You Can't Save the Spider *and* the Butterfly

hawkeward:

dragonagedrabbles:

abuse of power

“My brother has gone mad,” Bethany said matter-of-factly.

There was no response, but she hadn’t expected one. Dead men, as a rule, were not good conversationalists.

“Maybe I should have seen it, before he became Champion,” she continued. “Maybe if I had been here, instead of with the Wardens…”

But instead there had been blood and fire on the steps of the Gallows, the crackle of magic and desperation in the air, battling mages barely older than she had been when she came to Kirkwall. Her brother had cut them down and stepped over their bodies as if they were meaningless, nothing—and how close had she come to being one of them?

What would Father have said?

She shook that thought away. “But now he’s viscount, with the full support of both the nobility and the templars behind him. More powerful than Knight-Commander Meredith ever was.” She remembered his face as they settled the circlet on his head, hardened and alien. “And more angry.”

Was it so long ago that he had carried her on his back and let her braid ribbons into his hair? It made her heart ache.

There was still no sign of life from her companion, but she pressed on. “They told me about you, the Wardens at the Vigil. About how you were, before. That you fought a cruel ruler to free the people trapped as her subjects, and swore revenge against the Darkspawn for one murdered man.”

Something finally seemed to flicker in his hollow eyes, like a knife sliding deftly between ribs.

“I know you hear me, spirit—or whatever you are.” She paused, the words sticking in her throat. “Jo- Come with me. Help me end what my brother has become. Rain justice down on this whole rotten city.”

For a moment, nothing. Then his white, stiff lips quirked into a smile.

“Better than haunting some corpse,” he rasped, and sat up.

girl-chama:

You Can’t Save the Spider *and* the Butterfly: Started thinking today about what would happen if my Elissa ever ran…

brennacedria:

Started thinking today about what would happen if my Elissa ever ran into Ria and Anders after Chantry Boom. I’m not 100% certain yet, but I think she might actually threaten to have Justice removed the way the desire demon was removed from Connor. Nevermind if it’s actually possible or not because she certainly wouldn’t know any difference, but I’m sure she could get access to mages with or without the Grey Wardens’ help. Anders was one of “her” Wardens and Justice, while not strictly under her command, still took orders from her while she was in charge of Vigil’s Keep before the two of synced up and ran off to Kirkwall. I’m almost positive that she’d feel the need to punish Anders at least for what he’d done, and in order to do that and be certain she’d get through to him she’d have to remove Justice first.

I… should probably do my best to keep whatever secret trouble she’s off getting involved in far away from where Ria and Anders go into hiding, shouldn’t I?

I like this. A lot. If it were possible, I mean. I think one (or both, for a failure) of them would die in the “extraction” process. I had completely forgotten that course of action for removing a spirit. I think as Wardens, Ria could justify any action over Anders’ head. In this case, I think it would be morally justified as well, but certainly no man made authority would object.

I figure that Elissa would blame Justice for how Anders turned out, and only find out it was a mutual decision once Justice was removed—one way or the other. How she’d react to that, I don’t know; what I do know is that she and Alistair had been trying to grant extra autonomy to the Fereldan Circle at the very least before she had to leave Denerim, and Anders and Justice have not only ruined the peace she feels she created by ending the Blight, but have endangered mages she’d hoped to help as well. No matter what, she’ll be furious with him/them and want SOMETHING done in response—even if it means beating Anders black and blue with her own fists until her temper runs out.

archangelgarrusvakarian:

There is one thing I don’t get. In Origins the Warden (or Wynne or Morrigan) enters the Fade with the help of some mages to get rid of the demon in Connor. So it’s some kind of exorcism. So it is possible to free some one from a demon and maybe from a corrupt Spirit too. Justice was corrupt the moment he emerged with a living human soul. So why does no try it that way…finding some mages could not have been that difficult. And I’m sure even Orsino would be reasonable to listen to them.

It’s been discussed before, and I think there were two points that kept problem of Janders from being fixed that way: Anders was a willing host, and that’s why Justice was able to get more deeply rooted than a demon possessing a mage normally would; and more importantly unlike with Connor and the desire demon, there’s none of Justice left in the Fade to attack the way we did in Redcliffe. In the case of demons (and possibly even in Wynne’s situation) the entity technically never leaves the Fade, not entirely. It just sort of reaches through a curtain to use the host like a puppet, so a mage going into the Fade is able to encounter the demon’s true form there and defeat it. Justice was completely trapped outside the Fade well before Anders offered himself as a host. None of him is left there to attack.

As an aside, what I’ve always been curious about is how and why Justice couldn’t force himself apart if and when you take Anders into the Fade when you’re helping Feynriel. Justice obviously takes full control there; is he unable to leave even when in his element, or does he choose not to leave?