softspokenlandlord | IC Inbox

Don't feel pressured to accept it. But...

[Atem leans his arms on the outside-facing rail of the fire escape, looking down toward the landing just below them, on the 7th floor level. There's a person there who's standing very still. They're not dead; their brain is still firing, making the little microcorrections to muscle snd tendon needed to maintain balance. The lights are on --

-- but nobody's home.]

I got an opportunity to feed on the way home. That guy...his soul's gone already!

[A Sherlock-scan, especially with a werewolf's senses, will turn up a little bit of information. This guy has deep frown lines in his forehead and jaw, showing age and cut so far into his skin that it's hard to imagine his face in a softer expression. His hair is thinning but dark, and smells; compare that with the rumpled clothes that are embellished but not good quality and rings on a few fingers but no wedding band and you've got a guy who cares a lot about appearances, who's aging disgracefully, and very likely unmarried. He smells of expensive cigars, a box of them in his pocket; a pricey vice.

Atem gestures down at him.]

Want to have the rest?

[The moment his head's outside, Ryou gets a pretty good whiff of the man just below them, and it's not flattering, to put it simply. He doesn't care for the smell of this guy. Then again, he doesn't really have to like his external scent to want to eat him, does he?

And...after all the energy he'd expended running back and forth between Kulen and Bavan, he definitely is hungry. Just seeing the human below, still and soulless, makes his stomach tighten, a reminder that "hey you've been asleep for a long time, maybe it's time to eat now."

...It's a nice little override to the general malaise he's been feeling. As if he knows eating will make everything better. Atem will probably have his answer before Ryou even speaks, just from context clues; Ryou's eyes seem to sharpen, and as he leans further over the edge with his too-long neck, he licks his lips, noisily. Obviously.]

I wouldn't mind that at all, but...Atem, I'm a messy eater, you know...

[It's one thing to eat human parts at home, small and simple. But eating a whole person could be off-putting.

At this point though, Atem can't very well take the offer back. Ryou's eyes are trained on the human husk below, very, very interested.]

That's okay. You won't be eating him here!

[A messy eater....what a cute way to put that.]

When a demon takes a soul, they have power over the body that's left, for a little while...

[The body below them takes off running down the stairs, faster than you'd guess this guy ever moved in life, leather-shod feet pounding on the metal. He richochets off the guardrail on some of the landings like a wrestler on the ropes; that's got to hurt, or would, if there were any person left in there to process pain. Once he hits the bottom, he'll head for the street, ducking into an alley Atem knows about.

The demon grins at Ryou.]

Go get 'im!

[The game of chase has already started!]

[Well. That's just unfair. Ryou's immediate instinct would have been to chase and hunt like this anyway, but there's a whole other layer added on with Atem encouraging him to do it.

Being given permission immediately spurs him into acting without a single iota of hesitation. Hell, he doesn't even say anything, because if he talks then he might lose the guy at this rate!

So, Ryou snakes the rest of his body out onto the fire escape and after stretching himself along down to the sixth floor, he coils up like a spring and jumps. It takes a few long moments before he touches down on the ground, but it was a pretty big shortcut, so Atem's going to have to pilot this guy pretty quickly if he intends to keep ahead of his very motivated werewolf boyfriend.]

[The body isn't in great shape, but Atem doesn't care to preserve its muscles. He pushes it as hard as it can go, running full-tilt into the alley.

When Ryou reaches it, Atem will be perched like a gargoyle on one of the low rooftops, staying in line of sight of the target. Atem has him frantically climb up some pallets leaned against the side of a wall, so that he can scramble up and over a fence: he's in the pool area now. He might make up a little ground, since Atem has him jump onto his stomach and slide across the icy tarp that covers it this time of year at top speed, scrambling out and climbing the chain-link fence on the opposite side.

It's like a game for Atem -- like Dyster Dragracing. He's got to find the path that gives him the most speed boosts, that puts the most obstacles in Ryou's way, so that the chase can be drawn out as long as possible....

....it's fun.]

[Ryou bolts into the alley, losing some momentum because of the smaller area to work with. He can smell Atem, but that's not what he's worried about right now. No, the most important thing is keeping a bead on the husk that's currently not behaving like a husk at all. Ryou takes a leap, clearing the fence easily while trying to avoid the pool since he'd definitely trip up there. He loses time on that, as expected, but gains a second or two on jumping over the fence again.

They're pretty evenly matched, but Ryou's determined. It helps that he has his tail for counterbalancing his ridiculously long body and the overexaggerated movements it makes.]

I'm...going to catch...you!

Heh heh heh!

[Ryou turns the fence, turns the corner, and....

...where did the guy go?

Ryou will have to do some sniffing around. The man's left a trail, Ryou has his scent...where could he have gone to? There's a dumpster, a storm drain, a big old-fashioned standalone mailbox, and, of course, the other ends of the alley....

But there's no visible sign of him.

If Ryou follows his nose, it'll lead him to the mailbox. The man pulled the top off and climbed in to try to hide!! Ryou will have to get him out, somehow.

Atem's still following at rooftop-level, gliding from ledge to ledge. He's settled close enough to watch comfortably, one leg dangling from the edge of the roof.]

[Ryou skids to a stop once he's faced with...basically a puzzle. He takes a moment to breathe, cool off, and take in his surroundings. Hmm...there's not that many places that the man could have gone, so this shouldn't be hard.

Ryou's nostrils flare as he takes in a deep breath, sampling the air. Hmm...he still smells you, Atem, and he glances up just to prove he does, though he has no intention of making a big deal. If Atem wasn't here, the human wouldn't be moving.

Furthermore, the human is pretty easy to find. Ryou doesn't even hesitate--he pads slowly towards the mailbox, still sniffing loudly. His nose is probably taking the fun out of this, but when you can smell prey a mile away...it's not unusual.

One paw presses against the base of the mailbox, testing its sturdiness, its stability. Atem would have chosen this hiding spot for a reason. Dumpster was too easy. Storm drain was too complicated--they'd both have to go underground. Why was this the best choice?]

[It's stable -- bolted to the ground. Monster strength will take care of that, though.

Atem picked it because it'd keep the man relatively clean -- no making Ryou eat out of a dumpster, and who knows what's in a storm drain -- and because Ryou will have to force it open and pull the man out. It'll be tricky with wolf paws, and maybe it'll be like pulling an animal out of a burrow, or like a treat inside a rubber toy.

He watches peacefully from the rooftop, as Ryou decides how to approach. When he's looked up at, Atem winks. Go on, get him!]

[Ryou circles around the mailbox, giving it a thorough once over as he tries to figure out how he man got in, but then he remains in position, with his body coiled around it like a serpent. At that point, he rakes his claws along the back, searching for any seams and creating an ungodly scratching noise for a brief moment. That said, the scratching does more than just leave ineffectual marks--he put enough force in to dent the box, just a bit.

He's letting his instinct pilot him a little at this point, which is why he presses his snout to the letter drop and tries to lick the inside far enough to reach the man. But...that doesn't really work. How frustrating.

Ryou pulls back, his lip curling in annoyance and disgust because public mailboxes taste unpleasant. Then he uncoils from the mailbox and backs away--

--only to then charge it and ram his paws against the center of mass to rip it from the ground. He is getting in there.

[A peal of wicked but delighted laughter echoes through the alley. Ryou's gotta get in there!

The mailbox falls over with a clang! It rolls heavily in the snow a few feet, back and forth, sluggish. No weak seams on the back, but the metal is dented. There are places Ryou's claws could sink into to rip it open, but the easiest way in is to pull off the lid.]

[The laughter causes Ryou's ears to rotate towards the sound, and for a moment it cuts past his instinct and reminds him that this is also providing amusement to Atem. He's not upset about it either, honestly. Atem laughing earnestly like that is rather nice!

It clears his head some, lets him think just a bit more critically. He could just pull the lid off. He could. But that wouldn't be very amusing, would it. And Ryou's hunting instinct still lurks at the edges of his mind, reminding him of the promised satisfaction if he just gave into the urge to bite, claw, tear.

After all, why shouldn't he rip the mailbox open? He's strong, probably stronger than he'll ever be after this month. Better give his demon boyfriend a show and a half!

So...he raises a paw, then slams it down on the mailbox, sinking his claws in. The impact stings a little, because it is metal he's trying to claw open, but it works well enough. He growls deeply as his entire foreleg tenses, pulling his claws down with another loud screech. By the time he's pulled his paw away, there's four massive channels opened from top to bottom, like the world's least efficient can opener. Ryou proceeds to hook the claws of both forepaws into one of the gashes, then pull with a similar strength. This time though, his pads are creating a cushion--he doesn't tear the metal, he forces the metal apart with his strength only.

...It's a heady tonic, the thought that he could do this. He'll miss this power terribly.]

[Of course, Atem tells the human shell to run! run! Climb out! Get away!

An attempt will be made. Maybe the human clambers out and gets a few feet down the street. Maybe he doesn't even get out of the mailbox. Either way, the game isn't over until it's over, and Ryou will be fought until the man's last, soulless breath!]

[And it is in fact a very valiant attempt! But the human is climbing out directly into the jaws of a werewolf. There's no way he'd get away unscathed.

As soon as he's halfway out of the mailbox, Ryou's teeth snap closed on his forearm. There's a loud crunch followed by a sickening tearing, the sound of flesh and bone being ripped clean through. It allows Atem the opportunity to pilot his game piece some distance away, less part of his arm, while Ryou devours what he'd torn off. But that will be the last time Ryou will be playing around. He whirls once he's swallowed down the arm, his eyes practically glowing as he prepares to jump into action again.

The wolf has been activated.]

Edited 2021-12-12 22:32 (UTC)

[Any other Atem might have blinked at the amount of violence Ryou Bakura is inflicting on a fleeing victim.

This one, though, is just having fun watching his boyfriend have a good time as Atem runs his puppet-victim like it's a platform game. The man sure does make a break for it, but the next corner, the next alley, the next bit of shelter, is a good thirty feet away...

He's not gonna make it.]

[Thirty feet is a long way to run for a human that's bleeding out from a grievous injury, isn't it? Ryou, on the other hand, covers over half the distance in seconds, slamming the human face first onto the ground with the weight of one massive forepaw. Claws dig into the man's back, and Ryou presses in harder as his lips pull back, revealing massive fangs that are still covered in blood from the arm.

All of the fur along Ryou's back stands on end, and it's not from anger. It's from anticipation, as his jaws open wider, wider--

--and he bites the man's neck, almost completely severing his head because of how big he is in this form.

That should be the end of that. If it is, Ryou then takes the opportunity to step off of the human and flip him onto his back. Atem's about to learn which part of his prey Ryou likes eating first.]

[He watches curiously from the rooftop. This seems like an important thing to know about his boyfriend, since the temporary change is going to stretch through the whole month.

Atem doesn't interrupt. The man can't move anymore. The game is over, his neck snapped, his body lifeless as well as soulless. He's just here to watch. What parts does Ryou eat? What does he leave? What should Atem prepare, later in the month, when Ryou's a more reasonable size?]

[Claws scrape down the human's chest, shredding his shirt and laying open his flesh partially...but most of the work is done by Ryou's fangs. He opens his jaws wide again, then closes them on the man's side, teeth sinking in past skin and muscle and spilling still-warm blood onto his tongue.

Now his eyes are definitely glowing. Nothing like his shade eyes, but definitely a callback with the way the irises nearly blank out the pupils. There's no artful dissection here, just Ryou swallowing a chunk of flesh, then his lip curling back as he takes hold of the remaining skin flap and peels it back to reveal fat and musculature which oozes blood onto the ground below. Then, and only then, does he bite more viciously, feasting through that and into the man's innards. The soft flesh there seems to be the first place his instinct tells him to go, and he doesn't mind. In fact, he likes it.

Which is very, very alarming when he's not feeding! But it doesn't figure in while he's eating. Soft tissues good.

The sounds he makes are not the most attractive as he gorges himself on the human, but once he's consumed the internal organs, he does move on to sawing off a few ribs with his molars. In his fog form it's way easier than he would expect, and he crunches the bones into smaller, digestible pieces before moving on to licking at the remaining ribs, passing his tongue across the bones to pull meat off. Sure, his tongue isn't as rough as Tybolt's, but it's not soft either. It's functional.]

[Huh. What Atem takes away from all this is, so, sausage might be good...

He hopes that guy didn't eat anything too terrible before Atem caught him. If there's poison in his stomach or liver, Atem's sure the fog's healing factor will take care of it -- after all, none of the nagas who eat people whole have caught prion disease! But that doesn't mean Atem wants Ryou to end up with indigestion because Atem fed him a gross human.

Priorities.

Anyway, Atem's own stomach doesn't turn at all. There's nothing to feel bad about. This guy's soul was long gone. Ryou, if Atem knows him, won't feel bad at all about this kill, and he got to have a good time chasing him down and tearing up a mailbox to get at him. This should go some way towards replenishing the energy Ryou burned through on the 4th.]

[Priorities.

Ryou's pretty sure he could eat roadkill and be fine, but thus far he has avoided giving in to the wolf on that. No, fresh kills are much better. It's interesting, how very easily he can digest bones like this.

Once Ryou's cleaned the rib bones off and ground them down with his molars, he sets about eating the rest of the guy. It's pretty methodical, and he's fairly large, so he's not going to leave anything to waste, not even the head. It takes a few minutes of work, but he tears the man apart one limb at a time, wolfing him down until the only thing left is a tattered pile of bloody clothing...and one shoe.

Where the hell did the other one go?

...Listen. Ryou lost track of it. It's fine. He may or may not have eaten it. Who knows.

Once he's pretty much finished, he seeks out wherever Atem's settled himself. The excitement of the run and the fixation of feeding is starting to ease back, and so he can focus now.]

...Sorry if that took a while. Feeding is...well, it's all-encompassing.

[Atem is probably aware of that, when it comes to Ryou. Even as a shade, he was a vicious eater. If it was anyone but Atem, and maybe Mukuro...he'd feel more ashamed. But Mukuro's a werewolf too, and Atem has seen him eat before, in one form or another.]

[....there is literally nothing left. Ryou even ate the bones. And maybe a shoe.

That -- that makes him have to suppress a wicked little laugh. Atem keeps quiet because he doesn't want to interrupt, but...the whole guy! Honestly!]

Do you always eat the whole guy in one go, or is it just because your stomach is bigger than usual?

[Ryou at least has the decency to look a little self-conscious at that question. He's sure that Atem's right, his stomach being bigger than usual made it much easier to devour an entire human.

The whole guy!

But...was it gluttonous? Too much, maybe? He's pretty sure that soon it's going to catch up with him and he'll have to flop somewhere, even at a size like this...but it was really good, and he doesn't like wasting!]

U-um, no, I don't--I usually bring some home, actually. I keep it in the fridge for later.

[...Ryou frowns suddenly. Something...doesn't feel right. It's not settling well, like he's got something caught where it doesn't belong. Eugh, no, this is gross...

He goes stiff, bracing himself on his paws, then starts to cough. It sounds very uncomfortable, almost like he's going to be ill. But then he finally gives one extra-loud hack and horfs up a piece of chewed leather and nothing else.

...Ah. Okay. There's the shoe.]

Ugh...maybe I was...a little too enthusiastic about it.

[Mumbled quietly, or as quietly as a long dog can mumble it.]

[Oh, ew. Atem makes a face as he catches a whiff of a pretty evil smell.]

Yuck.

I thought you were only supposed to eat shoe leather when you're starving...

[He shakes his head, then pushes himself off the roof-edge and glides down to the ground, carefully avoiding all mess. His hooves crunch against the snow.]

S-sorry I didn't...I didn't mean to eat it. I was just--he...you got me all excited about it!

[Ryou backs away from the nasty, chewed up shoe covered in spit and bile, looking deeply embarrassed. One paw comes up to wipe at his own maw, but there's more blood than anything else, so he smears that around instead, which of course means he has to lick it off his paw and...ugh. Ugh he's so gross.]

Don't look...I'm awful.

[Bad wolf. Very bad.]

[--he breaks into laughter again. It's not meant to be mean, it's just that Ryou sounds so miserable, about coughing up a shoe--! And being dirty!

Very fondly:]

You're really messy....

[It's the clear affection in his tone that keeps this from being a neg.]

Luckily, you're a good hunter, so that guy didn't get far. Come on, let's get you home and cleaned up. I'll help!

[He puts a hand on Ryou's big wolfish shoulders to guide him back toward the 38-8.]

That guy definitely never imagined his shoes' ultimate destiny would be something like this...

[They were nice shoes, once.]

WELCOME TO YOUR PRIVATE CHANNEL, WhiteWizard. FOR SECURE COMMUNICATION, USE 007.80.751.19 * WhiteWizard has joined 007.80.751.19 <WhiteWizard> Hello, this is Ryou Bakura! <WhiteWizard> Feel free to reach out to me if you need anything. :) <WhiteWizard>** I will get back to you as soon as possible.

IC Inbox | ryslig

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cw; dismemberment, cannibalism

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cw; gore and cannibalism for the forseeable future

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cw; slight emeto

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