#dm0ll0y

[vampien]

start quote:‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎you saved my life back there.

she brings a lit cigarette up to her lips, taking an inhale to bite back the long winded and uncanny sigh that would've fallen through her teeth instead.‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ this game of theirs intrigues her, maybe from the perspective of an outsider, someone who cares for armand‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎––-‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎or maybe because she can see an endgame from miles away, slipping in and out of @dm0ll0y's mind.‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎this, she is sure, that the wish of the boy is different from the wish of ancient vampire‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎(one of the closest things she has ever had to a friend outside of her own husband).

there's a sharp narrowing of her gaze, yet without a blink, as she dances over his features.‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎perhaps a tinge of jealousy dances behind her eyes, wondering what the excitement truly feels like pumping through his veins, but she swallows it down, bringing two fingers up to pull the cigarette from her red stained lips.‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎a quick blow into the cold air slips smoke right past his ear, and with it, comes a small hum from her chest.

" yes i did. "‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎her voice is like a song, carrying with it a natural harmony that pulls even the most hesitant in‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎––-‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎at least daniel is wracked with curiosity, or so she believes it to be, so much so that it might kill him before armand would even get the chance to‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎...‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎" daniel you may feel untouchable but you're not, your body isn't, and humans can do just as much damage as our kind can. "‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎she begins to walk then, one leg crossing in front of the other with a click on concrete, with it too comes the turn of her head over her shoulder, a brow raised indicating: follow.‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎" let's go get you something to eat before you collapse. "

[tahtalard]

a locked door never proved a challenge, & surely daniel had recognized by now. perhaps a test: waiting with baited breath, armand's demonstration of effort. the kind of musings swirling around an otherwise dark room, stare fixated on the shining silver of an empty lock. trespassing into dated, half-rotted spaces. at least someone was enjoying the dingy amenities that came out daniel's pocket.

he'd wait for the boy, hoping to hear the JOYS of a fruitful day. whatever salty, fried treats found their way to his grasp. the hum of a city in limbo between life/death. maybe not vampiric lore uncovered, but some hopeful family overcoming their tragedy. or maybe a cat, no longer stuck in a tree. domestic and safe, strangely marked by despair.

wishful imagination cut short by a bloodied image before him, shadowy and small in dim lighting. impressively baroque and frightening for the mortal frame. no attempt to conceal the inhuman speed with which he crosses carpeted floors. wide-eyed concern makes quick path over daniel, stopping for breath at each crimson stain. his own shape still hidden in the dark. an apparition, half-frantic around HIS boy, deliciously wrapped in something DANGEROUS.

the silence of their encounter, broken first by @m0ll0ys. ❝ it isn't mine. ❞ still, quiet. hardly a confession of BRAVERY, armand thinks. yet what was once concern is intermingled and perhaps overshadowed by pride. ❝ NOT YOUR OWN? ❞ repetition still proves hard to believe.

he LAUGHS, a sort of relief swelling behind it & pushing the exclamation further. slender finger digs into the damp fabric, closing around it tight. ❝ and do tell whose did you spill ? ❞ splintered laughter, a cover of possessive tug underneath.

[tahtalard]

dm0ll0y " you're getting blood on the carpet..."

the tentative, almost shaky vibrato that carried daniel's words when he spoke upon such evil. a BEAM OF LIGHT, awakening armand from the trance that tugged him under tsunami of OTHER MEMORIES. a tightly wound grip of adrenaline & crash. daniel was a rhapsody of heat.

dragged back to a reality wherein he couldn’t drain the boy of such intensity, despite the icy call that pulled them both. the fluttering of umber, silencing the death knoll. sleepy drip of crimson; injury that dodged artery. messier, hardly a scar.

languid posture straightens & the laugh that rattles vampire’s frame is still strangely human from the taste. stale, smokey stench indicated perhaps whatever owner of chain had bigger fish to fry than the sticky shape that had gradually grown beneath them. still, an estimated cleaning bill would find itself paid by morning— a thin envelope left on fragile end table, made out in flowery script ‘apologies and gratitude’.

empty, again. short taste of mortal freedom abandons armand. first exodus from the chest. the chill chases those humanizing feelings to exile: sharp pain, dull highs, the joy of once again winning over death. slender fingers leave daniel’s shoulder, fall back to place in lap. he turns gaze toward cut on the boy’s neck. the first part left unspoken. ❝ and you are worried about cleanliness? ❞ non-accusing, a lift in the corner of his mouth.

[tahtalard]

dm0ll0y : ❛   hand .   hold  out  a  hand  for  my  muse  to  take .

armand's mind, elsewhere. the glittering lights of circus & fairground behind them catching his gaze as daniel spoke. an innocent wide-eyed expression takes over as he turns on his heel. overtaken by a towering, bronzed structure complete with some growling motor that pulls it around, & around, & around.

unblinking, half-focused, amber gaze UNMOVING from the shadowy ride. so enthralled by the machine that he doesn't see the hand, stuck out to pull armand along. he can sense it, though. lively heat that radiates off daniel, encroaching towards his own still shape.

does daniel think armand is stupid? the periodic broken wooden plank has yet to catch the vampire off-guard. he has no need for such FRAGILE support to keep moving along pier! he's half-tempted to swat the gesture away, a childish response to unneeded care.

skeletal digits stretch, releasing the tension that holds his form in statuesque stiffness. the cold hand lays lazily into the other. the beating in daniel's hand, warmest in the palm, a thrummed reminder of their separation.

❝ how often would you come to this? ❞ does it spark joy each entrance? do people grow weary of the predictability? does the sticky stench of sea-water and machinery grow familiar, or even more suffocating?

[tahtalard]

@m0ll0ys:❛   indulge .   find  my  muse  drinking  to  cope . + reverse :-)

he hadn't fully LEFT, as he'd made a grand show to do. daniel's intrigue in vampires only seeming to fuel a deeper wedge. the gravity of this push & pull would drag armand to other concerns, leaving daniel for however long until the STAGGERING self-destruction left armand no choice but return.

&& initial investigation proved these coastal towns frequented a six-pack or two. youthful adults kept in a dizzying comfort. && daniel, armand was convinced, could be SUGGESTIBLE.

the first drink was to be expected, offered while still rolling along busy sidewalks. perhaps even the second, intentionally sought out. it is not like he hadn't seen daniel pursue distraction in time. he'd seen the wide grin make its way across an eager face.

armand took back to his OWN efforts for the evening. he didn't care to see daniel so enchanted by the depravity surrounding the streets. he'd allow the glowing lights of city signs to draw his attention. a knowing dread settled.

yet, the growing darkness outside proved window introspection an easier feat. a glowing image, lain over a simple grey table. a prick of annoyance, forcefully stretched over the HEAT of concern. unlocked door. affronted by a sticky smell.

slender legs slide into the partnering chair with a frightening pace. ❝ sit up, shh. shh. sit up. ❞ a gentle pull on his shoulder, the soft pressure wrapped around his back to hold the boy upright. ❝ there are plenty who would grant your wish. a cruelty to ask. you are not very good at looking, it seems.❞ hummed. hopeful for a forgetful wake.

[tahtalard]

@m0ll0ys : ❛  i guess i picked the wrong time to be a human being.  ❜

❝ I SUPPOSE YOU DID. ❞ picked! choice! daniel had chosen this suicidal voyage to MURDER CAPITAL OF THE WORLD (gaudy billboard told him as much). daniel had chosen, not only a reckless mission, but to conduct such in presence of vampires— reckless themselves. & hadn't he heard mortal BEG for anything BUT humanity so soon? PICKED THE WRONG TIME! tension in tight shoulders remains despite the show of a HEAVY SIGH.

❝ though i'm not certain significant TIME CHANGE would prove much in your favor. ❞

the heat of the sun was more violent, and armand crept at a much greater distance behind daniel. the trash-ridden food, the orange-sick motels. matched species roamed the streets and yet so far armand found them to be monstrous. unpredictable. volatile. UNCIVILIZED. could devour daniel whole. ( armand didn't like competitors! )

to go unnoticed by the boy was easier here. punctured dead are little M.O. when half the town gets their meal in such fashion. still, armand had let himself be caught in the crime, stood still 'side shaded vending machine. ( slowly feeding it coins & watching the languid sacks of starch crumble into each other ).

❝ is your poor choice in humanity REASON for suicidal embarkment? or is this just a surprise upset in timing as well? you know they won't talk to their lunch. ❞

[devourcr]

( @dm0ll0y asked: “ you promised me forever. “ )

armand's frown is reflexive and immediate, brow furrowing with a mix of sadness and sympathy. as much as he wants forever, he doesn't want to give it to him. what if the gift destroyed him? destroyed them? it's easy to be human and want it. while armand never says it out loud, he never forgot how much he'd wanted the dark gift himself. how every year that passed before he finally received it had been infuriating.

but centuries gave him perspective that a young human life never could.

eternity doesn't have the same value as one mortal life. if they'd been human, wouldn't he have been happy to spend that time with daniel? with no fear of a stretching eternity or the loneliness that crept in with it. he presses his lips together thoughtfully,

❝ what is forever, daniel? would one human life not feel like forever for you? ❞

[devourcr]

( @dm0ll0y asked: “ when you didn't show up, i started to worry. “ )

armand is the hunter — not the summoned. for him to call on him initially planted a seed of disquiet in the vampire. while armand eagerly chased the mortal from city to city, he likes to keep him on edge and guessing. weeks could pass with no word and while armand might keep a distant eye on the boy, he doesn't always appear. and yet, at other times, he barely lets him have a second to breathe as he enters a new city.

this time it had been weeks.

armand watches daniel chase his vices with pure fascination, amused with how he can cave to his mortal desires while also running for his life. even when he doesn't reach out, he doesn't have to expend much energy to find him. armand watches, dips into his mind and scoops out information, and disappears until he's ready to see him again. ready to surprise him in the next city, checked into his hotel, or waiting for him at a hole in the wall bar, or at the doorstep of some lead.

the longer the gap, the more he thought he may worry about the chances of him popping up again soon. but the way he says it, it doesn't sound like that's the case this time. not when he'd been trying to reach him. had it been desperation, he wonders? and why?

and there he is, in yet another rented room, staring at daniel from the doorway — this time by request.

❝ what's happened, daniel? ❞