#leline lilwater

[rusted-muses]

Leline Lilwater (left), Virgil Darca (right), Kirai (center).

Scene from a roleplay between myself and @midian-muses

[rusted-muses]

From my Discord RP with @midian-muses: Leline Lilwater, in a modern AU, alongside Kaede. The way these two women interact has been a very therapeutic marinade for me, and I very much wanted to commemorate them in artwork.

"Did I say something wrong?" Leline asked softly.

Gently, the woman shook her head.

"I just feel like I keep making you uncomfortable. I don't mean to. I know we had a rough meeting, but... I know who to be mad at for that, and it's not you. I'd like to be your friend, if you want."

"Thank you," she mumbled.

Honestly, she had not assumed that the other woman was mad -- in retrospective that was really presumptuous of her.

She blinked and looked down further, now ashamed.

How could she dare sit her with the woman like this?

Ask her what's wrong, or change the subject?

Why am I so bad at this?

Where the hell is Kirai with that sake?

And other entirely unhelpful thoughts flooded Leline's mind as she watched Kaede seem to crumble. In the end, she just went with her gut, and reached across the small table to gently touch Kaede's shoulder.

Kaede flinched a little bit and stared up at her, surprised, a little glimmer of guilt flickering in her eyes.

Quickly, she looked down again. "I'm sorry."

"You don't have to be sorry, Kaede," Leline told her earnestly. "Not to me. I really mean that. You gotta do what you gotta do. I get it."

They could not risk explicitly rebellious words or thoughts. But Leline remembered something that her parents used to tell her, something Yuen was unlikely to regard.

"Everything will be alright. You'll see."

[rusted-muses]

Hmm... Name the most iconic moment for one of your muses!!

Oooooh, good question.

Well, Virgil's got two so far that I can't choose between..

In my RP with @midian-muses, it's gotta be the first fight with Kirai. My little dude cut the guy's head off with one fell stroke. (Unfortunately, it didn't take.)

In my first book, which is still in revisions, his iconic moment comes in the climax, when he covers Leline's jailbreak by releasing 1,000 captive dragons into the sky.

[rusted-muses]

How would Leline react to finding out that Virgil befriended Kirai?

Pretty sure Leline mellowed to Kirai when he let her say goodbye to Virgil, and then shared some drinks with her on that last night. She doesn't want him dead anymore, at least.

In fact, if memory serves, she asked Kirai to look out for Virgil when she left. So, she'd be relieved to find that he's keeping his word.

[rusted-muses]

How would the conversation between Virgil and Leline be if she is back and he meant to tell her about Kaede?

What would he tell Kaede?

As for what Virgil will tell Kaede (not to mention what Leline will tell her), I'm saving that for the RP. A lot of it will depend on how long they've been together and what Kaede feels about the situation.

But as for Virgil's private talk with Leline... let's see what I can do.

(Reader Beware: Here be over 800 words)

The instant they were alone, Leline let her brave mask fall to the floor. She swept Virgil up into her arms and whirled him around. His laughter filled the room. He was here. He was safe. Her world was finally spinning again.

She set him back on his feet and kissed him. There was some giggling as their noses bumped and their teeth clashed together. They'd been apart long enough to be out of practice. They needed to find each other once again. But fifteen years of marriage left deep marks, and the memories refreshed themselves quickly.

When he pulled back, there were tears in his eyes. She couldn't fault him for that; she'd been crying since the door closed.

“Did he hurt you?” Virgil whispered.

Leline shook her head. “Not once.”

In her time as Raoul's unwilling concubine, she had known luxury she had never imagined, and felt pleasures that seemed otherworldly. When it came to pure hedonistic abandon, Raoul was on another level completely. Stepping back into these humble surroundings was like waking up from a dream.

But Raoul kissed Leline like he was consuming her. Virgil kissed her like he would die for her. There was no choice at all between them. There never had been.

“I'm so glad.” Virgil hugged her tight, burying his face in her shoulder. "I'm so, so glad. You should never have had to go. I'm so sorry.”

“You're alive," Leline replied. "That makes it all worth it. Now we just have to find Alex and start planning our escape.”

“Lelli…”

Something in his voice made Leline pull back. “What is it?”

“I… I need to tell you something.”

They sat down side by side, backs to the wall. Virgil wouldn’t meet her eyes, which was strange. She was always the first place he looked for comfort.

Bit by bit, the story came out. It had been a few days after Leline was taken away. Yuen summoned Alex for more torture before her old wounds were even finished healing. Virgil was left alone, frightened, sinking further and further into self-loathing… until Kaede came to see him.

“She was the only spot of warmth I had left. I didn't know if I'd ever see you again, I didn't know what was happening to Alex…”

“And she was there for you,” Leline finished. When I couldn't be… "Well… at least I know you still have great taste.”

“Come on,” Virgil chided. "I'm being serious.”

“So am I. That woman's gorgeous. She could have me just by snapping her fingers.”

“I don't know what this means," he said, ignoring her attempt at levity. “I don't… you're my first love. My true love. But what I feel for Kaede isn't less… and it isn't going away.”

Leline sat with that for a while. She vaguely remembered what human monogamy was like, from her short time as a foster kid. How it took marriage and romance and sex and mushed them all together into a single blob. That wasn't her culture and it wasn't her belief. And she knew Virgil understood that on an intellectual level. But, perhaps, not an innate one.

After a while, she placed a hand on his knee, trying to encourage him to look at her. When he did, she smiled gently.

“It means we save her, too.”

Poor Virgil’s eyes went red with unshed tears. “You mean that?”

“Of course I do. If she makes you happy, then she’s family.” She kissed his cheek and gave his hand a squeeze. “Did you really think I’d be mad?”

“Not mad,” he replied, shaking his head… though, there was an embarrassed flush on his cheeks. “But, having to go behind your back like that… it really got to me.”

“Well, it’s not as if you were sneaking around,” she pointed out. “I was all the way in London, playing call girl for a brain-dead incubus that looks like Fabio.”

“I know, I know, it’s stupid,” he mumbled, putting his head in his hands.

“No,” she chuckled gently. “It’s just you.”

Virgil smiled up at her, his tears beginning to dry. He reached up and ran his thumb over the sharp curve of her cheek, down to her full, soft lips. She no longer wore a glamour; she was her true, orcish self. But he stared at her as if she were the most beautiful woman in the world.

“This is really okay?”

“This is really okay.”

Leline cupped his face in her hands and kissed him. She could taste his tears on his lips, and feel them clinging to his coppery facial hair. But beyond that, she could feel the love he had for her. It shone as bright as it ever had, as it ever would. Nothing short of death could put out that light.

“Now, then,” she said, with a twinkle in her eye. “We need to have a talk with your new girlfriend.”

[rusted-muses]

What do Virgil and Leline think of Alex?

Leline: I think she's hot. Being stubborn in the face of pure villainy is always a turn-on.

Virgil: I can never tell if you're joking when you say things like that.

Leline: Neither can I. 😁

Virgil: I think she's really strong and brave and loyal. I'm proud to be her friend.

Leline: Ooh, me too!

Virgil: You're hoping she'll spar with you if you get on her good side.

Leline: Yeah...

[rusted-muses]

What are Leline and Virgil's thoughts on Yuen, Vincent and Darren?

Yuen

Virgil: I cannot comprehend this man's capacity for cruelty. He's like a cross between the Christian devil and an Eldtritch horror.

Leline: Asshole.

Vincent

Virgil: I've seen people treat their Sims with greater empathy than he treats thinking, feeling beings. It makes my skin crawl. But, at least he's polite.

Leline: Also asshole. And if he doesn't put my face back the way it was, I'll give him something to heal.

Darren

Virgil: ... Asshole.

Leline: Double asshole.

[rusted-muses]

Does Leline age? How long does her kind live?

Orcs in my canon age at around the same pace as humans until around the age of 20 or 25 when they're (physically) fully mature. At that point, they still age, but much slower. (This is also true of elves, who have a similar lifespan.)

Leline's mother is considered early middle-aged in her 90s, an she'll be eligible for senior citizen's discounts at about 150. Anything over 200 is impressive, as that's when the body is at its most delicate.

Since Leline herself is half human, it's hard to say how long she'll live. Some half orcs age like humans, some age like orcs, some are in the middle. She'll know when the arthritis starts to set in.