Werewolves of Manchester

[hydeforareason]

"It's alll right, Guv!"  Damn it, he was losing a lot of blood and he ambulance had yet arrived.  The place was crawling with coppers of all sorts, Ray Carling leading the charge to kick in the head of whoever unleashed the dogs on their commander and chief.  Sam stayed behind, hands pressing into the wounds on Gene Hunt's chest and upper arm,

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[alwaystheguv]

It wasn't as bad as it looked. Well, it had been at the time, blood had been everywhere and it had originally hurt like a bitch. Now, on the other hand, he was feeling much better. Apparently he was healing very quickly. Two days stuck in the hospital, one blood transfusion and some stitches. Not bad, not good. His wife came down to whack him around the back of his head and tell him off for being a dolt and the next day he had the CID come in. It was a balance of good and bad right now

[hydeforareason]

Sam lifted the basket with the grapes and pushed his way through the hordes of men that had come to see Gene when he realized that he probably couldn't be seen from the back. "Grapes, gotten an' accounted for. Found the ballistics, can't find the bullets themselves. You 'it whatever you were aimin' for--"

"Course he did. 'E's the Guv!" Ray chimed in, waiting for the not from Gene, the proverbial pat on the back for something well said.

"Right, everyone on out!" Sam growled. He couldn't get anywhere if Ray was leading the charge on the arse kissing. He gave the group a push and pulled the curtain around Gene's bed. "An' you, lay back. You've stitches. Don't pull them out or you'll be here longer."

[alwaystheguv]

"Better run lads, Sammy's gonna give me a lecture of correct procedure when handliin' dogs!" Gene yelled, obviously taking the piss. His men sniggered as they took off and Gene turned his head, looking at Sam with a small frown. Nope, he was done lying down. He merely sat there and adjusted his shirt. What a shirt to give him, pink of all colours,

His wife must of thought it'd be hilarious but Liz always did have an annoying sense of humour. Worse than Sammys.

"Look, now we're alone, I should tell you that I don't think that was a normal dog, Tyler. Fucking massive dog, it was about my size. Gotta be a big breed, long haired, kinda like a wolf-hound. Maybe it's like a baskervilles sorta thing," he remembered watching that film was a boy, scared the shit out of him then.

[hydeforareason]

Sam only nodded and dragged a stool over to sit across the bed from Gene. "The wounds you had were-- Intense. Massive. Gene, I thought your heart stopped twice." Gene in private, always. Sam had earned that right over the past few years of working with the man. They were a pretty well oiled machine by that point, even if they still butted heads more than once a week on the stupidest things. Usually over paper work or proper proceedure. "There was so much blood-- I 'ave no idea why you're sittin' up an' talkin' if you ask me."

He pulled open the file of the man they'd caught.

"We still can't find what you shot. I'm goin' to guess it was the wolf. We didn't find any fibres on your clothing, just 'uman 'air. Doesn't match the blagger we're 'oldin' either. I've no idea what's goin' on, unless some of that blood wasn't yours on you. My theory is that it was the wolf's you shot."

[alwaystheguv]

"Not but I could of, you twat. What sort of bastard let's a big fuck off dog like that loose?" Gene growled. No, really, he growled. There was no denying that he growled but-- well, it was sort of hard to prove because the distraction was set. Before anyone could call him on it, he's already knocked the bastards chair out from under him.

Handcuffed to the desk, all that he did was slump on the floor, cracking his head on the table.

Crouching down, Gene grabbed his shirt. "Spill, you wanker."

[hydeforareason]

"Woah! 'Unt!" Sam was at his side in a moment, all of the hai on the back of his neck and his arms standing on end. He shuddered. That growl had almost made him want to run away. It didn't help when the idiot he was shaking around did the same thing, baring his teeth for just a moment before he settled down again.

"Quiet, pup. You've no idea what you're playing with."

The accent was off. Foreign. Sam didn't like it. He did wrap his arm around Gene's to haul him back. Before they bit each other like rabid beasts.

[alwaystheguv]

"Oh get off Tyler!" Gene snapped, shoving Sam away and moving closer to have a proper go at the git. He stomped on the mans hand and kept his foot there, relishing in how the man twitched in pain but tried to hide it behind a cocky smile. Nice try. "Look, just tell me where the dog is, you little rat bastard."

The man just smirked and said no more. It was just a little bit annoying.

Gene ended up kicking him in the face and storming off with yet another growl of anger. He couldn't be arsed to deal with smarmy bastards like that.

[hydeforareason]

Sam's arm and shoulder were absolutely killing him. He picked himself up and went after Gene just the same, grabbing the larger man by the elbow. "GUV! What the 'ell is wrong with you?!"

He'd seen Gene get angry before, but never that angry. And the man's strength was just absolutely unbelieveable. It left him almost shivering. Sam might be a light weight, but he could hold his own. Gene just exuded something he couldn't really manage to be too close to and yet he refused to back down.

"That was insane!"

[alwaystheguv]

Gene caught himself and realised what he was doing before nodding awkward. "Erm, yeah, got it. So I'll just-- yeah."

And Gene was out the door of his office, leaving Sam too it. Taking off outside, he went straight out to go to the board and check over their latest case. Some idiots robbed a bank and now he had to go find the bloody morons and get the money back. They had a few leads, a good distraction, Gene snatched the post-it note and took off.

He just needed some way to concentration his attention.

Otherwise he might sniff another bloke. The fucking hell was up with that? Was he losing it or something? Why did he sniff Sam?-- It was a nice smelling soap though.

[hydeforareason]

The next day saw two bars of Beso brand soap on Gene's desk. Sam obviously had gotten it for him. He was forever doing that, little favours, little triffles-- It didn't mean much, just that they were mates. Probably, they were becoming best mates. Sam had gotten him a sandwich too, something with more bacon and cheese on it than was typically deemed capable of sustaining life on.

In other words? Gene's favourite.

Sam was the only man at CID currently, though there were signs of some of the men scurrying around in other parts of the station getting coffee or waiting to clock out from the night shift. He was working on getting that idiot processed from yesterday, but he was too busy calling for an advocate thanks to Gene roughing him up.

[alwaystheguv]

Gene had his hip flask out as he downed some of the booze and wondered into the office looking twitchy as he had been all this week. He took a seat on the edge of a nearby desk and looked at Sam, trying to get his attention. He had some things to rattle on through but it would take a while to get Sammy to proper listen to him.

The man just seemed to be talking to him like a mental lately.

"Have you had any word on the missin' blaggers? I've been following leads and tips and I've gotten nowhere. Except that one of the blokes hadn't left Manchester-- went to talk to him, he had an alibi, not part of it," Gene complained, he may be having a funny spell but that didn't mean that he couldn't still do his job, right?

[hydeforareason]

"Uh, yeah actually, got a call in this morning, I'm going to finish this 'ere an' take Chris to check it out," Sam said, tapping his pet on the desk as he looked up at Gene. He seemed pretty calm to him. Maybe that row with the missus was over? One could only hope.

Maybe not. Gene's pinkie finger was twitching and it made him narrow his eyes slightly.

Not good. Not one bit.

He tapped his thumb against his paper -- worried -- and pushed back in his seat. "Doin' all right, Guv?"

[alwaystheguv]

"We can but I've got nothin' to say... weathers nice," Gene remarked sarcastically. Gene didn't know what the big problem was. Was it because he was now out preforming Sam? Well, he couldn't help it, he had a lot of energy and he was happy to make use of it. He had solved more cases this week than ever... some were minor little piddly crap but he still did it and did it well.

"Why? What do you think we should talk about?"

Did Sam think he was a loon now? A druggie? A workaholic? That was definitely rather insane, to be sure.

[hydeforareason]

Damn. The hard way then. "Since your accident, you've been a little odd. I'm not sure what's done it, actually, but I can listen." He gently leans forward, shoulders rolling towards Gene in interest. He had incredibly earnest eyes, each gazing soulfully up at his Guv. Sammy cared. He probably cared a little too much.

He settled his chin in his hand, elbow on the desk. Their eyes locked and if he didn't know better, he'd have sworn that Gene was sniffing the air again.

"So really anything-- Liz? Pain killers--"

Don't make him ask outright!

[alwaystheguv]

"I'm not on drugs," Gene said bluntly because no, he was not taken in by that sappy look. Sam was giving him that 'love me I'm a puppy dog' look and Gene just really didn't care for it. He never had been taken in by Sam Tyler, the bleeding heart king. Instead, he just stared at him with a bored expression.

And really? After what he told Sam, he was a little offend.

"I never ever touch drugs, you daft prick. I barely like painkillers-- I've seen what they do and it's ugly and I know I'm a hypo-whatever for having other vices but never drugs."

And he was more that a little pissed off at this. "I'm just feeling energised. Get over it."

[hydeforareason]

"Okay, fine, but that doesn't 'appen, Gene. No one jus' gets energised..." Midlife crisis? Damn, Sam really couldn't place it. "I'm jus' a little worried. It's more than you being better off -- no smoking probably cleared up your lungs so you can breathe a bit better--" Sam shook his head. "Trouble is, you're 'urting people. You stopped goin' to the pub, you banned smokin' of all things--"

Sam shook his head. Maybe he was just reading too much into it? Or maybe he was just seeing things that weren't there. That happened-- A lot.

He pushed himself up. "Listen, sorry. I am. I'm glad you're feelin better. If you say it's nothin'--" Then it was obviously something. Sam bit his tongue. "I believe you."

[alwaystheguv]

And Gene made it very hard for Sam to watch him, it wasn't intention, he just didn't so anything he usually did. No pub on the night, instead he dropped in at the butchers and took home a pack of meat. Dinner was very interesting and his wife spent the whole time rather horrified.

Who wouldn't when their husband ate what had to be a family sized pack of meat with some left over.

The night, nothing special happened. And that was the same for the next morning, he had breakfast, got ready and ... well, he had no idea where his wife was. She had just up and left. By the time he got into work, he feeling much better. So much so that he actually, to everyones amazement, agree to go to the pub.

"I had a dickie stomach and the lack of fags was killin' me. I'm fine now, just off is all."

[hydeforareason]

Gene got a cheer when he stepped into the Arms and even Sam was grinning. Back to normal and it only took a month. He bought Gene a round and sat with him in the back after a rousing go at darts left Chris injured. And it hadn't even been Sam's fault this time! Sam settled down for a nice evening as the sky darkened outside. He didn't bother to keep an eye on Gene. The man was all smiles and pounding back glass after glass of bitter.

Annie came up to Sam not too long after his second glass for a dance, was cut in on by Phyllis, and Sam finally made it back to the safety of Gene's table just as Ray suggested bringing out the cards.

So much for the full moon. Sam hadn't even thought of it. Not for hours now.

[alwaystheguv]

Gene seemed fine, he felt fine, everything was brilliant. So why not have some fun? Snagging Rays packet of fags off the table, he took them and looked them over before smirking at his men. Yep, the good life was gone. Gene got to his feet and stretch before nodding at his men who all seemed to enjoy having the Guv back. "Gonna go have a smoke outside, gotta get used to it again, need wind assistance. Set up a game of cards, yeah. Sam deals... no cheatin' that way. Leave me out the first round, got a long reunion ahead

[hydeforareason]

And the Cortina.

Sam stood outside about an hour after Gene had left them hanging frowning at the car. He didn't have the keys but he didn't have to. The cigarettes by the back door made him frown and he picked them up before following a trail of tattered clothing to the street. Gene's favourite coat laid in three uneven pieces, torn down the back and with one arm laying a few metres away.

His heart was pounding in his chest as he rushed to take the keys from inside one of the pockets. Great. Just great. Gene had been attacked.

Any number of criminals were after the Manc Lion. Maybe Roule had gotten out or sent his friends? In the Cortina, Sam called into dispatch. "DI TYler! We lost one of our prisoners--"

Fuck. Sam started up the car and took off back to the station.