Chapter 3

Alistair never left her side. He sat by her bed with his head resting in her lap or in his hands as he prayed to the Maker, begging him to save her. Her friends and fellow Wardens came and went, but he never left. He knew that they wanted him to leave so that they could spend some time alone with her, but he was not going to leave her until she woke up. Once Wynne and Anders had done all that they could for her, Alistair requested a basin of warm water and he gently cleaned off all the blood from her face, her arms, legs and her hair. He changed her into a clean night shift and sat down again in the chair beside her bed. He gazed at her; she looked so peaceful and beautiful. He took her hand in his and pressed it to his lips. "Ella, my Ella, please come back to me. I need you, my Love. Please come back." He repeated that over and over again like a chant that he hoped would reach her subconscious mind to let her know how much she was needed and loved.

It had been five days since Zev had given her the antidote. Her breathing had improved and Wynne had said the poison hadn't caused any irreversible damage to her organs, but still she slept. He knew it was good for her to sleep. The rest gave her body time to heal, but he desperately wanted to see her open those strikingly beautiful green eyes and smile at him.

So he started his chant again. Alistair didn't know how long he sat there begging her to come back to him, but eventually his eyes began to feel extremely heavy. He couldn't remember the last time he had slept. He laid his head down in her lap just to rest his eyes for a bit. He teetered on verge of unconsciousness when he felt warm fingers slid into his hair… her fingers. He must already be asleep. The fingers caressed down the side of his cheek. "Alistair," her voice whispered. Yes, this was very good dream. Her fingers felt so real, so soft against his skin. Her fingers slid down his the side of his neck to his collar bone. "Alistair." Her voice said again, a little louder and there was a raspy sound to it.

"Mmm, Ella," He moaned as the scene changed and he stood over her as she laid naked before him on his bed back at the palace, her body so tantalizingly inviting. "Alistair" she called out again from far away.

He bent over her and ran his hands up and down her soft legs before he stopped at her knees and gently pushed her legs apart. He then knelt in front of her and lifted her leg up to his lips and began to kiss her foot, then her ankle, he slid forward and placed a kiss on her thigh. Her body glistened before him and she smelled so sweet like jasmine.

"Oh, my Ella, I've missed you" he moaned. He stroked the inner part of her thigh with his hand, then moved his hand up between her legs to the source of the heat and slid a finger inside her.

She let out a moan and gasped, "Alistair." She leaned forward as her fingers ran through his hair and tugged lightly as she cried out his name again.

He plunged his fingers in and out of her and his tongue licked at just the right spot. She arched her back and he could see shivers ran up and down her body. He could see the tension building in her as his tongue and fingers worked in unison. He felt her body contract against his fingers again and again as her body rippled with pleasure. "By the Maker, Alistair," she cried out.

Alistair stood up and unlaced his breeches and stepped out of them as they hit the floor. Ella could see that he was fully aroused and she reached up and gently grasped his erection, stroking him very slowly. Alistair's head dropped back and his breath caught in his throat. "Oh Maker, oh, Ella," he moaned. The need to be in her overwhelmed him and he grabbed her under her knees and pulled her forward to the edge of the bed. She raised her hips to him and with one swift movement, he slid in to her and sighed. Warmth enveloped him that sent millions of little shockwaves throughout his entire body. It was sheer ecstasy being inside her as he moved in time with her. He grasped her bottom to pull her upward so that he could sink deeper into her and he began to thrust faster as he rocked against her. He could feel his body tensing every nerve ending was humming …

"Alistair, wake up," her raspy voice whispered while she ran fingers ran through his hair. "Alistair, my Love, wake up," she said again.

He was immediately jolted awake with the realization that she was awake and calling his name. He lifted his head from her lap, rubbing his eyes as he looked up into her beautiful face and saw the most striking eyes staring back at him. She smiled at him and whispered, "That must have been a really good dream. I have been trying to wake you up for ten minutes."

Alistair jumped up and took her in his arms. His eyes were brimmed with tears. "Thank the Maker, Ella. I thought I had lost you," and he kissed her forehead, her cheek and then her lips. He ran his fingers through her hair and then cupped the side of her face.

"I'm glad to see you too, your Majesty," she said softly.

"I'll let you get away with calling me that just this once because you have been at the Fade's door, but only once," he said as if he were scolding her.

She smiled weakly at him, "Can I please get a glass of water, my throat is very dry?"

"Absolutely and let me get Wynne so that she can check you over." He hurried from the room to get Wynne and have water sent up.

Wynne and Anders came and examined her, with both Mages giving her a clean bill of health. Wynne said that she would be weak for a while, but that in time she would make a full recovery. Word had spread quickly that the Commander was awake and it seemed like every person in the Keep was making their way to her room to see her.

Wynne pulled Alistair aside from the gathering crowd. "Alistair my dear, it has been days since you have bathed or slept. Go get cleaned up and get some sleep so that you are looking your best when you see her next."

Alistair started to protest, but Wynne interjected sternly, "Bella is going to be preoccupied for a while with everyone coming to see her. Anders and I are going to have to set-up visiting times so that they don't wear her out. She is still going to need plenty of rest to make a full recovery. Go! Sleep! Eat! Bathe! And then come see her."

Alistair hung his head sheepishly and murmured, "Yes, Ma'am," and turned to head to his room, paused and said, "Hmm, where is my room by the way?"

Varel stepped forward, "I will be glad to show you to your room, your Maj…Alistair."

"Thank you," he replied with a yawn.

Varel lead him to a room right down the hall from Ella's. "These are our guest quarters. I believe that your luggage has already been delivered to your room. Sanjay is the servant for the Guest Quarters. When you wake up tell him you are ready for a hot bath. He will also bring you up a tray of food when you are ready."

Varel turned to leave and pause for a moment. "It a relief to everyone that the Commander is awake. Your dedication to her is admirable and her faith you in is well deserved."

"Her faith in me?" He questioned.

"Why yes! She always speaks very highly of you and talks about the great things that she knows you will do for Ferelden. She has a great deal of affection and respect for you and as I am sure you know, it takes a lot to earn that from her."

Alistair smiled sheepishly. "Yes, it does."

"Get some rest, Alistair."

Alistair quickly got undressed and slid underneath the covers. He didn't realize how tired he was until his head hit the pillow. He glanced out the window and saw the sun setting behind the hills. He thought about how relieved and happy he was when a foggy cloud enveloped his mind and he was fast asleep.

When Alistair awoke long shadows streamed across his room. He turned and glanced out the window. The sun was sitting just above the hills. He stretched and glanced out the window again. By the Maker, he must have slept for an entire day. He got out of bed and strolled across the room to the door and opened it. The room outside of his bedroom was the Guest Quarters' Library and Sitting Room. He didn't even remember passing through there yesterday. A young elf was sat in a chair near the fireplace reading a book and didn't hear the door open.

"Mmm, excuse me. Are you Sanjay?"

The elf stood up and bowed, "Yes, your Majesty."

"Oh, great! Could you please bring me a hot bath and a tray of food? Preferably something that has cheese and crackers with it?"

"Right away, your Majesty," the elf bowed and turned to leave.

"Aaah, one more thing… how long have I been a sleep?"

Sanjay gave a brief smile and said, "Three days."

"What? How could anyone let me sleep that long?"

Just then one of the other guest room doors opened and Wynne stepped out. "Aaah, Alistair so glad to see you decided rejoin the living."

"Wynne, I have been a sleep for three days; how could you let me sleep that long?"

"Let you! I couldn't wake you. After the first 24 hours I went in every few hours to check on you and to make sure you were still breathing. Obviously, Alistair, your body needed the rest. It had been over a week since you had more than a couple hours of sleep at a time."

"Ella…"

"Is fine," Wynne interrupted, "and recovering very nicely. She definitely has her Warden appetite back and is starting to get her strength back. She was up today and took a walk in the garden."

"Can I see her?"

"Yes, but you may have to wait. Her Wardens are very loyal to her and visit her often."

Just then, a servant girl from the kitchen brought a tray of food up, "Your Majesty, would you prefer to eat out here or in your room?"

"In my room, please."

"As you wish," she replied and headed into his room.

Alistair ate, bathed and shaved as quickly as possible and headed down the hall to Ella's room. Outside of her room chairs had been set-up in the hall. Alistair figured it was for friends waiting to visit her. He was about to head in when he heard her speaking. He didn't want to interrupt so he took a seat in a chair that faced her bed so that he could see her. She was sitting up in bed and her color had returned to her cheeks. She was turned to face Nathaniel who sat in the chair that Alistair had occupied for days. At this angle she could not see him, but he could see all of her animated facial expressions as she talked with Nathaniel. He leaned on the edge of the bed and held her hand in his and had both of their hands resting against his cheek. There was an intimacy between them that was undeniable. Alistair felt his heart sink a little. He knew he no longer had a claim on her, but seeing her involved with someone first hand was painful to watch.

"…Brie I tell you it's a miracle that Delilah and the baby survived the attack…."

Did he just call her Brie? By Andraste's knickers, how many nicknames does this woman have? Fergus and her father called her Pup. All of her friends call her Bella, he called her Ella and now Brie. How could she keep them all straight? As he tried to block out the conversation that was taking place in front of him, his mind drifted back to the last time he called her Bella. It was not a good memory. They had just arrived back at camp after saving Arl Eamon's son Connor, who had been possessed by a demon. In order to save Connor, the ritual the blood mage Jowan had performed, allowed Morrigan, a mage that traveled with their group, to enter the fade and kill the demon that had possessed Connor. The ritual had required all of Arlessa Isolde's life force to do it and Alistair was so mad at Ella that the moment that they got into camp, he confronted her about her decision.

"I wanted to talk to you about what happened at the castle today," he said as he rounded on her.

"You were there. You saw what happened," Ella replied coolly.

"YOU let Lady Isolde sacrifice herself with blood magic. HOW COULD YOU DO THAT!" He shouted at her.

"How could I do what? Use blood magic or allow Isolde to sacrifice herself?" She asked calmly.

"BOTH!" He spat at her.

"Would you rather that Connor was dead?" She asked reasonably.

"No of course not, but we could have gone to the Circle of Magi. We could have tried harder. We could have done something that didn't involve blood magic," he retorted.

"Alistair you might want to read up on your Grey Warden history next time you are in a library. Grey Wardens do whatever it takes to defeat the blight AT- ANY-COST! Sometimes they utilize unconventional methods and at times that has included blood magic. We are Grey Wardens, Alistair, not Templars. I recall Duncan reminding you of that fact the first day we met."

At the mention of Duncan's name Alistair's face became ever redder if that was even possible. "DUNCAN also taught me that Grey Wardens have a responsibility to protect people and keep them safe! You sacrificed Isolde's life! How could you be so cold? What gives you the right to make that decision?"

Ella's voice was low and controlled, but also dangerous as she growled out her reply, "I was living up to my responsibilities. I was protecting the people of this town and keeping them safe. The circle would take a four day round trip. I could not risk the lives of everyone in this entire village in the hope that the Circle could help us. I'm sorry to say, but the lives of the many outweighed the life of one. So as the leader of this merry band I made the tough decision, a decision that you wouldn't have had the courage to make and you know it! That's why YOU made me the leader, but the moment I make a decision that you disagree with you attack me and question my motives. How f-u-c-k-i-n-g dare you?"

Alistair stood there as the anger dissolved away and now there was just pain that rippled through his heart. She was right. He had laid this responsibility on her because he didn't want to make the hard decisions and to be responsible for the lives of others. "Bella, I am so sorry. I was just so upset and worried about killing Eamon's wife. I wish I could take back what I said."

She shook her head, looked up at him with tears in her eyes, "You just don't get it. Sorry doesn't make everything alright. Sorry doesn't undo the damage that you have done. That decision was the hardest decision I have ever had to make. I wanted to come back to camp and fall into your arms and have you hold me til the pain went away. Instead, the first thing you do is attack me. Not once did you ask me why I made that decision or how I felt about it. You promised that we stick together no matter what and then when I needed you most you turned your back on me. You betrayed me, Alistair, and broke the trust that I had in you. Now, please just leave me alone."

She turned on her heels to walk away. He reached out and grabbed her wrist, "Bella, please…"

She whirled on him and for the first time raised her voice, "DON'T TOUCH ME!" She paused and then continued in a low growl, "And don't you ever call me Bella again. My friends, my family, the people that I love and trust call me Bella. Those things no longer apply to you."

Alistair stumbled back as if her words had physically struck him. By the Maker, what had he done?

From that night on he called her Gabriella while the rest of the group called her Bella. A nice consistent reminder of how he had almost lost her. It took months for him to gain her trust back, but eventually he did and somehow managed to have her fall in love with him. To this day he couldn't figure out how he pulled that one off. Then months later they made love for the first time in his tent. Afterwards, as she lay in his arms he called her Gabriella. She leaned up on her elbow, looked at him tenderly and said, "You are my friend and my lover and I know that you trust me and I you. If you want to, you can call me Bella again."

He looked at her for the longest moment before he replied, "No."

Ella raised her eyebrow, "No?"

"No. Everyone you know calls you Bella, but I am not everyone. I'm the only one that will always stand by you and love you till the day you die. My name for you needs to be different from all those common folk."

She chuckled at this, "Well, what did you have in mind?"

Alistair twisted his fingers in her hair and smiled up at her, "Ella. From now on you are my Ella." He then pulled her forward so that her lips could meet his. Her mouth opened as his tongue sought out hers…

Ella's laugh pulled him out of his thoughts. "Nate, I think the King is waiting to come in."

"He can wait a little longer besides you were mine first, Brie."

"I'm not anyone's anything anymore and I'm not looking to fill that role either."

Nathaniel stood up and leaned over kissed her on the cheek and said, "Well, if you change your mind I would be happy to step into those boots."

Ella sighed, "Good-bye, Nate." As Nathaniel walked past Alistair he gave a slight bow. "Your Majesty."

Alistair stood up, "Nathaniel." Alistair walked into the room and closed the door.