Truth or Dare: Side Party for Servants and Scoundrels

[faderifting]

WHO: Anyone!
WHAT: A party for people who might scare the nobility, are deathly afraid of chandeliers, or fled the soiree with cheeses hidden in their clothes and need to make a clean getaway.
WHEN: During (and after) the soiree.
WHERE: The valley beyond Skyhold.
NOTES: Drinking, revelry. People might make out or something. We're not responsible for your actions.

The soiree might be fun, if you're into that sort of thing, but that isn't what it's for. It's for impressing the powerful and opening their pockets—and, necessarily, some people aren't invited. In some cases that's personal. In others, it's just understood. When they're done helping to set up, most of the servants and workers who aren't needed to serve make themselves scarce. The usual trickle of refugees to and from the fortress slows. Some people used to sleeping in the stables may find their "beds" occupied by nobles' horses or the rooms they had been squatting in cleaned and prepared for someone else to stay in.

There's no resentment. (Or at least very little.) That's how these things go. And in the valley outside the fortress' walls, there are foot soldiers and refugees and a number of miscellaneous exiles who welcome the company with large fires, cheap but freely flowing alcohol, and whatever music can be wrung out of instruments exposed to such low temperatures. The crowd thins and dwindles as the night wears on, but even after the last person has left the Great Hall in Skyhold, there's still a sizable gathering near the river with no intention of going to sleep before sunrise.

No masks allowed.

Comments

[equanimiti]

After having his full of the mundane conversations and the general snootiness of those arrogant nobles, Alayre sought the outdoors. He needed a breath of fresh air and he would find none better than the crisp cool breeze of the Frostback Mountains. It should be a crime for the Templar to look so miserable while dressed so fancily in reds and golds. Alayre hadn't cracked a single smile all evening and his usual knack for pleasantries had vanished.

The Knight-Commander wore the same frown he had at the soiree here at this humble gathering. He honestly looked out of place here given his decorative attire but Alayre couldn't have cared less. The Templar much rather be here lingering among all the undesirables than in that nightmarish ball. Alayre had given his fellow Templars a curt farewell before leaving but other than that; he slipped away unnoticed. Now pining for a glass of ale over anything else, Alayre paused once he saw a familiar face.

Detlef. That name brought a scowl to his lips. Try as he might to put aside that name, Alayre constantly had to correct himself whenever he spoke of Anders. While Alayre was indeed quite furious with this conniving murderer, he still couldn't convince himself to fully hate the mage. His anger was fueled by the lies told and the secrets hidden. One would argue that he's more hurt than angry but Alayre wouldn't even humor such a thought. Nevertheless, it's something of a miracle that Alayre hadn't approached the Wardens about Anders yet. Despite all the malice that lingers within him, Alayre couldn't bring himself to act upon them despite venting his frustrations to Norrington in private.

Uncertain what to say to Anders or even how to say it, Alayre turned away. Now isn't the time for arguing. He had enough of arguing since joining the Inquisition and he honestly doesn't have much fight in him now.

[justice_is_blond]

He was tempted to simply let Alayre go. The man looked angry, and Anders wasn't sure he had the energy to deal with that. It was exhausting, honestly, and each yelling person made him care even less when that's likely the very opposite of what they wanted.

But as the Templar had stood there, staring in Anders' direction without actually seeing, Anders had come over. Why not? Best to know for sure where matters stood, know for sure if this Templar was all talk and little substance, if he'd crumbled in his resolve at his first dealings with a mage who hadn't surrendered to Templars.

Alayre turns, and Anders exhales. "So that's it, then?" If he goes, he goes. Anders will turn and walk away too. He doesn't have much faith in Templars, and he wants to think he's prepared to be entirely disappointed.

[equanimiti]

Alayre had every intention in just leaving. He needed time to think, he needed time to be alone. All of the insanity that had taken place this month had left the Templar feeling quite conflicted. In truth, he's a little bitter. However, when Anders spoke--Alayre realized that he couldn't just walk away.

"What would you have me say?" The words were said long before he could think on them. "What is there to say?" Now turning to face the mage, Alayre pinned him down with a look completely devoid of friendliness. "Tell me, Anders." He made it a point to use his true name now.

"What would have me say about all of this?" If the other wanted to indulge in conversation, now was the time.

[justice_is_blond]

"All of this? I've no idea. The ale's all right. The music's decent." He's calm, watching Alayre, judging what he's seeing. "I'm not about to presume to put words in your mouth. I wouldn't even say you owe me anything for saving your life, and you can rest assured I've no intentions of telling anyone that it was your advice that made me finally choose to come to the Inquisition."

He shrugged. If this bridge was burned, then there was nothing Anders could do. He wouldn't like it, but in a way it would make his life easier if he could go back to lumping all Templars together.

"Though I'm very curious about what comes now. We had some good conversations. Do they all get discarded because of my past, when you had to have known I had one? I meant everything I said; does the source taint it?"

[equanimiti]

Anders' love for wit won him no favors here but Alayre chose not to comment. Just as the other watched him, he found himself returning the same calculating gaze. Why should be bother speaking with Anders now after the fact? Why even bother with trying to make sense of all this madness now? He could mentally kick himself for not turning away when he had the chance. This wasn't the opportune moment for either of them to speak. The upbeat music and merrymaking served as a stark contrast to the heated discussion building between them. It's irony at it's best.

A tinge of surprise lingered upon his face once Anders revealed he hadn't told anyone about him inviting him to Skyhold. Surely had Cassandra known, she would've been beyond furious with him and Alayre would've lost the confidence of his allies accordingly. Anders could've buried the Templar had he made that fact known but for some oddity, he hasn't.

Why was that? The same went for Anders saving his life out there within the snowy lyrium-laced fields of Emprise du Lion. Why would a rogue apostate known for his heinous crimes, save the life of an Templar and a knight-commander at that? It wouldn't make any sense to think of this man as his enemy and yet here they are. Alayre simply doesn't know what to make of Anders and it showed in his hesitation to speak.

"Of course not." He finally managed to answer. "Your misdeeds don't taint the truth spoken but I'm hesitant to trust in you again." Alayre said in hopes of making sense of all his thoughts.

[justice_is_blond]

He waited, past the look of surprise, through Alayre's silence. There's a lot to take in, and parts of it don't line up with the heartless murderer rumor says he is. It's satisfying, when someone tries to compare what they see and what they've heard and find the latter lacking, and it seems that Alayre's doing that. The fact that his reply is civil and not accusatory says a great deal.

Anders inclines his head in a partial nod. "I don't expect you to take me at my word when I've lied. But I can tell you that my name was all I lied about. I made sure of that. I didn't want there to be a tangle of lies when I wound up dead... found out, rather, that would undercut everything I'd done or said. I still can't afford that. One lie beyond my name, and everything would have to be discarded."

And it wasn't like he could have come here as Anders. Everyone had to know that.

[equanimiti]

It really a bit much for Alayre to take in and it shows.

He literally didn't know what to say to this man or how to voice his concerns about Anders. The fact that a known murderous Abomination has lingered in Skyhold for all this time makes him uneasy. Yet it was the same Abomination that saved Alayre's life. The same that also spoke with him and gotten him to change his views on everything he's learned since becoming a Templar. The two of them were actually on friendly terms.

"Death would've claimed you had you stepped foot in here as yourself." Alayre acknowledged with quiet sigh. "That much is certain considering how many clamor for your demise." His thoughts lingered upon one particular hateful rant spoken not too long ago on the sending crystals. At the time, Alayre had tried to remain impartial but even he couldn't stop his frustration from boiling over regarding this whole issue. Not hate but definitely frustration.

"Perhaps there's indeed reason why the Grey Wardens would have us turn a blind eye towards you." He grumbled. "You, despite it all, possess..only good intentions." The Templar lets out a tense sigh.

"I don't desire to know you as Anders but rather as the one mage dared to befriend a Templar."

[justice_is_blond]

Only good intentions would be more than he'd grant himself, but that someone would grant it to him... Anders blinked, very surprised. Not just someone. A Templar. There were days he wondered how much of himself was left, days when he sought out Cole or Zevran or Nate or anyone who knew him who would tell him the truth without a layer of hatred over it, and without a layer of false hope. Having someone offer that unasked was powerful.

It took a moment for him to react further, still surprised, but then he nodded.

"If it helps, that's not even my name. You could call me whatever you'd like; I don't know what my given name was anymore." Alayre wanted to know him. It was beyond risky, anything he say could be used as a weapon against him, but he's past anything he had planned out. Everything was risk. Everything was life. "The Templars called me Anders, the Anders boy, because I didn't speak the language and wasn't responding to their orders. I learned that they meant me by it rather quickly."

Fists, feet, they'd delivered the message efficiently. "And then disuse..." He shrugged as if to say not knowing his name was natural, expected, not a burden. It bothers him, though, when he lets it. Thankfully there are so many other things to focus on being bothered by.

[equanimiti]

The origins behind Anders name is a telling story of the abuse of power done by his Order. The fact that this mage had been named by these Templars who readily physically and mentally abused him honestly won Alayre's disgust. Bigotry and discrimination often goes hand and hand with the Templars. This is something Alayre couldn't possibly deny and doesn't dare try to deny. Despite his good fortune to have been apart of a stricter tower, Alayre couldn't deny that some of that nonsense transpired even there within Pharos.

"Detlef suits you better, I say." Alayre said with something akin to a slight smile upon his usually somber face. "I cannot say what sort of fate awaits for you here at Skyhold but I...shan't treat you as my foe if you aid us in the battles to come." The Templar managed to say after a moment of hesitation on his part.

"This is bound to be a very long war, Detlef, and even after the war is won--healing Thedas will be a complicated affair." Alayre doesn't expect to live to see the day when Thedas a whole finally heals from its wounds but he plans to leave the foundation for such a possibility for others to continue where he left off.

[justice_is_blond]

There's something faintly amusing about a Templar choosing to use Detlef over Anders, as well as something a little powerful. He may never have his own name back, but Alayre is letting him have a chosen one rather than what he'd been given as the Order tried to strip him of personhood.

"I can pledge to fight Corypheus, to aid in that struggle. I cannot honestly promise to aid Templars in everything. Nor can I promise to heal every Templar who is injured that I come across." There's too much history, too much baggage. "However, if they're not someone known to me as an abuser, if they're working with the Inquisition on something that is not hurting mages or Grey Wardens, I will help them. I wish I could offer more, but I cannot."

He hopes Alayre understands. He thinks the man does, but it's hard to know. Anders is an abomination; the limitations he faces with Justice's drive that has a habit of edging into Vengeance are not always easily grasped.

[equanimiti]

Alayre is quite aware of the empowering undertones here. He's subtly placing himself upon the same level as Anders now in hopes of breaking the invisible wall that hinders their friendship. That wall being the very hierarchy between Templar and Mage. Unlike others who feel the need to play that sort of game, Alayre sees no reason why he should do the same.

Especially with one he once deems as a friend.

"I accept your offer as it is, Detlef." He states with a vague smile. "And I wouldn't dare ask of you to offer more than you are willing to give." Perhaps Alayre will live to regret his words but as of now, he's content with the Grey Warden's pledge enough to offer the same in return.

[justice_is_blond]

"Thank you." There's a little surprise in his voice, and a lot of gratitude. Finding a Templar who isn't obsessed with keeping mages down, or following their strict definition of Andraste's words, is rare. Finding someone who will treat a mage as a person is even more rare, and Anders is touched that Alayre is one of them. He'd lied directly to this man about his name. He'd come to the Inquisition at his invitation. Alayre had much he could have resented, and he's chosen not to.

"I... I look forward to working with you in the future, Alayre."