Three Word Wednesday, "Bitten"

The words over at Three Word Wednesday are affinity, fidget and mention.

Bitten 
They’re called the canines, but that is so ever misleading.

So offensive.

Take a moment, put your index finger to your own teeth and trace their glossy smoothness from the front two teeth – the central incisors – across the lateral incisor and onto the canine.

Uhhhg, yes.

The cuspid.

Take your thumb and index finger now, feel the slight elongation of your cuspid teeth – on top and below – and trace the points. Imagine the power it takes for all four to rip through flesh, through muscle and in one bite, sever either the right or left common carotid artery.

Oh, not your teeth, silly.

Ours.

You must understand the hesitation to refer to those four beautiful curved, glossy specimens to the filth that is the canine. True, our teeth are built like yours, made up of various minerals - calcium, phosphorus, other, assorted mineral salts – dentine and capped with a whisper of enamel. That gloriously smooth, hard layer that gives a bite meaning.

For you, for us, that makes no difference.

But to call them canine. Well, it’s so odious.

We are the hunters of the hunters. The cool-to-the-touch blur your first feel when the little hairs across your neck fidget. The shadows you see move across lit walls, when nothing else moves.

That is, until we feed.

And there is nothing more seductive than the swell of the sweat that fills our olfactory nerves as we close in. Bare our teeth.

Bite.

I suppose you could compare it to that of a jaguar; one swift sink of teeth through skin, bone, veins. The jaguar is, after all, the only of the big cats that kills with its bite. Oh, you can look it up. Tigers, lions – not to mention your cute, common house cat – kill by suffocation.

But we don’t feast on flesh now, do we? No, it’s our glorious affinity for all that pulsating, salty, iron-rich blood that flows through you.

No suffocation for us. We’re more seductively vicious. Calculated, cool.

Nothing like those silly movies your kind keep making up about us. The ones that show a bite with two little cuspid pokes along the vein.

(Think now, think to your own teeth, the two rows of teeth and try and figure out how you could pop just a couple of your cuspids into flesh, like twin needle injections? I think not.)

Roll your tongue across your own glorious teeth; feel the tiny ridges along the incisors – all eight of them – and then imagine the speed, the skill, the absolute symphony it takes for all 12 teeth to rip through the skin of your neck, through stringy muscle and into those gloriously pulsating carotid arteries.

Comments

anthonynorth said…
A story with bite! I like it.
VL Sheridan said…
Wonderful, seductive tone. I'd let myself be bitten.
Ren said…
Okay. I learned my lesson :)
To borrow VL Sheridan's word, it is very seductive, indeed.
Christine said…
I don't feel so self conscious about my little fangs now, and I so want to bbq steak tonight, medium rare please.
Deborah said…
Wow, it had me running my tongue over my teeth throughout ... intense and thoroughly enjoyable read! :o)
Sheilagh Lee said…
deliciously dark,well written Thom.
Monica Manning said…
This is why Dracula is so damn hot! As is your writing, Thom.
rmpWritings said…
positively delectable!
Old Egg said…
Full moon on Friday in Australia I will be on my guard. A biting tale.
Wow. I'm speechless.
Ann (bunnygirl) said…
Nice description. I'll keep the covers up around my throat as I sleep tonight.
Altonian said…
I like to get inside a good story, but yours got me inside the mouth as well. Shudderingly good!
Jae Rose said…
Oh my word..now it's going to be scary cleaning my teeth..they are weak little pieces of calcium..no defense against these hunters who want my blood..I think everyone who read this must have rubbed their tongue over their gnashers..brilliant way to tell this story..Jae
Laurita said…
Toothy! Great use of language - seductive, raw and chilling.
Sam Pennington said…
Yes, nice piece, I liked this even though it made me shudder....and shudder again!
Dee Martin said…
I hate being late to the fang party but it is funny to think about everyone (myself included) running their tongue over their teeth as they read this. Oh the power of the writer! And no sparkling? Goodness! I loved every word...the voice was so spot on, conversational but silky/oily matter-of-fact murderous. LOVED it!
Anonymous said…
Thom, I really got into this when I realized the importance of the canine teeth - and yes, I can see where the 'wolfman' aspect of that would mightily piss off self-respecting vampires! But you captured the romance, the seduction of vampire lore. Great use of the prompt! Here's mine, a little late:
http://sharplittlepencil.wordpress.com/2011/03/06/affinity-for-coffee/
A bit more upbeat, but still about favorite drinks!! Amy
April said…
Nicely done! You really became the character before you wrote, it came across very convincingly.

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