* / 𝐇𝐀𝐌𝐋𝐄𝐓

milo ;; oh ?? how so? milo ;; when was your last relationship? i guess you can include any sort of relationship in that department bc sometimes my relationships only are a couple of days n stuff milo ;; oh yeah he was such a champ he did his best but i think my mama threw the rest away when i wasnt looking  milo ;; yes !! i forgot, yes, that’s also a secret! i guess i sort of spoiled it by talking to julian abt it but i’ve tried my best to keep my mouth shut from then onwards  milo ;; wow you have a lot of friends in the society  milo ;; leah isn’t exactly fond of me so the fact that i had a conversation with her that didnt end with me crying was pretty monumental  milo ;; duchess of york ?? like fergie ??  milo ;; i like poppy :)) she’s in our initiates chat and she’s always so well spoken and stuff but rly down to earth i think !

milo ;; i don’t think i have either! but i think you’re WAY WAY more high profile than i am so i doubt they care abt me haha milo ;; we can always just hold hands if you’re more comfortable w that milo ;; or cheek kisses :)) milo ;; you like to cook ???? oh my god that’s awesome !! milo ;; i always try but i’m just HORRIBLE at it. maybe you can teach me when you have the time, i’d really really love that ! i think i cut my dad’s lip once with a pancake i made for father’s day bc it had a sharp eggshell in it milo ;; don’t worry, your secret’s safe with me ! ohh, we have our first secret as a couple, that’s rly exciting  milo ;; well.. a fake couple. real couple ?? a couple.  milo ;; i mentioned you to my friend julian, btw. well, he comforted me last night so he knows, but he’s smart and kind and would never expose anything for the sake of exposing. he’s married to napoleone who’s a member, do you know him ?? milo ;; from what i’ve asked of others, everyone’s been singing praises. the president, the girl who outbid me for poppy flowers, everybody !

“Sadly” Esmeralda sighed, wouldn’t it be nice to suddenly not be so ambitious? To not care what the world says or expects from you? Esmeralda doubted she’d ever know what that feels like. “Awww you are too cute you know that?” she cooed, of course she knew was welcome to stay but she would never force him to put up with her. Even she knew she could be a little too much sometimes. “Sounds like a challenge Et”

étienne gave her a pointed look, and took a bemused sip from his glass. “cute is a word very few people use, esme.” he drawled, deliberately self-effacing. “i’ve put up with you all these years, what do you expect to pull out of your pocket now that could possibly irritate me?” a dark, perfectly sculpted brow shot up. “i think we’ve uncovered all very few flaws in each other’s  personalities by now. my terrible taste in men, and your inability to sit still, par exemple.” a smug smile came to his lips.

milo ;; ofc not !!  your head completes your entire look and you’re too handsome to disassemble! milo ;; oh it’s not what i WISH wish i just dont know what else they’d like us to do, but dates are usually p fun so we can get to know each other ! milo ;; i mean.. unless you don’t want to get to know me more than the stupid stuff i said the other night  milo ;; sounds good ! we won’t go the arranged route and we’ll make it convincing that we’ve been together for at least a few months now .. or should we pretend to start the relationship now & get engaged later later, like months later ? milo ;; but that means we should kiss n stuff in public, are you comfortable with that ?? milo ;; oh :( milo ;; well.. we can do other stuff together too ig  milo ;; what are your hobbies ? i’m sure we have something in common

with @invxgue​ post-auction

he catches a familiar face just as everything is winding down from the results of the auction. he’s still stewing in whatever remnants of anger and disappointment at how everything has come to be, but he reckons it will pass soon enough; and now, he has someone he can at least talk to, conversation always the best and easiest option for taking his mind off of things. there’s been very many years ever since their last le rosey days, and truth be told napoleone has never really strived to keep up with étienne despite their shared status as members of the society; but he supposes now is at least the best time to make amends for that particular lapse in judgement.

❛  étienne,  ❜  he greets, nodding at his old schoolmate as he approaches, champagne flute in hand. he’s been indulging himself, partly to swallow down the anger that’s bubbling in his chest and threatening to rise in his throat any moment now but also partly because he feels like he genuinely deserves it.  ❛  it’s been too long, my friend,  ❜  he says, though perhaps that title wouldn’t exactly be welcome now considering their… distance.  ❛  how have you been ?  how have the years treated you ?  ❜

his recent absence from society proceedings had come at the expense of the connections he had made within it, and before he’d ever taken up the moniker of hamlet. his school years at le rosey felt like another life altogether, one where the world had been at his fingertips and the future looked bright. he was watching the auction from a table he was sharing with esmeralda, tucked near enough to the back of the room that he could watch and not necessarily participate, nursing a glass of red wine - french, of course - and an incoming headache. 

“napoleone — far too long.” he greeted, with the most genuine smile he could muster. “not nearly as good as they seem to have treated you  — i believe i just saw your husband up there, no?” if étienne had been an envious man he might have felt some jealousy for napoleone’s great success on the political field and the handsome, accomplished husband he’d just seen being bid for (though the fact the italian had not won had not escaped ét’s notice). but he was not a man of envy, and despite his unwillingness to show it too outwardly, he was nothing but happy for his old friend. “i can’t go anywhere without seeing your face in the news, monsieur premier ministre.” he joked. “though we always knew you’d be among le rosey’s most famed alumni, didn’t we?”

milo ;; there have been a history of arranged marriages, maybe we can look at those ? milo ;; i hope ours doesnt end in a beheading tho :))) milo ;; don’t worry, if it’s optimism you’re lacking i’ll just b extra optimistic and give you some milo ;; oh  milo ;; well then that’s easy! it’s just a big party, that’s p much all rich people do milo ;; do we have to get engaged publicly too?? milo ;; bc it’s not supposed to seem arranged, right ? i think that’s what mama said. maybe we should go on a few dates too milo ;; n stuff milo ;; i mean i bet it’s better to have a quick engagement after supposedly falling head over heels than an arranged marriage. the tabloids may be less mean abt it milo ;; when we’re married we can watch all the tv (if u have extra time ofc) i’ll get you invested in the real housewives drama ! love island is always so good

POINT COUNT ( 10 may - 16 may ) claiming ( 46 ) points for ÉTIENNE DE POLIGNAC.

point breakdown : replies:  ( 13 ) x ( 1 point ) = 13 points. intro: ( 1 ) x ( 15 points ) = 15 points. task: ( 1 ) x ( 10 points ) = 10 points. development: ( 1 ) x ( 5 points ) = 5 points. filling of a wanted connection: ( 1 ) x ( 3 points ) = 3 points.  previous total: n/a. total : ( 46 ) points.

Alessandra was outside the Louvre, a cigarette dangling from her hands as her other hand was occupied with her phone. Hank wasn’t able to make it to the auction, so she was updating him of its events. She had noticed, at some point, across the street was an old friend and one of their fledgling initiates. Their conversation seemed heavy, and so she didn’t interrupt, but she did watch with curiosity as the younger man seemed to flee back into the Louvre, away from Étienne as quickly as seemingly possible. An eyebrow lifted, she crushed her spent cigarette into a pocket ashtray and headed for the Editor. “Étienne, darling,” she greeted, pressing a customary kiss to his cheek, amusement painted all over her expression. “Not that I’ve never had an initiate running away from me in tears, but what did you say to that poor boy?”

he had never been a man overly concerned with the way his words made other people feel, but as he watched milo baptiste walk away from him all but in tears, étienne felt distinctly unsettled. the last thing he wanted right now was company, but as footsteps approached and he turned to see alessandra, he relaxed a little. “alessandra. you’re a sight for sore eyes.” he kissed her cheek in greeting, and retrieved a cigarette from his silk-lined pocket. étienne rarely smoked, but it was one of his vices in moments of stress. he’d anticipated this, knowing the baptistes would be here, by making sure he had a cigarette and a lighter in his suit jacket, which he lit as he spoke to his old friend. “nothing that didn’t need to be said. nothing i should have said, honestly.” he ran the heel of his hand over his eyes wearily. “i’d begin to explain the situation, but likely you wouldn’t believe me, bien-aimée." a quiet, bitter laugh ripped out of him with the first puff of smoke. 

“Probably not as often as it should” Esmeralda commented, “I figured you wouldn’t complain but I can think of an handful of people that might. My agent for example and moving the label sounds like a too much of a chore to even bother.” And moving Emerald Records from the UK would ruin any chance she even had of knocking her father off the top spot. “I’ll just have to buy a pretty apartment here and visit often. Whine about the English weather every time I’m here and spend days annoying you. Sounds like fun doesn’t it?”

“sounds like a dream. too good to be true though.” he spared her a rare smile, small though it was. they had their lives to live, their successes to front - ambition left no room for whims. “no need for an apartment - you know the door is always open for you at mine.” his house was large, and perfectly decorated, and empty most of the time. well, at least it was for now, until the poor baptiste boy inevitably moved in and co-haunted the halls. “you’ve never annoyed me, esme. though i suppose we shall be putting that to the test if you do ever come to stay.” he said with a wry smile, taking a slow sip of his drink and letting his eye slip over the other attendants of the gala idly. 

milo;; why are you losing your words? milo;; i understand that and that’s okay !! it makes perfect sense. i have to admit that i did lie to you milo;; i wanna be like you and see this sort of like a business deal, but you said we both wont be particularly happy. i simply can’t not be happy, so i will try my best to still find joy with you milo;; and it’s okay if you arent ! but i hope i can somehow make you happy too and ofc if i’m annoying you can always tell me because then i will shut up  milo;; that is what made me so sad yesterday. i cannot think of how i can live without happiness milo;; but i want to see it through too  milo;; so are we supposed to get married and like have sex in front of ppl so everything knows its legit or