#potentate louis

[coarsely]

OC Interview

Hello! I was tagged by @ink-flavored, thank you so much! Last time, we interviewed Saccade, so now it's time to go across the border and interview the Potentate Louis!

Are you named after anyone?

"Yes. There were two Louis' of the Potentate dynasty before me; one had married in to the Potentate Ludovica some eons ago, and despite the 10 children the couple sired during their marriage only two made it to adulthood. The other was a military man, Seraph of the Empyrean's Army only for a week before his horse went wild and dove down the side of a cliff. Neither are... particularly proud namesakes, but I am grateful to be given a chance to carve a greater legacy for future generations."

When was the last time you cried?

"What a ridiculous question. Do you mistake me for a hysterical woman, or an overemotional, nostalgic fool like Salvatore? I have not cried since I was a small child."

Do you have kids?

"Another ridiculous question. I am not married, so how would I have children? I am not a degenerate, unlike some of my cousins. Moreover, palace this may be, there are quite enough people in it as is. I do not seek to add to the tally of Potentate heads within these walls. And furthermore–I have no desire for children. I have quite enough brothers and sisters, cousins plenty to ensure the family blood does not dry. No, Empyrean willing, I shall never marry either".

Do you use sarcasm a lot?

"No; I will not undermine my words and authority by using them for irony, humour or mockery. It is unbecoming of a Potentate."

What’s the first thing you notice about people?

"Masks, of course. What they wear upon their faces. The weapons of Nod have placed Eden into a permanent masquerade, and some are taking advantage of that. I see people with masks of owls, of wolves, of ravens and lions and bears. They wish to show what they feel represents their personhood, their status. For example, my father, the Potentate Felipe, has taken to wearing one of a ram, with great curved horns. In truth, I think they are slightly too heavy for his head to comfortably wear–but you understand why a Seraph of the Empyrean's Army would want a thing symbolising protection, like the ram. Now that we must have our faces covered always in case of a gas attack, it is necessary to still have ways to communicate our personhood and societal status."

What’s your eye color?

"Blue. Like my father, like the God-King himself, Magnus. I am proud to say I have my grandfather's eyes. Naturally I... never met him, but the shade is similar in the many portraits of the Potentate Boris. I would have liked to have met my uncle."

Scary movies or happy endings?

"Fiction is for children, and for fools unable to face their own reality, too cowardly to grasp and change it. Neither."

Any special talents?

"I... am adept with the sword and I have a natural inclination to the sciences. If my aunt, Clymene, was not so close in age to me, I would naturally be considered to inherit the science sector when she passed. As it is, it is unlikely to happen."

Where were you born?

"Do you seek to waste my time with unnecessary questions? The Palace of Eden, as every one of the Potentate dynasty was born ever since the Prophet lifted it from the ground. Only the Potentate Zephyr was born outside of these walls, when Gloriana, pregnant with her son, attempted her coup and ran away from these holy walls."

Do you have any pets?

"Not specifically. There are... hounds kept for hunting and guarding, but none are mine, and I find the novelty of such beasts wears quickly. A cat would suit my temperament much better, but there is little to do for a small animal in this palace."

What sort of sports do you play?

"I fence regularly, to keep my physique in check, and I often play chess with my cousins. Oh, I raced against my siblings often on horseback when we were children, but I suppose that doesn't count as a sport. I also played cricket as a youth, but Orsete is a terrible cheat, so I never pursued it."

How tall are you?

"I stand at 182cm. Not as tall as my younger brother, Azelio, who stands at a quite ridiculous 194cm, but I am taller than my father, and that is all one can ask for, no?"

What was your favorite subject in school?

"I have appreciation for most academics, but if forced to choose... physics, I am endlessly fascinated by."

What is your dream job?

"What trivial, provincial things jobs are. I have no need for them. The only duty I have, the one I dream about, is that to my family, to do the great Potentate name proud, and to join my ancestors in the Empyre when my time comes."

Thank you again! I'm tagging @chauceryfairytales , @bebewrites, @ashfordlabs, @borisyvain, @megarywrites, @mjjune, @albatris, @scholarlycoffee and as always, anyone else who wants to be involved! The questions are under the cut, as before.

Are you named after anyone?

When was the last time you cried?

Do you have kids?

Do you use sarcasm a lot?

What’s the first thing you notice about people?

What’s your eye color?

Scary movies or happy endings?

Any special talents?

Where were you born?

Do you have any pets?

What sort of sports do you play?

How tall are you?

What was your favorite subject in school?

What is your dream job?

[mediumgayitalian]

“Oh, fuck.”

The clatter of her practice sword on the ground is almost louder than the crunch that rings out from his wrist. He inhales sharply, biting back a shout — no matter how many times it’s happened, he will never get used to breaking a bone. That shit hurts.

“Fuck, fuck fuck. Fuck, Seaweed Brain, is it broken?”

“Think so,” Percy grits out. He tries for a smile, and Annabeth matches it, small and worried. He leans into the hand she cups over his cheek. “Not too bad, though. If I just dump my water bottle on it —”

“Absolutely not. Water healing leaves you achey when it rains, you know that.” Shifting to wrap her arm around his waist, she helps him stand, shouldering some of his weight like it’s his ankle that’s broken. He lets her, reaching down to squeeze the hand resting on his hip — I’m fine. We’re good. She turns her hand to wrap clasp their hands together — Okay. If you’re sure.

They walk together to the infirmary, taking their time. Aside from the pain pulsing from his arm, it’s not too bad — camp is as balmy as usual, and the spring break energy is practically visible, it’s so potent. The Demeter cabin has plants growing everywhere, flowers and fruit trees blooming as bright as a box of new crayons, and the air is filled with shouts of laughter and teasing. Annabeth’s steps fall in time with his, and she’s a comfortable warmth at his side, pressed from shoulder to hip.

“You still okay?”

“Yep.” He catches her eye, smiling crookedly at her. “Doesn’t even make my top fifty.”

She rolls her eyes, hipchecking him. “Don’t I know it, ya klutz.”

“Not sure I would call being flung from the St. Louis Arch being a klutz. Or exploded in a volcano. Or crushed under the sky. Or slashed by giants. Or chased by —”

“You’re talking, but all I’m hearing is Annabeth, please, please pinch me, as hard as you can —”

“Hey! Get those claws off me, gods you’re worse than an empousai —”

“— and when you’re done pinching me please put me in the tightest headlock you can manage —”

“I am injured! You are beating up an injured person right now!”

“— and then please just bite a chunk out of my shoulder —”

“Cut it out or I’m telling Mom!”

“Wimp,” she taunts, finally releasing him. “I don’t go running to Sally every time I lose a fight.”

“Wha — you do so!”

She ducks through the infirmary door, smirking like she can’t hear him.

“You literally — you snitched on me last week! I got grounded for two days!”

“And you deserved it,” she says primly.

He gapes. “I did not!”

“Anytime you two are done,” Kayla drawls, shoving a clipboard at them. They accept it with matching sheepish grins, cowed at her perfectly arched eyebrow and slowly tapping foot. “I got patients to deal with and older brothers to harass. Let’s get this moving.”

She is shockingly good at humbling people for a thirteen year old. The two of them turn to their clipboard, chagrined, letting her stomp away with an exasperated He’ll be with you soon! Don’t set off the sprinklers again!

“That was one time,” Percy mumbles, ears reddening.

Annabeth pats him on the back. “There, there,” she says mockingly. “The fact that it was one time definitely negates the fact that you flooded the entire Big House because you got jumpscared by a child.”

“Harley can be sneaky, okay. Let me live.”

“Literally no.”

Annabeth does most of the paperwork for him, ‘cause she’s a nerd because his wrist is far too swollen for him to write properly, so it takes maybe half the time it normally would. The infirmary is crowded as Hell, though (he knows, he’s been), so they settle in for the wait, amusing themselves by tearing little pieces off of a blank form, balling them up, and tossing them in increasingly harder places. Percy is winning 7-4, although Annabeth might just pull through if she manages to toss her paper ball into Travis’ wide-open snoring mouth.

“Hey, guys. Sorry for the wait.”

Aw. She missed. Percy was looking forward to that.

“Hey, Will.”

He drags his attention away from the son of Hermes to greet his friend, but frowns before he can open his mouth.

“Woah, dude, you good? You look exhausted.”

Will snorts. “Welcome to spring break, man.” He holds his hand out for the clipboard, scanning it briefly. “Sparring injury? Oh, thank the gods. I could use a break. Here, face me.”

He climbs up onto the minimal left over space on the cot, tucking his legs under his thighs. Percy turns to mirror him, hesitantly sticking out his arm — A break? he mouths to Annabeth, meeting her eyes over Will’s head.

She shrugs.

“Just spent four hours putting Jake’s nose back on his face,” Will mumbles, placing a careful hand on his fingertips and his forearm. Percy flinches — his skin is blisteringly hot. Like someone just dropped a hot stone onto him. “I never want to sing a skin cell hymn again in my life.” He prods at Percy’s wrist for a moment, gentle enough not to hurt. “Okay, hold still, I’m gonna fix ya right up.”

Healing hymns are familiar, by now, but Percy will never get tired of them.

The cool thing about ambrosia and nectar is that as pleasure food for the gods, it’s pleasant. It’s whatever taste you want, whatever you need to have most, you get it. But healing hymns are intentional the way nectar and ambrosia aren’t. Ambrosia and nectar happen to be healing for demigods — healing hymns were constructed to knit you back together, like you mother smoothing a bandaid over a skinned knee. They’re warm and sweet and deeply, endlessly comforting in a way most things simply cannot claim to be. They don’t feel like a medical procedure or a hasty patch job, they feel like someone gripping you tightly and promising you’ll be okay. They feel like getting carried to bed when you fall asleep on the couch. They feel like sitting down after hours of standing, like a drink of water when your throat is drier than sand. Healing hymns draw the pain and sick and ache from your body, and they feel like relief.

But this time, Percy can’t focus on it.

With every word, Will seems to get a little duller. Nothing like the horrible ash-grey he went in the war, dragging the poison from Annabeth’s body, but like his usual sunny disposition was dialed down a few notches. Enough that Annabeth frowns in concern, drumming her hands on her thighs, watching him closely.

“There,” Will says, pulling away. Percy turns his now-healed wrist, noticing the slight pant to Will’s breath, the strain to his smile. The shake of his blistered fingertips.

“You look overworked,” Annabeth says quietly.

Will holds his hands up in a what can you do gesture. “Spring break.”

“You said.”

“It’s just busy, is all.”

“Yeah, but —”

“Guys,” he interrupts, smiling tiredly, “there are two hundred ADHD demigods at this camp right now who have been trapped in a classroom for six months. There are three of us. I’m going to be a little drained; we’re all a little drained. But I’m fine, okay?” He gives them a second to scrutinize his expression, eyebrows raised in amusement. “I have been running my infirmary for years. I know how to pace myself, and I certainly know how to make sure my siblings are pacing themselves. If something goes really wrong, Chiron is a whistle away. I can go longer than you guys without sleep, anyway. Apollo kid health.”

“If you say so,” Percy says reluctantly. “I just — I can wear a wrist brace, man. Not every injury needs to be handled when it happens. You can tell people no.”

“I appreciate that, Percy, and I’ll keep it in mind. Anyways, I’ve got more patients. Stay off that wrist for the rest of the day, okay? It might be tender for a bit.”

Percy turns to Annabeth as Will leaves, frowning. He’s has never noticed the so-called spring break stress before (his camp spring breaks are usually a blast, but now that he’s thinking about it, he can’t think of a single spring break where he spent any time at all with Will, which is odd), but it can’t be good for him. There’s gotta be something they can do to ease some of the bruising under their friend’s eyes.

“I could set off the fire alarms again,” Percy suggests. “That’ll certainly get this place cleared out.”

Annabeth snorts. “I think that’ll cause more harm than good, Seaweed Brain. It’ll just fall in him to clean it all up, after.”

“Shoot.”

Percy counts nine of the forty cots currently unused. Will, Kayla, and Austin are rushing from cot to cot, handing out nectar, wrapping bandages, rattling off hymns at light speed. All three of them look exhausted, squeezing shoulders when they pass each other, knocking hips, exchanging tired smiles. This is so clearly something they’re used to.

Annabeth’s head rests on his shoulder.

“It wasn’t always like this,” she whispers. “When it was fully staffed…”

Percy exhales heavily. Yeah. He remembers. There was a lot less complication, once upon a time. The most chaotic the infirmary would get was when Lee would challenge his siblings to Hymn Karaoke — trying to heal with pop songs. There was a lot more laughter, at one point. A lot more people.

Percy sighs, squeezing his eyes shut. It never does well to dwell, but he — gods, he wish they all had more time. To sit with it, to acknowledge…everything. Siblings. Friends. A camp that’s smaller than it’s supposed to be.

Annabeth squeezes his hand again, and he squeezes back, resting his head on top of hers.

“Hey,” she murmurs after a moment, pursing her lips at the front door. “Look.”

Slinking through the entrance like a criminal is Nico, in all his dork ass black camp shirt glory. He looks around shiftily, like he’s trying to make sure no one sees him, and when his gaze lands on Percy and Annabeth his eyes widen. Annabeth smiles at him, but it does nothing to ease the spooked look to his face, back arched like a startled cat. He turns to leave, but before he can slip back out the door —

“Nico!”

The son of Hades whips back around so quickly he brains himself on the doorframe. Percy ducks his head and bites his lip, hard, because he can feel Nico’s glare at the side of his head like the press of hot coal, and if he laughs as badly as he wants to then the infirmary is about to look like a Spirit Halloween.

Will turns back to his patient, squeezing his eyes shut and rattling a hymn off so quickly it makes a burst of light pop from his whole body, and rushes over to where Nico’s standing. He only trips over two things, which is remarkable for him. Percy would be proud if he wasn’t a little embarrassed on his behalf.

“Nico! Hi!”

“He-ey, Will,” Nico says, voice cracking badly on every vowel. Annabeth shoves her face into Percy’s shoulder, body shaking.

“I didn’t know you were coming! I thought you were in the arena all day.”

Nico shrugs, shoes scuffing the floor. “I am. I just — uh, I got hurt? So. Came to see you.”

Will’s beam is so bright it hurts to look at, a little. Percy squints and realises that’s not just the excitement, actually — he really is glowing, faintly. His hands flap slightly at his sides.

“Well, you’re in the right place, then.”

“Yeah.”

Neither of them say anything for a minute, rocking back on their heels. Will watches Nico closely, biting his lip. Nico looks resolutely at the floor.

“We weren’t this bad,” Annabeth whispers, “were we?”

Percy shakes his head. “Nah, there’s no way.”

“Gods. It’s so — I don’t know whether to smile or take a dip in the Lethe. It’s embarrassing and endearing at the same time.”

“Painful to watch, but I can’t stop looking,” Percy agrees.

“What’d you hurt?” Will asks, finally. “Did you pull your shoulder again?”

A look of panic flits briefly across Nico’s face until he smooths it to something neutral, aloof.

“Yep. Totally. During — sword fighting, I swung — I did this really big thrust, actually. Just — hugely powerful, training dummy exploded on impact.” He clears his throat. “Some might say too powerful. If you can imagine.”

Percy cradles his head in his hands. “Oh my gods — ”

“Don’t laugh don’t laugh don’t laugh,” Annabeth chants, “oh my gods, don’t laugh —”

A light flush dusts Will’s cheeks. He brushes a strand of hair behind his ear, fiddling with his earrings. “Woah, really? I’ve never heard of that before.”

Nico smirks, standing up a little straighter. “Well, it’s not the first time. I tend to go pretty hard.” Remembering his supposedly hurt shoulder, he exaggerates a wince. “Too hard sometimes, I guess. Could you do the — the energy thing?”

“Oh — gods, yeah, sorry. Hold on.” He stares at Nico’s shoulder, hesitating. “It, um, works better with skin-to-skin contact.”

“I have seen crystal vases less transparent,” Annabeth says, aghast. “In two years he’s going to remember this and try to drown himself.”

“I will be counting down the days,” Percy says gleefully.

On rare, rare occasions, the gods answer his prayers. Clearly, both Nemesis and Aphrodite are looking at him kindly today. Percy makes a note to scrape some of the good stuff off his plate for them both today. Hell, maybe he’ll skip the portioning and toss them an entire roast chicken each. Or something. They deserve it.

Will places both hands — interesting, Percy notes, his wrist was snapped cleanly in two and he only needed one hand, wonder why that was — on Nico’s shoulder and closes his eyes, screwing up his face in concentration.

“Huh. I’m not feeling much damage. You said it was your right shoulder?”

“I heal quick,” Nico says loudly. “I mean, some of the damage might have — um.” He clears his throat. His face glows a faint crimson. He clears his throat again. “Y’know?”

Will’s face is a similar shade.

“Right, right. Yeah. Um, brace yourself.”

Instead of starting to sing, Will closes his eyes, holding completely still. After a moment, the tips of his fingers begin to glow; soft, ambery yellow, flickering like lit candles. He opens his eyes again and focuses intently on Nico’s bare skin, tracing patterns around every defined muscle, leaving a trail of light behind. He lingers, for a moment, when he connects the last string of light, waiting until it has faded entirely from Nico’s skin to remove his hands and shove them in the pockets of his coat.

“That better?” he asks softly.

Nico swallows. “Yeah.”

“Good. I’m glad, Nico. It means a lot that you — came to me. When you needed it.”

“I trust you, I guess.” Nico looks away. “You know what you’re doing.”

“I think I just threw up in my mouth a little,” Percy says thoughtfully.

Annabeth laughs, shoving his shoulder. “Don’t be mean.” She pauses. “Me too.”

With a sigh that can only be described as besotted, Will steps reluctantly away.

“I have patients,” he says, in the same tone of voice Percy usually says I have midterms. “So I gotta…”

“Yeah, no, go. Do your —” Nico gestures vaguely. “Doctor thing.”

“Right. Yeah. I’m gonna — go.” He turns, walking back towards a group of Hephaestus kids who appear to be tightly entangled in some kind of net. After a few steps, though, he pauses, biting his lip, then darts back over to Nico, pressing a lightning-fast kiss to his cheek — “Um, bye. Thank you for visiting. Bye,” — and then runs back over to his siblings, shy smile on his face.

Nico’s jaw is brushing the floor of his father’s palace. He stands, still as a statue, for four entire minutes.

“I think he just died,” Annabeth observes, eyebrows climbing higher and higher up her forehead with every passing second “Damn. Survived so much only to literally die because a cute boy kissed his cheek. A true hero’s end.”

Percy, because he is a kind, concerned friend, clears his throat loudly.

“Yo, di Angelo, you alive?”

Nico startles so violently he falls right over. Percy shoves his fist in his mouth to keep from cackling.

“Shut the fuck up,” Nico hisses venomously, scrambling upright. “Both of you, shut the — not a word —”

Percy and Annabeth make the mistake of looking at each other and simply erupt. Percy can’t feel his stomach. His lungs have abandoned ship. He’s glad as hell he’s in the infirmary because he is heaving for breath, tears streaming down his face, entire body convulsing. Nico stands in front of them literally shaking with rage, entire body redder than one of Apollo’s sacred cows, trying and failing to string together a threat that will ease any and all of his suffering. Annabeth screeches, almost falling off the bed as she cackles. Percy cannot even find the strength to catch her, his muscles are so weak.

“I fucking — I hate you! Both of you! You’re dead to me!”

“Your face!” Percy shrieks.

“Percy Jackson, I am going to turn you to fucking dark matter! I despise your very essence! I —” He stomps his foot. “I’m leaving, and I’m going to leave a rotting corpse in your cabin! Screw you!”

“Oh my gods,” Annabeth wheezes, digging her nails into his arm. “Oh my gods, that was —”

Percy wipes a tear from his eye. “I love being alive. I love being alive so much.”

“It really is great.” Composing herself, and biting back the leftover giggles that keep bubbling out, Annabeth looks back towards Will. He stands much straighter, now, smile back to full brightness. His siblings, too, look rejuvenated, snickering to each other and making kissy faces behind Will’s back. “So many beautiful things to witness. I’ve never seen his face go that red.”

Percy sighs. “This is genuinely going to carry me through the semester. I think his soul died a little. And Will just — gods, that kid is bold.”

“Oh says you, Mr. Do I Get A Good Luck Kiss.”

“Hey, I earned that.”

Annabeth grins, punching him in the shoulder. He grabs her wrist and tugs her towards him, chasing the curve of her smile. She laughs into his mouth and it taste like strawberries and freedom, and he presses a kiss to her cheek, to her jaw, and the side of her neck, resting there, breathing against her skin. After a moment her hands come up and slide in his hair, gently untangling the knotted mess.

“He is one thousand percent going to put a zombie in your bed, you know,” she says after a moment.

Percy snorts. “Yeah, I know.” He smiles. “Worth it.”

[asterdeer]

THEY DIDNT FUCKING BURN THE DAMN BODY???

[covid-safer-hotties]

Nasal COVID-19 vaccine halts transmission - Published July 31, 2024

Study in hamsters indicates vaccines targeting nose, mouth may be key to controlling spread of respiratory infections

A nasal COVID-19 vaccine blocks transmission of the virus, according to an animal study by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The findings suggest that vaccines delivered directly to the nose or mouth could play a critical role in containing the spread of respiratory infections.

The lightning-fast development of COVID-19 vaccines just months after the virus appeared was a triumph of modern science and saved millions of lives. But for all the good they did in reducing illnesses and deaths, the shots were unable to end the pandemic because of one notable weakness: They couldn’t stop the spread of the virus.

A new study by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis indicates that next-generation vaccines that target the virus’s points of entry — the nose and mouth — may be able to do what traditional shots cannot: contain the spread of respiratory infections and prevent transmission. Using a nasal COVID-19 vaccine based on Washington University technology, approved for use in India and licensed to Ocugen for further development in the U.S., the researchers showed that vaccinated hamsters that developed infections did not pass the virus on to others, breaking the cycle of transmission. In contrast, an approved COVID-19 vaccine that is injected failed to prevent the spread of the virus.

The findings, published July 31 in Science Advances, provide further evidence that so-called mucosal vaccines sprayed into the nose or dropped into the mouth may be the key to controlling respiratory infections such as influenza and COVID-19 that continue to circulate and cause significant illness and death.

“To prevent transmission, you need to keep the amount of virus in the upper airways low,” said senior author Jacco Boon, PhD, a professor of medicine, of molecular microbiology and of pathology & immunology. “The less virus that is there to begin with, the less likely you are to infect someone else if you cough or sneeze or even just breathe on them. This study shows that mucosal vaccines are superior to injected vaccines in terms of limiting viral replication in the upper airways and preventing spread to the next individual. In an epidemic or pandemic situation, this is the kind of vaccine you’re going to want.”

Developing vaccines that can control virus levels in the nose has proven challenging. Viruses such as influenza virus, SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) multiply rapidly in the nose and spread from person to person within a few days of initial exposure. Traditional injectable vaccines generate immune responses that can take a week to build to full strength and are much less potent in the nose than in the bloodstream, leaving the nose relatively unprotected against a fast-multiplying, fast-spreading virus.

In principle, a vaccine sprayed or dropped directly into the nose or mouth could limit viral reproduction and thereby reduce transmission by eliciting an immune response right where it’s needed most. But gathering evidence that mucosal vaccines actually do reduce transmission has proven tricky. Animal models of transmission are not well-established, and tracking person-to-person transmission is fiendishly complicated, given the number and variety of encounters a typical person has on any given day.

For this study, Boon and colleagues developed and validated a model for community transmission using hamsters and then used it to assess the effect of mucosal vaccination on the spread of SARS-CoV-2. (Unlike mice, hamsters are naturally susceptible to infection with SARS-CoV-2, making them the ideal laboratory animals for a transmission study.)

The researchers immunized groups of hamsters with laboratory versions of approved COVID-19 vaccines: the nasal iNCOVACC used in India or the injected Pfizer vaccine. For comparison, some hamsters were not immunized. After giving the vaccinated hamsters a few weeks for their immune responses to fully mature, the researchers infected other hamsters with SARS-CoV-2 and then placed the immunized hamsters with the infected hamsters for eight hours. This first step of the experiment mimics the experience of vaccinated people who are exposed to a person with COVID-19.

After spending eight hours rubbing shoulders with infected hamsters, most of the vaccinated animals became infected. Virus was found in the noses and lungs of 12 of 14 (86%) hamsters that had received the nasal vaccine, and 15 of 16 (94%) hamsters that had received the injected vaccine. Importantly, while most animals in both groups were infected, they weren’t infected to the same degree. Hamsters that had been nasally immunized had virus levels in the airways 100 to 100,000 times lower than those that had received the shot or had not been vaccinated. The study did not assess the animals’ health, but previous studies have shown that both vaccines reduce the likelihood of severe illness and death from COVID-19.

The second step of the experiment yielded even more striking results. The researchers took vaccinated hamsters that subsequently developed infections and placed them with healthy vaccinated and unvaccinated hamsters for eight hours to model transmission of virus from a vaccinated person to others.

None of the hamsters that were exposed to nasally vaccinated hamsters became infected, regardless of whether the recipient hamster had been vaccinated or not. In contrast, roughly half of the hamsters that were exposed to hamsters vaccinated by injection became infected — again, regardless of the recipient’s immunization status. In other words, vaccination through the nose — but not by injection — broke the cycle of transmission.

These data, Boon said, could be important as the world prepares for the possibility that avian influenza, currently causing an outbreak in dairy cows, might adapt to humans and trigger a flu epidemic. An injectable vaccine for avian influenza already exists, and a team of researchers at Washington University is working toward a nasal vaccine for avian influenza. That team includes Boon and co-author Michael S. Diamond, MD, PhD, the Herbert S. Gasser Professor of Medicine and one of the inventors of the nasal vaccine technology used in this paper.

“Mucosal vaccines are the future of vaccines for respiratory infections,” Boon said. “Historically, developing such vaccines has been challenging. There’s still so much we don’t know about the kind of immune response we need and how to elicit it. I think we’re going to see a lot of very exciting research in the next few years that could lead to big improvements in vaccines for respiratory infections.”

Study linked in the first link!

[collegeboysam]

My main Devil's Minion theory for the finale, taking into account both the show so far and parts of the books, is this:

Armand has been giving Daniel his blood (in his drinks, in his food, in his IV drip) to cure his Parkinson's. But, without realizing, it caused secondary effect he didn't expect: the blood is what helped Daniel remember what happened in San Francisco. And will continue to help him remember more and more as time goes by. Perhaps do even more than that in season 3.

Leaving the long ass explanation as to why I think this could be it along with heavy book spoilers:

To me, one of the biggest clues for this is that Daniel does not remember anything about the first interview beyond the moment Louis invites him to his place (Daniel says he always wakes up at that moment anytime he thinks about it), which is the exact moment when Armand appears.

He does not remmeber him this until he goes to Dubai and is around Armand for the first time in decades.

Daniel's answer about him "waking up" at that point everytime indicates he has tried to remember that day all these years but he never could go beyond that point. And I don't think that talking about it with Louis is what made the memoris return.

The first time Daniel sees Armand in the dream after all these years, is the exact same day that he gets his levodopa transfusion. That night, after he falls asleep on the couch, he sees Armand arrive at the bar and from then on he continues remembering more and more details.

This ties back to the books, since in Queen of the Damned and more so in the Devil's Minion chapter we find out in the 70s-80s Armand used to feed Daniel his blood. Since the first time Armand feeds Daniel, he has visions. It creates a connection between him and Armand but later on also allows him to have very vivid dreams and have visions that only vampires should be seeing.

It's an established canon detail that consuming Armand's blood as a human makes Daniel have dreams/visions related to Armand and other vampires.

We still don't if DM's happened as it did in the books (at least the part about his 12 year relationship with Armand, since he ofc never got turned in his 30s), but there is a clear connection with the book.

In the show, he shouldn't be dreaming and remembering Armand in the first interview, since Armand erased his memory with his mind gift. Armand is a really old vampire, he has Marius' blood, his erasing of Daniel's memory should not have stopped working randomly.

And I don't think is random, I think it's happening because of the vampire blood is mixing with his medicine and food. It's making him remember and see things he once forgot since the mix is not only curing him, it's taking down the walls Armand himself put in his brain.

I don't think this is what Armand intended, it can be a secondary reaction he didn't anticipate.

Why the mix works on Daniel in particular? Could be any reason they want: Armand's blood is that powerful since he's ancient, it works because Daniel used to drink his blood in the 80s so his body is used to it and now mixing medicine with said blood has a reaction it never has with anyone else, it works because it's mixed with this particular medicine, etc. They can go with many options here and change it depending on what they decide for DM's in the 80s.

Now, another reason why I'm suspicious about the blood-in-medicine bit is another spoiler from the books: Doctor Fareed is actually a vampire. Not only that, he and his immortal companion and maker (Seth) develop medical science on vampires. Additionally, they run a clinic for the treatment of mortals, particullarly for incurable medical conditions. Parkinson's is incurable.

To me it's not too far fetched that Armand has asked Fareed this favor, of mixing the levodopa with his blood.

What vampire blood can do in the books isn't really a deus ex maquina, since it has it's limitations and it doesn't seem like it could be so potent it can cure every human condition ever and recover vampires from all injuries, but the show has not followed 1:1 all the rules from Vampire Chronicles either. Armand being immune to the sun being one of them, and it's a pretty important one, yet they added that right in.

This doesn't have to mean that vampires could now cure all incurable condutions with ancient vampire blood. It could be only Daniel: because he had it before in the 80s and formed a connection to Armand, or maybe because it's Armand's blood in particular (and he's not interested in helping anyone else lol.)

Transfusion aside, we now have the hint that Daniel likes his martinis better when Armand makes them. Because Armand puts more vermouth in them. Per Armand himself, Lestat tasted "like vermouth and annihilation". Could it be that vermouth is just generally what vampire blood tastes like?

Daniel could like the taste of Armand's drinks because they had traces of his blood in season 1. Armand could know how to make them perfectly because he remembers how Daniel likes them (maybe he used to add the blood as an ingredient just for the taste back in the day lol, since Daniel liked it so much.)

There are other scenes where we see Daniel asking "Rashid" personally for a refill of what looks like wine in one episode. And Armand does grab the cup to bring him more. We see him making Daniel a martini in another scene in particular, when Louis tells him "he's lingering."

Daniel having different drinks, courses of food, more drinks, dessert, it's shown many times in the first season and Armand is always around.

Perhaps Armand saw that only feeding Daniel his blood wasn't doing much and that's when he decides to go with the IV drip. More direct method, straight to Daniel's veins. As soon as he does, Daniel starts to remember.

Being "Rashid" is what gave Armand this advantage, since it would have been suspicious to have an ancient vampire who supposely "doesn't know Daniel", making him martinis and bringing him drinks, keeping tabs on his medical treatments and scheduling him a doctor.

But as a supposed member of the staff and pseudo asistent, Daniel thought it was kinda normal that Armand was doing these things for him.

And why would Armand want to help Daniel? There's a couple of options to choose from:

DM's did happen in the 80s and he still cares for Daniel, loves him even: It's important to note that one of Armand's big hopes when he's with Daniel is for Daniel to grow old. Armand wanted him to live his mortal life and mature, experience life as a human to its fullest. Daniel would argue and constantly try to push Armand to turn him when he was "still young". (Also motivated by Armand's own looks, he wanted to be with Armand as an immortal and also appear young next to Armand.) But for Armand, what was important was Daniel living his human life, as he would love him regardless of his physical age. Not to mention Armand is sure the maker-fledgling bond is destined to fail, and all fledglings will eventually resent their makers, he doens't want Daniel to hate him and end their relationship. Daniel argues that as a human he could die at any moment, as a vampire he can be strong like Armand, he doesn't have to worry about protecting him, and they can be together forever, young and now. This causes tons of fights between them. The show has actually given Armand what he wanted in the books, and it's Daniel growing old. In the show, he made Daniel forget their relationship when they reached the impass of Daniel wanting to let himself die on purpose so Armand would have no option but to turn him. Armand, not wanting to take Daniel's life away, erases his memory to protect Daniel and let him have a normal life. (There's also the theory that erasing so much, 12 years, out of Daniel's mind is what have him parkinson's eventually.) Additionally, per the books, Armand was correct and once he turns Daniel he starts to resent him as his maker and they break up for a while. Armand knows Daniel is strong and can take care of himself, so he doesn't force him to stay. But Daniel loses his mind while being away from Armand (Armand doesn't know this), ends in the care of Marius of all people, but eventually Armand goes looking for him and Daniel becomes his immortal companion once more, choosing him over Marius. Daniel and Armand end up together as endgame. I think the show has changed the time Daniel spends with Marius, and has instead made the breakup happen between them from the 80s to the current timeline, by the means of Armand never turning him and erasing his memory instead.

DM didn't happen: Let's say DM has not been a thing so far (but with all the looks between Armandaniel and all the devil minion's easter eggs they have put in these 2 seasons, I doubt it. But hey let's consider!) Louis said Daniel was a testament of their relationship enduring. Armand is currently desperate to save it, so he's saving Daniel to somehow show and hint to Louis their relationship should too. Daniel can't die when Armand knows his relationship with Louis is deteriorating, it could be taken almost as a sign that is time to end their relationship as well. In this scenario, I imagine DM's happens after Dubai. Louis and Armand break up, Armand follows Daniel because he blames him for he breakup (since he opened cracks in their relationship) and is when he tells Daniel to keep him entertained or he will kill him, starts stalking him, etc. This also makes sense because originally, Armand starts stalking Daniel in a time period he and Louis have broken up.

Extra: Does Louis know of Armand's plans? Unclear to me. I think it could go either way. Armand is so good at making plans and knitting webs to get wat he hopes/wishes for, he could be doing the entire thing without letting Louis know, going along with the interview because he has other interests for having Daniel close. At the same time, I think Louis wouldn't mind helping Daniel stay alive so he can live longer, publish the book, and I think he considers Daniel a friend. He even offers him the dark gift at one point in the 1st season. But does Louis know of the time Armand spend with Daniel if DM's happened? We'll see.

Finally, I believe this leaves them with many options for season 2:

Does Daniel start to get addicted to the blood? Does he need to keep consuming it to continue to get better? Will consuming it more and more cause for more memories of Armand to return?

Not only that, he can start having visions that directly connect "The Vampire Lestat" with the main plot of "Queen of the Damned". He can be the one to start seeing what Akasha is planning.

The actor for doctor Fareed is going to appear again in season 3. I think that's particular. Even if he's a vampire, he doesn't appear until way later in the books and so far he has only appeared for Daniel's sake. He could be continuing his treatment, giving him more of Armand's blood, and in season 3 Daniel could keep on remembering more and more about Armand or start to form a connection with him because now he needs his blood to stay/get better, but that connection could lead to many other feelings and situations.

That's what I think so far.

I'm more inclined to believe DM's did happen in the 80s, since there have been many clues scattered around these two seasons, but even if they decide to make DM's happen in the current timeline, the blood-feeding could still make sense to me.

But hey, there's also the option that DM did happen, but something health related affects Daniel and Armand sees himself forced to turn Daniel into a vampire in the season finale, since he cannot live with the idea of Daniel dying. Which is why he was maybe giving him his blood in the first place. Having fed him his blood before (and now) could affect how Daniel behaves as a vampire.

And hey, if all this is for nothing and Armand never gave him his blood and I'm fully delusional 🤡, then I guess I'll use it for a fic or something hahaha since I think it makes sense to me anyway lmao.

One way or another tho, there are enough hints for Armandaniel to come to usssss in season 3 FOR SURE.

[justmeinatree]

Extra - Saturdays Take The Pain Away

Summary : an Extra to Let Passion Get Too Much … niall x louis x reader threesome (nestled between part 4 & 5)

*note - i made this chapter an extra because there’s no smut. i know that a lot of people following this story are just here for the smut, and that’s totally cool ! but this idea of feelings has been in my mind for a long time and i just needed to get it out there. if you’re not here for feelings, and only here for smut, you can skip right over this part and not feel like you’ve miss anything !

previous part /// jump to pt. 1

Word Count : 5.3k

A/N : i’m sorry. i made some promises, but this was plaguing my brain and then it just sort of ended up on my screen and well now it’s on yours. enjoy ! ✌️

GIFs : unknown - msg for credit

you were not looking forward to this dinner. not one fucking bit. 

it had been months since the gang had gotten together, and in theory, you should be ecstatic to see everyone again. and yet, here you were, sitting in the passenger’s seat of niall’s car, resenting the fact that he essentially bribed you to come. fuck him, and fuck him for knowing how to get you to do things you don’t want to do.

you trudged behind him into the restaurant, following along until you almost bump into him, noticing that you’d made it to the large table in the back of the establishment. 

and as if this night couldn’t get any worse, you were the last two to arrive, forced to sit in the last two seats at the table, right in front of louis and his new girlfriend.

it was a dinner where everyone would finally meet her, the lady that stole his attention clean away from you, for the last few months. and damn it all, she was actually really pretty. like really, really pretty. fuck, you’d actually consider making a move on her had the circumstances been different, and if you didn’t already absolutely hate her guts. 

niall notes your sudden pause, your eyes clearly fixated on the end of the table where you’d be forced to sit, making him give your shoulder a comforting squeeze, murmuring against your ear, “be civil. we’re doing this for louis.”

so you sigh, put on a smile, surely the fakest smile that all of your friends will most likely see right through, and sit in the god forsaken chair you were condemned to for the next few hours. 

you couldn’t keep your eyes away from them. the way his fucking hand rests on her thigh, incredibly unsubtly, under the table. the way she fucking leans into him, all lovey eyes, as if she’d just learned that he hung the moon in the sky. something you’ve known for years now. the way his fucking nose bumps into her temple when he whispers something in her ear. the fucking blush that rises to her cheeks when he obviously says something a little too sexual.

but it was also the little crinkle by his eyes when he smiled, the glint in his irises when he laughed, the little bit of stubble starting to grow on his jaw, the bob in his throat when he swallowed, the grasp of his fingers around his liquor glass, and the fact that she was allowed to cuddle and touch and all of a sudden you weren’t. 

you were fucking fuming. 

and niall, bless niall, knew you were having a hard time, his hand always perched against you, be it your knee or your shoulder, even giving a little scratch to the back of your neck in comfort. you had to remember to thank him later. because he was helping, really was, you were just a little too worked up at the moment to really take notice. 

the only thing that seemed to help was the constant flow of liquor, always a bottle somewhere on the table, something you were reaching for more than you typically ever do. by now, you’d long forgotten how many times you refilled your cup, the concoction having turned absolutely rancid halfway through. you were notorious for leaving a few sips at the bottom of the cup, always refilling with something new, the current mix becoming more and more sour, and more and more potent. 

niall was letting it slide, for now, seeing as he knew you needed it. and again, bless niall, taking one for the team, and pacing his drinking in order to keep a watchful eye on you. 

but as time went on, louis had taken notice as well, “going a little hard tonight there, love.”

and you were fuming all over again, the liquor clearly running rampant through your system, “don’t pretend like you care now,” you mutter, eyebrows furrowing, gaze flicked down, because you could not stand to even look at him anymore. especially now that her hand was perched on his chest, as she talked over him to oli. 

louis instantly looks over at niall, a questioning glance, worry etched on his features. he wasn’t blind, he wasn’t naive, he knew very well that you weren’t taking this easily. but it’s when he catches the little shake of niall’s head, a silent plea to just let it go for now, a message received loud and clear, making louis sigh, hand tugging on his roots quickly.

so he waits. knows you well enough that he’s just going to be patient, wait it out until the moment comes where you inevitably have to pee. and with niall now distracted, and louis’ girlfriend happily chatting with oli’s lady, he quietly excuses himself, waiting in the hallway next to the one bathroom that’s occupied.

you’re startled as you step out of the toilet, not expecting someone to be right there. expecting louis even less. fuck.

“will you tell me what’s going on ?” louis asks softly, wanting to keep you calm, genuinely worried for you, his bestest friend.

but he’s met with a sigh, a shoulder shrug, and a quiet, “don’t want to talk to about it with you,” as you attempt to sidestep him and head back to the comfort of niall.

louis is quicker though, having less alcohol inebriating him, hand gripping into your upper arm, pulling you back into the bathroom along with him, closing and locking the door.

you use the wall for support, the world spinning a bit thanks to the absurd mix of liquor. your eyes were fixated on both your shoes, louis’ getting closer and closer and closer, until they were right up, toe to toe, against yours. 

“please talk to me, love,” he breathes, making you look up, noting how close he’s gotten. so fucking close. you could feel his tiny breaths hitting your nose, his fingers almost touching yours, and you were spinning, spiralling into a never-ending swirl of louis. 

you’re not even sure how it happened, but your lips were mingling with his, your hands gripping into his shirt. and everything seemed to melt away, float off into nothingness as all that mattered in that moment was louis.

but just as quickly as it happened, his mouth was briskly pulled away, and the invading sense of him had disappeared, instantly replaced with a large hand wrapped around your neck, holding you in place. “the fuck are you doing ?” louis snaps.

he hadn’t even realized what he was doing. that is, until he caught the look that flashed through your eyes. a mix of submission, of excitement, of calm relaxation, of lust, and fuck, even more than all of that, trust. 

slowly, his hand falls from it’s hold on your throat, his breathing laboured as his mind absolutely reels. louis never meant to do that, not for a second. he’s not even sure what took over him, but it’s making him crumble, as if his insides were so confused they were running around like headless chickens, bumping into everything in their path.

so he focuses on the moment that brought all of this on, the moment you lunged into him for a deeply passionate kiss. and then his simply confused insides shift to confused anger, “have you gone fuckin mad ? you know the rules and this is straight up fuckin cheating. and you’re roping me into it too,” he adds sternly, finger poking into your chest, on the verge of shouting, because fuck, really ? “don’t ever fuckin make me cheat on someone again, i don’t do that shit.”

heavy. your chest was heavy. the water in your eyes was even heavier, tears falling down your cheeks, unable to stop no matter how hard you willed them to. it felt like you were breaking all over again, feeling the weight of the loss of louis all over again. you didn’t handle it well the first time, and you were clearly not handling it well the second time. 

“i miss you,” you whisper quietly, a stark contrast to louis’ shouting, shame filling your entire demeanour.

louis knows what you meant, doesn’t need you to explain further, and as heart wrenching as it is to look at you in such a state, he’s still filled with the same bout of confused anger, “we knew this was going to happen, darling. christ, what the fuck did you expect ? that i’d just sit around waiting for you and niall to want to fuck ? never have someone to call my own, ever again ? be your god damn lap dog for the rest of eternity ? you’re not that fuckin naive,” he shakes his head, turning away from you and leaving the bathroom entirely. he couldn’t deal with this. not right now. not with his girlfriend surely wondering where he’s gone for so long.

he heads back to the dinning area, taking the path that forces him to walk behind niall’s chair. he crouches once he reaches niall, hand falling into a pat on his friend’s shoulder as he whispers against his ear, “should go check on your girlfriend. she’s in the bathroom.” 

and as quickly as he’d arrived, louis was gone, back to his spot next to his girlfriend, offering her a smooth smile and a soft peck on the cheek.

niall however, is left utterly confused, eyebrows furrowed as he looks over louis, trying to get any other hint out of him, wanting to be prepared for whatever he was about to walk in on. but with louis too engrossed in whatever conversation he’s just joined, and niall not wanting to leave you if you were really in need, he decides to simply head in blind.

when louis had left, you felt your knees give out, your back gliding down the wall until your bum hit the floor. your elbows rested on your knees, hands supporting your forehead. 

it didn’t take long for the telltale knock that was surely niall checking up on you, a sigh leaving your lips before you speak out, “s’unlocked.”

niall walks in quietly, shutting the door behind himself and locking it, looking down at you with empathetic sadness in his eyes. he extends his hand for you to grasp, helping you come to a stand, landing his hands on your hips, walking you backwards to the counter, and hoisting you onto it. niall stands between your legs, hands soothingly rubbing patterns into your thighs, “what happened, petal ?”

you look up into niall’s eyes, shame and sadness and nervousness pouring out of you, as you murmur, “i kissed louis.”

niall breathes, shaking his head softly, before wrapping his arms around you, pulling you in for a tight hug, “you miss him don’t you ?”

you nod against niall’s chest, face pressed against him, breathing him in. something about niall has always brought you so much comfort, you couldn’t quite describe it, but in moments like these, his calmness was everything. “it doesn’t change how i feel about you, you know that right ?” you needed to be sure, because it was true. so far, if anything, it felt like the addition of louis was somehow making your connection with niall stronger.

“of course i know that, petal,” niall murmurs, giving you a reassuring squeeze, and a lingering kiss to the head, “i know because i feel it too,” he adds.

you nod, it was something you kind of figured, both niall and louis were complete shite at hiding any sort of feelings. “how are you handling it so well ?”

“m’not sure,” niall sighs, shrugging. “i don’t think i’m handling it well, i think i’m just really good at shoving it aside and not thinking about it.”

“s’not healthy,” you murmur against his chest, playfully scolding him, lifting your head for the first time, looking up at niall. the easy, soothing, understanding conversation seemed to regulate your emotions so well, it’s something niall caught on to quickly in your relationship, something he’s happy to use as a secret weapon whenever it was needed.

“i guess it just hurts,” you sigh softly, “we were building something so strong, so good. and so fast. maybe too fast even,” you ramble on, your thoughts a bit jumbled, coming out as they piece themselves together. “but then he just found someone else. it’s like, i could understand if it wasn’t feeling as good anymore, or if we were growing apart for some reason. but it happened when things were just getting better. i wish i could understand,” you nod, finally figuring out what you were trying to say all along.

“we may never understand, pet,” niall hums, nodding. “i wish i knew as well, i really do, but we can’t dwell on answers. truth is, he met someone that he obviously has been enjoying enough to give it a go with. i’m sure he didn’t plan on it. last i knew he wasn’t even looking. sometimes these things just happen,” niall shrugs. “i know it doesn’t make it any easier, but that might just be it.”

“feels like you’re saying that she’s better than us,” you look at him, face smooshed in a mix of disbelief, of jealousy, of disgust, with a slight tinge of are you fuckin kidding me.

niall laughs, hands landing on your cheeks, thumbs smoothing out the crinkles in your skin, “m’not saying that. i don’t believe for a second that she has anything on you.”

you smile, knowing that he’s just being silly to make you feel better. but the gesture feels amazing none the less.

“what do you say we ditch this place and go home, have a cuddle on the couch with some shite food and one of those awful movies you like so much ?” niall smiles wide, wanting you to feel better, wanting to make you smile for real, wanting to make you laugh. wanting to make you enjoy a moment without the invading thought of louis.

and honestly, nothing would feel better. so you nod, shooting niall a smile, one that screams thank you for being you, a look niall is privy to more than anyone else you know. christ, you really loved him. 

“c’mon,” niall hums, taking your hand and helping you hop off the countertop, arm wrapping around your shoulders, leading you back to get your things from the table.

“leaving already ?” louis asks, eyebrows furrowed in confusion when he noticed you both gathering your things. 

“yeah,” niall nods, “s’an emergency cuddles kinda night,” he adds, noting the way louis deflates a bit at the thought. so niall turns to you, handing you the car keys, “go ahead petal, m’just gonna pay and meet you at the car.”

once you were out of ear shot, niall turns to louis, taking the opportunity to speak to him quickly while his girlfriend was getting drinks with a few others. but louis jumps in first, “emergency cuddles ? s’everything alright ?”

niall looks at him, confused with why he’s asking, “uh, not really,” he chuckles, “s’kind of the point of emergency cuddles.”

“she wasn’t supposed to hate me,” louis sighs quietly, elbows landing hard on the table, forehead resting in his hands as he thinks. contemplates every single decision he’s ever made that have led to him this point.

making his way around the table, niall comes to a stand next to louis, patting his shoulder, “she doesn’t hate you louis. s’quite the opposite really, that’s what’s making this so fuckin hard for us.”

louis’ head snaps up to meet niall’s, his girlfriend now back and standing right behind him, patiently waiting for access to her chair. but louis’ mind couldn’t quite focus on her yet, because what did niall say ? no one’s ever told louis anything of the sort. what does he mean by the opposite ? what does -

“look, i gotta get back to her mate, have a good night yeah ?” niall hums, mustering up the best smile he could, ruffling louis’ hair and patting his girlfriend’s arm, offering a small, “good to meet ya,” before turning his back on the table and heading off.

louis felt like he couldn’t breathe, felt like his chest was constricting, felt like every ounce of power in his body had shot to his brain, trying to detangle the mess he put himself in. he’d never considered for a minute that you would have any sort of feelings for him that were more than friendly. never considered niall being so nonchalant about his girlfriend of over a decade having feelings for- “he said us,” louis murmurs, feeling the world he’s known crash around him. 

he can hear his girlfriend asking a question, but he’s too focused staring into nothingness, eyes locked in the direction that niall left in, now long gone.

it had gotten late, like two whole movies after a late dinner kind of late. but you were so cozy, curled up on the couch in niall’s arms, head tucked into his neck and shoulder, his fingertips gliding up and down your arm, the gentle squeezes he’d give you in soothing comfort. the evening of emergency cuddles and shite movies had done wonders, with the distraction and the time to simmer down from the earlier shenanigans, you were back to your normal, calm self.

you were aimlessly flicking for another movie, hovering over legally blonde, ignoring niall’s mutters of “christ, this one again ? just fuckin watched it a couple weeks ago,” when you hear niall’s front door open and shut, then locking, louis rounding the corner and trudging up to the living room, “glad you’re still up-“

“make yourself at home, mate,” niall cuts him off, eyebrows furrowed in confusion, following his path to stand in front of both of you.

you were both shooting confused glances, watching louis pace the living room floor back and forth a few times, before finally breaking his pattern, stopping and staring at niall, “what did you mean earlier ?”

niall’s eyebrows shoot up, unsure what he said that put louis in such a state “uh- what ?” niall shakes his head, utterly unsure of what louis was referring to. “what are you doing here mate ? s’like 3am.”

“m’i not welcomed at 3am anymore ?” louis asks quietly, shyly. he looks small, looks almost like a petrified animal, something that doesn’t go unnoticed to either you nor niall. and you both hated it, torn up inside because fuck, it was louis. he was never a small petrified animal, he was usually a loud rambunctious one. 

“no, that’s not- what ?” niall sighs, shaking his head. “y’always welcome here, louis, you know that,” he offers softly, gaze fixated on his to convey that he really means that. thankfully louis visibly deflates when the words hit his brain, a little ounce of comfort in knowing that. “but, help us understand, please. shouldn’t you be with your lady ? not barging in on us in the middle of the night ?”

louis takes a deep breath, eyes flicking across the room as his brain pieces together exactly what he wants to ask. he was so jumbled up, it wasn’t easy to form one coherent thought without 8 other notions intruding. he sits himself on the coffee table, facing you both, wrangling the one thought that was plaguing him most, “i need to know what you meant before you left. when you said it was the opposite,” louis murmurs shyly, eyes flicking to yours when he said the word opposite. and just as quickly, he looks back at niall, adding, “and you said us. said it was hard for us,” he emphasizes.

niall chuckles breathily, shaking his head, “this couldn’t wait til morning huh ?”

“no !” louis all but shouts, niall’s eyes going wide, as he starts to understand that this entire thing is getting way bigger than he ever had imagined. 

“okay, okay,” niall hums softly, hoping that a calm conversation works just the same on louis as it does on you. “sorry louis, m’sorry. just a little caught off guard by this.”

“so am i,” louis groans, scrubbing his face with his palms, willing to do anything to slow his mind and just be able to think properly. 

“alright,” niall nods, shuffling a bit so he’s seated more on the edge of the couch, his hand extending to land on louis’ knee, giving a comforting squeeze, his thumb fluttering into a little soothing rub. “just tell us what’s going on, we want to help, mate.”

louis takes a breath, gaze fixated on niall’s, “just please tell me, please. i need to know what you meant. it’s driving me mental.”

“what am i missing ?” you pipe in quietly, shuffling yourself to the edge of the couch as well, wanting nothing more than to be closer to both of them. a feeling you hadn’t been able to soak in for months. 

“when i asked you to go wait in the car,” niall explains, looking over at you, “lou said that he didn’t want you to hate him-“

“you think i hate you ?” you interrupt, your face snapping to stare at louis, sadness washing over your features.

“no, it’s not- i don’t-“ louis stutters, because really, he knows you don’t hate him, it’s just he never thought-

“fuck, i don’t hate you louis, i love you,” you blurt out, “why on earth do you think i hate you ? what did i do to make you believe that ?”

louis just stares at you, mouth slightly parted, ears ringing loudly, breath caught in his throat. did he hear that right ? did you just- but niall- niall. fuck. his best friend. louis’ gaze snaps to him, worry and panic etched into his features, still too frozen to process properly and form a coherent sentence.

“what ?” niall asks softly, breathing a laugh, “think i didn’t know that ? she hasn’t exactly been hiding it.”

“but- but how-“ louis groans loudly, looking back at you for a moment before landing his head back into his hands. this was too much, there was too much happening at once and his brain was imploding.

“louis,” you murmur soothingly, tracing his bird tattoo to get his attention, his face lifting from his hands, eyes filled with a desperate need to understand. “do you want to know why niall and i work so well together ?”

he nods, eyes flicking between the both of you, as you turn a bit to face niall better, smile taking over your features, something you couldn’t quite control whenever you looked at the man you loved so much. “we love each other, unconditionally. we don’t get angry with each other, we empathize, sympathize, understand.”

niall smiles back at you, eyes shining with pure adoration, as he adds on, “we don’t keep secrets, we just talk things out, ask questions, be there for each other. it’s done nothing but make us stronger, make our love stronger,” he hums, your forehead coming to rest against his, allowing yourself a small moment to take him in.

louis watches, biting hard on his lip, because this is exactly what he was afraid of. exactly what made him go find a girlfriend in the first place. he was jealous, mother fucking jealous, and he didn’t know how to handle it. still doesn’t. so he gets up, making a quiet exit towards the hall.

“hey,” you look over, “where are you going ?” you ask quickly, shooting up and grabbing at louis’ arm, forcing him to turn around, facing the couch again.

“s’that,” louis sighs, hand waving in the general direction of niall, the couch, and where you just were, sucked into your little world of niall.

“what’s that ?” you ask, leading him back into the living room.

“the two of you, fuck, i- i don’t know. jealousy ?” he murmurs, his shoulders deflating as he talks about it for the first time. “m’never gonna have the connection you two have.”

“christ, louis,” niall shakes his head, “‘course you wont. especially not if you keep running off to find a girlfriend every time. doesn’t happen overnight, gotta build it with us.”

louis sits back down on the coffee table, enjoying the ability to face the both of you while being in close proximity. it seemed to make this whole thing easier, just the fact that you could all feel each other, feed off of everyone’s calm demeanour. “there you go with that us again.”

“d’you honestly think he doesn’t want you here ?” you ask softly, utterly confused, because really, niall wasn’t all that great at hiding the way he’s been feeling about louis. 

“i don’t know what to think,” louis mutters exasperatedly. “up until a matter of hours ago, i just assumed this was all for good sex.”

“daft at reading people, you,” niall sighs, shaking his head. “guess that’s my fault though. i know that about you, should have been more honest from the start.”

“me too,” you nod, agreeing. “we all could have been more honest, i think,” you smile softly. 

“i’ll start,” louis hums, desperate for some clarity, eyes locked on your hand that had fallen onto his knee, fingertips rubbing his inner thigh over his pants. it was easier to keep his gaze down, scared of your facial reactions as he pours his heart out. the idea of empathetic understanding, no matter what, was still a very new concept. one that would take some practice, to gain the confidence, he assumes. “last time we were all together, we shared a moment, you and i,” he explains, eyes flicking to yours before falling back down to your hand. “it fuckin scared the piss outta me,” he breathes a nervous chuckle. 

“why did it scare you ?” you ask quietly, hand squeezing his thigh, as a silent confirmation that he’s safe to speak his mind.

“because i was just going to wind up hurting myself,” louis goes on. “i couldn’t have you the way i wanted you. m’not gonna be your fuckin lap dog,” he chuckles softly, referencing earlier, pulling a little giggle out of you.

“now where’d you go and get an idea like that ?” niall laughs, shaking his head. 

“because she’s your fuckin girlfriend,” louis groans. “christ, i want my best mate’s girlfriend,” he sighs, his head tipping back to look up at the ceiling, because this was really happening. “i want my best mate’s girlfriend,” he repeats, “and i want-“ he cuts himself off, eyes squeezing shut. fuck. this is not what he had planned out for his life. this is not what he expected when you asked him to join the two of you that fateful first time.

“i want you too,” niall fills in, hand reaching to grasp louis’, making him look down to both of you, trying to decipher your faces.

“what’s this mean then ?” louis mutters quietly, a bit too scared to say it loudly, his heart beating wildly in his chest.

“i don’t know,” niall answers honestly. “and we don’t have to figure it all out right now. this was a lot, tonight. but now with our real feelings out in the open, we can think about it clearly. think about what we want. talk about it openly.”

niall, thank fuck for niall, always the level headed one. you truly dont know what you would do without him.

“it’s nice that we’re all on the same page,” you pipe up, smiling at both of them, turning a bit towards louis with a smirk.

“what’s that look for ?” louis laughs, his chest feeling so much lighter all of a sudden. the weight he’d been carrying for months finally vanished.

“well, i’d like to kiss you right now, but, you know, don’t wanna make you a cheater,” you giggle, referencing his little outburst from earlier.

“speaking of which,” niall jumps in, playfully scolding louis, “i hear you’re going around choking our girl in random bathrooms.”

louis presses his fingertips into his eyes, trying to stifle a laugh. our girl. christ, how much he loves hearing that. and it all just seems so ridiculous now. especially with how easy the two of you made this talk. “no fuckin clue what got into me. s’like i just knew it would make her stop. fuck, i really don’t know, my mind was going wild,” he answers niall, as best as he could, before turning to you, “wouldn’t be cheating,” he hums with a smirky smile, “after we left the restaurant, i brought her back home. told her i couldn’t see her anymore.”

you bite your lip, eyes locked on louis’, as you can hear niall’s chuckle in the background, “now why would you go and do a thing like that ?”

louis’ gaze flicks to niall’s, a knowingly playful look in his eyes, “because she wasn’t you two,” he hums, fingertips gliding down your cheek to your chin, then up your jaw to cup your neck, “she was nothing like you,” he murmurs.

“told you,” niall smacks your arm playfully, watching the blinding smile take over your features, slight blush rising to your cheeks.

“careful, m’gonna get an ego,” you joke quietly, your heart beating rapidly, because this was fucking finally happening. 

“you’ve earned it,” louis whispers, his lips coming up to yours, so close, ghosting breath against your skin, “fuck, i love you,” he murmurs before closing his mouth onto the plushness of your bottom lip.

a soft moan works its way from your chest, fingers instantly reaching up to tangle into louis’ hair. louis’ softest hair. fuck you missed him.

louis pulls away, faster than you would have liked, resting his forehead against yours, catching his breath momentarily. it really didn’t take much for you to render him breathless, something he’d almost forgotten.

the tiny whine doesn’t go unnoticed though, feeling the puff of louis’ breathy giggle against your lips, “just have one little thing i want to do before getting too lost in you.”

your eyebrows furrow, pulling away from him just enough to get a good look at his face, slightly confused, because what else could there be ?

but his gaze turns to niall’s, shuffling himself to be a bit closer to him, leaning in for a kiss.

niall takes no time falling into it, feeling louis’ fist tighten itself in his shirt, right over niall’s chest, muttering into the kiss, “i love you too.”

niall nods as a silent form of acknowledgment, a silent me too, their mouths still attached, too busy revelling into each other. niall’s hand comes up to glide through louis’ hair, gripping at the nape of his neck.

louis pulls away a moment later, looking at the both of you, taking this in. a lot had happened tonight. a lot of the weight he’d been feeling, lifted. a lot of the confusion and stress and panic and overflow of thoughts and emotions, just wiped away. and all of a sudden, he’s tired. feels like the moment after a large comforting meal, when you feel full in the best way, wanting nothing more than to get cozy and have a good sleep.

“look tired, tommo,” niall hums, fingertips gliding over the bags under his eyes, hands falling from his face to pat his thigh, “c’mon, lets get some sleep. think we all need it after tonight.”

“i’ll even let you take the middle,” you smile wide, leading them both up to the bedroom. you really wanted to lay down, you hadn’t noticed the toll this had taken on you until your adrenaline dropped, leaving you downright exhausted.

“i’m fuckin honoured,” louis laughs, lunging right in the middle of niall’s bed, shuffling himself comfortably under the blankets. with his eyes closed, he can feel you sliding in on his left, niall on his right. he can feel himself be saturated in calm happiness, giddy for whatever this new situation holds. excited for what he’ll be waking up to with his two favourite people.

Part 5

……

Series Masterlist

Main Masterlist

tags : @cc-horan28 @acesofspadess @slutforcoffein @blondedmgc @daphnesutton

[xxhellonursexx]

A clever detail I noticed!🍸

Daniel comments in his ongoing notes about Louis' household staff that Rashid "makes martini like he's worked at Duke's."

What distinguishes a "Duke's" martini from other martini?

The "Duke's" martini is served in a well-chilled glass prepared with just a thin wash of vermouth, followed by gin that has been kept in the freezer and is so cold that its consistency is almost syrup-like. The peel of a lemon is crushed over the top.

You can see that Rashid has everything needed on his cart.

The result is an EXTREMELY cold, dry, and potent martini, considered by many martini aficianados to be the best. Each martini has the equivalent of 5 shots of alcohol.

This martini was developed by bartender Salvatore Calabrese in response to the nightly complaints of a certain Pulitzer-winning journalist who kept complaining that his martini was never cold or dry enough.

No, it wasn't Daniel Molloy, obviously. It was Stanton Delaplane, who proceeded to write a column praising the Duke's martini and calling it "the best martini in England."

I find it a cute and clever touch that out of all the cocktails that could've been served to Daniel, he was given a martini created because of the nagging of a fellow Pulitzer-winning journalist. 🍸

[horizon-verizon]

Interview with a Vampire: Claudia

I watched this series a long time ago, both season, but I remember that I never expressed my disdain for Claudia-hate.

Some people argue Claudia had no right to be angry at Louis for telling Armand about Lestat...ugh.

While you may be part of a community, I don't think that means that said community has a right to force you to dehumanise yourself or to dehumanise/infantilize you. Or to ignore and dismiss what are very deep core, defining wounds in favor of their own "order". They know she is an adult and a community very much can change or shape itself towards some members' emotional needs as long as there's a unresentful understanding amongst all.

That play, if you notice, is basically describing--metaphorically--Claudia's existence, how others see her, how the coven members can and might abuse her, as well as foreshadowing the end of this story Claudia may have chosen to be a part of a coven, and specifically one in theatre, but she did not ask for infantilization. It's like if you have an insecurity and then tried to find a group to "belong" to, say a church community, but you find out right after you joined that you have to basically hone or perform your insecurity many times a week. For Claudia, that's x50. If you go back to the last episode, in the after credits, the directors and actors reveal that for the vampires, performing's only purpose is for them to be as they are (killing humans for glee, blood, etc.) while in front of the very humans they have to hide from so as to not be hunted or else.

Claudia has another layer of tragedy--her being a vampire adult stuck in an immortal body. And she has been forced into posing as a child for all of her vampire life, AND she has never been a human adult. While every other vampire she has met has at least experienced--even if they don't remember--what being a human adult was like and have carried whatever makes one "adult"/become physically "mature". Claudia is arrested in childhood not just physically of body but partially of mind, as you said. She has been trying to understand what it means to be a vampire and to be a realized vampire all this time, which is why she was so single-minded in finding other vampires--to find any frame of reference as well a a community that knows and appreciates their own vampire "self". So she could then find what she can be without it always going back to her entrapped state. Who is she, what is she? The girl who has never been "fully" mature? Who has only known adult" life as a vampire but is trapped with the form of the human self she no longer has any real attachment to? She quite literally doesn't have much clue what it's like being a more comparatively complex "human" (kids are still people, still complex, and have good cognitive skills) and has had no mental grasp or sensory experience of "humanness" to actively use when defining-measuring her own actions and self. Or others'. Other than the memories of an abusive aunt and a father who neglected her that are diluted to its most potent foundation of fear that obviously she nor others would want to dwell on, thereby making her even more focused on being a "vampire". There is quite literally nothing like the "leftover" shame Louis has from his mortal life in her, nor something else in the same "family" in potency.

Therefore she has no real interest or feeling of proximity or stake in understanding humanity nor her own proximity to the possible meanings of "humanity"--which explains her lack of patience or care or empathy for humans. She has nothing else but vampirism. So yes, there are more sticky, overlapping motivations for her "demanding" is not strictly the same sort of demanding as the kind of a child's natural forwardness, curiosity, & self-centeredness. Rather, this is a separate, related, and mutually informing phenomenon to how she is partially always a child with impulsive, demanding self-concern of a teen/child.

No one else has this sort of condition, even if they are also trapped in some ways and by their own actions. Only for her to be forced into playing a child in front of the very mortals she and the others do not think of as actual people. It is also like they are excluding her from their own process of self-actualization of vampirism, even inadvertedly. The effect is cruel and unnecessary. She can play a little person, or Armand can do as she asks and relegate her to the back, but he specifically states how he wont' bec "he said so", she should be "grateful", and that they are making a lot of money. As if that is actually why they perform in the first place. So, it's also form of exploitation. In a way, the coven is "feeding" off of her or she is going through special "punishment" before Armand actually punishes her. Child star, anyone? It's also interesting, considering how she is a walking violation of their laws, how they already show that they hate when their precious rules are broken, and how they resent Armand for making Louis just walk around breaking rules...she likely will/would have always been an outlier--socially--in the community she looked for all her life. So, they could also be said to take pleasure in her de-personing similarly to how they take joy/self affirmation when they kill humans onstage--"look at how we enforce our own laws, watch us punish this girl and watch as how we mock 'innocence', how opposed we are to the very concept." And they literally sucked the joy of performing from Claudia by trapping her in the performance she wanted to use to "free" herself--a thing she would have loved and thrived in, used to destroy her.

Claudia is in the most danger if the coven finds out abt Lestat, since Louis is at least in Armand's favor by having slept with him/Armand being in love w/him. And she is physically weaker, smaller as well as a literal "abomination". Louis using the reason of "you were unhappy" is simply not enough in the face of this danger mostly stacked against her, so his superior motivation is that he wanted to keep close to Armand. He had a whole year, mind you, to tell her Armand knows. S2Claudia is not the girl who kept secret the bodies of people she indiscriminately killed after her breakdown last season, which itself again was, as self-destructive and messy for not just her but Louis and Lestat, was a mental breakdown from THEIR actions in turning her as she is now that lead to her killing her first crush/how Lestat handled that. Yes, she needed to know her actions' consequences; however, with Lestat & Louis having not actually not engaging with her as a person but more an accessory-child so they could properly discipline her teenage-child stage, that was also most of their own doing. They needed to connect the consequences of their own actions to their actions that have lead them all to that point--w/o them, Claudia wouldn't have had to live as she did, and that will never change or not matter or not define why she does what she does! (btw, the first crush kill has its own plethora of meaning: it is when Claudia first really comes to realize that she is too dangerous to even that who she could love/value [like a child who's finally broken a much-loved thing what it did not fully internalize was the same as all the other things they did not "love"]).

Having read the book, this TV iteration Armand is not at all interested in really incorporating Claudia into the coven on her own merit, but just to keep Louis around, so he tolerates her emotions and psychological state even less. In fact, it works toward his benefit, bc it isolates her from Louis. I think it's good to remember that these people/vamps are not really trying to act in good faith to each other and might=right is what they really respond to unless they actually like you. Which isn't often.

Then there are those who question why Claudia is so fascinated and comes to trust Madeliene. And vice versa.

Claudia is fascinated by Madeline bc Madeline is a woman who really lives in her womanhood with no trace of self victimization or apologizing for it. Madeline actively listens to her, to her pain, Claudia is the interested in her own. Madeline is not distracted or putting anyone else above Claudia and is interested in what she has to say. It began with Claudia seeing how isolated the woman was in the other episode, how people tried to "warn" her away from her, and defying that boundary to see for herself what made this woman so ostracized. Like a teenager who doesn't like being told what to do (like Lestat), but also bc she had already desired to see herself in a dress that the woman was making that she wanted to use to see herself as she thinks of herself--a woman. You can compare it to how a trans person will wear clothes they/we see as "feminine" or "masculine" to identify and see their denied inner selves outwards. And the guy telling her not to enter likely re-reminded her of her limitations & childness. Also, Claudia cannot talk to other vampires both bc they are not interested and she would have to divulge information that could get her killed. Which makes Louis' telling Armand all the more enraging for her bc it's not just his secret but hers, she has been keeping the end of the silent deal they have to do so, and he never told her he was thinking of telling anyone--much less the vampire who could destroy them both consequently. In fact, Claudia is so much alike to Lestat. It is true that Claudia is trying to go back to Louis with how the coven is doing what they are doing, but she is very valid in that considering all the above and how we still expect our loved ones to have space for us when we see that the space we found with others is actually not conducive to our happiness or safety or mental stability--as the coven has proven to be and she instinctively knows but is clinging onto she has also felt Louis to be so unhappy even before they arrived at Paris (remember how he talked about wanting to go back home, how she was incessant in her search as if he resented her for the constant movement). In fact, it can be literally be life saving.

No, Madeliene is not a pedo nor does she only love or is attracted to Claudia bc she reminds her of her younger sister who she lost and their relationship re-fulfills a lonely failed-protector need in her. Just because you may not like her or understand why she has any appeal to anyone in the series or in real life, doesn't mean she has none nor that there isn't real meaning people get from her character.

Madeleine loves her, is loyal to her, and wants to be her vampire companion in any way--platonically or romantically--bec Claudia similarly rejects nothing about her when quite literally most people in Madeline's life has rejected-abused her or has died. Gender and sexism is a huge part of that; we see how Mad is dragged to the public and had her hair shaved in a public shaming for sleeping with the Nazi guy, and no I don't think sleeping with a Nazi soldier is morally unquestionable (at best), but the crowd's fury was not at her seeming inhumaness but them deciding to re-enforce a control over the female body. think Cersei's walk of shame, how that was clearly not about her murdering people but punishing her sexual decisions culturally denied to women. Would we really have seen a mal townsman be similarly shamed in public if he had slept with a Nazi lady spy or office worker, or the wife of a Nazi officer? A female Nazi officer?

Madeliene loves Claudia because despite all that Claudia has been through and still goes through, she is defiant and relatively easygoing (if people leave her be) and is as defiant as she is. She loves her strength and humor; is impressed by how Claudia is herself and relatively steady in her convictions to be herself. This inspires not just admiration but a faith that Claudia has an emotional steadfastness to be a "permanent" fixture in her life when change in Mad's life has mostly always been negative AND constant. Claudia is both intriguing, never boring, as well as immortal. Which goes back to why the book Mad wanted to be changed and be bk!Claudia's eternal companion--having lost her daughter and having lived her life forever haunted by the regret, she saw Claudia as a self restoration. With show Mad, she's also eager to leave behind human life not just for her lost sister but everything else on top of that. Where she would not have to be beholden to tragedy and have the vampire beauty and strength to be her "optimal" self. Humanity offered her nothing but pain and with the war, and thus far into her life as a dressmaker, she didn't seem to feel there was hope for an actually satisfying life...and without Claudia saving her from being raped, she def would have had an even worse life.

And she likes/is grateful for that Claudia is not put off by her own weirdness; Madeline is weird, she invited a vampire to suck her blood without really knowing beforehand what could happen to her aside from Claudia perhaps losing control and killing her accidentally. (No, I don't include her being dismissive and flippant with Armand when he was questioning her abt her readiness to become a vampire. One, she might have learned from Claudia abt his treatment of her and we already know that she puts Claudia before literally everyone else. Two, Armand may have been sincere in his desire to assess her and impart vampirism's bleakness, but he also was very clearly trying to intimidate her and it is very clear Madeline is not a person to take such things for long & unchallenged...she was nearly raped for it before. She's quite literally the definition of protecting any shred of dignity & happiness over he very life, she's just very...hard as reflective of her "dead" and disillusioned era. We have to remember that this is a time where people are coming back from a terrible world war and brought out the very worst in people--survivors aren't going to majorly be exactly pleasant to be around nor emotionally accommodating but challenge people to assess worth of personal investment.) If you really think abouu Claudia as a person instead of as an attachment or "obstacle" to LouisxLestat or some sort of "child", it's really not difficult at all why anyone could admire her. She could have folded at any time but she pushes on.

They match each other's "freak" AND sense of survivorship, basically.

Was it at first a little strange that she took an interest in Claudia before she ever saw her as a vampire or knew of her nature since Claudia is supposed to look like a teenager? And is Claudia's trappedness as adult-in-body define much of the material that developed into those traits I described? Yeah. But she's hardly a pedo if she has proven herself to see Claudia as an actual woman and treated her like she was one as if she instinctually knew she was (which is what I think happened)...unlike book Marius' weird attraction for kids.

[artbyblastweave]

Have you got any opinions of Left 4 Dead 1/2's cast of survivors?

One thing I've been thinking about a lot lately is when a work of apocalyptic fiction treats the end of the world as a site for personal reinvention. On the one hand it's potent theming, because the questions of how you choose to behave when utterly freed from existing societal constraints, and how you reconstruct your sense of identity after total context collapse, are sort of inherently packaged in with the premise. On the other hand you're kind of playing with fire, because if you treat the apocalypse as something primarily liberatory or empowering for the protagonists I personally often find it offputting. Congratulations! Your personal growth was purchased at the low low price of the death of billions! You can get away with that kind of thing if you take it in a lighter direction and maintain, like, a deliberately mock-misanthropic tone, or play up the inherent comedy of a person whose life sucks so much that the apocalypse represents a step up- but it's a knifes-edge to walk. I've found that a satisfying synthesis is examine that act of personal reinvention as a coping mechanism, a story that the person doing it is telling about themselves in order to deal with the horror of their surroundings. Zone One by Coulson Whitehead and Rot and Ruin by Jonathan Maberry are pieces of zombie fiction that I think use this lens in an interesting way. I believe that Left 4 Dead is close-to-unique among Valve properties in that they actually released a close-to-standalone self-contained narrative starring game's the principal cast, in the form of The Sacrifice*, and I feel like the comic explored this dynamic in interesting ways, because the four survivors exist on a distribution between "Apocalypse-as-New-Lease-On-Life" and "Turbofucked," in ways that pointedly affect their behavior and outlook.

Louis, the eternal optimist, Certified Gamer, still clad in white-collar garb two weeks into the apocalypse, is revealed to have been the one of the four who had the most going for him before the outbreak, a middle-class job with a well-defined upwards trajectory. His dogged insistence that things will eventually be okay is implicitly informed by how badly his life got upended by all his coworkers going nuts and trying to eat him. On the flip side, though, the comic portrays him as having had the fewest actual interpersonal connections- the only person he interacts with in his flashback is his coworker Ray, and that interaction is defined by how Ray is nowhere near ride-or-die enough for Louis to risk coming into the office at his request. He barely registers that the guy in the bathroom who attacks him is a zombie. Make of this what you will.

Zoey was a step down on the ratchet-she was floundering, but it was a comfortable flounder that's likely familiar to a lot of us. Struggling in college, no direction in life, a would-be creative struggling to turn her interest in fiction into an actual career. Parents separated and at each other's throats- but she had parents, had support, had options even as she was treading water. The apocalypse is superficially her call to adventure, letting her live out the fiction she immersed herself in before the outbreak, and you see glimmers of bravado stemming from that- but that same genre immersion is directly tied to her decision to put down her father before his immunity was apparent, because they thought that they were living out a trope that they aren't. She embodies the gap between the nerdy apocalypse fantasy and the horror of actually living through that.

On the other end of things you have Francis, who's downright gleefully cynical about the apocalypse- marrying the assertation that they're all going to die, and that nothing will ever be okay again, with the claim that the apocalypse as the best thing that ever happened to him. Before the outbreak Francis had a strong social circle but was also slated for prison; the apocalypse eliminated the immediate threat of jail, but his pre-outbreak social circle very pointedly isn't around anymore, in a way he's kind of talking circles around when he brings it up with Zoey; he mainly brings them up in the context of contrasting them with how competent Bill is at navigating the apocalypse, and you can infer that his initial attempt to treat the end of the world like an opportunity for a party didn't turn out so hot. He very badly wants to be the guy who had nothing to lose, the guy who's having a blast, he wants to inhabit that role, but there's an undercurrent of performativity there.

Then you get to Bill, who genuinely had nothing, in a way that inform his post-outbreak behavior in really interesting ways. He had no friends, no family, no purpose, and he wasn't in particularly good health. The apocalypse is, in many ways, straightforwardly a step up from his previous situation, in ways that isn't true of any of the others- now he has friends, a goal, a reason to keep moving. The Sacrifice is interested in how that affects his decision making, for better or for worse- he's myopic, invested in the well-being of an extremely tight in-group at the expense of others, monomaniacally good at fighting the infected in a way that even the other survivors find somewhat unnerving. There's a sense in which the brave new world is Bill-shaped. Admittedly the brave new world killed him dead. But it killed him dead in a significantly more badass way than he otherwise would have died, and on some level that was probably his preference. (I don't really go to Dead By Daylight, but I'm tickled pink by their implication that getting to do asymmetric survival horror multiplayer forever is sort of like a Valhalla situation for him.)

[coarsely]

OC cuddle scale tag

Rules: Rate your OCs based on how they handle cuddling/being cuddled on a scale of 0-10

Many thanks to @noblebs for tagging me! This thing looks so cute and fun I absolutely have to participate! I have a lot of OCs so we might be here for a while but it's a very fun exercise to go through.

Saccade: 6/10

She's got biceps like cantaloupes, and is pretty tall, so you'd think she'd be great at it but she's pretty hesitant around touch for the most part, and so usually is pretty tense and awkward. She prefers to give people a handshake or a slap on the back rather than hugging them, and that hesitation comes through.

Vítor Cadogan: 2/10

You'd think a man whose occupation is looking after emotionally damaged children would be well used to giving hugs, but nope! He tends to leave that side of things to Apricity, preferring to be more of a steadfast emotionally dependent rock as opposed to a warm, nurturing personality. He's extremely awkward about it, and he's rather lanky physically, and isn't big on touch as a rule, so the whole thing doesn't suit him.

Ucalegon: 6/10

She's very sinewy, very thin, lots of bones and edges and hard muscle. Despite this, she does put her all into it, and often rocks the people she hugs gently in her arms. She doesn't much like being hugged, but doesn't mind hugging her friends and loved ones, of which there are many. She's also pretty strong and could lift most people, if you're into that.

Cerebellum: 8/10

Muscular, a little on the boney side but he makes it up with sheer enthusiasm. A hug from Cerebellum gets you lifted in the air and twirled around in excitement. He likes to hug his friends! But it can be a bit overwhelming for people not into that, alas.

Diomede: 5/10

He's bonier and thinner than he used to be these days, and is a lot more touch-starved than he ever was with the Vagor. So very hesitant and awkward for the most part, up until his desperation for human contact hits and then he's extremely clingy until you let go.

Hendrix: 2/10

Hendrix is thin, bony, very angular, slightly wet and cold, and has a number of very hard shell growths all over his body that can and do dig into the skin. The only reason why he's not 0/10 is because he does properly try to give you a bear hug if you ask (he's not large enough to really make it work but it's the thought that counts) and he's just about tall enough for most people to snuggle in nicely, it's just that you're snuggling into what feels like rocks.

Imperator V: 9/10

V is a gentle giant in every sense of the word (except for all the murders). He's very large, both muscular and with a healthy layer of fat on him, and while he is somewhat starved for real gentle human contact he's not socially aware enough to feel awkward about it when it is initiated. If you get his shirt off him, he's also pretty hairy. He'd make a great human blanket, if you asked. One mark deducted for the very real risk that you might get blood stains on you from hugging him. On account of all the murders.

Imperator III: 0/10

Sorry babe the armour that singes the flesh of the sinners and nonbelievers of the Empyrean's doctrine stays on during hugs.

Ed Edwards: 8/10

The man is over 7 feet all, and is a former boxer who has put on a lot of healthy weight in his sporting retirement. He is also, despite his bitter attitude and constant pissed off attitude, is someone who does quite like physical contact. He is touch starved also, which I'm coming to realise is pretty standard in this project, especially Bronze Eden. What intense cultural puritanism and Catholicism does to a motherfucker I guess. Anyway points deducted because he still doesn't quite know his own strength and will squeeze you a little too hard.

Sal Solomon: 1/10

Like hugging an unwashed porcupine.

Sylvester Praeceptor: 5/10

Probably the only person on this list that gets hugged somewhat regularly, by his favourite sibling and proverbial twin Jules. However he's not really big on physical contact outside of that, and rarely lingers in someone's embrace. He's fairly tall but quite thin, although his shoulders which are deceptively broad are probably nice to rest your head against if you want. All in all, fairly middle of the road hugger.

Potentate Magnus: 1/10

He's an emaciated 105 year old man with a very literal God complex. He doesn't hug and if he did it would be like hugging a skin-clad skeleton who actively thinks you are lesser than him. Also wouldn't take off his mask so you'd get stabbed by his horns.

Potentate Augustus: 1/10

He would think you were attacking him and would have a heart attack and die.

Potentate Boris: 6/10

Quite warm, very gentle and pleasant, but points deducted because he would start crying and make it awkward for everyone.

Potentate Salvatore: 7/10

He's more of a kiss on the cheek guy rather than a hug guy but he can and will do it, and is fairly warm and cozy, probably the most normal Potentate to hug. I wouldn't linger though, he gets creepy if you stay around him for too long.

Potentate Felipe: 0/10

Would get a stiffy, potentially cream his pants. Bad idea for everyone involved.

Potentate Clymene: 10/10

Warm, soft, smaller than you but properly wraps her arms around you and all around is a very comforting person to hug. Smells nice too, on account on all the floral perfumes she uses. And she won't tell you off for having bad manners for wanting a hug as others might do.

Potentate Zephyr: 3/10

Clymene took all the good hugging genes 😔 he is tall, lanky, and usually is awkward, tense and uncomfortable, but is much more open and warm around Clymene, who is the main person he's hugging. Again, they're probably the only siblings in this miserable family who genuinely like each other.

Potentate Louis: 2/10

Like his uncle Zephyr, he is awkward, tense and uncomfortable, and has the same lankiness Zephyr has (although isn't as tall). He is also chronically touch starved, but will snuggle nicely given the opportunity. Unfortunately you might get hair gel on you, nothing we can do about that.

Sorry for writing so much, games like this really make me realise how many characters I have in this current project 😅 I'm tagging @woundlight, @chauceryfairytales, @dyrewrites, @albatris, @solipseismic and as always anyone else who wants to give this a shot! It was a really cute and fun thing to do!

[ourpleprose]

One of my favorite scenes from iwtv the book has always been Louis and the painter. Anne isn’t even trying to be subtle about writing Louis with Oscar Wilde in mind. It’s also giving such potent ’WHY COULDN’T SATAN HAVE MADE ME LESS BEAUTIFUL’ vibes I love it

[prescitia]

@masteredinstinct from here

Your wings look fine to me is a cut too fine to bleed, the pain of it delayed but no less potent. His throat convulses around it, swallowing the ache until it becomes a facsimile of bearable.

His beloved Louis...always quick with the knife and slow with the kiss of apology; which comes in the grace of his perfect lips upturned. Teasing. It does its job and the ache is but a memory at sea in the fluttering of his heart. The power he holds, without ever having to lift a finger...

Even the banal seems an angelic performance. The caress of a book's spine, the turn of a page, the cradle of the heft of it held as feather light. It is the only use the shelves have served, the most acclaimed of minds lining dustless ledges his beloved sorts through each night. If that is what gives him passion then Lestat De Lioncourt will suffer his envy of them.

Ever short lived, his moments of bliss. Always the maddening turbulence craved at the point of fang. Ready to bleed him for his misdeeds. It quickens the beating of his undead heart, shines hope in the blackened pit of resignation hollowing sterling eyes.

Yes, fight Louis. These unceasing nights of forced comradery are far more draining than ones spent in seething animosity. The fine line dividing love and hatred never so thin as with Louis de Pointe Du Lac.

"I miss only what I love." An agonizing distance between them, the oppressive desire rising from the ashes of a smoldering fire, Lestat leans on the bend of his knees. Hands fold together to hold each other the way he longs to hold the ones fascinated by books.

"I miss you."

[greenvincentine]

“The astral light is projected by glance, by voice, and by the thumb and palm of the hand. Music is a potent auxiliary of the voice, and hence comes the word 'enchantment.'”

from  Transcendental Magic:  Its Doctrine and Ritual   Alphonse Louis Constant

[ellistheelephant]

Still thinking about Louis going to the barricade and fans being oh-so-gentle with him. One of the things that I find so interesting about this moment is that the predominant view of young female fanbases is that they are an uncontrollable crazy mob. And Louis has certainly had lots of experiences in his life that could reinforce that view, but it really seems it hasn’t for him. He trusts that he can remind his fans to be gentle with his broken arm, and that they will honor that trust and actually be careful. What gets me is that it’s true, fans DID listen to him, they WERE gentle and chill in a situation that is pretty intense. As someone in the fandom it can be easy sometimes to see all the negative sides of fandom. But sometimes young women need to be told they are alright, actually they are brilliant.

I’m still so fascinated by the relationship between Louis and fans. I think there’s a lot going on between fans intensely identifying with him, largely being queer women, thinking he’s gay, and Louis emphasizing the connection he has with fans. It’s all a very potent mix.

[morgianesffs-blog]

Vampire Theory. The possibility of multiple Makers.

This theory was inspired by a scene (see above gif) from AMC's IWTV S02E06, and therefore mostly applies to Anne Rice's literary universe, but can be considered for any and all other vampiric variations.

Watching that scene made me wonder something. Across almost all stories (written or cinematic) the process of creating a new vampire is the same.

Find a human.

Bite and drain specified human of almost all their blood.

Replace the humans blood with vampiric blood.

Wait for human body to die, and transform into vampiric body.

Now there is some variations across all the different strains of vampires, but that is generally the recipe.

Now here is my thought. Typically this is a 1 on 1 interaction, between 1 human, and 1 vampire, leading to 1 maker and 1 fledgling. Both because of its romantic connotations, and because vampires are predatory and not inclined to share.

But, and here is my theory...

Is there actually a rule, or biological inhibitor preventing a fledgling from having multiple makers? Or given a vampires predatory / territorial nature does it just never happen so no one has thought about it before?

In this specific example both Louis and Claudia share the same maker, so their blood is technically the same blood anyway (a point they make in the show). It doesn't happen in the show, but if Claudia gave Madeleine some of her blood at the same time is Louis gave her his blood, would Madeleine have multiple makers?

Would it still be just Louis because he is older and therefore maybe his blood is more potent.

Or would the human body reject both the bloods outright, and instead of turning would they simply die?

What about multiple vampires who had different makers attempting to turn a singular human. I'll use Louis and Armand because they are companions (even though I know Armand in the AMC show doesn't want to turn anyone).

Would it work with different blood types?

Would one over power the others blood?

Or would it fail entirely and result in permanent death instead of Undeath?

Now, again, this theory is inspired by Anne Rice's / AMC's Vampires, but could be applied to any variety of vampires, and I want it to be.

I want to hear peoples thoughts or opinions across a variety of universes, if only for a theoretical exercise. But if it inspires anyone to write something similar, take it and run with it, you have my permission.

[puntointerrogativo]

The show that’s all about an interview - the sharing of the most painful and private details of all their lives - deciding to grant a reprieve, to lay a veil of silence over Claudia and Madeleine’s dying words and Louis and Lestat’s reunion is such a potent choice.