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karniss-bg3 · 7 months

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Ya bring up a point I’m sure not all monster lovers consider—- turning Kar’niss back being a goal of his would mean sacrificing my love for the freaky and remembering he’s just a guy with needs too. I imagine if there was a WISH spell, given their open-ended nature to do Anything with reality, you’d probably get access to one with only a few options of what to use it for in a limited game context. Probably it’d give you the offer to fix your other companions, or your own lingering plot issues—- could we see some Kar’niss reaction to Tav, after mulling it over (alone or among companions), truly deciding to use the WISH for him and/or let him use it (one of those ‘trust your companion will do the right thing’ moments). Bet they find the spell after robbing Lorroakan or somethin. (Though it’s a Wish Spell—- imagine a man so short sighted as to just wish to be without pain but not change so he can still ‘be of use’. Hopefully he’d have learned better about his worthiness by the time you found a WISH though).

Title: A Wish Come True

Word Count: 3,667

Spoiler Warning: Spoilers for Act 2 and Act 3

Characters: Gale, Astarion, gender-neutral Tav and Kar'niss

Summary: After a hard battle in the sorcerer's tower, Gale uncovers a hidden Wish spell scroll. Kar'niss is now faced with a tough decision; Use the rare scroll to break the drider's curse or remain as he is forever more?

***

It had been a hard fought battle in the sorcerer's tower but the group came out victorious. Lorroakan had been bested and his lifeless body had settled in the middle of the floor. Astarion was the first to root around the wizard’s quarters with Gale not far behind, both searching for powerful items and weapons they could pilfer for their journey. Gale’s sharp eye spotted a peculiar rosewood box in a corner with intricate swirls carved into the lid. He leaned in for a closer look and sensed that the chest was locked tight. Astarion also picked up on the notion and casually nudged Gale aside with his shoulder.

“Allow me,” Astarion said, chuffed.

Gale held up his hands and gave Astarion the chance to unlock the mysterious vessel. Retrieving his trusty lock picking tools he went to work. As he began to fiddle with it a magical aura pulsed from the box and a blast of magical fire surged from the base and onto the fumbling thief. Astarion’s clothes caught alight and made the vampire lurch from surprise and pain. He spun in circles, frantically slapping at the blaze that threatened to consume his clothes whole.

“AH! Hot, hot, HOT!” Astarion screeched.

Gale stood by, his blank expression mirroring his annoyance. He’d flick two fingers aside, a blue aura shrouding them before a downpour of water crashed over the ignited fop. This doused the fire as well as Astarion who now stood there, soaked but free from danger.

“Now, what have we learned, Astarion?” Gale asked.

The vampire’s upper lip rose, exposing his fangs, shooting the wizard a miffed glare.

“That’s right. When exploring a tower of sorcery, maaaybe let the seasoned wizard do the poking, hm?” Gale said, gesturing to himself.

Astarion rolled his eyes, his hands hurriedly squeezing out his hair before flinging his arms side to side to rid them of excess moisture.

“Fine. I doubt there is aught of interest in that chest anyway. Likely moth eaten robes and naughty paintings. Have at it, oh ‘mighty’ wizard.” Astarion gave a disingenuous bow in Gale’s direction, abandoning the chest in an effort to fix his drenched appearance.

Gale wasn’t put off by Astarion’s complaining, rather accustomed to it by this stage in their journey. Instead he put his focus on examining the chest with a more nuanced look. His keen arcane senses were able to detect the sheen of an enchantment that shimmered over the item as a whole. He outstretched his hands toward it, palms hovering inches above the lid, putting his full concentration in breaking the troublesome spell. His eyes took on a purple hue, his robes kicking out at his ankles crackling with magical energy. He called out a single word, willing the weave to do his bidding, assaulting the enchantment in an effort to break it. His determination paid off. The energy pushed from his palms covered the box and the shimmer that once dominated it’s surface shattered like fiberglass removing the danger.

“Ah, there we are.” Gale swung open the lid to peer inside curiously.

The coffer, at first, didn’t seem to contain anything of note just like Astarion predicted. A pile of old robes of various hues sat in a neatly folded pile. Gale picked them up to look them over and while they were of a fine make, they didn’t seem to have any significance beyond that. He frowned with the discovery, continuing to dig in hopes he’d discover more.

“Ah-ha! Utter trash, certainly not worth getting burned over,” Astarion said while wringing out his shirt.

“Mm no, there must be more. A sorcerer wouldn’t go through so much effort to protect worthless robes,” Gale replied.

This prompted Astarion to come closer to investigate once more. Gale cleared out everything leaving an empty chest. The vampire smirked as he leaned over, a knowing gleam twinkling in the corner of his eye.

“Oh darling, it seems we’ve been done in by a red herring. Cazador had many items of value, ones he’d not leave wittingly out in the open.” Astarion reached into the box and ran his smooth fingertips along the wooden walls of the container. He did so until he felt a discrepancy in the wood grain; An indent. “There you are.” He’d press the hidden button, a quiet double click of mechanisms heard within its walls. Both men watched while the false bottom of the box slid open revealing the true treasure beneath.

Astarion’s lips curled in a self-satisfied grin, leaning in closer to Gale to make cocky eye contact with him. “I suppose a rogue isn’t as useless in a tower of sorcery as you thought, HM?”

Gale side eyed his proud companion, palming the side of his face to gently push him away. “You’ve made your point, good work.”

Inside was a pouch of gold coin, a bizarre wooden wand painted red and gold with floral accents and a short stack of scrolls. Gale filtered through the items with some fascination, going through each scroll with fierce scrutiny. His snooping came to a halt when he read over one scroll in particular, his eyes increasing in size as the shock took hold. Astarion was in the process of dumping water from his boots when he noticed Gale’s frozen demeanor.

“What is it, what did you find?”

Gale didn’t answer his curious companion, instead whirling around to call down to the floor below. “TAV! You need to see this!”

All this time Tav was situated on the lower floor with Kar’niss who had sustained injuries during the battle. The drider had lowered himself to the ground so Tav had ease of access to his wounds. They were bandaging a cut on his arm when they heard Gale shouting from above. Tav’s brow crinkled in confusion and Kar’niss followed suit, both exchanging a glance. Before Tav could rush to Gale’s side the wizard was already climbing down the ladder with some urgency. Astarion followed behind, half dressed and damp but equally as curious as to his discovery.

“What’s going on?” Tav asked.

Gale handed over the scroll to them. “Here.”

They took the parchment and scanned over the text inscribed upon it, a creeping realization hitting them the further they read along. Their eyes darted to Gale, then to Kar’niss and back to the scroll, their fingers beginning to tremble.

“A wish spell,” they whispered.

This revelation sucked the air out of the room. Astarion’s jaw dropped with amazement while Kar’niss’ breath hitched in his throat. A silence fell over the massive study, each companion eyeing off the other, uncertainty and excitement palpable in their immediate vicinity.

Gale broke the silence first. “What do we do?

Tav pressed their lips into a thin line, soon turning to Kar’niss. “This is it, what we’ve been searching for. You can return to your true form, Kar’niss. Your suffering could come to an end, right here, right now.”

Kar’niss rose from his crouched position, his hand rubbing over his arm in a self-soothing gesture. He swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat while legs shuffled beneath him in an anxious dance.

“But...this spell, it’s incredibly rare and powerful, is it not? Why waste it on me? So much could be done with this power. If I suffer it is due to my own folly,” Kar’niss said.

Astarion bolted forward as if angered by the statement, his crimson eyes glaring up at the drider. “Have you learned nothing after traveling with us? I know it’s a difficult lesson to learn, it took me far too long as it was. But what happened to you is not your doing. You were a victim, same as I. Take the scroll and reclaim your life.”

Kar’niss shrunk when he was chided so, unable to maintain his gaze on Astarion for too long. His nervous energy didn’t seem to wane, undecided and skeptical of his own worth.

“It’s true, this spell is not easy to come by. We can only use it once. With that said, I know first hand what it is like to be toyed with by the divine. Yours is a particularly cruel case, Kar’niss. As far as we know this is the only way to undo what has been done. I think we can all agree that despite our myriad of problems, this is your best chance at freedom,” Gale said. “We have alternatives to tackle our afflictions, you do not.”

Tav looked between Gale and Astarion, mulling over their words and watching Kar’niss shuffle about nearby. They took time to think and finally made their approach. They stepped toward Kar’niss, lifting an arm to gently rest their palm at the center of his chest.

“This isn’t a choice for any of us to make. You know better than anyone what is in your better interest and I trust in your judgment. If you need time to think it through then take it, you don’t have to decide this very moment.” Tav took a step closer, a warm smile on their face. “What is important is that you make the choice, that it is of your free will. Know that we will support you no matter the road you take. You are not a waste, Kar’niss, not by a long shot.”

Kar’niss listened to what everyone had to say, observing all present with some trepidation. He glanced down at Tav, resting his clawed hand atop of the one pressed to his chest. Without a word he stepped away from the group needing a moment to think by himself.

The others afforded Kar’niss his much needed space, retreating to another part of the tower to continue their search for other useful items. He was still in shock, scarcely believing that they had found such a rare item, something that could change his life moving forward. He came to a stop near a large standing mirror propped on a nearby wall. The drider turned to face the reflective surface, seeing his own image projected right back at him. He jolted from the surprise of it, as if it was the first time he truly saw himself since his change. His legs carried him closer, crouching down to get a better look.

His torso was bloodied from the recent battle, bandages placed over his arms where he’d suffered ice damage. Those details were the easiest to ignore, instead focusing on how twisted his once beautiful visage had become. His fingers reached to feather across the many eyes scattered across his forehead, trailing down to the scarred gash across his lip, finally reaching the hardened chitin sealed along his jawline. His gnarled hand reached out to caress the surface of the mirror as if trying to console the reflection within, his gaze meeting the pair staring back at him. His eyes tread lower, spotting the spider body his torso was haphazardly melded to, his pedipalps trembling beneath his belly button. He snarled and jerked his head away from the mirror, the biting sting of tears starting to collect at the corners of his eyes.

Was he worthy of salvation? He thought back to all of the atrocities he had committed both under Lolth and the Absolute, complacent in the part he played, a willing puppet for their unspeakable crimes. Astarion’s words rang in his mind, the notion that he was a victim rather than a fervent contributor. Should he be punished forever for actions of his past, or could he move beyond it and become the person he was meant to be? Gale’s statements came to mind next, the idea that he had been toyed with by those he worshiped, that he had the opportunity for freedom. What did that mean for someone like him? He could never return to the Underdark, not as a drider or a drow. That home was forever lost to him. Did the surface offer him something more, something greater? Or would he know the same abuse just with different faces?

Tav’s statement crashed through the walls of self doubt and hesitation. This was...his choice? Could he trust himself to make it? He realized he knew one thing for certain, he wanted to stay with Tav at any cost. He didn’t wish to be a burden on them, forever doomed to defend a drider from the gawking and cruel masses who didn’t understand him. Their life together would never know peace so long as Tav had to play protector. There were many other things they couldn’t do as he was now, things he’d long since thought about but was too afraid to voice. He wanted to know love, to know happiness, two things that were always short of his grasp, just out of reach.

Kar’niss turned to look back at the mirror but with more determination in his expression. He examined himself once more, for the final time, his head lifting as if in defiance of what Lolth had made him. He’d give the mirror a shove, pushing it over and letting it shatter on the floor below.

“Never again.”

During this time the group had pilfered much of the area. Gale had taken to reading the many texts stored on the bookshelves while Astarion hung his clothes on the balcony to dry, parading around in his underwear with no shame. Tav rolled their eyes at the display.

“There are many robes scattered about you could wear in the meantime,” Tav grumbled.

“Yes but they’re old, and ugly. Besides I look stunning au naturel. Really, you should be thanking me for providing your eyes with such a feast.” Astarion swished his arm in an effeminate arc.

Tav groaned and slumped deeper in the chair they had sat upon. “I’m going to regurgitate that feast onto Lorroakan’s carpet if you don’t stop.”

Their prattling was interrupted when they heard the clicking steps of the driders return. Gale closed his book and Tav stood up, Astarion joining the pair to look upon Kar’niss, the air of expectation heavy around them.

“Have you made a choice?” Tav asked.

Kar’niss rubbed his hands together nervously, looking between the three so as to work up the courage to make such an announcement.

“I thought about what you’ve said, all of you. While I still...struggle to believe I am worthy of this gift, I don’t want to spend the remainder of my life in hiding. You found me at the worst point in my life. You could’ve killed me without a second thought, you spared me instead. You showed endless kindness and patience while I struggled to contend with my own mind, feelings I thought to be genuine. I can’t return to the Underdark and Lolth’s shadow will forever follow me. At least with this spell I have the chance to live on the surface with a modicum of peace. I—“ He trailed off, his expression twisted while he searched for the right words. “I want to be happy. I don’t know what that really means for someone like me but I’m willing to find out.” He’d take in a shaken breath. “Use it.”

All three spared a glance to one another, seeming pleased with his conclusion. Tav stepped forward to hold the scroll out to Kar’niss but the drider raised both hands in refusal.

“I think since Gale found the scroll, he should do the honors. That and I am worried I’ll word it wrong and botch the entire thing. I don’t want to make my condition worse,” Kar’niss said.

Gale chuckled and took the scroll from Tav. “A fair concern, I will be diligent with my phrasing. Are you ready?”

Kar’niss inhaled a deep chest full of air, his legs dancing shuffling beneath him once more. “I think so, yes.”

Tav wandered over, issuing a comforting squeeze to his hip. “Everything will be fine. We’re right here.” They’d then back away to give distance for the spell to work its magic.

Astarion and Tav kept their distance, the vampire taking Tav’s hand into his own to give it a reassuring squeeze. Despite all his fanfare he realized the importance of this moment for all involved. Gale stepped forward keeping a gap between himself and the anxious drider, holding up the scroll to focus on arcane concentration.

“I wish for the drider known as Kar’niss to be restored to his true form, complete and whole as the drow he was before Lolth’s cruel curse kissed his essence. Memories hale and intact, body rich and vibrant, freed of the evil rendered upon him against his will.”

As soon as the last word left Gale’s lips the scroll in his hands crumbled to dust, their particles glittering in the air. They floated over to Kar’niss and began to dance in a shimmering ring around him. Kar’niss looked around with an urgent jerk of his head, lifting his arms due to a tinge of fear striking his core. The particles grew in size and number until they formed a continuous beam of golden light, expanding to form a dome of radiance that concealed the drider in full. Gale, Astarion and Tav stood by, their eyes wide and breath baited. They couldn’t look away even as the light increased in intensity, unable to see what was happening within. Loose papers in the tower went flying, carried away by the breeze radiating from the churning sphere in the center of the room. All of them could feel the force of this magic and it’s near infinite power, crackling and buzzing with arcane energy of a grand magnitude. The swirling golden light started to shrink in on itself, a notion that made Tav step forward with concern. Was Kar’niss alright, what was happening to him?

Soon the sphere shrunk to half the size it had been prior to its conjuring, the shell cracking down the center and breaking away, portions of the dome flaking away and disintegrating from sight. Once the shell had all but faded away the only thing that was left behind was the glowing silhouette of a man on the floor, doubled over on his hands and knees. The aura steadily peeled away revealing the changed individual beneath. A doubled over drow male was left behind, his form naked and vulnerable. The trio nearby watched in stunned silence, waiting for a sign that the spell had truly done as advertised.

A soft groan rumbled from the man on the floor, his hands pushing himself up into a seated position. He was dazed but alive and healthy by all appearances. Shoulder length white hair curtained around his pale face, now cleansed of the eyes which had once dotted his brow. The hard carapace that once molded over his arms, chest and jawline were no where to be seen, leaving behind smooth flesh and darkened nipples. Most notable were the presence of legs, two instead of eight, thighs muscular and firm. Kar’niss held up his hands which had begun to shake, looking them over in awe. His fingers were smooth rather than jagged and rough, able to bend his fingers with more flexibility than he had prior. He ran his palms across his face, particularly his forehead, noting the absence of the additional orbs he once carried. Finally, he glanced down to see his legs and genitals, all as they had been once upon a time. A choked gasp surged from his throat as the reality of it all began to set in. He was back to himself.

Tav rushed into action once they assessed the situation. They ran over and grabbed a loose blanket draped over a nearby chair, darting to Kar’niss’ side. They dropped to their knees in front of him, draping the garment over his shoulders to stave off the incoming chill.

“Kar’niss, are you alright? How do you feel?” Tav asked.

The drow didn’t know what to say at first, still patting over his torso and thighs in an effort to make sure this wasn’t a dream. He shook his head, mouth hanging agape, a swell of something building in his chest that he hadn’t felt in an age; Joy. His trembling lips pulled into an emotional smile, throwing his arms out to wrap them around Tav. Pulled into the vice grip of a hug Tav promptly laughed from surprise and relief, their arms threading around his torso to return the gesture enthusiastically.

“Th-Thank you...thank you…” Kar’niss whimpered, his face buried in Tav’s neck.

Tav bit their lower lip while stroking the back of his hair, leaning more into the embrace.

“You did most of the work, Kar’niss. This is your victory as much as it is ours. I’m proud of you.”

He bit back a sob from such a heartfelt statement, fingers curled into the small of Tav’s back. He leaned away enough to make eye contact with them, his body radiating overwhelming emotion. He cupped Tav’s face and brought them in for a kiss, one that he put every ounce of his body and soul into. Tav returned the affection with equal vigor, clinging to the man they adored so.

As the pair embraced Gale and Astarion stood by, looking on with their own sense of pride and joy at the outcome. Gale glanced Astarion’s way.

“You really couldn’t have put on some clothes for this monumental, once in a lifetime moment?” Gale grunted.

Astarion scoffed and waved a hand about dismissively. “Darling, they’re not paying one speck of attention to me. For once, that’s a good thing, mw-ha! Besides, my near nudity will likely help Kar’niss feel less self conscious about his own.”

Gale chuckled and propped his arm on Astarion’s shoulder, leaning into him while looking Tav and Kar’niss’ way.

“True enough, Astarion. True enough.”

Tav and Kar’niss continued to hold and kiss one another, filled with relief and hope for what future lay ahead. This was the beginning of a new journey for the pair, one that they were ready to face together.

To the very end.

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evillittlebirdie · 5 months

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Salvation (Kar'niss/Tav)

Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine

Kar'niss knew better than to give into temptation. The treacherous, base part of him yearned to take advantage. He could not help himself. He could see Tav's limp. Like an impulsive child, Kar'niss blurted out his proposal. Despite the soreness in his joints, Kar'niss bent his legs in service. Tav denied him, and yet he pressed on, insisting.

After being admonished, Kar'niss shrunk into himself. He had learned to make himself small, especially before his mother, to lessen punishment. Like a wolf baring its neck, Kar'niss surrendered to Tav. He didn't realize he was chewing his lower lip until his fang caught on the soft part of the flesh. The cut allowed for drops of blood to trickle down his chin.

"Oh, Kar'niss," Tav hesitated. And in her infinite kindness, Tav approached him and placed her bare fingers on his chin. She wiped away the drops of blood. Something soft fluttered in her eyes. Kar'niss didn't know what to call the look. He knew when his mother was angry with him. He knew when his father was disappointed. He knew when others were revolted, frightened, or irked by him. But Tav's countenance was unfamiliar.

"You didn't do anything wrong. I will go with you to the cavern," Tav said in response to Kar'niss's request. She smiled at him, making his heart flutter. She wiped his blood on her trousers and offered her hand to him. He reached forward, his dark claws in contrast to her soft appendage. He wavered, and Tav wrapped her fingers around his hand.

"Lolth, save me. You are completely useless!" Ilhar grabbed Kar'niss by his wrist and pulled up. He was so small but already such a burden. She pulled him up so he was several feet off the ground. Kar'niss cried as his forearm dislocated from his elbow.

But there was no intent to hurt when Tav held Kar'niss' hand. She was not revolted by the hard chitin covering his hand's dorsal area. Tav touched him more within the last few days than anyone had for years. She was a true avatar of his Queen.

"Please rise," Tav encouraged him. And he obeyed her effortlessly, rising to his full height. She didn't let go of his hand even when she had to stretch her arm to hold it. "Let's go to your cavern. I can walk."

Kar'niss would not push her if she wanted to walk. "Mistress will follow." He looked down at their enclosed hands. Even though she held his hand, he didn't curl his fingers around her.

"Monster. Abomination. Wretched being."

Mercifully, Tav let go of his hand and tilted her head towards him. He walked towards his cavern, and Tav followed after him quietly.

"You offered me a ride," Tav remarked after a minute of silence. When she reminded him of his suggestion, Kar'niss began to lower himself. It was second nature to obey her. But Tav quickly chatted, "No, no. I didn't mean I would take you up on it."

Kar'niss would not reveal how relieved he was that Tav would not 'ride' him. Kar'niss remembered House Melarn kept many drider slaves on their property. Instead of a sedan, some nobles rode their driders like horses, complete with bridle and saddle. The harness was more for a show of dominance than any practicality.

When Kar'niss pleaded to remain a servant to his own house, he thought that Ilhar would keep him as such a beast. If he was willing to do this for his family, he should be able to do this for his new goddess, his true goddess.

"It would hurt, wouldn't it?" Tav questioned, pulling Kar'niss from his memory.

"Always hurts. It would not matter," Kar'niss remarked nonchalantly. He lived with the pain for so many years that he had become numb. Every inch of his spine ached. What would a body's weight do that hadn't been done to him?

"Really?" Tav questioned, frowning in response to his declaration. She bit her lower lip before inquiring, "Even before the battle?"

"Ever since the spider queen cursed me...Failure," Kar'niss responded. He lowered his eyes, pushing away his recollection of the day he was turned.

"I'm sorry that happened," Tav expressed genuinely. "It seems that the gods are rather hard on us all, aren't they?"

Something was wrong with that statement. Something pulled at Kar'niss' mind.

A pregnant pause passed as Kar'niss tried to figure out what his intuition was trying to tell him. But he was quickly distracted by Tav's chattering. "Everyone should be at camp tomorrow. We all need a day of rest. I know you've spoken to Astarion and Halsin. Maybe you can meet everyone else."

The idea of speaking to his Queen's followers was enough to make him forget about the misgiving. "If Mistress wishes," Kar'niss cautioned.

"Well, I would like you to at least introduce yourself. Everyone is curious about you," Tav explained carefully. Kar'niss wondered why she was being deliberate with her words. But Kar'niss interpreted her words as an order. He would speak with the others if it pleased her.

***

"Astarion, perchance, do you know where our leader is located?"

Astarion sighed plaintively as Gale's voice interrupted his reading. He looked up from his book and raised his eyebrow, "Why would you think I would know?"

Gale gave him a pointed look, "You two are nearly joined at the hip during most of the day. And no one has seen Tav for over an hour."

"You're relatively intelligent, Gale. She's gone off to visit her pet drider," Astarion imparted. He used a ribbon to mark his place before closing his book. "No doubt coaxing him out of his hiding place with food and baby talk, just like she did the owlbear."

Gale frowned, displeased with the answer, "Of course. I am unused to this addition to our nightly routine."

"No doubt we will have a full menagerie by the time our tadpoles are pried out," Astarion stated flatly. Tav's heart was too compassionate for her own good, as Astarion tried to tell her numerous times. Most people weren't decent like her. One of these days, a mutt would turn on her. She could hold her own against a rabid dog or hungry cub. But a mad drider? That was a different story.

Judging by Gale's visual disgruntlement, he was feeling similar about their new guest. Astarion could use it to his advantage, for Tav, of course.

"You need to check on her, though. Not me. I must tell you Kar'niss doesn't like me," Astarion pointed out, tilting his head forward. "So if I walk anywhere near that cave he's holed himself in, I may risk being lashed. He may respond better to someone else."

Astarion watched in interest as Gale contemplated his words. And like a marionette, Gale moved precisely the way Astarion wanted him. "I will go and check on her. I'm sure Tav can handle herself, but she shouldn't speak to him without one of us nearby. He's not the most rational being we've come across."

Carefully hiding his satisfaction, Astarion nodded and watched Gale walk toward the cavern. Gale fancied himself the proverbial knight in shining armor for Tav. Even if Astarion didn't have a keen eye for reading people, he could catch Gale's infatuation with Tav.

Not that he was the only one, but that was irrelevant.

Let Gale break up whatever private conversation Tav and Kar'niss were having. It would keep Astarion from being involved, and whatever interaction would be halted. Tav potentially being annoyed with Gale was a perk.

#baldurs gate 3 #bg3 fanfiction #tav/kar'niss #tav x kar'niss #kar'niss #drider

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tadpolectomy · 2 months

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Do you have Baldur’s Gate 3 brainrot? Do you love your OC so much and wonder why the fanfic isn’t writing itself? Do you like to support queer writers trying to make ends meet (that’s me!)? I* got you, buddy. *You may notice a change in URL, I'm still @theskeletonprior I've just taken my BG3 brainrot to a themed blog.

My commissions are open, so come tell me about me your Tav! (And their love-interest, if you’re into that. Bring me your unromanceables!) I especially like to write hurt/comfort, angst, action-adventure and polyamorous relationships. I'll also happily write canon x canon and especially love rare pairs. I don’t accept graphic NSFW requests, non-con, or underage. When in doubt, just check in with me. I do have the right to decline any request for any reason, but I'm pretty easygoing. 1000 words for $15 1500 words for $25 2000 words for $35 Check out my work samples on AO3.

Reach me here* or via my email address [email protected]. I have a Google Form which you'll find on my ko-fi, but reach out to let me know you've filled it out, as it doesn't notify me if someone responds. I respond to everyone, so if you haven't heard from me, please do check back in.

#bg3 #bg3 fanfiction #bg3 fic #bg3 commissions #bg3 tav #baldur's gate 3 #tadpolectomy comms #tav tales #durgetash #astarion x tav #tav x karlach #tav x kar'niss #kar'niss bg3

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mel-0n-earth · 3 months

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BG3 February Writing Challenge: Day 3

Day Three (SFW): First encounter with their love interest (LI)

Link to the original prompt list

[Again, I'm using this writing challenge as an excuse to develop some ideas I had for a Kar'niss x Tav fic. I wrote a bit about my OC Tav in my fills for Day One and Day Two.]

Shadows crawled and swirled and gripped and strangled like so many vines in a gossamer jungle of night. Yes, as did sun bring forth seed from soil, so did shadow draw the Lady’s deeds into fruition. Yet Kar’niss could not thrive in such darkness as did his Lady, no. No, no, no—it was his Majesty’s light that guided him through throngs of gloom and rot to seek out followers anew, to lead the acolytes to her temple atop the moonlit tower. He would do as she asked, for as long as she asked. What more had he than her voice like molten gold in his fractured mind?

She spoke to him now—whispers crawling like spiderlings, or more aptly, wriggling like a worm. Lead, it said. Lead them to the tower. And pleased he was to appease his Mistress.

Then a shadow, a flicker in a corner, leaving a trace like the smoking wick of a snuffed candle. Something was here, waiting, watching. For whom? Or what, for that matter?

The Lady bristled.

“’Ere, web arse, something moved up there,” the goblin said, voice crunching like tiny bones. “Want me to drag it out?”

A glimmer, a flash in his mind, like branches of lightning connecting in the sky and driving earthward in a shower of spark and dirt. Then, a figure where shadow once was, a sole figure standing defiant amidst the gloom—no, no, not any soul. True soul.

Such a strange sight to decipher in the dark—neither male nor female, drow but not drow. Such an oddity would be lost in the rank and file of Menzoberranzan, swallowed in the limen of their placelessness. A rancid giggle escaped his throat, cackling, keening.

“Such a strange servant you have chosen, my Queen. Yet even drow have folded in your dark. How have they survived? Where is their lantern?”

A raised brow, a downturned mouth, reading, measuring, deciding. And yet, unafraid. Strange to see, so very strange.

“The Absolute guided me here,” they declared (such assurance to their voice—warm, regal even. Even if Kar’niss could not decipher their place in the grand design, yet it seemed this one knew it well, wore it like a mantle). “She said I was to take yours.”

Oh, how his mind spun with that. Loyal he had remained, yet loyalty hardly bore the same weight as survival—such a word, survival, the Underdark had brought him to loathe it.

Survival—he’d said once before, in another life. One loses something when their existence is reduced to such a trite notion. Why survive when I could live?

FOOL, fool he was. The spider bitch had not liked that—no, not at all. Blessed was he to stumble into his Majesty’s light. Better off he was crawling on eight legs on the surface than on all fours before the noble Houses of Menzoberranzan.

Yet her voice was silent now. Surely, if she objected, his Lady would say so? Was he to take her silence as acceptance? A confirmation of truth? It seemed so…

“Very well. If it is your will, they can have it.”

A glint in violet eyes, pale and glowing in the dark, like quartz in dark stone, a precious thing born of the very earth. Once, he might’ve written a song about such a lovely thing, plucked it from the vestiges of his long-shattered lyre—no more. That fool was long dead, back bowed and broken to beastly form. Only the servant remained.

“Good,” their voice came once more (no, not a mantle—more a sovereign’s ring, to be honored with a gentle hand, a touch of lips, a gesture of gratitude for having briefly brushed with such splendor). “You may go now.”

A pit formed in his stomach, large and cavernous.

“Go?!” the goblin screeched. “Whatcha mean go?”

“We can’t go without you,” the orc pleaded. “The shadows would tear us to pieces!”

Kar’niss hesitated—only for a moment. Then, a snarl, a drawing of brows, anger brewed with confusion to boil in his belly. “This is not her Majesty’s will,” he hissed, all seven eyes burning in his skull-cage.

The not-drow’s eyes narrowed, striking him like a holy beacon in the dark. “The Absolute wants you to go,” they hissed, serpent-like, deadly and exquisite in equal measure. “Now.”

The voice did not sound as his Lady’s did, yet it struck a similar chord in his fractured mind—reason in the madness, harmony among the discord, beauty amidst ugliness. He would bow to it. He would obey.

“If it is her majesty’s will—”

“You can’t be serious!” the brute fool of an orc shouted. “You know what’s out there!”

Righteous anger blazed through him, devouring sense in its wake. The words fell sharp from his tongue, like daggers buried in a corpse. Did they not see? They were under their Lady’s scrutiny. This was a test—one he did not plan to fail, for he had already suffered the full extent of his failures. “If it is her majesty’s will,” he seethed, throat bubbling with delirium, “Then we. Shall. WALK!”—

--a blinking of many eyes, their fragile figures kaleidoscopic in his vision, copies upon copies of doomed and daunted faces regarding him with disbelief. Yet he would not be swayed. They had spoken—his Majesty had spoken—

“She will protect us,” he said, voice wrapping around his own fear like a child’s blanket. “She must.”

He cast aside his Lady’s light, and crawled stumbling into the choking dark.

As the shadows slit him open, boring their tendrils into the last dredges of his sanity, he felt life slip from between his clawed and blackened fingers. Close, so close was he to his death, his salvation. It would all be over soon, the Lady’s shadows would consume his disgraced form, and silence would settle over the scattered fragments of his mind.

But it seems he would be granted no such mercy. Instead, a voice came to him, slithering and familiar.

I’m not done with you yet, my pet, the Spider Queen crooned from out the Demonweb. It would be far more fun to see how thoroughly they might break you.

Kar’niss’s eyes went wide, and a scream tore his throat as the shadows dissipated and his body began the process of slowly, agonizingly, knitting itself back together.

The fool’s journey, it seemed, had only just begun.

#I have no clear idea of where I'm going with this #think the little mermaid but instead he is a drider #even I do not yet fully comprehend my vision #bg3ficfeb #day three #bg3 #kar'niss #OC Tav #Tav x Kar'niss

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skatik · 6 months

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happy another kar'niss day ♡

sketch -> final

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maoilix · 2 months

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Some Kar'niss doodles as he won the poll :^) my Tav Juniper aswell!... OH and Astarion is also there

Dialogue available in alt text!

#bg3 #kar'niss #baldur's gate 3 #kar'niss x tav #bg3 fanart #bg3 kar'niss #baldurs gate 3 #baldurs gate 3 fanart #bg3 fan art #bg3 tav #original art #bg3 astarion #fanart #digital art #tiefling #Mao Juniper

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major-nasya · 15 days

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Awkward conversation (//ω//)

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justagayfish · 2 months

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Dirk makes a new friend! (he has no idea what a drider is)

(Bonus Gale reaction + coloured Gale under the cut)

Bonus Gale reaction + coloured Gale

#bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 fanart #bg3 durge #bg3 tav #bg3 gale #bg3 kar'niss #kar'niss #gale dekarios #gale of waterdeep #my doodle #my art #digital art #dragonborn #bg3 dragonborn #my oc #drider #oc: dirk #ship: dirk x gale

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cornflowersisblue · 5 months

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Driders are depicted as horrific, evil beings. Their transformation from drow to driders is accompanied by significant changes in their physical and magical abilities, emphasizing their sinister nature… ✍

Kar'niss: the most charming spider boy in the whole game 🥺

He just needs a loving hug 💗, and no one should touch his precious moon lantern! If asked, he will kindly guide you through the darkness.

#baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #bg3 spoilers #drider #karniss #kar'niss #bg3 kar'niss #bg3 karniss #baldur's gate iii #karniss x tav #bg3 act 2 #kar’niss

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shatouto · 5 months

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#baldur's gate 3 #kar'niss #bg3 tav #kar'niss x tav #oc: lorame #my brain is too tired for real emotional stuff so fluff it is #I FORGOT TO DRAW HIS PEDIPALPS AROUND HIS WAISTTTT

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lavenderpearls · 7 months

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Kar'niss and Eleni own my heart

#baldur's gate 3 #bg3 tav #bg3 #kar'niss #drider #tav x kar'niss

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karniss-bg3 · 6 months

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Writing Prompt: Kar'niss x Tav proposal and /or wedding planning? I imagine they'd have a super intimate ceremony, maybe just the two of them

The hour had grown late in the sleepy town Tav and Kar’niss had settled in. Tav was working to lead the livestock back to their pens to rest for the night. After the task had been completed they’d go in search of their drider, their gaze drawn to the roof of their home where he had settled to admire the sky. Tav climbed up the ladder to get within reach, walking over to the pensive creature with a smile.

“Taking a moment of repose?” Tav asked.

Kar’niss settled on his belly, his legs bent into sharp points either side of his large body. “Yes, thinking.”

Tav walked over and sat in front of him, leaning back between his pedipalps to get comfortable. Kar’niss rested the stubby limbs over Tav’s shoulders, hooking under their arms to draw them tighter to his body.

“About what?”

“The future,” he stated simply, “our future.”

They took in a soft breath while their hands grasped his pedipalps, rubbing over the solid surface in an affectionate pass. “I’ve been thinking about the same. We’ve lived here for a few years now, found a rhythm that works for us. It took time to get over everything with the Netherbrain, all of the trials we went through just to survive. But we made it Kar’niss, we’re alive.”

Kar’niss nodded. “I am grateful for this. Some days...are easier than others. My mind still plagues me, I still hear the whisper of voices that are not real. You have helped me to cope, to find a way to live even with this affliction.” He leaned his torso so he could wrap his arms around Tav, his chin nestled on top of their head.

Tav closed their eyes and leaned back into him, the cool breeze wafting between the pair while they enjoyed each others company. “I am proud of how far you’ve come. I know it’s been an adjustment living on the surface, contending with so many eyes on you. You’ve handled it well.” They paused, their gaze trained on the half moon above, a sight the pair admired often together. “I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”

The drider tipped his head back, surprised by the statement. “You do?”

“Of course. After all this time we’ve spent together it’s become clear that I couldn’t imagine a day without you.” Tav turned their head to look up at him. “I love you and I love this.” They squeezed their lovers arm, shifting their weight so they could turn to better face him.

He bowed his head, rogue strands of white slipped from behind his ear to sway free. “I love you as well, very much. But—are you sure? I am still a monster to many people, it will be hard for the world to see us together.”

“Then let the world squabble among themselves.” Tav reached to cup either side of his face, fingertips feeling over the mixture of soft and hard features. “I don’t need them to understand us, this is not for them.”

There was a silence between them while they both let such a concept sink in. Kar’niss was still coming to terms with anyone willing to stick their necks out for him. He’d lean down and rest his forehead to Tav’s own. “Then...I see no reason why we can’t stay together like this. I do not wish to be anywhere else.”

Tav smiled as their noses brushed, basking in each other’s presence. “Marry me,” Tav whispered as their voice warbled with emotion.

Kar’niss blinked in confusion, soon leaning away to study Tav’s face. “Mare-ee?” He squinted as his legs clicked at the ground.

It took Tav a moment to realize that such ceremonies weren’t commonplace in drow society and if anything were unheard of. “Marriage is a bonding ceremony, something two people do when they want to promise to devote themselves to each other. Sometimes it is used for political means among noble houses but for most it’s a promise to love one another until their death.”

“This is a strange concept to me,” Kar’niss began, “consorts, slaves, lust toys, all of this makes sense to me. High houses of the Matriarchs had some ceremonies but it was never for love. Drow...do not even have a word for such an emotion.”

“Which is a shame. I know you’ve had a hard time in the Underdark but the same will not be true here, not with me at least. I would like to marry you but only if you desire the same in return. This is not your custom and I don’t want you to feel forced.”

“I do not feel forced when I am with you. I simply don’t know what this ritual requires. Is it something someone with a body such as mine can do? Is it some sort of physical challenge to prove virility? Or is it more a test of the mind and reflexes?”

Tav chuckled and applied a soft pat to the side of Kar’niss’ face. “It’s not a test, not in that sense at least. The requirements, so to speak, change depending on what deity you follow, or what customs your race may have. For us I think keeping it simple is the best course. Nothing fancy, only what is needed to make it official. A quiet ceremony with a few friends and someone to officiate the wedding.”

“Web-ing?”

“No no, wedding. It’s what the marriage ceremony is called.”

“Oh.”

They smiled at their lover, pressing a soft kiss to his chin. “It’s not as complicated as it may sound, promise. Is it something you want, though? To marry me?”

He inhaled deep into his lungs while he glanced to the side, taking time to think about the notion. He’d look upon Tav and study their features, think through all they had endured together, how Tav had stayed by his side even when he was at his worst. He’d tense his arms to get a good grip around his lover, hoisting them off the ground so they were truly face to face.

“If this is what surface society deems as proof that we are meant to be then I shall do it. I would rise to any test, challenge or ritual necessary to show my devotion. You are my new light in the darkness, Tav. Now and always.”

Tav felt a well of emotion bubble within their chest, their heart swelling after hearing words of passionate conviction. Their chosen reply was that of a kiss, deep and intense to transfer their excitement to Kar’niss directly. The gesture was returned by the drider with equal vigor, embracing the one he loved beyond all measure. They held the embrace for as long as their lungs could bare it, Tav’s arms winding around Kar’niss’ neck to hold fast. A new chapter of their lives was beginning and neither could be more eager to see it unfold.

The adventurer and the wayward spider, together forever.

#baldur's gate 3 #kar'niss #drider #bg3 #karniss #baldurs gate 3 #answered #my writing #bg3 fanfiction #bg3 fic #tav x kar'niss #kar'niss fanfic #gender neutral tav #fluff #romantic #sfw

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