Grizzly Pleasures [Riley]

[Darien Greer]

[atrb=width,400,true][atrb=border,0,false][cs=0][bg=373737] Hunger, it was the constant companion of a vampire. There was never a moment in Darien's vampire life when the back of his throat was not burning, aching for a taste of the sweetest of pleasures, the vampire food of choice, blood. However, he was nothing if not a control freak, strange a trait as it was for a slave to have, it was there and he was not going to complain about it. The control freak in him was able to push the hunger away, to keep it from ruling the man he was. It had taken years of practice, he'd been trained as a slave to take his blood where he could get it of course, whether his victim was animal or human didn't matter as long as the victim was not his owner. As the years had passed, Darien had resolved to give up human blood completely. It has been said that there is no hunting like the hunting of man, but Darien found it incredibly off putting to have to worry about stopping screams from the victim. He also had never had the stomach for murder and it was simply too much fuss to try and ensure that the surviving victim didn't talk. So Darien tended to hunt animals rather than men. Everything was simpler that way. However, his moments of eating were still few and far between, he was testing himself. He loved knowledge and the current experiment he was performing was getting a mean number for how long a vampire can go without eating. His current high score was two and a half weeks. At that point, the thirst had become too unbearable and he'd been forced to seek out sustenance. But none of the blood banks were open and he had made a stupid and out of character mistake by not preparing for this outcome. However, when in New York, he'd always been told that he simply must visit the Central Park Zoo. The thirst as strong as it was today would not allow him to simply take a little from his chosen victim, he would have to kill whatever being he sank his fangs into, so he headed for the Zoo. When he arrived, he'd made quick work of the cheap security system, it really was no match for someone of his caliber. Then he'd strolled through the place as if he owned it, enjoying the taste of freedom. Sevanni had been surprisingly lax with him, allowing him a lot more freedom than usual, which led him to suspect that there was something going on at the house that Darien might not have been too happy about. Darien wasn't interested in putting his nose in Sevanni's business, he knew that his master had some unsavory hobbies but it was not his place to care about that. He was a slave, property. The friendship that he and Sevanni shared was a gift, but it did not mean that he forgot who and what he really was. Slaves did not question their master's choices or actions and Darien liked to be exceptional at everything he did. His current problem was figuring out what animal he was hungry for. The penguins were too slippery and it would take far too many to sate his thirst. The elephants were too big, and their skin was rather tough to bite through. Pandas were delicious but also an endangered species and Darien had no interest in assisting nature's war on them. The big cats were a challenge that he normally relished but as he stared into their habitat he couldn't work up the appetite for them. Finally, he passed the grizzly enclosure and felt his stomach rumble in appreciation. With a grin, he approached the large wall that surrounded their sunken habitat and leaped it in a single bound. He landed easily on his feet and rose to face the Zoo's biggest and meanest grizzly bear. It was the lead male, the one that had been forcefully taken from the wild, captured and forced to live a life caged. Darien felt for the beast and decided that he would do for it what no one did for him. The bear was no match for Darien's vampire strength and soon it was trapped in his iron grip as Darien's teeth sank into the bear's jugular, the blood flowed easily into his mouth, hot and sweet. The ache in his throat eased slightly and Darien let out a groan of pleasure. The moon shone down upon him, illuminating the macabre scene below as the bear struggled, sending crimson droplets flying. Darien growled and tightened his grip on the bear, sucking at the life saving blood that was flowing between them. The bear sagged in Darien's arms and pretty soon the blood flow ceased and the creature's weight was pulling him to the ground. Darien dropped the thing and wiped his lips, licking the excess from his hands to make sure he could walk home without bringing unwanted attention. Then he heard a sound, a heartbeat, human. It was fluttering quickly and he grimaced at the implication of that heartbeat. He'd been discovered. ----------------------------------------------- Word Count: 857 Notes: Hope you like it! Haven't used Darien in a while.

[Riley Smokes]

[bg=#2F72DE] The Part When It All Began OH• MY • SWEET • L O R D! • T A L K • A B O U T • A • G R O W L I N G • A P E T I T E CLAWS, PAWS and FANGED JAWS

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In life, we are constantly faced with choices.

Pushing his back against the cold, metal fence, he could feel his heart beat at a much faster rate. A displeasing scent of sweat filled his nostrils, but in that situation, the man had mistaken it for something else – fear, and it was his own.

The decisions are crucial, because when we make them, they will determine the path that our future will take. Some of the choices, like ordering a meal from the menu, or picking the colour of your new apartment – those are the simple ones.

His hands were shaking, and he was certain that it wasn’t because of the cold, night weather. There was blood on his hands, also his own. He wiped them off on his black jeans. Worry about the stains later. There’s a hell of a lot more to worry about right now.

And then there are the ones that are not as clear cut, but holds enormous weight in our lives, like a parent quitting their dream jobs in order to raise their children, or a trauma surgeon deciding which critical patient he should save first.

Riley Smokes had a choice to make that day. A decision that would changed his life forever.

-Thirty Minutes Earlier-

''Don't forget Smokes, deadline's next week.'' the editor of The New York Times nudged as he swiftly walked past the journalist's cubicle. He didn't even bother to look up from his phone. ''It's already done, boss. I'll leave it on your desk tomorrow morning.'' Smokes nodded as he got up from his chair, and swirled both handles of his bag pack onto his shoulders. Still fixated on his phone, the editor raised his index finger as a gesture of acknowledgement. ''And that is why I'm giving you the promotion.'' he complimented as the elevator closed in behind him.

''Yeah, I'm a gem alright'' he sighed as he waited for the next elevator to arrive. After spending two years as an investigative journalist - which required extensive research, spying, invasion of privacy and other shady activities, writing about the 'burning-under-informed issue of the week', the big man decided that Smokes deserved a promotion. His very own advice column. Sure, the lesser workload and higher wage was tempting, and he could finally put his psychology knowledge to good use. However, there was one thing Smokes didn't like about the job - It was completely and utterly boring. It lacked the sense of adventure that came with investigative journalism. He had grown up a timid-nature kid. In kindergarten, high school, and he admitted - even during college. He was a goody-two shoes, a rule follower, a boundary maker. His first job as a journalist sparked a fire in him that he never knew he had. He craved for adventure. He craved for the risks. And unfortunately, he craved for the danger.

Walking across the trees of Central Park, Smokes was glad that he remembered to bring his jacket that morning as the night breeze blew past. The psych-major looked around and embraced the environment's view. 'A little jungle within the concrete jungle.' he mused. He continued his way towards his red SYM Simba scooter, which was parked at a bike rack area near the zoo. He couldn't park near the New York Times Building, because there wasn't enough demand for them to extend the parking lot.

The zoo was closed for the night, gates shut. Smokes cringed his nose as he walked pass. Perhaps it was his own psychological assumption, but it smelled really bad even from the outside. That was when he heard it. The roar was loud, yet it sounded like the lion, or whatever it was, was whimpering. Smokes was startled, but what intrigued him was that the roar ended as abruptly as it started. His helmet was already clipped on under his chin. He was ready to go, but his curiosity, as usual, got the better of him.

To get a closer look inside the zoo, Smokes ran to the side which was covered only by a wired fence. He could hear thudding noises in the distance. Something was definitely going on. He started making up headlines in his mind. 'Animal Abuse in New York Zoo', or 'Secret Cult Sacrifices Endangered Tiger' , his imagination was running wild. Smokes gulped nervously before climbing the face. As soon as he got to the other side, he accidentally grabbed onto the sharp edges of a barbed wire. ''Aah, damn it.'' he whispered, letting go of the fence and steadied his feet to land on the ground.

He walked to where he thought all the noise came from, and he didn't have to go far. Right in front of him, he saw it - The dead grizzly bear. All that blood. The man, with his teeth sinking into the poor animal's neck. ''Holy Mother of-'' he forgot he was supposed to be quiet, but it was too late anyway - the man had heard him.

Choice. It ultimately comes down to two, biological, and basic options - Fight or Flight. When humans, and even animals feel threatened, the brain carries out this response. To either stay and defend against the threat, or run away towards safety.

Pushing his back against the cold, metal fence, he could feel his heart beat at a much faster rate. A displeasing scent of sweat filled his nostrils, but in that situation, the man had mistaken it for something else – fear, and it was his own. His hands were shaking, and he was certain that it wasn't just because of the cold, night weather. There was blood on his hands, also his own. He wiped them off on his black jeans. 'Worry about the stains later.' he thought. There’s a hell of a lot more to worry about right now.

The man - something that Smokes was beginning to doubt he was, released his bite on the lifeless bear carcass and stood up, his back facing Smokes, the same position that his editor was in back at the building. And similarly, call it intuitive, but Smokes was pretty sure that the man was acknowledging his presence as well.

He could've run. Climb back up the fence, get in his scooter, and...flee. But he didn't. ''What are you- It's a freakin' bear!'' he exclaimed in disbelief.

He chose.
And his life will never be the same again.

"I'M TALKING!"
"I'M THINKING!"

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WORDS!A record breaking 1067
STATUS!COMPLETE
NOTES! Apologies about the length, but it's a given, since it's his introduction to the supernatural world. Tell me what you think. (:
TAGS! Darien Greer
INSPIRATION! 'Up From Below' by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros.
TEMPLATE CREDIT! ARRO @ CAUTION 2.0
PICTURE CREDIT!
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[Darien Greer]

[atrb=width,400,true][atrb=border,0,false][cs=0][bg=373737] It was a good thing that grizzly bears were so full of blood and life. If not, Darien wouldn't have been sated and the blood that was dripping from this man's hands would have driven him over the edge. Even with the bear's blood running through his veins, Darien couldn't help licking his lips at the sight of the blood. The smell pervaded the air, filling his senses and making him thirsty again. Human blood was so much more potent, so much more desirable. He couldn't help but long for it. No vampire ever truly could. He shook his head, trying to rid himself of those thoughts. He didn't want to take human lives but he desperately longed for human blood. The man was pressed up against the enclosure's wall, trying to get as far away as possible. Darien chuckled under his breath, the man would never be able to get away from him. If Darien wanted to drain the stranger dry, he could do so. It was the nature of vampires, they were predators and humans were nothing more than prey. Darien stayed still, not wanting to approach the man and scare him. But when he opened his mouth, Darien couldn't help laughing aloud. A big belly laugh, but it wasn't a happy laugh. It was bitter, hard. He hated what he was some days. Wished that he'd died a slave rather than lived as an undead one. No one could ever understand what it was like, knowing that you would be someone else's property for all of eternity. Of course he was now the property of what he considered to be a good man. Oh he knew that Sevanni had a dark side, he knew that Sev had done bad things. He even knew that right this moment, Sevanni was probably torturing that poor blonde wolf that had been captured. But he saw a side of the man that few ever did. However, there was a more pressing issue. He needed to determine if this man in front of him was going to be a problem. Darien couldn't allow the vampire race to be discovered, outed to the world. “Sir, is it not better the bear than...say, you?” Darien took a step forward and held his hands out to show he wasn't a threat. "Don't worry, I mean you no harm. I may be a vampire but that does not automatically make me a monster." He motioned toward the bear. "Would it have been better for you if the bear had a been a cow? Would that have been a little closer to the killing that you humans do for food?" He was genuinely curious and found this a perfect opportunity to discover how to better himself. How to become a better "veggie vamp". "Tell me, what would make you comfortable? Telling you that I normally take my blood from blood banks? From willing donors who beg me to bite them? Or would it make you feel better if I were a heartless monster so you could convince yourself I am not a man." Some one had told him that once. That they wished he was a heartless monster so they wouldn't feel like there was such a gray area to vampires. He'd been told that he was too nice, too good. They wanted him to be a killer, to take human blood whenever he was the tiniest bit thirsty. Sometimes he thought that Sevanni wanted that from him too. It was a thin line they walked. Darien's eyes studied the man in front of him. He looked like an intellectual, perhaps a kindred spirit. Even, perchance, a friend, if he hadn't been born to the fate he had. There were things that he knew, things he'd been through, that no man would ever understand. "Come now, don't be shy." ----------------------------------------------- Word Count: 634 Notes: Hope ya likes it.