Author's note: This is just a teensy idea I had whilst playing avidly on my copy of Inquisition. Two hundred hours in and I still have a lot of quests and operations to do; I am loving it. As these are drabbles, they will not be very long and the writing will be very inconsistent. There will never be a true ending because whenever I am bored and have an idea that I do not have the time or the urge to write forever…well, it will be penned down here.
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragon Age, plan to own it, or expect to own it. In short…I'm useless. XD
Greenery, lush and vibrant, covered as far as the eye could see. Reyn was glad of the new scenery; the desert farther west was killer, especially when you wore heavy armor and equipment. The tall Warden eyed the area with a thoughtful eye, listening for any disturbance that might hail her on the wind.
Her fiery hair had grown long over the years, a far cry from the short locks she had possessed when she was still a young noble with both her parents alive and all the fine comforts nobility had granted her. Reyn had never been a fool and had trained extensively with a blade for years, but looking back now she realized how soft she had still been as a young teen.
At nearly thirty years, Reyn had changed dramatically from that time in her life when her world had turned asunder and the Grey Wardens had become her refuge. A long, thin scar marked the smooth skin of a cheek tanned from traversing in the sun too often. Her steel blue eyes had grown the light of experience, the laugh lines that would have surrounded her mouth long since vanishing. It had been too long since she had actually laughed; not since leaving Leliana and searching for the cure to her own biological clock, made shorter due to the taint swirling in her system.
Reyn sighed, a faraway look edging in blue waters. How long had it been since she had seen ginger hair a shade lighter than her own and eyes that rivaled the blue of the sky? How many years since that finely accented voice soothed her mind and soft hands banished her fears? And her song….Reyn truly missed hearing her bard sing. Leliana was a master in many forms, but music was perhaps her best and the one she derived the most joy from.
Reyn had heard faint whispers for a time about Sister Nightingale, Leliana's new pseudonym. From the way people talked, Leliana was now the foreign title. It worried the warden to hear how significant the changes were. Leliana never relished killing; deception…perhaps. But killing? It was no longer in her blood, and Reyn shuddered to think about the woman she might see when the cure was finally found. The Cousland warrior had never wanted to leave Leliana, but knew that if she left things as they were, the Calling would end their storybook romance before its time.
The weary hero meandered over to a swift moving stream, slowly sinking down gratefully on a rock warmed by the rays of the sun. The pack strapped across her shoulders alongside her shield was dropped at armored feet. Reyn mopped at her sweaty brow, eyes slowly closing as exhaustion made her moves sluggish and her head feel heavy. She had been traveling for hours now and her body demanded rest, even when her mind protested it.
In a few hours she would be at it again, moving farther and farther away from Thedas and the love of her life. But, with each step she took, she gained more of a chance at the happiness she could see with Leliana. Reyn wanted to spend the rest of her life safe with her bard, maybe even start a family. The possibilities were endless. Reyn would always be a Grey Warden; after all, they gave her the chance at not only life, but also revenge against Arl Howe for the death of her parents and friends. But, just because she was a warden did not mean she had to forego a life of content with Leliana.
I will find a cure for the taint and avoid the Calling, and I will come back to you Leli. I swear it.