YaY! Another update! I know it's a day late, but nyeah... I'm not too enthused right now. I've got 12 things going on at once. be thankful that I have the first 9 chapters pre-written, so I can update regularily.
I offically HATE school now. Grrrr shakes fist
Anyroad, I'd like to thank you wonderful people who are reviewing. And those of you who are reading this and aren't reviewing for some... odd reason... Perhaps you don't want anyone to know you're reading this o.O
Anyway, I'll let you get on with the story now -
"Moira, we've got seven days until the next full moon? What're ye doin'?" Rahne looked on at her guardian as she unplugged computers and put them into boxes.
"We're movin', Rahne. Go clear up yuir room an' put everythin' out in the hall."
"WOT?! Moira? Movin'?! Where?"
Moira smiled. "I've got a man in New York who wants t'meet ye, Rahne. He's gonna help with me research."
"But-"
"Wot's wrong?"
Rahne sniffled. "I don' wanna leave the Island! It's safe here! I cannae hurt anybody!"
Moira sighed and placed a comforting hand on Rahne's shoulder. "Aye, Rahne. I know yui're scared, but y'gotta trust me on this. This may be what I need ta do ta find a cure t'yuir curse."
She nodded. "Yes, Moira..."
Moira's throat constricted as she watched Rahne drag herself back to her room. Rahne may have been walking the earth for almost 1000 years, but deep down, she was still a scared little girl. If the cure worked out the way Moira wanted it, then she would adopt Rahne and raise her as her own. She would live a carefree life, not being afraid of getting close to someone.
DING-DONG!
"I'm comin'! Hold your horses, y'impatient li'l devil!" Sean jumped over the back of his sofa in his hurry to answer the door. He tripped and collided with the floor. "AH! Fuckin' chri- ouch..." he lifted himself and limped the rest of the way.
DING-DONG!
He swung the door open and growled. "I'm not buyin' anythin'!"
A broad shouldered man with short black hair and glasses blinked in confusion. "That's alright, Sean. I didn't plan on selling anything to you."
"HANK!" Sean slapped his forehead. "I fergot y'were comin' t'day! Jesus-H-Christ, mate... uhh... c'mon in."
Hank looked at Sean, analyzing his attire, factoring in the date and time, and the contents of Sean's coffee table. It appeared that Sean was recovering from a mini-bender. "I really can't stay long, Sean. I just stopped to ask if you wanted to go down to the airport with me to-"
"I wasn' supposed ta be expectin' ye?" Sean asked from the kitchenette, where he was making a pot of strong coffee.
"No." Hank laughed. "I'm just wondering if you wanted to go down to the airport to pick something up with me."
Sean came out of the kitchen with two mugs of coffee and handed one to Hank. "Oh, Hank! I was wonderin' when you'd build up the courage to ask me out!"
"Ha ha..." he sat down his mug on the table amongst the empty liquor bottles. "So, you interested?"
Sean gulped down half his coffee. "Sure. I need t'get out of here anyway."
"Good! Grab your coat, and lets go."
"Hold up, Skippy! What's so important you won' even let a man finish his coffee?" he took in another mouthful.
"I'm meeting Dr. McTaggart today-"
Sean spat out the contents of his mouth. "No! On second thought, I'm not goin'!" He stood up and stormed back into the kitchen.
Hank got up as well and followed him. "Why not? Did you have a fight last time you saw each other?"
Sean stared into the sink. "No."
"Then why don't you want to see your old friend from college?"
"Because the last time I saw 'er, she was tellin' me tha' she got engaged."
Hank didn't seem to realize the full weight behind that statement. "Well, I'm sure that must've been a long time ago, but I think she might like to see you again."
Sean remained silent.
"She doesn't know anybody in New York. She'll need a friend."
"Fine..."
"This is a mistake! Take me back t'my apartment, Hank!" Sean headed back toward Hank's car.
He grabbed the nervous Irishman by his sleeve and dragged him back in the direction of the airport.
"I hate you." he grumbled.
The two grown men went up and down several escalators until they found the area where people were waiting for passengers. Hank asked Sean for a pen, which he had to dig around for in his coat pocket.
Hank, with pen in hand, wrote on a piece of paper, in large bold letters 'Dr. McTaggart', and held it up for all the passengers to see. Sean tried to hide himself amongst the crowd, but failed. He stood at least a head taller than most everyone else.
"Flight 237, from Edinbourgh to New York, now unloading. Please collect your bags and have a nice day. Thank you for flying American Airlines." droned the voice on the overhead speakers.
"Well, isn't that-" Sean started a clever quip, but was interrupted by Hank's elbow coming into contact with his ribcage.
"Moira! Over here!"
A woman with short brown hair and square rimmed glasses looked up from the baggage claim and smiled.
It was really her! Sean's stomach started doing cartwheels. After thirteen years of separation, he was finally seeing his Rory agai-
She grabbed the hand of the little girl standing next to her.
Sean's heart sank.
"Hank!" Moira exclaimed, running up to him and hugging him in sheer excitement. The little girl stood back a little and looked on shyly. Moira let go of Hank and gently pushed the little girl toward him. "Hank, I'd like ye ta meet Rahne. Rahne, this is Dr. Henry McCoy, the fella I tol' ye about."
"Hello." she said in a small voice.
Sean tried his hardest to remain inconspicuous, ducking into the background. He just wanted to melt away. He felt a hand pull him forward.
"Moira, this is my colleague, Sean-"
Moira squealed like a preteen schoolgirl at a boyband concert. "Cassidy! Is tha' really you?!"
He laughed nervously. "H-Hi, Moira- OOMPH!"
She leapt at him and put him in a strong hug. "Oh thank goodness! Somebody I can talk ta about the old days!" She looked up at him with stars in her eyes. "You've filled out nicely, Sean."
He gave her a startled glare from her statement. "Moira!" he snapped in a harsh whisper.
"Nae, really! Yui're physique is much more... I want to say manly-"
Hank decided to go in and save his friend from further embarrassment. "My car is somewhere at the end of this Labyrinth. Shall we?"
Rahne sat in the front passenger seat, next to Hank, with her head sticking a little ways out the window. She had a big smile on her little face as her dark auburn pigtails billowed in the wind.
Moira watched her with motherly amusement. Sean was slightly shocked. He looked over at the little Scottish woman next to him and saw the carefree look on her face. He shrugged and went back to watching passing traffic, until he felt something touch his knee.
"Sean-"
"AH!" he jumped and shouted, causing Rahne to fall back into her seat. She shook her head and stuck it back out the window.
Moira giggled. "She's a sweetheart."
Sean inwardly frowned. Last he heard of Moira, she was pregnant, and Rahne looked to be the right age. "They grow-up real fast, don' they..."
Moira looked at him strangely. "Aye... tha' they do." Moira started to get an idea. "She looks a lot like her da'."
Sean squinted his eyes, trying to remember what Joseph McTaggart, Moira's husband, looked like. "I don' thin she looks THAT much li-"
"Sean." she forced him to look at her. Very calmly, she took his hand in hers and stared him straight in the eye, "do ye remember tha' night we got really drunk after graduation?"
Sean felt his heart rate speed up. His hands started shaking. His brow broke into a cold sweat. "Wha- I'm... Uh-" he choked.
Moira suddenly started laughing. "Nothin' happened, ye Irish ninny! I was jus' messin' with ye!"
Sean swore he was going to have a coronary before the day was over.
Rahne sat back down in her seat and peeked over her shoulder at her guardian and the man called Sean Cassidy. They were holding hands, and Moira was laughing and smiling. Rahne truned around and looked to Dr. McCoy. "Dr. McCoy?"
He didn't take his eyes off the road. "Please, call me Hank."
Rahne smiled, "alrigh', Hank! What's goin' on between Moira an' Mr. Cassidy?"
Hank chuckled. "They're old friends."
Rahne sniffed the air. "Nae, I think it's a bit more 'an tha'..."
"Oh, and how can you tell?"
Rahne gave him an incredulous look. "Are ye jokin'? I'm practically half wolf! It's called pheromones."
"Oh yes! Of course!" Hank laughed to himself. "I have many questions for you, Miss. Sinclaire-"
"Moira looks really happy."
"Hmm?" Hank glanced back quickly to see both Moira and Sean laughing with each other. "Is that unusual?"
Rahne shrugged. "I've never seen her like tha'. She's usually a really lonely woman."
"I though she was married."
"WAS is the key word, Hank."
He 'ah'ed in understanding.
"It's not my place t'talk about it, but Dr. and Mr. McTaggart have been separated for quite a long time now. I'm not totally sure on the details." Rahne fidgeted uncomfortably. She didn't like sitting still for so long. She wanted to get out of the car and run around. "What about Mr. Cassidy? What's he like?"
"Sean? Oh, he's a high school English teacher. Very close-minded," Hank snorted, "afraid of Leprechauns."
Rahne giggled. "Everyone knows tha' they aren' real-"
"He doesn't believe in the existence of werewolves."
"If he stays around long enough, he'll be in for a rude awakenin'..."
"He's a bachelor and lives alone."
"He's perfect!"
They pulled up to a large storage building that Hank had to use an id card to get into. After swiping the card, he handed it to Moira. "This is the key." he stated as the large door rolled open.
The four of them entered the building. Sean hung back, examining a console near the entrance.
"That's the containment room, there's the backup. This is the main computer. This is the operating table, incase of emergencies." Hank started pointing out the contents of the laboratory. "Unfortunately, we can't do any research until the programming is finished, and the only part of the lab that is fully operational is the containment room and the surveilance cameras."
Moira and Rahne looked at eachother nervously. "Hankm do you have any idea what tonight is?" the older looking woman asked, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose.
"Sunday?"
Rahne rolled her eyes. "It's the full moon."
"Oh dear." Hank scratched his chin. "That is a problem... And the sun sets in about an hour..."
Rahne started shaking. "Wha' are we goin' ta do?!"
Moira gave her a comforting hug in hopes of calming her down. "The containment room is secured, ye can spend the night in there, an' I'll check on ye in the mornin'." she turned to Hank. "Is there another room where I can stay?"
Hank saw Sean wandering about at the other end of the lab. "I'm afraid not. But I do think I know where you could stay until this place is fully functional."
Rahne seemed to have caught on to what Hank was eluding to. He winked to her, and she grinned. "I should be fine on me own."
"Sean! Could you come here please?" Hank called. Sean put down a surgical looking object and went over to where the others were gathered.
"Yup?"
"Sean," Hank handed him his car keys. "Could you take Moira back to your apartment and let her use that spare room for the night? Thanks!" He patted his shoulder, practically shoving him out the door.
Sean looked at the keys in his hand, then at Hank. He looked at the car, then at Moira. He looked at the building, then at Rahne. "What?!"
Moira was getting into the car and shouted at him. "Quit wastin' time! Lets go!"
"But-" Sean climbed into the driver's seat and turned the ignition. "What about Hank?"
"I'll walk home. It's not that far. I want to get some work done tonight, now that Rahne's here to help me. You two behave yourselves!"
Moira leaned over in her seat and Sean's lap. "Alrigh', but just as a warnin', when the sun goes down, get yuirself outta there."
He smiled and nodded, waving them off.
When they were gone, Rahne went back into the lab and shut herself into the containment room. She started shaking again and sat down in the middle of the floor. It was going to happen soon. She could feel her body temperature raise, much like getting a fever. That was the first stage.
Hank worked away at a computer nearby.
"This is my home..." Sean held the door open for Moira.
She did a quick sweep of the main room. It certainly looked like a bachelor's pad. Her heart clenched in sadness at seeing the small mess of bottles. "It's... lovely, Sean." she said, trying her hardest not to sound judgmental.
"It's not much, but it keeps me outta the rain." he immediately went over to the coffee table and picked up the empties, finding the cold coffee he had given Hank earlier that day. "Sorry about the mess. It's not usually like this-"
"Nae, It's fine. Me own house was in worse states than this." she set down her overnight bag on the chair next to her luggage. "It kinda reminds me of yuir dorm room." she laughed.
He glared at her. "Okay, you can stop teasin' me, Moira. I'm a different man than that scrawny wee nerd from University." he scolded in an amused tone. "An' if I remember correctly, you weren't the vision of academic perfection, Miss Kinross."
Her cheery demeanor darkened.
An awkward silence followed. "Did I say somethin' wrong?"
Moira shook her head. "Nay. It's just been a long while since I heard me maiden-name." she followed Sean and sat down on the couch.
"How is-"
"I haven't seen Joseph for a few years."
"Are you-"
"Yes. He went to Dublin an' took Kevin with him." she sighed, trying not to let the oncoming tears show.
Sean tentatively placed his arm around her shoulders and let her lean her head against his chest.
"This is familiar." she smiled sadly.
He cleared his throat and shifted in his seat. "Kevin?"
"Our son. Mine an'... He'll be turning thirteen soon. I doubt he even remembers me." Moira wiped her nose on her sleeve. "But I suppose it's for the best. Joseph didnae think I was suited ta be raisin' children. I spend too much time with me research."
Sean growled to himself. "Joseph was always an idiot."
Moira snorted. "Tha' sounds familiar, too."
She tore at the constricting cloth that covered her furry body. Roaring angrily, she was finally able to free herself. She was hungry. The faint taste of blood in her mouth caused her to salivate. It was a craving. A need. A need to hunt.
She looked around her surroundings. A creature in white stood a short distance away, minding its own business. She licked her chops at the thought of tearing through its flesh. She slowly got up on her feet and stalked toward it slowly. It would be an easy task to sneak up on the creature and kill it before it could warn any others.
Hank whistled to himself, having forgotten to check his watch, or look outside to see that the full moon was out and shining brightly in the night sky. He was programming a computer to read archaic symbols of some sort, and far too preoccupied to notice anything going on around him. He even laughed to himself when he almost tripped over a cart covered with syringes. The needles contained a tranquilizer that could knock out a herd of elephants for three hours, and he needed to stay awake in order to complete his task.
She snorted, getting even closer to her prey. One paw in front of the other until - she ran into some invisible force-field. She scratched at it. She hopped up on her hind legs and placed her front paws on the barrier. She pushed. It refused to move.
She snarled at the wall. If it wouldn't move, then she'd just have to get rid of it. She swung her paw back, spread out her claws, and threw it forward. She heard at satisfying crunch when her leg came into contact with the barrier. It seemed to have cracked slightly.
Hank looked up from his computer in confusion. He could've sworn he heard a cracking sound. He looked over in the direction of the containment cell, but shook his head. There was no way Rahne could get out of there. It was made of bullet proof glass.
The creature was alerted by her action. She'd have to wait a few moments before taking another swipe at whatever was blocking her from her meal.
She paced back and forth until it went back to its previous distraction. She took a few paces back, then rushed at it. She threw her shoulder blade into the wall and felt it shatter on impact. She shook the broken pieces from her fur and snorted in triumph.
However, her victory was short-lived. Her prey was alerted, and watching her. She could smell its fear, and it stirred her desire to kill. She lunged forward at an amazing speed, sending her prey into a chase.
She knocked over several carts and electrical devices before finally tackling the creature. She lowered her bared teeth and sank them into its shoulder, but it struggled. It managed to swing its arm up and strike her in the side of the neck with a sharp object. She snarled viciously and went to take another bite at him, but her neck suddenly wouldn't hold the weight of her head.
Her hind legs went limp and collapsed underneath her. Her front paws slipped and sent her torso into the floor.
She fell into a chemical sleep.
Hank breathed heavily, releasing his vice like grip on the syringe imbedded in Rahne's neck. He pushed the small werewolf off his body and dragged himself over to the wall. He winced when he put pressure on his left arm. He touched it, and he could tell that it was bleeding a lot. He tore the sleeve of his lab coat off and tied it around the wound.
Glancing over at the fur covered body that lay sleeping in the corner, he felt satisfied when he concluded that she wouldn't wake up until the next day. He closed his eyes and drifted off himself.