[Tokyo Ghoul: Devour or Perish]Hunger Pains

[killerlung]

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Katoro "Kat" Kawashima


23:34 The 11th Ward

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Kat cringed as he shuffled along the vacating streets of the 11th ward, sparse people walked to and fro, so oblivious to his pain, so caught up in their own worlds. Kat's hood was pulled over his head, his hair obscured his eyes as he made his way vending machine by an abandoned bus stop. The hunger, it filled his every thought, every piece of him wanted to feed, to mince good regular folk into meat, to stop this damned hell he was feeling. He'd stare up desperately, looking at his reflection in the vending machine, he was sweating profusely, his breaths ragged and his eye..black in all the parts that shouldn't be, and redder than the hottest burning coal.


He'd close his eyes turning away, ashamed by the monster he saw, no he was supposed to be a hero, what hero looked like this!? How could he save anyone when he couldn't keep himself from destroying them!? Rin his big sister, drool built in his mouth even as he thought her name. He'd fumble for a coin, his hands shaking as he placed it in the machine and slammed his fist down on the button for a can of coffee milk. He'd frantically dart for the beverage as it came down the slide and rip open the tab, gulping down the drink in an attempt to stave off his hunger just a little longer, at least until he could find a bad guy, or-or a corpse? A corpse would work right!?


He'd finish the drink letting the can hit the floor, his eyes suddenly going wide as it hit his stomach. He'd glance around, still seeing a few odd strangers walking here and there he'd make out in a sprint for the nearest alley, heading down it and slamming himself up against a dumpster before puking up the beverage in it's entirety. Too much milk, not enough Coffee he'd think in one of his sparse coherent thoughts. He'd pant raspy breaths, glaring down at the former contents of his stomach with an odd sadness.


He'd wipe his mouth, pulling himself up, his single kakugan focusing in on a source of light at the far end of the alley. He'd make for it frantically, the flickering light of a flame, there was a smell too, it smelled amazing! Kat's mouth began to water as he grew nearer, his kakugan zeroing in on a sight that shook him, that made him stop in his tracks.


At the end of the alley, around a small corner and beneath some debris, there was a fire, by now that was obvious, what wasn't was the child, the dirty kid that sat around it, that cooked something over it. He was an orphan, just like Katoro! Katoro walked forward a bit of his mind coming back as he regarded the similarity before he saw it, saw what was cooking there over the fire.


A Kitten, it's fur stripped with a small knife, was skewered toasting over the fire for the starving, homeless child to eat. Katoro's eyes grew wide, wh-why!? Kittens were sweet! They were kind! Why eat one!? No, it was obvious, this kid ate it because he had to, because of the hunger, because it kept him moving. It all made sense, it all smelled so good!


Katoro shuffled forward crouching under the debris slightly and making his way closer to the fire, a broken glass bottle would crunch under his foot, causing the boy's eyes to dart towards him locking eyes with him for a moment, but by now it was too late. Kat was already on the boy, grabbing him by the head and slamming his head into the brick wall, over and over, and over, and over, and over, and over again.


The blood splattered all over the wall and floor showering Katoro in the crimson and painting the wall in a sick red hue, before Katoro sunk his eager teeth into the nape of the boy's neck, relishing the sweet taste of blood and flesh. Oh it just tasted so sweet, so tender, he gulped it down, the pain in his stomach growing less as he sank his teeth in for another bite, and another.


Before long the boy head was dangling by the chord of his spine, the flesh entirely stripped, and Katoro fell to his knees, glaring at the blood on his hands, at the blood pooling on the alley floor. What had he done!? This isn't what heroes did! He'd think frantically, looking at the broken skull of the boy, at the dull, blank look on his face.


Tears began to well in his eyes, and he slammed his fist down into the puddle of crimson.

What kind of hero, ate a kid?...



(Feel free to join in, scold, reward, or chastise the newest member of the ghoul community.)



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[Dr Nyx]

Aoki Hayashi

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Aoki sighed as he strolled through the strangely quiet and empty streets of the 11th Ward; Erugh today had definitely been eventful but at least now he could relax and just stroll through the night. His Headphones filling his ears with some Music by a nice American band going by the name of Starset, they definitely made some nice music. Course the music hardly hindered his almost unnatural even for ghoul standards. He could hear distant conversations or the running of someone in the far distance but he didn't mind, It definitely helped when dealing with doves anyways.....That's when his nostrils where filled with a strange but new smell...It was, Sweet and attractive. It seemed to be a Ghoul but, Usually they smelt quite different...More...Bloody if that made any sense at all. Pushing up his Glasses he chose to pursue the scent..It was oddly alluring but thankfully his hunger had been sated a while ago..So now it was out of curiosity.


Walking to a vacant street that was only inhabited by a passing stranger and a seemingly distressed man; slamming his fist down on the button to get a drink of Coffee. The way he drank it was frantic and by the smell of him he seemed to be the source of that aroma...It seemed like he was hungry and not the regular sort, the type you get when starved and wanting to rip anyone in your way apart to get that little lick of blood on the tip of your tongue. The man suddenly slammed the cup down and made a sprint for it, Aoki quickly but subtlety following him out of morbid curiosity. It looked like he needed some help and maybe he could provide some, Or well at least stop him from running into a patrol of Doves.


As he followed that sweet Aroma, His eyes widened a bit as he witnessed the man brutally smash a Kid against the wall like some sort of Rag doll and ravenously devour them. Jesus fucking christ, this guy didn't seem to be the most decent of people..Or well that's what he thought anyway. That thought remained and he was more than ready to leave until the Man seemed to have a Mental breakdown, slamming his fist into the puddle of crimson that seeped from what remained of the boy. He understood the feeling of severe hunger and guilt, So maybe this guy wasn't as bad as he originally thought...He could chastise him but what good would that do? "Bad boy you just killed a kid." That would definitely help the situation now wouldn't it?


This...Ghoul?..Should be able to smell him by now so fleeing wasn't an option, Might as well take his chances and see what this guy is really like.."Uh hey, Are you alright?...Do you want some help?..I'm not here to hurt you." He'd make his statement true by slowly approaching and leaving his hands in mid-air, The opposite of a good defensive maneuver. He'd stand quietly as he waited for the mans response, hoping to maybe not get killed.

 

[killerlung]

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Katoro "Kat" Kawashima


23:44 The 11th Ward
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Kat's tears hit the growing puddle of blood, the dripping and dropping of their monotonous fall standing as a constant reminder to his sin as he sat their shaking, his kakugan still very much active as the smell of his kill lingered in the air.


Suddenly a new smell began to waft his way, overpowering even the smell of his kill as it came nearer.


Another ghoul!? Katoro would think desperately, his stomach sinking as he remembered being hunted by ghouls upon first awaking in Japan. He shuddered as the voice broke the relative silence, but what he heard wasn't a threat, heck it wasn't even a challenge, help? Had he really wanted to help him?





Katoro turned to face the man, his single kakugan making his condition immediately apparent. "H-how could you help?" he'd ask bitterly as the last of his tears fell. He was a monster, he wasn't a hero, how could he be a hero now? Had Rin just led him along? Katoro turned his gaze down, getting lost in the small sea of red that lay at his knees.


Then he'd hear it, small, quiet, but defiant, grasping on for dear life. Kat would turn to face the dumpster nearby, his eyes locking on the kittens that sat behind it meowing out into the night. Course they were starved, and battered but otherwise they were alive. Kat paused growing lost in the sight, the kitten the boy had killed, the one he was trying to eat, that must've been their brother or sister.


So, he'd saved the rest of them? W-was that being a hero? He'd stop considering the logic before wiping the tears away from his eyes with blood stained hands. "I-I'm sorry, I-I just....ummm I'm new to this...I think" he'd say cautiously, as he sat there on his knees glancing up at the man in the alley.


"I didn't mean to be rude, I just, well..." Kat would pause before pointing towards his single kakugan, "I'd...understand if you want to eat me now" he'd mutter, his tone more than a little self defeating. Despite Kat's epiphany with the kittens, the realization that he wasn't quite disqualified from considering himself a hero, it was clear that he was still wracked with guilt.


Unfortunately guilt was a very dangerous emotion for a ghoul to have in Tokyo, and so Katoro found himself at a bit of a disadvantage in that alley, finding himself plagued by an emotion one might only call human...

 

[QuirkyAngel]

Takafumi Erizawa

“You shouldn’t offer up your life so easily,” Takafumi said cheerily, interrupting the conversation between the blue haired ghoul and the one-eyed one. Seated on the roof of an old apartment building, Takafumi had been able to witness all the events that had transpired since he first heard the sound of someone puking in the dumpster. The gruesome murder. The tears. Takafumi had seen it all. And while he found the scene distasteful, he couldn’t help being fascinated either. After all, he had never seen a ghoul with one kakugan before.


Takafumi studied the one-eyed ghoul curiously. He had already completed his monthly hunt and he had no desire to break his own self-appointed limits...even if the ghoul smelled rather delectable. Ghouls without self-discipline usually ended up dead. And, unlike the ghoul sitting in a pool of blood, Takafumi had absolutely no desire to die. Though, he had to admit, it had been a while since he smelled a ghoul so appetizing.


Almost as good as my father did…


Takafumi frowned, irritated by the memory. Smoothly getting to his feet, the masked ghoul stepped off the rooftop, his loafers barely making a sound as they landed on the pavement. Takafumi approached the bloodstained ghoul the same way he would approach a suicidal student: cautiously, sympathetically, but also unhesitatingly. He disliked ghouls that killed children. However, the ghoul that had been crying his eyes out only moments before looked very much like a child to him…and Takafumi could feel his teacher instincts kicking in.


“I don’t know what’s gotten you so upset, but death’s never usually the answer,” Takafumi held his hand out to the bloody ghoul, intending the help the poor thing to its feet. @killerlung


His eyes flickered to where the blue haired ghoul was standing. Takafumi didn’t recognize him…but that was no surprise. Ever since he’d quit his gang all those years ago, Takafumi mainly stayed within his own hunting grounds, not bothering with ghouls unless they bothered him. However, his quest to discover who the hell Jack was had led him to Ōta…where he would happen upon a ghoul whose scent reminded him of a human.





“Are you an friend of his?” @Dr Nyx

 

[killerlung]

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Katoro "Kat" Kawashima


23:50 The 11th Ward



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Katoro glanced over toward the newcomer, another ghoul!? He'd recoil a bit, not sure why, a second ago he'd been so eager to give up his life and now, well now maybe he wasn't? Kat would stumble backwards falling onto his but with a splash as a small puddle of warm blood soaked through his clothes. The smell was intoxicating, and Katoro cringed as he felt his stomach rumble again. He'd glance at the two men, his single kakujan locking with each of their eyes as he scooted back in alley only to find nowhere else to scramble to as his back made content with the cool clay brick of the bloodstained alley wall.


He'd watch the newcomer leap down from his shallow perch on the adjoining building's rooftop, his feet landing gracefully, his demeanor unshaken by the fall. For a single moment Katoro would sit in awe, his mind flashing to those cool Super Sentai heroes or those comic heroes from America. He'd think it was cool, well beyond cool, to so nonchalantly shirk off a fall like that. Katoro would imagine himself doing the same before the warm jagged feeling of his hand grazing the broken skull of the boy, brought him hurtling back towards reality.


Katoro heard the man's words as he stepped closer, was he, w-was he trying to help him? He'd wonder for a moment, trying to put his feelings into words. He'd stammer glancing away from the ghoul's seemingly compassionate face, "I-I..I killed him...He's a kid, a real kid...not like me...I...I" and then it came the man's words hit him like a sack of rocks. Deaths not the answer? he'd think, his eyes suddenly going wide. Did this man know another way!? Did he not have to kill anymore? Katoro would breath down a heavy gulp, trying to weigh down his learned fear of other ghouls. He'd glance up at the man in front of him, and staring at his outstretched hand intently.


Was this man one of the good ones? He'd wonder to himself for a moment as he continued to stare at the hand. And then Rin's words came back to him,


"Good people in this world are hard to find, so if you find them just make sure you don't ever let them go."





Kat used to wonder what she meant by that, after all people often times seemed nice enough even if ghouls weren't, but over the last few weeks he'd learned different, he'd seen different. He wasn't so sure what to think anymore, especially about ghouls, heck even about people, but as that man's hand offered itself up to him he'd figure, he'd rather keep betting on good.


So without another word he'd take the ghoul's hand, lifting himself up and looking at the man with the sort of nervous apprehension one might see a beaten child regard their beater with. Every ghoul he'd met so far had hunted him, or chased him, but now this one he told him not to hurt himself, not to let anyone hurt him. Kat had to know why, and so with a curt nod he'd introduce himself. "I-I'm Katoro, t-t-thank you" he'd stammer nervously to the kind seeming ghoul.


@QuirkyAngel @Dr Nyx

 

[QuirkyAngel]

Takafumi Erizawa

“Katoro, huh?” Takafumi lifted his free hand to his face, slowly removing the plastic, full-face mask he wore. It was a habit of his to wear his mask whenever he hunted or dealt with ghoul related issues. The chance of running into a CCG investigator was usually greater in those situations. However, there were no Doves around, as far as he could tell, and the innocent-looking ghoul before him didn’t look particularly dangerous. Besides, wearing a mask in front of a ghoul was a pointless endeavor…since ghouls could recognize him by scent alone.


“Call me Takafumi.” Takafumi leaned forward, taking a whiff of the “ghoul” called Katoro. It would seem that the younger ghoul wasn’t as suicidal as he had thought.


Delectable~


“You look like a ghoul, but you smell human.” Takafumi said with a curious lilt in his voice. Brown eyes met Katoro’s tear-stained ones. The boy’s one kakagan was still active. “Are you still hungry?”


Letting go of Katoro’s bloodstained hands, Takafumi licked off the residue blood before reaching into his pockets of his brown jacket and pulling out a red lollipop. “Take a blood pop. It’ll stave off the hunger a little.”


His eyes flitted to the cranium of the pitiful human child that was unfortunate enough to have run into a starving ghoul.


A child that never got a chance to experience the world to its fullest. One who probably didn’t even have the opportunity to receive a proper education.


Takafumi sighed.


“It’s a shame, but accidents do happen. I’ve killed a couple of my students when my hunger got the best of me as well. Not something I’m proud of but…” Takafumi shrugged. “A ghoul’s life isn’t easy. If you don’t learn to control yourself, Kid, you’ll end up dead—whether you’re ready or not.”


@killerlung