Arlo James

See what it's like to be a vulture's lunch

He could feel her gaze upon him. Watching, studying and yet working to appear as if she was not. She was hardly inattentive- of that he was almost acutely aware- and yet just how observant she was remained to be seen. She was something a little different to what he'd hunted before, something a little new. Arlo found himself almost intrigued in her beyond that mere scent of her blood that tempted him all the same. He was doing better tonight. Much better then he usually did. He rarely lasted this long without lunging at them in some desperate frenzy of hunger and yet those threads of control were easier to grasp tonight. Perhaps it was simply because he found himself inquisitive off her beyond that hunger, her mannerisms and motions were fluid. This woman the very sort of vampire he normally avoided if only because they were like him. She played a different tune and yet their instruments of deceit was surely the same- even if Arlo would be inclined to argue for the innocence of his intentions. The man all but having convinced himself that he did no real harm, that surely it was acceptable to live as he did. He killed no one, he hurt no one- not really- and by the time he was done with them there was one less vampire strolling those streets to harm someone else. He was wary of this one though. Even if he hardly showed it. His features remaining as lax and easy as his form, his figure free of tension or concern, that grin still upon his features as he played that forgettable fool to an extent. This display truly not all that far from his true personality and yet how capable he was of adapting to those victims. Arlo hating how predatory he became and yet he could hardly prevent it. There was so something almost thrilling about it all the same. The young vampire only truly beginning to find intoxication in those hunts even if he continued to deny it.

He responded easily to those words, commenting idly upon their supposed previous meeting, his own sentence open, providing few concrete details and broad enough to leave her wondering whether it was true or not. Arlo hardly aware that she had seen through his ruse so readily and yet a part of him suspected she was almost playing that game right back at him. As if curious to see which one of them might break first. Bold- for a woman. Arlo more than willing to keep on playing all the same. After all, as long as he got her away from that crowd, that was all he needed. Whether she truly believed him or not didn't matter. Why not have a little fun? Her comment about the power within those cars saw him glance away, those ardent blue eyes peering beneath that unruly mop of near-black hair to eye them. He'd never really considered the power of them. The man truly knowing little about them and yet that lazy, easy-going grin lingered on his lips.

"If you're expecting some manly comment about cars or engines I'm about to disappoint you- no idea how they work, but I appreciate them all the same."

That soft chuckle hummed from his throat then, that query about names seeing the man respond as easily as he had to every other query or prompt, Arlo nothing if not nearly flawless in his ability to talk. That vampiric vulture entirely capable of persuading most of his victims to share with him after all. He wasn't a bad guy after all, not really. He just needed to eat, just like every other vampire out there. His choices just tended to be a little more obscure then most. Arlo the only one of his species within this city as far as he knew. Not that he was surprised. His type were rare as it was. They never lasted long. Those other vampires hardly seeming to encourage their existence. That alone had made him cautious, most of the time. Arlo having managed to steal blood for months now and those few whom had caught him in the act? Hell, he'd almost managed to befriend most of them. Sebastian had even helped him get laid. That was a pretty hard thing to do when most women couldn't quite....handle his bite. His use of that word 'babe' seemed to spark some reaction within her, his own sharp gaze hardly missing that subtle twist to her features, Arlo readily reading those little cues to see just how well his ruse might have been going. Her hand resting on her hip then. Hmm, hit a nerve had he? Her words almost implying a question, as if she didn't understand that nickname.

"It doesn't mean 'a child' when I say it. It's a term of endearment, you know? It means you're cute. Though to answer your question, no, you don't look at all like a child, babe. Not with that body."

His lip quirked slightly again, teasing at her still, meeting that raised eye with one of his own if only to see just where she might let him take this before offering up that name as if she'd been the one to forget it, as if her memory of that night they met had been hazy. The woman promising not to forget it again. Her words sounding exactly like that. A promise. Arlo made that easy suggestion to lead them away from those crowds then, those revving engines and squealing tires echoing against the night sky as he gestured away from it all, offering that easy walk, hardly seeing why she might refuse and yet anticipating it all at once. His features impassive until she agreed with that promise of some delightful conversation of what he'd been up to. He could manage that right? He fell easily into step beside her then, leading her away from the races and that scent of gasoline and fumes. God she smelled stronger now, his fingers curling into fists within his pockets to keep himself from doing what he shouldn't. Not yet. A little further.

"I've been moving around, like I do. Haven't been back to New York yet, maybe later in the year. Nearly went ice skating over Christmas, thought about it for like ten whole seconds, you ever done it?"

That last part was true in the least. He had nearly ice skated until he'd considered that breaking a leg sounded painful and he hardly knew what to do with Little Bear while he did. What if he fell on her?! His pet, for now, was pushed from his mind, those thoughts of her saved for moments outside his hunting when he needed to remind himself he surely wasn't a monster and yet those thoughts that lingered now were surely entirely monstrous. That street they had found themselves on was empty, their footsteps echoing along it. Arlo stepping just so as to stop her pace, pivoting to face her now, those pupils dilating for just a moment in that escape of hunger before he forced it back. One hand running through his hair almost as if he was plagued with...indecision. His gaze at last meeting her own for several long moments- before he abruptly disappeared. Arlo reappeared almost instantly behind her then in much the same way he had done to Sebastian and yet, this time, one arm effortlessly reached about her waist, pulling her against him, restraining her as best he could, using his own body as a veritable brace against her before his lips found that smooth flesh of her neck just below her ear. His voice a whisper.

"I'm sorry about this babe, I am, I won't hurt you, I'm just hungry is all. You smell wonderful."

He could smell that blood in her veins, the scent almost intoxicating, his lips brushing along her neck in an almost intimate fashion and yet it was hardly that porcelain flesh he enjoyed, Arlo effortlessly seeking that vein before his lips parted- those long canine fangs scraping across her skin in preparation to pierce into it and flood her system with that intoxicating sedative his venom carried. He'd leave her all but powerless to fight against him and lost in that high his victims enjoyed while he drained them dry.