A few short drabbles looking into the character of Sabriel Mahariel, Hero of Ferelden, Arlessa of Amaranthine and Commander of the Grey in Ferelden. This is the same Sabriel that appears in my other story. This was written (and left unfinished) before I had even conceived the idea of When It All Ends.
Decided to share it cause it is sorta fun and cute(ish) and just gives a little bit more insight into Sabriel.
I should note that this was written before the release of DA2 - so if i end up continuing this story I will probably tweak it so that it fits in with DA2 lore and whatnot.
Enjoy :)
Disclaimer: Bioware owns Dragon Age etc. etc. etc.
Warden Commander Sabriel Mahariel pushed the stack of papers in front of her away in disgust. After several hours of being stuck in her chair she was in no mood to sign anymore creators-be-damned forms, especially since she knew that it was a beautiful day outside. She had almost managed to escape Vigil's Keep that morning only to be caught by Seneschal Varel and Nathaniel, each man sporting large piles of forms.
Normally the dalish warden would dutifully sign each and every one of the papers; but since the showdown with the Architect and the Mother, with both the Keep and Amaranthine both needing repairs, she had a scarce minute to herself and it was driving her insane. When the small shemlen letters had begun dancing across the page each time she tried to read them she finally gave up.
The small elf got to her feet and crept to the door to her office and peered around the corner; searching for a sign of Varel or Nathaniel (she was certain that he, as her second-in-command, had teamed up with the Seneschal to keep her eternally bound to that cursed desk) or anyone else who might stop her with one trivial matter or another.
She felt her heart leap as she saw all was clear. She snuck out of the room, keeping low and close to the walls as she made her through the hall and up the stairs towards her quarters. She almost ran into Sigrun as she reached the second floor.
"Com-" the dwarf began before Sabriel clamped a hand over the other woman's mouth, holding a finger up to her mouth to indicate silence.
Sigrun gave the elf a curious look but said nothing as Sabriel pulled her hand away; glancing up and down the corridor to make sure no one else was there. She gave the confused dwarf a quick thumbs up before sprinting the rest of her way to her door. When she was safely inside her room she donned light hunting leathers she had received as a gift from her elder and the clan. She quickly slung Starfang over her shoulder before grabbing Farsong and her quiver.
Without a second thought she threw herself out of the window, grabbing at the vines that weaved their way up the stones of the keep. She quickly clambered the rest of the way down and made her way towards the gate, trying to be inconspicuous as possible. She gave the guards a brief nod as she passed through the gate before breaking into a run. Within minutes the stone walls of Vigil's Keep had disappeared and she was alone in the forest.
She usually was not one for frolicking in the woods, but after being cooped up for so long and finally getting free – frolicking is what she did. She laughed and giggled like a small child as she ran through the forest, almost dancing through the trees.
She was having so much fun that she didn't notice Anders until she tripped over him.
She rushed around a tree only to discover the apostate mage bent over picking at small bush. By the time he had registered in her mind it was already too late. She went over the top of the mage and somersaulted through the air and landed in a heap of elf, leather and steel five meters away.
Anders was the first to recover "What in Andraste's name was that for?"
"Didn't see you. Sorry, Anders." Sabriel said as she disentangled herself from her weapons. The mage rubbed the side where she had hit him, pouting. "I was…distracted and didn't see you until it was too late."
"You're getting sloppy Commander." Anders commented with a smirk, "What if I had been a bandit or a darkspawn or something?"
"Then you would be lying on the ground in two."
"Ouch." He replied in mock hurt.
Sabriel rolled her eyes. She liked the mage; he was a lot more amiable than some of her previous encounters with mages.
Flemeth was just downright insane (she tried not to think about the fire-breathing dragon side of her too much);
Morrigan had been difficult to get along with and it had taken a lot of time and patience to get the young woman to open up;
Wynne, though likeable, had been too lofty for the elf's tastes (and the way she talked had near drove Sabriel up the wall at times);
and Velanna, despite also being dalish, had always been quite hostile to Sabriel and had dared to even called her a flat-ears when she thought Sabriel hadn't been paying attention.
And the circle mages? Although she pitied their plight she thought they were a bunch of weak willed sissies. She knew it was her dalish upbringing (wandering around Ferelden for the first time had quickly put things into perspective for her) but she could not imagine being virtually held captive like slaves and not trying to fight back.
Incidentally, the mages fighting back had also led to the fall of the circle a little less than a year ago – a mess she had had to clean up in order to get the mages to help Conner so that they could help the arl which had eventually led to…
She let her train of thought slide, just thinking about how many times she had had to run back and forth across Ferelden like some sort of messenger boy still irked her. After she had almost drawn her dagger on Bann Teagan and Isolde, Alistair had had to take her out of the room to cool off while Leliana had discussed the details of their newest 'quest'.
Sabriel got to her feet, brushing dirt off her armour as she did so "So what brings out to this neck of the woods? I seem to recall you weren't too fond of nature."
"Not nature so much, more along the lines of getting dirty." He grimaced down at his dirt-covered robes "It's a mage thing."
She walked over and helped the man to his feet "I think it is a shemlen mage thing."
"Commander" Anders said warningly.
"What?"
The mage shook his head disapprovingly "You're doing it again."
Sabriel stared at him for a few moments before she caught on, "I think it is a human mage thing." She said sighing.
Despite having left her clan over a year ago and being in (mostly) human company since then, she still had the habit of calling humans shemlen – a habit she was trying to break. It had been pointed out to her on numerous occasions that it was not proper that the Hero of Ferelden and the Ferelden Commander of the Grey referred to all humans as shemlen. Thus, with the aid of her current wardens, she had been trying to break the habit; so far she had had limited success.
"Not all mages are human." The smirk returned. Anders loved pulling his commander's chain when he got the chance.
"Most non-circle apostates and dalish keepers are not bothered by a bit of dirt. Only circle mages." She corrected. "Which brings me back to my original question: what are you doing?"
"Collecting herbs mostly, we were running a little low and, well it was a nice day, so I thought I would go get some." Anders replied while brushing the dirt off his robes.
"Elfroot?" Sabriel glanced at the plant the mage had been picking at before.
"Yes, mostly elfroot, but if I find anything else I'll take it. Never know when I'll be free the next time."
The elf looked at the plant then back at the mage "Need some assistance?" she offered.
"No need Commander, I was planning to head back after that bush anyways." The mage smiled "You can return to running through the woods like a rabid mabari."
"A rabid…" she began in protest but she let it drop "Very well then. Oh, if Varel or Nathaniel ask where I am – you haven't seen me." She shot Anders a hard, commanding look "Got it?"
The mage laughed, "Skipping your duties are we Commander?" he quickly raised his hands in defense as the elf's amber eyes narrowed. "I won't tell them a thing. I promise."
"Good. I will see you later then Anders." She gave the mage a curt nod and then disappeared into the forest, leaving no trace she had been there mere seconds before.
Despite having seen it for himself several times, every time Anders was always a little stunned that the elf could move so quietly. She ghosted around the keep, through darkspawn filled caves and among the trees of the forest without a sound; disappearing one moment then reappearing the next – almost as if by magic.
But then again, she was the Hero of Ferelden who was supposedly 7 feet tall (pushing 5 foot 3), shot lighting bolts out of her eyes (she did have glare than could send soldiers running in fear) and could destroy darkspawn with her mind (she could certainly kill them with those blades of hers). Something as simple such as vanishing like a ghost fitted in with the tale perfectly – if you did not know the woman it would be very hard to distinguish between the truth and the myth.
It was just before sundown when the Commander returned to the keep, feeling very relaxed and calm after having the afternoon to herself. A doe was slung over her shoulders, a treat she had hunted and bought back for the cook. Adrenaline from the hunt still ran through her, making her feel light and buoyant – she had not taken any thrill from hunting since she had left her clan. During the blight she had hunted, but more so for necessity than for fun.
She walked into the main hall, her prize still over her shoulders. Both the Seneschal and Nathaniel came up to her, mouths open as if they were about to speak but Sabriel cut them off by dropping the deer onto the ground between her and them. She gazed proudly down at her swift and clean kill and then motioned to one of the servants, giving instructions that the deer be taken to the kitchens.
Varel was the first to speak, watching as two servants hefted the deer away "Commander, where were you?" he demanded, "You left without telling anyone – we did not know where you were."
"I escaped." The elf replied bluntly.
Both Varel and Nathaniel blinked.
"I was sick of signing all those forms" she began to elaborate "and it was such a nice day outside and I hadn't any time to myself since all this" she gestured vaguely around her "began. So I decided enough was enough and I escaped; I snuck out, got the gates and ran for the hills – as you humans say."
"But those forms needed to be signed today." Varel exclaimed, staring at the elf in disbelief.
Sabriel waved her hand dismissively, a trait she had picked up from Morrigan "I am certain that the blight won't begin again because some forms are signed late."
"Commander," Nathaniel began "those forms are necessary to get this Vigil's Keep back in fighting condition, every day you delay signing the forms is a day longer until were back to full strength. You can't just–"
"Nathaniel," Sabriel interjected, fixing her amber gaze on her second-in-command "as my second-in-command I give you permission to sign forms regarding bringing the keep back to normal."
Nathaniel stared at her as she turned back to the Seneschal, grinning, "Problem solved then? Yes? Good. Anything else?"
"You can't just–" Nathaniel began again.
"Yes I can." She crossed her arms, not prepared to give any ground "At the rate you two are going, I am going to die of paperwork before the taint can kill me."
Both men flinched at the mention of the taint, they both knew full well what that entitled "Nathaniel can sign for all the mundane things that need signing, major decisions are still my department, but for pretty much everything else Nathaniel's signature is just as good as mine."
She let her gaze soften as she looked at the warden "I trust you Nathaniel, that is why I am letting you take this responsibilities – you are my second-in-command after all."
Nathaniel's shallow complexion reddened just a little "I- I am honored Commander."
The elf grinned widely at the man. Problem solved, crisis averted and freedom retrieved. "Is there anything else Seneschal?"
The older man composed himself again "Actually, there is." Sabriel resisted the strong urge to sigh "About your… 'escape' this afternoon. As the Commander of the Grey and the Arlessa of Amaranthine, you cannot disappear without letting us know, and you cannot just go off on your own." He closed his eyes and began to massage his temples, "It is dangerous for you, and you still have enemies out there who would not hesitate to try to kill you when you are by yourself. The nobles' plot may have failed but that does not mean there is not anyone else who would take that opportunity. Also leaving without notifying one of us means that no one in the Keep knows where you are."
"As the Commander, you have responsibilities, as does everyone else here in the Keep and you must complete your duties otherwise the whole Keep suffers. You must understand Commander, it is not just about you, it is about everyone in the Keep…" Varel's brow furrowed slightly "She's gone, hasn't she?" he asked Nathaniel, his eyes still closed.
The rogue let out a long sigh "Almost as soon as you closed your eyes Seneschal."
The next day Nathaniel moved into her office.
She watched, slightly amused, as two guards tried to maneuver an old wooden desk through the door. Nathaniel stood nearby and tried to give them instructions to help them in the feat, without much success.
"No, tilt it to your other left." Nathaniel ran his hand down his face in exasperation; dealing with the guards was proving to be exceedingly difficult (unbeknownst to him he had happened to recruit two of the dimmest guards in the Keep for the task). He pointedly ignored his Commander as she sat at her desk, grinning like a Cheshire cat.
As the desk got stuck again the elf gave a little snigger "I am glad you find this so amusing Commander." Nathaniel said icily, casting a sharp look at the woman.
"Oh don't mind me," Sabriel purred, her attention briefly turning back to the stack of papers before her, "I was just wondering if you required any assistance." Her eyes flashed back up to meet his, laughter dancing the amber depths.
"That will not be necessary." the man replied through his teeth.
Twenty minutes, three jammed fingers and one spilled inkwell later, Nathaniel stood back and admired his new workspace – all set up and prepared for whatever paperwork that came his way, which, incidentally, came flying over his shoulder and hit the wall before falling heavily on his desk.
He spun quickly to stare incredulously at his Commander "What…?"
She cut him off, pointing at the bound pile of papers on his desk "That is your share for today."
He turned to stare at the stack of forms, all tied up neatly in string, and he felt his stomach drop – the stack was huge, it would take him the rest of the day to read and sign them all…
"Those are all the forms regarding the rebuilding and upkeep of the Keep," Sabriel said from behind him "the forms for supply requests and Wade's materials are there as well."
"I need to sign… all of those?" Nathaniel managed to rasp out.
"I wasn't lying when I said that I was going to die of paperwork." The man turned back to his Commander and found her gaze fixed on him "Admittedly, I've given you the leftovers from yesterday as well as today's batch of forms so there is more than usual; but for one person it is still an enormous amount of work."
And then she grinned, getting up from her desk as she did so, "Well, you better get started then, Ser Nathaniel; because it's going to take you a loooooong time to finish them all." She walked around the desk and headed towards the door.
"Where are you going, Commander?"
Sabriel stopped, and looked back over her shoulder at him – her face the picture of innocence "I've finished all my paperwork for today." She told him.
Nathaniel felt his face twitch "What about all these?" he asked gesturing to the papers on his desk.
A slow malicious grin spread across her face "All yours." She replied before disappearing through the door.