#ofdales

[polyhymniar]

HER APPROACH IS SLOW, calculated & with a great deal of observation. moves only when she deems the time is ripe. the fur-trimmed cloak she wears is the same color as the ground weighted with four or five INCHES OF SNOW ( a cloak which she initially refused to fashion herself with as the cold bothers her little ).  evaporated breath cuts through her mouth.  

❛ it gladdens me to have encountered another grey warden ; more so the warden-commander, ❜ the syllables in her speech are careful, learned.  

❛ tell me ; have you been afflicted with the calling all of the other wardens have heard? ❜

@ofdales  || starter call ( adaar )

[nothinglorious]

❛  you and i are going to change the world   ❜

⚔️ 《 CYRAS AND ALISTAIR 》

SHADOW AND BONE. @ofdales

     The sun had long set and the camp had been made, tents lining the area like a makeshift wall. The lot of them had retired for the evening, but Alistair has found requiem near the fire, his head too full of thoughts to fall asleep. He poked at the embers with a stick, not sure he quite believed Cyras in the least bit. They had done many things and saved many people but they still had to defeat the Archdemon. What if they didn’t even survive that? He slouched down further and rubbed sat his eye. 

    “At least your optimistic, I do hope your right. Though I’m not sure how two Grey Wardens are going to move mountains.” He shot Cyras a look over the fire and then found himself smiling. “What’s the first thing you’d do to change the world?”

[skysaved-a]

❝  you see in the eyes of a child.  ❞

god of war

“ is that so ? ”   her voice is all but flat, carrying with it the faintest undertones of curiosity. had it been anyone else, she likely would have taken offense, would have bristled & reared; but it’s cyras, so mislyn does her best to keep the sharpness out of her voice, to keep her features from twisting. she settles for something that might border on aloof if not for the uptick of her brow.

she doesn’t think herself infallible ( quite the opposite, really ), but she’s always been a bit of a prideful thing.   “ in fact, i rather think i see things quite clearly. ”

“ unless that was some sort of pointed remark about my height. in which case i hardly think you’re one to talk. ”

[polyhymniar]

'not too heavy, is he?' A joke, of course, Kieran is still small enough for his Elven father to carry --- the Qunari Inquisitor should gave no problem if she truly wanted him moved. Still, Cyras reaches out a hand to muss at the hair of the lad's head, where it rests on her lap. Even in sleep he clutches the book he had insisted on showing her. 'I'll return him to his mother if you wish.'

A BONE-THIN HAND, PALE AS CREAM ghosts over the boy’s obsidian strands that are spilled forward in the moonlight & quite a CONTRAST against the wyvern scaled fabrics of robes. she can smell the milk that lingers in kieran’s skin —— tinged with honeyed innocence that she both envies & admires.  for she is deathly still so as not to RIP HIM AWAY from the comfort steadiness of her legs.  only when his father’s baritone voice fills her ears does the herald raises her eyes.  

❛ ——i assure you, kieran poses no issue, grey warden, ❜ her intonations are a satiny hum. something otherworldly.

the reflective scales are shined with delightful perfume of ANDRASTE’S GRACE & other wild flowers pulverized on mortar & pestle into an oil.  the skirts of robes are extended outward, covering outward a circumference of the grass she sits upon like a pool of melted gold.

❛ allow the child to rest.  he has had such a long day of adventure. ❜  

[theharellan]

웃 your favourite da:o banter

dragon age positivity meme | accepting

Justice: You are correct that I do not understand, Velanna. Help me to understand.

Velanna: (Sigh) There is… so much history between my kind and humans, Justice. Where would I begin?

Justice: You can only be responsible for your actions, your judgment. Does the same not apply to them?

Velanna: You may be right. I don’t know.

Justice: And the atonement?

Velanna: I will atone when they do.

───────

Velanna: What sort of atonement would be appropriate?

Justice: You have reconsidered, then?

Velanna: I am simply curious to hear what you think would be suitable.

Justice: Teach them. Show these humans what they are so carelessly destroying.

Velanna: And if they do not listen?

Justice: Then you have done what you could.

Velanna: It’s… worth thinking about.

is it cheating to use da:a banter? i honestly can’t remember a lot of da:o banter that’s not just funny, which is great but i love it when a few lines can develop character. ofc you get that in origins, too, but these two banters between velanna and justice inform a lot about both of their characters. neither is wrong to feel the way they do, necessarily? velanna not wanting to reach out to humans given everything is 100% valid but justice wanting to see a way forward makes sense, given his nature. it tells you about velanna’s rightful bitterness at the world and justice’s relative newness to it.

[skysaved-a]

the warden bends slightly to press his lips to her tattooed brow, soft and comforting. it pains him to see another one of his people forced into the hands of fate. 'mala suledin nada, da'len,' now you must endure, child.

 mislyn   has   always   kept   her   eyes   open .   she   does   not   shut   them   for   all   the   horror   in   the   world ,   &   she   does   not   shut   them   when   the   world   is   good   &   full   of   light   &   so   bright   it   hurts .   it's   something   of   a   point   of   pride ,   this   unwavering   capacity   she   has   to   reach   ever   forward ,   even   when   the   past   drags   heavy   through   the   earth   behind   her ,   like   an   iron   ball   chained   tight   around   her   ankles .   she   witnesses ,   &   she   remembers ,   &   she   carries   on .   a   bit   like   him .

 but   now ,   just   for   now,   she   closes   them   tight .   with   her   eyes   shut ,   she   lets   herself   feel   young   &   tired   &   aching .   he   might   not   be   family ,   but   he   is   a   little   piece   of   home   all   the   same .   &   here ,   in   this   far   away   place ,   with   these   strange   people ,   that   is   everything .   a   smile ;   small ,   fleeting ,   but   real .      ❛ our   people   are   remarkably   good   at   that .   enduring . ❜

 &   as   quickly   as   it   came ,    the   moment   slips   from   her   grasp ,   fades   away ,   but   not   into   nothing —   she   feels   lighter   now   than   she   has   in   months ,   since   the   sky   fell   onto   her   back .   a   heavy   sigh   through   her   still   up   turned   mouth ,   &   she   leans   her   forehead   into   his   touch   just   so .      ❛ ma   serannas ,   hahren .   i’ll   be   alright . ❜

[chantrysworn]

23. the final hug

hugs

    She knows she had been naive to assume their little group wouldn’t splinter once the archdemon had been defeated. Alistair had a kingdom to rule now, Morrigan was already gone, Sten left to return to his people.. she herself had received the summons from Dorothea (Divine Justinia– she’d need to remind herself of that) to come to Val Royeaux. The bard is excited to see her mentor again, of course, but.. well, over the past year, this ragtag group had become her family, oddly enough. A weird family, but a family nonetheless. It’s weird to be leaving them. Or.. what was left of them.

    Her few belongings are already settled into the merchant’s cart she plans to travel with to the border, where she’d then be picked up by one of Divine Justinia’s guards. All that was left to do was say goodbye. Which was.. easier said than done. But might as well just.. get it over with. So she turns to Cyras, a sad smile on her face (that she tries to make a bit happier, but utterly fails.) “We’ll write, yes?” She assures, more for herself than for him. She steps closer, wrapping her arms around the warden and pulling him into a tight hug. The bard didn’t know when she’d see him again, and her hug lingers perhaps a second too long before she pulls away.

    “Well.. until we meet again.”

[chantrysworn]

accidental  ‘ mistletoe ’   

mistletoe

    Leliana suppresses a noise of shocked surprise when she bumps into Cyras. Her aimless wanderings around Skyhold had left her unawares, it seems. She has no business being caught out like that, but at least it was Cyras who found her and not a scout. Thoughts are a cruel thing, and with her reports done for the day, she could either have helped Josie write her letters or go for a walk. With a sore wrist from her own hours with a pen, she had opted for the latter. Unfortunately, walks do nothing to clear her thoughts.

    She does, however, have to raise an eyebrow at the curious glance from Cyras. The spymaster hadn’t even said anything yet, what could be.. oh. The Inquisitor has a sense of humor, it seems, leaving mistletoe about the place like this. No matter. The spymaster leans down to press a gentle kiss to the warden’s cheek. Perhaps that was cheating, but there was nobody here to call her out on it. She smiles after she pulls back. “Consider this my way of saying that I’m glad you’re here.”