OOC: This post is an in-character inbox for anyone wishing to contact the character, Araidne, for faderift. To contact the mun, please PM this journal or send a private plurk to wizera.
While she'd now had plenty of time to get comfortable in Skyhold — she knew her way around the castle, and recognized most of the Inquisition mages by face, if not name — Vasran was not quite ready to be sent out into the field... or, at least, they hadn't seen fit to assign her a mission yet. Left in stasis for the time being, she was somewhat restless, a little bit bored.
But that was only in general. The good thing about Skyhold was, there was always something interesting happening somewhere: something to talk about, someone to talk to. Even lacking that, there was always people-watching.
Vasran was sitting on a crate in the courtyard, idly playing with creating and banishing lightning between her fingertips, when Ariadne passed nearby. Vasran smiled — her would-be twin was a little strange, but not uninteresting.
Ariadne had just raided the dining hall. Nothing that anyone would miss, of course. A stray roll, a leftover scrap of dried meat. Anything she could fit into her well-worn pack, leaving it lumpy and heavy. It was for the refugees. One of the few contributions she felt she could make.
Which wasn't nearly enough.
But Ariadne had a bleeding heart.
She picked up the scent of her doppelganger a split second before she heard her. And turned with a bit of a smile. It was still strange to be considered a 'Human.' But she did like it. "Afternoon," she replied, offering Vasran a bouncy, little curtsy.
"I think he's off sulking," Ariadne replied, making her way over to Vasran. "He gets a little bit cranky whenever Katniss leaves. You know how cats are. You leave them alone and when you come back, they're excited to see you for five seconds, before they get resentful and want you to know that they're very disappointed in your behavior."
She folded her hands behind her back, tilting her head to one side. "How are you? I hope Skyhold's been treating you well."
"It has ceilings," Vasran responded dryly, shifting forward a little on the crate. "That's still a big improvement... although not a requirement of yours, I've heard."
What sort of human slept in trees, anyhow? That seemed more like a stereotype of the Dalish.
Ariadne laughed. "I like ceilings well enough," she said. "At least when it's raining or snowing." But really, she missed the thick canopies of Deleo, blocking out all but the worst of storms, smelling like the color green and the idea of comfort.
"It's a shame so many of them are crumbling," she added.
She frowned down at the shard, its light so very much like her natural skin color. "Sometimes, I wonder if I should wear gloves," she said. "So it's not immediately the first thing that people see about me."
Which wasn't to say that everyone she met was unkind.
It was only...well...some of them made judgments. And some of those judgments weren't very nice.
"It doesn't hurt any more," she added, cheerfully enough.
Vasran pressed her lips together. She'd been hoping for a more... insightful answer. But she was probably going to have to bring up what she was wondering outright.
"I heard Seeker Cassandra was taking in rifters for questioning." Her tone was low, conspiratorial, concerned.
Yes, there was that. Ariadne found herself listening to Vasran's pulse. A slight elevation.
This wasn't a search for idle gossip.
She sighed, curling her fingers around the shard. "I'll tell you," she said, "Just as I would tell your seeker, that if any Rifters are getting out of line, it's only individual dispositions. We certainly don't have some kind of conspiracy. We barely even know each other."
She hummed, and leaned back again. "I suppose you are all a bit... rag-tag."
Vasran's eyes wandered again, but this time to the bag Ariadne was carrying. Had she been on her way somewhere? Maybe. But as long as she kept answering questions, Vasran was going to keep asking.
"What was it like in the Fade? I mean—" she went on hastily, giving another one-shoulder shrug, "—I know what it's like for mages, and what it's like in dreams, but... people don't generally go there under other circumstances."
Ironically, the Red Dragon was somewhat famous for underestimating the power of rag-tag. The strike team that Ariadne had been a part of had undermined him quite beautifully.
But she was telling the truth. There were no hostile intentions coming from the Rifters. They hadn't even bothered trying to organize. Not well, anyway. Not beyond Marcel's meeting.
She shook her head slightly. "I'm not sure I can give you a very good answer. For me, at least, it was a dream. Until I hit the ground and realized I was up to my ankles in snow."
"Shame." Then again, if non-mages could travel physically through the Fade in some way that wasn't vague and confusing, Vasran figured it would have been discovered before.
"But that's what it is for most people, you know. Dreams. Only most people don't fall out of Fade Rifts."
Her eyes lit up with impish delight. "I guess it's really true then. I am special after all."
It was a funny thing to say to someone with her face, but Ariadne couldn't come up with anything better. As far as she could tell, from speaking to all the other Rifters, there was no discernible pattern between who they were or had been. Sleep was the only common denominator.
She shrugged. "I was dreaming about my father. His name was Feofan. He died when I was a girl."
I am special after all. Maybe it was because they looked so alike, but hearing that made Vasran want to encourage her. "Atta girl."
As for the dream — or, well, specifically the dead father — "You'll find that's a common theme with people around here. My own parents died during the Blight. Not that I knew them too well to begin with. Circle life tends to keep you separate from all that."
"...Well, no." Of course you couldn't. "There's the First Enchanter, who runs the place, then the rest of the Enchanters, the run-of-the-mill Mages. Even some Apprentices get to adulthood without going through the Harrowing."
A glance down toward the grass at that, a small expression of shame and regret that Vasran hoped, at least, wasn't too obvious.
Her heart may have skipped a beat.
"Then there's the Tranquil, and the Templars, of course..." She looked up again to study Ariadne's face. This really was all new to her.
The sudden look of regret was impossible to miss, even without the slight fluctuation in her pulse. For all Ariadne pretended to be innocent, she knew what it meant. And had the good sense not to broach the subject. Not outright, anyway.
But she nodded at the question. "Afraid so," she said. "One where the Elves are the most powerful race in the realm and where I'm the only one with this face."
She hoped.
Tentatively, she took a few steps closer to Vasran, keeping her voice gentle and low. "Was it hard for you? Growing up like that?"
Vasran gave a short, voiceless laugh. "Only that one time demons corrupted most of the grown-ups. I had to lock myself in a trunk. Still don't know exactly how long I was in there."
Thank the Maker they'd had the Hero of Ferelden himself on their side.
"The Circle was my family. Only one I'd ever know, really. I know it wasn't as good elsewhere, but..."
But she still wished it hadn't come to a rebellion. But there wasn't anything to be done about that now. So instead of finishing the sentence, she shrugged.
Lightly, she put her fingertips on Vasran's elbow. "Corrupted by a demons? That sounds like it must have been very scary."
From what little she had gleaned about the demons in Thedas...it seemed like a fair generalization. Still, her tongue felt a little bit heavy after she said it. But she reminded herself that she was there to provide comfort. Not start philosophizing about what the word 'demon' actually meant.
The touch prompted a look down at that same spot on her elbow. Sure, they had spoken a few times, but Vasran wasn't certain she would necessarily call Ariadne a friend. That made the touch odd.
She didn't move her elbow away, though. That would have made her look weak.
"'Had' being an operative word," she scoffed slightly as she looked up again. "Though I suppose there's still Alfie. Alfsigr. We were in the same Circle, and she managed to find her way here, too."
...ooh. Meanwhile, Airy really didn't have anyone at all here, did she?
"It's too bad the rifters aren't closer with each other."
She let her hand drop without batting an eye. Whether or not she could tell Vasran didn't like it was another matter.
But humanoids could be awfully strange about touch.
"Yeah," she said with a nod. "Although I've been hearing of some Rifters coming together from the same place. They seem to almost come together like drops of water. Out of necessity."
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But that was only in general. The good thing about Skyhold was, there was always something interesting happening somewhere: something to talk about, someone to talk to. Even lacking that, there was always people-watching.
Vasran was sitting on a crate in the courtyard, idly playing with creating and banishing lightning between her fingertips, when Ariadne passed nearby. Vasran smiled — her would-be twin was a little strange, but not uninteresting.
"Afternoon, Human."
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Which wasn't nearly enough.
But Ariadne had a bleeding heart.
She picked up the scent of her doppelganger a split second before she heard her. And turned with a bit of a smile. It was still strange to be considered a 'Human.' But she did like it. "Afternoon," she replied, offering Vasran a bouncy, little curtsy.
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"Where's your feline rider today? Or has he traded you in for another steed?"
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She folded her hands behind her back, tilting her head to one side. "How are you? I hope Skyhold's been treating you well."
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What sort of human slept in trees, anyhow? That seemed more like a stereotype of the Dalish.
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"It's a shame so many of them are crumbling," she added.
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Her eyes wandered down to catch on Ariadne's hand — the one with the shard embedded in it. "How's that been treating you?"
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Which wasn't to say that everyone she met was unkind.
It was only...well...some of them made judgments. And some of those judgments weren't very nice.
"It doesn't hurt any more," she added, cheerfully enough.
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"I heard Seeker Cassandra was taking in rifters for questioning." Her tone was low, conspiratorial, concerned.
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This wasn't a search for idle gossip.
She sighed, curling her fingers around the shard. "I'll tell you," she said, "Just as I would tell your seeker, that if any Rifters are getting out of line, it's only individual dispositions. We certainly don't have some kind of conspiracy. We barely even know each other."
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Vasran's eyes wandered again, but this time to the bag Ariadne was carrying. Had she been on her way somewhere? Maybe. But as long as she kept answering questions, Vasran was going to keep asking.
"What was it like in the Fade? I mean—" she went on hastily, giving another one-shoulder shrug, "—I know what it's like for mages, and what it's like in dreams, but... people don't generally go there under other circumstances."
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But she was telling the truth. There were no hostile intentions coming from the Rifters. They hadn't even bothered trying to organize. Not well, anyway. Not beyond Marcel's meeting.
She shook her head slightly. "I'm not sure I can give you a very good answer. For me, at least, it was a dream. Until I hit the ground and realized I was up to my ankles in snow."
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"But that's what it is for most people, you know. Dreams. Only most people don't fall out of Fade Rifts."
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It was a funny thing to say to someone with her face, but Ariadne couldn't come up with anything better. As far as she could tell, from speaking to all the other Rifters, there was no discernible pattern between who they were or had been. Sleep was the only common denominator.
She shrugged. "I was dreaming about my father. His name was Feofan. He died when I was a girl."
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As for the dream — or, well, specifically the dead father — "You'll find that's a common theme with people around here. My own parents died during the Blight. Not that I knew them too well to begin with. Circle life tends to keep you separate from all that."
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Which was too bad, really.
Ariadne was a hugger.
"How does it work though, with very young children? You can't have a circle without some adults, can you?"
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A glance down toward the grass at that, a small expression of shame and regret that Vasran hoped, at least, wasn't too obvious.
Her heart may have skipped a beat.
"Then there's the Tranquil, and the Templars, of course..." She looked up again to study Ariadne's face. This really was all new to her.
"You really are from another world, aren't you?"
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But she nodded at the question. "Afraid so," she said. "One where the Elves are the most powerful race in the realm and where I'm the only one with this face."
She hoped.
Tentatively, she took a few steps closer to Vasran, keeping her voice gentle and low. "Was it hard for you? Growing up like that?"
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Thank the Maker they'd had the Hero of Ferelden himself on their side.
"The Circle was my family. Only one I'd ever know, really. I know it wasn't as good elsewhere, but..."
But she still wished it hadn't come to a rebellion. But there wasn't anything to be done about that now. So instead of finishing the sentence, she shrugged.
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From what little she had gleaned about the demons in Thedas...it seemed like a fair generalization. Still, her tongue felt a little bit heavy after she said it. But she reminded herself that she was there to provide comfort. Not start philosophizing about what the word 'demon' actually meant.
Not today.
"But I'm glad you had a family."
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She didn't move her elbow away, though. That would have made her look weak.
"'Had' being an operative word," she scoffed slightly as she looked up again. "Though I suppose there's still Alfie. Alfsigr. We were in the same Circle, and she managed to find her way here, too."
...ooh. Meanwhile, Airy really didn't have anyone at all here, did she?
"It's too bad the rifters aren't closer with each other."
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But humanoids could be awfully strange about touch.
"Yeah," she said with a nod. "Although I've been hearing of some Rifters coming together from the same place. They seem to almost come together like drops of water. Out of necessity."