( david harbour, cis male, bisexual, he/him ) rome welcomes RUSSELL LAWSON, a HUMAN. they are 45/45 years old and have been in the city for 6 MONTHS. they are known to be COMPASSIONATE + IRRITABLE, which makes sense because they’re INDIFFERENT about the marriages. i heard they’re betrothed to ANY FC - a SUPERNATURAL.
@bloodwedstuff
death tw.
Russell had a pretty normal, middle-class human life prior to the war. He married his high school sweetheart, had a kid, worked a steady job teaching history to middle schoolers, nothing out of the ordinary.
His wife passed away ten years before the war and single parenthood was tricky, but he managed. He found a new kind of normal with time and things seemed like they’d be okay. But then the war started.
At the start of the war Russell was aligned with the humans. Seemed like the right thing to do at the time with all the propaganda around him vilifying the supernatural. Really his son was the one who wanted to get involved and Russell was too worried to let him go out there and do it alone. The duo were close to the front lines for several years, acting as hunters
Things took a turn for the worse when his son was attacked while they were least expecting it. A supernatural risked their life to try to save Russell’s son and although it was too late, he was touched by the selfless action and came to the realization that maybe the supernatural weren’t as bad as they were being portrayed as. It was a turning point in the war for him and he decided not to take a side any longer.
After that, he found and traveled around with a small ragtag group of supernaturals and humans who were trying fight for peace or offer assistance they could to anyone in need. People were welcome to come and go in the group, but there were a few core few that stuck around no matter what and became a small found family for each other.
The group wasn’t very successful in a lot of their endeavors due to no real leadership or means to achieve their goals, but everyone involved found it better than causing further bloodshed in a war that dragged on.
When they heard about Rome being a safe haven, that became their new goal.
Personality wise he’s very much a grumpy dad friend that’s gonna give you advice and support you but also tell you to knock it off and not to do anything stupid.
He has a bad habit of calling anyone who appears fairly younger than him ‘kid’ even though they could hundred or thousands of years older than him sksksks
How some people held themselves was in awe. It’s like they never dealt with the war or perhaps were just… above the lingering affects of it. Some people adjusted better she needed to remind herself. The brunette had her bags stuffed with the freshest things the city could offer. Her own little home coming together nicely – Kala found it was the only thing helping her adjust. Busying herself in house hold things… However her usual walk home she found herself unable to not take note of the woman walking. She looked so cool and collected.
“I like your shoes.” The nymph bluttered out having not even realized she was so close.
Despite being upset over just about everything going on in the city, Esther was too prideful to carry herself with anything but confidence and grace. She was walking back from being rejected from a job for ‘lack of great people skills’ when the other woman’s voice stopped her in her tracks. “ Thank you. ” Almost overly polite to overcompensate for the bartender told her earlier. “ I have to say I was pleasantly surprised to find not everything laying around after the war was completely hideous. The city may be lacking in certain areas but at least it still has the simple luxuries. ”
“ I have to say, I’m surprised by the restraint everyone has shown. I thought there would surely be riots in the streets by now after all that soul bond nonsense. ” Even though that meant she lost a bet with some gargoyle, she couldn’t be too upset about the lack of chaos. “ Best take advantage of it, I doubt things will remain peaceful for any extended amount of time. ” Esther mused as she turned to the closest person. “ Speaking of, you wouldn’t happen to know where one could find entertainment in this city, would you? ”
“ Cappelleti. “ Bonnie repeated, watching with curiosity as the elderly man made his way over to what looked to be a giant filing cabinet. The metal drawer made all sorts of noise as he pulled it open, running his fingertip along manila folders until he found her name among the other residents of Rome.
“ Bonnie Cappelleti. Here you are. “ He shut the drawer with a bang && shuffled back across the room, seating himself across from the young girl. “ It says here you’re matched to someone that goes by the name of Esther. “
The very moment that the paperwork was in her hands, Bonnie flipped it open. – Only to see that they weren’t giving her as much information as she had hoped for. No species listing. No occupation. No photo so that she could know who to look for while walking back home. Just a first name, a phone number, && an address. Lovely.
There was a knock at the door && the man was once again on his feet again, motioning for Bonnie to carry on with her reading as he went to address the person on the other side. — “ Esther. “ She mumbled, taking it all in. To think that this was the name of the person she’d be stuck with for the rest of her life. The name she’d probably say more than anyone else’s.
“ – Well, you have good timing. I was actually just having a chat with your fiance. “ —- That was enough to pull Bunny from her train of thought, her attention instead turning toward the doorway.
Might as well rip the band-aid off and find out what kind of creature she was damned to be with for an eternity. The thought still made her skin crawl and it only got worse with the soul bond. She couldn’t believe such a thing almost made her desire to have a demon as a partner. At least she wouldn’t have to worry about them breaking so easily.
“ What a lovely coincidence. ” A deceivingly sweet smile sat upon her lips. She practiced playing nice for centuries in heaven so she could stomach doing it for the brief time she’d spend in this building. “ That spares us the trouble of trying to track each other down later. I’m a busy woman and would absolutely hate for my partner to have to run all over the city just to get a hold of me. ”
She slipped pass the man to get a look at the woman she would be wed to. At least there wasn’t a horrendous stench in the room, so that ruled out her being a ghoul. “ Pleasure to meet you. ” She extended her hand out to the other with the same sweet smile on her face. “ I’m Esther. ”
Her nose crinkled slightly at the thought of being married to a ghoul — and while she’d heard some controversial things about demons given her time spent with Abel, she suspected that hatred tended to go both ways. “Well — I do hope you find your partner at least somewhat desirable.” Unfortunately, not everyone would be as lucky as she had been. “Oh yes. We’ve been together for years. I think at this point I’d have to at least tolerate him given all the time we’ve spent together.” A small smile graced her lips. “I’m grateful. Coming here was undoubtedly a risk.”
Esther let out a humorless laugh, “ Seems unlikely given the kind this city has attracted, but I suppose one can always hope. ” Really, if she wasn’t tied to a ghoul, demon, or human she might be able to stomach her partner. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes, more than a little envious that someone could actually be content in this arrangement. “ How sweet. I’m sure the council was overjoyed upon learning they could pair the two of you together. I assume they think having at least one happy couple walking around makes their plan look a little less ridiculous. ”
“They’re not so bad. But there are the rare few that can be quite… daft.” Rosalie said, trying for some delicacy. That human girl wasn’t the only one that wanted to out of these marriages all of a sudden. It blindsided everyone, no matter what species they were. “I think she’d rather take the mutilation than having to be bonded. I wonder if her spouse will feel it too if she does try to hurt herself. I probably should have at least asked that so I know to do my best to keep mine from getting hurt.”
“ They’re all the same. ” This city was supposed to be a place of peace, but that didn’t mean Esther had any plans to change her opinions on the species. “ I find it hard to pity her. If the humans hadn’t started a war, we wouldn’t be in this situation to begin with. ” She made a sound of disgust. “ It wouldn’t surprise me if that were the case. It would give everyone an incentive to take care of their spouses and clearly they think that’s the only way we’re all going to get along. ”
“that alone has to be some sort of bad omen.” he commented before falling silent to reflect on what she said. “it’s different.” his feelings towards heaven were hard to sort through – nothing was as black and white as he once thought it was. part of him found it hard to feel like he had the right to feel betrayed by heaven. angels were created to serve heaven above all else and he was the one who forsook that part of his duty. if anything, he betrayed heaven. and yet, he couldn’t quite shake the feeling that he had been wronged in some way by their father.
“it doesn’t matter anyways.” he spoke again as he pulled himself out of a train of thought that was getting him nowhere fast. “knowing his plan in full wouldn’t have kept me there and from what i understand, i doubt it would’ve kept you there either. being left in the dark wasn’t the only problem either one of us had.” though he doubts they’ll agree much beyond that.
It didn’t take long for their moment of peace to sour. “ You’re still as foolish as ever. It’s not that different, Abel. We’re blindly listening to a man who thinks his way is the only way and we’re continuing to do so even though he’s withholding information. This is just a poor version of heaven. ” She spat, feeling the rage in her starting to grow. “ But of course you wouldn’t realize that. ” Maybe a few more years from now he’d realize all the ways they, in her opinion, were wronged.
“ No, I suppose not. ” The anger she had been keeping inside during the ceremony was now spilling out with every word she spoke. “ Humans are to blame for our falls, aren’t they? And not just ours either. ” The first to fall did so because they were envious of them after all. “ At some point we should’ve wiped them out. All they do is destroy everything they touch. Look at the state of the world, this is entirely their fault. ”
Normal. Mercury had once had some very cookie cutter ideas of normal ( before the war had shattered them and morphed the word into something entirely different ). The idea of having to reshape it once more nearly brought on a headache, and rather then focus on something that very well might throw her into a panic, she instead fixated on the next sentence that left her new companions mouth. “Vile creatures?” Eyebrows raising in surprise, Mercury couldn’t help the small frown that tugged at her features. “I suppose some weren’t very fortunate with their match — I can’t really imaging marrying a stranger.”
“ Well, they’re not all desirable now, are they? Would you really want to spend your life with a ghoul? Imagine the constant stench. ” She shuddered with disgust. “ And a demon? I’d rather take my chances outside the city than trust their kind. ” Esther stopped herself before getting carried away with all the cons of each species. “ I take it you’re lucky enough to know and at least tolerate your future spouse then? ” A low tolerance was about all she expected to get out of her own marriage. Company was often too disappointing for much of anything else.
“ Well, now I truly don’t know whether to congratulate the newlyweds or offer my condolences. ” Esther spoke as if she was the one who had just been inconvenienced by the reveal. In her opinion she was, or would be at some point. Heaven forbid she become tied to a human (or possibly worse a demon) for an eternity. “ There goes my hope of a short-lived marriage. ” She was keeping the true extent of her rage contained. While she wouldn’t lose sleep over unleashing a little angelic wraith, this was the only sanctuary on this damned earth so she best make an effort not to ruin it for herself.
abel shook his head in disapproval at the conclusion of the ceremony. it certainly wasn’t what he expected. “this is going to be a disaster.” he understood the logic behind the surprise, but found the execution deeply flawed. there was no way this didn’t cause at least some unrest and distrust within the city. “they should’ve disclosed everything from the beginning. suddenly revealing this information to everyone doesn’t seem like a great way to keep peace.” he criticized.
@bloodwedstuff – open
“ Surely this is the first time in we’ve actually agreed on something. ” She couldn’t say it was cause for celebration, especially since she just learned she would be bound for an eternity to her betrothed. “ I’m surprised you’re not numb to this sort of betrayal. When did our father ever disclose his plans in full to any of us? I suspect not even the archangels know as much as they claim. ” Her voice was laced with venom as she spoke of their creator. “ Never worked out for Him either, did it? I wonder how many of us He’s lost to the earth and Hell because of it. ”
“At least the food’s good,” Rosalie piped up with a playful smile as she filled her plate to the brim with her favorites. Her parents only said not to make a drunken fool of herself. They didn’t say she couldn’t devour everything she can in one sitting. She was starving because she hadn’t eaten all day; due to nerves, but also she’d be damned if she didn’t fit into her Vera Wang for the wedding today. Her gaze drifted when she heard a grunt from a table. Another one of the humans who had been married off was still trying to take off their ring. “She does realize it’s hopeless? Unless she decides to cut off her hand. That’d be the entertainment of the evening.”
Esther watched the human with wicked amusement. If she was going to have to suffer through some horrendous marriage, at least the humans were going to too. It really was the little things sometimes. “ I never thought them to be creatures of high intelligence so it wouldn’t surprise me if she continued to try to get it off for the entirety of the evening. ” The mutilation would lift her spirits. “ Something tells me cutting her hand off wouldn’t change her fate. Still, I don’t think it would harm the poor thing too much if the suggestion was made. ”
sorry i haven’t been around! i was feeling a little under the weather these last few days. i’m going to do some event related things and then get to other replies and messages tomorrow <3
Vessels, what pesky things to contain their celestial essence. They don’t appear to contain it all too well because she can still sense one of her many sibling’s aura -- void of it’s holiness though. Esther wasn’t interested in exchanging pleasantries with someone who turned his back on her centuries ago. She was however interested in learning what sin he had committed to find himself among the fallen, if not only to rub salt in the wound.
“ Please tell me I’m not going to run into a pack of Nephilim you’ve fathered. ” It didn’t matter if she no longer served heaven, she still found the creatures to be vile. The fallen angel couldn’t understand why some of her siblings would damn themselves to take humans of all creatures as lovers. “ I would hate for this city to become filled with their stench. And I’m sure I don’t need to remind you of the fate the abominations usually meet. Unless you’ve changed in the last three hundred years, I can’t imagine you’d handle that well. ”
“I’m not sure what to do with myself.” She murmured — more to herself then anyone else. The first month in the city had been an adjustment period ( an attempt to slowly move back into a life that no longer centered around fighting to stay alive ). But without the threat on her very existence, without people to care for or lives to save, Mercury found herself restless. Sitting still just left her waiting for the other shoe to drop and it was beginning to drive her nuts. She’d taken to the streets in hopes that something would draw her in, but the thought of intruding on others and being a nuisance ( a burden ) was a habit she still readily avoided. “What are we meant to do now?”
She was almost positive the question wasn’t directed at her. It didn’t stop her from chiming in though. There had been a time in her life when she answered the questions of man and no matter what she did, some of that angelic nature remained. “ What happens after every war, attempt to get to back to some kind of normal again. ” She couldn’t say she lost much in the war, just a little more of her soul. Returning to some state of normalcy would be easier for her than some. “ I’m sure it’s expected that some of our free time should be dedicated to getting familiar with whatever vile creatures we’ll be shackled to for eternity. ” Esther can’t help but take a bitter jab at the idea.
( elodie yung, cis female, homosexual, she/her ) rome welcomes ESTHER, a FALLEN ANGEL. they are 39/950 years old and have been in the city for 1 WEEK. they are known to be INDEPENDENT + MERCILESS, which makes sense because they’re FURIOUS about the marriages. i heard they’re betrothed to ANY FEMALE FC - a UTP. ( ri, 25, cst, she/her )
murder & violence tw.
@bloodwedstuff
In the beginning Esther was a faithful and ruthless warrior for the heavens. Although she was obedient enough, there was always something a little off about her. Unlike most angels, she never really cared for the humans and was more indifferent towards them.
Speaking of angelic duties though, she was definitely an angel that took part in hunting down and killing Nephilim and honestly? She enjoyed it. Served them right.
Much like the first fallen, she began to feel hatred in her heart for the humans. They were all so ungrateful and greedy, so hellbent on fighting over false promises of power. Why should she have to fight to protect them from themselves? Why should any of the angels care for these beings capable of such evils? With some of the acts they did to each other, she thought them no better than demons.
Around 300 years ago she turned her back on heaven, tired of protecting a species that seemed content to slaughter and destroy each other without a second thought.
Not gonna lie, she fell on her own and was a little hurt no one followed her. Well, a little hurt is an understatement. She felt betrayed. In all her years of service, she was always loyal to her siblings/comrades and not one of them had the sense or decency to follow her after she made some damn good points?
Even though she’s been on Earth for 300 years now, she hasn’t taken up a surname because she doesn’t belong to anyone. All her former ties are nothing but painful reminders so she has no interest in investing time in long-term relationships of any kind.
300 years of being on her own for the most part only seemed to darken her heart further. She falls more in line with the lore that speaks of fallen angels trying to corrupt and harm humans after their fall.
The war provided a great opportunity for her to take out pent up rage and hatred towards the humans. She fought fiercely on the side of the supernatural, not because she cared about what happened to them. It was more like a big “fuck you” to the humans and heaven. Definitely shed her fair share of blood on the battlefield.
The irony in comparing humans to demons is that she’s fallen so far that she now resembles the creatures she hated. Realizing this, she wants a break from it all, a little peace. So to Rome it was.
Not a fan of the marriage. She’s highkey hoping whoever she’s betrothed to will be some being on their deathbed so it doesn’t last long rip.