#anwen hawke

[hahren-tabris]

Since the latest DA news got me in the mood again, I decided to revisit my old design for Anwen Hawke's Tarot card 🦅💗

[hiddenwashington]

@drvcxrys said : Hi! I would like to reserve Needy from Jennifer's body pls and ask for some fc suggestions, thank you!

needy lesnicki is reserved for swan until 3/30 at 3:08pm est ! for fcs , maybe : grace van dien , erin kellyman , bella maclean , hunter schafer , leah lewis , hailee steinfeld , maya hawke , havana rose liu , anwen o'driscoll , sophie wilde , kathryn newton , or olivia scott welch !

[tiadres]

(Sent again, I just realized I used a symbol in the last one that makes tumblr eat asks hahah ignore if you got this already!) Veilguard questions: 1, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 13, 20!

Hi, thank you for asking! c:

1. What was the first Dragon Age game you played?

Dragon Age Origins! So started from the very beginning ^^ I learned about Dragon Age from a friend maybe 6-7 years ago and starting from the first game seemed logical when jumping into a new series.

4. What does your worldstate look like going into DAV?

Summarizing some of the main plot points from each game:

- Warden, Tiadres Amell, is a human mage and alive & well

- Romanced Alistair, who is the King of Ferelden. Tia is his mistress.

- Recruited all companions (base game and DLC) and they are alive & well

- ... except for Loghain, who was executed at the Landsmeet

- Helped Redcliffe fight, Connor is alive and not possessed

- Supported mages, did not agree to Cullen's "request" (very diplomatically worded in the Keep, considering what he was suggesting asjfgj) and Irving is alive and well.

- Brokered peace between the elves and the werewolves

- Defeated Branka, Bhelen is the King of Orzammar. Dagna left to study and thus was the Arcanist in DAI.

- Found the Urn of Sacred Ashes, did not defile it

- Tia agreed to Morrigan's suggestion and convinced Alistair to go along with it, and thus Alistair had old god baby with Morrigan.

- ... and thanks to that dark ritual, Tia defeated the Archdemon without perishing herself.

- Protected both Amaranthine and Vigil's Keep

- Killed the Architect

- Champion, Cadriel Hawke, is a mage and alive & well

- She romanced Anders, who is also very much alive & well

- Recruited and befriended all companions, even Sebastian although Cadriel didn't really understand why he'd wanna hang out with the rest of the gang 😂. Everyone is also alive and well, except maybe Sebastian who is alive but maybe not so well or at least not happy with how things turned out. Also everyone besides him stayed with Cadriel.

- Bethany died in the prologue 😔

- Carver became a Grey Warden, Isabela returned with the tome and was not given to the Arishok, Aveline married Donnic, Merrill did not destroy the Eluvian and her clan is alive, helped Tallis.

- Killed the Arishok in duel

- Approved of Anders' actions at the chantry

- Sided with the mages

- In Legacy, sided with Larius and found Malcom's will

- The Inquisitor, Anwen Lavellan, is an elf mage and alive & well.

- She romanced Josephine (and Harding, although Dragon Age Keep does not acknowledge that at all).

- Recruited and befriended all companions

- ... except it's a bit more complicated with Vivienne. They started with very low approval as they saw the mage matters from two very different points of view, but eventually got along much better. Anwen gave Vivienne the real snowy wyvern heart, but as her approval apparently never got quite high enough, there's this funny thing in the Keep where I had to manually assign them to friends because the Keep thought that since they were never friends, Inky also didn't give her the real heart. So I fixed it by selecting the friend and the real heart tiles.

- Dorian reconciled with his father and left to Tevinter to change things, Blackwall left prison as Grey Warden, Iron Bull is Tal-Vashot, Cassandra discovered the book and rebuilt the Seekers, Sera killed Hammond, Solas freed his friend, Cole is more spirit, Varric tracked the red lyrium source.

- Leliana was inspired, encouraged Cullen to stop taking lyrium, did favors for Du Paraquettes to solve Josephine's problem

- Samson was Anwen's nemesis (this is funny in the sense that I never felt like he was some big nemesis for my character, then I saw the tile in the Keep and was like whaat ^^") More than that I felt sorry for him, it would have actually been interesting from story point of view to have him be the Commander of Inquisition's forces instead of Cullen. Learned about Samson's armor and destroyed it.

- Anwen denied being chosen by Andraste, declared for order and stability, was a recruiting judge

- Went to Redcliffe and allied with the mages

- Grey Wardens rebuilt, Stroud was killed in the Fade

- Celene and Briala reconciled, Florianne is alive

- Anwen drank from the well, respected the temple traditions and allied with the guardians.

- Leliana became Divine Victoria

- Sutherland's company was successful

- Did the exploration stuff

- Discovered and met Ameridan, shared the truth

- The dragon was slain, earned legend-mark from the Avvar

- In Descent, saved the mines and stopped earthquakes

- Bull remained loyal, disbanded the Inquisitioon, stop Solas at all costs

6. Do you have your Rook(s) planned out to any degree? If so, would you share some details or ideas you have?

I actually just talked about that in here! So I have a pretty solid plan forming for my Rook, Konstantin, who will be a mage (I really love playing mages ^^"), necromancer (I think the specialization is called "Death Caller" or something?) and a Grey Warden, and he will romance Harding. I'm certain that I will create more Rooks too (and hc them to be companions to my canon Rook, like I've done with many other Dragon Age ocs who are companions to my canon heroes even though I've also played the games as them) but I don't yet have any specific ideas regarding them.

7. Which character from the previous games or other media are you most hoping will make an appearance in DAV?

The Inquisitor is confirmed so I'm looking forward to that. Josephine would be great especially since Anwen romanced her, maybe we could get some dialogue about how they're doing and see them interact with each other. Merrill would be cool especially since she would certainly have a lot to say about the situation at hand, she could even be a good advisor on Eluvians and Elven lore. Maevaris Tilani, Zevran, Fenris, Krem, Bodhain and Sandal also come to mind, and many others certainly too.

8. What faction are you most excited to learn about?

I really love Grey Wardens but since they've been much involved in every game, I'm not sure how much new we're going to learn about them. Probably mostly something about what's been going on in Weisshaupt recently. Antivan Crows I'd really love to learn more about, and the Mourn Watch. And the Veil Jumpers seem really exciting as well!

9. Which romance, if any, do you plan to pursue first?

Harding! When we first saw reveals about the companions I was all heart-eyes at Taash (and still am, I am weak for big, strong ladies) but when I heard that Harding is in DAV and a full companion and romance option, I knew I'm going to pursue her first. My inky has a non-monogamous arrangement where she's in a relationship with Josie but also dating Harding more casually, so Harding is available for Rook even though she has a pre-existing love interest.

10. Which location are you most excited/hoping to explore in-game?

Based on the trailer, Minrathous seems very exciting. I actually like that they went for a more futuristic style with it because it is a city ruled by mages with a sense for dramatism, so of course it's gonna be like from a different world. I'm also excited for Arlathan forest, I'm expecting it's going to be a more classic fantasy location with bunch of magical stuff.

13. What's one thing you've seen confirmed so far that you're a fan of?

Harding obviously, and the rest of the companions seem very cool too and I love that they're romanceable (and pansexual too, which gives more freedom in designing characters to romance them). I know this is already another thing, but the character creator sounds amazing too and like a huge upgrade from DAI. I love that there will be an option to be non-binary, and that character creator options aren't limited to gender. Sounds like we'll have a lot freedom in making our characters, which is awesome.

20. Post a picture of gif that conveys your current level of excitement for Dragon Age: The Veilguard!

[sun-marie]

YES i love Taash and Muireann tracking down whatever the hell is going on with the Devouring Storm, and Taash as an Adaari general is an inspired choice 👌🏻

Mine's also going to be under a cut bc this got long 😅 (and for post-game spoilers)

I think for Lydia, while she (and the rest of the Veilguard) stay in the Lighthouse to defend the Crossroads, when she's not doing that, she, along with Neve and Lucanis, are really involved in the reconstruction of Minrathous, and beyond that working with Archon Pavus for larger Tevinter Reformation. As First Talon, Lucanis's contracts are all oh-so-conveniently for corrupt slave-owning Magisters in and around Minrathous, but he does have to stay at the Villa every once in a while for extended periods of time. Sometimes Lydia goes with him, but sometimes the tension between her and Caterina is too much and she can't. In those cases, they separate until he gets back :(

When she's not in Minrathrous, Lydia also helps Bellara and Davrin figure out Arlathan forest, and specifically helps Bellara retrieve dangerous artifacts from unstable Elven Ruins (while picking up anything shiny and culturally insignificant along the way <3). Isabela and Rowan also occasionally rope her into small seafaring treasure hunts with Taash, who I do also think has made the Devouring Storm their MO. Illario starts spending a lot more time at the Lighthouse with the gang, he and Lucanis make up and I think he (sort of) fills Harding's position as the eighth member of the Veilguard. Lydia grows to genuinely care about Illario too and so she's fine with this arrangement.

At some point, Lydia gets Lucanis a baby wyvern he names "Dolce" (thank you @iisadiya for the name suggestion <3) who he trains to help him with his assassinations. Two or three years after the events of the game, they get engaged, which prompts Caterina to try and have Lydia assassinated. This is the last straw for Lucanis, who officially resigns as First Talon and hands the position over to Teia, finally breaking free of the Crows and Caterina to become a Freelance assassin.

They get married (<3) and Lucanis (and Spite), Lydia, and Dolce start to gain a reputation in Tevinter for being this shadowy force that frees slaves and will Get You if you're corrupt, a la the Blue Wraith or a continuation of Lucanis's Demon of Vyrantium persona. They work a lot with Neve and the Threads to get their information, and each day Minrathous starts to improve just a little more, it's citizens none the wiser on exactly how. Lydia starts to take more and more pride in her elven and tevinter heritage, as well as her rivaini culture, and dedicates her life to moving forward and making the world better a better place. whatever it takes

(Also at some point in all of this, the gang find Anwen Hawke's spirit wandering the fade, separated from her body but not passed on to the afterlife, and after getting help from Isabela they find her Original Body and bring her back, some 10 odd years after her "death". She and Fenris reunite and it's A Lot, but ultimately good 🥲 )

guys since we're never going to find out what happens after veilguard tell me what your rooks get up to, if you say it it's canon now (tiny spoilers under the cut)

for my world state muireann and taash go spend some time with muireann's dad, start working for the lords again and go full autism mode about the devouring storm. after a lot of effort, taash successfully rallies the qun and some returning antaam, and becomes somewhat of a general alongside some other adaari. they do not like being in a leadership role but muireann is a good support for them. muireann calls in favours with archon dorian and the rivaini navy (who have let bygones be bygones about the dead noble because what she did at tearstone more than makes up for it). they also recruit the veilguard team back so they have big griffons, whatever is left of the wardens, bellara as a lead researcher, the crows, etc. aboard the wave sweeper (muireann's ship) they lead their navy across the sea to face the devouring storm. idk what the devouring storm is but i'll make something up if they don't tell us. anyway they win and spend the rest of their days exploring and adventuring, the end

[caffeine-cowboy]

I was tagged by the lovely @daydreamingdragonage to make my OCs on this picrew so I did! I think uhhh everybody that I would tag has already done this but just d o  i t if you want to bc it’s fun!

Here we have 

1) Rionna Mahariel, Hero of Ferelden (sweet gal) 

2) Corenne Andras, Warden Commander (not here for your shit)

3) Anwen Hawke, Champion of Kirkwall (cheeky but also super sincere)

4) Tahira Adaar, Inquisitor (the most difficult to accomplish, since she’s actually a huge qunari with grey skin and horns but. we did our best!)

[eulalia-plays]

Someone is in trouble for playing with blood magic and demons~

[caffeine-cowboy]

I made my gal! 😍 

Dragon Age II: Custom Hawke Picrew!

70 hours later, I’m done! Done-ish. Might add some things. I hope you are able to get something close to your canon Hawke :D Let me know if there are any big issues! Feel free to tag me so I can see!!

Have fun!

[hahren-tabris]

My OCs :3

Main-

Heroes of Ferelden: Neve Tabris (romancing Alistair) and Aelon Mahariel (romancing Morrigan). Dual Warden Worldstate

Champion of Kirkwall: Anwen Hawke (romancing Fenris)

Inquisitor: James Trevelyan (romancing Cassandra)

Secondary OCs-

Arlessa of Amaranthine: Katherine Cousland (romancing Ser Gilmore)

Arcane Advisor to the Inquisition: Aveline "Ava" Trevelyan

Her Pupils: Lucas Amell and Madolyn Surana

Anders' Bodyguard: Hazel Ward (romancing Anders)

If I have drawn art of them, they'll be tagged as their name! (so "Anwen Hawke" or "Ava Trevelyan")

You can also learn more about them in this ancient twitter thread I made <3

[sun-marie]

rookanis is like fenhawke if, somehow, both parties were more mature about it and went through twice as much punishment in the story

[harvcrd]

WANTED

Audrey Hawk busca a su hermana menor.

Descripción del personaje: Anwen Hawk, 21 años, adoptada (igual que el resto de los hermanos), estudios a elegir por user…

Descripción de la relación: extremadamente positiva, son íntimas.

Sugerencias de faceclaims: China Anne McClain, Madison Pettis, Jasmine Tookes, Sara Sampaio… ( latina o poc )

Contactar a: @lcdyhcwk

[hiddenwashington]

anonymous said : What are some fc suggestions for Phoebe Spengler?

maybe : anwen o'driscoll , hailee steinfeld , kaitlyn dever , auli'i cravalho , sophie wilde , maya hawke , belissa escobedo , antonia gentry , kiernan shipka , gideon adlon , blu hunt , or alice pagani !

[tiadres]

Here we go again

I’ve recently made some changes to my canon worldstate - or rather, I’ve decided upon just one world instead of two like I used to have, combining the characters and elements from those that I love the most. And of course I am replaying the series that way! What makes it all even better is that now I have an actual PC that can run all the games smoothly, unlike my poor old laptop which struggled greatly whenever I had two mages in party at the same time in DAI, not to even mention the whole Trespasser ^^” 

I’ve always had a very good idea about my Amell’s personality and story, and the only change I’m making for her now is that while I previously had her and Alistair both stay as Wardens, I’ve decided that instead she’ll arrange for him to be king and keep her as his mistress. This is because A.) I do like Alistair as king B.) This way I won’t end up with having to choose between Ali and Hawke in the Fade, because that is simply an impossible choice for me to make </3

For Hawke I am probably going to change her class to mage instead of rogue like she originally was, since I just love mages and I think it would add nicely to her relationship with Anders. Lavellan is going to have a change of LI; previously she romanced Cullen but I’ve since started to feel like that’s not quite right, and after consideration I’m fairly certain I’m gonna pair her up with Lace! Anwen and Lace would make such an amazing and cute couple, and I am willing to go for that even though we still do not have that “romanced Harding”-tile in Keep >__<

So anyway, I’m excited and full of OC feels :3 

[storywars-r]

Riverbed

(image from League of Legends)

Chapter 1 by R

"Do not," mother repeats for the utmost time, "Do not dangle your feet in the water. Who knows what lurks under there. Keep your toes on the shore at all times."

I nod. I always nod, but as always I never listen. She disapproves of me enough, scurrying down here to the basest floor, as if somehow the dirt she lives so high above makes those below lower in a more than physical sense.

My other siblings climb high to see the sky and the clouds and the stars, and she warns them about falling. Me, I balance on the stone of the lowest floor and dip my ankles in the murky water, begging something to attack.

Whatever lives in the water never attacks me. I've found that very little chooses to do so.

I dive in to the water, careful that I'm out of sight of the few boats which travel this way down and open up my eyes. It's hard to see, and everything is dark and wavery, but then I open up my eyes again and it gets clearer. Day-eyes do not work in water, but night-eyes give some sight.

There are sharks that swim upstream, but none of them attack me. I do not know why, but everything avoids me as if I have the plague. People do it, less so, shying away from my presence with slight flinches and adjustment, but animals are less reserved in their snubs.

I sit down on the floor of the river and stare up at the sky, at the glimmering faint lights of the city above. There is no sound but that faint rushing, but soon enough I push myself back up, low on air.

That's when I heard the alarm, as I pushed out of the water and up in to the air, and the city was alive where it had been slow and lazy. The alarm was not one that I had heard before, but I knew instantly that it was trouble.

Chapter 2 by yarden zamir ([Nep]PandaBoy444)

There were only three types of alarms in the under-city.

One was a simple bell ring, that hollowed through the city, the alarm warned of collectors, people from the light-city, coming to collect slaves.

Every month, they would come and take one or two young boys or girls to do with as they please, but this alarm was not the one shouting and howling its presence in the cold night air, it was a different one.

Another type was the sound of a horn, a big, loud, ear wrenching horn, that tore through the cities under streets, waving and echoing off the walls around.

But this one wasn't it either, it was not the sound that was running now, sucking hope from its listeners and swallowing the chatter and laughter of the people around.

This alarm, this one was different, it only meant one thing, one terrible thing, it echoed through my head, again and again, telling me the truth I didn't want to hear.

I looked up, and there, in the silent street above, I saw it.

Chapter 3 by Fiernen

It was a Peryton. I had heard of the creatures before. My mother used to tell me and my siblings stories about mythical creatures like the Peryton.

It had the head, chest, and forelegs of a stag. It's hindquarters, back legs, tail, and wings were that of an hawk. I knew that the creature itself was not dangerous. Perytons had always been peaceful in the stories. They always came to warn people when something bad was coming. When you saw one, it meant that terrible things were about to descend upon you. Specifically, witches.

I heard the sounds of the terrible chanting, the screams, and the crashes. I stumbled backwards as I heard the chanting and the screams coming closer.

"Hey, little human! Come here and I'll help you get away from the witches!"

I whirled towards around to see the speaker. I blinked in surprise when I saw it, floating in the murky water.

It was a girl. A young girl, probably fourteen or so. About my age. But she didn't look like me at all. Her hair was a strange silver colour. Not like the hair of an elder, like actual polished silver. Her pale skin had a bluish tint to it. That alone was enough to make me stare in astonishment, but the strangest sight had yet to emerge.

"Well? Come on, get into the water," the girl insisted. "I mean, if you want to stay and get eaten by witches, you can. It's just that that is not at nice way to go."

"W-who are you?" I stammered. The girl groaned.

"If you must hear my name before you'll come, then I'm Anwen. Now, I don't need to hear your name until we're both safe. So get in the water already!" Anwen pushed off from the wall and swam backwards, staring up at me expectantly. That's when I saw it.

A tail. A long, flashing silver tail. Each small scale shone in the darkness like the light of the moon and stars was trapped in it. The tail was strong and lithe. I gaped at it, remembering another of my mother's tales.

"Y-you're a mermaid?!"

Anwen rolled her eyes. "No, I'm a merauga, more commonly known as mer. A girl mer could strictly speaking be a mer-maid, but my species is merauga, thank you very much."

I just blinked.

She sighed. "Get in the water, please."

I did it. I was still kind of in shock from seeing a Peryton, hearing the witches, and meeting a mermai- I mean, merauga.

Once we were both underwater, Anwen handed me a strange little glowing pearl. I raised my eyebrows at her. She rolled her eyes again.

"You swallow it, silly. It lets you breathe and speak underwater."

I eyed the pearl distrustfully, but finally gave in and swallowed it. The effect was immediate. The water felt different around me, like air, but much better. I loved it. I had always loved the water, and now I finally had to the chance to live in it easily.

I looked at Anwen. Her frank gaze did not waver when she looked at me. She didn't flinch away or look disgusted. She wasn't like the humans and creatures that I had known before. She was different.

"This is amazing!" I shouted over to her. She shook her head sadly.

"No, what would be amazing would be to be able to go up into the air and climb high into the sky. To see the stars without the water clouding them, to feel the wind in your hair, that would be amazing."

I could see the longing in her eyes as she looked up through the water.

"I can't breathe up in the air for more than thirty seconds. But I've always wanted to live up in the air." Anwen sighed sadly. Then her eyes widened as she looked up into the air again.

"SWIM!"

Chapter 4 by Claire

I did, listening to the evil cackles of witches in the distance. I thought I was a fast swimmer, but Anwen swam faster than anyone I had ever seen before, not that I have seen many people swim.

People are so afraid of what creatures might be lurking in the water, never experiencing the exhilarating feeling of jumping into the blue.

As we race through the cool water, I contemplated what life would be like down here. I wondered how many other merauga there were and if I would be able to meet them.

I was so deep in thought that I almost ran into Anwen. She floated, staring up at the sky through the murky water, slightly cocking her head as if listening to a conversation. I had no idea how she could hear that far, but I did not attempt to interrupt her.

"The witches are heading west. We'll travel east. My people have a small city over that way, but it is about an hour or so away."

"Wait what about my family?" I asked.

She stared at me for a second, "We cannot help them, but they may have found another way to safety."

"Oh... ," I answered quietly, reality sinking in.

Before I could contemplate what that might mean for my family and me, a large shadow suddenly passed over the water.

Chapter 5 by Sinbad the Sailor

"Swim down!" She says, swimming towards an unusually shaped cave.

The descent was like nothing I've ever felt before. Exhilarating. It seemed as if the further I went down the more connected to the river I was. I stopped.

"Why are you bringing me here?" I demanded. Anwen lifted her hand and a current pulled me closer to her- too strong for me to swim away. "What are you doing?!"

"I'm sorry mortal. I have to do this." She pulled me through the cave and locked hands with me.

Anwen's silver tail slowly morphed into feet equipped with silver boots that laced all the way up her calf. The bluish tint of her skin came to life and became a soft tan.

My heart fluttered and my body became cold, legs changing into a tail. My stomach clenched and the pearl I had once swallowed came out. Anwen swiped the pearl and swam away, still, with and incredible speed.

She switched places with me. I'm a Merauga. Alone in the Riverbed.

Chapter 6 by Fiernen

I desperately flipped around my blue-green tail. It felt so strange. But despite that fact that I didn't really know how to swim with a tail, I found that I was rocketing through the water faster then I ever could have swum with feet.

I had no idea where to go know or what to do, so I did the only thing that made sense to my confused brain. I went to the edge of the river. I swam for a little while before I found a place where I could hoist myself up. I had only just left the water when I noticed that someone was sitting there, and quickly ducked back into the water again.

"You're a merauga now. You can't breathe in the air, remember?" Anwen muttered. I stared up at her in horror and anger.

"You! You changed me into a merauga and left me alone in the river! I'm going to kill you!" I yelled, furious at her.

"Fine." Anwen sniffled. "Go ahead. I don't know if I want to live anyway."

That made me pause.

"Why not?...." I asked nervously.

"Because the only reason I did that to you was because it was my first chance to leave that oppressive water and live up in this beautiful air! And it is amazing, even better than I imagined it to be. But the people up here are cruel and uncaring! I found some humans hiding and thought that I could join them."

Anwen held out her forearms for me to see. I gasped. They were black and blue, with tiny cuts oozing blood. It was only then that I noticed her face was also bruised and bloody. Anwen sniffed again.

"They thought I was a monster because I looked different. My silver hair, my bluish skin, they thought that I was a demon. So they beat me up and through me from their hiding place." She looked down at me and whispered, "I'd like to be a merauga again. Can we be friends? I am really sorry."

I almost told her that no, I was still mad at her and didn't care, but that would be a lie. I never lie. So I told her the truth.

"You saved me from the witches, and you didn't leave me alone in the river for too long. So, do we switch places again?" I suddenly found that I kind of wanted to stay as a merauga. It would be so much easier to live in the river if I had a tail and could breathe underwater without a pearl.

Anwen must have seen my wish on my face, because she smiled suddenly. "We don't have to switch. If you want to stay a merauga, I can turn into one easily enough. I just need a scale from your tail."

I pulled on off, wincing. It hurt to rip those out! Anwen grinned from ear to ear and began to rub the scale down her legs. A silver glow slowly built up until there was a blinding flash.

Anwen yelled and jumped into the water again. I looked at her and saw that her tail was back. She grinned at me again and spun around in the water.

"I never thought I'd miss the water if I could get into the air, but I did! I still wish I could live in the air, but maybe I'll have to be contented with who I am." Anwen gestured for me to follow her and we set off down the river.

It was about a half an hour later that I saw something dark coming through the water towards us very fast.

"What is that?" I asked Anwen. "It doesn't look like any creature I've seen in the river before."

Anwen looked where I was pointing. Her eyes grew wide with fear. She screamed in terror and grabbed my hand, desperately pulling me away from the oncoming monster.

Chapter 7 by Bean

She pulled me down so far it became dark. I could see the cave she pulled me into earlier. Anwen yanked me into the cave. It was lighter now.

"Do not make a sound," Anwen whispered. I could see she was scared.

I looked out of the cave to see what it was. I couldn't see it. Then I did. And I think it saw me too.

"Oh no!" I looked at Anwen worriedly.

She looked over to me and asked, "What happened?"

"Ummm... It saw me and is swimming towards us..." She swam towards me and gasped. The creature was getting closer and closer. "RUN!" I yelled at Anwen. She looked at me confused. "SWIM!!" She smiled a little, but soon her expression became fear again.

"Quickly, there's a little hole over here." I followed Anwen to an exit. "Come! You must follow me. Try to keep up."

We swam out of the cave and continued threw the darkness. I felt like I was flying. The water around me, pushing me through the ocean. I turned on my back and saw the creature above us.

"Anwen! Look UP!!!" I grabbed her, and she looked at the deadly animal swimming in circles above us.

"Oh no! When they're swimming in circles that means-" She was too late to warn me.

The creature zoomed downward, straight into me. It was like being kicked in the gut, but worse. I was being pushed down... down... all the way to the bottom of the sea. I tried to breath, but found myself unable to take in air, or whatever I was breathing. The creature had me pinned. When I looked to see a closer look of it, the creature looked like a handsome boy. That's when it happened. The most unexpected thing ever. I couldn't believe it. He, or the creature, looked at me gasping for air, and took me to the surface. I had become a human again. The creature looked kind. This made me very confused.

"You are not like the other?" The creature asked. I could tell this wasn't their language.

"No... I'm human... What are you? She was afraid of you." I was breathing air like I'd never before.

"I'm a fishman! We are afraid of meragua's. They be friends, then kill you."

"Well..." I was interrupted by a screeching noise. Like a scream but more high pitched.

Anwen came zooming from underwater and attacked me. Her face looked different. It look all scrunched and evil. She grabbed me and took me back into the water.

I squirmed, and tried to escape but couldn't.

This must be the end. Until it came! Swimming down to save me...

Chapter 8 by Fiernen

The fishman was coming quickly, but it was not as fast as Anwen. The merauga turned me around to look at me, and I saw shock on her face as it changed back into what she normally looked like.

"What? You?! But-"

Anwen was cut off as the fishman threw a strange barbed spear towards her through the water. It sliced just past me with perfect aim and lodged itself into the merauga's stomach.

Anwen released me. She yanked the spear out. Blood plumed through the water like the tentacles of a crimson octopus. She slowly sank to the bottom of the river, clutching her wound. Her eyes were squeezed tightly shut.

The fishman grabbed my arm and started to pull me away, but I shook his arm off. I couldn't tear my gaze away from the silvery figure lying on the silt and stones at the bottom of the river. I started to feel my breath running out, though.

I still refused to go back up. I needed to see Anwen, just for closure. I started swimming down. The fishman gave an exasperated noise and handed me a pearl similar to the one that Anwen had given me, though this one had a greenish tint to it. I hastily swallowed it and was able to breathe again.

I quickly swam down to the merauga lying on the riverbed. She looked back up at me, tears streaming down her face. She looked so pitiful, lying there spread-eagled in the silt. Her face was bruised and bloodied and blood still floated up through the water from the wound on her stomach. She didn't look dangerous anymore.

But I still saw a monster.

I came right up close to her. I could sense the fishman hovering nervously a ways away, but he was too afraid of Anwen to come any closer.

I shook my head. "What kind of a monster are you?"

Anwen looked away. Then she looked back, a pained expression on her face.

"Meraugas always kill humans. I never understood it. I swear, I wasn't going to hurt you. I was always an outcast among my people. They said I was a fool for wanting to live in the air. They shunned me. I thought that maybe a human would make a better friend. And I could never have sat there and let you get eaten by witches."

A different me would have believed and forgiven her. But she had tricked me once before, and I knew better than to believe her now.

"You attacked me, Anwen. You looked like a monster. I can't keep on trusting you when you keep on betraying me."

Fresh tears rolled down the merauga's cheeks. I noted that the tears must be different than human tears if they could look like normal tears while underwater. Anwen answered with a quavering voice.

"I thought that I was grabbing the fishman. I wouldn't have attacked you. I still want to be your friend. The fishmen are the merauga's enemies. They-"

Anwen stopped talking and clutched her wound, curling into a tight little ball and trembling violently. After her fit had subsided, she resumed talking.

"They do help humans that the meraugas attack, but they also kill the meraugas." She lowered her voice, glancing warily at the fishman. "I hear that they also eat the meraugas they catch. When I die, don't let him eat me, please."

Despite my angry and distrust, I couldn't help but feel scared. "No one said that you were going to die, Anwen."

"But I am. Also, I know that you hate me, and you have every right to, but please, can I ask you a favour?" I could tell that she was having more trouble breathing. I could see her pulse from the way the blood came out of the wound, and it was faltering and slowing down. She had lost a lot of blood.

I swallowed, trying to get the words out. Despite everything, I felt tears pricking my eyes. "Sure Anwen, sure. You can ask me a favour."

It took Anwen a moment to get up the energy to answer. Finally she managed to get the stuttering words out.

"Once I'm d-dead, don't leave m-me here on the r-riverbed. T-take me up into the air. I used to l-love the old stories of v-viking heroes. C-could you give m-me a viking f-funeral? Put me in a l-little boat and set it on f-fire? That w-way my soul can rest between the l-land and w-water, just like I always w-wanted."

I was crying now. I didn't care what she was or what she had done, I didn't want Anwen to die. She was the first person who didn't look at me like I was some kind of filthy animal. She saved my life and was kind in my darkest time. She was young, too. She didn't deserve to die like this.

"P-promise you'll d-do that for m-me?"

"Promise." I choked out.

Anwen was slipping away. Her bright blue eyes looked into my brown ones one last time. Then she slowly raised her eyes to see the stars and moon shining dimly through the water. A slight smile stole across her lips. Then the lights in Anwen's beautiful eyes went out. Her body went limp and still.

I sat there by her body for a long time. Finally I glanced back at the fishman. He was watching me quietly. I turned away again and picked up Anwen's lifeless form. I didn't think that the fishman would actually eat her, but she had asked me to give her a viking funeral. I intended to honour my promise.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

The little craft floated off down the river. I stood watching it. The silent fishman floated in the water next to the edge of the river. I saw one last flash of silver as the moonlight reflected off Anwen's dazzling scales. I loaded the bow I had found nearby. Then I ignited the arrow and shot it over to the boat. My aim was true.

The flaming boat bobbed slowly down the river until it finally sank. When there was nothing left to be seen of it, I knew that it was time to go.

"Goodbye, Anwen." I whispered to the river. Then I turned away, unable to look any longer.

"What are you going to do now?" The fishman asked. "Do you want to come live in the river with my people? A pearl will last as long as you need it to."

I heaved a sigh. "No," I answered. "I think that I've had enough of the river. It's time to go see if my family is still alive and help my town to recover from the witches' attack. I think that it may be time to stop daydreaming and live my life."

As the fishman slipped back into the watery depths, I strode away. I was a very different person than the child that had first followed Anwen into the river. It hadn't been so very long ago. Probably not even an hour, to be honest. And yet I had changed.

I took in a deep breath of air as I looked at the buildings of my home. There were fires to put out, injured people to look after, and dead friends to bury. But I would do what I could to help the people of my home. I walked away and left the dark river behind.

[caffeine-cowboy]

14 and 15 for your darlings?

Thank you! :D Only got one playthrough so far, so answering with my lasses Rionna Mahariel, Anwen Hawke and Tahira Adaar (with bonus Warden Commander Corenne Andras). This got soooo long I’m sorry omg

14 - If they’d been in each other’s places would they have made the same or different choices? And who would they have romanced, if anyone?

I’m a baby who can’t make mean choices in videogames, so the overall trajectory of each game/questline would have been pretty similar I feel - although Corenne was a bit of a tougher, pragmatic departure from my norm (she still saved both Vigil’s Keep and Amaranthine, though), so if Rionna had still been around for Awakening then she might have been a bit nicer about things. But I can’t see any of them siding with Branka or Zathrian, for example, or templars in any instance. Anwen might have had the ritual done if she’d been the warden, because I think she’s slightly less willing to literally die for what she believes in than Rionna. Corenne would’ve been more comfortable in the role of Inquisitor than Tahira because she’s older, more experienced, more used to command; she would’ve probably made some slightly tougher calls in the name of practicality sometimes.

If Rionna was in DA2 she would’ve romanced Merrill and if she’d been in DAI she would’ve romanced Josephine, ‘cause she’s soft. (canon romance: Leliana)

If Anwen was in DAO I don’t think she would’ve romanced Leliana, but (let’s pretend bioware’s limitations don’t exist for a moment) she might have got with Morrigan. If she was in DAI she’d romance Sera. (canon romance: Isabela)

If Tahira was in DAO she might have romanced Leliana, and if she was in DA2 she’d romance Isabela. (canon romance: Josephine) 

15 - Would your protagonists have the same character alignment?

They’re all pretty Neutral Good, I’d say. They care more about helping people than anything else one way or another. Corenne has more Lawful Good leanings because she’s all about making systems work for her and the people, whereas Anwen has slightly more chaotic leanings (it’s the Hawke Energy). I’d say both Rionna and Tahira were just trying to make things not shit in an incredibly difficult situation, breaking the rules or restoring order when needed on a case by case basis so I’ll say they’re neutral good. 

[sun-marie]

3 & 21 for any/all of your DA ships >:3

Hehe, thank you for the ask!!

3. What's something that always reminds them of their partner?

Rhiannon/Alistair - For Alistair, I definitely feel like any flower reminds him of Rhiannon, but especially roses. Not only because of the history they with Alistair wooing her with a rose, but also because she's sharp and dangerous on the outside but soft and fragile on the inside. As for Rhiannon, y'know those food picks that look like little swords they sometimes stick in cheese? Those really remind her of Alistair, especially on occasions when they're separated (she has gone on record getting emotional about it, much to the confusion of everyone around her)

Aelon/Morrigan - Well firstly, Kieran for both of them <3 But individually, every time Aelon eats soup he thinks of her, regardless of the kind or quality of the soup. He'll for real be eating the most gourmet high-quality fanciest soup in existence and still deadpan look at the chef and go "It's good, but not nearly as good as my wife's" (<- Lying. But he thinks it's funny). And for Morrigan, part of the reason she's so interested in elven culture and history is that she keeps coming across Little Things and going "Oh! That's so Aelon :^) <3"

Anwen/Fenris - I like the idea that when Anwen was helping Fenris learn to read, they started with one of her favorite ferelden children's stories, The Tale of Corsa the Jackal, and now that story lives in the same part of her heart as her memories of Fenris. And for Fenris, I think it'd be something really simple like the warmth of a torch or fireplace reminding him of her fire magic and how warm her hands can be

James/Cassandra - basically any small or seemingly frivolous piece of gadgetry reminds Cass of Jamie, from a compass to Dwarven clocks to children's toys. She would groan at him for this, but the sight of great, roaring dragon covered in beautiful and colorful scales does remind James of Cassandra quite a bit. Really, the fact that the Pentaghast's are so widely regarded as Dragon Hunters doesn't even factor into it, he just sees a large and powerful creature with an equal amount of beauty and goes "ahhh just like my wife :)"

Lydia/Lucanis - Lydia has so deeply adopted much of the Lords penchant for wearing the flashiest golden jewelry, so it's little wonder gold reminds Lucanis of her so much. In addition, she is slowly replacing his association of the sea with his time in the ossuary with the image of her <3 In Lydia's case, the smell of coffee is synonymous with Lucanis at this point, especially since she didn't really care for coffee before meeting him and so wasn't around it very often <3

21. Would they be able functionally cook a meal together? What would they make? Would it turn out well?

Rhiannon/Alistair - Yeah, probably. It'd be the lamb and pea stew Alistair mentions in his banter with Leliana. Would it turn out good? ...Define "good". Edible? Yes. Filling? Yup. Tasty? No. They'd have a good time talking while waiting for it all to cook though <3

Aelon/Morrigan - Uhm, nah. not really. Aelon's not really into cooking in general, and Morrigan strikes me as the "If Anyone Tries To Talk To Me While I'm In The Kitchen I'll Kill Them" type ^^;;;

Anwen/Fenris - "Do you wanna get takeout or go out tonight." Honestly if Orianna wasn't there I think these two would just make like. Ham sandwiches for every meal lmao

James/Cassandra - Not a meal, but James does have this cookie recipe from his aunt that he is on an endless journey to improve upon somehow, and I think it's something fun he and Cassandra tinker away at whenever they have downtime. The cookies do usually come out good, but never as good as he remembers his aunt made them (when he was 7. which i'm sure has nothing to do with it)

Lydia/Lucanis - #1 Bonding Experience for these two is cooking together, Lucanis taking the lead and Lydia helping with prep and transferring ingredients. I think I've mentioned this before, but in my mind their favorite meal to make together is Rivaini Couscous Salad, especially with how customizable and experimental it can be <3

Dragon Age OC Shipping Questionnaire

[sun-marie]

Hi!! Sending you good vibes and a hug and a question: what are your DA guys' favourite spots to wind down and relax?

Hello!! Thank you, I appreciate it a lot 🫂💗💗💗 and Oooh, this is a great question 👀

Rhiannon Tabris: I think she spends a lot of her downtime in Alarith's shop, making small talk with him and the various customers and occasionally helping when the line gets long <3

Aelon Mahariel: I think he feels most relaxed anywhere up in the trees of the Brecilian forest, where he can have a bird's-eye view of his surroundings 🌲🌳🌴

Anwen Hawke: The one-and-only ✨HANGED-MAN✨, at one point the staff wonders if she's not staying in Varric's room (which she does actually do a few times in Act 1 and a whole lot in Act 3)

James Trevelyan: His bedroom at Skyhold <3 I think when he gets overwhelmed, he's the type that likes to hideaway and work on his gadgets

Lydia Laidir: Definitely her little cove beneath the Hall of Valor 🌊 Especially after a good swim, and if she can catch the specific way the sun sets on the water~