#remember!

… Attending @opalescence-sim’s Royal Masquerade Ball.

Name: Laurelle La Vance Age: 25 years old Traits: Cold-Blooded, Determined, Bookworm, Jealous, Repressed (+ a little self-centered) Orientation: Biromantic, Bisexual, Greysexual House: Vance (Represented by the color blue)

History

Dreary but mundane, what hangs over the heads of the La Vance family’s homeland is the unexpected death of their beloved Royal Heir, Princess Claudia. It also hangs over Laurelle’s head—not simply because the Royal Lady was her older sister, but because she was the last person to see her alive; she murdered her, and everyone knows.

… Or maybe not? A hunting trip, a training session, or a boating incident gone wrong. Perhaps the Princess actually ran away? Her death orchestrated? No one, let alone the general public, is quite sure what happened, if Laurelle—the spare—actually conspired to murder her sister. Manslaughter or murder is gossip and debate among citizens, but in the Royal Court, in the eyes of the very silent, grief-stricken Queen, it’s held in majority opinion that it was murder. No trial, no body, no consequences held. Just whispers, ostracization, and contempt toward a fractured Laurelle. Not all is for naught, though, because, in return for her sister’s life, Laurelle is due to be Queen! Or at least until her mother, Queen Constance, gets out of the way…

Laurelle La Vance

Perhaps the rumors about being a kinslayer don’t come out of nowhere. Everything her older sister, basked in the light and first place, was, Laurella is not, and how she was perceived prior to Claudia’s death no longer matters. Perceived in court, she is quiet, detached—or rather is that because of the way she’s been ostracized?—cunning, quite unsettling these days, and hyper-vigilant. She’s spent most of her life with an intense interest in historical literature. Her childhood was particularly filled with emotional neglect. She may be a bit touch-starved, and cold-blooded (lacking empathy), and may have a hard time discerning her real emotions from what she wants others to see from her… But that happens when growing up with a mother more interested in politics than her children, let alone her second-born. Nowadays, what’s left in their relationship is Constance feeling more justified in her absence—suspicious, aid-less, too, in the defense of her kinslayer daughter to the Court, but set to tradition enough to see through to Laurella’s crowning after her death, because there’s no one else. They’re the last Vances of their line. It’ll have to be enough.

Hobbies: Sword-fighting (a little too much and aggressively with her knight), reading, attending Court (despite the fact that everyone dislikes her).

Notable Likes: Malicious interactions, Research & Debate, Gossip, Deep Thoughts, Winning, Spymaster Dante, Outdoors, The Color Red.

Notable Dislikes: Complaints, La Vance Royal Court, Pranks, Mixology/Alcohol, The Color Blue.

The Royal Masquerade

Queen Constance had been dropping hints about an arranged marriage for a while now. Going to House Dayne’s Masquerade Ball was inevitable. 25-years-old and the last of her line, marriage has been long overdue, but the death of Claudia has helped in more than one way in discouraging suitors her way. That help is running out. Whilst kinslayer rumors will forever flow around her head within her region, the lack of action against her from Queen Constance has evaporated most steam in people believing the rumors—at least in weighing out the benefits of marrying into the Vance family—despite what is felt otherwise within the Court. So, what was once nothing in the discussion of marriage has turned into signals and nudges from her mother, steamrolling until an eventual announcement. If absolutely nothing else, Larella is certain in two things: She will get no input on her suitor, and that her suitor or their family will be in the clutches of her mother. A dead weight spouse not on her side won’t do for her plans, so there’s little choice anymore. She must act first.

Distance is the first benefit of interacting with House Dayne. The kingdom is far away enough not to be too influenced by the belief that Laurella intentionally murdered her sister, let alone be under her mother’s sway—right?—but still powerful enough that seeking out marriage is worth it. Laurella doesn’t expect to find love, nor does she think she’ll experience it, but she’s willing to pretend to be anything she’s not if it brings her closer to her goal. The next few weeks are poured into research.

The Knight In Toll

The travel to Starfall—a region where Laurella’s reputation finally doesn’t precede her—should be a smooth vacation. Laurella will force it so, despite the individual arriving in toll with her being Lucien, her right-hand Knight. Unchosen, because he was chosen as Princess Claudia’s right-hand Knight first. Now, he’s Laurella’s. A complicated relationship. They’ve known each other since teenhood. His disdain and grudge runs equally as deep as everyone else—worse, maybe, with his closeness to her sister—only he will not allow her to die, to fail again as he did with Claudia. His loyalty does not lie with Laurella, but with the House of Vance and Queen Constance, which is very inconvenient for someone who follows her everyday. Hopefully this trip changes that! … because Laurella is starting to get tired of entertaining this grudge.

Things to note about her kingdom:

Aggressively matriarchal. Queens hold all sway, so may be a bit unused to showcases of otherwise.

Line of succession dictates under no exceptions Heir status is transferred to next in line kin in the event of a Queen or Dauphine’s death… even if that kin is suspected to have had a hand in murdering said Dauphine…

Succession is passed only when the current Queen has passed away.

Tensions have risen with Queen Constance and the noble households lately…

Preview of some of Laurella’s outfits:

*Whew, I’ve been obsessively working on these two for the past couple of days! I get far too much decision paralysis to be in CAS for a normal amount of time, 🫠 (but srsly, thank you again two times over, @opalescence-sim, for the extended time). Upside is it’s been fun writing lore 🦇.

*As you can see, her outfits—Lucien's a bit too—are Victorian-inspired, but feel free to go rogue if you want to change up her outfits. I tried to show it a little in her Party Outfit 1, but she’s definitely willing to temporarily change up her clothing style if it appeals to Valaruxx or House Dayne’s aesthetic. She’s a bit conservative with her clothing, has a I hope obvious in its intention blue and red color scheme (which like I just realized the correlation between House Dayne’s Purple?), but other than that, tweaks are welcomed!

*She’s vaguely intended to be French in all but visual generics, and victorian clothing and… Being historically accurate would drive me crazy, take the french inspiration as you will.

* lookbooks poses by @helgatisha