†⋅ . extinguished

francisco maikel bolívar y tovar. king of venezuela.

[franciscobolivar]

silje.

     - ‘ YOU’RE WEARING red to a bullrun ? ’ / @hshqstarters​

          “ hmm? ” gaze averted down to the shade of the clothing in question. “ no this is pink. ” or so he’d come to argue. 

[franciscobolivar]

dianna.

“no, white.” she had said red, and so took the glass from him anyway. dianna shot him a little look, but made no move to touch her glass with his — out of all the things to toast to… “we can do a little better than that—” she squinted up at the bright afternoon sky, comforted by the warmth on her skin. “how about a toast to you coming with me to my friend’s party at cala d’or, hm?” before he could even protest, she clinked her glass with his with a triumphant smile before taking a small sip. “you must be bored just talking politics all the time, no? i bet you’ve never even been to majorca.” 

          “ i’m going to that one, am i? ” he was. confirmation from dianna wasn’t needed to know he’d be there simply because she said so, never mind that she might have been correct about the political conversations taking a toll on whatever shred of a personality was left at the end of the day when diplomacy took precedence. “ you might be right. ” the words were muffled by a sip taken of the apparently highly reputable spanish wine. he’d judge it with scrutiny, regardless of how high the praises were. something about things needing to be knocked down a peg when they were too good to be true. “ you haven’t been talking politics all the time, what’s kept you busy? ” he glanced to his present company. “ probably more now that you’re out of the suburban life. housewife doesn’t suit you, ” francisco admitted. 

[franciscobolivar]

†⋅ . ( @diannayi​​​ )

          “ you said red, didn’t you? ” francisco inspected his own glass of wine before he handed dianna the one in his opposite grip. despite the outcome, he’d already made up his mind before even a single drop had touched his lips. “ we’re going to cheers to, ” he glanced around with attention falling to the few royals nearest: aurel, anastazya, one of the scottish princess, euphemia or catherine, they looked the same half the time to him, and finally back to his present company.  “ no more raccoons? ”

[franciscobolivar]

ana maria.

“It was no trouble, really. Did you get a chance to see everyone?” Ana María nodded and offered a similarly small, but warm, smile. She was glad to see her brother slightly more relaxed. She doubted he would ever be able to permanently uncrease his brow, but it was good to see him carrying a little less weight. “Though, you might owe Alejandro a movie night or two.” Undoubtedly, her son had missed his favorite uncle. Underneath the roof of their own home, Ana María let her real emotions show a little more, raising her eyebrows at his transition. She didn’t her hopes up too high, though. She’d already operated on partial information for so long. “Leave me alone in the program? Are you sure about that? People might start thinking Venezuela’s entire diplomacy is based on cakes and food,” she joked, poking fun at herself.

          “ mostly everyone, who all asked about you and alejandro. ” speaking of his nephew, to which he simply offered a smile and nod of acknowledgment to the movie marathon promise he’d given the boys weeks back. “ if i don’t keep my word with him, who can i keep it with? ” certainly not brazil. “ eventually, it might be a possibility. ” though given how quick everyone had been back in venezuela to question ana maría’s return home, it was doubtful he’d even be able to get away with going back without her and alejandro next time. he’d just begun to part that topic of conversation when another thought occurred. “ oh, tía loredana, she was asking about you, with some theories of her own, i think you should give her a call before she starts another rumor. ”

[franciscobolivar]

†⋅ . ( @anamariaabolivar​​ )

          “ thank you for holding things down here. ” francisco glanced up to his youngest sister with a smile, faint but visible. the time spent back in venezuela clearly was beneficial to the king whose demeanor and posture both had been put at ease. the programme was wearing on him, it had been since his arrival, yet it was a necessary evil. “ i almost considered just having you take care of everything here, to represent us. ” but, she didn’t know enough to do the job, not yet. “ i wanted to talk to you about that. ”

[franciscobolivar]

maitê.

ANA MARIA.

“Why wouldn’t I? It’s good optics, to show we can cooperate in dance and in politics.” Even if she was aware that her brother perhaps had a less polite opinion. He wasn’t the one dancing. She extended her hand and a smile to Brazilian princess. “Take the lead, your highness.”

sure. a silence agreement, with a closed lips smile, maitê nods her head twice before allowing the princess’s hand to rest on her shoulder not long when she puts her hand on ana’s waist –– this was going to be fun. “we are both promising not to step on each other’s feet.” it was said in jest, of course yet the meaning had a whole other thing behind. “this may finally give us the chance to talk, it seems your interest is on miguel and helena. i promise you, i’m just as interesting.”

          “ i’m sure she knows, ” francisco interrupted. the king’s gaze narrowed only enough to become noticeable if someone was looking for such a reaction. a faux smile crossed his lips, the sort that never reached his eyes, as he looked to maitê, then to his younger sister; polite antics and nothing more. “ but i think you’d prefer miguel’s time, wouldn’t you? ” he held out his hand palm up, to who? it wasn’t clear, but what was obvious was that this dance of politics wasn’t going to continue between them if francisco had his way. ( @anamariaabolivar​ & @maitedobrasil​​ )

[franciscobolivar]

inna.

“ watch out— ”  she points to the dog shit just a few steps away from him. ( @franciscobolivar​ )

        “ charming, inna. ” it didn’t have to make sense, the wave of existential dread had already taken hold in the presence of a soletskaya sister. his default reaction to karyna’s closest look-a-like, defiance. “ we should take this as a warning sign. ”

[franciscobolivar]

helena.

You’ve got to be frickin’ kidding me. 

Helena rummaged through her purse for the umpteenth time for the keys that simply weren’t there. Miguel was out doing whatever he was doing. She hadn’t asked when she left this morning when she went out to get some air. Squeezing her eyes shut, she began to drag one of the aluminum trash cans to the rear window. Helena banked on the window she’d often kept crack for fresh air to remain cracked for emergency purposes. The lid of the trash rattled as she climbed on top. Her gloved palms laid flat against the glass to push it but slipped. “Why do these things happen to me,” she peeled off each glove and shivered with the cool contact. 

@franciscobolivar​​

    the exterior details of each house had blurred together, one after the next until the venezuelan had stumbled upon the sight of helena stood a top of a trash can and far away from the residential street he had expected — this wasn’t fourm avenue. the thought to ignore her had crossed his mind, but his steps began to slow as if he’d become an onlooker to a traffic accident. the floodlight illuminated the brazilian's actions and as a result francisco became stationary. he said nothing at first, he just continued to watch the spectacle before him, helena struggling. oddly poetic to the venezuelan who had found himself on his knees in the metaphorical sense to . . . actually no, there was nothing poetic about this. it was just entertaining to see maitê’s sister in such a predicament. 

“ you rival the raccoons here. ” he finally stated as if that would somehow be a comfort and ventured forward towards the floodlight that had caused him to squint in response to the stark contrast of the night. “ maybe it’s karma, or God. ” he thought it necessary to answer the rhetorical question. 

[franciscobolivar]

ana maría.

“It’s a magazine, aren’t there subscribers? Doesn’t he have other gardening friends?” There had to be other people besides her brother that would take a full 200 copies of an autographed magazine. “Put Ale and I down for 2 each.” Her son would probably be excited to see one of his favorite uncles on a magazine. As expected, Francisco seemed to insist on continuing on through the box. As usual, she couldn’t tell if it was out of stubbornness or care, but either way, it did help her get through the box faster, able to focus on hanging the clothes up instead of sorting as much. “He’s met Claude, Mimi, and Petro.” And all the dogs and cats. “I don’t think he’s met the D’Orléans yet.” He’d met other people around the neighborhood, of course. They went out for walks or to play soccer in the open field often enough, it was bound to happen. However, Francisco didn’t need to be updated on every interaction they’d ever had. Especially when she was fairly certain he was trying to fish around about something else. “Why? Is there someone we should be cautious of?”

    “ not friends, admirers, ” francisco corrected with the intent for the three of them, yes alejandro was included in this, to get on a call with him later; maybe rosa too if she was even in the same city let alone house at that moment. “ i wouldn’t bother with the other neighbors. ” the nonchalant comment came as he continued to sift through the box until it was empty and on the ground. “ no. ” yes. he gave a slight raise of his shoulders that lowered into a shrug as if to further convince her, and maybe himself, that he didn’t hold anything against the people who lived nearby. “ i don’t think the french are known to be friendly. ”

[franciscobolivar]

dianna.

is it so wrong for her for wanting to laugh? the combination of the expression on his face and the bottle of whiskey in his hand was almost enough for her to disturb the quiet peace of the night for good. “i’m not getting my silk wet,” she hissed, taking the apple from him to squeeze between her fingers. “you better not be throwing that whiskey up there, it’s a waste of alcohol.” not to mention all the noise it will make! “don’t rush me—” dahye dropped a kiss on his bare shoulder, a devilish grin on her face as she positioned herself right in front of francisco and leant her back fully onto his chest. poising herself as if she was going to make an impressive pitch on the baseball field. “—you ready to see some shit?” some shit sporting prowess, more like! she started winding her arm back before pulling all of her energy into the throw — …and the apple landed with a melodic clatter against the roof tiles just slightly to the left of the raccoons. “i told you—” but the near-miss had the desired effect nonetheless, the two raccoons stood up alert before darting off in breakneck speed. her lips stretched into a triumphant smirk as she turned fully to wind her arms around his neck. “so now can we get back to bed?” 

    “ what? ” francisco’s brow creased at the comment. he held up the whiskey and took a swig straight from the bottle as if to showcase his intentions. “ this is for drinking, which you and i were supposed to enjoy together but the minute i walked in you were too excited and started taking your clothes off, ” he noted (maybe exaggerated) with a smile he had no desire to hide. “ i wasn’t about to stop that. ” the build-up to her apple toss had ended not with a bang but a laugh from francisco as he witnessed the apple land on the rooftop but away from her target. “ i think our national baseball team is looking for a new pitcher. ” but dahye had fixed the problem. unlike earlier, francisco’s hand only went as far as the ribbon on her robe almost daring to pull on the knot as he held the end of the silk tie between his thumb and index finger. his other hand grasped around the neck of the whiskey bottle at his side. “ hmm, can we go to bed, ” the venezuelan repeated her question as if he needed to think over her request. “ no we’re going to do something else. ” he wasn’t about to sleep now. 

[franciscobolivar]

dianna.

“i don’t know what kind of so-called ghosts you have here in the americas but-” the rest of her words teetered off into a breathless laugh, her argument died just where his lips had met the base of her neck. dahye had almost turned fully around to hoist herself up the kitchen counter in order to kiss him properly before he unceremoniously pulled away. men ! how easily distracted they are. “hey, you stay inside.” just about anyone could be peering out of their living room blinds at them, the sudden light flooding her backyard certainly didn’t help. she wrenched the back door open, squinting in the light and shivering at the sudden onslaught of the cold night air, dahye wrapped her robe around her a little tighter as she tiptoed out onto the yard, eyes searching up on the roof. of course, there were the blasted creatures - not boogeymen after all! she shuffled back onto her back porch and stuck her head in. “quick, get me something to throw - it’s just fucking raccoons on the roof.”

    francisco stood in the doorway with his arms crossed against his bare chest and body leaning against the doorframe while he watched her walk out into the cold to investigate. “ what’d i say baby, el cucuy. ” or the equivalent to it in canada at least. he turned his head to glance back at the kitchen for anything he could easily spot to reach for; when nothing stuck out right away he pushed away from the doorframe to wander the kitchen in search of something. “ take the water hose to it. ” the venezuelan called out to dahye as he swiped the unopened whiskey bottle from the counter he’d brought over earlier and an apple as he came around the kitchen island. both items had been presented when he walked outside, explicitly what she had asked him not to do, but only the apple was handed to her. “ you have one shot. ” he took a few steps further out onto the grass for a better vantage point and unscrewed the bottle cap. “ make it count. ”

[franciscobolivar]

ana maría.

He was somewhere else again. She didn’t know where, and she doubted if she asked, he would give any real insight. Ana María remembered when that dynamic used to make her uncomfortable. When he wondered where he was, would pester him about it. But it had been years, and she’d grown used to the chasm between them. “Here, let me hang these,” she said, taking the jacket and putting it on a hanger and putting it in the closet. He seemed distracted enough, she was able to beat him to hanging things up, having brief moments of waiting as he inspected the box. “Kiko, I think that’s my box. You don’t have to.” If he didn’t seem so distracted, she’d think it was one of his efforts to take care of her, one of his older brother attempts to send a care package by way of balloon over the chasm. But this time, it honestly seemed more like a mistake. And one she wasn’t sure if he would insist was intentional or not. “For our use or just to give him a hand cramp?” she asked, letting a wry smile spread on her face, too.

    “ if we don’t take them i don’t know who else will want to see his face on the cover of a gardening magazine. we’ll just regift them, back to him. ” with his free hand, francisco reached for the edge of the box and tilted it towards himself to peer into; all ana maria’s clothing. still, his demeanor had changed somewhat from the text that caused him wave off the mistake he’d made over which box belonged to which sibling. more importantly, it kept his mind from wandering to the same thoughts that had plagued him over the past few weeks, for a moment, a brief one. “ it’s fine, ” he insisted and reached to grab another article of clothing he simply handed off to her at that point. “ did alejandro meet the neighbors yet? ” he was making small talk and with ana maría that always meant there was something he was holding back on talking to her about.

[franciscobolivar]

mimi.

“Hello gorgeous!” Mimi cooed, “you want to see the puppies again? –Oh, God!” She stood on tip-toe to look over the fence, expecting Ana Maria’s little boy but instead seeing the Venezuelan king. She ducked down behind the fence again for a moment to compose herself before peering back over sheepishly. “’Morning,” she waved, “sorry. I thought you were…Someone else.” @franciscobolivar​

    “ morning, ” the venezuelan repeated and made no effort to hide the obvious smile from the blonde’s mistake. “ mmh, okay i see. about, ” francisco raised his hand to about the height alejandro came up to on him. “ yay high. dark hair, caterpillars for eyebrows? ” he made sure the last few words were said hopefully loud enough for his nephew to hear from inside with the back door wide open. “ i’ve seen him around. ” and the ‘ tio ’ that sounded from the house indicated alejandro had heard the eyebrow comment and was getting better at his english, maybe too good. francisco took a glance back towards the door and back to the blonde. " la dama del cachorro, ” he repeated alejandro’s description of mimi as if it all finally clicked what his nephew had been going on about for the past few days. 

[franciscobolivar]

anya.

“ it’s her uncle whose in charge right now, isn’t it? does she have that much sway over him? ” russia had little interest in the tumultuous relationships of the latin american countries, aside from where it could benefit them economically. providing outright and public support to francisco would threaten profits of current deals with brazil. “ these things will pass. they fault you, you can blame terrorists, corporations, give a vague promise of policy change that will take years to fall into place….and eventually people will forget. after all, even the americans manage to keep their place despite all their pollutions. your debt is a more immediate issue. focus your priorities, your majesty. ”

    otaviano wasn’t someone francisco worried about, they were friends? supporters of one another and with that came an understanding but maitê distrusted both — something of little concern to anya, for now. “ not otaviano, but others. ” the details of mercosur he’d spare her of, but to focus on his priority also meant to prevent any cause that would increase debt. “ it’s funny, i never thought i’d be one to call you optimistic. ” she just never fit the profile from his limited point of view on the woman, anya just wasn’t known for a sunny disposition. then again, their interactions were limited to foreign debt discussions disguised as friendly chats.

[franciscobolivar]

leon.

     - THERE WAS no easy way to tell the dark haired man that leon would rather not get involved in whatever dispute he had with his sister. especially because telling karyna to do what he suggested would make no difference when she didn’t want to do it. ‘ i understand. ’ he did. ‘ and i could, but i believe that is something you should take up with her yourself. ’

    “ right. ” not the answer he wanted. then again, there was little leon could actually do and was far from being the sibling he actually needed to speak with. “ and getting her to answer me, since she is your sister, how would you suggest going about that? ” calling only worked if she answered and the more he called well, all the more reason not to answer the various missed calls in a single day. 

[franciscobolivar]

maitê.

“perhaps,” she interjects, impatiently. “but we still would like to see since you have no trouble in shouting it to the world.” it was a mistake, she shouldn’t have said this harsh but the implicit tone to say that their state company wasn’t doing better or prepare when that boat shouldn’t have been there in the first place was, at the bare minimum, disrespectful. “what we able to do is to increase this investigation and come to our conclusion very soon, and increase our contingencies plans for, unauthorized, illegal, boats transporting oil on our coast. because i can assure you, that all out protocols are in place and update, and weren’t even needed to be used until this so you better be sure that we will find the responsible and hold them accountable, your majesty.”

    it was so effortless how maitê broke the friendly facade shared between them and in turn it caused the venezuelan to arch a brow at the change of tone. “ and i gave you time. ” his statement was unfinished yet brief in delivery and he waited. “ before i shouted it to the world as you like to put it, i waited for you to correct the mistake. you didn’t. ” another pause. this time francisco’s gaze narrowed just enough to have been noticeable. “ did you expect me not to respond to allegations against venezuela? you may not be your father or your uncle but you’re not new to how this all works. ” he only allowed the indifference to hold on his features a moment longer before the temporary facade returned even with her need to stress brazil would find who was responsible. he knew they would, it was just a matter of time. “ saying it twice sounds like you have something to prove. ” he gave a nod to her wine glass. “ you’re going to need another one soon. ”

[franciscobolivar]

dianna.

“no, she needs a full night’s sleep so the skin can regenerate.” which should be what dianna’s doing as well, no matter how handsome the interruption. as an attempt to calm him enough to get some sleep, she pulled herself up to a sitting position and laid herself fully upon his chest. “it’s not that loud… or—” she raised her head to lazily grin up at him. “—or do you want me to check it out? i’m not scared of it.” with a little stretch of her legs all the way down to her toes, she gave francisco’s shoulder one last kiss before slipping out of bed and making a show of shimmying into her silk robe. “c’mon, you can watch from the kitchen window.” 

    the confusion on francisco's face when she left his side only lated the duration of time it took for dahye to reach for her robe. she knew how to be a worthwhile distraction to the point where he had almost forgotten about the sound entirely and his voice, lazy in delivery, murmured, “ i prefer the view from here. ” but the scratching that had become nails on a chalkboard for the venezuelan had him reaching for the first item of clothing of his he could find, pants. necessary. francisco caught up to her after he had gotten somewhat dressed, half-dressed “ and what happens when you run into the bogeyman outside? ” once he was close enough behind dahye, he slipped his arms around her waist to pull her back towards him after the pair had reached the kitchen. “ huh? ” he pressed a kiss to her cheek. “ you really want to risk that . . . ” another kiss to her jaw, neck — but again the scratching noise. he exhaled out of nothing more than frustration and moved around dianna to reach for the assumed backyard light switch.