#[ still. i want to give dorian headaches ] | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

confusedlucifer · 15 days ago

Text

so yesterday at 1 am finally the credits rolled on my first playthrough of DA:Veilguard and left me with a lot of thoughts and feelings, and also a literal headache this morning like i was hungover. full game spoilers ahead!

i want to preface by where im coming from - my expectations for this game were basically zero. it took ten years to get here, with very publicized troubled development, the game being reworked at least three times, lay offs, leadership leaving etc. basically up until june this year i genuinely did not believe another DA would come out and if it did, it wasnt going to be very good.

i'm also a person who played DAI on release and didnt really enjoy it that much at first! of the first three DA games, i think its by far the weakest in terms of story and the cast of companions. i never cared about Solas one way or another and always was a bit meh on the shift of the story toward ancient elves and gods. nonetheless i have 500+ hours in that game and dearly love my Inquisitor.

so with the combination of these feelings, i was really wary of this game being too much a sequel to Trespasser and centering Solas too much, and the Dread Wolf title initially just confirmed this (and annoyed me) (i did not like the bald man sorry)

i think in general i came into it with the acceptance of what the game is - and isnt. after the initial reveals and marketing started, it was clear they are making an action game, not a full fledged RPG anymore. it was also clear its going to be a shift for the series. i had my worries about the story and companions seeming too nice and sanitized, which was basically confirmed for me after i started reading Tevinter Nights (which came out in 2020) where you meet a lot of the companions and factions and they are quite the heroic bunch. so i knew all this going into the game and kinda braced for it.

still... the beginning hours were rough. the start of the game just really wanted to bounce me off so badly with some of the worst and grating writing from the start and just the jarring transition from the formula of the previous games and into this new action game setting. suddenly i couldnt talk to my companions whenever i wanted, i couldnt get to know them freely. it was a lot to adjust to at first.

the combat, the visuals and promise of meeting the cast really tied me over and the writing for its part got generally better the further in i got. i remember especially as soon as i started to discover the two cities, especially Treviso, i really started to fall in love with the setting.

despite myself i also came to really like how Solas is in this game - now finally actually just Fen'Harel, mask off full on Hannibal Lecter in Silence of the Lambs figure, imprisoned and offering "advice" yet subtly lying to your face and manipulating you the whole time. in general imo he was handled really well all the way to the end, and i enjoyed the Crossroads quests, the memories of his rebellion, the Regrets and lore reveals/confirmations of theories that have been teased either since the beginning of the series.

and despite my initial apprehension to some companions i really grew to love all of them just within the one playthrough. which is not something i can say for the cast of Inquisition personally - i grew really attached to Dorian, Varric, Cassandra but the rest were varying levels of neither here nor there until subsequent playthroughs. Veilguard really makes you spend a LOT of time with these people. and they feel like people with their own lives outside of you, despite relying on Rook a lot for advice. i actually really loved seeing them develop friendships and relationships independent of Rook, it made the home base feel more alive. generally i loved each of their questlines, some were weaker but the real highlights for me were Emmrich and Taash alongside Harding (esp playing as a dwarf). i immediately loved Taash being younger and giving attitude compared to the rest of the more matured cast it created an interesting dnyamic, and being a nonbinary kid of a conservative immigrant parent myself their storyline hit me really hard. i really adored Davrin and the griffon storyline following up on the Last Flight which is imo one of the best tie in books for this series. and Bellara - girl im so sorry for bouncing off your personality at first. her personal quest and performance was so touching and surprised me a lot by the end how much i liked her, and how much depth she was given. Lucanis was a pleasant surprise for me but i think his questline could have been done a bit better overall, and same for Neve - who i was really looking forward to initially but her questline kidna fell short of my expectations (thought i feel that on another replay things might be different due to me nuking Minrathous basically)

(also i ended up going for Emmrich romance with my mourn watch dwarven warrior and when i tell you there were times when i absolutely yelled out loud at how much i was catered to. his story and Manfred are just. so so delightful)

the real drawback of this game is.. my god there is so much missing. it does not really line up with the Tevinter we have heard about. some of the factions (namely LoF and Veil Jumpers) are not really super relevant. some factions are sanded down (Antivan Crows), and although it can be explained away in the lore (we are dealing with just one house, not all of the Crows so theres some wiggle room) its still hard not to see these changes. we visit so many places but they become a bit one note, sometimes reduced to just set dressing. especially by the end of the game i really wanted to see more of Minrathous and Tevinter in general, but we get very limited, filtered view of it. and with the companions feeling so independent of you, it actually makes Rook feel kinda underdeveloped in comparison. it feels they forge better friendships among themselves than with you, which i do kinda miss having a sort of "Best friend" in these games ala Alistair/Varric/Dorian. one thing i really sorely wish they added was any sort of prologue of you actually meeting Varric before the events of this game, because while you are attached to him as a player, Rook doesnt really have a very good established relationship with him i feel.

but looking at it as a game that went through so many iterations and ideas and genuine hell to even be released... i understand the reason people are upset with some of these things and situation about Southern Thedas or not following up more directly from Trespasser. personally it doesnt bother me (as i mostly live in headcanon with my DA characters anyway) but i get how it would others. i just dont understand the feeling that the devs and writers who worked on the previous games are out to ruin your beloved universe. so much of this game screams to me "we dont know if we will ever get to make another one of these". all the places we go to, without any larger plot relevance, the lore reveals and theories, the questions answered etc so much if it just such a huge closing of a chapter on Thedas, because theres no certainty for us or the devs we will ever return to this world again.

i have.. so many feelings about it but honestly towards the end of the game, finishing all the companions quests, finishing the quests for Wardens and the Crows as well especially and then heading towards that finale... like idk maybe ill change my mind down the line, but right now it feels like one of the best executed endings in any Dragon Age game. the whole maybe like 4? hour long finale just really gripped me by the throat, even though i saw some of the twists coming it still affected me a lot. and im excited about the tease for potential future too - turning the gaze outside of the continent and beyond the ocean, again something that has been very vaguely teased since Origins (with the lore of Kossith initially fleeing south because of Something TM) with moments here and there throughout the games. i'm glad there's still more mystery in this world and ancient elves didn't eat all of it. i'm even excited for the prospect of shifting the series into a single protagonist series with Rook.

i do miss a proper epilogue (just like i miss a proper prologue) at the moment especially because they seem very firm on no DLC and with the future of the franchise so unsure. with all this feeling of closure on this really storied world, i would have loved some good old fashioned epilogue slides at least vaguely discussing the future of the different kingdoms and nations, any sort of reaction to what transpired in this game yknow. if we dont get a DLC or a sequel down the line, i hope at least maybe for more tie in comics or novels.

still very much feel like DA:O and DA2 are tonally a separate world from DAI + DAV, and its not a bad thing but its why i dont expect Veilguard to be anywhere on par with the first two games. this is where im at, excited to eventually replay the game with a different faction background and different choices once the dust settles and hoping time will be kind to this game despite its many flaws.

#da4 #dragon age #dragon age veilguard spoilers #veilguard spoilers #not like super heavy spoilers but definitely some

7 notes · View notes

wingedblooms · 2 years ago

Text

The Ancients

This is a Maasverse post, and as such, there are spoilers for all Maas series. Proceed with caution.

“I’m afraid I can’t be of service,” Mort sniffed. “If you want an instant answer, you should find yourself a seer or an oracle.”

Celaena slowed her pacing. “You think if I read this to someone with the gift of clairvoyance, they might be able to … see some different meaning that I’m missing?”

“Perhaps. Though as far as I know, when magic vanished, those with the gift of Sight lost it, too.”

“Yes, but you’re still here.”

“So?” Celaena looked at the stone ceiling as if she could see through it, all the way to the ground above.

“So perhaps other ancient beings might retain some of their gifts, too.” (com)

In acowar, we learn that Elain is a seer and in the Maasverse, seer seems to be a broad term associated with the gift of Sight. Sarah sometimes uses seer interchangeably with oracle, as we see below.

It was a useless gift, she’d decided as a child. It couldn’t do much at all beyond blinding people, as she’d done to her father’s men when they came after her and her mother and Randall, as had happened to the Oracle when the seer peered into her future and beheld only her blazing light, as she’d done to those asp-hole smugglers. (hoeab)

An oracle appears to be a type of seer; at the very least, they have similar gifts of clairvoyance. Oracles were believed to be messengers, or conduits, for gods. We see indications of this in the scene where Hunt visits the oracle sphinx in hoeab. While we don’t know the full extent of Elain’s gifts, her abilities are referred to as oracular, and she shares parallels with both oracles and mystics in the Maasverse.

In fact, her gifts seem like they could rival the ancient beings Aelin referenced in the first quote. She tracks down Baba Yellowlegs—an Ancient—to help her unravel a mystery, and introduces us to another important method of Sight they cherish: witch mirrors.

Witch mirrors

If Yellowlegs truly was a witch, then perhaps she had the gift of Sight.

“Come to look into the mirrors?” she said, smoke spilling from her withered lips. “Done running from fate at last?” (com)

In the gloom, the caravan stretched on much wider and longer than should have been possible. A winding path had been made between the mirrors, leading into the dark—a path that Yellowlegs was now treading, as if there were anywhere to go inside this strange place.

[…]

As she strode through the forest of mirrors, her reflection shifted everywhere. In one she appeared short and fat, in another tall and impossibly thin. In another she stood upside down, and in yet another she walked sideways. It was enough to give her a headache. (com)

First, I would be remiss if I didn't point out the fact that Aelin links witches to the gift of Sight, just like in Midgard. Second, Yellowlegs’ caravan is unusual because its materials (the stones in the oven and wood in the walls) come from the ruins of the Crochan city. Combined with witch mirrors, it creates an otherworldly illusion that disorients Aelin and makes it difficult to escape Yellowlegs’ clutches.

Later, we learn from Manon that witch mirrors can be used to see, communicate, or amplify power:

“You can see the future, past, present. You can speak between mirrors, if someone possesses the sister-glass. And then there are the rare silvers—whose forging demands something vital from the maker.” Manon’s voice dropped low. Dorian wondered if even among the Blackbeaks, these tales had only been whispered at their campfires. “Other mirrors amplify and hold blasts of raw power, to be unleashed if the mirror is aimed at something.” (eos)

She and Aelin even enter a witch mirror to view a memory, and like I’ve discussed before, this experience might mimic Elain’s murky realm.

Aelin had a body that was not a body. She knew only because in this void, this foggy twilight, Manon had a body. A nearly transparent, wraithlike body, but…a form nonetheless.

Manon’s teeth and nails glinted in the dim light as she surveyed the swirling gray mists. “What is this place?” The mirror had transported them to…wherever this was.

“Your guess is as good as mine, witch.” Had time stopped beyond the mists?

[…]

The eddying fog darkened, and Manon and Aelin stepped close together, back to back. Pure night swept around them—blinding them.

Then—a murky, dim light ahead. No, not ahead. Approaching them. Manon’s bony shoulder dug into her own as they pressed tighter together, an impenetrable wall.

But the light rippled and expanded, figures within it appearing. Solidifying.

Aelin knew three things as the light and color enveloped them and became tangible: They were not seen, or heard, or scented by those before them.

And this was the past. A thousand years ago, to be exact. (eos)

@offtorivendell and I suspect there may also be witch mirrors in Prythian:

“My sister had a collection of mirrors in her black castle,” the Carver said. We halted once more. “She admired herself day and night in those mirrors, gloating over her youth and beauty. There was one mirror—the Ouroboros, she called it. It was old even when we were young. A window to the world. All could be seen, all could be told through its dark surface. Keir possesses it—an heirloom of his household. Bring it to me. That is my price. The Ouroboros, and I am yours to wield. If you can find a way to free me.” A hateful smile. (acowar)

Stryga, which is awfully close to the word for witch (striga, strega, shtriga, etc.), used her mirrors to spy on the world. It’s possible that her black castle was Hewn City, a place of rotting darkness that is home to wicked heirlooms much like her extensive collection in the cottage. Are Stryga and her magical mirrors also somehow connected to Maeve and the Valg? And if her heirlooms are also Mor’s family heirlooms, does that mean they are distantly related to Stryga and the Valg, and therefore connected to witches? Wounds associated with the Valg are described as rotted darkness (tod), making me truly wonder about the Court of Nightmares and those who inhabit and rule it now.

In tog, Maeve—a dark queen and world-walker like Stryga—confirms that mirrors can be used to spy, travel, and kill. She says she taught the witches how to use their enchanted mirrors. If Stryga is connected to the Valg, did she see her outward beauty in the mirror, or the displeasing form beneath (to use Maeve’s own words), no matter how many beautiful maidens she hunted and devoured? Could that unpleasant form look like the Valg princess we see in tog?

Its true form…It was as horrific as she’d imagined.

Smoke swirled and coiled about it, revealing glimpses of gangly limbs and talons, mostly hairless gray, slick skin, and unnaturally large dark eyes that raged as she looked upon it. [...] It hissed, revealing pointed, fish-sharp teeth. Your world shall fall. As the others have done. As all others will. (tod)

That would certainly drive someone like Stryga, who is obsessed with youth and beauty, insane. And it would make so much more sense that her true form–the rotted core of the Valg–would be capable of corrupting an enchanted mirror as scholars claim.

Save for the Weaver in the Wood—who certainly seemed insane enough, perhaps thanks to the mirror she’d so dearly loved. Or perhaps whatever evil lurked in her had tainted the mirror, too. Some of the philosophers had suggested as much, though they hadn’t known her name—only that a dark queen had once possessed it, cherished it. Spied on the world with it—and used it to hunt down beautiful young maidens to keep her eternally young. (acowar)

Much like Baba Yellowlegs, Stryga had a habit of devouring beautiful maidens and, once confined to the Middle, lured unsuspecting beings to her cottage. @offtorivendell has wondered if the Ouroboros will make a reappearance and if so, it might make the most sense in Elain’s story. It is interesting that Clotho helped Feyre find books on the Ouroboros and is the last known person in possession of Elain’s glass amulet. I do think this amulet could be connected to witch mirrors, even if only as a symbolic hint of things to come. The phrase secret, lovely beauty is repeated, suggesting a link—or sister-glass, if you will—between two females with hidden depths (more on this in The sense chanted and Groundings).

The Ancients

In addition to sharing information about witch mirrors, Manon confirms that some witches—like Baba Yellowlegs—have the gift of Sight.

Aelin murmured, “Nameless is my price.” Aedion opened his mouth, no doubt to ask what had snagged her interest, but Aelin frowned at Manon. “Can your kind see the future? See it as an oracle can?”

“Some,” Manon admitted. “The Bluebloods claim to.”

“Can other Clans?”

“They say that for the Ancients, past and present and future bleed together.” (eos)

The Blackbeak and Blueblood Matrons are also referred to as Ancients. Together, the Matrons represent the Three-Faced Goddess: Crone (Yellowlegs), Mother (Blackbeak), and Maiden (Blueblood). This goddess supposedly gave the witches their iron teeth and nails to keep them anchored to this world when magic threatened to pull them away.

Legend had it that all witches had been gifted by the Three-Faced Goddess with iron teeth and nails to keep them anchored to this world when magic threatened to pull them away. The iron crown, supposedly, was proof that the magic in the Blueblood line ran so strong that their leader needed more—needed iron and pain—to keep her tethered in this realm.

Nonsense. Especially when magic had been gone these past ten years. But Manon had heard rumors of the rituals the Bluebloods did in their forests and caves, rituals in which pain was the gateway to magic, to opening their senses. Oracles, mystics, zealots. (hof)

Nesta and Elain—who were Made in the Cauldron (which may be connected to the Three-Faced Goddess, as one of them is called Mother)—have iron mental gates. They also both wore iron bracelets and Elain has an iron engagement ring somewhere in her trove of jewelry. Elain, the obvious choice for the Maiden aspect, also wore a blue cloak during the witch accusation in Windhaven and seems to possess the most powerful Sight. Is it possible that time bleeds together in her murky realm like it does for the Ancients, and she might need even more iron, or something else, to remain tethered to Prythian?

“An Ancient,” Dorian mused, then murmured to Manon, “Baba Yellowlegs.”

They all turned to him. But Manon’s fingers brushed against her collarbone—where the necklace of Aelin’s scars from Yellowlegs still ringed her neck in stark white.

“This winter, she was at your castle,” Manon said to him. “Working as a fortune-teller.”

Manon stared the general down. “Yellowlegs was a fortune-teller—a powerful oracle. I bet she knew who the queen was the moment she saw her. And saw things she planned to sell to the highest bidder.” Dorian tried not to flinch at the memory. Aelin had butchered Yellowlegs when she’d threatened to sell his secrets. Aelin had never implied a threat against her own. Manon continued, “Yellowlegs wouldn’t have told the queen anything outright, only in veiled terms. So it’d drive the girl mad when she figured it out.” (eos)

Does Elain also know a person’s secrets on sight like Baba Yellowlegs? Is that why she was the only one who suspected Feyre’s pregnancy, and why she hasn’t yet met a character with a secret beneath her pretty face?

A Cauldron-blessed seer, could she even be the Eye of the Goddess incarnate, a divine guardian, as I suggested in Herbs she planted?

A large circle—and two overlapping circles, one atop the other, within its circumference. “That is the Three-Faced Goddess,” Manon said, her voice low. “We call this …” She drew a rough line in the centermost circle, in the eye-shaped space where they overlapped. “The Eye of the Goddess. Not Elena.” She circled the exterior again. “Crone,” she said of the outermost circumference. She circled the interior top circle: “Mother.” She circled the bottom: “Maiden.” She stabbed the eye inside: “And the heart of the Darkness within her.” It was Aelin’s turn to shake her head. The others didn’t so much as blink.

“That is an Ironteeth symbol. Blueblood prophets have it tattooed over their hearts. And those who won valor in battle, when we lived in the Wastes … they were once given those. To mark our glory—our being Goddess-blessed." (eos)

What if, like a Blueblood prophet, Elain is given a bargain tattoo of the Eye of the Goddess on her heart? (Please, Sarah.) Or perhaps its floral equivalent in Prythian: a layered rose that blooms with three colors when exposed to light, revealing the heart of Darkness within? A mark of the Goddess…

The Cauldron shattered into three pieces, peeling apart like a blossoming flower—and then she came. […] I dared a step toward it. And what I beheld in those ruins of the Cauldron … It was a void. But also not a void—a growth. (acowar)

to complement the eye of the beast in her love interest’s siphon?

I watched the light shift inside the sapphire Siphon instead, as if it were the great eye of some half-slumbering beast from a frozen wasteland. (acomaf)

or her mate’s magical eye?

“This eye …” Lucien gestured to the metal contraption. “It can see things that others…can’t. Spells, glamours … Perhaps it can help me find her. And break her curse.” (acowar)

Only Time, or the wind, will tell what form the future might take.

Next: Song of the wind, or how Elain might travel like a witch.

Series: seer. wise woman. witch.

#witch elain #witchy elain #the ancients #witch mirrors #three-faced goddess #past present future #the eye of the goddess #crone mother maiden #witchy archeron sisters #acotar witches #tog witches #crescent city witches #maasverse witches #elain archeron

61 notes · View notes

grigori77 · 4 hours ago

Text

Critical Role, Campaign 3 Episode 115

Sing? Really? Oh gods ... wait ... oh no ... really, he is THE LAST PERSON who should have one of these things ... oh yeah, give it to Robbie ... YEAH, that's moe like it ... no, give it back, Samuel! Yes. That's better ... by the gods this is a mad skit and I'm not surprised Marisha's got gigantic giggles ... XD ... oh my ... SHE'S gettign a go? The one cast member who CAN'T sing? Interesting ... LOL

MattL "We're professionals!" Yes .. you are ...

Wait ... what's going on with Ashley and Marisha? Is that a bit for Matt's plug? It's a bit random since they're both OFFSCREEN for it ...

Der Katzenprinz? Awwwwwwwwww ... it's real! :3

Back with Bells Hell and the Mighty Nein, then ... so we're reeling things back an hour or two ... which is about right ... "dicks out?" Really?

Fjord's sensitive nipples ... that's adorable. He's the most feared pirate in allf Exandria, folks! XD

Less illusions, more projections ... yeah, exactly, Imogen. Oh yeah ... Snowcone Ludinus, yeah ...

The confusion begins ... oh yeah, I've been looking forward to more of this ... LOL ... meanwhile Matt's just enjoying sitting back and WATCHING ...

Ah yes, where DO the Nein stand on the subject of the gods?

"Trent Ikithon"? Don't invoke that name, Fjord! Don't trigger the Dirt Wizard!

Caduceus: "So you're feeling confident because you've fought two snowmen?"

Just make Fearne an egg already, Chet!

A Message to Ludinus? I mean honestly, one of Jester's Messages would probably be a major headache for him, so I could actually get behind that idea ... XD

Rashinna! Hi! She's here, it's time, then ...

Ooooh, bombs ... yay! That should be fun. Explosives are always fun.

So ... is that like some funky cool grapple gun? That's pretty sweet ...

Wow ... Gaz really is like the Johnny Bravo of Ruidus, isn't he?

Nott wants to be close to "the big boom" ... well yes, she would ... I love this little pyromaniac ... if she shouts "Fluffernutter!" just before she blows it up that'll just be the icing on the cake ... XD

Don't eat the slime, Beau! It's not for eating ...

Trying to decide who can just fly up and who needs a little help ...

Fjord: "You hear that, Nott? Braius is going down." Veth: "Don't even tempt me! Big strong man ..."

"Lunchies"? Wow ... Gaz, man ...

Ah, so tea and ... something more? Hmmmmmm ...

A toast? Go for it, Dorian. "Please don't die, and down the hatch." Attaboy ...

Ruidian cheese dreams ... I love that so much ... XD ... yeah, please let Gaz survive this so someday he can have some cheese ...

Braius wanting Chetney to CHISEL R.T.A. on him when Jester has actual TATTOO EQUIPMENT ... LOL

Caleb thinks the Hells are even more insane than the Nein... that is a crazy compliment, definitely ...

:3 ... awwwwwwww ... Imogen and Laudna are as cute as ever ... I really am hoping they're gonna make it through this shit ... yeah, please let them get that little cottage they dream of ...

Yasha ... silently judging Veth for mooning over Braius ... I love it ... the question about Yahsa and Beau's marrital status ... so ... they're still not sure what it is? Hmmmm ... Marish: "Wait! Dani says we're married!" Oh boy ... LOL

Lots and lots of sex. This is apparently Yasha's secret to their longevity ... of course it is ...

Did Veth just ask Yasha if she was up for a foursome? O.O

Yes. Beau WOULD be a great mother. It's bizarre, but very true ...

Marriage at TravelerCon? Oh yeah, that sounds PERFECT ... yeah, all the wedding planning is just THE BEST PART of this episode so far ... which after all the Yasha/Veth sex-talk is definitely saying something ... XD

Gaz tries honey for the first time ... O.O ... wow ...

Oh ... so that's it, then? Time to start ... hmmmm ... and potentially a big goodbye for both parties ...

Caduceus: "When the time comes ... go with what feels kind." Oh ... yes. Definitely ...

Let Laudna have the Raven Mask. PLease. As much to stop the squeekiness, really ...

Yes. Give Ashton an hour of Psychic protection. That would be really helpful ... wait ... Chetney has NEGATIVE ONE for Wisdom? Fucking hell ...

Oh, so she just FAKES IT? That's hilarous ...

A last quick moment with Dorian and Orym? Oh ... THEY'RE KISSING?!!! THEY'RE KISSING!!! THEY'RE FUCKING KISSING!!! TEN SECONDS OF KISSING!!! IT'S HAPPENING!!! Oh dear ... sorry Braius ... oops ...

Fucking hell ... are Ashton and Fearne REALLY about to take a massive amount of mushrooms right before they go into the most desperate fight ot their life? O.O

Fucking hell, Sam! How many of those do you even HAVE?!!!

Caleb and Imogen bonding ... yeah, they really do seem like such a good friendship fit ... :3

It's going all red ... and a screech? A strange screech? Is Imogen getting trapped in a dream? Oh fuck, that's exactly what it is ... Liliana! Oh fuck, is it all going off already? Not good ... he knows? Oh fuck ... that's so bad ... wait ... WHAT?!!! What's happening to her? Matt Mercer don't you fucking DARE!!! Oh fuck ... is she gonna be with her for as long as she can in what's clearly her final moments? Fuck ...

A HARNESS?!!! He's funnelling her? NO!!! NOOOOOO!!!

And NOW he calls a break? Matt Mercer you EVIL BASTARD!!!

While all that's happening we're off with the Nein instead ... damn it! And back with the old seating arrangement! Cool! But no Robbie? Not quite so cool ...

Seeming is still up? Okay, then ... smart ...

Group deception check? First fresh roll as the Nein ... okay, it's been a little while ... looks like we all have to get back to remembering the old stats ... and Ashley's RIGHT back on the classic dice behavour already ...

Crap ... are they running into difficulty ALREADY?

Bluffing time ... Deception check! Oof ... here we go, then ... so ... that worked, then? Phew ...

And now they're being followed ... bollocks ... so then that DIDN'T work, then ... hmmmmmm ...

Invoke Duplicity! Oh nice ... yeah, it's been a while ... :3

Nice ... so THAT distraction worked. Great work, Jester.

Sneaky sneaky ...

Aha ... so this place seems like what we're headed for ... yup. we're here. The Arx Creonum ...

So they're going IN then ... oh, a friend? Somebody on the inside, then ... yeah, looks like they're pulling it off, then ...

Wow ... gods, she was so young then ... :3

Okay, so now it's time to finally work out what they're gonna do with the climb ... is Beau gonna go so some more Cool Monk Shit? Let her Naruto Run along the cable ...

Veth casts Spiderclimb ... cool ...

Beau's still spicy about Veth shooting her in the arse after seven years ... XD

THat's a lott of BOOM, Gaz ... and now he's sort of quoting The Goonies ...

Meanwhile Fjord and Jester are doing the whole Superman and Lois thing ... LOL

Think light thoughts, guys ... and yeah, a little Guidance would be helpful too. Thanks, Jester ...

Veth gets a MATCHING OUTFIT for the infiltration? Cool ... yeah, she's on the DEMO TEAM ... O.O ... extra cool ...

The bird flips the bird ...

The assault has begun! Laura: "It has begin!"

Climbing time for the demo team, then ... okay, well that went surprisingly well ... the lines are now secure. Step one is a success ... Spiderclimb!

Ring of Spell Splitting, plus Death Ward? Nice ...

Veth totally showing up everybody else as they go up ... XD

STEALTH CHECK!!!

Safe arrival, then ... all going well so far ... what's next, then?

Finding a prime spot for the bombs, then ... Investigation check! Okay ... planting the bombs ... c'mon Veth, this is what you're really good at ... no Spiderclimb lasts an HOUR, you're fine ...

Lighting the fuse ... here we go ... HIDE!!! TAKE COVER!!!

They've been spotted? Crap ... IS THAT a problem right now? Oh, guess not ... BOOM!!!

A THIRD OF THE BUILDING starts to fall away? Holy fuck ... O.O

Time for the rest of them to make the cli8mb too, then ... all at once! Get to it, guys!

Evasion for ZERO DAMAGE? Sweet. "Rogues are back in style!" XD

Seven rounds to ascend? Crap ... what's gonna happen in the interrim?

Beau is DASHING it ... this is gonna be SPECTACULAR ... so she can clear it in FOUR rounds ... which means 4 Acrobatics checks ... roll well, Marisha! 17 for the third one? Oh fuck ... that's BARELY enough ... wait ... is Veth SERIOUSLY gonna electroshock Beau right now? O.O Caleb Bird sighs SO HEAVILY ... so the DC is now TWENTY ... oh fuck ... Sam fucking Riegel, the classic chaos gremlin ... oh wow ... yeah, she just GRINDS THAT FUCKER with her staff ... that is just AWESOME ...

Gods I love these two so much, they're both so petty ... XD

Meanwhile how do everybody else get on? Starts smooth ... but now they've been spotted ... crap ... this complicates things ... and now they're being pelted with stuff ... SPEARS?!!! Seriously? Crap ... O.O ... shit ... did Laura really rol a THREE?!!! Crap ... and now she's just had her harness cut away ... FUCK!!! And now Jester is FALLING ...

Ashley rolls a ONE when Yasha tries to grab her ... so Fjord just goes after her instead! Of course he does ... so romantic ... but that adds an EXTRA ROUND to the whole mess ... crap!

Oh for fuck's ... ANOTHER shit roll? So bad ... Ashley strikes again ... and now YASHA'S harness is starting to go too ... shit! Grab that hook, girl! Nope, she's falling too ... yeah, Caleb just swoops for her ... and NOW she's starting to Rage ...

Fuck ... yeah, he JUST catches her in time ... and now they're under fire ... a giant eagle has 26 hit points? Bloody hell ... O.O ... that was almost SO BAD ...

Taliesin rolls a ONE ... oh sweet fuck ... and now CADUCEUS is plummetting too ... crap ... so Jester casts Polymorph on him ... she turns him into a giant dire-beetle ... with a Dacuceus face? Wow ... that's just PURE nightmate fuel ... but he is now flying again ...

Okay, so ... they made it, then? Finally ... and it was a TOTAL MESS the whole way ...

Great ... so now they have to make MORE checks to climb up the side of the structure ...

Oh okay ... Battlemap time? Here we go, then ... fuck, this shit looks REALLY HAIRY ...

"HELLO BEEEEEEES!!!"

ROLL INITIATIVE!!!

Beau clambers up onto the wall and runs along the top to try and get past them, while being as tauntingly annoying as possible ... hmmm ... then she goes on the ATTACK!!! POP POP!!! Oh, I have missed this ... Stunning Strike! Yay! But they resist ... crap ... Patience Defence!

Caleb tries to swoop as close as he can to the big blasted opening in the hope to just TOSS Yasha into it ... nice ...

Caduceus buzzes to the nearest platform and hides, ready for the next move ...

Yasha picks herself up and starts climbing the wall ... then she throws her recently acquired spear at one of Beau's foes ... oh yeah, 29 DEFINITELY hits ...

One of the Shrikes shoots his glass cannon at her ... yeah, that's a miss. Phew ... quite a wake-up call, though ... another one takes a shot ... ALSO misses ... thirs one HITS though ... oof ... it definitely hurts, but she's able to shrug it off ... then the closest to Beau takes a shot, that misses ... but the next hits her! Crap! She burns a Ki point and just manages to grab the shot and throw it back! Nice ... CRACK!!! And he fails his save ... 2 D8 Psychic damage? Nice ...

Jest holds her action while waiting to get closer ... holding Darkness? Okay ...

Crap ... Yasha's taking hits ... but she's a Barbarian so she just BOSSES her way through it ... nice ... Telekinetic Combo? Boooo! Thankfully she's able to shrug THAT off too ... meanwhile Beau's taking some pretty nasty hits too ... oof ... crap, it knocks her RIGHT BACK to the wall ...

Armoured feskuls? Crap! Sam: "Can't this game just be roleplay and no combat?"

Fjord touches down with Jester on the nearest ledge, and she casts Darkness to give Yasha and Beau some cover ... nice! Meanwhile he casts Hex on the juggernaut fighting Beau. Then he throws some Eldritch Blasts at him! Ballsy ... Even with the Darkness he manages to hit with ALL THREE!!! Also nice ... oh yeah, that's A WHOLE FUCKLOAD of damage in one round there ...

The Blade Baron uses his Blade Storm to start swiping at Yasha ... crap! EIGHT D10 Slashing damage? Fuck ... that's nasty ... thank fuck she's Raging ...

Gaz arrives! Phew ... he flubs his entrance, but he's there now, at least ...

Veth rushes to join her friends ... and fires her Aeorean Security Cannon into the Darkness, hoping she doesn't hit Beau (or at least that's what she SAYS) ... 39 points of damage? Wow ...

Beau bolts out of the Darkness and makes for the gap ... oh, that is pretty sweet! Yeah, do that ... if you can take this Hulk out in one deft move ... OH SHIT she actually PULL IT OFF!!! That's so beautiful ... yeah, he's just PLUMMETTING to his death now ... that's a proper sweet fucking move, Beau!

Caleb curves around the edge and swoops down to Caduceus, and that's about it ... hmmmm ...

Caduceus casts Guidance on him, and also that's about it ...

Flashbacks of Aeor? Yeesh ...

Yasha has to try and slip past to make it to the edge ... so she just decides to take a swing at him instead. Reckless Rage! Yes ... that's a hit! Yeah! And another! Ooooh, Dvine Fury? Nice ... that.s 43 on one hit ... second's another 19 ... now she tries to shimmy by ... and she MANAGE IT!!! Yes ... she's free to fully disengage so she jumps down and makes her way down towards Caleb and Caduceus ...

The Shrike tries to shoot at Veth ... second shot hits the mark ... ouch ... thanks to Uncanny Dodge she shrugs off the worst ot it ... and she doesn't suffer any ll effects either ... phew ...

The two Polymorphed folk are now taking fire ... POP!!! Yup, now Caleb has been BATTERED back to human form ... and the rest of the damage hurts too ... but both shots as Ceduceus just miss him entirely ...

Jester casts a Guiding Bolt at 2nd Level and chucks it at the feskul ... and MISSES!!! Shit ... that's so frustrating ...

Juggernaut faceplant! Nice ...

Shit! Spotted! Now they're under fire again ... Caleb and Yasha takes some more hits ... and here come the feskuls! Aaaaaaaaahh! Oh, that is NASTY!!! Fjord and Jester take some hits too ... the other goes for Veth ... and she gets BIT!!! Nasty ... 32 points of Piercing damage? FUCK!!!

Hexblade's Curse! Fjord hurls them at the juggernaut ... pow! And it just FALL OFF THE EDGE!!! Nice ... he shifts the Hex to the feskul, then fires some Eldritch Blasts at it ... second hits! BOOM!!! Prmanently reduced AC? That's pretty sweet. Finally they land on the ledge next to Beau.

The Blade Baron sets in on Gaz ... oh man ... PLEASE make it through, big guy! Thankfully Matt rolls absolute BALLS so he gets through JUST FINE ... so the Baron just FLEES?!!! XD Oh my gods ...

Gaz goes right after him and just starts POUNDING on him ... oh yeah, he just KEEPS ON HITTING HIM!!! Nice ... That's 66 points of damage he unloads on him ... and that's IT for the Baron! Beautiful ...

Veth just BOOKS IT and makes a flat out DASH right past the remaining foes ... who manage to MISS her ... phew ... then she jumps down and makes a PERFECT landing right onto the juggernaut ... instantly blinding him ... very nice ...

Beau attacks while he's blinded ... POP POP!!! Juggernaut's hurt, but still in it ...

Caleb chucks a Fireball into his nuts ... and ENGULFS HIM!!! Nice ... Claeb grabs hold of Veth and pulls her away as the burning enemy plunges over the edge ... nice ...

Okay, time to head into the tunnels, then ... Beau dumps a bunch of ball-bearings behind them as they go.

Fjord and Jester are the only 0ones left out there, along with Gaz ... hmmm ... meanwhile they're still taking fire ... oof ... yeah, they're getting hurt, but hanging in there ...

Jester jumps down and SLIPS ON THE BEARINGS!!! Fuck ... yeah, she bruises her butt when she goes down ... oof ...

The feskul tries to attack Gaz ... it starts snapping at him, but doesn't influct much damage on him in the end. The other swoops on Fjord, but he's able to fend it off ...

Fjord throws some Eldritch Blasts at it, and two hit ... yeah, one's a CRIT!!! Nice ... yeah, that's some serious damage, and he blasts it right out of the sky. He follows the others and now they're all together ...

Just Gaz left, then ... he manages to disengage and jumps across too, JUST manages to avoid the bearings and now he's with the rest of them. He turns to cover their entry, leaving them to head on inside.

Jester gives him the rest of her honey before she goes. Snd he calls her "Honey Miss!" Awwwwwwwwww ... :3

Yeah, that's a good place to call it a night. Is it Thursday yet?

4 notes · View notes

kaija-rayne-author · 24 days ago

Text

I'm doing a series of reviews as I play Dragon Age Veilguard. One or two posts a day, whenever I can play.

This is installment one.

Can't remember if I mentioned that a lovely person gave me a copy of DAV. And I'm so very grateful I can play close to release. So I can do an unbiased review series.

Something came to my attention. I need to make it crystal clear that I utterly love the diversity in DAV. It's fantastic. I'm also a heavily left leaning, non-binary, queer as fuck reviewer, editor, and author.

I'm on media blackout while I play this, so I'm only getting second-hand info on how awful it is right now in the DA Fandom. Please be safe and take care of yourselves. Arguing with incels and white supremacists is completely pointless. They sea lion worse than an actual sea lion. Your mental health is important.

Though, every single time the anti-queer brigade comes out for a new DA game, I sit there thinking 'have you bozos ever played any DA game, like, ever?' My guess is nope.

I'm seven hours in. (2 in CC so 5 playtime.)

Spoilers for DAV. Dragon Age Veilguard

Also, this is all my off the cuff writing. I haven't the time, energy, or desire to edit them.

Five hours in... I can confidently say welp, it's a game. It is indeed a video game.

I don't hate it? Most of it? Can't say I love it, either.

Background and environment folks did a fantastic job. And I was pretty sure they would. That part feels like Dragon Age. Except for the floaty spaceship thing in Minrathous. Intentionally not saying what it's supposed to be, because they do tell you.

Baddy design is as bad as I feared. If not actually worse.

I totally called it on several points, which gods escaped, for one. The fact that those 'demons' were gonna give me a headache, too. And the whole Solas Varric sitch.

CC is pretty good. Nothing ground breaking, but people should be able to make a character they like? You can make a good redhead.

I like the new codex design. I still preferred DAO for that one. Aaaannnnd I've already caught a couple editing errors in the text.

Extremely thrilled that my non-binary ass can be non-binary.

Yes, you can actually make a (slightly) pudgy character.

That is still not Solas. And you can't try to tell me I'll probably like him once I see him in game, anymore. I don't. He does still move the same, so they got that right. Still has the subtle humour, too, which, since Weekes wrote him, makes sense.

They were right, the characters do look better in game.

AND THAT IS STILL NOT A FUCKING DARKSPAWN.

My youngest kid just glanced at my screen and did a double take with a 'Ma? Why are you playing Fortnite?'

From the mouths of babes. He's right in that Fortnite player age bracket, FWIW. And no, he has no interest in playing Dragon Age. No matter how much they made some of it look like Fortnite.

Not feeling any of the romanceables, yet. But I've only met Neve, Lace, and Bellara. Alas my poor bisexual heart. None of the women do it for me. That may change, it's still very early as per in-game events.

I'm going to stick with it to see if it'll actually catch me up. Because it sadly has not, yet. By an hour in on my first playthrough of DAO, I was head over heels for Alistair. By 1 hour into Awakening, Anders had me. By hour 3 in DA2? Anders and Isabela both had me. By seven hours into DAI? I was very much in love with Solas, though I was playing a guy because I wanted to Romance Dorian first. (Still really loved Dorian.) But yeah, that bloody elf had me first, and I think it was at the first damned scene with him in it. Which is roughly an hour or so in?

I'm intensely curious about the story, and it's why I was so desperate to play it. So unless it somehow utterly offends me, (worse than those not-fucking-darkspawn and what-the-actual-fuck-are-those-demons already have) I'll finish it. Unless I lose interest. It's at least worth playing so far. I don't feel like I wasted the seven hours.

Fighting is reasonably easy to adjust to. And it'll be more fun when I get the hang of it. (For me, I usually don't have a lot of trouble picking up new fighting systems in games.)

Oh, and it took Astarion BG3 half an hour. 🤣

Please no spoilers if anyone responds. As I said, only seven hours in.

In case you're interested, here's my predictions piece.

And here's the second part in my ongoing review as I play series.

#dragon age veilguard #DAV #Veilguard

5 notes · View notes

spartanguard · 1 year ago

Text

sons of love and death, 6/13 {CSSNS 23}

Summary: After the Final Battle, Killian Jones had finally settled into his happily ever after with his wife and family. Until a new foe arrived in Storybrooke: the infamous Dorian Gray, who looks rather familiar—one might say identical—to the pirate, and he’s on a mission: to claim the powers of the Dark One for himself. There’s only one problem: the Dark One no longer exists. What follows is a journey of vengeance, revelations, magic, and finally facing down the darkness within himself that Killian thought he’d finally put to rest. [roughly canon divergent from 5B, though set post-canon] A/N: Back again; cruising right along with another update of my @cssns story! (A bit later in the day than usual but hopefully no one minds :D Next week will probably be similar as I'll be instructing at band camp with spotty reception, but it should still be up at some point on Wednesday!) Hope you like it! (As always, thanks to the best beta, @optomisticgirll !) rated M | 4.3k words | AO3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

“Again.”

“Must I?”

“Yes.”

“Fine,” he huffed.

To say Killian’s magic lessons were going well would be a severe overstatement. Emma had tried to gently start teaching him to use his powers in much the same way Belle had, though with a bit more expertise. But considering her use of magic was purely instinctive, they hadn’t gotten very far. (Besides, it had been night time, and it was just the two of them…they ended up making a more figurative kind of magic together, as they so often did.)

Now, the following morning, she’d insisted they bring Regina into the fold. To the queen’s credit, she was a better teacher—stricter, but he honestly responded to that better; his instructors in the naval academy certainly hadn’t gone easy on him.

However, he still hadn’t made much more than a ripple, and he wasn’t even sure that was him. They’d convened on the deck of the Jolly Roger—somewhere he felt comfortable, and where his powers likely already had a connection—and a glass of water sitting on a barrel was the object of his attention. But in the time they’d been there, he’d only managed to make the water slosh around a bit, and he couldn’t rule out it being caused by his own stomps of frustration or the bit of rolling waves.

Emma gave him an encouraging smile, though, so he focused on the glass again, willing the water to do something—anything. There was a feeble sparking in his palm, and he tried to use his fingers to guide the surface of the water into changing from afar. Briefly, a small droplet pulled up and hovered over the rest, but he was only able to hold it for a second before it slipped away and fell back in.

He huffed and wiped the sweat from his brow. “This is impossible.”

“If you keep insisting it is, then yeah,” Regina snapped back. “You just have to focus.”

“Focus on what?” he demanded. “I’ve stared at that glass hard and long enough to give myself a headache and nothing’s happened. So it’s more than a lack of attention.”

“You need to focus on the power—and then, how you want to use it,” she finally explained.

“Yes, because I know how to do that,” he griped, then frustratedly ran a hand through his hair.

“You did at one point,” she stated. “I seem to recall getting a firsthand taste of your command of the Darkness.” She nonchalantly rubbed her neck to remind him (as if he’d forgotten).

“Aye, but I wasn’t fully in charge then. The Darkness just…knew,” he answered. “It was reflexive. It’s a bit easier when you have hundreds of years of experience whispering in the back of your mind.”

“Well, at least we know it’s there,” Regina muttered. He was about to tell her off again, but she was looking at the glass—where a tiny whirlpool was currently spinning.

He looked at his hand again, and the glow was back. Emma was suddenly at his side, and carefully took his hand in hers. “Okay, do you feel that? The magic?” she asked.

“I…I don’t know.”

“Take a deep breath; relax.” He tried to do as she told him. “Okay, now close your eyes, and only pay attention to your hand. Does anything feel different?”

He followed her lead again, shutting his eyes and turning his attention to his upturned palm. It did feel different—warmer, somehow. “It’s like there’s something…simmering, almost, just under the skin,” he described.

“Good,” Emma encouraged. “Do you feel it anywhere else?”

He furrowed his brow in focus, giving it a shot and trying to notice if that sensation was anywhere else. It was faint, but he could feel it flowing up his arm, through his veins, right around to his heart. And the more he paid attention to it, the stronger the feeling got.

“Yeah; it’s—it’s everywhere,” he gasped, almost incredulously. How had he not noticed that?

“Mhmm,” she replied. “It feels like that for me, too—like a well, deep inside. So hold onto that, and open your eyes.”

He breathed in sharply—the light in his palm was glowing even stronger now, and much steadier than it had yet.

“Try something,” Emma encouraged.

He focused again on the glass and this time, rather than the accidental whirlpool, he did the opposite and made a waterspout draw up and dance on the surface. He chuckled to himself, even—amazed he’d actually done it.

“Now was that so hard?” Regina commented, and any pride he’d had was immediately gone, replaced with annoyance, and the waterspout violently exploded in all directions (but mostly Regina’s).

“Hey—that was great,” Emma jumped in, taking his hand in hers. “Let’s try it again.”

For a while longer, they kept at it, and he did have increasing levels of success—mostly when he focused on Emma and how she had described the feel of her magic. The more he used it, the more he felt it—but, at the same time, the more he realized it had always been there. Where the Darkness had felt foreign, like ice in his veins, this felt organic—like a muscle he was learning to use in a different way. Looking back, it was probably why he’d always felt the most at home on or near the sea—not just due to his upbringing.

But often enough, he felt overwhelmed, and his anger boiled over—almost literally. Regina had to magically fix the glass several times after an emotional reaction led to an explosion.

“If you could just get that level of power under control, you’d be a pretty fearsome opponent,” Regina commented as she put the cup together again.

“Should he, though?” Emma countered, sounding concerned. “I thought it was a bad idea to use anger like that—you know, the whole anger-leads-to-the-dark-side thing?”

“It can,” Regina conceded. “I’d know more than anyone. But I also let that anger and heartbreak consume my entire being; Hook—you’re past that,” she told him.

“True, but you know as well as any it’s a daily choice,” he replied. “Maybe it’s too late for me to master this,” he sighed, staring at a knot in the deck. “There’s no way I’ll ever catch up to Dorian.”

“He may have learned how to use his magic sooner, but you both have the same potential—especially with elemental magic,” Regina said. “And I’ve never known you to give up on anything,” she smirked.

Well. He wasn’t used to encouragement from Regina, but if she thought he could do this, he supposed there was a chance he could.

And when Emma gave him a supportive grin, he felt like he could do damn near anything.

It came easier after that, though he was still very much a beginner. But eventually, all the water in the glass was contained in a swirling orb, hovering above the glass. He was sorely tempted to send it Regina’s way, but was mostly feeling a sense of pride at accomplishing that much.

However, the moment he began to feel confident, it faltered and splashed down on the crate.

“Well, bare minimum, you could be a one-man fire department,” Regina quipped. He shot a half-hearted glare over at her; but with the way his brother was keen on setting fires around town, it wasn’t a terrible concept.

Regina had to leave for an appointment then, and poofed away after her farewell. “Showoff,” he muttered as the smoke dissipated.

“Hey—you’ll get there,” Emma assured him. “Everyone starts somewhere.”

“I know,” he sighed and put an arm around her, wanting to have her close. “But how many people started learning magic at 193?”

“If you were able to figure out a smartphone, you can figure this out,” she tossed back, chuckling.

He nodded and half-smiled. “I just…I still wish I didn’t have to. I don’t want to,” he confessed.

“I know,” she conceded. “But remember—it’s just precautionary. Although, I do have to say—I like the idea of two hot magic users who also happen to be True Love,” she added, turning in his hold to wrap her arms around him. “Literal power couple, us. Kinda turns me on,” she added in a low voice.

They shared a laugh—and a deep kiss—at that. He had to admit he liked that idea, too; even when they’d been the Dark Ones, there was something satisfying about their shared level of power. This, however, was a much-preferred situation.

But as they walked home hand-in-hand, he still had worry in the back of his mind: that he might yet give into the darker, more powerful impulses he’d seen corrupt others, like Gold and Dorian, but most of all—his own sordid past.

★・・・・・・★・・・・・・🗡・・・・・・★・・・・・・★

When Dorian eventually (blearily) blinked his eyes open the next day, his head was pounding and the sun was well into the sky; so, an average morning for him.

Voices drifted up on the wind; the fact that they hadn’t knocked him off the bench indicated his cloaking spell had held. There wasn’t even a pause in their conversation when he shifted in his horizontal position and the empty whiskey bottle fell to the sidewalk, shattering.

He rolled over to look at it, then with a flick of his hand, heated the pieces until they melted and then let them cool, looking like permanent puddles of water on the concrete.

A familiar voice filtered through the din of people speaking from…wherever they were—his own. He squinted and looked around, not willing to sit up just yet, but was still able to find the sailing brig moored a few berths over. He was surprised he hadn’t noticed it last night, but he’d been a bit preoccupied (and inebriated).

And there, on the deck, was his brother, alongside the sheriff and the Evil Queen. His vision wasn’t the sharpest in his hungover state, but it appeared as though Hook was attempting to harness his own magic. “Good luck, brother,” he scoffed; it had taken him the better part of 15 years to get a grasp of his own powers and was still honing and mastering them, even after more than a century and a half.

For a while, he watched the attempts to teach his brother, and felt an odd sense of relief at how poorly he was doing. So that wouldn’t be an obstacle to him.

But another fact was made glaringly obvious: Killian had allies; Dorian did not.

He should probably do something about that.

However, he knew that the two dark magic users he was aware of in town were not going to be available to him—Regina was clearly helping his brother, and the former Dark One was unlikely to assist someone who was out for his blood (the amount of which would not be small).

But in a town this big, with this many magic users from their home realm (among others), there had to be another.

He waited and watched (and sobered up) while Killian continued his attempt at figuring out magic. It was hard to imagine someone that averse to learning sorcery had ever been the Dark One. There were a few moments, though, where he could feel that small piece of it flare up—when Killian was visibly angry or frustrated. That was good news; it meant that there was plenty of power left in that remnant.

It was simmering when their lesson finished and Hook shuffled off somewhat dejectedly. That was definitely something Dorian could use to his advantage. But now that he was alone, it was time to track down more resources.

He took down the protection spell and closed his eyes to focus. There was a hefty combination of both dark and light magic in the very soil of this place, but the traces of it floating in the air were remnants from the various magic users.

After meditating for a minute, he found one thick thread of dark magic and a few smaller ones; some of the thinner ones were Dark One leftovers, so he ruled those out, and started in the logical spot by following the larger strand.

However, he should have anticipated it leading him to the cemetery. And not even to Regina’s vault—to actual graves. He didn’t know who they were, but Cora Mills and Cruella de Vil were unlikely to be of any help.

So he picked the next invisible string and followed it across town. Thankfully, it passed by a convenience store; he didn’t go in, of course, but he did magically shoplift a bottle of water and some aspirin for his still-splitting headache. (The one thing he’d never found a magical cure for was a hangover. But it wouldn’t be an issue when he was immortal and invulnerable; he was only the former at the moment.)

The thread dragged him up and down some rocky hills and through a fair chunk of the forest, until finally bringing him to a clearing where there sat a small farm. Both the barn and farmhouse were weatherworn but tidy, save for a gaping hole in the barn roof.

Something powerful was resonating in the barn, and he had to investigate. It got stronger as he got closer, and based on the sigil carved in the dirt, he knew that someone had once cast a powerful curse here.

There was more Dark One residue lingering in the storm cellar across the clearing, and if he wasn’t mistaken, a cage inside; had this person kept Rumpelstiltskin captive, or one of the other two? If so, then he desperately needed them on his side.

He could see a light on in the second floor of the house and movement behind a curtain. Looked like it was time to introduce himself.

Once on the porch, he glanced at his reflection in the glass of the door, making sure his hair was perfectly imperfect. Then he knocked, and waited.

A tired-sounding female voice called out “Coming,” but it certainly wasn’t in a tone he liked to hear that word in.

He also heard…was that crying?

The door flew open and a woman whose bright red curls were as disheveled as her clothes greeted him, with a wailing child in her arms. He was speechless at first—this was a dark magic user? She looked so…messy.

(Not to say tidiness was key to being a sorcerer, but when you could clean at the wave of a hand, it wasn’t hard to keep things organized and neat.)

She looked at him almost in exasperation. “What do you want, Hook?” she sighed. “I’m kind of in the mid—”

A shrill alarm from back in the house cut her off. “Oh, bloody hell,” she cursed, looking over her shoulder. “Here; follow me,” she commanded, and shoved the kid in his arms; he just barely got his arms around the child, some foreign paternal instinct making sure he didn’t drop them.

The woman ran ahead of him, around a corner; he only hesitated a moment to follow. Just what kind of person was his brother that a dark magic user wouldn’t hesitate to trust him with her child? Perhaps he wasn’t as virtuous as he seemed.

Or, he realized as he entered the kitchen, maybe this woman wasn’t as powerful as he thought—especially based on the cloud of smoke that came out of the oven when she opened it.

“I take it you need a hand,” he assessed.

“Haha, very funny, Captain,” she deadpanned as she pulled out a very burnt meatloaf and practically threw it on the table. She stared at it dejectedly for a moment, then looked back up at him.

She looked confused for a moment, and it was obvious when she looked at his hands—and everything clicked.

“Who the hell are you?” she barked, moving almost impossibly fast to grab the still-crying toddler from his arms. “And what the fuck are you doing here?”

“I was going to ask you the same thing,” he replied, magicking away some baby drool off his jacket. “I followed the scent of dark magic over here, all the way to you. And I was wondering,” he started, stepping closer to her and tilting his head down, “if you might be interested in making some together?” He stared up at her through his lashes, a move few women had been able to resist.

To his horror, though, she just rolled her eyes. “You’re clearly related to him,” she scoffed. “And you’re definitely not my type. Besides—don’t have my magic anymore, so you’re wasting your time.”

“You don’t?” His question sounded far more like a whine than he’d intended.

“No. Believe it or not, there are things more worthwhile than having powers.”

“Bloody hell, why does everyone in this fucking town give up their magic?” he cursed, then threw himself down on one of the dining table chairs.

“Don’t get comfortable,” she bit out while bouncing her child. “And I’d tell you, but honestly, you have to learn it on your own. I certainly did.” She smiled at her little one, even though it did nothing to calm them down. But a steely gaze was back on her face when she looked up at him. “Now please leave, whoever you are; my daughter is hungry and you’re disturbing her.”

He’d never received such poor accommodation as he had in Storybrooke. But he knew a losing battle when he saw one—at least, where the fairer sex was concerned.

“Alright. It was not a pleasure meeting you, Miss Red. Take care.”

He didn’t waste any time in leaving and poofed away, strategically transporting to the empty hall of Granny’s Bed and Breakfast and slipping into one of the vacant rooms (which was…all of them; honestly, it was Granny’s loss, because his gold was worth just as much as the next person’s).

He took a seat on the mattress, but not after putting a soundproofing spell on the room—he could tell by sight the bed would creak.

And then he flopped backwards on it dramatically. For the moment, he was going to let himself wallow in defeat at his lack of allies. (Another bottle of whiskey should help.)

But he did learn one valuable thing today: he wasn’t going to accomplish anything as himself—not when his brother’s apparently good reputation stood in opposition to his own.

He’d long been aware of what kind of man Captain Hook was. Perhaps he should remind the town of that—and Killian, too. Especially if his brother was going to continue to hone his own powers—Dorian either needed to shake his confidence, or trigger the Darkness as much as possible.

He knew, however, that no one would listen if he just went about town, shouting the pirate’s indiscretions for all to hear. No, he was going to have to be a bit more calculated than that—a bit more devious.

Callous, concentrated on evil, with stained mind, and soul hungry for rebellion, Dorian Gray hastened on.

★・・・・・・★・・・・・・🗡・・・・・・★・・・・・・★

A couple centuries ago

On the opposite side of the realm from Cailleach, in an opulent but somewhat cold castle, its out-of-place nursery wing finally had an inhabitant once Zoso had made his deal with the poor woman. True to his word, he raised the little boy like he was his own, with as much warmth as the Darkness constantly whispering in the back of his mind would let him muster.

Dorian grew into a smart, well-mannered boy, if a touch self-centered—understandable given his solitary upbringing. Zoso assumed that would level out once he went out into the world. But he was altogether careful and conscientious, so he had few worries about the boy’s future.

When the lad came of age, Zoso began to teach him magic. That was the whole reason he’d wanted to take in a ward in the first place: so he could raise a suitable replacement for the Curse of the Dark One. He was beginning to grow tired of the burden of this spell, but had yet to find someone he thought wouldn’t abuse the mantle. After so many years and seeing so much of humanity, he knew most folks, once grown, would not hesitate to make selfish decisions. But perhaps if he raised his successor from infancy, he could ensure it went to someone who could keep the Darkness in check.

(Briefly, he considered passing it onto the boy’s birth mother, but she was one of those rare few who he knew would shoot him down.)

Dorian was a fast learner, studious, and had a natural talent with magic—as though he was born with it. It sparked red from his fingers and tended towards flames, but Zoso taught him how to rein it in, and only had to put out a few fires. He made no attempt to hide the fact that he wanted Dorian to follow him, but was waiting until it was absolutely necessary to inform him of the manner in which the transfer of power would occur.

The boy grew into a young man, handsome and confident, and Zoso began to send him on errands for him around the realm and let him begin to live something of his own life; he hadn’t been completely sheltered growing up—Zoso often took him on his journeys—but it was time for him to learn the ways of the world on his own. He gave him the surname Gray, because of his hopes the lad would be the bridge between the light and the Dark, and sent him on his way.

At first, the bits and pieces he heard about Dorian were all positive: using his powers and knowledge to help people, acting as a gentleman, a general force for good in the world. Not that Zoso was worried about it, but he was proud of the lad, and hoped he’d soon be ready to take up the title of Dark One.

But then…he started to hear less-positive things. Drunken debauchery, time spent in brothels, cases of arson leaving destruction where he’d been. Some of it could be explained by the immaturity of youth, but when bodies began to turn up in his wake, it could no longer be ignored.

Nor could it when some of the books from his library on the darkest types of magic known to man suddenly went missing after one of Dorian’s weekly visits.

Perhaps his experiment had simply failed? Or perhaps there was no safe way to find a successor.

Either way, he knew he could no longer pass on the mantle to Dorian.

So if his dagger somehow ended up in the hands of a despotic but otherwise dimwitted duke, who just so happened to be terribly losing a war that was drafting children into its ranks, then he wasn’t too worried; he only had to hope that one of the parents in the kingdom was desperate enough to seek him out themselves. (He’d put a bug in someone’s ear if it was necessary. But he thought back to Dorian’s birth mother and his original perception of her, and realized that far more than an innocent child, he needed to find a loving parent to pass on the burden to.)

Not a week after the dagger had fallen out of his grasp, Dorian came storming into the castle. “You bloody fool!” he cried out. “You lost it! How the bloody fuck could you?”

“Language, boy,” Zoso answered calmly, reading a novel in his sitting room. He’d told the lad the dagger’s significance—just not its full use.

“I don’t fucking care. That dagger was to be my birthright—you told me so yourself, many times. How could you be so careless?”

“What makes you so convinced I gave it up by accident?” Zoso countered, eyes still on his book. It hadn’t taken much convincing or suggestion to get the Duke to seek it out, and he made no effort to stop him.

“What?” Dorian gasped, the fire in his eyes (and palms) dying out. “But—you said—all these years—”

“Yes, when I thought you would grow into a man worthy of it,” he tossed back. He closed his book, set it on his side table, and stood to walk over to his adopted son. “You really think whoring your way across the kingdom is good preparation to take on the darkest magic of all?”

“Aye, I do,” he spat back. “Why shouldn’t I spend time with the darker side of society before I drown myself in it?”

“That argument would hold water if you were learning anything, rather than just reveling.”

Dorian sneered, cutting a sinister dimple into his cheek. “Oh, I’m learning plenty. Where to find the best wines, the most decadent food, the prettiest prostitutes. If I’m looking at eternity, why shouldn’t I enjoy myself?”

“That’s not how I raised you.”

“No; it’s not. Maybe it’s how my real parents would have, though.”

Zoso laughed. “I told you a million times: they were poorer than a mouse. Were it not for me, you’d be lucky to be a deckhand on a merchant ship, if you were even still alive. I gave you everything, and I won’t hesitate to take it away.”

“I don’t need you,” Dorian growled. “I’ll get my hands on that power all on my own; I will find a way.”

Zoso laughed. “Good luck living long enough.”

Dorian gave one last parting glare and then disappeared in a burst of flames.

Zoso sighed at his failure, shook his head, and then got ready to leave himself for that hamlet across the realm. He’d have to find someone else to pass this burden to, and fast; he didn’t think it would take Dorian long to figure out how power was transferred.

He took one last look at the nursery before leaving, hoping that neither he nor Dorian would ever see it again.

★・・・・・・★・・・・・・🗡・・・・・・★・・・・・・★

thanks for reading! tagging some peeps (let me know if you do/don’t want a tag!) @kat2609 @xpumpkindumplingx @shipsxahoy @mryddinwilt @cocohook38 @annytecture @shireness-says @ohmightydevviepuu @wistfulcynic @pirateherokillian @colinoeyebrows @wingedlioness @word-bug @thisonesatellite @killianmesmalls @thejollyroger-writer @ineffablecolors @ive-always-been-a-pirate @nfbagelperson @stubblesandwich @phiralovesloki @athenascarlet @kmomof4 @ilovemesomekillianjones @whimsicallyenchantedrose @snowbellewells @idristardis @scientificapricot @searchingwardrobes @donteattheappleshook @jrob64 @the-darkdragonfly @stahlop @klynn-stormz @resident-of-storybrooke @bluewildcatfanatic

#cs ff #killian jones ff #cssns 2023 #captain swan supernatural summer #sons of love and death #my ff

33 notes · View notes

yuki-hitomi-chan · 11 months ago

Note

Show us your ocs!!!!

Okay okay. Note that I'm bad at remembering to take screenshots, so the ones I have will have to do. I'll do my video game ones, including Dragon Age (origins and inquisition) and Baldur's Gate 3. Yes, they're all very similar I know, and yes I like playing as elves shush.

Baldur's Gate 3

Current Tav: Rion About: Half-Elf/ Rogue/ Thief/ Urchin Canon Romance: Gale

So this is Rion, and he's romancing Gale. He's pretty charismatic (12) but don't ask him to lift anything. He's like every other guy in the game and has a total of 8 STR. You also can't see it here, but he has red highlights that show up in the sun. As for personality, he's mostly good aligned, although he will sometimes cause problems on purpose, especially if he thinks it's funny. He's a sweetheart and has a bad habit of picking up stray children (he wants to protect them like he wasn't when he was a kid), so yes, he finds the tiefling kids funny and even gave them some tips on how to improve their scams. Fun note: He's transgender, which is why he makes certain decisions (He got magic hrt don't ask me how it works it's magic), especially if it comes to affecting how he looks.

Also, I didn't realize that there was another half-elf with his name in the game until I met them. Was a bit funny, since they pronounce it like Rye-on and he pronounces it as Re-On.

Dragon Age Origins

Hero of Ferelden: Da'len Tabris About: City Elf/ Duel wield Rogue/ Assassin Canon Romance: Zevran Arainai

Da'len is my Tabris Warden! Her name means "Child" in Elven, and the story behind that is her father heard a mother calling to her child, and thought it was a wonderful name despite her mother's (rightful) disagreement. Turns out, she's just permanently named 'Kiddo' (which earns her some weird looks from those who actually understand elven to her annoyance. She didn't choose her name, her shut-in father did). Always the troublemaker in her family she wasn't ready to settle down at the beginning of her adventure, giving her family a headache, but that doesn't mean she won't kill for them. She fell in love with the assassin who tried to kill her. She's somewhat grated against humans, which gets her in trouble a lot, especially when she doesn't put up with their bullshit, and even more so when she thinks a knife is a good way to solve a problem (I mean, sometimes it is). Still not sure who's bright idea it was to keep her as the leader of the group, but nobody important died, so that's gotta count for something, right?

Ironically, despite having a mabari, she's not really a dog person.

Dragon Age Inquisition

Inquisitor: Ferris Lavellen About: Dalish elf/ Archer Rogue/ Assassin Specialty (I also played him as a mage at one point.) Canon Romance: Dorian Pavus

This is Ferris! He's a Dalish hunter turned savior for a god he doesn't even believe in! (Well, he sort of recognizes the maker as "a god" but more like the human's god versus his pantheon.) He originally had brown eyes, but due to the Breach and it's magic, he got very green eyes that sometimes weird people out because of how unnaturally green they are (No, they never change back, so good thing he looks good with green eyes). He struggles at first because he has no idea what proper human social cues are, but eventually he figures it out. He doesn't really like being a leader, but does it because someone has to fill the role, and he's the only one who's going to do it. He wasn't too sure about Dorian at first, but he came to fall in love with his sarcasm and flirting. (Ferris is not subtle about his flirting with someone who could be considered an enemy socially, something that makes Cassandra and Josie want to pull out their hair)

Fun fact, this boy right here is how I figured out I'm a gay trans man!

So that's my OCs from those games. If anyone wants to learn more about them, feel free to drop an ask! I know I got a bit ramble-y here, but I had fun!

#dragon age inquisition #dragon age origins #baldurs gate 3 #Original Characters #Crow's OCs #inquisitor lavellan #warden tabris #bg3 tav #Ask to tag #ocs

8 notes · View notes

theheadlessgroom · 1 year ago

Text

“Oh, just your company alone is a huge help, my heart,” Randall beamed, olive green eyes filled with adoration as he took her slender hand to bring to his thin lips, which ghosted her pale knuckles in a kiss. As he did, he felt his heart skip; aware now that he did this even in the future, addressing her as “his heart” and kissing her hands, it added a sort of poignant weight to the action-for all that had happened to them, some things never changed.

“Do you get a lunch break?” Dorian asked, briefly toying with the notion of buying his old friend a meal, but said notion went out the window when Randall gave a dry laugh, replying, “Only under great duress from Minnie-it’s never as long as I’d like, and I’m sure she’ll want me to hop to it when it comes to getting started on your hat; she’ll consider it a top priority commission, much like she did with Emily’s veil. If I get to eat, it’ll have to be very, very quick.”

At this, Dorian fell silent, but still frowned, thoroughly disliking this answer: It was enough to make him want to march out and confront Minnie over it, but that wouldn’t do any good, it’d only get Randall in trouble, he was sure...it was a look of disdain his old friend didn’t miss, saying, “Don’t worry about me, Dori, I’ll be fine; I’ve got a sandwich packed, and I’ve gotten used to eating quickly. I appreciate the offer, but really, I’ll be alright.”

“Still...” he frowned, but nevertheless tabled his protests for now-maybe he’d see about bringing Randall something really nice this evening; he was sure he ate a very late dinner after a long night at the haberdashery...

…if he even got dinner at all...

@beatingheart-bride

At this response, Randall couldn't help but smile, making a little show of being relieved as he replied with a shy laugh, "Well, th-that's...that's good to know!"

"It is-after all, we like you and your bullheadedness," Dorian grinned, nudging his best friend a little before continuing, "But Emily's right; we're...we're all going to be nervous. God knows I am, God knows. But...we can't let that fear stop us from moving forward with our plan. It's going off without a hitch so far, so I believe as long as we keep up the pace, we'll be alright.

And don't worry about Pennyworth," he added. "I'm sure he's off nursing his bruised ego at the moment, he probably won't be showing his face anytime soon. And besides, I can't imagine how he'd know about either our friendship or your love for Emily. As far as he and everyone else in New Orleans is concerned, we don't know each other."

"Well, that's...comforting," Randall replied, though he was clearly still nervous, Dorian could see it in his eyes. Touching his shoulder again, he replied, "Maybe I'll make a bit of dropping by to see you while you work on my hat, much like how Emily visited you while you made her veil. We can talk then, if you're still a bit worried."

"I...I'd like that, Dorian," Randall beamed, lighting up a little at the prospect, Dorian happily returning his smile, eager to spend more time with his best friend.

#((i think both sets of parents' brains would break trying to wrap their heads around all the reasons why their children))#((have no qualms about leaving their privileged lives behind to marry people 'below' their station; as their families would say!))#((because you're right; both families do benefit from stepping on those they deem as lesser!))#((the gracey's tolerated june because of her gardening skills and still tolerate lena for her cooking))#((but beyond that they'd never stick their necks out for either of them; and in the case of june; let her go))#((because dorian was getting too close to her and randall; even going the extra step of sending dorian away to boarding school))#((in order to lower the chances of him and randall staying in touch-and i'm sure the de clairs similarly tolerate lower classes))#((working under their employ; but wouldn't speak up for or actively stick their necks out for!))#((but their children are different! they've picked up on these injustices; and don't want to benefit from them))#((the way the older generations have; and have instead found much happiness with those their parents would deem 'lesser'))#((and if that means giving up their lifestyles then so be it! because if they can't be with the people they love))#((because of those lifestyles; then they don't want it!))#((and no worries; i understand! i've had headaches like that; so i get it! hope you feel better soon!))#outofhatboxes #beatingheart-bride #V:Days of Future Past

5 notes · View notes

herenya-writes · 1 year ago

Text

Day 14: Castle

Arlaros watched the Inquisition soldiers drag the mayor of Crestwoood away. He didn’t know what would happen to him. He had sentenced him to exile from Ferelden; did that mean the Inquisition would carry him to the Orlais border and drop him there? His advisors seemed to expect him to know what to do, what to say, and what the consequences of everything he did and said were. But he didn’t. What gave him the right to sit in judgment over a person who had committed a crime ten years ago? His glowing hand? Why was this his job and not the king of Ferelden’s?

He leaned back and closed his eyes. The great hall was mostly empty today. Apparently the visiting nobles of Orlais didn’t care what happened to the mayor of a nowhere town in Ferelden. There were still Inquisition members and a few merchants, but for the moment Arlaros decided to ignore them and just sit there.

There was a headache building behind his eyes, one he knew wouldn’t be going away anytime soon. He was supposed to meet with his advisors in a little while to look over the war table and decide what their next moves would be. There was that issue of succession in Ledes he hadn’t had time to consider yet, and Josephine would probably want him to make a move on it soon. It was a position of minimal political importance, his advisors claimed, but having the successor in their pocket would be useful in the Orlesian court apparently. Once again, he didn’t understand what gave him the right to make these decisions, sitting on his throne like a king in a castle.

“My lord?”

His musing were interrupted by a timid voice, and he opened his eyes to see one of Leliana’s runners hovering at the foot of his throne. He held back a sigh.

“Yes?”

“Sister Nightingale wishes to speak with you. She said it was urgent.”

This time, Arlaros did sigh. “Thank you. Tell Leliana I’ll be there shortly.”

The messenger nodded and ran off toward Leliana’s tower. Arlaros stood from his throne—Creators, why did they give him a throne?—and made his way to the tower at a slower pace. The mostly-empty hall meant he wasn’t interrupted on his way over, although Varric did nod to him with something like sympathy in his eyes. Was it obvious how far in over his head he was?

He climbed the stairs to the library, taking a moment to breathe in the smell of books. They hadn’t had very many books in his clan, but he had always loved the smell of them. The Inquisition's library was larger than anything he had ever seen, and he had begun to take some comfort in being surrounded by books.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t linger. He forced himself to keep moving toward the second set of stairs. Before he could reach them, though, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He barely resisted the urge to jump and turned instead to see Dorian.

“Ah, my apologies for startling you,” he said, voice as smooth as silk. “I simply wanted to let you know I think you did the right thing. The mayor committed a horrible crime, but locking him up or sentencing him to death would only trap everyone in that moment. You’ve given him a chance to atone.”

Arlaros found himself at a loss for words. His thinking when he had sentenced the man had been along similar lines, but he had been so out of his depth. He had lived through the Blight, of course, but his clan had been mostly untouched, thankfully. He didn’t know the horrors the way Ferelden did. Still, he hadn’t been able to send the man to his death, and there didn’t seem to be a point in jailing him.

“Thank you,” he finally managed. “I’m glad to know someone approves.”

Dorian frowned at him. “Surely you have more people in your corner than just the mage from Tevinter.”

Arlaros shrugged. “Some of the others probably appreciate what I did. Solas, probably. Maybe Josephine. I haven’t exactly taken a poll.”

“Fair enough, I suppose. Well, none of us envy you. That throne looks terribly uncomfortable.”

Arlaros’s lips pulled into something that was almost a smile. “You’d think with all the money the Inquisition has spent on fixing Skyhold, they’d at least buy me a cushion,” he joked.

“It’s a disgrace, is what it is,” Dorian declared with the air of a man condemning an act of war. “Can’t have our Inquisitor’s lovely backside bruised by his own throne.”

That pulled an actual laugh out of Arlaros. Then, the caw of a crow echoed through the rotunda and he remembered why he was here. He schooled his face into something approaching neutrality and nodded to Dorian. “You’ll have to excuse me; I’m late for a meeting with Leliana.”

“I suppose that’s reason enough to leave my delightful company. Give our Sister Nightingale my regards.”

Arlaros promised he would and headed for the stairs, his mind already turning to other things. By the time he finished his conversation with Leliana, he had all but forgotten his exchange with Dorian. Until a week later, when a tasteful velvet cushion appeared on the throne.

#my fics #dorian pavus #arlaros lavellan #dragon age inquisition #dai

3 notes · View notes

spoilertv · 7 months ago

Text

#SpoilerTV

0 notes

teecupangel · 2 years ago

Note

I love all of these and the pregnancy would add more depth to the plot because, by ensuring that Desmond and Altaïr only started experimenting after Desmond had given birth to an heir, this gives way to the rumor that ‘Desmond only accomplished his marital obligations before doing whatever he wanted’ which isn’t correct at all but you know those servants and nobles will be gossiping like crazy about it. Ezio’s pining would reach a crescendo once Desmond has given birth as well, seeing the happiness that the baby had brought to Altaïr and Desmond would have crushed him. He loved seeing Desmond’s smile but, goddamn it, he can’t help the ugly jealousy that grips his heart seeing him together with his husband and child. The child himself is a symbol of the love that Desmond and Altaïr shares and only an idiot would believe that they didn’t love one another. Also, by adding Ezio to the mix after Desmond’s pregnancy, you have the added sweet, sweet angst of Desmond feeling he’s not attractive after the pregnancy and it takes Altaïr and Ezio worshiping his body for him to finally get it in his head that, yes, he is still attractive in their eyes.

Ratonhnhaké:ton’s angst also has the side of ‘are they using me to get back at Count Kenway?’ as well since he knows the count and his faction is an ongoing headache for the king. And everyone has heard the rumors of the prince consort’s royal guard being his lover as well and, yeah, Ratonhnhaké:ton can see why such rumors appear in the first place. Ezio hides it well but there were the little things, the way he leans too closely just to whisper something, how comfortable and casual he was talking to the first prince, and… sure, Ezio is good at hiding things but Desmond’s soft smiles give it away.

So when Desmond gives him the same smile, Ratonhnhaké:ton knew that he was gone. Even if he was being used as some kind of political pawn in this tug-of-war that the king and Count Haytham have, he didn’t even mind one bit. Not when it means he could stay by Desmond’s side.

Unorganized Notes:

Other than being the Hunt Master, Ratonhnhaké:ton is also the combat instructor of the first prince.

I say first prince because… let’s face it, there’s gonna be more than one. And these children would definitely have more questionable ‘parentage’ in the eyes of the people.

Malik was also on the top of the list of people Altaïr and Desmond was thinking of inviting. It was because Malik informed Altaïr of Ezio’s feelings that Altaïr crossed him out of the list. Malik’s loyalty is to Altaïr and to the crown and Altaïr decided to move forward with Ezio instead.

There were rumors that Kadar hated Desmond because supposedly there were plans of an engagement between him and Altaïr. That’s a lie. House Al-Sayf is loyal to the crown so there really wasn’t any reason for the royal family to marry into House Al-Sayf other than to ‘reward’ their loyalty which Rashid has no reason to do. Kadar did have a crush on Altaïr but he’s good friends with Desmond.

House Kenway’s beef is with House Miles, not the royal family but since Altaïr and Desmond married, that did put the royal family under fire. Their beef seemed to come from some kind of ancestral rift centuries before between a member of House Kenway’s branch family marrying into House Miles. It led to the dissolution of the branch family and well… it’s not exactly clear what happens after that.

House Kenway is one of the most fucked up noble families in the country. The previous count had to step down after being assaulted within the inch of his life by unknown assailants but it’s heavily implied that it was premeditated by someone close to the family with rumors of the mastermind’s identity ranging from the previous countess to the current count’s sister. Count Haytham Kenway was given the title as a child which led to the oldest daughter disowning her family name and leaving, supposedly staying somewhere in Dorian County, while the previous count was moved to one of the villas away from the capital. Count Kenway was raised by his sister’s ex-fiance and mother instead and he refuses to marry. Some say he had proposed to his illegitimate child’s mother but was turned down and he still carries a torch for her… or that rejection has turned him completely away from marrying forever.

House Miles’ faction also includes Count Dorian and Margrave Frye. Technically, Duke Al-Sayf should also be counted in that faction but House Al-Sayf preferred to not be part of any political strife.

An AU with King Altair, his consort Desmond, Ezio the royal guard, and Ratonhnhaké:ton the Hunt Master. In the grand hall, Altair rules over all. And behind closed doors, it's Desmond that controls the three men. (And the rumors are rampant about the royal consort sleeping with both the royal guard and huntsman behind his husbands back, when in reality, Altair is there for nearly all 'encounters'.) Basically it's a harem AU lol.

Not gonna lie, I saw “... there for nearly all ‘encounters’.” and my mind went for “Cuckling? We going for cuckling?” and I’m like “yeah, okay, I can get behind that” XD

Okay, let’s set this up…

(warning, there is hint of mpreg on this one)

Altaïr and Desmond married for political reasons due to certain complications concerning how Altaïr had succeeded to the throne.

William Miles is the head of the Grand Duchy of Miles withDesmond Miles being the oldest of his children and the only child he bore with his first wife. House Miles is one of the most prominent noble families in the kingdom, gaining more power and influence during the reign of Grand Duke William Miles as the head of House Miles. His first wife being able to trace back her ancestral line to the first rulers of their kingdom has also helped in adding more legitimacy to the possibility of the Grand Duchy being ‘worthy’ of taking the throne… in case there is a need to do such a thing.

And such a thing almost came to pass thanks to how King Altaïr had taken the throne. The previous king, King Rashid, had started to push forward concerning plans and laws that all seem to lead to one conclusion: “declaration of war to neighboring countries”.

Because of this, majority of the noble families tried to dissuade the king, many of them worried for the people while others did it because they knew the risk it possesses in their current standing in the nobility hierarchy. Rashid pushed forward with the plans, together with the support of the other noble families (either willing to go to war for greed or honor), and planned to strip those who opposed him of their noble ranks.

Including William Miles.

Now, this is where the story gets muddy.

Some would say it was Crown Prince Altaïr, grandson of King Rashid and his only remaining family, who went to William Miles, propelled by a desire to stop the war before it begins. Others would say that it was William Miles who approached the crown prince, promising him the throne if he was to side with his faction.

Those who believe the latter would also say that the main reason why the Crown Prince had sided against his own blood is that they did not actually share the same bleed.

Crown Prince Altaïr was officially the son of the late Umar, a knight from a minor house with a mysterious unknown origin, and Rashid’s daughter, the late princess. But the rumor was that the late princess had been barren and Altaïr was Umar’s son from another woman to ensure a successor.

It’s a rumor that had been gaining steam since the crown prince had shown how ‘perfect’ he is to succeed his grandfather.

Some would say ‘too perfect’… as if he was compensating for his ‘dirty blood’.

Regardless of the reason, the crown prince became the face of the noble faction against war and they were able to remove Rashid from the throne with minimal bloodshed.

The then Crown Prince Altaïr married Desmond Miles a month later.

And two weeks later, he ascended the throne as the new king.

Unorganized Notes:

A lot of people believe that Altaïr and Desmond married for political reasons. House Miles married into the royal family which means that House Miles’ influence had grown even further while Altaïr would quell any whispers of his questionable blood (which might not even be true) by marrying Desmond who has been recorded and confirmed to have royal blood thru his ancestral line.

Because of this, a lot of people liked to ‘joke’ that Desmond has all the right to have lovers on the side and, even if any children he bore are not Altaïr’s, they are still a legitimate successor since Desmond is the one with the royal blood.

House Miles would never speak of this to outsiders but Desmond had already been passed over as the next head of House Miles when he was a child because the grand duke considered him lacking in many areas and focused his attention on Desmond’s younger half-sister who showed promise, a girl William had with his second wife. (Whether this is Lucy or Layla is up to you). Desmond had been raised with the knowledge that he is nothing more than a bargaining chip to further House Miles’ influence.

Desmond’s mother isn’t dead. She and William divorced when Desmond was around 5 years old and she’s living in her family estates in the capital. Desmond would visit her every summer and that is when he and Altaïr had first met.

They’re not exactly childhood friends, they’re not even friends at all. At most, they were acquaintances who would sometimes be at the same tea party or gala or something and their eyes would just… find one another. Altaïr never knew him as a member of House Miles and Desmond isn’t stupid enough to not know he wasn’t the prince. Desmond developed a crush on him in that “he’s so far out of my league” kind of way while Altaïr… well… Altaïr wasn’t sure what he feels for Desmond was until his aide/royal guard Malik informed him that it was called ‘attraction’ while calling him an idiot.

Altaïr actually only learned that Desmond is William Miles’ son when he visited House Miles’ ancestral home to talk to the grand duke about Rashid. Before this, they barely talked.

Altaïr was the one who requested Desmond’s hand. William believed that Altaïr had done such a thing to ensure the legitimacy of his rule. Nope. Altaïr had been pining for Desmond for yeeeaarrrssss while Desmond had been pining for him at the same time and both of them are idiots who didn’t do anything because they believe their stations are too far for a relationship to be approved (Altaïr believing Desmond is a son of a minor lord and Desmond believing a ‘failure’ like him would never be given the time of day) and, now that Altaïr knew that William Miles needed his cooperation, he had an excuse to marry Desmond. (Because fuck courting, Altaïr is in it for the long haul)

Desmond went into the marriage believing it was a political one, only to be surprised when Altaïr treated him with kindness and, really, Altaïr was pretty clear when he straight out told Desmond that he had been carrying a torch for him for years… even if it took Desmond a few weeks (and a lot of gifts and awkward Altaïr trying to be charming) for him to believe it.

Their sex life did quite start off being quite vanilla and it’s only when they started experimenting that they realize how much they enjoyed a change of their dynamic where Desmond is the one in control.

Desmond taking in Ezio and Ratonhnhaké:ton would come quite a bit later when they’re both comfortable with their feelings for one another and it started off as something ‘fun’ they wanted to try out. Primarily, Altaïr wanted Desmond to have sex with someone while he watches and fuck Desmond after.

They both decided on Ezio because they believed he could be trusted and he’s hot af.

Ezio is actually the second son of a noble family that got burned by Rashid during the few last years of his reign. Ezio had been preparing to kill him in a suicide mission when he learned that Altaïr had taken the throne. He became a guard to check if Altaïr is worthy to be king and kill him if he’s not.

He did not, however, expected to like Altaïr as king and have a crush on Desmond that he wouldn’t do anything about… until he got invited in the royal couple’s bed and well…

He became a frequent visitor.

He and Altaïr grew close because of it and he likes to joke about Altaïr’s ‘kinks’ when they’re alone.

Being in love with Desmond came soon after that and he became Desmond’s lover with Altaïr’s approval (there was a bit of angst on Ezio’s part for being in love with a married man who is in love with his husband but that got thrown out of the window when Altaïr told him that they both knew his love for Desmond and that Altaïr wishes to nourish it).

Ratonhnhaké:ton was more of happenstance. To be more specific, Ratonhnhaké:ton saw Desmond during the yearly Royal Hunt and was attracted to him. Altaïr saw his potential and just… suggested him to Desmond during one of the Royal Hunts. After the celebrations, Ratonhnhaké:ton took the mantle of Hunt Master in the capital and never left.

Ratonhnhaké:ton is the illegitimate child of Count Kenway and there are rumors that he joined the royal court as the Hunt Master as a big ‘fuck you’ to the count who is part of the noble faction that is against (not openly) Altaïr’s rule. There are conflicting rumors of his ‘rumored’ relationship with the Prince Consort as either another way to insult House Kenway or is actually a ploy of Count Kenway to destabilize King Altaïr’s rule from the inside.

Nope. Ratonhnhaké:ton has cut all ties with the count even before he started sharing Desmond’s bed and he doesn’t give a shit about House Kenway after his last ‘confrontation’ with the count.

Desmond sometimes top… as a treat XD

“You would do anything for love, after all” is a phrase Ezio and Ratonhnhaké:ton have heard from Altaïr before and they’re not sure if it’s meant to be an explanation to why Altaïr is fine with Desmond having lovers or if Altaïr supporting their relationships was a way to ensure Ezio and Ratonhnhaké:ton would prioritize Desmond’s safety above all else in the worst case scenario. Altaïr never bothered to answer that one.

#this should be about smut and feelings #but let me go wild #and i WILL add political shit in this #what else #oh yeah #tw mpreg #cw mpreg #and the usual tags just to be sure #altdes #ezides #condes

67 notes · View notes

elisaphoenix13-cullrian · 2 years ago

Text

More Than Words (Ch.3)

It was really only a matter of time before the symptoms of Cullen's lyrium withdrawal caught up with him. He had been so focused on finding Dorian and getting him somewhere safe that the adrenaline had taken precedence over everything else. Now that Dorian was safe and recovering, the pain came crashing over Cullen like a wave. He woke one morning to his entire body lit up in white-hot pain and nausea that had him scrambling for the nearest open container to retch into. Which happened to be a decorative vase Cullen would probably have to replace. That was far in the back of his mind though. As soon as he was finished emptying what little he had in his stomach, he couldn't find the energy or motivation to move.

The pain radiated through his entire body and he was already drenched in sweat from an unrelenting fever. He could do nothing but moan miserably as he slumped against the wall. Cullen hadn't had an episode like this in months but he supposed it was overdue now that he was giving himself time to relax. He would try to get some sleep–even if it was on the floor against the wall–because he refused to bother Mia. She had her hands full keeping house and helping with Dorian, and it wasn't as if this was the first time Cullen pushed through this on his own.

But then he felt something cool against his face and he couldn't help but sigh. It felt heavenly against his fevered skin and it took a few moments for him to recognize that it was a wet cloth. When it was finally pulled away, Cullen dared to crack his eyes open, only to immediately shut them again when sunlight caused his headache to intensify. There was a brief sound of curtains closing and then he braved opening his eyes again when he sensed the room was blessedly darker.

Only to find Dorian. Who was in the middle of wringing out the cloth in a bowl of water. Considering the water was too cold to be drawn from the well, he had to assume that Dorian melted down some ice with his magic to get it. The bowl and cloth were already in the room when they first arrived.

"I didn't mean to wake you," Cullen finally manages to croak out. "You should be resting. I'll be alright."

The look Dorian shot at him before he leaned forward to press the cloth against Cullen's face again made him rethink arguing against the mage's help. The man may have been mute but Cullen had been around Dorian enough to understand his expressions. At least for the most part. There had been times when he admittedly misread a situation, but this was clearly a stop being so stubborn look.

It was almost like he could understand Dorian without words. He was expressive enough to relay what he thought or wanted and Cullen was learning quickly. Before, Dorian would say things that would be completely opposite to what his face was expressing which would confuse Cullen, but now the facial expressions were all he had. Cullen was able to pick up on Dorian's needs much easier because the mage wasn't using a knee-jerk instinct to cover up how he was really feeling.

"Thank you." Cullen whispers, closing his eyes again to enjoy the cool water against his face.

The silence that followed was expected but comfortable, with only the sound of Dorian rewetting the cloth every few minutes until Cullen felt less feverish. Only then did he attempt–and manage–to get back into bed and lay down. The nausea had fortunately been mostly gone after vomiting, and the fever was lower thanks to Dorian, but the pain was still persistent. His headache raged, his body complained…he wouldn't be getting out of bed that day unless he was given an elfroot potion. If he tried, he would only fall flat on his face.

He managed to doze off for maybe a couple of hours, and when he woke again, he found himself staring at a potion sitting on the bedside table. Cullen sits up to investigate and is pleased to find that it was an elfroot potion that happened to be sitting on top of some parchment. Cullen recognized Dorian's elegant handwriting immediately. It always made him a bit self conscious about his own. Josephine once described it as atrocious and nearly unreadable…he had been more considerate after that.

I've made you a potion. Make sure to drink it all, and if you're feeling up to it, come downstairs and try to eat something.

Food was the farthest thing from his mind but at the same time it didn't seem like a terrible idea. Cullen could probably stomach some fruit and bread. Maybe even some broth. When had the roles reversed? He was supposed to be helping Dorian.

Though the potions the healer gave them a few days ago had done what they were intended to. Dorian was back to eating normal meals and had even sat outside with a book while Cullen helped Gaius around the farm. More than once he had caught the mage eyeing him when he looked over to check on Dorian, and the mage would either smile at him or slyly look back down at his book. As if he was trying to pretend he was only looking around at the scenery before turning his attention back to his book. Maybe he was and Cullen was looking too much into it.

With an annoyed grunt as his warring thoughts, Cullen grabs the bottle and drains the contents after uncorking it, and he lays back down to wait for the effects to kick in. It only took a few minutes for Cullen to feel well enough to get out of bed and carefully make his way downstairs, and when he did, he was surprised to find Dorian in the kitchen with Mia.

And it looked like he was helping her cook lunch.

Cullen actually looked around to see if there was any hint that he had fallen asleep after taking the potion and that he was dreaming. But the lingering pain was a little too real and confirmed that he was indeed awake.

"Now it just needs to simmer for a little while so the sauce thickens." Mia says, drawing Cullen's attention again. She catches sight of him out of the corner of her eyes and they both look at him as he joins them. "Are you feeling better? Dorian said you were sick."

Cullen rubs his face with a sigh. He never wanted to worry his family but decided telling Mia the truth would be the best decision. He had a feeling Dorian had a suspicion as to the cause of his illness as well so it was best to confirm it for himself.

"Yes. Dorian's potion helped. I…occasionally suffer from lyrium withdrawals. It's not as bad as it was when I first stopped taking it but I suppose being worried about Dorian took priority and pushed back any episodes. This was overdue." Cullen says and clears his throat when Dorian gives him an odd glance.

He did just admit he was worried about the other man after all. It was something the mage wasn't used to.

"Of course you would do that." Mia huffs fondly. "Are you hungry at all?"

Cullen winces. "I'm…not sure. Maybe some bread or some fruit."

Mia nods and steps outside to possibly fetch some fruit from the trees and Cullen steps closer to the table only to falter. He manages to catch himself on the edge of the table and he holds his hand out when Dorian moves immediately to help him. The mage was already placing a hand on Cullen's chest to steady him though so he bit his tongue and allowed Dorian to help ease him into a chair. If it had been anyone else, Cullen would have felt useless, but Dorian didn't look at him with pity. Cullen only saw concern and maybe some exasperation underneath that. Dorian was just worried.

And somehow Cullen knew that Dorian didn't think he was weak. Just like he didn't think Dorian was weak. They could both take care of themselves, but even the strongest warrior needed help now and then.

"I'm alright." Cullen repeats his earlier words. "The pain…flares sometimes. The potion helped though so thank you for that."

Dorian hums in response and pats his shoulder before momentarily stepping away. He returns with a chess board which he sets on the table before taking the seat across from the commander, and Cullen looks at him in surprise. They hadn't played a game since before Dorian's abduction, and that had been at least a month ago. Cullen was also surprised because he didn't know his sister actually owned a board. They played when they were kids but he didn't think she played now.

He was pleasantly surprised to learn that that wasn't the case…though he was now afraid that nothing had changed and she would still beat him. Unless she was out of practice? The board did look a little dusty around the edges and Gaius didn't look the type to play.

But then Cullen's concerns circled back to Dorian. He seemed to be taking his new ailment very well and he couldn't decide if it was genuine or if the mage was very good at hiding what he was really feeling. Which was possible. Dorian was talented at being very expressive while at the same time wearing an unreadable mask. It was part of the reason Cullen would always get so confused.

"I may not be feeling well, but that doesn't mean I'll lose. I hope you're prepared for your inevitable defeat." Cullen taunts. He couldn't help but smile when Dorian's lips curled up into a smirk.

Aren't we feeling confident? Cullen could hear him saying.

His chest still tingled from where Dorian had touched him and now his smirk was making the rest of his body tingle just as pleasantly. Cullen almost forgot about the pain when he focused on that. He was content with taunting Dorian and getting another smirk or two, or even a glint in gray eyes while they played game after game of chess. He barely noticed when Mia had set a plate of food near him, but he did eat everything she gave him. When his focus was on Dorian or the board, he didn't worry about if the food would disagree with him. Cullen ate instinctively and only realized he did when his sister took away the empty plate and Dorian looked pleased.

It also successfully garnered his attention whenever Dorian would graze his fingers against Cullen's. He was sure that the mage was doing it on purpose since there were at least three times where there was no reason for it. Once, Dorian even deliberately took one of his pawns out of his hand to set it aside with his other pieces.

But then Cullen had to remind himself that this was just how Dorian was. He was charming and charismatic and flirted with everyone. He had different ways of flirting with different people but this was how he flirted with Cullen. Nothing too special. Just something to get a reaction from him. Dorian even admitted to it shortly after he joined the Inquisition.

He couldn't help but wonder though.

"I'm…going back to Skyhold soon." Cullen says in the middle of their third game, and looks up from the board at Dorian when he pauses. "I was only staying long enough to make sure you healed in peace. I know how some people there treat you."

Cullen watched Dorian carefully. When he saw his brows start to furrow and his lips downturn into a frown, he took the risk of reaching over to grab the mage's wrist.

"What you decide to do is up to you," Cullen continues when Dorian looks up at him. "If you want to stay here, Mia and Gaius said you're more than welcome to stay. I would visit of course."

The glare that Dorian gave him was enough indication that he wasn't staying behind. Which Cullen expected and it made him sigh because now he had to voice his concerns. He wasn't good with words but he was going to damn well try.

"I didn't think you would but I wanted you to know that was an option," Cullen laughs nervously before releasing Dorian's wrist to rub the back of his neck. "I just ask that if you return to Skyhold with me that you tell me if someone tries to hurt you. I know you can defend yourself but I still worry."

The glare quickly shifted into something unreadable but Dorian nodded all the same so Cullen didn't think too much into it.

"There's…always Tevinter too." Cullen says quietly and he frowns at the thought of it. "I don't like that option but it's not my decision to make. You've told me enough that I would only worry if you're safe. I–" he stops when he notices his sister. "Nevermind."

He didn't want this conversation with anyone but Dorian who was still giving him that unreadable look and making Cullen feel like he overstepped. But he couldn't help it. He saw what Dorian looked like when he found him and now part of him refused to leave Dorian to his own devices. He wanted the mage within reach at all times but he knew that was unreasonable. Dorian could take care of himself. He didn't need Cullen fighting his battles or snarling at anyone who even thought of harming him, but that was all he wanted to do. Dorian was his friend and he never wanted to see him covered in his own blood again. He already lost his voice.

"I better go write a letter to inform the others that I'll be returning to Skyhold within the week." Cullen says, getting up and knocking over his king.

Never once had he thrown a game against Dorian. An unfinished game was either set aside to be finished later or completely forgotten, but a game was never thrown. Cullen had too many conflicting feelings he was trying to sort through and he just didn't have the energy to finish the game. So he walked back up to the bedroom with the intention to write his letter like he had said, but he paused in front of the fireplace. Then he cursed because what was going on with him?

Just a month ago he and Dorian were close friends, but now Cullen might be feeling more. Maybe those feelings were always there but he didn't notice them until he found Dorian in that cave. When he saw the state the mage was in, not only had he been worried, but he had been angry. Angry at Dorian's captives for hurting him like they did, for forcing such a painful and corrosive poison down his throat so that he may never speak again, and angry that the Inquisition didn't do more. The last was unreasonable because the Inquisitor adored Dorian, but Cullen went out by himself to find the mage because they were taking too long.

The thoughts circled over and over in his head until he suddenly stopped. Stopped and realized that he wouldn't have gone to such lengths, gone by himself, to find someone else. He wouldn't have done it for Sera or the Iron Bull. He would've stayed behind and done exactly as Leliana did. Send some soldiers out in the hopes that they found them. But Dorian? Cullen couldn't sit back.

He was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he almost didn't notice the door opening and then clicking shut again, but he did and looked over to find Dorian looking at him. A little peeved too. Cullen wouldn't be surprised if it was because he threw their chess game.

"I'm sorry." He mumbles. "I…I'm not good with words. I didn't want to talk about it in front of Mia either. I only want to ask that you be careful whatever you decide to do."

Dorian huffs and walks closer to grab Cullen's wrist to lift it and trace his finger across his palm.

Do you think I would return to Tevinter and not grace you with my presence every day? Perish the thought.

Cullen chuckles dryly. "I suppose not."

You worry about me?

"...yes." Cullen admits. "Now more than ever. You are my friend and seeing you that way…I won't let it happen again if I can help it."

Dorian smiles softly. The things you say Commander.

That confused Cullen but he decided not to pursue it. At least for now.

"Are you sure you're well enough to travel?"

I will be fine. I have a few more days to recuperate and learn your sister's recipe for that sweet bread.

Cullen finally laughs. "I thought I saw you cooking. I'll be sure to tell Varric."

Dorian's dirty look was enough warning even though Cullen didn't actually plan on telling anyone. It was nice to see the mage interested in something like cooking because he knew he would never catch Dorian dead trying to muck out the stables. He would say something about his attire not being appropriate for the job but they both knew the mage felt above a chore like that. But the fact that he was willing to learn to cook was a nice surprise…even if it was just things like Mia's sweet bread.

Write your letter and get some more rest. You looked terrible this morning.

"Yes, dear." Cullen snorts and then rubs his forehead when Dorian flicks it in irritation.

He didn't miss the gleam in gray eyes though. Something that looked like hope to Cullen. But he was probably looking too much into it again.

#cullrian #cullen rutherford #dorian pavus

10 notes · View notes

tomtenadia · 3 years ago

Text

Remember Us - 8

Weekend surprise!

-----

Rowan had another tough week.

His headaches had been almost constant and some days worse than others. He had bouts of dizziness and on a couple of occasions he had felt disoriented and confused again. He had been terrified. All of a sudden he had no idea where he was, who he was and it just sent him back him in the hellhole of the first days he had woken up.

Aelin had took him to the hospital and his doctor had ran some test and explained that what he was experiencing were some common symptoms with a head injury. The spells of disorientation should disappear soon but he had said that headaches might linger a bit longer. He had prescribed some painkillers but Rowan had decided to take them only when the headache was unbearable. The first time he took them he was knocked off for an entire day and did not like the idea.

That morning he was home alone. Aelin was at work, Thomas at his nursery and Evalin had taken Freyja with her while running some errands.

He was sitting on the sofa with a book in his hand. He had asked Aelin to show him the book where Thomas’ namesake was. He had joked saying that he was keen to meet his competition.

Things between him and Aelin had improved. He still had his fears, he was still scared of not being enough for her but she had been a constant presence at his side and never pushed. They had shared some nice moments and in bed at night he had started sleeping with her in his arms and his hand on her belly.

Slowly he realised that the feeling he had for her had been real. His attachment to her was growing day by day. More memories flooded back and in the past few days their friends made an appearance as well and he had talked with Aelin about those moments and now he could put names to faces. They had discussed the possibility of meeting them in person, but Rowan was not sure how he felt about it yet. A part of him wanted to, was curious, but the other felt terror at the idea.

He sighed and went back to the book and read the same page for the millionth time. He had discovered that he was also struggling to concentrate, another annoying side effect. Exhausted, he placed the book on the coffee table. He was about to go back to bed but someone rang the buzzer of their house. He was not expecting anyone. So he stood, grabbed his walking stick and reached the door. Once he opened it he found a tall dark-haired man with a baby carrier at his chest and a baby in it. Lorcan. The man was Lorcan. His partner at work. Aelin had filled him in.

“Hi,”

“I am Lorcan,” said the man.

“I know.”

“Sorry, I was taking Allison for a walk and I got to this area and decided to pop in for a visit.” He explained “I can go if you don’t feel like having visitors.”

Rowan shook his head “I guess I need to start to interact with the outside world.”

“Fancy some fresh air?”

Rowan thought about it and nodded. He hadn’t left the house since he came back from the hospital. “Let me change.”

He came back a few minutes later and left a note to Evalin, explaining that he had gone for a walk with Lorcan “you need to be my guide, I have no idea where to go and how to get back home.” He locked the door behind him and pocketed phone and keys.

“Don’t worry. I checked with Aelin and she said that it was okay if you felt like it and that fresh air might do you good.”

Rowan nodded and took a deep breath of fresh air. “Just don’t run, I am still very slow.”

“I was just going to the park down the road. Elide is at work today so I am on babysitting duty.” And caressed his little girl’s head.

The baby was fast asleep against Lorcan’s chest. “She looks lovely.”

“She is her mother’s daughter, she is basically an Elide in miniature.”

They walked in silence to the park and then sat down on a bench and Rowan sighed in relief. That had been the most he had walked and his leg complained. It was getting better and Dorian had recommended to keep using it as much possible to get used again to the weight on it. Also, he had muscle mass to rebuild and the man had given him exercises to do at home.

“Silly question, but how do you feel?”

Rowan sighed “definitely better than a few weeks ago. Memories are coming back and it’s not as scary anymore as it was before.”

“How is it going with Aelin?”

Rowan paused and looked at the park around him. That was a loaded question and he always had to sort out his feelings “We are growing closer, or actually is me. My feelings for her are slowly getting clearer.”

Lorcan chuckled “you two will go back being attached to the hips in no time.” And the comment surprised Rowan “as soon as you two decided to stop fighting you became this disgusting cheesy couple. You have been together forever,” he continued “and after what you have been through, this is a stroll in the park. I am not sure another couple would have survived it.”

Rowan looked away, the pain of those memories was always vivid. He had dreamt the night she had woken up in a pool of blood. He had wondered the same thing. How their marriage survived that level of loss.

“Elide would probably make fun of me for saying this but you are soulmates. Elide and I had to work hard, mostly because of me. Before her I was not the relationship type.” He told him, rocking gently from side to side to prevent his daughter from waking up “you and Aelin had a deep connection from the start, even when you called her a spoiled brat and she called you obnoxious bastard. There was something there, among all that fighting and you were the only ones who did not see until much later.” Lorcan kept talking and Rowan listened interested. He needed to know more about them and this was exactly what he needed. An outside perspective on his relationship with Aelin “that bond, that connection brought you back together after those dark weeks.”

“I felt it since the first time she stepped in my room after I woke up.” Then he looked at the man and decided to learn more about their relationship.

“How did we meet? You and I.”

“Uni.” Said Lorcan with half a smile “First year and first day. We sat at the back of the class. I showed up with no pen or paper for taking notes thinking it was not needed for our first day. But the professor dove straight in. So you gave your spare notepad and spare pen.”

Rowan laughed at the memory.

“We became friends instantly.” Allison stirred so Lorcan stood and paced in front of Rowan “Once we graduated we applied for jobs and we landed in two big law companies but after two years you left them and then a while later you came to me with a plan. I resigned the next day.”

“Do you regret leaving a high paying job?”

Lorcan shook his head “not in the least. It was driving us mad and killing our lives. We had no time for anything. Too many ungrateful bastards to deal with. Elide and I broke up for two months because of it. No, I have no regrets. What we do now is good. We actually help people.”

Rowan played with his wedding ring in a nervous gesture “what if I can’t get back to my old job?”

“You have probably heard this a lot, but take your time. Things are under control. When you feel ready you can ease back in, but there is no rush.”

Rowan sighed “I need something to do. When Aelin is not at home Evalin looks after Freyja to give me space.”

“You probably still have your law books. Get them out of storage and read and see if anything comes back. If not, they are handy if you are struggling to sleep.”

He laughed and in that instant Allison woke up.

“And she is awake.” He gave the girl her pacifier “come on I’ll take you home.”

***

Lorcan took him back home and Rowan was now back on the sofa trying to go back reading the book but only managed a few pages before the headache came back.

He groaned in frustration and then paced a bit around the house like a caged animal. He stopped at the window and looked at the tree in front of the house and he had an idea.

Slowly he reached the closet and found a few spare duvets and grabbed one of the colourful ones, then a couple of pillows and dragged them outside. He had to abandon his walking stick so the job had proved harder, but not as hard as the second part of his plan. He had to get the stuff in the treehouse. The weather was nice and he was going to prepare some adventure for the kids. He had no idea what, but he would think of something. Climbing the wooden stairs with the duvet in his arms had proven hard, but now at the top he dropped the blanket and took a deep breath then very carefully made his way down and grimaced at the pain in his leg. With a heavier limp he made his way back in the house and grabbed a backpack and started to add some toys, books. Then he found battery powered fairy lights in the closet and grabbed those as well. Finally he grabbed the pillows and left the house once more and went to the treehouse. Rowan climbed half the stairs and threw the backpack inside, then grabbed the pillows and finally got in the house and sat down ignoring the blinding pain in his leg. He had gone too far for one day.

Crawling around the place he started spreading the blankets to make it cosy and warm, then the pillows and eventually he attached the fairy lights around the walls. He switched them on for a moment and the effect was perfect. He laid out the books, the toys and eventually lay down to relax.

He had finally managed to read a bit more of the book and was now engrossed, Thomas was still the alleged bad guy but he had just discovered that he had confessed that the enemy had taken POW and begged his captor not to glass the base that still had their people on. He had started to like the man and could start to see why Aelin loved him.

He reemerged from the book when he heard some familiar voices. With caution he crawled to the edge and popped his head outside and saw Aelin with Thomas in hand and Freyja in her stroller pushed by Evalin.

“Good afternoon,” he greeted them.

Aelin lifted her head and gasped when she saw him inside the house.

“Dad!” Shouted Thomas, freeing himself from his mother’s grip and running to the wooden ladder.

“Careful,” Aelin was at his side and helped the boy climb.

“Fancy joining me?” Rowan extended his hand to Aelin and she smiled.

Evalin nodded at her daughter “go, I’ll take the stroller inside. Stay with your family.”

Aelin lifted Freyja in her arms and slowly climbed the ladder. Rowan waited for her at the top and grabbed the little girl and allowed Aelin to climb easier.

When she reached the top and peeked inside she gasped “did you do all this?”

Rowan gave her a grin and nodded “I was bored and I tried to do something so we could spend some special time as a family.” He winked at her and Aelin kissed him “I love you,” she whispered and he kissed her back. He could not utter those words yet but he wanted to show her how much he cared already.

Aelin lifted the blanket and squeezed underneath after she and Thomas had removed their shoes. Rowan sat at her side and brought her close to him. The kids sat in front of Rowan in between his legs. Thomas passed one of the books to his dad but Aelin took it. She knew Rowan was still struggling with reading for prolonged time “now, is everyone cozy?”

Thomas screamed all excited and leaned his head against his father’s chest and Rowan placed a hand on his head and Freyja snuggled closer as well.

Aelin pulled up the blanket to cover them and tucked under Rowan’s arm and opened the book

“In a distant and magical land there lived a princess. She was young but loved her kingdom very, very much…”

#rowaelin #rowaelinkids #rowaelin fanfic #rowaelin fanfiction #rowan whitethorn #aelin galathynius #domestic fluff #rowan x aelin

65 notes · View notes

deiliamedlini · 3 years ago

Text

Whumptober 2021- The Darkness I Know

Chapter 12

It’ll Be Fun, They Said

torture | made to watch | begging

Fic Summary: After the world as she knew it was destroyed by the corruption of Malice, Zelda allies herself with her saviors from captivity: a disgruntled former governor, an alert paramedic, a cocky pilot, an excessively overt optimist, and a blind strategist. While the corrupted, malice-filled Yiga Clan looks for revenge on them, Zelda has to learn how important it is to find family in others... and how much more dangerous the stakes become if she fails to protect them.

Previous/ Chapter Index/ Next

*Spoiler Content Note, but read if you want to know what the torture is/ skip past the squiggly lines if you don’t: Because Link is blind, it’s hard for him to know what’s going on in this scene, so I just want to put it here as a content warning kind of thing that Zelda is tortured with malice, but as it’s going, Link doesn’t know what it is, so just a heads up that that’s all that’s happening. To the reader and Link, it sounds like it could be worse, which is why I wanted to give a warning so you know it’s safe to go ahead (or not, if magical torture isn’t for you). I also gave the villains a mini speech to let you know what’s happening.

AKA: There’s no point to this long note other than me just trying to keep reading safe for you on torture day!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Zelda woke up with a pounding headache, blinking several times before anything became even remotely clear. Not that it helped much.

They were in an incredibly dark, damp cavern made of rock and lined with wet clay. There were no structures, but a single fire, candles, and lanterns lit the area up just enough to make out several people sitting around in a huddle, muttering amongst themselves too quietly for Zelda to hear.

She tried to stretch out her sore body, and she understood from the stiffness she felt that she’d been curled up in one position for far longer than she cared to realize. She hated to think how much time had passed, where they’d gone, or what horrible Yiga things might have been done to her. Still, as she tried to stretch, she realized that her leg was held back by something, something that rattled with her struggling movements, catching the attention of every single person in the area. Chains? she thought. Like a trapped animal.

“Zelda?” Link’s voice asked, and she blinked several more times before turning behind herself towards the wall to see him sitting up, attentive now, but seemingly in a comfortable position. He’d been awake for a while now.

“Link!”

Her throat was raspy, and she suddenly remembered being swallowed up by the water, dragged under again and again with only a second to gasp for air before she’d been dragged down again by the relentless current.

That was all the time they had for a reunion, because three of the Yiga stood from their huddle and headed towards the two of them.

Zelda scampered back towards Link and the wall, not bothering to get up, but pulling at the chain that was firmly set into the rock wall instead.

“It doesn’t budge,” Link whispered, his hand out for her. She took it and saw instant relief wash over his features. “You’re okay?”

“I am,” she said, assuming that was the case.

Then the Yiga were standing over them, and Zelda tugged Link’s hand to silently get his attention.

The three Yiga had their masks on, but their hulking frames had Zelda shudder. It didn’t help that they towered over here where she sat.

“They don’t trust me anymore, Zelda,” Dorian’s voice said. He stepped forward; the one in the middle and knelt in front of her. “They think that my friendship with you has clouded my decisions, and that when you’re involved, I’ll always take the safer route.”

“And that’s a bad thing?” Zelda breathed, trying to sound brave. But she’d never felt so trapped in her life, not even the days she spent in her car while the Malice spread for the first time.

“Yes. We are pragmatic above all else. You should understand that.”

“Find me the logic in this twisted situation, Dorian. It’s not pragmatic; it’s insanity.”

He continued as if he hadn’t heard her. “You began the initiation into the Yiga Clan on your first day with us. Now, you will continue.”

“Like hell I will!” Zelda scoffed, feeling Link inch towards her where they sat.

Dorian sighed. “It could be easy. I can still do that for you.”

“No,” another voice answered, emerging from the shadow with a faint light. “No, her time for mercy is done. She’ll join us, or she’ll die in the process. It’s that simple.”

Zelda squinted at the familiar face of Astor, and the near constant purple wispy glow around his hands.

“Why do you even want me? I don’t share a single belief in common with you.”

“That’s the beauty of it,” Astor said, gliding forward like he was on air. “You’ll succumb to the Malice one way or another, and then you’ll understand—” he trailed off and stared at Link. “I knew you looked familiar. You’re one of those renegades who destroyed our hideout.”

“Didn’t do enough damage, it seems,” Link said as calmly as he could. Zelda could hear the slight shake in his voice, but she knew Astor wouldn’t.

“You killed Master Kogha. Did you know that? You nearly killed me. And to you, Zelda, he almost got your beloved friend Dorian killed, but I saved him, like the benevolent leader I am. So much death. The blood on your hands won’t wipe clean so easily.”

“A price I’ll gladly pay tenfold to wipe you all out,” Link said bluntly.

“Didn’t kill Ganondorf?” Zelda spat.

“No, no, he survived. And he’s s glad we found you once again. He missed you. So here we have it: the girl who escaped, and the man who pulled the trigger on everyone’s fate. Just know, everything that happens now is your fault.”

Link grimaced, prepared to shoot a comeback at Astor, but the sound of Zelda’s chains stopped him.

Zelda’s voice was panicked as she asked, “What are you doing?”

The chains rattled against the ground, dragging slowly along the dirt, but clinking as the coil slid over the other chain links. Zelda scampered away from the noise, and Link suddenly felt her in his arms, holding tight. He wrapped his arms around her, unsure what she was doing, but understanding that it was something she couldn’t do alone.

“Let him go,” Dorian said, the chains stopping. “Let him go or we’ll take him too.”

Zelda choked on a sob, all confidence and strength drained from her in an instant. Link could feel it leave her with her weakened arms, and he held her tighter.

“What’s happening?” Link asked.

He couldn’t get a clear response from Zelda though, as her only response was another hiccup. But suddenly, she was being pulled from his arms, and she let out a shriek. He tried to hold her, but there was too much strength on her end. He figured either two people or magic were what was pulling her along.

He felt a boot connect with his chest, and his hold on Zelda slipped.

As did the last vestiges of his calmness.

“Zelda!” he called, pushing the boot off him and getting to his feet to try to catch up to her, only to fall onto his face when the chain tugged his ankle, and he couldn’t keep his balance fast enough. Pulling his leg, he realized the chain was too taut; someone was holding it or standing on it.

They were shortening his leash.

“Link!” Zelda cried, “Leave him alone!”

There was a pained grunt, and then the sound of a palm hitting skin before Zelda audibly struggled.

“Hold her still, Dorian,” Astor said. “And don’t let her take it off.”

“Let go!” she shrieked, banging into things, thudding herself around like a human wrecking ball.

“Zelda!” Link tried, pulling at his chain again, but he was met by another boot that kept him down.

“Dorian! Please! Don’t let him do this! Please! This is going to kill me!”

“It didn’t kill me,” was Dorian’s only response.

Straining his ears, Link tried. He listened harder than ever, trying to figure out what was happening. But all he could hear was her whimpers, and a whispered plea of Link’s name that cut through him like a physical wound. He pulled harder at the chains, willing to break his ankle if it meant getting through the rung, but this time, the boot hit him in the face, and he immediately tasted the metallic zing of blood in his mouth.

“You’re a fool,” the Yiga said. “Stop trying that.”

Astor’s voice felt a little closer. “Is he watching? Make sure he does. This is what happens to those who defy the Yiga; they become the very thing they hate most in this world: us.”

The Yiga was on Link, and he was forced to his knees.

“Link!” Zelda called, and he was able to focus his head in her direction, if only for her sake. Whatever they were about to do, he wasn’t in a position to stop it.

Not that it stopped him from trying.

“No,” Zelda tried one more time. “Dorian, I was your friend! I know your grandchildren’s names; I know their birthdays! Collette wouldn’t want to see you when this is all over and know what you’ve done to me. To others! To someone who could be her! Would you do this to her? Would you put her through this pain?”

“Valiant effort,” Astor cooed. “But Dorian knows that while he’s here, his family is safe from any unwilling conscriptions.”

Link leaned back, grabbing the chain around his ankle so he knew exactly where the excess was, and then pulled the Yiga down by the leg until he heard a thud. Link tossed the chain around the Yiga’s neck, and pulled against the struggling man, gasping for air.

“Let her go, and I’ll let this one go!”

Astor scoffed. “Kill him, for all I care. He knows he’s replaceable for the greater good.”

Link tightened his grip on the chains, listening to the Yiga choking.

They weren’t bluffing.

He let the Yiga go, fearing the repercussions Zelda might face, and felt another blow land hard, sending his mind spinning until Zelda’s voice brought him back.

She went from calling his name, to unintelligible sounds of panic.

“I said hold her!” Astor snapped. “I need my knife! Get the Malice ready.”

Link tried to sit up, but a sharp blade at his throat had him freezing in place, forced to wait it out on the floor.

It had been a long time since Link heard anyone scream as loud, or for as long as Zelda did. He’d been with Urbosa on a run, just around the beginning of her time in Kakariko. She was still reeling from her former status as a political leader, to a grunt picking up a certain plant for some paramedic who wasn’t even a real doctor.

It had been the first time Link dealt with the Yiga.

A man’s voice had pierced the air, a relentless, unending scream that hurt Link probably half as much as it hurt the man. The Yiga were standing over him with knives dripping red, and the man writhing. Link hadn’t seen what happened, but Urbosa described it later. Once she’d injured one and chased them away, the man was already halfway dead as Malice spread all along his hand. Urbosa had tried to calm him, but nothing could ease the pain, not even time, not anesthetics, not the young paramedic. Nothing.

Urbosa had left, and the paramedic stayed, introducing herself as Mipha. She was shaken by what she could see, and said his arm would have to come off. But by the time she was ready to amputate, the Malice had spread too far. Within hours, he’d become engulfed in the stuff, and Mipha’s best shot at helping him had been to end it before he had to endure more pain from the malicious substance.

So now, as Link sat here, listening to Zelda’s pleas, begging them to stop, pleading with Dorian to stop Astor before he could set the Malice on her, Link could only remember the man who’d died a vicious death within hours of coming into direct contact with the stuff.

“Zelda…” Link rasped out, realizing for the first time that his voice was shaken from overuse. He’d been calling for her without realizing. Wetting his lips, he felt the taste of salt again and again. “Shit,” he whispered to himself.

When Zelda’s whimpers grew louder, along with the sound of footsteps, Link perked up, listening intently. The thud was on his left, and he crawled over to her while her chains rattled, reattached to her ankle.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“No.” She fought back a pained groan, but only managed to shoot forward into a tight ball instead. “I’m not going to survive, Link.”

“Where is it?”

She confirmed his theory about what had happened with her non-response of simply placing her arm into his hands.

He ran his fingers over it. “What did they do?”

“It’s covered so we can’t….” she closed her eyes tight as a wave of pain shot through her. “…we can’t… um… get it out.”

Half of her body collapsed into Link, and he steadied her before running a hand through her hair. “We’ll get it all out. You’re not dying, okay? I’ve lost too many people this week; I refuse to add another to this list.”

She curled up, instinctively pressing herself into him, looking for some sense of safety while she was staring her potential death in the face.

Link held her tight, and rubbed her back as she cried out in pain.

Goddess, it would be another long night.

15 notes · View notes

eyeofthedrgn · 3 years ago

Text

A Heavy Battle Symphony - Chapter 4

New chapter! This chapter is slightly fluffy, still angsty, but much less than previous chapters.

Catch up here: Chapter 1 // Chapter 2 // Chapter 3

TW: language, mental abuse, verbal abuse, physical abuse, violence, depression, anxiety, panic attacks, self harm, self-esteem issues, sexual abuse (only alluded to briefly in future chapters), just a lot of trauma, angst, smut - lots of lovely gay smut

Word count: 1685

Chapter 4 - Forgotten

A little piece of paper with a picture drawn

Floats on down the street 'til the wind is gone

And the memory now is like the picture was then

When the paper's crumpled up it can't be perfect again

It was Monday, and he was healed enough that Maeve let him go to school. After a normal morning routine, Lorcan made sure he wore a hoodie that would do a decent job covering his neck. Hood up, hands in his hoodie pocket, head down, he headed to school.

He missed a lot of schoolwork. It was going to be a late night. Luckily, most of the teachers gave him until the end of the week to turn it in.

When P.E. came around, he went straight to the gym rather than the locker room. He found his teacher and handed him his doctor's note. Mr. Brullo sent Lorcan to the library to study. Lorcan was happy about that. He was able to catch up on some of his homework.

Lorcan's handwriting, luckily, wasn't hindered by his cast. Perrington at least broke his right arm, his non-dominant arm. That he was thankful for, if he could be thankful for anything that happened to him.

He was getting a headache from his pre-calc homework. Lorcan rubbed his face with his hand and sighed.

"Lorcan?"

Lorcan grunted and slowly turned to see Elide, who looked relieved to see him. That was interesting. "Oh, uh, hi."

"Aren't you supposed to be in gym?" Lorcan lifted his casted arm. Elide's eyes widened and her lips parted. "Oh." She swallowed. Fuck, here comes the pity. "How-" she closed her mouth. "How'd that happen? We thought you were sick." Why were they concerned?

He told the same story Maeve told the doctor. Something about getting in a fight and falling down stairs, and "you should see the other guy". She didn't seem to believe him, neither did the doctor.

"Can I sit with you?" Lorcan shrugged. She sat down and then proceeded to talk to him about what he missed in creative writing. He didn't realize her voice was so soothing.

"Has anyone signed your cast yet?" She was eyeing the black cast. "I have a silver Sharpie!" She pulled it out of her bag and held it up with a smile.

Lorcan huffed a small laugh. Not being able to say no to that smile, knowing he was going to get in trouble, well, what could really do to him anyway? So, Lorcan carefully pushed up his hoodie sleeve. She smiled brightly at him. He propped his head up on his hand, eyes closed and listened to her hum as she put ink to the black cast.

++++

It was hard to keep from asking Lorcan questions. Elide saw the handprint bruise on his neck, the exhaustion lining his body, and of course, the full arm cast. She thought about how his injuries were formed. Obviously, someone put their hands on him, but who?

She didn't know who he lived with besides his aunt. It was doubtful that a woman had done this sort of damage, but one never knows for sure.

As she put pen to plaster, she kept looking up at his face between strokes of ink. He had drifted off to sleep. His face was slack, a slight snore every time he breathed out. Lorcan looked so innocent like that and dare she say, gorgeous.

Having finished her artwork, she just watched him until the bell rang. She gently brushed a lock of hair off his forehead, delicately tucking it behind his ear. He didn't stir.

Elide wished there was something she could do to get him away from his more than shitty situation. Calling the police was probably out of the question, but that was really the only thing she could think of.

The bell rang.

---

He didn't realize he had fallen asleep until he felt his textbook being pulled from under his elbow. "Oh, shit. Sorry," Lorcan furrowed his brow as he started cleaning up his stuff.

"You looked tired, I didn't want to wake you, but it is lunch time." Elide smiled, "and you have to look at your cast!" She seemed so excited about it.

Expecting some nonsense, he was pleasantly surprised to find a nice line drawing from his elbow to his wrist. It was a row of detailed trees with her name under it. Lorcan looked at it with awe. He looked back at Elide, "You did that?" Obviously, she did that. Don't be stupid, Lorcan, he thought to himself.

She giggled. He thought her laugh was adorable. "Obviously." Lorcan's cheeks flushed while he finished packing up before they walked together to lunch in a comfortable silence.

---

He followed Elide through the lunch line, the lunch lady gave him an extra serving. He was probably looking a little gaunt these days having barely eaten for the past week. Lorcan started towards the empty table in the corner.

Apparently, Elide wasn't having any of that as she pulled him to the group table before he could go be alone. Everyone seemed excited to see him. His name was shouted amongst several other greetings. Lorcan felt a tug in his chest as he looked around at the friendly faces. Why were they always trying to be nice to him? And then his eyes fell on the silver haired boy, he instantly forgot what he was thinking. He stared at the green eyed beauty a fraction longer than he should have as he sat down.

Elide introduced everyone. Aelin, Lysandra, Manon, Dorian, Chaol, Fenrys, Connall, Rowan - the silver haired boy - and then Vaughn, who was the last one to join the table.

He was sitting between Elide and Fenrys. Lorcan kept his head down while he ate, feeling very out of place. Everyone was chatting around him, over him, leaning around him. It was a lot. He wished he was alone at the table in the corner.

Rowan spoke up, "Can I sign your cast?" Lorcan jerked his head up. The sleeve of Lorcan's hoodie was still pushed up, he had forgotten to pull it back down which was unusual, but under the current circumstances, it made sense.

Lorcan's heart sped and he suddenly felt warmth spread up his neck. It drove him crazy how much his body reacted of its own accord around Rowan. He wished it would stop.

There was no reason to deny him when the punishment was coming now anyway since Elide's Sharpie touched the cast in the library, so he just shrugged and moved his arm towards the center of the table, towards Rowan.

"Elide, can I borrow your Sharpie?" She handed it over with a nod and went back to animatedly talking to the other girls about something.

Lorcan was careful not to press into the edge of the table, as he adjusted his arm. "I don't think mine will be as pretty as Elide's. Sorry in advance." Lorcan just shrugged a shoulder. He watched Rowan do his little doodle.

Then Rowan grabbed Lorcan's hand to carefully twist his arm to get to a different part of the cast easier causing electricity to shoot through his skin. His breath hitched. The soft fingers lingering on his skin, he never wanted the other boy's hand to move. Lorcan's eyes darted to Rowan's face to see if he noticed anything weird. All he saw was intense concentration, the way his tongue stuck out just a tad and his brows stitched together. Suddenly he was too warm, chest tight, heart pounding. Hellas below.

"There!" Rowan smiled at his silly nonsensical line doodle signed with his name. "All done." That smile did weird things to his stomach and the absence of those warm fingers made all the heat he had just been feeling disappear. A shiver ran down his spine.

Rowan capped the Sharpie and went to hand it back to Elide when Fenrys grabbed it.

"Can I?"

"Yeah." He was screwed anyway.

By the end of lunch, his cast was covered in names and doodles by his... Friends? They couldn't be friends, could they?

As he walked to his next class, he started panicking. His chest tightening for a whole other reason than being in close proximity to a certain boy. A tightness that was only reminiscent of growing anxiety. He shouldn't have let anyone sign it. What was he thinking?

Fuck.

++++

"Lorcan," Rowan breathed as he saw the dark haired boy basically being dragged by Elide to their table. Everyone perked up at that and welcomed him back.

Rowan saw his pained expression. Then, he saw the cast and the light purples, greens, and yellows on his neck that Lorcan was obviously trying to hide with the hood of his hoodie. It looked like a handprint. A fucking handprint. His gut roiled at the thought.

But then Lorcan looked at him, and oh boy, those eyes were going to be the end of him. They were an amazing onyx, almost like pools of night. His cheeks heated and he hoped no one noticed.

He finally got the courage to ask to sign his cast. And when Lorcan leaned over to get his arm closer to Rowan, he noted the stiffness and slight discomfort that flitted over his face. There was so much damage to Lorcan's body that they couldn't see. It made him unbearably sad thinking about it.

For the rest of lunch, while everyone signed Lorcan's cast, Rowan just sat there silently, observing the beautiful dark haired boy. He'd catch his eye every now and then give him a small smile, which was never returned. His eyes just quickly flitted away. Lorcan, he learned was very hard to read.

Rowan wished they could hang out, just the two of them. He wanted to get to know him and help him. And know what those lips felt like, tasted like. How it would feel to thread his fingers through his long dark hair that was usually in a messy bun. Or just to hold his hand. Fuck, he had it bad.

____

Thank you for reading! Let me know if you would like to be tagged.

@thenerdandfandoms @starlightorstarfire

#rowcan fanfic #rowcan #rowan x lorcan #rowan whitethorn #lorcan salvaterre #heavy battle symphony #crackship

14 notes · View notes