#pre dai

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Drawing this took long enough that it gave me a bunch of time to think about Nora’s breaking point with the Circle - the moment she realizes being a “good” mage would never be enough to keep her safe. Her best friend and the closest thing she has had to a sister is made tranquil following an assault by a Templar. The Templar was transferred to another circle. Her friend had been, by and large, a model mage before this, but an unprofitable one - with weak magic. Nora realizes that all it took for her friend to be made tranquil was for her to become inconvenient to the Chantry - for convenience of keeping her mind whole to become outweighed by the promise of profit from another tranquil mage

For a brief time after this, Nora is granted limited privileges, including being allowed to spend time outside on the battlements under Templar guard. She realizes that they are trying to buy her silence and her compliance - offering a carrot to avoid the stick. While she continues to play the part of the good mage, this moment is the moment she decides her silence won’t be bought, and she will have her freedom.

—

Deeper than the Ocean Itself—Chapter 17 by @briannasroger

Cullen/f!Trevelyan, rated explicit

Aaaaaaaa!!! Poor Ophelia is so on edge and the way you write it has me gripping the edge of my seat!! So immersive, great visuals, I’m watching my girl get tormented in 4D 🥰

“Her brows arched, unimpressed. "You are staring." Somebody come get this line and put it in the Cassandra museum! It’s so perfectly her, my unbothered Queen who has no problem stating the facts

Lmao Alfonso pls stop giving your sister a heart attack 🤣 he might be overprotective, but we love him anyway 🙂‍↕️ adhd impulsive Alfonso, my beloved

Pls tell me why I always write his name as Alphonso (I had to go back and correct it) 💀 I swear that’s how I read it and then I go back and it’s not that???? But then when I write Alphonso with a ph, my brain tells me no that’s write, cause I want to write Alfonso with an F but that’s the wrong one. My brain is gaslighting me into Alphonso with a ph 😭

OOOOOHH!! I think it’s cause Ophelia has a ph! Where the Phi lightbulb emote when you need it

“The Maker saw fit to give her caution when she required bravery, and impulsivity when she required thought” RAAAHHH!! I have so many thoughts about this idk how to articulate them all!! Like that she believes these are almost like curses bestowed upon her by her god, that He would punish her that way 😭 and she sees these pieces of herself as failures of skills she lacks when they are really skills bred out of a need to survive! Like caution has kept her safe. If she’d been more cautious with Fabian, maybe they wouldn’t have had a baby and had him subsequently taken away from them. Being brave didn’t work for her then, and so she buries it along with the pain of losing her son. Not that I think she regrets having him, but I think she doesn’t necessarily want all that pain if that makes sense. And impulsivity is thinking quick and on her feet, she hasn’t always had time for long thought. She makes me think of a rabbit here in this scene, and my heart is aching for her 🥺

Duhaime coming in hot with the leading questions, leading *me* to want to bite him 👹OH SO HE WANTS TO DIE IS THAT IT??? Saying the courts will never let her live gtfo of here!! Someone hold me back!!! Fuck you man, you don’t know shit about the courts 👹👹👹👹👹

NOT THE SA BROTHER!!! Someone get me Leliana’s bazooka, I’m killing this guy right now!!! I’m crashing out of him 👹AND HES OGGLING HER CHEST IM GONNA [redacted in incredibly violent]

Ophelia touching Cassandra’s arm to ground her 🥺 stawwppp that’s so cute!!! I love them 😭 Ophelia and her scary soldiers 🥰

“You can choose to be the spider, or you can choose to be the fly.” Im about to be a black widow in a sec if you don’t STFU dude 👹👹👹👹 great writing tho, you really drive home his skeeviness and I hate him so thoroughly only cause you made it possible 🙂‍↕️

Being not assassinated is a very good goal indeed 🙂‍↕️ but it’s really interesting how they are being blunt! And I think Ophelia’s point about her being a prisoner still is affecting that. Like people just don’t see her as human, she’s little more than a circus monkey to them 😭

“Ophelia sighed.” Like Commander, like Herald LOL I am thinking about the line last chapter that was “Cullen stared.” LOL 😂 I love them

“It was a relief to know thinking about her friend didn't send her into a spiral.” Aaaaaaaa!!! She’s starting to heal!! I’m so happy for her 🥺 but also I’m so sus that this orlesian guard is similar to her friend, it almost makes me wonder if this is a ploy or something to get her to drop her guard. I wonder if that’s what they were trying with the first guard??? I’m suspicious. And also why doesn’t that guard talk? Seems like a poor excuse to say it’s cause he’s new… I’m exploding these guys with my mind too 💥

EEEEEEEEEE!! Cullen so smoooooth RAAAHHAHH I WANNA EAT HIM!! They are so in love and I just want to skip in circles around them!

“Cassandra stared.” I love this, like the Cullen stared and the Ophelia sighed. The Big Three.

Not Cullen telling the guards to dance beside them 😂😂😂😂😂 sending meeee he’s such a sassy bitch LMAO 🤣

“The guards and Cassandra followed at a pace, Cassandra sighing in a way that was almost—but certainly couldn't be—dreamy.” Yessssss there’s our romance lover 🥰 it so is dreamy, Phi, cause you and Cullen are dreamy and in love 🥰

“His face tightened. "The Inquisitor's request." 🤦‍♀️ BROTHER PLEASE! Don’t do your lady dirty like that! Very in character tho LMAO

"Forgive me. I am not one for dancing." …🥰 forgiven! Please proceed!

“She imagined the whispers.” What if you imagine him whispering dirty things in your ear instead? What then phi?

“There was a moment of awkwardness in the space of a breath before he led her into the first steps.” That’s a nice sentence you got there, don’t mind if I read it a couple times cause its really good 🥰

“his hand tightened on her waist, sending her outward and then drawing her closer.” SMASH!! Oh, you weren’t asking?? Well…. *(quieter this time)* smash 🙂‍↕️

“Don't worry about me."

"I always will." I pronounce thee husband and wife. Amen 🙏

Ooooooo sensitivity to scents!! That’s an overlooked one! Especially around nice scents. Like yeah, it makes sense that a nasty smell would make someone nauseous, but that headache from a bunch of overpowering good smells is also terrible!!

"You have an odd fixation with me breaking my legs." PLS 😂 he’s so silly I love himmmmmm

“Desire always lingered just below the surface when she was around him.” I don’t know why this is making me unwell but it isssss just !!! That they are both still holding back around each other, those feelings still new and unsure, and lingering, waiting for the right moment to release!! Not in front of the crowd, but slowly over time I think 🙂‍↕️

Eeeeeee!! I love how he explains why he says no in the game to inky, and like aaaaa!! I just love that little nod to the game and that we get to explore it differently here!

“Wondered if she would someday be brave enough to simply do so.” I’m thinking about the part earlier where she says the Maker didn’t bestow her with bravery 🙂‍↕️ but I think she’s plenty brave in ways that she just doesn’t realize!! It takes a lot of strength to survive everything she has and be mostly normal, that is a bravery in its own right. Just cause it’s quiet, doesn’t mean it isn’t brave 🙂‍↕️

Baron Amis, my behated, you too are on the mind explosion list, so ready yourself 💥

Ohohoho Ophelia is playing the game so well here!! Take that you stupid Baron!! Baron (barren) in heart and in home

"A soft voice and big eyes will work to distract your Inquisition, but I answer to a higher calling." Yeah, his overinflated ego 😒

"I have fought for peace. I have no wish for the carnage to continue." UGGGHHHHH I despise men like this, they’ve really convinced themselves that this is the truth and it’s so annoying. Like wake up asshole, your dick is two inches and you suck!! Get a grip! And he’s a very believable villain! You’ve made him very real 🙂‍↕️ and I want him very dead 🙂‍↕️

Eeeeee!! This chapter was so fun!! The game and all its moving pieces, how Phi fits into it, and the dance with Cullen were all fantastic!! Can’t wait for the next one in two weeks!

A Single Thread of Gold—Chapter 2 by @morganaofcamelot

Cullen/Shadowheart, rated Mature

"Who are you?" Cullen asked. "What kind of sick game are you playing at?" Aaaaaaa!! What a perfect Cullen response! I can really feel his trepidation here, and like damn yeah this would be so freaky for him! So many unknowns!

Rip my little brain buddy, but it makes so much sense that Cullen would kill it! He doesn’t fuck around with the supernatural, and a talking brain would qualify as demonic to him!

Ooooooo!! Him worrying it’s the future makes so much sense for him! He’s so desperate to make sense of it all, or at least enough that he can push forward, that he’s grasping at anything logical that he can! And honestly it’s a good guess!

Lmao 🤣 not Cullen being called an abomination LOL we love when that canon dialogue just fits perfectly ❤️ and he’s probably looking at her like lady have you lost your mind??? Also aaaaa! I’m so curious how he’s gonna deal with these new races that he would consider demonic! This guy is face to face with all his worst fears and I’m so here for it!

“The woman gave him a dismissive look that distinctly reminded him of Cassandra.” Ahahahaha 🤣 omg he’s so right tho, that unimpressed glare is so Cassandra 🤣

Oooooooo I love their partnership so much!! And I’m so excited to see where this goes!

all you had to do was stay—chapter 19 by @bibutterflies

Cullen/f!Lavellan/Solas, rated Explicit

I know I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again: Cordy’s attention to detail on all her gifts is soooooo sweet!! I just adore the thought she puts into everything, and the little personalizations. Like yes Sera loves bees, but leather boots is also so fitting for her! She’s gonna love it!

Aaaaaa!! And the boys are playing chess together!! How domestic and sweet 🥰 but also their competitiveness is sending me 😂 i can perfectly picture them both being like “please 😒 obviously im winning.” Aggsjskahag though i think Cullen should be more impressed that he can go toe to toe with someone as old and allegedly wise as Solas

"Why, exactly, are we still pretending that you two aren't together?" Dorian’s asking the real questions over here 🙂‍↕️

"Well, tits, I hate being out of the loop," she grumbles.” LMAO 🤣 top notch Sera dialogue fr fr

“Clearly, she's gotten far too used to receiving physical affection whenever she craves it.” That’s cause she’s a pretty princess who can do no wrong 😤 and both Cullen and Solas know this

C’mon Solas, let that inner wolf out AAWWWOOOOOOOOO!!

Solas brother, if anything she was being too kind 😂🤣 she doesn’t know the agreement!! For all she knows yall are cheating 💀 but I suppose an alpha wolf has needs (to kiss the inquisitor)…would Cordy be an alpha beta or omega? I think maybe we’ve had this cursed convo before, but I’m leaning towards omega…but ANYWAY!! Sera is right and Solas is horny 🙂‍↕️

Ohohoho the plot thickens!! Lots of fun tidbits in here for me to snack on like thick mints!!

“She kicks the stone with a frown.” Pouty girl hehehehehe maybe someone should kiss it better

Trapped and alone with only Solas! Whatever shall they do 😈 I remember you talking about this scene like months ago, and I’m so happy we finally get to see it!!

Ahahahaha Solas hates that she knows him so well but also wants her to know him so well. No know, only know! Until then, she’s removing his walls brick by brick, and I like to think that now she’s just gotten to removing the ones at her eye height, so he can finally see what she’s doing and he’s both freaking out and wanting more 🙂‍↕️ And she’s baiting him like a fish in a pond hehehehe

“Because when he kisses her, it's the closest to peace he's felt outside of the Fade.” WAAAAHHHHHH!!!

“Fenedhis, Maggie!” Eden shouted, letting out a loud huff. “You always do this. I’m gone for a few days and you’ve let everything go to shit,”

“Creators, Eden... I just forgot to bring your sword inside, I didn’t know it was going to rain,” Maggie said quietly, eyes trained on the ground. In their hands Eden held a sword they had been working on, the leather on the hilt discolored and molding from being rained on, rust forming on the blade. They sighed, looking up at their sister.

“I have worked on this sword for weeks. It’s ruined now,” they said, their voice growing quiet. Maggie shifted uncomfortably, she knew that once Eden grew quiet like this, they were really angry.

“I know, Eden. I know. I- I’m sorry,” she said, looking back up at the archer before her. Eden felt themselves grow hot, a burning in their chest as they looked down at their creation, ruined from the rain.

“I should know better by now. It’s my mistake for trusting you wouldn’t fuck something up,” Eden spat, shaking their head at the mage. They took a deep breath, immediately regretting the words as soon as they fell from their lips. “Maggie, I-”

“That sharp tongue of yours will be the reason Elgaris leaves you,” Maggie responded, snatching her staff which had been leaning against the twin’s tent. Eden huffed, hands resting on their hips.

“Come on, Maggie,” Eden said, more softly now.

“Don’t. Just leave me alone for a while, Eden,” Maggie said dejectedly, shaking her head as she turned on her heel, heading towards the forest.

“Shit,” Eden muttered, pinching the bridge of their nose.

Eden’s temper often got the better of them, harsh words rolling off their tongue entirely too easily. They always regretted it immediately after, seeing how their words hurt others. The nasty things they would say just spilled out of them, poisoning the people they loved. The rage that festered inside Eden scared them. They found it hard to control the inferno once it started burning.

“What was that about?”

Eden turned to see their partner, Elgaris, approaching them from behind, a puzzled expression on his face. Elgaris was a warrior for Clan Lavellan, found as an infant by Keeper Istimaethoriel among some elven ruins. They had grown up together, childhood friends turned something more. Eden cared for Elgaris a great deal. He was strong, a talented warrior, and a good friend. He helped take care of Eden and Maggie after their mother had disappeared, always ensuring they had everything they needed. Eden admired his strength and tenacity, and his ability to put up with their temper.

“Maggie is angry with me. Again,” Eden said, messing with the sword still in their hands.

“What did you say to her?” Elgaris asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Why would you assume it was my fault?” Eden asked, feeling the anger burn in their chest once again. Elgaris raised an eyebrow at them knowingly.

“It doesn’t matter what I said. I’ve upset her,” Eden said, leaning the now ruined sword against their tent.

“What’s that?” Elgaris asked, looking over to the sword. It was a beautiful weapon, crafted with Dalish design. The blade was engraved with intricate patterns, the leather around the hilt a dark blue, though most of it was discolored now from the rain.

“It was a gift. I was making it for you,” Eden said, crossing their arms. Elgaris took a step closer, leaning down to inspect the weapon. The patterns engraved in the hilt were vines, hand engraved into the steel. Along the side read: ‘Dareth shiral, ma vhenan,’

Safe journey, my heart.

“It’s… it’s beautiful, Eden,” Elgaris said, his expression growing somber.

“Then why do you look sad?” Eden asked, cocking their head to the side. Elgaris froze for a moment, clearly thinking about something.

“Don’t worry about it, vhenan,” he said, pressing a kiss to their cheek. Eden nodded, letting out a huff.

“Maybe I should go after Maggie. I owe her an apology, if nothing else,” the archer said, reaching for their bow and quiver. Elgaris nodded, his eyes still trained on the sword Eden had made.

“Dareth shiral,” Elgaris replied, turning away from Eden. Eden could feel in the pit of their stomach that something was wrong, Elgaris wasn’t usually this... quiet. Eden steeled themselves, they couldn’t focus on that right now, though. Eden slung their quiver over their back, heading out towards the forest.

“Ar tu na'lin emma mi!” Eden hissed, the string of their bow pulled taut as they aimed an arrow at the man approaching them. Their hand was steady, ready to let the arrow fly at this perceived threat.

“Eden, it’s me!” he said, palms raised in defense. Eden narrowed their gaze, their body tense, adrenaline rushing through them. That voice was familiar, why did they know that voice? Eden concentrated on the face before them, struggling to recognize any features. A man. An elven man. Slowly, he became more recognizable. Dark brown hair tied back in a bun, a sword slung over his back. His vallaslin was dark blue, the mark of Mythal. Eden had gotten their own vallaslin the same day, theirs representative of Ghilan'nain.

After a moment, Eden’s eyes grew wide, realizing the man before them was their lover, not an enemy.

“Elgaris,” they breathed, lowering the arrow. “Ir abelas, I-” Eden began, feeling a well of emotions bubbling to the surface as the adrenaline began to wear off. Had Elgaris taken one more step, Eden would have killed him. Just as they had killed the men now lying at their feet. The men that had slaughtered their sister right before their eyes.

“Eden, what happened?” Elgaris asked, his voice shaking as he looked around at the carnage before him. Several bodies lay scattered around Eden, all but one riddled with arrows. As he looked closer at the body before Eden, his breath hitched. Red, shoulder length hair, long pointed ears, just like Eden’s. He recognized the mage's staff immediately. Redwood with intricate carvings, a wolf's head at the top. He had made that staff.

“I found Maggie,” Eden whispered, dropping to their knees. They rolled over the body before them, revealing to Elgaris that it was indeed Magdalene, Eden’s twin sister. Elgaris gasped, his knees weakening as he looked at her, lying in the dirt, a gash across her throat.

A tear streamed down Eden’s cheek as they looked down at their sister, her eyes still open, the blood on her neck now dark and dry. Eden’s hands were shaking as they held Maggie, an ache in their chest. They gently closed their sister’s eyes, letting out a sob as they cradled her body.

“This is your fault. You know that, right?” Elgaris said after a moment, watching Eden stroke Maggie’s cheek. Eden froze, their gaze slowly traveling up to meet the other elf’s, the shock on his face replaced with anger.

“What did you say?” Eden hissed, slowly moving to stand. Elgaris’ eyes grew wide, dropping his gaze to the ground. Eden cracked their neck to the side, feeling that all too familiar burning in their chest, breathing growing more ragged. They took a step towards the warrior, their jaw clenched. Elgaris took a step back, clearing his throat as he eyed Eden’s fists, now balled up at their side.

“She wouldn’t have come here if it wasn’t for you,” he spat, reaching for the sword slung over his back. He held it out in front of him, his grip on the hilt shaky as Eden slowly approached him. The archer’s knuckles were white from digging their nails into their palms, the muscles in their forearms flexed tight. The anger within felt white hot and blinding, consuming them like a forest fire.

Elgaris scrambled backwards as Eden reached him, gripping on to his sword. Eden reached out for the sword’s guards, wrenching it from the man’s hands. They tossed it to the side, grabbing the front of his armor and pulling him towards them.

“Go on, seth’lin, say it again,” Eden said, lifting the man off of the ground. Despite being the same height, Eden was much stronger than Elgaris, a vice grip on his clothing. He struggled to free himself of the archer’s grasp, gasping for breath. Elgaris clawed at their hands, sputtering for air as Eden lifted him up. He could see the all consuming, seething rage in their eyes, all semblance of anything but anger gone.

“Eden, don't do this,” he squeaked out, pleading to be released from the elf’s grip. Eden took a deep breath, the urge to snap Elgaris' neck almost consuming them. They let out a breath, tossing him to the ground.

“Get out of my sight, Elgaris. Before you end up like them,” Eden hissed, gesturing to the bodies on the ground. Elgaris huffed, standing up and dusting himself off.

“You’re going to end up miserable and alone, Eden. You couldn’t even keep it together for her,” he said, watching the archer carefully. “I hope you know it was always Maggie. I loved her. You I merely tolerated,” he spat, kneeling down to pick up his sword. A sharp whistle pierced the air, an arrow flying right over the top of the warrior’s head. He looked up, fear overtaking his expression.

“You have 10 seconds to run,” Eden growled, another arrow ready to fly. Elgaris’ eyes grew wide, scrambling backwards. Eden watched him take off, running as fast as he could in the opposite direction of the archer. They turned back towards Maggie’s lifeless body, stumbling over to her. Eden knelt down next to her, placing a hand on her shoulder.

“I am so sorry, Maggie. This is all my fault,” they whispered, tears forming in their eyes. As they gazed upon the body of their sister, they felt a different kind of pain in their chest. Unlike the rage that festered deep inside, this didn’t burn. This was a gaping, chilling, all consuming kind of ache.

Eden stayed by Maggie’s body for what felt like forever. Stroking her cheek, her hair. Telling her all of the things they never had. How much they loved her, how they’d miss the way she talked in her sleep, her laugh. How they were sorry for all of the awful things they had said, for the fights they started. Things would never be the same. Now Eden had no one.

“The Dread Wolf guides you, lethallan,”

Eden looked over their shoulder, seeing Keeper Istimaethorial approaching them from behind, her staff in her hand. Eden looked down at Maggie, lying lifeless before them.

“You must stray from these ways, Eden. Your rage will consume you,” she said, lying a hand on Eden’s shoulder. Eden knew she was right. The rage that festered within would overtake them one day if they couldn't calm it.

“This is my fault,” Eden whispered, closing their eyes. The Keeper shushed Eden, kneeling down beside them.

“Yes, it is. And now you must endure,” Keeper Istimaethoriel replied, patting Eden’s shoulder. The mage stroked Eden's cheek, standing and turning on her heel. "I will have Elgaris and his men come and get her, she deserves a proper ceremony,"

“I suppose I must,” Eden whispered, a hand on Maggie's shoulder.