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[doneisdone]

[Correspond at your own risk.]

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letter.

[byblow]

[ Backdated, don’t ask me to when. ]

Teren,

They decommissioned my sending crystal, the knaves.

I mean, from a tactical perspective it makes some sense, when there are so many of us here. It would be pretty hard to find out which crystals were accounted for or not if we were all killed at once. And limiting who has them means there are fewer people spreading information around. Easier to trace leaks and traitors and so on. I get it!

But I wish they’d made an exception for me. I tried to tell them I couldn’t sleep unless a scary Nevarran woman told me a bedtime story, and they didn’t care at all. Not even a little.

So this is my formal request for you to please send one bedtime story to me, by return letter. I can read it out loud to myself with your accent.

Alistair

[doneisdone]

[Some time later.]

Dear Alistair.

Once Upon a Time there was a Prince who thought he was very Clever and would make all manner of Jokes that were Very Bad. One day He was eaten by a Crocodyle and no one could Save him and no one wanted to.
The End.

Teren

P.S. Wash your socks.

action.

[hornswoggle]

[ Just casually taking a seat across from Teren, hello. ]

Have you any talent in songwriting, Warden von Skraedder?

[doneisdone]

[She looks up from her soup and stares at John for a good ten seconds before speaking.]

What,

[hornswoggle]

[ Is this not what Flint meant when he mentioned Teren would be assisting him in all his ventures? ]

I'm considering ways to improve the reputation of our fine company, and it occurred to me that setting some of our more valorous deeds to song may help us in spreading them across the land.

[ Earworms, super effective. ]

Of course, I'm also considering simple dramatic storytelling, but the idea of songs tickled me.

[doneisdone]

[She eyes him with what can only be described as suspicion, slowly bringing the spoon to her mouth again.

After another long silence,]

I don't sing.

[hornswoggle]

[ Undeterred— ]

Of course. Fortunately, I believe we are blessed with a number of singers, should we manage some lyrics.

[ we ]

[doneisdone]

[This has happened before: she's placed a voice before a face, found familiarity with someone before ever meeting them, and it's all the fault of those infernal crystals.

Finally, something clicks in her mind, and her eyes seem to lose some of their luster.]

...you're John Silver.

[Maker preserve us.]

[hornswoggle]

[ Honestly, it's actually very nostalgic to receive this reception. Ah, the days when he was just an annoyance for most people. ]

I am. I believe you're familiar with my partner, Commander Flint.

[ And apparently with John, but he can only assume it is for obviously great and flattering reasons. ]

[doneisdone]

Yes.

[She takes another spoonful.]

action, for Barty as well.

[byblow]

[ Around a small bright fire in the dark Deep Roads, Alistair is lying on his back and tossing a little stone up to catch, over and over. ]

What do you think will happen when they run out of Archdemons?

[doneisdone]

[chewing on a small piece of tinder,]

Perhaps we'll become them.

[gentlecountry]

Not sure how much I likes the idea of being an Archdemons. Though it might be nice to be tall, just for a while.

[Archdemons are big, and while Barty is well-used to being the shortest, if not the smallest, person in any given room, just once he'd like to loom. Nobody respects dwarvish looming, really.]

No, I retracts that: could be fun. You know what they say; always be yourselfs, unless you cans be a dragon.

[byblow]

But these would be evil dragons. Leading hordes of murderous darkspawn. Destroying everything. And everyone.

[gentlecountry]

Well, ways I sees it, maybe dragons is just naturally evil. After all, we been tainted for years, ain't none of us evil, excepting miss Teren here on a productive day. [A nod, in deference to Teren's efficiency.] No, I expects what I'd do is I'd take my hordes of murderous darkspawns and go rampaging on other darkspawns.

[He gestures with a finger. There you have it.]

Cuts downs the numbers-like.

[doneisdone]

[A tiny smile quirks onto her lips at Barty's nod. He's not wrong.]

What makes a thing evil, anyway? Being at odds with us? [She cocks her head toward Alistair.]

[byblow]

Uhhhh, [ Alistair says, but it’s a sarcastic sort of uhhh, pretending to think about something that doesn’t actually require thought. ] Indiscriminate destruction of life? Sweeping through places killing everyone, down to the children?

[doneisdone]

[The twig in Teren's mouth changes direction as her mouth twitches into a little smirk.]

Is a Blight so much worse than an Exalted March?

[The archdemons doesn't need an advocate, but here she is anyway.]

crystals as discussed;

[dissolving]

[ idly, ]

You ever spend time in the City?

[doneisdone]

Nevarra?

Aye, from time to time.

[dissolving]

Nah, I mean — Kirkwall, now.

[doneisdone]

Oh.

[a long, calculating pause,]

Not in some fair while, no.

[dissolving]

'S a bar by the neighborhood, [ meaning the alienage, because of course he does ] Good place for quiet. Loud quiet, y'know.

[doneisdone]

All right.

[what's your point, pup]

https://media.tenor.com/-z76x5iCiMUAAAAM/arrested-development-gob.gif

[dissolving]

Figure we could move th'mending there, some night —