#kamikamiya

First, the Inquisitor approaches Varric, who admits that he knows little of the dwarven tongue, much less the words I love you. He advises them to go to the library. When they get to the library, they can’t find the right book, but speaking to people around the library will direct them to the archive beneath the castle. There, a book on the dwarven language can be accessed, inside which lies a puzzle. Solve the puzzle, and the phrase “I love you” will be unlocked.

Upon returning to Japhra, a final cutscene will play in Japhra’s quarters, where the Inquisitor can choose to tell Japhra their true feelings, and thus cement their relationship. 

5. If they romanced someone as Inquisitor, would they still fall for that someone as a companion? How would that play out? How would they react to that person being romanced by the “new” Inquisitor.

I’ve mentioned before that Japhra, as Inquisitor, romances Commander Cullen. If no one romances her as a companion, she eventually does befriend him, but it’s a much slower process, and any possibility of their relationship becoming romantic is left ambiguous. Here’s how it goes down:

During the evacuation from Haven, Japhra catches the first signs of Cullen’s withdrawal symptoms. Shaking hands, irritability, paranoia. She marks this as out of the ordinary, but they’re fleeing through the mountains from a Red Lyrium dragon and a walking, talking darkspawn magister while their leader has vanished under a mountain’s worth of ice and snow. Shaking hands, irritability, and paranoia are expected, under the circumstances. She puts the events out of her mind.

A few weeks later, though, at Skyhold, Japhra notices the same behavior. And again, some time after that. She’s well acquainted with what a Lyrium addiction looks like—her sister was a Lyrium addict, and dwarves are supposed to be resistant to the effects of the crystal. Quietly, and somewhat behind the scenes of the main campaign, Japhra confronts Cullen about his addiction, accurately marking it as a threat to the Inquisition. What she doesn’t expect is… well, Cullen. The man isn’t stupid. He’s taken precautions with Cassandra, and is (quite frankly) one stubborn son of a nug. Japhra realizes that if anyone can beat Lyrium, it’s Cullen. Thus, she decides to quietly support him. It’s one of the hardest things she’s ever done, as both a companion and as Inquisitor. What happened to her sister shaped so much of who Japhra is. Japhra is cautious to the point of coldness, and hates Lyrium, even normal, blue Lyrium, with a passion.

But I digress.

Long story short, Japhra does what she can for Cullen. She watches him, like Cassandra does, and checks on him regularly with special dwarven remedies that can lower the intensity of lyrium headaches. She’s got a good eye for when his symptoms are flaring up, and tries to make sure there’s always someone with him when he’s in danger of seriously hurting himself.

Now, here’s the interesting bit. How would she react to Cullen being romanced by another Inquisitor? For the most part, she grants Cullen his autonomy, and leaves them both alone to do their thing (I will never, ever, in any fic I ever write, ever, let Cullen live down the goofy, besotted smile and the line “… you said that” during the chess game. Ever). But depending on how high her approval is, a Cullen-romanced Inquisitor will have a change in dialogue options with her after the romance is sealed:

Japhra: Inquisitor.

Inquisitor: Japhra. Good to see you.

Japhra: Do you have a moment?

Inquisitor: [Pick one response]

- For you? Of course.- Sure, but make it quick.- Actually, there’s something I’d like to talk about instead. (This option reverts the dialogue back to her usual dialogue tree, and the special dialogue involving Cullen is lost.)

Japhra: You and Cullen. You’re… together now, right? Romantically?

Inquisitor: We are, yes.

Japhra: You know he’s addicted to lyrium. This won’t be easy on either of you.

Inquisitor: [Pick one response]

- I’m aware of the challenges, but I think we can do this.- What do you mean?- How we handle our affairs is none of your business.

Japhra: [High Approval/Neutral Approval] I like Cullen a lot. He’s a good man, and you’re a good [man/woman]. I don’t want to see either of you get hurt any more than you already have been. I just… wanted you to know. Either of you can come to me. For anything. I know how difficult it can be, to love somebody who… well. That’s all.

Inquisitor: Thank you, Japhra. Your support means a lot to the both of us.

Japhra: Yeah? Good. I’m glad. Was there something else you wanted to talk about?

Japhra: [Low Approval, or option 3 chosen]: Look. I like Cullen a lot. He’s a good man, and I don’t want to see him get hurt. Life’s thrown plenty of nug shit at him, and not all of it’s his own making. You’re in this for the long haul. You can’t just back out if it gets too hard.

Inquisitor: I have no intention of “backing out”. I love Cullen.

Japhra: You… do, don’t you? All right, I’ll leave it alone. Was there something else you wanted to talk about?

(Returns to usual dialogue tree)

8. What kind of Inquisitor would drive them to leave the Inquisition/confront them about their actions (what gets their approval low? what does that scene look like)?

Japhra’s approval drops if the Inquisitor is too trusting, specifically if she allies with the mages instead of conscripting them, or if she allows Morrigan to drink from the Well of Sorrows. She believes in second chances, but with appropriate supervision, and her approval increases if you recruit people from the criminal underworld. This being said, she will prefer harsher punishment for more dangerous foes, and for people who betray their own she usually favors death or exile. This includes people like Duchess Florianne and Livius Erimond. Japhra also votes exile to the Wardens for Blackwall, and approves if you choose the “Good Riddance” dialogue option, though she takes back the sentiment in later party banter with Blackwall.