Author's note

Sorry about the long wait between chapters but unfortunately these things happen, a lot has come up these last few weeks and because of it, I am forced to put this story on the backburner for a short while. From the Dales to Denirim will be back Mid/Late October.

Chapter 26 – First, Neria

Neria was three years old when she first discovered her magic. She remembered her mother complaining about the cold in Ferelden and she wished that she could help. Somehow, she managed to set their aravel on fire and it would have been disastrous if her Keeper hadn't been there to put it out quickly.

Shortly after the keeper started teaching Neria, just small stuff at first to help her control the power she had. The first spell she learnt was simply to make small roots sprout and Neria was delighted with it.

A year after that, her life changed considerably. Her family had travelled outside the clan for a small trade mission and someone at the village had told the Templars of their location. That night a squad of Templar knights came for them. The last thing Neria remembered from that night was her mother's screaming face, telling her to hide.

The Templars took her to the tower; they said it would be her home for the rest of her life. After she arrived, the Knight-Commander forced her into solitary confinement for the best part of three months, claiming 'that it was the only way she would forget her barbaric ways and be ready to learn magic properly'. It only served to make her hate the man. One of the Templars had been kind to her for a time, bringing her food when others were not looking and one time he brought another mage child to keep her company for a morning. Solana Amell.

Her first friend in the Tower was a human and Neria couldn't care less. She was too young to understand the propaganda that the Dalish teach about humans and even if she had, she had been stuck on her own for three months, she would have talked to anything at that point. Solana was a bit older than Neria, at five years old to Neria's four, but she didn't care. She had never spoken to a Dalish elf before and their conversations built the foundations that would last for the next thirteen years.

Thirteen long years, that was how long Neria had been at the Tower when it all went wrong. Jowan, another of her close friends, persuaded Solana to help him escape and it proved to be her downfall. The man had claimed to be wrongfully persecuted, he believed the Templars suspected him of blood magic and he used Solana's romantic side against her. He loved a chantry sister and wanted her help to run away with the woman. Solana readily agreed.

At the dead of night, Solana, Jowan, and lily the chantry sister, broke into the phylactery stores to steal Jowan's blood phylactery. IF he managed to destroy it then he could theoretically have fled anywhere in all of Thedas and the Templars would have been unable to track him.

They managed to steal it with ease but were undone when they exited the basement. The Knight-commander and First Enchanter were waiting for them. Solana was deeply shamed at being caught but Jowan became violent. He proved the Templars right and used blood magic to escape, leaving Lily and Solana to face the punishment for his crime.

Solana had not yet been chosen for her Harrowing so The Knight-Commander decided she was too dangerous. He made her Tranquil. Stole her emotions and cut her off from the fade as if it was nothing. The whole situation made Neria sick and that day she knew that she had to leave the Tower, as much as it had become a home to her. Therefore, it was almost great fortune when the Warden's came to help fight the demons that overtook the tower.

It was even better fortune when she discovered that the leader of the Wardens was Dalish, finally someone from her people who could teach her all that she should have learnt. As soon as the Tower was free from monsters, she asked the Wardens if she could accompany them, she needed to be free from the tower sooner rather than later, and this was her way out. Lyla accepted and demanded that the Templars let her go with them. For such a little elf, she could be quite terrifying.

One thing she had loved about the tower though, the gossip. There was so much internal politicking in the tower and so much gossip that Neria was always being told a story about one person or another. If it wasn't gossip then it was matchmaking. For such a small group of people the amount of 'he likes her' or 'she likes him' that went on in the tower was incredulous and Neria had developed a love for it all. So, once she had discovered that the feelings between her fellow Elvhen and the Orlesian bard she made it her personal quest to get them both together.

"How are you today, Leliana?" She asked as she entered the room. Leliana had fallen asleep soon after they had shared a meal a few days ago. Whilst the healing magic had healed her body almost immediately it took some time for her mind to catch up and realise the body was not injured, this was why Leliana took so long to awaken from her injuries and why she was still so tired now.

"Neria," Leliana smiled as the elf entered, "I'm fine thank you, and yourself? Have I missed anything else, mon amie?"

"I'm great, nothing has happened since yesterday, don't worry." Neria giggled as she walked across the small bedroom. Leliana was lying in a small bed in the corner of the room, there was a desk and chair set out beside it for Wynne to work at whilst she was healing the bard, Neria sat there. "Lyla should have reached the circle by now, how scared do you think the Templars are?"

Leliana giggled and a smile shone across her face, "I suppose it depends on if they have annoyed her. Although, knowing Lyla if they looked at her she might just flip. They're probably racing around the tower trying to get rid of her as quickly as possible."

"I can see it now. ' Quick get the Tempest whatever she wants! She'll kill us all'" She put on a false high pitched voice as she spoke and waved her arms wildly before bursting into a fit of giggles, Leliana soon joined her.

"You know, she is meant to be resting, Neria, not laughing like a lunatic." Wynne tutted as she entered the room, "I hope you are feeling better, child." She smiled at the bard, who could only smile back whilst recovering from the laughter.

"I am fine, Wynne, thank you for checking up on me." Leliana remarked, "I asked Neria but she is useless, is there any news that I've missed?" Neria gave an indignant huff and tried to look angry with Leliana but her eyes betrayed her amusement at the bard.

"I bring good news, Leliana, a Templar ship has been spotted in the lake. It is half a day's travel out but chances are that our Warden is coming home." Leliana perked up at that, almost instantly trying to jump out of the bed. "Slow down, child, they won't be here till at least the evening meal, so relax. I'm sure Lyla will come and check on you first chance she gets, she wouldn't leave your side when she was here last."

Wynne had her suspicions that the pair were close. She had known love once and she knew just how poisonous it could be to ones morals. Love blinded a person, masked any decision regarded a loved one. Lyla couldn't afford to let such foolishness overtake her now, her role was too important to throw it all away for the Orlesian. However, Wynne knew she could be wrong, the elf was incredibly racist, and the chances of her falling for a human seemed slim to none. If she could find the time she would talk to the elf, remind her of her duty to the world.

-FTDTD-

When Alistair found the time, he tried to stay with Bann Teagan. He remembered the man being kind to him as a child and he wanted, nay needed, to get to know the man once again. The Bann remembered him as well, fond memories of a child too young for decorum and proper etiquette. As a child, Alistair would often run through the castle covered in mud, hordes of servants chasing after him. It always amused Teagan to no end, he would try to help the boy escape punishment every time he did it, and not just because of his father.

Teagan had known from the beginning that Alistair was a royal bastard. However, he also knew that if he were revealed to the kingdom he would have been an embarrassment to the throne. Now though, he was all that was left of the Theirin bloodline. Whether Alistair knew it or not, he was the rightful heir to the throne and Teagan had no doubts that his brother would use that to bring the man to power, elevating his own position as he did so.

That wasn't to say that Eamon didn't care for the heir. In fact, it was quite the opposite. As Alistair grew up, he all but pampered the boy, or as much as one could pamper a serving boy. It was bad enough that his wife began to suspect that he was Eamon's own. It was this suspicion that drove Eamon to put Alistair in the Chantry, an act he quickly regretted. Eamon had begun to see the child as his own and it pained him to be parted from the bastard but he knew that his duty to his wife was greater than that to his brother-in-law's bastard.

King Maric had married Eamon's sister many years ago and unfortunately for their family, Eamon's sister, Rowan, only bore one child to the king before falling ill and eventually succumbing to it. Cailen, her only child, was but three years old when she passed but he had a close family who helped each other through the pain. Two years after her death however, Alistair was borne to a woman unknown to all but Maric.

Eamon has sheltered the boy as a child but Teagan knew that he would no longer hide the rightful heir. Moreover, he agreed. They needed a Theirin on the throne and he knew that Alistair would be a good king, even if Alistair couldn't see it himself.

"Bann Teagan?" A servant appeared at the doorway of the study. Teagan had been looking over the Warden treaties. "The Warden-Commander has returned and she has a whole host of mages with her. They are requesting your presence at the throne room."

-FTDTD-

Lyla looked around the small ship deck; it was startling how many people were required just to get the boat to move. Dalish elves rarely sailed and this was Lyla's first time, and if she had anything to do with it, her last. To say she didn't have sea legs was an understatement as the elf had spent the majority of the short trip with her head over the side, evacuating her lunch.

By the time they docked Lyla had recovered enough to walk unaided. Her stomach injury whilst healed still caused her pain and that coupled with the remnants of seasickness made for a very uneasy elf. She made her way to the gangplank and led the First Enchanter off the ship, towards Redcliffe docks.

As the village was still recovering, it was not strange to see no one working the docks however, that's not to say it was empty. Alistair, Neria, and Zevran had all come to meet the Warden and witch at the ship, Neria rushing forward and embracing her friend in a small hug before stepping back and allowing their business to continue.

"Felas, miss me?" Lyla smirked as she approached; the elf mage to her right looked slightly embarrassed at the emotion she had just displayed. "I hope you haven't managed to burn down the castle or anything whilst I was away."

"Blast it, how did you know?" He gestured towards the obviously intact castle behind him, "It's all gone, Lyla, all of it. Honestly, I blame Zevran. It was all him." Zevran bowed his head and started laughing quietly to himself whilst Lyla just giggled outwardly.

"First you try to assassinate me, now you're burning down shemlen castles? Oh what will we do with you, Zevran?" She pondered.

"He tried to assassinate you?" An Orlesian voice cried from across the docks, "How could you let an assassin stay here with my child?" Isolde had arrived, with Teagan in tow.

"Seriously, shem? You think that an assassin who, by the way has done nothing but help you, is more dangerous than the demon inside your child, what is wrong with you?" Lyla shook her head and stepped back to allow the First Enchanter to join the conversation. "This is First Enchanter Irving. He is the man who is going to save your son."

The mage started to explain to the nobles how he was going to cleanse Connor but as Lyla had heard it all she just drowned it out and allowed her mind to wander. She was secretly worried about Leliana; the bard hadn't come to meet her at the docks, had she not woken up yet? Worse, had something happened to her? As if hearing Lyla's inner monologue, Neria took her aside and spoke in quiet whispers, "Leliana woke up a few days ago, lethallan. She's been worrying about you ever since, what do you say we leave everyone else to deal with this for now and go see her?" A smile grew on Neria's face as she spoke.

"Ma nuvenin, lead the way, lethallan." Lyla followed the elf up the path to the castle leaving Alistair to deal with the mages and nobles.

He was doing a good job at it as well. Isolde, to her credit, was not panicking as much as one perhaps could when one's child was possessed by a demon. Nevertheless, she was panicking, despite all of the assurances from Irving and the mages he had brought with him. It was only Teagan who managed to quiet her enough to listen. Irving explained that the ritual would take most of the night to prepare but first thing in the morning, it should be ready. He then explained that they would have to send a mage into the fade to fight the demon and since Lyla summoned the mages there, he would only accept her choice of whom to send. Morrigan, Wynne, or Neria were Alistair's first ideas but he knew that whilst Morrigan may be the most powerful combative mage they had, she would be unwilling to help save the child. She had said often enough already that it was a useless venture and that they should just kill the child to be rid of it quickly. Wynne was busy healing the injured army that remained from the battles before and whilst Neria was getting stronger by the day, she was still young and inexperienced. It was another choice that seemed impossible to Alistair and he found himself, certainly not for the first time, thankful that he wasn't in charge of anything more important than dressing himself.

-FTDTD-

Leliana was sitting at the foot of her bed, waiting on Neria's return. They had been chatting together when a servant arrived and told them of the Templar boat's arrival. Leliana had made to leave for the docks but Neria forbid it. Claiming the woman was still too weak to leave the castle and although Leliana knew she was strong enough, she stayed behind with Neria's promise that she would bring the Warden straight to her. So here she sat, wringing her hands and letting her mind run away with worry.

She was a bard, Maker's breath, why was she so nervous about seeing Lyla again? She had had feelings for people before so why was this so different, why did it turn her into a ball of nerves at the idea of seeing her friend? Once, Leliana had thought herself graceful, confident but it seems that all of that was gone now, had Marjolaine changed her that much? Or could it just be that Lyla was different that the men and women Leliana had been with before.

Her internal monologue was interrupted by barking in the hall outside her room. Instantly the butterflies in her stomach disappeared and she was excited. Revas bound into the room first and as Leliana stood to greet them, Revas all but tackled her back to the bed.

"Leli!" Lyla squeaked as she ran across the small room to the bard, "I'm so glad you're ok, I was so scared." Lyla pushed the dog out of the way and embraced the human woman. A blush crept across her face and reached the tips of her ears as she realised Neria was still in the room.

"I'll give you some space to… welcome each other." Neria winked as she backed out of the room, "Come, Revas." The hound bounded after her and suddenly Lyla and Leliana were alone.

"How have you been, Lyla?" Leliana asked after a few moments, the hug hadn't stopped and the warmth of the elf warmed Leliana's heart. "I've missed your company."

"I'm ok now, though I must say having a group of Templars, mages, Morrigan, and Revas as company made me miss you even more." Lyla reluctantly released the human and sat on the bed, one of her braids fell in front of her face, and as she moved it back behind her ear, Leliana let out a gasp.

"Your ear, what happened, Da'mi?" Leliana reached a hand out and brushed it across the scar on Lyla's left ear, she gasped again at the horror of it.

"We were attacked on the way to the mages. Some crazy woman and her friend, she managed to take me unawares and tried to cut my ear off. Morrigan killed her friend and when the woman realised she stabbed me in the stomach and took off into the night. It was strange. She was saying things about someone's pet and a nightingale." Leliana gasped once more and collapsed on the bed.

"Nightingale? No…" She started shaking her head and brought her knees to her chest, "She's found me, how could she have found me?" Her eyes were wide with fear as she looked across at Lyla, "You should cast me out. She is too dangerous to risk everyone's safety."

"Who is too dangerous, Lethallan?" Lyla edged closer and placed a hand on the woman's knee where Leliana gladly took it in her own. "And I would never cast you out. You are my clan now, da'assan, I protect my clan."

"Marjolaine, it must be her, she always called me her pet and often 'Nightingale' because of my singing. The woman she sent after you, she is a bard as well, she must be." Leliana shook as she looked up at Lyla, a fire burning in her eyes of which Lyla had never seen. "They must be brought to justice for what they have done. If we find Marjolaine, or this bard, we must confront them, Lyla."

"Ma nuvenin, lethallan, I promise. We have no idea where she is but if we find her, I will kill them both for what they have done." Leliana looked up but before she could say anything, a knock was heard from the door.

"Lyla, are you there?" Alistair called through the door, "The First Enchanter needs you."

"Can you come along, Leli? I may need you if I have to spend more time with those insufferable Templars." Lyla stood and Leliana soon followed as they left the room, still holding hands.

Alistair swiftly told the pair about the plans of the First Enchanter and the fact that Lyla is the only person that he trusted the decision of who to send into the fade. As they approached the main hall, Lyla stopped the group and with a final squeeze of Leliana's hand, she released it to talk to the woman. "Leliana, go find Neria for me, tell her to come to the hall as quickly as possible." Leliana nodded and set off in the assumed direction of the elf. "Felas, tell me Zevran is in the hall now?" when the Warden nodded she continued, "Get him here for me, now. Come back yourself, there is something I need to discuss between the three of us."

Alistair was gone but a moment before returning to the small corridor, Zevran was close behind wondering what exactly required his presence and he did not waste any time in asking.

Lyla briefly explained how she had been attacked on the way to the tower and how she now believed it was Marjolaine who had ordered the attack on her. Unfortunately, this meant that she had to betray Leliana's confidence and tell them about her past or at least the part where she was a bard. Alistair, to his credit, was extremely surprised but did not seem to judge the woman in any way and Zevran just nodded as though he already knew.

"The asha'alas is going to be coming after Leliana next. We cannot let her harm my bard. Zevran, every camp we make I want you to survey and report to me on any weaknesses a would-be assassin would exploit. Felas, I've already decided that we are going to have to double our watches, as the only members of my clan who can detect the darkspawn we need to have a constant watch for them as this blight worsens. If Zevran tells us of any weaknesses, we can keep an eye out for them whilst we keep watch." Lyla kept her voice down as she spoke, she knew that Leliana would be back at any moment and she didn't want the woman to realise how much trouble they were going through to protect her but to Lyla she was easily worth it. "Any questions?"

The men shook their heads, the plan was simple and easy to implement into their routine. Zevran grinned inwardly though, like Neria he had noticed the blossoming relationship between the Warden and bard and now he had his proof, Lyla was going out of her way to protect 'her bard' it was all too perfect.

Lyla strode confidently into the hall; she noted with interest that the nobles had kept to one corner away from the practicing mages, as if worried that their mere presence would disturb any ritual that was being made. Leliana and Neria had gathered by the entrance and upon seeing Lyla, they started towards her, Revas bounding ahead as usual.

"Aneth ara, lethallan, I need to ask a favour of you." She began, as soon the mage was close enough. When Alistair had told her of the decision ahead, Lyla's mind instinctively knew whom she would ask to enter the beyond. Morrigan had no great wish to help the child and had only done so far because of Lyla and whilst Wynne was a more experienced mage, she was still too busy tending to the many injuries from the battle days before. The only answer to the question was Neria. She was young and inexperienced but Lyla had seen her fight in the tower and she knew how powerful the elf could be if tested, this was the perfect test as far as the Warden was concerned. "A mage needs to enter the beyond, Neria. They will need to destroy the demon that has taken over the da'len and not succumb to its seduction. I trust you, Lethallan, with my life and more importantly, with my clans life. We have said I am this small clan's Keeper, which makes you my First, Neria. Are you willing and capable enough to do this task for me?"

Neria took a moment to take it all in. Lyla had dropped a lot on her in that one speech and she was unsure if she understood it all correctly. The Warden trusted her enough to call her 'her First' Neria could scarcely believe it. There was also the fact that Lyla wanted Neria to face up against an extremely powerful demon, a feat that would usually terrify Neria but to make matters worse she would have to face it in its home territory, the Fade. The more Neria dwelled on it though the more aware she was that she could do it. She was Elvhen, she would not bend her knee to some demon just because she was too scared to fight, that was not her people's way and it would not be hers. She became acutely aware of the silence of the room as it waited for Neria to answer.

"I can do it." There it was Neria's confidence in one short sentence. She was no longer scared to face this demon, she was excited, she could finally prove that she was worthy of her people and not a little child that needed protecting. She was an asha not a da'len and although she did not have to vallaslin to show it, she could prove it.