g h o s t l i g h t s.

( NADIA HILKER, 254, SHE/HER ) We opened the gates to the seelie court for GENEVIEVE LENOIR and we are curious to see how the VAMPIRE, that is often described as the tempest, will contribute to the new era ━ are they the hunter, or are they the prey? We will find our answers in due time and until then, we hope that they can keep their little secret from getting exposed. It could be dangerous if everyone knew what we know…

____

“I don’t know,” he said, grinning. “One hundred? One hundred and fifty? Compared to you, I feel like a five year old boy.”

“Don’t worry about that,” he said. That girl looked like she was still in college. “Let someone else be the one to corrupt her mind. I’m too old for that now, as strange as that sounds to you. There’s more I want from life–” Afterlife, if that were more appropriate. “–than to be something of a young girl’s fantasy. I don’t much liked being a Prince Charming.”

Or perhaps I do, but not for a young woman like that. “Life is too delightfully dark for that.”

David listened intently, his childish grin fading into something more appropriate – and more empathetic. He now felt twelve rather than five. “Transient things can still be profound, I find. Like…” he sighed, thinking. “Music. A song can last a few minutes, perhaps less, and yet there’s a passion that stirs within you, isn’t there?”

“In all honesty,” he sat down beside her. “What was your human life like, if you still remember it?”

his guess garnered a laugh. ❛ that’s because you are. i’m two hundred and fifty-three— ❜ she paused, brow furrowing. ❛ —no, fifty-four. you lose track when you stop celebrating birthdays. ❜  

the way he spoke of wanting more, of achieving some greater purpose held her interest. she had been the opposite, deciding to wreak as much havoc as she could to repay a universe that had turned her into a monster. ❛ tell me, what is it that you want from your death? ❜ that was what it was, she’d decided. it made it easier to stomach how much she had changed since her existence as a human ended.

genevieve hummed her agreement, not having considered things that way. “that is true. ❜ she wondered how many of those ‘meaningless’ encounters she’d had over the centuries ended up meaning more than intended.

❛ i don’t remember much, and what i do has become fragmented. i had a brother, félix. ❜ she spoke the name with reverence. ❛ we lived in a village in bresse, what you would know as the bourgogne-franche-comté. the era wasn’t as romantic as the movies would like it to seem, but it was peaceful. simple. my mother was a midwife and i would help where i could. ❜

her gaze flicked to her boots, weight shifting uneasily. ❛ i wanted to be a doctor.” then, as quickly as the moment came it was replaced by a bitter laugh. ❛ fat chance of that happening now. ❜

VALA SHAKES HER HEAD , “ i’d be a terrible motivational speaker . i make an effort for you . i’d probably tell some unsuspecting stranger to burn the whole world down . ” she giggles . she nods along with gen’s words . it is probably better to put it off on the children . and she does look forward to seeing what cosimo’s children and mia do with the world they’re given . “ they’re probably due for a brighter future anyways , ” vala says . vala’s existence hasn’t exactly been spent doing good , anyways . “ that is valid … i think i would not be a good person to have the future be depending on . the whole world will burn down . ” 

gen shrugs, ❛ maybe it could use a little torching. ❜ but then again, that’s her penchant for fire talking. it’s hard to tell, though, if she would relish the chaos as willingly now. now that consequences applied to her, that she cared enough for them to matter. ❛ an interesting world that would be. i can picture it, you flying past on clouds of your own smoke. maybe then they would finally turn the lights off. ❜ she nods to the skyline. ❛ call it a global bonfire. ❜

____

“I take it you were around during the American Prohibition?” A crack at her age, though it would hardly mean much, considering the… well, considerable lifespan of some. Finding a vampire younger than he was somewhat of a rarity. There was nothing like the older of his kind to make him feel like a schoolboy again.

A terribly corrupted schoolboy, that is.

“My girlfriend? Funny. She looks like someone I used to babysit.” He tossed the camera back and forth between his hands. “And what about you, Genevieve? Do you find yourself having any sort of love life?”

❛ i came to america for the prohibition. ❜ and promptly left once jazz was replaced by the depression. ❛ tell me, david, how old do you think i am? ❜

she had to resist the urge to laugh. ❛cCute, maybe you can take her to her first r-rated movie. ❜

his question intrigued her, though she had seen it coming giving the subject matter. ❛ i’ve found that when you’ve been around long enough you realize that the deep, all-encompassing bond that defines love is inherently transient and not worth the effort. ❜ the saying ‘til death shall us part’ was only palatable because there would be an end to it; once there was no death, love became constrictive. ❛ why tie yourself to someone when it’s inevitable that you’ll outlive your feelings? i find flings more mutually fulfilling. ❜

THE DRAGON LAUGHS , “ you’d have to find someone else to give you them ? ” she asks . “ yes , exactly . the world needs us . everyone would just be completely lost . ” she giggles . “ eh , we’re immortal , so doesn’t it depend on us , as well ? ” vala questions . though the younger ones wouldn’t be quite as cynical about things as they were , she supposes . her thoughts wander to cosimo’s children , and she smiles . she is excited to see what they grow up to be . she barely knows them , but she adores them so much already . “ i suppose they are the future . ” 

genevieve pushes a hand through her hair as she laughs. ❛ you make it sound easy. forget baking, vala, you should try your hand at motivational speaking, ❜ she teases. at the statement, the brunette shrugs. ❛ so it does. still, I think I prefer pushing it off on the children. ❜ if she’s honest, she has spent most of her immortality avoiding any thought about why she was chosen, what greater purpose the indefinite extension of her lifespan might serve. at one time, she assumed it was to toy with the scales of power and provide the world a healthy dose of reality. now, any form of explanation eluded her. ❛ shirking responsibility is my strong suit. the future depending on us would kind of screw with my whole life’s purpose and i don’t think midlife crises apply to us. ❜

___

“If you’d believe it,” David said, holding up his camera. “Time is cycling in on itself again.” His fancy way of saying everyone is nostalgic for the 1980s. Sensing her lack of interest, David said the camera aside. “A young woman gifted this to me. She said she found it in a thrift shop. I’m not sure what made her think of me when she decided to get rid of it. But…” David scratched his chin. “… it does bring back something.”

❛ good for us. i look forward to the return of speakeasies. ❜ though genevieve often reflected on it, she held no particular fondness for the past. she had seen too many cycles, too many patterns repeated that rarely ended in anything aside from chaos. naturally, that was something she didn’t hesitate to capitalize on, but after a point it almost became boring. ❛ what i’m hearing is your girlfriend gifted you a piece of thrifted plastic, ❜ a smirk pulled across her lips, ❛ i think it might have been a crack on your age. ❜

Status: Open @dihstarters​ Location: UTP

“Do you think I’ll show up in this photo?” David asked, plucking the polaroid from the camera. The machine was an old, clunky thing, more for nostalgia than anything else. He came of age when this camera was in vogue. In all earnestness, he couldn’t help himself.

quirking a brow, genevieve could just barely stop herself from rolling her eyes. ❛ what a funny and completely original joke, ❜ she deadpanned, looking between him and the camera. ❛ where did you manage to find such a relic? i didn’t know they made them anymore. ❜ truthfully, she had never really bothered with technology. aside from acquiring a cellphone shortly after they became popular and replacing it each time a newer, better variation came out, she didn’t see a use for it.  

open starter / @dihstarters​

alcohol does nothing to iseult and the mother of monsters can’t quite figure out if that’s a good thing or not. all she knows is that it’s better than dull water, so that’s why she finds herself at skyline’s, sitting at a high chair, the view of the city extending far beyond even her sight’s reach. her eyes scan the place and, out of habit, she keeps her own true nature concealed ━ unlike many other patrons at the lounge. but it’s one in particular that catches her attention ( and it seems hers is not the only one ). with a smirk on her lips, iseult turns to the other. “seems you’ve caught the attention of someone at the other end of the bar,” the ancient comments, looking at the person she’s talking about before turning her attention to who she speaks to.

genevieve’s adaptation to life in the city started slow. when she isn’t people-watching, perhaps one of the few activities new york provides that she seems unable to grow tired of, she keeps busy trying her hand at human activities. the tour bus around the city was atrocious and the aroma of the grease from the hot dog stands made her queasy, but she has found herself enjoying the museums. all in the name of distraction; what better way to avoid the future than to lose oneself in the past? skyline’s was on her way home from the met, where she had spent the afternoon making museum-goers uncomfortable with her disconcertingly specific knowledge of the weather conditions on the borodino battlefield during the napoleonic wars. the voice beside her draws gen’s attention from her drink, and she follows their gaze across the bar to find eyes that were far too keen staring back at her. ❛ lucky me, ❜ she grumbles, downing the rest of her shot and waving for the bartender to get her another one. typically, she finds bars to be an ideal place to meet her next meal, but this one seems altogether too eager to get her alone. they would probably thank her for taking their life. ❛ by all means, feel free to take them off my hands. ❜

VALA NODS , “ i know . though i think that you could do almost anything you set your mind to . ” she replies . if anyone is going to fall for the tricks others played , vala would just brush it off , unless it is a foul trick played on someone she cares for . but she has very few warlock acquaintances , let alone friends . anyways , some just needed to learn it the hard way . her friendship with gen had come from time , not immediately . it is how her friendships usually work . “ we are both too young to die . would have been devastating , ” the dragon chuckles . though she knows that any single loss for her would have been terrible … and in a way , not knowing whether her sister was even alive made it feel almost as if she had . but she kept telling herself that ana would not be taken like this . vala shrugs at gen’s question , “ the older , more experienced , will not crumble , but perhaps the younger beings , ” she suggests .

❛ what ever would I do without your pep talks, ❜ gen sighs wistfully, amusement showing in the quirk of her lips. surely she would be painfully morose, more so than she already was. ❛ the world would be so much worse off without us. boring, pointless, hopeless even — — the list goes on. ❜ that was at least true where vala was concerned, the verdict was still out on herself. she hums her agreement, ❛ and the younger ones are the ones on which the world depends, are they not? ‘the youth is the hope of our future’ or however that saying goes. ❜ for her, at least, they were. their passion and not yet jaded spirits made them excellent vampires and fitting members of her clan. that is, what had been her clan. she wonders how long their loyalty will last, and, more importantly, how long she wants to hold it. funny how quickly things change.

THE DRAGON SHRUGS , “ or do a very big favour and make it so they must owe you a very big favour and no amount of portals will ever add up ? ” she suggests as a joke . mostly . vala thinks that she has a good judge of who is really her friend or not , and she knows that many strangers who are immediately nice are wanting things in return . much of the dragon’s ‘ trust ’ is surface level . she chuckles , when gen asks if she’d believe her if she said she’d protected the realm too , “ i would be very surprised , ” the dragon offers a smile . she shrugs , “ once everything started , i did not expect there was much anyone would have been able to do about the destruction . i am just glad that you came out alive . ” and it’s true . the majority of the people she cares for are alive , and that is really what is the most important to vala . she knows she requested the damage remain to a minimum , but she also knows it was a difficult request . “ it’s all that matters , in the end . that those important to us are okay , is it not ? ” 

❛ that i can do.” if there was one thing gen was good at, it was strategizing favors. it was a shame if people when people were naive enough to truly believe she was the type to actively seek out a friendship; but she wasn’t going to be the one to guide them through the nuances of having an angle. people on the right side of her kindness found themselves in said position following a suitable lengthy growing period. learning the way the other functioned and understanding why they did so was the basis of gen’s ties and, from it, trust was forged. but it was not something she gave freely, certainly not to strangers, and the notion that it was something she could ‘give’ on a moment’s notice was laughable. ❛ it w o u l d have been a shame had i perished. so young too, barely in my prime, ❜ her voice is teasingly wistful. ❛ you’re right, we were lucky. others lost so much more. ❜ for her, the number was so few that even a single loss would have been devastating. ❛ i wonder how few will grow from their pain and how many will crumble. ❜ she clearly wasn’t at risk for winning any optimism awards.

“ MAYBE YOU CAN find a warlock and become very good friends and they can do the same for you … though i think my friend portalled me to and from work when we were in spain more to make sure i would show up … ” vala giggles . she nods , “ i did promise a friend i would be around for holidays so i think i will at least put up with the cold then … but i still wouldn’t show up to work … ” she muses . “ it wouldn’t be so bad … but yes , it seems unlikely . ” the dragon nods . though perhaps if enough of the ‘ leaders ’ were friends , maybe they’d come up with something . “ some do , though i think it is usually the ones considered good turn out to be … not so good ? ” she hums . vala bites her lip , at gen’s question . “ i was trying to help to save the realm from being destroyed … ” she replies .

genevieve smirks, ❛ making a very good friend *and* willingly creating obligations. sounds like i’ll be having an ambitious few months. ❜ not that it w a s n ‘ t possible, it was just incredibly unlikely. ❛ i agree, ❜ and she does. that is largely why she carried herself through interactions with an air of caution. if someone seems too nice, there’s a reason, and it doesn’t involve shitting rainbows. ❛ figures, ❜ she says around a smile. she hadn’t expected any less, not after their last conversation. ❛ would you believe me if i said i was too? ❜ her voice holds a sardonic semblance of humor. ❛ i kept my word. ❜ no, that was a lie. ❛ i did more than that… more than i thought i could. ❜ the admission springs forth unbidden, perhaps the result of her shaken state, though she finds no use in amending it. ❛ not sure what to make of that, perhaps the realm corrupted me more than i thought. ❜

THE DRAGON NODS , “ well , a lack of alligators does sound disappointing . ” she chuckles . vala shrugs again , “ yeah . i mean , i don’t need the money or anything , but it’s something to do , and it keeps me close to them . though perhaps i can convince my warlock friend to portal me in occasionally so i can spend parts of each month in spain or japan … ” the dragon muses . “ though on the other hand , the others might not agree because they know i’m not going to show up to work from the first time it snows until the end of the last time it snows … ” she rambles . she snorts , “ can’t really fault anyone for wanting to combine things , if that’s what they all want … and they can come up with a peaceful way to do it . ” it didn’t seem very useful to destroy yet another place . but having some open spaces left behind would not be so bad either . “ i understand the want for industry … and the need for certain aspects of it . but the lights are too bright . ” 

❛ i’m jealous, you’ll save so much time on travel, ❜ she agrees around a laugh. ❛ and who can blame you for escaping? screw the cold — you weren’t built for it anyway. if you can be like a bird and migrate, i say do it. a cynic to her core, gen can’t help but smirk, ❛ good luck to them on that. ❜ her faith in humanity has long since disappeared, whittled away by years of disappointments. ❛ people never change. not really. at this point, history is our guidebook. ❜ she pauses again, weighing her words carefully, knowing that if she voices them she might have to confront truths she’d rather avoid. ❛ where were you… when the uprising happened? ❜ of course, her curiosity always has a way of getting the best of her.

VALA SHRUGS , “ it is nice . much different than my normal residences . ” she did like it though , the few months she’d spent in mexico . though that probably had more to do with the company and less with the location . “ what’s new orleans like ? ” she nods , “ jules and vik can show me around . in the end , i think i mostly care about the places here that they like . otherwise it really is just another crowded human city . ” she muses . “ maybe zee will want to open a bakery here … we’d certainly get a decent amount of traffic … ” the dragon hums . she snorts , “ man-made lights will never be as good at the stars . humans are strange . ” 

gen also shrugs, thinking back to her week spent in louisiana. ❛ it’s hot, and humid. the people know how to have a good time, though i was sorely disappointed by the lack of alligators. ❜ part of her had been expecting them to stray further from the bayou. vala’s idea of staying in new york catches her by surprise, and she thoughtfully mulls it over. ❛ might as well make the most of it. revolutionizing manhattan’s bakery scene is a respectable second act, ❜ she teases after a moment. it's better than her plan of wandering the city working through an existential crisis. ❛ i can’t argue with you there. if they all want to band together and form one giant city, i would g l a d l y take over the open spaces they left behind. ❜ her hand stills as she sighs. ❛ there's never room for quiet once industry rolls through. ❜

SO FAR , THE DRAGON IS UNSURE what to think of the city . there are too many people and she doesn’t really like the crowds and everything is so big in the smallest way . she offers a slight smile when her friend joins her , shrugging at her question . “ this is my first time here . the only place in american continent i have been to before is mexico . ” she says . she snorts , “ it does smell terrible . the only good thing is that julian lives here . and vik likes it . they said the food is good but i usually like to cook , ” she hums . she lets herself fall back to the ground so she can stare up at the sky . “ it is harder to see the sky here … and the lights make it so the stars aren’t so easy to see . ” she adds after a moment . maybe she isn’t so unsure about her feelings . 

❛ how was that? i’ve only been to new york, and parts of new orleans to see mardi gras. ❜ finding dinner was simplified when people were clad in various costumes and expecting u n i q u e interactions. not to mention her curiosity about the french quarter getting the best of her. ❛ i'm afraid i can’t comment on the food, but i’m glad you have people to explore it with. ❜ how long had it been since she was enticed by street vendors? perhaps that was something that could occupy her time here. something to think on. gen nods, understanding the sentiment. ❛ the new yorkers argue that the lights of storefronts and billboards are more appealing. ❜ her fingertips ghosted over the smooth blades of grass. ❛ they prefer concrete to nature. such is the way of the world, it seems. ❜

The pageant stench of arrogance clung to the air like static. Or maybe, that was the stench of death? In this world, Zach found that the two weren’t always mutually exclusive. Could it have been a vampire that was before him? Not many would have had what seemed like such disinterest in seeing a large dragon transform into a tall human form. At her comment, Zach instinctively flexed his lats and shoulder blades in a motion similar to flapping and extending his wingspan. “The only real place they can. Anywhere else would be too uncomfortable.” Granted, it was almost painless when they hid. However, once they burst out during transformation, well, not many got to experience something busting out their back.

perhaps years of friendship with a dragon had left her jaded, as gen found that she couldn’t even attempt to feign awe. ❛ i see, ❜ she hummed instead, twirling a loose thread at the hem of her shirt between her fingertips. gen cleared her throat after a moment, shifting. if she was going to make effective use of the distraction, he would need more to go off of. ❛ i’ve never bothered to watch before, but boredom lends itself to unique pastimes. ❜ she had been watching the comings and goings of various rodents and birds alike. she was partial to the sparrows, appreciating the way they collected sticks for their nests with such meticulous precision. ❛ enjoyable flight? ❜

& GENEVIEVE LENOIR ( @lencir​ )

SHE STARES UP AT THE SKY , thinking that perhaps laying in the grass will help to lift her mood . she is near the portal so she can avoid being discovered by any humans . but so far vitalaeryss showing her the house he wants is the only thing that has lifted her mood . being around so many large buildings and mundanes is making her anxious in itself , and she knows she could return to spain or japan but vik and julian are here , and vik seems content to stay a while . she has no intentions of going anywhere he is not , and she doesn’t want to drag him away . she is drawn from her thoughts when she hears someone approaching , and pushes herself to sit up . “ gen . ” the dragon offers a small smile to her friend . “ hi . ” 

if anyone notices her sulking about more than usual, they don’t bother to voice it. just as well – – she’s not feeling particularly amiable. she should be halfway to her clan by now, planning a way to celebrate her return, not skulking near the very portal that started everything. gen’s stroll is interrupted when she comes across vala, and she somehow finds comfort in the sight. it seems they both were less than jovial about their current state of affairs. ❛ hi, ❜ she repeats, the corner of her lips turning up slightly in response. without bothering to stop, she takes her place on the ground beside her, not bothering to maintain a half reclined position. ❛ was new york always this loud? ❜ she’s ashamed to say she’d grown accustomed to the mythical silence, dark and crowded alleyways having lost their appeal. ❛ not to mention how it smells like shit. ❜

A loud rumbling echoed through the clearing just outside a dense collection of trees. His clawed limbs scrapped against the soft ground as he skidded and hopped to complete the landing. Letting out a faint roar, Zach swiped his tail sideways, scrapping and nearly tearing out a few trees. His wings spread open before he began to shift into his human form, his large body shrinking in size, scales turning into soft tanned skin, and dark hair forming on the top of his scalp.

As his human body formed, the environment itself begun to shift subtly into that of New York. The plain and trees were giving away to street lights, pathways, and central park trees. It took him a minute to adjust to traveling between the two realms, but when he recovered, he found the bag he had hidden a distance away and changed into the clothing he had inside of it. His eyes moved to look behind him as much as he could without turning his head. “You been there long enjoying the show? Or happen to like quiet spots in the park too?”

@dihstarters​

with all her newfound freedom, one might have assumed that genevieve would book it. even she assumed that she would book it, which is what made her current predicament so disarming. back pressed against rough bark and a single leg dangling, the vampire sat perched in a tree at the outskirts of central park. the park brought her the calm she needed for deep thought in a way the rest of manhattan didn’t. a far cry from the mountainous franche-comté, the abundance of greenery still managed to ground her. the gravity of the decision she had made the night of the attack haunted her. in the time it took to kill those people, her liberators, she had managed to jeopardize her own future beyond the seelie realm. in being selfless, she might have compromised her entire life’s aim. it felt wrong. but not so wrong as falling into the chaos, charging forth with the rebels, and allowing mayhem to consume the realm. and that is what frustrated her most.

her existential crisis was interrupted by the flapping of wings. how nice, a dragon had been sent to distract her. and a cocky one, at that. ❛ less enjoying, more answering several of the questions i’ve been carrying. ❜ came her offhanded reply. she didn’t bother getting up, instead peering down at him. ❛ i always wondered where the wings went. ❜