Chapter 7: The Full Moon Aproacheth.

Seras had never really gotten into reading before. She enjoyed it, had gotten good grades in English throughout her school years, but she had never seemed to just sit down with a good book and read. As she turned the page of the book that she was currently reading she made a mental note to read more in the future. Her current urge to read was brought about by two things. First, she had seen the books in Matt's room. Second, she couldn't move all that well anyway, so she might as well sit still for a few hours and read while her body and mind reestablished the vital connections that allowed her to move.

About half way down the current page, Seras' ear twitched at a sound out in the corridor. Her head raised a little and her eyes moved to the door of her room which was open a small amount.

"Geez, you'd think that this corporation would be good enough to accurately assess situations, and realize how much force is needed for certain missions. Calling you, me, and Seras in is overkill for that level of mission." Doug's voice. He sounded slightly annoyed, which vanished as he continued, being replaced by puzzlement. "Speaking of Seras, where was she? She didn't show up, and that's not like her."

"She needed some down time, though she didn't think so at first." Matt's voice. His voice carried a note of boredom, but to Seras it sounded slightly forced.

"Oh, down time. From what I wonder. And how would you know that she needed it, Eh?" Doug's voice again. Seras frowned at the nearly audible 'nudge, nudge, wink, wink.'

Seras' frown turned into a slight smile as she heard Matt smack Doug upside the head. Her smile then turned into a frown again as Matt explained.

"I was teaching her how to transform into mist. She was pretty uncoordinated afterwards."

"Ah."

For a moment, silence reigned between them, only the sounds of their footsteps heard. Seras was about to start reading again when Doug suddenly spoke, his voice slightly hushed, his tone tense.

"Tomorrow's the full moon. You ready?"

Matt's voice, in response, was just as tense, and the response itself was short and direct. "Yes."

They fell into silence again and Seras frowned in puzzlement. What was so special about the full moon? She knew that Doug would transform into a were-wolf, but Walter had said that Doug would keep his mind, so she didn't think that was it. Then there was Matt's voice. Matt only spoke in such a voice except on missions, and then, only rarely. Something was wrong.

Knock knock.

Seras looked at the door, a frown still on her face as Matt's voice carried through the door. "You decent?"

"Yes."

Matt opened the door the rest of the way, and he entered, Doug a step behind. Seras looked at him in puzzlement as Matt explained. "Just checking on you, seeing if you're recovered from the transformation."

Doug moved over to the table and leaned against it, a serious expression on his face. "You look okay, but I'm curious as to if you really are. Matt once told me what it's like, turning into mist. Gave me the creeps."

Seras nodded. "It was rather disturbing." She shivered before continuing. "But I'm alright for now. Thanks for checking." She smiled at first Doug, who smiled in return and nodded, then at Matt. Matt didn't smile in return. Instead, he was frowning at the book she was reading.

"That looks slightly familiar."

Seras considered the book she held. It was old and well read, with a few stains on some of the pages, and a well loved air about it. The pages were soft from the effect of hands constantly moving across them, and the binding turned easily, caused by being held open for long periods of time.

Seras' voice was rather casual as she replied, closing the book on her index finger, marking her page. "Well, it is yours. I saw it in your room earlier, and thought I might read it to pass the time."

Matt sounded puzzled as he responded. "You went back to my room, and got that book?"

Seras nodded, slightly defensively. She HAD made it, and she had only fallen over twice. Matt, catching Seras' nod and its defensive quality, merely grinned.

"Fall over a few times did you? I told you to stay in bed."

Seras hunched her shoulders and glared at him with indignation. Matt merely grinned wider before continuing.

"And you didn't bother to change. I was hoping to get my clothes back. Not that they don't look good on you."

Doug's eyebrows rose as he looked more closely at the clothes Seras was wearing. He grinned as he realized that they did, indeed, belong to Matt.

Seras frowned, and forgetting that Doug was present, responded, indignation sounding clear in her voice. "Consider the clothes as payment for-"

"Payment?"

Both Matt and Seras started, and looked at Doug, who was staring at the two of them, grinning from ear to ear. His voice held a note of extreme delight, and mischief showed clear on his face.

"Payment for what I wonder?"

Seras blushed crimson, and reopened the book, hiding behind it. Matt, seeing her reaction, threw back his head and laughed, long and hard.

He was still chuckling when he spoke. "Well, as I've checked up on you, and confirmed you're alright, I must away."

Matt turned and walked toward the door, a grin on his face, as Doug followed, grinning as well. Seras considered them over the edge of the book. Finally, as Matt reached the threshold of the door, she blurted out her question.

"What's so important about the full moon?"

Matt and Doug stopped dead. They both tried to look relaxed, but Doug succeeded more than Matt did. Or maybe it was the fact that Matt, usually as relaxed as possible in any position, looked much more noticeable tensed than Doug.

Doug looked over at his shoulder, a grin on his face, his voice casual. "Nothing much. Matt just helps me out, in case something goes wrong. I don't want to bite anyone."

The response was smooth, well delivered, and very feasible. Seras almost believed it. Almost. But the fact that Doug's grin, and the casualness of his voice were both noticeably forced, and the fact that Matt hadn't turned to give a grin of his own, both betrayed the lie.

But it was as Matt spoke, his voice thick with emotions Seras couldn't identify, that convinced Seras that something was terribly wrong, and that Matt and Doug were trying to keep it secret.

"Seras?"

"Hmm?"

"Do me a favor. Tomorrow night, don't leave the manor grounds."

And with that, Matt and Doug stepped out of her room, letting the door shut behind them.

Seras stared at the door, trying to shake the feeling of foreboding that had suddenly settled into her gut.

Outside in the hallway, Matt and Doug didn't talk until they were both sure that Seras wouldn't be able to hear them.

"Damn it!" Matt punched the wall with enough force to sink his hand up to the wrist within the brick surface, his teeth gritted in anger, lips pulled back in a slight snarl, revealing the tips of his fangs. Doug studied him with a guarded expression in his eyes and a carefully neutral expression on his face as Matt retracted his hand from the new hole in the wall, brick and cement pieces falling to the floor.

"You'll have to tell her."

Matt whirled to face Doug, fury shining in his eyes as the light in the underground hallway began to dim. Matt's voice was tight with anger as he spoke, the words clipped. "No I don't. If I had my way, NO ONE, not even you and Sam, would know."

Doug didn't back down from his friend, maintaining a calm expression. "Matt, I've seen the way you look at her. And Sam's seen the way she looks at you. Sam and I agree; there's something forming between you and Seras. Trust me on this; you WILL have to tell Seras the truth."

Matt shook his head to the negative, and Doug frowned. Denial wasn't something Doug often saw in Matt. In fact, aside from Doug and Sam, Matt never let anyone see him acting this out of character. Matt's whole body was tensed and his eyes darted from side to side, as if he was ready to leap forward and engage someone, or turn and flee, seeking possible angles for attack and pathways of escape. As Doug recalled from his health class, Matt was now deeply into the 'fight or flight' mode.

Doug reached out and put a hand on Matt's shoulder, giving a reassuring squeeze as he did so. "Look, denying the truth won't do you anything, be that truth the fact that you have to tell Seras, or the fact that Sam and I will always stand by you, no matter what you do."

Matt closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and nodded. Doug kept his hand on his friend's shoulder for another moment, before nodding in reply and removing it. Matt turned and started walking toward his room, Doug beside him. Once they had arrived at Matt's room, he opened the door and let Doug in first, entering after him.

Matt moved over to the table and sat in the chair. For a moment, he simply sat there, eyes staring unseeingly at the tabletop in front of him. Eventually, he came out of his reverie, and shook his head. Matt pulled off the glove on his left hand and dropped it onto the table, then reached out with both hands and grabbed two items on the desk. The item in his left hand looked to be no more than a simple piece of clay, perfectly circular and flat, like a coin. But on one side a runic symbol was etched into the clay, one neither Doug nor Matt could actually read. In his right hand was a simple, sharp knife.

Matt put the clay piece on the table, then took a deep breath while he brought the knife in his right hand closer to his left thumb. He then quickly stabbed the tip of the knife into the thumb of his left hand, deeply enough to make sure blood flowed freely. Matt then put the knife down, the tip stained red, and grabbed the clay piece, holding his bleeding thumb over it.

For a moment, the blood dropped onto the clay, filling the grooves. Then there was a hiss as the blood completely filled the groove of the runic symbol, and the blood instantly dried and crystallized. Matt let his vampiric healing flow through his thumb, and the hole sealed shut instantly. He then tossed the clay piece over his shoulder to Doug, who caught it with his right hand, and pocketed it.

Matt then got out of the chair, and walked over to his coffin, a slump to his shoulders that had nothing to do with being lazy. Matt sat onto the bed, took off his shoes, and then lay down, pressing the button to lower the coffin lid with his left hand.

Doug watched until the lid closed with a click, then turned and left the room, letting the door shut behind him.

:Author's Note:

Sorry this is so short, but that seemed to be a good stopping point. Please let me know what you think in a review.