#oc:vitani

[vitanithepure]

Patch 5 epilogue spoilers under the cut.

Wait..."teaching robes"? 👀

TEACHING ROBES. He. Is. A. Teacher.

Gods I love the domestic Gale so much. I love the whole exchange they have.

I love the kiss!

Aaand I am a bit sad the orb scarring is gone...but then again, he *is* healed, on so many levels.

I love them so much, a truly perfect ending for them 😭💜

[vitanithepure]

Fun!

Vitani - The Sorcerous Sun 🌞

Adeim - The Wayward Son 🗡️

My friend and I have been coming up with quest names for our various tavs (a la The Pale Elf and The Wizard of Waterdeep) and actually I'm having a little too much fun with it. So here's my list:

Auric - The Golden Brother

Naught - A Kindness of Ravens

Ciaran - The Silent Songbird

Jinx - The Wild Magician

Amaris - The Mirrored Moon

[terrapia]

Please, V... Ugh, fine.

Vitani and her :･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧attitude:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧ everytime Evelyn's right.

[vitanithepure]

It seems this time around Vitani has a very... complicated relationship with Astarion. And it's giving them whiplash because it goes from absolutely insincere interaction like:

Which Vitani really begins to enjoy, because there is no venom in his constant bemoaning and a lot of fun to be had in playful quips once they stop taking them at face value.

But the next night they get hit with:

And suddenly it's no fun and games, it hurts... because he's right. How else to explain 200 years of this and nobody catching wind of what's going on in a lord's mansion in Baldur's Gate? Cazador Szarr is a prominent figure, and people powerful enough to know him... did nothing. Somebody had to know, you cannot stay hidden in a city this big without someone wanting to help you stay hidden.

Their perception of reality is being challenged, because a week ago Vitani was safe as one of the nobles, the Flaming Fist could do no wrong, and the city was safe, governed by the Dukes and patriars of Baldur's Gate. And the truth is...

The strong really did fail Astarion. Vitani won't give him their word to keep him safe, not to just be reminded again they are in no position to make such promises.

But they promise themselves to become strong enough to be able to help the next Astarion they meet.

[vitanithepure]

I wanted to make a coherent, long-winded post about what this means to me and what it means to Vitani, but I'm so helplessly emotional just looking at the screenshots I took yesterday that I'll just drop them here and let them speak.

"You don't have to die."

and

"You don't need to impress me, Gale. I'm no deity."

"Yes, you are. Trust me, I would know."

Will forever and ever get me.

[vitanithepure]

Irrelevance. There is no hidden trauma behind this fear, Vitani doesn't care for being a hero, but wants to be remembered in some way. Wants to make a difference in someone's life. Wants to matter to someone.

Another one:

Tell me, what is your Tav's greatest fear? Can be from spiders to failure, I wanna know what makes them shake in their boots- outside of their current perils. And do they have a reason for these fears?

Delight- Heights. Saw a man fall from a mountain path by a simple strong wind when she was still working with a big smuggling ring. Ever since she gets the jeebies around long falls.

Iker- Being eaten alive. He's seen it happen and because of Back Story Reasons, so he would rather bite his tongue and die before being eaten alive.

Rowan- Loss of control. They're very conscious of how the world perceives them and its opinion of them, so the thought of losinc control of themselves and acting against the image and reputation they've built so far is horrifying.

Zlatan- Undiscovered. He has lived thus far with very few attachments and even if he walks a different path from his people he was still raised a stalwart githyanki warrior so death is a paltry fear to him. Perhaps with new companions this will change...

Briallen- Watching someone they love die, helpless. Yeah this is the thing that keeps her up at night and afraid of opening her heart to someone. It's happened once and completely defined her life till this point. Never again.

[vitanithepure]

Matching earrings!

Oops, totally didn't notice where we are, what a coincidence...

@iamaweretoad thank you so much for enabling me.

[vitanithepure]

Oh gods, the camera angles and positioning since the last patch is being... weird.

Look at them dramatic theater kids.

[vitanithepure]

I enjoy poking inside Vitani's brain. They are such a mess I don't even want to begin putting things back into place, let them do the heavy lifting.

For example, the Weave scene plays so wonderfully into their insecurities. I picture it going roughly as this:

Like, yeah, I don't care much about this guy, but I'm a people pleaser and he seems worried. Oh, who's that lady over there? Seems personal, maybe I'll just go back and...

And before they know it, they walk over and start up a conversation.

So they learn that the haughty wizard is actually very passionate about magic, and can be really nice and patient. And a considerate teacher, unlike the tutors they had back in Baldur’s Gate. Gale shows them the Weave as he perceives it and allows them to connect the way they see fit, through their own experiences.

And it takes just a drop of that kindness to make them euphoric and foolish enough to imagine things that are absolutely asinine. Hand holding. On a walk. With Gale. Gods, why doesn’t the ground just open up and swallow them whole to save them from the embarrassment?

And honestly, I don’t know who made whom more of a stuttering mess here, but Gale certainly finished it more gracefully. At least he pretended everything was okay.

And because they are a sucker for punishment they had to bring it all up the next day and...

...wait, there are things to come???

[vitanithepure]

I hope so!

Oh, you are talking about the owlbear, aren't you...

[vitanithepure]

This is what happens when you hyperfixate with mutuals. I am not taking resposibility.

[vitanithepure]

I did it! I finally licked the spider!

It was good while it lasted I guess 😂

[vitanithepure]

Say what you want about Astarion, but for all his bark there is little to no actual bite. Or perhaps Vitani is too pathetically naive and he just feels sorry for them?

Either way that's their own brand of friendship, even if they would both scream "we're not friends!!" at me right now.

[vitanithepure]

So... this happened.

And now someone will be left crying and I'm not ready for this. 😭

Karlach was just so happy, and enthusiasm like this is so catching, and Vitani was overwhelmed by all those good things that were happening and... Karlach was so considerate, I didn't even know you can ask her to just lie there with you and...and...

This will be awful for someone and Vitani will never let themselves live it down 😭

[vitanithepure]

I totally forgot how abysmally bad was their first impressions of each other.

Stop making Vitani sad and insecure, Gale - a challenge.

[vitanithepure]

Okay, fine, Larian doesn't want to fix Gale's romance in game, and I am not ready to let go of my fixation just yet.

*grumble, grumble* Larian forcing me to write my own Vitani/Gale romance. Unbelievable.

840+ words of pure self-indulgent fluff under the cut because I have no self control. No spoilers.

They didn’t go far, just enough to still hear their companions’ laughter and merrymaking over a shared meal, but enough to be alone. Vitani loved them dearly, but there were other people that they also used to share that time with, and now it’s not even sure if they are okay.

Their parents. Their brother and his family. With all the information from Baldur’s Gate coming in, there was a lot on Vitani’s mind, most of it bad. Some downright tragic.

“We took notice of your absence at supper. Is something the matter? It’s unusual for you to wander off like this.”

They would berate themselves for the lack of caution while out alone on unfamiliar ground, but Gale’s presence and attention never failed to make them forget the world around. Even more so, when he sits down beside them on the grass and puts a warm, comforting hand over their shoulders.

In turn, they lean in and put their head under his chin and everything seems better at this moment.

“I miss home, Gale. It isn’t far from here, but somehow it makes me miss it more.” 

“What do you miss the most about it?”

“Our cozy little garden. We used to share meals there, on sunny days. I don’t even know the name of the flowers, just remember how beautiful they were in bloom,” Vitani slowly disengaged from the embrace, looking away, “but it’s a silly notion, I shouldn’t feel so sorry for myself when we all have to deal with…everything.”

“Just a few nights ago, I felt so homesick and alone that I almost let it coerce me into giving up on the entirety of this. On me. On us,” he reached out to touch their face, gently turning their head towards his. “But you know that. You were there with me, brave in the face of my own foolishness.” 

He placed a lingering kiss on Vitani’s forehead, taking his time to smell their hair, a fragrance of lilacs and something that reminded him of sunshine - a scent distinctly theirs. Gale felt their smile under his palm, and it was the sweetest feeling to know he can do that - make them happy.

“It’s a good night for a bit of indulgence. The Weave is just here, waiting for you to paint a picture with it. And I would love nothing more than to see your lovely garden, just as you remember it.”

He stood up, helping them to their feet as well, and there was no disagreeing with that encouraging smile of his, those soulful, dark eyes. 

“Fine, but if I burn the forest down, I’m pinning this all on you,” and gods, Gale’s laugh, no matter how small, was worth every silly thing they ever did or said.

Vitani closed their eyes, reaching out for the Weave came to them as naturally as breathing but going back to those blissful moments from their past? There were horrors so profound between now and then they needed to sift through, but it’s easier when warm fingers entwine with theirs. 

They find the right place and time, the perfect summer day in Baldur’s Gate, and begin their work. A stroke of a hand to visualize the arbor, covered with grapevines over the entrance from the house, another to grow the old birch tree in the middle of the garden. All the pieces coming together.

And when Vitani’s eyes open again, they are both home…standing in father’s favorite patch of purple flowers. Oh, there would be hell to pay, but he isn’t here now. Gale is, though, and lets out a sigh of wonder at the luminescent creation before him. 

Because maybe it was their lack of skill, or maybe a fluke of wild magic coursing through their veins, but the illusion didn’t exactly show the garden as they saw it. Instead of broad daylight, it was glowing in the moonlight, giving off a silvery aura of its own. It was…

“...breathtaking.” Gale swept his hand over the nearby lilac shrub, its leaves shimmering at the touch. “It’s missing something, though. Well, two things to be exact, but first…”

Just looking at his effortless gesture, one would think it is he who had innate powers of controlling magic. But that was all his own brilliance, a passion shaped into art. Into a mesmerizing display of a swarm of butterflies, their wings iridescent, glowing in blues and purples. They flew all around them, spreading around the illusionary garden. 

“As for the second thing…,” when Vitani turned to face him, Gale was already looking at them. All the surrounding lights reflecting in his eyes, highlighting the silvers in his hair, making him look as ethereal as the scenery surrounding them. 

All they could hope for is that he sees the same when he looks back at them. That he sees the same care and devotion in their gaze. Because there is nothing beside this between them when their lips meet, here in this magical garden of their doing. Just love, wandering hands, and butterflies fluttering around their hearts.