Looking out on the views from his room in the Palace, Cailan once again found himself pondering a dilemma with regards to Raina. He looked down at the letter again, trying to take in what his father was asking him to do. Could he do it? Would she even agree to it?

To my son,

Should you find yourself reading this letter, I am dead and you are now king. I write this letter to you with a request, I do not ask this of you lightly, but I am confident you will understand why.

I wish for you to marry Raina. I know this will shock you, but understand why I ask. You are king now and no doubt finding your feet. You need support, an ally, that is why I am giving you Raina. She was to be my queen, so let her be your queen.

She will be a good queen, supportive and strong in times you are not. She will give you the hope and love that she gave me. All I ask is that you learn to love her as I did. She deserves to be loved, she gives so much but asks for so little.

I am proud to say that I am your father, although at times, I didnt always deserve such an honour, I certainly dont deserve to call myself Alistair's father. You both grew into such wonderful young men and I'm glad you have each other. Look after each other, I didnt allow you to be close as children, but you can be close as adults, that would make me happy. Take care of Oliver, be the father I couldnt be. I love you all so very much, my only regret is that I havent shown it enough.

Give thought to what I have asked. You will not regret it if you do.

From your proud father,

King Maric

Cailan wiped away his tears before they dropped on to the letter. His father knew he wouldnt survive the battle and had to let him know his final words. He was grateful for that foresight, it gave him great comfort to know how his father felt about him. He was right, he had two brothers that looked up to him, one who needed a father in his life and he was prepared to be that father if Raina wanted that. Raina would be a good wife, she had the charm, intelligence and strength of a Ferelden queen. He decided he should discuss it with her first, she also had a say in her life. If she decided against marrying him, he would respect her decision.

Raina sorted through Maric's belongings, deciding what to keep and what to give away. He had been gone three months and it was only now she felt strong enough to deal with it. She picked up a book, reading the title. She smiled, clutching it to her chest. It was their favourite book. As she moved it to the bookshelf in her new room, something fell out on to the floor. She put the book down on the bed and picked up the folded parchment, that slipped slightly under the bed. She opened it, knowing instinctively what it was, sitting on the edge of the bed to read it.

To my beautiful wife

It fills me with sadness knowing if you read these words, then I am no longer alive. I want you to know, that you were truly the love of my life. I have never felt that kind of love before, it gave me such a good feeling in my heart. Although our time together may have been short, to me it felt like many lifetimes worth of love.

My darling, I have something I must ask of you. I wish for you to marry Cailan. He needs a queen, he needs you. I cannot think of a better person for him to share his life and kingdom with. Do not be afraid to love him. I want you to be happy, have the family you always wanted. Cailan will be a good husband and father. It saddens me that I will not get to see our beautiful boy grow up nor will I ever make things up to Alistair, but I take great comfort in knowing that you will all have each other. I know you will take great care of them like you did me.

I love you, my little diamond, but please dont be afraid to love again. What we had was special and nothing will ever change that, but your love is far too wonderful to not be shared. You deserve to be loved and Cailan will give you that if you open your heart to him.

Be happy, my beautiful wife,

Your ever loving husband,

Maric

Raina sighed, her tears falling down her cheeks as she pondered what Maric had asked of her. She knew he was right, Cailan would take care her, and treat her with respect. He was a decent man and she wanted Oliver to have a father. Pushing away her tears, she resolved to discuss it with him. If he was open to the idea, she would be too.

Cailan walked out in to the garden, finding Alistair overlooking the gardens. He could tell his brother was upset, suspecting he had also got a letter from their father. He approached Alistair, placing a hand on his shoulder, making him jump a little. "Are you alright, Alistair?" He asked softly.

"I just read father's letter to me. I got close to him after so long, only to lose him again." Alistair sighed, as he dried his eyes.

"Can I read it?" Cailan asked, gently. Alistair handed him the letter and he read it with sadness.

To my son

It fills me with regret that I can not say these words in person, instead I have to settle for my words, I hope they are enough. I wish that I could take back the years in which I did not raise you myself, like I should have. I did what I thought was best to protect you, but I was wrong. When your mother brought you to me, I knew that the blood in your veins would make life hard for you as a royal, so I gave you to Eamon to raise. I wish I had been stronger for you, I could have protected you myself, silenced anyone who said a bad word about you and I didnt, for that I am so truly sorry.

I am immensely proud of the remarkable young man you've become. You have a courage in your heart that I have seen in very few. I have enjoyed the time we have spent together and I wish it could have been more. You called me father, even though I did nothing to deserve that honour. It gave me such a joy to have my boys together and I hope you stay together. Take care of your brothers, they'll need you as you'll need them.

I love you, son and I thank you for allowing me to be your father.

From your proud father

King Maric

Cailan felt his own tears fall, his brother didnt have the time he had with their father and it wasnt fair. He pulled Alistair into an embrace, resting his head on his shoulder. "I love you, little brother."

"I love you too." Alistair whispered, holding his brother tight.

"Are you going to stay?"

"If you want me too."

"Of course I do. I want you to stay here, you belong here." He ruffled Alistair's hair, nudging him with his elbow as he laughed.

"I'll be Alistair Theirin for the first time ever."

"Prince Alistair, little brother." Cailan sat down on the stone bench, Alistair sitting next to him.

"That'll take some getting used too." Alistair noticed Cailan's face drop. "What's wrong?"

"I have something to discuss with you. Father wants me to marry Raina."

Alistair quirked an eyebrow. "Really? Did he say why?"

"He said I needed a queen and Raina would be the ideal woman for that."

"Well, he has a point. She technically is queen and Oliver needs a father. What are you going to do?"

"Discuss it with Raina. She might be against it. He's only be gone three months" Cailan sighed deeply, shaking his head. "I just hope I dont upset her."

"You wont. She'll understand why you're asking." Alistair stood up, shaking some dead leaves from his clothes. "I'm going to read Oliver his bedtime story. Go, talk to Raina," He patted Cailan on the shoulder before he walked away.

Cailan knocked on Raina's bedchamber door, waiting for her to respond. "Come in!" She called out and he entered the room. "Raina, can we talk?"

"Yes, there's something we need to discuss." She sat down in one of the armchairs, waiting for him to join her. "So I received a letter from Maric, I assume you did too."

"I did. He asked for me to marry you." He replied as he sit down in a chair opposite her. "I wanted to discuss it with you. I am willing to do it, if you are."

Raina sighed, rubbing a hand across her cheek. "I'm willing to do it. Maric wanted Oliver and I to have a secure future." She crossed her arms, laughing slightly. "The nobles are going to hate it though. Some of them werent crazy about me being Queen to start with, now I'm going to get a second crack at it."

"With respect to them, they can go swim in nug shit. I need a Queen. You know what it takes to rule, Father has been teaching you since you first started together. I need your help.

"I'll help you. I will teach you what Maric taught me."

"So when shall we get married?"

"In two months." A thought entered her head and she shifted uncomfortably. "What about heirs?"

"Oh, errrr...I dont expect anything like that from you. We will deal with my successor when we need too."

"At least we are clear on where we stand. Does Alistair know?"

"He does, he's happy with us doing this." He smiled at her, thinking of his younger brother. "He's going to stay."

"Good, he belongs here." She stood up, smiling down at him.. "I'm going to check on Oliver."

"Alistair is reading him his story."

She laughed, a little sadness breaking through her brief moment of happiness. "I'm glad I stayed."

Cailan clutched her hand. "So am I. We need you." They smiled at each other, before he stood up. "Why dont you have a bath and relax. We'll take care of Oliver."

"That sounds like a good idea. I've been aching a lot recently." Cailan left room and Raina sat on the bed clutching her necklace. She missed Maric more than she could ever bear to admit too, but she had his sons, they needed her support and she was determined to give it to the fullest.

Raina laid in bed, exhausted, both physically and mentally. She had just received the news that she was with child again and she had no idea how to process the news. She wanted to cry but no tears would fall. Pregnant with a child she didnt want, no idea who the father was. She didnt immediately acknowledge Sophie as she entered her room. "Go away." She uttered, barely moving.

"Rai, what is wrong? You've been funny ever since you saw the healer." She sat down next to her sister, stroking her hair.

"I'm pregnant, Sophie." She finally burst into tears. "I dont want the baby. I want it out of me!"

"Why dont you want the baby? It's Maric's chil.," She tried to soothe her sisters tears, not understanding the reaction she was having.

"It might not be. I'm a terrible person." Raina sobbed into her pillow. "I had sex with Cailan, the night after Maric died. I'm the worst kind of person."

Sophie was shocked at her confession, Raina and Cailan had never shown any kind of attraction between them before, still she understood that neither were in the right state of mind at that time. "Raina, sweetheart, you were grieving. Sit up and tell me what is so wrong about the prospect of carrying Cailan's child. In two months you're going to marry him. So it might be Maric's or Cailan's, it doesnt matter. You're going to have another child."

Raina sat up and looked at her sister. "I just feel like I'm betraying Maric."

"He would want this for you. He loved you more than anything and if moving on and loving again would make you happy, he would want that."

"I know, I just miss him."

"I know." Sophie pulled her sister to her, holding her close. "Hey, I'm holding two people." She whispered.

Raina laughed, pulling away from her sister. "I suppose I should tell Cailan. Either way, this baby is a part of him somehow."

Sophie cupped her face, wiping away the tears. "This baby will be worth it, no matter who the father is."

"Thank you. At least me staying here means I have you close by."

"I'll always be here for you, like you always are for me." Sophie got up and walked to the door, she heard a scratching at the room and laughed. "That'll be my furry shadow. Cannot leave me alone."

Raina smirked. "Wasnt she like that when you were pregnant with Logan?"

Her eyes widened as she stop, her hand hovering just over the door handle, looking over to her sister. "Oh. Well Loghain will be pleased." She opened the door, the mabari immediately jumping up at her. "Bye sis, look after my niece or nephew."

"I will if you look after mine." Raina laughed as her sister left. She stood up, moving over to her long mirror. She turned to the side, caressing her stomach. There was a new life growing inside her and Sophie was right, Maric or Cailan, it didnt matter, he or she would be a blessing on her life.

She walked to Cailan's study, finding him hard at work, writing letters and various other things. "Cailan? We need to talk."

He looked, smiling at her. "Take a seat. Drink?"

"No, thank you. This is going to be a shock." She fiddled with her hands, looking down at her feet. She looked up at him again, noting the worried expectation in his eyes. "I'm pregnant and as you know, it could be yours."

Cailan's eyes widened in shock as he slumped into his seat. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, the healer confirmed it. I'm about 3 months along." She waited for a reply but Cailan was still, she wasnt even sure he was breathing. "You feel ashamed?"

He put his head in his hands and laughed humourlessly. "I might have got my own father's widow pregnant. What will people think."

"They'll think that Maric is the father. Only three people know what we did."

"Four. Sophie?"

"Yeah, Alistair?" Cailan nodded. "Cailan we are going to get married. Now as far as anyone needs to know, its Maric's child, but you, being a caring and kind man, have agreed to raise my children as your own. That is all people need to know."

He barked out a laugh. "My father really did teach you well."

"And I'll teach you. Are ok with this?"

"Yes. I'll love this child as I love Oliver."

"Good. Now I really need to take a nap. Oliver is with his nanny, so you can work." She stood up slowly, hoping to avoid the dizziness that often came with getting up too fast. She felt the same when she was pregnant with Oliver so she had no cause to worry about it.

"I'll come and check on you later." Cailan watched as she left his study. He smiled to himself briefly before getting back to his work.