Your top 5 ships and why?
Tough one! Hmmm… most of my top ones are m/m ships, just because that's what I'm most comfortable writing and most enjoy reading.
Alistair/Zevran - because they each brings things to the relationship that the other needs. There’s only one subject on which Zevran generally deludes himself, and he wouldn’t put up with Alistair’s poor self-image for long since it's based almost entirely on self-delusion. Alistair has the steadiness and cheerful good humour that Zevran needs more of, while Zevran’s more cynical outlook is a good antidote to Alistair’s always wanting to believe the best of everyone. And they both so desperately need someone to love, protect, and be protected by.
Alistair/Jowan - which falls into the category of "things I didn't ship until I wrote some", and then fell in love with the potential dynamic there. Their partnership can be everything that should be right about a templar/mage relationship (or any relationship really), including the rather ugly part that Jowan will have every reason to never give in to a demon, and yet the comfort of knowing that if things go horribly wrong, ever... that Alistair would do whatever needed doing. Which to someone who is at heart very frightened by the destructive potential of his own powers, really would be reassuring.
Sebastian/Fenris - which I've been shipping since before I ever got DA2, thanks to some fantastic writers. Even in fics where Sebastian keeps to his vows, I think they'd have a very intense and mutually satisfying friendship (probably with vast amounts of UST). It would be a very safe friendship for both of them, between Sebastian's vows and Fenris' dislike of being touched. I headcanon them getting together once a week. Fenris supplies the wine, Sebastian brings food, and they just sit around talking for hours on end and enjoying each other's company.
Fenris/Zevran or Fenris/Isabela - I think of these ships as being almost identical, because Zevran and Isabela are like two sides of one coin, with very similar backgrounds and personalities, and they'd both bring the same things to a relationship with Fenris. Things Fenris needs, like someone who will court his desire, and is willing to wait patiently, for years if needed, for him to be ready for a next step. Someone with vast experience of many sexual situations - including some ugliness in their own pass - that enables them to help him to heal from the ugliness of his past. Someone who'll flirt and smile and let him know he's desired, and maybe push just the slightest bit occasionally, but who will back off the moment they start to make him feel uncomfortable, because they don't want to make him uncomfortable, they want to intrigue him, seduce him, convince him to willinging take that next step.
Rare Pairs! I love getting an idea or a prompt for a pair I've never given any consideration to before, especially if it turns out to be a pairing very few if any fics have been previously written for. It means I get the fun of striking out into what may be entirely unexplored territory to figure out what their dynamic would be, what in each other they'd like, how and why it would work. That's why I have so many weird pairings I've enjoyed writing, like Keran/Feynriel, Oswyn/Anora, Loghain/Sebastian, Merrill/Aveline, etc.
