Work Text:
There was a buzz of excitement among the wisps of the Lighthouse. The Fade was making something. Objects were appearing: in rooms, on ledges, up trees… on a plate? Didn't matter. It was different, it was exciting.
It was new.
Not new-new; they'd seen objects like these before. Great wads of dead trees or dead skin bound together in dead hide and dead bone. Dead. Dead, but living, in ink and charcoal and graphite and paint.
Like mortals, but different. Smelled different. Felt different. Was different.
The wisps chimed cheerily as they zoomed around to collect the new-things. One here, another there. It was a game. They were winning.
Neve's office usually seemed to be haunted by wisps; those that remained chittered excitedly at the ones playing outside. Neve raised a brow when a wisp flitted into the room carrying a book. Not wholly unusual, since the wisps were by now prolific thieves. She swatted half-heartedly at it from her seat; if she managed to grab the book, then great, but it wasn't a priority right now, absorbed as she was with her case notes. It floated just out of reach with the book, zigzagging through the air, trilling teasingly.
She shrugged and returned to her notes, and the wisp chimed; it almost sounded disappointed.
A wisp flew past the window, clinging to a book.
Another flew in through the door. Then another.
Neve frowned, dropping her notebook with an irritated sigh. She put it in a drawer, out of the wisps' reach; she wasn't making that mistake again.
What was going on? Who were they stealing from this time?
A fourth wisp flitted in through the door, and Emmrich jogged into the room behind it, his bangles jangling softly with each step. He ducked when yet another thieving wisp came in through the door, and tried to grab the book it carried as it zoomed past. The wisps danced a circle around the room, and they could swear they were laughing at them.
"I take it those books are yours?" Neve asked, bewildered. Her brows rose as she watched the wisps' delighted display; she didn't think anything could surprise her at this point, but the Fade somehow still managed it.
Emmrich shook his head. "Mercifully, no. I'm not sure these books existed at all before today; I certainly don't recognise them. Except, perhaps, for that one." He followed one of the wisps with his finger. "That, I believe, is one of Jovus' journals."
"Of course it is," Neve sighed.
Emmrich clapped his hands together, getting the wisps' attention, and their dance slowed. "Alright, friends, we've had our fun. May we please have the books back?"
The wisps stopped in midair and chattered amongst themselves, twinkling gently like teal stars. They quickly seemed to reach a consensus, and whizzed around the room, stopping only to deposit the books on Neve's desk one by one. Emmrich beamed and waved them on as they whirled out the door once more, chirping happily, off to search for some new and exciting mischief.
"Thank you, friends!"
Neve pinched the bridge of her nose; it was always something around here. "They're worse than Rook. And that's saying something."
"They are merely sating their curiosity," Emmrich tutted. An ongoing argument with the mortal residents of the Lighthouse, Neve in particular. "They're playing to their nature, and they don't mean any harm." He crossed to her desk and started thumbing through one of the books: a thick, handsomely bound volume in vibrant red leather.
"We've talked about this before," Neve said, wryly. "And we probably will again. Doesn't make it less of a hassle." She slid over the first book she put her hand on, and opened it to a random page. She glanced quizzically at Emmrich, who frowned at the book in his hands.
Emmrich took another book from the pile and flicked through it. He grabbed the journal and opened it to the first few pages to compare the text, and his frown deepened. "I don't suppose you can read this?" He asked.
"A little, but not the whole thing," Neve said, with a non-committal shrug. "Joe and I would sometimes use the odd word for a coded message, but otherwise? Even he said none of us would ever need it."
Very likely, since the ritual used to bring him to Thedas required an inordinate amount of blood magic, and it would probably require the same if not more to send him back, let alone anyone else of a mind to make the attempt. Who else would need to learn? Disappointing, nevertheless.
Emmrich studied the book and the journal further for a few moments, trying to translate a word or two from general context. His frown slowly turned as a theory took root in his mind.
"The Fade created these books, in his native language!" He turned to Neve and beamed, gesticulating wildly. "It must have sensed a desire for home, or something similar, and reacted accordingly. But to create something in a language from another world, known only by a single person, is remarkable! Oh, I must show him these and discuss it with him! Would you mind if I took these books?"
"I have enough mysteries here as it is, so go right ahead." Neve chuckled, and waved a hand dismissively. "If you find anything interesting, I'm sure you'll let me know."
**********
The Fade was a fascinating place.
Functionally infinite, worlds and dimensions as countless as the stars in the sky hiding at the fringes, full of mysteries to unravel. The sort of puzzle one could spend years on, find something completely new and exciting every single day, and yet get no closer to ever solving the problem overall.
But that's its glory! With every step, a new marvel, a new question to ponder, perhaps even a new friend or colleague! What could be more thrilling?
The Lighthouse's newest mystery came in a rather mundane form: several books, found in the oddest of places. A few more were helpfully added to the pile by some passing wisps, apparently having grown tired of their latest game.
It seemed as though only one person would be able to read these books, and he wasn't where he normally was, in his usual haunt in the music room.
Emmrich hummed disappointedly when he knocked the door and no one answered, so wandered back to the library with the small, but steadily growing stack of books. He placed them carefully on the table, took the topmost book and the journal, and settled himself on the sofa.
Propping the journal open across his knees, he inspected the book in his hands: a blue and grey striped hardcover, scored in one corner to mimic the bite of a shark. He gently flipped it open and frowned when he saw that the first few pages had been cut out. Which seemed odd, since the Fade had newly created these books. Either the Fade had removed the pages itself for some reason, or the wisps were getting proficient with knives. That was… a concerning train of thought.
He wasn't sure what -- if anything -- he was going to accomplish, since he knew very few words in Cyrodiilic, and the endeavour was made even more confusing once he realised that Jovus would occasionally write backwards.
At least it's pleasing to look at, he mused, heaving a frustrated sigh.
With the hopelessness of the situation finally dawning on him, he put aside the journal, and instead opted to flip through the shark-bitten book and just look at the pictures.
The book was full of colourful illustrations depicting a tall, grey-skinned pirate with the head of a hammerhead shark, leading Emmrich to believe that this was likely a children's story. The pirate-shark sailed with a motley crew of humans and elves, and was often posed heroically wielding a cutlass.
Emmrich chuckled to himself, finding himself wondering if this was the sort of grand adventure Jovus wanted to be a part of when he was a child. He smoothed the pages out with his hand, and leisurely flicked through the illustrations.
As he flipped through the pages, he slowly became aware of a presence behind him. So engrossed with his "reading," he didn't notice when the door to the courtyard creaked open. Nor did he notice when Jovus sauntered into the library, picking from a bowl of olives.
He glanced over his shoulder to find Jovus hovering behind the sofa, staring in quiet delight at the book in his hands. Emmrich smiled politely, and shuffled along the sofa to make room, inviting Jovus to join him.
Jovus set the bowl down on the table, and flopped onto the sofa. He laughed, eyes sparkling with glee, when Emmrich handed him the book. "'The Saga of Captain Wereshark.' Gods, I haven't read this in years." He opened the book and tutted, disappointed, at the missing few pages. "I have never been able to find the first chapter. At this point, I'm willing to bet it doesn't exist."
"Aha! That explains it. The Fade created these books, but I suspect it didn't have enough information about the first chapter to draw from, so it simply removed the pages instead." Emmrich suggested. He raised a brow, chuckling gently. "Wereshark?"
"What, did you think that werewolves are the only were-creatures that exist?" Jovus grinned, waving a hand dramatically for emphasis. "There's a whole were-menagerie out there."
"I genuinely cannot tell whether or not you're joking." Emmrich frowned, which only made Jovus laugh. He offered no further explanation.
Jovus inspected the pile of books on the table, idly running his finger down their spines. "So, the Fade made these? Why? How?"
Emmrich beamed, clapping his hands together, clearly delighted to be talking about his field of study. "Isn't it fascinating? I believe that the Fade sensed a desire for home, and did its best to recreate what it could from what it has learned of you. One might say that a book is a gateway to another world, so the Fade may have created these books as substitute for different 'places' for you to visit. The fact it also managed to draw from your native language is remarkable -- it's as though the Lighthouse itself is truly trying to make you feel welcome. As for the how, well, the simple answer, Jovus, is magic."
"I suppose that makes some sense. As much as anything in the Fade makes sense, at least," Jovus said, considering. He closed the book and put it on the table, away from the rest. "So you can't read them." It wasn't a question.
"Ah. No," Emmrich flushed, shaking his head. "I did attempt a translation using one of your journals as a reference -- one of the wisps took it -- but that was perhaps slightly ambitious on my part." He laughed lightly, a trifle embarrassed. "The illustrations are lovely, at least."
Jovus slid the bowl of olives closer to Emmrich; an invitation to share. He picked up each book in turn and thumbed through them, giving a brief summary of each:
The thick red volume was a book of poetry, mostly romantic tragedies. He promised to try and translate them properly for Emmrich to read through later, but warned that they'd probably lose something in translation, and almost certainly wouldn't rhyme when they should. Emmrich nodded; he expected as much.
There was a woefully bound, plain leather notebook, whose heavily annotated hand written pages looked like they were barely holding in place; that turned out to be a rather eclectic collection of delicious sounding recipes written by a remarkably well-traveled young woman.
Jovus picked up a thick black book with a stylised silver dragon affixed to the front. He laughed lightly as he flicked through it; a heavily embellished tale about a destined hero saving the world from being eaten by dragons. Said hero was apparently one of his cousins. Once again, Emmrich couldn't decide whether or not he was joking.
He continued through the stack, and a few of the books Jovus wrote the titles out letter for letter in Common; there was absolutely no way those words existed in any language. "Nchunak?" "Nchuleft?" Nonsense. Jovus snickered, and congratulated Emmrich on his valiant attempt to pronounce these nonsense words.
Next in the pile were two thin black books with a dull white skull embossed on the front. He hesitated; his hand hovered over them briefly, and he set them aside, reluctant to say anything about them at all.
"Oh, no." Jovus picked up a rather non-descript looking leather folio, and bit his lip, trying to suppress a laugh. "I dread to think what the Fade thinks of me if it believes that I wanted to read this."
Emmrich's brows raised, and he glanced over at him curiously. "Why? What is it?"
An impish grin spread slowly across Jovus' face, and he flipped to a page midway through the book. His eyes quickly skimmed over a passage, and he cleared his throat dramatically. He read aloud from the book, taking extra care to portray the voices. He watched Emmrich intently for his reaction, the grin never slipping from his face.
Oh no, indeed.
"I must finish my cleaning, sir. The mistress will have my head if I do not!
"Cleaning, eh? I have something for you. Here, polish my spear.
"But it is huge! It could take me all night!
"Plenty of time, my sweet. Plenty of time."
Emmrich covered his face with his hands and groaned, his shoulders shaking in silent laughter. "Oh, dear."
"It gets worse," Jovus said, eyes bright.
"I'm not sure I believe that."
"Well, it definitely doesn't get better." Jovus barked a laugh. "There's an honest-to-gods stage play version of this." He tapped the book. "I highly recommend it to anyone, it's terrible."
Emmrich and Jovus laughed together, and Jovus continued to work his way through the book stack:
Another book of poetry; this one Jovus insisted was awful and shouldn't be read by anyone. A bold claim, given the passage he'd acted out not moments prior.
Some romance stories, one of which was incomplete, but words were slowly being added to the pages over time, as if the Fade itself were writing it. Emmrich seemed particularly intrigued by that one. Jovus closed the book and set it aside, promising he'd check it again later.
A sickly green book whose name Jovus repeatedly tried and frustratedly failed to translate to Common, contained incredibly detailed diagrams of werewolf anatomy, inside and out. Jovus shrugged non-committally when Emmrich asked how they managed to get the information, perhaps naively.
"Drugging, capture, vivisection, forcing them to turn repeatedly until their bodies gave out," Jovus counted on his fingers as he spoke. "We aren't people, so it's fine." He waved a hand nonchalantly.
"My word. That's… barbaric." Emmrich stared at the book, horrified. "Perhaps I will look at that one… later." Much later.
Jovus shrugged again. "The information is still good, despite how it was obtained. Everyone involved in that book is long dead. I'll try to translate it, if you're that interested. Or you could always ask me questions, if you'd like. I am right here, after all." He gestured up and down himself, for emphasis.
Emmrich hesitated. "I will… consider it." He hummed thoughtfully, after a moment. "Perhaps you would permit me to examine you, sometime? Purely for the sake of furthering knowledge, of course." He added, hurriedly.
It's true he wished to study his beast form -- werewolf anatomy wasn't exactly his area of expertise, but given Jovus' presence on the team, it might have been prudent to learn. But books could only take one so far; practical knowledge and experimentation was far more productive.
"Of course." Jovus smirked, lounging back against the sofa. "Let me read your notes afterwards, I'll let you do whatever you like."
"Certainly! Knowledge is meant to be shared." Emmrich beamed. "I do so appreciate an experimental spirit." He propped himself up against the back of the sofa with his elbow, his hand resting on his temple, and he gave Jovus a considering look. "You know, you have a most curious way with words."
Jovus smiled innocently, fighting to keep his expression even, but the mischief clear in his eyes was betraying him. "What makes you say that?"
"'I'll let you do whatever you like'? Please," Emmrich smirked, and a low chuckle crackled in his throat. "If I may say, my dear, I certainly expected better lines from you."
Jovus' face split into a grin. Oh, this was going to be fun. "Perhaps it was just lost in translation? A slip of the tongue?"
"You and I both know better than that."
Jovus clicked his tongue, making a show of thinking deeply. "Hmm. Perhaps I should read you another passage from that book? Would that be better?"
"Gods have mercy, anything but that," Emmrich laughed, splaying his hands in mock surrender.
"Well," Jovus drawled out the word; he leaned forward, edging closer to Emmrich. "You claim to 'appreciate an experimental spirit.' May we put that to the test?"
"I admit, you've piqued my curiosity. There has been a particular experiment I've wished to share with you for some time." Emmrich smiled placidly as he gazed at Jovus' face, lingering on his lips.
"Might it have something to do with my werewolf anatomy?" Jovus asked, playfully. He slid closer still to Emmrich; their knees were barely touching. It was exhilarating. It was maddening.
Emmrich met Jovus' gaze, his eyes sparkling. "Your human anatomy will do just fine, thank you."
The echo of a heartbeat thrumming in his ears, Jovus closed what little distance remained between them. Finally, the gentle sparks of weeks of teasing back and forth had caught, and a flame was flickering to life.
He cupped Emmrich's cheek, and they closed their eyes as their lips brushed against each other's. He pressed a slow, tender kiss to his lips; perhaps softer than either of them were expecting, as if he was waiting for reality to catch up with him, and Emmrich would leave.
But Emmrich didn't pull away; instead he returned the kiss enthusiastically, which was more than Jovus had hoped for.
They smiled into the kiss, a serene smile which lingered even after they broke away and opened their eyes. Jovus traced the outline of Emmrich's jaw with his thumb, and he leaned into his touch.
Jovus laughed breathlessly, not entirely convinced that it was truly real. "We can't really call that an experiment. Only one result? Shameful," he tutted teasingly, and pulled his hand away.
"You are absolutely right," Emmrich said soberly, a spark in his eye and flush creeping across his face betraying the serious tone of his voice. "We ought to try again, and see if we can replicate the result."
He combed his fingers through the waves of Jovus' hair, and pulled him closer. They closed their eyes once more as they shared another kiss, hungrier and more certain than the first. Their lips parted, their tongues gently exploring as they each tasted the other, like they were sampling the finest of wines. Exquisite, and to be savoured.
Jovus slid his hand through Emmrich's hair, mussing the carefully applied pomade, but neither of them cared; nothing in that moment mattered more than the man in front of them. A moment they didn't want to end.
"Oh!"
They opened their eyes, and broke away from each other, slightly alarmed. Their faces were flushed, and Jovus beamed as he sank back against the sofa. They exchanged fond glances; disappointed as they were it had to end, they were happy to have shared that moment at all.
Bellara and Neve stood at the door to the courtyard; Bellara tried to cover her face with her notebook, as if that would make the interruption less awkward. Neve opened her mouth to say something, but instead opted to close it again and smile at them knowingly. It's about time.
"You may as well come in," Jovus laughed lightly, and gestured towards the chairs at the table. Neve and Bellara shuffled in and took the offered seats. Bellara patted herself down, looking for a quill.
Jovus picked himself up off the sofa and collected the red book of poetry, and stacked what remained of his bowl of olives on top. He sighed, pressing the back of his hand to his forehead dramatically. "Oh no, we forgot to note down our findings. Looks like we'll have to try the experiment again sometime."
Emmrich nearly choked on a laugh. "Once again, you are absolutely right. I look forward to it."
Fizzing with restless energy, Jovus slipped behind the sofa towards the music room door, but Emmrich stopped him.
"Jovus? There is a ritual I must perform at the Necropolis -- not yet, but soon. You would be most welcome company, should you wish to join me." He smiled at him hopefully.
"Just let me know when," Jovus replied, barely able to contain his giddiness. He paused for a moment, then padded back to kiss Emmrich on the temple. With a wink towards the women, he gave the room a parting bow, and sauntered towards the music room. He glanced briefly back over his shoulder, as if to assure himself that it was real, then disappeared inside, grinning widely.
Emmrich smiled to himself, and slowly remembered that he wasn't alone in the library. He turned back towards Neve and Bellara, to find Neve pouring wine for the three of them.
Bellara bit her lip to suppress a delighted squeal, quill and notebook at the ready. "Tell us everything!"
Emmrich glanced behind him at the music room's stone door, and couldn't help but shake his head and laugh. Jovus had left him with the two women, and made his dramatic escape; exit, stage right.