[She leans closer, and her weight, the trusting warmth of her hair on his shoulder, is its own agony of undeserved joy.]
Long ago, there was a spirit of Wisdom. I— [his courage falters, briefly. He has never told anyone of this.] An old an powerful spirit, which had learned much of the fade, and never concerned itself with the physical world. It had for a companion a spirit of Benevolence, until one day that spirit vanished.
[The room is small and warm, and his arms hold her close against his chest. He can feel his own pulse, in the contact between them, rapid in a way that has nothing to do with sexual excitement— fear. It is fear. He does and does not want her to know these things about him.]
It followed its companion's trail, and found it in the physical realm, trapped there in a body forged of lyrium. In despair it asked, what happened to you, my beloved friend? And the spirit of Benevolence shook her head and said, that she had chosen to live outside the fade, to live in the physical world. She told it that she needed Wisdom, to hold back the foolhardy voices of the powerful. To protect the people. To help her, despite the danger, and the greed.
I... allowed her to convince me. I chose a physical form, and A body was forged. [It felt safe, to let go of the pretense, if only for a few words, his voice captive in the few inches between them, where no one could hear it. Even the lighthouse no longer held these secrets, he had made sure of it.] Solas, she called me. Wisdom turned to Pride, and I... I was no longer my own self.
[There, it is done. He breathes.]
You have had more than you know, to teach to Wisdom, Vhenan. If only you knew.
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Long ago, there was a spirit of Wisdom. I— [his courage falters, briefly. He has never told anyone of this.] An old an powerful spirit, which had learned much of the fade, and never concerned itself with the physical world. It had for a companion a spirit of Benevolence, until one day that spirit vanished.
[The room is small and warm, and his arms hold her close against his chest. He can feel his own pulse, in the contact between them, rapid in a way that has nothing to do with sexual excitement— fear. It is fear. He does and does not want her to know these things about him.]
It followed its companion's trail, and found it in the physical realm, trapped there in a body forged of lyrium. In despair it asked, what happened to you, my beloved friend? And the spirit of Benevolence shook her head and said, that she had chosen to live outside the fade, to live in the physical world. She told it that she needed Wisdom, to hold back the foolhardy voices of the powerful. To protect the people. To help her, despite the danger, and the greed.
I... allowed her to convince me. I chose a physical form, and A body was forged. [It felt safe, to let go of the pretense, if only for a few words, his voice captive in the few inches between them, where no one could hear it. Even the lighthouse no longer held these secrets, he had made sure of it.] Solas, she called me. Wisdom turned to Pride, and I... I was no longer my own self.
[There, it is done. He breathes.]
You have had more than you know, to teach to Wisdom, Vhenan. If only you knew.