Flutiebear: Rambling My Way Through Thedas

everyone’s favorite apostate

Dragon Age themed Inktober anyone?! Same official prompts, but I just try desperately to relate all of them to this videogame, which is how I got Varric's chain out of the day 1 prompt; ring!

Drawing Varric's chest hair truly is a spiritual experience.

Carver Hawke

“The Second” Inspired by “The Emperor”

Finally get to share my piece I did for the dragon age calendar! 🙌

I can’t believe Cassandra had to pay Varric an extra 7 bucks for him to include Sebastian in his story.

Varric: oh dear, I meant to tell you all about the Disney prince slash priest in training with the dreamy blue eyes and the scottish brogue but I’m having trouble remembering the details - maybe some gold pieces will help jog my memory?

Cassandra: Dwarf. He cannot be that important to Hawke’s story if you’ve gotten this far without ever mentioning him. Do you mean to tell me he was there all along and you just forgot about him?

Varric: All right, Seeker, if that’s what you want. I guess you don’t want to hear about the tragic death of his family and his struggle to let go of the quest for vengance so he can become a priest, while he’s also struggling to resist a forbidden attraction to our hero Hawke that he can never act on?

Cassandra: *digging through pockets frantically like the romantic nerd she actually is* wait tell me more

Daisy

I think my actual favorite thing is that the Warden’s presents are always perfect- antivan leather boots that smell like home, your mothers amulet, the sword that represents your soul

whereas Hawke just fucks it up so badly- a book when you can’t read, and amulet that would totally get you killed if you wore it in public, a fertility amulet, and a gaudy shield named after a shamed knight

don't forget hawke gives a book to the guy who can't read

i love the legacy dlc so much it physically hurts

AHHHHHHHH

Hawke and Carver having a heart-to-heart discussion at Gamlen’s after showing the recovered will to Leandra.

Source

I really cannot handle how gorgeous Garrett Hawke is, and also how much he looks like my husband. Which makes sense because I really cannot handle how gorgeous my husband is, so a lot of things just made sense for me and I'd prefer if you just didn't look at me right now.

Sometimes I think the greatest tragedy of DA2 is that Marian didn't get the same wrinkles on her face as Garrett.

I've always loved the body language in this scene. How Anders holds Hawke's face so gently, as if he's holding something precious and breakable. How Hawke hesitates ever so slightly before placing his hand to hold Anders's arm in place; how he hunches into Anders, sags against him, what little gap remains between their bodies disappearing. How Anders doesn't see any of this, because he keeps his eyes shut, maybe because he's too afraid to open them, too afraid he's still dreaming. 

And then of course what we don't see here: Hawke breaking off the kiss but not the eye contact, leading Anders to the bed by tugging on his hand, as if Hawke has to drag him there; the two of them not so much falling on the bedspread as laying down with great intention--

Like I've said before, good sex scenes aren't just hot; they tell a story. They reveal character. And in that respect, DA2's romance scenes are miles above what you'll find in most other games today.

Snippet:

As an impromptu treasure hunter at heart, nothing piqued Garrett’s interest quite like a room full of dusty wardrobes in the Amell cellars. With seven hundred years of history in the foundation of the estate, the thought of what he could uncover drew him right in to investigate. There was one wardrobe that immediately caught his eye, hidden in the darkest corner with its doors latched shut with a lock. That could only mean one thing: Something of great value was inside.

Setting his torch on the hook on the wall, Garrett went to examine the wardrobe, the lock old and rusting. He was no rogue, but there was more than one way to open a locked door, Garrett taking a few steps back. Then, with a high kick that would have made Isabela jealous, he slammed the heel of his boot into the lock. It snapped as easy as a sword cleaving a frayed rope, but brought on a cloud of dust that sent him into a hacking fit. The pain was worth it for, as it cleared, the bounty inside was revealed. Garrett whistled in disbelief, smirking as he reached inside. “Well, well, well, ancestor Amells. What were we trying to hide?”

Read more at A03 here.

Special thanks to Flutiebear, who helped make this story wonderful. Your support has meant the world to me, boo!

What I love about this story is that in just a few thousand words, it strikes a pitch perfect chord of pathos and heartwarmingness (is that even a word? whatevs it is now).

With this scenario, it would have been really easy to just coast along to an easy, fluffy ending, but I really like how dark the edges of this story are, how all the spaces in between words hints at great pain and loss. It makes the schmoopy bits and dick jokes all that more satisfying. :)