softspokenlandlord | IC Inbox

[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.]

[This is so embarrassing...Ryou's pretty sure that Atem doesn't care but he cares, a bit. It's so unhygienic...]

Mmmnh, fine...

[He lets himself be led, his massive tail dragging pathetically on the ground behind him. He bumps Atem's shoulder gently with his head, making sure to do so with the back of his jaw where there's not a bunch of blood. It's an affectionate move, he doesn't need to ruin it with how gross he is.]

...Thanks. I did need to eat. Just...probably shouldn't eat shoes.

[~~He has no idea that deep fried shoes are in his future.~~]

[They'll walk back together, one of Atem's hands buried in Ryou's fur.]

You should never be hungry enough that you're eating shoes. Never!

[He'll make sure of it himself.

Ryou's cleaned up, and the rest of the fog goes by more or less peacefully. However, once Ryou's back to something closer to human size, he's going to wake up one day to a really, really good smell. Atem started putting this together once Ryou fell asleep; it's meant to be a surprise. But, sooner or later, it'll probably wake his roommate up.]

[Ryou's happy to be back to his usual size--well, for being a werewolf. Not that the blanket nest thing isn't exceedingly comfortable, but his bed is way better than that. So he sleeps pretty damn good once he's back to normal.

And...he is very much woken up by a very, very nice smell. It's practically cartoonish the way his pink nose twitches and one ear slowly, slooowly flicks upward. It takes a minute for the rest of Ryou to catch up with the program, but eventually he does get up out of bed, because he has to find the source of that smell. He's certain Atem's up to something.

After throwing on a shirt--as lazily as possible because he's still groggy--Ryou finally emerges from his room, looking a little rumpled. Curiosity wins over "brush self" this time, so he definitely has bed-head and a scruffy tail.

Ryou rubs at one eye as he speaks.]

Mmmh...are you...cooking?

[He sure is, if the way he quickly shuts the oven door behind him and turns to face Ryou fast is any indication.

(No oven mitts. Heat immunity.)]

...it isn't ready yet. Go back to bed.

[It'll be ready soon, but.....! Not yet!]

Oh.

Oh, um.

[One ear flicks in surprise. S...should he go back to bed?]

Yes, uh. Okay, just tell me when...you want me out again.

[Slowly, Ryou starts to back right up into his room, and it's a miracle he doesn't trip over his own tail. He's still too tired to deal anyway, but he'll find a way to entertain himself until Atem calls him back out. Probably by thinking about food since it's in his mind now, maybe brushing his tail out since it's more work than brushing his hair at this point.

...Perhaps he'll think more critically about this fresh scenario of "My Boyfriend Is Cooking For ME?!?! That's My Job!"]

[Whew. That was close.

Anyway, the smell only gets stronger. It's a meat smell, a human meat smell, but whatever's being done to it is nice. It doesn't smell like raw human. Smells more like red meat by now.

Atem raps his knuckles on the the door, eventually:]

I hope it's not too weird to have steak for breakfast! Even if it is the afternoon...

[It's evening for Atem, since he took a nap the night before so he could babysit this during the day....]

[Ryou does brush out his tail while he's waiting, then proceeds to fidget for however much longer it takes for Atem to finish because it smells really, really good...

Truly this is some kind of wickedness, to have him wait it out...so when Atem knocks on the door, Ryou's there almost immediately, opening it in time to hear Atem insinuate that steak? Was not a breakfast food? Ha!]

Plenty of countries consider steak a breakfast food! So personally, I welcome it.

[He knows these things. He's been places!]

You didn't have to trouble yourself...b-but it smells quite good.

[Ryou's tail slowly begins to wag, because he wants it, he really, really wants to eat breakfast that his boyfriend's prepared!]

[How well-traveled. How cosmopolitan. Very handsome worldly werewolf.]

So, you're hungry?

[He asks, not like he doubts it, but like he wants Ryou to ask for it. Atem's own tail flicks back and forth, betraying a playful mood. Look, he put a lot of work into this date, and he's finding that he wants to hear it asked for. Being appreciated is great, actually?]

Edited 2021-12-30 04:23 (UTC)

[Then he's in luck, because Ryou is definitely okay with appreciating being cared for. Who wouldn't?]

I've been hungry ever since I caught a sniff of what you were doing, you know!

[His tail is wagging a little faster now, and he reaches out, taking one of Atem's hands in his own. Lead or be led, but Ryou's excited to have breakfast with you, buddy. He is ready.]

You're quite the cook, going off of that. Trust me, this nose doesn't lie.

[Big dumb werewolf nose and olfactory system.]

[The hand in his sends warmth through Atem: it is sweet and good, and he can't really describe how fond it makes him feel. His eyes, lit up (metaphorically, not with an infernal glow), rest on Ryou's face.

They're just two monsters doing their best to get by in a horror game, and when Ryou looks at him happily, Atem feels like he's winning it.]

Well, I can only really cook one thing...

[He leads Ryou by the hand to the little table off the kitchen, where a sizeable hunk of slow-cooked someone is sitting tender and marinated in front of the seat Ryou takes most often. It looks a lot like steak, sliced up into even sections, presented in the center of the plate with chopped green scallions garnishing it. There's a smaller plate of bread next to it and a glass and a few things to drink (wine? softer cider? lemon-lime club soda?) closer to the center if the table, but cooking vegetables and making them taste good is beyond what Atem's capable of. He's quite serious about what he just said -- he only knows how to do "person." There's not even eggs.

(There are eggs, just, absolutely fuckwrecked and inedible, and disposed of. An attempt was made, but he flew too close to the sun.)

Bread and steak will have to do.]

...but I'm pretty good at it.

[The excitement that Ryou feels as he's pulled along is...almost indescribable. The last time he can remember this happening, he had been all stammers and awkwardness and feeling as if he would never, ever be worthy.

Today, those feelings are silenced. Even his inadequacy is pushed so far down that it can only tickle at the edges of his mind, because this is his time with Atem.

And when he's finally brought to the table and presented with something that's for him, made by someone who he loves dearly...Ryou doesn't even speak immediately. His gold-and-black eyes flick across the entire table, taking in the sight of that beautifully cooked meat, the bread, the drinks...

It's so thoughtful Ryou feels as if he might cry. His heart feels as if someone's dipped it into an ethereal warmth, and there's butterflies in his stomach, as if Atem had just kissed him for 5 minutes straight. His fingers curl tightly around Atem's, while the other hand goes to his chest, showing how touched he is.]

It's...it's lovely.

[This isn't even Ryou getting choked up about food, it's the effort Atem had put in. The love. He didn't have to garnish with scallions!! He didn't have to put bread out, or a variety of drinks, or even do this as a surprise, but he did and hhhhhhh...it's such a touching gesture...

He has to pull Atem into a hug.]

Ah! Ha ha, it's just breakfast!

[He breaks into that laugh as he's pulled in for the hug -- will Ryou be able to tell that he's winking? His bat-wings give a pleased little flutter, rearranging themselves on his shoulders primly.]

I learned how to do this some time ago, but since you weren't a meat-eating type, it never seemed like the time!

[And then there'd been November, when he'd not been in any kind of place to do something like this. This might have happened sooner, if Atem had remained a vampire...]

Edited 2021-12-30 17:39 (UTC)

No. It's not just breakfast.

Just breakfast comes premade from the store, or from a restaurant.

This is...this is something that came from your heart, right? It's why you sent me back to my room, you wanted it to be perfect and it is, it really is perfect, Atem.

[Don't mind him, he's just, uh. Rambling emotionally into Atem's hair and he could totally feel the implied wink in Atem's words, even if he couldn't see it. Whereas Atem's wing-shifting is pretty simple and not the least bit invasive to Ryou's personal space, there's a definite thump-thump-thump as Ryou's tail wags so furiously that he smacks it into the chair.

(which is far better than possibly causing damage to breakfast)

Give him a minute or two, he wants to hug and be hugged.]

Mmmm.

[A thin blue tail winds affectionately around Ryou's ankle.

Yes, his heart's in it. Usually, Atem's the kind of person who, when turned loose in a kitchen, burns water. Instant noodles and a hot plate are managed without mishap, sometimes. But, now that he's finally able to make one thing?]

I learned how...and wanted to do it, for you.

[Atem has plenty of meat eating friends. Many of them live on this floor. This particular smell has never come out of the Apt 806 kitchen before. This is not a look-after-his-friends-and-make-people-eating-easier thing, this is a boyfriend thing.

Ryou has an uncanny ability to keep Atem from feeling threatened, in any way. Making something like this for someone who might take it as having power over him? Who might read it as something someone beneath them would do? Never. This would never happen. But with Ryou, it's simply a nice present -- not a service, but something he put work into and wanted to give.

It's comfortable.

So, Atem stays here, arms around Ryou's waist, comfortable and safe. He's quiet for a little bit, but if it keeps up, he will say--]

Don't let it get cold, now.

[Ugh, stop. Stop being kind to him it's so unfaiiiir he owes Atem so much. But he doesn't want to waste the meal in front of him by letting it cool off, so he does finally pull away. One hand lifts, and padded fingers start toying with his hair shyly.

He's not blushing, you're blushing.]

Y-you're right, I shouldn't waste your efforts.

[He takes a deep breath, wills his tail to calm down even though he is definitely very happy, very spoiled, and only then does he move to take a seat. It's done carefully, allowing Atem to either pull away or double down on the tail around his ankle.]

There's some for you, right?

[Because Ryou is, if nothing else, extremely polite. He can't just sit here and eat this without Atem having any, can he? Even though...demons don't need to eat people, and this is very obviously well-cooked sinner made for Ryou's dietary needs.]

[Atem unwinds his tail and slides into a chair on an adjacent side of the table, so they're sitting close together. His legs are crossed, but it's casual, not poised; he's practically draped over the dining-room chair.

He pulls an apple out of a fruit basket that's also on the table, but not necessarily meant to go with the person steak, and polishes it on a sleeve.]

Oh, I'll eat some if you want to share it! But don't worry about me. I've told you, I don't starve myself!

[He has been snacking all day. How does Ryou think Atem made it without eating the human himself?

I've never needed to eat human meat, but I don't mind it...the Tägevalgten tricked me into it in Rota, and after that, it hasn't really seemed like a big deal...

[Monch! He takes a big ol bite outta the apple. Very easy with such sharp teeth.]

I 'id 'ake a li'le -- [swallow!] -- to make sure it was good.

The Tagevalgten...I'm glad not to have seen anymore of them. It wasn't right that they would feed newcomers human meat, it's not as if they've changed by that point.

[Ryou doesn't linger on that though, instead focusing on his breakfast because he has been pretty excited to try it. He takes hold of fork and knife to politely slice one of the sections even smaller than it already is (even though he probably doesn't have to, he's a werewolf, what is he doing), and take his first bite.

...

...

Oh, if he was a shade, his eyes would be positively glowing. But that's alright, because his ears can carry the work there. They flick straight up as Ryou's eyes widen. This...this is really good! It's tender and juicy and perfect!!

The tail that had been stilled long enough for him to sit is now twitching uncontrollably and he's trying not to let it wag so it doesn't get him into trouble with his surroundings but this is so good. SO GOOD?!

Once he's done admiring the flavor...Ryou less-politely shoves another piece in his mouth and chews.

What did he do to deserve such a perfect boyfriend? He can't even speak, it would disrespect this delicious food...but he does hum his distinct approval anyway.]

Heh heh heh!

[The approval comes across loud and clear, even though Ryou isn't saying anything; good, Atem's glad. He's pleased as punch that it worked, and he's going to munch his apple as Ryou works his way through the meal, taking a hunk of bread at some point, too. He's just using his hands, it's fine, they've been clean for cooking this whole time.]

If you like, I'll show you how to do it. But don't go making it all the time, or I'll have to figure something else out, for when I want to impress you, or say "sorry"...

[His tail undulates lazily behind his chair, a calm, pleased back-and-forth. His demon ears don't move much, but currently, they're pricked a little bit forward, paying attention.]

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; slight emeto

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slaps a warning for Fancy Cannibalism on this thread

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