Who: Helen, Varric, Nikola, and Lulu What: Dinner When: March 6 Where: Helen’s house Rating: PG-13ish? Because Varric, Nikola, and Lulu. Status: Complete!
Helen was nervous. And she was doing a terrible job of hiding it. Sam had been kind enough to look after Alice for the evening, alleviating at least one concern, but there was still the meal and the place settings and finding something appropriate to wear. Not to mention the other four “children.” It was easier to focus on the little things. It kept her from worrying about how Nikola and Varric would react to one another.
Checking the clock again, she straightened an already perfectly aligned fork, turned a plate just so, not entirely certain what to do with her hands. Maybe she wasn’t as ready for this as she had hoped.
Varric was wearing one of his nicer shirts, and matching slacks to go with it. It made him look rather a bit how he did in the dreams, which made sense, as he was slightly more dwarf-like than he had been, last week.
Nikola dressed nicely. He was always dressed nicely, but tonight he made sure that his shirt was bleached, his pants pressed. He stood on the front step leading into Helen’s place, with Lulu by his side. He was holding a bottle of wine. “Here goes nothing,” he said to his fiancee, then lifted his hand to knock on the door.
Lulu had put on her most modest LBD, her hair loose and curling around her shoulders. “We’ll be fine,” she smiled, squeezing his hand. “The past can influence the present, but it does not control it.” She kissed Nikola’s cheek, smiling to herself. “I think this will be nice. I like Helen.” And she and Varric had gotten quite close around Christmas.
She’d been expecting them, anxiously watching the minutes tick past. She still jumped when he knocked on the door. She was being ridiculous. Taking a calming breath, she stood, smoothing a hand over her dress. She held out a hand for Varric before starting toward the door, somewhat reluctant to answer it alone.
Still, she greeted them with a smile. “Thank you for coming.”
Varric took Helen’s hand, and gave Nikola a nod and Lulu a toothy smile as the door opened. “This will probably be one of the more civilized dinner parties I’ve ever been a part of.”
A Hawke dinner party tended to involve demons or darkspawn, in his experience.
“Hopefully.” Nikola said, a little smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. He glanced between Helen and Varric, and the first thing that popped into his mind was to kiss Helen’s cheek in greeting. But he didn’t dare. Not with the way Helen had been freaking out over everything. He squeezed Lulu’s hand. “That’s the plan, anyway.”
Lulu smiled, breaking the tension and moving forward to kiss Varric’s cheeks and hug him. Then she repeated the process with Helen, leaving red kiss marks on her cheeks as well. Lulu looked back up at her fiancé, smiling knowingly before she took Varric’s arm. “Varric, darling, would you be so kind as to give me the tour?”
That…was unexpected. She would have expected it of Nikola, perhaps, ill-timed as it might have been. Lulu was another matter entirely. Her hold on Varric’s hand tightened before she forced herself to release him for the requested tour.
Varric couldn't help it. He was eyelevel and Lulu's cleavage was legendary. It seemed even, like she'd somehow enhanced it tonight. Perhaps that was just dwarf-vision. He patted Lulu's hand, only oogling for a second or three, before turning to guide her through the house.
Nikola couldn’t stop a little chuckle that escaped him at the look on Helen’s face. He leaned forward to tap a quick kiss against Helen’s cheek in greeting, then stepped past her into the house so she could pull the door closed behind him. “Thank you for having us over.”
Lulu smiled, leaning over to murmur into Varric’s ear. “Thank you. How is she?” Lulu worried about Helen. She didn’t want to upset her, but at the same time, she wasn’t going to give up Nikola.
She closed the door behind him as he moved past her, drawing her attention back to the present. But the smile she offered was weak. Reaching out to give his arm a faint squeeze, her eyes briefly followed Lulu and Varric. Then softly, “You can put the wine in the kitchen.”
“She’s doing pretty good,” Varric said, his worries in line with Lulu’s. He wanted his woman to be happy, no matter what it meant for himself. That didn’t mean he wouldn’t prefer a certain outcome.
Lulu nodded, sighing. “I hope they figure out whatever it is they need to figure out,” she murmured. She was worried for them both.
Nikola nodded, then moved to the kitchen to set the wine on the counter. It was a red, an exceptional vintage. He rummaged around her drawers for a corkscrew to open the bottle and let the wine breathe. “You haven’t had any more dreams, have you?” He asked aloud, assuming that Helen had followed him into the kitchen.
"Several," she answered, crossing the kitchen to open a drawer, handing him the corkscrew to save him some of the trouble. "I'm simply less inclined to appreciate them."
“And here,” Varric said to Lulu. “Is Bianca.” He gestured to the crossbow over the mantle. He really wished he got less odd looks when he lugged her around.
“I see.” Nikola accepted the corkscrew and worked on the bottle for a moment in silence. “...there are things I should show you.” He said after a moment of consideration. He pulled the cork out of the bottle and unscrewed it from the corkscrew. “Things I’ve learned in my dreams.” Electricity. He was learning to control it.
Lulu smiled. “May I hold her?” She nodded at Bianca. “Some of my weapons have come through from my dreams, but I don’t really need them, per se.” Being a black mage meant always having your gun with you.
“I warned you they would bleed into reality.” In case he had any illusions about her feelings toward the dreams. She’d noticed certain changes in herself, as well. And she wasn’t especially happy about them.
“I only let very special friends hold Bianca,” Varric replied, as he took the auto-crossbow down. The metal gleamed, recently polished. He held her out.
Lulu took the crossbow, cradling it like a baby. “That’s a girl,” she cooed.
Nikola nodded. “They have.” He reached into the cupboard where he knew she kept the wine glasses and pulled some out. “...in very, very interesting ways.” He added, a little smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. She’d warned them that they would change him. He hadn’t taken her seriously, but now he was wondering if he should worry.
“You enjoy them.” It wasn’t a question. She didn’t need to ask; she’d already decided the answer.
“Girl on girl, my favorite thing,” Varric quipped, smiling like a proud papa.
Lulu laughed, stroking the shaft of the bow with her fingertips. “Well, Bianca’s a bit of a tease, now isn’t she?”
Nikola simply raised an eyebrow, the smirk still present on his face. He set the glasses down, then took hold of Helen’s hand and placed it on his arm to lead her into the living room where Varric and Lulu were. He positively beamed at the sight of Lulu holding the crossbow. “What did I miss in here?”
Lulu turned to smirk at her fiancé. “I’m sorry, Nikola, I’ve taken another lover. Bianca’s … perfect. I wish I knew how to use her properly.”
Helen fell quiet, following without much resistance. There were some things that would always be beyond her understanding. It wasn’t that she didn’t see aspects of herself she’d like to change. She just didn’t want to be different. She didn’t want to be someone else.
Varric chuckled. “I’m afraid the only one who can handle her is myself, and Bianca never strays. Except maybe for Isabela and that was just confusing.
Nikola gave a playful sigh. “My heart is broken. I always knew you would leave me for... a crossbow.” He released Helen’s hand and moved across the room to wrap one arm down and around Lulu’s fantastic waist. “I suppose I’ll find some solace if you allow me to watch.”
“That’s what Varric said.” Lulu chuckled. “I jest. I don’t think I could ever leave you for a piece of weaponry. A really good sewing machine, maybe.” She handed the crossbow back to Varric. “Besides, she’ll always love Varric best.”
Helen didn't feel she had anything to offer this conversation, so she stayed quiet, resisting the urge to flee. When had everything gotten so difficult? She didn't remember it being so complicated before. Perhaps she had just been too young to realize it.
Varric chuckled, placing Bianca back up on the wall. "We'll now I know what to get you for your birthday."
Nikola chuckled. “I’ll have to keep my eye out for a sewing machine, then.” He said, then leaned in to press a kiss against her jaw. It wasn’t really like him to make such an obvious display of affection, but he was head over heels in love with this woman, going to marry her, and Helen knew it. It would likely be good for Varric to see, too.
Lulu smiled, looking up at Nikola with a joy that radiated from within her and spread out. She tiptoed up to kiss his jaw, carefully wiping away the red lipstick that she’d left behind. “I jest. I’d probably just buy the sewing machine and keep you anyway.”
Glancing between the happy couple and her own fiancé, Helen forced a smile, something she’d grown far too good at in the past decade, excusing herself with a quiet, “I’m going to see how dinner is coming along. Please, make yourselves comfortable.”
Really, she had simply wanted an excuse to be alone for a moment, a small part of her wishing she could slip off and find Winnie. But she didn’t, returning a short time later, feeling slightly calmer if she still held herself somewhat stiffly. “I’m afraid I’m rather out of practice entertaining guests.”
Varric shook his head. “You’re doing fine, Rabbit. We’re all friends here, I doubt you have anything to worry about. Unless Lu is secretly the pope.”
“If she is, she has a lot of explaining to do.” In the time that Helen was gone, Nikola had settled himself on the sofa. He’d tugged Lulu down next to him and was holding one of her hands in both of his own in his lap.
“I’d never be the pope. That hat is a monstrosity.” She smiled, kissing Nikola’s knuckles and grinning at Varric. “Helen’s told me so much about her dogs, are they here?”
“Of course.” Where else would they be, after all? She’s nearly as protective of her greyhounds as she is of Alice.
Varric whistled, hoping to bring the greyhounds running. And Alice’s adorable puppy, too. And his husky, of course.
Surprisingly, it wasn’t the greyhounds who answered first, but instead Finn, overeager and running full tilt. Winnie and Evan followed at a slightly more sedate pace. Nali was last into the room, entering more quietly than the others.
As soon as Helen sat down, Winnie was beside her, dropping her head into her lap. Evan was a little more ambitious, but still slightly leery of strangers, inching up to Nikola, while Finn did a lap around the table before stopping to sniff at their guests' feet, eager for attention.
Lulu couldn’t help herself. She cooed slightly, moving to kneel on the floor, giggling when the smallest dog hurtled into her arms. “Oh, look at you, hello!”
Nikola definitely wasn't as much of an animal person as the rest of the room. He liked watching the ladies get excited, though. He lifted his arm to wrap up and around lulu's shoulders as she petted the dog.
Evan wasn't entirely deterred. Encouraged by the fact Nikola was ignoring him, he nudged lightly at his leg and gave him the classic 'How can you not love me?' face.
Helen hummed affectionately, gently stroking Winnie's head. She adored them both, but Winnie had been there first, and she was without a doubt most protective of her master.
"His name is Finn," she murmured, glancing up at Lulu.
"This is Nali." Varric said, scriching the husky's head.
Nikola rolled his eyes and gave a little sigh, then reached his hand over to rub the head of the dog that was nudging its nose into his leg.
Lulu smiled when Finn licked her cheek, scritching her and murmuring sweet babytalk. “Oh, Finn’s a perfect name for you, isn’t it?”
“He likes you,” Helen addressed Nikola without looking up, “You should be flattered. He’s usually quite loyal.”
Nikola chuckled softly as he patted the dog’s head. “What can I say? Animals look up to me. Alpha Male and all that.” He was teasing. Mostly. Truth was, Nikola wasn’t great with animals. He didn’t mind them, he could just go without. He liked these dogs well enough, though.
Taking a seat, Varric let himself sit back and relax. Nali climbed up into his lap and got comfy too, making him oof. She wasn’t a small dog, and he seemed to disappear amongst her grey fur.
Helen rolled her eyes, shaking her head as she gently scratched behind Winnie's ears. "He's drawn to you because you didn't want him to be."
She glanced toward Varric, or the space she knew he had been rather, smiling when Nali obscured her view. Such big babies they had. But mostly well-mannered, except maybe for Finn.
It was part of Finn’s charm, Varric thought.
Lulu, on the other hand, was delightedly rubbing Evan’s ears. It wasn’t hard for her to fall in love with animals; she was every inch a mother, and it extended to four legged babies as well.
“Smart dog.” Nikola said, still rubbing the dog’s head. He was planning on washing his hands before they ate. He turned to look at Varric. “So, you’ve been having those strange dreams like the rest of us?” It was funny how close Varric and Lulu were, and how close Nikola and Helen were, and yet Varric and Nikola had never spoken until now.
“Smarter than most give them credit for.” Which was likely why Winnie was still glued to her side. She didn’t much like seeing Helen in distress.
Varric nodded his head. “You could say that. I’m not too much different. Still short, still dashingly handsome, and still talented with word and pen.”
Lulu snorted. “How’s my book coming?” She’d given Varric permission to write a bodice ripper with herself as the heroine. She was looking forward to reading it.
“Your book?” Nikola asked, glancing with amusement between Varric and Lulu.
Whatever Varric was writing, Helen had a feeling Nikola would enjoy it
Lulu beamed. “Of course. I’m a tawdry lesbian seductress, naturally.” She chuckled to herself, returning to giving Evan tummy rubs.
“It’s about halfway done. I just got to the part where Lulu’s character has stumbled into a harem.”
Nikola gave a laugh. “I can’t wait to read this.”
"I'm certain he'll be happy to share," Helen murmured, smiling as she trailed her fingers down Winnie's back. "He's a remarkable storyteller."
"Not until this one is done," he cautioned. Varric smiled at his lover, and winked. "I still have to get the middle written."
Lulu couldn’t help but laugh. “Oh, no, a harem?” She feigned a gasp. “Whatever shall I do?”
“Them all in order?” Varric suggested.
Nikola chuckled. “I’m sure it’ll be a tantalizing work,” he said, giving Lulu a little squeeze with his arm around her. Okay, maybe there was a part of him that wanted to show her off. Just a little. Even around Helen, he was proud.
A blush went over Lulu’s cheeks, and she shook her head. “Luckily, nobody will know I’ve done such things.”
It was lost on Helen, not that she hadn’t gotten that impression earlier in the evening. But it made her more uncomfortable than anything else. If it stirred any other feelings, she was doing a fair job of ignoring them.
“Just my millions of readers and fans,” Varric replied, his grin widening.
“Millions, huh?” Nikola said, breaking into a little smirk. It made him feel proud that a million people might be reading about his wife. Or a fictionalization of his wife, anyway. She belonged to him, and now men and women alike were going to be lusting after her thanks to Varric’s novel.
Lulu rolled her eyes, laughing. “They won’t know it’s really me, you silly one.” She patted Varric gently, but leaned over to give Nikola a kiss on the cheek.
Helen dug her fingers lightly into Winnie’s fur, murmuring softly to the greyhound then standing. “Shall we eat?”
"Well I did describe her great tracts of land in detail," Varric joked. He got to his feet and shoo'd the huskie.
“Yes.” Nikola said in response to Helen’s question, smirking softly at Varric’s description. He’d have to get his hands on the book sooner or later to read it. “Let’s.” He stood and reached over to help Lulu to her feet as well.
Standing, Lulu smiled at the dogs and tiptoed up to kiss Nikola on the cheek. “Thank you for dinner, Helen. I’m so pleased you invited us.”