faderift | The secrets in the snow

parkour/sparring;
Finally, finally, they gave her a clean bill of health and so once again there are notices pinned on the board and in the tavern to say that Araceli's climbing lessons are back on. That's if people don't spot her first, scrambling up and down the walls and battlements, covered as they are in snow and ice; she learned how to do this when she arrived, and maybe it isn't ideal but she's spent so long down on the ground that she's not going to waste another moment.

Plus she has the cane from Pel, too pretty to be cast aside, extending her reach as she practices outside the lessons. And that's not the only place she spends her time with it. Swapping out a rapier for a cane isn't going to come naturally to her overnight, but she's long overdue changing things up. The dummies are fine but people are more welcome. Just forget that Korrin is her girlfriend okay?

nuggalope;
After getting the nuggalopes to Skyhold, Araceli never really got the chance to ride hers much, so out she leads him. Lux grudgingly in tow if he can't eventually be coaxed to perch up on top of the nuggalope. Who does, in fact, happen to go by The Walrus because he is a distinguished lump of a creature so what other name should she have given such a beast?

Getting him out of Skyhold is honestly the worst bit since he's skittish and Araceli tends to sink in the deep snow, dogging her progress until at last they get out to where the camps are where she can really ride him. There aren't exactly brakes on a nuggalope though but he's at least a friendly walrus, if shy.

tavern;
But after all that running around in the cold by day, most evenings find Araceli in the tavern. Sometimes with a book, more usually with cards or dice, always with Lux curled up sleeping on her lap or by her feet to keep her warm as she sips brandy or rum. Cold nights mean that company is all the more welcome, especially when she feels back to her usual self again.

And there's even the odd night when she brings her lute along; the Winter Palace was the start, and now she needs to get used to that sort of thing. Better to do it here where she knows most of the faces, and where less of them are likely to take offense with her.

wildcard;
[Or make up your own scenario and I'll roll with it.]

the wilds (of skyhold);
Too much time in Orlais and she craves time alone, even with the work she might need to get done. The tent would be familiar to some if they happened by when she goes out into the deepest part of the forest surrounding Skyhold, the snow and ice crunching underfoot as she goes. Into the deepest, darkest parts of the wilds - or as wild as she can find here - does she travel, leaving a trail to follow if any are so bold, and her campfire burns bright in the dark by the time she makes camp.

And that's all she does, it would seem. Simply makes camp, settles herself. Wraps Kieran up warm in bearskin since he's almost as hardy as she is, settled in the woods as seemingly the two of them for a day or two at a time whenever the mood strikes. Kieran prefers to venture back during the day but Morrigan remains to wander as herself or as a wolf, or to perch high up in the branches as a crow should someone come across her little camp.

All the better to swoop down on them, after all.

around skyhold;
With or without Kieran in tow (when your mother is Morrigan, she's a very good ward against wayward snowballs from your friends, didn't you know), Morrigan can be found prowling around Skyhold, visiting the stalls. There are supplies to gather, people that attempt to speak to her before they lose their nerve, or her son wants to ask about something and even a year in Skyhold doesn't have her trusting people enough to let him wander about strangers unattended.

Maybe you might accuse her of smile as she sweeps the snow from his hair or his shoulders, of spoiling him when she thinks he isn't looking. But it's that time of year, isn't it? And do you actually know when Kieran's birthday is?

library/her study;
A diversion in Orlais after so much time in the field once again finds Morrigan alternating between Skyhold's libraries and her own more private study, attempting to catch up on the work that seems to have piled up in her absence much like the winter snows. The door to the study doesn't remain open but there are signs of life from the flickering of a candle or scouts and runners dispatched to fetch what she might require when she would rather not be disturbed to fetch it herself. Or there's Kieran popping in and out with whatever he thinks is particularly interesting.

Usually pinecones. Decorated pinecones. Or he wants to defrost and warm up again after a snowball fight, dripping all over the threshold with a grin as he peers out since no one in their right mind would dare, would they?

wildcard;
[Or make up your own scenario and I'll roll with it.]

yngvi;
tavern;
There are three (okay so technically four) places to look for Yngvi Congealedinagutterson if you want to find him: the undercroft, skulking about in the vicinity of Gwenaelle Vauquelin, or the tavern. (Or places he shouldn't be, but you actually want to find him, don't you?) So he's in the tavern most of the time when he's not doing something that could qualify as work. The nugs are in attendance and Yngvi's clearly been up in the hold judging from the new pelt he's bundled up in.

The not-from-Asher pelt. Which is...well it is. And Yngvi is drinking. Which he does most days because he's a dwarf and it's not like this stuff bothers him when he practically got weaned on it anyway but pull up a seat and don't squash his nugs. They're brave, not intelligent.

undercroft;
Down in the undercroft is where Yngvi spends an appreciable portion of his 'not-actively-getting-under-someone's-feet' time. Whilst still getting underfoot because that's just a fact of life when you're Yngvi to be quite honest, but these days when the cold comes howling in because you can't trust elves (this place has an elf name, but what elves know about building would comfortably fit a thimble if this is the example he's got to go with) he busies himself with actually working to keep warm. The hammering is excessively loud but that's just Yngvi.

Ask pretty much any hapless person who has the misfortune of being down there when Yngvi has been around before, prodding and poking, spraying crumbs because there's half a sandwich being shoved down his gullet as he works.

Lots to get done it would seem, traps and honing axes and improvements to the keg chariot but he wouldn't say no to a break if you can make yourself heard above the racket.

battlements;
And if Yngvi can't be found in any of the usual haunts, he's found a new spot. Or spots. Do you call it a spot if it's kind of a long snaking line? Possibly not but he's drunk and this is quite high for not being part of the mountain itself, up here on the battlements, usually in the dead of night. Maybe spooking a guard because there are just a pair of eyes and part of a nose poking out of the furs he's wrapped in because it's freezing up here.

If he leans up and over just right, he can sort of look out over the world and-- "Don't get the appeal of this unless you're hanging someone else over it because they owe you money."

That's the only point of building fortifications so sturdy so high up. Unless you're going to parachute off them but the Inquisition, and more importantly the rest of the Boneflayers, wouldn't take kindly to him inviting some Carta relatives up here to test that one out. Probably.

wildcard;
[Or make up your own scenario and I'll roll with it.]

As one of the party who went to retrieve the nuggalopes, Christine isn't startled by the creature's size or temperament. Really, they're big softies once they're offered a bit of food. That doesn't mean Christine has claimed one for her very own just yet, but she's still learning to ride a horse. A nuggalope is something entirely different.

Seeing Araceli leave the stables with her mount, Christine smiles fondly, remembering that trip up into the Frostbacks and visiting the hold under happier circumstances than the first time she visited. She comes closer, being mindful of the nuggalope and allowing him to see she's no threat.

"Hello. Taking him out to stretch his legs?"

Now that Araceli has clearance from the healers to resume parkour activities, it's a lot less simple to casually track her down. Sure, Korrin could just reach her through the sending crystal, but where's the fun in that? The gloom and chill of winter has been getting to the sun and warmth-loving Vashoth, much as she's tried to combat that feeling through piling on as many activities as possible. So, she'll take what entertainment there is to be found. Finishing up her training exercises, she begins her search around the courtyard and battlements but will wander elsewhere if need be. Time to see if she can spot her lady love before Araceli drops in on her first, though the rifter woman always seems to have the upper hand there.

Edited 2017-01-07 04:31 (UTC)

It's not the dead of night because Korrin uses that to keep her lady warm, thank you, but at some point in the evening when the tavern's crowded and she needs some fresh air Yngvi will have some company. The tall Vashoth woman makes good use of the furs Asher gave her, as shielded from this southern nonsense known as 'winter' as she can manage without compromising her freedom of movement. Hearing Yngvi, she smirks and strides over.

"Oh, are you offering yourself? Because I don't have anything better to do at the moment."

Inessa is outside Skyhold at this time as well, not making a beeline for camp but meandering around in the very general direction of it. Part of that is due to the restlessness and curiosity of her mabari companion, who wants to stretch his legs, roll around in the snow, and sniff everything in existence. She'll play fetch with him later if he needs it but for now, she's content to walk at a slower pace and observe Garahel in action.

The lumbering gait of the nuggalope gets their attention, since how can it not? Garahel, ever curious, heads over to inspect this less-than-familiar beast, wagging his tail at Araceli. "Garahel, mind your manners! You don't want to spook it." Inessa calls out, picking up her pace to a more purposeful stride now. She can't help but stare at the magnificent horned being, which was nothing more than legend in her Circle tower books.

"Hey you." It's been a while. Physical recovery is more or less over with by now, but the psychological scars -- and the losses since -- have left a mark. Cosima seems a bit more subdued than when she and Araceli first discussed cards on the road. Still, her smile is warm enough.

She isn't entirely sure Araceli will want a reminder of what happened, but she hopes that it won't cast a pall over even a simple conversation. She's running short on friendly faces these days.

"You mind if I join you for a little?"

Well excuse some of them for having busy schedules that don't involve a great deal of lounging about when there's work that could be getting done, if Asher-- No. He cuts that thought off sharp and leans up on his toes, plants his chin on the edge of the stonework that seems sturdiest here until it digs into the skin enough to sting through the cold as he squints up at her.

"Piss off." Hi Korrin, how are you because he hasn't seen you in a good month because he fucked off up a mountain to go spend part of the winter somewhere equally cold because Aura said they all should and no one resists Aura Hardie. Which he might explain, might not, needs to work his jaw a bit more and swing down because he can't actually talk like this it turns out. Pity. Had a view for almost a minute. "Don't owe you shit do I? Asher owed you money yeah because Asher never kept track of the money but you take that up with Liadan, not my good self. 'Sides, you'd lose your fingers, bet your lass'd be cross then." His teeth chatter with the cold, so that about covers up how his smile isn't the usual flinty sort of affair it should be but well it's a long journey to Skyhold for a dwarf in a keg drawn by nugs isn't it?

"Cosima, hola." More than a little guilt has Araceli flushing; if she's honest, she was avoiding as many people as she reasonably could when she recovered but that doesn't feel like much of an excuse for not seeking out the people that were down there in the dungeons with her. Bad attitude to everything that she had at the time or not. "Not at all, take a seat, allow me to-"

Leaning under the table, she pulls Lux back so he won't startle and yap since nothing can cut through any din like a startled fox sounding off.

"How have you been, well I hope?"

The last horse Araceli rode was the following: stolen, from Tevinter, and ridden to Craintellier. Now she'll have The Walrus who is as different from a horse as can be, solid and roly-poly, a bit like a walrus, a bit like a whale, and a bit like a few other things she could name then maybe have to draw. She doubts Thedas knows much about things in the sea unless they drag them up in a net.

"Calma," she urges to the nuggalope, petting his nose but he seems to remember the people that were part of the group because he snuffles hopefully. "I thought so since I can finally ride him without my leg protesting now. Get him used to some of the sights and sounds outside the stable too."

Sending crystals are a gamble anyway since there's a good chance Araceli might not notice hers if she happens to be high enough up certain parts of Skyhold at any given moment, and if she was studying in the library then it'd be hidden underneath something to make it less of a temptation when particularly boring or offensive topics eat away at her. From atop a section of the battlements Araceli spots Korrin, swinging herself down to the top of the brickwork to run nimbly along to get to where she hopes Korrin might be going.

She's along the front of Skyhold proper, using the cane too so she can try it out, the anchor catching and letting her swing forward once she's off the battlements, edging her way around above the stairs, past the healer's tents where some of the new arrivals look up in surprise.

Maybe they'll give her away, maybe they won't, she's got a destination in mind a bit further along.

With Lux off scouting ahead with his nose against the snow and more of it streaking his face and up to the tips of his ears, he ignores Inessa and Garahel, more interested in seeing if there's anything interesting beneath the snow with a small group of fennecs trailing after him. Perhaps one of these attempts he will come up triumphant with some small creature and not just an ever more frozen nose as his audience grows. The nuggalope notices the mabari however, trumpeting and rearing up even when Araceli tugs at the reins.

"Lo siento! He hasn't seen a big dog before!" Does the ground shake when those fists come back down or is it her imagination? Snow flurries up certainly, catching in her hair as she aims an apologetic smile Inessa's way as she presses herself flatter against the nuggalope, murmuring softly to him until he seems less upset. "Ah, there we are, see? Not scary at all, a good dog, si? Inessa, may I introduce The Walrus."

"I am pleased to see you so recovered," she replies with a serene smile. Araceli took the long way when it came to her recovery, but that makes it all the more rewarding to see her out walking and riding. Skyhold is unique in that it has such a collection of mage healers here. Most other places have to get by with herbs, bandages, and splints to heal the majority of injuries. Well, not so much have to, but prefer to. Mages are still feared in a great many places. It's easy to forget when the stone walls surround and protect you, and isn't it a funny thing how Skyhold's walls let Christine feel so free while the walls of Montsimmard Circle did the opposite?

"Might I walk with you a little way? I find myself in need of the bracing air."

The good news is that no one is running with a sword. The swords - not very sharp, probably no danger to run with anyway, but even so - have been put away outdoors where they belong. The bad news is that they are running. Racing. Kieran is lighter and Alistair is longer-legged, so it's a pretty even match, until just short of Morrigan's door Alistair totally cheats by ducking down and scooping Kieran up into his arms.

Gotta do it while he's still small enough, right?

He staggers to a halt outside the doorway, arms full of squirming 10-year-old. Squirming, muddy 10-year-old. That Skyhold is unseasonably warm year round doesn't stop snow from falling; it only ensures it melts and leaves plenty of filthy slush for children to fall into. "Special - " he says, and pauses to hoist Kieran higher before he slips out of his grasp. "Special delivery."

"Uh, way better than the last time you saw me, at least." Which is as much as she's going to acknowledge that whole misadventure or how long it's been since. "Nah, I'm okay. Kind of at a loose end now that the healers gave me a relatively clean bill of health, if I'm honest. How are things with you?"

Inessa tenses up at the nuggalope reacts, for a moment worried that it would rid itself of Araceli or trample them. She nearly casts a Barrier spell, but that soon proves unnecessary as the nuggalope calms down. Garahel has backed away thanks to the commotion but starts to make his way over again, more carefully this time and wagging his tail because yes, he is a very good dog.

Relaxing after a moment, Inessa's smile surfaces as she looks over the largest mount she's ever seen. "'The Walrus'? That's quite a name. Sweet Maker, it's even bigger than I had imagined." She takes a few steps closer, slowly, when it seems calmer. "Poor Walrus, we meant no harm. Garahel won't trouble you, I promise." Garahel grunts rather than barks, determined not to provoke the mount again. He just wants to be friends, honest.

Korrin snorts in amusement at all that; being annoyed at Yngvi for his rudeness would be like yelling at the ocean for its tides or the clouds for their rain. It's just the way he is, and she knows it. Besides, the fact that he's still breathing means he's faster than he looks, even bundled up. "I plan to keep my fingers, thanks, even if the South seems determined to freeze them off. Andraste's tits, why can't we have our headquarters somewhere less face-hurtingly cold? Corypheus should've pulled his shit up in the north, near a beach."

Or within riding distance of one, for Araceli's sake. "Where've you been, man? Game night's been tamer without you." Maybe not by that much, but Yngvi's contributions always added a certain flavor, one that's been lacking without his foul-mouthed presence.

Korrin has a one-track mind but she's not completely unobservant. Spotting one of the new arrivals looking upward, she belatedly does the same to see what caught their attention..but doesn't catch sight of Araceli in time. She's not going to stop to ask what they saw, since it could have been anything and she'd rather catch up than confirm a sighting while her kadan slips further away.

And then she gets an idea. Sera's roof, reachable through her room on the second floor of the tavern, is hardly the highest vantage point in Skyhold but it nonetheless gives her a good view of the courtyard. Hoping Sera won't mind her borrowing it in the elf's absence, Korrin ducks into the tavern long to access the area. Which, given her long legs and stride, isn't very long at all. Upon stepping out, she shields her eyes from the sun, not wanting Araceli to 'win' because she was blinded.

Ah, let him give a truly sage answer for the ages. "Swamp crotch. Do you want an entire Inquisition of swamp crotch because people like us know how to live in such places and move around between them but I bet that most people would be itching and stinking inside a month. Like...like the Wounded Coast on a low tide." Not what he'd originally planned but the Wounded Coast has a legendary smell with legends Yngvi shall embellish at the drop of a hat should he need to so there, it works.

"Away. Things to do, places to see, babies to have shouting matches with, people owe me money." By the way guess which one of those things definitely happened. "Went off up another mountain to go see Aura didn't I? Boneflayers all got an invite to go spend time with her. Her and the old boy." Shivering he brings up one of his perpetually ragged thumbnails, gnawing at the edge of it until it's red and wet before he spits over the edge of the battlements. "D'you reckon that'll freeze before it hits the ground?"

Whenever she waves Kieran off to go do whatever it is he does with Alistair (she doesn't spy, that implies a degree of mistrust but sometimes she does happen past because that's how a Morrigan do) it's a chance to get things done that have less of a time limit on them without homework and sensible meal times and bath times etc. When one of the spare candles rolls off her desk and clatters to the floor she gives it a look. A few of the plants, all strange curling things from dark corners of the Wilds curl in on themselves seemingly.

Morrigan's just picking up the candle before someone trods it into the floor when the peace is shattered and she---

She is aghast.

(By the way watch for the back of his head, she's had bloody noses from it and that's when he was small, less able to wriggle successfully. A good thing she has magic to heal her up or imagine the state of her face from years of accidental headbutting incidents.)

It takes a good minute of working her throat and her jaw to get a word out because what is she looking at here, is that Alistair, is that her child, is it some new sort of mud demon escaped through the cracks in the wall when no one was looking because let's be honest, Skyhold security can be shockingly lax when required.

"And what, pray tell, are you delivering, exactly? Some wild creature you caught in the wilds for the cooking pot?" Alistair, do you want to play along?

Ascending up to Madame Vivienne's balcony is easier with the addition of the cane, taking some of Araceli's weight as she stops very quietly for a moment should the lady herself be present though to date she's never been caught when she's used this as part of her routes about Skyhold. Her legs are less tired than her arms but her legs have been told to rest, her arms have been taking more strain with a crutch and the cane, but nothing is hurting. Nothing is stopping her from moving or pulling awkwardly. Tomorrow she'll feel the strain after going months on the ground but she'll work through it again and again until it was as if she'd never been away.

Honestly it feels good to hang almost weightless with the wind in her hair, the worst of the noise dulled to a low murmur this high up.

And then she swings herself on when her shoulders protest that she's doing nothing, slipping the cane into her belt as her fingers and toes find familiar holds as she shimmies down and across, further in the direction of the kitchens or the stables. It's that general area of Skyhold she's headed to at least. Not just so easy pressed flat to the front of a building as it might be for someone with Korrin's long legs or fade step. But Araceli might have plans if she beats her.

"Have you ever seen a walrus? Sometimes they come to some of the islands of my home to haul out, the bulls are huge with tusks longer than my forearm. But Walrus alone wouldn't do, it wasn't grand enough, I think something so large and splendidly handsome as him needs a title, no?" Even if that title is just the word 'the'. Or la. Depends if she calls him the name in her tongue or not and that varies depending on the mood.

Giving him a nudge with her heels, she directs him over closer to Inessa so he can sniff at her then lower his head further at Garahel, black eyes peering as he flicks his ears. "What were you imagining?"

"That I am glad to hear." Given how much of the time seems to just blur from one day into the next, that's probably the better way to deal with it. "Better now I can climb the walls physically and not every other but that way. Some freedom to go with my studies but my hands are as fast as they were, or no one has complained about my playing."

"So you won't need to have me delivered into your care again?" Araceli teases, a little part of her (though larger than she would expect, but these things take time it would seem) surprised it's so easy to joke about that now when it seemed impossible to do so. Maybe next time healing magic and a quicker recovery can happen but right now she's been getting herself used to magic again without it making her flinch or wake up sweating in the dark.

"Of course, I never say no to some company unless I'm up there," she nods to the rooftops of Skyhold, where she sometimes will say no if people find her. It's a very big if, she's usually able to get away from anyone that might bother her if she really wants to be alone with her thoughts or her lute. "How have you been? As soon as my mind was my own I threw myself back into the parts of my studies I could manage when I heard the ball at the palace was to happen."

The secrets in the snow

araceli;

morrigan;

yngvi;

{ nuggalope }

parkour kissing magnet?/also kitchen time

battlements

nuggalope

tavern

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her study; i warned you

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r u d e

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