#anon i really really appreciate this ask and the similarities of daniel trembling when he and armand kiss!!!

[desertfangs]

The parallels between the first time Armand kisses Daniel as a mortal and the first time it happens right after Daniel is turned are driving me insane!!!

As a mortal:

"He'd come silently out of the shadows into the moonlight, a young boy in dirty jeans and a worn denim jacket, and he had slipped his arm around Daniel and gently kissed Daniel's face. Such warm skin, full of the fresh blood of the kill. Daniel fancied he could smell it, the perfume of the living clinging to Armand still. (...) Daniel had been trembling, on the edge of tears. And why was that? So glad to see him, touch him, ah, damn him!"

As an immortal:

"He steadied himself, but the sight of Armand made him want to cry. Even in deep shadow, Armand's dark brown eyes were filled with a vibrant light. And the expression on his face, so loving. He reached out very carefully and touched Armand's eyelashes. He wanted to touch the fine lines in Armand's lips. Armand kissed him. He began to tremble. The way it felt, the cool silky mouth, like a kiss of the brain, the electric purity of a thought!"

Armand: *puts his mouth on Daniel's*

Daniel: *instantly starts shaking all over*

So much had changed, so many years had passed, but Daniel's reaction stayed the same. Armand's kisses made him lose his mind! He began trembling and wanted to cry, scream, touch, kiss, and never let go. My boy is absolutely head over heels 🥲 Imagine their first kiss post-reunion, Daniel was probably like one of those toys with shaking heads that start wobbling like crazy when you touch them 🥲

Anon, I want to thank you so much for this ask!! Because oh my gosh, yes, he's totally head over heals, totally desperate to be close to Armand and touch him, you're so right! Both kisses are so intense and powerful! Daniel trembling and shaking with desire and the sheer overwhelming emotion of it is just chef's kiss. You can absolutely feel the love he has for Armand in both scenes.

I think a lot about how in that first passage, Daniel was probably scared Armand had vanished and he'd never see him again. He's trying to write, trying to find some semblance of normalcy in the world when he knows the monsters it contains, trying to cope with the fact that vampires exist and he may never find them again. And then suddenly there Armand is, kissing his face, arm around him, burning from the blood of someone he'd killed (Of course our boy is into that! Daniel being so into Armand as a monster is my jam) and he's literally on the verge of tears with relief.

The second time, he's just so enamored with how he sees Armand with his vampire vision, the way he notices every little detail of his face, the light in Armand's eyes, and the way the kiss now feels like such an electric connection fusing them together. Anon, I'm going to cry!

So their reunion kiss has to be equally incredible! Daniel nervous and trembling, because it's been so long, because time and distance have created a gulf of uncertainty between them. But then there Armand is in front of him again, his personal devil, his immortal lover, his beautiful maker, and I'm sure in some ways it suddenly feels like nothing has changed.

I don't know when it happens. Is it a stolen kiss in some empty room of Trinity Gate, a brief encounter because they've snuck away for a moment to be alone? Is it on the street in New York after they go hunting together, the streets slick and glittering with rain? Is it back in Armand's bedroom, Daniel standing there unsure if Armand is going to kick him out before sunrise?

Wherever it happens, I have no doubt it's an incredible moment, Daniel's hands trembling as he grabs fistfuls of Armand's shirt fabric because he's clinging so tight, Armand trying not to tremble himself as he reaches for Daniel and their lips finally meet after so many years apart. How soft and jolting the kiss is at the same time, how it quickly turns passionate and desperate as they hold each other and don't want to let go. 😭💖

Thanks so much for the ask, anon, this has been such a great thing to spend my day thinking about. I'd love to know what you (any of you) think their reunion kiss was like, any and all versions of it, because no matter how or where it occurred, it was definitely memorable.