14 Days of Dragon Age Lover’s Prompts - Day 3: Bow and Arrow

Day 3 of @scharoux‘s 14 Days of Dragon Age Lover’s Prompts

Ship: Inquisitor/Leliana

Tags: Day 3: Bow and Arrow, Fluff

-

“Take a deep breath. Don’t hold it like that, Alexandra.” Leliana sighed loud enough for Alexandra to hear. “Straighten your shoulders. This isn’t any staff, where you could just whirl it around with little care. You must let it flow through you, like a river seeking the ocean.”

The wind had died, and only the sound of voice clamoring, the clanging noise of steel meeting steel, seeping of mud, and the crushing of grass tore through the air. Alexandra felt her cheeks warmed, the heat prickling her skin so much that she was almost sure her entire face had been erupted with crimson. Mouth tightening, drawing into a hard grimace, Alexandra could not keep the growl from her voice. “This would be easier if I just learned how to use a sword, and not the rest of this.” Anger pummeled heat beneath her skin, pooling at her hands, and she did her best to keep the fire from erupting along the arched wood for a bow. It was a trying effort. 

Leliana’s voice seemed amused. “It would, but when had you ever taken the easier route?” From the corner of her eye, Alexandra saw Leliana stepped tentatively into her view; and faint slivers of washed golden light lefted the fitted, chainmail armor glimmering. The anger dwindled as she stared at her lover, and for a moment thought she stared at a goddess. A small smile played at her lips, and her brown-stroked blue eyes were touched with a soft light. It was not the same cold detachment which often shrouded her gaze, but something smaller, sweeter, gentler. Alexandra felt the warmth spread thickly down her neck, and felt a semi-heavy weight tug hard at her heart. But it was not harsh, nor was it cold. It flooded more warmth across her chest, all the light in the world swirling to fill Leliana’s eyes. 

“Um.” Alexandra wanted to swallow, felt her throat clogged, but could not do it, and that caused more of her blush to heighten. “No, I don’t.” She focused her mind in channeling the embarrassment in her heart into a small, tiny ball, pushed away deep in her mind and forgotten. With that, she found lips curling into a soft smirk. “As is evidence with my audacity in courting you.”

That had gotten her a roll of the eyes by her lover, though she noticed the slightest growth of a smile on Leliana’s lips, brimming with endearment. Alexandra fought the urge to throw the bow away, grasped Leliana by an arm, and capture those smiling lips with her own. “You do have a certain enjoyment in danger, I’m afraid,” murmured Leliana in a voice that was clearly meant for Alexandra as well. Her eyes had fallen to gaze at the grass at Alexandra’s feet, but they were thrown up with a heated, stern glint. “You have to learn, Alexandra. Nock another arrow, again.”

Alexandra sighed, and accepted the fact that she knew Leliana would not budge. You tried, however, she assured herself. It was little assurance, in truth. Turning on her heel, she faced the straw-filled targets, and reached a hand behind her back to grasp an arrow from her quiver. As Inquisitor, Alexandra was given the finest bow, arrows, and quiver that the Inquisition could offer - even if she had middling talent in the activity. There was no point in fighting, Trevelyan.

Then, she felt a presence behind her; fingers sliding over her arms, a chest pressed flushed against Alexandra’s back, and a chin rested on her shoulder. “Take deep breaths, ma cheri,” said Leliana, almost in a purr. A hand rested on her stomach, and a soft pressure against the underside of her arm caused her to lift her bow, notching the arrow. “Don’t draw too fast, take it slowly, and breathe.” A tingle sparked at her core, and she did her best to ignore the sweetly-accented voice grazing across her ear, or the scent of rosewater tinged with incense. This time, Alexandra was able to swallow, pushing down the twitch of her nerves and stopped the trembling in her fingers. 

Leliana’s hand gently eased her left arm back, her instructions blurring at moments as Alexandra could not help but focus her mind on the noise of her love’s voice. It was alluring, calming any feelings of panic, which bubbled at the center of her chest.

A whizzing sound pierced through the air, knocking Alexandra out of her daze state and from her thoughts. A soft wind had picked up, the lightest she had ever felt, rolling against her back. Blinking, Alexandra noticed that her arrow had struck the center of the target’s head, straw piercing out of the wound-like opening as it was hardened blood. 

Grass crackled behind her, crushing beneath feet, and Alexandra turned to see Leliana with her arms crossed beneath her breasts, head tilted once more. “You did it.”

“I...did. Maker, I did.” Her shoulders slacked, and the relief poured out of her like a flood that shattered a dam. 

“Will your magic. But I’ll let it slide, this one time.” Leliana stepped once, twice, and pressed a kiss beneath Alexandra’s chin, arms wrapping around her neck. “Well done, ma cheri.” Her voice was muffled against Alexandra’s skin, and instinctively, she pulled the woman into her arms, leaning down to kiss her. 

“All with your help, of course.” Alexandra felt Leliana’s smile grow against her lips.

When they pulled away, Leliana’s eyes were mischievous. “I think someone has earned a reward.”

Alexandra had never been so glad that most of Skyhold had still been unoccupied. 

14 Days of DA Lover’s Prompts - Day 2: Hand Holding

Ship: Inquisitor/Leliana - specifically, Amayiana

Tags: Day 2: Hand Holding, Fluff, Marital Bliss

A/N: Again, I think this could be so much better, and I’m so sorry for this complete trash. XD

-

A cool wind stirred the curtains of a deep, dark blue in a soft wave. Light from the sun swallowed the world outside from the open threshold, the scent of morning dew and budding flowers spicing the air with the gentlest touch; shadows lengthened and curved against the marble walls, some spots left glimmering by the touch of sunlight. And Amayian kept a firm grasp at Jacqueline’s hand, balancing little Isalian in one arm, and did his best to ignore the tugging at his hair by his youngest son. At a certain point, a moment in time he had long forgotten, he had given up trying to push the child’s hand away. If it was not his hair, it would be his spectacles, and the child had already broken three in a month. 

Jacqueline laughed, her once reddish hair, burned now a soft chestnut, bounced in soft, long tresses, like a veil of burnished bronze. “Come on, Papa!” She flashed a grin at him when she had turned her head, green eyes flecked with gold shimmering with strands of golden bars from the light, and he saw her mother’s features the most in that grin - light and warm and mischievous and brilliant. Despite what Leliana had often said, there was a certain smile which often played upon her lips, and Jacqueline had shared that smile more freely than his love. Out of all the things the Maker had given him, Amayian was most grateful that He had granted his children Leliana’s traits. Most of them, anyway. I would rather have them sing than to swim. Grimacing, he pushed back those thoughts with a shake of his head. With an insistent tug, Amayian was propelled forward by his eldest daughter’s rushing pace, never slowing or taking a moment to catch breath. How children bottled so much energy would always remain a mystery to him. 

“Slow down, Jacki,” said Amayian, holding Isalian a bit tighter in his arms. 

But his daughter either could not hear him, or pretended not too, as her run was swiftly sped up, and Amayian had no choice but to follow. His exasperation seemed to bring great delight to Isalian, as he laughed and giggled in between intervals of tugging at Amayian’s locks. 

A shadow was cast across marble floor, carpeted by a blue rug lined with golden along its edges, and a hand reached down to stop Jacqueline in her place.  “Ah, ah,” the voice tsked. “Slow down, ma belle.”

Leliana wore a dress of white, a belt of leather with silver buckles wrapped snugly around her waist. Long locks of copper feel lightly a little passed her shoulders, and it framed her face like a shroud of flame. Her cheeks were gently flushed and they brought out the freckles which dotted across her features like orangish-red stars. He fought the insistent urge to pepper kisses across each and every one of them and press her close to him. Later, perhaps, he thought to himself, smiling. 

A pout blossomed upon Jacqueline’s features, and she crossed her arms haughty over her chest. Stomping her foot upon a carpet which muffled the noise, Jacqueline whined. “Mama, Papa is being too slow!”

That got a raise of an eyebrow from Amayian, and he saw his wife giggled behind a hand, the other wrapped tightly on Esmyial’s, who laughed alongside his mother. “I would not be surprised,” said Leliana, whose blue eyes touched with brown twinkled like the light of stars upon a rippling lake. “He is getting old.”

His other eyebrow followed in suit, but he could not keep a smile off his lips. There was something endearing in hearing Leliana giggled, even after a near decade of marital bliss. Shifting and hiking up Isalian, as the boy tugged another lock of hair, Amayian rolled his eyes. “Where is Ralia?” 

The smile upon Leliana’s lips vanished, and her brows knitted together. “She is not with you?”

“I thought she was with you.”

Jacqueline perked up, all her annoyance of before swiftly gone as if pushed by the wind. “She’s probably in the library.” Untangling her grasp from his, Jacquliene took Esmyial’s. “We’ll go find her, Papa!” And with that proclamation, they turned and swiftly darted into another corridor where it lead, after a while and a few turns, to the library.

Leliana sighed as she watched their eldest children raced. “We better follow them. They certainly have your energy, mon amour.” Stepping delicately upon the carpet, like a forest nymph across grass, Leliana brought her lips against his neck, as if waiting for his pulse. It was the only place where she could kiss that was nearer to his face. There were moments when his height often lead to failures of romance.

Laughing gently as he saw his wife’s “distraught” face - a smile still lingered upon her lips - Amayian bent down and placed a single kiss to her forehead, and then proceed to pepper her freckled skin with kisses. Giggles erupted from passed Leliana’s lips, and with his free arm, he pulled her close to continue on his loving onslaught. At last, his lips grazed across hers, soft and warm, and he pressed her closer with a gently push of the arm around her waist to deepen it. “Are you sure it's my energy, ma cherie? Or is it their beloved mother? I'm nearly positive in saying that you have the stamina of Andraste on your side.” 

Leliana’s smirk was teasing and her eyes were filled with soft light. Her hand rose to trace alongside the line of his jaw, thumb running over his beard and cheek. “Hm. Maybe we can test that theory later tonight.” Her voice barely came as a whisper, though it sent a pleasurable warmth down his body. “But for now, we must stop our little spirits of valor from destroying the library.”

Amayian rose to his full height, and offered his hand to his beloved light, laughing low beneath his breath. “Shall we?”

With Isalian’s giggle in his ear, the child’s fistful tug on his hair, all his attention rested on Leliana’s smile, as bright as the summer’s sun and lovely beyond all compare. Delicately placing her hand upon his, the thought of how small it was compared to his propping back into his mind, she gently squeezed and said, “Lead, ma amour, and I’ll shall always follow.”

14 Days of DA Lover’s Prompts - Day 1: Rose

Ship: Inquisitor/Leliana.

Tags: Fluff, rose, 14 Days of DA Lover’s Prompts

A/N: This is probably shit. I feel like it is. But here is the first entry of the DA Lover’s Prompt!

- The leaves danced across the air in a rippling cloak of cherry and rose. Light only peaked a little across the eastern horizon, lighting the blackish-purple stone roofs and tannish brown wood with a flush of amber; the sky a mantle with wide strokes of indigo and violet, touched with pink, and mere slivers of orange, crimson, and gold, seeping and melting into one another in a seamless blend which Leliana could not find the beginning nor end to - a painting where the light breathed new life. Even the underbellies of clouds were touched with the same rosy-pink as the skies, rolling lazily overhead with faint flecks of light twinkling through. 

Alexandra shifted from foot to foot, bouncing on the balls of her feet, eyes glittering brilliant gold and bright emerald green. In the dawning light, the gold burned like burnished amber, thickly strewing through the green to nearly overpower, but even then the green stood as prominent as a gray stone in grass. The few hints of goldish-orange that fluttered through the air had left the Inquisitor’s hair sheening with golden ripples across dark, wavy locks; a burning halo of light that trembled with every turn of her head or shift of her feet. Leliana’s palms itched to pull away a rogue strand which twisted gently down the side of her face. It was a jarring outline and Leliana had to keep it in herself not to stroke it back into place behind Alexandra’s ear. She did not trust fingers nor herself to only allow Leliana to push back a mere black lock. Most likely than not, Leliana’s fingers would slip into the shadowy mane and her lips would somehow find their way to the Free Marcher’s. They were the same shade of the cherry-colored leaves…

A smile danced upon Alexandra’s lips, confident and mischievous and adorable and infuriating all boiled in one. How she was able to look both endearing and nearly divine was a mystery Leliana could not quite solve...and a part of her doubted that she even wanted to know. In the shadows of night, Alexandra was the goddess of caresses and a conductor of noises Leliana had not made in many years. But when the sky burned purplish-pink and the sun barely roused enough to color the world in its white-gold light, a softness came over the Inquisitor, a sense of vulnerability and bliss which the Spymaster rarely saw grace her lover’s features. She would not deny that she took a secret pleasure in seeing the releasing of tension in Alexandra’s shoulders; the laziness in her step so unlike the near glide over the earth like some goddess which typically displayed her pace; or the mangled mess and uncared for of her long tresses which seemingly was never disturbed out of perfection.

Maker, I have fallen, haven’t I?

No one walked through the garden, nor was any sound uttered or cried beside the soft morning wind which weaved from the west. A coldness still lingered from the previous night, but the splashes of warmth from the sun ebbed away most of it. Leliana leaned into Alexandra’s shoulder, sighing. “You seem eager for today.” She could not entirely keep the sleep from her voice or silence the yawn rising at her throat.

“I get to spend the morning with you, ma cherie, while the flowers are blossoming and the leaves dancing.” Laughter bubbled passed her lips, and Leliana thought it was nearly the sweetest sound in the world. “There is no other place I would rather be.”

Warmth prickled Leliana’s cheeks, and she lightly jabbed an elbow into Alexandra’s side. That had only got the younger woman to laugh harder, and Leliana could not find herself to be too annoyed with her love. She was far too endearing for her own good, she thought. “Hm. Charmer.” Leliana rose upon her toes, her silken slippers were trimmed with fur to bite away any cold from the previous night that had been more chilled, and grazed her lips across a pale cheek, dusted with the lightest of freckles. They weren’t so light last night, were they? A smile tugged at the corner of her lips.

When she pulled back, Alexandra was grinning that insufferable grin of hers - the one Leliana had come to adore. Once, she would had chastised herself whenever her heart’s beat rose and quicken, but the time had long passed since she had truly cared to listen to it. Alexandra’s smiles were often free and open, seductive and lovely, but they never truly reached her eyes. In the darkness of night and the early morning of day, Leliana found that Alexandra’s true smiles held secrets which no words could were able to give meaning to. Those smiles of hope, of love, of fear, and of compassion often came with the same warm, light flame burning in her eyes. “I do try my best.”

Leliana hummed and allowed herself to smile. “And you often succeed.” Her smile grew into a grin. “Sadly.” 

“Sadly?” Alexandra’s mouth laid open, gaping like some sort of fish out of water. Though, she could tell that Alexandra was not too offended; there was a certain light which flashed in her eyes, amusement burning gold and seemingly brighten the green. Leliana felt her arm wrapped tight around her waist, squeezing her side gently.

Leliana did her best to smile the most innocently as she could, despite the laughter bubbling at the center of her chest. “Oh, yes. I sadly fall in love with your horrendous puns and flirtations.” 

“My lady, you offend me!”

The rolling of her eyes happened before she could had stopped herself. “You are easily offended, ma amour.”

Alexandra’s only response was a grin. Until, she said, “Close your eyes.”

Leliana notched an eyebrow and tilted her head a little to the side. “Why?” she asked, curiosity peaking. 

“Just do it!” She waved her hand dismissively, but her grin never wavered. Instead, it had merely grown, spreading across her features to leave her eyes seemingly dazzling like stars, or a child who held a secret that no one else could possibly know of. 

And this is the woman I love? Sighing, Leliana’s eyes fluttered closed, and she became acutely aware of the soft sounds of grass crushed beneath feet, and the wind rolling cool fingers across her skin. For a moment, that was all she heard: the wind singing low with the soft patter of light feet across the green. 

“Open your eyes,” she finally heard, as chipper as a bird’s morning call. 

Fighting her own urge to smile, Leliana had to blink as her vision focused upon the woman with dark locks and dancing green-golden eyes. In her hand was a rose, a vibrant crimson that softly shuddered with the wind’s light touch. “Here, ma belle,” said Alexandra, inching forward the flower. “I believe it's quite fitting, no? You could be so prickly at times, but they are nothing compared to the true beauty which lies within...or on top, if we are going with this rose metaphor.” Her laugh was short, almost shy. Her fingers danced and petted the crimson petals. “It’s foolish, I know.” She shrugged, her lips thinning, though somehow still smiling at the corner of them.

Leliana blinked. She had never quite seen the Inquisitor so shy before, almost as if she was tumbling over and folding into herself. But Leliana reached her hand across before Alexandra could pull the rose away. “No, it is not.” Her voice barely came out as a whisper. Hesitantly, she unfurled Alexandra’s tight clench on the stem, and brought it slowly to her chest, taking it the soft scent of the rose. Her eyes fluttered closed, and she smiled. When she opened them, Alexandra’s cheeks were as red as the rose itself. Stepping closer, she leaned on the tip of her toes, and brought a kiss to her chin, before gently nudging it downward with a hand that entangled itself in her hair. Her lips grazed across Alexandra’s, ghosting over the softness. “And if you were, you are my fool.”

And my lovely rose as well.