"Stupid, stupid, stupid," Eriana muttered to herself as she moved through the corridors of Vigil's Keep, making her way to Nathaniel's room. What had she been thinking, seriously? If there was a manual on how to be an ineffective leader, she was pretty sure step one would be pouring out your heart and telling all your problems to a subordinate you've only known for a few weeks. Step two would definitely be allowing said subordinate to kiss you, or almost kiss you. Thank Andraste for the assassination attempt. Eriana stopped dead in her tracks and started giggling. "Oh, I'm losing it," she thought to herself. "Would I really rather fend off attempted murder than to kiss Anders?" No, it wasn't that; in any other situation, Anders would be perfectly kissable with his long blonde hair and disarming smile. She just wasn't exactly ready for that. Zevran had only been gone for a month, so what was she doing allowing herself to be cradled in another man's arms? She wasn't over him; she wasn't even sure if she ever wanted to be over him, there was a chance he might return, after all. It was a moment of weakness, that's all.

It was the deeproads' fault. Ever since she realized that they would be headed there in a few days, she had been dwelling on her first trip down into that darkness, back when they were recruiting the dwarves during the Blight. It had been a difficult trip for her, dealing with the influence of the archdemon, the new sensation of the taint in her blood pulling at her, and the knowledge that, in a way, she was walking around in what would eventually be her tomb; in fact, the entire experience had almost broken her completely. The only thing had had held her together had been Zevran, and it was in the deeproads that she finally admitted to herself that she was developing feelings for the elven assassin. He had been so kind, so understanding and comforting with her, and it had been in the deeproads that she finally let go of her reservations and kissed him for the first time. It was the only pleasant memory from the whole horrible three week experience and was the start of the relationship that had come to mean so much to her. Now, she was headed back there, only this time without him.

With those facts on her mind, she had gone to find Velanna and had found herself pouring her heart out to Anders. He had been so understanding, so comforting, that when he pulled her into a hug she hadn't had the will or desire to resist. Instead, she turned into the hug, relishing the warmth and comfort that she felt being in someone's arms again, and in a way, she had lost herself in the moment, allowing her resolve to slip momentarily. Luckily, she was jarred from the moment before anything else happened. Now, she just had to pull it together before she did something else stupid, like throw herself at Nathaniel too.

"Hey," she said, poking her head in the open door of his room. "You up to anything important?"

"Not really," he said, looking up and motioning for her to come in. "I was just oiling my armor. Why, what's going on?"

Eriana smiled as she leaned against the door jam, "I was just wondering if you would be up for some late-night prisoner interrogation."

Nathaniel chuckled, "An interrogation in the middle of the night; either you're just really eager or something serious is going on." He grabbed his belt and daggers and followed her out into the hallway. "So, what happened?"

Eriana shrugged nonchalantly. "Anders and I were attacked on the battlements tonight by a pair of Crow assassins." Nathaniel stopped suddenly and grabbed her arm.

"Excuse me? I'm not sure I heard you correctly because I'm pretty sure you just told me in no uncertain terms that someone tried to kill you tonight, and he is still alive?"

"Not someone, two someones."

"Two people tried to kill you, and for some bizarre reason, you don't exactly seem to be all that upset about it."

"It's because I'm really not all that upset, truth be told; they were completely inept, Nathaniel. I mean, really, you would laugh. Not only did they give us clear warning of their impending attack by shouting 'the Antivan Crows send their regards,' but they also weren't even able to land a single blow." Nathaniel regarded her closely. "I'm serious, Nate, I'm fine, not a scratch on me."

"I'm not laughing," Nathaniel practically growled beside her, "Do you think that this is connected with the conspiracy against you?"

Eriana sighed, "I doubt it, but that's what we need to find out." She stopped and turned to him, explaining exactly what happened and describing the young, would-be assassin. "So, how do you think we should go about doing this?"

"While I'm inclined to inflict some major pain on this guy, I'm not sure that would be the best route to take. If he's as young as you say he is, he might respond well to…well to you. You're sweet, pretty, sympathetic; he may just tell you everything you want to know, especially if he wants to keep his head."

"Sounds like a plan," she said as Varel and Garevel walked up with one of the guards from the battlements. The grave looks on their faces suggested that they had been informed of what had happened. "So what will you be doing while I'm playing nice."

"I'll there as a subtle reminder of what may happen should he choose not to cooperate with your more gentle methods."

Eriana chuckled to herself before putting on her serious face and making her way into her office. If she was being perfectly honest with herself, she knew that she didn't really need Nathaniel to get the young man to talk. After all, she had convinced the entire nation of Ferelden to unite against the Hero of the River Dane on her powers of persuasion, so getting information out of this guy should be a piece of cake for her. No, her reasons for going to Nathaniel were purely personal, and on some level, she knew it. She didn't need an interrogator, what she needed was a buffer, just in case Anders decided that he wanted to pick up where they left off when the assassins interrupted them. She really didn't want to hurt the mage's feelings by rejecting him, but she really wasn't ready to go down that road, not just yet, anyway. So, Nathaniel was there as a shield of sorts, to keep Anders at bay.

As it turned out, however, it was a totally unnecessary move because as soon as Eriana left her office with her fellow Wardens, Garevel approached her, insisting that he needed to speak with her in private.

Eriana said good night to Nathaniel and Anders and followed Garevel into his office; she was unsurprised to find Varel already there, pacing the floor. "Commander, I think you need to take a seat," her captain said, pulling out a chair for her. "We have been debating for some time how to best broach this situation with you, especially considering how much you seem to trust Howe, but in light of recent events, I think it's best that we just tell you straight." He took a deep breath and glanced at Varel before continuing. "My Lady, we believe your life is in danger."

Eriana had to work to keep her expression stoic and serious. When exactly was her life not in danger?

"And," he continued, "we have reason to believe that Nathaniel Howe might be involved."

"Involved in what, exactly?" Eriana asked, leaning forward.

"Involved in a conspiracy to assassinate you," Varel finished for the captain. "Commander, during the fealty ceremony, I was approached by Ser Tamra who claimed to have intercepted some unsigned letters that were calling for your death. I looked over the letters but, as of yet, have been unable to determine who may have sent them or who the desired recipient may have been. Either way, it seems that several of your vassals are planning to move against you. I'm sorry for the delay in bringing this to your attention, but we wanted more proof before alarming you unnecessarily."

"And what does Nathaniel have to do with any of this; do you believe him to be involved with this conspiracy?"

Garevel stepped forward, "It's highly likely, My Lady, whether you wish to believe it or not. He has a definite motive, and he has already tried and failed to get close enough to assassinate you once. Perhaps joining the Wardens was an elaborate hoax to gain your trust, and considering the fact that he was missing from a good portion of the ceremony, there are definite reasons to suspect that he has a connection to this conspiracy. Varel and I believe that tonight was the first of their attempts on your person."

Eriana put one hand up as she massaged her temple with the other. "Let me stop you there, gentlemen. Nathaniel was not missing from the fealty ceremony. He was there by my command, observing the nobility in secret. He brought me news of this possible conspiracy as soon as the vassals cleared the hall."

"So, you knew about this already?" Garevel asked, and Eriana nodded. "Commander I wish you would have let us known about this. How am I to protect you if you don't inform me of every possible threat?"

"Well, that was an oversight on my part, and for that, I apologize." Eriana said. "You are right; I should have told you the instant I found out, but as there was no knowing who was involved, Nathaniel and I thought it best to keep it quiet as long as possible. We were afraid of alerting the conspirators that we had caught wind of their plan." She stood up and walked to the window. "And don't take this to mean I don't trust you; I do, more than I trust anyone outside the Order. But try to understand, for the past year and a half I've been taking care of these kinds of situations on my own. My first inclination isn't to reach out for help, so please forgive my oversight. I am just learning to work within this kind of support system, and it's against my natural inclination to trust other people to solve my problems."

"I can understand that, Commander," Garevel said. "You did spend the better part of a year being touted as an enemy to Crown and Country; that's bound to make you somewhat self-reliant." He sighed, "So you don't think Howe had any hand in this."

"No, I'm certain of it," Eriana said with confidence. "But, if this is to turn into a strategy session concerning my safety, Nathaniel really should be here." Varel and Garevel agreed, and Varel left to fetch Nathaniel.

"This still doesn't change the fact that this group has already begun to move against you, however. Tonight's attack was proof positive of that." Garevel said. "It seems obvious that the conspiracy has taken out a contract for you with the Crows. Do you still feel that it's wise to allow him to leave?"

Eriana chuckled, "Okay, for one, there's no way those two children who attacked me tonight were sent by the Crows. They are far too inexperienced to be sent on a job of this magnitude; the organization wouldn't allow their reputation to be hurt by such a futile attempt."

"What makes you believe that they were inexperienced?"

"I can read Crow tattoos; those two tonight were fresh out of the apprentice barracks. Secondly, the Crows wouldn't even accept a new contract on me; I have a bit of a professional understanding. I did some work for them during the Blight, so they, in turn, agreed to leave me alone and refuse any future contracts on me. Besides, they've already failed to kill me three times, well four if you count those two yahoos; any more failed attempts would just be bad for business. It hurts a reputation to continue to fail to kill someone," she said with a grin.

"Are you sure your agreement still stands now that the Blight is over? Perhaps there are new Crows in Ferelden who don't honor that agreement."

Eriana shook her head, "No, I met with the new head of the Ferelden house of Crows before we left Denerim; our agreement stands. The one I worked with during the Blight has chosen to stay in Antiva."

Garevel chuckled, "Commander, for someone who claims not to be politically inclined, you definitely have a strong set of contacts. Why would the Crows have a cell here anyway?"

"We've just come out of a civil war; there are a lot of people still not getting along. The Crows go where business if good."

Nathaniel and Varel came into the room, and immediately, Nathaniel moved Eriana's side. She glanced up at him, "Did he fill you in?" The nobleman nodded.

"Nathaniel," Garevel said, stepping forward, "Eriana has explained that you have been helping her with this, and I am sorry we suspected you."

Nathaniel gave a half smile, "I would doubt your ability to protect her if you hadn't suspected me; it was a sensible assumption to make. I just wish you had come to her sooner with your suspicions; after all, I do spend a great deal of time with her, often alone. If you believed I had ill intentions toward her, she should have known immediately."

"Look," Eriana said, standing up, "there has been a lack of communication on all sides. What is important now is that we do something about this since we have a bit more evidence than mere hearsay." She turned to Varel, "Do you have any suggestions on what we may want to do to catch these conspirators?"

"We've discussed a few options. We could send a company of guards out to investigate, see what information that they could uncover."

"No," Nathaniel said, shaking his head, "guards aren't good at ferreting out this kind of thing; they just aren't subtle enough. Their presence would merely alert our enemies that we are aware of their plans; it could drive them deeper into hiding."

"That's what Garevel said. We could also 'invite' a member of each noble family to stay with us indefinitely, and should something happen to her, well…"

"Absolutely not." Eriana said, her face stern, her jaw as tight as a bowstring. "I will not be painted as a tyrant. My position in this arling hangs by a thread already; I must gain the people's trust and I can't do that if I'm holding people hostage for no good reason."

Varel held up his hands, "It was merely an option; one that I myself was not too fond of, My Lady. There is one final option," Varel said with a sigh. "I was contacted by a man calling himself the Dark Wolf, and he has offered to investigate the matter further…"

But Eriana didn't hear anything else he said after the words Dark Wolf left his lips. Zevran…

Zevran took her hand, a sly grin on his face as he lead her from Bann Franderel's estate, Andraste's Tears safely tucked away in the folds of her cloak. The two elves made their way through the back streets of Denerim, making their way as quickly as possible back to their room in the Tavern. The raid had been a complete success; they had managed to get in and out of the estate completely undetected, sneaking through shadows past the company of guards patrolling the yards and hallways. It was their crowning achievement; after months of committing petty crimes, they had finally pulled off a major heist and had managed to do it cleanly to boot.

But the danger wasn't past, not for them anyway. Now that had to make it back to the safety of the tavern without being stopped by the Denerim patrol. Two armed elves out in the middle of the night would definitely arouse suspicion, so they tried very hard to move unseen.

As they were about to round the corner into the market square, Zevran caught her arm and spun her around, pinning her against the wall, covering his body with hers as he began to pepper her neck and shoulders with kisses. His lips moved up to her ear, "A guard is just around the corner," he breathed into her ear before moving to her lips. She moved her hands down to his waist, moving the daggers on his belt to his back so that they were completely concealed beneath his cloak; at her waist, Zevran's hands were doing the same.

"Hey you, knife-ears," a gruff voice came from behind Zevran, and Eriana glanced up at the guard from over his shoulder. "This is inappropriate behavior for a public street, and you two are out after curfew."

"I'm sorry, Ser," Eriana said in a soft, demure voice, keeping her eyes low like she was too ashamed to meet the human's eye. "It's just…it's just my master isn't fond of me seeing other elves so the only time we can get together is after he's already gone to bed." She was trying hard to keep her face serious, but it was becoming increasingly difficult as Zevran's hand was slowly making its way up the front of her shirt as he started slowly caressing her breast, making it very difficult to focus on what the guard was saying to her. "We just wanted to see each other, that's all; we weren't trying to cause any trouble."

The guard looked at them for a moment before sighing and waving them off. The elves didn't need to be told twice; Zevran grabbed her hand as they scrambled across the square to the back entrance to the Gnawed Noble Tavern. Once inside their room, Eriana turned and glared at Zevran who was lounging lazily on the bed, his armor already off and a smug smirk painting his face. "You, Master Arainai, are evil, I hope you know that."

He grinned and pulled her to him, pulling the cloak from her shoulders and allowing it to pool on the floor around her feet. "And you, my dear Wolf are delicious," he whispered in her ear as his hands made quick work of the rest of her armor. "Just watching you as you stole through the shadows was simply delectable; I can see my lessons have not been in vain."

She chuckled and crawled onto his lap, kneeling on either side of his thighs. "Oh, don't call me that; I absolutely hate that name, The Dark Wolf. It's just so masculine." She sighed, "It's just like humans to assume that a man pulled these jobs off."

"Um, technically, a man did; I am a man, am I not?"

Eriana laughed and pushed him back onto the bed and stretched her body out on top of him, "You know what I mean. Anyway, I don't feel like talking about them anymore."

Zevran raised a delicate eyebrow, "Oh, really now? So what do you feel like doing, my wolfling?"

She ran a hand down the front of his trousers and deftly began undoing the laces. "The same thing it seems you feel like doing, I'd say."

"Ah, you need only command, mia cara; though I do ask we keep he clawing and biting to a minimum, no reason to mar perfection."

"Zevran," she whispered, looking down at him.

"Hum?"

"Shut up,"

He chuckled and quickly shifted their weight so that he was the one on top. Expert hands began working their way down her body, over her breasts, across her flat stomach, and finally between her legs. She gasped and arched against him as he gently eased one callused finger inside her as he began to softly kiss the inside of her thigh. A second finger joined the first and he began to move them in and out while stroking her steadily with his thumb. "Oh sweet Maker," she gasped as his lips moved from her leg, and he began kissing and caressing her core with his very talented tongue. Her hips began to buckle against him, and he chuckled, sending a new wave of vibrations through her body that pushed her over the edge.

"I don't believe this is the work of the Maker, my dear," Zevran whispered as he kissed her, positioning himself between her legs. The taste of herself was warm and sweet on Zevran's lips as he hungrily devoured her mouth. Eriana reached down, stroking his and positioning him at her entrance, rocking her hips forward to meet him…

"Commander, Commander," Varel was saying, "are you still with us, my Lady?"

"What?" Eriana said, suddenly jarred from her memory. "Oh, sorry, yes, I just got a bit distracted, long day." She glanced over at Nathaniel who was looking at her with a questioning look on his face.

"I was asking you what course of action you think we should take with these conspirators."

"Oh, right, set up a meeting with this Dark Wolf; I'd like to see what he has to say. We will be in Amaranthine in two days, arrange a meeting with him later that afternoon. Nathaniel and I will talk with him." The men nodded, and Eriana excused herself, claiming she needed to retire. Nathaniel followed close behind her.

"Ana, are you alright; you seemed a little distracted back there. Is something the matter?"

"I'm fine, Nathaniel; I guess I'm just getting a bit tired. It's been a long day, and I could use some sleep. Be ready to head into Amaranthine in a few days." She turned and looked up at him. "Don't worry, Nathaniel, we'll figure this out."

Nathaniel patted her on the shoulder, "I know, and we won't let anything happen to you."

Eriana smiled up at him and wished him goodnight before heading into her room. The moment the door shut behind her, she closed her eyes and leaned back against the door. Zevran…Zevran was here…in Amaranthine. He hadn't disappeared into Antiva like she thought; it had all been a rouse to get the Crows off her back. It couldn't be a coincidence that she was in danger and someone called the Dark Wolf, the name they had used during the Blight, had offered his assistance. It was a sign; he was letting her know that he was here and that he wanted to meet with her. He hadn't left her after all, and she would be seeing him again, soon. Her heart sang at the thought; she would be in his arms again before the week was out. They would be together again, and all this hurt and pain, these feelings of emptiness, they would all be things of the past. She would be whole once more. They would be whole once more.

For the first time in over a month, Eriana slept peacefully, content in the knowledge she wouldn't be alone much longer.

Okay, so I bumped up the rating for this one. It's my first attempt at anything remotely smutty, so bear with me. I wanted to include the reunion with Keenan's wife and the meeting with the Wolf in this one, but that would have made it far too long. So next time, my friends.

Thank you to those of you who have been reading and reviewing. Eva and Fairy, I appreciate your reviews more than you can realize. Crystalskytiger, thanks for the add.

Just a question to those of you who have stories out there now, are your stories registering hits because for some reason mine haven't been. According to my stats, no one read my last chapter (yet I got reviews for it). Strange, anyway, enjoy!