A/N: Once again, I'd like to start this chapter with a huge thank you to all the people that reviewed. Your comments have really made me feel so proud and so encouraged. So, here is chapter 25. It's short but think of it as a mini interlude for the next few chapters.

Now, I am debating whether or not to write a sequel for this but I'd like to know what you all think. Give me ideas of what you think the third story should be about and I'll fully consider everything.

As always, please R&R

And know that you all have my love,

Ann

Chapter 25: Leaving In the Twenty-Fifth Hour

I woke and without opening my eyes, I heard Sebastian's slow breath in my ear and I felt his arms wrapped tightly around my waist. Our legs were tangled with each other's and I smiled as I opened my eyes, watching the sunlight stream across the room. Then I laughed as I surveyed the room. Clothes were strewn about everywhere. Armour, tatters of ripped cloth, boots, shoes, my underclothes, his were hooked on the bedpost and a closet door flung open when I had attempted to grab my night-robes but failed when his hand had curled around my knee and tossed me back into bed so he could enter me with one swift stroke. The robe was still on the floor. My immature but unstoppable giggles shook him awake and he opened one eye to survey me and then grinned.

Sebastian kissed me before he murmured, with sleep still heavy in his voice, "Good morning…"

I returned the greeting in kind, "Good morning, my love."

"Can I ask you something?" he asked.

"You just did," I countered.

His eyes turned a little serious, "So what happens now? You're staying here but you're still Viscountess…"

I pulled my pillow down a little and tucked my hand underneath, "Well, the group and Nicholas seemed to think that I could rule Kirkwall from Starkhaven. I imagine, I'd have to take trips to Kirkwall now and again but… you could come with me."

Sebastian frowned and curled into me closer, "Will it work? Granted, Kirkwall and Starkhaven are close enough to each other but it might not be viable for long."

I shrugged, "I have done all that I can for Kirkwall and another can take my place if necessary. No matter what, Starkhaven is home. Kirkwall never had my heart to begin with. It isn't much of a sacrifice if that's what you're worried about but it seems that if I am Viscountess, it might work in our favour."

He smiled slowly as realization sunk in, "You still want to marry me!"

I wrinkled my nose at him, "Well, I am in your bed and I did come to Starkhaven hoping you'd take me back and we could use my title as a potential justification for-"

"Say it, Evelyn" was his only command.

I shook my head, "You know, you're getting far too used to ordering me around. I'll have you know-"

He kissed me, silencing my words as his arms cradled me. He whispered, "Say it…"

I smiled, "I want to marry you, Sebastian."

We basked in that wonderful silence for a while before an insistent knock at the door came. The way the door shook made me roll my eyes. Aveline.

She shouted outside, "Sebastian! Get your lazy ass out of there! We've got problems. Sebastian!"

I heard the sounds of Isabela and Varric behind her, "She was in court yesterday. She's fine," and "Stop. Just stop."

There was enough noise outside for me to recognize in between some other voices like Bethany's and Merrill's. Sebastian had smothered a laugh against me before picking his robe from the floor and opening the door. He asked in his princely voice, "Aveline. What can I do for you?"

Aveline huffed, "Took you long enough. Firstly, Hawke is missing. The last time we saw her was when we left the mercenary camp."

Isabela groaned, "She was in court, yesterday, you blighted idiot!" I heard Merrill giggle in the background before a rough movement of metal and Isabela's yelp. Varric soothed, "Come on now, let's calm down."

Aveline restated, "Hawke has not been seen since the mercenary camp. Secondly, that elven girl has been found. She's downstairs with Fenris."

I covered myself with a sheet and called out, "Aveline, I'm in here. I'm fine."

Isabela pushed the door open with a cheeky laugh and ducked beneath Sebastian's arm. She surveyed the room with the most gleeful expression and she asked, "So, is this where I say 'I told you so'?"

I pulled the sheet higher up my body and nodded, too self-satisfied to shove her out the door. I shared a look with Sebastian and he rolled his eyes. I giggled. Bethany took the laughter as her cue to stroll through and she shook her head, "Maker's breath, Evelyn! Look at this mess!"

Varric chortled and said, "We'll see you downstairs." Aveline blushed, grimaced and then left as well. Bethany put her hands on her waist and asked, "Are you happy?"

I nodded, "Very much so."

"Good," she said before telling me, "I'll see you downstairs and pretend I never saw Sebastian's knickers hanging about."

Sebastian turned bright red and I lay back on the bed, laughing until my sides hurt. Isabela couldn't help the bubble of laughter that welled up and she shook her head before telling us, "You'd best get dressed. The female shaped battering ram will kill you if you don't."

In the throne room, everyone waited with the elven girl and Nicholas. I think everyone was more interested in discussing my progress with Sebastian and our shared love life than the elven girl. There was an attitude of 'pfft, Goran' that almost made me laugh. Sebastian's grandfather took one look at us and he asked me pointedly, "Am I forgiven?"

I had rushed forward to embrace him, "Yes. Yes you are."

Aveline cleared her throat and interrupted. I turned to her and quirked an eyebrow. She explained, "She was found bearing this letter upon her."

I took the proffered letter and ripped it open. Inside was the message:

"Collect your men. We go into Starkhaven Chantry and hold the sisters hostages."

I gave it to Sebastian whose eyes glinted into ice. He passed it to the rest of the group who read it to themselves.

The elven girl watched us all with fearful eyes and I paused to stand before her. I asked her, "What is your name?"

"Brillara, Viscountess."

I asked, "Who do you work for?"

She shook her head, "I cannot say. I am loyal to my master."

I frowned and turned to Sebastian, who asked her, "We would like to know where Goran is."

At the mention of Goran's name, the girl's eyes filled up with tears. I asked, "Is something the matter?"

I touched her arm and she cried out. That was when I noticed the limpness of her wrist and the bruising near her hand. I motioned to Anders who, with one look, told me, "Broken and dislocated."

I frowned, "Who did this to you?"

She covered her face with her good hand as Anders healed it, crying helplessly. I shared another look with Sebastian, worried and tense. I knelt before Brillara and asked softly, "What happened?"

Her voice shook as she said, "He hit me. He pushed me into the table and bent me over…" Her voice broke as she neared her confession and ice slipped into my gut. She had been raped, that much I could make out from her tearful response.

I asked, "Where is he?"

She murmured, "On the other side of the Minanter River, between the two dividing creeks. There is a small safe-house built there for him."

Then I tried to ask again, "And your master? Who is he?"

Brillara shook her head, "I cannot betray him. He bought me from the brothel and I love him very much even though I will never be his wife."

Helpless, I told her, "But in a ways, you already have… you can't go back to him after this."

She nodded, "I know but I won't betray him."

I asked, "What will you do now?"

Brillara said, "I leave Starkhaven and hope to build a life without my master elsewhere. That is all I can do."

I wanted her to give her master's name but I was fighting for a lost cause. She was in love with her master and it was evident that whoever he was, traitor though he may be, he was not a cruel man to his servants and perhaps, he too loved Brillara the way she loved him. I gave her some coin and told her, "Use that wisely and build your life somewhere."

We watched her leave. Fenris told me, "That was a bad mistake to make. You have a viper in your court."

I shook my head, "What would you have me do? She loves him. She'd rather die than see him exposed. At least we can go after Goran now."

He disagreed, "And what of that noble?"

Nicholas said to him, "There will always be vipers as you suggest. Even if we remove one noble doesn't mean another won't crop up elsewhere. We will simply have to be vigilant."

Sebastian said, "We can go to the brothels and ask around. See if any information can be revealed to us. On the other hand, we could go for Goran and hope he reveals something to us."

Aveline said, "I know of that general area she describes."

I called out, "Alright everyone. Get ready and we'll meet at the gates in an hour."

Anders grabbed my arm, his eyes narrowing to slits, "Hold on. You're not going anywhere." I tugged my arm away but his grip was too tight and he was trained upon me with such focus that he began to frighten me. Bethany asked, "What's going on?" but he did not reply, his eyes glowing with a familiar swirly blue. Justice had surfaced. I felt a wash of lyrium pass through my system, a strange cold feeling sliding up and down my bones that left me dizzy.

Then I saw it, the little piece of magic that Justice left behind gave me a quick image, just a quick flash, of something that was hidden deep in my belly. I wavered on the spot as I watched with fuzzy vision Sebastian shoving at Anders, "What did you do to her?"

I whispered with shock, "I'm pregnant."

The room turned quiet and Sebastian, caught with his guard down, was shoved upon the floor. He looked up in shock, "What?"

The vision in my mind had not cleared and though, the form in my stomach was nothing but a tiny speckle compared to what it would be in nine months time, I knew she would be a girl. I could almost see the vision in my mind growing, a little girl growing up with my curly hair but Sebastian's auburn colouring, my skin tone but Sebastian's blue eyes, my mouth but Sebastian's nose… I sat down on the throne and said, "I'm pregnant."

Sebastian's eyes lit up with wonderment, with pride, with joy but mostly, with love. He picked himself from the floor, strode to me, lifted me to my feet and knelt on one knee. His hands swept past my belly and he laid a soft kiss upon my tummy, as though welcoming our child into the world.

I told him, "We're going to have a daughter."

He quirked an eyebrow, "How do you know?"

I smiled, "In the Fade, my father found me and showed me a glimpse of the future. He showed me a vision of you and I in bed, with me complaining about having to wake up for court and then I heard a little girl's pattering of feet, her joyful laughter as she giggled about her baby sibling being awake. I'm not sure what gender the sibling is though."

He swept me into a kiss, a sweet kiss that poured with all the joy and love that I could ever feel. It was a kiss that spoke of never ending laughter and bliss, never ending family and kin, one generation into the next. As we broke apart, our friends cheered. Even Nicholas seemed a little misty-eyed. He had hugged both me and Sebastian, exclaiming, "Great-grandchildren. Oh ho, this will be good."

Everyone was all smiles and Sebastian said to Anders, "Sorry. Didn't know what was happening."

Anders shrugged, "Nothing you and I haven't done before."

I looked between the two of them, "Hold up, when have the two of you fought?"

Each looked away, ignoring my questions until I suddenly remembered to ask, "Hey Anders, can you tell if she is a mage?"

Anders shook his head, "I can't feel any mana in her. She's not a mage." He frowned, "It wouldn't matter though, she'd just go to school like any other child and come home at night."

I shook my head, "Curiosity is all."

Aveline cleared her throat and said, "I know this is supposed to be a happy moment and all but… we have something to deal with."

I nodded, "Well back to the original plan. We'll all meet up-"

Everyone snarled at me, "NO!" and I was taken aback by the response. I protested, "But-"

Sebastian shook his head, "You are not going into the battlefield pregnant."

Nicholas placed his hand on my shoulder, "I shall look after the pregnant one. The rest of you deal with Goran," he turned to Sebastian, "If it is necessary…" A meaningful look was exchanged and I sighed, "You're encouraging Sebastian to kill Goran?"

Nicholas sighed as well, "It may be our only option."

Anders kissed Bethany and told her, "Stay with your sister. I'd rather you were safe." She nodded.

Everyone left for their chambers, each equipping themselves with armour and weapons. Sebastian and I were no different and I watched as Sebastian removed his clothes for the armour that he always wore. I asked, "Do you think you will take long?"

He shook his head, "No. Surely not. It will be a day or twos ride to get there and the same amount back."

I pouted, "Four days without you seems a long time."

He smiled and kissed me, "But just think… we will have the rest of our lives once Goran is dealt with. Isn't that worth the price of four days?"

I lay in bed and asked, "And what of court?"

Sebastian smiled, "You will handle the nobles just fine, I am sure," then he turned to see and sat on the bed, "I… Please be careful, my love. The days are getting colder and I want you well dressed and indoors as much as possible. And Evelyn, don't tell anyone you're pregnant… I don't want anyone targeting you whilst I'm away."

I smiled, "Are you getting overprotective already? I'm only surely a day pregnant at most."

He kissed me, "Rest. I will be home soon."

I could tell that in the upcoming nine months, he would be an overbearing protector, ensuring my every step was clear of pebbles and stones before allowing me to walk anywhere.

All I had to do was get through four days.