#now I have a mighty need for Vigil's Keep crew shenanigans

[mxanigel]

Fic titles? 👀

How Much You Loathe (How They Love You)

A Castle on The Hill

Four Times (X) Says Hello - Five Times They Say Goodbye

Liberosis*

(*From @dictionaryofobscuresorrows , n. the desire to care less about things—to loosen your grip on your life, to stop glancing behind you every few steps, afraid that someone will snatch it from you before you reach the end zone—rather to hold your life loosely and playfully, like a volleyball, keeping it in the air, with only quick fleeting interventions, bouncing freely in the hands of trusted friends, always in play)

Squeee~ so many ideas, thank you!

How Much You Loathe (How They Love You)

This feels very Winter x Miranda lol, like "I care about you against my will" kind of vibes. Their relationship was built from clash after clash, yet there's a growing (albeit begrudging) respect on both sides. This fic would specifically cover the aftermath of the ME2 suicide mission when, having survived, Winter and Miranda would want to figure out what the hell they are to each other, where they go from here.

It would culminate after Arrival, when even Winter is brought low by the massive casualties they inflicted. Miranda comes to Winter's cabin to offer ruthless calculus as a way of showing support because she cares, and Winter absolutely is not in the mood for that kind of reassurance. They definitely end up hate-making-out that devolves into not-hate, partly because they know what they have can't last.

A Castle on The Hill

After vanquishing the Mother, peace returns to Amaranthine. Then, one morning, Neri receives a report of a haunted castle. Varel explains it's not really a castle, not by Vigil's Keep standards, but the nickname of a large house overlooking a village. That house was built to look like a castle by a minor noble who abandoned it after the growing cost of the project threatened to liquidate all of his holdings.

Neri ignores the report until they get another. And another. Concerned about darkspawn (or, worse, a tear in the Veil), the Vigil's Keep crew heads to the "castle" to investigate. They find a maze within because the minor noble thought castles should have lots of hallways and small rooms and secret passages. Which happen to be perfect breeding grounds for nugs.

Anders figures it out first but decides that's a boring result and uses magic to make it seem like there are actual ghosts in the house. (Velanna may help once she discovers how much Oghren Does Not Like Ghosts.) Hilarity ensues.

Four Times (X) Says Hello - Five Times They Say Goodbye

I think I need to hand this one to Winter too. It'd feature four of the first Mass Effect's side quests in which they greet someone they plan to/seriously threaten to kill, possibly focusing on the Helena Blake sequence, and then contrast with one time they didn't say hello first (one of the Cerberus missions, or the Garrus personal quest mission with Dr. Saleon).

Liberosis

(Thank you for including the definition!) This fic would dive into Heather Cousland's growth as Ferelden rebuilds during the years of Dragon Age 2. How she learns to live without revenge driving her, how she builds the reputation of the Dark Wolf beyond a single person so that she doesn't always have to carry that role with her, how she builds trust with Neri and rebuilds some sort of relationship with Nathaniel. Her traumas aren't forgotten, but they no longer assault her upon waking nor torment her sleep. It would be after this growth that she and Anora figure out how to be together despite politics and arranged marriages and physical distance.

Send me a made-up fic title and I'll tell you what I'd write for it

#fic title ask game #dragon age ramblings #mass effect ramblings #Winter Shepard #Neri Surana #Heather Cousland #now I have a mighty need for Vigil's Keep crew shenanigans