Leliana smiles patiently and lifts the man's elbow. "Try again. This time I want you to exhale slowly when you release." Her beauty, accent and soft touch unravel the man. He stutters his thanks and tries again.
Solona stands in the shadows out of the heat of the midday sun. These poor people of Redcliffe have been haunted by monsters. What that entails she will find out at sundown. She shivers. Abominations, darkspawn, demons… these things she has fought and won, but the unknown has her heart in a vise grip. Dread threatens to wash over her and sweep her away. She sighs heavily.
A glint of light flashes catching her attention. She can see the knights far above the town near the mill heatedly debating tonight's plans with Alistair and with the ever stoic Sten watching presumably silently. Solona chuckles while imagining their conversation in her mind. Alistair's quirky dry humor will likely not go over well with the knights. Sten is undoubtedly causing unrest with his mere presence.
Solona shivers. She can feel his presence before seeing him. "Tell me what has you smiling so deliciously?" His voice is so close, too close.
She laughs and shakes her head. "Nothing, Zev." Solona glances at him fighting the urge to step away. His lack of personal boundaries tests her at their every encounter. "Alistair is talking with the knights of Redcliffe. I just…" Solona shrugs weakly.
Zevran chuckles and joins her watching the glimmering shapes as they move around up on the far hill. "Ah, I'm sure his charm is winning us many allies. Truly, I should perhaps save him from himself, yes?"
"Thanks, Zev." Her voice trails off. His eyes are on her again. It is so unnerving.
"Something troubles you?" Zevran quirks an eyebrow.
Solona lowers her voice as if the man across the courtyard can hear her. "Nothing, it's really nothing. I should be used to this by now."
Zevran follows where her gaze was moments ago and stares hard at Murdock. The man bristles and turns his attention to a man standing near him. "Shall I speak with him first?" Zevran fingers his dagger, his intent clear.
"Zev!" Solona shakes her head. "I would simply have to heal him with my magics and cause the man even more troubling thoughts." She puts her hand gently on his arm to stay his hand. "I appreciate the offer, perhaps your talents can be of more use with Alastair and Sten up the hill."
Zevran inclines his head in a semi-bow. "It will be my pleasure… or it could be yours." He chuckles before slipping away presumably towards the mill.
Mayor Murdock glances in her direction for what seems to be the hundredth time in the past twenty minutes, leery about having a mage around. She sighs softly. Such looks should mean nothing to her. She's been a mage her whole life. Raised in the circle, templars gave her that same look daily and they've known her for years. Yet the mistrust and fear is hard to ignore. She's trying to help these people yet still she is watched as if she is the monster. She swallows hard and steps back in to the chantry leaving the others to do what they could for the town. The last thing she wants right now is to lose her temper.
Solona shivers as the coolness of the chantry envelopes her. The dark cool of the building is welcoming compared to the harsh sticky heat of the outdoors. Solona hears the wailing and tears, the hushed voices and panic. Their fear is so tangible it starts to wear on her nerves. Is there no escape?
Her eyes slowly adjust to the darkness of the room. Her feet propel her forward of their own accord. She stops not realizing why and smiles shyly. Bann Teagan stands at the front of the chantry waiting calmly, watching her with interest, a smile tugs at his mouth. "How goes the preparations?"
"As well as can be expected, I suppose." She fights to control her hands. Her nervous wringing is so unbecoming. She grips her hands together and swallows hard. Discipline. Her heart is beating so hard, she is sure he can hear it yet he makes no comment about it. What is it about this man that has her so flustered? They just met hours ago for the first time. Upon hearing his plight she readily agreed to help him before he was even able to tell them all of their troubles. This is so unlike her. Granted she helps anyone she can, she's a spirit healer after all. There is something about this man that calls to her. Nonsense.
"Is there anything I can do for you?" Teagan's voice lowers gently. Her eyes are mesmerized by his lips as he speaks. He smiles, her heart flutters.
Hold me? Her eyes lift to meet his. She shivers. "I'm… no. I don't suppose… no." She lowers her gaze and stares at her hands. "My apologies. I find myself hiding at the moment. Not very brave of me, I know. It's just the outside world is a bit overwhelming at times. With the darkspawn, sky, people, noises, strangers, demons… did mention the sky?"
"I'm afraid I don't understand." His brow furrows. "You are a Grey Warden. Fighting darkspawn… it's what you do."
"Yes, I fight darkspawn which is frightening on its own. Add in the fact I've been taken from my home to do just that. Taken from everything I know and love." Solona braces herself and sighs softly. Her arms cross and she holds her arms in a self embrace. "I'm not making much sense I suppose. As you've most certainly noticed by now, I am a Circle mage. I've lived in the tower for as long as I can remember." She steals a glance at him, mentally bracing her self for the usual reaction of hate and fear, yet finds none. Instead she is greeted with an understanding or at least a sympathetic smile.
"I see. And how long have you been away from the tower?" He motions her towards a bench and she follows gladly.
"What month is it?" She sits gracefully on the bench, folding her hands on her lap.
"You're serious?" He peers at her skeptically.
"Mostly, it has been a year since Ostagar fell. I was taken from the tower by Duncan a month or so prior." She shudders at the memories. "I was conscripted. This life I find myself in… it isn't by choice."
"Do you miss it? The tower, the people?" Teagan takes a seat beside her.
"It is all I knew," Solona shrugs her slender shoulders and nervously brushes her hair behind her ear. "Some consider it a prison, I called it home."
"What of family?" Teagan prompts.
"The people of the tower are my family. I had a mother and father once. I suppose it's possible that I still do. I do not know them and they are not to acknowledge me or even my existence." She lifts her gaze to his again and smiles noting the concern in his eyes. "It isn't so bad really. I was only four when I was taken and you cannot miss what you didn't know you had."
"So young? I had no idea they would take children away at such a tender age." He tilts his head in contemplation, listening to her.
"Any child at any age that shows signs of magical aptitude is taken and sheltered at the Circle." Her brow furrows. "Odd that I have no memory of parents, yet I remember the day they came for me. There was an animal in pain and I was compelled to heal it." She slowly shakes her head back and forth lost in her memory. "I didn't even know what I was doing, I only knew the beast was hurt and I could make it feel better. The templar that came swept me up in his arms and I…" Solona laughs, though the sound is a bit hollow even to her own ears. "You can't really be interested in this, can you?"
"I confess. I find that I am. Is that so bad?" He grins that disarming smile of his and she feels her cheeks warm with color.
"No, I don't mind." Solona tilts her head, "I felt templar came to take away the cursed child yet I never felt safer than I did at that moment." As much as she fought it, her mind turns to her favorite templar. Her heart aches at the thought of him, her first love. She swallows back the pain and memory of their last parting and turns her attention back to the present. "And you? Do you have any family?"
Teagan shrugs. "You know Eamon is my older brother, we also had a sister, Rowan."
She tilts her head. "What is it like to grow up with a family?"
Teagan opens his mouth to speak and hesitates. "I…" He chuckles. "I never really gave it much thought. It simply is."
"I'd have to disagree, Ser. It isn't so simple. Not for one such as myself." Their eyes lock before Solona lowers hers. Mercy. "Was it lonely having so few around you, only a mother, father and siblings?"
Teagan shakes his head. "Oh there were servants and a whole village filled with people. Not to forget neighboring towns. I don't suppose it was that much different than what you experienced."
Her eyebrows rise in amusement. "That couldn't be farther than the truth, Ser. You had parents. I had instructors and the First Enchanter. You had siblings, I had other mages. I was confined to live my life within an enclosed tower with no windows. You had a castle and a village to come and go when you pleased. While I grant you, guards aren't necessarily so different than templars. Guards are not taught how to utterly stun and drain a mage of their powers. Yet the true exception is guards are there to protect you from others, while templars are there to protect others…" Her voice hitches, "from me."
"I am corrected, my lady. You are quite right, the two are nothing alike." His eyes search her face. "Ah, to be a templar assigned to watch you… it might be worth being locked in the tower."
She laughs. "Ah the forbidden, such is the wants of men." Her eyes widen momentarily, her hand flies to her mouth horrified. "Oh…" She cringes and turns her head. "I've apparently spent too many nights listening to the Antivan Crow and Orlesian bard. I've apparently lost all sense of decency."
He places his hand under her chin and turns her to face him. His eyes dance with amusement. "Remind me to thank them."
Solona gasps at the nearness of him. She swoons closer to him her heart races, pounding in her chest. Kiss me. Her voice wavers. "Will my embarrassment know no end?"
"Perhaps we should turn the conversation to safer ground?" His thumb caresses her jaw before releasing her. "To answer an old question, growing up with a family has its own troubles and rewards. Each family is different with their own issues. It is what you do with your life that matters."
"What about… others…" Solona bites her lip. "Do you have… a…"
"Others?" Teagan sits up startled. "Oh… you mean, am I married?" Please say no. " I… no. No, I've never had the pleasure. If I did, I'd be lucky to find a woman as lovely as yourself."
Solona can feel her cheeks warm. The color is most certainly a deeper red if that is at all possible. "Such flattery." She giggles nervously. Andraste's flaming arse, a giggle?
Teagan leans a bit closer to her. His shoulder touching hers. "If I may be so bold, what of you, my lady? Are you married?"
"Me?" Solona's hand flies to her lips as a squeak of surprise escapes her. He chuckles at her embarrassment. "No, no I'm not." Her mind flashes with memories of her forbidden lost love. Oh Cullen, if only… she shakes her head. No, if only is an endless lonely road to travel.
"I find that hard to believe. Surely, that is a crime somewhere." Teagan takes her hand in his and gives it a gentle squeeze. He glances behind her. "But I am too bold, my lady. This is hardly the time for such… banter. Please accept my apology."
Solona looks at him in confusion. "For what?" Her hand still in his, she looks down at their hands finding it oddly comforting. "I am not offended."
"You're too kind, my lady, amongst many other things." Teagan holds her gaze, lifts her hand to his lips, kissing the back gently before releasing it.
Her heart skips a beat and races to catch up. "Oh my…" She places her hand back on her lap. The back of her hand still tingles where his lips touched. "I should probably…"
"There you are." The all too familiar voice comes from behind her.
Too late. Solona visibly cringes as Teagan slips away distancing himself. His voice is instantly cordial and business. "What news, Alistair?"
"We are as ready as we're going to be. Your knights are up by the mill and your militia will stand their ground and protect the village if any manage to slip past us." Alistair glances at Solona. "You will be joining us, wont you… Sol?"
"Of course." Her left hand gently touches the back of her right. Solona avoids making eye contact with anyone. "My healing will be needed. I'm sure Wynne can handle things in the village while we take care of the monsters by the mill."
"Right…" Alistair looks from Teagan back to Solona. "Night approaches, we need to go, Sol." He gives Teagan a curt nod and turns on his heel heading towards the door expecting her to follow.
"I'll be there in a moment." Alistair hesitates. "I would like to speak with the revered mother before I go."
Alistair gives Solona a nod and moves on. She sighs softly. "If I manage to live thirty more years, I still will not understand that man."
"He's rather protective of you." Teagan watches Alistair leave the chantry giving them a backwards glance. "He's also rather taken with you."
"Taken? Alistair?" Solona blinks up at him stunned. She shakes her head slowly. "That can't be right. We are friends, nothing more. I have never once implied any interest in him otherwise."
Teagan grins at her. "Were you nice to him?"
"Naturally. He is a fellow warden and a friend." Solona stands and moves towards the center of the room closer to Teagan on her way to speak with the revered mother.
"Then he thinks there is hope." Teagan chuckles at the shocked look she gives. "Men are much simpler beings than you can imagine. A soft touch on the arm as you pass, a smile, a laugh… any one of these simple innocent acts will nurture hope within a man's heart."
"So you should stop being… me." Solona sighs heavily. "I do not wish to hurt the man, yet I also have no intention of allowing him to believe something that is only real in his mind."
Teagan's hand slips to her lower back as he escorts her towards the revered mother. "Perhaps tonight is not the appropriate time for brutal honesty. He is about to face horrific monsters."
"And any other night, he faces darkspawn, demons and abominations. Tonight is no different for a Grey Warden." She shivers very aware of his closeness. "Maker be with you, Ser."
"Maker be with us all, my lady." Teagan backs away from her and takes up his post once more at the head of the chantry.
The sun was setting by the time Solona made her way to the mill. She stayed in the background away from the knights and fighters. She kept unusually quiet and simply watched. The mannerisms of the men when they forgot she was there was vulgar, garish yet mildly entertaining.
An eerie mist originates from the castle walls, followed by a green haze, twinkling lights dancing and a horrid screeching howl. "They're coming!" Ser Perth, the knight captain readies his sword. "Prepare to light the fire!"
Solona watches in fascination as the archer's arrow is lit aflame. "Fire!" He aims a bit high and let the arrow soar through the dark sky. It hit its mark perfectly. The oil bursts to life, burning brightly as the flames lick hungrily at the sky. Monsters did indeed come. They burn in the fire as they cross the barriers weakening them, yet they come. Knights hack at their limbs and torsos. Sten lobs more than a few heads and still they come. The night becomes a blur of fire, healing and killing.
"Sol!" Leliana waves for her. She casts a rejuvenation spell upon Ser Perth and runs to her side.
"What's wrong?" Solona feels her power waning. How many more of these monsters are there?
"They're coming from the water! The village is over run, we need you." Leliana runs back to the village leaving her standing there.
"But…" She turns back to the knights hesitating. She takes a deep breath and runs to Morrigan's side. "I know you aren't a healer, but you can heal... please... please watch over these men."
Morrigan throws another arcane bolt and pauses to stare at her. "What is it? What's wrong?"
"I don't know. They are asking for my aide below. Something must have happened to Wynne. Please just-"
"Go!" Morrigan pushes her away. "Go on."
Solona takes one last look at them and nods. She turns on her heel and heads for the bridge. A lone howl stops her cold. Cully! She lifts her robe to ease her movements and runs. Her hair is loose and flowing behind her. She must look a sight, running with her robe hitched tears streaking down her cheeks over a mabari war hound no less.
The mayor or perhaps it was Teagan had decided the militia would stand their ground in an open patch just before the chantry. A lone bonfire burns brightly in the night air giving sight to the monsters and their distorted faces.
She pauses long enough to take in the situation yet questions still churn in her mind. Where is Wynne? Where is Cully? Leliana stands in the shadows of the chantry stoop, plucking arrows skillfully at the monsters yet they still come. Zevran slips between the monsters slicing and hacking yet still they come. Solona didn't hesitate any longer. She focuses her attention on the fire raging before her, the chant spilling from her lips before she releases a mass paralysis stilling the beasts for a time. Time is what she needs, heal after heal for the militia as well as her own companions. She feels the drain on her yet she refuses to stop. Bodies are strewn across the area cast in shadow so she has no idea if they are human or monster. Where is Teagan?
Her heart lurches. Could he be one of the slain? She takes a deep breath and continues on. She can hear Wynne and her ever present sage advice chiding her in her mind. She is a Grey Warden. She is fighting for Ferelden. She has no time for men and their whims. Love is not for her. She is not meant for a normal life. She growls deeply at the injustice of it all and releases a lightening bolt of frustration, pain and anger. The monster staggers and falls to the ground before her.