no sooner had the jubilation of the masquerade party arrived than it had been swept away in the wake of the news that a murder had occurred on school grounds. at first, regulus had simply thought it an innocuous rumor started by restless underclassmen but that soon proved to not be the case when the body of bertram aubrey had been discovered hours later.
once again, the overall mood of the school had shifted back to what it had been at the start of term. however, regulus seemed to be in his usual spirits. meaning he was decidedly neutral about the whole thing. unfortunate, that one of their own had been murdered right under their noses but regulus found himself more so intrigued by the dark mark that had hung over all their heads that night.
❝ why do you think they targeted bertram ? ❞ regulus wonders aloud to the others in the independent study hall that afternoon. classes had been canceled but he was presently revising his star maps for astronomy, regardless. though this was all rather dull considering the elephant in the room and he seemingly did not care if this was neither the time nor place to be having this conversation. ❝ and why hogwarts of all places ? what do they seek to gain out of stoking fear in school children ? ❞
lucrèce had her books and parchment spread out in front of her, but she had given up on actually studying long ago, and was far more focused on tending to her cuticles when regulus spoke up. she couldn’t help but glance around at the others in the study hall, who all looked too nervous to speak their minds. des lâches. “ — not school children, ” she said languidly, her gaze returning to her nails. “ — their PARENTS. what is more terrifying than the thought of your children being hurt, non ? ”
“ — don’t you look lovely tonight, ” lu greeted narcissa courteously, as if they were at a pureblood benefit instead of a drunken afterparty. and she held herself like it too – regal and poised, cold as ice. “ — the men must be lining up to have their hearts broken by you. ” // @gcldenchilds
“ qu'est-ce que c'est, ma sœur chérie? tu n'aimes pas le rougissement que je t'ai trouvé? ” it was crude but it’d been effective… perhaps too effective? there was more than a screech of annoyance coming at her but accusations born from rage. “ me? what did i do? do you truly think so low of me? ”
“ —me-permets de renvoyer l’ascenseur, ” lucrèce growled, stepping forward and raising her bloodied hand to smack her sister sharply across the face. “ — oh, i wouldn’t put it past you, ma sœur. you always did have a talent for DESTRUCTION. ” she didn’t truly believe what she was saying. her words were merely intended to jab, to sting. when lucrèce spoke next, her voice was low and coldly commanding, masking the fear which had begun to broil in the pit of her belly. she only knew two things: one, that something dreadful had happened, and two, that her sister, with all the grace of a bull in a china shop, had somehow gotten herself entangled in the middle of it. typical. “ — dis-moi qu’est-ce que passé. ”
“ — you know, maybe it’s the PUNCH talking, but dim lighting and a mask are doing wonders for your looks. you should consider hiding your face more OFTEN. ” // @gidexnprewett
“ cesser d'agir le fou lucrèce et écouter ” their confrontation was a track as well worn as any sibling camaraderie in another family, but she had no time for it. it was only when her hands curled into fists that she realised they were slick with bertram’s blood. it was childish but it was the only way she could think to get her sister to pay attention, so she brought a red hand up and swiped her sister’s cheek.
“ — élodie ! ” lu screeched in indignation, recoiling at the feel of something wet and warm on her cheek. “ — c’est quoi de bordel ? ” she reached up gingerly and touched her face, her hands coming away sticky and red. if she wasn’t listening before, she certainly was now. her eyes travelled from her bloody fingertips to her sister in abject horror and rage. “ — you little demon, what have you DONE ? ”
any other night ellie would retort with a quick quip, some dig at the older girls shorter height. but this wasn’t any other night, this was all hallows eve, hallowe’en, and ellie had just found out that something dark was lurking other in the woods. she still had the boys blood on her when she spoke to her sister “ i wouldn’t be so quick to assume its lies, lucrèce ”
“ — mais non, instead i should jump to conclusions as you so love to do, ” she mused, hardly paying her sister any more attention than she would an annoying gnat. “ — i wonder that your legs are not TIRED. ”
“I don’t think anyone invited them. They just followed the rest of us out here. Though I do have to wonder… with all the talk about dead bodies, and considering how many of them are talking about it… do you think one of them found something?”
“ — do i think one of them found a dead body ? ” lucrèce scoffed lightly. “ — getting a little TOO into the holiday spirit, are we ? surely you must know how quickly gossip spreads around this school. especially if it is FALSE. ”
“Who invited anyone?” Lucius drawled. He would have recognised her voice anywhere, even without the very identifiable accent. “Though really I’m not sure what standard of behaviour you were expecting and… did you say dead bodies?”
lucrèce lifted a shoulder in a graceful, uncaring shrug. “ — i assume they saw someone passed out from drink and drew their own conclusions. i suppose overactive imaginations don’t pair well with SPIKED punch. ” her lips curved in a faint, derisive smile. “ — especially on hallowe’en. ”
“Fairly certain they invited themselves, but can you blame them? This party is ace and I’m pretty sure I did the same at their age anyway.” Thalia shrugged. “It’s the hallucinogenic punch. Nothing to worry about.”
“ — perhaps you did, but i am certain i never behaved so … disgracefully, ” lu commented, her eyes lingering on the fourth years a few moments longer before she shrugged indifferently. “ — bah. well, we must hope they learn their lesson from this dead body hallucination. perhaps they shall be too TRAUMATIZED to come to the next party. ”
“ — mon dieu, who invited the fourth years ? ” lucrèce sniffed, icy blue eyes shooting a disparaging glance towards a gaggle of younger-looking students. “ — they do NOT know how to behave themselves. drinking too much and yelling about dead bodies. quand même ! distasteful. ”
isn’t that LUCRÈCE ALLAIRE ? yeah that is HER, sitting there at the SLYTHERIN table with those other SEVENTH years and i think i heard sybill saying they look like ESTER EXPOSITO… whoever that is! when she looks into her crystal ball she sees the cold glimmer of dead stars, gliding down a marble staircase, freshly healed skin over a torn-off hangnail, silk sheets twisted around two pairs of legs, perfectly polished china carefully arranged. anyway i’ve heard they’re pretty SELFISH, POISED, and RESOURCEFUL. apparently they’re a PUREBLOOD but i’m sure that’s not related.
it’s hard to get attention with six siblings. especially when you’re the second youngest daughter in a family that only ever wanted a son. lucrèce used to not care. when she was younger, she was perfectly happy playing with her sister elodie, bonding while their parents fussed over their brother.
until lu figured out the secret – to get attention, all she had to do was be practically perfect in every way. so she stopped playing with ellie, started staying inside and practicing the harp until her fingers bled, balanced books on her head until her posture rivalled that of royalty, memorized each obscure etiquette rule of which fork goes where.
it was around that time that she also figured out her siblings were not her allies, but rather, competition. if they did worse, by extension, that meant she did better.
she took full advantage of this realisation, and poor ellie got the brunt of it. she’d prick her with her needle during embroidery lessons, then played the innocent when her sister reacted. they fed into each other – ellie would get into trouble, and lucrèce would egg her on ( never allowing herself to get caught, of course. )
it was no surprise when lu was sorted into slytherin at hogwarts. she fit all the check boxes – proud, manipulative, cunning, ambitious … and, of course, pure.
with her french accent, beauty and charm, lucrèce easily found herself the subject of attention from many of her classmates. and she thrived ! finally, instead of lu trying to impress others ( namely, her parents ), others were trying to impress her.
she quickly developed a talent for getting other people to do things for her – her homework, revenge, etc. for all her ambition and drive, lucrèce can be extraordinarily lazy. if there’s someone she can get to do her work for her, dirty or otherwise, she will.
hates losing control. while her sister is all impulse decisions and recklessness, lu is careful planning and preparation. she’s fiercely independent, although she keeps that fierceness all on the downlow, beneath a rehearsed smile and downcast eyes.
does not show feelings. feelings are weakness. and lu would rather die than show weakness
lowkey secretly hedonistic ? on the outside, lu is the portrait of restraint and class. but with a very select few, she’s partaken in her fair share of vices. drinking, drugs, and mostly yes, sex. she’s very careful not to let a reputation spread, but she’s a teenage girl – she enjoys sex and she’s not ashamed. she just knows better than to act like it.
kind of obsessed with nailcare ? it started because she would bite and pick at her nails whenever she was stressed or upset, so eventually she started painting them to refrain from biting them. now she has an impressive collection of nail polish and varnish. her cuticles are impeccable. it’s kind of a way for her to maintain control – doing her nails helps her keep a calm head. if her nails are out of order, her life is out of order.
pretty squeamish. almost failed care of magical creatures because she couldn’t dissect a flobberworm.
she puts herself first, always. and she isn’t ashamed of that. if she wants something, she goes for it. if other people don’t do the same, that’s their own fault.
has the confidence of a mediocre white man because why not
lowkey scared of commitment
uhhhh i’ll add more if i think of it ? i’m sure i’m forgetting things. pls plot w me
