So...

It was brought to my attention that with all the writing for Dragon Age I have done, I've never really touched my cannon characters. Odd, but I was always a bit afraid it would come across... wrong, or repetitive of the game. I have been informed after a short test piece that this is not the case, so... I'll give it a try.

Reviews appreciated!

- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -

The sound of her name in the halls and corridors of the underground caverns rang in Kasha Aeducan's ears over and over again. The crowd chanting her surname to the stone, verifying that she ha brought her family praise- then, only a day later, the same voices speaking the same but saying she brought shame. The memory brought tears to her eyes, tears that fell on the dirt below- tears as a sacrifice to the stone. Tears were all she had left to offer her ancestors, but those she had in abundance.

Kasha Aeducan, but Aeducan no longer, forced her steps behind the Warden Commander of Fereldan. Duncan's presence eased her fears as much as she believed any one person could. He may not understand in any significant way, but he had obviously dealt with shell-shocked recruits before now. Behind the commander, Kasha felt her feet move almost automatically in rhythm with his. Her heartache didn't dull, but it did scream quieter with Duncan before her.

It was on the second night of their trek across the land to meet Cailan's army that Duncan approached the dwarven woman. As usual, she had escaped to her tent as early as possible, the act of looking up at the sky the others found so restful feeling dizzyingly uncomfortable to her. She always felt as though she would fall upwards, crazy as the sensation sounded to anyone else. She was slightly surprised to hear the wrestling of her door and then see Duncan's face smiling at her.

"Miss Aeducan," he greeted, and for a moment she almost felt angry at the reminder, "may I come in?"

"I'm not Aeducan. Not..." Her voice wavered, her eyes falling to the ground as she practically whispered the ending. "Not anymore."

"Ridiculous." Duncan shrugged and held a hand out to rest on her shoulder. "I have seen rulers fall out of favor before now, young Kasha. I'm sure this will not be the last time either. Being cast out does not make you any less noble, nor does it change where you came from." With that, Duncan reached into his small bag and pulled out a small mirror, likely used as part of a shaving kit. He held it up to her face and let her look. "You are very little changed, Aeducan."

Kasha Aeducan looked at her reflection. It was indeed the same she had seen last week, from her thick black hair to the shimmering blue eyes, and even the near porcelain complexion of her face. Her brother had wanted to mark her as casteless, but brevity and urgency had taken over- besides, what did it matter in the face of certain death? It was a technicality, but to her an important one.

"You're right," Kasha admitted. It didn't make her feel much better, but the realization did help. "I am still myself. I still have the same skills I did before." She smiled widely and met his eyes. "I'm particularly good at killing darkspawn."

"That is a part of why I welcomed you," the Warden Commander confided. "The other was your demeanor."

"Demeanor?"

"I see something in you, Kasha. Your men saw it too- all spoke very highly of you. You have a natural talent to command." Quieter, he confessed, "When I went out this time, it wasn't to find just another Warden. I am older now, close to my end. I would leave an able commander behind me."

Kasha blinked. "You can't be suggesting..."

"I believe you could be the strongest Commander of this new age given the right opportunity. And training." Duncan moved to leave the tent again, turning his back. "We will talk of this more once you are through the Joining and we have assisted the king in this first skirmish of the new blight. My goal is that I can hand the reins to you once we have found and slew the archdemon."

Kasha nodded, understanding the priority to manage this initial battle. One meeting of enemies at a time. "As you wish, commander."

Kasha had no idea at that time just how much that discussion would haunt both her waking and sleeping moments from then until the day she died.