video; un: Hob

[100more]

[The video shows Hob, sitting at home on a balcony of his apartment. He smiles, but there's a little uncertainty to his attempt at pleasantness. Something is bothering him.]

Hello, all. Uh, I don't mean to alarm everyone, but...

[That's usually how people cause alarm. Good work, Hob.]

I noticed something strange during my recent walks. I have a path I routinely take as I explore the city, walking different areas each day in case there's something out of the ordinary. Well, I typically stop in the same shops for some water or food, or to carry something home. When I went into one of the stores I frequent, I noticed the things I helped myself to previously haven't been replaced. It always was, before.

[It's hard to mask his concern.]

As more people typically arrive about once a month, if resources get scarcer... shouldn't we think of something?

[A quick smile.]

Or maybe it's all a fluke! A temporary disruption in services. That's all.

[That could be it, right? Hob doesn't have to eat to live, but starving is not a lot of fun.]

Comments

[100more]

There may have been a time when I might have doubted it.

[ Though everyone was at least a little superstitious six hundred years ago. ]

But I try to keep an open mind.

[perfectdevil]

[ An open mind is certainly something Lestat can respect, so after staring at the screen for a long moment, he shrugs with a ridiculously exaggerated flourish for a movement so casual. ]

What are vampires like in your world? Do I look like a vampire?

[100more]

I've never met one before. [ That he knows of. ] In stories and television their looks can range from horrific to beautiful.

[ Obviously, this man is classified as the latter. ]

So, I suppose you could look like one? Show me your teeth.

[ If he has fangs, he just might be a vampire. ]

[perfectdevil]

[ Lestat gives a slow tilt of his head, like a snake listening for the scratching of a mouse at the entrance to its hide.

When he opens his mouth the motion is far from obedient; instead it's languid, almost lascivious, his tongue against the roof of his mouth, his eyes staring straight and unblinking at the viewfinder, his lips pulled back in the ghost of a smile.

His eye teeth are indeed sharp, but they're nothing like what Hob might have seen of Dracula or Nosferatu. Lestat has no need for anything quite so long and sharp. It's entirely feasible that Lestat could simply be one of those mortals born with exaggerated canines. If it were in person, it might be a little more obvious that there is a lot to him that is distinctly not human - his pale skin and the chill of it, his eyes, the shine of his fingernails, the way his body moves - but this screen offers him a handy gauze of pixels to add to his disguise. ]

Satisfied?

[100more]

[ If Lestat's intention was to make Hob blush when showing off his mouth, he has succeeded.

But he does want to see, and his brow knits at the sight of the pointed teeth. They're not as huge as they are in the movies, but it does feel like there's something otherworldly about the man. He's simply.. too perfect. ]

Uh.. yes, but I still can't quite decide.

[ He knows he wouldn't want to be bitten by those sharp ones, though. ]

It's not polite to assume.

[perfectdevil]

[ Lestat finds himself cursing this crutch of technology often, but never so much as he does when humans react in this way; the flush of colour to the skin, the slight pause in their reactions, the rapt expression they look at him with. He wishes he could smell the blood through this little screen, to know what kind of human he's dealing with by lightly scanning his thoughts. In a way, perhaps that's his own crutch to lean on, so he'd do well to have a little more patience for these machines. ]

It's not, is it....

[ Lestat closes his mouth and smiles, a devilish little twinkle in his eyes as he watches the man on the feed very closely. ]

Would you be scared if I was?

[100more]

[ Hob wouldn't want to be rude, but he's also incredibly curious. After all his years, it's exciting to think he can still see and experience new things. Though sometimes, he reaches for something too dangerous. Something he shouldn't. Maybe one day, he'll learn. ]

That depends on if you're a threat or not.

[perfectdevil]

[ Lestat's hand falls to his mouth in thought, a shining glass-like nail running a track back and forth along his lower lip. He could quite easily tell this man he had nothing to worry about, or crow with delight of what a miracle the human sense of danger is, but oh.. it's no fun to give such a concrete answer so soon into a first impression. The mystery, the allure, these are the things Lestat covets above all else when talking to humans. ]

I suppose you'll have to come to that conclusion yourself, should we ever meet, hm?

[ He reaches forward to shut off the feed, but just before he does-- ]

Good luck with your famine.

[100more]

[ The mystery is definitely left lingering in the air when the pretty man turns off the feed. And what did he mean by your famine? Unless food doesn't apply to him. Maybe he did just talk to a vampire, after all? ]