#ireida tabris

5. Is your inquisitor jealous that both the warden and Hawke have a mabari hound? 

Not really, since she wound up with Cullen, so they do get a mabari in the end. I expect there’d be arguments between the three of them as to the best way to tend to a mabari, though, since Allie would constantly be slipping hers table scraps and letting it loose to romp around on its own, Rial tries to teach hers to follow the rules but usually can’t resist the puppy-dog eyes (plus, her friends are spoiling him behind her back,) and Ireida keeps hers right at her heels and usually treats and addresses it as just another one of her recruits.

9. Would your warden or Hawke have actually accepted the role of inquisitor if Cassandra had located them as she’d planned to? Would they have been a good leader for the Inquisition? 

Yes, both of them would have accepted, and I’d imagine they’d have been decent Inquisitors. I actually have an AU of Rial Hawke as the Inquisitor, and it involves a lot of secrets and covert letters (since she romanced Anders,) and some really sad moments as well (since the Hawke who’d be in contact with the Grey Wardens would be… Carver. Yeah. And Alistair is his direct superior, so that’s the choice. Only it’s not a choice, because Carver’s going to do what Carver’s going to do, and the Wardens need a leader with rank, and Carver’s not going to let his big sister call the shots on his death anymore than his life.) There would’ve been a lot more impact on the story, because of that, and finding out what happened to your baby brother would’ve been a big deal.

Ireida, I think Cass would’ve found, is both a lot stricter and a lot more flexible than she would’ve expected. She wouldn’t be making any of the little decisions, about trade or planning or stuff, probably demanding to know why she even had advisers if they couldn’t think for themselves, but at the same time, if she’s in charge then she’s in charge, and while she’ll listen to what you’re telling her, she’s not a big fan of insubordination. Once you’re her friend, she’ll help you get away with murder, and she’d happily have adopted all the DA:I companions as well (Warden!Mom, for the win!) but I doubt the stories really did her justice.

23. How old were each of your protagonists at the start of their respective games? Do you think their age affected the choices they made? Looking back would they have done any major action differently?

Ireida was in her mid-twenties, probably 26-28? I think the way she progressed would’ve been the same no matter what age her adventure started; she’d still have had that feeling of knowing and accepting her place in the world and that nothing was going to change that at the beginning, which still would’ve given her pretty good diplomatic skills, and I think she’d have made the same choices, if the plot progressed as normal. If she got sent back in time, however, with all her memories? Shianni would never have gotten drunk that morning, she would’ve argued more with Nelaros to try and make him less likely to come after her, and also would’ve demonstrated her own skill with a blade so that he would feel more that she could handle herself, and she would’ve tried her best to convince Cailan that marching at the front wasn’t just “foolish,” it was downright idiotic; in fact, for that last one, she’d’ve probably abandoned diplomacy entirely if it came to that, because, just… c’mon!

Rial started at probably 23? And ended the story at maybe 35? And I feel like although her age itself didn’t effect her decisions so much, her rational changed as she got older; she’s a lot more aggressively pro-mage now than she ever was back then, for example. Had she had her older mindset, she probably wouldn’t have agreed to so many shady business choices so readily, probably would’ve had a harder time dealing with Templars and the City Guard, and probably would’ve rushed to the aid of strangers much more quickly. If she time traveled back, she’d take preemptive action to avoid certain things; there are people she would’ve killed  (*cough*PATRICE*cough*), there are people she would’ve kept in touch with, there are meetings she would’ve gone to, and there is information she would’ve immediately shared. Basically, every misunderstanding you can think of that caused unnecessary death in Kirkwall? She would’ve tried to iron out before it even happened.

Allie is 22 when she becomes Inquisitor, and if she was older, I think she’d’ve been a lot more jaded, and wouldn’t have been the wide-eyed, ever-trusting idealist she is at the beginning; probably she wouldn’t have recruited all of the companions, maybe she wouldn’t have been so trusting of the Wardens, and most likely she’d’ve been too set in her ways to play The Game quite so well as she did. And aside from times when security lapsed, or unnecessary death resulted, she really doesn’t have many regrets, so sending her back in time wouldn’t change much… I don’t know. We’ll see how old she is and how she might act come DA4; it’s hard for me to imagine her as anything other than the bubbly ball of sunshine and anxiety issues she is right now.

28. What is their favourite location within their own game and what would be their favourite in each others?

Ireida is a city rat, and always will be. She loved her home in the Alienage, and she loved all the people there. In Awakening, she loved the Keep, as it was a place that was Hers, and no one could argue with that. In DA2, she’d’ve been most at home in Darktown, or the Lowtown Alienage, and in DA:I… probably either the Western Approach or the Hissing Wastes, honestly. I don’t know, the dryness, the sand, the ancient mysteries everywhere, it all seems like stuff she’d be really into. I mean, not every Fereldan needs to love being perpetually soggy and covered in mud, right? (Even if she really doesn’t mind it, and she’d probably get lonely out in the desert after a while.)

Rial… It changes. She likes being wherever she’s surrounded by family (blood or not,) so Act 1 that would be both Gamlen’s house and the Hanged Man at a tie, Act 2 it would be the manor, until All That Remains anyway, after which she doesn’t really like being anywhere, but she goes to the Hanged Man to drink. A lot. This, um, this pretty much cements her as a functioning alcoholic in my mind… It really scares her friends. Come Act 3, she’s doing her best to recover, and her relationship with Anders really helps, but outside of her room, next to him, she really hates that manor house. Probably Merrill’s house would be her favorite place? Or Fenris’s. Because we know that the team gathers in both places pretty regularly, and while there’s more of a crowd in Fenris’s house, Merrill’s is more “homey”. She also helps out at the clinic a lot. 

In DA:O, after Lothering (hello, actual home!), she’d probably be most comfortable in Redcliff. In DA:I, first it’d be Flissa’s tavern (hello, relapse! *sigh*), and then probably Skyhold’s garden.

Semasan “Imekari”/“Corey” Errett

Semasan was born to a young Tamassran who turned Tal-Vashoth for reasons unknown. Semasan was named for her mother’s favorite flower, a blue-grey blossom that grew along the seashore. While the child was still very young, the two Vashoth were taken in by a human merchant by the name of Ransford Errett. Errett often traded with Qunari and Vashoth, and had learned enough Qunlat to get by, which was a great boon to the Tamassran, who was struggling to learn the trade tongue.  “Tama” eventually took an official job as house and bookkeeper, while her daughter was all but adopted by Errett as one of his own. Semasan grew up outgoing, adventurous, and rambunctious, often chastised by her mother, who simply called her “Imekari,” (“Child,”) when the girl got on her nerves. The nickname “Corey” came from a misunderstanding, when some of her playmates thought “imekari” was Semasan’s name; she now introduces herself with it.

Many have joked over the years that Semasan is “only half-Qunari.” She never grew any taller than 6’3 (1.9m) putting her permanently at chin-height with the average Kossith, her horns are short, thin, and twist almost straight back like corkscrews, hiding easily amongst her thick mass of chestnutty curls, her skin is a warm golden-brown, and her eyes are the same color as the flower for which she was named; she’s a far cry from the grey-skinned, white-haired, purple-eyed giants people expect of the Qunari. Combine that with a loud laugh, a bright smile, and a willingness to negotiate her way out of almost anything, and most people are convinced that Errett must actually be her biological father as well as the man who raised her. Semasan isn’t quite sure what to make of the joke herself; while it is one she’s happy to repeat whenever people start telling her she’s “not what I expected,” it still hurts sometimes. She tries not to let it show.

Now in her early thirties, Semasan runs her own mercenary group, happily trotting back and forth across Thedas between jobs, helping as many people as she can, discount if she likes you, free if you didn’t ask. They occasionally help out various militaries, but for the most part, they stay independent. Semasan herself can be easily located in any room by her height, the mane of beaded braids swinging around behind her, and the enormous two-handed axe she carries into battle. She’s a fairly good judge of character, adores everyone she works with, and has taken anyone who works with her for over a year to meet her mother at some point. And everyone knows she’s in a loving, committed relationship with the awkward Dalish elf with the blue tattoos who can take down a druffalo from two towns over. Or if you don’t, you will, just as soon as you hit on one of them or say something offensive (good luck, buddy.)

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And now, the other way around:

Aliav’Ellan nar Lienia/vas Ferski

Ali is the small, bubbly Quarian at the butt of every joke, at least, according to her friends. While she’s never purposefully stolen something, she often forgets to ask permission before borrowing things, and often loses them later. She can most often be found clambering around in the guts of her “ship,” which is technically just a used skycar she’s “improved” to be space-worthy (with barely room for one to live in it, and that one still unsure how safe it is to take it through a Relay—she can normally find someone willing to let her park in their cargo bay when she needs to jump between them—Ali doesn’t consider the Belar a good Pilgrimage gift.) Her suit is mustard-yellow with orange and blue accents, making her easy to spot in a crowd, and she’s probably one of the clumsiest people you’ll ever meet in your life, constantly tripping over her own feet, banging her head on every nearby surface, and dropping whatever she might be carrying all over the floor (and it’s never less than ten things. Ever.)  Still, she’s not useless in a fight; with a thick, military grade blade on her Omni-Tool, a modified pistol at her side, and an old-fashioned metal wrench she keeps on her belt, as long as she’s not about to collapse from exhaustion or fever, Ali can be quite formidable when she has to be. Of course, given how often she forgets to check her valves, takes off her mask just to breathe the air, or works for three days straight, that’s a chance more people could probably risk taking.

Ali hates the suit, which is probably at least a part of how she ends up being so sloppy in her maintenance of it. She also has very weak biotics, barely enough to pick up a book from a few feet away, but she uses them all the time, and will happily brag about them to anyone who will listen; her friends mostly humor her at this point, after seeing how kicked puppy she can get if nobody’s interested in hearing about it.

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Eriya Tais/Rita D’nalas

This Asari mercenary specializes in melee combat and Infiltrator-style tactics, and seems genuinely uncomfortable with both the idea of relationships of any kind and using her biotics for any reason beyond pure necessity. Often classified as a stuck-up loner, she barely interacts with anyone she works with, and but when she does start talking, many are surprised by her knowledge of genetics; some have wondered why she isn’t a biologist or something instead. Still, Asari stick around so long few bring it up, assuming she’ll move onto other interests as she settles down and gets older, and she stays in one place so rarely, no one ever really gets to know her reasons. Or, well, almost no one.

Eriya Tais was born on Chalkhos with a Volus father, who absolutely doted on his baby girl. Her skin is an average blue, perhaps a little on the pale side, her skin marked by a few thin grey and green dashes, most notably running along the center of each segment of her scalp and two that line up roughly with where the eyebrows of a human might be. She was a soft-spoken, sweet child, who seemed very content with her home and the people around her. At the age of 54, Eriya went on a camping trip with one of her friends, and never came back. The other Asari was found weeks later, scavenged and rotting and barely identifiable, but there were whispers that what was left of her nervous system wouldn’t have kept a glow-stick alight; Eriya’s parents panicked, but the last they heard of their little girl was an Asari of a similar description buying a ticket on a nondescript ship heading for Illium two colonies over.

A few years later, Rita D’nalas began offering herself out as a hired gun, using jobs to travel from place to place, and reacting to any suggestive comment like you had just dropped a slug down her spine. She chose to abstain and hide, and no Justicar was ever sent after her, although she lives in terror of the day one did; her “condition” feels like a stain just under her skin, something that should be obvious to anyone who knows how to look. And perhaps she’s a little too well liked for a woman who’s rarely anything but gruff and anti-social, but her precautions work just fine, and she’s rarely anywhere long enough to be a real threat to anyone there.

I like to think she started running into the same oddball, tattooless Turian on multiple jobs, and he was stubborn and friendly and made her laugh and actually got her to joke along, and after two or three she caught herself falling for him. A few more missions and she didn’t want to hurt him too badly, so she just straight-up told him no relationship between them was ever going to work, and half-jokingly asked him to stop following her. To which he responded by acting shocked and offended, telling her to stop following him, and wanting to know why they couldn’t make it work? Was it his flirting? It wasn’t that bad, was it? Eventually, she wound up telling him about her “condition,” and he seemed… oddly relieved. “Not all that interested in mating anyway, Riri, if you hadn’t noticed. It’s not, um, not really my thing.”

(Because Alistair being an asexual Turian is both awesome and the only way I can make myself fully happy with this AU version of my Warden, okay? They’re very happy together.)

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10. Which of your OCs has all the sass? Who has all the class?

I…tend to give the class to my antagonists or villains. I guess Jasper is pretty classy, and Lilah can be when she wants to be, but they’d have a hard time competing with Megan and Thomas if it came down to it. Sass is pretty evenly spread out across my casts, but Abby and Moreen instantly spring to mind, just for the sheer levels of I-don’t-give-a-fuck they always have.

Rial, of course, is mostly a purple!Hawke, so she has so much sass. I’d say Coren is up there too, although hers is more stealth-sass, like, an hour or two later you sit straight up and go “Wait a minute…” And for class? Ireida. Ireida “I made Leliana teach me about nobility table manners,” Ireida “I can keep this smile through anything,” Ireida “I will talk until you think this was your idea” Tabris. Even when exchanging awful puns with Alistair, she keeps her class.

15. Which of your OCs has the most patience? The least? How would they react to someone cutting in front of them in line?

Meg has the most, Lilah probably has the least. Most of them I think would react with minor annoyance or maybe some flustered spluttering; the ones most likely to be upset honestly are the ones least likely to be waiting in line. Although… I suppose it depends on the line; Gerald is normally nothing but friendly and would happily give up his spot to most people, but if it was a line for food or charms that Maya (his sister) needed, then he’d be pretty pissed.

I feel this is a good time to bring up my two Adaars? Yeah, I haven’t actually played as them yet, but I have them all planned out; they’re twin sisters, and one of them becomes Inquisitor while the other dies in the blast. I mention this because while Ireida might be incredibly patient as she winds people up around her fingers, she has nothing on Minerva “Minnie” Adaar, who will stare you down in complete silence until you give in, for however long it takes. She can wait forever. And Rial might whine and Allie might pester, but Hadrianna (“Haddi”) will bowl everyone over in her eagerness to see what something is. Part of that probably comes from the fact the other two are not the tallest  or strongest person in their friend group (excluding Bull,) and therefore have things like shelves they can’t reach and friends they can’t just accidentally knock over, therefore making them more likely to pout than just run for the thing as fast as possible.

20. Your OC overhears someone talking smack about one of their friends. Do they come to their defense or get involved in any way?

Okay, this one is complicated. You can pretty evenly break my characters down into four groups for this one.

A) Characters like Meg and Thomas are very concerned with their image, and will probably pretend they didn’t hear it; they won’t want to make a scene. If anyone directly asks, they have a very diplomatic answer about how that sort of behavior is deplorable and they won’t stand for it, but unless they’re put on the spot, you probably won’t get them to directly confront the asshole. They’re more likely to rip them down subtly from the background.

B) Characters like Allie, who are very sweet and a little naive, and will come over with a sheepish smile to gently correct the asshole, because surely they just don’t realize what sort of slander they’re spreading, and if someone would just clarify for them they’ll stop. They are not afraid to make a scene if the asshole continues to be an asshole.

C) Characters like Ireida, Coren, and Gerald will come over and often give the exact same enlightening conversation, with the intent of educating the asshole in question, but they do it with hard voices and steely eyes and an unspoken threat of what will happen if the douche doesn’t back off. They probably won’t make a scene…here. Later though, in private, vengeance is to be expected in some unexpected and horrible way that unmistakably comes from them yet cannot actually be traced.

☆   How adventurous are they?

Ireida’s up for anything. Ten years in, you name a kink or a location, I’m pretty sure she’s at least asked Alistair if he’d like to try it. And that’s the thing, although she herself is pretty spontaneous and very open to the idea of experimenting in bed, her main focus is always going to be making sure they both have a good time and know what they’re doing. She’s adventurous, but also extremely respectful, and really wants to make sure that he never has any reason to regret sticking with her.

♧   Most exotic place they’ve done it at

Rial has pretty much always regretted it every time she doesn’t have sex in a bedroom. There was a barn in Lothering, where she and her then-girlfriend realized straw really will find the most uncomfortable ways to stab you, two separate tries on a beach–one without a blanket, the other with–which both wound up getting sand in all sorts of awful places, and once she and Anders tried in a cave, which worked until a centipede dropped on her back and thoroughly killed the mood. She likes to keep sex private, meaning most non-bedroom options are out, so if you asked her, she’d probably shrug and make a joke about an Orlesian inn.

❀   One thing they’re dying to try.