#halsin and the tadfool gang

[aphroditestummyrolls]

would love to hear more about Parasite 👀

Friend! Hello!

None of Parasite is actually written yet, it’s all just a long outline in my google docs. It’s the darkest thing I’ve ever written. It’s transmasc reproductive body horror, angst, and heavy hurt/comfort. Baldur’s Gate 3 lends itself really well to reproductive horror— the whole premise of the plot starts because the origin characters and insert character have alien parasites gestating in their brains and are due for an agonising, complete transformation into mindflayers.

Parasite is a halstarion fic where Astarion starts the fic both infected with the mindflayer worm, and pregnant. Astarion’s feelings about the worm are much more complicated than his feelings about the fetus— the worm has granted him the ability to walk in the sun, distance from Baldur’s gate, and the ability to resist the thrall of his master! Everything he needs to seize his freedom! Meanwhile, a painful reminder of Cazador’s ownership isn’t just there in the scars on his back, but literally growing inside him. On top of both of those parasites, though, the story is ultimately about how Astarion views the world, other vampires, and himself as parasitic— either your power is drained, or you are draining someone else to become stronger.

It’s a story about self hatred, vulnerability, revenge and found family, as well as the rage and grief of spending 225 years trapped in an endless loop of psychosexual torture; being able to finally escape, only to STILL have to share your body with your past. It is NOT a story about learning to love the baby.

I’ve been feeling really unsettled and strange in my transness, and working through some personal stuff, and when I sat down to write, the outline just kind of started itself. I’ve never written anything like it.

Thanks for playing ❤️❤️

[hwathwugu]

Cold desert nights

[toxictoad]

I can't find the original post but I keep seeing screenshots of the one person who made their tav basically the party's dad and I love that. I love making old tavs that look at their companions and go "Whelp, I guess I have seven unruly children now" and by the time Jaheira joins in she sees basically one elderly adventurer juggling a vampire spawn, a (formerly) explosive wizard, a tiefling who only recently stopped being on fire all the time, the 24-year-old blade of frontiers, a murderhobo githyanki who was betrayed by her goddess, a recovering Sharran who was betrayed by HER goddess, a Drow who was literally an Absolute general like two days ago, and Tav is just like "My kids :)" While Astarion is pickpocketing people and Minthara is poisoning dinner and Lae'zel and Shadowheart are knife-fighting (Flirting)

[its-jaytothemee]

A Burden Shared - Part 1: The Fight (2/2)

Pairings: Astarion x Tav, Halsin x Tav, Astarion x Tav x Halsin

Word count: 4,241; Tav and Astarion POVs

Rating: Explicit, 18+

Read on AO3

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Summary: A group sparring session turns sour, and Astarion becomes very protective of Tav. Halsin goes to comfort Tav afterwards and ends up confessing some feelings he's had for a while now.

Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Eventual Smut, Feelings Confessions, Spoilers for Act 3, Sparring, Protective Astarion, Soft Halsin, Tav needs a fucking hug.

Author's Note: The tadfools get a filler episode. No explicit material yet, but will be present in a later chapter. Part 1 is finished, hopefully part 2 can be uploaded sometime in the next week or so. Will switch between a few character POVs, for now I only have Tav and Astarion. Enjoy! :)

Karlach and Tav cleared out a large area of the camp to give themselves plenty of space. Wyll and Astarion went to fetch the large stash of various weapons they had collected along their journey for them to choose from. Everyone else gathered around, admiring their makeshift arena.

“Alright gang, here’s the rules!” Karlach’s voice was full of excitement. “The challenger gets to decide which weapon Tav gets to use against them. No magic!” She looked at Gale, whose shoulders slumped slightly. “If anyone disarms her, they win!” Karlach was talking so fast, obviously anxious to get to the sparring.

“Wait, what exactly are we winning?” Shadowheart asked.

“I don’t know…you just…you win!” Karlach shouted back. Shadowheart just shrugged in response. “If Tav knocks you down before you’re able to disarm her, she wins.”

Tav took her place at one end of the sparring zone, she couldn’t help but feel a little excited.

“Okay then…who’s first?” She yelled out the challenge. Shadowheart started to move forward, but Karlach plowed past her, knocking over everyone and everything in her way.

“ME!” She yelled, radiating pure joy. “Don’t worry Soldier. I’ll be gentle.”

“And my weapon?” Tav asked, smiling back at her.

“Take the greatsword.” She replied, grabbing her own greataxe.

They took their positions standing opposite of one another. Tav steadied her breathing, never taking her eyes off of Karlach. She took a relaxed ready position, her greatsword held low at her side, waiting. Karlach’s lips twitched into a half smile as she let out a roaring scream. Now.

Karlach had a few moments when she entered her rage where she was most vulnerable. Usually, Tav would take those moments to protect her in a fight, but not today. The second the yell left her lips, Tav lunged at her. She reached her friend just before her rage started to take effect. Tav brought her sword up to catch her greataxe in just the right spot where it caught onto her blade. She twirled around the front of Karlach, ripping the axe from her hands before she could strengthen her grip. Disarmed, she would be much easier to topple. Tav kicked the weapon away, forcing Karlach to decide whether she would push forward attacking, or risk turning her back to grab her weapon. She chose to attack, of course. She took a step towards Tav, arm extending to try and wrestle her sword from her grasp. Tav let one of her wrists lag behind her as she moved away and Karlach took the bait. She turned so her back was facing Karlach, her arm wrapped around Tav, still holding her wrist. Still off balance from lunging at her, Tav was able to throw her weight forward and send Karlach tumbling to the ground in front of her. She moved to stand over her, hovering the tip of her greatsword above Karlach’s chest.

“Dead.” Tav said, smiling down at her. Their fellow companions clapped and let out a few cheers.

“Fucks’ sake, mate.” Karlach said, laughing. Tav offered her hand to help her up from the ground.

Wyll was already taking Karlach’s place as she was finally standing up.

“Let’s see how you handle a weapon that takes a little more finesse.” Wyll teased. He tossed a rapier towards Tav. She caught it by the hilt and gave Wyll a knowing smile. He knew she relied mostly on her strength to overpower opponents. She handed Karlach the greatsword as she sauntered back over to the others.

They stood only ten or so paces apart. Wyll gave a low bow, always the gentleman. Tav couldn’t help but laugh in response, returning the gesture. He began to move around her, his quick and graceful steps were much harder to anticipate than Karlach’s stomping. She opted to stay in one place, slowly turning her body to keep aligned with Wyll’s. He suddenly lunged at her. The swift fluid motion was perfectly timed with his steps. Tav moved her blade to block the attack, swatting it to the side. She made a couple of slashing movements that looked clumsy compared to his, trying to keep Wyll on his toes. She knew if she could wear him down, she would get an opening. He continued to dance around her, every now and then attempting a flourishing swipe at her. After a few minutes, she noticed a slight change in his breathing, and he slightly lost his balance trying to feign a step towards her. Gotcha. She took the opportunity to step to the side, just out of reach of his blade. Once clear of his sword’s arc, she ran to get behind him. Before he knew it, her foot was colliding with the back of his knees. He let out a small yell before dropping to his knees. She kicked his blade out of his hand and jumped in front of him. She smiled and pointed the sharp tip of the rapier at his throat, other hand on his shoulder.

“Dead.”

Wyll pursed his lips in response, but smiled as he took her hand to help him off the ground. More clapping and cheers from the sidelines brought another smile to her face. Astarion let out a loud whistle.

Gale was the next one to take the challenge, holding two quarterstaffs, he made his way to stand across from her.

“Gale, what are you doing? Tav could kill you with her bare hands, let alone with a weapon.” Karlach teased.

“Kill him Tav! Kill him! It would be so funny!” Astarion yelled, making himself laugh so hard he fell off of the barrel he was sitting on. Roaring laughter came from everyone else at the sight. There was no way to deny it now, Tav was having a very good time.

Gale gave her a slightly concerned look. She shook her head slightly, reassuring him that she would not in fact, kill him.

“Quarterstaff.” He said, tossing the extra staff her way. She caught it in one hand and twirled it above her head. She gripped the staff with both hands and held it out in front of her.

Gale took a small step back, getting into a low, defensive stance. He knew he wouldn’t be able to overpower her, she would have to draw him out or go to him. Gale was deadly quick with his spells but was no match for Tav in hand-to-hand combat. She held the staff in her right hand and sprinted forward. Gale held his position, preparing himself for her impact. When she was a few steps out, she jumped and lifted the staff over her head. She tried to aim at the end of his staff to throw him off balance. He moved at the last second and caught her strike right in the center of his own staff with a loud crack. Tav raised her eyebrows at him, she was rather impressed with that block. However, Gale seemed all too happy for the silent praise and lost his concentration for a moment. It was just enough time for her to spin around the other side of him and sweep his legs out from under him using her staff.

“Very dead.” She said with a laugh, her quarterstaff gently resting on his chest.

“Just drag me away. My knees will never let me get up from this.” Gale simply held his arms up waiting for someone to move him. Tav continued to laugh as Karlach came over to help pick him back up onto his feet.

From the corner of her eye, she saw Shadowheart moving in to claim the next round.

“Mace and Shield.” She said, already equipped with a spear and shield.

Clever, Tav thought to herself with a smile. Shadowheart was cunning, she knew that if both of Tav’s hands were tied up she would have a harder time grappling anything away from her. She walked over to the pile of weapons, grabbing a simple mace and shield.

“Wait, we can use shields?!” Gale yelled from his seat. Tav laughed in response.

“I’ll allow it.” She said, already trying to anticipate Shadowheart’s movements.

They circled each other, each tracking the other’s movements carefully. The shield added more weight that could easily fatigue her, so she would have to make this quick. Tav decided to make the first move. She needed to test the range Shadowheart had with that spear. As expected, Shadowheart lunged at her as soon as she reached the very edge of her range. Tav turned to the side to avoid being hit by the spear. As it rushed past her, Tav had the perfect opportunity to smack the shaft of the spear away with her shield. Shadowheart was able to maintain her grip on the weapon, but she was thrown off balance. Tav was able to take another step forward, putting her within range to strike with her mace. Using her momentum from her shield bash, Tav spun back around to strike Shadowheart’s shield. She hit the edge of the shield with a loud crunching sound. Shadowheart let out a grunt and her shield went flying off to the side. The sudden movement caused Shadowheart to twist away from Tav, giving her an opening. She hit the middle of the spear, causing Shadowheart to fumble and fall to the ground. Tav pinned her spear hand to the ground, mace still held high.

“Dead.” Tav said, still standing over her. Shadowheart gave an approving smile before wincing suddenly. Tav looked over to the arm that had been holding the shield to see her forearm horribly bruised, and slightly disfigured.

“Shit! Oh shit! Shit, shit! I’m so sorry, Shadowheart.” Her excitement disappeared as she stared at the injury, tears stinging her eyes. She jumped up, releasing her other arm. Carefully, she leaned Shadowheart back up off of the ground. Tav was breathing more heavily now and starting to feel some heaviness in her arms from the first few rounds of sparring.

“It’s alright, Tav, really. These things happen when we’re fighting, even during practice. Besides, I can take care of this easily.” She gave her a reassuring smile. Halsin was making his way towards them.

“Allow me.” He said, kneeling to their level. His familiar healing incantation prompted the warm soothing magic to fill the air around them. Tav watched as Shadowheart’s arm returned to its normal color and shape. Unexpectedly, she felt the healing surge over to her as well, taking away some of the soreness in her muscles. She looked at Halsin, who gave her a quick wink. It caused her heart to skip a beat.

“See? Nothing to worry about.” He said, helping Shadowheart up to her feet.

“Maybe we should stop…” Tav said, her guilt causing her chest to tighten.

“Of course not, darling!” Astarion jumped to his feet. “We haven’t all had a chance to best you yet, don’t tell me you’re scared.” He flashed a teasing smile at her.

“I…I don’t want to hurt anyone.” Tav folded her arms in front of her chest.

“Oh come on, Soldier. Shadowheart’s fine! We were just starting to have fun.” Karlach complained from her seat.

“I’ll go next, I know you won’t hurt me.” Astarion’s tone was teasing, but Tav could see something else in his expression too. It was important to him that they keep doing this.

“Okay then,” she said with a deep breath, “what weapon?” She smiled back at him.

“Weapons.” Astarion responded, his expression was pure mischief. “Pick any two you like, my sweet.”

She went over to the mess of weapons and picked up two shortswords. Astarion was holding both of his daggers, crouched and ready to strike.

Tav moved back to her starting spot. She held the two swords out in front of her, their light weight a relief from the previous round. She knew she would have to watch him closely. Astarion was fast. Tav knew him well, but he also knew her. She would either have to wait for him to tire himself out or lure him into a false sense of security. Astarion moved first, dashing towards her quickly. She sidestepped his attack, taking a swing at his arm using the flat side of her blade. He easily evaded her swipe. He continued running back and forth, making small slashes at her swords, trying to get them out of her grip. She feigned a move to her right, luring Astarion to her side. He looked confident, likely thinking that she had tripped. Tav waited for his signature twirling move he did with his daggers when he was sure he was going to hit something. That was when his grip was weakest. As soon as she saw the dagger flash, her foot came up to collide with his wrist, causing him to drop the small blade. He let out a small chuckle as he rubbed his hand and wrist.

“Oh darling, I didn’t want to have to do this to you.” He shook his head slightly, a playful smile on his lips.

“I’m sure I can take it, love.” She responded, keeping her voice as innocent as possible.

To her surprise, he placed his dagger back on his belt and started walking over towards her. He had a very serious, sultry look on his face. Tav felt herself smiling like a fool. She shook her head fondly, she knew exactly what he was doing.

Astarion stopped right in front of her, in a position where she could easily topple him over, but she decided to play along for a moment. He reached out and placed one hand on her hip, and the other on her cheek. She leaned into his touch a little, but also subtly moved her left leg to be in between his.

“Oh, look at you melting into my touch.” His voice was as sweet as honey. “I sometimes forget how devastatingly beautiful you can be when you’re fighting. The way your skin gleams, that…intense look in your eyes.”

“Boooo! Go back to fighting!” Karlach yelled from the sidelines, eliciting a laugh from the others.

Tav did not miss the fact that the hand by her hip had moved ever so slightly towards her sword’s hilt. But she felt Astarion relax slightly as he stroked her cheek. There it is, she thought to herself. She hooked her readily positioned leg around his and kicked it back hard. The look of surprise on his face was worth every second of his silly teasing. His legs flew out from under him, and he fell to the ground with a loud thump, seemingly knocking the wind out of him. Tav smiled and kneeled over him, pinning the hand still holding a dagger to the ground with her knee. She crossed the two shortswords over his neck. His smile widened – he was enjoying this.

“Nice try. Still dead.” Tav whispered. She gave him a quick kiss on his nose before standing back up. He took her outstretched hand, taking a small bow after he stood up. More cheers and laughter came from their companions.

“Well, my dear, we have to use all of our strengths after all.” He turned to go and sit next to the others.

She kept smiling as she watched him walk away, realizing that he may have suggested this entire spectacle to try and cheer her up. And it worked.

While she was staring after Astarion, Tav failed to notice that Lae’zel had made her way out of the small group to face her. She was a little surprised as the indifferent githyanki usually avoided their group activities. Tav smiled at her and gestured to the weapons off to the side.

“Which weapon, Lae’zel?” Tav asked.

“Pick what you would like, elf. It makes no difference to me.” Her tone was cool and steady.

“Very well.” Tav responded, her smile fading. She went back to her greatsword to match Lae’zel’s.

Lae’zel’s strength rivaled her own. She was cold and calculating in a fight and was not known for her mercy. The strange thing was that she didn’t seem to want any mercy either. Tav carefully took her place in front of Lae’zel, taking a moment to slow her breathing. They stood there staring each other down for a few moments, when Lae’zel finally lunged towards Tav.

Tav swung her blade up to catch Lae’zel’s first swing. The metal rang in the quiet air. They held their position, staring at each other through the crossed blades. Tav pushed Lae’zel away with a grunt. Lae’zel made a large, slashing swipe at Tav, causing her to jump back. Luckily, Lae’zel was caught a little off balance, giving Tav a chance to recover. She lunged at the githyanki, aiming a low blow with the flat side of her blade. Lae’zel was barely able to swing her sword back around to block her. Tav recovered quickly, bringing her blade back up to try and make a hit to loosen Lae’zel’s grip on her weapon. She lifted her hands at the last second to avoid the blow. They each aimed another powerful swing at the other, causing their blades to meet directly in front of them again. As they held their swords crossed at their faces, the muscles in their arms began to shake under the strain. Tav broke away suddenly in an attempt to force Lae’zel off balance again. She recovered quickly, but not before Tav was able to kick the side of Lae’zel’s thigh.

“Chk.” Lae’zel hissed toward Tav.

Tav immediately went in for another hit, this time aiming for her arm. Lae’zel parried her swing, bringing her own blade down on Tav. Tav was almost able to move out of the way, but the sword’s edge grazed her left arm, leaving a shallow gash. She winced in pain, almost losing grip on her sword, but her right hand maintained its hold. Tav did have to bend over slightly while trying to keep her balance and keep her weapon in her hand. Lae’zel was standing in front of her, sword held high, moving to strike. Tav kneeled at the last second, catching Lae’zel’s attack with her sword. The impact sending pain up her already injured arm. Her strength faltered slightly, and Lae’zel pressed her advantage. With Tav close to the ground, Lae’zel pushed all of her weight into her sword, causing Tav’s hand to slip slightly and slice across the edge of Lae’zel’s sword. The sight of blood running down Tav’s arm and their blades did not give Lae’zel any pause. She was starting to worry that Lae’zel wouldn’t let up even if she yielded or dropped her weapon. Tav took a couple of quick breaths and very quickly rolled out of the lunge she had trapped herself in. Lae’zel fell forward, almost hitting the ground, but used her sword to catch herself. Tav spun around with one leg, sweeping Lae’zel’s feet out from under her, causing her to land flat on her back.

Tav slowly stood up and walked over to her, holding her greatsword just over her throat in her uninjured hand.

“Dead.” Tav said. This time, there weren’t any laughs or cheers from her companions, just a few murmurs and awkward claps.

“Chk. Make it so then.” Lae’zel said up to her.

“That’s not how we do things here, Lae’zel.” Tav said, trying not to show how exhausted she was now. She dropped her sword to the side and offered Lae’zel her hand. She promptly refused and got up on her own. Tav gave a small nod and turned to walk away towards the rest of the camp. Suddenly, Astarion’s voice called out to her.

“Tav! Look out!”

His warning came just a moment too late as she felt a sharp pain across the back of her head, it brought tears to her eyes. Her vision swam momentarily, but she soon realized that Lae’zel had hit her with the pommel of her sword. She fell to one knee, trying to shake off the pain. It was barely a second later before Astarion and Karlach were standing over her. Karlach was pulling Lae’zel away from Tav as Astarion huddled over her protectively, daggers drawn. The others came running over right after. They managed to wrestle the large sword from Lae’zel’s hands.

“Kainyank!” Lae’zel growled at Tav. “We still carry ghaik parasites and yet you waste our day with this useless game!”

At this point, Tav had managed to stand back up. Astarion stepped forward so that he was slightly between her and Lae’zel.

“You stop to help every mewling istik we pass. We could have been here over a tenday ago if you would not insist on using us all to fulfill some hero’s purpose! You trust a ghaik with our lives, our futures!” Lae’zel let out a frustrated yell as she tore her arms away from Karlach and Wyll.

“You have no right to lead us. Your weakness will be the ruin of us all. I will have no part of it.” She moved towards Tav again, fists held up and ready to fight.

Unable to hold back her frustration any longer, Tav yelled and dove towards Lae’zel. She caught her right around the waist and tackled her to the ground. Lae’zel fought her, but Tav had the advantage. She was able to grapple Lae’zel into a chokehold of sorts.

“Stand down, Lae’zel!” She shouted.

Lae’zel struggled against her grip, scratching her long nails on Tav’s arms. She caught the small gash in her arm from earlier, causing Tav to cry out in pain. The cut on her hand was still bleeding and Tav felt Lae’zel starting to squirm free of her clutches, headbutting Tav in the process. She decided to let go, hoping she could roll out of the way before she took another hit to the head. But once she was free, Lae’zel simply rolled away from her.

She stood up and glared at Tav. With one final growl, she turned on her heels and stormed away from the group.

Astarion helped Tav to her feet as all eyes turned to her. Her head was pounding, she could feel blood running from her nose, and her vision was a little blurry. Although she couldn’t tell if her vision was struggling from the hits she took or the tears.

“I uh,” she stammered, still trying to fight off the dizzy feeling, “I think we should call it a day.”

Astarion gently wiped a trail of blood from her face with his sleeve.

“I think you need some healing, my dear.” He said gently.

“No I…” She could barely think straight. “I just want to go and clear my head. I’ll uh, I’ll be back soon.” She turned away before anyone could respond and started walking towards the trees at the edge of camp.

***

Astarion watched as Tav sulked off into the trees. She wouldn’t talk with anyone about it, but he knew she was starting to feel the weight of being their assigned leader. He couldn’t imagine that he helped with that, being one of the rowdy vagabonds she was trying to manage. He wanted to help her, really, he did, but he had no idea where to start. Everything was going so well today until the fight with Lae’zel. He didn’t think he had ever seen Tav laugh so much. A moment after she disappeared from his sight, he saw Halsin start to walk after her. For some reason, he felt a small spike of pain in his chest watching him follow her. He was relatively certain that Halsin wanted to be with Tav. It was obvious in the way he talked to her, how he hung on to her every word and watched her walk away for just a moment too long. He trusted Tav, but he still couldn’t help but feel a little upset at the two of them together alone. While he was hopelessly pining and fighting off waves of jealousy, Karlach had somehow managed to sneak up on him.

“Hey soldier…” She was trying to be quiet yet still managed to be the loudest person in the camp. “Maybe you should go and check on Tav. Since you two are…you know…”

Astarion shot her a look “What? Together?”

“Sure. I was gonna say ‘fucking’ but same thing really.” Karlach shrugged.

“Ugh must you be so vulgar?” Astarion said, rolling his eyes. “Besides we’re not…I mean we haven’t since…” He suddenly felt flustered. “It doesn’t matter. I wouldn’t even know what to say anyway. I’m not exactly skilled in the art of comforting others.” He looked up again to see Halsin disappearing into the trees.

“Aw come on, Fangs. I’ve really been rooting for you two. Besides, from what I gather from Tav, you’re very skilled at the art of– ” He shot her another look that cut her off abruptly, and she tried to hide a smile. “Sometimes all you need to do is be there, even if you don’t know what to say.” Karlach nudged him slightly with her elbow.

“Halsin will be able to help her much more than I could.” He responded, surprised by how sad admitting that made him. He shook off the feeling, and instead turned to where Lae’zel was standing near her tent.

“Besides…” He started, his temper rising, “I think maybe Lae’zel and I need to have a friendly little chat.”

“Fuck yes.” Karlach whispered under her breath, following closely behind Astarion.

[medra-gonbites]

Baldur's Gate 3 Companion Head Canon Filmmaker Edition

Depending on your crew, filmset can be the best time or the worst time of your life!  While kicking back and playing Baldur’s Gate I started to wonder what kind of positions would the gang assume on a filmset.

Here is my personal HeadCanon for the tadfools (+ Jaheira, Halsin, the Dead Three and Withers) if they were to be on a film set.

Astarion | Costume 

Of course Astarion would be in charge of the costume department! Not only because he can sew and design the best costumes with utmost skill, if you provide him with nothing but rags, but also because he would make sure the actors are always decent and taken care of. End of a risqué scene? Boom, he is already there with a robe, some blankets and a water bottle. “Let’s take you back to the changing room darling!"

Besides he is very fast and stealthy which would be a perfect time saver for in between takes: last minute check and tweak before we start rolling? Watch him dash to unwrinkle fabrics or refasten pins: 0 second lost.

Shadowheart | Production Design

Shadowheart would love to be in charge of the decor. Already in pre-production she would have a blast skimming flea markets and brocantes to find props and elements to create the perfect set, although she would probably be able to craft it from scratch if needed be, and could create an atmosphere with nothing but cardboard if she had to. She would keep track of all the props and organize them in a neat fashion. She would be so focused there is no chance you would end up with a continuity error (not in her department anyways!).

Karlach | Light Technician

Karlach has a light crew vibe to herself. She would run around rolling and unrolling cables, carrying and setting up C stands, activating generators, going as far as powering them herself if she has to. Watch her set up the lights and filters like it's nobody’s business. Sandbags? No worries she can carry 20 at a time. She can hold a reflective panel above her head for hours without breaking a sweat. Friendly and motivated, she is a wonder to work with and the camera crew has no issues communicating and coordinating with her. Tell her what needs to be lit and she will make sure it is. Let there be light!

Wyll | Acting

The charisma, these dance skills, the whole blade of frontier performance that radiates main character energy? You cannot convince me Wyll is not born to stand under the spotlight or in front of the cameras. At the beginning of his carrier had a preference for theater but he prefers cinema because it gives him the opportunity to do several takes and indulge his perfectionist side. He would be on set early to rehearse and he would be an absolute treasure to the rest of the crew. Very talented and humble, the best actor to work with!

Gale | Director of Photography

I will not budge: Gale would be in charge of the imagery. What angle, what move, what ratio, what color? He'd know what’s best to tell the story and his composition would always be on point. He’s got 10 different lenses, he made the shotlist six months before the shoot and he went on all the location scouting rekkie, even the ones he did not have to attend. He also checked the location at different hours to have a look at the natural light change through the day. He is very patient with his assistants and with the lighting crew which he would always give a hand to set up the lamps (literally thanks to the old mage hand). Don’t touch his camera though, he will fight you.

Lae’zel | First Assistant Director

“Ok, we have a schedule and we have to make sure we respect it. How much time do you need to build this scene? 10 minutes? Do it in 5!”. Lae’zel would be such an efficient first AD but she also would become the scapegoat of the set because of how demanding and blunt she would be. She doesn't mind and she knows its a status that often comes with the job. At the end of the day, everyone would get to leave on time though (or barely a few hours of overtime) and everyone would be grateful for it. You can and you will have a drink with her afterwards and all will be forgiven.

Halsin | Safety Coordinator

Obviously, Halsin would be in charge of safety; because film is fun and should remain fun, no matter how serious it is for some: nobody is getting hurt on his watch! 

Intense traumatic scene with an actor? He will be a perfect intimacy coordinator: he knows how to handle personal space and aftercare. Tricky stunt? He’s got a first-aid kit ready (not that you will need it as he made sure all equipment necessary for the stunt are secure). Animal Handling? Yes, he got that covered too, the creatures will be treated as royalty and he can even shape shift to keep them company. Child actor on set? Did he mention he can take care of that too? Beyond all this he will make sure everyone in general is keeping healthy, calling for breaks, making sure everyone has enough to drink and/or eat which he will remind the whole crew to do because they tend to forget.

Minthara | Production Manager

Yes, Minthara has arranged the location, the catering, the shooting authorization and pretty much all the rentals that you need for the day. You better be on time on her set: the call sheet is precise and so should you. She will make sure everything that has been arranged will proceed as expected but should the unexpected occur last minute? Well that’s not a problem because she is cool as ice and can perform under pressure like none. There, she fixed it, and with an hour to spare. After the production, she will chase you and spam 3 reminders a day for you to send your invoice and receipts (she gotta book everything for the accountant!).

Jaheira | Location Manager

Jaheira is the first and the last on set. She gets the keys to places, she relays the instructions on where to find what, what is off limits and what can or cannot be used.  She will make sure everyone parks at the right spots, that people that are outside of sets are not hindered by your crew, and that the place is given back clean (or cleaner even). She is always very sweet to the person in contact, be it the owner of the location you're shooting at, the caterer or curious bystanders who come to investigate. She also keeps an eye on the carpooling schedule. Nobody will be forgotten on her watch.

Minsc | Boom Operator

Minsc is in charge of taking sound. He listens carefully to every take to make sure there are no parasites or interference; if he doubts he will ask Boo to double check for him. He will mic up the actor very gently, giving them funny lines to say to test the mic. He finds it hilarious to call out farts when he hears them in his headphones; he will then ask loudly who it was. Often it is himself.

Tav | Writer/Director

It is their story and you better believe they will see it through. They wrote the damn thing, they gathered the right crew and they will direct it all. They call the shots and make the decisions. At the end of the day they call action and cut. Whether it is a happy or bad ending, the story will have 3 to 5 acts and it will be sent out to all the A list festivals of Toril.

Durge | Director/Producer

It is their story too but they did not write it, however they did make sure it was possible to make it by any means necessary! They are in charge and they even have a cap and a chair to prove it. They had a megaphone too at some point but it was misplaced (stolen by Astarion who got fed up with all the yelling).

The Dead Three | Executive producer

These three are power hungry, ruthless and bloodthirsty, of course they are producers! They know where the money is, they know how to get it, they know who to play and sweet talk to get it. Orin tends to be more artistically involved in the project but Gortash has the people’s touch and will be in charge of handling communication and distribution. Ketheric will make sure the money gets where it needs to go and will be in contact with the subsidies and fundings to provide reports and deliverables.

Withers | Storyboard

It is Tav and Durge’s story but Withers illustrated it. Visualization goes a long way for the whole crew and it is nice to have something to fall back on when the chaos of the shot list overwhelms you. Thanks Boneman!

Do you agree with this? Do you have other characters in mind that could be useful on set?

Did this spark an AU fanfic idea within me? Maybe...

[choccy-zefirka]

a random OC ask for you: what is your OC's favorite memory?

also: if they were dropped in a random city for a day with a pouch full of gold/relevant currency and no obligations whatsoever, what would they be doing?

Ooooh I will answer this for Cinder, one of my BG3 Tavs, who's a half-Orc, half-Tiefling!

Here's her as a child, hastily painted over Renoir's Girl with a Hoop.

I mentioned before that Cinder's family, particularly her grandfather, was obsessed with preserving and genetically solidifying their infernal heritage, deliberately seeking out marriages with other Tieflings from long family lines with lasting devilish traits (her grandmother was a draconic sorcerer to boot, also seen as a huge plus for the pedigree).

Cinder was born looking entirely like a Tiefling, and before her milk teeth dropped and the new teeth started growing into tusks (revealing that she was a product of her mother's one-night-stand with an Orc), her grandfather spoiled her rotten. His attitude post-reveal changed dramatically — like that of Alma Madrigal from Encanto when Mirabel turned out to have no gift, I am now realizing, but on steroids. Eventually, his insults and physical violence and denial of the domestic comforts, which he'd previously lavished on her, pushed her to run away from home and become the outlaw she is at the moment of tadpoling.

Cinder knows now, both from learning some of her family history and using her adult brain, that her grandfather was a terrible person who, in his quest for perfection, also emotionally abused his children — her mother and uncle — and outright killed her aunt (uncle's wife) in the midst of family drama before Cinder herself was born. She realizes that, even if she did not turn out looking like an Orc, he still would have found ways to make her feel broken and not enough... But even so, the memories of that picture-perfect childhood are her happiest ones (until she makes new memories with her Tadfool Gang and Halsin), and she still misses that time in her life, and hates herself for missing it.

One thing that she associates with her childhood is reading books in her grandfather's library, and she is still quite fond of reading, though now it's more of a well... cringe hobby for her, given that she's found work as a typical bighuge intimidating Orc muscle. So if dropped in a city with a lot of gold and no-one looming over her shoulder to ask questions and wonder passive-aggressively if she even knows what books are for, she'd go to a book store. Maybe visit a couple of museums and raid their gift shops while she's at it.

[agent-jaselin]

Durge and the tadfools gang making an excuse to take Reith to a different lication for a bit so Ranger Tav and Halsin can have sime alone time.

Is it fir romance? No, it was a short affair after all. It’s for Halsin yelling at Ranger tav about keeping Reith a secret.

Like, he acknowledges he couldn’t have been a fully present parent while the shadow curse persisted. But instead of a nice normal wood elf family unit to be raised in Tav dragged the kid across the world and even to other plains cause he was determined to “fix” the curse so they could be a family. Like surely a somewhat absent father and an entire druid grove would have been a better place for them to grow them strapped to a planes walker ranger’s chest in the feywild??

[aphroditestummyrolls]

WIP Wednesday SATURDAY

Tagged by the lovely @jazzythursday here’s some catstarion ❤️

Halsin’s golden eyes scanned over the little cat’s face, but there was a slight furrow in his brow. A big hand tentatively reached out to touch. No sound accompanied it— not a snap of teeth or warning hiss. Just utter silence, and the overwrought trembling of the creature against his chest.

“May I?” Their resident druid held out his hands in askance. The idea of letting someone else take the cat had Gale’s throat going dry and tight, surprisingly so. Halsin, of course, saw the hesitation immediately. “You’ve been a good friend to him, Gale. He’s safe now. May I?”

“Of- of course, yes. Apologies. I must be missing my own cat.” The nervous laugh was unbidden, as was the bloom of heat in his cheeks. “Is he alright?”

“Just a bit frightened, still. This must have come as quite a shock.”

His arms felt weak without the weight he’d been carrying.

“Came as a shock to all of us, that’s for sure.” Wyll chuckled, shaking his head incredulously. “When we couldn’t find him after the fight, I began to fear a much worse fate befell him.”

“I’m not certain Astarion wouldn’t have preferred one of those fates to this.”

“Chk. To be rendered to so soft and small a form? He is helpless.” Lae’zel failed in sounding anything other than fascinated. Maybe even endeared. “It is temporary, this spell?”

“Cats are far from helpless, regardless of their size. You’d be surprised, I believe, by the immense power and hunting prowess in those soft little bodies. As for this beast,” Gale gave a chagrined little smile, raising his still-bleeding hand to the firelight, “I think you’ll find our rogue is still more than capable of carnage.”

“I’d hesitate to refer to Astarion in any form as helpless. But still! Love to know how soft he is… I just don’t want him to try to take a bite out of me. Poor guy might burn himself.”

Halsin hadn’t taken his eyes off his patient. He muttered quietly,

“Be careful, Halsin— he may make a break for it at any time.”

“I don’t think he will.”

Tagging @kezzzx, @non-un-topo, @nicolos, @polarcell, and @the73rdpostscript. And if you aren’t writing anything, feel free to share upcoming sketches or other art you’re working on! ❤️❤️❤️ no pressure, of course.

[aphroditestummyrolls]

Snippet? Snippet. The beginning of the Tadpole Broadcast System ( @ongreenergrasses told you I’d tag you ☺️)

The ravages of the Shadow Curse had grown worse than any of his nightmares could have prepared him for. Tendrils of fossilised malice formed great trunk-like expanses that rended the streets and uprooted the carcasses of long-abandoned homes. The field of battle was still strewn with the dead— his comrades in arms and dark justiciars both. Time bleached them all down to the same bones. Yet, Halsin couldn’t bring himself to look too long at the symbol of the Emerald Enclave— in one hundred years, the symbol rusting on the grove’s armour had not changed. It was the same as that emblazoned on his own chest.

He had never felt less deserving to wear it. With every step, he felt the penetrating stares of hollow eye sockets. His steps lagged at the back of the group, trying to pay his respects to each body they passed.

There were simply too many.

Back then, they had no time to bury the dead. Not as the curse rippled out from Moonrise Towers— not when Engmar fell before his eyes, and responsibility to lead was thrust onto his shoulders. Unwanted from the start. He carried the curse in his bones.

It has poisoned you, and through you, that poison reached all the way home. To the grove, Kagha, the goblins— your failures reek of it.

All that was left to be done was to right it— he owed that much to those he couldn’t save. After all this time, he would balance nature. In the Oakfather’s name.

And, of course, for the sake of his newfound companions, and the tadpoles they carried.

They were a brave bunch. Staring down the prospect of ceremorphosis, surrounded on all sides by the threat of the Absolute, far from their homes. It was too much for most. Halsin couldn’t truly say what he would do in their position. But still, he bound himself to them, doing his best to offer counsel while these unlikely companions tugged their shared string of fate.

Not for the first time, he looked around at the ragtag band of intrepid adventurers, and wondered if his presence could possibly be more help than hindrance. Their armour was near permanently bloodied, faces etched into haggard masks by the shadows as they delved deeper into their mission. Already, the toll of the curse was settling in them— Gale’s magic was all but spent by the end of each day’s journey; Shadowheart and Lae’zel hardly had the energy to bicker; even Wyll Ravengard, the noblest son of Baldur’s Gate, was grasping for hope in the darkness.

These young adventurers had already fought so hard, and given so much— they saved his life, saved his grove and all those who needed its shelter while Halsin could not. They had faced certain death at the goblin camp. He owed them all as much as he could give them.

And already, they had lost one of their number for his sake.

“Not lost.” Karlach reiterated that last night around the fire before delving into shadow. She said it as if she was getting sick of reminding them. “If Astarion was truly gone, Mr. Withers would’ve told us so. I asked him if he could revive him, but he can’t revive someone who’s still alive!”

Their cleric sighed. “It’s not like I want him to be dead. It’s simply a possibility we need to keep in mind before we mount some rescue mission that’s actually a body retrieval.”

“Chk. Yes, you never miss an opportunity to remind us of his likely fate.”

“That doesn’t mean I wish him torment, gith. He’s one of us. And whatever happened to the waste of resources? That your people would never stoop to aid a captured—?”

Halsin couldn’t help the tingle of surprise— the offense in Shadowheart’s tone was genuine. Perhaps there was hope that little sharran could forsake her darkness, even here. Perhaps they all could find a bit of light once more.

“Shadowheart, that’s enough.” Wyll cut them off, more exhausted than anything else. “We’re getting Astarion back, we’re finding my father, we’re figuring out how to get these tadpoles out of our brains, and we’re ending this bloody cult before it destroys our city.”

It was quite the to do list.

If the gods willed it, they would find their lost vampire. And Halsin had to try. It was the least he could do.

Before he even knew what was happening, when he was still getting pelted with stones through the bars of his dank cell, he saw a flash of a silver dagger. Smelled the sharp and sudden flood of fresh blood. In a flurry of motion, with the gurgle of a blood-choked scream, battle commenced. But, all Halsin could see was an elf emerging from the shadows, lockpick in hand.

He was slight, pale as a moonbeam and dressed like a bastion of civilisation— a city boy. It was the blood splattered across his fine clothes and the line of red in the corner of his mouth that gave him away as a part of nature. As a predator, not unlike the bear. Eyes glinted like garnet drops as he focused on the rusted old lock.

Oh, he was lovely. Surrounded by the bodies of the fallen, taking advantage of the distraction of battle to free him. Astarion freed a bear, not knowing if it would savage his handsome face.

It was Halsin’s fault he’d been in the goblin camp at all. His fault that he’d been whisked away to Moonrise. He owed Astarion that much.

They would find him.

[aphroditestummyrolls]

How Old Are You?

My friend! Thank you for playing ❤️ I can always count on you.

This is a little oneshot— that’s going to ACTUALLY stay a oneshot this time, I swear!— where the tadfool gang comes across a child in distress in the woods. They (Astarion, really) end up saving the child, and the little thing cottons onto their saviour immediately. Astarion scares them off and they get the child to safety, but it kicks up all sorts of feelings— Astarion’s feelings about children, his guilt over the for children, the stealing of his own (elf age) youth, and the loss of whoever he was before he was turned…

Here’s a snippet:

He was niave enough, then, to believe they could put the whole incident behind them. The child was taken to a pool to bathe away the troll blood, and Gale cast a hasty cantrip over her reddened little clothes. Her older sibling was meant to meet her in a village due east, and thank the gods they managed to track them down before Karlach or Halsin or one of their other, more do-gooder companions decided to embrace another parasite to care for. Astarion could only roll his eyes.

It didn’t matter. They saved the wretched little thing, found their sibling, left them to lead a long life far from their band of tadpole-brained carnival freaks— hopefully. As long as the stupid girl didn’t go wandering into anymore trolls.

The deed was done. It didn’t matter. At least, it shouldn’t matter. Astarion had entirely forgotten about the girl by the time they all gathered round the campfire that evening.

Unfortunately, he seemed to be the only one.

“Hope Sylvie and Bea found a safe route home— wherever home is.” Wyll stirred his stew listlessly, gazing into the embers of the fire. It was all terribly gallant.

Karlach nodded heartily around her mouthful. “I hope she doesn’t have too many nightmares tonight.”

“Of the trolls or of Astarion?” Shadowheart scoffs, turning to him. “After all those backflips trying to keep us from finding out your sanguine little secret, you pull it out as a bedtime story?”

“There’s plenty worse where that came from.” He shrugged. “I can give you as many bedtime stories as you please, Darling.”

She rolls her eyes. “We have our own nightmares to contend with, thank you.”

Halsin is still looking at him. He’s scarcely stopped, and it’s rankling up under the vampire's skin.

“What, Druid?” He finally snaps.

Come play with me! Send me a WIP title and I’ll write you a snippet!

[aphroditestummyrolls]

Tagged by my dear @ongreenergrasses thanks for thinking of me ☺️☺️

rules: post the names of your wips and open your askbox for questions about them. (a good time to note that I always have a running ask game of wip questions and/or drabbles 👀)

Parasite

the tadpole broadcast system

Little Star 2.0

Catstarion 3 FINAL (🫠)

How Old are You?

Of lucky stars and four-leafed clovers

As always, with no pressure: @liggytheauthoress, @nicolos, @non-un-topo, and @jazzythursday have fun!

[aphroditestummyrolls]

TADPOLE BROADCAST SYSTEM what a cute title!

TADPOLE BROADCASTS SYSTEM!

So— the cuteness ends with the title, unfortunately. It’s an Astarion and the Tadfool Gang (featuring Halsin) fic where— after a sequence of events, a long overdue rescue, and some magical assistance from Gale that backfires tremendously— Astarion’s memories/thoughts start getting accidentally projected into the heads of his fellow party members. And it’s Astarion, so those memories are the definition of a trigger warning.

I’d offer a little snippet, but currently it’s 90% outline and 10% vivid daydream. But, I’ll tag you whenever I start writing properly! ❤️

Ask me about my WIPs