#Bastien Book 4

[oconnormusicstudio]

Billy Connolly and the William Tell Overture

  Today, we’ll be listening to the end of the William Tell Overture by Gioachino Rossini.  This piece, originally the overture to an opera, has been arranged for piano and is in several method books, including Piano Pronto Movements 1 and 2.  It’s also in Bastien Book 4 and Piano Maestro. The original story Maybe your grandparents watched the original Lone Ranger Or you saw the newer Lone…

[lorirwritesfanfic]

Fallen Petals

Book: The Royal Romance Characters: Liam Rys, MC (Jade), Madeleine Amaranth, Bastien Lykel Pairing: Liam Rys x MC (Jade) Rating: E Word count: 1066 Reading time: 4 min Summary: After the first dinner to celebrate his engagement to Madeleine, Liam couldn't stop thinking about Jade. He had to find a way back into her heart. Based on the prompts: @kingliamappreciationweek Day three: Roses / Golden

Author’s note:

Jade Bourbon is a creation of this author. The other characters belong to Pixelberry Studios;

Thank you to @lizzybeth1986 and @sazanes for hosting another KLAW. The event never fails to wake up my writing muse from hibernation 😁

This fic is part of TRR series, To (Secretly) Love You, but I believe anyone who played TRR Book 2 will understand the context.

County of Fydelia, January 2018

"Thank you for coming!" Madeleine faked a smile and waved as the last guest left the grand hall. The countess then grumbled and extended her hand to her maid, who promptly squeezed a hand sanitizer on her palm.

Right next to her, Liam inhaled sharply. It still baffled him to remember that Leo endured Madeleine for three years. Keeping up appearances in front of guests was one thing. But when it was just them and the servants, it was so much harder. After all, that was exactly when Madeleine's true self would show.

"Your Majesty, your bedchambers are ready," Bastien whispered.

"Thank goodness," the King mumbled to his bodyguard, who pressed his lips together and nodded. Bastien certainly knew how obnoxious Madeleine could be.

"I beg your pardon?" Madeleine cut in. 

"Bastien just informed me my room is ready and I thanked him. If you excuse me, I'd like to rest right now." 

"Alright, you've been doing your part pretty well, Your Majesty." Madeleine smirked.

"Not as well as you do, sweetheart," Liam retorted as he walked towards the stairs.

"Just try to not ogle that commoner when she's around and we should be fine."

Liam stopped in his tracks as his hands balled into fists. How Madeleine planned to keep up with this engagement if she insisted on pushing his buttons it was still a mystery to him. But he would never let her know she was getting under his skin.

"Have a good night, Madeleine," he said, plastering his best fake smile then headed upstairs.

Inside his bedchambers, Liam drank the last of his scotch and heaved a sigh. This certainly would give him the worst migraine in the morning, but at this point, it didn't matter. He just wished the whiskey could help him sleep and forget this night ever happened. Yet, he couldn't. How could he forget the look in her eyes? She clearly seemed upset, but her eyes still searched his from time to time. And she changed. Her hair, the way she dressed, her posture... Did she miss him too? Did she still want anything to do with him? He needed to know how she was doing, what she was thinking. He just didn't know how.

A soft knock pulled him out of his reverie.

"Yes?"

"The maid is asking if you want anything from the kitchen, Sir," Bastien explained.

Liam scanned the room, searching for any dirty dishes, when his eyes landed on the flower arrangement on the table outside.

"Actually, I do want a couple of things from the kitchen." Liam began to list a few things he wanted so his guard would pass it along to the maid. "Also, do you know if there are any flower shops open at this hour?"

"I'm not sure, but I can ask around."

"Get me the number of the best flower shop in town. I'll talk to them myself."

"Your assistant can handle this matter, Sir."

"No, let's keep this between us."

"As you wish, Sir."

About half an hour later, the Royal motorcade rolled to a stop before the largest flower shop in Fidelia. Once the King's guard cleared the perimeter, Liam climbed out of the car and walked in, greeting the flower shop owner with a smile.

"Your Majesty, it's an honor to have you here." The woman bowed in respect.

"Thank you for accepting my request in such short notice, Mrs. Atwood. Shall we see the roses?"

As the florist led him to her workstation, where dozens of roses were displayed on vases, a cold breeze blew against the flowers. Liam watched a few petals fall on the floor as a sudden memory took over his mind.

Cordonian capital, November 2017 (coronation night)

A giggle escaped Jade's lips as Liam's hand caressed her lower back and traveled to her derrière.

"So you're a butt man, huh?" She grinned.

"Pardon?" His brows furrowed in confusion.

"You know... Some people prefer boobs, others prefer butt. And since your hands can't seem to rest anywhere else..."

Liam's cheeks flushed crimson. "I didn't realize... I—"

"It's okay," she interrupted, leaning in for a quick yet torrid kiss. "I like it."

A slow smile played on his lips. "Oh, do you now?" Liam captured her lips once again, grasping her buttocks in the process.

"If you squeeze them harder, we might never leave this maze, Your Highness," she whispered.

"Nothing would make me happier."

She pulled away just enough to look at him and arched an eyebrow. "Nothing?"

"Well, there's one thing..." He gazed at her in adoration as a gentle breeze ruffled roses, a few petals falling near them. "Making you my queen would make me the happiest man. Are you ready?"

"I am. As long as I'm with you, I'm ready for anything, my love."

"I love the sound of that."

"Great! Me too."

Both of them chuckled. 

Just then, a gust of wind blew inside the maze, ruffling the flowers, rose petals and leaves flying towards them.

"Oh! So cold!" Jade shivered slightly, hugging him tighter. "I think my butt is going to freeze!"

Liam guffawed then reached for his jacket, covering her backside and part of their thighs.

"Thank you." She smiled softly as a rose petal fell on her hair.

Liam then reached for a red rose nearby, tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and placed the rose on her hair bun. Jade has always been an attractive woman to him, even when she wore that unflattering waitress uniform from the New York dive bar. But, right now, wearing simply a red rose from the maze garden, she never looked more beautiful.

County of Fydelia, January 2018

"How many flowers should I get for the bouquet, Your Majesty?" The florist asked.

"All the red roses you have."

"All of them?" The woman's eyes went round.

"And a few baby's breath to adorn the arrangement," Liam said as he touched a fallen petal on the table. 

The florist nodded in surprise (probably shocked that the King knew a thing or two about flowers) and left to pick up the flowers. When she returned, she placed a card and a pen on the table. "You can write a note to your fiancee. I'm sure she'll be delighted to know you came here to pick the flowers yourself."

"Thank you." Liam smiled and reached for the pen and the card. He could only hope the person he'd send those roses to would be willing to read his note and to see him again.

[kamidukki]

[AKNK] Butler and Demon

List of butlers in akuneko and the demon with whom they're in contract. Included are information from main episodes (up to Ep. 3 "I can't believe anything") and event Captive Dolls.

Some notes before further reading:

🔹romanisation are taken from the Ars Goetia wiki page.

🔹the list is incomplete at the moment, either because of my mistake or the info simply hasn't not yet been released (filled in with 'unknown'). In case of the former, kindly inform me. [Additionally, there are some speculations on twitter about all the demons' name even though they haven't made an appearance yet in-game. This was made possible by finding the closest match between the butler's crest and the sigil of their allegedly corresponding demon]

🔹side effect is a rough translation of the word 代償/daishou (price) in game.

-First floor butlers-

Berrien

Demon's name: Belial/ベリアル (revealed in ep. 3 ch. 6 pt. 14)

Form: (unknown)

Power granted: to escape/avoid death

Side effect: (unknown)

Bastien

Demon's name: Orobas/オロバス (revealed in ep. 1 ch. 2 pt. 14, appeared in picture that shows up in ep 2.5 ch. 3 pt. 6)

Form: White fox

Power granted: an increase in weapon speed

Side effect: (unknown)

Lono

Demon's name: Ronove/ロノウェ (revealed in ep. 4 ch. 2 pt. 14)

Form: (unknown)

Power granted: increases physical endurance (Lono survives a fall that'd kill him otherwise, but it doesn't exempt him from the pain)

Side effect: (unknown)

-Second floor butlers-

Haures

Demon's name: Flauros/フラウロス (revealed in ep. 1 ch. 3 pt. 24)

Form: (unknown)

Power granted: increases comrade's fighting skill

Side effect: (unknown)

Boschi

Demon's name: Zaebos/ザエボス (revealed in ep. 1 ch. 5 pt 16)

Form: black leopard

Power granted: temporary increases the upper limit of phyisical ability

Side effect: consumes a large amount of energy

Fennesz

Demon's name: Phenex/フェネクス (revealed in ep. 1 ch. 2 pt. 26)

Form: (unknown)

Power granted: an ability to memorise everything/any book just by reading it once

Side effect: (unknown)

Ammon

Demon's name: (unknown)

Form: (unknown)

Power granted: (unknown)

Side effect: (unknown)

-Third floor butlers-

Lucas

Demon's name: Foras/フォラス (revealed in ep. 2.5 ch. 3 pt. 6, then in details in ep. 3 ch. 5 part 20)

Form: white lion

Power granted: finding out someone's chance of survival when they're in the verge of death

Side effect: (unknown)

Lamli

Demon's name: (unknown)

Form: (unknown)

Power granted: (unknown)

Side effect: (unknown)

Nac

Demon's name: (unknown)

Form: (unknown)

Power granted: (unknown)

Side effect: (unknown)

-Basement butlers-

Miyaji

Demon's name: (unknown)

Form: (unknown)

Power granted: increases speed/agility, possibly fighting prowess as well

Side effect: a change in physical appearance and general attitude (ch. 10 of event Captive Dolls), nightmares (Miyaji 1st Anniversary card story 「不器用な怒り」)

Flure

Demon's name: Furfur/フルフル (revealed in ep. 1 ch. 2 pt. 16)

Form: (unknown)

Power granted: increases sense of aesthetic and artistic faculty

Side effect: (unknown)

Latto

Demon's name: Stolas/シトラス (revealed in ch. 9 of event Captive Dolls)

Form: white owl

Power granted: great hearing ability enhancement

Side effect: (unknown)

-Villa butlers-

Teddy

Demon's name: Forneus/フォルネウス (revealed in ep. 3 ch. 2 pt. 4)

Form: white grizzly bear

Power granted: super strength

Side effect: intense hunger

Yuuhan

Demon's name: Marchosias/マルコシアス (revealed in ep. 3 ch. 2 pt. 4)

Form: black she-wolf

Power granted: a temporary increase of fighting ability in line with the number of enemies defeated

Side effect: loss of consciousness

Hanamaru

Demon's name: Focalor/フォカロル (revealed in ep. 3 ch. 2 pt. 4)

Form: a massive white horse akin to a griffin

Power granted: durability of weapon used in fighting (a blade that will remain unbroken no matter what)

Side effect: (unknown)

-Second Floor Villa butlers-

Shiro

Demon's name: Gaap/ガープ (revealed in ep. 5, ch. 2, pt. 3)

Form: large, white tiger

Power granted: block out certain parts of memories/make it impossible to recall a certain memory

Side effect: (unknown)

Bellen Cliane

Demon's name: Byleth/Beleth (revealed in ep. 4, ch. 1, pt. 13)

Form: unknown

Power granted:

Side effect:

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 4/5

Book Blurb:

I locked away my magic and ran from home for a good reason. So why am I ready to undo everything when my demon ex finally tracks me down? 

You can’t outrun your demons—McKenna Ellerbeck knows this all too well. She’s been running from literal demons for a decade, one that will stop at nothing to take McKenna’s magic for their own and one that shattered her heart by grasping for dark power. After a horrible run-in with hellhounds on the streets of Paris, McKenna is ready to hide again when she’s confronted by her ex, the Archdemon of Desire Remiel Blake. Remi, the sexiest of gender-shifting demons, calls in an old debt that McKenna owes her, though unlike other deals the terms of fulfillment are simple: all she needs to do is return to her hometown of Arcadia Commons, Massachusetts, for seven days. Disgruntled and disguised at her own insistence, McKenna returns home to the magical community, intent on simply staying in her hotel room watching pay-per-view. But with her high school reunion conveniently happening in the same hotel she’s staying at—the one owned by her ex-boyfriend Bastien Lemaire—and her brother mysteriously picking fights with the town’s most prominent witch family, she finds she can’t stay away for long and decides it’s finally time to face her past and the witches, werewolves, demons, and friends she left behind.

If you miss Supernatural, True Blood, or Buffy, you'll love this sexy and magical contemporary fantasy from a marvelous new voice in fiction, Katie Hallahan!

Review:

When your ex is the demon of lust drags you back to your high school reunion to face everyone you left behind after an incident that ended in the death of your best friend... you do not expect to face off against another demon or to possibly get back together with your hot demon ex. The first book in a series, the story follows McKenna Ellerback, a woman running from her past, from her hot demon ex, and from her own magic. McKenna made a mistake... something that ended in the death of her best friend and now she's been on the run ever since, yet when she has a horrible run in with hellhounds she is saved by the very ex she's been running away from for the past decade, the Archdemon of Desire, Remiel "Remi" blake. Remi is as tempting as she is cunning... and McKenna owes her and she is here to collect..., in the form of McKenna returning back to her hometown of Arcadia Commons for seven days to attend their high school reunion. McKenna doesn't want any part of that, she doesn't want to face her other ex or any of the friends she's abandoned.... yet strane things are happening that has her drawn back into facing her past and her friends.... and maybe her own feelings for Remi. This was definitely a fun paranormal read filled with drama, friendship troubles, relationship healing, demons, and more! It's a fun first book in the series and I am so curious where the second book goes and how McKenna and Remi's relationship will be in the second book! McKenna and Remi are definitely interesting characters and their relationship was really fun to read, from high school lovers to exes... and to something more. Remi is a really fun love interest and I was so rooting for her the entire time. I definitely think you should pick up this book if you are looking for a fun sapphic paranormal romance with drama and mystery!

Release Date: November 12, 2024

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and Orbit Books | Orbit for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[im-peech]

Lullaby of Water Dragon - Event Story

Chapter 4: The Water Dragon’s Child

previous | all | next

【Inn’s Room】

- After a while -

Luckily, we were the only guests at the inn. Yimin-san was happy to let us stay at his inn.

Then we put our luggage in the room. Thanks to Yimin-san’s kindness, we were treated to some light snacks. At first, everyone was nervous, but after introducing ourselves and as the conversation continued, the atmosphere became relaxed…

Bastien: Munch… munch… Phew… These dumplings are not too sweet and are tasty.

Lato: Oya. It’s round and has a cute shape. It kind of reminds me of Flure’s cheeks. I just want to poke him.

Yimin: Fufu, I’m glad you liked it.

<Thank you for treating us well.>

Yimin: No, no. This is just a little token of my hospitality, but please enjoy and relax.

Muu: Munch… munch… (Hehe, the dish is so delicious! I want to thank the person who made it!)

<(Okay, I will do it for you.)>

Muu: (Thank you, Aruji-sama!)

Yimin was kind enough to make Muu a dish using cat-eatable ingredients. With Yimin here, Muu is unable to speak. Perhaps because the food is delicious, he doesn’t seem to feel cramped.

Hanamaru: Oh I’m sorry… I suddenly showed up with a large group. Due to work circumstances… I had to come with this group.

Yimin: No, it’s fine. Actually I’m happy that there are more people to treat. There are not many tourists in Shanlong at this time of the year… The inn was also quiet. 

By the way… You said that you came to this city for work. Did you quit your job at the church and take up another job?

Hanamaru: Oh… The kids from the church have already left their nest. Now I’m having fun working with these guys. Well, to be honest… The reason I came to this city is… 10% for work and 90% for sightseeing.

Yimin: Fufu… I’m relieved to hear that your children have grown up healthy. I’ll bring more tea. Please wait a moment.

When Yimin left… Hanamaru sighed in relief.

Hanamaru: Phew… I didn’t have to talk about my job…

Nac: Seriously… I was getting a bit nervous listening to that. If Yimin-san knew we were Devil Butlers… He might get suspicious. Hanamaru-san, until we find out if Yimin-san is related to Yuhan-san… Be careful of what you say and do not do so as not to damage trust.

Hanamaru: I know it. Don’t talk like that, like Yuhan. But… well… “Sounds like something Yuhan would say…”

Hanamaru:...

<Hanamaru?>

Hanamaru: …Hey, everyone. Honestly, what do you think of Yimin? Do you think he is Yuhan’s cousin? Honestly, I think they are definitely cousins. As Yuhan said, I didn’t think their eyes looked similar… Well, you see… the way he speaks… is totally like Yuhan.

<Um.>

<He sounds so much like Yuhan.>

Bastien: That’s right. He’s so much like Yuhan.

Nac: There’s no denying it. That gentle way of speaking… It’s so familiar… Mainly in the mansion’s villa.

Muu: I also think that Yimin’s way of speaking… is so much like Yuhan.

Lato: Yes. The voice itself is not similar, but the choice of words and intonation are similar.

Hanamaru: Right? I guess everyone thinks so. Let’s assume that Yimin is related to Yuhan… We’d better gather some information. While staying in this city… I need to find more reliable information.

As we were talking… From the back of the inn, we heard the sound of footsteps approaching.

A tall child: Ah, it’s true! He truly exists.

A slightly shorter child: Is that Hanamaru over there? That’s right! It’s true!

Hanamaru: Hm?

Two children ran from the dining room and jumped onto Hanamaru’s back.

Hanamaru: Guh!?

The taller child: My father picked up the bottle mail guy!

The slightly shorter child: His hair is curly and fluffy! He looks just like the picture in the bottle mail!

Hanamaru: Ouch, that hurts! My hair is falling out!

The taller child: Hey Hanamaru! Play with me in the place of my dad!

The shorter child: Hey Hanamaru! Read me a picture book in the place of my dad!

Lato: A picture book?

While the children were holding onto Hanamaru, Yimin came rushing over in a panic!

Yimin: Haoran! Haoyu! What are you doing to my guest?!

The taller child: Oh no! Father…!

The shorter child: Father…!

Yimin came to Hanamaru’s place and tore the two children’s grasp from Hanamaru.

Hanamaru: Haa… haa… I thought I was going bald…

Yimin: Hanamaru-san, I’m sorry…! My children must have caused you so much trouble…!

Haoran! Haoyu! You two should apologize!

Haoran: Ugh… Hanamaru… I’m sorry…

Haoyu: Hanamaru… Sorry for pulling your hair…

Yimin: Don’t call customers by their first names, it’s rude!

Hanamaru: It’s okay, it’s okay! Even if you just call me by my first name, I’m used to this kind of thing. Then, Yimin… Are those naughty boys your sons?

Yimin: Ah, yes… that’s right. The first child is called Haoran and the second child is called Haoyu.

Haoran: I’m Haoran! I’m 6 years old!

Haoyu: I’m Haoyu! I’m 5 years old!!

Nac: Fufu. They’re such lively kids. When they grow up, they will be big shots when they grow up.

Yimin: I’m sorry for causing you troubles… Actually, these kids were shy in the past. But.. Maybe it’s because I’m so busy with work that I didn’t pay them any attention. Now, when they see an adult who likes children, they often beg them to play with them.

<I see.>

Nac: Well, so… you two are lonely because Yimin-san doesn’t pay you any attention.

Haoran: If you understand that, come and play with me!

Haoyu: Read a picture book!

Yimin: You two stop messing around! I’ll play with you after work!

Hanamaru: Ooh… You two have plenty of energy huh. Well, if you say so, I have no choice. Would you like to play with me?

Haoran: Yay! I love Hanamaru!

Haoyu: I like you too! So read me a picture book!

Hanamaru: Hey, it’s heavy! Stop it, don’t jump on my back!

Yimin tried to pull the children away, but they both clung to Hanamaru and refused to let go.

Bastien: Hmm… they are very energetic kids.

Nac: Yes, even though Hanamaru-san loves children… It seems difficult for two to play at the same time. But if we could be playmates for the children here… If we can gain the trust of their parent, Yimin, it will be easier to get information. But I don’t think Bastien and I could keep up with all these energetic kids. Hmm… What should I do?

Lato: I see, then… I’ll play with them. Is that okay, Nac-kun?

Nac: A-as expected of Lato-san… I was only whispering to myself but you heard me? Well… Then, Lato-san. I feel bad leaving the kids behind when they’re playing. For now, could you be their playmate for today? I and Bastien… along with Aruji-sama and Muu… we have a request. We’ll go complete the request.

Lato: Fufu… I got it.

Bastien: Hmm, I don’t really understand the situation… But if what’s what you say, Nac-san, I will follow your orders. Aruji-sama, Muu, let’s leave the inn.

<I understood.>

I, too, like Bastien… The situation was hard to grasp. It seems that Nac will take us outside, he has finished carrying the luggage.

Hanamaru: Oops, while I was playing with the kids, Nac got outside first.

Take care, Aruji-sama.

Haoran: Hanamaru! Play, play!

Haoyu: Hanamaru: Picture books! Read picture books!

Hanamaru: Hey, don’t pull me! You guys are so impatient!

Lato: Haoyu-san. If it’s a picture book, I’ll read it to you.

Haoyu: Eh, really? Thank you!

Lato: Kufufu… It’s nothing. Well then, Aruji-sama… Leave the kids to me and enjoy your trip!

<U-um.>

Haoran: Hanamaru, give me a piggyback ride!

Hanamaru: There there! Stop pulling my hair!

Yimin: Stop it, Haoran!

Lato: Oh this picture book, the illustrations are beautiful.

Haoyu: Right, right! It’s my favorite picture book!

Hanamaru: …! Hey, I feel like my hair just fell out!

<(I wonder if it’s okay…)>

Feeling uneasy amidst the noise, we left the inn.

previous | all | next

[daitranscripts]

Bring Me the Heart of Snow White Pt. 1

An Alchemical Formula

Vivienne Masterpost

The PC approaches Vivienne on the balcony.

Vivienne (high approval): My dear, I’m afraid I must ask you for help. Vivienne (neutral approval): Inquisitor, I wonder if you might help me with a delicate situation. Vivienne (Low approval): Inquisitor, I find myself in the unpleasant position of asking you for help.

Vivienne: There is an alchemical formula that I must complete, but I have been unable to obtain a critical ingredient: The heart of a snowy wyvern. I had arranged to obtain one, but the chevaliers working with me were killed in the civil war.

1 - Dialogue options:

Investigate: Tell me about the wyvern. [2]

Investigate: What is this formula? [3]

Investigate: Why do you want my help? [4]

Yes: I’ll help you. [5] +Vivienne slightly approves

No: I don’t think so. [6] -Vivienne greatly disapproves

1 - Investigate: Tell me about the wyvern. PC: If I’m going to hunt down a snowy wyvern, I need you to tell me everything you know about it. Vivienne: They’re quite rare and exceedingly dangerous. Their venom is the most potent of any wyvern. Ordinary hunters would not make the attempt. The risk is too great. You, my dear, would certainly be an equal to this monster. [back to 1]

2 - Investigate: What is this formula? PC: I didn’t know you were an alchemist, Vivienne. What exactly is this project you’re working on? Vivienne: It is a special request from a member of the Council of Heralds. I am still the Imperial Court Enchanter, after all.

Vivienne (high approval): The matter is private. That is all there is to say. Vivienne (low approval): I would not have attained my position at court if I didn’t know when to be silent.

Dialogue options:

Special: You won’t tell me? [6]

[Back to 1]

6 - Special: You won’t tell me? PC: You want me to risk my life to get this thing for you, but won’t tell me what it’s for? Vivienne: My dear, it is hardly proper for me to blab the secrets of those who put trust in my discretion. ㅤㅤ ㅤ Vivienne (high approval): I would do no less for you, after all. [back to 1] Vivienne (low approval): You wouldn’t want me to speak up about your many issues, I’m sure. [back to 1]

3 - Investigate: Why do you want my help? PC: I’m not a hunter. Why do you think I can help? Vivienne: This beast is not hunted for sport as other wyverns sometimes are. It is far more deadly. In the past, chevaliers have been dispatched to either kill the creatures or drive them away from villages. Since my chevaliers have fallen to political conflict, I find myself in need of someone with a martial aptitude. [back to 1]

4 - Yes: I’ll help you. PC: I’ll do what I can. Vivienne: Thank you, my dear. I would be most grateful. I shall give the location of its lair to Cullen. Remember, my dear: I must have its heart, or the potion will not work. I eagerly await your success.

5 - No: I don’t think so. PC: This doesn’t seem like my concern. Vivienne: As you say. I shall remember this, my dear.

Scene ends.

The PC sees a book as they go to leave.

PC (mage PC/arcane perk): Is this… a youth serum? I’ve never seen alchemy this complex. Where did she get it?

PC: I can’t make heads or tails of this. Age regression? Who is this potion for?

Next: Duke Bastien

[pardi-real]

Tarot of Destiny / Chapter 4 - Feelings to Convey

Prev | All | Next

[Central Land, Maginaria]

We arrived at the city of Maginaria that night. As we got off the carriage in front of the inn... all the butlers who had arrived earlier were there to greet us.

Fennesz: "We've been expecting you, my lord."

Lamli: "Wow~! My lord, your outfit is absolutely splendid ♪"

Hanamaru: "Looks good, and our outfits are almost matching, right? Hehe. It's kinda like a date."

Yuhan: "Mr. Hanamaru… Please refrain from such offhand comments."

Teddy: "Please do, Mr. Hanamaru! The other butlers are giving you the cold stare!"

Flure: "Sigh... I knew you'd say that."

Hanamaru: "I-I feel like everybody is being unusually cold tonight... Sh-should we head inside the inn soon? My lord..."

Miyaji: "Yeah, that's right. You must be tired after being in the carriage for so long."

Lucas: "We’ve reserved the finest accommodations for you, my Lord."

Nac: "Yes. We've meticulously planned the security arrangements as well."

Lato: "Not even a single mouse can sneak in, so please rest assured..."

> "Thank you, guys"

[Maginaria, Inn]

I entered the inn, guided by everyone... It was quite a large inn. The interior was luxurious, almost like a hotel.

> "What a grand Inn"

Lono: "Right! Because my lord, all of us, and Lady Elvira will be staying at this inn."

Bastien: "For security reasons... We've booked this entire floor."

Boschi: "Hm? Speaking of which, where did Elvira go?  She was with us until a moment ago..."

Ammon: "Oh, her... She quickly headed to her room.  Those northern witches... Maybe they prefer being alone, rather than being in a place bustling with people?"

Boschi: "Hmph...  Even so, we're here on guard duty. It would've been nice if she said something before leaving."

Haures: "......For you to talk about manners……"

Boschi: "Huh? Got something to say, Haures?"

Haures: "No, it's nothing. Anyway... About tomorrow's plan, a few of us will take turns to guard her when she goes out. Meanwhile, the available butlers will accompany you, my lord...  And guide you through the city of Maginaria."

> "Guided city tour?"

Lono: "Yes! Because it's a special festival, after all."

Bastien: "We couldn't relax at the mansion... So, at least, we hope my lord will enjoy this trip."

Lato: "Kufufu...  We'll be accompanying you from tomorrow onwards. Rest early tonight… Please prepare yourself for the enjoyable times starting tomorrow."

"O-okay"

Yuhan: "Well then... Let us guide you to your room, my lord."

Teddy: "A soft bed is waiting for you!"

Led to the room by the butlers, I felt utterly exhausted after being rocked in carriage. I quickly finished bathing and dining, and laid my body on the soft, warm bed. Before long, I fell into a deep slumber.

~ Meanwhile, around that time ~

Tap, tap, tap

Muu: "Everyone, the lord is asleep! Seems like it's safe to start the discussion now!"

Berrien: "Understood. Thank you, Muu."

Miyaji: "So, Berrien. What's the discussion about?"

Berrien: "Yes. Of course, it's about 'the tarot card drawn by the lord.' "

Yuhan: "It's 'upright Death'...  Even though we're behaving as if we're not concerned in front of the lord... I'm still worried."

Hanamaru: "But come on. Isn't it just a mere fortune-telling? I mean, fortunes don't always come true. It's a hit or miss."

Berrien: "That being said... Lady Elvira's fortune-telling is famous for its accuracy."

Lucas: "That's right… With her fortune-telling indicating the 'upright Death'... The lord is probably... deep down, feeling anxious."

Berrien: "However... When we were in the carriage earlier... Lady Elvira mentioned something that concerns me. 'You already have a way to save the lord from a bad fate'..."

Lono: "Huh... What's that?"

Bastien: "Mr. Berrien, please tell us more."

Berrien: "Yes. According to her..."

........

Hanamaru: "Hmmm~... Through the tarot cards each of us has been given, look into ourselves... And then, the feelings that surfaced from it... convey them to the lord. I see...  I don't get it at all."

Teddy: "I don't understand the meaning either...  But if we follow as instructed, maybe it could save the lord? If that's the case... I think it's worth a try!"

Haures: "Exactly, I agree. Does everyone have their tarot cards with them?"

Boschi: "Yeah. Just in case, I've got mine in my pocket."

Fennesz: "Looking at these cards... Looking back at myself and the feelings they bring up... then...  Should I convey the feelings that come to mind to the lord?"

Flure: "I think we should. Although I don't understand the meaning at all... If there's a chance to save the lord... I'm willing to try anything!"

Bastien: "Yes. We've been spending almost two years with the lord. I can't imagine a mansion without the lord anymore."

Lato: "That's right. That's how much the lord has given us.  The lord saved me... Changed me..."

Haures: "Hmm... Yeah, indeed.  If the lord wasn't here... Some of us wouldn't be here in this world."

Berrien: "Yes... The lord didn't just save us. Our lives are heading in a better direction thanks to the lord. From before the lord arrived until now... The impression of everyone has changed a bit."

Miyaji: "Yeah... Absolutely."

Lucas: "The lord is... indeed a special person to us."

Haures: "Well then, from tomorrow onwards... As we discussed earlier, while strolling around the city with the lord... Each of us, the butlers, will convey our feelings.  Let's proceed with this plan. Does anyone object?"

Lamli: "Of course not! It's to save the lord, after all."

Nac: "If it's to save the lord, these feelings... I can keep talking about it for three days and three nights."

Lamli: "......Isn't that super annoying?"

Knock, knock

Berrien: "Oh? Who could it be at this hour...  I'll go and check.  ...Who is it?"

Prev | All | Next

[mashithamel]

My Psy-Changeling couples ranking:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Michelle Taiki Art (@michelletaikiart)

Cause why not? From the bottom!

Just the worst:

22. Dev/Katya: the very moving part as he prepares for her death does nothing to redeem him or this terrible relationship.

21. Nate/Tammy: omg, stop giving me a stomach ulcer and just treat her like the love of your life like she deserves

Snooze-worthy:

20. Aden/Zaira: I tried so hard to like this one and failed both times. Just boring.

19. Kenji/Garnet: the only thing that saves this is the shower scene at the end

18. Max/Sophia: the ending with the serial killer and Kaleb just jumping in is almost enough to save the story

These just don’t quite work for some reason:

18. Bastien/Kirby: could be great, but loses the plot with too many unsexy details later on

17. Emmett/Ria: cute, but not hot

16. Vaughn/Faith: I like them as individuals, but not so much together

15. Vasic/Ivy: he *falls to his knees* when she sends him nudes, but the back half is boring and goopey

The middle of the pack:

14. Walker/Lara (novella): I love a Silent Psy figuring out skin privileges. The plot is fine.

13. Clay/Talin: these guys get on my nerves most of the book, but I do end up rooting for them, and I love a romance that starts in childhood.

12. Dorian/Ashaya: a solid couple, good chemistry (and Vasic and Aden do cool stuff!) just not my favorite

11. Lucas/Sascha: a good start to the series, just doesn’t stand a chance against my favorites

10. Drew/Indigo: sexy, fun; just feels like a filler episode waiting for Hawke/Sienna

9. Riaz/Adira: annoyed me too much in the beginning, but I love how two people who lost at love get another chance for something real

The solid reads, worth it beginning to end:

8. Mercy/Riley: 🔥🔥🔥chemistry, liked this one much more the second time through, they are a great couple

7. Felix/Desiree: a sweet, fun little romance

6. Judd/Brenna: I adore everything Judd, and so enjoy his story. Plus Brenna’s pretty great, and the non-romance plot is good.

My inner angsty teen is in love:

5. Hawke/Sienna: surprised by how much I loved this one the second time around. Angst and longing and everything. Plus, a really nice Lara/Walker

4. Kaleb/Sahara: it’s dark, compelling, angsty, powerful, and sexy. Nothing I don’t love about it.

Best of the best:

3. Zach/Annie: just the perfect first date. I adore them so much.

2. Stefan/Tazi: Stefan, my beloved! Their story sweeps me off my feet everytime.

1. Cooper/Grace: nothing crazy from the main plotline, but such a sweet, sweet love story and lots of lovely foreplay. Let me go read it again…

I had so much fun doing this. Gonna take a break before getting into the Psy-Changeling-Trinity books (I am so looking forward to a reread of everything bearclan! And Alpha Night! And Ivan/Lei!). But this has been so much fun I’m considering doing it for Kit Rocha’s Beyond series too. Cause why not? 😊

[richincolor]

Out in December! ❄️

With October in the rearview mirror and November getting underway, the rush of exciting new YA books will slow a bit, but that doesn't mean there won't be a few hot new books to look forward to in December. Here's a peek at what YA books starring BIPOC characters are coming out next month:

The Ruined (The Beautiful #4) by Renée Ahdieh The Sylvan Vale and the Sylvan Wyld are at war. Now that the unsteady truce between them has been broken, lines must be drawn. In an effort to protect the weakened Winter Court, Bastien rallies powerful allies and friends in New Orleans to come to their aid.

Meanwhile, under protection alongside her injured mother in the Summer Court, Celine is uncertain of whom to trust. She cannot get word to Bastien, and does not understand why he has not returned. When she realizes war between the fey courts is imminent, she journeys with Ali in an effort to find the time traveling mirror and change their fate. But when Celine’s rivals realize Bastien has rallied his allies in the mortal world, they decide to take the fight to him.

Caught in a Bad Fauxmance by Elle Gonzalez Rose A fresh, fun contemporary rom-com from debut author Elle Gonzalez Rose, about an aspiring artist who agrees to fake date one of his family’s longtime enemies in the hopes of gathering intel good enough to take down their rivals once and for all.

Devin Baez is ready for a relaxing winter break at Lake Andreas. That is, until he runs into his obnoxious next-door neighbors the Seo-Cookes, undefeated champions of the lake’s annual Winter Games. In the hope of finally taking down these long-time rivals, the Baezes offer up their beloved cabin in a bet. Reckless? Definitely.

So when annoyingly handsome Julian Seo-Cooke finds himself in need of a fake boyfriend, Devin sees an opportunity to get behind enemy lines and prove the family plays dirty. As long as Devin and Julian’s families are at war, there’s only room for loathing between them. Which is a problem because, for Devin, this faux game of love is feeling very real.

Our Cursed Love by Julie Abe Six days to remember. Love or lose him forever.

Remy Kobata has always wished she was destined to be with her best friend, Cam Yasuda. All the way from being neighbors from birth to mixing up magical prank potions together to their “just friends” homecoming date during their senior year in high school, nothing’s a secret between Remy and Cam―except for how much she is in love with him.

Remy is trying to work up the courage to confess her feelings during their winter break trip to Japan, when she gets selected for a mystical tea leaves reading and it reveals that they’re not meant to be together. After they stumble upon a secret magical apothecary in the back alleys of Tokyo, Remy and Cam are offered an ancient soulmate elixir, created before all love potions were banned by the magical government. They each have their reasons for wanting to take it, but what could go wrong with finding your soulmate a little earlier?

Except, after they drink up, their senior year trip flips into the worst vacation Cam has forgotten who Remy is. If she can’t help Cam remember her by midnight New Year’s Eve, they’ll both be cursed to forget each other. To unravel their past and rewrite the future, Remy and Cam must travel through Tokyo to rediscover Cam’s memories and make new ones―and maybe even fall in love all over again.

Seven Minutes in Candyland by Brian Wasson Sophomore Kalvin Shmelton has finally perfected his underground candy-selling hustle at school. He keeps his prices reasonable, his inventory fresh, and himself out of the drama. But when a heartbroken Sterling Glistern—Kal’s longtime crush— barges into the storage closet where he keeps his candy supply, a new source of income unexpectedly presents itself: relationship therapist. Sure, he only meant to help Sterling realize she’s been dating a jerk—and maybe win her over—but news spreads fast that Kalvin’s not just the master of sweets…but hearts, too! And as the son of two famous therapists, he leans into this newfound reputation and the money that comes with it.

The truth, however, is that Kalvin’s parents’ “perfect” marriage is crumbling. He was supposed to woo the girl of his dreams, fix his parents’ relationship, and lend a listening ear to a school-full of heartbroken teens. But a jealous boyfriend, a vengeful competitor, and Kalvin’s own growing ego threaten those plans, forcing Kal to rethink all he thought he knew about friendship, family, and love.

Lucero (A Forgery of Magic #3) by Maya Motayne In the aftermath of Sombra’s return, the balance between light and dark magic has been destroyed and chaos has broken out in Castallan and around the world. Sombra’s shadows have taken over to create monstrous versions of everyone Finn and Alfie love, and with war between Castallan and Englass looming, the prince and the thief must band together one last time—to save their entire world.

To stop the magical imbalance, they must find the stone relics of Sombra’s body before the god can unite the pieces and regain his full strengthonce more. But the laws of magic no longer apply, and with their own magic—and even the laws of time itself—drastically changing at every turn, Finn and Alfie are left on their own to stop Sombra and fulfill their prophecy before it is too late and the darkness reigns.

Will they restore balance to their world or will its light be gone forever?

Any of these books on your TBR list? What are you planning to read in December? Let us know! And thanks for following along on this reading journey for another year. Next up, we'll be posting our 2023 favorites!

[alexlacquemanne]

Novembre MMXXIV "November Who"

Films

Daleks' Invasion Earth : 2150 A.D. (1966) de Gordon Flemyng avec Peter Cushing, Bernard Cribbins, Ray Brooks, Andrew Keir, Roberta Tovey, Jill Curzon et Roger Avon

Family Business (1989) de Sidney Lumet avec Sean Connery, Dustin Hoffman, Matthew Broderick, Rosanna Desoto, Janet Carroll et Victoria Jackson

Le Distrait (1970) de et avec Pierre Richard et Bernard Blier, Marie-Christine Barrault, Maria Pacôme, Catherine Samie, Micheline Luccioni, Paul Préboist, Tsilla Chelton et Robert Dalban

Elvis et Nixon (Elvis and Nixon) (2016) de Liza Johnson avec Michael Shannon, Kevin Spacey, Alex Pettyfer, Johnny Knoxville, Colin Hanks, Evan Peters et Sky Ferreira

Scandale à la cour (Olympia) (1960) de Michael Curtiz et Mario Russo avec Sophia Loren, Maurice Chevalier, John Gavin, Angela Lansbury, Isabel Jeans, Tullio Carminati et Milly Vitale

Monsieur Aznavour (2024) de Grand Corps Malade et Mehdi Idir avec Tahar Rahim, Camille Moutawakil, Gulia Avetisyan, Bastien Bouillon, Marie-Julie Baup, Lionel Cecilio et Hovnatan Avédikian

Les Sentiers de la gloire (Paths of Glory) (1957) de Stanley Kubrick avec Kirk Douglas, George Macready, Ralph Meeker, Timothy Carey, Joe Turkel, Adolphe Menjou et Wayne Morris

L'Alibi (1937) de Pierre Chenal avec Louis Jouvet, Jany Holt, Erich von Stroheim, Albert Préjean, Margo Lion, Fun-Sen, Véra Flory et Génia Vaury

L’Exercice de l’État (2011) de Pierre Schoeller avec Olivier Gourmet, Michel Blanc, Zabou Breitman, Laurent Stocker, Sylvain Deblé, Didier Bezace, Jacques Boudet, François Chattot et Anne Azoulay

Drôle de missionnaire (The Missionary) (1982) de Richard Loncraine avec Michael Palin, Maggie Smith, Phoebe Nicholls, Trevor Howard, Graham Crowden, Denholm Elliott, Michael Hordern et Rosamund Greenwood

Les Félins (1964) de René Clément avec Alain Delon, Jane Fonda, Lola Albright, Sorrell Booke, Carl Studer, André Oumansky, Arthur Howard et George Gaynes

Docteur ? (2019) de Tristan Séguéla avec Michel Blanc, Hakim Jemili, Solène Rigot, Artus, Franck Gastambide, Fadily Camara et Lucia Sanchez

La Séductrice (A Good Woman) (2004) de Mike Barker avec Scarlett Johansson, Helen Hunt, Tom Wilkinson, Mark Umbers, Stephen Campbell Moore, Milena Vukotic et Roger Hammond

Graine de violence (Blackboard Jungle) (1955) de Richard Brooks avec Glenn Ford, Anne Francis, Margaret Hayes, Vic Morrow, Sidney Poitier, Warner Anderson, Louis Calhern, Rafael Campos et Jamie Farr

Peter Gunn, détective spécial (Gunn) (1967) de Blake Edwards avec Craig Stevens, Laura Devon, Edward Asner, Albert Paulsen, Sherry Jackson, Marion Marshall et Helen Traubel

Doctor Who : Le Fandom Français (2019) de Julien Cadart Serizel, Pauline Cadart Serizel et Thomas Pouchin avec Alexandre Blondel, Carine Boxho, Nino Bréant, Mathéo De Lima, Marie Devigne, Romana Doc, Julien Evrard et Antony Fromaget

Séries

Doctor Who Season 20, 1 Series 1, 4, 6, 9, 12, 14

Mawdryn Undead - Father's Day - Terminus - The Doctor's Daughter - The Daleks - Enlightenment - The Curse of the Black Spot - Sleep No More - Praxeus - Rogue - The King's Demons - The Five Doctors

Psych Saison 3, 4, 5

Noël au balcon, tout le monde en prison - Six pieds sous la mer - Sale temps pour Lassiter - Au feu le médium - L'Enfer du vendredi - Plus menteur, tu meurs - Mardi 17, le retour de Jason - Une soirée avec Mr Yang - Mission Canada - Famille, je vous aime - Petits arrangements avec le Diable - Presque cent dollars pour un Shérif - La Peur des balles - Meurtre à Bollywood - À qui le tour ? - La Nuit du Loup-Garou - Y a-t-il quelqu'un pour sauver Shawn ? - En avant soldat ! - Sensations trop fortes - Rendez-vous dans sept ans - Le Groupe de Réflexion - À vos masques… - Dans le ventre de la bête - Mr Yin présente… - La Guerre débridée - La Botte secrète - Soucoupes flippantes - La classe qui tue - À toute vitesse - Un duo vintage - Mer agitée - Alter ego - Partir un jour… - En cabane au Canada

Friends Saison 3, 4, 5

Celui qui avait un tee-shirt trop petit - Celui qui courait deux lièvres - Celui qui avait un poussin - Celui qui s'énervait - Celui qui avait un truc dans le dos - Celui qui voulait être ultime champion - Celui qui allait à la plage - Celui qui soignait les piqûres de méduses - Celui qui ne voyait qu'un chat - Celui qui avait des menottes - Celui qui apprenait à danser - Celui qui avait une nouvelle copine - Celui qui fréquentait une souillon - Celui qui poussait le bouchon - Celui qui était dans la caisse - Celui qui savait faire la fête - Celui qui draguait au large - Celui qui posait une question embarrassante - Celui qui gagnait les paris - Celui qui se gourait du tout au tout - Celui qui n'avait pas le moral - Celui qui jouait au rugby - Celui qui participait à une fête bidon - Celui qui avait la chaîne porno - Celui qui cherche un prénom - Celui qui faisait de grands projets - Celui qui va se marier - Celui qui envoie l'invitation - Celui qui était le pire témoin du monde - Celui qui se marie : première partie - Celui qui se marie : deuxième partie - Celui qui avait dit Rachel - Celui qui embrassait - Celui qui a des triplés - Celui qui accepte l'inacceptable - Celui qui rate son week-end - Celui qui a du mal à se taire - Celui qui emménage - Celui qui avait des souvenirs difficiles à avaler - Celui qui s'était fait piquer son sandwich - Celui qui avait une sœur un peu spéciale

Astrid, Raphaëlle et Alexandre Ehle

Œil pour Œil

Dans l'ombre

50,47 % - Le chat noir - La riposte - Élu par la foudre - Danse sur un volcan - L'odeur de l'essence

Opération Trafics

Procédure exceptionnelle - Drôle de pastis - La Bataille de l'or - La Sainte Famille - W… comme Watteau - T.I.R

Astrid et Raphaëlle Saison 1

Puzzle - Hantise 1 - Hantise 2 - Chaînon manquant - Chambre close - Fulcanelli - L'Homme qui n'existait pas - La Mort et Compagnie - Invisible

Les enquêtes Caméléon

Trou de mémoire - Un panier de crabes - Les Gens d'en face

Cat's Eyes Saison 1

Tamara - Sylia - Alexia - Quentin - Gwen - Prudence

Les Enquêtes de Vera Saison 13

Délit de fuite

Spectacles

Portishead : Roseland NYC Live (1998)

Tant qu'il y a de l'amour (2019) de Bob Martet avec Marie-Anne Chazel, Patrick Chesnais, Valérie Bègue et Laurent Gamelon

Play the Blues: Live from Jazz at Lincoln Center, Wynton Marsalis and Eric Clapton (2011)

Charles Aznavour : Au Carnegie Hall (1995)

Charles Aznavour : Symphonique au Théâtre du Chatelet (1981)

Mascarin (1973) de et avec Michel de Ré et Micheline Dax, Alain Lionel, Arlette Didier, Francis Lax, Jean Péméja et Virginie Vignon

U2: Rattle and Hum (1988)

Amy Winehouse: Live at Porchester Hall (2007)

Doctor Who at the Proms (2013) avec Neve McIntosh, Dan Starkey, Matt Smith, Jenna Coleman, Carole Ann Ford, Peter Davison, Nicholas Briggs, Ben Foster et Murray Gold

Grand Concert de la fête de la Sainte Cécile (2024) par l'orchestre d'harmonie d'Albi et l'orchestre cadet de la fédération du Tarn

Santana: Supernatural Live (2000)

Nina (1979) de Jean Laurent Cochet avec Jacques Sereys, Louis Velle, Rosy Varte, Yves Marchand et Gérard Pollet

Livres

Doctor Who : Il était une fois un Seigneur du Temps de Dan Slott, Christopher Jones, Matthew Dow Smith, Mike Collins et David Guelou

Les contes de l'infini de Flavia Valerio, Pauline Cadart Serizel, Rémi Germain, Marion Lemaître, Manon Segur, Robin Brou, Julien Cadart Serizel et Marie Valerio

Doctor Who : Le douzième docteur, tome 2 : Fractures de Robbie Morrison, Brian Williamson et Mariano Laclaustra

Doctor Who : L'Armée oubliée de Brian Minchin

Les Daleks envahissent la terre de Terrance Dicks

[oconnormusicstudio]

Billy Connolly and the William Tell Overture

  Today, we’ll be listening to the end of the William Tell Overture by Gioachino Rossini.  This piece, originally the overture to an opera, has been arranged for piano and is in several method books, including Piano Pronto Movements 1 and 2.  It’s also in Bastien Book 4 and Piano Maestro. The original story Maybe your grandparents watched the original Lone Ranger Or you saw the newer Lone…

[libertyreads]

December TBR--

December might be my weirdest TBR of the year. Let's go out with a bang shall we? I have a couple of new releases to read this month as well as a couple of library books for the holidays. And I'm starting a series that I'm really unsure about. Let's get into the books. Starting with the ones I don't have in physical form (at least not yet).

The Ex-Mas Holidays by Zoe Allison (library)-- Another Christmas novel for me to read. I'm loving that I'm giving myself the space to read these this year when I haven't for the past few. I normally do a Christmas in July and then don't read any more but it's so fun to feel the festive spirit while reading. The synopsis for this one will be taken straight from GoodReads: "It's hard to escape your ex when you're working together over Christmas in the Scottish Highlands, but being stuck together might be the best possible present in this sparkling new contemporary romance."

Holiday Kisses by multiple authors (library)-- This is a holiday anthology featuring stories from Alison Kent, Jack Burton, HelenKay Dimon, and Shannon Stacey. I've already read the one from HelenKay Dimon (it's actually how I found out about this anthology after the fact). So, I will probably be logging these as the separate entries they are in my spreadsheets and updates. But we follow: 1) a man who gives the gift of trust and receives a second chance at love in return, 2) a woman who helps to heal the wounded heart of a soldier, 3) a couple who finds that true love knows no distance, and 4) a young window who learns that there can be two great loves in a lifetime. Festive and romance filled these should be good, quick reads for me.

Freshman Year by Sarah Mai (NetGalley)-- A contemporary graphic novel that follows Sarah as she goes to school in Minnesota and hopes to impress her professors, meet interesting new people, and stay close to her friends and boyfriend back at home. What seems manageable at first quickly unravels as Sarah's high achieving roommate puts her to shame, her summer love dissolves, and she is quickly overwhelmed with the freedom, isolation, and possibilities that college gives her. This looked so cute on NetGalley and I'm excited to read it this month.

The Ruined by Renee Ahdieh (new release)-- The finale to The Beautiful comes out this month and I'm excited to finish this one out. This hasn't been a stand out series for me but I'm connected to the characters enough to see it through. Especially with the way the last book ended. This series is about vampires set in 1800s New Orleans but it definitely becomes more involved as the series goes on. In this one we watch as the Sylvan Vale and Sylvan Wild go to war while our beloved Bastien and Celine are separated and dealing with their own dramas.

Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes-- This is the series starter that I'm unsure of. This is a 2012 Fantasy novel with four p.o.v.s so it can go one of two ways: 1) I love it, 2) I hate it. There will probably be no middle ground. Synopsis? In the three kingdoms of Mytica, magic has long been forgotten and hard-won peace has reigned for centuries. But underneath it all a deadly unrest simmers. Each ruler grapples for power while the lives of their subjects are brutally transformed. Four key players find their fates forever intertwined; caught in a dizzying world of treacherous betrayals, shocking murders, secret alliances, and unforeseen love.

Defiant by Brandon Sanderson (new release)-- This is the final book in the Skyward series (but I've heard rumblings of a spin off series) and I'm sort of just ready to see it finished. I agree with a lot of the people who are out there saying that it's basically flight school in every novel which has gotten stale. The Skyward series follows Spensa who wants to train to becoming a pilot for the military but has to deal with her father's past. The world expands and expands as the series goes on. It's an okay series that I enjoyed more in the beginning. I think this final book is what will either make the time I've spent on the series worth it or a waste of time. It's Sanderson so I'm kind of hoping what I've heard about his finales holds up.

On a Sunbeam by Tillie Walden (library)-- This is a pretty well loved Sci-Fi graphic novel from what I can tell. We follow Mia who joins a crew that rebuilds run down structures throughout the deepest reaches of space. It flashes back to Mia's pivotal freshman year of school and a mysterious new student she falls in love with. We also find out the true reason Mia joins this crew. I love space. I love found family. I'm here for it.

All of these books are pretty much being sourced from different places: preorders, my physical TBR, the library, NetGalley. So, I'm happy to see that. I just hope I have a good time completing a couple of series, starting a new one, getting into the festive spirit.

[bryceslahela]

now i’ve played most of all the vip books, i. can confidently say that ms match is the best out of all four.

[bastienpianobasics]

Bastien Piano Basics

Free piano lessons , Free sheet music,  WWW.bastienpianobasics.com

 Hi if you're like me, I love music . Some of you are professionals others just like to play. Well on that note I did some research on learning to play piano easily and quickly . For young beginners James Bastien has always been recommended by professional music teachers for years. Some of his most popular books for beginners include Bastien piano basics level 1 Bastien piano basics level 2 Bastien piano basics level 3 Bastien piano basics level 4 Bastien piano basics SCALES, CHORDS & ARPEGGIOS. Just to name a few. If your older or want to learn to play quickly i thought it would be great if i could help by providing a couple of places that not only can get you playing in no time best part is it's a lot of fun i have one place alone that has taught over 90,000 people help to start from beginning and be playing in just days. If you play any instrument one thing everyone needs is sheet music . Well now not to worry because i have you covered there also. But here is the best part i thought i would surprise you by saving the best for last. You will even get to learn to play one of my favorites Bastien piano basics Boogie Rock and Country level 1 made for beginners how fun that is. Here’s The best part its all free lessons sheet music and more. So if you want to rock out, play at a party or maybe even just for fun . Everything you need is here for you  hope you like it .

  click the link .http://www.bastienpianobasics.com                                                               This is also really amazing you can play any instrument but the sheet music place will give you some free sheet music its a good selection. But if you want an amazing deal . For less the $50.00 they will let you down load all the sheet music you want for a whole year that's crazy. They have an awesome collection. If you find this helpful let me know i will be happy to get you more free things for you. Thanks Dave Warman.

[lizzybeth1986]

Legacies

Book: The Royal Romance, Book 3

Pairing: None - mostly Liam and Hakim bonding, mentions of Hakim and Constantine's friendship

Rating: G

Word Count: 4, 813 words

Summary: In the aftermath of his father's death, Liam struggles with the lionizing of Constantine's rule, and wonders at the legacy he wants to leave behind. Answers emerge from an unlikely source.

Tagging @kingliamappreciationweek and @sazanes for KLAW Day 2: Historian theme, @choicesficwriterscreations for FoTW, and @aprilchallenge for the prompt "Garden".

Music: "Father to Son" by Queen.

Chapter 1: The Statues

(Faceclaims:

King Liam - Daniel Henney

Hakim Thorne: M’Barek Bouhchichi)

There is a gaping emptiness in Liam's chest, from the minute his father died right before his eyes. No overwhelming grief, no soul-ripping pain, not even anger. Just a void where a beating heart should be.

Father is lying in state now at the Queen Kendra Hall - not too far from Bossina Cathedral - where he will remain for the next twelve days. Liam almost hates himself for having far clearer memories of his father's cleaned, lavishly-decorated (in every medal he'd recieved since the age of 18) corpse, than of the moment he died - before reminding himself that at least with Father he remembers something. With Mum he doesn't even have that.

Liam keeps his eyes down, his head bent and his face studiously blank as the current crowd of mourners disperse, making way for more. The Vigil of the Princes is only twenty minutes...but in that time he can see, from the corner of his eye, a wide range of people come and go - most of them from the military and the coastal communities. As Liam had suspected, the people who benefited most from Father's rule were the most invested in soaking in that one last glimpse of him.

Leo is at the other end of Father's casket, also dressed in military garb, the torchlight from the walls making both his and Liam's medals sparkle. Liam cannot see his elder brother now but he knows, instinctively, that the struggle on his face to hold himself together must show. In the past this struggle had baffled him. There had been times when he pitied Leo his inability to uphold the family propensity towards being stoic. Over the years there have been times he was grateful Leo didn't have to worry about the consequences of his emotions showing on his face anymore.

But not today. Today, Liam envies his brother for the luxury of feeling.

Five minutes before Bastien - from his vantage point on one of the smaller balconies - taps his staff five times to signal the end of their vigil. A brief flash of Father in his last seconds blazes behind Liam's closed eyes, before disintegrating into an image of his gnarled, faintly-discoloured hands this morning. Clutching a book in his right hand, his left barely touching a blue flower placed on his chest.

Every member of the royal family is buried with at least 3 items that were either close to their hearts, or that acted as symbols for their reign. Father was one of the... dubiously fortunate few in recent times, who could draw up a will that included this (and other) details: a fresh blue Aster - their national blossom - plucked the day they prepared his casket, a small decanter of the calvados that had been made almost 62 years ago in celebration of his birth, and a copy of An Insighte Into The Great Apple War of 1244 by Artemisia Fierro and Sofonisba Vescovi, two scholars of the Renaissance who had once held connections to Cordonian nobility.

Liam takes in a deep breath as memories of his father's love for that book flood him. It had been only the second tome ever written on one of the last and most successful war campaigns in Cordonia, he'd whispered almost conspirationally to Liam once, and was considered the better-researched text of the two.

Father had always had a fascination with studying past wars. Almost as if to gear himself up for some sort of battle.

Was any of that ever worth it? Liam wants to ask his father one last time. The fear, the paranoia, the frowns that deepened almost to permanence on his skin in his final years, the forever impulse to look over his shoulder for the knife in his back...did any of it do any of them any good in the end??

As if in answer to his questions, Bastien's staff hits the floor five times. Without even looking around, Liam's footsteps move on instinct alone towards the area where Esther stands patiently with the Queen Mother, waiting. Her eyes are sheilded by the half-veil from her black box-hat, and the rest of her face is the very portrait of serenity. But as she places a hand over the crook of his elbow, he notices how they tremble.

They both nod in Mother's direction, their hearts turning over at the sight of her pale, pinched face, and move away.

This week cannot possibly have been easy for Esther. All week she has had to give interviews - as the last person outside of the King Father's family to speak to him before he died. All week the press has been badgering her to wear the medallion he had bequeathed to her, if only in his honour. She has been listening to every kind word, every eulogy, every speech with studied calm - only the rise-and-fall movement in her throat giving her away.

Brilliant strategist. Ruthless towards his enemies and devoted to his people. A truth pioneer of his times. The lifeblood of this land, a lion among men. A man who devoted his life in pursuit of ensuring the safety of all under his reign.

Liam's eyes were trained towards the dias when that speech was being given. On his arm, the light sting of Esther's manicured nails digging into his flesh grew sharper. He pressed his lips together and bore the pain, shaking his head and smiling weakly as she fretted over the half-moons left behind on his hand an hour later. It's nothing.

And that isn't a lie.

The truth of her feelings towards the father he had once loved and hero-worshipped...the father he still catches himself admiring sometimes...settles on Liam's chest like an unbearable weight. It is one he is prepared to carry - their whole lives if need be. Because as much as it hurts him to see the woman he loves lose all respect for his childhood hero, it is nothing compared to the hours and hours she has spent sitting through a thousand emotional tributes to the man who had so coldly planned such a complete violation of her space. A space that, as a foreigner in King Constantine's land, she had trusted him to keep safe for her...at the very least.

As he turns away from Esther to watch The Vigil of The Great Houses - their observance half the time of the Princes' - Liam steals a glance towards Olivia, the ruby on her brooch the only spot of colour against her black attire and pale visage. Her countenance is solemn until the moment her eyes rest on her aunt - the sight of the woman making her lock her jaw in such defiance that he can almost hear the message she is sending.

I am the Duchess of Lythikos. I will make sure we do our duty and pay our respects to the man who was once our king. Yes, auntie, Lythikos' king. Fight me.

Standing a few feet away is Bertrand, his senses strangely attuned nowadays to the cries of babies and toddlers...the mental calculations of what his little son sounds like now writ large on his face.

The Duchesses Emmeline and Adeleide, of Portavira and Krona respectively, fold their hands in front and bow their heads solemnly. Liam supposes he can only be grateful that Countess Madeleine's mother chose the sheer dreariness of sobriety today rather than her usually unflappable high spirits; for besides a few furtive glances in her determinedly stoic daughter's direction she shows nothing but a muted (but perhaps not entirely sincere) sorrow.

But it is the Duke of Castelserraillan - standing directly in line with Liam's field of vision - that captures Liam's attention. Jaw set, eyes dark and glittering, his face such a tapestry of restrained grief and resignation that Liam is certain he juat imagined the flicker of bleak anger in the older man's eyes.

The last time he had seen Duke Hakim was at the Costume Gala. Amid the festivities, Liam spotted him with Father, their heads leaning slightly in each other's direction, as if exchanging long-repressed confidences...the Duke on occasion placing a hand on Father's arm with a familiarity that Liam had only heard of secondhand. There was even a point in the conversation where Duke Hakim looked directly at his father, eyebrows raised, a subdued delight glimmering in their dark depths.

Esther would inform him later on that the two had fought over Father's repeated snubs and Duke Hakim's fraying patience at the beginning of the ball, but patched up in seconds.

Looking at Duke Hakim's face now, he wonders which sentiment haunts the older man the most - relief over that one second chance they got, or an unhealed hurt. Unhealed hurt over the the fact that King Constantine didn't have a chance to make good on the promises he'd broken, long ago.

Promises, perhaps, that the Duke may not even be sure his best friend intended to keep.

--

For as long as Liam can remember, he has always associated the moonlight with the Capitol Square. Walks around the city were a luxury the little prince could ill-afford with his Father's packed schedule. When these little excursions did happen, they happened at night, in the light of the moon and the street lamps, the air fragrant with the scent of wildflowers. He would take Liam alone. Mum would often find reasons to demur...although in later years Liam suspected she made them up so her husband and youngest son would have their own time together to spend.

He would look up at the strong, chiseled features of his father's beloved face, admiring the way the moonlight emphasized its sharp, decisive angles. Father loved to show strength and control, even on a casual outing with his children. His was a jawline that seemed carved out of marble, softened only by full lips that dazzled when he offered the rare smile. A smile Liam saw most often when they stood at the Capitol Square.

Look at these statues, young man. Father would say, his hand gesturing vaguely towards the sword on famed Captain Guard Valentina Greaves raised left hand. At the age of 5 the statues - with their weapons and their fierce gazes - terrified him, at age 12 they intimidated him. Look at these faces, look at the resolve in them. To better their country. To fight for it. To keep it safe. Cordonia has always depended on the best of us to take her forward into the future - and these indeed represent the best of us.

He hasn't come here since his Coronation. Indeed - one could always put it down to the amount of travelling the new King had to undertake since...but Liam knows better. He has been hesitant to visit this place since the night he had confronted his father on his hospital bed in Shanghai.

Tonight is different. Tonight he needs answers. Tonight he needs to understand, for himself, if in refusing to play in the shadow of his father he is making a mistake - or circumventing another tragedy.

Both he and his future Queen have been sitting through three days straight of eulogies. Of stump speeches that have been lightly modified to suit the gravity of the moment, of stories and anecdotes that lionized and whitewashed the man King Constantine was. Not just from nobles but from businessmen, fisherfolk, soldiers and generals.

Liam has long determined that he will never follow the route his father swore by. It is not who he is as a man; it will never be who he wants to become as a king. But on nights like tonight those words of praise for his predecessor haunt him. If the ghost of his father were to ever take shape, it would do so in just one question.

You have become so stubborn in your need to be the antithesis of me. Will Cordonia end up paying price for that?

So tonight he takes that walk to the square alone. In anticipation and in dread.

Until he finds himself at the foot of the statue of Valentina Greaves, and discovers he isn't alone, after all.

"Your Majesty," the voice behind him is deep and rumbling, its sound resembling the depths of a pounding waterfall. Duke Hakim has discarded his jacket this warm night, the waistcoat and shirt registering the straightening of his shoulders. In his right hand, an ornate gold pocketwatch.

Liam smiles briefly in welcome, letting the older man know he isn't intruding in on a private moment of mourning.

"Good evening, Duke Hakim," he straightens his own shoulders. There was once a time - a time that has faded into blurred memory - that he took joy in calling this man "Uncle". When did that stop? It has been so long he cannot even recall.

The two keep silent for a time. There is, after all, far too little and far too much to say. Stripped of their titles and reduced to the basics, Liam is the son of the Duke's best friend. He is also the son of the man that had his friendship and loyalty in the palm of his hand for years, and never understood or appreciated it. So much of what Liam knows of Father's friendship with Duke Hakim, he knows in bits and pieces: in the exchange of disappointed glances between his mother and Kiara's parents, in piling-up of invitation cards to events on Father's desk that went unanswered. In the too-long pauses Queen Regina would take every time she returned from an event at Castelserraillan, where she went as the King's representative. Even in the rare moments Father remembered his university days. There isn't a single second in those memories that Duke Hakim didn't play a starring role in.

It is in silence that they move from the statue of Val Greaves to the next. The night breeze brings with it the scents of orange blossom and french lavender - gifts from Duke Hakim's great-great-grandparents to an ancestor of his. The next figure of marble glares defiantly to his right, a spear in one hand and an apple cupped in the palm of the other.

"King Aithan." Is it his own imagination or is Duke Hakim's smile truly trembling on his lips? "who won the Great Apple War of 1244 in the most decisive victory since his grandmother united the Five Kingdoms."

Queen Kenna, the aforementioned ancestor, is right behind them, her legs standing apart and an array of weapons from all over the Five Kingdoms at the base of her statue. If you took in the sight of both figures together, Father had told him once, you could almost convince yourself that she seemed to stare directly at Aithan, imparting her blessings and her wisdom. More than the words, it is the shine in Father's blue eyes that Liam remembers most.

Duke Hakim's eyes glitter oddly in the moonlight. There is a moist sheen to them now that Liam is almost afraid to ask about for fear of intruding. The next words that come from his mouth are uttered softly, so softly that it's as if he is saying them to himself, as if he has forgotten that the man next to him exists.

"I've lost count of the times we used to played tag here." Absently, he runs a tender finger along the back of the watch fob he is holding, staring at it with a gaze soaked in muted grief. "It wasn't very hard to find Kontos. He always chose King Aithan's statue to hide behind."

Liam offers a sad smile of his own. "My father was nothing if not predictable."

The two men share halting, reluctant chuckles over this shared image. An image neither of them expected the other to recognise. It unravels some tightened cord between them - one that made it impossible for them to speak as if they knew each other.

"I didn't realize you and Father knew each other so well as children," Liam whispers as they pass other statues. Queen Ilona, 1346, who staged several successful attacks on the more hostile of their neighbours. King Calix, 1420, who thwarted at least three coups in his lifetime and finally managed to keep the Nevrakis family in a stronghold that they found impossible to wriggle out of until two centuries later. Queen Flora, 1492, who held her two year old child in one hand and slashed down the traitors who had entered her bedchambers with the other. The sword on her right hand is sculpted to appear as if it's still in midair, perhaps to complement the fire and brimstone in her eyes. "All the stories Mum told me of the two of you seemed to happen in university. I always assumed you weren't close till then."

A small frown pierces the skin between the Duke's eyebrows. When he speaks, his words are suddenly clipped, as if they are strangers again. Liam bites his tongue, chiding himself on his uncharacteristic carelessness.

"We weren't close until University. Just playmates whenever my mother brought me down to the Capitol. Duchess Emmeline and Duke Barthelemy could have boasted of the same." His voice is a hoarse rasp, his nails scraping lightly over the watch. "I'm more surprised you heard those stories from Ellie's mouth, not his." As if she were the only one who cared enough to keep them alive, Liam can imagine him thinking, and on an instinct fostered by years of now-destroyed blind worship, he leaps to his father's defence.

"I did hear a few from him. Just not as many. You'd know when he was the happiest because those were the stories he'd tell."

Duke Hakim respectfully appraises his King in a speculative glance, not entirely convinced. Liam cannot find it in him to blame the elder man. For years, Queen Regina - and then himself - had been the mouthpieces Father used to deliver excuses for his rejections of Castelserraillan's overtures. Each time the Duke would briefly glance over their shoulders as if expecting someone else - each time the glow of hope would dim from his eyes when he saw no one. Over the years it has made him wary not only of his old friend, but of them too.

The distance between the men has undoubtedly created a chasm amongst the families - one Liam doesn't know yet how to break through. There is no real reason for Duke Hakim, or his wife, or his daughter (who he had befriended himself over the course of the social season, and who has been around less and less since the Gala. It's gone long enough for him to begin worrying. Should he change the subject and ask the Duke about her?)...no reason at all to believe that Liam is different, that he is a man who will not abandon his well-wishers. Or even that he is a king who shares their goals, their dreams for this country.

There may come a time when Duke Hakim will believe Liam cares about what he thinks. Today is not that day.

As if to encourage a change in the subject, Liam looks around at the many statues dotting the Square. "Every single figure here is that of a warrior."

Duke Hakim grants him a weak, resigned smile. "I hear there used to be more. It was your grandmother who had them removed."

Yiayia Cassandra. Whose intimidating, terrifying countenance made his own father appear like a lamb in comparison - a statement both mother and son would've loathed to hear. Who hated the Nevrakises but kept tomes and tomes of their ancient books on war strategy. Who scoffed at art as being a useless, ego-fuelled and far too fanciful exercise.

Father would often speak of her with the same blind worship Liam had once reserved for him. It isn't surprising then his politics turned out the way it did, that despite his disdain for Olivia and her lack of courtliness, a part of King Constantine wouldn't wholly disagree with a lot of what she could propose.

Strength and authority. Those were the qualities the Royal Family wanted above all others in their heirs; anything different would spell failure.

Already, as Liam poses the question to the man beside him, he realises with a lump in his throat that he knows what the answer will be. "Which statues were those?"

"Artists. Scribes. Inventors. Scientists. People who advanced the nation in times of peace."

Liam smiles sadly. "And who are often overlooked in favour of the drama and glamour bloodshed brings." He responds with a shiver.

He is rewarded for this admission with a sharp, shocked look from Duke Hakim. An emotion, a memory, seems to flicker in his eyes before it swiftly disappears in the neutral game-face he has been showing around Liam all this time.

"I don't have the most trustworthy memory on the ones I did manage to see; it's been too long." The watch fob disappears into his fisted hands. "One of our own was part of this esteemed gathering. Dominique Lavigne, a master sculptor of her own time, who dressed as a man to get recognition. Yusuf Hadid from Domvallier, who combined Arabic calligraphy with our own Cordonian arts in handwriting. Saengdao Adair from Krysanthe, a pioneer in herbal medicine and the reason Krysanthans excel in both traditional and allopathic medicinal fields even today."

Liam freezes. "That last name? Could you repeat that again?" It's a name he's read about, vaguely, in obscure texts...but the fact that there's a statue...

"Saengdao Adair," the Duke says, locking his companion in a quizzical gaze. "Her statue -"

" - was mentioned in my father's will. Among others." Liam whispers, almost to himself.

Hakim's eyes widen. The contents of a passing monarch's will - even one who had passed on his throne to the next in line before his death - would be jealously guarded by the Palace, only released to the public years or maybe decades later. This is clearly information the King wouldn't impart so arbitrarily to just anyone.

More than once he has tried to stop himself from wondering if the boy had more of his mother in him. It was a hope he'd always held to his chest in the early years of Constantine's withdrawal...one that died when it became clear that he wanted little - if at all - to do with the Thornes. Against all wisdom, this small exchange is beginning to allow that hope to flare up within him again. Belatedly, he loosens his grip on his old, trusted watch fob - a gift from Kontos the year they graduated.

Liam rubs the space between his brows, trying to remember. "His will mentioned the King Fabian Alcove," he whispers, "that arrangements were to be made to shift it there from the Stirling Halls."

"Stirling Halls," Duke Hakim repeats, his voice suddenly hollow. Liam knows he must be remembering it as the place that was open to no one barring the Royal Family - not even members of the Great Houses. That was where all art went to die?

"The date on the will is from two and a half weeks before the Costume Gala," Liam says softly, his eyes searching Duke Hakim's face, then the hands that have dropped to his sides. The pocket watch is still there, his thumb running distractedly over it. "They only transfer artifacts to the alcove when they -"

"...when permission is granted to reveal those works to the public."

The two men stand still, soaking in their collective memories of the man whose body now lies in wait, to be descended into the Royal Family Vaults. To be buried beside men and women he'd read about in textbooks, loved, idolized. Who embodied his favourite words: Bravery. Valour. Strength. Warriors.

But he would also be buried next to men and women who understood the value of times of peace. Who - as he had often heard in Duke Hakim and Duchess Joëlle's speeches - advocated that a country gave you its best when its environment made you feel safe enough to create. And that was a safety that went far beyond border protection and weaponry.

People that Father would regularly dismiss when he and Leo were growing up. People that Cordonia wouldn't give a second thought to, nowadays. Because the value of their advancements were seeped so deep into public consciousness that they were often taken for granted.

Here in Cordonia, the mindset of the reigning monarch and the collective mindsets of their people often fed on each other. Yesterday's history books could hail one man a hero one minute, and a weakling the next. And for at least two centuries - perhaps bored from decades and decades of peace and good diplomacy, who knows? - the popular view seemed to favour a fondness for the most dramatic and bloodthirsty of their ancestors. Father was no different in holding that view.

When had that changed?

The moonlight casts the Duke's face into a fascinating interplay of light and shadow. The lines of his jaw are softer than Father's, but signify its own unique brand of strength. The air around them is scented and heavy, almost as if this moment promises a watershed of sorts, and that very air is drawing a bated breath.

"I haven't visited that alcove in a long time," Liam admits, looking away, "I don't remember where it is."

Duke Hakim swallows, then motions his hand vaguely to their left. "It's this way."

The alcove is inside a garden - a fairly large one, made of old red brick and surrounded by an array of beautiful creepers. The two men stop short of going inside, halting their steps and drawing a gasp at the sight in front of them.

"... Saengdao Adair?" Liam whispers, drinking in the sight of this pioneer with his eyes. Her hair is long, her voluminous folds of her robe billowing almost realistically as if they were real linen, not marble. A mortar and pestle rests in one hand; her other is raised, delicately holding a sprig of stinging nettle.

There are others. So many others. A woman with a map and a compass, staring ahead into horizons not yet explored. A man with a richly-feathered quill in his hand, a book in the other. A woman holding a jewel-embellished half-mask. A simple sculpture of a man dressed in the garb of the ancient Technocrats, his eyes glowing at the sight of the nails and bolts in his hand, ready to invent something new.

A woman seated on her heels, hammer and chisel in hand, lips pursed and eyebrows scrunched together as she worked at transforming stone to a work of art.

Liam lets out a small, watery laugh. "A sculpture for a sculptor."

The Duke responds with a smile, shaking his head. "Fali Kraine from the Blackspine Mountains."

Liam nods. "They say she had this precise look on her face and sat exactly this way while sculpting this piece. What I wouldn't give to witness that."

But the centerpiece of the alcove is a woman. A scribe. Hunched over - in the rough cotton garb of a scribe from the Renaissance - books and parchment. Transcribing - letter for letter and word for word - the history of her nation so that her descendants could share it with their children. His ancestor. Queen Lisabetta.

"King Fabian commissioned this," Hakim's voice is a hoarse, shaky whisper, "to remind his beloved wife of the value of the work she had once done."

Liam swallows a painful lump in his throat. Back in the palace, an hour ago - he had stayed in Esther's room, knowing she would need him more these next few nights if she were to preserve an ounce of her sanity.

"You're a good man, Liam," she had murmured against his throat.

He held her tighter, smiling slightly against her hair. "That won't always translate into becoming a great king, my love."

Against her own will, she let out a long yawn. Her fingers ran lightly over his chest before resting against his heart. "But it certainly helps."

He had held her until he was sure her body was resting softly and heavily against his, her breathing slow and deep...and then quietly slipped out of her arms to walk to the Capitol Square.

He looks at the Duke too. Both he and his children took this trip without Duchess Joëlle, who chose to go to Switzerland. He remembers every account of how attached the couple are and how much they dislike being apart - including his own mother's. Liam winces; he never recognized until now the sacrifice Duke Hakim made in coming here without her.

Yet here he is. For a country that will not always respect him. For a friend who would not always accept him. For a King he isn't entirely sure he can trust.

For an ideology that won't capture the country's imagination, the way valiant heroes on horseback do. But if these commemorations had been shifted to this alcove, with the intention of placing them around the Capitol Square...that must mean some change was underway. Within his father, and with Liam's help perhaps within the rest of the country too.

"It's getting late," Liam says, straightening up and getting ready to leave the alcove. "We'd better head back to the palace."

"In a minute, Your Majesty," Duke Hakim says, giving him a brief bow, then turning to the statue of Queen Lisabetta.

As Liam leaves the alcove, he hears a voice so soft he wonders if he had imagined it.

"Kontos," the voice said, a sigh released from deep inside a man's chest, "Kontos, you listened."

--

A/N: This mini series takes place in the Petals and Thornes universe, that revolves around a romance between Hana and Kiara. While a lot of the story beats follow canon, I do make a lot of deviations from the text, including with other characters who aren't central to the story but whose stories have a definite influence on the larger plot. I'm hoping to make Legacies one of them. At present I plan for it to be a four part series.

A/N2: In canon, Constantine's funeral and burial arrangements lasts just a week, all of which was skipped entirely to the Lythikos leg of the Unity Tour. I have increased that time to 12 days.

The Vigil of the Princes is based on the British tradition (of the same name) in royal funerals - esp that of the monarch - where the family members stay vigil for 10-15 minutes near the casket of the deceased. Family who has served in the military perform this ritual in their military uniform.

The Great Houses' Vigil is my own creation but with elements borrowed from the above tradition. My HC is that it is shorter and unlike the surviving royals, the members of the Great Houses are not required to wear military uniform.

Kontos is a playful nickname that Constantine's close ones were allowed to use for him, as long as they didn't use it in public (because apparently the meaning in Greek is "short")

Krysanthe is the modern-day Aurelia, with Hana being their current Duchess/Head of House. Saengdao is indeed Annelyse's descendant. Here is my HC on the duchy and Hana's rise to Duchess.

Characters from my playthrough of TRM in this story:

Artemisia Fierro - Hunter (f!Asian)

Sofonisba Vescovi - Kayden (f!Black)

Lisabetta Rosario - MC, who fell for Artemisia initially but married Fabian later on. Artemisia and Sofonisba keep in touch with the royal couple and are protected by the Crown.