Not the Best of Times Who: Joy and Paziter When: Anesus 3, 8:00 PM Where: Main Hall
Paziter was in a righteously cranky mood, by all the gods and their consorts. He had gotten to sleep late due to Harlan's dawn-time visit (not a problem in itself. Harlan was nice. Harlan was fun. Most importantly, Harlan understood how to act like a half-decent Vrykolas-being.) The trouble had come after the human had left.
Oh, and had it come in spades.
Needless to say, Paziter had slept very poorly, and held Lykos-kind to even lower standards than he'd felt when he stumbled into Raven the first time around. That tramp, she had run Paziter to within an inch of his temper, which had -- until this point -- come in yards and miles. One of these nights that bloody unfortunate Zalaron was going to get just what she was asking for...
But it was not going to be tonight.
Paziter was up in the main hall with a bundle of wrecked clothing, thinking on Harlan's earlier suggestion. Perhaps somebody would help to mend his coat, which he dearly liked (it came in his Sire's colours, though those were black and white) or perhaps the people up here would provide a kind of veil between the lie that was 'privacy' in his own bedroom and that thrice cursed rotten dog-woman. He'd have some kind of defense to fall back on then, right? Public duels were extremely formal and had to be arranged, and Paziter would have room to tweak the system if things came right down to it -- still working on the assumption that duels worked on Vrykolas terms, of course.
Whatever the case, he had forced himself not to focus on the sound of blood rushing, and to instead scan faces and hands for possible other lines of conversation. Harlan had been right in that he wouldn't hold Paziter over for long. It was coming on two nights since he'd fed, and already his senses were queuing up for more. He'd have to find Alarie, and soon.
At least he had backup. Now he caught sight of a solid looking young woman with a tempting sounding heartbeat. She was holding some clothing in her hand, working with needle and thread and... oh, now that was too perfect.
The Vrykolas' snarky mood drained away quickly enough as he closed the distance between the two of them, consciously practicing hooking into the shadows cast by the light of the fireplace to move along. He wasn't good at shadow-walking, but if he practiced every day, he'd eventually be able to use darkness to his advantage.
Standing before Joy before he knew it, quiet as a whisper, Paziter took a peremptory breath in. "Excuse me?" he asked, reigning in his every last knot of confidence. Asking for mending was not nearly the same as asking for blood, after all. "I... ah, was wondering... are you good with clothes-mending?" She looked familiar... had she been in the first-years meeting? Perhaps Paziter had simply seen her around the compound.
Jo needed new clothing. It didn't take long to notice that her current garb wouldn't blend in at all with the others living in the compound. And Jo still needed that bit of anonymity, at least until she could carry on something resembling a conversation. That little meeting with Harlan this morning had been a good start, but.. he was helpful. And seemed far more friendly than most of the other inhabitants.
So here she sat, altering one of her shirts so that it looked a little more like what others wore, surreptitiously keeping an eye open for particular styles and cuts and stitchings. She wouldn't copy any one piece of clothing, but had decided that a mix of everything would be just as good. She had seated herself near a window to watch the sunset, and simply stayed when it had gotten dark. She could see just as well by candle or firelight, and there was nothing better to do.
She was engrossed in her work when Paziter spotted her and ghosted over. Jo didn't exactly jump when Paziter appeared before her, but it was close. She looked up quickly, eyes guarded and wary, mostly out of instinct. But then, her expression changed when he spoke. Shaking herself mentally, Jo offered a shy smile. "I'm pretty good at it, matter of fact," she announced, eyes flickering down to his bundle then back up expectantly.
It didn't hit her until she'd thought about it for a moment, that she recognized this man's face. And then her expression changed yet again, this time to one of almost gleeful anticipation. This had been the man who'd spoken up in the meeting last night, asking for a list of those who would be willing to 'support' the Vrykolas. What luck!
Paziter didn't realize that Joy was particularly interested in him; her heart-beat hadn't picked up, and the way that she darted her gaze down to his bundle of ruined clothing and then back up with that anticipatory smile led him only to think that she must really like what she did.
Shifting a midge uncomfortably, embarrassed that he couldn't share in her enthusiasm (he worked well enough with an awl, and with leather wrappings, but sewing was tricky business, and meant for women, besides!) he cleared his already dry throat. "Would you be willing to... trade? I had an accident," well, an accident and an intentionally rotten encounter, to be more accurate, "and I don't really... know. Where to start." He jostled his clothing-pile so that the burn on his pants (such nice pants. Silk and expensive cotton!) and the snarls of thread that had been pulled up the front of his over-coat, near the artfully carved buttons were plainly evident. "I'm willing to barter... I like to do crafts. Fix things. I'm pretty good with metal-smithing, if you needed something like that... I don't know." He averted his gaze, apparently finding the dust that had accumulated by the bench somehow fascinating. "I'm flexible, I guess?"
Jo wanted to laugh, though not at Paziter or his scorched and snagged clothing. She was just that excited. But there was the matter at hand, and she didn't think the Vrykola would appreciate her gushing at him at the moment. Instead, Jo turned her attention back to the clothing, eying it critically. "Well, that's not too terrible," she said, plucking at the tears. "At least you didn't wear it to threads after the tear. That's difficult to fix without a serious patch. But that burn mark is gonna need one," she announced.
The girl held out her hand in greeting. "I'm Jo," she said, having remembered only then that introductions were usually the beginning of conversations rather than the end.
As she rifled through her bag of equipment for the right color thread, she considered that trade bit. Oh she knew how trades worked. The problem was, she'd never been on the receiving end of a trade that didn't involve bare essentials. Grain for fruit, milk for fabric, eggs for sugar and salt. Here she had basically everything she needed, right there whenever she needed it. All that was left was... things she'd wanted but never thought to ask for.
"Well," Jo was just as hesitant as the Vrykola. "I don't need anything fixed, but..." there she stopped, looking troubled. Now that she thought of it, her request was a bit too large for a mere mending job to fix. And besides, wasn't mending one of her chores anyway? Wow, where to go from there? After the long (and somewhat startled) moment all Jo could do was quickly end the thought with an "I don't know." And then winced. That was too long a pause. Quick, think of something to ask for that didn't require months of dedication.
A patch. Paziter winced, imagining himself in pauper's garb in all the colours of an opal. Some people could get away with many colours, but he knew that he most certainly could not.
However, her abrupt introduction distracted Paziter away from his wardrobe woes, and he automatically bowed as he took 'Jo's hand to pressed his lips faintly to her skin. He could feel her pulse and though the thought of sinking fangs into her wrist flitted across his mind, he hurried through the formalities in order to allow her to have her hand back. "Paziter Ingret," the Vrykolas replied, but only after he was certain that he wasn't speaking with his fangs out. "Pleased to meet you, Jo." What a strange name, human or no.
He felt disheartened when she paused to think about anything worth her effort. Surely patching and repairing something wouldn't require such a huge trade of talent? But then she answered with that 'I don't know,' and the Vrykola frowned. He could always ask another person, he supposed. He couldn't simply run into everybody that he needed the first time around -- Harlan had been a lucky case, after all! "Nothing at all?" he asked, attempting to keep his tone level, instead of pleading. "Are they that bad a case? I mean... I don't really know a lot about patching... If it's too much to do..."
A little startled, Jo almost jerked her hand back when he bent over it, and her pulse certainly shot up a notch or two, though not from fear. Wow, that was certainly new. No one had ever kissed her hand before. She felt a little giddy, and almost missed what he said, bobbing her head timidly at his return introduction. She'd been expecting a simple handshake!
Oh dear, apparently he'd misunderstood her hesitation. "No, it's not a big job," Jo hurriedly assured him, "I was trying to think of something that was small enough compensation. Mending is one of my chores, anyway, so I didn't want to..." oh dear, she was babbling. That wasn't good either. Scare the man away, why don't you? She took a breath and started again. "I had been about to ask... if you could teach me... something. But that's a huge commitment, and definitely not worth a simple patchup." There. Halting though it was, at least now he might understand her hesitancy.
Jo watched his expression, her own a strange mix of caution and hope. Would he be angry? He didn't seem the type to fly off the handle, but then, she'd only just met the man, and it was her first meeting with an actual Vrykola. Who knew what to expect?
Oh dear, had he managed to flash fangs at her, despite his attempt to curtail any signs that he was growing hungry again? Jo's heartbeat was a jangle in his ear, though of course he assumed that he'd managed to scare her somehow. Humans didn't like to be touched, he must keep that in mind. Lykos too much, humans too little... this was all so much to take in!
"Oh!" He blinked at her a few times, rather surprised by her request. 'Teach her something'? What was it with humans wanting Vrykolas-lessons? Paziter's Sire had never mentioned that humans wanted to absorb their own knowledge, though of course the servants had been curious enough. They had always liked the things that Paziter was able to bring down to their homes, at the very least. "What... what do you want? To learn?" He realized that he was clutching his clothing in a tight little death-grip, and consciously attempted to relax. He considered mentioning that he was already working through the clock-work inventions that Harlan had dreamed up, but decided against it -- as shy and quiet as he was, Paziter felt a mild possessive streak; time with Harlan was fun, and he wouldn't want to turn it into a chore for the sake of anybody, whether or not his coat remained ruined. Instead of tacking that information into the conversation, he freed a hand to roll his wrist and then scratch at the back of his neck, occupying himself to avoid blurting anything out that he didn't yet want to.
Oh dear. Well, she'd gone and said it. She should have known he'd at least be curious. "I, um." It was one thing to realize a lack in one's self, and quite another to admit it. "I want to learn how to read," she mumbled, eyes downcast, a blush rising to her cheeks. She'd been just as ashamed to have to ask someone to help her with the chores list, just last night, but if she didn't learn it from someone, this would just keep happening. This was not something Jo was used to. Back home, if she'd wanted to learn something, all she had to do was try it out a few times. Probably fall on her rear more often than succeed, but still, she'd learn. If it was too complicated, she could watch her father, or one of the men working the farm first.
But neither her father, nor the men on the farm knew how to read. And truthfully, before coming here, Jo hadn't had the time, or the reason to even consider learning that skill.
"I'm sorry, I know it's too much," she finished, voice a bit more audible now. "If you like, we can forget the trade thing, and I'll just add this to the rest of my mending?" Wow. Why did that make it sound like Jo was desperate to fix his clothing? Really, she would be happy with his company while she worked, but winds take her if she was going to tell him that.
"To read..." Paziter mouthed out loud. To read? To read?!
She didn't know how to read?
Wow, he'd have been embarrassed too, if he had to admit something like that. He could understand her posture and her tone of voice, now, for all that this entire conversation was painful enough as it was.
"Well... how much do you have?" he asked. "Learning. You, ah, know the alphabet?" It was phrased as a question, though he couldn't imagine any child getting away with not knowing it. Reading was one integral part of Vrykolas society; with the oral traditions of religion came inseparable the public historical repository of the written word. Even the servants had been taught to read and to write, though their bragging had been the subtle sort and Paziter had never picked it up.
Jo couldn't read. Paziter had no idea how to teach reading, but he imagined that it would take a lot of chalk and a good couple of slate boards, or barring that, enough ink and paper to make Lenhakri jealous (not to mention Paziter and his sire's coin-pouches ache!)
Well, now she'd done it. Her first response was to defend her position. "Well you don't need to read and write when you work a farm and don't have no one to talk to, do you?" Jo blurted, boldly meeting his eyes. Then winced again. "Sorry," she murmured, looking down. "I know, um, the sounds? Just don't know what little picture goes with 'm."
Yeah, go ahead and laugh. Maybe her father was right. Might as well just keep going. She wasn't going to leave a worse impression by rambling, now. "See? Told you it was too much. I'll do yer patching, though. You seem nice enough, and with all the trouble you people have, you know, with meals and suchlike - you were the one at th' meeting last night, right? Who asked about that list? Yeah. I figure it's the least I can do to help." Jo shrugged, face carefully blank of expression (a trick she'd learned long ago to keep her father from worrying himself into knots over her state of mental health because she didn't have a mother to do 'womanly stuff' with). "Heck, I'd offer to put m'self on the list, if it'd save me from this embarrassment," she finished, voice all but inaudible. A normal human wouldn't have even heard it.
Feeling rather put upon, Paziter dropped his gaze before Jo had a chance to give him that death glare, nor did he look up again even as she apologized. He did mutter an awkward veto that Jo simply mend his clothing for free... but then she went on a completely different tangent and Paziter was pulled out of his self-sorry state to stare at her. "What?" asked he, catching the last that she'd said but not entirely sure that he'd heard right.
From what he'd heard from older residents, it was like pulling teeth to get a meal... but this was the second human who'd offered themselves up out of nowhere without Paziter really having to ask. (Nevermind that they were both girls. He didn't want to think about that or he'd probably crawl under a rock to hide.) He was looking over her shoulder, slightly off of her face when he found himself suggesting, "well... if you're not averse... if you wanted, I mean... I could teach you to read in exchange for..." he frowned, not wanting to finish the sentence should it instead scare her off.
Now it was Jo's turn to be surprised. "Wait, what? You'd really.." she started, then stopped, staring. Was he really offering to teach her? He wasn't teasing her, was he? Just in exchange for...?
The girl blinked several times in quick succession, then opened her mouth to speak again. And thought better of that almost immediately. She'd already almost scared him away; it was probably best to say as little as possible at this point. Instead, she wordlessly held out her arm, wrist up, wide eyes fixed on his face.
The thought flickered through her head that, if father could see her now, he'd have a stroke. Or a heart attack. Maybe both. His own daughter, offering her own blood to one of them. And for something that the man had never thought terribly important, too! The thought triggered the faintest flicker of a smile. Sorry father, but you did always say my curiosity got me into the worst trouble. But Paziter seemed so nice. Jo couldn't believe that he'd intentionally hurt her, for all that she might have wanted to give him a good sock in the face for laughing at her lack.
Of course she could probably get someone else to teach her. She hadn't placed all her hopes in this one possibility. For all that, Harlan might know someone (or be willing himself). But Jo had always been curious about the Vrykola, and this was just too good an opportunity to pass up; what better way to learn about someone than spending time with them?
Paziter made a noise somewhere between a cough and a quickly quelled choking sound, bringing his own fist to his mouth as he cast her an incredulous stare. Really, the implications of having a wrist held up to a Vrykola in the middle of the bloody main hall was enough to embarrass him right under a rock. Darting a look around to make sure that nobody was watching, Paziter put his free hand out and gestured for her to lower her own arm. "Not here," he would be flushing right to the ears if he'd had the blood for it. "It's, ah... it's personal." Sort of. Maybe not in the same way as other personal things, but he wasn't going to be seen digging in in public no matter how hungry he was. Some Vrykolas hunted with partners, but Paziter had never done so. He'd never hunted, period; with his strange upbringing he had instead approached those he was comfortable with and asked them to step aside for a few minutes. (And the only time that he had disobeyed implicit rules of manners he had gotten such a smack...)
"It's not... it's not a trivial thing. So yes, if you want to trade..." he frowned, looked down at his bundle of clothing, fiddled with it for a minute, and then put it atop Jo's pile of mending. "But let us get the proper... proper... ah... water. Food. For you I mean. Somewhere to sit comfortably. I don't want..." His facial muscles did the most amusing acrobatics when he was feeling put upon, cheeks scrunching up, brows furrowing, grimace showing a bit of fang even as he worked his way through his half, "I don't want you to faint."
Paziter's reaction wasn't exactly what Jo had expected. Had she done something wrong? Her arm dropped back into her lap at his furtive gesture. And then, in a moment, she began to understand his reaction. Well, now that she thought of it, she didn't really think he'd have just attacked her wrist, right there in the middle of the common room. It wouldn't have bothered her, but he seemed a bit more... restrained.
So she just waited quietly as he set down his bundle (she'd be sure to start on that first thing), and then her eyes darted back up to his face as he resumed speaking, noting the impressive contortions it went through. Wow. Wait, was that a fang?! Jo's eyes lit up with interest, so focussed was she on watching for another glimpse of fang that she almost missed what he was saying.
"Faint?" She sounded amused. "Don' you worry about me, I got plenty," Jo said softly. "But if it'll make you feel better, there's food in the kitchens, an' we can go up to my room, or to wherever yours is." As she spoke, her hands began to gather the needles and thread strewn about. That took no more than a moment, and once her things were packed away and the bundle of clothing gathered up, she peered up at him expectantly. Well, now what?
"Not my room," his voice was fervent, surprisingly bitter despite his earlier simpering. Paziter, hands interlaced across his stomach (which was now greedily demanding, knowing that there was food waiting and that he wasn't drinking right now!) scanned the room, then gestured with a tilt of the head towards the kitchens. If his experience had proven anything to him, Paziter was certain that Jo would be grateful for something to drink, something to eat, and a place to rest her head when he was finished.
Food.
Oh Gods. This was so bizarre...
Was he really getting propositioned by two (three?) people in the span of a couple of nights all because he'd gone and stuck his head out like he had at Tayne's meeting? What in the world had he done to deserve it? (Then again... with the way that Raven had been treating him, perhaps he deserved a little relief...?) Paziter didn't allow himself to linger on those thoughts too long. Instead, he shuffled along ahead of Jo, grounding himself (as it were) by allowing his feet to tug at the shadows that were cast by the great hearths at the other end of the hall. Practice practice practice!
When they reached the kitchens, Paziter went for the same supplies that he'd gotten Harlan, deftly bringing a tray about and filling it with a few scraps of bread and a goblet of juice (for lack of a bucket of ready to drink water... he didn't want to make a pit-stop in the well room!)... and then turning to Jo. "Where to?" he asked, quelling the urge to take a deep breath.
While the sudden change in Paziter's tone of voice confused her somewhat, Jo wasn't one to be put off as easily as that. Besides, now that the topic had been broached, he seemed pretty anxious to continue, despite his awkwardness about it earlier. Winds, what had Jo gotten herself into this time?
As they made their way to the kitchen, and rummaged around for suitable foodstuffs (at least she trusted it was all suitable; Paziter knew more about this than she did, so she let him gather what he thought she'd need), something about the way the Vrykola moved caught Jo's attention. Was it her imagination, or... no, she'd definitely seen something odd. It reminded her of how she herself used magic in the wilds sometimes, when stalking a particularly sensitive prey animal. Interesting. Maybe she could get him to show her sometime. Would bribing work with that, as it had with the reading lessons?
And then he was asking where to go. Jo pointed one finger towards the ceiling. "Upstairs," she said, and then it was her turn to lead the way. Up the stairs and down the hall to her block, then past the door and temporary window into Harlan's room (who she'd only met earlier that morning; she wondered if he was in, and if he was, what he'd say to Paziter's presence) to her own little window-room on the end.
Her space was organized neatly, and almost as empty as the first day she'd arrived, save for some cloth and furs piled onto the little table. Tipping her pile of clothing and sewing supplies onto the foot of her bed, she turned to face Paziter, tilting her head curiously. To him, it may have felt awkward and distressingly personal, but to Jo, it was just another experience she had been immensely curious about. Boys never really bothered her, except when they acted unexpectedly civilized. Still, having a Vrykola standing in her room, and knowing what was on the way, set her heartbeat fluttering away in her chest.
What had she gotten herself into?
For a moment, Paziter was convinced that Jo was playing some trick on him, taking him right to Harlan's block... of course he remembered the route that he'd taken two nights ago, even if this time he was feeling more civil and in control. Disquieted enough to feel his hands trembling against the tray that he anchored firmly against his chest, the Vrykola frowned, worried. Even though Jo had revealed that she was opening another door, and not Harlan's after all, he felt... embarrassed? Nervous? A feeling that he couldn't quite pin down, knowing that Harlan might be in and would very easily be able to spot the business one door down from him.
Paziter realized that, as he heeled the door closed (though the room was still distressingly open with those windows) the feeling that was leaving him anxious and embarrassed was the fact that he was about to be feeding from another human no more than a couple of nights after he'd taken from Harlan... and the older compound resident might find that rude. Somehow. As if Paziter felt Harlan wasn't good enough (which in truth, he wasn't, though it wasn't for quality's sake, more the quantity!) and so was choosing to purposefully spurn the other man by feeding from the girl next door.
'Just stop thinking,' he clamped down firmly on the wild worry that was spiraling out of control in the back of his mind.
Casting one more furtive glance through the window to ensure that Harlan would not be hanging off of the sill, peering in, Paziter made space upon the table for the tray and then faced Jo. Obviously, she didn't know what to do, and he found himself in the roll of mentor... which was again a flip from his usual status. It didn't help that Jo's heart was beating like a wild thing, every minor sound and scent that of prey that felt it was 'caught'... Paziter didn't realize how grateful he'd been that Harlan had been so calm and certain about everything. If the other human had been in the state (even as quietly as Jo was) when the Vrykola had been so hungry, Paziter probably wouldn't have been able to contain himself.
As it was now, he raised both hands, gesturing for Jo to sit. "I... you probably haven't done this before. I'm just... well, would you rather make a cut yourself, or would you rather I... did so?" This time he'd brought a second goblet in case Jo preferred to remove herself from the experience another step.
Of course, Jo had no idea that Paziter and Harlan had already met, or she, too, would have been nervous about her neighbor's reaction. As it was, she had something else entirely to worry about.
Jo plopped down on her low bed when the Vrykola gestured, scooting back a tiny bit to get comfortable, but not so much that she wasn't still literally on the edge of her seat with anticipation. She nodded faintly, with a timid smile, at his assumption that she was new at this.
When he asked if she wanted to make the cut, however, the girl was momentarily confused. "Cut?" she blurted, head tilted a little and expression vaguely troubled, "I thought.." And then her mouth was clamped shut as she tried not to insult him or something. Clearly, her information had been faulty. But she'd seen that glimpse of fang, surely those couldn't just be for show. Maybe this one was just so civilized he preferred to use a knife and cup (Jo had just noticed he had brought two, when she herself would be the only one drinking that juice) to biting.
"Um," Jo murmured, somewhat at a loss. "Sorry, I really am new." Hopefully, her inexperience would excuse her, at least a bit. "Whatever you like, I don't mind. But I'd, um," she faltered, "I'd rather not.. cut. Um. Myself." A slow flush reddened her cheeks as she spoke, and for the life of her, Jo couldn't make it stop.
It was a fair opinion; of the dozen or so servants who'd lived at the base of his Sire's catacomb-filled home, he'd known some who would promptly slit a wrist, fill a cup, put the wound to Paziter's mouth and tell him to shoo. Some weren't so economical; one or two even seemed to prefer a bite to the neck, though Paziter was not their favorite and so he'd mostly avoided them.
The Vrykola pegged Jo as the kind of human who wouldn't like the idea of having a knife put to her, at least once she confided that she didn't want to use one, herself. Keeping that in mind, he wiped his palms together and then, once he realized that they were sweating, upon his pants. "Well, I'll just..." he posited himself on the bed next to Jo, both grateful for and ashamed that his face didn't flush the same way that hers was. He put a hand out, palm up, waiting to receive her wrist again. "I'm sorry I'm just... this is... it's awkward when it's with someone I don't know," he apologized in advance. "It's just the first time..." the last was partially muffled, as with 'fresh blood!' at the forefront of his mind, his fangs had descended and he was speaking to Jo's floor, looking opposite his lap from where she was sitting.
Jo remained silent as she watched Paziter's reaction, relieved that at least she hadn't managed to insult him this time. And it wasn't even as though she hadn't accidentally sliced through her own fingers and flesh over the years as she worked with knives in various areas. She just didn't particularly like the idea of putting a blade to her skin on purpose.
When he sat next to her on the bed, Jo scooted aside a bit to give him more room. She still didn't trust herself with words just yet, so she only nodded to his comments as she lay her wrist in his open hand. But her heart gave her away, picking up another notch and beating loud enough that she could practically hear it herself. Well, at least she'd always had a healthy heartbeat. Oh yes, she certainly hoped this awkwardness didn't last.
But even with all of that, the girl kept her eyes open, not at all squeamish at the thought (or sight) of blood, in a prime position to finally begin to sate her curiosity. Too bad Paziter wasn't more open about the whole thing; Jo would have liked to get a good look at his fangs.
Her hand in his, Paziter took a moment to explain, "this will hurt... but not for too long, I promise." Again, the worlds were muffled and slowly minced, for he didn't want to cut his own lip while speaking! His grip became firmer, meant to keep Jo from yanking her hand back at the last possible second; for all that he was trying to be careful (and probably overdoing it in the process) Paziter was still a Vrykola, and Jo was, for the moment, prey. If she struggled he would probably let her go, at least until blood was drawn. He hoped that he wouldn't need to worry about that!
Ducking his head down, he resisted the urge to simply sink his fangs into the upturned inside of her arm -- not only would it be incredibly rude, it would probably hurt a whole light of a lot more than was needed. Instead, he carefully followed the feeling of the pulse in her wrist, luxuriating for a moment in the warmth and life of the sound and smell she gave off. There was something about a clamorous heartbeat that made feeding all the more delicious, as loathe as Paziter was to admit it. He found a particularly juicy artery and promptly punctured her arm, his own hands clamped around Jo to keep her from moving too much. Suddenly there was blood in his mouth, welling up and around his teeth as he removed them -- careful, he didn't want to rip her tendons!
Bloodlust was really only a problem when a Vrykola couldn't get what he wanted, as far as Paziter knew. Drinking, now, he felt the typical haziness that usually swept thoughts away, but with it was a kind of clarity. He could hear Jo's breathing, her heart beat, could monitor her condition through a number of different senses all at once; that was all in the background. For now he simply sated himself, at least until Jo might begin to feel faint! Unlike with Harlan, Paziter felt assured that the young woman wasn't going to collapse after only a light feed... and her blood, he had to admit, was heartier than the other humans. By the rate at which he felt a tingle of delicious warmth fill his body, her donation would likely keep him going for a few days straight... not that he was worrying about a few days from present right now. The simple sensation of renewed bloodways was enough to occupy most of his mind.
Once he had had his fill, if Jo hadn't otherwise objected, Paziter was careful to heal the wounds he'd given her; tongue to human flesh to seal over the puncture wounds, to begin knitting them back together again. He drew away from her and turned his face away to avoid the rudeness of showing blood on his face, even if she were only the prey. Paziter dug through a pocket and found a handkerchief, dabbing at his face. That hadn't been the most clean feeding session he'd had, but at least he wasn't dripping from the chin!
Jo nodded a simple response to his warning, and tried not to struggle, as her instinct insisted. She'd never particularly enjoyed being restrained. But this was... well, different. Sort of. At least it wasn't against her will. She winced slightly at the promised pain, but he had been right; it didn't last long at all. The following sensations were very interesting. Jo felt her arm go cold almost at once, as the blood drained from it, that chill spreading up from where Paziter had sunk his fangs, all the way to her shoulder, fading out as it approached her heart. And speaking of her heart, that began to level off a bit, slowing it's beat to a more normal rhythm, though nowhere near faint. This girl really was quite healthy.
Jo had no idea how much he'd take, or how long it would take him, but when the Vrykola finally pulled away she was beginning to feel a little light headed. It would pass, since it was only because her heart was suddenly making up for a a bit of volume lost, but for the moment, she was glad Paziter had insisted on bringing up food and drink.
But before that, Jo couldn't help but stare in fascination at her arm, the little punctures already beginning to close. "Wow," she said, breathlessly, in awe, "I didn't know you could heal." She was just out of it enough to lose some of her inhibitions, which, inevitably, led her to be more open about her curiosity.
"It's, ah, a little survival mechanism," he suggested through the handkerchief that was still covering his mouth. Paziter took a moment to rise and ensure that his face really was clean by checking in the mirror, pleased as peaches as the flush that tinted his cheeks and nose, by the sensation of slow-flowing warmth that was merrily circulating through him. Turning back to Jo, finally, he was holding the filled goblet, and now he stretched his arm out so that she could easily take it. "Thank you," he told her, voice earnest. "It's been a while since I've fed that well." 'You were delicious,' didn't really seem like a good thing to mention. He always felt bad with how goopy-headed a human looked after being fed from... he imagined that the sensation was probably not very pleasant.
When Jo looked up, she was beaming. Half a shade paler than her usual tan, but no more worse for wear. She bobbed her head at his thanks and what she took for a compliment, taking the cup in both hands, in case she was weaker than she felt. She may have been a bit lethargic, but there was no way she was kicking him out just yet. Unless he wanted to leave, of course.
In Jo's case, being sleepy didn't necessarily equate to being groggy - in fact, all that did was take away what little control she had over her thoughts escaping. Had she ever been drunk before, she might have equated it to a slight buzz, just a cup or two to loosen the tongue but leave the mind mostly alert. And, as much as Paziter might not have thought her flavor was an appropriate topic of discussion, Jo was all for it. "So," she said, pausing to sip at the juice, and then resuming her grin, rather amused now, "how do I taste?" She pulled her feet up onto the bed, curling up against her pillow and the wall.
"Uhhh..." Paziter wondered if she'd read his mind, though the implications to that thought were unsettling, to say the least. "Fine, just fine?" He'd never had anyone ask him that specifically before. More like 'had enough?' The Vrykola shifted from foot to foot for a second, then decided to bring the tray over to the human so that she'd have something to eat. Setting the bread within reach, he deposited himself on the foot of her bed -- half to keep from pacing and half because he felt a little safer, out of immediate sight of the windows. "Is there anything else I can do for you?" asked he, regarding Jo's somewhat softened expression. She was a little less intimidating when she was curled up like that. Almost... well, 'child like' wasn't quite what he was looking for. She seemed somehow exuberant.
Paziter wondered why... most humans who bothered to feed Vrykolas at all of their own free will regarded the whole thing as a sort of duty. It wasn't fun, certainly!
Jo giggled a little "I'd hate to give you anything horrible." She took a long drink of that juice, feeling the sugar dissolve in her stomach and shoot little tendrils of energy into her system. Was it like that for the Vrykola as he drank, too? It made her giddy. Thankfully, Paziter chose just that moment to bring her the bread, which she tore a hunk out of immediately, feeling even more grateful to him for having thought of it.
She smiled at him as he took a seat at the foot of her bed, glad that he didn't seem to be in a hurry to go now that'd he'd fed. "If y' wouldn't mind," she began, hiding behind her cup timidly, "could you stay here for a little?" It was the request that Jo hadn't been able to voice earlier. "We could talk, or I could do your mending.." there she faltered and looked troubled. "Dunno how exciting that'd be for you, though," she finished, mumbling behind her juice cup.
"Ah... sure," Paziter agreed, watching her eat in the more mundane fashion. He remembered doing that himself, vaguely, but memories of pre-Scion existence were blurry to him. Paziter didn't usually stay with the people that he fed from for too long -- not only did it remind him of his roots, it was usually considered bad manners. Paziter wasn't sure why it was considered bad manners, but he had a feeling that it stemmed from the thoughts of normal Vrykolas who preferred to hunt over the more cushioned lifestyle that his Sire had taken.
Not that Paziter would ever think of his Sire as off-kilter, despite what had been sloppily whispered in the past.
Deciding that it was time to drag his attention back to Jo, at least so it didn't look like he was brooding (which he was,) the blonde added, "the only time I ever regretted feeding from a human was when they'd gotten skunk drunk and I didn't know any better. That was..." He tried to think of the episode as anything other than distressing and foul, "that was interesting."
Manners didn't actually mean much to Jo. Oh, the girl knew it was rude to do certain things (including eating in front of others without offering them something, but she figured that since Paziter had already eaten, she was fine there), she just wasn't big on what she considered superfluous social niceties.
Jo almost choked on her mouthful of juice when the Vrykola mentioned that little experience. She swallowed hurriedly, her hand flying up to simultaneously muffle the sudden bout of giggles and express some amount of shock. "What was that like? Did you get drunk too?"
Paziter scratched at the back of his neck, just above where his high-collared shirt met the back of his short hair. "Not... not exactly." He wrinkled his nose, remembering the experience. "I was sick. It was uncomfortable." Considering that he didn't often get sick (at least, not since his turning), Paziter had an easy time remembering all of those incidents that were less than normal.
"Oh!" Jo exclaimed, her amused expression shifting instantly to one of alarm. "It was.. I mean.. I didn't know y' could get sick," came her apologetic murmur. Oops? Already, Paziter was proving to be quite informative. She wanted to know more about the Vrykola, both personally and as a member of his particular species, and in her current state, there was little enough to stop her from asking. Except that she hardly knew where to begin.
Harking back a bit in their conversation, Jo remembered something that had interested her. "You said 'human'," she tilted her head to the side curiously, "can you.. um.. feed from animals too?" She made sure to the terms he had just used himself, both to put her question into words and to make sure she didn't offend by using the wrong ones. Hopefully it'd work. Jo still wasn't terribly adept at this whole social conversation thing, but she was learning fast. Again, hopefully.
Clearly, there were some facts that her father had left out. She wondered why, but decided to think about that later, when she didn't have company to watch the mental gears turning.
Paziter didn't look up at her, though he couldn't put it past himself to outright lie, even if he knew that telling the truth would probably land in trouble. "Well... yes... but not well. They taste like... their blood tastes thin. It doesn't last very long. It's not as good as humans' blood."
Finally casting a glance at her, eyes narrowed, lips pursed, he asked, "why do you ask?" She was going to tell him to get out and go drain rabbits in the future, wasn't she?
Jo considered his answer using her juice comparison. Watery, tasteless juice. She scrunched up her nose in distaste; she understood why they preferred human blood, if animals were like that.
About to say just that, Jo suddenly found herself caught in a suspicious glare. She blinked, startled, expression shifting instantly from sympathetic distaste to wide-eyed confusion. "I'm sorry, I was.. I just wanted to know, that's all." The flush returned to her cheeks, though it was much fainter now than it had been earlier on in the evening. "Was it rude to ask? I'm sorry," she said again, hoping he wasn't about to leave. "I don't know much.. about you.. and, um.." Jo ducked her head again, clamping her mouth shut to cut off her babbling. Ah Winds, as if he didn't already think you an idiot, go ahead and insult the man too, she berated herself, good way to make friends, there.
Paziter was a little taken off guard by her reply... while perhaps thinking that Jo throwing him out of her room was a little far, he hadn't been expecting her reaction. "It's... not rude... it's just that..." suddenly, with the human ducking away shyly, Paziter felt self conscious again, too. "I figured that if you knew, you'd be angry. Most humans don't really like being fed from." Even if some put up with it in exchange for security and a comfortable life...
Well, at least she hadn't been unintentionally rude. Jo had the idea that he'd probably forgive her if she had been, new person and all that, but it definitely wouldn't have made a good impression.
It didn't take her long at all to consider his view of things and nod her understanding. The few people she knew back home would have been terrified of him, or at least disgusted. They certainly wouldn't have hesitated to go tell him to hunt elsewhere, since he could survive on animal blood, and leave the humans alone. Jo could understand that point of view too, but her never ending curiosity had demanded that she at least try it, once. "Well, it's not that bad," she murmured. "Leaves you a little cold an' dizzy, and 't's not actually fun, but I'm not gonna kick you out an' make you eat somethin' that's not as good f'r you." Jo was imagining what it'd be like for her, comparing human food and Vrykola food again, to be told she could only eat the smallest portions of the least filling meal, while everyone else ate whatever they pleased. It wasn't fair at all.
It was so strange, Paziter thought for the umpteenth time, to have found himself in the compound. He had never really felt guilty about feeding before. Maybe cautious... careful, but the humans that he knew had taken feeding as a matter of course. They had refused to be bled only when they didn't have it in them. Paziter felt himself oddly thankful for Jo's reassurance, though he was confused that he needed to feel thankful at the same time. It was... definitely odd.
He was slightly hunched over his lap, hands squeezed together over his knees to massage the warmth that had spread there into his fingertips. The sense of being full and physically comfortable certainly helped; he soon decided that conflicting thoughts aside, Jo wasn't all bad company at all. She was different... but everything about the compound was different. That wasn't always such a bad thing.
At last, he answered her claim with a quiet, "thank you... do you want a blanket or something?" He wondered if a fire had been started in the sitting room, and remembered the row upon row of books that lined the walls shelves. It might be worthwhile to see if Jo wanted to move.
"Mmm," Jo thought for a moment, holding the nearly empty goblet in one hand, freeing up the other to chafe her arm bit. Warmth by friction wasn't quite enough. "Maybe," she decided, and glanced down at her bed. As inviting as it was to just crawl in under the covers, there was no way she'd be able to stay awake, and then she'd lose this chance to get to know this Vrykola better. Paziter was already here, and who knew when she'd be able to hunt him down again. Besides, felt like a lot of effort to get up off the bed, turn down the blankets, and then climb back in, only to make Paziter feel he ought to leave. (She knew he would; she herself would feel the same were the situation reversed. Going to bed was about as unsubtle a way of evicting someone as Jo knew, besides actually showing them to the door.) There had to be a way to both warm up and keep her guest, though Winds take her if she knew what it was.
fainter, but since she had never been fed from before, she couldn't possibly know herself that well. Not that Paziter could really claim to be helpful; he might feel vaguely responsible for her well-being at this point, but if something went wrong with her, he probably wouldn't be able to do anything to help her.
It was worth a shot to keep an eye on her, in any case. "Can you walk? We could sit by the fire in the book-room," he suggested, thinking about how it might be nice to curl up in front of the fire and doze, himself. He hadn't gotten nearly enough sleep last day.
Oh. Well that would work. She grinned at his good idea. "I can walk," she said, uncurling her legs and sliding off the bed. It took a moment for the slight wave of dizziness to pass, and Jo put the cup back down onto the platter. It was empty, anyway. After a short stretch, and a quick glance at her wrist out of curiosity (it hadn't completely healed, but it was well on it's way already!) she was ready to go.
For a moment Jo considered bringing down her mending, then quickly snagged a few pieces from the top of the pile, Paziter's included, and her bag of supplies. "There," she said, and motioned for the door. Hopefully that little patch of dizziness was all she would feel, though the stairs might prove a problem. Well, at least she could curl up in front of the nice, warm fire downstairs. Maybe she could just sleep there. It would be easier to get breakfast in the morning that way, too.
When Jo had finished gathering her things, Paziter opened the door for her, furtively peered into the shorter hall that connected this block to the main hallway, and then led her down the hall. Ladies always walked a step behind and to the side of men, and humans never took the lead. It was one of the many little ingrained lessons that Paziter had locked into the back of his brain; unless Jo sounded like she was about to collapse, he was quite happy to walk in front. He could hear and smell her even if he couldn't see her from here, though with the windows, 'echoes' made pinpointing anything much more difficult.
That was one of the confusing things about the compound... it certainly wasn't built to compliment Vrykola senses. The long, echoing, empty hallways of his Sire's home were so much more comfortable than the tight, smelly, noisy quarters here. They reminded him more of the way that humans preferred to live, all crammed together with every generation and their dog, too, in a single big house.
In any case, Paziter didn't swing right down the hall to the stairwell, choosing instead to peer into the sitting room up on the second floor. The area was smaller, the atmosphere calmer here. People came in, sat down to read or work, and fell asleep... and that was about it. It seemed much more calm than taking Jo downstairs. Besides, he didn't want to subject her to a flight of stairs when she seemed light-headed already. (Not that Paziter wouldn't have mind skipping up and down stairs right now. He certainly had the new-found energy for it!)
Inspecting the room and finding that there were relatively few people here (more than if the windows hadn't disrupted everybody's privacy to begin with, but not as many as had chosen the anonymity of the main hall or the kitchens or even the basement lounge!) Paziter turned and made a sweeping gesture for Jo to enter, his back to the door as he held it open. He couldn't help but be congenial... even if Jo was a human, she was still female and she had allowed him to feed. It was the least he could do to be polite.
To be truthful, had Jo actually been able to hear Paziter's thoughts, she might have had quite a bit to say about them at this point. However, as she was both unable to read minds and rather woozy at the moment, she was quite happy to follow along behind. It was much easier to just follow along and let the Vrykola lead the way to... the sitting room, with the little fireplace, all lit and emanating warmth.
She grinned openly at him as he stood, holding the door open for her, and then strode on in, flopping down in an unoccupied chair, mending supplies and clothing in her lap.
When the human had found herself a seat, Paziter allowed the door to close and followed after her. There weren't any chairs immediately available next to Jo, but that wasn't much of a problem. The Vrykola simply dragged a padded stool over to her side and perched himself atop it, shifting and ensuring that his shirt was tucked in the back, that he looked composed despite a chair back and arms to support him.
Really, for as terrible as he'd felt earlier tonight, Paziter was in much better spirits. He really didn't mind keeping an eye on the wordy Jo, especially when the alternative was to slink back home and possibly face Raven again. The horror...
Settling down, Paziter cast an eye down at the flopped human. "Don't, ah, fall asleep," he teased, though it didn't come out as smoothly as he'd envisioned it.
Jo was already beginning to feel warmer. The fire would have put her right to sleep, actually, had it not been for the anticipation she still felt at Paziter's presence. She'd poked her nose in here once or twice, but never really felt the urge to enter. Now that she was actually inside, the bookshelf caught her eye. She'd never seen as many books as this place had in all her life. Especially not all in one place, as these were.
To her father, and most of the men on the farm, so many books would be seen as a frivolous waste of someone's time and money. But to Jo, the library was very impressive. She only wished she could properly enjoy it.
Turning away from the books towards Paziter, Jo grinned at his joke, her nose wrinkling up with the amused expression. "Haw, haw," she said, still smiling. "Not likely, with all th'xcitement 'round here lately. Tho' don' ask me t' jump up an' dance a jig, neither."
Paziter tried to imagine Jo doing any kind of dance, and simply couldn't manage. She might seem exuberant now, but she didn't seem the kind to do more than a little chair-wriggling, if that. Humans weren't very good at dancing, in his opinion. They were fun to watch, but they were gangly and slow, and they didn't ever seem to move by memorized steps. Very undignified. (Probably not as undignified as Lykos dances, but Paziter didn't want to begin thinking about that.)
Despite what was on his mind, all that the Vrykola got out was, "I won't, you're safe." A stunning conversationalist, he was not. He had followed her line of sight, doing his best to be observant, and had noticed the way that she lingered over the books lining the shelves against the walls. If she wanted to learn how to read, then this must be a mild kind of torture. It would be like... like... having access to all of his raw materials without the tools to work them. He frowned a little at the thought. Maybe it wasn't exactly the same, but it was close.
Rising from his stool, Paziter wandered over to the bookcase and skimmed the titles that had been etched (some in gold leaf, some in red dye, others in black) into the spines. Most of the collection seemed to be documentary, and not entirely up to date, at that. There was a wide selection about the war, about the Vrykolas side in the matter, and about Vrykolan history trailing back before that. There was information about humans from Vrykolas point of view, there were even a couple of titles dealing with the Lykos (one of which was still in Paziter's room, tucked under his pillow.) Paziter paused when he noted a book that had been written about the moons, thinking that somebody had, for some unforseeable reason, committed a strictly oral tradition to written word. It made him jumpy, thinking that some Vrykola had had the gall to do such a thing, but, upon furtively opening the book and turning the pages and giving a brief read, was relieved to realize that it was less the religious aspect of the heavens, but astronomy annotated with common mythical knowledge.
Maybe Jo would enjoy a reading to. Paziter settled the book back into its niche and looked for something more intriguing, eventually finding a stumpy little copy of a book about the travels of a famous Vrykola across the face of Trivald. It was speculated to be completely fictitious, and Paziter had read it when he was younger and had enjoyed it quite a bit.
He returned to the stool and looked down at Jo, hoping that she hadn't drifted off after all. "The story of Silnova Archeroe is an epic about a man's travels across Trivald," he told her, if she was still awake. "If you want, I can read it aloud..." though he didn't have great confidence in his narrative voice, Paziter had decided that it would make an interesting experiment, at the very least.
"Oh good," Jo said, her smile never faltering. And then Paziter moved to the bookcase and Jo watched him, hawklike, as he skimmed the shelves. She still wasn't entirely sure about him, since he never quite seemed comfortable in her presence, but it seemed that he was quite enjoying himself over there. When one of the books fell open in his hands, Jo felt a twinge of jealousy as he read it. The next book he pulled out seemed more acceptable, as he wandered back over with it.
And... offered to read it to her? Jo's eyes widened a that. Had she been more drowsy, that might have been mistaken for a drifting bit of dream encroaching on reality. Even if she had been about to fall asleep, that would have been enough to wake her right back up again. She nodded, enthralled, looking for all the world like a little child curled up before the fire, anxiously awaiting the promised story-time.
Paziter watched her reaction with a hint of a smile that he couldn't hide. Jo's exuberance was contagious, in a way... even if he had been exhausted and grumpy this evening, the human had had an almost alarming way of buoying his spirits. He shuffled the book in his lap as he got himself settled on the stool. "Well then." Clearing his throat, he began, starting right from the title across the surface of the leather cover. His narrative voice was passable; a little quiet and uncertain, but certainly nothing like his halting conversational tone. When he had a line to read, the Vrykola seemed to divorce his voice from his awkward social presence.
This wasn't how he'd planned his evening... but Paziter found that even though it was extremely unusual, it wasn't a bad way to go through the night. Jo's quiet company was antithetical to Raven's rude wake-up call, and right now, it was the quiet company that the pale Vrykola probably needed most.