I want to first of all thank PheonRen, my muse and sista Jinx1983, Saga Svanhildr, Warrose, megglesnake, fifespice, LadyCallia, Katrina-Irene, Shepard Supreme (your review had me giggling for hours), Raven Jadewolfe and Catastros. You all rock! :D
Bioware owns! :D
Chapter 14 - It Takes One to Know One
The fight had really not lasted that long, Leliana realized. She gave a prayer of thanks to the Maker as she saw the last of the undead dispatched and found herself looking up the hill happily, the rest already starting to cheer. That was when she saw Drinx come tearing down the hill at full speed, stopping only to bark anxiously at Marcus who was standing next to her, smiling at all the villagers.
The mabari clamped her jaws on the hem of Marcus's robes and tugged viciously. Leliana's smile froze. Something was wrong. Very wrong.
"Marcus, something is wrong! Look! She clearly wants you to follow her!" Leliana called off to him and he started as she broke into a run. Zevran and Morrigan turned their eyes on the scene and frowned as Marcus himself started to run, yelling at the others to follow.
As soon as they arrived slightly out of breath, they followed the mabari's wild run up the second hill and saw Wynne and Alistair kneeling over something amidst the rotting corpses, the knights and the rest of the villagers who had fought with them uncomfortably looking at the scene some distance away.
Leliana gasped. Where was Jinx?
Marcus was already up the slope and the first to arrive. Alistair was in tears, looking down at...
Maker's blood! Jinx!
Marcus hurriedly cast a healing spell first and then began to perform a scan on her body to try to diagnose what the next best spell for her was. The rest soon arrived out of breath from running all the way up.
Morrigan cursed, something that was very unlikely for the swamp witch but went unnoticed by the rest, so intent were they on what was going on. Sten said nothing as he looked at the small still form before him. He shook his head slightly, and sat next to Marcus's dog Prince, who was looking at it all attentively. Alistair continued to weep silently, unable to stop as he held Jinx's cold hand between his large ones. Leliana was crying quietly too, afraid of the outcome. Morrigan had handed Wynne a lyrium potion which she took grimacing and then returned to Jinx's side to assist Marcus.
After what seemed to them like an eternity, Marcus spoke.
"We should take her somewhere where she can rest. Let's try the inn, there are beds there. Two of us can carry her -"
"No," Alistair interrupted, wiping away his tears, his voice hard and determined. "I'll carry her."
And he did.
...
Lloyd gave them all rooms for free. A messenger arrived from the Chantry at the same time that Jinx was set gingerly on the bed by Alistair, and Marcus went to the main room downstairs to see what it was all about.
Bann Teagan had found out about Jinx's demise and was sending get-well wishes but urged them to meet him at the mill the very next day before noon. Marcus scowled but sent the message back that they would be there, then he ordered a hot bath and a meal for all, and went back up to Jinx's room.
Wynne, Leliana and Morrigan shooed them all out as they undressed her gingerly and placed her inside the huge stone tub, washing her carefully before inspecting her wound, now nearly all healed, and dressing it again after drying her. They put a soft, white nightgown on her, courtesy of Leliana, and set her carefully on the bed. Only then did they open the door again and let the rest back inside.
Alistair pushed them out of the way and sat on the bed beside her, taking her hand in his again. He looked up at Marcus and Wynne, a questioning glance in his eyes.
"She'll be fine, Alistair. The wound will have healed completely by tomorrow and she won't feel pain at all. Luckily Drinx made it to us in time to save her life. If she had taken longer Jinx would now be..." he swallowed unable to say the next words, and Alistair nodded, absent-mindedly stroking her hand, which was warming up slowly in his.
"I suggest we all get some sleep," Wynne said softly.
"I agree. There was a messenger from the Bann here, and it looks like we have more work to do tomorrow," Marcus said quietly. Morrigan and Sten were the first to leave, and Leliana then said good night to them all, followed by Zevran whose concerned glances did not escape the rest. Wynne made them both promise to call her if she was needed later, and left also.
"I'll stay with her, " Alistair said. "You need to get some rest."
He looked back at his friend and saw his eyes were red-rimmed and weary. "I'll stay for a moment Alistair. You can go to your room, which is the next door on the right, take a hot bath and get into something more comfortable. She won't regain consciousness. I used a sleeping spell on her, so that she can get her strength back. She'll wake up first thing in the morning, feeling like new."
"All right, then. I'll come back in a little bit," was Alistair's reply. "Thank you, Marcus. For saving her life."
"We all love her, and rely on her to see this through," Marcus answered. "Besides, I cannot take her away from you. I tried already and failed, remember?" The joke was not a very good one, but made Alistair smile nevertheless.
He nodded then and left, promising to return later.
...
When Jinx woke up the following morning, she felt something warm pressing against her and turned over sleepily, opening her eyes. Alistair lay beside her, snoring softly. She smiled at the sight, and snuggled onto his chest happily. He mumbled something under his breath and his arms tightened around her.
Then the memories of the previous night came crashing upon her and she wrenched herself from his arms and sat up in bed, feeling her side frantically.
Alistair woke up with his heart in his mouth and sat up in bed as well, eyes wild and confused at the same time.
"What is it? Are you all right?" He asked anxiously.
"Oh, Alistair! I just remembered and I panicked. What happened?"
He relaxed then and took her in his arms, lying down again and settling her comfortably on his chest.
"You were very badly hurt. If Marcus hadn't arrived when he did, well...let's just forget about it, shall we?" One of his hands was caressing the top of her head and smoothing her hair which felt soft and silky under his calloused fingers. She lifted her face up to look into his eyes, and sighed.
"I'm sorry," she murmured.
"What?" He chuckled. "You were nearly killed! That wasn't your fault!" He said his hand now caressing her cheek softly while the other one was traveling along her shoulders and back.
"I'm not supposed to be an easy target. I let myself be overwhelmed by weariness. That is not something that a -" She stopped then, remembering that he didn't know.
"That what? What is it, my love?" He crooned.
She looked up at him, her eyes wide.
"What did you call me?"
"My love, because you are," he whispered and kissed her forehead, his eyes shining with adoration for her.
"There you go, distracting me again," she said, and her hand fell on his cheek, her fingers fluttering to his lips lightly.
"Mmmm," was his only reply, his eyes half-shutting, the sensation of her caresses very pleasurable to him, his body responding to them accordingly. She trailed kisses from the corner of his lip along his cheek right up to his ear. He moaned softly. It was getting very difficult to think at all. His arms gripped her tighter, and one of his hands turned her face towards him gently. His lips went down and he captured her rosy ones in a deep kiss, their tongues dancing wildly against each other, sending sparks of pleasure throughout their bodies.
There was a knock on the door that brought them back to the present. Alistair cursed under his breath and got out of the bed, and then went to open the door.
Marcus stood there, looking a bit ashamed.
"Um...sorry to interrupt, but we are needed at the mill in two hours. I just wanted to make sure Jinx was all right," he smiled at them both and Alistair gestured him in and shut the door behind him. "How are you feeling?" Marcus asked, his hands shooting out to start a scan on her.
"I'm fine, really! What's this about the mill?" Jinx asked curiously.
"Oh, Bann Teagan wants us there. He will probably want to enter the castle, so I'm guessing we will be fighting some more today," Marcus replied.
"Could you ask for a hot bath then, Marcus? And some breakfast too..." Jinx said. "We should hurry so we aren't late."
"You are not going anywhere today," Alistair said determinedly.
Jinx turned her eyes to him and scoffed immediately.
"Like hell I'm not. I have to go!" She retorted.
"You don't have to go anywhere. We'll solve this problem. You're staying here and that's final," Alistair replied firmly.
"Um...I think I'd better just leave. You are all right, Jinx. You can move around and everything, but I'd -"
"What? I can't believe you are ordering me around like a- a- a pregnant wife or something!" She yelled, ignoring Marcus.
Alistair grinned at this, his eyes starry all of a sudden. Marcus rolled his eyes when he saw this. He turned to leave.
"Hey Sunshine," Jinx called out before he could reach the door. Marcus turned to look at her, his eyebrows raised. "I just wanted to thank you," she said softly. "You saved my life. That's one I owe you." She winked at him, and her smile was as bright as the sunlight streaming through the window.
"You owe me nothing," Marcus said, his voice quavering slightly. "I'm just so relieved you are alive, Jinx. Try to stay that way." He paused and looked straight at Alistair. "Because I won't be able to bring him back from his depression if you pull that trick again." He chuckled.
Jinx nodded and looked at Alistair sweetly. He was still staring at her with a dreamy expression in his eyes.
Marcus laughed and left, closing the door behind him.
"I want to go, Alistair. Can't you just let me go to see what it's about?" She pouted. His eyes fell on her lips and he crossed the room in two strides and took her in his arms, his lips crushing hers in a passionate kiss.
"Maker!" He said through her mouth, then broke away, his breathing hitched. "You really don't know what you do to me, do you? All right, you can come to see what it's about and organize us if we need to fight. But you are not fighting today, is that clear?" His stern voice earned him a playful peck on the cheek and he grinned.
There was another knock on the door. This time it was water being brought for her to bathe.
"Ah, well. I guess I have to go. I'll come back once I've bathed and dressed to take you down for breakfast, all right?"
"Don't keep me waiting, or I'll hurt you," she said playfully and kissed him again.
He kissed her back and broke away gently.
"Oh I promise you I'll never keep you waiting. For anything," he whispered, his eyes twinkling.
...
Bann Teagan was waiting at the mill, his back turned, observing the castle before him.
"Odd how quiet the castle looks from here. You'd think nothing was wrong at all..." He turned and smiled when he saw Jinx. "My Lady! It's so good to see you are well."
Alistair stepped forward. "Not well enough to fight, I'm afraid. She nearly died last night. We'll be fighting in her stead today, Teagan. "Alistair's voice was steely and determined and he draped an arm over her shoulders protectively. Teagan's eyes widened slightly and he cleared his throat to speak.
"Of course. Well, I'll get on to the details immediately. I called you all here because I have a plan to enter the castle unnoticed. There is a secret passage down the mill but is only known to me and my family. My signet ring unlocks the trapdoor that leads into the passage."
"Well, that's convenient," Jinx spoke up, anger slowly taking hold of her. "Why didn't you tell us of this before?"
"I'm sorry, my Lady, but I needed warriors to help the village. The villagers were the only thing that really mattered and...Maker's breath!" He exclaimed, and pointed a quaking finger at someone who was running towards him.
A woman with strawberry blonde hair ran right up to him and embraced him tightly.
"Teagan! Thank the Maker you yet live!" She cried out in heavy Orlesian accent.
Jinx tensed, her anger making her tremble slightly. This stupid bitch before her could only be Isolde.
"Isolde!" Teagan exclaimed. "You're alive! How is this possible?"
"Teagan! I have no time to explain. You must return with me to the castle. Connor needs you!" She wailed.
"We'll need a better explanation than that!" Jinx snarled at her, taking a step forward.
"What? Who is this woman, Teagan?" She demanded, a scowl on her face.
"Listen, Lady...I've been hacked at and barely escaped death last night. And all to defend your village. So you had better tell me what the fuck is going on here, before I lose it!" She yelled back at her.
The arlessa flinched back as if she had been struck. Jinx huffed in indignation before her. Alistair moved in, quickly speaking as he did so.
"You remember me, Lady Isolde don't you?"
Her eyes widened as she glanced at Alistair, and her scowl returned. Jinx saw the disgust in her eyes and voice when she spoke to him, and a vein started to throb somewhere around her temple.
"Alistair? What are you doing here?"
"That's it!" Jinx yelled and flung herself at the arlessa, but Alistair was too quick and grabbed hold of her before she could lay a finger on her. Jinx did not keep quiet however. "You stop talking to him like that, you bitch!"
The arlessa took two steps back and flinched again at Jinx's words. Teagan blushed, and started to speak before anything else happened.
"They are Grey Wardens, Isolde. They saved my life and the lives of all the villagers here. And she nearly died fighting too..."
Isolde's face saddened.
"Oh, pardon me," she said, while Jinx still struggled in Alistair's arms. "I would give you a proper greeting, but you must understand...the circumstances." She turned back to Teagan, and continued to babble, and Jinx stopped struggling to listen better at what she was saying. "You must come with me Teagan. A terrible evil lurks within the castle. It has killed everyone but is keeping Eamon, Connor and myself alive. It let me go because I promised to return quickly. I do not have much time."
"I don't understand, what is this evil you mention?" Teagan asked her.
"I do not know. Something that the mage unleashed after Eamon was poisoned. We do not have much time, Teagan, I beg you!"
"Eamon was poisoned?" Teagan repeated dumbly.
"Who is this mage you mentioned?" Jinx asked suspiciously.
"He is an infiltrator. Loghain sent him," she turned back to Teagan. "Teagan please!" She wailed.
Jinx tensed. Alistair dropped his arms at the mention of Loghain and his fists clenched, the anger in his eyes quite formidable at that moment.
"Could this evil be a demon?" Jinx interrupted again, inching closer to Isolde.
"I do not know...oh, Teagan, please say you will come back with me! I have tried to convince Connor to leave the castle but he will not come. You are his uncle! He will surely listen to you!"
All at once everything was clear to Jinx. Everything screamed trap to her.
"You aren't telling us everything. What are you hiding?" She snarled at Isolde.
"I beg your pardon? That is a rather impertinent accusation!" She retorted angrily.
Jinx thrust a finger at her face, trembling with anger.
"Listen, you stupid bitch!" She yelled.
"What did you call me?" Isolde replied angrily.
"A stupid bitch! Because that is what you are! You aren't telling us everything!" Her index finger poked her in the chest and Isolde took a step back, suddenly very frightened of Jinx. She thought that this girl was certainly insane. "I know your kind. You sit back, and scheme, thinking you are smart and will stop at nothing to get what you want. The only reason we are here is to help your husband. Are you going to tell us what is really going on or not? This sure as fuck screams 'trap' to me!"
"Please, my Lady. I have to go. That is my family there. It may be a trap but I have to do this!" Teagan protested and Jinx rolled her eyes and walked back to Alistair, muttering darkly under her breath. Teagan turned back to Isolde. "Isolde, will you leave us alone for a few minutes? We must converse in private."
"Do not take too long. I shall wait by the bridge," she replied.
Then, giving Jinx a look of hatred, she walked away.
"Stupid bitch," Jinx called after her.
Teagan pinched his nose with his fingers and then continued.
"Here is my signet ring," Alistair stepped forward to receive it. "You go in through the passage, and I'll go in with Isolde. I may be able to distract the evil she speaks about there, giving you time to make your entrance. When you arrive at the courtyard, you can open the main gates to let the knights in and the rest of your group to help also. Whatever you do, Eamon is the priority here. The rest, Isolde, Connor and myself, we are expendable."
"I don't believe that," Alistair said quietly. "We will rescue you all."
"Ah, Alistair. The Maker smiled at me indeed when He sent you to Redcliffe. I must go now. Good luck and may the Maker watch over you."
Alistair turned to the rest, and Marcus walked slowly up to him.
"I'm guessing you have a plan?" He offered hopefully.
"Er..." Alistair answered and Jinx rolled her eyes.
"Fuck it all to oblivion and back again!" She cried out. "Here's the plan: Sunshine, Blondie, Morrigan and Wynne go in through the passage. Three mages should be more than enough to fight any undead you encounter, but just to make it clear, fight and kill everything that moves. Make sure you find the smithy's daughter, don't you dare forget about her!" She said ominously. "Then when you get to the courtyard, you open the gates and let the knights and the rest of us in."
They all nodded back at her.
"Jinx," Alistair whispered as he stood directly in front of her. Without waiting for her to answer, he bent down and kissed her in front of everyone. She melted and kissed him back fervently. Alistair broke away breathing heavily.
"For luck," he said, then turned back towards the mill. "Right. You heard her. Let's go."
Everyone watched as they disappeared into the mill, then turned to go up the hill towards the castle as they had agreed. Nobody was paying much attention to anything else, and Leliana chatted all the way to the gates with the knights.
Once they arrived, Leliana turned around and the smile on her face froze.
"Wait! Where's Jinx?" She asked Zevran, Morrigan and Sten, who simply turned a blank gaze on her.
They all looked around and Leliana ran all the way back downhill, arriving at the mill out of breath.
But Jinx was nowhere to be found. Leliana cursed and trudged up the hill wearily again.
Alistair was going to kill them.
...