It had been a long three years since Emilia had gone. Alistair knew of her vague whereabouts with the letters she frequently sent. Most of the messages revolved around her reassuring her husband that she was, in fact, alive and well. He willed her to tell him of her whereabouts, but as he was unable to send any form of reply, he could not voice his concerns. She knew that he would attempt to bring her home, or find her at the very least and give her an armed guard. As it was, the only people with her were Ophelia, Luciana and Athene, her companions through the Blight, her closest friends beside Alistair and a select few. Though her other old friends had moved on to different waters as they remained in the heart of Ferelden, until now.
Emilia's correspondence in the past month or so had revolved solely around the Inquisition, that supported the mages that overran Redcliffe, the forces that Alistair had tried to help, and the Grand Enchanter had allowed it all to happen. It left a bitter taste in his mouth. The consistency of her correspondence suggested to her that she was, in fact, with the Inquisition. As the previous Warden Commander, investigating the disappearances was still important to her, perhaps that was why she was there. He sent a letter to the advisors, to Leliana specifically, to see if she had any information regarding the whereabouts of his wife. If any were to be sympathetic to his cause, it would be her.
Her reply took longer than expected, she apologised for the delay but told him that she was in fact currently with the Inquisition, she also gave the reasons why he had not been informed, knowing Cousland herself would have been severely pained to admit them. Given Alistair's earlier ejection of the mages from Ferelden, their exile, to be precise, Leliana and Cousland believed his presence inside Skyhold would be unhelpful to say the least. Emilia's presence was for entirely different reasons, she was a temporary advisor to the Inquisition while the others continued their investigation into ending the Calling. Leliana also added that she would be explicit in what information Emilia could share to make Alistair's correspondence with her easier, as well as giving him an address to write to. The letter had been sent at least a week ago, but he couldn't help but pore over it continuously, to see if there was anything that he had missed. He had sent several letters since, all with no response, he had heard the rumours of the Inquisition being within reaching distance of their defeat of Corypheus, and he hoped that Emilia was nowhere near the fallout when it inevitably happened.
"Da, when will mother be back? I miss her." He heard the voice of his daughter, he put down Leliana's letter.
"I don't know Eleanor." He replied with a sigh, as she made her way over to the side of his desk, her tutor looked somewhat embarrassed, cheeks flushed red and strands of hair making their way loose from her bun, stood outside the door of his study. Alistair smiled, dismissing her, she curtsied and walked out of the doorway and down the stone corridor. "But I do know she misses you and your brothers dearly." Eleanor moved closer to his chair, close enough that Alistair could now pick her up and place her on his lap as he noticed her bright green eyes begin to shine with tears. He held her close, his arms enclosed around her small frame. He wondered how much she remembered of her mother in truth, she was in her eighth year now, but Emilia had been gone for three. The twins said that they missed their mother, but how much did they really know of her? They were only six. Alistair hoped that she returned soon, he hated that she was missing them growing up, and they were growing up fast. "How about you and I go for a walk? Find your brothers too." Alistair said to Eleanor, his voice soothing, she looked up at him, blinking the tears away, if it weren't for her eyes she would have been a perfect likeness to her mother. She nodded timidly, a small smile opening across her mouth before it widened into a grin, she grabbed on to him again, hugging him as tightly as her small arms would allow her. He smiled to himself, remembering that their children were a blessing, a Maker given miracle. He couldn't help but smile.
He lifted her off his lap and placed her gently back on the floor, her grip on his shoulders loosening as he did so. Alistair stood up from his chair, taking his daughter's hand, walking at her pace in the direction of Duncan and Bryce's adjacent rooms. The two boys were overjoyed to see him. Given Emilia's absence, the brunt of the work lay on his shoulders, meaning he had even less time to spend with his children. It saddened him deeply but he had no choice, the kingdom required constant vigilance, especially in the light of apostate mages, the tear in the sky and the brewing tensions with the Orlesian Empire, there simply wasn't time for his children in such a climate. Today was a rare occasion.
He decided that he would take them for a walk around the gardens, Eleanor clasping one of his hands, and the twins bickering noisily over who should hold the other. In the end, it appeared that Duncan was the one destined to hold it, Bryce making simpering and grumbling noises for some time after. He wanted to take a walk around the gardens, where the flowers were plentiful, especially the roses, the one flower that united Alistair and Emilia above any other, that made their hearts sing, and brought back the memories of their blooming and growing relationship. Today his heart clenched at the sight of the red petals, knowing that his love was not here to appreciate them, too.
Their walk took them to the main gates, Eleanor ran off towards the roses, and Bryce and Duncan once again began to fight amongst themselves, this time pretending to practice the sparring they had seen their father do, and the other soldiers also. Alistair tried his best to keep an eye on all three of his children, turning and watching constantly, though he knew that he probably need be more concerned with the fighting boys than the demure Eleanor who was entertaining herself by admiring the roses. His back was turned to the gates, Eleanor seen in the corner of his eye, but his focus was trained on the boys, a small prayer to the Maker that the pair would not injure themselves. He couldn't help but smile at the pair, there was a clear admiration for their father as they pretended to spar, his boys would become great warriors, he would make sure of it.
The clouds drifted in the sky, removing the cover from the sun, the courtyard now bathed in glorious, golden light. Alistair's smile widened, he couldn't remember the last time that he had the time like this to simply live as a normal family.
From the corner of his eye, he saw Eleanor's small form dart out of sight, she was running, but where to? His parental concern clenched in his stomach, he spun around quickly, to keep an eye on his daughter's sudden movement. Almost as soon as he turned away from Duncan and Bryce, he heard them shouting and squealing, he snapped back to face them, and they too were running. What has gotten into them all? He thought to himself as his eyes scanned the movements of his children. When he finally looked up, he saw why, and he nearly collapsed on the spot.
Walking towards him were two women, women that he knew all too well. The first was his good friend Ophelia, the second, his beloved wife. As much as his brain pondered the question as to why Ophelia was with her, he simply couldn't focus on that right now. Emilia was here. He willed his feet to move toward her, it had been so long since he had seen, touched her. His heart began to race. In the back of his mind, he hoped that Ophelia didn't feel too awkward in their presence.
Emilia had hoisted up her dress slightly to allow her to crouch, and talk sweetly to Duncan and Bryce while holding Eleanor tight, her tiny body shaking with her cries, her head buried in the fabric of her mother's red dress. She flicked her gaze up to see Alistair almost stood over her, and her eyes, too, were brimming with tears, but the smile breaking across her face told him everything he needed to know. Ophelia scurried over to Emilia, whispering something in her ear before walking away, leaving the family to their reunion. Besides the noises of Eleanor's soft crying, and the twins' incessant bickering and cheering, and sounds that sometimes sounded like words but weren't always, both Emilia and Alistair were silent. Emilia was the first to break the silent,
"Hello." Her voice was barely above a whisper, her eyes always on him, watching him as he knelt down in front of her, doing his best not to simply collapse in front of her.
"Hello," Alistair replied, unable to keep the smile off his face. "I missed you. I missed you a lot."
"You look just how I remember. Oh, Alistair, I missed you too. I'm sorry I left. I'm so sorry." She almost choked on her words. Alistair placed a hand on her cheek,
"There's no need for apologies. We can talk later, now, we enjoy this moment. While we can."
Despite all that she had to tell him, Emilia could not argue.