Big hug to Seika for her help, and comments. :D

Thanks to all that still follow this story despite my random updates and replies, and an extra butterfly brooch from Aira for all that review it. :D

On Hypocrisy

Unbelievable. I can't believe it! It's –"

Zevran sighed. "Unbelievable, yes. I believe you have said so a few dozen times already, Alistair. Why don't you sit down and take a break? Your stomping and whining gives me headache."

"Shut up. I'm not talking to you, you… hypocrite!"

Zevran sighed again. "Such a terrible word! It wounds me so, I will bleed to miserable death. May I at least know how I deserved it?"

Finally, Alistair stopped and turned to him. "How you deserved it? Don't play dumb, Zevran! You supported every foolish decision Aira made today, you told her to free a maleficar who poisoned my uncle, and then even let him go into the Fade and risk him finishing the business! And you only did it to get into her panties-"

Zevran's patience was steadily diminishing whole evening, as Alistair yelled first at Aira, then at Leliana and then continued in their room; it finally evaporated into oblivion somewhere around the word 'business'. It was only thanks to tremendous self-restraint that Alistair wasn't lying on the floor with several daggers in his chest.

"Silence," Zevran hissed, and he had to look murderous enough, because Alistair shut up. "I have had enough of this tantrum. Jowan is a fool who was tricked by Loghain. Like Duncan. Would you kill Duncan because he was stupid enough to believe the Regent?"

Alistair's face turned red. "Duncan was not a maleficar!"

"Neither was Jowan! A failed poisoner, perhaps. And he regretted it and was severely punished! Why is it not enough?"

"Because half the city died because of it!"

"And because of Duncan, darkspawn massacred half of the army!"

"Stop comparing that pathetic excuse of a human to Duncan!"

"That pathetic excuse of a human is Aira's best friend!"

"That's irrelevant!"

"Only to a hypocrite like you!"

"You're a hypocrite, not me!"

"No, you are!"

"I'm not, you are!"

"Is repeating all you can do? You're pathetic!"

"If I'm pathetic then you are–"

But Zevran never found out what he was if Alistair was pathetic, because there was a sharp knock on the door; not waiting for a reply, the door opened and in stormed a very annoyed Wynne.

"Are you two fighting again?"

"He started it!"

Wynne muttered something that sounded suspiciously like a curse. "Now listen carefully, for I will tell this only once. I have had a difficult day, healing dozens of injured people, and tomorrow will be the same. I need to rest. If I hear one more shout, anything louder than a whisper, in fact, from this room you will spend the whole next week preparing valerian extracts."

"But Aira is leaving to search the Urn tomorrow," Zevran protested meekly.

"Then be sure to stay quiet," Wynne snapped. She gave them the last disgusted glare, turned on her wheel and left.

"This is all your fault," Zevran whispered accusingly the moment the door closed behind her.

"Mine? Yours!" Alistair whispered back.

"You're like a ten year old."

"You're like a five year old."

"See? This just proves what I said."

"All it proves is that you're a fool."

"No, you're a fool."

"No, you're a fool."

Quietly, but passionately, the dispute continued through half the night, but remained unsolved.