entrancelogs | [CLOSED] Stalked in the forest, too close to hide;

Entry tags:

[CLOSED] Stalked in the forest, too close to hide;

Who: Angel, Kaneki & Ryoko
Where: The woods, Neverland.
When: The night of 10/22.
Rating: R
Summary: Some Lost Ones are glad to see outsiders, but that doesn't mean they're friendly.
The Story:

[Though outsiders were generally deemed unwelcome in Wonderland, there are those among the Lost Ones' numbers who have a particular use for intruders-- a hunger that too often goes unfulfilled for the sake of preserving their sense of belonging. While some of the Lost Ones plan to use arrows and swords to dispose of the invaders, Angel's own weapons are more closely concealed.

The scent of blood mingled with the reek of someplace other than Neverland are enough to help him find his prey's trail, silently moving through the trees as he listens for a snap of twigs or rustle of leaves to indicate that someone else is close. Finally, a sound does come, piercing the night air-- but it's not prey he hears moving behind him. Instead, he smells kin: another like him, Lost and hungry for something other than wild game.

He turns halfway, looking over his shoulder for the source.]

I can smell you. Might as well come out.

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[Kaneki keeps his dietary habits as secret as he can in a place so usually cut off from outside. Even among misfit children, his type isn't one that most would want around.

He smells blood in the air ahead of him as well and pauses. It's not human blood, not quite, and he's not sure if it's something he can eat in that case. It might be worth it to try, but--

He jumps a little when he's addressed and then does slink out of the brush, feeling a little foolish. Though he can be vicious when he's caught his prey, he's not the best of hunters to begin with. Chalk it up to inexperience.]

I could smell you, too.

[His tone is a little defensive, but only because he feels embarrassed for being found out so easily.]

[Angel smirks when Kaneki reveals himself, turning fully to fold his arms across his chest, looking him over as if sizing him up.]

We're on the same side. Not worried about you smelling me.

[Kaneki, after all, isn't food.]

The outsiders probably can't smell or hear either of us.

[Angel smells too saturated in blood for Kaneki to think of him as food. He might be able to choke him down if he absolutely had to, but there wasn't a reason for him to try it. Something in him tells him that might be a Bad Idea.]

You're looking for one? [That's mostly a statement, while the follow up is a genuine question.] Have you found anything?

Of course. Not every day we get dinner just delivered to the island.

[Feeding off the wildlife is enough to help him get by, but it's not the same-- his older self would have been horrified at the thought of willingly turning back to human blood, but for this Angel, he's gone way too long without.]

There's one not too far ahead. A girl. Shouldn't be able to hear us from where she is, but she's left a trail. Easy to follow.

[It would be nice if Kaneki could eat wildlife. His diet is a little more particular, which makes things very awkward and difficult. You can't exactly start eating the people you live with in a closed off location; things tend to get very unpleasant if you do.]

You don't mind sharing? Then I'll come. I should be able to kill her quickly.

[It's possible she wouldn't even see it coming in a literal sense. He hasn't eaten in a while, so he can't promise his kagune will work as it should, but even if it doesn't, there are other ways to kill her.]

I've got no use for them after I drink.

[He shrugs casually, turning his attention back towards the path ahead.]

It's the meat you need, isn't it? We're not so different, you and I.

Ah, yeah. [Kaneki starts to move along the path again, trying to be quieter than before.] I can eat after you're done.

[It feels a little like eating table scraps but, really, there's much more meat in a body than blood. Even without the blood, humans taste good.]

I won't drain her dry.

[He smirks knowingly, though his voice drops to something barely above a whisper. He prefers not to drink from the dead if he can help it, anyway.]

Plenty for both of us. Who knows? If all goes well, maybe we'll catch a few more. It's like the island has turned into a buffet.

[Left a trail is right, Ryoko's been sort of trampling her way through the woods, unsure of where to go or what's even going on. She doesn't remember being separated from everyone else here or how she got here, all she knows is she has to keep running. If she stops, she hears whispers, and she doesn't want anything to do with what they're telling her, no matter whose voice she's hearing.

So she just continues trying to flee, completely unaware that there's other things in the forest she should would about besides the things in her own head.]

[Kaneki is trying to figure out how the heck he would store meat in a place like this, because a lot of food now doesn't help him in the long run. He doesn't get far before he smells food and pauses, hearing her just a second later. He glances at Angel as though to see if he wants Kaneki to make the first move. He'll gladly do so, but doesn't want this to be entirely uncoordinated.]

[Angel catches a stronger hint of her scent, as well, stopping dead in his tracks as he turns his head towards the not-so-distant crunch of leaves underfoot as their prey makes her way through the woods. She's not far, and he's willing to bet that neither he nor Kaneki operate at human speed.]

How fast are you?

[He keeps his voice low as he asks, eyes carefully trained in Ryoko's direction. He can see movement in the distance, and he crouches to duck himself out of her immediate field of view should she glance in their direction.]

[Hey, don't worry, it should be pretty easy to get the drop on her. She's not exactly the Super High School Level Track And Field Star, and even if she was, it's not like she'd remember that in the first place.

In fact, maybe if she were paying attention, she might've noticed something move out of her line of sight, but even then, she might not have. She's pretty rattled from this whole thing, muttering the same thing over and over.]

...nothing to do with me...nothing to do with me...nothing to do with me...

[It's just a string of that over and over as Ryoko makes a terrible life choice and turns around to yell at...nothing. She's pretty sure she heard someone behind her, but there's nothing there. Thanks Neverland, like she didn't have enough problems without the whispering and hallucinations.]

This has nothing to do with me, so just leave me alone!

[Kaneki had been about to answer - "faster than a human" - but Ryoko's yelling distracts him. It seems like now is the moment and comparing speeds to see who's better suited to attack first would probably waste the opportunity.

He darts out of the brush, half running and half leaping so that he knocks Ryoko to the ground. Despite the fact that Angel is the one who needs the blood and not him, being so close to a human when he really is hungry makes it too hard to not bite her. At least he goes for her upper arm, biting through her clothes and into her bicep.

As soon as he tastes blood, his left eye floods with blood and his kagune creeps out of his lower back, two arms on either side of him, curved like very sharp spider's legs.]

[Angel covers ground quickly in the moments after Kaneki attacks, moving almost too fast to be seen by the human eye, but even as Kanki's kagune is revealed, the vampire grabs hold of Ryoko's shoulder as he crouches beside her, equal parts laying his own claim and helping to keep her pinned with his inhuman strength.]

Now, now.

[He gives Kaneki a knowing look, clucking his tongue softly.]

Remember to share.

[For a moment, all that really registers with Ryoko is this guy with this weird...thing coming out of his back, what is that, they don't have those, she's pretty sure she's never seen this guy before. She hasn't even really processed that she's on the ground yet. It simply hasn't occurred to her. And then something does...

Pain.

It's not that she's a stranger to it, she might not remember it, but she's had a few painful experiences lately back home. Being grabbed by Madarai, Enoshima gouging at her tongue, there's definitely been pain, but really nothing like this.

What's worse is she can't even move to try and survey the damage or see how bad it is, not with that guy holding her down. It would be unpleasantly familiar to her if she could remember things from back home, but without her notebook, she has no hope of doing so.]

I don't know what's going or why this is happening, but I don't think...

[Hang on, that thought's brought to an abrupt halt by the pain. This would be the part where she says this has nothing to do with her, but she can't help but think that these two really don't seem to care, do they?]

[Kaneki's eyes dart to Angel, ignoring Ryoko entirely, and he barely stops himself from taking another bite just to spite him. Or at least he'd like to think it was spite and not ravenous hunger. Regardless of the reason, instead of continuing, he pulls back a little. It's hard to do with the smell of flesh and blood right under his nose, but he manages it.]

I know that.

[If his tone was defensive before, it's more than irritated now. This is why ghouls rarely hunt in groups. But Kaneki had said he would wait until Angel had what he needed from her. He can only have the blood, after all, and Kaneki can eat everything but her bones.]

[The vampire glowers at him in turn, overlooking Ryoko's objections. Until she starts screaming, he's not interested in what she has to say-- typical, when it comes to his victims. He flashes a brief smile at his momentary partner-in-crime, too wide and showing too many teeth.]

That's better.

[If they have to slug it out afterwards to work out their aggravation with one another, all the better. It's been awhile since he's gotten to throw down with someone who's more than human.

He lowers his mouth to the side of Ryoko's neck, letting fangs brush against flesh without breaking the skin, inhaling deeply despite having no need for breath.]

Wriggle if you want, sweetheart. More fun that way.

[More fun? This is absolutely the least fun thing she can ever remember happening to her? Nope, no fun at all. No fun to be had here at all. Fun has taken a vacation and left these two behind to babysit her apparently.]

Help! Somebody, please!

[She's not expecting help, this isn't the part of the story where her hero rides in on a white horse and saves her from the evil whatever these guys are. That never happens to her, it's just a gut feeling. Her notebook, of course, would validate it. Nobody comes to save her that's actually good. No, it's always she gets saved by something worse. And something worse probably isn't going to stumble along today.]

Why...why are you doing this?

[It's quieter this time, she'll probably start screaming again once they start, but nobody's coming to save her, are they? It's hopeless, nobody's coming to save her. She's completely doomed, and has zero chance of escaping. Even if she remembered her talent, it wouldn't do her any good here, no, no good at all.

Even her question is pointless, there's no reason for her to ask why, even if she wasn't going to die, she wouldn't remember what they told her. But still, she can't help but ask it, if anything she's afraid to hear the answer, she can't shake the feeling it's going to make it worse, but still, there it is.]

[It's a pretty stupid question after one guy just took a bite out of her and the other is caressing her neck with his teeth, but Kaneki still shrugs and answers. Despite the apparent nonchalance of the motion, his voice is earnest.]

We're hungry.

[He's going to wait all of another fifteen seconds for Angel to get started feeding, because that's about all he can stand with her bleeding. He's not sure that he likes that, having lost some blood, she'll be easier for him to rip chunks out of, but it is what it is. Food that's easily gotten is a blessing more often than not.

He smiles and speaks again, although he has this feeling she's not going to remember.]

You're here and you were easy to catch.

Don't really need more reason than that, do we?

[The scent of blood mingled with a strong undercurrent of fear is too much for him to resist any longer. His fangs finally break the skin, hot blood flowing over his tongue in a way he hasn't felt in ages.

There's nothing like human blood. Nothing else even comes close.]

[She'd love to say that's not a good reason. In fact, it's a terrible reason. That conclusion and how they reached it is so bad, that it has nothing to do with her. But instead of that, she's just screaming because what else can she do? She's screaming and kicking her legs like she's trying to get away, but she just can't seem to break free.

Not that she can remember her talent either, but given the state of panic she's in, even if she could, no matter what she looks at, she can't see anything that would help her in this situation, no, it's just completely hopeless. No one is coming to save her, not a stranger, not Matsuda, she can't even save herself. The fact of the matter is that no matter how much she protests that this has nothing to do with her, no matter what she thinks, she is going to die and nothing will change that.

And with that realization, the understanding of how bleak her future is, how nonexistent it is, she tries to get a better look at Angel, and then glances over at Kaneki, who hasn't even started in on her yet (Though with what he did to her arm, she hopes she won't be alive to experience whatever he's going to do.). Without her notebook, Ryoko won't remember their faces, at the moment, she doesn't even remember that death isn't permanent in Wonderland. She just wants to get a good look at them while she still can. Because when she dies, these two had everything to do with it.]

[Kaneki stares back at her while he waits for Angel. He can't shake this feeling that he knows her from somewhere, but he quickly diverts that thought every time it surfaces. It doesn't matter, none of that matters. She's trespassing and she's food, and that's all he needs to care about.

Kaneki is merciful enough not to eat her alive. He's not sure how much Angel needs to drink to be satisfied, but he trusts his own judgment above anyone else's. When it's time for him to start eating, he uses the arms of his kagune to stab her in the throat and the chest. She should die quickly, or at least that's what he's hoping for, and once she does, he's going to eat until either she's gone or he can't anymore, whichever comes first.]

[His lips are stained with blood when he finally releases his hold on her, leaving neat puncture wounds behind, dragging his tongue across them to claim what little he'd managed to spill. She's still alive, but he'd felt her fearful heart begin to slow as he drank, her pulse growing slower against his lips.

His fingers remain tightly clenched against her shoulder, but he inclines his head towards Kaneki, conceding.]

Do your worst.

[By the time Angel's finished with her, she's quieted down a lot, both from the blood loss and from the realization of how dire her situation is. For real this time, there's not going to be another outburst from her. She doesn't have the energy to do something like that, and even if she did, it's pointless, so why bother?

No, she'll just lie here and wait for the end. At least she can go out thinking about what's important to her. That's something, right?]

[Watching a ghoul eat directly from a corpse - and he makes sure Ryoko's a corpse before starting to eat - isn't a pretty sight. If he weren't so hungry, he could have cut her into smaller pieces with his kagune, but it doesn't even occur to him.

It's also not pretty to see just how happy he is about eating.]

[Angel steps back just enough to avoid any splatter, watching his temporary partner with some mixture of horror and satisfaction.

Well. Seeing as he typically likes to play with his own food, he's not really one to judge.]

You don't hold back, do you?

[Finished, Kaneki wipes some blood away from his mouth with his sleeve, suddenly self-conscious, as though he hadn't just been ripping into a corpse.]

...I was hungry.

Fair enough.

[As though Angel hasn't done far worse with far less reason.]

In the mood to go hunting for seconds?

[Kaneki hesitates for just a moment before nodding. It's best if he eats as much as possible now - it will hold him over for longer that way.]

Let's go, then. [He gets to his feet, brushing himself off as much as he can.]

[Angel grins broadly, his smile a little too sharp and too white.]

Race you to the next one.

[He gives no other warning, only winks at Kaneki before he takes off at inhuman speed, disappearing into the trees.]

H-hey!

[Kaneki is much faster than a human, but he isn't prepared for Angel's speed. He takes off after him, having to work to keep up for once. At least if he loses him, he can find him again by smell.]

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[CLOSED] Stalked in the forest, too close to hide;

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okay let's get this disaster started!

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...pretend that would up there said worry.

I wouldn't worry about it (also wow he is doing this sooner than I expected sorry)

this is gonna be hella awkward after the event, isn't it.

VERY AWKWARD, also if you guys let her live for another tag, it'll probably be worse later on

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