LEIGH YOU ABSOLUTE FUCKING GENIUS

You know that conversation you can have with Emmrich where he asks what your plans are for your body when you die?

I think Arsinoë accidentally horrified him. Not by clinging to non-Nevarran ideals about cremation, but by telling him she never thought anyone would care that much one way or the other.

She would be dead, so she wouldn't care. And honestly, a majority of compradi die as Fledglings without graduating; she thinks their bodies were probably burned (since you have to do something with bodies) but they certainly don't have funerals, so it certainly wasn't worth worrying about then.

Emmrich interjects, trying to wrangle his own shock long enough to point out that she's not a Fledgling now, so surely...?

Well if she dies now, Arsinoë all but shrugs, it would depend on the circumstances, wouldn't it? She isn't someone important like a Talon or the scion of an established Crow family. She certainly isn't Caterina Dellamorte, who warrants something verging on a State Funeral.

If she died, there is still a non-zero chance it would be at another Crow's hands, in which case it's anyone's guess what happens after.

If she dies honorably fulfilling a contract, then Viago might feel obligated to do something if he isn't pissed off at her failure and she's isn't still in Exile. He's her mentor, so probably he would manage at least a small pyre. Maybe even a flower or two for the flames if he's letting himself feel sentimental. Teia would probably be there because Viago was.

But just as often, when a contract goes wrong, there's no time to go back for the body. The mark get ahold of it, or whoever's left on the contract has to focus on survival rather than the dignity of a corpse that can't feel any of it.

But really, none of that would matter to Arsinoë, would it? She'd be off wherever dead souls end up going, or maybe in oblivion, who knows. She doesn't have any family to be horrified by her corpse unless you count Viago, who is Fifth Talon, has bigger things to worry about, and will get over it.

But anyway, why do you ask, Emmrich?

Emmrich is too aghast to answer clearly at that point because every single point of Arsinoë's answer goes so deeply against everything that is ingrained in him as part of the Mourn Watch, from the belief that a corpse just doesn't matter to her sincere belief that no one would care enough about her for any particular mourning rights.

And the thing is Emmrich does care. It's his professional duty to care, but he's also become fond of his young friend and he cannot handle imagining that she could die on this mission or the next and potentially receive no rites at all.

Cue Emmrich starting to plan how he's going to have Rook interred in the Grand Necropolis when the time comes. It may involve some string pulling, especially if (hopefully) she dies not on this mission but in the distant future, and even more so if he precedes her and has to leave the job in one of his colleague's hands. But Maker help him, there will be a plan and her death will be respected.

When it comes to light, Neve is uncertain and a little weirded out, but also a little offended by all this. She's fallen in love with Rook, but even before that, the respect between them would have warranted a pyre and Arsinoë's name on the Wall of Light if there was no one else to arrange things. Is this why she's never asked about what happened after Varric-

Lucanis is horrified by the idea of Arsinoë as one of the spirit-possessed skeletons in the Necropolis or one of the jewel-eyed skulls in its many niches; he snaps at Emmrich about Nevarran obsession and respecting Rook as Antivan.

Emmrich refuses to budge. She expected the Crows to do nothing for her. She deserves better, deserves to be remembered, even if she isn't Nevarran.

Lucanis seems fully stunned by the idea that Rook believed this in the first place, given Viago's attachment. Given Lucanis's own growing feelings. Emmrich does soften a little bit when he sees that Lucanis truly didn't realize, but he also doesn't fully divert his plans.

Gathering a grave-dowry is normally left to a lover or family member if the deceased was themselves unable, and Emmrich is neither. But needs must, and though his friend now seems attached to Neve and Lucanis, hearts can be fickle. A plan is better. So he puts away small things here or there, eyes which of Rook's enchanted rings and amulets she seems to favor just in case.

It almost helps him live with the knowledge that Arsinoë believed she would die unmourned. Almost.

(grabs you by the shoulders) you have to make room for new experiences in your life. you have to go through the unpleasant work of leaving your comfort zone, even if just for a few minutes at a time. because if you don't, your brain will trick you into stagnation. you will start to believe that the world can barely fit you in it. but that's not true. it's the opposite way around. you can fit the whole word inside of you. your task is only this: to welcome it with open arms

Starting off the year with some outfits for the fave :D

Nico: what’s the phobia for being murdered?

Percy: common sense

i dont think i posted these but here i made a little frog pattern to make tiny frog toys with my grandma

this is the first lil guy I made while still learning how i should sew it

The progress of my hand-embroidered Sera character card from Dragon Age Inquisition.

75 hours, 11.5x19.5 cm

Sometimes a family is a dumbass rockstar doing his best, a sharpshooter with family issues, a nearly 50yo tank with anxiety, their therapist who draws a lot, some lady with self-worth issues who tried to kill them, and the cat they use as a personal telephone.

You guys remember the epilogue slide from Trespasser if Dorian and the Iron Bull are in a relationship?

"On one occasion, Venatori forces ambushed Dorian, who likely would have died... had not an unnamed mercenary band led by a Tal-Vashoth warrior crossed Tevinter's border and mounted a dangerous rescue operation. The mercenaries left a trail of freed slaves and dead Venatori in their wake, enabling Dorian to escape. When asked about the Tal-Vashoth in question, Magister Pavus declined to comment."

"Far from Home (The Raven)" by Sam Tinnesz has the following lyrics in the second verse:

"I'm sending a raven

With blood on it's wings

Hoping it reaches you in time

And you know what it means

Cause out here in the darkness

And out of the light

If you get to me too late

Just know that I tried"

Dorian knew the attack was coming, but didn't have enough time to get himself out of harm's way. In a last, desperate attempt, he sent a raven to the Charger's last known location, knowing that they would probably not receive the message until well after the ambush was over and he was dead. He didn't have time to write much, so he just wrote "Venatori" and his location. And then all he could do was pray to the Maker for the raven to reach its destination in time.

This is the closest he gets to dying, the most successful plot to stop his efforts to reform Tevinter. He's alone, fighting several Venatori on his own, and he's losing. He's tiring, he's out of mana, and he's hurt.

He thinks of the Iron Bull, how Tevinter is still his homeland, but it isn't his home anymore. His home is in Bull's arms, and he'll never be there again. He tries to keep fighting, as long as he can, but he's slipping. The Venatori know it, they've started penning him in, drawing out the last of his power and aiming to neutralize, not to injure. This is it.

And then he hears "Horns Up!" and watches several familiar figures charge his opponents. One of them, the largest, barrels down the cultist in front of him. Dorian collapses, no longer able to support his own weight, but that's okay, because Bull is there to catch him. And he’s home now.