(open) i paced around for hours on empty, i jumped at the slightest of sounds

[mensrea]

Who: Stiles Stilinski and YOU
When: Night of Aereuer 8 (full moon)
Where: Various spots in Aefenglom
What: Semi-feral Arachne party games on a very special 18th birthday
Warnings: Language, animal death

[ After escaping from Sheva in the Wildes and absconding to Aefenglom, Stiles begins his hunt. Honestly, he’s not quite sure what he’s exactly on the hunt for – only that there’s a voracious hunger rising within him, an appetite that won’t be whetted by just any meal. And so, humming the happy birthday tune to himself loudly and offkey, he prowls from district to district from the city skyline. Those eight spider legs carry him vertically up edifices with no apparent effort, even make impressive leaps across significant distances between buildings. The sense of fear that usually holds Stiles back is gone; uninhibited, he experiments with his superhuman abilities in boyish delight, that joy tempered only by the unkind, savage grin stretching his mouth too wide. ]

It’s my party and I can cry if I want to, [ comes one such inspired ballad, interrupted by his sniggering as he swings upside down from where he’s currently perched. ] Cry if I want to, cry if I want to!

[ That’s if you’re lucky. Sometimes it’s – ]

It’s yo birthday, so I know you wanna ri-i-i-ide out. [ There’s a dog howling somewhere nearby in sympathy. ] Even if we only go to my-y-y-y house.

[ During the night, Stiles will make a nuisance of himself. Expect to find him cavorting through the streets doing eight-legged cartwheels, singing obnoxiously despite the hour, spinning webs in inconvenient locations, dropping by homes to pay friends unexpected house calls, etc. ]

( ooc | Full Moon Shift appearance details, CR & plotting comment, and info & permissions page. Stiles will not be hurting anyone. If threatened with violence, his Arachne instincts will force him to flee the scene. If you want to figure out a specific prompt for your character, hit me up! )

Comments

[eyeforaneye]

[ He remembers how he felt the first time he tasted rat blood, that feeling of finally satisfying a deep-seated need no matter how controversial or repulsive. That feeling had been relief mixed with reluctance, slowly resigning himself to the fact that this would become his new existence: squeezing every drop from bad-tempered little creatures always trying to snap at his fingers, fighting to keep blood from matting into short, rough fur.

What he feels now is so incredibly different. Warm blood fills his mouth and coats a tongue that's all but begging for it and the flavor incites a manic response that twin moons had been trying to coax from him with their duet siren song, teeth immediately scraping at matching entry wounds to widen them so that he might bite deeper. He feels powerful, satisfied, aroused, and sickly fulfilled as the taste of copper tinted with the heady flavor of magic quickly cements itself as his newest addiction. Going back to rats? After this? After what Stiles has made possible...

Eyes go half-lidded as he regains awareness of the teen crouched at his side, the wet sounds of steady sucks at a bruised throat tapering off as he slowly pulls back. His next breath in is deep and languorous as he basks in the moment, tongue swiping at newly stained lips when his gaze turns sidelong. ]

You really thought of everything, didn't you? [ It's all but teasing as his hand suddenly moves, flattening over the one Stiles had placed upon that deer with an almost cloying grasp, squeezing with a mixture of desperation and excitement. ] It's difficult to hold myself back right now... do you want to feel it?

[ No response is awaited, instead swiping his thumb slowly and purposefully over trichobothria as his head ducks back down. He seals his mouth back over still bleeding punctures as that deer's eyes grow dull, the resurgence of that taste forcing him to smother a groan as he swallows hurriedly. ]

[mensrea]

[ A pall of unnatural silence descends upon the beset pet store but for the wet noises of Sasuke feeding. Not even the caged insects dare disturb the Vampire with their chittering cacophony. Or maybe he’s become willfully deaf to anything that isn’t Sasuke in that moment; he couldn’t possibly look away if he even wanted to. Stiles allows himself to enjoy the view, the Arachne limbs positioned behind them like a privacy screen. So far, so good. The faint impression of color is starting to return to Sasuke’s cheeks, thawing a pale countenance until it’s almost lukewarm. When his friend pauses, glancing askance at him with thin rivulets of blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, Stiles feels the weight of that regard like a tangible touch.

Regardless if it is meant as such, Stiles accepts the remark as praise. He preens unabashedly, fangs bared in a genuine smile, pleased to hear that his efforts haven’t been in vain. Then Sasuke intentionally initiates contact – a rarity always worth appreciating, honestly – and Stiles falters. His persistent mien of impenetrable, cocky confidence finally falls from his face as that thumb brushes over the trichobothria in a caress. The fine hairs there, acutely sensitive in order to feel minute vibrations in the air from long distances, become contiguous to Sasuke’s flesh and create a kind of impromptu, one-sided Bond. He’s instantly aware of every miniscule detail about his friend’s physical state that he’d been previously ignorant to. And oh, Sasuke may smother his groan but Stiles does not. When this last happened, it was an accident during one of their training sessions that left him uncomfortably aroused. This experience is incomparable. The feedback that the trichobothria receive from Sasuke has him shuddering with overstimulation, like each precious mouthful of blood the young man draws is going directly to his own groin. He actually grasps Sasuke’s wrist with his other hand, caught between wanting to wrench himself free and – and…

From the fawn to Sasuke to Stiles, an unbroken chain of sensation that he is woefully unprepared to process. As the deer’s heart slows to a crawl, he feels the muscular organ thudding against Sasuke’s ribcage speed up in response. The rhythmic working of his friend’s throat as he drinks, over and over, is as palpable to Stiles as if his fingers were pressed intimately against that graceful neck. He’s breathless with a secondhand hunger, mouth parted on a silent gasp as he stares unblinking at the sight. The Arachne limbs scrabble restlessly for purchase, inflamed with the same excitement and arousal as the two young men. Though Stiles says nothing, too overwhelmed for words, the hold on Sasuke’s wrist loosens gradually until he’s absently petting the pulse point there in time with the Vampire’s swallows. ]

[eyeforaneye]

[ For years Sasuke's most intimate relationships with pleasure have come in the form of denying them their rights to exist, basking in self-destructive martyrdom as if it were a legitimate longterm strategy for life. What others think of him matters only in the sense that they not view him as self-indulgent or self-serving, at all costs, but now? Here he is taking exactly what he needs and then some, and Stiles merely places a hand on his and comforts him with simple touches that offer a wordless, implicit approval of his selfishness.

He feels almost giddy as he gurgles a blood-soaked laugh against pinched skin, fur damp and matted when he finally draws back again with an almost tender squeeze of Stiles's hand. This is good, he feels relaxed and fulfilled but also keyed up and hyper-aware of every perfect moment. Nothing outside this room matters to him beyond a chance to indulge in whatever this moonlight-drenched night has to offer him, understanding all too well what Stiles had meant by his earlier claim of being "high".

The groan is one he finds oddly endearing, matching the throbbing of his entire body – it makes a budding erection almost unnoticeable. He's sure in this singular moment that he's never felt more physical pleasure in his entire life. ]

It's your birthday and yet I'm the one getting gifts... I should take back what I said earlier about not getting you anything.

What do you want?

[mensrea]

[ The sweet sound of that laugh, low and rich, chases goosebumps tantalizingly up his bare arms until he’s shivering, somehow simultaneously overheated and chilled. Watching this indulgent display is stirring awake a ravenous hunger within him, one that has him hissing out a longing breath between newly wet, glistening fangs. When the first bead of secreted venom plips almost inaudibly to the pen bedding between his spread knees, Stiles realizes what’s happening. ]

Ha, would you look at that, [ he muses aloud in soft wonder. ] You’ve got me dripping.

[ Releasing Sasuke’s wrist with a final, fond squeeze, he holds a hand beneath his mouth to catch the venom in his palm. Stiles has done more than enough research to understand what this toxin might be capable of, but has yet to use it. As tempted as he is to sink his teeth into the deer and release the substance into her dried-up bloodstream, he won’t spoil Sasuke’s meal. So, wiping his hand clean on the pine shavings at their feet, he turns his head to spit out a mouthful of saliva and venom. His stomach clenches hard in protest, reminding Stiles that all he’s had to eat since yesterday morning was a smoothie and some carrots. ]

Birthday boy wants you to enjoy himself.

[ Arachne limbs help push him to his feet, hand sliding free from beneath Sasuke’s. A measure of composure returns once the trichobothria are clear of that connection, delicious though it undeniably was. Stiles is still visibly affected by it, the front of his jeans tighter, but he remains indolently unapologetic about either of their semi-erections. Challenging the implicit (and sometimes, explicit) boundaries Sasuke usually adheres to, he drops that hand to his friend’s shoulder and affectionately massages the ball of muscle there. ]

Up for a second course? I think I need a snack to take the edge off.

[eyeforaneye]

[ Flecks of concern and worry dot his consciousness nigh imperceptibly and are pushed aside in favor of far stronger emotions, not even fully registering that the feelings are gifts from Jonas. Were he more in control himself they'd read to him properly as the warnings that they are, but right now? They hit a wall not of pure ferality but of moon-induced mania, too focused on the now to allow much to bring him down. ]

What an answer... Something real, Stiles. Should I walk you over to the insect enclosure in the back? Even that's less lazy a gift than what you're suggesting... [ Even if under normal circumstances he'd call it far too big an ask. Right now instead he's tossing him that satisfied smirk over his shoulder, thumb swiping absently at droplets of blood on his chin as he allows that animal corpse to drop back against the enchanted grass with unceremonious disregard.

He pops the digit in his mouth to savor the last taste of magical mammalian blood as his eyes linger on Stiles's own set of fangs, instinctively seeing a threat but a lack of malicious intent from his friend calms his more primal reactions. ]

I'd transform to partake with you but I don't know what might happen to me if I try it right now.

[mensrea]

[ With a breathy noise too brief to even be called a chuckle, he exits the pen and considers his options for a quick meal. Simultaneously, he remains cognizant of the blood-drenched presence at his back that stifles the otherwise dreamy atmosphere of the store. Sasuke no longer seems to be at risk of losing control to bloodlust, at least. That fact alone has him smiling, a private moment to indulge in the pride and pleasure of having done something right. Home is secure. Jonas is safe. Sasuke is well. Stiles did good, just this once. The Arachne limbs fold in around him, the awkward caricature of a hug. ]

There’s a thought.

[ Bare feet pad quietly as he approaches the insect enclosures, some of which feature fairly active critters. Nocturnal creatures, like him and Sasuke. But many of the specimens are normal sized – a pittance of a meal for a full-grown Arachne. His fingers trail over glass. ]

The next time you do transform, let me pet you. How’s that sound? [ Pausing, he turns a challenging smirk on Sasuke, one eyebrow cocked. ] Real enough for you?

[ A giant, exotic-looking praying mantis observes him with flinty eyes. Large enough to satisfy him, though the description on the terrarium warns that she’s highly aggressive and not to be handled. ]

If that’s asking too much, how about you grab my new friend here without losing a finger?

[eyeforaneye]

No, [ he returns in a low voice deepened by satisfaction and slaked hunger, skin still buzzing with the magic he'd so desperately needed and veins fully pumping life again. Lately his heart beat has been so much slower and growing all the more reluctant by the day – but not now. Now he feels powerful again, alive, and with that sense of power comes his confidence. ]

Hardly real enough. Do you understand what you're asking? Maybe to you I'm just some animal, but think of it from my perspective. [ Essentially submitting himself to being caressed by Stiles. Perhaps now, high off blood and feeling an unknown sense of both security and physical contentment, it might be easier. But he knows this feeling won't last. If it did it wouldn't be half as precious.

He trails after Stiles like a shadow, paying no mind to those independent spider limbs as he crowds him from behind not unlike the way he had out in the Wildes, both of them struggling through a burgeoning friendship with a backdrop of strained archery lessons. It's almost funny now. Perhaps it's a desire to show off his new heightened body heat. Perhaps he just wants a good look at the insect in question, level with Stiles's own eyes. He peers over his shoulder, head tilting.]

So, you want to pass your hunt off? Sure, it won't be a problem for me. Alive or dead? [ His arm reaches past Stiles, bracketing his body as his hand comes to rest on the glass of the enclosure, waiting. ]

[mensrea]

Kill it, if you want. [ A silky shrug. ] I don’t care.

[ No, this isn’t the kind of hunt he’s interested in. Not at this point in his transformation, anyway. There’s no game to be had here, nothing to test his abilities in sleuthing, beguiling, and problem solving. Gaze sharpening, he deviates from staring through the glass at the insect to studying Sasuke’s features in the reflection. Each flexible stalk of the Arachne appendages, protruding from various points on either side of his back, flattens carefully to avoid contact with the hovering Vampire; the limbs are overspread with trichobothria and shy from the casual brush of Sasuke’s clothes. ]

Do I come across as the kind of guy who goes around randomly petting animals? [ he asks with an amused huff. Chin dipping, he glances over his shoulder at Sasuke. ] You’ll never just be some animal to me. The fact that it’s you is why I’m interested.

[ Tarsi claws make quick work of the locks on the tank. Stiles continues to regard Sasuke – capsizing under the weight of his own affection for the other man – before finally returning his attention to the mantis. With a brief discordant screech, the metal, mesh top to the tank is removed and set aside. The mantis is frozen, antennae twitching. ]

I can’t even touch you normally, [ Stiles continues, voice dropping in quiet rumination, tone tinged with a bittersweet fondness. ] Can’t it be okay, just once, to pet you when you’re a bat? The only one judging you would be yourself.

[eyeforaneye]

No, you already told me how it is that animals react to your presence. Do you think I'll be gentler when you reach for me?

[ Silence follows as respect for Stiles's quietly voiced question and longing, gaze lingering on the side of his face when he exhales heavily. What a demanding man... His attention reluctantly focuses back on the scythed insect peering back at them with huge keen eyes, his own taking on a far softer quality as he exudes that same hypnotic magic he'd utilized on the deer almost without any conscious effort. A possible victim? An instinctive response. ]

Does that bother you? Foregoing touch between the two of us... [ The word "touch" is brought to life as his hand lifts just to duck down lower into that cage, the mantis not even reacting to the threatening hand when it would force her to look away from a piercing set of eyes. Fingers wrap around her with another exhale, satisfied with the lack of fight when he raises her up out of the enclosure and face to face with Stiles. His chin is nearly resting on the other teen's shoulder now, waiting expectantly. ]

[mensrea]

I just told you you’re not an animal to me. [ He shifts his weight onto the other foot. ] Of course I’d expect you to be gentler.

[ Ah, there it is again. Teasing the periphery of his awareness, a sensation feather-soft and enticing, whispering gently to him in dulcet tones to let down his guard, to give himself over. Goosebumps pebble up along his naked arms. Far more interested in watching the effect that Sasuke’s thrall has on the mantis in real time, he clinically ignores the physical reaction of his own body. Stiles is no less curious for the potential danger that their current proximity to each other might earn him; he trusts Sasuke, foolish as it likely is when they’re both so moon-high. But if this is what a fledgling Vampire is capable of before death… Stiles shivers. ]

I’m not used to it, [ he answers, appreciative of his friend’s power as the mantis is retrieved without issue, ] not being able to touch a friend freely. Maybe it’s the ADHD, I don’t know, but I’m a tactile person – I like being able to connect with people through my hands.

[ An Arachne limb stirs from its dormant state, reaching forward to effortlessly clip the mantis’ head from its neck; compound eyes finally slide away from Sasuke’s hypnotic gaze as the creature thrashes in its headless death throes. As for Stiles – his fangs glisten again, this time with purpose. ]

If you want a bite, you need to go first. I’ll ruin it.

[eyeforaneye]

[ He sees trust and fascination in equal measure in that set of inhuman eyes, fixated so intently that they remain only on him even when danger looms close in the form of that dexterous spider limb. For a moment, that head is weightless, slowly turning with those eyes still fixed.

Then all at once the gossamer sheen that the scene had adopted is shattered, reality spinning back into place once the thrall is broken and that magical creature experiences its consequences. Sasuke feels nothing beyond a slight satisfaction, sated by his own abilities and equally pleased that he's so ready and able to repay his debt to Stiles. Well, at least in some small measure... ]

Then ruin it and I'll watch. That's where my interest lies. [ Here he steps forward, turning on his heel with a lean against that cage to better watch him. ]

You know I'm also a tactile person... [ He trails off, eyes lowering to that writhing, beheaded body. ] But always for another reason. My instincts will always perceive a fight first if you reach for me.

[mensrea]

[ With a mental shrug, he takes the insect’s body from Sasuke with a human hand, offering the other boy a wry, unapologetic grin when their fingers brush. As the Vampire speaks, Stiles silently holds the mantis up to the dim light for inspection, pupils dilating. While he could eat it in the manner of a carnivore, arachnid instinct instead urges him to bring the mantis to his mouth, where a special kind of acid now beads at his fangs. Weak convulsions of the headless corpse have it struggling feebly in his grasp, vibrations in the air that only serve to excite him. ]

Reach for me first, [ he suggests easily, briefly glancing up at Sasuke. ] You can, you know. I’m not going to freak out like that time in the café.

[ That said, he descends upon his meal. Fangs glide effortlessly through the chitinous shell, pumping the mantis full of a dissolving acid necessary to liquidize his prey’s insides. Green hemolymph drips down his fingers, mixed with his own saliva; it’s messy, but Stiles unselfconsciously continues until satisfied, finally pulling away while licking his lips to wait. ]

[eyeforaneye]

[ The brush of fingertips has an unreadable but intense expression passing over Sasuke's features, eyes lifting to lock on his until that prey steals the other teen's attention away from him. For a second, brief and unpleasant, he feels a swell of unexpected anger. Why? Possessiveness? There's no need to give it thought when it's assuaged by Stiles addressing him again, slowly exhaling. ]

It was in my mind not to touch you but I'd almost forgotten why. You prefer something gentler. [ He reaches out then, telegraphing his movements generously when he reaches for Stiles's arm... just to smear what insect blood has stained his hand onto the other boy's skin instead, no thoughts given to the trichobothria. ]

You make more of a mess now when you eat than I do.

[mensrea]

[ At last, the decapitated mantis succumbs to death. Stiles hums softly in approval, studying the fang-gouged abdomen and the progress of the acid. While he waits for its insides to liquify, he snaps a raptorial leg in half simply to listen to the crack, eyes half-lidded with a cruel kind of pleasure. The sensation of a callous-roughened palm smearing green blood over his arm has him rolling his head back, a husky groan hissing out between his fangs. ]

Ssssstooop. [ This time, Stiles draws away, jeans too tight as heat suffuses him like a bolt of lightning coursing through his body. ] Not too gentle. It’s too much for my arms and hands these days. Gonna give me a serious problem like the first time we trained.

[ Once the full moon no longer affects him, there will be time to sincerely regret confessing that tidbit of information. Stiles shows no signs of embarrassment now, however; a sharp, challenging grin is leveled at Sasuke as if daring him to put the pieces together. ]

Anyway, I don’t need gentle from you anymore. I know you. I can take it. It’s okay.

[eyeforaneye]

[ Before his mind had been clouded by an indescribable pleasure the likes of which he can safely say he hasn't previously experienced, but this time? This time he has his wits about him to fully gauge the effect that his touch has on Stiles, a touch the other teen had requested. His gaze mercifully doesn't travel south but it doesn't really need to, not when he can hear his sounds and see the shifts in his expression that fully communicate his arousal... sexual or otherwise. ]

The first time we trained? [ Memories filter back in around clouds of misremembrance and current distraction, quietly taken in by the sadism he sees in normally cautious but warm brown eyes. "What a good look", he thinks. ]

When you returned my shuriken, you mean. Oh, I remember... I don't think you can take "it", Stiles; you're underestimating my nature.

[mensrea]

[ As his friend takes a moment to recall the memory in question, he feeds at last. The mantis is consumed from the inside out meticulously, Stiles catching the trickle of blood with a swipe of a tarsus – then brought to his mouth on some unconscious instinct. He licks the claw clean, pink tongue stained green, before returning to the insect itself. No part is wasted; even the broken raptorial leg is picked apart for meat and blood. ]

Mmhm. [ The distracted noise is the only confirmation that Sasuke has remembered the correct point in time. ] Am I?

[ His eyes slide over to the Vampire, expression lit up with a cocky kind of mirth. ]

Maybe you’re the one underestimating me. But that’s alright. Guess you’ll just have to prove me wrong.