Hypothesis

[skeggsismad]

RISK had changed drastically since the first time James had been here. The whole floor map had shifted, giving the illusion that it was an entirely separate place from the one he’d briefly visited years ago. But it was still the same place; it contained the same throbbing music, the same desperate bodies and the same jeopardy for its human patrons. The last few weeks he’d perused the joint and decided it would be adequate for his purposes. Maybe it wasn’t ideal, but it was the best option he had at the moment.

He stood at the very cusp of the bar and the dance floor, not quite immersed in either. A young woman had been putting on a show for the last ten minutes in an attempt to sway his affections but it hadn’t been working; James’ eyes were scanning the crowds behind her.

She reached for the back of his neck with slender and needy hands. James leaned his body out of her range. It didn’t stop the leggy blonde bimbo from endeavoring again. Her impulses were slower than the average human and the cocktail glass in her other hand confirmed her intoxication.

“This isn’t a game of twister,” He scolded, grasping her hand mid-air and coiling it back towards her own side.  “You have to earn it.” 

The young woman’s bottom lip puckered out amidst a pout.

“You’re a dick!” She shrilled, her fisted hand heading straight for his stomach. James stopped the punch before it ever reached him, inclining his head back towards the woman to meet with her eyes.

“If you were sober, we would have left together again. Obviously you’re not the sharpest tool in the shed but I’m sure you can muster the intelligence it takes to conclude that I am not interested in you tonight.”

The woman stomped her foot bellicosely on the ground, perhaps thinking that if she threw a fit for long enough the vampire would give in. He looked away from the woman now, gaze traveling back towards the rest of the club. Until he could find a more suitable human companion he decided it was best to stand like a statue, oblivious to the drunken human’s vies for attention.  He’d take her as a last resort, but only as a last resort. It was cumbersome to wait for alcohol to leave a human’s system and he didn’t have all day, clearly.

[pinkroses]

Chase was wearing form fitting skinny jeans and a tight black t-shirt which had had the sleeves ripped off jaggedly to show his firm arms. His blonde hair was perfectly styled, tousled and messy, with the front section flopping down over his forehead, but in a manner which was too bouncy to be called a fringe. His green eyes were fixed on the display of hysteria from the drunk woman and the guy he was assuming was a vampire.

Chase had only been to Risk a few times – and the number of times he’d been fed from he could count on one hand – but he knew enough about guys with power to know throwing a hissy fit was not the way to get them to do what you wanted.

He waited a few seconds until the girl began to slink away before approaching the vampire himself, sipping from a glass which held only water – and water was the only thing he’d drunk tonight.

“Really? You would have left with her if she’d’ve been sober? Man, you could do so much better than her,” he said with a smile playing on his lips as he lifted his glass to have another sip. As the glass went down again Chase let his eyes follow it, eyeing up the guy before him before returning his gaze to the vampire’s face.

[skeggsismad]

James had honestly expected that the woman would put up more of a fight, though he didn’t complain when she eventually gave up and wandered elsewhere. Chase moved into his frame of vision so smoothly that the previous human was no longer noteworthy.

Within a few seconds he could tell that the mortal wasn’t under the influence and immediately his interest was piqued. Other than a clear head there were really no other requirements for tonight’s round of tests. He was looking for participants of all age, racial and gender groups. This one would fit in nicely with his sample already documented; he had yet to test any young Caucasian men.

 He raised an eyebrow at the young man’s statements.

“You think so?” He asked, though he seemed only half-attentive. There was no question whether he wanted to take Chase home at this point; the mortal would suit his purposes and it was better to get an early start than to continue searching. James didn’t believe in such a thing as ‘the perfect victim’.  Yet, there was a pace to exchanges like these.  Humans knew they had to be impressive to compete with one another and vampires, naturally, had to be enthralled with their chosen meal.

“Indulge me.  What do you think would be much better?”

[pinkroses]

 Chase knew he didn’t quite seem to have the complete attention of the vampire, but he was willing to work at it. At least he had some of his attention.

“Someone who isn’t going to make a scene and throw a tantrum. Someone you’re not going to have to help walk to a cab because they’ve had one too many,” Chase said, strolling across the vampire’s line of vision to his other side which incidentally might give him a glimpse of the woman who was now stumbling onto the dancefloor, knocking people out of the way as she moved.

“Someone who will treat you the way you deserve,” he added with a warm smile, biting gently on his lower lip. He had spent years getting guys to do what he wanted for money – vampires were a little trickier and Chase knew he wasn’t ever going to get paid in cash by them, but that didn’t make it any less fun.

[skeggsismad]

James’ eyes followed the mortal more closely now that he’d started his smooth talking. He suspected at this point that the young man was likely gay and expecting a rendezvous. Then again, an addiction to vampire feedings transcended sexual orientations. The vampire did not intend to orchestrate any act aside from feeding that was sexual in nature but that didn’t mean he had to broadcast it. Sexual advances often worked in his favor.

“But how do I know you can deliver?” James asked, arm extending to grasp Chase's hip and pull him closer. His touch wasn’t as ice-cold as the flesh of most vampires; it radiated a small amount of heat, perhaps because he wasn’t full-blooded.

Though he had sized the boy’s physical features up when he’d arrived in a more scientific manner, this time James allowed his stare to dawdle in much more of a sexualized way. Maybe years ago it would have appeared obviously manufactured, but after practicing a great deal he was beginning to get the hang of feigning lust.

[pinkroses]

Chase’s smile grew as he was pulled closer in an intimate manner, used to being manhandled and pushed into the positions he was wanted in when he wasn’t fast enough. From what he’d seen from vampires so far a lot of them hadn’t minded whether their pray was male or female, and he’d be more than happy with both, although he was more drawn to men physically. He knew not everyone was like that though and guessed the same was true for vampire – this was looking more than promising though.

Trust me, no, that wouldn’t be right. Why the hell should this vampire trust him?

“Test me,” Chase said with a smirk, pressing his hips more pointedly towards James’. “I’ll do whatever you want and I won’t scream and pout when you’re done with me. Promise,” he said, raising his hand in the sign of a boy scout – although he had never been anywhere near a scout meeting.

[skeggsismad]

It was eerie how close the man’s words matched up with James’ actual intentions. There would be testing and it would be easier if he had the mortal’s full compliance. He didn’t know how much of this was bullshitting or if the mortal honestly believed he’d be able to carry out that promise. Obviously the mortal didn’t know what was in store for him tonight and if he did suspect it, that meant he had to be some sort of thrill-seeker.

“Here, let’s turn you around.” James guided the man’s body into a turning motion so that his backside was now facing him. The vampire had little interest, but he made sure to falsify it, grinning at the man’s ass and giving it a soft smack. He backed the human’s body into his own so that they were now cozily pressing against each other.

“If that’s indicative of any of your other assets, I’ll be pleased.” He teased by slipping his fingertips underneath the front of the young man’s jean. Yet, he hesitated. How invested was he in his experiment that he was willing to grab another guy’s junk? James reasoned he’d done far too much to give up now. He could be revolted about his own actions later. His hand wrapped around whatever was beneath those jeans, paying no mind if the human didn’t happen to be wearing underwear. 

“What’s your name?”

[pinkroses]

Chase smirked as the vampire pressed close to his behind, happy to show off his wares if it meant he got a buzz tonight. To be honest he didn’t care if they ended up fucking – but that was how things usually worked for him. He wanted to be drunk from, like when he was whoring and he wanted money. Fucking was usually what was desired in the end by the other party.

“Wow, you’re keen,” the human said with a grin as the vampire slipped his hand down the front of his jeans, which had no underwear hidden underneath. He was really surprised by James’ forward approach, they were still in the bar on the main floor for God’s sake… but he didn’t let it show and wasn’t about to pull away. He wasn’t ashamed of himself, he’d brought himself low enough that it was too late for shame so he pressed himself back against James, grinding his ass into the vampire’s groin.

“My name’s Chase. What about you?” he asked with a grin, looking back over his shoulder at the vampire’s their faces close together now and it was all looking very promising. Maybe they wouldn’t even need to go anywhere else, there were the rooms upstairs which might be exactly what this vampire wanted since he was already so handsy.

[skeggsismad]

“James,” He responded, instantly pulled his hand from the man’s groin. It may have seemed too sudden, in fact, but James had decided Chase’s reaction was mostly favorable and there was no need to perpetuate.  Perhaps if he’d taken the time to skim the mortal’s mind he would have been able to tell the slight unease Chase was experiencing. Even so, he refrained. What little telepathic energy he had stored he planned on using later when it was most crucial.  For now he would take his chances reading ordinary social cues and gestures.

He ignored the grinding and spun the mortal around so that they were facing again. He forced a smirk.

“I think that’s a passing grade.”

He reached his hand out towards the young man’s chest, manipulating his fingers to crawl up it like the legs of a spider. His other hand reached out to grasp Chase’s wine glass from his hand.

“You don’t need this. You’re coming home with me.” He spoke rather decisively. As if to enforce the idea he stopped his spider-leg hand movements, sliding the hand behind the man’s back to gently guide him in the right direction. The method had worked with women but he’d never attempted to charm a man before in the same way. James wondered, then, if it would work quite as smoothly.

[pinkroses]

Chase gave a playful giggle as he was spun around again and he moved his hand slightly, intending to press it against James’ chest, but he found the vampire already performing a similar move to himself so Chase dropped his hand to rest on the vampire’s hip, oblivious to the effort James was putting in to keep up this charade.

“Just passing?” he asked, a small pout on his lips although the corners of his lips curled upwards to show he wasn’t really upset. Passing was all he needed to get his payout.

“You know that’s just water, right?” he asked as the glass was stolen from him and discarded. He raised an eyebrow as James declared they were going home together. Well, that hadn’t been exactly what Chase had expected, but very few people (or an observant vampire) would have spotted the doubt before ha warm smile spread over his face and Chase let the vampire direct him however he wished by pointing him in the right direction.

“Sounds like a brilliant plan. This place was getting dull before I saw you anyway,” Chase said, letting James take him where the vampire wished.

[skeggsismad]

Continued here.