#thisissomethingidkwhat

[morganaseren]

🌹

So this is from another AU I’m slowly outlining. Basically, Niamh never got sent to the Circle because her mother was able to use one of her connections from her raider days to get her the magical training she needed. When Niamh grows up, she ends up leading one of the chapters of the Mages Collective, secretly helping her people escape persecution beneath Chantry rule. She eventually ends up getting entangled with Leliana, who is the Left Hand of the Divine at that point and also investigating the strange happenings around Highever. It soon becomes this intricate game of cat and mouse, where the roles are reversed constantly as they both try and outsmart the other woman.

“I can’t afford to let you catch me.”

“It doesn’t have to be this way,” Leliana insisted as she slowly pressed forward, hands raised to show she was unarmed.

“Doesn’t it?” Niamh questioned sharply even as she wanted to so badly trust in the other woman—a rival she had eventually come to respect and more. “How can you possibly guarantee that? Your Divine may very well be the epitome of everything I stand against. A thousand years of Chantry doctrine, and my people suffered for it and are still suffering.” She closed her eyes to ward herself away from the temptation—of the surrender—she had always found within Leliana’s arms. “No matter what I feel for you, you and I both know that this is a mistake.”

“Niamh—”

“You know it’s true! Maker’s breath, Leliana... We stand on opposing sides! Your colleagues will look at me—unbound from the Circle’s control—and see a monster when all I ever wanted was to be given the opportunity to live as freely as they could!”

---

Electricity then sparked in the air between them in emphasis of the other woman’s conviction. The arcs—living serpents of energy—then surged back toward Niamh’s body, where Leliana could see the way her pale eyes were illuminated as if from within. She knew they only took on such an appearance when the mage was unleashing an onslaught of power, but here... She knew that Niamh was beginning to feel trapped.

She could hardly blame her.

Divine Justinia’s personal Knight-Enchanter Guard were moving quickly toward their location, but Leliana could only hope she could mitigate as much of the situation as possible. She didn’t want to stand against the woman responsible for what was essentially her rebirth, but she didn’t want to risk losing Niamh either.

Her two worlds were colliding in ways she had never foreseen, and this time, she didn’t know if she had a way of escaping with both intact. “Do you believe this is easy for me, Leliana? Don’t you think I want to just... fall into your arms and hope that the world might someday forget about us?” Niamh whispered, and her heart shattered upon hearing the tears in that voice--the ones her lover couldn’t afford to let fall. “But you and I both know that isn’t how it works. They’ll never accept us, and eventually, you’re going to realize this was hopeless from the start...”

((Disclaimer: This does eventually have a happy ending, but I... haven’t written it yet.))

[morganaseren]

62. “It’s only one night, we’ll just share the bed.”

((Had to adjust the sentence structure somewhat, but how about I spoil you with a future scene from OtSttCA? ;) ))

“Have there always been so many steps leading back to my quarters?”

Leliana shook her head fondly as she guided Niamh up the staircase in question, practically half-carrying the other woman as she readjusted the arm slung around her shoulders. After her resounding victory of the archery contest, the celebratory party following it had been quite the raucous occasion.

“I had no idea your extended family could be so lively,” she mused humorously.

The Arlessa of Amaranthine had come to pay a visit to her dear niece and--given her history as a former raider of the Waking Sea like the rest of her family--she had brought along her sailing crew. Although well into the prime of their lives, they were all still a rather spirited group, and such energy inevitably fed back into Bull and his Chargers. As such, Skyhold’s tavern was overflowing with festive cheer and drink before long.

The latter had proven to be Niamh’s undoing, especially as her aunt pulled her into a rather intriguing challenge of sorts. Her friend had wound up singing an old folk song that was cumulative in nature, and as each verse lengthened, Niamh had to drain a full tankard of... whatever homemade brew her aunt and crew had brought along in the form of several casks before the rest of the crowd finished the song’s chorus.

“Ah.” Ghostly-grey eyes took a few moments too long to focus on her, but Niamh’s lips spread into a languid grin of satisfaction. “You’ll find the Mac Eanraigs and those under their banner know how to celebrate under any occasion.”

Leliana arched a brow in amusement. While her friend had won her aunt’s challenge, she was certainly more than a little inebriated now in doing so. She wasn’t quite slurring her words, but there was an overly-careful way to how she pronounced them. She was always amused with the way the woman’s accent came on a little stronger with enough drink in her system.

It was perhaps a surprise in more ways than one, as Leliana had never known Niamh to overindulge in all the time she’d been in Skyhold and because she had also been unaware of the woman’s singing ability.

---

“You never told me you could sing,” she had said, turning to Niamh in surprise when the challenge had been issued, and from the eyes of the other patrons within the Herald’s Rest, they all seemed equally intrigued as well.

“I can’t. I mean, it’s not--Um.” From the other woman’s wide eyes, it seemed she hadn’t expected the sudden attention. “It’s mostly just folk songs and old sea shanties--nothing like what you were capable of during our adventuring days together.”

“I certainly wouldn’t have minded if you wanted to share them at our campfire back then.”

“I suppose,” she admitted, shrugging then with a rather sheepish smile, “but I always liked listening to your songs more.”

---

“I’m surprised you held out as long as you did,” Leliana admitted, having sampled the drink that had led to her friend’s current state. “

“My Aunt Eithne would argue it’s in my blood. I can hold my drink,” she answered confidently even if Leliana was all too aware that the other woman would likely fall back down the stairs were she to stop aiding her. “Besides...” Niamh flashed an actual smirk her way. “It’s certainly nothing that would lead me wake up in another province with only a towel and my shoes.”

Leliana couldn’t help her laughter. “I can’t believe you remembered me telling you that.”

“Oh, I remember a lot of things about you.”

“Do you?” she questioned somewhat distractedly as she opened the final door leading up the woman’s quarters.

Niamh simply nodded, but the gesture was taxing enough that her head drooped down until her chin nearly hit her chest. “You’re not an easy woman to forget,” she murmured, and from the way those pale eyes lidded themselves, it seemed complete exhaustion would soon be upon her.

Before Leliana could respond, she heard the clicking of claws upon the hardwood floor above them, and she looked up to see Bain--Niamh’s mabari--standing at the top of the stairs. The long, fluffed tail that had been wagging upon their arrival soon slowed as he eyed Niamh uncertainly. She gently shushed him when he began whining in concern at the unfamiliar state of his mistress.

“She’ll be alright. She just needs sleep.”

“No, I don’t...”

“Considering how long it took me to get you up here, I beg to differ,” Leliana deadpanned, gently depositing the other woman on the bed. She was thankful that Niamh had been casually dressed prior to the archery contest even if she hadn’t been an active participant in it. The sleeveless tunic and loose trousers would likely be more comfortable to sleep in than the woman’s usual formal attire. As such, she only had to loosen Niamh’s boots and set them aside before pulling the furred pelts of the bed over her. “Do you need anything before I leave?”

“Would you stay here with me?”

Leliana’s brows rose. “Pardon?” When the other woman didn’t immediately respond, she looked around the room and saw the couch sitting next to the balustrade of the stairs as per usual. It certainly seemed comfortable enough. “Very well. I can sleep here if you wouldn’t mind me taking one of the blankets.”

“No, no. It’s only one night; we can share the bed.” She yawned, and the gesture laced the rest of her words with drowsy abandon. “I don’t move around much in my sleep, and even if that had been the case, it’s large enough that we wouldn’t easily bump into one another in the middle of the night.”

“Oh? Do you feel you’re going to have that bad a time come morning?” she asked in amusement, causing wintry-grey eyes to slowly open in sleepy regard of her.

“No,” she answered, a lazy smile playing on her lips. “I just missed you is all.”

[morganaseren]

10) write in silence or with background noise? with people or alone?

(Also some hugs)

I always have to have music playing while I’m writing. Lol. It just sets me in a better, creative mood, especially if there’s a certain ambience I’m trying to set within the chapter. It helps me dig a little deeper into what I want. Honestly, I have entire playlists dedicated to not just OtSttCA but the various AUs I have going on as well. :P I love music.

And I definitely have to be alone while I write! A room with the curtains closed, lights dimmed, the smell of tea or coffee in the air, and music playing? That’s my ideal writing environment.

And Niamh and I thank you for the hugs! <3

[morganaseren]

🖊

How about a fun fact (or two or three) about Niamh regarding language? :D

So I’ve always headcanoned that she’s of Irish heritage (or the closest Thedosian equivalent of it) from her mother’s side of the family. I alluded to this a bit in chapter 14 of OtSttCA, but she was just starting to get a proper grasp of Irish as a child when her magic manifested within her at age 4. Of course, she was taken away to the Circle following that, and what burgeoning knowledge she had of the language was left to languish in disuse since Common was more prevalent within her new home.

A soft-spoken woman by nature, she has the typical Irish accent, but she doesn’t really know her native tongue beyond a phrase or two along with some traditional songs that she recalled her mother singing to her as a child. This created a large sense of disconnect within her regarding her culture and heritage because of it, and she felt a rift in the sense of belonging she desired with her family.

When she’s later reintroduced to the surviving members of her family (mostly just her brother Fergus and their Aunt Eithne) during the events of Inquisition, what eagerness she had to relearn Irish was constantly pushed aside thanks to her growing burdens as a leader. Then, with her new duties at Divine Victoria’s side along with the growing war against Solas following the end of the Trespasser DLC, the urge was forgotten again entirely.

In AUs where Niamh becomes a Grey Warden, she is 22 by the time the Blight begins and roughly 24 after the events of the main game, the Witch Hunt DLC, and Awakening are finished. Because Niamh’s the one who undergoes the Dark Ritual with Morrigan, Saoirse survives what would have been her canonical death against the Archdemon, which was largely the catalyst that led to Niamh disappearing from Ferelden and going on a decade-long journey of self-imposed solitude abroad in OtSttCA. With her sister alive and well, Niamh gets to relearn Irish through her and their Aunt Eithne.

Then, in any other AUs where the Blight isn’t a concern, Niamh’s fluent in her native tongue along with Common. Depending on the verse, she may have also picked up a few other languages to learn as well, such as in the Arranged Marriage AU, and while she’s not necessarily fluent in them, she knows enough to hold a conversation or at least make a trade or two in negotiations.

[morganaseren]

I think it would be cool to see some sibling time for Niamh with both Saoirse and Fergus.

Omg. You’re right! I don’t think I’ve actually had the three of them around together and just bonding. :O I’ll make a note to include a couple scenes of that in Niamh’s Arranged Marriage AU with Leliana. Thanks for the suggestion! :D

[morganaseren]

🤍 BEAUTIFUL PERSON AWARD! ONCE YOU ARE GIVEN THIS AWARD YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO PASTE IT IN THE ASKS OF 8 PEOPLE WHO DESERVE IT. IF YOU BREAK THE CHAIN NOTHING HAPPENS, BUT IT'S SWEET TO KNOW SOMEONE THINKS YOU'RE BEAUTIFUL INSIDE AND OUT 🤍

[morganaseren]

🌺send this to ten bloggers you think are wonderful. keep the game going🌺

Awww! Thank you! Right back at you! :D

[morganaseren]

What is your OC’s favourite kind of weather? Do they like watching it rain? Do they prefer a gentle sunshine? How would they spend the day with this weather?

Niamh honestly loves any type of weather that she can experience firsthand than from behind a window. To say she felt entirely too caged in during her time in Ferelden’s Circle is probably quite the understatement. There’s just something about being so close but just out of reach with the outside world that it was almost physically painful for her at times.

Niamh’s always loved thunderstorms though.

To her, they’re as comforting as any lullaby, which makes sense, given what one of her nicknames/titles is. Lol. The droning thunder is familiar as any heartbeat, and she finds the rhythmic sound of rain to be just as soothing.

When she was living abroad after the Blight, she spent a lot of her time out in nature, camping out beneath the stars. Whenever the weather turned inclement, she’d sit out in the rain for a time, often letting it soak her down to the bone while listening to the gentle—and sometimes harsh—pattering of it against leaves, grass, rocks, etc. Afterwards, she’ll find her way to a natural shelter of sorts—a cave or some type of earthen den/overhang that she fashioned with her magic—before settling down to watch the storm all over again.

In OtSttCA in general, Niamh has this mask of a capable leader, but a lot of her emotional state can be easily be determined by the atmosphere around her.

As such, thunderstorms are something like a reset button for her, especially since they’re part of her element of choice. She allows the misery and stress that’s allowed to bottle up within herself to come out, and she feels the echoes of it within each deafening crash or gale of wind. It’s this ancient understanding between herself and nature, where she’s allowing herself to simply be vulnerable without fear of an audience before she has to return to the role everyone expects of her.

By the time the sun makes its appearance again, she’s usually feeling far better than she was before. It’s not a perfect option by any means, but it does allow her the needed space to clear her mind in preparation for any of the obstacles ahead of the Inquisition.