Callum and Rayla Scene #2 (spoilers!):
[Callum bursts into Rayla's room, frantic]
Callum: Rayla!
[Rayla, who has her hair in a loose ponytail, wakes up, grabs two pillows in her hands as if they were weapons]
Rayla: Who's there? Don't come any closer!
Callum: It's me, it's me!
Rayla: Callum?! Are you crazy? You're lucky I didn't...[looks at her pillows]
Callum: [laughs] Death by pillows wouldn't be the worst way to go... (sits on her bed) Rayla, it happened. Aaravos took me over, I had the pearl in my hands.
Rayla: Callum, it's late. You were dreaming. You know if I actually thought you were in danger-
Callum:*says something I can't remember*
Rayla: Okay, okay, I believe you. But what can we do?
Callum:...I have an idea!
(a beat)
Rayla: Great. And that idea is-
[Callum takes Rayla's blanket and rushes off]
Stella chitters]
Rayla: I know...he took our blanky! [She flops back onto bed]
The end.
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Je Te Veux • Voyager x Vertin
No more sadness. Breathe in the precious moment.
Synopsis — A moment of respite in the wilderness. Voyager invites Vertin to a little dance.
Words — 600+ words
A/N — Voyatin fluff for @definesanity as a part of our trade! Was listening to Erik Satie’s Je Te Veux while writing this soooo yeah! Get well soon btw!!! I still absolutely love the KaalaaPocket fic you made RAAAHHHH!!!
As the light dipped below the horizon wilderness, it casts a golden hue over the expanse. The timekeeper wandered among the flower bushes recently installed near the picnic area, their fragrances carried by the breeze like a sweet perfume. She stumbled upon Voyager, who was gracefully twirling to the faint classical melody of a record player tucked away on the picnic mat. Vertin’s eyes were drawn to the mesmerizing sight, she was dancing alone whilst humming softly to the music, the skirt of her uniform subtly swayed to the breeze, swirling around her. And she looked like she was in gentle bliss.
Intrigued by Voyager’s dance, Vertin approached with a curious smile. "Excuse me, Voyager. Do you mind some company?" she asked, her voice soft, tinted with the familiar accent.
Voyager stopped, with eyes that sparkled like stars once she noticed the timekeeper’s presence. She nodded in response, but instead of gesturing at the picnic mat, she offered her hand to Vertin, a silent invitation to join her in the dance. Vertin hesitated, an eyebrow raised, her lack of confidence in her dancing abilities momentarily holding her back.
“Oh… You want me to dance with you?” Vertin asked to confirm.
“Mhm,” Voyager nodded.
“I… Don’t know about that... I’m not really good at dancing,” she admitted sheepishly, casting her gaze downward.
Voyager’s expression softened with understanding, but she smiled with an ounce of cheekiness. She stepped forward, squeezing the timekeeper’s hand in hers, shaking her head softly. She was close. And she smelled like flowers, different from the ones around them. A note of lavender, her signature fragrance.
She guided Vertin’s hand up, placing it gently on her shoulder, while her other hand rested lightly on Vertin's waist. With a subtle sway, Voyager began to move, her steps slow and deliberate, as if inviting Vertin to follow her lead.
Vertin, feeling the warmth of Voyager’s touch and the gentle rhythm of the music, tentatively mirrored her movements. At first, her steps were hesitant and awkward, her body stiff with self-consciousness. Her eyes couldn’t meet Voyager’s throughout the first few minutes. She was looking down at her feet, trying to coordinate herself to Voyager’s moves and the music.
Voyager let her do so for a while. But suddenly, she paused her steps, using a hand to lift Vertin’s chin with care, guiding her to meet Voyager's gaze. Vertin’s eyes widened with surprise, meeting the softness and encouragement in Voyager’s gaze.
“It’s okay, Vertin,” Voyager spoke with a whisper. “Don’t worry about the moves. We’re just dancing to wind down.” She giggled softly, the sound like a melody blending with the music.
Vertin couldn’t help but smile at Voyager’s reassurance, it’s an honor to hear the usually quiet alien visitor speak, so a flicker of confidence ignited within her. With a nod, she took a deep breath, allowing herself to relax into the dance. As Voyager resumed their gentle swaying, Vertin focused on the feeling of Voyager’s hand in hers, the comforting weight of her touch grounding her to the moment.
With each step, Vertin felt herself growing more at ease, her movements gradually syncing with Voyager's in a harmonious rhythm. She began to lose herself in the dance, the worries and insecurities of the day fading into the background as she surrendered to the moment. For those few minutes, there were no storm, no Foundation, no Manus Vindictae, no nothing… Just the alien visitor’s starry eyes, the momentum of their moves, the scent of flowers, the music, the breeze, and them.
Chasse… Whisk… And sometimes, a playful messy natural turn… The two of them giggled whenever Vertin did a misstep or Voyager led her into a spontaneous twirl.
So, the evening light becomes witness of time and space’s little waltz before it bids its goodbye to welcome the wilderness night. It was peace not often found amidst throes of uncertainty beyond the suitcase. A precious, fleeting moment.
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Hello! I just completed the 5some scene witb Halsin and Astarion and I dont really have anyone to comment this with I hope you dont mind me dropping here real quick to say [SPOILERS]
So... he just dissociates no matter what? I completed Astarion's quest and I could swear that meant he wouldnt dissociate in the scene. But I think what bothers me the most isnt even the dissociating itself but the lack of response from the Player Character. I just LET him?? I dont comfort him, I dont stop the whole thing in its tracks??
And its the only way to get Halsin's backstory?? Am I doing something wrong? I feel so conflicted about the whole thing. Opinions? Thanks for reading this far if you have, sorry for any inconvenience!
I don't claim to be the best source on Astarion lore or on his storyline consistencies/inconsistencies since we're like a bitter divorced couple, I can't talk about him without getting slightly annoyed. But,
I got that exact same scene (5some) after Astarion's story conclusion. To me it makes sense that he's still distant - we fixed his Cazador situation but we didnt fix his sexual abuse issue because he never brought up the trauma. I'm assuming you didnt romance Astarion ang got this scene? For me, a non-Astarionmancer it made sense, since he never told me about his intimacy issues in the first place. But if that happened to you, and you romanced him, then I can still understand him being distant in that moment. He's not that into sex with other people and you just asked him to perform in front of 4 others. I can see how he would default to an auto-pilot. But that's assuming you did romance him. If you didn't then there's not much to be surprised about. He's tired of performing seduction.
To me, it's not that big of a deal that the PlayerCharacter doesn't respond to catching Astarion drift away. Without romancing him and learning about his baggage PC at best can only assume that Astarion is not into sex due to his past of sleeping with his victims and that possibly bringing up bad memories. Since the narraror line about him being distant during the encounter was only a brief mention (narrator mentions PC and Astarion catching eyes for a moment, any further descriptions of his performative behaviour are a general description of the scene since nothing is visible, not necessarly describing what the PC is seeing).
What! I! Fully! Agree! With! You! Is how Halsin's mega traumatic backstory is only ever accessible through a hidden option (i wouldn't even call it a mission, just a random NPC conversation) in Act 3. That conversation could have been naturally implemented into the (currently bare-bone) Halsin romance route. This is why I'm still screaming about letting the players have access to Halsin as a companion in Act 1 already, so that he can go with the PC to the Underdark. That could lead to him having some flashbacks to his time there, and perhaps slipping in some titbits during idk the exploration of the wizard tower in the underdark and him seeing the chain mounted to a wall and that bringing up some nasty memories?? Like the story writes itself, it's all there but I'm guessing the devs had better things to do then flesh out their fanservice and fan demands. Like adding Halsin as a romance options SHOULD HAVE BEEN a post release thing !!!
My opinions are more or less summed up here. It's ass that an abuse victim such as Astarion gets all the special treatment and a catharsis while Halsin, who also went through a traumatic experience doesn't. He actually laughs it off. But that's okay, people cope differently. So why not have us explore his backstory more? Well, it's crunch of course. The devs had no time to put love and care into Halsin even tho him being a romance option/companion (so those conversations about his past wouldn't come up) wasn't even on their initial goal list, just something a few discord people suggested.
I feel like the writers had too much on their plates and too little time to make sure inconsistencies in character motivations/ reactions, backstories don't occur. But we should all be happy Astarion got all the attention he deserved. Oh, you're saying there are other companions in this game too? Since when?
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