Chapter Text
By the time the others returned, Gale was snoring loudly in his bed, and Astarion and Calanthe were deep in their trances. Astarion was vaguely aware of their presence, didn’t sense anything wrong, and fell back into rest.
When the sun began to spill through the windows the next day, Astarion woke with a start. His trance had turned to full sleep at some point, and he’d waisted the entire night. Calanthe wasn’t laying next to him, and he immediately got up to find her.
She was, perhaps unsurprisingly, sitting on Halsin’s bed, holding the duck he’d been whittling in her hands. It was a depressing sight, but something told Astarion she needed to be alone for a bit.
Instead, he chatted with Isobel for a bit. Apparently she was out looking for Selunite allies in the area, but wasn’t haven’t much success.
He ignored Mizora completely where she sat in the corner, pretending to read a book when in reality she was watching his movements carefully. It felt better to put on his armor, but after he was done he still felt the burn of the devil’s stare.
It was extremely annoying, and more than a bit intimidating, so instead he went over to where Tav was resting and just…stood there – staring at her.
At the beginning of all this, Tav looked relatively peaceful in sleep but now…
Worry lines creased her forehead, and a slight frown seemed a permanently etched on her lovely lips. She looked older somehow. The weight of leadership was taking its toll.
And yet, it didn’t temper Astarion’s growing resentment towards her. She wasn’t going after Cazador like he’d constantly advised, prioritizing everyone else’s wants over his. Her plan to keep them all safe from Orin had failed, and now Halsin was gone. Calanthe was devastated, heartbroken, and it was Tav’s fault.
As if sensing his dark thoughts, Tav’s eyes shot open. She started, recoiling away and pulling a knife out from under her pillow before she realized it wash him.
“Gods, Astarion! What are you doing?”
“I was just wondering what the plan was today, oh fearless leader, and how we were going to get our druid back, or maybe kill Cazador before he comes for us, maybe even go look for Shadowheart’s parents? You know, if that wouldn’t be too much trouble.”
Tav gaped at him before her face hardened.
“If you have a problem with how I am leading this group Astarion, just say so.”
“Fine,” Astarion crossed his arms over his chest. “I have a problem with the way you are leading a group. I’ve had a problem since day one, actually.”
“Oh, I see, this is about helping people? Gods, Astarion. I thought you’d gotten over that. It’s not my problem that you are a selfish asshole!”
“Selfish? I’m being selfish?” Astarion hissed angrily. “You promised me. You promised!”
“Not everything is about you, Astarion!”
“Enough!” Dame Aylin’s voice thundered through the room. Astarion jerked away, his entire essence cowering from Aylin’s pure divine burst of energy. “You snap at each other like dogs. Without unity, we have no hope of defeating our enemy.”
Calanthe appeared, ducking around Aylin’s enormous wings, and going to Astarion’s side, wrapping an arm around his middle.
“I am doing everything I can,” Tav rose, straightening to her full height. “We’ve been working ourselves to the bone, exhausted, every day since we arrived to get as much done as possible, to gain every advantage. What have you two been doing? Shopping? Sneaking out in the middle of the night to mess with a newspaper? Don’t you dare lecture me like any of this is my fault!”
Tav had never raised her voice at him, never talked to him like this. She was blaming him, blaming Calanthe, for their lack of progress? Criticizing them for stealing away a few moments of peace while they still could?
“If anyone were to ask Minsc,” Minsc, awake apparently and in charge of his own mind- with a rodent perched on his shoulder - spoke, “everyone here care. Everyone wants to win. Casting blame on each other does nothing. And Boo agrees.” He said this as if that settled it.
Astarion rolled his eyes and turned back to Tav.
“We cannot afford to wait any longer. Cazador knows we are here, at any moment he could strike. We need to go after him, now.”
Tav took a deep breath. “No. We don’t have time.”
“Then I’m done.”
Astarion stepped out of Calanthe’ grip and walked away, not looking back. He grabbed his bow and walked right out the door.
----
Calanthe wasn’t about to let Asatrion wander off alone. She quickly gathered her belongings, ignoring Tav who was trying to “reason” with her.
“Enough, Tavera!” Calanthe pulled out the full name. “He’s not really leaving, he’s just angry, and scared. Can’t you see that? Astarion is perfectly aware of the gravity of the situation, but do you think he can focus on any of that when he is back in the city that was his prison for two hundred years? His older master, his tormentor and abuser poised to attack at any moment? He has been there for all of us this entire way, doing everything that was asked of him even when he didn’t agree with it. Don’t you dare call him selfish again.”
“I know he’s scared,” Tav argued back, ignoring the majority of Calanthe’s statement. “He is so afraid, he will throw his life away, throw away his soul, whatever goodness he has left if he gets the chance.”
Oh, oh. That was this was about? That is why Tav had been delaying? Because she didn’t want to give Astarion even the chance to ascend?
“That,” Calanthe’s voice dropped to a deadly growl, “was not your decision to make. You have no right to take this choice away from him. None.”
Without another word, Calanthe followed Astarion out the door.
Thankfully, he hadn’t gotten far. She found him standing on the street, gazing up at the distant, looming figure of Cazador’s palaze.
“Hey,” Calanthe greeted him. “Ready to go?”
Astarion blinked, then looked at her, his eyes devoid of all emotion.
“Where?” He asked dully.
“Sorcerous Sundries!” Gale’s bright voice said behind them. “We need to find out all we can about the crown, no? Or maybe you would prefer to join the others investigating the foundry?”
Neither one of those options had anything to do with Cazador, but Astarion shrugged and followed Gale wordlessly. Calanthe watched him, looking for any sign of her witty, sarcastic, playful vampire – but he just seemed…defeated.
Gale even cast a worried look towards Astarion when Astarion didn’t retort to Gale’s lengthy monologue about the wonders of the wizard shop.
“Perhaps,” Gale said thoughtfully, “we can find something about killing vampires. Pick up a few scrolls of sunlight beam, if we can afford it.”
Astarion perked up a little at that, and even managed a dramatic eyeroll when they saw a few wizards outside the store performing tricks for a crowd.
Before they even stepped inside, however, things got complicated. They met, of all people, one of the mercenaries from way back at the Grove, demanding to speak with the head wizard over some bounty.
Apparently, the wizard had hired him to find…The Nightsong.
Aylin.
Well, sh*t. Looked like they were going to have to have a word with this Lorroakan. Inside, they saw Rolan, the teifling they’d saved so many times, standing behind the counter. A wide smile was plastered on his face, but when they got closer they saw his face was covered in cuts in bruises.
“Rolan!” Calanthe gasped. “What happened to you?”
“Ah, Calanthe, Gale, Astarion. Lovely to see you again. I’m so pleased to see you made it to the city.”
“You look like you’ve been in a brawl,” Gale gasped.
“Oh, nothing to concern yourselves over,” Rolan brushed it off, though he visibly tensed. “Now, is there anything I can do for you?”
Calanthe and Gale exchanged a glance.
“Uh, yea, you have any sunbeam scrolls?”
He did, and they were costly, but Calanthe didn’t really care. They needed whatever advantage they could get. After buying all the scrolls Rolan had, they went off to find Gale at the back of the shop.
“Someone is abusing him,” Astarion noted.
“Rolan?”
They’d paused, watching a teenager shouting an incantation that summoned a large creature made of ice.
“Yes. I’ve seen that look enough times, worn it myself. He didn’t get those wounds from a fight.”
Calanthe’s stomach plummeted. Rolan wasn’t her favorite person in the world, not even her favorite refuge they’d saved, but gods be damned if she was going to just walk away when she knew he was being hurt. Between this and the Nightsong Bounty, Calanthe was itching to pay Lorroakan a visit.
But first, Gale’s book. He learned from the bookkeeper in the back of the shop that what they sought was deep in the Head Wizard’s private vaults. Which meant they had to break in.
“Ah, finally, something fun.” Astarion did look a little more lively at this prospect.
“I’ll distract the guards so you two can get down into the vault.”
Neither Gale or Astarion seemed to like that idea, each giving her an alarmed look.
“Someone needs to stay here and warn the others if you two don’t make it out, don’t you think?”
“But, darling,” Astarion didn’t seem to have a real protest to this, other perhaps than he didn’t want to be separated from her.
“It will be fine, I promise.” Calanthe kissed him on the cheek and pat Gale on the arm.
Neither man seemed all that convinced, but went along with her plan anyway.
They went up to the second floor, and Calanthe went up to inspect the metal construct guards standing watch there. They were smaller than the Steal Watch, but unlike the Steal Watch they had not been ordered to stand down by Gortash.
“I was wondering, if Lorroakan was available?”
The metal guards all turned to look at her, and behind Calanthe heard the faint click of a lock springing open. She cast her gaze around the room, as if admiring the splendor, and saw that Gale and Astarion had vanished into the office behind her.
The vaults were delightful, honestly. A series of deadly traps protected the goods within, and Astarion got to boss Gale around to make sure he didn’t accidentally set any of them off. The puzzle behind the entire thing was a pain, but Gale was able to figure it out relatively easily.
The best part, however, was the treasure.
“This Head Wizard is trying to get our dearest Aylin, and is abusing Rolan, don’t you think it is our moral obligation to steal all his most prized possessions?” Astarion thought it was a strong argument.
“No,” Gale said cheerfully, “but we are going to do it anyway.”
“Well,” Astarion was taken aback, “look at you. Out of sight of our most heroic keepers and you become a little more fun.”
The rare tomes seemed to be the main driver behind Gale’s greed, but in the end they left the vault with packs stuffed full with magical weapons, clothing, scrolls, and of course gold. When they slipped out of the office.
The metal guards were gone.
And so was Calanthe.
sh*t.
