I promised I'll make it up to Alistair for the last story, so here it is. This was also already published at CMDA but here it is all new and shiny thanks to my great beta Seika. :)
Anniversary
Alistair rolled out of the bed, yawning. Why did the Maker have to create such noisy birds? He stretched, enjoying the warm breeze on his sleepy face. Wait. Breeze?
He turned to the window, and almost jumped in surprise, quickly looking around for his sword. There was someone sitting on the windowsill–someone who was now laughing heartily at him.
"I wondered when you'd notice me. Relax my friend. It is only me."
"Yes, because knowing you were in my room watching me sleeping is so relaxing," he snarled at the damned elf, but that only made him look smugger. He walked to the window and looked down.
"Right. You didn't really crawl up here through the window, did you?"
"Ah, I'm truly flattered that you esteem my skills so much, but alas, I still cannot turn into a spider. No, it was your lovely wife who let me in, through the doors, actually. I only opened the window to–"
Bang! Said door almost fell off the hinges, as two small identical figures, still in their night robes, rushed in and threw themselves on his visitor.
"Uncle Zevran!"
"Were you in Antiva? What did you bring me?"
"You will teach me fight with daggers?"
"Duncan! Wynne! Get off your uncle, now." He tried his best to sound strict and bit angry, but he knew he was failing miserably. "What is this behaviour? Is this the way to greet your uncle? What are you, a pair of wild mabari puppies? "
"No, Dad."
A perfect picture of repentance, doubled. But he knew all their tricks by now, and was determined not submit to their cuteness. Maybe he would even succeed, for once, but then Zevran destroyed it all, completely ignoring his effort to act as a parent here.
"You were good while I was away, yes?"
"Yes, uncle Zevran," they chided in unison, wild mabari puppies turned into the cutest of kittens by the implications of that question.
"That's not very helpful, Zevran. Stop spoiling them," he grunted.
Zevran just waved his hand and looked at him. For a moment his eyes seemed almost sad, before he laughed again. "Fathers are meant to educate. And uncles are meant to spoil, yes? So let me do my part."
"All right, but there will be no presents until you're washed, dressed properly and after breakfast!"
"Yes, Daddy!"
Bang!
"Perhaps I should remove the door and put just some curtain there," he complained. Zevran laughed softly.
"You're a lucky man, Alistair."
"I am," he said, proudly. "Now come, let's go to have some breakfast too, before we get all sentimental."
"Ah, I'm afraid I can't let you go yet."
He looked at Zevran, surprised. What was he up to now? "Why?"
"Because you're still in your night robes, my friend. And rather… unsexy ones, if I may point out. How am I supposed to get more cute nieces and nephews if you sleep in that?"
Groaning, he pushed laughing Zevran out of the door, but a moment later the elf peeked in again.
"Are you sure you don't want a helping hand?"
The slipper landed few centimetres from the place where the elf's head was just a second ago. He should put locks on that door… Hopefully Zevran hadn't learnt to pick them yet.
oOo
"Uncle Zev, do you know it's Mum and Dad's adversary next week?"
They burst out laughing and the little girl blushed a bit, embarrassed. Just like him. "That's anniversary, Wynne," he corrected her.
"But she wasn't that far from truth, no? At least in the beginning."
"Don't listen to that. Uncle Zev is bit confused," Alistair glared at the damned elf, who raised his eyebrows at him.
Neria laughed at them. "Uncle Zev doesn't know how it really was. Why don't you tell him?"
Their eyes lit up at that. The story of how he and Neria fell in love was their favourite; they would listened to it any time they could.
"You and Mum met at Ostagar! That's where the big battle was, you know, Uncle Zev, and all the good Grey Wardens died, even Duncan," said Wynne, throwing teasing glance at her brother.
"But he killed hundreds and hundreds of darkspawn first!" he specified.
"Yes, but not as much as Wynne," said the little girl haughtily. "She survived," she explained to a very amused Zevran.
"But Mum and dad met before the battle, and it was love at first sight!" the boy proceeded to the less embarrassing topic.
Zevran laughed. "If you say so."
He grinned. Of course it was. Well, maybe not from the very first-
"So you're another mage?"
"Would that make your day worse, ser Templar?"
"No, of course not and I'm not–"
"Ah. Pity. I hoped it would."
-but definitely from the second. Well, at least from his side. He knew he was in love halfway through the Korcari Wilds; the night before her Joining he couldn't sleep, for fear she would not survive.
"… and Mum really liked him because he was witty and funny," he heard Wynne continue in the story. Oh Maker. He didn't dare to look at Zevran's face now.
"Ah, that is true, principessa. Even Leliana, the bard, frequently went to consult lyrics for her ballads with him."
He groaned inwardly. Oh no. Leliana told him. She promised she wouldn't tell anyone. Who knows how long Zevran knew? Besides, it was not frequently, only once. When it was most important not to blunder.
"Just tell her what you feel."
"Right. I… what I feel… I feel dizzy. And hot. And terribly nervous. And I'm sweating."
"That's… no. Think about it. Why did you pick the rose?"
"Because it was beautiful."
"See, we're getting somewhere. It was beautiful like her, right? What else is so important about that rose? Think!"
Maker, that was real torture. It took them almost an hour to come up with a few lines that were, according to Leliana, fit to tell the lady. It took him another two hours to memorise them. And even, so he was still stuttering when he gave her the rose. But it was worth it.
"And they never argued; never, they were always nice to each other, because it's rude to argue, you know," added Duncan enthusiastically.
Zevran snickered. "Yes… that's very rude," he said pointedly. "And those who are rude to a lady deserve nothing less than a good punch in the nose. Always remember that, my lad."
Ah. That punch. It hurt his pride more than his nose, but it was necessary, he had to admit that.
"What are you doing, assassin? You almost broke my nose!"
"What are you doing, you idiota? You made her cry!"
"She let that maleficar kill Isolde!"
"She did the only thing she could to save the boy! And you're going to apologise to her, or I'll really break it!"
Duncan nodded in agreement. "Yes, Daddy says that too."
"Good to know," Zevran snickered again and raised his eyebrows at Alistair. "But please, go on. This is very… ah… enlightening."
Neria laughed. "See how much you didn't know about us? Tsk, tsk. Go on, darlings, tell him everything."
Alistair listened to his children – his children! He was still sometimes surprised by that – how they told to Zevran in great detail how he and Neria fought together, all of their enemies throwing away their weapons at the mere sight of them, and he couldn't stop grinning. Zevran was a great audience, laughing and gasping in awe always at the correct places, only occasionally throwing sideways glances at him.
"And then they marched to the Landsmeet together and then Daddy said, 'I'm not going to be a king!' "
"Yeah! Because he wanted to stay with Mum, you know. And the nobles didn't like it, they were very angry."
"They wanted him to marry an old lady! Who wasn't Mum!"
Zevran was laughing so hard he was crying now. "Yes, I believe I remember that old lady. And what happened at the Landsmeet. And before."
Of course he would remember. He spent the whole night before the Landsmeet trying to talk some sense to him and Neria. Under Eamon's pressure, they both already resigned to the fact that Alistair will be the king.
"Do you really mean to give up what you have? Just because some old fart wants it?"
"You don't understand. It's not so simple."
"It is very simple. You go there and say 'no thanks'."
"But it is our duty –"
"Duty! Duty is not always the most important thing. I gave up the woman I loved, because I believed it was my duty. To be loyal to the Crows. Believe me. If you do this… you won't be able to forgive yourselves."
It was the only time Zevran had talked openly about Rinna, the only time he had really bared his soul to them. It had had quite a sobering effect, on both of them. Oh, poor Anora! She was so sure she was going to be the Queen. Instead, Neria cheerfully informed the nobles that Alistair was going to be a Grey Warden… and named Fergus Cousland the king. Anora was a child of a traitor, and thus unfit to be a queen, she explained when Anora threw a tantrum.
"And then they came here and daddy defeated the darkspawn here, because there were lots of them!"
"Yes and Mum couldn't fight because her belly was this big!" Duncan stretched his hands in front of him as far as he could reach.
"Because we were inside, you know," explained Wynne wisely. "But if daddy married the old lady, then we wouldn't be there and we wouldn't be born. I wouldn't miss Duncan but I would miss me."
"Hey!"
Alistair sighed. "Apologise to your brother, Wynne."
"… Sorry."
"That was an amazing story, my dear. You are great storytellers… just like your daddy," Zevran chuckled. "Now, there is something waiting for you in the yard, but don't run, and be careful not to scare–who am I talking to, anyway?"
Both twins bolted out of the room the moment he said 'yard'.
oOo
Leliana came that evening, Sten two nights after that. Wynne and Shale were last to come, on the evening of the celebration. If only Morrigan had appeared. He would have loved to see his daughter. That was all he knew about the child–that it was a girl. Urthemiel.
But there was nothing he could do, except wait. Perhaps one day even that dream would come true. All of the other dreams had, as unbelievable as it sounded.
The Grey Wardens were restored.
He had the best friends a man could want. Friends that were always ready to stand up for him and to cover his back.
He had the two cutest children in the whole of Thedas… even though they were sometimes drove him crazy.
And he had her.
Neria turned to him, eyes full of laugher and love.
Yes, Zevran was right. He was a lucky man.
