Chapter One: Brothers and Sisters

There weren't many women amongst the Grey Wardens. In fact, she was the first one Alistair had met.

Lady Rosamond Cousland from Highever: skilled with knives and Maker knows what else. That was how Duncan first mentioned her. He forgot to mention that she was beautiful. In times when she was not looking, he could just stare at her for hours and not get bored. To him at least, it was amusing to watch how her golden red hair caught the last ray of the Korcari sunset or how she tried to steady her pendant between her breasts as they walked. He made that pendant for her while she had her first dream of the darkspawn. Since Grey Wardens were supposed to consider each other as brothers and sisters, he wondered if his thoughts could be considered incestuous.

He did also hear of her history: how she lost her family in one night when Arl Howe attacked and destroyed her home. Despite that, she was still able to get everything done. While he was still deep in mourning Duncan, she became the group's leader by default and was able to get them out of the Wilds with a witch in tow. Despite the impossibility of the situation: two junior Grey Wardens and a small rag tag group of fighters against a Blight she still believed that they could still win. She was amazing. No, he thought that that word did not even do her justice.

Sometimes he watched her toss in her sleep. She was having nightmares. During the times she thought everyone was asleep, she spoke with her dog, Fergus, which could prove to be confusing at times because she mentioned several times that her brother's name was Fergus too. If anything, that did prove her odd sense of humor.

"Do you think he's alive here somewhere Fergus?" she whispered as she lay her head on the dog's massive back as she looked at the stars.

The dog barked cheerfully.

"That's true. He probably stinks now too. Well, if he's out there, I hope he is sleeping comfortably somewhere and dreaming good dreams."

Alistair looked at the sky above him. He wondered if it looked the same throughout Ferelden. He thought about his sister, Goldanna: if she was under the same sky, was she also thinking of him the way the woman with her was thinking and worrying about her own brother? He could only wonder.

Once at Lothering, he told her that he was a bastard raised by Arl Eamon and then later the Chantry. Of course, he did not tell her who his father was. No, the last thing he would want is another person to coddle him, especially a lady, especially her. No: all she had to know was that he was raised by dogs.

Speaking of dogs, she ate like a dog although she denied it. In some nights, she watched her creep to their food supply and raid it. The next morning, he would see most of the food gone. She was changing the way she was expected to change. As a senior Grey Warden, a brother-by-default, it was his task to take care of her. Not having known his sister yet, he wondered how a brother should act to a sister.

Seeing a bag of cookies left near the fire as they were encamped near Lothering, he had an idea.

That night, as she took over the Watch, he handed the bag to her.

"Here, take it. I know you are hungry, er…sister."

She looked up to him from her seat. "Uh…thanks. But weren't you eating these earlier?"

"I saved some for you."

She took the small bag in her hands. A small frown formed on her face as she examined the first cookie she picked. "Some of these are half-eaten."

"I did not touch those, I swear."

She ate them anyway. After finishing most of it in less than five minutes, he flashed an overly sweet smile that made her raise one eyebrow.

"I am glad you enjoyed it, sister."

Her reply was a weird questioning look. He probably looked weird.

As she placed the last cookie in her mouth, they heard a loud bellow near the fireside.

"Vashedan! Who stole my confections?!"

The guilty party did not stand up.


Two hours later, Rosamond and Alistair found themselves in Lothering once more.

"Why?" Alistair lamented. "Why did you have to eat those cookies?"

"You gave them to me, you idiot."

"That did not mean you had to eat it. They might have had poison for all we know."

"If it had poison, perhaps it was meant for you."

She was right, of course. It was he who took the cookies and forced her to look for a baker in the middle of the night.

Most of Lothering was quiet save for its tavern. There were no cookies to be found there. The bakery was closed, but both of them found no harm in knocking on its door. At the first knock they both heard barking, a crashing sound, and a shrewish voice yelling: "Oh shut up, Paws!" It took a few more knocks until the door opened, revealing a small brown terrier and a middle aged woman in her night clothes.

"What do you want?!" grumbled the woman. To both of them, that sounded almost like a threat since she looked like she had better days.

Rosamond spoke first. "We just wanted to buy some cookies."

"Sorry can't help you."

The woman was about to close the door to their face when Rosamond's quick hand stopped it.

"Madam, I am sorry that we have come at an inopportune time, but we would appreciate it if the baker could make some cookies for us tonight. It means a lot to our friend—"

"Look dear lady," retorted the woman, "even if I want to help you, my husband is on his way to Redcliffe and won't be back in a days.

The massive door was about to be shut to their faces once more had not the dog slipped past to do his business by a bush nearby. "Not again Paws!"

"Please Madam—we will pay you one gold piece if you let us use your husband's kitchen."

That did the trick. Soon, they found themselves confronted with the reality of dough, flour, salt, sugar, butter, eggs, vanilla, chocolate chips and a heated oven. Rosamond barely remembered how Nan made cookies for her, but she had enough help from a book she found on the cupboard which she contained the baker's cookie recipes. They divided the work: Alistair mixing ingredients in one bowl while she in another. Given that he never had any experience in kitchens save for raiding them, Rosamond ended up doing most of the mixing and chocolate positioning until the cookies were placed into the oven.

When the cookies were done, Alistair took one small bite and swallowed. Although it wanted a bit more sugar and it was a slightly overbaked, at least it tasted like a cookie. "It's…err…edible."

"Thanks a lot." Her eyebrows and lips twisted into a frown. "Well, you can expect nothing less from one of the most eligible women of Ferelden. By the way, I am also skilled with poisons."

"That explains why I feel like I'm going to die within the hour." His hands dramatically grabbed his neck while he made choking noises.

She did not seem to take the joke. She was silent for a few seconds as she took a seat by the fire. "I…I don't think I could ever let you die."

There was no chair beside her so he sat on the floor. Of all the things that could make her sad, it surprised him that it was the thought of him dying. Not many people could be affected about such a thought save perhaps for those who knew who his secret.

The kitchen became too silent. He smiled a naughty grin and inched his face close to the downcast face. "Aww…I did not know you cared for me so much. I am charming after all."

Her lean but strong arms pushed him back down. "Don't let it get to your head. You could be an idiot sometimes."

"Whoever said that idiots can't be charming?"

"They can't be charming because I said so."

He gave her a feigned frightened look.

"Seriously, I don't think I could cope about you dying because I don't think I could lose another person important to me. Being a Grey Warden and all, you're the closest thing I have to family. I know that this kind of thinking is selfish…"

Family. He never had one, but he was comforted by the thought that she thought of him as such.

"So as family, what do brothers and sisters usually do?"

"You learn to share." A smile formed on her lips as she took one cookie from the tray. He watched her break it into almost equal halves and gave him one piece. He was about to eat his piece when he noticed that her eyes seemed to stare and wander far away as if she weren't in the kitchen anymore with him.

He felt for her hand and gave him her piece. "What if I want to give you everything? What if I wouldn't mind if I do not get anything? What would you call that?"

Her eyes caught his. He did no know if it was confusion he saw in them as she held his gaze. He held her hand until she pulled it away. "That's called being fair." Like a hungry seagull, she swallowed both pieces almost whole.


It was almost daybreak when they got back to camp. Fergus, who had been keeping watch in their place, almost dove at his mistress when she gestured him to sit down in time and patted him. She silently crept to Sten's tent to bestow upon him the night's labor. Once she was done, she went back to where she was keeping post and laid her head on her dog's back. Alistair sat on the space close to her a bit far away from the mabari.

"So, uh…do brothers usually inspect their sisters' suitors?"

"Only annoying ones," she said with her eyes closed. "Which is sadly I think a common brotherly characteristic."

"How many have you had?"

"I don't like bragging. Thank you very much."

"Good for you."

"Thanks."

"Anyone interesting?"

"No. Not interested in getting married to babies or old lechers. I am not impressed by titles either."

"What about princes? I heard they were charming."

"Probably. Only good-looking ones please."

He did not know if she fell asleep or was at least trying to sleep. As she fell silent, he could not help but think: If she only knew…If she only knew…

Of course, he did not want her to know. As he sat, he noticed a red rose blossoming near her. He smiled. After Duncan's death, nothing or no one has ever made him smile save her.

When the sun was up, the party rose and continued traveling to Redcliffe.