#au!nicolas

[symphonyofmalice]

Your happiness is my concern, and you may be certain that in it I shall find my own❞ (newlyweds)

((𝘿𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙨 𝙇𝙞𝙖𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙨)) @minaharkerdailymirror

"Truly?" Nicolas asked. Mina kept saying it. But believing her was still a challenge, a rug he expected to be pulled out from under his feet. He just didn't understand. He knew what pleasure he got from their arrangement, but... "What kind of happiness can it bring you? To lie alone in a bed at night, or watch your husband walk through the door, and know he has debased himself with someone else?"

[symphonyofmalice]

""Do you want to talk about it?""

((ways to ask about it.))

When Mina had come home, Nicolas was sitting on the bed, staring blankly at the wall. He hadn't said anything when she came in, his expression hadn't shifted. He only looked up at her when she spoke up out loud.

"I had the first session with the therapist today" he said. Mina already knew that. She had been the one to encourage him to see a therapist long before now. Once he realized he was gay, Nicolas had gone to the church first, and eventually agreed it might be a good idea to take advantage of the college's mental health center. His voice sounded toneless, but not bored. It was like he was clinging to a cliff overlooking absolute terror by the fingernails. "I think I really fucked up."

[symphonyofmalice]

( 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐊𝐄 )

((comforting actions))

Mina hated her hair. But Nicolas found himself slowly falling in love with it. There was a tranquil routine in helping her comb, brush and style it in the mornings. It could make a frenzied day feel calmer, or add an anchoring touch of comfort to a melancholy one. It never saved him from his worst moments, but it could add a finger to the scales, and that could nudge 'hellish' into 'awful', or 'mediocre' into 'fine'.

Right now, it was Mina that needed the comfort. "Tell me" he encouraged her softly. "What happened?". His hands moved through her hair with no particular intention. It was four in the morning, she didn't need a hairdo, she just needed touch and presence and a listening ear.

[symphonyofmalice]

Sanctify them in the truth

There was a ritual element to the murders. There had to be. There were practicalities, like never killing someone that could be tied to his personal life, to keep the police at bay. And then there were Rules, the commandments that came from his soul and could not be bent or broken.

It was two in the morning. Nicolas was in the secret second home of his latest victim. This one had been hard to catch, since he was a priest. Nicolas could not enter a church while he was hunting. He could not kill anyone wearing a rosary or a cross. There were Rules. But here? Where the fire-and-brimstone preacher came to have his affairs? Here, his hypocrisy would be exposed to the world.

The middle-aged man was bound and gagged on his own bed. Nicolas had drugged him, to restrain him. But he was awake and aware enough to look afraid as Nicolas approached with the needle. They had to be alive when he drained them, he had to stop before the heart stopped. That was a Rule. The first syringe of blood was squirted directly down his throat. He had to taste it, that was a Rule, too. But he had about two liters to drain, and he couldn't drink all of it. The rest was delicately poured into an empty champagne bottle and two glasses, set up in a mockery of a romantic date at the dining room table. Bright red rose petals led from the table to the bed, where he left the man dying, two puncture wounds in his neck.

---

Back at home, he changed out of his clothes, an eighteenth century getup that would have fit a period piece about the revolution. The gloves were practical, yes. But he needed to maintain a connection to his true self when he was hunting. He slept through most of the day. Come evening, he got up, dressed in a band t-shirt and ratty dark jeans, and went out as Nicolas, local musician.

Arriving at the club, he saw Mina already sitting at the bar. He sidled up on the stool next to her. "Hello hello." Mina had an unhappy expression on her face. "What's stuck in your craw tonight? The music's not that bad," he joked. Befriending Mina was the riskiest thing he did, but he couldn't resist. She, like him, was an agent of truth, in a way. He could feel the spark in her.

[symphonyofmalice]

[ 11. ] sender is discovered sleepwalking by receiver. (Newlywed verse?)

@minaharkerdailymirror

(A yellow sunrise)

To keep up appearances, newlyweds Nicolas and Mina shared a bedroom, and the large bed within it, even if they didn't do what they were expected to in it. Nicolas had found it oddly comforting to sometimes have the simple presence of another warm body beside him. His own sleep could be irregular- sometimes struggling to drag himself out of bed in the morning, sometimes feeling excited and energized after only three or four hours in bed.

He wasn't sure what, exactly, woke him this particular night. But when his outstretched arm found nothing, he opened his eyes, suddenly alert. The other half of the bed was empty. Had Mina gotten up in the middle of the night? Was something wrong?

Perhaps she was only getting a drink of water. Perhaps she had snuck out to someone else's bed and he should politely ignore it. But after waiting a few minutes, Nicolas felt worried. If he found her and she was fine, she could make fun of him. He got out of bed, threw on a robe, and went looking for his wife.

[symphonyofmalice]

Window to the past

@beautifulsavagegarden continued from here (x)

Nicolas shook his head as she offered him the box. "What would I do with it? Where would I put it? Carry it with me, just a box floating through the world, when I am not always more than a voice or a thought myself? It is not my theater anymore, and I have no use for it." She did. She could use it for it's mundane purpose, or to summon him, apparently. "Keep it, throw it in the sea, burn it, it's yours."

He wasn't sure what allowed him to touch things or not. Most of the world was intangible to him. Some places always felt a little more real- familiar places, like the theater or the catacombs, or the room he had shared with Lestat, while it survived. He had the odd conviction that he could always hold a violin, but had never needed to test the hypothesis- he could conjure one for himself from thin air. Maybe it was things that were his, whatever that meant. More instinct than fact.

"I did" he said plainly. He had been the favored son, not the only one. He was sure his siblings resented how he had thrown out the status and privilege is parents kept trying to burden him with. "But I was never a very good older brother. are you sure you want my counsel?"

[symphonyofmalice]

Introducing AUs!

I’m interested in roleplaying with Nicolas in some alternate universes, especially where he is something other than a vampire. I might write out my headcanons for each of these and add them as a page to the blog. In some ways, these will at as “verses”, though I still prefer to allow myself the flexibility of treating it’s own thread seperately, and not necessarily expecting 100% consistency. All AU’s will have a tag (used for headcanons, threads in that au, etc.) using standard bang path (Au!Nicolas) formatting. 

For my RP partners: 

-These are evocable! If you want a particular AU, just mention in in an ask, starter, meme, etc. 

-These are combinable with existing memes/starters! So feel free to send something like “Demon!Nicolas [quote starter]” or “😘with Changeling!Nicolas” etc. 

The AUs:

🙂Human

NeverWas!Nicolas: For any circumstances in which Nicolas never becomes a vampire. Perhaps he didn’t ask Lestat to turn him. Perhaps he was refused. Perhaps they parted ways too early, perhaps he was kept in the theater as a mortal pet. Obviously, time-limited to a mortal lifespan. This is specific to au’s and not threads within Nicolas canon human life.

NotAnymore!Nicolas: Wether the cause is magic, a blessing, a curse, body-swap shenanigans or anything else, this is for any thread where Nicolas becomes human after experiencing vampirism. 

👻Ghost

Ghost!Human!Nicolas: For a Nicolas that dies while human. The Children of Darkness went too far and lost their hostage, or perhaps killed him to spite Lestat. Now there is a haunting in Paris, a ghostly figure dressed in red, holding a violin. 

Ghost!Vampire!Nicolas: For the ghost of Nicolas after his vampirism, the ashen imprint left behind after his Grand Sabbat pyre. 

🧚‍♂️Fairy: Changeling!Nicolas: A fae child left in a human household, growing up with parents and siblings that found him strange and alienating, uncanny and unnatural. Only as a young adult did Nicolas find his people- with their bright eyes and bell-like voices- returning to play his music under the hills and in the forests. 

🐦Animal and animal related:

Daemon!Nicolas: His Dark Materials/Daemon AUs where Nicolas’ soul is a companion animal, a ~(european storm petrel? whippoorwill?) named Acanthos. 

Matagot!Nicolas: Threads in which Nicolas is a matagot from French folklore: A magical spirit in the shape of a black cat. The matagot can bring great evil and suffering to those it encounters, but if carefully controlled, it can also bring great wealth and riches. (Puss in Boots was a matagot). 

Anthro!Nicolas: For furry AU’s in which Nicolas is an anthropomorphic animal, likely a bird, given the bird-over-a-wasteland depiction of his inner soul. 

Shifter!Nicolas: For threads where Nicolas is a shapechanger that can flip between human and animal forms. As with the others, I will likely stick to bird forms, as I personally see those as most representative, but I’m not beyond a werewolf au. 

😈Demon: Demon!Nicolas: Nicolas as a true denizen of hell, under the reign of Wrath. A devil associated with madness, rage and debauchery. Depicted in human folklore and religious stories constantly with some instrument, from lyres to violins. Much like the namesake Panics of Pan, his music is said to drive human beings to their worst extremes. He can inspire poets, playwrights and musicians with cosmic visions, though the cost for making a deal is high. 

🧜‍♂️Mermaid: Siren!Nicolas: He sits upon the rocks, silver scales glittering in moonlight, wet hair near-black. His beguiling voice can charm any who listen to it. And when their ship dashes upon the rocks, his shark-toothed mouth will feast upon blood and bone. 

This does not need to be an exhaustive list, and I am happy to do other monsters, creatures, variants etc.! 

[symphonyofmalice]

Bouche à Bouche

Starter for @2kyears

It was good work, all things considered. It paid well. These balls served royalty and those noble enough to share a room with them, and that meant they could afford fineries: the best food, the best furnishings, and the best musicians. These dances were more than just entertainment, after all. Dynasties were expected to be made or broken as the heirs of the most important families waltzed together.

In truth, Nicolas had not paid much attention to the actual guests. He didn't know the names and faces, which family was which and what drama was between them. All that had nothing to do with him, after all. He wasn't titled, he wasn't getting married, he wasn't here to wine and dine and dance. He was here to play. So he played, letting the violin speak for itself in elegant, precisely rhythmic notes.

When there was a break, he made himself disappear. These aristocratic types didn't want to see the hired staff, and he didn't care much for their company either. He made his way along the servants' passageways to the kitchens to grab a glass of wine, and then outside. The fresh night air would do him some good.