#it's him calling blackwall an ass when he's all defensive. it's him having little to no control over a group of children

[tortoise-teapot]

lost elf theme dark solas theme... there needs to be a third solas song there is a piece missing. where is his whimsy. anyway i've filled in the gap with this

[bearlytolerant]

Fandom: Dragon Age

Pairing: Solavellan

Rating: E (nsft)

Word Count: 1306

AO3

Let’s Just Be

She was sunset reflected on the ocean. A million freckles dotting blushed warm skin. Eyes closed in peaceful paradise as her arms draped over the edges of the tub. She exuded serenity and peace.

He hated to disturb her.

Setting his satchel down, he went to her desk where he knew she kept a sketch journal and charcoal. Situating himself on the bed, he started his sketch, replicating this moment on paper. She had to see how he saw her. Within moments her form was outlined and he filled in the details, losing himself in the process of creating.

His eyes drifted to his muse, desperate for a quick but thorough study. She dropped an arm back into the tub but her eyes remained closed—surely she was somewhere far from here—but then he watched as her lips pursed, let out a puff of breath. And a gentle moan. It dawned on him that he was now a spectator of more than a moment of meditation.

Solas dropped the charcoal and it went rolling across the floor, stopping at the edge of the elegant rug recently given as a gift from the Empress.

Her eyes flew open.

“Damn it Solas! Next time you sneak in here, please say something.”

He went chasing after the charcoal on his hands and knees. “My apologies. In my defense, the door was ajar and I was not sneaking.”

“What were you doing?” Sarya asked.

He had the charcoal now and he was up on his feet, walking back to the bed.

“Sketching you. I hope you don’t mind.”

“No. Not at all. I was just startled.” She smirked, her mood shifting, becoming playful. “Should I pose? Did you capture my best side?”

He chuckled. “No posing. The moment is lost now and I always capture your best side in that every side of you, every inch of you, is best.” He abandoned the sketch for a kiss from her lips. “You know I think you are beautiful. But if you don’t mind me being honest, I’m more interested in that moan I heard.”

“Everything has been so stressful. I deserve a little release,” she said.

“I can help with that,” he said, reaching into the steaming water. He skimmed his fingers down her leg and back up her inner thigh. “Would you like to talk about it?” His hand stilled.

“Talk? Maybe later, I’ve had enough talking. There is so much endless talking in that war room. Besides, I am also perfectly capable of helping myself.”

“Is that what you want?”

“From what I heard, it seems to also be what you want.”

“Either or both ideas appeal to me,” Solas said. “But I am not here for me.”

Sarya tilted her head and smirked at him.

“However, perhaps it would be nice for you to be relieved of any sort of duty altogether? Allow me to take care of you.”

“Oh I would hardly call this duty.” She laughed. “You could use a little relaxation though too. Join me?”

He pressed a plush kiss to her neck and she tilted away, exposing more skin and he kissed a path up to her jawline. Found her lips. Melted into her bliss. They made out for a while, even as Solas’ knees began to numb a little, until he needed to shift. He broke away leaving them both breathless. He quickly stripped and joined her, finding space for his legs around her body.

She held back a chuckle as they situated themselves, splashing water over the sides of the tub. “I guess these weren’t made with two people in mind…”

“Perhaps you should request an upgrade?” Solas picked up one of her feet and began massaging.

“Oh sure, I bet that’s easy to get.” Sarya rolled her eyes. But then hummed a pleasurable sigh.

“Maybe Blackwall would be willing to custom build one. Anything for his Herald.”

“Stop.”

He put her foot back in the water.

“No. Not that. Please keep doing that.”

He allowed himself a small laugh as he found her other foot. It was easy to be himself with her.

“I’m surprised you can’t just use some spell to make this tub bigger.”

“That is not how magic works.”

“Isn’t it though? Can’t you do anything your mind thinks of? I’d make a big tub if I had magic. I’d use magic to just make everything big. Giant cupcakes. Giant horses. Giant nugs… but not spiders. I’d use my magic to shrink them all to tiny invisible things.”

“If they were invisible, how would you know if one was on you?”

She shuddered. “Good point. I rescind my statement. I would just use magic to take spiders out of existence.”

“Ah but spiders are good for catching other foul insects. They are helpful creatures and they rarely harm.”

“Fine. I’ll keep them for you. But they’re creepy so I’m still using magic to make them tiny.”

“What else would you use magic for?” he asks as he kisses her ankle.

“I’d use it to do everything for me. No need to get dressed. Just poof and clothes are on. I could make any dress I wanted and any food. I could make myself taller or shorter. I don’t know, anything and everything I could think of. Why don’t you use your magic for everything?”

“Much the same as you do not fight or run or loose arrows all day long for lack of stamina. All that spell casting would drain my mana. If I use magic for everything, how would I protect you when it matters most?”

“I protect myself,” she said.

“Yes but in the rare case, like with that terror demon near Dennett’s farm, I could be useful to you.”

Sarya sighed. “Fine. I concede.”

“Perhaps I should record this day in the books.”

“And why is that?”

“I won an argument.”

“Oh you could hardly call this arguing.” She splashed him with water.

Solas smirked then lit the water up with a rune that created a wave. It rolled up and soaked Sarya’s entire face.

“Oh no–that is it!” She splashed him again and again, water continuously pouring over the edges.

He chuckled and reached forward, stilling her hands and pulling her into himself. He kissed her cheek. She cupped his face, kissing him long and deep and hard as she settled into his lap. Her hands wandered and he choked back a gasp as she rubbed herself on the tip of his cock. He could not withhold the groan though as she sunk on top of him, head rolling back with a sigh as her hand clung to his shoulder.

She was so beautiful like this. Open and pouring herself out. Letting him in. Reveling in the moment without a promise of tomorrow. Or perhaps a promise that tomorrow will be there and they’ll have each other to make it better.

He bent forward to nip at her neck and she laughed then moaned when he squeezed her ass.

“Again,” she demanded.

He obliged, more than happy to. When he did, her palm pressed flat against his chest and she leaned back, lengthening her body and exposing the scars on her chest and stomach. He kissed them. Each and every one while she rode him to her climax. She crumbled into him, chest heaving and heavy.

“Ar lath, ma vhenan,” he whispered as he pressed his lips to her forehead.

“I know,” she breathed. “I love you too.”

Then he held her close to his chest, combing his fingers through her wet hair. Warmed the water and let time slip away with her in his arms. And it was in those pockets of time that he felt peace. That maybe, just maybe, this world he had made was real and it was the better one.

[squeaksquawks]

tell a lil bit more about your Hawke and your Inquisitor 👀👀

HELL YEAH LET'S GOOOO

I kind of uhhhhhhhh went WILD and wrote POSSIBLY TOO MUCH so!

Athena Hawke entered Kirkwall as a cheeky but kind like 20 year old and left Kirkwall as a shell of a person HAHA. She's a warrior, so she had Bethany by her side and they were INCREDIBLY close, so taking her to the Deep Roads and making her a warden (a choice she made in a panic without thinking of what Bethany wanted) genuinely haunted/still haunts her.

She has the...worst case of RBF and people avoid her on the street when in reality mentally she's like "What should I get for dinner. Chicken? No. I had that for lunch." and Varric absolutely ribs on her for it and calls her some variation of grouch/grouchy which she HATES.

She romanced Fenris and it was very much a love at first sight of seeing a mans heart torn out of his chest while Bethany was in the background like "Athena. No. NO." She tried really hard to be Cool About It but it just lead to her like, glaring at Fenris a lot and him being like "...?" because, again, horrible case of RBF. When he left in Act 2 she was like "of course, take all the time you need." and then burst into The Hanged Man 20 minutes later like "VARRRICCCCCCCCCCC" in like, TEARS LMAOOOO. Eventually she and Fenris settle down and she finds a lot of comfort in how blunt he is, and I like to think he finds comfort in the fact that she tries to stay kind despite her life circumstances.

She loves Varric, adores Merrill, and would (and literally nearly did) die for Isabela. She and Anders are very co-workers esque and she thinks Sebastian's a drag HAHA

Athena's big thing is that she thinks Literally Everything is her fault and she could have, should have, done better. It informs a lot of her choices and obviously does not lead to the healthiest of mindsets. She also resents the fuck out of being The Champion because she resents that all of a sudden she is in charge of things and how did this HAPPEN (a common thread in my protags in different ways LMAOOO)

I think post Kirkwall she and Fenris shack up for a minute before they get back out there. I like to think all my protags take vacations after their games LMAOO THEY DESERVE IT. She also cuts her hair because it makes her think of her mom and is still keeping it short by the time Inquisition happens.

By the time Inquisition happens, because I love spice and sadness, she and Fenris are not necessarily broken up but they are a bit strained because of Hawke's tendency to throw herself into things even when they could be deadly, which Fenris would Prefer She Stop Doing.

Also, lil fun fact - Athena has a lot of patience and tries to stick to "no unnecessary murdering" until she snaps and goes wild. She IS a reaver, so. Circe........I do not have favorites, but, hypothetically, if I did, Circe Lavellan may possibly be my favorite.

She has the strongest personality out of her, Hera and Athena which was REAL FUN. She DOES NOT WANT TO BE INQUISITOR which is a very fun journey because by the time Samson tells her something isn't her business, I got really into playing as her and OUT LOUD, IN DISCORD, AS HER, I said "I am the INQUISITOR. EVERYTHING IS MY BUSINESS." When anyone would ask her if she thought she was the herald/believed in Andraste she HARDCORE AVOIDED THE QUESTION, just like she hardcore avoided questions about her intentions for the inquisiton after corypheus. (she did not know and she very much was like "we should be focusing on SAVING THE WORLD FIRST, HOW IS THAT NOT YOUR FIRST PRIORITY)

Circe was..............very popular. The way Cullen was animated made it seem like he had a GIANT CRUSH ON HER which my entire discord had a field day with, because for Circe humans are Always On Strike Two. (at some point there was a scene happening and Circe left the room and Cullen watched and my friend went "I THINK HE JUST CHECKED OUT HER ASS I AM NOT KIDDING") This became funnier when Cullen's plan was what ultimately saved Clan Lavellan because she very much was like "I owe this human man a life debt. I hate it here." Solas took her on that whole fade date and she was like "ahaha yes, FRIEND, FRIEND WHOSE FRIENDSHIP I VALUE," and she and Blackwall had a whole Flirty Thing going on until Bull showed up, which really tells you about what Circe's tastes are LMAOOO.

Circe and Bull are..............they...........mean so much to me..........They very much have a murder pact ("If I go mad"/"If I become an abomination") that they openly joke about to horrify people but ultimately would not if possible/would be in great pain if they had to go through with it! Which is fun! Circe would find comfort in Bull being like, a Thoughts Free Zone for a bit and then she'd be like Unfortunately I Now Have Feelings For This Man. She'd be very embarrassed about it all until she finally fessed up and then they'd be DISGUSTING TOGETHER LMAOOOOO. Just UNBEARABLY CORNY. Also, Circe would absolutely let Bull throw her in battle, and since she's a Knight Enchanter it's all very fun and chaotic.

Side note: Cole is absolutely a little brother to her, she dotes on him like crazy and adores being with him. She gets very defensive of him and spends a good chunk of her free time with him, especially after he becomes human and she can track him down more easily

Circe also would become more and more anxious of losing her personhood, of everything she's done be for nothing, of being remembered as a concept and not a living breathing thing - i'm talking like full on panic attacks, unable to sleep, having to be calmed down about it. - ESPECIALLY after Ameridan. She tries to (somewhat) prioritize joy after that, finally visits Clan Lavellan after avoiding them for literal years (I played Descent and Hakkon after the main game to give the game a better sense of time passing before Tresspasser), ect.

By Tresspasser she is Fed Up, not sleeping, not eating, and also her arm is doing That Whole Thing concerning the fuck out of Bull LMAOOO. The ongoing joke was that Bull had DEFINITELY suggested cutting her arm off at multiple points in time, and when it actually happened it felt very monkey's paw HAHA. She definitely freaks out on Solas and is like oh I gotta KILL THIS GUY!! Also, because it feels relevant, she DID NOT LIKE MORRIGAN and drank from the well.

Also! Playlists. Everyone has a playlist! I use these while drawing to get me in the mindset so they're not in chronological order but here's Hawkes, Circes, and Heras which is the most work in progress since I just finished Origins and need to.....maybe take out the MULTIPLE songs about dying HAHAHA

EDIT: also because I played the games out of order and used the default world states for 2 and inquisition due to some Choices I made during Origins Circe is uhhhhhhh going to have either Fenris try to kill her or Hera and THAT'S GONNA BE FUN FOR HER

[nebula-plays-cyberpunk]

Play with Fire

pairing: Kerry Eurodyne x Male!V , Johnny Silverhand x Female!V word count: 6333 (measly and weak but just u wait) summary: V has everything under control. He's not dying. He and Kerry are still going strong. He's now the King of the Afterlife. And Johnny Silverhand is alive and in his own body. He's not forgetting anything...or is he?  notes: Anyone ever want both a male and female V in game? Surprise motherfuckers! Post-Canon The Sun ending fix-it fic coming RIGHT UP! Enjoy two V’s!

Play with Fire — . . | 02 |

AOO Link

4307 hours, 258420 minutes and 15505200.1 seconds. 5.9 months. That’s how long it took to get Johnny back. Not just in V’s head, but actually back . Not only did V focus on getting his own body to stop slowly dying from the lack of Johnny’s biochip in his head, he also focused on how he would get Johnny back. The fucker grew on him...or in him, for better use of the terms. Johnny was a parasite that not only slowly killed V by means not of his own volition, but also slithered his way into V’s heart. Hell, the only reason V came back to his body instead of giving the thing to Johnny was because he gave control to Johnny at Arasaka Tower. V looked over at the man now...in the flesh and not just a fucked up construct in his head that only he could see and hear. Johnny was leaning on the railing to V’s penthouse apartment. The sun was slowly setting on Night City, and despite V being almost next door (or next skyscraper) to her old apartment, there was something so surreal about the scene. Johnny had an unlit cigarette in his mouth and was just leaning on the guardrail, looking at the city with a silent awe. His sunglasses were on top of his head and there was a sort of peace about it all. V blinked as a message came into view. V let out a soft sigh, turning back around and walking into the house.

V was going through his clients and fixers. After everything that happened at Arasaka, V was suddenly thrown back into his body. A living legend. Something V had wanted for a long time...and it felt strange. V was still learning how to live with being a legend. Taking over Afterlife and Rogue’s legacy was a lot more difficult than V had imagined. V hadn’t even imagined becoming a fixer himself...and now there he was. Every other fixer didn’t want Rogue’s position, and most of them now came to V for things. It was all just so...much more than what he expected. V kind of expected to die and become a legend, not live to tell the tale of his escapades. He was alive and now people whispered and tried to fuck him over far more often than he wanted to be fucked. V grumbled once more, throwing himself onto the couch. Kerry was on tour with the Us Cracks for another day and V desperately wanted to actually be fucked instead of having to deal with others who were trying to fuck him in a non-sexy way. “Bein’ a fixer a lot more difficult than you expect?” Johnny asked, pulling V’s attention to the door where Johnny leaned against. V let out a small grunt, looking back up at the ceiling. “I doubt Rogue ever took a fuckin’ break, but you aren’t Rogue. You can make new rules.” Johnny muttered, walking over and leaning over the couch, looking down at V. V looked up at him, suddenly mesmerized by how he actually cast a shadow...how he didn’t glitch when he talked. How he couldn’t just materialize his sunglasses and how stupid he looked with them on the top of his head. “Take a break before you burn yourself out. Didn’t go through all that trouble to clone a new body just to fuck it up by working too hard.” Johnny muttered. V stared at him for a moment longer and sighed. “There’s still a lot of shit I gotta deal with.” V grumbled, rubbing his eyes. “Ya know, I didn’t just get a fuckin’ manual of how to be a fixer and how to run shit smoothly.” V said, looking back up at Johnny. Johnny didn’t say anything, his mind obviously going back to what happened at Arasaka tower...the reason why V was a fixer now and not just a merc. Rogue was dead. Silence filled the air. V sat up and touched Johnny’s hand. Johnny didn’t say a word at the action. Didn’t move his hand either. It was weird being able to physically touch Johnny. Even weirder not to hear his stupid voice rattling around his head, but to actually hear it. Even without the fucker being in his head, he just knew shit with Johnny. That’s what happens when you share a brain and see into the other’s head and soul’s.The two had been through enough shit for a lifetime...and here they both were...living and alive. Clones of what they once were, but both alive. About 5 months into looking at ways for V not to just kick the bucket in the coming month, V decided to take up street fighting. The first place V fought was a little rooftop in Kabuki. There, he fought these two twins that were the same but different. They had split their personalities into two different bodies so that they were two different people but still 1 person. It made V feel hopeful. Sure, they were twins to begin with, but seeing how identical they looked, V got the idea of clones. V called up Hanako who didn’t answer, but V left a voicemail, explaining his reasoning for the call. Then he called Takemura who also didn’t answer. Arasaka fuckers were hard to track down, especially since what V was asking was a lot. V wanted a new body and he wanted Johnny’s engram back, Johnny on the chip...and then a clone of Johnny. It was a big request, especially wanting to bring a literal terrorist against Arasaka back to life...So, like a rational person, V broke back into Arasaka Tower, took Johnny’s engram back and booked it the fuck back to Vik’s. Then V had to go into Cyberspace to find the fucker, so he had to get some help from the Voodoo Boys to get back to the blackwall. Then he had to find him in Cyberspace and throw his ass back into an engram. Alt luckily let him leave willingly, even telling V to make sure when switching out his own engram into a clone to be quick, otherwise he would flatline. The next thing V had to do was find someone to copy Johnny’s DNA and then find out about clones. In less than 2 weeks...while trying to run the Afterlife...and dying. Kerry was a real lifesaver when it came to those 5+ months. Always helpful. Helping buy the best people to make identical clones of both V and Johnny. Fuck he missed the stupid rockstar. “Mind if I use that little Arasaka AV to get the fuck off this little penthouse oasis?” Johnny asked, pulling V from his own thoughts. “Got a hot date er somethin’?” V asked back with a smirk. Johnny returned the smirk. “Wouldn’t you like to know.” Johnny teased back. V let himself chuckle, waving his hand towards the front door. “All yours, Silverhand. There’s a key by the door...you know, so your old ass is able to get in it.” V snarked, standing up and grabbing a bottle of Centzon off the end table in front of him. Johnny didn’t have any modifications, minus his new cybernetic arm. His old one was a few decades outdated and despite V’s own cloned body being perfect, something in Johnny’s DNA left him without his left arm...Johnny didn’t seem to mind the new arm. Didn’t seem to mind the new body either. Apparently his cock was still impressive and that was all he really cared about. “Don’t go nukin’ any Arasaka towers.” V teased as Johnny started walking over to the front door. V looked over and saw his middle finger up in the air as he grabbed the key from the door. V sighed, hearing the doors slide shut behind Johnny and the AV starting up and flying off. V sat back on the couch and closed his eyes. +++

“Open the fucking door you fucking gonk!” Johnny shot up from his spot on the couch at the sudden pounding and screaming at the door. V got a new penthouse and lovingly gave Johnny his shithole of an apartment. Another louder pounding of the door followed as Johnny got up from the couch which he had fallen asleep on after eating far too much Chinese food. “I swear to fuckin’ GOD VINCENT FLOWERS!” The pounding of the door was somehow even louder as the woman’s voice continued to scream against it. Vincent Flowers ? Ooh V would not like to know some lady was saying his full name. Johnny was sure V only swung one way, but with the way this chick was banging on the door, it sounded like V had wronged her. Bad . Johnny opened the door mid-pounding, forcing the woman behind it to stumble forward into the apartment. “Take it easy, princess.” Johnny smirked as the woman let out a sharp huff, glaring up at him. She had red hair, a red and black trenchcoat. At least she matched. “What do I owe the pleasure of-” Johnny started before the woman kicked his feet out from under him, straddling his chest once on the ground and holding a gun against his forehead. He could have sworn he heard someone mutter something outside the door, but it slid shut before he could even process anything that was going on. “Vincent Flowers. Vince. V. Whatever the fuck he goes by. Where the fuck is he?” The woman snarled lowly back down at him. Johnny stared back up at her, his hands going up in defense as his breath came back from being knocked out of him. Still not used to that feeling either. “Who’s askin’?” The words came out far more growled than Johnny had meant. He had only had his body for about a week and now he was gonna lose it to some redheaded woman for being protective over V? Yeah that seemed about right. Kinda figured he’s flatline under a woman. “His sister .” The woman said through clenched teeth, glaring back down at him. Johnny’s brows furrowed as he stared up at her. V was around Johnny’s height, maybe a centimetre shorter than him, but this woman had to only be about 5’4”. Her hair looked long with how big her stupid space buns looked. V had dark black hair, while this woman had dark red hair. V didn’t have any tints of red in his hair. The only thing the two had in common were freckles across their nose, though this woman’s freckles were far darker than V’s and...her eyes. Their eyes. Purple. Johnny blinked. “I don’t remember you.” Johnny muttered aloud, more to himself than to the woman. Johnny had been in the prick’s fucking head for over a month, seeing his memories, feeling his feelings, and not once did he remember this little redheaded bitch in the fucker’s memories. Johnny stared at her for a moment longer before she punched him in the nose.  “ Fuck .” Johnny grumbled at the sudden pain. “ Tell me! ” The woman snapped pushing the gun now fully against his forehead. It felt warm. Like she had used it recently, but not so recent that it burned. “Where the fuck is V?” The woman said with a low growl, getting closer to Johnny’s face. “Where is my brother?” The woman asked, sounding a little less hostile at her own words. Johnny watched as her guard went down for a minute before slamming his head into hers. The woman let out a sharp hiss from the pain as Johnny took the opportunity to shove her off of him and quickly rush over to where he kept his gun. Gunfire filled the little apartment as Johnny dove over the couches and grabbed his own gun from the coffee table, staying low to keep from the gunfire. “Why are you lookin’ for him?” Johnny asked loudly, as the gunfire stopped for a moment. Johnny glimpsed over the couch before ducking and falling below where the couch ended and the step was to keep himself from being shot as she fired a few more shots. “I’m worried about the fucker.” The woman snapped back. “He went fucking dark about 8 months ago. Not a fucking word. Dropped off the face of the planet.” The woman explained. Johnny made sure his gun was loaded before quickly rushing over to the bed and jumping on it, to keep himself from being shot, firing a few warning shots back at the woman. “Is he alive?” The woman asked, her tone softening at the question. A moment of weakness. Johnny tossed a pillow towards the couch, watching it get blown to bits from gunfire, helping him figure out where she was by the way the fluff blew out of the pillow. Johnny’s ears perked up at the sound of clicking near the bathroom, knowing she had emptied her clip. Now or never. Johnny quickly rushed around the bed wall and the bathroom wall, grabbing onto the woman’s wrist, hitting the gun from her hand before flipping her over his shoulder and onto the ground, aiming his gun down at her now. The woman glared back up at him as Johnny kicked the gun towards the couches, away from this little hellfire. “He’s alive.” Johnny said, watching her glare subside for a moment as a wave of relief washed over her. “Good.” The woman sighed, staring back up at Johnny before reaching and pulling out another gun from just under her chest from a gun holster and aimed it back at him. Fuck. “Valley.” The woman said, staring back up at Johnny, expecting an introduction. Johnny found himself chuckling. “Johnny.” Johnny introduced himself. Maybe she really was V’s brother. Valley. Valley. This name didn’t sound familiar, but when he thought back of his time in V’s brain, he felt it was familiar. “V doesn’t live here anymore.” Johnny explained, keeping his gun trained on the woman. The woman let out an annoyed huff, setting her gun down to her side, staring up at the ceiling. “You know where he is?” The woman, Valley, asked, looking defeated as she lay on her back on the ground. Johnny slowly lowered his gun. “I just want to see how he is...not just hear it.” Valley muttered, looking back up at Johnny. “I’ve heard a lot of shit about him...It took me about a month to get to Night City and even outside of the fuckin’ city, I’d heard things about V...kinda why I didn’t just come and see what had happened when he went radio silent.” Valley muttered, more annoyed than anything. Johnny stared at her for a long moment before she sat up. “I only knew one number of his, and it was a client that got him into Night City...Jackie Welles. Do you know him?” Valley asked and Johnny felt his heart drop at the name. ‘Course he knew him. Knew that V never truly mourned. Felt the ache in his own damn chest from the grief. “Yeah…” Johnny muttered aloud, staring back at the woman. His heart clenched uncomfortably tight. Valley simply looked back up at him and nodded. “I mean, hell, I know it was about 2 years ago when V first left, but that was the only contact I had that could even potentially lead me to him…” Valley muttered, sitting up on her elbows. “Then he got kicked out of that stupid fuckin’ Arasaka job, so I couldn’t just ring them up askin’ for V.” Valley continued sitting up fully, leaning her arms against her knees. “Last thing I heard was he got this big gig with some big fixer. Thought it’d make him a legend.” V shrugged, looking back up at Johnny. “Then...nothin’.” Valley shook her head, looking confused by the silent act. “Don’t get me wrong, he would go off the map for a while, sure, but after about 2 months, a girl gets worried, ya know?” Valley asked as Johnny stood silent, watching as she explained herself. Johnny felt himself sigh, glancing back at the clock that sat on the ground beside the bed as it blared an obnoxious red reading 3 am. “Why don’t I take you to see him yourself?” Johnny asked, placing his gun on the bathroom sink. “If you really are his sister, then you have a lot to catch up on.” Johnny muttered, reaching out his cybernetic hand to help her up off his floor. Valley grabbed his hand, shoving her gun into her holster, looking at the arm for just a moment. “Where’s he live now?” Valley asked, walking over and grabbing her other gun off of the ground. Johnny, despite himself, watched her bend over. The more he looked at her, the less he could see them as biological brother and sister. For one, V had no ass at all, and despite the long and dramatic trench coat (that hugged this woman’s figure e xquisitely ) Johnny could tell this woman had an ass. And a nice rack on her. “And to think you were someone V would bone.” The woman muttered aloud, forcing Johnny to stop his gawking, only then noticing her staring back at him. “Sorry princess, but you did come banging on my door like an ex-lover at 3 in the fuckin’ mornin’.” Johnny snarked back with a smirk. The woman scoffed, walking past him towards the door, but Johnny caught the slight color change in her cheeks when she passed. Johnny chuckled lowly as he grabbed the key to V’s AV from from the desk beside the bathroom, shoving his gun into his holster. “Everythin’ alright in here?” Johnny heard as he popped his head around the corner, seeing that Valley had opened the door and a police officer was standing on the other side. “Got some complaints about gunshots and screamin’.” The officer muttered, looking around Valley into the apartment. Johnny walked up behind her and shook his head. “Nothing to concern yourself with, officer .” The words were spit out with venom as Johnny leaned against the door, nearly nudging Valley out of the way. “You know the area.” Johnny said with a shrug, glaring back at the man. Looked like the same cop that nearly got that ex-cop down the hall killed for not giving a shit. “We were just headed out.” Johnny stated sharply, grabbing hold of Valley’s arm and hitting his shoulder with the officer’s shoulder as he got out the door, pulling Valley along. The officer chuckled behind him as the door to V’s-er Johnny’s , he guessed, apartment slid shut and locked loudly. Johnny felt his blood boil from the sound. “Easier just to let people know you were bringin’ a joytoy back to get aggressive with. No need to be called out for a domestic with a cumslut.” The officer muttered aloud. Johnny stopped, just a moment after Valley did. Valley turned a lot quicker around than he did. “So if you knew that the noise complaints were involving a joytoy or doll, you’d ignore it?” Valley snapped quickly, her fists already in balls as she walked back up to the officer. The officer’s hand went to his hip and Johnny reached for his own gun at his hip. “Oh, I’m sorry, is being a slut a hard job?” The officer chuckled back down at her. “Is being a cum guzzling whore dangerous?” The officer asked, bending down with a smirk that Johnny suddenly grabbed hold of Valley’s arm and pulled her a step back. “Try being a cop.” The officer continued. “Not much of a difference.” Valley spit back. “Both get fucked by Corpos all the time. Only difference is that pigs don’t need to be paid extra to swallow.” Valley snapped. Johnny couldn’t help the snort that left his body as he watched the officer’s face drop. The small moment quickly died as the officer pulled his gun from his holster. Johnny quickly pulled Valley from the situation, vaguely hearing the police scream and curse as the two sprinted away from the scene, down the stairs, past the gym and into the elevator, quickly shutting the thing and going up to the roof. Even as they rode upwards, Johnny could hear the officer swearing and screaming. A few shots of gunfire followed. Johnny now laughed as he leaned against the side of the elevator. “Had my doubts ‘bout you bein’ V’s sister, but after that little show? No doubt.” Johnny chuckled, nodding back down to where they had been. Through the glass, Johnny could see the officer having a tantrum, now across the apartments to better see their elevator going up, looking for another way up to the roof. Johnny turned his attention back to the woman. She had her arms folded, obviously in her own head, glaring at the elevator doors. Johnny could have sworn he felt heat coming off of her. “V never mentioned he had a sister.” Johnny said, changing the subject, leaning against the elevator’s wall. Valley blinked, pulling herself back to where she was before looking over at him. “Should have just put a bullet to his head.” Valley muttered, looking past Johnny, out to the apartment buildings as they continued climbing higher. “Get rid of at least 1 corrupted fuckin’ cop.” Valley growled, her jaw clenching as she spoke. “Police station isn’t too far from here if you want to go burn the place to the ground.” Johnny shrugged, folding his own arms. Johnny watched as Valley’s glare slowly faded as she let out a small chuckle. “Know anyone with explosives?” Valley asked and Johnny nearly doubled over from laughter, but easily kept that in his chest, instead just chuckling. Maybe 50 years ago, but now, he was still new to being alive, let alone knowin’ where to get some more nukes. “Didn’t bring mine with me into the city. Hard enough as is to get into the fuckin’ place without havin’ explosives in the trunk.” Valley chuckled. Johnny stared at her for a moment before chuckling. The elevator doors opened. “I remember V had to smuggle in some kinda lizard into the City to get in.” Johnny chuckled, walking out the elevator doors. The sound of police sirens weren’t as loud the higher they were. Johnny suspected that one or two might be for the little commotion that Valley caused with the cop down in the apartments, but they wouldn’t even be in the same building when they got to the roof. Only way to get to the roof was by the elevator. Pretty shitty design, but Johnny didn’t give a shit. Place was meant to be torn down anyway, but enough people kept living there that they kept bringing in money into the Corpo’s pockets. Johnny pressed the key to the AV and the AV opened up. Valley followed behind, lookin at the AV and raising an eyebrow. “What? Don’t look like the kinda guy that owns an AV?” Johnny sassed as and got into the AV. “No, you don’t.” Valley stated as she hesitantly got into the AV. Johnny chuckled as she sat down beside him, flinching as the doors closed. “Please provide your destination.” The fancy British voice of the AV said. “V’s place.” Johnny stated, reaching over and grabbing two champagne flutes with clear liquid in them. Johnny knew V filled the fuckers up with vodka instead of the champagne that they were supposed to have in them. “Noted. En route.” The voice said again. “Here.” Johnny said, reaching to hand Valley the drink. Valley didn’t move her hand from the arms of her chair. Didn’t even look towards him. Her eyes were fixated on the floor. Johnny looked at her knuckles and saw them going white. “Don’t like flyin’?” Johnny asked with a chuckle in his voice. Valley shook her head. “Rather drive.” Valley muttered, shutting her eyes tightly as the AV got into the air. Johnny rolled his eyes, drinking the Centzon down. “Willin’ to stand up to a cop about joytoys than to fly in an AV?” Johnny snarked aloud. Valley glared over at him, snatching the drink from his hand before drinking it all before coughing violently. “Fuck!” Valley hissed, looking for a place to put the glass down. Johnny moved his own back to its original placement before grabbing the empty one from Valley’s hands. “Jesus!” Valley snapped, glaring over at the vodka flutes. “Couldn’t just be water er somethin’?” Valley snapped, more mad at the two other filled flutes than she was at him. Johnny chuckled, leaning back into his seat, spreading out as he usually did. “Can’t handle your liquor, princess?” Johnny asked with a smirk, reaching for his sunglasses and finding nothing. Johnny let out a small, displeased grunt at the fact that he couldn’t just materialize the fuckin’ things. Wasn’t expecting to leave the apartment till morning. Wasn’t expecting to be woken the fuck up by V’s long lost sister at 3 in the fuckin’ morning. “Initiating landing sequence.” The British voice announced. Valley looked both relieved and extremely stressed. Even if she was V’s sister, he could think of one way that she could relax. Johnny found himself adjusting his pants slightly. Fuck he needed a good lay. Shouldn’t be hard. Didn’t have any trouble back in the day... “We have arrived at your destination.” The AV announced. The door opened automatically and Valley quickly got out of the AV. Johnny rolled his eyes as he followed behind. Valley looked up at the penthouse building. “V lives here ?” Valley asked, gesturing towards the house. Johnny chuckled and nodded. “Oh, I’m going to fucking kill him.” Valley growled lowly, already grabbing one of her pistols. “Watch the guns, princess, there’s security drones around here.” Johnny chastised, catching up to her as she walked towards the front door. “Pretty sure if they nearly shoot my head off, they’ll take yours off without hesitation. ‘Specially with a gun in your hand.” Johnny muttered as he walked up to the front door. “Put the gun away.” Johnny snapped, nodding at her gun. Valley let out a sharp sigh before doing so. “Now. Stay here.” Johnny stated, taking the few steps up to the building, putting a code into the door. Valley rolled her eyes and folded her arms. “I’m not a fucking dog.” Valley hissed as Johnny entered the house. Johnny rolled his own eyes as he heard her following behind. Johnny hesitated for a moment as he heard noises in the house. Valley walked in beside him before Johnny grabbed her arm and forced her to stop. Valley glared back up at him before he tapped his ear, indicating her to listen. Valley stopped and listened, as Johnny slowly pulled his gun out. Valley followed suit with the action. Johnny and Valley slowly headed towards the gun stash. Fuck. Johnny wasn’t prepared. He was just in a tanktop and his leather pants. No bullet proof vest or nothing. Should’ve known he’d find himself in some shit sooner or later. Just expected it to be later and when he actually figured out what he was going to do in regards to money. May have tried out that rockstar life he sorta missed out on when Samurai broke up. After Alt died, he had kind of spiraled out of control...well, not ‘kind of’. He couldn’t remember much from 2013 to 2023. It all seemed like a blur of drugs and alcohol and deals that got him a nuke or two. It was a blur, and as much as V insisted that he needed to go to therapy for it, Johnny honestly felt at ease after coming back. New body and all kinda helped. Well he did feel at ease...did before he had a gun in his hand in V’s house. Johnny looked over at Valley and counted down from 3. Gave her a second or 2 to process, but that’s all she needed as she nodded back. Johnny counted silently aloud before hitting the door’s button that made it open. “Oh my God!” Valley screamed, quickly averting her eyes from the scene. Johnny let out a good laugh. The source of the noise? V fucking Kerry...or rather he had been for about a second before Johnny got to fully witness what V looked like while blowing his load. Had the pleasure of having an up close and personal experience when V and Kerry trashed and burned that shitty record guys’ yacht. “Johnny get the fuck out!” Kerry snapped as V quickly pulled out and looked mortified at the whole thing. Johnny laughed, leaning against the doorframe, much to both Kerry and V’s discomfort as the both grabbed something to hide themselves. Kerry going for a more modest plant while V grabbed a machine gun. “Forget that I’ve been in your head when you did this the first time?” Johnny asked V as he ushered Johnny out of his little armoury and shoved past him, rushing up the stairs. “You forget when we -” Johnny got out before Kerry punched him in the stomach, making him bite his tongue and fall to a knee from the force and cough. “T-Touchy subject?” Johnny coughed as Kerry quickly ran up the stairs after V. Johnny laughed with a hiss as he stood up, holding his stomach for a moment longer, trying to subside the pain by sure willpower. Didn’t miss that. Didn’t miss the raw pain of bein’ alive. When he was with V, he got a small snippet of emotions and feelings. None ever compared to the real thing. The only one that came close was whenever V thought about Jackie; gave him a call and left a voicemails whenever anything of importance happened. That was something that always hit Johnny with full force. Johnny walked back into the living room, noticing a slight breeze to his right. His eyes turned towards the source and saw Valley leaning up against the guard rail. Johnny walked out onto the terrace and leaned beside her, pulling a cigarette from his case in his pocket and putting it in his mouth. The lack of nicotine that V took in when Johnny was in his head really changed him. V really changed him. It was just a habit now. He didn’t light the thing. Just needed a little familiarity, but the taste didn’t do as much as it once did...even with a new and not-fucked-up clone body. “Was...was that Kerry Eurodyne?” Valley asked after a moment of silence. Johnny looked back over at her. Even in the neon lights, he could see that her face was flushed still. Johnny chuckled, feeling it go through his whole body. That was something he also wasn’t used to. Feeling so...so light . Sure, corpos were still shit, Arasaka was still around and doing shady shit and hell, the world was in a worse state than when he flatlined and got trapped in an Arasaka mind prison, but...he was alive . And Adam Smasher was dead...and so was Rogue. The lightness was quickly replaced with guilt. Johnny nodded his head, not letting guilt take over as he spoke. “And you’re some Johnny Silverhand impersonator, right?” Valley asked, leaning on one arm to turn and look at him. Johnny raised an eyebrow back at her. “You’re all in this poly relationship, but you forgot it was Kerry’s night with V.” Valley stated, looking serious as she spoke. “V and I really liked Samurai growing up so it makes a little sense that he’d fuck anyone in the band he could get his hands on.” Valley shrugged. Johnny stared back at her before laughing. “Disappointed you didn’t cash in on that option?” Johnny asked playfully. Valley raised an eyebrow back at him. “You know, Johnny was known as a player.” Johnny chuckled with a wink of his eye and a wiggle of his eyebrows. Valley snorted and shook her head. Johnny should have saved that for later. Her face was still a light pink from earlier and he couldn’t tell if she was even remotely affected by his words. “That your final guess on what he’s been up to?” Johnny asked, raising his eyebrow while leaning now to look at her. “That your brother ditched you to get kabobed by the leading men in Samurai?” Johnny asked playfully. Valley let out a snort through her nose before laughing. “Oh God ew!” Valley said through her laughter. “I don’t want to think about that !” Valley snapped through her laughter, punching Johnny in the arm before reeling back as she hit his metal arm. “Fuck!” Valley hissed, looking at her hand and then his arm. Johnny chuckled at the action, as she shook her hand and walked away from the rail. “Even went as far as choppin’ your arm off?” Valley asked, looking back up at Johnny. Johnny opened and closed his left hand, looking at the metal arm. “You could say I wasn’t made with one.” Johnny said, leaning backwards against the railing now. A cool breeze blew against his back, sending a shiver up his spine. Despite global warming and all the shit they were doing to keep the little piece of ice in Antarctica frozen still, it meant that summers were hot and winters were cold . Johnny couldn’t even imagine the weather after 50 years. It was in the middle of October, and that was the first cold breeze Johnny had felt. Didn’t help that Night City was beside the ocean. “Alright, what the fuck is so fuckin’ important that you need to show up here at nearly 4 in the fuckin’ mornin’?” V asked angrily as he walked out of his house and onto the terrace. Couldn’t really take him seriously as he was wearing a frilly little robe. Johnny didn’t say a word, only nodded towards Valley. Johnny watched as V turned and the anger in his face suddenly disappeared. Valley’s face was slow to respond. The two looked shocked to see the other. “V-Valley?” V asked hesitantly. Johnny watched as the anger V once had on his face was transferred to Valley’s. “What are you doi-” V got out before Valley walked up to him and punched him in the face. And then continued to punch him and tackle him to the ground and beat the shit out of him. “Hey hey hey! Knock it off!” Kerry snapped as he came running out in a similar skimpy little bathrobe that V was wearing, grabbing hold of Valley and trying to pull the girl off V. Valley was so caught up in beating the shit out of her brother that she didn’t even realize that she elbowed Kerry in the nose. Kerry let out a sharp hiss as blood came rushing out of his nose. “Little help Johnny.” Kerry snapped back at Johnny who had just stood and watched it all happen. Johnny rolled his eyes as he went and grabbed Valley and tore her off of V, his cigarette dropping in the process. Despite her desperate attempts to continue beating the shit out of V, Johnny pulled her off of him. “You promised me, Vincent!” Valley screamed as Johnny physically picked her up and held her from V as he lay on the ground. Valley kicked and screamed, trying to get Johnny to let her go, but luckily, the new cybernetic arm was helping keeping her restrained. “You promised, Vince, you promised me !” Valley continued to scream, but now Johnny had the unpleasant feeling of tears drip onto his arms. His cybernetic one was advanced, so he could feel the gentle droplets, but his non-cyber arm felt like they were heavier. Kerry was now kneeling beside V as he sat up. V’s nose was bleeding, he had a cut on his cheek and his head and would have a hell of a bruise under his eye. Johnny didn’t have to be in V’s body to know that hurt...but it wasn’t the physical hurt that V was worried about. He looked as if his heart was breaking and Johnny could almost feel the phantom feelings as if they were his own. Valley soon slowed down her kicking and screaming that it stopped all together. Johnny slowly put Valley onto the ground where she seemed to crumple up. A heart wrenching sob left her mouth as she sat on her knees, her hands on the ground to steady herself, but even they didn’t look sturdy. “Valerie, Valley, please, Val fuck , I’m-I’m so-I’m so sorry.” Johnny took a step back from the scene as he watched V crawl over to Valley, grabbing onto her hand tightly. That only made Valley sob even harder. V pulled Valley into his arms and let out his own sob. “Val I’m sorry, please, Valley, please I’m so fucking sorry.” V sobbed as the two held each other. Johnny walked around them and grabbed Kerry’s arm as he looked at the scene, confused and obviously distraught at it all. “Come on, Ker, let’s give them some privacy.” Johnny muttered as he pulled Kerry into the house with a little force. “What the fuck is going on?” Kerry asked, blood from his nose still running down his face. Johnny led him into the kitchen and turned on the faucet before grabbing a towel and running it under the cool water. “Johnny, who the fuck is that?” Kerry asked as Johnny handed him the wet towel as Kerry continued to stare out where they both knew V and Valley were. Johnny knew Kerry was concerned, but he also felt the hint of jealousy in his tone. “That’s his sister.” Johnny stated seriously. Shock and disbelief crossed Kerry’s face. Johnny only sighed, grabbing a fresh cigarette from his pocket and lighting it up.

[carvers-hawke]

Cullavellan Week - Day 3

Fandom: Dragon Age Pairing: Devanna Lavellan/ Cullen Rutherford AO3 Link: Here! Notes: Pshew, made it with a few minutes to spare. Uh. I’m really bad at writing action scenes and this was heavily inspired by the fight choreography of Wonder Woman. Also Dev is a Reaver, but like, not your average Reaver someone come talk to me about how she got her abilities because i love it so she gets very, very into fighting. 

And by the nature of day four’s prompt I won’t be participating since this is the first time I’ve a) wrote anything with Dev in it and b) wrote for Cullavellan. Anyways, today’s prompt is

It’s no secret that the Inquisitor and Commander are experts in combat! Show them in action out in the field!

They usually weren’t on the field together. As Commander of the Inquisition’s forces, Cullen had a mostly administrative position. As much as he would be down in the training fields, running the soldiers through drills, sparring, encouraging his troops to learn how to use their damn shields, he didn’t often leave Skyhold.

It was uncommon for him to take the field of combat, but not unheard of.

He had accompanied the group to Sahrina, to lend his sword and shield to the Inquisition in breaking the Red Templars’ hold on the quarry, to disrupt Samson’s easy supply of lyrium. It had been deeply satisfying, even if it did mean subjecting himself to the sickly sweet call of the tainted lyrium. And it called, leaving a deep throbbing pain between his temples, and a strong tremor to his hands. He hated it, but it was a suffering he would endure.

But then they’d met a handful of behemoths, and one had gotten in a good, lucky hit through Cassandra’s guard, and their Seeker had been rushed back to the nearest camp for healing. Broken limbs, cracked ribs, and a punctured lung, the healers were working round the clock to get her into stable condition. But the Inquisition couldn’t rest, and Michel de Chevin meant to confront the demon Imshael, one of the Forbidden Ones.

As if it was a matter of taking down a shade, or an abomination, and he remembered the devastation in Darktown when Hawke had faced down the creature Xebenkeck. The thought of the Inquisition facing down a demon of that caliber, without someone trained to nullify magic, to strike against these creatures, was unacceptable. And with Cassandra’s condition that left him.

Cullen hadn’t taken lyrium in over a year, that was true, but he had been a Knight Commander, and he could still throw a holy smite that would knock even the Grand Enchanter on her ass.

He might have wished, however, that the demon Imshael hadn’t taken up residence at the very top of Suledin Keep, filled with more Red Templars, and giants.

“Oh. Oh this is going to be fun.” A small mercy, that Devanna was at his side, body vibrating with excitement as they surveyed the doors of the Keep.

Kalros regarded her Hand, an indulgent smile on her face even as she fisted her hands on her hips. “Would you like to do the honors, then?”

“And it’s not even my nameday.” Devanna said it with such enthusiasm, swaggering up to the door.

She was a violent creature, this woman he loved, with the blood of dragons in her veins, and it was made all the more apparent by the way she led the charge into the Keep. A haze of bright, glowing red as she clawed deep furrows into the door, weakening it before kicking it down in a shower of splinters that left the few guards just inside looking on in astonishment.

“Hello lovies~” She sang, drawing her blade with a soft hiss. “Who’s ready to die?”

And the battle was joined.

It had been some time since Cullen had really fought. Not since the attack on Haven, and even then his duties had been more in organizing a suitable defense and getting as many people out as he could—not enough though, never enough. Still, any fears that he might be rusty, given his current companions, faded as he waded head first to join Devanna. The others stayed back, Varric taking the high ground to better aim with his crossbow as Dorian cast barriers and threw fire spells back and forth. They were content to let their warriors do the bulk of the work, well, all of them save Kalros, who used no staff, and wreathed herself in magic and using it to construct weapons of her very own, occasionally assisted by the chakri in her hands.

They fell into a sort of synergy, the reaver and himself, his defensive tactics well matched with her own reckless abandon. He knew that was the point, of course, the harder they hit her, the more she hurt, the stronger she became. And yet, he couldn’t help but cringe at every hard earned injury, couldn’t help but work to stay at her side.

“Archers!” He lunged forward, shield raising up in front of her, just in time to block a bolt that would have pinned her in the shoulder.

The elf stuttered slightly at the restraint on her shoulder, pupils widening from their slits in surprise and realization.

Realization that blossomed into a wide grin as she leaned in quick as a flash to place a blood smeared kiss to his cheek. “Thank you lover.”

And just like that she was ducking out of the protection of his shield, swinging that massive sword of hers and laughing at the spray of blood and death in her wake. Cullen noticed, with no small amount of unease, that the deeper they went into the fortress, the more potent the animus that clung to her. It manifested in a blood red mist, swirling and infecting any enemies that came within fifteen meters of her. Her attacks hit harder, and ideally it wasn’t a bad thing—it made putting down the Red Templars easier—but he could see her slipping.

The laughing gradually became less, replaced with wordless growls and snarls, her kills becoming messier. The danger of the dragon blood that ran through her veins; it was a source of power, but indulging too much could lead to madness as Cassandra hadn’t hesitated to point out.

He worried, a quick glance over at the Inquisitor showed a tightness of expression that indicated worry as well, but at least they were getting close to the end.

“Is that a bloody—“

“Kaffas, watch the swing!”

“Maker’s breath!” The giant staggered out of its cage with a swipe of its arms, a pulse of that sickening call running through Cullen as he focused on the clusters of red crystal sprouting from its skin.

And then he was dodging out of the way as it threw a chunk of stone at them, rolling away even as the crash left his ears ringing. He recovered in time to see Kalros reach out, frost blooming up her fingers even as thick ice shot up around the giant’s feet, holding it in place. Devanna was already dashing in to press the advantage it created, weaving between the giant’s fists to harry at its legs. Drawn in by her orbit, Cullen moved as well, creating as much of a distraction as he could even as he used his shield to deflect the blows thrown his way.

The fight might have lasted a few minutes of a few days, everything became a whirl of dodging and slashing, barriers shimmering over his skin as magic and crossbow bolts peppered the rough skin of the giant. They were wearing it down though, little by little, and Cullen hoped that it ended soon because he could feel the burn of exhaustion in his arms, shield hand starting to go a little numb.

Cullen couldn’t help but think at this point that maybe Cassandra had been lucky, even with the injuries she’d sustained.

There was a loud roar, and the sound of something hard colliding with something metal, causing Cullen’s heart to stop in his chest, his throat squeezed tight in a vice as he saw Devanna go sailing through the air. There was an indentation in the wall that she’d struck, sliding down with a smear of blood.

“Dev!” He wasn’t sure who yelled it first, Kalros or himself—possibly both—but Cullen instinctively jerked in her direction.

The kossith woman had positioned herself behind the giant, her face cast in a soft violet glow as she looped her lightning whip around its throat. It was by some design, some treatment like that which allowed a Tempest to sheathe themselves in the elements, that prevented her from getting electrocuted as she twisted the whip around her leg, catching it under her boot to pull the giant back. And it was a testament to her strength, both physical and arcane, that allowed her to restrain the beast even as she tried to choke the life from it.

A soft hiss of pain from behind him, an impatient noise, a growled fucker as Devanna climbed to her feet. Her sword was a few feet away, wedged into the frozen earth from where it’d been dropped, and instead of going to recover it she pulled out her long, aurum hunting knife.

She staggered a few steps, head swinging from side to side in her disorientation and she couldn’t mean to rejoin the battle.

But the elf righted herself, forcefully regaining her equilibrium and switching her grip on her knife.

“Cullen.” She snapped, her normally husky voice rough and deep, like shards of glass being scraped over stone. “Shield. Now.”

Panic gripped him, followed by confusion, as she made her way towards him, speed increasing. He remembered the last time he’d heard her say that, in the training grounds of Skyhold, a training session she’d insisted he watch because she wanted to show him something. He remembered the way Blackwall had taken a knee, shield braced to launch her.

And that was what she wanted him to do, to give her a step up to get to the giant’s vulnerable spots.

Bloody hell but was she always this reckless? Was this the sort of thing she did, on their excursions out into the field? How was she still alive?

His braced himself anyway, sword dropping and balance shifting as he gripped the shield tight with both arms. Her booted foot planted hard against the shield, but the weight of a fully armored warrior was nothing he wasn’t used to, and Cullen followed the change easily, rolling with it and pushing.

Some of her hair had fallen loose from its updo, strands of red flowing behind her as she flew through the air, teeth bared and a loud, inhuman snarl ripping from her throat. The knife plunged into the giant’s chest, a hand hold by the collarbone as she reached forward with her free hand, summoning the power in her blood and ripping into the creature with a spectral dragon’s claw.

It reached in, phasing through skin and bone and muscle directly through the sternum, and Cullen was forcefully reminded of Hawke’s companion, Fenris. Except, the way the blood hovered, the way he could visibly see the giant’s life force seep into Devanna, cuts and bruises healing before his very eyes, was in no way the same.

No, watching that sent a shudder of unease down his spine, and it was oh so dangerously close to blood magic. Except she was no mage, and her abilities had been forced on her, it was only fair that she use them to stay alive.

Finally the giant fell, first to its knees, and then backwards, Kalros letting the magic of the whip fade as she nimbly jumped out of the way. His first instinct was to check on Devanna, his feet taking him to his lover’s side, but as soon as he got close he felt… he felt the prod of something sharp, painful, buffeting at him. Foreign, a sort of ache that reached down into his soul and held it tight in a clawed grip.

“Cullen wait.” Kalros reached over, pulling him back. “It’s not safe.”

And that’s when he realized—the animus hadn’t faded, if anything the giant’s death had only fueled it farther. She had trouble coming down, letting go of the blood lust and calming the fire that burned within her, especially after particularly large battles. She needed help, she’d explained, someone who could bring her back to herself.

“She doesn’t recognize you.” The kossith continued, taking a step forward.

He didn’t hesitate, pulling himself out of Kalros’ grip and moving closer. “Devanna.”

The aura pushed back at the intrusion, sensing an enemy, and she tilted her head ever so slightly to regard him. Like she had when they’d first met, holding herself apart and unsure. But there was no recognition in those yellow eyes, pupils narrowed into thin slits. She treated him like a threat, an unknown, and while that cut deep into him Cullen reminded himself that this wasn’t her.

“Devanna.” He repeated, voice firm, as he continued his approach. “Love, the fight is over.”

It wasn’t completely over, he knew that Imshael still resided in the heart of the fortress, but if they challenged the demon like this, they would be at a disadvantage. More than that, he hated the way she quivered, body barely held in check despite the violence that held her coiled tight like a spring ready to snap. This was a part of her, he knew, but it wasn’t always healthy.

“Dev.” Her hand shot out like a blur, fisting in his mantle and effectively bringing him to a halt. “Love.”

It was a delicate situation. Devanna, he knew, could easily injure him if she so chose. Especially in this state, where her strength had increased tenfold. If he moved wrong, gave even the slightest indication that he was a threat, she would strike and at this distance not even the Inquisitor could stop her.

But he wasn’t afraid. If this day had shown him how powerfully aggressive his lover was, there were so many instances that he could call to mind of her gentleness. She loved him; though she didn’t say it he had felt it in so many small, potent ways and he trusted her.

So Cullen held himself perfectly still, hardly daring to breathe as she watched him like a cat watching a mouse. He didn’t fight when she pulled him in close, lifting his chin in a show of surrender when she pressed her nose into his neck, inhaling deeply.

“Cull…” She murmured, the tension bleeding out of her frame as she moved in closer. “Shit that was…”

“I’ve got you. You’re good.” He assured her just as quietly, pulling her into a quick, rough embrace. “You didn’t lose yourself.”

“You could have gotten yourself killed.” Devanna pulled back, a frown on her face as she looked up at him. “You should have let Kal—“

“Maybe.” He agreed, cutting her off by carefully dragging his fingers down her cheek. “I didn’t though. We’ll discuss our mutual recklessness once we take the Keep.”

Her pupils dilated at that, just a fraction, picking up easily on the intent behind the words. There were many ways to cure battle lust, he knew, and there were many ways to calm his warrior.

“Right.” Devanna cleared her throat, head ducking as a flush covered his cheeks. “Well. Let’s go kill a demon, shall we?”