5.36

"These are very comfortable." Prince Rigel comments mildly as he touches the soft woollen vest that envelops his body. Underneath it was a plain white shirt with the collar decorated with a few funky tie pins like a heart with wings and a pale brown teddy bear head. After greedily touching the soft and fluffy sensation of the vest for the nth time, his brow furrows as he twists his hips and complains, "The skirt, however, is too revealing. Can't it be longer?"

Glancing at the light grey pleated skirt that shook with the vampire's movement and how it barely reached mid-thigh, Jia Hyson merely laughs. "It's not the late 1900s anymore, your Highness; showing off more bare skin is fairly acceptable now. Of course, there are still limits, but miniskirts and baring your stomach are now quite fashionable for women."

"Don't they feel vulnerable?" Prince Rigel muses as he tugs at his skirt uncomfortably. But every time he does it, he still readjusts it back to the original length, disliking the lopsided appearance his tugging had caused. "Baring their stomach? What if a mosquito comes along and stings you there? Or a fly finds the little damp hole on your stomach appealing to try to enter; flies are so disgusting they might have just emerged from the sewers and then lay little white eggs-"

"What the fuck did I just walk into?" A freshly showered Mr Garth says with disgust as he uses his telekinesis to dry his hair with a towel. Wearing simple dark blue lounge pants and a light grey cotton shirt with some popular characters from the newest trendy game Genkai Starpact printed on it, he looked a little out of place from the very feminine vibe of the room. 

"It's a legitimate concern!" The prince protests.

"Yeah, yeah, sure, your highness." Mr Garth rolls his eyes before throwing his damp towel at the other, causing Prince Rigel to yowl angrily like a cat that's tail was stepped on.

"You insolent-! You're lucky I hadn't done my makeup yet!"

Jia Hyson chuckles, walking over to the irate prince and picking up the towel for him. However, once he did, he couldn't help but do a double-take before sighing emotionally. "It seems as long as your face is pretty enough, anything looks good ah. Really jealous."

Prince Rigel blinks, and Mr Garth floats over a nearby mirror. Taking a look, Prince Rigel could see that his blond curls had been flattened somewhat under the damp towel and produced an artistically messy hairstyle that unexpectedly suited his outfit quite nicely. Humming with satisfaction at his own appearance, he snaps his fingers at the more muscular vampire smugly. "Not bad, I suppose; now pass me the hairspray."

Both Mr Garth and Jia Hyson exchanged glances before rolling their eyes at the same time. Mr Garth picks up a hairspray bottle with only a moment of thought, long used to knowing which makeup thing was what after spending so much time with Alaric and supporting his crossdressing. Tossing it to Prince Rigel, he then walks over to bend down and kiss Jia Hyson affectionately. "Don't worry, babe, your face is pretty enough for me."

"Such a sweet talker." Jia Hyson murmurs as he kisses back.

Now it was Rigel's turn to roll his eyes while shaking the can of spray. Even though the prince still felt a bit sour, there was not much he could do even if he remembered his true identity now and that he suspected Alaric was not really Alaric. 

It was like a pauper finding out he was actually the son of the wealthiest man and his friend was actually the cousin of a wizard. It was pretty world-shaking information to have, but it doesn't change his friend's love of smoked salmon and his preference for tuna. The two things were pretty much unrelated, and there was no reason for his identity shift to affect, or even for him to believe it would affect, his chances with Alaric, who was already clearly already smitten with another vampire.

Since they last had the conversation where Rigel suggested taking a year off, it had been over a week. Jia Hyson and Mr Garth had thought deeply about the suggestion and discussed the matter together seriously for a few days. However, the more they talked, the more excited they became at the idea of travelling together. In the end, they admitted that there was really no reason to not do it. Just like the Eclipse Coven prince had said, at worst, they've just put off the problem temporarily for a year in exchange for a lovely time overseas. 

As for Alaric's education… well, Jia Hyson felt it was a bit novel to be skipping a year, but in a way, it works out better that way. He'll be further separated from Prince Silas when he comes back, and he might be closer to the main protagonists this way too. As for his grades, Jia Hyson was a little attached to them; he wasn't going to deny it as a child who had grown up in a household with fairly typical Asian parenting in regard to education. But overall, it was only a little uncomfortable to think about and easy to brush off. 

Seeing they've come to a decision, both already began planning ways to reasonably be allowed a year off. After all, Mr Garth was one of the pillars of the coven who was both a powerhouse and a vampire helping out with a few cases and missions. Alaric's situation was also not particularly easy either. He was the Rong family's golden child of the current generation, and there were a lot of high hopes for him. Not only did he help with smaller duties and volunteer with patrolling, but he was an exemplary student and role model to all vampires. If he went off all of a sudden to play around overseas, could anyone really accept it so easily?

In theory, it wasn't too difficult to find excuses to travel. But one, a year was still a reasonably long time to leave the coven, and two, it would be strange for both of them to go together. This sort of thing had a lot of considerations. Fortunately, they still had a few months left. While they shouldn't leave it till the last minute, they didn't want to rush it either. 

For now, it was best to continue doing what they were doing and consider various ways to sell their shared year-long vacation idea to the coven. Mr Garth knew the coven elders and other adult vampires better, and Jia Hyson as the good child, already had a lot of their favour. However, Mr Garth and Jia Hyson both agreed, for the sake of laying down the foundations, they were both willing to move their relationship slowly into the public eye. 

While their age gap was extremely scandalous for humans, for vampires who have already acknowledged Alaric's maturity, it could only be said to be extremely shocking at most, with maybe only ten per cent directed at the difference in their years. And at least sixty percent of the shock would most likely be attributed to the fact two people of such personalities and identities would actually form a serious relationship like this. Thirty per cent would definitely be for Mr Garth's previous identity as Alaric's teacher. After all, there was an understandable stigma there, which was stronger the shorter the time since they had a student and teacher relationship.

As for the fact that they indeed were together for a while during that relationship? …Hehe, that wasn't necessary to say ah~

Prince Rigel, as the person behind the suggestion, was, of course, met with much better courtesy. At the very least, there were no more problems of having the prince enter and immediately know the couple had just committed another rechristening of the entire house three times over. Given they all got along unexpectedly very well, the dormitory had been nothing but harmonious. 

"Hey, why don't we try some of the more mature clothing?" Prince Rigel asks curiously as he puts down the hairspray and checks a mirror to determine if his hair is satisfactory. "You know, the, uh, how do you people say it now, the chic high fashion?" He tried to be casual about it, but Jia Hyson could quickly tell the other was brimming with suppressed eagerness to try a new look.

Jia Hyson hummed, "It's not impossible; I have a few outfits like that; it's just…."

"Just what?"

"We're a bit too short to be well-fitted in a lot of those clothes." Jia Hyson's mouth twitches. They were slim and had compact lithe muscles, but their height wasn't very good, especially for Western standards. The era of this world was still a little behind in a lot of matters, and so the very cool and fashionable high-end clothing was really only made for the tall and skinny models or the tall and big-breasted with skinny waists. The unrealistic beauty standards of the future were being promoted as the norm today, and it made it difficult for people who don't fit into them to find beautiful clothes that fit well enough. 

A lot of the Lolita designs Jia Hyson had on hand were imported over, and the layers of fabric can hide a lot, but there were many clothes that would require tailoring to produce the best effect. Which, obviously, is a bit embarrassing. He would go to boutiques to mix and match the clothing to his tastes, but they were mainly along the lines of simple and cute or conservatively elegant. 

As for the very aggressive beauty of high society fashion Prince Rigel was eyeing? Jia Hyson didn't have the confidence, nor did he really have the inclination to try very hard to pursue it. He felt this might probably be Alaric's influence on his tastes, which has caused him to be more biased toward the very feminine designs that embody cuteness or prettiness. As a consequence, he didn't have many sexy, mature and sleek outfits and would subconsciously reject seeking them out if they were too inconvenient to find. 

However, Prince Rigel, who was exploring his new interest, did not have this sort of set, specific preference. He liked whatever he thought looked good, and he especially liked high-quality materials. He also seemed to enjoy vintage dresses and rather retro styles. Jia Hyson didn't have many, but under Prince Rigel's strong, enthusiastic attitude, they had already arranged to go shopping for more at a later date. 

"You don't understand," Prince Rigel sighs when Jia Hyson once curiously brought up his strong interest in that particular era of fashion. "Vampires now have become pro-human, very influenced by humans, choosing to integrate and hide. While I don't really like this path and find it quite suffocating, I have to reluctantly admit that humans have much more colourful tastes than ourselves."

Taking out a stick of soft pink lipgloss from Jia Hyson's lipstick box, the prince eyes it critically before putting it back down. "Back in that time, I was still young, but everyone was wearing black and black, with some red to give more colour. The really trendy ones would add white and gold and very muted, dark, cool colours. Everything was dark and conservative, as if we couldn't bear to let the sun sully our skin. It was really dull and pretentious." He continues to explain as he rummages for a better colour for his lips. "In retrospect, I envied the people of that time somewhat for being able to dress brightly. I respect our vampire's noble traditions, but that doesn't mean I have to enjoy the fashion culture we had and still currently do for the most part."

Jia Hyson glances at Prince Rigel, whose face doesn't change much at the admittance. It could be said that Prince Rigel's powers were amazing, but at the same time, the restrictions were hard to bear and harder to understand. 

The time he spent asleep far outweighs his time awake, making him more malleable and unable to take the time to form his own personal tastes and opinions. Spoiled and pampered, he is treated well, but at the same time, it is like treating a distant family member who came to visit and give money. There is goodwill, but there is also apathy, calculation and a hypocritical sense of expectation. 

Keeping up the reputation of the Eclipse Coven, supporting vampire traditions, bearing responsibilities when asked… It made one wonder if Rigel really had much if any, time to explore what he wanted. All he had was an obsession with bed-related products, maybe because that was one of the few things he was given control over that was just for himself. 

Bebe: 'You could've been a great therapist.'

Jia Hyson: 'Aw, thank you.' UwU

Bebe: 'Yeah… it's a pity that you're better suited to the psychiatric ward, though.' KermitLooksOutWindowWhenRaining.jpeg

Jia Hyson: '…' PikachuRage.jpeg

Mr Garth also gives the prince a complicated look. It's not that he hasn't heard of the very traditional values and old-fashioned attitudes of the Eclipse Coven. They're fairly open about their attitude, especially given they fought very hard to maintain the old vampire ways, which was shown through how they raise many of their offspring. However, because of the growing suppression from the majority of the covens who were more in favour of the pro-human movement, equality and modernising to the current peaceful societal norms of humans, the Eclipse Coven, in turn, had also suppressed a lot of their behaviour. Otherwise, they couldn't get various benefits like allowing their people to enter St Lailah's Academy and other large organisations. 

Even if they were predominantly assassins by trade, it was impossible for every vampire there to have useful powers for it or the personality. So it was essential to give those vampires alternative ways out. And, if they were suitable for assassination and espionage, it was still advantageous to learn to integrate and interact with others, forming a network and understanding different social cues and psychological ticks. Therefore even if many of the Eclipse Coven vampires inwardly disliked it, for the sake of the children's futures, they could only reluctantly bow to the majority. At least on the surface.

However, covens were like their own small, exclusive countries; it was difficult for outsiders to know what really went on unless they sent spies. And even then, it was one thing to infiltrate a coven and another to infiltrate and see what happens in the royal family of a coven. 

Aware that he had stagnated the atmosphere, Prince Rigel rolls his eyes and takes out another pink lipstick to determine its suitability. Seeing it seemed acceptable, he drew a small line with the lipstick on his hand for the final test. Nodding in satisfaction at the faint glossy pale pink that dyed his skin, the prince glances at Alaric and gestures to him impatiently and demandingly. "Get me the glittery lip paint thing you used before. And that box full of eye makeup." Prince Rigel turns to look at Mr Garth and haughtily tilts his chin up, "And you, go get me some water with lemon."

Jia Hyson and Mr Garth could tell this was the other's way of silently asking them to move on from the previous conversation. The care was awkward and demanding, but the two vampires merely smiled and accepted it graciously. 

Seeing them so obedient, the vampire with heterochromatic eyes clicked his tongue and summoned a book from thin air. It was a history book with various pieces of coloured paper inside the pages. Prince Rigel's delicate pale finger runs through the colourful paper tabs thoughtfully before picking one and opening to the page. There, on the paper, was a series of different drawings of the American fashion trends in the 20s, which Prince Rigel stares at with interest.

Peeking at the more delicate-looking vampire as he tries to find the glittery lip gloss among the mess they made, Jia Hyson sees the other had opened a book again and subconsciously smiles a little.

Prince Rigel was clearly the sort of vampire who would become a little fixated after gaining interest in something. After warming up to crossdressing, he quickly understood how to use the current technology and use the extensive school resources at hand to follow various fashion blogs and books. If the prince found something that caught his interest, he would dive further in that direction.

Jia Hyson had more or less already developed his own tastes and aesthetics after so long, the result of which was a very loli, girly type style that occasionally had simple and elegant designs, but overall it was all very cutesy. Prince Rigel was different, though. Even if he hadn't found his preferences yet, he clearly didn't have strong feelings for the cute look, most likely because of his own angelic baby face. He wanted to do more styles and seemed to have some nostalgia for the colourful fashion and style of vintage and retro-type dresses. He was even going online to do his own personal research on how to even style hair or do makeup similar to the past. 

Jia Hyson didn't hate this attitude and felt it was really endearing how focused the other was on his newfound interest. He had to admit, his previous poor impression of the Eclipse Coven Prince had long been chipped away bit by bit. Jia Hyson wasn't the type who disliked personalities similar to his own, and Rigel was also one of the only people he knows now that is also a fellow crossdressing enthusiast. Despite the many conflicts of interest they had, Jia Hyson really considered the other a friend now. Or the closest he dared to call a friend other than Mr Garth. 

After all, before, Prince Silas was the person he probably spent the most time with. However, there was no way he could call the other much of a friend anymore ah. It was already quite kind to not call the black-eyed vampire an enemy, given the context. 

Once Prince Rigel and Jia Hyson were happy with their appearance, Mr Garth efficiently set up the cameras and lighting, as well as helped adjust anything wrong with their background. He was essentially a one-man camera crew, props crew, and backstage crew, with drone cameras even included. It could be said if the modelling industry, no, the entire entertainment industry knew such a man existed, they would run over and beg him to lend his services and bring the film and fashion industry to new heights. 

The theme for the post today was sponsored by a shop that sells adorable handmade notebooks and stationery. Therefore the two vampires had picked the personal study and Jia Hyson's bedroom for the photo shoot. The personal study was to be 'Carnation's' room, so they added a few flowers and personal touches to the desk that Prince Rigel wanted to it. Jia Hyson's bedroom already had a fairly personalised desk, so there was not much needed to do there other than clean up a bit. 

Prince Rigel and Jia Hyson excitedly adjusted everything, checking what they looked like in the camera, doing a few silly poses, and even dragging Mr Garth into some, making the atmosphere very harmonious and warm. 

Once everything was set up properly, they proceeded to start taking the actual photos. First was Carnation and Jasmine in their separate 'study room'. 

Because the study room Prince Rigel had claimed originally had a more professional vibe, even with the added decor to make it cozier, the other decided to also wear simple but cool, frameless glasses to match. Prince Rigel was often seen with a sweet smile that was like a pink spring flower blooming, but with the glasses and a stern, concentrated expression, there was a sense of seriousness, and his face was more beautiful than a white winter bud in the snow. 

To lean into this, there was a dimmer lighting to suggest Carnation was studying till late, back straight as he filled in his homework and sipped on a hot drink. The steam from the drink gave his already fairy-like face an even more ethereal and soft air under the lamp on the table. There were also a few pictures taken of the crossdressing prince standing to pick one of the books in the study library, taking one out to read, and leaning into one of the other comfier chairs in the room, engrossed in the story. 

In contrast, Jia Hyson's room was kept a little messy and chaotic to show a very typical teenager's bedroom. His shots were full of a scum student's aura, constantly doodling on the paper, leaning back on the chair and playing on his phone, and leaning over with a scrunched-up pouting frown as he struggled with the homework given. It was very playful and relatable to many young people. 

After the solo shoots, the pair changed into sleepwear to do a sleepover scene. Jia Hyson wore quite a revealing, thin outfit, consisting of a navy blue crop cami top with wavy scallop trim and a little white star print at the left-hand lower corner. To match, there was also white short cotton shorts with a navy blue galaxy print, a little navy ribbon, and the same wavy trim. With such an outfit showing off so much pale skin and Alaric's thin and shapely legs, it immediately made the other two vampires' eyes darken and swallow a little. It can easily be imagined what the response from the less platonic fans would be once they saw this. 

Jia Hyson turns in the mirror, strikes a pose and smiles, enjoying what he sees greatly. For a crossdressing outfit, it was actually very difficult to pull off given the little fabric it had for most men, given their naturally broader shoulders and musculature. However, Alaric's body was the slim type that could belong to any classic old BL shou or yaoi manga uke. Thus there was only a slight discordance with dressing up like this that could more or less disappear under the effects of lighting, makeup and strategic posing. 

Prince Rigel also had a similar body type. However, taking account of his more conservative nature at heart and his, uh, well, large asset that was a little hard to hide under any tight and thin fabric, Jia Hyson gave the other the boyfriend shirt treatment. Wearing an oversized pale green button-up pyjama shirt with plant patterning, the blonde vampire looks sweet and small, attracting a different but equally fatal appeal. 

"Isn't it a bit too big?" Mr Garth frowns as he observes Rigel adjusting the large shirt, which keeps slipping side to side on his shoulders every time he shifts. 

Jia Hyson had a complicated expression at the telekinetic vampire's question before glancing at the Eclipse Coven prince's boyfriend shirt outfit, which reached down just past the middle of the other's thigh. "No, it's pretty good."

Prince Rigel nods in agreement, face a little smug as he readjusts his pyjamas for the nth time. "Yes, it's perfectly fine. Covers what needs to be covered." He casually says as he tugs the hem of the shirt pointedly.

Mr Garth's eyes lower, subconsciously attracted by the movement, before they move up to Prince Rigel's grinning face with a bit of shock and disbelief. He felt like he understood but didn't understand. Looking toward his lover in askance, Jia Hyson only helplessly conveys the length of about 8 inches with his hands to the other. Then after some hesitation, he widens the gap between his hands to be a bit longer after some thought.

Mr Garth: '…' Very good, it was bigger than mine. 

The older vampire didn't question how the blue-eyed vampire knew this information. After all, they were the same type of person in regards to sexual matters; in fact, Mr Garth could say he was even more casual with it, as sex for him can partially be viewed as simply just another way for him to sleep well. He very much understood that such an act can lead to love, but it certainly isn't the same as it. 

Not only that, he himself had agreed to take a break with Alaric just so the younger vampire could meet new people and broaden his horizons. It's normal to drink a little vinegar, but it would be hypocritical and completely unreasonable of him to feel too jealous or disgusted over the fact Alaric had sex with others now. As long as everyone was single or at least in an open relationship, and everything was consensual, then there was no need to feel seriously betrayed over any mentions of the past. 

Besides.. Mr Garth's eyes flicker over the hem of Prince Rigel's shirt with faint curiosity and intrigue. It wasn't like he wasn't completely against it if the pair replicated their previous tryst as long as he was there too.

Jia Hyson easily caught the interest in Mr Garth's eye and tilted his head, and touched his chin thoughtfully. Well, it seems they both had the same good taste. He grabbed a wet tissue to wipe the lipstick off his lips, but it couldn't wipe away the faintly wicked smile on his face. 

Both lovers look at each other at that moment. Mr Garth raises his eyebrow, and Jia Hyson's smile widens. They didn't need to say anything as a tacit understanding was made.

Prince Rigel, who was completely unaware of all this, suddenly felt a chill down his spine.

...

..

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Little Theatre:

Prince Rigel: This prince is feeling strangely vulnerable right now.

Jia Hyson: Hehe

Mr Garth: Hehe

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