Tori Evermoore was a lost soul. She had been orphaned as a young child, bouncing from foster home to foster home before she eventually ran away and going to live on her own. She never really truly belonged anywhere, that is until the day she found a portal. Having nothing to lose, Tori investigated the portal, finding herself walking through a soft green and golden tunnel that opened up into a strange tower. There was a clamouring outside and she couldn't figure out where she was, but before she could turn back and go through the portal once more, the portal closed and vanished without a trace.

"What? Wait, come back!" she had called, touching the wall where the portal had been.

A young man and his companions had come running into the room, looking around frantically.

"You there!" The young man had called to her. "What are you doing here?"

Tori had looked at him. "I came through a portal, but it closed behind me and I can't get back!"

The young man looked around at his companions. "A portal? From where?" he had replied.

"Astoria... Where am I?" she had asked.

"You're in the Tower of Ishal of Ostagar. We are facing the Blight that threatens to overtake Ferelden." The young man explained, then took her hand as he and his companions rushed onward. "Come with me, it's not safe here!"

Tori had followed him, never letting go of his hand.

Tori found that she had been pulled into another world entirely, left to fend for herself like she had always done but in a world that was thrown into chaos, betrayal, war, and a whole mess of other things going on around her. She found herself in the company of Alistair Theirin and his companion, Branford Cousland, and learned that they were both Grey Wardens- an order of men and women who came together in times of great need against something called the "Blight" and were the only ones who could stop it- and were the only remaining survivors of their order.

Branford had just joined the Wardens, with Alistair being his senior officer, but when the darkspawn- foul creatures that were tainted by the Blight- attacked Ostagar, the uncle of their king, Loghain Mac Tir, betrayed the king, Cailan Theirin- whom Tori later found out was the half brother to Alistair- and quit the field. From what Tori could gather was that Loghain had left Cailan and his men, alongside the Wardens, to die at the hands of the darkspawn and fled like a coward back to the capital city of Denerim and they were now faced with the task of gathering allies and building an army to take on the darkspawn horde and bring Loghain to justice.

One night while they were in camp, just a few weeks after meeting a Chantry sister named Leliana and adding her to their group alongside the Kokiri Wilds mage Morrigan, Alistair had asked Tori where she was from. Knowing he would just think her insane, Tori opted out of telling him, but everyone was curious about the same thing, and Morrigan assured her that they would not think her insane.

Tori looked at everyone and sighed, knowing it would be better to just tell them then and not hide it from them. "When I first came to Ferelden, it was through a portal. In my world, I lived in a place called Astoria, which was a small city in the state of Oregon."

"What is a 'state'?" Morrigan asked, intrigued.

"A 'state' is like a province or territory within a country. Like here, you are from the Kokiri Wilds, which is an uncharted territory within the country of Ferelden."

"I see. And what country do you hail from, Tori?"

"The United States of America."

"I have never heard of such a place."

Tori had to chuckle at the amused and intrigued tone in Morrigan's voice. "And I've never heard of Ferelden or anywhere we've travelled or will travel to before just a few weeks ago. The portal I mentioned earlier, I found it when I was trying to make camp one night back in Astoria. I was curious, so I went through it and came out in the tower where Alistair and Branford found me."

"And did you not wish to go back?"

Tori sighed and looked up at the stars, seeing a whole new set of constellations than the ones she had memorized on the nights she slept alone in the woods. "If I could, I might go back."

"But?" Alistair asked, looking at her.

"But the portal closed behind me and to be honest, I had nothing there for me back home." Tori looked at him. "I was left orphaned at a young age, getting bounced from foster home to foster home, never finding a new family or anywhere that I could belong. I finally got so tired of it that I ran away and started living alone and fending for myself. To tell you the truth, I'm kind of glad that I went through that portal because trapped here or not, I can help for once and maybe start a life here."

Hailey, Branford's mabari hound, came up and nudged Tori's hand. Tori smiled and rubbed the mabari's ears. "Hey, girl."

Hailey licked her hand and trotted back off to where Branford was sitting with Leliana once she was satisfied that Tori was alright.

"Well, I must say, I am most intrigued Tori Evermoore. Perhaps there is a way to get you back home, a way to open another portal, should you ever wish to go back." Morrigan said. "If you should like, I could study into it."

Tori shook her head. "If you need to study the idea of the portal, please, feel free to but I have no need to return to Astoria. If I can help here in any way, then I want to stay and fight. Maybe once this is all done with, I can start a new life as a farmer or something."

Alistair watched as Tori excused herself and walked to the edge of their camp. Deciding to go after her, he stood next to her silently as she stared at the stars. "You're not crazy, you know."

Tori smiled and looked at him. "To be honest, I thought I was dreaming when I stepped out of the portal. Everything logical told me to stay away from that portal, but it was so intriguing and beautiful and different than anything I had ever seen before that I had to investigate and find out for myself what lie beyond it."

"Well, I'm glad you're safe with us at least, then." Alistair said, smiling in return. "We can try to show you our world, for all its beauty and good, for all its chaos and evil, and try to help you adjust to living here."

Tori smiled and patted his arm. "Thanks, Alistair. You know, you're a real gentleman and such a sweetheart." She reached up and kissed his cheek before starting her way back to the camp fire. "I should probably be careful, then shouldn't I?" She stopped and glanced back at him, giving him a smile and a wink as she added, "Or else I may find myself falling for you."

Alistair stood there, blushing, as he watched her make her way to her bed roll. He touched his cheek and smiled a bit to himself.

As the weeks went by, turning into months, Tori travelled with Branford and Alistair and the rest of their companions- who now included a dwarf named Oghren, an elf named Zevran, an elderly mage named Wynne, a Qunari named Sten- which was his rank as well as his name for some reason- and a dwarf merchant named Bodhan Fedic and his son, Sandal, whom they had saved from darkspawn in Lothering. Oghren liked to drink and tell stories, Zevran was constantly flirting with everyone, Sten was grumpy and stayed quiet most of the time, and Bodhan and his boy kept to themselves mostly as well, but would join them for meals and such when they made camp. They had gathered the Grey Warden Treaties Alistair and Branford had retrieved from the Wilds and used them to secure alliances with the Dalish, the Circle Mages, and the Dwarves of Orzammar. Now they just needed to revive the man who had raised Alistair, the Arl of Redcliffe Village Eamon Guerrin, with the Sacred Ashes of Andraste- a woman long ago who was said to be the Bride of the Maker and was sacrificed by the Tevinter Imperium as a martyr.

As they journeyed from the Brecilian Forest where they had secured their alliance with the Dalish elves to the location where it was said the ashes rested, Tori learned how to fight, learning how to deflect spells, use a shield and sword, a bow, daggers, axes and hammers, any weapon she could learn. Finding she was most comfortable with a sword and a bow, she chose to have a long sword at her back holstered next to a Dalish longbow. She practised each night with a different person in their party, learning ways to defend herself from different attacks and styles, and she got better and better each night. Finally, she was beginning to feel like she was an asset to the team, like she really could help them out.

One night, about a day's journey or two from the village of Haven where it was said the ashes could be located, they made camp and Tori sat off to the side, pondering. She and the others had become really close, even her and Morrigan- who usually kept to herself more than Sten would- and she was beginning to see them like a family. And then there was Alistair. Out of all of them, she was most fond of him. He was sweet and gentle, protective and kind, he was always looking out for her, always keeping everyone else's best interests at heart over his own, and even though he was of royal blood, the only thing he wanted anything to do with as far as the royal court went was to see to it that Loghain paid dearly for betraying his brother and the Wardens. He wanted nothing to do with ruling over the kingdom he was helping to save. His brother's wife, Anora, could keep the throne for all he cared.

"Tori, are you alright?"

Tori looked up as Alistair joined her. She offered him a smile and nodded. "Of course. Why do you ask?"

"You don't sit alone unless something's bothering you." Alistair noted, still giving her a worried look.

Tori touched his cheek and playfully smoothed out the worry lines. "Stop giving me that look, Alistair. You're far too young to be getting worry lines already."

Alistair playfully swatted at her hand, catching it lightly in his own. "You can tell me anything, Tori, you don't have to hide. Not with me."

Tori looked at him, seeing him in the same light she had for weeks. He was handsome, chivalrous, courageous, strong, everything she ever wanted in a man. He was everything she could dream of as a girl, but she never thought she'd ever find someone.

"Tori?"

Tori realized she had just been staring at him and blushed looking away. "Sorry..."

Alistair squeezed her hand gently and took her chin to turn her face to his. "Tell me what's bothering you?"

Tori looked at him, deep into those golden honey brown eyes she had fallen in love with, and smiled. "You know you mean the world to me right? You and the others have been like family to me, something I haven't had since I was almost too young to remember. Coming here, to Ferelden, and aiding you in saving your world has given me a purpose, something and someone to fight for, to protect. That's something that has never happened to me before. I've never belonged anywhere before, never stayed long enough to feel welcome or like I could make a home and settle down somewhere, but here- with you and the others- I find more and more each day that I can have exactly that right here. Whether it's on the road, or I settled down and start a farm somewhere, or move to the city, it doesn't matter. As long as I am with you, I know I can be happy."

Alistair smiled and touched her cheek, his smile growing when she leaned into his hand. "That's what has been bothering you? Silly girl..."

Tori stuck out her tongue and giggled. "Don't call me that, Alistair. Besides, the only part that bothers me about it is the conscious thought that I could lose everything I've built with you and the others in an instance if something goes wrong and we fail." Her smile faded and she looked down. "I couldn't bear it if I lost Branford, or Leliana and Morrigan, Oghren and Zevrann and Wynne, even Sten and Bodhan and Sandal." She looked back up at him. "I couldn't bear it if I lost you."

Alistair searched her eyes. He never wanted to admit it, but he been in love with Tori Evermoore from the beginning. The first time they met in the Tower of Ishal, he had admired her chocolate brown hair, her brilliant green eyes, and the more time he spent with her, he began to fall in love with her personality, her willingness to help out, her natural protectiveness, her grace, her interest in learning about their world. Everything about her made his heart race, made his mind spin. He never thought he'd ever find someone he'd care for like he did Tori. She was so honest and good natured. "I couldn't bear it if I lost you."

Tori blushed a bit. "We're a day away from Haven." She put a hand on his knee. "We don't know what will happen or what we'll find. We'll have to have each other's backs."

Alistair smiled and leaned in a bit. "I'll always have your back, Tori, I promise. Maker help me if I ever fail you."

Tori's breath caught in her throat as Alistair closed the gap between them and placed a gentle and longing kiss on her lips. She closed her eyes and leaned into it, feeling safe as his arm wrapped around her waist and pulled her closer. When he pulled away, they were both blushing, and he smiled.

"Forgive me, I um... I got caught in the moment..." Alistair said.

Tori smiled and touched his cheek. "It's a moment I'll always treasure." She returned his kiss and stood. "I'll always have your back, Alistair. No matter what." She kissed his forehead and rubbed his cheek. "Come, let's get to bed. We have a long day ahead of us."