Avatrix:
The exhibitionist, they would call her. Her art would spread across Kirkwall like a virus. Signs and Symbol of Ancient places and runes. Avatrix had made her mark on the city; Ferelden had no place for her anymore, even after the blight had ended. She had shaped her life in Kirkwall, after arriving from Ferelden, getting her first job, and even starting her own business, which was becoming alarmingly popular. Her job was to make her work seen, whether to embarrass someone or impress and also for personal pride. And boy she was good at it.
Her contract now was simple, "Make the Templar pay!" the card from the box said. In Ava's mind she couldn't care less if Templars were terrorizing mages and their families, because, well, she's not a mage or knows anyone personally who is. And attracting attention of Templars and Mages isn't in her memo. Yes, of course she would want her work to be known, but no one actually knew what she looked like or who she was. Except two or three people maybe, and she would gladly keep it that way. No one would deal with her directly. She'd leave a box outside "her" house and take out all the papers, which would hold a person's hidden vendetta, and Ava would line them up from least interesting to most and go up the list, this was the end of the list and tomorrow she would go to her box and pick to next set of papers.
"You'd think they'd notice me by now," she said half up the tower she was climbing. It was dark but soon the sun would rise to a new day, and Avatrix was determined to get this done tonight. "So what will it be this time Av'? A banner, a sign, or maybe I can just paint something on the whole damn tower, I got up here, getting around shouldn't be too-" One of the fingertips of her gauntlet broke off as she was climbing, causing her fingers to grind along the stone sending her downward slowly "Shit, Archie! You didn't test these?" Regaining her footing on the tower she continued to climb, slower this time. "I'm going to kill him after this." She said to her self. Archie or Archimedes was her tinker. Archie provided all of the gadgets and gizmos she needed for her "job". Archie is a good friend, but insane one. With his mind in several different directions you wonder how he stays sane oh wait he doesn't. But the joy, is knowing him, knowing that he's not sane nor is he completely sick in the head. He was brilliant in Ava's mind and good company to keep in this lonely depressing city.
"So Mr. Wilks what's your verdict?" She said, finally at the top of the tower took out her kit of fine paints and brushes. She pulled out a crimson red paint and big brush. Then pulled out the banner she would be putting her work on. Light brush stroke after light broke; she put her devious work on the banner. She caught herself scrunching her nose and mouth and laughed, Archie called it her working face. A couple finishing touches and it was done. What was left to do was to hang it, which wouldn't take long, just as long as Archie's gauntlet didn't break again. Sunlight became visible over the buildings. Ava tied the last rope to the banner and began to descend down. "Some Circle Tower, not one Templar or Tranquil! This night's been fun, I only wonder- Hello shiny thing!" A rock was sitting prettily on a pedestal. The window at which she had been looking into was barred, slowly she began to unscrew the bars with her extended finger on her gauntlet, "and Archie said I wouldn't need this pshhhh. No one really wants these bars," she dropped the first one, "I know I don't," she said dropping the second one, and kicked her legs inside the Circle Tower. She looked left, no one. She looked right, and no one. "Let's see what the Circle of Magi has to offer me."
"Definitely not that." A voice said from a dark corner of the room. Ava knew that voice, "Cullen." He stepped from the shadows and grinned like a Cheshire cat.
"Avatrix, nice to see you at this strange hour. Another contract?"
"Shouldn't you be sleeping or harassing a mage? I thought Templars were renowned for that."
"We Templars are renown for…many things."
"I told you a long time ago, we have no relationship. I do thank you for helping me back in Ferelden, but we are completely different people." Still eyeing the object she tried to sidestep the Templar. Reaching for the pedestal, Cullen took her by the waist and clung to her from behind pulling her dark red-violet hair to the side, Ava groaned. "Don't you want to know what it is first?" he said resting his head on her shoulder. And breathed her in, smelling the hints of lavender and lyrium. i "She's been with the tinker again"/i, he thought.
"I can figure it out for myself," she reached further to touch the object, but Cullen pulled tighter on her thin form. "Hug me any tighter and one of my gadgets will stab you."
"I just love the outfit today, a black coat with tails, black leggings, buckled boots, and a red shirt. Not to mention the various belts and packs on your person. You look like a person who really would not want to be seen."
"I have to carry a lot," she said grinning. Slowly she kept reaching and was close enough to feel a tingling sensation in her fingers. "Lyrium?"
"You're familiar with the stuff?"
"Familiar enough. You did teach me most of the things about it." She felt a slight brush of his lips go over her shoulder and the curve of her neck. Lingering over the black ink of a semi-revealed tattoo. He smiled when he pressed his lips to her neck. She gasped slightly making him smile even more. "I didn't come here for this Cullen…I'm not here…*sigh*… to play." i Damn it, don't give in, you need to leave! /i
"The sun will be shining soon, don't you want a good night's sleep or in your case a good morning's?" He began to trail kisses up and down her neck and her shoulder. Holding on to her waist tighter, she was trapped. i Damn him, he was always good at this. I can play this twice as dirty. /i She managed to turn around and break the chain of kisses to face him and crossed her arms around his neck.
"I'm not leaving here with out something. And I don't have to time to go somewhere. Would you take me right here?" Ava pressed her lips to his neck and up to his chin. Cullen moaned with pleasure. He lifted his eyebrow her statement, "Here, in this room?"
"We did do it in the Chantry in Denerim if I remember correctly. And we never got caught."
"You didn't, they found something stolen from that altar the next day. That was one hell of a lie I had to tell."
"Cullen, you're a horrible liar, no one will even know what happened. I promise." She connected her lips to his in a passionate kiss. Cullen grabbed her legs and sat her on the pedestal. He kissed her roughly, and began to take off her coat. Her looked down at the belts and looked back at her "These will get in the way if we keep doing this." She replied with "You've always avoided them." And wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling off the white shirt he was wearing. She dug her fingers in his back making him flinch a little. She had forgotten about the gauntlet for a minute. "What can't handle a little pain?" Cullen shut her up by consuming her neck, biting down on it and moving up to her ear and biting onto that. She was biting her lip to try and not make a sound. But also to not give in to easily. He, as always, was part of the plan. Part of her hated doing this to him, but another part couldn't resist doing it. Her hands made their way along the sides of the pedestal and towards the center. Cullen's hands, however, ran straight under her shirt and toward her bosom. He pulled her shirt up and kissed her chest dozens of times. Ava let out a cry, "Cullen…"
They heard footsteps from outside the door and immediately disconnected. i Thank the Maker! /i Cullen reached for his shirt and Ava jumped from the pedestal and arranged her clothing. He grabbed her hand a pulled her toward the door. "Sorry you might not be getting something tonight." He said to her. "You don't know about that." She replied with a sultry grin. He grinned mischievously.
Sneaking out of the Circle was easy enough, but now she had Cullen to deal with. "Thanks you for walking me out," She said.
"No problem, but we're not done," He grabbed her again, but bells from the Chantry chimed over the city. "Just the luck, your outta time." She said messing with his shirt, "But I'll reconsider your offer, just don't go looking for me."
"Never do, be safe Ava." i He's giving up? That's new. /i He kissed her on the forehead and let her go. Turning her back to him she pulled up her hood and escaped into the shadows of Kirkwall. All she had to do was go back to her place, change- "Ow!" Something flew into her head, as she looked around, she found a note.
i You want a front row seat? I saved you a lovely spot, but I can't keep it forever.
-Archie /i
People were crowding around a spot near the Circle Tower; Ava was pushing through the crowd trying to find Archie, well until he grabbed her and pulled to the middle of the huge group. "I told I couldn't keep it forever, what took you so long. Wait I know this answer, you ran into a certain little Templar who has a certain little interest in you."
"You should really stay out other people's business, Arch, you'll regret it in the future." The crowds voices began to sink into her mind, one after one, she heard gasps, giggles, questioning voices asking "who" and "why". She never liked crowds, which is why she didn't like to look at her work. She could never think with all the sounds, and she liked to think, use her mind in smart, wise, and even in stupid ways. "Your brain likes to figure out and separate all the sounds it hears, so that you can pick out the ones that seem worse off than you." Archie once said to her. But in Ava's mind it was sensory overload.
"Honey I'm one of the closest people to you, I know everything about you, you NEED me to be in your business. It's the only way to keep you from going crazy."
"I'm getting tips on not going crazy by a man who is in fact the epitome of insane."
"Insanity and Crazy my darling are two very different things. Insanity, which you so claim I possess, is most extreme of foolishness in someone who is mentally ill. Crazy is a state of mind in a mentally deranged person. Usually is shown, in aggressive ways." He looked at her, with his goggles over his eyes and his eyes brows slightly cocked. She noticed that his hair was an unkempt spikey mess. "But we, my Purple Finch, are two people who have merely seen another side of the spectrum, a more vibrant side." He sighed contently.
Ava looked up the Mage's Tower, and watched as the banner flow in the sky, with gentle blow of wind and every now and then the wind would blow perfectly and reveal her work. The sign read "William Wilks, proud Templar and amateur child lover." It was a beautiful sight indeed; she was mesmerized by the peacefulness of banner in the wind. It cleared her mind; she couldn't hear the sounds anymore. Archie's chuckling brought her back to the crowed setting. "Where in the hell did that come from?"
Ava smiled, "An old friend, apparently priest aren't the people who enjoy touching little children, spiritually and physically."
"Your gonna change this city Avatrix Bellaire, but tell me, darling, don't you ever get tired of cleaning everyone's dirty laundry in Kirkwall, ever stop to think about yourself little bird?" Archie said, taking off his goggles showing his harlequin eyes, which looked to her sincerely. Ava did not answer; she simply looked at the faces in the crowd. One stood out to her, it was a man. A tall muscular man. With dark brown musky hair and a thick beard. What stood out to her most about him was that he was a mage, in refugee clothing with three others following him. What was he doing out side the Circle, an apostate, walking around near the circle tower, is he asking to get caught? There was a dwarf with a crossbow, and guard of the watch with a shield and sword, and a similar looking man with a greatsword. He turned his head saw Ava looking at him. His eyes were as blue as the seas across Thedas.
Her mind blanked, she couldn't think anymore, but her mind didn't clear like the way it did earlier. She completely froze. She was scared by the way she reacted, she couldn't come back to reality, and he just stared back, his face was calm but stern, the wind blew blowing his hair slightly. There was a faint whisper, slowly bringing her back, until the whisper turned into a shout and erupted in her eyes. "AVA! You still with me?" She bought her eyes back to Archie, "Yeah, I'm going to go home, it was a long night, I need sleep."
"Alright suit yourself Little Miss."
"Oh and before I forget, I have a present, here you go, pure lyrium, right from the Circle Tower." Ava said taking the stolen object from her bag.
"Where ever did you find this?"
"Can't you just take the gift and accept it?"
"Of course, you are lovely, Purple Finch."
"Have a nice day Archie, don't stay out here too long."
"I don't plan too."
She flipped up her hood again and walked out of the crowd, before entering the alley her eyes searched for the four figures again, but she could not find them. She sighed, and walked over to her house. Her job was done for the day and she must rest. For she will have new contracts tomorrow. And she knows, an exhibitionist work, is never done.