Babys First Dadwc Fic! - Tumblr Posts

Welcome to DADWC, Crabs! 🥰 How about "Our eyes had the most devilish affair; meeting in secret in a room full of people" for Ghilara and Solas? Happy writing!

Thanks for the prompt! Very different from my usual stuff which was very fun. I'm craving a spy au now....

for @dadrunkwriting

Halla, Envy and The Wolf- Ghilara Lavellan/Solas, SFW, 1,065 words

The gathering was ostentatious and gaudy enough to put the Orlesians to shame. It seemed the magister indeed had decided to take a leaf out of the Orelsians’ book for the night with the holding of a grand masquerade. If they had only looked a few more pages ahead they would have realised what an excellent setup such an event made for an assassination.

Ghilara herself was dressed in a long flowing gown of white and gold, a low neckline and sleeves that nearly doubled the width of her shoulders, long gloves concealing her mechanical left arm. A long slit up the skirt of the dress revealed Ghilara’s long legs and bare feet in homage to the Dalish style. Upon her face was placed a pure white mask with horns that twisted back from her face. A Hanal'ghilan. A golden halla.

Ghilara had protested when Lelliana had laid out her outfit, eyeing with skepticism the bold colour and constraints of movement, but the spymaster had insisted. And, as it turned out, Ghilara was not even in the top percentile for wealth wasted on ostentatious gowns and robes.

She plucked a glass of red wine from the tray a waiter, or more likely slave, carried through the crowds of people, all peacocking their wealth in a cacophony of coloured silks, gilding and jewels. She grimaced to see the slave go, but pushed the thought away. By the end of tonight every slave on this estate would be free.

She surveyed the crowd over the rim of her wine, dark and thick like blood, searching for her target. She was not the master of the house, at least not in name, but without her, the family would be torn to shreds in the Magisterium like dogs to meat.

It didn’t take her long to find the target. She hadn’t exactly made it difficult, and Ghilara smirked as she saw the outfit the mage had chosen for the evening. Grotesque and fitting in equal parts. Her mask stretched down over her whole face, the colour of pale, decaying flesh and set within it an oversized screaming mouth, taking up most of the face with its blood red colour. An envy demon.

Well, she was clearly nothing if not self aware.

The woman, Envy, had sequestered herself away from the main party, so she might take audience from her sycophantic devotees one by one. Even now she was reclining back on a red chaise, her gown artfully arrayed around her like a corpse flower, benevolently receiving attentions from a tall and lithe man in a wolf mask which draped out over his face more like the hood of a fur cloak than a mask.

No not just a wolf mask.

The man turned to survey the party and Ghilara caught sight of the three eyes craved into the mask. Ghilara’s smirk returned. It seemed she needn’t have made the effort to come anyway. The wolf masked man cocked his head as he laid eyes on her, standing out from the main buzz of the party. Ghilara raised her glass to him, drinking a sip, letting the red liquid run a trail from the corner of her lip, before flicking her tongue out to catch the liquid on the tip.

Even from where she was she could see the Wolf give her a smile, inclining his head down. It was only the briefest of movements but Ghilara saw the long, familiar fingers, toying a small vial between them. Her gaze flicked back up to the Wolf’s face where a single digit made a shushing gesture, tapping tip of his finger against the bow of his lip.

Ghilara made a shrug, the corner of her mouth still quirked up in a smile, taking a step into the crowd towards Envy. The wolf turned back to Envy, coy and sycophantic in equal measure. Obscured by the sweating press of bodies lolling about the edges of the dance floor, Ghilara did not see those clever fingers allowing but a single drop to fall into Envy’s glass. She did not see Envy’s delighted face as yet another man professed his devotion for her. She did not see the two raising glasses in a toast, the sweet liquid falling down Envy’s pretty throat. Another slow arrow the beast never had a chance to notice.

She was still amidst the crowd when she felt the soft but purposeful ghosting of fingertips over the back of her hand and wrist. Still facing away from him, she tilted her head to allow her words to carry to him and him alone. “You should have let me know and saved me the trouble 'ma vhen'an.”

“And deny myself the pleasure of seeing you so beautiful, ‘ma Hanal’ghilan? I am sure you can find yourself another dance partner for this evening.”

“And what of you, ‘ma fen, will you save me a dance?”

He leaned down so that she could feel the soft tickling of fur hairs on her cheek and the soft inhalation of her hair. His lips were so close to her ear she could feel the brush against them as he spoke. “I will always save you a dance, ‘ma halla, ‘ma vhen’an. Though mayhaps a different kind to the one dear Envy may be due for.” As he spoke his fingers played with her own, teasing and playful, not quite interlocking, running his digits up and down, as if memorising the angles of every joint and carpal.

Ghilara closed her eyes, fixing the moment in her memory, the feeling of his fingers against her own, and the warmth of his breath tickling her neck. “I believe I still have work to do, since you have so kindly robbed me of my initial target. But please do not forget to save me a dance. You know I am still waiting for you.”

She knew that were coming. The words that always came whenever they met now. Though expectation did not lighten the blow. “Ir abelas vhenan.” Even as she was turning round to see him, to see the Wolf properly, he was gone, a vanishing shadow amongst the magisters.

She had an appointment to keep, now with an unknown magister, rather than Envy, though she doubted she would have trouble in finding one. She could only hope that Solas would not keep her waiting for another dance.