{Keenan}

Keenan laughed when she said he deserved it, "Exactly my point." Grinning when she mentioned the mask, he said, "You know gold is one of my favourite colours."

He offered Freyja his arm, "Let me guide you," he said with an easy smile. "Don't stress too much. It's easier when you are able to explore as you go. Unfortunately circumstances have been less than ideal lately, I've dumped a lot of information on you. Take as long as you need, just don't let any one else see... then my father might actually murder me." He let out a nervous laugh. He almost felt as if he was living his life on borrowed time. He was just relying on Aleks keeping his mouth shut. He was nervous, he wanted to just tell people but the reactions so far other than Freyja, were less than positive. The fae seemed to have less hate for halflings, it made no sense why a vampire would be so freaked.

He entered the tailors workshop where several vampires were running around like lunatics. The head tailor stopped when he realised it was the prince. "Your highness," the man said bowing, "Your outfits are over here, ready to go. I apologise for the mess, less than a days notice for a masquerade ball and a huge influx of orders," the man said with a sigh.

{Aleks}

Aleks laughed, "Eco location? You guys really know nothing about my species do you," he said shaking his head, "It depends what you say makes you human. Emotions are different, less almost. Some vampires train themselves to feel so little at all. You don't feel things as deeply, afterall, you are practically dead. I had to die to be turned. You don't gain much really, immortality, increased strength and heightened senses, increased healing, oh and we can see in the dark, just as well as we can see right now. Some more powerful vampires are able to dabble in blood magic as well, but strength depends on parentage. The king was the most power vampire in generations and then Keenan surpassed him, unsurprising, considering who his mother is," he said with a shrug, it wasn't all that it was cracked up to be, "it comes with a very long list of weaknesses which are not fun and I don't think I'll ever get used to the whole bloodlust thing. It's tied to emotion, at least to begin with, if you don't feel things so deeply, it's less of a risk, some humans don't cope with the transformation because of that. You have to abandon human feelings to control it," Aleks let out a soft laugh, "the whole drinking blood thing to survive is weird though. Even I will admit that. That is probably the hardest adjustment, plus the murderous tendencies," he admit.

He pursed his lips trying to think of anything else he should add, "I can't enter places of worship without being explicitly invited, kinda an awkward thing to learn when you grew up in a family that regularly prays to the gods, that was a big adjustment. The gods are how humans cope with things they don't understand," he shrugged, "it's not all bad though. I would have just worked on the farm if I had remained human. I learnt how to read and write and how to wield a sword, hell I even learnt how to ride a horse properly. Now I get to dress up and attend balls. The bloodlust thing still freaks me out after 15 years. You are always thirsty, no matter how much you feed, craving violence and destruction," he shrugged, "most channel it into training, then you don't notice it so much... or so I have heard. Pure vampires wouldn't know any different though and they don't have many vampires that were once human."

Aleks rolled his eyes, "Just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should have to. It's far easier if you just let them do it for you." Although maybe he only enjoyed having the servants so much as he had grown up human, this was not the sort of life he was expecting to lead. He cracked Faustin a smile, "I forget you alive beings feel the cold and at least being a vampire made me far less clumsy."

His eyes widened when Faust said fae bit eachother to mark territory, "why are you lot so territorial, my goodness," he said shaking his head. He chuckled when Faustian said he found the vampire way strange, "It's a sign of trust. Your partner could drain you if they wanted. It has the added bonus of being very pleasurable. Don't hate on it until you try it," he said with a wink, "I think you'd find you rather enjoy it. I am sure your sister did."

Why did this male have to keep being right? He should talk to Freyja but if he was being honest, he was a little afraid of her, especially after the Cassian incident. It made no sense considering Faust was also fae and likely possessed magic in some capacity but he knew how to control it.

{Keenan}

Keenan cracked a smile when she just said that she would tell the king that she was with child if it came down to it. "If you want him off your back, that would be the worst way possible to do it. He would believe you are a miracle worker and have convinced me to carry on the bloodline. He would probably watch you more to ensure that nothing happened to you." He shrugged, "I wouldn't let him get close enough to threaten you. I'd rather kill him myself. Besides, Keenan Kinslayer has a good ring to it," he said with a soft laugh. His smile warmed when she spoke about her dream, "Perhaps you have a dark haired mate? I do agree about the eyes, it is not a vampire trait, we tend to be more plain and human than that. I have my mother to thank for that. The king is not the prettiest male around."

Keenan was silent as he looked at the tailors creations. It seemed that both Freyja and the tailor were waiting for his approval. He reached out to touch the fabric of the shirt that was embroidered. It was truly exquisite. The tailor deserved a raise for the speed he and his team had managed to put it together. His gaze was critical as he moved to the mask his face betraying nothing as he examined the intricate design. He then examined Freyja's outfit, he could see where the theme came into play. She would take on the role he traditionally played, the big scary leader. He was more than happy to stand by her side as trophy husband at these things if it meant she came up with more designs like this.

After a few very long, silent minutes, he turned to face them both. "I think it is beautiful," he turned to face the tailor, "You and your team are very talented, add a seventy percent tip to our bill." The tailor's eyes widened and Keenan just waved him off. He turned to face Freyja, a huge grin plastered on his face, that regal controlled prince from two minutes ago gone.

"I know I have said it before, but I love it. You are genius!" He hugged her. "Honestly, I would never have thought of something so good," he shook his head in disbelief, "seriously, amazing.'

{Aleks}

Aleks shrugged, refilling his glass. This liquor had the most peculiar taste but he wasn't against it. "You weren't entirely wrong about the vampires being a selfish species. However, we also care about jewels. The toe eating thing is new though. I'm not sure I have ever met a vampire who has done that. We drink blood, we don't actually eat flesh."

Aleks actually laughed when Faustain said he was disgusted by the feeding rituals, "Look I never said it was pretty. Why do you think we always make and effort to drink out of glasses?" He raised an eyebrow when Faust said he switched out his sister's wine, "Oh that was you? I had assumed that it was a vampire. We could all smell it."

He frowned when Faust said he would be travelling again soon. It can't be particularly enjoyable moving around that much. He was already dreading their trip and they only had a few stops, it wasn't a permanent arrangment.

Aleks laughed, gross distrubing and disgusting. Now he would pay good money to see Faust with a vampire lover, more his reaction afterwards. "I promise it's most enjoyable. For a general, you are awfully freaked out by blood. As I said, don't hate it until you try it," he shrugged, "missing out if that puts you off vamps."

He raised an eyebrow when the prince said the territorial thing was attractive, "Look, I can see it. But, I don't get why you would willingly hurt yourself or a partner. Like doesn't being bitten hurt? Your fangs are far shorter than mine so I guess it wouldn't be as deep, but still," he shudder, at least blood sharing was painless. He had been with the crown prince, so most other males would not dare flirt with him, nor any of the females, Keenan had a reputation the preceded him. Now however, Aleks was free to flirt as much as he wanted. He pursed his lips as he thought about it some more, "I guess it is kinda romantic, like a big declaration of your commitment to each other, especially as you will have the marks too. A big show of trust too."

{Keenan}

Freyja seemed surprised by his generosity with the tip. He wasn't a complete monster and besides, the poor tailors had worked themselves to the bone to have it done in time. He turned and said softly, "they took a hit during the war. Some were conscripted and far less nobles were buying finery, myself included. Tailors are not great at fighting. The tip was the least I could do."

He laughed, she seemed far more relieved once he spoke, "It was deliberate," he shrugged, "I have to keep everyone on their toes. Besides, I like the drama," he grinned, "Also I waited the perfect amount of time. Any less and it would be insincere, besides I was actually taking it all in. It is very intricate. I am seriously impressed. How do you come up with these ideas?"

He followed her out into the gardens. They were picking flowers for his hair. His father may have a fit over this, he was hoping that the masquerade would offer him some anonymity but that was a foolish wish. He was recognisable regardless of what he was wearing. If his father did complain, he would just tell him that his wife designed it. It was the truth and at the end of the day, spending time with his female wife was exactly what his father wanted.

He grinned as they stepped into the garden. It never lost it's magic. Perhaps that was because what was used to establish it initially. He didn't care. It reminded him of his mother and it was the one memory of her his father had permitted him to keep around.

{Aleks}

Aleks grimaced, "Eating flesh is just gross though, even for me." He grinned when Faust mentioned that he was a handful at 10. He could see it now, a tiny Faust causing great distress to the castle nanny as she tried to get him to dress.

"You don't have to take lover to try it," he teased. Aleks shrugged, he did get that blood drinking was strange but he'd also like die if he didn't. He had major objections to it in the past and several vampireshad threaten to hold him down and force him to drink. He was stubborn so he wanted to keep the small shred of dignity he had left, so he drank. The texture was weird and it was worse once it was cold but the taste mostly remained the same. Apart from Keenan, he was sweeter almost? Probably something to do with being a halfling. Strange nonetheless.

Aleks raised an eyebrow, "so fae make huge declarations of love, hmm, maybe I need to start flirting with them over vampires," he laughed, "they won't want to drink my blood though. A shame really."

He sighed standing and brushing the wrinkles out of his suit. "I should go find something to wear tonight, thank you for listening though." In reality he was going to feed. He was starving, all the talk about feeding had set him off.

He turned to leave, giving Faust an awkward half bow before leaving. At the end of the day, the fae was still a prince and far out ranked him.

Aleks walked back towards hsis rooms, summoning a servant to fetch him some blood so he could feed as he looked through his closet. He decided on a suit and shoulder cape. The suit was a rather plain blue but shimmered in the light. The cape was more intricate, a deep blue with stars embroidered in a vibrant silver. He did not share his ex-lovers taste in fashion.

{Keenan}

Keenan followed her gaze, watching with fascination as she carefully selected flowers to go with the outfit. He feigned a gasp in mock horror when she suggest wildflowers, "You wish to ruin the perfection of my gardens. That is borderline traitorous," he said with a laugh.

He looked aroud more critically this time, "Perhaps we should have an area that is more natural then. Perhaps some wildflowers amongst a garden with a pond or something?" he suggested. They could expand the garden, especially if it made her happy. He would just make it happen.

He watched as she carefully selected a rose. He smiled, her control of her magic had increase even if she hadn't realised. A week ago he was worried she would destroy his gardens if she touched a bloom. The one she had touched during that time had not recovered. They had just been removed with the groundskeepers assuming some mystery disease had killed them and they were worried it would spread.

Her basket was very colourful. He was going to be very colourful. It was exactly what he had agreed to but still, it didn't exactly fit his scary vampire vibe. He was sure he could find a way to intimidate others and still look feminine. "It's very colourful," he said, "I don't think I have ever worn anything that bright. But there is a first time for everything and with you designing it, I am sure it will be brilliant."

He could not think of a time he'd worn anything other than dark colours. His wardrobe exclusively contained dark navy, black, dark purple and grey. He wasn't exactly adventuorous with his colour scheme. He did have the odd piece with red but that was because it was their colours. Black and red. Black for night and red for blood. He could see why many species thought they were evil, hell they dressed like it.

He offered Freyja his arm so they could head back inside. "I should feed before we start getting ready." Although he had fed earlier, with the amout of energy he had used, he was still feeling shaky. He couldn't afford to be at anything less than his best even if that meant constant feeding for the day. He stopped a servant on their way through, ordering a pitcher of blood to be sent to their rooms.

{Aleks}

He sipped at the blood provided as he prepared himself to get ready. The events of the day still had him reeling and Faust was acting strange when he left. Was there some big secret he was not aware of? It wouldn't be the first time. Halflings had to be born right? They weren't made like vampires. That meant Keenan had kept that secret for years. Hell, how was Montague coping? He'd known him longer. It was no surprise that Claude knew, she was Keenan's spy master. Freyja though. That still frustrated him. Faust said maybe it just slipped out but it was so closely guarded before now. Maybe she knew something already. Could fae sense it, smell it the same way he could smell a vampire? That would be risky for Kee if it was. Hell if the king found out that they all knew, they would all be executed. Aleks very much like his head where it was.

Getting ready for the ball by himself was strange. Usualy he had at least Keenan with him, if not the whole inner circle. He wasn't sure if it was a good or bad thing. Theor unit seemed more fractured lately, even without his and Keenan's relationship drama, Montague was acting strange and Claude seemed to be off with Freyja with a clear distaste for Keenan. Had something happened between them that he was unaware of? Probably.

He set his glass down, now empty. THe blood thing was an adjustment and the feeling that came after feeding still made him shudder. It was like he had satisfied something inside of him, something that craved violence. The bloodlust was still there but weak enough that he could just ignore it.

He set to work on his look, with the outfit decided, it was just makeup and hair to worry about. He followed Faust's suggestion and slicked his hair back with gel. Usually he would go for a vibrant eyeshadow but he was feeling something different. He decorated his eyelids with a light silver glitter before adding thick black wings of eyeliner. He finished off the look with glitter dusting his cheek bones.

{Montague}

Montague was still reeling from his argument with Keenan. His best friend had threatened to lock him in the dungeons and starve him for two weeks. Two weeks wouldn't kill him or drive him insane but it would be very unpleasant and it was something he wished to avoid. The worst thing was that he could tell from the look in his friend eyes that he meant it. Keenan would actually follow through with this threat.

To top it all off Keenan was a halfling. If the public found out, they would have him retried for Maksim's murder and kill him. They would see the male as a traitor. Montague wouldn't reveal his secret. They may not agree about the Freyja think but he didn't want his closest friend to die. Hell, if Aleks told anyone, he would kill him. Keenan wouldn't do it as despite their relationship ending, he would always care about Aleks. Montague did not have such a relationship and would do it without hesitation. Hell there wasn't much he wouldn't do for Keenan.

The whole halfling thing though... It was a lot to digest. If he was fae, that meant he could do magic. Hell he had spent a lot of time training with mages when they were younger. Mage magic was different than fae magic though. Mages used blood. Hell did Keenan know how to do both? If he did, that made him a hell of a lot more dangerous, not your average vampire prince. No wonder he survived Maksim's attempt on his life.

Originally, he was not going to attend the ball but Keenan wanted him to be nice to Freyja, so in this case he would attend. Unlike the others, he was not one for pagentry. He did not have a character design in mind when choosing his outfit for the evening. He just went for a simple black ensemble, paired with a black mask with feathers coming off the right corner. Even his makeup was simple, just a dark smokey eye.

{Keenan}

"I have quite enjoyed the perfection of the gardens in my long, cold miserable life," he said with a laugh, "besides, it only seems cold to you alive creatures." That was why it hurt so much to shift. He wasn't just shifting his physical features but going from almost dead... actually practically dead, maybe vampires were more like the undead... humans did have to die to become a vampire. Not the point. He was also transitioning from dead (undead?) to being very much alive and full of life. That's what caused the stupid emotional reactions, that and infernal hormones. He tried not to dwell on it too much but he was going to have to shift mmore regularly to just get it over with.

The scent of blood hit him first when he entered the room. It wasn't that it was overpowering per se, he was just starving. His fangs ached at the thought. The urge to bite something was high. He shoved it down. That was the bloodlust talking, not him and he was not a monster. He may not be able to control the shifting thing and his control over his magic was questionable at times but this was one thing he could do.

He grinned as she said she would cry if he ruined the vest with blood, "You can get a blood stain out you know. We haven't been around as a species this long without learning a thing or two," he let out a breathy laugh, "besides I am too careful for that to happen." He was grateful for that to be an excuse for extra feeding at this point.

He poured his first glass and tried to sip at it and avoid seeming too desperate. It was most difficult, although the ache in his fangs had subsided by the third glass. He was more relaxed as his strength gradually returned, he didn't realise how weak he had become. That was bad. He looked up at Freyja, "You should order something as we are skipping dinner." He didn't actually expect anyone to be dining in the hall tonight, they would all be too busy perfecting their outfits for the ball.

He couldn't hide the look of distain that fell across his face as Faustain walked in, he looked away from the male and focused on the glass in hand. As he finished it, he poured himself water in a different glass and sipped at that to make sure there was no risk of blood getting on the white costume.

He looked critically at the outfit Faustain had brought with him. It was interesting that Daemon had tried to dress Faustain down so he would stand out. Keenan looked at Faustain critically, sure the male was objectively pretty but he was pretty in a way all fae were. Confidence and dressing well helped as well. Daemon was far more attractive, his whole persona was alluring. Faustian was well... Faustian. Also there was the whole mind reading thing.

Keenan instinctively moved away from the male, just slightly. He was too close for comfort. Freyja said that fae trained to protect their thoughts but that meant his entire court was vulnerable. He watched Faustain suspiciously. Hell, he was now significantly more worried about Aleks. What if Faustain read his mind and found out that Kee was a halfling. Hell Faustain being here right now was a risk, he could find out. Then again, Keenan had been drunk around him and he hadn't even squeezed him for information then. Freyja did say he avoided doing it but Keenan was still slightly concerned.

Keenan was surprised to see Faustain asking his sister for fashion advice, however, after seeing the outfit she designed for him, he couldn't blame the male. He wondered if Freyja would help her brother with makeup. Keenan wasn't sure how much fae usually wore to these events. Makeup was a big part of self expression for vampires, not seen as either masculine nor feminine. It was exhausting to apply for some events but as a whole, Keenan enjoyed the artistry and it really did add a finishing touch.