Chapter Text
“Do you remember your first love?”
There were so many things to do in the du Lac household. A wedding was on its way, and the chaos could only be understood by those who were going through it. The bride and groom would need to be ready, just as much as the rest of the family did. The house needed to be decked beautifully, and the food needed to be perfect.
Peeking over his brother’s shoulder, Louis startled the younger man when he spoke. “If you keep eating the cakes, what are the guests gonna eat?”
“I’m not eating the cakes!” Paul exclaimed, looking up at the women who were around them, flushed in embarrassment. “I’m not!”
Paul grabbed at Louis, trying to silence him with a grapple, only for them both to knock over a bouquet from the table. Immediately, Grace was screaming from the top of the stairs. “Mamaw! They’re trying to break my flowers, Mamaw!”
“Boys, you’ll wreck the dais before the wedding even commences. Go and make yourselves useful outside, your cousins need help with the benches,” their mother exclaimed from across the room.
“Will do, Maw!” Louis said with a grin, his arm around Paul’s neck as they both played around and headed outside. Laughter and giggles surrounded the house that day, bringing in life that reflected a household full of love. Music had played for days leading up to the wedding, accompanied by dancing and joy that spread on an occasion that befits it.
The same kind of joy that left mere days after that.
Louis kept waking up in cold sweat after that accident. Paul was always just out of reach in his dreams exactly like that day when he fell off the roof. What were they doing up there? What did they talk about? Why did they have to sit up on the roof that evening? So many questions, but always the same underlying accusation. Why did Louis watch Paul fall off the roof and not do something?
It wasn’t like Louis had known Paul’s intentions. It wasn’t like he knew what was going to happen. Had he known that such tragedy would befall them, would he have simply let it happen? No. Of course not. Over and over again, Louis kept replaying the situation in his mind to try and get a different outcome. Could he have seen the signs? Had he seen them but turned a blind eye? No matter how many questions everyone else would ask him, Louis had a thousand more to ask himself.
Ever since the day they laid Paul to rest, the atmosphere had been nothing but sombre in the household. Florence was more sarcastic to her children, nursing a grief that she didn’t know how to deal with in any way other than rage. Grace and Levi had pretty much moved in, only absent every other weekend so they could visit Levi’s family. Those were the days that hurt the most, when Louis was left alone with his mother who was still so full of unspoken anger.
But Louis was not alone.
“Louis?” a quiet voice asked, peeking around the doorframe to look at him. She was only a little taller than his waist, with curly hair decorated with pretty ribbons at the top of her head. She was hugging a doll that looked just like her, in a blue blouse and white skirt. When the house felt like a mortuary for the living, she was the one who kept Louis sane.
“Claudia,” he called out with a smile, beckoning her to come close to him. “I fell asleep, didn’t I?”
“You did,” she said, nodding as she climbed to sit next to him. “You had a bad dream. You were crying in your sleep again.”
“Was I?” Louis let out a small laugh, wiping his face with one hand and then looking back at the six-year-old girl. “It’s nothing. I don’t even remember the bad dream anymore. Oh, does Little Claudia have a new dress?”
He touched the doll’s hand gently, playing with it in an attempt to redirect her attention. Her smile brightened when she realised he had noticed it. “Yes! Grace made the dress to match mine! She’s pretty, isn’t she?”
“Yes, she is. Just like you,” Louis smiled. “I’m kinda hungry now. Are you hungry? Shall we go raid the pantry?”
She nodded excitedly, hopping off the bed. She held onto Louis’ with one hand, and hugged her doll to herself with the other as they walked towards the pantry. It was still quite early in the morning. It seemed like the rest of the house had not awakened yet. Louis started to make some toast, getting butter and some jelly for Claudia as well. He knew that it wouldn’t hurt to make more, so he made quite a few slices just in case someone else might want one.
As if right on cue, he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Florence appeared by the doorway, took one look at the two of them, and walked up to the fridge to get her own food.
“I made some toast if you’d like,” Louis offered.
She turned to look at the toast, then at Claudia, and turned away. “No, thank you.”
Louis glanced at Claudia, hoping that the little girl had not noticed the coldness in his mother’s eyes. Luckily for him, the girl was busy feeding her baby doll a portion of her toast as she ate. Florence crossed the kitchen after pouring herself a glass of milk to make her own toast, and all Louis could think of was how silence could be so unbearably deafening.
“The butter,” Florence asked curtly, turning to Louis’s general direction.
“It’s here,” Louis said, about to grab it from the table when Claudia realised what it was.
“Here’s the butter!” Claudia exclaimed, picking up the plate it was on and turning around. Having not seen exactly where Florence had been earlier, she turned right around and knocked the plate of butter right into the woman, making her drop her toast and spill her milk. The plate of butter fell to the ground, the ceramic breaking everywhere.
“You spoiled little brat!” Florence snapped. “Have you no eyes in that head of yours?”
Startled by the noise and the realisation that she caused it, Claudia began to cry. In a fit of anger, Florence raised her hand to hit the little girl, only for Louis to intervene and pull Claudia into an embrace. “Mamaw, stop! It was an accident!”
“Everything is an accident to you, Louis de Pointe du Lac! Responsibility means nothing in your book! Blame the fates and destiny all you want, but sins must be paid for!”
Taken aback, Louis could only blink and stare at her in exasperation. His voice was quiet, shaky and broken when he spoke. “I’m sorry, Mamaw…”
“Worth nothing now,” Florence said, turning around and leaving the kitchen immediately.
Louis was just as much in shock as Claudia was, but he was older and had to pull himself together for her sake. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath to calm himself down, and then looked her in the eye. “Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere? It’s okay… It was an accident. You didn’t mean to do that. You didn’t mean to do that…”
He pulled her back into his embrace, rubbing her back as she continued to cry.
Later that day, Louis coaxed Claudia into a better mood by bringing her to the park near their home. He often made time to sit outside, just to enjoy the quiet away from home. As he sat on the bench, he looked up at the sky and took in the warming sensation of sunlight on his skin. The sensation reminded him of Grace, eagerly informing him of the health benefits of vitamin D.
He took a deep breath and closed his eyes tilting his face up for a while, leaning back into the seat. Then, the light suddenly darkened behind his eyelids. When he opened his eyes, Armand was hovering above, umbrella in hand.
“Armand.”
“Louis,” the man greeted. “Mind if I join you?”
“No, of course, please,” Louis shifted on the bench, making space for the man to sit next to him. “Sorry, I didn’t even realise you were here.”
“You brought Claudia out to play,” Armand commented, still holding the umbrella up for shade.
Louis looked up at the umbrella, laughing quietly. “Are you afraid of sunlight? You’re not a vampire, are you?”
“No, it’s not that. I figured it was too bright for you,” Armand shrugged. He closed the umbrella, then put it aside. “It’s nice to soak up some sun out here sometimes. How have you been? I hardly see you in class anymore.”
“Oh, that,” Louis sighed. It was true. He hasn’t been going, really. Armand and Louis were both studying business. They met almost a decade ago because they were also neighbours, and soon became close friends because of how comfortable they were with each other. “No, Grace has been staying at Levi’s house more the past few days. His mother’s not well, or something. So I’ve been watching my mother, watching Claudia.”
“She still can’t accept Claudia, can she?” Armand’s question was well-founded. Everyone knew that Florence absolutely detested Claudia, but not a lot of people knew why. Armand just happened to be close enough to the family to know the full story.
“How’s Marius?” Louis asked instead.
“He is the way he is,” Armand said with a smile. “I heard he’s back on dating apps, so I’m guessing he’s going to be a menace in society. More than he already is, I mean. Benji! Get off the roof of that slide right now!”
The ten-year-old boy climbed off the roof pretty easily, running off to jump from the side instead. Unlike Claudia, who was doing her best to keep safe and steady, Benji was reckless when let loose at the playground.
“Sybelle didn’t come with?” Louis asked, glancing over Armand’s shoulder to try and catch a glimpse of the tween anywhere.
“No, she’s found a new interest in sketching,” Armand said, then started yelling at Benji again for trying to climb up the side of the slide.
Despite not being what others might call “a good person”, Armand was kind in his own way. It was one of the reasons Louis continued being friends with him. He was a man of contradictions, and Louis had long since given up on making sense of them. Armand didn’t like making way for the elderly or little children. He claims they should be reminded that they are not entitled to privilege everywhere they go. Armand would speed towards or honk at jaywalkers. He says they should be reminded of the risk they’re taking when they gamble with their lives. Armand would hide a thief running away from the cops, but he would also be the same one to share the thief’s location with authorities when asked.
Armand was both a predictable calamity and a kind of chaotic stability that Louis needed in his life.
Knowing very well that his best friend was not always the nicest person, nor the most loving human being, Louis still admired the method to his madness.
The household that Armand lives in is leagues apart from Louis’. It is a home of misfits. A home that shelters a group of people who would have nowhere to go otherwise. Marius owns the house by deed and title, having inherited it from his uncle, who passed not too long ago. He brought in Armand as a teenager because he had run away from home and was going to fall into bad company. Marius was far from a good role model. He was not a loving father figure and was more of a sugar daddy to young Armand than even a brother. People in the neighbourhood often talked about how Armand was being groomed as a young impressionable boy, but knowing Armand and Marius in person changed Louis’ mind entirely.
In truth, Marius was just a lonely man venturing into his forties when he took Armand in. Armand, on the other hand, was far too eager to please. They developed a codependent relationship that looked twisted from the outside, but only they knew the truth about each other. After visiting the household, despite Florence’s initial disapproval, Louis caught a glimpse of the happenings inside that house.
It was whimsical. It was magical. It was full of imagination and art.
No, Marius was not grooming Armand into a sexual relationship. He was simply allowing Armand to embrace who he was without the guilt that Marius carried himself. Marius allowed Armand to be a child again, gave him the opportunity to study what he wanted and to explore art beyond the canvas. Louis remembered how impressed he was when he was told that the sky painting on the ceiling was done entirely by Armand’s hands. The number of quirky items being displayed in a glass case like they were trophies made Louis laugh - because who would put up a limited edition electric blender right next to the spelling bee competition plaque? In the Romanus household, this was normal.
By the time Armand was a young adult, he extended the opportunity to two young orphans who were living on the streets - Benji and Sybelle. They were not related by blood. One was a young Palestinian boy who could not understand a lick of English, and the other was a quiet girl who was scared of everything and everyone. They clung to each other like they were their lifelines, desperately needing one another to survive in a harsh world. Louis remembered the first time he saw them both in Armand’s home. He had been so confused, but Armand just shrugged it off like it was nothing. When Marius came home that day, Louis remembered the confusion on his face too. Yet, Marius waved it off and went to his room to sleep off a hangover.
Benji and Sybelle were given a roof over their heads, clothes handpicked by Armand and paid for by Marius (whether he knew about the transactions or not was a different question). With the right coaching and tutoring, Benji showed potential in poetry while Sybelle turned out to be a genius in piano. Still, Armand never treated them like they needed to be coddled. He still yelled at them when they got on his nerves, and told them off. Louis could just feel that it came from a place of love. It was never displaced anger, nor toxic rage, and it showed in the way neither of the kids would tiptoe around him.
“Damn, with all that yelling it’s no wonder people think you’re their mom,” Louis laughed.
“Well, their mom got it easy and now I’ve got to deal with this,” Armand said. Harsh words, evidently. Still, Louis knew Armand meant well. “Anyway, if you need notes from class, I have them all on a Drive.”
“Nah, that’s fine-”
“I’ve already emailed it to you. Whether or not you open and read them is entirely up to you.” There it was again, the brand of kindness that Louis was thankful to have. Armand also had a kind of smile that could come across as cheeky and smug whenever he did something he was proud of, like the one he was wearing right now. “You’re welcome.”
“Thank you,” Louis nodded and let out a small laugh as well.
“You owe me a dinner date,” Armand added.
That earned a groan from Louis as he threw his head back. “Okay, I’ll buy you dinner at the cafe.”
The cafe being the du Lac’s family business. It was homely and daresay, not the most special, but it was a good spot to hang out, especially for students and younger people. Offering a meal at the cafe he practically owned should feel like a cop out, but Louis didn’t really feel like making too much of an effort when he was already mentally stressed out by everything. Between classes and the looming feeling of dread, Claudia’s relentless curiosity about everything and Florence’s cruel stretches of silence… Louis really just wanted all of this to end.
“No, not just dinner. A dinner date,” Armand shrugged. “A nice place picked out and booked for us. We both dress nicely. You show up smelling nice, I show up with a bouquet of flowers.”
Louis raised his brows in amusement and nodded, humouring him. “With a candle in the middle of the table?”
“No, the candle is not necessary. Could be to set the mood, sure. I’d much prefer someone playing the violin as we dine…”
“Yeah, fuck off. I’m not doing all that for you. Go get a boyfriend who could do that,” Louis scoffed and shook his head. “I mean, if there is a boyfriend who could do that…”
“What do you mean? I’m a boyfriend who would do that,” Armand said, looking offended.
“It’s so cheesy,” Louis said, looking at Armand incredulously. “What? You’re gonna read poetry too at dinner?”
Armand shrugged and raised his hands. The idea was not so ridiculous to him as it apparently was to Louis. “Well, we’re gonna have to agree to disagree, then? This is why you’re single, Louis.”
“Okay, fuck off forreal this time,” Louis said, getting up to his feet. He walked ahead towards the playground where Claudia and Benji were playing. “Claudia. Time to go! We gotta get home before dinner.”
He reached a hand out, waiting for the little girl to take it so they could head home. He looked back to see that Armand had joined him by his side. “I gotta go. Thanks for the notes and… for everything else.”
“It’s alright,” Armand shook his head. “Oh, by the way, I almost forgot to remind you. Marius’ birthday party is happening at the end of the month, so make sure you show up for that.”
“Right, I actually forgot about that,” Louis sighed. “Thanks. We gotta go shopping to get him something.”
Armand nodded and then turned back to look at Benji, who was spinning circles with his arms locked around a pole. As Louis walked away, he threw a glance back to see Armand talking to Benji before leading him to the right apparatus for safe climbing —the monkey bars. Caring for others just came naturally to some people, Louis thought.
For the next few days, Claudia played alone in her room as if to avoid going down to the kitchen for breakfast before everyone else was awake. Louis watched her sometimes, when she played with her doll house where she sat all the dolls around her to have pretend tea parties. Most times, Louis would notice the doll that most resembled Florence would be kept away from everyone else. He was quiet as he watched her play, realising how muted the house could really get sometimes.
Or at least, it was… Until one day, Louis woke up to loud blaring music.
For the first time in months, his dreams had been interrupted by an unfamiliar sound that was clearly not his alarm. Louis sat up and frowned, looking around for his phone to try and figure out the time. It was just fifteen minutes before his alarm would go off. Who the hell would be blaring music so loudly and so early in the morning? When he left his room, he found Claudia first. She had a doll pressed to one ear and her hand covering the other.
“Lou! What’s that noise?” She asked when she caught sight of him.
“I don’t know,” Louis said, scooping her up in his arms and then walking out of the house to figure out where the noise was coming from. Of course, he had not expected the source to be the house just across the street.
There was a small stage set up in front of the garage, large speakers on the stage and a man who was playing a guitar on it. The blond man was topless, wearing only a pair of very shiny green pants and a pair of sunglasses. If anything, Louis thought it looked ridiculous to see someone like that in broad daylight. Louis set Claudia down when Grace joined them on the porch, looking just as confused about the noise as they were.
“What the hell is going on?” Grace asked, more irritated than agitated.
“I don’t know,” Louis said. “Wait here, I’ll go check it out.”
Claudia held onto Grace’s hand, watching as Louis jogged across the street to shut that noise down.
“Woah! Hey! Excuse me?” Louis called out, trying to catch the attention of the man who was jumping around on the stage. “Hey! Hello!”
The blond man seemed to startle when he saw Louis, quickly going over to his laptop to hit the pause button and pull his earpiece off. He grinned, and Louis was suddenly taken aback by how disarming that simple gesture had been.
“What’s going on, man?” Louis asked, dropping his voice now that it was no longer as loud as it had been. “It’s seven-thirty in the morning!”
“Oh, is it? I didn’t realise that it was so late,” the man’s response threw Louis for a loop.
“What?”
“I play music in the mornings on the first of every month. It’s my version of the town hall bells, you see,” he said. The French accent was simply dripping off every consonant. He looked past Louis and then waved a hand.
“It’s not even the first of the month…” Louis said, frowning in confusion.
“Yes, but it’s the first day I’m officially here,” he said. He took the guitar off and set it down, resting it on the speakers before hopping off the stage. “Which reminds me that I should probably introduce myself to the neighbours!”
Before Louis could say much else, the man was already jogging off across the street to greet Grace and Claudia. Louis had to run after him, panicking for a moment that this unhinged stranger might pose more of a danger than he initially seemed to. Louis felt safer seeing Levi there to ensure everyone’s safety just in case.
“Bonjour!” the man greeted. “Sorry for waking you all up. I’m your neighbour across the street!”
“But that’s Mael’s house,” Claudia said, pointing at said building.
“Yes, Mael is my uncle! I came to visit, and today is my first official day here,” he said. “My name is Lestat de Lioncourt. I came from Paris and just arrived late last night. You are…?”
Lestat held out a hand to greet Levi first, shaking his hand before going down the line. Grace shook his hand because Levi didn’t seem apprehensive. Florence shook his hand a little warily. Finally Claudia shook his hand, as well.
“And who’s this little dolly?” Lestat asked, taking Claudia’s doll by the hand and shaking it.
“This is Little Claudia,” the girl said excitedly.
“Hello Claudia, and Little Claudia. My name is Lestat. It is a pleasure to meet you both,” he said, then straightened up and offered a hand to Louis who was now standing behind Claudia with his hands on her shoulders protectively. “And you are?”
“Not interested,” Louis frowned.
“I can see that,” Lestat said without missing a beat, before turning to the ladies. “Forgive my intrusion and insolence so early in the morning. It has been a pleasure making your acquaintance. I hope we can be good neighbours from here on out. If there’s anything that you need, anything at all…” Lestat twisted his body and hitched two thumbs over a shoulder towards the house across the street. “I’ll be right over there.”
Lestat jogged back over and pushed the stage into the garage on his own as the du Lac family returned to their home. Just like that, Lestat arrived like a storm that was meant to turn their lives upside down.
Gathering the courage and pushing himself out of bed was not easy for Louis. It’s been months since Paul had left them, yet somehow it still felt fresh to him. Grace’s baby bump was already getting bigger, and he knew he shouldn’t be feeling this way, but the thought that his younger brother would never meet their sister’s children brought in another wave of sadness that he could not truly express. Nobody in the family would understand how he was feeling, and he couldn’t burden Armand with these thoughts when the man was already dealing with so much himself. All Louis could do was swallow those thoughts and hope they would not fester into something far worse.
He always took grocery shopping duty because it allowed him to leave the house without the expectation of interacting with someone else. It gave him the opportunity to dissociate without guilt. All he had to do was blast music in his ears and pretend the world out there did not exist while picking out items to check the list. Claudia was home with Grace, so he didn’t need to worry about her either. He just needed to get her a treat when he came home.
Today was no different from any other grocery run. It was peaceful in spite of the noise inside his own head. He shut the music off and walked into the house, setting the bags of groceries on the dining table as he announced his return.
“Mamaw, Grace! I’m back. I got the Russet potatoes that you wanted,” Louis called out.
He barely registered the hand that reached into the bag to grab ingredients out, when he heard a voice echo his words. “Louis is back! He’s got the Russet potatoes that you wanted! You sure took your time.”
Louis frowned, looking at the blond man who was now in his kitchen with an apron over his clothes and ingredients in his hands. “Wait, what are you doing here?”
He followed Lestat and was met with a sight he had not seen in the house, ever. Florence was cutting up ingredients at the counter. Grace was stirring the pot. Claudia was sitting in a chair, eating a slice of apple. Lestat had gone to wash the potatoes and was asking for the peeler so he could get the potatoes done as soon as possible. Louis was blinking in confusion, seeing the kitchen so lively all of a sudden.
“What is going on-”
“Open your mouth,” Lestat interrupted, going over with a spoonful of the gravy from the pot into Louis’ mouth after blowing on it. “Quickly, how is the taste? Well seasoned? Anything else needed? Salt, pepper? Chop chop.”
“Um…” Louis tasted the gravy, tried to process it as quickly as he could, then shook his head. “A little more salt.”
“Your blood pressure must be through the roof. Here, sweetie. What do you think?” Lestat decided to give Claudia a taste instead. The little girl was hardly any help, given the way she just beamed and gave a thumbs up. Either way, Lestat seasoned the gravy a little more before bringing the potatoes over to Florence and then helping her as well.
The phone rang out in the living room, and immediately Lestat chirped. “I’ll get it!”
When Lestat left the kitchen, Louis hurriedly followed him and grabbed him by the arm. He snatched the phone out of Lestat’s hand. “What are you doing here? Why are you making yourself at home?”
“I came to deliver letters that were wrongly posted to my house, and your sister invited me in for breakfast. Florence said to make myself at home, so I got lunch started for us all,” Lestat said, as if it were the most obvious thing to do in the world.
“I don’t know how things work where you’re from, but barging into someone’s home like this is considered trespassing. I could get you arrested,” Louis warned.
“Oooh, okay. Tough guy, I get it. You feel left out because I’m in your kitchen and we made you run around like an errand boy, but you don’t have to worry. It’s not too late to join us. I was just about to start on dessert,” Lestat grinned.
“Lestat? Who’s calling?” Grace’s voice from the kitchen could be heard calling out to them. At that moment of distraction when Louis looked over his shoulder towards the kitchen, Lestat snatched the phone back out of his hands and then headed back to the kitchen. He handed it to Grace, telling her that it was her precious beau calling and to take her time talking because he didn’t mind taking over.
“Madame, that is enough,” Lestat said, gently taking the knife out of Florence’s hands despite her half-hearted protests. “You’ve done quite an amazing job with the preparation of ingredients, I think I can take over from here. Take a seat and take a sip of your coffee. Rest your feet, please. I insist. Leave it to me, and your precious children.”
Lestat made a gesture to beckon Louis before continuing. “Get us started on the after lunch crepes, Louis. And if you would be so kind, Princess Claudia, to be a good daughter and bring these strawberries to Madame Florence, please?”
Claudia took the plate of strawberries happily, bringing them over to Florence, who did not even spare a look at her before saying, “She’s not my daughter.”
There was a pause in the atmosphere as everyone looked at Florence. Louis was staring at her, heart skipping a beat, when he realised what she had just said. Claudia’s expression fell as she set the plate of strawberries onto the table, and Grace was just about to hang up the call. She, too, was looking back at her mother in shock of what she had just said. It wasn’t anything new. The sentiment was known to anyone who knew the family. It was just the fact that she had said it in front of someone who was almost a complete stranger.
“Mamaw,” Louis called out, in disbelief.
At this time, the doorbell rang. Lestat clapped his hands together and cut the tension short. “Ah! Just in time! That must be backup!”
He left the kitchen quickly, returning with another woman who was almost as tall as he was, with blond hair longer than his own. “Everyone, introducing Gabrielle! This is my Maman. Maman, this is the du Lac family! Madame Florence, the amazing head of this household. That is Grace, the flower in bloom to brighten up the house. That tall glass of crème fraîche is Louis. And this little princess here is Claudia.”
Lestat lowered himself to Claudia’s height, then spoke up towards the blonde woman. “Claudia. This is my Maman.”
“Hi Maman Lestat!” Claudia chirped, having perked up some from her shocked sadness. She gave a small wave up at Gabrielle.
“Thank you for having us over,” Gabrielle said with a smile as she regarded everyone in the space. “I hope my son has not been a hassle.”
“I have been nothing but an angel!” Lestat exclaimed before jumping up and running over to the kitchen. “My bouillabaise!”
They worked on putting together a full meal after that, just in time for lunch, as they set the table. Everyone sat around the oval table, holding hands with one another and saying grace before starting on the meal.
“I must apologise for my child’s antics. I hope he hasn’t been too much of a menace since we arrived,” Gabrielle said eventually.
“Oh, please. Raising sons is like herding cats. This household has had its fair share of chaos,” Florence said. Gabrielle and Lestat’s eyes naturally glanced over at the painting of Paul that hung on the wall. They exchanged looks but did not mention anything about it. Florence looked at the food in front of her, eyes glazing over for a moment as if being transported back into a memory. “Some days I miss the chaos and the laughter.”
Louis looked up at his mother, wanting to say something but still choosing to hold his tongue so he did not end up saying something unsavoury in the presence of guests.
“No matter. Soon, the house will be blessed with cries and laughter for little ones again,” Florence continued, smiling back at her guests.
Gabrielle turned to the little girl sitting next to her and smiled teasingly as she spoke. “And Claudia would have little niblings to play with, too. In our household, we call children of our siblings as niblings…”
“That won’t be applicable to her,” Florence said.
Immediately, Louis turned red in the face as his head whipped towards his mother. “Mamaw!”
“I’m only saying what we’re all thinking,” Florence said plainly, refusing to even look in Claudia or Louis’ direction. “If we do use that term in this household, it would only be applicable to members of the family. Not outsiders.”
“Claudia is family, as much as I am. As much as Grace is,” Louis said, trying to keep his anger in check despite it clearly creeping up in his tone and onto his face.
“Lord forbid,” was all Florence had to say before Claudia jumped up from her seat and took off running for her room, upset and crying her eyes out.
“Mamaw,” Grace whispered under her breath.
“I can’t believe you.” The chair scraped over the floor loudly when Louis got up and went after the little girl.
Lestat and Gabrielle exchanged looks again. This time, Gabrielle was desperately trying to tell Lestat to keep his mouth shut and not make any other comments. The way Lestat looked back at her and raised his brows made it quite clear that they were both having some kind of telepathic conversation.
“We should get going,” Gabrielle said quickly, interrupting before Lestat could get anything else out. “You are most kind to have invited us into your home.”
“The pleasure is all ours. Please stay as long as you’d like,” Florence said. Despite the smile on her face, there was just something about the way she spoke that gave Gabrielle the impression she really meant otherwise. After taking their leave, Gabrielle and Lestat headed back home across the street.
Upstairs, Louis had followed Claudia back into her room. He stood at the door first, knocking on the door as he stepped in and closed the door behind him. “Hey…”
Claudia’s eyes were puffy, nose red, and she was hiding in the corner of her bed with her Little Claudia doll clutched to her chest. Just the sight of the little girl made Louis’ heart pang in guilt. She didn’t ask to be treated this way, but he couldn’t do anything other than comfort her each time she cries. He walked in and sat on the edge of her bed, looking over at her. She was rubbing her eyes and her face, trying to calm down as much as possible.
“You’re a strong little girl,” Louis said, raising his arm slightly so she could crawl under his wing like a little bird. “I’m sorry… You know how Mamaw is… She didn’t mean to say all that.”
“Then, why does she tell everyone that?” Claudia asked, ducking her head and hiding in Louis’ side. “She hates me.”
“No. No… She doesn’t,” Louis turned and cupped her cheeks, making her look at him. He wiped her tears with his thumbs, just trying to calm her down somehow. “She’s just… upset with someone else.”
“Grace says she’s hurt and doesn’t know where to put it,” Claudia said, quietly sniffling. “But… why does she have to put it on me?”
Louis sighed softly. It was a fair question. The fact that the little six-year-old had to deal with such harsh words made his heart sink. Louis didn’t think he was the compassionate one in the family. Coaxing his siblings with jokes when they were upset, taking them out to play and distracting them whenever they were reprimanded for something. He would teach his little brother how to climb, he would give Grace piggyback rides just to cheer them up. Now, with Claudia, he found himself doing the same thing. He never really knew any other way to deal with sadness or hurt in any other way than to distract and detach from the situation. Now that he was older, he could only hope that he was doing better in the way he was coaxing Claudia.
“Come here,” Louis said, shifting them both onto their knees on the floor beside the bed. Claudia followed him off the bed and joined him on her knees. It wasn’t uncommon in the household for them to use prayer to try and calm their emotions. “Do you remember what I said about God’s strongest soldiers? We have to turn to Him, pray to the Lord when times are tough and challenging. We prayed together when we lost Daddy, we prayed together when we lost Paul…”
Louis paused at that point, closed his eyes and encouraged her to do the same. They clasped their hands together on the bed, saying a prayer that Louis wasn’t even sure he had faith in.
“Lord, I pray that You would strengthen me with all power according to Your glorious might, that I may have great endurance and patience. Help me to lean on Your strength and not my own, today and every day. In Jesus' name, Amen.”
“And send us an angel to be our friend,” Claudia added. “Amen.”
A small laugh escaped Louis as he turned to look at Claudia and stroked her hair gently. Unbeknownst to them both, they were being watched from across the street through the window. Lestat and Gabrielle had returned to their home after the uncomfortable meal, and Lestat had gone out to the balcony to stretch. He hadn’t realised at first that he could see into the du Lac’s upstairs window from there.
Now he could see Claudia interacting with someone from that angle, but not the person she was interacting with. Lestat ducked a little, trying to get a better angle to see who it was, but he was called downstairs by his mother right after that. By the time he looked back at the window, the curtains had been drawn closed already.