Disclaimer: I do not own these characters.

Note: Chapter 2 in the process of being finished. "the steamy bit".

Start:

The Warden sat, eyes bewitched by the flames which consumed the last branch of the evening. In her entranced state, she did not notice Alistair's own eyes glued to hers as he sat across the fire with a look of concentration and furrowed brow. His restless mind contented itself with resting on the subject of the woman – maker she was something, although this dreamy stupor she seemed to be in was not something he was accustomed to viewing. Never before could he scrutinize thoroughly the lines of her face without provoking a leer or, these days, a playful gleam from those mischievous eyes. Her face was softer than it looked when her mind was present. When aware of herself, she had perfect control over her muscles and movements- always aware of her surroundings, constantly choreographing future footsteps.

She seemed relaxed now – peaceful. He recalled that he only recognized this look from the few events which they slept next to each other around the campfire, the first time being on the evening following their introduction -

He remembered standing vigil next to her resting body, ready to wake her at any sign of disturbance on her face. The night after his own joining, he recalled, had been unbearable. He had been trapped within his nightmares with no one to rescue him from the paralysis of sleep, unable to draw breath enough to cry out as his mind conjured demons and pain… no. He could not have let her go through the same pain, and had been resolved to protect the small and determined woman as much as he could before the real adventure began. Although he had not known his love for her then, he had felt a duty towards her happiness. She had gone through so much, he knew, and though she had not yet shared her feelings of remorse and sorrow, he knew that there was pain behind those determined eyes during their first encounter - pain he could empathize with and understand all too well.

Now, by the fire, she was unmasked – raw. She looked smaller and more helpless than he had ever seen her. Even during her first nightmares, she had shown a fighting spirit against whatever had haunted her in her mind, thrashing angrily in her bed roll. Now she looked uncertain and woeful. Did she share the same dark thoughts as him, now that the end was drawing closer? Did she feel the same anger at the fact that she was a slave to duty, wasting her doomed-to-end-early life in this brutal way? Did she also feel guilty at wanting the burden to be on someone else? Of course she did. She, like him, was a Grey Warden, and together they were alone in this dark place. This realization resonated in him a clear and pure desire. In that moment he knew he never wanted to be apart from her. He wanted her to always feel as if she were meaningful and cherished by him- that her life is not wasted away for the good of something bigger than them both, but rather that it fulfilled something much more intimate. What more can two people achieve in life than pure and selfless love? How dare they feel worthless in the arms of one another? But no, she was not his yet. Not completely. He had paled away from the idea of trusting himself completely with her, ashamed at not being adequate enough for her experienced body. He felt disgusted with himself. How could she respect such a shy and giddy school boy? No. He was far less mature than he let on.

In the few seconds this epiphany dawned on him, he had lost sight of her eyes and did not know how long they had been staring intently at his own face. He met the gaze with the same determination exhibited and with confidence he rose and walked over to her. Silently, she stood and waited for him to speak.

"I guess I really don't know how to ask you this" he said quietly, unabashedly. He felt a tremor of anticipation as his mind grasped the implication of his boldness. Maker's breath, this was going to be it.

"As me what?" she replied softly, eyes still looked on his own. Surely she must know. He gulped as his nerves started betraying his thoughts and heart played a tattoo in his chest.

"Ah. How do I say this?" he began hurriedly. What happened to that chord of determination he felt before? He was so confident a moment ago, but now it was impossible to form any kind of coherent sentence. All he could think about was the forbidden act he was resolved to perform now that the Templar's veil had finally been overcome… and Maker he wanted it. "You think it would be easier but, every time I'm around you I feel like my head's about to explode. I can't think straight." He waited to see if she was going to quit her state of composed silence and perhaps rescue him from his inaptitude.

"That's very sweet" she said, calmly, taking his hand in her own, squeezing it gently. Although her voice conveyed no mockery, there was a sparkle in her eye that showed her amusement. He could only keep going, loving her all the more for letting him plunder through this.

"Here's the thing," he continued. "Being near you… makes me crazy." He recalled all the awkward moments it took to get him to this point – all the attempts at separating himself from his desire for her, thinking that it would distract him from his duty. "But I can't imagine being without you. Not… ever." He regained his confidence now, knowing that together they could never be defeated in spirit. He took a final breath and met her gaze. He truly cherished her and felt warmth spread throughout his body. "I don't know how to say this in another way. I want to spend the night with you." He had done it. "Here. In the camp." Aha. He could breathe again, but a sudden of doubt washed over him as he saw no change in her gaze. He quickly gave both an out. "Maybe this is too fast… I... don't know... but – I know what I feel."

He watched her intently for a change of expression, to gage what sort of affect these words had on her. Damn her for being so good at controlling her expression. Only her eyes ever gave her away and in this moment the sparkle in them was intensified by the reflection of the glowing embers in the fire.

"Even though I'm not human like you?" she finally said, in the same quiet and confident voice she had adopted for this conversation. Alistair couldn't bear this response – after all they had been through together, she felt that this could be a barrier? His blood surged out of anger at his fellow men that created an air of superiority over their brothers in kin and this anger only intensified the desire within him to want to protect her forever.

"Especially because of that" he said as he drew her hand to his lips dutifully and brushed his lips against them.

She smiled a reply and her composure began to wane as she took this in. "You want to spend the night. Are you sure?" She perhaps was remembering all the awkward bits that happened before. But he was sure and he dove in to an explanation of the change that had happened.

"I wanted to wait for the perfect time, the perfect place…but when will it be perfect? If things were, we wouldn't even have met. We sort of…stumbled into each other, and despite this being the least perfect time, I still found myself falling for you in between all the fighting and everything else. I really don't want to wait anymore. I've…I've never done this before. You know that. I want it to be with you…while we have the chance. In case…" he cut himself off out of respect for both of them. He knew she could handle reality, but this was a time for them to forget about it for a moment. He drew breath and waited for her to reply. She did not protest against the impending doom he almost referred to, and there was understanding in her eyes along with a new gleam of longing.

"Very well," she said now truly smiling. "If that is what you really want."

"I think so." He said, kissing her fingers once more, drawing a quick breath from his beloved, "I hope so."