#thedosian language

[theodosiani]

Thinking about the possibility that elvhen came after dwarven and may have even been something invented and came into common parlance during the Titan Wars specifically.

[dieverged]

NIMA & LANGUAGES.

During their time traveling, whether it is slipping through the cracks and seams of another world or roaming their own land both familiar and unfamiliar, they take great care in notekeeping things of interest. Do they keep one journal or many? Few can say, and Nima ever reticent hides her truths behind a smile. If you were to chance a glance, a great many notes flood beige pages, intelligible in a messy hand only they can read── Terms and phrases, meanings, often accompanied by questions! Some separated into sections, specifically in the case of Elvish and Orlesian which each have their own pages allotted to them. Their notes are held as loose study guides, picked up from primarily from listening and speaking; both a means of interest, curiosity and fascination, and safety to best camouflage themselves with the world around. A people person through and through, Nima does what they can to envelop themselves in the land and culture of those who are willing to share their insights.

They prioritize verbal chiefly above written, though they do attempt to seek what knowledge they can find and taking notes down as they can; copying scripture as best as they can to piece together as they find out more. As you can imagine, this often results in a fair bit of crosses, scribbles, and disjointed connections that only they make across the entirety of their journals. They always keep an eye, ear, and hand out. Sneaking to grasp at scrolls, literature, tablets and landmarks.

In the presence of a native speaker, someone willing to teach, that is one of the few times where she is willing to allow view of certain pages; unless she is feeling particularly indulgent. Otherwise, while she would certainly enjoy reading various scriptures or practicing her hand, she focuses primarily on speaking── Not proficient by any means, but she uses what she can if she finds the company amenable. Common is her default, otherwise. A lot of the time, she will take various sources and accounts to help her, never afraid to ask questions.

Regarding Elvish, in her travels she has happened upon City and Dalish elves alike, picking up what she can from both. Granted not all have been welcoming and she never overstays, but there have definitely been some who've entertained her queries. Dalish clans more tolerant of humans is where a good portion of her knowledge comes from, and in kind she offers little pieces of information from her various travels, substituting what she lacks from memories forgotten to any interested! Language, culture, history and religion are things she has picked up from City and Dalish alike, scarce though it is, and has made a few ally's in so doing.

The same can be said for Orlesian, the fair few she has met who are willing to engage with her endless intrigue. Orlesian is a language she can speak ... perhaps mildly conversationally? Enough to get her where she needs to be, more or less. She isn't adept at either, and less so for any languages further outside of Fereldan and Orlais aside from phrases she jots down, but she knows enough── With more of a grasp on Orlesian, as the Elvish she practices is often predicated on whether she is able to locate the few friend's she has made who are willing to teach.

This is not specific to just Thedas either; Across the many worlds she slips into, if she is there for long enough whatever the reasons may be, she will do her due diligence to embrace the languages and the cultures therein. She's also kind of a history buff, so the two go hand in hand for her. She enjoys having knowledge at her fingertips, and learning it is as thrilling to her as traveling!

During her Inquisition verses is where she learns a great deal more from the resources they have which she takes full advantage of. Whether she is a companion or Inquisitor, she spends a great deal of time studying. If she is a companion, on the days she is not accompanying the Inquisitor, is when she travels by her lonesome or slips into Skyhold's library for hours at a time. As the inquisitor, she has the benefit of being taught first hand as time allows for it, which it doesn't always ... that's not going to stop her though, lol. Going traveling early in the morn? She'll be in the library til midnight hours. Sneaking in lessons between meetings when she can, which has definitely caught a disapproving sigh or two, but she can't help it!

[anemonetea]

Truly back on my Dragon Age OC shiz again.

Aurélie du Gaullois is my bored Orlesian Park-Avenue-princess. She enjoys collecting puzzle boxes from across Thedas, decoding enemy missives, gossiping with her Mortalitasi bestie Albrecht, and laughing at her own jokes. (She's also Deaf, which lead to some fun Thedosian sign language headcanons!)

Also, pardon me but do you have a moment to talk about our Lord and Saviour ORLESIAN FASHION??? I got on a roll and couldn't stop. The Orlesian fashion concepts from DA:I are still fire and I'm never going to be over them.

[ammocharis]

One bit of obscure Dragon Age lore a day until Dragon Age: The Veilguard is released

The lands that lie south of the Korcari Wilds are a frozen wasteland dubbed the Sunless Lands. Most Thedosians think this place is too cold for mankind to survive. However, Brother Genitivi learns from the Chasind that the Sunless Lands are inhabited by a group of people called Agadi, which means "exile" in the Chasind language. Genitivi theorizes the Agadi have been expelled from the Korcari Wilds and splintered off into their own culture.

Source: Codex entry: The Korcari Wilds; Dragon Age: The World of Thedas, vol. 2, p. 131

Previous bit

[revoleotion]

okay so I am doing the felassan joins the inquisition AU. I forgot who started this so uh. I gotta find that post again to give full credit but here's the first few paragraphs of my wip

.

There is a new recruit in the Inquisition. It’s a tall elf with a vallaslin dedicated to Mythal etched into his serious features. His hair is soft, tied back behind his neck, and while his clothes suggest that he might’ve lived a life similar to the one Solas claims to have lived, he holds himself differently, with a certain maturity only a long life can teach you. He doesn’t lower his voice when he speaks, and while he respects authority–he does speak like someone all too familiar with hierarchy–his entire demeanor feels genuine, somehow.

He introduces himself as Felassan, which is a name that rolls off your tongue nicely when you address him with it. It stresses the phonetic markers of a language you barely speak, one that is lost to time and oppression, and it shakes a part of it awake again, gently pushing old, forgotten scraps of it into your hands, urging you to remember. On the rare occasions he speaks Elvish, he wields the language with more skill than any other elf you know, other than Solas, of course.

That is not to say that he doesn't understand the common tongue, or modern Thedosian culture. He is far more assimilated than Solas is. He dresses in nice robes that have a distinct Fereldan style to them, and if it weren’t for his vallaslin and ears, he would probably blend in perfectly with the other recruits.

He is nothing if not polite. He knows military tactics, and while Cullen is hesitant to listen to a complete stranger at first, you end up finding them in the Skyhold Courtyard from time to time, pouring over a map, moving figurines around and gesturing wildly. Felassan’s voice isn’t overly loud but it carries far without much effort.

Perhaps naturally, based on the perceived similarities Felassan expects them to have, he gravitates most towards Solas. Solas isn’t… well, it’s hard to say whether he is uncomfortable with this because Solas, as you’ve gotten to know him over the last few months, would rather die than discuss his feelings. You still remember the kiss, the sincerity of it, the way he held you; the way he immediately stepped away and fled, apologized, insisted that it wouldn’t work when you offered to try. Despite his unwillingness to show discomfort, it’s obvious that he’s not exactly a fan of Felassan following him around.

It never gets heated. All things considered, their opinions do align well enough. Solas never snaps at the man the way he does at Dorian. There is no awkward tip-toeing around the topic of identity and purpose either, the way he does it with Varric. He doesn’t try to convince Felassan of the value of ancient Elvhen knowledge like he does with Sera. You expected Solas to judge the man for being Dalish but it never even comes up. (Which is odd, considering that this was one of the first topics he breached with you.)

About a week after Felassan joined, you are starting to notice the tension between them. Solas sighs when Felassan brings up a Dalish legend about the Dread Wolf. Felassan turns to you, “Inquisitor, have I told you my favorite legend yet? Of the time the Dread Wolf lost his tail to a mabari?”

“Please don’t bother the Inquisitor with Dalish superstitions,” Solas says.

You reach out with your anchored hand to pat his arm. “It’s fine, Solas. No, I haven't heard of it yet. Why?”

Solas winces away from your touch.

“Felassan…”

“Yes, Solas?” Felassan interrupts smoothly, and there is something in the way he looks at Solas that makes you wince. There is too much emotion in that gaze, emotion you can’t grasp, no matter how hard you try.

Solas meets his eyes, and for a few seconds there's nothing but intense silence between them, all until the apostate turns away, his posture defeated.

“Nothing. Continue.”

[sha-brytols]

oc tag game

tagged by @stenshale i'm literally so bad about doing these normally but i love yapping about my ladies so ❤️ doing elnora for this since i like dont ever talk about her LOL

Name: Elnora Lavellan

Alias: do varrics nicknames count. Boots

Gender: sexy genderbent gijinka of Nick Wilde (female)

Sexual Orientation: Bisexual

Age: i'm not joking it changes everytime i write her but generally late 20s - early 30s. i know she doesnt look it inquisitions cc is a fucking nightmare for me ok?

Spoken Language: Elvish, Trade, I imagine Josephine got her to a diplomatic level of the major political languages (Antivan, Tevene, Orlesian, etc) but literally only the level needed to conduct politics

Occupation: Secondcoming of girl Jesus

FAVORITE:

Color: Green 💚

Entertainment: Booby trapping Cullen's room

Pastime: Booby trapping the Keeper's aravel

Food: (googles thedosian dishes)

yeah sure this

Drink: Mint tea

HAVE THEY...

Passed university: no she got kicked out for putting tacks on chairs

Had sex: Not in the game LMAO

Had sex in public: she got fucked hard by the exalted council in front of all of thedas does that count

Gotten tattoos: June vallaslin ❤️

Gotten piercings: Yes! She actually has these pretty feather earrings in Trespasser

Gotten scarred: In my canon the Anchor caused these huge jagged lightning strike scars to run all the way up from her left arm to her chest and collarbone. Also a scar on her lip from a nasty fight with a black wolf while she was still a hunter

Had a broken heart: yes and it was so embarrassing he's literally bald

ARE THEY...

A cuddler: Yes ❤️ She has no respect for personal space she is literally constantly touching people

Scared easily: Nope! If anything she's something of a thrillseeker

Jealous easily: No LOL literally the most laidback partner you can imagine

Trustworthy: Yes she's also incredibly honest and has a very clear moral center. The problem is literally everyone around her seems to have a lot of fucking personal issues and never listens to her .

FAMILY:

Parents/siblings: Orphan, but she has a very close paternal relationship to the clan's craftmaster

Children: Varric won the custody battle over Cole unfortunately. sad!

Pets: She has a halla named Dhul'iana (hair eater. her name is hair eater.)

tagging @thewardenisonthecase @mournmage @vanilladella @kirkwallguy @cacturne and im missing a lot of people but its ok im gonna do this again with esther xoxo

[marvelous-goose]

Meet my Rook game !!

I was tagged by @nonagesimus (sorry for not seeing this until just now !!!) and I'm tagging @tinylilemrys and @steppenwolfslair :3

GENERAL

Name: Jasper Thorne

Alias(es): Rook, Jas (but only by his twin sister, Emmy)

Gender: Trans man

Age: 27 when Veilguard begins

Place of Birth: Fenhold, in the Hossberg Wetlands

Spoken Languages: Common and a bunch of elaborate Orlesian curses he learned from Lorant and Antoine (he understands generally what they mean but could not use them in a sentence to save his life)

Sexual Orientation: Bisexual

Love Interest(s): Lucanis, @nonagesimus's Ayden de Riva, @theesteppenwolf's Lorant Thorne

Occupation: Grey Warden

FAVORITE

Color: Indigo

Entertainment: I'm gonna be so real with you, I don't think Jasper has much in the way of entertainment beyond daring his Warden friends to arm-wrestle in the canon setting. Although I do think he quite enjoys music when he goes out drinking. In a modern AU, he's definitely a fan of medical dramas and procedurals (he watches them with his mom & they shit-talk the nonsense plotlines)

Pastime: Card games, but especially solitaire when he needs to turn his brain off for a bit and focus on something that isn't whatever is bothering him. Nature walks and gardening--he and his mom had a beautiful herb garden growing up.

Food: Shepherd's pie, or whatever the thedosian equivalent would be

Drink: Herbal tea with honey, or black coffee if Lucanis is making it. In terms of alcohol, whatever's the cheapest.

Books: The corniest, pulpiest fiction nonsense you could possibly imagine, or the densest magical tome. No in between.

HAVE THEY

Passed university: Does joining the Grey Wardens count as passing university? (I think in a modern AU, he'd at least get his AA.)

Scared easily: Nope

Jealous easily: Not in the context of a romantic relationship.

Trustworthy: Jasper defaults to trusting most people a little bit. How you use that trust determines how much trust he's gonna give you moving forward.

FAMILY

Siblings: One, a twin sister named Emmeline (Emmy for short). He's ~8 minutes older than her. They are technically identical twins, but since Jasper is trans, it's not like most people can tell.

Parents: Teresa "Tess" Thorne and Jack Thorne. Jack died when Jasper and Emmy were about seven years old; Tess is still alive.

Children: None.

Pets: None.

[octosan]

kcwriter-blog I agree. He wasn’t the same guy. Also while I believe Solas would kill a friend, I don’t think he would stab him the back. It’s just out of character. So a Felassan is just another way for the devs to say “no he really is a bad guy”

Well and the other thing is that Solas' reasons for killing Felassan don't even make sense to me now.

I know a lot of people go #JusticeForFelassan and point out that "Betrayal of Felassan" refers to Solas betraying Felassan and not the other way around and like, I do vibe with that? But by telling Solas that he was not going to take the eluvians and suggesting that they just give this world a chance, Felassan literally did betray him. He essentially told him, in couched language, that he was not going to prioritize the ancient elves over modern Thedosians anymore.

Obviously it is a good thing that Felassan did this and that's not something he needs to be criticized for (though I kind of wish we'd gotten confirmation that he feels this way about all elves and not just Briala's people, because whew the sheer contempt he had for the Dalish-) but in a version of the story where Solas believes he must destroy Thedas for the sake of his own people, it makes sense to me for him to have killed Felassan for this, because Felassan is literally a threat to his cause now. And furthermore, the vibe from that scene in the story was that Felassan knew very well that Solas would kill him for this. He chose to go there after considering hiding from him forever, the narrative says that he knew going in that nothing he said would be enough. So whether or not Solas literally stabbed him from behind is immaterial imo.

Killing him mid-sentence was to me also symptomatic to how Solas Cannot view modern Thedosians as people because of how much harder that would make what he feels he has to do. Not to keep pointing to that Solavellan evidence here but that's reflected in the Cole banter after the break-up. "You're real and so everyone could be, it changes everything but it can't." Solas will also admit to a friendly Inquisitor that having accepted that Thedosians are people will "not make what must come next any easier".

Briala CAN'T remind Felassan of him. Solas CAN'T find Briala's goals sympathetic. Because if he does, how is he supposed to be okay with destroying everything she's working for when he brings the Veil down? And yet he MUST bring the Veil down or he would be betraying his own people too.

Now that Veilguard has removed the ancient elves from the narrative entirely and retconned him into just blindly hoping that all modern elves benefit from the Veil coming down, he and Felassan want the exact same thing (for modern elves to have a chance.) So now his killing him has been reduced to (essentially) a petty disagreement on how to help modern elves, and Solas killing Felassan mid-sentence a symptom of him just... rashly killing people? Rather than him decisively doing what he feels he must for the sake of people who actually exist and need him.

[ms-katonic-of-tamriel]

Veilguard

Still haven't played it but I am thinking the New Year may change that because I am already thinking a potential fic.

Specifically Age of the Dragon sequel.

It's set about 14 years after Corypheus's death, and Elisif will be 44 by this point, Empress of Tamriel, obviously not participating personally as she's got a country to run, a superpower no less, and she's had other kids in the intervening years who aren't even teenagers yet, she can't just leave them and as Empress she is too well-protected for portal accidents... and makes state visits rarely. Also with Embassies everywhere, she wouldn't stay a mysterious stranger with no resources for long.

However, you know who is the perfect adventuring age by this point?

MAIA AND THE TWINS. Maia's 20. The twins are 18. Maia enrolled in the Arcane university age 16, did a four year MThaum, just graduated, now on a gap year in Tevinter, partly to help cement diplomatic relations and partly to get a handle on Tevinter magical techniques. The twins were sent to live in the Reach at age 13 because Kaie wanted to actually acquaint them with the country and their heritage and Cicero could cope with the hormones no longer. Lia's been training with the ReachGuard since age 14, while Ria has been training with Auntie Keirine.

Meaning we've even got the VG mage specialties covered - Evoker for Maia, Spellblade for Lia, Death Caller for Ria. And of course they're all trained Thu'um-wielders.

The twins went with Maia to keep her company and also because they were curious too and Kaie was keen to find out just what Tevinter was like and more about the magic. All three, thanks to their Inquisition days, remember how to speak basic Thedosian, kept their hand in with books in the language, practice with visitors from time to time and pick up more once actually there.

Needless to say, Dorian's been back there for some time and is happy to host them at his Minrathous town house. Ralof there too with Frodnar, now 30ish and Dorian's officially adopted heir - both men took Dorian's name. Dorian and Ralof both in their forties too.

Miraak is Tamrielic Ambassador to Tevinter - switched countries once the idea to have Maia study there got floated. Lucien and Ria the Elder are both with him - Lucien is now his legal husband and very keen to find out more on Kal-Sharok, Orzammar having exhausted its knowledge. Maybe Kieran's there too.

Don't know how the plot would actually work, especially without Solas. But I can see Maia going on some academic excavation and unleashing something she shouldn't.

Cicero not involved, he's in his sixties and retired, looking after the twins' cats. But Eola's only in her forties, and the Black Rose is actually looking younger what with being part-Daedra now, so guess what they're both candidates for being involved.

Alistair might well show up, he's definitely watching. Perhaps he's sent Barbas along as eyes and ears. And we know Morrigan's canonically involved.

Just need to get round to playing the thing now.

[lucaniseyebrowlicker]

I use Italian for Antivan in fics solely because I speak Italian fairly well, and have a cultural understanding of the language not just an academic one. So while discussing Italian swears that capture the casual blasphemy of say, “Andraste’s Holy Cabbage” in Discord, I remembered porco Giuda (pig Judas) and decided the Thedosian/Antivan equivalent would be

Porco Maferato

[guacamolleee]

hey lee!! for the flower prompts, how about Iris for Sabine, Lilac for Mirevas, and Moss for Thana? And/or Myrtle for any/all of them?

hi vivi!!!! thanks for asking <3 <3 <3

(from the flower ask meme)

Iris: Is Rook religious? Are there any moments in their past that made them come to this decision?

Sabine goes to the Chantry on Sundays but doesn't pay attention, it's more of a force of habit, really. Though, if/when she eventually figures out The Viper is the Black Divine she might have a conniption lol

Lilac: What is one of Rook’s happiest memories?

Among their happiest, for Mirevas, it would probably be when they and Neve had coffee with Lucanis after his personal quest. It's the committment scene that goes a little different because it's the three of them. They finally figured it out, and Mirevas is on cloud nine for days

Moss: Does Rook remember their mother?

Thana actually has two mothers! Not that she knows, she remembers neither of them lol

Fun fact! This is purely self-indulgent (and lore breaking) but her mothers aren't Thedosian! They're my OCs set in an original world of my friend's novel (they even get a reference!). There's a whole angst bit how one of her mothers was poisoned then died, along with (allegedly) Thana herself as a baby (obviously she doesn't die and ends up isekai'd in Thedas. It's a whole thing)

Myrtle: How does Rook’s life (and potentially their partner’s life) change if they have children and/or get married?

I don't imagine Mirevas marrying either Neve or Lucanis. They are ultimately a free soul that goes wherever the wind takes them. But the three of them are in a committed relationship, and they don't think marriage is particularly important. They ping pong between Minrathous, Treviso, Rivain, and Arlathan to see each other, wherever their respective jobs take them — and it's enough. And while I don't think the three of them would have any biological children, Mirevas has a very soft spot for orphans and street urchins (reminds them of themself), so they eventually get a gaggle of them.

Sabine and Davrin, post-Veilguard with the Blight gone, would eventually settle in Arlathan with the Veil Jumpers, helping Endrin out with the griffons and keeping Assan happy by keeping him close to his siblings. It's quite a change for Sabine, who was a city girl all her life, but Davrin helps her ease into it because he's a gentleman (though he's probably laughing at her half the time). I imagine they eventually marry in a Dalish ceremony, Sabine stumbling her way through the Elvhen vows, human tongue not quite used to the way the words are shaped. But she's going to do them! She practiced for weeks, and it's like a song, there's a rhythm to the language that she can recognize as a singer. As for children, I haven't really decided one way or another for these two. But we'll see!

Now Thana… Thana gets the whole marriage and kids with Emmrich. She's wanted a family all her life. She's been handed off from one person to another growing up, no one to call her own and belonging to no one in return, except probably to the Necropolis itself. So she marries Emmrich as soon as she can (once she gets brave enough to propose). They live together in his large apartments in the Necropolis in domestic bliss, Emmrich going back to his teaching duties, and Thana turning to mortuary practice. When Emmrich eventually goes before her, she's the one who will take care of his body, lovingly embalming and dressing him, preparing him for burial in a family mausoleum they had commissioned a few years back. He'll be interred next to his parents who were transferred to that mausoleum once it was finished. But anyway, they have at least two children (besides Manfred), one of them is Elannora (Nell or Nellie), named after Emmrich's mother (he absolutely cried when Thana suggested it) and a younger boy (that I'm still thinking of a name for). I'm toying with the idea of a third that ends in tragedy but we'll see.

[ndostairlyrium]

Hey ho, my lovely. How about 14, 22, and 30 for Ellie from the Rook Questionnaire?

*stamps a kiss onto my screen* hellouuuu ** <3

taking advantage of this to say that I'm enjoying A LOT seeing all the snippets of Eury and all the parallels you're finding during your playthrough, it's super cool!!

Rook Questionnaire

14: What hobbies does your Rook have?

Already replied here and here

22: What languages is your character fluent in?

Nevarran and trade, but he can pick up words related to Fade, Spirits, and magic pretty much in any language.

Also lemme complain for a moment about this mess lmao I don't know what's the deal with languages in Thedas anymore and it's so exhausting trying to make it make sense :'D because sometimes they are already existing languages without the cultural baggage a language should have, other times it's a cypher, but then we have two languages from the same family mixed together poorly (without considering that both languages have variations scattered throughout the globe and dialects), and sometimes they don't even exist (nevarran + anders not found but somehow they're both german, like wtf?!?). Sigh.

30: What's your favorite thing about your Rook?

I'm having so much fun detailing him! He's chaotic, borderline unhinged, and incredibly awkward. Also, his behaviour is so contradictory yet I can pinpoint easily the reason why he's acting like a line graph rather than being a straight line (does it make sense?).

I think my favorite thing so far is how immediate and in-the-moment he is about things. Like, Ela is selfless, Hawke is nurturing, Ankh is neurot- farsighted... and then we have the thedosian equivalent of this meme

He's irredeemably reckless :' he doesn't think twice and just dives head first into any situation. Consequences? I don't know her. Let's put our fingers inside the power socket and see what happens

I love everything about this!

[ammocharis]

One bit of obscure Dragon Age lore a day until Dragon Age: The Veilguard is released

Crystal Grace has a meaning in Thedosian flower language - it symbolizes parting. It may be used in floral arrangements made for funerals.

Source: Short story: The Wake

Previous bit

[longer-than-i-should-admit]

Just thought of the saddest fucking headcanon for the time between Trespasser and Veilguard for Solas and Sibyl. Oh god. Y’all don’t mind me I’m just sobbing over here in the corner about my babies.

Sibyl is a prolific, fine cook. She handles most of the meals when they traveled because she enjoys it so much (as cooking for others and giving them some pleasure/peace/nostalgia is her love language) and figured out easily on that was a good way to “carry her weight” (since it took her a while to pick up on combat and felt guilty for relying on the others). She recreates dishes from the various Thedosian cultures as she learns about them (especially ones mentioned by her companions) and experiments with the ingredients she has available to her in the field. She figures out all their favorite meals and desserts and spoils every single one of them rotten because she just cares about them all and appreciates their help so much. They are the best fed twelve people in Thedas and their misfitting clothes show for it.

I headcanon that Solas doesn’t know how to cook a whole lot (besides maybe the most basic of meals for sustenance only) because I don’t see him as being a big eater. He misses being a spirit. He never wanted a body. I can totally envision him struggling to eat regardless, then add a thousand years of uthenara on top of that (which probably made him severely malnourished) to make it even more difficult to readjust. He likes sweets we know, and spicy foods, but as thin as he is in Inquisition versus how he fills out in Veilguard makes me think he wasn’t talking very good care of himself perhaps beyond what was strictly necessarily for recuperating his mana pool (plus I think he was actively mourning, connecting to my headcanon that he shaves his head for the same reason—Mythal, Felassan, the Veil, Arlathan being lost, the spirits trapped in the Fade…the list goes on).

Sibyl picks up on it immediately. She sees him push food around on his plate to give the appearance of having eaten it. She thinks it’s just pickiness at first, personal preference (because let’s be real, the Singing Maiden probably doesn’t have the most robust of menus—understandably so), so once she gets ahold of the campfire she starts making dishes she always loved at home to see what her companions like the best. And she notices, with some bemusement, that Solas eats everything she hands him. He mops up all the juices or sauces with the different types of breads she bakes. And, eventually, when she keeps asking him if he’d like to have seconds (to which at first he denied—Pride, remember?), he begins to ask for them on his own with polite words, composed posture, and unexpectedly earnest eyes. This takes a while, seeing as he can be stuffy around the other companions, but over time he just doesn’t care anymore. Her food is that good. If they can ask for seconds, he can, too.

Something something, “The dog that bites you because it is rabid is not the dog that bites you because it is starving.” Something something, “You may kill either, but one is just a few scraps of meat away from being your faithful servant.” Is this anything?

He puts on weight. He finds it easier and easier to rebuild his physique and mana reserve, no longer growing so fatigued and ill with the rigorous exertions involving almost constant travel and combat. Sibyl’s is the only food he readily trusts by the time they get to Skyhold. If she cooks for her Inner Circle (which she does often), you had best believe that his ass will be in that seat directly to her left; she always sends out messages in the mornings to they’ll all have ample time and notice, and he’ll spend all day long anticipating what she’ll make. He always makes it a point to fill her plate before he ever fills his, even though she protests it at times and tries to do the same for him. He reminds her that the cook should be rewarded for her hard work, and if she insists on doing the dishes afterwards and he doesn’t have any pressing research to conduct, he’ll help her.

The moment she discovers his sweet tooth? It’s over. It’s so over for him. She picks up on it fairly quickly, but she doesn’t know its full extent until he shares a memory of Arlathan with her for the first time. This happens much later in the timeline, once they’ve been established as very close and good friends—he’s trusted her enough to have met Wisdom, and she’s going through a deep depressive spell and can’t conjure any good memories of her own to protect herself in the Fade from the demons more likely to stalk her emotions being away from Skyhold where Solas has almost complete control. He’s been debating on showing her some of his own better memories since she’s been so open to showing him her world, but he’s always so afraid of accidentally letting slip who he really is because she’s so perceptive about things and he doesn’t know how far her insight extends. It’s difficult for him to remember anything good of Arlathan, but her buying him some of those frilly little cakes from Val Royeaux reminds him of his favorite patisserie in Arlathan. So—his best friend, who is the person he has been the closest to trusting in over a thousand years and has treated him better than anyone else he has every known, is so so sad and nothing that usually works is helping—he decides to share this with her. He is meticulous about removing himself from the memory as best as he can, showing it to her and taking the place of himself so she doesn’t realize he was actually there, and it works. She has been utterly fascinated with elvhen history since she first met him and to actually see Elvhen’an? Even the comparatively smallest fraction of it? She’s infatuated with it. She’s studying each detail like she’s trying to memorize it, treasuring each mundane element Solas had forgotten. He missed the shop, certainly, as it was a moment of respite he often sought, but he’d never really thought about the plants that the baker kept in the windowsills or how lovely, delicate, and colorful all the crystalline display dishes were. His memories are vivid enough he’s able to share his favorite dessert with her so she can experience the taste. He makes an off-hand comment, almost stumbling—from the sight of her in the height of Elvhen’an, when things were at relative peace, standing under the shimmer of golden sunlight streaming in through the windows and studying each item with that curious, glittering gaze he has come to so adore, clothed in the finest sage Arlathenian robes to match his silver ones to befit the setting more, and…he almost forgets she was not there, she is not one of the People (spirit or elvhen), and that he could not allow himself the weakness she so effortlessly and unwittingly invokes in him—and saying he wishes he could taste them. He caught the damning “again” just before it slipped off his tongue. He amends it, perhaps a little more hastily than he should have, in the waking world, citing that whomever had such a strong recollection of this place dearly loved its products.

Sibyl notes it. She cleans as much information as she can from the dream before he releases it. And then she spends a full day the next time she’s able to in Skyhold’s bakery trying to replicate it. Solas is elbows deep in his latest mural when she marches into the rotunda with a brilliant, giddy grin and sets a cloche onto his desk with all the flourish of the Orlesian court’s head chef. Solas is caught so off-guard he kind of floats over, in shock, confounded by the idea that she would have gone through so much pointless effort just for him. They look the same. They smell the same. They taste almost exactly the same (he cannot fault her for the ingredients that may have gone extinct in several thousand years—between the Evanuris’ gluttony for excess and the five Blights, many things were lost). Pride incarnate has the hardest time withholding the tears welling on his lash line at bay while he eats it in silence, closing them to savor the nostalgia bombarding and buffeting him like a monsoon.

“Are they all right?” Sibyl asks tentatively, her voice quietened from her prior enthusiasm at his lack of an outward response. “I thought I got pretty close, but maybe I added too much salt or sugar—”

“Ea gaelathen,” Solas interrupts her gently but firmly. He clears his throat, feeling somewhat silly for having such a reaction to a food of all things, and offers her his signature polite smile—although he suspects it is not as composed as he would prefer. Nevertheless, he allows his gratitude to shine through freely—that he dearly owed her. “Serranasan ma, emma falon,” he tells her. “This is—exactly how I expected it to be.” He swallows and sets the parchment with its crumbs gingerly on top of his work surface amongst the pigments she gifted him for Wintersend and the books she hounded requisitions to acquire for him for weeks just because he had off-handedly mentioned the titles being difficult to come by—things granted him strictly out of the benevolence of her heart without expecting anything in return. “You did not have to go to the trouble. You are busier than ever.”

“Ara melava son’ganem,” she tells him with a smile and an affectionate, warm tone that brooked no argument. “It’s something you wanted, and something that I could try to give you. That’s that.”

“Ma nuvenin,” he murmurs. It struck him then how terribly he wished he could touch her—even casually, as did the others. Josephine thought nothing of asking her up into a hug, and Iron Bull nearly knocked her down with how often he slapped her on the back. She was free with her touches, too worsen it—Solas recalled each time she had absentmindedly brushed arms with him, skimmed her hand across his back if she were passing behind him in a tight space, glanced her fingers against his while exchanging books or papers or items, gently steadied him if he was injured or weakened in the field as clearly as the bakery itself. She sought hands to hold when she was at her lowest, and he no longer hesitated to let her borrow his. She did not know how much blood stained them, but she also did not know how much more he would spill to keep her safe.

So it is a twist of fortune and torture both that she opens her arms and waits for him to mirror the gesture before hugging him tight. Her considerate grace and unknowing cruelty caused her only to retract once he pulled away first—which took him a frankly mortifying and shameful amount of time and effort to do so for fear of her seeing the way his lip trembled before he ground his teeth and ignored it.

“All you need do is ask if you ever have a special request,” she tells him quietly. “Being reminded of even the smallest joys can bring the light back to the darkest of nights. Thank you for sharing it with me.”

“I will remember that,” he says softly.

He does. He remembers his favorite of her meals as acutely as the pain of leaving her, the Inner Circle (his first true friends, he is forced to acknowledge when the loneliness becomes almost too much to bear), Skyhold, and the Inquisition. No matter which restaurant or tavern or bakery he slips into to indulge in a meal beyond what his meager, lackluster capabilities could conjure, nothing tastes the same. It’s never as good. It is flavorful, certainly, in most cases, but it tastes just as hollow and unappetizing as it did before he met her. The enjoyment is gone.

He tries to replicate some of them and always fails. He can never seem to quite get it right—too little pepper, too much salt, not enough of something he can never place a finger on. He gives up after a year. Cured and pre-prepared foods become his go-to. (Looking at you, unknown jerky in the Lighthouse larder.)

He wants her soups and breads and pastas and salads and cupcakes and cookies and pies and he relives the memories of those raucous, at times aggravating dinners down in the private dining hall in the belly of Skyhold just to savor the remnants of those flavors once more. He always tells himself it will be the last time, that it is pointless to deepen the wound, that he has to let it all go if he is to proceed with his plan. He must harden his heart to a cutting edge and put it all aside in order to succeed. But he hasn’t had a decent meal in years, so just one more night of remembering how she made that specific Antivan dish he had tried wouldn’t hurt, right…?

(He is a terrible liar, most of all to himself. He despises it.)

To make matters worse, his dreams of the memories that he deigned to share are inextricably altered as a result. Her presence is a permanent mark in each of them that he cannot shake despite knowing fully well that she did not have a part to play in any of them.

His recollection of that same patisserie now haunts him with her beaming face greeting him from behind the service counter haunt him almost worse than his other regrets. She is always radiant, always dressed in flour-dusted, bleak-colored robes in a stark, drab contrast to the unnerving spotless and immaculate rest of Arlathan, always with her hair pinned up and her face flushed from the ovens and humming the songs he no longer remembers the words to. Sometimes she remains human, unblemished, petite and curvaceous and perfect as she is. Others she is one of the People, the pinnacle of elvhen beauty, her dainty tapered ears decorated with the most tasteful and delicate of golden chains and fragmented chips of jewels discarded by the elite who wore the polished, faceted stones in the gaudiest of fashions. He sees her bare-faced, and he sees her marked by Sylaise or Mythal (or, on his worst nights, Elgar’nan, with wearied, dark circles under her crinkled eyes, relieved at the sight of him, favoring certain limbs or covering wounds she had not been allowed magic to heal in any way save what came naturally to their bodies) for her creativity and inclination for beautiful decoration and inherent satisfaction to serve others in shades of verdant greens or comely ivories or vivid vermilions. He wonders what spirit she could have been, but is never able to determine an answer. Devotion, hope, loyalty, curiosity, compassion, or protection—even wisdom—all seem suitable options. It drives him mad that he cannot place what she reminds him so deeply of without being able to figure it out—yet he remembers that she is not Thedosian. It does not matter in the end. He betrayed her still. He hurt her (and not just by robbing her arm) just like he’s hurt everyone else that he’s ever cared about.

He misses her. Terribly. It’s a constant ache he cannot cope with. He never expected to find so deep of a connection with anyone again after Mythal was twisted against her purpose. She is his closest friend in millennia. She is a victim of his follies. She only expected him to ever be who he truly is at heart—not a tool, not a weapon, but a resource—a scholar, an artist, a…gentle soul. She reminded him of what it used to feel like simply being Solas. He was the one who drudged up his other names in the end. She valued him for his knowledge, not his manipulations. She means more to him than many things—almost more to him than destroying the world that she had come to love as dearly as her own. She was everything that…well. He tried not to think about it.

Freeing himself from his own prison (the intended way…the right way) is an adjustment. Being brought back by Rook (with some wariness and mistrust, which is to be expected, but far more open-minded welcome than he could ever have anticipated) into his own Lighthouse by the Veilguard that now inhabit it is an adjustment. Relearning how to cooperate and live with people again is an adjustment, nevermind the fact that they are perhaps even more eclectic than those with whom he had traveled in the Inquisition, is an adjustment. But Rook—despite everything—treats him with respect and eventually seeks him out, Professor Volkarin is a balm compared to most circle mages with whom Solas had ever conversed (or debated, in the case of Madame de Fer), Bellara Lutare is a blinding spark of hunger for knowledge always ready to listen to the explanations she extracts from him without (had she any capacity for malice, that would have served her well), Scout Harding and he find common ground after a long and difficult conversation, and the others eventually follow suit—especially once he and Varric reconcile. After that, it is as though a switch is flipped—they find him for the most mundane things (questions about his history or general conversation or invitations to venture out into the world in their continued efforts to mitigate the blight’s spread and restore order to northern Thedas) and treat him as though he might have been one of their companions all along. He knows the dwarf likely had something to do with it, but…Solas is still attempting to resolve his own issues, and it is exhausting enough that he will not question why his old friend would so readily forgive him for almost killing him in a fit of pique. Solas adjusts, with time. And perhaps it should always have been so easy to laugh with others, or escalate ongoing jokes, or share anecdotes of the many mishaps living for millennia is bound to incur.

It makes him miss Sibyl more. She is busy with the south and owes him less than nothing and yet he cannot help but think of how much she would adore this ragtag team just like she had her own. She would also have advice for him on how to deal with all the struggles he faces each day waking with the slow acceptance of all the regrets he had orchestrated—while his knowledge of the mind and its workings remained astute, she had always been better at deciphering the unintelligibility and complexity when it came to matters of the heart. She anchored him when he was trapped under the wake of his feelings, and he had more than ever before now—yet he did not entertain the idea of asking her. Not now. Not until he got better—for the world, but also for her—including making himself eat normally. For his health.

Lucanis is kind enough to save him a portion of cacio e pepe at his unspoken designated seat at the head of the table opposite Rook, who is the one to talk him out of his study to join the rest of the Veilguard to take a break from his day-long studies. They waited to start for him, which he finds both humbling and embarrassing. But listening to idle chatter is a balm he did not know he had missed so deeply, and they allowed him companionable silence unless he felt he had anything of value to add to their conversations (which was rare, given how awkwardly he still felt amongst their ranks after everything—but they took his earnest, intentional attempts at gentle correction and constructive criticism with charity nevertheless). And the others, while ornery and prone to teasing amongst themselves—and now towards him that he hadn’t betrayed them again—were kind enough to his battered, wounded pride not to comment on the traitorous pair of tears that diluted some of the sauce saturating the noodles. It was almost the same, and it somehow helped—like she wasn’t so unreachable.

When Solas returns to Skyhold, it is a far lengthier readjustment, but Sibyl allows him no time before she’s bombarding him like a mother hen—and, for once in his long, lonely, lost life—he allows her to fuss without very much protest. He had missed her. He had missed her affection and her sincerity and her food. He nearly gorges himself on it the first couple of weeks, but he finally gets a hold of himself and slows down after that. He’s safe. He’s protected. He’s home. And he almost begs Sibyl to teach him how to cook like she does because a) it allows them bonding time, b) he wants to develop the skill, and c) he’s being a bit clingy and ends up practically glued to her hip the first couple of months. He trusts her completely, now, with his own life and his heart, and he never wants to be parted from her again.

(He does cry the morning after he returned to find some of his favorites on a tray waiting on his desk when he emerges from his quarter. Fortunately, not many people were in the rotunda at the time.)

[pupkinpumpkin]

https://www.tumblr.com/thievinghippo/763052703781879808/31-days-of-dragon-age?source=share

Oct 21: Introduce your Inquisitor

*long inhale*

Nah I'm just kidding. Kinda

I've done like 3 different posts about her, so this one will be a bit of a combo of all of them

Marella Lavellan

Born to be in STEM, forced to be The First, aka woulda been a great artificer

She never believed in the Creators, was bisexual in a homophobic clan, and had large expectations put onto her the second she developed magic, which was when she was 8, so basically she's a gigantic mess who modifies her personality and beliefs so her clan will accept her and has heavy religious guilt and trauma.

Also she has pyrophobia because when she was 20, her secret girlfriend was pushed into a fire by some rogue Templars and then died.

Basically throughout the Inquisition she slowly learns to stop being people pleasey, accept herself as she is, and grows some self confidence

She gets with Cullen, and I personally really like this since they both have had very negative experiences with the opposite faction and instead of fixing each other, they learn to fix themselves but act as a rock and a person to lean on for the other. Cullen would have gotten off lyrium without her and she would have learned to become her own person without him, but their relationship gives them someone to depend on during the worst moments of their journey to self betterment.

And, personally, she would've given him a lot more pushback on the idea of the 'danger' of free mages than is allowed in-game

Her best friends include Cole, Cassandra, Josephine, and Dorian, with Solas and Sera being close seconds. Dorian specifically really helps Lavellan gain the confidence to be herself, specifically after his personal quest.

I think even with the insane amount of pressure she was put under in her clan and the way she never really felt she could be herself in it, she is still proudly Dalish and would never turn her back on her culture and heritage. She just learns that her version of what it is to be Dalish is different from the one her clan believes in

Fun facts include:

- She's trilingual! Knows Elvhen, the Common Language, and Tevene due to a family friend of the clan being an ex slave from Tevinter. Dorian teaches her more as they become friends

- At first, she's a little uncomfortable with Cole because he can feel all the hurt she's always trying to hide, but she really grows fond of him and sees him as a little brother in the end, helping him help others in her free time

- She has a panic attack in Wicked Hearts Wicked Minds!

- She would genuinely be a top player of The Game if the whole thing didn't stress her out so much

- Right after becoming Inquisitor, she asks Josephine and Vivienne to teach her about Thedosian politics

- Her ears move in accordance to her emotions

- She had a big crush on Cassandra at one point

- She and Dorian hit it off so well in the beginning and hung out with each other so much, that people thought they were together in the early days of the Inquisition

- Her sister, Ehlyena, also never believed in the Creators, but unlike her, Ehlyena ran away from the clan at 14 and converted to Andrastianism. I like to think that she visits Lavellan after In Your Heart Shall Burn, so its a nice family reunion, but it's also really weird. Imagine finding out your little sister is God's special little boi but also your sister doesn't believe in God

Anyway ya that's mostly it

[zennihilation]

Hiro Laidir: Lore Dump

About Hiro:

Human Warrior and Lord of Fortune

Rivaini Native 

Introduces himself as Hiro, it is absolutely not his name. 

Flower: Bird of Paradise

Smallest by weight on any security detail

Good at: Trap Setting; Shield Tactics

Bad at: Trap Disabling; Finesse

Romance: TBD; Token: A gold coin tied to a jade ring

Preferred Gifts: Books (preferably Romance and Adventure); Coins; Stones; Carvings

Questionnaire

1: Where in the Thedas is your Rook from? Dairsmuid, Rivain

2: What is your character's alignment? Chaotic Good

3: Race and subclass? Human Warrior, Slayer Specialization

4: If your Rook was a companion, where would they be found? Rivaini Coast

5: What emotion did they usually pick? Good, Sarcastic

6: What companion are you platonically close with? Davrin, he thinks all of his stories are fictional.

7: Romantically close with? Harding Maybe? 

8: Who are they suspicious of? No one, he tends not to be suspicious of people.

9: Does your Rook get along with their chosen Faction? Yes. They’re painfully enthusiastic about everything, even though their skillset means they’re left behind for defense and not for the fun ‘scour the crypts’ or ‘fight the dragons’ kind of jobs.

10: Are they proficient in playing any instruments? Kubing, a mouth harp made out of bamboo

11: Weapon of choice? Rivaini Thornback (Targe)

12: What is their orientation? Male / Pansexual

13: What are their thoughts on killing? Is it a necessary evil or do they enjoy it? Only in self-defense and prefers non-lethal takedowns. 

14: What hobbies does your Rook have? Exploring everything.

15: What NPCs do they like? Which one's do they dislike? They like Myrna, partially because of the Mourn Watch’s general view of spirits, but also she seems to 

16: Do they have a favorite creature in the Thedas? Pangolins! They’re weird looking and armored.

17: Do they enjoy life as an adventurer? Yes, there’s so many things to look at and touch and take!

18: What would your Rook be doing if they weren't recruited by Varric? Working security for the Lords of Fortune

19: How do you think they'll meet their end? Falling into a hole, honestly.

20: Would they side with Solas or fight him? They would try to convince him to stop, buying Emmrich’s spirit argument.

21: What is your Rook's favorite ability? For Gold and Glory

22: What languages is your character fluent in? Rivaini, Trade, Antivan. 

23: What do they do after an absolute crisis? Goes catatonic.

24: Does your character believe in the afterlife? Sort of. They have a very good relationship with spirits, but otherwise spend very little time thinking about it.

25: What specialization best represents your Rook? Sabotuer (They should have been a rogue.)

26: What animal best represents your Rook? Lemur

27: What was their life like before the events of Veilguard? Directionless. They love the Lords of Fortune, but they always want to do more.

28: Is your character the de facto leader of the party? Or do they consider someone else to be the leader? They would be following Neve’s advice the entire time. She seems like the only adult in the room.

29: If you could choose a different faction for your Rook, which one would they have joined and why? They would sign on with the Veiljumpers, fully enticed with the hunt for magical artifacts. They’re not really comfortable with the killing for money deal or tied up enough in Thedosian politics to join up with the Shadow Dragons.

30: What's your favorite thing about your Rook? Something about having full on Anime Protag energy just makes me laugh.