So I passed over what happened after Alistair's proposal, but fear not fellow Alistair-lovers! Fluff is abound in this chapter! And...erm...smut. Better than the first time I wrote it because I've grown a pair and decided to just write it the right way. And let me tell you, I got all this from reading other stories. I'm a virgin, so take the awkwardness and like it. Feel free to review, too! Let me know how bad this is lol. Skip to the first break if that's not something you want to read.

At first, I was tempted to just drink until I couldn't see straight. Then I thought about checking on Leliana and Aedan.

Then I saw Alistair waiting for me in the Hanged Man and any and all other thoughts flew out the window. His eyes lit up the instant he saw me walk into the tavern. I didn't even stop walking when I got near him. I grabbed his hand and pulled him up, dragging him upstairs after me. Now we're walking down the hall to our room, and it'd be a lot easier if he wasn't trying to get his hands on me. And if I wasn't trying to get mine on him. I'll be perfectly honest; I want him so badly I can't think of anything else right now. By the time we get down to our door, he's practically carrying me, and I can't even think straight. I'm not even sure which of us gets the door open. But I do know I'm the one smart enough to shut and lock it behind us. Not that it helps with him pushing me against it so he can finally kiss me.

That kiss makes my blood burn hot and my heart race. I can't get enough of him fast enough. His hands roam all over my body as he pushes against me, hungry for the contact. Everything about him and his touches makes me twitch and shake with desire. I can hardly think through the haze.

Alistair lifts me up and hooks my legs around his waist, moving his kisses to my neck.

"There's...a bed," I pant.

He laughs, pausing for only the briefest of moments. "There is." He sucks on the juncture of my neck and shoulder and I gasp, leaning over his shoulder. I bury my face in his neck, moaning with each kiss he gives me. "This needs to come off." He pulls at the clasp on my side for emphasis. "Now," he growls. He works at it, pulling at every single clasp on my torso until he can throw my chest piece aside. He never once stops kissing me, and I don't necessarily care. I want it off as much as he does, and I want his clothes off just as much. I pull his shirt over his head, revealing every single muscle he hides underneath. Just the sight of his torso makes me moan and he takes his opportunity, kissing me again and delving his tongue inside my mouth.

"Alistair-"

He pulls my shirt off and groans, pressing against me with a new force behind his desire. His lips trail kisses down to my collarbone while his hands throw my boots off before moving to my trousers. I feel him pushing against me and my hips buck into him. He bites into my shoulder, stifling his groan.

I push on his chest, somehow managing to say, "Bed."

He listens this time, getting a grip on my thighs before he pulls me off the door. He stumbles and we both laugh at his blindness. It takes him a few tries and me giving a few directions before he drops me unceremoniously onto our bed. He throws his trousers off as he crawls over me, pulling mine off too. It takes him all of four seconds to get a hand under my back and throw my breastband after them. Alistair plants a kiss on my stomach, slowly making his way up to my chest. My body starts shaking with anticipation, but then he just totally moves away, kissing me so hard my world spins. I feel him pulling the last of my smallclothes off, but that's far away. All that matters are his lips and his kiss. I twist my hands into his hair, reveling in how soft it is, when he buries himself inside of me. A moan rips out of my throat before I can stop it and he runs his tongue along mine, groaning.

He starts moving his hips and I raise my own to meet his thrusts, fire running through my veins. The pressure in my stomach builds and builds with each motion, but there's no end in sight. 'Grey Warden stamina', if you ask Morrigan about the ritual her and Aedan performed. Not that I have. We had some very strange conversations on our way through Denerim.

Alistair doesn't seem happy with that, though, and he wraps an arm around my waist, sitting up. He pulls me with him. I shudder and moan from the change in angle, and as I go to kiss him, he dips his head, pulling my nipple into his mouth. My eyes snap open and my back arches.

"Alistair...!"

He begins sucking as he thrusts up into me, groaning when I roll my hips to meet him. "Moan for me." His hands grab my hips as he slides back down, slamming me into a thrust with so much force I almost come undone. I throw my head back, moaning so loudly I'm sure someone downstairs could hear. He groans against me before he does it again. The feeling he creates is indescribable and it's so hard for me to hold myself together it's almost unbearable. I ball my hands up in his hair, pushing myself farther into his mouth and closer to his hips. His hands tighten on my waist before he pushes me back onto the bed, moving his kisses up to my collarbone. I still arch into them, enjoying each little press of his lips more than I thought possible.

As he goes to thrust again, he jerks my hips up and slams further into me than he has before. I almost scream with the pleasure from it; it feels so amazing. He covers my mouth with his own, swallowing any noises I make. Our tongues duel with each other in an elaborate dance when I feel the pressure build so high it becomes unbearable. I wrap myself around him, absorbing his next thrust with every fiber of my being. All of the feelings explode, bursting all over my body so suddenly I see stars. My muscles clamp down on him and he hits his release at the same time I do, groaning into my mouth. I shake all over as I come off my euphoric high, trembling from everything. Alistair slides off me and lays on his back, completely spent. I find that energy to curl against his side, so he wraps an arm around my shoulders, kissing me gently.

"I love you," he whispers, forehead pressed against mine.

"I love you too," I say, returning the kiss.

He sighs, stroking my hair. "I was worried about you."

"That's not a first," I say, wrapping an arm around his chest. I put my head on his shoulder, closing my eyes. "But I'm tired. We can argue later."

"Who said I wanted to argue?" Alistair asks.

I ignore him. I don't want to argue with him just because he was worried about me. I don't want to fight with him, period. And I'm really tired, and his shoulder is a good pillow. It always has been and always will be, so I drift off with a stupid smile on my face. I faintly feel him press a kiss to the top of my head, but before I can even think of what I could do back, I'm asleep.

By the time I wake up, Alistair's snoring. Loudly. I have no idea how that didn't wake me up. But he didn't, so I can't really complain. The one candle in the room has gone out, so I can only assume I was sleeping for a fairly long time. Guess I should get up.

I throw my feet over the side of the bed, running a hand through my hair before I start hunting down my clothes. I pull them on quickly, leaving my boots where Alistair threw them. Then I sit on the floor next to my pack, staring up at the ceiling. I squeeze my eyes shut and breathe through my nose as I try to comprehend everything that's happened the past few days.

I'm engaged. The thought makes me laugh in disbelief even as I twist the ring on my finger around. I'm seriously engaged to someone. I don't believe it. I don't think I'll ever get past the shock, either. I always thought I'd end up married to someone my parents chose, and here I am, engaged to the man I love. I can't help the smile that breaks through. Alistair is the sweetest man I've ever met, Templar and all. And when he could've had anyone else, he chose me, the apostate Warden that's counted as an abomination. That sounds too ridiculous and I laugh, shaking my head.

That's not even the strangest thing that's happened all week, but it's the only good thing. I got poisoned and kidnapped by some blood mage, Hawke's mother died and she blames me, and now on top of it all, I have to watch her from a distance while trying to figure out which nobles want me dead. This is turning out to be a bigger mess than the Blight! At least with the Blight everything was straightforward. Go here, kill these things, get treaty, repeat. Now I'm getting caught up in assassination attempts on my life, watching my friends nearly die, and trying to do what the Maker demands. Not that I've gotten any new orders, exactly. Still the same. Fix the Chantry. Don't get killed.

I am such a busy person.

"Hello?" Someone knocks at the door. "You okay in there, Glowy?"

I roll my eyes, getting to my feet. I throw a blanket over Alistair and kick his clothes into the corner before I open the door. Look! My favorite dwarf and pirate.

"What?" I ask, rubbing my eyes.

"Ooh, did we interrupt?" Isabela asks excitedly.

"Uh, no," I say, stifling a yawn. "What did you want? Seriously. I'm trying to sleep."

She makes a pouty face. "You were supposed to help me get something from the Docks, remember?"

I nod. "I'll still help. Just not right now. I'm tired." She shrugs, grinning in a knowing manner. "Is that all you wanted?"

"Nope," she says brightly.

"Hawke won't be bothering us for some time yet for...obvious reasons," Varric says.

"So...we figured we'd have a little contest," Isabela says, smirking. "Merrill's going to join us regardless of what you say, but we figured we'd ask the resident Wardens if they wanted to get in on our drinking contest."

"Dear Maker," I mutter. "Is it really a good idea to get a blood mage drunk? Especially when that mage is Merrill?"

"Probably not," Varric says, chuckling.

I sigh, looking over my shoulder back at Alistair. He's rolled over to face the wall, and is still snoring. I've got nothing better to do and I could use a drink. I could also go for seeing if Leliana is still alive. And if Aedan is done fussing like a moron.

"As long as we get my brother involved," I say. "And as long as we avoid the poisoned drinks this time."

Isabela laughs as she walks off down the hall. "We will do our best!"

Varric looks up at me, grinning. "After you, Glowy." I roll my eyes as I step out into the hallway, shutting the door behind me. It is a short walk to the tavern below and Varric keeps up with me that entire way, muttering something about keeping Isabela off Merrill once the elf is drunk. He doesn't even doubt that it will end up that way, or that Isabela will get 'grabby-grabby', to quote Aedan. "You buying?"

I shrug. "I don't have anything else to spend my sovereigns on."

"Sounds good to me!" Varric says, chuckling again. He chooses a table in the corner before sitting down. I sit with my back to the wall and stare out at the patrons. None of them look familiar.

"No Seekers today."

Varric looks over his shoulder, snorting. "Maybe they got bored."

"Bored? They got bored watching a glowing mage sit around and do nothing? What an idea," I mutter, shaking my head. The dwarf ignores my comment, waving Norah over so I can pay her. I count out five sovereigns and hand then to her. Five should last us an hour to two.

"So, Glowy," Varric says, leaning over the table. "Got any interesting stories from the Blight?"

"I'm wondering how you've never asked this before," I say, crossing my arms as I lean back in my chair.

"Never thought of it," he says.

I raise an eyebrow before shrugging. "Sure, why not? Anything you want to hear about in particular?"

He grins. "How did you end up possessed?"

"That's a long one," I say, rocking my chair again. "Might want to wait for Merrill to get here. She'd like it, perhaps."

"Have it your way," Varric says. "We'll wait for Merrill. In the meantime, why don't you tell me how you managed to kill two high dragons? Or how you met Flemeth?"

Sighing, I look up. Which is the lesser of two evils? Hmm. "Hope blew the first one to pieces with my combustion grenades after it decided to do its best to eat Alistair. I stabbed the Archdemon in the head with my sword."

"You did? How?"

"I spent a lot of mana wearing it down," I say. "When it collapsed, I ran up and stabbed it before Aedan or Alistair could."

"Ah. Taking all the glory for yourself?" Varric asks, smirking.

"Maker, no!" I exclaim. "No, you have the wrong idea!" I shake my head, dropping my chair back to the floor. "Do you know why Wardens are needed to defeat the Blight? We're needed because if a regular person kills it, the essence of the dragon moves into another Blighted creature, and then the Blight continues. But when a Warden kills one, we take it and both of us die in the process. Then the Blight is over. Ta da."

Varric's eyes widen as Norah puts our drinks down on the table. He waits for her to walk away before he asks, "You killed it because you didn't want them dying?" I nod, and he laughs in disbelief. "It's rare to hear of courage like that out of a fairytale."

"I guess so."

He blinks, confused. "So, wait, how are you still alive then?"

"Flemeth's daughter," I say, looking at my hands. "Morrigan. She...she had Aedan perform a ritual with her the night before we marched for Denerim. He got her pregnant and when I killed the Archdemon, her baby absorbed its essence instead of me."

"And this kid is still alive?" Varric asks.

"As far as I know, yes. He is," I say, nodding.

"Walking around with the soul of an Old God, eh?"

"Yeah," I say, sighing.

"And the Maker doesn't want you to fit that, Glowy?"

"The Maker wants me to fix the Chantry," I mutter. "I guess that takes precedence."

"Ah," he says. "Fixing the unfixable?"

I snort out a laugh. "Considering it's His Bride that formed the Chantry, and now he has me tearing it down, I'm surprised it lasted this long."

Varric chuckles. "The Chantry is full of problems if you haven't noticed."

"Oh trust me. I've noticed. That's the only reason I don't think I'm going insane yet."

"Yet? That's a good one," Varric says. "I'd say you were insane just from charging an Archdemon with a death wish."

"Better than letting my brother die," I say softly. "Or Alistair."

The dwarf shrugs. "I heard there was another Warden with you when you were fighting the Blight. A Nevarran, no less."

"There was," I say. "Cyrus. He was one of the assassins Loghain and Howe hired to kill us."

"They hired a Warden to kill Wardens?"

"Cyrus had left the Wardens before that," I reply. "He got bored. And actually, it makes sense even though I'm sure Loghain didn't even know that we can sense each other and any nearby darkspawn."

"I gather that's an untold secret?"

"Usually," I agree, nodding. "But when I was Warden-Commander, my men took to calling me 'Commander Loose-Lips'. I felt that everyone should know the consequences of being a Grey Warden even if it might deter potential recruits. I thought it would be unfair."

"Commander Loose-Lips?" Varric starts laughing so hard his face turns red. "If it was as short as Glowy, I'd take to calling you that!"

I smile faintly. "Aedan calls me that sometimes."

"That's perfect," the storyteller says, snorting.

Looking past Varric, I see the door open as Merrill enters the Hanged Man. Isabela is leading Aedan and Leliana downstairs, the Orlesian leaning on my brother for support. My eyebrows knit together in concern as the Dalish elf slides into a chair next to Varric, effectively blocking my view. I get to my feet and walk around past, straight over to Leliana.

"Does your side still hurt?" I ask.

"More or less?" she asks, making a weak attempt at a joke. I raise an eyebrow and Aedan's forced to pull one of her arms over his shoulder. "More. Definitely more."

"I'm sorry," I say, walking alongside them as he pulls her over to our table. "Tell me if it gets unbearable and I'll see what I can do." I go behind the table first, dropping into my seat gratefully. Aedan helps Leliana sit between the two of us, smiling apologetically at Varric and Merrill. Isabela has sat next to the elf.

"It took us a moment to get her moving," Aedan says. "I apologize for the delay."

"No need, Cap," Varric says, waving a hand. "Daisy just got here, herself." He looks to me, frowning. "Now I believe you owe me a story."

"Ooh, what's it about?" Merrill asks excitedly. Sometimes she seems a lot more innocent than Alistair, but then I remember she's a blood mage trying to fix an Eluvian, and I forget that notion immediately.

"It's about Hope," I say. "About how we bonded."

"Bonded? I said possessed," Varric says, snorting. "I feel like I'm getting cheated."

"Well, she didn't possess me," I say. "If you ask her, 'the Father' brought us together. In other words, the Maker. If you ask me, I'd say it was watching one of Howe's men nearly kill Aedan."

"You don't seriously believe that's what brought her across the Veil, though," Aedan says. "Do you?"

"I used to," I say, shrugging. "Some days I feel it's truer than her explanation." I glance at Merrill, who looks confused every time we bring up the Maker. "I know Hope's reasoning goes against your beliefs, Merrill, but-"

"It's fine," she says, smiling. "It would be foolish to think our gods created humans to kill us the way they did. I've always believed there were other gods out there for each race."

"What about the dwarves?" I ask. "They worship their Paragons. Did they just spring up from the ground, bearded and all?"

"That's exactly what happened!" Varric says defensively.

I cover my mouth to stifle a laugh, shaking my head. "Anyway, I believe I was going to tell you what happened when we reclaimed Highever?" Varric nods and I scoot my chair in, leaning on the table with my elbows. Isabela calls Norah over for more drinks while I talk. "So, two weeks or so after Ostagar, Alistair, Aedan, and I were fussing over the treaties and about how we were supposed to raise this army to combat the Blight. We had already planned on going to Highever after we picked up supplies and some misfits from Lothering, but as we approached the lands, we realized our brother, Fergus, might actually be alive. Highever's men never joined the fighting at Ostagar as they were all scouting in the Wilds, and Leliana had informed us an army of men bearing laurel shields had passed through only a day or so before we arrived. So we chased Fergus and Highever's men across Ferelden, finally joining up with them a mile or so out of Highever Castle. We came up with a plan to get inside and retake it, meaning Leliana and I had to go get captured by Howe's soldiers. Once we were thrown in the dungeons by Thomas Howe no less, we waited an hour before getting the guards' attention. I locked them in my cell and we searched the rest of the prison, finding my mother locked away and beaten. Then we started making our way to a side passage where Aedan was waiting with the others. Once I let them in, we regrouped with Leliana at the gatehouse. We started to open the gates for Highever's men, but we were attacked in the process, and the weight was cut. I did some stupid stuff that I don't recommend ever trying so we could open the portcullis. Once the soldiers were in, we joined them in attacking Howe's soldiers. It took us a few hours to breach the main hall and the rest of the castle, but when Aedan and I went looking for Thomas, we figured he'd be back in our father's office, which is way back, as far away from the portcullis as possible. We fought our way there, just the two of us, but I lost Aedan while I was healing one of our men. When I caught up to him, I found one of Howe's knights standing over him. He attacked me and almost bested me, but Hope came out of nowhere, healing me just as I thought I was going to die. But she also completely took over, much the same way Justice does with Anders. She killed him in less than thirty seconds, and when Aedan and I finally got to our father's office, we found Thomas there with an entire garrison protecting him. As we fought our way in, I reached Thomas first, and before I could realize what was happening, Hope came out again, and he died within ten seconds.

"So there you have it. That's how I first got involved with Hope."

Leliana looks the most surprised. "That is how it happened? You never told me!"

"I didn't tell anyone," I say. "Not even Aedan. He met Hope when we were in the Fade, but didn't find out about the whole bond until much later." I shrug, adding, "And then there's Morrigan, who seems to know everything before I do."

"You didn't know you ended up in Highever's dungeons, Orlesian?" Varric asks.

Leliana rolls her eyes and Aedan snorts out a laugh. He looks over to me, raising an eyebrow. "So what are you playing with, sis?"

I blink rapidly, confused, as I clasp my hands in my lap. "Nothing. Why?"

Even Merrill can see I'm lying, but since I'm up against the wall with Leliana beside me, the bard is the only one that can try anything. She reaches for me, but I flip, pressing my back to the wall on my right. Her jaw drops and the rest of them start laughing.

"Overreacting?" Isabela asks, chuckling.

"Just a tad," Aedan says, raising an eyebrow. "You hit Leliana and I'll punch you, sister or not." He pauses, smirking. "Hope or not."

I scowl at him and Leliana lunges, elbowing my collarbone and knocking all the air from my lungs. I swear to the Maker my eyes almost pop out of my head, but she gets what she wanted, snatching my hand out from behind my back.

"You little shit," I snap.

"That is not very nice, Elissa," she says, clicking her tongue in an amused manner.

"Aedan?"

"What?"

"Punch me."

Isabela chokes on her drink and Varric laughs, slapping his hand on the table in amusement. I glance back at Leliana, but she's grinning like an idiot, and Aedan is looking over her shoulder. Merrill is sitting across from me, eyes wide.

"Ha!" Aedan exclaims, whipping around to Varric. "Ten sovereigns, dwarfy."

"Dwarfy?" Varric demands. "And why do I owe you ten sovereigns?"

"That bet last week?" Aedan says. "Pay up, pal." Varric looks over the table, almost falling on it to do so. He scowls, dropping back to his chair.

"What are you going on about?" Isabela says. "Let me see!"

Leliana whips around, suddenly pulling her attention back to focus. "Did you seriously bet on something like that?"

"Of course I did," Aedan says. "But hey! I bet in Alistair's favor!"

She groans, hiding her face in her hands, and I laugh. "You married a child," I say, laughing so hard my face turns red.

"Elissa?" Aedan says, looking at me. I raise an eyebrow through my laughter. "Look who's talking."

Now Leliana starts laughing, falling back on Aedan from how hard she is. Merrill looks completely lost by now, and Isabela looks annoyed. Varric still looks miffed as he hands Aedan his money and, I can't even breathe; I'm laughing that hard.

"What's so funny?" Merrill asks.

Leliana grabs my wrist before I can think to move my hand, slapping it on the table.

"Alistair proposed!"