#i mean take Lady Dimitrescu over here as an example...

[the-insomniac-emporium]

Marriage HCs (RE8 Ladies)

{When do they realize they want to marry you? How do they propose? What do their vows entail? Any specific honeymoon ideas? All this and more, for the (main) Ladies of Resident Evil: Village!} {Notes: Mother Miranda's section is extra long, as it includes a not-exactly-marriage ceremony as well as actual marriage HCs} {Under read more for length, at 6,200~ words}

Alcina Dimitrescu:

When she realizes she wants to marry you: Having been born in a time where she thought she may never be able to marry the love of her life, marriage is not something that quickly comes to mind for Alcina. For a long, long time she has been content with the idea of simply being with her lover. In order for her to consider proposing, a few things must happen: First, you must make at least one (1) comment about marriage, even if you don’t suggest that the two of you get married. For example, you could comment about a lovely ceremony you witnessed last time you went to the central village. Second, at least two of her children must ask her if she intends to marry you.

After all, family is everything to Alcina. She could never spend her (eternal) life with someone that her daughters didn’t approve of, and while by this point you will have earned their respect, it is another question entirely if they want you around permanently. But when they see just how happy you make their mother? And when you show them the same love that she does? Well, they cannot help but encourage their mother to ensure that you stay in their little family. With their motivation, Alcina finally decides to take things one step further. She had been content to spend the rest of her life with you already, but now your bond will be legally recognized, with no one able to misinterpret the nature of your engagement (pun intended) with one another.

How she proposes: Overall, it’s a fairly typical proposal. Every once in a while the two of you have a special date night, and it’s on one of these that Alcina pops the question. You’ll be curled up against her side on the balcony (on one of the warmer nights, no worries), gazing out at all the stars. To your surprise, Alcina will sing softly for you, an old jazzy love song on a record player as her accompaniment. Once the song is over, she’ll give a little speech.

“In all my years, I never thought that I would meet someone who means as much to me as you do. Yet here I am, love spilling forth from my chest like a mountain spring, in awe of the feelings which you give me. There is nothing I want more than to spend the rest of my endless days with you by my side… will you do me the honor of marrying me?” Then she’ll pull the ring box from where she hid it earlier, popping it open for you to admire. When you say yes, she’ll smile wider than she normally does, as she very carefully slides the ring onto your finger. The next morning, she will announce the engagement to her family and senior staff members. Be ready for your step-children to surround you in a very nice hug.

What the wedding is like: Technically the Village has its own marriage traditions, but for the most part inhabitants are welcome to adhere to their personal desires (without any judgment). In the case of your wedding to Alcina, there is only one truly important local tradition, due to your soon-to-be wife’s status as nobility: When the two of you sign the marriage certificate, you will use a quill fashioned from one of Mother Miranda’s feathers. Miranda herself will attend the wedding, but only part of it, to officially recognize you as a member of House Dimitrescu.

The main portion of the wedding will primarily be a family affair, inside the castle itself. Only your closest friends from the village, as well as Donna Beneviento, will get to be guests. Decorations will be at least somewhat traditional (flower centerpieces on every table, two-toned banners hung across windows, an ornate chandelier in the center of the room), with a strong dose of Dimitrescu flair (napkins with the house crest embroidered on the fabric, blood-red candles spread around the room, drinks supplied by the family business, at least a hint of a gothic aesthetic, etc), with plenty of opportunity for anything you’ve always wanted. Alcina herself has very little in mind, having gone so long without expecting to get married. What matters most to her is ensuring that her daughters each get to play a part.

Daniela will want to be the flower girl, Cassandra may very well be involved in making the rings (and will want to bear them), and Bela will want to officiate the wedding (because she knows Mother Miranda won’t). It may be more traditional to have a priest play that role, but the Village isn’t exactly normal enough for that.

The second half of the wedding is a (semi) public reception. Considering Alcina’s status in the village, just about all of the citizens will want to help celebrate. Few are actually considered important enough to get into the venue (the castle courtyard). Those that are may add their gifts to the table, or speak to Alcina and you in an attempt to curry favor, or they may simply partake in the festivities with mostly genuine smiles. Anyone who tries too hard to get your wife’s attention will likely find themselves being “shooed” away by your daughters. Further into the village, the less important members of society will still have their own ways to celebrate. Merchants might put on sales, artists may dedicate new works to the lovely couple, and the clergymen may sing praises to the Mother and the Four Lords (may they all find love as endearing as Lady Dimitrescu).

What her vows entail: “In all my years, I never expected anyone to warm my heart the way that you have. Eternity seemed to be a lonely prospect, in regards to love, with none at my side. But you have spared me that greet aching. I promise to love you, cherish you, and protect you. I promise to stay by your side through whatever comes our way, my devotion unending, my affection unwavering, and my attention unfettered. For all of time, from now until the end of the world, for nothing but total annihilation could ever separate you from me.”

Honeymoon ideas: Due to her, ahem, “stature”, Lady Dimitrescu is regrettably unable to leave the village itself. However, the two of you are delighted to receive an invitation from Donna Beneviento, who offers to let you spend a weekend in her guest house (which is larger than one would expect). The view of the waterfall is breathtaking, and there’s enough room for a couple servants to accompany you, if you so wish.

Bela Dimitrescu:

When she realizes she wants to marry you: Although she does not take as much time as her mother, Bela does take a fair amount of time to decide to propose. It’s something that she thinks about fairly often, however, as part of her way of “checking in” on herself. Essentially, she periodically goes over a mental list of her relationships with others, her current projects, and her emotions in general, to see if there’s anything she needs to work on. For the most part the goal is to help her manage her anxiety, but it also ensures that she’s very in tune with the state of her relationship with you. It’s during one of these check-ins that she realizes she wants to marry you, and she’s instantly filled with a sense of warmth. Still, she’ll subtly try to make sure that you’re on the same page before she actually proposes. The last thing she’d want is to make you feel pressured.

How she proposes: Prior to her proposal, Bela will start hinting at the idea of marriage, both gauging your interest and revealing her own. She’ll mention that you’ve been together for a long time, that she’s got an incredibly long life ahead of her, and that there’s no one she’d rather spend that life with than you. Assuming that you respond positively, she’ll begin to plan out the perfect day to spend with you. Chances are she’ll also talk to each member of her family, both getting their approval (which they give without any hesitation) and asking for their advice (which they give perhaps too eagerly, considering that none of them are married), wanting their assistance with setting up the proposal. Or at least her mother’s help. Honestly, Bela mainly just wants to make sure that her siblings agree to keep any shenanigans to a minimum (preferably suspending them for the entire day).

As for her actual plan, that depends a bit on your personal preferences. Over the years that the two of you have been together, you’ve come to enjoy certain hobbies together, as one of your favorite ways to spend time with one another. There will be at least one hobby that you didn’t pick up at all until after you started dating Bela. That will be what she’ll start your “perfect day” with. Just the two of you enjoying an activity that your relationship grew around, somewhere nice and quiet (where Daniela won’t accidentally spoil the surprise with her excitement). Then she’ll take you up to the castle’s observatory, where you can gaze out at pretty much the entirety of her family’s property, and the endless night sky. Bela will guide you over to a telescope she set up earlier, which for once won’t be pointed towards the heavens. Instead it’s focused on the gardens (illuminated by hanging lanterns) that the two of you have spent so much time in. Specifically, in the center will be a new feature that makes your heart skip a beat: A wedding arch. As soon as you pull yourself away from the telescope, you’ll turn to see Bela already down on one knee, holding out an engagement ring.

“There is no one else I could ever walk the world with, no one who I would overcome any obstacle for, none whose company lights such a roaring fire within my chest. My mouth goes dry, and my heart races so fast that the beats blend together into an endless hum, and my hands shake, and I tremble before the unshakeable force that is your love. All my life I have thought myself to be a whole person- that I am enough, on my own. But with you… I am more than whole. I never want to be just whole again. Will you promise to sync your heart with my own, from now until forever? Will you be my muse, my lover, the one who gives me faith? Will you marry me?”

What the wedding is like: Late Spring/early Summer wedding, no negotiation. She’s worked damn hard on her garden (even if technically the castle’s servants did most of the dirty work), and she wants to make sure that as many of the flowers are in bloom as possible when the two of you get married. Sure, that might mean that some of the attendees will need to make sure they’ve taken their allergy meds (damn pollen), but it’ll be more than worth it, especially considering what Bela uses as inspiration for her vows.

What her vows entail: “Our love is a garden we have sown together and nurtured for years. It has grown, and spread, and bloomed, and in turn it has nurtured us. It has given us air to breathe, a place to rest our heads, it has fed us and sustained us. No one can stand among the flowers and say that we have not toiled. We have worked, but we have not suffered, everything we do for each other is an act of love. I promise to water our roots before they know true thirst, to accommodate our changing needs through every season, and to cherish every bloom, every moment we have together. I promise that our garden will never wither, that I will love you forever, as enduring as nature itself.”

Honeymoon ideas: Out of all the Village’s bachelorettes (well, former bachelorette, now that she’s marrying you), Bela is the most willing to actually leave the village (at least temporarily). There are dozens of places she’s read about that she’d love to go to, but the two of you do have an eternity ahead of you, so she knows you’ll have plenty of opportunities for future vacations. Still, it’ll probably take the two of you a long while to decide on a destination. In the end, she’ll suggest a nice, semi-secluded cabin near a lake, somewhere out in the countryside. Nice and private, with rolling fields of flowers for the two of you to admire together. Thankfully, she requires blood less frequently than her mother, and won’t need to hunt down any “snacks” during your honeymoon. Nothing would ruin the mood quite like having to evade the police (even Cassandra would be worried about the potential fallback, and how her mother might react). If you happen to have a fondness for letting Bela bite you, well, she might not even need to pack any blood bags. She still will, though, because it’s better to be safe than sorry, and she’d hate for you to be too loopy (from blood loss, obvs) to actually enjoy your honeymoon.

Cassandra Dimitrescu:

When she realizes she wants to marry you: It’s a very sudden, unexpected thing for her. Compared to her family, she’ll have thought about it the least prior to deciding she wants to propose, and will be the most caught off guard by that realization. Chances are the two of you will be having a perfectly normal day, and then you’ll give her the same loving look you’ve sent her way thousands of times. But somehow it’ll make everything ‘click’ into place for her. All the sudden she’ll be pulling you even closer than usual, refusing to voice her rush of affection, silently determined to make your commitment to each other as eternal as her life.

How she proposes: Not exactly one for extensive planning, Cassandra is likely to propose not long after her realization, even if she’s not entirely prepared (by conventional standards). Still, she does try to make it romantic. There might not be a terribly long speech, but she’ll make it clear just how strong her feelings for you are.

“You’re my everything, and I want the whole world to know it,” she’ll say, a finger tucked under your chin as she stares into your eyes. “Marry me?” As soon as you say ‘yes’ she’s kissing you hard, sweeping you into her arms like you don’t weigh a thing. It takes her awhile to make herself let you go, but it’s more than worth it when she slips the engagement ring onto your finger. There are no words to describe how happy she feels in that moment… which is why she settles for giving you as many kisses as she can manage, eagerly covering your face and neck with evidence of her love.

Alternate Proposal: Though she takes forever to realize that she wants to marry you, there’s quite a bit of time leading up to her discovery where she would absolutely say yes if you asked her. Just gently take her hand, and softly ask her if she wants to get married. Before you even have a chance to take a breath she’ll be adamantly agreeing, grinning wide, already asking if you want to take her last name, or if you want to hyphenate it with your own (not becoming a Dimitrescu is not an option).

What the wedding is like: Cassandra isn’t exactly what someone would call “socially inclined”, and finds herself stressing out considerably over the idea of a typical wedding. It’s not exactly anxiety, rather an odd manifestation of her desire to keep her business private. But that doesn’t mean she’s not willing to budge for you, should you wish for more than the 2 guest limit she suggests. She will, however, request that the main part of the ceremony remain as small as possible. Ideally, you’ll exchange vows in front of a “crowd” made up of only family members. The ceremony will likely take place in the redecorated main hall of the castle.

There is a distinct possibility that a blood oath will take place. It may be almost impossible to get Cassandra to bleed, but the symbolic nature is significant enough that she’ll be very intent on making it happen. At the very least, she’ll want a small sample of your blood (prior to the wedding) to use when she makes your wedding rings.

What her vows entail: “You are everything I want, and everything I need. The taste of your blood on my tongue has bound us together, our hearts beat in sync, and now our hearts will be strung together for the rest of time. I will be both your blade and your shield, the fire to drive back the cold and the shade to thwart the chill. Nothing will separate us, nothing will hurt us. With this, we are two halves, reunited as one.”

Honeymoon ideas: There are two main ideas for your honeymoon, with the end result being determined by your personal preference. First off: A week spent in the woods surrounding Castle Dimitrescu, staying in the cabin of a local steward. Together you’ll hunt the monsters of the land, working perfectly in sync. Blood will be shed, trophies will be taken, and the two of you will satisfy each other’s every need- if that’s the sort of thing you’re into, at least.

Option two is perfect if you’re less interested in bloodshed, more interested in Cassandra’s artistic side (Lord knows you have to care about at least one to end up with her). Leaving the village may feel quite strange for the both of you, but there are many wonders to be found outside the boundaries of your shared home, all better when experienced together. While Cassandra’s “medical condition” limits how long she can travel the outside world, a week is plenty of time for you to make treasured memories. You’ll visit museums, galleries, a couple antique stores (mainly to get souvenirs for your in-laws), and the most highly rated scenic parks. It’ll be oddly relaxed for an outing with Cassandra, but even she wouldn’t risk bringing unwanted attention to the village.

Daniela Dimitrescu:

When she realizes she wants to marry you: It’s not entirely inaccurate to say that Daniela has always wanted to marry you, but it’s certainly not the way she would phrase it. Despite her questionable understanding of romance, heavily blurred by the persuading of novels, she is quite aware that relationships ultimately lead to one of two outcomes: Either the couple splits up, or they spend the rest of their lives together. Of course, not all couples in the latter category decide to get married. But Daniela has always fantasized about such things, and has been planning her dream wedding for as long as she can remember (longer, actually, considering how short her memory tends to be).

So, it was fairly early into your relationship with her that she first imagined what it might be like to marry you. There’s not much for her to imagine, at first, yet the thought brings her warmth nonetheless. As time passes, she periodically checks in with both herself and you, not-so-subtly “joking” about proposing. She’ll make sure to joke around her family, too, waiting for the point where they seem more accepting/amused than judgmental. Eventually it’s clear to everyone that she’s 100% serious. Except you aren’t entirely sure whether she intends to propose herself, or if she wants you to propose. That leads to you asking her sisters for advice, much to their amusement.

In the end, both of you start to get nervous, paranoid about who is plotting what. Which leads to an awkward “confrontation”, where both of you try and fail to be low-key. “Do you want to get married?” Both of you ask, at the same time, blushing like mad. “Yes, of course, I love you-” the two of you say, before exchanging a tender kiss.

“I want to get married, I do,” you explain,”but there was a delay with the rings I ordered.” Daniela giggles at that, overwhelmed with joy. Then she pauses, glancing away, as if suddenly remembering something. “There’s a, er, chance… that I also ordered rings. Rings that may or may not also be delayed?... We’ll see whose order gets here first, I guess?” With that said, the ‘race’ is on.

How the proposal happens: By the time the rings you ordered arrive, alongside a sincere apology from the Duke for the delay, you’re as excited as can be. While you’ve been waiting, you’ve worked on planning a special date night with Daniela. Understandably, it’ll be obvious that you’re building up to a proposal, with your girlfriend knowing perfectly well how the night will end. Part of you worries that she’ll end up blurting out her answer before you even pop the question. Luckily, she plays along all day. Pretends to be oblivious during family lunch, even when Cassandra starts teasing her about her “plans for the day”, acts casual when you pull her in close in her personal study. By your private dinner, she is acting giddier than usual, but refrains from spoiling the fun. When you start your proposal speech, you face away from her, gazing off the balcony. Something tells you that meeting Daniela’s gaze would mark the breaking point of her self control.

“We’ve been together for over a year now, but it feels like I’ve known you my entire life. Maybe it’s more accurate to say that you’re everything I’ve needed- that before we met, I felt your absence, a gap in my existence, waiting to be filled. And that as soon as we got together… that void disappeared. I love you, Dani, and I yearn to make you just as happy as you make me. As such,” you say, at last turning to face her, pulling the ring box from your back pocket… only to see Daniela is already kneeling on one knee, holding out a box of her own.

“Will you marry me?” She asks, grinning as wide as physically possible. In response, you hold out your ring box for her to take, and the two of you quickly exchange rings. Before long the two of you are holding each other incredibly close, sharing soft kisses and loving looks.

What the wedding is like: Planning the wedding takes about as little time as you would expect, considering how long Daniela has been preparing for this. She already knew what kind of dress she wanted (she’s breathtaking, unbelievably gorgeous, in her both very-much and very-not cliche gothic princess mix), the way the castle should be decorated (not that the castle needed much to meet her gothic standards), who should handle catering (Ava makes a wonderful cake), and who she wants to invite (almost nobody, but she approves all your recommendations without hesitation).

What her vows entail: “There was a time when I lived my life with my nose stuck in novel after novel, vicariously chasing fictional romance. All those years I waited for the right person to come along, someone who could be an equal to those stories. But when I found you… I learned that sometimes reality is far, far better than fantasy. A million lovers across a million books could never compare to the love I have forged with you.”

Honeymoon ideas: Daniela is more hesitant to leave the village than either of her sisters, feeling unsure about being away from her home (and family) for even a few days. Preferably, the two of you would find somewhere within the village boundaries to stay, with just enough privacy to “properly celebrate” your marriage.

Donna Beneviento:

When she realizes she wants to marry you: The moment that Angie suggests marriage, in her iconic shrill voice, is the moment that Donna realizes just how close the two of you have become. When the two of you cook together, and you don’t break the pasta before putting it in the pot, she knows that the two of you can last. But the real moment that seals the deal is when Mother Miranda comes to visit her favorite Lord (Donna, obvs), and not only remembers your name, but actively involves you in the conversation. Even though Donna may have only had a couple lovers in the past, you are the first that Miranda has ever shown any respect. With her approval secured… Donna knows what she wants to do.

How she proposes: In the privacy of her garden, protected by a wall of illusions, she pulls back her mourning veil, gently pulling you in for a kiss. Once you part, she gives you a knowing look. “You are more than a partner, more than a lover. I need you. I offer you immortality, shelter, happiness guaranteed, in exchange for your hand in marriage,” she says, no question to her voice, presenting her statement with the confidence that she knew your answer. Many people have the wrong idea about Donna, falling for her ‘innocent’ and ‘naive’ persona. Even Mother Miranda underestimates her adopted daughter.

But you know the truth- and as such, the severity of Donna’s tone, the sheer conviction in her demeanor, does not faze you in the slightest. If anything, it only endears you to her further. To see her approach your union with the same assuredness that she uses for her most sacred duties… it fills your heart with love. There’s no hesitation in your response, nor any doubt in your answer. Warmth sparks in your chest as you accept the offered ring, as stalwart in your affections as your soft-spoken lover.

What the wedding is like: Private. Very, very private. As well as short, simply, to the point. Despite being one of the Four Lords, Donna is not willing to allow her wedding to become a public spectacle, even for a few measly minutes. Somewhat to your surprise, Mother Miranda seems very understanding of this fact. While Lady Dimitrescu or Lord Heisenberg getting married would require public celebration, Lady Beneviento is allowed to have a private event, with all village revelry being constrained to the town center. The most that regular civilians will be allowed to do is send wedding gifts- but even those will be sorted through before they reach you, to ensure that they are of reasonable quality.

The wedding itself will be held in Donna’s garden, with Mother Miranda officiating the ceremony. Just as with any important marriage in the village, the certificate will be signed using a quill fashioned from one of Miranda’s feathers. Decorations will be sparse, but colorful. After vows have been exchanged, a couple guests may be allowed to mingle, as well as enjoy a lovingly cooked (and fairly traditional) meal, with plenty of baked goods available for dessert. Expect to do most of the talking during this part of the wedding, because Donna will slip back into her reserved persona as soon as others arrive.

What her vows entail: “As I have crafted dolls, as I have pulled needle with thread and sculpted clay, so too has the universe created us. Molded us into corresponding shapes, designed by the divine to fit together, your hand in mine. With these rings, we sew our hearts together, binding us in law just as fate has bound us in love. I promise to protect, to cherish, and to hold, throughout thick and thin, in sickness and in health, for all of time.”

Honeymoon ideas: Well, if getting to live in a beautiful mansion by a gorgeous waterfall isn’t scenic enough for you, Donna is surprisingly willing to leave the village for a honeymoon. As long as she styles her hair correctly, or chooses her wardrobe strategically, it’s easy for her to “blend in” with the outside world. On top of that, leaving the village means being able to drop her act. You’ll get to see her being her open, honest self, without having to worry about maintaining her reputation among the Lords. Donna wouldn’t be terribly picky about where the two of you go, but she would suggest Italy. One of her earliest memories is spending a weekend in Vieste with her parents. It’s also one of her only intact memories of her family, and she’d love to tell you all about it when you visit, maybe ending the night with a toast to lost loved ones as the two of you gaze off at the beautiful coastline.

Mother Miranda:

When she realizes she wants to marry you: That’s… complicated. To be fair, most things about Miranda are. She’s the leader of a cult, a (moderately) mad scientist, an immortal, and at least a tad bit socially inept. Figuring out relationships is rarely easy for anyone, but Miranda has it even harder than most. It was quite difficult for the two of you to even officially start dating. Even after that point, she rarely had time to sit and reflect on things, marriage being one of the farthest things from the forefront of her mind. But there does come a time where wishes to express the immense amount of affection and trust she feels towards you.

It takes a lot for her to reach that point, however, considering how closely she guards her heart. Not only will you have to show her that your love has no alternative motives, you’ll have to show absolute dedication to her cause. Admittedly, her standards are far from fair. Loving Miranda is easy- but being with her, being loved by her, earning her full commitment? Not many would consider the reward to be worth the effort, regardless of how incredible she is, or what sort of powers she could grant someone. Maybe there will be moments where even you have your doubts. These moments will be fleeting, forgotten as soon as they appear.

Your love for Miranda is enough to conquer all, in the end. There’s nothing you wouldn’t do for her. Reviving her daughter may be her first priority, but you understand, you accept that fact, and you work by her side without complaint. Even if science isn’t your forte, you put whatever knowledge and effort you can into her endless project. Time after time, you sacrifice your own happiness for hers, knowing that someday her goal will be accomplished. It’s after an important milestone in her work that she realizes just how important you have become to her. More than that, it’s the first time in years that she really feels like she’s earned a break. With that in mind, she decides to set something up for the two of you, though it takes a while for her to figure out what exactly she wants.

A display of devotion- that’s what she wants to do. It won’t be marriage, though, because her last one ended in tragedy, and she is not yet ready to take that step once more (though she will be, eventually). What she does for you is arguably deeper than marriage, the sort of thing that only Miranda can offer, that cements your relationship for eternity. She connects you to her very heart, the source of her power: The megamycete. The fungal root at the center of the village.

The “Not-Marriage” Ceremony: The day starts with you waking up in her arms, one of her wings tucked over you for warmth, her breath ghosting the side of your neck. Not exactly uncommon for the two of you. What does feel different is the way Miranda greets you, being oddly forward with her affection, telling you she loves you in a reverent whisper. Then she’s pulling you in for a kiss, stealing your breath away. Chances are you’ll spend a fair amount of time pressed against her, lips locked, hands perhaps wandering to familiar places. After the two of you have satisfied yourselves, she’ll tug you towards the kitchen for an easy meal.

There’s an energy surrounding her that sparks a fire in your chest, excitement and curiosity dancing inside you. Only some of your interest shifts into anxiety when she starts leading you into the village caverns. As far as you’re aware, nobody other than Miranda herself has been allowed down here in generations. The two of you have to pass through a dozen locked doors before coming across a barrier that she has to shapeshift to get past, unlocking it from the other side. Finally you reach the fungal root, and you’re frozen in awe. You’ve heard about it, understanding far more than the average villager, but actually seeing it in person is, well, indescribable. It takes Miranda placing a hand on your shoulder and speaking to bring you back into the moment.

“No one has worked as hard, as consistently, or as directly with me as you have. You have proven that you understand the necessity of my actions, and that you have taken on my goals as your own. Without you, I would be alone, no matter how many of my servants might claim to be in my company. You are the only person to ever earn a place at my side- now you may reap the rewards, and claim your position as my partner.” Holding a hand out, she offers you everything. Just as she has led you in life, and as she led you here, she now leads you directly to the fungal root, guiding your hand to the strange growth. As soon as you touch it… everything changes. In an instant your mind is flooded with information, over a century of memories collected from hundreds of long-dead villagers, limitless knowledge overwhelming every fiber of your being.

When you regain your senses, Miranda is gently cradling you in her arms, lovingly caressing your cheek, gazing down at you with pure adoration. The two of you have never been closer.

When she’s ready for marriage: Realistically, Mother Miranda will have zero interest in marriage until she’s been reunited with her daughter. Once she can finally hold her child in her arms again, an overwhelming feeling of relief in her chest, old mental scars finally start to fade. Her newest goal does not take long to form in her mind: Secure the best environment for Eva to grow up in. For the most part that means protecting the village from outside threats, as well as (finally) helping the four Lords heal, so that their squabbling won’t interfere with her family. But those alone fail to satisfy her. When she allows you to hold baby Eva for the first time, and your eyes overflow with love, everything falls into place in her mind. You’re the missing piece. Even after the past ceremony, Miranda wants more. She wants to marry you, at last, like part of her had always subconsciously wanted.

How she proposes: Although Eva is not exactly a normal child (and might quite possibly grow up faster than a normal human baby), she still requires near constant attention, and most nights she refuses to go to bed quietly without both her parents present. It’s after one of these occasions that Miranda and you end up curled together on the couch, exhausted as can be. Nonetheless, you’re both happy beyond words, smiling softly at each other. “I had planned something more… spectacular, something more worthy of your status, but I find myself unable to wait any longer,” Miranda muses, stifling a tired chuckle. “Will you marry me?”

What the wedding is like: Years from now, Miranda may wish to have a more traditional wedding, or a renewal of vows to be more accurate, with an older Eva serving as an enthusiastic flower girl (and Donna supplying the flowers, of course). But for now, she’d prefer something simple, knowing that you might be overwhelmed by the village’s reaction and post ceremony celebrations. Everyone will want to participate in your wedding, from providing tribute to decorating the entire town. Thankfully, Miranda will limit the main festivities to very close guests, such as the Four Lords (and their families). Afterwards, the two of you will make a few mandatory appearances among the more important village groups, as well as others, if you feel so inclined.

What her vows entail: “Few things in life are set in stone, unmovable in its place in the universe, so correct that it becomes unchangeable. I have been lucky enough to witness several such things: My rule over the village, my bond with my child, and my love for you. With this ceremony, we may not bind ourselves any closer- for we are already one- but we acknowledge our union, and celebrate it for all to see. You are mine, and I am yours, as we have always been meant to be.”

Honeymoon ideas: It’s been almost a century since Miranda left the village for non-business reasons. Wherever you want to go, she’ll take you, as long as it’s safe for Eva to accompany you. She’ll be happy to spend private time with you, regardless of the destination.

#alcina dimitrescu x reader #bela dimitrescu x reader #cassandra dimitrescu x reader #daniela dimitrescu x reader #mother miranda x reader #donna beneviento x reader #lady dimitrescu x reader #re8 village #resident evil: village #fucking finally got this done

[infernalrevenge]

HCs abt an S/O of Lady D's who's struggling to get her daughters' approval? It's rarely addressed in fanfics, but y'all.. becoming a stepparent is a hard and frustrating journey, especially when mama and kids have such tight bonds. Makes small wins feel so rewarding, tho! What are your thoughts on that? How would D react, how would she help? (or make it harder, in true possessive Mother Hen™ fashion..) Which flybaby would warm up to S/O first? How would S/O try to win each of them over, etc..?

Oooh this is a really cool thought! Not that I have a lot of experience with stepparents but yeah, changes and adjustments in family dynamics like that can't be easy. I think I'm gonna have some fun with this.

When the Dimitrescu sisters found out you were the human dating their mother, at first they were mostly indifferent. Not like it's their business as to who Alcina gets it on with anyway (and they could also be thinking you would quickly turn to lunch if you fuck up badly enough, in which case they would gladly join her in the feast.)

They might quip with you sometimes, but for the most part, you're left alone.

But when they realized you were here to stay and might become a parental figure in their life... oh boy.

You're telling them they have to answer to you now? A mere mortal? On what grounds? Just because you have sex with their mom? They think the fuck not.

Hell, they're individually old enough to be your parent, so truly... what the fuck?

(Part of that fear of you joining the family may come from thinking that Alcina now has someone else to preoccupy herself with, so there's less time for them. Perhaps even less love for them. They can't have that. That can't happen.)

As for your partner's reaction? She's kind of torn. On one hand, she understands how her daughters feel about having a new family member suddenly join the dynamic -- someone they barely know relative to each other. You could have been around for a few years, but they've been all together for more than half a century, and they're doing just fine.

On the other, she wants to see you all getting along. She loves you and wants you to be a part of her life, and of course she also loves her daughters with all her heart.

She's not really sure what to do, so she kind of... ends up not doing anything.

But she is curious as to what you'll do about the situation though, since the sisters would hardly make it a secret that your presence is an annoyance at best, completely unwanted and unwelcome at worst.

Bela, surprisingly, might be the hardest to win over. You would think that, as the eldest, she should be the one to lead by example and be the mature one. Plus, she's always looking for her mother's approval, so approving of you may get her on her good side (and yours.)

But she's very opposed to change, especially one that affects her life this much when it's not her choice.

She lets Cassandra and Daniela get away with pulling harmless pranks on you to get under your skin, or make Alcina mad at you. She pretends to not have a direct hand in them and would passive-aggressively remark on whatever they did.

Oh, your clothes were misplaced and looking for new ones made you late to a date with the Lady? "None of them were very nice anyway. This is doing you a favor."

You found dog poop under your bed and now you reek? "I don't smell that much of a difference."

Getting doused in sticky honey and molasses somehow? "At least Mother has a reason to think you're sweet now."

They would never do anything to hurt you, not unless they want to incur their mother's wrath or sadness, just... little things (hopefully enough to get you to leave.)

But luckily, if you're a patient and persistent person, they (ever so) slowly warm up to you in different ways.

The most important thing to remember is that they're different people despite having a lot of things in common, so your manner of approaching them will have to vary for each sister.

Daniela might be the easiest to win over, such a sociable little fly. She might try to be standoffish at first, but if you bring up a book series that she enjoys reading as a topic for conversation, she can and will keep you there for hours talking about the characters, dissecting certain themes, and explaining her theories of the inner machinations of the plot.

If you actually start reading it upon her recommendation, she becomes ecstatic. Finally, someone other than her sisters she can explain these theories to! And someone who can actually relate and add on to them!

Eventually, she'll come to realize that having you around won't mean the end of their family. It just means they're getting more out of it -- a new member to love, and one who loves them.

Cassandra might be a little territorial about her current interests, so you'll have to take on a different approach.

Maybe try introducing her to something that peripherally matches what she likes now. She seems to really like hunting and torture to take her aggression out on, so uh... maybe try martial arts?

It would be more fun if it was something the both of you were new at, so you could bond over attempting to do things together. Nothing says "I want to get to know my stepdaughter better" like letting her throw you to the mat and laugh in excitement when she gets the technique right.

She is still very stubborn though, so she may take a while to fully convince. Even when it seems like you're on her good side, there's a tiny bit of denial. But she'll come around, no matter how reluctant.

Finally, as for Bela, she just needs to see that, though most of her family now genuinely likes you, that it doesn't have to change a thing about how they feel about her either. They're not going to abandon her or anything that drastic just because someone new has entered their lives.

Seeing her sisters approve of you can be jarring, no matter how long or gradual the process may have been. Like, weren't they switching out your shampoos and putting snakes in your closet last year? Why is everyone buddy buddy now? (Why are they leaving her behind?)

She'll start to act bitter toward everyone, feeling like she's been betrayed and shut herself away. She doesn't even want to see her own mother anymore.

But eventually, you have to talk to Alcina to do something too -- she could see you were making an effort, but she's not making it clear to her daughters what exactly was happening. She should be the first to approach Bela regarding the subject, along with her sisters.

You may need some time alone with her as well to drive the point home too. Having more people in the family doesn't mean less love, but in fact it means more, because now you're there to care for her too.

And she has to admit that seeing her mother care for you, having her sisters like you, it didn't really feel like they were any different towards her. They were more insistent in getting her to spend time with you, sure, but other than that... things were mostly the same.

The acceptance may be begrudging at first, but when she actually gets used to this new norm, she'll come around.

If you want to bond with her, you can teach her something. She likes learning new things, and she'll start to warm up to you more if she has reason to keep going to you to get this new information.

It can be anything -- music, arts, sports, cooking, you name it. Even introducing her to new technology will help get on her good side. You'd be surprised at how quickly she gets into it that you start to wonder why it was so hard to get her to like you in the first place.

Also, just talk to her. As a person, as your new daughter, whatever. Just acknowledge her and be honest. She appreciates the little things.

All in all, it's going to be tough. The journey will have its ups and downs, and not everything is going to be smooth sailing. Communication is key, though, as with any sort of relationship. Let the girls know you care for them just as much as you love and care for their mother. In a way, that's all they really want.

But they're not calling you "mom/dad/parental unit". First name basis with a stepparent (affectionate) all the way.

#alcina dimitrescu x reader #alcina dimitrescu #lady dimitrescu #bela dimitrescu #cassandra dimitrescu #daniela dimitrescu #dimitrescu daughters #dimitrescu sisters #resident evil village #resident evil 8 #re8 #anon #inbox #headcanon requests #gender neutral reader #gn!reader #bela dimitrescu headcanons #cassandra dimitrescu headcanons #daniela dimitrescu headcanons #stepparent reader

[the-reaper-of-maidens]

Shadow Walk

Coming in FAST with that quality Lady Di x OC ONCE AGAIN~ The Reaper’s dark magic abilities are slowly starting to take shape, and it’s up to Alcina to teach her the ropes. I hope I explained how this ability works well enough... And yes, more soft Alcina ksksksk TW: abuse mention

Some headcanons: the daughters have different abilities, but that might change when the game comes out and we find out more. c: I’m also gonna assume dark magic is a thing in this game, since Daniela can do spooky dark magic stuff in the demo.

Viorica is the oldest daughter, and Aurelia is the youngest. Pointless, since they’re only mentioned in this story, but... still!

“Now, with any new ability, you have to practice it and hone it, my dear Reaper,” Alcina swirled a wine glass, finishing off the last of it. “Once you get this down, shadow walking is a powerful skill.”

“Makes sense, I wasn’t an all star tennis player after one day,” the Reaper finished off her own drink, a HarSha black tea with honey and blood. She rolled her shoulders back and tossed her leather jacket to the side to make things easier.

“How did it feel, the first time you walked into the shadows?” the castle’s mistress asked as she set her wine glass down, trying to pinpoint the issues to help her hound dog improve.

“Crushing, like I turned flat as paper and it was hard to breathe, so I panicked and clawed my way out,” the Reaper explained, shuddering at the memory.

“Not surprised, the first time in the shadow realm is always… terrifying. It’s exactly why I cleared out my entire day: to teach you how to better utilize shadow walking. The very first step is to relax. Loosen up. Take a breath before you step into the shadows and breathe in and out… in and out slowly and evenly,” Alcina advised. “The second step is do not be afraid. Don’t let the dark and fear get to you, my pet, because that’s a fast ticket to stay stuck in the shadow realm.”

“So… just relax and don’t get scared. Sounds easy enough.”

“But do not underestimate its difficulty. It’s far easier said than done, O Reaper Mine,” the lady of the castle strongly warned. “It’s far more dangerous shadow walking unprepared than it is to astral project prepared.”

“Typical dark magic stuff, everything has a risk when it comes to that,” and with that, the Reaper took a few breaths to psych herself up, slowly stepping into a nice little corner rife with darkness by the throne. She normally hid away in this spot, anyways, in case Alcina wanted her at the ready to dispose of someone who was being a bother.

“Just focus on entering and exiting for now, Reaper. Don’t let the branching paths within the shadow realm distract you,” the mutant vampiress nodded, watching her little hunter ease into things. “Hmm,” she poured herself another glass of wine as she watched. For now, she didn’t feel the need to take a stroll in the shadow realm with her, as the Reaper needed to get used to being alone in the shadow realm first.

“Okay, don’t get distracted…” the Reaper repeated to herself as she went in. The shadow realm was, as Alcina said, terrifying the first time. The shadow realm was full of a person’s darkest fears and most painful memories, which was why the gargantuan woman stressed the importance of keeping calm. “...Don’t…” she swallowed nervously as she saw the eerie specters of her birth family in the voidscape, all eyes on her as if casting judgment on her, “get distracted…” She remembered her mistress’s words and decided to dip out before the shadows would try to drag her in. She stepped back out into the mortal world, slashing her way out as she panted heavily, shaking off the dark tendrils that still clung onto her arms.

“Breathe, Reaper,” the vampiress reminded her hound dog, watching her take a breather as she sat down against a wall. Alcina stood up to give the Reaper some encouraging words. “Don’t be surprised if you fail many times. I have experienced it many times myself when I was learning,” she knelt down to her hunter’s level.

“...You? Failure?” the Reaper was surprised, to say the least. To her, Alcina Dimitrescu, the lady of the castle, was the epitome of grace and perfection. How could she have possibly failed at anything?

“Mother Miranda taught me all I needed to know when my own abilities started manifesting. If it makes you feel any better… I saw slayers in the void, doing unspeakable acts on the servants of the castle. My fears actually became even worse when my daughters went under my protection,” Alcina admitted. “It’s horrific, is it not, to see your constant fears being personified in the shadows? That paralyzing grip… you can’t let your fears win, Reaper. If you do, they’ll drag you away, never to be seen again. It’s a fate worse than death, my dear.”

“Wow… I didn’t think you feared anything,” the Reaper admitted. “...Makes my own feel stupid. I saw my birth family, judging me. I was scared because I saw Pop again… I was scared he’d try to hit me. I was scared Ma would try to manipulate me to go back home. And my little bro? Tch. Less said, the better.”

“Shhh, your pain isn’t lesser than mine just because you think it is. Slayers are a rare occurrence. You went through torture every day. Those are not the same, Reaper. Even my own childhood pains can’t be compared to yours.”

The Reaper reached out for Alcina’s hand and gently squeezed it, nodding a bit. “I know… it’s just hard for me to realize that. Just… gimme a minute and I’ll be ready to face my trauma and fears again, Lady Alcina.” She liked it when Alcina was soft, it was a rather rare side of the mistress only she, besides the sisters, got to see.

“Of course. It’s never easy the first few times. I don’t expect you to suddenly get over years of abuse the second time you enter the shadow realm,” the lady of the castle was understanding, or more lenient than she would usually be, at least.

The Reaper took a few breaths, trying to compose herself in a few minutes. “I’m kinda curious… do your daughters have similar abilities?”

“Not quite. Past their strength and speed, it seems like they have different powers. Aurelia, for example, doesn’t swarm into moths like Daniela can. She can shapeshift, though. Viorica is excellent at using magic compared to the other two, so she much prefers hands-off fighting,” Alcina explained.

Soon enough, the Reaper was ready for another round. “I got this. Those specters won’t get to me…” she relaxed as she went into the shadows again. Naturally, she was still a bit tense seeing those laughing phantoms, but she stood tall (well, as tall as could be for 4’9”). She turned tail only once the one depicting her father stepped forward, fist raised. “Sorry… it’s Pop. He’s the big hangup, it seems,” the Reaper sighed.

“You did say he gave you some of your scars… I’m not surprised. We’ll take it one day at a time, Reaper,” Alcina nodded. “Once you get past your little hurdle and get used to being alone in there, I will join you in the shadow realm to show you how to navigate. It can be… difficult, due to how fluid shadows can be.”

“I think I get what you mean, it all depends on the angle of light, and that can drastically change the shadow it casts.”

“...Exactly, my dear. It’s another reason traversing the shadow realm is more dangerous than the astral plane. Unless you have furniture that you never move, your starting point might not even be there when you get back, so you can’t rely on that. Just be ready to end up in a different spot in the castle when we do that,” Alcina gave her hunter a heads up.

For now, though, the Reaper needn’t worry. She just focused on getting used to the horrors of the voidscape, bit by bit every day. “Okay, I think I’m mostly okay now, Lady Alcina. Realizing that they’re only phantoms helped me out a lot… they can’t hurt me,” she confided after months of simple practice, just shifting between mortal plane and shadow realm.

“Good,” Alcina nodded in approval. “That will be your armor, my Reaper.”

“We just need a big enough shadow for you to walk into, but luckily… we got one right here, if you don’t mind bending down a bit,” the Reaper smacked the wall nearest to her. It was evening, so the sun cast some decent shadows on some of the objects. The petite hunter learned during her training that she needed a shadow big enough to enter (if she couldn’t get into it crawling, it was too small, she found), that she couldn’t go into shadows with many holes, and that she obviously couldn’t go into her own shadow.

“I wonder where we’ll end up tonight,” Alcina giggled charmingly as she took off her hat and set it down somewhere, which sent shivers down the Reaper’s spine.

Oooh, maybe it’ll be our room, the Reaper was flushed behind her bandana as she followed the countess into the shadow realm. Of course, with Alcina by her side, she wasn’t scared of these shadowy wisps tormenting her for who she loved, and with her at Alcina’s… the countess was reassured that slayers wouldn’t dare enter Castle Dimitrescu.

“Eyes up, my pet, the branching paths have subtle cues to clue you in where they lead you to. Blink and you’ll miss it,” Alcina patted her hunter’s head. She squinted, noting a vague blob resembling a table. “I believe… this one leads to the dining hall,” she led the Reaper through the twists and turns, and out they came, stepping out from next to a cabinet. “It can be dreadfully difficult to ascertain where the path will lead,” the mutant sighed. “I’m glad we didn’t pop up from underneath the table this time.”

“...It’s happened before?”

“...I don’t want to talk about it,” Alcina pursed her lips in embarrassment at that memory. Hell, even to this day, it still happened on occasion. “Now, let’s keep going in your training, my darling hunter. Just follow my lead, and you might get rewarded nicely~”

#lady dimitrescu #lady dimitrescu x oc #abuse ment //

[dercolaris]

Still - Chapter 3: Goodbye

Fandom: Resident Evil Village

Characters: Alcina Dimitrescu, Karl Heisenberg

Relationship: Alcina Dimitrescu & Karl Heisenberg (Lovers)

Genre: Romance, Hurt & Comfort

Planned chapters: 8 + prolog and epilog

Warnings: Strong language,  Descriptions of the Second World War (I do not glorify or support the ideology. The mention only serves my idea for the origin of Karl.)

Status: Work in progress (4/10)

Short Summary: As is well known, hatred and love are traveling on a dangerous thin line, but has it really always been that way between the fighting Lords? The sad answer is no. Alcina and Karl had a much deeper relationship than the brief glimpse Resident Evil Village suggests. This is their untold backstory. A story of a fiery love that is slowly torn apart by the parasite until the once strong feelings are only a faint memory in their dead hearts.

Ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/33511438/chapters/83754979

The sun was staying low in the orange sky, giving the gradually passing summer day a last bit of warmth before the cool night would come. Karl looked out at the calm water in the harbour and for a brief moment forgot that times were anything but peaceful around him. There was disturbing news about enemy forces in the area. The officer brushed a strand of wet hair from his forehead and rummaged through his jacket for the crumpled pack of cigarettes. Heinrich was right with his remark. The Romanian tobacco had a strong aftertaste and it would probably take a few more weeks for the man to get used to it. A casual glance at his pocket watch revealed that his date was likely to be late. The blond-haired man put the cigarette in his mouth and watched the hustle and bustle around him for a while. The promenade, which was fortunately intact, was peppered with small bars, cafes and restaurants, which not only the foreign soldiers liked to visit. The locals also seemed to have fallen for the beauty of the sea and looked every now and then for a break in the breathtakingly beautiful evening hours. Karl wanted to look at his pocket watch again when a now well-known scent rose into his nose. She was here even if he couldn't see or hear her yet. A small smile formed on his rough lips and he carefully lit his cigarette, taking a tentative drag. Alcina had a stubborn habit of appearing next to him out of nowhere, but her unique smell betrayed her presence.

The officer smirked a little and focused on the water again, not even bothering to look for her. The singer would come to him when she felt like it. An older waiter hurried around between the individual tables and finally put two glasses on the dark wood in front of the blond-haired man, examined the engineer with sceptical looks. Karl raised an eyebrow and asked curiously: “Is something wrong?” The waiter cleared his throat slightly and replied coolly: “No, but I wonder why you ordered two drinks when you’ve been alone this evening till now. Are you expecting company soon or is it just a minor misunderstanding?” The engineer puffed the smoke out of the side of his mouth. In the meantime he had got used to the much too curious locals, who let no situation slip by and pester him with countless questions. The blond-haired man replied calmly: "I assume that she will be here in a few minutes." The waiter nodded in understanding and went back into the small café. Karl sat up slightly to take a more comfortable position. The last two weeks had passed by in a flash. He hadn't been able to relax so much for a long time and every hour with the mysterious jazz singer was a gift from a god he didn't know.

Alcina saw the world from a different perspective and shared it with him in her generosity. She showed him little miracles of everyday life that he had long forgotten in the cruelty of reality. The blond-haired man put the glowing cigarette in the ashtray and pulled one of the glasses closer to him. The engineer sipped the whiskey, lost in thought. He didn't want to leave Constance – at least not without her. "Very attentive, Karl." The officer turned his gaze to the black-haired woman across from him and, like every day, was fascinated by her unattainable beauty. Alcina was a lady of refined taste. Even today she literally stole the show from everyone present. The blue, knee-length dress with isolated white rose embroidery played around her slim figure and at the same time graceful elegance. For Karl it almost seemed as if her entire wardrobe had been designed especially for her. The singer sat down in the vacant chair and looked out at the calm sea. She spoke softly: “It is a tragedy that we cannot look down to the bottom of the sea. Everything we see is close to the surface and nobody dares to look for deeper lying beauty in the water. I always hated the concept of superficiality."

The engineer blinked in surprise. The black-haired woman was a master at speaking in metaphors and this example also fitted seamlessly into the collection of unusual statements. In the last few days Karl caught himself letting this way of speaking flow into his linguistic usage, although it didn't really correspond to his sometimes rough nature and had a strange effect on his mind. The longer he spent time with Alcina, the more often he had to restrain himself. She had some influence on him, whether good or bad was in the eye of the beholder. The lady put her left leg elegantly over her right and took the glass with the sherry in her hand, sniffing the wine a few times. She was undoubtedly a connoisseur. After a while the blond-haired man replied hesitantly: "In your case, the visible surface is just a glimpse of something that is still completely inexplicable to me."

The engineer paused and stared almost bitterly at his companion. Sadly, what he said was true. The man seldom got any clue about was going in the head of the singer. A mysterious veil surrounded her and prevented him from seeing deeper into her soul, unless Alcina allowed him to do so for a brief moment. The debacle, however, was that he desperately wanted or even had to see more. However, the lady successfully denied him entry into her own world and kept him at a strange distance. Karl respected this limit, but a tremendous urge in his heart demanded answers. Answers he would probably never get. Alcina smiled wickedly and replied in slight amusement: "There are some things we don't have to be able to understand in order to appreciate them." The person addressed took another sip of his drink without a word. He felt the need to agree and disagree with her at the same time, but two souls had been fighting in his mind for a long time and he had got used to keeping his personal views in the dark. Alcina would already know what he thought about it anyway. The singer had a keen sense for his torn soul and had left no stone unturned to finally give him his smile back in the last two weeks. Her attempts had not been unsuccessful.

The black-haired woman sipped from her sherry and asked cautiously: "You will leave tomorrow morning or did I remember this wrongly, Karl?" The officer sighed barely audibly. He had told the lady practically everything, beginning with his unfulfilled childhood up to his crossing to Romania in order to finally escape the German Reich. She knew about Fritz and Heinrich, as well as countless other soldiers who had mostly lost their lives in the war. The man took the still glowing cigarette between his fingers and explained almost sadly: “I will have to leave Constance before breakfast. My arrival at my uncle's place was over thirteen days overdue.” The jazz singer finally turned her gaze to the engineer. As usual, he couldn't read into the look in her light brown eyes. Alcina put down her glass and looked for more, deeply hidden words that the blond-haired man did not want to utter openly. Finally she replied calmly: “Duty draws you into the mountains and at the same time you really want nothing more than to linger here. An unsolvable dilemma.” The officer smiled dejectedly. He put the cigarette out in the ashtray and blew the last of the smoke out of his lungs, then let his gaze slide back into the water. Karl mumbled softly: "Do I have a choice right now?"

Sooner or later the war in Romania would reach the port city with all its severity and force him to fight again. There was practically only one option and that was to escape to hard-to-reach places in the mountains. There he would find rest. The engineer felt the insistent gaze of the lady on his face. He felt the amber opals dig into his mind again. "I can't make the decision for you, Karl," said the black-haired woman suddenly softly, "but you should think twice about my words from our first night." The blond-haired man didn't dare to look up. In theory he was the maker of his own fortune, but the practice in which he lived looked quite different. The man emptied the glass faster than planned and asked with a scratchy throat: “Would you like to say goodbye to me in the morning? It would really mean a lot to me.” The singer fell into a very uncomfortable silence, and the engineer wasn't even sure whether it was a disappointment or the thought of parting weighed heavily on her shoulders. A little bird perched on the table among their drinks without warning. The animal hopped around a little, then fluffed its grey plumage. Alcina hesitantly moved her hand in his direction and offered the bird her right index finger. The blond-haired man watched in disbelief as the animal hopped up to the lady without any shyness and burst on the finger.

She raised her hand as if in slow motion and gently whispered: “My mind would love to do it, but my heart knows that looking at you leaving would break it for the first time in my life. I must apologize, Karl.” The addressed person slumped a little. He hadn't expected this answer. His lips slowly formed a thin line. It started to hurt in his chest and even though he knew that he could avert this tragedy, he currently saw no way out. The bird chirped softly. Alcina gently stroked the animal's silky plumage with her other index finger and added in a whisper: “To be honest, I am not ready to give up on you, Officer. Not now, when I feel that I can finally arrive with someone at a possible home and be able to rest after years of travel. So maybe we can agree to say see you again instead?” The engineer frowned in amazement. The words had to work on him for a moment before he could start a question: "May I take this statement as a promise, Alcina?" The jazz singer smiled lovingly and lifted her index finger with a slight swing. The bird jumped off as if practices and spread its wings, flew a short round around the table and slowly disappeared in the direction of the sun. Alcina was still watching the animal when she replied: "At least I'll do it."

The officer's heart grew warm. Once again the lady had managed to move something in him and activate gears that he had never known before. The black-haired woman turned back to him and added quietly: “Would you tell me the name of the village and your full name, Karl? I would like to write you in detail about my travels.” The man nodded slightly. He looked in the inside of his jacket pocket for a small writing pad and the worn pencil. The engineer quickly wrote down the requested data, and finally handed the sheet to her. Alcina took the paper gratefully and glanced at it, then froze surprisingly. The officer frowned at the sight. He asked worriedly: "Is something wrong?" The lady blinked slightly, for a moment did not seem to understand that he had asked her something. She waved her hand with a smile and replied in a friendly manner: “No, everything is fine. I know the village and have an idea now how I can best reach out to you.” Karl could sense that this was definitely not the whole truth, but as usual he would not get a satisfactory answer from the singer. He had to live with what little she told him. The blond-haired man rose slowly and turned back to the water, his hands slipping into his trouser pockets without haste.

He heard the other chair scratching over the floor. The singer stepped next to him and put her arm tightly around his, carefully following his gaze. She whispered only audibly to him: “Allow me a few more years of freedom, Karl and I will return to you. It's just a matter of time.” The addressed person nodded in understanding. Alcina had already told him in the first week that she would be drawn into the world for a while before she could settle down. Her band wanted to celebrate more successes and give people hope in uncertain times. An honourable thought. The officer put his hand tenderly over hers, which was still resting on his arm and enjoyed the cool breeze on the promenade for a moment. He said calmly: “I will wait for you. I've been alone all the years before and I'll be able to endure a few more weeks. I trust you.” The singer snuggled closer to his side at these words. Her eyes fixed the reflection of the sun in the sparkling sea. She replied quietly: “I did not expect to lose my heart to an SS Officer, but I will not complain about this fate.” The engineer slowly shook his head and corrected her in a firm voice: “You lost your heart to a free man, Alcina."

The jazz singer's eyes began to shine. She placed her hand on his cheek and carefully turned his face to her, then put her lips gently on his. That kiss sealed a silent promise. A contract without papers, but linked to memories of the past and wishes for a better future. The night fell unexpectedly gently over the port city. While most of the soldiers slept, Karl used the time he had left to be able to walk unencumbered in the morning hours. He had prepared a small package for Otto. He would probably look for him in the course of the morning and hopefully find out first that his newfound friend had left. The officer wrote the soldier a few more personal lines as well as an official paper for General Eicke back home: “In the name of the Führer, I, Officer Karl Heisenberg from the SS-Division Totenkopf, will set out alone on a reconnaissance mission to the mountains of Romania. Through conversations with the locals, I learned that the French and other hostile rabble had ventured as far as Romania and could research new technologies in remote villages. This rumour must either be refuted or cleared up. I plan a total of four months for this secret mission. May our German Empire be Victorious forever! Heil Hitler!” The engineer sighed softly at the last two lines and left his room. With luck, the letter could be sent to Germany on the next ship that night. He handed the envelope to an overtired soldier in the registration office and withdrew back into his room, locking the door behind him as quietly as possible.

The loneliness was an unusual companion in his life. Most of the time he had greeted her, but after all these days with Alcina he had serious doubts whether he could actually go weeks without the beautiful singer. Karl finally crossed his arms over his chest. He didn't feel like sleeping, but there was nothing else to do and time wouldn't fly by doing nothing. After a while the officer lay down on the bed and stared at the wooden ceiling. There was still a certain amount of heat to be felt, but not as overwhelming as in the afternoon hours. The blond-haired man reached into the other inside pocket of his jacket and carefully took out a photo. He had asked the war photographer to send him a copy of the picture and the man had actually kept his word. His eyes stayed on the woman's gentle features. The officer murmured to the photo: “You may have lost your heart to me, Alcina, but nothing will be left of me if you decide to leave me. I trust your promise. Please don't make me regret having hope.” The engineer closed his eyes for a brief moment, relaxing to the low chirping of the crickets. Perhaps the memory of the jazz singer would accompany him in pleasant dreams.

A loud ringing ripped the man out of his sleep. Karl, drowsy, looked for the rusty alarm clock and switched it off, then rubbed the sand from his eyes. He sat on the side of the bed, blinking in the gentle rays of the rising sun. The time had come. The officer went into the bathroom and did a long wash. He took the remaining time to shave off the trimmed beard completely. As usual, hygiene would be neglected on his long journey into the mountains. The blond-haired man stowed his remaining sharp blades and looked around the room again. He had everything that was important to him. Karl finally opened the door and shouldered his duffel bag, heaving the load fairly comfortably onto his back. The engineer was about to leave when he remembered something else. He peeled the tank combat badge from his uniform and placed it on the ramshackle desk, then looked for a piece of paper. He wrote a little note to Otto. The officer finally left the barracks and strode through the completely quiet city by the sea. He passed the club as well as some ruins. The blond-haired man was excited about the landscape that awaited him and would accompany him for the next few days of his journey.

Otto walked listlessly across the barracks area, almost tripping over his wrongly laced shoes. The officer had still not shown up at breakfast. The black-haired man looked in his pockets for a cigarette, but again couldn't find anything. "Fucking hell, again?”, the soldier hissed in annoyance. He shrugged and knocked on the officer's door. Nothing happened. Otto frowned. He knocked again and opened the door very carefully. As soon as he entered, the man noticed that something was different than usual. He dared a look into the bathroom, but found the same empty picture here too. Only then did he see the badge on the table. The black-haired man took the note in his hand and read it carefully: "For Miss D. I trust you to deliver it, Otto." At that moment, the private realized that the officer could no longer be in Constance. He finally found the letter Karl had written for him and informed his superior about what had happened. Otto hid much of the information the officer had entrusted to him in the letter. After all, they were still comrades.

#Resident Evil #Resident Evil 8 #Resident Evil Village #Resident Evil VIII #RE VIII #RE 8 #RE Village #Karl Heisenberg #Alcina Dimitrescu #Karl heisenberg x Alcina Dimitrescu #Donna Beneviento #Salvatore Moreau #Mother Miranda #Angie #Romance #Hurt & Comfort

[aion-rsa]

Resident Evil Village Struggles to Turn Horror Gaming into a Blockbuster

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In case you haven’t heard, Resident Evil Village is a hit. The game’s sales figures suggest it could go on to become the best-selling RE title ever, and critics and fans everywhere are ready to name Resident Evil Village one of the best games of 2021, one of the better Resident Evil games, and even one of the best demonstrations of next-gen gaming technology so far.

If you’re looking at Resident Evil Village as a product, it’s hard not to consider the game a success even this early into its lifespan. Capcom is probably pretty happy with the game, and in many of the ways that matter most, they should be happy. Resident Evil Village is a very good game. You could even probably throw out the word “great” in many circles and not have to argue about it.

It’s when you start to ask questions about how Resident Evil Village works as a “horror” game, though, that the conversation surrounding arguably the biggest release of 2021 so far becomes much more complicated.

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Resident Evil Village is a Gameplay Theme Park With a “Horror Land” Section

Coming out of Resident Evil 7, I hoped that its eventual sequel would end up being more like the first 3/4 of the game (which emphasized small sets, limited resources, and often unnerving moments of horror) and less like the last 1/4 of the game (which relied a bit too much on an awkward form of first-person gunplay). Given that the millions of people who played Resident Evil 7 also praised those early parts of the game and were critical of its later sections for roughly those same reasons, there seemed to be a popular belief the next game in the series would advance what worked and address what didn’t.

There’s a degree to which that proved to be true, but one of the most surprising things about Resident Evil Village is how it’s structured. Whereas the previous game’s thematic divide felt like a questionable decision, the divide here is significantly more deliberate. It’s almost like the game is an amusement park divided into four themed “lands” that are connected by a hub area where you get your refreshments and souvenirs.

Two of those lands (Lady Dimitrescu’s castle and Donna Beneviento’s home) are not only clear examples of horror game design but very good examples at that. Hell, Lady Dimitrescu’s castle is practically a throwback to most of RE‘s “trademark” elements (large stalker characters who chase you throughout the area, limited resources, puzzles, and a creepy residential setting). It’s not just a reminder of so many of the things we fell in love with about this franchise over the years but it’s the section of the game that most clearly resembles what many people considered to be the best parts of Resident Evil 7 and the ideas that made them fall in love with the series again.

Donna Beneviento’s home is arguably even more interesting than that. It deprives you of all your weapons and items and makes you solve what turns out to essentially be an elaborate escape room. The designs of its hallways and rare use of “fetus horror” make it a clear callback to P.T., but it feels more like a bigger nod to games like Outlast and Amnesia which emphasized a “defenseless” style of horror at a time when Triple-A horror games were still often relying on more action-based gameplay.

You can’t be talked into liking these sections of the game if you just don’t like them, but as someone who looked forward to the idea of Village expanding on RE 7‘s best horror ideas, these two areas gave me pretty much exactly what I was looking for and more. Dimitrescu’s castle was an engaging bit of survival horror that combined ’90s tropes with modern sensibilities while Beneviento’s house was a genuinely terrifying piece of game design that felt like the team flexing their ability to go toe-to-toe with the most legendary designers in modern horror gaming. These two areas prove that when the Resident Evil team wants to make a great horror game that would be top of its class in any era of horror gaming, they are more than capable of doing so.

So does Resident Evil Village stop trying to scare you beyond those initial sections? Not exactly, but the way that the game divides its campaign into these clearly defined gameplay areas starts to become more pronounced as it abandons more traditional horror ideas in favor of something…different

Resident Evil Village’s Action Sequences Often Struggle to be Scary

It’s tempting to say Resident Evil Village‘s third and fourth main areas (which are ruled over by Salvatore Moreau and Karl Heisenberg) abandon horror in favor of action, but that’s not strictly true. Moreau is an intimidating presence whose fish form forces you to stay on the move, and Heisenberg’s factory is filled with creative monstrosities who often overwhelm you in tight corridors. It’s not like the game suddenly becomes Max Payne.

The problem isn’t that these sections aren’t trying to be scary. The problem is that they struggle to take the best horror elements of the previous sections and incorporate them into the action.

Moreau’s section is often intense, but it’s not very threatening. Moreau’s scripted movements and the relatively linear nature of this area mean that it lacks the constant threat of Dimitrescu’s presence or the overwhelming feeling of dread that looms over Beneviento’s mansion. It’s not quite a scripted QTE section, but it often feels like one in the worst ways.

Heisenberg’s lair is even stranger. At this point, Resident Evil Village just throws waves of werewolves at you and spices things up with battles against mechanical creations. It’s certainly not bad, but the bigger problem here is that you’re likely going to be armed to the teeth at this point in the game and probably not hurting for ammo as the previous two areas were light on enemy encounters. You even pilot a homemade tank in the final battle against Heisenberg! The entire area reminds me of the recent Wolfenstein games. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but as the conclusion to what came before, it feels like less of a pay-off that builds off your mechanical and emotional investments and more of a detour.

Even though the popular line on Resident Evil Village is that it’s more action-heavy than the previous game, the real thing that stands out is how jarring so much of the action of the later sections is in comparison to the rest of the game. When the game does crank up the action, it does so in such a way that feels almost hostile towards the ideas of “survival horror” and resource management. Because of that, the scares it does throw at you are almost all overcome by a few bullets. The less said about the game’s boss fights (which take the idea of bullet sponges to a frustrating new level), the better.

Resident Evil Village isn’t quite four games in one, but the awkward transition between its main areas can leave you with the feeling you’re dining on a sampler rather than just ordering the one thing you really want.

Village tries to unify these ideas in various ways, but the results are a mixed bag. For instance, I mostly love the game’s use of a “merchant,” but you really only start to feel his value at higher difficulty levels when enemies require more bullets to kill. Otherwise, he’s a save room companion that appears often enough to ensure you rarely feel resource-starved.

I also wanted to love his upgrade system (which requires you to turn in animal meat for permanent boosts and abilities) but the heavily scripted placement and behavior of the game’s animals mean that it rarely felt satisfying to find and kill them, while the easy nature of the game’s combat meant I rarely felt incentivized to go out of my way for help. It’s another example of a good idea that just isn’t incorporated well into the overall experience and ends up standing out in a negative way.

The same is true of the actual village’s “Metroidvania” like design, which gives the impression that it’s filled with unlockable shortcuts and secrets but ultimately proves to be surprisingly linear. Most shortcuts you find are found through the course of natural progression, and only a couple of treasures require you to go out of your way. There again, though, your desire to go out of the way for any of it may be hindered by the game’s generally forgiving nature, which already makes these sometimes disconnected ideas feel even more arbitrary.

It’s tempting to say that the game’s developers didn’t know what kind of game they wanted to make so they just threw a little bit of everything in there, but that’s likely not the case. In fact, I do think that Village‘s team knew exactly what kind of game they wanted to make. It’s just that the game they wanted to make seemingly wasn’t united by the idea of horror but rather a fear over what has happened to horror games of the past.

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Resident Evil Village Reminds Us Horror Games Are Rarely Best Sellers

A 2019 report on the best-selling survival horror games in U.S. history reveals that seven of the top-ten titles are from the Resident Evil franchise and that the top two sellers (Resident Evil 4 and 5) are the ones that utilized more action-heavy design ideas.

The non-Resident Evil games on that list (The Evil Within, Dead Space 2, and Dying Light) may also come as a surprise. Where are beloved and acclaimed horror games like Silent Hill, Amnesia, and Until Dawn? They’re much further down the list than you probably want to hear.

Horror games have traditionally struggled to become blockbuster hits, which is quite surprising when you consider that horror movies have consistently been some of the film industry’s most profitable products. If there’s a difference between the two, it seems that many more people have fun being scared with friends while watching a horror movie than they do when playing video games (often, in the case of horror, by themselves). Indeed, the interactive nature of video games makes them one of the most effective mediums for horror.

When it comes to Resident Evil Village, that seems to have been the “problem.” In a recent interview, Village producer Tsuyoshi Kanda said that the team took it as a “compliment” some players found Resident Evil 7 too scary but noted that “it’s always our goal to create something that anybody can feel comfortable jumping in and playing, so we eased up on the tension curve [in RE Village] relative to Resident Evil 7: Biohazard, so players aren’t in constant fear.”

So as it turns out, the Village team’s apparent decision to not bind all these ideas they had with the thread of scaring the hell out of us at all times was apparently very much intentional. Resident Evil Village isn’t trying to be the scariest game you’ve ever played and failing at doing so; it’s trying to be a horror game that gets more people into horror games.

There’s a degree to which I respect that approach more than I can put into words. I love horror, and I want as many people as possible to love horror. I wouldn’t show someone who’s not a horror fan the scariest movie I can think of to get them into the genre, and I wouldn’t tell someone who is scared of horror games to get over it and play Alien: Isolation. I’d tell them to start on a classic like Bride of Frankenstein, and I’d sooner recommend they play something like Resident Evil Village and be thrilled if they ended up enjoying a game that was still as scary as this one sometimes is.

If Resident Evil Village‘s strong sales inspire more studios to make horror games, then I’ll consider it a success in a way that goes beyond any criticisms I could possibly throw at some of its design decisions. We need more great horror games, and if they happen to look as good as Village and be embraced as widely as this game has been so far, so much the better. I don’t need Resident Evil Village to be the scariest horror game ever, but I would love it if its success allowed some other studio to go out and make that very game.

In many ways, then, Resident Evil Village is a horror blockbuster. Yet, the ways it’s not quite worthy of that title make me worry about the immediate future of the franchise and perhaps the genre.

Resident Evil Village Doesn’t Make it Clear Where Resident Evil Goes From Here

If Resident Evil 7 was about 75% horror and 25% action, I’d say that Village is closer to 50/50. As noted above, though, the bigger talking point is how the game struggles to fold horror into the more action-focused sections and instead makes the dividing line between them a bit bolder than ever.

The dream scenario is that Capcom finds a way to keep that 50/50 style but finds a way to blend those ideas together smoothly enough that you don’t notice the lines that separate them. At the very least, we can hope that Resident Evil 9 doesn’t make its later parts quite so action-heavy and frontload the horror rather than spreading it evenly throughout. It certainly seems counterproductive to suggest that you’re making a game less scary to reach a wider audience but then putting nearly all of your best scares at the front of the game when you’re more likely to dissuade them from continuing or even starting.

Yet, it’s hard not to wonder if the next Resident Evil game will continue the series’ recent evolution by making the horror portion of the experience just a bit smaller. It’s a decision that may not matter much if there were enough notable horror games on the market to pick and choose your preferences, but at a time when it seems Resident Evil is one of the last Triple-A horror survivors, it almost feels like the series is burdened with the task of finding how to make a better horror blockbuster rather than continuing to suggest that “horror games” and “blockbuster games” are forever destined to be two different design concepts and that the latter will continue to eat the former if necessary.

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Serenade (Daniela Dimitrescu/Reader) Pt. 4

Fandom: Resident Evil: Village

Pairing: Daniela Dimitrescu/Reader (Gender neutral)

Rating: T for language and what could be called a brief implication of cannibalism (is it cannibalism if one person is a vampire???)

Warnings: Nope, none this time, other than what's mentioned in the rating.

Notes: Music for this chapter here. Still not beta read, we die like Jenkins from Mass Effect (the game that made this chapter take longer, oops)

Previous Chapters: Pt. 1: Nocturne, Pt. 2: Overture, Pt. 3: Accelerando

Chapter 4: Toccata

(Toccata: (Italian: from 'toccare', to touch). An instrumental work designed to display the technical prowess and proficiency of a performer.)

Goddamn, you thought, is this what “ride or die” means? To think that someone was willing to stand up to Lady Dimitrescu was already awe-inspiring; the fact that they did for your sake? That was worldshaking. Hell, you could die two minutes from now, but your last thoughts would be about this. It takes everything you have not to move to embrace Daniela. Instead you give a short nod, your head already bowed so as to avoid eye contact with the giantess.

“Is that so, daughter? You wouldn’t lie to me just for a maiden, would you?” Lady Dimitrescu asks, tone making it clear that she had already decided on Daniela's guilt.

“Of course I wouldn’t,” Daniela protests, pouting a little as she did. “No maiden is worth your disappointment- or ire, for that matter. I simply wanted to surprise you with a performance… eventually. I’ve hardly begun to learn anything so far-” she pauses, realizing that this might not paint you in a positive light- “not that it’s any fault of my teacher, you know how my mind can… wander. They wouldn’t have been playing just now if I hadn’t asked for an example.” Honestly, you had to be impressed by both her quick thinking and willingness to stick to her story. If only she hadn’t just contradicted herself.

“An example? What happened to wanting to surprise me?” You almost flinch at the sound of Lady Dimitrescu’s voice. Of course she would realize her daughter’s slip up. Even with the sharpest tongue in the world, one couldn’t go forever without making a mistake.

To your surprise, it is not Daniela who answers the question, but Bela. So far she had refrained from speaking, not wanting to involve herself in her sister’s mess. What had made her change her mind?

“I’m afraid that is my fault, mother,” Bela says, with a sigh, sounding as if she hated to admit it. Had you not known any better, you would have never even thought to doubt her. Such was the assuredness of her voice. “When she told me what she was planning, I had to see this ‘instructor’ for myself. I thought that a quiet song, such as that which they played, wouldn’t reach your ears. I… should have known better.”

This actually gives Lady Dimitrescu pause, and out of the corner of your eyes you could see her carefully eying her eldest child. Evidently she had more trust in Bela than Daniela. Not that you blamed her, admittedly. Regardless, this felt like the change in direction that you so badly needed. That didn’t, however, mean that you didn’t shudder as Lady Dimitrescu turned her amber gaze back towards you.

“If anyone is going to teach one of my daughters, they are going to be a professional,” she starts, voice unwaveringly stern. On one hand her firmness was terrifying, but on the other it was good to know that she was, seemingly, warming up to the idea of letting you live. “Sit down, show me your talent- assuming my daughters are telling the truth.” With that said she moves, settling into a chair that’s just small enough to look uncomfortable, her eyes never leaving your form. As if playing for her daughters hadn’t been scary enough, you thought. Trying to push down your fear, you slide back into position, hands hovering over the keys. Hoping to gain a rush of courage, you glance towards Daniela. She’s watching you, closely, and gives you a small nod as soon as your eyes meet.

“My Lady, is there anything in particular you would like me to play? A specific genre, or style perhaps?” You ask, praying that she wouldn’t ask you to play a specific song. Most of what you could remember were original compositions. At best, you could recall bits and pieces of songs that were popular in your youth. But if she asked you to play a theme, or use a specific technique… as long as you were successful, it would certainly help your cause, right? Your question seemed to catch Alcina a little off guard, though you couldn’t tell whether that was good or bad.

“A waltz, lento, maintaining legato whenever possible. Should be simple,” Lady Dimitrescu suggests, the slightest of smirks on her lips. Relief filled your chest- it would most definitely be simple. Part of you wondered why she hadn’t asked something more of you, like perhaps a humoresque etude with several glissandos, or a capriccio that uses chromatic notes and ended with a cadence. In the end you had to assume that this was just a first step, and the goal was two-pronged: For one, she would test the general sound of your playing. Secondly, she would sample your knowledge of musical terms. What kind of teacher would you be if you couldn’t even manage this? Right, a dead one.

Once again you find yourself playing the piano for your own survival. If only your mother could see you now, using what she had taught you for the entertainment of vampires, barely keeping your composure well enough to play. Worse, what if your ex knew that you were playing the song you wrote for them? The thought almost makes you slip up, but you manage to play it off as a trill. None of your audience members react, at least not as far as you can tell, and so you internally sigh in relief.

When your song ends, you hold the last note until it fades, anxiety wanting to draw out the moment for as long as you possibly can. Once the sound is gone completely, you close your eyes with a soft breath. To your surprise, a quiet round of applause fills the space around you. Looking up, eyes wide, you see both Bela and Daniela giving you their praise. The latter is grinning, something akin to pride in her eyes, as if thinking “that’s my darling”. A faint blush rises to your cheeks, and for those few moments your fear is gone.

“Well, you certainly know a thing or two,” Alcina begins, both her children going quiet as soon as she starts speaking. “But I expect a great deal of you, understood? Weekly progress updates, with noticeable changes, and a concert in three months time. I want to be amazed,” she explains, rising from her chair to once more stare you down. Somehow, you aren’t as scared this time. You stand as well, facing her, then give a deep bow. Without so much as a single more word to you, she turns to Daniela. “Do have fun, dear.”

Then she’s ducking through the doorway and closing the door behind her. Somewhat stunned, you stand still, unsure whether to sigh in relief or just plain pass out. Wanting to thank Bela for her help, you turn to her, only to see her holding a finger up, silently asking you to wait. Similarly, Daniela moves to stand by the door, ear just inches from the wood, straining to listen to something beyond. Exactly how good was their hearing? It feels a little awkward for you to just stand and wait, but you take the opportunity to do a couple breathing exercises.

“I can’t believe that worked!” Daniela says a minute later, throwing both her arms in the air in victory. Then she moves quick as can be, pulling you into her arms, spinning once, and dipping you with a grin on her lips. “If only someone else could play while we danced,” she teases, much to Bela’s irritation. You’re blushing harder than ever now, shocked that she was being so open with her affection. More than that, was she already past whatever had upset her the last time you spent time together? Or was this simply too big of a victory to ignore?

“Do you have to be so over-the-top?” Bela asks, and you can practically hear her rolling her eyes. At this Daniela pulls you back up, against her chest, just tight enough to encourage you to stay.

“Do you have to be so crabby?” Daniela fires back. Then she sticks out her tongue, making a little “hmmph” noise as she does.

“Forgetting something, sister?” Bela responds, voice going low, eyes narrowed but mouth curling into a sly smirk. “If it wasn’t for me, your precious ‘sweet thing’ would be our dinner tonight.” With that she moves closer, somewhat of a swagger to her step, and reaches out to boop her sister on the nose. “You owe me bigtime. And you-” she turns to you, pointer finger curling under and lifting your chin- “are lucky my sister seems fond of you. It’s the only thing keeping you alive.”

“I’m in your debt, Lady Bela, and you have my undying gratitude,” you reply. This seems to satisfy the eldest daughter, as she promptly releases you and swiftly makes her exit. Once the door closes behind her, Daniela is cupping your face in her hand, gently moving your head to face her again. Although she’s smiling, there’s a hint of something else in her eyes. Considering who had just been touching you… you had a feeling it was jealousy. Mentally you roll your eyes, but otherwise, well, you had an idea for how to ease Daniela’s feelings. “I think I owe you a great deal more, my lady. How can I ever repay you?”

“Mmm, I can think of a few ways, my little songbird,” Daniela cooed. Then she leaned in, softly putting her lips to your own. It was exactly what you had expected, but after your last meeting you certainly wouldn’t have made the first move yourself. Vampire/captor or not, she had boundaries, and you fully intended to respect them. So you kiss back, slowly, careful not to seem eager or pushy. Unsurprisingly, it doesn’t take long for Daniela to speed things up, her fingers once again weaving themselves into your hair. She’s pulling you closer, somehow, one arm wrapped tightly around your waist.

After a minute she pulls her head back, breathing hard, and lets her forehead rest against your own. There’s a smile on her lips, one that (for once) reaches her eyes. There’s a spark in her that you would have never expected before, back when your life was simpler, and you feel blessed to witness it. How many had gotten this chance before you? Were you the first to see her like this? You’re blushing harder, now. A little laugh escapes you, making Daniela tilt her head a little, but you’re enjoying the moment so much you hardly want to explain. It’s not until she pulls further away, eyebrow raised, that you respond.

“You’re just so cute!” Again, you laugh, grinning wide. When you look at Daniela, you’re surprised to see her blushing even harder than you, unable to meet your gaze. She bites her lower lip, which only makes you find her cuter. “I can hardly believe any of this is real,” you continue, “that someone like you would… well, have any interest in myself.” This time Daniela’s eyes snap back to yours, her expression changing, souring, in an instant. You can’t begin to imagine what you’ve done wrong this time. Thankfully, she’s quick to explain.

“There’s nothing wrong with you,” she assures you, both hands raised to cup and caress your cheeks. Confused, you tilt your head to the side, brain working overtime to understand what’s happening.

“I never said there was, my lady.”

“Then why would you be so surprised that I want you?” Daniela asks, voice wavering, eyes never leaving your own (never even blinking).

“Do… do you even have to ask?” Of course there were reasons you were surprised. A hundred of them. Nay, a thousand. Nothing had prepared you for this- not for your first meeting, nor the second, nor the way she had stood up for you just ten minutes prior. But your words only confuse Daniela, who gives a small nod in reply. “You’re immortal, living in a castle, over a dozen maidens working for you at any given time, myself being one of them. You’re absolutely stunning, easily the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met, your voice makes me weak in the knees, and you… you could have anyone here. Could whisk them away with a promise of safety and affection. Hell, I’ve heard about you doing it before so you can drain people of their blood. And… and for some reason you haven’t done that to me. At least not yet.”

“You’re the one who wanted a chance to show me how you feel. And you’re quite the charming sweet thing yourself, you know. How could I not take you up on your offer?” Daniella replies, hands dropping from your cheeks, moving to your waist. “I could still bite you, if you want, take all that sweet blood of yours and make you mine. But I’d prefer to wait until after my concert. It would be a nice, romantic way to celebrate our achievement.” Somehow she’s grinning again, teeth showing more than you’d like, acting as if she’d just said something guaranteed to make you swoon. Had she still been planning to kill you this whole time? Was she serious about finding it romantic?

“I think I’d prefer to stay alive, actually. Dying isn’t really my idea of a romantic-” you start to say, interrupted by another kiss from Daniela. It’s a short one, thankfully, clearly just an attempt to make you pause.

“I’m sure I can be very persuasive,” she challenges, grin sending a chill down your spine. There’s a fire in her eyes again, though this time it’s excitement instead of anger. Knowing that arguing would be pointless, you let out a sigh, then settle for kissing her on the cheek (as opposed to “agreeing” with her). There’s no way you can change my mind, you think, but maybe I can change yours.

#daniela dimitrescu #daniela dimitrescu x reader #resident evil: village #re8 village #it's called toccata because of daniela #and her infinite scheming #she's showing her technical prowess by manipulating the game #also because of reader but whatever #there's fluff in this one