sorry for your loss

[cuteandinnocentpet]

[When people are returned to the main floor, they will find a trail of cupcakes from the elevator to the dining room. There is a table of drinks, pills, and cupcakes and cakes from the automat.

And on the table, in the center, is this asshole, with a party horn in its mouth. Despite that, it talks into everyone's mind.]

As you strangers tend to have a tradition of parties after an execution, I took the liberty. The plates and cups are over there.

[. . .

be merry I guess]

Comments

[necroyalty]

The short version: do not find yourself in bed with a vampire, as it ends very poorly no matter what happens.

[ She's just getting started. ]

[unwittingking]

...noted.

[He’s never going to, but it’s good advice regardless.]

Was it a bad break-up or something? Or were they just a terrible person and you had a lapse in judgement?

[necroyalty]

Terowyn was a lover of mine who fell victim to the vampiric curse after he died. I thought he was still there, that by some miracle he was still mine...

...it's not so simple.

The thing they don't tell you about vampirism is that your soul literally slips away not long after. You can fight it all you want - he certainly tried for a few months - but in the end, the person who inhabited that body is gone.

And all you're left with is a malevolent husk bearing their memories.

[unwittingking]

Ah.

[At that, he feels like he’s heard enough, story-wise. No need to drudge up more bad memories, after all.]

I’m...I’m sorry that happened, too. That you lost him that way.

[It’s one thing to lose a loved one the normal way-it’s a whole other thing to lose them, and see their body become an enemy.]

CW: brief mention of child death/stillbirth

[necroyalty]

I left his side when I knew I'd lost him forever. By then I had other things to worry about, and...

When I first found out about my daughters, I was at least glad I had a piece of Terowyn left. It's not ideal, but I was grieving and I was going to take whatever I could get.

The priestess who delivered them was about to tell me my children were dead. I held them in my arms and they had all the pallor and chill of the grave.

I know what undeath looks like, King. I'm a necromancer. Comes with the territory.

I'm glad that she was wrong in her assumptions, but... well. We had to do some tinkering with her memories, magically speaking. Not something I approve of normally, but hopefully you understand.

[unwittingking]

[He feels his heart stop when he hears that. To go through something like that, having one small hope to remember someone, only for those children to nearly die when being born...he feels a small bit of relief when she says they lived. No one should have to go through that.]

If it’s to keep them safe? I can understand that well enough. Sometimes you have to do things you don’t like to keep the people you care about safe.

[It’s not nice, but just necessary sometimes.]

[necroyalty]

It's...complicated.

Not like undead are exactly shunned where I'm from, but. Vampires. You understand.

[unwittingking]

[He nods.]

Yeah, I do. It’s good that you had that option, at least.

[Considering the other option that he can think of would’ve been...not as merciful.]

We’ll get to see them again, though. When we get through all of this. I promise that we’ll figure things out.