The Past Catches Up With You You wake up, slow and groggy, to the sensation of something warm and wet and furry shoving against your face. You grunt and bat vaguely in front of you, coming in contact with what appears to be a large, furry wall. Cracking one eye open, you see nothing more than a giant nose directly in front of you. It exhales hot breath onto your face. You push Bella’s nose…
The Biology and Politics of Sunburn You wake up to the taste of ash in your mouth between gritted teeth. Cole must have woken you, though you don’t see him anywhere. Maybe he’s decided to make himself scarce as you wake so he doesn’t have to deal with your bad mood. And you’re in a frightful one right now. You absolutely ache for someone to take this feeling out on. It crawls under your skin…
Unimportant Complications Your first thought was to tell your master. Years later, you would understand that to the world at large, that would seem absolutely, completely insane. But you’d been his for years at that point; you hated him, but so did everyone he owned. That’s probably the natural state for any chattel under the sun. You believe with all your heart that if chickens and cows can hate, they do so fiercely and without…
Avoiding “No, focus. You seek to control your power, but it is a part of you, like an arm. See it as such, and control becomes not domination, but casual mastery. You do not seek to control your arm, it merely does as you wish.” You are terrified that if you lose your grip, this beautiful wagon will go up in flames. Control of light without heat is difficult for you. How are you meant…
Idyll Fantasies You’re gone when Sera wakes up, which is, you feel, deeply appropriate. You’re churning with equal parts regret and nausea. Sera isn’t responsible for the nausea. You’re not sure how much she’s responsible for the regret; you’re actually pretty content to blame yourself for that, too. The previous night is still a blur to you. You remember it, sort of, but it’s all fusing together into a haze of sweat and alcohol and…
Hey everyone! I am so tired, all of the time. First, life stuff! Skip to the line break for website stuff only. The tl;dr is that I managed to get hired for a job I was qualified for, got bait-n-switched (no literally I signed for one job and I showed up and they were like actually you’ll be doing 100% different job, and it turns out in America they can do that and it’s legal?????…
A Queer Night Out You’re reminded sharply of the little thief you helped in Val Royeaux, mostly because you can feel your entire mind screaming that this is none of your damned business. Nonetheless, your eyes and ears are drawn to the sound of raised voices. When you realize it’s coming from in front of the town’s Chantry, you’re even more curious. Heedless of the fact you’re in company at the moment, you move a…
Swordplay You freeze like a halla at the sight of the Seeker with her sword drawn. Time crawls to a stop as your mind and heart race into a careening gallop. Your aura is tamped down in your gut, something you realize immediately upon trying to gather it. An instinct; you probably woke up that way. Anytime something frightening happens, instinct has you tucking it away to safety instead of pulling it out. One day,…
Pigeons Are Fucking Idiots In retrospect, sleeping on the roof was both a great idea and a terrible one. It was great because you’re remarkably safe from prying eyes, and with Cole there to watch over you, you sleep pretty solidly through the night. You’re not sure if Solas just didn’t sleep or if he just wandered off in the opposite direction in the Fade or something, but Cole never woke you up like he…
No Man Is an Island Okay, so, of things you enjoy hearing, that’s at the very bottom, right alongside “kill them all!” and “don’t let her escape!” The wild thing is, however, that although the woman recognizes you, clearly, you actually have no clue who you’re being accosted by. Which is saying something; normally you’re pretty good with faces. “Hey, lady, wrong redhead,” Sera says with a scowl. “Her name’s not Alix Fancybritches or whatever.”…