Running Away

He'd never felt that way before. The timid kisses they'd had until that moment were nothing compared to what they had now. Something was singing in his blood, and he felt that he could barely control himself. She quickly took off her jacket and as soon as her hands were free again, she slipped her fingers through his hair and kissed him unrestrainedly. He put his arms around her waist and pulled her even closer towards him. He wanted to melt into her, he wanted to-

"Oh Maker, I'm sorry!" Karl screamed. He'd entered the room and now was standing at the door, not knowing whether to close the door or simply vanish into thin air. Lucía moved away and blushed furiously. Anders stood up and walked to the window. Karl cleared his throat. "Er… I… wanted to see if everything was fine. I guess it is, then. Does this mean you won't be going to Seheron?"

"Seheron?" Lucía asked, raising an eyebrow. She looked at Anders.

"I… made some arrangements today, to do a course in Seheron for five months. It's… not easy to get in the program. They've accepted me and I'm supposed to leave in 2 days."

She frowned, trying to understand what he'd just said. "And when… When were you planning to tell me?" Anders looked away quickly, a soft blush covering his cheeks. She arched her eyebrows. "You weren't going to tell me," she snorted and shook her head. She stood up, grabbed her jacket and her bag, and walked towards Karl. "Here," she took the memory card that Cullen had given her and left it in Karl's hands. "He says you've got three weeks."

"What are you two talking about?" Anders asked.

"I think you've got enough secrets of your own to worry about others'," Lucía said bitterly as she left the office.


Isabela shook the doctor's hand and left his office. She walked down the steps, along the empty streets. She needed to think, and for the first time in her life, she needed to be alone. Her feet led her to the Boardwalk, the posh area of the city that overlooked the sea. She sat at a table of a café and ordered something. The owner of the place wasn't playing music today, and she welcomed the silence. Now she could hear the sound of the waves, gently rolling in and crashing against the rock wall that protected the seafront. She closed her eyes and smiled. Yes, there was peace in the world, and everything would be fine. She didn't need to be afraid.

The waiter brought her the Rivaini coffee she'd ordered and left it on the table with a smile and a wink. It was nice to feel wanted. She fed on the thrill of the accidental brush of fingers on her arms, the slight touch of a strange body in the elevator… Leto didn't give her that thrill. His body was there for her, in ways she hadn't felt with other men. But his mind wasn't. And she'd learnt not to care. It had been difficult, but she'd eventually understood that there was someone else in his heart, and that whatever he said or did would never be as sincere as the moment he'd told her about her. Which was the reason why she'd panicked when her period was late.

Three weeks. She'd forgotten about it, until one day she was looking for something in the bag of toiletries and had found the pads. She'd counted the days and yes, she was three weeks late. It was usual for her, but then she remembered that they'd had unprotected sex once.

She'd spent the rest of the day wondering whether she should say something to Leto or not. She decided not to say anything. She bought a home pregnancy test and followed the instructions. The first one was confusing. She had to buy another. Also confusing. It couldn't be that hard. One or two lines, that was all. The first one had no lines. The second had two half lines. Fuck my luck, she'd thought, as she'd picked up the phone and made an appointment with the doctor.

Weeks of testing revealed that not only she wasn't pregnant, but she couldn't get pregnant at all. The doctor had said that it was in her DNA. She could have been born without arms, or mentally impaired – instead, the anomaly had made her infertile. She could always adopt, he'd said, but however advanced the fertility treatments were, having a baby was just not possible.

It was funny. She'd never wanted a baby. She hated the idea of someone depending on her. But one thing was to refuse to have a baby, and another, not even being given a chance. It occurred to her that maybe this was a blessing in disguise, a way of telling her that she shouldn't expect to have a family of her own. She thought about her sister and her little niece and was suddenly overcome by the desire to see them. She'd ask Leto…

And here was the thing. She and Leto weren't an item. They'd never be an item. The knowledge didn't make her sad – on the contrary, it was almost liberating. For a moment, she felt sorry for him. She'd never stop seeing him, though – he was a friend. He understood her loneliness, and she'd always thought that two lonely people together were better than two lonely people alone.

She'd returned home that night, and the next day, while they were having lunch, she explained to him that she didn't feel like having sex with him anymore, but could they remain friends? Leto was surprised; still, what surprised him the most was the fact that he actually liked the idea.


"Come in, Donnic!" Bethany closed the door behind the young man and took his coat. "I'm sorry about the mess, but we're packing as fast as we can."

Donnic had been having dinner with the Hawke women quite often, since Bianca and Varric had moved to Starkhaven. "I don't mind. I can help! Are you leaving Tantervale?" he asked, rolling up his sleeves.

"No, we'll be moving to a hotel for a few days, until Lucía signs the contract of the house she bought today. She managed to pull some strings, now that she's got the contacts, and I think she really wanted to leave this place behind. Hey, are you staying for dinner?"

"I… don't know?" He was confused – had that been an invitation?

"I'm sorry, I meant 'You're staying over for dinner'," she giggled. "I'm cooking tonight, because Mama's at Benoit's again, and I'd like to hear your opinion on my latest creation – as long as it's honest," she said, raising a finger.

Donnic smiled. "Of course. Thank you."

"No problem!" Bethany grinned and left the books she was putting in a box. "I'll adjust the ingredients to three people. Lucía will be here in a short while." She ran to the kitchen. Donnic followed her with his eyes. Maker, she was beautiful. Every time he was around her he felt as if he was sweating bullets, afraid that someone would see how much he liked her. He'd never get the courage to tell her-

His phone rang. He took a look at the display. "Varric?" he answered.

"How's it going, kid? Did you get to the Nest? How's everything there?"

"Yes, I've just arrived and everything's fine. Bethany's cooking and I'll be staying over for dinner."

"Quick question before I pop in the shower: are you alone with Bethany, brother?" Bianca asked. Donnic shuddered. His sister on the speakerphone: horror of horrors.

"Yes, but-"

"Junior, behave," Varric warned him.

"Lucía's coming, any minute now!" Donnic said hurriedly.

"I'll call her to see if that's true," Varric grumbled. Donnic heard the baby crying and sighed. "Hey, gotta go. Enya's demanding some attention from Papa. Say hello to Sunshine for me."

Varric hung up quickly and walked over to the cradle. Enya's crying could be annoying, but to him, it was the most beautiful sound in the world. Now that he was alone with his baby girl, he could sit down in his study room and tell her the stories he'd been making up for months now. The thought of being able to hold this baby had kept him going all the time they'd spent down there. Some nights, he'd found himself in Bianca's arms as she held him close and kissed his forehead. The nightmares were not frequent, but they were intense. All the people that had died there… He could have been one of them.

He felt Enya's little hand wrapping around one of his fingers. She kept bringing him back. He raised his eyes and saw Bianca standing at the door, drying her hair with a towel, smiling at him. He beckoned her and when she stood beside him, he circled her waist with his left arm and kissed her stomach. Bianca kissed the top of his head and looked at Enya lovingly.

They were everything they needed.


Anders was walking back to his apartment. He had to pack his bag – the plane would leave early in the morning. He'd tried to call Lucía all day long but she'd rejected every single call. She was right to be mad at him. He felt terrible about it. It occurred to him that he was terrible at making people happy. Lucía was furious. Karl was disappointed. Leto was miserable. The only person that seemed to support him was Bethany. He sighed.

As he walked along, he took out his mobile phone and called Leto to let him know about his trip. A woman answered. "I'm sorry," he said, "I must have the wrong number."

"Anders? It's me, Isabela. Your name appears on the display. How are you?"

Anders was stunned. Hadn't they broken up? What was she doing with Leto's phone? "I'm… fine! I'm doing fine. I just wanted to let Leto know that I'll be leaving for Seheron in the morning."

"Oh, he's in the bathroom. Ah, here he is. Have a good trip!"

"What's this thing of a trip?" Leto asked. "You coming here again?"

"No," Anders said hesitantly. "No, I'm… leaving for Seheron tomorrow morning, for five months."

"No kidding! I've heard it's a great place!" Leto said. "Lucky dog; I hope you have a great time!"

Anders looked ahead and he saw Lucía, standing outside the door of his building. "Yeah, me too," he said distractedly. "Listen, I'll call you from there. Something's come up now."

"Sure, no problem. Have a good trip!"

Anders hung up and hurried his steps. "Lucía…" he started to say, but she raised her hand.

"All I wanted," she said slowly, "was for you to give us a chance. No past lives. No family in between. Just you and me." She sighed. "I don't like this feeling. I don't like chasing after you. I feel like we're wasting our time, and I don't know what else to do…"

"You don't need to do anything," he said, taking a step towards her. Her face looked tired and she looked as if she'd been crying. His heart beat faster. She was there at last. She was there for him.

"If you have to leave, then leave," she said sadly. "I just wanted you to know that I won't bother you anymore." She turned to leave, but he grabbed her by the wrist and spun her around. He cupped her face with his left hand and kissed her passionately until she pulled apart, panting.

"Anders," she whispered softly, her eyes closed, as she clung to him. She was afraid he'd disappear if she let go of him.

"Come with me," he murmured, taking her by the hand and leading her up to his apartment.

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Title: a song by Hoobastank. Just as I said in chapter 24, you can imagine what comes next, and right after that, I'll be taking you right to the other lives - Leto's memories, Anders's memories, and the moment where everything started.