#thejoiningexchange25

Sign-ups are now open for the 2025 exchange! Anyone interested in Warden characters and who believes they can meet the minimum requirements is welcome to join.

👉 Click Here to Sign Up 👈

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Sign-Ups Close: Sunday, October 26th, 12p Pacific Click the link to view it in your own timezone!

Contact: Ask • Discord • email: [email protected]

Creators have been revealed for @thejoiningexchange, so now I can share my gift for @juniper-and-dragonthorn! I came into this exchange certain I'd be writing something with Isseya or Valya or Davrin, but the Hawke/Stround pairing seized me and would not let go (positive)

Female Hawke/Jean-Marc Stroud | Teen | 5141 words | No CW | divider credit

On the run from the Wardens, Hawke and Stroud dare to steal something for themselves. (It ends just as it was always going to.)

addt'l tags: angst, hurt/comfort, romance, grief/mourning, vignettes, purple hawke, warden carver hawke, hawke left in the fade

“We don’t have to go,” she says, the contents of Varric’s letter hanging between them like storm clouds on the horizon. Her fingers press too hard into the parchment and leave their imprint in soot when she discards it, frustrated. “Maker knows I had to figure everything out on my own. This Inquisitor is already better off. They don’t need me— us.”

“You do not mean that,” Stroud murmurs. He’s reclined against the headboard, eyes closed, gloved fingers pressing idly at his temple.

“Maybe I do.”

“You don’t. Perhaps you wish you did, but you don’t.”

“It would be easier if I did,” she grumbles. A tired smile tugs at the corner of Stroud’s mouth; it twists something in Hawke’s heart, to see it, for how rare it is these days. And for how it throws the lines on his brow, the dark circles stamped under his eyes, into sharp relief.

“Has easier been in the cards for people like us, even once?”

Hawke huffs and settles next to him. Coaxes him sideways so his head is in her lap and her fingers can take the place of his, teasing the headache from behind his brow, offering them both the comfort of skin against skin.

“I’m eternally optimistic.”

There are currently 96 works featuring Grey Wardens in the collection! Thank you to all of our participants - we're impressed with your hard work and excited to delve into your creations 💙

Check Out the Works Here!

Reminders:

► CREATORS ARE STILL ANONYMOUS! Please do not share your work as your own publicly until creator reveals on Sunday, December 21st ► You are allowed to publicly guess who your creator might be, share recs, or link to any of the works in the collection! ► Creators, don't forget to update your publication date to today, that way it shows in Recently Posted searches. To do so: Edit Work -> under Associations check "Set Different Publication Date" -> enter today's date ► Don't forget to comment on your gift!

Treats:

The collection will remain open for treats until creator reveals on December 21st, so there's still time to post an extra gift! You can treat specific people by checking out the requests list. You can also treat the exchange as a whole by creating for any pairing on the Nominations List. ► As of now, all participants who opted-in have received at least one treat, so the Treatless List is empty! For more information and a detailed how-to, check out our Treats & Treatless FAQ!

Contact: Ask • Discord • email: [email protected]

Thank you to everyone who participated in the inaugural run of this event! Together, we created 107 new works featuring Grey Warden characters 💙

Check Out the Works Here!

Reminders

► You are now free to publicly claim your works! Add them to a series/collection/thank your beta/etc. If you post about it here on Tumblr, mention @thejoiningexchange so we can reblog your post! ► If you haven't already, make sure to comment on your main gift. Commenting on treats is not required, but it is good form to comment on all gifts received. ► The collection is now closed for posting.

a treat for @youworeblue for @thejoiningexchange

Carver finds himself in Kirkwall, though something else is Calling him…

A treat for @carako written for @thejoiningexchange

The Inquisitor needs to learn to dance, and Alistair grew up with nobles, right?

All she had ever wanted was for him to be happy. And what she got was to outlive him instead.

For the prompt: Fiona (Solo) a treat for @ashurautism for @thejoiningexchange Thank you for this prompt! I never imagined that I would write about Fiona but I am so glad that I did. She is a truly fascinating woman.

A treat for crabswithsticks for @thejoiningexchange based on the prompt: Davrin & Isseya. You can't carve what you don't know...