Rendezvous
The fading sun streams into the windows of Merrill's small home in the alienage. She scurries about, preparing herself another lonely dinner. She can hear the sounds of some of the vendors trying to sell their remaining wares before the day ends. The day was marching towards twilight, easily her favourite time of day. She always enjoyed the changing colours in the sky as the sun fell behind the trees when she was back with her clan. Perhaps she would venture out this evening to watch as the stars poked their heads through the veil of the night sky.
With dinner prepared, she sits at the large table in the main room of her home and gives thanks to the Creators for their blessings upon her. She is just about to take a mouthful of stew, but stops as she hears a knock at the door.
"Now, who could this be? Interrupting my dinner!" she exclaims, clearly not amused.
She goes to the door.
"Yes?" she asks, as she opens it and peeks her head out. Her eyes widen as she sees a face she did not expect.
"Carver!" she says, thoroughly surprised.
"Hullo Merrill," he says. "May I…come in?"
She swings the door open wide. "Oh yes! By all means, please come in. I have just sat down for dinner, but have made a rather large pot of stew. Won't you join me?"
He smiles warmly. "I would very much like that."
She leads him into her home and hurries to prepare him a bowl of food. "Please…have a seat. Anywhere you like. Don't mind the clutter!"
Ignoring her offer, he chuckles, knowing that she is far too frivolous to worry about every day tasks such as dusting and tidying. That is, at least until a visitor arrives and she notices the disorder. He does not mind though – it's part of her charm.
"Thank you. I hope I'm not interrupting," he says.
"Not at all," she replies. "I have just been puttering around, trying to pass the time. I may even take a walk later! So what are you doing in the city?" She stops suddenly, recalling what his sister advised her of a few days prior. "Oh! You were…being held somewhere – I remember now! Your sister told me that she was going to the coast to try to rescue you. My, but I'm glad you're all right."
He walks over to where she is preparing his bowl and holds out the flowers he brought with him from the estate. "I, uh…brought you something."
She looks at the flowers in his hand, and then looks up at him, blinking widely.
"Daisies?" she says. "You brought me flowers?"
"You, uh…don't mind, do you? They reminded me of you," he stammers, hoping he has not offended.
"I don't mind. They are very pretty," she exclaims as she takes them from Carver. "But I thought humans only gave each other flowers when they – ooooh!"
"Yes," he coughs, "well, it has been awhile since I've last seen you. And I…missed you."
"You did?" she asks, raising an eyebrow. "This is…a surprise."
"Not a bad one, I hope," he says.
She shakes her head and leads him to the table with his bowl in hand. He sits down as she places the bowl in front of him.
"I just didn't expect you to want to see me. I've often asked your sister if she's heard from you, but now you show up at my doorstep. You'll forgive me for being nervous," she says.
"You're not the only one," he mutters under his breath.
She looks at him. "Did you say something?"
"Oh, uh…don't be. Nervous, that is. We're friends Merrill, and I…like you," he offers.
She smiles widely and takes a bite of her meal.
"I'm glad," she says. "I like you too."
The rest of the meal is eaten in silence. The two nervously glance at one another when the other isn't looking. They begin to take notice of little things that they have not noticed before. He watches as she daintily dabs the corners of her mouth with her sleeve after every bite. She notices that he clears his throat constantly when he is nervous. Eventually, they both finish their dinner and start to relax a little.
"That was delicious, Merrill," he says, without exaggerating.
She blushes. "And you're not just saying that? I've been trying very hard to make do with the ingredients available in the alienage. Sometimes fresh meats aren't very plentiful around here."
He unexpectedly reaches out and places his hand on hers. "No, it was really great."
She looks down at his hand, almost horrified with the contact. He notices her shock and pulls his hand away quickly.
"I'm sorry!" he says. "I didn't mean to –"
"No, no," she interrupts, "I was just…I'm not very good at this."
He smiles at her. "Neither am I."
They both laugh nervously. She stands and gathers up their dishes, removing them from the table. Carver also stands and walks over to where she left the daisies. He picks up a single flower and turns to face her. She looks up at him with her unblinking bright eyes. He brushes back a lock of her hair that has fallen into her face, and places the daisy behind her ear.
"Perfect," he says softly.
"Carver," she says, "would you like to go for a walk with me?"
"I would love to, Merrill," he replies and takes her hand. He leads her out the door into the evening air.
The alienage has quieted down significantly since he arrived at her home. The vendors have packed up and gone home. Only a few elves are scuttling about the streets. They only briefly pay attention to the strange raven-haired elf walking hand-in-hand with the tall human in foreign clothing. He is happy that he was not wearing his full armour – he would have been overburdened. And sweating profusely. His nerves were causing enough of that as it was.
Their conversation is limited, but neither of them mind. Being in the company of the other is enough. Merrill has felt so much an outsider since coming to the city, that his acceptance of her without question sets her heart aflutter. Carver is simply happy to be appreciated by someone. As they wind their way through the streets of Lowtown, he remembers his agreement with Varric to meet at the tavern for drinks that evening.
"Would you like to go to the Hanged Man for a drink?" he asks.
She frowns slightly, as though disappointed that they will no longer be alone, but then smiles. "That might be fun."
He looks at her. "Are you sure? For a second there, it looked as though I shouldn't have asked."
"Oh no!" she replies. "I just…wanted to do something first."
"Oh? What did you want to do?" he asks her.
"This!" she replies. She stands on the tips of her toes and pecks him on the cheek quickly.
He blinks, and cannot react for a moment.
"Merrill," he says, "you are full of surprises."
She smiles. "That was okay, then?" she asks.
He responds by pulling her towards him and kissing her softly, on the lips this time. She closes her eyes and cannot believe what is happening. When they pull away from each other, her eyes remain closed for a few moments. As she opens them, Carver places a hand on her cheek and says "That was okay."
He wraps an arm around her waist and they begin a deliberately slow walk towards the tavern. Happiness in the smallest of doses is happiness nonetheless.
Basking in the glow of one another, the two mages lounge lazily in their bed. They have spent several hours relishing each other's company in the comfort and safety of the estate. Neither of them would have denied that the time they spent on the road back from the Wounded Coast wasn't one of their more exciting encounters, but they enjoyed themselves so much more when in the confines of their home.
Stretching his arms behind his head, Anders thinks back to the night when she invited him to move his belongings into the estate with her. He was more than pleasantly surprised, and the invitation couldn't have come at a better time. But how could he ever forget that night – it was after all the first night they spent together.
"What's that smile for?" she says, interrupting his thoughts.
"Oh, just reminiscing," he replies dreamily.
"Anything specific?" she asks as she rolls over to rest her head on his stomach.
"I was just thinking about our first night together. And how I almost didn't have the nerve to come here that night," he replies.
She places a hand lightly on his chest. "I cannot imagine how I would have handled that rejection."
"I was still in the midst of a terrible debate over not wanting to hurt you. But the kiss we shared in the clinic that day…I could no longer deny myself," he says.
"Thank the Maker for that!" she says. "I'd recognized the attraction to you from the moment we first met. If you had not come that night, I'd have hunted through the streets until I found you."
"Of that, I have no doubt," he says, smiling at her. He pulls her up until she is resting on top of him. He wraps his arms behind her back as she props her chin on her hands to look at him.
"I'm quite surprised at just how Carver has come around," she comments.
"That was quite a shock," he says.
"And calling him 'brother'…you are too much," she jokes.
"That was kind of a spur of the moment decision," he says. "I have to admit – I am starting to feel that way though. It's strange how his acceptance of me has made me feel."
"You're telling me," she says. "I had to wait almost twenty years for him to come around."
"You're a hard act to follow. It must have been tough to grow up with you as his older sister."
"Now you're just trying to flatter me," she jokes.
He smiles at her, bringing his hands up to her face. "It's what I do best."
She scrambles up closer to his face and kisses him.
"I love you, Anders. Nothing will ever change that."
He looks at her seriously. "I truly hope that's the case. The future is a devious thing."
"It would take a lot to change my mind, love," she replies.
He smiles, but deep down fears for what is coming. His plans have taken him down a road he doubts she will be able to follow.
"We should probably consider heading to the Hanged Man. We did promise to meet the others there, after all," he says.
"Of course. We'll have to see how things went between Carver and Merrill!" she exclaims. "I can't even begin to tell you how insufferably cute they must be."
"Get moving, woman," he commands, "before I change my mind and extend this well into the night."
She sits up and smiles at him slyly. "Hmm…tempting…" But she leaves the warmth of the bed to prepare herself for their tavern outing. They dress, continuing to watch each other in their half-clothed states. As soon as they are ready, Anders takes her by the hand and leads her out of the bed chamber. He chooses to enjoy these days with her while they last. The time for action is drawing near, and soon it may no longer be his choice.
