Hello All!

First of all sorry for the huge delay. Yes I did say a few days but life got catastrophically in the way. It's going to be sporadic posting for the next few weeks.

Second, thanks to all you readers. There have now been over 600 of you individual readers this month who have dropped by. Yay.

Okay so here we go, back to everyone's favorite (ex) werewolf and vampire.

I own nothing.

Tom looked at his old Nokia 3310 phone and frowned, it had been given to him by McNair as a means of contact if ever there was an emergency. He looked through the numbers, there were very few, all helpfully added by other people:

Alex

Allison x

George Sands WW

Hal – call DON'T text

Home – HH

Hotel

McNair

Natasha :)

Nina Pickering WW

Tony café

It was the second one that stood out; Allison. He'd avoided Allison since becoming human. As far as she was concerned, nothing had changed. She had called after to find out about the suspiciously transparent 'gas leak'. He'd explained what he felt he could; supernatural stuff, nothing to worry about now, all good.

He'd hoped that now that he, Alex and Hal were human, so were all supernaturals. But that wasn't the case. He'd last spoken to her after the first full moon since the death of the Devil.

He's asked tentatively how was she feeling, every part of him hoping that the full moon had been surprisingly uneventful?

'Tired, but you know, it's all par for the course isn't it? I was a bit disconcerted though when I woke, I think I ate a rabbit.'

Tom smiled as she went on to explain there was a lot of fur around her, she'd found a leg, judging by it's size it had been a male so no chance of little baby rabbits being orphaned thank Goodness!

'Right,' Tom said nodding down the phone, 'Ah can imagine.'

'Is Everything okay Tom?' Allison said, her familiar enthusiastic tone causing his insides to squirm. 'You sound more detached than usual. Nothing nefarious happening in Barry again is there?'

'Yeah, Ah mean nah all good ere, just… tired innit.'

'Are you sure,' she pressed, excitement entering her energetic tone, 'Because I have been searching for alerts in the Barry region for unusual activity-' Tom laughed. 'Now don't laugh Tom, but there has been a distinct lack of anything suspicious, which, in itself, I find mistrustful. The Government seem to be working overtime.'

'Well ah don know anything about that.' Tom had told her about the Men in Grey, which had only fuelled Allison's enthusiasm for conspiracy theories lately. 'Me un Hal an Alex aint involved anymore.'

He hadn't elaborated any more than that.

He couldn't tell her. How could he tell her? Sitting on his bed facing away from the door staring at his phone, Tom didn't even hear Hal coming up behind him. 'What's troubling you Tom?' He said softly.

Tom jumped. 'Ah stop that man! Don you knock no more? I coulda been in the nuddy!'

'With the door open?' Hal ventured.

Tom stopped, he couldn't honestly think of a response. Finally, he gave up, hunching further over his phone again. 'Jus knock yeah?' He mumbled.

'You've been up here for hours Tom. Alex is wondering what you're doing.' He looked at what Tom was holding, confusion giving way to understanding. 'You're thinking about Allison aren't you?' Said Hal. 'Is it guilt or fear that is keeping you from contacting her?'

'How'dja know that?' Asked Tom with a start.

Hal smiled sadly. 'All but one on that phone are dead or here. It was a logical assumption.' Tom shrugged, 'You didn't answer me Tom,' Hal said coming into his room and gingerly skirting a discarded pair of shoes.

'What?'

'You haven't spoken to her in five months, why?'

Tom put down the phone and rubbed his hands through his shaved head in frustration. 'Ah don know man.' Hal waited, he could work out why; guilt at Allison still suffering the agony of werewolf transformations every month, or fear that once he told her, they would have nothing to link them anymore. But it was up to Tom to talk now; he needed to voice it himself. 'What if she don wan me no more now I aint… you know.'

Hal waited.

'Look, when Allison came round before, she didn't properly like like me until she came huntin. And I shouldna don that, because she was gentle before and kind, and it were like I woke the monster in her. But,' He thought some more. 'She's still gentle and kind, even with the wolf, but me, ah don have the wolf no more, but I still aveta do this. She's gone home, and she's livin with her folks, even with her curse. She's goin through this every month and stayin the same lovely clever girl she was, and am human, and I'm still livin like it's still in me. But ah don't. So we aint even got that linkin us ave we?'

Hal looked at his friend. 'It is what you're used to, and her life is what she's used to. The fact that she has managed to maintain that semblance of normality is admirable. In the same way you have too. You both started off in very different places, and are making adjustments accordingly. Who knows, it may bring you closer.'

Tom frowned, it sounded good, but everything Hal said sounded good, that didn't mean it was. 'All ah know is, we met because we were the same, an now we aint.'

'Look at Alex and me.' Hal said, trying another angle 'She was human, and I was a 500 year old vampire, then she died because of me and she was a ghost trapped here. This is the first time that we have been the same species ever, but our relationship started when we couldn't have been more separate, it built the foundations that we now stand on. Two people can start off opposites and grow together, so can two people with a shared past connection. Doesn't that give you hope?'

'I guess. I don know. Ah mean I know she aint gonna wan ta kill me like you did with Alex.' Hal swallowed awkwardly, 'But, she's so clever an that, she's bin ta school, and going to uni to become a doctor or barrister an I… I'm just, well look at me.' He threw his hands out and around the room.

Hal smiled thinly 'I'd really rather not focus on the room Tom if it's all the same to you. But,' he said hurrying on, 'I have known many werewolves that have had long and loving relationships with humans; in the end it is only one night a month that separates you.'

'But bein... you know. Were all we had linkin us.' Tom said. 'What if she only liked the wolf?'

'Being the same species may help build relationships in the beginning, but it is hardly the means of sustainability Tom. The wolf may have brought you together, but it is your character, your personality that will keep that connection going.'

Tom looked up at Hal, 'D'ja really mean that?'

'Yes Tom, I do.'

Tom nodded, but his eyes remained unfocused.

'Is there something else Tom?' Hal asked, he could see Tom wasn't saying all that was on his mind.

'Nah, am good.' He mumbled.

Hal waited another beat, then decided to leave. As he headed towards the door he took one last cursory look around the clutter and mess, his razor sharp eyes landing on the thing Tom must had been working on when he first came up. 'You need to hide those from Alex.' He said pointing to the three whittled stakes that lay haphazardly on the floor next to a cross. 'She can't see them.'

Tom's eyes followed his, his frown deepened. 'Why can't she know Hal? I hate lyin to her.'

'I know, Tom,' Hal said. 'I don't like it either. But she won't understand that this is helping.'

'It aint helpin er.' Tom replied.

'No, but it's helping you; and killing vampires is helping people. We are helping people Tom.' Hal sighed, rubbing his face and screwing up his eyes, 'Look, approaching Alex with this right now isn't wise, she's too insular right now.' Tom looked at him blankly. 'She can't process other perspectives, her own issues blinker her from understanding anything beyond what she deems as normal. And that.' He indicated the stakes, 'She will not see as normal. Okay?'

Tom looked at Hal; he was right, Hal was always right it seemed. Alex just got angry when they didn't do what she wanted. She had made them cook a Sunday roast the other day and thrown a fit when Hal had scheduled a shift that started at two. She was on a knife edge, Tom felt like he was still no a knife-edge. The only one who seemed to remain calm and in control most of the time was Hal, and that worried Tom. He'd been used to Hal being in control, but that had created pressure old Hal had dealt with it with routines, and OCD and general 'Hal-ness', he didn't know how new Hal would cope with that.

Tom nodded and went to pick up the stakes to hide them. The conversation had ended and Hal was turning to leave.

'Hal,' Tom said as he was about to close the door. Hal stopped and turned, he waited as Tom seemed to search around the room for what to say next. 'All this; Allison, hunting vampires. Who… Who am ah without the wolf?' He asked.

Hal stared at him. For once, he couldn't think of anything reassuring to say. He suddenly felt so tired of always being the one to support. 'I don't know Tom, what are any of us without our monsters?'

He walked out, Tom's bewildered stare boring into his back.

Okay, so as I said, I will post when I can.

Please review, it keeps me going. :-D (contructive critisism is also very much loved!)