#thema and lyna

[thema-sal-shiral]

Thema and Lyna side by side.

Thema belongs to me. Lyna belongs to @katalyna-rose

Kat was nice enough to let me remake Lyna with my PC DAI, with mods to show her with longer hair. That poor man at the bar wasn’t too wrong, they do look a little bit alike. This is also reference for anyone who reads Ménage à Trois.

[empresstress13]

Re-reading @katalyna-rose and @thema-sal-shiral‘s amazing work:  Ménage à Trois. I decided to finally try my hand at drawing lovely @katalyna-rose‘s third of the OT3: Lyna Lavellan (in this ‘verse also acting as Ghilan’nain)! @thema-sal-shiral‘s amazing Thema as depicted to the best of my ability can be seen here. 

Love the story, both amazing OCs, and equally AWESOME writers! ♥

[katalyna-rose]

Small small 3some AU prompt: Lyna's side of the first meeting with Thema.

Lost in the Woods

As always, Thema belongs to @thema-sal-shiral and Lyna belongs to me.

No content warnings! Just a little domestic moment and some memories.

Lyna laid in bed beside Thema, propped up on too manypillows with a book in her lap. She’s abandoned the goal of reading in favor ofstroking the pale head in her lap, a gentle smile on her face. Even thoughtheir lover was so far away, a wanted traitor and a pariah whom they wereforced to disavow over and over, having Thema with her was such a comfort. Ifshe’d been forced to bear this burden alone, working for the Dread Wolf frominside their enemy’s confidence, she would have gone mad. But with Thema by herside, anything was possible. An impossible woman, everything about her strangeand different, she made Lyna strive to be more than she was.

The game trailwas interrupted by a wide patch of broken brush and the stumbling, draggingsteps of a wounded thing. The shape of the few full prints and the marks oftoes indicated that whatever had passed this way was Elvhen and in direstraits. Lyna frowned, examining the trail. It was fresh, an hour old at most,and clearly whoever it was couldn’t move very fast. She glanced again at thegame trail she’d been following but knew she’d never be able to live withherself if she didn’t follow the path of this wounded person and either putthem out of their misery or try to help. She abandoned the game to follow theperson.

The memory suddenly assaulted Lyna, as it was wont todo on occasion. She still wondered if it had been Compassion or Fate that droveher to investigate that limping trail. She would likely never know.

Lyna stood inthe middle of a clearing, hands fisted on her hips and glared at the ground.The terrain had changed, now rocky and firm, and the limping trail had vanishedwithout a trace. She had searched every inch of the clearing and into all thesurrounding forest, but she’d been unable to pick the trail back up. The onlycomfort she had was that there had been no trace of blood anywhere along it.With luck, whoever it was could make it to safety. Perhaps a friendly spiritmight find them.

Forced toabandon the trail, Lyna returned to her hunt. She wandered back into the forestand scanned for tracks, but she couldn’t get that trail out of her head. Shewished she could have found and helped whoever it was, but she also couldn’thide from the fact that her Pride had been injured by being unable to pick thetrail back up.

Lyna laughed to herself as she stroked Thema’s cheekand the woman stirred just a little in sleep. She’d been so sure of herselfthen, so certain that she could follow any trail. Thema had proven her wrong.Though the otherworldly woman had little experience in tracking when they met,she had since exceeded Lyna’s abilities and would notice things that Lyna mighthave missed. If it had been Thema following that trail, she wondered if shemight have been able to pick it back up. The two women together were masters ofthe hunt, able to follow weeks old trails to their final destinations and makeit look easy. Thema made her better in every way and Lyna always strived to beeven better for her.

Nearly an hourafter Lyna was forced to abandon the trail and resume her hunt, she heard acrash nearby. She couldn’t believe that anything that could make such noise hadgotten the jump on her, but the sight that greeted her when she looked towardthe sound drove that thought from her head. It was a woman, Elvhen with hairlike the stars that wheeled above them despite being dirty and matted, eyeslike the blood of Titans wide and fearful, and features wider and longer thanany Lyna had seen before. Her nose was spattered with freckles, her face wasbare of Vallaslin, indicating nobility, but nothing else about her suggestedthe same. She was unarmed and unarmored, completely nude and stumbling asthough she’d never walked before. She was trailed by three spirits thatvanished before Lyna could identify them.

Unthinking,Lyna rushed to her and held open her arms as the woman fell. Had she not beenthere, the stranger would have fallen face-first into the dirt. Instead, Lynawrapped her up in her arms and kept her steady as she gasped for breath. Sheheld the woman close, brushing tangled hair out of her face and whisperingsweet words of comfort to calm her. The woman trembled, clutching at herdesperately, like a lifeline, and Lyna held her tighter until she was able tostill. Slowly, she lowered them both to the ground since the woman could notstand under her own power. Lyna looked her over for injuries but found none,her body whole and working, though something lingered in her bones. It was justa wisp of some agony, something she no longer carried but which had beenpainful and powerful enough to leave an imprint of memory. It vanished beforeshe could identify it, too.

“Can you hearme?” Lyna asked softly as she held the strange woman. The woman shifted in armsand looked up, her eyes finally focusing and meeting Lyna’s. “Who are you?” sheasked. If the woman was a runaway, she would not give her real name. If she wasnobility as her bare face seemed to suggest, she would give her title. A namewas not the answer Lyna expected.

Crystallineeyes slowly cleared, the woman settling. Though for a moment she seemed not tounderstand the words, eventually she gasped, “Thema. My name is Thema.” Lynasmiled at her.

“I am Lyna,”she told her. This Thema managed to smile back.

Lyna leaned down and kissed Thema’s sleeping face inher lap. She was so peaceful in sleep, so unlike the strange and filthy womanshe’d found all those centuries ago. And in a few hours when she would wake,she would be different again. Bright and loud and unpredictable, Lyna would bealmost helpless to do anything but follow Thema’s many moods and whims. It wasstill strange, even after so long, that Thema would sleep for a few hours eachnight. It was still inconvenient at times, such as during celebrations meant tolast a fortnight or longer. They would retire together during lulls inconversation or quiet moments so that Thema could sleep. When they returned,they passed it off as needing time together. The others seemed to think theywere strange and very lusty. Well, at least they weren’t wrong!

Lyna could remember Andruil attempting to claim thiswoman with no past and almost no understanding of their language. It had takenLyna a long time communicate successfully with her. She’d brought her homebecause she didn’t know what else to do, but she could not hide a person fromher queens. Andruil tried over and over to mark her with Vallaslin, but eachtime the marks had simply slid off her skin like wax off warm glass.Frustrated, Andruil had simply declared that Thema was hers and bound magic inher hair. And then she’d promptly forgotten about the strange, unmarked slavein her household. As Thema had slowly gained Andruil’s memories, she’d realizedwith a grunt and a roll of her eyes that the queen had forgotten all about theincident in less than a month. It had served them well at the time, however,allowing them to become close and allowing Thema to adjust her new life. In theend, it had worked out for the best.

Lyna touched the vhenan’nahr in Thema’s hair, herlove for her woman made magic and real. She was beautiful and fierce andwonderful and Lyna loved her so much. She still felt cold and alone with Solasat their side, but Thema made the separation bearable. At least she couldcommiserate, if nothing else. And with Thema, Lyna would always be safe andloved. That much had been true from the moment they’d met. Lyna’s life had onlyever been made better by Thema, even when they fought. It was a love meant tolast for eternity, Lyna was certain.

[katalyna-rose]

3some AU: The Evanuris can die, but their spirits live on. When their bodies die those closest to them risk being taken over. The death of Andruil and Ghilan'nain elevate a slave and Mistress of the Hunt, and a woman out of her World, and the death of a fearsome beast.

Fake it Until You Make It

As always, Thema belongs to @thema-sal-shiral and Lyna belongs to me!

Content warnings!

Implied/referenced torture, implied/referenced non-consent.

“Don’t go, Lyna!” Thema pleaded again, following Lyna around the tiny room as she finished strapping on her armor and gathered up her weapons. Thema spent altogether too much time in Lyna’s tiny room, where most of the space was taken up by her wardrobe, which held all the fancy dresses she wore when she danced and when she was bartered away to the highest bidder. Nearly all of the remaining space was taken up by the tiny cot Lyna slept in, with just barely enough room for her armor stand and the little cabinet that held what she needed to maintain both her armor and her wardrobe as well as some healing supplies that she’d smuggled from the infirmary. With Thema in the room as well, they were all but bumping into each other, which did not help Lyna maintain a respectful distance from her friend.

“I have no choice, Thema,” Lyna reminded her. She paused her work, dagger belt only half buckled and turned to her friend. She touched her own chin and her forehead and the dark purple lines there. “This is blood writing, falon. It is made of my own blood and binds me to Ghilan’nain for as long as I live. I have to go.”

“But you’re not even healed yet!” Thema cried. “How can she ask you to hunt with her when you’re still dealing with broken bones? It’s insane!”

“She neither knows nor cares what condition I’m in when I’m returned to her,” Lyna told her, tightening the straps on her belt and donning her quiver. “As long as payment is made and the buyer makes no complaints about me, she is content.”

“But how can she even do this to you!” Thema cried, frustrated. She tried to pace, but there simply wasn’t enough room to do so and she ended up throwing herself down on Lyna’s cot. Lyna winced, hoping the flimsy legs would hold. “How can she possibly justify selling you like this!”

“I’m only worth what I can do,” Lyna reminded her softly. “As it happens, I am worth a great deal. Kings and queens have offered Ghilan’nain castles to buy me from her permanently. They have offered their lands, a thousand other slaves, all the magical beasts Ghilan’nain could ever want. She refused them all. When Elgar’nan bought my maidenhead, he paid Ghilan’nain with two dragons, his weight in diamonds, and my weight in sapphires and he kept me for only one full day. I am worth far too much to Ghilan’nain for her to truly risk me.” She paused her preparations and put a hand on Thema’s cheek, kissing her forehead instead of her lips as she wished she could do. “I’ve gone out hunting in worse conditions,” she assured the strange woman who sat on her bed. “And this time I won’t even be hunting, not really. I’ll probably bag some small game in case the hunt runs long and we have to stay out longer than a week, but I go with Andruil and Ghilan’nain themselves. They will be hunting. I will be assisting.”

Thema glared up at her, not appeased, and poked Lyna’s ribs gently. She hissed and moved away, the pain sharp even through her armor. “You’re not healed,” Thema repeated. “They’re going to get you killed! And then what will I do? I barely have a handle on this crazy language of yours and I still don’t know which fork to use first. Why do they impose all these manners on slaves, anyway? It’s not like most of us are ever seen. And why do they even have slaves to begin with? We’re the same as them!”

“But we are not,” Lyna told Thema. “The Evanuris… They have powers that I could never dream of wielding! I cannot create animals from driftwood the way Ghilan’nain can. I cannot summon a weapon from thin air and use it to kill a beast as Andruil can. I am not like them.”

“So they know a few tricks and they don’t share,” Thema dismissed, her hand cutting through the air. “That doesn’t make them gods!” Lyna merely smiled. Thema hadn’t seen the things she had seen.

“You do not even have magic, falon,” Lyna reminded her sadly.

“I could still kill them,” Thema said darkly. Lyna froze, then glanced around as though she could spot eavesdroppers in the tiny space of her room.

“Don’t say things like that!” she hissed, panicked. She gripped Thema’s arm hard enough to make her squirm. “It is treason, or worse, to say things like that! I could not bear it if they killed you for such words! And you would suffer greatly and beg for death before they gave it to you! Don’t say things like that.” Then she forced herself to release Thema’s arm. She reached up to her hair and picked up the two braids in the mass of creamy silk. “You see these? These are my duties. The magic of what I am is woven through them. You’ve seen how many Andruil and Ghilan’nain wear, their hair filled with them. The nobles have many, as well. I have two.” She picked up the smaller one, the one strewn with a few wooden beads, and all but thrust it at Thema. “This one is my responsibility as Mistress of the Hunt for Ghilan’nain. I lead three dozen other slaves and we bring in all the meat consumed by this palace. And when Ghilan’nain goes hunting, with Andruil or alone, I am duty bound to accompany her.” She let that braid drop and picked up the other one. It was much thicker, strands threaded with silverite beads and gems. “This is my duty as a courtesan. Look at it, Thema!” she demanded when Thema turned away. “Look at it. There is magic woven through it. It would alert Ghilan’nain if I ever shirked my duty. If I fought or refused to service whoever had bought me or displeased them in any way, she would know. And I would receive far worse than a few fractured ribs and broken fingers. I have no choice. I must go.” Then she snagged her ragged cloak and threw it over her shoulders. She stopped before she left the room and looked back over her shoulder. “You wear your lovely, starlight hair in a single braid, falon. One braid for your duty as a lowly slave. You feel the magic in it, too. We are both bound and we cannot escape.” Then she left. She did not see the determination in Thema’s eyes as she went.

It was three days before Andruil and Ghilan’nain caught up to their prey. Three days of trailing behind her mistresses silently, carrying the heavy weight of their tent and bedrolls and cooking utensils on her back as she trotted to keep up. Three days of watching them laugh together, carefree. And three nights of being commanded into their tent to assist them in pleasuring each other. And then she was literally kicked from their tent to make her bed between the roots of the trees, nothing but her old cloak to keep her warm and nothing at all to cushion her body. It was nothing she hadn’t endured countless times before, but since Thema had pointed out all the ways in which it was unfair she found herself noticing more than she usually did.

Ordinarily, Lyna would shut herself down during these trips, lock away everything that made her who she was to protect it. This time she could not. Her three broken fingers still plagued her, wrapped to each other in increasingly ratting bandages. She found herself huffing her breaths as the swelling around her fractured ribs made it difficult to breathe. She found herself completely repulsed by everything done in the tent at night, found herself imagining instead Thema’s soft body to get through it without throwing up. Even so, she was beaten for not being wet for her queens. That was almost preferable to the alternative.

And then, at last, they caught up to the beast they’d been tracking. It was something Ghilan’nain had recently created. She’d set it loose a few months prior to let it grow accustomed to life in the woods, make it a challenge to find and take down. Lyna didn’t know what it was supposed to be, but it was monstrous. It was easily taller than all three of them if they stood on each other’s shoulders, with armored plates on its body and sharp horns on its face and tail. It screeched so loudly when Andruil and Ghilan’nain whooped and attacked that Lyna thought her eardrums would burst. She hung back, waiting for a signal to join the fight if needed.

Andruil’s dark hair flashed, many braids left loose, as she jumped to dodge the beast’s charge. She laughed cruelly as she shot a magical arrow between two armored plates behind the beast’s foreleg. A string appeared in her hand, connecting to the arrow, and she tugged as the beast spun. The beast shrieked in pain as the armored plate was torn free.

Ghilan’nain’s high-pitched laughter sounded even over the shrieking of her beast. “Well played, vhenan!” she called. Golden hair streaked past Lyna as Ghilan’nain rushed the beast. As it charged her, she leaped. She landed just behind its head and drove her dagger into the back of its neck. Her strike seemed to do little more than enrage the thing, and she was forced to leap away off its back. Andruil laughed.

“Losing your touch, ma lath?” Andruil called to her.

“It would be such a same to steal the kill from you!” Ghilan’nain replied, though her damaged pride made her reckless. As Andruil shot an arrow into the bleeding flesh revealed by the armored plate she’d torn free, Ghilan’nain rushed the beast again. She did not calculate for its writhing in pain as she leaped, and instead of a clean landing on its back she ended up impaled on one of the spikes on its face.

“Ghilan’nain!” Andruil shrieked, voice shrill and hoarse. “Slave! Save her!” she commanded, furiously shooting arrows that merely glanced off its armor. Lyna leapt into action, an arrow of wood from her non-enchanted bow burying itself in one of the beast’s eyes. She leaped but did not have the power to bound onto such a tall creature’s back in one jump. Instead, she aimed for its leg and cut her hands on its armored plates as she used them to climb. Once on its back, she narrowly dodged one of Andruil’s desperate arrows as she climbed onto its face. A second arrow from Lyna’s bow took out its other eye and then she used its distraction to snag Ghilan’nain’s limp and bleeding body off its tusk.

Lyna twisted her ankle badly when she landed on the forest floor again, Ghilan’nain’s bleeding form clutched against her chest. She laid the queen down near Andruil, who instantly abandoned the fight despite the fact that the beast was still very much alive to try to tend to her lover. Desperate and furious tears fell down Andruil’s face as she suffused the other woman with her magic.

“Kill it!” she commanded Lyna, not bothering to look up. Lyna took a deep breath, ignoring the pain in her cut hands and broken fingers, ignoring the way her fractured ribs protested the breath, ignoring the way her ankle screamed as she ran back at the shrieking creature.

She was shooting to keep it distracted rather than to harm it, trying to find any weakness to exploit, when she heard a shriek behind her.

“Lyna!” She turned, taking her attention off the writhing beast for a moment. It used her distraction to charge, but she spun out of the way and it rammed into a tree instead.

“Thema!” Lyna cried, catching sight of her friend. Thema shot an arrow from her own bow and managed to hit the weak point behind its foreleg that Andruil had created. Now riddled with arrows, the new wound did little more than enrage the beast. Lyna had been searching for an artery to pierce through that spot, perhaps make the beast bleed out, but thus far hadn’t had any luck. “What are you doing here?”

“Tracking you!” Thema replied, shooting again and striking the blinded creature’s eye socket. The arrow didn’t go deep enough, but it maddened the beast. It spun and charged the wrong direction. “I couldn’t just let you go! And look at you! Hands bleeding, limping, fighting this thing alone! Where are they?”

“Ghilan’nain is hurt,” Lyna called to Thema as they raced after their retreating foe. “Andruil is tending her.”

“Fuckheads,” Thema muttered. Lyna slanted a glance at her, not understanding the strange euphemism, but ignored it. Another arrow loosed from Lyna’s bow lodged itself under a plate of armor behind the beast’s head, and that gave Lyna an idea.

“Keep it distracted!” Lyna called to Thema. Then she raced forward. She leapt up as high as she could and grabbed on to the beast’s tail instead of the armor plate she’d been aiming for. It shrieked and reared, but an arrow glancing off its face soon distracted it once more. Lyna climbed as quickly as she could, balancing precariously with her arms out beside her as she raced over its back to its head. Before she could strike and push the lodged arrow into its brain, she heard a shriek as the beast stamped its front legs.

“Shit!” Thema bellowed. The shriek, all too familiar as Andruil’s, was swiftly cut off as the beast’s legs met the dirt again. “Fuck, fuck, fuck, it just crushed them!”

A string of curses left Lyna’s mouth as she kicked out. The arrow was shoved into the beast’s brain all the way to the fletching. She unsheathed a dagger and used it to pry up the armor plate more, then stabbed. The beast cried out so loudly that Lyna felt blood trickling from her ears as suddenly the world went silent, her eardrums burst.

“Shoot inside its mouth!” she shrieked to Thema. Or at least, she hoped she did. She felt the burn in her throat from yelling, thought she formed the correct words with her mouth, but she couldn’t hear anything. She took a knee to steady herself as she drew her bow as far back as it would go. The tip of her arrow was only inches from the exposed flesh. The beast suddenly dropped its head, likely with an arrow in the roof of its mouth, and Lyna loosed the arrow. Its skull angled down, the arrow vanished inside the beast’s head, shot hard enough to tear through its brain.

Slowly, the beast fell onto its side. Lyna rolled as it collapsed, finally dead, then simply lay on the ground. Her entire body hurt, the world still silent to her even as Thema rushed over and cradled her head. Her mouth was moving and she was gesturing frantically. Her starlight hair brushed Lyna’s cheek, lyrium blue eyes wide and frightened. She held a pale hand over a gash in Lyna’s side that she didn’t remember getting, ripped right through her armor. But she still couldn’t hear a thing.

“Should have kissed you while I could,” she told Thema with a smile, or hoped she did. Thema fell still, mouth closing and gesturing ceased. Then she leaned down and soft lips met hers. Thema tasted of blood and sweat, but maybe that was from her own mouth. Still, it was was lovely, finally kissing the strange woman from another world. Thema pulled back and Lyna smiled at her. Her eyes were wet, but she looked angry. She said something but Lyna wasn’t well-versed enough in reading lips to know what it was. It looked like a command, but Lyna was past such things now. In death, she would obey no one.

She could feel herself fading, all her many injuries stealing her strength. She’d lost a lot of blood, hit her head, probably punctured a lung as her fractured ribs broke. She was certainly having trouble breathing. She coughed wetly and saw the spray of red drops. Thema’s eyes widened in panic, but Lyna didn’t know how to tell her that it was okay. She’d never be bartered away again. She’d never go hunting while injured again. She’d never be an object rather than a person again. In death, she would be free. And at least she’d gotten to kiss Thema once before she died.

She noticed something out of the corner of her eye even as her vision darkened. She frowned and summoned the energy to look. Her eyes widened in shock at the state of the queens she’d been sent to protect. Their bodies were crushed, a mass of pulp and blood. But they were not dead. Evanuris did not die, and she watched as their spirits rose from their bodies. Two distinct patterns of swirling energy rose, one blood red and the other pale lavender. They swirled in confused circles for a few moments, gathering into themselves. Lyna had only a moment to curse the stars that she was so close to a dead Evanuris, to hate that Thema would be caught as well, a bright and beautiful spirit silenced. And then the energy rushed at them.

Blood red surrounded Thema and she convulsed, seizing on the ground. Pale lavender suffused Lyna, and she could feel herself screaming though still she heard nothing. But the pain was unimaginable, every cell in her body being torn apart and put back together.

A whisper in her mind, a voice screaming at her from far away. Pain and fear in that voice, ancient and powerful, called Lyna to submit. But no, she was already dead. She didn’t fear reprisal and she told it to go to the Void. To her everlasting surprise, it did. The whispers faded, but the pain continued until Lyna blacked out.

When Lyna at last woke, the sounds of the forest were loud in her ears and the pain in her body was gone. She groaned as she sat up and blinked. She was covered in old blood, dry and crusty, but there were no wounds anywhere on her body. Her broken fingers were healed, her lungs drew breath easily, the gash in her side was gone though her armor remained torn.

She should not have still been herself, she thought. That was how it worked! The power of an Evanuris transferred to another of the People when they died and their personality overwrote that of the new body. The vessel died and the Evanuris lived on. Yet Lyna was still herself, even that whisper of the queen in her mind completely silent. But there was no denying the power she could feel coursing through her veins. It was white-hot and intense, but she kept it all under her skin. She didn’t understand.

She looked over at Thema when she saw movement and braced for the fury of Andruil. Surely she would know that Ghilan’nain’s personality was gone, her lover somehow truly dead while Lyna lived on. She doubted her death would be swift.

But Andruil blinked at Lyna, looking confused. “Lyna?” she said, voice small. “What just happened? I feel like I got ripped to shreds.” Lyna’s jaw dropped. Andruil did not even know her name and would never say such things.

“You’re still you!” she cried and threw herself at Thema. She tackled the woman into the dirt and, damn the consequences, kissed her. But Thema welcomed the touch, kissing her back.

“What happened?” Thema asked, sounding shell-shocked.

“Evanuris don’t die,” Lyna told her. “Their spirits transfer to another of the Elvhen when their bodies die. We were closest and I thought you were doomed. I was dying so I didn’t mind as much, but you… I thought Andruil would kill your mind to take your body. But she didn’t! Maybe it’s because you’re not of this world, but you’re still you!”

“But what about you?” Thema asked, pushing some bloodstained hair back from her face. “I saw that cloud or whatever it was fly right at you!”

“I don’t know,” Lyna admitted, sitting back. She frowned at her hands as she thought about it, running over everything that made her unique in her mind. It was a short list. “Oh!” she finally exclaimed. “I was Fade-touched at birth,” she told Thema. “It doesn’t happen often, but in the moment I was born the Fade became a part of me. It’s why my magic is as strong as it is and why my eyes are purple. I’ve never heard of a Fade-touched vessel before. Maybe the Fade within me protected me from Ghilan’nain’s mind.” It seemed as likely as any other explanation, but she didn’t know enough about such magics to be sure.

“Your vallaslin,” Thema said suddenly. She licked her thumb and scrubbed at the dried blood on Lyna’s face. “It’s gone!”

Lyna touched her face as though she’d be able to feel the absence of her slave markings. Then she laughed. “Well, I wanted freedom!” she cried, grinning at Thema. “Now we’re queens!” She doubled over, laughing hysterically.

“But we’re not them,” Thema reminded her when she finally calmed down.

“Who has to know?” Lyna asked with a grin, the heady taste of freedom making her reckless. “If we act the part, who will be able to tell? We know them well, after all. I certainly know them better than anyone else! You’ve spent time with Andruil as her Huntress. We could pretend.”

“Fake it until you make it,” Thema muttered. Lyna raised a brow, assuming it was another idiom from her old world and her old life.

“Exactly,” she said, grinning. Then she looked around for the remains of whatever beast they’d killed. In death, it had reverted back to what it had been. It had never been meant to live, had been made to die, so its carcass no longer existed. Instead, in the middle of the clearing in which Lyna and Thema had fought the giant beast, there was the body of a large, black wolf. All the many dozens of arrows that had been used to kill the beast had fallen away when its form shifted, and all that remained were the two arrows that had killed it. One stuck out of its mouth, shot from Thema’s bow. The other was Lyna’s, buried under the back of its skull and shot with enough force to have pierced the bone between its eyes.

“Where’s that thing we killed?” Thema asked, following Lyna’s gaze to the wolf.

“It’s there,” Lyna told her, nodding at the wolf. “Ghilan’nain’s toys aren’t meant to last past death unless she’s creating a new species. She must have created that thing from the body of a wolf.” It was beautiful, shiny pelt free of blood except on its face, a male beast in excellent form.

“What do we do with it?” Thema asked. Lyna grinned at her.

“Andruil and Ghilan’nain would break it down. Skin it and keep the pelt, eat the meat, maybe take some trophies from what’s left,” Lyna told her.

“Trophies?” Thema asked, frowning at it.

“Don’t you think that skull would make a lovely statement?” Lyna asked her. “Arrow shot so hard it pierced bone. The beast killed us, but we took it down hard in the end.”

“Fake it until you make it,” Thema said again, firmly, grinning at Lyna. “Let’s get to work!” Lyna began to break down the carcass as Thema moved rocks and collected wood for a fire pit. They would stay for a few more days and figure out exactly what to do when they returned. They would not be tortured and killed for a fluke that allowed them to remain themselves instead of being overtaken by their queens. They were free, and in power, and that was not something Lyna would sacrifice, especially not for the kind of death that awaited her if she told the truth.

Besides, she thought as she eyed Thema bending down for a dry branch, she had someone to share the secret with. Lyna smiled.

[katalyna-rose]

Poisoned Lies

A direct prequel to A Moment’s Escape

As always, Thema belongs to @thema-sal-shiral and Lyna belongs to me.

The party was boring and frustrating and Thema was showing it. She glowered and slouched and fidgeted. But Lyna kept her serenity firmly in place, smiling and laughing and working the room with her usual ease. Yet it was only long practice and necessity that kept her smiling and happy when the party was for Elgar’nan’s recent victory over the forces of Fen’Harel.

“The cowards didn’t even fight to the last man!” Elgar’nan was saying, swaying with drunkenness as he recounted the tale yet again. He had a slave sitting on his lap and another at his feet, both attractive young women whom Lyna would be purchasing from him as soon as the party ended. He would have already forgotten who they were by then. “We decimated half their force and then they fled into the trees! Didn’t even take an eluvian! They’ll die of the elements before they make it back to whatever hideaway they have.” Lyna struggled not to roll her eyes. She knew about their hidden eluvian network and the fact that every one of Solas’s army was more than capable of living in the wilderness. But that was a difficult thing for one so accustomed to the luxuries of court to accept; Elgar’nan did not remember a time before Arlathan any longer.

“Did you send scouts after them?” Mythal asked, voice overly silky as she glared hard at the two slaves who were rubbing themselves against him. The two women had no choice; they wore Elgar’nan’s Vallaslin and had to do as they were bid regardless of Mythal’s wrath. Lyna would buy them the moment Elgar’nan tired of them.

Elgar’nan snorted. “Of course not. I was not about to lose soldiers to the damn woods!” Mythal sighed in annoyance and Lyna narrowed her eyes on the woman, wondering if her betrayal of imminent. It was becoming increasingly clear that she was more concerned about her husband’s infidelity than their cause.

It was only a short while later that Elgar’nan stood, grabbed the two slaves, and stepped out of the party. Lyna clenched her teeth, wishing she could save them from what was coming, knowing far too intimately what they were facing. But there was nothing she could do until Elgar’nan was finished. She would not have to pay for the two, however; he would believe them dead or simply wouldn’t notice their disappearance. And they would be freed.

“He’s always been a coward, unwilling to sacrifice for the good of the war,” Falon’din declared, waving his glass through the air and conveniently forgetting that he had once fancied the declared traitor. “He always takes the option not to give lives. It’s lost him more battles than it’s won.” He shook his head sadly, also forgetting that it had been Solas’s tactics that had brought him to heel when he waged war for more territory centuries before. Solas was the reason he had been pushed back into his own lands and made to stay there. Then his piercing eyes fell upon Lyna and Thema. “You two knew him best,” he sneered. “Was he always such a coward?” Thema rolled her eyes but Lyna laughed heartily, feeling her soul darken as she did.

“Always,” she confessed, eyes dancing with glee. “If he hadn’t had such a big… talent… we never would have put up with him!” She sat back in her chair, allowing her posture to slouch as she considered the wine in her glass and pursed her lips. “He made many promises he did not keep,” she told them all softly, as though imparting a secret. These words had been carefully thought out, discussed between herself and Thema, but only she could be the one to deliver them convincingly. Thema had mourned the necessity but Lyna had attempted to assure her, yet still she felt her heart screaming in her chest. “He also made many promises that he did keep.”

Dirthamen sat forward, the chance for gossip and juicy secrets piquing his interest. “What promises?” he asked eagerly, leaning on his brother. Falon’din wrapped an arm around the man’s shoulder as all the Evanuris watched her closely. She smiled sadly and it was not feigned; she hated that she had to say this, had to lay this accusation upon her heart, but the others were getting too close. They were watching too carefully for signs of Andruil and Ghilan’nain helping Fen’Harel in some way and she needed to put them off the scent.

“He promised kindness to us at first,” Lyna said in a conspiratorial tone. “He did not deliver. He promised punishments when we did not please him. This he did act upon.”

“But you are as strong as him! Surely you could put him off!” Falon’din scoffed. “There was no need to stay if he treated you poorly!” Mythal’s eyes flashed but Falon’din didn’t notice. Lyna smiled at him and leaned closer, teasing him with a view down her bodice.

“Have you ever grappled with an opponent twice your size who has nullified your magic?” she asked him, voice low and intimate. “I do not recommend doing so. You will not win.” Then she sat back and gulped her wine both for show and for the blessed numbness from the horror of what she was saying. To accuse Solas of the same atrocities she had endured for centuries before taking up Ghilan’nain’s mantle made her feel sick and woozy, but it was a necessary evil to keep herself and Thema hidden among the Evanuris, where they could do the most good. That was what she told herself as she teased the others with vague images of powerless women bent to the will of an evil wolf.

“I apologize,” she finally said as she stood from the table after enduring countless questions about exactly how Fen’Harel had hurt her and responding with implied brutality. “This subject has put off my appetite. I would like to retire for the time being, but I will return before the closing ceremonies.”

“I’ll come with you, vhenan,” Thema said, standing as well. “I won’t let you be alone when you’re not well.” She glared around at the others accusingly, letting them see her displeasure for the sheer volume of questions they’d asked. Though it had been discussed, allowed, it was still awful.

Elgar’nan returned just as Thema and Lyna left, the three of them bowing to each other. Lyna followed Elgar’nan’s trail to a hidden alcove, where the two slaves were curled up in agony and trying to heal each other with shaking hands. They gasped and tried to move away when they saw Andruil and Ghilan’nain approaching.

“Hush, now, be still,” Lyna soothed, sending her magic ahead of her body and washing them both in pain relief. Both relaxed and allowed the two Evanuris closer. Lyna focused on the more gravely injured one first while Thema soothed the other and covered her modesty. Broken bones were easily mended, torn flesh sewn back together, and the woman was healed quickly through the ease of long practice and great power. She sat on the floor, shaking, while Lyna healed her companion.

“What are your names?” Thema asked them. They stared at her in silence for a while.

“I’m Adhlea,” the first to be healed said at last. She had golden hair and a willowy figure, incredibly delicate-looking like a porcelain doll. “That’s Nehnisa.” The other woman was dark-haired but slender and small like her companion.

“Seems like Elgar’nan has a type,” Thema muttered, noticing the similarities between these two slender women and Lyna herself. Lyna only grunted in response, displeased but in agreement.

“Adhlea, Nehnisa, listen to me carefully,” Lyna said in a murmur. She threw up a sound barrier around the four of them so that they would not be overheard. “I know that you have just endured a great injustice because I endured it myself from the very same man. I wish I could have saved you from it but we all would have been killed had I tried. Instead I have come to offer you a way out.” Nehnisa grabbed Adhlea’s hand as they gasped.

“The rumors are true!” she exclaimed on a breath. “You are helping us!”

“As much as we can,” Lyna told them, nodding. “We can get you out and tell you where to go. From there, Solas’s people will find you and take care of you.”

“But what is said about him…” Adhlea protested, brow furrowed. “Better the evil we know!”

Thema snorted and Lyna shook her head. “It is all lies,” she confessed to them, feeling just a little lighter as she told them the truth. “He is a good man. He has always been good to us and he will protect you. You will be free.”

“You’ve heard the whispers,” Nehnisa urged, clutching Adhlea’s hand tightly. “You know the stories. We have to go! I can’t do that again! I can’t be his property anymore, not when there’s another choice!”

“But my sister…” Adhlea protested.

“She can go with you,” Thema told them. Adhlea relaxed. She bit her lip, thinking, then nodded.

“Okay,” she said, and Nehnisa grinned. “What do we have to do?”

The instructions were given, directions to the one of the hidden passages, the path through the eluvians that would take them through three unseen rebel checkpoints before they arrived at the spot where they would be taken in by Solas’s people. The three checkpoints would make sure they weren’t followed, knowingly or otherwise, and alert the others if there was danger as the former slaves passed by. If they were safe, they would be taken in. If they were unknowingly followed the problem would vanish and they would be taken in. If they alerted the guards or any of their masters, everyone who knew would vanish and the hidden passage would be sealed, a different one opened elsewhere. It was brutal, but they could not risk corruption and spies when their goals were so important and so delicate. The two women had been on Lyna’s list of potentials long enough, however, that she was reasonably confident that neither of them would say a word to anyone as they left.

Adhlea and Nehnisa left then, scrambling for what few possessions they had and fetching Adhlea’s sister. Thema and Lyna retreated to their rooms, where Lyna kicked over a small table with enough force to shatter it.

“Vhenan?” Thema murmured, unused to seeing Lyna’s temper.

“I will kill them all,” she whispered furiously, fighting tears and awful memories. Thema wrapped her arms around her and Lyna leaned into her embrace gratefully, but it could not cool her ire.

“Let’s get the hell out of here,” Thema suggested after a short time. “Let’s drop all the court bullshit and just go! Just for a while, just to escape for a moment.”

Lyna rubbed her face, though it was dry, then nodded. “I spotted some ruins while hunting a few weeks ago that I wanted to explore.”

“Then let’s go!” Thema urged, already tugging off her court finery.

“We promised to return for the closing ceremonies of the celebration,” Lyna reminded her.

“Fuck that!” Thema cried, and that was all it took. Lyna stripped out of her fine dress and began strapping on her armor, anticipating the thrill and wonder of new ruins to explore, new history to find.

[katalyna-rose]

Commission from @queensoledad of Thema, Solas, and Lyna from Ménage à Trois. It was a bit of a wait, but it’s damn beautiful!

Happy holidays, @thema-sal-shiral! ^.^

[katalyna-rose]

Cure

Direct sequel to Corruption.

The madness of the Void nearly destroys the three lovers, but a cure lies within their love.

As always, Thema belongs to @thema-sal-shiral and Lyna belongs to me!

Co-written with my delightful Kylee! Because I suck at Thema’s dialogue! ^.^

Under the cut for length.

In her own arms, Lyna carried Thema home. She did not take her to the room the three of them were meant to share and instead placed her in a fortified cell. It nearly broke her to do it, to feel the wards that latched onto her lover to keep her as docile as possible, but it was necessary. If Thema were to wake, as she must for Lyna to talk her through this madness as she had done before, then she must be restrained. Lyna was covered in scratches and the blood of both of her lovers, but she had not fought and so she was mostly uninjured.

“I let you do this to each other,” Lyna whispered, choking on her sobs again. She had left orders to keep everyone away from Thema’s cell so that she would be the only one to see Andruil like this, so she was not worried about others seeing her weakness as she cried. Gently, carefully, Lyna cleaned Thema’s skin. She wiped the woman down with wet cloths, scrubbing away the blood of two battles. As she worked, she used her magic to heal Thema’s wounds, ignoring the scream of the red madness and the lyrium that touched her. She would suffer far worse to see Thema healed and safe and sane once more, after all.

“To see the two of you fight like that,” Lyna murmured to the sleeping woman, her hands shaking as they worked to clean her. “It was the worst thing I have ever witnessed in a very long life of suffering. And I couldn’t… I just sat there and watched you…” She choked again, hot tears burning on her cheeks.

Finally, Thema was healed and her skin was clean. Lyna drew up a blanket to cover her lover and protect her from the chill of the cell. She cast a paralysis on Thema’s limbs, then bent to gently kiss her lips. “Wake,” she whispered, power in her voice. Thema came awake with a gasp, red eyes unfocused as they opened. Slowly, her gaze came to rest on Lyna, her previous fury dimmed, but she would not speak.

“Thema, my heart,” Lyna whispered. “You are at home now. Do you remember where you have been?”

“I left and found the Void again,” she said, voice hoarse, and she coughed once, twice. “Did I sleep? I don’t… I feel like shit…” The woman tried to shift, freezing when her limbs would not move as she wanted. Red-touched blue flew to meet her lover’s gaze, fear and anger in her look. “Lyna? … Am I- am I in a cell?” Blue pierced through her to the metal gate beyond.

“You don’t remember?” Lyna asked, feeling her eyes prickle with fresh tears. “You… You tried to kill Solas. You nearly killed me when I tried to stop you. I couldn’t… I couldn’t get through to you. You wouldn’t listen, you only wanted blood. Solas fought you and made you sleep. He left and I don’t know where he has gone. I’ve been taking care of you. I had to bring you here because I didn’t… I was afraid you would still be violent. I don’t know where you’ve been, my heart. I don’t know what you’ve done.” Lyna gently stroked Thema’s face, brushing back her starlight hair. “All I know is that you fought Mythal and gravely wounded her, then came to find us and tried to kill Solas. I don’t understand, Thema.” Lyna tried to hold back her tears, but they slid down her face without permission, burning her skin. “I don’t understand any of this.”

Silence filled the cell for a few heartbeats and when she opened her eyes again crimson had retaken them, flooding into the veins of her face. “He deserved it,” Thema hissed. “So did she. I’m only sorry I didn’t kill her.” Muscles tensed, her body straining against the magic binding her, and she growled like a demon. That other voice was back, flitting at the edges of hers. “Better dead than used, that fucking wolf.”

Lyna choked back a sob, tears falling freely now. “Thema,” she whimpered. “I need you to remember. Remember when we were happy, before this cursed war. Remember when I danced for the two of you. Do you remember the first time he saw me dance? It was in my studio. You were so excited for him to see me! I went through my usual practice, nothing special about it, even for him. He was enraptured, do you remember? And then you wanted to show me off. You asked me to do the back bend, to curl backward into a circle. And you brought me incredible pleasure while he was tied to the chair! Do you remember how he came without either of us so much as touching him? Do you remember what it felt like to care for me in the aftermath? I came so hard I could barely move. Remember what it is to be happy together and you can get through this again. You’ve come back to me before. Come back to me now.” Lyna picked up Thema’s limp hand and kissed her fingers one by one, amethyst eyes searching through the crimson corruption for a spark of her lover.

Shivers raced through the Huntress’ body with each kiss and the flood receded, little by little. Sanguine faded from her skin, pulling back in her eyes until it ringed her pupils. “Lyna…” Thema’s words were thick, tears gathering in her lashes. “Ir abelas, vhenan, I’m so sorry…” As slowly as it had faded, the madness rushed back in. “You can’t have her, witch! I will see this world destroyed and you will be the last to die…”

Lyna clenched her jaw. It was not the first time whatever madness Thema possessed had spoken as its own entity, but it would be the last. “You will not keep her from me,” she vowed. “My heart will be herself again.” Gently, she placed Thema’s hand down beside her. She leaned in close, meeting the hate-filled red of a gaze that should have been loving lyrium blue. “I will save her, no matter what it takes. You will destroy nothing. I will send you back to the Void where you belong!” Then she stood and left the cell, locking it behind her, ignoring the pure rage and hatred in her lover’s face. Head held high and shoulders straight, Lyna left the dungeon behind with tears still drying on her face.

No one, not even Fen’ghilan, knew where Solas had gone. They all watched her out of the corners of their eyes, wary of her as though she would turn mad and attack them. She tried to pay it no heed, but their fear grated on her nerves. First, she went home to their rooms in Terasyl’an Tel’as, but Solas had not returned there. She went back to the Temple and found nothing but broken columns and blood stains. The eluvian showed a trace of his magic, which she followed through. It was an old trail, made of blood, sweat, and overflowing magic, but Lyna could track it. She traced Solas’s steps through the winding paths between worlds until she finally came out in a familiar forest. It was one of their eluvians, placed for the purpose of secret movement, but she recognized the place. She no longer needed Solas’s fading trail to know where he had gone.

The lake looked different in the sunlight than it had under the moons centuries earlier, but Lyna could still remember that night. Solas had fought a drunkard for objectifying her and generally being a pig, and after they were thrown out of the tavern they’d come to this lake. It had been Thema who suggested stripping down and swimming together, no one around to see. They’d spent hours playing in the water, wrestling and throwing kelp at each other. It had been one of the last truly peaceful times the three of them had together before the rebellion began in earnest.

On the shore of the lake where the three of them had once laid side by side and let the cool breeze dry their skin, Solas sat. He was soaking wet, seemingly having dunked himself in the lake fully clothed and then crawled out of the water to sit on the shore and stare at it. He did not look at Lyna when she approached and he did not speak.

“Thema is healed and resting,” Lyna informed him. He still did not react. “I had to place her in one of the cells beneath Terasyl’an Tel’as. She cannot… She cannot be trusted not to try anything.” Lyna felt more tears gathering, though she’d thought she’d run out. Anguish gripped her throat like a vise, pain ripping at her chest. “I freed her from your imposed sleep but paralyzed her limbs. I tried to speak with her.”

“I imagine that did not go well,” Solas said at last, his tone painfully distant. Lyna sank to her knees beside him.

“Look at me,” she demanded desperately. For long moments she thought he would ignore her, but finally he turned his head. His brow was still bleeding into his swollen eye, all his many cuts and bruises left untended. “Oh, you idiot,” Lyna muttered, reaching for him with her magic. He caught her wrists.

“Leave it be,” he told her, his one good eye betraying the depth of his sadness and pain.

“Don’t be stupid,” Lyna snapped. “It’s already going to scar! Don’t let it get infected, too!” Still, he hesitated for a few moments longer before finally allowing her to heal him. The swelling in his eye was easily fixed, bruises fading before her gaze. His brow would, indeed, scar after having been left to bleed openly for too long, the wound too deep to heal properly. He had arrow wounds in his side and scratches all over, but she managed to heal them well enough. It was exhausting after the energy it had taken to heal Thema, however, and she swayed on her knees once it was done. Her arms felt as though they were made of lead and she saw spots in her vision from the exertion. Solas caught her shoulders and kept her steady until she could keep herself upright.

“Thank you,” he murmured, then returned to his vigil, staring out at the empty lake.

“You won’t find her here,” Lyna told him.

“Then where will I find her?” he asked her, a brittle edge to his tone.

Lyna was quiet for a few moments. “I don’t know, Solas,” she finally admitted, feeling sobs shaking her chest again though she held them back. “I couldn’t reach her this time. I’m frightened. It’s never been this bad before. I needed you…”

“Then she is lost to us,” Solas said, his tone detached. Lyna stared at his profile in shock, then tackled him into the sand.

“Don’t you say that!” she snarled in his face, pounding on his chest. “After everything I have done to keep her, after everything I have sacrificed for you both, don’t you dare give up so easily!”

“She tried to kill me!” Solas shouted, throwing her off none too gently.

“She is not herself!” Lyna screamed, clinging to her anger to stave off more tears. “You could have killed her!”

“You could have subdued her!” he retorted. Lyna stopped short, reminded of how she had been paralyzed with fear, not knowing what to do besides cast barriers over them both and try to get through to them with words. She had not thrown a single blow despite Thema’s first attack having been against her.

“How could I live with myself if I harmed either of you?” she asked him instead, voice soft. She was staring at the ground and did not see Solas flinch under the weight of his guilt. “I needed you while I cleaned the blood from her skin and healed her wounds,” Lyna continued. “I needed comfort in the face of this mess. But you left me. You left us. You left her lying on the cold floor in a pool of her own blood. You left me staring after you, wondering if I was about to lose you both. I may not have handled the fight well, but you certainly didn’t handle the aftermath at all! It fell to me once more. Do you even love me anymore, Solas? It has been so long now. Do you still care?”

“You know I do!” Solas snapped, his tone in conflict with his words.

“I don’t,” Lyna whispered, meeting his gaze with despair. She saw anger in those storm blue depths. She saw anguish and loss. Love was perhaps the furthest from his feelings. “I don’t know anything anymore.” And without waiting any longer, Lyna stood and retreated from him. She went back to Terasyl’an Tel’as and she washed the blood from her body. In caring for Thema and searching for Solas, she had forgotten to care for herself. What little remained of her magic was spent healing her bruises and scratches, and then she collapsed into bed wearing only thin cotton breeches and tunic.

“I am alone,” Lyna whispered, then allowed the sobs to take her. She cried, curled into herself and heaving, while the sun vanished beneath the horizon and the moons shimmered high above her. But still the tears would not ebb. They flowed from her as though a dam had been broken and all the tears she had denied during the long years since Thema’s madness first began came flooding out at once. She lost track of time as stars wheeled above her and the sun returned, only to vanish once more. And still she cried, unmoving on the bed even as thirst overcame her and Hunger asked when last she had eaten. She ignored it all, lost in her agony.

She did not know how long it was before a gentle hand touched her brow and smoothed back her hair from her face. She barely felt it, lost as she was, but the touch continued. Gentle fingers combed through her tangled hair and rubbed her back soothingly. When she did not protest, a familiar body pressed against her back and strong arms dragged her close. Kisses were dropped on her shoulder, neck, and ear, everywhere lips could reach. Finally, Lyna turned in the arms that held her and clutched the warm chest she now faced. She tucked herself closer, seeking warmth and comfort rather than passively accepting it.

“Ir abelas, vhenan,” Solas murmured, gathering Lyna up in his arms. “You are right. I failed you both. I did not know what to do and so I did nothing at all. It was not fair to leave you like that. I should have been stronger for you both.” Lyna couldn’t answer, sobs still shaking her, voice lost to tears. “I am so sorry that I have made you doubt my devotion,” he murmured, voice suspiciously thick. He moved around her, tugged his jawbone necklace from beneath her body. He brought it before her eyes, drawing her attention to the twin braids tied to the string. “I may have cut off all my hair, but I kept these braids,” he told her. “I could not bear to be parted from them.” With a weak and trembling hand, Lyna reached to touch the braids. In them, she felt his love, as strong as ever, the vhenan’nahr having lost none of their potency despite having been separated for so long. In Lyna’s hair, Solas found her own pair of vhenan’nahr and stroked them gently between his fingers. “My love for you both will never fade away.”

As the magic shivered through Lyna’s fingers and up her arm she finally, finally calmed. The tears slowed, the sobs became hiccups and finally settled. Lyna wiped her face with her hands, scrubbing at her swollen and crusty eyes until they burned. She looked up at Solas and was greeted by a gentle smile. He placed a tender kiss on his lips as his fingertips stoked her cheek and she leaned into his touch.

“I don’t know how to save her,” Lyna admitted, voice rasping and broken. Solas reached behind himself and produced a water skin, which he held to her mouth for her to drink. She drained it dry, so many tears leaving her thirsty.

“I had a thought about that,” Solas told her. She looked up at him quickly.

“I’ll try anything,” she said urgently. He smiled just slightly.

“I love you,” he reminded her. “I love both of you. The two of you together are all I need or want. I have thought about it many times over the centuries but never asked. Lyna, I would like to marry you and Thema both.” Lyna blinked in confusion.

“How does this help her?” she asked. Then she made a noise in her throat when she realized how that sounded. “I didn’t mean- I love you, Solas, and I have thought about it, too, but in the context of what’s happened, how does this help?”

“The bond connects our minds,” Solas told her gently. “We will feel what each other feels and know each other’s emotions as intimately as though they were our own. This sharing of minds may be the key to saving Thema. If we could each shoulder some of the burden of this corruption, it would not overwhelm her so much. She could be herself again.”

Lyna searched Solas’s gaze desperately. “Would it work?” she asked in a whisper.

“There is no way to know except to try,” he told her. She frowned, thinking it over.

“Do you want this because you feel guilty over what happened?” she asked him after a while.

“No,” he told her calmly. “I want this because I love you both and I never wish to parted from either of you again. I want this because I want to be married to you. I want to feel what you feel and make you happy in whatever way I can. I want this because I want you.”

“I want you, too,” Lyna whispered, then wrapped her hand around the back of his neck and dragged his lips to hers. She kissed him desperately, teeth in his lips and tongue in his mouth, and he met her passion forcefully.

“Then let’s get married,” Solas said as they finally parted. Lyna nodded, smiling for the first time in months.

Together, Solas and Lyna made their way to Thema’s cell below the keep. The door was opened and Thema was roused from slumber gently. Solas knelt beside Lyna as she softly trailed her fingers over the woman’s cheek until her eyes slid open.

Crimson no longer stained her skin though it was there in her eyes. After all the time in the cell, and months spent in the Void her face was gaunt and pale, muscle in her body starting to waste away. “Are you finally going to let me out?” She asked, dry tongue running over chapped lips. When her sight passed over to Solas, the pointed tips of her canines were displayed. “What do you want?”

“Freedom for us all,” Lyna told her, suffusing her magic through Thema’s body and healing it of everything she could. Though corruption screamed through her, Thema’s chapped lips healed to plush health and wasting muscle grew strong again.

Solas took Thema’s hand in his and kissed her fingers much as Lyna had done before. “Thema, vhenan, ir abelas,” he said softly, meeting her gaze unflinchingly. “For a few moments I acted as though I do not love you with all that I am and for that I can never forgive myself. But I do love you. Both of you. I have always loved you and I always will. I never wish to be parted from either of you again. And with that in mind, Lyna and I have come up with a way to share this burden on your mind, to take some of the weight from you. It is not a guarantee, but it is the only thing I can think of that might ease you.”

Panic surged across her features. “No!” For a moment she struggled with the spell that held her captive and docile, tendons standing in sharp relief on limbs and neck, then fell limp. “I can’t, I won’t, let you do that. It’ll take you too and I-I…”

“No, love, do not think that,” Lyna soothed, running her hand over Thema’s cheek and bending to gently kiss her brow. “You get better when you stay away from the Void. So do not return to that wretched place and let us ease you. Between the three of us, we can beat this corruption. But we cannot lose you, Thema. We love you so much.” Lyna felt tears gathering again and struggled against them as she cupped Thema’s cheek in her hand. “Stars, what would I do without you? I need you, Thema. I love you. For millennia we have never been apart for more than a few months at a time. Without you, either of you, I am lost! Let us ease you for the love we all share.”

“Please, Thema,” Solas added, still kissing her limp fingers.

“I hurt you.” One finger twitched on her hand, enough willpower for the moment to override the spells.  It brushed his cheekbone, trying to touch the scar on his brow. “I hurt both of you.”

“No more than I hurt myself,” Solas told her softly. “The thought of losing you…” He shook his head slowly, agony overtaking his features. “I cannot breathe. I should not have fought you. I should have been there for you through all of this. Let me be here for you now.”

“Let us share this burden, Thema,” Lyna pleaded. “Let us bring you back, make you whole again. Please, my love, let us help you.”

The white-haired hunter lapsed into silence, watching both of them. A few minutes, what felt like an hour later, she let out a resigned sigh. “Both of you have been around me for far too long…” Thema tried to joke. “As long as I can get a fucking bath, I’ll marry both of you. Because I’m cheap like that.”

Lyna gave a watery chuckle and Solas smiled at her. Lyna picked up Thema’s other hand and kissed it. Then she took one of Solas’s hands and they crossed their wrists together, making a tangle of their clasped hands. Solas’s magic was first to twine across their skin, a ribbon tying them together.

“We didn’t prepare vows!” Lyna suddenly exclaimed. Solas stopped and stared at her for a second, then laughed.

“I hardly think we need them,” he said with a smirk. “What just happened was enough, don’t you agree?”

Lyna smiled at the pair of them. “I suppose so,” she admitted, relenting. Then she wrapped her magic across their hands, binding them again. Thema had no magic, but it wouldn’t make a difference to the spell. They would be bound together, all three of them. The glimmering ribbons sank into their skin and Lyna gasped as new parts of her mind opened. She was flooded with sudden sensation, a scream of fury and pain that rushed through her and then eased as it was stretched too thin between them. She sighed in relief as the scream dimmed to a whisper, a sound echoed twice. She could feel the throbbing of Solas’s head, his new scar still causing him pain. She could feel the cold stone under Thema’s limp body, the muscles that were cramping from disuse. She sent her healing magic to them both, soothing their aches, and felt a thrill of love and comfort from each of them. It was followed immediately by shock, matched perfectly from them both as they felt how similar their reactions to Lyna’s healing were. Lyna laughed and felt how her joy affected them. When she opened her eyes again, lyrium and storm blue looked back with matching wonder.

“And so we are wed,” Lyna said, awe in her voice. “And we are not mad.”

“Not yet…” Corruption faded completely from Thema’s eyes though it still lingered in the back of her mind, a sleeping beast that could still be roused if she was not careful. “All married people go insane at some point.”

The bond was a struggle for her, her spirit not used to such things, but given time would become as natural as it was for any normal Elvhen. With a clear mind she thought of a hot bath, wondering if her new spouses would pick it up, with both of them in it and quite naked, washing each other. Perhaps doing more than washing each other. It had been a century after all, and now that the corruption was gone she felt oddly light, a pressure gone from her chest. She wanted to touch and be touched, to apologize for the pain given in her favored way.

Lyna felt heat suffuse her belly as she removed the enchanted paralysis from Thema’s limbs. Solas gathered Thema up in his arms, intending to carry her up to their rooms.

“Consummation is generally the next step,” he reminded them both, reading Thema’s emotions with far more ease than Lyna had.

“Good,” Lyna said as she stuck to their side and opened doors for the pair. “It’s been a century since we all had sex together and I am in sore need of a cock in my cunt. I am very sure that Thema is equally desperate for it to be in her mouth.”

Solas laughed heartily while Thema snickered in his arms and Lyna felt their mirth as a warm buzz in her mind. “This should prove to be quite interesting,” Solas mused, grin in place. And so it would.

[thema-sal-shiral]

Spoken Memories

Warning: Suicide mention, may trigger. Character back story. Angst.

3some AU.

Thema belongs to me. Lyna to @katalyna-rose

Even though they called themselves Gods now the Evanuris still needed to sleep. Not all slept at the same time, the greed of the others turning away from their common foe and onto each other. Fen’harel and Ghilan’nain took advantage of this, slipping into slumber as well while the Rebellion still warred. Andruil led in their stead, taking advantage of momentary power vacuums to liberate and claim lands. Rumors spread that Fen’harel never slept, and then far more vicious propaganda meant to undermine faith and belief.

This day Andruil sat upon her marriage bed, watching over her heart.

A scroll of the latest unit movements was draped across her lap, a finger marking the last place she had read. Her back laid against one of the wooden posts at the foot of the bed, dressed in one of Solas’ tunics. When her spouses slept she did not stray far from them. The Evanuris had tried to kill them many times, even when they were gone from the battlefields, assassins hidden amongst freed slaves.

Solas and Lyna laid in each other's arms, their chests rising and falling in soft rhythm. They still had weeks to go before the woke and their songs in her mind were dim. It was disconcerting even after all these years to have them mostly gone. It was heaven and hell, this bond, being able to share intent and emotion, yet unable to completely hide her secrets.

Guilt was constant in the back of her mind now, as well as worry. Memories of what had been plagued her when they slept.

She had never told them what had really happened so long ago. They knew now that what she had spoken of was not the whole truth. Solas and Lyna did not press for more information but the bond told her they worried and wanted to know. That worry drove her own, unsure of it she could even say the truth. What would they think of her then? That she was a coward? That she wasn’t even a real person?

Breath stuttered in her lungs, a cold wash racing over her skin. To lose them after everything she’d already done was a fear far greater than anything she’d ever known. Thema knew she had to tell them.

It was not until night had fallen, glow stones shedding weak light over the bed, that she finally said anything. “This feels really weird talking to you guys while you’re sleeping…” Her voice felt thin, lost in the silence. Fingers picked at each other or tugged on her vhenan’nahr. “Especially since I royally fucked up with the Void and now I’m going to dump a shit ton of other stuff on you.”

A deep breath, the quiver of a bottom lip. “I, um… bad decisions are pretty much my m.o. really. Back on Earth, I ran away from my families after my parents split. Lived on the streets or whatever bed I could get. Did a lot of shit I’m not proud of. Did a lot of shit I’m surprised I survived.” Thema chuckled weakly. The feeling of rough concrete, brick and mortar, were phantoms on her skin, the cheering of a back alley fight, and then going to the home of someone from the crowd.

“Broke my arm during a fight. Had to go to an emergency room. It’s a, uh, place for people who need a healer right away and can’t wait to see their usual healer. It’s fucked up as shit, really.” The sleeping lovers had not moved while she spoke, still lost in their dreams. “They had to do this thing where they can see the broken bones. Then they did more things. Took my blood to study it, and then some of me to study. I was in that hospital for about a week before I knew why. No one would tell me why.” The smell of cleaners, bleach, filled her nose and she could recall the stark white halls and the beeping of heart monitors.

“So this little asshole of a doct- healer, I mean, he comes in and tells me I have advanced metastatic bone cancer. It’s a, it’s corruption in the bones. Makes them weak, painful, but I was so used to pain that I didn’t think anything of it. He told me that I only had about three weeks to live, gave me some drugs to help with the pain and just dumped me on the curb. Fucking asshole!” Teeth clenched and ground together, the memory spiking hot anger through her body. She very clearly remembered the Doctor’s face, rather handsome, but his whole demeanor made him ugly.

“Went somewhere else, got a second opinion. That doctor told me the same thing, but he was a shit ton better about it. Answered my questions but he still said that I didn’t have much time left. He got me a room at a nearby hotel since I didn’t have a place, paid for a few nights, told me to get in contact with my families and shit. Fuck.” Blood started to well up in the flesh beside the nail bed, skin picked away as she talked. “Ow. Motherfucker.” Copper taste filled her mouth as she sucked on the wound.

“Ugh. Figures.”

“Anyway… I didn’t call my family. They didn’t care that I left, they wouldn’t care about this. After my time at the hotel ran out I hiked out, with a broken arm in a cast, over the border into BC and found this area that was pretty far back from any road and hiking trail.”

Thema lapsed into silence, biting her lower lip as the memory flooded back. Rich, earthy loam, trees all around with roots winding through the soil and glimpses of a clear blue sky overhead. “I… had a bottle of Johnny Walker and my pain killers with me. Three weeks to live? I refused to go out like that, curled in a ball crying. So I… I ended it right there. My choice.” She barely remembered any of it, just the burn of whiskey and the feeling of pills scraping her throat raw. “Wonder if anyone found my body…”

“Somehow I wound up here. As a ghost, spirit, thing. Don’t remember much of that, just gray haze and sometimes seeing Spirits. They didn’t like me and always ran when I came near. So I just… wandered for a long time… Might have scared the crap out of some Elvhen, no clue.”

“There was this woman, an Elvhen, in the forest. She was dying, had Andruil’s bow on her face. Maybe one of her hunters? Or Andruil hunted her. Don’t know. When she died I got sucked into her body.” She shuddered, wrapped up in herself, feeling the memory yet again. “Her body broke… bones broke and healed every day. Every bone. Teeth fell out over and over, and my - her hair… I was blind a lot of the time. Couldn’t feel anything but the pain and I just wanted to die again. Maybe it was divine punishment for killing myself, being trapped in a body like that.”

“If it wasn’t for my friends I probably would have died right away. If… If Lyna hadn’t found me I definitely would have. She’s the only reason I’m alive. Or am I? … I don’t know.”

She rested her chin on her knees, arms wrapped around them as she still watched her husband and wife. “So that’s me… bad decisions and mistakes one after the other wrapped up in a body that isn’t even mine.”

“Everything I am and done, do, is nothing but fucking luck. I don’t deserve any of this, or you two.” She stroked their cheeks gently, a kiss pressed into their brows. “I don’t know how you two can love me.”

The couch by the main door was her bed for that evening and the layers of blankets and furs were no replacement for their warmth and arms. Thema watched them as she crawled into the temporary nest, the dagger under her pillows there in case she needed it. She would guard them with her life and gladly give it up if needed so they could move forward to save their people. “Ar lath, ma vhenans.”

[katalyna-rose]

for dwc: the trio go skinny dipping under the stars. Drinking and talking about existence? ;))

Drunk on Moonlight

Well, it isn’t DWC anymore, but I wrote it! :D

As always, Thema belongs to @thema-sal-shiral and Lyna belongs to me!

Is bar fighting a content warning?

Lynabalanced three drinks on her hands with the ease of long practice as she madeher way from the bar back to the little table she and her vhenan had claimedfor themselves in a corner of the tavern. As she did so, she blew a strand ofhair out of her face. In order to blend in with the commoners they had allremoved most of the braids, only the most basic duties remaining, and as aresult most of Lyna’s hair was free to tangle and get in her face.

Thecups in her hands were all different sizes, which made carrying theminteresting, especially since it was not their first round. The largest wasThema’s tankard of cider, the largest size the tavern would serve. The smallestwas her own glass of the sweetest enchanted liqueur that would bloom with manyflavors even after she’d swallowed it. In between those sizes was a drink soridiculous that the man making the drinks had given her a strange look. It wasessentially liquefied chocolate mixed with an incredibly strong enchanted liqueur.That one had been expensive enough, the chocolate unusual enough, that thetavern owner had demanded payment up front before the ingredients were evenbrought out.

Lynawas almost back the table and two waiting smiles when a very drunk man passedbehind her and almost made her drop everything she carried by pinching herbackside. She gasped and the drinks wobbled, chocolate spilling over into herdrink and cider ending up on the floor, but she kept her hold on them.

“Don’ttouch me!” Lyna admonished with a scowl, setting down the table and turning toface the intruder. He was grinning, unrepentant, cheeks flushed and ruddy fromhis own drinks.

“Comenow, sweet, I need a few drinks over at my table,” he slurred, leaning closeenough that she could smell the stink of cheap ale on his breath. She leanedaway and pointedly sat in her chair between Thema and Solas.

“I amnot serving,” she told him, leaning on Thema as Solas stood.

“Isuggest you leave,” Solas told him. Lyna leaned close into Thema’s embrace asher arms snaked around her. “You are being incredibly rude to my heart, and noneof us appreciate it.”

Theman looked between Solas, Thema, and Lyna and snorted. “You’re a damn selfishbastard!” he cried. “Takin’ all the pretty ones! Why d’you get two bitches likethat? Bet the one with the purple eyes just wants your money and the blue-eyedslut just wants your dick. Hey, are you two sisters? With all that hair youmight be! That’s hot!”

Lynaclenched her hands on Thema’s arms around her to hold the woman in place, herown jaw clenched so hard her teeth hurt. Lyna was so focused on keeping Themain line that she didn’t realize until far too late that she should have beenworried about her other lover. The first punch flew before anyone could blinkand the drunkard staggered back with a hand on his face. Then he flew into arage.

The drunkenman’s first blow landed only because Solas allowed it to, splitting his lip andcrunching his nose sickeningly. And then he was on the offender, pinning him tothe floor and beating him with only his fists, not even the crackle of magic inthe air around him. The man attempted to fight back but he was unused to handto hand combat. Solas was only as good as he was because Thema had been teachinghim some of her kickboxing techniques, but even if she hadn’t his sheer rageand natural physical power still would have won the fight. As it was, the manwas reduced to a moaning, bleeding lump on the floor of the tavern in verylittle time. Lyna stared, awestruck, as Solas slowly stood and wiped his lip.It was the ultimate insult to assault someone like that, no magic to fightwith, only fists. It was the greatest disrespect the drunk on the floor wouldlikely ever receive and Lyna could hardly believe it had been on her account.

Shestood from Thema’s limp grasp and ran to Solas, the tavern silent around them.She put her hands on his face and healed the damage done by the single punch hehad suffered, his split lip sealing back together with ease. His eyes were wideand dark and he wrapped his arms around her waist as she healed him, chestheaving with exertion and adrenaline, but he said nothing. The moment her magicfaded from him, he crushed her lips under his. She held his face in her handsas he bent her backwards, claiming her eagerly in front of everyone in thetavern.

“You’resuch an idiot,” she whispered to him when he finally released her lips, but shecouldn’t contain her grin.

Behindthem rose a sudden loud whoop and they turned to see Thema grinning andapplauding. “I am so fucking proud of you!” she yelled. She ended up snagged bythe shirtsleeve and had her lips crushed in the same manner that Lyna’s hadbeen, and then he simply held them both.

“Youare my heart,” he told them while the drunk on the floor attempted to crawlaway. “I could not allow such insults to you.”

Lynawas speechless, flushed and flustered, but Thema was grinning and stilllaughing as she threw her arms around them both. “Yeah, I know,” she told him.The low murmur of the voices in tavern gained volume as the owner walked overto them.

“Thethree of you need to leave,” he said, glowering. All three of them picked uptheir drinks and chugged them down. Then Solas left a few extra coins on thetable, presumably as an apology for the mess of blood on the floor. As theystepped past the drunk on the floor again, Thema gave him a good kick to thekidney and made him curl into the fetal position with a choked moan. The snapof the tavern owner’s angry magic followed them out into the street.

Solassighed fondly. “It’s been quite a while since I ended up kicked out of atavern,” he said, gazing at the decisively closed door through the haze of his buzzand adrenaline high. Thema laughed.

“Soit’s happened before?” she asked. Lyna stayed silent, holding onto them both asthey all wandered away from the tavern at the edge of a small town at the edgeof her territory, streetlamps and moonlight guiding them.

“Ohyes,” Solas admitted easily, wrapping an arm around each of them. “Before I metthe two of you, I spent a fair amount of time in places like that, gettingdrunk and often ending up with a barmaid on her back in the storeroom. I wouldcelebrate victories as Mythal’s general that way.”

“Andyou’re just so responsible now,” Lyna muttered, making them both burst outlaughing. She smiled to herself, pleased, as she received a sloppy kiss on theside of her head. Her final drink was beginning to hit her and the world waspleasingly hazy around her.

“Hardly!”Solas chortled. “But I am, perhaps, more stable now, thanks in large part tothe two of you.”

Themasnorted. “As if!” she cried, tugging them down a random road away from town. “I’mprobably more irresponsible than either of you! The only reason we’re not alldead is probably Lyna.”

“Oh,thank you!” Lyna said sarcastically. “I always wanted to be a mother to two fully-grownpeople who should know better and are also having sex with me regularly!” Allthree of them doubled over laughing in the street.

Theshimmer of a large lake glimmered between the buildings and Lyna tugged themboth toward it. They followed easily, still joking and relaxed together,pleasantly drunk. When they reached the water, Lyna found a hidden stretch ofbeach and sat down, staring out at the water.

“Hey!”Thema suddenly cried far too loudly. “Let’s go swimming!” Solas chuckled.Before anyone could stop her, she stood and began to strip.

“Thema!”Lyna cried. “Are you just going to go swimming naked? What if someone sees?”

“Noone’s around,” Thema retorted. “It’s the middle of the night and everyone is athome or drinking. Come on! It’ll be fun!”

WhileLyna was focused on Thema, Solas managed to sneak up on her and yank off her shirt.Thema chortled while Lyna gasped. “Fine! Fine,” she laughed, failing completelyto maintain her previous air of offended responsibility. They all threestripped down and left their clothing in a pile on the sand, then waded intothe lake. Thema splashed her and Lyna splashed back, which resulted in a waterfight with a lot of screeching and giggling. Solas attempted to stay out of itand merely watch, but Lyna swam underwater to escape Thema’s constant wave ofwater and yanked his feet out from under him.

Whenshe surfaced Thema was clutching herself and laughing so hard she was wheezing.Solas looked like a drowned rat, his hair hanging in his face and a glower thatquickly changed to mischief as he suddenly threw kelp in her face. Shescreeched and tackled him in the water. Somehow Thema ended up between her bodyand Solas’s as the three of them wrestled in the water.

Hourslater, when they were all exhausted and their skin was pruning, they lay on thebeach together and counted the stars. Lyna was still feeling her buzz fromearlier and suspected that the others were as well, but gentle fingers weretrailing over her skin and she suspected her hands were busy as well but couldn’tbe bothered to check. She was exhausted and happy, sand and kelp in her hairand her lovers beside her.

“It’samazing that no matter where you go, assholes are everywhere,” Thema said aftera while. It wasn’t angry, merely contemplative and resigned.

“Iwill never allow anyone to objectify either of you,” Solas vowed, voice strongand certain. Lyna felt a flutter in her belly, love blooming in her chest.

“Icould have forgiven him if he had not involved the two of you,” Lyna said,voice dreamy and far away. Thema snorted.

“That’sexactly why he ended up on the ground,” she said. “You’re our heart and we’llnever let anyone treat you like that again. You’ve been through enough. Neveragain.”

“Ilove you both so much,” Lyna sighed happily.

“Weare one heart,” Solas said softly. “We will always care for each other.” Lynagrinned and took their hands in hers. In this way, relaxed and tired and stillbuzzed, they passed the night, hair and skin drying in the cool breeze and thestars wheeling above them.

[katalyna-rose]

3some AU: Solas has a dream about the restoration of Elvhenan, his wives by his side and a newborn child in his arms. Prior to finding his wives, right after returning to Skyhold and the memories contained within.

Terasyl’an Tel’as

As always, Thema belongs to @thema-sal-shiral and Lyna belongs to me!

I guess childbirth is a content warning? No others, though.

Solasran his hands over the molding walls of Terasyl’an Tel’as to feel the ancientstones, newer than the ones he had laid, and feel the tug of ancient power. Ithad been so very long since he’d last walked these halls. That seemed like adifferent life, a piece of himself that had died when the Veil was raised andhe was thrown into sleep and cut off, perhaps forever, from the love of hisheart.

Hehad gone over each and every stone of this secret stronghold with Thema andLyna, weaving his magic with Lyna’s to lay a net of intricate spells over theentire place with Thema’s suggestions to make it stronger, better, moredefensible. Without their help, it would not still be standing, would benothing but a few snow-covered rocks on a nameless mountain. Whoever had foundit after it was abandoned would never have thought to rebuild it because itwould not have been strong enough to bother repairing if not for their hardwork.

Itwas difficult, so very difficult, for Solas to walk these halls again withoutthe two missing pieces of his heart. He could see them in the stone, feel themin the air, sense them in the magic, but they were not there. It was only awisp of memory, of laughter, of finding light in the darkest days together. Ithad been well over a year since he woke and still he had heard not a singlewhisper of their presence anywhere. Even here, where he was the closest he’dbeen to them in millennia, he knew it was only memories impressed upon thefoundation of their ancient home; they were not here.

Solassighed heavily and turned his wandering steps with purpose. He had been awakefor two days trying to set up what he needed and washing away some of his painand fear by painting a new fresco in the rotunda. He needed to sleep, andperhaps in this place that still held the memory of his loves so strongly hecould find the trail that would lead him to their resting place. He carefullydid not let his hopes grow high, but he held on to the thread that he couldstill find them, that they were merely sleeping somewhere as he had been. Heheld that thought as he found the small room he had been allotted in the castlethat had once been his.

Thebed he crawled into was large, as he preferred. Even since waking alone healways had room in his bed for two beautiful women. He could not stand to sleepin a smaller bed; it felt as though by having a bed that only fit him he wasadmitting that he would never find them. He would not allow that thought totake root, and so he had too much room for himself as he gathered his blanketsand furs and draped them over his legs. He curled onto his side and couldalmost pretend that strong but slender arms slid across the mattress to holdhim tight. He reached out as though to embrace the nearest body but foundnothing but empty sheets. He sighed and forced his thoughts to quiet so that hecould sleep.

***

Inthe tower room in the middle of Terasyl’an Tel’as, a woman was screaming. Solasheld her hand tighter and spewed words of encouragement and strength, but hedid not know if she heard. On her other side was another woman, also sayinganything she could think of to soothe the screaming woman.

“Youcan do this, Lyna, just a little more,” Solas told her. The Spirit ofMotherhood at the end of the bed was nodding, ready to catch the child as itwas birthed.

“Push,Lyna, push! You’re almost there!” Thema chanted, struggling to stay calm. Solas’shand was turning blue in Lyna’s bone-crushing grip, but he didn’t care at all.She could have pulverized every bone in his body at that moment and he wouldn’thave minded. Thema wiped a cloth over Lyna’s sweaty face, keeping the saltydrops out of her eyes. Lyna’s milky hair was dark with sweat and tangled aroundher face, her violet eyes dark as her pupils expanded with her adrenaline. Overher bulging belly, Thema and Solas shared a worried look. This was their firstchild and the first child born since the restoration of Elvhenan and theyfeared for both mother and babe. But Lyna was strong, stubborn, and determined;she would last through this as she had through far worse things before.

Finally,just as a new dawn tinted the sky pink and blue, the screaming of an infant soundedthrough the room. The Spirit of Motherhood gathered the child into its form andbathed it with magic, then wrapped it in a blanket. Burning stronger, brighterfor having served its purpose, it settled the child in Lyna’s waiting arms asshe sobbed with relief. Solas leaned nearer, almost bumping heads with Thema asthey peered into the bundle of cloth Lyna held.

“The child is healthy, whole andwell, and shall live as true Elvhen,” the spirit told them, then vanished. All three new parentsdrew ragged breaths of relief at once, then smiled at each other. Thema wasblinking back tears furiously, her eyes gleaming despite her efforts. Lynaopenly wept, hormones combining with emotion to make it inescapable, and Solascould feel hot tracks on his face as he gazed down into the face of a beautifulnewborn child. His child. Her child. Their child. A child with three parents tolove and care for it equally.

“Well?”Thema whispered eagerly. “Is it a boy or a girl?” They all held their breath asLyna gently unwrapped the blanket from the screaming, squirming infant sheheld.

“It’sa girl,” Lyna finally said, voice hoarse from screaming and choked with tears.A short sob left her. “We have a daughter.” Solas sobbed with her, gatheringhis family into his arms. Thema hid her face in Lyna’s shoulder and Solas felther shoulders shake, and soon enough she was sobbing too. And they were all amess, all four of them sobbing as they held each other.

“CanI hold her?” Thema asked after a while, sniffling and wiping away her tears.Their daughter had stopped screaming and transferred to her other mother’s armswith a little cry of protest. Thema cradled the little girl carefully as Solasand Lyna watched, her eyes overflowing again. She said nothing, simply held hernew baby and silently cried. After a time, she offered the infant to Solas.

Inhis arms, his daughter was tiny and soft and delicate. She looked up at herfather with wide blue eyes, unfocused and new. He stroked her cheek and shebabbled softly at him, startling a sobbing laugh from his chest. He looked upat his wives, at Lyna and Thema who watched him avidly, and he felt the mostprofound happiness suffuse his soul. He had his family, two beautiful andloving women and now a daughter to care for. He knew he would be outmatched bythe three women once their daughter grew, even more so than he already was. Helooked forward to it, to all of it.

***

Solaswoke with a gasp, thrashing under his blankets. He reached out, hands searchingon either side of him for warm skin and sleepy murmurs, but he found nothing.He blinked and frowned, then touched his face; he was crying. He remembered thedream, remembered where he was.

Therewere no loving women in his bed, there was no daughter in a crib nearby, andthe Veil still sundered the world. Everything he wanted was still so far out ofreach. He had hoped to find Thema and Lyna, to see them again, but he hadwanted to locate their sleeping bodies in the waking world and not be tormentedby visions of what could not be. He wiped his face but new tears fell.

“Wherecould they be?” he asked in a whisper as though the ancient walls around himwould answer. “Where is my heart?”

Hisone-time home was silent and did not answer. Solas dropped his head in hishands and sobbed.

[katalyna-rose]

Because I'm not feeling well, 3some AU: The triad share their germs and wind up getting sick one after the other. No healing magic for the flu.

You’ll be okay soon, vhenan! I would make you some tea and cuddle with you until you feel better! Here, I’ve changed it a little, but I hope it makes you feel better.

As always, Thema belongs to @thema-sal-shiral and Lyna belongs to me!

Brief Illness

Lynawiped Thema’s brow with a damp cloth, her magic infusing it with a gentlechill, and the woman moaned. Lyna brushed her hair back as she pulled at thepillow that cushioned her. Thema had wanted to be close to Lyna, so she’d puttheir fluffiest pillow in her lap for her lover. Lyna wiped her cold cloth on Thema’sbrow again and she grunted her discontent.

“Hush,vhenan, try to rest,” Lyna murmured.

“Fuckthat,” Thema replied with muted venom.

“You’llfeel better if you rest,” Lyna insisted.

“Can’tyou just heal me?” Thema groaned again.

“Someillnesses are resistant to magic,” Lyna reminded her yet again. “You’vecontracted one. Your body will take of it naturally and I am here to treat yoursymptoms as best as I can. Just rest and you will heal.” Thema groaned.

Theywere silent for a while as Lyna wiped Thema’s sweat and kept her skin cool tocombat the fever. Every so often Lyna would murmur comfort or sweet nothingsand Thema would only grunt in response. When Solas returned, he was greeted bya pathetic moan and a grasping hand. With a gentle smile, he sat on the bedbeside the two women.

“Feelingany better, my heart?” he asked her gently.

“No,”she growled. Solas chuckled slightly and Lyna smiled; Thema would never change.

“Herfever is rising but shows signs of breaking soon,” Lyna told him. “That processwill be terrible, but once it is done the worst should be over. She’ll be fine.”

“Iknow she will be fine,” Solas told Lyna with a smile. “She is too stubborn notto be.” Thema grumbled wordlessly at them both.

“Mybones hurt,” she told them, a thread of fear in the irritability.

“Itis only the fever, my love,” Lyna soothed. She sent a gentle pulse of magicthrough Thema’s body and felt the woman relax as the pain settled slightly.

“Here,you need water,” Solas said gently. He lifted Thema up until he could press aglass of cold water to her lips. She drank it slowly and then settled back ontoher pillow. “Stay hydrated through this. It will help.” Thema grunted at himand he smiled as he stroked her face. Despite her irritable attitude she leanedinto his touch gratefully.

“Don’tleave again,” Thema grumbled, clutching at him. He chuckled and laid down,pillowing his head on Thema’s belly.

“Lifegoes on outside this room while you are ill,” Solas teased, and was promptlyswatted while he chuckled. “I won’t need to leave again for at least a week,”he assured her as she settled.

“Good,”she grunted. Then she sighed heavily and closed her eyes. Soon enough, shemanaged to fall into a light sleep and Lyna sighed in relief, echoed by Solas.Thema would be fine.

[katalyna-rose]

Embrace

Direct sequel to Spoken Memories

After Thema’s heartfelt confession, her lovers and now her spouses offer every comfort, every reassurance that she is loved. She will always be loved.

As always, Thema belongs to @thema-sal-shiral and Lyna belongs to me!

When Lyna woke after her long sleep cycle and opened her eyes in the pale light of predawn, the first thing she saw was Solas’s face and his eyes fluttering open moments after hers. She smiled softly at him as she stretched, releasing the tension in dormant muscles and reawakening her body. She shifted closer to Solas and kissed him softly, holding him close for a moment as his warm arms slipped around her in return and a satisfied sigh rippled through him.

“Do you remember briefly waking some time ago because she was in distress?” Lyna asked him in the softest whisper. He tensed for a moment and then nodded.

“I remember what she said,” he admitted. Lyna sighed heavily, then looked across the bed for their wife. But she wasn’t in bed. She was fast asleep on the couch across the room, her hand under her pillow no doubt gripping the hilt of a dagger. Lyna and Solas sighed in unison, feeling the guilt and despair of their wife pulsing in time with her heartbeat as she slept.

Solas was the one to rise from the bed and approach her. She stirred as he gently took her hand from her weapon and shifted her to pick her up. She woke once she was in his arms but she knew it was him and she wasn’t afraid. She frowned at them as Solas deposited her in bed next to Lyna and then crawled back in beside her. Lyna pulled Thema into her arms and Solas wrapped himself around them both.

“I love you so much,” Lyna told her as she lay stiff and confused in their embrace. “But sometimes you can be a bit of an idiot.” Solas chuckled. “Haven’t I told you a thousand times that it doesn’t matter at all who you used to be? Thema, whatever happened before brought you here, to our world, to us. And for that, I love it.” She tightened her arms. “I wish I could take the pain for you, all that despair, but you are my love and I am so grateful for every bad decision you made that brought you down this path.”

“Where would any of us be without you?” Solas asked, his arms tightening until it was nearly painful. “Thema, you are our heart and you have done so much for us.”

“You heard me?” Thema asked in a horrified whisper.

“Your distress woke us only enough to hear,” Solas admitted. “We could not move, sleep still holding us fast. But we heard.”

“Thema, you are not the sum of your actions,” Lyna told her. “You are so much more than that. You are your thoughts, your desires, your emotions, your intentions. You’ve made mistakes, yes. But who hasn’t? You are Thema and you are our wife and we love you. We will always love you.”

“You could not change it now,” Solas told her with a smile in his voice, “even if you tried.”

“That’s right,” Lyna added with a smile. “You’re stuck with us now. No getting away!”

All at once, Thema relaxed in their hold, going boneless within the warmth of their embrace. Their bond told them that she was trying to hold back tears and both of them flooded her with reassurance until she let go. She tried to be quiet, soft gasps escaping her as hot tears slid down her face. Lyna tucked her face into Thema’s shoulder and Solas curled his body around hers and her sobs increased in volume. They held her fast as she began to sob in earnest, hiccupping in gasping breaths to sob louder each time. They felt the release of so much poison from her mind, pus bled from the wound that had never healed even after thousands of years. She’d been holding it in, letting it fester, believing herself unworthy for all that time. Lyna only wished that she’d pushed the matter sooner, drained the fester from this wound before it got so bad. But she tried to keep her thoughts serene, a gentle comfort for Thema to take in. She held her wife and breathed in the scent of her hair and kissed whatever skin she could reach while she sobbed in great heaves. Solas did much the same, letting her cry and holding her tight, keeping his mind open and loving. They reminded her gently through the bond that she was safe and loved and it would be alright.

Lyna lost track of time as the sun rose high above them and Thema cried millennia of tears. It didn’t matter, was entirely worth it to feel the way Thema’s mind cleared with each passing moment. Whatever corruption lingered from the Void within her, within them all, found less and less to cling to as this poison drained away. It would be much easier for them once she was done and Lyna could not contain her grateful sigh.

Once Thema’s tears finally dried and her hiccups settled, Lyna sat up and gently brushed away Thema’s hair while she scrubbed her face. She smiled down at her lovers, Solas kissing her cheek and the side of her face while he continued to hold her. Thema’s lyrium blue eyes were bloodshot, her lashes crusted with salt, her nose red and dripped snot that she unsuccessfully tried to sniff away. But she was still beautiful as she looked up at Lyna with new clarity in her gaze.

“How about a bath?” Lyna suggested with a smile. “I think we could all use a bath.” Grateful agreement thundered through their bond from them both and they slowly clambered out of bed to wash.

[thema-sal-shiral]

Blood on Fire

Prequel to this prompt for @katalyna-rose . Set in the 3some AU, Solas x Thema.

Warnings: NSFW, explicit sex, angry sex, mentions of choking, rape play, dom!Solas.

He needed to fight.

The minute they stepped into Skyhold he grabbed his rucksack, filled it with necessities and left. His face was a mask of fury, so much so that Rutherford, Leliana, and even Madame de Fer would not come near him. They knew that the Inquisitor was making his life a living hell now that his wives were in Skyhold. How dare she say half of the things she did, ignorant, petulant child. His life was not hers to own and control, and he’d not let her dictate anything, let alone whom he would love.

Leliana pulled her scouts away from following him as he stalked from the Hold that was once His.

As if they would be able to trace him if he didn’t want to be found.

Cole merely muttered to him as he left ‘blue skies like velvet, an old power in their hands, a thrill of the chase; they went hunting to calm their blood’ and he knew his destination.

He needed to fight and fuck, and he knew where he’d find it.

A quick slip into the Fade guided his steps, knowing where his lovers went. They had split up to cover ground in the foothills of the Frostbacks and the one he sought was closer by. She would fight him, help release his frustration, and he knew she would enjoy it. His demon never backed down from a rough time and wore her scrapes, bites, and bruises with pride, had designed her robes of Arlathan to show them off. The rage in his veins would be cooled when they were done, and then he would seek his dancer.

She was found rather quickly and he shed the outer layers of his armor, his staff and rucksack, as he watched her from the hilltop. The starlight hair was visible from here, even hidden in the shadows of brush and trees, the bow-staff in hand. Beyond her were deer grazing in a small meadow, fat with the Spring that barely touched Tarasyl’an Te’las. The Keep was changing, his wives slowly plucking at his spells that slept in the stones. He could feel it in the air and soil, but not enough yet for him to reclaim, too soon to make such a move.

It took almost too long for him to finally reach her, for all her attention was focused forward she would easily hear him if he wasn’t careful. Time and trial had granted him the experience needed her and when his fingertips touched her...

The knife strapped to her calf nearly cut an ear off, his tight grip on her wrist all that kept it in place, his other hand was sealed over her mouth. Muffled screaming scared the deer off as they struggled, the lava in his veins burning him from the inside out. Finally, the weapon was tossed away, the bow-staff out of her reach and she was pressed into the damp loam beneath them. Her ass was pressed into his groin so tightly he was sure she could feel his hard cock through the layers of cloth and she hissed and snarled threats of dismemberment and pain against his hand, fingers curled like claws where magic bound them to the earth.

“Shhh,” Solas crooned, black velvet in his voice. “My demon...”

All at one she still, crystalline eyes rolling in their sockets, trying to push back against him to see him. He only pushed her down with his chest, the two of them so tightly pressed that they could be one. “Ah ah... no moving, ma asha, you are mine.”

She stilled, for a few seconds trembling in his hold, before she became like a snake in his grasp. It made him laugh, low and throaty, pleased at her defiance, needing it like he needed air. His demon fought him and he did not let her go. Clothing was ripped, hers mostly, fingers digging purple patterns into her belly, her breasts, a hand mark across her throat when she started cursing him again. The bond was not there anymore but they knew each other, knew by tone what was needed, and she wanted this as much as he did.

When he drove his cock into her sweet cunt she was drenched, her muscles already rippling in the rhythm of orgasm. They had battled, she had lost and through the haze of rage, desperation and lust, the motion of a single word that would stop all this was never made.

She pushed back against him, a hand on her hip stopping her impudence, his teeth in her shoulder as a warning. Her cunt clenched on him, a scream against his hand as she exploded on his cock, her sweet juice sluicing down his flesh, soaking his sac, muscles pulsing like a heartbeat. He pushed harder and deeper, testicles slapping into her sex, the body in his grasp shaking like a leaf.

Fingers found her clit, tugging at the slippery flesh. Fresh waves of melted honey flowed from her as her body locked up. Then she was fighting him again, her teeth in his palm, bucking and writhing. A blinding shot slammed into him and his teeth sliced into her flesh, taste, and scent of copper on his face. She nearly howled as the pain and the shots of his seed pushed her over again.

He growled at her, rapid waves of cum soaking his trews, dripping down his drenched cock, warming his balls and sliding over her shaking thighs. The juices of their sex mingled as he came again, like a river of fire from his cock, and they climbed higher and higher each time, crashing down in exquisite explosions.

They lay tangled in the brush for hours, wringing the other dry of everything they had. When they finally fell apart they slept in each other's arms. His lungs hurt, his throat dry, his rage run clean and painted on her skin. Lips were sore from the biting, his joints ached and his fingers tingled.

The worst wounds were healed though she protested and he gave her new marks to make up for it. He cleaned himself of her fluids, aware of her eyes watching him move about.

“Lyna is not far away,” Thema purred, voice hoarse and raspy from her noise. She was sprawled out in the churned soil, dirt streaked and battered, like a primal spirit of nature. “You should go see her.”

“I plan on it.”

[katalyna-rose]

For DWC: Threesome AU. Thema is not a beauty in Arlathan, compared to her lovers, her more human features can be seen as ugly. No one is willing to say that to her face because of her Evanuris status, but Lyna and Solas overhear and are very willing to rip people apart.

Nothing of Importance

As always, Thema belongs to @thema-sal-shiral and Lyna belongs to me!

No content warnings this time! :D Look, I wrote something that isn’t smut tonight! XD

For @dadrunkwriting

“Andruil’s new face is definitely not an improvement.” Lyna heard the comment whispered behind a delicate fan as she passed a group of three ladies, lesser daughters from prominent houses invited to the ball only because Mythal and Elgar’nan had invited nearly all of Elvhenan.

“Oh, I couldn’t agree more!” one of the lady’s companions exclaimed softly. She tittered. “I’ve seen mules that were more attractive. Such a shame she had to lose the previous face! It was so much lovelier!”

“And her ears then were at least proper Elvhen ears!” the third lady added. “Not those flat, rounded monstrosities!” All three of them laughed.

Lyna took a few deep breaths. Solas, who had been approaching her with a smile, frowned when he saw how brittle her expression had become. She handed him her glass of wine so she didn’t throw it at anyone or turn the crystal into a weapon and turned to address the offending women.

“Do you make a habit of speaking of your leaders behind painted fans?” Lyna asked them softly with a gentle smile. She would not show them how close she was to ripping them all apart, torturing them with her magic for daring to speak that way about her lover.

“Oh! Ghilan’nain!” the first woman to speak exclaimed, finally noticing her presence far too late. All three dropped into deep curtsies, all but sinking into the floor. The air around them trembled with their nervous fear, though Lyna kept her smile gentle.

“We did not see you arrive!” the third woman said, avoiding eye contact.

“Ah, then you do make a habit of it,” Lyna said sadly. She sighed, still smiling, and observed each woman in turn. They flinched under her silent assessment, not daring to say more, not daring to retreat from an Evanuris who had claimed their attention. Though Lyna was not the Ghilan’nain they had once known, she’d been playing the part long enough to have no trouble at all drawing the curtain of her vast power around her shoulders like a cloak. “Andruil is your queen,” she reminded them softly, her tone turning from gentle to dangerous. “That is the only fact that matters. She is your queen as I am your queen, and any disrespect will not be tolerated.” Her aura turned to black smoke that slithered around the ladies like poisonous gas. “If you compare my love to any animal ever again, know that I will find out and I will make you eat your own intestines before you die.” Her smile was still in place, but it was as sharp as her fury. All three women trembled in fear.

Solas, who had been standing just behind Lyna and watching the scene play out, scowled and stepped forward. “They said what, my heart?” he asked Lyna, his voice rumbling with danger. The woman who had made the comment about the mule pissed herself on the spot. He glared at each of them in turn. “If ever you disrespect any of your leaders in such a way again, not only will you be force fed your own entrails by my beloved Ghilan’nain, but you will then be hunted by the very object of your insults. Do you know what it is to be prey, I wonder? To cower from each shadow that blocks the sun in fear that it may be the last? Do you know what it feels like to have your heart pierced by an arrow shot from Andruil’s own bow? You will find out. This is your only warning.”

And with that, they both dispelled their power, Lyna took her wineglass back from Solas, and they strolled away, arm in arm, as though nothing strange had happened. With a gleeful smile, Lyna greeted Thema. “There you are, love!” she exclaimed, releasing Solas in favor of kissing Thema sweetly.

“What happened over there?” Thema asked curiously, returning the kiss easily. Solas caught her jaw when Lyna released her and kissed her deeply, passionately enough to leave her breathing harsh when he finally pulled back.

“Nothing of importance,” he assured her with a heated smile. Lyna noted that the three offending ladies were retreating with haste from the ballroom, one of them carefully holding her fan over the top of the wet trail in her gown. She hid her satisfied smirk.

[katalyna-rose]

Tamed Wolf

Thema and Lyna show off their Wolf, collared and marked. A game, but also a point to prove to one in particular who does not seem to know her place.

As always, Thema belongs to @thema-sal-shiral and Lyna belongs to me!

“We’re going to show you off,” Thema announced, and Lyna watched Solas’s shocked expression turn to playful dismay. She could almost hear his stomach dropping. When Lyna held out collar, a leather choker that could only barely be passed off as jewelry, his eyes darkened with desire. He could only nod, his mouth still gagged.

It took a lot of time to get them all ready. Solas was dressed lovingly by Lyna and Thema together while they weren’t wearing a single stitch, the women working to gently prepare him as they wanted. The weather was hot and sunny and they planned to visit a large garden that was considered neutral territory between the Evanuris. Each king and queen held their own section along the edge, belonging only to them, but the middle was neutral and perfect for meetings that did not require complete privacy. It was also perfect for showing off conquests of various sorts, as the lovers planned to do. They dressed Solas in an open vest of light green, the tail reaching his knees. It showed off his arms, crossed with welts and the marks of fingernails and even a few bites deep in the muscle. His chest was left bare as well, the marks of teeth clear on his pecs, welts and nail marks all across his belly, more bites and bruises from fingers obvious on his hips. Low-slung trousers of ruddy gold began just barely above his groin, showing off the twin trails of nails leading down to his manhood. The trousers were tight, ended at his calves, and he wore foot wraps that ended just over his ankles. Even his strong legs were not unmarked, nails and finger-shaped bruises and welts covering them, too. The fabric had dark embroidery swirling across it in delicate loops. He wore no ornamentation other than the collar and shining jewels in his vhenan’nahr. Lyna pulled back all his other braids and bound them to the back of his head, letting his bruised neck and the collar be seen. They had tamed their wolf and he wore only their claims as ornamentation.

Thema and Lyna wore nearly as little, their robes loose around their legs. A slit up Lyna’s left leg all the way to her hip showed off a few finger-shaped bruises and bites and the marks of fingernails. The filmy white material flowed easily around her legs, revealing as much as it covered. The bodice was tight and left her arms bare, showing off her strong and feminine figure, and the scooped neckline revealed much of the tops of her breasts, painted in bruises from teeth and mouths. She wore a necklace of woven silverite threads scattered with amethysts like a collar, her hair bound back except for her vhenan’nahr.

Thema’s dress was similar, a slit up her right leg to the hip showing off just as many marks as Lyna’s. The material was light blue, her woven silverite collar scattered with sapphires. The scooped neck of the gown showed off her bites and the swell of her breasts. The swirling silver embroidery was a mirror of Lyna’s like the slit up the skirt, a compliment to Solas’s.

At last they were ready, their wolf on display, and they journeyed to the garden to play their game. This would be fun, as much for the benefit of a certain hated ally as for their own enjoyment. The day was indeed quite warm, the sun beating down on the plants around them, fragrant flowers soaking it up. They strolled together, the three of them, Lyna and Thema arm in arm as Solas trailed just behind with his hands clasped behind his back. Everyone they passed did a double take and then openly stared, and each stare straightened Solas’s shoulders and excited Lyna as Thema shivered beside her. They toured the neutral area of the gardens twice, though they both disliked the way Falon’din looked like might devour Solas the moment he saw them. Finally, when they had been seen by everyone in the neutral area and failed to locate Mythal, they retreated to Solas’s territory, at the edge of Mythal’s, and found a bench just a little too close for comfort to the marking of Mythal’s domain of the garden. But that was the point; they wanted to be found.

Lyna and Thema draped themselves beside Solas, leaning against him as they rested. Lyna had her legs crossed, allowing the slit in her skirt to reveal most of her toned and bruised legs. Thema had left bites and scratches all over her thighs and at some point even Solas had managed to leave a few. Though still, their wolf was done up in war paint all over his body, only his face free of marks, though his lips were swollen and bruised still. Lyna and Thema mostly had marks on their thighs, but there were plenty of them.

“Do you enjoy being shown off, ma lath?” Lyna asked as she traced a few welts on Solas’s arm.

“You know that I do,” he said with a smile. He was sitting straight and proud, all but glowing with the pleasure of having his devotion seen.

“But do we know it?” Thema asked, also tracing marks on his body.

“I would have them all see that I belong to you,” Solas declared, and his words shivered through Lyna. “I would declare my devotion for all to hear. I have been claimed, body and soul, and I belong to the two of you.” Thema all but purred and Lyna pressed kisses against his marked skin in response.

“What are you doing?” came a shrill voice from within the garden. Lyna and Thema shared a pleased look before turning to find Mythal standing not ten feet away and glaring with venom.

“Just having a bit of fun,” Thema told her, leaning her head on Solas’s shoulder.

Mythal gestured at the three of them with a flick of her fingers. “You bring this display of… excess into my territory?” she spat, eyes flashing.

“We are not in your territory,” Lyna informed her calmly. “We are in Solas’s territory.” Mythal opened her mouth to debate the point, but Lyna nodded at the short border fence nearby. “That’s your territory.” Then she smiled sweetly up at Mythal. None of them had bothered to rise from the bench as protocol would usually demand. Mythal had begun the confrontation and their choice to remain seated was a subtle insult, a way to tell her that she was not worth the respect of standing to bow.

“This lewd display is an insult to us all,” Mythal snarled at them. Lyna noticed that she kept her gaze carefully averted from Solas and all his many marks, so she shifted to draw the queen’s attention to the marks on her thighs. Mythal’s lips thinned even further, a small sort of victory.

At the edges of her vision, Lyna noticed some of the others gathering nearby, summoned by the unusual noise of Mythal’s initial screeching. Elgar’nan was glaring with open hatred at Mythal, jaw clenched and eyes narrowed. Falon’din and Dirthamen were leaning against each other, looking remarkably entertained. Even Sylaise and June were present, though Sylaise wore a mask of polite disinterest and June looked bored and sour. Nobles of each monarch hovered behind them, all of them remaining carefully in the neutral area of the garden though the other Evanuris dared a step into Solas’s territory. Whispers passed behind painted fans, amusement in the eyes that flickered across the three on the bench and wariness in those that gazed at the offended Dragon Queen, but the other Evanuris remained silent.

“You’re the one trespassing, Mythal,” Thema informed her, gazing at the woman’s feet. Mythal was only three steps outside her territory, but it was enough to warrant the jibe since they had already been falsely accused.

“You insult us all with this game of yours and yet have the nerve to accuse me?” Mythal hissed. She seemed completely oblivious to their audience.

“Falon’din didn’t seem to mind,” Lyna observed, winking at the man in question. He straightened with a sly grin and devoured her with his gaze. It made her skin crawl and she’d rather have clawed his eyes from his face, but it achieved the intended result. Their gathered audience tittered and laughed, knowing well that Falon’din was more than passingly interested in the affairs of the three lovers. It also drew Mythal’s attention to the crowd and humiliated her as she saw that she was viewed as the offending party in this confrontation.

“In any case, nothing we are currently doing has exceeded the bounds of propriety,” Lyna continued, her eyes back on Mythal. “We are all sufficiently clothed, and we have engaged in no inappropriate behavior in the gardens.”

“Pity,” Falon’din muttered and Dirthamen snickered. Lyna gave them a smile before returning her attention to Mythal.

“Indeed, we have simply come to take a walk,” Lyna continued while Thema stroked her fingers over Solas’s chest. Their tamed wolf sat as he had been, with his back straight and proud, but he looked at Mythal with confusion as she avoided looking at him at all. “Have the laws changed regarding a simple walk through the gardens since we visited last week?”

“They did not trespass and they have done nothing rude,” Dirthamen observed mildly, his eyes on Thema’s revealed legs. “Let them be, for they have done nothing wrong.”

Elgar’nan took this opportunity to stalk to his wife and grip her arm strongly. “I suggest you end this farce before you disgrace yourself,” he hissed aggressively into her ear, louder than he had perhaps intended. Lyna watched, lazily stroking her hand up and down Solas’s thigh. She was aware of Falon’din’s gaze on her movements but she ignored him.

Mythal opened her mouth to make some retort, but Elgar’nan jerked her in his grasp and dragged her back into her own territory. She fought against him but his grip remained strong and she was towed away. The show ended, the nobles dispersed, followed quickly by Sylaise and June, off to return to their own territory. Falon’din and Dirthamen lingered for a few moments, watching the display, before Dirthamen tugged at Falon’din and they both wandered away as well, leaving the three of them alone once more.

“What was all that?” Solas asked them curiously, frowning in confusion.

“Just proving a point,” Lyna sighed happily, leaning on his shoulder. Thema hummed her contentment as well. It had gone even better than they could have hoped, ending with Mythal in social disgrace. Though the scandal wouldn’t last long, it was enough to get their point across; she had lost and Solas belonged to them. He would never be what she wanted him to be.

“This was fun,” Thema observed as they made their way back home some time later. “We should do it again sometime.”

Lyna looked at Solas and all the marks painted on his body in the throes of passion. “We should,” she agreed, her voice darker than she’d intended. Solas shivered as his tight trousers tented in front.