Author's Note: I am writing this literally days before the new DLC "Witch Hunt" comes out, so I am 100% certain it will blow all of this out of the water. However, considering the beauty of RPGs is that you can actually make choices, somehow I don't feel too bad. What the heck would a Dragon Age AU look like, anyway? Barring a high school one… *shudder* All feedback is appreciated, regardless of nature. Also, I hope to be updating this fairly regularly, but I work a rotating schedule, so no promises. I will try, though. Also, thanks to mille libri for leaving me my one review, and to those of you who added my story to their alerts or favorites list.

Find Morrigan
by wayfaringpanda

Chapter 2: Wet Dog

Leliana appreciated the smell of the sea. She loved the way the salt tickled her nose, the damp freshness blowing against her cheeks. It was bracing, and enticing, and spoke to her bard's heart of adventure and freedom. She also absolutely despised crossing it. It had been with much dismay that she had realized that, in order to shave a few weeks off of her journey to Ferelden, she would have to take a boat to Jader, a few days north of Orzammar. It had turned her a terrible shade of green, one she was certain clashed horribly with her hair. Most of her time had been spent below deck.

"It is certainly nostalgic," she mused, eyeing the townsfolk who bustled about the pier, offloading cargo and shooting her looks of curiosity and suspicion. She sniffed again, then grinned. "Wet dog." As if to affirm her arrival in the country, a pair of large dogs went tearing right past her, barking loudly in their excitement. "I am back, I see."

She settled her pack across her shoulders, made sure she had easy access to the recurve, then started out. A quick copper to a child underfoot and she found her way to the merchants. Despite the look of distaste that crossed his face when he recognized her accent, he served her readily enough. No one was in any position to turn down coin nowadays. Truth be told, it had been rare to begin with. Barbarians that they had been, the Fereldens were practical for the most part.

As she stepped out of the shop, the ring of steel against steel reached her ears. With a start, she looked in the direction the sound came from

a warrior, faster than she'd ever seen, snarling at the men who dared call him and his brothers traitors to their king, blade whipping out to punish those who would stand in his way

and ran towards the sound. Skidding around the corner, her hand on the bow ready to draw, she was momentarily stunned to see what appeared to be a field of men in battle. It only took half a second, however, to realize that these men wore padded gear, and were not very good. A training field.

She willed her heart to slow, resettling the bow across her back. After observing the men at their practice for a moment, she turned and headed out of the village.

Leliana's heart ached. She did not know what had made her remember, what had sprung the memory. Maybe it was the feeling of returning home, although she could in good consciousness claim neither Ferelden nor Orlais. Maybe it was the clash of steel, that had reminded her of their first meeting.

Maybe it was the smell of wet dog.

"I will stop the Blight, but I do not need you."

The warrior before her, the one who had introduced himself as Aedan, finally said, his eyes softening a bit but his tone firm. He stood then, and with a smooth gesture replaced his helm, once more concealing his auburn hair, so dark it was almost brown. Ice blue eyes glinted from behind the metal, piercing through her, laying her bare for all to see. She shivered slightly, but remained captivated by this man.

A enormous hound stood by his side, and the faintest hint of whine had reached her ears. Aedan scratched the dog's head absently, and the whine subsided.

"But I…" she stuttered, stunned. He was leaving her behind? When there were only three of them? How could he think that he could afford to leave her? She wanted to snap at him, but knew that would only seal her fate.

"I will go, for now. It's not important that you believe what I say, only that you serve the Maker in the end." She stepped in front of him again, forcing him to meet her eyes. "Think about it, please?" She hated saying it, hated begging. But this man, this Aedan, oozed competence and danger and

sex

she wanted nothing more than to go with him. Her blood burned for the excitement of it all. "That's all I ask," she added, softly, before turning to leave.

She had lain in wait for him at the northern exit to the town. If she had been of a mind to chew her nails, she would have, it was that nerve wracking. She hoped he wouldn't manage to somehow get around her. But, as the day started to wane and she had begun to lose all hope, he had come trudging over the hill, companions in tow. To her shock, the caged qunari was with him, dressed in armor and a greatsword slung behind him. She wondered how he had gotten the creature to agree to work with him. Then she wondered why he had decided to take the qunari, but not her.

She begged with him again, and he seemed unconvinced. It surprised her that the other man supported her, although he had been quick to mock her at the same time. With a sigh of defeat, Aedan looked at her again, noticed the dagger she wore, how she held her body. He smacked Alistair on the back of the head, causing the other man to give a grunt of surprise. "Oh, fine."

The sense of relief that flowed through her was almost unbearable in its strength. "Thank you! I won't let you down, I promise!"

Suddenly, without warning, the mabari jumped up to plant his paws on her shoulders, giving her a thorough lick to the face and an excited bark. Aedan hauled him down by the collar, scolding the dog fiercely and apologizing in an embarrassed tone to his newest companion. But she didn't mind, instead getting down on one knee to thank the warhound for his enthusiastic welcome.

It had only been later that she learned that Aedan had scoured all of Lothering for information about her, just as he had the qunari, and it was only after he couldn't find her anywhere in the town that he had finally decided to leave.

It was not a terrible memory, although it hurt to remember. She had spent the past three years trying to both remember and forget her beloved, and Leliana thought she had finally reached the point where she could view select memories as though through a veil. But setting foot here, back in Fereldan, seemed to rip that veil to shreds.

A tear trailed down her cheek, as she turned to walk out of town.

Maybe it was the smell of wet dog.

Author's Note (part 2): So, this actually was originally much longer. However, I decided to cut a great portion of it because in the end, no matter how much description I throw in, no one really wants to read game dialogue in a fanfic. Or at least, I don't. So, I cut about 800 words and am left with this. C'est la vie.