ARRIVAL LOG 008

[larkers]

WHO: Everyone
WHERE: New Amsterdam
WHEN: Night of October 5 to night of October 8
WHAT: The eighth arrival
NOTES OR WARNINGS: Coercion and loss of autonomy, alcohol usage. Further notes at end of log.

> ARRIVAL LOG #008

Awareness comes to you in blurred snatches, cloudy fragments of sound and light, color, sensation. Hazy and difficult to grasp on to, but slowly aligning into focus. A series of regular, rhythmic beeps. A medicinal, astringent smell. The sensation of movement, a low hum and accompanying vibration under you. Your eyes are heavy, hard to keep open, but in the glimpses between slow, dark blinks you see four people in black body armor seated opposite you, as well as a man in dark gray scrubs.

You realize there are others next to you. All of you in blue short sleeve shirts and ill-fitting jeans, hair recently cut but at various stages of growth, restrained by straps across your chests, arms, feet, holding you to the bench under you. To your left, an armored interior door, two more people visible, the movement of streets passing through a windshield. You try to open your mouth to speak, but it's as if your tongue is coated in tar, and you manage nothing more than an empty parting of lips.

The vehicle stops. The guard opposite you stands and comes to unbuckle you from the bench, helping you to your feet. Your limbs feel wooden and heavy, slow to move. One guard opens the back of the vehicle, and false, colored light, illuminating the streets in the distance will first alert your senses of being somewhere else, combined with warm air that's only cooled with the setting of the sun. The nurse moves to stand at the back, checking each passenger over one by one just before they're helped out of the vehicle, quick and methodical. He doesn't climb out after you, moving to sit as the last passenger is unloaded.

The guards keep their heads down. Their actions are quick, firm, but not entirely unkind. Once all the passengers are out, they climb back into the vehicle and close the doors. The engine powers up again, and then the bus is gone.

You're left alone in an alley, with no idea of where you are or why you've been brought here.

Around the corner of the alley, there is the smell of beer and a weird yodel-like sound – no, wait. That is definitely yodeling and beer. Further movement forward will lead to you finding yourself in a busy area filled with multiple people carrying reusable cups full of liquid. You've just shown up at a party with a bunch of people wearing nearly identical clothing. The good thing is that everyone is probably too drunk to notice.

◉ Though entirely capable of independent action and thought, new characters will find themselves completely, unquestioningly compliant to any verbal statement which could be taken as a command or request.

> OKTOBERFEST

The message from El comes the same as usual: insistent, not waiting for any active attempt to open it. Scrolling within your vision as if being written while you're reading it.

I'm starting to think that the arrests last month mean that our friendly delivery men have had to change up what they're doing. Either way - the group waiting for you this time is huge. The get up? Blue shirts, all around. Let's see how long that lasts. Anyway. Arrival #8. You know the deal, don't you? I bet you're all already out there having a good time.

Although New Amsterdam is a mish-mash of world cultures, there are certain traditions that took root in the city as it began to form its identity. Yes, one was Anime Naexpo. Another? Oktoberfest. Hoping to capitalize on the heritage of the region, businesses throughout New Amsterdam pushed for the continued celebration of Oktoberfest. In fact, the only time it wasn't celebrated was during the Xelkoven War, as the fight between humans and AI meant that any celebrations were put by the wayside.

Perhaps even more so than having to work during an anime convention, Oktoberfest is not a fun time for customer service workers. All around, various different cashiers, food truck chefs and drivers, rickshawers, couriers and more find that they don't have a choice but to dress up in Dutch costumes recalling times of the past. These costumes are typically pulled out of some back closest and generally assigned to the employees, so some of them won't fit all that well. The problem is that it isn't cool enough to be dressed in these as the days cool off, and the only saving grace is that they get to work at night rather than the day. The early parts of their shifts are miserably hot, and things don't get better from there. If your character is a customer service employee, they can expect some uncomfortable days ahead.

Somehow, the discomfort of the various workers doesn't come in the way of the loud and festive activities. All around New Amsterdam, various tents go up selling a lot of different wares, many of which are probably second hand junk that people are trying to sell off for a few credits. This is the time when the Black Market stops working underground, instead opening temporary store fronts in tents that are far too nice for the wares they're providing (but at least they're trying to be a less obvious money laundering front). If someone's looking to get in good with the underground or get a sense of how to find these places for some actually illegal goods, Oktoberfest is a prime place to start.

Otherwise? Oktoberfest is likely full of what anyone would expect: a lot of beer, funny looking Bavarian clothing, a lot of live music, and a lot of opportunities for drunken folk to put on a good show. If your character is the type to look for an opening to grab some attention, this is the place to do it.

◉ There will be a lot of beers available in pretty much every single tent. The drinking age in New Amsterdam is 18, but it's equally unlikely that anyone will be checking implants with how busy everything will be. The most popular beer this year? "We're Lucky We're Not Cyborgs," an extremely hoppy IPA made by the most popular brewery in New Amsterdam. All of the beers are available in bottles that you can return for more, as businesses no longer sell alcohol by the can. Think of growlers – but in a far more manageable size! Feel free to come up with the cyberpunk name of your dreams for the beer. Or people can just drink the New Amsterdam River – which is the name of the beer with a picture of the man-made river on it. It's cheap, but reliable. Oh, and for those of you that don't like the taste of beer, there's cider and mead on tap at most places as well.

◉ There will be various stages all over for acts to perform, but the schedules will not be full. Before long, the characters will know that Oktoberfest is where some people plan to get discovered. And … it's also a place where some people become social media sensations, in either good or bad ways. Need to propose to someone? Need to show off your abs? These stages are the place to be. If someone's not up there, take the chance and make it your time to shine. Or … go down in infamy.

◉ Most of the food throughout the festival will harken back to its German heritage, albeit without a whole lot of success. There are sausages, but much like the hot dogs of today, it's likely better that you don't ask what's in them. A safe bet is the large array of potato dishes around. These are delicious – and cheap!

◉ There are some competitions, too! Virtual fencing – albeit in a very, very amateurish way – and virtual crossbow competitions happen throughout the three-day event. And then there's yodeling. One of the stages will be dedicated to this the entire time. Yes, people practice to win big, but that doesn't mean that everyone has to practice.

◉ Like with Oktoberfest of the past, celebrities will have their own VIP tent right in the heart of the financial district. If you have a favorite music, film, or movie star and they have a penchant for partying, this is the place to be. Sneaking in will be hard – but not impossible. Though some will find that they might have to work this tent. These celebrities can't go without their coffee or beer, after all.

> SAFEHOUSE

Access to the safehouse is a hatch hidden behind stacks of empty storage shelves in the back of an abandoned supermarket in an outer district of the city. The immediate area is similarly abandoned, empty stores, flanked by several blocks of dive bars and clubs which cater to more niche tastes. A place where people can come and go unseen, or, if seen, not spoken of. A dark haired woman called Gaby is ready to greet the new arrivals and get them settled in, brusque and no-nonsense – she'll be open for in depth questions later, but will advise everyone to ask the people who brought them in for the beginning bits of information.

◉ The safe house is a large open space, filled with rows of basic cots set up to sleep a large amount of people. Basic, but outfitted with everything necessary for daily life. A few doors lead to back rooms for storage, medical care and a large communal bathroom, and past the long rows of cots there is a communal kitchen, fully stocked, and an eating area. Privacy is at a minimum.

◉ New characters will be asked to pick their beds, and provided with a change of (second-hand, mismatched and somewhat threadbare) clothes and basic toiletries.

◉ While there were previously also NPC occupants of the safehouse, natives to New Amsterdam, these people have now been moved on to somewhere safer. A few of their belongings remain, discarded or accidentally abandoned.

◉ Gaby will make it clear to all new arrivals that if they have any requests or queries, they should contact her or El.

◉ There will be shifts when Gaby isn't present in the safehouse because she's shorthanded following the UNA attacks in our January event. New characters will find that if they try to open the hatch to leave during this time, it'll be sealed shut for anyone without a registered implant.

◉ The drugs making new characters compliant will remain in their systems for a few hours after their arrival at the safehouse before finally beginning to fade. They will be gone entirely after a night's rest. In the meantime, they may want to be careful of what others say to them.

◉ New characters will be given rudimentary access to the network on arrival in the safehouse, but will not have their ID set up yet. They will be able to make posts and replies, but their messages will be anonymous and they do not have inboxes yet.

◉ New characters will not be allowed to leave the safehouse until OCTOBER 9. These 4 days are for them to adjust, learn about the world they've arrived in from their fellows, and for El to speak with them and work on setting up their IDs.

> WHAT DREAMS MAY COME

As everyone goes to sleep, a familiar stomp vibrates through New Tokyo on the other side of the world. The wall outside of the city is stable at first, holding up, but the vibrations continue. The creature this time is twice as large as the one that hit New Amsterdam – 800m high, yet not seen until right around when the vibrations began. It should have been, by all rights: New Tokyo is no less secure than the other cities around the world, with constant surveillance and a dedication toward maintaining an idyllic life for its citizens. Its behavior is similar: it slams its tail against the outer wall of the city before it gives way, the destruction nearly absolute. In a panic, New Tokyo's UNA forces and police force move into action to try to bring down the monster and protect its citizens.

At the same time, whether they're still awake or already asleep, something stirs inside of the displaced. Their chests will glow without anything to bring it about – no power drawn on, either innate or new, and no skin touching. This glow seems to fatigue any of them if they're still awake, and will send anyone already asleep into a deeper one. Once they're under, the stirring within will give way to unrest that foments dreams and visions for many of the displaced. If they had a dream while they slept, characters will wake up with a burning sensation in their chest.

As for New Tokyo: it will be left in ruins by the time the UNA soldiers there manage to take down the monster. Several sections of the city remain intact – almost out of luck – and the governor of New Tokyo reports that they believe this monster came from outside of the city, having been given life by the unsafe conditions outside of the megacity. Within a few hours, this statement will be revised, with the governor admitting that he doesn't know what the monster was or where it came from, only that their surveillance saw that it came from outside.

The three dreams below are what each character will experience, though you can feel free to assume they managed to jar themselves awake before the dream finished. To get a dream, please comment below to get an RNGed number for the dream that they'll be having. Since these are unnatural dreams, you can feel free to have your character remember it in its entirety – or not, if that's what you'd prefer.

If you have multiple characters, we suggest you only have one experience a dream, but it's ultimately up to you!

> DREAM 001

A blue glow illuminates the site – offering light on a foggy morning, with everyone having completed their journey to this final destination. A sense of fatigue and relief that washes over everyone there, but also an inner warmth that seems to radiate from the site itself. Huge rocks rise up on either side of the site, acting as shielding barriers for these followers and what lies ahead of them. Despite the lack of natural light cast through the thick fog, there's still a distant glow, leading them forward.

You find yourself among these people, well aware of the many miles you walked to get here, most of it on an incline. Around you, the clothes that people wear are worn, tattered, made from wool that's begun to wear down. How long have you all been traveling? It's hard to say – hard to guess, only that you know that you were all drawn here. No single story is the same. Some saw symbols: triangles that glowed when they saw them in the periphery, as well as bits of circles coming together. The tree of life. Perfect like nature in its finest form. Others could never put the words to what they experienced.

Each of you feel the draw now. It resonates within you, fills you up. Just ahead, there are structures that seem to float in space, and when you draw closer, a clear, light blue bridge appears. The walk forward requires a leap of faith – and there are some unwilling to take it. Afraid. They wonder if they've wasted their time.

But you haven't. You walk forward, and the bridge carries you forward. You can't tell if you're walking or literally carried, but eventually you come to an alcove where a strange circular structure stands. As you step closer, it comes to life, a mixture of lights and – no, not sounds. But the same resonating warmth.

You walk into it and –

– you find yourself somewhere else. Somewhere new.

> DREAM 002

– this is not where you belong where you've chosen to live – this is not it this is not it this is not it –

Your fingers spread, wrapping around the nearest metal instrument to drag it close. You test the edge against your skin, drawing out a sharp pain. You never asked for this particular experience. But every day, you feel it.

It's time to take back what you can. The walls around you are white, pristine. Somehow, you know that they weren't a day ago. One of the others you know got sick, doubled over after a bad interaction with a medication. You see them now, dark rings under their eyes, a shaved head. How do you know this? Your mind doesn't answer you. You just react. Someone in a coat as white as the room draws closer. Checking your vital signs. Your breathing picks up – your lungs hurt. You lash out with the instrument, cutting deep. A bright red spreads. A sick smile creeps over your lips. You know that color, deep within you. You know it.

And then there's nothing.

And then life moves on (your life moves on). Has time passed? The room is different. The person with the red splotch of color on their lab coat is gone, and your build is different. More gangly, uncontrolled. Deep down, you feel an unabiding frustration. You hear a shout: "Put them down!" It's too late. A fire erupts. The doors seal.

> DREAM 003

You recognize the walls. The building. But there's some barrier between you and it, a constant, subdued fog that lies between you and your surroundings. The lights are bright. Everyone moves in a single file, dressed in the same white scrubs. You're among them. The workers walk alongside you, occasionally checking your vital signs. Sometimes they make you grab each other's hands, noting the shift in reactions or responses.

The air here is cool. Stale. Your head is cold, recently shaven. Like everyone else, sans a few. It looks like it's been a while since they had a haircut. You don't recognize them, not like the others. You're certain that you recognize the others.

Thought is difficult to process. There's an IV into your arm. You try to make out more of your surroundings, but the fog encroaches and takes over. You're missing your chance. Your chance to know where you are – were? Who did this to you?

Distantly, you see a marking on a wall. Letters. P - R - O - PROJECT. You're certain of it. What else is there? Nothing. No. Something, but not another word. It's a symbol of some kind, or – an animal? There's a splotch of yellow, bright and prominent on its breast, with a dark V that cuts down. The fog obscures the rest.

> FINAL OOC NOTES

This arrival log is a little different, as it doubles as a prologue for our monthly event! Everyone's character can have one of the dreams, and it'll hit them anytime within a day of the attack on New Tokyo. This does include anyone new to the game! So, please go ahead and comment below to have your dreaming character assigned a number. All assignments will be random on our part!

Welcome to Meadowlark, newbies! You're now free to post to the network and logs comms. To reiterate, your characters will have no IDs or inboxes, nor be allowed out of the safehouse until OCTOBER 9 (MARCH 17). At that point it's expected they'll have gotten a good idea of their new situation from their fellow characters, and will have discussed their background and job potentials with El in order for their false IDs to be set up.

All arrival logs act as mingles, so older players can please feel free to top level for the festivities described!

If you have any questions or ideas about how you'd like to get your character involved in the world, please head over to the plot engagement post and drop us a comment! For questions specific to this log, there is a thread below.

Please check out our March calendar rundown for a look at things happening this month, as well as some additional notes from the mods.

As a reminder, AC for new characters accepted in March will be 10 comments across 2-4 threads, while current characters will need to provide the full AC of 20 comments across 2-4 threads. AC will be posted on April 1 and close on April 7. If you do not reply to AC, you will be considered idled and dropped from the game. We will not post a warning list.

> NAVIGATION

Comments

[reneger]

You're still not telling me what you're looking for. ( she's young. young and terrified and doesn't know what the hell she's doing and jason can definitely relate. he's been there. quite a few times, even if he was a little better at hiding it. given her circumstances, that's entirely understandable, too; she doesn't know what to do, doesn't know if she can trust anyone with--whatever this is. )

You're not human. ( he states simply instead, keeps his voice barely above a whisper. ) We've got plenty of people here who aren't. Gods. Androids. Hell, people who used to be dead and woke up out of their fucking coffins one day.

( it's fucking hard not to snap at people. but jason's giving it his best shot. easier, given that she is just a kid. )

I need to know what you need to get it to you.

[gasping]

I'm hungry.

[ that much is a whine, agitation and frustration both, but it's an understatement. she's past hunger, past a simple want for food — though caroline's never seen it happen, she could very well mummify given a bit longer of burning energy and nothing come in to replenish it. ]

Unless there's blood bags down in the secret basement that you won't let me into or somebody willing to stick their neck out for the cause, I don't think you can help me.

[ which is what she'd been worried about from the very beginning, but she'd let herself get carried away with a little shred of useless hope. and now she's let out a secret she never intended anyone to know, to somebody who may not even keep it.

and she can't leave this place, at least not for a few more days. which meant she could very well be trapped in here with people who would like nothing more than to stick a pile of wood right through her vampire barbie heart. no thanks. ]

I need to get out of here. There's got to be — bunnies, foxes, something.

[ she hadn't even been able to find rats before rey had ambushed her, but surely there was something out in this place. it might be the future, but surely there were animals somewhere. ]

[reneger]

There's nothing like that in this generation. No wildlife running round streets to nab. ( at the very least: she made it absolutely clear with her last statements about what exactly's going on here. doesn't leave room for doubt in jason's mind when she speaks about blood bags and necks. it's strange, but not the strangest--hell, it's not even close to the top of the list of weirdest shit he's seen on gotham's corners. granted, she's still a little out of his field of expertise. jason handles drug dealers, petty arms dealers, assholes like black mask. those that aren't quite human but not far enough gone to be considered otherworldly. rarely, does he cross over into dealing with other shit.

there's a low breath that passes through his lips, before jason gets to his feet. the medical supplies are still running a bit low after what happened before. from how--desperate she's looking, he doubts she can hold it together much longer. but she is trying--that much is obvious. whatever her deal is, ripping out veins and doing whatever the hell she wants isn't on her game plan.

and jason todd has always had a weak spot for kids. even the blood sucking kind.

hands slide down to press against thighs, using that as leverage as jason pushes himself up to his feet. ) Caroline, ( using her name, for once. ) get up. This isn't the place for talking shop. You wanna eat? We'll make sure you eat.

[gasping]

[ she probably shouldn't. she's never been the biggest follower of the 'think three steps ahead' rule of life, but even caroline can recognize that admitting she's starving for something more than just pasta carbonara less than twenty-four hours after arriving into a strange place (not to mention the future) is a little bit of a risk.

but what choice does she have? it's either suffer alone for the next howevermany days until the hatch opens for her and then try to find her way to some futuristic blood bank or animal shelter, or take this unsolicited but much needed offer for help from a stranger — and considering she's just been brusquely advised that bunnies aren't a thing she's likely to find, caroline has to admit that her chances of survival aren't exactly great if she chooses door number one.

so getting up really is the only way to go. she's wary, admittedly, but trying to be positive about this whole risky business scenario. ]

Okay. I'm coming. [ she doesn't have anything for anyone to steal, so nothing to worry about in terms of leaving something behind. ] You're not planning on staking me in a broom closet or anything, right?

[reneger]

Look, ( he waits. waits for her to get up, waits for her to get herself steady before he starts heading off--towards the nearest closed off room. doesn't matter what's in it as long as no one is in it. jason doesn't necessarily want this part to be noisily announced, given what she is. and he can speak for himself all he wants, but he doesn't know everyone in this safehouse. doesn't know how safe it actually would be for someone who sucks blood to stay alive. ) if I wanted someone dead, I wouldn't hide it.

( not. not like that anyway. )

'sides, I always trust my instincts. ( with a slow, easy half-smile in her direction. as if they're not walking away to go fucking talk in a closet or something close about vampirism. ) And my instincts say you're not a murderous asshole.

[gasping]

No, I'm not.

[ she can be certain about that. my name is caroline forbes, and i'm a good vampire. if such a thing exists, caroline wants to be it. control is important. she could give in to baser instincts, or she could choose to be better than that — and so she does.

the room in question isn't quite a reach-in closet, but it's certainly no luxury suite. there's barely enough room for a few people to stretch their arms. but it's private, with a door that closes and separates its occupants from the rest of the safehouse, and so it's really better than any other alternatives.

not that there seem to be very many. ]

I usually eat bunnies. Deer, if I can get my hands on them. Blood bags if I have them. I don't usually go after people. [ a beat, a hand running through limp hair. ] It's too murderous asshole-y for me.

[reneger]

( made even smaller by how stupidly bulky jason is, but he hunkers down a bit. presses lips together as she talks. if she can feed off of blood bags, it means she doesn't need to bite. good. ripping teeth out of his skin if she doesn't know how to fucking stop is the absolute last thing jason really wants to deal with. he loses enough blood as is. given her earlier reactions, she's--not doing too hot, and jason definitely doesn't want to test her endurance this early on. )

Physical contact here spikes an empathy link. ( meaning, she'll feel everything off the person she's feeding from. while he's not stupid enough to believe that's enough to stop a person from hurting someone else, it's a bit of a deterrent. and: he does follow instincts. she doesn't seem like that kind of gal.

jason leans back against the wall behind him, holds up an arm. she's already got his jacket, the tank under definitely doesn't cover skin. there's gloved over his hands, but he leaves those. )

Had an incident recently that cut into our medical supplies. ( slowly, a soft blue glow starts up from his chest. shadows curl off his shadows, fall over his palm into the shape of a small knife. he holds it up to his own arm, presses the blade against the meat of a forearm. )

This good enough?

[gasping]

I'll be careful. I won't hurt you. I can do this.

[ the glow is. not new, she's seen it now, but the action prompts more questions than answers as shadows give way to shapes and then —

— the scent of blood, rich and coppery and sharp, floods caroline's senses. it's a near immediate reaction; her eyes flutter shut and then snap back open, revealing dark irises, the veins beneath twisting and angry. perhaps most obviously, as caroline opens her mouth to speak, canines expand to drag down, filed into sharp points perfect for puncturing skin. ]

It's perfect.

[ she knows what he's trying to do. to expose the blood a little at a time, make it easier for her to get to, prevent her from having to use too much force. she'll try. she can't promise, but she'll try.

she crosses to close the space between them, hands curling around his wrist and elbow to keep his arm steady; there's a beat as she looks up at him, as if checking for one last change of heart, but it doesn't come. he doesn't pull away or stammer out any rejections, and so caroline dips her head, mouth opening over the new cut with delicate precision.

the first lap of her tongue is — hesitant, almost. too aware of the situation, too aware of the risks of this somewhat public place. but when nothing happens, when her chest isn't suddenly impaled, caroline gives in. her lips press flush against his skin, fangs sliding in; there's the peripheral awareness of blue glowing from her chest, the sensation of emotions flowing back and forth. he'll feel caroline's gratitude, her fear, her pain and loneliness — and her optimism, too, always there, always a spark somewhere in the dark.

there's pleasure, too. not just the pleasure of feeding after so long without, but the effects of a vampire's bite slowly spreading across his skin. that natural, predatory gift, to trick victims into wanting to offer themselves up as feeding sources; though caroline's bite is enthusiastic, she doesn't roughen him up or jerk his arm, careful not to inflict any more pain than she absolutely has to. ]

[reneger]

( honestly: caroline isn't the first person to start licking blood off of him. but he's pretty sure previous occurrences were trying to be sexy. this isn't about appearances, or licking shit off to be annoying. caroline holds onto his arm, watches him for a moment and dips her head down to drag her tongue against it. hungrily. it's fucking weird to stop and think about, but it's too late to consider regretting it now.

teeth press in and bite through skin before jason can really open his mouth to complain about it; there's. curiosity, because this bit is definitely new to jason. a weariness, the deep seated anger that never fades; anger at some asshole for dragging in a little (vampire?) girl and leaving her fucking starving on their doorstep. anger that shit like this still happens. but there's no fear. no hesitation. not even a spike of pain. her teeth are longer, sharper, but he purposefully gave her the meaty bits--jason's taken enough damage to sharpen his pain tolerance and this shit really doesn't bother him.

then pleasure which. is enough to throw him off. takes that curiosity and warps it into confusion as muscles tense a bit, but he doesn't pull back. loosens once more after he's had a moment to adjust to it. )

The hell do they put in those teeth? ( murmured soft, not enough to startle her off but enough to be heard. ) 'cause I've gotta say, I've dealt with a pretty wide array of drugs but definitely not something like that.

( he relaxes, a bit. counts breaths, counts pulls from her mouth and keeps tapping the fingers of his free hand against his thigh every few moments. tests for movements, for dizziness. twitches the fingers of the hand she's drinking from, too--just in case. but jason won't start bitching unless he catches onto any adverse effects. )

[gasping]

[ she pulls away before she really wants to. before she's totally satisfied, anyway. what she gets is enough to steady her, to bring a little color back to her skin, to settle the need that's been tugging at her mind with every second.

she pulls away, tongue pushing out and over her bottom lip. as delicately as she'd fed, there's barely a mess, just the hint of red at the corners of her mouth from the impact of her teeth breaking through the skin. it's a little unsettling to have someone consciously aware of her pulling away, and so caroline ducks her head, pushing a slow breath through pursed lips until the urges settle and her mind stops spinning.

slow, careful breathing. eyes closed. the only way she knows how to get that control back.

when she feels her own expression soften into something a little more mundane, caroline tips her face back up, a grateful smile and the release of her hands on his arm signaling her choice. ]

I don't want to take too much, [ she offers by way of explanation. ] It can be kind of... tempting.

[ because she wants more. she knows she does. she could drain him dry if she's not careful. she could kill him. she doesn't want to do that, though. ]

[reneger]

( a little exhausted--like he'd just gone running for a long amount of time, but no other adverse effects. jason's fine. didn't even ask her to pull away before she figured out she'd had enough and pulled away. good. because either it's a fluke (he'll be cautious, still. watch out for that) or she's got good enough control not to take too much. maybe she doesn't even need more than that, even if it is tempting.

jason raises his free hand. slides his palm against the bite wound to rub off any excess blood. takes a deep breath in to steady himself a bit. and offers her a toothy grin of his own. )

I've got plenty more, you're fine. ( he's also a bigger guy, but. another breath, and he's standing himself up straight. usually when he's lost this much, there's--a hole in him somewhere. not having the pain to go with the woozy feeling's pretty fucking nice. ) You get hungry again, call me.

( although he also realizes: there's only so much blood he can lose in a short period of time. and considering his extracurricular activities-- ) If I can't share, I've got a few people I can contact.

[gasping]

Are you sure?

[ she's hesitant, but there's no denying how good an offer that is. a willing supply, without having to compel or negotiate or overpower someone to get it? there's a lot caroline's willing to do to have that. without really knowing it, jason's found himself particularly influential on the baby vamp. ]

I mean. [ don't shoot the gift horse in the mouth. ] If you're okay with it, I will.

[ her hand lifts, a thumb brushing against the corner of her mouth to clear off the remnants; it's a bit of a weird thing, she realizes, but she can't quite resist the urge to lick her fingers clean, to take the last drops of what's been made available to her.

what's probably weirder to jason is the fact that he tastes good. blood is blood, but there's. variables. the condition of the body, the quality of it, what they've eaten or drank. he's strong, physically fit — and so his blood is too. it's not quite her favorite (b positive will always win out), but it's a good alternative. a great one. ]

That's — mm, yeah, that's way better than bunnies.

[reneger]

( he's swallowed down quite a bit of blood in his time. bit the inside of a cheek, bit down on his tongue, lost a few teeth as a kid when fists would slam into his face. chewed off good portions of the inside of his lip--jason knows what he tastes like. wouldn't say it's particularly good, but considering the mythology surrounding vampires and that blood is her goddamn food source--he's not surprised she's into the taste. he is healthy, active, eats like shit usually but his habits have shifted a bit since leeching off the asgardians. still too much booze, but healthier shit to go along with it. good oxygen content in his bloodstream--if it wasn't appealing to a vampire, he'd be surprised.

(unless she tasted the zombie in him. the pit. but it's been years.)

palm sliding against where she bit one last time to rub off anything left and jason reaches for the door. doesn't stumble a bit. )

I'm sure. ( more of a lilt to his tone, now. ) But there're gonna be some rules to go along with the offer.

[gasping]

[ rules make sense. they're not ideal, but she didn't exactly expect him to write her a blank check and stick out his arm for the taking whenever convenient. there's a give and take to this, one that's a little new for her, but it's better than starvation. for now, she'll take it. ]

Okay. Rules. [ her head tips to the side, watching. waiting. ] What'd you have in mind?

[ he has the leverage in this situation (and probably knows it, too) but she doesn't want to just agree blindly either. ]

[reneger]

( better than starvation for her, better than jason having to figure out how to maneuver around any issues that come up with this later. the door opens, but he's not walking out yet. )

If anything happens you're not sure of, call me first. If you wanna reveal you've got fangs--don't to the natives of this place. If it comes up with someone from the safe house, let me know who knows. If you turn up staked, I want to know who I've gotta look into.

( eyes level on her own. )

If "accidents" happen, call me. If they're not accidents, still call me.

( so. let him stalk her a little closer than he might most. but it's not a tell me everything or stick only to me just a let him in a little more so he knows what's happening. )

[gasping]

[ those... weren't the rules she had expected. she'd expected some kind of obligation, some kind of to-do list that utilized her strength or speed or violent capabilities. not — a request to keep him in the loop. not something that felt like he was trying to taking responsibility for her.

it surprises her, and for a moment, caroline is quiet, a small smile playing at her features that she doesn't quite manage to hold back. ]

I will. [ call him, that is. ] I'll be careful.

[ she has to be. doesn't need his instruction to know to do that. but it's nice to have the reassurance that she's not the only person who doesn't want her to wind up with a wooden skewer through her chest. ]

I wasn't planning on making it public knowledge, but — is there anyone I shouldn't?

[ for better or for worse, his enemies have become her enemies. safety in numbers. ]

[reneger]

( he doesn't need her strength. doesn't need any special vampiric capabilities that jason doesn't quite have. wouldn't. that's--part of being one of bruce wayne's flock, isn't it. one learns to depend on themselves. to handle things bigger and stronger. to use inner strength and intelligence to battle superhumans rather than depending on bulk. jason prefers the bulk part.

but depending on someone with physical capabilities better than his own isn't necessary. it's useful, but not needed. and not something he'd ever ask for in exchange for something someone else needs. not unless they were a dick.

which. obviously, )

No one that's currently around. Don't tell Gaby, obviously. ( like he doesn't have a problem with her, but also: her allegiance lies tighter with morningstar than anything else. ) Or anyone else who's from here.