"Wait…that's it….? There were a few in the tower who preferred men what's wrong with that? I mean sure they had to hide it due to the chantry but still…" Eve blinks frowning puzzled.
"Yes…" Dorian frowns.
"That's stupid. I mean…" Eve begins ranting only to stop from my stern frown.
"Eve…in Tevinter it is taboo, Tevinter is known for its bloodlines and heirs, I don't know about you but most homosexual couples can't have biological kids and since pure blood lines are so important to the imperium, it is considered selfish…" I explain to her calmly, seeing a surprised look on Dorian's features.
"But that's you can't help who you love…I mean sure it's…" Eve huffs sadly, head down.
"It varies depending on where you are Eve, but Tevinter is big on having heirs of pureblood nobility and such for the perfect heir," I simplify for her.
"Really?" Eve frowns.
"Yes, Fennic is correct, it means every perceived flaw, every aberration is deviant and shameful, it must be hidden," Dorian confirms bitterly.
"Give him a chance maybe he wants to apologise, maybe he wants to help you," Hopeful, Eve offers as I sigh shaking my head at the girl, magisters never change…it's impossible, they think there always right it'd take a war and even the they'd still believe themselves in denial to be right.
"Dorian please if you only listen to me," Dorian's father begs.
"Why? So you can spout more convenient lies!" Dorian scowls.
"He taught me to hate blood magic, the resort of the weak mind he said those are his words! But what was the first thing you did when your precious heir refused to play pretend…you…you tried to change me," Shocked, my eyes widen at Dorian's words, his tone breaking. But still, a magister who hates blood magic? Wait change? Don't tell me…enraged, I feel a wave of rage and disgust at the bastard before me.
"I only wanted what was best for you," Dorians father argues as I gawk at the sly ass.
"You wanted what was best for you! For your fucking legacy! Anything for that!" Dorian hisses tears staining his features as Eve looks worriedly at the scene as I approach Dorian, head down on the table, unable to look at his father.
"You didn't let him speak," Eve whispers to him as Dorian turns away pained.
"I can't…I can't do this!" He whispers, tear stained he approaches the door slamming it open as Eve turns to me and I nod, gladly leaving Eve and the magisters to talk as I go outside, briefly shivering from the brief chill of the air as I notice Dorian leaning against the banister of the tavern, looking pained, head down and conflicted.
"You know I had a feeling you were a ugly crier…" I blurt out as he turns to frown at me.
"Vishante kaffas! I thought you're meant to cheer me up not insult me and for your information, I'm a pretty crier!" He curses at me scowling.
"You...don't think it's strange do you?" Dorian questions me making me blink.
"What?" I frown.
"My preference to men?" He turns away almost fearful as I scoff.
"Urgh of course not, you fuck who you want to fuck, gender shouldn't mean anything and the more you make a deal out of your sexuality the more it can consume you and become your whole personality..." I explain.
"Huh?" Dorian blinks.
"Dorian I don't care if you sleep with a goat, you do who you want it really doesn't concern me, it's your personality that matters, besides I knew," I shrug.
"How? I thought I was being subtle," Dorian asks, playing dumb.
"If that's you being subtle Maker. You weren't subtle sweetheart you mentioned wanting to take and bang Cullen," I point out.
"For all you know I could have been bi," He suggests.
"Yeah no," I scoff.
"You don't take offence?" He furrows his brow as I groan.
"Dorian it's your life, I don't care. Besides, my brother's bi, I grew up with my brother staring at some guys and me having to knock him back to his senses for a mission. Hell, I had to deal with Isabela and Merill gushing about some girls and me pretending to care and don't get me started on Anders. I want a family of cats, a house a, geez that guys sees things way too early in the future, funny considering how things turned out. But yeah, most of my closest friends are bi, not sure about Varric though...either he's straight or got a thing for crossbows," Jokingly, I try to lighten the mood only to sigh as I see his tear stained face and groan, right...this calls for emotional times. Awkwardly, I pat his back making his tear stained eyes meet my tired pair.
"I really don't give a shit about who you fuck," I summarise.
"Or love," He points out.
"Right yeah love's a thing," I mutter.
"Just saying…Dorian…don't end things like this…" I sigh, joining his side, looking out at the horizon, feeling Dorian's eyes on me.
"And why not? He tried to change me Fen, using the magic he so despised! Why are you defending a mage even, a magister at that!? We have enslaved your people and here you are defending him!" He spits out fury evident in his tone.
"I am not defending him! I am thinking for your sake. I know that," I huff.
"How could you understand!?" He demands furious as I hold in the urge to deck the idiot making a scene over something so trivial.
"…" Struggling, I remain silent holding in the urge to beat the living shit out of him.
"I…I'm sorry I didn't…" Dorian turns away guilty.
"Dorian I want to tell you a story. There was this girl, she loved her mother very much but one day the little girl wanted to protect her family, so she did something one day when the little mother was attacked by a vicious monster and that little girl went off on an adventure and that mother waited for her, waited days, weeks, months, years for that little girl to come tumbling back into her arms you know what happened?" I ask beginning the story, pained as briefly I see glimpses of that strange girl, screaming her hands bloodied, tears of fear in her eyes as the young mother cradles the scared terrified girl, so lost, so confused, so frightened, soon being ripped from her mother's loving embrace and shoved into a embrace of lust, dirt and raw pain.
"What?" Dorian asks.
"She never did, that same mother died calling out to her little girl who had died, that little girl was long gone an still even on her deathbed, the mother called out to her, crying tears of sorrow for the acceptance of losing her little girl…" I lower my head, ignoring the pain in my chest as I continue to stoically looking out at the scenery before me.
"I…never knew…" Dorian whispers horrified at the sad story.
"Yeah a bit of a morbid story heard it around these parts, but still the moral of this story is I guess…don't let your kids go off on their own…" Casually, I shrug only to feel Dorian's soft chuckle.
"I think it's don't take family for granted…" Weakly, he smiles releasing a small chuckle.
"Oh yeah that. Still it's up to you, your life your choice Eve and I barely know your family we just know from what you've given us…" I huff not particularly caring for the end result.
"You don't hate me? I thought you'd want to kill my father…" He sighs sadly.
"Oh no I do, I would happily but Eve would then cry and I don't want to deal with a headache," I confess making Dorian snicker.
"But still, I suppose not all magisters are monsters," Calmly, I stand up from leaning to see Dorian slowly stand, smiling sadly as he returns into the tavern and I slowly follow him into the tavern, resuming the talk…
"Dorian are you alright?" Eve questions, worriedly Dorian who sighs, stands up proud and smiling at the concerned Eve.
"I'm fine," Tightly, Dorian smiles only then for it to falter into a sneer when seeing his guilt ridden father as I coolly lean against the door ready to strike the magister or leave, up to these guys….
"If I knew I would drive you to the Inquisition…"Dorians father welcomes him back to the topic at hand.
"You didn't! I joined because it was the right thing to do! Once I had a father who would have known that…" Silently, Dorian's father bows his head as Dorian turns to leave once more, only to be stopped by his father's next words.
"Once I had a son who trusted me, a trust I betrayed. I only wanted to talk to him to hear his voice again, to ask him to forgive me," Dorians father says stopping Dorian in his tracks as Eve glances at me and I nod, the pair of us leaving to give the Pavus family some privacy, some time to breathe and hope of restoration for their family home…