we all fall down (o)

[LEXUS QUINTINUS]

THESE SMOOTH-TONGUED WOLVES
OF ALL WOLVES ARE THE MOST DANGEROUS

The gods. Ha. The gods were laughable. But was such a wise train of thought when prowling the temple grounds of Saturn himself? To be honest, this silver-haired master of rhetoric couldn't care less. His superstitions had begun to curve down a different course, troubled only by spirits of another name. Long, clever fingers toyed with the chain around his neck, the one that dangled a gold pendent against his chest. It was teased in his grasp with a certain aura of smug amusement that curved the monster's lips into a devious grin. This patrician was a narcissist if ever there was one and it was evident even in the proud curve of his spine and the half-lowered eyelids that portrayed a haughty and relaxed expression. Dark eyes were always so sultry in their sly smoldering; plotting and scheming even in the slightest of glances. This game of wicked agendas was always played with a seductive hand. At least where Lexus was concerned. Ah, the wolf who preyed on the soft, fresh, and vulnerable with a lick along his predator's lips.

It was late afternoon and the air smelt of smoke. The lawyer had yet to pinpoint why, though the scent was gingerly intoxicating to his prowler's senses. It seemed to entice something feral; something that purred in Cheshire Cat amusement as he stepped near the pillars of the temple's grand facade. The fingertips of his free hand reached out, ghosting over the ridges. Like a serpent, his movements were slow and languid with an elegant height to his head. Superior, like a king who stepped atop the heads of his people. He was wandering toward one of the walls, again letting his fingers trace over several of the grooves worn into the stone. The temple housed riches and laws, two things that were used and abused so frequently that it made his insides squirm in some strange sense of anticipation. All the while, his other set of fingers were busy tangling themselves in his necklace. The Egyptian gold caught the gleam of nearby torchlight and briefly cast a dangerous glow in the man's brown eyes. Should this society... This civilization and its people... This religion... Everything. Should it all come tumbling down, well, he'd be sure to try and get a good seat.

Snorting a bit at the dramatic nature of his own contemplation, Lexus turned to lean against the wall. One of his hands still traced the various marks and points of his pendant and he watched as people continued to wander here and there. The orange glow of the Roman sunset was beginning to fade into a dying bronze, signaling the shift into a hazy twilight. The Quintinus patrician was already wondering where to head next. Why had he come here in the first place? Because his arrogance willed him to mock his environment, even when in the privacy of his own head. He wandered here often, having others mistake him easily for a religious man paying his respects to the highest of the high. That grin on Lex's face just broadened at the thought. He payed his respects to no one. Not genuinely, anyway. Ah, so, where to? For now, he remained against the wall in a suspicious lack of light. Would his lusting ways tempt him to the brothels? To the obedient hands of his servants? Hm. He chuckled, eyes falling upon the proud figure of Saturn as it looked over its followers. "Maybe you'll come tumbling down, hm?" Talking to statues was silly. But this egomaniac had always been a little eccentric. Shouldn't that be considered a flaw? Flattery, really.

IT ISN'T SUCH A STRANGE THING IF THE WOLF EATS THEM.

TAGGED: open.
WORDS: lol, idk.
NOTES: pointless rambling is pointless. :c
CREDITS made by EDWARD of ON THE EDGE

[LAEVINA SEIUS]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=style, width: 450px -moz-border-radius-topleft: 2em; padding-left: 10px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 10px; padding-bottom: 10px; ;] But you cannot intimidate me - - - - - - - - - - - -THOUGH YOU TIE ME UP WITH ALL OF THESE STRINGS Perhaps her train of thought had wandered. Perhaps she just wasn’t paying attention. Or maybe, there was even a slim chance that she’d been meaning to head this way in the first place, and simply forgot why she had come here in the first place. Sadly, out of all three options, the second was the most likely. Yet, nearly lost in the city she had lived in almost all of her life, the dark haired girl didn’t seem the least bit concerned. Deep blue eyes were almost completely closed, open just enough to allow her to keep a vague sense of where she was, and how close to any other objects or people she might be. Lips were twisted ever so slightly at the corners into a small smile, parted to let the softest of voices through. It was quite obvious that this was no place for such things as this, with the way she moved in lazy dancers twirls, though this girl was not a dancer. Her fingers were dancing over the air, arms outstretched, as if playing music on some invisible instrument, but she knew how to play none. No, the little liberti was a canary. Made all the more obvious by the way the lazily swaying creature seemed to be giving off a very faint music. In the middle of the temple, regardless of what kind of looks she may have been getting, she was singing. Softly to herself, and seemingly unaware of anyone else who may have been anywhere nearby. “Move back to move forward… You’re not alone. We’re dragging you along.” A dip of one hand, a lazy twirl. No, she didn’t dance, just moved. Which was undoubtedly how Laevina had ended up where she was now, in the first place. Flitting along as carelessly as a songbird, the young woman strung her words along effortlessly. How long had she been doing such a thing? Floating her words along on lazy little tune like this? For as long as she could remember, honestly. It was her voice that had earned her the slight freedoms that she so enjoyed. Regardless of how unwilling one would have been to open the door of such a bird’s cage. “But new ones… And tie them on. We wear strings… And we make them sing.” One hand raised just for a moment, tucking a few stray locks of blue-black hair behind her ear. For the first time in about an hour or so, she opened her eyes just a bit wider to glance around at her surroundings. Never missing a beat, and never stopping her slow movements. She had a tune in her head, and it was stuck there. She was venting. Releasing stress, sorrow, and anything else that the girl may have otherwise refused to openly express. Her brows were furrowed, and her smile had lessened, lips moving for the sake of her words alone. Though she was normally payed for the sound of her voice, now was simply a time for herself. Even if she didn’t vocalize it in a ‘normal’ way, the day had been stressful. Unwanted comments and such. Honestly. She was a songstress, not a harlot. “And I beg, sing for me, sing for me… And they only vibrate for me.” Pain, almost. Or was it anguish? Her expression shifted as the song did. The words weren’t her own, but she felt them. Empathized with so many things. Maybe it was the lasting impression of the maternal instincts that had never been given an outlet? “But I cannot breathe through these strings… I cannot breathe…” Maybe a hand had reached out just a bit too far. She immediately recognized the feel of her fingertips brushing over some unknown person’s shoulder. The song faltered and died, immediately replaced with very soft, startled gasp. Retracting her hand, it was drawn in close to her own chest. No, it wasn’t out of fear. Simply a conditioned response. She wasn’t stupid, but past experiences had acted as a ‘teaching’ experience. It was difficult to forget a lesson learned. The first thing she noticed about this man… Was that she hadn’t noticed him before. She’d opened her eyes, seen anyone who might have been there. But not him. Had he been hiding before? What a silly thing to do… LYRICS HALOU - WE WEAR STRINGS ★ TAGS NATTY ★ NOTES I RAMBLED TOO MUCH. orz ★ CREDITS TEMPLATE BY RIMY OF OTE ★

[LEXUS QUINTINUS]

THESE SMOOTH-TONGUED WOLVES
OF ALL WOLVES ARE THE MOST DANGEROUS

The first thing he noticed was the singing. He was surprised he hadn't noticed it sooner, actually, but he blamed the way his thoughts had descended into the territory of a scheming despot. How silly, how silly. Oh, but a little bit satisfying... Yes, just a little bit deep down, festering in his chest where a man's heart should have been. His head tilted lazily to one side and his eyelids lowered halfway. The grin on his face was that of predator; the wolf who had found himself a little rabbit dancing in a clearing. Little rabbit, little rabbit... Do you taste good? Already, Lexus had averted his mind from his cynical amusement to the situation that had presented itself to him. It was late afternoon, he had nothing to do, and there was a pretty young woman all on her own and lurking within arm's reach. Perhaps he wouldn't have a boring night, after all. Luring boys to his villa was his usual remedy, but this would have to do. And the more he listened to her voice and chanced a glance at the dear little bird, the more he'd decided that this would be even more of a catch than his usual delights. But how does one go about catching birds again? Ah, he was quite ready to flex his claws just for the occasion.

Like any absent-minded gentleman, he continued to keep to himself. All the while, of course, his mind turned in assembly of wicked ideas that were so very good at getting the best of the lawyer's logic. It had been a while since he'd seen such a lovely face. Though Rome had several specimens of beauty, Lexus had always been particularly selective. Or, he liked to think so. But, even when he'd been married to his beloved Arcadia, he'd scoffed at the claims of beauty so often made through the teasing lips of a temptress. Whores, of course, were a dime a dozen. But lovely little things like this singing canary? He supposed he'd have to find out... The evening had yet to begin and his interests were piqued. Such was reason enough to prey upon she who had managed to float right into his open hands. Vaguely, he found himself wondering one thing or another with his eyes hovering over the image of Saturn again. His grin had widened slyly and his eyes -- the eyes of a lusting animal if ever there was one -- seemed to flicker dangerously in the torchlight. A temple was no place for sinister work... All the more reason to defy it, of course.

And then there were fingers brushing against his shoulder. The patrician glanced to the girl in a languid turn of his head and his grin still curving his misleading mouth. An elegant, silver eyebrow lifted in an expression of amusement and a purring chuckle was breathed past his lips as he watched her own reaction. Oh, and that gasp. The sound of it had attracted the most of his attention. He had been unable to help the way the pink tip of his tongue had flickered over the corner of his mouth in the temptation to trace his bottom lip. To make his hungers too obvious was never the way to go about things. But the bird had fluttered into his trap the moment she'd unintentionally initiated physical contact. So when would the flytrap enclose her in his gaping jaws? "Your singing is lovely, you know." The master of rhetoric took no shame in swathing himself in charisma as the calm sound of his voice addressed her. Though leaning against the wall, he took to standing straighter with head held high in his typical tilt of the chin. His voice was soft, though. A gentleman's drawl. "I'm not usually treated to such unexpected talent."

He inclined his head a little, as though to show for his gratitude on the matter in a thankful bow. His eyes, though, were quick to flicker back to her face and observe it in the passive glow that usually did well with cloaking his questionable intentions. She looked nothing like Arcadia... and he loved that. His late wife had been boring, bland, timid, and awkward. The sex had been mediocre at best, if he remembered correctly. It was out of habit that he usually recalled people in his memory due to how good they were in bed. He had yet to decide if this was good or bad habit. It was an important detail to keep in mind, after all. But this little bird looked promising... And her voice... Mm. He wondered how it might sound if coaxed into different sounds far less subdued. "Can I hear a little more? Just a little?" A pause. He ran his fingers slowly through his own hair, letting the pale strands slide over each slender, dexterous digit. "Or perhaps I can pour you a drink? It's the least I can do, my dear. Credit where credit is due." And the monster grinned with the smile of any handsome Roman legend, all the while a forked-tongue shapeshifter eager to tempt the butterfly into his web.

IT ISN'T SUCH A STRANGE THING IF THE WOLF EATS THEM.

TAGGED: laevina.
WORDS: lol, idk.
NOTES: listening to "monster" on repeat... does things to my brain. |: oh, and sorry for the rambling. orz
CREDITS made by EDWARD of ON THE EDGE