#the feasts with marius

[aunteat]

armand's relationship w food.....haunts me....

[ormymarius]

the aquamen are serving

[faerywhimsy]

Day 1 - A Druid

"Will you tell me a story?" Daniel asked, at the end of a long night, at what was the second anniversary of his turning that Daniel and Marius had spent together.

The last year had been... rather more difficult. Marius had made both of them the silent promise that this year would not again be the same.

"Whatever you wish, young one," Marius said softly. "What would please you? A ghost story? One of a necromancer, perhaps?"

"Will you tell me about when you became a vampire?" Daniel asked softly, still not meeting his eye. "There was a druid involved, wasn't there?"

"A God of the Grove," Marius uttered, his voice still soft but now for a different reason. Marius did not like to think of his beginnings.

He supposed he was a little like Daniel in that way. The past still had such power to cause such pain.

"That's right." Daniel frowned, as though he was trying to remember something, then he let it pass as though accepting his brain still wouldn't work the way he wanted it to. The way he still sometimes expected it to nonetheless. "Would you tell me about that?"

"Will that help?" Marius asked him, lifting one fair brow.

Daniel gave a shrug, retreating back into quiet. Marius didn't know if it was because he'd lost his words to answer, or whether it was simply just Daniel did not know the answer to Marius' question.

And so Marius moved into granting to Daniel what he had asked for. With his soft, even cadence, Marius articulated the story of how one called Mael brought an aging scholar of the age of forty into the wood where the burned and crippled vampire known only as the God of the Grove could no longer inspire the devotion his followers required of him.

"I was to replace him," Marius murmured in his carefully measured tone. "I did not know that at the time. I did not even yet know of such immortals existed."

"Apart from the Greek Gods," Daniel acerbically inserted, having found his voice again for a moment, to Marius' delight.

He smiled. Daniel's engagement made unpacking this story for him all the more worthwhile.

"Apart from them," he agreed. Not Gods of the Grove those. A god of the sky, and lightning. Another of the sea and all its creatures. Still one more of darkness and underworld. And so, so many of their siblings and lovers and offspring.

Marius wondered how much his life would have been changed had even just Hades proven demonstrably real; capable of overcoming the druids who had kept Marius until his escape.

Alas, it had been many long centuries since Marius had believed in any god.

Marius learned the language of the druids, he told Daniel. The language that would enable him to converse with those of a world Marius had been unable to previously imagine.

Nobody had ever told him that a human couldn't hope to live with the knowledge of what they were without going insane.

Marius hadn't remained human long enough for that to become any real issue.

And then on the night of the Feast of Samhain, Marius was walked to the great oak tree, where the blood drinker in that place taught him what lessons he could of their kind before bringing him into the blood. It was he who gave Marius the purpose that turned into him becoming the caretaker to the Mother and Father of them all, long before Akasha's bloody rise.

Daniel was silent a long time while Marius was locked in his own thoughts. "Feast of Samhain," he said, breaking into Marius' darker thoughts. "That's... Halloween, yeah?"

Marius ensured that he could speak without his voice breaking before he ever opened his mouth. "It is. Yes."

Daniel smiled, his eyes seeming to go far away for a moment. But not too far. He didn't seem to struggle to come back. But, finally, Daniel observed softly, "You became a vampire at the same time of year as me."

Marius stared at this one so young in the blood, the fledgling of his own fledgling. He felt a softness rise in him for the first time, then, for a very long time. How simple Daniel made it. Bypassing entirely the shared trauma all blood drinkers seemed to carry, just that of being brought into the blood.

It had been something he tried to spare Armand many centuries before and, perhaps, in that one aim Marius had succeeded. But there were so many other ways he had failed him, and Marius keenly held onto each.

Ways that, centuries later, Daniel had somehow gone on to paying for on Marius' behalf.

There were times Marius could barely look at Daniel wouldn't feeling the guilt of ages washing over him. Was endless pain and suffering their only legacy?

And then Daniel, in a momentary reprieve, would say something so utterly genuine and simple that the reframing could bring beauty to something Marius had only seen as ugly before. He managed to bring Marius back to himself when he struggled to find his own purpose in this too modern world.

"I did," Marius said, unable to find the words to articulate the gravity of feelings Daniel had unwittingly stirred in him. "Yes."

Daniel nodded and smiled gently as his eyes began to flutter shut. It would not be dawn for some time yet, but Daniel still felt its coming far sooner than Marius.

Marius only watched the young one as he slept, this boy who contained multitudes that may have gone overlooked if if another lost vampire hadn't decided to offer him an interview.

[writeyourletters-inthesand]

saw the les mis tour and?? they literally .

[nxx-hq]

its taking all of my self control to not draw again for the "from dawn till dusk" pool. I need to save for anniversary. And Luke's birthday card rerun. And the dragon event.

[icypopz]

what's the best marius ssr story and why is it fabulous feast

[ashildretzky]

"Just a cold and lonely lovely work of art."

Some thoughts regarding Armand’s mind-reading abilities that I haven’t seen discussed so far.

Amadeo/Armand is canonically the most beautiful and ethereal-looking person most anyone he meets has ever seen. Even when he’s being trafficked, his captors are punished by their leader for leaving a mark on his face, potentially degrading his value. When he and Marius sneak into the hall where Bianca’s criminal relatives are feasting (to seek revenge for her), the men in the room see Amadeo and start offering Marius money and jewels for him.

He says, “I couldn’t help but smile. Kill them, I thought, slaughter them. I felt fetching and even beautiful. Come on, somebody tell me I make you think of Mercury chasing away the clouds in Botticelli’s Primavera.”

He can predict the flattery, even down to specific comparisons. He knows what they’re going to say about him because he’s heard it a million times. This has been the nature of his entire life. This is what he’s used to: being objectified, being consumed. He doesn’t want to hear more of this; he wants them all dead. (And the men go on to bid against each other and talk about what it is they want to do to Amadeo when they win the “auction.”)

These are the thoughts that people feel free to verbalize about him to his face. Can you imagine what it’s like for him when he finds out how much worse it is inside their heads?

I think that even when he can do it, he avoids reading people’s minds as a self-defense mechanism. Especially with people he loves. With the sort of insecurities he has after being so brutally abused and tormented throughout his life, he must be terrified of finding out that someone he loves has negative feelings about him – or worse still, doesn’t really love him at all.

[rustingways]

Honestly, my favorite thing that Anne Rice would write about ANY of her vampires is them watching TV. Armand voraciously consuming any and every movie he can find. Pandora aggressively ignoring Marius to stare at a screen for days on end. Louis living in squalor without electricity but showing up in Lestat’s house whenever he wants to catch his shows.

Like, can you imagine rising from your coffin at night, feasting on the blood of a human to sustain your unnatural existence, then being like “Oh, I should get home in time to catch SNL.” Or watching the fucking Shopping Network all night?

[artfulacrostic]

some of my favorite moments from the 1995 10th Anniversary Concert of Les Miserables bc it's BARRICADE DAY and thus tis the season:

the convicts during Look Down all being Valjeans from different countries

the bishop M is baby faced and has an angelic voice

the clips from the fully staged show that they insert whenever there is too long of an instrumental/to explain things

colm wilkinson and philip quast's confrontation makes me want to chew on my laptop screen. so good. so crisp

baby cosette gets spooked by a balloon popping during castle on a cloud but barely flinches and keeps singing

the entire cast in the background of master of the house bopping back and forth in time. they are so here for it and it's amazing

philip quast's stars. he's so fucking good. i'm insane about him

michael maguire as enjolras's little happy dance when gavroche tells them that lamarque is dead

michael ball as marius somehow gives himself literally heart eyes whenever he talks about cosette. i can see them. it's so funny

during a heart full of love, colm wilkinson and philip quast are so invested in the background. they're leaning over to whisper to each other. they are besties

lea salonga as eponine delivers "i know this house i tell you, there's nothing here for you. just the old man and the girl, they live ordinary lives" like a GODDESS she is EVERYTHING

michael ball surreptitiously wiping his sweat on lea salonga's hair during her death scene. mans is dying a little

drink with me features anthony crivello as a fucking stellar grantaire, and after his verse, enj comes over and puts his hand on his shoulder to comfort him for a very long time. complete with a lingering touch on the arm and everything. fantastic exr crumbs 👍

the clips from the full show of the final battle are hilarious. completely different cast (though only obvious to insane people like us.)

highlights include one of les amis right on the middle of the barricade doing like. a backwards worm he's so into his death throes. he always has me losing my shit

empty chairs at empty tables includes the fucking cruel choice to have the entire les amis cast of actors line up on each side of michael ball and just a step behind so that they're in shadows, all staring sadly at him for the whole song. gives the impression of all the ghosts of marius's dead friends looking on from the afterlife and demanding answers. heart wrenching. THIS IS JUST SUPPOSED TO BE A CONCERT, WHY ARE U DOING STAGING LIKE THIS

beggars at the feast has everyone in the background clapping/tapping along again. love seeing the thenardiers get their due appreciation

the 17 valjeans from other international productions enter after the finale and they all have their gavroches holding their country flags it's so fucking cute

and of course final encore with all the additional valjeans and the whole cast is fucking ACES

ANYWAY if ur looking for a production to watch that is good af this is the top of my list even though it isn't fully staged. it's sooooo. it's some good fucking food. happy barricade day!!

[romanticizingmurder]

I posted about it before but now I can't find it but the Marius/Armand feast scene is hilarious to me from both perspectives.

Armand being desperately horny that Marius is killing:

Marius' increasing hysteria that he's raised a child who doesn't appear to have any moral objection to him murdering and eating people:

Armand starting to sob solely because his master is yelling at him and killed the one man who was nice to Armand (despite that man also being the one blackmailing Bianca):

And after everything, Marius desperately trying to salvage some sort of learning momrnt from this night and introduce the idea of moral ambiguity to Armand only for Armand to be like soooo if I do that will I become like you which is so remarkbly unhinged it makes me cackle everytime:

Absolutely no lessons learned for either of them, 10/10 romance no notes.

[eleancrvances]

more les mis arena tour notes because yes, i went again. and i was close enough to notice an annoying amount of details, ignore me

killian sounded much healthier this time around and i loove him

also, this theater had a portion extending across the pit and into the audience which they used some times. killian sang the entirety of bring him home from there, just a few meters from me

because of this, bradley was also able to come forward and kneel at the end of stars

AND at the end of the suicide. i'm glad i got to see him so closely at that moment, he was really broken down, tears on his face and all

AND james went up there to die at the end of the final battle :))))))))))

when madeleine asked if javert is sure he's not vaijean, bradley looked so offended it made me chuckle. "how dare you imply i wouldn't know jean valjean anywhere." and then he didn't

i really love how gavin doesn't sing "i'm a con, just like you" but instead says it very matter-of-factly. an underrated line imo. of course thenardier and valjean are nothing alike, but in the eyes of the law they're exactly the same, and that's the whole problem isn't it

channah sounded much more tired than last week, understandably so since she truly gave her all every time i saw her, but she was still Acting

i noticed she looked genuinely hopeful when javert entered during fantine's arrest, as if she believed he really would listen and help her. her face dropped when he called bamatabois a "good man"

towards the end of lovely ladies she stared ahead for most of the time, so when she finally turned around and realized the man holding his hand out to her was the foreman she gasped, and it hurt

when valjean asked to kill javert, bradley didn't look surprised in the least, he simply looked down and smiled

this time, at the end of we meet again, bradley didn't lunge at valjean but simply slowly walked towards him until killian put the hand holding the knife on his chest and quietly told him "hey. go"

...which tied in nicely with how he entered during the sewers, he usually runs in and looks shocked to recognize valjean, but this time he walked in with his eyes already on him and killian had to lift his hands to halt him when he saw him

enjolras fixed gavroche's little hat during one day more :')

i still don't much like beatrice's cosette tbh, but she does have a very sweet voice, and unfortunately this staging doesn't leave her much room to grow the character

jac was on this time and i'm glad i saw him, his marius is quite sassy, but loving, towards cosette obv but he also looked so genuinely fond of eponine. my boy was properly sobbing during a little fall of rain

after the scream in rue plumet, when everybody was running away, nathania bit montparnasse. and even though he threatened her, thenardier jumped and ran away the moment she stepped towards him. she's scary and i love her

adam robert lewis was having the time of his life doing the background choreography of beggars at the feast, bless him

also, not show related but when i left the theater i walked next the window of a restaurant and saw raymond walsh and jeremy secomb grabbing dinner. i didn't want to disturb them so i quickly waved and mouthed a thank you through the glass, and they did a little bow :)

also a cute thing i want to remember: there was a little girl (about 6 years old) sitting in front of me, who enjoyed the show and sobbed when the students died. while leaving her mom called her and i realised she has my same name :)

[professional-girlkisser]

currently reading tva and wdym it was marius who taught armand to kill like this??

And there is never any need for him to suffer, or for blood actually to be spilt. Embrace your victim, love him if you will. Fondle him slowly and sink your teeth with caution. Then feast as slowly as you can. This way his heart will see you through.

Let the victim in his dying tell you what he can about life itself. If images of his long life trip before you, observe them, or rather savor them. Yes, savor them. Devour them slowly as you do his blood.

Make love to your victim. And listen always for the actual moment when the heart ceases to beat. You will feel an undeniably orgiastic sensation at this moment, but it can be overlooked.

[monstersinthecosmos]

feeder marius teaching amadeo about how romans liked to gorge themselves at feasts and puke between courses by hand-feeding amadeo until he gets sick. he rubs amadeos back through it and then they start again, and again, and again. 😌

[rocksanddeadflowers]

It's the winter solstice today so I am again thinking about Lyfrassir celebrating Yule on the Aurora to try and keep Yggdrasilian traditions alive. Hanging up spmistletoe (space mistletoe) or spcedar (space cedar) etc to bring in greenery, or cooking a large traditional feast, maybe they request Marius and other willing mechs to preform Yule carols.

I think specifically Marius would have many feelings about Lyfrassir celebrating Yule, not just bc of the violinspector thing but bc the lore I picked up, Marius is Space German, so he presumably had a variation of Yule in his past. (Also the fanon(?) idea of Marius having written The Wassailant album in his universe, like the Kofi Young album, is chef's kiss btw.)

Just.... Lyf emotionally rambling on about the celebrations they grew up with while Marius teaches them to make Thomas Wheel breads bc he may block out much from his past but he somehow remembered this and it means so much to Lyf that he may as well.

I want the others trying to help the holiday spirit. I want Tim to tell Marius that this is just like Christmas and he should definitely kiss Lyf under the mistletoe bc it's tradition and he rants about Santa Clause bc what do you mean you guys didn't have that? I want Brian to bake gingerbread cookies shaped like octokittens. Raphaella flying around hanging up decor and occasionally scooping up Jonny and forcing him to help (he acts way more upset over it than he actually is). I want the Toy Soldier being compared to nutcrackers but it actually ends up playing Mari Lwyd which, while being mainly Welsh it's close enough and its absolutely lovingly terrifying. Ashes insists on a Yule Log that's an entire tree (Lyf explains that's just an exaggeration or myth but also won't kill their fun). Nastya and Aurora shift the day-night lighting cycles to feel as close to a Midgard winter as possible. Ivy is honestly the only one trying to find genuine traditional celebrations (both out of caring for Lyf and bc she needs this to be accurate period) to help Lyf with.

They pick a night to feast and drink, a few trading presents while they get drunk off of wassail or muled wine and singing different winter holidays carols from each cultural background that had them. Lyf is ever grateful for their newfound family. They're fucked up and frankly quite concerning, but it means the world to find that deep down, in their own way, they all truly care.

[honeybeezgobzzzzz]

🔱 On the Beach Chapter Two

On The Beach: Orm has spent the last year staying with you, Arthur’s best friend. Part of his sentence is to learn about surface dweller culture from a surface dweller, and try to understand that not everyone above the waves is bad. With the year up, and Orm comfortable with a lifestyle that consisted of just you and him, how will he feel when his half brother shows up, and jealousy rears its ugly head? To put it simply, not very well..

Warnings: Language.

To Note: Orm Marius x NAMED!FEMReader, dividers by @firefly-graphics.

Word Count: ~4.7k

Previous | Masterlist

A hand was lightly running up and down your back, stroking your skin and tracing the ridges of your spine as you snoozed. It totally felt like yet another lazy day of sleeping in, soft sheets beneath your body and a warm body wrapped around your side, keeping you at the perfect temperature. You were still locked in a dream that involved a talking cat and some quest to fulfill before ice cream mountain melted.

You guess you had been craving a lot of ice cream lately because all you could think about was Ben and Jerry’s Phish Food. That and the Bay Shack fried clams, something about fish and shellfish just sounded really good lately which was odd because you were never a huge seafood fan. Practically a sacrilege in a fishing village but that was just how you felt.

Maybe it was a side effect of spending so much time near Orm, he had finally rubbed off on you.

“Beloved, you need to get up,” Orm’s masculine yet dulcet voice reached your ears shortly before he was pressing his sinful lips against your bare shoulder, his hand slipping from underneath your tank top to brush your hair clear from his path. Groaning out softly as he pressed a trail of kisses across your shoulder and then up your neck, his lips made your skin prickle.

“Don’t wanna,” you moaned out, trying to edge away from his teasing and tickles while burying your face further into your pillow. “I’m too comfortable.”

“You promised you would meet Mrs. Johnston at nine to discuss the tagging station.” Orm reminded you, nuzzling his face further into your neck as his hand carved a path over your side and slipped to where your tank top was bunched up. His fingers caressed your stomach and became very distracting, practically making it nearly impossible to try to fall back asleep.

Groaning in exaggerated misery, you swatted at the teasing hand on your stomach before reaching over and throwing the covers off your legs. Pulling yourself free from Orm’s arms, you sat on the edge of the edge of the bed and ran your fingers through your hair, getting out the knots and snares.

Now slightly more awake, your stomach rolled and twisted just like it did every other day. Wonderful, you would have thought you’d be over this annoying stomach bug by now, it was hard enough to keep it from Orm. You loved him, but you swear he takes overprotective to the next level.

Dropping your hand from your hair, you leaned back to look at Orm who was still lounging on his side, although he now had his head propped up as he gazed at you. How could one person look so hot just lying there?

“What is it?” Orm asked, his eyebrow rising elegantly with his question. Letting out a small huff, you leaned back and ran your fingers down the side of his face.

“It’s unfair at how handsome you are,” you told him with a smile. “And I constantly wonder how I ended up yours.”

“Do I need to remind you?” Orm countered, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips as he turned his head and pressed his lips against your fingers. Your face heated up at the memory two months ago. Arguing after Orm got huffy about your friendship with Arthur, then making out in the sand, then Orm feasting like a king, and then…

“No, no, I don’t need to be reminded,” you answered in a strained voice, your face slowly turning red as his smirk grew wider. “I remember quite clearly thank you very much, and now that we’ve cleared that, I need to hop in the shower.”

Pulling your body from the bed, you raised your arms above your head and stretched, enjoying the feeling of stretching your arms and shoulders out. Lowering your arms, you let out a yawn as you headed for the bathroom, oblivious to the fact that you were giving Orm a full view of your cheeky underwear.

Since indicated night of which you will not be speaking of, Orm and you had been sharing your bed. As it turned out, he was a big cuddler and had no issues making that clear to you. You didn’t explicitly say you’re dating, but at this point, you were fairly sure you were more than just dating given the Atlantean culture and views on ‘dating’ in general.

Considering his upbringing, he wasn’t exactly a PDA type of man, but he did like to let others know you were taken, and that meant hand-holding, opening doors for you, maybe a little too much hovering when another man was around you, and the occasional death glare. But when it was just the two of you, he was a hands-on type of man. It was like he was rewarding himself for keeping his hands to himself. You weren’t going to complain, his arms wrapped around your body was literally the best thing you had ever felt.

Stripping out of your tank and underwear, you quickly hopped in the shower and started washing your hair. You were nearly finished rinsing the shampoo from your hair when a wave of nausea hit you. Putting a hand over your mouth, you leaned forwards and pressed your forehead into the cool tile of the shower, counting slowly to ten in your head.

You could not throw up. You would not throw up. You will not throw up.

The wave of nausea passed and you let out a deep breath, glad you didn’t have to scramble for the toilet and have Orm wondering why you were throwing up, and go all Ocean Master on you because it was entirely unacceptable that you were sick and not feeling well. Taking a deep breath, you finished your shower and wrapped yourself up in a towel.

Walking back into the bedroom, you saw Orm propped up against the headboard, book in hand. Smiling at the sight, you turned to the dresser and started riffling through its contents for an outfit to wear. Orm was developing an appreciation for Surface Dweller literature, so you often made trips to the local library to check out several books.

Deciding to go with a navy suit today, you grabbed your white set of lace underwear and bra. Your meetings with Mrs. Johnston about the tagging station up north required you to be dressed more formally, even if it was only going to be a fifteen-minute talk. Doing a quick dry of your body, you tossed the towel onto the bed and shimmied your underwear up your legs before hooking your bra on.

“Don’t forget that you are going fishing with Tom today,” you said as you took out your navy pencil skirt and pulled it up your hips. Orm, who had been quietly watching you get dressed, raised a blond eyebrow.

“You needn’t worry, Beloved, I have not forgotten.” Orm replied with a smile. “Mother is dropping by while we are out, I believe she wants to further bond with you.”

“If you want to call it that,” you huffed with a small laugh before grabbing a white blouse with button on the upper half and shoving your arms through the sleeves. “It’s just female time, nothing too extravagant, we both need to escape the testosterone somehow.”

Orm’s lips twitched but he remained silent as you quickly buttoned the top few buttons, leaving a few undone, and stuffing the ends of the shirt into your skirt. Today was a special kind of day, Orm was going out with Tom, who he had a mutual respect for now, while Atlanna and you would spend a day without men around. Tonight, you were planning on meeting up with Arthur and Mera to eat at a restaurant.

Now that things were calming down, Arthur and Orm were trying to make things work between them, and they both made sure to visit their mother every few months. You were looking forward to hearing more stories about Atlantis from Atlanna, and Orm was looking forward to getting out on the water.

It was a win-win scenario.

Grabbing your matching navy blazer, you folded it across your arm before dipping your feet into your plain black heels and walking over to where Orm lounged.

“I won’t be long, I think we still have leftover pancakes in the fridge if you’re interested in those for breakfast.” you told him with a smile before leaning over and kissing him. “I’ve got my cell on me, you need anything just give me a ring.”

“Only if you promise to be safe,” Orm countered, just like he always did when you left the house.

“I’m always careful,”

“We will agree to disagree on that statement then,” Orm huffed as you drew back. “Stubborn woman,”

“Mmh, your stubborn woman, may I remind you.” you grinned back as you shifted the blazer over your arm. That brought a smile to his lips. He always liked it when you reminded him that you were his, and his alone. With a smile on your lips, you headed out to take care of the one piece of business you had today.

Driving back from Perry, the town where the tagging station was located, you were glad to have a moment of peace in terms of your nausea. It was becoming clear that you weren’t going to be able to hide this from Orm much longer; he wasn’t an idiot. Your only option at this point was to talk to Atlanna and hopefully gain some motherly insight on what you should do, especially considering how protective Orm is.

She was used to dealing with stubborn, obstinate Atlantean men; if anyone could help you out, it was her. Turning into Amnesty Bay, you drove through the town as you wound your way back up to your house. Parking your car out front of your house, you pulled the keys from the ignition before sliding out of your seat.

Closing the car door, you made your way up the paved path to your front door; by now Tom and Orm would be out fishing, and Atlanna would be reading in your living room. Just as expected, Atlanna was sitting on your couch reading one of the Lord of the Rings books.

“Good morning,” you greeted with a big smile as you set your purse and keys down on a side table. Atlanna looked up from the book with a big smile.

“Eva, it is good to see you again! I have missed your company.” Letting out a small laugh, you saw down in your armchair.

“I think I’ve missed being around females in general,” you chuckled back before running a hand through your hair. “Atlanna… can I talk to you about something?”

“Of course, you can talk to me about anything… is everything alright with Orm?” Atlanna asked, her eyes scanning you. “You look fatigued, are you feeling unwell?”

“Kind of, I wanted to ask what is the best way to break it Orm that I’m not feeling well without him going all Ocean Master on me and refusing to let me leave the house until I’m feeling better,” you explained as you twisted your fingers together.

“Darling, Orm is going to be protective no matter how you break the news to him,” Atlanna told you, which made you let out a small groan. “You aren’t sick with something serious though, are you?”

You shrugged in response.

“You— I don’t really know what’s going on with me, yeah I’ve been dealing with some sort of stomach bug, but that’s not all that’s bothering me,” you admitted, chewing on your lip. “I mean does living with an Atlantean affect a surface dweller? Because I’ve been craving a lot of fish lately, and I used to hate it… and I’ve discovered I like swimming and can hold my breath a lot longer than I used to. It’s all so confusing, the water around here isn’t warm enough for someone like me to tolerate swimming around, I’d get hypothermia.”

Your fingers wrung together as you shook your head.

“I feel like I’m going crazy, and every day that goes by where I’m hiding it from Orm makes me feel like I’m betraying him.” Atlanna reached over and took one of your hands, unweaving your jumble of fingers.

“Deep breaths, Eva,” Atlanna said softly as she gently squeezed your hands. That’s when you realized you had worked yourself up in a matter of seconds. Nodding your head, you took a few slow breaths.

“Sorry, I just— I really want Orm to know that he can depend on me to always be honest with him and that I will never keep secrets from him, but I don’t want him worrying.”

“This isn’t anything to worry about, Eva,” Atlanna reassured you gently; your eyebrow rose up.

“You know what this is? Is it Atlantean related? Is it temporary?” you questioned in rapid succession. She chuckled at you before brushing your hair behind your ear.

“Oh your condition isn’t anything to worry about, Eva, quite the opposite, and it would explain why you are craving fish, and are adapting to the water,” she said with a warm smile.

“What is it then?” you questioned, your eyes searching hers. “Did I get some weird Atlantean cooties from Orm or something?”

“If you want to call a child cooties, then yes,” Atlanna replied with a light chuckle.

“Wait what?” you questioned, your brain thinking you had misheard her. Her smile grew and she took your hand with both of hers.

“You are pregnant, Eva, not sick, it isn’t anything to worry about.” That one word echoed in your mind, and a second later your face turning bright read. It was official, Atlanna knew you had slept with her son.

“I— but— how—“ you were floundering for words while your cheeks burned with heat and the Atlantean queen chuckled, patting the back of your hand.

“We are compatible, Arthur is proof of that.”

“I know but are you sure? How is it that I am gaining Atlantean abilities? I— I am one hundred percent surface dweller.”

“But the child you carry is not, and you two are connected.” You were shaking your head, your face still burning that brilliant shade and indicating your mortification.

“But we only— Atlanna I can’t be, I— Orm and I are just— oh hell Orm, what is he going to think? Wait, I might not be and maybe this is just some side effect?” You were blurting out every excuse your brain could think of while Atlanna let you deny it to your heart's content. “It was only one time, only one time…”

“There is one way to make sure,” Atlanna reminded you. “That is if you wish.”

You let out a stressed breath, trying to control your emotions and slight shaking. Nausea, vomiting, fatigue, cravings, mood swings, it all made sense, but the logical side of you needed hard proof.

“I guess that means I’ll be running up to the drug store,” you whispered out, your shoulders sinking in defeat.

“Would you like me to go with you?” Atlanna offered; you shook your head.

“No, I’ll be quick,” you told her before getting up. Retrieving your purse and car keys, you headed back out to pick up some pregnancy tests. Your hand was shaking when you tried inserting the key into the ignition, and it took a few tries before you fully got it in and started the car.

The entire drive to the nearest drug store you could feel your heart racing in your chest as the fight or flight mode kicked in. Pregnant. It just wasn’t something you had ever considered, especially considering Orm and you were from two different worlds. Yes, you loved him very much, and he acted like he loved you back, you were sure he loved you back. But throw a baby into that mix and you were in unknown waters.

Five minutes later you were in line to buy three pregnancy tests, maybe one too many, but you had to make sure. If one of them said yes, then you were. Paying for the tests, you scurried back out to your car and headed back to your house, feeling like you were sneaking around Amnesty Bay.

Entering your house, Atlanna and you looked over the three tests, reaching the directions of each of them. It seemed simple enough, pee on the sticks and then wait. With the three sticks clutched in your trembling fingers, you entered your half bath and followed the instructions. When you were done, you headed for the living room, setting them down on the coffee table before taking a seat and staring out the sliding glass doors.

You were afraid of what they would reveal.

Five minutes later you still refused to look at the tests, your hands forming little fists and resting on your knees as you stared vacantly out at the distant surf.

“Would you like me to check them for you?” Atlanna asked; your eyes which were prickling with tears turned her way.

“I don’t think I can stomach looking at them,” you told her quietly. A few moments went by.

“They are all positive,” you closed your eyes and felt a few tears run down your cheeks before you were dropping your head into your hands.

“Oh God, he’s not going to want it and he’s going to be so mad at me,” you moaned, digging your fingernails into your scalp. “What am I going to say to him?”

“Eva, dear,” Atlanna spoke, taking your hands from your hair. You lifted your head to look into her eyes. “Orm will not be mad, trust me, my son loves you very much, and if anything he will be elated by this news.”

“How do you know that?” She smiled down at you, brushing at your hair.

“Atlantean men do not lay with a woman unless they intend to spend the rest of their lives together.” She explained with a small chuckle. “My son is very much smitten with you Eva, you have nothing to worry about.”

“I still feel like my stomach is going to turn inside out,” you whispered, Atlanna only smiled before pulling you in for a hug.

It was later that night that the four of you, joined by Arthur and Mera, ate at one of the nicer restaurants in Amnesty Bay. Arthur had stared at you in surprise when you had ordered a very seafood-centric plate. You had given him a look and mumbled about Orm rubbing off on you.

From there you steered clear of the wine, and anything that you had learned pregnant women should avoid in the time you had before Tom and Orm had gotten back. Luckily, the conversation turned pleasant and you could relax, just enjoying sitting next to Orm partially in your own little world.

Unfortunately, when it came time for dessert, you had to forgo your favorite triple chocolate cake slice that you pretty much always go when you ate at this restaurant. Both Orm and Arthur had given you weird looks when you had refused dessert.

“Are you sure Eva?” Orm questioned, looking down at you with an inquisitive eyebrow raised. You gave him a smile and nodded.

“I’m full, no need to fill up on cake I don’t need,” you nervously laughed, waving a hand in the air. Orm wasn’t convinced, neither was Arthur, but they didn’t push it. “Enough about me, tell me how Atlantis is doing…”

That got Mera started on some new construction and laws that were taking place, which thankfully took the conversation and attention off you. Slumping back in your seat with a soft sigh, you rested your elbow on the table and dropped your cheek into your hand. Beneath the table, you felt a large warm hand take your free one you had resting on your thigh.

Your fingers curled around Orm’s larger ones as you kept your gaze on Mera talking animatedly about the project she was helping to manage. His thumb was gently stroking the palm of your hand, easing some of the jitters running through your body.

Well, so much for trying to go under the radar; Orm officially knew something was up with you but thank heavens the man wasn’t inclined to ask what it was while you were at dinner. You would have been mortified. Eventually, the meal finished up and the six of you were heading back to your house.

While Tom and Atlanna talked with Orm, Arthur, and Mera in your living room, you got a pot of coffee going. The smell of the coffee was absolutely divine, and yet torturous, caffeine was a no-go, and that meant no coffee for you, which was going to suck majorly. Muttering under your breath about the unfairness of it all, you grabbed a tray and pulled down five coffee cups. The coffee was dribbling away when Atlanna came walking into the kitchen.

“Here, let me take it,” Atlanna said before taking the tray from you. “I’m sure they are already suspicious enough as it is…”

“When do I tell him?” you questioned anxiously, wringing your fingers together before glancing at the kitchen drawer that held the positive tests.

“When you are ready, Eva, if you want to wait until everyone has left and it’s just you two, that is fine. You needn’t stress over it.”

“I—“ you stumbled out that one word before running a hand through your hair and fretting further. “Atlanna, he knows I’m hiding something from him, he knows. We’ve spent enough time around each other to pick up on those types of cues.”

“My son won’t just question you outright in front of the others, Eva, he won’t subject that to you.” Fidgeting where you stood you looked at the kitchen drawer once more. “Eva,” Your eyes flickered back to Atlanna. “No one is going to pressure you into telling, take your time.”

With that, she glided back towards the living room, coffee tray in hand. Biting down on your lips, you skittered over to the kitchen drawer and pulled it open. It was basically a drawer that held random bits and bobs, a few miscellaneous keys, nail clippers, a tape measure, a couple pens, and the positive pregnancy tests.

Just rip it off like a bandaid, Eva, there is plenty of time to wallow in self-misery later at his response.

Picking up the pregnancy tests, you stuffed them into your blazer pocket before heading after Atlanna. Entering the living room, you saw Tom fixing himself and Atlanna their coffee, Arthur drinking his straight black as usual, while trying to convince Mera to try the hot beverage, and Orm standing aloof, scowling at the tray with one remaining cup.

“Do you not want coffee?” you questioned him as you sidled up to him, pressing your sweaty palms into your skirt. “I can get you tea instead if that’s what you want…”

Orm turned his sharp blue eyes to you, and his scowl lightened up. He slipped an arm around your waist and pulled your body against his while looking deep into your eyes.

“Are you feeling unwell tonight?” He questioned vaguely. “You didn’t fix yourself a drink, and you’ve never refused to order your favorite cake…”

His voice was soft as were his questions and for only your ears to pick up on. Letting out a deep sigh, you slumped into his side and rested your head on his shoulder. How could he be so perfectly in tune with you?

“Hey Eva, you feeling okay?” Arthur spoke up, and turning your head to look at him, you saw that he was staring at you with a frown. “You haven’t been acting like yourself at all today; you never skip the wine and cake at The Oyster, and I have never seen you not fix yourself a mug of coffee.”

Your eye twitched in irritation at him for blatantly pointing it out. Orm might be a perfect gentleman, picking up on social cues, but Arthur… not so much. Tom, who probably figured your situation out the moment you refused the wine, sighed and shook his head at his son.

“Perfectly fine thank you very much, Arthur,” you responded crisply, giving him a look; he caught it, and in a couple of seconds, a light bulb went off in his head.

“Ohhhhh,” He dragged out, Mera elbowed him heavily in the side as you turned to look up at Orm.

“Can we talk?” You questioned him before nodding your head at the sliding glass doors. “Privately?”

“Of course, beloved,” Orm responded, his forehead crinkling slightly before he started leading you towards the indicated doors. The further you moved away from the cottage, the more it felt like your heart was going to beat right out of your chest. “Eva, you are practically shaking; whatever it is you are hiding from me, I promise you I won’t be mad.”

“It—“ You started, struggling to find the right words to say. “I don’t know how to tell you, and I’m afraid you will be mad.”

“Eva,” Orm said gently, turning to you and taking your cheeks in his hands. “There is nothing you could say that could make me mad at you, maybe hurt, but not mad.”

You could think of a few things that would make him so hurt he would be mad, but you weren’t going to bring that up. With a slightly shaking hand, you reached into your pocket and withdrew the two tests to bring them in front of you. Then ever so slowly, you turned your eyes down to look at them. Orm’s gaze followed until you were both looking at your trembling hand holding the tests.

Orm released your cheek with one hand and carefully steadied your shaking hand by taking your wrist. The plus sign and the word pregnant steadied and became readable.

“The answer to your question is,” you finally answered. “No, I have not been feeling well.”

The tests were pulled from your hands, and seconds later Orm was kneeling in the sand, his hands on your hips as he pressed his forehead against your still fairly normal stomach. Your hands hovered frozen near his head, not really knowing what to do.

“Orm, please say something.” You whispered, your anxiety at an all-time high.

“You being the mother of my child is the greatest gift you could have given me, Eva,” Orm replied softly, his fingers pulling your body further into his.

“Even if it’s a half breed?”

“It has your blood, Eva, that is more than enough for me.” Letting out a sigh of relief, you slipped your fingers into his hair. “Is this why you have been avoiding your favorite things?”

“Most of my favorite things are not good for a pregnant woman,” you explained while running your fingers through his soft hair. “That includes chocolate, wine, and coffee.”

“You had me worried, Eva,” Orm said giving you another squeeze. “I am relieved to know that you are not ill.”

“Tell that to the morning sickness,” you huffed underneath your breath before finding your feet leaving the sand as Orm stood up, his hands still on your waist. Wobbling around, you clutched at his neck as he started walking you back towards your cottage. “You say you’re the one lucky to have me, but sometimes I feel like I’m the lucky one.”

Orm looked into your eyes with a curve to his lips. You moved your left hand to hold his cheek, your fingers running along his skin.

“I don’t think I say it enough, but I love you,” you told him. “More than anything in the world.”

“I would repeat your words, but I’m afraid there might be something I will love more than you.” Orm returned quietly as he swung you up to cradle your body in his arms. You raised an eyebrow. “Our child, beloved, my love for our child might rival the love I have for you.”

“I think I’m okay with that.”

Date Published: 12/20/20

Last Edit: 4/28/24

Previous | Masterlist

[lifewillalwaysbe-lavieenrose]

GUYS!! I saw Les Mis! In Munich!!!

Let's recap!

The Cast:

Daniel Gutmann as Javert. He was incredible. Definitely my personal highlight. Everytime he sang his voice just ROARED. And he was menacing holy shit. Aggggggh I'm normal about him

Barbara Obermeier as Eponine. When I first heard her sing in Act 1, I knew she was gonna kill it in Act 2. And she did.

Merlin Farcel aka Enjolras. His voice was so perfect I LOVED all the high notes, BUT:

The beard. Sorry, but in my world Enjolras doesn't have a beard. Plus, it makes him look like Peter Maffay

Madame Thenardier was PERFECT (I don't remember who played her that night😭) She was so funny and the audience really loved her.

The Music:

At first, I felt a bit underwhelmed by the orchestra. To be fair, I listened to the 10th anniversary recording SO much, that I really got used to that grand orchestra sound.

There was an electric guitar and at one point an electric bass when Javert sang, which I really loved.

During Master of the House/ Beggars at the Feast you could really see the orchestra bopping their heads and having fun and that made me very happy

I really loved the brass section, they really stood out (That French Hurn during On My Own????!)

The Costumes:

I don't know why, but the Les Amis were wearing these caps all the time. I have never seen a production with them in it. Is this a historically accurate thing?? I didn't really like them, they looked very plastic/shiny and fell out of place

I cannot find a picture but in the beginning of Act 1 Valjean wore a pink vest and then a purple coat which both looked very cheap and which I both didn't like (maybe it was because of the light? The colors felt very unnatural)

Eponine's outfit. At first I thought it didn't look shabby enough. But it looks so badass I'll let it pass

Why don't you let Enjolras wear his red vest??

What is Marius wearing? Goofy boy

Big Mad Hatter vibes from Thenardier. I loved his and the Patron Minettes outifits, they looked very edgy

This is perfect. Perfect. I only wished he had undone his hair for Javert's Suicide (he did, but only for the last 10 seconds)

The Stage:

The stage had a turning middle and stairs that could be moved around, similar like in Hamilton.

They did a cool transition with young Cosette walking up the stairs and old Cosette walking down

Also, they had some cool staging with buildings moving around for Stars. But I feel like there was almost a bit too much happening in the background for this song.

I don't know why they didn't have the Barricades turn and show Enjolras hang upside down. It's such a cool/tragic moment!

During the Barricade scenes, the stage sometimes felt a bit empty. I mean, there were always like 15 people standing around. Maybe the Barricades were to small/not high enough

Empty chairs at empty tables. Where were the empty chairs and empty tables??

In Everyday/A Heart Full of Love Reprise single leaves started falling down on the stage (Like Valjean entering the Fall/Winter of his life) I loved that.

Also, the parallel of Marius learning to walk again using a cane, and Valjean loosing his ability to walk using a cane. I never noticed this before!

There are SO many cool things about the staging I could talk about here. But I want to mention some other topics as well:

The "Spirit" of the Show:

There wasn't a single French flag to be seen. Some red ones, but no French flags.

In the trailer, the director said he wanted to create a more universal setting, speaking to everyone in the audience

I think that's a great sentiment but like. Everyone has French names. There were titles above the stage telling us the year and locations (Places in France) of the events. The title of the show is French.

So I think adding the flags (aka a bit more French nationalism?) would have seemed a lot more convincing for the cause of the students and the whole spirit of the show

But maybe this also has to do with the show being in German? I don't know and I'd really like to discuss it. Maybe someone here made a similar experience seeing it in another language

And last, but MOST importantly:

What about Valvert and Enjoltaire?

In the Confrontation, Javert and Valjean got really close to each other. And I mean fighting each other and then stopping just to sing directly into each other's faces.

Instead of running infront of the court in Who Am I, Valjean just goes to Javert and rips his shirt open? Okay, go off I guess

In Drink with Me, we have a platonic forehead touch between Enjolras and Grantaire. Sadly, that's all I noticed between them 😔

Also, the fact that Grantaire is supposed to be ugly/shabby/a drinker/a sceptic got totally lost, which really takes away from his character.

Conclusion:

All the actors were good, some of them were FANTASTIC. I'd watch it again just for the guy playing Javert, if I could. God, he was SO GOOD

The music was all it should be, maybe a bit too reserved (but again, this might be because I am so used to the 10th anniversary concert)

I really loved some costumes and I also really disliked some

The staging was great, some choices confused me (flags, barricades etc.)

Would I watch it again?

Absolutely!

To be clear, some of the things here might sound more negative than I actually mean. It's just that I have watched SO many different productions online, that I fixated on all the great performances and how I think they should be done. Of course everyone has different opinions here.

Okay thanks for reading if you made it here. Have a great day!