ΗΑΔΕΣ (underworldly) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2016-06-11 13:00:00 |
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His goddamn teeth. His eyes. If there was any night to get completely fucking obliterated, it was this one - actually, every night since those ‘dreams’ started (he’d gone like, thirty years without remembering any of his dreams and now all of a sudden he recalled them with disturbing, astounding clarity) was one to get plastered. To be fair, it probably wasn’t the best idea this particular evening - Hades didn’t want to come off as some drunken toolshed, someone who was weeping into his glass of scotch and thus needed the bartender to call a cab for him. He also liked to think that he had good taste in watering holes, and this one was pleasant - it was classy. The Lord of the Dead (really...really?) didn’t care for alcohol so cheap you could preserve yourself in, that was a big ‘no fucking thank you.’ Rather, he wanted a lot of selection and he wanted a warm atmosphere and he wanted bartenders who weren’t afraid to set drinks on fire if it gave them an extra ‘oomph’ in the good-tasting department. Plus, this particular bar barrel-aged their cocktails. Enough said. Now, he waited for Liv at the right place; it was located in a cluster of low-slung buildings, filled with the sounds of clinking glasses and non-shitty music. About those eyes though? They were green, kind of a mossy color, because after throwing on a pair of emergency blue contacts over the yellow, that’s what happened. His teeth, those were another story. Pointed and devilish, he looked like he sharpened them on kittens, a whetstone, and good intentions. Well. He was King of the Underworld. So it wasn’t a far-off assumption. New brain, new Liv. Of course her core personality always remained the same, her feelings the same, but each brain amplified certain aspects of her personality. This one made her feel freer. A lot more confident in her own skin, in her body. Getting drinks with a Hollywood director was no longer intimidating in the slightest. She was excited. Reading for whatever the night brought. She entered the bar Hades had selected in a tight, low cut dress that showed off her assets. She spotted Hades right away and sauntered over to him. “Hey handsome,” she greeted taking a seat, not yet noticing his eyes or his teeth. Hades had his tulip-shaped glass, scotch all nice and neat, and face - he was looking at Liv’s face. Peering over that glass, brow raised - and alright, maybe his own fake-colored peepers wandered a little but it was an appreciative glance. “Hey yourself, you look nice and - “ He sniffed a bit, the scent capturing his attention for some reason. It was like frankincense, what you’d burn during a church mass, woody notes, pews on fire. A little bit of something cloying too, a dried tray of sweet, smoky ashes. “What perfume is that?” Little did he know it was like, Eau du Undead but anyway. “It’s nice too,” he cleared his throat, setting his glass down. “Anything the lady wants, of course. Can’t beat most of these cocktails.” This was the second time someone had commented on how she smelled. Did she really smell dead? She didn’t notice it. But hell at least Hades seemed pleased by it. Maybe it wasn’t so bad after all. “It’s all me, babe,” she replied with a wink swirling in her stool to face him a bit. That was when she noticed his eyes. They were a different color. Weren’t they? Or had they been green back at the coffee shop? “Something’s different,” she said in regards to him not sure if she could quite put her finger on it. It wasn’t just his eyes, granted she hadn’t gotten a good look at his teeth yet either but he just felt more powerful somehow. But then how much more powerful could a director really get? Liv left her comment at that though flagging down the bartender for a cayenne and grapefruit margarita. Heavy on the cayenne. Hades already knew she had a thing for spicy. Babe. Wow, Hades hadn’t been called babe in...probably a really long time, at least, not in a context where he was sitting in a bar with a woman; smarmy talent agents trying to book gigs for the actors they represented were a different story. He much preferred the first scenario. Still, it kind of threw him off a little - Liv, Queen of the Morgue, hadn’t tossed about such terms in the coffee shop, did she? Was that like her? Then again, he’d only met her once before. The in-depth personality analysis usually came later on, so who knew. “Different...with me, you mean?” he asked, and alright, cayenne and grapefruit with her tequila. That sounded pretty good, actually, though it was another neat scotch for him since he’d finished the first. “Maybe. It’s kind of a long story. And also sounds crazy - “ But what didn’t, these days? “Then again, you dissect dead people. Ever find anything really embarrassing up in cavities they shouldn’t be?” Well, it was a legit question. “Yeah,” Liv confirmed. Maybe she just hadn’t noticed the aura he gave off before but he definitely felt powerful to her now. “You just seem more powerful. It’s sexy,” she smirked as he went into more of his explanation. “You’d be surprised how many long and crazy stories I’ve heard lately,” she commented mostly referring to hearing about her friends dreams. Could he be one too? She hadn’t been paying too much attention to the network lately. Well that was certainly a topic change. But whatever if he wanted to know. “I’ve found a few dolls. Barbies and Kens mostly,” she shrugged as the bartender brought over her drink taking a sip. “Why do you have something inside you that shouldn’t be?” another smirk. “Play your cards right, maybe you’ll find out,” he responded just as cheekily, but this was after a good, hearty laugh at the idea of dolls being stuffed where the sun didn’t shine. Dear god, what was wrong with people? Also Hades hoped he earned a few points by not making the ‘no, but do you want something inside you that shouldn’t be?’ dirty remark. ‘Cause it was pretty much there, on the tip of his tongue. But alright, back to how Liv thought he was sexy. That was pretty flattering - she wasn’t so bad herself, with that interesting and pale-as-a-snowbank look she had to her, like a porcelain doll but without the starved and sunken in cheekbones. Curves were nice. “I had a weird dream,” he continued, shifting a little on the stool to better face her, arms folded on the bartop - the music wasn’t too loud, but if he was going to talk about the fucking dreams, he’d want to be in closer proximity so that babble wasn’t overheard. “You know what I mean?” Maybe, maybe not - but he had a feeling those who did have the weird dreams picked up on it in others with the right hints. “Best offer I heard all day,” she teased right back. And if he had made the second comment, Liv wouldn’t have minded at all. Well not with the current brain she was on. Her usual self was a bit more coy than that. However tonight she would have responded with a big fat yes. Why not? He was hot, and it had been far too long for her. Although in the back of her mind she was worried about her zombieism Could it be transferred through bodily fluids? She knew it could with a scratch or a bite, but as for sex she had no idea. It was technically a virus though. Oh. So he was a dreamer. Liv definitely picked up on that hint. “I do,” she replied a bit more seriously. With her free hand she reached out poaching a hand on the crook of his crossed arm. Her other hand brought her drink back to her lips for another sip. “What happened in yours?” Her touching him, it was kind of zingy - definitely not in a bad way, more like an electrical sort of way though it must indicate some other type of commonality or connection, Hades thought. Maybe they both liked pina coladas, and getting caught in the rain. Though given Liv’s penchant to basically drink hot sauce right from the bottle, a fondness for froo-froo beach drinks seemed unlikely. “Uh, well, let’s see.” He flipped his other hand over, pulling it free, to drum his fingertips on the top of her palm - like ticking off the events as he mentioned them. “One, I was banished to the Underworld. Two, my nephew is apparently going to thwart my plans for domination. Three, there’s a lot of fire and brimstone. Plus, the Pit of Death and Tartarus and it’s just generally shitty.” But now color him curious about the Queen of the Morgue. “And you? Do you sense things about people?” She’d said something about power. Granted, he had a lot of it there - but not much else. Well that all sounded familiar. A myth she had heard about the Greek Gods. Maybe his name wasn’t just a coincidence. Holy shit! Liv almost spit out the sip of her drink she had just taken. No wonder he felt more powerful. Even if he hadn’t received powers or whatever yet he was still the Lord of the Dead. And she was technically undead. “So you’re basically that Hades?” she asked once she regained her composure, eyes wide with some disbelief. She took another sip of her drink before replying. “Only dead people. I get visions.” She purposefully left out the part where she was a zombie. Yes, Liv was having a drink with that Hades - who was sipping scotch, currently, and enjoying the smooth, smoky, burnt cork and leather flavor. “Basically,” he snorted a laugh, and why the shock and awe? Though he supposed it was kind of a weird thing to hear. “So I guess you could say I have a thing for picking up on the nuances of the dead and death as well. And you just give off this...delightful aroma.” Making an offhanded comment, that was all. She could take that as she would - but something was clearly up. “But, uh, you know. Teeth,” he flashed a grin, giving a glimpse of those impressive choppers. The transition was upon him, unfortunately - he knew it would just get worse. “Kinda freaky. Unless you’re into that.” She probably shouldn’t have been so shocked. Or at least not acted that way. She wouldn’t appreciate someone responding to her dream news that way. But Lord of the Dead was a pretty big deal. Well so was being a zombie, but it wasn’t like she ruled anything. Just chowed down on brains on a daily basis. “That feels a lot like your ‘you have a face for close-ups’ compliment,” Liv responded. It was one of those where she couldn’t tell if it was actually a compliment or not. “I’ve been told I stink,” she added offhandedly with a shrug. Didn’t really bother her much. Not many people seemed to notice her smell. “Oh,” Liv said eyes on his teeth. “Those are sharp,” way to state the obvious. “Kinda makes a girl wonder what it’d be like to kiss you.” Who the fuck told this woman she was all stanky?? Because that was rude. Geez, people. “You smell good,” Hades assured, and he was absolutely 100% telling the truth. Cross his heart and hope to die (oh, the irony there). “Kind of...spicy. Like sweet smoke. At least to me - and it’s not a bad thing at all.” There was obviously some connection to the dead, or undead as it were - perhaps it was that state of being caught in between, that offered the uniqueness in aroma. And if the reaction to seeing pointed teeth was to bring up kissing, then - well, really, he wasn’t one to look a gift horse in the mouth. The observation made him laugh, a toasty sort of chuckle; low and rumbling around in his throat. “Maybe you should find out. Satisfy your curiosity, so you know if I bite or not.” Spoiler: He would if you asked nicely. But with these teeth? That was probably filed under ‘way adventurous.’ She liked how Hades described her smell a lot better than Stefan. Good or bad smelling she still hoped it wasn’t detectable regular humans, as in the nondreamers. But she was very much over the topic of her scent. It was time to take Hades up on his offer. “If you insist,” she replied with a small park in her eye as she set her drink down on the bar her other hand remained on his arm. Liv closed the gap between them, lips crashing into his. Her tongue flicked over his sharp teeth and yes she did wonder what it would feel like to be bit by them. But that was for another time, or later. Her other hand moved to his chest gripping his shirt, pulling her closer to him as she continued to feel his teeth with her tongue until she pushed past them using her tongue to caress his. Liv had some chutzpah, that was for sure - because that kiss nearly knocked Hades right off his stool. Maybe he wasn’t the one doing the biting this time, but there was a bite to it regardless - like a nip of wormwood before the sugar, it was almost dangerous (for him or for her? Probably both). He wasn’t shy about returning it though, just as eager to let his tongue do the talking - while leaned in to help close that gap between them, one hand resting on her thigh (so he didn’t lose his balance, shit), the other curling around the back of her neck. She tasted like tequila, and that was damn delicious. Onlookers probably coughed something like get a room, cough cough, because a hot, open-mouthed, slutty kiss (as kisses were meant to be - who wanted a closed-mouthed, dry one? Bleh) at a bar was such a thing to inspire a reaction like that but who cared. It left something burning within him, whether it was from the cayenne pepper or lust churning like the cosmos, who knew. “Curiosity satisfied?” he asked, with a grin, once he could breathe again. Usually Liv wasn’t quite this bold. She would never be forward enough to kiss a guy she barely knew. But this brain was making her more daring in that aspect. But she had to admit she was enjoying it. The coughs and stares from other people at the bar didn’t matter to her. People kissed, deal with it. “Mm,” Liv replied still a bit out of sorts from that kiss. Her hand remained on his chest though it wasn’t quite gripping his shirt anymore. Just resting there now. “Interesting,” she finally said with a glint in her eye. “I might need to do more research.” “Yeah? What kind of research, doctor?” Hades asked, finding that really amusing. Bold as a lion, eh, Liv? Well, why not. Fortune favored the bold, as the saying went. Fingertips pushed a lock of that pale hair behind her ear, the opposite hand behaving - it was also just resting on upper thigh territory, he hadn’t gone for the disappearing act under the dress to determine what kind of underwear she was wearing. If she was even wearing any at all. He wouldn’t make assumptions. But yes, go on, do tell. Research was all well and good because where would we be if we based our ground-breaking conclusions on one occurrence? Probably in the shitter, see, he was way into having these brilliant thoughts. “I mean, you’re clearly the scientist here.” Liv was in fact wearing underwear. A black lacy number. She wasn’t quite bold enough to go commando. All this was already out of her usual comfort zone, yet she was perfectly comfortable. Part of her hoped this feeling would last when the brain wore off, but now was not the time to worry about that. She was going to live in this moment, savor it for all it was worth. “I think you have a pretty good idea,” she said with a wink. However before he could respond she was going in for another kiss. Her hand gripped his shirt once again although she really wanted to unbutton it. She refrained since they were still in public. Although the onlookers really just made the whole thing hotter. Her other hand moved to the back of his neck, fingers curling in his short strands of hair. It was Liv who did the biting, gently tugging on his lower lip with her teeth before fully pulling away. “Getting there,” she murmured against, in reference to her curiosity being satisfied. A surprised noise rumbled in Hades’ throat - he didn’t miss the way those fingers curled on his shirt, fisting the fabric, and while making out in public (in a bar, granted, it happened all the time - flashbacks to gallivanting around Europe, man, he hadn’t made out with someone in a bar in awhile either) was probably something others could avert their eyes from? Undressing probably wasn’t. But still, didn’t stop him from pulling Liv closer - it was difficult for two people to share one stool, yet damn if he didn’t try to get her in his lap; there was very little space in between them anyway. Kisses returned, hands started wandering, knuckles skimmed up the side of that slinky dress - and he knew they’d have to move, at some point, so paying customers could order drinks and the actual bartending staff could have the space to make money. But chill, it would happen. Once he bared those teeth in a shark’s grin, a light graze over her lower lip before he pulled back a little. “Not to disrupt your flow of getting there, but do you want to take this research someplace else?” A dark corner, a room in the back, the back of a car, her place, wherever - just not the bathroom stall, he had a bit more class than that. Those teeth, damn she loved how sharp they were. Even with just the light graze. She wanted more. Wanted to feel an actual bite. But his question sobered her up a bit. She wasn’t naive. Liv knew perfectly well the direction this was heading. She had initiated it. But she was also aware that this wasn’t fully her. She wasn’t the girl that brought a guy home on a first date. Was this even a date? Well it clearly was now. And then there was that nagging worry in the back of her head. What if she got carried away and accidentally clawed his skin open. Or even worse what if the zombie virus could be transmitted through sex? “As fun as that sounds,” Liv said between breaths. Ugh if she was this breathless already she could only imagine what a night with him would do. It was far too tempting. But Liv had some restraint. “I think we are going to have to save more research for another night.” Though she was now resolved to end the night there she still murmured that last sentence in his ear, lips brushing against it. Gotta leave him wanting more after all. Well, that was a douse of cold water (such a contrast with the fiery sensations a breathy voice stirred up), but Hades didn’t protest. If a woman said no, then it was a no (and any guy who whined about it deserved a slap to the junk) - besides, little did he know what was warring in Liv’s head and what the risks were. The potential of turning your fuck buddy/one night stand/partner into a zombie due to a bump and grind was probably important to mention anyway. “Fair enough,” he cleared his throat, giving her thigh a squeeze, rubbing there gently before both hands were back on the bartop. “You want another margarita laced with cayenne pepper? Extra pepper, ‘cause you’re special.” Maybe the night wouldn’t end with dirty moaning and a raunchy romp or two, but. They could have more drinks and, uh, talk? Talking was good. Yes potential zombieism was something she would have to tell whoever she slept with. But it wasn’t something she wanted to get into on a first date. Maybe if Hades ever called her again she’d like open with it or something. She didn’t know. All she knew was while she was on this brain it was best to keep her distance. Which meant no more drinks. Drinks and talking would just lead them right back to where they were. And even without the zombie issue Liv was not that kind of girl. Stripper brain or not. Liv shifted back onto her stool already gathering up her things. “Thanks, but I think it’s best I go,” she gave him a small smile. “Next time?” Who knew if there would be a next time with her behavior tonight, but she kind of hoped so. Needless to say, he was a little confused, but alright. Did he say something off? Do something? Was it because he looked like he’d taken a rusty nail file to those pointy teeth? At first Hades thought she was into them, but maybe not. Maybe Liv just didn’t even like him at all? What a puzzle this evening was turning out to be. Still, he wasn’t going to act like a dipshit about it. “Yeah, well, okay...I should probably get going too, then.” So he could jump into an actual cold shower and get blood flowing to the right head again, things like that. “I’ll walk you out though,” he added, sliding off the stool, because he wasn’t about to let her leave by herself - at the very least, he’d make sure she got to her car okay. She was fine to drive and what the fuck was a pretty sobering experience regardless. But he’d definitely call again. Something was up here, and well, the Lord of the Dead would get to the bottom of it. That was a promise. |