#they sleep entwined in louis coffin

[pynkhues]

I’m confused by what you mean when you say that Lestat was “cast out of the house” after the drop in 1.05, as this is not what the show tells us. Lestat left of his own will — he wasn’t thrown out. He beat Louis half to death and then ran away, as evidenced here — “Lestat had disappeared after that awful night. Vanished out of a profound sense of shame he would later confess to” (Louis, 1.06). Louis was in no fit state to throw anyone out of anywhere: as mentioned previously, Lestat had just beaten him half to death.

Apologies if I’m misinterpreting, but in instances like this you seem to paint Lestat as a somewhat of a victim — poor Lestat, banished from his house by his uncaring, domineering husband — when in actuality he was anything but a victim. He was the aggressor, the perpetrator of horrific intimate partner violence, and so to twist the narrative to imply that he was hard done to leaves a very sour taste in my mouth. 

Another instance of this is in your Byronic Hero post, where you suggest that Louis “decides when Lestat gets to live at Rue Royale”, in reference to him being “one of the monsters who’s controlling the household”. We’re talking about someone that has just spent months recovering from a brutal attack by their partner; Lestat chooses to not return because he is ashamed and he knows that Louis has not forgiven him. Louis is not forcing anything on him — and he certainly doesn’t have the power to keep Lestat from RR.

Can you understand why assertions like these are problematic? I understand you wanting to explore the push-pull power dynamic between L&L, but in doing so you seem to be missing the essential through-line in 1.06, which is that Louis and Claudia cannot leave while Lestat lives. Any power they may have once held is overshadowed by Lestat’s absolute control of the household, so to place Louis on level with Lestat as “one of the monsters controlling the household” is at best misguided, and at worst displays an unsettling disregard for victims of IPV. 

(x)

I mean, with all due respect, anon, you're responding to a series of tags I wrote last night that I specifically said I would later clarify and better articulate, so I'm not surprised you're confused and yes, you are misinterpreting me (again, I suspect, as I think you may have sent me asks like this before). I've been clear for months now that the drop is a singular act of violence on this show, and it's not one that I'd ever diminish or underwrite, and as a result, this feels like a pretty bad faith read of something I've both spoken about already and explicitly said I would be talking about again soon. Instead of paying me the respect I extend to all of you by giving me the time to reply in the way I've signalled I would, you've used my tags to make assumptions about what I will say and frankly made some pretty unkind accusations as to my character.

It takes me time and energy to write up replies, particularly replies on this sort of topic that require greater attunement, sensitivity and nuance than others. It's something I do for free, and at the sacrifice of other things in my life, and it's something I do with my name attached, unlike anons. And look, I enjoy doing it - I do - but if you follow me, you should know that my sister - a survivor of recent IPV and her two small children are currently staying with me, after I was a witness in her courtcase against her ex-husband in October - real people, not fictional characters - something I've also been open about, and so you telling me that I have an 'unsettling disregard for victims of IPV' feels like a particularly cruel thing to say to me right now.

I will answer the other anon's ask, as I said that I would, but I'll do it in my own time, and in the meantime, I'd ask that you perhaps don't put words in my mouth or mount arguments to things you yourself say you are confused about or feel you could be misinterpreting. I'll clarify, again, as I said that I would.

[scxrsgxrd]

Cravings - An Intimate Affair

This is my contribution to @skarsgard-daydreams 600 followers challenge🎉Many congratulations lovely, we’re so lucky to have you in this fandom!!

“But why do you have to go?” You let out yet another frustrated sigh as Eric zipped his duffel bag shut, slinging it over his shoulder with ease as he called for Pam to join him.

“Because I’m her sheriff.” Eric planted a kiss on your forehead and you frowned. Eric and Pam had been beckoned by Queen Sophie-Anne to accompany her to a meeting with the King of Texas, a meeting which Eric refused to disclose the details of. When it came to matters of vampire politics Eric maintained that the less you knew, the safer you were, and as much as you wanted to protest this, you knew that he was right. 

“So why does Pam have to go?” 

“For fun, like a court jester.” Eric smirked before yelling for Pam once again, this time including a phrase in his native tongue and, judging by his tone, you assumed it wasn’t a pleasant one.

There was a flash of pink and then a bag launched across the room, hitting Eric in the chest and knocking him backwards as Pam settled on one of the barstools.

“I couldn’t find my Gucci pumps.” Her cold stare landed on you in an accusatory manner and you frowned once again, you’d never dare to even look in the direction of Pam’s designer wardrobe, let alone take something for yourself.

“I’ll get you a new pair in Texas, Pamela. Now come on, we’re already late.” He gestured to the door and Pam flashed one more glare at you before disappearing out of the bar, leaving her custom designed Louis Vuitton bag at Eric’s feet for him to escort to the car.

He carefully stepped over the bag and held your face in his large hands, placing a kiss on your lips and holding it for a few seconds before pulling away. You whined in protest, gripping onto the collar of his leather jacket and silently begging for him to stay.

“It’s only for the weekend. You have the keys to my apartment and the safe, treat yourself while we’re away.” 

-

You opted to sleep in Eric’s coffin while he was on the trip, but there was a strange feeling anxiety that had settled in your stomach while you were waiting for Eric to return from Texas. You couldn’t think why - Eric leaving for weekend-long vampire business had become the norm in your relationship, yet in the few days he had been gone you’d had the most vivid nightmares, haunted by a face you didn’t recognise, a strange entity that seemed hell-bent on ripping you to shreds while you lay there helpless and frozen. When you awoke each night with a stifled scream and drenched in sweat you could almost feel Eric’s deep desire to come home immediately and cradle you, to comfort you and reassure you that as long as he was present, nothing and nobody would dare to lay a finger on you.

You felt an air of selfishness to be pining for Eric while he had important business to attend to, for you knew that every single emotion you felt, Eric felt tenfold, and as much as he might have wanted to, he was unable to step back from his sheriff responsibilities and make an early return to Shreveport. His trip was only for three days, but in that relatively short space of time you felt as though you were paralyzed by your loneliness. You lay in his coffin each night with one of his sweaters pressed against your cheek, inhaling the scent of Eric’s cologne as you screwed your eyes shut and allowed yourself to picture him next to you in an attempt to satiate your craving for his presence.

Although Eric had told you that you ought to treat yourself in his absence, you felt unable to leave his coffin. You felt safe in the small space, Eric’s sweater still clutched against your chest as your body felt unable to move, wracked with worries that you were unable to explain, yet they plagued your brain for the whole weekend as you lay still, only emerging from the coffin when absolutely necessary.

You were asleep when the lid of the coffin was hauled off, two strong arms lifting you out as a small groan erupted from you, stuck in the delirious limbo of slumber and consciousness as a familiar voice shushed you. A hand threaded its way into your hair, running through your dishevelled locks as your eyes began to open. From what you gathered it was still the evening, perhaps the early hours of the morning as Eric was in no hurry to haul himself into the coffin. 

“Eric-”

“I know, sweetheart. Just relax, I’m here now, I’ve got you.” 

So you melted into his chest, inhaling his scent as he stood with you in his arms, humming a soft tune as you felt your heart rate begin to slow, your muscles begin to relax.

Once Eric was happy that you had calmed, he placed you gently back into the coffin, and you heard the sound of his clothes dropping to the floor before he disappeared for a few seconds. When he returned you felt the soft knit blanket he had purchased for you a while back cover you, with Eric positioning himself behind you, his large body engulfing yours as he peppered small kisses on your shoulder.

He draped his arm over you, nuzzling his head just behind your own as his legs entwined with yours, ensuring that he was as close to you as possible, his presence soothing you as you finally felt able to breathe. There was a silence between the two of you, a comfortable one. You knew that while you were awake, Eric would be too, refusing to let himself fall into a deep sleep while you were in such a vulnerable headspace.

“I was worried about you, that maybe you wouldn’t come home.” Your small voice broke the silence, and you felt Eric shift behind you, moving his head upwards so that he could place a kiss on your temple. For a few moments he remained quiet, considering your statement as his lips remained pressed against your head.

“You don’t need to fret about that, I am yours. Mind, body and whatever is left of my soul.” There was a gentleness to Eric’s voice that you had never heard before, and the softness of his words comforted you, aiding you in pushing away the intrusive thoughts that had become rooted in your brain over the weekend.

You allowed yourself to relax completely, your eyes starting to flutter closed as you drifted into a peaceful slumber, Eric’s arm remaining wrapped around you with his face buried in your hair.

[bulbuli83]

prev tags

#i will say though i've never said louis and claudia cast him out#i said he was cast out#i think he cast himself out#but louis and claudia pointedly don't let him back in#like it's literally a huge part of the episode#he respects that line#it's his house#if he was the singular aggressor and controller you're painting him as what's stopping him from forcing his way back in?#louis doesn't have the power to keep lestat from rr okay#sure#then why isn't lestat living in the house for literal years?#what does that tell us thematically?#what does louis throwing lestat's coffin from a window mean?#what does it mean when louis stabs him and bites him and drags him from his mistresses house?#why don't they replace lestat's coffin in the house at rr?#they leave the damage so they don't forget the damage#but symbolically all that does is tie louis and lestat closer together#they sleep entwined in louis coffin#which is dented from where louis smashed lestat's face into it#these aren't real people these are characters and the decisions they make are deliberate writing decisions#intended to reveal character theme plot#louis IS one of the monsters in the house#does that undo the horror of what lestat did to him?#of course not#and that should never be undermined#but louis DOES control the household alongside lestat#he chooses when lestat gets to come home

I’m confused by what you mean when you say that Lestat was “cast out of the house” after the drop in 1.05, as this is not what the show tells us. Lestat left of his own will — he wasn’t thrown out. He beat Louis half to death and then ran away, as evidenced here — “Lestat had disappeared after that awful night. Vanished out of a profound sense of shame he would later confess to” (Louis, 1.06). Louis was in no fit state to throw anyone out of anywhere: as mentioned previously, Lestat had just beaten him half to death.

Apologies if I’m misinterpreting, but in instances like this you seem to paint Lestat as a somewhat of a victim — poor Lestat, banished from his house by his uncaring, domineering husband — when in actuality he was anything but a victim. He was the aggressor, the perpetrator of horrific intimate partner violence, and so to twist the narrative to imply that he was hard done to leaves a very sour taste in my mouth. 

Another instance of this is in your Byronic Hero post, where you suggest that Louis “decides when Lestat gets to live at Rue Royale”, in reference to him being “one of the monsters who’s controlling the household”. We’re talking about someone that has just spent months recovering from a brutal attack by their partner; Lestat chooses to not return because he is ashamed and he knows that Louis has not forgiven him. Louis is not forcing anything on him — and he certainly doesn’t have the power to keep Lestat from RR.

Can you understand why assertions like these are problematic? I understand you wanting to explore the push-pull power dynamic between L&L, but in doing so you seem to be missing the essential through-line in 1.06, which is that Louis and Claudia cannot leave while Lestat lives. Any power they may have once held is overshadowed by Lestat’s absolute control of the household, so to place Louis on level with Lestat as “one of the monsters controlling the household” is at best misguided, and at worst displays an unsettling disregard for victims of IPV. 

(x)

I mean, with all due respect, anon, you're responding to a series of tags I wrote last night that I specifically said I would later clarify and better articulate, so I'm not surprised you're confused and yes, you are misinterpreting me (again, I suspect, as I think you may have sent me asks like this before). I've been clear for months now that the drop is a singular act of violence on this show, and it's not one that I'd ever diminish or underwrite, and as a result, this feels like a pretty bad faith read of something I've both spoken about already and explicitly said I would be talking about again soon. Instead of paying me the respect I extend to all of you by giving me the time to reply in the way I've signalled I would, you've used my tags to make assumptions about what I will say and frankly made some pretty unkind accusations as to my character.

It takes me time and energy to write up replies, particularly replies on this sort of topic that require greater attunement, sensitivity and nuance than others. It's something I do for free, and at the sacrifice of other things in my life, and it's something I do with my name attached, unlike anons. And look, I enjoy doing it - I do - but if you follow me, you should know that my sister - a survivor of recent IPV and her two small children are currently staying with me, after I was a witness in her courtcase against her ex-husband in October - real people, not fictional characters - something I've also been open about, and so you telling me that I have an 'unsettling disregard for victims of IPV' feels like a particularly cruel thing to say to me right now.

I will answer the other anon's ask, as I said that I would, but I'll do it in my own time, and in the meantime, I'd ask that you perhaps don't put words in my mouth or mount arguments to things you yourself say you are confused about or feel you could be misinterpreting. I'll clarify, again, as I said that I would.