#but he also did choose them over Louis

[alleyskywalker]

Yea, the in-world/Watsonian explanations for this do feel a little wonky. It would have worked better/made better sense if Armand had pretended to break with the coven later, when the play was almost finished and they needed someone closer to Louis/a way to bait Claudia and  Madeline into coming back/having a meet up with Louis and Armand so that the coven didn't need to go hunting for them. Armand being immediately sent to do this spy thing does seem like taking unnecessary risk if Louis notices that he's spending lots of time out, even if given that the coven had already done a lot of prep work by writing the play/stealing the needed materials/summoning Lestat. My guess is one way Armand covered up going to the theater was by saying he was out hunting – since Louis didn’t hunt people, or at least not often/nightly. (Also, in Armand’s confession scene Louis says something like “all those nights you spend over here you didn’t think to tell me,” the phrasing of which makes me feel like…maybe Armand wasn’t literally living with Louis but had – or said he had – his own place but then he came and stayed over X amount of nights.) But it is still a risk for sure.

The coven’s reasoning I buy for the coven as most likely is to a) have Armand as a spy with a dose of loyalty test, b) lull Louis into complacency/lure out Claudia, and c) make sure Louis doesn’t leave town. The thing is, Louis may have known that he was committed to Armand but I honestly don’t think Armand did. I don’t think he was lying when he said that he couldn’t trust in Louis love lasting at the time that he made his choice. To me that’s a big part of their tragedy – Louis for a long time couldn’t bring himself to commit to Armand, was sending signals that he wasn’t committing and was still not over his ex, ignored Armand’s warnings, ignored Armand telling him, essentially, “you’re putting me in danger”… Like there were a million reasons and cues that would have had Armand doubting Louis’ commitment. By the time Louis is ready to commit, Armand can’t trust it anymore.

As for the issue of not just going to accost Louis, Claudia and Madeline while they’re turning her… Well, first, they don’t know that’s what the trio is up to in that moment. Plus, they have to deal with Armand first. I really don’t think the confrontation was like: “Hey Armand, we’re done with your boyfriend’s shit, you gotta choose” and he’s immediately like “wow yea guys I’m choosing you, btw, they’re currently making another Vampire illegally and we should hurry to catch them while they’re busy.” I’m quite certain that Armand tried to resist the coup, or at least argue about wtf Louis needs to be tried, etc. They spend time throwing the evidence in his face (Claudia’s diaries, etc) and threatening/guilt-tripping him. Eventually, of course, Armand would agree to be on their side, but I don’t think he immediately told them about Madeline’s turning. They got it out of him one way or another eventually – perhaps snooping in his mind, perhaps Armand offers this up as something that’s already happened and says they left the city to try to buy time… We don’t know exactly how all this went down, but the point is, this would have all taken time. It doesn’t actually seem like turning a Vampire takes hours or anything, so most likely by the time the coven have Armand in hand, Claudia and Madeline may have already left the city.

Actually, I wonder if the whole “I broke with the coven” act was supposed to be short-term. Claudia spends lots of time with the coven but is often with Louis. They know where Madeline works(/lives?) but they don’t have tons of information about her schedule, plus she’s nocturnal now too, as a Vampire. It would be best/easiest for the coven to take them all together, or at least in a way that prevented them warning each other telepathically. The easiest way – with the added plus of punishment + loyalty test for Armand – would be for him to go to Louis, say he broke with them, get the whole gang together for a little outing/celebration of their freedom or whatever, and then tattle to the coven where they are/will be for the kidnapping. Except when Armand gets to Louis…turns out Claudia and Madeline have left town, and suddenly the thing was supposed to be only a 1-3 day rouse suddenly stretches out for a couple of months as they wait to lure Claudia and Madeline back in.

I mean, yea, the Doylist reasons to plot twists were the main driving force here, I agree, but there is in-universe reasoning there too.

Why would Armand go to the trouble of saying that he broke from the coven if he was just going to have Louis burnt alive? Like seriously, what was the purpose of that? It's not like Armand needed to get Louis into a vulnerable position so that the coven could take him; the coven clearly didn't need Armand for that. And if they wanted him to direct the play having him live with Louis doesn't make sense, as it would make it harder for Armand to secretly direct it. I genuinely can't think of an explanation that makes sense, unless you simply want to think Armand is cold hearted enough to want to share Louis' last days with him knowing that they're Louis' last days, which I just don't.

[nalyra-dreaming]

Be careful, it's one of a kind! - Or: the trial script.

I took a few screenshots and put them through the editor, and there are a few interesting tidbits of information that can be gleaned from the few shots we got of the final trial script:

Supposedly the trial was written by the "Vampire Santiago", and the "Vampire Samuel Barclay". With... "additions made" by the "Vampire Lestat de Lioncourt".

Now the last part is particularly interesting, because as we see in the screenshots we get, that there are quite a few "additions" that Armand makes, but he is not listed there.

We now have (additional) confirmation by Assad (at the SDCC 2024 panel) that Armand was the one who orchestrated Claudia's / their deaths, so let's keep that in mind here. Especially since he is not listed.

"Our red curtain. Our spotlight. Santiago acting as master of ceremonies. But this is the only part of the play that will mimic our normal fare. That and our finale."

There's several aspects to this.

We know that - at least in Armand's tale - Santiago "took over". "Master of ceremonies." But only acting, not actually being. The "mimic our normal fare" both hints at this being not what they normally do, and, given the mock aspect of the trial - it acknowledges the farce it is. It is not a play, not a trial, but something in between, framed as neither, while implementing both.

Santiago's entry speech. With an interesting annotation by Armand: "You are standing half in and half out of your light."

Only, Santiago isn't actually standing in and out of the light. (At least in the version we got to see.)

Now, those who know the books know that the force of Lestat's personality is often called a "light", and not always in a wholly positive manner.

For example there is this comment by Nicolas, which refers to it:

And for every aspect of our proposed damnation you found exuberance, and there was no end to your enthusiasm and the passion coming out of you-and the light, always the light. And in exact proportion to the light coming out of you, there was the darkness in me! Every exuberance piercing me and creating its exact proportion of darkness and despair!

The lights of the stage obviously put them all into focus, too, something that was forbidden before Lestat came and destroyed the old ways. The "walking in the places of light" was one of the things the Children of Darkness accused Lestat of when he encountered them.

I think the comment there is a kind-of-meta comment, of Armand being half in shadow hand half in light. There is a choice here, for light or darkness.

Here, he chooses darkness.

Some things we haven't heard in the episode:

"If the prosecution's evidence convinces you to condemn those HERETICS for the heinous trampling of the vampire laws we will carry out our sentence before your very eyes as only we at the Théâtre des Vampires know how: slowly, inventively, gruesomely."

And then, this lovely stage direction 💀:

"Agency: If and when Claudia or Louis speak, (drive) them together, close their throats, (Santia)go will address it with the audience, as per the below:"

"I don't need to hear from you..."

That part we heard in the trial.

Apart from the stage directions and the part we didn't hear Armand's notes are also interesting once more: "Remember to comment...." and something starting with "Fi"... "Fine" - or "Find their thoughts" (could fit I think). Because this note, even largely unreadable proves once more that Armand was fully in on what they did to Louis and Claudia there. Made sure that the blows... would land.

This one. This one we didn't get to hear! (The part after "Tik Tok")

Santiago reading from her diary: "He soaks in the light from everyone around him, making it all about Lestat. This is most definitely about you and your death."

Light reference again! (See the quote above.)

And (accompanied by Armand's notes to have Santiago hand the diary to the audience):

"I know she was your favorite. I know she was your baby lu. But she had us all fooled. She's the best actor of all of us. She lies so sweetly, doesn't she. But look closer. When the mask falls away, she's a monster."

Oof. When the mask falls away... Pot to kettle.

"I can't hear you." - say it louder.... Lestat.

And then: Lestat's entrance. Being seated in an especially prepared "Bergere en cabriolet".

And here we have another "I can't hear you! Let me f...". It's the counterpart to the blend-over (below), another read from Claudia's diary there, after Lestat talks about loneliness and Louis "abandoning him". (Btw, I don't buy this shift to blame to Louis and Louis "hunting" Lestat for one second, for the record^^. I think that was all very much BS for the trial, in order to make Louis seem guilty to the audience.)

Armand's comment (on Lestat's first lines) makes it seem as if Lestat was less than enthusiastic - or weak. Now, I said before, I think there's quite enough evidence to suggest that the "real trial" might have gone a bit more like in the book, with Lestat mostly out of his mind and his mind meddled with as well (see below).

But the counterpart to the blend-over is actually the most interesting one, imho:

(This is a hard one to see, it's only seen in blend-over and Louis' hand moves across it before the scene fades to Armand scribbling down the note!)

"It This is too early for Lestat to acknowledg[e...]"

This is too early for Lestat to acknowledge. Louis and Claudia, would be my guess. This direction is proof that Armand made directions for Lestat especially as well. It's the only one (we have so far) where he actually writes the name.

Armand knew he could make this direction. And he made it.

Given Lestat and their history this, for me, is proof, that Lestat's mind has been meddled with as well, at times at least. Because there is no way that Lestat would have followed Armand's directions there, imho. Would not have done something, especially in that moment, where they set up the execution.

Yes, Sam is on record saying that Lestat played along with the play itself so he could get into the audience's heads, and therefore make it easier for him to make them shift Louis' sentence to "banishment" (that's where the "additions" come from, in all likelihood), but there, at the point of judgement and the execution being set up he does not look at Claudia (but he does look at her afterwards!), he's staring straight ahead, swaying on his feet.

Taken out of the equation, so to speak.

(That's an extra shot btw, extra shots always carry meaning.)

So.

Quite the script. -.-

Clear stage directions for Santiago, Lestat, and the other coven members should Louis and Claudia try to do something.

Now. I know there have been a lot of posts about Armand "master mind" or "villain" or victim, or what not. And I am glad that Assad has been so very clear on that just recently, though all of it is already given with what the show gave us, imho.

Armand did plan the trial. Did master-mind it. Did pretend. Did direct. Did lie.

He orchestrated their deaths.

And Lestat interfered with Louis' death. At the very least.

And.. Armand continued to betray Louis. For 77 years.

I said it before, I don't quite buy the tower scene, I expect it to get more context, at the very least.

It will be very interesting to see if they return to the trial next season, and in what capacity.

Because all the "hints" are, all the evidence is there already.

[gildatheplant]

Santiago and his relationship with Armand

OK so I actually wrote most of this as tags to a post that compared Santiago mocking Louis in the restaurant with Louis mocking Santiago after he set the theatre on fire, but I realized I wanted to expand on the idea.

Basically, I had always interpreted Santiago's hatred of Louis as jealousy over him 'stealing' Armand (both in the book and in the show). An interview with Ben Daniels confirmed that while Santiago was initially written as straight, Ben felt the only way Santiago would so viciously hate Louis was if he was in love with Armand. However, in the same interview he also said that Santiago had been in love with his maker, and his jealousy of Louis and conflict over Armand killing his maker made him want to destroy Louis.

After reading this, I was more than a little confused: if Santiago loved his maker, how could he fall in love with Armand?

Then I saw the gifset and was reminded of this moment-

Louis mocks Santiago about his maker's disdain for him, and how his maker abandoned him shortly after he turned him. Santiago loved his maker, but his maker did not love him back.

Now, we aren't given any timeline of events in terms of when Santiago is made, when he joins the Coven and when Armand kills his maker, but I think it's safe to assume it all happens not long after he was turned. So we have fledgling Santiago, bitterly in love with a maker who disdains him, meeting the beautiful and powerful Armand. Armand welcomes him into the Coven, gives him the opportunity to return to his theatrical career, and kills the maker that wounded Santiago's pride and heart. From that perspective, Armand must have seemed like an avenging angel to Santiago- of course he'd fall in love.

For years, Santiago forges his way up the ranks of the Coven, serving Armand and becoming his right hand man and star of the show. The other vampires of the coven practically throw themselves at him, some of the women literally fighting each other over him...but his heart belongs to Armand.

Then Louis and Claudia come into town, and Armand's attention leaves him for this beautiful man that Santiago can't help feeling attracted to too. And Armand lets this newcomer do pretty much whatever he wants, making the execution of Santiago's maker suddenly seem a lot less fair... yet Armand is still the one responsible for pretty much all the opportunities and good things in Santiago's life, and he's still the one Santiago loves and wants above all others.

Just look at his reaction to seeing Armand's photo in Louis' apartment-

There's no anger there, no hate. He's in love. And he wants Armand back.

Santiago must've been thrilled when Armand seemingly changed his mind about Louis and Claudia and agreed to punish them for their "crimes". I suspect, though this is only hinted at in the show, that after the trial, Armand regrets choosing the coven and allows himself to be overthrown by Santiago (Celeste is overheard by Louis saying that Armand was overthrown and there's no reason to doubt her at this point). Now Santiago has (he thinks) everything he wants: leadership of the coven, his rival dead, and Armand seemingly broken and at his mercy. When we see him watching Armand bow his head to him and slip into his coffin, Santiago stares at him with naked hunger, completely ignoring Celeste hanging off his arm.

He thinks it's only a matter of time before Armand will become his lover once more. Instead, Armand frees Louis and allows him to destroy Santiago's world.

[fascinationstreetmp3]

ive been thinking about the differences between book and show armand when it comes to sharing his blood. from what i understand, book armand does not let anyone properly drink his vampiric blood until daniel. he tries to use that fact to bargain for lestat's love in TVL when he finds him in new orleans in the early 20th century ("love me and the blood is yours, this blood that i have never given to another.")

but show armand lets louis and lestat drink from him, even when he's insecure in his relationship with louis lasting (he recognises the taste of armand's blood in the coffin), and even before he's sure lestat loves him (in his telling of the story, anyway). i can't help but wonder if the extended amount of time he spent with marius had any influence on his feelings about this.

book amadeo was with marius for two years and during that time had a lot of spirit in him; he loved marius, but also criticised and questioned his behaviour, rebelled and challenged him, and was often punished for it in various ways. marius could take what he wanted from amadeo whenever he wanted it, but there was defiance there too that, by the time amadeo was made a vampire and they're later separated, marius had only just started to fully control. later, after being kidnapped by the children of darkness, armand held onto his blood as one last thing he still had autonomy over after everything else was taken away, this pure, untouched piece of him that was his alone and that he could choose to withhold or share.

show amadeo had ten more years as a human, and in that time marius came to truly own every part of him, could control when amadeo gave himself away and to whom, and complete codependency had been fostered between them for over a decade. there was no way or reason for amadeo to ever defy his master's wishes or question him the way he once did at this point. even though he resented that he would not turn him, he still depended wholly on his love and attention and would do anything for it. by the time he was taken by the children of darkness, maybe armand already felt he did not have anything left of himself that he could or should control. so after meeting lestat and the coven's collapse, armand starts to give his body and blood to others first (there's the added layer of physical sex in the show too) in an attempt to gain security and companionship and love from them afterwards.

[stop-breaking-my-heart-telltale]

Y'know, it's unfortunate more people don't compare Louis and Violet in good faith.

Like, when I do see people compare them, it's usually through the lens of one is good, and the other bad. One is more canon than the other, and here's why. One is objectively better for Clementine, and the other is less impactful, worse written, didn't have chemistry with her, insert several insults here, etc.

I don't think it's inherently bad to express why you might not like one of them, or why you prefer one over the other. That's fine, that's a matter of opinion. It only gets to me when it becomes hostile, or passive aggressive... but even then, I've learned to just roll my eyes and move on. Some people make it very clear that they're not worth having a discussion with.

However, I wish I could read more nuanced comparisons of the two that didn't default to the "and that's why this one is better." At least some are kind enough to tack on a "for my Clementine" at the end.

You know how it goes: Louis is cute and he makes Clementine laugh, whereas Violet's boring, her love is shallow, she's still not over Minerva and she's using Clementine as a rebound. Violentine's a bad ship because Violet's actually a traitor, and they're practically the same person and that's bad.

Violet's loyal and reliable, whereas Louis is annoying, he never takes anything serious, he's a traitor for his vote, and he's nothing but a distraction. Clouis is a bad ship because how could any Clementine possibly like him after he voted her and AJ out? That's bad!

That's always the conclusion, right? One good, one bad.

This is incredibly limiting and it drives me nuts.

They're foils. They contrast one another, highlight each other's strengths and flaws, in such an interesting way that it makes Clementine's choice between them all the more meaningful.

One is not good and the other bad, they're different, and I think that's worth exploring.

Let's start with a common argument: Violet is the more impactful option due to her connection to Minerva.

Now, to be fair, I can understand why someone on Team Violet would believe this. Yes, it's true that the confrontation with Minerva is more impactful for a violentine shipper who has more investment in Violet as a character. Louis doesn't have as strong of a connection to her.

However, what they're failing to recognize is that Minerva isn't the only ghost to haunt this narrative. Violet may have Minerva, yes, but Louis has Marlon... and that doesn't just go away once Marlon's dead.

Violet's route has Minerva as her ex-girlfriend, and her bond with Tenn that all comes to a head on the bridge. Louis' route has Marlon's death and how that specifically impacts his relationship with AJ and Clementine, and the slow burn of forgiveness on all sides.

Marlon and Minerva are also reflective of Clementine's worst outcomes.

Clementine and Marlon were tied together through Brody's blood splattered on their hands and faces. They both killed a part of Brody, but only one of them lies about who killed her first.

After Marlon dies, Clementine gradually replaces him throughout the game; Rosie is her dog now, she uses his bow [which Louis gave her], she becomes the leader. Clementine gets them to fight back, and when three of her people are captured, she doesn't cut her losses. She does what Marlon couldn't; "we're getting them back."

When she chooses Louis, he does for her what he never did for Marlon: he steps up.

Clementine proves she won't become Marlon just as she proves she won't become Minerva.

After getting James to agree to help them, Clementine and AJ talk about what to do if she ever gets bit. AJ says he'd want her to bite him, too. He repeats this sentiment after she's actually bitten, telling her he wants to stay and they could turn together, peacefully.

When Minerva confronts them on the bridge, she's dying... and she wants Tenn to die with her. She doesn't care who she has to kill in the process. She's more monster than human at this point, and most times, she succeeds.

They're both bitten. Clementine could've become a monster like Minerva in the end. She could've killed AJ, and they could've become walkers together. But she didn't. Minerva wanted Tenn to die for her, and Clementine wanted AJ to live for her.

Also, I should mention she has Minerva's axe. She carries the key weapons associated with Marlon and Minerva throughout different points in the game, further solidifying these connections. She uses Marlon's bow to save her friends, and she uses Minerva's axe to save AJ, who in turn uses it to save her.

What's also so interesting about this is how Marlon's alive in episode one, and Minerva is thought to be dead. Louis has his best friend, and Violet's lost hers. But, at the end of the episode, Marlon's dead and Minerva's revealed to be alive.

Marlon becomes the ghost, and Minerva becomes the monster. Clementine becomes to Louis and Violet what Marlon and Minerva never could... how does that not drive anyone else insane?

So, no. One is not objectively better, or more impactful, because of a connection to Marlon or Minerva. They're different. It just depends on which storyline you personally find more compelling.

Actually, let's talk about that a little more.

In my opinion, the most intriguing point of comparison between Louis and Violet stems from their perceptions of survival, and how that impacts Clementine.

An argument I see made against violentine is that Violet's boring because she and Clementine are too similar. This usually comes from clouis shippers who prefer the "opposites attract" dynamic Clementine and Louis have.

On the flip side, there's the counter argument that Louis is reckless, that he doesn't take survival as seriously as he should and Clementine wouldn't want him because of that.

These are interesting to me because I get where they're coming from... but they ultimately miss the point.

The other day, I replayed TFS. Except this time, I did something a little bit differently. I played my usual clouis route, but then I had the violentine route pulled up on my laptop so that I could watch these scenes, comparing them side by side… and something occurred to me. 

Louis is about challenging Clementine's perception of survival, and Violet is about validating it.

Louis challenges Clementine from the very moment we meet him—he’s playing music. His initial philosophy on survival butts heads with Clementine’s. The fact that hunting with him and Aasim challenges your perception of “your choices have consequences.” These games have conditioned the player to think along the lines of, “Yeah, Louis is more fun… but if I don’t hunt with Aasim, we won’t have any food.”

Except that’s just it. I hate to say it, Aasim, but in the grand scheme of things… hunting with you doesn’t matter. It's actually less rewarding. You know why? Because in the next section, we get food from the train station. It would’ve been more beneficial to spend time with Louis over hunting, hence how he challenges you.  

This then primes you for the choice between choosing to follow Louis or follow Violet. I know people complain about how this is presented with Violet doing something productive [checking the walls] and Louis playing piano… but that’s the point. If you’re going through with Louis’ full route, you need to meet him at his level, and in turn, he will meet you at yours. You need to accept the challenge, the idea that Clementine isn’t entirely right about the way she’s gone about survival.

Oh, and do I even need to mention the vote? The debate over Louis’ vote is exhausting. Often times, people tell on themselves in how they talk about it. It’s not actually about the fact that he voted against them. If it was, these people would have a bigger bone with pick with Mitch, Willy, Ruby, and Omar… and yet Louis is the one who takes all the blame as if he’s the only one personally kicking them out. 

Louis is reacting to the death of his best friend, and the complicated feelings that come with it being caused by AJ. He wants accountability, even if he knows something's wrong. You can either agree with him that it was murder, and set AJ on the path of atonement… or, you can double down and tell him to fuck off, AJ was justified. 

But here’s the thing… the vote adds to the appeal of Louis’ route. To someone who hates him, or at the very least is critical of his vote, that sounds mad or delusional.

Except it’s really not.

Ever heard of a thing called tension? Because there’s a lot of it in ep2 between clouis + AJ and it’s fantastic.

Yes, Louis voting them out is problematic because we need a problem to solve. We need something to feed the tension between him and Clementine. He stepped in front of a gun held by his best friend in order to protect her, forever changing their relationship… only for that to seemingly be taken away from us the moment AJ shoots Marlon. 

Yes, Louis’ route is about being challenged, but it’s also about challenging him. That he’s able to forgive them, that he’s able to question his own survival philosophy and understand theirs, that he’s able to apologize and actually change for the better… that right there is what makes clouis so damn good. 

He becomes hardened whereas Clementine softens. By the end of the game, they’re on a similar level now without neglecting their differences, and they can move forward together. 

That’s what makes Louis’ route appealing… and it’s also what makes it unappealing to people who prefer Violet. 

By contrast, Violet’s already on Clementine’s level when it comes to this perception of survival. She validates that Clementine’s on the right path.

They have other similarities in the way that they’re both female, queer, they both have a kid they look after, they’re not always great with other people, etc. 

People who prefer Louis might consider this boring, but I think to Team Violet, it’s comforting. It’s comforting to have a partner who takes this as seriously as you do, who wants to get shit done. They’re playing Clementine with a similar attitude, and don’t believe it needs to be challenged. It’s comforting to feel validated on something you already firmly believe in. 

We also see this if we compare the hunting and fishing scenes. You have to make an effort to choose Louis by choosing to neglect hunting, but the game makes you fish with Violet no matter what.

Violet’s prioritizing fishing because they need food. That’s what they’ve set out to do, so let’s do it. The game is letting you know that’s the case, and if you value that, continue pursuing her. 

While fishing, they discuss why things are weird with her and Brody. Violet doesn’t take well to Clementine’s blunt, “Because you make it weird. Brody tries and you just make fun of her."

That’s understandable because I think she already kind of knows why and is looking to have her feelings validated. She prefers it when Clementine suggests that it’s because Brody never said sorry for what happened to the twins. 

There’s also comfort and validation in the way Violet sides with Clementine and AJ after Marlon’s death. She votes for them to stay, vocalizing how much she disapproves of the results. There’s this feeling that I recognize from a lot of the sapphic romance I read; “it’s you and me against the world, I’ll always have your back, even if you’re in the wrong, I’ll fight for you.”

In our case, it’s violentine + AJ against the rest of Ericson, save Tenn and Aasim. Violet validates that AJ was justified because Marlon was a liar and murderer, claiming that AJ and Clementine did nothing wrong. Violet fights to keep them. 

The tension between violentine in ep2 is different because instead of one pushing the other away, they’re being forced apart by the vote and there’s nothing they can do about it. That tension is somewhat released when Clementine comes back and they’re reunited, working out a plan to best defend the school. 

It’s also why Violet’s presented as doing something productive when you follow her instead of Louis, and why she asks if you want to hang out after checking the defenses. 

All that being said, allow me to reiterate that one is not good and the other bad, they're different. These concepts of challenge and change/validation and comfort exist on a neutral road as diverging paths. It’s up to the player to pick what path they prefer, but that doesn’t mean the other path isn’t worth acknowledging or analyzing. 

I should also mention that they’re not exclusive; there is overlap with validation being present in Louis’ route and challenges in Violet’s. They’re just more present in episodes 3 and 4 after we’ve made our decision. 

There are several more examples of how this all fits together, buuuuut–

Ya’ll wanna compare some allegories?

Those familiar with my content might already know where I’m going with this as I’ve made a post about Louis and the piano in the past. 

You see, I believe that there are allegories for Louis and Violet’s hearts present in their routes: Louis’ piano, and Violet’s pin. 

I already have a thorough, in-depth analysis of Louis and the piano that you can read, so all I’ll say about it is that on the night of the raid, he asked Clementine to carve a piece of herself into his heart so that no matter what, their initials will be immortalized together in its wood…

And that makes me fucking feral. 

But I'm also so normal about it.

As for Violet, her heart is the star gazing pin she gives to Clementine. She gives it to her so she’ll always remember that night… but she doesn’t give it to her until after Clementine’s saved her, and that fascinates me in the context of it being allegory. 

Louis asks Clementine to carve herself into his heart right before the raid, cementing that from that moment on, he is utterly devoted to her. I believe this is part of the reason why Louis is still happy to see her if he’s the one who’s captured. Yes, yes, he’s also incredibly traumatized from having his tongue cut out and he’d be happy to see anyone, yada yada… but listen, if you romance Louis and he’s captured, his heart remains with her—that piano with their intitals is on full display. When he sees her, he’s still so devoted to her that he refuses to accept that it’s at all her fault. Even when she says it is, he shakes his head... and he so easily accepts her when they’re together in the end. From the moment Clementine puts knife to wood, he’s hers. 

Now, look… you might think I’m going somewhere not great with this but hear me out. 

I think after Clementine’s gone star gazing with her, Violet is fully ready to give her heart to her. Y’know, give her the pin. But, think about what Violet said about how people have left, but Clementine came back. Plus, with the impending raid to think about, maybe Violet should keep the pin until the right moment. 

I believe a key difference between her and Louis is that Violet needs one last thing to solidify that Clementine’s the one. 

Louis gives her his heart prior to the raid because of everything that’s already gone down between them following Marlon’s death. Violet needs to know that Clementine’s willing to fight for her the way she fought before. When Clementine saves her from the raiders, it’s solidified. Even after she sees Minerva again, it changes nothing.

It’s also worth noting that the pin is something Clementine wears. Like the piano carving, it’s a piece on display for everyone to see, to let them know whose heart Clementine has.

Violet literally handed Clementine her heart as a means of saying, “I’m yours. I’m devoted to you.” 

This is why romanced/captured Violet is devastating, and is why she behaves the way she does in the cells. She was so ready to give her heart away and then nope, sorry, Vi! You get knocked unconscious by raiders instead! 

If anything, you kind of deserve to be told to fuck off if you romanced her and then let her get captured. Just sayin’. 

Look, I have a lot of complicated feelings about the captured violentine route, mostly with Violet being as forgiving as she is after her eyes are burned—yes, yes, I know, her eyes are burned and Minerva messed with her head so of course now she’s not hostile, yada, yada. 

But I think it’s rather telling that you don’t get the pin in this route. Sure, Violet’s willing to forgive and possibly pursue this romance in the future… but she’s not ready to hand over her heart, not truly. Not after everything that’s happened. 

And if you want to get extra angsty about it, imagine that Violet made the pin right after they parted ways, but before the raiders came. Meaning that if she’s captured, it’s possibly still sitting somewhere, abandoned. 

Mmhmmm, very normal about this. I feel normal. My normalness about this continues... normally. I'm not losing my shit thinking about that. Nope. Why would I? I wouldn't! So normal.

Okay just let me talk about their reactions to Tenn's death and then I'll shut up.

This makes me want to gnaw my own foot off, I can barely handle it.

AJ shoots Tenn on the bridge because Clementine trusted him to make the hard calls. This saves Louis or Violet's life.

When Louis jumps across, he's completely silent as he watches Tenn die... and then he's pissed; "What the fuck?! How could you just shoot him like that?!"

AJ explains himself, that he did it for him, and Louis is so upset that he forces AJ to look at what he's done, to watch the walkers eat Tenn; "Tenn's dead. He's dead! Do you realize that?! Look! [...] He's... he's gone, because of you. Just fucking gone."

If Clementine says AJ saved his life, Louis says, "So what, we just cut him loose? Gun him down like he was nothing?"

If Clementine says nothing, Louis says, "Tenn was just a little boy!"

The reason Louis responds this way is because in this moment, he just relived Marlon's death all over again, but worse. So, SO much worse!

When Violet jumps across, she breaks down, begging, "Oh, my God! Oh, my God! No, no! No, no, no..." as she watches Tenn die... and then says to AJ, "No! What the fuck?! How could you do that?!"

AJ explains himself, that he did it for her, and Violet is faaaar from okay; "For me? I can't... Tenn is gone! That soft little boy who liked to draw, he's gone, because of you!"

If Clementine says AJ saved her life, Violet says, "You think that's okay?! Just gunning down one of our own?!"

And there it is.

Louis is hardened in this situation because he already went through this... Violet hasn't, not with AJ. She softened up throughout her route due to her relationships to him and Clementine... but this is the moment where she realizes that maybe AJ wasn't as justified as she believed, and this is the consequence.

This leads us to the ending where AJ asks if they're still mad about him killing Tenn, and I just... I'm biting my foot right now because the script has flipped.

Louis is forgiving and understanding. He's soft, he's sympathetic, he shakes AJ's hand to let him know that all is forgiven and they're okay; "I... AJ, I guess it's like... You saw something I didn't. About the situation, I mean. Minnie and the walkers and Tenn, it's just all this chaos in my head when I think back on it. [...] Clem says you saved my life? Well, then, that's exactly what you did. And how can I stay mad at anyone for doing that?"

Or, alternatively, "He was your friend, AJ. I know you are hurting just as much as I am."

As for Violet? She's understanding, too... but she's not quite ready to forgive yet; "The thing you said on the bridge...that he was messing up all the time. It wasn't something new, you know. Tenn got himself or other people into trouble all the time, long before you guys got here. He was always so lost. He lived in a world that just...isn't there, you know? And that's why I tried to look after him. But when I was pulling him away from the walkers, and Minnie, I could also see...he just wasn't there anymore."

"So you're mad, but sad."

"Can I be that for a while?"

And it's completely understandable that she's hurting and struggling with how she feels about AJ moving forward! She wants to be okay, she wants to forgive him, she just needs time.

Now, because I'm forever bitter, but I'm gonna mention this as well: whenever I see someone point at Violet's scene and say, "See!? This is how LOUIS should've acted in ep2!" like... they're telling on themselves again. Not just that they don't understand Louis as a character or his route, but that they don't fully grasp Violet's part in this either. Or time frames, for that matter.

Let me put it to you in simple terms... they react the same.

After Marlon and Tenn die, they're upset. They're pissed. They blame AJ and yell at him. After they've had time to process what happened [Louis after the two week time skip, Violet after time passes between the bridge and the ending] they share the same, "I'm still upset about Marlon/Tenn. Can I be that for a while and still be your friend?" sentiment.

The difference is that Louis is treated poorly for it because of the vote, and because we feel it first hand for longer... Violet got to grieve off screen and come back after she's sorted herself out.

It's a disservice to both of their characters because it's rooted in that same mentality that I criticized at the beginning: "This is why one is better than the other."

Do I need to say it again? I'm gonna say it again.

One is not good and the other bad. They're different.

There are so many fun discussions that could come from putting Louis and Violet side by side, and examining them. I haven't even covered the different ways they're introduced, or compared their ep3 dates to see what it says about them and the overall narratives! What about the cell scenes!? How they react when Dorian's about the cut off their fingers! The way they approach James upon meeting him!

That last one in particular is especially funny! They're all under stress about blending in with a herd of walkers to infiltrate a boat to save their friends, and yet Louis easily saunters up to the guy wearing walker skins with a smile, and makes him laugh by saying, "Functional and fashionable. I'll take two."

Violet approaches James like he's an injured wild animal that's going to bite her, and bless her heart, she tries with, "I, uh… hey. Hey there, James. Sorry about Willy." Then James gives her this judgmental side-eye, like buddy? She's not the weirdo here.

There is so much potential to dissect here, and I want to see people do it... but I want them to do it fairly, in good faith.

I want to get away from the idea of comparing them to "prove" which is better because there is no objective better. There isn't! That's a waste of time!

I'm so done with The Debate™; it's unhelpful, it's annoying, and it's boring as shit. I've heard it all before, and you probably have, too.

I want to put Louis and Violet under a microscope and study them with the thought process of, "one does this and the other does that... what does it mean!? what does it say about the narrative!? Oh my god, they have the same opinion on this thing, WRITE THAT DOWN!"

So yeah, that's my ramble for the night.

I'm gonna go replay TFS for further research.

[charliedawn]

Hi! I have a request! (I won't be mad if you choose not to write it, you do you)

Since the slashers can't leave the facility, how would they take you on a date? I feel like Freddy would take you on a date in your dreams, etc. Please include Penny! He's my favorite!!! Love your work, and hope you have a blessed day! ❤️

Penny would make a whole world appear just for you. He is not as powerful within the hospital as he’d normally be, but he could still make a pretty good illusion for you.

He’d probably make you see what you want and make sure you have as much fun as possible. He’d dig into your head for all of your most personal desires.

He’d also take as many opportunities to know you better and satisfy his curiosity as to why you’d ever want him too.

Penny *tilts his head curiously at you* : "Humans are so odd. Your hearts beat so loudly when you are afraid…But, yours has a different sound to it."

You *surprised* : "Really ? How does it sound ?"

Him *presses his ear against your chest to hear it closer and closes his eyes* : "…Different." *giggles* "Good different."

Arts and crafts. Jason love carving wood and making bird houses. He brought his passions with him when he first entered St Louis. He’d be excited to show you his masterpieces and show you how to do it.

You’d be sitting side by side while using your hands to try multiple different shapes, but would be careful as to not let you get hurt with the knife when you’d try to carve things.

Jason *smiles proudly while showing you his last wooden piece of work*

Jason isn’t comfortable sharing anything about himself so…It’d be a huge honour. He’d also show you his collection of frogs and let you pet them if you want.

He’d also hold your hand and show you his face if you’d want.

Jack is a pretty standard guy when it comes to dating. He was kind of the popular kid and did date a lot in his younger years.

He’d normally go for the classic cinema and restaurant. But, as he is trapped in the hospital…He’d do with what he’s got.

Netflix and chill.

He’d ask the other slashers not disturb the both of you as you take over the TV room and eat snacks together.

Jack *pretending to be yawning before lowering his arm over your shoulders to caress the skin with his thumb*

You *smile knowingly* : "Really ?"

Him *smiles and shrugs* : "…Hey. Am a big fan of the old technics…is it working ?"

You *smile before leaning back against him* : "~Maybe."

Pennywise would let you drag him anywhere, but he’s the type to not like big crowds so…the fact that he can’t go out won’t really be a problem.

He’d be just as happy staying inside and have some time with you. But, don’t expect him to have many date ideas.

Pennywise never dated anyone before, so he’d just let you decide or let you sleep on his lap. Tops.

However, he may sing you to sleep.

And his voice is really soothing when he hums while rocking back and forth on his rocking chair.

Pennywise *starts humming while holding you close and stroking your hair*

You : "…I thought you didn’t like people touching you ?"

Him *smiles* : "Guess you must be the exception, huh dollface ?"

Norman is a gentleman. He’d be holding you and gently swing you back and forth in his arms.

He’d be dancing a waltz with. Or cooking you a good meal. His mother taught him how to be a good cook and to always be as respectful and nice as he can be.

So, he’d also be the type to buy you dinner and buy scented candles and roses for the occasion. And he’d always ask you if you’d had a good time at the end.

Norman *holding you close* : "Was it alright ?"

You *smile and wrap your arms around his waist* : "Perfect."

He’d then smile and let out a relieved sigh.

Norman was taught to be perfect. He would be devastated if you didn’t have fun or didn’t enjoy your time with him.

Freddy can date. But, the dates he went on in the past weren’t exactly heartfelt. He just never got emotionally connected with someone enough to care.

So, he’d try simple at first.

Freddy would either invite you to get a drink or offer to take a look at his garden. Let’s not forget he used to be a gardener. So, he does love flowers.

He’d then wait until it gets dark to ask you if you want him to try something on you.

Freddy never used his powers for anything else than pain or to kill. So, he’d be nervous when first trying to think of the perfect dream date.

Freddy *smiles nervously before taking your hand* : "Trust me ?"

You *smile back* : "Always."

He’d then get inside your head and put his plan into motion. He’d be careful not to hurt you of course and try to make it as perfect as he can.

Because he knows you trust him. And that is something Freddy never got from anyone but the kids he used to love…before they betrayed him.

Bo : "…Beer ?"

Bo is a simple man. It’d normally be a truck ride and drinking beer while looking at the sky, or at whatever is around.

But, as he can’t really leave the facility…he’d just ask you to join him in the courtyard of the hospital to have some s’mores and look up at the sky.

No conversation necessary. But, he’d be happy either way.

Bo : "Thanks fer…Ya know…Sayin’ yes to the whole thing…"

You *smile and shrugs* : "No need. Believe it or not…I like hanging out with you, Bo."

Bo *is stunned before chuckling and handing you a cold drink of your choice* : "Whatever you say, darlin’…"

Bo would be happy to hear it, even if he wouldn’t believe it at first.

Because Bo has always been the failure of his family.

So, why would you ever like his company ? But, he’d let himself dream for a bit. Just for a moment.

Brahms would give you his favourite toys and ask you to play with him. He’d also share his favourite snacks with you and watch cartoons with you.

Brahms is a child at heart and he’d be happy to do anything with you, as long as he spends time with you.

He’d also insist on staying with you for the night.

Brahms *holds you close and starts breathing deeply* : "Nice…day ?"

You immediately understood what he was asking and hugged him back.

You : "Yes. I had a great day. Thank you, Brahms."

He was very happy to hear it and cuddled you closer—even letting you take a peek at his face. He’d become very clingy very quickly.

Brahms has a big fear of being a disappointment and abandonment. So, once he knows you like him ? There’s little chance he’d ever leave you alone.

Michael *A…date ?*

He’d be surprised and even a little nervous at first. Love is a tricky business for Michael, since he technically killed all of the people he ever cared about.

So, he’d be a little worried you’d end up with the same fate.

So, even making him agree to go on a date with you would be tricky.

Michael *frowns and sighs before taking your hand*

You *smile hopefully* : "Is that a yes ?"

Michael *nods after a while*

He’d then lead you to the kitchen and have a little cooking date with him. He knows how to handle a knife and was advised early on to find an activity which would soothe him. He found cooking.

But, cooking with you was different. It felt…better.

Seems like the bogeyman can get lonely too.

Unfortunately, Hannibal Sr. is considered too dangerous to leave his cell most of the time, as he arrived after all the others to St Louis.

So, he’d be either asking you to put on some music for him or to read to him. Two of his favourite things.

Hannibal Sr. *smiles as he tilts his head left and right to the music*

You *smile as you silently observe him* : "Tell me…Why did you ask me on a date ? I mean…You’re always in there. It seems pointless."

Him *stops tilting his head before opening his eyes slowly and smiling at you* : "But, that is precisely the game, my dear. Anticipation makes the deal all the sweeter…"

You : "So…You would rather wait and watch me all day rather than going out on an actual date ?"

Him *chuckles* : "Of course not, my dear…But, even if I never was set free…Spending a lifetime just watching you would be enough for me."

You stared at Hannibal Sr. for a while and he didn’t break eye contact for a second. He had just confessed that he’d be okay with just watching you until the end. And somehow, you believed him.

[hakuna-machete]

So here’s the thing, when Louis gave Armand the advice on the bench about letting Santiago essentially hang himself with his own ambition so Armand can get everything he wants, I think Armand took the advice and applied it to the betrayal and the trial.

What I think is gonna happen, it’s going to be revealed that Armand was like huh I know that the coven wants to kill Louis and Claudia and even me and I want Claudia gone and I want Louis all to myself but I don’t want to be the REAL bad guy so I’m gonna do what Louis advised and I’m gonna make Santiago think that he’s the one doing it.

I think we’re going to see Armand somehow planting thoughts into Santiago‘s mind with his power, and all the other coven members without them noticing, so they really think that it’s their own plan. And I do think that during the trial, Armand was exerting control over Lestat, which is probably really difficult - which is why Lestat was able to break through occasionally-, and is probably also in the mind of the coven to make sure the coven is playing their parts AND also then trying to control the audience, like to make them choose the verdict that he wants for Louis. All of that combined, controlling a vampire as powerful as Lestat, manipulating the coven, and then completely controlling all of the audience probably did actually take most of if not all of his power. 

And BONUS Now Louis truly hates Lestat for the role he played in Claudia’s death.

And DOUBLE BONUS now he has an excuse to destroy the coven through Louis.

I could not prevent it BITCH YOU WROTE IT

[greenqueenhightower]

Hey.

I constantly argue back and forth with TB stans that Jace, Luke and Joffrey aren't legitimised just because Laenor, Corlys and Viserys go along with Rhaenyra’s lie about them being "trueborn". As I'm sure you're aware, in Westeros only a king can legitimise the illegitimate by first declaring their bastardy and then legitimising them afterwards. And TB stans. Just. Don't. Get. It. They also seem to think that the King's word is law in Westeros. They don't understand that this a feudal monarchy where the king and his vassals are reliant upon each other and both must respect the social contract in order for the Westerosi social structures e.g. monarchy to be maintained.

IMO, they fall for the narrative trap of the Targaryen characters. Just because Viserys and Rhaenyra say that the King's word is law doesn't actually make it law. It's only law as long as the king has the ability to enforce it. Therefore, if a king did something insane in the eyes of his noble polity, e.g., try to place his bastards in the line of succession, they'd rebel proving accurately that the King's word is in fact not actually law. Aerys's overthrowing is a great example of this. As is the reign of Daeron II: if his word was law and everyone had to obey him, no one would have joined Daemon Blackfyre's rebellion.

Anyway back to TB stans. I think alot of them don't actually realise how the world works. Even GRRM confirmed the bastardy of Rhaenyra’s 3 son's for goodness sake. Every time they try to deny it using the aforementioned argument it only confuses me. Are they insecure about Rhaenyra having illegitimate children? Is that how far they're para-social relationship with her goes?

They also have another stupid argument that Rhaenyra's kids having her blood means that they can inherit her throne. No no no no no no no no no. THAT'S NOT HOW IT WORKS TB. If it was Westerosi lords with bastard relatives, it would allow them to inherit. You have to be trueborn. It's unfair but these unfair laws are what keeps Westeros from constant civil war. That's the point of inheritance law in the Seven Kingdoms.

Anyway, sorry about the rant. It's just that sometimes when I argue with certain TB stans they don't seem to understand the laws of the world they're fans of. They will bend over backwards to excuse their faves, not understanding that you are allowed to criticise a character you like (& in their case love). I think Rhaenyra is an interesting character - moreso in the book TBH - I just don't get why so many TB stans willfully refuse to understand the way in which the laws of the world she inhabits work. Any thoughts?

Hi anon, it took me forever to get to your ask but you're right! 💚

Not all TB stans share the same views, and there are people in here with whom you can converse intelligently, but I have also seen the discourse you're referring to, and it is very annoying when the stans don't get it.

You put the Westerosi legitimization process very well. If we consider the greater Middle Ages-inspired world-building context that Westeros is based on, it makes sense why bastardy is a stigmatized social issue. Blood "purity," lineage, and legitimacy are important because they are the only way land and titles are bequeathed and inherited.

The King is the only one who can legitimize his own illegitimate children as heirs, but he can do so for other illegitimate children, regardless of whether these are related to him by blood. King Louis IV, for example, legitimized John II Duke of Brabant's son, Jan Cordeken, after a petition John wrote to him thus enabling him to inherit his father's fortune and found the House of Glymes. From Ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome to Enlightenment Europe, there are examples of Kings legitimizing not only their children but also the children of their officials, courtiers, and friends. It was seen as granting a favor to them, and when it came to personal matters, a King might choose to legitimize his children when he ran out of heirs, or in the case of Louis XIV, because he could and wanted to.

In other words, Viserys, who knew of but chose to ignore Rhaenyra's sons' (his grandsons') bastardy, had ample time and opportunity to legitimize them but chose to blind himself to the truth instead. What was that about Alicent calling Viserys "weak" in one of the deleted scenes of S1? Well, "weak" isn't the only word I would use to describe him... also irresponsible, foolish, and inadequate.

Nevertheless, the legitimization process in history was seldom favored by the court, the King's vassals, and the people, and caused quite a stir. As you say, the King's law didn't hold up that much ground compared to the law of tradition and at times the Church. The people didn't care if a King legitimized a child by naming them heir... the stigma of being born "illegitimate" wasn't washed off that easily, because bastards were seen as devilish, impure, half-breeds, unnatural hybrids, and so forth. So Viserys choosing to ignore the issue face front was bound to be catastrophic, because no matter how he tried to silence the tongues that wagged by threatening to cut them off, the issue of his grandsons' apparent bastardy remained, and THE REALM would not accept any of them on the Iron Throne, for the same reasons.

And Viserys did nothing about it. He could have confronted Rhaenyra when Jace was born and reminded her of the stark reality of the consequences of what she was doing. Not only did he name Rhaenyra (a woman) as his heir, which alone was controversial and unprecedented, but a woman with three illegitimate children, whose existence never even tried to correct or prevent. Viserys alone weakened Rhaenyra's claim with his lack of foresight and counsel.

If TB uphold the "Viserys loved his grandsons and he accepted them as they were" narrative, they are not only deluded but lack media literacy as well, because Viserys DIDN'T CARE if his grandsons were trueborn or not, or if that would plunge the realm to war, the same way he didn't care that he had named Rhaenyra as his successor when the realm, who was so used to having Kings for centuries, knew he had THREE legitimate sons of his own.

So my two cents on the discourse would basically be that those who don't understand the social and political repercussions of Rhaenyra having bastards, not being counseled as to why this is destructive, left on her own to raise them, and having to cope with the consequences of her actions as she realizes that the father she so loved and admired didn't protect or support her at all, are missing out on a much more interesting character in Rhaenyra and a more complex dynamic with her sons, who she now understands are exceptionally vulnerable and potentially threatening to her cause.

This is a far more intriguing reading than anything TB stans are getting at with their "no criticism" ban on Viserys and Rhaenyra.

[nicoleanell]

(actual link to gif set because tumblr's being weird)

Man it's the fact this statement is weirdly big and generous and brave in Armand's mind. I think it was Assad or someone else who said it was a moment of overconfidence or almost gloating, which is not the exact vibe I get, but I think there's something to that big-headedness of having survived and gotten through it and it's over now and just... He just wants to see. He just wants to skip that little stone down the cliff and see what happens. Maybe if nothing happens *then* he would actually be able to exhale. (He will not. He'd find something else. There's an itch in him that's never going to be secure enough in the bed he made.) Maybe it's just wanting to test something - Louis or himself or how many ways he can't die.

People tie it directly to Armand not being able to say the words in 2x05, which is probably intentional, but also it's not *exactly* the same because for one thing it's in the Past Tense now. It's very much meant as a moment of *closure* - he DID love you, past tense, we don't know where he is or how he feels now and that doesn't matter - while in San Francisco with Lestat right there on the mind telephone, it was the present tense terror that maybe that really was all Louis needed to hear to go running back to him.

But their relationship has also changed SO dramatically since San Francisco that it feels like even the past-tense version is a very, very precarious thing to admit. Because it's not about the material love triangle, it's not who-will-Bella-Swan-choose, it's about 70 years of mythmaking and storytelling.

SIDEBAR: The show left us IMO with a very frustrating ambiguity about the extent to which Armand has used his mind powers on Louis, like to the point where you have some fans believing that *every single fucking memory* we saw onscreen that they didn't like for the last two seasons is Fake News actually, and other fans believing it happened Just That One Time GOD. (I personally lean toward way *less* mind manipulation than other people assume, and if it was literally JUST the shit that happened in 1973 that's... enough to be messed up lol. I think the "love of my life" and finishing each other's sentences scenes have some unsettling implications. I *don't* think Louis having imperfect recall and limited perspective of stuff that happened a century ago is because of Armand all or even *most* of the time.)

But the fact no matter what is that Louis has a lot of cognitive dissonance around Lestat because he WANTS it acknowledged on some bone-deep level that Lestat loved him, because he loved/continues to love him too. And if we're gonna insist on throwing the word "gaslighting" around when we just mean "lying", then at the end of the day it's about Louis being told he's not crazy by someone who has at times made him feel that way.

Idk maybe this is me getting Too Deep about a finale I still think is kinda unsatisfying and already had way too much to do with Lestat and not enough with Claudia. But I do like that moment when I look past the toxic love triangle and more toward "hey buddy [my best friend Armand] why are you Like That" and Louis' little smile breaking my heart.

Something sad about that moment is Armand's right that saying those words *doesn't* end the world, and if nothing else had happened and Daniel and the Vampire CIA weren't on their divorce-attorney kick, that'd be the end of it. (Hot take I don't think saying the words or not in 1973 would've really made a difference either, and there's so much more nuanced and wild shit going on there than an undelivered message romcom beat.) And Louis would be *grateful* for that moment of understanding and closure between them.

[cbrownjc]

Hi! I love your takes and predictions on DM, they get me excited for each new episode!

Do you think that part of The Chase was Armand keeping tabs on Daniel, making sure that he didn't remember, and that's how they reconnected?

What's more, it looks like this is when Raglan warns Daniel about Louis. Seeing that he remembered what Armand did to him and Louis, and they apparently teamed up, it caught my attention that Armand is not the "dangerous" one in Raglan's warning. The Talamasca and Raglan are probably informed about what happened between them and therefore know Armand won't harm him.

Also, it looks like they finally sold the Bacon triptych. I wonder who the buyer is and when will we meet them.

First, hello! I'm glad you like what I have to say about Devil's Minion. 🙂

So, The Chase. I think it might start with Armand just wanting to keep tabs on Daniel, just to make sure he doesn't remember anything. But I think part of it will also be Armand just not being able to let go of what Louis said about Daniel -- that he found him fascinating. And I think part of that will have to do with what Daniel does after Louis and Armand drop him off at the drug den.

Because, in the books, the thing Daniel did right after waking up from Louis' attack on him was drive to New Orleans to try and find Lestat.

Daniel was allowed to remember the first interview and that Louis attacked him in the end. And I think Louis' little positive message to Daniel is going to have an effect making Daniel like a dog with a bone, as it were, after he wakes back up.

I think, at first, Daniel is going to try and find Louis again. And then, when that fails, he's going to try and find Lestat. Which, just like the end of the first book, means going to New Orleans.

And Daniel doing that is going to be too much for Armand to take IMO. And he'll reveal himself again to scare Daniel away -- but his curiosity about this boy will continue to compel him to keep following Daniel. Confronting Daniel from time to time over why Daniel continues to choose to do certain things or go certain places. And Armand's own fascination with this human boy will begin to take hold of him.

And Daniel admitted to Armand that he has a knack for angles -- for getting people to open up to him. Armand himself started to do so at one point. And I think, little by little, during The Chase, Armand will find himself doing so with Daniel again.

And there is plenty of time for such things as this to happen since The Chase lasted 4 years in the book. And given this one episode was basically an adaptation of the 3-4 days that Armand kept Daniel locked in a cage before The Chase started, I think The Chase itself will be given the same length of time to play out in the show as it did in the book.

And given the state of Louis' burns, it taking him 4 years to heal from them isn't a stretch, IMO. He might know what Armand is up to during this time, or he might not, IDK. Louis' memories of the 70s are clearly just as tampered with as Daniel's. So who really knows at this point what Louis knew or didn't know about what was going on between Armand and Daniel either during The Chase period or after it.

Now, about Raglan James. I'm not 100% off from the idea that he might be Marius. Because if he is, then Marius very much would know why Armand isn't a threat to Daniel, which is because Armand loves Daniel -- now, in the present day.

Because you are only truly safe from Armand if he loves you. And Armand didn't love Daniel back in 1973. The only thing that saved Daniel's life back then was Louis' declaration that Daniel was more fascinating than Armand. And then, when Armand was finally going to kill Daniel it was Louis again, using the idea of Daniel living being a commitment to each other (and their Maître/Arun dynamic, however you want to read/classify that) that ended up sparing Daniel's life again.

However, given that "Paramores" folder that is in Armand's file, it's not unreasonable to think that the Talamasca might also know why Daniel is under no threat from Armand, but that Louis is one. Because let's be real here -- Louis is still very much what Daniel declared him to be back in '73 but that his younger self was too inexperienced -- as well as too coked and ludded up out of his mind -- to know, which was that Louis was dangerously unstable. No matter the truly lovely friendship that we see between them grow in this episode . . . there was a nice friendship dynamic between them going on back in '73, but then Daniel said something really wrong and Louis "detonated" and almost killed him.

We've already seen Louis be really sadistic when he feels Daniel has crossed a line or a line of questioning is going somewhere Louis doesn't want to go (like when he manipulated Daniel's Parkinson's). There is no stopping something like that from happening again, short of Armand himself stopping Louis from doing something like that again of course. (And even then... ?) Though, for the record, I don't think it will reach a point where Louis will kill Daniel, but I think that is what James' warning is about. That Louis is still very much capable of "detonating."

As to the Bacon triptych, I honestly have no idea or theory as to what is going on with that, nor who the buyer could even be. So I'm just going to read other people's theories on that one. 🙃

[nalyra-dreaming]

COMMENTS on 2x07 - SPOILERS

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . *FIRST OFF: GOD HAVE I CRIED *No breath, no relief, all the pain This… contains a lot of swearing. . . . . . . .

The fucking rat box - there is a significant time gap between Claudia being shoved in there and her on stage. I BET that will become "that" time frame later, when Armand.... finally gets to it.

Btw, the iron boxes... an iron entrapment. I'm not sure if deliberate, but there is a piece of lore from Blood Communion that could come into play here IF they should pick it up again, later on

I’m glad they made the mental influence clear right away. Like… it’s not even subtle. And Lestat acting weird AF isn’t subtle either. It’s clear. It’s scripted. It’s the “last play”. It’s been “designed, and rehearsed.”

The Achilles’ heel slashed is so… vicious

Louis sensing and smelling Lestat… oh honey

Like that they referred to “the old place” for the other theater

Them making him swear on her diary is sooooo…💀

Santiago is so PLEASED when Lestat returns to script lol… we don’t see it but I wonder how many of the jury it took

A story of love... 💀

They are using the music box music … the fuckers

Awwww Armand being “punished” to watch… nawwwwww glad Daniel is not buying it either... and by Sam, the playwright... with a scythe... nawww. Okay, everybody buying that after that little restaurant display raise their hands, lmao.

That Lestat sleeping in the dirt is just... wrong. We already KNOW he returned to Paris twice. Another hint!!!

The repeated hint at the “ancient blood”… very on the nose

Their eye contact

Them trying to make it seem as if Louis “hunted” Lestat… lmao. As if Louis could have if Lestat would not have wanted him to????

Santiago prompting Lestat…. they seem to have pushed the narrative into his mind

on a random note: the blue contacts look so much better this season???

Oh…. Lestat SNAPPING at “fags” - loved it - so fantastically intense and creepy

“where lies their disgust now”?

Lestat making that man feel what he feels - WHY didn’t you just show this to Louis?????

THE HAIR CHANGED!!! There is that strand again! And the perfect hair in other scenes!!! INFLUENCED!! Manipulated!! I’ve been fucking saying.

OOOOHHHHH MY GOD Claudia’s turning … Louis knowing about the laws, did Louis really promise to stay???? I mean that’s just bargaining, and Louis just… begging… oh god, AND THEN THE FUCKING CUT TO ARMAND’s LOOK OH YOU FUCKER

“you were manipulated into it”… yeah. Say it, Santiago

God. Lestat there. And Louis the way he sees him.

Lestat confirming that Louis did not share affection with him anymore, as said, for years

Yeah, no, Lestat’s pose there for the Antoinette reveal is totally… natural 💀

God, Claudia cackling at Lestat saying “she’s the best of my vampiric self”… 😭

Ep5 revisit. Uhhhhh boy did they expand on what we already knew. And I KNEW something happened in the coffin room that made Lestat snap!! I KNEW IT! Okay, they kept the weird logistics of the fall (for now at least), but… yeah. This makes at least… more sense than before, I guess. Also, Lestat fully breaking script and admitting it. KNOWING he had hurt Louis there. Knowing. (I still stand by the Amel theory for the outside part and the comment in 1x06. Since they are taking from Prince Lestat….)

“A wolf congratulated for not killing her pup”!!!!!!!!

Louis is wearing something other than black again!!!!

“and then - something real” - and Armand chiming in… how… inconspicuous 💅🏼

A Stoning. Indeed.

I’m not sure how much I believe of them waking Lestat tbh… like... with the supposed trial rehearsals... and the crossing over... nawwwww

That eating blood with a spoon is so… inefficient. Like, they drink so much more???? What kind of blood is that to savor it like that? Must be special??? Or it's just show.

Oh god. Madeleine choosing Claudia. She is my coven. God.

Ugh. Lestat breaking script for Claudia. AND BY GOD I HOPE CLAUDIA FULFILLS THAT PROMISE

Oohhhhwwwwwww and Armand working SO HARD ON SAVING LOUIS!!!!! YOU LITTLE…. GNAAAHHHHH I don’t even have a word. "bites something"

God the pebbles/rocks. The entombment. And the SAME stones at the Dubai tree…

Lestat, swaying on his feet

So. Armand tells us of Claudia facing her death bravely. And defiantly. And the stare of shock and pain on Lestat’s face. Armand… the last to know the truth… for now. -.-

PREVIEW

And Armand getting Louis out.. afterwards. When… the coven did not care anymore, right??????? Mh hmmm.

Louis getting their asses

Louis going to kill Lestat??? MHHHH

EPISODE INSIDER

"it’s a fake setup - props in a play". Yeah. THAT.

Claudia doesn’t give an inch - "she knows she’s right"

“She has Lestat’s blood - if they do anything, it’s come back with a vengeance”!!!!!!!!!!! YES PLEASE 😭

Claudia’s death represents Louis’ last connection to this world

“[Claudia] was a brilliant vampire.

IN - fucking - DEED

God, what an episode.

I am... somewhat irritated that the reshot the turning and did not really revisit murder night, because the discrepancies there still stand. Except they have always intended to return to it in s3, which might make sense. Still. A bit weird, all of it. And Lestat breaking out of the control and script to admit to hurting Louis. 😭

God.

[vanfleeter]

Home For Christmas

Summary: When the band gets stuck in St. Louis on Christmas Eve, Jake goes to extreme measures to make it home for Christmas. Characters: Jake Kiszka x Fem!Reader x Tommy x Lily Warnings: Extreme Dad!Jake fluff. Slight angst.

__________________________________________________________

Jake stares out the window of the airport at the fluffy white snowflakes as they float down from the clouds above. He used to have such a love for snow, and it only intensified when he had kids. Watching them run around in the snow, laughing and smiling as they chased each other and rolling up snow balls to launch at each other. At this moment, however, he absolutely despises it. His jaw clenched as he watches it constantly falling with seemingly no end in sight.

The flight home to Nashville from Seattle was grounded in St. Louis due to a heavy blizzard in Nashville preventing any incoming flights from landing. Now only did he curse the snow for potentially ruining Christmas, but he also cursed the band’s management for scheduling shows so close to Christmas. They’ve never done this before, all of their shows have always come to end at least three weeks before Christmas, with a small break for Thanksgiving.

So in the airport he still stands with his jaw clenched and his fists balled up tightly in the pockets of his coat. He feels his phone vibrate within the small inside pocket of his coat. Pulling out he flips it over to see your contact staring right back at him.

How does he tell you that he’s not making it home for Christmas?

And the kids.

He sighs, closing his eyes to brace himself for the disappointment that will lace your voice when he breaks the news.

“Hey baby,” He answers, trying to sound as cheerful as he can, despite his own disappointment fighting for dominance.

“Hey honey,” You say, sounding quite chipper. He feels a pang in his heart at the sound of it, making it even harder for him to have to tell you. “The kids were wondering if you were almost home?”

“And what about you?” He ponders, trying to keep the mood light.

“Well of course I am too,” You say with a giggle. He chuckles before inhaling sharply and releasing it. He knew you sensed it because the next words out of your mouth only made him feel worse. “You’re not coming home in time, are you?”

“Doesn’t look like it,” He says. “I’m sorry.. We left Seattle on time, but the blizzard in Nashville, our flight got grounded in St. Louis.”

“Crap…”

“Is that daddy?!” He hears Lily call out in the background.

“Yeah baby, it is.”

“Ooo! I want to talk to him! I have a very important question to ask him!”

“Sure baby..”

He hears the rustling over the phone before he hears Lily start talking again, “Daddy, when you get home, can we watch The Grinch first? Tommy wants to watch The Santa Clause first, but I really want to watch The Grinch. Please, please, please?”

It was a fairly new tradition they had begun when Tommy turned four. He loved watching The Santa Clause with Jake on Christmas Eve, and then Lily grew older and decided she loved The Grinch so they would end up watching both movies on Christmas Eve, just whoever got to go first was the always the hardest to choose because no matter who got picked in a random draw, the loser always pouted and got upset.

This year, with him being stuck in St. Louis, he can’t do the random draw to determine who goes first.

“You know we always do a draw, Lily.”

She huffs and he just knows she’s rolling her eyes. “When are you going to be home so we can pick?” She asks. “Because we also have to put out the cookies that we baked over the weekend before you left for your shows.”

“Why don’t you put them out anyways?” He says.

“Only you know where the special plate is, Daddy.”

“I could tell you.”

“Daddy..”

“Tommy can help you.”

“Help her do what?” Tommy says in the background. “Why do I need to help her when you’ll be here?” Jake stayed quiet, chewing on the inside of his lip as he tried to find a good way of telling them. “You are going to be here… Right?”

“Well, I-”

“You’re not coming, are you?”

“Bud, I tried.. But our flight–”

“I knew it..”

“Tommy, I’m sorry, I-” The line goes and he pulls his phone away from his ear to see the call ending and disappearing from the screen.

In the window, he sees his reflection as well as Josh’s as he walks up to stand beside his twin. “I take it the phone call didn't well?” He asks.

“Tommy’s upset.. Rightfully so.. I’m sure Lily’s the same way.. Y/N is disappointed.”

“I’m sorry,” He says. “Maybe we’ll get a Christmas miracle and the snow will lighten up and we can go home.”

Jake huffs and turns away from the window. Now he officially hates the snow. Truding back over to the seats, he slumps down in a chair and rests his head in his hand.

“We’re so damn close,” Sam grumbles beside him. “Heck, I bet we could drive home.. It’s only what–five hours?”

“We can’t drive in this weather,” Danny says. “That’s a suicide mission.”

The idea swims Jake’s head. He ponders it over and over again until he’s sitting up in his chair and slowly turning to face Josh. Josh’s eyebrows are pulled inwards as he stares at his brother. The realization soon hits him and he’s shaking his head. “Oh no.. No, no, no. Did you not listen to a single word Danny said?”

“Come on,” Jake says as he stands to his feet. “We rent a car and drive home.”

“This is risky,” Josh says, looking up at him. “Jake, I know you want to get home and I know it sucks not being able to be there with your family but risking your life to get home in this weather is just absolutely nuts.”

“Then you can stay here and I’ll drive home alone.” Jake grabs his bags off of the ground and starts heading off through the airport and towards the car rental company. “Is it possible to rent a car?” He asks the gentleman behind the counter.

“We do have a car available,” The man says. “But I would say that it is quite treacherous out.”

“Yeah well, I have disappointed kids at home that I need to get to.”

“Jake..” Josh walks up beside Jake and rests his hand on the counter.

“Josh, I have to get home.”

“I know,” He says. “But you’re not going alone.”

“Thought you weren’t coming?”

“Just get the damn car before I change my mind,” Josh says.

And within the hour, all four of them were packed into an SUV with all of their luggage and on their way home to Nashville. The snow was denser than Jake had anticipated so he crawled at a slow rate, which means that five hours will turn into seven hours. But he’s determined to make it home.

He could still hear the disappointment in Tommy’s voice when he learned Jake won’t make it home for Christmas. He’s determined to prove him wrong as well. His phone starts ringing and he looks at it on the dashboard stand. Your contact shows on the screen and he reaches forward to swipe his thumb across the screen to answer the call.

“Hey I’m glad you called, can I speak with Tommy?” He asks. “I need to talk to him.”

“It’s me..” Tommy speaks. “I wanted to call to apologize.. You can’t control the weather so I know I can’t be mad at you.”

“You have nothing to apologize for,” Jake says. “But I have good news. I’m coming home.”

“What? How? You said-”

“We’re driving home.” Jake says. “Slowly.. But we’re coming.”

“Really?!”

“Yes, but you have to keep it a surprise, okay?”

“Aye aye captain.”

“Good. Now go help your sister set out the cookies and I’ll be home before bedtime.” Jake ends the call and continues the steady crawl down the freeway.

–

Six hours and thirty minutes later, they’re finally reaching the city limits of Nashville. There’s still quite a few cars out on the road but the majority of the city looks like a ghost town. He makes it to Danny’s place and they bid their goodbyes before he makes the trek to Sam’s. One by one he drops them off before he makes his way to his own home.

Down the street he can spot the twinkling lights that decorate their home and he sighs in relief. Those damn lights he had to hang up on Thanksgiving the second dinner was over. For once he appreciates them despite the anger they’ve given him trying to hang them around the trimming of the house. The front yard is decorated with a few inflatables, a flamingo, a snowman, and a gingerbread man.

He was also relieved to see the driveway somewhat shoveled so he forced the vehicle up the slight incline and put it in park. Ditching his bags for the time being, he shuts off the car and gets out, being mindful of the ice and balancing himself as he carefully walks up to the front door. He can see through the front window the tree in the corner. The couch is in slight view and he can see Lily asleep, curled into your body as you too are asleep. He smiles to himself before sticking his key in the lock and twisting it.

Quietly he opens the door and steps inside the house, instantly feeling the warmth through his coat and his clothes. Shaking off the stray snowflakes that clung to him from outside, he starts to pull his coat when he sees Tommy step out of the kitchen. He quickly signals for him to be quiet as the still small boy rushes through the living room and tackles his father against the wall.

“I take it you’re happy,” He chuckles as he wraps his arms around Tommy.

“You have no idea.” Tommy says before tilting his head backwards and flipping his hair off of his forehead.

“Time for a haircut?”

“No way.” Tommy says.

In the midst of their hugs, Jake hadn’t noticed the littlest Kiszka waking up to find her father home. “Daddy!” She exclaims as she crawls off the couch and runs across the floor to throw her arms around his legs.

“Hey Lilypad,” He laughs as he sinks to the floor and lets her crawl onto his lap. “Did you put out the cookies?”

Lily nods her head, “And the milk!”

Hearing you groan, Jake looks to see you opening your eyes. You blink a few times and stretch out your body before looking over at the scene on the floor by the door. “When did you get here?”

“Just now,” He says. “Want to come join the cuddle party?”

“After you get in your pajamas,” You say. “You look a little out of place right now.”

After prying the kids off of him, he quickly brings his things in from the car and rushes to get dressed in the pajamas that match the rest of his family. Once he was good to go, he joined them back downstairs on the floor of the living room on the made up bed of blankets and pillows. Lily immediately takes her place on his lap and rests her head against his chest while you snuggle up to his side and Tommy rests on his other.

Lily groans when the opening sequence of The Santa Clause begins to play on the tv. “The draw was fair and square,” Jake reminds her with a soft tickle to her side. It wasn’t long before both kids were passed out on the blankets halfway through The Grinch playing.

Jake feels your hand rest against his cheek before turning his head so he’s looking at you. “Stop risking your life to make it home,” You say. “But thank you for making the effort.”

“I would do anything to be home with my family on Christmas,” He says as he gently kisses you. “I wouldn’t miss this for the world.” He gently pats Tommy’s back who simply snuggles closer to him. “I mean, come on. This is so much better than cuddling a pillow in an airport.”

You can’t help but to giggle. “Who doesn’t love children laying all over them?”

“Whoever doesn’t is crazy..” He chuckles before kissing you again. “Merry Christmas..”

“Merry Christmas.”

_________________________________________________________

@losfacedevil @writingcold @edgingthedarkness @i-love-gvf @katuschka @josh-iamyour-mama @sammysstolenbirks @asendingtothestarsasone @hollyco @musicislove3389 @its-interesting-van-kleep @katiegvf @tinydancer40 @gretavangroupie @lizzys-sunflower @fleetingjake @takenbythemadness @godly-sinsx @psychedelectable @dancingcarbon @cheersdannyx2 @piratejtk @katuschka @musicislove3389 @takenbythemadness @wildbluesorbit

add yourself to the tag list in my master list!

[greattigerssimp]

Hi! I see you like my stupid Punch Out x Disney Princess idea. Maybe some headcanons if they went out for Halloween as the Disney princesses (I know Halloween is over but still 😭)

idk really stupid idea but I blame my brain lol

It's not stupid at all! Girl boss Disney princess boxers coming right up ^^

Little Mac 🟢🥊

- Went as Vanellope

- Doc Louis went as Ralph and Peter Punch went as Felix

- Highly protested against putting candies in his hair

- Kept the hoodie after Halloween, but otherwise didn't care for the costume

- Terrible at the voice

- Watched the movie for authenticity, later bullied Joe for being cut from the film

Glass Joe 🇫🇷 🥐

- Absolutely adorableeee. Bro got lots of candy for being so bonita

- He actually loooves Beauty and the Beast! It's classic French literature, after all, and he's a sucker for adorable literary works like that.

- Also relates to Belle a lot, mainly for her love of reading

- Gets giddy every time he watches the movie or the Broadway version

- Kinda snobby about it though, like he's all like "erm actually the Broadway version is the one I prefer" like sis no one cares, shush and continue being adorable

- If Gabby was alive in this AU, he'd dress up as Gaston. He admires him in a not-straight way lmao

- Obviously kept the dress

Von Kaiser 🇧🇪 🔩

- Wanted to go as Snow White or Rapunzel since he's familiar with them (his mom would read those fairy tales to him as a kid), but since he was the last boxer to choose who to go as, he got stuck with Anna

- Watched the film alongside Soda, and he didn't care for it (that was mainly bc of Soda singing along to each song)

- Sweating BUCKETS during trick or treating since Anna's outfit is quite warm

- Chaffed... a lot.

- Did not keep the costume, even after Joe's compliments.

Disco Kid 🇺🇲 🕺

- Was happy to go as Rapunzel, until he realized what a hassle the long hair would be

- Also hard to get groovy bc of the hair

- Has the entire films soundtrack on a playlist

- Made a remix of "I see the light" after he was done trick or treating

- Kept the dress, but gave it to April (his lil sister in my AU) after Halloween. She definitely dressed up as Flynn to match with Disco Kid that night

King Hippo 🏝 🦛

- Bonita af

- Watched the film, and got obsessed with it... the lush, tropical environments reminded him of home, which is rare since Hippo doesn't remember a lot about Hippo island

- Y'all should've seen him watching the film for the first time; he can't talk, but during the songs bro was low-key stimming- like, bouncing a bit in place, humming along, that sorta thing. Dude was in his element

- Joined Macho Man at the local beach for a Halloween swim

- Sadly lost his outfit in the ocean. Cried for 3 hours

Piston Hondo 🇯🇵🥊

- Dresses up as Mulan

- Thought the film was nice, but would much rather wear Mulan's armor than a dress she barely wore

- Heike dressed up as Li Shang, Dragon Chan later joined them during trick or treating, dressed as Shan Yu

- Even Yuki joined them, wearing a cute lil Mushu outfit

- Sadly didn't keep the outfit

Bear Hugger 🇨🇦🐻

- Went as Snow White (SO DID I OMGG?? - me)

- Most authentic portrayal of character; dude equipped himself with animals and stuff to make himself look real

- Wifey Lomasi (OC of mine) had to help him put on the dress. She would match him by dressing up as Prince Florian (would love to go as Pocahontas, but didn't want to chafe + wanted to be unique)

- Spruce (his squirrel) dressed up as an apple

- Singing the songs in a very jolly, very off-key manner.

- He's definitely keeping the costume for next year

Great Tiger 🇮🇳🐯

- Dressed up as Jasmine, but he'd really prefer to dress up as Jafar. He's more bonita (this hc was brought to you by ✨️an extremely biased Jafar fangirl✨️)

- His clones dresses up as the other characters, namely Aladdin, the Genie, and the very bonita Jafar

- Jafar Jafar jafar

- Holy frick I love Jafar smmmmm

- Okay back to Great Tiger

- He liked the movie a lot, and thought it was very funny

- Also very content with his outfit! He didn't chafe (hahaha Kaiser-) and it was nice and breezy

- Even fashioned his flying carpet to look like the one from the movie

- Keeping the outfit, but is definitely dressing up as Jafar next year (mmmm my fave boxer + fave Disney character uwu)

Don Flamenco 🇪🇸 🥀

- Dressed up as Sleeping Beauty, aka Aurora (ironic since in my Halloween hcs Carmen was Aurora and Don was Prince Philip lol)

- Carmen dressed up as Maleficent bc she doesn't want to "dress up as a dude" (oh the symbolism)

- Loves all romance stories, and Sleeping Beauty is no different. Dude 100% believes in true, unconditional love

- Joe also loves sleeping beauty, since it's another piece of classic French literature. He's going to see the play version with Joe in about a month lol

- Somehow didn't chafe; it must be his skincare routine

- Got sleepy halfway through the night and went home early

- Carmen stole the dress and isn't giving it back

Aran Ryan 🇮🇪 😈

- VERY against dressing up as Merida (a Scottish character) at first, but slowly grew to love it

- He watched the film, and related to Merida to a T (and so do I lmao)

- Brought a real bow and arrow and definitely shot random people with it (Before Sandy broke it)

- Took off the wig, burned it, and threw it at a random house

- Kept the dress and gifted it to his younger sister, Brooker (Another OC of mine) back in Ireland

Soda Popinski 🇷🇺🍾

- Watched the movie with Kaiser and really liked it! He's a sucker for winter aesthetics

- Researched more information on Elsa and went crazy learning about Elsagate

- Can and will sing "Let it go" if you either ask nicely, pay him, or if your name is Super Macho Man

- Chaffed terrible, ended up crab walking most of the night

- Spent 30% of the night w/Macho Man and king hippo, watching Macho Man do laps

- Also gifted the dress to his sister after Halloween

Bald Bull 🇹🇷 🐂

- Dressed up as Tiana, and doesn't care for it

- Very independent trick or treat night

- Was fine with the movie, but wasn't crazy about it

- A few candy givers complimented him though

- Accidentally ripped his dress late into the evening. Pray to the random group of trick or treaters that got mooned that evening

- Didn't keep the dress

Super Macho Man 🇺🇸🌊

- He's absolutely slaying the little mermaid outfit (he got first pick lol)

- Will not shut up about how he saw the movie in theaters as a kid, and will not shut up about how he knows Jodi Benson lmao

- That being said, it was very hard to move, which meant someone (Soda) had to pull him on a wagon everywhere. Dw, Soda wasn't complaining

- Decided to go to the beach to see if he could swim like a mermaid with the tail on. Yes, he could, and he did it beautifully.

- Soda also joined in his swimming. It wasn't straight at all

Mr. Sandman 💤🟢

- Very itchy dress- it did not accommodate his build at all

- He won't admit it, but he felt very bonita

- Joe started yapping about how lucky Sandman was to be dressing up as such a deep, meaningful character (bro straight up has a hyperfixation for French literature)... Sandy almost clocked him for yapping.

- Ironically had to go home to midnight, not because it was late, but because his glass shoes broke under his weight, and he had to go home and pick shards of glass from his feet

Bonus HC: All of them definitely recreated this scene:

OG post from @flamingoprincess25 ://www.tumblr.com/flamingoprincess25/765906549064482816/to-the-punch-out-fansmy-halloween-special-is?source=share

[dfyltdy]

Armand Prefers the Rake Over the Lawnmower Again

Armand had to give up his relationship with journalist Daniel Molloy to maintain his familiar and understandable relationship with Louis de Pointe du Lac. He likely did this to better control Louis and prevent his suicide attempts following Claudia's death.

Armand was deprived of his coven, the routine, and the understanding of what to do each day when he was part of his theater. Over the decades, Louis became Armand's coven. He learned Louis's routine, thoughts, and could predict his steps. He knows what it is like to be with Louis. It is familiar and stable for him.

It became entirely normal for Armand to thwart Louis's suicide attempts, establishing a banal and predictable eternity. Daniel Molloy is a hurricane that bursts into their lives, exposing the raw wounds of each of them. Possible romantic relationships with Daniel would destroy the familiar routine that Armand had built. Given his need to monitor and control everything around him, this leads to the total collapse of the web he spun around Louis. In new, unclear, and completely unstable relationships with Daniel, Armand has no control over either Louis or Daniel. This frightens him, causing him to act rashly, choosing relationships where everything is familiar.

This is his coping mechanism: choosing the familiar, life with Louis.

Considering that Daniel was genuinely captivated by Armand, not finding him boring, whereas Louis had long been tired of life with him, as well as life in general.

In some sense, Armand replaced Claudia for Louis, not Lestat. Armand became a companion for Louis, just like Claudia, taking care of sustenance, routine, money, entertainment, and safety.

The tragedy in Paris forever deprived Louis and Armand of romantic thrill and sexuality. The erosion of the erotic aspect of their relationship, which no one managed to revive. Louis sought solace in young people, promiscuous sex, and blood mixed with drugs. Cleaning up after Louis became part of Armand's routine.

It is worth recalling that the dynamics of Louis and Claudia's relationship also changed several times. The first time it happened was when she asked to be called sister, and Louis stopped being a father to her, becoming an uncle, reflecting his inability to care for her as a parent. Such a role shift deeply angered Lestat. After all, you can't just change the dynamic he had built.

Most likely, this happened implicitly in Louis and Armand's relationship, as shown by the characters' behavior from the first season. If Claudia did things and helped Louis just because he was part of her family, Armand does it because he does not want and cannot be alone. Loneliness is a hostile environment for him. He does not know how to be alone and does not consider it normal for himself. It's a hostile environment filled with uncertainty.

Again, Armand has sacrificed too much in his relationship with Louis to let go of the reins of their cart. Yes, it's without a front wheel, but still on the move, sometimes falling into pits but then steering back on the right path. Reflecting this situation, one can recall the conversation on the bench where Louis asks Armand to leave the coven for his sake, but even the thought of it causes Armand pain. Louis asks him to abandon the familiar, built over hundreds of years. Armand disagrees, but Louis accepts dominance over him as a submission to his will.

Something new, unfamiliar, and unknown poses a huge threat to the fragile balance that Armand tries to protect. That is why he engages in masking, portraying himself as Rashid, fully dissolving into another personality, wrapping himself in it like a cocoon of safety. This way, he tries to protect himself from Daniel's keen mind and avoid his suspicions and attacks immediately. While Louis finds it amusing to engage in such a battle with Daniel, Armand needs time to build a fortress around himself and come up with a lie that would divert suspicions from him and not trigger unwanted memories in Louis and Daniel.

However, despite all Armand's efforts, Louis left him. Left alone, Armand turned Daniel into a vampire, hoping to find new support in him and maintain some semblance of stability in his life.

[camisoledadparis]

THIS DAY IN GAY HISTORY

based on: The White Crane Institute's 'Gay Wisdom', Gay Birthdays, Gay For Today, Famous GLBT, glbt-Gay Encylopedia, Today in GGay History, Wikipedia, and more … January 2

1801 – Explorers Alexander Henry and David Thompson make an entry in their journal titled Exploration and Adventure among the Indians on the Red, Saskatchewan, Missouri, and Colombia Rivers describe a Native American known as Berdache, son of Sucrie, who is a "curious compound between a man and a woman."

1900 – (Charles William) Billy Haines (d.1973) was an American film actor and interior designer. He was a star of the silent era until the 1930s, when Haines' career was cut short by MGM Studios due to his refusal to deny his homosexuality. Haines never returned to film and instead started a successful interior design business with his life partner and was supported by friends in Hollywood.

Billy Haines was born in Staunton, Virginia. Haines ran away from home at the age of 14, accompanied by another unidentified young man whom Haines referred to as his "boyfriend". The pair went to Hopewell, which had a reputation for immorality. Haines and his boyfriend got jobs working at the local DuPont factory for $50 a week. To supplement their income, the couple opened a dance hall, which may have also served as a brothel. His parents, frantic over his disappearance, tracked him through the police to Hopewell. Haines did not return home with them, remaining instead in Hopewell and sending money back home to help support the family. The couple remained in Hopewell until most of the town was destroyed by fire in 1915. Haines moved to New York City settling into the burgeoning gay community of Greenwich Village. It is unclear whether his boyfriend accompanied him.

He worked a variety of jobs before becoming a model. Talent scout Bijou Fernandez discovered Haines as part of the Samuel Goldwyn Company's "New Faces of 1922" contest and the studio signed him to a $40 a week contract.

Haines's career began slowly, as he appeared in extra and bit parts, mostly uncredited. His first significant role was in Three Wise Fools (1923). However, he continued to play small, unimportant parts at Goldwyn. It was not until they loaned him to Fox in 1923 for The Desert Outlaw that he got the opportunity to play a significant role. In 1924, MGM lent Haines to Columbia Pictures for a five-picture deal. The first of these, The Midnight Express (1924), received excellent reviews and Columbia offered to buy his contract. The offer was refused and Haines continued in bit roles for Goldwyn.

On a trip to New York in 1926, Haines met James "Jimmie" Shields, probably as a pick-up on the street . Haines convinced Shields to move to Los Angeles, promising to get him work as an extra - some sources say Shields worked as Haines' "double' in his films. The pair were soon living together and viewed themselves as a committed couple.

In 1933, Haines was arrested in a YMCA with a sailor he had picked up in Los Angeles' Pershing Square. Louis B. Mayer, the studio head at MGM, delivered an ultimatum to Haines: choose between a sham marriage (also known as a "lavender marriage") or his relationship with Shields. Haines chose Shields and they remained together for almost 50 years. Mayer subsequently fired Haines and terminated his contract, quickly recasting Robert Montgomery in roles that had been planned for Haines. Haines did make a few minor films then retired from film.

Haines and Shields began a successful dual career as interior designers and antique dealers. Among their early clients were friends such as Joan Crawford, Gloria Swanson, Carole Lombard, Marion Davies and George Cukor. Their lives were disrupted in 1936 when members of the Ku Klux Klan dragged the two men from their home and beat them, because a neighbor had accused the two of propositioning his son. Crawford, along with other stars such as Claudette Colbert, George Burns, Gracie Allen, Kay Francis, and Charles Boyer urged the men to report this to the police. Marion Davies asked her lover William Randolph Hearst to use his influence to ensure the neighbors were prosecuted to the full extent of the law, but ultimately Haines and Shields chose not to report the incident.

Haines and Shields remained together for the rest of their lives. Joan Crawford described them as "the happiest married couple in Hollywood."

Haines died from lung cancer in Santa Monica, California at the age of 73, a week short of his 74th birthday, which was on the new year of 1974. Soon afterward, Shields, who suffered from what many believe to be Alzheimer's Disease, put on Haines' pajamas, took an overdose of pills, and crawled into their bed to die. They were interred side by side in Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery.

1928 – Ray Kassar was president, and later CEO, of Atari Inc. from 1978 to 1983. He had previously been executive vice-president of Burlington Industries, the world's largest textile company at the time, and president of its Burlington House division. A member of the Board of Directors, Kassar had spent over thirty years at Burlington.

Ray Kassar was hired in February 1978 as president of Atari Inc.'s consumer division by Warner Communications, which at the time owned Atari. By this time, rifts had begun to develop between the original Atari Inc. staff (most of whom had engineering backgrounds) and the new hires brought in by Warner (who, like Kassar, mostly had business backgrounds).

In November 1978, when Atari Inc. co-founder Nolan Bushnell left the company after a dispute with Warner over the future of Atari Inc., Kassar became CEO. Under his leadership, sweeping changes were made at Atari and the laid-back atmosphere that had existed under Bushnell's leadership all but disappeared. Kassar's twenty-five years at Burlington Industries had given him a taste for order, organization, and efficiency and his efforts to revamp Atari along similar lines provoked substantial animosity. Kassar shifted the focus away from game development and more toward marketing and sales. Atari Inc. began to promote games all year around instead of just at the Christmas season. R&D also suffered deep cuts and the discipline and security at Atari Inc. became strict.

In a sense he also helped create the video game maker Activision. While Kassar was at Atari he angered a large number of the game developers by not crediting them in any way to the point where they walked out of Atari. He told them that they were no more important to the games then the people that worked on the assembly line. They started their own company and called it Activision.

Ray Kassar is the namesake the widely popular game “ Yar’s Revenge.” The creator of the game was a former employee at Atari “Yar” is Ray spelled backwards. The title is a deliberate jab at Kassar, mocking his dictator-like work ethic as well as his flamboyant manner. Ray Kassar was known by the employees at Atari to be an extremely flamboyant homosexual outside the work place. Employees didn't care what his sexual preferences were, but they were irked by his daily habit of being chauffeured to work in a limo and then proceeding to make grand entrances into the office.

Kassar built Atari into a video game giant that it was, before he was forced to resign because of allegations of insider trading in 1983. He sold all of his shares in Atari just hours before a report was published that Atari had suffered monetary loses in the millions.

1929  – Charles Beaumont (d.1967) is born Charles Leroy Nutt. He was an American author of speculative fiction, including short stories in the horror and science fiction subgenres. He is remembered as a writer of classic Twilight Zone episodes, such as "The Howling Man", "Miniature", "Printer's Devil", and "Number Twelve Looks Just Like You", but also penned the screenplays for several films, among them 7 Faces of Dr. Lao, The Intruder, and The Masque of the Red Death.

In 1954, Playboy magazine selected his story “Black Country.” Playboy has been loved by straight men for decades but it was this gay short story that built its reputation. Hugh Hefner was the only one to accept a science fiction story about heterosexuals being the minority against homosexuals. When letters poured in, he said: 'If it was wrong to persecute heterosexuals in a homosexual society, then the reverse was wrong too.'

1949 – Christopher Durang is an openly gay playwright, screenwriter, and actor whose works have been produced on and off-Broadway and regionally since the late 1970s. A fiercely satirical comic dramatist, Durang often incorporates gay themes and gay characters in his plays.

Durang's breakthrough in achieving critical and financial success came in 1981 with the Off-Broadway production of his scathing one-act play, Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All For You (written in 1979), which has over the years become a popular vehicle for actresses as diverse as Nancy Marchand, Cloris Leachman, Lynn Redgrave, and many others.

In Sister Mary Ignatius... , Durang draws on his childhood experiences as a student in Catholic school. He satirizes the unbending dogmatism of the eponymous Catholic nun, who is oblivious to the absurdity of what she believes and to the harm that she causes. When four former students, one of them a contented gay man, return to embarrass Sister, she shoots two of them (including the gay man) dead.

Durang often creates hyper-sexual characters (both gay and straight) in an attempt to unhinge attitudes about sexual behavior. In Sister Mary Ignatius..., the gay character explains his homosexuality to his former teacher: "I was seduced when I was in the seminary... and then I went to New York and I slept with five hundred different people."

In Durang's more recent work, straight characters take on the hyper-sexuality stereotypically associated with gay men. Lulu in Sex and Longing needs to have sex every fifteen minutes, while in Betty's Summer Vacation, Buck proudly displays a scrapbook containing photos of his penis. Durang's is a distinctive voice in American comedy, at once angry, intelligent, and queer.

He lives in Bucks County with his partner, John Augustine; they have been together for more than 20 years.

1961 – Todd Haynes is an American independent film director and screenwriter. He is best known for his feature films Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story, Poison, Velvet Goldmine, Safe, and the Academy Award-nominated Far from Heaven and I'm Not There.

In 1987, while an MFA student at Bard College, Haynes made a short, Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story, which chronicles the life of American pop singer Karen Carpenter, using Barbie dolls as actors. The film presents Carpenter's struggle with anorexia and bulimia, featuring several close-ups of Ipecac (the prescription drug Carpenter was reputed to have used to make herself vomit during her illness). Carpenter's chronic weight loss was portrayed by using a "Karen" Barbie doll with the face and body whittled away with a knife, leaving the doll looking skeletonized. The film is also notable for staged dream sequences in which Karen, in a state of deteriorating mental health, imagines being spanked by her father.

Superstar featured extensive use of Carpenter songs, showcasing Haynes' love of popular music (which would be a recurring feature of later films). Haynes failed to obtain proper licensing to use the music, prompting a lawsuit from Karen's brother Richard Carpenter for copyright infringement. Carpenter was reportedly also offended by Haynes' unflattering portrayal of him as a narcissistic bully, along with several broadly dropped suggestions that he was gay and in the closet. Carpenter won his lawsuit, and Superstar was removed from public distribution; to date, it may not be viewed publicly. Bootlegged versions of the film are still circulated, and the film is sporadically made available on YouTube.

Haynes' 1991 feature film debut, Poison, garnered Haynes further acclaim and controversy. Drawing on the writings of "transgressive" gay writer Jean Genet, the film is a triptych of queer-themed narratives, each adopting a different cinematic genre: vox-pop documentary ("Hero"), 50s sci-fi horror ("Horror") and gay prisoner love story ("Homo"). The film explores traditional perceptions of homosexuality as an unnatural and deviant social force, and presents Genet's vision of sado-masochistic gay love as a subversion of heterosexual norms, culminating with a marriage ceremony between two gay male convicts. Poison marked Haynes' first collaboration with producer Christine Vachon, who has since produced all of Haynes' feature films.

Poison was partially funded with a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. The film subsequently became the center of a public attack by Reverend Donald Wildmon, head of the American Family Association, who criticized the NEA for funding Poison and other works by gay and lesbian artists and filmmakers. Wildmon, who had not viewed the film before making his comments publicly, condemned the film's "explicit porno scenes of homosexuals involved in anal sex", despite no such scenes appearing in the film.

Poison went on to win the 1991 Sundance Film Festival's Grand Jury Prize, establishing Haynes as an emerging talent and the voice of a new transgressive generation. The film writer B. Ruby Rich cited Poison as one of the defining films of the emerging New Queer Cinema movement, with its focus on maverick sexuality as an anti-establishment social force.

Haynes achieved his greatest critical and commercial success to date with Far From Heaven (2002), a 1950s-set melodrama inspired by the films of Douglas Sirk about a Connecticut housewife Cathy Whittaker (Julianne Moore) who discovers that her husband (Dennis Quaid) is secretly gay, and subsequently falls in love with Raymond, her African-American gardener (Dennis Haysbert).

Haynes is openly gay. He currently lives in Portland, Oregon.

2005 – Bonnie Bleskachek became the first openly lesbian fire chief of a major city, Minneapolis. She was demoted two years later amid claims of harassment and discrimination, but return to the department as a staff captain. She co-founded the Minnesota Women Fire Fighters Association.

[murfpersonalblog]

IWTV S2 Ep1 Musings - LDPDL smdh

My daughter Claudia is NOT. PLAYING. AROUND.

I had to giggle here, cuz it just reminded me of what she said in S1:

Claudia will drag Lestat AND Louis each and every chance she gets, bless! 😂

Aaaaaaaand the racists. 😒 Eat ALL of these mofos, YAAAAAS~!

I am SCREAMING at the cinematic poetry--Louis is talking about not burning Lestat, as Lou & Claud can't get warm enough at a fire where they're burning the dead Soviets they just ate.

While Claudia sits there giving Lou the cold shoulder & the silent treatment, icing him out so Louis only talks to himself--I HOLLERED.

My daughter KNOWS!!! DRAG HIM, CLAUDIA!! ^0^

But then I cried, cuz WAIT. If Louis is talking to himself, is this also factoring into why he's seeing DreamStat? Cuz Lou's also desperate for connection, which he can't get from Claudia anymore either! 😭

Louis said DreamStat "came by invitation," as a colorful & vibrant "distraction" (read: comfort) from the dull monochromatic grey Eastern European land. But Lestat is bloodsplattered & filthy just like everyone else.

The question of his guilty conscience: what does Lestat feel/think about Louis? And what is Louis projecting?

That's all Louis wants to hear--that Les misses him and forgives him.

"I'm glad it was you...a la fin." We still need confirmation that Lou slit Les's throat, not Claudia. Cuz this will also point to how much Lou is lying to himself about how betrayed Lestat really felt--that his death would be better by Lou's hands than Claudia's. Is Lou making himself feel better by giving Les the coup de gras, and thinking Les is grateful to him for it?

Cuz he's clearly scared to death that WHEN--not IF--they reunite, Les will be pissed and hate/kill him.

Cuz Lestat's love was what kept Louis alive--Lestat loving Louis saved/damned Louis' life. (The Merrick of it all, istg.)

So it's WILD that Louis thinks this. That the split second Louis finds happiness, the boogeyman Lestat will come and kill him, or take it from him--or just be there as a hallucination constantly reminding Louis of what he left behind.

As an aside:

It was a BAT--that's cute! XD

Louis in denial as he tells himself choosing Claudia over Lestat was worth it. And Dream!Stat chanting "I do" like frikkin wedding vows, then choking on the words/vows as a vampire bat claws out of his throat--I CANNOT with this show anymore.

This is interesting--the 7000 people he killed in Eastern Europe were a necessary evil--Lou calls them "souls," when Les called them "the Meat" and Claudia called them "Kill Juice." And in Paris he only kills once every other day. They ALL feel like murder to Louis. But Louis KNOWS he never killed Lestat!

He put Lestat in the dump the same way Grace put his name on that tombstone--it's the DISTANCE that's killing them.

It's separation & absence, which they HOPE will make the heart grow colder--when we all know that's not how the saying actually goes.

So who are you REALLY fooling, Louis? Cuz it for sure ain't Claudia!

She said "you slow us down!" 💀 But Louis warned you: "I can barely speak French and English. I'd just hold you back.... You don't need me. You think you do, but you don't. You're smarter now. You see trouble coming a mile away." If only they'd've BOTH remembered that bit once they got to PARIS. 💀💀💀

This dude, I swear. No wonder he never joined the Theatre; he can't lie for ish! 😅

And I OOP! 👀

By the end of the episode we get Louis' BEAUTIFUL "You and Me" monologue to Claudia, and she finally accepts his apology and promise that he won't kill himself like Draciana did.

MERRICK COME THROUGH! 😭

Which nearly made me cry when you finally see DREAM!LESTAT SITTING RIGHT THERE. 😭 Who is Louis REALLY talking to!?

As he always does when in denial & running from his problems (all the way to effing Romania, ffs), alcoholic!Louis "runs to the bottle and to bad beds."

I REFUSE.

I CANNOT.

I SHAN'T.

Louis, if you don't stop right this moment ISTG! 😭😭

I love this effing show, omg what a great start to the season!