#brigid trevelyan

[spacetrashpile]

12, 13 (we had to know i was going to ask this one), 16, and 17 for everyoneeeee

:D!!!!

ask me about my DA worldstate!

already answered 17 here, but the rest are under the cut!

12. attitude towards Mabari?

Rhiannon: Argos her good buddy Argos. She loves that dog, he is so special to her. I think she really likes animals in general and as such is also a big fan of mabari.

Katerina: I don't think Katerina cares as much about mabari as like... a group, but she certainly loves her own dog. Shoutout Barkspawn. Never done a thing wrong in his life. I wish I remembered I could bring him into fights more frequently, I should've had him rip Meredith's throat out.

Conall: I don't think Conall had actually ever met a mabari before Cullen picks that one up at the Winter Palace in Trespasser, but he is a big fan of that dog. Not of Cullen but that dog specifically is cool.

Brigid: Something in me is telling me Brigid is kinda afraid of dogs. I do not know what and I do not know why but this is what is happening. But I think she like... respects mabari. In a weird way. If that makes any sense.

Alistair: Alistair is like a dog in his own way. He and mabari have an understanding. This is only mostly a joke but I'm not elaborating beyond that.

13. their thoughts on the Grey Warden order?

Rhiannon: Oof. Complicated. I think she grows to detest just how secretive they are, especially by the end game because of obvious "going to die fighting the archdemon" reasons. But, even though becoming a Grey Warden is what killed her, and what killed so many others before her, I think she's too grateful for the chance to escape the Circle and live her own life, even for just a little while, to truly think too terribly of them.

Katerina: Generally very neutral, pre-Legacy. I think they know about as much about them as any other regular citizen of Thedas, and as such is glad they're around to deal with the Blights when they come (even if they do let Lothering get destroyed, she can understand that Blights are usually a lot worse than that). Post-Legacy, and after finding out how they treated her parents, her opinion definitely sours a bit. But they still take the opportunity to help them get themselves back together after getting out of the Fade, because maybe if they're involved in the rebuilding process, that sort of thing won't happen again. No one tell them that they could've made Carver a warden instead of killing him though. I don't know what this would do to their brain but I do know it's nothing good.

Conall: After Here Lies the Abyss, I think Conall is... mistrustful of the Wardens, to say the least. But he also recognizes that they still serve a purpose in Thedas, that someone needs to be there to fight the Blights, and that unfortunately it needs to be them. But his opinion of them is pretty permanently soured, and this is also one of the really important things on his journey to being hardened by the end of the game.

Brigid: I think Brigid really respects the Wardens and the burden they take on for the world, especially after she learns more about the Calling and everything during Here Lies the Abyss. The Wardens continuing to exist, even after they were tricked the way they were, is very vital to her, and I think they're a very honorable group to her. She sentences Blackwall to join the Wardens when Corypheus is defeated for a reason. She loves him, but he's also done a terrible thing, and she thinks that actually joining the Wardens and becoming a part of those honorable few the way he originally intended to is an important step in redeeming himself.

Alistair: Alistair was this close to being a Grey Warden, so he certainly thinks quite highly of them. Some of them are certainly pricks, but the individual Wardens who are shitheads don't do enough to sour the entire order for them, thankfully.

16. do they get sentimental about their weapons or armour?

Rhiannon: Not generally, no. I don't think she's particularly sentimental about any of her weapons, and she's not sentimental about any of her armor until she gets the ironbark armor from the craftsman at the Dalish camp. That she is wildly sentimental about, because she has such a complicated relationship with being an elf, and for so much of her childhood she wanted to run away from the Circle and join a Dalish clan so badly, and maybe she never actually does that, but this is such a huge sign of acceptance. That matters a lot.

Katerina: No, I don't think so. I think they're more likely to get sentimental about trinkets or jewelry from people, small things that they can keep on their person at all times. The sentimentality lies in it being someone else's first, and I don't think they really have that with any of their armor or weapons, so none of it is super important to her.

Conall: Another one where the answer is generally no, but the armor he gets from Inquisitor Ameridan absolutely gets special treatment. Because holy shit of course it does. Jaws of Hakon is so important to me and "the world will take the rest" is so important to me and also haunts Conall a little bit so, yeah, that armor gets its own special treatment.

Brigid: Yeah, I think she does. Not necessarily with armor, but I think weapons are something she gets very sentimental about. She keeps a lot of bows from the Inquisition era long past when they'd ever be useful to her anymore solely for the sentimental value.

Alistair: Also yes, for sure. He's a very, very sentimental person in general, so various knives and armor pieces are inevitably going to get wrapped up in that sentimentality too. They've definitely still got the knife from their first Crow contract, I know this in my heart of hearts.

[lordwoolselytaxservices]

I made a thing...

All of the individual OC pages are under construction and need a lot more work but I've finally created a directory of sorts for my babies!

I still have a few OCs to work out and get proper screenshots for as well as adding my Warden and Hawke into the mix. I won't be putting my Rook on here until I play the game and can really feel out the direction I'm looking to go with them.

Anywho, if you'd like to check them out:

Periwinkle Lightning Universe

~I used Canva to make this site which isn't the most ideal for things sometimes so if you see any errors or have feedback, please let me know! ^.^

[ahoardofprompts]

Better to be slapped with the truth than kissed with a lie.

 Russian Proverb

[kagetsukai]

Only fools rush in [Cullen x Brigid]

In the light of Kissing Day celebrations, I’ve been more inspired than ever to write a whole lot of fluffy things. And since I love and adore my friends’ OCs, I have written some stuff to celebrate their relationships :D This one is for @puddle--wonderful and her beautiful Brigid Trevelyan. You can read the original fic over here.

Pairing: Cullen Rutherford/Brigid Trevelyan

Prompt: Rushed late for work kisses, a flash of heat before hurrying out the door

Read on AO3

“Void take it,” Cullen’s voice echoed against the walls of her chambers with a certain level of force. “How is it so late already?”

Brigid smiled sleepily at the mild panic in his voice and lazily shifted within her bed sheets; for once, she had no early morning appointments. Instead, she turned to watch him run back and forth, collecting his things, organizing papers, putting last pieces of clothing into place. He had failed to finish grooming his hair so stray golden curls flopped about his face, making him look both younger and even more handsome.

He was just about to step down the stairs when she loudly cleared her throat, calling his attention to her.

“You forgot my goodbye kiss,” she said and tapped her puckered lips.

Cullen tilted his head, quite reminiscent of the mabari he loved so much, and an indulgent smirk curled his mouth. He slowly stepped forward and stopped a few paces from her bed.

“Inquisitor, you are quite demanding of my already limited time,” he noted in a voice that was purposefully even.

“I give you permission to use that as an excuse for why you were late,” she replied and leaned forward expectantly.

An amused chuckle rumbled deep in his chest. He closed the gap between them and leaned in to bestow a chaste peck on her lips.

That was never Brigid’s intention, though; she swiftly wrapped an arm around his neck and pulled him closer, crushing his mouth in a passionate kiss. Cullen gasped in surprise and she promptly swallowed the sound, taking the opportunity to slip her tongue against his. She had no idea how long they kissed, but when they broke apart, her Commander looked significantly less rushed and lot more dazed. A slow smile spread over his face while his fingers gently ran a path along her neck.

“That was sneaky, my beloved,” he pointed out.

“But that was what I wanted,” she replied with a coy smile.

He laughed in earnest this time and leaned in to press his lips against hers one more time.

“You will be the end of my good reputation,” he said as he turned to leave.

“I’m pretty sure everybody already knows why you’re late so much,” she pointed out.

Cullen’s amused laughter rang against the staircase as he left the room, while Brigid bundled deeper into her sheets, memory of his kiss bright and fresh in her mind.

[starswritteninourscars]

so I am just stealing questions together. for Brigid Trevelyan: 1. Describe one time your character embarrassed themselves and 2. What is one thing she is really proud of?

1: Brigid was constantly trying to live up to her older sister, Evelyn, and her (comparative) lack of social graces was one thing she was very conscious of. On the way to the Conclave, the two of them stopped with other members of the Ostwick delegation at the home of a potential supporter of the peace agreement. Brigid made a joke about another noble family that the potential supporter’s family had feuded with for decades, unaware that the woman’s marriage had recently ended the feud. Evelyn managed to smooth things over, but barely. Brigid was mortified.2: She’s really, really good at math and accounts. She’s once caught a potential trading partner trying to swindle the Trevelyans just from financial documents.

[katuary]

https://meridok-old.tumblr.com/post/145251459905/30-day-dragon-age-oc-challenge-by-meridok-me

Day 1: Introduction

Warden

Elissa Brigid Cousland (she/her)

Noble Human Rogue (Dual Longsword)

Born 15th Drakonis, 9:10

Takes her friends’ trauma so they don’t need to hold it, relies on cunning/speed/stealth, does whatever it takes to survive.

“I wouldn’t want to fight me either. Three steps ahead at all times. Known to stab as a warning. Killed a god, don’t try me.”

Hawke

Marian Astrid Hawke (she/her)

Two-Handed Warrior

Born 21st Cloudreach, 9:07

Kind, witty, charming, with a guilt complex for (and willful ignorance on the faults of) everyone she’s loved.

“Try hard, fail hard. Walking disaster, sorry in advance. Friends are family, hurt them and meet my giant sword. Fuck the Chantry.”

Inquisitor

Evelyn Augusta Trevelyan (she/her)

Mage (Knight-Enchanter, Winter)

Born 18th Solace, 9:16

Empathetic to a fault, resilient to an advantage, always willing to be proven wrong and learn.

“Lucky is an apt nickname; I literally fell into this. Everything is too much all at once, but tell me how I can help and I’ll try. “

[willowflowerwaterlily]

Brigid Trevelyan turned 4 today!

[bfohg-old]

Start with this: It should have been Cordelia.

Cordelia Trevelyan knew politics. She knew religion. She was of high birth and good character and she never shied away from a challenge. It should have been Cordelia.

But Cordelia died. She went into the opening ceremony of the Grand Conclave at the side of Grand Cleric Frieda of Ostwick. She sat perfectly composed as the assembled crowd grew restless waiting for the divine. As it became apparent that something was wrong, she sent the grand cleric’s secretary to discreetly inquire as to the cause of the delay. She waited patiently.

She died with the rest of them.

This is who survived: Brigid Trevelyan, the younger sister raised on the country estate, who believed in her big sister, in her family, in the Maker, and never expected to have anything more on her plate than hunting expeditions and family accounts... and Signy.

Signy of no surname, raised by her elven mother in the alienage of Ostwick until her magic came to her. Signy who argued as hard for mage freedom as Brigid Trevelyan argued to come with her sister to the Conclave. Signy who didn’t know what to do with that freedom when she got it.

Signy, who had spotted Cordelia Trevelyan earlier that day and could have sworn she was looking in a mirror, if it weren’t for the nose, the hair.

Signy whose mother told her she looked like her father, but never told her that father’s name.

So this is who the Inquisition has to work with, instead of Cordelia Trevelyan: the uncultured country girl with her bow and her abacus, and her bastard sister, who wakes up with her hand burning with a magic she never studied hard enough to understand.

[spacetrashpile]

For the DA worldstate questions! Any protags u want

3, 7, 14, 17!

ask me questions about my DA worldstate protags!

i already answered 3+7 here, but 14+17! i think i'm just gonna answer for everyone again, lol.

14. who are they closest to from their family?

Rhiannon: Unfortunately there's not a real answer for her? Rhiannon didn't have any siblings or family outside of her parents, and she hasn't seen her parents since she was 4. I established she was from the alienage in Denerim but if her parents are still there by the time she comes back before Landsmeet, she doesn't seek them out. I don't think either side would know what to do if she'd tried.

Katerina: The problem is that if we're trying to talk in the present tense then there really isn't an answer. I think prior to Bethany's death the answer would've been Bethany, and then after she died, Katerina and Carver got a lot closer, and he's probably the real answer, but then he died, so Katerina and Leandra got closer, and then she died too. And in the wake of that, all she's got left is Gamlen, and later Charade, but I really don't think Katerina ever has a relationship with Charade, and unfortunately with Gamlen... well Katerina chose to tell him what happened to Leandra and then he said that he wished they'd been born "normal" like Carver, and there's really no coming back from that for them.

Conall: The answer probably would've been Brigid, his sister, before she dies at the Conclave, but even then, I don't think they were wildly close. It takes until post-game for Conall to start being close to any of his family again. So I think the answer is probably his nephew Alistair, honestly? Conall rebuilds his relationship with his half sister Erin post-game, but there's a pretty sizeable age gap between them (14 years) and there's always a distinct weirdness about their relationship now that Brigid is gone. But getting closer with Erin means being able to have a relationship with her kids, and I think Conall's probably closer with his niece Flora pre-Veilguard, but then Varric manages to pick up another Trevelyan for this whole Solas thing and the entirety of Veilguard gives Conall and Alistair like, a very close bond. Conall sees a lot of his younger self in Alistair, for better or for worse.

Brigid: Again, pre Conclave the answer is almost certainly Conall, but post-game, I think Erin, with Alistair as a close second. Her parents choosing to not support her or the Inquisition because of how the Chantry treated her is really a gap she can never bridge with them again, but her and Erin get a lot closer after Brigid becomes Inquisitor because like, yeah she's got the whole saving the world job, but being Inquisitor at least post-game allows her a lot more mobility to actually see her than being a Chantry sister did. This also allows her more time to get to know her niblings, and then, again, the Rook thing really helps her get close to Alistair.

Alistair: I think it's definitely their sister, Flora. He cares about her so much, she's half the reason he went from Antiva City to Treviso to join the Crows rather than just joining the Crows in Antiva City after leaving the Circle, because he wanted to be closer to her. However, Brigid-Inquisitor timeline Alistair would definitely say Blackwall is a close second, because I elect to ignore the thing about Blackwall dying during Trespasser if you romance him and make him a Warden, so I think when that timeline's Alistair decides to become a Warden rather than join the Crows that he and Blackwall end out spending a lot of time together and bonding.

17. what were they like as a child?

Rhiannon: Rhiannon was a very skittish child. I think she was scared of most people, and of herself to an extent after uncovering her magic. I think this contributed to her being a very lonely child, and even after she grew out of the anxiety a bit, she never quite grew out of the strangeness, so it was very hard for her to make friends.

Katerina: Extremely bullheaded and stubborn. She set her sights on something and she went for it, and I think she started to grow out of this a bit as she got older but it definitely never entirely went away. I think Katerina and Bethany also did a thing that me and my sister did when we were really little where Bethany would talk through Katerina for a while by whispering whatever it is she wanted to say to Katerina and they’d then repeat it. IDK I just think this is cute.

Conall: Knee-jerk reaction here: weird. Not even because of the mage thing or the transgender thing I think Conall just had a total lack of a filter as a kid and it meant he got really weird with it most of the time. Not particularly outgoing or particularly shy, but extremely honest in a way most people don’t really like. He grew out of this but only a little bit.

Brigid: I think Brigid was a very quiet child. She was definitely one of those kids who kept to herself and her books and didn’t really make a lot of friends, but I don’t think she was strictly lonely? Unlike Rhiannon I don’t think Brigid struggled to make friends, I just don’t think she really wanted any. This is also definitely a part of why her and Conall were so close as kids.

Alistair: Alistair was a very shy kid, I think, but this is definitely something he grew out of once he ended up in the Circle. They and Flora were also definitely joined at the hip from basically moment one, too (perks of having a sibling who’s barely younger than you so you have no memory of a time they weren’t in your life).

[fuckyeahseekeroftruth]

Part 2 of Daughters of Andraste (Character death warning for Here Lies the Abyss.)

Adamant Friends, Faded Lovers Inquisitor Katerina Trevelyan has one goal: to stop Corypheus from raising a demon army.

Okay, Kate has two goals: stop Corypheus, and keep Cullen from dying of lyrium withdrawals. She and the former Templar have become friends now, after all. Just friends, mind you. But then Brigid Hawke and her entourage explode on the scene, Robert Trevelyan finds himself desperate to impress Cassandra, Colleen Lavellan stumbles into a love triangle (sort of?), and Leliana is spying on...everyone?

So you know. It's business as usual at Skyhold.

Welcome to my lore-friendly re-imagining of Dragon Age Inquisition, with multiple plotlines, 'ships, original characters, humor, slow-burn romance, smexy stuff, and more! Part 1 is complete, Part 2 (this bit) is ongoing. Thanks for picking up my fic and I hope you enjoy it!

Mobile friendly version at SageFic.com thanks to my awesome husband Bladewarden. Thanks for reading and drop me a comment to say hi!

THIS IS SUCH A GRET FANFIC!!!!!

[preservingshrine]

"Bos Primigenius" in Britain: Or, Why Do Fairy Cows Have Red Ears?

I was inspired by the lovely @hyacinth-halcyon and zir wonderful Butler writeup to summarize some academic articles I’ve been sitting on for a very long time. It’s useful to me as a devotional and an academic exercise. The paper I’m summarizing for you today is "Bos Primigenius" in Britain: Or, Why Do Fairy Cows Have Red Ears?, written by Jessica Hemming, Ph.D, for Folklore, Volume 113 (2002), pages 71-82.

Many medievalists, especially scholars of Celtic literature, have observed that red-eared white animals are associated with fairies and other supernatural beings. What has not been satisfactorily answered is why this should be so. This article offers a possible explanation, suggesting that this widespread phenomenon is rooted not in fantasy but in zoology.

Cows! They’re adorable. They’re delicious. They’re important. Hit the jump for more.

As a general rule in Irish folklore, white animals with red ears that come from the Otherworld are a fairly commonplace motif. From the earliest Irish sources, we have accounts of white cattle with red ears, and dogs with the same coloring accompany Annwn, King of the Otherworld, in the Middle Welsh tale of Pwyll. We also have reports right up into this century; in a presentation given on the Isle of Man to the Folklore Society, Mrs. Moore Douglas talks about “fairy dogs, usually white with red ears and feet are frequently seen running across the fields in the evening” and Marie Trevelyan mentions that the Welsh Cwn Annwn, or Annwn’s Hounds, are “very small dogs, white as the drifted snow, with tiny ears quite rose colored inside.“ The paper focuses on cows because they’re the earliest animals of that type and to quote it, “dogs and horses seem to have only acquired this pattern by analogy (Heming, 71)”.

So where have you heard of these cows? Let’s run down the list:

In the Tain Bo Friach, the hero’s mother gives him a herd of twelve cows out of the fairy mound and they’re white with red ears.

In the Tain Bo Cuialnge, the Morrigan transforms herself into a white heifer in her attempt to destroy Cu Chulain.

In Compert Mongdin ocus Serc Duibhe-Lacha, the hero promises his wife to the king of Leinster's in exchange for his beautiful red-eared white cattle.

The twelfth-century Metrical Dinshenchas, in a place name stanza about Howth, mention "seven hundred kine, red eared, pure white." There are further references to these cattle-always noted for their beauty or purity and frequently specified as coming from the fairy mounds-in Tochmarc Etaine, Tain Bo Regamna, Caith Maighe Lena, and the lives of Saints Brigid, Ailbhe, Mo Lua, Columcille, Finian and Ciaran.

I’m sure you’ve noticed by now that all these references are literary.So why do white cattle with red ears always belong to the fairies? Well, there’s a couple of theories:

They’re fairy beasts because white and red are “magical colors”. We know that this is the case with white; gwyn in Welsh primarily means “white, bright, shining fair” and the secondary meaning is “holy/blessed”. With red, it’s not so cut and dried. In recent comparative studies of British folklore, white, red, and black are all the most symbolically significant colors and in his discussions on Anglo-Saxon magic, G. Storms claims that red was a magical color in that society. This is all well and good, but it doesn’t provide any information about the polysemy or significance of red in medieval Ireland and Wales.

They really did exist and people believed they came from the Otherworld because they were rare or of a special value. 

So what historical evidence do we have? Let’s take a look.

In one of the early Irish law tracts, as a punishment for satirizing King Cernodon of Ulster, part of the penalty includes “seven white cows with red ears” (Heming, 71-72).

According to the Reverend John Storer, the entry for the year 1211 in Holinshed's chronicle reports that the wife of William de Braose (a powerful Norman baron with lands in Wales) gave to the queen of England "a gift of foure hundred kine and one bull, of coulour all white, the ears excepted, which were red" (Storer 1879, 107).

In a passage from the thirteenth-century Iorwerth Redaction of the Welsh laws, the sarhaed (or payment due for insult) of the king of Aberffraw is set at "a hundred cows for every cantred he has, with a red-eared [white] bull for every hundred cows,"(Jenkins 1990, 5).  The Cyfnerth and Blegywryd redactions add the following: "The status of the lord of Dinefwr is also adorned with white cows, each with its head to the tail of the next, with a bull between every twenty of them, so as to fill the space from Argoel to the court of Dinefwr" (Jenkins 1990, 6). 

Finally, a custom at Stretton-on-Dunsmore in Warwickshire required the villagers to pay "Wroth or Ward money" to the lord of the Hundred of Knightlow until the 1870s. If they defaulted, they would forfeit "twenty shillings for every penny, and a white bull with red ears and a red nose" (Storer 1879, 104). Locals claimed this tradition predated the Norman Conquest.

There is a historical record that sets a loose precedent for the existence of these cows. (In Ireland? Not really. There’s some evidence that they did have red-eared white cattle with the Moylie, a modern breed that is claimed to be ancient, but can’t really be verified. There’s no evidence of red-eared white cattle in Ireland consistently.)

However, the most compelling evidence is that white cows with red ears exist is that though the several herds on record have dwindled down, one still exists today in Northumberland, England. Meet the Chillingham Cattle.

Handsome cows! Charming cows! Cows of many talents--and they love to pose for photos! Unfortunately, any basic scientific information about them is wrapped up in a convoluted origin myth. Here’s what we know. They are white with red ears. They’re not specialized either--these cattle have not been bred for beef or dairying. Proper records only go back to 1689, in which a white calf with red ears is purchased, and another white cow with red ears is mentioned again in 1692. They were owned by the noble family in those records up until 1939, when a private association was formed to manage the herd. They are related to Wild Park cattle, another registered breed, but the Chillingham herd is very much inbred.

Here is what the association would like you to believe. The Chillingham Cattle are directly descended from the aurochs of the ancient world (Bos primigenius), more so than modern breeds. They have always been while with red ears and they have never been domesticated. Symbolically, these cattle were associated with the noble family who owned them and questioning their lineage and purity also meant questioning the legitimacy of the noble family. These assumptions are all easily refuted.

The current scientific consensus is that all humpless domestic cattle are of a single species, Bos taurus, and all of them descend from the aurouchs, Bos primigenius. A Chillingham cow is about as exotic as a Holstein or a Jersey cow. They may resemble miniature aurochs, but cattle tend to revert to their ancestral type when they are not bred for a specific purpose of beef or dairy. It has been argued that they could have descended from aurochs imported by the Romans, but there are no records of them importing cattle into Britain and genetic studies done on the cows have proven that there is no relationship between them and Roman stock. There is also nothing to suggest that they could be pre-Roman, particularly due to the fact that aurochs in Britain became extinct during the Bronze Age. (They never reached Ireland, either.) 

If Europe never had any truly wild cattle besides the aurochs, then by definition, the Chillingham cattle nor any other herds can be considered wild. The line between feral and domesticated cattle in the Middle Ages is also more blurred than the modern definition because allowing your herds to forage for food in the forests was a very common practice. However, the Chillingham cattle could have become feral. It’s also possible, given the only records we have are from 1692, that the cattle could have been purchased between the thirteen and seventeenth century and put in the park then. If that was when they became feral, no one would have had any reason to try to curb those behaviors. Thus, because there were no wild cattle in Europe, the Chillingham cattle must have descended from feral or domestic stock.

Multiple sources of evidence state that the Chillingham cattle do not always breed true to type. In the 1692 account, out of the twelve cattle with colored ears mentioned, some have black ears. In another account from an engraver, Thomas Bewick, in 1790, “about twenty years since, there were a few at Chillingham with BLACK EARS [sic], but the present park-keeper destroyed them; since which period there has not been one with black ears (Bewick, 1970, 39)”. In other words, the color seems to be a result of selective breeding rather than ancient purity. It also probably points to them not being descended from the northern European strain as aurouchs because as far as we can tell from the cave paintings, the bulls tended to be black and the cows and calves were red (Clutton-Brock, 1987, 64). A zoological study has noted, though, that colored herds tend to produce white cows with colored ears, and the Chillingham cattle could have originated from white calves dropped by a domestic herd (Bilton, 1957, 147).

So what can the Chillingham cattle tell us about the fairy cows in Irish and Welsh literature? Well, for one, how special they are perceived to be. We’ve seen ample evidence of how much effort it takes to maintain the appearance of the breed. We’ve talked about how unusual their appearance is and why the colors may inspire people to see them as Otherworldly.

There’s a definite possibility that this could be an Irish construct. Red-eared white cattle could have been imported from Great Britain to Irelan during the early Medieval period. They would have still been seen as exotic (and expensive) as imports and their appearance embedded them into folk memory, particularly if they were owned privately by noble families. Alternatively, if they were already feral, they could have been granted a liminal status: not wild beasts, but not tame.(Or people may have just assumed that the fairies would have the most expensive, exotic type of cow known to mortals. Sounds legit, especially given how rare they would have been.)

Overall, we don’t really know the true story of the Chillingham cattle, even today. I do think it’s telling, though, that the association protecting them argues that they are descended from “the great bull of Caesar’s time” and the neolitich and paleolithic eras. Imagine how much more extraordinary they must have seemed to people in the early Middle Ages. It makes their story all the richer.

[woolfcried]

STARTER CALL MASTERPOST

BOOKS.

jude sweetwine / i’ll give you the sun

mr. quagmire / a series of unfortunate events

jerome squalor / a series of unfortunate events

carmelita spats / a series of unfortunate events

frank denouement / a series of unfortunate events

yo-yoji / the name of this book is secret series

lily wei / the name of this book is secret series

ginny weasley / harry potter

viktor krum / harry potter

charlie weasley / harry potter

katie bell / harry potter

nymphadora tonks / harry potter

helga hufflepuff / harry potter

rowena ravenclaw / harry potter

theta knight / the diviners

evie o’neill / the diviners

bailey clarke / the night circus

isobel martin / the night circus

celia bowen / the night circus

katarina bishop / heist society

vera claythorne / and then there were none

nancy drew / nancy drew

ella of frell / ella enchanted

TV.

turanga leela / futurama

philip j. fry / futurama

briar beauty / ever after high

erin hannon / the office

jim halpert / the office

pam beesly / the office

freddie lyon / the hour

dale cooper / twin peaks

princess carolyn / bojack horseman

diane nguyen / bojack horseman

chris traeger / parks and recreation

cassandra / tangled: the series

VIDEO GAMES.

trainer leaf / pokemon

jasmine jolene / bioshock

brigid tenenbaum / bioshock

robert lutece / bioshock: infinite

elizabeth comstock / bioshock: infinite

lara croft / tomb raider

jessamine kaldwin / dishonored

viola dewynter / saints row

the boss / saints row

kinzie kensington / saints row

cressida (lone wanderer) / fallout 3

travis miles / fallout 4

dahlia lombard (sole survivor) / fallout 4

nerissa / the wolf among us

luke triton / professor layton

flora reinhold / professor layton

clive dove / professor layton

katia anderson / professor layton

emmy altava / professor layton

dorian pavus / dragon age: inquisition

sera / dragon age: inquisition

inquisitor arrietty trevelyan / dragon age: inquisition

MOVIES.

ashlyn morgenstern / barbie in the twelve dancing princesses

genevieve morgenstern / barbie in the twelve dancing princesses

courtney morgenstern / barbie in the twelve dancing princesses

manolo sanchez / the book of life

annie hughes / the iron giant

marina / sinbad: legend of the seven seas

cassian andor / star wars

leia organa / star wars

plumette / beauty and the beast (2017)

milo thatch / atlantis: the lost empire

garrett / quest for camelot

arthur curry / dceu

christian / moulin rouge

THEATRE.

velma kelly / chicago

marian paroo / the music man

inez serrano / no exit

anya / anastasia

elphaba thropp / wicked

nino quincampoix / amelie

veronica sawyer / heathers

eliza doolittle / my fair lady

COMIC.

barbara gordon / dc

tatsu yamashiro / dc

zinda blake / dc

evaan verlaine / star wars

ORIGINAL.

grayson hyde

petra balboa

eleanor tate / saints row

bowie campbell / saints row

vivian prescott

ophelia price

sylvia delaire

nikoleta costas

coppola davies

seraphim perrine

reyna castilla

cab obsidian

cain obsidian

flamel beauvoir

tarot talbot

diem

zhang jun

james whelan

vera barde

mortimer allegri

keats

ellie lyncoln

marjorie clarke / a series of unfortunate events

[willowflowerwaterlily]

Brigid Trevelyan turned 3 today!

[dragonifyoudare-old]

Their Chorus Was a Battle Cry

Start with this: It should have been Evelyn.

Evelyn Trevelyan knew politics. She knew religion. She was of high birth and good character and she never shied away from a challenge. It should have been Evelyn.

But Evelyn died. She went into the opening ceremony of the Grand Conclave at the side of the grand cleric of Ostwick. She sat perfectly composed as the assembled crowd grew restless waiting for the divine. As it became apparent that something was wrong, she sent the grand cleric’s secretary to discreetly inquire as to the cause of the delay. She waited patiently.

She died with the rest of them.

This is who survived:

Brigid Trevelyan, the younger sister raised on the country estate, who believed in her big sister, in her family, in the Maker, and never expected to have anything more on her plate than family accounts... and Signy.

Signy of no surname, raised by her elven mother in the alienage of Ostwick until her magic came to her. Signy who argued as hard for mage freedom as Brigid Trevelyan argued to come with her sister to the Conclave. Signy who didn’t know what to do with that freedom when she got it.

Signy who looked so much like Lady Evelyn Trevelyan that, when she stumbled out of a rift, people thought that was who they had found.

So this is who the Inquisition has to work with, instead of Evelyn Trevelyan: the uncultured country girl with her bow and her abacus, and her bastard sister, who wakes up with her hand burning with a magic she never studied hard enough to understand.

End with this: We don’t always get the right heroes, when the Maker (or the Creators, or whoever is really up there) rolls the dice. We get people, and we hope they can become what the world needs.

(coming soon on my AO3 / Cullen/F!Mage / heavy half-sister relationship focus)

[spacetrashpile]

3-7, 24, 26 for all of them? sniles so sneetly

ask me questions about my DA protags!

YAHOO! this is a lot of questions for a lot of pcs so this is going under the cut

3. opinion on blood magic?

Rhiannon: Complicated. I think generally she dislikes it, she understands other people's distaste with it, but her experienced in the Circle tower and with Jowan and Irving have... muddied the waters a bit. Jowan is someone she knows and cares about, and someone she knows was groomed into becoming a blood mage, who was pushed until he had to take these means. It definitely makes her wonder sometimes whether or not that's true of other blood mages, y'know?

Katerina: "Well first of all Merrill's never done anything wrong in her life so jot that down". Again, she understands the hatred that some people have for it. I mean. She's had extremely up close and personal bad experiences with blood mages. Of course they understand the hatred. But they've also had the up close experience with Merrill to know that blood magic can be turned towards noble pursuits, and they've also been repeatedly lumped in with blood mages and mages who hurt people solely for the crime of being born with magic, often by people who claim to care about them. So yeah maybe they have a bit more sympathy for blood mages and blood magic even though they've not personally pursued it.

Conall: Unfortunately this is where we start getting into the boring more "traditional" answers. I think Conall really dislikes blood magic overall, but I think he does occasionally have the same thought process as Katerina, where he's been lumped in with/been seen as just as bad blood mages and he doesn't get why but he can occasionally see how one might get to that point. It just so happens that his primary experience with blood mages is like. The Venatori. That one Magister from the Warden thing who's name I can never remember. Bad sample size.

Brigid: Brigid is definitely the harshest on blood magic of my protags, in no small part because she isn't a mage and has basically never had the thought of "what could push me so far that I'd do that". Also she was a Chantry sister for most of her adult life before being the Inquisitor. So while, yes, she's more sympathetic with mages than other Chantry folk might be, this is where she draws the pretty harsh line.

Alistair: I think Alistair was slightly more open to the idea of blood magic before the game, key word slightly, because he has definitely had the idea of "Could I ever get to that point, could I ever get that desperate?" and even if the answer he came to was no, he still has considered how one could go that far. And then there's the whole thing with Solas and the Venatori and Zara and Illario technically and. Well. I think he's kinda a bitch about it now.

4. attitude towards Andrastianism?

Rhiannon: I think she struggles a lot to separate the idea of Andrastianism from the idea of the Chantry. The Chantry has oppressed mages like her, it has committed impossible atrocities against her people (the elves), all in the name of Andraste and their faith. However, I think Leliana does help her start to... extricate them out from each other a bit. I don't think she's ever going to like Andrastianism, not really, but she's more able to approach it as a part of the Chantry but not wholly the Chantry, if that makes sense.

Katerina: Ok so despite... the everything. I do actually think Katerina would call herself Andrastian. I think she recognizes they do not want her, and she does not care. The idea of Andraste as a person who existed, as a person who encouraged- at least theoretically- freeing people from colonial rule, as a person who was rewarded in the end for the extremely difficult and fraught life she led, I think that's comforting, in its own way. They obviously do not like the institutions that have arisen from Andrastianism, but Andraste herself is a weird source of comfort for them.

Conall: I once described Conall's attitude towards Andrastianism as very similar to my attitude towards Catholicism (raised in it and didn't really think about his own thoughts on it until he was a pre-teen and was directly exposed to all of the terrible things the Chantry has done and continues to do and in reckoning with his relationship with the Chantry realized he didn't really believe in Andraste or the Maker but sometimes he still does the fantasy equivalent of the sign of the cross when he gets really freaked out) and yeah I stand by that one.

Brigid: COMPLICATED. EXTREMELY COMPLICATED. Brigid, pre-game, genuinely, truly believed in Andraste, in the Maker, in the idea that there is some sort of plan for the world, and this was something that made her happy to believe. And then the events of Inquisition happen and god damnit if the Maker really exists then He really wants to test her faith specifically. She is reckoning with the atrocities of the Chantry at every other moment, the Divine herself (MAYBE. THAT'S IT'S OWN THING.) tells her "no one chose you for this, you just had bad luck", a magister who claimed to have stormed the Golden City tells her to her face "your god is not real and never was" and like C'MON MAN. OF COURSE THAT FUCKS HER UP. She hates Corypheus, she doesn't want to believe him when he says the throne of the gods was empty but it eats at her. I don't know if she really believes in Andraste anymore by the time this game ends. I don't know that she knows. But obligatory quote from when I first shook this out that I know is the reason you sent this to me: "She can't deny that when Corypheus calls out for his own god in his final moments and hears nothing that she feels a bone deep satisfaction. Maybe her god is quiet, but so is his."

Alistair: What a tonal shift here. Despite Erin's family being a strong Chantry family, I don't think she really puts that on her children. She's a "bad Catholic" type of Andrastian, one of the ones who observes the holidays and if you asked she'd call herself Andrastian, but she doesn't think about it too hard. And as such I don't think Alistair really finds himself believing in Andraste or having wildly complicated feelings about it.

5. attitude towards the Chantry?

Rhiannon: BAD. SHE DOESN'T LIKE THOSE GUYS. First thing she did upon arriving to Ostagar was make that Chantry sister mad. First thing she did upon arriving in Lothering was try really hard to get Sten out of his cage and when that didn't work she just threatened the Reverend Mother and had no qualms about it. The fact that her and Leliana end up together is a miracle in itself.

Katerina: ALSO. BAD. Slightly better than Rhiannon's by virtue of not being in a Circle and as such dodging a lot of the up close and personal religious abuse that she could've otherwise suffered, but she's not a fan of those guys! Anders was right even if he couldn't have had worse timing!

Conall: Complicated, but not great. The Trevelyans are a, theoretically, very devout family. He probably would've been handed off to the templars if he hadn't been a mage, and wouldn't that have been a sight. By the time he reaches adulthood, Conall is not a fan of the Chantry as an institution. He's not a fan of the Circles and the Chantry has committed innumerable acts of violence, but he also recognizes that it is functionally the only thing that gets shit done in Thedas, which is why he bothers going to the Conclave at all. At least a part of him thinks that Divine Justinia can use the Chantry to reach a peace.

Brigid: Also complicated but in a different way. She's literally a Chantry sister, and while that wasn't a decision that she made entirely of her own accord, it wasn't really something she objected to either. However, Inquisition forces her to reckon directly with the atrocities the Chantry has committed in the past, with the terrible way it continues to treat mages and non-humans and the implications of that. She also gets functionally excommunicated at the start of the game when the whole "Herald of Andraste" thing is at it's most controversial so that's fun. I think she really wants to dig the Chantry out of the hole that she sees it as being stuck in, I think she sees the Chantry as something that can be saved, and she wants to put in the work for that.

Alistair: Alistair's feelings on the Chantry are the ones I've mulled over the least, since the actual institution of the Chantry doesn't have nearly as much of a relevance to Veilguard as it does the other games, but also because outside of the Circle, it doesn't play a huge role in Alistair's life, either. I think Alistair is very grateful to have grown up more removed from the Chantry's direct influence on their life than some, and to have grown up further north where the Circles are generally more lax, but I think it sort of stops at that.

6. attitude towards the Qun?

Rhiannon: For all that Sten tries to explain it to her, I don't think Rhiannon ever really gets the Qun. She's had decisions made for her her entire life, so while I think she does understand the idea that it could be nice to know exactly what your role in the world is, she's never gonna be able to reconcile that with that role being chosen for you by someone.

Katerina: Katerina is definitely very open to the Qun and the Qunari. I don't think she'd ever convert, obvious "being a mage" reasons aside, but I think she's very curious about the Qun and wants to learn about it and the Qunari. They don't see the Qunari as inherently hostile like a lot of Kirkwall does, but unfortunately this kinda gets stopped in its tracks when the whole thing with Isabella and the Arishok happens. Sorry man, you're not taking their girlfriend. But I do still think the Qun is something that interests them after the fact, lol.

Conall: Conall is definitely open to learning about the Qun, but he's got a lot less of an active interest in it than Katerina. But of course he's curious, it's a very foreign thing to him, and it's a very interesting way of life even if it never really clicks for him.

Brigid: I think Brigid is... a bit wary about the Qun. Similarly, I don't think she's ever gonna get it, but I also think she doesn't really look into it that much? This is just not where her attention really falls, but what she does learn from Bull helps to demystify it a bit.

Alistair: Alistair likes learning about the Qun, I think. He's very curious about the world and cultures outside of himself. Unfortunately I don't think our runaway Circle mage is gonna be a huge fan of the "you are meant to be one thing" part, though.

7. if they had to choose one person most important to them, who would that be?

Rhiannon: I think it'd have to be Leliana. Being with Leliana really opened up the world to her in ways that she never before thought possible, Leliana gives her a love she's never had before and never really believed she could have. She is so so special to Rhiannon in ways that Rhiannon and I can't entirely describe.

Katerina: Varric, of course it's Varric. It's the easy Hawke answer but it's the right answer. Like the answer before. Well. The everything. Would probably have been Carver, and in some ways it is still Carver, but Varric is there for so so much of it, Varric helped them stay alive through all that shit in every way. It's Varric.

Conall: WHAT a mean question to have to answer for him, truly. I'm hesitantly gonna say Cole, but honestly ask me at a later date and the answer will change. The answer changed multiple times while I was trying to write this, even. But like that's basically his kid. I called Cole "my tall son" the entire time I was playing and it bled over into how I played Conall and how Conall feels about him really hard, lol.

Brigid: ALSO an insanely difficult question to answer for Brigid but I think I'm gonna say Cassandra. Both of them having their respective crisis of faith during the game (Brigid with the everything as described above and Cassandra with the whole Seekers and Rite of Tranquility thing) really helps them get close with each other and gives them like, an insane thing to bond over and it makers their relationship a very important one for Brigid.

Alistair: Am I allowed to say Arul. Is that an option. Like yes Arul isn't technically in the game but. 2/4 Rooks AU you are so important to me. Arul and Alistair you are so important to me.

24. what languages can they speak?

Rhiannon: Obligatory "Rhiannon is mute so technically she doesn't speak anything" anyways. Rhiannon speaks the Thedas equivalent of common sign language, something her parents taught her when she was little and that the Circle continued to teach her. I think she desperately wants to speak Elven, but she doesn't, because where would she have learned it? She can read the words, she can teach herself that much, but the words aren't hers, they aren't words she can actually use and that is a deep sore spot for her.

Unfortunately I feel like my answered for all my other characters are kinda boring. They all speak the native language of the country they're from (Ferelden for Katerina, Antivan for Alistair... do they have a specific language in the Free Marches or in Ostwick specifically? I don't know enough about Dragon Age for this) and then whatever the in universe English equivalent is called. Conall picks up a few words of Qunlat and Tevine from Bull and Dorian and Alistair picks up some elven words from Bellara, but that's about it.

26. do they get a happy ending?

Rhiannon: Well. Well. You know the answer to this. No, no she doesn't. She doesn't do the dark ritual, because the idea of forcing a child into whatever life that could entail horrifies her, because Morrigan says she's willing to do that but is she?, because how do you ask that of Alistair, either, because she is, at least a little bit, a coward in the end. So no. But god did she deserve one. And god do I feel bad that she's my only protag who doesn't get that.

Katerina: Despite everything, and despite what Katerina may think they deserve, yes. I think it takes a while, I think it takes until at least Veilguard when they eventually find their way back to Isabella in Rivain, and I think Varric's death throws a real wrench in that happy ending for a while but EVENTUALLY. Yes. Yes she does.

Conall: He has to claw it from the hands of the universe, but yes. I honest to god have no idea what he actually does with his life post Veilguard, but it can be literally whatever he wants it to be, and that's about as happy as it gets for him.

Brigid: Also yes! It's a difficult one, it's not one that gets to stay happy for long after the end of Inquisition, but post Veilguard I think her and Blackwall get to live that small and obscure life where they don't have to save the damn world ever again that they both wanted.

Alistair: Yes! Alistair is the only one of my protags for whom a happy ending does not involve retirement, which is nice. They continue to do Crow stuff obviously, they continue to do Veilguard stuff, and they genuinely enjoy that! Only one of my protags for whom saving the world on a consistent basis doesn't drive them crazy, lol.