#claudine…! spoilers

[officialkaitov8]

Rip Claude you would’ve loved hrt

We lost a real one fr 😔

[bloodraven55]

MY KIDS ARE ALL GROWN UP

[upathosarts]

probably my fav part of the kurotaba route

[tokyo-tower-symbolism]

How many times do we have to teach you this lesson, old man?

[kurashikimisaki]

finally have time to draw again!! so here's some revstar + umineko sketches :3

[caramelmochacrow]

I love how in the movie everyone was in their gay divorce arc except maya and claudine

YES. LIKE. EVERYONE WAS DIVORCING EACH OTHER WHILE MAYA AND CLAUDINE WERE JUST. DOING WHATEVER THE HECK THEIR REVUE WAS.

When THOSE scene happened in the kaoruko and futaba revue me and my sister were losing our shit. Like. There is no straight explanation for anything that was happening in that revue and the others in general. Nothing. I know that futaba and kaoruko being those positions probably means something other than 'they're gay', I know it does, but my GOD THESE BITCHES GAY. Also at the beginning when claudine was being a gambler and kaoruko a dealer, kaoruko saying she ruined her sweets box, saying she ruined it and poisoned it, and then says 'your the reason that we...' and then futaba (literally) breaks into the scene a few moments later and says that their friendship was like a box of sweets all imply that kaoruko is blaming claudine for their divorce. I love it.

The revue of hunting was just. God. Nana saying junna was bright, nana asking where her junna was and that she was beautiful, junna saying that the words she quotes inspire and move her while to nana they mean nothing, Junna finally finding her own words and saying that she will finally become the protagonist and then the last part where they're going toward the next stage, moving on from the starlights they did in seisho and everything else, nana crying and saying that she was a liar and that junna is still bright, junna not going back to comfort her and nana wiping away her own tears and both of them calling each other by their full names killed me.

That entire revue was just an Experience for me. I love nana a lot so seeing her just be THAT in the entire movie and revue made me so so insane. Nana ilysm but :(

Karen and hikari was the biggest divorce in the movie ofc. Karen worked so hard to just do one play with hikari, but now that she did it, what else can she do? She finally did starlight with hikari. Hikari did the same, but she always loved the stage, so she knew what to do next, to go to the next one. But karen didnt. She doesnt know what to do. Without hikari she isnt a stage girl. Literally. Once hikari leaves her she wont have a purpose on the stage, she is nothing. So instead of something like hikari helping karen find her new purpose for the stage, she just helps by telling her which direction she should go to find her next purpose by herself, then everyone throwing away the cloaks that the giraffe gave them except for karen meaning that they found their next stage and at the end they show karen about to audition for something and her cloak finally flying away meaning she found a new purpose and reason for the stage just. Yeah. They sure are that, huh?

Maya and claudine. These bitches. When I finished kaoruko and futaba's revue, i told my sister, "if this is kaoruko and futaba, what's maya and claudine going to be?" And after junnanna, I said, "that was the gayest one so far, wonder if maya and claudine can top it," AND THEY DID. They didnt do any of those positions the other guys did but the things they said? Oohhhh boy. It beats a confession by anyone.

The subs I watched are different to the ones some people watched I think but the implications still stand. Maya and claudine's revue begins with them acting out a play. (Also can I say that claudine's voice and outfit was TOP NOTCH AMAZING AT THIS PART. HER VOICE AND FIT OOZES WITH SMUG I LOVE IT) claudine and maya make a deal, implying that claudine is the devil and that maya is a pure and innocent person wrapped in the devil's finger. Things happen, blah blah blah, and maya tells her that she cannot steal her soul because she has none, she is a vessel for the gods and gets an outfit change, she wears all white and a fancy gown that's clearly suppose to be a swan, contrasting claudine's black attire. the part where they're fighting as other people from other countries, rivals in history, they say (in the subs I was watching) something along the lines of "a hero is nothing without trials and a saint is nothing without temptation." Maya is clearly the saint at that part, with claudine asking her to make a deal with her like the devil, maya plays a lot of lead roles, which is usually the hero, so maya is the hero. A hero cant be a hero without trials, if they are a hero, what will prove it? A saint cannot be a saint without temptation, what proves they are a saint without it? So if that's what the questions are, what proves that maya is amazing?

It's claudine. Claudine is her trials, claudine is her temptation, without claudine maya has no proof she is amazing.

Then at the end, instead of one of them being on top of the other like the other guys, they are lying down on the ground at the same area, they are both finally on equal ground.

Anyway wow I rambled a lot lol sorry.... I just love the movie a lot so... just take this ramble?

[vhalesa]

Days survived without drawing mayakuro: 8

[dagmartoons]

claudine why do you have a clockwork orange poster in your room

[nin-jou]

acho que claudine transborda o assunto: solidão lgbtqia+

[yzeltia]

Handed Down from Stone

Chapter 14: Etched in Jet Characters: Claudine, Y'zel Tia Rating: T for Teen Notes: The last word is not a typo

-Sharlayan Settlement 1560-

Claudine swallowed as he heard the sounds of sniffling in the empty study. The room was locked when he came in, and he was rather certain his mentor, Y'lem Tia, had the only other key. Carefully setting tomes down, he looked about, jumping as he heard a hiccup in the dark. 

Fairly certain he didn't sense the aether of specter, logic took hold. Someone was there with him, even if not apparent. Carefully he wandered between desks until his eye caught a pink tail slinking under the farthest table. Walking to the spot, he squatted, finding a young Miqo'te curled up, rubbing his eyes, and sniffling.

"Hey there. How'd you get in here," he asked with a small smile.

The freckled boy jumped as he was talked to. "D-Don't eat me," he begged before trying to scamper away, hitting his head on the table and flattening himself.

Claudine stifled a bit of a laugh before moving chairs to sympathetically check on the boy as he rubbed his forehead, "I'm not going to eat you. I just wanted to know how you got to such a place."

"The key…" whined the little Miqo'te.

"And you're scared I'm going to eat you for stealing it?"

The younger boy shot up, freckled cheeks puffing out in a huff. "I didn't steal it! It's my key!"

"They don't give just give study keys out to little boys."

"They gave one to you!"

"I'm not a- You little!"

Claudine fumed for a moment then calmed himself, forcing a smile at the brat.

"Who gave you the key," the blond finally asked after being locked in a bit of a staring contest.

"My father."

"Oh! Professor Y'lem's boy. You're Y'zel!"

Y'zel nodded, sitting up and looking up to the other. "Mhm…"

"You shouldn't be in here, key or not. What if you got hurt," Claudine offered.

"I can't! I'm doing a bravery test."

"What?"

"Shtola said I couldn't stay in here by myself all day….and I told her I could. She told me a bunch of scary stories though about creatures that come out of the darkness to eat little Miqos before she left."

"Well, that's sounding like she cheated a bit to rile you up."

Y'zel nodded then hunkered back down under the desk. 

"Well, if she asks I'll tell her you were plenty brave given the circumstances…but perhaps I should take you to your father."

Y'zel blinked, staring at the Hyur as his hand was offered. Gingerly, he reached out, taking it and letting the other pull him from his spot. His ears perked suddenly.

"Who is Praxi…Praxithius?"

Claudine shook his head, "I'm uncertain. Did you read about them?"

"You just said it."

"I didn't say anything?"

Y'zel folded his ears back as his companion shook his head in earnest. Offering a smile, Claudine reached out, ruffling the younger boy's hair. "Let's go."

Y'zel nodded, reluctantly following along.

"You'll tell Shtola I stayed the entire night?"

"It wouldn't be right to lie…perhaps a half -truth. You stayed until I forced you out."

"That works I guess. She's a shrew."

"That's not very nice."

"It's not? Father says it means she's perceptive…though disapproves of Uncle Rhul letting her practice with Master Matoya."

"Oh! You meant she's shrewd. A shrew is a small burrowing animal."

"I guess shrewd then…"

Claudine laughed as Y'zel looked away embarrassed, "I believe a bit more work on your vocabulary might go a long way in mitigating some of your cousin's teasing."

"Mit..what?"

"Learn more words," Claudine laughed.

"I read better than a lot of my cousins…big books with several volumes!"

"And you didn't know what a shrew was?"

"I don't read about animals…"

"Then what do you read about?"

"Brave knights and adventures…a lot rescuing princesses from dragons…but I like the ones where it's just the prince and knight and they fall in love better…Shtola says that they're unrealistic though and will give me the wrong impression of what courting is like when I'm grown…"

"Perhaps a bit. I'm too young for that sort of thing myself, but imagine when I am I will be too busy with research to bother with that kind of thing."

"You don't want to live happily ever after?"

Claudine paused, turning to look at Y'zel whose blue eyes had widened, somehow threatening tears.

"I…well, there are other things to worry about."

"That's so sad! Even scholars deserve love! My father is a scholar and all he worries about is his work, but even he found my mother and had me!"

The Hyur blinked, finding Y'zel clinging to his student robes. He offered the boy a pat on the head. "I am not much older than you! As I said, far away from such things! There's no need for you to despair on my half!"

Y'zel sniffled then looked up at the other before his ears perked once more before worried expression turned into horror stricken. Quickly turning, Claudine gathered the other onto his arms then knelt down, shielding the Miqo'te before tilting his head as a Bhoot hovered by, arms outstretched to gently caress his face. The Hyur seized up, scooting back before it could slither around his neck. "Shoo! Off with you," he ordered, finding a discarded book to bounce off its dome body.

Hit, the creature floated back, then continued on, leaving the boys to huddle under the desk. Catching his breath, Claudine checked on Y'zel, the Miqo'te's pink hair on end. 

"Perhaps we've wandered too deep into the library for this hour. Let's just wait until someone wanders by," Claudine offered, trying not to appear as frightened as his companion.

Y'zel nodded meekly, recoiling against the other's chest, content to hunker down shielded by the student's robes. It was not before the two had dozed off together, the boys remaining undisturbed until found later by the Miqo'te's worried father.

-Coerthas, Y'zel's Cabin, Present-

Y'zel tilted his head as he read the letter a second time. Though most likely not his friend's intention, it has struck the more empathetic parts of him. To imagine the Voidsent were nothing more than scared aetheric consciousnesses seeking nourishment, made them seem frightened and in need of care, at least to him.

"Is your friend extending her sabbatical? You look as if you've been quite shaken by that letter," Claudien asked, lowering himself beside Y'zel on their futon.

"No, it's…well," he started before handing over the letter.

"Quite taken with your cousin…and this bit about traversing the Void itself! I really must invite her to dinner sometime and pick her brain…but I'm not parsing the reason you've become so upset."

"The Voidsent…they're…they're just trying to get by…"

"...by sucking the aether out of living beings, yes."

"There's so many things flushed with aether though! I imagine if we just found a way to supply it…" he muses quietly.

"You've got a big heart," Claudine sighed, kissing the Miqo'te's forehead before pulling him down onto his chest, "But…perhaps we wait on your friends to learn more about them before you make a buffet of yourself."

Y'zel puffed his cheeks out then crossed his arms as he rolled away from the other. "I have the Echo. I'm blessed with more aether than I need. Besides…I owe a Voidsent…"

"Pardon? How could you manage that?"

"I was cornered one time in some ruins in Gyr Abania…I had packed light for climbing, all I had was the training scythe my dad had gifted me as a boy."

"Raiden, not Y'lem correct?"

"Yes…Anyroad, I was cornered and when things got too hard to handle it appeared from the stone embedded in the hilt and felled the creatures."

"And you're certain it was a Voidsent?"

Y'zel nodded, "It wasn't if my own aether, and I felt this connection with it. An exchange."

"And since?"

"Well, I was scared after and on my return packed it away…but now I'm worried. It probably has a special connection to me and I've all but severed it."

"...Again, before you find yourself crawling into the nearest void gate, perhaps the scientific method should be involved? Testing. Retesting? I believe there are some resources on this phenomenon available in my department as it was of interest to some aristocrats in Ul'dah or something. Yet, another project added to my people in the wake of the reopened borders."

Y'zel relented and turned back around, nuzzling up under Claudine's arm, pinning his ears under it to dull the man's rant about work as he tried to doze off. As he fell into sleep, one ear perked, catching a familiar voice he couldn't place."Hunger…return…Pretzel…."

[animefeminist]

Transmasculinity and queer sexuality in the works of Ikeda Riyoko

Content Warning: Discussion of transphobia and suicide

Spoilers for Dear Brother, The Rose of Versailles, and Claudine

Ikeda Riyoko—perhaps the most famous member of the “year 24 group” that played a large part in creating the foundations of the shoujo manga genre—is often credited with laying the groundwork for depictions of queer characters in shoujo, and in particular with creating the archetype of the gender-bending heartthrob heroine, or “girl prince.” Building on earlier representations of butch or transmasculine characters in early shoujo manga such as Princess Knight, and the Takarazuka theater tradition of the otokoyaku male role actor, Ikeda’s enormously popular gender non-conforming heroes—Lady Oscar from The Rose of Versailles, Rei from Dear Brother, Julius from the Window of Orpheus, and the titular character of Claudine—helped to establish that there was a major mainstream audience excited to cheer for a hotheaded, androgynous tomboy with a heart of gold. Lady Oscar in particular has fingerprints all over the history of anime and manga, from a gender-bending cameo in Pokémon to serving as the inspiration for iconic characters like Tenjou Utena.

When I first read The Rose of Versailles last year, I expected its depictions of queer and transmasculine characters to be somewhat limited—after all, the comic was written for mainstream audiences and a mainstream publisher in the 1970s. But across Ikeda’s work, I was deeply surprised with the level of care and nuance with which Ikeda approaches transmasculine love stories. While there is obviously a lot about Ikeda’s portrayal of transmasculine characters that feels dated to modern audiences (for example, her comics often do fall back on “biological” ideas of women’s weakness and emotionality, and sometimes psychologize her character’s genders in uncomfortable ways), I was surprised by how much of these comics still hit for me today. What makes them work for me is both the extreme pathos with which Ikeda writes transmasculine character’s experiences of rejection—and, at rare moments, gender euphoria —but also the fact that her trans characters are not simply given a one-size fits all born-in-the-wrong-body narrative. Instead, they are each portrayed as unique individuals with varied personal relationships to their gender, their sexuality, and the historical context of the society they live in.

Read it at Anime Feminist!

[bloodraven55]

previous evidence says otherwise kaoruko

[marcuyapup]

Revue starlight: EL DORADO

art below contain spoilers for futaba x claudine route

"I want to see that fire burning inside you"

commissions open here or see the tumblr post

[hotvintagepoll]

Propaganda

Claudine Auger (Thunderball)— Thunderball is the first James Bond movie I ever remember watching and actually paying attention to, and it's all because of Claudine Auger as Domino in all her sexy black and white swimwear, AND [spoilers below the cut—]

Rita Moreno (Singin' in the Rain, West Side Story)—She’s an EGOT, an absolute legend for how she navigated her career as a woman of color in the fifties and sixties. Her performance as Anita in West Side Story is why I go back to that movie so many times. She is an icon and she is the moment.

This is round 3 of the tournament. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. Please reblog with further support of your beloved hot sexy vintage woman.

[additional propaganda submitted under the cut.]

Claudine Auger:

—the fact that she got to kill the villain.

Rita Moreno propaganda:

"Amazing showstopping actress in her one big memorable role as Anita in West Side Story. She sings and dances with unmatched joy and energy, and then breaks your heart with her acting. Rita took a role that felt as a stereotype to latina women and made it compelling and multifaceted. Her subsequent career was filled with mostly side roles, but she still managed to excel in whatever Hollywood threw at her."

"It’s Rita!! The EGOT herself! She can act, she can sing, she can dance, a triple threat. Obviously absolutely iconic as Anita in West Side Story (her part of the Tonight Quintet is the sexiest part of the film, fight me). But before that she was the amazing Zelda in Singin’ In the Rain!?! Thanks Zelda, you’re a real pal."

"She continues to be amazing but also she's got legs for days."

"THEE iconic rita moreno, EGOT winner, civil rights activist, theatre legend. watch her documentary "Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It". also her rendition of "fever" on the muppet show"

[badass-queer-couples-battle]

Sword gays showdown preliminaries

Propaganda:

For Kazuma Asogi:

ok so he’s not CANONICALLY queer but it’s ace attorney. so… he does, however, canonically have a katana! a sword so integral to the plot it gives me shivers just thinking about it. the sword also has a name, it’s karuma (translates roughly to karma) and it gets passed onto the main character, ryunosuke naruhodo (who he calls partner), after kazuma (spoiler alert) dies in case 1-2. except (SUPER spoiler alert!) he isn’t dead! he comes back in case 2-3 and would you look at that he has ANOTHER SWORD, a more european sword (cause he ended up in england after his amnesia brain said he REALLY had to go to england). once he gets his memories back, ryunosuke gives karuma back to him and proceeds to use it to destroy the wax figure of his dead presumed serial killer dad (long story), and now he has, you guessed it, TWO SWORDS! for the next two cases he wears both swords at his sides, and also he broke the tip off of karuma attempting to murder someone (he didn’t actually murder anyone but still) and then turns out karuma’s hilt has the REAL serial killer’s will in it. very VERY important sword. in the end, kazuma gives karuma back to ryunosuke which is really symbolic but that’s besides the point, and they cross swords and it’s a whole big thing. 10/10 gay sword guy.

For Raiden:

Man catches knives with his heels and uses a sword to cut through robots 20 times his size

He's such a tragic character! Raised to be a super soldier from birth and is constantly being exploited by the government. As for the lgbt part him and his rival in the latest game he's in have so much tension it's unreal (gay). I headcanon him as trans too because he has a feminine figure, his voice gets more masculine as the series goes on (testosterone) and his entire body gets replaced with cybernetics (trans allegory...)

For Claudine Saijou:

Fights with a longsword! Should be number 1 for this line alone: “For heroes, there are trials. For saints, there are temptations. For me, there is you”, said to def not her girl crush but rival btw (stream Revue of Soul) Vote for my disaster theatre kid its what she deserves!

Her gay levels are off the charts. She has a homoerotic rivalry with another classmate (Maya Tendo/Tendou Maya) that is integral to her character, as she was always first until she met Maya. She’s also half-French, but that’ll be important later. When she’s looking at pictures of Maya stretching (to study her form of course) and another character asks her what she’s looking at, she panics, blushes, and says none of your business. Her and Maya have a heartfelt conversation while stretching with Claudine’s face pressed into Maya’s chest (between her stomach and breasts). Some art from a magazine has Maya pushing Claudine into a deep stretch, but it looks like something a lot different (Claudine blushing doesn’t help. Also I realized that there’s a lot of gay stuff related to stretching with these two).

During a two on two duel (I know it’s not a duel), they fight together. Not only that, but at one point they hold hands and take a pose typical of romantic partners in dancing. For no reason. They just pause and do it to show off. They aren’t even fighting. Anyways, when they lose, Claudine starts crying, not because she lost, but because Maya lost. So, of course, Maya starts speaking to her in French, with one of the things she says being “You’re cute even when you cry, my Claudine.” All of this is stuff that’s happened in the series (except the magazine thing).

Now for the gay stuff in the movie. Their duel with each other is so dense with sapphic undertones they can hardly be called undertones. For starters, the song that accompanies this revue is called “A Beautiful Person, or Perhaps it is.” While this title is incomplete, the director states that he wanted the watcher to fill it in and this removed the end of the original title. That title is “A Beautiful Person, or Perhaps it is a Love Song.” The duel is framed as a fight between a hero (Maya) and a devil (Claudine). Maya is in an outfit reminiscent of Renaissance Italy and Claudine is in a suit. Thus, Maya signs a contract giving her soul over to Claudine, as is the case with marriage. With her own blood, in the shape of Position Zero (an important symbol in the show), which happens to look like a T, for Tendou. After a few minutes of fighting, Maya disappears and monologues, appearing in a white dress. This means that Maya has signed her soul over to Claudine, and they are now both wearing a white dress and suit. Not beating the gay marriage allegations. Maya finished her monologue with “For heroes, there are trials. For saints, there are temptations. For me, there is a devil.” They continue to fight, Maya proclaiming herself emotionless and empty. Maya then cuts the medallion from Claudine’s chest (they wear medallions and you lose the duel if it gets cut off).

Claudine falls. Maya attempts to claim victory by stabbing her sword into Position Zero, which is then covered by steel doors. Claudine sits up and reveals she has another medallion in her mouth, which she does by sticking out her tongue in a uhhhh. Anyways, after a bit of back and forth, Claudine tells Maya that she’s full of arrogance and pride and envy and longing. She then says that “No matter how many times I die, I will revive! Tendou Maya! To beat you, my rival, into submission!” She then makes her stage entrance, taking Maya’s usual entrance speech and mocking it. She also says “I fill myself with exploding passion, now, and bash it into your heart!” After some talking, Maya makes her stage entrance, taking Claudine’s usual entrance speech and mocking it. Up until now, they have been playing characters, but still letting their own emotions shine through. Now, they are entirely themselves.

They begin to fight again, running downs white aisle before clashing swords, with Maya saying “Such an ugly, emotion drenched appearance-“ and is cut off by Claudine, who says “Show me more, Tendou Maya! Right now, you’re the cutest you’ve ever been!” To which Maya responds “I’m always cute!”  The song starts up again (duels are accompanied by songs), with Maya singing “With a grin of deception I’ll tear this piece of cloth.” Deception in Japanese is mayakashi, a reference to Maya’s name. Maya then sings “I want to show you my feelings becoming dyed in black.” Black is Kuro in Japanese. Claudine, in Katakana, is Kurodine, with her nickname being Kuro, so that line could also be interpreted “I want to show you my feelings becoming dyed in you.” Claudine then sings “Only me, always, forever,” before they sing in unison “You only need to look at me,” as they lock blades. Some fighting happens and they’re falling through the sky, holding onto each others clothes and Claudine says “Only I can make you lay everything bare!” To which Maya responds “I’ll expose my everything, on the stage!” Claudine shoots back with “There’s a partner you can expose everything to, on the stage!” At this point, there’s a short time with independent vocals for Maya and Claudine in addition to their talking. Maya has been singing “If I’m on the stage, if I’m in front of you,” for the last two lines of dialogue. Claudine sings “Be it ugly or beautiful,” as Maya sings “I will expose, anything and everything, all of me, all of me.” As this happens, Maya is saying “We love the stage,” which is continued by Claudine saying “And we can’t part from the stage!” Maya calls them both “Pathetic clowns!” To which Claudine corrects “No, rivals!” Maya says “If you’re there, I have to strive higher!” Claudine says “You make me even more beautiful! Maya!” Maya then yells “Claudine!” Claudine yells “For heroes, there are trials!” Maya continues “For saints, there are temptations!” Then, as one, their swords crossed, faces inches from each other, yell “For me, there is you!” Over top of this, their voices sing a line in unison: “Forever and ever, I’d like to cross swords with you.”

Claudine’s sword stabs through the contract, through the Position Zero in blood, which may be Maya’s family name, and Maya says as an aside “Saijou Claudine… You are beautiful.” Claudine cuts the medallion from Maya’s chest, finally beating her rival.

[valkyyriia]

Hello! If the request are still open I’d like to make one 😊 This is my first time requesting something so I apologize if I missed anything 🙏🏻

I’d like to request Comte as the suitor(established relationship) and rain for the prompt. Thank you 😊

A Deluge of Feelings

Words: 1401 CW: None | SFW Tags: Fluff, Non-Sexual Nudity, Google Translate French, Spoilers for Comte's name, Minor Characters from Comte's Route Prompt: Comte + Rain Pairing: Comte de Saint-Germain / Reader

Note: Absolutely no worries Hikari! There's a first time for everything 😊 Glad to have another Comte enjoyer here! He's my favorite suitor!

I had several other ideas for this fic that I ended up stashing away for a rainy day (pun fully intended). I really do love Comte. ♥

Also posted on AO3 here.

When you left for the ball earlier this evening, the sky had been clear; nary a cloud in sight. The sun had been near setting when you had climbed into the carriage, its rays painting the evening sky with gorgeous shades of peach and orange. You made a mental note to ask Vincent - or Leonardo, if he felt productive - to try to paint a nineteenth-century Paris sunset for you one of these days.

So when you heard the telltale rumbles of thunder in the distance soon after arriving, it caught you - and your partner - by surprise. You had been talking to your friend, a nobleman's daughter by the name of Claudine, when the manor's windows rattled from the shockwave. Rain began to fall in light droplets, a soft pitter-patter cascading against the roof. Your partner, the ever-elegant Comte de Saint-Germain, quickly made his way to your side.

"Claudine, it's always a pleasure to see you," he greeted the other girl amicably. She curtsied and addressed him in kind, before excusing herself with a cheeky grin in your direction. Your response was a not-so-ladylike roll of the eyes, your own attention returning to the nobleman by your side.

Le Comte watched her walk off, his brow furrowed. The way girls behaved was still a mystery to him, even after God knows how many centuries of life. He would always be doomed to wonder in this regard, he supposed. Some things weren't meant to be understood.

Returning to the matter at hand, Comte placed a large hand on your back and drew you close, kissing your temple and murmuring into your ear. "We should try to get home before it gets any worse, Ma Chérie. I don't want to stay out and risk you catching cold or us getting stuck in town."

He swiftly guided you towards the doors of the manor house to call for your carriage. The rain, however, had other ideas. As you neared the door the soft droplets turned into a torrential downpour; sheets of rain fell from the sky like gauzy curtains, obscuring all but the brightest of lights. Water ran in dark, snaking rivulets across the cobblestone paths,

The pureblooded vampire exchanged a quick word with the coachman by the door. The watery onslaught was so deafening you were unable to make out much of what they were saying, but you assumed it had something to do with the carriages.

After a moment, your hypothesis was confirmed. Comte turned to you, an apologetic smile on his face.

"We won't be able to take a carriage back to the mansion in this weather, between the flooding and the low visibility. The coachman isn't certain they'd even be able to make it to the city's residential district with how bad it is," he said, kissing your forehead. "For now, we should just try to enjoy ourselves for a bit longer and hope the rain passes by."

The two of you returned inside, le Comte remaining by your side this time. He continued to greet the other nobles who approached the two of you, his hand secure on your hip. You stood by him, a placid smile on your face as you played the part of a nobleman’s partner.

Soon, you found yourselves dancing together on the ballroom floor, enjoying each other’s company as you waited for the storm to subside. Unfortunately, it seemed as though there was no end in sight. The rain continued to pour, quickly dashing any hopes you had had of returning home tonight. Normally this situation would bring you stress, but you found the thought of being stranded in town for the night didn’t bother you that much. You were with Comte, and you knew that he would stop at nothing to keep you safe.

Le Comte checked his pocket watch, a graceful frown marring his face. It had gotten quite late already, and with no sign of the rain letting up, your choices were dwindling. At your questioning glance, he smiled reassuringly.

“These things happen. We can predict the weather, but we can’t ever be fully certain how it’s going to be. It’s no matter,” Comte spoke, lovingly brushing a stray hair out of your face. “We will just have to brave the weather and head for a nearby inn, I’m afraid.”

Before you could speak up, you were interrupted by a familiar, loud voice.

“Ah, Comte de Saint-Germain,” he said. You immediately recognized this as the Duke de Guermantes, Comte’s friend and Claudine’s father. He smiled at you, greeting you as well.

You knew the Duke de Guermantes rather well, all things considered; he was the father of one of your only female friends in this time period, as well as a friend of Comte’s.

“Monsieur le Duc,” you replied in kind with a curtsy.

He turned back to le Comte with a friendly smile. “I see the two of you are stuck in town for the evening, non? The carriages won’t run in this weather.”

“I’m afraid you’re correct,” Comte agreed with resignation. “We had hoped the rain would let up long enough for us to return home, but I suppose le des intempéries had other plans.” He smiled amiably. “We were going to brave the outdoors soon and go to one of the inns nearby for the evening.”

The Duke de Guermantes shook his head dramatically. “I think not! I would make quite the poor host to force one of my dearest friends and his partner leave the safety and comfort of my home in un orage. Non, you shall stay here for the night.”

Le Comte’s features were painted in surprise. “Are you certain? I would hate for us to impose on such short notice.”

“Nonsense,” the Duke waved him off. “I shall not hear of it. You could never impose.”

“Merci beaucoup,” Comte said. “We are very grateful for your hospitality.”

Soon, you were both shown to a guest room in the Duke’s manor. Rain still beat against the windows, drowning out any other sounds.

Comte stepped up behind you, his hands deftly picking out several of the pins holding your hair up. As your hair came loose of its confines, his fingers gently combed through the strands. You sighed into his touch.

Comte’s hands slid down to your shoulders and he kissed the top of your head.

“Je t’aime,” he murmured, turning you around in his arms and brushing a hand against your cheek. “I am sorry we could not make it home tonight, Ma Chérie.”

You smiled back at him, leaning into his palm. “It’s alright, Abel. I’m happy to go anywhere so long as it’s with you.”

Le Comte’s golden eyes were filled with an indescribable deep emotion in response to your words. His hand drifted to your chin and tilted it up, his lips crashing into yours for a hungry kiss. He soon broke away from you, grimacing in discomfort.

You frowned, your hand cupping his cheek. “What is it, Abel?”

He just shook his head in response and took your hand in his, pulling it from his face. Your eyes widened in understanding.

“When did you last eat?” You murmured.

His eyes drifted to yours and he smiled knowingly. “I’m not hungry,” he murmured. “Not for anything but you, at least.”

Your cheeks flushed, but your frown deepened. You went to step away but his other hand came to grasp your waist and hold you there.

“It will pass, as it always does,” he assured you. “Un moment, s’il vous plait.”

You turned back around and began to unlace your dress. You were surprised when his fingers joined yours almost immediately, assisting you in shedding the garment. His fingers lightly skimmed over the skin that was now laid bare before him.

“You are beautiful, Ma Chérie. I still find it hard to believe that in the endless sea of eternity, I found you.” He kissed your bare shoulder. “However much I should like to ravish you this evening, I fear we must get to bed,” Comte sighed. “We still have to head back home in the morning and I think we should not abuse le Duc’s hospitality.”

With a pout, you agreed and crawled into bed with him, nestling against his warmth comfortably. He kissed your forehead. “Bonne nuit, mon amour,” Le Comte whispered. “Je t'aime, maintenant et pour toujours.”

Taglist: @natimiles @queengiuliettafirstlady @candiedcoffeedrops @goddesswitchmother

@fang-and-feather @candied-boys

Let me know if you'd like to be added!