#louis is only just getting a sense of how much he used claudia

[isthatacalzone]

it's baffling to me the lengths to which people will try to frame anyone in iwtv as being better than anyone else. everyone who says they love each other is doing it poorly. Lestat apologised to Louis on that stage and it was real and it was also a performance. Armand feels genuine remorse for not saving Claudia, claims that he couldn't prevent it but we all know he could have. Louis loved Claudia and wanted the best for her, and she was a broken doll picked up and used to soothe his guilt. Even Claudia, who did love Louis, has a specific view of everything that happened to them, to her, that made her messy, that made her angry and awful at times. why would you flatten them? why would you take away what makes these emotions real and complicated?

[lizardkingeliot]

I took a ton of notes during my rewatch of 2x07 just now but the thing I kept coming back to again and again was Armand's framing of the entire narrative and how it plays with truth vs lies in such an insidious way it's honestly brilliant in its cruelty. Truth being used as a cudgel not only against Louis, but against Lestat as well. And against, us, the viewers at home.

We obviously all know Armand is a very powerful 500 year old vampire who is not going to be held back by an infant of a vampire like Santiago. Like… Armand. Babe. Let’s get real. But that’s the narrative set-up. The coven, now being led by Santiago, has Armand captive behind his little rickety baby gate with Sam and his prop weapon not letting the puppy come out to play. He cannot prevent it! Poor baby. Someone get him a juice box and a snack.

Enter Lestat. The vengeful lover come to make Louis and Claudia pay for what they did to him. What's interesting here is that everyone—Daniel, Louis, Armand—acknowledges in Dubai that the trial IS a sham from the beginning. A tool to allow Lestat his revenge. But the truth of why it's actually a sham is being hidden behind a thousand layers of gaslighting and deceit by Armand. Lestat is merely another prop on the stage. Being forced to use the TRUTH of his love story with Louis—and to twist essential elements of their beginning as a couple—as a weapon to drive the final wedge between them so that Armand might have Louis all to himself. That's what this is about. A farce so that Armand might have what he wants more than anything in the world. Someone who will be with him always. Without Claudia, without Lestat... who else is there for Louis to run to?

The trial as we see it is told mostly through Louis' POV. It seems to be a true picture of how it all happened but the cognitive dissonance watching him try to reconcile what Lestat was doing on the stage with the framing provided by Armand (who cuts in frequently to assure us that Lestat shapes things to suit HIS narrative) is painful. Louis sees and feels and hears the sincerity of Lestat. A Lestat who is defiant from the jump and refuses to paint the story as butchery. It's about LOVE. It is always always always about the love. An entire sham trial about vengeance and murder framed around... love.

Everyone who's familiar with the books already knows Lestat didn't want to be there. I won't go into that too much but the show did a good job of showing us just how unwell Lestat was during the entire process. But there are also some really interesting moments where we are TOLD explicitly through Louis' recounting of the events that Lestat was not actually there for revenge. Namely, the moment when Lestat says HE deserves to be punished alongside them. These are not the words of someone who is seeking vengeance. These are the words of someone desperately rattling the bars of his own cage trying everything he can to prevent what's happening. Because unlike a certain someone, in that moment Lestat is quite literally unable to prevent it!

The entire episode is Louis trying to reconcile the conflicting truths that exist inside him: that Lestat was there for revenge, that Armand couldn't prevent the coven from exacting their cruelty, and that the Lestat who was on stage WAS sincere and emotional and fighting with everything he had to let the truth ring as true as it was when he was able. He refused to refer to Louis as the accused every time Santiago insisted on it. He would only refer to Louis by name. He would NOT allow the narrative to frame him as someone who didn't also do monstrous things to his lover. He was weeping and flooded with shame. Sincerely, genuinely remorseful for the awful thing he had done to Louis.

There's also something else here about Lestat acknowledging he tried to crush what he could not own vs Armand deceiving Louis into the false sense of control that is the entire basis for their relationship. Owning something he does not crush, merely confines. He's not crushing Louis with insanity, he's locking him inside his prison of empathy. He quite literally has Louis locked in a cage while allowing him to believe he's truly free. Free from the insanity of Lestat. Evil, vengeful, gaslighting Lestat who only uses the truth to shape the narrative for himself.

There's a lot more going on here. I can't possibly get it all out of my brain right now and I imagine I'm going to be picking apart the nuances for a while. There are so many layers. The truth vs lies vs intentional reshaping of the truth of it all. But if you rewatch, pay attention to Armand's face, the score that accompanies his recounting of events, the passive way in which he holds his body in both Paris and Dubai. He's locking Louis in a dream world where the truth is present in such a way it only serves to amplify its own distortion. I don't even think he's fucking with Louis' memory all that much, just framing it in such a way that Louis cannot see past what is right there in front of him. What he already knows. If only he had just a few more tiny pieces of the puzzle...

But he's trying to get there. He is getting there. The truth of Lestat is breaking though. Lestat is still present there with him in Dubai, as real as if he were really in the room. After 74 years, Louis can still recall every detail of his face, still smile at him recalling the truth of his memories. The truth he wouldn't allow himself to look at all the way. The truth he himself had to distort for his own sake because it hurt too much. He's allowing himself to see not only the truth of himself and his own actions, but the truth of Lestat. All the complicated, sincere truth of him. The truth of the one who truly could not prevent it.

[theladyofthevarioussorrows]

In honor of Lestat de Lioncourt's 264th birthday, I present to you...

Written in Blood, or the Play in which The Brat Prince Ties the Knot

Part I (of IV)

Fandom: The Vampire Chronicles (Gothic horror novel series, 1976-2018); Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire (TV series, 2022-present)

Pairing: Lestat de Lioncourt/fem!reader; Lestat de Lioncourt/You

Word count: 3,900+

Characters: Lestat de Lioncourt (Sam Reid, the best version…­­­the only one that matters, obviously); fem!reader; The Vampire Armand (lol ouch); Nicolas de Lenfent (even bigger ouch, RIP); Santiago; Estelle; Celeste; Eglee; Sam; Gustav; Quang Pham; pretty much the entire Theatre des Vampires.

Summary: Fem!reader is the newest addition to the Theatre des Vampires, and Lestat becomes smitten with her (of course he does, the little whore!). Lestat’s allure, charm, beauty, and viciousness are not lost on the reader, and she falls for him (I mean, who wouldn’t, let’s be honest). With fem!reader being the freshest member of the Coven, Santiago “initiates” her (similar to how he brought Claudia in) by casting her as Lestat’s co-star in the next play as his love interest. The play, overseen reluctantly by Armand is about a wedding (in the vein of The Taming of the Shrew, As You Like It, or something similar but accurate to the time period, that is the vibe…Lestat, little miss Lady Macbeth himself, “barely Balthazar” Armand, “too old to play Hamlet, too young to play Polonius” Santiago, and I are all Shakespeare girlies, so I thought it would make sense); fem!reader and Lestat are actually getting legally married, unbeknownst to the mortal audience. Fem!reader and Lestat are to be the bride and groom, Santiago is the Justice of the Peace, and the rest of the TDV are the wedding party. While Armand is still the Coven leader, he “directs” the play and Nicki leads the orchestra. Things do not go the way they were planned to go (in Armand’s case); a story of love, sex, and vampire drama unfolds.

Warnings and additional tags: New/eventual relationship, established relationship, smut (P in V), fluff, mention of sex, mention of masturbation, (F and M), oral sex (F and M receiving), all characters (except the reader, duh) are written to be as close to the way they are in the books as well as the show to the best of my ability, reader-insert, reader-interactive, use of Y/N, Lestat gives the reader pet names in French (this is Lestat, after all), mutual pining, flirting, slight voyeurism, slight exhibitionism (is anything Lestat does really a secret? No, not really), blood drinking, blood sucking, bloodletting, biting, gore, violence, murder (feeding on humans is the only instance of this), both Lestat and fem!reader are bisexual, age gap (fem!reader is younger than Lestat by at least a bit but it doesn’t really matter as much because he himself is a new-ish vampire; Lestat would still be somewhere in his thirties in mortal years by the show’s timeline), Lestat is very seductive and persuasive (fem!reader doesn’t need much persuading, so it’s not a bad thing), a bunch of mentions of Shakespeare, lines from As You Like It are in italics and dialogue from vampires using the Mind Gift are in bold italics.

Notes: This story takes place while Lestat is still performing with the Theatre des Vampires and is newly a vampire himself. Magnus is obviously dead by now (thank God). The events of this fic take place after Lestat breaks up with both Nicki (he is still alive at this point in time) and Armand, but before he meets Louis de Pointe du Lac and later Claudia. I don’t have anything against either character (I adore both greatly!), this is just a “what if?” kind of situation. This is a basic idea I had had for literal years ever since I read the books, but I didn’t do anything with it until the second season of the show started, specifically episode 10. I wasn’t immune to Harlequin Lestat, and I was FERAL about it. Sam Reid only made that worse for me (God, I am so in love with him…that man IS Lestat. He doesn’t just play him, he BECAME him, and no one else has come close. Tom Cruise and Stuart Townsend could NEVER!). The premise of the fic came to me while listening to “Written in Blood” by She Wants Revenge…one thing led to another, and here we are! Also, yes, I KNOW the vampires don’t “have sex” in the novels, but they do in the show (a LOT). I might make references to things that have happened in the books (mostly Interview with the Vampire and The Vampire Lestat, possibly a bit of Queen of the Damned) but might not have been shown in the TV series yet, so reader beware of that. Let this be the spoiler warning if you are not familiar with the books or haven’t watched the show. I am completely ignoring both movies, because they mean absolutely nothing to me now that the (far superior) show exists. The piece that fem!reader uses for her audition comes from Shakespeare’s comedy As You Like It…she is reading as Rosalind while disguised as Ganymede, and Lestat reads with her as Orlando. I thought the parallels were a nice touch. I obviously do not own the rights to As You Like It, I merely used the one scene for Y/N’s audition, and to add romantic and dramatic effect. Special shout out to my best friend Riley for their contribution and ideas!

Language: English (except for a handful of pet names and expressions used by Lestat in French, hopefully I did it correctly. I took 4 years of French in high school, but I am not fluent)

_________________________________________

It was a cool autumn night in Paris, and while mortals slept, the undead were busy welcoming their newest member to their coven inside the old auditorium. The Vampire Armand stood proudly in front of the stage, looking up at the Theatre’s founder and poster child Lestat de Lioncourt, giving him notes and stage directions he knows full well Lestat will not listen to. Next to Lestat was Y/F/N Y/L/N, a freshly turned vampire herself.

Today was Y/N’s audition to join the Theatre des Vampires, and although nervous, she felt at home already among the other thespians in the room with her. With her lifelong love of theatre and literature that only intensified in her newly immortal life, Y/N knew she was in good company. She caught herself stealing glances at Lestat, as if against her will, but she knew she couldn’t help herself. Of all the vampires in this room—the stage director and Coven leader Armand, fellow company members Eglee, Celeste, Estelle, Sam, Gustav, and Quang Pham in the seats, as well as the gifted violinist Nicki hiding in the wings—there is something captivating and enchanting about this charismatic blonde actor. Y/N felt immediately attracted to this man, and she was both alarmed by and pleased with this sudden revelation. Lestat could feel Y/N’s attraction to him, something he found adorable, endearing, distracting, and quite arousing. Lestat gazed at her, a charmingly wicked smile on his face as he admired the young vampire in front of him. Armand, annoyed but pushing the uneasy feeling down, turned to look at Y/N.

“Welcome to the Theatre, dear Y/N. The Coven and I are interested as to how you found yourself in Paris, and how you found us. Please, enlighten everyone,” Armand said, with a slight air of both curiosity and mild arrogance rolled together. Y/N quickly moved her glance from Lestat to Armand and shivered slightly before she answered.

“Hello all, my name is Y/F/N Y/L/N, and I was visiting when I was given the Dark Gift. I have been in Paris ever since. I heard about the Theatre through my maker, and through discovering the Theatre, I found out about the Coven.” As she told the truth, she felt Santiago staring daggers at her, full of amusement.

“So, little miss Y/L/N, it seems as though you enjoy the arts, is that right?” said Santiago, with a slithery snark. Y/N nodded her head. “A birdie told me that you’re auditioning with one of Shakespeare’s lesser works, yes?” Y/N nodded again. Lestat’s blueish violet eyes widened as he grinned a little bigger.

“Yes, I will be reading as Rosalind disguised as Ganymede. I hope you find it suitable,” she said politely, trying to stifle a small tinge of laughter. Santiago exaggerated his giggle to mock her slightly before speaking again.

“Hmm, I assume you would like to have someone read with you. I wonder who that could be…” Santiago’s voice trailed off as he shifted his glance from Y/N to the left of her.

The slender, blonde, and devilishly handsome vampire beside Y/N spoke before she could even have the thought to respond. Watching from the wings, the violinist Nicki put a hand to his forehead with a quiet groan.

“I volunteer myself. I know the play by heart,” said Lestat. He shot Y/N a soft but sly grin as he placed his hand on his chest, reeling in the blush that appeared on her face. Armand had to hold back a scoff as Lestat offered to read with her. “I’m quite curious to see how she does, if I may.” Lestat gently bowed as he spoke to her, with a smile on his face and intrigue in his heart. Lestat was many things, and subtle was not one of them. Y/N nodded, smiling slyly back at him.

“You may,” Y/N said, bowing slightly. Her cheeks cast a rosy glow upon them as she smiled. Santiago chuckled to himself, and Armand choked down another scoff as he looked back to Y/N and Lestat.

“As you wish. Lestat, you will read with Y/N as Orlando, starting from his entrance after Jaques exits the scene. Y/N, you will follow.” Armand crossed his arms over his chest as he watched the two vampires in front of him on the stage.

“Yes, maître,” said Y/N, slightly nervous but strangely excited about reading alongside this hauntingly tempting creature next to her. She got herself into character quickly, trying to fight off the thought of how sweet Lestat’s blood might taste on her tongue and how soft his full lips must be, among various other salacious and primal things that she wasn’t aware of that she needed or wanted. It wasn’t an unwelcome thing—Lestat had something disarmingly attractive about him. Y/N felt drawn to him somehow, but she tried in vain to hide it. Lestat cleared his throat and prepared himself as well, his own pale skin turning a faint pink as they moved to the middle of the stage. Butterflies fluttered inside their bodies as they began their scene. After a few seconds of silence passed, Lestat launched into character.

“My fair Rosalind, I come within an hour of my promise.” Lestat said, remembering the lines from memory as if it was nothing out of the ordinary. Despite her nervousness and giddiness, Y/N began herself.

“Break an hour’s promise in love? He that will divide a minute into a thousand parts and break but a part of the thousand part of a minute in the affairs of love, it may be said of him that Cupid hath clapped him o’ th’ shoulder, but I’ll warrant him heart-whole.” Y/N matched Lestat’s intensity and focus as she spoke her lines. Astonished by her delivery, he carried on with his own lines.

“Pardon me, dear Rosalind,” continued Lestat, feeling a rush of adrenaline in the pit of his stomach, the pleasant sensation only growing stronger as she went on. Lestat watched her as she moved effortlessly through her audition, overcome with awe, very nearly stumbling on his own lines as a result. Armand and Santiago watched from the bottom of the stage as Y/N and Lestat kept going.

Armand watched from the front row and noticed Lestat’s immediate and oddly natural chemistry with Y/N and was well aware of the subtle attraction and quiet infatuation she felt towards Lestat. Armand could feel it through her, and it bothered him. He couldn’t help it; he began to feel his face turn green with envy. Santiago, however, was greatly amused at what was unfolding in front of them—and he relished the drama of it all. The rest of the Coven watched from the seats intently, some engrossed, some unbothered. Nicki leaned up against the wall backstage, a pained expression etched on his features. Looking on at his former lover floating across the stage with a woman whom he had only met mere hours ago and watching her fall under his spell just as he had, Nicki shook his head, a grimace forming on his face.

With all due respect, maître…maybe we should keep an eye on the new one, said Santiago, filling Armand’s head with his thoughts without moving his mouth. It’s only a matter of time before our dear founder tries to take her to bed with him…you know as well as I do how he is. And seeing how she’s looking at him—Armand did not want to hear this. Lestat and Y/N were too immersed in their scene and lost in each other to hear them through their own minds.

Armand cut him off. Enough, Santiago. I know very well how Lestat operates. Let them finish. I’ll allow Y/N to continue, for now. We shall decide what measures to take when the time is right… As Armand and Santiago sized Y/N up, she breezed through her audition.

“Come, woo me, woo me, for now I am in a holiday humor, and like enough to consent. What would you say to me now an I were your very, very Rosalind?” Y/N continued as she blushed and smiled at Lestat. Anything he did in his impromptu performance, she followed with masterful skill.

Lestat slowly walked closer to her, his gaze never leaving her eyes. Lestat looked at Y/N, smirking as he brushed some of his long blonde hair behind his ear. He let the silence expand for a second before he continued.

“I would kiss before I spoke.”

Lestat and Y/N gazed at each other as if they were the only beings in the room, amusing Santiago morbidly and annoying Armand profoundly. A mixture of admiration and a deep hunger formed inside Lestat’s chest, and Y/N’s heart pounded against her ribcage. She gulped quietly as she tried to keep up with Lestat. Determined to give the best audition she could despite having to act opposite the most gorgeous creature she has ever laid her eyes on, alive or dead, Y/N tried to fight off her own desire building within her. Soft gasps could be heard from the other vampires watching them from the seats.

“Nay, you were better speak first, and when you were gravelled for lack of matter, you might take occasion to kiss. Very good orators, when they are out, they will spit; and for lovers lacking—God warn us—matter, the cleanliest shift is to kiss.”

Sensing Y/N’s struggle to maintain her composure, Lestat met her energy with his own words. “How if the kiss be denied?” He looked at her for a beat, cocking his head to one side quizzically. Y/N answered him with a playful shrug.

“Then she puts you to entreaty, and there begins new matter.”

Lestat continued his teasing, delighted by the thrill Y/N gave him. “Who could be out, being before his beloved mistress?”

Y/N pretended to scoff. “Marry, that should you if I were your mistress, or I should think my honesty ranker than my wit.”

Lestat looked at Y/N with a look of mock surprise. “What, of my suit?” he said, his voice harboring a more sensual tone this time.

“Not out of your apparel, and yet out of your suit. Am I not your Rosalind?” Y/N floated across the stage like a ghost, every single movement calculated and carried out so smoothly.

“I take some joy to say you are because I would be talking of her.” Lestat’s face reddened slightly as he noticed how Y/N’s jaw dropped, but only for a second before she kept going.

“Well, in her person I say I will not have you.” Y/N let out an exaggerated giggle as she playfully spun around slowly.

A dramatic sigh escaped Lestat’s lungs. “Then in mine own person I die.” He looked back at Y/N as she turned to face him again.

“By this hand, it will not kill a fly. But come; now I will be your Rosalind in a more coming-on disposition, and ask me what you will, I will grant it.” Y/N gazed at the vampire in front of her, only inches separating them now. Lestat reached out to gently caress Y/N’s cheek as they looked deeply into each other’s eyes, making her blush even more obvious in her face now. He has her right where he wants her, and as fate or some other mystical thing would have it, Y/N is right where she wants to be. Once again, Lestat drew the silence out for a beat too long before he spoke.

“Then love me, Rosalind.”

Y/N’s voice trembled a little as she leaned into Lestat’s touch. His unbroken focus on her made her feel slightly faint just from the way he looked at her, but she kept her cool as best as she could. “Yes, faith, will I, Fridays and Saturdays and all.” She shyly smiled up at him, trying and failing to hide her quiet swooning.

Lestat hung on to every word that left her lips as if he had never heard such language spoken before. Of course, he was no stranger to the stage himself, having been the Theatre’s main selling point for a few years now. The act of performing on a stage in front of an enamored audience always thrilled him, but she…she was different. This new and sudden but pleasant feeling cut him way deeper, hit him harder—he knew that she was something magical. And Lestat wasn’t quite sure where to put that desire and hunger, so he decided to do the thing he does best: he needed to have her all to himself, by any means necessary. Lestat was delighted to find that the feeling was so clearly mutual.

Santiago watched Lestat enchant Y/N as they continued with their performances. He gasped quietly as he saw Lestat become smitten with Y/N, rolling his eyes. Just look at those two! Can you believe them? They’ve made eyes at each other from the second she came through the door. They’ve only just met a few hours ago and he’s looking at her like Venus de Milo herself…and she looks as if she’s about to melt through the floor. Armand found himself becoming more and more annoyed as Lestat and Y/N carried on like they were, and Santiago took notice. Maître, you’re grinding your teeth…

Armand huffed quietly. I said let them continue. Y/N is smarter than we realize. If she doesn’t know who she’s getting herself tied up with, she will. I can guarantee that. Armand maintained his mildly annoyed expression as he crossed his arms over his chest. I see potential in her. We can use that potential.

Santiago, ever the drama queen but also the suck-up, tried to push Armand’s buttons. How shall we do that, maître? I wonder what our violinist has to say about this…I can’t imagine he’s especially thrilled about—

Armand cut him off once again. Be silent now, Santiago. Nicki is the least of my worries right now.

Now mildly aware of the growing discomfort in the pit of Armand’s stomach and Santiago’s antagonizing of him, Lestat continued to read with Y/N. He was enraptured by her, this was true—but he also found quite a bit of amusement in making Armand uncomfortable. Y/N, less aware of the effect her performance is having on the Coven leader and his all-too-willing sidekick, matched him masterfully.

“And wilt thou have me?” said Lestat, sultry and low.

Y/N nodded her head and smiled. “Ay, and twenty such.”

Lestat felt his heart flutter in his chest as he moved closer to her. “What sayest thou?”

Y/N gently bit her lip then let it go with a smirk. “Are you not good?”

“I hope so.” Lestat rolled his eyes in a sassy manner.

“Why then, can one desire too much of a good thing?” Y/N went on, closing the small space between herself and Lestat.

The vaguely pained expression did not escape Armand’s face. Still wanting to maintain some sort of order and power over his Coven, Armand kept his focus fixed on the two vampires on the stage in front of him.

Santiago, an evil grin taking shape over his features, watched Lestat and Y/N’s bond become deeper by the second as Y/N continued. “Come, sister, you shall be the priest and marry us. Give me your hand, Orlando.” Y/N gently reached for Lestat’s hand, and he placed it in hers, tangling their fingers together. She looked to where the audience would be sitting. “What do you say sister?” Y/N looked back up at Lestat as he gazed back at her, their vampire eyes blown out with love and desire for each other.

After what felt like an eternity, Lestat put his finger under Y/N’s chin and gingerly tilted her head up. He started to move down to press his lips to hers, and she moved up to meet him. He closed his eyes, and her eyelids fluttered shut as his lips gently—

A groan could be heard from Armand as Santiago abruptly rose from his seat and applauded loudly. Lestat and Y/N snapped out of their trance and pulled away from each other, no longer able to hide their blushing. The rest of the Coven began to applaud as well. The vampires Sam and Gustav were enthusiastic in their encouragement of the new potential member of the Coven and her undeniable and palpable chemistry with their Theatre’s founder. Celeste looked on with a proud smile on her face, while Estelle clapped wildly. Eglee rolled her eyes before eventually joining in with her applause. Backstage, Nicki shook his head again as he quietly left the auditorium, quietly cursing under his breath.

“Very well done, Y/N. Very well done indeed,” said Santiago, sounding giddier than he probably should. He looked at Armand. “What say you, maître?” he asked with mock amusement.

Armand once again did not listen. He looked up at Y/N as Lestat released her from his gentle but bold embrace. “Exquisite work, Y/N. Exceptional. While we evaluate your performance, you are welcome to remain here with the Coven. We have provided a coffin for you near your maker’s.” Armand started to dismiss everyone before he turned back to Y/N. “We do expect you to keep our hours, curfew is three o’clock sharp.” He shot a subtle but menacing glare at Lestat. Lestat rolled his eyes and chuckled to himself as he turned his back to him. Armand looked at Y/N again. Lestat smiled warmly at Y/N as he winked at her.

Still reeling from everything that just occurred, Y/N nodded and bowed. “Yes maître, I will. Thank you all.” Armand dismissed Santiago and the rest of the Coven, and they all left the auditorium.

It was then that Y/N heard a sensual and seductive voice inside her head.

Très bien fait, ma chérie. I’m impressed.

Y/N turned around to find Lestat leaning against the piano on the stage, his arms crossed over his chest, looking her up and down, dripping with genuine curiosity and insatiable desire. She blushed and smiled as she met his gaze.

“That’s very sweet of you to say, Lestat. It really means a lot to hear.” Y/N walked over to him, slightly nervous but not at all deterred. “You were amazing yourself.”

Lestat rolled his eyes playfully at her compliment but accepted it. “You flatter me, mon amour.” He stood up straight and walked over to her, looking down at her with that softly sly smirk again. “I must say, my dear Y/N, you are quite the actress. Many have come and gone from this theatre, but none have bewitched me so like you have, ma petite fleur.”

Y/N swooned at his words, slightly taken aback by the sincerity in them despite the obvious attraction. “Oh, you’re too kind. It’s not often I’m in the presence of someone so…” She caught herself getting lost in his eyes again—something she has by now realized is very easy to do—before she continued. “So…enchanting as you.”

Lestat chuckled lowly. “Is that so? Well, you have captivated me too, love,” he said, pausing briefly as he took the sight of her in. “I haven’t seen such talent on this stage in quite some time, Y/N.” She blushed deeper as she took a second to gather her thoughts. Y/N sighed softly before speaking.

“Thank you! I’m just happy that I can finally do what I love to do. Up until today, I thought it was unfortunate that I couldn’t do this kind of thing when I was mortal, but I don’t have that feeling now that I’m here. In an odd way, it feels right like this.” Y/N chuckled lightly.

Lestat listened to her words intently. “I know that feeling very well, mon coeur. For what it’s worth, I’m quite glad you wandered into our midst. I can see already that you’re passionate about the Theatre, and it’s refreshing. You’re simply lovely.” Y/N smiled at his words of admiration and encouragement. “I cannot wait to see what other talents you possess, if you don’t mind my saying so,” he said with a smirk, appreciating the slight drop of her jaw. Noticing the positive tension on her face, Lestat spoke gently to her. “Oh, and don’t be nervous, chérie. There is nothing to be afraid of. I have no doubt you’ll fit in here, I am sure of it.” He traced her jawline affectionately before tilting her head up to bring her eyes to meet his, just like he did during her audition. “And, if I may be so bold, I would love to get to know you better. If you’ll have me, of course.” Y/N’s eyes widened as she swooned. She nodded as she stuttered slightly.

“I’d love to, Lestat. I would be honored.” Y/N felt her heart jump into her mouth. The gorgeous blonde vampire in front of her reveled in how flustered she looked as he spoke to her.

“Very well then, dear Y/N. We’ll continue our little conversation after your initiation tomorrow.”

Y/N gulped. “My…my what?!”

Lestat giggled slyly. “You heard me correctly, ma chérie. Welcome to the Theatre, darling. You’re one of us now as far as I’m concerned.”

“But…Armand said—” Lestat gently placed a finger over her lips to shut her up as he spoke lowly to her, sultry and dripping with desire.

“Shh, ma jolie fille…never mind what that manipulative gremlin Armand said.” Lestat let his finger gently drag across her bottom lip before letting it go. He brushed some of her hair behind her ear as he continued. “I’ll be seeing you backstage afterwards, yes?”

There was no way for him to be coy about his appetite for her any more than he had earlier. The vampire Lestat de Lioncourt, the Brat Prince himself, was anything but shy about his unquenchable thirst for Y/N; it only grew exponentially in the few hours since he met her.

Y/N felt as though the air had been knocked out of her lungs as she nodded. “Of course, Lestat. You will.” She smiled at him, trying to regulate her breathing.

Lestat smiled wickedly at her again. “Très bien, mon amour. I’ll see you then.” He caressed her face again before turning to walk away. “Bonne nuit, ma belle. Sweet dreams.”

Y/N could feel her heart pounding in her throat as she smiled. “Good night, Lestat. I hope you sleep well.” Blushing, she beamed at him, and he smiled back, a blush of his own on his face.

With that, they left the room. As she lifted the lid to her coffin next to the others to crawl inside it, Y/N gasped as she heard Lestat’s voice in her head again, stopping her momentarily.

Remember what I told you, ma petite fleur. There is nothing to worry your pretty little head with. And know this too, my darling: I don't bite...hard.

[murfpersonalblog]

IWTV S2 Tentative Timeline (Pt2c) - Unreliable Narrators, Armand & the Trial

Thanks for the response to Pt2b, @usuallydeepalpaca-blog! I really want people to talk to me about the IWTV timelines, cuz this show is SO confusing! 😩😭

"I think if you create the timeline with info the show doesn't provide, i.e. Armand was involved from the start, then you're bound to get it wrong."

Absolutely. I fully expect that I got some stuff wrong, which is why I said it's a TENTATIVE Timeline.

I've in no way said it's THEE CORRECT™ timeline, cuz chile IDKWTF is going on. 😅 I openly say what confuses me, questions I have, and how I come to the conclusions that I draw. I'm being as transparent as possible to let y'all know that I DON'T know. 🤷 The show doesn't provide EVERYthing, so I'm just piecing things together in a way that makes an iota of sense to me, following the logic of what the show HAS provided. The only solid details we have are diehard IRL dates, that gave us a time range when certain events can/can't happen. AFAIK I'm working with the same set of details everyone else has, until AMC gives us more info in S3+. And unfortunately, the 2 biggest unknown variables are Lestat & Armand, and to what extent they were/weren't involved in the Trial that got Claudia killed & Louis buried alive.

"saying Armand messed with Louis' memories re: the trial is also something not supported by the show."

The show obvs. wants us to assume that Armand made Louis hallucinate Sam guarding him in the theatre box (thus painting Armand as a "captive" along with Louis & Claudeleine).

Even if Armand didn't use the Mind Gift on Louis, he lied at least twice:

lies by omission: letting Louis think a hallucination of Sam was real

lies to Louis' (& Daniel's) face: going along with the premise that he was Sam's "captive" & Armand sat there the whole time thinking of a way to rescue Louis

And we KNOW this is a lie, cuz Daniel calls it out explicitly, asking how Sam can be "in two places at once," allegedly "guarding" Armand, but ALSO helping to torture Louis in the Wet Room.

Armand never denied or contradicted Louis saying Sam was in either place. Maybe Louis really did misremember Sam being in the wet room--the ONLY one who can corroborate all this is SAM--whom Armand ALSO lies on, throwing Sam, Daniel & the Talamasca all under the bus by saying the script with his handwriting all over it was forged! No honor amongst thieves I guess! 🤣

(Eff Lestat's POV in S3--when is SAM gonna give HIS POV of the Trial?!)

So I'm operating on patterns of behavior, and the logic that if he's deliberately lying about one thing (a VERY BIG THING, actually), then what else is he lying about? How are you "atoning" for anything, when you're just heaping lies on top of gaslighting on top of manipulation?

Armand has used Louis' obvious confusion to his advantage, just going along with whatever will make him look better & more sympathetic. Which ofc, is the exact same thing he does with the "Banishment" lie. "They gave me a choice...I could not prevent it" is the truth and a lie all rolled into one incredibly manipulative cocktail, cuz if it was just a simple matter of Armand selling Claudia out to save Louis, that would be one thing--but Armand KNEW the script planned LOUIS' death the whole time. The "seismic lie" about "Banishment" effs up Armand's whole defense.

Cuz Sam already wrote the script in April 1949 (and I said this is confusing, cuz if it's the WHOLE script, then this implies Lestat's half was written by then, too, and NOT in September after the Eiffel Tower crime--which means he was ALREADY in Paris & working with the coven; inc. Armand (which would also explain WHY Armand took Louis to the library so much--perhaps anticipating that Loustat would feel e/o's presence if Louis was around the theatre too much? But that doesn't explain Claudia)--omfg I'm confused). Wtvr--we KNOW that at some point b/t April & September 1949, Armand made his edits & directed the entire production--from Santiago to Lestat to Tuan's projections--ALL of it. And we know Tuan's projections started being made in June/July 1949.

Armand KNEW Daniel had been given the OLD script from the archives, WITHOUT Armand's edits & directions, and LET Daniel AND Louis think that was the truth--

--same way he went behind Louis' back and removed extra pages from Claudia's diaries that would reveal MORE of his shenanigans--

--and the same way he lied about Nicki (& Gabrielle) in 2x3.

The show ALSO provides us with quotes like this:

And this:

And this:

Which in retrospect make Armand look even more insidious, esp. when we wonder to what extend Louis' been "driven to form new conclusions about myself" when he doesn't even KNOW himself; let alone WHAT memories he has that are real or false.

It's so effed up, and it makes me side-eye all the insistence that LOUIS is the one mostly at fault, when he's got literal double-hypnosis Brain Scramblies from WWDITS. 😭🤦

Ofc there are unknown-unknowns when dealing with unreliable narration. But there are also known-unknowns, too, that also make Armand sus.

Sure, Loumand was away at the library in July (IF that memory's even real, Mr. "I Had A Hunch")--but how on earth would Armand have NOT known that the coven was working on the Trial right under his nose for MONTHS prior & after July--Luchenbaum sewing new barrister costumes & wigs; Tuan painting projections & testing new lens/film tech; and Sam writing a new script (when we already KNOW Sam can't multitask when his "head's in a hat")?

July is only ONE month in over HALF A YEAR of Trial prep. Louis was never around the coven to know what was going on--but ARMAND was; it's where HE lives.

Whose POV was it that showed the whole coven passing around Claudia's diaries? Whose POV was it that revealed Santiago being called Maitre in every scene that ARMAND was also in?

Armand was in the park with Tuan when Tuan called Santiago Maitre; and Armand was in the theatre with Sam when Sam called Santiago Maitre--so this is clearly either Armand's POV telling on himself; or it's AMC screwing with us.

It's TRUE that Turning Madeleine was the straw that broke the camel's back, as Armand was like I can't keep THAT a secret from the coven, too (and ofc he couldn't--they're VAMPIRES; they'd FEEL a new vamp in their territory). But Loumand's problems PREDATE Madeleine; the same way Loustat's problems predate Claudia. I blame Les for not dealing with Lou's BS, just like I blame Armand, cuz THEY are the Coven Masters, NOT Lou--esp. cuz Armand had 14 other vamps in his coven he SHOULD be prioritizing over Lou. The same way Loustat's guilty of being bad fathers (which they BOTH admitted to), Armand's guilty of being a bad coven leader (which HE admitted to).

IMO, all this makes any & all discussion about Armand's trustworthiness difficult, when his "seismic lie" throws EVERYTHING else he's done into question. Esp. since the show ALSO provides us with the FACT that Armand knew from DAY ONE that Claudia lied about "Bruce"/Lestat; and that Louis was a terrible liar & terrible with the Mind Gift; and that he'd ALREADY planned on killing Louis in 2x3! Armand knew from the get-go that he couldn't do EFF ALL to keep Louis & Claudia out of danger, and TOLD Louis so.

"It also ignores that Louis softens his participation in certain things because he can't live with the guilt of his full participation, e.g. Claudia's turning, which he continued to lie to Claudia about even during the trial and only accepted the extent of his involvement in Dubai"

The Trial Timeline's purpose is to pinpoint when the preparations took place, NOT to hash out how bad of a father Louis was to Claudia. 🤨

And it certainly isn't meant to provide a timeline for the events in S1 wrt Claudia's Turning--we already know the dates for all of that, that she was made in 1917. I focus on the 1940s in S2, and the European dates, NOT the NOLA dates. LOUIS did not participate in the Trial's preparations, ARMAND & LESTAT did. My timeline has ZERO bearings on Louis' guilt for not warning her, etc.

But on the subject of Louis & Claudia, I've cussed Louis out for not telling Claudia about Armand b4 (x x), I don't ignore it at all. I fully understand & even agree with Armand being fed up with dealing with Louis' BS. But HE CHOSE not to kill Louis when he had the chance, and it's obvs that whatever arrangement they made when they had sex in 2x3/2x4 allowed Louis to TRUST that Armand would keep "the secret" & keep Louis & Claudia SAFE from the coven. (Which is a BOGUS claim for him to make, when Santiago'd ALREADY peeped that they were lying about Lestat & being from NOLA, but wtvr). I've called Louis a naive idiot 1000x for overestimating Armand, putting his life in Armand's incapable hands--just like he would AGAIN by trusting him about "Banishment;" and AGAIN by asking Armand to wipe his memories in SanFran (and LIE by omission about Les saying "I love you, Louis").

"Louis remembers the trial, he remembers what was said and what Lestat showed him."

HOW can Lestat have showed Louis ANY memories during the Trial (inc. the Ep4 revisit), when Makers/Fledglings CANNOT read each other's minds???????

I love this show so much, but I effing hate this show--they don't even give us an answer, Daniel just moves right past it, like wtf are we supposed to do with that, AMC? There's plot threads, vs plot HOLES. Louis' TOO unreliable, Armand's a shysty liar, white savior Lestat to the rescue~~~! "BANishMEnT~!" As if Lestat's any less impartial?

Esp. when at least SOME parts of the Ep4 Revisit were OBVIOUSLY Scripted lines written by the coven to implicate Louis in breaking the Great Laws that Lestat allegedly taught him AND Claudia to follow?

Like, Louis HATES himself, and is quick to blame himself for things beyond his control (a la Paul, a la the Ordinances; "Can we be forgiven if we do not forgive others ourselves?"); so if one is determined to see him bad faith then of course one can easily pounce on him Florence DPDL style / Santiago style, and blame him.

(Esp. since in 1x4 we literally SEE Louis admit to begging & emotionally baby-trapping Lestat into turning Claudia--the revisit in 2x7 is more (melo)dramatic & extended, sure, but it does NOT contradict Louis' account in S1. So I get REAL confused when people say he lied about 1x4 or wtvr.)

Louis invalidates his perspective cuz he KNOWS he's an unreliable narrator--he spends 2x1 sobbing about wanting to remember & "get every detail right"--and ARMAND is there constantly tryna STOP the interview; having directly contributed to his already deteriorated (& inherited?) mental illness, by bending Lou's trauma into "a Lestat shaped-effigy" with all that "I will not harm you" bullcrap.

TL;DR: We won't know for sure what the Trial timeline actually looks like, unless S3+ revisits it with more context.

But as things stand at the end of S2, NO, I don't trust Armand as far as I can throw him, cuz there are waaaay too many instances where he's deliberately lied & obfuscated & omitted in ways to deliberately confuse the narrative surrounding the Trial--that go beyond Louis' already confirmed trauma, PTSD, mental illness, repressed/faulty memory, and guilty conscious.

If y'all want a timeline of S1 events, those have already been made by other people in the fandom (this one is goated).

I wanted to know what was going on in S2; so I used every single date and IRL reference possible, and put them in chronological order in a way that makes sense based on how I TENTATIVELY understand things currently; NOT how AMC has confirmed yet--if they ever will.

If anyone has more relevant in-show references & IRL sources we can cite, to help make better sense of S2 than I did, let us all know!

[savagewildnerness]

I’m so curious…

What’s the one thing you non-negotiably need to be present from the book The Vampire Lestat? (You’re only allowed ONE choice here! So pick wisely! Obviously there are many things we all want to see, so pick The most important one to you (where there is some chance it might not be used too.))

{For me, it is The Witches’ Place! It doesn’t have to be present exactly as it is in every conversation & situation in the books. But I need The Witches’ Place to be present literally, metaphorically & existentially & for it to be echoing backwards to Lestat’s childhood right through to Nicolas’ end (& what would have been his end 100 years earlier; or in any era, tolling like The Bell of Fate), through Lestat’s immortal eternity. And I think, with the TV show being set right at the height of The French Revolution, there is opportunity for even MORE super poignant parallels & FEELING & meaning with The Witches’ Place on TV which I hope they utilise to its full.}

And are there any things you are happy to lose? You can have as much as you like for this one. Because hopefully there aren’t *that* many!!?!

{For me, I’d initially imagined Lestat & Gabrielle might travel longer (it’s just a decade in the book even though Lestat refers to it as YEARS (as he feels eternity so keenly for the first time)), but now I think it might be shorter on tv?! Because we’ve seen more dramatic vampiric findings in travelling with Louis & Claudia & that doesn’t need to be repeated, but lesser… & the poignancy in that era is that Lestat’s family all die, Nicki dies (as Lestat knew would come to pass, so is hanging over him the whole time) & Gabrielle leaves him… it’s not about The travels so much. I think the feeling of being in Egypt matters. But I don’t mind if we lose the rest of The Places. I think now that maybe Nicki will die & Lestat will go into The Earth soon after 1796, when Gabrielle leaves him. And maybe that’s why Rolin didn’t want to show physically damaged Lestat in S2 - as Lestat may be in The Earth longer before Marius saves him & maybe Rolin wanted to save the horror of what he is for that moment? Although it affects the feeling if Marius waits years before rescuing Lestat (but, though a change. I think, an interesting one potentially…?)

But yeah, I’m happy to lose some of that travelling (though need to keep Gabrielle’s Akasha-esque philosophising & the sinking feeling of grief & hopelessness & the truth of the sorrow & the fear of feeling-less-ness etc!)

I’m also happy to lose some of Armand & Marius’ back stories in the vision/retelling way. It’s long to be *in a story* with them (especially Marius!) & we have some of Armand’s story already, so I think his can be condensed to the biggest feelings… then we can later get Armand’s story more fully from Armand himself, I hope!

And surely Marius’ story isn’t going to be *that* long? I think much of that can be told alongside Maharet & Mekare, later, perhaps? Though obviously we need some of it so TWMBK make sense.

Hmm…..?}

Anyway, all I know is I’m tying myself to a tree if The Witches’ Place isn’t present! But I imagine Sam would too, so surely we’re fine on that count!!?! 😁

How about you?

[avalonia320]

IWTV Thoughts

I finally got to watch the finale last night and when I tell you I am SHOOK to my damn core. I don't know how to put it into words. I'm older than a lot of people here. I first read the Vampire Chronicles when I was 11; I found them in a box that belonged to my mother. When I tell you I devoured those books, re-read them over and over and over, fell in love with Lestat and New Orleans & Paris, cried over Claudia and Louis...I was totally besotted by the world Anne Rice created.

When the movie was announced when I was a teen (yes I'm that old), first I was so excited and then I was furious, as many of us Anne Rice devotees were, when Tom Cruise was cast as Lestat. I could not imagine an actor further away from how I had imagined Lestat. But still, I had to see it, and while it was still miles away from what I had wanted, I came away impressed with Tom Cruise. He still wasn't my Lestat, but he threw himself into the role in a way that made me believe he'd been waiting his whole life to let his inner Queen off the chain.

The movie itself...I had loved parts of it, but there was still so much more that I wanted. When the sequel came out (Queen of the Damned) I liked parts of that too and I actually enjoyed Stuart Townsend as Lestat. I hated most of it though, especially what they did with Marius (to this day I don't know what the hell that was about) but it was obvious at that point that I was never going to see the vampire world I was so enthralled with on the screen.

Then this series comes out. And while my expectations were low, I was still pretty excited. And then I watched it.

Holy fucking shitballs, you guys. I am normally so protective of my favorite books, resenting any little change unless it makes sense but everything they've done with this series, everything they've changed makes so much fucking sense. I don't want to try and break it down, I don't have the words. Lestat was always my big love in the books, but in this series, I've fallen in love with Louis and Claudia in a way I never imagined. I always loved their characters, don't get me wrong, but I never connected with them this way until now. And don't even get me started on Daniel, who I will admit I actively disliked in the books for the unforgivable crime of being boring. Um....that's a word I will never ever use in connect to Daniel Molloy ever ever ever again. And Armand and Madeleine and...I can't.

And Lestat. I loved him in the first season but in the second season, when he showed up with that long hair, I saw him for the first time like someone took the Lestat that has lived in my head since I was 11 years old and put him on the screen. He is EXACTLY how I imagined him. The way he looks, the way he talks, his emotion, his breakdowns, his unbelievable flair for the dramatic...this is HIM. I feel like I've been been unconsciously waiting decades for him to show up and for people to see him the way I saw him back then. I can't be the only old school fan that feels this way. It's just so surreal to see it so exact, it takes me right back to my childhood and the way I fell into stories then. The way you feel things when you're so young is something so hard to recapture but I feel like I'm right back there again on my bed, reading the books over and over again.

I'm just so grateful. To everyone involved with this series, the writers, the cast...I know i'm getting overly emotional but everything's been so shit lately and we've all needed an escape, a good one for once. I needed this so badly.

And I have to believe, wherever she is now, Anne Rice is so fucking proud.

[nalyra-dreaming]

to put all the cards on the table... (and now that we have that teaser... oooofff). i read the books, but i want to put my obsessive detail lover glasses on. anne is really nuanced in her writing, so yes i totally get lestat is not how louis described him (more or less 👀), but just in a vibey way. to make a specific list, what is that 20% that louis got wrong in your opinion?

That Louis got wrong? :)

Hmmm… So first off I do not think that what we saw of Lestat in that video (aka the rockstar persona) is how he looked when he was with Louis in NOLA.

Then again… Surprisingly close, isn't it?^^

So to get into this I need to explain my view of this a bit. Kidnap your ask, if you will^^

Louis describing Lestat: strands of hair down the sides of his face, unkempt a bit wild hair (at times at least). If his hair isn't done in some kind of fashion (opera, french pony tail etc)

I said it before, I think these strands down Lestat's face are indicative of Louis' POV (own) memories.

Which brings us to this small excursion on the subject. There's the evil step-mom bob, when Claudia comes in, and which is repeated outside in 1x05:

Hair lengths aside, we now know that Lestat was just as bloody as Louis from the trial revisit (see below), which was supposedly the truth, but in any case "no scratch on Lestat" has never made much sense. Meaning the force-feeding likely didn't happen either...

.... and the drop... well. Supposedly did. Even though he is quite clean again?

Because... that is still very far from what we (supposedly) saw as the "truth" of Lestat's bloody face in the coffin room just before, which we were shown at the trial:

I think the evil step-mom-clean-and-glorious-looking Lestat is Armand's tampered-with version.

Because... going through this because I think we got Louis' POV and actual memories of Lestat more in the beginning of season one.

There are a lot more instances of the "strands down his face"...

Btw, see this? Of what was used by Daniel to prove an "error" to the tale in 2x08? To prove Armand's manipulation?!

Right after the scene... he has them again:

Even Claudia's POV has them!

Even when she absolutely hates his guts:

I think every scene we saw with Lestat either in made up hair or with the strands down his face are ... "as real as it can get in a tale".

And the other scenes... the perfect blond hair ... is not.

Which brings us finally back to your actual question:

What is the 20% Louis got wrong?

And... I'm not sure Louis really got him that wrong?! I think Louis misunderstood some things, didn't know a lot of things, and Lestat fucked up others. They didn't talk enough. And sometimes love makes you desperate. They knew exactly how to wound the other.

And Armand... meddled with the tale. I said it before, the "train scene" cannot have happened as shown. The hotel likely neither.

I think every scene where Lestat is an "evil bitch with perfect hair.".. is a meddled with one. Given Armand's goal of influencing the tale? Namely making Lestat seem as bad as possible, while being unable to hide his own fascination with him? Makes perfect sense to me.^^

And there's actually not that many of them either. The outside of episode 5, the tractor salesman, the train, the paranoia driven one in 1x07 has strands again, while he does not have them the scene before and through a lot of the remaining last episode of the first season.

As such the little comment in 1x07, "the king's hair has betrayed the king".... takes on a third meaning, imho - not only a quip by Louis on both the "hair" on the floor and "heir" (Claudia)... but also that the "hair"... betrays the "king"... the leader - the coven master vampire meddling.

Layers, upon layers, upon layers.

So what did Louis get wrong?

Not that much actually, I think. But... some of the key scenes were not his. And those were therefore, in the sense of the words, wrong.

[justheretolurk003]

A long post on why Daniel is more fascinating than Armand (according to Louis)

Got you. In fact I’m a bit torn on whether or not Daniel is that different from other people that he is extremely fascinating. I think he has a risqué attitude that a lot of the people at the bar share: that willingness and unapologetic desire to live life and enjoy pleasure at maximum. A bit like Lestat’s answer in S1, when Louis asks him why vampires are on Earth, and Lestat answers he himself put Louis on earth for the purpose of pleasure and do whatever they want.

But I don’t think a resemblance to Lestat is the whole reason Louis didn’t kill Daniel that night. While being broken down by Armand, Daniel admits that he is good at getting people to open up, a trait that is more uncommon but not so much. Still, I think Louis picks up on that, even at the bar when Daniel says he is good at looking for people in the cracks. That sparks Louis’ interest. A way Daniel shows he is good at listening is the way he does not judge Louis when he shows him his own coffin —instead he just asks how it works. When Louis shows him his fangs, Daniel is scared af at first, then asks him to show his fangs again later on. This creates an environment of comfort Louis uses to rage against Lestat and mourn for Claudia. Their interview is not an interview based on accuracy, it is an “emotional upchuck” which can only be had in an environment where there is some level of trust, comfort and a non-judgmental attitude. In 1973 Daniel is not so much an interviewer, but a therapist.

And still I don’t think that is the whole reason Daniel was not killed by Louis that night cause Daniel is also unapologetically himself. Unapologetically horny, unapologetically weird, unapologetically chill, unapologetically idiotic, cringey and with no sense of danger when he offers to become Louis’ companion. I think this trait along with the previously touched upon ones are the reason Jacob calls Daniel “cool”. Daniel is cool in the sense he is unpretending. A dude that is chill, observant, with an angle and you can have fun with.

And still, these are not incredibly fascinating traits that few people possess. In fact, I know plenty of people who share these traits and embody them even more than Daniel. On top of that, at that point in his life, Daniel hasn’t lived a fascinating life. He said it himself: just a shitty kid from Modesto. In fact, Armand has lived a ten times more fascinating life than Daniel (argue with me in the comments if you disagree, bitch) and Daniel is right when he says Armand is more fascinating cause for fucks sake, he can actually read minds! But again, the comfort they offer to Louis is radically different. And that is why Louis prefers the night he spent with Daniel than the decades alongside Armand. On one hand we have Daniel’s non judgmental, unassuming gaze compared to the snobbishness and high horse attitude of Armand. We have Daniel letting Louis be messy and vengeful and emotional, and Armand who is composed and impenetrable and we’ll-adjusted, the whole time.

And yes, I think Armand looks down on Louis because Armand is giving a performance of how to be a well put together, good adjusted person. Armand looks down on Louis for picking up men at bars, he looks down on him for being a mess and opening up to Daniel, you can say he looks down on him for committing suicide (though this coexist with the hurt and betrayal Armand feels at seeing his efforts, cause yes, Armand sees it as efforts, be thrown away by Louis).

Whoever Armand is with, he tries to appeal to his partner and create an environment in which nothing is out of order, nothing is evocative, in which everything is to their liking. In this case, the environment is plain because the goal is that there is not a single thing that triggers Louis. Armand justifies this by saying he does it for Louis’ sanity and comfort. And the epitome of this place is Dubai.

Louis is cut off from society, in a place where everything is tailored to him to never upset him or trigger him. And I genuinely think this is the way Armand knows how to pay for what he did in Paris and show his love for Louis. This blandness and willingness to appeal to the desires of the other (“Is it gremlin or good nurse tonight?”) is how Armand expresses love. And it is tragic that is how he does it. Because what is sex work if not appealing to the desires of other people? What is a slave if not someone who is forced to appeal and is exploited to the greed of other people? What is a master if not a person you have to satisfy in every of their wishes? Armand caters to desire. That is how the dozens of people that exploited him taught him how to relate to them, especially Marius. The only way Armand could love Marius was by serving him, cause that was the only way Marius made himself available.

The power of Louis and Armand’s roles as maître and Arun is that Armand performs as a slave when he is the master and Louis performs as the master when he is the slave. Armand is recreating his dynamic with Marius, it is just that this time Armand has the power to be the master. Instead of outright being one, he is covert.

As a side note, I don’t think Armand is taunting Lestat when he contacts him to talk to Louis. I think he has that call with him out of the goodness of his heart — perhaps, to show Louis how good he himself is— but mostly because the role Armand forces himself to play is so suffocating, so unfair, so fucked up, that when Lestat says I love you Armand can’t deal with the pain of having to repeat that back to Louis. He just can’t. It is a genuine vulnerable moment of Armand. Ideally, it would be a wake up call for him to stop playing this role, but the events in Paris have him stuck playing that part.

It is intentional that they show us Armand letting Lestat come and destroy the coven, because he is letting Daniel do the same thing: come destroy Dubai, come destroy the catering to desire, come destroy the constant acts of service. And I hope this time is for good. I hope Armand and Louis are free from this dynamic that eats away at them. The space Armand holds for Louis to process his emotions hurts both Armand and Louis. Armand, hurt by always having to work relentlessly and never sit down with the truth according to Assad, which I argue is a lifestyle he inherited from his past as a slave. Louis, hurt by not having a non-judgmental space to cope, process and grieve as a victim of abuse, perpetuator of abuse, and the betrayal he committed against Claudia.

The reason Daniel comes across as fascinating to Louis is because Louis was begging for a listening ear, for somebody to care about his story, and Daniel has good the traits to listen to Louis and met him at the right time.

Sadly, centuries of trauma prevent Armand from being who Daniel is.

(Also didn’t Claudia say to Madeleine that there was something broken in her and Madeleine told her sometimes people go boom and then fine and then boom? To me, Louis in the 70’s embodies this so much).

Gif by @unicornspwnall

[whatshehassaid]

“I LOVED HER.” “BUT SHE DIDN’T LOVE YOU. Not like he did. Not like I have”

That isn’t Armand saying Claudia didn’t love Louis. She did. What he’s saying is that Louis was so fucking focused on PINING for Lestats love, superimposing Lestat on Claudia AND Armand that Louis refused to accept love from them. Because he didn’t want Claudia. He didn’t want Armand. He wanted Lestat and he couldn’t have him (whether it be because Louis convinced himself Lestat was bad, or dead, or because Louis is in denial). He tries to make villains out of Armand and Claudia.

“Speaking of mistakes…”

“Vintage Lioncourt.” “I’m not Lestat, Louis.” “Okay….”

“Picked ANOTHER ONE over ME”

“It was NEVER ABOUT ME. Another chapter in the FUCKED UP ROMANCE OF YOU TWO”

“If you want to escape this cage of empathy I’ve trapped you in all you had to do was ask, Louis.”

“Imagine me without the burden of her”

Louis can’t face the fact that he was IMPLICIT in what happened to Claudia in Paris. She wants a companion in Madeline cause she’s not getting in from Louis.

I feel like we may be going the route of Armand and Claudia (probably immediately after the trial and before her death) bonding over their experiences. Not just to do with Louis and Lestat… but their childhoods… being raped… being used… being turned so young…

I’m not 100% on this but if they do include the head swap thing (which is still fucked up, I’m still upset at Armand for that) I feel like Armand will frame it or believe that he can save her if he can just give her a woman’s body to match her mind. And I feel like Claudia will jump at the chance. Again, not 100% with that and it’s STILL super fucked up.. but I think if that happens Armand (AT THE TIME) would believe he was helping her. Like how he “helps” his victims. How he was never helped as a human child and as a vampire. They relate to each other because they’ve never been someone’s first choice… and I think the moment Armand hears her say those words (“it was never about me. Another chapter in the fucked up story/romance of you two”) he’s gonna realize how much they really have in common and feel empathy for her.

It makes a lot of sense with how Armand’s character (especially in the books) is. He has a thing about consent (it’s a bit twisted because you could argue he assumes he knows what’s best for people… and acts accordingly thinking that he’s helping them) But he needs people to consent at least somehow. Even if it’s coerced.

That’s also why I believe after Paris… Louis initially agreed to have the memories of his role in Claudia’s death suppressed. He couldn’t handle the guilt that he didn’t care enough to save her. Armand just took it to the point of constantly suppressing the triggering memories. Plus on TOP of that I’m 100% sure Louis is schizophrenic and it’s causing blackouts.

Armand wasn’t really lying when he said that “I protect Louis from himself.” He WAS being honest. It’s in a fucked up way, but I believe it’s true.

And then with Daniel, that’s a whole other can of worms because I don’t think Armand wiped his memories right after San Fran. I’m starting to believe it wasn’t just Louis telling him to keep Daniel alive. The minute Daniel admits he finds Armand fascinating… and tells him “you can read minds right?” Alluding to the fact that he ISN’T LYING. Daniel is intrigued by Armand… and that immediately catches Armand’s attention. We’ve only seen up to Louis attacking Daniel from an unbiased POV (the tape recording). The rest is MOSTLY FROM LOUIS. Who had had memories taken whether by Armand or by the blackouts… and remember he has a habit of trying to make himself look good in Daniel’s eyes. He tries to convince himself constantly that he’s not a bad guy - but in reality…. He’s done some shitty things too. So it wouldn’t surprise me if some of that was also lies to Daniel. “You’re a liar Louis. Whether you know it or not.”

Something happened in those 4 days with Armand and Daniel that I’m not sure Louis realizes. He may come in and out of actual remembrance where he KNOWS Armand and Daniel fell in love… and he uses it against them both… and then goes back into not knowing what’s happening.

I have a feeling we’re getting the trial/claudia’s death/a reveal about the blackouts etc/the fire from ARMAND. Hence the “imagine me without the burden of her” line that Louis says. He would NEVER in a million years admit to saying that. Definitely not to Daniel.

The Merrick storyline plays into this here. Finding Claudia’s diaries… realizing that Louis really treated her badly and that she hates him for it. And Louis not being able to take it.

I also feel like Lestat and Armand have teamed up in Dubai without Louis or Daniel realizing it. They may be trying to help cure him with the help of Dr. Bhansali.

(Also, devils minion definitely happened in the past… you can just see it in the way Armand sometimes looks at Daniel - and in the books even though he was a stickler for rules… his only exception has ALWAYS been Daniel. He loves Louis, he wouldn’t have put up with any of this if he didn’t… but Daniel? Daniel is really the love of Armand’s life. And Lestat is Louis’. I need them boys to figure this shit out - and with the fact that Daniel wasn’t listed in the Talamasca victims folder? Even though he was attacked, held hostage and tormented… means he is probably in ANOTHER folder - *cough* ARMANDSPARAMOURS *cough* I hope they have Daniel find his name in there cause THAT is gonna be J U I C Y.)

[nightcolorz]

Ryan, Armand is an ancient vampire. He's the strongest vampire in the show so far. He put the whole coven to sleep with a flick of his wrist. The show EXPLICITLY framed Armand as the one who orchestrated the trial. I didn't know you were delusional holy shit.

oh my god, don’t address me by my name, I don’t know u, u absolute freak 💀. If I can’t see ur profile picture u can’t call me by my government name, general rule. If u wanna be intimate with me like that get off anon, jeez Louise. I was so caught off guard by that I couldn’t even register the rest of ur point.

anyways I’ve talked about this b4 actually! It’s extremely unclear so far in the show verse how much of a role Armand had in the trial. The only thing we know is that he let it happen, he didn’t save Louis on purpose/was planning to let him die, but he stayed in a cage, even tho he wasn’t a prisoner, per his choice. We also know, based on the timeline, that Armand was banished from the coven, and eventually decided to help with the trial, bcus he wanted to be accepted back into it. He wasn’t a mastermind from the beginning always planning to have the trial happened, that so far is not the story, but he did take control at some point. He definitely consented to it/allowed it to happen. He absolutely could have stopped it if he wanted to, that’s inarguable.

When I said in the post I assume u are addressing that Armand participated in the trial as a logistic, fawn response move bcus he felt it was the safest option since he was threatened, I said that bcus he says that in the show, multiple times. He could be lying, he could just be a completely evil villain who does everything cuz he’s crazy and doesn’t give a shit and actually doesn’t act at all from a place of perceived logic and self preservation. Maybe ur right and they are writing Armand as a one dimensional evil mastermind who doesn’t have any of the depth they have been writing him with and just lies to kill people for fun.

But personally, I think it makes more sense in context of the story and the characters, and it makes textual sense considering everything that has been told to us, that Armand chose to go along with the trial bcus he values his coven since it offers him protection (that he logically doesn’t need, bcus he’s extremely powerful, but Armand has a victim mindset that drives all of his choices) over louis, who he considers unreliable, and Madeline + Claudia, who he doesn’t care about. It’s completely unfounded in show canon that Armand is acting out of pure desire to see louis and Claudia dead, since he would have just killed louis and not stayed with him for 77 years after that, if that were the case, which was my entire point. Armand doesn’t act out of a place of hatred or pure evil, he’s doing what he genuinely believes will keep him “safe” even tho he’s the most powerful person in the room, he makes decisions as if he’s in vulnerable danger. He never logically is, but he doesn’t realize that. Did u know! That this is what ptsd does? How crazy, that someone with insane trauma would act out in a fear mindset, even tho they are in no actual danger. So crazy guys. Anyways, I guess I am delusional, holy shit. When u actually pay attention to the motivations and internal logic of characters, u can come off as pretty crazy! Thanks for the ask tho.

[avelera]

Gif courtesy of @apaethy

I just finished re-watching the first season of Interview with the Vampire because in light of what's going on as of 2.6 of S2, I felt I needed to, because this moment above is driving me crazy.

Why is Armand staring straight at Daniel during Louis' declaration? And why is it that, to me, he almost seems to plead with his eyes for Daniel to get him away from Louis?

My thoughts on the matter:

Doylist reasons (aka, out of universe, production, practical reasons): this is a big reveal that "Rashid" is actually Armand. It makes sense, from that angle, as an acting choice that Armand-no-longer-Rashid would look straight at the camera so we could get a good look at him.

Thing is, it's certainly a choice.

Because I would argue the more logical choice when having one character declare the other is the love of their life is for those characters to look at each other. Even a passing glance, a faint smile, a little bit of heart eyes.

Louis just gave a pretty romantic declaration. Actually, even more haunting as of 2.6, Louis just said out loud that he loves Armand in this straightforward, unambiguous, but frighteningly passive way that he refused to do back in Paris, what Madeleine had to cajole him into saying. Now Louis drops the L word all casual, almost as a challenge, right in Daniel's face??

Daniel Molloy voice: Nuh uh, I don't buy it, not for a second.

Ok, let's get into a meta reason this is a really freakin' weird moment and scene that they chose to use as the final note of Season 1, and therefore I think it's meant to be important and, as of Season 2, I think we're seeing the crux of why it's the end of one season and the set up of the next.

Metatextual reason: Armand is not the fucking love of Louis's life in the books. He's barely a footnote, unless that footnote is labeled, "THE VAMPIRE WHO KILLED CLAUDIA". Louis and Armand's relationship, such as it was, soured immediately after her death. They didn't stick together for decades, from the text they barely stuck together a few years after that. Armand wasn't at the Interview with Daniel (but he did pick up Daniel later, when kidnapping him when Daniel went to investigate Lestat's house and look for evidence to corroborate Louis' story).

So as a book fan, I sat up in my chair and audibly shouted, "What the fuck?" at that line. Because as I'm sure anyone who has read this far knows by now, in the books Louis is not the love of Armand's life.

Daniel is the love of Armand's life.

Daniel is Armand's only fledgling, ever.

So not only is there a weird declarative quality to the almost nonsensical (to book readers) statement that Armand is the love of Louis's life-- I don't know how else to explain it except it's like having a revival of Romeo and Juliet where they didn't die and Romeo's early girlfriend Rosaline show up to say that Romeo is the love of her life in Juliet's face. Do you see what I mean? Daniel/Armand is Romeo and Juliet, Louis the temporary fling. Having Rosaline tell Juliet that Romeo is her love would give a similar level of dissonance as I got hearing Louis/Armand was a thing over and above Daniel/Armand.

So to go back to Armand's creepy eye contact here (as if he has any other kind).

Watsonian Reason (aka, in-universe, what the story is going for): We are setting up the plot that becomes much more apparent in S2: Daniel was invited to Dubai to be the wrecking ball in Louis/Armand's relationship.

Which means the big canon divergence moments from the book are:

1. Louis and Armand didn't break up right after Paris, but stayed a couple for several decades longer.

2. Regardless of whether or not the Devil's Minion happened already (or if it's going to happen later in this story), Armand didn't turn Daniel into a vampire soon after meeting him a few years post-Interview with the Vampire. That event got pushed back.

My money is on Armand and Daniel had their fling but Armand refused to turn him. It's a fairly logical canon divergence beat because Armand didn't want to turn Daniel in the books either so in this universe, he just actually followed through and did the responsible thing.

But, I think Armand pined. And pined. And pined.

Whether or not Armand is Alice turning down Daniel's proposal (I at this point disagree with the theory) or if he was just stalking Daniel closely enough to read Alice's thoughts in that moment, he clearly has been keeping tabs on Daniel.

In my opinion, Armand is finally done with the relationship with Louis.

The interview is meant to passively accomplish these things:

Remind Louis how much he loves Lestat.

Remind Louis how much he loves Claudia and by extension if/when it "slips out" just how culpable Armand actually was (as the mastermind, not a bystander) for her death, it will give Louis the impetus to finally leave.

Bring Daniel back into their life. Because whether or not he'll admit it to himself, Armand has been pining for him over Louis for a while now.

I've kind of already explored this in another post but the more I watch of S2 and re-watch of S1, the more certain I am that this is Armand's actual goal. The pining looks he keeps shooting Daniel's way, the way Daniel seems to lose his train of thought whenever he looks at Armand, the palpable tension between them...

Basically, Romeo and Juliet are getting back together soon. We just need to get Rosaline out of the picture first, and that's why Romeo is having an interview that digs up what a shitty boyfriend he was to Rosaline so that Rosaline will break up with him first so he can get back with Juliet.

[theresthespark]

Okay Lestat is canonically a Scorpio and Louis a Libra which are both painfully accurate. I wanted to play Estelle and share my astrology headcanons

Claudia:

Leo rising – the hair, the general slayage, her association with yellow aka the sun

Aries sun – she’s so bold plus libra and Aries are sister signs so they share traits that present different which feels right for Louis and her’s kinship

Taurus moon – not prone enough to over emotionality to be a water sign but not overly practical in the way the other earth signs are. Very stubborn and does canonically enjoy beauty and luxury. Also if you know a Taurus I feel like it just makes sense

Madeleine:

Virgo Rising – She just gives demure when we first meet her and yet no bullshit either. Virgos just seems very put together almost unassuming which is funny since every Virgo I know is crazy lol

Aquarius sun – the decisions she’s made in her life feel the best suited for an Aquarian. Also her talking to Armand? That woman stopped giving a fuck about what everyone else is doing years ago

Cancer moon – Almost did Scorpio here but her loyalty and intensity didn’t feel suited there. Cancer still has some of Scorpio’s snap but its homey and soft too. I also can’t see Claudia gravitating towards someone similar to Lestat at all lol

(Bonus: suspected Aries Venus. The intensity of her!! Her directness when she cares! How she chases life and joy!)

Armand:

Pisces Rising – those big ole eyes are a big marker for this one. Also Pisces have big baby energy despite being the oldest sign which feels perfect for him

Gemini Sun – Please what else could he be? There’s the 27 different faces but more so, the love for technology and knowledge, the urge to always strategize. The near inability to ground into his emotions. The perpetual anxiety. Also Geminis are so funny without even trying but that’s just me

Capricorn Moon – Caps are ruled by Saturn which is in short a struggle bus placement. Fits well with the forever 27 thing (stuck in perpetual Saturn return) and his tendency to self flagellate. Also it being represent by the devil card in tarot. Iykyk

Daniel:

Capricorn rising – When you first meet him he comes off quite no bullshit in a way that only makes sense for Capricorn to me. Also fits for the workaholic tendencies (our risings tend to be a truest to self energy aka us at our best). Also feel that may be what draws Armand to him hehehe

Sagittarius sun – If you look up famous Sags all of them are silly goobers (and lowkey problematic 💀). Like him being a Sag makes SO much sense to me for San Francisco. Only a Sag would make that many dumb decisions just bc it was a vibe lmaoo

Aries moon – Thinking about Eric’s comment about Daniel not taking kindly to bullies. Also how similar him and Claudia feel to me I feel they’d share some major signage too

(Bonus: Gemini Mercury bc his got the gift of the gab, the quick wit)

Louis: (i couldn’t resist finishing their big three)

Libra rising – Ruled by Venus, Helen of Troy, Malena coded. What else could he be really?

Libra sun – Painfully canon

Scorpio moon – With how he talks about himself and his life versus how he moves through the world it makes perfect sense to me. So much emotion but also a lot of passion all bottled unless in the right company. Also he would loooove SZA (plus plus you’re more likely to become heavily attached to people who’s sun is your moon)

Lestat:

Aquarius rising – Leo’s sister sign (perfect for him and Claudia’s dynamic). She’s a rebel she does her own thing she does not give a flying fuck about the rest of yall. Only an Aquarius could be responsible for the events in Queen of the Damned

Scorpio sun – Again debilitatingly canon

Leo moon – Do I even need to explain it? Pull any TVL passage if you want an explanation lmaooo

I hope you enjoyed my analyzes I love astrology and would kill to get a proper birth chart for these characters. The house placements! The Aspects! The CHIRONS!! I need to chill

[theladyofthevarioussorrows]

Hello everyone! Sorry for the delay...but here it is...

Written in Blood, or the Play in which The Brat Prince Ties the Knot

Part II (of IV)

Part I here! | AO3 link here! | Spotify playlist!

Fandom: The Vampire Chronicles (Gothic horror novel series, 1976-2018); Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire (TV series, 2022-present)

Pairing: Lestat de Lioncourt/fem!reader; Lestat de Lioncourt/You

Word count: 3,800+

Characters: Lestat de Lioncourt (Sam Reid, the best version…­­­the only one that matters, obviously); fem!reader; The Vampire Armand (lol ouch); Nicolas de Lenfent (even bigger ouch, RIP); Santiago; Estelle; Celeste; Eglee; Sam; Gustav; Quang Pham; pretty much the entire Theatre des Vampires.

Summary: Fem!reader is the newest addition to the Theatre des Vampires, and Lestat becomes smitten with her (of course he does, the little whore!). Lestat’s allure, charm, beauty, and viciousness are not lost on the reader, and she falls for him (I mean, who wouldn’t, let’s be honest). With fem!reader being the freshest member of the Coven, Santiago “initiates” her (similar to how he brought Claudia in) by casting her as Lestat’s co-star in the next play as his love interest. The play, overseen reluctantly by Armand is about a wedding (in the vein of The Taming of the Shrew, As You Like It, or something similar but accurate to the time period, that is the vibe…Lestat, little miss Lady Macbeth himself, “barely Balthazar” Armand, “too old to play Hamlet, too young to play Polonius” Santiago, and I are all Shakespeare girlies, so I thought it would make sense); fem!reader and Lestat are actually getting legally married, unbeknownst to the mortal audience. Fem!reader and Lestat are to be the bride and groom, Santiago is the Justice of the Peace, and the rest of the TDV are the wedding party. While Armand is still the Coven leader, he “directs” the play and Nicki leads the orchestra. Things do not go the way they were planned to go (in Armand’s case); a story of love, sex, and vampire drama unfolds.

Warnings and additional tags: New/eventual relationship, established relationship, smut (P in V), fluff, mention of sex, mention of masturbation, (F and M), oral sex (F and M receiving), all characters (except the reader, duh) are written to be as close to the way they are in the books as well as the show to the best of my ability, reader-insert, reader-interactive, use of Y/N, Lestat gives the reader pet names in French (this is Lestat, after all), mutual pining, flirting, slight voyeurism, slight exhibitionism (is anything Lestat does really a secret? No, not really), blood drinking, blood sucking, bloodletting, biting, gore, violence, murder (feeding on humans is the only instance of this), both Lestat and fem!reader are bisexual, age gap (fem!reader is younger than Lestat by at least a bit but it doesn’t really matter as much because he himself is a new-ish vampire; Lestat would still be somewhere in his thirties in mortal years by the show’s timeline), Lestat is very seductive and persuasive (fem!reader doesn’t need much persuading, so it’s not a bad thing), a bunch of mentions of Shakespeare, lines from As You Like It are in italics and dialogue from vampires using the Mind Gift are in bold italics.

Notes: This story takes place while Lestat is still performing with the Theatre des Vampires and is newly a vampire himself. Magnus is obviously dead by now (thank God). The events of this fic take place after Lestat breaks up with both Nicki (he is still alive at this point in time) and Armand, but before he meets Louis de Pointe du Lac and later Claudia. I don’t have anything against either character (I adore both greatly!), this is just a “what if?” kind of situation. This is a basic idea I had had for literal years ever since I read the books, but I didn’t do anything with it until the second season of the show started, specifically episode 10. I wasn’t immune to Harlequin Lestat, and I was FERAL about it. Sam Reid only made that worse for me (God, I am so in love with him…that man IS Lestat. He doesn’t just play him, he BECAME him, and no one else has come close. Tom Cruise and Stuart Townsend could NEVER!). The premise of the fic came to me while listening to “Written in Blood” by She Wants Revenge…one thing led to another, and here we are! Also, yes, I KNOW the vampires don’t “have sex” in the novels, but they do in the show (a LOT). I might make references to things that have happened in the books (mostly Interview with the Vampire and The Vampire Lestat, possibly a bit of Queen of the Damned) but might not have been shown in the TV series yet, so reader beware of that. Let this be the spoiler warning if you are not familiar with the books or haven’t watched the show. I am completely ignoring both movies, because they mean absolutely nothing to me now that the (far superior) show exists. The piece that fem!reader uses for her audition comes from Shakespeare’s comedy As You Like It…she is reading as Rosalind while disguised as Ganymede, and Lestat reads with her as Orlando. I thought the parallels were a nice touch. I obviously do not own the rights to As You Like It, I merely used the one scene for Y/N’s audition, and to add romantic and dramatic effect. Special shout out to my best friend @eli-rx for their contribution and ideas!

Language: English (except for a handful of pet names and expressions used by Lestat in French, hopefully I did it correctly. I took 4 years of French in high school, but I am not fluent)

Taglist!: @themorriganisamonster @notsostrangerthing @witcherfilms @inthiseverymoment

Following the performance of the night, everyone in the Coven came backstage to officially welcome Y/N into the Theatre des Vampires. As she joined them in the middle of the room, Y/N was pleasantly nervous, not only because all of this was foreign to her, but also because she was reeling from her encounter with Lestat the night before. Never in her life, before accepting the Dark Gift or since, has she ever felt so enraptured and enamored by anyone as much as Lestat.  He watched her with a sly smile on his face as she sat down in the chair in the middle of the room, and she looked at him with a rosy glow on her cheeks as she beamed back at him.

Look at you…you’re glowing, ma chérie. Absolutely stunning… Y/N heard Lestat’s sensual voice in her mind, and it made her head swim. He winked at her as he moved to stand behind her in her chair. As the rest of the Coven formed a tight circle around Y/N, Armand moved to stand on her left, a large book bound in red leather in his arms. He took a deep breath before he spoke.

“Y/N, before we begin, we have something we would like to give you,” Armand said, his voice proud but his hesitation still evident. Armand turned to the beautiful blonde vampire behind her. “Lestat, I believe it is you who would like to have the honor? It was your idea, after all.” Armand tried his best not to sound bitter.

The violinist Nicki leaned against the wall, arms crossed over his chest and biting the inside of his cheek, trying to appear as neutral as possible despite being uncomfortable with the events of the past couple of nights. He didn’t have anything against Y/N; there was no reason to, he became numb to the way his former lover operates, and he only hoped that Y/N stayed happy—and safe—with Lestat by her side, should it come to that. But Nicki already knew better, Lestat had his sights set on Y/N, and there was nothing anyone could do to tear her away from him now.

“Of course, how could I forget?” Lestat said in his special syrupy and sultry way, gently caressing Y/N’s cheek before turning to walk over to his vanity in the corner of the room, a deep blush appearing on her face. Lestat opened the drawer and pulled out a gift wrapped in purple paper, shutting the drawer with his hip before walking back over to Y/N. He gently placed the present in her hands. “Thou art wise as thou art beautiful…isn’t that right, darling?” Lestat said, starting to blush himself. “Go on, mon amour, show us what it is.” Y/N, momentarily at a loss for words, smiled again as she gingerly freed the item from its wrapping. Once she realized what it was, her jaw dropped and red tears welled up in her eyes. Finally, she found herself able to speak again. In her hands was a gorgeous tome that housed the entire works of Shakespeare, bound in green leather with gilded edges.

“Oh…my God…it’s incredible…” Y/N said, blood tears starting to fall down her face. “Thank you all so much…” Y/N wiped her face. “Lestat…this was your idea?” Lestat nodded with a charming smile.

“Let’s just say I know more than you’re aware of, sweetheart,” Lestat said as he wiped a tear from her face and brushed some of her hair behind her ear. “When I said you were lovely, chérie, it was not in jest. I meant it wholeheartedly.” Y/N swooned and blushed at his words.

“Thank you, Lestat. This is the most wonderful gift anyone could ever give me.” Y/N said lovingly.

“Oh love, believe me,” Lestat said. “This is only the beginning.” Sensing a change of tone in the air that he wasn’t keen on being present for, Armand spoke up to break up the growing sexual tension between the blonde charmer and his newest possible paramour.

“Alright, dear Y/N…it is time. Will you have us?” Armand said with a small genuine smile, his voice tinged with apprehension.

“Yes maître. I will,” Y/N said as she smiled back at the amber-eyed vampire to her right. “I’m ready.”

“Good then…let’s begin the initiation. Santiago will read you in.” Armand said, trying to sound more confident than he felt in his cold heart. Lestat once again took his position standing behind Y/N’s chair. Armand handed the red book to Santiago as he stood on Y/N’s left, opening it to a page with the title “The Great Commandments Which All Vampires Must Obey.” Santiago moved a bit closer to her and began to speak proudly.

“The Five Laws…law one,” Santiago said. “Each Coven must have its leader, and only he might order the working of the Dark Trick upon a mortal.” Y/N looked up at Santiago as he read her the rites, gasping quietly as she suddenly felt Lestat’s hands brush her hair off her neck and place his hands on her shoulders, holding her to the chair gently. “Will you abide?” Santiago continued, noticing Lestat’s gesture and smiling wickedly. Y/N nodded.

“I will,” Y/N replied, eyes widening as she began to feel the rest of her body begin to flush. Santiago smiled and continued.

“Law two: the Dark Gifts must never be given to the crippled, the maimed, to children, or to those who cannot, even with the Dark Powers, survive on their own,” Santiago continued. “Will you abide?” Armand stifled a small sigh as he looked on. After a few seconds, he placed his hand over Y/N’s heart.

“I will,” Y/N answered again, trembling slightly. Celeste moved in front of Y/N, while the others tightened the circle. Lestat, gripping Y/N’s shoulders only a bit tighter, offered his praise without moving his lips.

My my Y/N, you’re adapting wonderfully, mon ange. Very, very good, darling.

Santiago cleared his throat dramatically before carrying on with the initiation. “Law three,” Santiago resumed. “Never should an old vampire work this magic lest the blood of the fledgling be too strong, for all our gifts increase naturally with age, and the old ones have too much strength to pass on. Will you abide?” Y/N nodded once again.

“I will.” Y/N felt her breath becoming more uneven as she squirmed under Lestat and Armand’s hands. Celeste moved to place her hand over Y/N’s heart as well. Eglee, Estelle, Quang Pham, Gustav, and Sam moved in closer and followed suit. Y/N’s gaze briefly drifted to Nicki, who hesitated for a moment before he placed his hand on hers, offering a friendly but sad smile. Y/N smiled back.

Santiago flashed Y/N another smirk before he began again. “Law four: no vampire may ever destroy another vampire, except that the Coven Master has the power of life and death over all his flock. Will you abide?” Y/N swallowed hard as she shook her head.

“I will.” Y/N took a deep breath before letting it go.

Santiago spoke up again. “Law five,” he continued. Noticing the anxiety in Y/N’s movements but not sensing any hesitation of any kind from her, Santiago chuckled to himself before beginning again. “No vampire shall ever reveal his true nature, or ever reveal the history of the vampire to a mortal and let the mortal live.” Santiago paused as he shot Lestat a knowing look, fully aware of the hunger and want coursing through Lestat’s body as he held Y/N to the chair. Lestat did not break his concentration on Y/N for a second, his attention solely on her. Santiago rolled his eyes. “No vampire must commit to writing the history of the vampires, and a vampire’s name must never be known to mortals, save from his tombstone, and never must any vampire reveal to mortals the location of his or any other vampire’s lair. Will you abide?” Lestat let his fingers drag gently along Y/N’s collarbone, smiling slyly and giggling lowly under his breath as he felt her shiver. Y/N inhaled sharply.

“I will,” Y/N said, a little more breathlessly than she probably intended. She let her head fall back slightly before gingerly shaking her head, as if to shake the feeling off. The other vampires moved closer to her, preparing her for the final phase of the initiation. Santiago clapped the red leather book shut loudly before smiling at Y/N, placing his hand on her as well.

“An outsider no longer,” Santiago beamed. “Welcome to the Coven, little miss Y/N.”

Reluctantly, Armand motioned for Lestat to be the one to offer his blood to her first. Lestat moved one of his hands from her shoulders to her neck and gently tilted it back. He bit a significant gash into his forearm before lowering it to Y/N’s lips. She swallowed softly before gently holding onto his wrist.

“Good girl,” Lestat whispered as she pressed her lips to the dripping wound and eagerly lapped up the blood that oozed from it. “Tres bien fait, Y/N. You’re a natural, my love. Just as I knew you would be.” Y/N’s eyes rolled back into her head as she drank his blood, the flavor of him sweeter than anything she had ever tasted. Lestat moaned softly at the sight, trying in vain to control his need for her. After a few moments, Lestat gently pulled his arm away, smiling as he watched a small trickle of blood fall from the corner of her mouth. He slowly wiped the blood away from her face with his thumb, letting his finger press against her lip and pull it down before letting it go. Never breaking eye contact with her, he took his bloody thumb into his mouth and licked the blood off. Y/N’s eyes widened as he smiled hungrily at her, her head beginning to swirl with love, hunger—and something else entirely. Armand, not at all surprised by Lestat’s bold display of sensuality towards Y/N, shook his head and bit his tongue to keep himself somewhat calm. Lestat stepped out of the way. Next was Celeste, who then offered Y/N her wrist, and she accepted her with gratitude.

“We’re happy to have you, Y/N. Welcome to the Theatre,” Celeste said with a proud smile.

With that, one by one, the other vampires offered their blood to Y/N, and she eagerly accepted each of them as they accepted her as one of their own, thanking them for the gifts they have given her.

After the rituals were over and Y/N was fully initiated into the Theatre des Vampires, she gasped lightly as she felt a soft but firm arm wrap around her waist from behind.

“You are nothing short of magnificent, love. Beautiful work, mon ange. Y/N, you were dazzling as always,” Lestat said with a sly smile. “I am still interested to hear more about you. What do you say we continue our little tête-à-tête from last night?” He smiled a bit wider as she turned to face him as she beamed back at him.

“Yes, Lestat. I’d love to,” Y/N swooned. “What would you like to know?” Lestat gently took her by the hand and led her to the corner of the room. Even as a mortal, no man had ever made her feel the way she did now…it was intoxicating. He was intoxicating.

“Only whatever it is you’re willing to tell me, mon coeur. Anything and everything,” Lestat said with a charming smile as he brought her hand up to his lips and pressed a soft kiss to it. “I find you absolutely enthralling, Y/N.” He reached out to tuck a loose strand of hair behind Y/N’s ear, his fingers gently grazing her skin as he does so. She felt warmth spread across her face under his touch as she leaned into it. “I must say, I’ve been wanting to share a moment with you, ma belle,” he said as he sat down in the chair at the vanity. Lestat gently pulled Y/N onto his lap and wrapped one of his arms around her waist, while his other hand brushed some of her hair over her shoulder. Y/N felt her heart begin to pound against her ribs again as she settled herself in his tender but strong hold. “Why don’t you tell me about yourself, chérie?” Y/N swallowed softly as she gazed at him.

“Well, I’m flattered, truly. I would love to get to know you better, too. You’ve all been very kind and helpful, and I feel very lucky.” Y/N said as she rested one of her hands on his shoulder to anchor herself to him. “I feel especially lucky to have shared the stage with you yesterday.” She giggled quietly as she took a deep breath before beginning again. “But I guess I’ve always loved everything about the theatre, ever since I was a little girl. I never really had the chance to explore or experiment with anything of the sort until I was turned.”

Lestat’s periwinkle gaze never strayed from Y/N’s vampire eyes as she spoke, his attention focused solely on her. He acknowledged her answer for a moment. “Ah, I see. I am sorry to hear that you haven’t been able to embrace your talents until you were Born to Darkness, but I would argue that might be one of the reasons some of us consider our nature to be an honor. You seem to be adjusting exceptionally, ma beauté. Please forgive me for asking, but who was it that bestowed the Dark Gift upon you?” Lestat gently ran his long fingers through her silken hair as he spoke to her, intently listening to her words. He was madly in love with this beautiful young vampire in his arms, and she had fallen just as hard for him. Y/N couldn’t imagine any other place she would rather be than in Lestat’s embrace. She blushed deeper as she answered his question honestly.

“Celeste is my maker. I’m still learning from her, Santiago, Armand, and the rest of the Coven…this is all very new to me.” Y/N caressed Lestat’s face and smiled. “I really am glad to be here.” Y/N gazed at Lestat, delighted to find a blush forming on his face as well. He smiled back at her as she continued. “Lestat…this is the most alive I’ve ever felt.”

“Oh, ma chérie …” Lestat traced the curve of her jaw with his hand as his voice dropped to a low and loving tone. “I want you to know that I am happy to see you bloom and flourish here with us…” He caressed her cheek and jaw with the back of his hand, maintaining eye contact with her. Lestat watched her blush and tremble slightly as he touched her, making mental notes of what she seemed to enjoy the most before he broke the brief pause. “…with me.” Y/N’s eyes widened as her jaw dropped slightly; a look Lestat came to know very well. She gulped silently.

“Do you really mean that, Lestat? I…I don’t know what to say…” Y/N, smiling, began to feel overwhelmed by his clear love for her, and it made her feel dizzy. Lestat was aware of this, and he held her closer to him, his grip on her hips tightening slightly, silently promising her he would catch her if she were to fall.

“You don’t have to say anything, mon amour. I meant every word. I have been entranced by you from the very second I laid my eyes upon you.” Lestat’s hand travelled down to find Y/N’s and tangled his fingers with hers. “You have me utterly spellbound, Y/N.”

Lestat hooked his thumb and forefinger under Y/N’s chin and gently moved her head so that their eyes were locked in each other’s gaze again. Slowly, Lestat leaned in closer as he closed his eyes, resting his forehead against hers. She smiled and blushed as she moved down to meet him, her eyes fluttering shut once their lips met. Lestat kissed her softly at first, taking his time with her. She kissed him back gingerly, allowing herself to savor everything he offered her.

As Lestat and Y/N shared their tender but increasingly intense kiss, someone was lurking across the room, only barely out of sight.

Santiago could not help himself. He stared at the two vampires at the vanity, so lost in the throes of their hungry passion that they weren’t aware that he was watching them, or for how long. Santiago ran his fingers through his slicked back bottle-blonde hair as he watched Lestat practically devour the new Coven member whole, smirking once he became aware that there was no holding back on Y/N’s end either. Y/N kissed Lestat back as if she would disappear into thin air if she stopped, and she knew well enough by now that Lestat would not let her go if she tried. Whatever Lestat gave her, she returned to him with equal vigor and thirst. Santiago could not decide if the sight unfolding in front of him thrilled him or sickened him. All he knew was that, for whatever reason, he needed to alert Armand. Is Y/N a threat to the Theatre? She doesn’t seem like it. Is she a victim? If she was, she wouldn’t be so quick to give herself to Lestat…right? What if she’s doing all of this of her own will? Santiago wasn’t sure, but he could not tear his eyes away from Y/N and Lestat’s hungry embrace, no matter how hard he tried.

Completely oblivious to Santiago’s spying—or, more likely, aware and unbothered—Lestat carried on with his discovery of Y/N’s mouth with his tongue, her ministrations matching his. Lestat’s hands made their way from the back of Y/N’s head and down her neck, dragging his fingers gently all the way down until he reached her hips. He gripped her and held her in his lap, not hard enough to hurt her but firmly enough to leave light handprints on her skin through her clothes. As Lestat moved his lips from hers to trail light kisses along her jawline, his hands found the hem of Y/N’s blouse and lifted it up slightly to let his fingers graze her skin beneath it, making her whimper softly and shiver under his touch. He let his long fingers dance along her sides and spine, up and down her ribs and chest, then back around again, his movements agonizingly measured. Immediately loving the effect he had on Y/N, Lestat chuckled lowly.

“Such beautiful sounds you make, mon ange,” Lestat whispered lowly between kisses. “I wonder how many more I can coax out of you…” his voice trailed off as his lips continued their exploration along Y/N’s jaw and neck, gently nipping at her collarbone before moving back up to capture her mouth in another searing kiss. Lestat helped her change her position in his lap, so that her thighs were around his waist, pulling her closer against him in the chair as he leaned back. He let his hands travel lower as he tightened his grip. Y/N showed her approval by moaning against his lips, wrapping her arms around his shoulders to stabilize herself. Lestat chuckled slyly again. “Shh, ma chérie…” Lestat whispered, his voice sultry. “Sois une gentille fille et tais-toi... tout le monde peut entendre...”

Y/N answered him breathlessly, completely caught up under Lestat’s spell. She knew some French but wasn’t fluent; she wasn’t entirely sure what Lestat said to her, but whatever it was sounded absolutely sinful. “What…? What did you say?” Lestat chuckled and smiled wickedly once more.

“Oh, my love…I said…” Lestat trailed off as he let his fangs softly scrape against the skin between her ear and her neck before speaking again. “Be a good girl and keep quiet…anyone can hear…” Lestat said, making Y/N gasp. “But it wouldn’t make any difference who hears us, now would it, darling?” Lestat’s words made Y/N’s breath catch in her throat before she whimpered a bit louder. Lestat let out a low growl. “I suspected as much, mon petit monstre.” Lestat bit her neck ever so gently, hard enough to cause a small bead of blood to drip down her neck. He quickly lapped it up and kissed her again before she could speak, making her yelp against his mouth and twitch in his arms.

Santiago was both so stunned and so morbidly entertained by this display of lustful longing that he nearly forgot his own mission. Maître…there has been an occurrence. A sort of…expected occurrence, shall we say? I have eyes on them now and…it seems it’s serious already. Very serious in fact.

Armand, also painfully aware of the steamy romance brewing between the Theatre’s founder and the Coven’s newest addition, answered Santiago with an annoyed snarl. I know, Santiago. Leave them be. There isn’t much we can do now. And don’t give Lestat the satisfaction…you know he revels in it. Don’t encourage him. He knows what he’s doing.

Santiago answered his master, deciding he should let these two vampires have their little moment. As much as he wanted to keep watching them, he knew that Lestat would catch on soon, if he hadn’t already. Yes maître. They’ll wear themselves out soon. Though I reckon it could be a while—

Armand winced and interrupted him. Enough, Santiago. Coffin, now.

As the two riled-up vampires explored their newfound love—and lust—for each other, Lestat broke the kiss softly, resting his forehead against hers, both trying to catch their breath and come back down to Earth. Lestat sighed and chuckled lightly.

“Mmm, mon petit chaton…you are insatiable,” Lestat breathed. “But it seems we’ve attracted some attention.” Y/N whimpered as Lestat felt her quiver in his arms, giggling as he held her harder, stopping her from falling backwards. She wrapped her arms around his neck tighter.

“We did…? Where…?” Y/N answered breathlessly, resting her head in the crook of his neck. Lestat smiled slyly.

“No need to concern yourself with that, my darling.” Lestat said, trailing soft kisses along her neck before moving to whisper into her ear. “What do you say we continue this tomorrow, hmm? I don’t want you thinking I’m anywhere finished with you yet…” Lestat growled. He gently patted her hips, signaling for her to stand up from his lap. He held her hand as she stood up, chuckling to himself as he watched her wobble as she stood. He stood up with her and held her hand. “Come on, my love,” Lestat said with a sly smile. “I’ll walk you to your coffin, you look tired. We’ll meet again here after rehearsal tomorrow, yes?” Y/N nodded and followed Lestat out of the room. She could have sworn she floated beside him, and Lestat knew that he was dangerously in love with her. He knew he had her in is clutches now, but he wanted to drag this out as long as he could.

[murfpersonalblog]

I wanted to respond to this post & tags by @mdeitrick13, after I saw @fishjellylou's response here.

I HATE book!film!Louis. It's actually a very popular opinion, esp. wrt film!Louis--there's a lot to hate, without ever getting into morality politics--from his plethora of stupid life choices, to his hypocrisy, to his whiny attitude, etc. And wrt to pimps & slavery specifically, we can get into all the ways owning & controlling people's bodies, freedom, & autonomy/agency is effed up. But where exactly does LOUIS exhibit any of that behavior towards Armand--book, film, and esp. on the show??? 🤔

Almighty all-powerful all-gifted uber-privileged vamps can get away with literal murder: Lestat can spitefully beat the hell out of Lou, Armand can sadistically torture HUMAN!Daniel, the coven can gleefully kill Claudia & Madeleine (who literally did nothing), Armand can petulantly drive the mentally ill (Nicki & Louis) to suicide--but disenfranchised weak AF desperate HUMAN!Black Louis is "worse" than all of the vamps, cuz he was a pimp who tried navigating the crap hand he'd been dealt the most effective way he could? 🤨🤨🤨

What did Louis do as a human pimp that makes him so much "worse" as a person than Armand is? Since when does AMC/the show or Lou absolve himself of guilt for being a pimp OR a vampire? In Lou's eyes, evil is evil, and he doesn't give vampires a pass AT ALL--eff all the "biological imperatives" Rashid was simpering about. Since when are demonic serial killing cannibals given a pass in the IWTV Morality Olympics, over prostitution? Cuz prostitution & vampirism BOTH exploit human vulnerability & weakness & bodies, and by the show's logic, one is no better or worse than the other--ALL vampires on this show are COMPLICIT as predators feeding off the lives & miseries of humans. Santiago only used the stupid "vampires are monsters" excuse to justify his personally-motivated vendetta to kill Louis, dismissing Lou's experiences to absolve Lestat's flagrant abuse of power against the man he claimed to love whom he knew was weaker than him and thus intentionally "broke."

The whole point of show!Loumand's dynamic is right here:

ARMAND, the 400+ year old Coven Master, stalked & approached & invited & courted LOUIS. Louis never spoke or utilized his past as a pimp when they met. Armand knew Louis was afraid of him ("I thought he was going to kill me....I sensed his ancient power"), and he promised Louis (who'd suffered from SEVERE PTSD after the last older more powerful vampire broke every bone in his body), that he would never hurt Louis, "and I never have," LOL.

In ANY of Loumand's courtship, where does Louis having formerly been a pimp give him ANY advantage over Armand, or the coven? 🤔

Where does pimp!Louis factor in as the "gross" part of their meeting & courtship--when Lou explicitly told Armand & the whole coven that they were NOT companions, and that he had ZERO interest in Armand tryna RECRUIT Louis to join Armand's coven (*cough* CULT *cough*)? 🤔 Who's pimping whom in this situationship? 🤔

Esp. since Claudia's the one who was actually recruited, to try to lure LOUIS in as the one they REALLY wanted to join, so offended when Lou refused ("[Madeleine] must join or die."). They used the same Charles Manson-style cult tactics on Claudia AND Louis!

Rolin explicitly used Charles Manson music in 1x5, but y'all keep missing the links between Lestat & Armand's treatment of Louis & Claudia to talk about how Armand was groomed & abused--by WHOM?! Certainly not LOUIS! And here the tags go AGAIN tryna link Louis with Marius. 🤦‍♀️ (I cannot WAIT till y'all show-onlies actually see Marius in action, not just picking up crap from hearsay.)

Where is Louis the predator out to harm Armand? How is Armand the one being "grossly" threatened by Lou, pimp or otherwise? When did Louis rape Armand, or pimp him out, or "donate" him to someone else? For all Louis' claims that "he's mine" cuz Lou got to top someone who's not his Maker, how does Louis actually come out on top or benefit, being with Armand? 🤔

For all Armand's simpering about "Are you asking me or making me, Maitre?," where does Louis FORCE Armand to do ANYTHING? Louis states what he wants to do/happen (make Madeleine for Claudia; save Daniel from Armand killing him), and Lou gives Armand the CHOICE to do it it or not. Armand could've had the whole coven descend on Lou the night Lou made Madeleine (as we see in the movie, which clearly noticed the same thing)--instead, we learn that he was actually writing/rehearsing the Trial script the whole time jfc 💀💀💀. He could've snapped Daniel's neck, and what could crispety!Lou have done to stop him, hobbling around all burnt up? But he complies, cuz he'd already sabotaged Loustat's chance to get back together by not telling Lou that Les said he loved him; instead CHOOSING to stay with the man who literally just said he's bored & hates being with Armand & literally just tried to kill himself rather than be with Armand anymore--like WTF???? But ARMAND'S the one who's been in danger from Louis!? 🤣 THIS dude!?

OK, Lou was a pimp, but Armand was running the frikkin vampire MOB in Paris--a literal biker gang of Charles Manson sickos! An effing wet room full of offed "heretics and rule breakers" (inc NICKI, who was NEITHER--SUS!!!) buried in the frikkin walls of his torture-basement, but Lou's "worse" for being a HUMAN!hustler, when Armand's a whole cult-leading mobster his effing self!?

On top of the legit torture we see him do to HUMAN!Daniel, playing with his effing food worse than anything we saw Lestat pull in S1.

(x x x x x)

How does Lou having been a pimp protect him from Armand lying about "Banishment," or having his mind wiped for 77 years, or Armand going behind Lou's back to tear out Claudia's diary pages Lou didn't even know about, or Armand throwing Daniel (& Sam & the Talamasca) under the bus to keep gaslighting Lou about the script?

Where does Louis abuse Armand's trust, lying to control Armand's actions? When has Lou hobbled Armand's bodily autonomy, and the thing Armand can(not) physically do? When did Lou donate Armand to other people? Or act outside of Armand's boundaries/consent?)

The whole point of IWTV is to emphasize LOUIS' vulnerability, and how it's constantly exploited & abused by people more powerful than he is--from humans in NOLA & Romania/Eastern Europe, to vampires in Paris, and especially Lestat.

Armand knew immediately that Louis & Claudia were lying about Bruce being their Maker, cuz he's THE best vampire with the Mind Gift. He knew EVERYTHING, and told Louis to his face in 2x2 that Louis's a terrible liar who can't hide anything or keep secrets from him--just like the last older more powerful vampire read Louis' thoughts & used them to seduce him; "Come to me, Louis."

Armand & the whole coven were Europeans who'd never even met an American vamp before--but they knew Louis was a pimp from New Orleans with a whole failed sugar plantation--cuz they they read his mind; what Claudia explicitly called "invaded their thoughts." Santiago called them BOTH out in 2x3 (more subtly with Claudia but straight up explicitly with Louis, as someone whose mind they could all read way easier than hers).

It especially confuses me when show fans complain all about pimp!Louis being with Armand on the show; but make no noise about slaveowner!Louis being with Armand in the books? (Or they're against pedo!Marius being with Armand, but make no noise about pedo!Lestat being with Armand? Let alone Daniel (who, unlike Marius & Lestat, is NOT an Old World European vamp from a different time period with different morals/ethics), or any adult attracted to a 17 year old's body--including book!Louis?) People have shipped Loumand for decades, yet it's only once Lou's a pimp (amongst other things....) that people suddenly care about poor innocent Armand being abused by the evil thug jezebel who got Armand's daughter killed and lied to Armand about his Maker and allowed Armand to be tortured & humiliated by the public with his ankles slashed open & buried alive for over a MONTH so he couldn't escape? 🙄😒

The Vampire Armand is only ever beaten TWICE: by Santino & the Children of Satan in the books, and by Daniel on the show. That is IT. NO ONE else gets the jump on Armand, or gets the upper hand over him--he's not even one of the ones Rhoshamandes kidnaps! NO ONE effs with TVA, or effs TVA over--HE'S the boogeyman of the vampires preying on his own kind, not the other way around.

The sheer IRONY of Mr. "I Could Not Prevent It" Armand as a character is understanding cycles of violence.

You're missing the whole point of AR/RJ putting the former sex slave Armand in relationships with a slaveowner (book) or a pimp (show). It's about realizing how a former sex slave (kidnapped & trafficked overseas to be tortured so bad that his PTSD gave him amnesia) became a powerful vampire with THEE strongest Mind/Spell Gift powers, leading entire covens/cults purging ALL fledglings in their territories who resisted--thus perpetuating SYSTEMIC & INSTITUTIONALIZED ABUSE.

Armand used & abused Claudia's naivety & Louis' trust in him, cuz he lulls victims into a false sense of security before the trap springs open--"NO PAIN."

AR put Loumand together NOT to make a point about how "gross" it was that slaveowner!Louis was taking advantage of former sex slave Armand. It's about how effing ironic and SAD it is that Armand (the one who IMO experienced THE WORST horrors as a victim of abuse in all of TVC) was now the ONLY one in a position of power to PREVENT things that happened to him from happening to anyone else--and did NOTHING. Or rather: he made already bad situations even WORSE.

Armand weaponizes his past to destroy other peoples' futures, victimizing & harassing & abusing everyone as the Coven Master of that EFFED UP coven. He CLAIMS he cannot prevent bad things from happening, flashing 🥺 all day--only for us to find out that behind the scenes, this mofo was a master manipulator who gaslit & schemed against his lover Louis ("alright, I sold him out"), tricked & abused his frenemy Lestat, mutilated Claudia's body and hid the evidence (I PRAY that ghost!Claudia reveals that the Frankenstein scene from TVA happened), and psychologically tortured his human/fledgling Daniel.

Armand was originally intended to be the main villain of TVC, all the way up until the 3rd book, when AR softened Armand's edges & gave it to Akasha in QotD, and Rhosh in the PL Trilogy. ALL of AR's vamps are sympathetic villains, not cuz one is morally/ethically "better or worse" than the other--arguments have been made even to understand Rhoshamandes & Akasha's perspectives. YES, Armand had horrible things happen to him--but LOUIS is NEVER the one who does those horrible things to him, nor does he EVER benefit from Armand's past. Armand ALWAYS had the advantage over Louis, pimp or no. STOP overestimating the Maitre stupidness! AMC already told y'all what that was about!

But y'all pointedly isolate every other vamp from culpability & accountability under the thinly-veiled guise of caring so much about the freedom/autonomy of people's bodies, when really it only serves to spread hate & vitriol for Louis. All I'm seeing in this fandom is the "GROSS" inequity of how Louis is treated & talked about, versus everyone else, and it's fishy AF.

[murfeelee]

IWTV Claudia's Celebration of Life: Spark in the Dark - Alternate Universe

As the title suggests, this event is to celebrate the wonderful Claudia; her personality, her aspirations, her journey. The heart for the past two seasons of AMC Interview with The Vampire. This is to take the narrative back to her, proving she's not just a shingle roof for us.

2. Aug 13th & 14th: Alternate Universe

“It’s chaos after you die. It’s a dream from which you cannot wake.” Armand says quietly to Daniel. “Imagine drifting half in and out of consciousness, trying vainly to remember who you are or what you were. Imagine straining forever for the lost clarity of the living—” Armand stops suddenly to glare somewhere to Lestat’s left. “Lestat, I beg you on bended knee to close your mind. I cannot bear to listen to her any longer.” “Listen to who,” Louis asks, sharp as fangs. “CLAUDIA!” Lestat shouts into the swamp, spinning in his inner tube. “These drugs are making me hallucinate our dead daughter. I’ve been listening to her explain exactly how I failed her with much virulence and creativity for the last forty-five minutes.” “What’s she like?” Louis asks, eager as anything. “Magnifique,” Lestat answers immediately. “She despises me. She’s wearing a yellow… I believe it is called a tankini. She has a margarita....” Lestat twists in his tube to glare at Armand. “Montre-lui/ Show him.” Louis squeezes his eyes shut, wrists limp in front of him. Armand’s mindgift transmission is jagged and blurry from the drugs, and Lestat’s view is all the more distorted by his own intoxication, but it’s her, it’s her. Claudia rises from the dead to berate Lestat from her very own inner tube, pausing only to take sips from her human drink. At least she is granted liquor in the hopeless afterlife that is haunting Lestat. Claudia’s hair is pulled back the way it was the day she passed, but her face is baby smooth, no trace of the injury the coven had subjected her to before her murder. She smiles at Lestat, dimple still adorable, no matter how old she gets. “And I don’t give one solitary sh*t if you’ve got him d**kmatized,” Claudia tells Lestat. “He says he forgives you for letting me die?” She brings her fingers together and gestures to her own chest. “I don’t f**king forgive you! ” Claudia starts singing in mockery, bitter as her daddy on his worst nights. She cups her hands (Her beautiful hands! The simple pleasure of her hand in his!) around her mouth like a megaphone. “I don’t forgivveeee you!” “Jesus Christ,” Louis hears Daniel say in the real world before exploding into choking coughs. In Lestat’s psychosis as translated by Armand on LSD, Claudia keeps at it. She urges Lestat to find new and innovative ways to kill himself, embodying Lestat’s senselessness and Louis’ sense in her rage. Their courageous, intelligent, honest-to-God hurricane of a daughter does not look Louis’ way the whole memory, even though Louis deserves the privilege of meeting her eyes again so much more than Lestat does. Even though Louis has spent a lifetime fasting and praying for it. But she is Lestat’s ghost, she haunts him just like she said she would, and Louis figures… He hears his own laugh—hysterical—as the memory ends, the tears wet on his cheeks. Louis figures he’s just too sane to see her these days.

-- Alligator Tears, @siahatha

MY THOUGHTS & CC CREDITS

MY THOUGHTS

A day late, cuz I was busy yesterday.

This post was directly inspired by the latest chapter of an extremely good & unhinged post-canon modern AU IWTV fanfic, where Loustat are back together, Devil's Minion is a thing, and Lestat's being haunted by the ghost of Claudia's memory. Louis' sad that he can only see her through Armand, cuz he can't read his Maker Lestat's mind, ofc.

CC CREDITS

-- IP EP pool floats by me

-- Lestat heatstroke tan line in gamma by me

-- Blood bags by @thebleedingwoodland (X X)

-- Louis swimsuit at MTS

-- Gators at Simszoo

[dxxtruction]

Thinking about Santiago.

How Armand was definitely appeasing Santiago to make up for killing his maker by colluding with him on the get go. Like Santiago definitely knew right when Armand knew about the two of them, and fair would only be fair. Santiago is someone who might act out frequently from all his resentment about his maker, and so Armand's probably thinking already that if he gives him this he'll finally cool his head about it. Stroke his ego a bit and give him a sense of power over something only Armand really has the power to do. But he doesn't follow through, as he'd caught feelings for Louis along the way. He's also realizing during this period of courting how much he really hates appeasing the coven all the time (he's notably bartered his body to them to solve arguments as this is 'how one endures'. and Coven life requires a 'letting of of the self'), let alone upholding all its laws with so much violence. He's not against either on principle, but is seriously questioning if this is who he wants to be at this period of time. Has honestly been disillusioned from the desire of coven life for the last century or so, because he's given the opportunity to see he can have other things. Like love.

With Claudia, Santiago's very much putting on a mask of innocence around her, scapegoating all the future blame onto Armand, anything that will happen will be Armand's fault. When really the only thing keeping this going is Santiago not backing down on needing the two of them dead so his ego is soothed. Santiago himself doesn't even care about all the laws. I'm not sure any of the coven or Armand do, let alone never indulging themselves in acting out in ways not tied solely to the group benefit. Which makes the fact they snitched on Claudia particularly interesting. They get to but she doesn't? Everyone hates Claudia to some degree and I think this just fuels Armand's hatred of her, because he's the one to always clean it up. And Claudia's going to act out, because, well she doesn't get along with anyone. I think the Baby Loulou play was a deliberate ploy to make the two of them buttheads, and what none of them, and their inflated egos, were expecting was for her to be a sweeping hit.

Armand knows if some coven members get to run rampant and some don't it leads to total chaos. So he can't just let Claudia have special privileges, but is technically letting her have them on a law the whole coven is in agreement on is something where a death sentence is entirely justified. (that of killing another vampire.) So this doubles over itself.

And to Armand, Santiago frequently emotionally degrades him, and publicly embarrasses him, in order to break him to a point where he has him where he wants him. He needs him broken so he can put him back together as he sees fit. Cause he can definitely easily coup and become the new maître, like he wants, but if Armand's all high and mighty, and feeling like he has any other choice, the whole plans a flop. Armand knows this sort of thing well enough to not see all this going on behind him (he does get lazy), even if he has a vague sense they'd probably get up to something, he's secure enough in Louis plan that they won't (which he calls love).

It's one of those things then where it has nothing to do with really wanting Claudia or Louis dead, at least for Santiago and Armand, but all about a clashing and contention between egos in a social contract that necessitates those bound to it be killed if they don't uphold, or fit into it well enough. Normally those who don't fit in are just prone to doing it themselves. It's a toxic work envoirment on steroids. Which Armand is in no small part apart of fostering the same as the rest of them. He does use a lot of their same tactics, and is normalized to them. (Such is a culture of toxicity). Then it's a little nation of vampires turning to fascism to get rid of the 'undesirables'. Which I think Armand does only come to sympathize with, because he felt he had no other choice (they'd broken him down), and it provided him with security. Much like Madeleine.

Moral of the story: never appease a fascist, and leave your toxic friend group at the soonest opportunity. Also leadership in relations where those who are in it do not have your best interest or values at heart, let alone if it's the group of the two of you, will likely want to undermine that leadership and relationship to serve their own interests (and visa-versa). This doubles as well for a larger community, or any person being against you, regardless of position. If they think they can get away with it, and desire to. And a lot of ways people think to do it is if it's already a normalized thought. I mean it's a big question when it comes to genocidal thinking, or really murder of any kind, how does an entire group of people, or person, become okay with the idea?