#obviously it should be Karlach

[fadewalking]

I dont understand the appeal of Shadowheart.

[mariana-oconnor]

The fact that there is no dialogue with Karlach where Tav can suggest that she and Dammon maybe get to know each other a little better is tragic to me.

I want to set up my friend with the sweet tiefling blacksmith. LET ME SET THEM UP.

[fruutes]

She thinks she gets everything she wants bc of her +2 persuasion but the +4 intimidation probably helps..

[mokeonn]

Currently I have so many bg3 saves bc I refuse to delete my old ones that will likely never be finished (first ever gameplays, not optimized, everytime I open one I get overwhelmed and stop), but also because I keep making new games with the specific purpose of romancing a certain companion, seeing special dialog, doing a specific style of run, or getting an achievement on steam.

[feyascorner]

Usually, you were thorough in covering your tracks. Specifically, the marks.

The camp is strangely quiet when you finally emerge from your tent. You’d stayed most of the night in Astarion’s but left before sunrise to avoid suspicions amongst your other companions. An act you believed was flawlessly executed, despite your lover’s disagreement. Still half asleep, you sit yourself next to the make shift table Wyll managed to gather before sundown last night.

Your companions exchange side glances with one another as soon as you do, prompting you to raise a brow. Most snicker, smiling, while Shadowheart and Lae’zel appear as if they want to gag.

“Is there something on my face?”

Karlach pushes a plate to you. “No, soldier, don’t worry about it! Here, have some breakfast.”

You don’t pay any more mind to it, opting to rather enjoy the meal. It’s only when Astarion paces out from his own tent and sits beside you, that you see the way his eyes widen, then his lips curl into a grin. It’s just enough to see the tips of his fangs.

“Please, not while we’re eating,” Shadowheart groans.

“I don’t know what the big deal is,” he scoffs. “It’s not like we were subtle about it.”

You blink. “Subtle about what?”

He points to his own neck, no doubt enjoying the conversation unfolding. “The bite marks on your neck, my dear.”

His words snap you awake. Immediately, you’re slapping a hand over your neck despite the fact that the overwhelming number of marks littered across your skin makes your efforts futile. Your face burns as you spin your head to face the inevitable embarrassment from everyone else at camp. The way most of them smile knowingly only worsens the impact.

“I, for one, rather like them. Perhaps we should make them a favorite accessory,” Astarion shrugs, and you bury your face into your hands.

A bit later, you’re in his lap, clinging to his upper body while you complain about what your friends may say now that they’re aware of the relationship you two share. He pats your back with a sigh while you hide your very being into the crook of his neck. “My love, they’ve known for quite a while. You were the only one convinced that we were anything but painfully obvious.”

“Still, it’s just—embarrassing.“ You groan again. “Not you, obviously, just that they know about something so personal.”

He laughs and you don’t fight the urge to glare at him.

“I did mean it though, you know,” he says. “Now that they have their confirmation, I wouldn’t mind seeing those pretty marks on your neck more often. Preferably everyday-“

He hisses when he feels a prick in his neck. You pull back, smiling with a mischievous glint in your eyes. “There. You have one too.”

His own grin only widens as his hands slide to your waist. “Now darling, I’m sure you can do better than just one measly mark?”

[gaysindistress]

Things that I feel like would happen when you’re in a relationship with Astarion.

I started playing bg3 and i have it bad for this vampiric menace of a man.

misc character masterlist

Warnings: blood drinking, he’s a vampire so yeah

1. He’s basically a cat but gods forbid you tell him that.

I have a tortie and let me tell ya, she is the sassiest animal I’ve ever met. This cat will climb into the closet just high enough that the dogs can see her but can’t reach her. She will jump into the counter and stare at me because she knows she’s not allowed up there. She will bat at the screen in the window until it pops open and she can escape. But jokes on you! she doesn’t actually escape, she just goes to the back door and meows until someone lets her in.

Anyways this is exactly how Astarion is. He’s sassy but hides it as being a witty nobleman when he’s really just being the sass master. He will do things purely to get a reaction out of people i.e. when he attacked you the first time you met. There was no need to try and pull one over on you like that but he did it anyways because he can. If you get too close to Gale (aka talk to him), he will pout and give you the cold shoulder because gale ‘is such a bore and I’m obviously better company than that, darling.’

He will make the biggest scene if he feels like your attention is being pulled away from him. Oh you’re talking to Shadowheart by the fire later than usual? He’s glowering at your back from his tent until you look over your shoulder at him. When you make eye contact, he’s going to roll his eyes and huff as he throws open the tent flaps. Shadowheart chuckles under her breath because she knows exactly what’s happening.

The longer you’ve known each other, the bolder he gets. He’ll add more each time. At first it’s just the staring and huffing. It moves to glaring at your companion and then waltzing over to you so he say something sassy like “I am not your mother. I should not have to drag you to bed each night.” When that stops getting the reaction he wants, he’ll plop down next you and make every annoyed noise known to man. He might even start to nudge you, extending out one delicate hand to touch your knee or elbow until you get the hint.

But don’t you dare call him out on this. Like a cat, Astarion needs to feek comfortable safe with you. If he gets even a whiff of negativity (or what he thinks is), it sets your relationship back weeks. Pointing out his little feline quirks will feel like you’re complaining or annoyed with him and he can’t handle it. He’ll pull away from you and resort back to his stand offish ways. He’s making sassy but lowkey hurtful comments all of the time. They’re not directed at you because he would never forgive himself if he upset you but that sentiment doesn’t extend to anyone else. Worst of all he won’t feed from you and would damn near starve himself before asking you.

It’s a delicate dance between the two of you but one you would never quit.

2. Feeding from you is difficult for him.

At first it was merely a means to an end but then you became more important to him and now he can’t bring himself to feed from you as much. He would rather never do it but alas blood is in limited supply and you’ve already given him permission to take what he needs. If he can, he finds some other way but it doesn’t always work out. You’ve never asked him why he seems to avoid such a normal task but it’s always on your mind and one night you blurt it out.

I imagine it’s been a long few days and tonight is the first time you’ve been able to relax. Freshly bathed, fed, and now sipping at decent wine, you’re lounging with Karlach and Shadowheart. The three of you have had more than enough wine to be relaxed and have passed over into what Astarion calls ‘delightful chaos’. You’re giggly enough to be entertaining but can still hold a conversation albeit slow and slurred. Your pale elf has been cranky all day and poor Gale has been the target for most of it. You tried to step in and at least lessen Astarion’s onslaught but that earned you the nastiest glare to date. Since then Astarion has been sulking in the shadows or hiding in his tent. You’re the only one brave enough to go near him when he’s like this however it’s still rather dangerous.

On clumsy feet you find yourself just outside of him tent where you can feel the brooding and angst wafting from inside.

“Astarion?” You gentle whisper to the fabric, awaiting his acknowledgment.

“What?” His response is short and biting, similar to how he’s been speaking at Gale.

Assuming he doesn’t realize that it’s you, you say his name again and ask if you can come in. He nearly brings his tent to the ground when he rips open the flaps.

“What?” He repeats with fury and pain in his dull eyes.

It should scare you, seeing him so feral and unrestrained but seeing him causes a wild smile to break out on your face. Your hands go to reach for his face but quickly they fall when you remember that everyone is watching you closely. Whatever wine you drank has given you an armor of courage (and stupidity really). You smile at him with all of the affection you harbor for this ethereal being and slide past him into his tent. The simple action sends everyone else into high alert while Astarion barely contains the hiss he wants to send their way.

When he turns around, he finds you already sitting beside his bedroll with your knees pulled up with your arms wrapped around them.

“What do you want?”

All he gets in response is a blink and then a beckoning to join you. Patting the space next to you, you quietly ask him to join you however he is determined to be cross with you for barging in. He repeats his early question with a hardened glower in your direction.

“Astarion…” you murmur to him, your voice low and gentle, “you need to feed.”

The sheer audacity to utter such a thing infuriates him to no end but you’re right. He does and the sanguine desire is growing far too large to hold in anymore.

He still tries to deny it but his words are unusually weak and he stumbles over each one.

“Come,” you order softly as you move to lay down on his bedroll and brush your hair away, “drink what you need. I trust you.”

Those three words are almost as powerful as a declaration of love to the vampire spawn. He finds himself crumble to the ground and crawl over your divine figure. The unholy need to devour you that he usually despises with his entire being is welcomed as his fangs sink into your neck. One of your hands comes to hold his shoulder and the other cradles the back of his head, keeping him close as he feeds from you. Your gentle touch and reassuring voice overwhelms poor Astarion. He begins to whimper and moan into the supple skin of your neck without even realizing it. When he pulls away to keep from completely draining you, he’s breathless and muttering to himself you how good you taste.

Why he would ever deny himself this divine experience?

3. He refuses to admit it that he loves when you initiate touch.

Because of his past, you’ve decided that you will only touch him if he asks and if you get explicit consent. Most of the time you wait until he invites you in some manner whether that be he telling you to get over here or paw at you like a cat. He appreciates it, he really does but sometimes he craves the feeling that he gets when you ask him.

His favorite, though, is when you ask him if you can lay in him when he reads. You’ve been napping in his tent on and off all day, having chosen to stay back and recoup after the long events from the past week. Most of your companions have been doing the same but Astarion has been trying his hardest to not spend too much time around you. It’s hard enough to not just bask in your affection but even more so when you’ve been cuddled up in his tent all day. When you finally decide to go to your own tent, he takes the opportunity to reclaim his bedroll. It smells of your sweet scent and is still warm from your body, something he secretly craves.

You return to his tent a few hours later after everyone has eaten and settled in for the night. Peering down at him with sleeping eyes, you cross your arms and huff when he ignores you for his reading.

“Yes, my dear?” He quietly chuckles while still pretending to read his book.

“You’re in my spot.”

“We’re in my tent therefore it is my spot.”

You can’t exactly argue with him. You plop down next to him and give him the biggest puppy eyes imaginable.

“Will you at least let me lay on you if you’re not going to move?”

If it could his heart would be doing flips and his cheeks would be red but alas neither thing is truly possible.

“That depends…” he pretends to be uninterested in your request and continues with his straight face as he flips to the next page in his book. He can hear your huff of annoyance and fails to hide the small smirk that tugs at his pale lips.

“On what?” You pry even though you both know this is just a little game and he’s going to give in.

“Ask me nicely.” He drawls in that low seductive voice he uses when he’s trying to persuade you. Finally he flickers his eyes over to yours. That simple action alone steals your breath and chases away any negative feelings you might’ve had.

You crawl closer to him, nearly touching him but not quite as you whisper your request again.

“Of course you can, my dear,” he whispers back while his smirk has fully taken over his face. “Lay your head here."

He pats his sternum and waits for you to settle. Much like a lover seeking warmth in the night, you immediately take refuge in his arms and cuddle as close as you can to him. You feel him set his the book on your upper back when you've found the comfort and warmth you sought.

Astarion begins to murmur the book’s words as his other hands rests at the base of your head. His fingers don’t yet feel confident in moving to thread into your hair but they do softly rub at the tension in your skull. Peace is found in your embrace and he couldn’t be happier that you asked him to join your party all those weeks ago.

[orinfucker]

cravings

summary: your desperation to learn about your past has led you to the door of the one and only enver gortash, and he is more then happy to refresh your memory.

warnings: fem!reader, durge!reader, blood, slight manipulation (gortash), suggestive, making out, finger sucking, pet names, dom!gortash

note: small drabble of durge x gortash because i am sooo normal about them! might write a part two to this but i’m not sure yet.

you knew this was wrong; sneaking out of camp in the midst of the night to meet with a man you had no knowledge of. but, who could blame you? everything he said about your urges wasn’t wrong, only someone who experienced them first hand would have the information he possessed.

so here you are, blindly trudging your aching legs up the staircase towards enver gortash’s office. you had your doubts about the man obviously, the way karlach had described him made your blood boil with anger; how dare he hurt one of your companions so badly. you knew this was a carelessly bad decision, but you needed to know more about this ‘past life’ of yours, and gortash seemed to have answers you craved.

“second door on the right.” you whispered aloud, reminding yourself of the steel watcher’s directions to the lord’s office. once you reached the polished door of his quarters, your body froze for just a second. was this really your only option? could you live knowing nothing of who you truly were? with a shaky breath, you curled your hand into a fist and knocked onto the wood of the door.

“ah, come in please.” a heavy voice spoke, the sounds of paper rustling echoing filling your senses. you fiddled with handle before finally opening the entrance to reveal the man you’d sought out: lord enver gortash. his presence was overwhelming to say the least, he held himself with such confidence it made the depths of your body ache. “i’m shocked to see you here, my dear. have you had a change of heart since the last we spoke?” you swallowed nervously, trying to search for the words to say, but nothing came up.

“perhaps we should make ourselves comfortable, to speak plainly with one another, yes?” gortash spoke, his eyes seeming to pierce right into your mind. a simple nod was your response before descending into his office, taking a seat at one of the chairs placed in front of his desk. “i, well, wanted to speak with you about my past.” gortash glanced towards you, and then a smirk plastered itself onto his face. “of course dear, ask me anything you would like.” the sultry tone of his voice sent a jolt of arousal through your body, one that felt oddly familiar to you.

“you’ve told me of my urges, something that is deeply personal to me,” you took a breath before continuing, “but i want, no, i need to know more about us.” gortash’s face twisted into a more sinister one before an amused laugh exited his throat. “you’ve been thinking about me then, is that it?” he began, leaning back into his chair as his eyes bore into your own. you shifted in your seat before shyly nodding in response. “when i heard your voice, it held such a familiarity, yet i have no clue who you are.”

gortash stood in his chair, circling around towards you own before kneeling to match your height. “that’s because we were something much more than business partners, my dear.” your face flushed over with red, immediately understanding the intent behind his words. “that.. can’t be right. i would never sleep with the likes of you.” you spat out in denial, refusing to believe you’d stoop to that level. “yet here you are, sitting in my office, begging to know about us. it seems to me that you want to indulge in our old ways.”

one of gortash’s hands began to trail over your knee, slowly edging up towards the clothed flesh of your thigh. you peered down at him for a moment, a feeling of lust clouding over your mind as the ministrations of his hand continued. “your body craves my touch, it aches to be used by me again.” you so badly wanted to refuse him, to feel repulsed at the feeling of his touch upon you, but every part of yourself cried out towards him.

gortash observed the way your face contorted from one of disgust, to one of desire. you felt an insatiable hunger rise within you, and without thought you leaned down to capture his lips in a messy kiss. the man below you groaned at the feeling, his teeth brushing against the flesh of your mouth before biting into your bottom lip, letting pecks of blood slip through them. you felt his tongue lick away the metallic substance before finally pushing away, heavy sighs leaving the both of you.

“my love, how i’ve missed you.” gortash breathed out as he stood from his knees, letting one of his hands come down to caress the side of your cheek. his thumb brushed against the fat of your bottom lip, wiping away the blood that was left from your raunchy kiss. “open.” your body could no longer resist; it obeyed every word, every breath that left gortash’s mouth. the flesh of your lips parted as his calloused thumb entered the cavern of your mouth, pressing down on the slimy organ inside before reaching for the back of your throat.

“you always were a nasty little thing.” his words sent chills throughout your body, a gag leaving your throat as his finger sunk deeper into you. “good girl.” gortash slowly removed his finger from you, wiping the spit and saliva away on the sides of your face. you looked up at him with doe eyes, practically begging the man to do anything he wanted to you. gortash took your hand between his own, helping you raise to your feet before guiding your body to lean against the edge of his desk.

“now, we have lots of catching up to do, don’t we pet?”

[sinizade]

B'ella, the Pale Child (Dark Urges Redeemed)

Class: Warlock (Barbarian subclass)

Romance: Bae'Zel

Besties: Scratch / Owlbear / Wyll / Gale / Karlach

One extra egg among all those eggs wouldn't make a difference, nor would they complain about having two extra hands to fight for the "glory" of their queen. This way, the hatching of this egg surprised the elders of that Creche a little, a child as pale as the moon and with eyes as red as blood that possessed a fury worthy of a demon, certainly that child had something inside it, but the Githyanki wouldn't get rid of a healthy child just because of surpestitions based on one of the babies' appearance... But should they?

B'ella was obedient, precise, deadly, her teachers could see and feel the almost insane pleasure she felt every time she beat her opponents in training, every time she made them bleed and beg... Something so... Sadistic... Even for a Githyanki child, it was unusual to have such an appreciation for death and the ways of killing, but then again, they weren't going to get rid of such a dedicated and useful fighter like her just out of superstition.

Her adulthood was only accompanied by an insatiable hunger, B'ella could have had her uses in combat, an animal, a monster, but when her abilities began to affect other Githyanki they finally realized that having her there was no longer safe or suitable for Creche, so in a clear desperate act they tried to contain B'ella, they tried to tame the monster inside her... The Slayer, but that obviously didn't go as they expected and her sadistic, cruel and psychotic fury spread to everyone in that Creche. Every teacher, every warrior, doctor, student, child, egg, all murdered, torn apart in a bloody dance that spread throughout each hall and that was when she heard a voice, a small creature that praised her... A praise that she never found she was going to receive, told her that there was a place where she could be who she really was, where she could know what it was like to have a family that truly admired her for what she did...

That male human, that Enver Gortash, intelligent man. Tasting Gortash, subduing him to her whims was satisfying, but her devotion was only to her creator, to her god, to her father, Bhaal... But everything had been thrown into the trash with the betrayal of that insolent child, that damned and jealous changeling who took her rightful place.

Waking up on a ghaik ship with no memories left her disconcerted, but her focus now was to get out of there and return to her people and achieve purification. Having someone as adept in battle as Lae'Zel made it easier since the rest of her companions with the exception of Karlach left the pale gith with disgust in her mouth regarding combat.

It wasn't so bad being around that bunch of big noses, they entertained her, they seemed to care about her dark desires, not just for them, but also for her? This was new, not even she remembered the last time she received any kind of help (literally)

Lae'Zel... Zhak vo'n'fynh duj... B'ella could barely understand what she felt, she could barely know what she felt, she didn't know or remember that feeling, but with Lae'Zel everything was clear. .. She was her world, her sword, her flame, the source of her joy...

Finding out that she wasn't a child of Gith broke her, even if she managed to hide it well, it destroyed her completely inside, knowing that the years she spent in her Creche, that her "egg", that her life, was a fake life designed by her "father". That wasn't for her, even if it once had been, now it wasn't... B'ella would no longer be a Bhaalspawn, now she would be a child of Gith and follow Orpheus and her beloved Lae'zel into battle against Vlaakith's tyranny

Some extra information about B'ella

Her memory was "reset" to her times at Creche as soon as she lost her memories, before her dark impulses took over.

She has a strange habit of keeping a lock of her enemies' hair for no reason, she just likes to have a memory of good battles, but when the enemy wasn't good enough she just crushes its head (She has a lock of hair with her from the hair of Minthara/ Ketheric/ Raphael)

Even though she appears to be reserved and cold, B'ella is considered TOO romantic when she is with Lae'Zel and only Lae'Zel, only her source of joy can see B'ella that way

[memray]

Gale’s Arcane Hunger as Chronic Pain

Realised why I’ve always gotten mildly annoyed by people’s complaints about Gale asking for magical items to soothe the orb (even before i was a Gale lover). If untreated it causes the guy pain and I think a part of my brain clocked onto that and associated it with my own chronic pain and how horrible it is when people dismiss it or complain about having to accommodate my pain.

Yes it is a video game but it’s really easy to see how things in this game can correlate to real life shit, Gale’s orb and Karlach’s heart being fantasy forms of chronic pain and illness (hells Karlach’s being a terminal illness for the majority of the game).

I also think that’s why I was instantly like “yeah bro whatever you need” in my first run when Gale revealed that he needed magical items to sate the orb even though I’d barely talked to the guy, because when that happened he was at camp in physical pain. It resonated with me and I wanted to help, much like how in real life my friends will do anything to help me with my own pain.

People’s reactions to his request for magical items to feed the orb obviously aren’t an indicator of how they’d treat disabled people irl, but it’s something they should probably think about with some of the shit they say. Especially when they say they think it’s funny to watch him walk around limping and clutching his chest in pain.

[avocado-writing]

Could I request headcanons for Astarion, Gale, Wyll, Halsin, Dammon, Rolan, and Zevlor react to overhear his gn crush saying how they're sure it's unrequited love as much as they love HIM?

OH so soft! yes absoloutely, enjoy!

Astarion

now to be fair. he is a bit smug to overhear that you love him.

but he's also... touched? that you, lovely you, would feel that way about him?

obviously he's been trying to seduce you and everything, but he's pleased to hear that it's worked, but why does he feel so warm? happy?

maybe he waits until a casual moment between the two of you, when he feels like he can confess and it isn't too heavy, and he just lets out a little "I love you too, you know."

you stop. he can hear the way your blood pumps.

"...oh..." your eyes are wide, looking at the floor.

he takes your hand and it makes you look up at him, and then he brings you in for a kiss.

he can feel how relieved you are. and he's so happy to be part of something real, something requited.

Gale

overhears you and wants to say something about it immediately, but won't interrupt in person...

so he just uses a Sending instead.

"I hope you don't mean that, because I am desperately in love with you. only a fool wouldn't be."

you freeze and your eyes flit over to where he's standing, face as open as a book with his love for you.

you excuse yourself from your conversation and he follows, seeing how embarrassed you are, you tell him he wasn't meant to hear you, you just had to get it off of your chest...

he takes your hand and pulls you in for a long kiss. if you won't believe his words, maybe you'll believe his actions.

you melt into him. just melt, and the two of you stay together like that.

longest that Gale's been quiet for ages...

Wyll

he does interrupt, because he can't stand to hear you talk about yourself like that.

asks for a private word.

takes you to a seculded location and sees how uncomfortable you are, tilts your chin up to look him in the eyes, wants you to see the sincerity when he speaks.

"I'm sorry if I gave you the impression I did not love you. I do, in fact. most ardently."

he will tell you about the moment that made him fall in love with you, all the things you do that make him fall a little deeper every day.

as he speaks he watches the way your body relaxes, your eyes get hopeful.

when he finishes speaking you press your lips to his in a kiss, and it's the sweetest first kiss imaginable.

Halsin

he's an old elf at this point. he hasn't got the patience to let you wallow in uncertainty.

if he hears you say you love him, and he feels the same, he will let you know immediately.

finds an excuse to have the two of you be together. maybe to gather firewood.

when you're alone he will instigate physical contact - brushing your hair out of your face or something like that

when you respond positively, he will move to cup your face, look properly into your eyes.

"my heart. I need you to know that whatever you feel for me, it is reciprocated a hundred times over. you make my blood stir in a way I had quite forgotten..."

you should kiss him now. he will return it. the two of you will spend some time alone together in the forest, getting to know each other more intimately...

Dammon

oh, Dammon. he's so shocked.

him? you love him?

wants to make a big gesture but doesn't know how. probably asks Karlach for advice.

in the end he smiths you a special piece of jewellery and gifts it to you the next time you're together alone. maybe he even invites you on a date specially!

he tries to get to the point about how he feels but rambles on... eventually you reach out to hold his hand and it gives him courage...

he gives you the jewellery and sees your eyes light up. he offers to put it on you. fingers linger on your skin.

"you know, I lov..." "I know, Dammon. I know."

you can't stop beaming. he's never been happier.

Rolan

annoyed!

why can't you just be upfront with him about this! he obviously loves you back!

oh... loves you? hmmm. that's news to him. but of course he does! you're brilliant! how can't you see that?

has a couple of drinks one night for courage and then goes to find you. it is not an eloquent confession.

"I overheard you the other day! and I want you to know I feel the same way! about you! love, that is >:("

you stand there, fucking bamboozled, before dragging him in by the collar for a kiss.

he smiles so hard and you can feel it as your lips meet.

"silly boy," you sigh, fondly, and kiss him again before he can complain.

Zevlor

another old man who doesn't want to waste time.

he loves you. of course he loves you. there's no point hiding it, if there's a chance the two of you can be happy.

when he has a spare, quiet moment with you, certain nobody can overhear, he speaks sincerely.

"i do not know what I could offer which would make me worthy of your love, but I swear I will work every day until I am."

oh, he is so sweet. you collapse into his arms for a kiss. your strong, brave paladin <3

[pheonixgrave]

Softer Now (18+)

Ahh! You guys seem to be really enjoying these. I realized I was just writing the same Tav so there's that

Warnings: Soft smut, definite voyeurism, a decent amount of blood drinking, Soft!Astarion, pre-Act III, post-Act II

“Aren’t you just a little jealous?” Karlach asked, joining Astarion near the stash of wine they found.

“Why would I be jealous of the walking encyclopedia?” He smirked, watching a certain elf interact with a certain wizard.

“Oh c’mon! He’s flirting with her and you two are a thing, right?”

“I find it rather charming, actually,” he took a swig of the awful wine in his hand.

The Tiefling looked from the vampire spawn to the pair looking over some old tome whose name no one else could pronounce. “Charming?”

“Let me tell you what I see,” he set the bottle down to face the barbarian. “To you and I, Gale is obviously flirting. In a very clumsy manner, but flirting all the same. Our fearless leader, however, has no idea. To her, he is as much of a friend as Wyll or Shadowheart. Yet, he keeps trying because he has no clue that she simply isn’t flirting back.”

“That doesn’t make you angry?”

“Of course not!” He laughed, “I can barely believe he managed to bed a goddess with how he flirts.”

“It does seem pretty out there, as far as stories go,” Karlach crossed her arms and continued to watch the pair. 

“Anyways, I know there’s no competition.”

She smirked, “You do sound a teensy bit jealous.”

“My dear, I do not get jealous.” The more he thought about it, the more pause it gave him. Their resident wizard does try to hold her attention more often than he should. But Tav’s time was her own. He knew he had nothing to worry about. After everything they’ve been through, he couldn’t imagine her changing her mind at the last moment. Right?

Tav, on the other hand, was enjoying pouring over the old tome they had found. It gave some interesting insight into Illithids and their reasonings. Unfortunately, she was unable to read the language it was written in. She was thankful for Gale in that sense. Who knew he spoke Deep Speech? Granted it was written in Espruar but the script itself was odd. The wizard had helped her decipher a few pages about psionic energy and how they have mastered it. It truly was fascinating. 

“This is nice,” Gale spoke from next to her. He was holding the dusty tome in his hands with the bard sitting near him, using her mage hand to scribble any notes she’s taken. 

She looked up at him with wide eyes, “I suppose it is! I’m very happy we found this book.”

“It truly is remarkable,” he swallowed, “It’s also a nice excuse to spend more time together in the midst of all this madness.” 

“Oh! I suppose it is nice to sit with everyone.” She didn’t fail to notice him scoot slightly closer. Just a hair between them now.

Gale closed the book and turned to look at the elf next to him. “I’m afraid I must ask you something.”

Something in Tav’s mind warned her to walk away. But she was still getting used to that voice, so she elected not to listen to it. This was Gale. This was her friend. “What’s on your mind?”

He grabbed her hands in his, “I have noticed you and Astarion getting rather close recently.”

Tav wasn’t sure how to react. She was already flustered by the sudden turn of the conversation. She was more than happy to keep speaking of the Illithid empire. “Where are you going with this, Gale?”

Gale’s eyes never left hers. It was like he was trying far too hard to bear into her soul and she simply…didn’t want him to. “I told myself it was casual, not a matter of the heart but…clearly I was wrong and it looks like I am the last to know. I know how close you two have gotten, I just thought you would show me the respect of telling me first.”

The Elf’s jaw dropped, “Tell you? Tell you what?”

“But you can tell me now. Who is it to be? Me or him?” The look in Gale’s eyes was nearly as serious as when he was told he’d have to become a bomb.

“What exactly am I choosing here?” Tav blinked, glancing down at the wizard’s hands that completely enveloped hers. It took her a moment before her brain caught up. “Oh! Oh, Gale! I had no idea you felt this strongly.”

A glimmer of a smile reached his face, “Well, perhaps I should have done more. Been more charming, more flattering, harder to reach…but I was only myself. Sometimes that just isn’t enough.” His face dropped looking at hers, “Whatever your decision is, I will respect it. But you must choose. You cannot have us both.”

Tav made a choked sound in the back of her throat before clearing it. “I don’t think this is a good idea. I think it’s for the best that we aren’t involved like that. I want to be with Astarion.”

“I see. I suppose he does have a certain charm about him, if you’re into that sort of thing.” He sighed, “I’ll just put my feelings to one side. I think that’s best for everyone. It’s certainly the best thing for me. I won’t leave, unless you want me to. Or until fate forces my hand, your friendship is all we have. And I will be happy to have it, eventually.”

Tav’s heart broke for the man. It must be quite painful to not have those feelings returned. For a moment, she thought about what she would do if Astarion ever stops feeling the things he says he feels for her. And the thought almost brought tears to her eyes. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry,” she couldn’t hide the crack in her voice. But Gale was never going to be the cause of it. 

“Worry not. I carry my regrets wherever I go and I am used to their weight. One more will not break my back.” He gripped her hands one final time before she pulled away. 

She gave him a sad smile before walking over to where Karlach and Astarion stood. Grabbing the bottle from Astarion’s hands, she drank deep for a moment. They both glanced at each other before turning back towards the Elf. She handed the bottle back to him before smiling at Karlach, “Is there anything you have to admit to me? Any deep romantic feelings or attachment?”

Karlach laughed, “What? No, soldier!” She put her still warm hand on the much smaller elf’s shoulder. “You’re a dear friend. More than that, you’re family.”

Tav’s shoulders dropped, “Oh thank the Gods.” She turned to Astarion who was watching her with raised eyebrows, “Bed?” 

The moment they were inside his tent, she buried her face in his chest with her arms wrapped so tightly around his waist. “Darling, what’s wrong? Did the mean mage say something he shouldn’t have?” 

She didn’t want to pull far enough away to answer him. She didn’t want him to see her start to cry. She just shook her head and held him as close as she could. She wasn’t sure how to process these feelings. The vampire spawn just wrapped his arms around her trembling form. 

“You don’t have to say anything, just nod your head. Did Gale hurt you in any way?” She could hear the growl in his voice. It sounded more dangerous than normal. 

She pulled away with a deep inhale. She looked up at him with tears already streaming down her face. With a sniffle she whispered, “Gale admitted he had feelings for me, yes. But then I thought about how miserable life would be without you in it.”

Astarion froze, his body tensed. “So let me get this straight,” he swallowed, more nervous than he’s ever really been before. “You told Gale you’re not interested just to be with me? I do come with my complications, my love.”

She let out a breathy laugh, “I told Gale I’m not interested because I’m simply not interested.” Her hand reached up to stroke his cheek, “I just don’t ever want to imagine a life without you again. A world where you’re not with me. Because you’ve always been near, even if I didn’t know it.”

He remembers the night he told her about Cazador. The night he told her about the Szarr palace was also the same night she had told her about her tower. And how she could see the palace from her desk. It was true, they really have always been close in one way or another. “And you got that worked up because…?”

“I wouldn’t even know what I was missing,” she smiled at him, eyes still full of emotion. “You’ve been all of my firsts. First kiss, first night together. Hells, the first time I’ve held someone's hand was with you. This is all still very new to me. And the moment I thought about you not being with me I-” she let out a choked sob before gripping his shirt in her fists and burying her face in his chest once again. 

For a moment, the vampire spawn didn’t react. It still takes him a moment to return affection but he managed to wrap his arms around the trembling bard. He swallowed before gently rubbing the small of her back. The thought of someone wanting him this badly was…daunting, to say the least. He knew if they had met before the nautiloid, he’d mark her as a victim. She was pretty and just naive enough to fall for him. Hells, he had even known her parents. Cazador loved having the city’s nobility over, but never her. 

She was always the princess in the tower. Always there but never seen. Even Cazador had thought she was a mere rumor and nothing else.

For a while, he just held her while she cried. He wasn’t sure what else he could do besides hold her. Nothing he could say would comfort her. They weren’t even sure if they would survive this mess. So he pulled her closer. The rest of the night passed as they were wrapped in each other’s embrace. Soft, whispered words of a future sprinkled with hope. For the first time in his unlife, he had more than just hope.

The next couple of days passed uneventfully. They were only traveling, plain and simple. Onwards to Baldur’s Gate. Where all of their dooms or salvations lay. In the gloom of it all, Tav wanted some fun. She had gone to Shadowheart and pilfered some of her extra blankets with promises to replace them once they reached the city. As they set up camp yet again, she made her way towards the lake side. She laid out all of the blankets in a large square before finding the extra food she had squirreled away. And pulled out the best wine she could find. It was an obviously aged bottle still covered in a thick layer of dust, but the label looked fancy.  She truly knew nothing about wine so she prayed to whomever was listening that it wasn’t swill. She then adjusted her bustier in an awkward manner before smiling to herself and searching for the vampire spawn.

He wasn’t hard to find. No one heard what she whispered in his ear. But they certainly noticed the fond smile and raised eyebrows as she dragged him away from the camp. Astarion looked at the little picnic she had put together, his hand in hers before kissing the top of her head. “And what’s the special occasion, darling?”

She smiled up at him, unabashed emotion in her eyes with a grin on her face. She was truly divine in the moonlight. She shrugged, “I just wanted to do something nice for you. We reach Baldur’s Gate in a couple days and we have to hit the ground running soon. I just wanted to take a moment, just for us.” She picked up the bottle of wine she had found, “I hope it’s okay. I know it’s old but I don’t know if it’s good.” 

He smiled and pulled her close. “Aren’t you just the sweetest little thing?”

The tips of her ears flushed as he placed a gentle kiss on her lips. And then they sat and talked and ate and drank. They spoke about the Gauntlet of Shar, about the monastery, about the Moonrise Towers. And the conversation drifted to their party as Tav slowly became more and more tipsy. She talked about Wyll and his obvious daddy issues. Shadowheart and her love for more adult literature. And Astarion was all too happy to sit and listen to her. It’s one of the things that drew him to her, after all. She could read people like they were a book she was all too happy to read. 

As the evening turned into night, the pair ended up against a nearby rock. Tav sitting on his lap as he peppered her neck with kisses. And as Tav’s giggles turned into soft moans as his hands started to travel to her waist. “You should keep quiet, my sweet, we wouldn’t want to wake the entire camp up. Would we?” He whispered before nipping at the base of her neck. 

“I-I think you’d like that far too much,” she managed to gasp out as he helped her rock her hips back and forth against him. 

He chuckled against her neck, leaving trails of almost bites with his fangs. “What ever makes you say that?”

“Astarion!” She moaned, grabbing the back of his head as he finally sank his teeth into her neck. She gripped his curls in one hand and dug her nails into his shoulder with the other. Her hips moved on their own as he slowly drank from her. His arms wrapped around her waist as he held her up. Between the wine and him drinking from her, she felt lightheaded. But that made the friction between them feel all the more intense. 

“You always taste just so perfect, my love.” He slowly released her neck before slamming his lips against hers. He knew he was being needy but he craved her. As his lips melded against hers his nimble fingers went to work on the knots of her bustier. It never took him long to get her out of her clothes and tonight was no exception. 

She grabbed his hands before he could fully remove her bustier, cradling his hands in hers. “Are you sure you want to do this? We really don’t have to. I’m happy to just sit here with you.” Her voice was barely a whisper, something meant just for him. 

He smiled at her before kissing her again, “Darling, if I didn’t wish to have you, I wouldn’t have you half dressed sitting on my lap.”

She smiled and let go of his hands and let him return to practically tearing off her clothing. He wasn’t satisfied until she was sat on his lap in nothing but her underwear. His face buried in her breasts, leaving small little nicks with his teeth as he made his way back up to her lips. Her hands gripped his shoulder as he snaked his hand down her body. He made sure to feel all the softness that was still on her body, never failing to trace her curves. 

Tav was small but years in a tower had made her body gentle. Her hands were rough from her instruments, yes, and she did have a lot of skill with a blade. But she was in no way muscular. And Astarion enjoyed that more than he could say. He enjoyed being able to almost see the tremors in her thighs before he felt it. Gods, he needed her. 

It only took him a moment to find her clit and draw slow, gentle circles around it. Never quite touching it directly. “Darling, you’re already shaking. Did you miss me that much?”

“Yes!” She cried into his ear. “Y-you’re teasing me.” Her head fell against his shoulder as her body trembled against him. 

“Oh, I’d never do such a thing,” He smiled and buried his hand in her hair. “I simply want to take my time enjoying you.” The vampire spawn slowly filled her cunt with his fingers, his palm grinding against her clit. 

She tried hard to keep quiet. Really she did. But when his fingers curled inside of her? She couldn’t help but cry out his name. How was he so patient? All she wanted was to have him inside her. He pumped his fingers in and out of her cunt so painfully slowly. 

Now, Tav may have been too focused on the rogue’s hands to notice anything else. But Astarion wasn’t. He knew Halsin and Gale were keeping watch tonight. He also knew it was far too late for anyone else to be awake. Which is why his hands didn’t stop when he noticed the bushes across from them moved. It was so subtle that he almost missed it.

Almost.

Someone was watching them. And he had an inkling he knew exactly who it was. The thought made him grin against Tav’s bloodsoaked neck. He sped up his fingers, holding her as she writhed against him. “That’s it, love, don’t hold a single thing back.” She came with a cry of his name. She was still trembling as he made a show of licking his own fingers clean. “I do so enjoy how you taste, my love.” He didn’t whisper this time. He wanted the wizard in the bushes to hear.

With shaking hands she went to untie the knots on his trousers. He leaned back against the rock, letting her take his length in her hands. “M-may I?” Her neck was stained just as red as the flush on her cheeks. Her big blue eyes wide in anticipation. 

“May you what?” His hand went to her throat and he felt her breath catch.

“M-may I ride you?” It really was endearing how she asked. Her voice was breathless and her chest was heaving. He had never been overly rough with her. But with a voyeur in the bushes? He was more than tempted to lay claim to the nearly virgin in his lap. 

He pouted at her, “I’m not quite sure what you mean, darling.”

Her eyes went wider than before. “W-what?”

She was so innocent. So pure, he had never even heard her swear before. “What is it exactly that you would like to do?” He purred, his forehead meeting hers. “Don’t play coy with me now.”

She swallowed, the tips of her ears matching the rest of her face. “Astarion,” she whined. 

“If you use your words, love, I’ll be happy to give you anything you want.”

She whined again when the grip around her throat tightened ever so slightly. “I-I want-” another swallow, “I want to ride your cock.”

He smiled, “See? Now was that so hard? You did so well,” he whispered against her lips.  She adjusted herself over him, still holding him in one hand while the other braced herself on his shoulder. His hand still held her throat, not quite squeezing just letting her know he was there. The bard lowered herself onto him. He groaned as she sank down. “Perfect.”

Her other hand flew up to his chest while she gripped his blouse so tightly that her knuckles were whiter than before. Her head spun while the wine loosened her tongue. ���Gods, Astarion.” 

“Use your words, darling,” he moaned against her neck, his eyes keeping an eye on the bush yet again. He wanted the wizard to see how good he could make her feel. He wanted him to see that he wasn’t even a thought on her mind. He wanted him to see that she wanted him and not Gale.

She sat for a moment, adjusting to his size before rocking her hips back and forth. Astarion’s hands flew to her hips to help guide her movements. “Feels so good,” she whimpered, still clutching at his blouse. 

“That’s it, pet. You can take it, I know you can.” Her movements were entirely her own. She gradually went from rocking to bouncing. His body told him to throw his head back but he couldn’t tear his eyes away from her. Maybe now Gale would realize she was his. Maybe he had more of a possessive streak than he thought. 

“Your hand, put it back!” She used his chest as leverage for her movements. He could feel her getting close and who was he to deny her? He instinctively put his hand back around her throat and squeezed. He had never felt her tighten around him harder. She wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his shoulder. He let her sit like that for a moment as she started to relax once again.

Whoever was in the bushes was gone now. Either too riled up to stay or too heartbroken to watch. Either way, Astarion found it satisfying. Satisfying enough to toss Tav on her back and put her ankles on his shoulder. It was something about knowing Tav not only trusted him but chose him, drove him wild. Far more than any lover he’s had in the past. Even through her half opened eyes and her mind filled with wine and pleasure, her eyes were still filled with that emotion. That feeling that he wouldn’t dare put words to yet. 

She was his. And he was equally hers. 

Her moans and whimpers filled the air but he felt so far away from her. Too far. She grabbed his hands and pulled him closer, lacing her hands with his. “Beautiful,” was all she could whisper before she clenched around him. This time, he wasn’t far behind her. They laid like that for a while. Him on top of her, her tracing small patterns on his back. The scars were a reminder of what awaited them in Baldur’s Gate. But it could wait for now. For now they had each other. 

“Did you see who was in the bushes?” 

He immediately met her eyes, “You knew?”

“I’m naive, not stupid.” She giggled, rolling over to her side.

“I believe we just gave the magic eater quite the eyeful.”

[soldat-buck]

i had a vision while making coffee this morning

bg3 culinary headcanons: Companion Edition

- Shadowheart: absolute zero regard for contamination while cooking. kitchen habits of a permanent bachelor. licks the tasting spoon clean and keeps using it to cook. eats hot cocoa straight out of the container with a spoon. thinks pouring ranch over an entire head of lettuce and eating it like feral animal while holding it over the kitchen sink counts as "salad". if you can get past the contamination thing, the food she makes actually tastes pretty good, even if it's sometimes odd (she cooks like a stoner, despite being perfectly sober. she is just Like That).

- Astarion: perfectly capable of cooking, and actually can cook quite well. food may not taste the same after becoming a vampire, but his enhanced sense of smell tells him nearly everything he needs to know about how to season and cook food properly. he doesn't cook because he doesn't like to (washing dishes? by hand? no fucking thank you, being undead is harsh enough on the nails and skin. finding a good lotion for normal undead dryness is already impossible)

- Lae'zel: in the modern world, if her life took her in a chef direction, she'd be in a Michelin star restaurant as the world's best and most terrifying sous chef. she absolutely would throw a knife at you for fucking up her plating (she'd intentionally miss. the first time). no nonsense is ever tolerated in her kitchen, but that doesn't necessarily mean she's got temper issues (her coldness and lack of tantrums is what makes her terrifying). she'd put Gordon Ramsay in his place for his rage theatrics and then make him weep with joy after serving him the most competent omelet he's ever had in his life. if she likes you, you may address her as "Yes, Chef!" outside of the kitchen.

- Karlach: uses 4 pots to make ramen. not because she's doing anything fancy or elaborate with it, the first pot was too small and started boiling over (whoops). the second one was, oh hold on, that's a cast iron pan, maybe you're not supposed to use that for boiling liquids, huh? wait shit, can't use this one either, i'm not supposed to use metal spoons on nonstick, don't want to scratch it. There we go! this one is the right size! and if i scratch this one, it's fine! wait, where the fuck did the flavor packet go (you should definitely be concerned about leaving her alone for the weekend)

- Wyll: very resourceful cook due to his Blade of the Frontier days. can improvise a meal out of damn near anything. can identify every edible plant and mushroom and tell you how to use it in a dish. would carry an herb garden in his adventure pack if he could. would absolutely thrive on the show Chopped (he's actually banned from auditioning again because it's not fair to the other competitors to have him on). he could make you a dessert featuring rattlesnake and fresh picked clover, and you don't know how or why, but you actually like it

- Gale: approaches the kitchen the same way he approaches most things in his life - academically. knows the proper safe temperature to cook meats/etc to, knows how to brown an onion, knows what seasonings are typically used together for certain flavor profiles and how to match seasonings to proteins. knife work sucks because he uses mage hand for mise en place and his mage hand has shitty DEX, but he's scared of his chef knife from the one time he sliced his thumb open (he was cutting an onion with improper hand placement and the knife slipped)

- Minsc: would exclusively eat by dumpster diving if it weren't for Boo's disapproval. eats like a human garbage disposal. he will eat a n y t h i n g that fits in his mouth, he is the least picky eater you will ever meet. does not understand how food challenges in the show Fear Factor are supposed to be challenges

- Halsin: world class forager. very competent hunter. prefers to eat everything as raw as possible. understands but doesn't believe in strict food safety because obviously stomach acid kills germs (and anyway, a little dirt here and there never killed anyone; exposure to germs is good for your immune system). open-mouthed kissing him is gambling with your health. makes the best vegetarian salads but do not trust any chicken he has "cooked". people with weak CON might want to consider avoiding his food

- Jaheira: uses Talk to Animals to Cinderella/Ratatouille rodents in the kitchen. she commands them like she's in perilous battle and the entire world is at stake (also rodents are worse to direct than cats, they do not know the difference between left and right. there's a lot of "No! Not that cupboard, the other one! NO, the OTHER other one! Flank him, he's off balance!"). making a cup of tea is a convoluted, stressful process that takes 10 times longer than just boiling the damn water yourself

if you want more bg3 culinary headcanons, there's also: the Absolute Edition

[cannonball5]

Playing through Baldur’s Gate 3 and it just hit me that without a Tav or Durge the 6 Origin Companions have 3 amazing enemies to lovers storylines and are kind of perfect for someone within the group.

Karlach and Wyll. Wyll is literally commanded by his patron to kill Karlach and is punished if he doesn’t by becoming a “devil”. Meanwhile they both have had their lives ruined by Zariel and both desperately want to put an end to the things that bind them to her, Wyll with his contract and Karlach with her engine. Also the former rich kid of Baldur’s Gate’s upper class and the poor urchin girl tricked into servitude (both being tricked, another thing they have in common) I kinda love it. Plus they can end up in Avernus together in the end, fighting Zariel’s forces side by side.

Astarion and Gale. Are both ambitious and full of themselves and just naturally rub each other the wrong way. They’re both cursed and forced to feed because of their curses but it gives them unique powers as a result. They both want to break away from their former associates but also want to become them. Imagine ascended Astarion and God of Ambition Gale, two of the most powerful heroes Baldur’s Gate has ever had, being in a relationship where they’re constantly trying to one up each other. Plus I just like the idea of a Vampire an undead creature of night and darkness being in a relationship with a god with all their radiant powers (and Turn Undead).

Shadowheart and Lae’zel. Distrustful towards each other, Shadowheart being a bit racist towards Githyanki, Lae’zel literally wantonly to leave her behind in the pod to save time, obviously these two should fall in love. In all seriousness these two are made for each other, as they both know what the other is going through. They both have missions that are immensely important to them and ambitions to rise to a station to be better servants to those they served. Only for those whom they worshiped to lie to them and betray them. And thus they have to choose to embrace what they’ve always known, or choose a new path against what they believed to be their sworn enemy.

Seriously the devs should’ve made it that if you ended up not romancing some of these companions they ended up extremely close with/in a relationship with one of the other companions. Missed opportunities.

[galesdevoteewife]

Gale may not be so typical squishy wizard/scholar?

-My Galeology study note-

Looking at his character sheet in the Deluxe pack gets me thinking, maybe our wizard is not exactly designed to be the typical squishy one...?

[Act2 spoiler warning]

2 things caught my eyes:

1) Great physical fitness, and good reflexes. (For your reference, Gale & Wyll are the two companions who have the highest Con: 15. I put everyone's sheets at the bottom of the post.)

His Con and Dex are... very high?? I mean, higher than Karlach and Lae'zel...????

Note 1: I suspect it could have something to do with his background as Mystra's chosen, as they are somewhat "transformed" when they agree to become the goddess's chosen. A topic for another day since I haven't quite figured it out yet, for anyone who is interested there's a chapter about it in The Seven Sisters. Also, I have little clues on how much chosen lore credit Larian was taking into account while designing him, or how Mystra's "taking back the given ability" works. Note 2: Again, Mystra's chosen are often sent on missions that involve a lot of traveling according to Elminster's series. Mystra also mentioned that Gale and she used to have adventures together, which leads to an assumption: despite his preference he might be traveling quite a lot until he was cast aside and quarantined himself in his tower. Might be the type of scholar who is very keen on field studies?

Note 3: Can someone undress Elminster to exam my theory please??xD Neh won't work I think all human might share same body model in game

Come to think of it, there was a party banter between Karlach & Gale that went like :

Karlach: Whoa! Almost slipped there. Gale: You wouldn't be the first, I'd wager. It's been some time since these walkways felt the carpenter's hammer. Karlach: You gonna catch me if I eat a brick? Gale: With my reflexes? I'd catch you before you so much as stubbed a toe.

At first I thought that was a sarcastic joke but, seems like it wasn't? Also this:

Karlach: Ready to enter the belly of the beast? Gale: It's the stairs I'm dreading. I shall close my eyes, and pretend I'm climbing my own, far superior tower in Waterdeep. Karlach: In that case, welcome home.

...So it seems when I pictured him as a homebody, I should reimagine the concept of home... His has...lots of stairs? Just walking around in the tower could be counted as a workout, sort of thing? Note: I don't think the place he shows in the Act 2 cutscene is his tower. Otherwise, aren't these neighbors pretty much doomed?

2) Not THAT smart. Well, I love him, so I will speak in his defence: [1] He has a warm(s) digging holes in his brain. [2] Poisonous magical bile running in his blood. Maybe he's just not at his best, makes sense, eh? Wyll mentioned he is nerfed after tadpole too. After all, this man obviously memorized a DICTIONARY:

Gale: You promised to stay in Waterdeep. 'Promise,' verb, meaning to swear something will or will not be done. Tara the Tressym: And I decided 'will not'. And a good thing, too. You look like you haven't had a good meal in days

Player: When I said we could be more than friends, you answered 'perhaps'. What does that really mean? Gale: If I recall correctly, the Waterdhavian Dictionary of the Common Tongue of Faerûn defines it as an adverb that conveys the meaning of 'it may be that', or 'possibly'. Gale: Sorry, sometimes I just can't help being quite insufferable. In seriousness, I'm glad you asked that question.

Along with a bunch of you-may-never-need information:

Everything about ceremorphosis? Myconid? Why in the world have him read about Cazador??? And how can he not know the distance between Waterdeep & Baldur's Gate, even Karlach ―who spent a decade, which is likely half of her life in hell― knows better geography than him. Gale either totally ignored the subject or portaled everywhere; distance meant nothing to him?? Uh, but you can't take party banters too seriously; it's buggy. How could a bug bit Karlach in the swamp? It should've been burned into ashes before it even reached her, no?

Anyway, just rambling some thoughts <3 I would have gone to Harvard if there was a major in Gale...

-DISCLAIMER- Brought to you by a brainrot wife, Galerian missionary. Be warned the article might has (strong) bias because the writer is braindead and she thinks Gale is the most awesome character in the world.

[normal-thoughts-official]

here is the thing

when i started playing bg3, i didn't expect wyll to be so devoted to karlach. her devotion to him is a given; the guy risked his life to save her when they had literally just met. of course he matters so much to her

but wyll matched that same devotion right back, as if she had been the one to save him, even though karlach never really got the chance to do anything of that magnitude back for him

but then i think about it

mizora's punishment plays directly into wyll's worst trauma. to be suddenly branded as demonic, so people will always look at him and see that first. like his father did. like the whole city, everyone who ever knew him, did. no amount of good deeds will ever be enough to compensate for his association with evil; his soul will burn in hell and he will not be welcome anywhere because he's a greedy warlock who made his choice. i don't know if that is actually true, but he certainly thinks it to be, if anything, from his assumption that the people of the grove (whose lives he had just saved, and who had known him for at least a few days as nothing but a kind hero who looked out for them) would be unable to look past his appearance and wouldn't want him near them

and mind, mizora clearly wants wyll to stay isolated. why else would she forbid him from explaining the circumstances of his pact? what could she possibly gain from that, other than making sure he can never dispel the notion that he made a deal with the devil simply for power?

so it makes sense that that, more even than the non-consensual body modification, was the punishment. to put his warlock status on display, so that people would immediately be offput by him - and even if they aren't, he will be sure they are

his own father couldn't stand to look at him, and that was back when he had just lost an eye

but the first thing karlach tells him is this:

"Thank you for seeing me for who I really am. And... I think I can see you for who you really are, too. A hero"

obviously, it's common sense for her to see him like this after he just saved her life at great, and at the time unknown, personal cost. but it would also have been common sense for his father to know that the son he himself raised and who's nothing if not a paragon of kindness and duty wouldn't just decide to sell his soul for power out of the blue one fine day. or that, if he keeps trying to say something but can't, then there might be more to the story. for fuck's sake, he lost an eye. and yet, ulder didn't. wyll's association with the demonic was enough to dispel everything about his personhood, his values, and his actions. and now said association was branded, quite literally, on his forehead

and karlach's suffered so much at the hands of devils. just like with the other tieflings, he expects her to be unsettled by him, at the very least

but then she says that she looks at him and sees only a hero. the man who saved her. the man who cared enough to listen and do what was right. the man who sacrificed something for her, who had to make a choice no one should have to make

he had saved an entire city when he first made the pact, and yet not one soul in it was able to see that. see him

but karlach did

karlach does

and not only that. not only is she the first person in perhaps his whole life to put more weight to wyll's personhood and actions than to mizora's; but she knew he needed to hear that. she says it like someone who's trying to offer a comfort in a hopeless situation, which is exactly what she's doing. she knows that he is afraid of being rejected

and of course she does

she is the one who comes closest to fully understanding him.

can you imagine being wyll and seeing karlach's story play out in dizzyingly rapid succession in your mind? had a pretty good, happy life, then in the span of one day everything changed when she was associated with the demonic. she lost everything and everyone she ever had. from then on, she only knew one thing: to fight. no rest and no friends and no breaks, just endless, senseless fighting. her body was changed against her will. she hadn't been touched in a positive way in ten years. even fucking mizora was there

that's his story, too

sure, he might not have been literally unable to touch people, but neither was karlach when she was in hell. he's been completely alone except for mizora for the last seven years, at least in the ways that matter. nothing in his life was constant, except for the fighting and the humiliation at a devil's hand. and the loneliness

of course he thinks it's a trick. it hits too close to home

and of course he can't help but listen anyway. because wyll is nothing if not compassionate, and he's just watched a tldr of his own pain inflicted on someone else

so when karlach says that she still sees him as himself first?

he is reminded that she gets it

for the first time in seven years, he is not alone, and he is understood

of course he would do anything to keep her in his life, just as she would

in a way, she did save him, too.

(slightly late meta submission for @thekindredcollective's wyllstravaganza2024, day 19: bond)

[dumbbitch-academy]

A Night of Blood and Wine

Astarion x f!reader

WC: 3.4k

Like always: 18+ MDNI

Summary: Its a party tonight at the Elfsong with the entire party! Reader and Astarion head upstairs where Astarion gets drunk, but in his own vampire way *wink wink*

Contains: Blood drinking, alcohol use, sex mentioned, but nothing happens, FLUFF like so much fluff omg, also Shadow'zel is alive and well

A/N: I wrote this story and it took me while but here it is. There is party banter so sorry if there is some OOC moments, I am not used to writing the rest of the companions. Enjoy! This is proof-read as much as my tired brain can handle right now, also I might change the title later.

AO3

Masterlist

The excitement grew all day inside of you. It had been so long since there was time to just be with each other. All of your companions having a party to celebrate nothing in particular, to still being alive, which was all reason enough and more. Your party had rented out the entire upper floor of the Elfsong, which currently buzzed with the excitement of everyone getting ready in their best clothes. You and all the other girls had gotten together in one room, giddily getting dressed. Lae’zel had been choosing which of her camp clothes fit the evening’s festivities the best, which Shadowheart helped her with, excited to see her in something more fun and less formal than her usual Githyanki armor. 

You giggled at the two, once their blatant disgust and animosity was channeled into something more productive, a beautiful friendship had begun to blossom between the two of them. From that point, an even more beautiful relationship was found out one day as a few others in the party, including yourself, caught them sneaking a kiss when they thought no one was around to see them “Too cute” you thought to yourself as you currently were sitting in front of the mirror, reapplying your eyeliner. The dress you had chosen was fitting for a party, it was a beautiful shade of pink, it paired beautifully with your tanned skin and black raven hair. The corset laced up accented your curves, the skirt a comfortable length. Karlach had opted for her usual leathers, as she knew she was going to ruin anything else besides her usual clothes with the amount of fun and liquid courage she planned on partaking in this evening. 

“You almost ready, soldier? We should have been there about 10 minutes ago!”Karlach came up behind you, staring at you in the mirror, a large grin had cracked her face into a wonderful smile. “Yes, Karlach. I’m done just now. Just want to look perfect tonight. I can’t remember how long it has been since we let loose a little,” you look at her through the mirror, “and how about you two? Are you finally ready?” You eyed Shadowheart and Lae’zel who finally came out of their corner, smiles in their eyes. “Yes, lead the way, let us head down and conquer this night,” Lae’zel said as she smoothed out her outfit one last time. 

The descent down the stairs gave way to nerves forming in your belly, excited for what the night might bring. Once you pushed your way through the doors, you immediately were greeted by a cheer from Wyll and Gale, Astarion still yet to be seen. “Finally, the ladies decide to grace us with their ever alluring presence,” Wyll spoke through a small happy laugh, you could tell he had already had a pint. “Good evening, ladies, follow us to your table this evening,” Gale motioned, obviously having begun drinking already as well. You all gathered around the table the men had picked out, large enough for everyone, and more towards the back. You still looked around, trying not to be overt about trying to find Astarion, but still curious where your boyfriend was, though you knew hanging out with a drunk Wyll and especially Gale was not a highlight on his list of fun things to partake in, sober at least. It was at this point you felt a cold hand land on your bare shoulder, where your dress straps did not cover. A shiver from both excitement and unexpected cold ran through you, and turned around to find Astarion. “There you are, my love. I was wondering when you all would show up. I was starting to think you were all having fun up there without us,” his usual smirk across his face. You shook your head, giggling and smiling, “What can I say, fashionably late and all that.” Astarion laughed, and handed you a glass of your favorite wine. He moved to kiss you, which you moved your face up to allow him better access to your lips. You could taste the wine on his lips as well, so he had started drinking as well. Not that it would get him drunk, but that would come soon enough. “You truly are stunning, my dear. What a beautiful dress,” Astarion warmly complimented you, looking at you up and down. “I could say the same to you, too, Star.” He was so very handsome tonight, not that he wasn’t every night, but tonight, there was just something about him. A lovely flowy shirt accompanied with leather pants that hugged his figure, smokey eyeliner to match yours adorned his crimson eyes. 

“I would like to propose a toast, to…” Gale had started, interrupting your flirtation but he quickly lost track of where ever that train was headed. “A toast to great libations, and even greater friends to share them with!” Wyll graciously swooped in and saved Gale, much to his inebriated thanks. Everyone toasted their goblets into the air, and took a swig. 

You looked around, just in awe that everyone who meant so much to you was with you at this moment, your very own family. Something that you had back home, but they never really truly understood you. You loved them, yes, still sequestered in that small little village, but this was something entirely different. This was a family of your own creation, of everyone who meant the world to you in their own special way, but especially Astarion. He was something that you never really planned on happening, not that you were complaining about the surprise. You looked upon the man next to you, laughing with Karlach, sipping his wine, and you felt just the most adoration for him in your heart. You could tell he could tell your heart beat was drumming hard as he looked over to you, a genuine smile in his eye, ears turning downward ever so slightly, something you noticed would happen when you became even closer. He bent down and kissed your blushed cheek. 

As the night went on, the drinks flowed. You were becoming pretty silly in your drunken state, and it was to everyone’s entertainment. “You know, I always kinda wanted something to happen between you two!” You looked over and giggled over at Shadowheart and Lae’zel, who were sitting oh-so-comfortably with each other, Lae’zel’s arm over Shadowheart’s shoulder. The pair both rolled their eyes at you, “Well, once she started to stop being such an ass, there really was a strangely endearing charm to her,” Shadowheart spoke turning her heart to the woman in question, brows knitted starting down at her goblet as she took a deep drink, not used to her love life being so proudly on display. “I was never an ass, just persistent in my objectives for the party being correct,” Lae’zel corrected her precious rosy partner, and Shadowheart raised an eyebrow in return. “Sure, whatever lets you sleep at night ‘Zel,” Shadowheart scoffed before she leaned in to kiss Lae’zel’s cheek. 

You turned your attention to Wyll and Gale, who were both deep in conversation about… something that probably would not make any sense to anyone outside of their little conversation. You tried to listen in on their discussion, but could not follow one piece of it, and you weren’t sure the two did either, much to your confused enjoyment. “I have no idea what they are fucking talking about either,” you heard Astarion say as he noticed your puzzled face once he turned from his conversation with Karlach. “Okay good, because I know I have had a lot tonight but I thought I was far more gone than I originally thought for a second there,” you nodded your head, grateful for the second opinion to confirm you weren't just going crazy. You turned your attention to Astarion who had been looking down at you, one eyebrow cocked up as he studied you, gauging how drunk you were, and when he saw that look of mischief and relaxation in your eyes, he snorted out a laugh. Before you could stop yourself, you immediately became needy for him. Not in a sexual way, but just to be close to him as you rested your head on his shoulder, “Starrrr…. Star, you should bite me and then we can be drunk together! It’s the perfect plan!” Astarion stopped mid drink from his goblet and his eyes widened. He laughed and scooped you closer to him, “Darling, are you sure?”  You looked over to Karlach who had her hand over her mouth, trying so hard not to burst into laughter and flames. “Yes! I wanted this to happen all day, I know you can’t really get drunk, and so I thought, what better way to get him drunk, than with my very own drunk blood?" You moved to sit up straighter and moved your hair out of the way of your neck. Somehow, for the first time, you managed to make Astarion slightly embarrassed. Who knew that it just took a lot of liquid courage and offering up your neck in front of the entire party to get him to become bashful. “Darling, let's go somewhere more private, I might decide to take my time with you,” Astarion quickly regained his composure, much to Gale and Wyll’s annoyance made evident by their groans. You nodded, a large, wet eye smile shown across your face. Astarion’s heart swelled, you were always so cute when you were relaxed like this. “Take your time guys, don’t let us keep you away from each other,” Karlach called out with a hardy laugh as the two of you made your exit. 

Astarion took you by the hand, and you followed suit feeling as if you were floating. As you walked through the crowd of people, you felt Astarion’s thumb rub your hand where it sat, causing you to smile and hum up at him. His eyes caught you out of the corner of his eyes and he smiled down at you again, his ear on the side of his head swiveling down slightly again. 

As you made your way to the shared bedroom that the two of you had been using, you decided all of a sudden you were way too hot after walking through the sea of people and climbing up the stairs. “Help me out of this dress?” You turned your back to Astarion, hair flipped to one shoulder. “My dear, cannot wait for me any longer? Are you that needy for me?,” Astarion feigned in pretend disbelief. His deft fingers worked to get the laces of the corset loosened. “Well I got too hot and now I want to be in my lounge wear. I mean we can if you wanted to, but right now I think I just want to have nothing on me and let you drink from me, clothes feel wrong right now,” you said, trying to explain the drunk logic swimming in your brain. “Sure darling, I can help you with that, my sweet, silly girl,” Astarion said behind you, your dress finally falling to the ground. You stepped out of the dress and took off your shoes, and looked up at him and giggled until you remembered you left your goblet downstairs at the table. Astarion noticed the look on your face and asked, “you forgot your drink didn’t you?” You nodded, but quickly forgot that issue when your eyes spotted the bed, and took his hand and you walked over to lay down. You climbed into bed, relishing the cold fabric from being empty for so long cradling your skin. With a sigh of comfort, you looked up at Astarion, who was softly smiling down at you with adoration. “You know, the eyeliner makes you look sooo good, Starri,” you giggled as you reached up for him. “I had a feeling you would appreciate it,” Astarion took your hand and moved into the bed with you, your naked body pressing against his still clothed form. You hummed in comfort as he bent down his neck to nuzzle yours asking, “Are you still okay with me biting you, love?” You nodded lazily, the alcohol swimming in your blood and brain making you lethargic, “Yeah.” 

Astarion hummed and whispered a thank you as he kissed your earlobe, making his way down to the junction between shoulder and neck with open mouthed kisses. He trailed back up to his favorite spot, gave it a peck, and slid his fangs into your delicate flesh there. The alcohol swimming in your brain made you confident as you moved your hands to caress him behind his head with one hand and the other on his butt. You giggled as you heard his breath hitch when he felt your hand fall to his ass, you rubbed the back of his head in soothing slow movements. “You are so sweet to me, my little Star, so beautiful, so loving, how did I get so lucky?,” you gushed in soothing whispers, eyes fluttering closed as you fully relaxed into the elf. Ears tickled your cheek as his ears twitched in elation from your words, and you giggled, “Gods, your ears are so cute.” Astarion’s ears twitched even more from your ongoing barrage of affection towards him and you felt him giggle into your neck, “I love you.” You hummed and smiled even though you knew he couldn’t see it, but you knew he could hear it when you responded back, “I love you too, Astarion.” 

He slowly swallowed his last mouthful and came up from your neck, his pupils dilating as the alcohol from your blood hit him. His face wore a dopey smile as he rose, but his eyes caught a bead of blood falling from the bite, and bent down to lick it up and finally lick the wound. His movements became less dexterous as the alcohol swam in his body and he nearly fell over trying to get back up from licking the wound. “Easy there, Star,” You move to sit up and help him to move to his back, face blissed out as he giggled to himself. You still felt deliciously drunk and now with your boyfriend reaching that same point of inebriation you were ready to head back to the party. You gave him a kiss on his now pink cheek and caressed his head soothingly, “I am going to get dressed and we can head back down.” His eyes locked onto yours and he nodded, “Whatever you say darling, you gorgeous beautiful woman.” You deeply blushed, he always would get super flirty once he was drunk. 

You slipped on some comfortable lounge pants and his white shirt that you could borrow more often than not, not that he was complaining. Seeing you in his shirt always made his heart soar. You went to see in the mirror what your makeup was looking like, slightly smudged and a bit runny, so you opted to clean your face so that you wouldn’t look like a racoon more as the night went on. You walked over to the bed and found Astarion humming a song to himself as he watched you move about the room. You offered your hand and he grabbed it, using the leverage to bring his body up, stumbling just a touch as he got back onto his feet. “Oh darling love, that shirt on you, it's so…” he thought for a moment the words he had swirling in his brain, “so nice.” His flirtation fell short and you snorted a laugh, “Okay, come on lover boy, let's not let them keep waiting all night. Plus, I want more wine.” 

You took your boyfriend back down the stairs, this time leading him. His feeding had sobered you up just a touch, but there was more wine to remedy that. As you waded through the crowd once again, you finally saw the rest of your table, who once they saw the both of you, raised up their goblets and cheered as the two of you came to sit back down with them. You found your wine goblet and began to sip on it again as Astarion sat beside you and clung to your shoulders, head dipped down to rest it on you. Always the cuddler when he was like this. Karlach was far more gone now at this point as well, and congratulated the two of you on returning back safely, “I was wondering when the two of you were going to be done”-she eyed your changed of clothes and lack of make-up- “have a little fun up there ,eh?” Your cheeks flushed, but before you could answer, you felt Astarion move to speak first, “Darling, everything we do is fun, you’d have to be a bit more specific if you were to ever want to hear about our thrilling and mind-blowing sex life.” You immediately choked on the wine in your throat you had been swallowing, “Astarion” you finally managed to gasp, and you immediately began to laugh with Karlach who was both surprised and delighted by Astarion’s comeback. He laughed his high pitched giggle, “She’s so adorable when she gets shy, my darling love,” he slurred out his words as he moved to kiss you cheek.

The rest of the night was spent enjoying everyone’s company, retelling stories of your most recent adventures together, and loving being with this new found family of yours. You did not know how you ever got so lucky to call these people your little family. As the night died down, you all retreated back to your rented rooms upstairs, saying goodnight to each other. You waved good night to Shadowheart and Lae’zel returning to their shared room as you and Astarion entered yours. Both of you were much more sober now, as the night had ended with you drinking water and eating a good plate of food to put something on your belly. 

You both helped each other get out of the clothes that had been somewhat plastered on your bodies from the heat of the busy tavern. You moved to help Astarion cleanse the eyeliner, his eyes closed as you ran the soft cloth along his eyes, removing the makeup. “Look up?” You asked as you went to get the liner from his lower lash line, “Did you have fun tonight?” He subtly nodded, not wanting to risk a poke to the eye, “I actually had a really great time tonight, thank you for asking. What about yours?” His crimson eyes pointed towards the ceiling still. You finished cleaning his face and gave him a kiss between his brows to his delighted surprise, “I had a wonderful night, thank you Star.” 

You both decided to climb into bed still naked, and held each other. You rested your head on his arm, he stared up at the ceiling which was dimly lit by a single candle on the bedside table. His cold body was a great relief from the heat your body had been enduring the past couple hours after his feeding. “Do you need to feed again? I don’t think you got very much earlier,” you asked looking up at Astarion, who moved his head to make eye contact with you. He thought about it for a minute and then answered with a tender voice, “No thank you darling, I’m okay, perhaps tomorrow night, but I’m enjoying just this.” You nodded and kissed his arm where your head lay, “Of course, Star,” you held back for a moment until you spoke again, “Astarion?” He looked down at you again, “Darling?” The look on his face held love and utter peace just to be with you. You had so much to say, to thank him for choosing you, for being there for you when you needed him, to let him know he could always depend on you, that you were irrevocably his, but the only thing that was able to slip from your lips was something that you hoped would convey all of those thoughts and feelings into them, but you knew you would spend everyday showing as well. You looked up at him, nuzzled your head into his arm again, and with a yawn, “I love you, so much.” He sleepily smiled and moved his head to kiss the crown of yours, “I know, I love you too, my little sweetheart.”