A/N: This is where things take a turn for the AU. You've been warned. ;)

Chapter Ten: Lothering

"So, why are you excited to be going to Lothering, Yvaine?" asked Alistair. They had been walking the Imperial Highway to Lothering for about two hours now and until that point had mostly been silent.

Yvaine turned and gave him a huge smile, one he felt himself eagerly returning. "You remember I mentioned my cousin Amalthea and how she lives in a village not too far from Ostagar?"

Alistair nodded, remembering the conversation from a few nights ago very clearly.

"Well, the village she lives in is Lothering!" exclaimed Yvaine and she looked as if she wanted to dance the rest of the way to the village but was preventing herself from doing so. "I think it would be in our favor to stay with my family while we're dealing in Lothering, their cottage is on the outskirts so we won't bring too much unwanted attention if it's just a couple of us moving around the village at a time."

He cleared his throat nervously. "Are you sure that's a good idea? I mean, well, given whom we're traveling with . . ."

Yvaine raised a quizzical eyebrow. "Are you referring to Morrigan, Alistair?"

Alistair chanced a glance at the witch traveling ahead of them, expecting her to be listening in or come up with a snide comment or two but he found her to be completely unaware of the fact they were discussing her. "Yes," whispered Alistair. "She might have been safe in the Wilds but the rest of the world sees her as an apostate, an illegal mage, her mere presence puts us all in jeopardy. I can't imagine your family would be thoroughly pleased with housing an apostate."

To his great surprise Yvaine did not take the news he had presented her with the shock he had expected, instead she laughed, rather loudly in fact. "Oh Alistair," she managed in between laughs, "I can't wait for you to meet my family."

Under normal circumstances, he would have taken that statement as a good one yet given the fact these were far from satisfactory situations and Yvaine was laughing, he could not help but feel a little unsettled. They resumed their silence for a few more minutes, then started passing the time by looking at plants and trying to figure out which ones were edible and which ones to avoid entirely.

"You mentioned earlier that Arl Eamon raised you, Alistair," said Yvaine as she watched a pair of birds flying overhead. "Care to tell me why?"

Alistair paled at the question, he knew he should not have opened his big mouth earlier until he was certain, but now he had to say something or risk losing her trust. "Is that what I said? Maker no, I wasn't raised by the arl, I was raised by a pack of wild dogs." He looked up and saw Fergus watching them from the front of the group, rolling his eyes and giving a sigh before turning his attention back to the road.

"That must have been an experience," said Yvaine, going along with the joke, she could tell this subject was touchy for him and she was not about to pry for information.

He nodded. "It was indeed, and they weren't just normal dogs, they were flying ones too. And strict Andrastians if you can believe that."

"Sounds like you had a most interesting childhood, Alistair," replied Yvaine with an amused tone, this was proving to be very fun indeed. "Must've been quite the sight at the Chantry, seeing you and all of those dogs entering just to worship Andraste and the Maker." She resumed watching the birds, thinking their conversation had concluded, and smiled as she watched Gawain run around her and Alistair in a large circle.

Again Alistair looked up and met Fergus' gaze, he mouthed the words 'tell her' and he knew it was going to be rather difficult to keep up the charade for much longer.

"Or I might have dreamed all of that," sighed Alistair, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "Amazing the things you dream when you sleep on the cold, hard ground." He glanced over and saw her brown eyes were focused on his face, as if expecting him to explain himself. "Look, the truth is I'm a bastard, and before you make any smart comments," he glared at the back of Fergus' head before continuing, "I mean the fatherless kind. My mother was a serving girl at Redcliffe castle and Arl Eamon took me in when he didn't have to, he cared for me, treated me like his own son, at least until he married Isolde."

The mention of Isolde's name caused Yvaine's temper to flare, she had never really gotten over what that woman had done to her and now that she knew the same woman had hurt Alistair in some way, she felt even more justified in her anger. "I'm sorry," she said quietly, she reached out and gently gripped his fingers in her hand. "I know how horrible she can be." She let go of his fingers, letting her hand drop to her side. "It's too bad we never met before now, Alistair, think of all the fun we could have had."

He cleared his throat nervously. "Actually, Yvaine . . ."

His words were drowned out by a loud squeal he realized was coming from Yvaine, she ran ahead of the group, even weighed down in her armor she was still fast on her feet. Alistair looked ahead to where she was running, in the distance he could make out the village of Lothering but closer to their position was a quaint little cottage, and that was where Yvaine was running to. More specifically, she was running to the two figures just outside of the cottage, and he had a feeling those were her family.

"Mal!" shouted Yvaine as she drew closer, able to make out which of her cousins was outside. "Mal! Mal!"

The woman who was Amalthea looked up from the garden she was tending and saw someone running towards her, she hesitated for a moment but when the word 'Mal' hit her ears she dropped the hoe and started running. They met in the middle, embracing each other immediately before dropping to the ground, both a mess of laughter and tears. Two people from the cottage came running just as Yvaine's group managed to catch up with her, all were wondering what was going on.

"Yvaine!" shouted Amalthea laughing as she struggled to sit up. "I can't believe you're here! I'm so glad you're alright!"

"I feel the same way," laughed Yvaine as she too tried to sit up again.

"What in the Maker's name is going on here?" asked a man's voice from behind Amalthea, she looked up and laughed, her younger brother's attempt at being serious quite amusing to her.

"Oh, Carver, it's just Yvaine," she said, turning to the cousin who was more like a sister to her.

"Just Yvaine?" asked a young woman from behind Carver, her dark eyes narrowing to slits when she saw the others walking up behind Yvaine.

Yvaine turned to see where her other cousin was looking, blushing slightly. "Bethany, it's alright, they're with me."

Bethany's eyes lit up when she recognized Fergus straight away. "Fergus!"

"Hello to you, too, Bethany," said Fergus with a chuckle and he turned to Carver. "Glad to see you're doing well, Carver."

Carver puffed out his chest, standing just a little bit taller than he had earlier. "You know how it is, Fergus, just have to watch out for Bethany here and make sure Thea doesn't get herself into too much trouble."

"A difficult task indeed," agreed Fergus, winking at his cousin who was still on the ground with his little sister. "Yvaine here is worse than the two of them combined."

Yvaine playfully swatted his leg. "You sorry excuse for a brother, take that back."

"Make me," teased Fergus he was swiftly knocked on his back, but not by Yvaine. "Beth! Why'd you have to go and do that? You know the rules, no magic!"

'So that's why Yvaine laughed when I mentioned her family taking in Morrigan,' thought Alistair, 'they're already harboring an apostate.'

Bethany giggled as she put her staff away. "Oh, Fergus, you know me, I love to break the rules when I can."

"Since when, Miss Goody-Two-Staff?" retorted Amalthea, throwing a small pile of grass at her little sister.

"Uh, excuse me," pipped in Alistair, "as glad as I am that you're Yvaine and Fergus' cousins, who exactly are you?"

"I'm Carver," said Carver immediately, holding out his hand for Alistair. "I'm the oldest."

"Like hell you are," snapped Amalthea as she stood up and dusted herself off. She smiled at Alistair before bringing him in for a tight hug. "I'm Amalthea and I'm the oldest." She shot a look back at Carver whom had slunk to the back, his eyes now on Morrigan, whom seemed rather pleased to have his attention.

Again, Bethany giggled as she looked at Carver, seeing where his gaze was locked.

"And this is my little sister, Bethany," said Amalthea happily, bringing her sister forward.

"Pleased to meet you," said Bethany, batting her eyelashes as she extended her hand.

"The pleasure is all mine," said Alistair, his voice had a lilt to it as he reached for Bethany's hand and instead of shaking it, he kissed it, she giggled of course.

Yvaine felt a surge of jealousy go through her body at top speed, her cheeks reddened and she had never wanted to knock Bethany on her ass so badly as now. Fergus had to bite back a rather loud groan and Morrigan tried her best not to send the clueless Warden sailing halfway across the village. Even Amalthea could barely fight down her desire to knock Alistair to the ground and tell him what a fool he was being, and she had just met him.

"I'm Alistair," said Alistair cheerfully. "You three of course know Yvaine and Fergus," he gestured to the siblings at his right and then he grimaced as he turned to Morrigan, "and this ray of perpetual sunshine is Morrigan."

Gawain pounced on Amalthea, eliciting laughter from both her and Yvaine, though hers was a bit more strained she was still reeling from Alistair's apparent attraction to her younger cousin. "Yes, Gawain, I remember you," laughed Amalthea just as another large Mabari rounded the corner, barking happily when he saw Gawain.

"Mordred!" exclaimed Yvaine and the other Mabari came bounding up to her, wagging his stump of a tail as he rested his paws on her shoulders, licking her face. "Yes, boy, I'm glad to see you, too." The Mabari barked before going over to Gawain, they stared at each other for a few moments then they started running around, as if they were two brothers whom were picking up where they had left off. The large group laughed as they watched, all clearly amused by the sight of two grown Mabari hounds acting as if they were still puppies.

"Would someone like to explain what's going on here?" asked a stern voice, causing all of them to jump.

Yvaine was the first to notice her aunt's presence. "Aunt Leandra."

Leandra smiled when she saw her niece, opening her arms wide, which Yvaine ran into eagerly glad to have the comfort of her aunt's embrace. "It's good to see you, Yvaine."

She struggled against the tears that welled in her eyes. She had forgotten how much like her mother her aunt was, their voices were practically identical, which only made the struggle worse. Yvaine pulled away from her aunt enough to look her in the eyes. "Aunt Leandra, you should know, Mother is . . . is . . ."

Her aunt gave her a watery smile. "I know, child, I know." She pulled her back into her arms just as Yvaine let the flood of tears roll down her cheeks, her entire body trembling with the sobs she released against her aunt's shoulder. Leandra rubbed her back and then looked at Fergus, his eyes too were shimmering with unshed tears and he rushed to his aunt, glad when she included him in the embrace. Yvaine quickly remembered Alistair and Morrigan and detangled herself from her aunt's arms though she did not go very far.

"Alistair, Morrigan," said Yvaine stiffly, "allow me to introduce my aunt, Leandra Hawke."

"A pleasure I'm sure," said Leandra as she observed Alistair and Morrigan. "Thea, dear, please show our guests inside and for Maker's sake get that grass out of your hair!"

Amalthea gave a heavy sigh, shaking her honey colored locks in order to free the pieces of grass that had gotten stuck while she was on the ground with Yvaine. "If you'll all please follow me inside."

They all followed Amalthea inside the cottage, Yvaine taking extra care not to get close to Alistair, preferring to walk with Amalthea instead. When they were all inside Leandra set about making a large kettle of tea while the young adults made themselves comfortable in the sitting room. Yvaine thought sitting room sounded too formal for the room, it was actually where all of the rooms that were not the bedrooms converged, with a large fireplace warming the entire area. She loved being here at the cottage, to her it was much more like home than the castle had ever been, the castle was far too large for it to feel intimate like her aunt's cottage. The room was filled with mindless chatter about inane subjects, such as the weather and how the crops were looking this year.

"Shall we drop all pretenses?" asked Leandra as she passed out mugs of her herbal tea. "Why are you here, Yvaine? Not that it's terrible seeing you again, but what's happened?"

Yvaine looked up at her aunt from over the rim of her mug, and slowly set it down on the table in front of her. "You know what happened in Highever, correct?"

Leandra, Bethany, and Amalthea all nodded while Carver seemed lost.

"What happened at Highever?" he whispered to Bethany.

"I'll tell you later," she whispered back, her eyes still focused on Alistair.

"Well," said Yvaine, bringing everyone's attention on her now. "I was rescued by the Grey Warden Commander, Duncan and taken to Ostagar."

"We were at Ostagar!" exclaimed Amalthea, nearly tipping over her mug in her excitement. "Carver and I were, we just arrived from there last night actually. How we managed to get out there, I'll never understand."

Yvaine blinked. "Thank the Maker you weren't killed."

"Continue on with your story, Yvaine," prodded Leandra as she daintily sipped her tea.

She nodded and glanced at Bethany who's big brown eyes were still focused on Alistair. "We arrived at Ostagar where I also found Fergus, and then I was inducted into the Order of the Grey Wardens. That's how I met Alistair actually."

"How'd you meet Morrigan?" asked Carver with great interest, his dark eyes scanning the witch's form.

"Her mother Flemeth rescued us from the tower of Ishal," replied Yvaine, watching the interaction between her cousin and Morrigan. "We had met before that but we've just now gotten to know each other better."

Amalthea's sea colored eyes lit up at the news. "Yvaine that's incredible! I can't believe it, you met the Witch of the Wilds! Not only that but my cousin is a legendary Grey Warden!"

Yvaine chuckled softly. "We're only legendary if we complete the impossible task ahead of us." She nervously cleared her throat. "Which brings me to why we're here, Aunt Leandra. Alistair and I have been tasked with stopping the Blight, we're here passing through on our way to gathering an army actually, I thought it'd be a good idea to stop by and see you before telling you to get the hell out of Lothering."

"We had already planned to," drawled Carver, his arrogant attitude rubbing Alistair the wrong way, he seemed too much like Morrigan for his liking.

She blushed a light red color. "I'm sorry, I hope we aren't preventing you from fleeing."

Leandra shook her head. "Not at all, my dear, we weren't going to leave until tomorrow morning. I wanted my children tended to before we took off for Kirkwall, I plan on finding your grandparents again, and asking for them to take us in."

"You're going back?" asked Fergus, leaning in closer. "Are you sure that's wise, Aunt Leandra?"

"I don't know what's wise anymore, Fergus," sighed Leandra, leaning back in her seat. "After I lost your Uncle Malcolm, I've felt compelled to return to Kirkwall and find out excatly what happened to my parents. I can no longer sense Mother like I used to."

Amalthea gave a sad sigh and went to her mother's side, wrapping her arm around her shoulders and giving them a gentle squeeze. "It'll be alright, Mother, you'll see. I don't think anything bad happened to them."

Leandra squeezed her daughter's hand and gave a small smile. "I'm sure you're right, Thea. Now," she turned to the Grey Wardens in the room, "what can we do to help you?"

Yvaine turned to Alistair who gave her an encouraging nod. "We need to gather supplies, which I'm sure we can do in the village, horses would be a welcome asset since we can't very well walk everywhere. I'd like to find out what's been happening since Ostagar—"

"That's simple," snorted Carver, "Loghain's taken over as regent."

"What?!" exclaimed Fergus, Yvaine and Alistair.

Carver gave a grim nod. "It was announced just this morning, he's taken over for Cailan, and with Arl Eamon sick, he was unopposed."

Alistair went pale at the news. "What? The arl's sick?"

"Have the three of you been hiding under a rock for the last few months?" sneered Carver. "The arl's been sick for a few weeks now, and no one's heard from Bann Teagan since he left Denerim. Best anyone can figure is he's taken over for the arl, it must be pretty bad, Arlessa Isolde hasn't been seen at Court since the arl fell ill."

Yvaine looked at Alistair, he seemed rather distressed at the news. "Then our first stop should be Redcliffe," she said firmly. "If things are really as bad as you say they are, we're going to need whatever leverage the arl can give us against Loghain and then ultimately against the Blight. As soon as our business has concluded here in Lothering we'll head north for Redcliffe." She watched as relief flooded into Alistair's face, he had obviously wanted to go there above all other places.

"Then we'd best get you to the village," said Amalthea, standing up. "I'll escort Yvaine into Lothering, with any luck it shall remain uneventful."

"I think Bethany should accompany you as well," said Morrigan, speaking for the first time since they arrived.

Bethany sighed and stood up as well. "I guess it wouldn't hurt for me to go, I'll purchase some items we'll be needing as well, Mother."

"I'll stay behind and help Carver and Aunt Leandra," offered Fergus.

"I might be able to help the girls out in town," said Alistair quickly but Morrigan pushed him back into his seat.

"If anyone else is going, it shall be me," she said smugly. "'Tis better you stay here, Alistair, perhaps you could play with the dogs while the rest of us work, that way you might not interfere too much."

Leandra saw the dark look Alistair was giving Morrigan and stepped in immediately. "Then it's settled. Girls, please hurry while you're in town, I don't want you drawing too much attention. Supper will be ready by the time you get back, now please, hurry."

The girls nodded and headed outside of the cottage, eager to stretch their legs and visit the little village before it was too dark to enjoy what it offered them.

"Carver, please go out to your father's old workshop and gather what crafting materials you can find," said Leandra, her voice commanding and stern. "Fergus, Alistair, you two go to the garden and finish where the others left off in gathering vegetables and herbs."

"Yes, Aunt Leandra," said Fergus, feigning a cheerful disposition as he pulled Alistair with him.

The girls arrived on the outskirts of Lothering, Amalthea leading them to a covered path that would take them to the village, only instead of finding a clear way through they were stopped by bandits.

"Well, looky 'ere boys," said the one who was clearly the leader. "More refugees looking to get inta Lothering. Ten pieces of silver's the toll to get past us."

Another man stepped beside the leader, he was clearly not the brightest of the bunch but he was their enforcer, though it appeared he was none too eager to take on Yvaine and the rest of the group.

"Maybe we should let these ones pass, boss," he said in a loud whisper. "These ones aren't like them others, they're armed."

"Your friend is right," drawled Morrigan, clearly amused. "'Tis wiser to let us pass than to challenge us."

"Toll's the same no matter who you are," replied the leader smugly.

Bethany looked less than amused. "You weren't here yesterday, who are you?"

"Isn't it obvious, Sister?" said Amalthea, crossing her arms. "They're highway men, praying on the refugees who pass through trying to get ahead of the Blight."

"Robbers is a better term," snarled Yvaine. "How is it that you're getting away with this?"

The leader chuckled. "This one here must be the brains. I like you, sweetheart, you know I could lower the toll . . . if you'll do a favor for me." He stepped forward and brushed a strand of hair out of her face, there was no mistaking what kind of a favor he was talking about.

Yvaine was quick and pulled out the dagger she kept in her boot, she held it against the startled man's throat. "You will let us pass, and you will leave at once."

"Men!" shouted the bandit. "Attack!"

She wasted no time on the leader, slitting his throat with her dagger before moving onto the blundering oaf to his left, she and Amalthea were quick to pair up both using their shields and swords to fell the man. Behind them Bethany and Morrigan were working on two of the remaining four bandits, Bethany froze them to statues as Morrigan blasted them with small balls of lightening. Then they split off, Morrigan with Amalthea and Bethany with Yvaine, each pair was able to dispatch the last two bandits quickly.

"I'm surprised they went down that fast," said Yvaine as she wiped her sword clean. "It took me much longer to get rid of an emissary the other night."

"I know how you feel," laughed Amalthea, wiping the splattered blood from her face. "When Carver and I were fighting them we figured it out that we needed to literally have each other's backs, so that's how we fought, with our backs facing each other. It was actually kind of fun once we got over the shock, soon we were keeping points."

"I wish I could have gone," sighed Bethany as she drank a small vile of blue lyrium.

Morrigan snorted. "Well, what prevented you? 'Tis ridiculous to stay home when there is sport to be had."

"Mother's always been worried about me getting found out," said Bethany as they started looting the bodies. "From what Carver told me, there were several templars in Ostagar, so it was best I stayed at home."

They went around to the broken crates and toppled chests, picking out what supplies looked like they would either be useful or bring in decent coin if sold, they even found a couple of horses close by. All agreed it would be best for Bethany to remain behind and keep an eye on the horses, there were several templars in the village and if any of them had witnessed Bethany's display of magic it would mean trouble for them. They tried to make Morrigan stay behind but she refused so they continued on their way into the village.

"Maker's breath . . ." whispered Amalthea. They had just entered the village and all about them were refugees in varying states of wretchedness.

"My sentiments exactly," whispered Yvaine as they moved down the road. "Mal, where are the shops and tavern?"

Amalthea glanced around. "Just across that bridge over there, though I suggest we look at the Chanter's board."

Yvaine raised an eyebrow. "Why? We just need supplies and some news."

"You also need some money and the Chanter's board is the best way to get some fast coin," replied Amalthea. "Do you have any other money, save for what we took from the bandits?"

"There's some in my pack but I'd rather not pull it out in front of all these people," said Yvaine quietly as they neared the Chanter's board. When they were close enough to read it, she saw there were a number of jobs to do, all that paid relatively well so she took the pieces of paper down and put them under her belt. They were not anything too terrible, mostly getting rid of some bandits and wild animals, nothing that would take too long. "How much did we get from the bandits?"

"Seventy silver," replied Morrigan as she jingled the leather pouch.

Yvaine nodded. "Add that to what we have and we have about three sovereigns and thirty two silver with some coppers left over. I might be able to sell some of the useless junk I found while at Ostagar which should bring us in more coin, couple that with the jobs from the Chanter's board and we should be able to afford what we need."

"Sounds like a good plan," said Amalthea. "I think we should head to the tavern now, Dane's Refuge, the bartender sells some supplies and usually has useful things at a decent price. I'm sure we'll be able to complete those jobs before we leave town."

"Then the tavern it is," said Yvaine cheerfully and they started off towards the bridge. When they grew closer Yvaine felt her heart ache, there was a little red haired boy whom was no older than Oren had been, the little boy seemed lost and confused.

"Have you seen my mother?" he asked when they were close enough.

"You poor thing! Are you lost?" asked Yvaine gently, kneeling so she could see the little boy better.

The boy shook his head. "I'm not lost, I'm just waiting for Mother. She told me she was right behind me but I've been waiting and waiting."

Yvaine wanted to scoop the child up and never let go but fought the urge. "What happened, sweetheart?"

"Some bad men with swords came to our house and Mother told me to run," replied the boy. "Maybe I should go looking for her."

"How about this instead," said Yvaine, trying to persuade the child from running towards death. "I have five silver here for you, why don't you go buy yourself something to eat and then go to the Chantry so they can look after you while your mother's away?"

She reached into her purse and pulled out five silver pieces, she handed them to the boy and patted his head.

"Thank you!" he cried, a grin on his face. "You're a nice lady, kind of like Mother." He sprinted off towards the Chantry, the money she had given him held tight in his tiny fist.

"You shouldn't have done that," said Morrigan, annoyed. "That was five silver that could have gone towards some ingredients for injury kits or something like that."

Yvaine shrugged. "I'd rather see the money go towards assisting a helpless child than being turned into a pile of elfroot."

Morrigan sighed heavily but did not protest, she even managed to hold her tongue when Yvaine directed a family of elves to the dead bandits' caravan so they could claim their stolen belongings. 'How peculiar, we're in a hurry yet she prioritizes helping others before guaranteeing us our supplies,' thought Morrigan as Yvaine offered to make some health poultices for the injured people that were camped around Lothering's bridge. Eventually they reached the tavern, having helped several people in the process, much to Morrigan's annoyance.

They entered the tavern and immediately Yvaine knew something was wrong, there were far too many soldiers standing around for this to be a coincidence. She looked to Amalthea, who's worried look confirmed her suspicions, there was definitely something wrong with this picture. One of the soldiers nearest their group made a gesture at one of the others who turned around, a nasty look on his face as if he had just stepped in Mabari dung.

"Well, gents, looks like we got lucky," said the soldier, stepping closer to Yvaine. "Seems to me we just found the Grey Warden Loghain warned us about."

Amalthea stepped in. "There are no Grey Wardens here, friend, I suggest you leave."

The soldier pulled out a piece of parchment, reading it before looking back at them. "Oh really? Well your friend here matches the description Loghain gave us, so if you don't mind . . ." He made to grab Yvaine, who quickly moved out of his grasp, unsheathing her sword in the process.

"You're not taking me without a fight!" snarled Yvaine, Morrigan and Amalthea both moved to protect her.

The man shrugged, obviously amused by the sight he was seeing, then he gestured to his men. "That's fine, we could do with some exercise."

A young woman with bright red hair in Chantry robes rushed forward and stood between the two groups of fighters. "Please, I'm sure there's someway we can resolve this without the need for violence." She looked directly at Yvaine, her blue eyes pleading with her to intervene, do anything that would end this peacefully.

Before she could even speak the leader of Loghain's men pushed the young woman out of the way, sending her to the floor, then they lunged for Yvaine and the others. One soldier locked blades with Yvaine immediately while the others took on Amalthea and Morrigan, they were outnumbered three to one and that fact came into play quickly, each woman being blocked off from the others unable to help when necessary. Yvaine tried to fight her way out of the corner they had backed her in, struggling all the way, barely missing the tables she was being pushed into not to mention the innocent bystanders that were all gawking. She could feel the flames of the fireplace licking the backs of her calves, if she did not get out of this position she would either be killed by the blade or die by fire. Neither was an option right now. Suddenly she remembered she had a shield strapped to her back, quickly she removed it from its spot and threw all of her weight behind it, hitting the soldiers and sending them down. Just as she raised her blade the young red haired woman stepped in and sliced the throat of one of them, Yvaine looked up in surprise before a yell brought her attention elsewhere. Amalthea was being backed into a wall by four soldiers and Morrigan could not reach her, she too was being blocked in by several soldiers.

Yvaine started to go for Morrigan but she waved her off. "Go for Amalthea first! I'll be fine!" Suddenly a large fireball exploded from where Morrigan was standing, knocking back all of the soldiers that had been around her, somehow the explosion had been contained to only the area around her missing all the other people in the tavern.

Yvaine nodded and with the red haired sister at her side, they charged for the men around Amalthea, each one taking a soldier, making quick work of them before heading over to Morrigan's position. She had managed to take out two of the soldiers on her own but was having difficulty with the last ones, Yvaine and the sister took on the one with a two handed sword and when he was down they converged on the last one. This one happened to be the leader.

"Okay, okay!" he cried as he cowered on the floor. "We'll leave you alone, just don't kill me!"

Morrigan turned to Yvaine. "We can't risk letting him leave here alive, 'twould be better to send his head to this Loghain as a message."

"He's merely following orders!" protested the sister. "Let him live, perhaps with his second chance he will do something more than being a mercenary."

Yvaine looked at both women, she knew what she had to do. She then turned to the fallen man, he was unarmed and had surrendered, two facts she could not ignore in this decision. "Go, take your miserable life and be off with you, before I change my mind. Just be sure to tell Loghain . . ." she knelt down and leaned in close, her voice a rough whisper, "the Grey Wardens know the truth and we're coming for him."

The man nodded and scrambled out of the tavern, not even bothering to pick up his sword or anything else for that matter, instead taking Yvaine's advice and getting out of there before she could change her mind. Yvaine sighed as she picked up some papers the man had dropped, so much for keeping out of trouble while in town, she then turned her attention to the Chantry sister whom was now cleaning her daggers with the hem of her dress.

"Thank you for your help, sister," said Yvaine as she started looting through the bodies. "I didn't know Chantry sisters knew how to fight like that."

The girl blushed. "Most don't, I'm an exception to that standard."

"I'm glad," said Yvaine with a bright smile. "I'm Yvaine by the way, what's your name?"

"Leliana," replied Leliana, with a small smile. "I want to thank you for letting that man live, most would have let him die," she shot a look at Morrigan, "I'm glad you aren't like most."

"Likewise," chuckled Yvaine. "So what were you doing here, where Grey Warden hunters happened to be?"

Leliana put her blades away. "So it's true? You are a Grey Warden?"

"Yes," said Yvaine slowly. "Is that a problem?"

"No," said Leliana, as she twisted her hands nervously, "it's just . . . the Maker sent me to you, that's why I'm here."

"The girl believes the Maker sent her?" said Morrigan, crossing her arms. "And here I thought Alistair was the mental one."

Yvaine shot her a look that told her to keep her peace, then she looked at Leliana. "I don't care who sent you, I'm just grateful you were here."

"I'm glad, because I'm going with you to help end the Blight," said Leliana triumphantly.

"Wait, what?" asked Yvaine, her eyes wide with surprise.

"The Maker didn't send me just to save you," replied Leliana. "He sent me to join you, He wants me to accompany you on your journey to end the Blight and bring peace to Ferelden."

Yvaine looked helplessly at both Morrigan and Amalthea, the witch shook her head and her cousin merely smiled, leaving the decision entirely up to her. She turned back to Leliana's expectant and eager face. "Welcome aboard, Leliana, the more the merrier."

Leliana's simple grin grew into a full blown, teeth showing smile. "Oh thank you! I was so worried you wouldn't let me join you."

"You've got to be kidding me," groaned Morrigan, she obviously detested Leliana's presence a fact made more and more clear by the way she glared at her.

Yvaine sighed. "Morrigan, we accepted you without anyone raising objections, I expect you to do the same for Leliana."

The witch rolled her eyes and walked to the bartender, intent on buying the supplies Yvaine seemed to be forgetting.

"Do you have any armor, Leliana?" asked Amalthea kindly. "I don't think it's wise for you to fight darkspawn in nothing but your Chantry robes."

Leliana blushed. "I'm afraid I don't, all I have are my daggers. I could go looking for some armor, though I don't have much money."

Amalthea brushed her worries aside. "That's fine, my mother has a spare set laying around somewhere at my house, she used to be a rogue fighter like you."

"Thank you, messere," said Leliana happily. "Might I make a suggestion, Yvaine?"

"Of course, Leli," replied Yvaine as she pocketed the loot she had found.

"Oh, I quite like that," sighed Leliana dreamily. "Anyway, I know of someone else who might be of some help to our cause."

"Really?" asked Yvaine, now curious. "Who?"

Leliana cast a nervous glance around the room. "There's a Qunari being kept in a cage outside of the village, I think it would be in our best interest to try and convince the Revered Mother to let him go with us. I believe he wants a chance to atone for his sins against the Maker."

"If you believe that everyone wishes to appease the Maker, then you will be sadly disappointed," sneered Morrigan as she returned with a large bundle of supplies, she looked at Yvaine. "I have purchased the necessary supplies, plus a few extra items that you might find useful, 'twas not as expensive as we anticipated. The bartender seemed most grateful that we took care of those soldiers."

Yvaine smiled. "Thank you, Morrigan, that was very kind of you." She took the bundle from the witch's hands. "Now, I think we should go to the Chantry and speak with the Revered Mother, having a Qunari on our side would definitely make people think twice."

Amalthea laughed. "Maker, I've seen him a couple of times, he certainly is intimidating. I hope to never have to go up against one of them if I can help it."

"Well Mal, if you ever do, make sure you're given a title in exchange for your service," chuckled Yvaine as they headed out of the tavern. "Oh, Morrigan, if you don't want to join us at the Chantry you can go join Bethany."

Morrigan could barely contain her joy. "Alas, and I was so looking forward to being converted into a statue worshipping, close minded, Andrastian. 'Tis such a disappointment indeed." She practically flew the way she ran off from their group, Yvaine laughed as she watched, knowing the young witch wanted to be as far away from the Chantry as possible.

The Chantry was noticeably much more peaceful and serene than the village outside, being inside almost made the girls forget that there was an impending Blight and a town full of terrified refugees.

"The Revered Mother's quarters is in the back," whispered Leliana as they passed by several pews full of people on their knees praying.

"Do you think she'll listen?" asked Yvaine as she dropped a piece of silver in the donation box.

Leliana nodded confidently. "She's not an unreasonable woman, surely she'll see how noble this will be."

They quietly entered the Revered Mother's quarters, it was light and airy, sunlight spilling through every window. The Revered Mother was sitting at her desk, looking as regal as a queen though somehow seemed humble at the same time. She looked up from her writings when she heard the sound of armor and clanking swords, she seemed only mildly surprised to see three armed women standing before her.

"Good afternoon, ladies," said the Revered Mother gently, then she saw Leliana in the back. "Sister Leliana, I see you've returned. Have you given up on finding the Grey Wardens?"

Leliana blushed and shook her head. "No, Revered Mother, I have found them. This is her." She gestured to Yvaine, who gave a slight bow to the Revered Mother.

The woman's eyes narrowed. "I see. Well, what brings you to the Chantry, Grey Warden?"

Yvaine did not even bother telling her her name, sensing this woman did not like her one little bit. "Mother, we've come to discuss releasing the Qunari prisoner into our care."

"There is no discussing it," said the Revered Mother sternly. "He is to remain there until the darkspawn arrive. He murdered a family in cold blood, I am not about to release him, he's liable to perform the act again given the opportunity."

"But, Revered Mother," said Leliana, "surely leaving him to the darkspawn is a cruel punishment, did not Andraste forgive her husband for his betrayal?"

The Revered Mother sighed heavily. "You might have a point, Leliana. But I still don't see how releasing him into the Warden's care would be a way for him to gain forgiveness and atonement in the eyes of the Maker."

"Revered Mother, if I may," said Yvaine kindly, "the Maker and his bride Andraste are the epitome of all that is good, and the Blight the exact opposite, how could fighting against this great evil not be a way to prove to the Maker you are trying to make up for what you have done? Not many would be willing to run towards death, and if he fights with us he will be showing he cares for the good of others above his own life."

The Revered Mother sat there and was silent for a few moments. Yvaine's heart beat wildly, not sure if her argument would be enough to convince the Revered Mother to let the Qunari go from her grip. Finally she cleared her throat and spoke. "Your words ring true, Warden, and if Leliana trusts you then I trust you." She reached into her desk and pulled out a key on a ring. "I hope you are making the right call, Warden, or his next victims might consider you their killers."

Yvaine nodded and took the key from the woman's hands. "Thank you, Mother. May the Maker watch over you."

"May he watch over us all," replied the Revered Mother through tight lips.

Amalthea leapt into the air and raised her fist the moment the Chantry's doors had closed behind them. "We did it! I didn't think anything would change that woman's mind! Yvaine, you were spectacular!"

Yvaine blushed slightly and nudged Leliana with her shoulder. "I think what really clinched it was having Leliana with us, I have a feeling this is the start of a wonderful friendship."

Leliana let out a nervous laugh. "I'm glad I could be of assistance. Your words were so genuine, Yvaine, as if you actually believed in what you were saying."

"Well, I do," said Yvaine proudly. "Despite what you might think, I am fairly religious, mostly due to my mother's influence."

"Your mother sounds like an incredible woman," said Leliana kindly, missing the pained look on Yvaine's face.

"Yes," whispered Yvaine, looking at the ground, "she was."

They arrived on the edge of the village, and after dealing with a couple of groups of bandits, they found the Qunari's cage though it would not have been difficult to have missed it at all. Amalthea was right, he was rather intimidating, a large build and features with purple-grey skin, menacing black eyes and rather large horns protruding from his brow and growing around his head like a crown. When they approached he looked down at them, which was saying something to his height since both Amalthea and Yvaine were considered incredibly tall by normal standards.

"What do you want?" asked the Qunari gruffly, his voice sounding like rocks grinding against each other.

Yvaine stepped forward, trembling slightly. "We're here to free you." She saw doubt and amusement flicker across his face, at least until she raised the key to where he could see it.

"I see," he said, mesmerized by the sight of the key. "You managed to convince the old woman I'm not a threat to her or the people of this village?"

"To a certain extent," replied Yvaine as she unlocked the cage. "She's agreed to release you on the condition you join us in our mission to stop the Blight."

The Qunari was silent as the door to the cage swung open, as if considering whether or not he would indeed join them. "That is an acceptable course of action, I accept."

Yvaine bit her tongue, she needed him on their side and she was in no position to argue with him. "Great, we're headed back to my aunt's cottage momentarily, I just have to return for a payment from the Chantry. You can wait here with my cousin and new friend."

"As you wish," said the Qunari and he went over to Amalthea and Leliana. Yvaine missed their scared looks as she ran back into town, looking for the person who would pay her for the job she had just done. When she found him, she collected the three sovereigns and ran back as fast as she could to where she left her group, glad to see all three of them were in one piece.

"Ready to go?" she asked and the girls nodded quickly, ready to be rid of the village. The Qunari even seemed eager to leave Lothering, though Yvaine could hardly blame him, he had spent his time locked away in a cage. They walked to the bridge where they saw Bethany and Morrigan speaking with what appeared to be two dwarves, with them they had a large cart with them. When they approached Bethany came running up to them, a huge grin on her face.

"Yvaine! Thea!" she exclaimed. "Come meet Bodahn and Sandal Feddic, they've agreed to join your cause, Yvaine!"

Yvaine could not help but smile with Bethany. "How on earth did you manage that, Beth?"

"It was Morrigan actually," replied Bethany as they walked down to the witch and the dwarves. "While we were waiting for you lot, we saw a few darkspawn attacking these dwarves so we decided to help them. When they were all dead, Bodhan was so thankful to us he offered us a boon of whatever treasure he had. Morrigan instead told him that his services would be better put to use helping your cause, at first he was reluctant but after a little more convincing, Morrigan swayed him."

"I'll have to buy her a present to say thank you," replied Yvaine.

They met with the dwarves and immediately Yvaine liked them, they were very kind and the boy seemed rather sweet although all he did was say 'enchantment' whenever asked a question. Bethany and especially Morrigan were rather impressed to see that Yvaine had recruited a Qunari to the cause though Bethany was a little wary of being around him. When they were all better acquainted, Yvaine decided now would be the time to return back to the Hawke cottage, quite proud of herself for all they had accomplished that day.