I own nothing of Dragon Age. Just Amilee.
I have no idea if this will be hard to follow or not. The back story will come, little by little, but let me know if I'm not explaining well.
Long ago, Amilee had realized that if someone cast dispel upon her, it lessened the strength of her gift enough for her to control it. Sandal, that sweet little dwarf of enchantment, had taken a chuck of red lyrium and made her a dispelling runestone while he had resided at the Hawke mansion. While the others were afraid of the stuff, Amilee wasn't effected by any strange music. It simply made her more powerful.
After Anders had blown up the Chantry, however, the Hawke party had been forced to take on Knight-Commander Meredith and her red lyrum sword. Unfortunately, Amilee's dispel rune reacted badly with the sword and the resonance threw her back in time. Crazy stuff like that seemed to be a constant side effect of her life.
When Alistair and the Hero of Ferelden had found Amilee in the Kocari wilds, she had gladly joined them in their quest to defeat the Archdemon. It was then she'd discovered yet another uniqueness that set her apart from the norm. She was immune to the Blight.
Duncan and Alistair were beyond shocked when she'd simply thrown up the blood she had swallowed at the Joining, unaltered by the attempted ingestion. Aedan Cousland was the only other to survive the ritual, becoming a full fledged Grey Warden. Duncan had been adamant about keeping Amilee with them after the defeat of the Archdemon, certain the secrets in her blood would be the key to curing the Blight. But after he had died, the notion was quickly dispersed from their minds.
The whole of the journey to fulfill the accords and recruit people for the coming battle had been taxing, but by the end of it all, Amilee had become quite adept at fighting as a rogue, not just a mage. She had also concocted an elaborate plan to change the future of Thedas, and in turn, her past. If only she'd realized what the outcome would have been...
Amilee shook herself out of her memories as her current companions finished packing up and they set off again. The weather was blessedly calm, but the dynamic between the party members had become agitated, an uneasy silence falling amongst them.
At first the tension was only between Evangeline and Rhys, due to events the night before, but that evening when they camped, Rhys had confided in the other two mages about Cole as well. Adrian got very angry, accusing the boy of some murders at the Spire. When Rhys didn't not deny this, everyone became distraught, including her. Harsh words flew and suggestions that Cole could be a demon left a bad taste in Amilee's mouth.
She got up and left the group to their silly squabbling and trotted off into the night in search for the young man. He wasn't a demon, of that she was certain. A spirit perhaps, but not one that was susceptible to her power, otherwise she would sense herself drawing off that negative energy. She wasn't really capable of communicating this with Wynne while the others were around, so she couldn't blame her for her assumption of Cole's nature. But she refused to believe it.
The murders, on the other hand, did concern her. It didn't seem like a young man of Cole's personality to retain bloodlust and from the way Rhys had spoken of him, he was torn between his friendship for Cole and the need to clear his name. There had to be more to it than simple murder. She'd been wrong before, but unlike the others, she would reserve judgment until after she investigated herself.
The hum had been dim at first, but as she backtracked the path they had come, it intensified until she spotted him huddled down under an old oak tree. He looked up and saw her, as if sensing her presence as well, and froze.
Time stood still as their eyes met, pale blue eyes versus aquamarine, neither moving, seemingly in fear of scaring off the other.
Finally, he broke the spell. "Hello."
She ambled over to him slowly, still uncertain as to whether or not he would flee from her. But he remained still, his gaze unwavering on her. She sat down near him, lifting her paw to place on his leg, gauging his reaction.
When he didn't move away she laid down, her head in his lap, allowing him to timidly run his hand along her head.
"I've never met a wolf before," he said with a start. "I didn't think they were so nice."
Huffing in response, she scooted closer, sharing her warmth with him. He was still damp from the night before and she could feel the cold of autumn had set in his body through his leathers. She didn't know how long they stayed like that, but the more they did, the more confident he became with his touch upon her.
It was an odd sensation, to be scratched behind the ears, along the scruff of her neck above her armor. It was akin to the feel of a hairbrush being dragged gently through your hair, just concentrated in a smaller area. It was soothing, along with the reverberation of serenity that she drew from him. So much so, that she began to doze off. It wasn't until he began speaking again, that she realized she had.
"Rhys doesn't understand. If I leave, that Knight-Captain could kill him. He wasn't there. He didn't see, didn't feel the wrongness of the man in the black armor." He shuddered and continued. "He's my only friend, I can't... I can't-"
He hung his head and Amilee sat up so he could wrap his arms around her once more. She waited patiently for the opportunity and as his hand encountered the rune at the base of her neck, she thought, "It'll be alright, Cole."
With a yelp he shrunk back from her, eyes wide in shock.
Unperturbed by this reaction, she calmly laid low to the ground, ears back submissively, and looked up at him, willing his fear to dissipate. When he calmed, she crawled to him, belly scraping the earth, and maneuvered his hand back onto her head.
Following her lead, he let his hand travel back to touch the rune once more.
"It's okay, Cole. I won't hurt you."
"What are you?" he whispered, wariness warring with curiosity.
"My name is Amilee. I could be your friend too, if you want."
"Amilee," he repeated, testing the name on his tongue. "You want to be my friend?"
"I'd like that, yes. I want to help you."
"Like Rhys wants to help me?" he questioned, brows drawn in confusion.
"Not exactly. It's just, you're alone. You shouldn't be alone. Not like this."
He seemed confounded by her attempted assurance, unable to respond for a time. "What do you mean, not like this?"
"Not like... You're stumbling around like you're lost. Have you ever been on your own out here?"
His face fell, dejected, as he admitted, "No. I haven't left the Spire since I got there. The templars... They left me in the cell and after a while I was able to get out. No one sees me. No one ever remembers me. Except Rhys... and now you." His head cocked to the side and his eyes cleared for a moment. "Warmth pressing, pulling to purify," he murmured, before shaking his head as if coming out of a trance. "What are you?"
"I'm... different. I'm a special kind of mage. It's hard to explain. Templars wouldn't understand which is why I'm like this right now, so they don't discover me... So you say nobody sees you?"
"I'm a ghost. I think. Rhys can see me, was my only friend for a long time. But hes afraid of me now. He wants to take me to the templars."
"Because you killed people. Why did you kill them?"
He hesitated, frowning in shame. "When I go to them, I know they will see me and I free them. The templars couldn't hurt them and they wouldn't feel pain anymore. It makes me feel real, keeps me from falling... It upset Rhys though. I don't like him angry with me. I'll try not to do it again, even if..." His eyes grew distant and dark at the latter part of the statement.
She nuzzled his neck to regain his attention. "Shh. It's alright, we don't have to talk about it anymore." Sniffing the air, she detected a sweet aroma. "Are you hungry Cole?"
"Yes," he replied morosely.
"I will return, then. Give me a moment."
She meandered back to the camp, as if she had simply been scouting the perimeter. Wynne had thought nothing of her absence, having retired to her tent for the night. The other two women couldn't be bothered by her, but Rhys eyed her as if he knew where she had gone, giving her a quirky smile.
Sniffing at the roasted pheasant they had set aside for her, she stared at Rhys as she picked it up, then disappeared once more into the night.
The next couple of days were quiet, the party seemingly too angry with Rhys to make small talk. Both evenings, Amilee had retreated from them, finding her way to Cole, and sharing her meal with him. She would lay beside him so he was warm as they slept through the night. They would talk for a bit, more so him than her, and she listened, letting him tell her what he could remember of his life at the Spire and encounters with Rhys.
Each time he explained a part of it, when he seemed to fall into despair, she would distract him; either sticking her cold nose in his face or, if his hand was on her rune, she would bring him back by singing a song and he would hug her in gratitude before falling to sleep, lulled by the sound of her voice. When they awoke, she would kiss his cheek in goodbye and wander back to the camp before the others woke.
Into the third day, as the four humans rode their horses, Amilee listened as Evangeline questioned Rhys out of the blue.
"Your invisible friend is behind us, I assume?" she asked incredulously.
"Where it not for our furred friend here wandering off suspiciously with her food every night, I wouldn't know. I don't see him."
Looking over her shoulder to narrow her eyes at Amilee, she replied, "You think the wolf is skulking off to share a meal with an invisible man?"
"She was with me the night I told you about him. She can see him too."
Doubt was evident in her features, until Amilee stared up at her and gave her a feral smile.
Wynne spoke, chastising, "Amilee, is that true?" She halted her horse to look down at her companion and everyone else followed suit.
"If the wolf is consorting with a demon, she could be possessed at any time," Adrian commented. "It could influence her, command her to kill us all in our sleep."
For the first time Amilee growled at them in protest, a low and dark sound that sent shivers up everyone's spine, save for Wynne. "Don't you take that tone, Amilee. Did you not hear me when I warned Rhys to stay away from this boy? He is dangerous."
So am I, Amilee thought. But unless she revealed herself now she could not defend her reasoning. It would probably make everything worse if she tried. All she could do was hold their gazes, unwavering in where she stood on the matter.
Adrian sneered, "If she's going to act like that, I'd say put her down now. Save us the trouble."
Shaking her head, Wynne continued, "What are you thinking? I understand you might pity the boy, but you're putting us in danger by encouraging him to follow."
Rhys finally interjected, "He was going to follow us either way. Never mind what she does. I'm sure she can sense a good person from evil. If she wishes to ease his journey, that's her choice."
Evangeline cast incredulous glances between Rhys and Wynne, "You have no room to talk. And you, are you seriously having this conversation with an animal?"
Sighing, the older woman stepped down from her horse and knelt down to hold Amilee, discreetly placing her hand on the rune.
"Are you sure about this?" she whispered. "I don't understand, but you know I would trust you."
Amilee nuzzled Wynne's neck in pretense, her reply quick. "I know I can't convince you that he is innocent, but I cannot abandon him to the cold or starvation. You know I don't have it in me."
There was a pause, then a great sigh. "Very well. Just... be careful." The old woman stood again and turned to the templar. "I will allow it, for now. If she shows signs of demonic influence, you have my permission to kill her."
"How very reassuring," Evangeline quipped in exasperation. "Let us be off then."
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