Chateaux de l'Eclipse

[Mewling Quim]

❝oWhat’s stopping me?
I get stuck again.
Is it really okay?
It’s never okay for me.
What’s got into me?
I get lost again.
Is it really okay?
It’s never going to be.o❞

outfit

✗✗●○QUIMOut of everyone in Chateaux de l’Eclipse, Irisalee really didn’t think that the person who would ask her to go to the dance with them would have been Oliver Thorne, and especially not after that disastrous dance that they had experienced during the last party. Okay, so it totally wasn’t disastrous, it was just really, really awkward. She thought as she fixed up her hair. She was running an hour early, which was odd for her, but her nerves were absolutely through the roof. She knew that Olly had been coming out of his shell more and more, but she never thought that it was so much so that she’d actually be going to the ball with him. He’s just being nice, Risa, chill! She softly curled the bottom strands of her hair before pulling it back and pinning it, and curling the layers in it after it was pulled back. It never really took her long to do her hair at all, and only ten minutes had passed since then, so she decided that it was just fine how it was. Risa then started to apply her makeup, going for a more classic look instead of her dramatized looks as she usually would. Nope, this time she’d be soft and girly and she would suppress her inner nerd goddess until after the ball. Tonight she was going to be Cinderella. “No, how about not. Snow White is more like it. I look more like her, I guess. Not really. Okay, so maybe a little.” Risa spoke to herself as she looked into the mirror while she applied her makeup.

Twenty minutes later, when her face was painted on and looking flawless, she disappeared from her bathroom and into her bedroom, eyeing the dress that she had laid out. It was a short party dress, formal enough for a ballroom, but casual enough just for her style. It was black with a light pink ribbon sash around the middle, and the moment she stepped in it, she already felt like a princess. “Party princess.” She said, wiggling her body in the mirror. She figured that Jace would have a comment on what she was wearing tonight. Risa slipped into her black Louboutin’s and took a few steps in them to be sure those were exactly what she wanted to wear that night. When she was satisfied, she fastened a tiered necklace on her neck and a plastic bow that matched the sash on her dress in her hair. Risa wasn’t aware of how much time had passed between her putting the dress on and the knock that she heard at her door, but she quickly slipped on her diamond star cut ring and sprayed on a squirt of her favorite perfume before going to the door and seeing Melody there. “Gosh! You look gorgeous, girl!” She had to compliment her, not only because both of their dates were twins, but because she did look pretty amazing. “Is it bad that I’m actually nervous?” She asked in a small voice. Melody probably knew Oliver almost as much as Hugo did with as much as they had been hanging out together, but a small voice in the back of her head called her an idiot as soon as she asked the question, and she started to feel irritated with herself.

She and Melody made their way down the stairs, and Risa caught sight of Olly and smiled. He was looking quite handsome tonight and she felt honored to have been the one he asked right then. Risa watched as Hugo greeted Melody, not expecting to get much of a greeting from Oliver herself, but was actually shocked when he wasted no time in following suit, only instead of taking hold of her and kissing her hand as Hugo did to Melody – which Risa thought was completely overrated. – Olly put his face close to hers and she was expecting him to peck her cheek as she did to him after their first “dance”, but that was not what happened at all. Oliver had licked her face, and Risa couldn’t hold back her laughter any longer than the two seconds that had passed in between. She turned to him and put her hands on the side of his face as he said that the awkward part was over now. “I’m not sure if that was just awkward or completely hilarious.” She was still giggling but they had linked arms and followed Hugo and Melody into the ballroom. Risa clapped her free hand over Olly’s arm and smiled up to him once they got inside. It was completely filled already with Vampyres and there were many more coming. “Let’s just go thank the heads of each house then go find a table, okay?” She said with a smile.

Things had gone a lot quicker than Risa thought it would and they were now seated at a corner table. They listened to Woolfred as he said that the party had begun, and she grinned to the music. It was nice to just sit here and listen along, but she stood up and held her hands out to Olly. “Come on, lazy bones, you owe me at least one dance, and we don’t even have to be around anyone while we’re dancing!” Their hands nestled against one another as she pulled him up and to the dance floor. The first song they danced to was a bit upbeat, which was good, it would be good for Olly to actually let go for once and have a nice time, and she was glad that she would be the one to help him do so. Well, she would, with the help of Melody. Okay, so with a lot of help from Melody. She thought as they actually danced through two songs together before they headed back to the table. “Thank you~” She said, giving him a hug before she settled down into the chair. Risa was used to high heels, but not used to dancing around in them. She smiled and nodded to Olly when he told her that he was going to get them a drink. She had a moment to herself, that was always good during a date, wasn’t it? “That’s not even what this is, silly!” She said to herself, knowing that they were just having a good time as friends.

When Oliver got back with their drinks, Risa grinned to him and took the drink from him. “Ah! It’s really cold! Thanks!” She grinned and took a sip before setting it down on the table and smudging the lipstick that had printed onto the side of the glass after she took a drink. A few minutes passed and they just talked until they heard the music stop and a voice speak up over the crowd. “What?” She whispered, standing up to get a better look at things, but there were so many people there! She just couldn’t see over them all! That’s when she huffed and kicked her shoes off under the table, standing up onto her chair. Risa didn’t seem like she was steady, but she actually was, but she thought it was really sweet how Olly stood beside her and held his hand by her just in case she needed to be steadied, but she didn’t say anything right then, nor would she ever, really. She watched the events unfold before her and she just wanted to squeal! It was so sweet to see something like this outside of a comic book, and when the entire crowd was anticipating Alaric’s answer, Risa gently grabbed onto Oliver’s hand and held on to it until hearing the answer, and when she did, she had already figured it. Alaric would of course say yes, those two were crazy for each other. I’m still holding Olly’s hand though, maybe I should fake forgetting that I was so he doesn’t think I’m weird or something… Risa looked down to their linked hands before looking back up to him. “Oh, I’m sorry, I forgot to let go.” She grinned, letting his hand go, and clasping her hands behind her back as she blinked up at him with big, innocent blue eyes.QUIM●○✗✗

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❝Ｚｏｏｍ!Ｂｏｏｍ!Ｂａｍ!Ｗｈａｍ!Ｋｒｒｒｒｒｒｕｎｃｈ!Ｚｉｐ!Ｐｏｗ!Ｒｕｕｕｍｂｌｅ!❞
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[x--A Beautiful LIE]

xxxxxxxxxxxx Alexis Rosa Soleilxxx

▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄ ▄▄
xx
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❝They can try to make me write a thousand lies,
but that won't ever change the way I feel inside.
They've got their opinions but I just don't care!
'Cause that's not what I want to hear.❞

xxx " '

As the afternoon progressed, Lexi was becoming increasingly excited for the Christmas party. She couldn't wait to see her mother and older siblings once again. Of course she wouldn't be spending a lot of time with them at the party, seeing as their mother expected them to socialize with others more than anything else. Still, the chance to spend the evening around them was enough to lift Lexi's spirits. She couldn't stop herself from missing home at times. Sure Alaric was spending more time with her than the previous year, yet their talks of home still brought on the longing feelings. These feelings didn't stop her from spending most of the last month out of her room, like her twin. What made Lexi the most thrilled about the evening was the fact that Corvo would be there. If she could, and he didn't see any problems with it, she would spend the entire evening with him. She wouldn't expect more than a few dances before her mother would interrupt her and insist she speak to the other guests. Lexi couldn't stop herself from wondering how Corvo truly felt about her. Would he truly mind if she spent so much time with him that evening? Despite the afternoons they spent together, there was something in Lexi that made her question the matter regardless. She could only shrug the feeling off and wait for what the evening had in store for her.

After leaving Alaric to take care of his own matters, Lexi was off to her own bedroom to prepare for the evening. She was in one of her usual daydream-like states as she waltz about her room, in no real rush. She didn't want to waste a moment of how enjoyable this evening would be. Lexi jumped into the shower, knowing that was always a good way to waste time. She made sure to use her strawberry scented shampoo, which seemed to give her quite a few compliments as of late. It took her about twenty minutes in the shower, despite feeling as though she was in there longer. From there she decided to spend some time drying her hair while absentmindedly contemplating everything. She wished her and Alaric could go home this evening. Christmas Eve wasn't the same without their family, even if they saw one another at the party. The last Christmas Lexi spent at the Chateaux de l'Eclipse was dreadful because of how homesick she felt. Nothing was quite the same as snuggling up to her mother while she impatiently waited until they could open their presents the next morning. It was hard for Lexi to not bug her twin into helping her catch Santa like she did every year. It didn't matter to them if they were old enough to know the truth about Santa, it was their own little tradition. That sort of childish behavior they could easily pull at home wouldn't work at their new home, however, so Lexi will have to spend another night grudgingly holding those urges to herself.

Once Lexi finished drying her hair, she threw it up into a loose but placed bun on top of her head. The few strands too short to fit she curled to add a bit to the look. She then moved onto her makeup, deciding to use a subtle nude color of eye shadow and a bit of black eyeliner. As she was slowly beginning to put her makeup away, Lexi couldn't stop herself from daydreaming. As always, she was off in her own world thinking about Corvo. She had to wonder how her family would like the idea of the two of them together. She did not realize until that moment that her older siblings did not know what was going on between the two of them. It was an exciting thought to tell her sisters all about their artsy adventures. Lexi hoped Ryder would not mind all the time she was spending with his best friend. She was sure he wouldn't mind too much, but she was blissfully unaware of their friendship dynamics as is. Speaking of, the more Lexi thought about Ryder, the more energized she was to see him as well. She missed her big brother dearly, almost more than she did her own mother. With a cheerful smile Lexi walked back to her bedroom, the thought of her family still on her mind. She casually caught a glimpse of the clock and nearly panicked as she saw the time. All that daydreaming was going to make her late, although that was nothing new for her. Her mother would be angry with her for sure. Lexi made a mad dash for her closet, digging through all of her clothes for a dress for that evening. It took her a bit of extra time, but she managed to finally come across a dress that may work. As quickly as she could, Lexi slipped into her teal, strapless dress. After tying up the lighter blue sash around her waist, she immediately stepped into her favorite silver heels, which happened to be covered in glitter. After that she quickly grabbed her accessories; her diamond bobby pins for her hair, her Soleil family ring, and her silver heart-shaped locket. The locket was the only item she took extra time and care for, seeing as it was from her father one Christmas.

Lexi shoved whatever else she may need into her purse as she flew out of her bedroom. The young vampire had to bolt through the building, dodging crowds of other guests lingering in the hallways. Lexi was not too terribly late for the party, but she would be for her mother's standards. Tonight was an important night for the Soleils and her mother as it was for the Eclipse family. Sera requested that she was there early to set a good example and greet everyone. It was sure to be a boring beginning to the party, but at least she could have some time reasonably alone with her family before the party began. Lexi stumbled her way into the ballroom, immediately heading for her family's table. With a sly little smile, she took her seat. She tried her best to avoid her mother's gaze, but she seemed to be in a better mood than Lexi expected. She spent a good portion of the first half trying to stay interested in the mundane task of greeting guests. She wanted to remain on her mother's good side so she could perhaps overlook how much time Lexi planned to spend only with Corvo. After what felt like an eternity, the ball began. With Alaric began to mention how Corvo looked that evening, Lexi could feel her cheeks immediately turn pink. "Oh shut up, Alaric!" she replied with a timid smile, her hands abruptly flying up to cover her face. She would surely get him back for that later, but did not know how to go about doing it. She couldn't mention Rory, not with the way Ric felt on the subject. She didn't notice seem to notice him around, which didn't matter to her. She still did not like Rory very much after all the harm he caused for her twin. Ric soon ran off, leaving Lexi alone with Jennifer and her curiously prying eyes. Lexi knew by the look that she would have to spill her secret, not that she truly minded to do so. With her little smirk she told Jenny about her past few weeks with Corvo, leaving out a few details here and there due to her mother's and Ryder's presence. Lexi didn't realize she spent the entire time Ric was gone rambling on and on about Corvo until Ric returned to her side. "Nooo~!" she began to say before Emilé came up and poked them both. Lexi wrinkled her nose a little before laughing about it. With a tiny shrug of her shoulders, she returned to Ric. "Nope dear brother, I have not left the table yet," she replied in a matter-of-fact tone. "I am waiting for a young man to come and ask me to dance! That's what all the princess stories say to do." She had a sweet and innocent smile on her face as she waited for Ric to start laughing. With how stunning and perfect everything seemed to appear that evening, it was almost like Lexi was in her own fairy tale. She was beginning to hope it would turn into just that.

Before the conversation could continue, the music stopped abruptly. Lexi gently wrapped her arm around Ric, knowing he was going to need extra support. Lexi didn't know what Rory was up to, but at this point she did not seem to be happy with it. She couldn't listen to what the boy was saying, not with her twin ready to collapse on top of her. She was too busy focusing on keeping him calm and happy, even though that would be a difficult task at the moment. And then there was a name, a name she had not heard of in many years. At first Lexi turned to Alaric, wondering if he had any idea what was going on. As the crowd cleared and Sebastian appeared, Lexi had to use all of her strength to keep from screaming out of joy. She couldn't believe it. It did not seem real to see her father again after all those years. It seemed her fairy tale was becoming more realistic. As soon as Sebastian completed his task for Rory, Lexi clung to his side. She couldn't help but to worry what was going through Ric's mind despite how excited and thrilled she was. She couldn't have been more thrilled for Alaric and everything happening for him tonight. Everything Rory was doing for him was sweet and adorable. Lexi knew it was going to be the perfect evening, far better than any Christmas prior.

Outfit

Won't someone tell me what is happenin' to me?
Why am I so misunderstood? Why can't they see?
Now I'm caught between the devil and the angel
that I used to be.
They say I'll understand it all in good time,
but age ain't nothin but a number in my mind.
I'm goin' crazy with this push me pull me
caught between wrong and right.

xx
xx
xx
xx

I must, I must, I must not... chase... the boys.

[Annotations of Discordia]

⊱ уσυ мιgнт ωσяк вυт ι ωσяк нαя∂єя discordia уσυ мιgнт fιgнт вυт ι fιgнт ѕмαятєя discordia мιgнт иσт вє σи тσρ σf тнє ωσяℓ∂

вυт, нєу annotations of discordia ~ nostealingplease
annotations of discordia ~ nostealingplease ι'м σи му ωαу

уσυ мιgнт fℓу вυт ι fℓу нιgнєя discordia уσυ'яє ѕσ нσт вυт ι'м σи fιяє discordia мιgнт иσт вє σи тσρ σf тнє ωσяℓ∂

вυт, нєу annotationsofdiscordia ~ nostealingplease
annotationsofdiscordia ~ nostealingpls ι'м σи му ωαу ⊰
discordia

✥

discordiaKai feigned a hurt expression when the sugar cube that Juliet had thrown at him bounced off his chest. “Thanks for the permission, your Highness.” He teased, bending down to pick the sugar cube up before popping it into his mouth. “Five second rule.” Was all he mumbled with a sugary grin. When it had melted into nothingness, he glanced down at the fluffy carpet. “Plus, I’ve never seen a room look so spotless in my whole life.” There was a split second where he realised what he’d said and felt utterly lost because he didn’t even have a life anymore, did he? It didn’t last long though and he covered up the empty feeling in his stomach by asking who on earth Kassie was. He’d never heard Juliet mention her and from the sounds of things, she’d written to his Princess just to hurt Elissiana. What a b***h, he thought with a small shake of his head. A grin appeared on his lips then because he’d never even think to say that word aloud. His thoughts and actual words were two completely different things. It disappeared quickly when Juliet told him that he did indeed have to wear the suit for the Christmas ball later that night. Instead of saying what he was actually thinking when Rory’s name was mentioned, he gave a coy smile. “I’m important to you? Now, that is a high honour you bestow upon me, your Highness.” This time he was ready for the piece of muffin that came flying towards him and he stuck his tongue out before placing it into his mouth. A short while later after they’d finished eating, Kai slipped his trainers off his feet and gently pushed Kyrie from his lap before allowing himself to be dragged onto the bed by Juliet. The bedding was so neat that he didn’t want to mess even a tiny bit of it up. He stroked Juliet’s hair and closed his eyes after she’d pulled the blanket around them.

His eyes stayed closed when she asked him whether or not he was excited that it would be Christmas tomorrow. “I…” He began but had no clue how he was going to finish the sentence. Am I? My parents won’t be there. I’ll never see them again… Christmas was so… Family orientated. Does Santa even come to Vampyres? A strong wave of sadness washed over him and Kai realised that it wasn’t coming from him, but from Juliet. Without another thought, he wrapped his arms around her. “Silly. Don’t get upset. You can talk to me about anything. You don’t need to worry about me getting upset about things…” He murmured softly into her hair. What is about her that I just can’t get enough of…? Kai was in the process of wondering when she suddenly pulled away from him and jumped off the bed, causing him to smile a little at her unpredictableness. When she returned, she had a beautifully wrapped gift in her hands. Juliet snuggled up to him once more and Kai took the box when she passed it to him. The paper was autumn and everything that he associated with Juliet, even though it hadn’t been very long since he’d met her. Very slowly, he unwrapped them, taking special care not to rip the paper. Ever since he’d come to Chateaux de l’Eclipse, he’d started up a box of memories, sort of like a scrapbook but bigger, and the wrapping paper would most certainly be going in. When the books tumbled out onto the blanket, Kai stared down at them for a few moments, his finger gently tracing along the leather covers. “Juliet…” He whispered. They were completely perfect. New notepads and sketchbooks had always been number one on Kai’s Christmas list ever since he was a kid, but for Juliet to get them him, and ones that looked so amazing as well… “Thankyou.” He said, carefully setting them on the bedside table and turning a little so that he was looking straight at Juliet. Without warning, he tucked a strand of loose hair behind her ear and smiled at the way she was nervously chewing her lip.

“Christmas was always a big family thing back at home. Well, my old home anyway.” Kai began, leaning back against the headboard whilst still looking at Juliet. “On Christmas Eve, we’d leave out milk and cookies for Santa, and a carrot for the reindeer. Only when I was little I got sad that only one of the reindeer would end up getting a treat, so it became tradition to chop one up into eight pieces so that they’d all have a piece. We’d spend the rest of the night watching Christmas movies and sticking cloves in oranges. I dunno why we did the last part. I think it was because Mama said they smelled nice though. She used to put them on the radiator and the whole room would smell all Christmassy. I had to make sure my room was always tidy and that I’d had a bubble bath so I’d be clean for Santa ‘cause he doesn’t come to unclean people. After my bath, Dad would go out and get us a takeaway. Fish and chips at Christmas might seem really weird but when you’ve done it for as long as you can remember, it’s just something that you carry on doing I guess. After dinner was when we put out Santa’s tray. I probably should’ve saved that bit until now. But yeah, cookies, milk and carrot chunks. Then I’d hop into bed after hanging my stocking up on my door. I was always too excited to sleep, even as I got older, so my Mama would sing O Holy Night, even last year she did. Then I’d finally fall asleep and when I woke up, Santa had been… I guess that sounds silly, huh? All of my friends at university said I was daft, but I never cared. Santa never forgot about me, not once.” Kai took a deep breath and looked up at Juliet once again. He hadn’t been paying attention, but as he was talking, his eyes had strayed downwards to a small piece of loose thread on the blanket as though it was the most interesting thing in the entire world. “It’s okay if he doesn’t come to Vampyres though… I know that Christmas will be okay because I’m with you.” He finally said after a long pause of silence. Without any warning at all, he leaned forwards and placed a soft kiss on Juliet’s lips. He didn’t know if it was okay or not, but she didn’t push him away. Kai deepened the kiss and stroked his fingertips along the base of her neck. Before it went too far though, he pulled away and stood up from the bed. “I think that’s my cue to leave… I’ll see you tonight, okay?” He whispered whilst grabbing his new pads and backing out of the door, Kyrie at his heels.

What did I do?! What did I dooo? Kai thought as he quickly headed down the fairy lighted staircase. The fact that he’d forgotten to put his shoes back on mattered little to him but he was sure it would matter if one of the Vampyre guests saw him walking around in Christmas socks. He’d caused enough trouble with having a room on the third floor and being a fledgling as it was. When he’d made it safely back to his bedroom, Kai breathed out a sigh of relief and walked across the floor to the polished desk. Once he was seated, he opened the drawer where he kept all of his sketching pencils, something he’d acquired when he went out with Juliet for new clothes. With a faint smile on his face, he opened his brand new leather sketchpad and put the pencil to its clean, crisp white paper. Kai was so absorbed in his drawing that when the alarm clock next to his bed started beeping, he almost fell off his chair. He stared down at the drawing for a second before signing it, in the exact same place of her neck where he’d touched earlier when he’d kissed her. It wasn’t finished, but he knew that it didn’t matter. Kai never came back to his drawings after he’d been distracted. It would forever stay that way now. Quickly, he closed the pad, stood up from the chair and walked over to his bed so he could switch the alarm off. The time surprised him, and he knew that he’d be in absolute hell if he was late for the ball, so he quickly set to work undressing and grabbing his suit, which was still zipped up in the bag, from the wardrobe. After a super fast shower, Kai dried himself off with one of the towels in his en-suite bathroom before starting to get dressed. The suit was a dark blue colour and he even had matching cufflinks to go with it. The scent of his apple body wash and shampoo gave off a nice aroma so he didn’t bother using aftershave as well, even though he thought twice about it. Everything had been heightened since he’d become a Vampyre, especially smells. After slipping his feet into the brand new pair of shiny black shoes, Kai straightened up and looked in the mirrors that covered the front of his wardrobe. When his hair was neatly brushed, he placed his blue trilby hat on top of his head, took one last look around his bedroom and headed out into the hallway.

The library was deserted apart from the twinkly lights everywhere. Kai ran his fingers along the book Christmas tree and grinned. “Princess? Are you in there?” He called softly to the rows of bookcases where he couldn’t see behind. When he was greeted with silence, he seated himself in one of the armchairs near to where he knew was Woolfred’s desk. He was humming Jingle Bells and twirling his hat around his finger when he heard Juliet’s voice asking if he was ready for his first dance with the princess. After losing all of his composure and actually dropping his hat on the floor, he quickly stood up and turned around. It took one sharp intake of breath to look Juliet up and down. She looked absolutely amazing. A vision in gold… He thought to himself, realising he had his mouth open. “Y-you look stunning.” He said truthfully as he bent down to pick up his hat. When it was firmly on his head, he walked slowly over to Juliet and kissed her cheek. Even if she did have perfume on, he could still smell her sandwich smell and he grinned. “Well, you Majesty. Shall we be off?” He asked, holding out his arm like he’d seen gentlemen do in the old movies he used to watch with his parents. “Jeez…” Was Kai’s only remark when they reached the ballroom. Although it was a room he’d never been in before, he still wasn’t expecting it to look quite so extravagant. There were so many people, well, Vampyres, dressed all in finery and Kai really didn’t know where to look. He kept close to Juliet, even though he had to stand behind her most of the time because she was greeting people. Most of the older looking Vampyres glanced his way once or twice in disapproval, but Juliet just greeted them and ignored everything else. She really is gorgeous, he thought as he watched the back of her hair swaying slightly as she shook hands with an elder male.

Eventually, the flow of people stopped bombarding Juliet and the duo had a moment to themselves. She led him away from the Eclipse table, where he’d felt completely awkward to be standing anyway, and onto the dancefloor. “Just pretend you’re throwing more bits of food at me,” he said with a wink before taking hold of Juliet’s hand and twirling her around. A little while into the dancing, the music quietened and Kai looked around, confused. The crowd of people were all looking towards the stage, so he followed their gazes straight to Rory Zeverai. He’d only seen him once before, when he’d gone to find Juliet after she’d kissed him and he’d rejected her. The fluttering in his stomach didn’t belong to him, he knew, it belonged to the beauty next to him. Part of him was angry. He wanted to go up to the stage and punch Rory right in the face. Of course, that would only end up with him getting beaten to a pulp most likely considering Rory was literally decades older. Most of him was scared though. He’d seen Juliet’s reaction in the forest and he’d hated every second of it. He never wanted to see or feel her cry again. Not as long as he was there to protect her. Kai gently took Juliet’s hand and moved closer to her so that their shoulders were almost touching. As he listened to what Rory was saying, everything about the old human custom of asking for the person’s hand in marriage, a strange sickness came upon him and he wondered if Rory was talking about Juliet. He’s not, right? Right…?” Moments later, the sickness turned to an ashamed relief when he realised that Rory was now talking about Sera Soleil. Juliet wouldn’t need the Soleil families permission to get married, so it couldn’t have been about her. Kai watched as the people parted and a Vampyre he’d never seen before came through the crowds. “Gosh…” He breathed once Alaric Soleil, who was now on the stage with Rory, accepted his proposal and they kissed. “If that’s the standard of asking a Prince or Princess to marry you here, I think I’m screwed.” He murmured to Juliet, trying to get her to laugh or do anything other than stand there staring at the stage.

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⇨ συтfιт ⇦

[Mewling Quim]

❝ °They will see us waving from such great heights.
Come down now, they'll say.
But everything looks perfect from far away.
Come down now but we'll stay.❤❞

❤Quim“You’re welcome!” Juliet said the moment Kai pulled away from pushing her hair behind her ear. At least he was okay and happy with what he got. She was so worried about it. Letting out an inward sigh of relief, Juliet leaned back against her pillows and watched Kai leaning back as he spoke. Everything he was saying made her smile. Christmas was a family thing here too, only most years they had guests as well. It was rough, at times, having an open house for the majority of the Vampyre population. But that was how it was when you were an important part of the lands. It was how it was if you held your name in such high standards. As Juliet listened, she tried to not show that she was really confused. Kai still believed in Santa? Well, to be fair, she was much, much older than he was. It was really adorable though, hearing about his traditions. It bothered her that his friends said things about him, but he said he never cared. It only made her want to do something for him from “Santa.” It wouldn’t be too nice to shatter his dreams about Santa the first Christmas he was here. “See my tree?” Juliet asked him, pointing to the mini tree that she decorated earlier that month. “See how there’s nothing there? Well, it’s because I know Santa will come too. Even if we’re Vampyres. So, I don’t think he’ll forget you.” She turned to look at him with a grin but the moment she did, Kai’s lips were upon hers. I’m melting. She thought, wrapping her arms around him, taking in every bit of his kiss. When he pulled away, Juliet opened her eyes and looked up to him, her mouth slightly parted. “O-okay…” She whispered, still in a blissful shock. That was completely unexpected. She guessed that he liked his gift more than she thought he would. “Kai! Don’t forget to meet me in the library, okay?” She called after him with a grin just before he left.

Juliet wiggled underneath her blankets and buried her face into her pillow, just grinning. She had no idea what had just happened. There was still a while before she had to actually get ready, but she still needed to talk to Woolfred. There had to be something that he could do at such small notice. She didn’t make a move to get up though; instead she curled up in the middle of her bed and picked the book from her nightstand to read it. Juliet had no idea how long it had taken her, but she finished the book and the moment she closed it, she breathed a sigh of relief. At least that one had a nice ending. Not many that she had read recently did. When she looked over at the time, she groaned. It was getting closer to the ball and she wasn’t ready to push her way through so many people for hours on end. Juliet figured she should get up and get ready, which she didn’t plan on taking so long to do. A quick shower, a quick fix on her hair, being sure she had a nice perfume on, and just a tad bit of makeup was all that she really felt like she needed to do this time. She wasn’t trying to impress anyone. Nope. Not this time. Anyone who mattered didn’t need to be impressed by such silly measures.

However, when she went to put on her dress, she held it up and looked at it. It was a golden mermaid cut dress that was designed to fit perfectly to her body. Even the sash had an accessory that was completely her taste. She unzipped the back and stepped into it, fitting it against her body before pulling the zipper up, even though it was a bit difficult considering it was on her back. As soon as that was done, she smoothed out the parts that needed to be smoothed out and then went to her jewelry drawer, finding the perfect accessories to match. A golden bird wing necklace was fastened around her neck as well as a golden lock bracelet, but that wasn’t all. She saw a gold and silver tiara that shown out at her. It wasn’t a normal tiara, not by princess standards, but it was a garland tiara and it would match so perfectly with that dress that it was just something that she knew she had to wear. Not to mention Kai keeps calling you princess. She thought, setting it on her head and being sure it was fastened by the combs that were in the back. Juliet slid her feet into a pair of beige pumps and took one last look in the mirror, being sure she looked okay enough to show herself, before taking a deep breath and heading out.

There was something she had to do before the party, before showing herself there at all, and she hoped that she could find Woolfred and pull him over to the side to talk to him about Kai. Juliet wanted to do all she could to let Kai know that Santa was still going to bring him things if that was the last thing she did that night. She walked around for a good ten minutes before she finally saw the sharply dressed man step out into the hallway. “Woolfy!” She called, quickening her step and catching him by his arm, looking up at him with big, childlike eyes. “Woooooolfy, I need your heeeelp!” She said in sort of a singsong while looking around to be sure Kai was nowhere near. She didn’t feel that he was close, so she was sure he wasn’t. When Woolfred asked what it was, Juliet grinned. “Santa.” She said, patting his arm at his confusion, especially when he told her that he thought she stopped believing in Santa ages ago. “I never stopped believing, silly; I just knew that the presents were from someone else.” She said before launching into the story and letting Woolfred know of what her plan was. “Just please, Woolfy? Consider it a Christmas gift to me?” She begged. Luckily he nodded just like Juliet knew he would. She knew that he’d do just about anything for her. She gave him a big hug and waved as she turned away to head towards the library, ignoring Woolfred’s words as he advised her to hurry to the ballroom.

“Kaaaaaaaai? Are you ready for your first dance with the princess?” The joke would probably never get old; she didn’t mind it so much anymore, not as much as she thought she would. She wasn’t an actual princess though. There were only a couple of them to the very important families, such as the Devon family. A light blush settled across her cheeks as she watched how Kai took her outfit in, not knowing whether it was good or bad, but from the way she felt deep down right now, Juliet knew that it was good. She was feeling what Kai felt. “Thank you,” She started to say as he reached down to grab his hat. “And you’re looking rather handsome yourself.” Juliet smiled as he kissed her cheek and held out his arm. Even if he hadn’t grown up in this society, it seemed like he knew some of the right things to do. Juliet took his arm and led him to the ballroom after giving him a small nod. Once they got to the door, she looked up to him. “Now you’re going to have to stay by me, okay? You’re my fledgling according to these people, which means I have to keep you in line. So, stand up properly behind me, no slouching, when I get to my family’s table and things should go smoothly. It won’t take long.” She finished explaining right before they got to the Eclipse table and she greeted her family as well as the Soleil family, attempting to avoid Alaric, but still having to say at least hello to him.

The looks that the elder Vampyres kept giving Kai meant nothing to Juliet and she greeted them just as she was expected to without any word to them on the matter. In fact the matter wasn’t their matter and it didn’t matter to her if they thought there was something the matter with him. She had to grin at her thoughts. A little while had passed and she was finally finished being a good hostess to their party guests. She knew that it wasn’t going to be anything new. It never was with this part, but still, when it was over Juliet stood and turned to Kai, taking hold of his hand and leading him to the dance floor. “I don’t have to pretend, I’ll just do that anyways.” She grinned and let him spin her around. It was really nice to be dancing with him, everything seemed to just fall into place, but she really hoped that it wasn’t just their bond talking. It would break her heart to know that Kai only enjoyed her company because of their bond. Not only did that hurt, the moment she heard Rory speaking her heart sped up before feeling like it would shatter into a million pieces. There were butterflies in her belly and she knew that Rory wasn’t there for her. He never would be and it didn’t feel like it would be okay any time soon. However, the moment that Kai took her hand, there was an entire wave of relief that washed over her, and she nearly giggled at the angry feeling that she had, knowing it wasn’t actually hers.

Juliet began to feel sick the moment she saw Sebastian Soleil walk through the crowd. She knew him from Aeron’s old photos. They were friends once upon a time, the best of friends, and then Sebastian ran off and married Sera Soleil. Aeron always told her that it was for the money since Sebastian didn’t come from an extravagant family like the Eclipse’s or the Soleil’s. It really made her wonder though, but everything that had just happened made her roll her eyes. Of course this would happen. She wasn’t even sure why she was so bitter by it, but she was. It’s because Rory rejected you, Juliet, you’re not stupid. Far from it. You know why you’re bitter. It’s because you’re jealous. She beat herself up in her thoughts, but it was all the truth. Juliet’s eyes narrowed and if looks could kill, Alaric and Rory would have just dropped dead right then, but when Kai spoke up, Juliet whipped her head around to him and stared at him with a blank expression at first. She knew it was a joke, but what if he was serious? They hadn’t known each other long. Things were starting to get awkward really fast, but instead of her letting it spiral into a pit of complete awkwardness, Juliet linked her arm with Kai’s and smiled. “Come on.” She said, leading him out of the ballroom after glancing and nodding slightly at Woolfred. “Alaric Soleil is not a prince, by the way. He’s far from it, actually.” She said it in a joking manner, but she wasn’t joking at all. Alaric wasn’t. He was a whining, snot nosed brat who shouldn’t have even been there. I hope I’m not bitter forever, it’s really putting a damper on my manners… She thought as they reached her bedroom.

Before Juliet opened the door, she took Kai’s hands with hers and pulled him into a hug. “I wish there was something I could do for you, Kai,” She said, “like if I could take the events of what happened to you and make them never happen at all, I would. It’s sad to not have your family at Christmas, and I can only imagine how you feel…” She let go of his left hand and cupped his face with her right one, softly stroking his cheek with her thumb as she looked up to him. “So, since its Christmas day now, I should probably tell you that Santa has always come during the day on Christmas day here since our ancestors had a gene where they couldn’t go out in the sun. Oh, gosh, that’s a story for another day, but we have time to do all of your Christmas things, okay? I know it’ll be different because I’m not your actual family, but I just want you to be happy.” Juliet twisted the knob on her door and opened it, letting the smell of cloves and oranges engulf them as they stepped into her bedroom, her hand still linked with Kai’s. There was a tray of fish and chips on one of her bedside tables, her television that was on the wall across from her bed had a selection of Christmas movies on the stand underneath it and her small Christmas tree was lit up and had a small tray with all of the ingredients that Kai needed to leave for Santa on it. She really hoped that he would be okay with this as she let go of his hand and gently sat down on her bed, holding up two stockings. “Merry Christmas, Kai.” Juliet said with a nervous smile.Quim❤

❤Ⓞⓤⓣⓕⓘⓣ❤❀

[Mewling Quim]

┏｡｡｡I'm sorry for the way I treated you.
I'm stuck in my ways to just run in the opposite way when things get comfortable.
I'll keep on licking 'til your flavor is gone.
Can you show me how to treat someone?
I don't recall ever learning how.
'Cause I keep screwing up.｡｡｡┛

｡｡♧♧ ｡｡

QuimCorvo laid in his bed and stared up to the ceiling as the effects had taken over his body. There was no telling what Jace had given him and frankly, Corvo didn’t care one bit. He was in such a blissful state, one that he hadn’t seen for years, not since going to the Soleil manor, and he didn’t want to come down one bit. He was already dressed and ready for the ball, which he was sure was going on already, Corvo just couldn’t force himself to move no matter how hard he tried. He honestly wanted to just lay there and waste the night away completely out of his mind. But Lexi’s probably waiting on you. His thoughts made him groan. What was even going to happen? There was no way he could go into that ballroom and say hello to the Soleil family without seeing Ryder and that made him feel absolutely guilty. Corvo stood up and caught himself at the end of his bed as he swayed to the side and almost fell over. “Stood up too suddenly.” His voice was a mumble as he straightened himself and took a deep breath. His alarm clock had been going off for a couple of hours but he had only just noticed it. As soon as Corvo turned it off, he reached over to his lounge chair and pulled his suit jacket from the back of it, slipping it on, before going into his bathroom and brushing his teeth and making sure he looked the best he could despite his current state of mind.

His head felt like it was entirely too big for his body and Corvo just wanted to lie back down, but he couldn’t stop from laughing at himself for the silly thought. Luckily there weren’t many people in the halls as Corvo swayed and stumbled down the stairs, catching himself on the railing every time he felt like he would fall over. He hoped he would be able to stand up straight by the time he got to the ballroom, though it was taking him forever. Thankfully he was nowhere near as messed up as he was earlier that day, but still, he was sure someone might notice. Yeah. Probably Ryder. Maybe not. What have I done? Why can’t I keep my greedy mouth off of people? At least that thought was clear. It was horrible being torn between his best friend and his sister, but those were the cards that he was dealt and they were what he had to play. Not that Ryder would want to play a round as well. Corvo tried. I’m not gay and neither is he. He thought as he stepped through the doors to the ballroom and let his eyes wander around a bit, taking everything in. It was absolutely gorgeous and he knew that the Eclipse family had outdone themselves once again.

There was a small moment when Corvo wondered where Jace was because if he knew then he’d go to his brother and ask how long whatever he gave him should have lasted, but he didn’t feel like he could swivel around too much just to find him, not unless he was clinging onto someone else, so he had no idea how he would even dance with Alexis like he needed to. Corvo glanced over to the Soleil table and let his guilt settle in his belly. Alexis looked wonderful, hell, they all looked pretty amazing. They were an amazing family and it made him jealous. Corvo wondered how it would be if he and Ryder were in each other’s shoes and if Jessica had a crush on Ryder instead of Lexi with him. The thought made his heart have a sharp pain and he decided that he needed to head straight for the drinks table. Once getting there he spotted Jace and shook his head, walking closer to his little brother, and falling onto his shoulder. “What did you give me and when will it wear off?” He asked, his voice muffled by Jace’s clothes. When he straightened up and turned back to the drinks table to get a drink, his head started swimming again and Corvo caught the table with one hand while taking a drink in the other. He looked back to Jace and grinned. “Whatever it was, thank you. Have fun. Don’t, well, do what you want. I’m in no state to tell you what to do, am I?” And with that Corvo walked into the crowd, sipping whatever was in the glass as he walked on.

His best friend was still at the Soleil table even though Corvo was sure that the ball had started so long ago and that meant that he couldn’t even work up the courage to go and ask Lexi if she wanted to dance, no matter how beautiful she was looking tonight. Ryder looked pretty amazing as well. I’m not gay. He thought again, pausing in the middle of the crowd with his drink halfway to his mouth as the music stopped and he heard someone speaking up. Well, this was an interesting development. Alaric was like his younger brother and Corvo hated seeing how hurt he had been while Rory was away, so why was he there then? You know what, it’s none of my business. He thought, especially when he realized he thought of Ric as a younger brother, so what did that mean Lexi was to him? She was so different than she was a long time ago, she was older. Matured. Gorgeous. But what did that even mean? He was part of the crowd that parted to the left as Sebastian Soleil came through and that had scared the hell out of Corvo. Sebastian just didn’t seem like someone to be messed with at all, but he was actually really nice from what he remembered. Though, he wasn’t sure if he’d appreciate at least two of his sons being gay. Ryder’s not gay. He thought again, taking a long drink out of the glass in his hand as he watched the rest of the events unfold.

So Alaric and Rory were now engaged and sucking face on the stage. That was always nice. But the party must go on and Corvo knew that he had to suck it up and get the courage to go say hello to the Soleil family and ask Lexi to a dance. Corvo still had no idea where he and Ryder stood and that made him sadder than ever. He was completely sure that he had lost his best friend over stupid, drunken mistakes and he felt that emptiness deep down. Much like he felt when he had first met the Soleil family. He sighed and set his glass on the nearest table before straightening his clothing and walking the best he could to the Soleil table. “Good evening.” He said to the entire family with a bow, hoping that they wouldn’t notice how messed up he felt. His eyes grazed Ryder before turning to Lexi. Corvo held his hand out to her and smiled. “Dearest Alexis, would you like to dance with me?” He asked with a nervous grin.
｡｡♧♧ ｡｡



Outfit

[Annotations of Discordia]

discordia

discordia
discordia

❝ staring at the bottom of your glass
hoping one day you'll make a dream last
but dreams come slow and they go so fast
~
staring at the ceiling in the dark
same old empty feeling in your heart
'cause love comes slow and it goes so fast ❞

discordia

discordiaSince the moment Ryder Soleil had stepped into the ballroom at Chateaux de l’Eclipse, he’d wanted to turn right around and leave again. Of course he couldn’t though. Sera had been giving him stern looks for the past hour and he knew if he even so much as picked up a glass of champagne, she’d whip it out of his hand in a flash. Not that he blamed her. She was his Mama and she had every right to tell him off, especially with the way he’d been acting recently. Which is like a complete idiot, he thought to himself as he readjusted his position against the wall and gazed over the dance floor at the dozens of Vampyres who were swaying prettily there. It was difficult trying to keep his eyes away from his best friend who looked enticing in a silver suit. Ryder forced himself to sit down at the Soleil table just to stop himself from marching across the room and falling into his arms. He’d seen the glances Alexis kept flashing his way, and each time he caught her looking at Corvo, his heart, which he’d thought wasn’t possible in hurting him anymore, felt tight and restricted like he couldn’t breathe.

Ten minutes later, Rory Zeverai was halfway into his speech and the whole crowd was staring at him on the stage. Ryder was looking at the people around him though. Alaric, who was clinging on to Lexi looked as though he’d just seen several ghosts. Not that Ry could blame him. Rory had apparently completely disappeared from the Solanse lands since Ryder had left to go back home. Emilé and Jenny were clutching each other and looking as though they were about to start swooning any moment now. Léon was still frozen into place with Elissiana who wasn’t even looking at Rory; she had her eyes on Léon. Someone likes their new dancing partner. He thought slyly before looking around again. Jace, Corvo’s little brother was standing next to his cousin, Rhys and both of them looked absolutely sinful together. Ryder let himself smile a little. It was good to see his cousin actually looking happy for once, even if he did feel a tinge of jealousy mixed in there. Hugo Thorne and Melody were stood together. Oliver Thorne was holding Irisalee’s hand, supporting her balance on the chair. Juliet Eclipse and the Thorne’s descendent, Kai, were holding hands as well. In every direction he looked, there were couples. Ry suppressed the urge to throw up and finally turned his head towards the stage where Rory was standing and talking.

It didn’t surprise him that Sera had given her permission for Alaric and Rory to be together. Ryder had been the one who’d told her to give them a chance after all. Still, he couldn’t help but wonder what she’d say if he turned his back on his values and went after Corvo. It’s not going to happen though, Ry thought sadly. He cared too much about his family, about Alexis, to let anything happen. He wasn’t going to be the one to break his little sister’s heart when he’d spent so many years trying to protect her from everything. With an inwards sigh, he turned his attention back to his surroundings. The crowd of people in the ballroom had all turned to look at the person who’d just entered through the double doors. It took for the man to actually be standing in front of Alaric to Ryder to register that it was his father. He watched as his sisters clung on to Sebastian. Rory was speaking again, but Ry wasn’t listening. After everything that had happened, he’d always thought that he’d be happy to see his father again, even after he’d left without a word. He wasn’t though, and it made his chest hurt because he knew that he should be happy, like the rest of his family clearly were. All Ryder could think about was how many nights he’d heard Sera or the twins crying themselves to sleep. He’d even seen Jenny and Emilé crying because of it. Ryder had never really had a good relationship with Seb, not like Léon did, and right that second, he felt as though he was looking in on a family and he wasn’t supposed to be there.

Alaric was on stage now, accepting Rory’s proposal and kissing him, but it was like a dream to Ryder. A dream he couldn’t wake up from no matter what happened. He sat in his chair watching his family, apart from Ric, cling to their father as though nothing had even happened. The band had started playing up and the crowds were slowly starting to dance again, and although a few people came up and congratulated Sera and Sebastian on their son’s engagement, most people realised that they needed to be along with Seb. Ry still hadn’t said anything when Corvo appeared at the Soleil table and asked Alexis to dance. He forced himself to look up and when he did, he saw that Corvo only had eyes for Lexi, who was already getting to her feet having accepted. A twisting sensation unfurled in his chest and Ryder bit back a gasp at the pain of it. Although he knew it would look bad, he stood up without saying a word, and stalked off through the crowds, clutching his hands to his chest. He’d end up getting shouted at later no doubt for making the Soleil family seem rude, but right at that moment, he just didn’t give a damn.

The air outside Chateaux de l’Eclipse was cold and the harshness of the snow dragged Ryder back to his senses. He wasn’t sure how long he stayed leaning against the one of the trees, his blue suit slowly losing heat. Why does everything have to be so complicated? Ryder sighed and watch his breath leave a white foggy cloud in the air in front of him. Five minutes later, his mind was set and he used his Vampyre speed to leave the Kara forest so he could rejoin the Christmas party. It didn’t really surprise him that he hadn’t cried since arriving at the Eclipse place. All of his tears had probably dried up from the past couple of weeks of him being an absolute wreck. Ryder slipped through the double doors unnoticed by anyone. After glancing around the room, he saw that Alexis was back at the Soleil table, her cheeks flushed, and Corvo was picking up two glasses from one of the drinks stands. Not wanting to lose his newly found courage, Ryder forced himself to walk over to his best friend. “Cor.” He said softly, catching his attention. When he’d turned around to look at him, Ry felt the pain in his chest fade away and be replaced with the butterflies of affection that he’d felt around Corvo for so long.

“Look, I love you, okay? I’m not going to pretend that I don’t. I can’t do that. I know Alexis likes you, maybe she even loves you. That’s why I can’t stay. I love my family so much, but I love you too. I… I can’t be around this anymore. Seeing you with Lexi breaks my heart. You kissed me once when you weren’t drunk. I-I’m grateful for that. I know you’re not gay, Cor, but I don’t care. I love you. I’m sorry for confusing you so much. I just… I don’t know. I’m going to say goodbye now, okay? You… You take care.” Before Corvo could respond, Ryder brought his hand up and stroked his best friend’s cheek. “I’m sorry.” He murmured, leaning closer. The moment his lips pulled back away from Corvo’s, it was like Ryder woke up from his dream. He could finally hear the people dancing and chattering away behind him. With one last look into Cor’s eyes, Ryder turned and walked hurried out of Chateaux de l’Eclipse and away from the misery he knew he’d feel if he continued to stay there.

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συтfιт

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❝ooI went out on a limb again, I guess I had to lose to win, I was too confused to know which way to turnoo❞

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[Annotations of Discordia]

❝owell, that is it guys, that is all
five minutes in and I'm bored again
ten years of this, I'm not sure if anybody understands
this one is not for the folks at home
sorry to leave, mom, I had to go
who the [********] wants to die alone all dried up in the desert sun?o❞

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✫discordiaJace sat cross legged at the end of Corvo’s bed and took a drag of the cigarette that was between his fingers. He’d woken up a couple of hours ago, but his brother had been dead to the world ever since he’d disappeared after the party the previous night. After wearing his suit yesterday, he’d settled on something a little more him. His black and white oversized Nordic sweater and matching slipper boots went together with his skinny jeans pretty well. Just like everything I wear, he thought to himself with a sly grin. “Coooorvoooo, can you wake your freaking lazy a** up now? It’s Christmas day and there’s presents!” Jace whined in a perfect imitation of their sister Jessica’s voice. “Speaking of, she’s texted you like fifteen times. I feel so sorry for you. She never texts me thank the gods.” After babbling away to the silent room for a few more minutes whilst he finished his cigarette, Jace bounced his hands on the bed to properly wake his brother up. When Corvo finally sat up, he handed him the box that contained his gift. Things were quiet as Cor opened his present and when he had, Jace beamed at him. “I know you left your pencils at home so I bought you some new watercolour ones! There’s paint and stuff here, but I thought you might like your own set.” Corvo perked up quite a bit after that and Jace leaned over and gave him a bear hug just because he could. “We’ll talk soon, okay?” He whispered before pulling away and flopping down on the bed, staring up at the ceiling.

A little while later, Jace had left Corvo to his own devices for a while so he could get dressed in peace. He was lounging in the sun room, despite it not being very sunny outside, and flicking through one of his Marvel comic books. His mind was elsewhere though, like on the party last night. He might’ve been high for the most part of it, but even he hadn’t missed Ryder Soleil planting a huge smooch on his brother. Nor had he missed Alexis Soleil’s face afterwards. Jace sighed and flipped the page absently. He’d known as soon as he’d seen Corvo go after Ryder only to stop at the door and turn back around that he wouldn’t be getting high again anytime soon. He might’ve been ordered to watch over Jace by their father, but from the expression on his face right at that moment, Jace knew that he’d need some watching over in the upcoming days. A small sound brought the youngest Wood son out of his reverie and he glanced around at the door, an instant smile appearing on his lips. “Well, hello there handsome. Merry Christmas.” If there was one thing that gave Jace time off from thinking about his family, it was spending time with Rhys McLeod. He had no idea where they stood, but that was half of the fun; having zero labels on them. Labels meant that you were stuck, just like Corvo was. “Oh frack. Just wait a moment, sugar.” Without waiting around for a reply, he jumped up from the reclining chair and hurried out of the sun room.

“Here you are. Your gift~” Jace announced, passing over a box that was wrapped in the same paper that he’d giving his brother. Its contents, however, were utterly different. He’d gotten Rhys an expensive body gift set because he knew that Rhys was exactly like him in the looking nice department. “Ciao darling.” He winked before flaunting off back out of the room. It didn’t take too long to find Corvo again considering he was still holled up in his bedroom. Jace settled himself onto his brother’s bed again and gazed at his brother. A few moments passed until he actually spoke up because he knew Cor wouldn’t want to hear what he had to say. “So, big brother. I saw you dancing with Alexis last night. And I know you’ve been spending a lot of time with her lately. Enough time for her to class herself as your girlfriend, actually. Guess what else I saw though? The look on your face after Ryder Soleil kissed you. Look… You’re not gay, Cor. I know you well enough to know that for a fact. I know you haven’t asked for my opinion, but sometimes the heart can get messed up and confused. You love Ryder, right? He’s your best friend, or he was anyway. But you don’t love him in the way he obviously loves you. You’ve been happy these past few weeks painting and spending time with Lexi, right? Sometimes you just have to ignore those confused feelings and stick with what you know.” Jace paused and watched Corvo’s face. “I have to say these things because I’m your brother. But y’know… As just Jace, I’d say the heart is a powerful thing. Sure, it breaks sometimes, but how are you going to know how you truly feel if you don’t follow it?”

India Mackenzie was curled up under her duvet, the same place she’d been for the past twelve hours. When her alarm clock finally started beeping, she moaned and whacked it onto the floor. The dance with Alaric Soleil had replayed in her mind at least twenty times since the party had ended and she’d spent the whole night going from crying to laughing to punching and screaming into her pillow. Mack pushed the duvet off her and forced herself to get up. It was Christmas day, a time to be happy. Even if the person she really, really, really liked had gotten engaged to a guy the previous night. With a sigh, she made her way to the bathroom and winced after catching her reflection in the mirror. She looked absolutely awful, especially with her puffy eyes. After a quick shower, she got dressed into her work uniform and actually put on some foundation, something she never usually did, so that she didn’t look quite so terrible. “I love you, Mama.” She whispered to the empty room the second her fingers brushed over her bracelet that had been left by her. Even though she couldn’t really remember her mother, she was still the only person left in the world that Mack actually had, even if she was only there in her heart. It’s always bad at Christmas. Just focus on your work, and you’ll be fine. It’ll be okay. She repeated over and over again in her head. Seeing the Eclipse family and the other guest families at Christmas just really put things into perspective for India. She adored working there, she really did, but this time she didn’t even have Lucy there with her because she wasn’t a maid anymore. With a quick shake of her head, Mack took a deep breath and opened her door, ready to start work.



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████❝oLooking for treasure in the things that you threw, like a magpie, I live for glitter, not you.o❞


outfit

████

[Mewling Quim]

┏｡｡｡I'm sorry for the way I treated you.
I'm stuck in my ways to just run in the opposite way when things get comfortable.
I'll keep on licking 'til your flavor is gone.
Can you show me how to treat someone?
I don't recall ever learning how.
'Cause I keep screwing up.｡｡｡┛

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QuimWith every sway and turn that went into dancing, Corvo’s attention had been focused on trying to do them all perfectly without being incredibly dizzy. As he knew he was. Don’t think about it, don’t even—good lord the floor is like water. He kept his smile the entire time he danced with Alexis, but he had to say that he was incredibly happy when the music died down and switched to another song. “Drinks?” He asked, his voice slurring slightly towards the end. He successfully led her back to the Soleil table before smiling to her. When Corvo looked around, he didn’t see Ryder at all. That didn’t stop him from roaming through the moving crowd, excusing himself past each dancing couple, as he made his way to the drinks table. He caught himself on the edge, making his hands curl over the table to steady himself. These were probably the last effects of what he had taken, so that was good. He shook himself and ignored the questions that one of the servers had asked him. “I’m good. I’m fine. Just dizzy is all. Dancing.” He managed to say, waving them away. “Actually, give me a couple of drinks. Doesn’t matter what. Well, whatever a Soleil would like.” He shrugged. Whatever that would be. Corvo figured that he was being quite rude right then, but he couldn’t help it. He could have if he hadn’t slipped and relapsed back into what he liked to commonly call ‘Old Corvo.’ He took the glasses and made sure they were steady in his hands before slowly turning and scanning the crowd. What happened next had caught him completely off guard.

His name had been called, a nickname, that voice. Gosh it had been forever, it seemed, since he had seen Ryder. He didn’t look okay. He looked far from it, but Corvo was sure he looked pretty bad himself. He flashed a quick grin at Ryder but it only lingered a short second before Ryder began speaking. It felt as though something had punched him in his chest, knocking all of the air out of him, as he listened to what his best friend was saying. The glasses clinked together and Corvo knew that if he didn’t set them down, they were going to crash right down to the ground, so without taking his eyes off of Ryder, he reached over and sat them down gently on the table. He wished over and over that his mind wasn’t as groggy as it was, and there were a couple of seconds where he wondered if he was just in a really bad dream, but everything was real and he knew it. Corvo couldn’t even move when Ryder touched his cheek, if he moved he was certain that he’d fall over, or fall into his arms. The thought of Alexis wasn’t even filling his mind right then, it was all Ryder’s lips on his and how time just seemed to stop for a few short seconds. Why was he leaving? He was heartbroken, Corvo understood that, but he wanted to grab hold of him and beg him to stay. To tell him how much he needed him. To curl up on his bed and spill that he had done bad things again. That he was trying to escape everything again. That he hated himself again. But he couldn’t, and he watched as Ryder left out of the ballroom.

The look on Corvo’s face was a mixture of too many emotions that he couldn’t handle. His best friend left. His best friend probably wasn’t his best friend anymore. He wanted to smash things. Without another thought, Corvo took a step towards the door, not pausing until he got to the doors that lead into the ballroom. His hand lingered on the door as he looked down to the floor. If he ran out right then that would be the end of everything for him and Jace and he couldn’t do that to his brother. Not after he had finally gotten out of their house. Corvo’s hand dropped and his fists curled into a ball, leaving behind crescent shaped marks in his palms where his fingernails were digging into his skin. When he turned, he grabbed a drink from the tray of a nearby waiter and took it over to the Soleil table. He promised Alexis a drink. Corvo shakily sat it in front of her and stared down to the table. “Excuse me,” He started with a tired voice, “It’s been a lovely evening, but I think it’s time for me to depart. Merry Christmas, Alexis.” He swallowed hard and thanked Sera Soleil and Logan Eclipse for a wonderful night and wished them a merry Christmas before leaving right out of the ballroom. For a moment he wondered if he should find Jace and get something else from him. Something that would knock him out and let him forget about the entire night. “Idiot.” He whispered to himself as he reached his bedroom door. “Getting drugs from your baby brother without questioning him. Without—” He didn’t finish speaking before he fell into his bed, suit half on, and passed out.

Nothing could have roused Corvo from his slumber because he was dead. He felt dead, at least, but his theory was promptly proven wrong as he felt his bed shaking around. “Jace. What in the he—” He started, but he quickly remembered that it was Christmas and he shouldn’t act that way on Christmas day. And he also remembered that he didn’t get Jace anything yet. You idiot. You’re so stupid. He thought to himself as he pushed up on his bed, sitting upright and blinking sleepily at his baby brother who was handing him a gift box. Corvo held the box in his hands and stared down to it, with a forced grin. It was Christmas, he should be happy, but instead he felt like he wanted to just cease to exist. He took a small breath and opened the gift and looked at it. It was perfect, and he shocked himself by holding back any tears that threatened his throat, it would be awkward for him to break down in front of his brother. Corvo was the strong one. He was the eldest. He had to watch over Jace and Jessica. He had to run the family one day. There was no way he could let the heavy feeling on his heart break through that. “Thank you…” He whispered, flashing Jace an actual smile after he explained why he got him that gift. Corvo returned the hug and nodded when Jace told him they would talk soon. He dreaded that tone in his brother’s voice. So much.

Corvo had reached over and pulled out one of his sketch pads and went to work with the pencils, sketching out a scene that he thought Christmas should have been. Or maybe it was just from his past. Three kids around a Christmas tree, fire going in the fire place, wrapping paper and boxes everywhere, it was perfect. He tossed his sketchpad beside Jace’s head and snorted. “Merry Christmas.” He said as Jace stood up to leave his room. It only took him a few seconds before he stood up and walked to his bathroom, stripping off the rest of his clothes from the previous night and throwing them on the floor. When he stepped into the shower it was freezing cold, but he didn’t care, he could hardly feel it. There were so many thoughts of Ryder in his mind and so many of Alexis. It was horrible. Why was it always him who screwed up every relationship he had? Or might have. By the time he was finished with the shower it had heated up and went stone cold again, so he decided that he should just get out and get dressed again. It took no time to get dressed into something comfortable and fit for this ‘grand occasion’ known as Christmas. Corvo figured that he probably wouldn’t even leave out of his room much today, not unless Jace made him, but then again they were Risa’s only family there, and he would feel pretty bad if he didn’t at least see her today.

The sketchpad was opened to the beginnings of a random sketch that Corvo started by the time Jace came back and sat on his bed, looking at him. He pretended to not notice the look that he was giving him, but he could feel his brother’s eyes burning a hole through him and he really wished he would just talk, even though Corvo was dreading the topic of the conversation. Jace had seen Ryder kiss him. He didn’t put it past him, his brother had a keen eye for details, you could tell just by looking at the way he dressed and kept himself. He couldn’t say that he was happy that Jace saw the look on his face, but even he was questioning himself whether he was gay or not. He never had these feelings for anyone, ever. No guy. No girl. It was just complicated and they made him feel terrible most of the time because he knew that he couldn’t act on them. At least Jace was there though. Jace endured more than Corvo gave him credit for. He tried to hold a blank, stony look on his face as Jace spoke, but the moment Corvo looked down to his bed, it was gone and his entire body started to shake. He was right, he should just forget about Ryder and continue on with Alexis. And his heart was broken. It was broken into two pieces, both pieces had the name of a Soleil seared onto either one of them and it hurt. It hurt so much that Corvo couldn’t do anything to hold back the sob as he brought his hands to his face, running them through his hair and holding the back of his head. He didn’t want Jace to see him like that. “God.” His voice was strained as he held back another sob. It wasn’t fair, but no one ever said that it would be fair. “How do I deal with this?” He asked more aloud than to Jace, but he had to say that even though he hated breaking down in front of his little brother, he was so grateful that he was there.
｡｡♧♧ ｡｡



Outfit

[Mewling Quim]

✗Now our history is for sale, and for that I apologize.➸
✗You see you're my only know how,➸
✗The study of when I believe I belonged to you.➸
✗So, have I found your secret weak spot, baby?➸

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“Is this actually real?” Alaric whispered as he leaned into Rory with a grin. Everything settled into his mind. The fact that the music was starting back up and the crowd was going back to what they were doing, and plenty of Vampyres were congratulating them and his family. It was odd to have this much attention from so many people, not that it hadn’t happened before, but now it was like he was getting attention from two different sets of people at one huge party. Which, he supposed, he was. Alaric gently tugged Rory off of the stage; he didn’t want to be in the middle of everyone’s eyesight any longer than he had to. He was certain that his face was as red as Santa’s suit. He didn’t want to let him go at all, it had been weeks since Ric had even laid eyes on Rory, let alone a single touch. Another hour or so had passed, and plenty of things happened between then. Alaric watched his brother run out after kissing Corvo, and that made his heart hurt for both Lexi and Ryder. But the biggest thing, to him, was the fact that their daddy was there and that he and Lexi were allowed to go home for Christmas. The night had turned from absolutely rotten to completely perfect, for him, in just a few hours.

The moment Alaric stepped into the Soleil manor, on Christmas day; he knew that it would be a pretty great Christmas. Well, besides Ryder being missing in action. He gripped Rory’s hand tighter and grinned. “I can’t believe you came to my house without me.” He nuzzled his shoulder as they walked through the doors. That’s when the thought hit him. It was Christmas! He was home! So was Lexi! Even if she was upset… Alaric thought that he needed to make her feel better, even though there were just already so many other things that they should be doing, and he knew exactly what to do. “Roooory~” He whispered, taking him towards their family room where the rest of the family had gathered—besides Sera, Alaric didn’t know where she was. “You sit here, I have to run and do something really fast.” He said, nudging Rory down onto a sofa in front of the fireplace and turning towards his twin sister. “Leeeeeeexi~” Alaric’s grin was huge as he put his hands on her shoulders. “We need rope, thread, tape, cookies, milk, and a net.” He let her shoulders go and quickly ran across the room to Sebastian and clung to him for a minute. There was nothing he could say to express how happy he was to see him, or how happy the entire night had made him so far. Alaric felt as though he was living in a dream, but he was sure enough awake, and everything with him felt nearly perfect. If only his twin sister and his older brother would be okay.

When he let go, Alaric sped off towards a room in the right tower of their manor, running through the house and up the stairs until he got to the top room of the tower. On the door there was a sign that said Ric and Lexi’s secret room. Stay out unless you’re Mels. Alaric smiled at the memories that were spent in there for so many years and he was just so happy that he was at home again. He twisted the door knob revealing the room to be exactly how they left it, only a bit cleaner. But he remembered where everything was, and it only took him a second to grab the box of things that he and Lexi used every single year when they tried to catch Santa. When he got back to the family room, Ric dropped the box behind the sofa where Rory was seated with Jenny on the other end of the sofa admiring him. Alaric nearly hissed at her, but thought that he’d be pushing it. It was Christmas and there was no reason he should get into an argument with Jennifer of all people. “Got the cookies and milk?” He asked Lexi and as soon as she said yes, Ric pulled the table out beside the gorgeous tree and let Lexi set them there. Every single year when they lived at home, since they were old enough to get into all sorts of mischief, Alaric and Alexis spent a good amount of time making a trap to catch Santa while their family just watched them doing so. It was fun, even if they never had any luck with that jolly old Vamp. He handed Lexi the rope so that she could tie it onto the net while he wove the string between two walls around the tree and the table with the milk and cookies, ignoring everyone else in the room. “Just a bit tighter.” He said, checking the strength of the knot that Lexi had made with the rope. “And be sure you tape the net up to the wall. And we can use this string as a tripwire. He won’t get past us this year.” Alaric was determined to catch him this time.

As soon as Sera and Sebastian retired to their room, Emilé tugged on Jenny’s arm, waking her up since she had fallen asleep in her dress on the sofa where she was harassing Rory earlier that night. Léon had already gone to bed and Ryder was nowhere to be seen, which made Alaric’s heart hurt. Ric was curled up against Rory, their fingers entwined as he watched the fire flicker every which way in the fireplace. “Go to bed, Sissy.” Ric’s voice was just above a whisper, but Alexis looked tired, and he was sure that she had plenty of feelings that she needed to process because of what happened that night. Once Alexis had gone from the family room, Alaric was left alone there with Rory; he sat up a little and leaned into Rory, kissing him gently. “Come on,” He said, nuzzling his neck before pulling him up from the sofa. “I wanna show you stuff.” Alaric then showed Rory the entire Soleil manor—including the back building that was used for their maids and the rest of their help— besides the inside of his siblings bedrooms and he and Lexi’s clubhouse, saving one room for last. It wasn’t hard to find everyone’s bedrooms; Sera had their names carved into the doors when they were all born. It was just a Soleil tradition. Not that they actually stayed in their bedrooms until they were all old enough to sleep alone, and even then Alaric would always slip into Lexi’s room and sleep in bed beside her when they were younger. He opened his door and switched on the light. “Well, this is my room.” He said, gently closing the door behind Rory, but forgetting to lock it. "I love you so much." Alaric smiled as he began unbuttoning his suit, letting the jacket drop to the floor.

There was something about waking up an engaged man that made Alaric’s stomach flutter with butterflies. Especially when he woke up tangled up with Rory, in his own bed, at his house, stark naked all because he heard his doorknob turn. When Ric looked over, he gave the maid a death stare. He wasn’t a child anymore, and they really should have learned to knock before now. The look on the woman’s face was priceless though. She looked utterly disgusted, and rightfully so, considering she had known Alaric since he was born. She said that she had been sent to wake them up and tell them that they had an hour to get ready. He nodded and she left, murmuring something about how filthy he had grown to be. Alaric stifled a laugh and turned back to Rory, kissing up his neck before smiling. “Lots of things can happen in an hour.” He whispered. But he knew that they both needed a shower and time to get ready, so Ric pushed himself up from Rory and pulled back the blanket before grabbing his fiancé’s hand and leading him to his bathroom. Alaric’s lips locked with Rory’s as soon as he turned on the water, and it only took him another minute before pulling him into the shower with him. “I missed you,” He said between kisses as the water sprayed down atop their heads. He honestly couldn’t say it enough. He really did miss Rory more than anything, but nothing could make how he felt right then disappear, or so he hoped.

It didn’t take them too terribly long to finish up in the shower and to get dressed. Alaric dressed in a nice pair of blue jeans, a blue long sleeved shirt, and a blue and white patterned cardigan before pulling on striped socks. He wouldn’t wear shoes at all in the Soleil manor until it was time for them to go. It was his home. Ric was glancing in the mirror, fixing his hair, when he looked over to Rory who had just gotten dressed. “You’re looking quite floral today.” He grinned and shook his head. His mother would probably wonder what had gone on in Alaric’s head when he fell in love with Rory because his fashion sense was nowhere near what Ric had grown up with. But he was still incredibly handsome, even with his silly clothes. He sat his brush down and walked out of his bathroom towards Rory, wrapping his arms around him and leaning up to kiss him. He just couldn’t keep his hands off of him, even if he was still pretty upset with him for just disappearing. Alaric wouldn’t chance ruining Christmas though by having an argument, so he just let it roll off of his shoulders right then. “Family’s waiting.” He grinned, turning towards his door and turning the handle, leading Rory down to their breakfast room, but before they went in there, Alaric took a detour and stopped by the family room to check on the trap.

There was a Santa hat caught in the net! Alaric jumped up and clapped his hands together once, holding them together with a huge grin. “It’s a hat! LEXI!” He called for his twin before unclasping his hands and pulling Rory by the shirt sleeve towards the breakfast room where everyone was. The table had more chairs and there were two empty ones in the middle—no one sat in Ryder’s empty chair, and seeing it vacant nearly made Alaric want to cry— and he and Rory sat down at the table before Ric leaned over to Alexis. “Did you see?! Did you?!” He whispered excitedly to her before looking up to the empty chair where his father should have been. Ric looked over to Sera, completely confused, and unaware of what sort of look he had on his face. This was the best Christmas, but without Ryder or his father there, Alaric was sure that the feeling would wear off soon. A moment of disappointment passed by before Sebastian Soleil appeared from the kitchens with a tray full of his special peppermint white hot chocolate. Alaric stared at his daddy with a grin as the tears stung the back of his eyes. He missed him as much as he missed Rory and now he was missing Ryder. There just wasn’t a single day that he could go without missing someone, was there? He nearly audibly sighed before catching himself as he stared into the cup of white hot chocolate, listening to his family chatter on about Christmas and how happy they were to see each other. No one asked about Ryder, just from the look on Sera’s face, they probably knew better, but Alaric was curious. He’d just have to talk with her later. “Did you try it?” He asked Rory quietly, poking his spoon in the middle of the whipped cream on top of the hot chocolate and licking it off of the spoon.


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✖●Can you pretend I'm amazing? I can pretend I'm amazing.●ღ➸

✖●Instead of what we both know.●ღ➸

✖●I cut to the punchline, baby, can we pretend I'm amazing?●ღ➸

Outfit