"But its not my birthday. I. . .don't really have one, not that I can remember," Cole explained to the group for the umpteenth time.

"Well you said it yourself, this is the anniversary of the date that you made the choice to leave the circle. It was like you becoming your own person again. That is as much of a birthday as anything," Varric responded.

"And any reason is a good reason to go out share drinks with your friends," Iron Bull added as he gave Cole a great clap on the shoulder. Cole staggered a little under the weight of Bull's friendly gesture.

"Yes. . .drinks. I heard the Inquisitor describing the last time you drank ale and things did not end so well."

Bull let out a great belly laugh at the memory.

"Ah yes that ball a few weeks ago. Now that was fun drinking with all those Orelsian nobles."

"Thankfully you lasted until after the Inquisitor's discussion with the Empress. Imagine if it had been before."

"I'm not so sure Cole, she seemed to be the one laughing while our fearless leader was the mortified one," Varric added with a chuckle.

"Still. . ."

"Ah stop worrying Cole," Sera said as she put her arm around Cole's shoulders. "I promise I won't let Bull or Varric do anything too terrible to you."

"And what about you?"

"What about me?" Sera replied with a wink.

Cole just sighed as the other three burst into laughter.

Cole cautiously eyed his mug of ale. The liquid was dark with a nice layer of thick head on top. A strong, though not unpleasant, smell wafted out of the mug into his nose. Though still a little nervous he was not as wound up as he feared he would be.

Varric raised his mug in toast and the others followed suit.

"To Cole, our young friend who has found the courage to stand with us!" he said.

"A comrade I trust at my side in battle and worth fighting for!" Bull added.

"And to what will be the first of many!" Sera finished.

As they all grinned at him Cole gave the best smile he could and replied "cheers!"

Varric took a healthy drink from his mug but nothing too deep for a dwarf. Despite being an elf of rather slight stature, Sera still took a long, deep pull from her own drink and enjoyed every bit of it. Bull drained his mug in a single pour and dropped his mug onto the table with a loud belch.

Cole took a hesitant first sip. The ale had a very rich flavor that was an interesting balance of bitter and sweet. He took a second, deeper drink and found that it was even more pleasurable than the first one. He realized they were all looking at him, waiting to hear his thoughts on his first drink.

"You know, I actually like it."

"See, what I'd tell you? Nothing to worry about. I knew you'd like it!" Sera cheered.

Several pints later, Cole was feeling exceptionally good. Except that his lips and tongue felt extremely heavy. His mind knew what he wanted to say but his mouth refused to cooperate. No matter, everyone just seemed to laugh.

Varric was telling another story, this one about his time with the Champion of Kirkwall and a certain pirate.

"So no shit, there I was just standing outside the Chantry, chatting politely with one of the Reverend Mothers. Suddenly Hawke appears behind me with Izzy in tow! I swear Hawke had been gone less than five minutes! She was like a damn shadow. I have no idea how she got in and got Izzy out so fast, much less without being seen!"

Bull, Sera and Cole were rolling with laughter.

"The best part was Izzy was not even remotely concerned she had nearly been caught in Sister's bed, with the Sister mind you, by the Grand Cleric no less!

'I was just getting a private tutoring lesson on some of the more intimate points of religion' Izzy told us. She offered to tell show Hawke what she had learned. I swear I thought Hawke was going to deck her right there in the middle of High Town."

Cole could not stop laughing. Varric and his stories were just too funny! In fact everything right now felt incredibly funny. Bull downing what had to be his tenth ale was hilarious. Sera slopping some of hers down her chin had him in stitches. The way his head was buzzing and the world kept spinning was so great.

Cole woke the next morning not exactly feeling sick, but he was not at his best. His throat was incredibly dry and his stomach growled at him. He groaned slightly as he lifted his head off his pillow. He must not have moved at all during the night as his neck was board stiff from staying in the same position all night.

There was a knock at his door and he responded with a very hoarse "come in". The Inquisitor walked in with a try holding a glass of juice and a few light pieces of bread. She placed it on the stand next to his bed. She gently sat down on the edge of his bed and patted his shoulder.

"Fun night?"

"Yes it was. Though this morning is no where near as nice."

She had to laugh. Cole reminded her a lot of her own younger brothers. While she knew he was more than capable of taking care of himself, she was still fiercely protective of him and had to personally be sure he was not in too bad of shape after last night.

"Just take your time and slowly eat some breakfast. You'll be alright once you get some food in you."

He nodded weakly in response. She patted him on the shoulder again before standing up.

"Happy birthday by the way. I'm sorry I missed the fun last night, but duty called. . ."

Cole gave her a genuine smile. "I understand. I know you would have come if you could. And it was still a lot of fun."

"Excellent. Next time I promise I'll be there."