#i need a name for this worldstate......

[persephoneggsy]

i found a neat template and wanted to fill it 

(elaborations are below)

FIORA COUSLAND, Warden-Commander and Queen of Ferelden

Archer Rogue (bard+duelist); romanced Alistair

Saved the Circle of Magi

Convinced Zathrian to end the werewolf curse

Crowned Bhelen King and destroyed the Anvil

Made Alistair king (with herself as Queen)

Used the Dark Ritual

Main party members: Alistair (lover), Morrigan (best friend), Wynne (surrogate mom)

Will sometimes swap Morrigan for Shale or Oghren

MARIAN HAWKE, Champion and Viscountess of Kirkwall; Princess of Starkhaven

Mage (spirit healer); aggressive personality; romanced Sebastian

Killed the Arishok

Sided with the Templars

Killed Anders

Carver became a Grey Warden

Main party members: Sebastian (lover), Fenris (best friend), Merrill (lover’s best friend (it’s my headcanon leave me alone))

If Carver is available, he takes up the Warrior spot

HILDEGARDE TREVELYAN, Herald of Andraste and Inquisitor

Mage (rift mage); romanced Cullen

Brought the Templars into the Inquisition as full allies

Stroud was left in the Fade

Recruited the Grey Wardens

Celene remained Empress, reconciled with Briala

Drank from the Well of Sorrows instead of Morrigan

Main party members: Dorian (best friend), Iron Bull (best friend’s lover), Cole (sweet baby boy)

Vivienne swaps with Dorian fairly regularly

[dragonologist-phd]

ok now seems as good a time as any to start on the AU version of Mercury! and ramble about her a bit in the process!

Kingmaker!Mercury is her default world state- she’s a grenadier alchemist, and the daughter of two retired adventurers who now run an apothecary. She learned alchemy from her father, took to it naturally, and always knew she’d be following in her parents footsteps and having adventures of her own. When she was old enough she set off, wandering on her own and taking on odd jobs, chasing excitement until she finally landed in The Stolen Lands. While she is recklessly curious and doesn’t always think through the impact her actions have on others, she ultimately wants to help people and do right by her friends. She’s very compassionate and believes that good exists in everyone, even those society views as monsters.

Righteous!Mercury has the same origin story…with one big difference. When she was still young, her parents’ apothecary was visited by a renowned scientist. She recognized Mercury's potential and offered her a prodigious position as her assistant. Her parents couldn’t turn that down…and so Mercury became Areelu’s apprentice.

Areelu encouraged Mercury’s curiosity and enthusiasm for experimentation…and also downplayed the importance of things like ethics. This version of Mercury is Vivisectionist Alchemist who's more fixated on pushing the boundaries of science and magic, and will follow that path with much less thought to the wellbeing of others. Her compassion for the monstrous is a bit more of a fascination in this version, which i'm thinking will veer her toward the Swarm path (tbd)

[blackjackkent]

Me> [struggling to unravel a very annoying UI bug]

My brain, entirely unprompted> H E Y. IF JAHEIRA HAD USED SOME MORE MINOR VERSION OF THAT RITE OF THE TIMELESS BODY ON RASAAD TO EXTEND HIS LIFESPAN, IT WOULD RESOLVE THE MORE FINICKY TIMELINE ISSUES ABOUT RION BEING THEIR KID.

Me> ...ok? I didn't ask right now but thank you for working that out I guess.

[dreadfutures]

Salinava keeps pulling the Temperance card like over and over againa and I think that has to be her romance card.

[hiddenbeks]

they don't know i'm planning major changes to my da worldstate,,

[mxanigel]

Tagged for WIP Wednesday by @anderstrevelyan, @poeti-kat, and @mxkelsifer (thank you!!! <3). I'll no-pressure tag @milesmentis, @galfrey, and @lazyadmiral for a WIP Whenever since I got to this late~

Given my recent Mass Effect brainrot, it might surprise you that I picked a Neri snippet for this week's entry. It surprised me. But I miss them. This is part of the scene where Neri reunites with Anders for the first time since he disappeared from the Wardens.

-----

We’re alone. Andraste preserve me.

“Are you here to drag me back to the Wardens?”

No greeting, no acknowledgment of anything that once existed between us, just an accusatory question. I swallow my emotions; I barely remain upright. “I didn’t know you were here until just now.”

“Oh.”

“But I was looking for you.”

“Why?”

“Because I wanted to see you.”

“Me?” He snorts. “Or the abomination I’ve become?”

“You.” My voice cracks.

“And you think I’d believe that?”

“It’s the truth.” I attempt a casual shrug. “But I won’t push you to believe it.”

Anders gazes at me for a moment, the silence stretching onward, adding distance between us despite our lack of movement. Then his eyes flick to my right arm. “You’re bleeding.”

I glance down. “Still?”

“Shit.” He exhales heavily. “Sit down.”

There’s a small wooden stool nearby, and I take a seat to begin dismantling my armor. The undead managed to slice its weapon across the less-protected underside of my arm—I’m not sure when that happened—which explains how much I’ve bled, though I’m slightly alarmed that my arm was dripping throughout our conversation. When did the bleeding start again? Or had it never stopped? Is this why I’m feeling dizzy?

“Drink this.”

I didn’t hear Anders approach me. That’s concerning. I cautiously sniff the clay cup he offers; it smells, well, medicinal.

“It’ll help with your blood loss. You haven’t changed, have you.”

I don’t dare meet his eyes. “If I hadn’t, I wouldn’t be here accepting treatment.”

He grunts and reaches for my now-bare arm, the exposed gash angry against skin smeared crimson with blood. It’s worse than I expected. A thrill runs through my entire being when his fingertips make contact. He gently applies pressure to the wound while cleaning the skin around it with the damp cloth in his other hand. The faintest trickle of magic warmth flows from his touch; by the time he finishes cleaning my arm, the gash appears less fierce.

As I force myself to finish drinking the incredibly bitter concoction, Anders applies a poultice and wraps it with cloth to secure it in place. “Treat your arm gingerly for the next day or two. If you can.”

I finally meet his gaze, finding his eyes ringed with dark circles. “I will. I promise.”

Surprise darts across his face before wariness returns. “What will you do now?”

“Find a place to camp for the night. Unless this village has an inn of sorts?”

“The tavern keeps a few rooms. They’re less keen to take on strangers these days, though your aid to Corin on the road changes things.”

“Would you prefer that I leave the village tonight?”

A muscle flexes along his jaw. “You’re wounded and there’s undead about. Camping alone isn’t a good idea.”

He still cares enough to say that. “I’ll visit the tavern. I appreciate the advice.” I push myself to my feet with my good arm and wobble once upright, waving him away when he looks like he’s about to support me. I can’t accept that yet. Not with this maelstrom of feelings threatening to burst out of my chest.

He hands me the blood-stained pieces of armor we removed from my forearm. Great. I need to clean those the first chance I get. I nod once in gratitude and turn to the door.

“Thanks. For looking for me.”

I glance over my shoulder, unable to hide my astonishment. A new softness has eased the lines on his face. I manage a weak smile before I step outside.

Perhaps there’s still reason to hope.

[afterthefeast]

i love lugh and maeve as two sides of the same coin. one (cousland) born into wealth and privilege and being raised with a very paternalistic feudal sense of duty to her people and country and the other (tabris) born into poverty and oppression and internalising a sense of duty to his people reinforced by the bonds of community within the alienage, who both become quite similar people. charming, charismatic, deeply loyal, politically ruthless and inclined towards self-sacrifice if it will help their people. they’re not the same (lugh is more empathetic, maeve less forgiving), but both are paragons of their community (perfect city elf in the eyes of the denerim alienage, perfect noble daughter) using that perfection to forward their goals at all costs. they would both i think mutually distrust and at least in lugh’s case despise the other, but they make very, very similar decisions motivated by parallel reasoning and it’s very fun

[miraculan-draws]

I have mentioned before that my Worldstate does not have Hawke going to Adamant/the Fade at all, and the Inquisition allies the wardens. This leaves. The Perfect opportunity. Of plausible deniability. For Anders.

By this point, Anders is occasionally using his Real Name as an alias. He can, with nothing more than maybe a hair cut and a change into his old warden gear, reunite with his husband and child, terrorize Varric, avoid Cullen and Cassandra like a Scooby-Doo chase scene, etc. The rebels and Fiona openly call him Anders. His haters are so mAD but they NEED Hawke so bad they have to just sit and stew in it.

When tensions are high enough, and people demand a trial for Anders, the Inquisitor, a DALISH MAGE, flips the script on them: if the people are pushed to overlook the past abuses of the templars, they must also be willing to overlook the past retaliations of rebel mages. When they refuse to settle on a path forward, he pulls out The Folder.

The folder has the illegal tranquility orders from kirkwall, the ones with the Knight-Captains mark. Eyewitness accounts from Amell, with the seal of Amaranthine below, as well as several inquisition mages, from HAWKE, (mages are not people like you and me).

In essence: if the jury wishes to convict Anders of a crime, the exact same sentence will be given to Commander Cullen.

Anders is pardoned :)

[thedragonagelesbian]

11, 13 and 21

canon worldstate questions!

11. what are their religious beliefs, if any?

vidreu aeducan: the stone rejected them when they were struck from the memories but it's fine (lying) and they dont swaddle themself in darkspawn blood and gore thinking about the flesh growing in between the fissures and rough-hewn gaps (not literally but metaphorically... and also a little bit literally...............)

cyrus hawke: even from the earliest days, cyrus was among the least andrastian of his family. malcolm had it drilled into him in the circle, and leandra grew up in the servants quarters of the amell estate removed from the alienage's modified worship of the creators. they passed their faith on to their children, and bethany took to it in particular, but cyrus was never interested in big philosophical questions or transcendental contemplation. what mattered to him was acting in the here and now.

as kirkwall weighed on his soul, though, he found himself reaching for dalish faith (as merill teaches it to him) more and more often. it's a way for him to connect with a people, history, and culture beyond the walls of the city of chains, and he desperately needs that kind of spiritual relief.

yiseeril trevelyan: it's ~~~~~~complicated~~~~~~~~~~~; born to a devoutly religious family before being sent to a circle in the heartland of chantry power, yiseeril was the picture of piety growing up. to the extent that that faith was shaken by a rogue templar preaching divine mandate as he made her tranquil, she swallowed that doubt the instant she came back to herself in the clutches of a seeker of truth and the primordial soup of a divine inquisition. when the people of haven proclaimed her to be the herald of andraste, she was all too eager to embrace it and the certainty that came with it, knowing that everything she had suffered up to that point meant something because she was Chosen.

fast forward to here lies the abyss and cassandra's personal quest. realizing that it was an accident that bestowed the mark upon her and that all the years of being lost to herself could've been undone at any time, yiseeril's faith shatters. she is nothing and no one; this house of cards she's built around herself to be a mythic, divine figure comes tumbling down

yiseeril struggles with her faith for the rest of the game--for the rest of her life, really--though always in private; being the herald of andraste remains politically advantageous, after all. but her trajectory is one of moving away from grand religious sublime and toward living in the everyday, the moment to moment, the trivial, and she's at peace with faith being something she now does from time to time rather than being everything that she is

13. their thoughts on the Grey Warden order?

vidreu aeducan: it is a job to dru, but it's a job she loves that lets you get away with a lot of not-so-ethical magic shenanigans in the name of a cause that means a lot to her personally. and also clarel did nothing wrong.

cyrus hawke: before here lies the abyss, cyrus' (negative) feelings toward the wardens were always about specific members (i.e., the hero of ferelden sparing loghain or larius threatening his mother to force his father to do blood magic) but not the order as a whole. once upon a time, watching a bunch of soldiers unquestioningly follow orders because they thought they had to to save the world would have struck him as tragic, but he has very little sympathy left to spare the wardens at adamant

yiseeril trevelyan: no strong feelings; yiseeril has an innate sympathy to those who do irrational things from a place of fear for their lives, so she lets the wardens stay in orlais, but she doesn't care about them beyond that

21. what is their biggest regret?

vidreu aeducan: defiling the urn of sacred ashes and having to kill leliana & wynne; dru doesn't share many personality traits with their younger brother but 'i always know what's best and thus i should not take into consideration the opinion or feelings of others except as a means to my own unassailable ends' is. one of them, at least at the beginning of the game. she's not cruel, just curious to see what defiling the ashes will do and careless wrt how that would affect her companions, whom she assumed would continue following her without question because what else were they going to do? stab her???

(thought seconds before being stabbed)

the regret is immediate, and though it does little good, they carry the dishonor of their actions that day for a long time, warming their cold pragmatism

cyrus hawke: every time he hasn't done enough to save someone. many such instances, but the one that gave him the most active and reckless grief was bethany being taken to the circle.

(everything that happened with anders is not the biggest regret, because it is so long and slow, this dull but constant ache and dead weight he drags with him for the rest of his life)

yiseeril trevelyan: she's never done anything wrong in her life, ever. i thought i might finally get her to regret something with the well of sorrows, but her only regret from that was that it upset sera, and they made up so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

(we'll see if veilguard changes that...)

[morganaseren]

Hi! I'd love to know more About We'll Lose the Grip in Waters Dark, the Poets must be out for Blood and the bodyguard au for the wip meme 👀

((I deeply apologize for how long this took me to get out. I work nights now at my apprenticeship, which means I'm on the weirdest sleep schedule... 😅))

Pairing: Leliana/Niamh Cousland

Rating: Teen

AU: We'll Lose Their Grip in Waters Dark Note: While this AU does deal with one of Niamh's worst worldstates, everything in regards to her relationship with Leliana will always be consensual. Honestly, Leliana goes out of her way to ensure Niamh's consent in whatever they do--not necessarily just in the bedroom.

In this scene, Leliana is lost in her thoughts while they're having sex. There's nothing especially explicit about the act itself, but I'm putting everything under a Read More due to length. There's also some mention of what Niamh's past was like before Leliana came into her life, but it's nothing graphic--a brief comment or two at best.

---

Leliana had remembered early on in their relationship how a simple hug had stunned Niamh into silence, words collapsing mid-sentence with the gesture. At once, Leliana had pulled back, wondering if she'd perhaps been too forward with her affection.

Upon Niamh's features, the surprise had been evident, of course, but Leliana also hadn't missed miss the flicker of quiet wonder and yearning in that gaze--perhaps from the simple knowledge that another person would ever seek to touch her with more than just lust in their hearts.

Past the depths of those bewitching eyes had been a soul so starved of such simple kindness, but beneath the oppressive environment of Kinloch Hold, Niamh had long conditioned herself never to ask for it, less it be misconstrued for more by the men and women who acted as both guard and executioner.

Her thrusts slowed then, unable to help the guilt that slowly crept into her. As Left Hand of the Divine, could she say she was any different from them? With an intelligence network that spanned nearly every corner of Thedas and the ability to command the death of any whom dared to seek harm against Justinia, Leliana was one of the most powerful women in the world. Did Niamh feel the need to chain herself to her out of fear that she'd be next?

"Leliana!"

And all at once, Leliana's worries faded at the simple call of her name. Her lover's usual soft-spoken voice had become high and tight with her arousal due in no small part to Leliana's ministrations.

Still, Niamh knew it was her there. Not some Templar or some faceless dignitary in the sea of contacts that Knight-Commander Gregoire had used her to curry favor with. Not the Left Hand. Not the terrifying spymaster or bard.

Just... Leliana.

And did Niamh not know her best?

"Leliana, please..." she begged again, voice breaking with the entreaty as blunt nails scrabbled helplessly against the back of her tunic. "I'm so close..."

"Shh... I have you," Leliana reassured, pressing her lips against the damp skin of the other woman's temple in apology for her distraction. "I have you," she repeated. "Just as you never need to hide your pleasure from me, you never need to beg from me either. I will always give you what you desire."

With silken heat still clinging to her fingers between the apex of Niamh's thighs, Leliana swiped her thumb in such a way that it immediately had the woman's body going taut beneath hers with a sharp gasp. Leliana couldn't help her own trembling as she felt velvet walls tightening and shuddering beneath her touch. She wound her arm behind Niamh, providing support as the mage's back arched instinctively with the rush of pleasure coursing through her. Leliana continued to work her fingers through wet folds albeit at a more languid pace, gently coaxing Niamh to the end of her release. It was only when her lover released the tightened grip around her shoulders and ceased shivering did Leliana finally pull out.

"Oh, good girl..." she rasped. She smiled when her words earned a lazy hum of delight at the praise. Leliana then peppered slow, tender kisses across Niamh's face, and the gentle laughter it caused was ever sweet music to her ears. "You did so well. Can you sit up for me? Ah. There we go. Good girl. I'm sure my desk can't make for a very comfortable surface after all that."

Leliana gently maneuvered Niamh's body to the side so that she could get her arms beneath her knees and shoulders more easily. With an effortless flex of muscles, she lifted her lover up and away from her desk. Carefully, she moved to seat them both into the chair behind her, settling Niamh atop her lap with the woman's calves draped over the lacquered arm.

"Are you alright?" she questioned, reaching out to adjust Niamh's robes, where it had settled awkwardly around her waist. Sheepishly, Leliana could admit that she'd been a tad too impatient to deal with the intricacy of the belts and knots there. As such, she had simply tugged and pulled at the fabric until her mouth and hands had unimpeded access to the treasure of soft flesh beneath. She could also see the marks dotting the area around Niamh's neck--all too visible now that enough time had passed--where Leliana had been unable to resist sampling the flawless temptation of skin before her. She was a delight in more ways than one, truly.

"I'm fine."

"You're certain it wasn't too much?" Her continued inquiries only drew a roll of those mist-grey eyes, but there was little missing the smile upon her lover's lips.

"You ask me that as if I didn't provide you ample incentive to take me here. Besides, your own attire didn't escape entirely unscathed either," Niamh remarked, reaching out to touch the vee of her tunic, where it had a more noticeable rip that split further down the middle. The lacing that held it together was now noticeably frayed, barely held in place by the eyelets that were threatening to split at the seams. "Hm. Leave this with me in the morning. Madame de Fer mentioned wanting to introduce me to her seamtress. I can ask if she'd be willing to mend this as well."

"As you wish," was Leliana's own response, unable to deny her, given how so rarely Niamh asked for anything. Granted, Leliana was somewhat distracted with the attention being given to her as Niamh gently adjusted the wide collar of her shirt. She quite enjoyed those small, exploratory touches. "Would you like anything from the kitchens?"

"Later perhaps." Niamh turned her head then to guide her arm back into the sleeve of her robes. "I don't think I can feel my legs ye--"

And then the other woman paused very abruptly, tensing in her lap.

Confused, Leliana's arms tightened instinctively around her, her senses immediately going on alert for anything that could have startled her lover. "Niamh?"

But the mage continued to stare ahead. "I... I think I've ruined your desk," she answered haltingly, disbelief evident in her voice.

Leliana blinked, letting the words settle over her before following Niamh's gaze to the object in question. Her desk had been unceremoniously cleared before she had laid Niamh atop it earlier. Before long, she had her lover's bare back against the wooden surface as they rocked against one another. At one point, however, she could remember feeling the faintest tingle along the nape of her neck during their coupling. It wasn't unlike how she could detect Niamh using her element of her choice out in the battlefield before the mage allowed lightning to strike.

It did in fact strike there as Leliana curiously eyed the fractal burns now etched across the wood grain, perfectly encompassing the shape of her lover's back in jagged asymmetry. She saw beauty in the chaos of its design, but she could also see the dismay settling into Niamh's features, and Leliana couldn't stand to leave her upset. She pressed her lips to the shoulder closest to her, still bare with Niamh's distraction.

"'Ruin?'" she repeated. "How could anything you touch possibly be less than sublime?" Leliana couldn't stop her smug grin. "If anything, I would consider it a compliment to my skills..."

And Leliana supposed such evidence would make working at her desk all the more enjoyable in the future.

Of course, her humor had earned her a grumble of discontent as Niamh hid her face against her neck. Leliana could feel the heat of the woman's blush against her skin, which charmed and amused her in equal measure, but she made no comment about it.

She settled her feet apart more firmly before rising in one fluid motion. Her smirk grew somewhat at the soft noise it elicited from Niamh, who was perhaps still surprised that she could lift her so easily.

"Come along, Mon Ciel Étoilée," she said, carrying her toward the side door of the office that opened into Leliana's personal quarters. "I do believe a warm bath is calling for us."

((I did not forget about your other prompts, friend! I promise! I just decided to separate them into two other parts since they were getting rather long! 😅 I hope you like this first one though!))

[asterroses]

sooo the kids in my main worldstate . thank u lily for encouraging me in my insanity

so obviously there is kieran . hes denaris's' and morrigans , hes a special little guy cus he was conceived almost entirely by the blood magic in the ritual . i have to include him cus it feels weird if i dont hes my weird guy ! !

then his sister ; sidony adaia tabris . shes born 6 years after kieran , so sometime during da2 [i think act 3 ? ? ? maybe ?] . shes like a carbon copy of zevran its like den's genes didnt even participate . shes a rogue , she has a wide variety of knowledge abt lizards and amphibians , and shes 15 years old during the veilguard . shes the last of their kids bcus denaris was REALLY unwell during his pregnancy [i think the blight in his system would just be harming him the entire time . makes it hard to conceive AND keep . he was soso sick] so he called it after sid . they didnt even plan for her but shes my babyyyyy

fenris and nikky adopt a tween a year after inquisition / trespasser . theyre an apostate mage on the run from their circle that collapsed , all they had were their phylactery , a grimoire they stole from their first enchanter , and a cloak to keep themselves warm . out of the two of them fenris is thee most protective abt them , even w all his turmoil abt them being a mage . theyre kind of like a mix of humorous and red hawke , but they care so so soooo much theyre really bad at not showing that they care . im naming them sylvan hawke :] honestly its fun imagining fenris being a dad same w hawke . sylv is about 18 ? during the veilguard ? or a bit older . i will figure it out

arcen and dorian have a son who is 6 years old when the veilguard takes place , his name is cylassan pavus-lavellan and he is suuuch a sweetie . his magic developed earlier than expected , which arcen chalks up to him being born a month early . hes a very energetic child with a love of griffons and dragons , as well as fantasy stories his dads , his older siblings and maevaris tell him . his dads utterly adore him and so do i hes just a BABYYYYY

but arcen and dorian ALSO have two apprentices learning magic from them ; valwen learning necromancy from dorian , and mabell learning rift magic from arcen . they have an agott and coco thing going on lolol i need to dev both of them more but i love them . valwen is definitely taking after arcen , and mabell is taking after dorian . both of them are kind of adapting their mannerisms like sponges . she/her for valwen , she/they for mabell ^_^

and then finally in the maxciene worldstate : anna theirin-cousland , born two years after awakening , and one year before maxciene's bastard . she takes the most after alistair personality wise , but looks like a copy of maxciene aside from her eyes . she does nottttt like her mom , nor does she want the throne . bcus maxciene has made it blatantly obvious she had her to keep the throne . maxciene my favorite problematic milf . umm she harbors grudges like no other , she has a lot of pent of anger [alistair is teaching her how to handle it . mostly w using a sword] , and she wishes to be someone elses daughter . ^_^

[blackjackkent]

random thought, feel free to ignore- but i wonder, considering the similarity in location, if the "selunite enclave outside the city" aylin and isobel mentioned would be hector's monastery in this worldstate?

HOLY SHIT. \o/

Hang on, I need to drop everything and roll with this idea because I love it. You just made my whole evening.

------

"Father Enric!"

The young acolyte is breathing hard as he comes to a stop inside the small chapel on the north end of Silverlight Monastery.

Enric, startled from his prayers, looks up with a raised eyebrow, then slowly, painfully shifts himself to his feet. (Age is telling on him, after all these years, despite all the training and discipline to which he has devoted his life.) "Calm yourself, Jakob," he says gently, keeping his voice deliberately calm in the face of the younger man's agitation. "Speak softly and without heat. What is it?"

In truth, he can guess. Another sally by the Absolutists - that terrible cult that has risen from the south. They have made three attacks against the monastery thus far, and the walls have held against their arrows and battering rams-- but not without damage, and not without casualty to the monks and clerics within.

The last attack was only three days ago, he thinks bleakly. We are not ready for another so soon.

But Jakob's news surprises him - it is not that at all.

"Two visitors on the road, Father Abbot, sir," the boy says. He is trying to maintain his composure but failing-- there is fear in his expression, and also a sort of perplexed excitement. "They come alone, but armed. One of them is an aasimar, father, and Brother Lloyd on the wall says that where the moonlight touched her, she glowed like a beacon!"

Enric's eyes widen. He reaches out to put a hand on Jakob's shoulder. "See that they are brought to my office at once. And wake someone in the kitchens."

-----

An hour or so later, there is a soft knock at his office door.

"Come in." He turns from where he is standing by the window, and finds himself meeting the eyes of a woman some three or four inches taller than he himself.

She puts an arm across her chest, bows respectfully. "In the name of the Lady we both serve, I greet you, Father Abbot," she says gravely.

Her eyes are so pale as to be almost white, and her skin to match, shot through with lines of gold like a piece of mended pottery. The wings at her back would likely stretch the width of the small office if she extended them, but one is furled at her back and the other wrapped around the shoulders of a smaller and rather exhausted-looking human woman, who is leaned up against the aasimar's side as if huddled against a tree in a storm.

"And I you," Enric answers, inclining his head politely. "You are--" He hesitates. "I hope you will forgive the presumption, but I hope my guess is correct. Are you the Dame Aylin that once walked these lands as our lady's right hand?"

She smiles slowly. "I am. It may be told by the moonlight upon my sword and the righteous fire within my heart."

Enric allows himself the briefest flash of pride at the monastery's record-keeping; even to the armor she wears, she looks exactly as the histories describe her. But that pride is almost lost in a much greater wave of emotion that is pure awe, for Dame Aylin (those same histories say) is the daughter of Selune herself. She has not been seen in the flesh for over a century. The last records of her are in letters from Moonrise before that cursed place fell to darkness.

"You honor us with your presence at Silverlight," he says. He starts to kneel, but she shakes her head impatiently, reaches out and takes him by the arm.

"We have come to aid your fight," she says briskly. "For we have seen the darkness of the Absolute face to face, and know the struggle that has set upon you these many weeks. My darling Isobel and I shall be the sword and shield of my mother on your behalf."

The human at Aylin's side -- Isobel? -- smiles wearily. "After a night's rest, I should hope," she murmurs, then adds to Enric, "We have come many leagues in a short time, that we might be of service to you."

Enric's practiced self-control is serving him well here -- but only with difficulty. The urge to simply gape in astonishment at the two new arrivals is considerable. "To stand at your side against this evil is a blessing none of us would have dreamed of," he says softly. "We would gladly accept, and offer you in return all that is ours in sustenance and shelter."

Aylin looks pleased. "A bargain it is, then," she says. Lifting one eyebrow, she studies Enric thoughtfully for a moment. "I see shades of him in you, most certainly - the shades which would have been passed by a lifetime's teaching. I am sure you are the man Hector has often spoken of. Enric of Trielta."

Enric is so startled that for a moment his self-control slips utterly. And though some of the surprise is at hearing this divine creature utter his name, more is for the source she mentions for her knowledge.

"Hector?" he asks. His eyebrows lift in sudden urgent question. "Forgive me-- do you speak of Hector Carlisle?"

Twin smiles flash onto the faces of both women at the name. "She does indeed," Isobel says.

"Hector is alive?" Even Enric himself is a little surprised at the rush of joy that goes through him at the news. "We all thought-- when the attack came upon the city, that terrible ship... we thought he must be dead. He was only in the market long enough to purchase supplies, but he never came back..."

"I can assure you," Aylin says, "Hector has not only climbed from the pit of that ship but triumphed over forces the likes of which we may all fervently hope you can never comprehend. You should be deeply proud to call him brother."

"As I am, and have been, and will be. Moonmaiden be praised... you are truly a bearer of all the best of news."

A flash of something that might be humor goes through the aasimar's eyes. "Should you expect anything else of Dame Aylin?" she says, raising one eyebrow.

"I--" He blinks, stammering uncertainly.

"My love jests," Isobel says, a little dryly. "It is hard to tell sometimes, I know."

Aylin makes a soft snorting noise but does not dispute the statement.

"But what she says of Hector is true," the human goes on. "He saved us both from a deep darkness at Moonrise Towers, after a century of loss, and has gone on to the city to face down the heart of the Absolute. I will not tell you his story while he still remains to perhaps one day tell you himself... but I will say that he speaks of you, of this place, every day-- with loyalty and gratitude."

She hesitates, then adds delicately, "You may, I suspect, not quite recognize him as the man who left, when he returns again."

That is a sobering thought, and Enric has to pause to consider it for a while before answering. "If he has faced the darkness so closely as you say, it would be foolish of me to expect it," he says finally. "But I cannot express how much it gladdens me to hear that he lives. He has been greatly missed, these last months."

He gestures to the chairs in front of his desk. "Please. Sit. I will have food and drink brought, and I hope you will tell me more of what you have seen, and what still lies ahead to do."

[greypetrel]

In other words.

I named Cullen's Mabari after one of Fionn Mac Cumhaill's hounds. I thought he was the type to pick names from mythology, and opted for Bran.

Then I replayed DA2.

Oops. No I wasn't thinking, yes my memory for names is abysmal, ask anyone who ever saw me in a con and asked me for a dedication on a comic how many times I asked them to repeat their name.

Then I was made notice.

...

And thus came to be that Cullen in my worldstate is just terrible at naming things. It became a joke in the family, of course, and he will justify himself with saying that he needed to come up with a name quickly, or Aisling would have named the dog Pork Chops.

It's not projecting at all.

I could ret-con myself and change the name but why.

[inflictswounds]

fuck it we ball : shipping edition !

( these are both romantic and platonic dynamics i'd like to write - friendships usually end up being my favorite kind of relationships so i encourage them VERY much. bolded names are the ones i'd like to write the most. ocs are obviously always included. this is a list i will keep updating. )

surana: romantic: alistair (specifically, august's (@/psychcwound), leliana, zevran, morrigan. platonic: other alistair muses [because these two are besties(tm) in my og worldstate], leliana, zevran, morrigan, jowan, wynne, sten, cullen (she's gonna dunk on him.... i understand if you don't wanna write them dlksjf)

hawke: romantic: varric........., merrill in aus. platonic: fenris, anders, isabela (the one who can match the menace energy alright), merrill, hawke twins.

lavellan: romantic: solas (it's. it's the drama alright. it got to me), josephine, blackwall, cassandra. platonic (the more romance focused characters apply here, too): COLE (from being afraid of the fade and its dwellers to befriending one. they are so important to me) iron bull, sera, leliana, dorian, varric (he calls her grumpy. as he should), vivienne, cullen.

zevran: romantic: ur warden 🫵 platonic: isabela (as in. friends who sometimes have fun together obv), the blight crew, other crow muses pspspsp.

tav (lorelei): romantic: gale (her 'canon' romance), karlach, shadowheart, rolan (because i think they could be fucking HILARIOUS, though depends how old you hc rolan to be) platonic: astarion (exclusively platonic, they are Friends), wyll, jaheira, lae'zel, halsin (bc these two have zero romantic chemistry rip), gortash (i need them to have a 4dchessing nemesis dynamic soooo bad).

tav (ramona): romantic: lae'zel (their 'canon' romance), wyll, minthara. platonic: gale, shadowheart, karlach, halsin, minsc, jaheira, astarion. (i didnt play a lot of their run yet, but this is how i see it for now...)

astarion: romantic: ur tav/durge 🫵, wyll, karlach, minthara (she could make him i worse i think) platonic: ur tav/durge, gale (i don't like bloodweave. sue me ig), shadowheart, halsin, minsc, (even he doesn't see my vision, too bad), jaheira.

karlach: romantic: ur tav/durge 🫵, astarion, wyll, shadowheart. platonic: ur tav/durge, lae'zel, wyll (again, bc they are just too powerful), gale, halsin, jaheira, minsc, dammon (i could b swayed to play a more romantic undertone, too), gortash (as in, i'd like to write a thread when she worked for him still. it could be inchresting).

[niofo]

so morgan is formerly trevelyan, right. i imagine bcos he spent so much time in antiva he has mix of ostwick (irish) and antivan (spanish) accents. he introduces himself as morgan de riva these days, but if there's someone capable of noticing there's something wrong with his accent, it's josie. and she knows trevelyans, bcos of lucille's trevelyan's balls, and morgan looks really similar to his mother. that's so cursed, omfg. i think i need josiemancing inky in this worldstate, that would be so bad i need to do this. also it's not something morgan ever mentions so it would be literally first time the veilguard hearing his former name. morgan wonders if he could manage to murder her surreptitiously before she can spill the beans (he can't, she's a bard).

[esseastri]

here i made it an ask:

HECK YES, ok, I'll do all the questions that Kogi didn't ask me.

What was the first Dragon Age game you played?

I started at the beginning because I think Kogi and Feather would have manifested in showers of sparkles to berate me into oblivion if I hadn't, so DAO.

2. Which Dragon Age game is your favorite so far?

DA2. Listen, I love all of those bisexual disasters (except Fenris) so damn much, and while the whole thing is a little repetitive, I always find it to be more comfortable than annoying. I'm a sucker for a good framing device with an unreliable narrator. And while I love the Warden and the Inquisitor because they are blank slates that I can create anyone off of, it's nice that Hawke has a solid, actual character for me to love.

3. Do you usually play as a warrior, mage, or rogue? Which class are you planning to try first this time around? Which subclass?

I've got one of each in my canon worldstate, but Rogue is historically my favorite, even though I find mage easiest to play. I will almost certainly make a shitty little double-daggers rogue as my first Rook because all we know of Rook so far leads me to believe that she'd be besties with my Hawke, which means Rogue Supremacy.

5. Do you typically use a preset character and name or spend hours in the character creator coming up with a custom one?

Bahahaha, I think the first time I played DAI, I was in the CC for a solid two point five hours. I will be dicking around for nine years with hair color alone.

6. Do you have your Rook(s) planned out to any degree? If so, would you share some details or ideas you have?

I will need to know the canon surnames for all the races before I can really dive into planning a Rook. I can't do anything without a name, and my name has got to jive with the surname, so that's what I'll need to start with. I can say that she will almost certainly have red hair, since all of my previous First Characters have been redheads. Gotta stick with tradition.

9. Which romance, if any, do you plan to pursue first?

I have been trying to KISS Scout LACE HARDING for TEN YEARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (But Davrin is making a strong case for himself by simply existing. He'll probably be second.)

10. Which location are you most excited/hoping to explore in-game?

Weisshaupt. I want to know everything about how the official organization of the Wardens works, so I know how shitty the little Fereldan outpost has been all these years.

13. What’s one thing you’ve seen confirmed so far that you’re a fan of?

Mmmm everything about the character creator--the pronouns and body shapes and lighting and just... everything about it.

14. What’s one thing you’ve seen confirmed so far that you’re NOT a fan of?

mmmmmmrrrrrggggggg Ghilan'nain.

15. Do you have any unpopular opinions about DAV so far?

The character trailer was a blast and made me infinitely more excited for the game than anything else we've seen, I didn't think it was ""too MCU"" or ""quippy"" or whatever, I thought it was perfect Varric content and I loved it.

16. What’s one crack theory you subscribe to (yours or someone else’s)?

Sandal will show up at some point, possibly in the Black City, because he's actually massively important and possibly the Maker in disguise.

17. Are you interested in all the lore and speculation or do you focus more on the games and stories themselves?

Yes? To me, a lot of the lore is in the stories and the stories are about the lore, so they go together. I'm not the most speculative--I just want to know, I don't want to guess!--so I'm bouncing off the walls waiting for the actual game to drop so I can just go nuts. And I'm always really here for the characters, so that's what I'm most interested in.

18. Which aspect of fandom are you most looking forward to? (e.g. reading/writing fic, the bounty of gorgeous art, getting to know new people, etc.)

NEW ART SO MUCH NEW ART god bless every fanartist in this fandom, I cannoooottt waaaaiiiittt!! There is already so much amazing stuff in the tags, I can't wait until there's even more!!! I want to see everyone's Rooks, all of them, I cannot wait. Also I have not written fanfic in years, but if anything is going to get me to write some, it will be Dragon Age, so it will be great to get back into that, hopefully.

19. Are you planning to replay any of the previous games, watch Dragon Age: Absolution, or read any of the books/comics/short stories, or are there other games you want to play in the meantime?

Uh, Kogi and I watched the gameplay trailer and about ten minutes after we finished, I'd plugged DAI into the PS4 and booted everything up. So. Yes. I'm also finally reading Tevinter Nights after sitting on it for two years. AND I'm making my best friend play all three games from the beginning so she can join us in DA hell, we are deeply enjoying Origins rn. It's great. I am fully in the soup and there I shall remain until DAV appears.