Return of Fluffy the Dancing Ogre

[twist_shimmy]

He has the power to... move you.

Awww, guys. :(

Based on a lot of the PMs I've gotten today, pretty much everyone is feeling awful. Why not take this moment to scribble down a few paragraphs/sketches of fluff and post them in the comments here? As soon as I get the new rule implemented, I'll post mine.

Comments

So... you three know each other?

[miri1984]

This is a little something I've been working on (with the help of the gorgeous AmhranComrac) to cheer myself up. I hope people like it. It will be worked into a mini-fic about Neria and Anders' wedding - total and UTTER fluff, with some fireballs thrown in for fun. Hope it brings a smile to people who follow either of our fics :).

The ship arrived on the evening tide. Sigrun, Nathaniel, Anders and she were standing on the docks as she came in - a beauty of Antivan design, flying the griffon pennant from its mast, looking extremely official. Of course, officially they were coming for a meeting of Warden Commanders - Caron had arrived a few days ago and this ship carried both Gaspare from Antiva and Dianora from the Free Marches. That the two warden Commanders were going to be present for her wedding was an added bonus. There was still trouble in Kirkwall - according to Dianora - and it was nice to know that she could manage to get away.

As the ship pulled into dock and the gangplank was lowered, Neria felt Anders draw in a startled breath. The wardens were milling about on deck, obviously ready to disembark. She could make out the tall, flame haired figure of Dianora, next to the slightly shorter, swarthy Gaspare. Beside Gaspare, however, was a much shorter, dark haired figure who looked vaguely familiar.

Anders’ hand clenched on hers and he turned her to face him. “Neria, I’m going to ask you to promise me something,” he said softly.

She looked up into his eyes, which were narrowed. “Whaaat?” she said slowly.

“We’re in a public place. So… no lightning. Or entropy. Or actually, no magic at all. Especially no shapeshifting.”

The wardens were making their way down the gangplank now. She had a moment to think that the dark haired woman was wearing the most ostentatious version of warden mage robes she’d ever seen before it hit her who she was. “Andraste’s arse!” she swore. Anders pulled her closer to him.

“No magic,” he hissed.

“What, do you think I’m five?” she hissed back. “I can be civil to her. Why on earth is she here?”

“It makes sense, when you think about it. She’s the head of the mages - she probably wants to… discuss magic with us or something…”

“Discuss magic?” Neria asked, raising her eyebrow at her fiance. He shrugged. 

Sigrun elbowed Anders in the ribs. “Up straight magic people,” she said. “Got to look good in front of the grown ups.”

Gaspare and Dianora and… the other mage were approaching.

“Anders! You are a warden!” Maggie Amell had a wide grin on her face, her green eyes twinkling with glee as she rushed forward. She looked about to hug him, but Anders, to his credit, stepped back and thrust out a hand to shake hers instead. 

“It’s good to see you Mags,” he said.

“And Neria! Look at you!”

“Maggie,” Neria said, nodding. She was quite pleased she managed to keep her tone level. Gaspare broke into a broad grin. 

“You three know each other?” he said.

She resisted an urge to roll her eyes. “Oh, yes,” she said, forcing a smile. 

 

Re: So... you three know each other?

[scarylady]

uh oh, trouble's a-comin'

Re: So... you three know each other?

[cave_fatuam]

SQUEEEEEEEEEE!!!!
That is all.

Re: So... you three know each other?

[amhran_comhrac]

I am so excited for you to do more of this! :D

Soothing .gif the first.

[twist_shimmy]

Re: Soothing .gif the first.

[elysium_fic]

*iz ded of teh cute*

Re: Soothing .gif the first.

[lenna_nightrunner]

OMG THE CAT I FORGOT ABOUT THE CAT :D :D :D

Re: Soothing .gif the first.

[cave_fatuam]

Must resist urge to mimic kitten, as kitten is in an endless loop...oh, to hell with it. Hello! *right wave* Hi! *left wave* Hello! *right wave* Hi! *left wave*....

Re: Soothing .gif the first.

[zute]

He's got the happy feets!

Here's a snippet I've been working on for Valentine's Day

[sagacious_rage]

"Here, do you know what this is?" Alistair asked, a faint tremor in his voice.

"Hm?" Pilar looked up from cleaning darkspawn blood off her armor to see her friend crouching next to her, holding a small flowering plant. "Oh yeah!" she grinned. "Leske and me, we stole a bunch of these off a surface merchant once." She shook her head and grimaced at the memory. "They don't make good eating, though. Real tough and bitter even after we boiled them for hours!"

Alistair furrowed his brow. "No, it's not for eating. It's a rose."

"If you can't eat it, what's it for then?" she asked as she turned back to her chores.

"What's it for?" he repeated, baffled. "It's just to... look pretty. And it's for you."

She stared up at him. "For me? Really?" She quickly ran through every option she could think of to come up with a reason to possess such a thing. "Why?"

He blushed a deep red and became even more flustered. "Because it's nice to have beautiful things. And it's for you because it reminded me of you. And... I have to go," and he ran off, stumbling over a tree root.

She sat for a moment, stunned, staring at the flower. Its petals were a deep velvet red, soft and silky. Its smell rich and sweet. The thorns had all been painstakingly trimmed. She stood and wandered over to Morrigan's tent.

"Hey, Morrigan?" she asked as she sat next to her at the fire. "Do you still have that mirror I gave you?"

"Of course," Morrigan reached into her pack to retrieve the shiny thing, and handed it to her.

They sat in companionable silence as Pilar alternated between studying her face in the mirror and studying the flower. "Reminded him of me," she murmured to herself, still not quite believing it.

Re: Here's a snippet I've been working on for Valentine's Day

[twist_shimmy]

Oh, the last two lines especially are just devastatingly adorable. :D

Soothing .gif the second

[twist_shimmy]

Re: Soothing .gif the second

[zute]

OMG! I otter laugh out loud! I swear, that little guy is tee heeing!

[ashstoner_021]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Bmhjf0rKe8

[cave_fatuam]

This was to quell the great and terrible Andraste, but ya know, it's cute too, so...

Look at Young-ish Tesni! All happy and not beat down by the world...
Lil' Caerwyn has never even heard of a cat before.
Also, ZOMG! Screentones!

[lenna_nightrunner]

Omg that is ADORABLE! It's true; she used to be happy XD

Caerwyn thought he was happy too, until he discovered cats and discovered their awesomeness.

Cutlet

[twist_shimmy]

A while back, cave_fatuam made me the cutest art of Evie and Absolon. So my contribution is a flash-fic to go with it.



The fire crackled, seeming determined to put Evie at ease, but it was the heavy weight in her lap that succeeded in making her eyes droop and her breathing deepen. She lifted a heavy hand and scratched at Absolon's ears, giggling as the pup wiggled onto his back and offered his plump, well-fed belly to the same treatment.

“There you are, pup.”

She looked up to find Fergus, long and lanky, staring at her from the entrance to the kitchens, clutching a practice sword in one hand. “Nan's been looking for you.”

Evie shook her head. “She wants me to go sit in the library, but Aldous says Absolon can't go in with me.”

Her brother chuckled and sat beside her on the floor. “That's because he chewed up the books last time.” When Absolon growled, he snorted. “I don't care if your teeth do hurt, cutlet. That doesn't mean you can chew on anything you like.”

“He's not a cutlet.”

“He will be if he does something like that again.”

“No!” Evie clutched at Absolon, hugging him close and ignoring his sleepy whines that clearly asked for freedom.

Fergus sighed. “Forget I said that. I wasn't being serious.”

They sat together in silence for a few minutes, lavishing Absolon with attention, before her brother sighed and rubbed at his forehead. “Okay. I have it on good authority that she's already checked the stables for you. If you want to keep playing with your pup, that's the place to go.”

Evie grinned up at Fergus, took Absolon in her arms, and bolted for the servant's door. She had the best brother ever.

Re: Cutlet

[lenna_nightrunner]

D'awww this is indescribably adorable :D I am very happy right now.

[cave_fatuam]

"man pouch"?
I think I might be a little in love with you for that. ^_^

D:

[twist_shimmy]

I just realized that I haven't EATEN today. That is how hard my inbox was hit. D:

I wonder if Herren The Boy would order me a pizza....

My life is super dumb...

[cave_fatuam]

Boyfriend (Doodle) just started playing through with a Dalish, so he can finally beat the game with every origin. He's tromping around Ostagar at the moment, and called me into the room...
Doodle: Your dad is Loghain.
Bef: What?
Doodle: Your father is Loghain. It's fucked up. I can't unthink it now. If Loghain had a limp we could sue the shit out of them.
Bef: Pfft. My dad would kick Loghain's ass at a pissed off ol' man contest. He's awesome.
Doodle: You just don't want to think about who that makes you. -the goofiest grin evearrrrrrr-
Bef: A queen who's married to a fool? Bitch, we ain't married. -finger snap-
Doodle: -blink- I love you, but you can't watch Nene and Kim* any more.

*This is what he calls Real Housewives of Atlanta... which I caught him watching without me the other day. XD

Re: My life is super dumb...

[elysium_fic]

OMG LOL-till-my-ribs-hurt.

[aithne]

This isn't new, but I'm going to bet most of you haven't seen it. We were discussing on the circle_tower LJ community the fact that Anders and Cullen share a voice actor, and that voice actor has done musical theater, and someone suggested, "Circle Tower! The Musical".

...and I wrote lyrics to a song. So, here, have a duet from the non-existent Circle Tower musical.



Nowhere You Can Hide (That Never Stopped Me Before)

(SCENE: the chapel at night, Anders sitting in the pew before the statue of Andraste)

(LIGHTS: Come up a little, tight spot on Anders)

[ANDERS]
Six times escaped, seven I’ll make it
Seven times—yes, that has a nice ring
‘The seventh time’, I’ll say, ‘I put a sleep on the Templars
And slipped out the door—didn’t see a thing!’
Andraste, my pardon, but I’m not meant for this life
I’m sure you’d understand
All I want is some freedom, a good meal, close friends
And these unseen chains off of my hands…

(second spot comes up slowly to reveal Cullen stage left, in the shadows)

[ANDERS]
Six times gone, the seventh’s the last
This time, Maker, I swear it’ll stick
This time, Andraste, I’ll slip all their nooses
Destroy my phylactery, yes, that’s the trick

(spoken)
This time, Andraste…

[CULLEN] (spoken)
You might want to keep your voice down, Anders.

[ANDERS] (spoken)
Oh, fabulous.

[CULLEN]
Six times, mage, and never you learn!
We bring you back time and time again
A year in solitary wasn’t enough?
Next time it’s your neck, and your body burnt
The whole of Thedas is a cage for you
There is nowhere you can hide
What’s out there that draws you?
What do you think you’ll find?

We keep you safe here inside this stone
Away from those you’d hurt and harm—
You want freedom? Freedom to starve?
Free to see fear on every face
And hate in every eye?

[ANDERS]
You wouldn’t understand—

[CULLEN] (spoken)
Try me.

[ANDERS]
I still remember, Templar, my mother’s face
My father’s strong hands, my sister’s kind eyes
The rest here, they’ve forgotten—
Orphans all, Circle-born babes—
Curled blind worms in the stone
Without futures or pasts
And Andraste forgive me, but I cannot live like that!

Six times, seven, eight, or nine,
Six times or sixty, it doesn’t matter
Only the grave can stop me from trying,
And even then , Templar, my ashes will scatter
The wind will bring me freedom at last.

[CULLEN]
Death can be arranged, ser mage
If that’s the thing you really want
If that’s the price you’d pay for freedom
If you would dare to turn that page
I’ve killed stronger men than you—

(They start to circle slowly around the chapel, watching each other)

[ANDERS]
I don’t give up quite that easy
But, ser Cullen, if you like you can try
Give me an excuse, go on, I dare you
Use that sword and we’ll see if the apprentices lie—

[CULLEN] (startled)
Lie?

[ANDERS]
You think the Templars are the only ones who watch here?
Ah, ser Cullen, we watch as well
One little mage who’ll never know the edge of your blade
She’s pretty, isn’t she? Ah, you never can tell—

All this talk of duty, Templar, and the Maker’s will,
But there’s one mage in the Tower we know you won’t kill.

And if one, why not two? Or three? Or thirty?
That blade of yours was forged to drink the blood of mages
But in your hands, will it go thirsty?

[CULLEN] (spoken)
You can’t understand—

[ANDERS]
(spoken) Can’t I?

(sung)
Freedom to starve, freedom to lie
Freedom to love and freedom to die
All these are choices taken away
From both knight and from mage
Ah, Templar, are we so very different?
Don’t we still bleed? Don’t we still pray?

(counterpoint)

[ANDERS] Six times, seven I’ll make it A cage of stone can never hold me A pretty girl on my knee and a good meal And the right to shoot lightning at fools And bring a little more light to the world… This Tower’s a circle, and all a Circle can do Is go around, never forward, never back Six times, seven, as many as it takes Until I’m at last free of this place Where the knights and the mages glare Silence and dust in every room I refuse to believe it is my duty To be trapped here—

[CULLEN] You can’t understand the task I am given The demons that haunt every innocent face I guard the world from the likes of you Who have brought their sin to Heaven And doom upon the world… Mage, we cannot be alike There is no world where we are brothers My blade was forged to drink your blood My soul was born to ward the others But there are nights of darkness and silence When I ask the Maker, is this really true? Why choose me for this double-edged duty? Because I am trapped here—

(unison)
I am trapped here just like you…

(they stop circling and just stare at each other. One measure of silence)

[CULLEN]
Go on, run. I’ll follow
I’ll be the hound that dogs your steps
I’ll flush you when you go to ground

[ANDERS]
That won’t stop me, nothing will
But you know that, don’t you?
Once a runner, ever so bound
By the Maker, this time…
This time, it will last…

(pause)

[CULLEN] (spoken)
If anyone asks, I never saw you tonight.

[ANDERS] (spoken)
Much obliged.

(lights down)

[darkrose]

This is wicked awesome! Reminds me of the first act duet between Valjean and Javert in Les Mis. I am in awe of people who can write lyrics.

[lenna_nightrunner]

If At First You Don’t Succeed...



“Ow!”

The bowstring caught my fingers as I let go and my arrow fell to the ground. I winced and shook out my hand, where angry red marks were blooming.

“Try again,” said Tesni.

“It hurts.” I glowered up at her where she stood at my side.

“And it’ll keep hurting until you get it right.”

“I don’t want to,” I grumbled

“It’ll hurt even more if you get a wolf’s teeth in your arm because you can’t shoot it properly.”

I stuck my tongue out at her and she messed up my hair. “Again.”

Left hand on the grip, rest the shaft above it, two fingers on the bowstring, pull back--

“Fen’lin!” I cursed as my hand was caught again and dropped my arrow.

“Language, da’vhenan.” Tesni crossed her arms in disapproval. “Did Tamlen teach you that?”

Yes. “No.”

“Try again.”

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Left hand on the grip.

“It might be hard to tell where the target is that way.” I could hear the smile in Tesni’s voice.

“Shush.” Rest the shaft above it.

Two fingers on the bowstring.

“If you shoot yourself in the foot I’m not going to be the one to tell Keeper Marethari what happened.”

“Shush.”

Pull back--

Twang. Thunk!

I hadn’t hurt my hand! With my eyes still shut tight I heard Tesni giggle at me. I opened my eyes and found, to my amazement, that not only had my arrow actually left the bow without falling, it’d hit pretty near the mark I was supposed to aim for on the tree in front of me.

I let out a whoop of victory. “I did it! Mamae, look!”

Tesni rolled her eyes, but she was smiling when she messed up my hair again.

“Yes, you did. Now, either you can try again with your eyes open, or I can send Tamlen to find a wolf that will stand perfectly still while you shoot at it.”

I grumbled and went to get my arrow.

Left hand on the grip.

“Again.”

[twist_shimmy]

YEEE! YEEEEEEEE. *flails*

Broken Shimmy is broken.

[visser]

Random conversation between me and the boy that I shared with Shimmy, but felt I should post it here cause I love you guys.

Sabia Arenaviridae: She says- "Seriously, he looks like Loghain."
sr2k2k: lol
sr2k2k: the 1/2 asian version?
Sabia Arenaviridae: I kind of just stared at my screen for a bit.
sr2k2k: if it helps, my teeth are much better (everyone in DA seems to have very brown teeth due to their shitty lighting engine)
Sabia Arenaviridae: haha true
Sabia Arenaviridae: You also don't look like you haven't slept in weeks =P
sr2k2k: well
sr2k2k: it's good that it doesn't necessarily show
sr2k2k: lol
Sabia Arenaviridae: hahaha
Sabia Arenaviridae: I admit, there's a few similarities in the chin and jaw, but.... (totally denying it to keep from sounding like an idiot)
Sabia Arenaviridae: I just got this mental image of braiding your hair and I LOST IT
sr2k2k: lol
sr2k2k: you should have seen me in HS then. Hair down to my waist.
Sabia Arenaviridae: *dies*


<3

Dearest Tasmen and Cave_Fatuam

[sagacious_rage]

Por vous:



And Tas already knows this, but that particular scene was the inspiration for the first scene in

I was going to cut out the table-flipping but certain people *cough cough Tas cough* told me that they would never forgive me if I did so it's there.

And Maebh is wearing a grey dress. I can't remember if I said so but she is.

OK MAYBE THIS GIF ISN'T AS CUTE AS KITTENS BUT IT SURE AS HELL MAKES ME HAPPY


(You've been engaged NINETEEN TIMES!!)

Re: Dearest Tasmen and Cave_Fatuam

[sagacious_rage]

Gdi I effed up that html sorry :(

[miri1984]

Ok, if you want LOLS HAVE SOME THRILLER:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PMeiRXs6Gxo

[amhran_comhrac]

That is perhaps the greatest thing ever
and I'm not just saying that because I sent it to you. :D

[decantate]

Ok, I have some fluff for the three people who remember Blood Ties. Behold: an excerpt from the chapter that hates to be written:


In winter Shartan brushed snow from the bench beside her. “Ah, it is cold.”

“It is so cold.” Her face was tipped up and as he put his arm around her he looked up as well, to the smooth-faced statue of their mother and the little tree planted over their father’s ashes, weak sapling that it was with exposed twigs scratching at the clouds. Surana turned to him and buried her face against his scarf and just like that, she was crying, her body heaving awkwardly with it. He jerked his head at her guards and they hardly hesitated before moving off.

“It’s a great big shem twisting around inside of my body and I feel it and my clan, my clan, I don’t have a clan, I cannot, my…”

Shartan pulled her closer, watching the courtyard, but his hand dropped to rest on the hard circle of her belly. “This little one, my niece or my nephew?” Her face was hidden beneath her fine furred hood but and her sobs were muffled by it. He gentled his voice further. “Think on this perhaps: I am your clan. You are my clan. The baby, it is our clan, yes?”

“What,” her voice broke. “What shall I say then when I go to the Dales? I have won this for them and I am to go there as a traitor with a round-eared babe that my own body made?”

Shartan slipped her hand down her belly and the child kicked for him. “The humans do not treat us so badly anymore and this is your work. Even you know that you are carrying this little one for our as much as you are for them, yes?”