Disclaimer: I don't own these characters, they own me. Special thanks to Toby Whithouse and BBC3 for the playground. Beta assistance from Whimsyfox & TJ4ev enables (most of) my grammar to pass muster for Hal.

And so the story continues, one day to the full moon. M-rating reminder & fair warning for the second half of this chapter.


It had begun to rain while they strategized with Rook's department. The refuge of Allison's wagon was a relief, even though Alex remained completely dry during their swift walk back. Hal's sullen mood was pervasive. A percussive patter hit against the roof of the car, and the front window started to fog from their damp clothes. Allison turned over the ignition, the estate wagon thrumming to life, and switched on the defrost. The stale air of the auto's heat system billowed out as she pivoted to face the back seat.

"I understand that werewolves will naturally hunt vampires, but… we don't actually eat them, do we?"

"That depends on how hungry you are," Hal answered offhandedly, his gaze beyond the glass.

"Eh, not exactly." Tom shifted uncomfortably in his seat and looked out to what had caught Hal's attention. In the woods ahead, a pair of men in grey trench coats with grey umbrellas emerged. They wove through the trees, inevitably on their way to the Pleasure Park while the pack was otherwise occupied. Hiding silver along the perimeter of a walled park with an asphalt ground wasn't going to be an easy task. Alex didn't envy them.

"You're implying that we're not going to have a choice? Because I have absolutely no intention of eating anyone," Allison pressed Tom.

He returned his gaze to her and shook his head. "Cor' you've got a choice. You can use the cellar," Tom said, matter of factly.

Allison sighed and put the car into reverse. Sensing the budding argument, Alex interjected her own question, "What I don't get is how a little bit of silver and blood will keep everyone in the park."

Hal stopped watching the departing operatives to give Alex a sideways glance. "You do remember what Tom did to our cellar?"

Tom normally transformed in the cellar with only a few claw marks to show for it. But after Hal was shot while protecting Tom from a silver bullet, Tom's wolf had gone utterly ballistic. They hadn't been able to quite clean up the last of Hal's blood, and the carpet and paneling had been decimated. All except for an area around where the silver bullet had lodged into the wall.

"I'd rather forget, but yeah…?"

"It will be similar. The blood will incite a frenzy, which will distract them from pushing at the boundary. Silver acts as a polarized force. Like a vampire with a crucifix, or a ghost with salt. If the line is unbroken, they cannot cross it."

"Why go to the trouble to bury it then?" Alex pressed.

"Because in human form, it has little effect, as Allison has noted. They mustn't know it is there prior to transformation."

The unspoken implication sat between the seats of the car. Hal had done this before. Several times before. With sacrificial lambs for the slaughter. Not even Allison wanted to bring that up.

Tom broke the short silence. "At least we get to chose who we're to shred and all. You think Rook's fellows will be able to stash 'em away without anyone seeing?"

"They managed to bring down Richard, and he's far from inexperienced. Rook's operatives are plenty capable, I'm certain."

"So this is how you trapped the Lobisomem." Alex made the statement reluctantly, looking forward into the defrosting glass.

"No," Hal shook his head wearily and returned his gaze out the window.

"No?" She turned towards him, surprised.

"It is how many other packs were trapped and culled. The Lobisomem…" Hal shook his head, gaze far away. "We allowed to get away."

After a pause, Allison asked a curious, "Why?"

"By that point," Hal paused, took a breath. "I convinced Snow to retain a certain amount for sport. We forced them into hiding by hunting the careless on mornings after, until eventually, an agreement was made."

"Oh," Alex answered softly. Hal had hinted as much, but never flat out said, until now. Vampires had nearly wiped werewolves off the supernatural list, and Hal had been a primary part. Tom swallowed, then faced the glass, clearly at odds with how to respond to his friend's honesty.

"Remind me to never land on your bad side," Allison disparaged, turning onto the main road When no one responded, she cleared her throat. "The, uh, pack is running again tonight. Bonding and whatnot. Shall I stop off at home?"

"No need. We'll join, at least for the start," Hal answered. "I would like to see Milo, if he is agreeable."

"Grande. We've time to swing by Fontygary's then. I'm starving," Tom proclaimed.

"But you just ate three confections!" Alex outburst, glad for the break in tension.

"Yeah, I shoulda had another 'un," Tom mused.

"Good idea. I'm hungry too." Allison nodded agreeably.

Hal shook his head then gave Alex a tilted smile. When she looked at him quizzically, he just shrugged, "Werewolves."


At the trailhead car park, Hal observed that Tom & Allison needn't have bothered with the chippy. Ahead, Christa was sitting with Irving on top of a picnic table under the makeshift shelter, both eating from steaming bowls of what smelled like stew, and engaged in conversation. Hal wished the girl wasn't here, but maybe she had found something of what she had been seeking.

Overall, it appeared that the group had dwindled by a nigh dozen, which was to be expected. After their training yesterday, the impending fight would have taken on a sharper edge of reality. Hal wondered just how many of them had come purely to meet others of their kind. The gathering that remained had a more somber scent; a determined calm before the storm.

Tom stepped out of the car and glanced back to Hal & Alex. "You coming?"

"In a moment," Hal answered, causing Alex to pause with her hand on the door. Tom held Hal's gaze, openly deliberating as the persistent rain re-dampened his short hair. Allison came around the car to join him, flipping up the hood of her jumper and glancing in.

"You're probably right," Tom said after a pause. "Guess we'll see you at home, yeah?"

"Enjoy the run," was all Hal said in reply. Tom nodded and closed the door, muffling Allison's "what was that about" as they walked away, towards the shelter.

"What - you just going to sit and wait for Milo?" Alex asked.

"He'll come."

"Huh," Alex folded her arms across her chest and leaned back against the door. Hal looked pensive, gaze not just afield, but ages away. He was right, however. Once Tom and Allison had joined the group under the shelter and those milling began to gather in, a hulking figure broke away. Alex watched Hal shift his demeanour as Milo approached the car, casually crossing his injured leg over his knee. She kept her arms over her chest and vaguely wondered if she should leave. Milo tapped on the window, then opened the door to take Tom's vacated seat. Wet leather creaking, he pivoted to crack them a smile.

"Come to check up on us have you? Or are you here to run with the wolves?"

"No, I'm here to talk to you," Hal answered plainly.

Milo raised an eyebrow, then wiped some of the rain off his face with his hand. "I gotta admit, I don't get it. Why are you helping?"

"Tom is my friend."

"Yeah, yeah and bullshit. What's in it for you? There's got to be something other than Tom keeping your interest. You're aware of our intentions, after all."

"Tom is my friend, and…" Hal paused. Alex realized his every move was deliberate. "I would like to make amends for lives lost an age ago."

Milo shook his head and his cordial expression hardened. "You can't buy redemption. You killed us in the past. It doesn't change a thing by playing nice now."

"No. It doesn't change anything," Hal agreed. "Except for the lives of those currently involved."

Milo's expression remained unmoved. "You really are a strange one."

"And you worked for Mr. Snow. Enlighten me, if you please," Hal tilted his head. "Why are you helping? What is 'in it' for you?"

Milo smiled roguishly, the edges of his eyes creasing, like he was glad Hal asked. "Our side is going to come out ahead in this. I just want to be there when it happens."

"Do you really believe that you can make even a dent in the number of vampires in the world, much less the United Kingdom? You are better informed than most. Surely you can appreciate the error in that calculation."

"Oh, I know this is just a drop in the bucket. But we'll make quite the stir. And that I believe is needed. The old ways are finished, Mr. Yorke," Milo declared with conviction. "Change is coming."

"Change is always coming."

"True. You would know." He grinned. "Will you join us tomorrow?"

"Perhaps. If I do, it will be covert," Hal answered without really answering. "I'm still curious though. Who else besides those here are on 'your side'? Who contacted you?"

Milo narrowed his eyes and paused. Then with a shrug, "I was contacted same as everyone else. By a werewolf."

"But you don't know who?" Alex chimed in, disbelieving.

"Does it matter who started the fire as long as it spreads?" Milo asked in return.

"And yet, they don't appear to be here," Hal glanced out the window to where the pack was departing, into the darkening woods. "So yes, I'd say it matters."

"Maybe," Milo said, unconcerned. "Tomorrow's moon will come regardless. And it won't just be werewolves who are transformed. This secret's been kept for far too long." After locking gazes with Hal briefly, Milo opened his door. "We'll see you on the other side."

Hal didn't rebut him or ask anything further, he just watched Milo depart. When Milo picked up speed to catch up with the pack, Hal turned to glance at Alex.

"He's lying."

"About changing the world?" Alex scoffed, still reeling from the bizarre conversation.

Hal shook his head. "About who contacted him."

"How do you know?" Alex thought her lie detection skills were pretty hard-wired after looking after three teenage brothers, but she hadn't sensed anything amiss. Aside from the absurdity of the whole conversation, that is.

"He deflected," Hal said as Milo disappeared into the woods. "And he did it on purpose. Whoever it is, they'll be there tomorrow."


Alex teleported them back to the foyer of Honolulu Heights and felt glad to be home. As Hal removed his wet coat and boots, she leaned against the bar. Briefly, she let her worried mind rest in the contrast of his navy shirt against the pale skin of his bicep. "You know, it really should be a criminal offense for you to wear blue," she said the thought out loud.

"Should it?" Hal asked innocently. "You could always have me take it off."

He smiled as he passed her, on his way to the stairs and she was momentarily stunned. Had he just..? How could they casually flirt when everything was so serious? The afternoon's strategy with Rook had made her painfully aware of how much trust they were placing in the Department. Trust that the wolves would be contained. Trust that they'd be stopped in time. Trust that none of their friends would get hurt. And now, the whole exchange with Milo? Hal really didn't seem concerned.

"I went to see Richard," she blurted. Hal's smile dropped and he stilled, hand on the railing. Alex winced at her own inability to think these things through. Given the quick change of his expression, she had no choice now but to continue. "Last night. He was sort of nice."

"Richard isn't nice," he cautioned, facing her.

"Yeah? Well neither are you, according to you."

He regarded her, the set of his jaw unchanging. "Why?"

Alex spun the ring on her index finger with her thumb. In the light of day, and especially after having spoken with Richard, her reasoning seemed absurd. But she had felt so strongly, and really thought that she could help. "I asked him to leave us be."

"What, exactly, gave you the idea that he would listen?"

"I thought… if I could give him what he wanted…"

"Jesus, Alex -"

"But it's not that simple, is it?"

"No," he quickly shook his head once. "No, it's not that simple." Hal didn't offer anything further.

"He, uh, warned us. Against the Department."

"Of course he would. And?"

"And… nothing. He said their priority isn't with us."

"Well, that is true. Their priority is to keep any of this from getting out." Hal rubbed his eyes, suddenly appearing wearied. "Look. Tomorrow will be what it may, but tonight I require a modicum of normal. 'More or Less' is on soon, and I need to stretch."

Dismissive, he turned away from her and ascended the stairs. Alex watched him go. How could he be so casual about this? In a huff of frustration, she turned away as well, stomped into the living room, and flicked on the telly.

Except, her temper was short lived. In light of everything tomorrow, how had she expected Hal to react? Thanking her for trying to solve at least one of their problems? Agreeing with her solution, and then proceeding to tell her how to do it? She flipped through the channels mindlessly and without interest. He could be so damn bloody… Hal sometimes. She sighed, and settled on Antiques Roadshow, even though no one else was watching it with her.

All through Fiona and team's visit to Northhamptonshire, and a parade of pedigreed and terribly dry marine paintings (if she were honest), she fretted about tomorrow. What if the werewolves found out? Or even worse, what if they didn't and the trap worked? What even happened to a pack of werewolves, once transformed? Would they start fighting each other when they were finished with the vampires? And if a larger number of vampires showed up than both Hal & Rook thought? Would they all end up fighting a real battle, outnumbered? Would Rook back them up as he claimed? And now, Milo's mystery mastermind may show up as well? It was all too much.

Painfully, she missed home, and her own sense of "normal." How had she gotten so far flung from that?

She had died, the answering thought came unbidden. She had died, been to the other side, and came-to in a world that didn't make sense anymore. A world that had always been there, but kept secret.

Hal's world. Tom's world.

And now, hers.

The cheery credits of the show surprised her. An hour had passed. She clicked off the telly and stood. Hal had wanted a 'modicum of normal' tonight, and until recent events, that had included her regularly joining him at this hour.

A pair of voices were discussing personal finance when she appeared. He knew she was there, yet continued his count of press-ups under his breath. She watched him, knowing she would never tire of watching him. Knowing she tended to interrupt around this time for that very reason. He finished, sprung forward and stood in one smooth motion, then met her watching gaze with an opening tilt of his chin.

"You're cross with me," she started, but he shook his head. He took a step back and sank onto the sofa. With a glance, he indicated that she should join him.

"I"m not cross with you Alex," he said when she hesitated.

"You're not? Oh." Befuddled, she approached. Hal watched as she sat, gingerly trying to leave space between them. He sighed, then reached out to draw her close.

"You're foolish, and unpredictable, but that doesn't mean I'm upset."

She nestled into his offered embrace and his arm tucked around her shoulders while Radio Four droned in the background.

"I just thought…" she trailed off, feeling foolish.

"I know," he answered softly and held her closer, resting his chin on top of her head. Somehow, those two simple words were comforting. Hal at least understood what she had tried to do, and didn't fault her, even if she had gone off half-cocked.

They remained that way for a while, comfortable with each other, and Alex kicked off her boots. Hal seemed to be listening to the radio, but she could sense that his focus was drifting. The whole ordeal with Milo and the werewolves had affected him more than he was letting on. Through his silence, however it was clear to Alex that he didn't wish to talk about it.

Instead of needling him with more questions he was reluctant to answer, she began to trace circles on his thigh, spiraling outwards. His relaxed muscles tensed. "This is not a good night, Alex."

She raised her head from his shoulder to look at him, registered the overt gravity of his eyes, and was unable to stop herself from smiling. "But it's just like running, Hal," she said, meeting his challenge and resuming the swirling pattern. He closed his eyes briefly, to rebuff her again, no doubt, but she didn't give him the chance. Maybe this modicum of normal was precisely what they both needed. A moment of calm, before whatever was to come on the morrow.

She adjusted the angle of her torso, turning fully towards him as she gripped his upper thigh. She leaned in close, her breast against his arm and her face only inches from his as she stared into his eyes.

"You know what I love?" Alex, leaving no room for debate, quickly unfastened his trousers. Hal was too startled to reply. Her question had thrown off his guard, so she took advantage of his instant inability for speech. "Even after everything, and you being a bloody, epically ancient vampire-" she slipped her hand into his pants, and he couldn't hide the hitch in his breath. "-you're still a man." She kissed him quickly. "And men, I get."

"And ancient vampires?" Hal's words came breathless. He was succumbing, giving into her without a fight.

"That, I'm working on," she replied with a grin.

He met her eyes then leaned forward to return her kiss. Lightly at first, but quickly sparking. She took it as an invitation, and turned all the way into him, sliding her knee across his thighs to straddle his lap while she stroked. His hands caught her waist, then pushed up the skirt of her dress to expose her leggings and camisole.

She shuddered with pleasure as his fingertips edged under the hem to grace her skin. One of his hands moved to the small of her back and he urged her against him. Material strained between them, and Alex gasped. He had effectively limited the range of her hand and positioned her to hit against his arousal with perfection. He kissed her without hesitation, a kiss full of promise, and Alex tried to retain her focus. Tried, and failed as Hal coaxed her to move in line with him.

He leaned back against the arm of the sofa, forcing Alex forward and she moaned. The hardness of his erection hit in just the right spot to make her want more. How had he gained the upper hand so quickly?

With one hand holding her in place, his other caught the zipper of her jacket and slid it down, the teeth easily giving way. Faced now with just silk, his hands returned to cup her buttocks. When he kissed the swell of her breast over the fabric, Alex surrendered her attempt to overcome him. Instead, she pushed up his shirt with a sudden yearning for far less fabric between them. She held the fistful of navy cotton to his waist to keep her movement with him, then trailed the soft line down from his navel. Hal's stomach trembled as his hands went past the band of her tights and pants. One hand pressed to her sacrum, making his stiffness beneath her all the sweeter. The second caressed lower, an exploration of the sensitive skin between her legs. Then he eased two fingers into her.

"Sweet bloody-" she moaned. The pressure underneath her, combined with the ministrations of his hand… She was powerless. He was giving her this, and she was powerless against him. She kissed him with love, with awe, with lust - all of it on her tongue and in her taste and giving it back to him as she moved with him. The tingling build of his focus on her grew with each kiss and she moaned into his mouth and he did not stop. Wave upon wave of pleasure and she wanted to cry, to scream, to sink with him into release - but he wasn't done. They weren't.

"Shall we take our running to bed, hmm?" He whispered into her ear as he stood, lifting her. Alex clung to him, panting against his neck as she spasmed in the absence of his delicate fingers. He took her to the edge of the bed and sat with her on his lap.

He coaxed the jacket from her arms, then guided her dress up and off. Slowly, he dropped back, laying them down with tightening control. There was still far too much fabric between them so she tugged at his shirt, causing him to half sit up again to allow her to remove it.

She loved the feel of him - the hardness of his body. Hal clearly loved her soft curves. His hands followed the line from her breasts down to the edge of fabric at her waist, then back up with her camisole. He bent his knees to support her, feet resting on the edge of the bed.

Catching her breath, she sat astride him in just her leggings and lacy bra, her hands on his bare chest. Despite feeling beyond control just moments prior, she felt powerful. She did have power over him. Her epic vampire. Her Hal.

She silenced the radio with a thought. Then she leaned down, sliding her hands from his chest to his waist. As she kissed him deeply, she pushed at the edge of his trousers and pants. He tilted his hips up and assisted in removing them.

"This is hardly fair," he commented, almost poutingly and she smiled. She agreed. Upright once more, she used one hand to unhook the clasp of her bra and coax the straps from her shoulders. His fingers spread wide over her belly, then up her sternum to pull the lace free. She dropped low to kiss him once more, breasts pressing to his chest as his thumbs hooked the waistband of her leggings and urged them down.

Bare skin against bare skin, she couldn't take him inside soon enough. The hard tip of him slid into her, achingly retreated a fraction, then she sank all the way. They both cried out with the relief of it.

She had dropped low, her breasts and heat against his chest and nuzzling his neck as she spiraled her hips. It was building; he could feel the pressure in his mouth. But so was she. His every sense told him that Alex was precariously close to an immediate orgasm from his earlier efforts. He had ridden this line before. He could control -

Alex moaned deeply, arching into his upward thrust, arching her neck. Sweet fuck. He kissed her throat - her exquisitely tantalizing throat. Another thrust and she bowed, her neck pressed against his mouth. He groaned as his fangs pulsed, aching to push through, and he forced his mouth closed. No.

He pushed her away and up, flattening his palm over her rapidly beating heart. She mirrored him with one hand against his chest, over his heart to support her upright motion - and she did not stop. She looked him in the eyes, placed her free hand over his and continued their rhythm, gliding up over him then drawing him deep.

His fingertips strained under her palm and she pressed hers against his heart in answer, deepening their strokes. If he could just keep her aloft…

"Let go," she whispered, sliding her fingers between his and holding them to her thudding breast. Off all the moments! Her words were all the permission his demon needed to manifest, beyond his control.

He gasped, exposing the tips of his fangs as they dropped. "You're not going to hurt me. Let go," she repeated, keeping a slow spiral of her hips around him. She knew the threat of his teeth, yet she kept her arm where it was. Challenging him to do it, and in turn challenging him to not. She was running him. No caution nor hesitation as she blazed boldly forward into her relish of him.

He could feel her every breath, every shudder, every sigh of pleasure. He could taste her scent on his tongue. The bond between them wound tight, competing with his hunger for her. His fangs throbbed with need, but he locked his arm against her, keeping her out of reach.

She slid over him and then down, taking them deeper, past his control, and building up towards that crescendo of release. But he knew that wasn't enough. It would never be enough. This was how he woke with corpses. This was how it could start; all the chaos and destruction he craved just under the surface…

And yet, he wanted her like this, commandeering him, always. He wanted this precious and precarious balance; the wanting of her and the wanting of her.

With one last insurmountable upward thrust, he shuddered and shook and spasmed into her and Alex arched forward in abandon, pushing against him with nails biting into his skin, accenting and accelerating the flood of sensation. She moaned and the bedside lamp flickered twice then shattered into darkness as she came with him.

Breath and beat, panting, they stilled, Alex aloft as she slowed the gyrations of her hips. His fangs were still brazenly out and he winced his eyes closed, willing the tips to retract, but they did not. Waves of pleasure crashed and ebbed against waves of hunger, the edge still painfully near. He desperately tried to avoid the thought of how easy it would be to take the tender skin at the inside of her elbow. To kiss her, and bite through…

She pushed against him, dropping forward and forcing his arm to the side as another ebbing wave of pleasure crested with the movement. Hal opened his eyes to her face hovering over his, her hand coming to cup his cheek. All she did was stare at him, a half-smile teased at her lips as she evened her breathing. Soon, his evened to match, calming, as she stared him down. When she kissed him, his fangs were finally gone.

A secondary release swept over him, stronger than any trail running or countless regimes. With Alex, it wasn't about domination, or power, or blood or control. It just was. Touch and sensation, pleasure and beauty. The curved line of her cheek and how it softened when her lips parted in ecstasy. The fluttering press of her belly against his. The strength of her thighs against his sides and the press of her fingers, coaxing him deeper. Always deeper.

It was all in the gentle way he could be with her after, entwined, the depths of her eyes searching his. As if she would forever be trying to decipher him.

It came down to these small moments. Fractions of time when he could let go. When it could all be just about them. An embrace, a touch of skin and gasp of breath. In Alex, his attention could rest.

Downstairs, the sound of the door opening broke the quiet pause between them. It closed, then there was a crash, and a thud. Alex lifted her head, listening, but Hal only hugged her close. "It's just Tom," he said.

There was another loud thud, then another, more muffled. To Alex, it definitely sounded like Tom was being attacked. "But -" she countered, and slid free of Hal, dropping off to his side as she began to sit up.

"It's Tom, and Allison," Hal added.

Alex listened for another half sec, then lay back down with a smile. "Oh," she said, understanding.

Hal tugged at the blankets they were laying on, and she nudged over to accommodate. He tucked them in, then draped his arm over her side to cradle her to his torso, his knee backing hers. She sighed contentedly, inching impossibly closer to him, then laughed. "I'm on the wrong side of the bed."

Sleepily, he kissed her shoulder. Hal was completely relaxed with his face next to her neck, and Alex felt a certain satisfied pride at just how right she had been about him. "There is no right or wrong," he murmured.

"Eh?"

"Only habit," his words were soft, and she momentarily wondered if he meant more than merely their bedding arrangements.

"You're falling asleep," she said instead. "Maybe I should go."

"Mmm," was all she heard in response, but he held her closer.

At the edge of his slip into sleep, the window propped open between them seemed so obvious to her now. Maggie had said she had to stop wanting to know - but it wasn't quite that. She had to stop fighting the knowing. She had accepted him for who he was, in all his complications, danger and history. Even though she was fairly certain he wouldn't hear her, she covered his hand with hers and whispered, "I love you too, you know."

Hal didn't answer, and Alex didn't hesitate in falling asleep with him. As she sank into the soft relief of sleep, she knew she wouldn't dream.