Title: The Vampire's Apprentice

Rating: M

Cast:Nick Cutler, Rachel Cutler, Hal York

Disclaimer: I own no-one from Being Human.All the rights belong to the BBC and I do not intend to, nor am I making any financial gain from the writing and online publication of this story.

Feedback:Is always much appreciated, thanks!

Summary: Once upon a time, Hal York saw in Nick Cutler a most promising young apprentice. It's amazing what a difference a week makes, especially when your fledgling struggles to live up to your expectations...

Chapter 2

"The Green Fairy" was a quaint bar just on the outskirts of downtown – a halfway house for local office workers during the busy lunchtime hours before their next thrombosis inducing meeting. Come sundown, it became a magnet for anyone who was anyone who had a taste for partying and beer on champagne money. The "Fairy's" regulars all owned an exclusive entry pass, akin to obtaining a black Amex. For that reason amongst various others, the locals tended to steer clear, favouring less exclusive hotspots in their never ending quest for oblivion.

Cutler had never been. He rarely went out in the evenings these days anyway. He was either too shattered from work, or just plain could not be bothered. For a few years now it was beginning to dawn on him how he felt he was getting old before his time, but what bothered him more was that this didn't seem to bother him. If he did venture out, it often was just him and Rachel and he liked it that way.

Yet now, he found himself standing in front of the very pub he had always avoided. So far Hal didn't appear to be looking at him as if he was dinner, but still, something was strange about the way his companion stood – eerily quiet for the last few minutes.

Feeling a little braver now they had stopped walking, Cutler tested the waters, finally daring to speak.

'You never answered me last night' he said, feeling a rush of anger at his own voice for coming out as a nervous croak, rather than the brave, clear timbre he had intended.

Hal however did not respond. Instead, his gaze was firmly glued to the pub in an almost fond manner. From inside the pub opposite the "Fairy" came the hubbub of cheerful voices, laughing and making merry and Cutler felt his confidence grow in the knowledge that there were people nearby. He cleared his throat loudly.

'I said you never -'

'-all in good time, Mr Cutler,' Hal replied quietly, a ghost of a smile flickering over his freshly balmed lips. 'And you have plenty of that now.'

Cutler frowned. He'd always hated cryptic puzzles, but that was nothing to how he felt about people who insisted on speaking only in riddles. If he hadn't been quite so worried that his fist might have been bitten off, Cutler would have smacked Hal in the jaw there and then. The feelings of bravery intensified as he stared at Hal's impassive face to be replaced by a bubbling anger and confusion.

'What did you do to me?' Cutler hissed through clenched teeth. 'For God's sake, Mr York, I thought…!' His voice cracked and faltered as all bravery fell away and he suddenly became intensely fascinated by his own shoes.

Slowly, Hal lowered his gaze to face the young solicitor, the mild smile broadening. 'You thought…what, Mr Cutler?'

Cutler shook his head, the fire of his eyes burning giant invisible holes in the toes of his ridiculously polished shoes.

'Go on, Mr Cutler. I promise you nothing you say shall surprise me in the least.'

Hal's tone was measured and careful, softer than usual as if he were attempting coax a terrified rabbit from its hole.

Cutler swallowed, immediately wishing he hadn't, as hi throat seemed so dry that it burned.

'I…' he began, not meeting Hal's eyes. 'I thought I was going to hurt Rachel.'

The pit of Cutler's stomach fell out and he felt his soul turn cold as Rachel's hurt, confused face flashed across his memory. The glimpse of fear in her eyes. He had frightened her – actually frightened the only person who understood him, who he turned to in every crisis, who had always been there in his darkest moments.

Who couldn't be there now, that horrible little voice in his head triumphantly whispered.

Oh God…

'Rachel?' Hal's tone was inquisitive.

'My wife.'

'Ah.'

Hal's expression was truly peculiar in that moment and it was likely a merciful blessing that Cutler remained oblivious to the cocktail of emotion that poured across Hal's face in quick succession. First, a deep frown, followed seamlessly by a puzzled and almost childlike curiosity and finally, a crescendo of triumph before it settled gently into a calmer contemplativeness, as Hal brought a steady hand to rest on Cutler's shivering shoulder.

'But you didn't?'

'What?'

'Hurt her.'

Cutler's gaze snapped up, his eyes wide and defiant. 'No! No, of course not!' he gasped, incredulous. 'I could never hurt her! I love her!'

'I see.'

Whatever Hal was about to say next, was interrupted as the door of the pub opposite the Fairy swung open and a young couple stumbled out onto the street. They clung to each other, laughing raucously before clumsily and only partially successfully snogging each other's face off against a nearby picnic bench.

'Love's young dream,' Hal observed pointedly, adjusting the cashmere scarf around his neck with a sigh and taking a seemingly blank green card from his inside pocket. 'Shall we go inside, Mr Cutler? I think we both could use a drink.'

Inside the Fairy, an air of drunken calm descended. It was a most bizarre atmosphere that sent chills up Cutler's back. The pub was pretty full of patrons, but they were all talking quietly, some in quite definite undertones. However the smell of alcohol hung in the air, along with the cigar smoke and another lighter but spiced, smokey scent which Cutler couldn't place.

It was like a library. If libraries served champagne and reams of exotic cocktails, and painted their walls emerald green and decorated their ceilings with gold leaf.

Cutler couldn't help but stare at the luscious décor. A passer by would never think such an interior could be nestled between the greasy café and bus stop on either side outside. Certainly the plain outside belied none of the secrets that lay beyond the door, guarded attentively by an unassuming man in a plain suit.

Cutler looked towards the bar, where, between the stacks of intriguing looking spirits was a framed notice, entitled "Code of Conduct". Well, that went some part of the way to explaining the behaviour of the patrons, certainly!

'Hal, good to see you again! We've missed you,' came a low voice.

Cutler looked around, to see a bearded man standing on Hal's left. He too was wearing a suit, but looking decidedly rumpled as if he'd run straight across downtown in a particularly violent gale.

'Hello, Dennis.' Hal replied, with a nod and a polite smile of acknowledgement.

'Come and join us, Hal?' Dennis nodded to the far corner of the bar, where a huddle of three other men sat, watching with interest.

'Love to another time, Dennis. Business tonight, you see.'

Dennis' eyes flicked over to where Cutler stood and a smile that made the hairs on Cutler's neck prickle, lit up his features.

'Ah, business, of course. No worries, sir. All the best, sir.'

With a nod and a grin, Dennis departed, rejoining his companions at the bar. Cutler wasn't sure, but he had a horrible feeling that under the ripple of laughter, he heard his name.

'Business?' Cutler ventured.

'Yes. Come on.'

They settled on a table a little way from the bar and before he knew what was happening, Cutler found a whisky and soda pressed into his hand, chilling his skin.

'How did you…?' Cutler blinked down at his favourite drink.

Hal smiled over the rim of his glass, sipping the strong spirit. 'Oh, I know plenty about you, Mr Cutler. I am very…thorough in my research.'

'You've been watching me?' Cutler's eyes widened and he set the glass down on the table.

'Studying you.'

'It's the same thing!'

'No, it isn't. And please don't shout. They don't like it in here.'

Cutler glanced around, feeling several pairs of eyes staring disapprovingly already at their table.

'I bloody well will shout if I want to!' he stared at Hal, wondering why he hadn't been more forthright before now and only dimly registering he was on his feet. 'Answer me properly, dammit! Who are you? What do you want from me and what the bloody hell did you do to me last night?'

A ringing silence fell and not from the rigorous following of the Code. Every pair of eyes in the Fairy was fixed on the pair. The only sound being footsteps as a tall man approached Hal, placing a bejewelled hand on his shoulder.

'Hal. You know our Code. Any more noise and I shall have to ask you to leave.'

'I know, Rupert, it won't happen again,' Hal replied with a firm nod to Cutler. 'Please, Mr Cutler, sit down.'

'Tell me!'

'I will. Sit. Please.'

Slowly, Cutler lowered himself into his chair and Rupert departed, collecting empty glasses in his wake. Hal sighed, taking a second draught of his drink. 'Really, Mr Cutler, I expected better behaviour from a man of your calibre.'

'Better behav-?' Cutler gaped at him, trying his hardest not to shout, as he really didn't like the way a pair of older men had been looking at him moments before 'You won't answer me!' he hissed. 'I just want to know what you did – why I…why I nearly hurt my wife, for the love of God!'

Hal gave a low laugh accompanied by a matching smirk. 'God? God has nothing to do with us, Mr Cutler. We are free men. We are powerful men and we are gods of our own kind in this ridiculously small world.'

Again with the riddles. Cutler wasn't sure how much longer he could stand this. 'See? What the hell is that supposed to mean? Why won't you answer me properly?'

'You're a vampire.'

A second silence fell.

This time, not around the bar, but inside Cutler's own head. No words came forth. No thoughts swam by to help the words along. He just sat and stared at Hal as if he had gone utterly mad. Then, finally, he laughed.

'What?'

'You wanted direct, Mr Cutler.'

'Yeah, direct, not insane!'

'I assure you, I am quite in control of my own mind.'

Cutler paused, trying to process the words coming out of Hal's mouth.

No. Wasn't going to happen. He could start shouting again but as much as he wanted to, that didn't seem to be getting him the answers he wanted. He needed to know what was wrong with him, and something inside him told him that Hal was the key. He needed to know what had happened. He needed to know why he had wanted to bite Rachel's neck and…

He shuddered, feeling a bizarre wave of both nausea and incredible hunger sweep through him.

'You brought me home last night, didn't you?'

Hal nodded. 'I did.'

'Why?'

'You were unconscious.'

'Why?'

Hal sighed deeply, rubbing his temples. 'Truly, it really is like training a toddler sometimes. Unless I am mistaken, Mr Cutler, you are not crawling on your knees and dribbling, therefore I am correct in assuming that you are a fully formed adult?'

'What?'

'I shall take that as a yes. Mr Cutler, I am running out of patience and I assure you that you categorically do not want that to happen, understood?'

Cutler swallowed, feeling a shift in the air around them as Hal glared at him, the softer notes of previous expressions suddenly hardened.

'Understood.'

'Good.'

Hal drained his glass, nodding at Cutler's untouched whisky.

'I haven't poisoned it, if that's what you think.'

'Oh no, I -'

'-and don't lie to me, Mr Cutler. There are only two things I hate with a real passion in this world, and that's liars and Dirty Dancing!'

Feeling it would be better to not respond, Cutler gave a weak smile and sipped his drink, immediately feeling the heat of the alcohol ripple through his veins, lifting him.

'As I was saying,' Hal continued, 'you are a vampire, Mr Cutler. As am I.'

Cutler opened his mouth to retort, but Hal held up a hand, silencing him. 'No, Mr Cutler, the floor is now mine. You drink. I speak. Yes?'

Cutler drank.

'Fantastic. Already, as I'm sure you have felt, your body has begun to change, to have urges you've never felt before – like with your wife.'

Cutler glanced up.

'Those urges will only get stronger. Frankly, I'm impressed you managed to control yourself and I admit I am curious as to how. For now, we'll just put it down to sheer chance that your wife is still alive.'

Cutler swallowed. 'What are you saying?'

'Tell me, Mr Cutler, how do you feel? Light headed perhaps? I know you're quite the lightweight when it comes to alcohol,' he added with an impish grin.

Cutler glanced down at his glass which now only contained rapidly melting ice cubes and he frowned. He felt absolutely fine.

'Not at all…' he replied, confused. 'But you're right, usually…'

'Alcohol will not longer have such a hold on you, Mr Cutler,' Hal continued. 'I have given you a gift of a world with such highs that you will never want to come down. Such feelings cannot be described, they must be felt. You will feel ecstasy without guilt. I can teach you that, Mr Cutler. I can teach you to live as you never lived before.'

'But, my wife. You have no idea what I thought…what I wanted to do to her!' Cutler's voice was desperate, pleading.

'You will learn, Mr Cutler. I can promise you that. Just let me show you.'

'How? I don't want to ever think that of Rachel again, you understand? I can't! It's…it's…'

'It's what you are now.'

'Then I don't want it! Take it back!'

Hal laughed, staring at Cutler as if he'd just invented comedy.

'Well, that's a new one. Mr Cutler, you really are quite the toddler, aren't you? I suppose it would be endearing to someone with more patience with children.' Hal paused, before gesturing at the bar where behind, a pretty woman in a particularly figure hugging dress stood, cleaning glasses.

'Look at her, Mr Cutler. Look. What do you see?'

Cutler followed Hal's indication.

'A woman,' he shrugged.

'Look harder, Cutler. What do you really see?'

Cutler turned to look again and as he did so, the barmaid happened to look up, catching his eye with a shy smile on her face. Setting down the pint glass she was tending to, she bit her lip slightly, cleavage on full display as she bent to clean the surface of the bar.

Suddenly, as if from nowhere, a deep, reverberating thudding filled Cutler's ears, sending shivers of inexplicable desire through him. He swallowed hard, vaguely aware that his breathing had become more audible than usual. But that didn't matter now. He didn't care who heard him. His eyes were locked to her, to her beautiful motions as she swept her hands across the bar…such delicate, gentle wrists. How easy they would be to break…

'You want her, don't you?'

Hal's voice was a dim echo in the descending fog of his mind. Cutler registered it and he nodded.

'Well, you can't have her.'

As the barmaid made her way through the door at the back of the bar, and out of sight, Cutler felt the oppressiveness on his mind lift and he glanced at Hal, feeling glazed as if he had just inhaled some particularly potent pot.

'Why not?'

Even his voice sounded unfamiliar.

'She's too well known around here. That's your first lesson, Cutler. Never barmaids. They're too well connected. Even without family, they have enough people who would come hunting and trust me, especially here, the people these people know are not the kind you want on your tail.'

Hal sat back in his chair, watching Cutler with interest on his face.

Cutler meanwhile sat, adrift in the sea of emotions and thoughts clouding every part of him. 'What…what now then?'

'Now?' Hal raised a brow, before signalling for their bill to be brought to their table and gathering up his coat with a broad grin. 'Now, Mr Cutler, I shall show you some real sport.'

'