An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
It's time for the eleventh post of the Dragon Age Big Bang 2023! Let's give it up for author Cookie_Rock and artist Serial-Chillr; they did fantastic work! Go check out their efforts over on Archive of Our Own.
Enjoy!
Rating:
Mature
Summary:
You've survived the Joining! Congratulations/Condolences!
Now that you've finished throwing up, we bet you have questions. Join us, brothers and sisters, as we attempt to unravel the mystery of what the hell is going on here!
Information on some of my favorite Girlsies !!! For sillies !!!
(working title was me infodumping about girlsies under the excuse that it is relevent to the event)
I don't have the energy to go through & update this post at the moment, but @thegroundsofbrooklyn has a post here that has more info on the UK Brooklyn Girls !!!
Starting out with our number one, the original girlsie: Charlie (Hard Promises) !!!
Charlie was the original love interest for Jack in Hard Promises, and she was a newsie !! Her story was that she was living in a house of prostitution with her aunt (with her aunt trying to shield her from as much as possible to stop her from going into that life / being exposed to it) and she was planning to (and did!) go with Jack to Santa Fe at the end.
Next up: Smalls (Papermill - Broadway) (Manhattan / Possibly The Bronx) !!!:
I know that whether or not Smalls is a girl is up to interpretation but I am interpreting her as a girl & including her in this list (same with Sniper).
Smalls is a Bronx newsie (as implied by her yelling so's da Bronx during Brooklyn's Here), but she's still allowed in Manhattan (hence being there for KoNY in some versions), so she's probably allowed to wander around on her own.
According to Liana Hunt, she lives in a family with at least one parent and a ton of brothers who all work to support them, so she's sort've eager to be one of the boys in that sense — she's also super tough.
Talls !!! (Broadway) (Manhattan / Possibly The Bronx):
Talls was Caitlyn Caughell's newsie whenever she was on for that track. I have no information on her besides the fact that she was played by Caitlyn Caughell & is probably a play on her height of some kind — + also being a play on Smalls. Smalls & Talls <3
Sniper !!! (Tour) (Manhattan / Possibly The Bronx):
I'm going to be mixing in other backstories for this because as far as I'm aware Sniper's the only newsie on that list with a backstory that isn't from their actress ? + she has more involvement in the show when she isn't a girl so I'm going off that
But according to Alex Wong — Sniper's last name is Wah, and she's the daughter (son in this backstory but it's okay) of Sam Wah, who owns the laundromat above Jacobi's (the sign of which can be seen in the pre-uksies Jacobi scenes). She's named after her 'incredible aim' with a slingshot.
In certain versions, she's one of the scabs, the last one to throw down her papers, and the one to go 'Ah, what the hell? My father's gonna kill me anyway!' in the proshot. In the tour, she was also the one to yell so's da bronx.
Puddles !!! (Tour) (Manhattan / Possibly The Bronx):
Puddles is in the same group as Talls in the sense that there is like no canon lore about her & there isn't even any information besides her name and the fact that she was played by Melissa Steadman Hart during the tour. However she has the cutest nickname and deserved to be included in this list.
Marriott! Buttons !!! (Marriott) (Manhattan):
According to Adrienne Storrs, the actress for Buttons, she's been a newsie for three years. Her parents are poor Italian immigrants that don't speak English, so she works to support them. She was convinced to start selling Newspapers by JoJo after being caught pickpocketing on the street.
Buttons & JoJo are best gal pals, she sees Specs as a younger brother figure (she's always looking out for him), and Race and Albert are her favorite people to joke around with!
She has (had?) a rich boyfriend that went to jail for forgery a bit before the strike, so she's a little heartbroken during it, but she's 'continuing to live her life and she has the best newsie friends'.
She has a really positive mindset in general.
She also (along with JoJo) checked Katherine out when she walked into Jacobi's and later taught her how to Irish dance during KoNY with JoJo !!!
Marriott! JoJo !!! (Marriott) (Manhattan):
According, once again, to Adrienne Storrs, JoJo (who's real name is Josephine) is 'one tough cookie'. She was originally a pickpocket, but Jack found her and took her under her wing for ten percent of her earnings when she was almost twelve. She was one of the original newsies in the Manhattan group, and after three years she started seeking out other girl newsies (& that's when Buttons came along !!). She's been a newsie for about five years, 'not too far behind how long Jack had been selling'.
She has an Irish father and a Romanian mother and they were circus artists that came to America with P.T Barnum in the 1870s. She was born in 1882 (making her seventeen at the time of the strike) and she was raised around a circus.
Rafaela (Marriott) (Brooklyn):
Once again, according to Adrienne Storrs, Rafaela's parents moved from Spain to Puerto Rico in the 1880s and she was born there in 1885. They moved to New York City when she was five and she's very close with her brothers, who were six and eight at the time. All three children became newsies at the same time, being expected to work as much as their parents did.
She didn't go to school, she taught herself how to read and speak English, using her time as a newsie as a teaching device. She's super tough, and she had to grow up really fast. She 'has a strong sense of community with her family and fellow Brooklyn Newsies'.
Joey (Marriott) (Brooklyn):
You guessed it, information yet again from Adrienne Storrs!
Joey is Racetrack Higgins' cousin, and she's super positive. She's also secretly a really good fighter.
Hildy (Marriott) (Brooklyn):
You'll never guess where this info is from.
Hildy is German, and her parents own a sausage shop, and she likes to get into trouble.
Honorable mention to Nancy, Hazel, and Muriel from Newsies Jr.
I don't have the energy to read through all of newsies jr rn to find out which lines they have, however I can tell you off the top of my head that they are very supportive of Katherine and probably also on the younger side (because. Newsies Jr. Obviously).
If anyone who's played them would like to mention their backstory in the rbs or in this accs ask box, that would be lovely !!!
Spot Conlon (UK) (Brooklyn):
Using Lillie-Pearl's backstory for Spot here, because Clarice never got the opportunity to share hers if she had one :(
Lillie-Pearl's backstory for Spot is that her parents were Irish and African American immigrants living in Seneca Village.
Spot in Uksies is very close with Davey !!! According to Lillie-Pearl, she doesn't call him Davey, she calls him David, and in her cameo description she added 'making rhymes with Davey' into her list of things she enjoyed. She is also very close with her girls (obviously), specifically Lucky & Stray, who she did the handshake with depending on what point in the show it was. She also liked Race, depending on the day.
(She also probably isn't on awful terms with most of the Manhattan newsies, especially if they're girls.)
Lucky (Newsies UK) (Brooklyn):
Lucky doesn't have a lot of canon lore too her HOWEVER I can tell you that she used to do the handshake with Spot back when she existed, was called Tops for some performances, AND her real name is Eliza !!! She also interacted with Scope a lot during The Rally.
Mack (Newsies UK) (Brooklyn):
Mack's real name is Jeanie MacDonald, but she shortened it down to Mack because she didn't like her name.
She's a Scottish immigrant whose family moved to the U.S (just North of New York) to start a farm, but a plague of locusts destroyed the farm, so they had to move into the city for work.
She couldn't stand being stuck in their one bedroom cramped apartment, so her father suggested that she take up work as a Newsie.
Splint (Newsies UK) (Brooklyn):
Splint's arm is in a Splint !!! For some mystery reason that definitely isn't because Bobbie's hand was injured at the time of the first preview. Definitely not.
She doesn't appear after The Rally, which is because — according to Bobbie — she falled down & died :( (Bobbie needed 2 be there as Hannah)
Also her real name is Splinty McSplint.
(Bobbie also said that if she were to have a love interest it would be Buttons.)
Scope (Newsies UK) (Brooklyn):
I have no canon info about Scope besides the fact that she has the world's cutest pigtails and hung around Lucky at The Rally a lot :(
Ritz (Newsies UK) (Brooklyn):
Ritz' real name is Rita, and her nickname comes from ritz crackers and also Lucy's last characters name !! That's all the canon info we have on her as far as ik :(
Stray (Newsies UK) (Brooklyn):
Stray's nickname comes from her feeding all of the stray animals of New York !!!
She is related to Specs in some way (probably siblings, considering the fact that Sam & Immie are).
She becomes a Bowery Beauty when she's older, and her real name is from a newsgirl turned dancer but Immie doesn't remember who that is — the closest I got in my research is Lillian Russell, who wasn't a newsgirl but yk close enough.
(Her love interest would've been Mike !!)
Pips (Newsies UK) (Brooklyn):
Again, no canon information on Pips as far as I'm aware, besides the fact that she is literally adorable
Rules: post the beginning lines of your most recent 10 published fanfics, then attempt to tag 10 people!
All of these are from exchanges and/or fandom big bangs, which honestly I love.
More Cookies, Please
Female Inquisitor/FOC; G
The signs are simple, but Kháeis practiced them over and over. She can’t say why it feels so monumental, this specific, fairly mundane interaction. It’s not as though they haven’t signed before, although this is the first time she is attempting it without Bella to interpret.
First, she pinches the fingers of both hands together and touches the tips: more.
...And All Seven Archdemons
Male Warden & Kieran, Male Warden/Morrigan; G
Kieran is a serious child. Doubtless the old god soul has something to do with that, but honestly, given his solitary upbringing and his parents’ demeanors, who would expect otherwise? A solemn and thoughtful little boy, wise beyond his years, but still only a little boy. A sensitive, softhearted little boy, who still sometimes wants his papa in the wee hours of the morning.
Drowning
Blackwall/Female Inquisitor; G
Rowan moves like water. Yielding, subtle, to fill the space she’s been allotted, but steadily wearing away at the limits, the constraints forced upon her. Blackwall took one look at her, a tiny thing hacking away with the too-big sword some idiot had burdened her with, and thought to himself, I will follow you anywhere.
not with a bang, but with a whimper
Female Amell/FOC (unrequited); T
“Hold still.”
“I am holding still.”
“No, you're not.” Long, thin fingers slither around the back of her neck, palm flat against the ridges of her spine. There’s weight to the hold, weight belied by the willowy grace of that hand. There's power to it, the promise of magic thrumming just below the skin, and there's command to it, command given by a woman used to being obeyed. And Scarlet wonders, briefly, if this is how she dies.
Love Letter to a Templar
one-sided FOC/FOC; T
(also check out the companion fic, Crushing Realisations, by librarypirate!)
Dear Ser Lux [too informal?]
To Knight-Ensign Lux, [ugh that sounds so stiff]
My Dear Lux [ABSOLUTELY NOT]
Ser Lux,
Killing In Kirkwall, Season 2, Episode 8: The Kirkwall Avenger
Merrill & Isabela & Aveline; NR
Host 1: Greetings, all, and welcome to Killing in Kirkwall: the number one most downloaded true crime podcast in Thedas.
Host 2: Except for Twisted Treviso.
Host 1: Oh, right.
Host 2: And Dead in Denerim.
Host 1: Well, their numbers are a bit inflated--
Host 2: And there’s also--
Host 1: Thank you, Daisy, I think they get it.
[intro music: the tune could be described as “a sweet lullaby” if not for the fact it is 1) in a minor key, and 2) wordless, and 3) sung in the high, clear, echoing voice of a young, creepy child.]
Sweater Weather
Alistair/Female Warden; E
She fits like a sweater.
As soon as the comparison comes to mind, Alistair realizes two things: 1) he will never again be able to put on a sweater without getting hard; 2) more importantly, that’s the stupidest possible thing to think right now.
Wildflowers in a Blight
Irving/Greagoir; G
We have only been wrong once.
It was, oh, 50 years ago by the moral reckoning. It was a double Harrowing night, a gift the old Knight-Commander used to give to us, unawares. We don’t remember the first apprentice’s name. Vetsa? Vella? Powerful by mortal measures, and doomed to fail from the start. If Rage had any self-respect, they would’ve left her to someone else.
So You've Survived the Joining!: A Practical Guide to the Grey Warden Life
Gen; M
with art by the amazing @serial-chillr!
Greetings, Warden!
You've survived the Joining! Congratulations/Condolences! Now that you've finished throwing up (for now), we bet you have questions. Many questions. And we bet that so far you've only heard gloomy tidings and at least one person dying in agony. You're terrified, you're exhausted, and nobody is giving you straight answers. Don't worry, we're here to help!
Spilling Tea
Rylen/OFC; G
Rylen was ambushed after breaking his fast.
Opposing forces attacked from the flanks and were on him almost before he realized it, overrunning his defenses as if they were nonexistent. He’d tried to resist—Andraste preserve him, he had thrown everything he had into resisting—but he was outmatched.
The smell of sugar...
...the delicate lines of pink frosting...
...it was a beautiful little cake they had offered him as bait, and Maker curse him, he had taken it.
I'm not 100% sure if all of you actually write fic, but I'm tagging @mrs-theirin, @keirou-kun, @atomictourists, @librivore42, @dilf-din and anyone who would get joy from it.
do you ever think about how learning to fight in a family of three mages must have affected carver’s fighting style?
if he joins the templars, he gets yelled at for charging onto the battlefield without waiting for his squad to catch up. they call him dangerously reckless and it’s not like he can say that he’s used to having three healing spells ready for him and at least one barrier already cast.
on the other hand, he’s very popular with the mages in the wardens. he’s the only person on the entire continent for whom run into battle and absorb as much damage as possible is an intuitive strategy. tanking was always his job! he knows to pull the battle away from the mages as much as possible.
he also knows how to be buffed. most warriors need practice to be able to use haste without tripping over their own feet. carver? carver was the guinea pig for hawke and bethany’s support spell training. it takes at least three haste spells stacked on top of each other to faze him. he’s not thrown when the heroic aura wears off and suddenly his hands are slower and his sword is heavier. he’s got a sixth sense for when a mage is about to cast an aoe spell right on top of him and he needs to move.
you ever think about how no one outside of the dalish elves grew up fighting with mages?
the warden commander probably puts him in charge of training new warriors, is what i’m saying.
NOTICE: As more and more fanfic writers are using generative AI for their works (you uncreative dweebs), I hereby swear on everything I hold dear that I have not and will NEVER use generative AI in ANY of my written work. Everything I post will be organically and creatively my own.
being sad and trying to think about ur favorite characters to make yourself feel better is always kinda funny when every character u like is an abominable piece of shit. try to think "[X] would comfort me" no they would fucking Noooootttttt. Lol
