faemused | Open To Anyone For Anything RP Post

Want to tag someone? Tag someone. Put the character you want in the subject line.
Leave a starter, or leave a prompt and I'll start.
Brilliant ideas and clueless flailing all welcome.
AUs and cross-canon, drama and comedy and shipping.
Just throw stuff at me. It's all good.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

thebloodiesthands

People, in Sairey's experience, see what they want to see. Different contexts (clothes, stance, location) can trip one up, particularly when all they've heard about this person, place, or thing is from tales. Maybe a woodcut drawing in a pamphlet somewhere, although those rarely capture the truth of anything. Even Eldy can be unnoticed when she puts her mind to it, and she's the Hero of Ferelden and the Arlessa of this arldom. It's why Sairey's willing to gamble her safety, and that of her cousin's, on them meeting here rather than trying to sneak out into a random location in the woods. That all said, she's heard something of the Champion of Kirkwall's appearance. Black hair, blue eyes. Dark hair, green eyes. Tall or middling height. Maybe short, with brown hair and eyes the colour of the sea when the sea decides to be green rather than blue. She has a dog, though, one of those big Fereldan ones, you know the kind.

In Ferelden, it isn't a particularly useful description.

Thank the Maker for dogs and merchant gossip, Sairey thinks as a dark-haired, light-eyed woman wanders her way, trailed by a striking mabari. Gazing at the mabari covers her as the woman - Marian? - stares at her. Yes. Marian Hawke, she's sure; the kaddis is right. So Sairey lifts her gaze up with a genial smile.

She freezes, as if hit by an ice spell. For three heartbeats, she just stares and the world grows a little fuzzy around the edges of her vision.

Marian, for it must, it must be Marian, has piercing eyes of an all too familiar shade. That kind of turquoise blue which Sairey sees in her left eye every time she looks into a mirror. Her face is similar, familiar, down the jaw, and really, that's such a silly thing, isn't it? Except Sairey finds her hand moving unbidden to touch her face, as if touching her own would mean what she sees makes sense.

Cousin, just a cousin, and not even a first cousin at that. And yet... and yet...

And yet, the woman standing before her is the first family Sairey has seen in close to two decades, and she feels faint.

"Thank you," is what she says, and she can feel her vowels sliding around to become even more aristocratic under stress. That won't do at all, so she shakes her head a little and consciously lets her posture relax back into normalcy. She can do this, feign nothing but friendliness until they move somewhere more private. Still, it's easier to look away from Marian to her companion, and Sairey offers him her current garland.

"Would you like to partake of the festivities, sirrah?" There's a flash of dimples as she speaks, and she hopes the mabari takes her comment as playful and genuine rather than mocking. How he would have been treated in the Free Marches simply doesn't stand up to thought.

From:

questionablewit

The different colored eyes are another shock. Not the fact of their being different, Hawke had been warned about that, but one of them looks exactly likes hers. Going by the expression on--it must be Sairey, it couldn't possibly be anyone else--Sairey's face, the stunned way she reaches to her cheek, the feeling is mutual.

It's Teo who breaks the moment, of course, letting out a loud, happy bark. The noise of the crowd deadened for a moment, but now it returns in full force, pressing and loud and very, very much unwanted. Hawke takes what seems like her first real breath for a few minutes as Sairey offers Teo a garland of flowers. Teo, intelligent as any mabari and more irrepressible than most, bows his head and accepts it with canine glee, his tongue lolling out of the side of his mouth. Hawke chuckles, and reaches down to scratch his ears. "Careful, or he'll decide this whole celebration is actually about him."

Teo gives her a baleful, reproachful look, obviously saying Of course it is, as well it should be!, and Hawke laughs despite herself.

From:

thebloodiesthands

The noble hound barks and the fair maiden laughs, and Maker, we offer up thanks unto forever for the creation of dogs, Sairey thinks as she giggles and places the garland solemnly on his head.

"There. Very handsome."

Laughing forces her to breath, and the mabari acting as silly as only dogs can, makes the smile linger on her face.

"Besides, And there's Andraste's mabari, By the Holy Prophet's side.In the fight against Tevinter, That dog would never hide. They say the Maker sent him special..."

Sairey's singing, as sweet and trained as any Chantry chorister, trails off and she gives Teo another smile. "Our Lady was a good Fereldan woman, I'm sure no one here'd think it strange if the celebration is for him."

It's not that she's tipsy, for she's not. But she feels giddy like she is, and there's a faint desperation beating at her heart.

Like me, it whispers. You're family, Marian Hawke who is the daughter of Leandra Amell, first cousin to my mama. You're family. I'm running a risk to meet you.

Please like me. Please let this be worth it.

From:

questionablewit

Inwardly Hawke doubts if Andraste was Ferelden, had a dog, or possibly even ever existed, though she has met more unlikely things. But they're playing a part and saying any of those things out loud here and now would definitely not be smart.

She gives Sairey a friendly smile, both real and part of the role. "You have a nice voice." And continues, as though it's a change in the topic. "Do you live here, or are you just visiting for the festivities? I've never been to Amaranthine before. I didn't think it'd be this crowded, even for Andraste."

Really she just wants to move things along as naturally as possible to getting the two of them out of here, somewhere not public, somewhere private, somewhere where she can ask a hell of a lot of questions. And probably answer even more questions, which is fair enough.

From:

thebloodiesthands

Sairey had been raised by the Chantry as much as by the older mages. Before that, she'd believed with the unthinking wonder of a child. After, well. It's gotten increasingly complicated, hasn't it? But for all that, she believes Andraste a real person, and from the land that became Ferelden, so there'd been no guile in her words to Teo.

The smile her cousin has is nice, and warms Sairey in ways that hurt. Family.

"It's all busy this year," she admits with a rueful sigh. "More than normal, although it's never been much quieter than this. So..." She gets up and walks closer to the woman who is her cousin.

She's a strong woman, is Marian Hawke. Solid in the ways warriors tend to be, unlike her own plumpness. Sairey is admittedly stronger, fitter than she appears, but still. She's always been a plump girl and she enjoys her food, and standing this close to Marion with her strong hands and fighter's balance, she can't help but contrast them. She can't help but hope that Marian won't think less of her for being soft. Some warriors do.

"My lodgings aren't far from here. They have the most divine apple cider, and there's a good view of the street festivities. Innkeeper owes me. So it might all be less overwhelming for an out of towner."

Her whisper in the middle of her statement is true enough. The innkeeper does owe Sairey. She'd helped the woman survive along with her child five years ago, and although Sairey would never ask for payment the Maude had insisted. She'd been true and discreet ever since.

From:

questionablewit

"How could I turn down divine apple cider during Andraste's own celebration?" Hawke drawls, grinning with amusement. She doesn't make even a flicker of a reaction to the aside, though she notes it, and it's a relief to hear. They can both use all the advantages and allies they can get. "Lead the way, please. I'll stand you a few drinks and a meal as thanks, if you like."

From:

thebloodiesthands

"Oh, I never say no to offers of free food," Sairey says with a smile. It's a lie; she has, and frequently. But the sentiment behind it is true enough, accepting an offer when given in good faith as a way of smoothing social niceties. Even now, years out of the circle, she sometimes has to study up on those.

Etiquette books are amazingly helpful.

Sairey leads Marian and Teo without incident to the inn, chattering occasionally about the city they are walking through. Never enough to be truly distracting, but enough to seem the part of someone talking to a friend. Once inside the inn - nice enough, the kind for artisan pilgrims and the lower class of merchant - she pulls aside a dwarven serving girl for her cousin to order from, and then leads her upstairs. The room is small, but not cramped, with an open window and a window seat. As Sairey had said, there's a good view of the street. There is also access to the roof next-door, if one were athletically inclined.

Sairey sits at the window seat, and pauses. Suddenly, she's unsure of what to do with her hands. Instead, she just looks up at Marian with slightly wide-eyes.

"So. Um. Hi."