rat king

He grins, and the smear of dried blood around his mouth cracks. It dragged outwards to his cheek, as if he'd haphazardly scrubbed it with the back of his hand. "Me, hospitalized? Good luck with that!" he laughs. Alvie listens with his head cocked, pointed ears perked in attention. The thick metal suit makes the knight's heartbeat a novelty, echoing like rodents scrabbling behind a wall. A pretty heartbeat was hidden underneath those thick, metal plates. He could pry them open, unwrap his way to the organ like a gory present.

lithe fingers wrap around the pommel of his sword still resting snug in its scabbard. luck is on his side, hospital or not. an luck keeps urging him on, surging from his fingers into his veins, spreading throughout his system with a soft sigh. this child of night, a slave to his own urges, looks the knight up and down like a five course meal, a mouthwatering spread presenting itself to him in the street. florian even gives him the gift of tilting his head slightly to the side, displaying his throat, as if ready for the taking.

this is exactly why he hates losing. that smug look about hunter as he approaches gets a roll of his eyes and another grunt as he squirms. "fuck off." though both of them know he intends to say the opposite of that. he's being ogled, and restrained, and he can't help how that makes him feel. a red tint appears across his cheeks. both sets. "we're always doing a strip hunt. I'd just appreciate it if I gave you more of a challenge."

The body is weak. Its flesh bruises, its kneecaps creaks, and the soft globes of tissue in its skull's sockets fail when the plank hits his head. A bright flash engulfs his vision, and his chest slams into the basement floor. The body is so, so weak. Its lungs scream for air, but the collision stuns him in such a way that he cannot breathe.

The streetlight's hazy glow illuminates the vampire's crown of short, black curls. His friends polish him, tend to him like an old headstone forgotten in the weeds. Marton and Ezra who had the strongest opinions on how his hair should be trimmed, how his claws should be buffed, and which colors brought out the undead in his eyes.

the mocking question only elicits the slightest of smiles curling at the corners of the knight's lips, though he is anything but amused. can't he just make this short and sweet? one quick swing of her, and his victim would be relieved of his head, much to the relief of not only florian, but as he imagines, most of the people whose lives this one darkens with his insolent behavior.

the moment she sees those sharp teeth, dominique is both relieved, and disappointed. disappointed, because this gorgeous one won't be her dinner this way, and relieved, because for once, she doesn't have to be alone. "I thought the same thing." she says, with a slight purse to her lips, like she's spoiled. "no one else seemed to be up to the task. I wonder why." she moves in her seat, switching her crossed legs as she nonchalantly looks the other over. shame. she'd probably be delicious, were she mortal. she finishes her drink and sets it on the counter. "I could have another one of these, or... you could choose for me."

He doesn't delay in his response: even before he's given the official order, Dodge is moving, stepping in between Javi and the beast immediately and readying his weapon in the same breath. The air splits with a freakish, enraged shriek as the animal charges for them, but even staring down such a monstrosity doesn't weaken his resolve, and his unyielding stance suggests that, if he can't bring the mutant down, his body will be a fitting shield... at least long enough for Javi to come up with plan B.

the beast charges at them, and javi's focus is entirely on dodge, trying to figure out whether he plans to use his head in this fight, or whether he just goes with brute force and keep it at that. the shriek from the creature makes him feel uneasy, his stomach drops and shivers run down his spine, but he doesn't look away.

he allows seth to place that cigarette between his lips. he allows him to light it, but when he leans in to light his own, javi can't help but roll his eyes. there's nothing seth van meter does that is ordinary, is there? "you and I got differing views on what counts as pretty." he walks beside seth, exhaling some of the cigarette smoke while his free hand stays by his gun, which still has the safety off, just in case anything decides to pop up in front of them again. "you ain't gotta tell me and yet, here we fuckin' are. you complaining, and me having to endure it." as if he would have it any other way. "considering the sector you're leading, you should probably be more open to accepting the modern way of life, shouldn't you?"

Javi's fingertips linger, a feverish heat pressed into his forearm. Or maybe it's Javi that's a normal temperature, and its him that's scalding. "More like..." he began. Leon's touch is firm, devoid of the bumbling softness his profession or the reading glasses slipping down his nose would suggest. He readjusts the man's form like posing a doll: a hand under his elbow, a slight pull on the forearm, a readjustment of his wrist. Their bodies are close enough, he smells the musk on the councilman's skin. One hand presses against the small of the councilor's back, while the other guides his arm forward in a sharp, deceive thrust. "Like you actually want to live, c-c..." he says. "Javier." The first name basis sounded so much more intimate than the formal councilor. "Fight like you want to live."

these are the moments that always bring javi back for more. the complete contrast to the gentleness with which leon speaks and the way he handles him with a firm grip. how it makes javi feel alive, as if something inside him has been awakened after years of forced slumber. he's holding his breath, as if he doesn't wish for anything to disrupt this moment. leon somehow manages to silence even the most annoying parts of his broken mind. that breath in his lungs is expelled with a soft exhale as leon's hand reaches the small of his back, and guides his arm forward in one quick move. "now, I see." he says, as he turnto face leon just in the right moment to hear him say his name. he does not put any more distance between them, even when the lesson is over. "what's more effective, do you think? slashing? sticking it in as deep as you can, to the hilt?"

Closed for @ravasz - Tristan

not knowing what exactly prompted a suddenly change of heart towards him always annoys tristan. he doesn't think he's ever even seen mo smile before. definitely not over the years he's been working at the hospital. tristan, practically stuffed with antihistamine to stop his body from reacting badly to the change in the air lately, gives the surgeon an awkward little smile-and-wave combo before taking a seat in front of him.