The man swings at me, while his friend moves towards Alistair. I duck and shove him away.
"I didn't want to fight." I snap, as I grab his legs. He falls back, his weapons clattering away from him.
"I just wanted to talk." I growl as he tries to jump up, his armour hindering his actions. I punch him back down, my knuckles cracking against his nose.
"I'm actually really fucking tired!" I yell as he finally stands up and I bring my blade to his throat, poking him gently with the point, making a drop of blood appear.
I hear a body drop behind me, as well as the sound of Alistair and Daisy moving towards me, Daisy barking and headbutting my hand.
"All right, we surrender!" The man cries and I glare at him.
"I have a fucken headache, alright?" I whisper aggressively.
"Now! We can stop fighting!" Leliana says next to me, either ignoring or simply not hearing what I said.
" Yes. You can, skip along now." I say, tilting my head at the man and smiling. He straightens, nods to me, shaking, and walks to the door way, his friend wobbling to his feet.
"I'm sorry for interfering. But, I couldn't sit by and not help!" She says, bobbing down slightly.
"I'm only like, five centimetres shorter than you!" I cry out and she quickly straightens. Brushing off my reaction, she speaks again.
"Of course. I am Leliana, one of the lay sisters. Well, I used to be one."
"Ah, yes. I'm Nessa." I say, trying to inject some energy into my tone, I have finished this scenario many times before, and now, even though it was face to face, the interactions were getting on my nerves.
"You're a grey warden. At least, that's what he said, no?"
" He didn't actua-"
"I didn't think you'd be an elf, though." She cuts me off. I raise an eyebrow at her, which she ignores and continues. "You'll need all the help you can get, especially after Ostogar. That's why I'm coming along."
" I'm not a grey warden." I lie. "Those traitors have a high bounty." Alistair growls at my words, but I ignore him.
"But...oh. I see. Of course. We should move on, my unremarkable, definitely nonwarden friend." My eyebrow raises even higher, hiding under my auburn fringe.
" Yes, well. We would... We do need hirelings. For our travels." I say, thinking stuff up as I go.
"Yes, the maker has sent me to help you." Oh, this.
"The maker?" I ask, trying very hard to hide my sarcasm.
"I must sound crazy, but you must believe me! The darkness, this plague. It will spread, take over Thedas. The maker does not want this!" She says fervently.
'Then why'd he make the darkspawn in the first place." I think to myself.
"What you do is the makers will. You have to let me help."
"Ok, fine. You can tag along." I mumble and turn around, walking out of the bar. Leliana blinks at my nonchalance, but moves to walk next to Alistair.
"Now for Sten." I mumble and turn towards his cage. He sits at the bottom of the cage, mumbling.
He stands up as he hears me walk up, taller than anyone I have seen before and I crane my head back to look him in the eye.
"I have no need to entertain you, elf. I suggest you leave me to my fate." His deep voice rumbles.
"Who are you?" I ask, trying to hurry the conversation along.
"I am Sten, of the Beresaad."
"I am Nessa. It's a pleasure to meet you." I say, bowing slightly.
"You... Mock me. Or show manners I have not known among your people."
"I need your help." I say before Alistair or Morrigan can speak. "You came to investigate the blight? I presume... Yeah, it's not going to stop. And I need help to defeat it." I stammer, not completely thinking the sentence through. Which Leliana comments on.
"The blight? You must be wardens, then? The Qunari have heard of you, the strength and skill. The legends far exceed reality." Sten says, ignoring Leliana.
" Yeah, yeah. I'll get you out of the cage ok? Getting the key from the mother should be easy."
"I will be here." He says, before sitting down again. I smile, baring my teeth and walk back to the bridge, enjoying the silence.
"Aren't you going to ask why he was in the cage?" Alistair breaks the silence.
" He murdered a farmer family." I answer, trying to get back to the happy silence.
" He did what? Aren't you worried he'll just kill us too?" Alistair cries, making my head throb.
" He regrets it. What he did is not forgivable. But... We all have things we regret." I mumble, the archers face jumping to the front of my mind. "I didn't even know his name." I whisper, guilt churning in my stomach like molten rock.
"And this will be a valuable skill, no?" Leliana asks from the back as we reach the Chantry. Before I can do anything, a man yells from next to me, making my prior 'dormant' headache come back to punch my in the face.
"Gah, fuck!" I say, grabbing my head with one hand.
"Here! One of their minions! Can't you sense the evil inside her?" He shouts and Daisy growls at him.
"Sir, you're scaring the children." One man says.
"The children? Better to slit their throats now, than let them suffer at the hands of the darkspawn!"
"What happened to you?" I ask, trying to hurry up and make him shut up.
"My wife. They came and dragged her away! I ran hearing her screams! I just. Ran." He says, pain stretching his voice.
"You're not honoring her death, not by shouting at these people."
"Are you calling, me, a coward?" He shouts at me, my headache throbbing.
"Just. Stop yelling. I'm not calling you a coward, you're just not dealing with her death well. She probably would not have wanted this." I say, holding my hands up in submission.
"I've shamed my ancestors!" He yells before running off, and I sigh in relief.
" He was right though wasn't he? We're all going to die!" A man says, and I turn on him, glaring fiercely.
"Only if you give up. Fereldeners have this ongoing trait of not dying. It's truly remarkable." I mumble at him before turning to the Chantry. I hear their plans of moving to Denerim from behind me.
I jog towards the Redcliffe knight and tell him of his fallen friend, passing on his belongings, before moving to the back, where an old woman sits in a chair. She turns to me, a smile gracing her lips.
ooOoo
Lotherings going to be three chapters, isn't it.
{Sigh}
Damnit. This always happens.
Sorry this is a tad late, but I couldn't help it. My timetable got majorly f'ed up by school...
But I'll see y'all on Friday!
-FMI