I followed Eva Amell across the bridge leading out of Redcliffe. Morrigan, Leliana, Sten, and Ruffian the mabari warhound kept their distance from us. I sensed they could tell what was about to happen; several people have told me that a vein in my right temple protrudes when I'm angry. I could feel my right temple throbbing and my jaw clenched almost painfully.

The militiaman guarding the bridge waved happily at us as we left the village. Eva responded with an uncharismatic hand gesture.

"What a charmer," Morrigan purred.

I tapped Eva on the shoulder. "I want to discuss what happened in the castle," I stated, making no attempt to sound like I wasn't angry. No, angry was an understatement. I was apoplectic.

"I was there. I know what happened," she replied without stopping or glancing over her shoulder at me. In fact, I could have sworn she started walking faster.

"How could you let Lady Isolde sacrifice herself like that? With blood magic? How could you do that?" I snapped, speeding up my own gait to keep up with her.

"Ask me nicely and maybe I'll answer," she retorted.

"Don't dodge the question, Eva!"

"Then ask me nicely," she repeated darkly as she took on a petulant march. Her jaw-length black hair swayed from side to side.

"We could have gone to the Circle of Magi. W-We could have tried harder!" I spat out, nearly stumbling over my words. "We should have tried something that didn't involve blood magic, that's for sure! This is the Arl's son we're talking about here. What are we going to say when we revive him?"

"Who says we even can revive him?" she asked, suddenly stopping and whirling around to face me. "And what else would you have me do, Alistair? You were in the Lothering chantry with me when Ser Bryant told us that the templars have called for the Rite of Annulment. I don't know what that could mean, but something is happening at the Tower. Something bad. Even if we did travel there and back so that the mages could perform the lyrium ritual, who's to say that it wouldn't be too late for the boy?"

"I just… I just don't know how you could do it, how you could make that decision. I owe the Arl more than this," I insisted

Eva quirked her lips as her dark blue eyes studied my face. After taking a moment to think of her next clever remark, she said, "Is being a Grey Warden always such a thankless job? In case you've forgotten, I entered the Fade to save the worthless brat from a demon. Besides, Lady Isolde had you thrown into the chantry against your wishes. She got her comeuppance as far as I'm concerned."

I took a step closer. The idea of hitting a woman seemed vaguely tempting. Well, maybe just a slap across the face. "Don't you dare speak of Connor in that way," I growled, trying to seem as menacing as possible. "And don't make this about me."

Eva also took a step closer. I hadn't thought she would stand her ground like this, but she did and that made me even more frustrated. Her dark cerulean eyes appeared black but perhaps it was simply the way the shadows reflected off them.

"Alistair," she said, drawing my name out, testing it like one would a wine to be critiqued. "We are possibly the only two Grey Wardens left in Ferelden. Do you truly want to fight with me? If you don't then please shut up so we can just get along. There are more important things at stake now than the Arl's trophy wife." Then her expression softened slightly, as did the tone she took with me. "If you think I don't feel horrible about what happened then you're wrong."

I was about to say something else, offer an apology for lashing out at her. Eva was clearly affected by the situation but I had been too enraged and self-absorbed to see it until then. She cut me off before I was able to utter a single word, however, when she leaned in until the tip of her nose was only an inch away from mine.

"Get off my back," she said venomously. Then she walked past me, making sure to bash her shoulder against mine. I looked at the others. Morrigan smirked condescendingly, Leliana shrugged sympathetically, and Sten just stared at me. Ruffian canted his head.

"Let's just get going," I said, turning to follow Eva. "We might make it to the Circle Tower tomorrow if we move fast enough."

That evening, we settled down in a clearing that bordered Lake Calenhad. I could see the tower in the distance; the black spire was ominously silhouetted against the cloudless twilight sky. The first stars began to wink across the universe at each other as though they shared some private joke not meant for the mortals stuck on the ground to understand. During the trek, Eva had not spoken a single word to anyone. When our eyes met, she'd glare pointedly at me.

I periodically glanced up from my campfire to see Eva at her own with a bottle she kept swigging from. Leliana briefly kept her company before retreating into her own tent. Only the Maker knew where Morrigan had gone off to. Sten sat across the fire from me and poked at the glowing embers with a stick. He made the flames surge back to life when they died down but he wasn't much for conversation.

At least Ruffian wanted to hang out with me; his chin rested upon my knee as I stroked the top of his head. "Do you think she always broods like that?" I asked him. "Is it a girl thing?"

Ruffian snorted in reply.

I heard a rustle. When I looked up, I saw that Eva's campfire was no longer ablaze and that she was walking off towards the north-towards the woods.

As I pushed Ruffian's head off my lap, I sighed, "Well, boy, let's go make sure she doesn't get jumped by darkspawn. Or bandits."

He barked.

I strode after her, Ruffian padding along at my heels. What in the Maker's name was she going off by herself for, I wondered. The dog halted in his tracks and lifted his muzzle into the air; he'd picked up her scent and then trotted down a narrow forest trail which was difficult to see in the encroaching darkness. I kept up with him.

It only took about a minute for us to reach Eva in a small clearing right alongside the lakeshore. At very first, I saw her boots which had been carelessly tossed aside and then I saw her sitting on the ground with her bare feet in the water. Her thin arms were wrapped about her knees. Of course, her bottle was right next to her. The Circle Tower loomed across the lake like a warning as the last sliver of sunlight slipped below the horizon behind it.

Ruffian approached her and barked at the side of her head. She flinched.

"Hush," she said, reaching out to pat the dog's flank. Then she glanced over her shoulder and did a double-take, which was surprising because I hadn't thought I was very quiet about catching up to her. "And what are you doing here?" she asked accusatorily.

"I saw you head off alone and I thought I should follow because I'm nice like that," I explained. "There are darkspawn and bandits and dangerous creatures that might… Swoop down on you. Not that you can't take care of yourself, of course… Right, I'll be quiet now."

Eva got up and turned to face me as she dusted her hands over the front of her skirt. "What's this really about? Are you still fixated on that thrice-damned ritual?"

"No, I'm not," I answered, somewhat dishonestly. " I've no interest in harping at you about Lady Isolde anymore. This is about your safety. It'd be easier to just watch you now than to plan a rescue effort later. Right, Ruffian?"

He barked.

Eva went silent for a moment. Then she said flatly, "How chivalrous of you."

"Do I detect bitterness in your tone? I mean, you're the one who suggested before that we just get along, right? So let's just get along."

She scoffed. "Oh, so you followed me just to deliberately try and get my goat."

"Yes, that's precisely what I did," I replied with a sardonic lilt.

"Well, you succeeded."

"Glad to be of service," I said, crossing an arm in front of my waist and offering a bow.

Eva raised both her hands in a gesture of annoyance and agitation. "Alistair, I joined the Grey Wardens without being… Fully informed. Granted, I had little choice in the matter but had I known what would be asked of me then I might have taken my chances with the templars. Being made tranquil doesn't seem so awful now." As she stated this last part, she looked over her shoulder at the Circle Tower, now almost impossible to see from such a distance in the dark.

Then she faced me again. "I'm trying to make the best of a shitty situation and I don't need you making things even shittier. Take your lectures and your finger-pointing and your wisecracks and kindly pike off. I want to be alone for a bit."

"Have it your way," I said, trying to sound casual about it as I turned to leave.

I made it about seven steps before marching right back to where I had been standing. I just knew that if I left her alone, something bad would happen. As a fellow Grey Warden, I owed it to her not to let that happen if I could help it.

"On second thought, no can do," I stated, crossing my arms over my chest. "Sorry, Eva, but I'm not going to just leave you here. Blame it on my chivalrous side but you can't get me out of your hair that easily. Now, you can either come back to the campsite with me or we can stay here. So… What's it going to be?"

She replied with a throaty noise of frustration.

"Would you rather I picked you up and threw you over my shoulder like a sack of grain? Because I could do that instead," I said. "It's an appealing idea, actually. I'm chilly and tired of being eaten alive by insects out here."

"I dare you to try," she said challengingly.

"I'm not going to," I replied. "By all means, I won't stop you from staring at the lake in that forlorn way you stare at things. I'll just stay in this spot. You won't hear a peep from me."

"Don't make me kick your ass," she said. Then she added, "Or turn you into a toad. I can do that, you know."

"Very funny, Eva. I dare you to try," I said, smirking wryly, though she probably didn't see in the dark. "By the way, this tough girl act you've assumed since we reached Lothering doesn't become you. You were more agreeable when I first met you at Ostagar."

"Watch yourself, Alistair. I can also light your hair on fire. Or make you explode from the inside out."

Just mentioning Ostagar put a lump in my throat. I then wondered how I could have been so short-sighted. She probably felt the same lump in the same place.

"I'm sorry, that was needlessly callous. What I meant to say is this…" I started, taking two tentative steps closer to her. She turned away, gazing out over the lake again and cold-shouldering me in the process. "You've had a rough time of it as well. I can't imagine it was pleasant being cooped up in that tower your whole childhood. And then the massacre at Ostagar. And the ritual. And everything, all this death... It just wears on me. It wears on us both, I'd imagine."

Silence.

I continued. "I'm beginning to realize that we might not see eye-to-eye all the time but we're both Grey Wardens and Maker damn it all, it's imperative that we stick together. At least until we defeat this Blight."

I reached out for her shoulder. Before my fingertips even touched her black fur mantle, she jerked her arm away as though she sensed my incoming hand. Sometimes I thought the girl had an invisible eye in the back of her head. She probably did too.

But I wasn't done with my speech yet. "This is not solely your struggle, Eva, and nor is it mine. It's ours. Look, if you want to talk about anything—anything at all—I'll lend an ear. Quite frankly, I'm rather curious about your experience in the Fade, though I understand if you're not ready to share. It couldn't have been easy, after all. Oh, and what about that Jowan fellow who you tried to help? He'd been a friend of yours at the Circle, no? Not that you have to tell me about him, I just thought it might make you feel a little better to get these things off your chest… Or not… It's up to you. Right... I'll just wait for you to finish brooding. I swear I'll be quiet as a mouse."

I took several steps back. In the uncomfortable silence, I became distinctly aware of the chilly breezing skimming my face and the sounds of crickets calling through the darkness for someone, anyone. Then I heard Eva take a deep breath. Alas, I thought, she lives.

"I'll have you know that mice can be quite noisy," she said. "There was one who lived in the library at the Tower. His squeaks used to echo through the rafters at night. You… You weren't supposed to wander the halls after bedtime but sometimes I snuck out of the apprentice quarters. Anyway, I named him Jack. Who knows if Jack was even a him? And he's probably not even there anymore. The templars wouldn't try to enforce the Rite of Annulment unless something serious happened, right?" she asked, turning around to face me again.

"Right," I confirmed. "Praise the Maker, now we're getting somewhere. See? You don't have to be such a closed book all the time! So, are you going to tell me what happened in the Fade or not? Sorry for snapping at you about that, by the way. I was upset and needed something to cast blame upon. You seemed like a convenient target at the time."

"Thanks a lot," she grumbled.

"You're welcome." I reached out and patted her shoulder. Although she tensed in response to my touch, she didn't pull away this time.

"Hey, Alistair, I have a question for you," she said. Although I had trouble seeing her face in the darkness, her tone made me imagine that she furrowed her brow thoughtfully.

"Mmmyes?"

"Would you do anything to stop the Blight?" she asked.

"Uh… Yes? Why? What are you getting at, exactly?"

"Damn the consequences and damn your own soul if need be, right?" she went on, gesticulating vaguely with her hands. "The ends justify the means."

"Eva, you're worrying me. What happened? Is this… Is this… This is about that ritual and the Fade isn't it? What's going on?"

She twisted her hands together in front of herself. "I was thinking about… The Blight… And… Well, it dawned on me that if we're hoping to stop it or even just make a dent in the darkspawn's efforts, we'll need more than a couple hedge mages, a loony Orlesian, a creepy serial killer, a dog, and a smartass prince. I sought outside help."

"Well, when you put it like that—Wait a minute… Eva, what did you do?" I demanded as I reached out for her. She tried to sidestep me but my fingers clamped around her upper arm. I yanked her so that she faced me again. "Tell me right now."

"You said yourself that we could use extra help! You said that when we picked up that bard in Lothering!" she exclaimed as she tried to wriggle free. "Unhand me!"

Instead of unhanding her, I grabbed her other arm and shook her—albeit rather gently. "Not until you tell me exactly what you did."

She stopped struggling. "Let go of me and I'll show you," she said calmly. "I suppose it's best you find out now rather than be surprised by it when we're in the midst of battle."

I released her and crossed my arms over my chest.

"Give me your hand," she instructed as she fiddled with her arms. The darkness prevented me from seeing exactly what she was doing, though. Without waiting for me to offer my hand, she reached for it. "When that darkspawn raiding party ambushed us along the road here, Morrigan was hurt and you know she's horrible at healing spells—Maybe I should give her a few tips."

"Get to the point, Eva," I said impatiently.

"Right," she said, sliding her fingertips along the back of my hand. "Well, I was exhausted after the skirmish—Calling on those snowstorms knocks me for a loop every time, you know-and had to call on this… Outside help. Or maybe it's more like inside help. I don't know. She promised to keep my secret but I don't think it can stay a secret from you guys for very long."

Eva wrapped her slender digits around my wrist and guided my hand to her other arm. I realized that she had rolled up her sleeves as my fingertips brushed the soft, tender spot along the inside of her forearm. Something about what we were doing felt extremely intimate and dare I say sensual, or maybe it was just my lack of experience with women that lead me to think this. I heard the nervousness in her voice as she said, "You can't see it in the dark."

That's when I felt the thin, ragged gash right below the crook of her elbow. Quickly withdrawing from her, I hissed, "You're a blood mage. Since when? Is this why the templars were…" I hesitated and continued backing away. "Or did this happen in the Fade?"

"You were right the second time," she said softly.

"What? No! I should never have let you take part in that ritual. I should never have let Jowan corrupt you. I should have put my foot down!"

My temple throbbed again. I could taste bile in my mouth, though I hadn't even noticed it rising up inside me. I think my entire body shook with rage and the effort it took for me not to throttle at her. Suppress the templar, I reminded myself, you're him anymore.

"This isn't the time to second-guess yourself," she said.

"You're a blood mage," I repeated as I clenched my fists at my sides. "You… You…" I couldn't even speak straight let alone see or think straight.

"I'm everything you were trained to loathe, but I implore you to look at the big picture." She came closer to me. "I did what was necessary. You can thank me when I slit my wrists to save your ass in battle. Lyrium can only carry a mage so far, but blood holds power and we'll need power if we're to stand a fighting chance against this Blight."

I looked at her face but her features were shrouded in shadows. I looked at her black robes but I could barely tell where the darkness ended and her lithe form began. She seemed like a phantom that sucked the light out of everything nearby. My gaze shifted to the laze, to the clear black sky, to the ground, but nothing I saw would offer me the answers I searched for.

She placed her hand against my upper arm; I pulled it away sluggishly. "Don't touch me," I growled.

"I'm not the villain in this fucked up story, Alistair," she said as she fumbled about in the darkness to collect her boots and her bottle. "I'm not the monster you see when you look at me. I hope you realize that sooner than later. Now I have to go track down my dog. I think he ran somewhere while you were pontificating at me again. Goodnight."

I heard the underbrush swish and stir as she stalked off.

Note: I have the second-to-last chapter done. Strangely, my mind cannot seem to work in a linear fashion so this story is being written completely out of order. It will still make sense if you read it now. In fact, it works as a stand-alone short story as well. The link to it is in my profile.