unknownballad | ❝ Pleasure is sweetest ❞

"As am I," he purrs, pushing the armful of flowers at the boy. Please, take them so he doesn't have to keep holding them.

Up close, Subin's even more lovely than from afar. All fair and sweet. There's something fresh about him that intrigues Ruvin. These types, the ones who are shy and withdrawn, who shrink at any notice, they're his favorites. It's surprising how much this type will endure. They strive to be pleasant and unassuming, even at the detriment of themselves. It's a type Ruvin knows well.

"Walk with me."

It's not a question.

There's a quiet 'oh' as Subin wraps his arms around the flowers. The flowers are entirely unnecessary and he has no idea what he's going to do with them (does he really just have to carry them around until he gets home?) but he still appreciates them all the same. Once the quick flash of surprise is gone, his expression says as much. He's never really had flowers thrust upon him before by a stranger from the audience before. It's a lovely gesture, but it's a shame that these beautiful flowers are being wasted on him. Cut flowers don't exactly thrive in his presence. He can care for and nurture a plant from a seed but he's never been too good at keeping something alive that's already been cut. He can't get the hang of prolonging the lives of dying plants.

Sorry flowers. Subin will love you until you're gone, though.

Dipping his head down to smell the flowers, his attention is dragged back to the beautiful man before he even has the opportunity to inhale. Walk with him? Where? Subin glances over toward the stage area then back up at Ruvin. He's done for the night. All he'd planned on doing was joining the audience for the rest of the performances. Going for a walk instead couldn't hurt. Walk off some of that adrenaline that comes with playing in front of others instead of simply sitting with it. Let go of that jittery feeling.

"Sure. I'd love to."

I'd love to.

How easily humans use that word. How ironic that Subin absolutely will not love the results of his decision. His love for the flowers will last less than an hour. He won't have any time to love anything once Ruvin has him in his grasp. And this one seems so oblivious to the danger Ruvin poses...

It's almost fun to hunt like this.

Almost.

Ruvin nods in a direction away from where they are and turns to head there. He fully expects Subin to follow without hesitation or delay. And if he's a half-step behind because Ruvin walks at a clip, that's fine, too. He isn't particularly fond of his lessers walking beside him as equals.

Subin knows that vampires are inherently dangerous (and this man is a vampire, right?) but they aren't permitted to feed directly from humans and this is a rather public area, so he feels relatively safe. He doesn't see the need to feel like he's in any sort of real danger. And it'd be a lie to say that the flowers aren't distracting him a little as well.

He's not oblivious to the rumours that it does happen, that there are places where humans supposedly offer themselves to vampires, but they're just rumours. Rumours of the sort of place that isn't for someone like Subin.

Subin trots a little to catch up with Ruvin, not wanting to fall too far behind too quickly. He does stay half a step or more behind though. His default, really, regardless of who he's walking with. It feels right. It feels natural. Especially with a man like this.

"Um... is this the first time you've come to one of these events?" An awkward attempt at small talk, at keeping an uncomfortable silence from growing between them.

What a tiresome question. So very human and lacking in any true concept of time. Is this his first time? Please! There are no firsts left for Ruvin to experience in this world.

"Hardly," he drawls, barely trying to mask his disdain for the question. His head turns ever so slightly, grey eyes shifting to peer at the human. A beautiful specimen, to be sure. And Ruvin loves breaking beautiful things more than others.

"But it is my first time seeing someone like you," he adds to make facilitate further conversation. He stops suddenly, pivoting on the ball of one foot to block Subin's way. "A shimmering opal in moonlight." Words so quietly uttered as the vampire reaches out to brush his fingertips over Subin's cheek. "Beautiful."

"Oh. Sorry," he mumbles sheepishly, gaze dropping to the ground in front of him, which causes him to almost bump into the vampire when he stops abruptly. The near mishap prompts another barely whispered apology. If Ruvin decided this little stroll was already over and that he was just going to leave Subin here, he'd understand. He's not exactly making for the best company right now.

With that in mind, though, he's not exactly ready for the compliments. Looking up at Ruvin, his eyes growing a little wide, Subin clutches the flowers tightly to himself. More of a nervous gesture than anything. "I've played here before..." He's sure that's not entirely what Ruvin means, yet it's the first thing he thinks of to say in response. Wide eyes follow Ruvin's hand and he swallows hard when those cold fingers touch his cheek. "Um, thank you."

He's hitting all the right notes, clutching the flowers, the apologies, those wide eyes like a deer facing down a predator. Perfect. A perfect little pet for his pet. And for him. There's nothing under his roof that doesn't belong to Ruvin entirely. But his current toy is becoming a handful and needs something to leverage him back into his place. This youth will serve that purpose perfectly.

"Breathe it in deeply, Opal," he purrs with menace lacing the words. A promise of something wicked gleams in those dark eyes, in complete contrast with Ruvin's angelic face. "These are your last moments of freedom."

"Op- Huh? It's Subin," he corrects softly, making the correction seem no more important than if it was the time that Ruvin had gotten wrong. A matter of importance that it seems he won't push back about much. See, he doesn't want to cause any trouble. He doesn't like confrontation. What he would like, however, is to leave. This seemed nice at first but he's quickly getting the feeling that this was a mistake and he'd prefer to just remove himself from the situation before he sees for sure which way things are going to go.

He's never even given the chance to bring up the idea that maybe he should just go home now. He's given little time to ponder on the situation before Ruvin shows his hand. No speculation. Subin drops the flowers and takes half a step back from the vampire, staring up at him wide-eyed and shaking his head. "What? What do you-? You can't. Please. I- No." He looks over his shoulder, back the way they came. There's no way he can get back in sight of people before Ruvin catches him. The music's too loud for anyone to hear him if he yells. And even if they did, he'd be gone before they got here. And yet he still does the first thing that comes to mind: He runs.

Ruvin sighs as the human bolts away from him. It shouldn't be tiresome since he enjoys hunting. But there's no sport in it when it's inevitable that the human will be caught. They're weaker and slower than even a neonate vampire. Well, at least Opal's prey instincts are strong, like a little rabbit. For a moment, Ruvin just watches him, watches his shape getting further and further away.

Until he's right beside him once more, vise-like grip around his wrist.

"Is that what you consider enjoyment?"

Subin (Opal?) knows there's no hope of getting away but he still tries to run. He knows it's only a matter of time before the vampire tires of the charade. It won't be long before the illusion of escape it's snatched out of Subin's desperate hands. But Subin still tries to make the most of the time he's given. A small part of him hopes that Ruvin will see the effort he's putting in to escape and decide that he's simply not worth the effort. As horrible as it is, he's hoping that Ruvin will target someone else instead.

His lungs are burning and his legs ache. Subin has never been particularly athletic, but it turns out he can run like he's been training his entire life when there's a monster behind him. But that all catches up to him when Ruvin does. He cries out when he's brought to an abrupt halt and he collapses to his knees, gasping for breath. He tries uselessly to tug his wrist free of that impossibly strong grip, tears springing to his eyes.

"No. No I- Please don't do this. I just want to go home. Please."

"Where else would we go, little rabbit?" Well, they're going to Ruvin's home. That's Opal's home now, too. It was decided the moment he caught Ruvin's interest. Unfortunate for Subin. Unfortunate for him that he stood out in any way: his beautiful music, the sheer coincidence of his opposing looks to the Ruvin's current pet. What a lovely set they'll make.

"Once we're there, you'll truly have something to cry about."

"I want- want to go to my home. My family is waiting for me. They'll... they'll come looking for me if I don't go home tonight," he tries to explain around his sobs. A warning for a monster who isn't likely to care. The truth of it is, though, that Subin doesn't live with his family and it's unlikely that anyone will notice he's gone for a good, long time. He grew up and struck out on his own. It's no more complicated than that. But he's grasping at straws here. He's trying whatever he can on the off chance the vampire has even a shred of humanity left in him.

Subin tries desperately to pry those strong fingers from his wrist but it's like clawing at steel. All he's managing to do is scratch up his own skin. It hurts but not as much as the vampire's grip on him and even that's not entirely physical pain. It's the pain of truly realizing he's been caught. The pain of watching his freedom slip through his fingers.

"Please j-just let me go. You don't really wan-want me. I promise. I'm not worth it."

The vampire stared at him, through him. He's equal parts bored and in credulous. But the emotion fleeting before those dark eyes return to reflecting nothing. Look at Subin as if he's nothing more some some pretty rock Ruvin saw on the ground.

"How could you possibly fathom what I want?" Though Ruvin's grip is like iron, his eyes drop to where they touch, fingers moving subtly over that warm wrist. He can feel Subin's blood racing, hear his heart thudding, the tensing of muscle. Movement humans aren't even aware of are so simple for him to detect.

Then his gaze sharpens, like he finally sees Subin again. "Do not lie to me again."

"I-I just..." He can't. There's no world where Subin could even presume to know what Ruvin wants. What lamb can fathom the mind of the wolf? And yet he has to try something. He's desperate. He doesn't want to be taken by the vampire because he's sure that he'll never come back from it. Subin is panicking. Though he can never even begin to imagine what the monster might want, especially from him, he wants to try to convince the monster that he's useless. Not just to him but in general. He's not good for anything or at anything except for music. There are others better suited for whatever it is that Ruvin wants him for. There has to be.

But what happens to him if he does convince Ruvin he isn't worth it? Does he really just get to move on with his life? Could he, even if he was given the opportunity?

Subin's damp eyes widen considerably and he tries to pull his wrist free from Ruvin vise-like grip. Nothing happens, of course. Subin's rather weak even by human standards. Against a vampire? He may well be doing nothing at all.

"Wait, no! No, I didn't-" He did. Though there was some truth to what he said, it was truth twisted into a lie. His family will eventually start to find it strange that they haven't heard from him in a while and they might search for him, but that wouldn't be any time soon. Just as likely is the chance that they'll notice he hasn't been around for a while and they'll simply think he's off living his life.

"...what's going to happen to me...?"

There, that's better. Just accept that there's no going back, little rabbit. Hunters seldom give up their prey. At least, not until they're done with it.

Seeing the Subin's fight is fading, Ruvin gives a tug to drag him along. "Nothing good," he simply answers. Nothing good for Subin. But taking Subin isn't completely for his own entertainment. At least he'll have a doting companion with whom to cower in fear.

Unfortunately, there was little fight in him to begin with. He knows that he's no match for a vampire so his best chance was trying to appeal to humanity that the monster clearly doesn't have. That and his begging were all he had. He didn't expect anything to come of it though. He went into it knowing that he already belonged to the vampire.

It was an inevitability the moment Ruvin laid eyes on him, wasn't it?

Subin awkwardly climbs to his feet and stumbles along behind the last person he'll probably ever see. His eyes fill with fresh tears as he looks toward the lovely outdoor venue where he played not long before. The applause from the crowd cuts especially deep at this particular moment. It feels like they're applauding his demise. He poured his heart and soul into playing for them and this is how they return the favour. He knows it isn't the case, but this feels personal. He knows that not a single person out there knows what's happening to him right now.

Would they do anything even if they did?

"Are you going to kill me?"

It was an inevitability. The moment he captured Ruvin's attention, Subin's fate was sealed.

Ruvin doesn't pause, whether Subin's walking or getting dragged beside him. Nor does he even deign to look at the boy. Are you going to kill me? Probably. Eventually. None of his pets have survived him. But killing them is never his purpose.

"Why are you afraid of dying? There is so much worse."

Ruvin's response makes Subin stop dead in his tracks until he's tugged along by the vampire, causing him to stumble and almost fall back to his knees. Instinctively, he reaches out to catch himself, grabbing hold of Ruvin's arm with his free hand, though he quickly releases it the moment he realizes what he's done. There's so much worse than death. For Subin, death has always been the scariest thing he could imagine. Being human means that death is the end. There is nothing else after that. No more chances. Death doesn't care about the people you care about or goals you didn't meet. The idea of just one day being gone terrifies him.

But there's so much worse. There's much worse fates than dying. "I just... I don't want to die." But he doesn't want to live with Ruvin either.

Perhaps, in that respect, Ruvin is very much like death; for he, too, doesn't care about the people others care about of the goals they didn't meet. And, unfortunately for Subin, Ruvin will be the end of his life, in more ways than one. Whatever dreams and goals he had, they're over now with no hope to return to their path. The people he care for? He'll never see them again. Indeed, all light and goodness will fade from his memory until death seems a welcome release from Ruvin's monstrosity.

"You all die, little rabbit. That is your fate."

Ruvin isn't wrong. It's a fate that every human shares. None can escape death, but they do hope that it can be put off for as long as possible. Most humans hope to live until they're old and grey. They don't necessarily expect to with vampires always looming (just because vampires aren't permitted to feed directly from humans, doesn't mean they don't. Humans aren't exactly a protected species) but they hope to.

Subin hoped that he would be among those who went largely unnoticed by the vampires who don't care for society's rules. There are much better candidates out there for a vampire's next meal so Subin never thought he'd catch anyone's eye. And yet here he is, falling victim to 'expectations' instead of 'hopes'.

"...you're right..." If he knew this was to be his last night, he would've done things differently. He would've made sure to speak to his family or invite them to his performance. Hell, he would've told them that he was performing tonight. He'd like to think he would've simply skipped the performance entirely but this is fate, right?

"Will you at least make it quick?" He's sure he knows the answer to that question, though.

“My intention is not to kill you, so no. It will not be quick.” Unlike the pace at which Ruvin is dragging Subin away. Away from where they met, away from Subin’s last pleasant memory, away from the world as he knew it. Society will vanish from his memory and only Ruvin will exist.

In a short time, the view shifts from the streets with people and shops to a more isolated area. Street lamps dot the darkness reveal large houses with larger properties getting further and further apart until they approach one solitary estate looming at the terminal point of a street. A large stone fence with an iron gate appears before them.

“This is your home now, my Opal.”

It will not be quick. Subin doesn't even get a swift death for his troubles, and he's not sure he's brave enough to take matters into his own hands. He's not sure that he can do what maybe he should when Ruvin gets to be too much to handle. Though who knows whether or not his new situation will force that to change.

Subin says nothing for the rest of the walk. The only sounds coming from him are quiet sobs and the scuffing of his shoes as he drags his feet along the ground. He stares over his shoulder, watching everything he ever knew drop away as Ruvin leads him along by the wrist. He can no longer see the lights from the venue where he'll never play again, or hear the applause from the crowd. Back there is the home he'll never see again and the family who may as well forget about him, the few friends that he's made over the years and his acquaintances. Musical rivals who lack competition now that Subin's out of the picture.

Not only does the world he knew seem to disappear but most of civilization does as well. It's only one the world grows darker that Subin turns to face forward, to see where it is they are and where they're going. Out of the city. Away from everything he ever knew. Away from everyone who ever knew him. This is the sort of place where no one would ever think to look for him.

By the time they reach the large stone fence with the iron gate, Subin is no longer sobbing. He's run out of tears. His eyes are bloodshot and dry. His face is puffy and his cheeks are all splotchy. But he's not crying anymore, though there are quiet sniffles and the occasional hiccup.

"I'm home," he says softly, miserably.

No, there would be none of that ever again. There will be nothing but this house and the monster who resides inside of it. Nothing but Ruvin and his delight in causing torment and pain. No more music, no more gentleness, no more softness.

Well, maybe some but Ruvin wouldn't approve.

Once they're through the iron gate the door looms before them, a single light flickering in an upper window with a wide-eyed face peering out. Look, Subin won't be all alone with Ruvin, after all. Inside the house is quiet. Once Ruvin turns the light on, Subin will get a look at the prawling entrance way. The house looks and feels somewhat sterile, unlived in. At least this part of it.

"Welcome."

❝ Pleasure is sweetest ❞

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