#and roland training astolfo

[noes-pillow]

If Vanitas used to be with the chasseurs why don't any of them recognize him?

[neversetyoufree]

Looking back, I wonder how much of Vanitas's choice in this scene is tied to the fact that he was given a choice in the first place.

So much of Vanitas's character is centered around the theme of self-determination (and the lack thereof). He is absolutely deprived of any control over his body and/or destiny at many of the key points in his life, and nowadays he's always desperately grasping at what few shards of self-determination he does have. This is why he freaks out when Roland talks about him being "under the vampires' power" in mémoire 15. It's why he's hung up on the idea of freedom as isolation from others' influence. It's why his main response to being triggered is to do something crazy and cause a scene; it puts him in control of the situation.

All that to say, when Luna destroys Moreau's lab and agrees to take Misha away, Vanitas must be desperate to feel some form of in-control, but I do not think he expects to be given any choice in what happens to him next. He's been conditioned not to expect that despite how much he wants it.

Vanitas certainly doesn't have much agency in how he lives his life as a child, as no kid gets to pick their parents or circumstances, and Vani has it especially rough with the death of his mother hanging over his head. Then his father dies protecting him, and he dies in a situation in which Vanitas is utterly powerless. Horror erupts into his life out of nowhere, and his dad throws himself in front of some fangs, and there's nothing Vanitas can do but watch it happen.

Next there's Vanitas's brief time training as a chasseur, which is one part of his history we know little about, so it's hard for me to say how free his choice was. He may have been pressured into joining, as we know the Chassuers aren't above pushy/manipulative recruitment of children (Astolfo), but I could also see his choice to hunt vampires made as a trauma response to the powerlessness of the vampire attack he survived. "I was powerless, so I'll claim the power to enact violence and make sure they can't hurt me or others again."

Then Vanitas is abducted by Doctor Moreau, which strips him of his agency just about as awfully as anything possibly could.

Vanitas the test subject has no bodily autonomy. He is poked and prodded and experimented on, because his body is an object of science to Moreau, not the vessel of a person with rights or self-determination. His only big active choices during his captivity are the choice to not run away for fear of somebody else suffering and the choice to volunteer in Mikhail's place. The only choices he can make are the choices to stay and throw himself even deeper into his own violation. Even his relationship with Misha is something that just kind of Happens to him. The kid is a force of nature that Moreau dumps on him without his say.

(This isn't Mikhail's fault, as Misha is just a child that wants affection, but having a needy, vulnerable little brother figure suddenly dropped on him in the midst of all that horror couldn't have made Vanitas feel less out of control).

Then Vanitas's torment by Moreau hits its climax, and Vanitas is told that not only has his body been violated by way of pain and torture—even his basic humanity has been and will be stripped from him. He now feels the disgust of having the blood of something he hates inside of him without his consent. And he's about to be killed, turned into a mindless husk of a "living key" instead of a person.

And that's when Luna shows up. This mysterious, incredibly powerful being appears and wreaks havoc on Moreau's lab like an avenging angel, and it agrees to Mikhail's request to take "us" along with it. Everything in Vanitas's life so far has taught him that he is powerless in the face of others' great power. Horrible shit just keeps happening to him forever, and this monstrous person sounds like they've just agreed to carry him off on Mikhail's request without a word of input from him. Of course he doesn't expect to be given a choice.

But he is.

Luna scoops up Mikhail, then they turn to Vanitas and ask if he would like to come along with them as well. After months or years of absolutely all of his autonomy and power being stripped away from him, the most powerful being Vanitas has ever encountered stops and gives him a choice about what he'd like to do next. They give him the option to go off on his own and decide his own fate rather than go along with them. And that's why Vanitas doesn't run away.

These are the images that flash through Vanitas's head right before he gets up and runs to Luna:

These moments are what inform Vanitas's choice. The memories of his father's death and Moreau's final experiment on him—his two most awful moments of abject helplessness.

When Vanitas runs to Luna and accepts their offer, these moments are what he's running from. He's fleeing from his inability to do anything or control his fate. He's running from a life of stolen agency. He's running toward the one adult who actually stopped and gave him a choice about what he'd like to do next.

Vanitas chooses Luna because they, despite having the power to kill or subdue him, give him the freedom to choose to accompany them in the first place. He's drawn to them not for protection, but as an escape to a life where he gets to keep making choices and grasp some agency.

Luna is the savior that gives Vanitas his freedom and autonomy back after it's stolen by Moreau. That's why it's so tragic that Vanitas carries their Mark in the present day. It's undeniable proof that, in their right mind or not, some version of Luna violated the fundamental trust and gift of autonomy that brought Vanitas into their family in the first place.

Luna's bite, both the physical violation and the transformation into inhumanity that it brings, is yet another way that Vanitas is stripped of all control of his body and fate.

[ishytori]

Завдання було виконано успішно!.. Або Роланд так думає XD

Спільне тренування Роланда й Астольфо

--------------------------------------

Mission was successfully completed!.. Or Roland thinks so XD

Roland and Astolfo training (Ukrainian)

[retracexcviii]

Chasseur Trinity Timeline

Hello there, I'm back with my timelines because I need everything to be in order XD

Since this time I didn't wrote a lot of things in the timeline, I will explain my points below (anyways, if after reading it you have some question, don't doubt and tell me):

First of all, we know that in present day Olivier is 27 y.o and Roland is 26 y.o thanks an old Omake (I don't have it rn, sorry).

1) Roland and Olivier met:

I don't know if they are around 8, 10, 12 or more so I used a big period of time in which they could have started meeting.

2) Roland and Olivier arrived Paris:

This is when they started they training as Chasseurs and we got some information:

Olivier hairstyle was different.

They were late teens or young adults here.

Roland was covered in bandages (for training or a mision).

Side note: importance of Roland's scars.

Roland's scars were what I used to organise the events between they met and when Astolfo lost his family:

As a kid, he didn't have any scar so we know this is something he got as a Chasseur.

(image from 46.5 of Roland covered in bandages)

When he started training he was covered in bandages so we can't tell if he got his scars here or not. But anyways, this is the nearest event to him and Olivier meeting because it's when they started the training XD

(image of Roland and Misha in memoire 47. Roland has right arm broken and is fully covered in bandages again)

When he met Misha after a nearly death experience, Roland was totally covered again + and eye patch (here is when I think he got the injuries that become his scars).

This event can be near to when they started training, but it can't be near the time Astolfo met Roland because in that moment Roland and Olivier were full recovered.

+ I don't think this happened after rescuing Astolfo because basically, taking care of Astolfo became 24/7 Roland's job.

And finally here we are able to see his scars. It's near to when they rescued Astolfo so that's other point to think he got all of that before Roland and Astolfo met.

(imagine is yellow) 3) When Olivier planned to leave the Chasseurs a.k.a. When Roland met Misha:

Back to the timeline, as I explained with Roland's scars, this has to be before rescuing Astolfo.

And again, this event can be near to when they started training, but it can't be near to when they rescued Astolfo because both Roland and Olivier had their arms broken. And depending what it's broken you need around 2 months or more to use it normally again (maybe the Chasseurs have drugs to make it shorter, but I will ignore that).

4) Olivier and Astolfo met:

We can't really know if this was the first time they see each other or even if this 2 panels are from the same day, but there are 2 important things to note:

Olivier wasn't a Paladin yet.

Astolfo already know the vampire.

5) The doomed day:

Between the previous event to this one there shouldn't be much time and, since Astolfo wears the exact same suit, I could even tell it was that same night. But kids can use the same clothes in different days so it can be more time between these events.

Side note 2: UwU I killed.

Since Astolfo wasn't a Paladin here and he is really similar to the present day, I think this happened around a year ago because Astolfo became Paladin at 15 and he is still 15 y.o.

6) Present day:

It's still 1888 because Astolfo's birthday is 6th January (basically, first day of 1889) and since he still 15, they are probably at the end of 1888.

Here both Roland and Astolfo are Paladins, but Astolfo ascended time before Roland.

.

.

.

And that's all, thanks for reading my mucho texto.

[chansonderoland]

Roland Valentine’s scene & CE translation - Fate/Grand Order

[Let’s see… I’m going to give this chocolate to Roland, but]

Roland A chocolate for me?! Ohh, thank you!

I have no choice but to take it off!

Ye—ah! I got a chocolateeeeeee!

*shakes head* 

[He won’t go that far, right!] [... probably!]

*Roland and Astolfo training* 

Roland Haaaaaaaaaah!

Astolfo Yaaaaaaaaaah!

Ready, set—

Roland !

Astolfo Too late!

[Vulcano Caligorante (Capture Net of Good Fortune)]!

Roland It’s not… too late!

[(The sword got entangled in his arm—!?)]

Astolfo Huh? Huh, huh, huh?

Roland …. Mmmmmmmmh…!

Astolfo Wa, wa, wah. Wa, wait—

Roland Hahaha, there’s no way I’d wait!

*loud crash* 

Astolfo Uhnyah—!?

Roland It’s the difference between our strength and our tactics. The only thing in your advantage was your timing.

As long as I know how to handle that, the rest is easy.

Astolfo Uuhh….

Roland Even if you look at me like that, it’s still the truth—

Astolfo You’re right!  Then let’s go one more time!

Master’s here now, so I won’t lose this time! 

Roland Oh, Master. My bad, my bad. What is it?

If it’s training we can do it together… 

[Roland, here you go!]

Roland ?

???

Astolfo Roland has the same expression as a cat that has seen something strange…

It’s choco, y’know, chocolate!

Ah, Master. Please gimme one too!

[I’ve already given you one] [Sorry, I’ll give it to you next time]

-> [I’ve already given you one]

Right, right! 

… will you give me another one? You won’t? You won’t, huh—

-> [Sorry, I’ll give it to you next time] 

Yay, I’m looking forward to it!

Astolfo So, Roland, what’s wrong? 

Roland Um…. no. I just don’t know what I should do.

Don’t get me wrong!   I’m really grateful! There’s no doubt about that!

However… You need to give something in return for Valentine’s, right?

I just can’t think of anything to give you in return for this favour…

[(He’s more serious than I thought…)]

Astolfo Uhmm. Well, anything other than stripping is fine, right?

I’ll go train with someone else while you think about that! 

*Astolfo leaves* 

Roland Hey, wait, Astolfo! Let’s think about this together!

Geez. He really left, huh…

Uhm… Master. Is there anything you want?

If it’s something I can give you, I’m ready to give you anything!

Though it’s impossible if it’s something I don’t have…

[Anything is fine]

Hey, that’s cold.

It makes it harder for me if you say that.

Ah, but wait a second. Hmm…. it can’t be helped. I’ll bring out my best!

[Your best…?] [Your best…] 

-> [Your best…?]

Yeah, my best!

->[Your best…]

Roland Yeah, in other words— My best birthday suit!

Roland I know what you’re thinking, but that’s not it. 

*Roland kneels* 

Roland My Master. No, at this moment, my King!

I dedicate my fealty and my oath,  and my chivalry to thee.

[Huh!?]

Are you dissatisfied?

[No, not at all!]

*Roland gets up* 

Heey, I’m just kidding, just kidding!

I’ll give you something more concrete when we get back!

Like QP! Or golden fruits!

*slap* 

Eh, that won’t do either?

That’s hard… then, I have only one thing left…

— should I take it off?

[This is enough—!]

Okay, understood!

Ah, but even if it’s not a return gift for the chocolate, my fealty and oath are real!

You can trust me on that! See ya!  

*Roland leaves* 

[My knight, huh…]

—

As a knight

A return gift from Roland.

Well, for me as a servant, even if another master shows up— For you, I’ll be your one and only servant.

So even if my king is here, as a knight, there is no doubt to whom I should give my allegiance to. My dear, esteemed Master. On my life and on my pride, I swear in this moment that I shall protect you with all my heart and soul.

Hahaha. Did I manage to seem like a knight for once?

— more than enough.

— 

TL Notes: 

I am no expert in Japanese, and I would have never attempted to translate this scene if it wasn’t dubbed. Take it with a grain of salt and feel free to disregard as soon as something better comes up. I tried to make it as natural as possible, but I’m not a native English speaker either, so if you think it’s weird, it probably is. 

Anyways, thanks for reading and please remember to give your Roland a chocolate. 

[cerealkiddie]

hihi ! i was wondering if i could request Carer!Roland headcanons from VNC please ? I don't have any specific ideas but maybe ? Like how he became your carer and his favourite things to do or general HCs ? Things like that! Thank you !!!

Carer!Roland Fortis Headcanons !

I'm up to date on the anime.. not the manga. so there r probably gaps in my knowledge of his character. hc on how he became a carer and your carer. sorry this is short!

he probably saw astolfo regressing and wanted to help him.

astolfo is regressor coded. he's going in the babypile rn. anyway back to regularly scheduled hc

roland wanted to be of assistance to another chasseur, his caring instincts took over. asking simple question of 'are you alright?' and 'can I touch you?' he probably took astolfo out of the training grounds and to his quarters to calm down and relax.

roland is super empathetic and observant though when it comes to certain things he's a teensy bit dense. he may not know all ur regressing que's but he goes with every change in ur personality. you wanna snack and floor time? he's going along with it. need something to chew on, here some chewelry!

loves singing soft hymns if you have trouble falling asleep.

very easy going, goes along with whatever his regressor wants to do but always manages to keep then in check with their energy levels so they don't exhaust themselves

extreme no no on playing hide and seek in the catacombs of the church. Roland doesn't want u to get hurt, lost or anything.

when he acknowledges vanitas and noè as friend and not foe he introduces them to you. hoping everybody will be friends.

he simply loves helping and watching over you while regressed. which also goes into my hc of him going w the flow of ur regression. if u wanna eat, he's cooking or finding a lovely restaurant. u wanna play? he's already pulling out your toys!

ddlg/abdl/nsfw/variants dni! add any of ur own headcanons in the comments or reblogs ! post belongs to me ☆

[haistulf]

empatheorem event info!

if you want to bodyswap with astolfo, you need to be comfortable with themes of assault and suicide, as those still affect him physically!

weapons

he's a fresh boy, so he's got nothing but a knife strapped to his back (that he stole) and a metal spear (that he bought)

abilities

he was trained with the spear specifically, with daggers as a backup. also hand to hand combat as a last resort

he's dexterous above everything else. when he fights with louisette/a spear, he doesn't hit hard, but he hits a lot, and that's what gives him an advantage against enemies that are usually physically stronger than a 15 year old boy

intentionally leaves openings in his fighting style to lure his enemy closer and then stab them, like a bitch

appearance

around 150cm or 4’11”ft. he's so small. also pretty skinny, he's mostly lean, think kid gymnast

always carries a red cross necklace with him

also wears a set of vampire teeth as earrings

pink, diagonal bob that he takes good care of

a couple of physical marks left by assault and a suicide attempt

mannerisms

french (derogatory)

uses monsieur and mademoiselle a lot

technically knows what manners are. he was raised as a noble first and then as a vampire hunter in church, so he has a baseline of acting like he's too good for most people he talks to. will also abandon any manners when he doesn't feel like using them

lots of self-hatred in that noggin

secretly insecure and acts snooty to make up for it

sadistic and violent

hatred for vampires in particular but will also get angry at any supernatural beings in general

very touchy about any mention of his family and/or his skill as a chasseur (vampire hunter)

always covered up in long sleeves and turtlenecks. likes to be stylish with lots of lace while he's at it

memories

i'll be honest, it's mostly dark. plenty of material to choose from for angst that i can go into detail for when we plot! all depends on the comfort level of the other mun. a couple of events that will probably be unavoidable include: -> vampires killing his family -> his following suicide attempt -> religious trauma inflicted throughout his time in the church

there's also some soft, from his time being raised by roland and olivier, before his falling out with roland. those are probably the happiest memories astolfo has, and he still mourns them. his memories of the granatum household are mostly tainted by their eventual death

icons

i have around ~150 icons right now that i'm happy to share for the purposes of the event!

this post also functions as an interest checker! feel free to like this post if you'd like to thread in the event!

[dervaaas]

Anything for you

You're his guardian.

platonic!Astolfo Granatum x reader

I honestly don't know how to describe it.

Damn I love this topic so much. I would like more of this, but I will write it myself!

F! reader

After being rescued by Roland Astolfo, he brought him to the church, after several showdowns, the top remembered the decision to put a guardian to him for supervision in the future, and it's a plus to take care of him now. When the question arose on whom to leave him, many supported the idea of exposing Y/N as his guardian.

A few days later, Y/N was brought to a little boy, at this time he was discussing something with Roland with admiration. When she approached them: Roland introduced Y/N and Astolfo explaining to him the whole situation and the importance of her being here. The boy accepted her with complete reluctance, but the girl understood that it would not be so easy, especially considering what he had experienced recently.

For Astolfo, the kindness received from Y/N became significant, perhaps he did not even think that someone else would take care of him, worry just like his mother. Roland began to take him with him to training, to which the boy willingly agreed. The guy became an immaculate ideal for the boy, who would kill a ghoul without hesitation. Astolfo praised Roland all the time, saying that one day he would become like him. All his joy was in him, and Y/N just a person who looks after him.

For two years like this, she had never heard him talk about her somehow, there was no such proud smile when he talked about her. It shouldn't bother her, but still, affection says the opposite. She wants to hear something about herself at least once, and not in terms of the fact that everything is fine with her and what she cooked today.

— Y/N wants to come back today, but I still didn't understand what she meant.. The boy stared at the ground, puzzled, after a question from his mentor.

— Come back? Oh, is she really going back to work as a hunter? Did you know she was one of the paladins? And she also had every chance to become one of the main ones in the church?

- no.. is that true? Astolfo immediately perked up. Is the person who is his guardian a person with a high status in the church?

"That's right, she even taught me for a while," Roland smiled proudly at the boy.

It was after this that Astolfo began to show more interest in Y/N. To her habits, the way she helps him with scratches and bruises after training.

—Is something wrong, Astolfo?" The woman asked him anxiously.

"Were you really a paladin?" The boy asked her with considerable embarrassment.

— Ah, well, yes, but not for a very long time, my health did not allow it.

— So you're really coming back!?

Astolfo became more attentive, asked for help in training., asked about everything he could. This probably pleased Y/N, but also offended in a sense. If she hadn't been a paladin once, would he have shown such interest? Probably not.

Worry about the fact that he began to treat Roland like that and his very aggressive behavior at his mention. Astolfo does not tell why he behaves like this, no matter how hard you try.

Excitement and pride comes with the news that Astolfo has become the youngest paladin in the history of the church. More than once he was told to be careful, even though he was strong. Mentally, physically, it doesn't matter, as long as he returns to her and tries something new in her cooking.

After what happened in Gevodan, Roland brought Astolfo straight into the house. Briefly tells about what happened, not missing a moment about Vanitas and Noah, and what they did.

— Mom, can I not go anywhere today? — Astolfo was lying with a fever after an overdose, and plus to everything he was not so warmly dressed.

— Of course, for you – anything. —Y/N with a gentle smile strokes this guy, who so diligently wants to seem like something worthwhile for her, against the background of her achievements. Although she doesn't care, as long as he doesn't suffer, everything is fine.

[300iqprower]

Hypothetical Rank Up No. 50: Chiron

[I really don’t know why i do these but i’ve racked up 50, somehow. I was considering doing some special revisit or whatever but I ended up just doing the only Apocrypha servant left that I think only needs 1 rank up, since i really do need to stop getting sidetracked from my impromptu “all of Apoc gang” thing and it lets me still have number 50 be its own post. We can just say it's my official catalyst for the only Argonaut I still need now that I have Asclepius.]

Mind’s Eye (True) A > Mentor’s Insight A++

Apply Evade to self (1 turn). Increase own DEF (3 turns).^ Increase HP Recovery Amount for all allies (5 turns). Decrease own Critical Star Gather Rate by 100% (3 turns). Decrease Skill Cooldown for another ally by 2 turns. [This unit can only be selected if there are no other allies] If selected ally is a [Prophesized Hero] Servant: - Apply Target Focus to self (1 turn) - Decrease your Skill Cooldowns by 1 turn. - Increase own NP Strength (1 time, 3 turns).

[Prophesized Hero] servants: Mash Kyrielight, Artoria, Artoria lily, Artoria Archer, Castoria, Lalter, Gilgamesh, Casgil, Atalante, Nyalter, Cu Chulainn, Cascu, Proto Cu, Georgios, Ushiwakamaru, Summer Ushiwakamaru, Heracles, Lancelot, Saberlot, Sakata Kintoki, Rider Kintoki, Hektor, Diarmuid, Saber Diarmuid, Arjuna, Karna, Santa Karna, Fionn Mac Cumhaill, Beowulf, Astolfo, Edmond Dantes, Rama, Sanzang, Sitonai, Minamoto no Raikou, Tristan, Gawain, Saint Martha, Ruler Martha, William Tell, Siegfried, Archer of Shinjuku, Yan Qing, Proto Arthur, Penthesilia, Musashi, Nezha, Achilles, Okita Alter, Sigurd, Bradamante, Asvathaman, Asclepius, Jason, Paris, Spishtar, MHX, MHXX, Mandricardo, Odysseus, Dioscuri, Caeneus, Watanabe no tsuna, Percival, Rider Caeneus, Jiang Ziya, Charlemagne, Roland, Kriemhild, Don Quixote, Super Orion

SO WITH THAT OUT OF THE WAY

Chiron rank up! Make him all about that Mind's Eye with a bread and butter skill! Sometimes the best thing for gameplay is to spread it all out over their kit. Other times, I find it much more fun to have that one skill everything revolves around. That's what this would be. Originally I was going to reduce the cooldown from 8/7/6 to 7/6/5, make the gather down 2 turns instead of 3, and make the cooldown recovery 1 turn for both of your other allies, but then I ended up deciding instead to make it more targeted so that I could add several effects for if Chiron fulfills his role as a mentor of heroes, IE the selected target is a servant who qualifies for that list of somewhat archetypical mythological heroes.

Flavor wise, it's a simple matter of Chiron using his divine wisdom to both defend himself (Mind's Eye True) and to employ a much more powerful version of the Coaching skill (WHY OUT OF ALL THE MENTOR SERVANTS IS THE ONLY ONE WITH A DEDICATED MENTOR SKILL MAID ALTER?!?!) and reduce an ally's cooldowns sharply while also lowering Chiron's normally quite high star gather to nothing so his allies can more easily crit (which also internally synergizes well with his AOE crit up and star bomb second skill) and using his medical knowledge to increase the effectiveness of all healing received by allies, though he's reliant on said allies to actually provide the healing. Taking is a step further, Chiron cannot use his cooldown reduction on himself unless he is solo, and if the servant to receive his mentoring is an actual mythological hero just like the ones he trained, then Chiron's own legend is amplified and he gains several more effects. He shields his allies (apply target focus), is more in his comfort zone teaching them (reduce own cooldowns by 1), and fulfills his divine duty as a mentor of heroes thereby strengthen the constellation he became as a reward for his service to said heroes (NP strength up).

Balancing wise it also gets pretty crazy. Out of all freaking EIGHT of these effects, less than half of them would scale with level, and one of them is Healing Up on a servant with no healing skills so really it's more like two and a half. In exchange, those remaining skills would scale IMMENSELY high, and the reduced cooldown on its own is partially worth leveling for given the potential uptime on the skills and the increased frequency of the non-scaling utility effects. The defense buff would go from a 20% max to a maximum of 35%, the potential NP Strength buff would be a maximum of 50%, and the at its best the HP Recovery Up would be a whopping 100%, effectively turning it into something that means under ideal conditions as long as Chiron is on the field all healing the team receives is doubled. The defense buff in particular is of note because it means that not only does the evade synergize well with the potential target focus, but it also means even against (the nowadays VERY frequent) Ignore Invincible, Chiron would still be able to properly tank hits for allies. The NP Strength up is a one time buff and Chiron generally lacks any personal stims, meaning even if Chiron can get good refund you'll be using that for the utility more than damage the second time. It's still high enough however that between Chiron's damage rank up and supereffective against Earth bonuses, that first NP can easily deal meaningful damage

(PS: do let me know if you think another servant should be included in the "Prophesized Hero" category and if so why; I based this list on people who fulfil the idea of the archetypical "Hero's journey")

[radioactivesweet]

Part 2 of this request​! Aaa sorry homie it took me sooo long

Roland is delighted when you first asked him to train you. He immediately accepts because, even if you don't have to fight, "mens sana in corpore sana", it's important for your health to keep yourself trained.

He is a strict teacher, but since you aren't a fellow chasseur but his lover, he'll try not to be as harsh, even though he finds it a bit hard at first.

Roland will try to involve Astolfo too during these sessions and the boy might accept only because you are here too, since he probably just wants to show you that he can be better than Roland.

When Roland will notice that you are tired, he will let you take a break - or just interrupt the training for that day - because he doesn't want you feel overwhelmed. Little by little you will get better, he is confident about it.

[digital-dhampirs]

If Moreau had kinapped Louisette, that also explains why Roland doesn't do anything against Astolfo's atttude toward him, why he accepts the hate toward him (he feels guilty)and why he seems so destroyed in the comic page where he realized Mikhail's disparition. Because it isn't the first kid who vanished while Roland was not watching. That's also explain why he wanted to kill Moreau too. Maybe he understood what happened to Louisette (and not only her). But if Louisette is 70, where is she now?

Hiya, thanks for the ask! I agree with ya— if Louisette was no.70, I do think Roland could still be carrying some sort of guilt over what happened to her around. I don’t think his lack of reaction to Astolfo’s hatred has anything to do with that, though. Roland doesn’t seem like the type who doubts himself or tends towards self blame— his absolute faith in his god gives him absolute faith in himself. If he made a mistake, he would likely accept that the mistake was somehow in God’s plan and resolve to do better next time (which could lead to him patrolling the area where Louisette disappeared, even while injured). He doesn’t really seem like the type for self flagellation.

If I had to make a guess, it seems like Roland has decided that the best way to approach Astolfo’s hatred is by not rising to the bait and allowing it to continue (for the time being, at least). In my initial post on Astolfo and Roland (still sadly lost to the chaos of my tumblr timeline lmao) I wrote that Roland likely understands that Astolfo’s intense hatred for him is (at least partially) a way for Astolfo to cope with his own self- hatred and guilt.

While my perspective on their relationship has changed a lot since then, I do think this is still somewhat true. When asked about his attachment to Vanitas in chapter 44, Roland states that “…it feels as though, the moment I take my eyes of him, he’ll shatter to pieces.” I can’t help but think Roland’s feelings towards Astolfo are similar (even if he approaches the two in very different ways).

Moving on to Louisette!

If Louisette was No.70, where is she now…. that is indeed the question!! I think Louisette’s current status relies pretty much entirely on what happened to her when Luna attacked the lab. There are four main options I can think of here— 1) Louisette died in the lab prior to Luna’s arrival; 2) Louisette escaped from the lab on her own; 3) Louisette was found in the lab after Luna’s attack; or 4) Moreau took Louisette with him when he escaped from the lab.

Let’s look into each option in greater detail and see if we can come up with some potential routes to where a No.70 Louisette might be in the present.

Option 1: Louisette died in the lab.

I think this is the least likely option at the moment. While it’s definitely possible, and would make sense considering the sheer number of kids Moreau has killed in his twisted experiments, I don’t think it makes sense from a storytelling perspective when there’s a much more impactful way of killing Louisette in the same time frame, which we’ll get into with Option 3.

Option 2: Louisette escaped from the lab on her own.

Option 2 slides in at a close second for least likely option. Luna states that Vanitas would have been able to escape from the lab quite easily, meaning if Louisette received some level of Chasseur training at some point she may have been able to as well, but yeah, this one doesn’t seem likely.

Option 3: Louisette was found by the Chasseurs after Luna’s attack.

Following this discovery, the Chasseurs likely killed Louisette to bury all evidence of Moreau’s wrongdoing. This seems like the most likely outcome to me. Louisette dies, freeing up the role of Monsieur Spider for Johann (or even Louis); and the potential fallout this could have for Roland and Astolfo once they realize what happened is absolutely delightful. Roland is already losing his faith in the Chasseurs as an organization, and learning that they covered up Louisette’s death could be enough to push him over the edge.

However, there’s an alternate route this option could take: what if the Chasseurs, realizing Louisette was mute and unable to spill any secrets, allowed the kid to live? I find this potential outcome absolutely twisted (and therefore like it a lot)— Louisette lives, but is mentally broken and forever unable to tell anyone what happened to her.

Option 4: Moreau took Louisette with him when he escaped from the lab.

This one, this one… this one is a wild card. It’s possible Moreau just speedily retreated from the lab after Luna caused their commotion. But from what we know about the guy, this doesn’t seem like his style— he just lost his two precious test subjects and Luna’s books in a single night; losing a third valuable test subject would be absolutely cataclysmic. If there was any chance of taking No.70 with him during his escape, Moreau would have absolutely snatched the opportunity. So I think there’s a definite possibility that [if Louisette was indeed No.70] Moreau took her with him during his escape.

So where would this leave Louisette?

It’s possible she died in a future experiment, or grew up into one of those hooded Moreau Monsters we see in the Hunters of the Dark arc. Or maybe… well… Monsieur Spider Louisette anyone—

the end (for now)

Those are all of my thoughts on where a potential No.70 Louisette could be in the present era of VnC. Thanks for reading this rambling analysis- of- a- theory type thing and please take everything here with a grain of salt. At this point, I don’t think this even counts as analysis of the source material, this is just me thinking about the potential repercussions of a potential theory that I don’t even have much faith in anymore. And! It’s a lot of fun. So thanks again for the ask!

[ishytori]

Малагіс і Брадаманта - мої ОС з мисливців. Початково Малагіс (або Могі, або Малагігі) - персонаж середньовічних французьких епічних поем-жест, як Роланд, Олів'є, Ож'є та інші. Брадаманта - як і Астольфо - героїня ренесансних поем, написаних італійськими поетами Боярдо і Аріосто, "Закоханий Роланд" і "Божевільний Роланд".

В моєму хеді вони старші за Роланда і Олів'є і др��жать з дитинства. Також Брадаманта тренувала юних Роланда і Олів'є.

Фік про перше тренування Роланда і Олів'є з еліксиром

--------------------------------------------------

Malagi and Bradamante are my two OC from chasseurs. Originally Malagi (or Maugis, or Malagigi) is a character from medieval French epic songs, gestas, as Roland, Olivier, Ogier and others. Bradamante, like Astolfo, is a character from Renaissance poems written by Italian poets Boiardo and Ariosto, "Orlando Inamorato" and "Orlando Furioso".

In my headcanon they are older than Roland and Olivier and are childhood friends. Also Bradamante was a trainer for young Roland and Olivier.

Fic about Roland and Olivier first training with chasseurs elixir (Ukrainian)

[vnckocurzyca]

New chapter new analysis

I’m publishing it one more time because it didnt show in tags for some reason???

I put it under “read more” so maybe now.

I finally read translation so I can finally write something about the new chapter. I know people’s strong feelings towards it and I think it’s totally understandable huh

I, personally, liked this chapter even if I think it was creepy as fuck. But I know Jun’s work and how she writes her stories and I know that she purposely made it really uncomfortable. I think this chapter was made to be upsetting because what happened during it was kinda important?

Warning; LONG POST (contains spoilers to new chapter)

First thing - Noe was forced to see some Vanitas’s memories. Of course by Misha eyes, but still it’s Vanis past. And as we know already, Vanitas REALLY didn’t want Noe to know about anything his past-related. He even threated him that he would kill you if Noe would someday try to drink his blood. So it’s opening for totally new conflict. We have two options

Vanitas would come to place and see Noe drinking Mishas blood and it would be horrible

Vanitas wouldn’t see it and Noe would live in sting of remorse and we know how emotional Noe is and it would be also horrible. And this option also has 2 options

Noe would finally tell Vani that he drank Mishas blood and it would be horrible

Misha would tell Vanitas that Noe drank his blood and it also would be horrible

When Noe started drinking Mishas blood he walked into a trap and there is no escape now. Vanitas is going to KNOW this and its going to be a problem, because knowing Vanis past, memories and emotions was a borderline in their relationship - Noe didn’t get a permission to step over it. And now he just... steped, because of Mishas blackmail.

Also the whole scene was made to be creepy - we can clearly see that Noe is distraught and scared and uncomfortable. We can hear his thoughts, we can see his terrified face

He is terrified for A LOT of reasons. A lot.

He is scared of Domis life. He don’t know what is going on with her and she is unconscious and she can literally DIE. Domi is his best friend, his childhood friend and nearly all family he has left. Domi is the closest person to him and he can’t just lose her like he lost Louis.

He DON’T WANT to read Vanitas’s past without his permission and knowledge. Its awful, it’s non consensual and non-con it’s something Noe hates, because, even if he would like to know Vani’s past (what he said back before Gevaudan arc) he don’t want to know it without Vanis consenst and he didn’t push. And now he is forced to see them, to betray Vani’s trust.He, probably, hates himself thanks to it.

He is blackmailed, bullied and intimidated which is bad on it’s own. He has absolutely NO CONTROL over a situation, he is absolutely subordinated and can’t do anything to change his situation. It’s scary.

He is forced to drink blood, which is a really intimate and delicate activity for him. He hates being forced to drink blood and forcing to drink blood, and, additionaly, Misha is a kid. Or, at least, he look like a kid (it’s hard to say his age for sure and how many years their past with Moreau happened). It’s gross, creepy and weird and Noe feels it. We can see him backing away from a fucking kid.

Jun did it purposely. Combine all of it, to made the horror moment for him, probably to break him in front o Misha.

The running thing in Vanitas no Carte is motif of Noe not having any control over anything in his life (even without his noticing). Noe never had a control over anything.

He didn’t have a control over his life during childhood, ie when he was sold on auction

He didn’t have any control over Louis’s death and curse. He couldn’t do anything to save him or to save other kids back then. He could do nothing.

He don’t have any control in general - he was trained by the Teacher to be his pupil. Noe don’t even know how big control Grandpa de Sade has over him and his doings.

He didn’t have any control when Domi found him at Orloks. She just kidnapped him to Altus.

He don’t have any control over his relationship with Jeanne - anytime he wants to talk to her or about her he is interuptted.

He didn’t want his blood be sucked by Ruthven and he didn’t want to Swear.

He don’t have any control now. He didn’t wanted to know Vanis past non consensualy, he didn’t wanted to drink Mishad blood, he don’t want to see Domi in this situation.

It’s a writing continuity. We are being told how little control Noe has over his (and others) life. It’s becaming a plot point. MochiJun knows what she is doing. She purposely made the whole chapter creepy and unsettling. She need us to know that what is happening right now is wrong - not only drinking blood from a 1/4 naked kid, but also the rest. Everything. That this chapter is traumatic - we literally touched Noes trauma, Domis trauma and Mishas trauma over a few pages and panels:

Dominique - we can see how she reacted to Louis death, how she wanted to make Noe feels better, why she changed her hairstyle and outfit, how she hated herself because it was her brother who died, not her. We can see it now - she is depressed, she hatees herself and would prefer to die over Louis. She was easy to catch for Misha.

Noe - we can see that he can do anything for Domi because she is his last friend, his family, last thing (person) he has. He can’t lose her, he is desperate and traumatized over Louis death so he can do anything, even suck Mishas blood and know Vanis past even if he hates it and its wrong for him.

Misha - we can see thanks to his flashbacks that it was hinted he was (if I undertand english correctly, sorry, it’s not my first language) se*//ually abused as a child. He thought his mother was possesed by devil, it was traumatizing on it’s own, but he was also dressed as a girl, physically abused and hit by his mother and used during her “sessions” with clients. Then he was kidnapped by Moreau who, probably, was experimenting on him just like on Vanitas - so Misha was abused again. And later Vanitas killed “father” what also traumatized him. His behaviour towards Noe it’s not really that suprising - its horrible and sad and heartbreaking knowing why Misha is that way, but its logical. It has sense. It’s just how his trauma made him.

Sooo do I think what happened in the chapter was good or okay? No. It was creepy and made me feel sick. But do I think Jun is bad for making it this way? No. I think her work is great, because she actually did planned it logically. She delivered TONS OF INFORMATIONS by only one chapter. Tons, about a lot of characters - Misha, Vanitas, Noe, Dominique, even Roland (he know Misha is one thing, but, also, why he was so beaten up? What happened my man? Who hurted you?) It wasn’t just gross pedo-fanservice some people accused it to be. (even if it was gross anyway och my gos this scene with Misha standing over Noe was frightening, I was just as scared as Noe, I felt like I was in his place and I was looking at Misha)

Also! I’m pretty sure one of the reason for Misha undressing his collar a little bit was for us (and maybe Noe too) to see his possesion mark on his arm. For some reason we, as an audience, need to know this.

But! We also get a lot of different informations -

Domi is a royal guard and is working in castle, so she probably knew Luca before and had contact with him or some other royal people. i think it’s interesting that she worked at castleas a royal guard.

Luca probably likes Domi and was worried about her. Also after knowing she is missing he decided to took direct actions, he is not passive.

Misha has Vanitas of the Blue Moon’s possesion mark on his hand. It’s really interesting, especially when we know that its his prosthetic arm. Somebody tried to cut his arm with a possesion mark and I bet it was Vanitas or Misha himself. Yet it DIDN’T work, mark of possesion is still here, above his prosthetic.

Noe “don’t know anything about Vanitas”. It was an important sentence. It was something that Noe need to know narratively speaking. It’s pushing the story forward, because Noe’s and Vani’s relationship is the core of the story. It was literally told in the first chapter that it’s a story about their journey.

Misha had a lot of bruises on his whole body after he was rescued. We knew he was beaten, but we could also see it’s evidence.

Mishas face when Noe drank his blood was similar to his mother face when a vampire drank his blood. It wasn’t accidental, we were shown his trauma and how it’s affected him.

Next thing I noticed:

In this panel, Misha looks A LOT like Vanitas. Og course he has child features and chubbier face, he has white(?) hair and eyelashes ets, but his mimic, his gaze, how one of his eyes is covered by hair and his words. Its literally how Vanitas’s panel would be draw. It’s really Vanitaish.

We also got some questions, like:

What happened to Misha and how he lost his hand?

What Luca ordered Jeanne? (probably to check out real Paris and maybe find Domi or Noe)

Why Mishas mark of possesions was so important for us to know?

Is that Roland met Misha in the past important?

Why was Roland so beaten up?

There was also one more thing. Jun is operating in her story not only by making parallels betweend her characters (ie Teacher and VotBM, or Astolfo nad Vanitas, or Louis and Domi etc) but also contrasts. The biggest contrast motif on the story are probably Vanitas and Noe thanks to not only their history, but also their appearance, personality, design of their clothes, their height, their names (Vanitas being related to death and vanity, Noe being related to saving and something biblical etc). Their whole characters are made constrast. And so we got here:

Vanitas and Misha are not made parallels, theyre made contrast.

Misha is looking from the upside, Vanitas is looking from the above, Mishas hair is white, Vanitas hair is black, Vani has a shadow over his face, misha is lighted. Misha has white eyelashes, Vani has black. Misha looks calm an suprised, Vani looks stressed. Their whole “atmosphere” is different. Even if Misha is bruised in this panel he looks clean, even angelic, when Vanitas looks... bad, he has dark circles under eyes, wrinkled eyebrows, bandage etc. They’re made to contrast themselves, not to be compared to. It’s the next hint about their role in the story I suppose. That they’re not similar, they’re not the same and there is something basically different about their roles.

I would also like to write about shadow and light work in this chapter, but I’m just really tired right now, soo here it is! My analyze od the new chapter, or, at least, the most important parts of it (for me). I liked it in general, but it was... stressed and I was anxious about this chapter for the one whole day. But in general I think Jun did gods work with delivering informations she wanted to delivere.

[naehja]

My headcanons about Dhams in vanitas no carte

About the Dhams, they are half-breed, so half-humans and half-vampires and I have a lot of headcanons about them.

-  They can pass the border and lives in Altus or the human World.

- Johann has a vampire mother, and has grow up in Altus. He has never knew his father.

 -  Dante has a vampire father and a human mother. And he grew up in the human world. He doesn't know who is his father.

- Riche is the same then Dante. (Human Mother/Vampire Father, born in the human world). She has never seen her father. Since she seems less bitter than Johann and Dante, maybe he’s dead.

Now about the Dhams in general. I have also headcanons.

- There are more Dhams than people thinks.  All aren’t like our trio. Some are 100% pro-humans and some others 100% pro-vampires. Others likes both sides. Others dislike both sides.

- But there are no dhams in the Chasseurs, and they hate them by principes. 

(At a era during the war or just after, Chasseurs killed dhams too. And if, today, the majority doesn't do it anymore (like Roland or Olivier); some others still kill them (like Astolfo))

- The Dhams can be born from a loving relationship, of course. Human-Vampire relationships happened a lot; Either the vampire decides to live in the human world (with all the risks), either they take their human partner in Altus. 

- If some Dhams (like our trio) are then the result of a “tragic” relationship or a “short relationship”, there are families in Altus and human world. There are happy families. 

- Sadely since some humans are kidnapped by vampires for “blood supplies”, there are Dhams borns from these humans servants. Either the vampire accept them, either they throw them back in the humans world where Orlak (or older dhams) find families for them.

- The Chasseurs, for a big part, doesn't approves those kind of relationships, but can't really act against it (if the vampires did nothing wrong, they can’t really kill them without creating problems). Others doesn't care or think that the human has been manipulated. Not a lot believe that there are love in those kind of relationship.

- Dhams are stronger than an average human, faster and more resistant. But they can't match a vampire (or a chasseur, who are trained all their life). They can’t drink blood or uses formulas but are more sensitive to it (or to magic) than a human.

- About Relationship between humans and vampires, there are same-sex relationship in altus, whatever between two vampires, human and vampire or dham with vampire. Some can adopt Dhams that vampires families doesn’t want. Some little orphan vampires can be adopted too but it’s more rare, because there are not a lot of them. 

[bluemoonvanitas-talk]

Ch 49

Some thoughts. Spoilers below.

The VOTBM does not have a name that is satisfying. Does that mean VOTBM has several names and changes it constantly? And I wonder if we are talking here about the actual real names. Meaning VOTBM could change it perhaps?

The look of VOTBM is something. The eye has similarities with Ruthven, but left eye covered reminded me of little Noe. He had left eye bandaged. The overall mood of VOTBM also is somehow similar to Noes.

Once our Vanitas gets confirmation for VOTBM he attacks. And seems like Vanitas was trained good enough as chasseur as stated by VOTBM. Attacking eyes and all. Eyes are weakness of Vampires and we have at least 3 of them with one eye covered at some point (Ruthven, VOTBM, Noe).

Vanitas does not trust VOTBM. Something as simple that VOTBM deciding to help them does not compute in his mind. And he collapses with fever. Guess it is because of the blood he was given? But Misha was fine (at least at that point). 

Fever reminds me of a scene with Jeanne. Vanitas gets a bit talkative when feverish.

And we get to a house where the interior is similar of Ruthven’s. House of “old human connection”. But Ruthven’s a vampire, so... Maybe it was just to emphasize Vanitas’s disbelief in possibility of humans and vampires getting along. Or?

And then we get a bit of Vanitas’s backstory. So his mother died giving birth to him. No wonder he thinks he is unworthy of love. He probably blames himself for that. And Vanitas’s father was a doctor! Vanitas thought father hated him, because he is the reason his wife died. But it seems they keyword here is “thought”. Cause in the end his father died protecting him from a vampire. So seems like dad loved him after all.

And we get similar to Astolfo vibes from Vanitas with “all vampires must die” and all. Noe was asking right questions. How and why did Vanitas end up differently than Astolfo? I guess the thing here is is “vampires are bad” is what Vanitas has been taught. But being in Moreau’s lab taught him that humans can be horrible to vampires as well. That much we knew already, but nice to see it lined up.

According to VOTBM Vanitas was skilled enough to run away from lab. But he didn’t? Damn. So a double was used to set up Vanitas’s “death”. Did Roland think Vanitas was dead and was surprised to find out he is in fact alive? But damn to stay so another child wouldn’t end up in his place. No wonder Vanitas hates anyone protecting him on their own accord. He is such an interesting character.

And so VOTBM calls Vanitas “kind”. And Vanitas says to forget everything he said to Misha next day. 

Noe keeps asking real questions. Why Naenia looks like VOTBM?

So experiments of Moreau had negative affect on Vanitas’s and Misha’s body. They were supposed to die from this. But VOTBM decided to save them. They searched for ways, but of course the last resort was the one we know. To become a kin. And of course VOTBM does not want to use that one. I guess being a kin has its own complications. But there were no other options after all.

Misha is like yeah sure, don’t wanna die. 

But Vanitas is a hard nope. He wants to remain as human as possible even if he dies. I guess he does not want to become a vampire or any of similar sort. He wants to be “just a regular human being”.

Could this have a connection to Vanitas’s death from Noe’s hands? What if Vanitas asked Noe to kill him? Since he is becoming a vampire but he wants “to be a human until the end”? Can we consider current Vanitas a regular human being though? He claims to be so, but it does not look like that?

And so we have a skip and VOTBM perishes. Did VOTBM die making Vanitas a kin? Even from Misha’s POV it does not look exactly like Vanitas killed VOTBM.

It looks more like another “someone died for Vanitas” situation or Vanitas was there when something happened to VOTBM? No wonder he does not want people/vampires to love him. They keep dying.

And we’re back to present and Noe. Vanitas is here. Looking forward for next chapter and where it goes. Interesting to see the dynamics of Vanitas and Misha now. As well as Vanitas’s reaction to Noe biting Misha.

[astxlphe-fics]

Let me live (let me die) 

Noé and Astolfo arrive in Florence and talk about the next steps. (They’re going to warm up to each other at some point, I promise)

Chapter 2/?

Content warning : mentioned character death 

< Chapter 1 || Chapter 3 >

“What kind of lead do you have in Florence?”  

Astolfo sends the Archiviste an annoyed look over his shoulder and goes back to watching the world fly by underneath.  

His lead isn’t a fresh one. It’s several months old, and it’s not the first time he goes to Florence for it. But you must do with what you have, and since almost everything he collected during  his time as a chasseur was lost with the Paris Headquarters, he has no other choice.

A year ago, the part of the catacombs housing the Paris chasseurs’ HQ collapsed. In Astolfo’s memories, the dust falls, and when he tries to breath he coughs — it’s getting in his nose, his mouth, his eyes, he can’t breathe right. He frantically searches for someone in the crowd, trying to distinguish people from each other, looking through faces after faces, men and women in uniforms but he can’t find him. 

“Where is Marco?” 

“Astolfo?” 

“Where is he, Roland?!” 

His heart pounds as he spots more uniforms sticking from under the rubbles and suddenly, he realizes he just lost everything all over again. 

A hand on his shoulder. Astolfo jumps and his surroundings change. He’s in the airship, flying high above the French countryside, and the vampire looks at him, his eyebrows drawn together in worry. 

“Are you okay? You look pale—” 

“I’m fine,” he snaps, and waves him off. “Why do you want to know about my lead?” 

The vampire’s face goes a little red. “I was curious and, maybe I could help—” 

“I do not want your help,” Astolfo cuts. “I am unsure of how many times I will have to say it for you to understand, but I don’t need your help.” 

“Don’t want or don’t need?” 

Astolfo falls silent, and his side aches where a months old injury still feels recent. 

It’s not the first time he follows this lead, and it has made him realize how weak he truly is, how little he is without the chasseurs. The man he is looking for was seen in Italy a year ago - and was still there six months ago when Astolfo went to check if the information was still accurate.

If he isn't still in Italy, at least he knows someone who can tell him where he went. He knows a chasseur — another blow to his pride, having to rely on them after being unceremoniously kicked out, after never being wanted in the first place.

He doesn’t answer the vampire's question. He doesn’t want to answer, because he doesn’t want to admit the vampire is right, that no matter how many times he refuses help he’ll always need it. 

Anger — at himself, mostly, and at the Archiviste — courses through him, as he thinks about his own weakness.  

“I said what I said,” he snaps. “Leave me alone, I’m skilled enough to get by on my own.” 

The vampire goes quiet, but glances at him when he thinks Astolfo doesn't notice like he can see through his every pretences and Astolfo hates him for it.

They land in Florence about a day later and Noé knows, in the way Astolfo keeps pushing him away, that he is in need of help. Vanitas used to be like this, too. It’s when people like them, who try to be fiercely independent, who want to deal with everything on their own, start pulling away that you know they will need you the most. 

He wasn’t planning on sticking around once they arrived in Florence, but he doesn’t like the idea of Astolfo on his own, flirting with danger without backup. 

Vanitas would call him a bleeding heart. Maybe he is, but it doesn't bother him. He is not ashamed of doing his best to help people, even if they pretend they don’t need it. Especially, if they pretend they don’t need it. 

Not to mention, he owes it to Astolfo. They may not have parted on the best terms, but Noé still owes him large debt, and he intends to see it repaid, one day. 

(He can still feel, on the skin of his flesh arm, the pressure of Astolfo’s fingers clamped tightly around his wrist.) 

Maybe it’s now the occasion. Besides, what else is he going to do? Go back to travelling alone, sitting in trains and airships with no one but himself and followed by the ghosts of his friends ? 

“Why are you still following me?” 

“I don’t know the city at all,” Noé remarks innocently, smiling brightly. “Do you know a good hotel I could stay for a few days?” 

He asks, because since they arrived Astolfo’s steps are lighter, he moves through the streets with more confidence. The younger man tries not to let the change show, but it’s like he has an easier time breathing. 

“Fine,” he relents, with much less hostility than what Noé is used to. “I’ll take you to one.” 

As he leads him through this city he seems to know by heart, they pass by a plaza. Noé stops there, admiring the cathedral, and Astolfo’s good moods seem to make him a little more talkative than usual. 

"This is the cathedral Santa Maria del Fiore,” Astolfo explains when they walk past it. He stops, gazing up at the facade and its rose window. “The sturdiest building in Italy. It took over two centuries to build, and it survived Babel and served as a shelter for survivors.” He gazes at the building like it holds some sentimental value, and though the urge to ask is there, Noé stays quiet, afraid Astolfo will go silent if he speaks up. “It’s the very first chasseur headquarters in the world, older even than the Vatican.” 

They reach a small hotel, not so far off the cathedral. It’s so unlike what Noé thought Astolfo would choose that he makes a double take — but, to be perfectly honest, everything Astolfo has done since they set foot in Italy is so strange that he can't bring it up.

Immediately, Astolfo launches into a conversation with the receptionist, in Italian so quick Noé’s basic knowledge of the language doesn’t allow him to understand a single word of it. He’s unfailingly polite, smiling at him warmly even as he points at Noé and seems to ask if they need only one room — at least, that’s what Noé catches of the conversation. Still, it seems to work out, because he hands Astolfo a pair of keys. 

One of those makes its way into Noé’s hand. “Here is yours,” Astolfo tells him shortly, reverting to French, before shoving something else in his hands. “And a city map. Now, will you leave me alone?” 

Noé isn’t sure he wants to — both for Astolfo and for himself. Some matters are best not left alone. “Thank you,” he says, not putting his concerns into words. If Astolfo suspects Noé isn’t about to leave him on his own, he’ll try his best to escape and he doesn’t want to take the risk of losing him so quick. 

Besides, he seems to be in good moods, and he wouldn’t want to ruin it.  “Why this hotel?” he adds, trying to take advantage of said moods, since they make him more likely to answer questions. If anything, he'll get more details about what exactly he's looking for.

“It’s only a few minutes walk to the Cathedral,” Astolfo explains quickly. “I’ll be meeting with the chasseurs.” 

It makes sense — if there are people monitoring vampire activity in the human world, it's the chasseur. If Astolfo needs any kind of information, he'll probably be able to get it through them. On the other hand...

"If you aren't a chasseur anymore, how are you so sure they'll meet with you?"

Astolfo grimaces, and crosses his arms, clamming up. It’s the question Noé shouldn’t have asked. “It doesn’t mean I don’t have friends,” he hisses. “Are you done with the interrogation?” When Noé doesn’t answer, he nods briskly. “Very well. Goodbye.” 

Noé still follows him up the stairs, because their rooms are on the same floor, but Astolfo ignores him all the way up.  

When he’s alone, Murr glares at him like he’s at fault, and settles near the window. Noé follows him here, staring out at the unfamiliar city skyline. He wonders how many secrets it holds, and how many of them Astolfo knows about. 

Later in the evening, he and Murrs go to the restaurant area to get something to eat, starting to feel hungry. He orders a simple meal, and is just finished with it when he spots Astolfo crossing the lobby towards the exit. 

He doesn’t see him, but Murr is staring intently, and Noé quickly pays for his meal to follow Astolfo out of the hotel. 

If it was only a matter of travelling alone or in company, Noé could easily leave Astolfo to his own device and wait for him to be done here, but he can’t deny he’s worried.

Noé sure remembers how skilled Astolfo was in a fight, but the young man isn’t a chasseur any longer, and had to give up his weapon and the drug allowing him to reinforce himself when he lost the title. What if he gets hurt? Or worse? The local chasseurs may have been his friends, but considering the circumstances of Astolfo's departure from the chasseurs, would they allow him to fight by their side?

So many things can go wrong. Noé doesn't like Astolfo, he doubts he could ever truly like him, but he isn't about to leave him to die with no second thoughts. He's seen enough people killed because of him, because he could do nothing, and he's not allowing this to happen again. As long as he follows Astolfo around, Noé won't let him die, not like Louis, not like Vanitas, personal feelings be damned.

“Once again, why are you still following me?” 

He blinks. Astolfo is staring at him in affront, eyes angry and jaw tense, hands set firmly on his hips. That he barely reaches Noé's shoulders would make it cute if Noé hadn’t seen him commit numerous murders.  

“Are you an idiot? What part of goodbye did you not understand?” 

“How are you so sure the chasseurs here will help you?” He asks again, maybe because he needs to reassure himself, in a way, that Astolfo isn't walking straight into a death trap on his own. But instead of answering, Astolfo stiffens, pointedly not looking at him, and Noé understands. “You don’t really know, do you?” 

“The man I’m meeting is an old family friend. Since the Chevalier Ténèbre was last seen in Italy, he should be able to give me more details.” 

“The Chevalier Ténèbre?” Noé takes in chin between his fingers at the name, thinking. He is sure he has he heard it before, but he can't quite place it yet. Was Chevalier a moniker or an actual title. “This name sounds familiar—” 

“They were originally a pair of vampire brothers and thieves. Now there is only one of them left, thanks to yours truly.” He tilts his chin up, face twisting into a grim smile, and he tucks his hair behind his ear. The fanged earring sways and glints. “And Antonio can tell me where he is now.” 

“Do you want me to go with you?” 

Nowadays, human and vampire relations are slightly better than what they used to be, and Noé is fairly positive that he can walk into chasseur territory without being murdered on the spot, especially if he's with a human — as long as he doesn't cause too much trouble.

“We are not in Paris, remember?" He shakes his head. “Roland isn’t here to vouch for you.” He wrinkles his nose at the name, though it's only half-hearted.

“If I didn’t know you any better, I would say you’re worried." 

Astolfo’s mouth opens, and clicks shut, no words coming out of it. Then, he huffs. “Do as you like,” he snaps. “I don't care. Get yourself killed if you wish it, but do not get in my way.”