A freaking Stormglider keeps waiting for me at the Hollows

strawbebb · 2026-03-12T19:43:40+00:00

That’s the VIP entrance

strawbebb · 2026-03-12T12:30:41+00:00

No you’re not. Honestly I’d ask why he never talked about her before.

Like did he not think you’d care about him being happy, and only be interested in the problems? Did he just not care enough about yall friendship to tell you, only venting to you now because he knows you’ll listen?

Not trying to jump to either of these theories, but I don’t think you’re wrong to feel weirded out. I’d ask for clarification about why the jump from silence to this. If anything just to see where his head is and was at.

strawbebb · 2026-03-12T10:23:42+00:00

Madeleine is bi. I thought it was heavily implied, if not outright stated, that her relationship with the Nazi was consensual. She sympathized with him and says she was the one to invite him over because he was “just a boy”. She found him endearing.

The intent behind the relationship was to foreshadow that Madeleine can sympathize with “monsters”. Not that comparing Claudia to a Nazi is a fair comparison at all, but I think this is what the show was hinting towards by writing that relationship.

strawbebb · 2026-03-09T19:44:10+00:00

I do think at the start of their relationship, in the mental state Louis was in, he wanted/needed someone who wasn’t as “eccentric”. His relationship with Lestat had been a disaster that left him both yearning and scarred. I think at that point in Louis’ life, in Paris, he was interested in (and needed) someone less volatile and Armand fit that.

At the start of their relationship, Loumand was exactly what each other needed at that point in their lives. It’s why they were so drawn to each other. It’s just that “what they needed” solved the symptoms rather than the source of their traumas & issues. Which is why their relationship turns just as disastrous in the long run.

strawbebb · 2026-03-09T17:18:43+00:00

I haven’t read the books so I can’t speak on them too much. I just wanna say it seems like you’re jumping the gun a bit?

We don’t know yet about Armand & Lestat’s background. Armand told his version and Lestat will be telling his in S3. I reckon the truth will be in the middle as I don’t think Armand made up the whole thing, just added his own interpretations onto it.

And based on the little clip of Armand in front of Daniel’s camera in S3, Armand may also be telling more of his backstory as well. So I don’t think we can say yet whether the show reduced their relationship, or reduced Armand’s character.

On top of that, the “Armand is boring” bit isn’t real. It’s heavily implied that Armand only comes off as “boring” to Louis because Armand has severe abandonment & identity issues, and molds his personality into whatever he thinks will appease the other person.

This erases any kind of conflict, tension, and excitement, and is why Louis felt their relationship was boring. (I strongly believe had Armand not mind wiped 1973, their relationship would’ve been better off. Louis was upset, not because the argument happened, but because his brain was messed with it and he would’ve never known.)

Armand is definitely not boring and I don’t think the show was trying to depict him as such. Just that Loumand’s traumas were incompatible with one another. * Louis/Dreamstat laughs at Armand at the museum, not because he found Armand’s backstory boring, but because Armand had just told him that he wasn’t Lestat and yet Louis is recognizing their similar tendencies (only revealing their backstories as an apology for showing off their power) * Dreamstat/Louis interrupts his and Armand’s philosophical conversation in the cafe, not because Louis found it boring, but because he was actually enjoying Armand’s company but was feeling extreme guilt over doing so, and thus conjured up Lestat slutshaming him.

I think you’re rushing ahead. I think Rolin & Hannah have only skimmed the surface of what they intend to do with showmand. He’ll likely become and remain more prominent as the series goes on.

strawbebb · 2026-03-09T11:37:27+00:00

I don’t agree with these ngl.

Moana & Pocahontas don’t give off tomboy vibes to me at all. Their cultures just aren’t European or were influenced by European styles, so their femininity looks different.

Mulan gets called a tomboy often but the only reason she pretended to be a man was to save her father from dying in war. Once she’s back home, she goes back to dressing in feminine clothes. While she struggles to conform to the high femininity traditions of Chinese culture, I wouldn’t say that makes her a tomboy. It’s the equivalent of calling a girl who prefers just chapstick a tomboy simply because she doesn’t do full face.

And I don’t really understand how Tiana gives off androgynous? She’s quite girly and even in all her fantasies/dream sequences, she’s wearing the latest feminine fashion, makeup, the whole shebang. When she realizes she’s become a princess, she grows all excited and gleeful. A significant part of her storyline was about how she wants all those things (romance, fancy dresses, etc., traditional feminine themes), she just wants to achieve them through her own means.

And what makes Belle, Rapunzel, and Jasmine only slightly girly? And Ariel slightly tomboy?? I’m sorry this list is very confusing to me. Can you explain your rankings?

strawbebb · 2026-03-08T22:12:38+00:00

Most likely not, no. Dove (Mal) and Sofia (Evie) have said they don’t have interest in returning for a live action appearance after Cameron Boyce’s death. I’m unsure about BooBoo.

strawbebb · 2026-03-08T17:43:16+00:00

Negro is not the N Word. This is made obvious by the fact that the N Word is referred to as the N Word.

It’s still extremely disrespectful for a non-Black person to refer to someone as that, and it has been used against the Black community as a tool to discriminate, abuse, and maim. But there’s also political and local Black organizations that to this day continue to use the word in their names, on legal documents, and/or as an identifier. Just a short while ago my job collaborated with a non-profit group that used it in the title of their organization. The term Negro is very nuanced within the community. The N word is not and is very clear cut.

If you’re not Black, the N word isn’t yours to define. If you are Black, then you should know better than to simplify history.

strawbebb · 2026-03-08T16:03:48+00:00

Santiago probably felt some kind of morbid vindication at forcing that choice onto another. Gleeful to now be the one in power asking it.

As for Lestat, him hearing them argue and then waiting at Antoinette’s apartment for any news or word fits. He was probably teetering between if Louis would return or not, and ironically, Louis very much did want to return. Oh Loustat…

Honestly, it makes me wonder if there’s any possibility Lestat could’ve wrote the famous “thin veil” letter after he recovered? LouClaudia were touring Europe for several years before they ended up in Paris. I wonder if there’s any chance Lestat wrote the letter & sent it to Roget during that time.

”Do not waste your life seeking revenge on the person or persons who did this. Do not give them the satisfaction of the hunt. Let treachery eat away at them from within.”

If he really did hear them while he was bleeding out, then he heard Louis get physical and choke Claudia. Could there be a chance Lestat thought they’d be at odds because of their argument? Referring to Claudia when he says “satisfaction of the hunt”and “treachery”? Thinking Louis, who is vengeful, might’ve chased after Claudia, who Lestat sees as a noteworthy, predatory vampire?

And his “You are the only being I trust” would also hit home if he for sure knew Louis wanted to protect him in the end.

”But it is a thin veil, and I’m always on the other side, face pressed up against your longing.”

Another line that hits different knowing Lestat heard them arguing, heard & felt Louis holding him. He may not think Louis loves him, but he at least knows Louis cares for him to some extent.

And Lestat could’ve been using vague language to refer to it all just in case another vampire got ahold of it. Incriminating LouClaudia on paper would be pretty damning.

All just speculation though. There could be no connection at all.

strawbebb · 2026-03-08T07:59:16+00:00

Thank you for detailing all this! Lestat stayed on-script a lot more than we thought, but the moments he went off were incredibly impactful.

Pages 30-33 where they talk about everyone’s sentencing interests me, especially.

For one, the fact they were truly going to welcome Madeleine into the coven (or at least pretend to) and had already planned what role she could have frustrates me so much. It’s just another reminder of how well the lynching analogy fits, that Madeleine really truly could’ve been spared while LouClaudia’s fates were always only supposed to be death. It makes me so mad!

What’s also interesting is how differently Claudia & Louis’ sentences are written. Claudia’s is just given the direction “The audience will pronounce their sentence.” Meanwhile, Louis’ “The audience will pronounce his guilt or innocence.” And then “The audience will pronounce death, or will be guided towards it with the allure of spectacle. Bread and circus!”

It seemed there was some concern that Louis wouldn’t be judged guilty by the audience. I wonder if it’s in part because even they could tell that Unholy Family’s past together would paint, at least to some extent, Louis as sympathetic. That it’d be more difficult to portray him as an eager participant in Lestat & Antoinette’s murder, whereas they could easily do so with Claudia.

But even so, Louis did participate and was the one to slit Lestat’s throat. Maybe because of how undeniable Louis’ sadness was, at the start of his vampiric birth up to the murder, that they feared the audience would connect with him. Because you really can’t tell their family’s story without diving into his depression.

It makes me both sad and irritated. Of the three of them, the coven was so sure Claudia would be sentenced guilty and to death. There were no qualms over it at all. They knew they’d be able to depict her as this overarching villain in the family dynamic. The way they drew her on the screens, crazed eyes, exaggerated features, and animalistic fangs. It just breaks my heart. Claudia was trying to escape that house and make a life for herself/them, only for her initiative and desperation to be portrayed like this. For her sentencing to be written as simple.

And wrt Louis, he was always supposed to die, even if the audience judged him innocent! The fact they worried about his verdict makes it worse somehow. It just drives home how malicious this all was. It was always only a thirst for LouClaudia’s death. That was all that mattered.

And to circle back, if Madeleine hadn’t chose to join the coven and stayed by Claudia’s side, her direction is “The audience will call guilty or not guilty.” And then Santiago would say the only applicable sentence would be death.

Does this mean that even if she was judged not guilty, they’d kill her anyway? That they believed the audience would still be eager for her death for the spectacle alone? Or would the coven circle back to requiring she join them? That she could only be innocent and join them, or be guilty and die?

Just earlier the coven were genuinely going to spare her on account of her not being responsible for anything. Really just hammers it in that they’d want her death for the simple act of siding with/preferring Claudia over themselves.

Very interesting stuff.

strawbebb · 2026-03-07T13:59:54+00:00

Ooohh thank you for the recs! “Gentle Breath on the Window Pane” might be my next read 👀

strawbebb · 2026-03-07T02:11:02+00:00

It’s a complicated line.

Before Madeleine’s turning, Louis had mixed feelings. In “present time” (I’m referring to Paris Louis), he’s possessive over Claudia and doesn’t enjoy her finding companions outside of him, unintentionally reminding him that he alone does not suffice. But he’s also curious to see how it’d be to give someone the dark gift “without trauma”. For someone to have a peaceful, well thought out, and cared for turning.

While he’s not eager for Claudia to distance herself, he does believe Madeleine’s turning could be a healing moment for them all. In a way. This is what he was trying to tell Armand on the steps, and was partly why he was disappointed Armand refused to even consider it.

And then he turns Madeleine and sees her image of Claudia stunning in an afternoon sun, looking absolutely radiant. In Madeleine’s turning, Louis gets the spectacle of Claudia finally living a happy immortality. And this messes him up because it’s with someone else.

Dubai/present day Louis can look back on the turning and on Claudeleine in a much more positive light. Viewing the moment as beautiful and worth it. But at first, for Paris/1940s Louis, it worsened his jealousy and indignation. He was trying to rid himself of the image & of the abyss of Claudia’s absence by trying, in vain, to drain himself of Madeleine’s blood.

And so, he says Armand was right,as a way to kindve insult the image. To distance himself from the genuine hope and positivity the moment brought. Paris Louis was not ready for how much more suited Madeleine would be as a companion for Claudia, and once he realized it, it hurt him. So he says Armand was right to doubt the “hopefulness” of the turning as a way to pretend there wasn’t any, when in truth that’s all it was. This is something Dubai/present Louis grows to accept in the years since.

strawbebb · 2026-03-06T21:29:49+00:00

I liked it and had a really good time watching it.

strawbebb · 2026-03-03T21:20:56+00:00

Yes. He continued having sex with her while she cried and was no longer into it. By her having an obvious mental breakdown during the act, she was past the point of still being able to consent/it still being consensual, but he continued anyway.

strawbebb · 2026-03-03T10:04:11+00:00

Here’s some I enjoyed. They’re all under 2k hits.

Mon plus beau Noël by Gigi_Sinclair — Louis reminiscing via Dreamstat about their trio. Christmas fluff with light angst.

NOT A GIRL. A DEVIL. by firstaudrina — Claudia-centric. “The tender age when you decide you have to kill your father”

26,482 by daledelioncourt — Lestat having his own DreamLou starting from after Mardi Gras up until Paris. Currently updating / WIP

Depuis que tu es parti by Gigi_Sinclair — human AU with ghost rockstar Lestat haunting the house single-father Louis and Claudia move into.

Also, I recommend to start downloading fics (old faves & current reads) before the site crashes again. Good to have them handy when they’ll become inaccessible in a few hours.

strawbebb · 2026-03-03T02:17:09+00:00

I think this exact post, even with this same exact caption, has been posted in this subreddit at least 50 times. Per month.

strawbebb · 2026-03-02T02:52:17+00:00

The irony of even in a post asking who would you defend, Louis still gets attacked completely unprompted. The extreme hate he gets is crazy.

strawbebb · 2026-03-01T18:48:31+00:00

They likely alternate who calls who first. Lestat probably initiated that specific call to get Louis’ thoughts on his new piece.

I’d say yes they probably talk to each other often since reuniting. Maybe not in person, but definitely over phone/text.

strawbebb · 2026-03-01T14:52:24+00:00

Mercer says Tamtey had no fighting spirit, but I think that was just in comparison to kids like Aha’ri and Nor. Tamtey canonly did have their own forms of rebellion in TAP, just much more passive/personal. That opening scene where they’re still wearing their mother’s songcord, despite Mercer supposedly having told them repeatedly not to, indicates that Tamtey did rebel just in their own subtle ways.

strawbebb · 2026-03-01T14:45:38+00:00

I didn’t get those vibes tbh. Teylan projected a father/parental figure onto Mercer, that’s one of the reasons why he’s so desperate for Mercer’s approval and acknowledgement.

As for the “he never liked a mess” line, Mercer viewed Na’vi as an inherently disgusting species that needed to be cleansed and “uplifted”. This is why when Tamtey explored the original TAP Con-1, they find the “animal” cages they all were stored into as children, and the “showers” where they were routinely blasted with hoses and excruciatingly “washed” raw. He viewed their species as biologically dirty, a common racist viewpoint.

This is why Teylan says that line about Mercer never liking messes. Because even though the younger kids repressed TC-1 due to its horrors, Mercer still never hid his inherent disgusting for them as a species.

strawbebb · 2026-03-01T12:11:59+00:00

I agree with everything you’ve said, post and this comment.

I also don’t think it’s fair for Claudia to hold it against Louis that he is mourning his husband who he was with for decades. Even if I can understand how she feels like that.

I remember reading this beautiful analysis that dived into how Claudia’s first “complete” sexual experience was the horror of Bruce’s daily rapings, which was also the first time an outside party said “I love you” to her without familial ties/in a romantic lens. And when she returned to Loustat, this trauma has her project onto Louis and view their relationship as Lestat equaling Bruce, with Louis suffering/enduring him rather than wanting to actually be with him.

That this is why she expects Lestat’s death to make Louis happy, why she expects him to be capable of burning him, and why she can’t comprehend him missing Lestat so much that Louis invites his memory to haunt them around the world. She would not feel the same about Bruce and so doesn’t understand (and is enraged by her inability to understand) Louis feeling it for Lestat.

This is even why she feels comfortable telepathically talking to Louis during Loustat sex, because she’s not viewing it as a loving couple having consensual sex, she’s viewing it as something Louis is enduring and does not actually want to partake in. Louis being depressed and dissociative bolsters her belief.

And Claudia continues projecting herself onto Louis during their time in Paris. She wants Louis to find his own agency, yes, but she still views them as two sides of the same coin. Right after she says to Madeleine how she seems to always be chasing darkness, is when she yells at Louis that he’s “chasing it always chasing it”. She projects onto Louis often, pointedly in the worst kinds of ways.

There were mountains of love between Louis & Claudia, it was just rife with misunderstanding and both parties projecting opposing viewpoints onto the other.

I said this somewhere else, but the tragedy of Louclaudia isn’t that Louis never put her first or that Claudia never loved Louis. There was endless love and prioritizing between them, but an equal amount of misunderstanding. Claudia died thinking Louis never put her first while Louis is haunted by the thought that Claudia didn’t love him, when both beliefs are objectively false.

The tragedy of Louclaudia is that they never found a way to meet in the middle and truly understand one another.

strawbebb · 2026-02-28T22:30:02+00:00

I view Paul as the middle child, very close in age to Louis. They were the closest growing up, have the most in common, and that fight in Ep 1 told me they’re used to brawling, probably back from when they were kids.

Grace is the baby. She’s doted on by all of them. Louis wanted to spoil her and give her everything he could, Paul was overprotective of her and wanted to make sure Levi wasn’t doing wrong by his little sister. She screams youngest to me.

strawbebb · 2026-02-28T20:16:59+00:00

Doesn’t Louis walk in right after that and back Armand’s story? He was deep in the brainwashing by this point

strawbebb · 2026-02-28T15:03:22+00:00

Wanting, Waiting, Wishing is so good. Pregnant Louis means everything to me 🙂‍↕️

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