The look of awe bordering on disbelief that we can see on Lestat's face in this moment! He had asked Louis to 'nod his beautiful head' and say yes, but despite the confident, clearly rehearsed energy of his proposal, I think Lestat had an enormous amount of doubt and insecurity about whether or not Louis would actually accept it, and may have actually been anticipating a rejection.

Not only is Louis consenting to this, he is pulling Lestat in unprompted for a seal of physical affection that tells Lestat his intense feelings of love and devotion are reciprocated. From Lestat's face I very much get the feeling of, 'You're choosing me? You're choosing me? You really want me?'

Did Louis ever fear that Lestat might seek retribution for his murder in TVL? Lestat is already such a direct and volatile guy, it doesn't seem unlikely. He already took out his issues with his mother and ex-boyfriend and hostile upbringing on Louis in IWTV, because Louis was an easy, available target. Louis is everything Lestat is not and didn't have.

I know you are probably going to say "no". But the idea of probability is a little skewered for an eternal time limit. And the new fans of the show know some serious psychology to make you believe what is and isn't beyond the realm of possibility.

I mean you’re right, my answer is no for a few reasons lmfao!

Lestat is definitely volatile, there's no doubt about that, but I don't particularly read his actions towards Louis as a way of "taking out" his issues. To me, it always felt almost the opposite— that he saw Louis as his last saving grace, the last person through which he might be redeemed. He failed Nicki, he couldn't keep his mother, but Louis is someone with whom he has a completely clean slate, which of course makes Louis' rejection hurt even more, which when drives Lestat to desperation, which makes him incredibly cruel.

You're totally right that Louis represents everything Lestat never was and can never had, and I'm sure that brought up so much resentment in him!! But it never felt like a malicious target, if that makes sense. The abuse, for Lestat, was about control rather than a rage outlet. It was always about controlling Louis, breaking him down until he has no choice but to accept that Lestat is right, because if he can just get Louis on his side, maybe that means all the bad things he ever did weren't so bad after all.

But ANYWAY on to your actual question— I think first and foremost, Louis did genuinely believe Lestat was dead after their last encounter at the Theatre des Vampires.

This is Louis' description of the very last time he saw Lestat, just moments before he learns of Claudia's murder:

‘Yes…’ [Lestat] whispered now, his hand struggling with the thing he concealed beneath his black cloak. But then he looked at me, and the tears spilled down his face. ‘Louis,’ he said, his voice deep and rich now with what seemed an unbearable struggle. ‘Please, you must listen to me. You must come back….’ And then, bowing his head, he grimaced with shame. ... “And Lestat sat there with his eyes closed, his face transfigured with his pain. It seemed the double of Lestat, some wounded, feeling creature I’d never known. ‘Please,’ he said, the voice eloquent and gentle as he implored me."

the last interaction they had in canon was fucking heartbreaking!!!!!!! That's not a man seeking retribution, that is a vampire out of his mind with grief, guilt, starvation.

And by the time they finally do reunite in TVL, Louis has seen Lestat's rise to fame. By this point, if Lestat wanted revenge, he had plenty of opportunity to do it. But he chose to focus on his rock career instead. Plus, Louis was the one to come to him for their reunion, not the other way around!

"You let me see you and you let me follow you, " he said. "You drove up and down Divisadero Street looking for me. "

Louis is a smart guy. He knows how to survive. If he ever for a second thought Lestat meant to truly hurt him, he would have kept his distance.

"And the new fans of the show know some serious psychology to make you believe what is and isn't beyond the realm of possibility." LMAO the new fans are also dealing with a physically abusive monster of a character who never showed up in canon so they can have fun with their weird "was it raining" meta nonsense all they want to try and side-step that one. we've been psychoanalyzing these vampires for decades, get in line my dude.

Story Post. Written by Cocoa. Art By Cocoa.

New Beginnings

It was night time and Lynx was currently out on a walk with Lestat, it worked out well that they both had a lot more energy at night time . They always enjoyed exploring around with each other. The world was always changing over the years they have been around together. Lynx was currently in his cat form since he enjoyed running a bit ahead every now and then just trying to burn off some steam jumping across a few gates and other things he was able to jump up onto. Lestat followed lazily behind, hands in his pockets. He kept a general eye on his wandering feline boyfriend. They were enjoying the cool air and the more calm nature of the city in the evening. A wandering human caught Lynx’s attention. He was eating a burrito supper, when he spotted Lynx, who had to be the biggest cat he had ever seen just wandering about. "Hey there... Are you a stray?" He had carefully crouched down and held a hand out to the cat. 

Lynx usually didn't bother interacting with people when he saw them, though the human male caught his eye. He stared at him for a few moments head butting his hand gently with a faint purr, he always enjoyed getting pets after all, and this man seemed pretty nice and also nice looking in his opinion. Lestat saw the interaction, but hung back, leaning against a wall as he watched his boyfriend interact with the human. He knew Lynx had pretty good instincts so he let him do as he pleased in this situation. The human chuckled softly and gently petted the cat. "Well, aren't you friendly? Such a big boy too." He cooed at the sweet cat. "No collar? How strange... You seem well fed, do you have an owner?” Lynx purred more when the other started petting him, head butting his hand a couple more times deciding he liked this human. He knew that Lestat would be close by so he rubbed his head against the humans legs gently a few times and started wandering back a bit the way he came, looking back to the other as if waiting for him to follow, tail slowly swaying.

Lestat watched from about half a block away, keen eyes on the human his boyfriend seemed to have picked. He was cute, and smelled sweet from what he could tell. Good. No drugs or alcohol in his system. Seemed like a young adult. An acceptable new person for them. Lynx knew what to look for when picking new people, he and Lestat did take turns at times but they each knew what to look for. He could sense this man would be a good fit. He glanced around as he led the human along and soon saw where Lestat was, double checking to make sure the area was pretty empty before leading the male over to him. Lynx went right up to his lover and hopped up into his arms, curling up close to him nuzzling him as he purred away, feeling quite happy with himself to have potentially found a good human. He did not just yet turn back to his human form as he wanted to make sure things were more in the clear, and that Lestat had a chance to talk to him as well.

The human looked a little hesitant when he was actually led to someone, but after a moment he decided to be friendly, and slowly made his way over too. "Hello Lynx, making friends?" Lestat asked his boyfriend playfully before turning his gaze to the human with a friendly enough smile. He wasn't one to simply scare humans off or hunt them for no good reason after all. There were other ways to be fed. The human looked a little surprised seeing the cat jump into the vampire's arms. He shifted a bit uncomfortably. "So he's yours?" Lestat laughed softly. "In a way you could say that. He seems to have taken a liking to you. He always picks well when it comes to humans." The other laughed nervously and shifted his weight again. "Ah yes..." He caught onto the human thing... And it was pretty clear Lestat was a vampire. Lestat gave a placeating smile to try and calm the human man. "I promise we mean no harm to you. In fact we only wish for a bit of help in exchange for a bit of help." He was always straightforward with the proposal.

Lynx watched the human as well, he could tell the other was nervous, easily being able to sense that. He figured maybe it would be easier if he joined in on the conversation shifting back into his human form. His hair was one of the shades from his fur and his eyes still the soft pale pink color. He snuggled up to Lestat still, despite being big for a cat he was small in his human form. "And you can decline our offer if you wish as well." He purred out with a small smile. The human looked even more surprised when Lynx was suddenly human, and took a step back but he was curious. If these two wanted to attack him they would have already. "What exactly are you proposing?" Lestat easily held his lover even after he shifted to his more human form. "Well every few decades we take on a new human companion to help us keep up with the times. In exchange we offer housing, scholarships, and other such financial and stability gains."

Lynx slowly looked the human over once again here ,almost a bit curiously just like before tilting his head a bit. "You seem like a good person for it from what I can tell." He said, nuzzling Lestat, keeping snuggled up close in his hold. "We have been around for a very long time and we enjoy the company of those who know about the time we are currently living." Lestat held out a business card of sorts to the human man with a friendly smile. "It is much easier to keep up with the times this way after all." The other took the card nervously and looked at it. "Um... I'll have to think about it..." He said with a small half shrug, taking another step back. 

Lynx shifted a little where he was, watching the other with a calm expression. "There is no rush, but please consider I have good feelings about you." He was still purring even though he was in human form. "Uh... Y-yeah... Okay..." The human said softly, before giving an awkward half wave. "Well... Um... Bye for now I guess." And with that he turned to leave, clearly seeming a bit overwhelmed. Lestat smiled after the human then gently nuzzled his boyfriend's cheek. "Give him time my love. We don't want to startle the poor boy too much after all." He said gently, setting Lynx down on his feet. Lynx sat there quietly watching the human leave, still with curiosity before turning his attention back to Lestat. "I know." He said with a small hum as he was set on his feet. "Too bad humans startle easily, I like him, he has good feelings around him. I think he will come around," he said, grabbing hold of his boyfriend's hand so they could walk home together.

Malik called a few days later, saying he would be willing to meet up and talk over the offer Lestat and Lynx made . Agreeing to meet at a little mom and pop diner. Lestat smiled at his lover when he hung up the phone. "Looks like you were right about that little human, he's agreed to a coffee date... Well Cocoa for you kitten, but either way, we may have a new companion. Lynx shifted where he was curled up on the others lap giving a small purr. "I figured he would." He said before giving a light frown. "But I like coffee…" He said with a small huff, though they both knew it would make him way too energetic and they didn't need that during this. 

Lestat gently scratched him behind one ear and pressed a sweet kiss to his lips. "Cocoa this time, coffee next time." He promised. Before gently getting up and carrying his lover off to their room. "Let's get ready." Lynx’s purring got louder when the other scratched him behind his ear, he leaned in closer smiling at the kiss and nodded his head a bit. "Okay deal." He pecked his lips once more, before wiggling out of Lestat’s hold once in their room to get himself dressed. Lestat went and got dressed as well, and put on a lot of strong sunscreen because it was only early evening and the sun was still out. He sunburned really easily which sucked. Lynx got dressed as well, making sure he looked nice, doing a bit of eye liner before he finished up to get his shoes on. "Do you want your hat too?" He questioned looking at the couple hats they owned. Usually he didn't bother himself since most people thought his ears were fake but he wanted to make sure his lover didn't get burned. Yes please." Lestat returned, reaching over Lynx's head to grab one, before gently offering his hand to his boyfriend. "Okay, ready to head out?" Lynx double checked to make sure he was good to go and reached out to grab hold of his boyfriend's hand with a smile. "Ready, let's get going." He was excited to be going out to meet the human he picked again, he had been very nice before and Lynx was hoping he would agree to their deal.

The trip to the diner wasn't too long, but by the time they got there Malik was already there. He actually worked there, but it was pretty laid back so he decided it would be a good place to meet. Lestat led Lynx in and saw the human at a table, he made his way over and made sure his boyfriend sat before taking his seat. Lestat ordered for the two of them, Cocoa and cookies for Lynx, and coffee for himself. "So, you're interested in our arrangement?" He asked. Malik gave a small nod. "Well I'm trying to get through school... And I could use some help..." He said softly. "What would being your... Uh... Helper work?" Lynx took a couple bites of the cookies he got happily licking at his lips a bit before tilting his head. "Well like we mentioned before we like to make sure we are keeping up with the times, the stuff we see compared to actually doing it ourselves is very different. It's easier when we don't stand out a lot." He said before taking a small sip of his drink. "We've both been around for a couple hundred years so we have a lot of, well, different years behind us to say." 

"And in return we offer housing, financial stability, and can even pay for your schooling. We do provide companionship, but it's not a necessity, as we are already dating and have been for about a hundred years."Lestat added on. Malik thought hard about it for a while, then gave a small nod. "Okay... I'll do it."

That is what i find so frustrating about TO. You have to be on another level of crap storywriting, if you have all the characters you need there in front of you on a plate yet instead of using your creativity and working with what you have you conjure up a baby plot revolving around a character no one even asked for. The whole reason we wanted TO as a show was to see more of TO family. These are supernatural creatures that have lived 1000 years yet theyre reduced to soap opera storylines. 1/2

I was really slow to pick up on the fact that TO wasnt going to be the show we all asked for. I wasnt really an active part of the fandom on social media then so didnt know what was going on so when TO was announced i stupidly thought this is going to be amazing, a plot about the original family. By that point i was sick of damon and most of TVD characters and was rooting for klaus to kill them all lol. It wasn't till the scene where Rebekah's driving away from NOLA in her car i (2/3)

Realised that she's actually leaving for good. I still thought in my head that this is just part of the plot but then i found out Claire left and i realised that this baby plot is actually what the show is, and not the show i was expecting so i stopped watching for a long time. Maybe i was just stupid because the pilot did make it clear it was about a baby plot and not TO family. Also weird how elijah was barely in TVD, rebekah was in it more yet Elijah was more prominent in TO. (3/3)

--- 

I honestly believe that JP never cared or wanted to write for vampires. She doesn’t have the knack or the talent for that genre. She does not grasp it. She does not care for it. I think she was there to fill in the blanks for Kevin and together they made a decent team. Kevin had the genre down up to a point and was good with the plot and the characterization and Julie could sprinkle some soap to the ships and the emotional drama and that combination actually fit. 

It is no wonder that once Kevin was out everything became a shipping soup and by the end of it everyone seemed to have one goal. To be human. To act human. To get the white fence, the babies, the normal life. Which would be find for a drama soap or show concerning humans but was catastrophic for the kind of genre show TVD was and what TO was meant to be but never was. I mean how many vampires were even left in the end? Not just those that died but those that turned...human. Come on now. JP wanted to have her cake and eat it too. She didn’t care for TO in the way a genre writer should and would. She wanted to get her baby soap and that was the only chance she actually had to go through with it. Everything else of hers that didn’t belong to the TVD franchise was getting cancelled in their pilots or before their first seasons even finished airing. And in general as a writer she writers for the telenovela kind of soap and she can’t separate in her mind church from state in the way that she couldn’t divide what she wanted as a fan from what she should write as a professional. She believed it to be one and the same and when it would not work she would throw everyone else under the bus so to avoid responsibility and then she would try to make it work anyway. Well... newsflash Felicia!

I on the other hand however was not in the same boat you were where TO was concerned. 

By the time S4 of TVD had reached its middle I was seeing things I hated. When they killed Kol while they were planning for the spin-off my mind was on red alert. I knew by that time how JP operated. It was obvious. I already knew her ways with the fans from Kyle XY too. Then I heard Phoebe had signed first. BEFORE Joseph while they had killed off Kol so Nate wouldn’t be part of the show. I saw where that Klayley trainwreck was leading. I already knew JP’s lack of talent and her inability to actually create intellectual plots and twists. So I was suspicious. I wanted this to actually work. I was an Original groupie first. I was rooting for the Original to get their own show but not in that way. It was like I watching a crash happening and I could not avert my eyes while everyone else was not seeing it.  I was voicing my concerns back then and I remember that the fandom kind of saw me like the crazy lady in the lot but when the backdoor pilot aired I was 100% sure of what TO was going to be. Rebekah was regressed to a supporting cameo ffs! Kol was dead. Klaus was OOC crying in the streets next to his lunch that was obviously by the promotional interviews and the way they framed it in the backdoor pilot meant to be his love interest with what I saw from the gifs later (since I had never finished the backdoor pilot because when they threw the twilight scene I was out) was a copy of a KC scene with the whole art but meant to be more ‘deep’. The whole episode had some cinematic moments that were okay and I remember liking that they had used the Lafayette cemetery from Interview with the Vampire. The soundtrack seemed awesome. Marcel actually seemed interesting. And then...the baby crap and I was out. Back then before the backdoor pilot had even aired Joseph Morgan had said in an interview that if he was in charge some things may have been differently done. But then I remember thinking...oh crap...and then the episode actually aired and OH CRAP.

I never bothered with TO. 

I dropped TVD like a bad habit when S4 ended and saw the ridiculousness with the doppelganger nonsense. At that point given everything JP was doing I found it really hard to understand how people could hold on to hope when it came to her and her writing. I was trying to warn people from the fandom left and right. Because I had honestly gotten truly attached not only with the ship but with the fandom too and I didn’t want people to get their hopes up and get treated as I was seeing them get treated. I was seeing it, I was speaking about it and understandably most people believed me to be irrational. I remember even people that I was close with and still am to give me the sideeye and be okaaay then.

By the time the official pilot aired along with TO’s first season I was 100% they would cut out the KC phonecall scene that was only meant to be a hook to get the green light for the backdoor pilot rather than anything else. The seen was cut of course.

But then I remember thinking that any responsible writer would aim to get a crossover as soon as possible and get Caroline there even to create a closure small arc to span in the two shows slowly (as they did with BTVS and ATS) but then they were all about saying how logistics were not working and the universes were going to be separated and I was still unable to understand how people actually had hope when the people in charge had no talent to do the basics and were so reluctant. The warning bells were there. Kudos to the DCTV universe for actually going for the crossovers in parallel back then so to show to everyone how the excuses the TO writers and producers were using were just that...excuses.

I was out for sure but I remember that I still kept an eye out to what blogs I followed reblogged and I remember when I realized how sloppy TO actually was. I remember seeing a gifset from a flashback of Klaus that aimed to be a visual parallel to Lestat from Interview with the Vampire only in the lore of the TVD franchise it was from before he broke his curse and he was shown with double fangs and golden eyes that were Hybrid traits. They actually didn’t bother to keep the basics of their main lead consistent for crying out loud. I don’t remember from which episode that gifset actually was. Only that it was from the first episodes and I was like...come on!

I remember I basically muted and unfollowed many blogs back then so to get my dash clean from that mess.

Anyhow I then returned for the 100th episode of TVD. When 5x11 of TVD was meant to air and the promos were out I was insisting that anything else that a kiss would be bad news for KC. I didn’t want to ruin everyone’s excitement but I was just getting a bad feeling about it especially after knowing JP’s track record. It was just too obvious to my eyes and it would be a regression in the development KC had up to that point. You DON’T narratively speaking -from a writing perspective- go from one cheek to the kiss to the whole sex when the characters are in different shows forming different attachment and ships if you don’t meant to wrap up the story. Which would mean leaving fans high and dry after leading them along. By that time TO was doing well in the ratings and I knew JP only cared for that and the KC fandom was not needed in her mind. I had made posts about it warning people again before 5x11 had aired. I remember I had even gotten some aggressive asks from KC fans about spoiling their fun and being negative without an actual reason. Then 5x11 airs, the sex scene is there (all sloppy to just get it out of the way...bad directing, not bothering with a song, giving the bare minimum) and JP goes all out and gives the interview about the KC closure minutes after the episode airs so to ruin everyone’s parade. Then there was the bomb with Claire’s exit which in my eyes was pending anyway ever since I had heard Claire had wanted to stay in TVD but was given an ultimatum only for her to be barely there in the backdoor pilot.

So generally speaking when it came to TO I was never hopeful. Not when JP was in charge. Not when they hired Carina out of all people for their writing team. Carina that hated Klaus and the KC fans. Not when they were disrespecting KCers from day one. Not when they were disrespecting the Kol fans. Not when Daniel was out there saying that once we would meet the new girl we would forget all about KC (which was said before TO’s first season aired so it was obvious that everyone was lying about Klaus not having a love interest). Not when the cast was mocking a whole fandom. Not when the conflicting interviews kept coming. Not when they had hired the gossip girl writers and producers and no one bothered with the actual genre. Not when...not when...not when...the list kept going. 

I kept my criticism and my predictions going and I remember being patient because most people believed me to be crazy (which I am generally but not when it came to that so I could understand the confusion) 

....and flash forward and here we are. 

Although, admittedly, certain things did surprise me on a real life level, at first anyway, because fictional stuff aside I could never believe that certain people could act in the way they did (losing flights? getting into twitter fights, picking out fans, and even calling them assholes in podcasts? on and on), but otherwise I never had any expectations to begin with so most things didn’t surprise me and yes I did earn the right to go ‘I told you so’...which I tried to tone it down many times but sometimes it was just too fun to resist. 

Claudia asks Louis to spend Christmas with both dads at Gabs' cabin. Louis is horrified but feels desperately guilty that she has to split time between him and Lestat because he's Louis (discuss careers) so says yes

Louis talks to Gabs to organise the cabin, secretly hoping she'd say no but she's up for it, makes wry comment about if he and Lestat will behave (allude to break up stuff)

Louis talks to Lestat, he's very into it and promises to organise all the travel, leave it up to him (allude to Lestat being immature and unorganised)

Louis whines to Marie, momentarily wishes kombucha he bought is wine (mention alcoholism, have Marie & Claudia relationship established, establish that Louis wants to look cultured and fancy but... isn't)

Time passes (Louis gets time off work, Claudia has her birthday, ramp up to Christmas, Louis panics about whether to get Lestat a present, general anxiety but: he restructured his entire life for her, he gave up his dreams of being a writer and took a boring accounting job, he split up with the love of his life for her to protect her from their issues, HE CAN PUT UP WITH LESTAT BEING AN ASSHOLE FOR A COUPLE DAYS)

Day One: Lestat rocks up in a sports car with snow tires, baggage only just fits, they tag team entertaining Claudia on the drive, listen to Disney songs, take turns driving, when Claudia falls asleep Lestat switches it to his own music and it's really good??? Very inconvenient (reference Lestat's music career history), get to hotel and there's two double beds, Lestat shares with Claudia, Louis turns round and sees TATTOOS and SOFT DAD INTERACTIONS and immediately runs off to take a (cold) shower before bed

Day Two: travel goes smoothly, Louis didn't sleep well and can't stop thinking about how hot Lestat is so is Grumpy Pants, he and Lestat have some close calls on arguments, very tense, then it starts snowing, they keep driving but break down, will be over an hour before the breakdown folks get there, only one blanket and Claudia is getting worryingly cold, they're starting to get concerned when a TRUSTWORTHY UNIFORM AUTHORITY MAN (police? Ranger?) turns up on a bike and offers to take Claudia to the diner in the nearest town to warm up, they reluctantly let her go (swap numbers, look at his badge, take down his bike reg, etc) then SHARE THE BLANKET… Lestat blames himself, emotional and horny moment, wind up making out obviously, then breakdown people turn up and interrupt them, they collect Claudia and book in at a motel with one double bed (Claudia sleeps between them… for warmth of course)

Day Three: Louis sleeps in and wakes up to Lestat and Claudia being adorable dancing and making breakfast in the kitchenette (reference when Claudia was a baby), Louis is high key having Feels by this point, they make it to the cabin and Gabs is already set up, the Tension cools off a bit

they mostly get along with a bit of bickering but generally... it's really NICE. Worryingly nice. Louis is really enjoying himself actually, if he could just get over how FRUSTRATINGLY ATTRACTIVE Lestat is insisting on being. And also... surprisingly... grown up? Like, still fun and goofy like always, but he's also being responsible and doing his fair share of actual parenting? And Louis is. Feeling some kinda way about this.

Christmas Eve: they do Christmassy shit and it's cute and fun, and Lestat absolutely gets out a guitar and does carols and sings with Claudia and Louis is just internally combusting. He says goodnight to Claudia and helps tuck her in, then goes out onto a balcony to clear his head. Gabs follows him out and sits with him and is like "So." And Louis just frantically word vomits at her about how Lestat has grown UP and got so good at this, and isn't being awful any more, and he shouldn't be feeling like this and he can't do anything because it's not fair on Claudia, what if it doesn't work out, she'll just get hurt again, oh god, this is a mess.

And Gabs is like "have you considered having any communication about this whatsoever with Lestat" and he is like NO OF COURSE NOT!!!!! And Gabs just sighs and is like "have you considered the fact that a lack of communication is partly what destroyed your relationship before" and Louis is like. Fucking. Dammit. You're right. And Gabs exits stage left with another deep sigh because oh my god, these morons.

Then naturally Lestat comes out with hot chocolate and they sit together quietly and drink. And Louis says, very softly, that he's had a really good time. And Lestat is like, were you expecting to not have a good time? And Louis gives him a flat look and points out that last time they were together for more than an hour at a time they wound up having a screaming row. And Lestat says, well, we've changed. And Louis reaches over and squeezes his hand and says, I know.

AND THEN THEY KISS

AS THE SNOW FALLS

(Louis demands they go to couples therapy)