Tumblngs of KJ

Anonymous asked: Might I read said ficlet?! I need to feel better, too :-(

Hey Anon, I assume you mean the ficlet that I referred to in a comment on this post?  Here you go! (Sorry this response took a bit, I didn’t have it bookmarked, so I had to dig through almost all 30 pages of my Alistair tag to find it!)

Alistair, the Warden, and the Ultimate Sacrifice

It might not fix the lore for everyone, but it did for me, and this is basically my headcanon now. I hope you like it!

kinlochhold:

melysandecousland:

I always interpreted the dialogue below (under the read more) to mean Alistair was born and living at Redcliffe Castle before Arl Eamon married Isolde.  That the Guerrin wedding was put off due to King Maric’s opposition.  And that once Isolde arrived at Castle Redcliffe, Alistair was treated worse and eventually Eamon sent him off to the Chantry at Isolde’s insistence.  

I also believe Isolde’s continuing hatred of Alistair is clear when she meets him again with Teagan after the battle with the undean - “Alistair.  What are YOU doing here?”  Her tone just drips conrtempt at best.  

I believe that she may not have known he was Maric’s son - Eamon may have kept that secret.

Just to provide some age check points - in the Stolen Throne after the battle of West Hill Rowan remembers her brothers Teagan , 8 and Eamon 15 - that’s in 8:99 Blessed.  So it’s not unreasonable to assume Eamon met Isolde while recovering the arling sometime after Maric defeated Meghren  and that they didn’t marry until the early teens, due to Maric’s opposition.  

I;d appreciate any thoughts or canon which provides a different viewpoint.  This, btw, has nothing to do with the “Who is Alistair’s mother discussion”.  It’s just - was Alistair living at Redcliffe before Eamon married Isolde?

Game dialogue re: Alistair’s childhood:follows below: 

Read More

While I think Alistair can be  a very unreliable narrator at times, I’ve always accepted this dialogue at face value, since he is quite specific about the sequence of events and the cause/effect. (I also find it interesting that Connor’s birth would have come right about the time that Alistair was banished to the Chantry. *shrug*)

I have always assumed that it is no coincidence that Alistair was sent to the Chantry around the time Connor was born. And that Isolde didn’t know, or didn’t believe, the truth about Alistair’s parentage.

minorearth:

I’m cheating a bit with today’s fic post. I’ll never have anything new done enough in time to post before I go to bed, but I don’t want to miss my day! So, thus, you get a little bit of a WIP.

This is a snippet of something I started writing for lifeofkj’s birthday a couple of months ago - yes, I am the LATEST when it comes to birthday gifts. Actually, I have three separate stories that I started for KJ’s birthday, and none of them are finished. Because I’m awesome that way. 

Anyway. I will finish at least one of them and make it an official very belated birthday gift at some point. What I’m posting tonight is a bit of one of those stories.

KJ asked me for Bethany/Alistair - possibly King Alistair, if I could swing it. This is one of my attempts to make it work.

Read More

I love everything about this. Every single thing. <3

merilsell:

maric’s blade: cloveglee: maricsblade: I know a lot of people get testy about modding…

shadoedseptmbr:

cloveglee:

maricsblade:

I know a lot of people get testy about modding Alistair’s hair, but have you ever really looked at the vanilla hairstyle? There’s a SEAM across his forehead. Like his hair is actually made of carpet.

Oh, I hate Alistair’s hair. It’s ridiculous, especially…

Ooh, I hate to disagree (not about mods, mod any way you like!) But all you really need is a sharp straight edge to get a cut like that…straight razor or a dagger in a pinch. Except for the boyband bangs, Romans wore that same style, short and brushed forward. And hair will train, especially if it’s got good natural texture, so the spiky bangs aren’t out of possibility, especially with a little sweat. But he’s cute with a ponytail, too!

Aye, this. I also think “his minor obsession with hair” comes from his fear to be recognized as Maric’s bastard at one glance. So it has to be cropped short and he will do his damndest to keep it so.

The ponytail is a good look for some time in post-Origin though, when matured Alistair is either Warden or King, and gives zero fuck who recognizes him.

//headcanon time

I like the short hair (forehead seam or no forehead seam), and this headcanon pleases me. Accepted.

cloveglee:

I have never been through a Landsmeet where the Warden did not interrogate both sides before unilaterally choosing the monarch he or she desired.  And I finally realized why:

I’ve never gone through a Landsmeet with a female Warden who was not in love with Alistair.

I’ve never gone through a Landsmeet with a Male Warden who has allowed Alistair to be either hardened or NOT betrothed to Anora.

Therefore… I have never seen the fabled scenario where Eamon says Al is King, Al agrees, and that’s that.  That’s actually what I want to have happen with Lady Aeducan’ Lieutenant… but I’m going to have break up with him, aren’t I?   Hmm.

It also changes the way I was planning to handle Anora… I will have to decide what I think is most important to this story, which is first and foremost about him coming of age and growing capable and independent.

I got that scenario once, with Kasia Brosca. She fought the duel herself, then asked Alistair to execute Loghain, and after he did the deed, Eamon proclaimed Alistair king and Alistair agreed with no input from Kasia. I didn’t even know that scenario was possible, so I was pretty surprised. Also, the romance was very much active at the time.

kinlochhold:

lyrium-ghosts:

I was against hardening Alistair at first. I thought it’d make him a different person. Maybe it’d make him lose his sweet disposition. But I tried it, and now I know how wrong I was. That one little sentence you need to say to harden him isn’t going to irrevocably change his entire world. It just…

Origins, when you look at it from Alistair’s point of view, is a coming-of-age story. I know many people before me have said this; I’m just reiterating it. He begins as a naïve little boy who looks at Duncan with rose-colored glasses. He idolizes that man and is completely content just following along in his shadow. After Duncan dies, Alistair just essentially finds a replacement in the Warden. But as time goes on and he watches people die and makes hard decisions, he grows. He finds more resolve. He stands more firmly for what he believes in. After his sister, who he’s dreamt about meeting for who knows how long, turns him out on his ass, he reaches a turning point. He either realizes that he must depend solely on the Warden and follow only him/her (if you say the line “You don’t need her. You have others who care for you.” or “I care about you.”) or he realizes that he’s got to learn to depend on himself (if you use the ‘harden’ dialogue “Everyone is out for themselves. You should learn that.”)

That said, is a hardened Alistair really so bad? Do you really not want him to learn to fend for himself? Do you want him following your Warden around like a lost puppy for the rest of his days? And what if your Warden dies? He’ll be lost and miserable as hell until he finds another replacement. That’s kind of an ugly fate, in my opinion. His ‘coming-of-age’ story ends right there outside Goldanna’s house if you choose not to harden him.

But if you do choose to harden him, I think that’s when he reaches his full potential. He can learn to be a strong king, with or without the help of the Warden or Anora. Watching him lead the army to the final battle in Denerim is awe-inspiring. He’s his best possible self, there. He’s confident and resolute. After seeing that, I don’t think I’d ever choose anything different. Bottom line: hardening him is probably what’s best for him.

Best for him, whether he’s going to be king or not… Warden!Alistair in Kirkwall doesn’t have The Warden, to hold his hand and tell him what to do.

Absolutely agree that hardening Alistair is the best thing for his growth as a character. I actually tend to believe that it’s a process that would happen for him anyway, even if the Warden doesn’t say that line at that moment, just in the process of his growing up. (My Warden!Alistair isn’t hardened, and he seemed perfectly capable and happy in Kirkwall.) But I do think it makes for a better arc within DA:O if it happens there.

cloveglee:

But I still want Alistair to be king because of the elves, and because he’s really a LOT better at delivering battle speeches.  But I don’t want to let Eamon be Chancellor.  But I don’t want a demon baby running around.  (Lady Aeducan’s head is spinning.)

Chancellor Arl Eamon, no demon baby.

Chancellor Lady Aeducan, demon baby. Decisions, decisions.

Maybe I should offer Zevran a contract on Eamon’s life, to be paid in advance.

If you harden Alistair, I think he eventually moves beyond Eamon as chancellor on his own. Your other option is to marry him to Anora, and the two of them rule together, no Eamon involved.