it takes strength to live this way

[qunari]

WHO: Iron Bull and OPEN
WHAT: General summary of events during the end of the month. Drinking, fighting, more drinking, maybe a little flirting.
WHEN: Mid-to-late Wintermarch
WHERE: All over the damn place. Mostly the tavern and sparring ring, though.
NOTES: n/a

He was starting to feel a little restless. By now, the boss would have taken them all out on some exploit or another, and even if he was glad to be at Skyhold again? Sitting idle could grate on the nerves a bit.

The best way to counter that seemed to be throwing down in the training ring just outside the tavern, taking on all comers as well as training those that seemed of a mind to ask. Cullen had most of his people following their own regime, but if they wanted a swing at something else? He wouldn’t refuse them. Not everyone fought like a templar.

The rest of the time, Bull made himself easy to find. Easy to avoid, too, if that was the preference of some. And he knew it was, from the glimpsed he’d gotten of the Vashoth inside the keep. But it was no hardship holding court inside the comfort of the tavern, indulging heavily in drinks and working his way down the menu of available meals and snacks.

It was business as usual, for the most part. Even if he did feel a little more restless than usual. Had to find a way to get out, hit something that really had it coming.

Or find someone to pass the evening with. That might help.

Comments

[demonicbeauty]

The training ring held some fascination for Ariadne. It reminded her of the spars the knights went through back in Valeria. She would watch them from time to time, between assignments from Lysia or Princess Amanda. Humanoid fighting always seemed very clumsy and random. But there was always something to be learned.

And Ariadne's curiosity certainly wasn't about to abate, just because she was in Thedas.

It would be legitimate, in fact, to say that it had increased.

She went to the tavern often enough. And there was nothing to do, she'd stay to watch the fights after. But she was surprised, when she approached that afternoon, to find the enormous Qunari there. She hadn't seen many of them, but she felt a certain kinship. They were the only non-humanoid species that didn't seem to be hunted down here. So she paused to watch him.

[qunari]

It proved a fortunate thing that the training ring was so close to the tavern, though perhaps that had been by design. It was easy to work up a sweat under the glare of the sun, even in the relatively temperate mountain climate, and Bull had been at it for a while now.

A few of the Chargers needed practice, he was moving between them to demonstrate technique, before urging them to try and take him on with what they'd learned. Three at a time. When his guys lay panting in the dirt, Bull chuckled and dismissed them to go cool off and drink some water, brushing himself off.

"Enjoying the show?"

He hadn't so much as glanced at her once during the scuffle, not openly. Yet when he looked up at her it was as if they'd been chatting together all this time, without a moment's hesitation.

[demonicbeauty]

It was the sign of a great warrior, to be able to mark one's surroundings without necessarily drawing attention to it. Ariadne's lip curled slightly when he spoke to her. He was impressive. She could certainly say that about him.

"Yes," she replied, raising her chin slightly. "I hope you don't mind. I can leave if it bothers you."

She tried to catch his scent. Not that she was expecting it to be different from any other Qunari. No, she expected that, along with the salt of sweat and the acrid aroma of adrenaline.

But it never hurt to check.

[qunari]

"Nah. If people staring bothered me, I'd be having a really hard time of it down here." Bull shrugged the idea away quick as that. The axe he'd been training with found a spot in the dirt to rest with a heavy thud, and a few strides brought him closer to the ring's edge.

Tiny little thing, wasn't she?

"Not from around here either, I take it."

[demonicbeauty]

Ninety pounds soaking wet. Not that Ariadne's small size had ever been a disadvantage. Quite the opposite, really. Not only did it make her nimble and quick, but it allowed her to be constantly underestimated.

A great asset when fighting against mountain trolls and whatnot.

She raised her hand as he approached, showing off the shard embedded in her palm. It was a funny sight for her. Where once every inch of her skin had been green, now it was only around that foreign glow.

"No, sir," she said.

[qunari]

Just like the boss. Damned if he knew what it meant, what any of it was supposed to mean. He wasn't stupid, but this shit was beyond any of them, so far as he could tell.

Not her fault though. Bull gave a curt nod.

"Figured. Don't think I've seen anyone like you hanging around the place. Usually means you're from out of town. So to speak."

[demonicbeauty]

"I suppose you could say that," she replied, the corners of her lips twitching slightly. Sarcasm and snark often eluded her. But irony? Irony Ariadne could understand.

Politely, she dipped into a curtsy. "My name is Ariadne, sir," she told him. "Ariadne...Everdeen."

She was still trying out the surname. It was strange to think that it could be hers now, that Katniss had been so willing to just accept her. Almost no questions asked.

But she liked it.

[qunari]

"Uh huh."

The hesitation with the name says enough, but he doesn't push on the matter. Names a relative thing, anyway. Under the Qun, your name was pretty much whatever your job was. Who's he to judge?

"They call me the Iron Bull. Good to meet you, Airy."

[demonicbeauty]

She wasn't entirely sure which delighted her more: His name, or the fact that he'd immediately called her 'Airy' without any kind of prompting.

His name, she decided. One could organically reach 'Airy.' After all, almost every single person she'd ever met, at some point, had compared her to a bird. It was easy to derive 'Airy' from that.

But to be called Iron Bull...

"Does it come from your prowess?" she asked, nodding to the training area.

[qunari]

"You could say that. The horns usually leave an impression, too."

Bull smirked, as though they'd just shared an inside joke of sorts. As though it weren't perfectly obvious why anyone might feel the name was appropriate.

[demonicbeauty]

"Well, you're not an animal," she said, shrugging up one shoulder to her ear. "So I'll stick with the prowess, if it's all the same to you. The other just seems so...rude."

And if Ariadne was anything, it was polite. Even when she picked someone's pocket, she did it with a sweet smile and a kind word.

No reason not to be nice.

"And you could certainly give the knights of my homeland a good work-out," she added. "I doubt even the captain of the guard himself could last long against you."

[qunari]

"That's why they pay me. I'm good at hitting things."

It's a little flippant, but it's true for the most part. He'd come here under precarious circumstances, but him and his boys were too good to turn away now that the boss was gone. Besides, he wasn't about to leave that hole in the sky to just work itself out.

Even if that did mean eventually dealing with demons.

"And it's not rude if I picked the name on purpose. I know what people think when they hear it. If it bothered me, I'd have picked another name." He shrugged, massive shoulders rolling.

[demonicbeauty]

What he said spoke volumes to her about how the Qunari were viewed in the world. And, in some ways, undermined her assumptions. After all, anyone who had body parts beyond the basic two arms, two legs, and one head of a humanoid back home was automatically a demonoid and, therefore, a second-class citizen.

Perhaps there was some enlightenment to Thedas after all.

...not that she was about to reveal all her secrets. But it was a nice thought, anyway.

She smiled. "I think it makes sense, actually. To be able to name yourself. How are your parents supposed to know what you're going to grow up to be like? If I were a queen, I'd have everyone given temporary names until they turned...oh...sixteen. And then they could decide for themselves."

[qunari]

"Not a thing most Qunari do, to tell the truth. I'm kind of an exception to the rule. Figured if I was living down South, I'd pick a name that suited."

Bull shrugged, scratching his chin thoughtfully. Kind of weird, as naming systems went, but he'd heard stranger, he supposed.

"Back home, we don't have names. More like...job descriptions. Your role defines who you are. So your name would change according to what you did, where you fit in society."

[demonicbeauty]

That was an interesting way of doing things. But Ariadne's forehead crumpled up in thought, after a moment. "But what happens if your town has two...ranchers? Or hunters? Or blacksmiths? Do they all go by the same name, then? Or can you only have one of each. And if you can only have one of each, what happens if you run out of duties that need to be attended? Or if someone needs help with a specific duty?"

She cut herself off, although a thousand more questions were eager to bubble up. Life had always been complicated in a litter of twenty. She couldn't imagine adding that sort of practice to the mix.

[qunari]

"You can have more than one. The titles get pretty specific, but we've also got numbers. Just so everyone's on the same page."

Bull chuckled, folding his arms over his chest. Curious little thing. Well, there were worse things than curiosity. Few things more dangerous, but she's a Rifter. It's all new to her.

"Besides, most kids are the result of the Tamassrans deciding we need new workers for one task or another. So running out of jobs isn't usually an issue."

[demonicbeauty]

She absorbed it all with a little nod, pleased that he didn't seem put off by her questions. It was always an adventure, learning how a new group of people lived. Especially when they were humanoid.

Fewer stodgy conventions, in her opinion.

"I'm sorry," she said, not sounding terribly apologetic. "But what's a Tamassran?"

[qunari]

"Heh. They're a lot of things. Hard to summarize all of what they do." One hand waved absently. "Technically they're a part of the priesthood. They look after the young, raise them, teach them what they need to know, and pick the roles they're best suited for. They also serve as guides and mentors for those who need them. That's not all of it, but you get the idea."

They also served as re-educators, and relieved certain sorts of stress when a Qunari got pent up. But he didn't figure that was necessarily what Airy was looking for in her answer. Little more relevant this way.

[demonicbeauty]

Priests who dictated reproduction? That felt funny, somehow. Not that Ariadne knew anything about reproduction, other than the fact of her own birth. But still, most of the humanoid races she'd encountered preferred to have their children for sentimental reasons, rather that economic ones.

It was a difficult reality to process.

She nodded nevertheless. "I see," she said. "So they're...leaders, more or less?"

[qunari]

"In a sense. Not the only ones we have. It's a little more complicated than that. They're part of the Ariqun, along with the Ben-Hassrath. They make up the priesthood...hm."

This might be getting too technical for a bas, especially one new to their world. Brow knotting, Bull gestures to himself.

"Alright. Put it this way. If you consider the Qunari a body, the Ariqun would be its soul. Is your soul in charge? Or is it your heart? Or your head? They all work together for the good of the whole. Make sense?"

[demonicbeauty]

Ariadne nodded, appreciating the metaphor. Which wasn't to say she couldn't follow complex politics. She was a spy for a rebel force, after all. Led by an outlaw and a princess together.

But the poetry. That she enjoyed quite a lot.

Still... "I suppose it would depend on who you asked. My auntie often tells me that I let my heart take control too much."

[qunari]

"There's some lesson to be learned there, I'm guessing. Keeping everything in balance, working in harmony. That's what the Qun is meant to be for. None of the dick-waving political crap you get down here. Everyone's working towards the good of the whole, instead of worrying about getting themselves ahead of the game."

Not that the Qun was perfect, or never faltered. Wasn't even that he liked everything he did for it. But it was better, so far as he could see, from every other alternative out there.

Certainly better than being Tal-Vashoth.

[demonicbeauty]

While she understood the basic meaning of what he said, her ears perked up at a slang saying she wasn't familiar with.

Ariadne had always been terrible with figures of speech, especially ones from the humanoid races. But even non-humanoids could allude her from time to time. And she was ever-so-eager to learn.

"What's a dick?" she asked. "And why would you wave it? Is it like a flag?"

[qunari]

At that, Bull let out a groan, one hand coming up to rub the bridge of his nose. Hopefully it was the terminology that had confused it. Too many kids running around this place as it was.

"Term for a guy's junk. You know. Erm. 'Manhood', I guess. And it's a posturing thing guys tend to do. 'Mine's bigger than yours', and so on."

He waved a hand dismissively.

"Be glad you don't have to deal with it."

[demonicbeauty]

Her frown deepened for a second. And then vanished entirely.

"Oh!" she said, suddenly feeling much smarter. "You mean a penis!"

She was familiar with humanoid anatomy. In many ways, it wasn't all that different from Alastrian. And she had grown up with ten brothers, not to mention many other men within the pack.

Of course, she didn't quite understand waving one around. But she supposed she understood the basic intent.