William:
Will walked out of his den as twilight settled over the land and headed towards the pond. He didn't see Ariel anywhere, so he settled on the bank, his head on his paws. As he had also promised, he brought out a bottle of his lightest drink, which was still a little crazy strong. He needed strong drinks to feel anything, but he had one that would be... better than the others for a first-time.
"I'm sorry, Ariel," he whispered under his breath and closed his eyes, keeping his ears open to the sounds of the night.
Ariel:
She saw his shadow on the surface of the water but she was...wary, afraid to go up to him. What was she going to do? What might he do to her? William had always been good to her though, always kind. He had lost his temper...and in truth it was her own fault wasn't it? She had prodded him on and on asking so many questions, things she had no right to know.
She had to go up, to apologize at the very least. Slowly she swam up to the surface taking a deep breath. "H-hello William..." She stayed a bit away from the bank still nervous. "I-I didn't...didn't think you would come...I'm sorry...about...about last night."
William:
Will's eyes opened at the sound of the water parting and he looked a little sad as Ariel kept herself away from him when she apologized. He glazed away and nudged the bottle a bit away from him.
"I brought you the drink you wanted to try. It's strong, but... It's the weakest I have," he said in return. He'd chosen a side of the pond where the bank went several feet straight down into the water rather than at a slope. That way she could fully swim up to him rather than have to drag herself up a little beach. If she even did want to approach him.
Which he mildly doubted.
Ariel:
She looked down with a slight frown as he ignored her apology and slowly swam closer. It seemed he wanted to put the matter behind him, and so she would try and put it behind her as well. It was hard but she forced a small smile and moved closer still. "You brought some spirits?" It did made her mildly curious to taste this drink that made other otters act so oddly.
"Strong? There are different kinds then?" She asked and finally leaned up against the bank. She let her tail go limp still nervous about splashing him again, he didn't seem to appreciate getting wet.
William:
"Yes, there are different kinds. I..." Will said and sighed. Fine, go ahead, be honest. It wasn't a weakness or anything. Just a little known fact.
"I can really only taste the strong ones. That's pretty much all I can taste, besides my unusual regular diet," he added with a soft shrug as his gaze crawled back to her. She had approached him, so maybe she wasn't so scared of him... But she had stuttered when she had apologized. She was probably terrified that he would yell at her again, or worse.
He hated himself sometimes.
He carefully took the cork out of the bottle.
"Just a little sip, now. And I wouldn't suggest letting it sit in your mouth," he added with a small nod.
Ariel:
She nodded and took the bottle in her paws curiously tipping it back and taking a sip, but she didn't swallow it fast enough and gasped pulling the bottle away as the liquid burned down her throat. She sputtered a bit more and coughed trying to clear her throat. Why did anyone drink that? It was like pouring molten lava down ones throat.
"Uhh-why...why do people like that stuff?" She gulped again and licked her lips trying to get the taste out of her mouth.
William:
William couldn't help himself. He tilted his head down into his paws and laughed lightly. After a moment he lifted his face and gently took the bottle from her, sitting up so he could take a slow drink, his eyes closed as his shoulders relaxed a bit. It didn't burn so much on him, he caught more of the flavor. There was a bit of a bland aftertaste, but the beginning was worth it.
"On normal otters, it can dull the senses. Some forget their troubles, others become what they think is brave. Me..." he paused, looking into the bottle. Sometimes he wished he could get drunk. "I just like to feel warm."
He took another drink, corked it, and settled back down.
Ariel:
"Doesn't fire warm you?" She asked curiously and watched the way he drank. He seemed to like it well enough, at least it didn't make him gag. She felt warmth all around her, her cheeks flushed with bright color. It seemed her tolerance was much lower then his and just a taste had her warmed right up.
"Does it really make them forget and act brave? Maybe if I drank more it would make me able to walk around." She sighed and eyed the bottle curiously, it was like somekind of magic tonic.
William:
Will's eyes flared at her suggestion.
"No." He didn't mean to snap it. He'd just had too long to think of what could happen if she took too much of the drink. He rubbed a paw over his face and shook his head.
"It messes with your head, Ariel. It might make you think you could, might even make you think that you won't dry out. It's not real, you will dry out just as soon as you would normally, hell, maybe even sooner," he explained in a calmer voice.
Much as he liked the drink, he didn't like his friends drinking. It didn't affect him like it would affect them. It was why he didn't indulge to greatly in his blood drinking. It was the closest thing he got to drunk, if he got carried away. And he more often than not, he didn't like for his senses to be impaired.
Ariel:
Then it doesn't really work, she thought with a soft sigh hearing Will explain. His loud NO had startled her the memory of his angry growls still fresh in her mind. She didn't want to upset him again so she refrained from asking more about how the spirits worked.
"It seems a steep price to pay for an illusion, drunkeness is bad isn't it? Like being very sick?" She had to focus a bit harder on her words as she felt her mind float a little. It seemed that despite all the water her system was in the drink had a larger effect on her, or perhaps simply because it was her first.
William:
"Yes, it's bad. Or, it can lead to bad things. Others could take advantage of you or it can put you into a state where you think you can do something you can't or you don't react as you normally would," Will explained as he considered his own drug. Rather than dulling his senses, blood was more of a high. Everything was enhanced after he fed and it felt good. He felt stronger, but he did know that it wasn't really getting stronger. It just felt like he was stronger.
And he knew he couldn't get carried away. It was always a worry that he would. He had a feeling that his older sister had to deal with that pull more than he did. It was probably why she had warned him to be careful. He knew he wouldn't hurt Ariel.
At least, he hoped he wouldn't.
"I didn't mean to yell at you last night. I was angry at something not you and got carried away."
Ariel:
She listened to his warning about the dangers of drunkeness, with so many she wondered what made it such a popular pastime. She licked her lips again the taste finally fading from her mouth and the cool water helping her relax again. Her fin gave a slow little flip barely splashing her with water, she needed the constant moisture.
His apology startled her and she looked down with a mild frown.
"Its alright, I know I must ask a lot of silly questions...and I forget sometimes how...different I am"
Ha different talk about the understatment of the century, she was a half fish freak. She could ask and learn all she wanted about land life, but shed never belong there.
William:
"No, they aren't silly, they're legitimate. I just don't want to talk about Lovett's," Will explained, reaching out a paw to tilt her chin back up. He quickly drew his paw back, however, remembering that he shouldn't touch her.
He drew back, scooting a little bit farther from her. They could still likely touch one another if they tried, but it would be more of an effort to do so. He glanced away from her, his face thoughtful.
"We're all different, some more than just the physical," he added, his voice low as he thought of his own differences The young half-vampire didn't like to think about his feelings or his differences.
Ariel:
She wanted to ask why he didn't want to talk about Lovett's but that seemed silly as well. She lifted her head and smiled weakly until she saw the way he moved back. She slid a little herself back down into the water feeling suddenly ashamed of her tail.
"Yes...very different..." She murmured, but he said beyond the physical. What was that supposed to mean? Personality wise? She knew there were bad otters out there, who enjoyed causing misery and suffering, but there were a lot of good otters too. Xylia was good, she was her very best friend...except now she might never see xylia again.
William:
William snorted softly, his gaze still elsewhere.
"Don't sound so forlorn. You're certainly not the bad kind of different. My mother would call you special." His voice was soft as he spoke. He had to wonder what she thought of herself, over how different and slightly incapable she was.
Did she think she was a freak? No, she wasn't a freak. She was special, lovely. Part of him wished that he could convince her of this, to tell her what he thought, but he wouldn't. His scarred half was too strong, much stronger than any other part of himself, at least for now.
Ariel:
"Special is just a kind way of saying I don't belong with the larger group...which is true." She murmured and sighed softly. "I belong with my own...kind." She shook her head softly and sank down into the water a little more. The trouble was there were very few of her kind, and she loved the land, the interesting otters who could live in both worlds. Not as deep perhaps but they were free to come and go as they wished.
"Your different too?" She asked softly though she already knew, she knew they didn't all drink blood. William and his family had to be unique somehow, different.
William:
"I think a better term for me is a freak," William replied without pausing to think about the comment. He loved his mother and father and knew they loved him, but that didn't change anything. Otters lived off of the lives of other creatures, but they didn't live on the lives of other otters. William and his family lived on the lives of their own kind.
Special, unique, they were positive terms for something out of the norm. William wasn't positive. He was dark, negative, cold, and bleak.
Ariel:
"Well at least we're freaks together." She half laughed before sighing and gazing up at the sky. "It's dark...I shouldn't keep you any longer, you probably have a lot to do, at the very least you need to eat." She flushed a little remembering the last time she had offered him a meal. It hadn't felt bad, but maybe she didn't taste good to William...probably like fish oil. It was a self loathing thought, but really what was she supposed to think?
William:
Eat, right. Will's eyes glowed a bit at the thought of the closest bit of food. She had definitely been an interesting taste, Ariel. He liked the unique ones, Ariel, the bleeding angels, he was sure if he had tried Anna's sister it would have been just as delicious, like a fine wine with extra spices to make the taste different and addicting.
But he wouldn't go after Ariel again.
"Don't worry," he said as he stood slowly. "I won't make a repeat of what happened the first night. I won't hurt you."
Ariel:
She watched the strange way his eyes seemed to light up, the way hers probably did when she sang. It was something that gave her pleasure, something she loved. Her eyes followed him as he stood and she heard him.
She didn't want him to say that, he hadn't hurt her at all. What would she do though, what could she say? "It didn't hurt..." She murmured softly and tucked her hair back.
William:
Will paused, frowning a bit. He always figured it hurt those he took from. He was biting them and taking their lifeblood after all. He blinked and turned to look at her, eyes narrowed slightly.
"Didn't hurt?" he asked, considering her.
"I can't imagine it was a pleasant feeling, though," he added, staying where he was. He didn't want to move away yet, but he couldn't step to her again. He wasn't as hungry as that one night, wasn't weak. He could resist the temptation and pull, but it was a temptation after all. And he could overcome it.
Ariel:
"No it didn't hurt." She smiled softly at him and blushed a bit, perhaps pleasant wasn't exactly a description. It was odd, intimate, a rush that left her lightheaded and content. Yes perhaps pleasant was the word for it. "Well...yes pleasant." She nodded softly.
"Don't your donors usually feel...relaxed?" She looked at him curiously, hopefully she wasn't odd in this manner as well. She didn't want to be a complete freak, maybe it was suppose to hurt.
William:
Will looked away, frowning.
"They don't have a choice, so I wouldn't call them donors. And they pass out somewhat like you did, so they can't really let me know," he explained in a low tone of voice. He didn't like being honest about his hunting. It wasn't something most of his family were exactly proud of. Well, his parents didn't seemed ashamed of it. Only himself and his older sister.
"I never thought it would be a pleasant sensation."
Ariel:
"Oh...I didn't realize there weren't others who donated, there are more then just you who need blood arent there?" She looked at him her brows furrowing. Why wouldn't the other otters provide when they knew their friends and family needed blood. It was quite strange, maybe there just wasn't enough to go around. Unless if maybe Will enjoyed finding his...what were they? Victims?
William:
Will looked confused. He didn't know a single creature that willing gave their blood to one of his kind. Well, that wasn't true. He knew his mother did, but that was only to his father. And he had a feeling sometimes Anna's parents did the same, but no on had ever offered before. Anyone that knew what was coming when he caught them were terrified. Of course, they were minis, so he had a feeling they were always scared of big otters.
"Yes, but I think we mostly hunt minis, or at least I do and I don't ever run into the same ones twice," he admitted with a sigh.
Ariel:
"You shouldn't take from the little ones, their really not as well equipped to deal with blood loss as a larger otter. Besides leaving them passed out makes them easy prey for less scrupulous characters." She chided softly, she knew he had to eat, but one would think they would have a little more consideration.
"I can help if you want? Not every night I think...I felt a little woozy for a few days, but maybe every three nights or so I could donate a little? If that would help, maybe you could ask around and see if others would be willing too? I know you didn't want to talk about Lovett's but she seems to know how to procure things, xylia says she's...resourceful. Maybe she could organize some donors for you and your family?"
William:
I'm not heartless. Oh, he wanted to say that. He never left them alone while they were passed out. He watched over them until they woke up, just to make sure they didn't get eaten. But no, he couldn't say it. He WAS heartless, or at least he wanted to be. He didn't want a heart, because you couldn't hurt what you don't have.
He couldn't be soft.
His eyes sparked once before he turned from her and took a step away.
"Don't delude yourself, Ariel. No one would willingly put their lives in our paws and for good reason. We're dark, dangerous creatures and that's all we'll ever be," he growled over his shoulder.
Ariel:
"Like Angelus?" She asked softly, Xylia had told her the dangerous otter was lurking around. Xylia had even warned her that the vampire might find her an exotic snack, which had left her eager to stay under water where she couldn't be easily found and killed.
She knew William wasn't anything like that, he didn't even want to take blood lest he hurt her. "Well...my life is in your paws." She sighed and rested her head on her paws with a small smile.
William:
No, not like Angelus. That male was a monster, he killed without remorse. He never wanted to be compared to that creature.
He hung his head and gave it a small shake.
"Maybe you should think of me as that dangerous," he replied, not sure why he said it. He didn't want her to think of him like Angelus. He wanted her to remain comfortable around him, not to fear him, but he couldn't let her hurt him. Or worse, let him get carried away and hurt her. No, her offers were too promising. She was too innocent, too trusting. He wouldn't let her get under his fur.
Ariel:
"Oh..." She sighed sadly and sank back down looking down at the wet bank. "Well...goodnight...goodluck...with dinner." Slowly she turned and dove back under the water feeling suddenly sad. Maybe later on she could sing herself a little something, cheer herself up.
William:
Will sighed as he walked away from the pond, hearing the water splashed as Ariel dove back beneath the surface. He wanted to go to her, to apologize and explain what had happened, why he was acting so, why he feared taking from those he knew, especially her. She was unique in the world, what would happen if he killed her? Her light would be gone and it would be his fault.
He turned away and headed out to hunt.
:: The Otter Oasis Guild ::
