Beauty's Doom • •

[trixie dylan llevellan]

The History Ball was something Trixie had been looking forward to. She thought it might have been more fun had her friends stayed in New York for the summer, but she wouldn’t begrudge any of them who went home to see their families. She could still find fun in tonight, even if she had shown up at the door barely knowing who might be inside. It was an excuse to get dressed up, to talk about something she had a growing passion for, and to take a night away from the books and the documentaries that usually kept her up long after she knew she ought to be in bed. Trixie enjoyed being out like that, and her studies kept her away from the operas she liked to attend. She still made a few shows throughout the year, but when she had been younger her dad had treated her frequently, since her heroes had been on those stages and everyone had assumed that it was the path the talented redhead would also follow. The young Parisian had wanted to prove she was more than her voice though, and the second she fell in love with the macabre moments in history she knew she had found something that could at the very least be a backup plan, if not the focus of her actual career.

In the end, Trixie had bumped into a few familiar faces and passed the time with them as the evening went on. They enjoyed the drinks and the food together, and entertained themselves before the hired entertainment finally took the auditorium stage. She had come to this event every year since her freshman year. Her family lived in the city now, so Trixie didn’t have to travel much over the summer unless they planned a trip back to Paris at some point. It gave her the opportunity to check out the summer events on the college campus, and attend anything that took her fancy, as well as volunteer for any of the open days or charity events that were short of hands due to the lack of willing students populating the city while classes were out of session. She enjoyed keeping herself busy with hobbies or events, and her active mind thrived on a hectic schedule rather than one that saw her lazing about the apartment for a long weekend.

The night was starting to wind down now. Guests were drifting out of the door a few at a time, and those who remained were slouched in their seats or over the tables, lazily continuing conversations that had likely started hours ago. Trixie saw her friends off into the back of a cab, and wandered back inside briefly to collect her things from their table. She didn’t live all that far from the campus, and cab fares seemed like such a waste of money for such a short distance. Plus, it was a cool evening – pleasant for walking – and Trixie fancied the chance to stretch her legs around the campus before heading off home anyway. She knew students still had access to most of the facilities out of semester, so it was hardly a ghost town, with a few coming from the gym or the library. She suspected Post-grad students lingered for most of the time, cramming in work where they could. Trixie hummed happily to herself as she moved across the quad, keeping to the path so her shoes didn’t get ruined by the dirt or the grass. She did a quick twirl near the fountain, looking down at her skirt to watch it flare out around her legs. This was why she enjoyed dressing up. Trixie might be an adult now, but she was still a little girl when it came to spinning around in a pretty dress.

• • •

TAGGED! Bodhi Nicholas Storm
WORDS! 634!
LYRICS! The Heart Asks Pleasure First - - - Nightwish
NOTES!

[Bodhi Nicholas Storm]

Bodhi should have gone home for a small bit of the summer but he'd opted to take on some summer classes so he might get just a little bit ahead in his studies. He was double majoring after all and neither majors were easy options. It had taken a lot to convince the Dean and everyone else to allow him to be both an English Literature major and a History major. Alone they were tough courses with a huge emphasis on studying and research, together it was so much worse. He constantly had essays, projects, and assignments due. On top of that, he needed to keep his job which was hardly something that kept his mind occupied. But he'd known that attempting to take on a part-time job in an area that interested him would take more time than he had. At least working at the book store, he got his textbooks and course books at a very good discount and he was among the very things he loved the most; books.

It was a bit of a mess, Bodhi was constantly on the go or passing out at his computer but he wouldn't change even the tiniest bit of it. In four years, he would have not one but two degrees hanging on his wall. With these summer courses, one at least would be hanging there a lot sooner than the other. It was the plan and Bodhi loved a good short term plan. Long term was something else entirely and he could live with not knowing where he was going to be in ten, twenty years. He thought planning that far ahead was closed-minded and meant there would be so many opportunities missed because he had things set in stone. No, for the most part, Bodhi enjoyed living on the edge of his seat, never really knowing what any given day might have in store beyond classes and work hours. It was fun and exciting.

Tonight was no exception to that rule. Bodhi had found himself at the last minute with a friend's spare ticket to the History Ball. He'd considered going but felt like it would have been a waste of money if he didn't get his assignment finished before it was time to go. Instead, he'd decided to forget about it for that year and instead go the following year. However, he'd finished all his work early and then his friend's girlfriend had to cancel at the last minute because her work shift ran late and she wouldn't be ready until he was over. That worked for Bodhi. He was dressed and ready to go in twenty minutes, meeting his friend at the doors. The night had been fun but as it started to wind down, he said goodbye to his friends and headed out. If he timed it right, he could get a drink on campus as he crossed it to get back to his apartment. Thankfully, he managed to find himself with a to-go cup of coffee and a renewed energy to start tackling whatever the night threw at him; even if it only threw more coursework his way.

♦ ♦ ♦

TAG; trixie dylan llevellan
WORDS; 525
LYRICS; So Far So Good --Thornley
NOTES; <3

[trixie dylan llevellan]

Trixie wasn’t sure if many people expected her to go to college. She had the talent and the growing reputation to head straight for the stage, bypassing anymore formal education. Her voice might not last forever though. She had heard whispers in the wings of her past performances; women and men whose voices weren’t as strong as they used to be, of leading roles going to surprising stars instead of the expected leading cast members. Trixie hadn’t been in too many shows yet, since her parents had always demanded that she put school first, but she had seen enough to know that her talent wasn’t something she could rely on indefinitely. Her plan right now was to graduate, fall back in love with classical performances and opera, and maybe twenty years down the line take her hobby of studying history and put it to professional use then. She wouldn’t be one of those performers who pushed herself beyond her capabilities, letting critics tear her to shreds when her musical range wasn’t as strong as it currently was. She would remain in control of her career, from what shows she auditioned for and starred in, to when she would decide to back out of the spotlight and focus on something else.

History would always be a hobby. She thought she might take on a voluntary role in a historical home filled with keen tourists while she pursued her operatic passion. Just something to keep her toes in the history pool before she made use of the degree she hoped to earn in the next year. It would be a nice way to take a break from the stage, to rest her singing voice between roles. She knew she had friends who were surprised she didn’t aspire to be a history teacher, or have a position in a museum. They didn’t understand why she was pursuing a subject so estranged from what she was naturally good at. There were others who were still surprised that people were keen to go into the world of opera and classical singing; they thought it was as dead and redundant as learning Latin in the 21st Century. Trixie didn’t try to change their thinking. She knew from experience that opera was either loved or hated. Richard Gere said it best in Pretty Woman, but she wasn’t about to walk around quoting a movie about a hooker when she was trying to defend her own dream profession.

Figuring that she would get dizzy if she didn’t stop spinning, Trixie continued her slow walk across the campus. It had been a wonderful evening, and this pleasant stroll home would likely be the perfect end to it. She looked up, trying to see the stars against the black velvet sky, and smiled. Her smile didn’t last long though after she breathed something in that felt foreign and too big for her throat. She coughed, hand to her chest, but it didn’t budge. Someone else was walking by, and Trixie spied the coffee cup in his hand. She didn’t typically enjoy coffee, but this wasn’t a time to be choosy. She grabbed the guy’s arm and gestured to his cup as she coughed again. He barely had time to answer before she pried it away from him and took a gulp, followed by another slightly smaller sip. “Sorry. I think I swallowed a bug.” Another small cough and she began to feel better. Whatever she had swallowed was gone, and Trixie didn’t want to think about it anymore, less it led to nightmares like something from a bad B horror movie.

• • •

TAGGED! Bodhi Nicholas Storm
WORDS! 603!
LYRICS! The Heart Asks Pleasure First - - - Nightwish
NOTES!