#alessandra: the maid

[leocadian]

alessandra's dating criteria for the rest of her life after fosca's death is literally: "5'8", brunette, preferably dark-ish eyes, a little weird, chronically ill, capable of matching her freak, loves to read, can play the piano." meets a guy that fits that exact criteria, marries him-lives a rather comfortable life, has a child (tries to drown the baby), KILLS HIM? and then burns her whole ass mansion down because she's mad (and suicidal) in her mid 60's in a rebecca-esque breakdown. (nobody likes her) and yeah, she's my favourite OC ever.

[disgraceful-writings]

Love, Peace, and War

[requested : @immyowndefender]

“Will you do one where reader lives and shoves both Alys and Aemond into a burning pyre along with the rest of kingslanding or at least one where she makes Aemond her bitch?”

Whispers of another woman keeping his bed warm have swarmed y/n since he left for Harrenhal. He had supposedly missed her, she now believes it to be simply guilt, coming home despite orders from his king and making love to her until the early morn. Something had seemed off that night, and she wanted to question it, but she was simply happy to have her love back in her arms. However, now he seems to only be trouble. Both of their sons lie dead and wrapped in the finest cloth on a pyre. Vhagar rumbled from her perch, seemingly annoyed. Y/n took one last look at her boys and looked Aemond in the eye with a depressed rage. He only looked at her with remorse. For their sons? For possibly ruining her by sleeping with another woman? She didn’t know, nor did she care.

“Dracarys”, he spoke loudly to Vhagar. Warmth kissed y/n’s cheeks, almost drying her tear stains. “Goodbye my little dragons, protect each other, my strong boys”, she whispered. Y/n turned and walked to her horse, not acknowledging Aemond or his family. When they traveled back to King’s Landing, y/n rushed to her chambers with her maids in tow. “Lyliana, fetch some wine. I’d also like a bath.” Both girls got to work, Lyliana fetching the wine and Alessandra starting to warm some water. Y/n glanced to her bed and saw a plush toy shaped like a dragon sitting next to her pillows. She can’t cry anymore, she’d lost all of her tears. “Shall I help you undress, your grace?”, Lyliana asked softly, knowingly. 

Y/n nodded and proceeded to be undressed with delicacy. Sitting in her shift, both girls started to braid her hair and wrap it like a crown to not get it wet. Y/n asked, “Do you think they’re alright?” The girls glanced between one another, Lyliana answered, “They have each other, your grace, that is all we could hope for.” Y/n nodded and stood. The water was warm, something she needed after a while. Her muscles had been tense after what she’d been through. “I will fetch more oils, your grace”, Lyliana spoke after looking at the selection. Alessandra spoke quietly, “I lost my boy in the fall”, she paused her words and focused on scrubbing the dried blood missed from under the princess’s fingernails. “What did he look like?”, y/n asked. “He had these big brown eyes that were so curious of what was happening around him. He barely stayed asleep, I believe he thought he would miss something”, she smiled with a small laugh, “His hair was black like his father’s and thick. He had this freckle under his chin too. My mother always told me freckles were angel kisses.” Y/n and Alessandra sat in a comfortable silence, only the water could be heard. 

Lyliana returned with the oils and assisted in finishing the princess’s bath. When she had emerged from the water, there was a knock at the door. Lyliana answered the door only through a crack, as y/n was in a state of undress still. “Prince Aemond”, she bowed, “Your wife isn’t dressed yet and doesn’t wish for any visitors.” Aemond didn’t listen and entered the room, “Y/n.” “Ladies, you may go for the night”, y/n released the girls, having now been dressed in her nightclothes. She looked at Aemond standing in the middle of the room. “What is it?”

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry I am the reason our sons are gone. I just- I can’t have you not speaking or even looking at me anymore.”

She poured herself some wine and sat in a chair, “That is what we are doing now, isn’t it?”

Aemond got on his knees at her feet and placed his arms around the small of her back, “Y/n please, you do not have to forgive me, but please don’t do this.” He buried his face into her thighs.

Y/n looked at her cup, not once acknowledging his proximity, “How’s Alys?”

Aemond raised his head, “What?”

“The girl from Harrenhal. What did they say she was? Some wet nurse to her brother?”

“How did yo-”

“I didn’t know you had a thing for bastards. Thought you always hated them, especially if their roots were from Harrenhal”, she paused for a drink, “Was she your spoil from war?”

Aemond brought his head up to look y/n in the eyes, “Tell me, Aemond, was she any good?”

He stood up now, stumbling over his words like a child caught. “Well?”

“No, she never could compare. I was so alone and lost, I-I lost myself to weakness. Please, my love, I never meant to hurt you.”

“Well you did.” A knock could be heard through the thick air, “Come in.”

A man who looked very much like the prince without the Targaryen features entered the room, “Your grace”, he bowed, “Your spoils.” A bag was handed to the princess, glancing inside she was hit with the stench of death. “You may go, Alfred.”

With her back to Aemond she stated, “A parting gift for you”, she turns and hands him the bag. “I will be going home for my brother’s coronation. I won’t be back.” She walks out of the room to the maester’s. Aemond slowly opened the bag and found Alys River’s head inside, devoid of color. He threw it, landing on a dresser, and poured himself some wine. His movement erratic, he didn’t know what to do, so he drank and went to the training yard to get his frustrations out. Y/n had traveled to Dragonstone before returning home. She spoke with Rhaenyra of how she was the true queen, and the world was lied to for a selfish man’s gain. How Delbore would support her claim if called upon. Then they spoke, not as queen and princess, enemies, or friends. They spoke of their sons, what she would do when she goes back home, and revenge.

Before she boarded the boat, she turned to Daemon and Rhaenyra, “Kill him. Make it painful.” She looked into Daemon’s eyes, and he nodded to her. She smiled softly and set sail for home, for peace. Her kingdom was never called upon. 

The Targaryen’s had seemingly forgotten of the princess. Until one day, she sat in the gardens with her sister-in-law and queen of Delbore having tea. “Princess y/n, a letter has come for you”, a servant girl spoke like a mouse. “Thank you, dear”, y/n dismissed her. She noticed the black Targaryen seal on the scroll and took a deep breath. The queen placed a hand over hers and smiled gently. The words she had hoped to hear for months, almost a year now. Aemond is dead. In black ink, the details of how he had received his dues. Daemon had sacrificed his life in killing the prince, leaving him with a sword through his eye. Time went on and Targaryens died like flies. Y/n, however, flourished on Delbore Isle. She took another husband. A sturdy but soft man who loved her truly. He never left her side, even during the birth of their daughter. Y/n had finally found peace.

Taglist : @watercolorskyy

Masterlist

[murfpersonalblog]

IWTV S2 Ep1 Musings - Looking for Home: Louis, Claudia & Daciana

They flip between siblings and parent so much even I was getting whiplash--no wonder Lou's confused. U_U

This was EEEEEEEEVIIIIIIL, AMC! 😭 Louis carrying Grace's wedding portrait, and using it to FAKE his identity in Europe, after Grace couldn't even go to Europe for her own honeymoon cuz Paul died--STOP IT! 😭😭

And you can hear just a few quick seconds of the DPDL lietmotif that always plays for Grace, Paul, and sibling!Claudia, before it takes this SUPER dark and ominous tone--the song has been tainted, just like Lou's relationship with Grace and Claudia was tainted.

Go AWF, Claudia!

And then she finds ONE, and it was so heartbreakingly touching.

I was hoping she was Alessandra, but nope, she's an AMC!OC, Daciana. I'm assuming they were nodding to one rando revenant:

And she is obviously the same "Anna" the kids were singing about--(very Gaunter O'Dimm of them, I love it 💀)--living like frikkin Baba Yaga in a grimy castle in the woods.

Daciana killed her own fledgling after Claudia blinded him--after the revanant AND Daciana attacked them first, but whatever. Cuz she said he wouldn't be able to hunt/feed with no eyes--so it can't heal; her fledglings are too effed up. She's officially the last one in the area.

And I get it now--the bear(?) head Claudia breaks off of the dead vampire's sarcophagus was a heraldric figurehead. Claudia showed it to Daciana, as a way of asking her who that dead vamp was.

She didn't want to tell them her story or hear theirs--but she wanted them to know about Cezare Romulo (RIP). (It's crazy how in 5 minutes The Vampire Daciana was way more effective than a whole hour of Dierdre Mayfair. 🙄😒) She complimented Claudia's blood, saying it tasted like the cream of the crop. Daciana only told them her name, and that she was waiting for her children--fledglings or real ones, who knows (I bet both).

Only for Daciana to kill herself right in front of them (RIP). ���🔥

This is so sad, but it was obvious she was gonna do that.

Stop teasing the Children of Darkness after this Alessandra fake-out. She's got the same darkness in her that Nicki (AND Louis) had. And we know where that means. 🔥💀🔥

These vampires are STARVING--hungry for family, love, home: LIFE.

So is Claudia! 😭😭😭 She wants a blood spouse! She wants a companion!

So I LOVE that Morgan clocked Louis on Grace's photo--that ain't yo wife! The gaydar was beeping the second your pretty arse walked in!

Like, it's been established that Louis is a terrible liar-you don't need an investigative journalist to figure that much out. Louis is TOO honest--he was dumb AF for telling Morgan his real name! I get why he did it in the book--again: desperate to make a connection.

But on the show it comes across way different--Louis almost immediately tells Morgan his name (he doesn't do that for Emilia, even though SHE called him pretty! Istg I was picking up some flirtatiousness with Lou & Morgan; put those pheromones AWAY 😂). But you come across MIGHTY SUS if your Black arse is going around switching identities on all these twitchy Europeans, Louis!

Like baaaaaasicallllllyyyyyyy!!! 🤦 You see them shooting up corpses just to make sure--you think they won't shoot YOU!?!

Anyways, it's so cool that they made Morgan a photographer--so is THIS why Louis starts taking photos!? 🤩📸

Cuz I've been wondering how Louis makes money in Paris so they don't have to pickpocket anymore?

I love that they included this.

No matter where they go, they have to pose as Black servants and maids and VALETS and SLAVES, white folk are the same regardless of the country.

Which was an interesting parallel with Daciana, and how much they were hyping up America.

She was clearly nuts, but smart & sane enough to realize that 2 (two!) Black vampires had fled their oh-so-great "land of the free" to come to HER busted AF blown up war-torn country, so why should she expect to have any happiness over there?

I don't know a lick of Romanian, but I wonder if the "another one" she was referring to was the soldier, or the country. As Daciana realized that no matter who she made her new fledgling, and no matter which country she ran to, she'd be alone & unhappy without the people she loved--her HOME.

Home is where the HEART is! Claudia's been homeless this whole time! Daciana's got that huge castle, but lives all alone--she can't make proper fledglings. Meanwhile Louis still thinks NOLA is home, even after they killed everyone who knew them--"including" Lestat!

*sigh* I hate this effing show, it's so dang good. 😭

[fourchuu]

Day 8: Dislikes

hmmm what do they dislike???? never thought about it

Aleena:

Amelya: fighting

Alessandra: the isolation culture of renaissance italy, women being property, not being able to see her family

Barbara: the cult, needing to keep putting gas into her bus

Brian: probably some kind of intrusive thoughts

Carisa: while leaving home was easy, there also comes the guilt of leaving them

Elizabeth: cowboy haters 👎🏼

Estelle: she hates how maids are the help desk of sessions, she loves helping but shes also a player

Federico: hates working the banks but its an inherited job so :(

Isabela: seeing herself as a martyr, being married to john

Josephina: the whole of her childhood, that home was really bad

Kamden: when birds fly away from him, cant they sense his whimsy???

Lucia: the murky water back home, it was stinky

Maria: not being able to save her brothers, she got the chance to go but they didnt and it keeps her up

Marion: hes a knight of doom so idk the visions?

Mayriina: spiders, they may be sacred to lolth but they're just kind of creepy

Natalie: bad music

Noah: his mento illness, hes a hope player hes gotta be riddled with self doubt and intrusive thoughts

Parvan: the isolation of being a farm boy :(

Sylvee: cloudy/stormy days

Violet: shes an overachiever and feels the weight of her own choices choke her

Xanthe: she really doesnt want to be heiress to the whole troll society thing but it's like not in her control

[voltives]

5. first sentence of the fifth paragraph of an unpublished WIP

12. a trope you're really into right now

18. if you keep them, share a deleted sentence or paragraph from a published fic

30. share a fic you're especially proud of

By the way, I was thinking an autumnal wedding. I shall be wearing a traditional ao dai.

5.) first sentence of the fifth paragraph of an unpublished WIP

“I believe she is a relative of the Colonel’s,” Signora Constanza replied, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Her appetite is strange, she will not stomach much more than coffee and plain vegetable broth. A remarkably odd creature, I’ll admit.”

This is three sentences in one, but it gives you context, so... there's that. No hints as to what the WIP is of, (although I am sure you can guess.)

12.) a trope you're really into right now

I'm not entirely sure if this counts as a trope, but evil, calculating women who believe their intentions are good but have terrible consequences for virtually everyone involved. (By the way, I had to look at a list of tropes for this and shook my head at every single one that came up. So I made my own.)

18.) if you keep them, share a deleted sentence or paragraph from a published fic

You're in luck! I actually have a graveyard of them.

“–I cannot go back, Alessandra.” She lowered her eyes, lifting her veil so her face was in full view. “I have laid my heart to rest, I must die here.” If she fell, it was easy enough to be written off as a mere accident. The more she spoke, the more her eyes welled with tears. “I was not meant to survive this long, I feel death circling at my feet. I have no choice.”

This was when I re-wrote the ending to "The Light We Cast," where Fosca doesn't actually end up talking to her maid during her inner-monologue as she spirals further into despair, and makes her final decision.

30.) share a fic you're especially proud of

The same one linked above. It's based on Passion (1994), for anyone unfamiliar with my current fixation-and for the 56 hits it has, it deserves so much more.

Also, an autumnal wedding is perfect for me.

Thank you for the ask!

[vogel-lynne]

If ESC 2023 Was a Wedding:

Newlyweds & family members:

The Bride: Bianca Paloma

The Groom: Marco Mengoni

The bride's mother: La Zarra

The bride's father: Gustaph

The groom's mother: Mimicat

The groom's father: Error 404 not found (but suggestions are accepted)

The bride's sister and main go-to when issues emerge: Mae Muller

The groom's little brother: Remo Forrer

The flower boys and twin cousins: TuralTuranX

The little ringbearer cousin: Reiley

The annoyed bratty teenager cousin: Andrew Lambrou

The queer cousin: Jann

The cousin that will steal the spotlight on the dance floor: Noa Kirel

The cool uncles and aunts: Voyager

The long-distant relatives you have to invite or they will be mad at you: The Kelmendis

Guest list:

The Maid of Honour: Alessandra

The Bridesmaids in matching outfits: Vesna

The Best man: Luke Black

The groomsmen: Joker Out

The groom's longtime troublemaker friends: The Busker

The one who is in for the bouquet toss: Mia Nicolai

Her worried fiance: Dion Cooper

The groom's salty and still not over him ex : Blanka

The first one to get drunk : Theodor Andrei

The one who ignored the dress code: Brunette

The groom's soccer team and drinking mates: Wild Youth

The bride's single friend who hopes to find her Mr Right: Monika

The Bride's gossiping friends: Teya and Salena

Staff:

The Bride's personal trainer: Dilja

The wedding Planner: Alika

The bridal stylist: IRU

The nail artist: Loreen

The make up artist(s): Lord of the lost (Chris)

The officiant: Pasha Parfeni

The bartender: Käärijä

The band: Sudden Lights (Expectations/from the beginning to the first ball) Let 3 (Reality/after a couple drinks)

Security: TVORCHI

The photographer: victor vernicos

The caterers: Piqued Jacks

[hekateinhell]

it's a four day weekend where I'm at so I'm going to live up to my very unofficial title of AU Queen (thank you DA 💖) and rec three of my favorite VC AUs!

today's #vcficfriday includes:

The Radiance of All That Shines (4885 words) by Anonymous Chapters: 1/? Fandom: Vampire Chronicles - Anne Rice Rating: Explicit Warnings: Rape/Non-Con Relationships: Armand/Daniel Molloy, Armand/Marius de Romanus Characters: Armand (Vampire Chronicles), Marius de Romanus, Daniel Molloy, Alessandra (Vampire Chronicles) Additional Tags: Workplace Sexual Harassment, camboy armand, CEO marius, Sex Work, Masturbation, Modern AU, I'll add more tags as i go, Dubious Consent, asexual armand Summary: Armand starts camming so that he can feed himself while he does an unpaid internship at Marius's company. :)

OKAY THIS ONE IS JUST SO REALISTIC WITH ARMAND'S CHARACTERIZATION AND NAVIGATING EVERYTHING THAT COMES WITH CAMMING I CAN'T WAIT FOR IT TO BE UPDATED ANON PLEASE 👀👀

change ain't so sudden (it just hides as it's coming) (47007 words) by Ghost_Ness/@its-ness-ness Chapters: 20/20 Fandom: Vampire Chronicles Series - Anne Rice Rating: Mature Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Lestat de Lioncourt/Louis de Pointe du Lac, Armand/Daniel Molloy, Armand/Louis de Pointe du Lac Characters: Louis de Pointe du Lac, Lestat de Lioncourt, Armand (Vampire Chronicles), Daniel Molloy, Assorted Band Members also, Claudia (Vampire Chronicles) Additional Tags: Human AU, Kidfic, Soap Opera Drama, Vignettes, absolutely dysfunctional relationship(s), general assholery, queer 80s rock entourage AU, Trans!Louis, everyone here is a gay disaster, helplessly watching your friends make horrible life decisions, retelling of Claudia's life in very specific AU circumstances, excessive use of swear words, and catfighting, Child Death, Armand having an emotional crisis as usual, Substance Abuse Summary: “Louis wants a baby.” Lestat swirls his glass again, for want of something to busy his hands. The ice clinks terribly loud against the edges. "Does it sound like such a terrible idea?" It takes all of Armand's remaining willpower not to choke on his coffee. “You really think you can make that work? Do you even understand what you’re asking him to commit to? You can’t. You’re going to break his heart.” If anything’s consistent, it’s surely Lestat’s ability to misread situations, and Louis’ tendency to own a bleeding heart, even at the worst of times. The whole story (or most of it) from the perspective of two outside participants.

I was following along with this one as new chapters were being posted almost daily and when I tell you IT WAS A JOURNEY I WENT THROUGH IT WITH EVERY SINGLE CHAPTER 10/10 my favorite telenovela. SO, SO GOOD from the capturing the decadent 1980s vibe, the whole outsider POV, and translating canon characters and issues into a very unique scenario. Also just saying, 40k is the length of an entire novella so you can consider it your book for the week!

Walk on the Wild Side (29324 words) by @sunshinerambling Chapters: 6/? Fandom: Vampire Chronicles Series - Anne Rice Rating: Not Rated Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Armand/Daniel Molloy, Daniel Molloy/Alice, Armand/Marius de Romanus Characters: Armand (Vampire Chronicles), Daniel Molloy, Marius de Romanus, Alice, Lestat de Lioncourt Additional Tags: Streamer AU, Armand is a streamer, Yes he wears the maid costume, He also has a secret only fans, Daniel goes broke trying to pay for it, Hand Jobs, Over stimulation, onlyfans au, Interview With The Vampire - Freeform, thigh fucking, Maid Costume, Marius De Romanus is a Tech Giant, Dry Humping, Soft humiliation kink, Marius is rough with Armand perpetually, Daniel wants to fuck Armand so badly it makes him look stupid, Surprise Lestat appearance, Lestat is rough with Armand, Public Blow Jobs, Public Hand Jobs, Public Masturbation, Daniel and Armand get closer and closer Summary: Armand streams vintage video games. Daniel convinces himself that he's just here for the video games. Until he realizes Armand also has an OnlyFans for members of a certain tier that sits behind a hefty pay wall.

Watching the virtual dynamics between Daniel, Armand, and Marius play out has me scandalized. I'm HERE for any version of Daniel ruining (enhancing) his life over Armand and I also can't wait for the next update of this one!

December 2023 addition (since I have now done enough #vcficfriday posts to start rbing older ones and share them with new people 💖): THERE'S NOW THREE MORE CHAPTERS AND SHIT IS ESCALATING DELCIOUSLY!! NOW LESTAT HAS JOINED IN THE SHOW AND DO YOU SEE THESE TAGS??? PLEASE THIS IS SO GOOD!!!!

[rainedroptalks]

i would love to hear about the evil bad books

HI MURPH I NEED TO SCREAM ABOUT THIS

(Alos I deleted this on my first try by accident lmao)

So there’s two, both by the same author, and I haven’t finished either. Ones called “twisted love” if that’s any indication of the vibe

So the first one! It’s about divorce! I have fully forgotten the name, but the main characters were called Alessandra and Dominic. I’m gonna call them A and D for my own sake

So these two met in college, A’s a nepo baby and D’s in here with a scholarship, he was poor growing up (also he has a brother who I fully forgot was part of the plot the first time I wrote this). He has dyslexia, so he is having trouble passing one of his classes, so his only good professor gives him the info of another student who does tutoring. It’s A. The two of them do the tutoring thing (which is honestly kinda cute. Fig you had no context for what happens later). D passes his exams and eventually the two begin dating, and then get married. At 23. Bad idea but okay

In the story, the two have been married for 10 years. D is now this super rich capitalist guy with a big company. He’s also a terrible boss. A has been basically his trophy wife for the past decade and the relationship is deteriorating. He forgets everything, doesn’t listen to her and constantly assumes how she feels. She doesn’t ever communicate how she feels so the marriage is going bad. They tried doing marriage counseling once but he fully forgot and she had to sit in that office making excuses for him while the counselor just looked at her with pity. He came home from work and didn’t even apologize for not showing up.

The final straw for her is their 10th anniversary. The two planned a trip to where their honeymoon happened (I think) and she reminded him like 3 times before he went to work. Would you be shocked if it turned out he forgot. Would you

She waits for ages and calls him multiple times. He doesn’t answer. She gets so pissed that she gets the bag she packed for the trip, puts her wedding ring on a table and leaves. When D gets home he starts looking for her and sees the packed bags. Finally he remembers and starts being an asshole to the maid about where A went. She says that A left. He starts worrying, not cuz he realizes he was a duck but because he’s super rich and thinks someone might hurt her to hurt him or smth.

Meanwhile A’s doing fine, she’s just at a hotel. The next morning she calls him, tells him her location and then hangs up before he can say anything. He shows up and here we see he doesn’t think of anything he’s done as wrong. “I’ll just book a new trip” SHUT UP!!! Anyway at the end of this she says she wants a divorce. This is like. Chapter 4

A goes to move in with a friend. She also realizes that she gave up a lot of her life to this dude, that she only has 3 friends and no life. The friend helps her out, and also gives her an ornate knife that she can stab her (ex)husband with. It was wrapped like a present. She’s so cool. Also D’s refusing to sign the papers so she gets a divorce lawyer.

At some point, D goes out with his friends for a business thing (what’s new), 2 of which are married to two of A’s friends. So they know. They awkwardly bring it up and he says something like “oh A’s just upset, she won’t actually go through with it.” And the one of his friends calls him a piece of shit and that if he treated his own wife like that even once she’d leave him forever. A’s had to deal with his bullshit for 10 years. Finally D realizes he sucks (not when his wife tells him though. He had to have his friends tell him. He doesn’t respect his wife)

So this begins the saga of him harassing her to show that “he still loves her”. He sends flowers. He follows her to a club. He threatens to beat up some guy who was flirting with her. Also the first sex scene happens here (I was not expecting that I was trying to stop myself from laughing in the library lol). In a bathroom. In a club bathroom. That’s… unsanitary, right?

Later there’s a party or something I dunno and he sees his estranged older brother here. Someone also dies here! Some old rich guy I don’t care. A’s here with her friends and she’s in shock from seeing a dead guy so D takes her home. They do the sex thing again. In the morning, he sees her trying to leave while he was sleeping and has the AUDACITY to get mad. The two start arguing and A starts crying. D realizes he broke this completely and agrees to sign the divorce papers then and there. The two are officially divorced

So next A goes on vacation. Her brother is in um. I don’t remember but it was in South America I believe, so she joins him. She gets a one way ticket. D finds out AND HE GETS A FLIGHT THERE TOO. FUCKING WEIRDO!!! She tries to ignore him but she thinks “Wow. D never goes away from his business things… maybe he really does care about me” AND GIRL THAT IS THE DEVIL SPEAKING. THE DEVIL

Then her mother calls, telling her that she’s getting married (again) and it’s in two days. What the fuck is happening. A and her brother have no fucking clue how to get there in two days and D offers his private jet he has (have we mentioned he’s rich yet? He’s rich) to take them. So apparently A’s mom is a model/actress/I don’t remember and she’s had a ton of failed relationships so A does not think this’ll last. Anyway, at the wedding, she hears the vows and starts tearing up cuz it reminds her of her own wedding and how wrong everything went. D tries to talk to her after the wedding, but her brother stops him and essentially says “Hey man you’re a friend to me but she’s my sister. And you clearly fucked this up. Leave her alone.” Anyway he doesn’t do this and A FUCKING FORGIVES HIM IN A CONVERSATION. Well, not fully. She agrees to try starting again, but also that they’re not married anymore and that she’s allowed to date and do things like that without him bitching about it.

The friend who gave her the knife is devastated at this news when A gets back. She can see this going so so wrong. Also the whole time in the background A’s been trying to open a flower shop or something like that, and the dude who owns the property she wants to use is apparently super and super nice, so the two go on a date. This was before the mothers wedding and the whole trip, and D shows up at the restaurant. He was actually there for something else, so he wasn’t stalking her this time. Anyway the other dudes fine I don’t remember him much. He wears flannels.

So that’s where I left off. I swear I’ll finish that book someday

The other one I barely read but it was about this 22 year old girl. Her name was Ava, and her brothers going away for a school thing. He’s super worried about her cuz apparently something happened when she was younger so he’s protective of her or whatever.

Also the book opens with her being stranded in the rain. Her brothers going away party is soon and she hasn’t picked up the cake yet. So she calls him and he picks up and tells her one of his friends borrowed his car. He tells her he’ll send the friend to pick her up. I would love you to guess what he’s doing during the call. IF YOU GUESSED THAT HE WAS HAVING SEX BEFORE PICKING UP HER CALL AND HE DID NOT LEAVE THE ROOM AND SITUATION BEFORE TALKING TO HIS SISTER then you’d be right!

So the dude who picks her up is this totally cool and mysterious friend of her brothers and also he’s an asshole. They get to the party and the best character shows up, Ava’s super hot best friend. She hates Ava’s brother apparently. She’s so cool

So the brother asks his friend (whose name I don’t care to remember) to watch over Ava while hes gone. He interprets this as “be super weird and controlling despite the fact you barely know this girl”. Anyway Ava should be dating her friend she comforts her every time she wake up from a night terror, even though she’s busy with law school. Ava’s friend is the perfect woman

Anyway that’s all! Sorry for the super long and rambly post I just have a lot of opinions. If there’s spelling mistakes I’m sorry I don’t have the energy to fix them

[chryzuree]

okay so. azure’s jst a little stuffed bunny, keeping chrysi company from since she was four to her teenage years. she loves him so much that his soul awakens. he’s brought alongside her everywhere, until he feels her friends are his too (jacks, primarily). azure loves chrysi. he knows jacks does too. when chrysi looped one of her rings on the ribbon around his neck, jacks throws a fit until chrysi gives him one of her rings too. he watches chrysi and jacks go from being little kids to awkward teens, and he watches them remain close. he’s jst glad that even though they’re older now, they bring him along everywhere (jacks once leaned over during a symphony to ask chrysi if she’d forgotten azure at home. she did not. she snuck him in via her skirts). azure is happy. his friends are happy. he’s still loved, even though chrysi tells her that a sixteen year old girl should stop carrying her stuffed bunny everywhere.

then she gets sick. it feels like it happens overnight. azure can tell because her body burns when she holds him close to her while she’s sleeping. he’s beyond worried, because she’s not waking up. he knows jacks is worried too, because he’s been visiting his sick friend every single day on his way home from his lessons.

she’s dreaming. deeply. and azure doesn’t know how he figures it out, but he winds up in her fever dreams. a bunny knight, her protector. he finally is able to speak with her, hold her with human arms, be with her. but it doesn’t last. it was all a dream from the start. and he doesn’t even get the chance to stay with her, because nessa takes all chrysi’s sheets and clothes and other things and prepares to burn them to get rid of the illness, once chrysi pulls through.

he should’ve burned that night. he didn’t.

somehow, he fell away from the gathered piles of chrysi’s things and he’s taken by one of the maids to her home.

(he meets alice here, but that’s a tale for another time.)

azure is sent off on a meandering journey. he meets new children and grows more threadbare. he’s long since lost the ring chrysi gave him. he still thinks of her. he misses her more than anything. sometimes, he even misses jacks.

years pass. azure winds up in an antique store, tucked away on a shelf behind the register. he’s definitely an antique doll, but he’s still a little lumpy, despite a restoration artist trying to fix him up. it doesn’t matter. he’s found anyway. by jacks.

jacks and chrysi decided to get married at random. it definitely doesn’t feel random to everyone else, but to jacks and chrysi, the idea was a novel lightning strike, a sudden realization they had never considered. jacks had just been through another failed engagement (4th so far, and society is beginning to question what it is that lurks behind jacks’s pretty face to warrant so many girls breaking things off with him. the truth is that it was always his love for chrysi, enduring ever always, ever since she’d given him one of her rings in a meadow.) chrysi has had no prospects.

it was jacks’s suggestion. his reasoning being that they were already close enough to be married (a repeat of what alessandra yelled at him, after she called off the engagement.) and that his only competition had always been her stuffed bunny.

chrysi agrees. more readily than she thought she would.

on that day, jacks was beginning to get desperate. chrysi was his best friend and his lover, soon to be his wife, and he could not find a perfect gift. not just a gift, but the gift. and he finds azure. ribbon frayed, ring lost, eyes cracked and velveteen thinning, but it’s chrysi’s bunny blue, or at least a creation that looks similar to it.

jacks ties the wedding ring onto azure’s ribbon. he gifts it to chrysi.

azure’s back where he needs to be. and chrysi still likes clutching him close whenever she sleeps.

and sometimes, just sometimes, azure slips into their dreams again. there, he is reunited with them. :)

[tangledinourstrings]

Favorite First Time Watches of 2024 (Animation, Part 2)

31. Curious Alice (1971) directed by Dave Dixon

32. Nimona (2023) directed by Nick Bruno and Troy Quane

33. 大鬧天宮/大闹天宫 (Havoc in Heaven/Uproar in Heaven, 1961) directed by 萬籟鳴/万籁鸣 (Wan Laiming)

34. Barbie in the Nutcracker (2001) directed by Owen Hurley

35. The Monkey King (2023) directed by Anthony Stacchi

36. The Bad Guys (2022) directed by Pierre Perifel

37. Red Hot Riding Hood (1943) directed by Tex Avery

38. Witch's Night Out (1978) directed by John Leach

39. Rapunzel (2019) directed by Juan Pablo Machado

40. ベルトかいじゅう王子 (Beauty and the Beast, 1976) directed by 渡辺和彦 (Kazuhiko Watanabe)

41. Вій (Viy, 1996) directed by Леонід Зарубін (Leonid Zarubin) and Алла Грачова (Alla Grachyova)

42. La jeune fille et les nuages (The Young Girl and the Clouds, 2001) directed by Georges Schwizgebel

43. Снежная королева (The Snow Queen, 1957) directed by Лев Атаманов/Լևոն Ատամանյան (Lev Atamanov)

44. 逃猫ジュレ (Runnin' Away Gelée, 2016) directed by 株式会社ディー・エル・イー (DLE Inc./Dream Link Entertainment)

45. 哪吒鬧海/哪吒闹海 (Nezha Conquers the Dragon King, 1979) directed by 王树忱 (Wang Shuchen), 严定宪 (Yan Dingxian), and 徐景达 (Xu Jingda)

46. 少女ノス���ェラトゥ (Nosferatu Maiden, 2017) directed by 谷口ちなみ (Chinami Taniguchi)

47. Destino (2003) directed by Dominique Monféry

48. Dance with the Seashells! (2023) directed by Théo Carme, Julie Fournier, Alessandra Rosamarino, and Anaëlle Saba

49. 世界名作童話 白鳥の湖 (Swan Lake, 1981) directed by 矢吹 公郎 (Kimio Yabuki)

50. I Am from Palestine (2023) directed by Iman K. Zawahry [Operation Olive Branch, Gaza Funds, Decolonize Palestine, eSIMS for Gaza, & arab.org]

51. Blood Bound (2023) directed by Lyly Hoang

52. Candy.zip (2017) directed by 見里朝希 (Tomoki Misato)

53. Chainsaw Maid Episode 0 (2010) directed by ていえぬ (Takena Nagao)

54. Girl X (2019) directed by ていえぬ (Takena Nagao)

55. MAID OF THE DEAD (2013) directed by ていえぬ (Takena Nagao)

56. The Name (2023) directed by Alexander Aguilar

57. Pandemonium (2023) directed by Lucille Rizzo, Louise Bailliet, Candice Loret, Olivia Gombault, and Lilou Martin

58. My Little Pony: A Very Minty Christmas (2005) directed by Vic Dal Chele

59. The Gruffalo (2009) directed by Max Lang and Jakob Schuh

60. Olive, the Other Reindeer (1999) directed by Steve Moore

[icreatethingsiguess]

I show my ocs again pt. 3 — character I haven't drawn in months edition (lazy art, maybe???)

Meet my girl Eliza Hopp!

⁽¹⁷ᵗʰ ᵒᶠ ˢᵉᵖᵗᵉᵐᵇᵉʳ, ¹⁸⁰² – ¹⁸ᵗʰ ᵒᶠ ᴶᵃⁿᵘᵃʳʸ, ¹⁸⁴⁸⁾

— "Eliza" is short for nothing. Her name is just Eliza. Her name is just a partner name to her mother's, "Beth."

— More about her name: she lacks a middle name (common for her species before 1837 and the mid 1800s in general, although there were cases of this happening afterwards too) and her surname, "Hopp," came from her half brother. It was originally "Hop," as he was half snowy tree cricket, but was changed to "Hopp" later on as an homage to mayor and Eliza's dearest friend, Rainn Fort.

— She's yet another butterfly puppet!! Beth is a holly blue whilst Eliza's father, Jeremy, is a brown/orange butterfly puppet of an unidentified species.

— She has two half siblings, Cassandra Flinders and Thomas Hopp, and two step-parents on both sides of her family, Crispin [step-father on mother's side] and Nyx [step-mother on father's side]. Through her half-brother Eliza has a sister-in-law named Alessandra Hopp who's a gramophone puppet (illegally built), and through her half-sister a brother-in-law named Benjamin "Ben" Flinders who's an anthro lyrebird originally from Eastern Australia. Eliza is also an aunt of seven kids thanks to Ben and Cassandra: from oldest to youngest they are Bellatrix, Samuel, Juliet, Daphne, Fiona, James, and Ashley (M). If this wasn't enough there's also a funky Scottish spirit dude named Duncan who helped nurse and raise all said kids so that they'd survive.

— Technically she has a husband named Rhys Maddox but only when their souls go and live other lives and end up meeting each other on Earth again via new lives and all that junk. They don't plan on having kids but they love each other very much. 😌

— As of mid 2023 she's no longer a resident of Nowhere And Also Everywhere aka "the afterlife," but will return once her current life passes on.

— In terms of personality, Eliza was quite the pessimist and was known to have a very low self esteem. She saw herself as not good enough to do anything but be anything but the town maid (HEAVILY influenced by her backstory) and was very quiet, only speaking to a select few people she felt like talking to: Rainn Fort, poet (and commonly credited founder of the town TLP, alongside Rainn) Matthew Milkweed, Cassandra, and Thomas were lucky enough, among others. Since being dead, her conditions improved.

— (Read backstory for context) Due to her upbringing she struggled a lot with mental illness, specifically depression and anxiety [PTSD and OCD are possible for her as well, but I need to look more into the former and develop her personality a lil more before I make a final judgement.) Even more well known was her maladaptive daydreaming (not a mental illness but oftentimes a symptom of one), which started in early childhood and lasted for the remainder of her life. It's very likely her maladaptive daydreaming played a major role in her untimely demise. On top of maladaptive daydreaming, it's very possible she's hyperphantasic, as I see her having a very vivid imagination.

Beautiful art by @fishyfishyfishtimes! Pieces are a couple years old:

• Here you'll notice she lacks clothing. She's depicted with a rounder segmented body above but actually has a more rectangular body type without any segments. Lack of clothing was first made popular in the 1960s and became accepted in the mainstream in following decades but with the exception of the first puppets in the 10th century, this wasn't the case. Puppets wore clothes, albeit quite raggedy (basically think "poor person in the Middle Ages") and torn, especially those that worked in manual labor. Here, Eliza's without clothes simply because she didn't have a dress design.

• Eliza with her half-siblings!! She and Thomas were very close to each other before she passed, and both were very depressed and angry at the world thanks to very very less than ideal living situations growing up. Cassandra is more of a mediator figure in the trio, see. They might not look it here in this doodle but they were actually quite close during their time together. All three of them lived together in one house and Cassandra frequently visited even when she moved out to live with her husband.

Drawings of caterpillar Eliza:

• Here's a good example of what caterpillars look like! These babies really are like insect puppies, if puppies had a more plant/fruit/vegetable based diet (too much meat for a caterpillar can cause stomach aches). They typically have 6-8 legs and having a "tail" depends on genetics. Eliza here doesn't have one! Caterpillars oftentimes have their future wing prints on their body, kinda like a fun Easter egg for what's to come. Eliza has black spots since Holly blue butterflies have small black spots on their wings :)

• A version of the doodle above except she has a dress. Nothing much to say here besides um. I don't think I can draw loose clothing on complex forms too well.

Eliza's Backstory (1802 – 2023)

CW: Backstory includes mentions of slavery, childhood trauma, segregation, and death

— This backstory is currently incomplete you can help by expanding it. Some details are still a WIP but I'd say it's coherent enough to count as a character backstory.

— A lot of the lore in the backstory was written by none other than @fishyfishyfishtimes ! She's an amazing worldbuilder so please go check her out. She only posts fish/sea creature related things (for now?) but maybe you like that too, I dunno.

Eliza was born (read as: hatched out of her egg) thanks to two puppet slave parents, Beth and Jeremy, sometime in 1802 (usually recorded as "the 17th of September" for simplicity); she was born in a household in London and spent the first couple years of her life around the house with fellow small children and even human children. Like many to-be slaves, contact with her parents was extremely limited if there was any contact at all as many children of slaves couldn't recognize who their parents were or were even allowed to interact with anyone outside their immediate field of view, or alternatively, they were to be sent off to a different household to work.

Reasonably, her living conditions for the first 35 years of life were less than ideal: like many "weaker" and more fashionable species, such as the butterfly, Eliza was resigned to do indoor tasks (most notably cleaning, given her fixation later on) and on rare occasions she would have to do garden work. She lived a life entirely at home, unaware of much of the outside world. Her time was mostly occupied by her excessive daydreaming while she slaved away.

This all changed on the 22nd of May, 1837, a day that's very well known in the (Universe) UK and around much of the world: after 8 centuries of being treated like mere "puppets," the first instance of puppets gaining personal freedoms finally occurred, on this particular day in British territory. Some human families paid royalties to those that had been treated so horribly. Puppet building was officially banned. There was only one nasty catch: instead of being integrated, both puppets and humans were now segregated by law. Thousands of puppets were grouped/grouped together themselves and left areas declared to be "human" areas (mostly big cities, such as London). Travel was allowed but heavily frowned upon by both human society and puppet society alike.

Somewhere in the midst of the chaos, Eliza got in contact with two puppets in particular, Cassandra and Thomas, who turned out to be her relatives. From 1837 – 1839, the trio traveled from developing town to developing town, eventually landing in a developing town between the counties of Kent and East Sussex, Townlocationplace ["TLP" for short]. Eliza quickly became infatuated with the mayor, Rainn Fort. The two became best friends but Eliza wasn't too content with just being friends. Unfortunately, Rainn had instead married a mute dragonfly woman named Alice Brown. This upset Eliza but she didn't push it. The pair remained good friends; Rainn helped her with literacy and even bought her new clothes to wear.

Eliza, however, remained in the cycle she was born into. If not in bed daydreaming, she would be seen wandering around the streets of the town aimlessly. On one of these trips, this proved to be an exceptionally dangerous practice.

On the night of the 17th of January, 1848, Eliza had written a love note to Rainn, wanting to deliver it to him in person. She had no clothes appropriate for going out in the snowy cold, only a gown. In the early morning hours she'd instead gotten lost and froze out in the dark.

Not too long after her soul was transported to Nowhere And Also Everywhere ("the afterlife") where she remained until finally trying to live a brand new life in the late 20th century. As of mid 2023, the present in the Universe, she's still living on Earth.

[leocadian]

another fact about alessandra: the reason why she refuses to undress for others is mostly because she has contracture burn scars on her lower neck/shoulders/upper torso from The Fire(tm) that Changed her life and dislikes it being seen. she's generally quite stiff with her movements (due to injury) but if anyone else at the outpost has noticed, they do not comment on it. fosca of course, clocks it straight away.

[necroneos]

That feel when you want a fandom mutual but people you reach out to are offline/inactive almost all day or for days on end. Pls I just want a JJBA/Jojo's Bizarre Adventure mutual who I can talk to regularly and not like once a day 😭. I wanna talk about my and yours OC x Canon or self-ships and just have fun. I know people are busy sometimes and I get that. I'm just in a setting where I'm alone 3/4 of the day and homebound with lots of free time on my hands 😅

For a start, here's my fav guys from this series!

Part 2 - Caesar 😍🫧 I have him paired with my crabby OC Patricia. Kars is my second fav, damn that guy is hot

Part 3 - Jean Pierre Polnareff 🇨🇵 I have him paired with my tiny adopted Canadian girl with a high IQ but is total space case OC, Jessica. Gotta love height differences 😌

Part 5 - Leone Abbachio 🐑 he'd paired with a former coworker of his named Alessandra.

Pannacotta Fugo 😡 together with a childhood friend of his that's the child of a maid at his old home (before he was cut off by his parents).

And finally, Melone 🍈 a neurochemist with a high sex drive! Beautiful in appearance with makeup on and everything, but being repeatedly called an ugly girl as a child can impact how you see yourself.

Part 7 - Johnny Joestar 🇺🇲 no OCs with him, but I absolutely adore the guy. I relate to him a lot as well.

Part 8 - Josuke Higashikata 🫧, what can I say? This boy is just precious and I love his design. No OCs with him either.

A heads up though;;; I'm not as comfortable talking with people who pair an OC of theirs with a fav of mine. Nothing against y'all, I'm just a former self-shipper and I still feel quite strongly about these characters 😅 I've just turned to the OC x canon side lmao

[nerdasaurus1200]

Ghost Bug Ghosts Version 2.0

An update of the update, cause I’ve made a few changes and added some people. If you guys want, I’ll make a separate list for my completely fanon heroes 

Marinette- Consort Yu/Piao Chong, Eru Iluvatar, Bahiti/Oracle of Khepri, Queen Hippolyta, Mudekudeku, Adora, Bo Rua, Joan of Arc, Princess Rapunzel/Sunbug, Cyrus/Sunbug, Micazoyolin, Tentomushi, Mudangbeolle, Elizabeth Schuyler-Hamilton/Lady Luck, Captain Marie Dupain/La Coccinelle, Maria/La Mariquita

Adrien- Hei Mao, Melkor/Morgoth, Mairon/Sauron, Isildur, Sméagol Stoor/Gollum, Bilbo Baggins, Frodo Baggins, Bastet, Antiope, Phantom Lion, Catra, Namaari, Meo Den, Prince Consort Aladdin, Jean d'Aulon, Hector/Gato Noir, Lady Cassandra/Madame Noir, Jericho/Sir Noir, Mistontli, Kuro Neko, General Alexander Hamilton/General Cat, Felix Agreste/Le Chat Noir, El Gato Negro, Selena Kyle/Catwoman

Alya- Bai Qian/Húlí, Nessa, Curumo/Saurman, Bofur, Sir Meriadoc Brandybuck, Set, Moses, Ulysses, Dolos, Tyrion Lannister, Double Trouble, Vixen, Tromus, Loki, Robin Hood/Swiper, Esmeralda, Prince Horace “Eugene” Fitzherbert/Flynn Rider/Reynard Rouge, Elianna/Reynarda Rouge,  Kitsune, Pied Piper of Hamelin, Conrad Dupain/Filou Fennec, La Zorra, Frederick Douglass, Clyde Barrow/Swiper, Edward Nigma/Riddler

Chloe- Jing Ze/Mifeng, Tian Ming/Mifeng, Aulë, Aiwendil/Radagast, Balin, Dwalin, Boromir, Apis, Artemisia, Boudica, Arya Stark, Scorpia, Ong Chúa, Demanitus, Sigyn, Will Scarlet, Addie/HoneyBee, Captain Quaid, Sir Varian/Sir Bumble Squeak, Luna/Honey Bumble, Grace O’Malley, Hachi, Angelica Schuyler/Lady Stinger, Peggy Schuyler/Miss Buzz, Amalie Bourgeois/Reine des Abeilles, La Abeja Reina, Dr. Pamela Isley/Poison Ivy

Nino- Yu Gui, Li Shang, Vana, Uinen, King Thorin Oakenshield, Samwise Gamgee, Ha, Moana, Athena, Jon Snow, Sir Leon, Netossa, Ngọc rùa, Baldur, Little John, Gilles de Rais, Adira/Hardshell, Thomas, Kame, Lieutenant Colonel John Laurens/Lieutenant Turtle, Frances Laurens, Alexandra “Lex” Beaufort/Snapper, La Tortuga, Kristoff Bjorgman

Nathalie- Kǒngquè, Yavanna, Alatar, Galadriel, Isis, Pharoah Rameses II, Hera, Queen Margaery Tyrell-Baratheon, Morgan le Fay, Gothel, Con công, Frigga, Sultana Jasmine, Queen Arianna/Bluebird, Atlas/Juno, Chiyome Mochizuki/Pīmosu, Aida Agreste/Paon Royale, Pavo real

Gabriel- É wáng, Melkor/Morgoth, Eonwë, Luthien, Ori, Alrabu Aleutha, Aaron, Psyche, Merlin, Chúa tể, King Odin, Friar Tuck, King Edmund/Monarch, Princess Nuru/Painted Lady, Ronnie/Grayling, Chiyome Mochizuki/Pīmosu, General George Washington/General Moth, Absolon Agreste/Le Papillon, Polilla, Ulysses S. Grant, Anastasia Romanov/Monarch

Mylene- Shǔ, Mandos, Nori, Belladonna Baggins, Bilbo Baggins, Seth, Hecate, Entrapta, Noi, Con chuột, Midge, Sir Varian/Sir Bumble Squeak, Kiera/Pack Rat, Carina/Reginault, Nezumi, Captain Jacquotte Delahaye/Bilge Rat, Cinderella, Clementine Haprele/La Rat Gris, La Rata Gris, Mary Bowser/Anonymouse, Billy the Kid/Pack Rat, Jane Porter, Bonnie Parker/Minnie Mouse

Ivan- Lu Bu/Niu, Tulkas, Pallanto, Gloin, Gimli, Apis, Hephaestus, Hercules, Hodor, Sir Percival, Frosta, Tong, Sửu, Magni, Quasimodo, Lance Strongbow/Strongbow, Ushi, Hercules Mulligan/Mighty Ox, Dureau Bruel/Puissant Beouf, Buey Poderoso, Tiana/Blue Babe, Bane, Clark Kent/Superman, Kara Danvers/Supergirl

Juleka- Mǔ lǎohǔ, Oromë, Tilion, Princess Tauriel, Princess Mili, Montu, Ares, Lady Sansa Stark, Con Hổ, Queen Freyja, Queen Brunnhilde, Tomoe Gozen, Catalina/Tigerin, Amber/Shadowcat, Tora, Anna Strong/Agent 355/Tiger Phantom, Amber Couffaine/La Tigress, La Tigresa,  Harriet Tubman/Shadowcat, Helena Bertinelli/Huntress

Alix- Ā lìkè s Kudbel/Tùzǐ, Vairë, Aliks/Huh, Princess Cassandra of Troy, Alix Kubdel/Con thỏ, Kanin Kubdel, Usagi, Alice Kubdel/Lapin Blanc, Alexander Kubdel/Lapin Blanc, Alessandra Kubdel/El Conejo Blanco, Mary Poppins/Miss Hopp, Alim Kubdel/Bunnyx

Kagami- Fa Mulan/Mother Dragon, Ulmo, Arien, Tefnut, King Zeus, King Aegon Targaryen, Queen Daenerys Targaryen, King Arthur Pendragon, Spinnerella, Raya, Nữ Hoàng, Prince Thor, Chieftain Hiccup Haddock, Chieftess Zephyr and Chieftain Nuffink Haddock, Maid Marian, Maleficent, Quirin/Zmey, Cassandra/Shadowscale, Doragonesu, Aria Sanceour-Agreste/Dragon Rouge, La Dragoness, Queen Elsa/Dragon Empress, Queen Anna/Dragon Empress, Kida

Luka- Bai Suzhen/Shé Nǚshì, Varda, Salmar, Beren, Bifur, King Aragorn, Wadjet, Medusa, Perseus, Oberyn Martell, Queen Guinevere, Mermista, Con Rắn, Jormungandr, Alan a Dale, Hugo/Schlange, Hebi, Lieutenant Colonel Aaron Burr/Colonel Serpent, Adam Couffaine/Le Serpent, La Serpiente, William Sherman

Max- Ma, Manwë, King Theoden, Princess Eowyn, Astarte, Pegasus, Khal Drogo, Glimmer, Con Ngựa, Heimdall, Sleipnir, Gilbert Whitehand, Stalyan/Lady Mare, Juliet/Equine, Uma, Sybil Ludington/Madame Mare, Le Chevalier, El Caballo

Marc- Gao ChangGong/Shānyáng, Irmo, Ilmare, Dori, Khnum, Silene, Sir Elyan, Dê đực, Aurora, Evie, Niorun, Yagi, Miram Anciel/Madame Bouc, La Cabra Billy

Nathaniel- Gōngjī, Estë, Oin, Lord Bard, Prince Legolas, Ra, Artemis, Apollo, Jaime Lannister, Sir Lancelot, Bow, Princess Merida, Chim Trời, Eir, Captain Caspar/Lord Dawn, Helene/Lady Dawn, Ondori, Dawn Kurtzberg/Poulet Rouge, El Pájaro del Sol, Clara Barton

Kim- Sun Wukong, Ossë, Prince Kili, Pippin Took, Babi, Icarus, Sir Gwain, Sea Hawk, Boun, Co Khi, Freyr, Diana/Singette, Monkī, Sasuke Sarutobi, Jack Overland Frost/Monkey Boy, Mary “Flee” Overland/Monkey Girl, La Singe, El Mono, George Custer

Sabrina- Gǒu, Faramir, Anubis, Hades and Persephone, Brienne of Tarth, Cú Chulainn, Chó, Hel, Yong/Xiǎo gǒu, Romeo/Weredog, Inu, Private Deborah Sampson/Private Hound, Leala Raincomprix/Chien de Guarde, El Perro Guardián

Rose- Zhu Bajie, Nienna, Melian, Bombur, Hathor, Aphrodite, Eros, Perfuma, Heo Con, Sif, Grenelda/Porcina, Ingrid/Porcina, Artemis, Snow White/Princess Schwein, Buta, Belle/Cochonette, Violet Lavillant/Petite Cochon, El Pequeño Cerdito, Charlotte/Princess Piggy

Jess- Yīng, Varda, Olorin/Gandalf, Miriam, Sucracha, Vedrfolnir, William Wallace, Chim ưng, Willow/Freebird, Orion, Pocahontas, Queen Elena/Aguila, Washi, Marquis de Lafayette/Aiglon

Lady Lion- Shīzi, Prince Fili, Hercules, Sư tử, Raion, León

[writings-of-a-crazy-lady]

Invisible Ties

Word Count: 2,249

Chapter 14

My fingers glided across the ivory, the simple melody that I knew encasing me in a fantasy world.  I was lost in my mind, unaware of my surroundings or those that came and went.  I had a few human “maids” that would often check on me, asking if I needed any water or food.  But I was entranced in the song, humming the words that I had practiced over and over again in school when I was able to attend.

Music was always an escape for me.  Always a way for me to slowly lose myself, forget my troubles and pain.  Even when I was nothing in my mind, in the world of song, I was something.  I could sing away my troubles, my broken heart or soul.  I was able to disappear and become something.  Prove all of my bullies and cruel mother wrong in just a few minutes.

I heard the door open to the room, but my fingers did not stop the melody as I allowed my hands to move across the keys.  I never allowed the words to fall from my lips, merely humming the tune until I felt hands touch my shoulders.  I quickly stopped playing the piano, allowing the unfinished notes to ring in the air that left me feeling a bit uncomfortable.

“Yes?” I looked up, spotting the crimson gaze of Marcus.

“You seem troubled, little one.”

“Is it that obvious?” I sighed, scooting over to allow Marcus a chance to sit on the bench with me. He took the hint, sitting close to me. I had closed my eyes, but I could feel his concerned gaze upon my face, as if he was searching for an easy answer to his many questions.

“Not obvious, mia amore.  I can feel the disturbance.  It is slight,” he quickly corrected when I looked at him, my immediate discomfort of the others knowing that I was unhappy showing.  “But none the less there.”

“I guess I can’t keep it a secret, can I?” I sighed heavily.  Aro could easily discern it if my power did not block him and now Marcus seemed to feel our connection and could sense if something was wrong.  All that is left is for Caius to have some secret ability at discerning my emotions and then it would be a losing battle to deal with my discomfort alone.

“Never keep secrets from us. If anything, then you can tell me whatever is bothering you.  I do not judge, little one.”

“Why do you keep calling me that?  Little one? Do I seem small to you?” I tried to change the subject, distract him somehow, but Marcus was as attentive as ever. His eyes gave that much away.

“I am much taller than you,” he pointed out, reminding me how short I was.  I nodded before sighing again, glancing down at my hands before staring straight at a wall.  I wasn’t sure how to tell him.  How to explain my discomfort at what had transpired recently.  After my panic attack at the pool, I spent the rest of my evening contemplating everything since I spent much of it alone.  And being alone was apparently dangerous since I overthought everything.  Every little detail of my life, my body, my hobbies…. All of it.  And honestly, I was second guessing their attraction or their faith in me.  Which was easy since my confidence was non-existent and the Volturi had a high level of it.

Still, I found myself unable to form the words, much less look at him.  How would he feel if I told him that I had zero faith in them?  That their affections could not be true? Marcus would probably feel hurt more than anything.  Something I didn’t want him to feel.  But I couldn’t help this doubt, no matter how much I wish I could.

A soft melody began to play, immediately gaining my attention as I turned to look at my partner. It was a tune I did not expect Marcus to know, yet he played it none the less.  Long fingers glided across the ivory keys as I found myself hearing the words in my mind.  It wasn’t a popular broadway musical, in fact, it flopped quite horribly.  It didn’t live up to the expectations of its predecessor but one particular song always stuck with me…

“~Who knows when love begins?  Who knows what makes it start?  One day it’s simply there, Alive inside your heart.”

I started the tune, the words quick to fall from my lips.  I didn’t realize I had gotten his attention, not seeing how Marcus’ gaze focused on me.  He just continued the melody as I sang the song, the words meaning something to me.

It was simply about love. How it ensnares those around them. Love was a mysterious emotion, never knowing how it begins or ends, if it ends at all.  And the fact that it can cause you great pain and lonely… Love itself was a confusing thing.  It could bring happiness and destruction all at the same time.  And in the end, it still endures.  Even through all the breakups, there was always a little bit of love left.

During the song, as I allowed the music to consume my everything, I had allowed my eyes to close once again.  My mind emptied of all my worries, every single thought slowly ceasing in my mind until nothing but a blank slate was there.  Just the words of the song and the emotions I was feeling.  And during that time, an audience began to form. Just 2 individuals, but still, an audience nonetheless.  Something I wasn’t quite use too…

The melody surrounded me, my voice carrying through the room.  Marcus never once missed a beat, keeping up with me as I hit the climax of the song, following the notes until I was able to reach the end of the song.  And I couldn’t help but ponder on the words for a few seconds more as he finished the melody, allowing the tune to ring in the air as if it was a thick blanket surrounding us.  Love truly was a strange concept.  To appear, even when you least expected it.  Doubtful anyone in the world could understand it.  Especially surrounded by twinkling vampires.    

“Brava!  Brava!” estatic clapping forced my eyes to open, my whole body immediately standing to attention as I finally realized that it wasn’t just Marcus and I in the room alone.  It took me a few seconds to finally realize that it was Aro doing the clapping, Caius not at boisterous but seemed quite impressed with my impromptu performance.

“E’stato magnifico, il mio amore,” Aro gushed over me, clasping his hands together.  “Truly marvelous.  You have such an enchanting voice.”

“Indeed, much like the siren we claimed,” Caius agreed.  I found myself blushing, rubbing my cheeks to dull what I could of the red.

“It’s nothing really,” I tried to pass off the praise, the idea making me far more uncomfortable. But I could tell they didn’t want to pass it off, trying quickly to continue the compliments.  Even when my stance turned to me hugging myself, forcing a fake appreciative smile on my face.

“Aro, enough,” a sudden snap from Marcus made him stop, the low growl not something I expected from my gentle giant.  I had to look up at him to make sure he wasn’t angry, but I was merely greeted with a calm look.  One that hid a small bit of worry underneath.  But the compliments ceased, Aro and Caius sharing a very confused look.  They didn’t speak, at least, not at an interval I could hear.  I mean, they could be sharing some telepathic language that I am not aware of… right?

“Forgive me, I’m just not use to attention or praise.  Truth is, I’m use to being exactly what I am good at, and that’s being invisible,” I started, knowing now that I had their attention.  Truth was, I was debating with telling them about my past.  I knew it would be difficult to explain, but Aro was right in a way.  Perhaps one of them knew exactly what it was like.  They were thousands of years old.  Lived through a time that I could never fully understand myself.  So perhaps someone understood.

“I grew up in a very chaotic life.  My father abandoned us before I was born.  Mom held some hope he would come back but he never did.  And mom and I could never see eye to eye.  She hated me.  Hated that I existed and took away the one person she loved.  We often lived in the poorest and darkest parts of town,” I paused, picking at a spot on my shirt.  It took me a second to gather my thoughts in order to continue.  “It was easier I suppose.  Mom often performed sexual favors to get out of paying rent or if she was short.  She drank a lot.  Got into some heavy drugs.  There was hardly any food in the house so I scraped by with what I could get ahold of. Mom, of course, never wanted to really see me out and about so I had to sneak around to avoid her.”

“I see,” Marcus’ voice held a sad note, his eyes void of any light that I was used to seeing.  He probably saw the line that connected me to her. He had explained his gift once to me. So, it was only logical.  I’m sure it didn’t look all that pretty either. Probably frayed and merely connected by a single thread.

“Yeah.  It’s like I told the Cullens, I saw a lot of red eyes where I lived.  Ran into a group that I guess activated my ability because they tried to attack me. But I disappeared on them.”

“Do you remember them at all?” Aro’s voice held a bit of retribution in it, my eyes finally connecting with his.  I guess my ability blocked out that part of my life because I could tell this was news to him.

“I could recognize them if I saw them.  But not off the top of my head,” I answered honestly.  Aro nodded only once, sharing a look with Caius as if he could deduce anything.

“Rogues.  They frequent the less fortunate areas.  High crime rates, missing persons- any attacks can go unnoticed and unsolved by law enforcement,” Caius shook his head.  “We cannot fault them for that.  Or we would have to fault ourselves for not finding her.”

It only took me a minute to realize what Caius meant, knowing then that Aro held some animosity toward the ones that attacked.  Which was odd.  I figured Caius would be the one to throw some sort of fit about them.  Not Aro.

“Alessandra,” a soft sigh made me look at Caius, the blond vampire having some sort of understanding in that moment.  It took a lot for me to not bolt when he held his hands out.  I didn’t know if I disappointed him yet I couldn’t feel that coming from him either.  Caius, to my surprise however, didn’t rush me.  It was as if he knew something the others didn’t.  Something about me.  Or about my situation.

“You do not need to blame yourself for anything that had happened to you.  I can see it in your eyes,” those words made me stiffen.  Aro and Marcus did as well.  Which surprised me once again.  I didn’t know what to think of those words.  Perhaps the shock came from it being Caius, the most volatile one of the bunch.  Yet he was not rushing, not snapping at me… what was going on actually?

“Masters!”

All three turned toward the doorway, Marcus quick to shelter me in his robes as they addressed the one who had bothered us.  It wasn’t one of the normal guard, I could easily tell that.  This one was probably of the lower ranks, though it made me wonder for a brief moment how large their army was.  I mean, vampires couldn’t die of natural causes, so an endless army was possible to build.

“What is it?” the familiar snap of the blonde was back, though he was standing closer to my form.  Aro had done the same as well, each standing unbearably close to my form as if they couldn’t trust the new comer.  Again, made me wonder…

“Multiple visitors have arrived, requesting your presence,” came the news, the young vampire swallowed thickly, her focus quick to snap to me.

“Tell them it can wait. We are busy,” Caius’ words were not kind as he turned to face me.  But his features did not match his words, as if he was hiding his displeasure from me.

“I understand, Masters, but-“

“But what?”

“One of them has asked to see Lady Alessandra,” she paused, bowing deeply before adding, “by name.”

“Who would ask for me? No one knows I’m here aside from the Cullens,” I countered, suspicious by the situation.  No one knows but them.  They were the only ones who mattered anyways.

“I am not sure, my lady. But she claims,” the vampire paused, again unsure of what else to say.  At least until Caius snapped again, peering over his shoulder toward her.  And that was when she uttered a single sentence that made my body go cold with shock and horror.

“She claims to be your mother.”

[xxrainbow-princessxx]

The Return - Leo x Isabella (TRR/TRH AU)

Can Leo get to Isabella and the kids in time?

Chapter list:

Chapter 1: Enough

Chapter 2: Homeward Bound

Chapter 3: Band of Brothers

Chapter 4 Dearest Sympathies

Chapter 5: No Expectations

Chapter 6: Line of Succession

Chapter 7: Unspoken Truths

Chapter 8: Family Ties

Find links for previous chapters here! 

Tag list: @lorirwritesfanfic @drakewalkerfantasy @desireepow-1986@rainbowsinthestorm @lorircreates @itslaniquelove @liam-rhys @hopefulmoonobject @speedyoperarascalparty @kimmiedoo5 @rafasgirl23415 @kingliam2019@mom2000aggie @texaskitten30 @the-everlasting-dream

Trigger warning: Violence, death, premonition of death, sexual innuendo, swearing

Isabella struggled against Barthelemy’s guards to break free, running across to Natalia and Alessandra who were petrified. Stroking their faces, Isabella tried her hardest to hide her true emotion; she was just as scared as them but she couldn’t let her children down, “it’s ok... it’s ok...” she nervously smiled, her eyes darting to check them over visually from head to toe “Where’s Nico?” Isabella whispered but the girls didn’t speak, their hazel green eyes reflected their fear. Isabella wasted no time bringing them into a tight hug as she had to think fast, “Mama’s here... I got you...” Taking a deep breath, Isabella bit down onto her lip as she stood tall once again, placing her children behind her, “What is this all in aid of?” Isabella shouted as it echoed through the quiet throne room, with one hand holding her children behind her, her other hand gesticulated wildly, “Why are you doing all of this?!” Barthelemy simply laughed, “My dear... it’s simple... The Sons of Earth never could in a million years take over our wonderful Cordonia alone... each generation would bring its own obstacles and tribulations...” he smiled evilly towards his niece, “... but when your divorce was announced, Laurentia would make our base even more powerful and prophetic. With me as our leader...” Barthelemy’s brow raised, “We would become unstoppable in our defeat of the Rys bloodline...” The roar of the thugs he used to infiltrate the Laurentian Palace filled the room of joyous chanting, “...and unfortunately for you my darling niece... you also have become a part of that bloodline...” Barthelemy’s eyes darkened, glittering with a madness Isabella could only describe as horrific, “Please...” she begged, “Please spare the children... they have not done anything to deserve this!” Barthelemy began to walk towards Isabella before he looked over her shoulder towards the twins grinning cruelly “Maybe they can join Camille and Nicolás in our new world... we always need a few... spares in case it doesn’t work out...” Isabella’s eyes narrowed, her dark chocolate brown eyes darkening as she spat at him, “Give him back you fucking piece of shit!!”

Wiping his cheek, Barthelemy’s nostrils flared with rage, “You insolent bitch!” as he slapped Isabella across the face angrily screaming, “You will not disrespect me!” The Royal guards were in a political stalemate as Barthelemy made his claim to the throne, their pledge to protect the Crown at all costs left them divided but as Isabella fell to the ground, Barthelemy glared at all in the room, “One step... take one fucking step and you’ll not leave this room alive!” He kneeled down, lifting her head by her dark, mahogany curls, addressing the young Queen menacingly, Barthelemy grinned with an evil smile, “You’re lucky I only need to keep you alive for a few more days... and to think...” he goaded her, “I sent you flowers, this is how you repay my courtesy... Obviously your parents didn’t teach you manners...” pointing to a random guard, Barthelemy clicked his tongue, “Take them out of here as we begin our ascension into greatness!” Isabella’s dark, chocolate brown eyes glared with rage as the guard attempted to pull her arm, “Get off of me!” she screeched, her eyes narrowing angrily, “You’ll regret that!” The Sons of Earth guard simply laughed, “I somehow don’t think so...” as he pressed a gun to her spine, “Time to go...” he sneered as Isabella reluctantly gave into his threats, holding Alessandra and Natalia close to her. Looking over her shoulder, Isabella’s dark mahogany curls bounced as she took a final glance at her Uncle. With her cheeks sucked in, and a brow raised, the young Queen stared at him momentarily until she was pushed out of the throne room and escorted to the holding cells held in the catecombs. Isabella’s temper was renowned, but at that very moment she vowed if they made it through this, Barthelemy would burn for this.

“Shhhii...” Jimena’s eyes widened as she reached over Matthew’s mouth to stop him from speaking; both of them staring helplessly through the vents into the Palace’s throne room. Jimena glared at him, her voice barely a whisper as she spoke, “Shut up...” before her gaze returned to the room watching those still in attendance. Taking her phone, she began to briefly record Barthelemy and his army’s chanting, panning left and right. “We need to get out of here...” she muttered quietly, “We need to get to the Parliament building...” Matthew looking more and more confused as Jimena began to rummage through the lockers. With a satisfied smile, she turned to Matthew holding a guards uniform, “Hurry up and get changed...” Matthew raised his brow as he was handed the garment bag but knew better to question her. The Queen’s lady in waiting terrified him as Jimena stared him down, “What are you waiting for?” Her dark almond eyes narrowed, “...A standing ovation? Hurry up before we get caught!” She was bossy to the point it could be construed as rude and like an arrow, straight to the point. Folding her arms, Jimena pursed her lips as Matthew undressed, “I would like to not die today thank you...” stripping himself from his light grey suit, Matthew draped himself in the military regalia before Jimena moved forward placing the military cap on his golden head, “Much better...” she cooed as her hands delicately dusted off his broad shoulders, “Now follow me...”

As the Cordonian Royal jet landed in a disused aerodrome, Leo, Liam and Drake embarked immediately to a waiting vehicle. During the flight, Leo and Liam called in as many favours as possible to veil their arrival into the Kingdom, working with their neighbouring countries to free up their air space, allowing them to pass freely and undetected. Leo was well aware of the situation he found himself in. Not only was Barthelemy attempting to take over, there would be defiance in rank. “Your Majesty...” Javier smiled as he pressed down on the accelerator, “Welcome home...” Leo could only chuckle as he patted his trusted confidante’s shoulder, “You’re a sight for sore eyes Javier...” before he handed Leo an iPad, “This is the latest we received from Jimena...” The three men huddled around to watch the blurry video, moving back and forth as they tried to analyse it. “Your Royal Majesties... we also have news...” Liam and Leo immediately rose their heads, eyes widening with anticipation, “The Princesses are fine, they are with the Queen for now... but...” Leo and Liam’s hearts began to sink, there always had to be something, “...Prince Nicolás has been taken alongside Princess Camille but they are safe for now...”

Leo could feel his blood beginning to boil, his face reddening as he tried to contain his anger. “Leo... he’s ok...” Javier continued, “...the children are with the maids, no harm will come to them...” Leo glanced at Liam momentarily who felt like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders, his daughter, his little Camille was so close he could almost feel her in his arms again. Liam sat stoically looking out the window as they drove to Parliament to meet the others. Barthelemy would regret the day he had taken her from Liam and Sienna and Liam was going to make sure that he felt every ounce of pain he had for months. “Li...” Drake quietly questioned as Leo and Javier we’re discussing the next course of action, “You ok?” Liam turned to Drake as Leo and Javier continued their conversation quietly murmuring, “How can he be so calm?!” Drake rolled his eyes to the left as Leo spoke tactics, “Li... he’s fighting for his family... his life... he knows he can’t be distracted from that...” Liam slowly bit down on his lower lip, “Drake...” he whispered, “I’m terrified... and I just pray to God my brother knows what he’s doing...” With his shaggy dark hair, Drake nodded as he reached out to grasp Liam’s arm to comfort him, “Li... he’s not the same Leo you grew up with; this has never been about him - it’s been about you. He is risking his own life to get Camille back...” Drake implored, “...without him, we’d still be searching...” With a sullen nod, Liam reluctantly agreed, he knew Drake was right but he couldn’t help but wonder what else was in it for Leo? He couldn’t have changed that much.

“Get you hands off of me!” Isabella’s nostrils flared as she struggled in the guards grip before lifting her foot and ramming her stiletto heel into his leg, the guard winced and clenched his teeth before grabbing her by the hair, “You fucking bitch!” he spat, “I can’t wait for them to fucking execute you and that husband of yours soon enough!” Isabella took a deep breath as she tried so hard not to scream out in pain but she barked back, “My husband wouldn’t even be allowed to speak to me like that!” Forcefully throwing her into one of the cells, the guard chuckled to himself as Isabella fell forward, caught by her two daughters, “Well guess what Your Majesty? Your husband ain’t here! Now be good girls and for once, do as you are told!” With two whimpering children and the metal door locking behind them, Isabella held Alessandra and Natalia as tight as she could, biting her tongue watching carefully as the guard walk off laughing to himself throwing the keys up and down in his hands. “Mi querida... mi querida...” she mumbled as her voice trembled, “It’s going to be ok... don’t listen to that crazy man... this is all...” she tried to smile, “...just a big mistake and Javier will get us out of here... I promise”

Alessandra and Natalia’s hazel green eyes glistened as they looked at one another quietly, “...mama?” Natalia squeezed her mother’s hand tightly, “mama... I’m scared... where’s papa?” Isabella blinked back tears as she brought her daughters closer, “Don’t be scared my beautiful girl... your father once he knows about this he will not...” she brushed the loose tendrils of her daughter’s chestnut brown hair from her face, “...he will not let a strand on either of your perfect little heads be touched, not by anyone... ok?” Each of them nuzzled into Isabella shoulders as they cried, struggling to understand what was going on. Their cries echoed throughout the dark, cold cells as Isabella rocked them back and forth to try to comfort them. She began to sing to them “Bailaba la niña alegre, en una noche estrellada. Movíase al son del aire, bajo la luna de plata. ¡Cómo bailaba la niña! ¡Cómo la niña bailaba!” She sang this song to her children every night before they went to sleep. “Cómo la niña bailaba...” she whispered as they sat in the darkness, only each other for heat and comfort.

Sucking in his cheeks, Leo proudly marched himself into Parliament, his sea green eyes scanned the room as he saw the Laurentian military gathered and standing to attention as he, Drake and Liam walked into the room. The crowd bowed as Javier stood next to him, “¡Atención!” he bellowed, “His Royal Highness, King Leo... The Queen and Royal family are still in the Laurentian Palace; we must fight together to reinstate normality...” Leo raised his hand stopping Javier in his tracks, “Sorry my friend... if I may?” Javier nodded as Leo addressed the many factions of military gathered, “I know I have no right to request; but my wife, your Queen and my children are under that roof. My wife has dedicated her life to you all, our daughters and son will do the same. This coup has came to our shores because of a self fulfilling prophecy embarked upon by those who were fantasists... Cordonian militants who I am ashamed to have called family once upon a time and have desecrated our home. I stand before you as a husband and a father to ask for your help to overthrow this madness...” Leo stood proud and tall as the military dropped to their knee pledging their allegiance. “For King and Queen!” their chants filled the Parliament building as Leo looked over his shoulder towards Drake and Liam winking at them as he smiled.

To blend in, all three Cordonian men were dressed in the same green military uniform as the others. Leo and Javier stood side by side as they reviewed the blueprints of the Laurentian Palace surrounded by Generals, Admirals and Royal Guard Commanders. “We make use of blocking the tunnel system as much as we can...” Leo’s voice was strong and authoritative, “The tunnels run from the Palace directly to here. The airforce and navy teams can help block off these tunnels, and work with the coast guard to review the ports...” Leo pointed towards the blueprint, “The army will surround the Palace as the marines and Royal guard will clear the entrances... allowing smaller factions of the army to follow behind... the main priority is to find the Queen and children to ensure their safety... the youngest according ton intelligence states they are with the maids, so should still be in the nursery...” The men gathered around the table nodded in agreement to the plan until they were interrupted by the banging against the Parliament Chamber door. Leo’s sea green eyes flickered to a shade of blue as he raised his brow before nodding allowing the heavy reinforced door to be opened. Jimena and Matthew stood with their hands raised as hundreds of rifles were pointed in their direction until Leo called them to a halt. The Laurentian lady in waiting was not pleased, her lips pursed as she confronted Leo, “Took you long enough!” Jimena barked as Leo chuckled, “I can’t teleport...” he looked over her shoulder and smiled towards the Englishman stood behind her, “New boyfriend?” Jimena bit down and tried her hardest not to giggle, “No... this is Lord Devereaux... Isabella’s lawyer...” Leo’s smile wavered as he looked the English Nobleman up and down, “I see...” he replied dryly, “Your services Lord Devereaux... are no longer required...”