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ride-a-dromedary · 2 months

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The thing that I find interesting to think on, is that Halsin isn't wrong about framing himself as old, even from an elf perspective. Not just operating under the framework that he's a survivor, and seems to have likely been the eldest in most groups he found himself in, so it's a habit to assume younger unless informed otherwise (especially considering he's the last of his line, and suffered through the deaths of his similarly aged fellows and elders during the Shadow Curse), and not just operating under the premature maturation that seemed to stem from this, thus him likely feeling older than he really is.

No, he's just stuck in 2e DnD lore (which considering that is what BG1 and 2 utilized, he's not technically incorrect to be, as he would have hypothetically been alive in canon during that period of time - consider it as a generational gap in thinking what constitutes as "old", and how previous generations aged or viewed aging compared to current generations):

(Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 2nd Edition: The Complete Book of Elves, pp. 37 Table 4)

[Info: A chart taken from the Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 2nd Edition Rules Supplement, indicating the age ranges of various types of elves, including Aquatic, Drow, Grey, High and Sylvan. A section of the chart is highlighted in reference to Sylvan elves. Sylvan elves are listed as being considered at venerable age by age 325+]

According to this chart, Halsin - by other elves' standards - would have been considered to be in "Venerable" territory, which is usually applied to those who are afforded a great deal of respect, particularly due to length of experience or age. And Halsin being in this category further informs his physical appearance, as according to the same manual:

"Only at venerable age do elves begin to show their years, yet they still appear younger than most humans do at age 50." (pp. 37)

and

"[At Venerable Age] the elf, at age 350 [on average] or older, begins to show signs of age. Wrinkles start mapping her face. Her physical condition deteriorates still further, but her knowledge and her wisdom continue to grow even greater." (pp. 39)

Which could partially explain *why* he refers to himself as old; by all technicality he's earned the right to do so.

And while the 5th edition of DnD does nuke this specificity of lore in favour of opening the floor to more creativity, and this is by all means technically outdated, it's still interesting to take previous lore into consideration in how it might inform choices and characters.

#BG3 Musing #Halsin Posting #Halsin #i'm just messing around with lore stuff while bored at work #yes bg3 operates under 5e lore but that gets more complicated when you consider characters like jaheira and minsc #were directly in 2e lore in canon which means it informs their existence to an extent #and then halsin astarion and minthara who hypothetically would have *also* been in it should they have been introduced in BG1 and 2 #so i don't think it can be discarded completely because previous lore informed current lore #so if your tav/durge/etc is older than halsin welcome to venerable age territory friend #he's also referred to as 'elder' in the epilogue and while that canon might be a lil debatable i think this may be a case #of actual elves viewing aging very differently than people on the outside do - their stages of life may very well #have someone 350 be considered older because they've reached that category #even if they don't look it to others and may not be considered so *because* they're only about half way through the average lifespan

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wampabampa · 15 days

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Doodles..sleepless doodles

#squish the goober #welcome home #procreate #welcome home oc #my art #doodles #Riley Red #cheddar monterey jack #miz’ri #baulders gate tav #baulders gate 3 #baulders gate Orin #baulders gate durge #I have 5 hrs #I haven’t slept #😔😔#I tried sleeping but I couldn’t

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imperial-agent · 8 months

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The Raven Queen's eyes witness those beyond the Shadows, her lost ravens. I have kept her gaze fixed on the Abyss for now, but a heavy, cold breath just behind my head, of source unknown, causciously reminds me of how precious little time we have got left in these lands, my Shiver. Or perhaps it is your absence, a phantom presence at my side that is the cause of this uneasiness. But I remain resolute nonetheless. You will not see me fail for I wish not to see you give in to this sickness. Hasten with your search and do not stray from the course. We shall yet cast a shadow beneath our feet. Together.

#baldur's gate 3 #bg3 spoilers #made a throwaway durge with a he who was looking guardian a few weeks ago #and now im on page 16 deep in the google doc writing elaborate backstory of their time back in the shadowfell......#like a normal person.#like im not even paying attention to the main story im roleplaying some completely different storyline i made up in my head heheh e #i have not been this invested in this game since august 3rd #I. AM. SO. EXCITED. you dont even understand #plus it's a welcome break from the regular tavs to just fuck around as durge #//also what is grammar i'm too feverish from my period to make sure everything sounds like it was written by a human bean #myedit #bg3 #the dark urge #he who was #oc:#isiva

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inaconstantstateofchange · 3 months

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Random OC Asks

i'm in a bit of a wild mood and having fun flinging random OC asks at folks' inboxes, so if you'd like one, feel free to drop a like or a comment! o(*^▽^*)┛

#i'm primarily in bg3 spaces so that's what i'm orienting it toward mostly #but any oc's welcome #i try to make the questions broadly applicable #idk asks are fun more people should get and give asks #bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #tav #durge #oc #ask meme #asks #character asks #original character

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red-dead-sakharine · 5 months

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I'm not sure sure if anybody needs or wants this, lol, but I had to share it...

This is the patch 5 epilogue for

evil Durge who embraced Bhaal after the Orin fight, but killed the Netherbrain, then walked free.

Can you imagine Raphael saying this? 🤣

#bg3 #raphael #gif set #spoilers #durge epilogue #I realize I will not be able to explore the Gale romance endings because my Tav is trapped in Bhaal's clutches #not without re-doing half of act 3 that is #the facial expression is fucking unhinged #kinda ooc for raphael but I still felt the URGE - hah - to share #you're welcome (for good or ill lol)#raphael bg3 #bg3 raphael #baldur's gate 3 raphael #raphael baldur's gate 3 #raphael the cambion #rds #baldur's gate 3 #baldurs gate 3

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stoplickingthedamnthing · 4 months

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Well, I'm starting anew in Faerûn, so I think I will try and share the journey here this time around :) I'm still trying to get the hang of the cam to get nice screens, but I'm playing with mods on a Dark Urge playthrough and quite like her. I've adapted an old one-shot character of mine because I never got the chance to play her in a campaign setting. For now, I want to build her story anew, as a Redemption Durge, because I feel that arc will suit her really well :)

This is Dysnomia Mossgrove (Nomi for short), who I had built as a lvl 7 shadowcaster back in the day. Her clan had expected the birth of a half-elf girl who was to be named Amber and then become archdruid someday. Instead, they found themselves with a tiefling babe who cast no shadow, and they did not welcome her. Her and her mother were cast out and, by the time she was 4, her mother passed from an unknown illness. The local Inkeeper, an old dwarven woman who called herself Ma Flora raised her then. No one ever got used to the kid who moved about the tavern unnaturally silently and seemed to cast no shadow, yet moved like one herself.

Of course, that was before. Or maybe it was a dream. Ever since she got out of that Nautiloid she's had really strange dreams. Some involving a life where she helped smuggle people to safety under the cover of shadows, where the night lent her the power to control the shadows that surrounded her in this distant land. But most of her dreams are of a much more violent nature. Bloody. Not quiet like shadows, but drowning in screams of agony. Not hers- others' agony. And in the dreams she relishes the sound, wants more of it. More warm blood on her hands.

When she wakes, she feels sick. These urges are vile, but something in the depth of that depravity calls out to her like an old familiar friend. It takes her considerable effort not to give in to the urge to slash, maim, kill when she first meets Astarion. Granted, he did attempt to hold a blade to her throat, so. Well, at least she's not the only one who seems blade-happy around here.

Meeting Gale went much better (than it could've). Despite the condition of her memory, Nomi was certain even wizards were supposed to be a bit better at controlling magic and their portals. Thankfully, she'd suppressed the urge to slice his hand clean off when he first reached out to her for help. He seemed friendly, even a touch too friendly. And, as is typical for wizards, believed his ties to magic better than those of a sorcerer born to it.

They found Lae'zel a short ways from Gale's malfunctioning portal, hanging from a cage and staring daggers at a pair of tieflings below. Luckily, they fell for a quick lie and went on their way (much to Lae'zel's displeasure). The githyanki is too hungry for battle, and the last thing Dysnomia wants is another voice urging her to kill. It might not be the wisest thing, to keep her company. But until they have a better lead than her creche for a cure, it might just be the best choice regardless.

Thankfully, they came across a few crypt-thieves before long who gave them no choice but to fight, and they were the perfect target for her shadow and death magic. She could only hope her companions didn't notice the twinkle in her eye each time she struck true, each time the thieves winced, each time another fell lifeless to the ground.

While fighting scribes of undeath didn't satisfy the sick urges within her, Nomi was glad for the opportunity to test her skills without battling the constant whispers in her mind as well. Unfortunately, nothing in the crypt brought them any closer to finding a cure, or to her lost past. She still couldn't understand why she seemed the only one among the group with such particular symptoms.

Oh, and an elderly undead was about as cryptic as you'd expect before he shuffled along his merry way.

At camp, she wasn't quite certain if Astarion was making fun of her, or if he genuinely wanted to discuss what she thought the best way to be killed was. A quick blade, to be sure, painless. Though her hands ached as necromantic magic threatened to surge and show him a different way during the conversation.

Should she be wary of Astarion? Should he be wary of her (he probably should)? Or were they actually getting along? Well, at least they seem to get along well enough.

Gale, too. Though she could do without the wizard's typical displays of hubris. It was bad enough to keep from slicing things open at every other turn, but this petty rivalry between wizards and sorcerers would turn to more than simple bickering if she lost control of her own unsightly urges. But by the gods, he does realize he has a mirror right in front of him, does he not? he set up the tent himself, Night's sake.

Oh, and the elder undead from earlier joined them at camp tonight. Seems he will be joining the crew. No, not Astarion (though his complexion is nearly as pale as Withers', but that's besides the point).

___

Whoo, ok that's what I got for the first session of play, lol. Not certain if I want to do these updates for every session or find a different way to tell the story as it evolves. I want a way to flex my atrophied writing muscle as well so we will have to see how this turns out. BUT here's some extra fun bits: Her name comes from the greek deity of lawlessness and chaos, a daughter of Eris (and Dysnomia is now one of Eris's moons too!). In her original backstory she had no knowledge of the source of her powers, or why she has no shadow of her own, but can control any shadows near her. Her powers lean towards darkness and death (necromancy) but she strives to help others even though they often fear her. She was a smuggler in a time of war, helping civilians relocate safely and ferrying goods between and behind enemy lines. I also love the fact that another meaning for the word Dysnomia relates to anomic aphasia, though! This is, in tldr, a memory issue affecting word retrieval and problems recalling words, names, numbers and nouns in general. So the memory tie-in seemed perfect for a Durge playthrough! :) You guys I'm even more excited for this playthrough than my first one.

#baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #astarion #gale of waterdeep #bg3 mods #bg3 dark urge #durge tav #Dysnomia Tav #oh my god i want to take a million screenshots of them all #I miss my Gale romance playthrough but that file got corrupted #I don't have the heart to restart it yet #so here we are #also I am usually just a fly in the wall reblogger and actually posting is relatively new to me so #do let me know if improvements can be made lol #otherwise #welcome! I will continue to throw my children in here and i hope you enjoy the little idiots as much as I do #and please ask me anything you want about the playthrough or Nomi

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ilmatarii · 8 months

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come join my durgetash shipping server. 18+ enjoying these sketchy ass awful people and their similarly awful situationship

#gortash #the dark urge #bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #ideally this server will have like 15 people who are all unwell over them #gortav shippers welcome as well #the rare and elusive gort/tav/durge shippers may join me in elysium

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parasite-core · 4 months

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What Pokémon would your Tav or Durge have on their team? Do they gravitate towards a certain type, or do they mix it up?

#OC questions #tag your OC #bg3 tav #bg3 durge #bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #I saw someone do this for FF characters and thought it would be fun for Tavs/Durges too #non-BG OCs are welcome as well I can’t stop you from info dumping about an unrelated OC nor would I try lol

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renasy · 7 months

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BALDUR'S GATE 3 | DARK URGE - ACT 01

The raw hate of life, reared from the miracle of death. A tear almost springs to your eyes.

#bg3 #bg3 durge #baldur's gate 3 #dark urge tav #half elf #wood elf #ginpatsu #welcome to madness #my gifs #my boy is gone #i wanted to post the creature with blood #but i dunno if tumblr will allow it #so #sfw content

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sorrelchestnut · 7 months

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I've seen a fair number of posts both here and on reddit that question why Tav (or the Dark Urge) would end up as a group leader for any other reason that "game mechanics say so." There's the requisite "okay, well if you play a high charisma character I guess it makes sense," or on the other end of the spectrum, "if you're playing Durge and murder someone right off the bat everyone would be too scared to tell you no." And I get where people are going with this! I really do. But it also fundamentally misunderstands a facet of human nature, which is that the vast majority of people do not actually want to be in charge, because that means being held responsible for the outcome. Accordingly, most people will dither when a group consensus is needed: have none of you ever tried to get a group of friends to agree where to go for dinner? Yeah, it's like that, but waaaay worse.

A lot of times "leadership" is just the willingness to say, "fuck it, y'all do what you want, but I'm doing this." I see it all the time in a corporate environment, where people will go back and forth on group meetings without anyone making a decision until finally one brave soul goes "in my opinion the clear answer is x" and then everyone gratefully goes along with it. Because now it's not their responsibility when something goes wrong! They're just following along with someone else's suggestion, and maybe it works or maybe it doesn't, but at the end of the day they don't have to worry about the consequences unless they're personally affected. In which case they might step up and argue back, and then they're stuck being a leader, too. Welcome to adulthood!

Lae'zel is the only one who ever even tries to exert some kind of control, when she tells you to follow her lead on the ship, or calls you her subordinate in the Grove. But, crucially, she doesn't ever make any serious attempt to take control: you can just tell her, "lol, no," and she sort of confusedly gives way, because she doesn't know how to handle this scenario. In her world there are commanders and subordinates, and everyone knows where they stand and falls in line. She's never actually had to take control of a situation and so at the first sign of resistance she falls back on the dynamic that's familiar to her, which is executing the commands of someone older and more experienced. She goes through a lot of growth over the game, to the point that she can take over as a resistance leader in her own right by the end, but at the beginning she's a wet-behind-her-ears private with some decent combat chops and it shows.

Otherwise, your party consists of:

Shadowheart, who's trained in infiltration and assassination and does NOT want a lot of attention brought to her or her mission for a variety of reasons;

Astarion, who has literally been a slave for two centuries and canonically takes a while to realize that he can exert an opinion beyond complaining about it;

Gale, whose only friend is his cat and couldn't project-manage his way out of a wet paper bag;

Wyll, who was probably trained for command at one point but has been doing the lone-hero thing for a decade and has a very large secret that he's trying to conceal; and,

Karlach, who's only ever been a bodyguard and a soldier and is genuinely just happy to be here.

Honestly, it would be more a surprise if Tav/Durge didn't end up as their unofficial leader, given the general power dynamics at play. The first time Tav/Durge says something like, "fuck it, we need to do something instead of stand around arguing about it, let's go check out those ruins over there," it's a done deal. They're The Captain Now! As long as they don't make decisions that fundamentally oppose something dear and important to the other group members, they're not even going to get any argument. Because at the end of the day, not one of these walking disasters has enough trust in themselves and their decision-making skills to feel any kind of certainty that they can choose the right path forward. If someone else is going to take that decision out of their hands? They're going to follow, no questions asked, right up until the moment they can't.

#bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #meta #some of you people have never suffered through group projects and it shows

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pursuitseternal · 6 months

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Masterlist: a collection of Spawn and Ascended Astarion fics, drabbles, and AU’s

🦇 The First Day— climbing on ceilings failure (comedy and smut)

🦇 The Second Day- Batstarion’s first appearance (just comedy)

🦇 The Third Day— Smut + Batstarion (just smut and chin scritches)

🦇 The Fourth Day- Batstarion and self-worshiping Mirror Sex

🦇 The Fifth Day- Bastsarion and Bat!Tav fluff

🦇 The Sixth Day- 🍑 smut one

series link on AO3

Series of scenes from Acts 1 and 2 of Spawn Rogue Astarion x Female Reader.

✨Part 1: “Go back to sleep, darling…” [the SFW flirty bite one]

✨Part 2: “You’ll have to keep quieter than that…” [the NSFW sexy fingering one]

✨Part 3: “Daggers are a love language, my dear…” [the NSFW sexy daggers one]

✨Part 4: “Let me have that sweet ambrosia, my love…” [the NSFW vampire feeding frenzy, period sex one]

✨Part 5: “All vim and vigor, dearest…” [the NSFW healing trope one]

✨Part 6: “Maybe we should fight more often…” [Lovers Spat and Make Up Sex one]

✨Part 7: “You had better tie me up, darling…” [fuck or die Sex Pollen one]

✨Part 8: “Anything to reassure you, my sweetest…” [jealous tav needs nsfw convincing]

✨Part 9: “Dexterity check first, my sweet” [my homage to his hands, and an excuse to use Sharess’ Caress]

✨Part 10: “To things that warm us!” [drunken toasts and public cockwarming]

✨ Part 11: “Use Your Words” [prompt full au: lovers run]

✨ Part 12: “Decadent” [Valentines Day sex chocolates, semi-public sex]

✨Part 13: “You’ll end up bitten” [the werewolf smut, knotting one]

✨ Part 14: “Don’t hold your breath” [underwater oral hot spring surprise]

✨ Part 15: “Knowledge is a dangerous weapon” [bookworm Tav, Spawn powers, breeding (no babies) kink]

Yuletide in Faerûn Part 1: A Yuletide Miracle (Spawn)

link to fic on AO3

Scenes of Ascended Astarion x Female Reader, realizing that all the power in the world can’t instantly heal all his trauma. It takes love, sex, and making him remember the Vampire Rogue he once was. All chapters are NSFW.

🩸Chapter 1: Welcome Me

🩸Chapter 2: Cleanse Me

🩸Chapter 3: Surprise Me

🩸Chapter 4: Hold Me

🩸Chapter 5: Master Me

🩸 Chapter 6: Warm Me

🩸Chapter 7: Persuade Me

🩸Chapter 8: Scald Me

🩸 Chapter 9: Rescue Me

🩸Chapter 10: Unmask Me

🩸Chapter 11: Seek Me

Yultide in Faerûn Part 2: Wrap Me Up (Ascended) 🎀

link to fic on AO3

🗡️Enemies to Lovers | Astarion x Named Tav

💞🗡️He can’t remember anything, but she does. The betrothed she believed dead, the source of all her centuries of grief and heartache now in the middle of her path after the Nautiloid crash, but something is different about him. Dark. Changed. Something hidden.

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3

Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6

Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 | Chapter 9

Chapter 10| Chapter 11| Chapter 12

Chapter 13| Chapter 14| Chapter 15

Chapter 16| Chapter 17| Chapter 18

Chapter 19| Chapter 20| Chapter 21

Ascended Astarion x Shadowheart BDSM Dark!Fic with feelings

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3

Chapter 4 |

Link on Ao3

Lumina is different, newly turned, and she has turned the head of the Master, the Vampire Ascendant. For the first time in 200 years, his beating heart might just feel something again.

CW: Dark fic with a hint of softer AA, Harem of Spawn, No Tav, very NSFW…

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3

🔥 “To Make You Swell with Child:” breeding kink with Ascended Astarion

🔥 “More than Just a Little Death:” angst with minimal happy ending, Ascended Dark Lord Astarion x Enemy Tav

🔥 “Virgin Blood:” losing your virginity to Astarion, retelling Act 1 Romance

🔥 “Beg me…” BDSM, NSFW punishment with Ascended Astarion 🥵

🔥 “Your Reward:” Prompt fill— NSFW Dark!Fic, DubCon, angst, and degradation with Ascended Astarion, premise of if Tav left him💧 Also on

🔥 “His”- gift fic, Durge x A!Astarion

🔥“Just a drop:” Astarion’s angst as he watches Tav turn

🔥“Filthy:” prompt fill— Astarion makes sure you’re completely cleaned after battle

🔥“I can be quick:” prompt fill— Astarion x Curvy female reader, body worship, NSFW

🔥Mistrial: Modern Faerûn AU: Justice Ancunín find Tav again after centuries, right in his own courtroom Chapter 1 ⚖️ Chapter 2 ⚖️ ao3 link

Fanart by @marimosalad, @mouldering-casket and @snowfolly

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eyebagshawty · 3 months

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Hey, I really like your works! I wondered if you could make something about suicidal reader and astarion, gale, halsin and anyone you feel like.

But only if you're comfortable with it. Some general hurt/comfort would be ok. Best inspiration 💛

Blurbs for Male Companions Comforting a Suicidal Tav

Pairings: Astarion, Gale, Halsin, Wyll

Warnings/Tags: some canon typical violence, suicidal thoughts/ideation, suicide attempt, angst, comfort, some are durge Tav, probably a dead dove do not eat situation

A/N: As someone who struggles with this type of thing daily, I really enjoyed expressing my interpretation of this; it was therapeutic in a way. These are blurbs, so it may not be as developed as I would like, but I hope you guys like it! Let me know if you want a part two with the ladies :)

Astarion

Marcus had kidnapped Isabelle. The sweet cleric had welcomed your party into the arms of Last Light Inn, and somehow you were too weak to save her. It was your fault.

Your. Fault.

Astarion had comforted you after, saying you couldn’t have known you would need every last bit of your magic to give your help. You couldn’t have known you would need to rest. It was just as much of a surprise to him, to Shadowheart, to Karlach. But the more you stare at Nettie’s wyvern toxin — more of a keepsake at this point than a tool for battle — the more you decide you should’ve known. Jaheira’s expression after Last Light had fallen, it’s burned into your memory. You had promised her your only intention was good, but there was still something in her eyes that showed blame.

As you watch your companions move around camp and settle next to the fire, your left hand subconsciously lifts your dagger from its holster; your right hand coming up to your mouth to open the seal of the wyvern toxin. Where could you even go from here? There was no moon lantern, but no reason to go back. You don’t even have anywhere to go back to if you think about it.

You really are a monster, the tadpole your own scarlet letter. The dagger is slathered with the wyvern toxin, and as you smile at your lover from across camp the dagger makes a shallow slice into your thigh just out of sight.

“I think I’m gonna head to bed guys, we’ve got a lot to plan tomorrow about where to go from here,” you mumble, your eyes slightly glazed from the poison entering your system. Your companions nod in agreement, each one heading to their tent to prepare for bed. Astarion, however, watches you. His brow furrows, and he’s about to offer for you to sleep in his tent again, but you’re already in front of him. “Hello love, I know it’s a bit early into, well, us. But I was wondering if I could sleep with you tonight.”

Astarion gently takes your hand in his and kisses your knuckles. “Of course my sweet,” he whispers. But the closer you get to him, the weirder you smell. He can smell the familiar bouquet of your blood, just a trace of it, but there is a sour note in there. “Are you sure you’re feeling alright?” As he looks back up to your eyes you let out a sob you’d been holding since earlier that day. His eyes widen; he isn’t good at comfort but for you he can try. “Darling what’s wrong?” He prods, needing to help you in your state.

You feel you can’t verbalize it, so your tadpole nuzzles up to his, asking for entrance. He accepts, and the images of your actions, your thoughts, your feelings flood into his mind. After the connection breaks you crumple to the ground, the poison entering the later stages.

Astarion’s thoughts immediately clear as he stares down at you in horror. He gathers your body into his arms and runs to Shadowheart, your seemingly now small and delicate form writhing within them. Shadowheart stands as she sees him running. “What happened Astarion?” She sternly quips, her eyes softening at the sight of you.

“They… it was one of those winged horrors. It poisoned them. Please help them. Please.” Astarion looks down at your eyes as they twitch and gaze blankly towards the sky. Shadowheart eases an antidote and a greater health potion into your mouth. Once you have your faculties about you once more, you lean your face into Astarion’s chest and weep. “Shh my love, let’s get you to bed.”

He lays you down gently to the various pillows in his tent, his every vein screaming to run. He isn’t ready for this kind of care and work a relationship requires. What am I thinking? It’s Tav, not some sorry bloke from a tavern. Get yourself together.

“I’m sorry. That was a pathetic idea for me to have, I know you might not want to explore this any further and I’ll still help you with-“

“Don’t be ridiculous, darling,” he mutters as he strokes your cheek with his fingers. “I’ve been right where you are before. Nowhere to go further but nothing to go back to, hmm?” You nod and he gives you a sad smile. “I find that I’m more happy than ever to be alive right now. Well, unalive but that’s no matter. I have you. We will find a way to get that damned moon lantern. I’ll bite everyone in this camp to take a break for a day. Whatever you need. I’m here and I… I love you.” He definitely didn’t think of saying the L word now of all times, but as a surprise to him it feels perfectly right.

“I love you too. Please just hold me.”

And so he does.

Gale

As you wake to the blinding light of the sun, restraints tug at your wrists. The memories of the last night come flooding back into you. The fear in Gale’s eyes as you bit at him that he had tried to hide, the way you kept failing to break through the urges to speak to him. He was so sweet to you. He didn’t deserve it. You love him.

“Glad to have you back with us my love,” Gale whispers into your ear as he frees your wrists and ankles from the restraints. He helps you to your feet and leads you to the fire. “Breakfast is ready. You told me your favorite is an omelet with bacon and some tea?”

“Yes, but you didn’t have to do this for me. I was being dreadful to you,” you mutter, looking down at the food.

“Of course I did. Our love knows no bounds, right? Now, eat. Baldur and his gate are waiting for us.” He kisses your head and you force a smile, shoving the food into your mouth as if you aren’t sick to your stomach with yourself.

The fight in the astral prism had put everyone off kilter. When you had found out the protector in your dreams, the person you needed to trust with your life, was a mindflayer, you only wanted rip each tentacle off its face and eat them as it watched. You did trust it. You were just so deplorable you thought its intestines would look beautiful around its neck to hang outside of your tent as decoration.

You can’t stand yourself anymore. Not just your actions, but your body. The urges make your body hurt, make your head pound and your stomach wretch. You never see a person in the mirror, you see a diseased sack of flesh squealing to be kept alive.

Gale holds you in his lap, leaving soft kisses on your neck as he reads one of his unusually large tomes. You feel disgusting. You will never deserve something nice like this. “I’m going to go see if I can spot the city from that building over there love,” you whisper as you kiss his cheeks and stand up, your stomach twisting as he gazes at you with loving eyes. He can’t love this, can he?

“Do you want me to tag along? I love a good tower as much as the next wizard,” he asks softly as he rubs your sides with his warm hands. You shake your head and force another smile. His brow lightly furrows but he shakes it off and presses a kiss to your lips in parting.

You find yourself sitting on the edge of the tower roof overlooking all of Baldur’s Gate. It has been a couple of hours, and you decide you don’t want to know any more about Orin or the makings of the absolute. Something in your mind tells you it will be the end of a lot of things if you find out. You shakily stand, letting out a ragged breath as pebbles skitter off the edge from under your feet. You close your eyes, exhale, and lean forward, when you fly through the mist into Gale’s tent. You let out a broken cry as warm and strong arms wrap around you, smelling of parchment and tea leaves.

“My love, I’ve felt the immanence of our situation for a while, and when Mystra abandoned me I thought I was as good as a newborn gnoll, destined for nothing but madness. But darling, what were you thinking?” He mutters into your hair.

“The urges won’t- nothing will stop. At my core I’m evil, something to be exhausted. I can’t-“

“Tav, I wouldn’t be as in love with you as I am if these things you said about yourself were true. I would give up my tressym to Astarion if it meant I could relieve any of your pain. Don’t tell her I said that though, Tara would never let me hear the end of it.” You let out a quiet chuckle, his dry humor always helping. “Now let’s sleep, no matter what this packed and unforgiving city does to us we will get through it together.”

“I love you, please, please don’t leave.”

“I would never dream of it.”

Halsin

Orin has captured Gale, and you feel helpless. Did you really not know your friend well enough to see that a shapeshifter was in his place? You have known him for months at this point. And yet, it was your fault for not checking in with him. For getting in that petty fight over the crown of Karsus that made you both ignore each other.

As you and your party trudge once again through the sewers, Astarion and Shadowheart both bombard you with questions about their personal needs within the city.

“Shadowheart, I understand we need to go to the House of Grief but Gale could quite literally be dead right now,” you assert softly, trying to show that she means just as much to you.

“Ugh, Gale. Of all times we have to be in a pickle it has to be over him and right now,” Astarion mutters to himself. You try to push down your frustration but the smirk on his face pushes you over the edge combined with his next words, “You’re the one that’s supposed to be making the rounds, darling. I can take Shadowheart to the house, and you and bear boy can find the bootmuncher.”

As shameful as it is for you, tears burst from your eyes as anger and anxiety take over. “So go. I don’t care anymore since you have never gone out of your way for us. I… fuck!” You slam your sword onto the ground and walk yourself back to cool off.

As Astarion builds up his retort, hurt and defensiveness flashing across his expression, Halsin steps in front of you protectively. “Calm down, Astarion. This does not need to be a fight. Let’s just break for the day. Come, my heart.” As he takes your hand comfortingly in his, you feel a gnawing dread seeping into your bones. This was all your fault, and you keep burning bridges with people you care for and you don’t know how to stop.

At the end of the day you find yourself in the middle of the woods, further from camp than Halsin liked, but it was your privacy; you asked for it and he would respect it. You stared down at your sword, your hands jaunting out to hold it at an awkward angle towards your chest. It had been like this for around an hour; you couldn’t even do this correctly, thinking about how everyone would grimace if they found you like this . Fuck it.

As the knife glides through your padded armor, a large hand places itself on your shoulder. It’s warm, and it smells like herbs and cinnamon. “My heart, please. This is not the way. We’ve come so far on this journey, together, and almost nothing has ever gone wrong. Silvanus guide me, please speak. I need to hear that you are okay,” Halsin chokes out, his voice thick with concern.

“It’s just… I would have known if Gale was acting weird. If I hadn’t pushed him away. I’m doing the same to Astarion, I’ll do it to all of them. When someone goes Illithid it will be on me. Hells we’re taking a break and he could be anywhere.”

“As much as we all love you little one, there is no leader. Nobody could have seen that coming. I had choice words with Astarion, and he would love to speak with you. Everything is handled, I just need you to understand that we can take the weight off of your shoulders occasionally. I love you with everything inside of me. Please know that you are loved.”

The sword clatters to the dirt, and Halsin brings you into his arms; a bear hug in every sense of the term. “I guess I will need Astarion to sew this back up,” you mutter, finger the frayed threads above your heart.

“That sounds like a great idea, little one. I’ll put on some tea for when you’re done.” He kisses your head and walks you back to camp, his arms never leaving your waist.

After a cathartic conversation with your resident vampire, a big brown cave bear awaits you in your tent with blankets and tea.

Wyll

On the dock overlooking the Chionthar, a blade glares up at you from your worn fingers. The Netherbrain is dead, your friends are free from the things that bind them, but you don’t know if it’s the same for you. Nobody forced you to create the Illithid plot with Enver Gortash, nobody forced you to kill Alfira. Her face will haunt you forever, what you did to her in a cold sweat during the middle of the night.

Sure, you had given up Bhaal’s inheritance, but it was still your skin that was covered in blood. It was still your face that bit and spit at the urge’s victims. It was with your eyes that you looked down at Alfira’s cold and eviscerated body. Wither’s had resurrected you in the temple, but you still felt shame creep into your veins. You weren’t a new person, you just forgot.

You saw Wyll hugging Karlach, her new Illithid form unusual but still distinctly her. You want to be with him, you need him like breathing, but the guilt and regret is gnawing at your flesh like a newborn gnoll. Maybe he would be better off taking his role as grand duke by himself, the whole city would whisper of the mad adventurer that had to fight for forgiveness to their complicit nature in the plot. As the blade begins to take its final drink from your wrist, Wyll looks up and shouts your name.

An eldritch blast knocks the blade into the sea, and warm hands wrap gently around your wrist, and a handkerchief is pressed to the small nick. He smells sulfuric but sweet like cinnamon apples as he presses a worry-filled kiss to your head. It comforts you but it shouldn’t; you don’t deserve this. “My love, what is wrong? The netherbrain has fallen, Karlach lives, what could trouble you this much?” He whispers into your ear, making sure the others know this interaction is private.

“I can’t live with myself. I may have forgotten a good extent of my past, but I remember everything from that point on the nautiloid onward clear as a whistle. It’s too much to act like I’m this hero,” you whisper back, tears streaming down your cheeks.

Wyll lifts up your left hand, a ring glinting in the morning sun. He kisses the knuckle wearing it, and looks up into your eyes with a bittersweet smile. “I did not choose you to be the love of my life, my sun and stars, because I thought you were evil my love,” he kisses your cheeks and puts his forehead to yours. “That wasn’t the you I see before me, this wonderful creature who sees past my horns, past Astarion’s vampirism, past Gale’s orb godssakes,” he chuckles and you let out a quiet laugh.

“I just don’t want to be that again. Ever again,” you whisper as you glance at your joined hands. Wyll brings a hand to your cheek and kisses your lips with a tender touch.

“It will take time. Just like I have newfound bumps in weird places, I need to get used to those. It’s being human. Now come with me, future Ravengard, we have beers to slam with our friends.”

He helps you up, and pulls you into the tightest hug as if you could disappear. You walk into the brightening dawn to the Elfsong Tavern, making sure tease him about becoming the grand duke the entire way.

#fanfic #baldurs gate 3 #bg3 #astarion x reader #astarion ancunin #bg3 romance #gale dekarios #gale x reader #halsin x reader #halsin #wyll x reader #wyll ravengard #18+ content #please read tags #angst

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sky-kiss · 5 months

Text

Scars

A/n: Soft!mangled Raphael getting some snuggles. gif belongs to @red-dead-sakharine. Because they are INCREDIBLE. Sequel to this.

Raphael x (GN) Tav/Durge

You watch him pace the length of your shared room.

He's always struggled to settle, a testament to his heritage. Like Mephistopheles, he runs hot and cold, thoughts racing, schemes forming; his features twist in response to some voice in his head. You can't read his thoughts traditionally, but you don't need to: Raphael is still trying to parse his fall from grace. That orderly, fanciful mind struggles to justify his image of himself (proud, regal, kingly) and the mangled ghost in the mirror (scarred, maimed, a pauper prince).

You rest your chin on your pulled-up knees to conserve body heat. You won't pity the cambion. Pity is everything he fears and loathes. You lift your hand, turning it this way and that. Blood cakes under the nails, in the beds, between your fingers…you feel it drying near the corners of your mouth, itching and flaking away.

You'd made a ruin of the incubus…but it's the nearest thing you can offer to a gift, and Raphael smiled. It made the mess worthwhile. You scrub the back of your hand across your mouth. It only makes things worse.

Raphael pauses. The cambion tips his head to the side, watching you, eyes narrowed. In the past, he was vocal. Now, he's…different. It's your fault, and some childish part of you wants to argue that you're trying to make amends, but…

…a devil's memory is long. Their grudges are eternal.

You are, and remain, his damnation first and savior second.

"What?" You demand too sharply. Your throat burns, either from the cold or Haarlep's blood.

"Look at you," Raphael purses his lips, growling the words. "A mongrel; a beast. What became of you? You were brighter before."

"So were you."

"Mmm. And what, pray tell, could have been the cause of my meteoric rise and fall? At whose feet might I lay the blame?"

How many times have you had this argument over the past six months? You've lost count, and it's lost its edge. A part of you, petty, too aware of his foibles, wants to scold him for it: he was more creative in the old days. Now they haunt the same battleground, both too cowardly to make a move. You are caught in each other's orbit: the ruined king and the abandoned godling.

You scrub at your mouth again, and he scoffs. The cambion crosses to you and snaps his finger. Before you can register what he's doing, he's pressed a wet rag to your skin, scrubbing the mess away. His touch is brusque but…a welcome change of pace. If nothing else, he's warm.

"Didn't your mother ever teach you not to play with your food?" He doesn't ask you to turn your head; he grips your jaw and moves you as he pleases.

You grumble, reaching out to settle your hands on his shoulders. The scarring on his torso is worse, much worse, and you feel the puckered skin flex under your touch. "Didn't have one."

Raphael squeezes your chin. "The point remains. Such a mess."

Despite yourself, you smile. Raphael's eyes darken, fixing on the blood-flecked across your teeth.

"Open." He orders.

And you were made to follow orders, weren't you? Bhaal's, the Absolute's, Gortash…the headiness of his tone and the lowness twists something in your belly. Raphael presses his thumb to your lower lip. A sharp nail scrapes across your teeth, careful, ever so careful, clearly away the remnants of your…indulgence. The cambion tilts his head to the side, pressing deeper into your mouth.

You set your teeth on this skin, eye burning.

"How curious is my monster…" Raphael sits back. He pulls his hand free, but you don't allow him to get far. You shuffle nearer, press yourself to him to leech his warmth. Claws pluck at your hair. "... you've bitten me once already…"

And the thought flits through your head, cruel and resigned all at once: what alternative does he have left? What do either of you have left?

You don't say this. It's better to pluck Raphael's free hand from where it rests between you. There are scars and burns here, stretching across the wrists, down towards his palm.

You hold his gaze, pressing your lips to the worst of his scars.

#raphael bg3 #bg3 raphael #raphael x tav #raphael x durge #baldurs gate 3 fanfiction #my stuff #raphael x reader

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