A Rogue's Regrets

wow so I don’t know what happened, but I blinked and suddenly I’ve been here for 18 months, and along the way gathered quite a few of you! (a little like Katamari Damacy, though with fewer paperclips and more cat hair and tomfoolery)

Either way, that’s a pretty big number (bigger than how many edible things I have in my fridge, how many cats I petted today and how many times I fell over my feet this week), so let me push this giveaway at you as a thank you! I sadly don’t have time for drabbles or sketches like last time, but I’ll be picking five of you at the end and making little promos as thank yous.

— rules

Open to followers only, please and thank you!

reblogs only

— prizes

five winners, five promos

promo includes a little graphic and text promo, to be reblogged a couple of times over a few weeks

gonna run this until Jan 25th! And thanks again for a swell year and a half! 

The contemplative moment was soon forced from his mind and head dragged back down from wherever it had been in the clouds. Tavern it was, then! As the two began to walk, Theo’s eyes widened and brow arched sharply to hear the woman’s playfully suggestive comment, a wide and almost comical smirk sprouting to hold his laughter at bay. But was it some sense of awkward embarrassment or excitement he was feeling? Both. Definitely both.

A rush of fluttering in his chest served as a kickstart to the warden’s seemingly relentless energy and soon he had taken the lead of their walk, including their own theme music along the way. It was a particularly obnoxious activity he’d often do during the blight to make their journeys across the countryside more eventful. At least to him, anyway. Singing bard tunes at the top of his lungs, sometimes with dance numbers, seeing who he could manage to annoy the most. Usually Morrigan. It had been quite a while since he’d been able to sing so freely, but it seemed that with old companions, old habits died hard.

Theo had managed to skip and twirl through the city crowd, having kept out of Kyllian’s punching distance just long enough to reach the tavern where he promptly dropped his childish ways in favor for those of a gentleman. A smug smile was forced down to a mere smirk just as the elf tugged open the large tavern door for Kyllian. His antics probably weren’t doing him any favors in looking like the suave, strong warden he had tricked most people into believing he was, but he figured that after knowing each other for so long, Kyllian knew the deal.

But I also found myself fighting a smile.

As he hummed his own little tune, I imagined the backing music to narrate his little story he was probably narrating in his head as we walked, much like the music played to stories told in taverns, I could not help but roll my eyes. It was somewhat annoying, me having never been able to carry much of a tune, not like Theo could, and being the vindictive jealous tripe I was. And yet at the same time there was something endearing about it. Annoyingly endearing.

The was probably the best way I could find to describe him. And what I found so charming about him. What I had Always found so charming. I felt my face tinge with tingles as the grin I fought blossomed into full bloom at the gentleman's gesture that I knew full well to be absolutely bullshit to the norm. But there was still something sweet in his attempt at the gesture. 

A snigger whistled through my nose, squeezed and strained as I tried to play the game. I cleared my throat. "Oh well, how kind of you...messere." I was trying so hard to keep down the bubbling  laughter. It might have been half nerves, for though I knew the act, he had never even attempted to play it on me. And for some reason I kind of liked it. He always got this look on his face, like a smoldering intensity when he was being polite to women like this, as I had seen many a time. The eye contact he would make with women of the Amaranthine court to gain their approve, the way he could make kiss on the hand seem so intimate...

I snapped quickly back to reality, realizing my eyes had not left him as these thoughts went through my mind and my smile faded slightly at my sudden self-awareness. I scuffled past him and into the tavern. Music played in the corner, the light was warm and the room was all a bustle. In a strange way Taverns felt like weird version of a home, as many as we had tried to stay in passing villages while on the roads. The smile quickly returned as the warmth returned to my chilled limbs. The tips of my fingers were much colder than I had previously thought. 

"Whether or not you realize it, mizzus Hawke," I said with a mocking tone, my hand balling into fists upon my hipbones, "The gate is not always closed. It is mostly open. We do business in the markets just like you humans." Rolling my annoyed eyes I gave a small scoff. Could someone be so daft? How did she suspect we got out sustenance with that gate closed, and no sustainable food market of our own? Though, she was not entirely unpleasant, as some of the humans I had had the indistinguishable pleasure to interact with. 

But as she flashed her little battle scar from her endeavor of the climb, there was a bit of respect that burned in my chest for her. Not afraid to get her hands dirty. And there was some semblance of respect to be had in that. Shortly after she finally understood the true meaning of my question. I quickly pointed at her with a smirk. “There we are! Smart girl!" I said with a touch of admiration if nothing more. Stupid guards. 

Hawke quickly darted off ahead of me and I looked after her a moment. “Bloody hell, well if you think you’re going without me, you’re absolutely daft!" Quickly I made my own, much less graceful decent from the roof, sliding awkwardly before stumbling to the ground and running after her. "I’ll hide behind the wall… Maybe if’n he’s there, we can just…" I clicked my tongue as I motioned with my hands as if to say I was banging on the man’s head. "Two against one… can’t be too bad, especially considering we’re much more clever him anyway, eh?”

Hawke slowed her pace to allow the shorter girl to catch up, a smirk on her lips though her head shook ever so slightly. Just as she reached the gate, she stopped dead and peered through. The guard was nowhere to be seen. Assuming he stayed missing in action, all the better for the both of them. The gate however, was still shut tight. Before she even thought to scale it once again, she turned to face Kyllian, arms folded as she stared down at the elf. There was a smile on her lips though her expression was serious.

"Look, if we’re going to do this I’m gonna need you to drop that attitude you have towards me." She said looking at the elf pointedly. "I may be human and yeah most humans are shitty, but I’m not shitty, so don’t treat me like it."

Without another word, she pointed at the gate and turned to it, grabbing the bars and shoving her foot into the third crossbar up to get a good foothold to throw herself up a few feet. It was as much a demonstration as it was actually scaling the thing, and took no longer than a few moments to reach the top. Lithe muscles made the job easy, and hands gripped the top bar as she swung both legs over and landed on the other side with a small thump.

She was right. Humans were shit. But not all humans. As she was clearly showing. I was just as bad as the human's i so despised. Much as it pained me to make this admittance. My face scrunched into a rather unsavory expression, lips curled as I swallowed my pride. But her words quickly brought me to attention, my posture up  straight as I reached out to grab the grating in the fence. 

I climbed more nimbly than I would have expected. Perhaps i was not as out of practice as I had formerly thought. I swung my leg over the top and quickly took the decent.Though, particularly with her height, the Hawke was certainly quicker than I would ever be. 

I looked back over my shoulder then. Just for a moment, to check this fuming guard. Much to my mistake. 

With a shrug, he felt a tug against his arm; pulled a few paces, before he gently separated them, he walked beside her.

This’ll be interesting.

"Yeah,.Ninny. You heard me." I chortled. this was the norm for us. And much more comforting. "'Course I know where we're going. You think smelly ol' me with my... what have you called it? A problem. Well I see nothing wrong with knowing the best drinking holes in every area. Don't let any swill tell you otherwise, nothing is worse than bad alcohol, Albs." Talk talk talk talk talk. The best way of avoidance. Until we were both forced to face the true subject here. Me and my big mouth.