Among the Blue [Critical]

Critical · Jul 30, 2015

"Hehehe. I get that a lot. It's totally understandable though. Our language and naming conventions evolved in a very similar direction as the Polynesian peoples.

That is, the parts that are actually vocalized in human languages. We tend to speak our own sub-audible language beneath the surface."

The students and citizens that followed Lelei down to the kingdom to combat the Deep One had see Lelei's native language first hand, and only barely heard it too. The language was more primal and physical than more familiar languages, involving subtle body language and even minute electrical stimuli.

"I'd still love to talk to you more, even if I'm the only one drinking."

Lelei showed no hestiation in approaching the bar at Ignatius' side, and then ordering himself some top-shelf whiskey. Once more, he specified that the bar tender use a much larger glass than normal, one more suited to the size of Lelei and Ignatius.

He stood quite close to Ignatius and, now that they were at the bar, spoke much softer, as if he was keeping their conversation private.

"So you gotta tell me. What would bring a powerful guy like yourself to a barbecue like that? I can't see any legal business deals going down there, and you didn't seem to be dressed for the occasion..."

A hearty swig was taken from his glass, and Lelei stared knowingly at Ignatius.

"... Were you there just for a... feeding frenzy, as I was? I mean, an occasion like that is easy pickings for men such as ourselves."

Romi · Aug 1, 2015

Similar root languages were interesting, but not actually interesting enough for Ignatius to investigate. He was not a language person. He spoke English, and that was it. Plenty of businessmen opted to pick up several languages, but he'd never found much of a need. There were too many languages on the islands - so many he'd never have even a chance of learning half of them. His time was better spent elsewhere.

"I imagine the acoustics of living under the water would make things quite different." Talking underwater was a fascinating but largely pointless experience for humans, which was why divers so often relied on hand signals - they couldn't be distorted.

Ignatius took a seat at the bar, considering his choice of alcohol before ordering a top-shelf whiskey for himself, to match the one Lelei had ordered. He did not particularly care for alcohol, and didn't have much in the way of preferences. He tended to drink what other people were drinking, assuming it was highbrow enough for him.

"It was business - and legal, at that." He waited for the drink to arrive, taking a small taste before resting his hand around it. "I was curious about the host - he's become an important part of Manta Carlos's business sector very quickly, and I've yet to meet him face to face. The party was a bust in that respect - he was too busy with an endless parade of busty women." So he'd cut and run early, long before the BBQ was over.

And there it was again. The innuendo for lack of a better word. There were a lot of possible interpretations, and Ignatius didn't like more than half of them. "That would depend on what you meant by a 'feeding frenzy'." He was a bit too well mannered to make literal air quotes with his fingers, but it was pretty obvious what he meant.

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Critical · Aug 2, 2015

Lelei snapped his fingers in realization once Ignatius explained his presence at the barbecue. Even though he could not, at the moment, remember the name of their gracious host that night, Lelei did remember that the host had an air of importance and standing about him. It seemed obvious in hindsight that an informal business deal would go down between those two men at an equally informal, and surprisingly private, gathering. If anything secret was exchanged, it was easily lost in the throng of naked bodies.

He did smile at the mention of the busty women, though. To Lelei, it sounded like the deal might have fallen through because of the distracting women, and not simply because Ignatius was *ahem* uninterested in them.

"Yeah. Yeeaah. Those ladies can be really distracting, huh? Even for a guy like me."

Ignatius asked for a clarification on Lelei's words, and Lelei just chuckled. He scooted even closer to Ignatius until they were almost shoulder-to-shoulder. Together, they were a wall of manliess at the bar.

"You're a smart man. You know what I mean. I don't know what phrase a man like you would use, but I'm talking about helping ourselves to those at the barbecue that were just offering themselves to me, to us."

To be honest, Lelei would have even added how much they could have offered each other, but his remaining sensibilities kept that out of the conversation. Even though Lelei preferred much smaller and softer boys, he could not deny the comradery he was feeling with Ignatius. Even if Ignatius himself was ignorant or in denial of it.

"Men like us can have anyone we want. Just like our meat. We feed first and we feed the most. It's almost their duty to satiate us."

Lelei took another swig of his whiskey then smiled at Ignatius with a changed look.

"But, y'know, in a fun way. I ain't talkin' about literally eating up them boys, and girls."

Romi · Aug 3, 2015

There had been no such luck, and no such deal. He knew as much about Gabriel Baltimore before the party as he did after. The whole thing had been a massive waste of time.

Even for a 'guy like him'? He really wasn't entirely sure what he meant, and there were a lot of possibilities. It was possible that he straight up wasn't interested in humans. He would hardly be the first non-human to find no real interest outside their own species.

That option was quickly pushed out of the way. No, he was definitely interested in humans. Ignatius didn't speak until Lelei 'clarified', making it quite clear which way he swung - humans. Human males, if he had to guess. It took everything he could not to blatantly grimace. Fantastic. He'd found someone sex-obsessed.

"While we agree on many things, I can't say we agree on that. I'm selective - I want the best of the best on my arm when I go to a party, not just whoever is willing to throw themselves at me." He suspected he had less people literally throwing themselves at him because he didn't actually want that - he was quick to discourage it, and no doubt people realized.

"Do you eat much red meat, or mostly fish?" A rather abrupt conversation change, but a change was a change, and he'd latch onto any conversation starter he could think of.

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Critical · Aug 4, 2015

Lelei took quite well to Ignatius' reply. While other people might have taken the reply as something of an insult, Lelei found it humorous and chuckled happily at it.

"You got a point there. You got a point. I should be more discerning with the boys I end up with... But I can't just help myself! If they're throwing themselves at me, it's like I'm obligated to catch 'em."

Ignatius was probably not receiving the best first impression of Lelei ever, and that was no one's fault but Lelei's. Considering that they were at a police charity event, with formal clothes and everything, Lelei should have been the professional he was known for being while on the job. The man Ignatius was meeting was the more casual Lelei, the man who liked to let a little loose and had a very active libido. Hopefully Ignatius would eventually see that there was more to Lelei than drinks and sleeping with young men.

Lelei finished off his drink and asked the bartender for another. For a man as large as he was, even a large glass of liquor was not going to do much but give him a nice warming sensation.

"Back before I came ashore, I used to eat pretty much just fish. You can imagine why. But now that I'm up here with land food, I can't say 'no' to red meat. I mean I like fish still, don't get me wrong. But I'd chomp down on a hunk of cow first. It's just so hearty and satisfying in a way that fish isn't."

The drink came back and Lelei was quick to put most of it inside him.

"You're a dinosaur, am I correct? You mentioned something about T-Rexes before. How is that working out for you? In terms of mingling with the humans."

Romi · Aug 7, 2015

So Lelei was a man with self control issues. Ignatius could not quite blame him. The urge to indulge was always there, and if he had no need to make himself presentable to the public, why not indulge in whatever he wanted? Ignatius's reputation was important to him, and his persona as a professional and refined businessman was key. Without it, he'd be getting much less business than he presently was.

Ignatius's drink was barely a quarter drunk, and he was happy for the change in conversation. "I can imagine. Fish is generally considered a bit lighter, while red meats are generally heavier. You should try some variety, if you haven't. I'm sure you've had pork and beef, but bison, goat, deer... all have their own flavor." He'd tried a great variety of meat, although he'd shied away from reptiles. While technically T-rexes had no doubt eaten other dinosaurs, the idea of eating something like a crocodile seemed a bit too weird for him.

"A Tyrannosaurus Rex, to be specific." And he was certainly proud of that fact. It showed on his face, in the way he smiled when he said it. "A controlled shifter, depending on how you want to define shifter." Some only counted those who shifted involuntarily, but he hadn't lost control since he was a boy. "They don't mind. Not many on this island can be considered really human, and I'm human enough that no one really minds." He certainly wouldn't have passed on the mainland, but he never really had to on the islands. "I'm in human form the vast majority of the time, so it's never really an issue. And no one has ever taken issue to me transforming, so long as I don't do it in the city." If he did it in the city, the damage he'd cause would be expensive, and he certainly didn't feel like throwing his money away like that.

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Critical · Aug 8, 2015

"I've had venison once, during another formal police gathering at some upscale venue. Super soft. I loved. I'd have more of it if it also wasn't super expensive."

The life of a voracious carnivore was an expensive one in the civilized world. The good meat costed a lot for a non-rich businessman, and eating lower grade meat grew old very quickly. Lelei found that eating other things with his meat helped mitigate the cost, and his sharky stomach acid was capable of dissolving almost anything he through in there so there was no harm in experimentation. Also, if funds got too tight, he could always dive into the ocean for a free fish buffet.

"I'd love to try bison. That sounds like upper-tier beef to me. I also bet I couldn't afford it either."

Lelei slowed his drinking down to sips while he listened to Ignatius explain the specifics of his dino-hood. Apparently Ignatius was not always the way he looked, and Lelei really wondered how that worked out.

There was no changing out of what Lelei looked liked. His people were not shifters of any kind, so everyone would always see the giant shark man and know that he was not human at all. There was nothing bad about his situation from his perspective. But for everyone else, there was always that initial adjustment period to his presence.

"That's pretty cool. So do you ever leverage that detail to your advantage? Like, if you got business negotiation going down, do you try showin' a little teeth? Sneak in a growl to show that you mean business?

What about the social life? Find anyone that has a particular kink for tyrant king lizards? Or does working out do enough for you?"

He raised his arm and gave a short flex.

"Cause it's a little of both for me."

Romi · Aug 9, 2015

Ignatius had never really had to hold back on the amount of meat he ate. His diet was almost ninety percent meat, composing mostly of meat and things that came with meat. Even breakfast normally meant sausage, if he remembered to have breakfast on a given morning. Most predators didn't exactly eat three square meals a day, so if he missed one, it really wasn't a big deal.

"Bison isn't all that more expensive than beef, depending on the quality of the beef your getting. Still expensive, as most red meat is though." While he'd always lived his life among the wealthy, his mother had instilled a strong understanding of just how good he had it. He knew not everyone could just afford to have bison flown in for something to try.

"Really, it tastes like very lean beef. Much lower calories, lower fat. Better marbling. I prefer it over beef, personally." But it was obviously not exactly something you could have day to day. "Perhaps you can come over the next time I bring some in. It's always good to try." Of course, he wasn't thinking of just how messy it was for Lelei to eat. He had no idea, and he wasn't thinking in terms of how those jaws would work.

He actually found himself laughing at Lelei asking about his business technique. He didn't laugh very often, in part because of how much it showed his teeth, but he sincerely doubted Lelei would mind, and he laughed long and hard at the whole thing. "Of course. Not so blatantly, of course, but it's pretty intimidating to a human to see something with so many sharp teeth negotiating with you." Intimidation was a factor in almost all business negotiations, whether people would admit it or not. "The money probably does a better job of finding me women I like." He doubted any of them were particularly interested in his teeth or his eyes - no, it was probably the money.

"Are you an officer then? Or just a friend of an officer?" He'd never been clear.

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Critical · Aug 10, 2015

"I would love to visit whenever you get your hands on some bison. We'll can make it meat-eaters get-together. Just you, me, meat and some drinks."

Lelei would have to remember to give Ignatius his number before the gala was over, in case Ignatius ever did consider inviting Lelei over for some meat and drinks. That kind of night sounded like an awesome time for Lelei. Considering the two of them, it would be the epitome of manly bonding. And it would not even need to be the kind of "bonding" that Lelei had been alluding to earlier. Grilling up bison with a T-Rex and shark sounded like a great time.

Ignatius' laugh was a great sign for Lelei. Hopefully it meant that the man was warming up to the shark, and getting over his initial trepidation. Granted, some of it was Lelei's fault.

"Maybe you should try guys then. In my experience, money is that much of a factor with them."

In reality, money was something of a factor for any mate, but men tended to value it less relative to other factors. Such behaviors and comparisons were a little stereotypical, but Lelei could not argue with his own experiences.

"I'm an officer in everything except for the official paperwork. I hate to use the term, but I'm something of a 'mercenary' for the police. Though I like to say 'indepedent contractor'.

The Manta Carlos PD is only partially equipped to handle the more-than-human cases and suspects that we get around here. I'm called in whenever they need such things handled."

Romi · Aug 12, 2015

Ignatius would not do the cooking himself. He was a businessman, not a chef, and he found no purpose in doing a halfass job himself when he could simply get someone else to do the job for him. No, he would have a professional chef prepare his high end meat. He had a chef who did the cooking for him normally, but he had a special chef for more specific kinds of meat. You couldn't trust just anyone to cook up a specialty meat for you.

He made a face at the idea that he should 'try' men. He actually opened his mouth to make a retort about the fact that a man could hardly give him an heir (which would only matter if he was interested, which he was absolutely not), before he closed his mouth. That was too personal. There was no need to get that far into it - his expression had made his thoughts on that clear enough.

"It's understandable that they'd need someone with considerable body strength in rare occasions. Most police work would hardly require it, but if someone goes rogue who is physically intimidating.." Both himself and apparently Lelei were lucky in that their particularly advantages were combat advantages, but there were plenty that weren't. Plenty were more combat neutral, and there were even those that were at a disadvantage compared to a normal human. Having a snake tail might be interesting, but it didn't make you any stronger than a human, and more than one mage was physically weakened by their magic to the point where even a quick bout of fisticuffs could take them down.

"Then they're lucky to have you. To be fair, I'm sure you get plenty of the perks without a lot of the downsides that come with being on the force. It can be quite a thankless job at times, and being 'on call' means you likely get to avoid most of that." It wasn't as if he'd get the hate of 'being one of the pigs' when he wasn't actually on the force. "I imagine the pay is good." Specialized forces always got paid better than the rank and file.

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