#my dialogue tends to shine more in the context of exchanges... alas

[elavoria]

OC in Fifteen

Tagged by @dirty-bosmer and @sylvienerevarine to share 15 lines or less more of dialogue that showcases my OC’s personality. This was fun, thank you! <3 I tag @nostalgic-breton-girl, @sheirukitriesfandom, and @1helios1~

I couldn’t choose between Isanna and Amaryllia, so I’ve put them both under the cut… with a bonus set for Regill, too, because I couldn’t resist—he may not be an OC, but the lines I’ve given him are much more suited to this sort of thing.

I may have gotten a little carried away, aha…

Isanna

1. “I would love to stay here with you,” she said, “but I must prepare for the day, otherwise Irabeth and Anevia are going to start wondering if you murdered me in my sleep.”

2. “I am an inquisitor,” she declared, “not a cleric or a paladin. If the goddess sees fit to take away my divine magic, you’ll be among the first to know.”

3. “You are aware, my dear count, that killing people on behalf of the goddess of mercy is part of my job description?” She paused to let that sink in, then explained, “A swift death at the end of a sharp blade is the only mercy some deserve. That is especially true here in the Worldwound.”

4. “Regill,” Isanna interrupted as she made her way to the table. She leaned heavily against the back of her chair, wincing from the effort, before staring a little too hard, a little too wide-eyed at Anevia. “Bring him here.”

5. “Bleeding again,” she murmured, frowning at the scarlet drops. “That won’t do.”

6. She shook her head and shifted her hand back to his face before answering, “I look at you, and I see the iron will born of your discipline, the depths of your wisdom and the sharpness of your wit in your eyes, the stern and stately set of your features, the lines and shadows that mark your years and experience…” She stared deeply into his eyes, then finished just above a whisper, “And I don’t want to lose you.”

7. “In the event I am… incapacitated in such a way, I want you to lead the crusade in my stead. I understand the army might be averse to following the person who killed their former commander, which is why I wrote my last wishes very explicitly, to clarify the situation and dispel their doubts, and legitimize your position as my successor. That document is what you will find in the cache, should you need it.”

8. “I would love to show you my Magnimar,” she said warmly. “And there’s so much to see there. It isn’t called the City of Monuments for nothing, after all. I—” She broke off with a blush as her thoughts of traveling for pleasure alone with the paralictor tumbled over themselves and dropped her gaze to her lap. “I’d be happy to go anywhere with you,” she said quietly, meeting his eyes again with a small, somewhat apologetic smile. “I’m even glad to be here with you. I’m, ah… I’m just glad you’re here.”

9. “I’ve tasted enough,” she said indignantly, then took another sip and felt it go to straight to her head. “I’ve tasted wine from all over Avistan in my travels.”

10. “You honor me,” she said with a gracious dip of her head. “As for your assessment…” He raised an eyebrow, and her smile turned mischievous. “Your test administration skills leave something to be desired. However, the test did accomplish your objective, and furthermore, it was a very amusing diversion, so I believe that can be overlooked.”

11. “Sarenrae’s patience isn’t infinite,” she said with careful deliberation, “and neither is mine.”

12. “Is this what you wanted from me, Dawnflower?” she whispered, gripping the carved symbol of her goddess a little too tightly. “Did you know my soul was corrupted when you sent me to Kenabres?” The silence was deafening, but she continued anyway. “Should I have heeded Iomedae’s words and purged the corruption from my soul?” She sighed and shook her head at the thought. “I can serve you and Golarion better with this power. I have made it my own, forged it into something good and righteous. And even if I hadn’t, you yourself once worked alongside the powers of evil in service to good.”

13. “This power I have,” she explained, letting go of one of his hands to rest it where her wound appeared. “If taken further, it… who knows what it might be able to do? It should be able to rival even the gods.” The passion in her eyes turned to a desperate fervor, and he stared back at her uncertainly. “I’ll find a way to keep you alive. I promise you.” She moved her hand to his face and twined her fingers through his hair, holding him as if he might slip through her fingers at any moment. “Regill… I love you more than anything in this world. I would do anything for you—and I will.”

14. “I promise,” she muttered aloud, fingers clutching weakly at the ground for something to hold on to. Finding nothing, her hands closed into fists and she trembled helplessly. “I promise…”

15. “Everything is going to change,” she said, “no matter what we do.” They sat with the thought in silence, and she added, “I want to change it for the better.”

15… 2. “You know I didn’t ascend to become a god,” she said quietly.

Amaryllia

1. “I will do no such thing,” she said, perhaps a little too fiercely. “I’m going to get you out of here, Chantry be damned. How long have you been here, anyway?”

2. “I am trusting you not to lose control again. I ask that you extend the same trust to me.” She paused again as the intensity of his gaze caused her to become aware of her heartbeat. “Can we do that?” she asked, almost in a whisper. “Can we trust each other?”

3. “He is not,” the warden hissed under her breath, “a traitorous bastard.”

4. “I am going to save everyone who can possibly be saved,” she said, her voice soft but resolute.

5. “There are some here who would call me too gracious,” she said quietly. “But… I don’t think there is anything wrong with mercy… or compassion, and understanding.”

6. “Oh, I very much doubt that,” she said smoothly. “I think you will forgive me far more readily if I do die.”

7. “I appreciate your concern, Wynne,” Amaryllia returned, her tone unusually short, “but I would prefer not to have a breakdown in front of the people I am supposed to be leading. And if I have to stay in this wretched city a moment longer, I am liable to explode.”

8. “I never considered you the real enemy,” she went on, meeting his eyes with a small, tired smile. “You are but a man, and can be reasoned with.” She stifled a sudden sob and stopped walking. “Not that I could even reason with my own friend.” Fighting back tears, she gripped her staff with both hands and let it support her. “I’m usually so good at that,” she said in a small whimper. “How did it go so wrong?”

9. “Do you think if I asked Greagoir very nicely,” she began with a slow playfulness, “he would let me cast a big lightning bolt in the chapel again?” To Loghain she added, “We fought a revenant in the chapel at Kinloch. I thought it had killed Sten, so I, ah… annihilated it.”

10. “You are not a burden,” she assured him, this time properly authoritative. “Besides, I… enjoy your company.”

11. “It is no matter, now, what might have happened,” she said. “We are here together, alive and well, as we should be.”

12. “Well, they are very… admirable, are they not?” she returned self-consciously, blushing despite her best efforts. “Gleaming plate and the occasional lush fabric…”

13. “Sometimes,” she said quietly, eyes still trained on the darkspawn, “I wish I could resurrect Uldred just to kill him again. But that wouldn’t make Cullen stop hurting, and it wouldn’t bring any of them back.”

14. “If I could share the source of it, I would,” she assured him, pleased but self-conscious. “As it is, I do what I can.” She thought for a moment, then added, “That is all any of us can do. If there were a little more graciousness in the world, a little more kindness…”

15. “Make no mistake, ser knight,” she said, and although she still spoke lightly enough, her words took on a grave undertone. “My charm was honed as a means of survival as much as anything.”

16. “Where would any of us be, without love?” She paused in reflection, then continued, “Is it not the only thing we have left, here at the end of the world? And is it not the most important thing of all? What are we fighting for, if not for love?” She looked back to Zevran and finished, “I would never pass up the opportunity to revel in the love I have found, the love I have made—literally or otherwise—when to-morrow is not promised.”

17. “I don’t blame you for that, or for anything, Greagoir. You trusted me; you showed me kindness when you need not have, and now I am doing the same for you.” She smiled, then added, “Besides, I don’t want you to die. There has been more than enough death lately, don’t you think?”

18. “I love your age,” she said gently as she wiped his tears away. “I love that you have so much life experience with which to guide me. I love how the years have shaped you into such a handsome and capable man.” He gave her an unsteady smile that she returned with an encouraging one, and she continued, “You cannot change the past, beloved. All we can do is learn from it and do better.”

19. “I suppose you’ll have to ravish me,” she said, turning her head to face him with a mischievous smile.

20. “Thank you,” she breathed. “I look forward to speaking with him—a man of good intentions and horrible decisions. He reminds me of… well, nevermind.”

21. “He’s too visceral a reminder of the fate you might have had,” she said. He nodded and hung his head, and she let go of him and moved up a step in order to take his face in her hands. “It hurts, and it’s frightening, but… darling,” she said gently, pausing until he reluctantly met her eyes, “if that were you, do you think I’d love you any less? If you fell that far, do you think you’d be unworthy of love and forgiveness, of a guiding hand to lead you back into the light?”

22. “It’s one thing to read about a person’s actions.” The locked clicked into place, and she dispelled her light and turned to face him. “It’s another to hear about their intentions, their regrets, why they did what they did and how they feel about it.”

23. “A year of you doing nothing but treating him like he’s beyond help, and now he believes it,” she said in grave accusation. “You’ve let your biases blind you to his potential, to his pain. If you approached him with respect—or simply any amount of decency—”

24. “Deserve?” she interrupted. Despite her best efforts, she couldn’t keep her derision out of her tone or her mana under control. “He doesn’t deserve! Listen to yourself! Don’t tell me what he deserves!” She discharged her mana as lightning directed toward the floor, and the crack that rent the air was immediately followed by another as dust and stone chips flew into the air. Cullen flinched, and startled into silence, they both stared at the damaged stone, then at each other. “Sorry about your floor,” she said in a carefully calm voice, “but that’s your problem. He’s a person with a beating heart—of course he deserves decency.”

25. “We are all victims of the Chantry, here,” she said softly, looking seriously into his eyes. “Mage and templar… we are not so unalike, ultimately. No one deserves to suffer so. I only wish to help heal where I am able, and… well. Former templars hold a special place in my heart, as I am sure you know well. I wasn’t able to be there for Cullen in his darkest times, but the rest of you… I will do my best.”

Regill

1. “You are… a most curious individual,” he remarked with equal parts awe and consternation.

2. “Yes,” he agreed, “and in so doing, you put yourself at needless risk. The crusade cannot be left without its commander. Your survival is vital. The survival of individual soldiers—” he gave her a piercing, meaningful look that cut her to her core—“is not.”

3. “Admiration of the flesh?” he asked, raising an eyebrow. “A frivolous pursuit.”

4. “It’s… fine,” he said hesitantly. “The gold is—” his eyes flicked back down to the pendant and darted about her torso before returning to hers “—nice.”

5. “No?” he asked in such a smug tone that she couldn’t tell if she was smiling more indignantly or out of enjoyment. “Then consider this a trial. One of many.”

6. “Yes,” he said vaguely. “Good morning.” He sat up with a grimace and added, “It will be a better morning once we’re away from this accursed place.”

7. “I’m holding them to perfectly reasonable standards,” he insisted, “and we will all be better off for it. Society—and even more so, our crusade against the Abyss—cannot survive mercy.” She recoiled as if he had slapped her, and he added bitterly, “What did you expect? I’m a Hellknight. An officer. You didn’t really think I was any different, did you?”

8. “This will make us a more effective unit,” he remarked in a dispassionate tone that was completely at odds with how flustered she had become.

9. “Not going to take the word of an angel from your precious Heaven, Prelate?”

10. He frowned slightly, then said, “I had no intention of killing someone who means so much to you, even if I cannot understand what it is you see in him. His current state does not warrant death. Not yet. I will further admit that I do, however, have several contingency plans in place should that change.”

11. “You’re very perceptive,” he remarked with a touch of affectionate annoyance. “One of the many things I love about you.”

12. “Perhaps I shouldn’t say that too often, after all,” he said with an uncertain little smile. “If it’s going to make you cry…”

13. “I don’t consider myself to have fallen,” he said. “In fact, I consider this an improvement by all standards.”

14. “I think I can excuse their lack of discipline under the circumstances,” he said with a smirk that soon turned into a smile. “Besides, I’ve learned how important cheer and good hope can be for morale—so long as it is built upon a sturdy foundation of discipline.”

15. The Hellknight fixed him with a look that could kill, and while his words were directed at Isanna, he remained staring at Billiver as he said through gritted teeth, “You may lie with this creature of chaos if you so desire. I, however, will have no part in it.”