#until we get the game and you actually see

[chanafehs]

My Veilguard review:

Note - I will be honest in saying this is very long and very negative. If you enjoy this game please don't let me be the one to ruin that for you and skip on this post. I will be discussing spoilers. This is just my opinion so please don't crucify me for it.

I think my thoughts about this game were shaky to begin with as I had been exposed to different spoilers and information before the launch. I wasn’t actually expecting this game to be amazing but as someone whose favorite Dragon Age game is Dragon Age 2, which is arguably the weakest in the series (until now), I still went in with the impression I would have a good time regardless. I did not have that at all, in fact towards the end of Act 2 and the beginning of Act 3 all I wanted was for the game to be over. 

The problems for me really started right in the beginning with the Inquisitor character choices and their characterization. No choices for your Warden, no choices for your Hawke, and only three choices for your Inquisitor out of the dozens you made in Inquisition. The romance option just felt like a very polite way of asking if you romanced Solas or not, especially after completing the game where your non-solas romance will only get one letter for you to read, outside of that, the Inquisitor will not even mention them. Disbanding the Inquisition meant basically nothing and vowing to stop Solas felt like it had little bearing on what my Inquisitor said when she showed up. 

The time frame to make Dragon Age 2 was just over a year and somehow included more choices from Origins than Veilguard did with over ten years of production. That is the information that's been banging around in my head throughout this entire game. In Dragon Age 2, we get the consequences of our decisions with Alistair’s fate and we get extra dialogue concerning Isabela/Zevran/Leliana/Anders/Nathaniel + some sidequests. Veilguard couldn’t even give us so much of a mention of our Inquisitor’s friendships and the consequences of those friendships outside of Solas. The Inquisitors themselves are locked into one personality type as well, and regardless if you choose to stop Solas or not, they are very amicable toward him. 

During the second cut scene you get with the Inquisitor in Dock Town, they will go on to ask you about your progress and then go on about Solas. Mind you, my Inquisitor is extremely unsympathetic to Solas and I chose the option to stop him no matter what, so why is it that every time I speak to her, she keeps trying to ask me if Solas is being genuine and that he was her friend? That doesn’t sound like someone who has vowed to stop him. They will also try to draw parallels between you, Rook, and Solas. Even at the end of the game, they will still try to appeal to you to see reason with him. That is essentially all the Inquisitor is there for. Incredibly frustrating. 

Throughout the game you will get missives from the Inquisitor detailing the devastation that is being brought to southern Thedas and every letter feels like more and more of an insult. To keep it short: Southern Thedas as we know it has been essentially wiped out. I think that deserves more than a footnote in some missive most players aren’t even going to see.

So the setting we spent all three games in, that we saved countless times, had our companions and protagonists die for, gets demolished in the background where we cannot see it. Skyhold had to be taken back from demons and whoops, that's not actually something you can do anything about. Nothing the Warden, Hawke, or the Inquisitor ever did mattered at all and it renders everything from the previous games absolutely irrelevant. 

With that aside, the companions are also another issue for me. I found myself having trouble getting attached to any of them and every single time I recruited one I had the internal question “Why are you even here?” None of their companion quests really tie into the story at large, save maybe Harding and Davrin, and they are incredibly boring save for a few cool moments.

The main appeal of Dragon Age for me is the companions, it’s why Dragon Age 2 is my favorite of the series. Despite the overused environments and the rushed production I still had a great time with it because of the companions. I was actually eager to do the companion quests and learn more about them and how they all fit into the main narrative. Even characters I didn’t like, I still understood why they were important to the story. Like I can’t stand Anders but I know why he is there, he has a purpose.

Every companion is painfully amicable towards you even if you decide to be “stern” towards them. I found myself not caring what dialogue option I chose about them because it made absolutely no difference. There is nice, funny nice, and gentle parenting. That is really all you have to work with in terms of the dialogue wheel. It was more difficult to get disapproval than approval and I can probably count on my fingers every time in this game I actually got companion disapproval. There is only one companion in my playthrough that became hardened, Lucanis, and it had virtually no impact on his character other than the fact he leaves for a couple of saves and comes back to kissing your ass. 

Something I actually really liked about BG3 and the previous Dragon Age games was working for your companion approval - this meant actually learning about your companion and what made them tick. If you don't understand them well enough you get disapproval, when you actually listen to their ideas and thoughts you get approval - there is an active effort to get these things. In Veilguard this does not exist and you are essentially promised approval no matter what, meaning there is no encouragement to know who these people are if they're just going to support you regardless.

I have to agree with the Skillup review they made about this game saying that every dialogue option feels like it was made with HR in the room and I one hundred percent agree. This is not how real people talk to each other. This is how teachers talk to toddlers when they want to explain the virtues of sharing toys with their classmates.

It felt honestly insulting at times to be treated like I don’t understand the concept of bigotry, I still have no idea what they were trying to go for with this, like were they trying to appeal to a market of high school boys who hadn’t discovered what empathy was yet? There is zero trust in the player and every dialogue and decision you make in these moments feels handhold-y and preachy. Like Pixar levels of life lessons you learn.

In the moments where I had to settle arguments over coffee and companions not respecting each other's interests, I could not honestly believe this is the same universe with Loghain Mac Tir, Meredith Stannard, fuck even Corypheus. Humor has always existed in Dragon Age and I love the comedic banter between the characters but it was always humor that served as an escape from the oppressive and dark situation around you, here the dark and oppressive situations feel like an escape from the unrelenting friendliness and tone deafness of your companions. 

The companion I probably had the most issue with was Taash and the way they were handled. I’m not going to get too deep into the Bharv scene because even thinking about it makes me cringe but If someone messed up my pronouns and then immediately dropped to do pushups I am most definitely killing us both. Isabela’s explanation is extremely preachy and she proceeds to do the exact thing she says she hates about people messing up pronouns. Anyways. Moving on. 

Taash I think is a good example of how to not write a multiethnic character. I don’t expect a white person like Trick Weekes to understand the first thing that comes with being multiethnic or having strict parents that intersects with that identity but it is most definitely not whatever the hell this is. 

The only thing I can offer here is that as a multiethnic person (my father is Palestinian and my mother is mainly Irish and Seminole) is that there has never been a point in my life where I felt like I had to choose what culture I am let alone give that choice to someone else in my life I just met.

That’s not what being multiethnic is. I do not have to choose between anything - I am whole and I don't need to cut myself into halves and quarters to be accepted.

It also feels subconsciously like you are supposed to choose Rivain as the Qunari are depicted as bigoted and oppressive as they always have been in this game. Knowing all of this really tainted my experiences with them as a character and I understand a lot of other non-binary individuals love the representation they brought on that level but personally, I’m just tired of “queer representation” always coming with racist undertones. Again, this game feels like it always had white queer people in mind, not lgbt poc. 

These kinds of comments are really only made worse knowing what the Qunari take inspiration from - primarily Black and Brown SWANA Muslims. Why should Trick Weekes have any authority over a questline like that is beyond me. 

Also, this sucked. Especially because they said it to Neve too. I don’t really want my non-binary representation sprinkled with Misogyny as well, especially since we can’t really call Taash out on this comment unless you’re playing a woman (as far as I know).

Aside from Taash, I thought the writing around Harding was strange. Don’t me wrong, I love Harding, but I do not remember her being this friendly and people-pleasing in the Inquisition. If you play as a Dalish elf the first thing she says is she’s surprised that you would care about anyone else - there is absolutely no inclination of this kind of perspective in Veilguard. Additionally, despite knowing everything Solas has done and the consequences that had on her ancestors, she still tries to push you to reason with him?

All of her quests about learning about the Titans, experiencing and embracing their anger, and you still want to appeal to Solas? That was another thing I found so weird about this game, throughout the entire story you are being told again and again that Solas cannot be trusted, he is to blame for everything, and will stab you in the back and yet it seems like every companion tries to push back on you if you agree with this viewpoint? 

Also, something I didn't know at this point of the game but I do now is that Solas had killed Varric and she does know this so why is she acting like this knowing Solas had killed her friend who she spent years with?

Genuinely this whole game felt like: Devs: Solas is a villain

Rook: okay understood

Devs: actually nvm you don't understand him if you think he's a villain

The only companion quests I was actually genuinely interested in were Emmrich and his thoughts around death and becoming a lich. Lucanis' quests had the best boss fights for sure. Outside of that, it felt like “Go here with Bellara” or “Go here with Taash” and it got so grating I couldn’t wait for these quests to be over so I could progress with the main story. It felt like an annoying back-and-forth game to finish a main quest just to finish all the companion quests and then go back to the main quest. Like a list of chores to get through before you can have any fun. 

The inclusion of characters like Morrigan and Isabela in this universe was extremely hollow and they do not feel like the Morrigan and Isabela we know at all. With Morrigan there is a bit of an explanation to this with the essence of Mythal however she reiterates that it is still herself and it is only the memories of Mythal that remain inside of her.

In my canon playthroughs of Dragon Age, I romanced both Morrigan and Isabela, so I was curious to see how the developers would address their pasts with our Warden and Hawke. Unfortunately, the answer is that they don’t address it at all. Morrigan hardly mentions her past, leaving us to wonder if Kieran even exists. The game implies that the relationship between Morrigan and the Warden is insignificant; a codex entry oddly suggests, in a very slut-shamey way, that Morrigan had more lovers than there are trees in the forest. Isabela doesn't reference Hawke either, as she fondly remembers Kirkwall for found family and friendship. It seems that if you romanced Isabela or Morrigan, congratulations—your canon doesn’t exist.

I will echo the statement others have made about all the cameos feeling like mascots because that is really what they are. There is no substance to any of them, Isabela only feels like she is there to be a supportive voice for Taash, Morrigan will only really talk about Solas and Mythal-Dorian is the only one who actually gets a substantial quest related to him. I thought he was fine minus the "illegal slavery" bit because what is illegal slavery Dorian. Next up we will discuss legal murder.

Another thing that genuinely broke the immersion for me in this game is how awful the armor is. It is a Dragon Age game so I wasn't expecting Haute Couture but the design is all over the place and nothing looks right. Not to mention the extremely weird orientalist undertones that follow the Lords of Fortune everywhere. The outfit Isabela is wearing is even worse in person and I tried to give this game the benefit of the doubt by thinking we would be getting some underwater mission with her and that would be the explanation behind her bikini outfit - this did not happen.

The belly dancer-esque outfits with the coin-bedazzled turbans were pretty egregious and made me want to limit my time in Rivain as much as possible. For a game released in 2024, I am disappointed we are still dealing with the same Orientalist fantasy tropes. Even the Qunari are more naked in this game than I had ever seen previously. At least DA2 and DAI gave them pants. But hey the Antaam are all blighted and evil so who cares right.

Speaking of the Antaam, a lot of the antagonist motivations for this game genuinely did not make sense to me. The Antaam are suddenly giving up their fear of magic to pair up with...the Venatori? To fight for the elven gods? It honestly felt like they had no idea who to make fight for the Evanuris so they just pulled two of the baddies from the Inquisition and went "We can just use them and call it done". When you press for information on why this is the answer is always a mustache-twirling dialogue about power. Nothing much deeper from that than any of the villains besides Solas. All of the villains, especially Elgar'nan and Ghilan'nain, are extremely one-dimensional and have no motivations other than being evil and striving for power. At least Corypheus had cool lines.

I'm not going to get too deep into lore changes since I know a lot of things happened in the comics, books, and TV show (all of which I did not read or watch) but I honestly do think it's a bad idea to have a "soft reboot" while needing to read several books to understand everything. That's not being welcoming to new players that's homework. If you wanted a soft reboot probably don't start off with half your plot and characters coming from various comics and novels people need to catch up on.

The portrayal of the Dalish in this game is inconsistent. When we inform them that their gods are evil and planning to overthrow the world, they respond, "Okay, heard you." How can they accept this explanation so readily? In previous interactions, Solas shared that the Dalish did not listen to him and even threatened him when he revealed this truth. Yet, when we present the same information, they believe us almost immediately. Is there no pushback or skepticism? The Dalish accept everything about the evil elven gods meanwhile Andraste’s followers remain completely unaffected by these revelations.

I think what frustrated me even more was watching our elven companions express grief and regret over the actions of the elven gods like they had something to do with it, painting the Dalish as adjacent to oppressors when they themselves are oppressed in every way. The only thing that remains consistent is the sad boy Solas act about it.

At the end of the game, two of my companions - Harding and Emmrich- were killed. Emmrich's death was unfortunately overshadowed by a zoom-in on a rock and I had no idea he had died until I got the popup. Still, all I can think about is just going "Rock moment" when he died. I don't really have anything negative to say about Harding's death other than the way she went out was fitting for her narrative. Bellara got blighted and there were no consequences for this and she walked away from it - forgive me but I am still under the DAO impression that if you get blighted that's game over but all the rules about the Blight have been changed in this.

I decided to trick Solas, and honestly, I don’t have anything negative to say about it, except that Solas should have noticed me holding the fake dagger since it was clearly in his line of sight. I liked the idea of outsmarting the god of trickery. While it wasn’t extremely satisfying, but I’m okay with how it turned out.

Even as the credits began rolling I still have trouble believing rook's role in any of this. Just the persistent nagging idea that they really just have no place in this story at all. In the beginning I wanted to see how Rook is looped into all of this and how they become central to the fight against Solas but just like with most of the companions, I have no idea why they are here. This should've been the Inquisitor's story to finish.

I'm not going to pretend that everything about this game was irredeemable and terrible. There were genuinely parts I enjoyed and had a good time with. The romance ending scene with Neve was fantastic, even though it took a long time to get there. Davrin was an unexpected aspect of the game that I actually liked, as I never cared much for Grey Wardens before, but he changed my perspective. Harding's mention of the Inquisition was also very sweet. Although I wasn't particularly invested in Emmrich, I loved the conclusion to his quest when he became a lich lord.

While I'm not the biggest Solas fan, I actually really enjoyed the cutscenes between him and Rook because one of my aims with this game was the ability to be mean to Solas and kick him while he was down. They definitely delivered there even though everyone else kept disagreeing with me.

The worlds are beautiful and the CC is definitely the best we've gotten in any Dragon Age game, I spent probably a solid hour in there. The hairstyles are great and the four unibrow choices? Bioware you shouldn't have <3.

Overall I definitely didn't have the best time with this game and towards the end of act 2 I was incredibly bored and the combat became repetitive and stagnant enough that I turned down the difficulty to get through it faster. I can't see myself replaying this any time soon and I am unsure what my stance on Dragon Age is now, do I Ignore this game ever existed or do I carve out everything I liked and pretend this is the Dragon Age I love? I have no idea, I am disappointed at how this game leaves us off and I really wanted to sit here and say It's good but I can't.

I think this game will reach out to and resonate with a different group of Dragon Age fans than me, I just wish I could enjoy it as much as I see other people doing. I was originally going to give this game a 3/10 but knowing you can pet the cats I will give it a very generous 3.5/10.

[catsharky]

Are we still gonna get more of the Rolan comic?

I've gotten a couple of asks about this, so sorry to the other people who asked previously and didn't get a reply!

There is absolutely going to be more! The rest of the Rolan comic is completely written and partly roughed out, and I do intend to see it through to the end. Unfortunately this has been a pretty accurate depiction of how 2024 has been treating me:

It's been Flat Stanley-ing my ass.

I will get back to it, it's just been a case where something had to give and unfortunately my comics wound up being the thing I had to put on the backburner 😭

If anyone is curious, I rambled about what's been up under the cut:

The long and short of it is that early this year my partner and I very suddenly and stressfully went from being part-time to full-time parents, in a house that is not big enough to have a family of 4 living in it full time. We also gained 2 additional pets at the same time, bringing us up to a total of 4 (2 cats, 1 snake and 1 hamster).

While that would make it cramped enough, my partner and I have lost a combined total of 5 family members in the past 3 years, and ignoring the emotional toll, we wound up being responsible for the belongings of three of them. Every time we manage to get our house a little bit cleared out, another person dies and we have to find room for another house's worth of stuff!!!

So I have been hanging on to my sanity by a thread cause it's hard to concentrate on comics when I am stuck working in a room where Fortnite or Minecraft youtubers or worse are all but constantly playing in the background.

On top of all that, all of the windows in our house had to be replaced because they hadn't been updated or well maintained since the place was built and the frames were rotting and growing mold. So we got to spend a couple of months trying to tetris our house into a state where the window company could have room to work last week.

And if that wasn't all enough, my little old man of a cat (who is my baby and largely my responsibility) developed keratitis- which despite all efforts continued to worsen over the last several months-, was diagnosed with diabetes, and finally had to have his eye removed this week. I've discovered new stress responses I didn't even know I had thanks to that, and I've been sick with a hellcold during both this and the window replacement 🙃

I've also been unemployed since December, which is both a blessing and a curse because on one hand I think I probably would have had an actual mental breakdown by now if I'd had to deal with all this while working full time, but on the other hand we can't move until I have a job again ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

So basically this year has been very AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA and I would really love it if whoever is controlling the game of the sims I'm living in would stop putting me in the torment nexus right about now, please and thank you.

Joke's on them though because I'm both a creature of spite and incapable of giving up, so in the words of Disco Elysium, 'Life gets hard but we go on' and we do!!! 😤

[nakylvr]

i think we haven’t indulged in katseye x strapping… who loves strapping down the reader most? favorite position? jay let us know 😁

ur so right we haven't indulged in it so allow me 😁 these are my thoughts all jumbled so sorry if it doesn't make sense!

sophia ⚓️

she prefers strapping you down but is not against it being the other way around if you ask or she's needy. favorite position is spooning i can't explain it. she just has her arms securely wrapped around you, pressing kisses to your neck and murmuring praises into your ear. she likes the intimacy of it! she's pretty soft and slow too, doesn't really get aggressive unless she's irritated at something and needs to get it out or you're being a brat and she has to be rough

manon 👑

she likes you strapping her down more but if you ask her she's immediately on her knees and will do it. i wouldn't say she's soft with it but she's not like how the other girls can get roughness wise, she somehow knows the exact way to make you break under her. she is a absolute sucker for missionary cause she can see you and touch you easily rather than where she can't see you. she really likes intimacy during it mumbling praises and how much she loves you

daniela 🛡️

as much as she loves strapping you down, she almost enjoys it more when you're the one doing it. its the switch in her i fear. she has the biggest one out the kats and she knows how to use it so good her strap game is unreal. doggystyle is obviously her favorite position you guys should've seen this coming. she has easy access to grab your hips and she's just so mean about it, degrading you and pulling you up by your throat. she's definitely the roughest by far, and absolutely loves when you're the same with her to the point of passing out

lara 🗝️

loves strapping you down loves being strapped down she just loves it either way! she can be so mean when she's fucking you and be such a brat at other times when she wants you to fuck it out of her. has the 2nd biggest strap. likes cowgirl the most cause she loves seeing you on top of her trying so hard to get yourself off until she grabs you and just pistons up into you so hard and fast. also cause if she's riding you she's still in control in a way, choking you as she uses you for her own pleasure

megan 🍒

the least to strap you down i fear. she would do it if you asked but you have to guide her through it cause she has no clue what she's doing :(. she'd be so slow and gentle that it'd almost be agonizing and you have to beg her to go fast and be rough which (surprisingly) she will! it's like she's a whole different person when she cracks and can get pretty mean actually. likes any position where she can see your face and your reactions but also really likes doing it in front of a mirror of any kind either way no matter who's topping or bottoming

[kupidachillea]

Could we have more Olympians x Reader? Maybe some slight nsfw and perhaps some time with Apollo?

Olympians x You (Hcs or imagines )

Author note: I usually do SFW but that doesn’t mean I don’t occasionally do NSFW if it’s light or not full on smut. I don’t think I’m brave enough for that and if I did I’d make a separate blog for it😭🙏 but I hope you enjoy

TW (trigger warning):This may have a few Yandere themes in it. And while the Olympians themselves aren’t really yanderes- they do share similar tendencies considering their myths. Please note that this isn’t completely accurate to their mythology- but it’s just a bit of fun so please take no offence and be nice in the comments.

CW (content warning)⚠️: readers either18+ (to read this I mean). This work contains NSFW themes, mentions of nudity, molesting and sexual harassment and assault, non-con, dubcon, toxic behaviour. General (hinted) Yandere behaviour, feeding of bodily fluids (blood[?])Reader’s discretion is advised.

⚠️ MINORS DO NOT INTERACT PLEASE ⚠️

🏺- You had been growing use to it..if that was the right term. Perhaps not ‘use to’ it but more along the lines of growing more accustomed to it. Being on Olympus wasn’t exactly all fun and games.

🪡- But of course you weren’t allowed to complain about it. You certainly weren’t allowed to complain when one of them would suddenly just pick you up and take you to their chambers. You already knew what that meant.

🏺- You’d find yourself pinned under one more more god, their hands caressing your body, their teeth leaving deep marks that you wouldn’t dream of calling ‘love bites’ there wasn’t nothing ‘loving’ about those bites. No matter how much they preach and repeat it.

🪡- Some days it would be one god after the other, other times you’d get a break. But there’s only some much a human can go through. One moment you’d be in the garden or somewhere with Hermes, his lips on your nether regions, sucking and licking at you while another moment you’d be bounced up and down on Ares while Aphrodite made out with you.

🏺- It made your head spin at times. Most times you were scared, who wouldn’t? It’s not like the men here had manhoods that looked anything like human..maybe an enough to look familiar in shape but still. Zeus was one such example, you actually remember begging him not to go through with it- afraid that the thing between his legs would split you in half but he would only laugh and hike your legs over his shoulders and whisper: “It’s okay little mortal.. we’ll do this as much times as we need for you to get accustomed to my size..”

🪡- Those words alone sent a shiver down your spine at the time. After that you weren’t able to walk properly for a few days. Not that the gods care, most of them found it funny. To see their little pet struggling to walk after such intense intimacy. “Poor thing, can’t even walk properly.” Poseidon would coo while watching you carefully ease yourself into the pool of water.

🏺- The sight alone made him excited and decided at that moment he wanted to help you ‘relax’…it wasn’t very relaxing to you. You would whimper as he sunk under the water and immediately attracted his lips to your hole.

🪡- Of course there were many instances like this but there were times where they did leave you alone and you did get time to yourself. Today was one of those days.

🏺- You were sat outside in the garden, fiddling with flowers and and grass blades. It was quiet for awhile and you actually had time to reflect on everything you’ve experienced. Sometimes it was good, other times it was bad..very bad and thought the Olympians tried to make you feel comfortable, you think that they don’t necessarily understand the word.

🪡- While you were thinking, you didn’t notice someone approaching you until a shadow of a man was cast over your body, blocking out the sun. You already knew it was one of the Olympians but you didn’t know which one until he spoke and that’s when you turned around.

🏺- “Ah, there you are, mortal..” Apollo spoke, a bright smile on his face as he crouched down next to you. “Relaxing in the garden I see..” He would mutter and you immediately got an off vibe..he wants something. As most of the gods did when they approached or summoned you, regardless you nodded to his statement as you fiddled with a petal of one of the asters that were growing in the garden.

🪡- Apollo smiled in response before speaking once more. “That’s good, that’s good..but perhaps you could relax with me? We could go to my chambers where no one would bother us…” The golden haired god spoke, his voice smooth as he held your chin between his larger fingers. You tried your best not to seem apprehensive at his request but you couldn’t exactly deny him..could you? You opened your mouth to try and voice your opinion but Apollo spoke before you.

🏺- “Please, my dear?” He pouted a bit, trying to make you agree and after a mental back and forth you reluctantly agreed. This made Apollo beam and he wasted no time in picking you up and dashing over to his quarters.

☀️.🎵.☀️.🎵.☀️.🎵.☀️.🎵.☀️.🎵.☀️.🎵.☀️.🎵.☀️.🎵.☀️.🎵.☀️

☀️- After Apollo got you situated and ‘comfortable’ in his room, he laid on the bed in the spot next to you.

🎵- You were quiet as you fiddled with your chiton and he tilted his head curiously. “Relax, my dear. It’s just us..” He spoke.. you’d be lying if you said he wasn’t the slightest bit charming. Apollo would shuffle closer to you and wrap his arms around your body. His fingers moving to caress your skin causing you to tense up a bit.

☀️- Apollo figured you’d still be apprehensive, but he thought he could get you to loosen up a bit. And so he continued to gently feel up your body, trying to coax you to relax a bit.

🎵- You were going to protest about the touching but Apollo quickly covered your lips with his own. He did this on purpose..wanting to silence your words that might ruin the moment. Your eyes widened and on instinct you tried to push him away, but he kept himself firmly against you. Kissing your lips and letting out a soft groan as his hand slipped under your chiton.

☀️- You obviously flinched, letting out a muffled squeak that caused the deity of light to chuckle. He could tell you were starting to slowly give in and kiss back, even if he could still feel the anxious beats of your heart. He decided to take things a step further.

🎵- Pinning you down to his bed and and moving his fingers to your hole. Teasingly rubbing his thumb over the opening as he moved his lips over to your neck, placing gently kisses as you whimpered. He then slowly fed you one of his fingers and bit his bottom lip at how your body tensed and gripped his index finger. He could never get tired of the way your body felt.

☀️- “There you go…that’s it…~” He would purr before adding another finger and scissoring your entrance then slowly pumping his fingers in and out. Curling them and stroking the spot inside you he knew would make you cry out. Your back arched a you whined, calling out his name as your hands immediately reached to grab for something..anything.

🎵- Apollo grinned and kissed your lips once more..adding a third fingers and moving them at a steady pace..not hard enough to hurt but not too slow either. All this was getting to him too but he wanted to focus on you mainly. For now at least…

☀️- He had you twitching and shivering from all the pleasure and the deity had drawn a few climaxes from you as well. You were panting and out of breath by the time he was done and he finally gave you a break..removing his fingers from your women out hole as he peppered your cheek with kisses.

🎵- “Mmm..such a pretty mortal..you did so well…you deserve a reward..” He would say before firmly pressing his lips against yours once more. At first you thought it was just a normal passionate kiss..but you suddenly felt a liquid like substance run down your tongue and down your throat.

☀️- Your eyes slightly widened as a slight burning feeling started to engulf your body. Your hands immediately reaching to try and push Apollo away, but he just groaned softly and caged your body between him and the bed. His tongue running over yours, sucking on the wet muscle and coating it with more of the golden liquid..

🎵- The more of this liquid he fed you the more your body started to feel like it was burning from the inside out. Your heart beating faster as the substance dribbled and leaked from the corner of your mouth. Tears burning in your eyes as you ingested every last drop he gave you.

☀️- Soon enough your heart stopped as you let out a muffled cry while Apollo gently rubbed your hips..pulling his lips away from yours and whispering that you’d be okay. He held you in his arms as you laid ‘dead’ for a minute or so before your heart started to beat once more; and Apollo smiled.

🎵- It was done..he had fed you his immortal blood..his ichor and now you’d never die. Or maybe you did..your old self..but that doesn’t matter now. What matters is that you’d never be able to escape them ever again..not even in death…they made sure of that.

Author note: Oof, sorry this took a long while. I’ll admit I wasn’t very focused and I procrastinated a bit. But on top of that I had things at home doing. Though I’m glad I finished it, usually if things take this long I like to post screenshots to show ppl I haven’t forgotten. I was just so slow to get this out. Sorry again but I hope this is to your liking, Anon! And to everyone else.

[burntoutdaydreamer]

I’ve been seeing a lot of posts in the wake of the election, of people telling each other not to end their lives. I’ve reblogged a lot of them, but I wanted to give my two cents as well.

I remember what it was like to be suicidal. I remember how hard it was to not give up. So I wanted to share with you the words my therapist told me that ended up saving my life:

“I’m not going to tell you not to commit suicide. Because the truth is, that’s not my call to make. I can’t see what’s going on inside your head. You’re the only one who gets to decide whether your pain is something worth bearing. What I’m here to do is to move suicide from your Plan B to your Plan Z. And we’re going to work together to map out a game plan, so that you have a list of options you can run through before you have to resort to that Plan Z.”

And I remember why these words saved me. It was because for the first time in my life, someone was validating my struggle. Someone was recognizing just how hard it was for me to keep fighting, instead of telling me that I needed to keep on pushing through. And that validation was, ironically, what gave me the strength to keep going.

Your pain is real. Your pain is valid. You are the only one who gets to decide if it’s too much to bear. All I can say is that that pain is not guaranteed to last forever, even if your brain- and the news- is trying its hardest to convince you that it will.

You don’t owe it to anyone to stick around forever. But you do owe it to yourself to hang on a little longer, just to see if there’s an easier, less permanent way to end your pain. Because as long as you’re still breathing, that chance at a happier life is still there, even if it feels impossible right now. I should know, because I found it.

So take a deep breath. Make a promise to yourself to live just one more day. Just one. And the day after that, do the same. Keep doing it as long as you need to, or as long as you have the strength to. Because eventually there will come a day where you won’t have to make that bargain with yourself. Where you’ll actually want to live, rather than just living by default. It’s worth waiting around until then, even if that respite doesn’t last forever.

So find a reason to live just for today. It doesn’t have to be profound or meaningful. It could be as simple as wanting to catch up on your favorite show. It could be sheer fucking spite if it needs to be. The orange man could keel over and die tomorrow for all we know. Dude’s 78 after all- isn’t it worth sticking around to see if that happens?

One way or another, you won’t be hurting forever. There will be an end to your pain. Hopefully, you won’t need Plan Z to get to that point. But you will find peace again, I promise you that.

We will get through this. Together.

[rookinthecrownest]

On Solas & That One Scene in Act I

Discussions of Blood magic + spoilers for endgame ahead (Seriously don't read unless you've finished the game)

I sincerely apologize if this has already been said (I don't keep up with the Solas tag), and not to keep being Annoying on Main, but I've seen a few posts suggesting the Bioware devs forgot how Solas feels about blood magic in DATV and I have to disagree.

In Inquisition, Solas has a neutral opinion on blood magic. He sees it as a tool, like any other form of magic, and no more or less dangerous depending on how its used.

In Veilguard, in that one scene with Rook, he says "I abhor the use of Blood Magic" and people say this is out of character.

I don't think it is.

It only seems that way if you take his words at face value.

Think about it. If he openly says to Rook, who he just met, "Yeah I'm actually fine with blood magic depending on how its used and I may or may not have used it on you" - how well do we think that conversation is going to go. Rook already has no reason to trust Solas. Him openly admitting how he feels about blood magic would destroy any remaining credibility he could build with Rook in order to mold them into a pawn. Rook would shut down and not listen to him because they would be questioning their own thoughts by this point.

Solas has a habit of using people & spirits as tools to accomplish is end goal. Using their blood should be no different.

I actually thought it was completely in character for him to decry the use of blood magic, to disarm Rook by saying 'Had I the power to control your mind I would have used it already' " - which gets Rook to at least listen to the rest of what he has to say. I think that line gave him some buy-in with Rook.

And what do you know, Rook buys it and doesn't realize until the end just how much Solas is actually is fine with using Blood magic - to the point of making them hallucinate a memory of dead Varric to keep them going.

It's all very clever for, and I quote, the Elven god of trickery, lies & betrayal.

[lillypad-monopoly]

Wild Life Episode 3 Thoughts

Sorry I don't have very good commentary this week. I was really busy and then life happened so I watched these POVs over the course of 6 days and didn't always take live notes.

The snail gimmick is iconic! Another amazing wildcard and a good Grian reference as well as being memey!

Someone joked about them being soulbound to the snails and I'm praying for the return of a soulbond Wildcard so hard right now

I'm genuinely concerned Skizz and Jimmy won't make it to episode 5. I hope we get some more passive wildcards coming up or this is going to be a pretty short series (also I would like them to get some stuff done)

Grian freezing the game is the lore event ever. Watcher powers are real but also he's clearly fighting back against their agenda more this season (once again such angst potential here RE: Grian knowing the wildcards ahead of time)

Ren digging all those holes looking for their horse is literally the definition of insanity and it's hilarious

Martyn and Etho interacting is always interesting both because the anime skin boys are hanging out together and because they have literally opposite playstyles. Martyn is crazy reckless and Etho is soo careful.

WHY DO REN AND MARTYN HAVE A DOUBLE BED

I really want to know all the snail names, since not everybody died this ep

I love that we're kind of going back to "suggestions" again, what with Tango killing Skizz and Martyn making snails invisible just for kicks. It feels like 3L and it's so fun.

I was so excited for Bdubs angst hour only for him to change his mind and not feel bad about anything after all

Etho's monologue 😂. The reason the go for you early is because they see you as a threat, not because they think you're not tough OMG.

Etho don't die to a creeper in the life series challenge impossible

Watching PICS build a base was actually so refreshing. I love the snail gimmick very much but it was nice to watch a POV where they were actually doing some classic life series stuff

Scott predicting violence for the next ep is...concerning lol. I don't know what he's seeing that I'm not, but outside of wild card stuff it doesn't really feel like we're at that point just yet

Actually I wouldn't put it past Tango to go wild. I'm just not sure the other Tuff Guys will follow him

I will be quoting "He's coming and he has only violence in his heart" from now on thank you Scott

Joel saying they have no enemies is so funny. The reason you don't have any enemies is cause everyone is too scared to cross you 😂.

Gem being excited about her snail while everyone else panics is iconic I love her

Joel giving Skizz a PVP lesson is so funny because Skizz *can* PVP from what I recall (I haven't seen a lot of Skizz so I could be wrong here)

Jimmy blowing up the car in front of Joel, Gem and Etho is the definition of "history doesn't repeat itself, it rhymes"

Lizzie I love you but you need to turn down something on your texture pack because everything is so bright

Bdubs manufacturing Tuff Guy behavior killed me. All of the Tuff Guys are such wet cats I love them <3

I've never watched Empires, but the bit where Jimmy gets blown up by a creeper has such powerful older sister/younger brother energy that I think I might have to headcanon them as siblings now

Scar and Lizzie being in the caves for the introduction of the snails and trying to figure out what's going on feels like a horror movie premise. People mysteriously dying to snail related stuff, and then a mob that's not in the game shows up and looks similar to the other person you're with and is following you around...

Team Bam/The Bamboozlers are as chaotic and struggling as hard as I expected. I don't actually want Lizzie to loose her teammates because I want everybody in until the last session, but it would be really funny if she did.

[puppethistoryhive]

just a girl

benny week, day four: cheerleader

relationship: betty weir | benny weir/rory keaner, betty weir | benny weir & ethan morgan

rating: teen

word count: 939

summary: Dressing up as a cheerleader and being flirted with by Rory awakens some things in Benny. (transfem benny weir)

read on ao3 or below the cut

Benny wasn't sure what Jane had done to them, but he liked it. He almost felt bad though, because he could tell it was making Ethan somewhat dysphoric. However, Benny actually felt really good. He liked the feeling of the longer hair, and the makeup felt foreign but right somehow. He felt pretty. He must've been pretty too, considering the way Rory bounded up to him and started flirting with him. Benny wasn't gay- he knew he wasn't gay. So why did the way Rory looked at him give him butterflies? He needed to talk to Ethan- tomorrow though. It had been a long day.

It wasn't until they cracked the case that Benny was able to find time to talk to Ethan. By then he had realized he was in a lot deeper than he first anticipated. The additional days of flirting and makeup had really done him in. It also affirmed his feelings about everything that was swirling through his head. Him and Ethan were playing video games in his room when he finally worked up the courage to bring everything up to his best friend.

“Hey Ethan, can I talk to you about something?” Ethan paused the game, and turned his attention to Benny.

“Yeah, B, what's up?”

“You know how we had to pretend to be Betty and Veronica?”

“Yeah…?”

“I sort of… liked it? Like the whole dressing up.”

“Okay, just the dressing up part?”

“I’m not even sure, honestly.”

“That's fine! Do you think maybe you'd want to try out she/her pronouns?”

“Maybe?”

“You don't have to rush into anything! Does being called he/him make you dysphoric?”

“No, I don't think so?”

“That's fine! Is there anything else?”

“I didn't hate when Rory was flirting with me?”

“Wait- what?” Benny just shrugged in response, “ so, not only are you maybe a girl, but you might also be into Rory?”

“Basically,”

“Wow I never thought I'd see the day a girl was into Rory,” that made Benny laugh. It also made his- her heart flutter. Ethan called her a girl, and it felt amazing. They continued their night like usual after that, and that also felt good. It felt normal and right. Someone knew, and the world spun like usual.

Now she just had to figure out how to tell the others. Especially Rory. She wrote him that letter to hopefully stop him from talking about Betty anymore until she figured out what she wanted to do. It was cheesy, but wasn't exactly that far from the truth either. It took her a few more days, but she worked up the courage to leave another note in the vampires locker, this time just telling him to meet her in the gym hallway after school, so they could talk

Betty was sweating bullets as she paced the hallway back and forth. Her mind was swirling with thoughts. What if Rory is upset at her for lying? What if he won't see her as a girl? Will he even want to be her friend? Just when she was starting to think this was a bad idea, she heard the all too familiar voice.

“Benny? What are you doing here? I'm waiting for Betty, so I hope you don't plan on sticking around too long,” She cringed internally at that. She knew she had to get out what she wanted to say before she lost her courage.

“Rory, I'm Betty.” Rory's face morphed into confusion.

“Um no you're not? Betty is blonde. And a girl, duh,”

“No Ror, me and Ethan dressed up as Betty and Veronica to keep an eye on Erica, then to deal with the whole witch cheerleader stuff,”

“I'm so confused. So Betty isn't real?” His voice sounded so vulnerable, and Betty’s heart broke in guilt. She took one step closer to Rory, small and barely noticeable.

“Yes, and no? She wasn't at first. But I think Betty feels more real than Benny at this point. I don't know,” Rory's face was still one of confusion, and a faint glimpse of hurt, “but, I do know that I like you.”

“Wait- what?” Rory's face was still one of disbelief, but the hurt was replaced by hope.

“I didn't know how to tell you, but surprise?”

“You're Betty, but actually- and you like me?”

“Yeah?”

“This is awesome!” Betty felt physically relieved. Rory wasn't upset. She should've known he wouldn't be shitty about this, especially because he knows about Ethan. But it was good to be sure that she was worried for no reason.

“It is?” Rory just looked at her like she was crazy.

“Uh yeah? I mean it's still a little weird that you're actually Betty, but not in a bad way! Wait, does this mean I can take you out on a date?” Betty shouldn't have been surprised by his bluntness, but it made her flustered regardless

“Yeah, it does,” she smiled at him. He returned the soft look.

“We can have dinner at my place, so you can dress however you want without others around, if that's what you'd prefer,” he looked uncharacteristically shy. Betty took his hand. She was sure vampires couldn't blush, but she wasn't sure if something like that has ever stopped him.

“That sounds perfect, Ror.”

[quitealotofsodapop]

"Pigsy! Pigsy, you won't believe it!" Mei was gasping as she burst into the shop, "We need to get out of here ASAP, Pigsy!"

"Whoa, whoa... what the- Mei! You're supposed to be out on delivery! I have twenty orders out!"

"And ignore be out doing them, Pigsy-buddy, but we got bigger problems right now!"

"BIGGER THAN OUR BUSINESS!? Mei, I'm not paying you to laze about!"

"MK and I got attacked, Pigman!" Mei snapped, pulling the mentioned cub closer. The moment the words were out of her mouth, Shihou tensed, fur visibly bristling.

"You were what!?" Shihou hissed, jumping to his feet. Mei winced, realizing MK's parent was in the room and now, rightfully, upset. "MEI, WHAT HAPPENED!? WHERE'S MK!?"

Mei shuffled a bit, showing the younger monkey clinging to her back. He looked a bit shaken, but was otherwise okay. In fact, as soon as he saw Shihou, he brightened up considerably and excitedly chirped a greeting. Shihou bathed a sigh of relief at the sight of his child up until he noticed the item MK had wrapped his tail around. Almost instantly his face became white as a ghost.

"Me..." Shihou's voice was shaky as he stumbled back a bit, "What... does MK have?"

"A freaky staff thing." Mei explained, "The GPS on the delivery app glitches out or something and we ended up devouring into some weird construction lot with a big tree and this weird gold staff sticking out of the dirt under it. There was some demons there talking about free some Bull King!"

"Are you saying that's the legendary Ruyi Jingu Bang!?" Tang interrupted, eyes glinting as he looked over the staff. Upon closer inspection, it was more evidently clear that this was either the actual staff or a very convincing replica, having the golden bands and etching all across it. "It's certainly convincing enough... but if that's the case MK should be able to lift it. It's said ony the Monkey King is able to lift the staff."

"Either way, those weird bull demons attacked us because MK picked it up!" Mei explained, "I'm telling you, it's THE Monkey King's staff! It was twice the size it is now when MK picked it up, but now it's the size of some toy want prop!"

"Well if they want it, I don't want MK having it." Shihou's voice was hard as he glared at the staff, "Whether it's the 'real' Ruyi Jingu Bang or not, someone wants it bad enough to attack a child over it."

Mei nodded, turning to her little brother figure who had since jumped from her back and was showing the staff's ability to grow and shrink for Tang, who looked about ready to pass out.

"MK, buddy. That isn't a toy, we need to put it down now."

MK paused in his play and looked her up and down and then at the staff before pouting.

"No! The bad guys want it! We need to keep Monkey King's staff away form the bad guys!"

"Xiaotian, put it down." Shihou firmly told his son, "Mei is right, that isn't a toy! It's not a game."

"NO!"

What followed next was a temperamental argument between MK and his father as they went back and forth, arguing over the staff that went on for almost an hour as everyone present tried to get the dangerous weapon away fromt he child. Eventually MK go so upset he swung the staff and accidentally destroyed a part of the bar, at which point Shibou finally had enough.

"ENOUGH!" Shihou yelled as he snatched the staff from MK's hands, "This ISN'T a toy, MK! You could hurt someone with it!"

Silence met the shop as Tang tried to comprehend what he was seeing. Shihou standing there with the legendary staff of the Monkey King in his hands, a staff only the legendary god is said to be able to lift.

'Or...The legendary Great Sage's son.'

It seemed impossible but there's no other explanation Tang could think of for not one but two monkey demons would be able to lift the legendary staff, especially since Mei and Pigsy had both tried to grab the staff from MK's hands only for them to be forced to drop it from how heavy the thing was, leaving several cracks in the floor. Yet Shihou, who was so pregnant he wasn't supposed to lift so much as a carton of milk, is able to lift it with ease as if it was a feather. Shihou himself seemed to freeze as if realizing what he did, glancing at the staff in his hands with a strange glint in his eyes before very obviously pretending it too was far too heavy for him. Unfortunately, it appears Shihou isn't as good an actor as his legend implied, it was far too late and everyone had already seen him lift it.

"Shihou..." Tang's voice was choked, "Are you... is it really...!?"

"NO! No I... it's isn't ehat it looks like!" Ahihou stammered, all but throwing the staff to the floor. Notably, while it had been so heavy it cracked the floor before, not a single scratch formed when Ahihou had dropped it, "I don't know why it..."

"Shihou i think we both know that's a lie..." Pigsy's gruff voice broke through, eyes glaring down at the staff, "So I need to ask ya, is that thing what I think it is?"

"It..." Shihou looked conflicted before his shoulders drooped, defeated, "It is."

Pigsy sucked in a breath as Tang felt all the breath punching out of his lungs. He'd thought he'd know Shihou, but if what he's saying is true then... his best friend and the father of the student he'd been looking after this past year had been none other than his idol! Shihou was Sun Wukong!!

"So what does that mean?" Mei asked, "Who were those guys who attacked us!?"

"The Demon Bull Family. When the staff was lifted, it would have released the seal on the Demon Bull King. No doubt the others with him were his wife and child." Shihou's voice was dull, a sense of despair ringing in it, "Now that they're free, MK and I will never be able to live in peace. They'll hunt us down relentlessly and drag every lowlife ein all the realms with them."

Prev.

Aww yeeeah! More Marbled Egg writing! Always a joy!

Mei reasonably freaking out and MK clinging to her back like a little koala (or in this case little monkey) <3

"Shihou" trying his best to stay calm but firm about the situation, his facade of a normal monkey demon breaking when MK nearly hurts someone with the Staff.

Pigsy catching on quickly that his best customer (Tang barely counts) is some sort of legend thats chosen to hide this whole time.

And Wukong's sheer despair thinking that he and MK will never be safe now that DBK is released. Not even considering that his former sworn brother would show them mercy.

MK most likely sneaks out during the last part to confront DBK on his own. He doesn't want his baba to be sad/worried about all of this anymore. He's either gonna beat up the Demon Bull king himself, or find a way to make friends as long as it makes his baba happy again.

Mei: "Uhh... where's MK??" All the adults: "EHHH!?" Shihou/Wukong, face severe: "Mountain. Armor. NOW." Pigsy, understanding: "I know a guy with a boat who can help."

[calicomarie11]

Tommy is a dumbass, but Buck loves him anyways.

Just because it seems warranted on tonight of all nights, I'm sharing a bit of my current WIP. This was all written before tonight's episode, so it doesn't match up with canon.

Subject to change before it gets posted to AO3 because I'm trying this crazy thing where I actually write the whole fic before I start posting chapters.

-------------

Tommy threw the strap of his duffle bag over his shoulder and wearily trudged up the front steps of his house, ready to sleep and wallow for the next two days until it was time to go back on shift. 

He went to unlock his front door and paused as the handle turned easily in his hand. He wasn’t the type to forget to lock up and it didn’t look like the door had been forced. He cautiously pushed the door open and eased into the house. He set down his bag carefully and grabbed the baseball bat he kept propped next to the door. (Look, his neighborhood was safe enough, but this was LA and weird shit happened all the time.)

Gripping the baseball bat tightly, Tommy made his way down the front hallway, ear cocked for the noise of intruders. As he approached the living room, the sounds of a baseball game on the tv got louder. 

“Goddamit, he was safe,” a familiar voice shouted, and Tommy eased up his grip on the bat. He set it down as he walked into his living room and spotted Eddie stretched out on his couch, a bottle of his beer in hand as he watched the Rangers losing to the Cubs. 

“Diaz,” he said, “What the fuck are you doing in my house?”

“Kinard,” Eddie snarked back in return. “Just stopping by to see if you were going senile in your old age. See, my best friend, Buck, you remember him? Came to my house with a hilarious story about you trying to dump him. Given the fact I had to drag you past that jewelry store when you started staring at engagement rings in the window the last time we went out to catch a movie, I find it a little hard to believe.” Eddie took long drink of his beer as he cocked an eyebrow at Tommy.

Tommy huffed and stalked out of the room to go to the kitchen. If he’s going to do this, he’s at least going to have a beer.  He yanked open the door of his fridge with a little too much force, knocking a few magnets loose and sending a handful of pictures to drift to the floor. He grabs a beer and sets in on the counter before bending down to pick up the photos. 

Evan and him in a beach selfie, a shot of Tommy and Evan on either side of Christopher from the first time Tommy tagged along to the zoo, a photo of the 118 in their Halloween Fest finery and a shot of Tommy swinging Jee around in Bobby and Athena’s backyard. He stacks them neatly and places them next to his beer on the counter. 

He wants to put them back up, where they belong. But they don’t really belong there now that he told Evan goodbye.  He picks up the stack again and opens the junk drawer. He closes the drawer again and then sets the pile face down to be dealt with later. He grabs his beer and heads back to his living room and his ex-boyfriend’s best friend.

Eddie is still shouting at the tv when he returns. He waits until Tommy sits down next to him to pout, “Where’s my beer?”

“You invited yourself, you can get your own damn beer,” Tommy growls. He makes a point of relaxing back into the couch and keeps his eyes trained on the tv. “How’d you get in anyways?” Tommy would have remembered giving Eddie a key.

“Switched keys with Buck.”

Tommy turns to look at Eddie, confused. “Then how did Evan drive home?”

“Man, other then the key for your house and one for Maddie’s place, 99% of our keys are the same. I have the spare for the Jeep and he has the spare for the truck in case one of us gets locked out.”

Tommy shakes his head at this new revelation. “Anyone ever tell you how weirdly codependent you two are?”

“We are not codependent, we are practical and efficient,” Eddie said in an affronted tone.“Besides, where’s your spare key for the truck?” he asked, his smirk communicating that he already knew the answer.

“With Evan,” Tommy confirmed. “Which means you currently have it. You should give me those keys before you leave.”

“Nope. You’re going to have to talk to Buck if you want your keys back,” Eddie said. 

“We could trade, Buck’s house key for mine?” Tommy tried.

 “No deal. If Buck doesn’t want you to have a key, he’ll ask for it back. Besides, half of LA has keys to Buck’s place at this point.”

“What?” Tommy said, surprise in his voice.

“Well, dude gets hurt so often and usually doesn’t have a partner to help out so everybody pitches in. Off the top of my head there’s me, Maddie, Bobby, Hen, Chim, Albert, Ravi, May, Chris of course, Carla, and there’s a spare at the firehouse on the master key ring. Oh, and the neighbors across the hall have a key.”

“Why would the neighbors need a key?”

“Buck locked himself out one time taking out the trash on the super’s night off so he asked Rose and Ethel to keep a key just in case.  Worked out, because they don’t mind watering his plants when he’s in the hospital for more then a few days.”

“Rose and Ethel? Does he live across the hall from septuagenarians?”

Eddie huffed, “Worse, trust fund babies. But they’re harmless. I’m surprised you haven’t met them yet.”

“Wait, does one of them have a septum piercing and the other one has pink hair?”

“Ironically, Rose is the one with the piercing. Anyways, stop trying to distract me and answer the damn question. What the hell, Kinard?” Eddie speared him with a piercing stare.

“I could kick you out,” Tommy said under his breath, although apparently not quiet enough.

“You could try,” Eddie scoffed. 

Tommy side-eyed Eddie. He knew he could take the slighter man, but he also knew he didn’t want to. He wasn’t quite ready to give up on the friendships he’d made or rekindled through his connection to Evan. Sure, Eddie was acting in his role as Evan’s best friend right now, but they had their own relationship.

“Why are you here?” Tommy asked, frustration evident. He hadn’t expected that Eddie would want anything to do with him after he had broken up with Evan and he’d tried to make his peace with that.

“My friend is being a dumbass, where else would I be? Seriously, man, what’s going on?” Eddie asked, and Tommy wants to talk about it, but he can’t trust it will stay between them. 

That was always the problem with his friendship with Eddie, it included Evan. He got that they were a package deal, and when he and Evan were good that wasn’t a problem. But now, he couldn’t just unload on Eddie and not expect it to get back to Evan.

“I’m not talking to you about this. I get that you want to help, but this is between me and Evan.” He tried to resist asking, but the curiosity won out. “What did he tell you?”

“Just that you blindsided him and started talking about taking some time apart, that he needed to get out there and explore his “sexuality” and how you didn’t want to hold him back. At least, that’s what I could make out before he doom spiraled and started dissecting the past month to figure out what he had done wrong.” Eddie narrowed his eyes at him. “You know he was expecting you to ask him to move in at that dinner, right?” 

And Tommy can see how Evan might have come to that conclusion when he’d asked him over. They’d been together 8 months and Evan spent more nights at Tommy’s then at his own loft. Evan bought groceries and brought them to his house so he could try out new recipes and he’d started hinting about how the backyard was big enough for a dog and Tommy had realized that half the laundry he’d folded last week had belonged to Evan. 

And he could see it, his future with Evan. A shared home, a supportive group of family and friends, hosting Thanksgiving because Evan really wants to deep fry a turkey and no one will let him try it at their homes. Marriage and kids and pets and joy. An end to the search, an end to being alone, the beginning of the rest of his life. 

And he panicked. Because 8 months ago Evan thought he was straight, he’d never kissed a man other then Tommy and one day he was going to wake up and realize that he settled for the first guy to make a move on him. And then he’d resent Tommy and it would be the beginning of the end. 

So instead of asking Evan to move in, he’d sent him away. At least, he’d tried to. 

He’d stumbled through a standard break up speech, the kind of thing he’d heard dozens of times during his life. It’s not you, it’s me. This is moving too fast. I think we should take some time apart, explore our options. 

And Evan had frowned at him, his brow furrowed as if Tommy was speaking a foreign language. He’d stuttered out a “Wh-what the fuck are you talking about?”midway through Tommy’s speech and then as Tommy kept trying to make him understand he’d started laughing. He’d actually patted the back of Tommy’s hand and said simply “No.”

It had stopped Tommy in his tracks. “No? You can’t refuse a breakup, Evan,” Tommy had said.

“Sure I can. I’m going to go and let you have your ‘time apart’ but this is not finished between us, Kinard.” And then he’d left and apparently headed straight for Eddie.

“Earth to Kinard,” Eddie snarked at him. “You want to spill what’s going through that fat head of yours? Because I, for one, can’t believe you are fumbling this. And I thought Buck was the idiot in your relationship.” 

Tommy felt a growl in his chest at the insult to Evan, no matter how lovingly offered. Evan was not an idiot, he was brilliant. He was smart and funny and warm and so open and he was going to destroy him when he left. So Tommy left first. 

“Eddie, I mean this with love, but leave it the fuck alone. You can stay if you want, catch the rest of the game but I am not talking about this with you.” 

Eddie shrugged, “All right, bro. Just be prepared for your man to go full Buck on you.” He chuckled as he toasted Tommy with the dregs of his beer. He got up to grab another from the kitchen. 

“I don’t know what that means,” Tommy yelled after him. “What does that even mean?” he muttered under his breath. 

[egg-emperor]

Sonic Frontiers 2 year anniversary!

So beautiful 🥰

It wasn't until my second playthrough of the game that I realized how much I actually love Eggman's portrayal in this game, when I finally understood it and didn't let fandom misconceptions make my mind up for me. I really love how this game perfectly delves into how egotistical, self-centered, and selfish he is and how that affects his view of everything, including love and family as he has an unsettling perception and terms and conditions for them.

There are a lot of great moments representing that, especially in the Egg Memos where we really get to explore his personal thoughts and feelings unfiltered right from his mouth! I also really like how they emphasized how much he hates working with Sonic and that it's only a desperate measure, again for selfish reasons. And how despite the respect and recognition of him being a formidable adversary, he'd be delighted for him to meet his demise hehe

And most importantly, how he's still evil as ever as he's constantly wishing that he could enact the evil schemes he planned for all throughout the main story and Final Horizon. His character in this game is heavily misunderstood by many as they say the opposite of the actual game and one of the writers but I love it exactly for what it is and it's become a lot of fun to analyze, especially for all the things that can be learned about Eggman's narcissism and psychology.

If you haven't seen or would like to rewatch my Frontiers Eggman cutscenes compilations, see the main story here, the Egg Memos here, and Final Horizon here!

[starphishuou]

I can't get rid of the Paimon x Leraye dream I had

This dream happened a few nights ago but I can't stop thinking about it because it fueled the Paimon x Leraye delusions I already had.

I'm pretty sure I'm the only one in the fandom who ships them (I still haven't found anyone else who ships them but if you do then I'm glad I'm not alone🥺)

Anyways, the dream went like this:

1. It started with both of them as kids in a grassy field. Leraye hid behind a tree when he saw a kid with beautiful blonde hair, put into 3 braids and tied with ribbons, wearing a pink dress, and was barefoot. The kid was Paimon and he was eating a dead dove.

2. Eventually, the two of them become friends and grew close up until they become the nobles of Gehenna we know.

3. Paimon develops a small crush on Leraye but that eventually grew as time passed on

4. One day while on patrol, Paimon sees Leraye hanging out with another guy. That guy had a Gehenna military uniform and long white hair that was slicked back in the middle.

5. As days grew by, Paimon tries to hang out with Leraye like they usually do but Leraye keeps turning him down in favor of his new friend.

6. Eventually, Paimon gets fed up and worries that their friendship is starting to weaken. So he marches up to Leraye's room and is about to knock but the door is already opened by just a small gap.

7. Paimon sees Leraye and his friend on the bed doing the ✨horizontal tango✨. Paimon is frozen in shock and eventually, Leraye sees him.

8. Leraye is about to reach out to Paimon but Paimon instead walks off in a rage.

9. Paimon can't help but wonder why he should be feeling this way because it's no shock in Hell to participate in sexual stuff with anyone. But he thinks that he's just jealous because Leraye and his friend have already grown close to the point that they might even be more than friends.

10. Paimon goes missing (for some reason. Hey! My brain did this sht in my sleep, idk why he went missing)

11. Paimon's sister/brother— Gremory— visits Gehenna and is PISSED (I've been hc that Gremory is Paimon's sibling because in the Ars Goetia, they are usually alike and are mistaken for each other. Also, Gremory can be a male or a female. Unlike Paimon who looks like a female but is actually male) (Personally, Paimon in the game gives me gender envy😔. So I also hc him as gender liquid)

12. Gremory visits Leraye first because they know that he and Paimon are close. Then they give him the big ol slap on the face and demands where Paimon is.

13. And then I wake up...

Well that was definitely an interesting dream. Paimon x Leraye angst anyone? Is this even angst? Idk, I'm just glad to have some Paimon x Leraye content even if my brain just did it in my sleep

(Small Paimon x Leraye doodle I did while I got bored :DD)

[selfproclaimedunicorn]

Aha I’m back for the oc ask game! This time around, mayhaps any of these?: Kaleb x Taryne, Sarra x Yorick, Aldreda + Brandon, and Kaleb + Cassana?

Can I hear a round of applause for world class slut & professional other man for Lord Kaleb Dormaire?

We have already established with the Aldreda ship that this man is willing to bottom, but I really think Taryne would push that limit. Does he love a strong woman? Yes. Will he take the strap like a champ? I fully believe in his ability to do so. Can he exclusively be a sub? Honestly, I don't know if he's got it in him & Taryne will not give up control in the thing she's doing Just For Herself. That said, I don't think they wouldn't not work. I feel in my bones that Kaleb & Taryne would be more a "friends with benefits" type thing than whatever exactly she has going on with Gwayne.

It'd probably start out in a similar way of "I have a pre-established relationship with Alicent, & when I came back to King's Landing to see her here is some rando she's made part of her household since Lyonel Strong's promotion/Jasper Wylde got a job. Things have now spiraled a little out of control a little bit." Kaleb would definitely have more tact than Gwayne upon first contact, but he'd wind up in a similar situation of picking up the queues of how awful & traumatizing Taryne's marriage is, & once some level of comfort was there between them he'd offer some form of companionship at the very least just to give her some moments away from her husband, & from there it just kind of builds until they act on whatever attraction is there. They'd both definitely be having a nice time, & letting Taryne be in charge on occasion is probably nice, but bestie I am looking at this man's amount of kids & his pullout game is not good enough for Taryne to have him be her regular Other Man unless he's willing to never put it in. Kaleb, I see your breeding kink. You can't hide it from me. My son, Yorick, is the same fucking way, I perceive you whether you like it or not. Taryne's definitely fond of him though! He's an actual good, genuine man who won't hurt her, & that really goes most of the way for her. Not a long way, like 90% of it. The bar is on the ground.

They've definitely got "judging & side-eyeing people at the function, & maybe they hookup after it" vibes.

Yorick & Sarra sounded familiar, so I did hunt through the tag & I have ruminated on this before actually! So linking

Oh, you mean her step-son by way of fucking both his parents?

Gonna be real, she looks at him & just sees her youngest brothers, because some of them died young enough that temporarily being heir to Lonely Light or the expectations of their dad or Ironborn (specifically at Lonely Light) never had a chance to super get to them. So Brandon is kind of a What If scenario for her. "Would any of my brothers have been like him? Would they have been friends?" That type of thing

I think he'd be interested in Aldreda as a person regardless of what canon we're going with (Alicent alive at Lonely Light with Aldreda or her canon fate) just because she's important to his parents & "she's a cool warrior woman who let me have a knife!" And that would obviously evolve as he gets older to probably seeing her as some sort of extra parent or aunt or something--how that plays out I think would just really depend on what happens with Alicent (& by extension probably where he winds up going)

Honestly though, Aldreda would probably waffle a lot on if she wanted to be around him when he's younger. She'd never be outright cruel to him or send him away, it'd be more a "do I have the mental capacity to be around a child?" Part of it is her having never thought about her own ability to have kids & the subsequent having of them/motherhood & being at least a little confronted with it by now kind of being his step-mom, & part of it is the weird "my younger brothers were all this age once" that turns into "he's older than [brother x] ever got to be." It's, like, "am I mentally okay to be around the happy, optimistic child? If yes go be near the child. If no, decide if you want to do emotional self harm or not & proceed from there." (I never said Aldreda was the healthiest person out there). She'd definitely be encouraging of him & would probably give him pointers for training, but she'd also be rolling her eyes at the knight thing, I cannot lie. But you can't totally blame her, there's no knighthood culture on the islands! She wouldn't discourage him though, she'd just privately think that there's better things to dream of. Also, she's definitely taking him out on her longship at some point because "every boy needs to go out on the ocean. It puts hair on their chest." Did she tell Alicent or Kaleb beforehand? Maybe.

I think they'd be at least casual friends, with varying closeness depending on if it's SOTF or TRP. Because, like, they were both growing up in The Red Keep, but she was also never really a part of Rhaenyra's friend group until they were both a little older.

In SOTF, it'd definitely be a case of "this is my husband's cousin's boy (aside from Laenor, of course) that I also know & have a positive opinion of. Of course I am going to be kind & welcoming to him!" Because Cassana Strong is, first & foremost, a big sweetie pie. She's a little insecure, but she's a sweetie pie & she will never make someone feel unwelcome unless they've given her a reason to. She'd maybe be a little judgey about him having so many bastards (because she's even judgey about her brother in that regard), but she wouldn't say anything to him about it. Because that's rude & also it's kind of just expected in Westeros. Not stopping her from being gossipy as hell though.

In the TRP crossover AU though, they're definitely closer since he's married to Her Girl. Like "that's Daenys's man, your honor. I have to giggle about him with her, that's girl code." Also, like Rhaenyra, she's definitely encouraging them & probably helping to set them up, because she's watching Daenys moon over him too! Her insecurity would make a bigger impact, temporarily at least, on their relationship here though. I'm not going to go into too much detail, because that's spoilers for her arc in that fic, but there would be a rough patch where she kind of ices him out & is kinda harsh towards him for a couple months. Yes, it would be a bitterness thing & she is butting heads with at least Daenys & maybe even him depending on how much he's willing to try to pus that due to her very sudden 180 on how warm & friendly she normally is. It's not beyond repair, & she gets over it, & I also think she'd be willing to tell Kaleb what was going on more than she probably is Tyland in noncrossover TRP since, like, she's known him since he was a kid.

Overall, I think Kaleb & Cass would have a very nice friendship. Maybe not a best friendship, but a comfortable one.

[magiclwritings]

The tray clanked against his desk as he set it down and he tried to put his thoughts together quickly. He hadn't been expecting to entertain Beau again. Hell, he was pretty damn sure that with Quintus in charge of his well being, he'd barely see him if it could be helped. But still he couldn't be rude. He had a feeling if he even attempted to run him out of here, he'd run back and tell Quin something truly awful. He sighed and made to grab the jug of wine he'd brought up for the both of them and uncorked it, pouring himself a full glass.

"Beau," He started out, still hunched over his desk. Cesare took the glass and a deep drink followed. "I don't know what you're looking to get out of me." He answered quite plainly, the prince turned around and looked at him again. Those dark eyes looking too intently at him. "And if you'd like to pick up where we left off, you'd need to retrieve my blade you left in the pompous, lard head of a man that's trying to fuck you and Quintus and now apparently me over until death." He sighed and took another deep drink of wine. The warmth pooling in his belly and it felt nice. The tension he'd been carrying was starting to ease but not loosen entirely. No he'd wait for Quintus to come back before any of that happened.

The prince popped a few bits of dark chocolate into his mouth followed by some cheese. Quin had been right when he said to get food. Perhaps that was a good sign, if he had appetite then maybe ... Cesare realized he was drifting but found himself unable to focus completely. "He's going to kill you when he finds you're out when you're not supposed to be you know. And I'm inclined to look the other way." That was half a joke, though he'd never allow actual harm to come to this man. He had saved them after all. "There's nothing I can do if this is what Quintus wants. I'm sure he's already spoken to Max but I will try and see what I can do." The prince polished off his wine and found a bit of bread to tide him over some more. A soft moan left his lips tasting the freshness of it. Gods he really should have eaten before getting up here. He had no idea why he hadn't. "But I did promise you'd be free and I doubt Quin truly wants to hold someone against their will. He may just be looking to give you a ... what do they call it ... ah." He smiled, brushing the crumbs from his fingers and he finally walked closer to him "A taste of your own medicine."

It was only then that he'd realized it wasn't Beau he was speaking to. The way the light reflected off Quin's eyes and that subtle tilt of his mouth, he knew him quite well. But it was clear there was some kind of game to be played here. He'd bite for the time being. Besides, it would serve him right to pull a stunt on him like this. "Maybe he's being too harsh. It's truly not for me to decide." He shrugged, smiling softly. "I'm not sure you could change my mind even if there were something to be done."

Quin walked with Cesare at his side, his mind racing from everything that had happened. He was downright terrified for his uncle to find out about the engagement. There was no doubt in his mind that his uncle hadn’t figured out Cesare stole Quintus back from him. There was now just as much of a target on Cesare’s as on Quin’s. In truth, he didn’t know what his uncle’s next move would be, but he had a feeling lingering in the pit of his stomach that it would be war. Since he could not retrieve Max and Quin, he’d take Adros by force to get them back. 

He was so lost in his thoughts he didn’t realize Cesare was moving forward until Quintus was already wrapped up in his arms. He leaned his weight onto the prince, tucking his head beneath Cesare’s chin, his arms looping around his waist. “I need…” Quin started, then paused. He knew what he needed. He needed to know what happened on the border, specifically between Cesare and Beau. While he firmly believed that Cesare would never sleep with someone else, Beau was an actor. He was precise in his ability to impersonate Quintus. And he knew he could have asked Cesare outright for the story and get mostly a truthful answer in return. “I want to clean myself up, change out of these clothes, and then I need to see Max.” He pulled back, looking up at Cesare. “While I do that, you should go down to the kitchens and get us food, bring it up to your quarters, and I’ll meet you there when I’m done.” Quin leaned forward, pressing his forehead against Cesare’s chin. He could feel the prince’s protest in his bones. It was torture for Quintus to ask for time apart, even if it was for a couple of hours after reuniting. “I need this,” He said, squeezing Cesare’s waist. “Okay?” 

Quintus pressed himself against Cesare’s body again before pulling away, his hand sliding down to grip Cesare’s. “Go collect us a feast,” He said, walking backward until their connected hands were stretched out, still connecting them. Then he let out and turned around to head back to his quarters. 

Entering his rooms, Quintus sighed to see Beau sprawled out on his bed, flipping through one of his journals. “Riveting diary,” He said, closing the book with a snap. “I don’t appreciate being left out of club meetings when I’ve done so much to get you here.” 

Quin laughed, the sound echoing through the room. He stopped at the end of his bed to grab his journal from Beau’s hands. “You’ll be present when I want you to be present.”

“Then what am I doing here?” Beau sat up, crossing his arms over his chest. 

“I want to know what happened at the border,” Quin said, sitting on the chest at the bottom of his bed. “Specifically, what happened between you and Cesare.” 

“Ohhh,” Beau purred, crawling towards Quin. “I see.” He sat next to the prince, his back pressed up against the bedpost. “Someone is riddled with jealousy. Did my beloved prince sleep with another man?” Beau pressed a hand to his chest, pretending to be faint. “I have to say, Quintus, you’re fortunate. He is such a giving lover. And, honestly, feeling the weight of his body press you down into the bed…” Beau closed his eyes, inhaling slowly. “I’ve never experienced such a feeling of security and protection.” 

“He wouldn’t have been fooled. He would know it wasn’t me at some point and would have stopped.” Quin felt like he was going to be sick. Everything Beau said was the same thoughts Quintus had after sleeping with Cesare. “He knows me.”

Beau lazily opened his eyes, raising a brow at the prince. “Of course, he realized after a while. We may look the same and may have been trained to fuck by the same man, but I am far more experienced in this act than you are. Cesare is too good of a man to point out your inexperience, but we both know you lack skills in bed. Richard always mentioned how frigid you were in the sheets. Cesare noticed the same thing. Unfortunately, that is not something I can do in bed. Or maybe he just fucked me, so I would help him get you out; who knows.” 

“I don’t believe you.” But he did. Quin felt like he had been doused in cold water, his inner insecurities exposed to the room. He was open and bleeding from every word Beau had thrown at him. Every nerve in his body felt raw and exposed. “He is an honor-”

“He’s a man, a future King,” Beau said, snorting at Quin’s words. “He’s had lovers before; you know that just as I do. Fucking you was probably like fucking a virgin. You can’t blame him for seeking out someone who has experience. What did he tell you about that night?” Beau looked at Quin before his mouth curled into a villainous smirk. “Ah, I see. You haven’t. Interesting. Does that mean you’re staying in here tonight? Because you should know, I’m a cuddler…” 

________________________________

The prince was either out of his mind or had completely lost it. The verdict was still up in the air. 

Getting into Prince Cesare’s quarters was easy. Quintus had lived in the castle prior and had snuck into the prince’s quarters because they let him walk right in even though Cesare was not back yet. 

So he had some time to kill. He made himself comfortable in the room, lounging on the prince’s bed, limbs sprawled as if he owned the space. He had always been good with that, walking around with confidence and being able to claim space for himself. Growing up like he had, they would eat you alive if you didn’t. It also helped that he was a quick study, much like his counterpart. The more time he spent around him, the more he learned they were alike. Even if it pained him to admit it, there was no denying that. 

It was another twenty minutes until the door opened, and Cesare walked in, his face lighting up until his gaze spied the clothes he was wearing. A brief look of suspicion crossed his face. “Prince Cesare,” He purred, drawing out the prince’s name. “I’ve been waiting for you. I thought we could discuss the deal we made back at the border. My feelings are hurt, but if you make it better, maybe I’d be willing to finish what we started back in my quarters.” He ran a hand down his chest, fingers toying with the fabric. “Hmm?”

[dreadfutures]

Tevinter Nights: dramatic summaries

Back in March I decided to read a story from Tevinter Nights out loud to the DA FanFic server every Monday night. I figured with the number of stories, we'd hit August right as we finished - hopefully it'll be a big month for us fans!

I just love this anthology so much - there are many gems and entertaining bits among them, and they're criminally underrated. A lot of the DA side content is hit or miss for a lot of people, but seriously, some of these short stories could be published on their own without any knowledge of Thedas and still entertain!!

Here are the summaries I wrote ahead of each reading. :) All of the TN short stories are independent of each other, so take a look and perhaps you will find one you enjoy. I tried to keep them largely spoiler free :)

Also, check out @larkoneironaut 's Tevinter Nights art project! They're enjoyable in their own way :)

Three Trees to Midnight, by Patrick Weekes

After the Qunari take Ventus, prisoners are put to work chopping wood on the outskirts of Arlathan Forest. Myrion, a human mage, and Strife, a city elf who joined the Dalish, are shackled together at the ankle as a work pair. While their relationship starts antagonistic, they are quickly forced to work together to escape. This thrilling adventure is one of our first looks into the mysteries of Arlathan Forest, and the Antaam’s advance south—despite the rifts forming in the Qun’s ranks. Notably, Strife and his companion Irelin appear in another short story, Ruins of Reality, and Dragon Age: The Missing.

Down Among the Dead Men by Sylvia Feketekuty

We finally see Nevarra in this tale, and what better place to start than in the Grand Necropolis itself? Audric Felhausen, our POV character, is a city guard who is tasked with protecting a Mortalitasi mage during an investigation about some restless undead in the bowels of the Necropolis. We see how spirits and demons wander, and get stuck, in the bodies kept there -- and how possessing a body, even a long-dead one, can have significant effects on the spirit. On both a cultural and metaphysical level, this story gives us a TON of lore. And Audric, our hero, is equally curious and unsettled by what he learns. By the end you'll see why so many people are desperate for him to be a companion in DA4!

The Horror of Hormak by John Epler

Do you love Wardens? Do you miss the dark fantasy elements of Origins? Do you like the aesthetic of Dark Souls, with giant stone doors you push open with all your might to reveal a giant boss? That's the vibe that John Epler (DA4 Creative Director!) brings to this story. Wardens Ramesh and Lesha are tracking down a group of missing Wardens in Nevarra--a group, it turns out, that does not want to be found. For better or worse, Ramesh and Lesha plunge into the darkness and discover a horrifying truth with massive implications for the ancient history of Thedas... and the Evil Gods about to wake in DA4!

Callback by Lukas Kristjanson

Follow Sutherland and his crew of honorable adventurers back to where they began: Skyhold. Now defended and empty but for a handful of Chantry chosen caretakers, the fortress that once housed the Inquisition has gone dark, and Sutherland is tapped to investigate. We see Skyhold and by proxy the Inquisition itself from the perspective of one of the little guys, drawn to it because of ideals and encouraged to become their best selves. In doing so, we also see how the events of this world can shape Spirits in unexpected ways, with consequences for a world where the Veil is thin. Callback is full of callbacks and cameos from a surprising group from DAI, and an entertaining and perilous mini adventure in its own right. This is a love letter to Skyhold, to the Inquisition, and a meaningful counterpart to the memories of Skyhold kept in its frescos.

Luck in the Gardens by Sylvia Feketekuty

Hear a tale of glory and daring straight from a Lord of Fortune themself! A genderfluid, disguise-wearing, acrobat-turned-swashbuckler regales us with an adventure from the streets of Minrathous. Spy on secret meetings between Magisters, learn what the Venatori have been doing since Corypheus' defeat, and tremble in the face of things "past the Veil of our world," neither demon nor spirit. Who are the Lords of Fortune from Rivain? What lurks beneath Tevinter's streets? This may be the story that inspired many people's wishlist for the next Archon and the next Black Divine -- some beloved, familiar faces join our hero to face the terror in the gardens!

Content Warning: Body horror, Eldritch horror, mentions of Tevinter slavery

Hunger by Brianne Battye

Tevinter Nights returns to Warden business in Hunger -- or does it? Evka Ivo, a heroic warden, and her junior recruit Antoine, have to decide what counts as Warden business when there's not a Blight ongoing. As they make their way to Weisshaupt to answer their summons, they decide to make a small detour to help a village in need. Evka and Antoine are our beloved dwarf/elf romantics who feature in a DA Day short story - as well as in the DA4 lead-in comic, The Missing! Whether they may be companions or contacts to our protagonist remains to be seen, but surely they'll make an appearance after such tales of heroism and compassion!

Murder by Death Mages by Caitlin Sullivan Kelly

We return again to Nevarra from a different angle this time! An agent of the Inquisition, the multiplayer necromancer Sidony, is sent back to the home country she resents in pursuit of a killer. We learn not only about Sidony's past, but about the political landscape of Nevarra: do the Mortalitasi run the country as shadowy puppet masters? What do the common people, and the nobility, think of the death mages from the Necropolis? How are Mortalitasi trained? And what does necromancy look and feel like to the characters in Thedas? In this tale of alleyway chases and gossip-filled balls, we get another glimpse into a country we may very well visit in DA4!

The Streets of Minrathous by Brianne Battye

We return to Minrathous to learn what's become of the Venatori since Corypheus's defeat. Join Neve Gallus, special investigator (and important cameo in The Missing comic), as she navigates the alleyways of Tevinter's great city in search of a murderer. Through her eyes, we see how less-privileged mages are viewed, and how the law bends to the whims of the rich and magical in Tevinter. Neve is joined by Tevinter Templars in her investigation, and their final battle is certainly eye-opening for anyone interested in fighting mages... What lies beneath the Streets of Minrathous, if not the Cekorax? Well, you're about to find out.

The Wigmaker Job by Courtney Woods

Lucanis Dellamorte, Master Assassin (and rumored heir to the First Talon) of the Antivan Crows, prowls the secret passages and unsuspecting rooftops of Tevinter with his cousin Illario on a contract. The target? A member of the Venatori with a... peculiar hobby. From shady hotel rooms to a grand gala and fashion show, get a look at the best of the Crows doing what Crows do best. This is one of the best stories in Tevinter Nights by far.

Content Warnings: abuse of slaves, body horror, torture, gore, hair eating, lots of pretty gruesome (if cathartic) assasination, and possession

Genitivi Dies In The End by Lucas Kristjanson

The remnants of the Inquisition approach a new group of adventurers and task them with finding the secrets of Fen'Harel. The Antaam - or at least, part of it - give chase. And Genitivi Dies in the End.

Herold Had the Plan by Ryan Cormier

Our Lords of Fortune are on the run as a mission to steal an ancient amulet goes awry. They have the amulet, they have their daring escape (a Lord of Fortune knows no other kind, of course) -- but Herold had the plan for what to do with the damn thing, and Herold is gone. As Starkhaven guards give chase, only one Lord of Fortune will survive the night. But will he make it to the mysterious Squire who hired them in the first place? Join us for an adventure that will break your heart and keep you on the edge of your seat.

An Old Crow's Old Tricks by Arone Le Bray

Tevinter has sent their finest centuri to defend the shores of the Nocen Sea from potential Qunari invaders. They stake their claim on the area and set up camp, enjoying the esteem of being the proud defenders of Tevinter. But it's not the Qunari this group of soldiers should fear.

CW: blatant racism against dalish, off screen massacre of a Dalish clan, many gruesome cathartic assassinations described in some detail, hand trauma

Eight Little Talons by Courtney Woods

Antiva's crown is weak. Antiva has no army. And the Qun is at its doorstep. Antiva's Crows may be the country's only defense, but they must act fast. Caterina Dellamorte, the fearsome leader of the Crows, calls all Eight Talons to meet in secret and solitude to discuss and prepare for the threat at Antiva's borders. But perhaps they should begin by looking for threats at home. All Crows are assassins. But only one is a murderer.

Half Up Front by John Epler

A former altus who chose to be disowned into poverty to be with her elven lover takes the job of a lifetime: steal a precious, powerful, magical artifact from the Archon's Palace itself. It was never going to be easy, but the former Altus Vadis couldn't have predicted that a Minrathous heist would bring her all the way to a port in Rivain, loyal to the Qun. What at first glance seems like a classic cat burgling caper actually might tell us a lot about the forces at play in Thedas—how perhaps the people on the ground may or may not be following orders.

Dread Wolf Take You by Trick Weekes

[caligvlasaqvarivm]

Okay challenge mode. You are a therapist and Eridan Ampora from Homestuck has just walked right out of his intro page into your office. How do you fix him?

put him and karkat in a room with a pile of stuff and tell them they can't leave until they've jumped into it and talked about their feelings