maneoxaiden - Tumblr blog

[maneoxaiden]

mirrors and death

Mirrors: What is your muse’s least favorite thing about their appearance?

Either his jawline, for being so slim and not as sharp as he'd like, or his ears. They're just big. Like they're not RIDICULOUSLY large or anything, but he's always felt like they were just like... 2% too big for his face.

Death: Name one thing your muse has lost that they wish they could get back.

Time, I think. Like sure, he's an immortal vampire, he's got all the time in the world. But day to day, in the present, it's something he lacks. Not enough hours in the day to focus on the work Veritas needs done while keeping up the things that help him decompress. He's lost the time he used to have to write stories and make music, and I think he'd like that back.

[maneoxaiden]

Fear-Themed Headcanon Questions

Send one (or a few) to my muse and they’ll answer: 

Spiders: Does your muse squish bugs or put them outside? The Dark: Did your muse sleep with a nightlight as a child? Snakes: Would your muse ever keep an unusual/exotic pet? Blood: What’s the worst injury your muse has ever had? Clowns: Does your muse prefer comedy? Or horror? Mirrors: What is your muse’s least favorite thing about their appearance? Tight Space: Does your muse ever feel that they’re not living up to their own potential? Closet Monsters: Does your muse hide any aspects of their personality/life from others? Crowds: What does your muse think of big cities? Death: Name one thing your muse has lost that they wish they could get back. Ghosts: Has your muse ever seen something they couldn’t explain? Needles: Does your muse have a strong stomach? Curses: Does your muse believe in good/bad luck? How about karma? Heights: Is your muse a risk-taker? Solitude: Name 3 things your muse couldn’t live without. Fire: Would your muse rather be very cold, or very hot? Failure: Has your muse ever given up on an important dream? Abandonment: How would your muse win back someone who left them? The Unknown: Is your muse a philosophical person? Boogeyman: What position does your muse sleep in? Falling: What does your muse think about falling in love or commitment?  Change: What was a turning point in your muse’s life? Disease: What does your muse do on a sick day? Number 13: Does your muse believe any superstitions?  Noise: Name one sound your muse finds absolutely unbearable. Insects: Name something your muse finds gross or annoying.  Dolls: Has your muse ever collected something? Getting Old: Would your muse rather live 50 years loved, or 200 years alone? Social Phobia: Does your muse consider themselves an outgoing person?

[maneoxaiden]

𝐇𝐔𝐑𝐓 / 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐓   ♡   𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐒

    change any gendered language to your needs.  ♡

“   you  don’t  have  to  hide  your  tears  from  me .   ” “   you’re  doing  great ,   okay ??   i mean it .   ” “   you  are  so  strong .   ” “   please  don’t  ever  give  up .   ” “   i  will  always  believe  in  you .   ” “   why  do  you  always  think  you  have  to  do  everything  on  your  own ??   ” “   it’s  okay ,   i’m  here .   i’ll  always  be  here .   ” “   you’ve  always  been  strong  for  me .   let  me  return  the  favor .   ” “   just  listen  to  my  heartbeat ,   okay ??   ” “   come  on ,   take  a  deep  breath .   it’s  gonna  be  alright .   ” “   please ,   just  hold  me .   ” “   you  always  meant  the  world  to  me .   i’m  sorry  i  let  you  forget  that .   ” “   i  never  stopped  loving  you .   ” “   you’ll  feel  better  if  you  talk  about  it .   i’m  here  to  listen .   ” “   you’re  so  much  more  than  the  mistakes  you’ve  made .  ” “   i  forgive  you .   ” “   you  are  so  fucking  powerful .   ” “   i’m  not  leaving  you  here .   ” “   i  trust  you  more  than  anyone  else  in  this  universe .   ” “   it’s  okay  to  be  confused .   nobody  has  all  the  answers .   ” “   i’m  so ,   so  sorry .   you  didn’t  deserve  that .   ” “   healing  is  not  linear ,   but  it’s  always  moving  forward .   ” “   you  can  admit  that  you’re  hurting .   it’s  okay  to  not  be  okay .   ” “   hold  my  hand ??   ” “   you  are  my  home .   ” “   no  matter  what  anyone  else  says ,   you  are  so  important  to  me .   ” “   don’t  worry .   i’ll  protect  you .   ” “   shh ,   it  was  just  a  nightmare .   you’re  safe .   ” “   don’t  talk  about  yourself  like  that .   ” “   just  say  the  word .   you  know  i’d  do  anything  for  you .   ” “   you  are  loved .   ” “   i  just  need  a  hug .   ” “   i’ll  destroy  anything  that  so  much  as  thinks  of  harming  you .   ” “   don’t  ever  let  anyone  make  you  feel  ashamed  of  who  you  are .   ” “   you’re  not  alone .   you’re  stuck  with  me  forever .   sorry .   ” “   well ,   hello  sleeping  beauty .   you  fell  asleep  on  me .   ” “   if  you  don’t  take  your  butt  back  to  bed ,   i  will  carry  you  there  myself .   ” “   i’m  sorry  to  wake  you  up ,   but  i  really  need  someone  to  talk  to .   ” “   i  hate  seeing  you  like  this   …   please ,  let  me  help .   ” “   you  are   &   always  will  be  precious  to  me .   ” “   i  can’t  believe  that  asshole  said  that  to  you .   it’s  not  true ,   you  know .    ” “   you  want  me  to  punch  him  in  the  face  ??   ” “   you  deserve  every  good  thing  in  the  world .   ” “   you  know  i  always  have  your  back .   ” “   you  don’t  have  to  worry  about  anything ,   as  long  as  i’m  around .   ” “   stop  apologizing ,   okay ??   i’ve  already  told  you  i’ve  forgiven  you  a  hundred  times now .   ” “   don’t  beat  yourself  up  over  this .   be  kind  to  yourself ,   it’s  not  your  fault .   ”

[maneoxaiden]

Send me ‘What If’ scenarios for my muse to answer.

[maneoxaiden]

ᴋᴀʟᴏᴘꜱɪᴀ | 750 challenge

ᴋᴀʟᴏᴘꜱɪᴀ — the delusion of things being more beautiful than they are

Marcus Aiden Armitage has had his heart broken so many times he's stopped keeping track. 

The curse of a hopeless romantic, he supposes. A many who wholeheartedly believes in fate, soulmates, twin-flames and whatnot is simply bound to face the pain of a broken heart once or twice in his lifetime, and that's for your average human lifespan. Alas, Aiden has had his heart broken by a few fair women and he's broken many a heart in return.

In fairness, it'd been quite some time since Aiden's felt the ache in his chest. Most, if not all of his lovers had held his affections some three-or-four-hundred years ago. If the man thought about it for long enough, he imagines he could recall what those endings felt like. He could allow himself to remember the finality of it all, the sense of loss—

So why did that familiar burning, aching, tearing in his heart feel nothing like that now?

"I ran into Amelie," That shouldn't have been possible. "She was with another man," That shouldn't have been possible. "I'm sorry, Aiden."

He wanted to refute the words spilling from Illya's lips- to lash out in anger, in a blind rage for such lies being told right to his face. He wanted to make Illya regret accusing his wife of such things, apologize for smearing dirt upon her character. Instead, Aiden finds himself... eerily hollow. Empty. So much so one could hear his fragile heart crumble piece by glass piece.

For there are a few sacred truths he knows for absolute certainty- the most important being that Illya would never lie to him.

Aiden knew Illya. Ever since he was a child, he's known Illya, and even as a child, Illya had never once lied to him. Even if the truth was the last thing he wanted to hear in that moment, Illya always told him the truth. While Amellie being outside the Kim family manor should have been impossible, clearly it wasn't. The younger man knew his pseudo-father-figure would never make a statement like that were he not sure of what he saw. If he hadn't confirmed it himself.

Amelie hadn't waited for him.

What was more than that was that she'd moved on entirely, walking along the streets with a new man on her arm. Aiden felt this discordant mesh of confusion, anger, sadness, heartbreak— and what hurt the most was that in the center of it all, no matter how small it may have been in comparison to every other emotion swirling in his chest, was understanding.

After all, she didn't truly remember him- he had Luca make sure of that. She would be safer hidden away, safer if she forgot all about him and the love they'd shared for two-hundred years. She wouldn't be a target, could never be used against him if she didn't remember him, if she was no where near Seoul. That was the whole point of leaving her under the care of Luca's family. A small, sharp, humorless exhale forced through the nose. She was definitely safer now.

The silence in the room felt like a dense pressure, like surface tension of a glass of water threatening to spill over. Illya said nothing, waiting for Aiden to break it. The soft ticking of the clock added to the glass, drip by drip. Aiden wasn't sure how long had passed before he took a deep breath. Amber eyes met Illya's with a vulnerability that only his father-figure had ever seen, the only emotion expressed on his otherwise stoic face.

"Was she happy?" a pause.

"Yes." silence.

The glass spills over.

"Very well, then."

                                                                         .oOo.

It's 4am, months from the day Illya had given Aiden the news, ink long since dry on the divorce papers. He found himself in his study, cigar in hand burning idly as he sat in contemplation. Staring down at the silver band that hadn't sat on his finger in fifty years he wondered, where did it go wrong? Scratch that— he knew where it went wrong. He was a big enough man to see his mistakes and admit to them. The day he stripped Amelie of her memories, her life here with him in Seoul, of the choice to remain by his side despite the dangers was where it all went wrong. Truthfully, the day he left Amelie in the supposed care of Luca's family was the day he left her. He had been the one to end their relationship as they knew it. That was on him.

Even so, he would visit her when it was safe to, and never did he ever stop loving her. Slowly, though, the visits slowed. When he would once visit her with the changing of the seasons, over time it became simply on the equinoxes. As Veritas began to gain momentum, Aiden couldn't be away for so long. His visits slowed to once a year, and as the danger of simply being who he is increased, he saw her even less. Somewhere along the lines he fell into the pattern of visiting for a weekend every five or ten years, but he thought about her every day. He loved her every second of every minute of every moment— the thought of reaching Veritas' goal, to make a world safe enough to bring her home, spurred his every action.

He loved her, and he never stopped loving her, so why didn't his heart break?

Where was the burning, searing pain, the heaviness of his heart, the overwhelming grief? The regrets of not doing better, not being better- where were the stinging tears of  inconsolable sadness for losing the love of his life?

Where did his heart go wrong?

Why did he feel so hollow?

Why did he feel nothing?

Why did he feel relieved?

He took a pull from his cigar, the puffs of smoke swirling around his head much like his thoughts- wispy, intangible, but heavy. Burnt ash lingered on the cigar, grey and dull. Aiden stared at it for a moment too long before flicking it into the ashtray.

Because that was it, wasn't it?

His heart had broken, he had burned- years ago he had. Decades, even. All that remained was the ashes of what once was. Fractures had spiraled in his heart the day he left Amelie with Luca's aunt, and only now were the pieces starting to fall apart. Only now were the ashes piling into the tray. Because now there was no illusion holding his hopeless fantasies together. There were no more dreams of bringing her home, wrapping his arms around her and holding her close, kissing her pillow soft lips and smelling the sweet perfume he'd once sworn to know by heart (and now couldn't remember if he tried).

And when he really thinks about it, he hadn't had a dream like that in years.

He had been holding on to a dream from half a century ago. To memories of a love that he cherished dearly, but could never return to. He wasn't the man he once was when he had married Amelie, and in truth, he was never truly the man who married Amelie either. He'd kept so much of his nature, his life, his sins hidden from her. So much of who he was, she'd never known. Even if she had waited, she never would have been able to accept him for the man he was today, because the man he was today couldn't hide his nature even if he tried.

What it all boiled down to, in simple terms, was that Aiden was bloody delusional.

The fact that it took over fifty years and a rather harsh wake up call to realize the truth of the matter was testament enough to that. His marriage with Amelie had ended some forty-odd years ago, if he were being generous. Fifty were he being honest, but seldom was Aiden an honest man with himself. He left her in a foreign country with no memories of their 200 years together, had completely had him wiped from her memory, only to torture himself by visiting her. His heart had broken years ago, every time he had to reintroduce himself to her, over and over again. Truly, he should have realized it was over when that stopped hurting.

Warm candle-light glinted off the silver band sitting on the wooden desk before him, and Aiden couldn't tell if it mocked his stupidity or not. Snuffing the cigar, he sighed before gently picking up the ring, as though it too might shatter any minute after being broken for so many years. Turning it over in his hand, he could only whisper to the empty room.

"So what now?"

[maneoxaiden]

rocky-maneo​:

Hours dragged by, and she’d easily run out of things to do. Thanks to her workaholic work ethic, she had no code to restructure, no digital architecture to plan out–nothing. She’d exhausted all work-related avenues before she decided to start working on something a little top secret. At least for now. She’d show someone when the time was right. 

It was in the throes of this that she heard a knock at her door. With some swiftness, she closed her laptop on the application she was working on and smiled as she turned in her chair to reveal her boss, his tall frame leaning against the doorframe to her office. Her eyes took in his meticulously crisp appearance before she looked away, hoping she hadn’t stared at him for too long. “Fun…if only I knew what it meant,” she joked, before scrunching her nose. “But I hear the party is for you. You’re kind of late if that’s the case.”

The man hummed, “Hn, not late enough, as luck would have it. A proper shame, really.” a sigh passed through his lips and he desperately wished a puff of smoke could have followed. he made it a point not to smoke in the building if he could avoid it, or at the very least, keep it to his office if he couldn’t afford to step out, and a smoke break sounded delicious right about now. Anything to postpone having to sit through the affair that is birthday parties with Veritas. 

It wasn’t that he had anything against Veritas— the majority of them, at least. The majority of the members, in some respect, were his family. An odd thought, but a fact. To an extent, he could deal with loud from his family. He practically grew up with Joon, after all. If he could handle seeing Joon develop through adolescence into adulthood, into whatever it was that they were at 500-something.

Five-hundred and twenty five, a somber voice in the back of his mind whispered. How many of those without your sweet Amelie?

He shook his head lightly, willing his mind back to to the present. 

Willing himself not to remember that he’d lost count years ago. 

Aiden gingerly pushed himself off the door frame and found himself stepping into the office. Stalling the inevitable, he tells himself, as his lips part to speak. His usual deep, monotonous timbre laced with a twinge of something not quite desperation, but certainly grasping towards something he already knows isn’t there. “There wouldn’t happen to be any desperate security breaches that need to be dealt with, would there? Missing merchandise? Weird security footage that needs review?”

Procrastination wasn’t exactly Aiden’s forte, but there was never a bad time to learn a new skill.

[maneoxaiden]

Friend: Wanna hang out tomorrow?

Me: I actually performed an Activity yesterday. Please wait the three day recovery period to submit another inquiry

[maneoxaiden]

ᴀ ʙᴇʟᴀᴛᴇᴅ ʙɪʀᴛʜᴅᴀʏ

/ˌserənˈdipədē/ — the occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way || with @rocky-maneo​

There were more than a few fair things in this life that Aiden could say, with complete and total honesty, that he hated. Parties were one of those things.

Being at the center of attention during a party was another one. 

He understood that Liz only had the best intentions in mind, but that didn’t mean he had to like it. He was a quiet man that preferred to keep to himself- he always had been, and more than likely he probably always would be. Parties, balls, galas- these big social gatherings would simply never quite be “his thing”, so to speak. 

The fact that he dragged on his work a little later than usual was expected, all things considered. He did a few more injections than he otherwise would have, analyzed more blood work than usual, took far more extensive notes than he’d ever taken in his life— all in the name of padding out the time before he’d have to drag himself to the cuddle room. In the end, he’d only managed to add about thirty minutes to his time, which was a right shame for the amount of extra work he’d done. The trip back to his office to change shirts quickly had only added a few extra minutes, and before long he found himself with little else to do but to make his way to the party.

The echo of the soles of his oxfords padding against the concrete floors rang through the empty halls, and the southwest wing of the base had never felt so barren (save for the wee hours of the night when the only inhabitants of the building were his fellow workaholics). It’s really no wonder that the steady clack of a keyboard caught his attention, and truly no surprise that the point of origin was Rocky’s office.

His knuckles gently rapped against the door to announce his presence before he let himself into her office. Content to lean against the doorframe, he raised an eyebrow in the kitsune’s direction, rare amusement in his tone as he spoke, “Planning on skipping out on the party? Surely you’re not wanting to miss out on all the...fun, right? Fun is what they’re having?” 

[maneoxaiden]

[maneoxaiden]

“Are you smiling or is that a grimace? I can’t tell the difference.”

Sometimes, very rarely, Aiden wanted to punch Marc in the face.

It wasn’t very often, but when it did, the need to punch The Other Marc was almost overwhelming. But, for Liz’s sake, he would refrain from such actions. But honestly, sometime his remarks were just... throat punch worthy, if he was being entirely honest. 

“Of course I’m smiling, you moron,” he just barely managed to choke out in a tone that didn’t entirely resemble a snarl, “I’m going to see my wife soon. I get to see her for the first time in nearly 11 years. I get to bring her home. We’re making the city safe, little by little. Why on Earth would I be grimacing at that?”

Aiden punctuated his statement with a long drag of his cigarette, feeling the hot, bitter smoke burn at the back of his throat the closer and closer he got to finishing it. 

“Don’t tell me, Liz finally got to you too? Honestly, tell me what it is about Amelie that Liz dislikes so much. Surely, she speaks to you about it. Amelie is a beautiful, gentle woman. I don’t understand what she ever did to earn this from you all.”

[maneoxaiden]

“Did you hear something?”

mentioned: @kittymaneo, @maneojaehyun, @maneokiha, @maneoxjsong

After all the pranks pulled by the Terror Line, Aiden was very cautious about his office. He kept it locked at all times when he wasn’t there to be physically seated at his desk, had changed the locks, added new locks, and even had asked Luca to place down protection wards to aid in keeping out unwanted precenses. 

Unwanted being the key phrase, there. Rocky was very welcome. 

Aiden suspected she had a hand in a few of the pranks, but she was an incredible worker with a brilliant mind, and more importantly, she knew how to sit in a comfortable silence. Rocky was one of the few people in the cartel who had the code to access his lab in the manufacturing bay and permission to seek him out when needed. Everyone else knew better than to ever bother the man while he was at work. 

But today was a mere follow up in his office, nothing too serious. They’d spent the better half of an hour already going over the prototype trackers for the drugs they’d discussed all those many moons ago, discussing the cost to implement it wide-spread, the potential to use them, or at least something similar, in other areas of Veritas’ business endeavours-

Punctuated by a scuffling sound.

“Did you hear something?” the Kitsune asked, head tilting in the direction of the sound. “Was that a mouse?” 

“An awfully large mouse to make a sound like that, don’t you think?” crimson eyes fixed on the closet door he could swear he just saw moving. He rose from his seat behind his desk and crossed the room, and if looks could start fires, the door to the closet would have been up in flames. He gave the door a solid kick and the thwack of the sole of his oxfords rang like thunder within his office space. Distinct screams of terror rang out from within the closet.

Aiden rolled his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration before opening the closet door, only to watch as Jaehyun, Kiha, Kitty, and J all somehow tumble out from the enclosed space. 

Kitty’s hands fell on his knees as he began coughing wildly, face contorted in a look of disgust that seemed to be plastered on everyone else but Jaehyun.

“OH my GOD, Jae, that was fucking disgusting.”

“You can’t just let one rip WHEN YOU’RE IN A CLOSET WITH THREE OTHER PEOPLE!” 

“I think I’m gonna puke-”

Aiden heard everyone gripe and complain about.... Jaehyun presumably farting in the closet and he could only feel his frustration and confusion swell.

“How the fuck did you guys manage to sneak in here. The door has three locks. One is a biometric. I’m... astounded.” his head whipped around to Rocky, “You didn’t have anything to do with this, did you?” 

The shock on the kitsune’s face was apparent instantly. Her eyes widened and she jumped in her seat a bit, hands coming up in front of her as she claimed her innocence. While Aiden was distracted, the terrors saw their chance to flee. A snarl left the lips of the vampire as he dashed to the space just outside of his office only to watch the boys sprint down the hall and out of sight.

Aiden’s only concern now was what the fuck did they do before he’d gotten to his office. 

[maneoxaiden]

18. "I hate you!” - Kitty

To say that Aiden didn’t feel those words rip through his heart would be a lie. Even though he knew the Gumiho didn’t mean it, not (too) seriously anyways, he still felt the pain in his heart that liked to remind him every so often that despite his claims, he did have one. Furthermore, Kitty was in it. Kitty was so very deeply embedded in his heart that Aiden loathed the day the little fox would be torn from him. 

Kitty, of course, knew damn well that the alpha vampire was weak for him. They hadn’t spent all these years together for the blonde to not pick up on everything that made Aiden tick just so. Truly, Aiden didn’t know why Kitty didn’t use that to his advantage more often, why he only used it for things life this. 

“Kitty,” Aiden spoke softly with a light sigh before pushing himself away from his desk, rising from his chair, “Kitty, wait.” 

Aiden was different at home. He wasn’t the same rough, volatile second-in-command that snapped quick, witty retorts dripping with malice. He wasn’t one dumb comment away from a migraine, one eye roll away from murdering the whole team and replacing them with undead henchmen— he was different. He was warmth, he was strong arms wrapped gently around the young ones delicate frame. He was hushed tones, speaking softly as he murmured apologies into the curly tufts of blonde hair.

“I’m sorry, kitten. Truly, it was not my intention to upset you like this. I was merely concerned for your health and wellbeing, but if your heart truly desires it...” he sighed in relent, “then you can have more ham.” 

@kittymaneo

[maneoxaiden]

“Who are you?”

It, perhaps, wasn’t the most brilliant idea in the world.

Walking right up to the borders of their neighbors to the north-west without an appointment could be risky any time of year, but with the social climate being what it is in the world of the gangs it was especially ballsy.  

The girl that stopped him at the border was... small, to say the least. Small, unassuming, one of the most neutral expression he’d ever seen on someone since Rocky, and the most delightful scent wafting off her soured by the scent of dog. Despite her stature, she held herself with sheer apathetic confidence. She did not shrink away or hide from his intimidating nature— she waltzed right up to him and stopped him from moving any further by her words alone.

He liked her. 

He stared her down with an amused smirk. Under normal circumstances he’d love to mess with the girl, get under her skin, maybe even try his hand at tempting her over to the dark side, but he had incredibly time sensitive information he needed to relay.

“Arsène of Veritas,” his low voice spoke softly, “I’d like to request an audience with Don Karma, and by that I mean I need to speak with him as soon as possible. A life is on the line.”

[maneoxaiden]

🗼: what's one thing you've learned to take as a warning sign in any type of relationship?

🗼: what's one thing you've learned to take as a warning sign in any type of relationship?

“Well, if we’re talking about any kind type of relationship, respect. Any and every relationship, be it romantic, platonic, business— it’s all based off mutual respect. If someone does not respect you and value you for who you are, the things you bring to the table- if this is a person that merely seeks to utilize you to further their own needs- I’d call that a rather large warning sign. Learning to recognize when someone is using you to further their own needs versus genuinely wanting you around is one of the most valuable life skills one could ever develop.”

[maneoxaiden]

🗾

Answered just now!

[maneoxaiden]

🗾

🗾: a lone soldier? a social butterfly? or both?

A bit of both. I wouldn’t call Aiden a “lone soldier” by any means— no war can be won by a single man alone. He loathes social events, though. Galas, balls, dinners- all those things the social elite partake in, he’s always hated. Dreadful things, those. He prefers solitude in most situations, but he doesn’t mind the pleasant company of a select few. 

[maneoxaiden]

🏗: what's your preferred method of dealing with stress? + 🌁: what's your idea of horribleness?

🏗: what's your preferred method of dealing with stress?

Depends on the cause of the stressor. If it’s just stress, Aiden will often settle down with a cigarette, some whiskey, and a good book with some piano playing in the background next to a crackling fire (bonus points if it’s raining). Sometimes he needs a creative outlet, and he’ll seat himself in front of his computer and continue work on his novels. If he’s enraged, however... that gets dealt with in The Basement.

🌁: what's your idea of horribleness?

“Horrible” is a subjective term in the eyes of the vampire. Many would call him horrible for his actions and ideals, and in the same breath would condemn others for the very opposite. Humans are horrible for striking out against that which they do not know- against what they fear, and that’s about all he can say.