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moonlitstoriess · 5 months ago

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Across the Universe-ch.5 (Fenrys x Reader)

Summary: Y/n has everything she needs in life. A family, friends, a safe place she calls home and most importantly a male whom she loves. What happens when it all changes when Y/n finds out about the betrayal of her lover and her so called family? Well, ending up in Terrasen and in queen Aelin's court was not what she expected but what she will need to start her new journey full of surprises.

Warnings: violence, mentions of trauma, abuse, sexual tensioooon

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Throughout her life so far, y/n has not met many humans. In fact, the only humans she ever met were the Archeron sisters. It was after the war against Hybern that, when Feyre, her high lady for whom y/n would once do anything for, began her diplomatic arrangements between humans and fae. That is when she would join Lucien and Jurian from time to time, and go to the mortal lands in order to negotiate, set new rules and mediate peace.

Which is why, as she stood in this hall now and saw 2 more humans apart from Elide and Lorcan, y/n was quite unsure and observative. From the corner of the room, she watched everyone hug, except for Lorcan of course because it seems like Elide is the only one who ever gets his nonstop clinging, and greet the new arrivals. It was also annoying how her eyes seemed to only look at the wolf who was looking as delicious as eve- Cauldron, y/n. Get yourself together and stop drooling after the most frustratingly arrogant male in existence.

Her eyes then took in the beautiful woman whose name was Yrene, if she remembered the servants words clearly. She had golden-brown skin and breathtaking curly hair with small specks of dark gold visible. Not to mention her slender frame and very generous other features that most probably drew both men and womens attention to her. This woman looked like a Godess of the Sun.

Y/n's attention then moved to the tall man-Chaol, apparently, beside her. His chestnut hair that is slightly long enough for some strands to reach his brow is what stands out to her first, followed by his copper-brown eyes. Apart from his height, he also seems very muscular. He would be considered quite handsome if not for the small frown on his face directed at y/n. That is when she realized that the room has gone completely silent as everyone is watching her. She swallowed her growing unease and said with a formal tone, "Y/n."

Yrene smiled as she came slightly closer, followed by Chaol who had one hand on his sword, "We heard quite a lot about you in Aelin's letter, Y/n. I am Yrene Westfall, it is so nice to finally meet you."

Then, Yrene nudged Chaol with her elbow as a sign to stop glaring and start talking. He cleared his throat and said, although still glaring and assesing her, and especially her wings "Chaol Westfall. Yrene's husband."

Y/N nodded in acknowledgment, feeling the weight of their scrutiny. It was also not helping that Lorcan's gaze was the harshest. He was staring with such intensity and anger that it was a surprise how she still had not melted away under his cruel gaze. "It's a pleasure to meet both of you," she replied diplomatically, trying to ignore the tension in Chaol's demeanor. She knew their arrival signaled an important moment in Aelin's plans, and if she wanted to find a way back home, she needed to navigate this encounter carefully.

Aelin stepped forward, once again breaking the silence that had settled over the room. "It is so good to have you both here again. Although, I am quite upset that Dorian did not come."

At that, Chaol turned back towards her and said, "Yes, he had some issues to solve in Morath regarding the growing number of rebels who were vandalising places as a sign of opposition to his rule. I offered to be the one to stay back while he came here but he insisted and told me to send his apologies."

Aelin nodded as Rowan stood beside his mate and put his arm around her waist. "Well, you two came a long way so have some rest and then we can discuss the matters at hand."

"Indeed, we have much to tell you."

Once Eva and Lysandra decided to lead the arrivals into the guest bedroom, y/n seperated from everyone as she went up to her room to begin finding a way to decipher this book. But, just when she put the book on the table, a knock came from the other side of the room.

When y/n opened it, Lorcan was on the other side. She did not have a chance to react before he stepped in, closed the door, and took y/n by her neck, pressing her into the cool wall. He was nose to nose with her as he snarled, showing his fangs before saying in a voice that made her feel awful things, "You can fool everyone else with your acts, but not me. I was an immortal once too so do not think for a minute that just because I am now a human, I am somehow weaker than you are. No, I have my eyes all on you and if I even get a whiff of something suspicious, something that poses as a threat to us, or most importantly, to my wife and children, I won't hesitate to end you right then and there. Are we clear?"

His hands, she remembered his hands when they were choking her.

Those hands that almost ended her life. Oh Mother, she did not die then, but she would die now.

No, no, NO, NO-

He then unwrapped his hand from around her throat as y/n held on to the wall while coughing and taking in large gulps of air. Forcing her mind and body back to reality.

I am y/n. I am 152 years old and I am free. I am safe. I am strong. I won't cower. I am a warrior.

She repeated her chants in her mind 2 more times before the blur was gone.

When she calmed down, she forced her face into cool indifference "If you think that by choking and threatening me I will be scared of you, you are utterly wrong. In fact, your utter childish behavior since my awakening has been nothing but hilarious and even if in the beginning I may have found it amusing, I am getting bored of your antics now. My only goal is to get home as soon as possible. I do not trust any of you just like you do not trust me and while it is so 'heroic' that you think of me as a villain you should save your family from, I have no interest in fighting you. Therefore, you either help us find a way to stop the danger that is surely heading your way and send me home, or you could fuck off from my presence because believe me Lorcan, this will be the last time you ever stand in my way or put a hand on me. Because if you do so again, I won't hesitate to end you and then pretend to be sad while patting Elide's back as she cries over your grave."

Lorcan only stared at her with an unreadable expression before saying, "Choose your moves carefully." and with that, he turned around and left.

She went towards the mirror and to absolutely no one's surprise, his large hand had left a huge, red and angry mark around her neck. Y/n sank to her knees as another flashback ran through her mind.

She was 18.

He had given her a good amount of money and sent her to fetch the new scabbard that the swordsmith had created for him. However, it was as if unfortune followed her everywhere she went as a group of 3 males' got in her way.

"Look! a whore to use." one of them said as the other two laughed.

"What use are you talking about? She is all bones and no meat. Disgusting. Would not suggest touching her, even with a ten foot pole."

At that, they all laughed even harder while she only watched with a fearful gaze, trying but failing to get out of their way.

"Give us all your money or you die."

At that, she said, "No, I do not have any money."

One of them grabbed her wrist as he said, "Liar."

The other two immediately put their hands on her as they searched for the pouch with the money, hidden in the breastpocket of her dress.

She tried fighting, tried stopping them but they were soldiers, training to be warriors while she was nothing. They would crash her under their foot with no remorse whatsoever.

The male holding her wrist noticed the pouch poking from within her clothes and immediately ripped the front of her dress apart, leaving her only in her undergown, as he grabbed the money.

Without saying a word, they pushed her to the ground and stepped on her stomach before laughing and walking away.

"Bitch"

"Useless females"

"Lets go spend it"

That was all she heard as y/n clutched her stomach and lay in the middle of the cold and empty ground.

When she came home, with no scabbard, a ripped dress and an aching stomach, he got up from his desk and came towards her as he asked, "What happened?"

"S-some males...they...they took the money before I could even reach the swordsmith. They rip-ripped open the, the-"

"You do not have the scabbard?"

Of course he would not care about what happened to her. He only cared about the sole fact that she 'disobeyed' his rule.

In the blink of an eye, he had her back pressed to the wall as he choked her with his big, disgusting and meaty fingers.

"You fool! I gave you clear orders to follow and what did you do instead? Whore around with some males and let them take MY money."

She could not breathe as her feeble attempts at pushing his hand away resulted in nothing.

She was drowning. She was dying. Her vision was getting blurry.

It is alright, darkness would claim her soon. Darkness would welcome her. She believed in the Mother but darkness was what felt more comfortable for her.

It was time.

When y/n open's her eyes again, she is still in the same position in front of the mirror.

As she looked at her neck, her anger at Lorcan started rising again. But more than that, her own emotions, her pity for her younger self took over.

She hated Lorcan even more for bringing up another buried memory. And this one wasn't even in her dream!

With a sigh, she went into the washroom to wash away not only her sweat from the training, but also the feel of Lorcan's hand and the bad memory. Even if it was just a flashback, she still felt dirty to the core.

After a long and relaxing bath, she picked out a turtleneck white dress that was not too tight but hugged her curves just right. After using some of the beauty products and styling her hair, she decided to go to the gardens to clear her mind.

To say that this garden was big would be an understatement. It was huge. When y/n passed by it in the morning, she did not carefully look at it since she was busy trying to rid herself of her nightmare and the stress. But now, as she stood at it's entrance and took the whole view in, she realized how ethereal it is.

Various forms of flowers, plants and trees were taking up every part of the garden. It was an explosion of colors, life and peace. Peace because this whole place was so comfortingly quiet that it made y/n feel so safe, she never wanted to get out.

As she walked, she came across a small, black gate with intricate designs on it and once she entered it, there was a small fountain in the middle of the clearing, surrounded by more greenery. Y/n's awe was written all over her face as she sat on the small space next to the fountain. The sound of water cascading from the marble openings, birds chirping and the smell of nature made her feel all energetic and content.

"Enjoying the calmness?"

She turned around to see Yrene enter the area. She was wearing an elegant long-sleeved creme colored dress with gold highlights at the bottom. Y/n smiled slightly before raising her head up, closing her eyes and soaking in the sun "It has been quite some time since I last was in a place this serene."

Yrene sat beside her as she said, "You mean, you do not have such places in your world?"

"So you are aware about me."

She smiled "Well, it is hard not to be after Aelin sent like 15 different letters while we were on the way, informing us, although in a coded way so no one else understands, about what you told them."

Y/n sighed as she said, "Great. Well, I know you also do not like me so just ask what you need to."

Yrene looked genuinely confused "I do not hate you. I do not hate on other women or females. I myself grew up surrounded by women and their influence so even if you are a stranger from a different world, I do not see you as a threat. In fact, I would love to hear more about where you come from."

Y/n reigned in her shock and scoffed "The males and men in here would disagree. Especially Fenrys and Lorcan."

Yrene put her hand on y/n's shoulder as she said in a soothing voice, "Men, males who cares? They are all the same."

Y/n smirked slightly while raising an eyebrow "And you say this while having a husband?"

Yrene blushed slightly, "Well, the way we met was...unusual. I despised him at first."

Y/n was shocked as her eyes became twice their normal size "Not a chance! He seems so protective over you, well not to say any husband shouldn't, but I would never guess you two were once enemies."

Yrene smiled as she sighed softly "Yes, well, let that be a story for another day. Besides, it seems like we are going to be here for a while. Aelin said there is another thing apart from you being here that also needs to urgently be addressed."

At that, y/n's mood soured as she remembered the book, "The book! I need to get it."

"Wha-"

"There you two are!" Lysandras voice boomed through the area as she came into view.

"Well hello to you too, Lysandra" Yrene got up as she hugged the brown haired female.

Lysandra turned to look at y/n as her eyes widened "Oh my! Y/n that dress looks absolutely perfect on you! and matched with those jewelries? You do have taste in clothing after all- Sorry that came out rude it is just I only saw you in pants and a shirt soooo...this is new." she finished her sentence with a sheepish smile.

Y/n returned her smile with a small but genuine laugh as she said "No reason to apologise. After all, you look rather ravishing yourself." And she did. Lysandras tight forest green, velvet dress not only flattered all her curves, but also brought out the feautures on her face.

Yrene smirked as she nudged Lysandra by her arm and said, "I bet that Aedion will manage to supress himself for maximum 5 minutes before dragging you somewhere to shag."

Lysandra blushed and smiled as she said, "Well thank you, thank you. We can continue this complement battle at dinner. Shall we?"

"You two go. I need to get the book since we will be discussing it."

Lysandra nodded as she hooked her elbow with Yrene and they left. Y/n, tired of walking, flapped her wings and shot into the air. Oh wow, it has been what? two days? since she last flew.

Today was tiring enough. First, Fenrys did not get any sleep at night because even after he calmed y/n down, he still stayed awake in case she goes back to her unfortunate state. Of course this also caused him to overthink a bunch of things about her. What was she seeing? Does she also have dark secrets? What is her past like? But anyways, moving on, then he again had this small moment with y/n in the training area where his body was about to betray his rational mind due to lust.

Then came Chaol and Yrene. After they got rest for a bit, Chaol joined him, Lorcan and Rowan in Rowan's office where he had to sign letters an do his other princely stuff. Honestly? Fenrys did not know or care because his mind drifted off to when Lorcan followed y/n earlier this afternoon. Of course Fenrys couln't follow them without Lorcan immediately finding out but knowing that he followed her for some reason brought a sour taste to his mouth. What if they are working together? Fenrys would not put it past Lorcan because even now after the war he still sometimes despises him. But then again, he has Elide and two sons now, not to mention how he is blood sworn to Aelin so he can not act out of line.

Then why did he follow her?

This question has been bugging him at the back of his mind for the past 2 hours as Fenrys sat in one of the chairs around a large table in the dining room. His quick visit to the borders in order to check on and give out new orders to to the soldiers and do some other official work left him drained of both energy and magic.

Fenrys looked around the room to distract himself from the sleep his body was begging for. Just like in any other room, the signature Terrasen green was present. The multiple large windows surrounding the room gave a perfect view of sunset while its green and silver gray drapes were gathered by the sides. There were small lounge chairs and one large couch in front of the window. There was no carpet on the floors as the polished wood shined under the light in the room.

"Are you sure she can be trusted?" Chaol's voice brought him back from daydreaming as he assesed his family members places. Chaol was sitting opposite to him with his wife by his side, right next to Chaol sat Lorcan and Elide. Next to Fenrys was Aedion and next to him were Lysandra and Eva.

At the opposite sides end, next to Yrene, sat Rowan while his mate sat at the head of the table. This once again left only one space empty, and would you look at that...it was right next to him. When y/n would come, he would have to endure her here, by his side. Oh Gods-

"Well, me and Yrene do like her now. I don't know about the rest of you." Lysandra said while Aedion kissed her on the cheek "If my wife trusts her, then I trust her."

Eva smiled as she said, "I certainly trust her! She did not look at me like most strangers do."

Rowan raised an eyebrow "And how do they look?"

"Like they pity me or like I am some deranged child just because of these" she points to the scars on her face.

The room erupts at that.

"Who do I have to kill?"

"Names. Give me names. Now."

"Eva, why did you not mention that before?"

"Let me pay a nice little visit to them sweetheart."

But all that chaos quickly died down as y/n entered the room. The second his gaze landed on her, Fenrys thought that Rowan sucked the air out of him because suddenly, he forgot how to breathe.

There was no word in the world that would describe her now. She was wearing a deep purple gown with a turtle neck that hugged her body like second skin and ended below her ankles, showing her shoes just a little. Her hair was styled in a way that highlighted her facial features. Not to mention her small but still eye catching purple and gold earings dangling from her ears.

He suddenly felt like the room was too small. Too tight. He was feeling and imagining things that he definetly should not be about a suspect. But how could he not? She looked absolutely delicious and Fenrys would be willing to cut out his kidneys if he could just touch her once.

She came and sat down next to him, although slightly hesitantly and that was when her addictive scent of jasmine and peaches hit his nose. He barely managed to hold back his groan. He was so turned on it was not a joke anymore. So much so that, just from the smell of her scent, he felt like cu-

Y/n put the book that was in her hands on the table as she said, "I am aware that we were meant to have dinner first, discuss this later, but the sooner the better. Aelin, would you do the honors?"

When y/n had gone upstairs to take the book, she could not stand the itchiness that suddenly overcame her. That was why she took off the dress, cursed on Lorcan for a good 5 minutes when she saw the state her neck was in, and changed into something more fitting for a formal dinner.

This decision may also have been slightly influenced by the fact that Fenrys would be there and he would see her.

When she entered the room, she saw how everyone looked at her. The females with support and respect, the males with suspicious or vary glances. For some reason, Lorcan was not glaring but just...looking. Well, that is an improvement at least.

But even under all those stares, it was only one pair of eyes that made her feel things she should not be feeling. Especially not towards someone like Fenrys.

But how could she not? The way he was staring at her like she was the only female in the world and he was a starved traveler looking for his meal. Not to mention how he himself looked so distracting with his hair let loose, forest green and black clothing that was brought together by his brown, leather belt and his black loose pants. Even all those layers failed to hide his perfect, muscular, broad body. And then when she sat next to him--although hesitantly because even with all the lust coursing through her veins, she knew he was still not someone she could ever trust let alone get close to--his arousal hit her like a large wave of water.

How she managed to stay calm and collected while going crazy inside was an absolute shock to y/n. But she managed and put the book on the table.

Aelin stood and said, "On the contrary, I wanted to share the news before dinner which is why the table is currently empty."

And that was then, that y/n realized the table was indeed empty of any meals.

"Y/n found a book that might have some beneficial information for us. When we looked inside, we found out that the Book of Breathings may be another form of Wyrdkey. But then, we could not read any more because the language changed to one that we do not understand. Lysandra found a small prophecy at the corner of the page which, y/n could you read?"

At that, y/n turned towards the book and read the prophecy. Once she was done, she looked up to see everyone, except Lysandra and Aelin, having different facial expressions.

Chaol cleared his throat and spoke first, "So, now what? How do we understand more if we can not decipher the language?"

By now, everyone was looking at the ancient writings on the book. Yrene, her fingers scamming the page, said with some sort of confidence, "Chaol, this is just like what we discovered about the Valg in Antica. At Hasar's birthday getaway. Look at the drawings. They seem similar no? I think...I think I might have a chance at solving this."

Apparently, everyone was thinking the same thing because Aedion looked at others puzzled faces and asked, "You...how? Do you know this language? I am so confused"

"No, I do not know the language but, my mother was a very smart woman. Not only a healer but also an extraordinary philologist. She had deciphered multiple texts and recipes for healing antidotes from some centuries ago. That was how she even managed to create new medicines and afford us a living."

Y/n's heart fluttered with hope. Finally, a chance, an opening to get home. To understand whatever may be coming for them.

The shock, intrigue and excitement was written over everyone's faces. Even Lorcan, whose eyes just went wide before he put his angry giant act back on.

It was Rowan who closed his slightly open mouth, raised a brow and asked, "So, you have been taught the skill?"

Yrene nodded, "Even though it was long ago, I still think I could atleast give it a try. Besides, 3 years ago when we were in Antica, the way me and Chaol discovered new and ancient information on valgs may have given me a slight reminder. If we are lucky, I will be able to atleast get more information in a couple of days."

Pride was written all over Chaol's face as he kissed his wife's cheek and then hugged her as he said, "I will be by your side, helping you. We did it once, we can do it again."

Everyone was smiling brightly with hope, Aelin and y/n, the brightest of them all "Thank you, Yrene. Whatever you need just tell me I will make sure you have it."

Elide, now also hugging Yrene, detached from her as she said, "We can search more in the meantime. Let us not waste another second."

As y/n nodded her head in agreement, she felt a smaller hand touch her arm. When she turned around, Eva was giving everyone, especially her, the big puppy eyes as she said- no begged, "Can I please please be included this time? I really want to help now. Pleaseeee."

Y/n felt this sudden need to hug the girl, but she said, not caring for whatever Lysandra or Aedion might say, "Of course you can Eva. How can anyone say no to you?"

She turned around to see Lysandra shaking her head but smiling as she said, "Alright."

Eva squealed as she jumped on y/n, squeezing the life out of her.

"What? No! it is dange-" Aedion's denial was cut off when Lysandra put her hand on his chest and said, "Love, she is helping us search for more information, not going into battle. I know how much you love her but please, bring down your protectiveness a notch."

"Bu-"

"Aedion."

He sighed but then hugged Lysandra to his chest and whispered something that made her turn bright red as she slapped his chest playfully.

"We shall start from tomorrow morning then." Aelin said, while ordering a servant to bring in the meals.

4 hours later and y/n was back in her room, getting ready for bed. The day was hot enough for her to opt for a loose silk nightgown that ended slightly above her knees.

Hopefully, Yrene manages to find something more. Tomorrow, she will join Aelin at whatever she is planning to do in order to get more information. She has to quickly find her way home. In all honesty, she could not care less for whatever troubles may be coming their way because this is not her world and Aelin is not her queen. Let them deal with their own problems. All she needs is to get back ho-

Y/n nearly fell down and kissed the floor when she felt something slip beneath her feet. She cursed quietly and looked down to see one of the large square floorboards slightly crooked. When she leaned down to touch it, it moved, sliding away and revealing a set of stone stairs, leadin downwards. She could not see anything beyond the first 4 steps as it was complete and utter darkness.

Should she go down and see what it holds? Does Aelin know that there is something like this in her palace? Are there more of these passages? No. Her curiosity always got her into trouble and now she most definetly did not need to follow it. Whatever is down below, it does not look neither safe nor promising.

No. She most definetly did not want to go down there. Even if her heart was beating furiously and her body and even mind was begging her to go and explore.

Hesitantly, she got up and closed the passageway. She could pretend like this never happened and that she has no idea something like this even exists in the first place.

However, she could not go to sleep now with all this new curiosity and energy thrumming in her veins. Without even thinking, she left the room in just her nightgown and slippers. To go where? she had absolutely no idea. Maybe she could go back and sit in her balcony? She did not get the chance to do so yet and look at the vie-

Her inner monologue shut down the second she opened the door to her room only to see Fenrys just entering his. At the sound, he turned around and looked at her face. Or at what he could see from the darkness. Then his gaze fell upon her exposed shoulders and the upper part of her breasts due to the low cut of the nightgown. His gaze turned even darker as he went even further down and saw her exposed legs. She thanked the darkness of the room, only the moon slightly illuminating her body but hiding her face, scars and most importantly, her neck, that is still as horrible as it was in the morning, from his deadly gaze. Hopefully he was far away enough and the hall was dark enough to not see her scars. She would most definetly make Lorcan pay for this. She would also have to go and ask Isolde for some kind of a healing cream to apply. Discreetly, of course.

His gaze came back to her face, as he closed his eyes, inhaled deeply, clenched and unclenched his fists, exhaled and finally, opened them again as he calmly asked, "Where are you going?"

For some reason, she felt nervous under his gaze and found herself fidling with the edge of her nightgown as she replied surprisingly cooly, "Out. Get some fresh air."

His gaze narrowed "In...that?"

Well, he was right it would be foolish to walk around with this much skin exposed, not to mention the ugly mark on her neck. But, y/n would rather cut out her eye than admit someone like Fenrys is right. So, she looked at him arrogantly "And? I can do whatever I like."

"There are male servants here."

"Well, might as well give them a show."

The second she said that, he was right in front of her in an instant. So close that y/n could feel his chest slightly touching hers, causing goosebumps to arise all over her body. She could only see the outlines of his face and even that was enough to make her feel squirmy. She only hoped he can not see below her head.

"You are not going anywhere in that."

Y/n smirked "Why? Are you jealous?"

He also gave her a cruel smirk as he said, "I would rather get eaten by a Wyvern than ever feel jealous over you. It is simply that your current state is not helping your 'innocent' image. Leaving your room late at night? Hmm I wonder where do you go. Maybe to conspire somethings just like you were sent here to do by your High Lord or whatever?"

At that, all the girlish feelings she felt for him at that moment, melted away, leaving only anger and disgust. This was the Fenrys she should always excpect when it comes to her.

"How can you even entertain such an idiotic thought? Believe me neither my ex High Lord nor I are so bored that we need to cross worlds and start trouble in a foreign place."

"You are right. Because, after all, you do seem like a coward. Or at the very least someone who has no meaning in their life."

"W-what?! Of course...of course I have a purpose! I am a warrior, a respected persona in my world."

"And? those are all titles, images you put on. Even in this world you are a coward."

"What even makes you say that?"

"I saw it from the second I winnowed you here. You put up this brave act that no one scares you but believe me, I know that is all a nice little lie. In fact, you are useless. You are of no help here. You think that just because my family is softening towards you that you are one of us?" He chuckles at that and then continues "You will never fit in. I see you for what you are. An annoying brat who thinks the world revolves around her. So I say this one last time. Find your way out of here and leave as soon as possible. You are an extra headache I can not tolerate." with that, he turned around and went into his room, shutting his door and leaving her shattered in the middle of the dark hall. That bastard! He did not even give her time to respond.

She should not feel this way. She has heard much worse throughout her lifetime. He is just jealous that she is making peace with his family. Besides, who does he think he is? A nobody. His words should not hold any value to her because he is an uncultured caveman- or cavemale who is and will always be below her. She will find a way and go to her world and be happy again and and...and forget him and...all of his cruel words that...felt like 5 different sharp knifes being stabbed into her chest.

What was this pain? She is not a coward. How can he so easily judge her without even knowing her? This pain felt too real. Not even Azriels words hurt this much.

But she did not cry. She stopped crying that the day she killed him in the forest. And so, as she stared at his closed door, she knew what to do.

Y/N ran back to her room, furiously slamming the door shut behind her. She paced for a few moments, trying to calm the storm of emotions raging within her chest. After waiting for what felt like an eternity to ensure no one would disturb her, she moved swiftly near her bed where a loose floorboard awaited her touch. With practiced hands, she pried it open, revealing the passageway.

Before she descended, she retrieved the large sharp needle she had been carrying with herself for the past few days, along with a small lamp that emitted a soft, comforting light. Tucking these essentials securely into the folds of her cloak, Y/N steeled herself for what lay ahead and descended the narrow stairs that led into the depths below.

How many stairs were there? It seemed endless, the damp smell growing stronger with each step she took. The walls around her were slick with moisture, echoing faint drips of water that added to the oppressive atmosphere. Y/N's grip tightened on the needle, her knuckles turning white as she navigated the dimly lit passage. She tucked her wings as close to her as possible.

The air grew colder as she descended further, the silence broken only by the sound of her own footsteps echoing off the stone walls. Shadows flickered ominously, playing tricks on her weary mind. Despite the discomfort and the ominous surroundings, Y/N pressed on, driven by a determination fueled by both fear and necessity.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity of descending into the bowels of the earth, Y/N reached a small landing. In front of her, was some sort of a large circular entryway that was made out of earth and rock.

She slowly got closer to it while also inspecting the area. There was nothing else but this entryway before her. The rest of the space was made out of rock. When she reached it, the touched her hand on to it but...how do you get through this thing?

She knew this was a circular door of some sorts because there were cracks around it. But how does one even move a thing so large and heavy?

As Y/N stood before the large entryway, carved from earth and rock, she couldn't help but marvel at its craftsmanship and wonder about its purpose. The door, if it could be called that, seemed seamlessly integrated into the natural stone surroundings, its surface adorned with intricate runes and symbols that glowed faintly in response to her touch.

She traced her fingers along the cracks that outlined the circular shape, feeling the cool, smooth texture of the ancient stone beneath her fingertips. The door appeared solid and formidable, its size and weight suggesting it would require tremendous force to move.

Taking a step back, Y/N surveyed the area around her. The chamber was quiet, save for the faint echoes of her own breathing. The walls were smooth and unyielding, offering no clues as to how the door might be opened. She glanced down at the large sharp needle she had brought with her, contemplating its use.

With a deep breath, Y/N approached the door once more, this time examining the runes and symbols more closely. They seemed to pulse with a subtle energy, responding to her presence in ways she couldn't quite understand. She recalled stories of ancient magic and hidden passages, wondering if this door held the key to unlocking secrets long forgotten.

As she pondered her next move, a soft rumbling sound echoed through the chamber, causing her to startle. The ground beneath her feet trembled slightly, and she realized with a mix of awe and trepidation that the door was responding to her presence.

A low, melodic hum filled the air as the runes on the door shimmered brighter. Y/N took a cautious step back as the massive stone panels of the door began to shift, grinding against each other with ancient mechanisms coming to life. Slowly, almost imperceptibly at first, the circular entryway began to slide.

Heart racing with anticipation, Y/N watched in awe as the door moved, revealing a narrow opening beyond. The air around her seemed to crackle with magic, a tangible presence that beckoned her forward.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity of waiting, the door came to a stop, revealing another narrow and dark passage. She sighed, but surged forward as she went through the door into the darkness beyond.

After about 10 minutes, she came to a clearing and dear Mother....this place...whatever it was....was gorgeous. It was a huge opening but what made it so breathtaking were the millions of glowing crystals. The ground, the floor and the walls were all covered in luminescent crystals of all colors, and shapes, each it seemed, with a unique magical property. Some crystals glow softly, illuminating the way, while others emit melodies that resonate through the air.

There were little waterfalls that created small, narrow lakes passing through the crystals. There was even a medium sized pond that was glowing, maybe it also had crystals underneath. When she turned around, it looked as if she came out of a mountains cave.

This place was gorgeous! Did anyone else know of it? She did not know but what she did know was that y/n needed to explore further. She stepped on the ground and the crystals did not even hurt her feet.

There were large ones, tall ones, so tall that she could see her whole body on it. The calming sounds coming from them made her feel so relaxed. Did this place offer some kind of healing properties? Because y/n surely forgot all her mixed emotions and pain the second she landed here. The air was also so fresh and clean and yet, it also carried a maicel scent with it.

As she walked, she came across another small passage but this one was illuminated by thousands of tiny glowing, white crystals. She followed the light to see what this road held.

As she walked through the illuminated passage of glowing crystals, Y/n's curiosity mingled with a growing sense of unease. The ethereal light seemed to lead her forward, drawing her deeper into the unknown. Each step echoed softly against the crystal-lined walls, creating an eerie yet mesmerizing atmosphere.

Finally, the passage opened into a small clearing bathed in a gentle, radiant glow. Y/n blinked, trying to make sense of what lay before her. There, amidst the soft luminescence, stood a mirror unlike any she had ever seen.

Wait. Was this thing like the Ouroboros? The Mirror of Beginnings and Endings? Does this also show you your true self or something like that? What if it shows you your future?

Well it must do something special since it is hidden here.

However, she was not expecting what happened after she came closer to the mirror.

Y/n fell to her knees in shock.

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Taglist: @ladespedidas @mis-lil-red @going-through-shit @kaitttttttt @blackgirlmagicforever

@acotar-writing @paleidiot @snoopyspace @stained-glass-eyes0708 @saltedcoffeescotch

@wallacewillow0773638 @cleverzonkwombatsludge @crazylokonugget @bunnyredgirl

@fullmoon-94 @thecraziestcrayon

#azriel #acotar #fenrys moonbeam #illyrian #throne of glass #bookish #fanfics #fantasy #fenrys x reader #sarah j. maas #elide lochan #aelin ashryver galathynius #chaol westfall #yrene towers #lorcan salvaterre #rowan whitethorn #lysandra ashryver #aedion ashryver #maasverse

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harmonyrae · 9 days ago

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Power Couple

CHAPTER 12 - Revelations I am incorporating my headcanon for the Aether Core connection. It’s NOT lore accurate - as far as we know.

You’ve been staying at the house on the hill for the past few days. You and Sylus have indulged in every fantasy you can think of. You’ve recreated your dream of being eaten out on the dining room table. Recreated his dream of throat fucking you by the pool. You secretly pray the chef never finds out Sylus bent you over the kitchen counter, the sink, the stove, the fridge… Basically his entire workspace.

You both handled work from home, opting to join conference calls from the pool or private office. You were careful not to discuss confidential information when Sylus was around. You knew if Dorian found out you were talking shop with Sylus in the room he would never forgive you.

When you weren’t tongue deep in each other, you and Sylus talked about the bond you seem to share. He explained the situation at the gallery and Chen’s possible “client.” He also explains the Aether Core. He had an Aether protocore fragment implanted into his eye when he was young. He had no say in the matter and no parents to fight for him.

“The connection we share, the Aether fragment, you have one too.” He places a hand over your heart. You feel that similar warmth.

“I don’t remember...” You cover his hand with your own. He wraps his other hand around your waist. The warm water in the tub has cooled, but you don’t want to get out, not yet. You feel his breath on your neck, his body firm against your back. Sitting between his legs as he presses kisses to your shoulders and neck as he explains.

“Do you want to know?” You lean your head back on his chest.

“Maybe? Yes… Tell me.”

Sylus takes a deep breath. You can tell this story will be hard for him to tell. You pull his hand from your chest and interlace your fingers with his. Giving his hand a squeeze, he sighs.

“We were in the same laboratory. My surgery was experimental. No one expected me to survive. So when I did, they didn’t waste any time putting your fragment in. Our rooms were next to each other. The walls were thin, so we’d sit and talk for hours. Well, when they weren’t running tests or experiments on one of us. We grew up together. We kept each other sane all those years. If you came back from tests crying, I’d sing to you. You’d be laughing in no time. And… if I woke up from a nightmare, you’d read to me until I fell asleep.”

Sylus tightened his grip around you. You could feel his heartbeat quickening against your back. You rub small circles on his arm, his grip loosening slightly.

“On your 18th birthday, I... aha, 'gently convinced' a nurse to let me into your room. It was the first time we were truly alone. No nurses hovering or doctors forcing us to practice controlling our Aether energy by resonating. Or…” His voice trailed off. Your heart broke listening to him.

“Did you make me a cake?” You heard him let out a breathy laugh.

“Sort of. I could finally pick up things with my energy so… I stole cookies out of the vending machine down the hall. Couldn’t steal a candle though, but you still made a wish. You wished we could be free. And I made you a promise, that I would find a way for you to be free. I don’t remember much else from that night. Besides just holding you. And trying to figure a way out.”

“And did you?”

You finally turn slightly to look at him. He avoids your gaze. You lift his chin so his eyes meet yours. And your heart nearly stopped when you saw his red eyes were glazed over, tears threatening to spill out.

“I did.”

The rest of this story can be told later, you were desperate to see him smile again. You quickly change the direction of the conversation.

“What happens if we find another Aether core or fragment? How does that help us?”

He presses your back lightly urging you to stand. He wraps his arm around you, helping you out of the bathtub. He takes a towel and starts drying you off gently. You raise your arms and turn in a circle for him, he chuckles. When you face him his smile has returned.

“Well, it might strengthen our connection. Stabilize it. May change our evol or strengthen it.” You grab the new towel off the rack and he holds onto your hips as you dry him off.

“So was the protocore at the auction…”

“It was a decoy. I have people testing it now. It was strange, the energy it gave off... It drained me. If it hadn’t been broken, I don’t like to think about what could have happened.” He leans in and starts placing kisses to your neck, you’ve stopped trying to dry him at this point leaning into his kisses.

“So we keep searching. We’re in this together, okay?” He cups your face in his hands.

“Okay.”

He takes the towel from your hands and tosses it on the counter. His hands slowly reach around you to grab your ass, he pulls you to him, his erection pressing against your stomach.

“Don’t you have a meeting in an hour?” Your voice is gruff as his hands squeeze.

“That’s more than enough time to fuck you senseless.” You let your head tip backwards, his lips pressing against your jaw. Your arms wrap around his neck.

“Promises. Promises.”

He laughs, moving swiftly to pick you up and place you on the bathroom counter. He captures your lips with his. He presses your shoulders back to the mirror, you shift your ass forward and relax into the position. He pulls away from your lips bringing them down your neck, to your collarbone and over your breasts. He places a gentle kiss to your nipple before he takes the bud between his teeth, biting lightly. You grab onto the back of his neck.

“Sy!”

You feel him smile against your skin before his lips continue down your body. He kneels with his head between your thighs. He drapes your legs over his shoulders and looks up at you with the slyest of grins. You’re about to give him an earful, but he sinks his face into you. His tongue pressing directly into your pussy with no hesitation, his nose pressed against your clit. Your eyes roll back and you gasp.

He speeds up his movements, rubbing his nose against your clit faster and faster. His tongue thrusts and swirls inside you, savoring every ounce of your arousal. He wastes no time, he has a meeting to get to after all.

Ding Ding

Sylus’s phone chimes on the other side of the room where your discarded clothes are. Sylus swears under his breath before rising to his feet, his chin and nose coated in your wetness. You let out a small whimper.

“I’m sorry kitten, there’s an emergency apparently.” He strides over to his jacket. And as frustrated as you are, you enjoy this view of his ass. Sylus retrieves his phone from his jacket pocket.

“What?” His voice is cold.

The need for friction between your legs is nearly impossible to ignore. So, you decide not to ignore it. Your fingers find your clit and you start to trace circles, being more rough than usual, you stare at Sylus letting your desires fuel the speed. You moan quietly, but Sylus still hears you. He turns and looks at you, eyes wide as he realizes what you’re doing.

“No no, I’m still here. Did he say why he wants to attend?” His voice is strained. Keeping it professional while watching you play with yourself is proving to be very challenging.

You spread yourself open as your middle finger glides over your opening. Your long strokes gather your arousal. You finally push your finger into your pussy, feeling how wet you are pushes you to move your fingers faster against your clit. Your breathing is erratic and your legs twitch slightly, but your eyes are locked on Sylus. And from the look on his face, he looks as if he’s about to cum from just watching you. You slide another finger inside and a deep growl escapes your throat.

“I’m on my way.” Sylus says and hangs up quickly, dropping his phone on the clothes pile.

He crosses the bathroom in a blink and places his hand over yours, putting more pressure against your clit. He buries his face into your neck and nibbles at the soft skin under your jaw. Stars cross your vision as you near your release.

“Sy… I need to cum…”

Sylus pulls your hand away and reaches down to place his leaking tip at your entrance. He rubs himself against your clit.

“Say please.” Sylus whispers. His hand reaches up to wrap around your neck. As his grip tightens and your breath hitches, you wrap your legs around him.

“You’re the worst…” You mutter between gasps. Sylus pulls back and tries to move away from you. You throw your arms around him and dig your nails into his back.

“No no no… please please Sy… please…” Your words rushed and desperate.

Sylus smirks before pushing into you, hard. Pleasure mixes with pain, as he starts to thrust into you rapidly. Your head presses back into the mirror and Sylus grunts at every thrust, feeling his hips slam against yours, a symphony of wet slaps fill the space around you.

Ding ding

Sylus’ phone chimes again. Frustrated moans leave both you and Sylus’ mouth. Sylus’ pace never falters. He tucks his hands under your knees and pulls them upwards, placing your feet flat on the counter. He wraps his forearms around your thighs, using them as anchors. With your legs pushed closer to you, Sylus is able to dive deeper. Slamming against your deepest sweet spots.

“Fuck-in he-hell…” Sylus mutters against your chest.

Ding

Now it’s your phone ringing. Your fingernails dig into Sylus forearms, forcing Sylus to pull back and you pull him into a kiss, trapping him against you. His pace becomes more erratic and you feel every twitch of his cock as he unloads into you. Your release is not far behind, you break away from him and scream his name. Sylus holds onto your thighs, rocking your forward, working both of you through the peak of your joined climaxes.

Ding

Your phone rings again. Sylus finally pulls out, he places a gentle kiss on your forehead.

“I’ve got to get to this meeting, jackass arrived early and brought a special guest. I’ll bring back dinner, okay?” You nod and kiss him before he leaves to get dressed.

You hop off the counter and shuffle to your clothes to grab your phone. You place a towel on the vanity chair before sitting down. You finally open your messages.

(Dorian) Call me. (Dorian) It’s urgent.

You press the call button and it rings only one time before Dorian picks up.

“You need to come to the office.” Dorian’s voice is cold and bitter.

“What’s going on?” You try to mentally prepare for Dorian’s latest tirade.

“Sylus has been lying to you.” You roll your eyes.

“Dorian, you’ve been suspicious since-” Dorian cuts you off.

“Onychinus is behind Ridgeway Liquors burning down.”

“What?”

“Sylus is Oni.”

Tag List (comment if you wanna be added!): @trishiepo0 @not-so-quite-human

When your slow burn story is too slow burn, so you do 2 spicy chapters back to back... maybe 3... Smile.

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kcwriter-blog · 3 months ago

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Thanks for Thinking of Solavellan

I’ve been seeing a lot of posts directed at Solavellans by kind, caring people who want to make sure we temper our expectations. After 10 years of being treated like dirt by the fandom, it’s so nice to have so many people take an interest in us, to the point of compassionately telling us that we aren’t going to get much content, as sad as that may be. I can’t speak for all Solavellans but I wanted to let everyone know why they don’t have to worry about me at least:

We are grown ups

We are adults, well versed in managing our expectations. In fact, most of us hold down jobs, take care of our families and live our lives. Are we excited that our Inquisitors will be in the game? Of course. Do we expect them to be the central character? Of course not. We understand that Rook is the star of the show. We are busy planning our Rooks and deciding which romances to pursue. We are trying to decide what class and faction to play just like everyone else. Are we excited about what we know about Solas so far? Yes. If Dorian is announced to be in the game, as seems likely, I’m sure people will be equally excited and talking about what they hope to see.

We know Solavellan content will not be the focus

See above but also, we are used to having less content. We have the least amount of romance content in DAI. In Trespasser everyone got to talk to their Lis throughout the game. We had a 15-minute conversation at the end. Most players got a resolution to their romances. Like all Inquisitors, our Lavellans are kind of in limbo where Solas is concerned. The fact that we are making Inquisitors in the character creator tells me that all Inquisitors will have at least one confrontation with Solas and Rook will probably be part of that. Those will differ depending on whether you want to stop him at all costs, redeem him or want to redeem him and romanced him. This was done in Trespasser. If they can find the time and money to put three paths of 15-minute conversation in a ten-hour game, they can do the same for a 70-hour game. That’s not a lot of content but it is sure to be impactful and we will be happy with it.

We are no different in voicing our hopes than anyone else

I have seen plenty of posts where people that romanced Dorian want to have a tender moment between their Inquisitors and him. I fully support their hopes. I want that to happen for them. Other hopes expressed are the return of Cullen, the return of the Hero of Fereldan, Fenris and Merril cameos, etc. All are expressed in terms of “I hope” or “I will riot if it doesn’t happen.” To be honest, I feel sad for those poor souls because no one is telling them to temper their expectations. Does the fandom not care about their health and well-being? We are expressing our hopes and wishes. Do we think we will get all of it? Of course not. We are, as I said before, adults.

We Think We Will Rescue Solas

Honestly? We hope we can be a part of that, but it is just hope. It is more likely that Rook will break him out of prison. Maybe the Inquisitor will get to help – the way Hawk and the Warden Companion did in DAI – but if not, there will probably be some sort of confrontation. Rook may ask the Inquisitor’s opinion about Solas and the answer will depend on the Inquisitor’s relationship with Solas but that may be all.

We have too many unrealistic expectation

Please don’t think that we expect everything we want to happen to be in the game. We are aware that a lot of our hopes are not going to be realized. To be honest, we are already surprised that some of those hopes are figuring in the game. Keep in mind that for 10 years we thought our only interaction with him would be to make sure he didn’t die alone. We recognize we are a small group and so does BioWare. Yes, we have indulged our brain rot and obsession with art and fiction but that’s just us. We don’t expect it to show up in the game. If it does, we will be excited. If it doesn’t, we will shrug our shoulders and go back to drawing and writing.

We are talking amongst ourselves

We are talking to other Solavellans. Solavellan has become a tight-knit community over the years because of what we’ve had to put up with. Anders fans can probably relate. We are not talking to the DA community at large. Most of us don’t interact with the larger DA community because of everything that has been said over the years. We talk to and support each other. If you aren’t a Solavellan, feel free to scroll past our posts or even block us if you think we are too loud or annoying. You won’t hurt our feelings.

I’m sure other Solavellans can add to this or mention things I’ve forgotten. Again, don’t worry about us. We will be fine.

#solas #dragon age #solavellan #dai #solasmance #fen'harel #solas dragon age #solas dread wolf #dai solas #datv spoilers #da the veilguard spoilers #datv #da the veilguard #da theories

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arabella-strange · 5 months ago

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imo the Grand Demon of Loathing is going to hit them all with reasons they hate (or could hate) themselves already:

Dorian's is all the reasons he was in the closet, all the reasons he was overshadowed by Cyrus, all the people he failed to be good enough to help (all the reasons someone he might love would not want him)

Imogen is her father's disgust, Liliana's choosing power over love for her daughter, Imogen's hypocrisy of also wanting power for personal gratification and lying to her friends (and herself) about it, her deep deep desire to be normal and the knowledge that she was a freak instead, her inability to save Laudna and her own doom to be alone (and deserve it)

Ashton's their many many failures, the times when they should they could rise above others and proved how pathetically they fall instead, it's FCG's death and the Nobodies' departure and parents who didn't care about them enough to reject power -- and their inevitable same fate, and all the reasons they deserved to be left behind

Orym's is being just a small little guy, just a toy soldier in front of a monumental horror, his inability to save people, and his inability to stick to his own better principles when those he loved most would have wanted him to (the ways he is letting down their memory and dragging down his friends now), and possibly his Fey doom to be alone and shackled forever, because he's just not as powerful, not as strong, not as good as they were or as he tells himself he is

Fearne's is her dark side again, her flightiness and selfishness, all the times she was a ditzy fool in the face of the grave seriousness of the world, all the times she made terrible choices and others paid for it (all the people who were glad they left her)

And perhaps most of all

Laudna's is already out there—all the negging Delilah has done to isolate and control her; it's the way she is powerless and her friends are special, it's that she always drags everyone down and they deserve to be free of her, it's that she is not fun-scary but just a rotten mistake and it would be better if she let herself go and stopped pretending to be worth saving

= Dominox has to be about preying and drawing on the ways that people shrink when they believe they DESERVE the worst of what they get. It's about pure Loathing and "insecurity"—it's the howl of the Abyss.

Fun!

[p.s. I do think Chet's beats coulda been more powerful if Matt had had another week to think of them. Like yes I guess Chet is haunted by accidentally killing people but he has been pretty resilient about that prospect. What he hasn't been so casual about is hurting his friends. It's why he chewed Ashton out so bad after the first Shard incident. It's why he peacocks so hard to all the higher-ups they meet. He doesn't want to be discounted and he really doesn't want to lose another family. I think if he gets Dommed again, it would also have to be about that.)

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yes-these-obsessions-are-healthy · 10 months ago

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DAI x BG3 matchups I need to see. I’m not good at writing crossovers nor am I clever at all. This is very much non-exhaustive and very much not the end point of these characters’ potential interactions with each other.

Karlach + Sera + Iron Bull

The absolute chaos. The absolute CHAOS. A powerhouse. Putting aside Karlach’s demon heritage aside, she and Iron Bull tossing back tankards and swapping war stories as vets that have been dealt shitty hands but continue to chug along despite it. Karlach and Sera connecting over growing up mainly on the streets and having soft spots for little ragamuffins. Plus they all talk about women’s tits a lot. I feel Sera would find Karlach sexy and funny.

Wyll + Cole

Like Solas and Varric, Wyll would take to Cole because he recognizes Cole’s desire to help others, even if his methods are a bit unorthodox. He would recognize Cole’s soul as gentle and kind, and his efforts to atone for the murders he committed in the Tower as proof of his humanity. He will join the Uncle-Dad Duo and complete the Uncle-Dad Trio. Cole would gravitate toward Wyll’s goodness in turn, and probably tell Wyll that him making a contract wasn’t foolish because in the end he saved a city, and if that was his desire, then he committed no sin in doing so.

Solas + Astarion

The messiest shit can only occur, and my messy bitch self wants to see it. Watch as Solas’s upright and stiff demeanor utterly bores Astarion. Watch as Astarion’s selfishness, penchant for violence, and casual disregard for the well-being of others utterly pisses Solas the fuck off. Watch as Astarion yawns or interrupts Solas’s lectures with a “yes, yes, we get it” or the most dramatic eyeroll and overwrought “ugh”. Watch as Solas and Astarion immediately sniff each other out as liars and schemers from first jump and hold each other at a distance, the tension spiking at random moments early in them knowing each other where the other prods at their falsehoods. Watch as Astarion is dumbfounded by Solas expressing his condolences to Astarion upon learning of Astarion’s enslavement to his master, because how could a man who holds such reproach for him still manage to feel pity? ‘It is not pity, but compassion, which you are at liberty to reject. That is your right as a free man, just as it is my right to feel it.’

In the best case scenario, Astarion calms down eventually, teasing Solas but still treating him like that friend of a friend that you grudgingly admit is useful. I think a part of Astarion would find Solas’s penchant dislike of him funny.

Vivienne + Astarion + Dorian

We are all doomed. The haughtiness will be scarcely contained. Dorian and Astarion are definitely flirting. Fucking? Not sure. But definitely flirting and enjoying killing bad guys, playfully arguing over wine, snickering over Solas’s shabby dress.

Shadowheart + Leliana

Tools forged to serve a religious order? Check. Crisis of faith? Check. Subterfuge preferred? Check.

Lae’zel + Cassandra

Soldiers recognizing soldiers. 🫡 ‘Why are the men around me so annoying.’

Minsc & Boo + Cole

Cole might be able to understand Boo! If not his speech, then his little hamster feelings. Minsc might be wary of Cole for the information that he manages to glean from Minsc’s head, but his unquestioned understanding of Boo would probably smooth that bump in the road, right?

Solas + Gale

A friend remarked that Gale would remind Solas too much of himself (prideful, ambitious) and thus they would not get along. There is that. I think that Gale would get a small smile out of Solas every now and then with his quips, because Solas himself is clearly a fan of banter; Gale would provide more of the energy in the same way Dorian does with his and Solas’s more civil banters. Gale and Solas also both hold a great measure of respect and adoration for magic as a force, an element, a piece of entirety that is beautiful for its own existence. Not simply just what magic can do for them as wielders of magic, but what it is and how it does so much to enhance a person’s understanding and interaction with the world, as precious as sight or sound.

Minthara + Iron Bull

Oh she will have him cowed in a goddamn minute. Oh man. Oh no. ‘Yes ma’am’, ‘no ma’am’.

Minthara + Cassandra

Oh this would be so interesting. Disciplined, serious bulwarks with little time for silly little men—Minthara would share Cassandra’s frustration and lack of amusement with Varric, though Cassandra would consider her suggestions to maim him.

Solas + Halsin + Iron Bull

I see potential here. Iron Bull and Solas already have a dynamic of Iron Bull’s “I have a pretty good idea of who you are, and it’s a liar” toward Solas, while Solas grudgingly respects Iron Bull’s strength and mental acumen in the same way you would respect a very intelligent bear—do not draw attention more than necessary, but stand tall lest it smell fear. Halsin feels like a softer Iron Bull, a mediation between the two. Like Iron Bull, his stature and build belies a thoughtful and sharp mind. Like Solas, he sees everything as connected, feeding into the other as part of a system, and would too feel a sense of loss at magic and mundane being so dramatically split as it is in Thedas—an aberration against what is natural. Also like Iron Bull, he’s frank with his sexuality. I’m certain the two would swap stories over booze. The trio would be arguably the three most mature and experienced in a room in any given situation. Not only that, but Halsin is far more actively in touch with his heart and honest with his feelings than Solas or Iron Bull. The latter two very much care about their loved ones, but with Solas it is under the surface and with Iron Bull it’s mixed up in cultural trappings of romance not being a “thing” in his culture, and thus both struggle with their feelings. Halsin however is very much in touch. There is next to nothing obstructing what his head and heart wants. He listens to his heart and he follows it. Solas and Iron Bull could learn a thing or two from him, tbh

Also I feel like Iron Bull, Halsin, and even Solas have a bit of a brat tamer streak in them so there’s that

Also Astarion would outright reject the notion of drinking Cullen’s blood cuz it smells like battery acid.

#bg3 #DA:I #shadowheart #gale #astarion #wyll #lae’zel #halsin #minthara #solas #vivienne #cassandra #varric #iron bull #dorian #sera #karlach #DAI #minsc

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leiawritesstories · 1 month ago

Text

Part 1: Velaris

Co-Written with @mariaofdoranelle

Of Hearts and Heists Masterlist

Read on AO3

Word count: 5.8k

Warnings: swearing, grumpy Rowan, icky paparazzi, blink and you miss it angsty hints oops

A/N: @mariaofdoranelle and i are so excited about this story!!! we're also kind of busy lol so this might be very randomly updated, but we're still so excited to share it with you!!

Enjoy!!

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

Four Months Earlier

Aelin blinked awake at the soft tap on her shoulder, brushing the bleariness from her eyes. She touched a button on the side of her headphones, turning off the noise-canceling feature, and moved one of the cups off of her ear, looking inquisitively up at the uniformed flight attendant standing politely beside her reclined seat.

“We are preparing for descent, Ms. Galathynius,” the lady said softly. “I’ll need to bring your seat upright. Would you like to stay here or move into another part of the cabin?”

“I can move, thank you.” Swinging her sleepy legs over the side of the makeshift bed, she got up, picked up her small bag and the media report her publicist left while Aelin was asleep, then moved to the other half of the private plane’s cabin. Comfortable beige leather chairs sat in clusters of four around a few tables, and she crossed over to the one where a dark-haired man around her own age was sprawled in one of the chairs, snoring softly.

He didn’t budge when she sat down opposite him, propped her chin on her hands, and stared directly into his closed eyes. Time to work, then.

She flipped open the folder that held Elide’s report. On the first page, she’d left a Post-it note with the reminder that Aelin would meet her new bodyguard. She didn’t know anything about him, except he was highly recommended and flew from Wendlyn to temporarily replace Chaol while he was on paternity leave.

Post-it aside, Aelin knew what was inside Elide’s media report even before she opened it: a reminder of the next season of her show among a whole bunch of speculation about her love life. She wasn’t masochistic enough to Google herself and see what was being said about her, hence why her publicist always curated a sum up of what was currently being said about her, with a few headlines and hit tweets so she could have an idea of potential subjects for the next round of interviews.

And this week’s media report? Just a big are-they-or-aren’t-they.

Because if producers invite Aelin and Dorian to co-star together, it’s obviously because they’re in a romantic relationship, it wouldn’t have to do with both of them being hard-working stars who have chemistry on screen, get along with each other and the rest of the crew off-screen, and also happen to not arrive late or throw tantrums on set.

It was another several minutes before he stirred, and Aelin prepared for it, putting her work off to stare at him with crazy eyes as he pushed the silk sleep mask off of his eyes—to her delight, he gave a little shriek.

“Holy shit, Aelin!”

She snickered. “Morning, princess. Have a good beauty sleep?”

Dorian Havilliard pushed his hair away from his face with a sniff. “Since you’re clearly so invested in my well-being, yes. I did.”

“Aww, Dor, you know how easy it is to scare you.” She caught the pencil he threw at her head. “You would have been scared when you woke up anyway, since we’ll be halfway around the world.”

“That doesn’t scare me.” He settled his headphones around his neck. “We’ve both been in this game too long to be freaked out by a little time change, right?”

“Right.” Aelin turned her attention to the notes on her phone. “Are we ready for tonight?” Her publicist had left her a lengthy list of instructions for that night’s launch of the teaser trailer for the new season of “Queen of Glass,” the hit Netflix series that Aelin and Dorian starred in.

Dorian grumbled under his breath. “I guess. Wish we didn’t have to jump straight into press, but that’s just how it worked out this time.” Normally, when going to an event for their current project, they would arrive at their first stop and have a day or two to settle in, adjust to the time change, and prepare for the upcoming interviews, but their last few weeks of filming had gone later than expected, and they hadn’t been able to leave until the day before the trailer launch.

“I know, you wanted to be able to see the sights—the landmarks, the river, the art, the men.” Aelin laughed at the guilty flush that crept up Dorian’s face. “It’s okay, you know—I have a thing for Velarian men too, I’d never judge you for it.”

He smirked. “We can leave that to dear old Dad.”

She barked out a sharp laugh. “It’s too bad he won’t be at this event, because you could give him all the heart attacks.”

“About that…”

Aelin arched one eyebrow. “Why do I sense that you’re about to ask me for one of your big favors again, Dor?”

“I have a big favor to ask,” Dorian crooned, right on cue, snickering.

She sighed in pretend reluctance. “What is it?”

“Weshouldpretendtobedating.” The words spilled out of him in a single, breathless rush. He took a big gulp of breath and tried again, his fingers tapping erratically on the top of the table. “We should pretend to be dating when we give interviews.”

“Dor, sweetheart…” Her confusion grew. “Why the hell are you saying that?”

“I have a whole entire explanation that I should’ve given first, but of fuckin’ course I had to go and spill the conclusion.” He took a long drink from his water bottle. “You know how much of an asshole my dad gets when he’s stressed out during campaigns.”

Aelin nodded. “Oh, I’m very aware of Asshat-in-Chief Havilliard.”

Actually, his dad was an asshole every day of every year and managed to get worse around the elections, but Dorian was so used to the toxicity and verbal abuse that he saw it as ‘normal’.

Dorian snickered. “Well, before we left on this trip, he decided to grant me the immense favor of a two-minute phone call, and he told me quite bluntly that if I ‘do anything to screw over his campaign,’ he’d go the extra mile to ‘unscrew it’—that was a direct quote, by the way, and you know…”

“I do,” Aelin said, softening now. Havilliard Sr. was the perfect example of how dangerous it could be to hand that much power in the hands of a jackass like him. The possibilities of what he could do to his son were endless—publicly cut him off, forbid him from seeing his mother and little brother, even sink his career with a few phone calls to high-profile executives from his golf club—and the worst thing, he had no qualms about dangling this over his own son’s head when convenient. “Sounds just like the kind of shit he would say,” Aelin agreed. “What do you need?”

“The next thing he told me—as if it wasn’t already clear—was that if I’m too indiscreet, he’ll consider that me screwing over his campaign. So, I just need to keep him off my ass, get one hell of a solid alibi, you know? And I didn’t have any good ideas until I told Lys about Dad’s phone call.” He took another deep breath. “I’m not trying to shift the blame here—”

“You definitely are, but I’ll ignore it,” Aelin teased. “Go on.”

“Lys suggested that we pretend to be dating for this press tour, potentially starting as early as this event. If we’re seen in a ‘relationship,’ then all the paparazzi and tabloids will assume that we’ve been hiding it for a while, and they’ll go fucking insane trying to dig up all the little hints. They’ll get so consumed with our fake love story that they won’t pay any attention to the stuff we don’t want them to see. Plus, it will get even more engagement for the season premiere.”

“Don’t I know that,” Aelin muttered. She tapped her nails thoughtfully on the edge of the table, thinking over Dorian’s proposal. “I want to ask for time to think about it, but…Lys is right. Damn, it’s like she knows things about this.”

Dorian chuckled. “Almost like it’s her job, right?”

“Who would’ve guessed?” Aelin laughed. “It’s a hell of an idea, Dor. Do you think we can actually pull it off?”

“My beloved Elentiya,” Dorian intoned, quoting his lines from the season they had just finished filming. “My heart and soul are yours.”

“You’re such a drama queen,” she teased. “Okay. We just have a lot to plan and discuss, but… I’ll do it.”

While she hated to indirectly support Dorian’s dad, she’d do just about anything to protect her friend.

“Thank you,” he said with a soft, grateful look—completely serious for once—and reached over to squeeze her hands.

The plane touched down as they spoke, the slight jolt of the landing causing the luggage in the overhead compartments to rattle softly. The pilot’s voice crackled to life over the speaker a moment later. “Welcome to Velaris! The local time is 14:25. We will likely be taxiing for ten to fifteen minutes, so please sit comfortably until we’ve reached our gate at the private flight terminal.”

“Looks like we’ll have a few hours before the trailer launch,” Aelin remarked, glancing at her smart watch.

“At least enough time to prepare while we sit in hair and makeup,” Dorian said, somewhat cynically.

She wiggled her brows at him. “We both know your favorite part of being a famous film star is getting your hair done every day, you little diva.”

“Guilty as charged.” He combed his fingers through his dark waves.

The plane finally pulled into a gate and stopped, its engines rumbling down to silence as the jet bridge connected to the plane’s doors. Aelin stood up, stretching her arms above her head and wincing a little at the stiffness in her hips from eleven hours on a plane. Even the comfort of the private jet didn’t relieve the physical strain of such long travel days.

She fished out her pair of sunglasses from her purse, but before she could descend the jet’s stairs, her assistant Manon was already talking to a man on the floor.

A man? Aelin wasn’t sure. He was the size of a French-door refrigerator, and he was probably strong enough to lift one, too. Pale blond hair, sunglasses, black ink peeking out his collar and sleeves contrasting with that Wendlyn tan.

“Darling, is our relationship open?” Dorian slid his sunglasses down the bridge of his nose to get a better look.

”Why?” she said in a teasing tone. “Last one to ride the bodyguard is a rotten egg?”

Manon, who was standing on the jet bridge, had her back to them, but she turned to give them one of her scary glares. Dorian immediately straightened, and it was only then that Aelin realized that they were both blocking the airplane door to gawk at the bodyguard.

Both hurried to descend the stairs, but Aelin went directly to her assistant—and new bodyguard—while Dorian went to Lys, probably to tell his publicist about their conversation.

The bodyguard took off his sunglasses, exposing a set of pine-green eyes. Gods, he just kept getting more attractive.

She was in such deep shit.

“Aelin,” Manon said crisply when she was within reach. “I want you to meet the personal security officer that’ll work with us while Chaol’s out.”

He gave nothing but a curt nod, his face a blank mask.

“I’m Aelin,” she offered.

“Nice to meet you, Miss Galathynius.”

“Do you have a name, or should I just snap my fingers at you?” She couldn’t resist a teasing grin, or the analytical up-and-down stare, watching as his jaw clenched.

“Whitethorn. Rowan Whitethorn.”

Rowan Whitethorn—stern, blazing green eyes, muscles for days, and tattoos that made her wonder how far they went. They curled down to the fingertips of his right hand and up part of his neck, only highlighting his…god, he was hot. An annoyed scowl crossed his stupidly handsome face. So far, his personality was the only unattractive thing about him, and his grumpy ass would stick out like a sore thumb among her team’s friendly environment.

”We treat each other on a first-name basis on my team, are you okay with this?”

He nodded. “Of course, ma’am.”

His automatic, almost robotic reply brought a slow smirk to her lips. “Let’s practice, then. Call me Aelin.”

He narrowed his eyes at her, barely concealing his irritation, and kept strong eye contact as he said, “Very well, Aelin.”

“And I’m Dorian,” the annoying pain in her ass she called a best friend and co-star cut in.

Aelin sighed. “He’s—“

”The boyfriend,” he interrupted again, this time sliding his hands around her waist. “A very possessive one, too.”

“Dorian,” Aelin sighed. “We agreed not to tell people yet!”

The incorrigible man shrugged. “I think it’s best that our security team knows, right?” She rolled her eyes. He continued, “Though I do think it’s a big insult that you don’t think I can protect you myself—I was killing zombies at 16, for Mala’s sake.”

“You and I both know the zombies were CGI-ed, Dori.”

Rowan huffed under his breath. “If the two of you are done, we have a schedule to keep. We need to get to the car.”

The private terminal was mostly quiet, but years of being in the spotlight made her extra attuned to the amount of possible eyes that could be watching. Dorian fell into step beside her as they walked through the terminal, exiting into bright summer sunlight. A black SUV with tinted windows waited beside the curb, and as they came out of the terminal, a man in dark gray pants and a long-sleeved gray shirt, dark shades covering his eyes and a clear coil of wire trailing from the earpiece in his left ear, stepped out of the car and opened the side door. Like most of the security personnel Aelin had met in her years of having a security detail, he was fairly nondescript—averagely tall and physically fit with closely cropped brown hair and a bland, forgettable face.

She left her suitcase for the guard to put into the back of the car and climbed in with Dorian, exhaling deeply at the comfort of the plush seats. “Damn, I could fall asleep so fast.”

“Don’t even think about it.” Seated in one of the seats opposite Aelin and Dorian’s row, Elide handed Aelin a steaming paper cup. “We have shit to talk about, Ae.” The petite woman had been Aelin’s publicist for five years and her close friend since childhood, and she was fearsome in front of the press.

“You are the best,” Aelin breathed, taking a sip of the double espresso in the cup.

Elide’s lips twitched into a little smile. “We’ll see how you feel about that when I’m done telling you about tonight’s event.” She glanced down at her tablet. “Dorian texted me earlier that he’d talked to you about the strategy?”

“You mean Lys’s brilliant, crackpot scheme to break the internet?”

Next to Elide, Lysandra raised one perfectly threaded eyebrow. “Lady, I know you didn’t just insult my brilliance.”

“I would never,” Aelin crooned innocently.

Dorian snorted. “You would.”

“Traitor.” She poked him in the ribs.

Lys clapped her hands. “Class is now in session. Pay attention, you two.” She and Elide shared a look. “So, Dorian told both of us that he talked to you, Aelin. Have you made up your mind about the dating plan?”

“Yes.” Aelin sipped her espresso. “I’m in.”

“Good.” Lysandra tapped something on her tablet. “We don’t think you should jump straight into it tonight, mostly because the timing isn’t great and we don’t expect you to be able to pull off a fake hard launch after traveling for most of the day. So here’s what we were thinking: when you make your red carpet appearance, just act normal. Be the two best friends that everyone knows you are.”

“But if you want to stay a little closer together, maybe stay side by side for all the photos and have multiple hugs, that wouldn’t be a bad idea,” Elide added. “The idea is that you give the press a subtle hint of what’s going to happen. Make them start to wonder if there’s anything more than friendship between the leading actors. That way, when you do launch your fake relationship, they’ll sprint back to the photos from tonight and put them up everywhere as proof that everyone missed.”

Dorian nodded slowly. “I know I say this about once a day, but you are truly a genius, Lysandra.”

“I know.” The publicist smirked. “Any questions?”

“When do you want us to do the big reveal?” Aelin asked.

Elide shrugged. “We can talk about it after the event tonight. You have a couple of free days after the trailer launch, so I was thinking that when you two go out exploring the city, you could make a point of holding hands or whatever so that people can catch those moments and start freaking out over your relationship.”

“That sounds like you’re going to stage some photos,” Aelin commented.

“Maybe I am.” Elide winked. “You should be expecting it by now, Ae.”

“I really should,” Aelin chuckled.

Dorian tilted his head to the side. “Hypothetically, what if we dropped a big hint during the screening of the trailer?”

Lys narrowed her eyes. “What do you mean by ‘big hint,’ Dor?”

He shrugged. “I dunno, like a kiss?”

“What part of not today did you not understand?” Lysandra sighed, but she noticed that Dorian was holding back laughter. “Are you…did you do that just to play me?”

“Maybe.” He snickered.

“You’re a little shit,” she laughed. “I swear, one of these days I’m going to drop you, and you’ll be running around in circles trying to figure things out.”

He shot her an angelic smile. “Lys darling, you’re the best publicist in the world.”

“I know.”

The car slowed to a stop at the back entrance of a five-story sandstone building, its walls broken with elegant arches of sparkling glass and columned balconies that were often the site of romantic photoshoots. The River Mansion, a two-century-old hotel that had been remodeled to modernize its facilities while preserving its historic architecture, was possibly one of the most beautiful buildings in Velaris. Aelin had stayed there twice before, and each time, she had loved it.

Their gray-clad security guard opened the door, and the four of them climbed out of the car, Aelin falling into step next to Dorian with the two publicists and Manon in front of them as they walked in the back entrance of the hotel. Rowan was a couple of steps ahead, and he held the door open for them like a gentleman, even though he was a grump. Inside, her feet practically sank into the plush blue carpet, but she barely had time to admire the tasteful art adorning the walls as Lys and Elide led them up to their rooms.

In Aelin’s room, a small army of stylists had already set up shop, and she barely had time to have a proper bath before being whisked into a chair. Elide ran through her whole list of instructions for what to expect at the event as Aelin’s makeup artist and hair stylist worked their magic, transforming her from travel-tired to glowing. The puffiness under her eyes vanished beneath a layer of expertly applied concealer, and a sharp wing of black eyeliner flicked out from the corner of each eye.

“You’re a wonder, Rin.” Aelin checked her reflection in the mirror. “I’ll never know how you do this kind of magic.”

“It’s called makeup,” Asterin Blackbeak laughed. She’d been Aelin’s makeup artist for just over a year, and she was magical with an eyeshadow palette.

“Ruin my fun, why don’t you?” Aelin winked at Asterin. She got up from the chair and went over to get dressed, returning once her form-fitting red silk gown was laced up her back, the slit up one leg allowing her freedom to move in the fitted skirts. Her stylist took the wide rollers out of her hair, letting it tumble down her back in a spill of glamorous waves.

“You guys are the best,” she gushed to her team, blowing them air kisses so Asterin didn’t scream at her for messing up her makeup.

Elide tapped one stiletto heel on the floor. “We’ve got to go, Ae.”

With a final wave to her team, Aelin followed Elide out the door and down the hallway to the elevator. They rode down to the lobby, and the steel doors smoothly opened to reveal the usual handful of paparazzi that followed anywhere the Queen of Action Movies went. Aelin smothered a grimace and ducked her lead like she’d been trained to do, dodging as many camera flashes as possible as Elide led her towards the private side door. She caught a relieved breath as they exited.

“You’re late,” Rowan muttered as she climbed into the car, its windows darkly tinted for privacy. “According to the schedule, we should have left ten minutes ago.”

She shot him a glare. “One of the things you need to understand about providing security for a film actress, Rowan, is that we rarely keep to a predetermined schedule.”

“Too busy taking fucking pictures,” he grumbled.

“Too busy avoiding cameras, not that you would know.” She yanked the door shut, silently fuming at the audacity of that man. It was hard to tell if he didn’t have previous experience with celebrities, or if he was just an ass.

It was too bad his ridiculous attractiveness didn’t match his behavior, because if it did, Mala knows the things she’d do to him.

The screening of the trailer and the endless stream of red carpet photos went by in a blur of camera flashes and a pasted-on smile, and by the time she had a minute to breathe, Aelin was walking into Rita’s, a club that she and many of her actor peers liked, arm in arm with Dorian. They entered through a side door, a private entrance that led directly into the lounge space, allowing them to avoid most of the greedy paparazzi.

Inside, the floor was already full of people in their best “Queen of Glass”-inspired costumes, with the only exception the black-clad security personnel who stood at intervals around the perimeter of the lounge. Aelin herself wore a dress inspired by one of her costumes from the first season of the show—a form-fitting black minidress with a dragon embroidered in gold thread climbing up the back, its jaw opened wide and its tail curling around one hip. She wore gold jewelry to complement the dress, and her lipstick was flame red and smudge-proof.

“Looking stunning as always,” Dorian said, appearing out of nowhere with a drink in each hand. He wore a white shirt with cobalt-blue embroidery and black leather pants, the shirt open to reveal half his chest, and a fake knife was tucked into his belt.

She grinned at him. “Thanks, Dor.” Accepting one of the drinks, she took a sip. “Shit, that’s delicious!”

“Fenrys is bartending.”

“Makes sense.” She winked at him. “So you’ll be spending as much time as possible at the bar, right?”

“Shut up.” His face flushed pink, and he elbowed her in the side.

She laughed, poking him affectionately in the ribs. “You know I won’t tell a soul about your little crush on the bartender.”

“Two hours.” Rowan’s curt voice cut through Aelin’s good mood.

She scoffed. “Lighten up, Whitethorn. Rita’s is secure, as you can tell from the guards everywhere, and I’m not some teenager who snuck out of Mommy and Daddy’s house. I’ll let you know when I want to leave.”

He scowled, and she silently cursed her panties for dampening at the sight. “You can’t be hungover at tomorrow’s events, Aelin.” He glanced at Dorian, who had a drink in each hand. “Neither of you can.”

“Good thing I don’t plan on drinking more than this, then.” She tugged Dorian into the crowd, leaving Rowan behind.

That tight-strung asshole was going to ruin her fucking life.

Sensing her grouchiness, Dorian tugged her towards the side of the room. “Want to go do the photo booth?” He gave her his best big puppy eyes. “Lys and Elide said we should, but also, it would be fun.”

“Why are you right?” she sighed, shaking the tension from her limbs. “I’m sorry, Dor, talking to that asshat is taking all of my patience.”

“Too bad he’s so damn hot,” Dorian added, wiggling his eyebrows.

She rolled her eyes. “I would’ve climbed him like a tree until he opened that stupid mouth of his and started poking his nose in my schedule.”

He’s been part of the team for less than a day. What did he know about Aelin’s drinking and partying habits? Or Dorian’s, for that matter.

“Fair.” He led her through the crowd, stopping every other minute to talk to some of the guests, that brilliant smile of his flashing as he posed for casual photos. She grinned right along with him, throwing herself into the joy that meeting her fans always brought her, and they eventually joined the line for the photo booth.

Rowan cleared his throat beside them, and there went Aelin’s blood pressure again. He folded his arms across his chest, glaring at her and Dorian. “You two decided it’s a good idea to go inside an unrestricted booth where I can’t see you?”

“It’s only closed off by a curtain, and it’s inside a secure location. Plus, your guard dogs probably sniffed it down already.” She glared back at him.

He refused to move. “It’s not approved, princess.”

“Oh, for the gods’ sake.” Dorian brushed past Rowan, tugging Aelin with him into the photo booth. “It’ll take a minute, and you can stand outside with your stopwatch if it makes you less angsty.” He winked at the stoic, brooding man and pulled the curtain shut.

Aelin huffed as she sat down on the small plastic bench. “Thanks. I don’t know why he’s being so ridiculous; I’ve only known him for eight hours.” She watched as Dorian tapped on the screen opposite them, picking a random handful of poses, and laughed when he flopped down next to her and threw his arm around her shoulders. “What happened to platonic co-stars?”

He snickered, grinning big at the camera as it flashed. “Hey, we’ve got to make it look good for all the big bad cameras, right?”

“Damn right!” She jumped into his lap, giggling, as the camera flashed a second time, and they scrambled into two more poses, a tangle of hilarity, until the camera counted down for the last time and he took her face in his hands and plopped a dramatic kiss on her lips as the bright flash exploded in the small booth.

Dorian positioned his hands just the way she liked it, without covering her face for the camera. Knowing how messy things could get off-set, it relieved her that he was thinking about how the kissing picture would look rather than the picture itself. Aelin would be lying if she said every stage kiss with Dorian had been this mechanic, but the short-lived crush she had on him at the initial stages of their first movie together quickly faded away when she realized she was into the character, not the actor.

And this? Right now, kissing Dorian was work, one piece of the narrative that belongs to Aelin’s favorite and longest-lasting character—her public persona.

Of course, Rowan chose that moment to shove his head through the curtain.

“Time’s—ah, fuck.” He jerked backwards as suddenly as he’d broken into the booth and awkwardly cleared his throat. “Uh, time’s up.”

“I think that’s the most un-grumpy I’ve seen him so far,” Dorian whispered into Aelin’s ear, making her snort a laugh and smack him in the shoulder as she collected the two printed photo strips.

“You’re a little shit,” she chuckled. She pushed aside the curtain and stepped out of the booth, immediately sidling up to Rowan’s side with a wide, innocent smile on her face. “Sorry to scandalize you, big guy.”

He mumbled something inaudible under his breath. “I’ve seen worse, princess.”

Aelin turned to leave, but she didn’t sense him following her, so something critical must’ve happened. She half-turned, raising an eyebrow at his parted lips and a look so intense it inflamed her skin with his poorly-concealed irritation. “Something the matter?”

“What are you wearing?” For the first time that night, he got a proper look at her dress in all its glory, and of course it wasn’t of his liking.

Aelin spinned like an overly excited girl about her dress just to annoy him. “One of my favorite designers made it—do you know the label Maison Sellene? She’s incredible, and she got the dragon design from one of the set designers’ sketches.”

Rowan’s eyes burned like dragonfire. “It suits you, princess.”

Her nose wrinkled. “Stop calling me that. I told you, my team is on a first-name basis with each other.”

“Fine, Aelin.” Oh gods, his pronunciation of her name made her shiver. Dorian came back with drinks, and of course he glared at the one she took. “I thought you weren’t drinking?”

Locking her eyes on his, she took a long sip of it. “It’s nonalcoholic.” He looked skeptical, so she pushed the glass to his lips. “If you don’t believe me, Rowan, try it for yourself.”

He accepted the drink as if she had poisoned it before handing it to him, sniffed it and squinted his eyes at her, trying to decide if the juice and soda water smell was real or just a deceit for his nose. “Fine,” Rowan said as he handed it back to her, the short word sounding awfully close to a grunt.

She huffed an impatient sigh and once again turned to leave, heading towards the cluster of women gesturing wildly for her to come dance with them. But she’d barely gone more than a few steps when Dorian hooked his arm through hers and pulled her to the dance floor with him, and she laughed as she looped her arms around his neck. “Are you trying to give Lys high blood pressure?”

“I would never,” he snickered, winking widely. “Just thought this would be fun.”

“We’ll see how you feel about that when someone posts a photo of us dancing this close on their Instagram story and the whole internet goes insane.”

“My kind of fun.” He dipped her backwards, and when he pulled her up, both of them giggling, he swept her into his and planted a stage kiss on her lips.

Just in time for multiple phone cameras to click.

She chuckled and pushed him away playfully. “I’m gonna go to the bathroom, ok? It’ll only take me a few minutes.” She wove her way across the room, only stopping a few times to chat with people, and she sighed with relief when she noticed that there wasn’t a line outside the ladies’ bathroom.

Once again, an arm banded around her waist.

This time, though, that arm hauled her to the side, and the door of the janitor’s closet slammed shut behind Aelin as the man all but yanked her into the small, empty, slightly dusty space.

She was firing Rowan so hard today.

Aelin slapped his hand out of her mouth and spun around before he could react, quickly hitting his groin with her knee. The man groaned, and she used the little time she had to grab a spray bottle—for temporary blindness if necessary—and turn on the feeble light to see who her assaulter was.

Imagine Aelin’s surprise when she found out that her attacker was Mr. Safety himself.

Still bent due to the damage to his crotch, Rowan wheezed. “Where did you learn these moves, princess?”

Arms folded across her chest, she shot him a glare. “What the hell, Whitethorn? You almost gave me a heart attack! What’re you doing?!”

Rowan’s hand curled loosely in front of his groin, as if anticipating another blow. “I got an alert that there’s an unauthorized person in the room, and my first priority is keeping you safe from potential threats.”

“What about Dorian?” She snapped. “Is he in less danger than me because he’s a man or something?”

Her bodyguard opened his mouth to retort, then closed it. “He…has his own security team…”

Aelin raised a brow. “And you’re in contact with his team? Keeping track of him? Because there’s a potential threat, or so you say.” Every single word was deeply sarcastic.

“Of course.” Rowan pulled his phone out of his pocket and showed her the screen. Several notifications were stacked up on the screen, notifications of a potential unauthorized guest in the room and brief updates about Aelin’s and Dorian’s safety.

Some of her irritation faded away. “Fine. You might have given me at least a tiny bit of warning before you grabbed me, though.”

His jaw clenched. “There’s not always going to be time for me to warn you, princess. The least you could do is understand that.”

The maleness of that statement, the entitlement of his tone brought her irritation right back. “Remind me again who is employing whom? Your responsibility is my safety, as you’ve said a thousand times. Well, that includes you giving me notice so I don’t think I’m being fucking kidnapped!” Her voice cracked on the final word.

And damn him, he noticed the crack in her demeanor.

His stance relaxed, and concern crossed his face. “Did that happen before, Aelin?”

Aelin’s throat felt too tight as she swallowed scattered flashbacks from a lifetime ago. As always, she forced them all back into their locked box.

“Didn’t you read my file, Whitethorn?” Aelin knew she was being harsh, but it was a necessary measure. “You should know the answer already.”

Both of them knew that file back to back, and she knew his question went beyond that. Rowan gave her a wary look, reading her deflection far too well, but the last thing she needed was his overprotective ass deciding she was fragile.

His phone pinged, saving her from any response he might have made. He glanced at the screen and sighed softly. “There wasn’t a threat, just someone who forgot their invitation. You can go back out.”

“About time,” she mumbled. Before he could say anything, do anything else, she pushed open the door and went back to the party, her heels snapping angrily on the floor. He stayed a good distance behind her, trailing her back to the party, and faded into the edge of the crowd, but she felt his eyes on her.

She shook off the weight of his gaze, plastering a gleaming smile back onto her face. She was Aelin Ashryver Galathynius, the Queen of Action Movies.

She wouldn’t let her bodyguard distract her.

~~~

TAGS: lmk if you want to be added or removed! maria and i are combining taglists for this fic so you can let her know too :)

@live-the-fangirl-life

@superspiritfestival

@thegreyj

@wordsafterhours

@elentiyawhitethorn

@mariaofdoranelle

@rowanaelinn

@house-of-galathynius

@tomtenadia

@julemmaes

@swankii-art-teacher

@charlizeed

@booknerdproblems

@earthtolinds

@goddess-aelin

@sweet-but-stormy

@clea-nightingale

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@mysterylilycheeta

#my writing #leia and maria write stories #of hearts and heists #aelin galathynius #rowan whitethorn #dorian havilliard #manon blackbeak #elide lochan #lysandra ennar #rowaelin #eventually rowaelin eheheh #throne of glass #throne of glass fanfic #throne of glass au #rowaelin fanfic #rowaelin au

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its-your-mind · 6 months ago

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okay well I know I said I wasn’t watching tonight and I’m STILL NOT but ALSO I did see pics of the new art and 1. I love it all so much they are all. Very pretty. Ashton and Dorian specifically did make me briefly black out. Friends you are going into the snow wtf are you doing but also don’t stop doing it holy SHIT I bet Orym just got a nosebleed as soon as he saw both of them anyways speaking of Orym 2. ORYM. MY BBY MY BOY. Two things. First I love the bluebells he’s growing bc that’s his DORIAN flower and that’s cute as fuck but SECOND AND MORE IMPORTANTLY he is growing!! His!! Hair!! Out!!!!!! Do you understand me???? It’s long enough to curl! It’s got enough weight to it to hang down over his face!!

(and you KNOW this was an intentional decision on the part of Liam “Caleb shaved his beard as soon as they got to xhorhas but let his red hair grow long and started to take care of it” O’Brien. He knows what he’s doing.)

I have been having so fucking many thoughts about Orym and his responsibility to his husband and dad and keyleth and his people and the hells and dorian and and and and. and I’m Not gonna be able to get them all into one post I think but Y’ALL. He is Intentionally ditching the military haircut. That’s the kinda haircut you gotta Maintain, ESPECIALLY if your hair curls (trust me — my undercut is on a Strict Schedule bc if I don’t shave it back every month or so it just becomes a field of curly-cues beneath my long hair). My boy Orym keep that cut Sharp and Precise for five years of wandering mostly alone. There hasn’t been any commanding officer telling him to cut it since he left home. But he kept doing it!!

I’m sure it was part routine, but it was absolutely also a connection to home and to the responsibility he had taken on, which we KNOW at its core was a responsibility to his husband and father. They were soldiers. So was he. They wouldn’t stop fighting. Neither would he.

And the Hells found the killer! Found out why the attack had happened! Reported it all back to keyleth, even! Orym did his duty - he hasn’t been an active air ashari soldier for a while now, even if his five years away counted as official business.

But he kept the military cut.

Until now.

Until after he had finally helped to kill the woman who had struck down the man he loved and the man who raised him.

Until after Dorian came back, only one day after Orym begged him, not because Orym needed his help, just because Orym needed him.

And so Orym wears his Ashari armor, is working to advance the world-preserving efforts of the Tempest, but he also lets his hair grow out, and he adorns himself in bluebells.

When Orym died on the end of Otohan’s blade, Will sent him back. Told him he wasn’t done.

Will wasn’t talking about a mission from the Tempest, or his own need to be avenged. Orym knew that then. He knows that now.

But Orym did still feel the responsibility to his family and to his people, to end the threat. And even though it was only a small part of a greater danger, it is still a threat neutralized. Now, there’s this freedom, this world of possibility that wasn’t there while Otohan was still alive.

And yes, things are horrible. They’ve all just lost a dear friend. It’s causing internal ruptures and dangers and it’s still possible the world will end soon. He’s made a lifelong deal with an Archhag. He’s still not sure what his responsibility is to the Tempest.

But Dorian’s here, now. Back by his side.

And Orym decides to let his hair grow out. Just this once. What the hells, right? Everything is changing. The world might end. Might as well see what kind of person he can grow into before he’s done.

#critical role #bells hells #THIS POST HAS BEEN BUILDING IN MY HEAD FOR WEEKS #THANK YIU NEW CHARACTER ART FOR THE GIFT OF A HAIRSTYLE THAT I COULD PIN THESE THOUGHTS TO #ANYWAY DONT LET ANYONE DIE TONIGHT GUYS IM STILL NOT ACTUALLY WATCHING BUT ILU ALL STAY SAFE OR AT LEAST ALIVE #cr spoilers #cr3 #c3 #c3 spoilers #cr3 spoilers #orym of the air ashari #c3e96

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leliwardens · 2 months ago

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so a second article has hit the da fandom and i'm in the part of the "this is genuinely so disappointing i'm considering not actually preordering/playing on release". i'm sure i'll come to terms with it and still get it but this really has been such a blow to my sheer enthusiasm that is like...incredible really for me as a fan invested in this franchise for over a decade to put me (and others) so low lmao

(under a cut bc it got stupidly long, a cookie if you read all of it)

one of the big "reasons" i've seen parroted by the fandom and the justification from the devs is (paraphrasing) you're in the north and all of these major decisions are in the south, which is frankly, stupid? sure, the choices of the divine wouldn't matter too much (if the circles are disbanded or not, for example) but the divine choice itself, should matter? the throne of ferelden? orlais??? these are major characters!

whoever is the sitting ruler of ferelden, regardless of the choice, has obv, lived through a blight not 20 some odd years prior. so one could imagine they would be invested in this, you know, double blight is going on and would like to help or help for their country? given the fact one of the last of the two archdemon prisons is canonly within ferelden!! marketing has also started the blight has spread across thedas, so one would think the current world leaders would be supporting or at least looking to the group seemingly working on stopping the blight. but i guess not since it's not a choice.

even setting aside the lore and plot significance of the majority of choices, even if it truly did not matter, you can say the exact same for choices within dai itself, however the devs knew the desire to have that impact + fan service, even minor, still superseded lore and plot significance. the hof letter and mentions by their romance partner is clearly fan service (since tbh i doubt leliana or morrigan would willingly talk about their partner themselves) but it was also telling you, the player, where your mc was. another example is there is no impact who the sitting king of orzammar is, but the game still mentions in a codex the consequences of that choice, even if the anvil was kept or not in ambient dialogue.

these and many more mattered, not in a world shaping way, but to tell you, the player, yes you played in this world and here's the acknowledgement of it, thank you. i didn't need to decide the fate of the world to enjoy leliana talking about my warden or varric supporting templars because my hawke did, because it still felt like i mattered, that yes this is a world i changed, even in a small way, that i lived in it.

and they removed all of that.

like, hell it was even a good way to "check-in" in choices and characters without dedicating entire plot beats to them! the epilogue for a non-divine!romanced leliana heavily implies she and the warden are still doing their own things but meeting up when hey can. that aside the cure? the fucking cure??? did they find it? did they share it with the other wardens? was it suppressed? the other members of the inquisition were invested in stopping solas, what about them? since you are literally going to their turf, is dorian, josephine, isabela, and even bull okay? is zevran or fenris going to be ignored? fenris had a whole comic about him!

the only way i can take this is being told to no longer be invested in previous material, even material leading up to this game. even if i know that's not really the truth, it really feels that way.

i don't even like the excuse for getting newbies into the series, because, well, dai did that fine WITH returning characters and overall plots lol? there's a loss of some context and dai itself had writing flaws with this method, but it did show you could have both returning and new players work fine, and not alienate said new players despite it being the 3rd game.

speaking of dai, why bother making the choices so endgame linear if they wouldn't of even mattered? why no matter your choice of divine, another group rises up to oppose her? why have the grey wardens going quiet and possibly on the brink of civil war, exiled or no? i had assumed at the time the bottlenecking was future proofing to create less variables, and i guess i was wrong since there are no more variables lol!

i'm genuinely not sure what they truly thought would be the reaction, given they are still trying to pull returning players via the marketing? like. varric, harding, morrigan returning, the focus on the grey wardens as a group (and likely why davrin gets such a spotlight) are all indications for returning players. fuck even solas, no matter what you feel about him, is a returning npc! to resolve his plot!!!

i never truly believed we would see big huge cameos, i did expect the divine, those who live in the north, but otherwise simple codex entries or letters if anything.

but to have.......nothing? be left with nothing? burns.

i do mean this completely honestly: what is the point of investing myself, my time, my money, hell even just interest in this series anymore? without the impact of previous games (or a better lore reason, such as a longer timeskip than 5 fucking years since the last dlc) then this is your run of the mill rpg with better writing than most, but that's all it'd really have. i didn't fully play or get into the series because of the decisions carrying over, but it sure as fuck kept me and others coming back. if this is the norm going forward past da4 then well, might as well pick any other rpg series.

#the last part is me being real bitter because i do love this series #but i didn't think #truly did not think #they could put me lower than how i felt about dai #and somehow they managed it #fanon can really only take you so far when the writers are telling you don't bother to care past this one game #i can't imagine it's the dev's fault and must be a consequence of the hell production cycle + ea meddling #but it's a hard pill to swallow when they'll dress it up like a return to form for your money only to tell you actually no <3 #i'll have more feelings later i'm sure since this is such a blow to me but here's this ramble vent whatever thrown into the tags #dragon age #da4 #dragon age critical #da4 spoilers #da4 spoiler

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thedevilsrain · 1 year ago

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chef's kiss

the big noses remain one of my favorite aspects of yasuko aoike's art and i very much love how they've remained over the years

#i dont want to be That Guy generalizing a gargantuan cultural sector of a country im literally an entire world from #but just looking at recent popular manga; stuff that came out 30+ years after eroica #even those eith more distinct art styles like it #the noses are just so small. or nowhere like this #so yes im very fond of my little manga with my tall androgynous men and their big noses. kisses #led zeppelin shoujo yaoi manga tag #also mostly dorian because hes my favorite character lol

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theheraldsrest · 10 months ago

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~How would the companions/advisors/LIs react to the Inquisitor being turned into a cat by apostates, and suddenly being in danger from aggressive nobles with allergies and refugees looking to ‘fortify’ their next meal. Meanwhile, the Inquisitor’s totally nonchalant and just living the best life~

“Companions (+Romanced) reacting to Inquisitor turned into a Cat”

God bless all of you. I love you all. This request kept making me giggle, thank you, @sacredpigeon, for this thought! (I think the void ate this ask, but i had it saved in my document, so all good!) Now we go through who’s a cat person and who’s not.

-Lord Lex

Cullen

-The commander of the Inquisition should be calm and complete in any situation. Not this situation though, my man is panicking. What does he do?! You’re a cat! What kind of magic is this?! How do you reverse this?! He holds you under your armpits and holds you out, trying to figure out what to do. Goes to all of the magic users and begs them for help. If romanced, he tries to see if you're still in there, asking for any sign. If given a sign, it gives him a bit of comfort though he still doesn’t know what to do with you. Promises to fix this, awkwardly patting your head and yelling at anyone who goes too close to you.

(Please picture a poor soldier being yelled at not to get too close to the Inquisitor and all they see is some cat walking around.)

Josephine

-Josey is trying so hard not to gush over this beautiful cat that the companions brought back-wait, it’s who now. See, it’s a little hard to accept that the cat in front of her is the Inquisitor when there’s literally just a cat in front of her. Do anything to prove it’s you and she’ll be convinced, even if it’s a bit skeptical. She’s trying so hard to treat it like a serious situation, but she really can’t when you’re at the war table and there’s just a cat there with a serious face. If romanced, she’s adoring you, petting and kissing you, telling you how pretty/handsome you are. Keeps you close so that no one bothers you while trying her best to get someone to reverse it.

Leliana

-Don’t laugh, don’t laugh, don’t laugh, don’t laugh, don’t- Ok but this is really funny. Leliana is trying so hard to keep a straight face while the others explain what happened to you. She’ll look you dead in the eye, and tell you to nod your head or shake your head before asking you several questions. If you’re still conscious and answer properly, you’ll notice a big smile growing on her face that she is failing to hide. She promises through her laughter that she’ll help find someone to fix it. Later asks if you can understand what her ravens can say.

Vivienne

-Just acting really annoyed. On the opposite side of the cat-loving spectrum, so she’s trying to hide her dislike for the small felines while still addressing you as if nothing happened. Madam Vivienne will not treat you any differently and, as such, will expect the same from you. If you’re more cat conscious than your own, she’ll pass the responsibility onto someone who loves cats, specifically Dorian. You have witnessed both having a conversation about you, Dorian calling you little baby while Vivienne calls you menace or beasty.

Varric

-This has to be one of the goofiest things he’s ever seen and yet no one would believe him if he told this story. Hell, half his stories that are true no one believes. He’s split on treating you like the Inquisitor still or treating you like a cat. Settles on a middle, calling you the “Inquisipurr”. Tries different things to see if you still have your consciousness or if you’re just a cat at the moment. Blink once for yes and blink twice for no. Hiss if you thin Cassandra should be nicer.

Cole

-Number one cat translator. Sort of. He can convey what you’re thinking, especially if you keep your mind. Doesn’t even mind it and still treats you like his friend. But most find it funny when he adds in a random meow because that’s how your mind is currently. Also with the occasional “The Inquisitor wants your attention” and then pointing down at the cat. It's the Cullen thing, but more people are obligated to think that that's just how Cole is instead of thinking he's a lunatic.

Solas

-Honestly? This is some bewildering magic, and he’s pretty sure the caster might have messed up. He’ll admit that it’s adorable, but he’d rather make sure you're safe before anything else. Solas will be one of the main people trying to look for a way to turn you back while also keeping an eye on you. Constantly goes between treating you like a cat and petting you before remembering that this cat is the Inquisitor and acting like nothing happened. If romanced, he tries to get you to follow him so that he can keep an eye on you. Or else, just holds you wherever he goes, holding you away from others when they talk to him.

Cassandra

-Ok, don’t panic. Or freeze. Both would be bad. Cassandra does both. She’s just…so confused and worried but what does she do about it? She tries to corral you to safety, afraid she or someone or something might hurt you. Then immediately goes to find a magic user and get them to figure out how to fix you. She’ll stay by your side the whole time. If romanced, she’ll put you on eye level and talk to you to calm you down, even if you don’t understand or look more calm than she feels right now. Cassandra promises to care for you as long as it takes to turn you back.

The Iron Bull

-What the fuck. WHAT THE FUCK. You’re so small and weird and WHAT. What does he do?! Bull’s trying to keep an eye on you while also trying to get someone to help you that knows what you’re dealing with. If you try to nudge up against him or climb him, he just tries to relax as much as possible, making sure you’re not gonna hurt yourself while an animal. If romanced, he just yoinks you up by the scruff of your neck and onto his shoulder, keeping a hand over you while looking for one of your magical companions.

Dorian

-You know those pet owners you just gasp and say “Look at you!” and pick up their cat real gently like just to hold them close to their chest while petting them? Dorian. He’s treating you like an actual cat while smiling the whole time, both because it’s funny and I do think he loves cats. Even risking cat hair on his outfit and notes. If romanced, he’ll even bring you up to look him in the eye while baby-praising you. “You are stunning, yes you are.” Doesn’t know if you’re fully conscious or not, but has to make sure you know he loves you no matter what.

Sera

-This is so funny and yet so cursed at the same time. She, too, is panicking while laughing at how stupid this is. What in the absolute shit magic is this? She really doesn’t want to touch you in case it’s contagious (Sera, that’s not how magic works) so it’s even funnier seeing her dance around away from you, yelling at you to stop it. If romanced, Sera makes a long scratching stick to pat you on the head and show you affection. She loves you but not risking it.

Blackwall

-Definition of panicked and protective. Whether you’re in a romance with Blackwall or not, he’s trying to hold on to you, his arms carefully around you and close to him. He can’t lose you if you’re close to him. Also, he’s used to nails of animals digging into him. Though if you are in a relationship and people are currently trying to fix your situation, some do spot him cuddling you, scratching your ears and kissing your head, assuring you that you’ll be fine.

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blarfkey · 1 month ago

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My next fic for @equalopportunitysolas week! This time I got to write for Varric/Solas for the first time. I've always been a bit intrigued by them and now I definitely want more. Hopefully Veilguard will have a lot of opportunity to explore their friendship/situationship lol.

Rating: PG

One nights insomnia leads Solas to find solace in the last person he expected.

Ever since he awoke from Uthenera, Solas has been plagued by constant reminders of the damage he has wrought, but none so worse than the Exalted Plains. Even the name leaves an acrid taste in his mouth, so horrifically ironic that even Dorian points out the hypocrisy and Cassandra stays mercifully quiet.

To see such remnants of his home scattered around veil thin battlefields and tombs and one small struggling Dalish tribe makes his stomach churn and sleep proves fitful and sometimes impossible.

One night, with his heart racing and the walls of his tent feels suffocating, he slips out to the fire, even though he has already completed his watch.

Only Varric remains, scribbling something in a small, leather bound journal close to the fire. He spares Solas a glance before returning to his work.

“Can’t sleep, Chuckles? I thought that was your specialty.”

“Every artist struggles with their craft,” Solas says dryly.

“Tell me about it,” Varric mutters.

He ignores Solas in favor of more scribbling and Solas grows curious, despite himself. Never has he had the inclination to actually read any of Varric’s crime serials or the romance that had so enchanted Cassandra. But Varric also never passed an opportunity to tease Solas or coax him into a ridiculous conversation or tell a story and this blatant avoidance is . . .

Well Solas is not going to say insulting because Varric’s attention irritates him and he’s grateful that something else occupies the dwarf’s focus that isn’t a bald joke.

Yes.