steviebunny

[steviebunny]

Sam tonight at the Upfronts event 🥹♥️🔥

Credit to Siren on Twitter! 💕

I really do think Sam is subtly going meta and dressing like Lestat would dress. The bow. The damask-patterned blazer. It's very much giving Lestat. 🥰

[steviebunny]

rusalka and lestat meeting for the first time in the middle of a trial chaos: ow hello... who is this? 👀😏🤭

Lestats thoughts: Who the hell is this woman and why does she smell like *MY* Louis?

Rusalkas thoughts: ~Annoyed at everyone~ Why is this beautiful blond man glaring at me let me leave puh-lease I have homework!

[steviebunny]

5. No Greater Tragedy

Paris

The Rusalka’s instinct was to pull away…to retreat into the safety of solitude. But with these two, that instinct warred with something else.

“Hope is a dangerous thing,” she whispered, more to herself than them.

“And yet,” Louis murmured, stepping even closer, “it’s the only thing that’s kept us both alive this long.”

Her resolve faltered. His touch was gentle, his gaze filled with an understanding that unnerved her. And before she could stop herself, she leaned into him.

Their lips met, soft at first—a meeting of breath and hesitation. But as the tension dissolved, the kiss deepened, her body molding against his as if it had always belonged there.

But in the pit of her stomach, something twisted…This is a mistake, and yet she could not convince herself to pull away. Once again she had fallen.

Faster than she knew she was in the arms of two vampires sped away to their bed far from the alley in which the three of them stood moments ago “We can prove to you there is power in giving in darling, all you must do is allow yourself to lean into it.” Armand's takes a place behind her- a hand curling into her hair pulling her back into himself- gently splaying her open for Louis to command…his other hand dips down to the edge of her costume pulling up the edges as Louis snarls, fangs descending with desire. He pulls at Armand sandwiching Rusalka between them he and Armand connect in a fit of passion.

Mouths warring with each other as they pull the cloth separating the three of them away.

He crouched before her, his touch reverent as he traced the line of her jaw, tilting her chin up so their eyes met.

“Let go,” he whispered.

And her resolve cracked.

The next kiss that followed was anything but gentle a plea and promise all at once. Louis’s mouth was warm, his fangs barely grazing her lips, teasing without drawing blood. But behind her, Armand’s presence was a constant reminder of the danger she was inviting.

She felt him move—his body tightening his hold against her from behind, His fangs ghosted along the column of her neck, her skin tingling with anticipation.

You’re trembling for your Maître, Ma crevette (French speakers don't judge me there were no good nicknames for fish),” Armand murmured, as his lips dragged down her neck, lingering where her pulse fluttered. “Are you ready?”

“Ready,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. "Good.”

Louis’s hands were not as patient as Armand’s. His fingers tugged at the fabric, pulling it away from her body with a low growl vibrating deep in his chest. The sound sent a thrill through her veins, her body responding before her mind could catch up.

The warm air kissed her exposed skin, but it was nothing compared to the cooling sensation of the two vampires surrounding her.

Armand’s fingers found the bare skin of her thighs, pushing the fabric higher, bunching it around her hips. “So eager,” he murmured against her ear, his tone laced with amusement as his hand explored further.

Pushing along her spine, he traced the curve as they repositioned themselves, the rusalka's face now pressed to the fabric of Louis's underclothes her eyes met him as the feel of Armand's hands kept traveling across her skin. As she began to mouth at Louis her fate was sealed together they shall stay… the feral look in each of their eyes only lighting the pleasure that would be associated with the rest of the evening.

----

Brought awake as the morning hours crept in the Rusalka rose from her tangled position between the vampires… Claudia’s coffin was still open she had remained with the coven. The room was quiet now, the weight of their shared hunger had long since dissipated into the stillness and the soreness in her body for once was from something other than athleticism.

Looking over the two men as she picked from a mix of clothes in the apartment, a blouse of Claudia's that would be too tight across her chest, Armand's trousers in a loose fit, and a button-up of Louis to put together something wearable to a lecture hall. Staring at the mess of sheets and tussled hair her heart squeezed in a way she had long since forgotten- there was no going back now.

She would need to get going before she’d be late. As the woman tamed her hair from the evening rendezvous she suddenly felt a huff of air against the back of her neck. Sharply turning she was shocked to see Armand awake leaning up against his elbows, don't vampires sleep through the day.

“Abandoning us already?”

“We had an agreement, didn’t we? I’ll be back at the theater at sundown.”

Armand raises a hand to the rusalka, she places her own against his palm allowing him to pull her back down against his chest. He raises her wrist to his mouth, biting down into her arm the pleasure that comes from the action is inconceivable as the Vampire removes his fangs he licks up the wound healing it their gaze never disconnects.

“You’ll return,” he whispers into her pulse point

“I will.” she swears back.

He allows her to rise. Rusalka straightens herself up for the final time, making her way to the door. She looks over her shoulder before leaving. Armand has pulled himself back into Louis. Their arms now surround each other as the American continues his rest. A gimmer in Armand's eye is the last thing she sees before shutting the door. She’s sealed her fate…and she needs to get to class.

---

Dubai

Louis and Armand lingered on either side of her, Louis’s hand rested on her thigh, a grounding touch, and Armand’s gaze remained unreadable.

“Paris,” Daniel said leaning forward. “Youessentially said everything with the coven was a farce.” His gaze flickered toward Louis before returning to her. “... was that really true? Even after the two of them?”

The Rusalka’s expression didn’t change, but her fingers clenched slightly, knuckles tightening. A crack in her constructed mask.

“You speak as if I had a choice,” she said , her tone flat. “Survival isn’t a game, Daniel. It’s something instinctual. When you’ve been living on the edge of a blade for so many years... sometimes, you confuse survival with something else.”

Daniel’s brow furrowed. “Something else?”

Her gaze drifted toward the window. “Hope,” echoing her own words from that night. And hope is something that can be dangerous,” she said almost to herself. Louis, watched her with quiet intensity, his expression unreadable but his grip on her thigh tightening just enough for her to notice.

“But you gave in,” Daniel pressed gently, “To them.”.

“I did.” 

“And after?”

“There was a great bit of time after…we were kind of like a family, the coven, Claudia, Us. Until I learned some things I found more than upsetting there was a time where I thought loving them was a mistake.” She said as she glanced back over to Louis. “That took a bit of reckoning but that part is yours to tell.” She brought Louis’s hand up from her leg offering it a kiss before sharing a look with Armand. 

Louis hadn’t spoken through most of this section of the interview, as her words settled over the room, he leaned just for her to feel his presence more.

“It wasn’t a mistake,” Louis told Daniel, his voice steady.

“No?” she asked softly.

Louis’s jaw clenched, but his voice remained gentle. “No.”

Her gaze shifted to Armand, who had been watching but his eyes betrayed the emotion he fought so hard to conceal.

“Do you regret it?” Daniel asked the weight of his question was palpable.

The Rusalka’s breath caught in her throat.

“Never.”

[steviebunny]

rusalka will be like" WTF is happening??!! in the trial and who is this attractive blond french guy??" 😭😅

Ohhhh not just that... Let's just say when she learns about the brutality done to Antoinette... A woman... She is definitely going to be furious.

[steviebunny]

5. No Greater Tragedy

Paris

The Rusalka’s instinct was to pull away…to retreat into the safety of solitude. But with these two, that instinct warred with something else.

“Hope is a dangerous thing,” she whispered, more to herself than them.

“And yet,” Louis murmured, stepping even closer, “it’s the only thing that’s kept us both alive this long.”

Her resolve faltered. His touch was gentle, his gaze filled with an understanding that unnerved her. And before she could stop herself, she leaned into him.

Their lips met, soft at first—a meeting of breath and hesitation. But as the tension dissolved, the kiss deepened, her body molding against his as if it had always belonged there.

But in the pit of her stomach, something twisted…This is a mistake, and yet she could not convince herself to pull away. Once again she had fallen.

Faster than she knew she was in the arms of two vampires sped away to their bed far from the alley in which the three of them stood moments ago “We can prove to you there is power in giving in darling, all you must do is allow yourself to lean into it.” Armand's takes a place behind her- a hand curling into her hair pulling her back into himself- gently splaying her open for Louis to command…his other hand dips down to the edge of her costume pulling up the edges as Louis snarls, fangs descending with desire. He pulls at Armand sandwiching Rusalka between them he and Armand connect in a fit of passion.

Mouths warring with each other as they pull the cloth separating the three of them away.

He crouched before her, his touch reverent as he traced the line of her jaw, tilting her chin up so their eyes met.

“Let go,” he whispered.

And her resolve cracked.

The next kiss that followed was anything but gentle a plea and promise all at once. Louis’s mouth was warm, his fangs barely grazing her lips, teasing without drawing blood. But behind her, Armand’s presence was a constant reminder of the danger she was inviting.

She felt him move—his body tightening his hold against her from behind, His fangs ghosted along the column of her neck, her skin tingling with anticipation.

You’re trembling for your Maître, Ma crevette (French speakers don't judge me there were no good nicknames for fish),” Armand murmured, as his lips dragged down her neck, lingering where her pulse fluttered. “Are you ready?”

“Ready,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. "Good.”

Louis’s hands were not as patient as Armand’s. His fingers tugged at the fabric, pulling it away from her body with a low growl vibrating deep in his chest. The sound sent a thrill through her veins, her body responding before her mind could catch up.

The warm air kissed her exposed skin, but it was nothing compared to the cooling sensation of the two vampires surrounding her.

Armand’s fingers found the bare skin of her thighs, pushing the fabric higher, bunching it around her hips. “So eager,” he murmured against her ear, his tone laced with amusement as his hand explored further.

Pushing along her spine, he traced the curve as they repositioned themselves, the rusalka's face now pressed to the fabric of Louis's underclothes her eyes met him as the feel of Armand's hands kept traveling across her skin. As she began to mouth at Louis her fate was sealed together they shall stay… the feral look in each of their eyes only lighting the pleasure that would be associated with the rest of the evening.

----

Brought awake as the morning hours crept in the Rusalka rose from her tangled position between the vampires… Claudia’s coffin was still open she had remained with the coven. The room was quiet now, the weight of their shared hunger had long since dissipated into the stillness and the soreness in her body for once was from something other than athleticism.

Looking over the two men as she picked from a mix of clothes in the apartment, a blouse of Claudia's that would be too tight across her chest, Armand's trousers in a loose fit, and a button-up of Louis to put together something wearable to a lecture hall. Staring at the mess of sheets and tussled hair her heart squeezed in a way she had long since forgotten- there was no going back now.

She would need to get going before she’d be late. As the woman tamed her hair from the evening rendezvous she suddenly felt a huff of air against the back of her neck. Sharply turning she was shocked to see Armand awake leaning up against his elbows, don't vampires sleep through the day.

“Abandoning us already?”

“We had an agreement, didn’t we? I’ll be back at the theater at sundown.”

Armand raises a hand to the rusalka, she places her own against his palm allowing him to pull her back down against his chest. He raises her wrist to his mouth, biting down into her arm the pleasure that comes from the action is inconceivable as the Vampire removes his fangs he licks up the wound healing it their gaze never disconnects.

“You’ll return,” he whispers into her pulse point

“I will.” she swears back.

He allows her to rise. Rusalka straightens herself up for the final time, making her way to the door. She looks over her shoulder before leaving. Armand has pulled himself back into Louis. Their arms now surround each other as the American continues his rest. A gimmer in Armand's eye is the last thing she sees before shutting the door. She’s sealed her fate…and she needs to get to class.

---

Dubai

Louis and Armand lingered on either side of her, Louis’s hand rested on her thigh, a grounding touch, and Armand’s gaze remained unreadable.

“Paris,” Daniel said leaning forward. “Youessentially said everything with the coven was a farce.” His gaze flickered toward Louis before returning to her. “... was that really true? Even after the two of them?”

The Rusalka’s expression didn’t change, but her fingers clenched slightly, knuckles tightening. A crack in her constructed mask.

“You speak as if I had a choice,” she said , her tone flat. “Survival isn’t a game, Daniel. It’s something instinctual. When you’ve been living on the edge of a blade for so many years... sometimes, you confuse survival with something else.”

Daniel’s brow furrowed. “Something else?”

Her gaze drifted toward the window. “Hope,” echoing her own words from that night. And hope is something that can be dangerous,” she said almost to herself. Louis, watched her with quiet intensity, his expression unreadable but his grip on her thigh tightening just enough for her to notice.

“But you gave in,” Daniel pressed gently, “To them.”.

“I did.” 

“And after?”

“There was a great bit of time after…we were kind of like a family, the coven, Claudia, Us. Until I learned some things I found more than upsetting there was a time where I thought loving them was a mistake.” She said as she glanced back over to Louis. “That took a bit of reckoning but that part is yours to tell.” She brought Louis’s hand up from her leg offering it a kiss before sharing a look with Armand. 

Louis hadn’t spoken through most of this section of the interview, as her words settled over the room, he leaned just for her to feel his presence more.

“It wasn’t a mistake,” Louis told Daniel, his voice steady.

“No?” she asked softly.

Louis’s jaw clenched, but his voice remained gentle. “No.”

Her gaze shifted to Armand, who had been watching but his eyes betrayed the emotion he fought so hard to conceal.

“Do you regret it?” Daniel asked the weight of his question was palpable.

The Rusalka’s breath caught in her throat.

“Never.”

[steviebunny]

looking forward to the next chapter of rusalka ❤️

Hopefully will be out by the end of this month or early April!

[steviebunny]

5. No Greater Tragedy

Paris

The Rusalka’s instinct was to pull away…to retreat into the safety of solitude. But with these two, that instinct warred with something else.

“Hope is a dangerous thing,” she whispered, more to herself than them.

“And yet,” Louis murmured, stepping even closer, “it’s the only thing that’s kept us both alive this long.”

Her resolve faltered. His touch was gentle, his gaze filled with an understanding that unnerved her. And before she could stop herself, she leaned into him.

Their lips met, soft at first—a meeting of breath and hesitation. But as the tension dissolved, the kiss deepened, her body molding against his as if it had always belonged there.

But in the pit of her stomach, something twisted…This is a mistake, and yet she could not convince herself to pull away. Once again she had fallen.

Faster than she knew she was in the arms of two vampires sped away to their bed far from the alley in which the three of them stood moments ago “We can prove to you there is power in giving in darling, all you must do is allow yourself to lean into it.” Armand's takes a place behind her- a hand curling into her hair pulling her back into himself- gently splaying her open for Louis to command…his other hand dips down to the edge of her costume pulling up the edges as Louis snarls, fangs descending with desire. He pulls at Armand sandwiching Rusalka between them he and Armand connect in a fit of passion.

Mouths warring with each other as they pull the cloth separating the three of them away.

He crouched before her, his touch reverent as he traced the line of her jaw, tilting her chin up so their eyes met.

“Let go,” he whispered.

And her resolve cracked.

The next kiss that followed was anything but gentle a plea and promise all at once. Louis’s mouth was warm, his fangs barely grazing her lips, teasing without drawing blood. But behind her, Armand’s presence was a constant reminder of the danger she was inviting.

She felt him move—his body tightening his hold against her from behind, His fangs ghosted along the column of her neck, her skin tingling with anticipation.

You’re trembling for your Maître, Ma crevette (French speakers don't judge me there were no good nicknames for fish),” Armand murmured, as his lips dragged down her neck, lingering where her pulse fluttered. “Are you ready?”

“Ready,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. "Good.”

Louis’s hands were not as patient as Armand’s. His fingers tugged at the fabric, pulling it away from her body with a low growl vibrating deep in his chest. The sound sent a thrill through her veins, her body responding before her mind could catch up.

The warm air kissed her exposed skin, but it was nothing compared to the cooling sensation of the two vampires surrounding her.

Armand’s fingers found the bare skin of her thighs, pushing the fabric higher, bunching it around her hips. “So eager,” he murmured against her ear, his tone laced with amusement as his hand explored further.

Pushing along her spine, he traced the curve as they repositioned themselves, the rusalka's face now pressed to the fabric of Louis's underclothes her eyes met him as the feel of Armand's hands kept traveling across her skin. As she began to mouth at Louis her fate was sealed together they shall stay… the feral look in each of their eyes only lighting the pleasure that would be associated with the rest of the evening.

----

Brought awake as the morning hours crept in the Rusalka rose from her tangled position between the vampires… Claudia’s coffin was still open she had remained with the coven. The room was quiet now, the weight of their shared hunger had long since dissipated into the stillness and the soreness in her body for once was from something other than athleticism.

Looking over the two men as she picked from a mix of clothes in the apartment, a blouse of Claudia's that would be too tight across her chest, Armand's trousers in a loose fit, and a button-up of Louis to put together something wearable to a lecture hall. Staring at the mess of sheets and tussled hair her heart squeezed in a way she had long since forgotten- there was no going back now.

She would need to get going before she’d be late. As the woman tamed her hair from the evening rendezvous she suddenly felt a huff of air against the back of her neck. Sharply turning she was shocked to see Armand awake leaning up against his elbows, don't vampires sleep through the day.

“Abandoning us already?”

“We had an agreement, didn’t we? I’ll be back at the theater at sundown.”

Armand raises a hand to the rusalka, she places her own against his palm allowing him to pull her back down against his chest. He raises her wrist to his mouth, biting down into her arm the pleasure that comes from the action is inconceivable as the Vampire removes his fangs he licks up the wound healing it their gaze never disconnects.

“You’ll return,” he whispers into her pulse point

“I will.” she swears back.

He allows her to rise. Rusalka straightens herself up for the final time, making her way to the door. She looks over her shoulder before leaving. Armand has pulled himself back into Louis. Their arms now surround each other as the American continues his rest. A gimmer in Armand's eye is the last thing she sees before shutting the door. She’s sealed her fate…and she needs to get to class.

---

Dubai

Louis and Armand lingered on either side of her, Louis’s hand rested on her thigh, a grounding touch, and Armand’s gaze remained unreadable.

“Paris,” Daniel said leaning forward. “Youessentially said everything with the coven was a farce.” His gaze flickered toward Louis before returning to her. “... was that really true? Even after the two of them?”

The Rusalka’s expression didn’t change, but her fingers clenched slightly, knuckles tightening. A crack in her constructed mask.

“You speak as if I had a choice,” she said , her tone flat. “Survival isn’t a game, Daniel. It’s something instinctual. When you’ve been living on the edge of a blade for so many years... sometimes, you confuse survival with something else.”

Daniel’s brow furrowed. “Something else?”

Her gaze drifted toward the window. “Hope,” echoing her own words from that night. And hope is something that can be dangerous,” she said almost to herself. Louis, watched her with quiet intensity, his expression unreadable but his grip on her thigh tightening just enough for her to notice.

“But you gave in,” Daniel pressed gently, “To them.”.

“I did.” 

“And after?”

“There was a great bit of time after…we were kind of like a family, the coven, Claudia, Us. Until I learned some things I found more than upsetting there was a time where I thought loving them was a mistake.” She said as she glanced back over to Louis. “That took a bit of reckoning but that part is yours to tell.” She brought Louis’s hand up from her leg offering it a kiss before sharing a look with Armand. 

Louis hadn’t spoken through most of this section of the interview, as her words settled over the room, he leaned just for her to feel his presence more.

“It wasn’t a mistake,” Louis told Daniel, his voice steady.

“No?” she asked softly.

Louis’s jaw clenched, but his voice remained gentle. “No.”

Her gaze shifted to Armand, who had been watching but his eyes betrayed the emotion he fought so hard to conceal.

“Do you regret it?” Daniel asked the weight of his question was palpable.

The Rusalka’s breath caught in her throat.

“Never.”

[steviebunny]

I really want to know how this "deal" was made between Louis, Armand and Lestat LOL

I'm so excited to get there! It's definitely an interesting one, I can't wait to get into it on the surface it seems like an odd bargain but I really hope everything being laid out as the story goes on will explain how it worked out up to the point where this fic takes place :)

[steviebunny]

5. No Greater Tragedy

Paris

The Rusalka’s instinct was to pull away…to retreat into the safety of solitude. But with these two, that instinct warred with something else.

“Hope is a dangerous thing,” she whispered, more to herself than them.

“And yet,” Louis murmured, stepping even closer, “it’s the only thing that’s kept us both alive this long.”

Her resolve faltered. His touch was gentle, his gaze filled with an understanding that unnerved her. And before she could stop herself, she leaned into him.

Their lips met, soft at first—a meeting of breath and hesitation. But as the tension dissolved, the kiss deepened, her body molding against his as if it had always belonged there.

But in the pit of her stomach, something twisted…This is a mistake, and yet she could not convince herself to pull away. Once again she had fallen.

Faster than she knew she was in the arms of two vampires sped away to their bed far from the alley in which the three of them stood moments ago “We can prove to you there is power in giving in darling, all you must do is allow yourself to lean into it.” Armand's takes a place behind her- a hand curling into her hair pulling her back into himself- gently splaying her open for Louis to command…his other hand dips down to the edge of her costume pulling up the edges as Louis snarls, fangs descending with desire. He pulls at Armand sandwiching Rusalka between them he and Armand connect in a fit of passion.

Mouths warring with each other as they pull the cloth separating the three of them away.

He crouched before her, his touch reverent as he traced the line of her jaw, tilting her chin up so their eyes met.

“Let go,” he whispered.

And her resolve cracked.

The next kiss that followed was anything but gentle a plea and promise all at once. Louis’s mouth was warm, his fangs barely grazing her lips, teasing without drawing blood. But behind her, Armand’s presence was a constant reminder of the danger she was inviting.

She felt him move—his body tightening his hold against her from behind, His fangs ghosted along the column of her neck, her skin tingling with anticipation.

You’re trembling for your Maître, Ma crevette (French speakers don't judge me there were no good nicknames for fish),” Armand murmured, as his lips dragged down her neck, lingering where her pulse fluttered. “Are you ready?”

“Ready,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. "Good.”

Louis’s hands were not as patient as Armand’s. His fingers tugged at the fabric, pulling it away from her body with a low growl vibrating deep in his chest. The sound sent a thrill through her veins, her body responding before her mind could catch up.

The warm air kissed her exposed skin, but it was nothing compared to the cooling sensation of the two vampires surrounding her.

Armand’s fingers found the bare skin of her thighs, pushing the fabric higher, bunching it around her hips. “So eager,” he murmured against her ear, his tone laced with amusement as his hand explored further.

Pushing along her spine, he traced the curve as they repositioned themselves, the rusalka's face now pressed to the fabric of Louis's underclothes her eyes met him as the feel of Armand's hands kept traveling across her skin. As she began to mouth at Louis her fate was sealed together they shall stay… the feral look in each of their eyes only lighting the pleasure that would be associated with the rest of the evening.

----

Brought awake as the morning hours crept in the Rusalka rose from her tangled position between the vampires… Claudia’s coffin was still open she had remained with the coven. The room was quiet now, the weight of their shared hunger had long since dissipated into the stillness and the soreness in her body for once was from something other than athleticism.

Looking over the two men as she picked from a mix of clothes in the apartment, a blouse of Claudia's that would be too tight across her chest, Armand's trousers in a loose fit, and a button-up of Louis to put together something wearable to a lecture hall. Staring at the mess of sheets and tussled hair her heart squeezed in a way she had long since forgotten- there was no going back now.

She would need to get going before she’d be late. As the woman tamed her hair from the evening rendezvous she suddenly felt a huff of air against the back of her neck. Sharply turning she was shocked to see Armand awake leaning up against his elbows, don't vampires sleep through the day.

“Abandoning us already?”

“We had an agreement, didn’t we? I’ll be back at the theater at sundown.”

Armand raises a hand to the rusalka, she places her own against his palm allowing him to pull her back down against his chest. He raises her wrist to his mouth, biting down into her arm the pleasure that comes from the action is inconceivable as the Vampire removes his fangs he licks up the wound healing it their gaze never disconnects.

“You’ll return,” he whispers into her pulse point

“I will.” she swears back.

He allows her to rise. Rusalka straightens herself up for the final time, making her way to the door. She looks over her shoulder before leaving. Armand has pulled himself back into Louis. Their arms now surround each other as the American continues his rest. A gimmer in Armand's eye is the last thing she sees before shutting the door. She’s sealed her fate…and she needs to get to class.

---

Dubai

Louis and Armand lingered on either side of her, Louis’s hand rested on her thigh, a grounding touch, and Armand’s gaze remained unreadable.

“Paris,” Daniel said leaning forward. “Youessentially said everything with the coven was a farce.” His gaze flickered toward Louis before returning to her. “... was that really true? Even after the two of them?”

The Rusalka’s expression didn’t change, but her fingers clenched slightly, knuckles tightening. A crack in her constructed mask.

“You speak as if I had a choice,” she said , her tone flat. “Survival isn’t a game, Daniel. It’s something instinctual. When you’ve been living on the edge of a blade for so many years... sometimes, you confuse survival with something else.”

Daniel’s brow furrowed. “Something else?”

Her gaze drifted toward the window. “Hope,” echoing her own words from that night. And hope is something that can be dangerous,” she said almost to herself. Louis, watched her with quiet intensity, his expression unreadable but his grip on her thigh tightening just enough for her to notice.

“But you gave in,” Daniel pressed gently, “To them.”.

“I did.” 

“And after?”

“There was a great bit of time after…we were kind of like a family, the coven, Claudia, Us. Until I learned some things I found more than upsetting there was a time where I thought loving them was a mistake.” She said as she glanced back over to Louis. “That took a bit of reckoning but that part is yours to tell.” She brought Louis’s hand up from her leg offering it a kiss before sharing a look with Armand. 

Louis hadn’t spoken through most of this section of the interview, as her words settled over the room, he leaned just for her to feel his presence more.

“It wasn’t a mistake,” Louis told Daniel, his voice steady.

“No?” she asked softly.

Louis’s jaw clenched, but his voice remained gentle. “No.”

Her gaze shifted to Armand, who had been watching but his eyes betrayed the emotion he fought so hard to conceal.

“Do you regret it?” Daniel asked the weight of his question was palpable.

The Rusalka’s breath caught in her throat.

“Never.”

[steviebunny]

I grew up watching British & Russian nature documentaries and now watching some of these American ones is like pulling teeth. Is there anyone else out there who absolutely hates how these docs cut away from the animals/narration to show the scientists. I'm asking this as someone who actually is a researcher in the STEM field. I hate it with a fiery passion please tell me I'm not alone, why can't these people get through one sentence without cutting to some random specialist to explain obvious concepts to the audience like they're talking to toddlers? Or just reiterating what the narrator just said.

[steviebunny]

I love how rusalka is like the lover of a divorce, she stays with louis and armand during the week and on weekends/holidays with lestat 😭😏🤭

Most definitely- they probably have to split some holidays too. Like Lestat gets Mardi Gras because he still lives in New Orleans but Valentine's Day or Father's Day (Louis definitely pouts all night) needs to be with the other two.

[steviebunny]

i love how Rusalka is like "mind you, you guys have a problem with Lestat, I don't. quite the opposite 🤭"

Thank you! That's exactly what I wanted to get across 🥺

[steviebunny]

New Chapter Out This Sunday!

4. The Contortionist

Paris: T’eatre de Vampir

The Théâtre de Vampires was alive with its typical chaotic nature, the air buzzing with anticipation as the audience filled their seats. Mentions of tonight’s performance had spread through the city, laced with rumors of a new addition to Armand’s band of merry men. The promise of something…someone…unseen, something new to be even more attention-grabbing then “My baby likes windows” before had drawn the city’s curious and the depraved.

The stage was dressed in its usual motif: black velvet, candelabras dripping with crimson wax, props artfully arranged, and a projection screen prepared to drop. Yet tonight, something new stood center stage- a series of three hand-carved poles, with square tops increasing in height and distance but the bases were only wide enough for a single foot, not even. 

Armand stood in the wings, his sharp gaze fixed on the Rusalka as she prepared. She was clad in a dark fabric that clung to her form, with gems that catch the light at each turn. Her hair was braided in a crown around her neck with a matching ribbon woven through. He paused, then leaned closer. “If you falter-” 

“I won’t.” Her words cut like a knife through his doubt.

The crowd fell silent as the spotlight illuminated the screen, casting its white face into forefront. Then a shadow moved behind it- her own. The Rusalka stepped into place, the outline of her body elongated and eerie, an unnatural curvrture to her limbs and joints.

The music began, a low, and slow melody that crept beneath the audience. As she moved, her shadow stepped out from behind the screen then bending and twisting ionto the first set of canes in a pseudo-handstand. Her arms elongated, her spine curved backward and her legs folded over her head in fluid, hypnotic motions before moving to the next set of canes. 

The projector came to life, casting images behind her water ripples, blooming flowers and an animation of a young woman with a braided crown of hair collecting water blossoms. The film began to show a young man, creeping behind the woman- as she turned in shock the Rusalka dropped. The music rose ominously, her body turning limp, a planned fall before impossibly catching herself, synchronised gasps left the audience. 

As the rhythm of the piano righted itself so did she, the video want on the young man a farmer, set to marry the girl for as the drawing turned it showed just barely was her belly swollen with child. Moving to the next set of canes, even higher above the stage to any typical person a fall from this height would surely result in a broken clavicle at the very least. Each twist and fold of her body seemed to tell a story of peace and despair. The boy reaced behing himself as he grabbed the young woman’s hand, her eyes filled with fear as it was brought up to his lips. And suddenly. The music rises and the river roars behind the pair- the lights sway and the man reaches behind himself grabbing a pitchfork, it takes all but a second for it to be speared into her stomach. 

The lights and projector go dark- the theater is silent. 

As the projection slowly starts again it illuminates the rusalka once more, in the darkness she made it to the last set of canes she and the animated woman now both face the audience. The young girl steps back a look of anguish as she falls back…and into the roaring river. As the last of her is taken under so is the Rusalka falling down into the stage. The audience screams! The Rusalka is gone into a hidden entryway in the stage floor, the last of the show is the dwindling projection showing the river run from rageful to a lull of tides. The man throws the pitch fork into the river and runs. THE END.

A series of applause breaks out, from his seat in the front row, Santiago smirks, “She has a flair for drama,” he murmured to Louis, who sat stiff and silent beside him. Louis’s expression remained stoic, but his gaze never left the stage. In the shadows of the wings, Claudia watched with fascination. Her small hands gripped the edge of the curtain, her knuckles wrapped around the fabric with tension. 

—-

Her show the second to last of the night was a triumph, after the vampires ‘dinner’. Santiago claps a hand on Armands forearm “Well” Santiago drawled, breaking the tension, “she certainly knows how to put on a show.”

Claudia with her eyes turned down to the floor says, “She’s more than a performer,” she said softly. “She’s a mystery.”

“And mysteries,” Armand said, his voice low, “are dangerous things.”

The Rusalka tilted her head, a sarcastic quirk of her her lips. “Then you should tread carefully. I might decide this stage isn’t big enough for all of us… If that’s everything I’ll be returning home for the evening I have class in the morning while you all laze about.” She winked at Claudia before offering a two-finger salute to the rest of the coven and waltzing her way out of the theater. 

—

The Rusalka moved through the darkened streets of Paris fluidily, her heels clicking softly against the cobblestones. Applause still echoed faintly in her ears, though it had long since faded behind her. Paris at night was a labyrinth of whispers and flickering lamplight, and she navigated it with ease, her mind preoccupied with thoughts of her performance.

From alleys behind, Louis and Armand followed her in silence, their figures barely discernible against the dark of night.

“She is fascinating,” Louis murmured, his voice a soft note in the stillness.

“Fascinating doesn’t mean trustworthy,” Armand replied, his gaze fixed on the Rusalka below.

Their conversation halted as she turned a corner, her stride purposeful. The faint sound of a scuffle reached their ears, followed by a muffled cry.

Louis and Armand exchanged a deep glance before following.

As they approached the narrow alley, they saw her. A man loomed over a woman pinned against the wall, his hand clasped tightly over her mouth. The woman’s wide, tear-filled eyes met the Rusalka’s, silently pleading.

“Unhand her,” the Rusalka said, her voice a low.

The man turned, snorting. “Mind ‘our own busi’ness, whore—”

Before he finished, she was pinning him. Her movements were a blur—predatory. In one swift motion, she tore him away from the woman sending him to the ground.

“Run,” she said to the woman, who hesitated for a moment before fleeing into the night.

The man stumbled his way back up, but she was faster. She grabbed him by the throat, her grip unforgiving. His protests turned to gurgles as she bared her teeth, her features twisting into a feral thing.

Louis and Armand arrived just as she sank her maw into the man’s jugular, draining him until his struggles ceased.

When she finished, she dropped his body to the ground a chunk ripped from his neck with a sneer. Her chest heaving as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

“You could have intervened sooner,” she said, her voice flat.

“You seem to have it under control,” Armand replied coolly.

She bent, grabbing the dead-man and dragging him toward the shadows. “It’s rude to linger,” she said.

Louis’s voice was soft. “Why did you save her?”

The Rusalka paused, glancing at him over her shoulder. “Because no one saved me,” she said simply.

Armand raised an eyebrow. “And the performance? Personal, yes?”

She stopped entirely, her expression darkening. “It wasn’t a performance. It was my life.”

Louis and Armand exchanged a glance, the weight of her words settling heavily between them.

She leaned against the wall, her arms crossed, her gaze distant. “I was nineteen,” she began. “A circus girl in a tiny village. My neighbor—his name was Artem—was older. Stronger. One night, he followed me back home. I didn’t see him until it was too late.” Her voice wavered, but she pressed on. “When it was over, he told me no one would believe me. And he was right. When I had no choice but to tell the elders, they planned to make us marry.”

Her laughter was bitter. “He didn’t want me, though. Not really. He wanted the fun. And when he found out I was pregnant…” She trailed off, her hand unconsciously resting on her stomach.

“He killed you,” Louis said softly.

She nodded. “He tried. Stabbed me. Left me bleeding by the river. I thought it was the end. I hoped it was. But hours later, I woke up. Cold. Alone. And…” Her voice broke. “I knew…there was no way- the child...”

She met their eyes, burning with rage, “I don’t know how I survived, how I became this, but I did. And I found Artem. I made him pay.” And he was delicious. Silence stretched between them, heavy and oppressive.

“I don’t want your pity,” she said finally, her tone sharp. “You won’t get it,” Armand replied, though his voice was softer than usual.

Louis stepped closer, his expression gentle. “What you endured is unimaginable. But you don’t have to live it alone.”

She scoffed. “I’ve done fine on my own.”

Even so,” Armand said, his eyes dark and unreadable, “you’re welcome to come it with us.”

Her gaze flicked between them, wary. “Why, I’ve made my feelings on the coven dynamic clear?”

“It’s not just the coven,” Louis said simply, “It’s us. Wouldn’t it be nice to not spend the rest of your days running, looking over your shoulder?” 

For a moment, she said nothing. Then shifted to walk parallel to the two vampires.

As they walked together into the night, the tension between them eased, just slightly. The Rusalka glanced at Louis, her expression softening. “You really don’t have to be so earnest, you know.”

“And you don’t have to be so guarded,” he replied.

She smiled faintly. “Hypocrite.”

Behind them, Armand watched in silence, his mind already calculating the implications of her story—and her presence among them.

***

Dubai: Modern Day

The sprawling penthouse was silent, save for the faint hum of the city beyond the glass. Daniel leaned forward in his seat, the recorder on his laptop.

Across from him, the Rusalka sat cross-legged on the leather couch, her posture regal, her face shrouded in a calm that felt unnatural. As her body rested comfortable against the skin of the vampires. One at each of her sides, the dim light softened the sharp edges of her features, but her eyes—those unsettling, liquid like eyes—seemed to pierce right through him.

“I know you didn’t come all this way for pleasantries,” she said, finally breaking the silence. 

Daniel cleared his throat. “No, I didn’t. I want to know more—about your time in Paris, with them. About...what you are to Louis, what all this means.”

“Paris,” she began, her tone flat, “was a game of survival, every moment, every word, every gesture—it was all part of a farce. One wrong step, and every university would shut their doors to me, I’d have no reason to stay in the city at all then. The entire petense for me making ‘nice’ with the coven.” Daniel nodded, his pen scratching across the legal pad in his lap. “And with them? With Louis and Armand… Claudia?”

She paused, her eyes narrowing slightly. “With them...things felt different. Arrogant and self-centered, yes, but also something more. They were broken things, trying to piece themselves together. Armand’s need for control just barely masking his desperation to relinquish it, Louis with his redemption, the guilt,  and Claudia...Claudia was just trying to find her place in a world that seemed to have no place for her.”

“And you wanted to give her one?” He supplied.

“I wanted her to be given the choice- she deserved the opportunity to make her own path. Unfortunately future events came to…well we will get to that point in the story later won’t we? Louis tells it the best and after all you’re here for him.” 

“So then whats the point of you and “Rashid” having been here at all.”

“Daniel I’m surprised in your line of work and having never heard of fact checkers?” Louis prevents another remark by clearing his throat, he crosses a leg over another and reaches a hand to grab one of her’s, “My mind is a tangled web- having them here allows me to recount events from more than a single perspective which should help you find the most objective truth within this all. Shall we continue the interview now that that’s settled?”

[steviebunny]

I am sane I swear

[steviebunny]

They say that Satan lives in this house. But I say different. I say angels live at 1132.

[steviebunny]

House would have figured out what’s wrong with Will Graham after nearly killing him and would have been like oh yeah also your therapist has been feeding you poison chicken soup that’s why you’re getting worse, probably should check his freezer too the guys not subtle with the cannibalism. But it’s easy to miss all this when you’re getting bent over the therapy chair instead of sitting in it.

[steviebunny]

Lestat in PRINCE LESTAT AND THE REALMS OF ATLANTIS