Summary: M-21 hadn't thought this would have been the result from kissing Takeo and Tao.

Contains M-21/Tao/Takeo

Set before season 6.

It Started with a Kiss

By Dark Ice Dragon

"Yooo, Boss," Tao called out as he, Takeo and M-21 entered the main lab. "We're here." Frankenstein had called them there and since they'd just had their weekly check-up an hour ago...

There was nothing else it could be about.

But what was it? They hadn't been injured recently or been in any fights. Everything should be normal.

"Ah, good," Frankenstein said, and he was still focused on their data in front of him. As far as M-21 could see, his own data was still the same, so why had he been called as well? Takeo and Tao's data bracketed his own and - they'd changed. Their markers were more similar to M-21's now. He heard Takeo and Tao's sharp intakes as they saw it as well. How-?

Frankenstein waited for them to stop in front of him as he took his glasses off with a sigh. "It would appear," he said, looking them over, his voice dry, "that the three of you have been exchanging bodily fluids."

M-21 couldn't stop staring at their data, trying to see if it could mean anything else, guilt and worry forming ice in the pit of his stomach. The data stayed the same; Takeo and Tao had become more like him, and there was only one reason M-21 could think of that explained that: he'd somehow turned Takeo and Tao.

"But - I didn't bleed over them." They'd made sure he'd stopped bleeding after a fight before supporting him home; that was something they always made sure of, after Tao had mentioned stories where a werewolf's bite could turn a human. They'd figured if a bite could change someone, it might have something to do with getting in contact with the person's blood.

...Wait.

"There are other ways to exchange body fluids," Frankenstein said, still gazing at them, and Tao burst out into stiffled laughter as M-21 flushed, his cheeks hot.

"Uh, I guess it'd be a little hard to hide that, huh?" Tao said between wheezes.

Shit. Shit. "I didn't mean to-" M-21 was cut off by Takeo and Tao both wrapping an arm around his shoulders and holding him tight.

"We know," Takeo murmured.

"So don't start blaming yourself, 'kay?" Tao grinned at him. "It's not like we knew this'd happen through kissing."

Saying it out loud made it sound worse. That small action that had made Takeo and Tao lose their humanity. "But-!" The word came out strangled. "You'd said-"

"Mmhm," Tao said. "But just 'cause there are stories about how werewolves turn people, doesn't mean they're true. Like with vampires!"

"There was a large possibility of you transferring your blood to them," Frankenstein said before M-21 could say anything, "no matter how careful you were considering how close the three of you are."

That didn't make M-21 feel better, knowing that because he was close to Takeo and Tao, it was inevitable they would have been turned into werewolves. Maybe if he'd kept his distance instead, they could have still been human?

"I don't think there will be many changes," Frankenstein added, closing the windows with their data on it. "A further increase in strength and accelerated regeneration, but I'm not sure if you'll reach the same level of transformation as M-21, if at all."

Tao snickered. "Me an' Takeo are werewolves now! What M's got is more than enough — though it would have been pretty cool if we could turn into wolves too, heh."

M-21 shook his head, sighing at Tao's comment as some of the tension eased from his body. Of course that was what Tao focused on.

"I would like more frequent check-ups," Frankenstein told them, "to make sure the changes are stable."

"Got it, Boss!" Tao gave him a salute with his free hand, and then turned to M-21 and Takeo, grinning. "So, this means we need to train!"

M-21 looked between Takeo and Tao, baffled. "You aren't going to ask if you can be turned back?" They'd jumped straight to acceptance?

Takeo shook his head. "If we could be turned back, Frankenstein would have given us the option already."

Tao nodded.

Oh. Right. And Frankenstein had already told M-21 he couldn't remove the werewolf DNA in him. If Frankenstein couldn't do that with him, there was no way he'd be able to do it with Takeo and Tao.

"Sor-"

"No apologies," Tao said, scruffing M-21's hair.

"It's happened," Takeo said as M-21 tried to shake Tao's hand off. "We can't turn back, so we can only move on."

M-21 pursed his lips, glancing at Takeo. It was that easy for them?

"And this means you won't be the only werewolf in the house!" Tao crowed.

M-21 looked between the three of them. That was true, but he'd never considered himself a werewolf — he was a modifed human. Though...with how much stronger he'd been getting lately, his humanity was probably being getting chipped away, getting replaced by the werewolf DNA bit by bit.

"C'mon!" Tao started to tug him (and through him, Takeo) towards the lab doors. "We need to start training!"

"One last piece of advice," Frankenstein called out when they'd taken a few steps away. When they turned around to look at him, Frankenstein said with an eyebrow raised and a wry smile on his lips, "Please remember to wear condoms. It'll help lower the transfer of your fluids as well as keep the mess to a minimum."

Tao burst out laughing. "We haven't gotten that far yet, but noted."

M-21 grimaced. If kissing had been enough to change Takeo and Tao, he didn't want to imagine what could happen if they had unprotected sex.

xOx

M-21 watched Takeo and Tao removing their tops, an amused smirk curling his lips.

Tao stuck his tongue out at him. "We've seen how your transformation shreds your shirts, M! This'll save on money and shirts."

"You don't even know if you can transform yet," M-21 said, leaning back on the training room wall. Frankenstein hadn't been sure if they could.

"That's why we're doing this," Takeo said, folding his clothes and handing them to M-21. "To find out."

Tao flung his top at M-21, who caught it before it draped over his head. "So how do you transform?" Tao asked, stretching his hands high above his head.

M-21 blinked at them. "You know how to-" Using T2 was different to how he transformed, since that was a drug Takeo and Tao took. M-21 shrugged. "I think about what I want -claws or the full transformation- and it...happens." It wasn't something he thought about anymore, second nature to him now.

Takeo and Tao nodded. When Tao held his hand out in front of him, his palm facing forward, he sighed and then grumbled, "Guess I'll have to redo my nails after this."

"It doesn't take that long, does it?" Takeo asked.

"No, but I still did them yesterday. Ah well." Tao shook his head. "I'll figure something out."

Of course he would: if Tao wanted something, even if it seemed impossible, he would find a way to do it.

Both Takeo and Tao were staring at their hands, nothing happening, and it was...weird. Was it really that hard, or were they just unused to doing it? Without looking, M-21 transformed his nails into claws and back again, making sure not to damage Takeo and Tao's clothes.

"Maybe..." Takeo and Tao's attentions slid to M-21 as he spoke. "Maybe you don't have enough werewolf blood in you to transform?" If only a small part of their DNA had been changed, maybe that was why they were having that much trouble transforming: they still had more of their humanity than he did.

"That might be it..." Takeo and Tao kept going for another few minutes, relief growing in M-21 the longer they did it. He hadn't changed them that much. And he had to make sure it stayed like that.

"I don't think it's going to happen," Takeo said, shaking his head as he lowered his hand.

"Damn," Tao said, doing the same. "I wanted to know what I looked like transformed!"

"You'd have stripes on your cheeks and furrier arms," M-21 said with a snort as Takeo and Tao collected their tops from him.

Tao swatted M-21's shoulder. "I know that, but our transformation might look different from your one — yours keeps changing anyway."

...That was true. His transformation from before he'd been taken into the house was unrecognisable from his transformation now.

"So what now?" Tao asked once he and Takeo had pulled their tops on.

"Food?" Takeo said.

"Sounds good to me!"

xOx

It didn't take them long to find something to eat and M-21 looked across when someone laid their hand on his shoulder.

It was Takeo, studying him. "How are you doing?" he asked quietly.

M-21 exhaled and looked away, unease still stirring his stomach. "I made you lose more of your humanity." Even if it had been a little, he still felt guilty about-

M-21 froze at sudden warmth on his left cheek, the one away from Takeo.

"Muah!"

He span around and jerked back when he realised how close Tao was. "Ta-!"

More warmth on his right cheek, half of his vision filled with purple.

"What're you doing?" M-21 demanded, staring at them. He wanted to step away, but Takeo's hand on him was firm and Tao had collected his other hand as well.

"Provin' we're fine with it and not afraid to keep kissing," Tao said, grinning. "We know self-deprecation's your default mode, so it's best to nip that in the bud as best and fast as we can."

"By-!"

"Kissing you, yes," Takeo said. "On the cheeks."

M-21 paused, not sure why Takeo had emphasised that.

"Yup!" Tao nodded. "Boss said it'd happened 'cause we'd swapped spit so, so long as we don't kiss with our mouths open then we don't have to worry too much about becoming more werewolf-y."

"And there's a lot of other places to kiss," Takeo added, smiling softly.

M-21 stared at them before he snorted, not trying to pull away anymore. "I...still want to be careful," M-21 said. He didn't want to risk it.

"'Course." Tao stepped closer and slid an arm around M-21's waist. "But we're just saying that we're not gonna stop kissing you, okay?"

M-21 shook his head and let out a soft chuckle, a small smile curling his lips. "Thanks..." He should have expected them both to be like that.

xOx

Nothing else happened over the next couple of days, though M-21 had caught Tao checking out his teeth in the mirror case he'd grown fangs. He hadn't.

"Is it that time already?" Tao said, tilting his head back over his chair as M-21 and Takeo entered the security room with coffee, one cup for each of them.

"We wouldn't be here if it wasn't," M-21 said with a huff as Takeo moved to set Tao's mug on the desk.

"I got it-" Tao said, a couple of cables shooting out from under his sleeve to take the mug from Takeo's hand. "Huh?"

M-21 blinked, not sure if it was the light from the monitors that was playing tricks on his eyes. Tao usually only called out one cable at a time when he wanted to hold something, but this was a mass of more than that. M-21 traced the cable, seeing only one poke out Tao's sleeve. But the tip instead split into four, pointed at the ends. ...Like claws.

Tao flexed his hand and the cable rippled, mimicking the move, before the cables melted back into one. "That's..." Tao murmured. The cable flicked again and then split into four, curled like hooks. "So cool!"

Tao span on them, his eyes sparkling. "Do you know what that means?"

"You've figured out how to make a hand out your cables?" M-21 hazarded. Tao had seemed fine with the one cable when he needed to grab something, but maybe with an extra hand he could add another keyboard to his set-up or something.

"Pfft, no." Tao shook his head. "Well, yeah, but it's not really like that! Before, if I'd wanted to make a hand or add something, I'd have to bring out another cable." As Tao said that, a second cable slithered out from under the same sleeve, wrapping around the first one but left the tip so there were two prongs at the end. "But if I can do this-" The tips split, making four and used that to take the mug from Takeo's still waiting hand. "-it's almost like a transformation, isn't it?"

M-21 stared, everything clicking together. When nothing had happened when Takeo and Tao had tried to transform, and nothing had happened in the following days, M-21 had put the thought to the back of his mind. He'd assumed their DNA being altered had been the extent of their change, but now it didn't look like it.

Takeo chuckled. "So your werewolf transformation went to your cables instead of you?"

"My cables are part of me anyway." Tao cocked his head to the side and then beamed. "But this way, this means my nails won't get wrecked! Aaand-" Tao peered at Takeo. "-this means you might be able to transform too?"

"Maybe," Takeo said.

"Great!" Tao hopped to his feet, tucking his chair into his desk. "I was due for a break."

This time M-21 didn't feel uneasy as the three of them headed for the training room: the others hadn't changed from what they'd been like before, so if they could transform, that would just make them better at fighting and protecting themselves.

xOx

Takeo and Tao left their coffee cooling by the wall as M-21 sipped his, holding their tops again.

"If we're going to be doing this often, maybe we should bring down a clothes rack," Tao mused, eyeing the far corner.

"And maybe a drawer of spare clothes," Takeo added.

"Wouldn't they get destroyed during the spar?" M-21 asked.

"You seem fine like that," Tao said with a laugh. "And I don't get hit while I'm monitoring you two either."

...That was true. They still kept an awareness of their surroundings to know where not to aim.

"All right, let's get started!" Tao said, rolling his shoulders.

M-21 watched them, feeling a little useless. He didn't know how to teach them how to transform apart from 'Just think about it'.

M-21 perked up at the sudden weight of an aura pressing on his shoulders.

He saw Tao's arms turn black starting at the shoulder and heading towards his hands. As Tao's skin changed, one black part pulled ahead and M-21 realised Tao's fur was winding down his arms like one thick cable. Once Tao's fur reached his hands, a thick cable slunk out from under his skin in a widening stream, splitting into four. The four parts thickened and curled until the cable looked like giant paws, the claws almost brushing the floor. There were tufts that had also raised along the back of the cable like they were fur. Throughout all the black there was a thin white stripe that ran through it, moving at sharp angles like it was a wire in a motherboard than a patch of fur.

"I did it!" Tao whooped, throwing an arm in the air.

Takeo was glancing between Tao and M-21 with an amused smile and when M-21 walked over, he could see why.

"It looks like our transformation won't be the same as yours," Takeo said as M-21 walked over.

"Huh, why - okay." Tao said, turning his hands over, the cables doing the same. A second later, they raised to hover above Tao's shoulders, anchored there. "Not what I thought I'd look as a werewolf.

"But I think I've got it now," Tao said, nodding. "M was right," he said as he tested the tips of the claws against the floor. "You just think about things changing like it's supposed to happen, and it will. It kinda feels like there's a mental block? Something to push through, something to reach for through it, but when you get it..." One giant claw waved.

M-21 took a photo of Tao on his phone and then flipped it around so Tao could see it.

Tao's eyes widened. "I look cool as a werewolf!" Instead of M-21's triangular fur stripes along his cheeks, Tao's were more a network on a circuit board in the same overall shape. "An electrowolf!"

M-21 snorted and then glanced at Takeo. "If that's what Tao looks like..."

Takeo shrugged as Tao snickered. "Maybe Takeo's fur'll be in gun shapes!"

"I don't think so..." Takeo said, but he was staring at Tao's fur a little doubtfully. With their modifications, who knew how the hell Takeo was going to turn out.

Tao cocked his head to the side, frowning a little as his breathing went deeper. "This is a little different from T2 — I have to maintain it myself."

Takeo nodded before he started concentrating again.

Tao's explanation seemed to help Takeo more than M-21's, because he transformed a minute later. Takeo's transformation was more like M-21's, purple fur along his arms and his fingers ended in claws. His hair had gotten fuller, to the point M-21 wasn't sure he would be able to tie it up with his regular hairties.

The stripes along his face were different from M-21's, starting a little higher and curving around Takeo's eyes, like they were highlighting them.

M-21 frowned while Tao grabbed M-21's phone from his hand and pulled Takeo in so he could take a picture of them together. If Takeo's enhancements had been centred around his eyes...

"Huh?" Tao turned towards M-21 when he reached over to brush Tao's hair away from his face just as Tao took the picture.

"Why'd y - hey!" Tao brought M-21's phone close to his face and then ran a finger over the edge of his ear. The ears that were now pointed.

Tao grinned. "Nice catch, M!"

It looked like their transformations were affected by where they'd been enhanced the most.

Then Tao slumped, his transformation disappearing as his cables thinned back to one coil. Only Takeo's quick reflexes caught him before Tao lost his balance.

"M'fine, m'fine!" Tao wheezed, waving a limp hand before M-21 or Takeo could say anything. "Phew, transforming really takes it outta ya!"

Did it...? M-21 studied Tao's face, baffled: there was a sheen of sweat there and he was paler than he had been a minute ago.

Takeo let go of his own transformation too and M-21 helped ease them to the floor as Takeo sagged.

They'd been affected this badly by transforming? That didn't make sense — they were stronger than him: they should have been able to transform for at least thirty minutes.

Tao chuckled, leaning on Takeo. "Jeez, you go through that every time?"

M-21 shrugged, looking away. Maybe the differences in their transformations drained Takeo and Tao a lot faster than M-21's own transformation. "I had to train a lot, and being stablised by Frankenstein helped as well." There was no way he would have gotten as far as he had without Frankenstein or Raizel-nim.

Tao laughed, his shoulders shaking. "M, we've already been stablised by the boss! Your stamina's amazing!"

Oh... Right. "Then...you're not that used to drawing strength for transforming." That had to be it.

This time, Takeo and Tao chuckled together, sharing a look. What...?

"You're the one who said we probably don't have that much werewolf blood in us, M," Tao said, prodding M-21's chest.

"So transforming should be easier if we don't have to do as much," Takeo added, smiling.

Except their transformations had been as extensive as his own. To maintain their transformations, Takeo and Tao should have to use the same amount of energy he did. They'd only been able to do it for a fraction of the time.

"Take the compliment, M," Tao said, wagging his eyebrows at him, "an' accept you're a lot stronger than you give yourself credit."

But. He couldn't be. He'd always been the weakest, no matter who he'd been with.

Except what had just happened wasn't so easily explained that way.

Neither Takeo or Tao said anything, just watching him.

M-21 was used to thinking of himself as weak, because that was what he was, what he'd always been. A bottom rung agent who'd barely gotten through the training, whose transformation was only just his claws.

But that wasn't the case anymore, was it? He could transform more of his body for longer than the two minutes he originally could.

Comments about his strength used to be jabs, prodding at weaknesses and mocking him. A scientist saying that meant he was one step closer to being discarded and killed for being useless.

But here...that didn't happen. If someone was weaker, then the others helped make them stronger. If someone was strong, the others said so.

Takeo and Tao had been part of the DA-5, and if he could hold his transformation longer than they could at the moment...

M-21 silently nodded, not looking at them. He didn't want to say it out loud, wasn't used to saying something like that. Hopefully that would be enough.

Smiling, Takeo and Tao smiled, drawing him into a hug. M-21 didn't move away when they kissed him on the cheek, his fingers stroking their skin.

"So I'm gonna hafta draw up a new training routine," Tao said once he was done, interlacing his fingers with M-21 and Takeo's.

That sounded good.

xOx

M-21 leaned back on the counter as he waited for the kettle to finish boiling. It had been a couple of days since Takeo and Tao had figured out how to transform and the three of them had been busy with training to increase Takeo and Tao's stamina, as well as working out more fight strategies they could use with their new powers.

His phone buzzed and M-21 picked it up without glancing who the sender was: there was only one person who would contact him through his phone, especially when everyone was also home.

[Help. sec room]

M-21 wasted one second staring at it before dashing for the lab.

No rambling message. No emoticons. No tildes. No exclamation marks.

There was something very wrong with Tao.

The door to the security room almost didn't slide open in time and M-21 squeezed through the gap as it was opening.

Tao's computer was still in one piece, throwing green li... What.

Tao's chair was pushed away from his desk, clothes strewn across the floor. M-21 automatically took in a deep breath, but he already knew he wouldn't smell blood.

Because there was a black wolf pouncing on him.

M-21 side-stepped, the wolf missing him. Tao had shown him enough wolf pictures that M-21 could tell the wolf was on the lankier side, and its right ear was all white. The wolf whirled around, dropping down onto its front limbs and M-21 eyed...him.

"Don't," he said, recognising the playbow from the puppy's antics.

The wolf - Tao froze for a second and then his tail flipped, wagging.

Shit. Tao had turned into a wolf? Because of his blood? Was Takeo the same?

The three of them had also watched enough werewolf movies that M-21 studied Tao, trying to find some indication he was still there and that he hadn't been taken over by the wolf instincts.

"If..." M-21 started, his throat not wanting to cooperate. "If you still have your mind, raise your left hand." Paw. Whatever. M-21 could guess the different ways Tao could interpret that because he hadn't been specific enough (raising his back leg instead, for one) but all Tao did was tilt his head at him.

Fuck. Tao wouldn't joke about that. He wouldn't.

Was it permanent? Tao seemed to recognise him, or at least hadn't tried to harm-

Tao jumped at him again, and this time M-21 held his ground, catching him. As soon as he was within reach, Tao went for M-21's face.

M-21 jerked back, and a wet tongue smacked against his nose instead.

"No!" M-21 held Tao at arms length as Tao whined, stretching as close to M-21 as his neck would allow, his tongue lapping at air. Tao was still big enough his back paws almost touched the ground.

M-21 sighed, realising what Tao was trying to do. "Not on the lips," M-21 said, hoping Tao would understand that. He'd done far too much damage (that he didn't know if it could even be fixed yet) to let Tao kiss him on the lips again.

Tao stared at him for a second and then nodded, his tail wagging.

Slowly, M-21 drew him closer, watching to make sure Tao would keep his word.

As soon as Tao was in reach, he licked M-21's left cheek over and over, covering it completely. But he did stay away from M-21's lips.

"All right," M-21 said, grimacing, "that's enough." His face would be dripping with saliva if Tao kept going.

"Hnng." Tao pulled back to give him a betrayed look and then lay his head over M-21's shoulder.

"Oi..." M-21 said against the fur tickling his nose and trying to get into his mouth. "You want me to carry you?"

Tao huffed, wriggling further and bracing his back legs against M-21's stomach before settling down.

Even as a wolf, Tao was exactly the same.

"Fine." It meant he knew exactly where Tao was. M-21 turned, leaving the security room and headed for the main lab.

Tao was content to stay in M-21's arms, not moving around too much.

"Frankenstein?" M-21 called out, looking around. Tao was also peering at everything, but not so much to dislodge him from M-21's grasp.

M-21 heard Frankenstein's footsteps before he appeared from around one of the machines. "Ye-" Frankenstein frowned at Tao. "Tao?"

Tao turned to peer at his name being called out.

"I see..."

M-21 winced. "He'd texted me just now and by the time I reached the security room, he was already like this. He's not violent-" Obviously. "-but he's not completely himself either." M-21 could recognise his behaviour as Tao's, but he wasn't acting like he would have if he was aware of what had happened.

Frankenstein nodded and then considered them both. "Is he hurt?"

"No," M-21 said, snorting as he shook his head. "He just wanted to be held."

Frankenstein chuckled softly and then gestured towards the scanner.

M-21 set Tao down there and Tao tried to climb back into M-21's arms. "I'll be back in a bit," M-21 told him as Tao grumbled. "I need to check on Takeo."

Tao perked up at the name, taking a step closer, but M-21 said, "I'm going — you stay here while Frankenstein checks you over."

Tao looked at Frankenstein and then sat down, his tail wagging at the tip.

At least Tao listened to him more like this instead of completely doing what he wanted.

The house was still quiet when M-21 entered from the lab, not sounding like there was a wolf rampaging around. Hopefully, if Takeo had also transformed he was also like Tao, which meant M-21 could guess where he would be.

Takeo's room was silent when M-21 reached it, even after he knocked. When he poked his head in, M-21 exhaled at the sight of a wolf waiting patiently on Takeo's bed.

Takeo had a longer, shaggier coat than Tao did, and he was unsurprisingly bigger than Tao as well. Takeo perked up at the sight of him, but didn't rush over, watching him. So he still had most of his personality too. Good.

"C'mon," M-21 said, and Takeo hopped off the bed, trotting over to him.

As soon as he was close enough, Takeo went back onto his hind legs, bracing his paws on M-21's shoulders.

M-21 could already guess what he was intending to do. "Not on the lips," he said as Takeo leaned in.

Takeo swerved away and sniffed the cheek Tao had already drenched before licking the one that hadn't been touched yet.

Even as wolves, they were both still trying to kiss him.

M-21 petted Takeo's fur while Takeo was busy. The fur under his palm was coarse and Takeo didn't seem to mind the touch, huffing.

Once he was done licking M-21's face, Takeo dropped back down onto all fours and they went back to the lab.

M-21 glanced out a window as they passed, and the full moon shone out from behind the thin cloud cover. Of course it was the full moon tonight. Because that was when werewolves were supposed to lose their minds, wasn't it?

M-21 couldn't stop the questions tumbling about in his head, tripping over each other, now that he knew both of them had turned into wolves. Why them? Was it permanent? Would they ever be themselves again? Why hadn't he been affected?

As soon as the lab doors opened, M-21 was ambushed by a furry missile.

He caught Tao, seeing Frankenstein approaching from behind.

"I haven't noticed any drastic shifts in Tao's DNA," Frankenstein said, as Tao relicked M-21's left cheek, "so if I were to guess, this is temporary."

M-21 nodded, not wanting to speak in case Tao's tongue accidentally got too close.

Tao eventually stopped and then peered over M-21's shoulder, snuffling at Takeo.

"Do you know why they're like this?" M-21 murmured as he walked to the scanner, Takeo trotting alongside him. From what he'd seen of their data, Takeo and Tao didn't have as much werewolf blood in them as he did, so why had they changed so much more?

Takeo didn't hesitate when M-21 asked him to jump up onto the scanner table and it was while Takeo was being scanned that Frankenstein answered.

"Aside from when Master awakened you to make you aware of your power, you were gradually strengthened and grew alongside the werewolf ability potential you possessed. Takeo and Tao, on the other hand, received your full abilities without knowing how to manage them, and it would appear that they were overwhelmed as the result."

"But I don't get affected by the full moon," M-21 said, frowning.

Frankenstein peered at him over his glasses, a wry smile on his lips. "It may be that both of them transforming tonight was mere coincidence, or it could be because you've adapted to your transformation and know how to control yourself during this time."

M-21 stared at him. He'd...never felt different during full moons, but if he was used to it, would he really notice if he thought it was normal?

"But the only way to tell for sure would be to see if this were to happen again at the next full moon," Frankenstein said as Takeo was slid out of the scanner. Frankenstein nodded as he looked over Takeo's data.

"Neither of them have changed much from the last check-up so I think this is temporary."

"Good."

Takeo seemed to know the scan was over and hopped off the table, looking around but not moving from where he was standing, close to M-21. Tao was also getting a little restless, wriggling in M-21's grasp, trying to twist around to look at everything.

"I'll call you if anything changes," M-21 said. Frankenstein was probably busy with other things and M-21 was reasonably sure Takeo and Tao didn't want to stay in the lab.

After Frankenstein nodded, M-21 left the lab. As soon as the door swished closed, Tao jumped out of M-21's hold and started investigating every corner he could, his tail wagging furiously. He was still moving towards the exit and he kept M-21 and Takeo in sight so M-21 didn't call him back.

Takeo was still content to stay by his side and the two of them waited by the exit for Tao to finish exploring.

But...what was he supposed to do with them? He barely knew what to do with the puppy. While the puppy did what M-21 told him to, it wasn't like he knew what he was doing.

...Maybe he should see how the puppy reacted to Takeo and Tao. If this was going to be a regular occurrence, they should get the puppy used to them.

Tao bounded over to them and they went back upstairs.

Takeo and Tao relaxed once they'd left the lab, Tao willing to explore further, Takeo's tail higher. It wasn't surprising they weren't completely comfortable in the lab, even when it was Frankenstein running it.

The living room was dark when they reached it, the puppy's bed unmoving and, right, it was late enough that the puppy would be sleeping right now.

He closed the door and led them upstairs. "We should probably go to bed too," M-21 said. It was better that way: Takeo and Tao's clothes had been all over the floor when they'd transformed so they would be naked when they changed back. M-21 didn't know when they would change back (in the movies it was usually when the sun started rising, but they shouldn't have enough energy to be transformed for that long. If they'd transformed normally, they would have let go of it a long time ago) but he was sure Takeo and Tao would prefer to transform somewhere private, so they wouldn't have to go through the house naked.

He didn't want to leave them alone in case something happened (and in case Tao wandered off to explore again), so whose room?

It didn't make a difference so M-21 went to his own room.

As soon as M-21 opened his door, Tao dashed in, making a beeline for M-21's bed. He jumped before M-21 could say anything, rolling and wriggling all over it, his paws paddling the air.

"...You're still yourself," M-21 with a sigh, a smile twitching up the corners of his mouth. He already knew that, but the reconfirmation was nice.

"Get off," M-21 said, shaking his head as he walked over.

Tao grumbled, his tail sweeping over M-21's blanket.

"We're sleeping on the floor." Because the three of them might be able to squeeze onto M-21's bed now, but when Takeo and Tao transformed back, that was going to be more of a problem.

Tao tilted his head at him and then hopped off, tugging the blanket off in one go.

Only the pillow didn't make it, and Takeo collected that in a gentle grasp, setting it down on the top of the blanket.

M-21 huffed, his smile a little wider as he said, "Thanks."

Tao whined, pawing at M-21's thigh.

"I meant both of you," M-21 said as he straightened out the blanket.

Tao perked up at that again.

Once M-21 was done, he lay down, and Takeo and Tao curled up on either side of him. They were warm, furry and each breath tickled his skin.

While Takeo and Tao drifted off, M-21 couldn't sleep. He hadn't been tired when all this had started, and he didn't want to sleep, just in case he missed something.

He watched them, listening to their breathing, trying to see a shift. Tao hadn't taken long to transform, but maybe it would be different when they transformed back. If they transformed back.

...They had to. They... M-21 bit his lip, not taking his eyes off them. This couldn't be like their usual transformations — Takeo and Tao would have died by now if it was.

Tao shuddered, and M-21 felt his fur rippling. Takeo followed a second after.

The transformation back took as much time as the usual one, and M-21 breathed a sigh of relief. They were naked like he'd expected them to be, their skin burning hot. Their faces were calm though, with no trace of fur there, and they were cooling quickly, so M-21 wasn't too worried about that.

They'd transformed back, but did they have their minds again? Should he wake them up to check? He didn't want to wait to find out, but they had to be exhausted after that.

Tao's face scrunched up and he nosed at M-21's shoulder before his eyes flew open. Hie eyes were normal, his pupils round instead of slitted.

"M-?" Tao croaked. He frowned, and then cleared his throat, peeking at Takeo. "...Okay, did we have sex and I forgot about it?"

M-21 made a noise between a snort and a laugh, glad Tao was back. Either Tao's words or M-21's reaction woke Takeo up, who lifted a hand to scrub at his head.

"What happened...?"

"We didn't have sex last night," M-21 cut in before Tao could start.

"Last thing I remember," Tao said instead, flicking M-21's nose, "was tryin' ta text M because-" Tao's eyes widened and his jaw dropped.

"I wasn't even near a window!" Tao cried out.

"Don't think the transformation cares," M-21 said, snorting.

"We...transformed...?" Takeo said, frowning.

"Not all of us," Tao said, picking at M-21's collar. "Someone didn't wreck his clothes for once."

M-21 rolled his eyes. He would have batted Tao's hand away, but his arms were trapped under Tao and Takeo. And Tao knew that, judging by his grin.

"Your clothes are fine," M-21 told them. "Takeo's are in his bedroom, and yours are in the security room.

"And Frankenstein thinks I didn't transform because I gradually got stronger rather than having the full strength straight away," M-21 said to Tao's unasked question.

"Was the transformation different than usual?" Takeo asked. "I can't think how we ended up losing our trousers."

Oh. Right. "You were wolves. Complete wolves."

"M," Tao said, pushing himself up to look M-21 in the eyes better. "This is a very important question: did you film us?"

"...I was more worried about if you were going to be permanently stuck like that to think about doing that." M-21 huffed. "And you've got your security cameras to see what you look like anyway." That was all he needed, right?

"But those are all far off and bad angles!" Tao wailed, flopping back onto M-21's shoulder. "None of those are close-ups!"

M-21 rolled his eyes. "If it happens again-" And it probably would. "-I'll film you both."

"Thanks, M!" Tao kissed him on the cheek, and Takeo followed him a second after.

"If this happened because we don't have enough control over our transformations yet," Takeo said, "we still have a lot of catching up to do."

It still felt weird hearing that, but M-21 caught his habitual comment before he said them out loud.

Tao beamed at him, and then nodded. "Yup! What's the time anyway?"

Takeo raised his head to look at M-21's bedside table. "Almost three."

"Perfect time for a sorta midnight snack!" Tao hopped to his feet. "I am starving."

"Tao..." M-21 said, huffing. "Clothes."

"...Oh, yeah." Tao snickered. "We should start keeping our clothes in each others' rooms just in case."

"I thought some of your clothes were here anyway," M-21 said with a snort. Most of their clothes were similar enough and close to the same size they sometimes mixed up whose clothes were whose. And that was before they borrowed each other's clothes. But going into their rooms meant he would find their clothes faster than digging through his own.

"I'll go get your clothes," M-21 said as he got up. Aside from Frankenstein, the others shouldn't be up, but it would be better if Takeo and Tao weren't accidentally seen naked.

It didn't take him long to grab something for Takeo and Tao to wear, and by the time he got back, his bed had already been made.

"Thanks, M!" Tao said as Takeo nodded, both of them taking their clothes and slipping them on.

Once they were done, Takeo and Tao drew him into a hug, and M-21 hugged them back.

It only took them a few minutes to get something to eat but M-21 was already yawning by then.

"Did you sleep?" Takeo asked, watching him with a small concerned frown.

M-21 shook his head, another yawn taking him before he could answer.

"Then it's time to go back to bed," Tao said, ushering them back upstairs.

M-21 blinked when Takeo and Tao didn't walk towards their own rooms, staying with M-21 when he opened his own door.

"Weeell," Tao said, "you had a good idea with the floor bedding."

"And you'd stayed up to make sure we were all right," Takeo added.

"So we thought we should make sure you sleep all right too!"

"...You just want to sleep with me."

"There's that too, heh."

"All right," M-21 said. They pulled the blanket off his bed again, and he saw both Takeo and Tao yawning from the corner of his eyes. So the transformation had tired them out too.

"M, go lie down so I can use you as a pillow already," Tao said, sitting on top of the blanket.

"You could go to your room and grab your pillow," M-21 said, lying down.

"But that's waaay over in my room and you're right here!" Tao snuggled up against him as soon as M-21 stopped moving. "Plus, you feel way better than a pillow."

M-21 snorted, and then felt Takeo's hand slip into his as Takeo lay down next to him.

With the warmth of Takeo and Tao surrounding him, M-21's eyes were already growing heavier and he drifted off to sleep.

Written for madameazzure's prompt, 'Let's say Tao and Takeo have become werewolves because M-21 had bit them (to save their lives or something; let's ignore Dark Spear for now) and now it's their first full moon, so M-21 gotta help them get through it (assuming he doesn't lose control anymore). Basically a instinctual werewolf!Tao, a instinctual werewolf!Takeo, and a very annoyed M-21 trying to keep them from making a mess'. I kiiinda strayed from the original prompt, haha...

So had some fun with making Takeo and Tao's transformations a little more individual, heh.

The final scene was going to involve M-21 deciding to kiss them both on the cheek, or have him think about how this had all started with a kiss and how things had changed, but it was still a little too early for him, hah.