#fuck the chantry and everything it stands for <3< /div> Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[tenojan-in-tevinter]

One thing I hate about chantry politics is simply how fucking fast everyone is to reach for an exalted march. You read about any slightly complicated part of Thedas' history and there's a footnote about how the Devine of the time was "considering" an exalted march as a "solution". In da2 Meredith crosses so many lines (& theres qunari I guess) and instead of anyone utilizing any amount of power to reign her in at all. There's rumors of an exalted march. Again. Why doesn't the chantry ever take any responsibility for its own people wtf. Like yeah sure. Any inconvenience that could be solved in literally any other way and you reach for a militaristic purge of all people remotely involved. Sounds like something rational to do. You know what forget about how fast they reach for it. I just hate that exalted marches are a legitimate legal move in the first place.

[queenofbaws]

top 5 vhawke moments <3 (whether that be vhawke in general or your own interpretation)

gasp!!! challenge accepted ;)c heuheuhehueuhe guess i have to ramble now ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

the numero uno is always going to be returning the tethras signet ring, because um??? hello???????? helLO????? hey i found this. the last real remaining physical object connecting you to your family. i thought you'd probably want it. yeah, it's a ring. yeah, no, there's nothing symbolic about that. it's fine. it's cool. i know you thought you'd never see it again. yeah, don't mention it :) LIKE WHERE DO YOU EVEN START WITH THAT THO??? the two characters. who slowly but surely. have suffered the agonizing losses of every. last. member. of their families. hawke knows what that ring means. varric knows hawke knows. they joke about the whole thing to avoid admitting it. HOW AM I MEANT TO BE NORMAL ABOUT THIS BIOWARE?!

"you people have done enough to her." just. just dig a hole for me to lie in. bury me. the ANGER in varric's voice. throughout 2 and even up until then in da:i, he's our fun little guy. jokes galore. sure there are moments here or there where that facade breaks, but in that moment, that fight with cassandra? he is. pissed. and he is. tired. he watched kirkwall eat at hawke for so long, watched the chantry take more than its fair share, and here's cassandra, suggesting it still wasn't enough? that she should've been at the conclave too? that after everything the powers that be took from her, stole from her, ripped out of her, how dare he hide her from them to protect what was left??????????? screams

i don't know if it counts as a "moment" per se, but god. just. hard in hightown. in general. aslkdjfalksjdf i don't know who reads. any snippet of that story. and walks away with a conclusion other than "oh, so like, he's in love-in love, huh? all right.' laughter like chantry bells. eyes the color of jewels. the picture of elegance and beauty even when she's in mourning. i see you, varric tethras. i fucking see you.

"i skipped the parts about us." 🥺 i will never. ever. recover. from knowing what we could've had, lmaooooooooooooooo. PERSONALLY, i am...so in love with the idea of a vhawke romance being completely off-screen, all considering. like there's no world in which varric was going to tell cassandra the details of his and hawke's relationship, no way. not happening. that little wink at the end would've been all i needed, and so i refuse to let it go 😫

finally, this is...so small comparatively, but in da:i, once you finish everything leading up to here lies the abyss, hawke and varric just hang out together in front of the war room, and...idk man. idk. it touches my heart every time. it's such a tiny little moment, absolutely unimportant, but you see them standing together like that, and for a moment - just for a SECOND - it feels like they're just. together. and chatting. and things are okay. you know things aren't normal. they know things aren't normal. but there they are, pretending and hoping the way they've done a million times before. *sniff*

[asimplearchivist]

(This has been sitting in my drafts long enough…my fear of mischaracterizing Astarion is lesser than the agitation of seeing this beast among my WIPs. @fangswbenefits I’m affectionately blaming you for giving me pale elf brain rot🫣)

Okay guys this may be a very niche concept that will appeal to maybe like two people total but it hasn’t left my mind since I mentioned the idea to a buddy of mine who convinced me to play bg3…(Cullen and Astarion have a lot of similarities, which I would love to elaborate on later, but…) hear me out—it could be a very interesting dynamic to play with in a crossover.

Headcanons under the cut:

I’m not usually one for crossovers unless they’re in self-contained within a fandom (like Pokémon or Dragon Age, for example—there’s a phenomenal fic called The Half-Life of Element Zero by @unhealthynpcobsession which is a DAI/MEA crossover and safely one of the only “cross-fandom” crossovers I genuinely enjoy and adore bc the story and concepts are contextually sound and professionally orchestrated), but I feel like the sheer numbers of DAI fanfiction that explore the concept of the Breach opening up portals into other worlds (namely our modern Earth, thus the Modern Girl in Thedas trope, my beloved) could include adjacent worlds. I believe I have seen Skyrim before, so why not Baldur’s Gate 3? (Now keep in mind I know next to nothing about BG3 bc I am newly introduced to its lore and everything but) I think one could easily get away with having Astarion somehow slip through the Breach, along with the Sole Survivor at the Conclave.

(Holy shit why did this turn out so fucking long?)

The Survivor wakes—chained, cold, and aching—in the cells beneath the chantry, interrogated by Cassandra and Leliana, and denies her involvement with the Temple’s destruction. Forced to cooperate with the Survivor due to their dire need for the Mark and its potential use related to the Rifts, Cassandra casts a scowl at Leliana. “I will escort the prisoner if you will deal with the pale elf.”

Leliana only responds mildly, “I will continue to deal with him as I have been for the last three days—as well as nurse the migraine that he has caused.”

The Survivor doesn’t meet this esteemed “pale elf” until the battle at the Temple, and she only sees him from afar—he accompanied Leliana’s men to deal with the array of Shades and Wraiths that speckled the cratered grounds while the rest picked away at gargantuan Pride. She notices he is masterfully skilled with his weapons, perhaps even peculiarly so—she also notices that he has far greater strength, agility, and stamina than the average elf, easily surpassing the abilities of his peers.

She doesn’t see him again until well after the dust has settled—the Breach has been patched, Haven is able to reassess themselves, and the new Inquisition begins to construct their foundation. The newly named Herald of Andraste attempts to escape it all, fleeing into the grounds beyond Haven’s gates under the guise of fulfilling favors and errands for the various supervisors in the village, and stumbles across an abandoned cabin in the forest—at least she thought it was abandoned, at first.

She’s rummaging through the things there, finds the passed healer’s notes, but the lightest creak of displaced wood behind her tips her off to the presence of another. She whirls, hand already flying to her weapon, and backs up against the table, sending things clattering to the floor. The pale elf stands there, smirking at her startle.

“Act all the victim when you intrude on my space,” he croons, tilting his head and tutting at her, “my, how manners seem hard to come by around here.”

“You’re that—” She stops, hesitates, starts again. “Sister Leliana mentioned you. You’re the only other one who survived the blast.”

“That is comparatively the least of my problems and only the beginning of my present predicament, yes.” His eyes—as brilliant a crimson as the blood that still crusts the wounds that litter her bruised, battered, borderline broken body—scan her form from top to bottom, pause on her bandaged hand, and return to meet her uneasy gaze with a considerate one of his own. “Although I’m afraid I can confidently say that I ended up with the better of the lots drawn between the two of us.” His expression relaxes, just a little, a thready furrow forming between his silverite brows. “Does that hurt?”

She clenches her fist and clenches her teeth. “It’s dismissible.”

“Considering I heard tell that it is in the process of consuming you, I would disagree—but, I digress!” He flashes her a toothy smirk. “I am just grateful that there are no longer demons spewing out of that torn arsehole in the sky.”

She stares at him for a long moment, uncertain what to say in response. She’s exhausted, sore, and reeling from the last week of utter unfortunate bullshit that had befallen her.

“You’re…rather tall, for an elf,” she finally says lamely.

His brows arch into his forehead in clear surprise before he tips his head back and laughs. It exposes his teeth, and…no, those were not fangs. It must have been a trick of the firelight.

“It does seem that my kindred, however distantly related they are, do not possess as generous of traits as I,” he chuckles, shaking his head. “All so thin and lithe and…well, diminutive…it’s truly a marvel how they’re able to get anything done without breaking their hollow little bones. It’s little wonder that they seem so afraid of everyone else around here.”

She frowns, echoing, “‘Distantly related’?” with some dubiousness.

“Oh, your lovely spymaster didn’t tell you? I’m shocked.” The stranger gestures to himself with his arms extended to either side. “You have my sincerest apologies, my dear, I haven’t even introduced myself—I complain of lack of manners, yet fail to offer them in due turn.” He dips at the waist briefly, eyes glittering through his frosty lashes. “My name is Astarion, and…to put it simply, I am not supposed to be here.”

“I imagine anyone is fortunate to have walked away from all that destruction unscathed,” she responds mildly, narrowing her eyes.

“How cute,” he simpers, straightening and bracing his hands on his hips. “I fail to possess sufficient enough knowledge of magic in order to explain how in the hells this happened, exactly, but I originate from a place called Faerûn—not your delightfully archaic ‘Thedas’.”

He goes on to ramble about his companions, at least two of whom would have been far better suited to hypothesize how to rectify this particular ‘magical’ predicament. He tells her about their unusual circumstances of being thrust together, forced to cooperate and work towards fixing their looming health issues and the threat that faces their world.

She studies him for a long moment after he finishes. “…It sounds as if you and I are trapped in similar problems,” she sighs, rubbing her face. “As incredible as this all sounds, I sincerely doubt such a story could be easily invented on the spot…so you have my sympathies. Do you think that you’ll be able to return home?”

“Sister Leliana introduced me to that lovely gentleman who dresses like a vagrant. Supposedly, he’s the resident authority on this…‘Fade magic’, as it were?” he surmises.

“So I’ve heard,” she responds.

“Yes, well, our conversation was cut rather short at the time due to him being rather persistent in keeping his eye on that little souvenir.”

She flexes her hand and glances away. She’s been doing her damnedest not to dwell on the burning in her palm, thank you very much, and she didn’t particularly want to discuss it, either.

“Nevertheless,” he continues lightly, although his tone tempers into something more neutral, “he promised that he would look into the issue.”

“That’s…that’s good,” she replies quietly. “I hope he finds a way to send you back.”

The pale elf tilts his head at her then, eyes contemplative when she looks back up. He offers her a thin-lipped smile—this one actually reaches his eyes, softening his angular features. “As much as I am grateful not to be in your position, I do apologize. It would seem that the weight of your new moniker is not one to be taken lightly.”

“It is what it is,” she grits out. “They will believe what they wish regardless of my input.”

“That doesn’t make it any easier.” He leans in, holding her stare. “…I think it best to remain nearby, for the time being. Sole survivors of a devastating explosion still under scrutiny by those newly in power ought to stick together, yes?”

She relaxes, just slightly. “As long as you’re not the one who caused all of this.”

His expression sobers enough that it jars her. “I am the least inclined to cause spontaneous combustion among my compatriots,” he tells her, attempting humor, but there’s something in his eyes that contrasts his words entirely—a lingering fear, apprehension, borderline horror, if she has to place a name on it. “But no. I did not. And I think I have a few choice words—and daggers—on reserve for whoever did cause all of this devastation. I never asked to be thrown into the middle of this refuse burn.”

“Neither did I.” She offers him a bow in return and gives him her name. “I would say it’s been pleasant to make your acquaintance, but…I think we both are allowed to say that we would rather not have met at all.”

“Agreed.” He stoops to pick up the papers Adan had sent her to find and hands them to her. “I trust I will see you again soon?”

“You do intend to stay?” she asks, brow furrowing as she tucks them into her pocket.

“I’ve nowhere else to go,” he begins, “and fleeing from an investigation would provide rather damning evidence for the prosecution, even if misused. For now I’ll lend my particular set of skills and…services to this delightful little collection of vagabonds. I think you need all the help you can get, given that poor, overworked general of yours is relying on farmers and pilgrims to become your armed force.”

“I don’t speak on behalf of the others,” she says, “but I thank you. You’re greatly appreciated.”

“It’s my pleasure,” he purrs. “Now…do go get some rest, my dear. You look positively horrible for someone who has slept for nearly six days.”

His nonchalant sincerity startles a laugh out of her—the first in what felt like an age. He seems pleased to have done so. She departs the cabin feeling slightly less isolated than before.

[bloodpotency]

I'm going to rank my favourite 5E clans and explain why under this cut

1. Tzimisce

Simply excellent all around. Interesting powers, interesting clan history, fun social-political dynamics to explore and a debilitating enough clan bane to come up with ways it might affect a person psychologically over time. A lot of my tzimisce characters explore the idea of "home" and belonging as well as the horrifying nature of having your brain rot from the inside not just from the beast but from even more innocuous toxic thought patterns like claiming ownership of friends. It must be so challenging to be a tzimisce and remain human, which is wonderful for storytelling and character studies. My only regret with this clan as a DM is that I'm committed to them seeming rare in my setting so there aren't many characters I can write.

2. Ventrue

They are, imo, the funniest clan. All I need to do is show you LaCroix and you understand. Though I can understand also why people think they are annoying for the reasons I find them hilarious. Let me pitch you this: my beloved Ventrue OC, Thomas, is a loser tech bro boyfailure who is entitled to everything and is regularly punished. He was sired illegally, swept under the rug and forced to associate with anarchs cuz no one else will take him. I never understood the beauty of misfortune comedy before I was introduced to Ventrue. It's all about the narrative framing.

3. Lasombra

Similar to Ventrue (obviously) but they have sexy evil Eldritch darkness powers. What's not to love. I recently read through the clanbook in its entirety with my partner and the way they are all so comically villain-like in how they conduct clan business it rivals the Tremere clan. I love their drama and their aesthetic. Their only ding is that you have to ignore a lot of awkwardly handled racism (to show how evil they are!) from the canon leader characters. I'll have to read Chicago by night soon and hope it handles it fine.

4. Nosferatu

You can't go wrong with a bunch of fucked up looking monster dudes. Nosferatu get a ton of points for how creative you can be with their character design, similar to tzimisce. I also really love how they are probably among the least-toxic clans to be a part of, so it's just as easy to write wholesome character dynamics as it is to write messed up ones. As a DM, they are also great utility characters that can write you out of a lot of corners. Need information? They literally just collect it for fun and profit. It's free world building and plot hook real estate.

5. Malkavian

Now listen... I know Malkavians have the obvious drawback of being frequently portrayed as mean-spirited caricatures of mentally ill people. However... If you are mentally ill yourself, writing one that is a respectful exploration of your struggles is really cathartic. Beyond that, though, my favorite part of the Malkavian experience is the cosmic horror element. I love how their antideluvian is some unknowable incorporeal being that connects all of them. I love unknowable mind breaking horror! And I love their utility as well. If your player is a Malkavian attuned to the cobweb, you can just speak to them as the Storyteller for free basically. It's great fun.

6. Tremere

Wizards.

...

Clan lore is good too. The rigid structure of the clan is good for making a world with a Chantry nearby feel larger and more powerful. Also I guess it's pretty fun that they can do real magic.

7. Toreador

They're kinda mid to me. I don't dislike them but a lot of what makes them unique in WOD is just normal typical vampire fluff in other media. They're seductive, romantic, artistic, yeah whatever. These things gotta be subverted or executed flawlessly for me to be invested so Toreador neither wins nor loses. It doesn't help that their 2/3 of their 5E disciplines are ones I find kinda boring in practice (Celerity, Auspex).

8. Hecata

Carried almost entirely by how funny I find the Giovanni clan, stands low-mid tier Hecata clan. It's sad how much this clan/clans got butchered in 5E. It suffers most clearly from WOD's desire to not "retcon" things in Vampire. Clan lore is non-existent because they tried to just mash a bunch of clans together and pretend like it makes sense and created what sounds like the most boring traits of all of them to be the default. Points for potential, and the ability to carry on playing as if you are simply one of the original clans that made up this one.

9. Gangrel

Even though by all means I should be into Gangrel, they still end up being kinda mid for me. They fulfill a similar niche that either Tzimisce, Nosferatu or actual werewolves could fill just as easily. There's nothing wrong with them, the things I see in them are just done better by other clans in my opinion. They become forgettable to me and I'm gonna have to will myself to make some more cuz it would make sense for my home game!

10. The Ministry

I think they could be very interesting. I think it's silly and goofy that one of their clan traits is "wants to make you evil", that's good for comedy. And the vibe they have is good. I love a good cult, I love snakes... But I don't know if I find the whole Followers of Set thing to be compelling unless I missed some lore about how Set has adapted in the modern world. Maybe it could be cool if Set was the Wyrm or whatever. The Ministry is good for plot devices but I don't know how interesting they are as characters otherwise.

11. Brujah

I admit I'm biased on this one. I think it's kinda sad that in "modern" day, the time period most vtm games are run, Brujah are just stock angry countercultural guys. They're set up to be protagonists of a story against corrupt leaders and...nothing else. The clan doesn't give you much to work with. Strong fast and sexy guys with their three disciplines and basically zero clan structure (I miss VTM Redemption philosopher Brujah) does aesthetic). Every good Brujah character is good because of their writing and gets no shortcuts from being Brujah.

12. Ravnos

The last two clans get like. Negative points for the racism baggage they were born with all the way back in the earlier editions. I think Ravnos has a bit more interesting clan lore (what with their antediluvian wiping them out in recent-ish canon memory) but it takes a lot of conscious effort to make a character that isn't an uncomfortable appropriation of nomadic culture stereotypes.

13. Banu Haqim

It's difficult to ignore how their clan bane used to be THAT... And the whole fact that their clan lore, to this day in 5E continues to struggle to untangle itself from islamic extremist stereotyping. Saying "oh the extremists are just the evil faction of this clan now!" doesn't really cut the level of how bad and uncomfortable and disrespectful this clan was. I am not equipped to write a character of this clan that does not exist entirely separate from its lore. You get no favors from Banu Haqim.

My thoughts on caitiff and thin bloods are separate, and I can't really put them on a numbered list due to how they feel like separate entities entirely in vampire. Might make a separate post?

Thanks for reading! Remember all the above content is just my opinion and I am a DM who makes ocs, I haven't actually been a player in this game as of me writing this. I'm sure it shows lol

[hiddenbeks]

alone, desire & failure for the oc u really want to talk abt :3

not-so-nice oc asks

ooh well since we're touching on the topic of failure i gotta talk abt ultimate failgirl fereldan turnip champion of kirkwall hottest apostate in town aka frida! also she's my only dragon age gal whose tag is still empty and this is a great opportunity to change that

alone: how does your oc deal with loneliness? have they ever been completely alone before? how do they act when there's no one around to see them?

frida deals with loneliness by seeking company! she's used to always having at least a few people around and she would prefer not to be alone with her own thoughts so. she'll hit up her friends and/or go to the hanged man for a fun evening to avoid this :) if there's no one around to see her it means her energy is totally depleted and that's when she's at her. rawest and most bare? she might cry for an hour in total solitude or just lie in bed staring at nothing or do something else she'd never let anyone else witness. she is so used to putting up a strong and fun and unshakeable front for others!! alone time is for letting all her emotions out unfiltered oof

desire: what's one thing your oc wants more than anything in the world? are they open with that desire? why or why not? what would they do to fulfill it?

she's a simple gal. she just wants to live her life freely and be happy and make sure her loved ones are happy...

...until she arrives in kirkwall and gets to know the kirkwall crew and starts hanging out and discussing mage freedom with anders and merrill and learns about the conditions in the gallows... as years go by she starts desiring. bigger things. it's not enough that she and her friends are free - she wants total liberation and while she doesn't go around the gallows yelling 'fuck meredith' she doesn't hide her views either. after becoming the champion she becomes much more open about this because what are they gonna do? arrest the beloved savior of kirkwall lol?? and if it takes blowing up a chantry and starting a revolt to achieve total liberation then so be it.

she's not actually involved in the blowing up of the chantry tho (beyond distracting elthina as you do in-game) bc anders keeps her in the dark but. at that point she would've helped if he'd asked. in fact she would've done it in his stead because just as anders says 'i didn't want it to be connected to you' or something along those lines frida would also have wanted to shield her friend at the cost of her own safety. because that's what she does. she needs therapy.

failure: what's your oc's greatest failure? have they been able to move past it? does anyone else know about it?

ok so when i call her failgirl i don't mean it in a 'fails at everything she does' way. she succeeds in many things! but all her achievements in kirkwall are overshadowed by her losses that she sees as failures on her part. most people don't see it that way because they don't know about her personal life, they just know she saved kirkwall! she fights for the mages! she's a hero of the common people whoo!! the companions of course know about most of her losses as they're right there to witness them and even if she doesn't open up about her troubles they Know she is tormented

but anyway uh. her greatest failure is basically not being able to do what she set out to do in the first place which was protecting her family! bethany dies when they're fleeing ferelden (she shouldn't have let her run off like that!), carver catches the taint and frida dooms him to a slow death as a grey warden (she should've told him to stay in the city!!) and then leandra is killed (she should've been more alert!!!). she blames aveline as well for the last one though. as is her right because holy shit aveline you're bad at your job! also frida is getting tired of internalizing it all so she starts taking her anger and exhaustion and disappointment out on others. mainly aveline. they have a weird can't-stand-her-ass-but-i-need-someone-to-fight-with kind of relationship. idk.

she also believes she failed as a big sister to carver by not bonding with him as much as she did with bethany when they were younger and like. she still struggles to understand him... see things from his point of view... they never get to have a true heart to heart about their Issues before she sends carver away to join the wardens and after that they barely see each other anymore and hhhhh

at first it feels like she'll never be able to move past her failures. she simply distracts herself from all the sorrow by keeping busy but as years go by she eventually... grows around it... there are still people to care about and causes to fight for and she is still needed and wanted and she slowly realizes that she needs to move on? and stay in the present and work for a better future. i'm starting to sound so sappy lmao but my point is!!!! she will eventually make peace with it all. even though it takes a long time. (she gets to have a heart to heart with carver too because i love these two and want healing for them!!)

[persephoneggsy]

For the world state meme! 3, 8, 11, 17, and 25, please!

3. opinion on blood magic?

Fiora Cousland: She was wary of it, but she also had a morbid fascination with it when she was younger. Kind of like how people would be interested in true crime, I guess. Then she actually saw blood magic in action and any kind of appealing mystique it might have had promptly went out the window. She’s pretty firmly in the “fuck that noise” category now.

Marian Hawke: Hates it. The idea of someone being able to take away her autonomy and make her a mindless puppet is a huge fear for her. She’s softened a little on the issue of thinking all blood mages are irredeemable, mostly due to being friends with Merrill, who doesn’t subjugate others so much as augment her own powers with (mostly) her own blood.

Hildegarde Trevelyan: While she can appreciate the scholarly argument that it’s just another school of magic that can wielded for good or for bad, it mostly just gives her the ick and she’d prefer to stay far away from it.

8. who do they hate the most, and do they have an arch-nemesis?

Fiora Cousland: It’s gotta be Rendon Howe. She had a mild disdain for Loghain after everything he put her and her allies through, but Howe took EVERYTHING from her. She also doesn’t get along with Nathaniel, despite acknowledging he wasn’t responsible for his father’s actions. Still, he left her with a bad first impression she could never quite get over, and the family resemblance caused too much resentment on her end.

Marian Hawke: Marian has a lot of people she considers enemies on the best of days, but the most vitriolic one for her was probably the Arishok. She hates everything that the Qun stands for and couldn’t stand him or his attitude. And then he attacked the city she was living in and nearly killed her in their duel, so. I like to think that Marian’s blunt nature earned the Arishok’s respect, but he sure as hell never earned hers.

Hildegarde Trevelyan: I don’t think Hilde has enough hatred in her heart to have an arch nemesis honestly lmao. Even with Corypheus and his ilk, she’s not fighting them because of an intense hatred or vendetta, she’s doing it because it’s the right thing to do. Like, at most the one person she felt the most annoyance towards was Magister Erimond. But, like, who didn’t?

11. what are their religious beliefs, if any?

All three of my girls are Andrastian!

Fiora Cousland: Probably the most “normal” relationship to her faith, she was raised in it and does believe in the Maker, but she’s not rushing to become a cloistered sister or anything.

Marian Hawke: Had a significantly more complicated relationship with her faith, due to being an apostate hiding from the chantry. She doesn’t think about religion much until she gets to Kirkwall and meets Sebastian, who does get her to view the chantry in a more… maybe not positive, but nuanced light.

Hildegarde Trevelyan: Much like Fiora, she was raised Andrastian and passively followed the faith for most of her life… and then suddenly she’s the new messiah. She has a bit of a crisis after being named the Herald of Andraste. Not because she stops believing in the Maker, but because she can’t fathom why He would ever choose HER to lead his faithful. Hilde has self esteem issues, if you couldn’t tell.

17. what were they like as a child?

Fiora Cousland: Very vivacious, prone to getting into trouble by playing pranks with her brother Fergus (or just as likely, playing pranks ON Fergus). She hated her “noble” lessons like etiquette and dancing and wanted to spend her time playing instead. Of the three girls, she had the happiest childhood.

Marian Hawke: Marian was quieter as a child than her more brash, fiery adult self. She had it drilled into her VERY early on to not draw attention to their family, so she mostly stayed inside and watched the twins. She grew to resent her parents for not letting her have a real childhood, but she never took it out on Carver and Bethany. At least she had a lot of free time to practice her favored hobby, sewing.

Hildegarde Trevelyan: She’s always been shy and anxious, even as a kid. She spent her days reading by herself in the family garden, and was adored by her father. However, her older half sister liked to alternate between picking on her or pretending she didn’t even exist — while her other half siblings tried to mitigate the damage by being kind to her, Hilde kept withdrawing further and further into herself until her magic came in and she was sent to the Circle.

25. what did they plan for their life to look like before the events of the game happened?

Fiora Cousland: Fiora figured she had a few years of freedom before her parents insisted she pick a husband and settle down. She wanted to travel the world first, though. She’d have a different lover every week and make a name for herself as an adventurer, like her mother, the “Sea Wolf”. Then, when her appetite was sated, she’d come home, marry the least offensive (or failing that, most handsome) suitor she could find and add to the Cousland line.

Marian Hawke: Realistically, Marian knew her prospects were slim. On her worst days, her pessimism would win and she thought she’d never make it out of Lothering. She’d be stuck there forever, tending to her family like the obedient little daughter her father wanted her to be and never have any freedom of her own. On her more optimistic days… she dreamed about opening her own fancy tailor’s shop and becoming rich and successful and fulfilled. Possibly also marrying a handsome noble who would adore her and listen to her.

Hildegarde Trevelyan: After being sent to the Ostwick Circle, Hildegarde imagined she’d spend the rest of her life there, barring the occasional permitted visit to her father’s estate. She would keep her head down and study. Maybe if she was lucky, she’d be selected as an archivist. Before the Circle, Hildegarde wanted to study architecture, traveling to different countries to document the history and aesthetics of the buildings and structures she would find. Her father is a renowned historian, so she dreamed of following in his footsteps.

Dragon Age Canon Worldstate asks

[doctormage]

jumping in on the anders apologism bc now i'm feeling strongly about it too, it's also just baffling to me how people can play da2 and villainize anders. bc youre right, the game spends a lot of time showing you chantry atrocities, plus one of the most interesting things about da2 to me is the prominent theme of how oppressors control the narrative, yet so many people miss it! the framing device for the entire story is varric telling the story of how a rebellion started to a chantry seeker, recounting chantry injustices but in a dark room away from the public, where it can be suppressed. that means something, but people still call anders a terrorist or murderer and i'm just like. well that's an interesting way to refer to slave revolts, lol. kind of the entire point was that the chantry lies to justify religious persecution and villainizes anyone who resists, but i guess you somehow missed that and are doing it for them...

“the prominent theme of how oppressors control the narrative” yes!!!! fuck!!!!

it’s especially funny to me given how they kinda beat us over the head w that in DAI (which obv came out after DA2 but like, we can use it as a lens to look at previous games bc it’s been out for 8 fucking years and we’re all somehow still arguing abt its predecessor lol). even the first two I can name just off the top of my head — the shit w the seekers wrt tranquility & the shit w inquisitor ameridan — are both instances of the chantry lying about their shittiness & those lies having serious long-standing implications for the entirety of thedas, but ESPECIALLY for marginalized groups (elves, mages, tranquil) (not to mention how trespasser explores similar ideas but i don’t want to derail)

also failing to acknowledge varric’s role as the storyteller AND the situation in which he’s being forced to tell the story, like you mentioned, is some big fat beef i have w DAI. how are yall gonna constantly bring attention to the fact that DA2 isn’t a direct narrative but instead a story being told while being interrogated by not just a seeker but THE RIGHT HAND OF THE FUCKING DIVINE, then want to demonize the revolutionary YOU created so bad that you backpedal enough to be like no varric was telling the 100% pure unbridled truth actually. he has a perfect photographic memory and remembers everything exactly as it happens, and then he wrote it down as such with zero exaggeration at all. despite him literally saying on multiple occasions that he loves to lie and sensationalize. not with this tho we trust him. HUH???

and don’t even get me STARTED on how they named the mage underground as such to draw parallels to the actual fucking Underground Railroad and were then brainless enough to be like “well that’s bad actually :/” lmao????? girl (gender neutral) WHAT??

but yeah at the end of the day youre absolutely correct, people will fall for this shit even at the hands of the fantasy catholic church and refuse to see otherwise. the games can straight up tell and SHOW us that the chantry & all the organizations that report to it (the templars, the seekers, the circles) are corrupt and LIE!! outright LIE and kill people to protect those lies, and still people will be like “okay well what about the rich people huh? what about all these made up scenarios i created to make myself feel better about hating when the oppressed stand up to their oppressors?? I’m enlightened for saying all violence is bad, even when it can put an end to more violence<3” lmfao not only are they doing the brainwashing themselves, like you said, but imo a lot of them are missing the point on purpose ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[tabriscadash]

I was asked this on my old blog right as I set about transitioning to this one, so...

The first character I ever fell in love with: for DA:O, dare I say Daveth? What can I say -- I irrationally got incredibly attached to him. otherwise, DEFINITELY Morrigan, and I have crystal clear memories of my first run through Lothering and looking at Morrigan like 😍 the whole time. For DA:2/E, Carver -- unless you count Anders & Justice since I knew of them from Awakening beforehand, in which case probably Justice. For DA:I, it’s a toss-up between Vivienne or Cole -- I technically liked Cole first but SPECIFICALLY in the supporting material (Asunder), and didn’t vibe with him anywhere near as much in the game, AND I got him as a companion after I got Vivienne, so probably Vivienne.

A character that I used to love/like, but now do not: for DA:O, I guess Oghren? I never loved him, but I liked the idea of him because I really liked the dwarves/Orzammar side of DA’s worldbuilding -- but he’s such an unlikeable character that I just.. don’t vibe with him at all. I debate recruiting him every single time now, and I don’t think I ever do his personal quest (in the base game OR Awakening). for DA:2/E, I don’t really have anyone that fits -- but I REALLY wanted to like Merrill and Aveline more than I did, and especially in Aveline’s case, I can’t stand her and genuinely think she’s the unintended, secret Big Bad of the whole game. for DA:I, probably Cole, bc I was really into the idea of a little walking-corpse serial killer animated by a spirit as per the book, but that’s not really the vibe in DA:I, and combined with the somewhat patronising/ableist language and how significantly he is infantilised (including by the fandom) I just got put off him. I do still like him, but not as much.

A ship that I used to love/like, but now do not: for DA:O, I don’t really have one? I guess see my DA:I answer, lol... for DA:2/E, has to be Anders - I don’t think he’s OOC in 2, but I think his writing does so little with him and he feels v. reductive. Where his relationship could be SO interesting and angsty, it instead is written in a really dull and/or cringey way. It would have been nice to see Anders more like the Anders of Awakening near the beginning of the game (rather than random, infrequent and questionably rare snippets), and then see the progression of his relationship with Justice as the game went on -- I want more interesting abominations, PLEASE. for DA:I, listen I cannot express to you HOW EXCITED I was for my planned Lavellan to romance Sera… also I used to be way more tolerant of Cullen x Amell/Surana ships because, like, hey dark ships are fun, right? But since Cullen’s ~wholesome whitewash~ in DA:I, and his fandom clamouring to absolve him of any wrongdoing ever.. it’s boring to me.

My ultimate favourite character™: for DA:O, probably Sten? or Morrigan. They’re both fantastic, and also are significant comfort chars for me. for DA:2/3, honestly, probably my own Hawke -- I feel so hugely proud of her, and can’t imagine I’d enjoy the game anywhere near as much had I not played it as my Hawke. If not her, maybe Sebastian or Carver? for DA:I, I really love Vivienne, as well as Blackwall, and Solas is a great character even if I probably would not say I liked him.

Prettiest character: for DA:O, we all know it’s Zevran. for DA:2/E, I think Aveline -- although her aggressively bland colour-scheme lets her down in a major way (although I respect her dedication to all orange all day every day). There’s just something about her arms -- very Abby from TLOU:2. for DA:I, maybe Josephine? Ser Barris is very pretty, too...

My most hated character: for DA:O, I really didn’t like Alistair, Wynne and Oghren, and of my companions - Oghren is probably my least favourite. He’s vulgar and also profoundly uninteresting. for DA:2/E, it has to be Aveline. There’s just something about ineptitude and a complete, wilful refusal to take accountability for your actions that I can’t stand. It would be okay if it was an intentional character flaw, but the game/narrative treats her like she’s lawful good and it really annoys me. for DA:I, maybe Iron Bull? He was a huge disappointment for me. I also really dislike Sera, Cassandra, and Varric. I’m so sick of Varric - I never want to see him again.

My OTP: for DA:O, I really loved Zevran’s romance -- but I am also very amused by the fact that Leliana got to ‘love’ status with Kallian accidentally, AND I got the ‘love’ glitch for Justice (👀) and Velanna. I do sometimes wonder about an AU where Kallian is forced to make a politically expedient marriage with Nathaniel Howe for diplomatic reasons in order to consolidate her position as Arlessa, and it being an entirely platonic arrangement (it’s not like anyone expects an heir from an infertile Grey Warden) -- and maybe Zev and Nate kiss sometimes, who knows? I also LOVE my Darkspawn Chronicles AU where Kallian and Nelaros are a happy, married couple each hiding their skills with weapons from each other like dumb, cute sweethearts. They shelter Zevran when he fails to kill Alistair and a poly couple evolves. for DA:2/E, I love the IDEA of a Seb romance that isn’t so strictly conditional around the structures that abused him -- he should be allowed to love, chastely or otherwise, but free from the Chantry OR his position as prince/heir. I’d LOVE to actually have a romance with him where you can actually challenge the abuse he’s experienced. for DA:I, Malika doesn’t have a canon romance (although I think when I replay, I’m going to romance Josephine!) but I think Blackwall has an amazing romance. Solas’ is also iconic, it must be said. 

My NOTP: for DA:O, I really dislike Alistair in a shipping capacity; he’s immature and says a lot of misogynistic shit and I don’t think he’s the worst for it, but I don’t really vibe with shipping him, having played the game as a female city elf. for DA:2/E, I wouldn’t say I have one, particularly? although I really dislike Aveline’s relationship with her husband simply because it seems incredibly inappropriate, given that they work together and she has power over him -- and because I dislike her, generally, I don’t feel inclined to do something nice for her. for DA:I, I suppose Sera/Lavellan -- although I’m not AGAINST it, it just really isn’t for me, having attempted it. I also don’t really vibe with Dorian x Iron Bull. Something abt the way the game handled BDSM and their relationship banter specifically I don’t really like.

Favourite episode quest: for DA:O, probs Orzammar/the Deep Roads. I really love the dwarven lore! and, of course, Fort Drakon is really funny, even though it’s not canon in my game iirc. for DA:2/E, maybe the murder mystery with the serial killer, where ultimately Leandra dies? I also really enjoyed all the companion quests. for DA:I, The Descent (just, all of it, lmao) and everything to do with the Avvar. Crestwood also BANGED.

Saddest death: for DA:O, it’s frankly a fucking INJUSTICE that Shianni gets murdered if you make her Bann of the Alienage -- the idea of that happening whilst Kallian is in Amaranthine and unable to protect her :( genuinely very upsetting. I go back and forth on who is made Bann, tbf, so idk how canonical it is: I think maybe Cyrion would get it, but I’m also endeared to Soris holding the position, with Shianni as Hahren. for DA:2/E, Bethany. I wish both twins had had the chance to reach Kirkwall :(. Let Leandra die instead. for DA:I, maybe not the saddest death, but the most memorable for me was that one sleeping dragon in the Hissing Wastes.. leave her alone. Stay out of a womans’ business.

Favourite season game: DA:O!

Least favourite season game: DA:I.

Character that everyone else in the fandom loves, but I hate: for DA:O, Alistair. I cannot deal with his complacency and hypocrisy. for DA:2, I really disliked Merrill but I honestly cannot remember why. DEFINITELY Varric -- I hated how the game forces you to be his best friend, and if you’re low approval, you have to endure these pointless pissy little comments with this little anti-dwarf centrist pissant. After the expedition, I literally have no reason to put up with him, and I NEVER take him out. I hate that he plays the same role in DA:I, too. for DA:I, the Iron Bull was hugely disappointing, and I also really don’t vibe with Cassandra. She just seems very wishy-washy and complacent and hypocritical, and many of her comments about other cultures seem snide for literally no reason other than bigotry. 

My ‘you’re a piece of trash, but you’re still a fave’ fave: for DA:O, lbr probably Sten. Mans is gonna launch a HORRIFYING invasion in the next game iirc and frankly, I’m ok with it. Just wanna see that big bastard again ❤🥵. for DA:2/E, I LOVE Gamlen, ok? for DA:I, I am not sure if I have one.

My ‘beautiful cinnamon roll who deserves better than this’ fave: for DA:O, if any of you so much as LOOK at Velanna wrong, it’s hands. That includes Bioware. I also feel incredibly protective of and sad for Morrigan. for DA:2/E, probably Sebastian -- I feel so sad for him, and so frustrated by the limitations with the game. for DA:I, I’m honestly not sure.. maybe Josephine? I don’t really feel this way about Sera, but I do think she deserves better from the game and its writing, and also from fandom: there are valid criticisms of her, but the hate she gets is not proportional to any valid issues with her -- and gee, I wonder why that is.

My ‘this ship is wrong, nasty, and makes me want to cleanse my soul, but i still love it’ ship: for DA:O, I did use to find Cullen x Surana/Amell intriguing as a dark ship -- I actually hc that Neria Surana is actually Nelaros’ sister, and have dabbled with it as a dark ship. I also am interested in Loghain/Alistair - which each pretends the other is someone else. Alistair is wooby, hate ships are, in general, fun -- so long as we acknowledge that they are, indeed, unhealthy ships. for DA:2/E, I kind of feel like Sebastian romances are, invariably, kind of dark... and, similarly, Anders romances -- especially with certain red Hawkes, The way it ends is, invariably, bordering on fucked up. ALSO Hawkecest is weird and wonderful: GET WITH IT. 

My ‘they’re kind of cute, and I lowkey ship them, but I’m not too invested’ ship: for DA:O, I joked about Velanna x Leliana once and I’ve not been able to stop thinking about it ever since… Velanna x Sigrun is also something that can be so personal. Ariane x Finn is adorable and are paid DUST by Bioware AND fandom. I actually am really into Anora x Nathaniel & NO I will NOT explain myself; it’s a crackship but it’s MY crackship. for DA:2/E, Isabela x Fenris is super cute, but I don’t pay enough attention to them to really have super committed thoughts & feelings on them. for DA:I, Blackwall x Josephine is cute as a background ship; I also think Maryden x Cole is sweet.

[emerald-amidst-gold]

8, 13, 80, 82, for the otp asks? 👀

OTP! OTP! >:3 Time for some more rambling~! You know, I think my love for these two dorks grows more and more as I create and talk about their dynamic. It just. HNNNNNGH. *makes grabby hands at dumb dumb wolf and dumb dumb dragon*

Anyways, my fangirling aside, let's get to answering! >:D Thank you so much for the ask, dear friend! X3

8. Who tends to worry the most?

I was going to answer this with 'both equally', but the more I think, the more I realize that Solas is the one who worries the most. XD

I mean, come on. We all know Solas is a natural worry wart. It's in the man's blood, and Fane has a tendency to make his dear wolf's blood pressure rise to fatal heights with the shit he does. PFFT!

Fane is a literal battering ram when it comes to battles (this is based on how I've specced him in-game), and he just charges in without caring if he'll get sliced, diced, or scorched. Fane's illness with magic makes it incredibly difficult for Solas to erect barriers on him, so he has to devise other ways to keep Fane in one piece (nitpicking about his armor, constantly asking, 'Are you certain you are ready?', and begging, 'Please control yourself this time, ma'isenatha.') All of that worry comes from the fact that Solas has seen Fane die, has had to guide him to it, even. Fane doesn't mean to brush off that concern and worry, but when he's embroiled in battle he...loses his senses a bit. Dragons aren't meant to fight, and fighting is what Fane does best in his new life, so he has a hard time balancing bloodlust with merciful restraint.

If Fane gets injured (which he does, but only grazes and the occasional gash), Solas won't let anyone else attend to him, fear gripping his mind, memories of blood soaked crystal and decaying scales cracking his mask and rendering him tortured. When Fane sees that, instead of just seeing the nagging, he'll go docile, go remorseful and will say, 'I'm sorry, my sky. I never meant to-- I only--hn.' Once they talk and wind down though, things get right back on track, but Solas is constantly worrying over his dragon--constantly.

Solas worries about everything with Fane--his scars, his nightmares, his battle with his identity--but battle is where he's the least reserved in it. He doesn't want Fane to have to fight, but he knows they both don't have a choice in the matter.

13. Who steals the blankets?

Solas. SOLAS.

Well, it's more that Fane gives the blankets to Solas. XD Due to the fact that Fane's affinity as a dragon was ice, he has a very low tolerance to heat. So, furs and even thin silken sheets can be a bit too much for our resident dragon to handle. Hell, Fane walks around the outer perimeter of Skyhold (trails along the mountains and whatnot) in nothing but a fur-lined cloak, his typical trousers, and his black tunic. My boy gives no fucks about the cold.

Fane and Solas' quarters in Skyhold stay a nice in-between temperature, catering to both their needs comfortably. Magic is a lovely thing, and there are certain minor spells that Fane can bear without throwing up all over the place.

...Fane does whine when the fire is a bit too stoked though. That's when the balcony windows get torn open by a deadpan Solas, who then regrets his decision like so many other things. *cackles* Fane just shrugs and gives his wolf that shit-eating smirk of his that says, 'That all you've got, Dread Wolf? Tsk. Shame.'

80. What do they love about each other the most?

Solas is enthralled by Fane's sheer tenacity. Even before the two of them realized who the other was, Solas found Fane's attitude admirable. He had a feeling that Fane was troubled, could see it during specific intervals, but he also saw the will to endure in emerald and gold. Despite the snaps, the snarls, and the moments of disassociation, Solas could see just how strong of spirit Fane was--making decisions without a single regret (on the outside, of course), standing firm to what he believed in, never bowing to those who wished to break him in half with their hopes and expectations, witnessing those moments of vulnerability when Fane's illness with magic became too much, but the other powering through it despite the pain, despite the hardship, and between it all, how much he cared about every. single. person he came across. The downtrodden and forgotten. The traumatized and bereft.

Solas adores Fane's tenacity, and most importantly, his devotion. The latter comes later when they form a romantic relationship, but Solas has always seen both traits in his dragon. And he'll do anything to make sure those shining spirits never becomes warped again.

Now, it may seem predictable, but Fane thrives off of Solas' brain. X'D Fane is a creature of observation, he picks and delves to determine why things work the way they do, or technically speaking, why people act the way that they do. As such, he's always stunned or enraptured when Solas becomes especially passionate about a topic (spirits, the Fade, the Elvhen, his beliefs, his opinions, etc.) Solas' questioning and curious nature is what made Fane open up as a dragon, had him seeing that there was someone not so black and white. So, even if it's sometimes at his expense, Fane lets Solas talk and talk and talk and talk until the candles are burnt down and the moon's high in the sky, never once letting his mind wander and spiral because he'd be a fool to ignore such a beautiful sight as his sky.

82. What is an inside joke they have?

Okay, okay! I may have mentioned this before, but Fane and Solas, on occasion, like to point out the sheer irony of Fane being the 'Herald of Andraste'.

What I mean by that is; he's a dragon. History tiiiime! >:D

Old Gods-depicted as dragons by the Tevinter Imperium.

Archdemons, those that command the Blights, the very thing the Chantry warns against aside from mages--dragons

Fane is a dragon. Fane is also the Herald of Andraste. The Tevinter Imperium used to worship the Old Gods which the Chantry says are false gods and the only true one is the Maker.

So, where does that leave us? Fane is a dragon being worshiped by most of Thedas as a literal figure of divinity. He's the very thing the Chantry claims is 'wicked' and 'heretical'. Furthermore, Fane does have the capacity to harbor a portion of an Old God's soul. *holds out hands* EH? EHHHH?!

"They worship me as a god, more or less, right?"

"If one where to delve deeply into the matter, then perhaps. I believe most of the beleagured and drifting see you as a symbol of hope, ma'isenatha."

"...They literally call me the prophet of their prophetess. They think I'm divinely touched."

"Technically, you are correct. But--oh."

"Yeah. Fucking hilarious. Looks like the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree. Let's hope the scum in Tevinter don't catch wind. It would be humiliating for the Chantry to know the people flock to a dragon."

"...You are ridiculous."

"But you're laughing, so I know you see the irony, my sky." *chuckles* "Ohh, my day just got ten times better with that realization. Imagine Cassandra's face! Hah!"

"You are far too riveted by this, my dragon. ...Though I admit, it is rather amusing."

"See?" *snickers* "Herald of Andraste. Pfft. I'm a fucking dragon."

Dialogue drabble that I may flesh out and form into a snippet of pure ridiculousness! But that's the joke between Solas and Fane, and when Cassandra's catches Fane nearly exploding with the force of holding his snorts back...well, let's just say she's very confused. *cackles*

[thessalian]

Thess vs A Grand Cleric’s Job

I’ve been playing DA2 again and I’ve finally put to words my issue with Grand Cleric Elthina, at least in terms of the way she really is not doing her damn job.

She keeps saying, “I can’t take sides”, and that’s true insofar as it goes. However, her great grand ideals get a little screwy when she follows it up by saying, “My job is to stand off to the side and pray these two find a way to peace”. Because no. No, Grand Cleric, that’s not your fucking job. Because after so many years, it’s clear that Orsino and Meredith are not going to find a way to peace without a mediator.

Grand Cleric Elthina’s job was not to stand off to the side and pray, refusing to get involved in any way. Her job was not to send those two off to their metaphorical rooms like chastised children, allowing them to stew in their own resentments and live inside their own heads. Her job was not to basically add fuel to the fire by allowing them to think that being so intractable was in any way cool.

Her job was to be a fucking mediator.

Her job was to sit both of them down in a room - a neutral space that neither would want to see destroyed, as an arbiter they wouldn’t want to kill, and make them fucking compromise. She said, “Both have good points; both have flaws” - she needed to put the Chantry’s gold and her life where her mouth was. She needed to flag up the good points and the flaws and help them find where the two could coexist. Her job was to say, “Neither of you are going to get exactly what you want, but if we sit down and talk about this, maybe we can find a way where both of you can come close. Now talk like fucking adults and I will be here to check you when you start in on your bullshit”.

I mean, she saw what happened with the Qunari, when roadblocks were in place between Qunari and Kirkwall’s rulership and stubbornness prevented the sides from coming to an understanding. If the fucking Arishok had just said, “I’m looking for something that was stolen and I can’t go back without it; if you want me gone, help me find the damn thing” ... well, Act 2 would have looked very different, but a lot fewer people would have died. Elthina was clearly aware of what happened there, how anti-Qunari sentiment among the people (HER OWN PEOPLE) just made things worse. She would have known that anti-mage and anti-Templar sentiment was growing among the people, egged on by Orsino and Meredith, and that someone was going to take matters into their own hands at some point. At some stage, it was going to stop being an issue contained within the Gallows grounds. Arguably, given Grace and Aldric and Thrask and the rest, it already had become an issue that spread beyond the Gallows grounds.

But no. Instead, she let the whole thing simmer, and outside forces obliged her to die for it, and yes, we needed that for Act 3 to conclude the way it did. All because she couldn’t do her damn job and arbitrate fairly and without bias between the Knight-Commander and the First Enchanter because somehow, that wasn’t her job. Except where it was.

I understand the needs of plot and everything, but however much I enjoy that game (and I do, believe me), I’m often a little disturbed by how much of the plot is solely dependent on everyone involved being incredibly fucking stupid. I understand that a bit of convenient ignorance is necessary for most plots to operate, but that much, that obviously? There were ways of making things work the way the writers wanted it to without having everyone involved effectively sharing a brain cell that was apparently on loan to Hawke of all people more often than was feasible. But of course, that would have taken time and development was rushed so they went for the more convenient method of having Kirkwall’s motto be, “Using logic is punishable by death” ... which I guess is partly explained by the whole Enigma of Kirkwall, “The very bones and foundations of this city are made of crazy-making evil” thing.

Oh well. Still fun.

[shadowglens]

12, 23, 39, 40 for nuala & maggie :3

12. how skilled at lying is your oc? how frequently do they lie? for what reason? what situations would be the exception?

nuala - she’s an exceptional liar, and in general is really good at guiding a conversation to suit her needs (or distract whoever she’s talking to from the truth), although she tries not to lie too often. she sometimes finds herself slipping back into old habits and lying to her friends, but she does her best to only do it when it will further the inquisition’s goals or against her enemies. (it’s part of why she was so broken up about solas having lied to her for so long - she thought she was an expert at being able to tell when she was being lied to. obviously not).

maggie - she’s an okay liar, but tends to lean more towards the blunt truth than lies. one thing maggie’s found over her life is that the truth can often do more damage than a lie, and she learnt to weaponsie that young. also, her parents spent most of her childhood lying to her, and the last thing she wants is to inherit anymore poison from them than she already has. 

23. what is the most annoying sound to your oc? what’s the most pleasant? is there any reason?

nuala - she hates the chantry songs that the priests will sing sometimes around skyhold, because it’s just another reminder of how much she despises the whole institution and all it stands for. favourite sounds would be a small brook running through the forset, or the rolling of thunder in the distance.

maggie - nails on a chalkboard, or anything similar. it drives her absolutely nuts. also, people who crack their knuckles. she loves the sound paint makes across a blank canvas, or the sound of an engine roaring to life.

39. how superstitious your oc? do they end up following them ‘just in case’? or are superstitions incredibly important to your oc? what are some that they believe? what about the ones they don’t?

nuala - she’s not really that superstitious, despite being raised in an environment where superstitions were a really important part of the dalish culture. over the years, and in the aftermath of solas leaving with the anchor, she falls back on a few - silly old wives tales about the glow of a wolf’s eyes in the dark, of the crack of lighting over water, of the flash of green that suposedly appears just before the sun sets. 

maggie - nope. her parents were crazy superstitious and so maggie is the complete opposite, rejecting any and all superstitions as stupid. she refuses to believe that all the creepy or weird stuff that happens in the world doesn’t have an explanation - honestly, she thinks most superstitions came about from either fucked up religious ideology, or drugs, or both.

40. are there any habits your oc has picked up from people around them? do they know where they’re from? does your oc try to stop themselves from doing it?

nuala - she doesn’t tend to adopt other peoples habits that much, being as stubborn as she is, but there are a few little things that she picks up. spending so much time with dorian makes her start using bookmarks instead of just dog earring everything, and she begins to question more of the people and world around her after talking so often with solas. i don’t think she’d even notice the changes.

maggie- she’s very much her own person and doesn’t like to let herself be moulded or changed by others too much, so not really. if she ever realised she’d picked up someone else’s habit, she’d probably forcefully stop herself from doing it.

[beauregardlionett]

this poem is my confessional (loving you isn’t a sin)

AO3 Link

A/N: big shout out to my man @sadwizardvibes for the inspiration AND for writing me a fucking song to go with this piece thanks for fueling my beauyasha brainrot man <3

If she was honest with herself, giving Beau that poem had been entirely an impulse decision. Yasha had told Jester she would work on it—which she did—and that she would find a special moment for it. But most of the moments she shared with Beau were special to her, so that didn’t exactly narrow things down. She cherished every conversation and tried her hardest to keep Beau safe. Especially after the events at the chantry, Yasha appreciated every moment she got with Beau.

So, she had handed the paper over and prayed she didn’t embarrass herself.

Beau had seemed flustered, touched, and Yasha had wanted nothing more than to kiss her then and there. But she had held back, because she wanted Beau to at least read the poem before anything else happened.

And then all of that insanity with Vess and Molly—no, Lucien—had happened, and Yasha found herself grateful nothing else had transpired between her and Beau. She hated to think the memory of their potential first kiss might have been marred by the events following.

Regardless, they were underway toward Aeor; the snowy landscapes were taxing, endless, and a little boring. Supposedly it was a good thing they had encountered none of the foretold beasts, but Yasha harbored a lot of pent up frustration and nerves. It would be nice to have something to take that out on.

At the end of their second day, Caleb set up his tower. He ushered them all inside to a haven of warmth and stained glass they were becoming steadily more familiar with. Dagon seemed understandably impressed with the magical structure and grateful for the guest room he was directed to.

Usually they would gather up for dinner together, but there seemed to be a silent, unanimous decision that exhaustion took precedence. They retired to their various rooms with yawns and quiet ‘good nights’, safe for the time being. Yasha lay on her back on the cot in the room with the floral mural. She traced an absent gaze over the patterns, identifying flowers in her head and hoping it would lull her anxious mind to sleep.

She couldn’t stop thinking about Molly—Lucien—and what they would do when they caught up to him. Yasha couldn’t stop thinking about Beau, about the poem she carefully tucked away to read later. Yasha couldn’t help but remember of Zualla as she stared at the flowers on her wall.

There was a knock at her door.

Pushing to her feet after a moment, Yasha walked to her door to poke her head out. She was confused about who might be at her door at this hour until her eyes found Beau fidgeting on the other side of the threshold.

“Hi,” Beau mumbled, hands behind her back.

“Hi,” Yasha breathed back, opening the door a little wider. “Are you okay? It’s late.”

“Yeah,” Beau said, voice pitching up a little at the end in a tell Yasha quickly realized meant she was nervous. “Yeah, I just uh…”

Yasha raised an eyebrow at Beau’s nerves, unused to a Beau who floundered. She realized in the second before Beau pulled the piece of parchment out from behind her back what this was about. The Aasimar flushed pink and her eyes flicked to the ground, embarrassed.

“This was…really beautiful, Yasha,” Beau mumbled, fingers fiddling with the edges of the paper. “But I uh…I noticed this.”

Yasha chanced a look up, Beau extending the paper and pointing to a tiny note scrawled in the bottom corner. She had forgotten about that.

In her messy, cramped handwriting, Yasha had scrawled the word harp? She had been considering turning her poem into a song, because it was always easier for her to express things through music. Plus, she knew that Beau enjoyed her music, so why wouldn’t she put it to chords? But Yasha ended up pushing the idea aside. It was one thing for Beau to like Yasha’s wordless performances, and a whole other for Yasha to direct poetry with music toward the woman of her affection.

“It was…just an idea,” Yasha said with a half-hearted dismissive gesture.

“Would you play it for me?”

Yasha felt her cheeks grow warmer, more red than pink now. But before she could give it too much thought, the Aasimar felt herself nodding. She stood aside and let Beau into her room, leading the monk back into the chamber painted with flowers.

Beau sat cross-legged on the floor across from Yasha as the Aasimar tuned her harp. She took a little longer with the task than strictly necessary, just so she could freak out in silence.

Of course, she had prepared chords for this, because she had run with the idea. But Yasha shied away from it, losing her courage. Music was something that had helped Yasha heal, a meditation in her own way. It brought her peace and offered her an outlet for emotions she didn’t quite know how to express. So, to have Beau sitting before her, eyes trained solely on Yasha, was intense and nerve-wracking.

If Yasha had learned anything, though, it was that she could trust Beau. The monk had been looking out for her, and for the entire group, since day one. Before Beau had trusted any of them, she had still been looking out for them. It was something Yasha admired about Beau—her capacity to care and to love despite everything she had been through. Beau inspired Yasha to keep fighting.

The least she could do was play this for her.

She didn’t need the parchment back. Yasha had spent hours pouring over the words and the chords to make sure it sounded perfect.

Oh, oh Beau, I’m grateful for you.

You waited while I wandered,

While everyone was wondering

If I’d ever come back, you stayed true.

Her voice faltered slightly at the start, uncertain and underused, but she persisted. Beau’s eyes on her simultaneously made her nervous and strengthened her resolve.

Oh, oh Beau, you mean so much to me,

I’ve lost so many people,

I cannot fathom losing

The woman who has loved so fearlessly.

Yasha rarely sang. She used to sing for Zualla in those quiet stolen moments years ago. When they were out in the fields alone, walking or hunting or just existing to stare at the stars. She sang once for Molly, both of them a little past tipsy after a good night for the circus. He had told her she possessed a voice fit for performances, but Yasha had waved him off.

Her voice was sweet, higher than her speaking voice because she sang from her nose and her head. It threw most people for a loop, but Beau merely sat there and stared. Her blue eyes were wide with awe, lips slightly parted. If Yasha didn’t know Beau couldn’t be charmed, she would almost think the monk under a spell.

And I’ve ambled and trekked over miles and miles,

Every step lead me straight back to you.

You gave me the space to learn where I belong

And I’ll tell you right now, it’s the truth.

It was almost like nothing else existed. Yasha’s fingertips buzzed against the taut strings of the harp, her voice vibrated in her chest, and Beau’s eyes stayed fixated on Yasha’s face. This was all that mattered right now, and Yasha couldn’t think of what existed before this, or what might exist after.

Oh, oh Beau, the one I’m thinking of,

I want to hold your hand and

Stand quietly beside you.

I want to confess, you’re my love.

The last strum of her harp faded into silence, and Yasha reveled in the peace vibrating through her veins. She had rarely known stillness like this before discovering music.

Beau sniffed, and Yasha twitched as she startled, eyes snapping up to Beau’s face. The monk still stared at her, eyes wide and watering.

No one’s ever written me a poem before. Yasha remembered the soft-spoken admission as a tear tumbled down Beau’s cheek. She guessed without asking that no one ever sung for Beau before, either.

“Yasha…” Beau breathed. “That was incredible. Your voice…”

The Aasimar ducked her head, not even trying to suppress the smile pulling at her lips. Beau’s awe was so genuine, Yasha barely knew how to face it head on.

“I didn’t know if you would…y’know want to hear it like that. Or if you would just rather read it,” Yasha rambled, running her fingers with absent focus up and down one string on her harp. “So…yeah, I mean, it’s a song, too. But it was originally a poem. For you.”

“Yeah,” Beau’s voice cracked. “I don’t—Yasha, that was…incredible. You’re incredible. You wrote that? For me?”

“Of course,” Yasha said, looking up again with a small frown. The note of disbelief in Beau’s voice upset her. Why wouldn’t she write a poem for Beau?

“Thank you,” Beau said, her voice overflowing with an emotion Yasha could empathize with, but couldn’t name.

“I am glad you liked it,” Yasha said as she set her harp aside. She didn’t know where to go from here. Jester had said Beau was waiting for Yasha to make the first move, and this…was this enough? It felt weird to question that kind of thing because Yasha had been married before. Theoretically, she should know how to do this. But then again, everything she and Zualla had done had been in secret. Yasha never learned how to express affection for someone openly.

And knowing what she did about Beau, Yasha figured that the monk had no better clue in any of this than she did.

“Maybe uhm…” Yasha started, but stopped. She didn’t want to mess this up. “Maybe after we finish this job…we could, y’know…get dinner? Just us?”

Watching a slow smile spread and pull at Beau’s lips was like watching a sunrise. It began slowly, a little hesitantly, colors bleeding into and washing away the darkness of Beau’s uncertainty. It was a gentle harbinger that lasted a lifetime in no time at all. Then, between one blink and the next, the sun. Beau grinned with wild abandon, lips pulled wide to reveal her teeth, and eyes scrunching at the corners with the force of it. Yasha’s heart went giddy in her chest at the mere sight of Beau’s joy.

“I’d like that,” Beau whispered. There was the same quiet, awed excitement in her voice from when she first received Yasha’s poem.

Yasha’s cheeks hurt from how hard she was smiling. “It’s a date.”

[dragonagecompanions]

DA2 You've probably got this many times - how would companions react to mage Hawke being made tranquil? Particularly interested in how a friendly/friendly romanced Fenris would react

Carver: While he might have resented many things about his older sibling and how their family’s magic affected their childhood, Carver would never ever wish for something like this. Ever since they had gotten to Kirkwall, Carver had warned his older sibling to be careful with all of the templars roaming the city. This place wasn’t like Lothering which only had a few templars in the Chantry that could be avoided; no, Kirkwall was teeming with templars that would look for any reason to lock up Carver’s older sibling. But did they listen to him and his warnings? Of course not. They had taken risks and look where it had gotten them. As much as Carver almost wanted to say ‘I told you so’, seeing his sibling in this state just left him heartbroken and full of anger. Not anger at his sibling like usual, just anger. Who the hell thinks that doing this to someone is a solution to anything?!?!?! And as Carver holds his sibling close, a sentiment they don’t really return, a pit in his stomach and the feeling of bitter bile rise in his throat as the worst kind of thought hits him. Now he won’t live in their shadow, and even if that thought would have been nice, these circumstance were not ever how he would have wanted this.

Aveline: Aveline might have married Wesley, who happened to be a templar, but that doesn’t mean that she agrees with the Order. The rite of tranquility was often something that she did not agree with the templar order on. Since she became a guard in Kirkwall and she was taken to the Gallows for guard work or with Hawke, she has not ever liked the sights of the Tranquil mages. So when there is a pounding at the door to her captain’s office, a pit starts to form in her stomach. Pounding is never a good sign. She opens the door to her office and the sight outside makes her sick to her stomach. Hawke is in the arms of two templars, but they aren’t fighting the templars as they usually would. There is no more of Hawke’s fire in their eyes and the calm voice that greets Aveline is not right. Hawke is unceremoniously shoved in her arms and her nauseous feeling melted away a bit to anger. This…. this was not the Hawke that she had fled into the Korcari Wilds with, the Hawke that would have died to protect their younger sister from Wesley when they met. There Aveline was left, with this broken version of her friend, seething with anger and a sense of pity for what had been done. 

Varric: There is basically one way to get onto Varric’s bad side and that is to fuck with his people. This means that the templars that brought Hawke to him in this state as well as every other stupid templar in those Gallows that allowed this to happen had made an enemy of Varric. However, that is an issue for another day as Varric would never abandon his people, which includes the now tranquil Hawke sitting at his table in the Hanged Man. It becomes quickly apparent that they are not like the Hawke he has known. They listen to the stories that Varric spins as he drinks to handle all this, but any of his clever quips that would have at least gotten a smile from Hawke now seem to just go over their head. As was said, Varric does not abandon his people, including Hawke, so he will always make sure to take care Hawke. But, the Black City will crumple before Varric gives up doing everything that he can to find a way to help Hawke, using whatever connections he has to gather that kind of information.

Anders: The minute that Anders finds out, from the moment that tranquil Hawke seems to stumble their way into his clinic, he snaps. Karl had been bad, and the threat to the girl had been worse, but this? All Hawke ever seemed to do is try to make a difference in Kirkwall and now they had been dealt the worst punishment out there. Vengeance roars inside of Anders and all of his self restraint is gone was he looks upon another friend made tranquil. There is nothing left to hold Anders back and if you think that what he did to the Chantry before was brutal, then the hell he would raise for Hawke would be at least ten times worse. And just like with Karl, I think that Vengeance’s powerful presence would bring some of the fade back to Hawke, but it would not be permanent to bring Hawke back. They would be gone, deprived of the fade, and while Vengeance roars within Anders, he also is taken with a sense of grief as he has lost another person to tranquility. 

Merrill: The Dalish do not concern themselves with the things that humans do, but that does not mean that Merrill has not heard rumors about the Rite of Tranquility. Especially after she moved to Kirkwall and suddenly the threat of templars was so much stronger, she had to keep from being discovered. However, when the short knock came to the door of her home in the alienage, she had not thought that she would be confronted by that reality in the form of Hawke with the tranquil brand burned into their skin. Everything was wrong, even their greeting of her was wrong and Merrill started crying immediately. This was Hawke, the one who brought her to the city and helped her settle her, but without their magic, they were so much duller. Merrill tries to offer them tea since they had come to visit her, but in the end, she breaks into sobs over lost friend. She already lost Tamlen to that mirror and now Hawke is gone. Merrill becomes even more sure of her decisions as she sees Hawke like this. It seems that though blood magic might be the only way to bring them back, all of her lost friends.

Isabela: Before Isabela had come to Kirkwall, she couldn’t say that she knew that much about this conflict between mages and templars. Those kinds of things tended to have a habit of staying on land and away from her ship. Even still, isabela has her morals that everyone deserves freedom and well, the tranquil she met in the Gallows... they creeped her out. When she wraps her arm around Hawke’s shoulder, there was something just... wrong about their postures. She quickly sees the brand on their forehead and sucks in a breath. She isn’t drunk enough for this. Every time she glances at Hawke staring blankly at her, Isabela has to take another shot. She might not have heard much about the mages and templars on the seas, but she sure as hell can use the seas to travel, searching for anything for Hawke. All she needs is a ship! This time, for Hawke.

Fenris: Fenris is dully aware of every single comment to support the rite of tranquility when he arrives at the Hawke estate to see his friend. Seeing Hawke just standing in front of the fireplace as their mabari whines at their feet was... startling. Fenris is aware that this might be the first time he has seen a tranquil mage, except maybe Karl, but this was disturbing. Tranquility was for blood mages, not good mages like Hawke! Everything that Fenris had learned from Hawke had taught him this: not all mages were bad and Hawke was one of the good mages. The lyrium in Fenris’s skin hums as his anger causes them to glow. What was it?! What was the reason to do this to someone as good as Hawke?! Why?

Sebastian: There had been plenty of times that Sebastian had made comments about Hawke being a mage or made comments that preached the Chantry’s ideals, but he wasn’t aware that this would actually happen. There is a pit in his stomach as Hawke dully enters the Chantry and Sebastian approaches him. Throughout all of his years with the Chantry, he can’t actually recall seeing any Tranquil come into the Chantry in Starkhaven. No, he knows he would remember it as he sees the way that Hawke moves, without any life that they once had. The Tranquil are made the the templars, servant of the Chantry, so why does seeing Hawke like this make Sebastian’s stomach hurt so badly? This is the Chantry’s rule, right? So why does this feel so wrong to Sebastian? 

Dog: From the moment their master comes home, Dog can tell that something is terribly wrong. They don’t smell right and they gave a whine confusion. They didn’t hug Dog, didn’t bend down and affectionately kiss Dog, didn’t call Dog the best mabari in all of Thedas like they usually did, merely patting Dog as they approached their master. It’s not right and they whimper, burying their nose and their master doesn’t paying that much mind at all, instead going to their room without a weird. (I know that Dog is typically just in origins but Hawke can also have a mabari and I wanted that angst)

-Direct From Orzammar

[lesetoilesfous]

OwO hello! Could I, perhaps, have a Kanders? In #3 from the kiss prompt list? (Explicit-ness to ur discretion ;3)

Oh I always love writing Kanders, thank you so much!! I hope you enjoy!

(If you want me to write you a dragon age ficlet, send me a prompt from here!)

@dadrunkwriting

Pairing: Kanders

Characters: Karl Thekla, Anders

Tags: Kinloch Hold, idiots in love under traumatising circumstances, general circle abuse, fuck the chantry, non-explicit reference to  sexual abuse

Rating: Mature

 Anders breath is sweet and stinging with brandy as he topples forward, eyes bright, and catches Karl’s face in his hands. “I’m in love with you!” He stage whispers, grinning, wide and stupid and giddy. “Did you know that?” He doesn’t wait for Karl to respond, bending his head instead and pushing Karl back against the wall as he gives him a hard, wet kiss, lips and teeth bumping clumsily against Karl’s mouth and chin. 

Karl stumbles, arms full suddenly of his lover, who is all long limbs and several inches taller than him, heavy and awkward as his elbows rest heavily on Karl’s shoulders, and his hands run up into his hair. Anders tries and fails to blow his hair out of his face. “I hate this place. Like. I really, really hate it. It sucks.” 

Anders looks down at Karl, and his hair and skin are white gold in the narrow shaft of moonlight that reaches them from the tiny box of glass above the tower’s bricked up windows. Karl nods and hums and listens, anxiously, for the tell-tale metal on stone crunch of an approaching templar. When one doesn’t come, he drags Anders into their shared quarters. 

It’s not often that Karl wishes he had a door - he has lived without the luxury of such a thing for far, far longer than he has had one. But he wishes for one now, as he turns to face the open space where any kind of barrier would in theory stand for his safety and privacy, and waits for an armed soldier to appear in it. 

After a moment, Anders’ long arms fall onto his shoulders, and his sharp chin rests on Karl’s head, and he tilts his face to press his cheek into his hair as he slumps over Karl’s back. “Wish we were out there. You know? What d’you think we would be. I’d be...a physician.” The syllables of the word blur together in Anders’ drunkenness, but he doesn’t let that stop him. Karl turns, and gently lifts his arms up over his head, herding him back towards his bed.

The backs of Anders knees hit the bed, and he folds easily, giving Karl a bright, sunny smile as he reaches for his hand and attempts to tangle their fingers together. Karl glances anxiously at the door even as he lets him, unable to ignore the part of his chest that pulls him like gravity back into Anders’ embrace. Anders tilts his head back. “Are you going to fuck me?” He pauses, eyes wide and earnest as he continues. “You can if you want to. Everyone else does.”

Something twists in Karl’s chest, and he pulls back and away from Anders. He tries to ignore the way he feels like he’s cutting himself loose from everything keeping him safe and close to the earth when he lets go of Anders’ hand. Anders frowns at him, eyes gold in the flickering, unnatural magelight of the tower. 

“Why d’you never fuck me, Karl?”

Karl shakes his head, busying himself with filling a cup of water and digging under Anders’ bed for one of his patented hangover potions. Far off, there’s the sound of metal on stone, and Karl tries to ignore the way it lifts the hairs on the back of his neck. 

Anders leans down over him, bending almost double to come face to face with him on his knees under the bed. His hair falls in a curtain of red-gold around his head. “You didn’t answer.”

Karl lets out a long, deep breath and pushes his hand into his hair, pressing the heel of his palm against his forehead as he waits for his thoughts to slow to a pace he can handle. At last, he finds the hangover potion, and pulls it out of a small hessian sack, setting it onto the chest beside Anders’ bed. “I’m not having this conversation right now.”

Anders sighs and falls back onto the bed heavily enough for the stiff, thin mattress to bounce his thin body. Karl tries not to stare too much as he does so. He never eats enough. “You never want to talk about it.” Anders rolls onto his side then, hair messy around his pink face, lips wet and flushed from their kiss. “Iiiiiis it because you don’t think I’m pretty?”

Karl pauses. Both he and Anders twitch at a sudden prickle of magic on the floor below them - followed by a loud wail, just as suddenly cut off. An apprentice, most likely, casting in their sleep. Karl takes a deep breath and gets to his feet, walking back across the small space of their room to sit on his bed.

Anders sits up. “No, come back!” 

Karl  pours himself a glass of water and drinks, deeply. It’s dusty and old, but it does something for the dryness of his throat and the taste of brandy still clinging to his tongue.With an effort, he tries to gather his wits. Then, suddenly, Anders sniffs.

“You don’t think I’m pretty, do you?” 

Karl looks up. Anders is crying. Anders never cries. Not when he was sent to solitary for a week, not when he was flogged, not when he turned up in the middle of the night, bruised and stinking of sex. 

Something in Karl’s chest lurches, and he doesn’t think before he crosses the small space between them again, falling to his knees in front of his friend (lover) and taking his hands. “No. No, no, Anders.” Karl’s voice is quiet, but no less fervent for it. He runs his thumbs over the backs of Anders’ long hands, tracing their familiar curves and scars. Looking up at him on his knees, Karl cannot help but feel like a faithful supplicant, praying to some forgotten, lovely god. He thinks he would not mind it, if that god were this man. “No, you’re beautiful.”

Anders sniffs, and blinks, and his eyelashes are dark with his tears. “But you don’t like me.”

Karl shakes his head, squeezing Anders’ hands. Downstairs, there’s the sound of a small squad of templars, and another tingling pull of magic. Karl expects that every mage on the first and second floor is awake now. It only makes this more dangerous. He looks out of the open arch of their quarters, checking for any possible onlookers before lifting one hand to Anders’ narrow jaw. “You know that’s not true. Anders. Look at me.” Karl waits for Anders to look at him, eyes gold and rimmed red with tears. Karl leans close enough to kiss him, and breathes against his lips. “I love you, too.”

Anders’ breath catches, and then he’s kissing him again, open-mouthed and wet and warm, and Karl lets him, gently guiding him into something more enjoyable for them both, even as his mouth and lungs fill with the taste of Antivan brandy. When they break apart, at last, to breathe, Karl gently strokes the side of Anders’ head, running his hand over his hair. After a moment, Anders’ breathing steadies, and he sniffs, scrubbing at his nose with his sleeve. 

Karl speaks quietly into the space between their lips. “I don’t have sex with you because I don’t want to use you, the way everybody else here seems to. I don’t want you to look at me and think of them.”

Anders breathes in, and the sound is wet and loud, and Karl glances again at their absence of a door. Anders says, “But that’s why I want you to.” Karl’s heart stops beating. 

He looks up at Anders, but Anders is looking away from him, now, chin raised, neck long and damp with his tears. Anders bites the inside of his cheek. “Everyone else...It’s not always bad. But, a lot of the time, it’s…” Anders sniffs and wipes at his chin and neck before he shrugs, once, stiff and jagged. “It’s rough and quick and I just. Want to know what it’s like when someone likes you. Like. Really likes you. Doesn’t just fantasise about getting their cock in your mouth. You know?”

Karl stares at him. Anders’ brow pulls his forehead into a wrinkled mess, and Karl catches his hands before he can start crying again. “Okay. I...if you still feel like this in the morning, we can talk about it.”

Anders brightens immediately. “So you are going to fuck me?” 

Karl laughs, and checks their absence of a door, before pressing a quick kiss to his hand. “No.” Anders’ face falls, and Karl squeezes his hand. “I’ll make love to you. If that’s what you want when you’re sober.”

Anders nods, solemnly, then falls back onto his bed, feet hanging off the end of his mattress - as they have ever since he turned fifteen. He grins at the ceiling, then turns the smile to Karl. “This has been a very productive evening.”

Karl laughs, quietly, and tries not to be distracted by the distant sound of metal footsteps on stone. “Anders?”

“Hm?” Anders smiles at him, soft and close-lipped.

Karl kisses the backs of his knuckles. “Please don’t do this again.”

Anders gives him a crooked grin, and pulls him closer with a sudden burst of unexpected strength, pressing their lips together. “I make no promises.”

[euryalex]

can you tell us more abt Cecilia and Leliana's relationship? 👀

 🥺🥺 omg thank you so much!!

aqszdfg sorry this got long so putting it under a read more but this is basically. Origins to Trespasser :’)

oh man what is there to say uhhh

when Cecilia met Lily for the first time she was like “Jowan wtf how dumb do you have to be to fall in love with a Chantry priestess??” but then she enters Dane’s Refuge only a few days or so later and is like “Ah.”

She isn’t sure whether it’s her accent, her hair, the way she asked Cecilia to have mercy on Loghain’s soldiers but man she’s just? “Well then fuck me I guess”

Anyway with Leliana there’s just... That connection, you know? Cecilia has only known the Circle and everything she knows about the outside world is from stories other mages told her and from books. But Leliana has so many stories to tell, especially about Orlais and Cecilia remembers every word.

In return, Leliana listens to Cecilia talk about memories from the Circle, about Jowan and other friends and people she knew.

They mainly hold these conversations when standing guard at camp together while the rest sleep but after a few times, Leliana accidentally fell asleep. And then it happens again. And again. And Cecilia never wakes her up. Maybe because of the way Leliana’s head rests on her shoulder or because of how peaceful she looks but that’s when they both officially realize ‘okay I’m in love’

And it keeps going like this.

For a while it’s like “we’re dating but not officially but we only have eyes for each other, we’re just too afraid to flirt with each other and we also happen to be oblivious to the other person’s flirting attempt’

And then they do talk about it. About liking each other. And then it’s a bit more obvious to them. They’re dating now.

But their relationship already hits a snag not soon after.

Alistair gives Cecilia a rose he found in Lothering and proclaims his love for her, which she has to deny since 1) she’s with Leliana, 2) she’s a lesbian and 3) she sees him like a brother, like Jowan.

He’s super respectful about it and everything, of course, but it’s definitely awkward.

So awkward that she doesn’t take him and Leliana with her as much as she used to. They finally officially make up when they dream of the Archdemon and darkspawn attack the camp. The Blight is what matters most now.

Anyway not long after that it’s official to everyone else - she and Leliana are dating now. It’s close to the Landsmeet, so the fight against the Archdemon comes closer and closer.

For a moment, when Riordan explains what will happen, she’s worried. Although she’s prepared to sacrifice her life, she doesn’t want to lose Leliana. On the other hand, she feels bad for asking Alistair to sleep with Morrigan. But finally the dam breaks and she starts crying, telling him how she doesn’t want to die and how she doesn’t want him to die and that Morrigan’s ritual is the only way to make sure they both live. And he does it, for his best friend.

Afterwards, she becomes Warden Commander while the Divine calls for Leliana’s help, leaving them separated for a while. But they stay strong, corresponding through letters and brief reunions. Then, in 9:37, she goes ‘missing’ and only a few people know of her location.

She is growing older, 28 at the time, and starts to worry. The Calling could come at any moment now and she realizes she doesn’t want to die. She wants to grow old with Leliana. So, she decides to look for a cure - one that doesn’t include drawing the tainted blood from her into someone else using blood magic.

So, when the Inquisition is looking for her to be their leader, she sends a letter to Leliana, begging her to lie to Cassandra, that she doesn’t know where Cecilia is. And she does. It’s hard to find the cure, and she has considered just using blood magic and be done with it but in the end, thinks it’s too selfish.

She wants a cure for every Grey Warden out there.

She is eventually contacted by Leliana, asking if she knows of anything that could help the Inquisition but there isn’t much she can do. This is the one time she’s selfish and goes to Skyhold herself, despite the Calling gnawing at her. It’s like a loud song that won’t leave her head but from what she’s heard, it’s not real, and she fights against it. She has to see Leliana. Just once.

So, they briefly reunite in Skyhold, and of course Cassandra is surprised because sure she expected this from Varric but not from her!

Sadly, Cecilia has to leave again but this time not for long. They reunite once more when Corypheus is defeated, which is also when Leliana joins her for a few weeks to find a cure.

Although I’m not sure how a cure would work, she’s definitely cured before Trespasser, probably by using blood magic. As Divine, Leliana made it legal for her, and other members of the Chantry to fall in love and get married - and that’s when Cecilia knows.

She proposes to Leliana :’)

[leothelionsaysgrrrr]

So I'm actually torn between Emma and Silver for my favorite OC of yours. Emma has a special place in my heart cus of her dynamic with Oliver, which never fails to give me all the feelings in the world. She has such a unique backstory and I just love her a lot. But then there's Silver, who I fell for almost as soon as I saw him lol. My weakness for pretty men is well known, I think, and he's got that idealist streak I can't help but admire. Plus, I love Tevinter OCs on principle.

THANK YOU :D  Fair warning, I have a lot of feelings about these two so I’m gonna go completely off the rails here!!

I am so GLAD you like Emma’s backstory, and you know I have all kinds of feelings for her and Ollie’s friendship as well :’)  There’s enough difference between them that they don’t 1:1 EXACTLY understand the other’s trauma, but there’s enough similarity in the process of accepting and understanding what’s happened to them that they're uniquely suited to supporting each other, and honestly Emma needs that so much.  Her situation is a good bit muddier than it would be if she’d been made Tranquil by the Chantry, and she’s left with a lot of questions regarding how she’s supposed to feel about what’s happened to her.  How angry is she allowed to be that every formative emotional memory and experience from her childhood and adolescence was stolen from her, essentially murdering the person she would’ve been otherwise, given that the person who caused that didn’t intend any harm and was in fact trying to help her?  Is the person she is now worth having been through that?  Worth less than she would have been if she hadn’t?  Is cured Emma worth more than she was before being cured?  Was she cured, with all the pain and hard work that’s come with it, to honestly help her, or to make others more comfortable with her - to assuage Sala’s guilt over having done this to her in the first place, and Rémy Sparrow’s despair over his beloved daughter not loving him in return?  

It puts her on quite a journey, trying to marry her academic understanding of emotion and connection to others with what she herself thinks things like love and family really mean, learning how to want things for herself (really, how do you answer when someone asks you ‘but what does it mean to want something?’) and recognize and communicate when she does, and dealing with her crippling fear of loss.  In the end, I think the connections she allows herself to make, to her friends, to her LIs (who all highlight and strengthen different areas of growth in her), and how she chooses to relate to her biological father and half-brother as well as her adoptive fathers and her lovers’ families, all of this gives her the support she needs to be successful in that journey, and she’s all the better for it.  It’s incredibly interesting for me to consider her perspective and complications that arise from it, and her quirks are so much fun to figure out, too.  I’m so glad you like her :) <3

Silver under the cut ;)

and SILVER.  This man.  Oh my god.  I feel like I yell about him all the time, but I DON’T I just rave at @lavellanlove about him until kingdom come and don’t say ANYTHING in public, HAHA.  But like, I know I gave him an unreasonably pretty face, but there’s SO MUCH MORE about him that makes him really, really stiff competition for Lux for my Favest Fave.  He’s so incredibly generous and kind with all of himself and everything he has, to anyone who needs it, but is also a snarky, petty little shit.  He LIVES for this sweet dessert that is basically loukoumades but is otherwise super picky about eating well.  He believes intensely in body positivity and would never consider someone unattractive based on how they look.  He identifies as a man, but his gender expression is kind of all over the place and he doesn’t see any reason for it to be otherwise; he dresses the way he likes, regardless of whether his choices are considered traditionally ‘masculine’ or ‘feminine’.  He knows he’s hot, and he’s vain af about it.  He thinks magic and mages are trite and boring, but he uses subtle blood magic to do what’s more or less Jedi mind tricks to de-escalate tense situations - make people reconsider attacking his people or fail to notice them at all, that sort of thing - fueled only by a finger prick’s amount of his own blood, never anyone else’s, and never more than that because he’s squeamish as all hell and can’t stand the sight of much more than that.  He doesn’t know how to fight and doesn’t want to learn because he genuinely doesn’t want to hurt people, even if they pretty objectively deserve it.  He does things that are super brave even though he’s scared as fuck to do them, like standing up to defend others from rude patrons, his secret work to smuggle escaped slaves out of the Imperium, and accepting a seat on the Magisterium knowing he could make a huge difference there despite also knowing it puts a huge target on his back, and feels guilty about being scared and hesitant.  He’s privileged and he knows it, and he uses it to the advantage of those who aren’t rather than himself.  He has his own struggles dealing with his past and his family, his own grief and losses, and has a strong tendency to try to deal with all of that himself despite having lots of people who’d gladly help if they’d let him.  I’m not even going to get started on his relationship with Emma which is so interesting to me because how do you navigate meeting an adult sibling???  Especially when your adult sibling is HER and you’ve spent your whole life wanting siblings and now you somehow have to establish a relationship with someone whose reaction is ‘but why?’ that’s supposed to have been cultivated over your entire lives in a couple years??  And all of this from a character who was supposed to be a one-off mention in TSU and nothing else.  I love him so much, thanks for loving him too :)