#Nani Surana

[mementotori]

Path of the Grey: Chapter 1

Welp I’ve been wanting to post this to Tumblr for a while but here it is

@mad-mod I love you, tiny husband

And @ineffablewitch so you can look at our babies

And because I fucking forgot to add this you can read more here

“The best cure for one's own grief and pain was worrying about the well-being of someone else.”

― Drew Karpyshyn , Children of Fire

9:10 Dragon

Templar Redding Surana had little experience with children. Sure, in Denerim he had helped out the local orphans. But this was different.

There were rumors of an elven apostate living in the woods near the Korcari Wilds, and Redd had been loathe to go. Something unnatural grew there and he wanted no part of that mischief. But he was a Templar after all, and that stick-in-the-ass Greagoir told him to go with a few of his men to investigate the tiny woodland hut.

The hut in question was unnaturally quiet. Save for his torchlight, Redd couldn’t see a damn thing. As he came closer to the shanty, he noticed something wet glistening upon the broken door.

A chill ran down Redd’s spine. He had seen blood too many times in his young life, and he now suspected the Templars weren’t the only ones to get rumors of the apostate.

“Maker’s Breath…” He heard one of the Templars behind him.

With a steady hand, Redd held him back.

“Let me go first.” he said, receiving a fast and ready nod from his companion.

Warily, Redd held his sword out, moving the door open slowly with his shielded arm.

It was dark and quiet, and smelled of dried meats and old sweat. This was immediately followed by the acrid scent of blood and death. The door stopped halfway, Redd heard a soft thud when he tried to push it open once more. He managed to get himself through, now seeing that the object blocking the door was a young woman. He gently turned her over, the tips to her once pointed elven ears crudely torn off.

She might have once been very beautiful, but her blonde hair was caked with blood and dirt, and her light eyes were clouded. Her throat had been slashed open, evidence of assault was clear enough as he looked at her broken body.

Redd felt his stomach knot up, flashes of his own childhood trauma swimming drunkenly in his head. He said a small prayer for her.

The was a soft thump in the darkness. Redd set the hand of the elven woman down. He slowly went over to the misshapen armoire, noticing one of the doors was slightly ajar. He set his sword and shield aside.

“Hello?” He said quietly, his Starkhaven accent still evident in his speech.

There was a long silence before he was answered by a tiny voice.

“Go away.”

Redd crouched down, his armor clanking awkwardly, “Are you alright?” He asked.

He looked through the small open slot between the doors, greeted by the illumination of bright amber eyes. There was a soft gasp followed by the crackle of a fire.

The wardrobe illuminated with the orangey fingertips of the little girl, embers floating up in the air. Small sparks started to fly up, almost hitting red in the face. He could feel the heat whiz by his head, singeing his hair.

“Alright, alright,” Redd said calmly, “I’m not going to hurt you.”

The light died down a little bit, the little girl eyed him, “Are you a knight?”

Redd smiled, “I am.”

“Did you fight a dragon?” The little girl asked, getting closer to him.

“Well I might as well have, you shooting that fire at me.”

The little girl wrinkled her nose, “I’m no dragon.”

“No? You seem fierce enough to me.”

The little girl thought for a moment, “I burned the bad men.”

Redd looked behind him, now seeing the charred remains of a man in the corner of the hut, his blade still in his hand. He turned back to the child.

“Was that you?”

The girl nodded quickly, “They hurt ma…” Her lip trembled.

“I know, I know.” Redd said gently.

They sat in silence for a while, Redd could her the girl moving closer to him every once in awhile. She was now at the opening when she finally asked for his name.

“My name is Redd.”

The little girl wrinkled her nose again, “That’s a color.”

“What? They just call it red because my face gets that color when I’m angry. They stole my name.”

“Then you must be angry a lot.”

Redd chuckled, “Perhaps…” He thought for a moment, “Might I have your name?”

The girl was hesitant, he could feel her eyes on his face.

“Na’Nalia.” She answered.

“What a pretty name.” Redd smiled.

“I know.” Na’Nalia said smartly.

She climbed down out of the wardrobe. Redd could see that she couldn’t have been older than 3 or 4 years old. She sat down next to Redd and huffed.

“Nani...can I call you Nani?” Redd asked.

Na’Nalia nodded.

“Nani, would you like to leave?”

“Why?”

“Well it looks to me like you’re using magic. How would you like to learn more magic with other children your age?”

Nani shrugged, “It sounds lame.”

“Well I’ll be there.”

“Promise?”

“I do.”

“Then I guess it isn’t so bad…” Nani sighed.

“C’mon, kiddo.” Redd took her up into his arms. He shielded her from seeing her mother on his way out.

His fellow Templars stood outside, kicking the ground.

“You.” Redd pointed to one of them. When he came closer Redd whispered, “We’re taking her back to the tower, give the mother a proper burial.”

“What of the father?”

“Didn’t see him.”

“Ser…” The Templar pointed to the trees.

Redd looked up to see a dangling body hanging from a large limb, a post that read ‘knife-ear’ in red letters.

Redd sighed, “Him too then.”

He held Nani close to him as he walked towards the horses lent to them by the Chantry. By the time he sat in the saddle Nani was already half asleep. In the moonlight he could see the puffiness under her eyes, clearly exhausted from crying.

As they rode away, Redd could feel Nani slowly sinking into a deep sleep. He looked down at her and thought to himself that this little girl was going to change his life forever.

[empresstress13]

OC asks for Ronny, Innanis and Beatrix - 1, 4, 22, 37 and 56?

1 -What is/are your OC’s nickname(s) and how did it come about?

Ronny - . . .I just realized that I am currently technically using a nickname for her. Her actual name is Veronica, but she almost always goes my Ronny! Depending on the city she’s used variations on the spelling too, but she uses Ronny in Denerim. There’s also a few places that she goes by Veronica, but that’s the most rare. Ronny and Ronnie are the most common names she uses. She’ll also go by: Nikki, Nik, Nica, Vikki, Verna, Vee, Via, Vera, Verona, Veronice . . . however, most of these are more alias than actually nicknames.

Innanis - Her mom used to call her “little star” and “star eyes” when she was younger, and so did some of the older members of Valo-Kas (her mother was a member before Innanis, but has since retired). Nana and Nanis are also commonly used nicknames among Valo-Kas members and their circles. Sera is insistent on continuously creating more and more creative nicknames.

Beatrix - Her family and close friends when she was little usually called her “Bea”, and it’s still a common nickname from them now. It’s just the shortened version of her name.

4- What is a noticeable physical attribute of your OC?

Ronny - Ronny actually does take meticulous care of her appearance. She’s very pretty, and certainly wants to use that to advantage, however she also prefers that people don’t remember any extremely distinguishing features later. . . she does have lavender eyes that are rather noticeable. 

Innanis - . . .this is difficult. She is extremely tall, has curled horns, dark red hair, and extremely pale grey eyes. Take your pick. 

Beatrix - Oooh. . . I’d say her smile! 

22 -Who is/are your OC’s closest friend(s)?

Ronny - She’s got a nice little network of friends, but close friends. . . that’s more difficult for her. She is pretty close with Beatrix Tabris, Isabela (yup!), 

Innanis - Innanis is a super outgoing person and has a large group she’d consider to be in the “friend” sphere. Her closest circles though - Sera and Dagna are her loves, but they’re great friends as well. She’s also super close with her fellow Valo-Kas members, Dorian, Vivienne, and Krem.  

Beatrix - Bea is super close with Soris, Shianni, and Nehnara Surana. She ends up courting Leliana and they are super sweet (and stabby to their enemies!). She’s friends with Ronny too! Ronny and Bea actually spent a lot of time together after Bea’s mom was killed, and Ronny helped her. . . get into trouble, but not too much trouble? Bea also is pretty good friends with Zevran and Alistair (but they had a ROCKY start). I’m also coming up with ideas about how Elraen ends up meeting Bea & Nehnara. Cuz that’s gonna happen. 

37 -What is your OC’s biggest dream?

Ronny - That she’ll admit to? She probably wouldn’t let anyone else know all of her dreams. She is definitely of the opinion that the more people who know her desires, the more dangerous that is. She’s very big on trying to get back on people who use power to bully others (she may have some red jenny connections as well. . .).   

Innanis - I think at one point she mainly was focused on providing for herself and her parents, learning everything cool ( which means EVERYTHING to her), and finding a sweetie to court. She’s got some of that. . . and has managed to also open up so many other cans of worms. XD She’d like to open up some sort of facility to help kossith who have left the Qun - getting them settled and prepared for society outside of Qun control, helping educate young vashoth, and most ambitiously help other mage vashoth! She’d like to see more supportive mage education all around to be honest. . . things are better than they were but. . . 

Beatrix -She wants to return everyone who was taken from the alienage during the Blight. She wants to get representation for elves in the Landsmeet. She wants for no other children to be ripped from their homes like Nehnara was. She wants no one to experience cruelty the way she did. Like her mother did. Like Shianni did. She wants to grow old with Leliana in a house filled with nugs, mabari, and children. 

56 -What are some of your OC’s strengths?

Ronny - She’s charming, personable, and quick-witted. 

Innanis - She is so, so smart. Super smart. Also creative and friendly. 

Beatrix - She is clever and determined. Also very loyal. 

Thanks for the ask! ♥

OC questions! 

[mad-mod]

Day 14. Honestly I just love my Dragon Age Origins warden Nani a lot have a picture of her . . . #Inktober #inktober2017 #daorigins #dragonage #origins #warden #elf #art #mage #surana #myoc #myart #madmod #day14 #fierce #dragonageorigins

[nahni-surana]

Jowan: "I knew I'd never be as great a mage as you are..."

Nani Surana: "Jowan, are you fucking joking? I flunked out of Spirit class and barely passed Primal and Entropy."

[mementotori]

Path of the Grey: Chapter 10

So a little break in all the nonsense here’s my babies being shitty

@mad-mod, @ineffablewitch

I cannot even imagine where I would be today were it not for that handful of friends who have given me a heart full of joy. Let's face it, friends make life a lot more fun.

-Charles R. Swindoll

9:28 Dragon

"Does this mole look like Andraste to you?"

Nani looked back at Eshne, who was lying across the silky blue sheets of Nani's bed. Eshne looked up from her book and cocked her head to the side, looking at Nani's mostly naked body. They had been doing their monthly body checks, sometimes for the fun of it, and sometimes for medical purposes.

"Which one?" Eshne asked, suddenly becoming interested with the many freckles that were littered across her breasts.

Nani raised her brow, "Which Andraste?"

"No, which mole." Eshne corrected her.

"I have more?"

"On your back, yes. Ask Niall. Though he probably doesn't pay much attention when he's hitting it from behind." Eshne started cackling.

Nani picked up a book from her dresser and threw it at Eshne. When it collided with her chest it just made Eshne laugh more.

"You're one to talk." Nani then laughed, turning back around to face her mirror.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Eshne asked.

"You think I don't see the way you look at your Templar. It's not right." Nani said.

"Did you not take the last name of a Templar?"

"He raised me, it's different. And you took the name too..."

"Listen, they're both daddies in different situations-"

Nani screamed, "Eshne Sylvia Surana!"

"Hey! Only Wynne and Redd can use my middle name." Eshne said pointedly.

"You want to tell dad what you said?" Nani asked.

Eshne sat up and pointed her bony white finger at her sister, "Don't you dare Na'Nalia."

Nani wiggled her brows.

"You're topless." Eshne pointed out.

"So are you." Nani stepped toward the entry that let out of her private mage quarters.

"N-Don't-Nan-" Eshne furrowed her brow, "Nani-I'm-I'm serious."

"Bye."

Nani bolted from her room, leaving behind whatever cloth she had been using to cover herself. She was now only running in her dyed underwear and her brightly colored tall socks.. Eshne shot up from the bed and ran after Nani, similarly clothed.

"Eshne, don't run too hard you'll end up wheezing!" Nani called behind her.

"Worth...it!" Eshne answered, she shot a quick freezing spell at the ground just before Nani took another step.

Nani's socks caught the slippery ice, and she sped forth. Eshne hadn't been paying attention to how much of the floor she iced, and began slipping as well. She ended up next to Nani, grabbing onto her sister while they slid uncontrollably. Both of them laughed and screamed at the same time.

They passed Greagoir, who was giving a tour to a few new initiates. Once he saw the two mages slide by, he put a hand to his head and sighed. He looked behind him, where Redd was already wide eyed, trying to avoid Greagoir's glare.

Nani and Eshne ended up in the Mage's quarter library. Coming to a halt when the lowered step into the library sent them flying into the air. They landed atop a wool rug, right in front of a group of younger mages.

Eshne's eyes fluttered open and she saw Wynne's scowl. She was ushering the children away, her eyes burning into Eshne as she did so.

"Hello, beautiful." Eshne said.

Nani sat up and looked at Eshne.

"Let's do that again."

"I think not."

Both of them looked at the doorway and saw Redd, his face the color of a cherry tomato. His nostrils flared, and his armor clanked as he stomped towards his adopted daughters.

"I don't even know where to begin with you two." He said through his teeth.

"How about 'Are you okay?'" Nani suggested.

Redd glared at her, Wynne was seething as she came up next to Redd.

"You should be ashamed." She started, "Can't you girls act your age for once?" She then threw up your hands, "Prancing around, NAKED, in front of the whole tower! Are you trying to kill yourselves."

"Well there was less fire this time." Eshne said, "That's an improvement."

Nani nodded in agreement.

"Maker, keep me." Wynne walked away, shooing away any mages who were staring for too long.

"Na'Nalia Surana," Redd said, "You are a full mage now. You should know better than to do this kind of thing."

"What if I say I was teaching dear Eshne about the physics of weight and velocity?"

"Oh Maker…" Redd sighed.

There was a clamor of armor that came from behind Redd. Cullen was already red faced when he walked in, no doubt the victim of Greagoir's screaming for not being with his charge. When he saw Eshne he felt weak, mostly because now Eshne was standing proudly topless next to an equally bare chested Nani.

"Andraste, preserve me." He choked.

"Get ahold of yourself, lad." Redd said gruffly, "If I don't like the look you give my girls I'll snap your neck." Then he added, "Now take Miss Surana back to her quarters with the rest of the apprentices." He clapped Cullen a little too hard on the back.

"Yes, ser." Cullen couldn't stop himself from blushing, looking away from Eshne when he handed her a nearby blanket to cover herself.

"This isn't over, young woman." Redd said as Eshne passed him.

"Really? Because I'm walking away…" Eshne said, then whispered as Cullen quickly escorted her from Redd's wrath, "Walking. Waaallking. Away."

"Maker I wish I could do more than ground her." Redd muttered to himself. Then he looked at Nani, "To your quarters now."

"But-"

"Now." Redd gritted his teeth, glaring as Nani groaned and walked out of the library in a huff.

Wynne walked over to Redd, she crossed her arms.

"Don't-"

"You know you let them get away with too much." Wynne interrupted him, "One of these days Greagoir will finally-"

"No he won't, I won't let him." Redd said. He looked down at Wynne, his eyes softening a little, "Is class over?"

"Now it is, no thanks to those girls you call daughters…"

"Just me?" Redd raised his brow.

Wynne did a double take, "Excuse me, Redding Surana."

Redd looked around, seeing no one he whispered, "C'mon Wynnie. Let me walk you back to your chambers..."

"Don't try to get cute with me, Ser." Wynne scoffed.

Redd smirked, "You still think I'm cute?"

"And you wonder why Eshne is so infatuated with that boy." Wynne shook her head, "It's unhealthy."

"I thought she took example from you?"

Wynne gave a slight smile, "Be quiet, you beastly man."

"What happened to you?" Jowan asked, looking at Eshne as Cullen walked her into the apprentice quarters.

"Be quiet, Jowan, I am deep in thought and I mustn't be disturbed at this delicate time." She handed Cullen the blanket that was covering herself.

"Oh, Maker." Jowan and Cullen both said, looking away as Eshne went over to her drawer to get out her blue robes.

"I should go." Cullen said quickly, "Yes…"

"Bye, Ser Cullen." Eshne called, watching the Templar race away.

"Why do you have to do that?" Jowan asked, sitting on Eshne's bed.

"Do what?" Eshne asked, pulling the belt around her robes taught.

"Anything remotely Eshne-like."

"Dear sweet Jowan," Eshne started, "I have to be myself." She sat next to Jowan, "It's so boring here."

"We make the best of what we have."

"Oh! Jowan! The philosopher!" Eshne said, laying down with her head on the pillow.

"What's wrong with you? You've been so grumpy lately." Jowan pointed out, laying next to Eshne.

Eshne sighed, "Ever since Nani had her Harrowing I've been waiting for mine. I'm old enough. It sucks having her on a different floor. She has her own room, Jowan."

"I know. I've been thinking the same thing." Jowan said.

Eshne shrugged, "Maybe it'll come sooner than we think. If we don't always have it on our minds it should come! That's the way the world works sometimes. Like when you're trying to find your sweet apple tarts and then you search and you search...and as soon as you don't think about it you find them under the pillow all along."

"That's where my sweets went?" Jowan asked.

"I admit nothing."

Jowan was quiet for a long time, they both listened to the rest of the mages come in from their classes, finally dying down when some went off to quietly read or work on their experiments. Jowan looked down at Eshne.

"Hey," He started, "Do you really think we'll both go through our Harrowing?"

"Of course!" Eshne said, "We're the smartest ones out of this sorry lot. You and me." She held up her pinky.

Jowan curled his pinky finger with hers.

"You and me." He repeated.

Eshne sighed, "Now, let's go sneak into the kitchens. I need more apple seeds for my pots."

"The others ones didn't make it?" Jowan asked.

Eshne pulled out a small box of lined pots filled with soil, a few withering sprouts came from them, nothing more.

"They need more sunlight," She said, "It's hard enough during the summer months, but now that it's getting colder they're not gonna make it," She frowned, "Maybe I'm no longer as Dalish as I'd like to be…"

"Esh…"

"I'm serious," Eshne said, "Jowan, I can barely recall what my life was like before I came here." She stared at her plants and sighed.

"Well…" Jowan thought for a moment, "What do you remember from them?" He asked thoughtfully.

Eshne looked up at him and raised her brow, "Why?"

Jowan patted the bed. Eshne put her plants back and laid back down next to her friend.

"I'm trying to be nice," Jowan said, "C'mon, Esh."

"Alright…" Eshne thought for a moment, "I remember trying to get my friends to steal our own aravel so we could be land pirates."

Jowan started laughing, "I guess you were always just this commandeering."

"Be quiet, Jowan, I'm reliving my glory days." Eshne said dramatically.

"Forgive me." Jowan rolled his eyes, "Who dared be friends with the great Eshne Surana at such an important time?"

"A lot of kids." Eshne answered, "There was Melia. She always seemed to have my back when the boys wanted to be mean. Her and Tamlen were always at each other's throats. Then of course sweet Merrill. I felt bad, she was so quiet. But my best friend at the time was Thackery. We were exactly alike."

"That's too much chaos in this world." Jowan commented.

"It was always fun getting into trouble with him…" Eshne said, "I wonder what he's like now."

"Do I make a good substitute?" Jowan asked.

"Of course. You have nothing to fear." Eshne smiled at him, she laid her head on Jowan's chest, "Besides. It's not like I'll ever see them again."

[mementotori]

Path of the Grey: Chapter 6

Oh hey yeah there’s more NSFW at some point

@mad-mod, @ineffablewitch

"Sweet, crazy conversations full of half sentences, daydreams and misunderstandings more thrilling than understanding could ever be." ― Toni Morrison, Beloved

9:28 Dragon

"This is stupid, Eshne."

"Shut up, Jowan, this is genius, have I ever steered you wrong?"

Jowan looked down the stairs, watching Eshne settle herself on a templar's shield. He peered down, wondering why he let a girl not only younger than him but also half his size talk him into these stupid stunts. When he saw the flash in her eye, he remembered.

"I don't know, Esh. Last time we crashed into a bookcase." Jowan's eyes went wide.

Eshne scoffed, wiping the sweat from her freckled forehead, "I've fixed the position, we'll make it this time."

"Oh, Maker."

"Your Maker has nothing to do with my genius, Jowan. Now get on."

Reluctantly, Jowan sat behind her, both barely fitting on the shield, but Eshne was small enough. Eshne put her hand on the stairs, ice started to form over the stone, making a slippery slide.

"Three, two, one," Eshne counted down, "Send off!" She pushed off the first step.

Jowan screamed behind her as they slipped down the stairs into the library on the shield. Eshne cackled wildly as they descended down the iced steps.

They reached the bottom and kept sliding. Eshne kept laughing, adrenaline pumping as they made it into the main part of the library. The shield finally came to a stop right in front of a pair of students who had been reading. Jowan fell over, not blinking. Eshne kept laughing, her cackles were almost shrieks.

"I hate you." Jowan whispered.

"Do not." Eshne stood up, picking up the shield, "I think I can get us to go further."

Jowan groaned, slowly sitting up, "You're lucky it's your birthday."

She handed him the shield, fixing her always braided hair.

"And hello to you too, Eshne." One of the students said, setting her book down, "I rate this one about a seven."

"Seven!" Eshne put her hands on her hips, "Holy shit, Nani, give me some credit. I learned the frost spells for this. Took me months!"

Nani flashed a smile, "I'm kidding it was awesome." She stood up, "Let's get some extra ice on the shield this time, I think it will slide better."

"You genius you." Eshne kissed her cheek.

"Defacement of Chantry property I see?"

The three of them looked up to see Greagoir, he was frowning and crossing his arms. Behind him was the First Enchanter, Redd, Wynne, and another templar they didn't recognized.

Redd saw Nani and prepared himself.

"Oh no, ser. Jowan and I were simply returning this, we have no idea where it came from. I was studying. That's what us mages do." Eshne smiled even wider.

"My dear, ser," Nani began, "How could you think that this sweet child would ever go against the laws of our beloved Chantry?" She put her arm around Eshne, "My sister and I, as you know, are devout Andrastians, and would flaw ourselves if we knew we had insulted the Chantry in such a way."

Eshne nodded in agreement, "Devout as she said."

Redd stifled a laugh.

Wynne rolled her eyes, "Eshne Surana, you will return the shield."

"What are you talking about return, I never claimed it in the first place." Eshne grabbed the shield from Jowan, then handed it to Greagoir.

"Just doing our Andrastian duty, ser." Nani added.

"Maker preserve me…" Greagoir sighed, "I suppose it is the Makers will that I should see you two today." He looked to the three mages, "You are aware that the Templar whom you had originally been a charge under is retiring," Greagoir sighed, "This is Ser Cullen Rutherford. He's going to be the Templar watching you from now on, Maker help him." He whispered the last part.

Ser Cullen gave a nod towards Nani, and when he saw Eshne he blushed under his helmet, "I look forward t-to m-making your a-acquaintance, M-Miss Surana." He extended his hand to her.

Jowan suppressed a laugh under a cough.

"Awesome," Nani held her chest, "I was so worried for my own safety. Thank you so much, Knight-Commander." Her words laced with sarcasm.

Redd cleared his throat, "I trust he will be more than up to the task of watching his charges Greagoir." He chuckled, "Even if they are a handful." He eyed his daughters.

Greagoir scoffed, marching back in the direction of the Templar barracks. Irving chuckled, shaking his head before he went off for his study.

"Eshne," Wynne began, "I would suggest you unfreeze the steps." She raised her brow.

"That is such a good suggestion, mammae. I'm so glad you thought of that." Eshne ran to do just as she was asked, skipping back to Wynne.

"I'll see you tomorrow morning for your studies." Wynne smirked, receiving a kiss on the cheek before she too left.

"So," Eshne began, rocking on her heels, "You're the unlucky Templar who was placed to lord over my every move."

Cullen removed his helmet, still blushing as he scratched the back of his head, "W-well I wouldn't want to m-make you un-uncomfortable, Miss Surana."

Eshne scoffed, but couldn't form a word when she looked up at him

"Oh." Eshne nodded, her eyes locking with his, her posture softening into a slight slouch as she crossed her arms.

Nani gave her a slight nudge.

"Well, that's, that's good," Eshne sputtered out, "A good, quality in a Templar, good Ser."

"What?" Jowan started laughing, but was cut short by a pinch on his arm.

"Right," Cullen blushed, "I'm sure I'll see you again soon, Miss Surana."

"Yeah that sounds, awesome." Eshne snorted.

Eshne couldn't help but stare at the Templars behind as he walked away, presumably trying to find Greagoir.

"Sweet Maker." She said to herself.

"You don't believe in the Maker." Jowan sneered.

"If that's what he gifts to the world I'll strip naked and dance the remigold for the big man." Eshne swooned.

"Please tell me you're joking, Esh." Jowan made a disgusted face, "You have a crush on the one person who is supposed to watch over our every move."

"Jowan," Eshne turned to him, patting his shoulder, "My poor sweet Jowan. They don't make men like that everyday."

"What about me?" Jowan laughed.

"You're someone's type, Jowan," Eshne smiled, "Just not mine.

Jowan ruffled her hair and she smacked his arm.

She looked back up at him, fixing her hair again while Nani cackled.

"Let's find another shield."

Nani snuck into the library late that night. She left the mage's quarters when Cullen hadn't been looking. He was so easy to fool.

She snickered.

Nani fixed her hair, making sure the front braids were pulled taught. Her hair was relatively straight anyways, she just wanted to look somewhat presentable. She pushed one side of her hair back behind her ear, a little white sliver of a scar at the tip of her ear the only living memory of her life in the Wilds.

Someone came up behind her, sliding their hands over Nani's hips.

Nani turned around, "Niall, don't be fresh."

Niall smiled and kissed her, "I had to take the opportunity before your father saw."

"He's in the barracks."

"Really?"

"Really really."

Niall lifting Nani's chin gently and he kissed her again.

"You look beautiful." He said.

"I know." Nani raised her brow.

She ran her finger over his chest, "The apprentices are all in the barracks now."

"Whatever are we mages to do?" Niall said, taking Nani's hand and placed delicate kisses over her palm and up her arm.

When he reached her neck Nani let out a moan and pushed him to a hidden corner behind one of the bookshelves.

Niall lifted her up by her thick hips, holding her to the wall. Nani pulled up her robes. She closed her eyes, feeling Nial work his fingers into her smallclothes, his other hand supporting her butt. She tried her best to keep quiet, not wanting any templar to hear them, but it was so hard when her entire body was ready to surrender to Niall's touch.

A wave of excitement ran through them, the potentiality of getting caught gave Nani a rush. Niall lifted up his robes to put his condom on, then making sure Nani was comfortable and wet enough.

He watched Nani's face as he slowly went into her, her lips parting. Her legs tightened around his waist, and her nails dug into his back.

He knew she wanted him to go faster, but he couldn't help but indulge in the carnal pleasure, seeing her writhe with each thrust.

Niall kept fucking her, his finger circling around her clit, just how he knew she liked it. He felt her tightening around his dick, knowing she was close to orgasm. His fingers kept at it.

The closer she came to orgasm Nani felt it harder to keep quiet. She let out a small moan. Niall smiled and shushed her, playfully nipping at her jaw. A long wave of pleasure ran through Nani, and Niall could feel that she had had her fill.

He buried his face in her clothed breasts, finally releasing himself. He wished desperately that he could properly look at her whole naked body instead of these quick sessions around the tower. He set Nani down, kissing her plum colored lips.

"They're finally moving me up to the mage's quarters," Nani said, lowering her robes, "Maybe we can get some time alone then?"

"Whatever you wish, my darling." Niall kissed her forehead.

He watched her walk away, glancing at her butt, thinking himself to be a very lucky man indeed.

[mementotori]

Path of the Grey: Chapter 8

I guess this one is a bit fluffy idk~

@mad-mod, @ineffablewitch

"The air around me still feels like a cage"

9:28 Dragon

Eshne sat in one of the library chairs, twirling a piece of her gingery hair in her forefinger. Her brows were furrowed while she stared into a book.

It was one of her favorites, despite its thinness, In Pursuit of Knowledge: The Travels of A Chantry Scholar by Brother Genitivi. She had looked over his passage on the Dalish hundreds of times by now.

'The Dalish, who band together in small groups of blood relatives, travel in ornately carved wagons known as aravel, drawn by large white stags called halla. The aravel are a unique sight, beautiful in their swooping curvature, and adorned with broad hoods and bright silken cloths that flap in the wind, often displaying the noble banners that once flew over that family's house. Most humans refer to the aravel as "landships," for in a strong wind it can often appear as if the elves travel in long boats with sails high overhead to announce their arrival (or warn others away). The halla are unique to the elves, and any but elven handlers consider them ornery and almost impossible to train. To the Dalish, they are noble beasts, superior in breeding to the horse. Certainly most humans would agree that the halla are as beautiful as the elves themselves; the fact that many imperial nobles maintain a bounty on halla horns that find their way into Tevinter is an affront the Dalish consider unforgivable.

Few among us can claim to have seen the Dalish landships up close. Any human who sees them on the horizon does well to head the other way. Few Dalish clans take kindly to humans intruding on their camps, and more than one tale tells of trouble-making humans who found themselves mercilessly filled with Dalish arrows.'

Eshne liked to dream sometimes that she was back with her parents, crossing through the forests of Ferelden and up near the Free Marches. Or at least that's where she thought the Dalish would travel during their nomadic trek.

She sighed, closing the book, wondering how late it was. Mages weren't given a strict schedule typically, with the exception of class times and curfew. Eshne didn't want to get in trouble again for being late to bed. She wondered if she could sneak in…

Standing up, Eshne picked up her book, walking over to the back of the library, taking hold of one of the ladders and climbed upwards. When she readed the very top, she slid the book to the back, making sure it was hidden. There were multiple copies of the book in the library, but this was the only copy of the book with her notes on the subjects written in. She knew Wynne would have had her head if she found out Eshne had written in a book.

Putting the book back must have stirred up dust, Eshne began to cough furiously, trying to keep it down as to not alert Templars she was still in the library.

She made it all the way down, trying to stifle her cough, but when she tried to walk over to her reading area she put her hand to her chest.

Not being able to keep her coughing at bay, her lungs started to seize. She couldn't breathe, wheezing as she fell to the ground. She tried to crawl over to the closest thing she could grab, the chair leg, trying to pull herself up.

Eshne couldn't concentrate on the spell to help her lungs expand. Sweat beaded down her as she painfully tried to get air. Panic set in. Where was Nani when you needed her?

She tried to close her eyes and calm herself but each time she wheezed she only started to panic. She knew she was the only one left in the library. Tears started to fall down her flushed, freckled cheeks.

Between her desperate tries to find breath she could hear the clink of armor, making her wheeze even more. Her lungs burned. She closed her eyes again.

"Maker's breath," She heard a voice, whoever it was ran towards her, "E...Eshne?"

She felt herself being cradled, her head resting against the hard steel of armor. Her eyes fluttered open while she gasped for breath.

The first thing she saw was Cullen's furrowed brow, his kind eyes glazed over, likening them to a pair of refined smoky quartz gems.

She was glad it was him, rather than one of the templars who gave her looks that made her uncomfortable.

"C…" She tried to say his name.

"Shh…" He hushed her quietly, "Don't try to talk." He took off his left glove, pushing the hair from her sweating face, "I know this sounds counteractive, but you need to try and focus. Can you try?"

Eshne nodded, trying to gasp for air, she concentrated on looking at his eyes, thinking about how they changed to a deep amber in the firelight. Her breathing started to slow.

Cullen smiled at her, "Good. Like that." He wiped away a tear from her cheek, "I suppose I should have known it was you that was here late at night." He chuckled nervously.

Eshne managed a small laughed between breaths, her lungs still on fire, but she managed to slow the pace of her breathing a little more.

She felt his hand on her cheek, warm and calloused. He spoke softly to her, trying to calm her attack.

"You know, my sister Rosalie used to have breathing troubles like this. Sometimes I would sit with her and tell her stories to try and ease her down." He said, his voice wavering with nervous tension, "I remember telling her a story one time about the golem statue that was in the town square of Honnleath. That's where I'm from…" He smirked a bit, still wiping away Eshne's tears while he spoke.

"I can't quite recall what it was about. Something about it being a warrior a long time ago, but it was frozen in place after it squished its master." He issued another nervous chuckle, this time Eshne laughed weakly with him, "Stupid I know, but she liked it."

Eshne shook her head, "It's...not...not stupid." She breathed out, smiling at him faintly.

"See?" Cullen said, "It helps."

"Yeah…" Eshne agreed, her voice was tired, but her breathing slowly returned to normal, despite the burning pain that still lingered in her chest.

Her right hand went to Cullens, which had been caressing her cheek lightly. She saw him blush when she held it.

As she sighed, she closed her eyes. Taking in the sensation of his warm hand pressed up against her face, it gave her butterflies.

Cullen cleared his throat, blushing even harder, "Do you think you'll be able to stand?" His voice cracked.

Eshne nodded slightly, opening her eyes, locking with Cullens.

On impulse, Eshne grabbed his neck, pulling him down to meet her lips.

He was hesitant at first, eyes wide from the shock. But he melted into a passionate kiss, grabbing her bottom lip between his.

Eshne could feel the warmth of his cheeks, it made her smile. She thought he was charmingly cute for being bashful about her kissing him.

Hesitantly, Cullen pulled away from her, looking at her scarlett lips as he sat up. He rubbed the back of his neck, his whole face and the tips of his ears turning red.

"I um…" He sputtered out, "You...you have...v...very nice lips, Miss Surana."

Eshne giggled, "Thank you, Ser Rutherford."

She slowly sat herself upright, Cullen held her hands, helping her stand all the way up.

"I can...walk you to you chambers...if that would please you of course." Cullen stammered.

"I would like that." Eshne said softly.

Cullen let go of her hands, awkwardly putting his glove back on and avoiding her gaze.

Eshne tilted her head, "I'm sorry if I was too forward…"

"No! No," Cullen stopped her, "I don't want you to think that I don't enjoy your...well it was very nice...and not at all what I thought...oh Maker...I…"

Standing on her toes, Eshne pecked his cheek, silencing his painful stammering.

"I'll...I'll just escort you back to your dormitory." He blushed again, touching the spot on his cheek where she had kissed him.

Eshne smiled, "Thank you, ser."

They walked back slowly in a comfortable silence. Eshne pretended not to notice his constant blushing every time he looked over at her. The butterflies in her stomach were fluttering crazily each time she thought about their kissing. How he grabbed onto her lips like he had been wanting to kiss her for ages.

"Here we are." She whispered, stopping at the archway into the apprentices chambers.

"Yes. Well." Cullen cleared his throat, "I'm glad you're feeling better, Miss Surana." He smirked.

"Thank you, ser," Eshne looked down at her feet, "You really did save my life."

Cullen rubbed the back of his neck again, "I'm just happy I was able to help. I mean. It's you...not that I wouldn't have helped another mage having that problem. I just mean to say...I was glad to see you given the circumstance…"

"Good night, Cullen." Eshne spoke softly.

Cullen blushed, thankful that she stopped him from making a fool of himself again, "Good night, Eshne."

He watched her walk away, disappearing behind the wall. His stomach fluttered at the thought of them kissing.

Back behind the wall, Eshne listened to Cullen walk away. She bit her bottom lip, hugging her chest, trying to hide her grin. She bit her thumb nail, walking over to her bunk.

Crawling under the blankets, she smiled again, holding her hands over her face to hide her giddiness.

She knew she was going to have good dreams that night.