[ How far they've come, that Bastien can drop a sweetly romantic line like that and Byerly can razz him for it. Just a little. Just a gentle roasting. Nothing mean. ]
I remember there being sheep all over. What happened to them?
Oh, yes. And all those cleansed and holy sheep will join us in our fight.
[ One last snicker for posterity, and then he’s more serious: ]
I like it. Denerim. I am saving the real exploring for when I have more time and a charming, clever guide, but what I have seen. It is less brown than I remembered, too. Maybe it was the season.
[ Byerly is immensely pleased by his assessment. ]
Maker, if I wouldn't be too conspicuous, I'd join you there in a heartbeat. Next time, to be certain.
It isn't a beautiful place - [ A confession - ] But a thing doesn't need to be beautiful to be good. And that's why we'll take our trips back to Val Royeaux. Especially in winter.
[ He says it out loud only after a pause, when he remembers Byerly can’t see how wide he smiles. Of course Bastien hadn’t imagined he would never see Val Royeaux again. But he also hadn’t imagined visiting with regularity or with company, or another dose of the sturdy comfort he feels whenever Byerly labels something theirs. ]
I do think I like it best in the winter. [ Not his favorite season; predictably, he prefers his days long and sunny. But, ] Once the court leaves for Halamshiral, everyone wears much more comfortable shoes.
[ There’s a creak of wood, and the racket of a busy market made into a murmur by distance; he’s opened the wooden shutters on a window to look outside, up at the sky, which really is just as blue as Orlais’. ]
Oh, speaking of working someone up...I need to tell you of what the Provost and I found on our investigation when we were searching for Flint and the Scoutmaster.
But alright. You are on your way to an estate to rescue your colleagues. Unaware that I am already stealing the little bit of glory there is to be had, in that area. Not seducing your companion.
Who's the one with a mustache problem now? You egotist. You just like him because he looks like you.
[ Definitely not because he looks and acts like Byerly.
Anyway - ]
We find our way inside. Slowly. Carefully. There's danger afoot, you see - all the more so when we catch sight of someone who's undeniably a mage of Tevinter, indeed. Their robes, unmistakeable, of course. This is a dark place, a place where the scent of blood hangs on the air, where the cries of the tortured come from deep below. The danger to us is great.
[ His little gasp is nine-tenths just playing along. Of course whatever happened turned out fine; they're alive, and somewhere in this story, someone is supposedly getting hot and bothered.
But there's a tenth of genuine retroactive worry, if they really came so close to harm. ]
They drag us kicking and screaming...is what I would like to say, except that they don't. Because on closer inspection, it turns out that those Tevinter mage robes are even more revealing than the actual Tevinter mage robes are. There's a quick-release leather codpiece involved.
[ Entirely different tone than that no than the last one—though the smothered laughter is all delight and relief. No judgment. Putting on robes and chaining up Byerly for an "interrogation" after those terrible dreams in Wintermarch didn't leave much room for that. ]
[ Mingled amusement and embarrassment on his end. Not that there was anything there to make him blush, of course - but it's a rude thing to walk in on uninvited. ]
We had to look around, of course, because that sort of place would be a good cover for keeping someone on actual captivity. Besides which, we couldn't rule out the prospect that Yseult and Flint weren't captured, but escaping to a steamy rendezvous.
[ With the sorrow of a hedonist who peaked too early: ]
No.
But they had remarkable commitment to the theme. Really top-notch set dressing, particularly considering that they likely had to pull it together on relatively short notice.
I would not refuse either. I think I'm meeting with a Lady Rede later? Unless she only set it up and they sending someone else to make sure I cannot plan. Or if it is a false name—Lady Rede. Rat Red. Hmm.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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[ How far they've come, that Bastien can drop a sweetly romantic line like that and Byerly can razz him for it. Just a little. Just a gentle roasting. Nothing mean. ]
I remember there being sheep all over. What happened to them?
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Hmmm… No little lambs in sight. No bleating in the night. While all our eyes were pointed North—a sheep-specific Blight.
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[ One last snicker for posterity, and then he’s more serious: ]
I like it. Denerim. I am saving the real exploring for when I have more time and a charming, clever guide, but what I have seen. It is less brown than I remembered, too. Maybe it was the season.
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Maker, if I wouldn't be too conspicuous, I'd join you there in a heartbeat. Next time, to be certain.
It isn't a beautiful place - [ A confession - ] But a thing doesn't need to be beautiful to be good. And that's why we'll take our trips back to Val Royeaux. Especially in winter.
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[ He says it out loud only after a pause, when he remembers Byerly can’t see how wide he smiles. Of course Bastien hadn’t imagined he would never see Val Royeaux again. But he also hadn’t imagined visiting with regularity or with company, or another dose of the sturdy comfort he feels whenever Byerly labels something theirs. ]
I do think I like it best in the winter. [ Not his favorite season; predictably, he prefers his days long and sunny. But, ] Once the court leaves for Halamshiral, everyone wears much more comfortable shoes.
[ There’s a creak of wood, and the racket of a busy market made into a murmur by distance; he’s opened the wooden shutters on a window to look outside, up at the sky, which really is just as blue as Orlais’. ]
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[ A grin. ]
Or pilfer them from the unguarded townhomes. If one feels adventurous.
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[ —is a joke. Mostly. If he weren’t standing in a room other people might enter at any time with little warning, in broad daylight, it might not be.
But he is! So, ]
That will be fun. I will never have any trouble finding you in a crowd here, in your silks. Even a crowd that is all tall, skinny, and beautiful.
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[ He's so, so, so, so pleased. ]
Oh, speaking of working someone up...I need to tell you of what the Provost and I found on our investigation when we were searching for Flint and the Scoutmaster.
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[ Rhetorical. And hardly any of the Division Heads' faults that they're chained to their desks so often. ]
If you seduced him on the road, I am going to begin thinking you have a mustache problem.
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But alright. You are on your way to an estate to rescue your colleagues. Unaware that I am already stealing the little bit of glory there is to be had, in that area. Not seducing your companion.
And then—
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[ Definitely not because he looks and acts like Byerly.
Anyway - ]
We find our way inside. Slowly. Carefully. There's danger afoot, you see - all the more so when we catch sight of someone who's undeniably a mage of Tevinter, indeed. Their robes, unmistakeable, of course. This is a dark place, a place where the scent of blood hangs on the air, where the cries of the tortured come from deep below. The danger to us is great.
But, in a moment of disaster - They find us.
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But there's a tenth of genuine retroactive worry, if they really came so close to harm. ]
No.
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[ Incredibly dramatic - ]
They drag us kicking and screaming...is what I would like to say, except that they don't. Because on closer inspection, it turns out that those Tevinter mage robes are even more revealing than the actual Tevinter mage robes are. There's a quick-release leather codpiece involved.
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[ Entirely different tone than that no than the last one—though the smothered laughter is all delight and relief. No judgment. Putting on robes and chaining up Byerly for an "interrogation" after those terrible dreams in Wintermarch didn't leave much room for that. ]
What did you do?
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[ Mingled amusement and embarrassment on his end. Not that there was anything there to make him blush, of course - but it's a rude thing to walk in on uninvited. ]
We had to look around, of course, because that sort of place would be a good cover for keeping someone on actual captivity. Besides which, we couldn't rule out the prospect that Yseult and Flint weren't captured, but escaping to a steamy rendezvous.
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[ That’s not true. She likes Darras; she endures the pirate part. ]
Had they come up with anything you hadn’t seen before?
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No.
But they had remarkable commitment to the theme. Really top-notch set dressing, particularly considering that they likely had to pull it together on relatively short notice.
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Maybe you should have recruited them.
[ Which reminds him, indirectly— ]
Any last-minute advice for winning over your colleagues here? —it is too late to pretend not to be Orlesian, unfortunately.
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[ An interesting question. ]
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[ He isn't serious, obviously.
Obviously-ish. ]
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The plot thickens.
[ You can imagine his eyelashes fluttering. But: ]
No, Lady Rede is quite real. She's lovely. Please don't fall in love with her.
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