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rosieofcorona · 6 months ago

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okay my darlings, i've seen a lot of takes on the AMA and this answer in particular:

and after mulling it over for a few days, i have decided to offer a scalding hot take for which i need you not to execute me marie-antoinette style, please 🙏🏻 (under the cut for length).

when epler said solas realized he doesn't have any "real regard" about the lives and goals of the elves, i didn't take it to mean that he is apathetic. i took it to mean the exact opposite, really. here's why. solas loves his people. incontrovertibly. he cares very deeply about their freedoms, about their existence, about what he's done to hurt them, intentionally or not. truth be told, it's kind of his whole thing. but their motivations are, as epler said, likely to be very different. solas always has very big picture goals. he wanted to free an entire people in arlathan. he wants to restore an entire people in thedas. and his followers, for their part, might agree with those larger goals. but their personal goals are likely not so large-scale. an elf or a spirit in arlathan might wish for simpler things for themselves. the freedom to choose their own path, their own fate, their own purpose. to keep themselves safe, to live in peace. to not serve all their lives under tyrants. an elf in modern thedas might want the same. to live without circles, or alienages, or clans. to not be derided or scorned or punished in societies that were built up around them, sometimes by their own labor. and solas wants to get them there, because he loves them. he does. but he cannot love them all as individuals (or as epler said, via "formal connections,") because it would be impossible. to save The People™ requires sacrifice, and solas knows this. all revolutions have martyrs, and solas knows this. individual goals, always, are dwarfed by the good of the cause, and solas knows this. and this, i think, is where he realizes that he would be doing them a disservice by using them as tools, even willing tools. that he would be robbing them of their lives and their own motivations by allowing them to continue in his service. when epler said that solas' rebellion turned him from being a leader, I took that to mean that solas learned from what happened in arlathan, with the spirits that he and felassan brought into battle. he loved them, too, and they died for him, and for his greater good. it was never malice or apathy against the individuals. it was what had to be done to accomplish his goals on a much grander scale. i think solas realized, near the end of his plans, that he could not continue to consider the elves as The People™, but as people- as full and separate lives, each with goals and needs and loves and purposes of their own. and yes, they chose to follow him, and yes, they may be sympathetic to said greater good. but he knows how many individuals have died in his name, even if they believed in what they were doing. solas has been through all this before. he knows the costs firsthand, where these people likely do not, not truly. he's seen the loss and the grief that comes after revolution, and he doesn't want that for them. because he loves them, both as his People and as his people. he doesn't want their lives reduced to his purpose, which will override their own unless he gives up his power. it's an act of love, to me, that he realizes this. an act of love to let them go, which the evanuris could never do.

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luckycl0ve · 6 months ago

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Sounds like you and me.

sometimes the dialogue supports your own backstory for your ocs. in this instance. well. rook is the inquisitor's illegitimate son that he didn't know he had

You are the Inquisitor / You are Rook:

You are the Inquisitor. You were born of a scandalous affair between your father and an elven grand enchanter. Lord Trevelyan is a harsh, imposing, mountain of a man, so you're tall; you can hide the slight point of your ears behind your hair, so your open secret need never go addressed. Besides, Lady Trevelyan is kind, and raises you as her own alongside your true-born brothers and sisters - even when your magic manifests - though she cannot protect you from being taken to the circle at Ostwick. You meet a loving partner there, an elf a couple of years your senior, but the relationship does not last as they disappear without notice one day - one of many heartbreaks. You think of them whenever you hear Solas speak of the plight of the elven people, and you wonder if he knows of your lineage, but feel unable to ask: the topic has always been unspeakable for you, as a result of your upbringing, though you yearn to know yourself more. It is only in the later days of the Inquisition when Dorian gently breaks it to you - having done some research after hearing rumours circulating in Tevinter about a scandal concerning his beloved - that your old partner disappeared to have your son. He is a grey warden and a mage and, of course, he is an elf. You have missed his entire life and, from the sounds of it, it's not been an easy one for him. You could have helped him, maybe, or at least shown him that though you didn't count on him existing, you want to try and be something to him - for him. You wouldn't have chosen to leave him at the mercy of a world that treats mages and elves the way it does on his own. But so much for that. You cannot take it back nor make it right. He is 29 now, and what's more - he's working with Varric to undo your mistakes. You write letters, but they go unanswered: he doesn't wish to see you, and you can't say you blame him, though you wish he didn't feel that way. But when Solas' ritual goes wrong, you must see him anyway. It's what you wanted, but you can scarcely face what you are to him, what you've lost, and the way you've repeated and intensified the very mistakes your father made concerning you.

You are angry. You are grieving what could have been. You yearn to be understood by the man opposite you, but you know it's probably too late for that, and there are more pressing matters at hand. What's been done weeps like an open wound inside you. You wonder if words could ever close it.

You are Rook. As a child you were essentially an orphan in the alienage at Denerim, having been sequestered there after a pair of mages had a child at the circle of Ostwick, to avoid scandal for some noble family or other. You were 7 when the fifth blight hit Denerim, and a Grey Warden who smiled and made jokes amidst the battle and the chaos fished you out of the rubble and handed your care over to the Dalish allies he was fighting alongside, given that the alienage was reduced to blood and ashes. You wanted to be like that warden when you grew up. You spent years with the Dalish, learning their language and customs, and the ways of magic under their keeper, but never truly fit in - even when you were able sit stone-still and silent for your vallaslin ceremony at age 16. You bear the vallaslin of Mythal on your face, the only steadfast mother you've had, though you aren't sure she's real. You left to find yourself not long after that, living a turbulent and troubled life travelling the Free Marches; Ferelden was no place for a free mage at that time let alone an elven one. You spent a few years in Darktown, Kirkwall, under the care and mentorship of an undercover mage who helped the less fortunate, including you, facilitating your physical transition. He showed you kindness you hadn't seen since the women in the alienage sang you lullabies, and you found a freedom in being as kind and just as he was, too. Trouble and violence inevitably came with associating with him, however, and the resultant choice to join the Grey Wardens and finally know your place was a clear one, if not one made lightly. You found out, through gossip and the knowledge of your elders, that you are a Trevelyan's son - the one they call Inquisitor. Travelling with Varric, you try not to ask too many questions about him, because clearly he's never been interested in you. You don't read the letters marked with the Inquisitor's seal: you know there are no words that can make up for all the trouble you've seen, and hardship you've experienced, in your young but tough life. You want to burn the letters, and wish he could feel it when you do - but somehow you can't find the strength in your righteous anger to cast them into the Lighthouse's fire; you leave them for Harding to read instead. On the strange journey you're undertaking, you eventually cannot avoid meeting Trevelyan, and you find that seeing yourself in him at long last - the parallels between your lives, the physical similarities - steals all the words you've fantasised about saying to him from your tongue.

You are angry. You are grieving what could have been. You yearn to be understood by the man opposite you, but you know it's probably too late for that, and there are more pressing matters at hand. What's been done weeps like an open inside you. You wonder if words could ever close it.

#dragon age #dragon age rook #inquisitor trevelyan #veilguard spoilers #dragon age the veilguard #datv #oc #oc art #The Way not 1 person can relate to this. THAT'S true fan art baby THAT'S what it's all about #i'm sorry this is all i do now but i am insane about it and possessed by visions so like you know how it is #dragon age inquisition #Rook Thorne

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flowersforthemachines · 3 months ago

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OC Tag Game

Thank you @hyperions-light for the tag, will never miss the chance to talk about my baby <3

tagging @rookamell @rook-laidir @hightowerqueen @corvus-frugilegus @larkinna @kindlyfeline @mythals-whore and anyone else who wishes to take part!

General

Name: Ghilasara Thorne

Alias: Thorne (before meeting Varric), Rook

Gender: Cis woman

Age: 31 at the time of DAVG, 43 at the time of death

Place of Birth: Hasmal alienage, Free Marches

Spoken Languages: Trade, Orlesian, Elven

Sexual Orientation: Bi

Occupation: Grey Warden (during DAVG), First Warden (post-DAVG)

Favorites

Color: Purple, green (she is, however, tragically confined to the gw blue and grey)

Entertainment: Theatre (as rarely as she could enjoy it in her life), card games, treasure hunting

Pastime: Cataloguing things, magic studies, hair braiding (she could throw a party when Taash joined. so much hair...)

Food: Anything edible. The Lighthouse was probably the first place where she could actually be picky about her food, she just ate whatever until then

Drink: Tea. But also anything drinkable (as long as it's not coffee)

Books: Big fan of The Randy Dowager :') one of the few ways in which she and Solas are similar. Also tragically loves Orlesian literature more than any other. Very particular about its translations into the Trade.

Have They…

Passed University: She received formal education in the Circle and passed her Harrowing when she was 17

Had Sex: Yes

Had Sex in Public: ...would the Circle tower count?

Gotten Tattoos: Just her vallaslin

Gotten Piercings: No

Gotten Scars: Too many to count (over 30, I think. The most prominent once are on her face and back. She also has a scar from Illario on her collarbone)

Had a Broken Heart: [links to the Lucanis Dellamorte section of her wiki]

Been in Love: Yes, even before DAVG

Are They…

A cuddler: Yes. If you are sleeping next to her, you must also accept the boon of being held on to like her life depends on it

Scared easily: She's always on her guard, but more in a "if you dare to touch me, I will end you" way rather than being scared

Jealous easily: Not at all

Trustworthy: Yes. If she didn't want to do something, she wouldn't promise that in the first place!

Family

Siblings: None

Parents: Her mother was a dalish elf who moved to the city to raise Ghilasara together with her father. They both worked as servants. Her father died from an illness after she was taken to the Circle, but she and her mother reunite after Blood of Arlathan ^_^

Children: Only if I'm feeling cruel on a particular day

Pets: She gets a griffon post-canon :) His name is Stormwing, and he's her favourite thing in the entire world

Blank template under the cut!

General

Name:

Alias:

Gender:

Age:

Place of Birth:

Spoken Languages:

Sexual Orientation:

Occupation:

Favorites

Color:

Entertainment:

Pastime:

Food:

Drink:

Books:

Have They…

Passed University:

Had Sex:

Had Sex in Public:

Gotten Tattoos:

Gotten Piercings:

Gotten Scars:

Had a Broken Heart:

Been in Love:

Are They…

A cuddler:

Scared easily:

Jealous easily:

Trustworthy:

Family

Siblings: .

Parents:

Children:

Pets:

#oc: ghilasara thorne #flowers.txt #also sigh. this is the second time today that I'm thinking of the ghilasara wiki. maybe my next project should be comitting to finishing it

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zombiefishgirl · 11 days ago

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May I offer you this idea for soulmates, where every time you lose something it shows up among your soulmate things.

Ooo I love that idea! So much shenanigans! Especially if throwing knives and the like count as lost!

Mara in her Clan with an endless supply of blades. Occasionally a very expensive wine or a cup of coffee appearing before her in the Alienage. Once a VERY steamy romance novel that she read until it was falling apart in her hands.

Lucanis by contrast thinks for a long time that he has no soul mate. He is almost 15 before Mara is born and close to 30 before she even has things to lose and even then they are so small as to go unnoticed. She owns very little and what she does she keeps close.

A bottom. A sewing needle. Arrows were the most noticeable and common. In his early 30s a romance novel he lost years earlier returns, read so often that it is falling apart, especially at the naughty parts. That is...interesting.

A month or two before the Ossuary a tiny pair of red lace smalls appear on his bed...

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dalishious · 3 months ago

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Last Flight: A Summary

This novel switches between 9:41-9:42 Dragon and 5:12-5:24 Exalted. I will note the time switches.

—————

9:41 DRAGON

With the Mage-Templar Conflict in full swing, the Grey Wardens of Weisshaupt make an offer to the Hossberg Circle: Any mage who volunteers to join the Order will be protected from the Templars using the Right of Conscription. Valya, a young elven mage, and four others take up the offer.

They are greeted by an elf warden named Caronel, who explains that they will not be undergoing the Joining right away; instead, they will be put to work in Weisshaupt's libraries. Caronel makes mention that the Chamberlain of the Grey requires their assistance researching blood magic – specifically, cases of wardens acting strangely, and Awakened darkspawn. Caronel takes the mages to the archives and tells them to start with records from the Fourth Blight.

In the library, Valya pours herself over old battle maps, and notices a hint of lyrium on the parchment. Valya uses her magic to reveal new words: “Lathbora viran”, translated as “the path to a place of lost love”. She remembers it from a poem she learned growing up, and uses this as a clue to find a hidden journal – Isseya’s journal. Valya begins to read it in secret.

5:12 EXALTED

Isseya and her brother Garahel, having joined the Grey Wardens a mere year before and still fresh in training, are thrust into battle prematurely when the Blight hits Antiva. So, they are among those sent to Antiva City to meet with the royals. King Elaudio and Queen Giuvana refuse to take the Grey Wardens advice to evacuate the city though, instead saying they will “think on it”.

While waiting for the King’s response, Isseya and Garahel are taken to be paired with a griffon. It’s explained that griffons choose their riders, and that bond is formed for as long as both are alive. Isseya bonds with a griffon named Revas (elven for “Freedom”). Garahel bestows a new name on his griffon: Crookytail.

When the darkspawn hit the city, the Antivan people decide to revolt against the King for his refusal to evacuate. The king and queen are killed, but the Wardens rescue and escape with Amadis Vael who was visiting from Starkhaven, and Calien d’Evaliste, a mysterious mage. In their escape, Isseya witnesses Calien use blood magic that proves very effective against the archdemon, even if they didn’t succeed in killing it.

9:41 DRAGON

It’s been two months since Valya and the others came to Weisshaupt. Valya is scared that without undergoing the Joining, the Wardens will kick them out. Caronel explains that they won’t be undergoing the Joining until there is an immediate need for it, since they may die in the process. Caronel also explains that he became a Grey Warden during the Fifth Blight; after humans attacked his alienage in Ferelden, he took to the Wardens for safety. So, he understands Valya’s situation and promises to defend her against any Templar threat.

Despite this assurance, when five Templars come to Weisshaupt seeking to join, Valya is terrified of ulterior motives.

5:12 EXALTED

In Wycome, the Warden-Commander orders the party of Isseya, Garahel, Amadis and Calien to accompany her back to Starkhaven, and then later they are to go to the Anderfels to rally support. Isseya questions why not Orlais or Tevinter, and the Warden-Commander reminds her that in Orlais and Tevinter, she and her brother won’t make much headway because they’re elves. But in the Anderfels, they will be more respected because of being Wardens.

Isseya joins her brother, Amadis, and Calien at a tavern. There, it’s revealed that Amadis is a princess of Starkhaven, as well as the captain of the influential mercenary company, the Ruby Drakes. Calien shares that he is an Antivan Crow. While they talk, Isseya comes up with a way to evacuate Wycome using magic makeshift aravels.

While Isseya takes the lead with the aravels, Garahel is sent flying letters across Thedas and told to charm his way into convincing various lords and ladies to helping the cause. Isseya laments that she hates the political game required of Wardens, but is glad that Garahel proves mostly successful.

The plan with the aravels mostly works, and Wycome’s citizens are largely evacuated to Starkhaven.

9:41 DRAGON

Valya asks the Chamberlain of the Grey what happened to the griffons. The Chamberlain simply says they died, without explaining how.

Valya is then invited by one of the templars, Reimas, to talk. Reimas says she is not there to harm Valya or the others, and is only interested in peace. Reimas also claims that she only ever wanted to protect mages, though Valya remains disapproving.

5:19 EXALTED

Hossberg in the Anderfels has been fighting the Blight off for the last seven years now, with mostly success. Isseya participates in air-drops of supplies using griffons, and an idea occurs to her: Calien, using blood magic, could get inside the head of a darkspawn scout and they could follow it back to where they are emerging from underground. That way, they could seal off the entrances and slow down the horde significantly. Calien agrees, and following the success of this plan, Isseya asks Calien to teach her.

Calien shares the story of how he learned blood magic himself: he took on a Crow contract to kill a woman, who was in fact an abomination. The demon bargained that in exchange for healing from the wounds inflicted on the attack, it would give Calien blood magic knowledge. Calien agreed, healed the demon only slightly, and then completed the contract. Isseya is not bothered by any of this, seeing blood magic as a practical tool against the Blight. So, Calien agrees to teach her everything he knows.

The next morning, Isseya leads the Grey Wardens to the entrance she and Calien found, and they are ultimately successful in sealing it. However, one of the griffons, Shrike, is mortally infected with the Blight in the assault. Isseya offers a way to make the Joining potentially work on the griffon, using blood magic. (The Joining does not work on the griffons otherwise; it drives them mad to the point that they tear themselves apart.) Shrike’s rider agrees to attempt this, and it saves the griffon’s life.

Queen Mariwen of the Anderfels approaches Isseya and not-so-subtly says that if the Wardens want the crown’s continued cooperation, then they will make Garahel have sex with her.

It’s discovered that the griffon, Shrike, now has incredible vigour and acute senses in battle, because of the Joining. Isseya is disturbed by this unexpected change, and vows not to use the spell she performed to make the Joining work on Shrike ever again. (Oh, my dear girl…)

9:41 DRAGON

Valya asks Reimas if she’s ever encountered a blood mage before, and if it’s really as evil as the Chantry teaches. This conversation prompts Valya to share with Reimas that she found Isseya’s diary. And Reimas admits that maybe it is possible to do good using blood magic.

5:20 EXALTED

Since things have calmed down in the Anderfels since closing the darkspawn entrances, Garahel suggests they shift their focus to the Free Marches. He also tells the group that he plans on refusing to sleep with Queen Mariwen, but Amadis convinces him she’s okay with it because it’s for the greater good. Amadis makes a request though: her own griffon, even though she is not a Warden.

Queen Mariwen throws a party, and Garahel spends the night with her, so she grants the Grey Wardens use of her soldiers. This enables Isseya and many other Wardens to go to Fortress Haine in the Vimmark Mountains, to be used as a safeguard against the Blight in the Free Marches. But the situation becomes dire very quickly, and Garahel delivers Isseya an unfortunate command from the First Warden: Put the griffons of Fortress Haine through the Joining.

Isseya cries the whole time through her modified ritual, but she puts all the griffons except Revas through the Joining. Then in the following battle, Isseya is forced to use further blood magic to possess the griffons in order to make them go along with the plan, because they can no longer be reasoned with. It causes a great strain, and Calien offers to help next time, but Isseya is still emotionally shattered.

9:42 DRAGON

Valya approaches Caronel for help getting to Red Bride’s Grave in the Wandering Hills. Caronel says the last time he was there, it was full of demon-possessed corpses, but Valya convinces him to take her and a group of recruits.

5:24 EXALTED

In the four years that have passed, Isseya has grown increasingly blighted and depressed, but Garahel has become a beacon of shining hope, and a prominent figure in the war against the darkspawn. Even things that Isseya herself accomplished she let go credited to her brother to help build this glory and inspire people. Isseya holds onto her griffon, Revas, who she still refused to taint despite almost all the others undergoing it at this point. Isseya has grown increasingly depressed and blighted, with the constant rituals taking a toll on her: “She looked like she’d been serving as a Warden for twenty years longer than her brother.” The other wardens are wary of her, seeing her as a monster, but a necessary one.

Garahel shares his plan to launch an assault into Antiva, where the Archdemon is. He fully admits that he does not expect many to survive the attempt, but draws an army of supporters for his plan anyways.

The next day, the Wardens and supporters fly into Antiva, where they take to aerial combat with the Archdemon. The tainted griffons fight with such ferocity that they are able to deeply wound it. With Isseya and Garahel being the last two wardens capable of reaching it, Isseya prepares to commit to the sacrifice of its defeat—but Garahel stops her. His last words are “Isseya, be kind to yourself,” before Isseya watches him and Crookytail swoop in on the dragon. Crookytail is killed, but Garahel lands on the Archdemon and is able to strike the final blow.

Garahel is given a hero’s funeral – the grandest to ever be given to an elf.

A month later, Isseya is called back to Weisshaupt. There, she is horrified to discover that the griffons are dying out from the taint; even those that were not put through the Joining have been corrupted through breeding and proximity.

Three months after this, the First Warden orders all griffons who show any signs of “irredeemable viciousness” to be put down, and Isseya predicts this will be their extinction. She is wracked with horrible grief, blaming herself. She tirelessly searches for answers to understand the disease she created, but comes up empty-handed. So, Isseya turns to Starkhaven and finds Amadis. There, she discovers that Amadis’s griffon is sick as well, and explains to Amadis that while she can’t save her griffon, she might be able to save the newly-laid eggs. Isseya then tells Amadis that she does not plan to be alive to see if it will even work, but asks that Amadis keep the eggs a secret – she does not believe the wardens or anyone else of her time deserve the griffons after what they did to them.

Isseya kills Amadis’s griffon and takes the eggs to a secret place in the Anderfels. There, she draws the taint from the eggs into herself, purifying them before freezing them in a magical stasis. She hides her diaries in Weisshaupt under a series of enchantments that none but an elf would be likely to unlock. Isseya wants the Grey Wardens of the future to be the ones to uncover the eggs, but wants it to be someone who would understand the value of freedom.

Isseya then takes Revas for one last flight, off to her Calling, as she no longer wants to live.

9:42 DRAGON

On the way to Red Bride’s Grave, Valya shares with the group her theory that they will find griffon eggs there. They fight their way through corpses, and eventually find the eggs, perfectly preserved. Upon uncovering them, the eggs begin to hatch, and Valya watches as one emerges who looks exactly like Crookytail was described. (Baby Assan!)

The group agrees to take the griffons home to Weisshaupt.

#dragon age #last flight #isseya #novel summary #finally finished lol

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aquamarinemarie · 12 days ago

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Romancing the Dread Wolf, Pt. Three

Chatting, squabbling, and flirting with the legendary, extremely opinionated Dread Wolf. Former spirit, ancient elf, Second to Mythal, and rebellion leader…

Oh, Lavellan, if you only knew who you were talking to.

Let's Talk About Elves (Haven)

Lavellan: I’d be interested in hearing your opinions on elven culture.

“I’d be interested in hearing your opinions on elven culture,” she says. Oh, boy. Maker, have mercy. Lavellan walked right up to a hornet’s nest and wacked it good, didn’t she?

Solas: I thought you would be more interested in sharing your opinions of elven culture. You are Dalish, are you not?

Immediate attitude. 😂

My Lavellan only wanted to talk, maybe get to know Solas a little better. But alas, Solas it seems has other plans.

General: Option One Lavellan (Proudly.): Yes, I am. The Dalish are the best hope for preserving the culture of our people. Solas: Our people. You use that phrase so casually. It should mean more… but the Dalish have forgotten that. Among other things. Lavellan: Oh, but you know the truth, right? Solas: While they pass on stories, mangling details, I walk the Fade. I have seen things they have not.

"Our people," he says, so bitterly.

Yes, Solas, the Dalish are indeed your people, just as the elves in the alienages are too; hard as it may be to accept.

I always pick option one here because of the emphasis on our people, since my Lavellan sincerely sees all elves, not just Dalish, as her people. Which is a little unusual for a Dalish elf, I know, but hey, she's from clan Lavellan, and her clan seems to be a little more open-minded than most.

General: Option Two Lavellan (Why are you so angry?): What’s your problem with the Dalish? Allergic to halla? Solas: They are children acting out stories misheard and repeated wrongly a thousand times. Lavellan: Oh, but you know the truth, right? Solas: While they pass on stories, mangling details, I walk the Fade. I have seen things they have not. General: Option Three Lavellan (I am a true elf.): My people come from the elves who refused to surrender when humans broke their treaty and destroyed the Dales. Solas: Your Keeper was not wrong about that, at least. We must mark the occasion of the Dalish remembering something correctly. Perhaps we should plant a tree. Lavellan: You insult my people. Solas: They insult themselves. Remember, I have walked the memories of the Fade. I have seen the history of the Dalish imitate.

“Your Keeper was not wrong about that, at least. We must mark the occasion of the Dalish remembering something correctly. Perhaps we should plant a tree.” 😂

I love how much of an asshole he can be.

General: Option One Lavellan (So help them.): The Dalish are trying to restore elven history. If you know something new, share it. Solas: Would your clan listen to what I had learned in my studies, my travels? Or would they mock the flat-ear and his stories, and go back to their ruins? At least you are asking. That is something. I will answer as I can. General: Option Two Lavellan (So teach other elves.): Fine, you think we’re terrible. What about the alienages full of elves who aren’t Dalish? Solas: Why? What would it benefit some poor man in a Fereldan alienage to learn that his ancestors strode the lands like gods? It would only make him bitter, or inspire him to take a foolish risk and get himself killed. Lavellan: You’ve decided his reaction for him. Solas: Perhaps I have. If you have questions and believe the answers will help, ask. General: Option Three Lavellan (We are trying. Accept that.): Ir abelas, hahren. If the Dalish have done you a disservice, I would make that right. What course would you set for them that is better than what they know now? Solas: (Sighs.) You are right, of course. The fault is mine, for expecting what the Dalish could never truly accomplish. Ir abelas… da’len. If I can offer any understanding, you have but to ask.

Solas: What do you wish to know?

I really do prefer option three, since my girl is honestly a bit taken aback, but is also capable of recognizing that Solas has a point. He does walk the Fade, and thus, has likely seen and learned truths her people would ordinarily kill to know.

So, my girl pivots, and counters with a show of manners. (She’s going to get along great with Josephine.)

She speaks elven, apologizes, and for added flavor, addresses Solas as an elder, and he… Sighs, resigned. She’s given him exactly what he seems to be asking for. Respect, and an opportunity to be heard. To be listened to. Decency now demands he apologize in turn.

Which he reluctantly does, and in elven no less.

That’s very much a win in my book.

Investigate: Option One Lavellan (Tell me about ancient elves.): I’d like to know more about the elves from before our time. Solas: The Dalish strive to remember Halamshiral, but Halamshiral was merely a fumbling attempt to recreate a forgotten land. Lavellan: Arlathan. Solas: Elvhenan was the empire, and Arlathan its greatest city. A place of magic and beauty, lost to time. Lavellan (special) (What else?): You’ve studied ancient elves. What else do you know of Arlathan? Solas: We hear stories of them living in trees and imagine wooden ramps or Dalish aravels. Imagine instead spires of crystal twining through the branches, palaces floating among the clouds. Imagine beings who lived forever, for whom magic was as natural as breathing. That is what was lost.

How broken and unnatural the new world must seem to him. You can hear the sadness creeping into his voice whenever he speaks of his people and the old world. A world Solas tells himself he alone destroyed, when we all know he’s the one who saved it.

A broken world, after all, is objectively better than a blighted world.

Investigate: Option Two Lavellan (Tell me more of the Dalish.): Are all Dalish elves like my clan? Solas: No. Your clan was unique in having enough interest in human affairs to send you to spy upon the Divine’s meeting. As your clans have been separate for so long, they have all changed, adapting to the lands in which they live. Some are no more than bandits, others trade freely with humans, and some have disappeared entirely into the forests.

Alright, who’s been blabbing?

Lavellan, was it you? Did you tell everybody you were sent by your Keeper to spy on the humans? Or did smarty-pants figure it out? Aah, who am I kidding? Lavellan blabbed.

Investigate: Option Three Lavellan (Tell me about city elves.): What can you tell me about elves living in human cities? Solas: The culture in alienages or among the slaves of Tevinter is like any of the impoverished and powerless. They cling to memories of a better past and practice a few rituals to distinguish themselves from humans.

I think if my Lavellan actually saw the alienages and how the elven slaves in Tevinter lived, she’d honestly be horrified.

Investigate: Option Four Lavellan (Mage) (Tell me about elven magic.): Is the magic they teach in the Circle different from the magic I learned with my people? Lavellan (Non-Mage) (Is elven magic different from the magic used by humans? Solas: No and yes. Magic is magic, just as water is water, but it can be used in different ways. Dalish magic is more practical, not needing Chantry approval, although they still frown on blood magic. Superstition. Much of it is more subtle, a legacy from when elves were immortal. Lavellan (Special) (Was immortality due to magic?): The legends of elven immortality… did they use magic to increase their lifespan? Solas: No, it was simply part of being elven. The subtle beauty of their magic was the effect, not the cause, of their nature. Some spells took years to cast. Echoes would linger for centuries, harmonizing with new magic in an unending symphony. It must have been beautiful. Lavellan (Special) (About blood magic…): You said that the censure against blood magic was superstition… Solas: I did. It’s fortunate Cassandra is not within earshot. Most modern cultures forbid blood magic. Publicly, even Tevinter disapproves of it. But as I said, magic is magic. It matters only in how it is used.

“It must have been beautiful,” he says. Again, the sadness. Guilt. Hints of pain.

Special Response (About blood magic): Option One Lavellan (Blood magic seems interesting.): I’d be interested in learning more about blood magic. Solas: I would teach you, if I knew it. Unfortunately, using blood magic seems to make it more difficult to enter the Fade. You understand why I have never bothered to learn it. A shame, as it is extremely powerful. Provided it remains a tool, not a crutch… nor a passion.

“You understand why I have never bothered to learn it.” Lies. More lies.

Yes, Solas is slippery with his words and prefers to lie by omission. But, he also, occasionally, blatantly lies as well. Does this bother me? Nope. Not one damn bit.

Special Response (About blood magic…): Option Two Lavellan (Blood magic is evil.): Every time I’ve seen blood magic used, it has been for some evil purpose. Solas: I once saw a woman stabbed in the stomach with a dagger. She died slowly, in agony. It was repulsive. If the Chantry outlawed daggers, would that stop people from using them? Of course not. Some would use daggers in secret, ashamed, and some would find rebellion titillating, a step down the path of depravity.

General: Option One Lavellan (That metaphor doesn’t work.): You don’t need to sacrifice a slave’s life to make a dagger. Solas: I suppose it depends upon the dagger. How many men have you killed while fighting for the Inquisition? How many more will you kill out of necessity? And if blood magic could help you? Well, it matters little to me. I do not use it, but I do not think it evil. General: Option Two Lavellan (The alternative is Tevinter.): So we should allow blood magic to be used freely? It works so well for the Imperium! Solas: Tevinter’s foundation stones are the bones of ancient elves with slave-blood for the mortar. It is an example of nothing more than gilded savagery. Pitiable, in a way. They always succeed through power, so they have never had the chance to learn another way. General: Option Three Lavellan (They’re still evil.): It doesn’t matter how they arrived there. Most blood mages use their power for the wrong reasons. Solas: Yes, but not all. I once saw a blood mage healer who would shed her own blood to close a patient’s wounds. Although, admittedly, you are unlikely to find her here.

Option three here interests me a great deal.

I rather like the idea of a blood mage healer – especially a powerful one. Could they heal severe burns, close otherwise fatal wounds, restore a man’s sight, or perhaps, regrow a lost limb? If so, I can easily imagine my Lavellan being interested in learning this kind of magic.

(And not just because she’ll later lose half a limb herself. My girl’s a knight-enchanter, y’all. Healing others is practically her job… when she’s not cutting her enemies heads off with a magic sword.)

Special Response (About blood magic…): Option Three Lavellan (I don’t mind blood magic.): To be honest, I don’t see it as different from any other magic. It’s a means to an end. Solas: Indeed. The problem is that, under the Chantry, blood magic is forbidden, so only criminals practice it. While in Tevinter, magisters compete with each other instead of keeping their volatile friends in check. They always succeed through power, so they have never had the chance to learn another way.

Lavellan: We’ll talk later. (That’s a promise.) Solas: Goodbye.

The early hostility of this conversation is really interesting, since we know Solas reached out to the Dalish at least a few times before joining the Inquisition. Which resulted in the "superstitious" Dalish attacking Fen’Harel and or mocking Solas as a madman. The rejection must have truly hurt, especially since (we can presume) Solas genuinely intended to help them… or at least educate them. Hence his frustrations, and general distaste for all things Dalish.

Until Lavellan, that is. She’s the sole exception.

The only Dalish elf that’s actually willing to listen to him without shoving a pie in his face… even if at times she may feel tempted to.

Source: daitranscripts

#dragon age #dragon age inquisition #solavellan #solas #fen'harel #lavellan #female lavellan #romancing the dread wolf #thoughts and musings #rtdw

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lavenderstobins · 3 months ago

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The Cousland family in my main world state! Close-ups and details under the cut because I'm a little obsessed with them

Eleanor and Bryce

My warden Jaemi has brown skin and I wasn't particularly vibing with her looking adopted so I mainly played around with Eleanor so recreate her how I personally picture her. She grew up on the seas! Raised on a warship! There's next to no information on her actual family (afaik anyway) so I like to think her mother was from Rivain.

Bryce I didn't change too much aside from giving him brown eyes instead of blue. Also, considering the game made them look ancient when they're in their late 40s/early 50s, I made them look younger than the game does.

Fergus, Oriana and Oren

Fergus I tried to keep similar to his in-game appearance while also keeping him consistent with the redesigns of his parents and the appearance of Jaemi. He looks more like Bryce, but he has Eleanor's eyes and complexion.

Oriana is from Antiva, so I based her appearance more similarly to Josephine's, and her appearance in the mod Oriana Cousland of Antiva. Oren then is a mix of both of his parents.

Fergus later adopts Amethyne, Iona's daughter in the Denerim Alienage, and I think maybe he'd end up in a relationship with Nathaniel Howe but I'm still figuring all that out right now so they are currently missing from the tree </3

Jaemi, Alistair and their children

Jaemi, in the tree, is starting to show the effects of the Blight, but its progress has slowed considerably thanks to Avernus' research. I'm choosing to retcon 'Grey Wardens are basically infertile' since it's stupid and we have both Alistair and Kieran with no real explanation as to how Fiona managed to have him (to my knowledge).

Jaemi would keep her surname as she and Fergus are the only ones left of her family, but I think as queen she'd let her name be Theirin-Cousland. I do think that all of their children are Theirin-Cousland too, but with the favouritism shown to Calenhad's line they'd be known more as Theirins.

Alistair I think has pointy ears but they're not super visible. I kinda love the headcanon that Eamon had Alistair's ears clipped when he was a baby to hide his elven parentage, but idk if I want to incorporate that or not yet, and the sims hates elven ears anyway, so.

Eleanora is their firstborn child. She was conceived during the Blight (specifically during the long venture through the Deep Roads which is a little hilarious to me) and she was born sometime after Jaemi returned from Amaranthine in 9:31 Dragon. She's older than Kieran by a couple of months (Kieran and Morrigan aren't on the tree solely because I haven't recreated Kieran yet) and therefore the heir to Ferelden's throne. She's very headstrong and adventurous, like Jaemi, and Fergus jokes that it's karma for all the trouble she caused their mother.

Duncan is their secondborn and their first son. His full name is Duncan Bryce Theirin-Cousland, because Alistair wanted to honor Duncan and Jaemi wanted to honor her father. He's the complete opposite of his older sister, being a quiet bookworm and socially awkward. He was born a year or two after Eleanora in 9:33 Dragon.

Isobel, Rose and Lillian are triplets (obviously not identical). They were intended to be the third and final child, and Alistair briefly fainted when the third baby was delivered. They were born 9:35 Dragon.

At this point, Jaemi started her search for a cure for the Calling, though mainly it was research and communications via letters etc. Rhys, their second son and sixth child overall, was an unplanned baby, born in 9:39 Dragon.

When he turned two years old, Jaemi embarked on a journey to find a cure. As much as she didn't want to leave her family, she couldn't risk them losing her and Alistair to the Blight. Honestly, I think there could be some fuckery here with Eluvians, but I need to look into it further/

Their last child, Ffion, is born in 9:45 Dragon, after Jaemi has returned from her search. She wasn't exactly planned, either, but this time it was more of a "if it happens, it won't be unwanted" rather than actively trying for a baby. Her name being similar to Fiona's is unintential on their part, though I like to think sometime after this Alistair finds out about Fiona being his mother.

Eleanora and Lucanis

Eleanora is my Rook for this world state. She romances Lucanis and she's 'technically' a Grey Warden, by which I think she has a sort of immunity to the Blight on account of both of her parents being Grey Wardens. Also because the surname Thorne 1000% sounds like she went to say Theirin and then panicked because she didn't want to reveal her identity.

Everyone in the Veilguard assumes that she's an only child because she avoids the topic of her family (not wanting to accidentally reveal her heritage or, yknow, status of Heir to Ferelden's Throne). Lucanis definitely assumes her family is small, like his, so he has quite a surprise when she finally confesses everything to their group.

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mageknife · 3 months ago

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oc tag game! tagged by @cacturne @mournmage and @vanilladella in the span of like 10 minutes lmao <3. here are all four of my main worldstate guys

Name: Laevis Tabris

Alias: “The Red Wolf of Denerim” (Shianni started this after the Blight and it stuck), Hero of Ferelden, Warden-Commander Tabris

Gender: Wolfboy (he/him)

Sexual Orientation: Gay

Age: 21 at the start of Origins

Spoken Language: Trade, just a little bit of Elven

Occupation: Petty thief (former), Fereldan Warden-Commander (allegedly), Zevran's husband (mostly), Friend of Red Jenny (when the mood strikes)

FAVORITE:

Color: The blood of his enemies

Entertainment: Having sex, humiliating nobles

Pastime: Target practice, hunting, spending time with his dog/wolf/bear

Food: Venison stew

Drink: Water. Hydration is important for staying on top of his game

HAVE THEY:

Passed university: Never even went near one until Broken Circle

Had sex: At least once a day at this point

Had sex in public: Frequently, he gets off on it

Gotten tattoos: No

Gotten piercings: He has three earrings in his left ear

Gotten scarred: So very much. The biggest one is where he lost his right eye to a werewolf, but he has battle scars all over his body

Had a broken heart: A little, with Alistair, but that's his own fault so he doesn't really count it

ARE THEY:

A cuddler: Not as much as Zevran is, but he won't object

Scared easily: No. The only thing he's really scared of is the Calling

Jealous easily: No. He and Zevran have a physically open relationship and often sleep with other people or share, but he doesn't have any doubt in his mind that they've committed their hearts to each other

Trustworthy: Yes, especially after the Blight. He didn't always follow through before, but after what happened with Alistair, he's less flaky

FAMILY:

Parents/siblings: Cyrion, Soris, and Shianni. He considers Wynne not quite a mother, but maybe an aunt of some kind

Children: Unlikely

Pets: His mabari (Shianni), wolf (Soris), and bear (Cyrion). He always cared for the stray dogs and cats in the alienage and gave them names, but he doesn't consider them his pets. Also Arum and Anders's many cats since they share a house

Name: Arum Hawke

Alias: Hawke, Champion of Kirkwall

Gender: Genderfluid boygirl girlboy (he/she)

Sexual Orientation: Gay

Age: 23 at the start of DA2

Spoken Language: Trade

Occupation: Spirit healer, rebel mage, therapist, abomination

FAVORITE:

Color: Rose pink

Entertainment: Playing cards, hosting dinners

Pastime: Cooking, baking, giving hugs, telling Anders how much he loves him, neglecting his own needs to care for other people

Food: Lemon cake with strawberries and cream, fresh bread with goat cheese, roasted zucchini and peppers

Drink: Hot chocolate mixed with cinnamon whiskey

HAVE THEY:

Passed university: No (apostate)

Had sex: A lot

Had sex in public: Yes

Gotten tattoos: He got his very prominent face tattoos to make himself look less like his father and it didn't even work

Gotten piercings: Not for a long time, but Zevran pierces his ears when he starts exploring his gender

Gotten scarred: He has some little scars here and there from jumping in front of his allies in fights, but he's a skilled enough healer that most of his wounds haven't scarred

Had a broken heart: Not romantically, but Leandra's death shattered his heart

ARE THEY:

A cuddler: Extremely, he'll give you the best hug you've ever had and not let go

Scared easily: More than he'd admit. He's terrified of not being enough for the people he loves

Jealous easily: Not jealous, but very protective

Trustworthy: The most trustworthy person you'll ever meet

FAMILY:

Parents/siblings: He's a Hawke

Children: Not of his own, but he helps teach and take care of formerly Tranquil children

Pets: The family mabari, Buttercup. He used to have a cat named Lily in Lothering, but Leandra made him get rid of her. Once he and Anders settle down, they take in a stupid number of stray cats (and keep very careful tabs on all of them, and they all have ridiculous names)

Name: Mullein Lavellan

Alias: Inquisitor (unwanted), Herald of Andraste (wanted even less), Ambassador Lavellan

Gender: Effeminate twink (he/him)

Sexual Orientation: Gay

Age: 24 at the start of Inquisition

Spoken Language: Fluent in Trade, Elven, Orlesian, Nevarran, and Antivan; studying Ancient Elven, Tevene, Ancient Tevene, Dwarven, Ander, Rivaini, and Avvar. He's a bit of a language nerd

Occupation: First to Keeper Deshanna Lavellan (formerly), Inquisitor (begrudgingly), Friend of Red Jenny, Imperial Ambassador to the South (post-Veilguard), honorary Shadow Dragon because Mae adores him

FAVORITE:

Color: Pine green

Entertainment: Reading, studying necromancy and history and languages, pranking people with Sera, chess

Pastime: Mostly reading as well, clinging to Dorian like a barnacle

Food: Miso soup

Drink: Green tea or white wine, depending on the day

HAVE THEY:

Passed university: Not in a Circle, but he got an A+ in Dalish mage

Had sex: Plenty, even before Dorian. More of a slut than he looks

Had sex in public: He's given more blowjobs in the Hinterlands than would probably be wise

Gotten tattoos: On top of his vallaslin, he gets a lot of tattoos between Trespasser and Veilguard, including but not limited to a vine of ivy up his left arm, a mullein plant on his right shoulder, a willow tree and ornamental leaves on his chest, a skull on his right thigh, a snake on his left thigh going from his knee to his dick (Dorian had feelings about this one when he first saw it), and an assortment of decorative patterns and flowers

Gotten piercings: He has a few ear piercings and nipple piercings, has debated getting more but he hasn't done it

Gotten scarred: Well, he lost his arm to the Anchor, if that counts. He also gets a scar across his nose doing Jenny work at some point

Had a broken heart: Dorian leaving for Tevinter and telling everyone else before him came damn close

ARE THEY:

A cuddler: Yes, but only with Dorian and Sera

Scared easily: Yes, he's been scared his entire life

Jealous easily: Yes, and he desperately wishes he wasn't

Trustworthy: Yes, unless you're Solas

FAMILY:

Parents/siblings: He was the 5th of 9 siblings (8 sisters), they're all dead now though, except for one, Calluna

Children: None

Pets: None

Name: Vervain Mercar

Alias: V (everyone calls him this except Emmrich and Varric), Rook (Varric tried so hard to make it stick but it didn't)

Gender: Faggot (he/him)

Sexual Orientation: Gay

Age: Roughly 34 at the start of Veilguard based on his best estimation, but he doesn't know for sure. He could be anywhere between 33 and 36

Spoken Language: Trade, Tevene, and he studies Ancient Tevene. Not a single word of Elven

Occupation: Thief, murderer, various other kinds of criminal, accidental babysitter, renegade mage, Shadow Dragon

FAVORITE:

Color: Black

Entertainment: Sex, drugs, alcohol, whatever the Minrathous equivalent of warehouse raves would be

Pastime: Sex, drugs, and alcohol as well. Also reading Tevene poetry, wanton destruction of property, and annoying Tarquin

Food: Anything spicy, the more painful the better

Drink: Whatever hits the best middle ground between strongest and cheapest

HAVE THEY:

Passed university: No, he taught himself magic

Had sex: So, so much

Had sex in public: Probably more than in private

Gotten tattoos: He has a decorative tattoo under his left eye that he got just for aesthetic reasons and a tattoo of a serpent and dragon on his left arm because he's Tevinter and it looks sick as fuck

Gotten piercings: So many. Four on his left ear (one got torn out, so only three now), five on his right ear, right eyebrow, nose, angel bites, two lip piercings, nipples, belly button, dick. He's definitely not stopping there

Gotten scarred: He has a massive lightning scar up the right side of his body and face from a fight against two Venatori magisters that went south, a nick in his left ear from where his old piercing ripped it, and miscellaneous scars all over from the fights he can't stop getting into

Had a broken heart: He told a man he loved him at 19 and then never again until Emmrich, so

ARE THEY:

A cuddler: Yes, he shows his affection physically more than anything else

Scared easily: No. It takes a lot to scare him, and it's only happened once in recent memory, when Neve was taken by Elgar'nan

Jealous easily: Extremely, even though Emmrich promises him that there's nothing to worry about

Trustworthy: He claims that he's not, but he's steadfastly loyal if he cares about you

FAMILY:

Parents/siblings: His parents abandoned him as a child and he doesn't remember them. No biological siblings, but for all intents and purposes Neve is his sister

Children: He definitely should never have any of his own, but he always looks out for the younger street kids in Dock Town. Also Manfred I guess but Vervain is kind of an absent father to him

Pets: The most fucked-up black cat you've ever seen that he found in a Dock Town alley. Her name is Baklava, she doesn't like him, and he would kill for her

idk who to tag i'm scared . @tytoalbatross and anyone else who wants to do this and hasn't yet

#THIS TOOK A WHILE please love them. i love them #laevis tabris #arum hawke #mullein lavellan #vervain mercar #eliasposts

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haeanotnon · 5 months ago

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for the warden asks!

21. Did the Warden romance anyone from their group? If so, what attracted them to their partner?

23. If Dog is in the party, what did the Warden name him and why?

27. How does the Warden feel about what is happening in the Alienage? How do they feel about how elves are treated?

Hi! Thank you very much for these questions!

21. Yes, he had (and has) an romance with Zevran.

It's hard for Nemeria to pinpoint anything specific (and he had no experience of being in love, and simply missed all the signs until it was too late (not that there was anything to regret)), it was just Zevran talking to him honestly, making funny jokes, showing some kind of care, being impressive and himself, and it all built up over time until it just hit him in the head :)

23. The Dog's name is Jowan. There's no particular meaning to it, and Nemeria doesn't think they're even remotely similar, but he was still worried and bored, so it just happened 🥹

27. Nemeria is an elf, but doesn't know for sure where he's from, having been raised in a circle of mages since infancy, but suspects it was an alienage, since the Dalish wouldn't give their child to the church. As for being an elf... In the circle, he was always a mage first (thanks, church?), and then became a grey warden first, and came to terms with being an elf and all that horrible treatment quite late in life.

Alienage in particular, as well as the whole concept of something being superior to someone by birthright, angers and frustrates him, but he doesn't quite know how to fight a system that's been built up for centuries, so he just does what he can when he can. Like equal opportunities for hiring in Amaranthine, sticking up for elves if he's around, providing medical care (he's a mage-spirit healer, by circle definition). For entertainment, taking advantage of his official position, he forced people who looked down on him and confused him with someone else to serve him a couple of times.

I hope this entertained you :)

P.S. lol I drew him a Kirk TOS shirt

#dragon age #dragon age origins #art #warden surana #hero of ferelden #dao #zevran arainai #grey warden #Oc: Nemeria Surana #alistair theirin

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lottiesnotebook · 3 months ago

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happy thedas weekend!!! Since you're feeling AUs, what about an arranged marriage AU for the characters of your choice? 👀

Happy Thedas Weekend! Technically I should probably have skipped this prompt, given that I already have an arranged marriage AU for the two characters I think most likely to end up in one, and that's the basis for my Big Bang fic, but then I remembered that the Tabris Origin literally kicks off with an arranged marriage, so have a sneak peek at what that might have been like if she'd been sent a slightly less conventional husband...

Zevran Arainai/Luna Tabris, Arranged Marriage AU, secret identities, implied sexual violence (canon typical), violence, gore

@guacamolleee | @thedasweekend

red sky morning, lovers’ warning

When Zevran Arainai meets the woman who will shortly become his wife, she is as pretty as the chalk-roses wound into her hair, and he is relieved, less for his own sake — he’s bedded targets and marks and fellow Crows with far less pleasing aspects — than for her’s. In a few weeks, or months at the most, she will be his widow, and he knows well that the world has far more to offer a pretty young widow than a plain one.

Not his widow, he reminds himself, as she presses a lingering kiss to his cheek and greets him:

“You must be Nelaros.”

“And you are my sweet Seluna, I hope, or my poor bride will have far too much competition for my heart when my hand is already promised.”

She grins at that, bright and unaffected, a girl already half in love with a man who's nothing more than a cover story. It will be no hardship to play the role she offers: the young husband dazzled by her beauty as much as her war hero mother or apprentice jeweller father. Her cheeks flush as he- no, Nelaros brushes his lips against her knuckles, and in the back of his own mind, Zevran thinks Oh, this will be too easy.

His mark is closely guarded as the son of Denerim's arl, but his blushing bride works in the villa's kitchens, and is well-liked enough among her fellow servants that few should begrudge her some stolen kisses with her new husband, and he’s faced far harsher contracts than stealing kisses from a pretty girl. Their marriage will not be a long one, but for her, at least, it will be briefly, perfectly happy, and for him, it will be a pleasing, passing fancy, to play at a domestic bliss he has never known.

It may pall eventually, but he will be gone long before the dullness and misery of alienage life can pall his betrothed’s beauty. And if the tedium does not wear as he suspects it might… Well, the Crows have not had a Denerim agent since the Rebellion, and he has wanted to spread his wings a little further for a while. Ferelden’s capital has nothing to Antiva City, but it could be his, if this goes well.

He does not account for the reasons so many people want the Arl’s son dead, or for his uninvited arrival at ‘little Luna’s’ wedding. Seluna’s spine stiffens as he speaks to her, her hands smoothing her dress in an oddly familiar gesture, even as she smiles and curtseys demurely to the man who leers and seizes her waist even as she attempts to dance out of his reach.

“You honour me with your presence, my lord,” she murmurs, eyes on the cobblestones, the flirtatious glitter faded from her eyes. She makes herself suddenly small, timid, mouselike, but Zevran can see the rigid set of her jaw, the tension in her spine, and a part of him wants to play the hero or the jealous betrothed, rescue his damsel in distress, and tuck her safe behind him, but that is not how alienage men behave. Even his fellow groom, his future cousin-in-law, averts his gaze from the scene, hands curled into fists.

Luna’s other cousin, the little redhead, is less fearful, or more foolhardy: she clubs the boy over the head with a bottle one of his friends discarded, and his friends drag him off when Seluna bustles forward to de-escalate, and then pulls her cousin away for an affectionate scolding. A more conventional young woman than her cousin, perhaps, is his future wife. That is all to the good for his cover, though it makes her a little dull in comparison. He feels a brief moment of admiration for fierce little Shianni, which sours too quickly to frustration when her vengeance comes close to ruining his cover, when the Arl’s son returns with his guards and carries away both the brides and their attendants.

“We have to go after them!” Soris insists, as the crowd of guests dissipates, as the alienage turns its eyes away from another mundane tragedy rending a celebration to tattered rags. Zevran Arainai might avert his gaze too — such horrors are as old as alienage walls and vhenandals — but Nelaros, Nelaros is as young and brash as Soris, and far more besotted with his pretty bride. And the human man, the Warden, is watching him with familiar, silent calculation.

His memory supplies the words the man does not: He’ll do. Young enough to train, too old to cry for his mother, and the quiet clink of sovereigns passing from hand to hand. He does not know what such a man might want from him, only that he cannot afford to lose his hard-won cover now. If Nelaros would go after Seluna, Zevran has little choice, but he steers Soris along a swifter, more silent route: via the kitchens where other elves work, where Luna likely has friends. Where the guards are served their drinks, and the poison for such vermin is kept. A messier trail than he’d planned, but it’s nothing to the swathe Luna has cut through the villa when he finds her.

Her white gown is stained scarlet with gore when he finds her, and she pulls her blade free from the throat of a noble boy with an expression of disgust that only becomes shame when she feels his eyes upon her. Her cheeks darken beneath the blood splatter, her eyes have the glassy, absent look of a fledgeling trapped in a waking nightmare, and she wears blood far better than she did flowers, some ancient goddess of the hunt and the kill.

It is Nelaros who opens his arms to her, but when she turns her face up to his, wide eyes blue as bruises, blue as nomeolvides blossom, it is Zevran who kisses the blood from her mouth. It is much later that he remembers he never intended to kiss her as himself.

#dragon age #dragon age origins #zevran arainai #zevran x tabris #zevran x warden #luna tabris #fic

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himluv · 3 months ago

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Listening

It's Wednesday, which means it's time for a new chapter of Say My Name (Say it Twice)! In which, Embria and Lucanis consider the particular wounds only family can make.

Read it below, or on AO3!

Lucanis followed Embria in silence. The forest was dark, the wind rustling the leaves around them, and the stars bright overhead. Her hand, warm in his, was his only anchor. But he could feel the tension in her grip, the vibration she could barely contain. It wasn’t until she led him up an outcropping of stone that jutted out above the trees, until she released his hand and laughed that he understood.

She was euphoric. Giddy with relief at finally having stood up to her mother. She gave him an incredulous smile and shook her head. “I’ve waited a long time to do that,” she said. She released her hair from its bun, ran her fingers through the strands and scratched at her scalp. She sighed, shook out her limbs and rolled her neck, then she sat down on the stone.

Lucanis joined her, sitting close enough that their shoulders and knees touched. He watched her with wary eyes, uncertain how long this euphoria would last before her exhaustion and hurt feelings caught up to her.

Embria looked up at the stars and shook her head. “She used to blame Felassan,” she said. “When I was little, she blamed all our problems on the fact that he left. That she had to do everything on her own.” She frowned at the sky. “But then I got older. I helped every way I could. And nothing got better. Some things got worse.”

He reached for her, put a tentative hand on her leg. Just enough to reassure her that he was there. He was listening.

“Once I was old enough to be on my own more,” she said. “Mamae started staying out late. Started bringing strangers home. Started drinking.” Embria put her hand on his, looked at their hands as he twined his fingers through hers. “I know she must have been lonely,” she said. “It had been just us for so long. But then she lost her job, and she couldn’t find another one. And the lovers got mad when she asked them for money. Worse when she tried to send them away.”

She took a deep breath, let it out slow. “And then I came into my magic and we had to worry about the templars.” Her voice was thin and frail as she continued. “We moved a lot. Sometimes… we didn’t have a place. We were poor, even by alienage standards.”

A bitter chuckle escaped her throat. “By the Void, I was such a stereotype.” She grimaced at him. “A little knife-eared urchin, begging and stealing in the streets while she waited for her Dalish Papae to come save her.” She pulled her knees up and wrapped her arms around them. “Except he wasn’t Dalish and he was never coming back.”

“So, you went after him,” he said.

She nodded. “As soon as I was old enough and had hid away enough coin.” She rested her head on her knees, looking at him. “I loved it with the Dalish,” she said. “I really did. They helped me with my magic, taught me about the halla and the forest. Gave me a family and called me kin.”

“What changed?” He didn’t want to pry, but tonight it seemed like she wanted to tell him everything almost as much as he wanted to know it.

She shrugged. “I don’t know,” she said. “I thought I was happy. I thought Erewhen and Mamae were happy. But then I heard about the Veil Jumpers, about their work in Arlathan and how they needed people to help…” she sighed. “It sounded so important, not just for my clan, but for all of the People. I had to join.”

He smiled. “You had to help.”

She snorted at that. “I think I ended up hurting a lot more people than I helped.” She looked up at the stars again. “Mamae wasn’t wrong. I’m good at running. I learned her lessons well.”

From where he sat, Lucanis didn’t think Embria was very good at running away. She’d stayed with the clan for over a decade. Had brought her mother with her, once she could convince her to join them. She’d been with Erewhen for eight years.

No, the Embria he knew didn’t run from anything. She was always running to something – to help, to trouble, to her friends, to him.

But, she wasn’t ready to hear that just yet. So, he kept his peace and listened.

“Erewhen didn’t last a week with the Veil Jumpers,” she said. “And when I wrote home to explain my side of things, Mamae wrote back demanding I return.” She shrugged. “So, I stopped writing.”

“That’s why they thought you’d died?”

“I guess?” She shook her head. “Maybe it was easier for Mamae that way. To accept that her daughter was dead rather than simply not speaking to her.”

Lucanis scowled. “I… don’t think I like your mother very much,” he said.

She laughed. “Neither do I.”

He gave her a tiny, sad smile. “But, you still love her.” He understood her situation all too well.

Embria sighed. “I do,” she said. “But that doesn’t mean I have to let her keep hurting me.”

Her words hit him hard. Stunned him in their assuredness as somewhere deep inside, a door cracked open in Lucanis's mind.

“She hurt. Rook!” Spite said. “We. Protect. Our Rook. Do not. LIKE herrrrrr.”

She snorted at that. “You don’t need to protect me from her,” she said. “This is a fight I’m more than capable of handling on my own.”

Lucanis’s head shook, his vision still gleaming purple in the dark. “No. Not our deal. Lucanis and Spite. Protect Rook! TOGETHER!” He felt the demon’s grin on his face, too wide and too sharp.

Spite retreated, granting control back to Lucanis, who shook his head and worked his jaw loose from the demon’s manic grin.

Rook raised an eyebrow at him. “A new deal, huh?”

He shrugged. “We needed something,” he said. “And I know we’ll always agree on this.”

She smiled at him, her hand squeezing his. “You can’t protect me from everything, Lucanis” she said. Her voice was frail, thin and so small in the cool night air.

Lucanis’s gut clenched, remembering her words in the dining hall the other night. How she hadn’t thought about going home. How she wasn’t thinking about what came after they killed the gods. Was she…?

Did she not expect to survive?

“Embria,” he whispered. He brought her hand up to his lips, pressed a kiss to her knuckles. “I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe.”

“WE. Protect. Our. Rook!”

For a moment, she merely watched him, her eyes darting across his face. She looked like she wanted to argue, to point out that, given what they were facing, it was impossible to guarantee anyone’s safety. He knew that – of course, he knew that – but that wouldn’t keep him from trying.

She must have found his stubbornness in his gaze, because her own mulish expression melted into something tender, instead.

“Fine,” she said with a huff. Then she lay back to peer up at the sky.

Lucanis followed her, staring up at the stars, their hands still laced together. For awhile she pointed out constellations, told him the Dalish legends behind each one, and explained how those stories were based in the true history of the Evanuris.

It was fascinating, how much she knew and could speak on from memory. But it was also sad, all those legends and morality tales that had actually come from the atrocities of their gods. And while her voice carried the appropriate, somber tones, Lucanis could tell she truly enjoyed telling him about them.

Lucky for her, he would listen to her speak about anything. Her voice soothed him like little else. It was the voice that had come for him in the Ossuary, not once, but twice. The voice that whispered to him in the dark, full of sleep and emotion. The voice that cried out his name when she was burning with need and so, so vulnerable. Her voice, no matter when he heard it, told him how much she trusted him. How much she cared.

To Lucanis, it was the best sound in the whole of Thedas.

The next morning was a busy one. Strife and the others had tracked their group from the crater, so Rook, Bellara, and Davrin spent the thin daylight hours figuring out which of the Dalish belonged to what clan and how best to get them home. But, it was clear to everyone that Embria was exhausted. Her skin was pale, the circles under her eyes dark and puffy. She kept rubbing at her eyes, as if trying to clear them of grit, and when she did look anyone directly in the eye, her gaze was glassy and red.

Finally, Strife had insisted that she leave. He and the others could sort out the rest. Embria had wanted to argue, but Lucanis’s hand in hers – and no doubt his own weary expression – convinced her that Strife was right.

Once they’d returned to the Lighthouse, Embria was as good as her word. The moment she and Lucanis had a moment alone together she’d broken down and sobbed. He’d laid with her on his cot, held her close and brushed her hair back from her face. He’d pressed gentle kisses to her neck and shoulder, tangled his leg through hers and just let her cry.

She cried for a lot of things, he knew. The horrors of what the Venatori had done in Arlathan. The stress and adrenaline of racing through the ruins, not knowing the fate of her people. The pain of having two ancient gods fighting in her mind. The sheer exhaustion of all of that, plus the turmoil of her conversation with her mother.

But, he also knew she cried tears of relief. They had saved the Dalish. They had survived the mission and rendered a blow to Elgar’nan and the Venatori in the process. They had saved her family, reunited them with their clan. And she had finally severed what little tether remained between her and her mother.

He’d held her as she cried. And then they’d slept. No one bothered them for days, not even Spite. The demon had been just as exhausted as they were. They only woke long enough to eat – Lucanis made sure she ate even though she expressed little interest in it – and then they’d slept some more.

On the third day, Rook woke and her eyes were clear.

“Good morning,” he said. He laid propped on one elbow to peer down at her.

She hummed as she stretched. “Good morning,” she said.

He pressed his palm to her belly, relishing the warmth of her skin under his hand. Her hand came to his cheek, and she pulled him down into an easy kiss.

“Thank you,” she murmured.

He frowned. “For what?”

“For letting me fall to pieces,” she said. “For helping me put myself back together.”

He shook his head. He hadn’t done much, but he wouldn’t argue with her gratitude. He kissed her again, and then she sighed.

“I should probably check in with the team.” She winced. “Get caught up on everything.”

He nodded. “I should visit the Diamond,” he said. “I haven’t heard from the Crows in for far too long.”

Embria gave him a crooked smile. “Sounds like we both have a busy day ahead of us.”

“It does,” he said. “And we do.” He kissed her again, slower. “I’ll see you at dinner,” he said. And then he climbed off the cot to get dressed. He felt her eyes on him as he pulled on his pants, so he turned to face her as he buttoned up his shirt.

Her eyes lingered on his chest as he slowly concealed it from view. When her eyes finally reached his face, he smirked. “All right, Rook?”

She snorted, then sat up, letting the blanket fall to pool around her waist. He couldn’t keep his eyes from flicking to her bare chest, but he schooled his expression and turned to grab his waistcoat. He pulled it on and then suddenly she was there, standing before him in just her shorts.

“Let me,” she said, gently batting his hands away so she could button up his waistcoat. Then she took his lapel chains off the side table and pinned them in place. “There,” she said. She kissed his cheek and gave him a bright, mischievous smile. “I’ll see you at dinner.”

He eyed her appreciatively, then sighed and shook his head. “Mierda,” he said as he turned to leave the room. Her laughter followed him out the door and brought a smile to his face.

Lucanis stepped out of the eluvian and into the familiar gloom of the Cantori Diamond. Even among the rafters, the casino exuded warmth and luxury. But, Lucanis had spent very little time among the Crows since his promotion to First Talon. He’d never been particularly close with any of Teia’s people – or with any people – but, he was still dreading the change in how Crows like Fletcher or Chance might treat him.

He’d gotten enough wary looks when he’d merely been the Demon of Vyrantium. Now he was the Demon and First Talon. And that was bound to have an effect on any Crow he interacted with. But, if his promotion bothered Chance, the man didn’t show it.

“What?” The man called as Lucanis walked by. “No Rook, tonight?”

He shook his head. “Not tonight,” he said. “You’re stuck with me.”

Chance looked Lucanis up and down, then crossed his arms and lifted a brow. “I’ve had worse pastimes,” he purred.

Lucanis snorted. Everyone knew Chance Candide was an incorrigible flirt. If the man truly did have an interest, it was far too little, too late.

“You’re almost as bad as my cousin,” he said.

Chance gripped at his chest dramatically. “You wound me, monsieur,” he said, but his smirk assured Lucanis no real harm was done.

“Goodnight, Candide.”

“Goodnight, First Talon.”

Lucanis stifled his groan and hurried to find Teia and Viago. Except, when he reached their usual alcove, there was no Teia. Just Viago, hands on his hips, glaring daggers at Illario. His cousin stood across the table from him, a bored look on his face. Both turned to look at Lucanis as he approached.

Viago eyed him warily. “This is a surprise.”

Illario smirked at Lucanis, but it did not reach his eyes. The expression was more habit than anything. “And where is the beloved Rook?”

Lucanis snarled, but before he could tear into his cousin, Viago beat him to it.

The Fifth Talon whirled on Illario so quickly, his cousin flinched. “Did I say you could speak?”

Illario clenched his jaw and glared at Viago.

“The rules,” Viago said. “Recite them.”

Illario sighed and rolled his eyes. “Do not speak unless spoken to. Do not leave your sight until dismissed. Touch nothing that is not given to me.”

Viago raised a brow. “And?”

Illario’s glare intensified, the words coming thick and unpleasant from deep in his throat. “I will treat my betters with respect.”

“And who are you betters?”

Illario sighed again. “Everyone.”

“Good,” Viago said, then turned his back on Illario to look at Lucanis. “You’re alone,” he said.

“I am.”

He raised that same, incredulous brow at Lucanis. “Why?”

Lucanis scowled at Viago, and caught Illario’s smirk from behind the Fifth Talon. He crossed his arms. “I thought I would check in.”

Viago hummed his disbelief.

Lucanis ignored him. “Where’s Teia?”

“At Villa Dellamorte, assisting Caterina with the repairs.” He glared at Illario again.

His cousin had the decency to look pained at the mention of the damage the Venatori had caused in the villa.

Viago sighed. “A status report, then?”

Lucanis smirked. “If you wouldn’t mind.” He followed the man to stand around the large table overflowing with coded reports and intricately drawn maps.

“The Venatori started fleeing the city a few days ago,” Viago said. “Rook and her team wouldn’t have anything to do with that, would they?”

Lucanis put his hands on his hips, swaying foot-to-foot. “We might.”

Viago tilted his chin at Illario. “This one’s been helping to clear out the any lingering cultists.”

“Is that so?” Lucanis didn’t look at Illario, didn’t want to hear his smarmy voice.

Worried, Spite hissed. Doesn’t want. To show. The demon grinned at Lucanis. Thinks you HATE him.

Did he hate his cousin? He was certainly angry with him. Angrier than he’d ever been, and they’d fought like dogs as teens. But… hate? If he’d hated Illario, he wouldn’t be standing on the other side of the table. No. If he hated his cousin, he’d be floating in a canal by now.

Lucanis sighed. “Viago?”

“Yes?”

“Give us a moment.” He didn’t look up from the report he was skimming.

Viago went still as Illario’s head snapped up. “Are you certain?”

Lucanis glared up at Viago, who raised a hand to ward off the First Talon’s ire.

“All right,” he said. “But you’ll be responsible to Teia for anything you break.” He glared at Lucanis and Illario, then swept away from the table.

Lucanis waited, half-expecting his cousin to launch into some prepared speech, a plea for forgiveness. To appeal to their relationship as more than just cousins. After all, they’d been more like brothers, once.

But, Illario said nothing.

“I am going to speak,” Lucanis said to the table. “And you are going to listen. Yes?”

A pause, and then, “yes.”

Lucanis nodded once in approval. “I’m not going to list your offenses against me,” he said. “We both know them well enough.” He took a deep breath, let it out slowly. “Some day, I may even forgive you for all of them.”

“Cousin–”

“LISTEN!” Spite’s voice twined with Lucanis’s, his vision flickering purple and back as he slammed his palm on the table.

Across from him, Illario froze. They’d had plenty of shouting matches before, had even come to blows when they were younger and their tempers had flared too hot. But those fights had always been over foolish things. This was different. Important.

“There is something I will not forgive you for, however.” Finally, he looked up at his cousin. “You hurt Rook.”

Illario didn’t look away from Lucanis. Didn’t flinch, or back down, or try to explain. He faced his cousin’s accusation and accepted it as the fact it was.

“You hurt Rook to get to me.” Lucanis looked down at the table once more. “And it worked.”

His cousin inhaled sharply at Lucanis’s admission, but otherwise remained motionless.

“If you ever try to hurt her again,” he continued. His fingers curled against the table, crinkling the papers beneath his hands. “If you so much as look at her with anything less than respect, I will kill you.”

Those final words were soft. A promise that required no force to drive it home. It was simply the fact of the matter. If Illario caused Rook pain, Lucanis would end his life without hesitation.

“Am I understood?”

A long moment passed in silence, and Lucanis felt that cold, nervous cinch in his chest.

“Yes, cousin,” Illario said, and for once his voice was free from guile. There was no cloy, no façade, just Illario Dellamorte speaking to his cousin. His cousin who was finally – painfully – in love.

Lucanis could not recall the last time he’d heard his cousin’s voice so clearly. It made his chest ache, to know that there would always be so much more than a table between them now. That, no matter how much forgiveness they found, they would never again be as they were. They were brothers no more.

He pushed back from the table, but still avoided Illario’s gaze. “Tell Viago I want word as soon as he has leads on our traitor to the Antaam.”

“May I speak?” There was that drawl once again. The disdain. The unaffected air that Lucanis knew Illario only wore as a shield. But, still, it rankled.

“No,” he said. Then Lucanis turned his back on his cousin and left the Diamond without another word.

#lucanis dellamorte #spite dellamorte #embria aldwir #rookanis #lucanis x rook #rook x lucanis #illario dellamorte #viago de riva #dellamorte the lesser #dragon age #fanfic #fic: say my name (say it twice)#himluv's writing tag

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shivunin · 3 months ago

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Dragon Age Fic Recs, pt. 2

It's that time again! Here are some fics I have really enjoyed recently. As before, if one of these is yours and you'd like your tumblr linked, just let me know! (some summaries edited for overall length)

**As always, be sure to check the tags**

Origins:

sometimes it feels like teeth by inquisimer: (T | 1,629 Words | Cyrion Tabris & Warden Tabris, bg Zevran/Tabris) Tabris frees the alienage elves from the slavers, but not all of them can be saved. I adore fics about Tabris’s relationship with their dad, but this one has such lovely “can’t go home again” themes and handles the conflict between pre-Origins Tabris and who she is by the time she makes it back to the alienage. I reread often!

I hear the river say your name (I watch the words fly by) by RosellaWrites (T | 2,282 Words | F!Amell/Morrigan) Morrigan teaches Eilonwy Amell how to shapeshift. Aghhh okay, I could write a little novel about how much I love this fic, but if you are looking for romantic tension and some (light) shapeshifting body horror you cannot go wrong with this one. It is so poetic and beautifully written!

Doggone by leggywillow: (T | 3,042 Words | past Alistair/Surana, Alistair & Anora) Alistair and the Warden are no longer together, but they still exchange letters--through Dog. Alistair struggles to find happiness in his life as king, but he isn't entirely alone. This fic is really bittersweet in a really lovely way. The awkwardness and attempts at connection between Alistair and Anora are really heartfelt and the letters between Alistair and Surana are painful in the best sense of the word.

Dragon Age 2:

The Hermit, Reversed by AmmoniteFlesh: (T | 3,705 Words | F!Hawke/Isabela/Merrill) Merrill fends off possession, severe blood loss, and the persistent ache of loneliness. Hawke and Isabela help - more than they really know. This fic feels so perfectly Merrill and the byplay between her and the demon is devastating in the best possible way. Just precisely the sort of hurt/comfort I always want.

Iron Bound by loquaciousquark (G | 96,963 Words | F!Hawke/Fenris) When Kirkwall’s ruling family agrees to a marriage with Starkhaven, it seems like the fairest arrangement for all involved. When Hawke’s journey to her new home goes amiss, she must work with the Captain of the Guard, Fenris, for their very survival. Can’t say enough good things about this fic. I cried, I hopped up and down, I hid in the bathroom at work to read large swathes of it at a time. If you like fealty, love triangles that are actually triangles (everyone has a strong and meaningful relationship with each other) and just the most beautifully written scenery, this one is for you. I wish it was bound on my bookshelf right now.

Inquisition:

Dwarves Are Not Meant for Dreaming by KiaStirling: (T | 2,992 Words) Dwarves are not meant for dreaming, but maybe Dascha wasn't meant for dwarfing. This fic is a really thoughtful reflection on what would change for a dwarf inquisitor upon receiving the Anchor in Inquisition. If you are looking for a quick read with lovely prose that makes you think, you cannot go wrong with this one!

In Flame Forged Anew by Plisuu (M | 30,410 | Male Trevelyan/Cullen | In Progress) The Herald was delivered from the breach by the hands of Andraste herself—the destined savior of the faithful in shining templar armor, sent to them in their time of need. The truth of Connor Trevelyan was far more complicated, and the bright brand of the Chantry sunburst upon his forehead offered no answers. This is a Tranquil Inquisitor AU and I was locked in from chapter 1. Trevelyan is compelling in and of himself, but also the writing is so vivid that I felt like I could remember cutscenes that never happened while I was reading it. An AU that is really grounded in canon, which is my absolute favorite kind.

Veilguard: Under the cut (description may contain spoilers)

Meet Me At the Bar by delawana: (T | 1,380 Words | Hawke & Varric) It’s a crowded night at the Hanged Man, and all of Hawke’s favorite people are there. I cried actual tears reading this. Really cathartic send-off, just really well-written Hawke and Varric.

At the End of Her World by flowersforthemachines (M | 11,330 Words | Past Lucanis/Rook) After almost a decade of a tumultuous relationship, Rook and Lucanis made the choice to cut ties for good. Yet when Rook's time comes, Lucanis visits the Weisshaupt fortress to make good on a contract taken ten years ago — to see Rook through the end of her Calling. I cried multiple times reading this. Absolutely agonizing, but very cathartic. Lucanis and Rook are no longer together, but they still care about each other so much and there is a huge emotional undercurrent to the events of the fic. Just. If you need a good cry, highly recommend.

#fic recs #dragon age fic recs #da fanfic #fic rec list #dragon age fic rec list #i am part of the way through a couple long fics that'll go on the next one #bc i want to finish them first c:#long post

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