#starlightintheirwake

[devourcr]

@starlightintheirwake asked: ❛ just relax and let me take care of you. ❜ (from Daniel)

let me take care of you. six words that had rarely been uttered in centuries now came as a surprise ( after all, he was always armand, the caretaker, armand, the devoted ). but then there's daniel, taking the breath from his lungs with such simplicity. at times, their relationship is loud, with armand prepared to drag him here and there, to consume nightlife like he'd been starved for centuries, with all of the energy of a five hundred year old vampire. but tonight, there's a quiet that's almost soothing — intimate.

two hands cup daniel's face, thumbs brushing against his cheekbone as his amber eyes study him with both curiosity and admiration. they're the only ones here. the building's old wiring buzzes, a singular car winds down the street outside their rented suite, and a dog distantly barks — but the world is hazy and out of focus. except for daniel. daniel's clear.

to let someone take care of him is to be vulnerable. but a smile toys at the edges of his lips and he nods. ❝ okay, i'm yours. ❞

[monbellemonstre]

(@starlightintheirwake liked this post for a starter!)

"Are you purposefully attempting to distract me or is it simply a talent that you possess naturally?" The words are spoken without malice, though in fairness they are spoken without much intonation whatsoever. Amber-brown eyes are fixated on Daniel though the presence within them in the moment is questionable, giving the impression that he is using the other man as a canvas for his mental masterpieces. Thoughts linger, and he indeed is very much so distracted, though his patience and calm remains. On the exterior. Internally his thoughts are a maelstrom of depravity that borders on blasphemy. The line, he finds, is teetered quite often when Daniel is seeking attention in one of the various preferred forms, but never fully stepped over. In this instance the attention is in the form of starting a conversation while Armand is leant over a large book of sketching paper with a sharpened charcoal betwixt two fingers, the detailed image of the man in question having begun to form before he had been interrupted.

[thebetterlookingonex]

Damon sat somewhat hunched over at the Mystic Grill's bar, in his usual seat towards the middle of the bar. He clearly had a lot of things on his mind. That bitch, Stefan, Elena, weird happenings, he then shook his head, as if trying to clear his head temporarily. A digit traced the rim of his newly given glass, his third or fourth that night. His gaze was slightly distant, staring into the deep amber hues of the liquid within it.

He could hear conversations in the corner and a few of the other booths, subtly listening in as he often did. They were all talking about different things, nothing that was of any concern to him. He ran a hand through his own hair, letting out a sigh. Although the bartender glanced his way, Damon paid him no mind. The man was used to his usual, strange antics by this point. He then takes the initial drink from the glass, sighing with a smile as he did.

@starlightintheirwake (Armand.)

[ahistoryendured]

@starlightintheirwake

Armand has been waiting patiently in the hotel room booked for doctor Fareed Bhansali on the latest tour stop of The Vampire Lestat. The lights are out, Armand has been concentrating on following the man's heartbeat up the elevator. He hasn't seen him since Dubai. Or rather, Fareed hasn't seen him.

When the door opens Armand waits until the light is turned on to rise to his feet. " Good evening, doctor Fareed. " He says. He uses his telekinesis to slam and lock the door to the hotel room. " I am not here to harm you. " He says, then seems to reconsider. " Well, I suppose it will depend on you. "

He steps closer then. With a gesture he invites him to sit on the bed. " I know you work for the Talamasca. Perhaps you always have? I suppose it does not matter. Researching vampires, is that your mortal life's ambition, Fareed? "

[thedamnd]

"So what's the deal with Renfield, anyway? Should I be worried?" Daniel tries for it to sound casual, irreverent even. Because it's a joke. Haha! He's not at all so jealous it's making him insane!

it was a strange thing to become accustomed to— not being able to get into daniel's mind. to not even be able to skin the surface and gain any lingering signals or tells that the other let slip through and show. as often as he might have tried to be respectful to daniel's privacy, he'd never been able to help himself from dipping a toe in.

no longer having that option was still quite the adjustment that over 500 years of immortality had not prepared him for. he knew, he'd always known the curse of maker and fledgling, of how such a block was often the undoing of such a dynamic— was it not why he'd always withheld? refused?

in a way, it was perhaps a good thing that armand had spent so many years in the shadowy corners of daniel's life. watching. waiting. assessing. peering into moments of privacy where daniel believed himself unseen. it meant he could read daniel in a way that he might not have otherwise, and in a way that plenty did not know those they held close in their hearts.

there's a tell tale sign. a specific micro expression when daniel makes a comment that he wants to land as a joke but is in fact a way of side stepping, of trying to disguise his own emotions and truth. it's enough to have armand paused, head tilting to one side as he lets his own eyes bore into daniel.

"worried about what, daniel?" even now, it would sometimes feel alien to speak his name. personal, close in all the ways armand had yearned for but hadn't imagined truly being able to be. there is a slight raise to the vampire's brow as he stares back at him.

"he's infatuated. you know so, else you would not refer to him by such a taunting name. but you know how that story ends, do you not?" and there it is, in the smallest tilt of head, in the sharpening of features and the smallest of wicked grins that give sign to the devil beneath. "do you believe there could really be another to hold my attention, my devotion in quite the way you do?"

[vxmpirearmand]

~ @starlightintheirwake || liked for a starter || For Daniel ~

Making amends is difficult.

Ordinarily, he would've stopped by now. It wouldn't matter to him whether or not someone forgave him.

But Daniel is, and has always been, different.

Daniel is the only person who has been able to evoke this guilt within Armand. It twists around his stomach, poisonous and uncomfortable. A lifetime spent thinking only about himself and his own interests - yet here he is now, eyes wide and pleading as he once again attempts to win his fledgling round.

The power of 52 years of yearning.

"Why will you not speak to me? Am I so much worse than Lestat - Or Louis - that you can barely stand to look at me?"

"Tell me how to fix it and I will."

[neverhangd]

Now Kees! 💋

“You stupid fucking arsehole!”

First comes Anne’s left hand, cracking across Kenway’s sunburnt cheek. What of the tavern didn’t go still at her shout goes still at the sound. The entire room sucks in a breath and holds it, looking between two formidable forces and wondering which one would win, if pitted against each other. Next comes Anne’s right hand, fisting in Kenway’s coat and yanking him back. Chapped lips brush the reddening spot on his cheek, then Anne throws her arm around his shoulders and lifts her other arm in victory.

“Whey-hey! Stupid bastard’s back, even if he does leave without a word t’fuckin’ anyone! Why’s his hand empty? Get this man a fuckin’ drink!”

[ahistoryendured]

@starlightintheirwake said: "You don't have to pretend with me." (from Daniel)

There is a subtle raise in Armand's eyebrows at Daniel's words. Pretend? The words are meant to be kind, or at least he thinks they are, but he feels like he is in one of his interviews. Armand barely knows who he is. Having had identities pushed upon him since he was mortal. Even after two years alone, how is he supposed to know when he is pretending and when he is being genuine?

" I don't wish to scare you, Daniel. " He says. Is that what this is? Him masking the enormity of his desire to shield his fledgling? He does not know anymore. " Not more than I have already. "