#nevermore lucy

click on the image for a better quality (⁠｡⁠•̀⁠ᴗ⁠-⁠)⁠✧✨

close up of the chibis — i might render them a little more later :

[Luca busted out right in front of Percival's doors when he least expected it, because why the hell not. His voice had been awfully joyful all morning, clearly, ranting to his father about "how much he's looking forward to his special visit".]

[Who could blame him? It is not every day that you get to bring around your new pet cat to your significant other and pleasantly surprise them with it!]

“Désolé, you said at my earliest convenience -I simply couldn't hold myself!” [The man spoke cheerfully, clasping his two palms together while his smile had almost caused him a cheek-ache on the way here.]

[After Percy allowed him to come forth, he gave him a tight, warm embrace. Completely forgetting the fact that the "surprise" in question was now suffocating between them.] -Meow!- [Smokey exclaimed.]

“Ah!” [His body immediately retreated backwards.] -Ahem- “I suppose it cannot wait any longer.. behold! The surprise that I mentioned in my letters! The newest addition to the Fauntleroy estate! Smokey!”

[Luca began to proudly show him off, picking him up out of his suit as if he was a magician pulling out a well-hidden dove.]

@way2rich4this

Percy startles so hard he nearly drops the book in his lap.

It had been a quiet morning—or at least, it had been until the unmistakable burst of “Bonsoiiiir!” ricocheted down the corridor like a cannonball made entirely of vowels and affection. The force of it makes his heart skip several highly concerning beats, and he turns toward the door with the sort of expression usually reserved for tax audits and lightning strikes.

And then he hears the voice.

Luca.

His posture unspools instantly—shoulders relaxing, breath easing, the corners of his mouth twitching upward despite himself. There’s an instinctive kind of warmth that floods his chest when Luca’s around, like stepping into sunlight after being buried in frost. Even if he is entering like an operatic thunderstorm.

Percy rises—awkwardly, stiffly, smoothing the front of his vest and blinking with a mixture of confusion and anticipation.

“I—ah, I wasn’t expecting—well, I suppose I was, but not quite this early—”

He doesn’t get to finish the sentence before Luca is on him, arms winding around his frame in a hug that knocks the air straight from his lungs in a soundless little gasp. It takes him a second to register the warmth, the affection, the familiarity of it—so full, so solid—and he melts into it instinctively, breath catching faintly as he leans his forehead against Luca’s shoulder with a shaky exhale.

And then—

“Meow!”

There is something squirming between them.

Percy blinks, then flinches, arms awkwardly lifting as if trying not to crush a very delicate loaf of bread.

“Is that—?”

But Luca’s already pulling back, bright-eyed and glowing with pride. Percy blinks rapidly, trying to make sense of what he’s seeing—first the suit, then the limbs emerging from the suit, then—

“Oh,” he breathes, eyes widening, “Oh.”

Because there, in Luca’s hands, nestled like an irritable puff of charcoal and aristocratic indignation, is a cat. A very fluffy, very unimpressed-looking cat.

Percy stares.

Smokey stares back.

Silence.

“…He was in your jacket?” Percy asks faintly, voice several decibels softer than usual, the words half-lost to stunned awe. He inches forward, reverent. “You… you carried a cat in your—”

He breaks off with a strangled little sound that might be laughter. Or tears. Or possibly a blend of both. His hands lift and hover mid-air, unsure where to go—is it rude to pet someone else's cat? What if the cat bites? What if Luca bites??

“He’s gorgeous,” Percy finally manages, voice trembling somewhere between delight and disbelief. “Look at him—look at his little face, he’s like a very cross cloud—oh, Gods, does he like me? Is he going to—?”

He cuts himself off again when Smokey shifts slightly, giving a skeptical little flick of his tail. Percy freezes.

And then, ever so gently, he holds out a single, tentative finger.

The ginger gaysssssss

Also ignore the lack of a background this took less than 2 hours I didn't have time for a background

I can't handle this emotional shit dudeeee they're making me sad

✨// Please don't do this to me.. I cannot possibly EVER make a decision and stick to it-

Both have their own perks, Lucy is domestic, cute, it has around a gajillion layers to it BUT almost all of them have lore and a witty joke behind them. Not to mention the ransom, yet important symbolism which me and the Percy's mod gently throw at you when you least expect it.

I won't lie, it started as a joke at first, but we all know how that ended. Somehow they mirror and compliment eachother in places I never quite expected them to do- funny, eh? High society's stereotypes, finding emotional shelter in upholding a persona in order to escape from your pre-written fate which your parents didn't give a single dime to ask your opinion about, saying anything BUT what you actually mean (because gods forbid you dare to, it'll simply bring ruin.)

Duca though?? Oh, now THAT'S angst fuel. We're talking about two men that loathed eachother the moment their paths crossed; a ginger who attempts in a very pathetic way to flaunt to his father about his knowledge against a dude that is simply trying to make a living out of his passion.

“But why did you say it was angst fuel?” It is important to note firstly how much they hate eachother, shush/hj

Anygays, we can assume that things didn't always stay like that. Surely, they had to trust eachother at SOME point; hell, these two fuckers spent a good few years around eachother since they met at a young age. For Duke to trust him enough to perform a near-death trick on his show? (Ref: flashback before he got his spectre) Feeling safe in bidding your life at the hands of your "assistant" is surely not a complete performance; it takes skill, time and practice. They definitely had their fair share of fond moments amongst eachothers company, platonic or not.

What mainly supports my statement is Duke's sense of betrayal at the end of his flashback, as well as his trust issues (we don't have time to unpack all of that/ref)

MY POINT- right, let me get to it and stop looking like a conspiracist madman for a good moment: both. Both is good/ref