After Hours {tag Connor}

[Stormy Quattrone]

Valerie refrained from breathing a tell-tale sigh of utter relief when he was at last alone, but it was a close thing. There were few other times in his life when he had been so relieved to be alone again, and that included the aftermath of the horrible accident involving his car and the unlucky Darren. Which, come to think of it, had only been short while ago in the grand scheme of things. Why were all his traumatic experiences occuring so recently in such a short period of time?

Well. Val found himself a tree to stand beside and ran a hand through his hair habitually. He felt better here, out in a forest of trees rather than a forest of people, particularly vampires. Now he remembered why he had become - in Roch's words - a hermit in years past. Maintaining a precarious social status quo could be incredibly exhausting. Already Val could feel that the fullness of his appetite had begun to wane, and was again urging him to find something or someone to feed on. Preferably Connor, but Val wasn't sure he was in the mood to go back and push his luck, even if Connor, too, would at the very least also be relieved by the contact.

Running his hands through his hair wasn't enough. Val pressed some fingers to his face and ran his tongue over a sharp fang. Yes, definitely in the mood for a snack, and the physical contact that would put this blasted strain on the bond to an end. Damnable thing.

[Connor Batten]

Valerie wasn't the only one who was irritated and wanting to get out of the mess of people, though Connor made a sincere effort not to go to Val.  His problem was that, for whatever reason, he couldn't locate Capri in the throng of people.  She was either trying to work her (sometimes questionable) diplomacy skills to deal with a problem as the party wound down to its close, or she'd gone home.  He was hoping that Christian had given her to okay to get out of there, considering she really didn't need to be out all night watching vampires party while she was pregnant.  That meant he was out of people to find and relax with.  He'd call her in the morning, since he didn't want to risk waking her up that night.

Thus, he ended up following the odd sort of 'trail' he seemed to have to Valerie, and found the vampire well outside of the party's boundaries, leaning on a tree.  "I'm not going back in there.  Your vampire friends can kiss my ass," he told the vampire firmly, immediately reaching up to mess up the 'sophisticated' look of his hair, and he pulled that damn mask off.  He felt better already, but he needed a change of clothes to make it really work.  Of course, he wasn't about to admit that he might have felt better because he was near Val again.  Somehow, he thought that was a result of Aristide's magic, and not typical to a bloodbond. 

His hair was sticking up in a million different directions when he found a different tree to lean on, and he suddenly gave Val a 'look'.  "I thought you promised to feed before this mess.  You are NOT allowed to do that here, Val!  There are hunters from all three guilds not that far away, and someone could wander over at any time."

Yeah, it was a small chance, but he wasn't risking it.  Just in case.  Either it would end with that secret being blown out of the water, or Valerie getting his head blown off for 'attacking' Crimson's leader.

[Stormy Quattrone]

Oh, goody, the first and last person Val wanted to see. The purpose of getting away from the party had been to get away from the PEOPLE, including Connor, but of course the human just couldn't let Val have even that. He was almost relieved by Connor's sharp words; it gave him something to direct his frazzled nerves at.

"I doubt anyone, even a vampire, would want to put their fangs anywhere near any part of you. Much less your ass." See? That felt great. Val was feeling more emotionally whole already. He made a scoffing noise in his throat at the massacre that Connor was making of his dignified hairdo. The man could have at least waited until he got home and to a shower, but no, he had to share his Neanderthal tendancies with the world. And then on top of that he had to jump to conclusions and start throwing accusations everywhere. Set against his own tree, Val returned the look.

"If you hadn't noticed, I haven't been hungry up until now, and as you also may have noticed by my total lack of jumping upon you, I can control it. Either drive us someplace discreet and volunteer, or shut up." The mention of biting tended to end conversations with Connor, or at least give them a small breather. Val wasn't blind; he knew that his bloodbond hated, despised, how much he enjoyed being fed upon, and would avoid the subject like the plague as long as there was a way out and he was given the choice. In better moods, Val feigned civility and kept from bringing it up, but in fits of irritation he was prone to mentioning it, or even acting on it if just words weren't enough to scare Connor into backing down. It was a petty tactic, but it hadn't failed him yet, and until he found something better or they reached some sort of agreement (highly unlikely) Val would use his weapon so long as it stayed sharp.

Val had long since abandoned his own mask, a thin black thing that hid his eyes like a pair of raven wings. Pulling it from his pocket, he toyed with it, as it allowed him to divert some attention from Connor. "This would all be so much easier, Connor, if you would just trust me."

[Connor Batten]

Connor actually hadn't been trying to be too antagonistic from the start, but Valerie's attitude certainly didn't help his.  Thus, he wasn't going to hold back much, either.  Besides, Val's stress was bleeding (pardon the pun) into him, and he wasn't so happy about dealing with Val's friends and enemies all night, either. 

"Speak for yourself.  You seem awfully fond of my throat," he snapped, but that was actually the end of it from him.  Val's demand that he either drive them someplace discreet and volunteer or shut up got him, and he shut up, at least for a moment.  The vampire was right in that mentioning that particular topic shut him up pretty completely, considering he didn't know for himself what he really thought of that, so he couldn't truly argue anything involving it.  Sure, he'd noticed that he hadn't gotten any pangs from Val needing to feed all night, but he'd also been extremely distracted right up until that moment.  He was worried he just hadn't been paying enough attention until it got to be a pressing matter.  Besides, he wasn't going to claim he was an expert at dealing with any of this.

Val wasn't the only one who went and found something to distract himself with, but Connor's turned out to be loosening the collar on that ornate costume, just for comfort's sake.  He hated ties for the same reason, because he didn't like having something pressed so tightly on his throat.  Of course, if he wore more clothing like that, it'd certainly be a different story, but he wasn't about to do something like that of his own free will.  It'd be Val, if anyone, who made that happen, and not without a fight out of Connor. 

"Well, excuuuuuse me if I've spent all of my adult life killing vampires and most of my teens training to kill them and find it uncomfortable to be in this situation.  Maybe if you give me a reason to trust you, that could work out," he pointed out bitterly.  As much as they both seemed to enjoy fighting with each other, it wasn't really something that was sure to bring them closer together or make either of them trust the other. 

[Stormy Quattrone]

Valerie glanced up from his mask and over at the disgruntled Hunter, debating whether to continue that line of teasing or not. He was too tired and it was too late for him to feel like pressing the blood feeding issue seriously, but that didn't mean he couldn't keep up the verbal chase. Watching Connor flinch and twitch was usually too easy a source of entertainment for him to pass up.

"I do speak for myself, mon petit repas.[1]" Since re-discovering his French, Val was finding it impossible not to slip little pet names into every other sentence. That in itself was a game, seeing how often Connor understood what he was being called. "I'm just saying. Don't complain of my hunger if you won't feed me yourself."

He was distracted for a moment by Connor pulling the shirt collar down. Thump, thump, thump, went the blood in mortal veins. It was doubtful the Hunter would appreciate the expression being directed at him just then, were he to look up and notice. Valerie wasn't doing it to make him nervous; the sight and sound really did go straight to his stomach. As he had told Connor, there was no chance of him losing his control, but that didn't mean a hungry man couldn't watch a plate of food go by. And it was more than just the blood. Connor had found him through their bond, their link, that thing that made them want to be near. The night had not been easy on either of them, and loathe as they may be to admit it, some time of physical contact would soothe the bond's endless, muted scream.

If Connor would just get over that distrustful, jumpy nature of his... "Any reason I give you, you'll only use to find yet another fault. I see no reason in satisfying your demands when the chances of succeeding are zero."



[1] My little meal

[Connor Batten]

Unfortunately, Connor didn't know 'repas'.  He got the rest and knew the French was a pet name, which irked him, but he couldn't really complain if he didn't know what it meant.  He had the feeling it wouldn't be something he liked if he could understand it, though he had to wonder where all the French was coming from all of a sudden.  Was it because they'd run into those other French vampires?  Perfect, Val had to go and reclaim his French-ness just in time to irk Connor with it.

At least he didn't notice the way Valerie was staring at him as he loosened his collar, which was for the best.  He was just trying to make himself somewhat more comfortable, and seeing a vampire staring at his pulse wouldn't quite accomplish that.  He felt the fact that Valerie was thirsty, though.  "No, I'm not offering, but you might want to take care of that soon.  I don't want to have to explain to people why I feel like staring at their throats like that," he told the vampire, though most of the nastiness from before had faded.  He didn't want to get into it over Val feeding because he didn't want to offer his own throat.  He was still way too torn on that issue, and he didn't want to encourage it.

Really, Val may have had a point regarding Connor's ability to trust, but he also might have been surprised.  Connor was pretty set in his beliefs, but the hunter wasn't the sort to FIND something else to believe when he knew the truth.  He didn't mind denial so much, especially where Val was concerned, but he had troubles forcing the truth out of his head when he was presented with it.  Val's opinion was fine with him, though.  He didn't really want a reason to trust Valerie.  Trusting a vampire who liked chewing on him, and who was this much trouble, wasn't his idea of a smart move.  Of course, the fact that they might be permanently stuck where they were was a sobering thought.  Eventually, they were going to have to address that issue.  They couldn't go on like this for long.  "You might be right, but at least the feeling's mutual.  It's not like you trust me, either," he pointed out.  He could bet that if Val went into a situation and Connor was his only form of protection, the vampire wouldn't trust him with it.  Neither of them trusted each other, and what reason had they given each other?

[Stormy Quattrone]

There was no snappy comeback from Connor in response to 'ma petite repas'. Valerie was certain that had the man understood the name, he would have been a little more biting in his response. Good. Val would be using that name again.

There was no need to follow up the line of conversation involving Val biting Connor, since for the moment he wasn't interested in pressing his luck. Later, maybe, but not currently. Perhaps not even tonight, at all, for all that Valerie was having to make a sincere effort not to fixate on the skin beneath the loosened collar. Tastey... enticing... warm.

Hm. He might be hungrier than he thought.

"You might be right, but at least the feeling's mutual.  It's not like you trust me, either."

Valerie snorted quietly. "Of course I am right." He wasn't offended by Connor not trusting him. It would be an exercise in futility, not to mention stupidity, especially when he didn't trust the human, either. "And you haven't quite given me reason to trust you, either. Especially after that display tonight." He gave the Hunter a sidelong look, a depreciating one that Connor would not like being on the end of. "I was... grateful for the support, make no mistake, but you need to curb whatever defect it is that blinds you to your own mortality and makes you taunt vampires who could cut us both down with a thought." He glared, just a little. "What, exactly, were you thinking?"

[Connor Batten]

After that display?  Val couldn't possibly mean that he was this pissed off over the situation with that female vampire!  He hadn't really done anything wrong!  "What the hell did you expect?!  She was being a total bitch, and you think I'm about to just take that shit?" he demanded, now actually angry with the vampire.  Before, he was just irritated, but this was enough to hit that limit. 

Grateful for the support?  Well, at least THAT was something, or Connor would have been seriously pissed off.  "How is it a defect that I don't take a load of shit from every vampire that shows up and wants to bash on us?!  Part of being strong is making others realize you're not going to be abused.  I'm a human who took leadership of Crimson when there are shifters, witches and vampires who wouldn't have wanted me to have it, and part of it is attitude!  You give off weak vibes when you let someone else walk all over you."

There was no way Val was going to agree, but Connor wasn't about to just let him be right.

[Stormy Quattrone]

Valerie's glare went up a notch from 'slight'. "Actually, yes, I did, as I will expect you to do with any vampire who outclasses us until such time as we can afford to speak our minds. Did it ever occur to you that your behavior reflects directly on me?"

"How is it a defect that I don't take a load of shit from every vampire that shows up and wants to bash on us?!  Part of being strong is making others realize you're not going to be abused.  I'm a human who took leadership of Crimson when there are shifters, witches and vampires who wouldn't have wanted me to have it, and part of it is attitude!  You give off weak vibes when you let someone else walk all over you."

A sigh. "Sang et enfer, le petit." [1] Val left his tree at last, walking to Connor and stopping two feet away; closer than socially accepted distance, further away than invasive. Barely. "Yes, you are the leader of Crimson. You are an accomplished Hunter with a reputation for intelligence, determination and getting the job done. You hold the respect of your Guild and others besides." It was cheap and it was mean, but Valerie then brought up his hands and clapped them slowly, mockingly, together. "Félicitations.[2] Now recall how, when you are at my side, you are none of these things. You are a human; a bond. You are mine. Perhaps my methods are not to your liking, but this is how it is." His gaze flickered, again, to Connor's open collar. This close to the skin, Valerie could almost smell the blood. "I do not 'give off' weak vibes, mon ami, I am weak. Before you, I kept myself cloistered away because acting as you do would not have pushed my position, it would have gotten me killed. As your attitude will get me killed - will get us killed -  if you continue to let it run free." A fang glinted as his upper lip curled back in a faint snarl. "Do not act that way ever again."

[1] Blood and fire, little one.
[2] Congratulations.

[Connor Batten]

Yes, Connor was all of those things, and as such, he was NOT taking shit from vampires.  He'd been tolerating it this long out of a desire to at least ATTEMPT to make the bond work.  Even just a little.  As he saw it, he did NOT have to take shit from Valerie like this, either.  Val hadn't taken him as a bond by force or through friendship or anything else that involved Connor either voluntarily or forcibly accepting Valerie's authority. 

As far as he was concerned, they were equals in this mess, and he wasn't taking this.

"You can give me orders when you can make me obey them, leech," he snapped, shoving Val hard enough to give them both some space.  He needed it in case Val TRIED to force the issue.  "I'm not anyone's, especially a vampire's, and I am not weak.  You can cower and live in fear, but I won't do it.  Go.  To.  Hell.  Asshole."

Unlike the first time, in that alley where Val had grabbed him, Connor's hand slid towards the knife he had on him with the full intention of using it if he had to. 

[Stormy Quattrone]

The time for talking was over. Valerie could see that in Connor's eyes and threatening stance. The Hunter was done listening to him; they had reached a point where there were few to no words left.

Then, Connor shoved him. Hard. Sent Val for a trip backward that would have had him on his backside in the dirt if not for supernatural reflexes and balance. Oh, that was the last straw. Val's lips weren't curling just to show fang, anymore, he was well and truly furious. He didn't like their situation any more than Connor did, but if it was going to end in something other than their mutual deaths, one of them had to learn some humility, and Val was going to go out on a limb and say that it most certainly was not him.

Connor wanted to be made to take orders? "Fine." Valerie's appetite wasn't getting any smaller just sitting around waiting. Connor was making moves to pull out the nice shiney weapon, yes, although Val doubted even anger would make the Hunter forget that his fate was tied to Val's. He wouldn't aim for the heart or head, not if he was smart, and Val had just pointed out that Connor was hardly an idiot. Not being much of a fighter, he wasn't sure he could avoid that blade entirely. But for the sake of making this very essential point, he would risk getting stabbed.

He gave no warning for the mental blast that was suddenly sent Connor's way. Valerie was stronger but still not the strongest, and Connor wouldn't be blinded by the pain of it for long. So the vampire took the opportunity presented by Connor's momentary flinch and moved in close with blinding speed. One hand went for the hand near the knife, the other deep into Connor's hair and wrenching back and to the side. Thanks to the bond, speed and strength were no longer catch-all advantages over Connor, but there was still one thing, or rather, two, that Val had which Connor didn't.

He set those sharp, delicate advantages right along the Hunter's neck, a prick away from the artery. He wanted to make that prick; the scent from this distance was intoxicating, his body KNEW this position, knew what it meant, and wanted to take that next step forward in the age-old bloody dance of vampire kind.

Valerie stayed the urge. His lunging forward had backed his prey into the tree, and he used that by putting every ounce of weight into not only keeping Connor still, but making him embarrasingly uncomfortable as hell. Valerie had no problem with being pressed this intimately close. "Force is not the only way to make you obey me and remember your place, Connor," he said, lips a scant breath from warm skin. "But if that is what you understand, then I can be persuaded to use it as well." Fingers gripped and twisted the yellow hair. "I was going to be kind and take care of this later elsewhere, but you try my patience. Enjoy." It was all the preamble Connor got before Valerie's teeth went that last inch forward and finished the job. Valerie let it be euphoric for them both, but went at it ravenously as well. Maybe a pint or two gone would put Connor in a more agreeable mood.

[Connor Batten]

Connor had gotten fast due to the bond, and he'd always been pretty quick even for a human, but the last thing he was expecting out of Val was the mental blast that shot right through the bond at him.  The portion of him that was pleased just to be relatively close to the vampire was the part that was suddenly searing him, and 'flinched' wasn't quite the right word.  There may not have been much in the way of outward indications that it had hurt him, but just the fact that he hadn't had the time to deal with Val's sudden attacks made it obvious that he'd been hurt, if only temporarily.

Because of that sudden agony and loss of functionality, Connor suddenly found himself pressed between a tree and Val's body, which wasn't exactly his idea of a good thing.  Of course, having his dominant wrist in an iron grip and his head wrenched around by his hair didn't exactly look much better to him.  He absolutely froze at the fangs at his throat, and found himself once more in the confused, torn state over whether or not that was a good thing or not.  His heart sped up, as always, though whether it was in fear or excitement was lost on him.  He knew how it would feel, unless Val wanted to be a complete asshole (which would be dumb on his part), and that was the part that had him wanting it.  The bond desired that satisfaction, and Connor could never truly deny that he enjoyed the euphoria of the bite.  That was part of why he never wanted to be bitten.  Of course, there was still the part of him that wanted to gag at the thought of being chewed on by a bloodsucker, but that voice was slowly getting quieter each time.  He was going to have to stop Val from doing this, and soon.  This time, Val wasn't asking, though Connor would really have preferred it if he did.

Considering the way Val had him pressed, rather intimately, against that tree, Connor had nowhere to escape to.  When the vampire's fangs pierced his skin, all memories of the pain and argument that had angered him so much completely faded, and the sheer pleasure the vampire's bite and the bond inspired overwhelmed him.  Val had one arm restrained and his head wrenched around to give the best access, but the hunter's other arm reached up around the vampire's shoulders in the closest thing to an embrace that Connor would ever grant any other man, nevermind Valerie.  He was going to be pissed at himself for this, but that would come after he had the chance to think about it.  Right then, especially with as long as the vampire held him, he wasn't going to be considering it for quite some time.  His free hand actually twined itself in Val's hair almost like one might do during a heated kiss to urge their partner on as a soft cross between a moan and a gasp slipped free from his lips.

Definitely not thinking about it, but Val had made a point.  No pun intended.

[Stormy Quattrone]

It was never this good with anyone else. Val found that to be a rather mundane and probably wrong-sounding way of putting it, but it was the truth. Any human could be bitten and bled, but only Connor could fill him with this much relief, could be this wonderful to feel and hold and hear. Connor's presence was everywhere, his scent soaking in to Valerie's pores while his blood gushed down the vampire's throat, liquid Connor to settle in his stomach and spread through his every vein. He wanted to own this essence. He needed to own it. It was his. If he weren't so concentrated on the meal at hand, he would have smirked at the hand in his hair. Connor was completely, utterly, totally gone.

Valerie took his time finishing, there was no rush. Connor always appreciated the drawn out pleasure, besides, at least until his working mind caught up with him. Thanks to the hard suction of Valerie's appetite on Connor's neck, the Hunter now had something resembling a hicky right over his jugular, where a slowly healing wound leaked the last of the blood for Valerie to sweep away with his tongue. He would readily admit that he enjoyed Connor's taste. Not the most exotic or unique, to be sure, but a delicacy in its own right, a haugty, heavy mix of sweetness and spice that flowed smoothly over the tongue. Connor was like eating a firecracker. Val savored the remnants of the meal as long as he could, waiting for the inevitable explosion.

"Delicious as always, sang de mon coeur[1]," he whispered into a darkly flushed ear. "I know you enjoyed it as much as I did." Drunk on blood and feeling like being an ass, he licked Connor's ear. "This isn't your world to walk in freely, Connor, no matter how much you want to. It owns you. I own you. Neither, I assure you, is something you can fight."

[1] Blood of my heart.

[Connor Batten]

Oh, it was definitely wrong of Valerie to word it in such a way as that, but fortunately, it wasn't said out loud.  Not that Connor would have freaked out about it initially, but at least he couldn't say for sure that it was mutual.  The only other vampire who'd fed from him had been Tabitha, and she'd hurt, so he didn't know if she could have made it feel this good.

Probably not, but he was allowed his denial.

Yes, Connor was entirely out of his mind, and not even in an insane manner.  He just couldn't think, and therefore, didn't.  He just clung to Val as the vampire continued to drink his blood, obviously taking his time, and he couldn't even consider a complaint over it just yet.  He would, eventually, but he was going to have to rise above that comfortable, pleasant feeling that Val had given him.  Once the vampire was done drawing it out, anyway.  Val always 'cleaned up' after biting him, which was a pleasant sensation to him, but hardly 'appropriate', but licking Connor's ear was purely to be an asshole.

It felt good, though.

He couldn't deny it, and Val had to be in his head enough after all that blood to know it, and so he wouldn't deny it, even later.  Why deny what both parties know to be the truth?  He hated it, though not so much right then, but that didn't mean he could really get away with denial later on. 

His heart rate had slowed due to the missing blood, making him a bit slower to return to his proper state of mind and hesitant to do anything drastic.  Instead, the arm had had been holding Val (ineffectively, if the vampire chose to resist) to him didn't leave its place around the other man's shoulders, and he actually rested his head against Val, taking a moment to actually recover with those silky, satisfied whispers running through his mind.  He didn't even seem to take offense to the French pet names any longer.

"This isn't your world to walk in freely, Connor, no matter how much you want to. It owns you. I own you. Neither, I assure you, is something you can fight."

Right then, he was willing to believe the vampire.  He'd just TRIED to fight, that much he remembered right off the bat, and Val had just completely overwhelmed him and proceeded to show him why he shouldn't fight.  That didn't mean, especially when things cleared up, that he'd stop being disagreeable, but Val had made a point that Connor hadn't wanted to accept.  He still didn't want to, but even some of the habits that die hard could eventually be crippled.

"This doesn't mean you win," he returned, voice quieter and with less conviction than before.  "You're not my Master."

Val still had some fighting left if he was really going to try to control this one, but the doubt was there.

[Stormy Quattrone]

The bloodsucker side of Valerie could never help but enjoy the pliability of a human body after a satisfying bite. Connor was wonderfully alive against him, a warm package of flesh, breath and heat that pulsed with the same blood that now churned through Valerie's gut. Best of all, Connor wasn't wiggling angrily or spitting nasty sarcasm. He was... quiet. Acquiesing. Not that Valerie would have him be like this always, but as a vamipre he liked the rush of power, the feeling of ownership and control. It was even more enjoyable in that he didn't get moments like this very often, being as weak as he was, never using this kind of force with his meals for fear of drawing attention. This, now, this was a meal he had won. This body, this blood, it was HIS.

That feeling only made Connor's reply all the more amusing and ironic. Valerie chuckled softly in his ear.

"Oh, not for now, I'm sure. You still have some fight left." His grip on Connor's hair was no longer so tight, though still nowhere near to letting go. It felt as though Valerie were the only thing holding Connor upright. If he were to let go and step back, would the Hunter catch himself, or fall face first to the forest floor? "And I would not presume to ask that you call me Master. The term is too Midnight, for my tastes." If he WERE more of the Midnight persuasion, he would have bitten Connor again to keep him just on the edge of lucid. But that would be the sort of manipulation he attempted to avoid, and wouldn't build trust, besides (although 'trust' was a lost cause at this point). No, he had made his point, or at least part of it. It was evident in Connor's voice and the weakenss of his body that the reality of their relationship was, at least, beginning to sink in.

Valerie carefully extracted his hand from Connor's hair and himself from Connor's grip before the Hunter could decide to push him away. He didn't want to have to make his point twice. "There is an understood relationship between a vampire and his bond: you belong to me. You can accept that, or you can fight it, and force my hand. I'm not getting killed because of you."