#the fact akasha even exists.........................................

[toestalucia]

going back to ydays post but with. spelled out main story spoilers. but ive been thinking about it all day, but truly the way it went from captain being handed (pushed into) the role of true king and mostly staying with it cuz 1) what other better way to get information is there 2) tau’luk surely had a reason for it. cuz gran does not do well with that kinda setting, theres no way theyd survive it for long, and adding on how they were siding with blf’s rebellion...as well as grans personal business with true king........

that into the entire setting of ‘yeah u get the throne so u can access the eye so u can see Everything and Exactly what threat we are up against cuz the otherworld is hijacking the timelines Massively rn and one has completely died (here u can see ur loved ones + urself die btw), also the fact ur crew nvr gives up is a chore so they r writing rackam out of the history haha rmbr when u saved alliah falling off an island with the ship? totally what happened. anyway no one around u except green knight Knows of this stuff n if someone finds out the otherworld will probably just change their memory so good luck’. is like. a whole lot. but also the entire thing of choosing not to give up being so important is ssoooooo good that i

[somevagrantchild]

Favorite Random Lestat facts

I have insomnia and vampires on the brain, so here are some of my favorite random Lestat facts, in no particular order:

He stole decorating ideas for his chateau from Armand’s Trinity Gate

His fingernails were a little too long when he died, so he files them, though they regrow every night

He liked to spend hours polishing his own coffin as a meditative exercise

As a human, he never liked to masturbate, he’d just go out and find someone to have sex with

When he’s not with Louis, he always thinks Louis can’t possibly be as attractive as he’s remembering him, but then when he sees Louis again, he’s like, “Nope, he really is that hot”

Despite his vanity, he thinks he’s one of the most conventional and boring looking vampires you’ll ever see, and ordinary and uninteresting compared to the cooler vampires

He thinks his best feature is his expression

When he was human, he never had much beard and didn’t have to shave often

He’ll always mention when people are taller than him, so we know anyone whose height isn’t given must be less than six feet

He knows how to tap dance

The other vampires think of him as a poet

Most dogs instinctually hate him, and being rejected by a dog makes him sad every time

Except for with Akasha, he never killed a human that wasn’t a meal

Even as a baby vampire, he had the power to toss Louis across the room with a flick of his wrist, but would still let Louis hold him back and whale on him just to get his rage out

He absolutely adored Claudia and thought of her as his mini-me

In the decade he lived with Antoine (1860-1871), he never wanted to go out in public because he was ashamed of his burn scars

He likes to take naps

He’s a voracious reader

He only wears black socks

He’s a serial walker, not even going anywhere, just walks for hours

He performed a rock concert in a full Bela Lugosi Dracula costume and never took off his suit or cape even though he was sweating buckets. That’s commitment to the bit.

Even though he’s good at it, flying always frightens him on an existential level and fills him with despair

Despite his love of fine clothes, he’ll wear the same outfit for weeks or months until it becomes rags

His list of things that make existence worth it: the blazing warmth of fires and caresses, kisses and arguments, love and longing and blood (emphasis on the longing)

His love language is gift giving (but not receiving)

He never shows any skin in public other than his face (and soooometimes hands)

He doesn’t like how white his hair turned after repeated burnings, and wishes it was more yellow

He gets really angry at the thought of Louis being embarrassed or insulted by others

He is incapable of expressing big feelings out loud, so he writes them all down instead

He wants everyone to remember how scary he really is

He doesn’t like blood with alcohol in it because it makes him dizzy

His mom came up with his name by combining the first letters of his 6 older brothers' names, and it means absolutely nothing

[1800-page-not-found]

Being drunk and complaining how you think your bf/gf is prettier than you (genshin men+women x fem reader) PART 3

ITS THE HARBINGERSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Not doing scaramouche cuz i already did in part 2

Dottore, Columbina, Sandrone x reader (seperate)

TW: implied unhealthy relationship (for dottore bc that man does not treat anyone like a human being, i have mixed feelings about that guy), and id like to state that i do NOT support toxic relationships.

Making another part for the other harbingers bc im really sleepy rn and I just wanna give you guys something because I havent posted in a long time.

The next part contains Pantalone, Tartaglia, Arlecchino x reader (seperate)

Maybe i'll do Signora, Pierro, and Capatino? but Capatino wears a mask??? wtv lol

Please note that you may not like "[name]"s personality, as it may differ from yours.

You had met Zandik when he was a scholar at the Akademiya, before he was expelled for his crimes and immoral acts. Fortunately, unlike the last girl who had fancied him, Sohreh, he did not mutilate your body, because somehow in that rather small and close to non existing heart of his, was you.

But unfortunately, you could not escape his unhinged mindset. You relied too much on the Akasha System. When he did get expelled, you followed with him. After all, thats what the Akasha showed which was best for you. Hundreds of years went by, and he became a powerful harbinger. He still gave you freedom, to some extent. So how did you wind up at his office, crying and drunk?

"Zandik" You cried.

You were ultimately weak in the mind due to your heavy dependency that Dottore had created for you. He smiled as you cried into his shoulder, dampening his clothes.

"Yes dear? What happened for you to come crying to me?" He was your white knight.

You quickly learned that somehow, dottore would always save you, relieving you of your agony. Like he did with the ruin machines when they found Sohreh's body.

"O-one of your clones said you didn't love me and you had another woman…" you hiccup in between your words.

"My dear, do not fret, there are no other women in my life besides you. Why would I require someone else? Those clones can be quite troublesome, and not all of them are friendly. I apologize for their behavior." He soothed you, patting your back. 'Yes, yes...let it all out,' he thought. His clones were doing well, their original sole purpose was to create insecurities and confusion in your mind.

"But-But, I'm not even that pretty, even you're prettier than me! Theres plenty of women who are better than me-what if you dont love me one day?" You mumble, your head still lying on his shoulder.

"Darling, I have to say, I am surprised by your irrational behavior. My affection for you is undeniable, and the fact that you would suggest otherwise is quite hurtful..." Your eyes widened.

Oh, how could you hurt him like that?! After everything he's done for you?...

"No-no! I'm sorry I didn't mean to hurt you, I-"

"Do you trust me [name]?" He cuts you off.

"Huh? Of course I do!"

"Good, now please can we move on? If we continue to talk about this, my heart will ache even more." He starts to make an expression that he knows will make you feel guilty. You've really fallen deeper into the rabbit hole now.

--------

Columbina had saved you at your lowest, and you had devoted your every fiber of yourself to her. You decided to get stronger, your sole motivation being paying back your benefactor. Well, that was until the angel-like harbinger said you could pay her back by forming a relationship with her.

You did start off as friends, but that slowly spiraled into a more intimate relationship. You promised to be there for her whenever and wherever, but really, does the harbinger who's ranked third really need protecting?... I mean, you're so much weaker than her, how can you protect her when she's in danger?

That thought slowly grew in your mind-you can't help but just let it all out when drunk on the fine vodka Columbina had brought back for you and her to enjoy...until well, you drank the whole bottle.

You stared at the empty bottle in your hand that once held the highest quality of vodka.

"[name], my dear, what's on your mind?" Columbina spoke softly, her voice sounding like a lovely melody in your ears.

"Mmmm...I don't wanna bother youuu..." You dragged out your words, slurring your speech.

Columbina stood up from the couch and took the bottle out from your hands and gently placed it on the glass coffee table, making a small 'kling' sound. She sat back down and held your hands, which were rather cold so she decided to warm them up.

It was strange how she always kept her eyes closed, but no matter what always aware of her surroundings. This only increased your insecurity, after all, only one with great strength could do such things...and you couldn't.

"[name]." She let go of your hands and placed hers on your cheek, and kissed you softly. "Your thoughts will never be a bother all right? I'll always be there to protect you and be by your side." She smiled at you warmly.

You started to cry, the alcohol heightening your emotions. "That's-that's the thing!" You let out a sob, wiping your tears. "I-I don't want to just rely on you, I want you to rely on me too! But, I'm so much weaker than you and, and you excel in everything! You're smart, strong, independent, and so, so much prettier than me and everyone, you deserve so much better than me I-" Your rant was cut short when Columbina kissed you again softly.

"Oh, [name], I never knew you felt this way, I want you to know that I rely on you every single day, there is not a single moment where I don't rely on you. I know you probably don't believe it, but you make me feel so happy. I don't care if you think that I outshine you, because in my eyes you're the most beautiful and amazing person in the entirety of Teyvat. You're perfect in my eyes just the way you are, and no one else can take that spot." Her voice really soothed you, and as she spoke, you stopped crying.

"R-really? You mean it?..." You sniffled, wiping your tears off your face.

"Yes, now please, there's no need to cry anymore alright?" she kissed your forehead and held you in a warm embrace on the couch.

"Mhm…alright, thank you, I love you…" You rubbed your eyes, tired from crying and fell asleep in Columbina's arms.

Once you were sound asleep, Columbina picked you up, carrying you in her arms bridal style and set you gently on the bed, making sure you're comfortable before crawling into the bed and cuddling with you.

The next day, you woke up, eyes puffy and not a single memory of last night. When you asked your lover, she just giggled and walked away, leaving you confused.

--------

Sandrone was an interesting character. When you first met, you had actually died. Well more like on the verge of death. Somehow, for some reason, she had saved you, as she had basically turned you into part automaton.

You were supposedly her 'puppet', but, puppets don't act this human. You were crazy for confessing your love to her, the harbinger who was known for only caring about her own works, and having a god awful personality to come with it.

Well, fortunately for you, you did count as one of her works, so perhaps that was the reason why she accepted your confession and you two started being in a relationship?...you still couldn't wrap your mind about this, you were really happy to say the least.

Today, you had practically begged her to come with you to have a picnic and stargaze. She was being quite stubborn. But of course, she couldn't outmatch your own stubbornness and you, thus she gave in.

You were so excited, yet here you were, sitting on the blanket, extremely drunk. You smiled at her, all giggly and bubbly as you wrapped yourself around her arm, hugging her.

Sandrone sighed and frowned, she stopped her work just for this? I mean, it was you... (She'd never admit to loving spending time with you, she's gotta keep her reputation up... but everyone knows, even you, that she has an extremely soft spot for you (and only you.))

"[name]...quit staring at me like that!" sandrone flicked your forehead, earning an 'owwww' from you.

After recovering from the ferocious attack, you laughed and smiled. "But you're just sooooo pretty! I can't keep my eyes off you, the prettiest girl in Teyvat!"

You lowered your voice to a whisper "I think you're prettier than me, all the other harbingers, and the Tsaritsa- Ow!"

She slapped the back of your head. "I will not allow you to speak of her majesty the Tsaritsa like that, [name]!"

She crossed her arms and turned her head away from you, looking angry.

Although, her words seemed to contradict her statement just now. She spoke quietly under her breath, "plus, youre the most prettiest girl in Teyvat, [name]..."

You perked up, perhaps having heightened senses was a good thing. "I heard that!" You shouted and smiled. "You really think that-"

"W-what?! No! You must be imagining things!" She yelled back at you. "Damn it, I shouldn't have heightened your sense of hearing too! Ugh!"

All you did was laugh teasingly at her frustration and embarrassment getting caught being nice, specifically to you. Until you blacked out from the alcohol. That reallllllllyyyy freaked her out, as she frantically carried you back home. (Well, the only reason she showed her 'nicer' side was really due to the only witness being her modified automaton.)

You had slept for a whole day before waking up at noon, with a god awful hangover, causing you to throw up.

(Sandrone ordered one of her machines to take care of you in secret and report to her every hour about your status.)

[yorutsuki]

「 ✦ Isekaied Reversed Pt. 4 ✦ 」

↳ Its been a few days since the Yaksha, Xiao, came home. During his stay, you've been busy trying to teach him modern etiquette, technology and as well, fashion. Surprisingly he learns quite quickly although, at points his stubbornness can be an obstacle.

Tags:

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<; Day 1 >

The day after your fantasies became a reality, you decided it was time to teach him about the modern era. For the first day, you decided that it was important to inform him how bland this world actually was. For instance, visions, monsters and rulers. At first the usually all-knowing adeptus was quite confused and lost.

How could their be no Archons? Why didn't people own visions even though there was a God? If there weren't any monsters, why did they need excessive police?

So as a helpful world-guide, you informed him of all the answers to his questions and doubts.

"So in summary..you're world is overruled by a God instead of Celestia. Instead of seven nations, you have 195 nations..which then have uh..countries—Cities? And their ruled by different leaders who aren't Gods..?"

You nodded, scratching your neck tiredly, "Yep, but thats not even half of it all. Theres more politic factors that play into this world and it's system.." You sighed, already knowing that explaining all of it would be a pain. "—and not to mention, some of their systems suck a-" You cut your mumbling off, clearing your throat.

"Anyways, we can get into the deeper stuff later, today is just about the basics—like currency and some basic laws."

Xiao shook his head as he crossed his arms. "Tell me how all of this would help in returning me back?"

You eternally groaned as you had briefly forgotten about that problem. "Well, finding a way to send you back isn't an overnight project—it will probably take time. In the meanwhile, you need to know how this world works in order to er-fit in? And trust me, you'd want to cause right now, you stick out like a polar bear in the summer."

The adeptus gave you a questioning look but shook his head once more, deciding it would be best to keep his mouth shut.

< Day 2 >

When the second day arrived, you began to teach him about modern technology. You showed many examples such as cars, Tv's, microwaves, temperature remotes as well as showing how to use different devices. Seeing him struggle turned to be much more amusing than you originally thought to be.

"A computer...? So you're saying someone can just do...anything on it?" Xiao quizzed, inspecting the bright screen of the device. You nodded proudly, "basically, it's like the terminal akasha." You compared, thinking of the best possible way that would make sense.

"Anyways, yes, you can do anything on it that's virtual. Unless you use the device itself as a weapon then well uh.."

Xiao nodded, "I see."

...

You quite regretted showing Xiao the physics of a computer as you could hear it playing videos and random sounds all night. You would've scolded him if it weren't for the fact you remembered that adeptus' didn't need sleep much like humans.

Eternally groaning, you rolled over and stuff your face into the comfort of your pillow.

...

The next morning, you had a small mental crises on how horrendous you looked—puffy eyes, dark eye bags, frizzy hair..

Dear God..

< Day 4 >

Yay! You skipped a day! If you're wondering why then heres the summary;

For the whole of the third day you couldn't get the yaksha to divert from the computer or TV. When you eventually managed to persuade him away from it, he'd ignore your whole existence with a pout. So thus, you took the day off from teachings and let him do his thing.

However on day 4, when Xiao finally regained his sense of duty and why he was even here, you started teaching up about fashion which ultimately led to...Mall trip!

'Hah...my bank account's decreasing every day...'

"Alright err...Xiao?" Was it informal to address him by his name? Ehhh you'll figure that out later.

"Alright, we're at the mall. In summary, a mall is a big plaza with many stalls but more modern."

"Oh! And don't worry about spendings, it's on me." You smiled as the guardian nodded.

You sighed as your head looked to the ground. "-but you'll need to repay me with a fixed door." You muttered grudgingly.

Xiao merely nodded once more before starting to walk around the area, ignoring the minor judgemental and simpful stares that stray his way.

It wasn't long until a group of teenage girls with an array of cropped and baggy clothing came rushing towards the two of you—well, more towards Xiao.

You couldn't help but feel anxious—one could even say jealous, as you watched the adeptus get swarmed by the needy high school fangirls who were gawking over him.

"Can we get a picture with you? Your cosplay is slaying so hard-" One of them asked, smiling like as if she won the lottery.

Xiao furrowed his brows in discomfort. "No, sorry. I'm busy as at the moment." He retorted sternly, not wanting to be center of attention. "Oh my God! You even sound and act like him!" The same girl replied, ignoring his clear discomfort.

Not wanting to socialize but seeing that he'd have barely any way out of it as, concerningly, people are much more narcissistic and persistant these days.

Thus you went over towards the group, interrupting their one sided conversation as you cleared your throat. "I see the shop over there, we probably should get going." You pointed towards the modern silver font sign with the metal letters of, 'H&M'. The adeptus, seeming to get the que, nodded as he walked towards you, not sparing the girls one glance.

As you walked one of them just had to say something.

"Jeez, she didn't have to be so bitchy, kinda a pick me honestly..." one of the girls muttered to her friends who you faintly heard chuckle.

You just rolled your eyes, not wanting to continue the conflict. "Such cowards, can't even say it to my face." You huffed following beside Xiao.

The adeptus glanced at your irritated state though only shook his head. "You mortals are weird. Why should you care about their opinions, especially if it's one coming from a little shit?" He questioned, his gaze staying in front of him.

You paused, looking at him wide eyed.

The adeptus, noticing your absent presence beside him turned a slight and saw your shocked expression. "What?"

"You just sweared?" You stared dumbfounded.

Xiao looked confusingly before understanding, shaking his head. "well in Teyvat, we have will to swear and say profanities but many refrain from doing so, and i'm guessing the 'gum-play' and code? From this world may also be a benefiting factor."

You made a 'ah' sound before shrugging. "probably."

The two of you entered the store as your journey for clothing has finally begun.

'i'm officially going broke...'

...

After a few painful yet inquisite long hours in the mall, the both of you were heading back to your car, ready to leave.

Unfortunately, your hands were struggling halfway out of the mall as the bags' weight was started to wear down your strength.

Your hands felt quite sore and you swore you saw a finger turn a dark hue of magenta..

"Give one to me."

You looked over to your side as Xiao held out his hand.

You rolled your eyes, "nuh uh, you already have a bag. Plus, I offered to get this stuff so in courtesy. i'm carrying it." You informed, a grin etching your face but soon was replace with struggle.

While shopping, you may have gotten a bit side-tracked and bought more than what you needed—overall, ending up with the both of you having to carry 3 bags in total.

Xiao huffed, "it's not a offer, you look like you're struggling and it will only make you slow." He informed, his brows furrowing.

'thanks for the confidence.' You mentally rolled your eyes once more before reluctantly handing over one of the bags.

...

Finally arriving home, you settled your new buys down and offered to clean the yaksha's clothes. More or less because you didn't want him stinking up the apartment/house and dragging dirt throughout it.

He hesitantly agreed before trying to change into the new clothes. Keyword, trying.

Somehow he managed to tangle himself with the shirt and you having to help him, but of coarse, you averted your eyes away from the scene and gave him verbal instructions.

...

Setting down the plates, you then unfroze the left over foods in the microwave.

Once the food was hot and steamy, you set it down on the table as the adeptus stared at it, puzzled. "What is this?"

"It's called pizza." You informed him, taking a slice for yourself.

"Pi-tza?" He questioned, staring at the slice of cheese and tomato covered crust.

"mhm-" Your head shot up, "wait, can you even eat flour—tomatos or cheese? You questioned. In game the only food he could have, lore wise, was almond tofu.

(HELP- I haven't played genshin in so long, I forgot exactly if he couldn't eat other things or if he just was doing it by his own preference...Oh well for plot purpose)

The adeptus nodded a yes, before hesitantly picking the slice up—taking a bite.

It was nothing like he ever tasted—almost on par with almond tofu. Actually, it's been so long since he had something other than the same dish which was most likely why the food's taste was enhanced. Either way, he loved it, the sauce gave off a perfect acidity while the cheese creamed it down. The crust was cooked just right and the toppings just brought the whole thing together.

You felt quite happy as his eyes lit up, practically munching the whole thing down.

"Jeez, slow down, theres more slices, plus you can choke" You chuckled.

...

As the day came to an end, you couldn't help but realized how happy you felt. It's been a while since you had company over so the change was nice.

Looking over towards Xiao who was peacefully sitting outside, a small smile graced upon your lips. How you wished this feeling could last forever...

.

.

.

.

A/N: Jeez, I need to post more often :(..Sorry for not posting, i've been busy lately with being sick and then having missing assignments and then having a busy weekend after. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter!! It was quite long :')

Please, if you have any, leave any feedback as it could really help me improve. And, especially if the stories going to fast or the relationship between the two is too quick, please let me know so I can try amking alterations.

With that being said, thank you so much for reading and have a good day/night! ^^

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{ <- Previous Part }

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[ Masterlist ]

[blood-orange-juice]

I want to overanalyze everything Arle says and how others interact with her. 4.1 spoilers ahead

(meanwhile Fontaine is the nation of human trafficking, actual slums exist and the law doesn't really apply to the wealthy)

She's very good at being unsettling. Half of what she says is a double-bind, she states things and the opposite of them at the same time. It's not even lies, she just rules out any possibility of truth. A conversation strategy the only goal of which is to throw people off balance. This creates a feeling that she might stab you right now in broad daylight or maybe give you a poisoned piece of cake.

A truly lovely woman.

Also an interesting parallel:

(first meeting with Furina and Arle's farewell to us)

Similar words but we understand what she meant each time, right? She's good. One has to constantly guess with her. It's your fault if you guessed incorrectly.

Demanding too much before she voices her actual request. The classics of bargaining. Again, she's good.

Traveler: "he would not fucking say that"

Personally, I think she's bullshiting to check our reaction. One of the best ways of getting information out of someone is to say a thing that is obviously untrue.

As a side note: interesting how hoyo are keeping the story suitable for all headcanons. Haters and indifferent people "know" that he had no chance of learning what food the traveler likes (their character doesn't interact with the boy that much). Shippers can "know" that we share Childe's love for spicy seafood and honey roast, not cake. Shippers who like cake can assume that she reads his letters. I also don't think he knows anything about Arle's taste in desserts, he's too self-centered for that. Anyway, lovely.

Alternative: it's a metaphor. This is obviously not a tea party, it's a battlefield. Childe would totally say *that*. But that's too subtle for most players, I doubt hoyo would do it.

Everyone who had read Tartaglia's actual letters to home stifled a laugh there. Anyone who has *seen* our dear boy really. He doesn't write about what he contemplates or feels, only about actions. Here's a headache medicine for our dear father. Please tell Anton that people in Liyue don't eat stones, it would be ridiculous. I'll take the first boat home once I've finished making a bloodbath out of this lovely city.

(a reminder in case anyone forgot)

So. Bullshiting again. Is she trying to check how close we are? Or to demonstrate that she doesn't, in fact, read his letters (even if she does)? I'm not considering the option that she's actually clueless, she's the Fatui spymaster after all.

(if she's trying to learn from us how to mimic his style to get to his family it would mean she's clueless and it would be bad writing)

Also I know that a lot of people are shouting "have you forgotten about the Vision??? stupid traveler, you have a proof that he's alive" and honestly I'm surprised. Why would we want to share *any* information with her? The traveler was visibly upset when Paimon blurted what she blurted. Also, yeah, let's tell a totalitarian country military official that her colleague recently gave one of his favorite weapons to an enemy of the state. Surely it will go swimmingly. That was intentional.

And then her farewell and her thanking us for helping the twins. Her unhingedness is suddenly gone. She might not be genuine but there's no double bind at least. She starts to say things that could be true or untrue.

Also this:

Not even a guess that the Gnosis could be used to power the Oratrice? After the Akasha terminal plot it's a pretty obvious option to anyone, would she really miss something like that?

Is she trying to push us to do something? It's hard for me to believe that she genuinely doesn't understand. But also she shares that info about a curse. Meh. I don't understand what's happening here.

[manynarrators]

Y’alllllll, I miiiiight be coming out of QotD with a new ship. And godamnit, I go from my Lestat/Armand ship (comparative rare pair with little content) to drumroll please, sprinkle in a bit of rising tension!

Something even rarer and virtually non-existent! Khayman/Armand. I want to read fic for them. There is no fic. I have thoughts about it, I think it could be So Good.

If I want fic for them I’m going to have to write it myself, aren’t I?

It sounds like such a crack pairing but I have logic!

The first is that Khayman is immediate taken in by Armand. But not just because he’s pretty, which is a part of it. But also the amount of power Armand has, notable for someone young(er). There’s respect! I’m here for someone ending up with Armand who isn’t scared of him, but is still aware he’s not weak.

And then throughout the whole middle portion of the book from Khayman’s perspective, he’s constantly looking for Armand! He keeps thinking things along the line of “I have to go to Armand, I want to try and protect him” which considering Akasha is quite literally going around murdering a ton of vampires at that moment, isn’t exactly patronizing! Still sweet though.

Armand is a bit cold towards him, but also he’s having A Day, and I think he’s not at his best for some logical reasons!

Now I to what is infinitely more like… personal reasons. The one that made me write the post: I think it would make Marius so upset, for a couple of reasons. The first is just that Khayman is incredibly old, and incredibly powerful. Six thousand years, compared to two. Not only is his beloved fledgling moving on with someone else, but someone even more of an ancient than him!

The second is that Armand is consistently made a spectacle because of his beauty. And Khayman is… unsettling. He’s got some aspects of beauty to him, according to Marius, but, on the whole, so old and inhuman it’s cycled around to terrifying. And I love the idea of Armand saying “no, I like him”.

The last one that I can think of for the moment is the fact that Armand and Khayman are both odd. Odd in a distinctly vampire way. Like half of what Armand says in TVL and IWTV is telepathically, he doesn’t move in the way of a human, he is, of the core cast of vampires, probably the least human acting one. Khayman hits a lot of the same vibes. They also both have a fascination with the modern world and learning about that. Give me these two old vampires learning about the world, but also without judgement that comes from being unsettling, or expecting to blend in more.

Like I’m all for Armand learning to be human, but also I am SO HERE for my vampires being well, vampires, with the goose-bump raising, cat-scaring unsettling nature that comes with. I think it’s got some of the appeal of show Devils Minions, just in a way I think has intriguing potential I want to poke around in.

This has been my TED Talk!

[whatshehassaid]

The fact that they keep bringing in characters that are from later in the books (Bruce, Dr. Fareed, Raglan James) makes me think Dubai is farther along in the books than we realize. I feel like some stuff (akasha) hasn’t happened yet… but finding Claudia’s diary in New Orleans, and Louis being suicidal etc are from later in the book series. Has parts of Merrick already happened? Louis said in season 1 that he hadn’t killed since the year 2000. The book Merrick was released in 2000. Armand (as Rashid) “You’re chronicling a suicide.” The fact that they even HAVE Claudia’s diaries in the first place is farther along in the books.

Now why bring Raglan James in so early? I already have a feeling they aren’t bringing David in (they didn’t for Mayfair Witches and he was a big part of that) so why Raglan James SPECIFICALLY? Why not just some random Talamasca member? They’re trying to hint at what’s to come. Daniel being in his 70s and not having David in Mayfair Witches (or IWTV I’m assuming cause it wouldn’t make sense to have David in one but not the other) makes me think they’ve merged Daniel and David into one character.

If you know anything about what happens to David in Tale of the Body Thief you’ll understand where I’m going with this - I’ll put a spoiler warning for the books here.

At the end of Tale of the Body Thief, David gets a new body and Lestat changes him into a vampire without his consent.

If Daniel and David ARE being merged into one character (which makes sense considering David is the one who listens to Armand’s story in The Vampire Armand and the fact David was a main character in the Mayfair Witches book series but was merged with Rowan’s love interest to make Ciprien in the TV adaptation) then that means that something similar could happen to Daniel.

Armand in the books (after 10-12 years of a romantic - albeit it started off fucked up - relationship which includes Daniel being addicted to Armand’s blood and a mutual obsession between the two of them and then they fall in love) turns Daniel in 1985 I think the same night of Lestat’s concert and the awakening of Akasha if I’m remembering correctly. In the TV adaptation since the San Fransisco interview already happened that also means (quite obviously from the new promo) that Devils Minion already happened. Which means young Daniel tried everything on Earth to get Armand to change him into a Vampire. Probably bringing himself super close to death because he wanted to be with Armand forever. Armand has a major trauma from Marius (grooming, child slavery, sex slavery- but also Marius telling him over and over that every fledgling grows to hate their maker- lol ok dude, you literally groomed your first two fledglings from childhood and abandoned them both but yeah, that must be a every maker and fledgling thing). It affects Armand to the point that he vows never to turn ANYONE into a Vampire EVER. But then he meets Daniel and falls in love with him and can’t stand the thought of existing without him. So he turns him.

It seems like Armand in the show didn’t truly believe Daniel loved him. (They have a really wild relationship where Daniel will run away and come back begging for him back and Armand welcoming him with open arms over and over until Daniel finally accepts that he’s in love with Armand too). But Daniel DID love him. Just as much as Armand loved (and STILL loves- because he always will) Daniel. So instead of watching him be chronically suicidal and trying everything to get Armand to turn him he wiped Daniel’s memories thinking they wouldn’t come back. Thinking Daniel could live a normal human life without him.

From what I can see of the preview it seems like Armand and Louis had broken up long ago. Most likely after the first interview in the 70s (I’m pretty sure it’s similar in the book - Louis ends up leaving Armand once Armand tells him Lestat is still alive and he didn’t die in the theatre fire). Hence, Armand saying “I know where he is.” in the promo for 2x05.

That’s when Daniel and Armand fully happen. But in the show instead of turning Daniel he wipes his memories and tries to let him live a normal life because he loves him.

Now Lestat and Louis break up and get back together like ten fucking times in the books and Louis when he isn’t with Lestat always goes off alone or he goes to Armand. Lestat and Armand eventually come to love each other and have a mutual understanding and respect for one another - it takes a while, believe me. Lestat KNOWS he can trust Armand with Louis. That Armand loves Louis too.

What I’m thinking is going on… is some of the events of Merrick have already happened where Louis seeks out Claudia’s diaries and her spirit to try to bring peace to himself. Instead it makes it MUCH MUCH worse. To the point that Louis goes forward with killing himself by burning himself to ashes (Lestat does bring him back don’t worry). But since I think the full Akasha storyline hasn’t happened yet I feel like humans would’ve noticed that (hence the great conversion cause she ends up killing like 90% of the Vamp population…) I think what is actually happening is Louis is trying to kill himself. He’s actively trying by getting Daniel to write this book for vampires to come after him and kill him (hence the “you’re chronicling a suicide”). His depression and despair is getting worse and worse as season 2 goes on, outwardly crying to Daniel thanking him for helping him remember.

I’m not sure if Louis in Dubai knows that Lestat is alive… he certainly doesn’t during the first interview.

Armand is a complicated character and he means well (yes he does do some fucked up shit in the books- some to do with Claudia- I don’t know if they’ll have THAT part in the show). But Armand does love Louis. He feels guilt for what happened with Claudia and he will do ANYTHING to make it up to Louis. To the point of letting Louis walk all over him (he’s had a fucked up human life and vampire life, let my boy live). I have a feeling, since Lestat’s lawyer in Paris mentioned it to Louis that Lestat has gone to sleep. They do that sometimes. Bury themselves underground and sleep- sometimes for decades. If that is the case I’m not exactly sure what happened between them for Lestat to do that but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.

What I think happened after the first interview? Armand was trying to protect Louis from himself. There are obvious signs of schizophrenia in Louis and they’ve been hinting at it since season one with the Paul/Bird symbolism. Louis has blackouts. He’s had them even before he and Claudia tried to kill Lestat- that’s why I think we’re getting a revisit to the fight in 1x05 and to Claudia’s turning into a vampire. Either that or we are going to get it from Lestat himself at the trial in Paris (cause yes, the real Lestat is there).

Armand was not lying when he said he protects Louis from himself. That Louis acts out sometimes. The photos of all the men I believe some of them are Louis’ victims from his blackouts. We’ve already seen a glimpse of one incident in season 2 with the man in the park and Louis leaving his dead body there. Armand has suppressed Louis’ memories of what happened in Paris. What happened with Claudia. Probably half because he doesn’t want Louis to run off without Lestat able to care for him and partly because he’s trying to prevent Louis from hurting more people viciously and then going into a guilt spiral.

Louis did know what happened to Claudia at one point… but I think it was making him so suicidal that maybe Armand and Lestat together decided it was best to have his memories suppressed so that he wouldn’t hurt himself. But now? Now Lestat is god knows where and Armand is barely holding onto control. Louis is lashing out at him. He’s lashing out at Daniel. The memories are flooding back and Louis is slowly remembering… not just what happened to Claudia… not just what Armand did… but the probably hundreds or thousands of gruesome deaths he’s caused during his blackout episodes. Including the blackout episode he had with Daniel in 1973.

Now speaking of 1973, Armand was trying even then to keep Louis’ schizophrenia and blackouts at bay. He was suppressing memories that triggered Louis - half because he didn’t want to lose Louis but I also think he genuinely was doing it for Louis’ own sanity. But then Louis goes seeking out someone who will let him speak about it and help bring those memories back - Daniel.

Armand may just think Daniel is another fuck and run, I have a feeling ever since Paris - even though Louis barely remembers it - honestly, probably before then going by the fuckboi tendencies Louis was displaying toward Armand in the last episode, he probably fucks around a lot and Armand lets him. Mostly because he’s trying desperately to make it up to Louis. As I said, he’s desperate to make it up to Louis.

So Armand says okay fine, have your fun. And Louis goes with Daniel. But what Armand DOESN’T know is that Louis isn’t going with Daniel for (or JUST for) sex. He wants him to help him remember. That’s the WHOLE POINT of the interview. Armand doesn’t know about it. The first interview happens…. And then? Daniel pisses Louis off. He triggers him off by asking him to turn him. And Louis blacks out and attacks.

Armand shows up mid attack to find Louis with the boy he spent ALL NIGHT WITH doing GOD KNOWS WHAT and he immediately thinks Louis is trying to replace him with someone else. He gets jealous. Again, he doesn’t know about the interview yet.

Louis blacked out and by that time its morning. Armand probably walked in on him (trying to be like - you’re going to get hurt if you don’t find a safe spot it’s morning!) feeding on Daniel and being burned through the sunlight coming in the window. Armand has jealousy issues. I can’t blame the guy he has a huge amount of abandonment issues and being hurt… so of course he immediately jumps to why is Louis spending all night with this boy? What is so special about this boy that he’ll spend time with him all night but he won’t even look at me the same anymore (since Claudia).

Louis has to hide from the sun… And that’s when Armand jealously curious about this human boy and why Louis is apparently so open with him from what he seen at the bar. He tries to get inside Daniel’s head. “Is that what makes you so FASCINATING?” “Leave him be Armand!”

At some point - with all this mind fuckery which of course is essentially torture and poor Daniel is probably half horny half scared to death - iykyk - Armand sees the tape. He plays it. This isn’t about the boy at all. It’s about LESTAT.

It’s always been about Lestat.

Upset (and rightly so - imagine being with someone for that long thinking they loved you and meanwhile they were still pining for their ex) he has a bit of a meltdown…. And when he calms down enough… he’s defeated and tells Louis the truth. That Lestat is alive and “I know where he is.”

Now… Armand… who is a stickler for the vampire laws… knows he’s tortured this boy… knows this boy can’t living knowing that vampires exist. Because he’s seen into his head he knows there’s pain there. Daniel is an addict for a reason though I don’t think Armand knows the reason at that point… but since he knows the boy MUST DIE because you cannot tell a human about vampires and let them live… he offers him a peaceful death. “I’m the quiet you’ve been longing for”

Daniel agrees. The kid is tired, he probably has childhood trauma hence the drug addiction. He was just attacked by one Vampire and tortured by the other.

Armand starts to drain him… and then?

I think Armand sees himself in Daniel. Whatever it is (I’m not 100% sure - maybe abuse of some kind) stops Armand from killing him. He’s found someone who understands.

He gets Louis (partly burned from the sun) to help him carry Daniel out. Not sure if they take him to a hospital or where they take him but afterwards Louis leaves Armand and goes looking for Lestat.

That’s when Devils Minion happens.

Armand and Daniel somehow fall in love. And a decade later he has to wipe Daniel’s memories because Daniel will not stop until he’s either dead literally or a vampire so he can be with Armand. Or so he says, Armand thinks.

Now fast forward and we have Louis self destructing. Armand trying to hold the pieces together… Louis brings Daniel in not remembering he almost killed the guy and thinking, “Well he can help me get these memories back… i know he’s Armand’s ex and he (Daniel) is missing memories too. maybe if I get his memories back we can help each other”

That’s why Louis keeps bringing things up. Daniel’s mind has filled in a decade of his life with a wife and daughter that probably don’t even exist. (I know, I know Alice is Armand theory… but the farther we get the more it makes sense). Louis is PURPOSEFULLY triggering memories to come back in Daniel so he can help HIM remember too. Armand (until last episode I think) was so focused on keeping Louis together and trying to protect him that he doesn’t even realize that Daniel is remembering him.

Until 2x04.

Daniel brings up the fire.

Armand tries to read his mind to see where he got the information from.

And he sees a flash of himself watching TV in the 70s. And that’s when he realizes Daniel DID love him. If Daniel didn’t why would he be getting flashes of Armand. Not of Louis and the first interview… not of Louis attacking him… no, he’s getting flashes of Armand.

Then he remembers that he suppressed Louis’ memory of everything to do with Claudia’s death (Louis’ main trigger). Louis confused: “the fire?”

As Daniel’s memories come back… so do Louis’. However the more Louis remembers the more unstable he’ll become. I think at a certain point when he remembers everything the suicidal part of him with reach a climax… he’ll snap. Blackout with Daniel in a parallel of what happened in 1973. And Armand is going to have no choice but to save Daniel. I feel like Lestat will sense this happening and I feel like it’ll be the PERFECT segue for present time Lestat. Now will Daniel be hurt badly? I’m not sure. Will Armand have no choice but to change him because Louis hurt him too much, maybe tried to drain him to “get back” at Armand after realizing what was happening?

Is that why Jacob is scared we may hate Louis by the end of the season? I feel like if it was just Louis trying to walk into the sun that comment wouldn’t make sense.

If he tries to hurt Daniel though…..

[nalyra-dreaming]

hi! I hope you are doing well! i saw people on twitter say akasha actually rapes lestat. when she drinks from him he’s reminded of magnus. i wanted to ask is this true? if u remember could u tell me where specifically this is in the book?

That... let's call it "causality" does not exist in the book.

There are exactly two instances where Magnus is mentioned in QotD, one is when Akasha and Lestat are flying:

"You've never had a teacher, have you?" she asked. "Magnus orphaned you the night he made you. Your father and brothers were fools. As for your mother, she hated her children." "I've always been my own teacher," I said soberly. "And I must confess I've always been my favorite pupil as well."

And the other is when Lestat sits down to reflect on his new powers a bit after he accidentally destroyed his watch:

I was trembling just a little. I sat on the bed to think this over, but I was too curious to think. The important thing to realize was this: it was physical; it was energy. And it was no more than an extension of powers I'd possessed before. For example, even in the beginning, in the first few weeks after Magnus had made me, I'd managed once to move another-my beloved Nicolas with whom I'd been arguing-across a room as if I'd struck him with an invisible fist. I'd been in a rage then; I hadn't been able to duplicate the little trick later. But it was the same power; the same verifiable and measurable trait.

In no scene I could find is there a mention of what Magnus did when they drink from each other.

Now, let me be clear, just because I think this take is... BS^^, does not mean that I don't think Akasha in fact abuses Lestat.

I have talked about that. He reframes what happens to him as love, but he actually does not have that much choice, and she sometimes spell-binds him to do her bidding, too.

The show might make it more drastic, like they did with all the abuse so far. Akasha will be a very dark queen, I think, very far from the movie version. We'll see.

[licncourt]

hi!!! i'm new to tvc and your blog so im not sure if this has been done yet but :'D i just wanted to ask your thoughts on akasha, even generally speaking? thanks!

Welcome!!! I have lots of thoughts on Akasha, but mainly I think her existence tells us a lot about the author and provides a lot of context for how AR approaches female characters in the series overall. I think Akasha, Claudia, and Gabrielle are a very succinct look at how Anne viewed women and the archetypes she felt existed within womanhood. Akasha is really the final boss of anti-feminist strawmen, written to be the ultimate evil and Bad Woman, but she just kind of ends up being an almost-compelling female character instead.

I think Gabrielle has strong elements of that, but the fact that she was so heavily inspired by AR's mother softens the narrative to her some despite the bitterness there. Akasha is something else though, and the narrative on a meta level does not seem to feel sympathy for her.

AR obviously had a very complicated relationship with her own womanhood and a virtually unshakable "not like other girls" mentality her entire life. It was some truly breathtaking internalized misogyny or maybe even a case of gender dysphoria that turned toxic. I doubt we'll ever know for sure, but that loathing she seemed to feel towards womanhood is very much on display in QotD.

Looking at the book as a female reader, I can't help but feel sorry for Akasha on some fundamental level despite the absolute evil she also commits. She was a queen, but doomed to be subservient to her husband on the basis of gender. Then, through some incredible accident, she's suddenly the most powerful human being there's even been, only to then be tortured and spend thousands of years internally conscious but unable to move, speak, or do anything at all.

It's almost an Eve story, a woman who is designed to be a man's inferior who instead seized knowledge and power (and the narrative), gained autonomy from and influence over her male counterpart, and then was punished for it by the larger forces at play. In some ways she reminds me of Claudia too, driven insane by her circumstances and unable to comprehend her own monstrosity, but she's also more evil than Claudia was ever capable of being due to her age (torturing and ordering the rape of of Maharet and Mekare, forcibly turning Khayman, etc).

If Anne had left it at that and changed her goals to be less grandiose, I think her character would have read better and been a more complex and convincing villain in the evil-but-a-victim-of-circumstance way that so many VC vampires are. That's one of my favorite things about the original VC vampires that was present in Akasha but not executed with quite enough finesse. Instead, I think Anne takes it way too far into cartoonish hatred for feminist stereotypes.

For most authors I wouldn't feel confident saying that was the intention but AR, if nothing else, aggressively involves her personal feelings and beliefs in her work, often to the detriment of the story. VC is just the fictionalized inside of her head and we know that. Combined with her other female characters and her own public statements, it's hard not to eye roll at the climax of QotD when Akasha decides she's going to kill 90% of human men and turn the Earth into a new Eden with her as the goddess for the human women (and male human chattel).

In that sense of her character, it seems like foreshadowing to Blood Canticle Lestat reprimanding the audience directly, just Anne finding something to be irrationally angry about and writing it into her book. I've said before that QotD is a step below IWTV and TVL because the cracks in her writing really start to drag the book down like they would for the rest of the series to a rather extreme degree. Knowing this was her last book with an editor, I'm curious how much of the overall readability of the book can be attributed to that/how far gone Anne already was at this point.

In spite of all that, it is kind of fun to go balls to the wall and take a Hell Yeah Get Them mentality when Akasha goes scorched earth because despite it all, it's sort of cathartic to watch a overpowered female vampire go on the warpath and scream all the deepest frustrations with patriarchy that many women struggle with. At the same time, it's hard to fully enjoy it knowing authorial intent (and reading it all within the context of the sexual violence Akasha perpetrated with Anne's usual lack of nuance). That's kind of par for the course though, most things in VC are Almost Good and that's what keeps us on the hook.

[fenicenera83]

I think Armand is most important to the Chronicles and the reason why they ever were written. He's in the first one and the last one as a bookend, one of the main trio.

Anne Rice herself literally said Marius emerged from Armand because she needed Armand to have a maker.

So Marius is important... but Armand is the indispensable one...

Leaving out for a moment the fact that Marius was not born from Armand, but as Anne explained from Lestat's desire to know a vampire from ancient Rome, to begin with. Second of then Armand is not indispensable, he is important, but his role is not fundamental. In fact it is even Lestat who is more important to Armand, as he destroys the coven, than Armand is to Lestat himself. It is not a talk of favorite characters, everyone has his own, the talk is that Marius is the one who sacrificed himself and was chained to his role as Akasha's guardian.And if it were not for this, and for Marius' willingness and dedication to his role, none of the other characters could have experienced their own immortality or told their own story. First and foremost Armand, without Marius there would be no Armand. Marius is the most indispensable character in the chronicles, at the level of plot development and the evolution of the story of all vampires even Lestat. Without Marius' sacrifice there would be no chronicles because he is the one who protected everyone and left the other vampires free to experience their immortality. So no Armand is not indispensable, he is indispensable in a specific context of various stories and various characters, but he is not indispensable at the total level of the unfolding of time and stories of all vampires. Marius is, on the other hand, even of the vampires he did not know even of all those who were ignorant of his existence or had only heard the legend of Marius the guardian of those who must be keept, Marius supported everyone from afar, taking on a burden that even the oldest vampires did not want. And when he tried to back down he was denied. So the real indispensable one is Marius.

[undermine-the-instinct]

Title: Just Barely

Cyno x Bard! Reader ▪︎ Warnings: None ▪︎ Wc: 830+

Bard!reader masterlist • Continuation here

So I've been having thoughts on a sort of Bard!Reader that travels all around, spreading music and song wherever they go, and now they end up in Sumeru. Before the Sumeru quest of course.

Sumeru is not big on unapproved performances!! Especially from foreigners!! You ditched your Akasha ages ago so they can't track you or steal your dreams, and you pop up everywhere!! Singing your insipid little songs and dancing some hillbilly jig the Sages scoff at.

You're not anything significant – except the fact that with your appearance, more people are getting bold about their performing arts, especially that performance theater, so the Akademia decides to make an example out of you. So, they send their General Mahamatra.

Cyno is not one to question rules or orders. The law is just and he will uphold the law and punish those who defy it. And if you're disrupting the natural order then he will deal with you. Only, it doesn't go that way.

Every single time you're in a crowd. You choose your battlefields cleverly, and it doesn't matter how many other matra he has guard the exit posts, you always manage to scurry off. Sometimes you're already gone by the time he arrives, a whisp disappearing behind a corner, sometimes, he'd see you meld back into a rushing crowd with a smile and a wink, and you're gone. It's annoying. He has paperwork to do.

The chase gets to be long enough that his superiors just tell him to keep an eye on you, and apprehend you if he catches you in one of your performances. You visit Port Ormos and sing to the sailors, you visit the Grand Bazaar and dance with Nilou, you strum your lyre for children and bedridden nobles. Apparently, and according to rumor, you greet the Sun and Moon with a song as well. Too many people are fond of you already.

But he can't catch you. You disappear into the waves when you catch a glimpse of him, you dash across courtyards with shrieking laughter and jump out of windows and vanish just before he can get his hands on you, leaving nothing but crackling lightning and strange sear in his chest.

And, what? What will he do? Chain your hands and feet and tell you to stop singing? Cyno can see that this is the life of you. He has seen your feet dance faster than you run and once he heard your voice at the break of Dawn, indistinguishable underneath the bird's morning call but sweet and soft and calling, sending his heart trilling. Your hands flutter over strings, and he jolts when you pluck a note too high.

He sees it now as you sit on the curb near the Akademia, strumming your lyre. You're getting bold now.

He strides over, and the crowd's murmurs fall into frightened awe as he stops before you, and you don't even open your eyes or raise your head.

"General Mahmatra Cyno, to what do I owe this pleasure?" This is the closest he has ever been to you and never mind the way that your eyelashes brush your skin or the way your smile pulls your lips.

"Musical performances are banned on the grounds of the Akademia."

"But I'm not performing…? I'm simply tuning my lyre. Does that count?"

"Yes. Furthermore, loitering is also prohibited."

"Hm. I hate those two rules, you know? They exist everywhere here." Your scowl is pretty to. He does not know why he thinks this.

"They are meant for a reason. They exist for a reason." His hand tightens on his pole arm and he does not like the way his shadow falls over you, or the way you don't raise your head.

"They make it illegal to exist or be anywhere." You continue, unhindered.

"They prohibit the arts, practically ban it, and you want to know why?" You do not wait for an answer. "Because the arts have always been a means of human expression. An act of rebellion. And when we rebel and speak our truth through art and song, it means change, it makes people afraid.

"This is not what we should be frightened of. There will be fires and there will be storms, toppled gods and kingdoms, and there will be darkness again. And songs about the darkness." Your eyes cut up to him, suddenly, and they're not anything extraordinary, whether in color or shape. But you hold his gaze, and that is extraordinary enough.

"Why do you think this makes them afraid, General?"

He grits his teeth, and hears a crackle of lightning by his ear. He doesn't know why he's entertaining you.

"I am not here to debate the worth of the arts to you. Remove yourself from the premises immediately or you will be escorted out."

You just look up at him, and sigh, and draw yourself up, joints clicking. You pop your joints with a furrowed brow as you turn away, but before that you ask a question.

"Cyno," the audacity you have. "Riddle me this. Do you believe that the law is just, or do you believe that upholding the law is just?"

"There is no difference." By the pitying look on your face, you beg to differ.

You leave, and the passing breeze of your departure smooths itself over his skin like a kiss. He doesn't watch you go. His fist tightens.

[npdclaraoswald]

The passage "Calcutta, if you wish, or Ethiopia; or the streets of Bombay; these poor souls could be the peasants of Sri Lanka; of Pakistan; of Nicaragua, of El Salvador. It does not matter what it is; it matters how much there is of it; that all around the oases of your shining Western cities it exists; it is three-fourths of the world!" almost makes the point Rice is trying to make about how the white, Western world has purposefully underdeveloped the rest of the world, stealing what those countries need to survive in order to further enrich themselves, like vampires. But treating vastly different cultures as completely interchangable, in conjuction with the fact that all of the characters of color so far that I can recall are:

Louis' slaves, whom he and Lestat kill in a fire

The unnamed elder who failed to protect Akasha and Enkil, nearly killed all of vampirekind, and got squished into a paste and lit on fire

Azim and his followers partaking in blood sacrifice, framed as far more brutal than the vampire killing we have otherwise seen so far, who are massacred because of it (with Pandora fine even though she also partook)

Davis, who along with Killer, was very much framed as a child predator taking advantage of Baby Jenks and was killed off page

The people in this nameless location which is described as Hell on Earth and showcases suffering only so Akasha can make a point

And the fact that by all reason, Akasha, Enkil, Khayman, Maharet, and Makare should be people of color, on account of being Egyptian, but are nonetheless described as having snow white skin. All of that really muddles the message and leaves the series just being racist

[maristellarium]

continued / @aetherose

Subconsciously, Yulia mirrored the Kowloong leader's posture as it changed - at first turning to half-face the woman as a silent, accepting listener, then turning to face the numerous rivers of lantern lights and stalls in a state of seeming reverie.

Because, in a way, this is just a reverie. A world of familiar joy, history's own projections of a happy night wrapped in technology's security.

Even so, the commandant takes the situation as simply, as seriously as ever. Her expression hardly shifts beyond quiet and attentive, though there are more than a handful of thoughtful blinks as Qu speaks. Indeed, were she put in the same position as the other woman, it would not be far-fetched to reach the same conclusions, the same solutions. In a different world, a different time, if the situation was growing harsher and the means ever scarcer, and Yulia extended the scope to anything that would secure her loved ones in some form...

The same logic that fuels the idea of better something than nothing. The same ideal that can only be fueled by love itself. A scenario that requires not just desperation, but the capability of even reaching that desperation, that sheer intensity of soulful emotion—

Yulia can see that happen to herself, potentially, vaguely - certainly. For a moment.

But these are all hypotheticals. The young commandant blinks a few more times, breathes in, thinks, breathes out. A star flickers and twinkles as usual.

She recounts the basic facts of the present: she is the commandant of a Babylonian militia hoping to reclaim Earth, waging a war against a virus that is not so much a war than a much more violent, physical maneuver to eradicate a widespread disease. Qu is the leader of a metropolis nation that has since digitalized itself to survive the initial devastation of humanity as everyone knew it.

Fact: The current state of the Punishing Virus is uncertain, rapidly evolving.

Fact: Both Babylonia and Qu have undertaken their respective decisions and actions to save some number of humanity against the danger and unpredictability of said virus. There are pros and cons to each.

Fact: Babylonia hopes to save humanity's future as it exists in the very present. The Tabula Akasha saved at least a fragment of humanity in a past state that continues via code and simulations extending into a present and future. The merits and the philosophical nature of the humanity in question—on both sides���are not relevant to consider at this time.

Fact: Xiao Yue is a resident of the present, far beyond the panic and ruin that came with the advent of the Pandemic Age. Qu knows what came before that, knows what was lost at all, to become ruins in the first place.

Conclusion: The commandant of Gray Raven may empathize, but what would a young woman, born in the safety of Babylonia in space, know about a long-lived leader's grief? Much less a leader of a once-glorious nation, representing a population of humanity itself?

Yulia looks at the night sky as well. There are some constellations she can trace, having read about them from a book at some point. But instead of connecting the dots between the stars she can see right above, her eyes follow a shape only she can envision, lines going through some stars and avoiding others, lines crossing between the black spaces between them instead. The resulting constellations would appear very, very nonsensical if she were to properly draw them down somewhere.

But they are still very, very real to her. As existent as everything around her, even now.

"Indeed. If the hardest choices are all that are left, then that is that. Because perhaps, the hardest choice of all is whether to make that choice in the first place." The young woman idly drums her fingers along the railing, feeling the smooth, years-worn wood of the banisters. "Though I can debate on whether your choices should have been made - whether your people would have wanted a different choice, something far different from any of the choices we already know about - in the end, that is simply discussing what-ifs. And what-ifs do no good when the moment of reckoning is at hand, or come and gone."

Yulia hums a bit, a somewhat thoughtful note to it. It's a faint and light tune, half-remembered from a place that doesn't exist anymore - or to anyone else but Yulia. "That is my own personal response. From the standpoint of a commandant from Babylonia, though..." The tune fades away, as does whatever meager emotion she held in her voice. "A commandant of my position and background would simply, crudely say that you needed to keep hope. To fight, rather than to resort to the methods that you did. Because that is exactly what Babylonia hopes for, and hopes to see in all of us. Humans fighting for that vague, elusive victory over an impossible fight, because if we don't, then the fundamental reason for Babylonia having its military at all comes into question. I am sure, Miss Qu, it has not escaped your notice or memory that Babylonia was built as a colony ship during your heyday.

"Ignoring all of the logic behind Babylonia's decision-making there—" A small sigh here - it might be dreary, it might be unamused - "Or, no. I suppose some of that logic is relevant after all. Babylonia wants us to reclaim the planet and have humanity repopulating it as before. Whether to return to that Golden Age that the textbooks talk about, or to an era surpassing it - regardless, there is a hope for humans to live on this earth. To breathe and create, to destroy and to die. Here, rather than in space—or anywhere else for that matter.

"And while I may be of the personal opinion that at this point, nearly no decision to preserve mankind in any form is an incorrect one - rather, 'bad' is subjective - it remains that some would disagree with you. Would disagree with the state of humanity to be." A pause, as a breeze picks up and causes the paper lanterns on the roads to sway with it, oddly rhythmic and alluring for a few seconds. "Hence, perhaps, why plans went awry. The definition of humanity, what it should be, where it should go - it's not uniform everywhere. Humanity clashes with itself, with you, because it does not agree with what it should be, what it was, perhaps not even with what it is today."

Another pause - somehow both longer and shorter than the previous one, before Yulia pulls away from the railing, back sharply straight in formal posture. "—Hmm. I know I said that what-ifs are utterly pointless at this juncture, but I must ask, if only because we are on this topic - in any ideal, unrealistic or plausible scenario, would you have your people leave the Tabula Akasha?"

[artandhijinks]

I'm going to kind of do a follow up post to this one and this one to address some issues that have been brought up in comments, tags and reblogs. I've also received quite a bit of hateful and abusive anonymous ask and they will be shut off until further noticed because the internet cannot be trusted.

Yes, the criticism that Claudia the female character of color has no agency of her own is valid. But here's a quick history lesson. Due to the time period she would be considered Louis's ward/property until she found a husband. Then she would be considered his ward/property. Because women weren't even allowed the right to vote until 1920 and in fact, in banks were legally allowed to deny unmarried women their own bank account until 1974. So women were still technically financially dependent on their husband until 1974. Now she probably could have got married even though she was 14. My own grandmother got married at 14 in 1959. But there is no way that's going to fly in a TV show in this day and age. And we have a book to follow plot wise and this is just the treatment of women. The treatment of people of color is even worse. So I get where this complaint is coming from? And it's even worse the further back in history you go. However I would like to add more diversity to this story. That's why I'm really rooting for a lot of race swapping when it makes historical sense. But I still think you guys are looking at this the wrong way. Here me out

The modern day part of the story is going to be the make or break point. Not what happens in the past. It's going to be the modern day. But we don't know what's going on in the modern day. As long as the characters of color now have agency can stand up to their abusive makers. That is what matters. Now for the Louis and Lestat relationship, if they were human that's an abusive relationship. Get out of there but they are vampires. They have eternity to work on themselves and to try to change and work this out. The same thing goes for Daniel and Armand. Do you think the devil's minion when Armand basically stalks Daniel all over the globe and gets him addicted to his blood is healthy. But again we don't fully know what's going on in the modern day.

But I can tell you to justify them staying together and being the end game ship even though they were toxic in the past in the modern day, both Louis and Lestat are going to have to have a relationship with healthy boundaries and Daniel and Armand are in the same boat. Now I love the devil's minion and I'm totally looking forward to this being explored in both the past and its full unhealthy crazy toxic form and the modern day in hopefully a healthier form. But old man Daniel is definitely going to have to lay down some boundaries otherwise they're going to go down the same road as Louis and Lestat did in the past. If they are not at that point yet they need to be at least working to that point. Where they can have healthy boundaries. This is going to be a learning curve for everyone involved.

And as for the changes to Marius's fledglings that I've mentioned earlier. Here is what I would like for them in the modern day.

Let's start with Pandora I would like her to be Indian. Living somewhere far away from Marius. In the books she refuses to be in the same room with him The only exception was when they had to take down Akasha. So this would include her blocking him in every form possible and never contacting him again completely ignoring his existence. She hasn't seen him since he stood her up and he she's never looked back. I ship her with Gabrielle. They've both survived abusive husbands that have treated them like property and an extension of themselves. They wouldn't try to control each other and would probably be living off somewhere in the woods. She wouldn't care that Gabrielle sleeps in the dirt every day and would occasionally just disappear for a little while but she'd always come back her. She would pick up hobbies related to Indian culture because she probably never really learned anything about it until Marius stood her up and she decided to never look back, even though that's the culture of her mother. I could see her getting really good at some of those Indian embroidery techniques where they use actual gold thread or glass/mirrors beads. That just seems like a vampire hobby. It's super detailed and requires a ridiculous amount of time and effort to master again. It seems like a vampire hobby

Then we have Bianca. I mentioned before Venice at the time of the Renaissance had a large African and ottoman Muslim population simply because it was one of the largest and busiest ports in the world at the time. Doesn't this sound a lot like a Renaissance New Orleans? I'm beginning to see some similarities here And it's mentioned somewhere that Marius might have made her because she looked a lot like Pandora. So there's the reason to go ottoman. I would prefer they go African. From what I can tell with my research, the African and ottoman population we're part of just about every social class. This did include slaves but also had indentured servants, the working class and some wealthy merchants. But I would want her to be living her best life somewhere in Africa. Maybe the Caribbean. Far away from Marius if she's African learning everything she can about whatever part of Africa she believes she's from. Again reclaiming that culture that was taken from her. Have her pick up a hobby we know Marius taught most of his fledglings how to paint in the traditional Renaissance style. I could see her being petty and now learning as many of the traditional African crafts to preserve them. Because she's immortal and some of these traditions are at risk of dying out, so they would be preserved with her all she has to do is find someone to teach every few decades. She would be slightly more hospitable if Marius calls asking for something but she still would have no problem telling him to go to go screw himself if she doesn't want to help him do whatever he needs help with

Then we have Armand. Not only does he have Marius to recover from, he also has the satanic cult and all that brainwashing recover from. And can someone correct me if I'm wrong but if I remember correctly didn't he believe if Marius was dead up until Queen of the Damned? He's the one that is going to struggle the most with boundaries when it comes to Marius thinking he was dead combined with severe Stockholm syndrome and all the grooming. But he also has Daniel if they can have a healthy relationship at that point. Daniel would have no problem advocating on his behalf when it comes to Marius. We know he has no problem telling very powerful vampires exactly what he thinks even if it might get him killed. If him and Daniel are not in a good place at this point. Louis would also have no problem helping Armand. They may not be an endgame ship, but they are still good friends

So yes, in the past these characters probably will have little agency in the past. That's just how history was women and people of color were treated as second class citizens at best more commonly they were treated as property. They're going to have to be very careful how they show the past abuse and mistreatment these characters go through. But as long as they have found their agency in the present day. I think we are in a good place.

But I do think this is the direction they're heading at least for Marius and his fledgling since I do think it's highly unlikely David is going to be in the show unless they want to make him a villain cuz I think that's the only way to do it. But that trigger the book purest worse than they already are. So some of his bad traits like the whole colonizer issue are going to Marius because it would be super easy to do it because he's the literal embodiment of western civilization as a Roman philosopher. That leaves the other non-problematic parts of his story going to Daniel they've already set this up by aging him up.

[blueiight]

Armandddd

abdulrashid armand ali nazarkhan<3 armand<3 andrei<3 amadeo… rashid…

First impression

I dont even remember LMAOSKSKDKDKS i was just like why is flop pitt tugging on that man face like that. but book wise i imagined iwtv armand as a red head zaddy on some sweeney shit imagine my shock when i realized he was like a boticceli angel. and show wise i saw the painting n was like oh that ipad guy is armand

Impression now

hes the funniest character in existence

Favorite moment

book wise its putting a blood air tag on daniel… segwaying from aspects of his life story in tva to randomly give his indepth opinions on vampires to david re: reality tv shows cutting to interview the actor later on as they show a past scene happening.. when hes begging lestat and gabrielle to give him something + they pretty much give him the third draft of lestat’s life (the theater they left hanging around somewhere) and gabi tells armand u have to live and move with the age and armand proceeded to become a super rich guy after the fact. blenders. Why cant we kill them all? :( show wise so far its when hes like DUBAI IS BUT A CHILD MR MOLLOY. :) ..WHAT IS A SUN TO A VAMP

Idea for a story

My brain is blank for that ig id wanna see armandlou travel the world re: what was briefly mentioned to in book iwtv w/ their show counterparts. i talked abt this w @likethemodel a bit

Unpopular opinion

this is my unpop opinion? ig .. id just wish ppl to keep in mind that show armand was in no way a child when turned LOL. or better yet, stop treating show armand like hes the Big Bad to blame details of a yet to be told story that make u uncomfortable! theyre all Evil no doubt & armand is a manipulative control freak but theres no Big Bad in the chronicles outside of akasha and the rhosmsddekdkdes guy just a bunch of antagonists that for the most part join the fold of misfits.

Favorite relationship

U cant make an armandlette w/o cracking some eggs<3

Favorite headcanon

ummmm mind drawing a blank here soz. hes a yandere fasho

[thelioncourts]

I mean are they gonna completely get rid of all those characters lestat hooks up with though? I think what’s causing all this anxiety about Jacob on the show is that you can’t really keep most of the storylines from the books and NOT have him be a supporting player at best. All these stories are about Lestat and his ho of the month. Either that or they scrap a lot of stuff in the books post TVL. Also it was the initial casting call that says Louis was a 2 season role vs lestat 5. Way before Jacob was ever cast. Also personally I’d rather he leave the show so I can stop watching then see him get pushed to the side and only show up one episode a season to be exasperated w/ Lestat.

I know you probably intended for a lot of this to be rhetorical and/or more of a general talking point, and I want to first point out that I totally get where you're coming from, and I next want to point out that if my answer here isn't extremely detailed, it's because I do feel like most of what I have had to say I have already said. I don't -- I don't actually know anything, I'm making guesses (educated ones, mind you! but guesses nonetheless) and am doing so with optimism because I simply have to for my own sanity.

What I will say about "Lestat and his ho of the month" stuff is that in a mostly complete (but not totally complete) list of Lestat's loves that I made on the last list (Nicki, Gabrielle, Louis, Akasha, David, Dora, Gretchen, Rowan, Antoine), we know that Nicki is dead; Nicki is in the past and while his story will be told, it's over. Antoine is Antoinette, we know that fate, and, as I said in the previous asks, whatever weird stuff Lestat has with his mom will (most likely) not be explored on a romantic level given the audience and network. That leaves us with Louis, Akasha, David, Dora, Gretchen, and Rowan really.

We know Louis. Love of Lestat's life. Soulmate. His muse!

Akasha is going to happen in a non-romantic, no doubt horrific, way.

Dora and Gretchen are not important. I don't say that trying to be mean or whatever, but they simply are not important. The stories they are part of can truly happen without them and I feel like it would be a waste of television time to try to work in their minor roles.

Rowan, as I stated in the last ask, is something Anne says she regrets. I hope, out of respect for Anne and for good storytelling, they don't even consider it. I also, however, have far less faith in Mayfair continuing long enough to ever even get to that point though so...

And then there's David. David is only important in TVC for his contributions of storytelling the other vampires' lives. There have already been a lot of theories that David won't ever come to exist within the show and his work will be relegated to Daniel and/or Louis as a means of keeping Eric in the show as well as Jacob. I think it would make more sense to give most to Daniel and work it from there, but either way, I hope these theories hold some truth and I never have to actually see David Talbot and that mess on screen.

I also think there is a lot to have Louis be part of if they choose to. Louis is always in Lestat's life, even when Anne was pushing him to the side, and I don't think it would be hard to make him a constant. I also have a theory that Trinity Gate (the place Louis lives with Armand at for, like, almost 15 years in the book and he's away from Lestat during) is sort of what we're witnessing in Dubai and, therefore, is not yet another era of separation for Loustat. Again, just a theory, but one based in educated guesses.

I could go on as to what I think Louis may be up to in later seasons, but I truly don't really know. I feel like we'll all have a better idea post-season 2, but I really do believe we're going to have him long-term. I wouldn't just be saying that if I didn't believe it. In fact, if there's one thing I believe above all else, I believe that this show cannot succeed without both Sam and Jacob. They are both amazing and beautiful actors individually, but together they are something else entirely and people will notice the lack of it and people will be upset by it should it not be in the show.

As for your last bit, I didn't know the original contracts were like that; I think it makes sense, I get why they did it, and I can talk about that too. But I also don't think Rolin Jones is going to say all he did without intention of backing it up, especially because the fandom is loud enough to call that shit out were it to happen.

And lastly, I do agree; if the show were to sideline Louis dramatically in the way the books do, I would also want Jacob to go somewhere where he's appreciated and his talents are being used and he can show off his beautiful skills and face. But I also truly believe the show wants to utilize him as an actor and see the worth of him. I do. And I hope I'm right there because to be proven wrong would be a devastation.