I like you very much. Just as you are.

She/Her | karinabean on AO3 | Angst enthusiast. Here for pathetic men who ✨yearn✨ Fics, silly merch, & original novels: tpseudonana.carrd.co

[tpseudonana]

About Me

Hi, I'm tpseudonana (karinabean on AO3). I am a scientist by day, a Romantasy author by night, and a connoisseur of pathetic men who yearn at any time.

CURRENTLY WRITING

A DA:I fic where the Inquisitor goes for a walk to clear her head, accidentally starts a fake book club, and ends up watching Commander Rutherford dismantle twenty recruits shirtless. High-angst with humor, slow-burn, competence kink, and chaotic Inner Circle banter.

Come for the banter, stay for the angst.

🔗 Read The Skyhold Literary Society on AO3

ORIGINAL FICTION: THE GHOST AND THE WREN

(Series: The Heron and the Wren)

I've also been quietly working on an original romantasy novel, though I've found that process to be a rather lonely one. Ironically enough, it was the work on my novel that finally gave me the confidence to post fanfic.

The magic system is based on the fiber arts because I also love to knit and crochet (very poorly, I might add)!

My MMC, Theron Valemont, is essentially "what if Cullen Rutherford was a Regency-era cavalry officer with a philology degree who accidentally got trapped in a set of standing stones in a 'reverse Outlander' type of situation?"

(And yes, for those wondering, the protagonist is also named Ella! Think of this as her alternate-universe academic timeline 😅)

HOUSE RULES

Ha! There are no rules! Really though, feel free to come yell at me about DA:I, the Legend of Zelda, Regency romance tropes, optimal forearm visibility ratios, or anything else.

In my other life I'm a mom of two, so I can't guarantee my response rates, but I can tell you my thirst levels overfloweth.

[tpseudonana]

chapter 11 wip - weaponized haberdashery

“Josephine, please, you can’t hold on to my armor forever.”

“I won it fair and square, Commander. It is not my fault you won't meet my terms to return it.”

“Because your terms are ridiculous! A coat, really?”

Ella walked in to a standoff in Josie’s office. Cullen stood before the desk, his arms crossed tight across his un-armored chest. He was back in his dark pants and linen shirt, this time with a brown leather vest he must've borrowed, as it pulled too-tight across his back and fell too short at his hips.

Ella loved it.

“Three days,” Josie said. “No armor, or no more armor.”

[tpseudonana]

SLS Chapter 1 Moodboard

"Oh yes," Dorian said smoothly. "And I must say, the narrative structure of today's selection is quite... gripping. Truly a thick, penetrating read."

A moodboard for the sun-drenched competence kink and the birth of the absolute brainrot. (And Sera being a menace).

Read The Skyhold Literary Society on AO3

[demiboydemon]

[tpseudonana]

NEW CHAPTER ALERT: OPERATION SPARKLEHORN AND OTHER TACTICAL FAILURES

Or, BREAKING NEWS: LOCAL COMMANDER REROUTES NAVEL FLEET TO SECURE TOMATO SUPPLY (this is about a girl)

Summary: The two most powerful people in Skyhold pass notes like teenagers and hide from their own employees.

(If you're wondering why I'm posting this at 2:30am, no you aren't)

Read Chapter 10 of The Skyhold Literary Society on AO3

Tag List @aetherflowers @bibutterflies @carako @dogot @dragonagedorks

@inquisiorastoria @loreofthedasposts @opheliatrevelyan @priya-san @theluckywizard

@tired-truffle

[rachelkatwalsh]

“Honestly, I couldn’t keep my eyes off you. But we’d only just met.”

[fairytalelagoon]

Rutherfest - Day 3: Free Day!

This was something I had put together a little while back and decided to save it for the final day of Rutherfest, since it was a free-for-all-day.

I always found it kind of hilarious that in this scene, if you chose to side with the mages, Cullen starts by chewing out the Inquisitor, only to switch to being all cordial and friendly barely minutes later. So, I decided to turn up the crack on that scene and made a silly little edit out of it with him and my Inky, Emilia.

Hope y'all get a kick out of this! I had fun making it! 😁

[tpseudonana]

Oh man their argument is reminding me of something. Is he planning to bring her cake later? 😏

[fairytalelagoon]

I was having some more modding fun in Dragon Age: Inquisition recently, and through the magic of video editing, played with a costume change between scenes in the Perseverance quest.

And lemme tell ya, having Cullen go from fully clothed to shirtless really adds to his vulnerability and makes the confession scene hit WAY harder. (Cut it with the 'he's sexy when he's shirtless' jokes, I'm actually being serious here.) It's kind of a shame they didn't do this in the vanilla game, it would've been a cool detail for his character.

[tpseudonana]

Research Notes: Cullen's Canon Scent

If you've played the DA:I multiplayer, you might have stumbled across a very specific piece of lore regarding our favorite Commander.

One of the rogue characters explicitly states:

"Cullen smells like elderflower and oakmoss."

I am blessed/cursed with a highly-sensitive sense of smell, so I am a sucker for a man that smells nice. I really loved digging into Cullen's signature scent, so I thought I'd share some of what I dug up!

First: the Elderflower

Why would a Fereldan military commander smell like delicate little white flowers? Well, elderflower is actually used in traditional medicine as a pain reliever due to it's strong anti-inflammatory effects!

(It's also very tasty in foods!)

You can read more about its medicinal uses here, or even check out a proper scientific study here.

Now, what is our poor Commander actively suffering from? Lyrium withdrawal.

He doesn’t just happen to smell nice—he smells like elderflower. And why does he smell like elderflower? Because he's using it topically to manage the agonizing pain of his withdrawals.

But then it begs the question: where did he get it from?

Well, obviously when Ella notices his wrist acting up in Chapter 6, I had her pull out a homemade elderflower and elfroot balm. She literally gives him part of his canon scent.

Yeah. I went there.

Second: the Oakmoss (aka a species of Lichen)

I looked up the scent profile of oakmoss in perfumery, and oh boy...

"Oakmoss is a strong earthy scent used to add sensuality and depth. [It] has a woodsy nature that imparts a warm, intense and damp earthy smell."

Not only does he literally smell like a sexy forest, but oakmoss also has another use.

In perfumery, oakmoss acts as a "fixative". Perfumers use it because its molecular weight binds lighter notes together, drastically extending how long a fragrance lasts.

It anchors the volatile elements.

Cullen is the grounding force anchoring Ella (a mage with highly volatile, chaotic magic trapped in her hand).

Honestly, BioWare’s writers are geniuses, and I am just here to connect the red string on my corkboard.

You'll have to wait for Chapter 10 to find out why he smells of Oakmoss, but if you want to catch up in the meantime, you can read The Skyhold Literary Society on AO3

[inquisiorastoria]

PomPomPullen

[tpseudonana]

chapter 10 wip - highly classified intelligence

Curly, We have a serious problem. You haven’t briefed me on our joint project yet. This needs to be rectified immediately. xo Embers

Embers, A drastic oversight on my part. Project Backgammon is proceeding as planned. xo Curly

Project Backgammon? Absolutely not. Project Sparklehorn.

Oh yes, Project Sparklehorn is a vastly superior name and absolutely not something my three-year old niece would call her stuffed nug.

Better than your terrible idea. And you have a niece?! I’ll need to be briefed on her as well. But, we need to discuss this in person. I’m running out of bread for Murrow. Where can we meet?

Murrow? Do you mean the crow? His name is Constable Corvin and he prefers sweet buns, not bread. Meet me in the empty tower room near the Armory in twenty minutes.

[tpseudonana]

The Evolution of the Weaponized Postscript: A Study in Two Parts

(Or, a brief summary of human resources violations within the Inquisition)

Who gave them paper? I just want to talk.

[dragonagebigbang]

https://archiveofourown.org/works/85285391/chapters/225224446 Hi everyone! We're back with our twentieth piece for the Dragon Age Big Bang 2026!

Let's give it up for author Lore of Thedas and artist DovesnRoses; they did incredible work! Go check out their efforts over on Archive of Our Own, and we hope y'all enjoy!

Rating: Mature Summary: Six months following the end of the Fifth Blight, Warden-Commander Haljra Tabris is tasked with a new mission — to rid the land of darkspawn. After being summoned by His Majesty to Amaranthine, Haljra embarked on a new adventure; yet, Haljra did not expect to meet a new foe: Nathaniel Howe. As time passed, Haljra realized Nathaniel was never truly her enemy. And in the aftermath of heartbreak and in the midst of battle, Haljra found herself falling for the disgraced noble.

[loreofthedasposts]

Shout out to my teammate, @dovesnroses, who has been an absolute superstar throughout this event! And, I want to send a huge thank you to @purplejuni for beta reading this submission!

Tag List @aetherflowers @bibutterflies @carako @dogot @dragonagedorks @opheliatrevelyan @priya-san @theluckywizard @tired-truffle @tpseudonana

[001x456]

thank you hwang in-ho and seong gi-hun

[tpseudonana]

I don't want to say this is true, but...

[estuschan]

peeks at the next print

[alistair910]

[tpseudonana]

SURPRISE BEYONCÉ DROP! FAILED REUNIONS AND FERAL CORVID LOGISTICS

(Or, how two people who wrote six weeks of love letters completely forgot how to be in a room together.)

Turns out six weeks of letters are easier than thirty seconds of eye contact. Gear up as our emotionally fluent penpals get one (1) homecoming and immediately set the War Room on fire.

Thankfully the cake-apology supply chain is as robust as the one for the Nevarran tomatoes, and the crow works for whoever brings the most bread.

Strap in, it's another long one. Oh, and the crow has a name now. (I'd die for him.)

Read Chapter 9 on AO3

Tag List @aetherflowers @bibutterflies @carako @dogot @dragonagedorks

@inquisiorastoria @loreofthedasposts @opheliatrevelyan @priya-san @theluckywizard

@tired-truffle