8061 réponses à ce sujet

[Sarah1281]

Or where they assign one of the characters as your default LI and has your character flirting with them against your will from the first time they speak back at whatever base they have. I'm pretty sure right now that if they do that then it doesn't matter how appealing the LI is because I'll never romance them.

[Ramante]

Since most of you aren't following the DA2-threads, this is what I was talking about:

GZ: What have you learned from the feedback on the romances from the first game that you’ve now taken to the second game?

DG: I don’t know, but there’s a lot of feedback for us. I’ve done a number of our romances, going back to Baldur’s Gate II. I always like to try something new. Origins was really quite in depth with the characters and the romances in particular. From what we get from the fans, there were a lot of people that the romances were more important to them than the story, which is great. It’s very gratifying to hear that. There’s only so much we can do, but I think trying out some different things like DAII takes place over a large span of time, and I always found that the romances can be a bit strange and that they don’t grow organically. It’s sort of a situation where you’re in this life-or-death adventure, you’re comrades that have been thrown together and passion springs out of that. It was nice to get the opportunity to have a romance that took place over years as opposed to a month at best. That was interesting to try, until I learned.

GZ: Do you expect the reactions to be the same for Dragon Age II?

DG: No, like I said, we are trying different romances. Alistair, for instance. He was a bit of a ‘woo-bie.’ A very cute romance, and a lot of people loved him a lot, which was great. But I wouldn’t want to have an Alistair-like character in a romance, because we’ve already done that. We could do something similar, or maybe revisit that in the future. However, the idea is about finding that happy medium between fans, especially ones who are the biggest fans of DA:O. They have that conflicting desire, which is they want everything to stayexactly the same, nothing change, but they want it to be new. You’ve got to find a line to walk in between there, and no matter which way you go they’re probably going to react negatively. However, you’ve got to sort of forge your path.

Edit: Format hates me

Modifié par Ramante, 24 janvier 2011 - 03:35 .

[Sialater]

Corker wrote...

ejoslin wrote...

However, honestly, my first playthrough, I romanced Alistair and got dumped, then started the romance with Zevran. 

I tried that.  Imagine my surprise when Flirty McFlirterson had no more sweet words for my Warden!  He must have realized it was a Bad Idea Rebound thing.  

Really?  Moira was still in a relationship with Al and got Zev back up to love to the point where I'd have to reload after accidentally clicking on him because he'd demand she choose.  And she took Zev to bed first. 

But this may be the bug I'm trying to recreate.

[Corker]

Yup, really. My first f!Cousland told him in no uncertain terms that he could not, in fact, leer at her, and neither would he get a kiss for answering questions. Turned the romance right off, couldn't restart it later.

[Shadow of Light Dragon]

Ramante wrote...

In the latest interview Gaider said that they realized that the romances were one of the most popular (and best) parts of Origins. The only changes (given so far) are that the LIs will not be the same as in Origins (so no 'just-like'Alistair'-romance and that this time the romances will evolve over years and not a month.
I think that in DA2 the romance convo's will be spread out over a larger part of the game, so you won't be able to get them in love in the first conversation.

Interesting...Laidlaw said on the forums recently that the percentage of players who actually did the romances wasn't that great (and he claimed he had the stats to prove it...because stats are oh so reliable ). But he also admitted he wasn't a fan of game romances to begin with. I think all the shipping is turning him into a hater :x

(Thanks for comments on entry, will write my own for others after work! <3 )

[ejoslin]

Sialater wrote...

Corker wrote...

ejoslin wrote...

However, honestly, my first playthrough, I romanced Alistair and got dumped, then started the romance with Zevran. 

I tried that.  Imagine my surprise when Flirty McFlirterson had no more sweet words for my Warden!  He must have realized it was a Bad Idea Rebound thing.  

Really?  Moira was still in a relationship with Al and got Zev back up to love to the point where I'd have to reload after accidentally clicking on him because he'd demand she choose.  And she took Zev to bed first. 

But this may be the bug I'm trying to recreate.

Ok, here's the explanation!

Once the romance with Zevran (or Alistair for that matter, or for a male with Leliana if the dialog is fixed properly) is cut off, it stays cut off.  No way to revive it.  And it's super easy to cut off Zev's romance.  Make it clear you think of him as only a friend or let him know you do not want him flirting with you, and voila, cut off.

The bug:  When Alistair forces you to choose between him and Zevran, if Alistair is the one forcing the choice, the wrong flag gets set for Zevran.  It ends the romance, but doesn't cut it off.  SO if you have a romance starter line still available, you can restart his romance.  However, if you do restart his romance while the romance with Alistair is still active, it bugs Zevran's dialog so you can't talk to him until you break up with Alistair.

Edit: And if anyone is wondering whether that is REALLY a bug, or working as intended...  the flag that gets set is something like ZEVRAN_ROMANCE_CUT_OFF_CANNOT_BE_RESTARTED.  Unfortunately, despite the name, the flag just does not work correctly.  

Modifié par ejoslin, 24 janvier 2011 - 11:46 .

[Kornichon]

deadline for the prompt! I'll say the results tomorrow ^^

*spent all the night to draw threesome with naked Zev. And bananas.*

Modifié par Kornichon, 24 janvier 2011 - 11:50 .

[payroo]

Prompt: Jealousy.  I wonder how you think Zevran would act and think about it.
anger? payback? sadden? disregard?
it's up to you!


Time Limit: No more than 3 hours

Deadline: Monday January 24th (not definite hour) 

Prize: Fan art, ask what you want and I'll do!
(but I don't do complex backgrounds, mechanicals, and things that will make me spend too much time on it)

go!

Oops, I hope I didn't miss the deadline!  Oh well, it's still Monday where I am so here goes:


fullsize: http://i56.tinypic.com/m9yvsg.jpg

I have been influenced by all your guys' amazing fic about Zevran and his brief stint with the Dalish! So I drew something vaguely along similar lines

eta: haha I guess this is a non-entry if it is past the deadline?

Modifié par payroo, 25 janvier 2011 - 02:17 .

[Sialater]

ejoslin wrote...

Sialater wrote...

Corker wrote...

ejoslin wrote...

However, honestly, my first playthrough, I romanced Alistair and got dumped, then started the romance with Zevran. 

I tried that.  Imagine my surprise when Flirty McFlirterson had no more sweet words for my Warden!  He must have realized it was a Bad Idea Rebound thing.  

Really?  Moira was still in a relationship with Al and got Zev back up to love to the point where I'd have to reload after accidentally clicking on him because he'd demand she choose.  And she took Zev to bed first. 

But this may be the bug I'm trying to recreate.

Ok, here's the explanation!

Once the romance with Zevran (or Alistair for that matter, or for a male with Leliana if the dialog is fixed properly) is cut off, it stays cut off.  No way to revive it.  And it's super easy to cut off Zev's romance.  Make it clear you think of him as only a friend or let him know you do not want him flirting with you, and voila, cut off.

The bug:  When Alistair forces you to choose between him and Zevran, if Alistair is the one forcing the choice, the wrong flag gets set for Zevran.  It ends the romance, but doesn't cut it off.  SO if you have a romance starter line still available, you can restart his romance.  However, if you do restart his romance while the romance with Alistair is still active, it bugs Zevran's dialog so you can't talk to him until you break up with Alistair.

Edit: And if anyone is wondering whether that is REALLY a bug, or working as intended...  the flag that gets set is something like ZEVRAN_ROMANCE_CUT_OFF_CANNOT_BE_RESTARTED.  Unfortunately, despite the name, the flag just does not work correctly.  

Ah, but the bonus of the bug is you get the romance lines at the gate.  And yes, that sounds exactly like what I did entirely by accident.

[ejoslin]

Sialater wrote...

ejoslin wrote...

Sialater wrote...

Corker wrote...

ejoslin wrote...

However, honestly, my first playthrough, I romanced Alistair and got dumped, then started the romance with Zevran. 

I tried that.  Imagine my surprise when Flirty McFlirterson had no more sweet words for my Warden!  He must have realized it was a Bad Idea Rebound thing.  

Really?  Moira was still in a relationship with Al and got Zev back up to love to the point where I'd have to reload after accidentally clicking on him because he'd demand she choose.  And she took Zev to bed first. 

But this may be the bug I'm trying to recreate.

Ok, here's the explanation!

Once the romance with Zevran (or Alistair for that matter, or for a male with Leliana if the dialog is fixed properly) is cut off, it stays cut off.  No way to revive it.  And it's super easy to cut off Zev's romance.  Make it clear you think of him as only a friend or let him know you do not want him flirting with you, and voila, cut off.

The bug:  When Alistair forces you to choose between him and Zevran, if Alistair is the one forcing the choice, the wrong flag gets set for Zevran.  It ends the romance, but doesn't cut it off.  SO if you have a romance starter line still available, you can restart his romance.  However, if you do restart his romance while the romance with Alistair is still active, it bugs Zevran's dialog so you can't talk to him until you break up with Alistair.

Edit: And if anyone is wondering whether that is REALLY a bug, or working as intended...  the flag that gets set is something like ZEVRAN_ROMANCE_CUT_OFF_CANNOT_BE_RESTARTED.  Unfortunately, despite the name, the flag just does not work correctly.  

Ah, but the bonus of the bug is you get the romance lines at the gate.  And yes, that sounds exactly like what I did entirely by accident.

Hmmm, I assumed people were getting it at high adore, not just with an active romance that isn't love.  I haven't tested it much, and with ZDF you have to have him in love to get the love dialog (high adore may get the friendship one with ZDF or maybe just get the romance active one, I haven't tested it that much).

What was causing the wrong dialog to trigger at the gates was an incorrect flag -- and a flag that was completely broken at that.  PLUS whoever did the data entry didn't understand how the approval flags worked, so even if that particular flag hadn't been broken, a warden in love still would have gotten the friendship dialog.  It was such a mess!

Modifié par ejoslin, 25 janvier 2011 - 02:37 .

[EccentricSage]

I don't think David Gaider meant that the whole game takes place in a month or less. I think he's addressing the ability of the player to rush through most of the dialogue and get to adore in a very short period of time, which may equate to a month or less in game. I remember him mentioning his dissatisfaction with that aspect of the old game mechanics in a thread somewhere.. I think it was when everyone was discussing Awakenings and what we did or did not want to see in the next Dragon Age game.



I think the events in the game as a whole would be over the span of half a year to a year. I think it's a tad unrealistic to push it to a full year or more, though, as the area of Ferelden we travel doesn't seem very big. I think the early DLC stretch it more, but the question 'Why does the Archdemon wait so long to advance it's troops' always bugged the hell out of me. I really wish the game kept track of time, I wish that the map was a tad more spread out, and I wish that about half way through the content in a single playthrough, that the Archdemon would begin a slow advance that you would have to try to block. Much more realistic.

[Shadow of Light Dragon]

ES: You're reminding me of the first time I played Baldur's Gate 2. Near the start, one of your companions is arrested and spirited away to some sort of 'mage asylum', so of course I went "Nooooooooo!" and tried to rescue them in the fastest way I possibly could...skipping ALL MANNER of sidequests.



Last time I did that with a (Bioware) game Now I just take my sweet time, traipsing from locale to locale, confident in the knowledge the Game World Revolves Around the PC to such an extent that it doesn't matter how fast you run (your cousin/friend will still get horribly tortured/raped) or how long you take (the villain will chill out while waiting/your cousin/friend will be saved in the nick o' time).

[Shadow of Light Dragon]

Comments tiem...

@Sarah: Jealous Alistair is jealous, but Zev doesn't seem himself for some reason...(may just be me, but I find the idea of a jealous Zevran almost as foreign as an obviously-being-kind-to-Alistair Zevran). Good attempt at the fill...I thought it was a tricky one, myself.

@mousestalker: Hehe, I liked this, it had some clever lines and consider me educated on what a ballade is (and Cyrano de Bergerac too!)

@Corker: *lots of sniggering* Clever way to deal with the prompt. And ridiculously awesome Zev-voice XD

@Sialater: I can actually *see* Zev wanting to smack Alistair a good one for being reluctant to take (be-mistress?) a Warden he admires. And recognising that station is more than he can offer as a Crow? :/ Nice work with the internal thoughts.

@Tigress: Ooh, good characterisation of the two guys, and just enough suggestive remarks on Zev's part that he doesn't come across too serious/friendly. Alistair does have some jealous/over-protective banter in the game, and it's a nice idea that he might finally recognise when Zevran's in love (maybe even before the Crow does).
(And thanks for the comment before! I think that brings my total of m/m fills to a grand total of 2 XD)

@payroo:  So much emotion The proud/happy Dalish with fresh vallaslin, Zevran touching his Crow tattoos One wonders how much celebration there is when an apprentice Crow gets his 'wings'. I can imagine it's a joyous time for a Dalish... Excellent picture.

And I know it's not a prompt, but...



Bwaahahah. I have Homer Simpson in my head going "Eatthepudding eatthepudding eatthepudding eatthepudding..."

[Kornichon]

payroo wrote...
eta: haha I guess this is a non-entry if it is past the deadline?

I didn't put an exact hour, so it's ok! ^^


TING-TING-TING! So time to comment and choose the winner and the next "prompter"!

Kornichon wrote...
soooo.... my turn for a new prompt?
what about...........



Prompt: Jealousy.  I wonder how you think Zevran would act and think about it.
anger? payback? sadden? disregard?
it's up to you!


Time Limit: No more than 3 hours

Deadline: Monday January 24th (not definite hour) 

Prize: Fan art, ask what you want and I'll do!
(but I don't do complex backgrounds, mechanicals, and things that will make me spend too much time on it)

go!

Sarah1281 wrote...

Ahria Tabris kissed him softly and Zevran could feel a burning stare on his back. She giggled and then practically floated off to her tent. Zevran watched her go for a moment before turning to the semi-hidden observer.
 
Alistair was still staring at the spot where Ahria had been standing. There was a dark look in his eyes and he was absentmindedly shredding the rose in his hand. Zevran vaguely wondered where he had found such a thing as he hadn’t noticed any of that kind of flower during his time with the Wardens. Perhaps it had been found earlier and Morrigan or – more likely – Wynne had preserved it for him.
 
“Hello, Alistair,” Zevran greeted. “Lovely evening, isn’t it?”
 
Alistair shrugged noncommittally.
 
“What are you still doing up?” Zevran continued, completely undeterred by the less than encouraging response.
 
Alistair mumbled something indistinct.
 
“I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that,” Zevran said apologetically.
 
Alistair cleared his throat. “I was planning on talking to Ahria.”
 
“So why didn’t you?” Zevran pressed. “I know that she and I had been talking for awhile but you could have caught her before she turned in.”
 
Another shrug. “I wasn’t really in the mood to talk by that point.”
 
Oh, so Alistair was perfectly capable of giving hints but refused to take them, was that it? Was Zevran going to have to actually come out and ask the other man about his jealousy? Well, if Alistair could ignore such blatant hints than Zevran could feel free to as well.
 
“But I noticed that you were waiting there for at least twenty minutes,” Zevran reasoned. “If you did not wish to speak to Ahria after all, why wait?”
 
“So you knew that I was right there?” Alistair demanded, suddenly angry.
 
Zevran tilted his head. “Of course I did. In the assassin business, not paying attention to your surrounding means that if you don’t happen to get killed then you at least deserved to be.”
 
“I…see…” Alistair said in the same uncertain tone he always used when Zevran spoke of his background. “Why didn’t you say anything then?”
 
“Ahria and I were talking,” Zevran explained. “And if you needed to speak with her you could have either come up to her right then or waited as you chose to do. I had assumed that if it were more important than what I was saying you would have felt comfortable interrupting.”
 
Alistair frowned but said nothing.
 
Trust a Ferelden to make him be blunt despite the way that that was screaming against all of his hard-learned instincts. These people were his allies for now and his protectors; he really did not need them to wish him dead. “I haven’t known Ahria long-”
 
“Doesn’t seem like it,” Alistair muttered under his breath.
 
Zevran wisely chose to let that go. “And so I was interested in hearing your opinion of our illustrious leader. I understand that you were actually the Senior Warden and no matter how much you might hate to lead, I’m sure that you wouldn’t put someone completely inept in charge.”
 
“Maybe, maybe not,” Alistair said vaguely. “Ahria isn’t incompetent, though, not nearly.”
 
“Then what is she?” Zevran prompted.
 
A small smile broke over Alistair’s face as he thought about her. “She’s…she’s just great. She’s really pretty and she knows how to wield daggers better than anyone I’ve ever met. She’s the most stubborn woman I know and without her I doubt I would have made it past Lothering. I didn’t even have a plan until she suggested the treaties, you know. I probably would have given my life trying to defend that little town and ending up not really doing much good.”
 
“You like her,” Zevran said gently.
 
Alistair started. “O-of course I like her. She’s my fellow Warden and the best friend I’ve ever had.”
 
Zevran stayed silent, waiting.
 
Alistair fidgeted under the elf’s stare. Finally, he continued with, “And so maybe there have been times when I’ve thought about her like…that but practically the first thing I learned about her was that – and I quote – she’d ‘rather slit my own throat with a rusty spoon than even consider ever touching a human.’ I think it might be because of whatever happened when she was recruited but she doesn’t like talking about it.”
 
Zevran nodded his agreement. Ahria hadn’t told him either but that made sense. Even the elves who were insistent on mating with other elves so as to make sure to not have a human child usually weren’t that vehement about it without reason. “So there really is no hope?”
 
Alistair laughed bitterly. “No, none. Even if it weren’t for you, she’d prefer the rusty spoon to me no matter how close we might get.”
 
Zevran really wasn’t sure what to say. ‘I’m sorry’? It seemed appropriate for the situation but he really wasn’t. He liked Ahria and was glad that she wasn’t interested in Alistair and wouldn’t be interested in Leliana either.
 
“I-I am glad that she’s not alone, though,” Alistair said hesitantly. “I mean, I’d prefer that I could be with her but since I can’t…I just want her to be happy.”
 
Zevran examined Alistair closely, trying to gauge his sincerity. Satisfied with what he found, he gave a brief nod. “You’re a good man, Alistair.” He wondered if he would be that dignified if he ever found himself in that kind of a situation. Not, of course, that he ever planned on allowing himself to get into that kind of a situation but there were so many things about his life that were completely unplanned that it was best not to rule anything out.
 
Alistair’s face twisted into a mirthless smile. “Lucky me.”

Awww really heartbreaking for Alistair...  I love the way they speak together, I've always think they like each other more than they want to say ^^

mousestalker wrote...

The man stared at her.

"You are jealous of me, jealous of me and this elf? Lamb, you are fooling yourself if you think he is faithful.”

The Crow rose from his seat at this, smiling. She raised her palm at him.

“Zev, this is my duel. Besides I need bard practice.”

“Cara, he...”

“My fight. You, fop, are you saying you know Zevran?” She was smiling as well.

“Kallian, I am the wronged party here, no?” She held her palm up.

“Argue with Leli.” Her mouth smiled, her eyes were stone.

The Crow settled back, seemingly furious.

“Personally, no. I've certainly heard of him. Besides, it doesn't count with an elf.”

“I think we will fight. To make it interesting, I will compose a ballade extempore and recite it for you. On the refrain. I shall strike home.”

“A ballade, really. I have no desire to hear an ancestral chant to your dogs.”

“You do not know what a ballade is? A ballade is a metrical poem with three six line stanzas and a four line envoi.”

“I know what a ballade is, knife ears.”

The tavern floor cleared with alacrity.

Leliana began taking book. The elven rogue considered betting, but resumed her preparations. The crowd was hugging the walls of the room, giving the combatants plenty of space. Zevran made his way to the redheaded bookmaker.

“You may still reconsider. No? Very well.”

“An encounter between Kallian Tabris and an Orlesian of Low Taste.”

“What was that?”

“My pardon, that was the title. Let us begin.”

“You come here foreign free foeman
stranger to this tallest of stone
stranger in a stranger land
soon to be friendless, all alone
flesh to be cut from your cloth'd bone
To be burned atop this bare loam
Sad should you be, weep and groan,
And at the refrain, I thrust home!

Your sword does not fight with elan
Your wind has departed, you are blown
Here is where the elf may beat a man
And find the fight she may call her own
despite battling a man sans tone
Your breath gasps, your mouth oozes foam
You face a fighter not gnarl'd crone
And at the refrain, I thrust home!



Here you are, far from kith and clan
Pricked by pride well overblown
Felled before all by woman
Shame will be your own tombstone
There you will lay quiet and prone
Your clothes ripped, hair uncombed
In the dark where light once shone
And at the refrain, I thrust home!


Prince, shake not, nor you weep or moan
In seconds you to your fate come
For this tavern ballade is done
And at the refrain, I thrust home!”



As the man died on the ground, she stepped over him and was swept up by the elven assassin. He held her in his arms, then they kissed.

When they came up for air, much much later, he called to Leliana, “So, how much did we make?”


Apologies to Edmond Rostand, Brian Hooker and Cyrano de Bergerac.

Time: 2 hours, 34 minutes.

love the poem ^^
I noticed it was rare to see some bard action in fanworks! and the way Zevran comes to the warden after the fight is really lovely ^^

Corker wrote...

Meta Jealousy
Time: 40 min
Prompts: 2

Zevran?  Zevran!  Where the hell have you gotten off to?

I am, as ever, at your service, my dear.  I was simply... off for a bit of a stroll.  It has been so quiet, lately.

New weekly prompt: jealousy.  I hinted, a while back, that this threesome thing with Leliana and Kallian was not going to last.

Indeed.  I believe I told the fair bard that I was not inclined to share my dear Warden's affections.

But the bed ended up being negotiable.  Well, how about we take a shot at the end of the thing?  What if you were to think that she was falling for Leliana again?

Oh, I am sure you would much rather write that from Kallian's point of view.  Or perhaps Leliana's.

What?  No, Zevran.  The point is how you handle your feelings.  Since, you know, you usually don't.

Ah, but I am told that viewing the little hints and cracks in my facade is a part of my charm, yes?  I am the puzzle box which must be teased open.  What puzzle will there be, if you tell this tale from my eyes, mm?

Dude, the prompt is jealousy.  I'm pretty sure there's not going to be a big mystery over what's in the box.  It's in the title.  Come on, work with me.  Bedroom, brilliant white morning light, fluffy blankets, Kallian with Leliana snuggled behind her.  You're looking at Leliana sleeping and thinking...

Two lovely ladies in my bed? What's not to like?

Excuse me?  Are you even listening to me?

...I beg your pardon?  I was distracted by the bosoms.

Maker's breath, why are you being so difficult?

Well, it's quite hard to concentrate when there are so many fine bosoms on display.

Oh, for the love of... You had a fifteen thousand-word long porntastic fill.  And you were the noble hero of an even longer fill.  No pouting because I'm writing some fem slash.

I would protest that most of those fifteen thousand words were spent with Leliana, not with my Kallian.  And now Leliana and Kallian are cavorting whilst I am off doing what?  Mocking Alistair at the Pearl.  Amusing, yes, but not nearly as satisfying.

And never mind that it cements the Kallian/Leliana pairing more firmly with the readers?

I... suppose I may have a concern along that line, yes. 

So you are jealous.

Since I have had so little 'screen time,' as they say, I do not even know!  Perhaps if there were some more context, I could better answer your --

Did I not start this conversation asking you to hit Wardrobe and Makeup?

But you are leaping the firearm! 

Jumping the gun.

As I said.  How can I find my 'motivation,' I believe they say, for the scene, when there is such a gap between the now and the then?  Perhaps I am not jealous.  Perhaps Leliana will have given her heart to another by then.  Who can say?

I can!  I am the author!  

Pah.  Then you should know better.

So... you're feeling left out.  I get it.  I've got every intention of doing that f!Brosca massage fill for you, you know.

Yes, I have been waiting very patiently for that one.  Imagine my surprise when I saw you writing something for Odessa instead!

Hey man, I don't cross her.  If she doesn't get her way, I turn around and find everything else I'm working on hog-tied and gagged.

Perhaps I should start assassinating rival works, then.  And now, what is this?  Alliterative poetry?  This has nothing to do with Thedas at all!

Sorry.  Deadlines.  (sigh)  Okay.  I'm sorry if you're feeling neglected.  I tell you what.  I'll go, see if I can hunt up a nice Zevran/f!Tabris prompt, just for you and Kalli, all right?  

I want it at least as long as the one you are doing now.

No promises.  But if it's short, maybe we can do something about your adventures at the Pearl.

Oh?  That might be amusing.  But no Oghren.

Oh come on! 

...perhaps if there is a bath involved.

lol it's just...awesome. Very original and fun! ^^
sometimes I have a little Zev and others chara with their own personnality in the head to chat with... weird, I know XD

Sialater wrote...

Zevran froze at the treeline to the camp, his eyes locked on her.  She cuddled close to the would-be king, her small, perfect body cradled against his larger, well-muscled one, her raven hair loosened and trailing down her back and over the boy king’s arm.  The assassin’s grip on two rabbits he held in one hand tightened.  He forced himself to loosen his fingers before he ruined the meat with shattered bones.  

He’d watched them silently, back in Denerim, in Eamon’s mansion, as the boy agreed to keep her as his mistress.  She’d actually had to talk him into it!  He’d wanted to walk over and slap Alistair until the man’s head rung.  She deserved more.  She deserved a life that wouldn’t revolve around death and pain and terror and strife.  

He couldn’t give that to her.  Neither could the man whose hand stroked her arm gently, as if she’d break.  Zevran knew what that skin felt like.  She’d taken him to her tent first, after all.  he wrenched his mind away from that thought.  She deserved more than to be anyone’s mistress.  

Though even being that was better than he could give her.  Bitterness was a solid mass in his stomach.    He had nothing to offer her besides a life on the run from the Crows.   She kept him safe, not the other way around.  He knew that and it was a hole in his heart that though he had her back, she truly was the one that had his.  It was that strength within her that made him want to shelter

She also had his heart in the palm of her tiny hand.  He had no idea when her delicate fingers had gotten hold of it, but there it was in her gentle grip, beating along with hers.  “You are not the only one to move quietly, I see.”  Leliana’s voice.  The assassin jumped and nearly dropped the rabbits.   “I did not mean to startle you.”  The red headed woman followed his gaze to see Moira and Alistair snuggling in front of the fire.  “Ah, that is what has your attention.  They are beautiful together, no?”

He glared at the bard, but said nothing.  His silence was apparently all the encouragement she needed.  “They are like night and day, and like the night and day they compliment each other.”

“Do you have a point, Leliana?”  His voice was harsher than he would have liked.  Mentally, he cast futilely about for his hard won, Crow-taught equilibrium, but found it difficult to grasp.

“Not really.  You just seemed to need company.”

“Brasca.  I don’t want it.”  His eyes went back of their own accord to watching Alistair’s hand stroke Moira’s bare arm.

“No.  It is just not my company you want.”  Her hushed voice was smug, as if she’d discovered a great secret.

“Don’t you have something better to do?”  

“No, it’s someone else’s turn to make dinner.  I am very glad that Moira put her foot down and will not let Alistair cook.”  She sounded far more pleased with herself than the statement warranted.

For the first time since she’d surprised him, he turned away from Moira to look at her.  “What are you up to?”

Her blue eyes regarded him steadily, and the back of her hand traveled lightly up and down his arm.  “I am trying to comfort a friend. But I can see that there is no comfort for you.  Unless it is from her.”

He knew what that touch meant.  At another time, in another life, he’d have taken the bard up on her offer of solace.   But looking at the two Wardens, the thought filled his heart with lead and his stomach twisted in pain.  “I thank you, but I have no need of comfort.”  Without a backward glance, he pushed himself off the tree he leaned on and headed toward Morrigan to hand her the rabbits.  When he turned around, Moira was looking up at him, a smile on her full lips.  He felt an answering smile broadening his face while his stomach twisted in an entirely different way.  She patted the log on the other side of her from Alistair. The ex-Templar scooted over and Moira followed, giving him more room.  He glanced at the big blond man who smiled affably at him. The king’s mistress.  Right.

He caught Moira looking at him, her blue eyes narrowed in concern.  “Is everything all right, Zev?”  Her slender, strong arm wound around his waist and give him a gentle squeeze of a hug through his armor.

“Of course.”

I just want to hug Zev! <3
I really love how you did Leliana's relationship towards him, very interesting!

Shadow of Light Dragon wrote...

Here's my attempt: Pierced (mildly nsfw)

Prompts: 1

'Jealousy' was haaaaaaaard! *flails* But at least I gave a different Warden some air-time. He's been giving me suggestive looks for a while now...

hahaha oh gawd! you know,usually I'm not a lot in M/M romances but since I know Zev... I litterally drool on that! XD
very sexy fic!

Tigress M wrote...

Well... here's my first attempt at a Zevran prompt fill. Be gentle with me. LOL

-----

“Problem, my friend?” Zevran asked, following Alistair’s gaze as he stared at the retreating figure of their leader.

“What? No!” Alistair replied, tearing his gaze away from Ehrin before scowling at Zevran.

Zevran chuckles. “You do know it does no good to lie to a Crow, do you not?”

“I’m not…! Oh, blast it! Why are you here? To rub it in?”

“I am not here to rub it in, as you say, though perhaps a massage would help ease some of your tension.”

“Absolutely not!” Alistair exclaims, his face twisted up in disgust. “I’ve seen how your massages end!”

Zevran holds up his hand. “I jest, my good man. Truly,” he says, stifling his laughter.

“Don’t you have somewhere else to be?” Alistair asked.

Zevran could see the discomfort in the Warden’s face. Perhaps he should let this go. But no , it would only get worse. Ehrin was already beginning to sense what was going on and it made her uncomfortable. She would never say anything, but she was already shying away from any public displays of affection and he feared if this was not handled soon, she would begin forgoing their intimacy in camp. And that would never do.

Contrary to what everyone thought, he was providing a much needed service to their young leader. Could they not see how giving her a release from all the pressures building around them made her stronger? No. They could not. All they saw was a wily, suave, sensual man taking advantage of their friend and leader; he knew this to be true from the conversations he’d overheard. Ah well, that was a problem for another day. Today’s problem was the ex-Templar, soon to be King.

“No,” Zevran replied. “I am exactly where I am needed, at this time.”

Zevran saw Alistair’s back stiffen. Finally. Alistair turned to face the Crow, eyes furious. “Is that so?” he asked, voice raised. “You’re needed by her side night and day, distracting her from the task at hand?“

Zevran said nothing, seeing that Alistair was just getting started.

“And what of her? What will she do once you’re done with her? Providing this isn’t some elaborate plan to complete your Contract and she actually survives her relationship with you.“

Zevran’s jaw clenched, his right hand gripping his left wrist behind his back with enough force to bruise. But he remained silent, breathing deeply in an attempt to calm his anger.

Alistair, on a roll, saw none of this and continued on. “She deserves a chance at happiness if we survive this. She deserves more than you’ll ever be able to give her!”

Zevran’s eyes smoldered before turning to amber orbs of ice as his temper flared and then cooled down to dangerous levels where it could be harnessed and finessed.

“And I suppose you are the one to give her this happiness? This fairy tale ending?” he asked, all smooth words, the ice almost undetectable.

“It would be better than the one you will give her!”

“Interesting that you should know what my future holds, when I do not. Perhaps you are clairvoyant, yes? I, however, do not need magical powers to see into your future, my Prince. One needs simply to open the shutters to see clearly the direction you are headed.”

“Yes, it doesn’t take a great scholar to know that I will most likely be Ferelden’s next king. I’m astounded you managed to figure that out on your own,” replied Alistair in that snarky tone he could pull off so well.

“And then what of your lovely Warden? Your lovely, ELVEN Warden, my friend?” Zevran asked, softly. “Did you truly think, should you have managed to win her heart, that you would have actually been allowed to keep her once all of this is done?“

Alistair bowed his head, staring into the fire. “I – I hadn’t thought about that… about that part of my future.”

Zevran chuckled softly. “Of course you didn’t. You are a man; we tend to only see so far and no farther. It is our curse… and our blessing, no?”

He laid a hand on Alistair’s shoulder and motioned him to sit. Alistair nodded. Once the two of them were seated by the fire, Zevran continued.

“But she did. Once she learned that you were to be king, she saw where your path would take you… and she knew there would be no room for her along it.”

Alistair’s stared into the fire. “She spoke to you of this?”

“We do more than knock boots in her tent, my friend,” said Zevran, laughing. “While boot knocking is wonderful, even I need time to recover, so to speak. Makes for a perfect time to chat. Pillow talk serves more than one good purpose, my dear man.“

“You talked about me… after… THAT?” he asked, his face turning crimson.

“Well… yes. There was not much time for talking beforehand.” Zevran continued on, glad to feel tensions on both sides receding. “She does care about you, Alistair. Enough that your jealousy is eating away at her, making her uncomfortable.“

“I… I had no idea,” said Alistair, stunned.

“I know. Which is why I decided it was time to tell you,” Zevran replied. He paused, drawing in a deep breath and letting it out slowly. He opened his mouth and then stopped, not sure he wanted to go on.

“What is it? What are you not telling me?” Alistair asked, sensing Zevran’s discomfort.

“You asked me where my future lay,” replied Zevran, his face grim. “And I do not know. But, I do know that I want her to be a part of it for as long as she desires to be.” He paused again, taking another deep breath before turning to look directly at Alistair. “I would like to say I am speaking to you on her behalf, but that would be lie. The truth… the truth is much more difficult to admit.”

Alistair looked at the Assassin, no, Assassin no longer. Just a man. A man obviously in love. “I think I can figure it out. I’ll go talk to her. This is obviously something I should have done long ago.”

Zevran looked at Alistair with a new level of respect. There, in that moment, he saw the first glimpse of the future King and he liked what he saw.

“Thank you, my friend.”

Alistair chuckled. “Do not thank me, yet. Once I’m done it will be your turn.”

“My turn?” Zevran asked, confused.

“To tell her how you really feel,” Alistair said as he stood up and walked towards Ehrin’s tent.

Zevran stared into the flames, saying nothing as Alistair left. Alistair was right, curse him. He did owe Ehrin the truth about his feelings, but he’d have to be honest with himself first... and that was the hardest part of all.

I like a lot the way you describe the feelings, really nice try for a first attempt for Zev prompt!
and pillows talk really miss in the game!

payroo wrote...

Oops, I hope I didn't miss the deadline!  Oh well, it's still Monday where I am so here goes:


fullsize: http://i56.tinypic.com/m9yvsg.jpg

I have been influenced by all your guys' amazing fic about Zevran and his brief stint with the Dalish! So I drew something vaguely along similar lines

eta: haha I guess this is a non-entry if it is past the deadline?

awww Zev looks so sad, looks like he feels rejected and different from the dalish because of his Crow tattoo...
I want to hug him, to pet him, to squeeze him,... and call him George XD


OK! so I think I didn't miss any entry?

the winner is.........Shadow of Light Dragon !  :wizard:
Seriously, I liked a lot your fic! just pm me about your prize, I'll draw you what you want! ^^

the next prompter is........Tigress M !
I saw you are a new Zev lover, so this is your present of welcoming

Guys, really nice entries!
all differents and all very interesting point of view! thanks for your participation! <3

Modifié par Kornichon, 25 janvier 2011 - 10:41 .

[mousestalker]

Kudos to the participants and congrats to Shadow of Light Dragon!

[Shadow of Light Dragon]

Woohoo! Thanks



I will have to sleep on the prize and think about it...

[Corker]

Congrats, Shadow!

Crib notes for the prompt thingie, if Tigress needs them (since it's -gasp- her first time! ):

Make a Prompt

- You pick an idea or theme for the week.  It can be as simple as one word (like "Jealousy") or more involved; the first page of the thread lists all the prompts to date.

- You pick a time limit for competitors.  We're currently defaulting to 3 hrs, but you could set it for longer or shorter if you wanted.

- You pick a deadline a week or so from now.

- You decide if you will award a prize and if so, tempt competitors with a description of its awesomeness.  (Fan art, custom fiction, and poetry have been prizes in the past; I imagine nice screenshots with somebody's Warden morph and Zev might be popular... wherever your talent lies.)  But offering a prize is not mandatory.

- Put all that into a post so we know what to do!

Judge the Prompt

- The week's judge traditionally offers feedback to all participants, usually in one giant end-of-week post.  But you could do it day by day, if you preferred.

- Pick your favorite for glory and honor!

- Each submitter, whether or not they are competing, should also tell you how many prompts they've already done.  Find the person with the least (or one of the people with the least, if there's a tie) and name that person next week's prompter and judge!

[Tigress M]

Congratulations Shadow! Well deserved.

Corker, thank you so much! I was a little panicked when I saw that I was supposed to do the next prompt! I'll be back with the new prompt soon.

[Tigress M]

Prompt: Tattoos. Wearing them, making them, admiring them (or not), anything goes.

Time Limit: 3 hours

Deadline: Tuesday, February 1st, 4:00pm Eastern.

Prize: Motivational or Captioned Poster (depending on my muse and the images provided by the winner).

Go!  

Modifié par Tigress M, 25 janvier 2011 - 02:45 .

[jenovan]

Congrats, SoLD!



And ooh, great prompt, Tigress! X3 *rubs hands together*

[Sialater]

Congrats, Shadow!



Good prompt, Tigress. The muse isn't hitting me with anything at the moment, but I'll keep thinking about it.

[Hilde]

Congratulations SoLD!

All of the entries this last week were fantastic!

Hi Tigress  Great prompt! I will have to think on this one.

[Tellervo]

Of course, my only ideas are naughty ones....

[Creature 1]

Tellervo wrote...

Of course, my only ideas are naughty ones....

You say that like it's a bad thing. 

[Tigress M]

Thanks, guys! I will confess I was a little nervous being a relatively recent de-lurker in this thread.

And since I'm here... I'll do my usual thing (for those who know me from the Ali thread lol) and post a screenshot. This one is from the ZRS mod... getting to kiss Zevran while on the road is totally cool! Had that been an option in the actual game, I might have romanced him sooner. LOL