Chapter Text
Lestat De Lioncourt, also known as The Vampire Lestat, was in the car on the way to the venue for tonight’s concert, where they were to start filming this documentary, He wanted to start in New Orleans for some reason, he didn’t know why. He was supposed to start in Saint Louis but he refused and everyone said why not? And, well, he couldn’t answer that. He didn’t know why not anywhere else he just felt, in his soul, that he had to start the tour here.
New Orleans.
The rest of his band wasn’t in the car with him as they normally would be because his manager, who was soon to join him, didn’t like them… said manager didn’t like him much anymore either, to be fair but he refused to ride in a car with the entire band.
Regardless he fixed his gaze out the window and away from his phone and the constant stream of text from the previously mentioned band. Watching the New Orleans streets zip by, house after house passing by his view. Lovely homes they were.
They’d just flown in an hour or two ago, he and the aforementioned manager had stopped, being flown in from Paris whereas the band had flown In separately from their respective homes scattered due to flight delays and the likes.
They were already at the venue now though.
After maybe twenty minutes, they stopped again and he didn’t need to look up to see who it was, it was his manager, Armand. “Good morning, how are you?” He asked pleasantly, sliding into his seat next to Lestat, one between them.
“Fine, jet lagged” he muttered, pushing his sunglasses up, Armand said he had things to handle before the concert so they were just now meeting up now despite flying in together.
“Good, we have a lot to do” Armand nodded, turning away and back to his Ipad doing whatever he did on it.
“You’re gonna get motion sick, again” Lestat crossed his legs.
“No, I’m not” he responded shortly.
“Yes, you are. You almost threw up on the plane” he scoffed.
“Almost being the operative word” he was still tapping away.
“I’m just saying that if you maybe put that fucking thing down sometime it would-!“ he turned to Armand fully.
“Lestat. stop it. I’m working for you, now if you would please shut up for once I’d be grateful” during his mini rant he didn’t look up, however some emotion flew into his voice.
“Oh? For me? I’m shocked! I thought it was all about you and what you want, not me!” He snapped.
“Are you really starting this again?” Armand rolled his eyes.
“Yes, yes I am! You’re being unreasonable just to spite me!”
“Are you not trying to spite me?” Armand questioned, finally turning to him slightly.
“Yes, I am and you know what? You deserve it! After all you put me through” he huffed, pulling his sunglasses off and turning away.
“What I deserve? Oh, that is rich! You put me through hell” he spat, turning back to that fucking iPad.
“You’re conveniently foggy memory doesn’t amuse me, I don’t do shit”
“You left me” that pure hurt that used to, and admittedly still does a little, break his heart, was raw in his voice.
“You’re still here” he scoffed, pulling his coat tighter.
“But I’m not your husband anymore” his tone tried to go back to that cold and distant one he’d started out with but it was still shaky.
“You’re still here” he repeated, turning as far away as he could.
When they got to the venue it was… kind of a mess. Crew running around and yelling all kinds of nonsense he vaguely understood and chose to ignore.
“Mr Lioncourt!” One of the techs came to a screeching halt in front of them “hi! We’re, uh… almost ready, one sec!”
He leaned over to Armand and whispered sharply “aren’t we late?”
“Indeed, we are… maybe so was everyone else?” He offered, trying to temper his… Well, temper. And he let him this time.
“Hm” was the only sharp noise he made as he surveyed the room once more, eyes catching on Daniel Molloy who was near the back, talking to some people, obviously frustrated.
He started walking over there and Armand followed.
“Mr Molloy!” Armand called in that corporate small talk voice he’d adopted. “Good to finally meet you in person, I’m Armand, and you of course know Mr Lioncourt” he held his hand out to be shaked
“Actu-“ he was about to correct him, say they could call him Lestat but he stopped. Stunned by the man in front of him, a small man hanging back almost against the wall, that’s why he hadn’t seen him until now and he was here and it was a tragedy that he couldn’t, the man was small in frame but tall in stature, with beautiful and smooth brown skin, hair short but looking eminently soft and his eyes, dazzling, deep brown, almost black so beautiful and ones he wanted to lose himself in, beautiful.
…this man was beautiful, he was nervous evidently by the way he held his camera close to his chest and his shoulders squared and he just wanted to take all those nerves away, absorb them and make them his. Make this man his… was love at first sight real? He’d never thought so. He thought those stories, while entertaining, were foolish. Such things were impossible, weren’t they? But with this man?… this beautiful man in front of him? He felt it might be.
If he was being honest he knew that it was.
Time started again, Daniel and Armand shook hands, exchanged pleasantries, he wondered what the man’s hands felt like, what he sounded like.
“And this is?” Armand asked, looking to the man, Lestat was grateful for he was at a loss for words.
“Louis, Louis Du Pointe Du Lac” the man said, voice cool and warm, washing over him like a flood. He extended a hand to Armand who shook it, jealously surged in his bones momentarily before the man offered it to him. “Hi, nice to meet you, sir”
He took the hand and felt a shiver go down his spine, it was as soft as he imagined but his grip was strong, as if he’d done this a hundred times “no need for all that, It’s Lestat, please! it’s nice to meet you too, Louis” the word, the name, rolled on his tongue presently, it felt right.
“Ok, Lestat” the man, Louis, said.
He laughed softy. “…What a fitting name, Louis”
“Huh?” The man gave him a puzzled look, a small smile upturning his lips.
“I was supposed to start this tour in Saint Louis but something told me not to do it, to start it here, in New Orleans and now here you are! Louis, instead of saint louis, What a fitting name” He tried not to say all the things spinning in his head.
“He’s the camera man, there are other ones for interviews but for the following you around shit it will be Louis” Mr Molloy explained, patting Louis on the shoulder, they seemed familiar despite the very obvious age discrepancy, Daniel spoke to him so casually and touched him, he shouldn’t be jealous but he was.
“Maybe, I’m just doing the New Orleans shows for now” Louis shrugged him off and explained. The look Daniel gave him informed that he left that out on purpose.
Lestat felt his heart break a little but tried not to let it slow he wanted to say ‘I hope you’ll stick around, Louis, I hope you’ll be mine, I hope you’ll be as smitten as me, I hope you understand how destine this feels’ instead he said “well, Mr Du Lac, it seems we’ll be getting to know each other for the next few days at least” he tried to tone it back, for all he knew this man wasn’t into men and even if he was he could still not be into Lestat, he just hoped he would be.
“Thank you!… Aren’t you hot in that?” Louis asked, directed at his fur coat.
“Yes, but beauty is pain” he tossed his hair over his shoulder for effect.
And he laughed, a beautiful soft little laugh that he hoped he could someday get more of someday. Louis was about to speak again but Mr Molloy did instead “why don’t we get this interview started?” In a flash they were ushered around to where they needed to be, before he was deposited into the chair across from the cameras and lights, Louis walking out of the room in the chaos..
Daniel was saying things he was vaguely absorbing about how this would work and where to look and what to do,
He didn’t listen, really, his heart ached for this man he didn’t know.
“The camera man’s hot”
“What?” Lestat whipped his head around to the band member, Annie, they were backstage and relaxing before they really had to be getting ready.
“The camera man, Lewis or whatever is hot” she was putting her blonde hair up, being sure to leave the pink highlights out, casual as sin, she was a thin girl covered in tattoos and wearing all red because she was so insistent black didn’t suit her.
He scoffed, trying not to be obvious with his attraction “don’t harass the camera man and it’s Louis”
“Louis? Ok” he didn’t like the rough way she said Louis but he didn’t have time to stew on that because a knock sounded at the door.
“Hello?” Louis's melodic voice sounded from behind the door, he fought the urge to rip it off the hinges and simply walked over and slowly opened the door.
“Louis! Hello! So nice to see you again” he chirped, probably too enthusiasticly.
He laughed softly again, clutching his camera bag close “it’s only been a few hours, sir, but I’m greatful”
Lestat’s nose crinkled “I told you, call me Lestat”
“Right, sorry! Habit, I normally run in very professional circles” Louis explained.
“Are we not professionals?”
Louis leaned to look around him, into the dressing room full of glitter of all varieties, leather, hair pieces, lots of makeup, and many other rockstar things thrown around the room. “You’re rockstars”
“Professional rockstars” he smiled, flashing his very sharp, very fake fangs.
Louis laughed again, bigger this time and his heart fluttered “You- you- wear fangs?” He covered his mouth, muffling his laugh and almost making Lestat frown.
“I’m the vampire Lestat, it comes with the theme!” At that moment she came up behind him and placed the cape around his shoulders.
Louis promptly doubled over laughing, not mocking, he could tell, but amused and shocked “o-oh! You’re- oh my god! This is- this is gonna be so much fun!” Lestat was in a bit of a state because Louis Du Pointe Du Lac was laughing and smiling in directly in front of him but… something was behind that, something he’d brushed away when they’d met but he saw it now, so close, his eyes, his profound sadness, the way even when laughing he was still stiff and tight, like a heavy weight was on his shoulders.
It let his smile fall, nobody noticed but it did.
“I can’t imagine what your shows are like!” Louis finally said after composing himself.
“You’ll be seeing them, won’t you?” He asked, tilting his head.
“Yeah, but behind the scenes”
That made him somewhat sad for whatever reason but he tried not to show it and simply said “so you’ll know all my tricks”
Him and the band were now all getting ready, flitting about as they always did, well, always did expect for Louis. He kept his distance, silently observing, only speaking to apologize for being in the way.
He was flustered, Louis was looking at him through a viewfinder up close and catching all the minute details, details like him fucking up his mascara epicly. “Damn it” he muttered before reaching for makeup wipes to clean his eyes off.
“Need help?” Richie, the bassist, asked, already having finished his makeup ages ago. He had back hair with dark skin and big doe eyes that made you feel every emotion he felt. he was fully into the vampire aesthetic, no convincing needed, he proudly dawned the fangs and makeup and insanely tight, somewhat silly and vaguely Victorian, vampire themed outfits
“Don't help him help me!” Victoria, who long preferred Vici, whined dramatically, she had her long legs kicked up on the couch, with fishnets not bothering to cross her legs despite wearing a skirt, purple hair with red tips falling over her face, she covered her brown skin in glitter just to piss Lestat off. She'd been trying a failing to do hers for a half an hour now, relegating herself to the couch to warm up on guitar.
“Why should I do that?” Richie teased.
“Because I’m your girlfriend!” She rolled her eyes.
“He signs my checks though” Lestat was too busy to remind them that no, he did not. It was all Armand.
“Stop fighting!” Annie snapped, very well exhausted, and stressed with the prospect of a documentary, already having broken three drum sticks with how tense she’s been, and they hadn’t even warmed up!
“Ok mom!” They all chimed, earning an amused look from Louis.
“Why don’t we have a makeup artist? Rockstar who go on world tours should have makeup artist” Vici wrapped her arms around Richie’s shoulder, watching him helping Lestat with his mascara.
“You gonna watch the show?” Avery, the keyboardist, asked Louis… who they weren’t supposed to talk to. Not that they were going to heed that. Avery has brown hair also with red tips, because they thought Vici was so cool. They were young and bright eyed and loved everything to do with the band more than life itself it seemed, with all of their life you’d think they’d get some sleep but no, they had massive bags under their eyes that stood out even more on their near sickly pale skin. if they could actually be a vampire they would be.
Louis blinked, moved the camera to cover his face more and responded “I’ll film behind the scenes so… technically”
“That’s good! It’s really fun” they sat back up and walked over to the rest of them.
“Are you done yet?” Lestat drawled, eyes closed again.
“One sec-” Richie drew out the words. “-ok, done!”
“You look nice” Louis said, casually, painfully casually.
He opened his eyes and turned to the mirror, it looked nice indeed, he pat Richie’s shoulder and stood “I’m going to go change, help your girlfriend”
He walked down the hall, fighting the fact that he was certainly blushing. Who had the right to make him act this way? He hadn’t been so flustered since he was a teenager and now? Louis Du Pointe Du Lac.
Louis was making him a wreck and he was annoyed by how glad he was.
Armand never made him feel like this, he-
“Lestat!” Armand yelled, he stopped walking, spoke of the devil and he appears.
“What?!” He yelled back down the hall, getting ready for a show was a good excuse to yell at each other, everyone busy and bustling around, always loud not that the permanent crew didn’t know how they were, didn’t see their marriage collapse but it was nice to pretend.
Armand closed the gap in a few long strides “I need to talk to you”
“About?”
“Please try not to have any… moments, not around the film crews. It’s a bad look”
He scoffed “my entries ‘brand’ is my personality, if anything I >should< try to have a ‘moment’”
“No, it’s not. You just can’t keep hold of yourself well enough to not yell at the paparazzi or cuss out an interviewer, it’s not your brand. It’s you. You could be respectable but-“
“I’m a rockstar! What about they don’t you understand? And you used to like that about me” he groaned.
“You’re a good performer, that I like. This temper I don’t”
“I’ve always been like this!” He laughed, exasperated.
“That’s a lie and-“ something fell, crashed to the ground more accurately, after a quick look boxes of supplies fell with Louis behind it, camera to his side. One that definitely caught that fight… he wasn’t sure he cared.
“I- uh- I was hoping to get a moment to interview you- you Lestat, before the show! You know? See how you're feeling about your first world tour…?”
And Lestat simply smiled and said “of course! Follow me!” And if he took pride in the look on Armand’s face when they walked away? Who was to blame him.
“Were you watching us?” He asked Louis casually.
“Uhh… yes but no. I was actually looking for you but I heard you arguing and…” Louis’ words fell off.
“And?” He encouraged.
“And I didn’t want to interrupt” he finished.
And he should’ve been mad but he wasn’t for some reason, the reason was likely Louis and this love at first sight, fairytale bullshit that was making his heart flutter.
Lestat was behind the divider changing as Louis asked him random questions like “where do you get your fangs?”
“They’re made to go over my teeth, especially for me they aren’t like the cheap little things you get for Halloween” he explained as he did up his belt.
“Are they comfortable?” He could hear Louis moving things behind the divider.
“They rub against my gums a little but I’m used to it”
“You also have a lisp” Louis informed casually.
“I do not!” He gasped, laying a hand over his chest.
“You do, just a little” Louis was laughing a little.
He stepped out from behind the divider, leather pants and a campy Dracula style cape dawned though had metallic accents.
Louis looked him over slowly, he pretended not to notice how he looked and how his eyes stopped at certain points.
“I do not have a lisp” he walked past Louis to see how he’d rearranged the little room, moving the chair to be on the side of the room with better lighting, in front of the vanity. “You rearranged that?”
“Who else is here?”
“Ghost, I heard this place has ghost!” he informed me, checking his makeup in the mirror, it could use some touch ups.
“Ooo! Let me not bring my daughter then!” he feigned fear, starting up his camera.
“You have kids?” He’d never gotten around to that, Armand didn’t like kids, he thinks… they’d never really talked about that, they never really talked.
“I do, one. Claudia, she’s five and the sweetest little thing” he could see the pride on his face when he spoke of her.
“That’s a beautiful name” he looked to Louis briefly before resuming his touch ups.
“Thank you, I picked it, actually, her mama didn’t have any ideas” he was pointing the camera at Lestat now but made no move to stop rolling.
“You’re married?” He didn’t want to sound too rude, he could be straight he didn’t know, and he couldn’t be mad about that. Disappointed? Yes. Angry? No.
“Yeah, going on six years. Are you?”
He huffed an amused laugh “I am not, that’s public knowledge, has been for a long time”
Louis cringed “sorry, I- my mama isn’t…. She doesn’t approve of… how you are so I can’t really consume media about you”
“It’s fine! It’s been a long time, those wounds have long closed” partially a lie, he was over Armand himself but not what happened, he knew that.
“I’m still sorry”
“Is your marriage good?” Lestat dared ask.
Louis paused and paused for too long “…yes, it is! We- we’re really happy”
Lestat was skeptical, deeply so, he wasn’t sure Louis noticed “is she in this industry with you?”
“O- oh, I’m not- I don’t have any training for this or qualifications or anything, it’s just a favor for Daniel” he rambled a bit, letting the camera down some.
“To film a whole documentary?” He raised a brow.
“To maybe film a whole documentary” he corrected.
“Even so, you must be good friends” he reached for the case he kept the necklace he was to wear in.
“We are, somehow” Louis said.
“Somehow?” The necklace was old, a silver one, but far from one of a kind so they felt free to splatter it with fake blood to gain the desired effect.
“We only talk to each other a few times a year at most, and I honestly have no clue how we met, I mean, I do but I don’t” Louis circled around to the side of him, getting a different camera angle
“How did you meet?” he started on his eye shadow he almost completely forgot somehow.
“I was doing business in San Francisco and we had some drinks at some bar and he- he uh, wanted to interview me so we did that but he didn’t really interview me, we just talked. I don’t think he ever even published it” he explained plainly, fiddling with something on the camera.
“He seems a little stubborn, annoying, pushy, insufferable”
“Say what you really feel, why don’t you?” Louis laughed.
“What I really want to say is in French sprinkled with profanities” that was true, he also had some kinder things to say to Louis on the same language.
“Oh, wait!” Louis said, setting the camera down and reaching a hand out, turning Lestat’s head for him and wiping the eye shadow that ended up on his cheek, the whole thing took seconds but he had to turn away immediately to hide his blush.
“Sorry! My face is just sensitive” a bad lie, but he wasn’t going to embarrass himself by letting the married man see him blush up to his ears from such a simple touch. Not because he cared Louis was married, not at all but because he didn’t feel like breaking his own heart.
“Sorry, my hands are clean and soft if that helps” he knew that, he felt it, if briefly.
Someone knocked on the door, well, he knew it was Armand from the melody.
“Come in!” He called.
“You’re on in five, sir” Armand cracked open the door and put on his best business man persona.
“Thank you!” Lestat all but ran out of the room, maybe running would be a good excuse for his flushed appearance?