Summary: Dorian will need a chance to recover from meeting his father again, but it turns out Alistair has had his own emotional revelations to deal with. Nurturing is not exactly Miraak's strong point but for his family, he'll make sure they're taken care of. Plus he's always at his best with an objective to pursue, and tracking down Alistair's mother sounds worth pursuing. Little does he know what else it'll open up.
A/N: The Found Family takes shape in this one! Alistair's past comes to light as he starts investigating his mother properly, there's a new arrival at Skyhold and it turns out Miraak's secretly after a kid.
The chantry was in a lot better state than when Miraak had first seen it. Calmer, quieter, pews back in place and looking as if services were regularly held here again – Miraak was no Andrastian, but he did like the atmosphere. Also he'd first laid eyes on Dorian here. It would always be special because of that.
Miraak flicked his attention back to his orb, making sure Dorian was all right. Conversation under way. The two men sitting down. No magic thankfully. It had better stay that way.
The orb would summon him if he was needed. Until then he'd have to try and put it out of his mind. Which Miraak knew full well was near impossible without something else to focus on.
Something like Alistair, who was there, papers in front of him, head in his hands.
His brother as well? Miraak was definitely going to have to fight something on the way back, take it all out on a bandit or something. His two new close kinfolk, clearly both having terrible days? Someone needed killing.
Miraak took a seat on the pew next to Alistair, carefully removing the mask and putting it between them.
"You are troubled," Miraak observed, not sure how to approach this. Alistair wasn't great at receiving comfort, Miraak had guessed that much. Not from Miraak anyway.
"Yeah? What gave it away?" Alistair snapped, and then he hung his head, sighing. "Sorry. Not your fault. Ugh. I was hoping I'd find nothing. But… fuck, Miraak. Look at this."
He shoved a death certificate into Miraak's hands – two in fact. One of a woman who'd died in childbirth thirty years ago… and the birth and death certificate of her newborn son.
"What is this," Miraak said, frowning. "Are they kin of yours?"
Alistair actually laughed.
"Kin? No, it turns out. She's the woman they always said was my mother. She died giving birth to me. Except for the part where her son died less than a day after being born."
"You were a twin?" Miraak asked and Alistair shook his head, pointing at the day of death.
"No. That date? Five months after I was born. I'm no expert on midwifery but pretty sure that's not how pregnancy works."
Alistair looked up, face furious but tears glimmering in his eyes.
"They lied to me," Alistair said bitterly. "My entire life, they lied to me about who my mother was. Arl Eamon would have destroyed this too if he could. I'm not who I thought I was. She might even be alive! She might… Maker, Miraak, I thought I'd find nothing and Varric would owe me a pint, and I'd owe Leliana a favour but… turns out Varric might be right?"
"Right about what?" Miraak asked. "I thought you seemed keen on revisiting Redcliffe. What made you look into your family history?"
"Varric had this crazy theory Grand Enchanter Fiona was my mother, based on nothing more than her fussing over me too much. Which is ridiculous but… now I have to wonder. I came here to verify my mother's death details but all I found out was that she's not even my mother? And Eamon hid it. Gave me a whole false identity, but didn't hide who my father had been which means he must have known as well. I… didn't think my opinion of my father could have got any lower but it has. It really has."
Miraak put an arm round Alistair and held him close, feeling for him. They'd definitely have to seek out a fight on the way back. Alistair thoroughly deserved the chance to take his anger out on something.
"Then we'll find her," Miraak said softly. "We'll find your mother. Did you say you'd spoken to Leliana?"
"Yeah, asked her how easy it'd be to find out what King Maric was doing nine months before my birth. Then you gave her that mission to root out the Venatori agents infiltrating Anora's palace, and she told me it'd be simplicity itself if there's anything to find. I'm actually dreading what she's going to come back with."
Miraak was now intrigued himself.
"We'll find her," Miraak promised. "We'll get answers. She might not have had a choice in the matter, you know. Or maybe she's dead."
"Thanks, mate," Alistair said softly, before glancing up and putting a hand on Miraak's thigh. "Hey, I know I call you all sorts of things but… your heart's in the right place, you know. I'm glad you're here."
Miraak gave him a hug and a pat on the back, before getting up and pulling him to his feet.
"Shall we go to the tavern and wait for Dorian?" Miraak asked. "I believe he'll need company when he's finished with his father."
"Yeah, sure – wait. He went back to talk to his dad? And you let him?"
"I don't own him, Dorian," Miraak said tersely. "He can do as he pleases. And once his emotions had calmed, he wished to speak with his father before he left. I agreed. Don't fear. I sent the orb with him. If he is in need, it will summon me. But it will be easier to come to his aid if we are already in the tavern, no?"
That it would. So Alistair gathered up the papers and followed Miraak out. It was always easier helping other people with their problems than dealing with his own.
Dorian entered the main tavern bar and while he'd suspected Miraak would be in here brooding, he'd not expected Alistair to be there too, still less Miraak unmasked and the two of them seeming in a good mood, with Miraak's arm draped round Alistair's shoulders and Alistair leaning into Miraak's chest.
That brought a lump to Dorian's throat and not from jealousy either. They just both seemed content. And then the Eye of Miraak whizzed past his head, meriting a few gasps from various patrons, but Miraak just glanced up, held out his free hand, watched while the orb settled into it, and let go of Alistair to put it away.
Alistair saw this, looked up, saw Dorian and was moving immediately, practically pouncing on Dorian to hug him.
"Dorian! Mate! Are you all right? Are you… still you? Not blood magicked? Still fancy Miraak?"
Dorian smiled and cuddled Alistair, because yes, yes he did, he adored that man beyond all reason and then he could smell Miraak moments before his arms were round them both and that glorious blond hair was falling over him.
"Yes," Dorian breathed. "A thousand times yes, I still find Miraak attractive, Maker, the muscles."
Chuckle from Miraak that set Dorian's spine tingling.
"Of course you do, I'm magnificent," Miraak purred, kissing his forehead. "Ah, Dorian. Are you all right. What happened."
Dorian really didn't want to think about his father right now, he wanted to be warm and safe in a handsome man's arms and forget everything. And what luck, two of them were cuddling him.
"Can we go back to the castle?" Dorian whispered. "Please?"
Of course they could. So it was all back to the castle, and to Dorian's surprise, Miraak sent Alistair off to get changed out of his armour then come back.
"What's going on?" Dorian asked, surprised. Miraak said nothing, closing the door then backing Dorian up against it, lips meeting his as Miraak pressed his full weight against him, hands cupping his cheekbones, and Dorian momentarily lost the ability to form thoughts.
"Mine," Miraak breathed in between kissing him. "They will not take you from me!"
Dorian should really tell him off about that but unfortunately his cock had other ideas and was really quite keen on territorial Miraak. So Dorian reached out for Miraak and started kissing him back, arms holding him tight, fingers weaving into that glorious blonde mane and tugging just so, and Miraak moaned into his ear.
"Alistair needs me – us," Miraak murmured into his ear. "Which is why he is returning soon and then the three of us are building a nest on the Arl's guest bed and cuddling. Ugh, this language of yours is inadequate to the task, Atmoran has better words for this. Non-sexual intimacy through touch, it's the best I can do. But before he comes back… I wanted you in my arms. Just for a time."
Dorian really would have preferred being flung down on the bed and fucked hard by his beloved Dragonborn but a three-man cuddle involving Alistair the Ridiculously Adorable had a way of getting his attention. It was certainly worth postponing sex for anyway.
"After Alistair's gone back to his own room, we are going to do some brutally depraved things that would horrify my parents, right?" Dorian whispered and Miraak's eyes lit up as he nodded.
"Whatever you've got in mind, I'll give you," Miraak promised, trailing his finger down Dorian's cheek, and while normally Dorian did not care for being dominated in bed, there was something about having Miraak do it that made him realise why some people went to the lengths they did to seek it out. At the very least, Dorian found he was capable of letting it happen occasionally and not feeling abused and demeaned afterwards. Very hard to do that when he'd come hard and then had Miraak cuddling him and kissing him and stroking his skin and whispering thanks, gratitude and how much he loved him and how beautiful he was.
Later. Dorian could be patient. Also the three-way cuddle in the tavern had been nice and he could stand to do more of it. So Dorian kissed Miraak, carefully slipped out from under him and went to the bed.
"This building a nest thing. How do we do it."
"You… don't know?"
Miraak looked uncomprehending and Dorian could feel himself going red and then had to admit that no, he'd never done this before.
"I never had siblings and you know what my parents are like!" Dorian sighed. "How do we…" He gestured at the bed and Miraak sighed and came over to help, shedding the heavy outer robes and stripping down to his vest, and under his direction, a nest of blankets and cushions materialised. And when Alistair knocked and shyly shuffled in, Miraak practically bounced over, hugged him and dragged him to the bed, much to Alistair's alarm.
"Miraak, what?" Alistair gasped. "I'm not OK with this! I'm married!"
Miraak paused as it belatedly occurred to him this could be misinterpreted.
"Krosis. Nothing sexual is happening. But you and Dorian both need a cuddle. So. The three of us will nest on the bed and cuddle. We'll remain clothed, but take off your boots and shed the outer layers if you need to. No kissing. No touching below the waist. You can be in the middle if you want. Or we can swap places. Up to you. But zeymah, do not tell me you do not need it."
Alistair stared at him, several emotions warring on his face at once, then his lower lip trembled and he launched himself into Miraak's arms, face down on Miraak's shoulders, and Miraak rubbed his back, rocking him gently in his arms before leading him to the bed and handing him over to Dorian, who just held out his arms and pulled him to him.
"There, there, my friend," Dorian told him. "Tell me all about it."
Miraak got in behind him, blankets and cushions and pillows were summoned and arranged and soon Alistair was warm and safe and being snuggled, and after a little prompting, was pouring his heart out about not being who he thought he was and his mother might still be alive, and Varric suspected Grand Enchanter Fiona but Alistair was sure that was rubbish but…
"My mum might be alive," Alistair finished. "My mum, Dorian! I might have a mum…"
And then he couldn't stop himself, crying all over Dorian's fancy leather outfit, and Dorian and Miraak both moved to cuddle him at once, holding him and saying nothing, and Alistair was not remotely used to this and normally would have felt too ashamed to even ask anyone other than Bethany for this, but here, now, it felt natural and safe and right.
"I'm sorry," Alistair whispered. "I didn't mean to… oh god, we came here for Dorian's Dad and I didn't even ask if you were all right!"
"It's all right," Dorian told him. "My tangled family relations don't need to be your problem. Bad enough Miraak's involved. I did tell him he didn't need to be involved either but he wouldn't have it."
"Of course he bloody didn't," Alistair sighed, patting Dorian's cheek. "Mate. I'm your friend. Your partner adopted me. You need anything, we'll help you. You can tell us this stuff, you know."
"This argument has been had, zeymah," Miraak said from behind Alistair, amused. "Dorian is not used to having family members he can rely on. You may have to persevere if you detect he has a problem."
Alistair just shook his head, exasperated.
"Bloody hell, not you as well, Bethany must have spent years working on me to get me to do the same and stop making a joke out of everything. Come on. Talk."
So Dorian did, telling them both all about the conversation and finishing that things were still awkward and Dorian hadn't forgiven his father by a long shot… but that Halward Pavus had given his blessing to both Dorian's membership of the Inquisition, and his relationship with Miraak.
"But you're to write to him at his office, not the house," Alistair said, frowning. "So he's given his blessing but doesn't want your mum knowing?"
"His mother's evil," Miraak told him and Dorian spluttered at that.
"She's not – she's just got opinions. And is a woman of faith and… oh god. My mother might be evil."
"She used to beat him," Miraak added. "For not being masculine enough. Ridiculous."
"And even your dad thinks she's never going to forgive or accept you, bloody hell," Alistair breathed, and then he took Dorian in his arms, letting him rest his head on his chest then rolling on to his back so he could put his free arm round Miraak.
Dorian made a noise that sounded like a sob, and then he reached out with his free hand and took Miraak's in his, squeezing it tight and saying nothing, closing his eyes as the truth hit him. He'd always known his mother was disappointed in him, of course. He'd never exactly felt loved by her. But all the same, it still hurt.
"It's fine," Dorian whispered. "I didn't expect anything else."
"She's your mother, Dorian, it is not fine," Miraak said softly. "You deserved better."
Dorian squeezed his hand again then opened his eyes, sad smile on his face.
"I met you, didn't I," Dorian said, eyes meeting Miraak's across Alistair's chest, which was not a location either had expected to be holding hands over and yet somehow neither minded.
"Yes you did," Miraak said, smiling. "I know it's not the same, but you are my lokaal and I will take care of you. And you, zeymah. You are my family now. I will not see either of you lost and lonely. You know that. Nothing is restoring my mother to me, but I can protect you from yours, lokaal. And you, Alistair. I'll help find yours."
Alistair hugged them both, not saying a word, because he wasn't sure if this was a promise Miraak could even keep. But it meant the world Miraak was promising to try.
And then Dorian spoke up, quietly, hesitantly, not sure he should even suggest this but doing it anyway.
"There might be a way," Dorian said, glancing up at Alistair. "I think Liriel could find her. She could track dragon blood, it's how she found Miraak… and you for that matter. Only, well, this is going to be awkward. It involves blood magic."
"It what," Alistair said, sitting up even as Miraak shrugged.
"It's likely Reach-magic, of course it does," he said, and then he noticed Alistair staring at him incredulously.
"It's bloody taboo across all Thedas, Miraak!" Alistair cried. "Maker, you're seriously suggesting we use blood magic to find my mother?" Oh my god, Miraak. If that gets out, you'll be branded a maleficar. No one'll follow you!"
"Then we make sure no one finds out," Miraak said, thinking this over. "You suspect Grand Enchanter Fiona? That helps. We can get her alone for testing after Leliana's reported her findings. If the only people who know are the three of us, Liriel and Fiona herself… who will know. If negative, Fiona never knows we even did it. If positive… she will have rather more to concern herself with."
"I'd know!" Alistair whispered. "Fucking hell."
Then a pause, because while Alistair was no fan of blood magic, the prospect of confirming his mother's identity was hard to resist.
"It won't hurt her? Or anyone else?"
"It's going to need a sample of your own blood, and I'm sure that won't be painless," Dorian told him. "But there shouldn't be any harmful effects. I mean, I saw Liriel cast it to find Miraak at Haven, and by her own admission she used the same spell to find you, although she wasn't intending to."
"I didn't even know she was casting it," Alistair admitted. "Alright. I'll do it but we have got to keep this quiet. It cannot get out."
"It won't," Miraak promised. "I'll talk to Liriel, find out what we can do. Don't worry, there will be no trouble contriving an excuse to bring Fiona to my quarters for some meeting or other. Dorian happens to be there studying, and you and Liriel can hide on the balcony. Trivial to organise."
"Right," Alistair whispered, still wrapping his head around this… but if it worked? He had to know. He had questions. And even if it wasn't Fiona, they might be able to trace his actual mother.
Alistair pulled them both to him, hugging them fiercely. Family. He had a family. Not just Bethany, or the Wardens, but an actual family taking shape. He'd never in his life expected this, and it meant the world.
"Miraak," Alistair said softly. "I'm sorry I've been an arse to you. You didn't have to do this for me."
"Perhaps I want to know as well," Miraak said, snuggling closer, and really, who knew that underneath the tentacle mask, the dread Inquisitor was a sentimental cuddler. Alistair never would have suspected, but he wasn't complaining. Family. He had a family. Might have a mother. That was a scary thought. But with the First Dragonborn at his back, things had a way of looking a lot less terrifying.
The journey back to Skyhold was uneventful and in the end, Miraak did not need to go out and kill things after all. Apparently regular cuddling sessions with his brother and lover had a way of soothing them all.
Miraak definitely didn't need and rely on physical touch for his psychological wellbeing. Miraak did not get lonely. Miraak needed none of this affection. He did all this for his kin's wellbeing, that was all.
And yet if it didn't happen, he'd feel sad and not know why. It was pathetic. Ridiculous. A weakness. But one Miraak couldn't help but indulge. If it reminded him of being a boy and building a fur cave and hiding in it with Halbard and Greta, that was no one's business but Miraak's.
Back in the Great Hall, and Alistair left to find Leliana for an update, but Mother Giselle was waiting to greet Miraak and Dorian, warm smile on her face to see Dorian still here, still with his arms round Miraak.
"You did not go with your family," Giselle noted, pleased. "Good. The Inquisition needs you, Messere… as does its Inquisitor."
Miraak smiled and hugged Dorian, not seeing any point in denying it.
"I would miss him," Miraak told her. "He knows this."
"With all due respect to my father, Mother, the Inquisition cause is important," Dorian said, doing a credible job of concealing his own feelings. "I can't just leave all this to sort itself out. And I won't have it said Tevinter landed the world with Corypheus then did nothing to help deal with it. I need to be here and I need to be seen to be helping. And Miraak's been kind enough to keep me around."
That was one way of putting it.
"Kindness had nothing to do with it," Miraak said, planting a kiss on Dorian's head. "He lights up my life just by being here and I would not be without him now."
The pink blush on Dorian's cheeks was more than worth it.
"Miraak, Mother Giselle doesn't need to…" Dorian whined, snuggling into Miraak and hiding his face, and Miraak grinned and hugged him.
"He hates public displays of affection," Miraak said, really rather enjoying this.
"From what I know of Tevinter, it is unusual for nobles to speak openly of romantic attachments, most likely because they are in addition to their marriages. Orlais is not dissimilar in that regard. Your culture was different, I see."
"Life is too short to pretend you don't have feelings when you do," Miraak told her, hoping Dorian took that to heart. "Isn't it, fariik?"
Dorian just muttered something and snuggled in, and Mother Giselle laughed and told them she'd steal no more of their time, but that she hoped whatever had transpired had been concluded satisfactorily.
Miraak glanced down at Dorian, because only he could really answer that one. And Dorian did look up, nodding sombrely.
"He's sorry for what happened," was all Dorian could say. "I will take rather longer to forgive him, but we're staying in touch. And he's decided to support my Inquisition membership. Apparently he was convinced this whole thing was me seeking to put an honourable end to myself."
He'd not said that to Miraak previously, and Miraak could not hide the flinch. And without the mask on, the horrified expression was obvious.
"You didn't tell me this!" Miraak cried.
"It wasn't why I joined!" Dorian protested. "He got that idea into his head because… because all he could see was the me he saw in Tevinter, wasting my life as he'd put it. I didn't want to die, I never wanted to die, I just… didn't think my life was worth much. Something my parents helped cause!"
Mother Giselle looked on, sympathy in her eyes, and Miraak wrapped both arms round Dorian, kissing the top of his head.
"You are worth the world to me," he said softly, and Dorian, thankfully, smiled and looked up at him.
"I know," Dorian said, stroking Miraak's face. "Honestly, I think you changed his mind about my reasons for joining. Hard to think I'm hell-bent on a path to self-destruction when you're right there clearly willing to do whatever it takes to keep me alive and protect me."
"First duty of an Atmoran man is to protect and provide for his kin," Miraak said, feeling a little awkward himself. "Of course I would do it."
"Your protective instincts are obvious to all, my lord," Giselle said, smiling proudly at them both. "They are one of your greatest strengths, that you will lend your own power to protect those in need. Do that, Miraak. Do that, and whatever else happens, you are doing the Maker's will. As for your own relationship, all can see the love you have for each other. Notably because we can see your face now. Before you met him, none saw you without that mask. You were an intimidating presence, my lord. Now? You stopped wearing it in Haven. And you don't wear it indoors in Skyhold. It makes you more approachable. More human. And all can see how happy you are, especially with Dorian in your arms. It is obvious to all that this was his doing."
"Of course it was, keeping that beautiful face hidden is a crime against the Maker!" Dorian gasped, his turn to take pleasure in Miraak blushing now. "I've been working on him. Slowly but surely."
"The work has paid off," Giselle said, approving. "I don't know about a crime against the Maker, but it was harming you, I think. You are better for it. And we will all be better off for you being your best self."
"I… thank you," Miraak said, feeling a bit lost for words. "Mother, you no longer think he's taking advantage of me then?"
Giselle shook her head.
"No, messere. It was wrong of me and I humbly ask forgiveness of you both. Hard to believe he's taking advantage of you once you see the real Dorian Pavus, and realise he'd go to the lengths of giving his own life to save you from harm."
Miraak tightened his grip on Dorian because that was not happening on his watch, not now, not ever.
"That will never be necessary," Miraak growled, feeling Dorian in his arms and knowing that his Thu'um was strong enough to protect them both. It wasn't Dorian's job to protect him!
"I imagine so, yes," Giselle said, smiling in agreement. "Well, I will take up no more of your time, messeres. Doubtless you have much to discuss. Maker be with you both."
Giselle took her leave, and Miraak took Dorian's face in his hands.
"Don't give your life for mine," Miraak whispered. "Don't! I cannot go through that again."
"I know," Dorian said softly, sadness in his eyes. "I'm sorry. I was so afraid you and me being together would cause trouble for you, part of me felt it might be better if I just… left."
"No!" Miraak gasped, pulling Dorian to him. "No, don't you dare! I… Dorian. No. Don't leave me. Please."
He'd not meant to sound that needy, but the other option was ranting and raging at him and that… that had killed Saering in the end. He couldn't do it to Dorian.
"I won't," he heard Dorian whisper back. "I promise, Miraak. I won't leave you."
Miraak closed his eyes, the faces of dead loved ones flashing before him, and not just his family. Friends. Colleagues. His military commander. His steward. Soldiers prepared to give their lives for him. All dead now. Wiped out by the vengeful Dov. And that had come about because he'd lost Saering.
He couldn't lose anyone else, and he couldn't lose Dorian. Not to Corypheus, his father or Dorian's own dark side.
Dorian was the most precious thing in Miraak's life. Miraak would do whatever it took to keep him in it.
"So what did you find?" Alistair asked. "Anything?"
Leliana motioned for him to sit down, not smiling.
"Assuming the date of birth they gave you is accurate? It's interesting. We searched records for the year before and after. I was after your father's appointments schedule primarily but I also checked their employee records for wet-nurse hires. If you were ever there, maybe born in Denerim even, they might have hired someone to feed you."
Alistair would literally never have thought of that.
"Did you find anything?" he whispered. "I mean… in Redcliffe… I found my mother's death certificate, but she died five months after I was born, and her son with her. I didn't think there was anything to it until that point, but Varric might be right? She wasn't my real mother, so who was?"
"I don't know for sure," Leliana said thoughtfully. "But I have information. We found records for a wet-nurse hire six months after your birth. But she was only employed for a few weeks. Unusual unless the child died, but the local Chantries had no record of any child funerals associated with the palace. Fortunately, she was still alive and living in Denerim, so we interviewed her. You know, it's amazing how many doors the Herald of Andraste's name opens. She was happy to help Inquisitor Miraak and his beloved foster-brother out."
"What did she tell you," Alistair whispered, drawing nearer, needing to know this, compelled to know more.
"That she'd been wet-nurse to a baby boy called Alistair and lived at the palace to do it," Leliana said, voice low and quiet. "That she was paid handsomely to keep it quiet. By Loghain Mac Tir of all people. He handled the business. She suspected you were someone's illegitimate child, maybe even Loghain's but you didn't look like him. You still don't."
"Loghain Mac Tir, still fucking my life even after he died," Alistair said, shaking his head. "Go on, what else? Does she know anything else?"
"About your parentage? No, but she did tell me you were no newborn. You were about six months old, and clearly not born in the palace. Your original date of birth is clearly accurate. But you weren't born in Denerim, you were brought there at six months old. We're not sure who by. So we went looking. With an accurate date of birth to look for, we could narrow down our search to what King Maric was doing nine months beforehand."
"What was he up to?" Alistair gasped. "Leli, please, did you find out? You have to tell me, please!"
Leliana sighed, lowering her head. "I wish I could, but that was where it got weird. The King's court diary is detailed. Every meeting, every potential connection, every moment of his day, chronicled and recorded. But not for that time period. He wasn't in court. He wasn't visiting any of his Arls or Banns or travelling abroad. He was on a mission with Grey Wardens, of all things. And the palace records of it are… sparse. Warden records will be even harder to find. But we did have one stroke of luck. Details of the Wardens on that expedition were recorded. One stuck out. An elven Orlesian mage called Fiona."
"Grand Enchanter Fiona," Alistair whispered, pieces falling into place. "Yeah, she said. She said she knew my father, they'd been on an expedition while she was still a Warden but she never said when. Nine months before I was born. And you're sure about this. And that the date of birth's right, because at this point, everything else about me is turning out completely wrong."
"Positive," Leliana told him. "Alistair, are you all right. You look terrible."
"Yeah – no," Alistair admitted. "Not really. I'm not OK. Not at all. Excuse me, I need to be alone for a time."
Leliana let him go, alarm bells ringing. What to do? Interrogate Fiona? Not after Miraak had declared for mage freedom, that would cause more trouble than it was worth. Alistair might not appreciate it either. And he was the Inquisitor's brother now. If Alistair was unhappy, Miraak would be unhappy.
Which meant she would need to bring this to him. A problem but an inevitable one. Still, Miraak had a way of getting people to open up. Maybe he could resolve the situation once and for all.
Inquisitor Miraak,
Congratulations on the new title. One that could either denote a great hero or a tyrannical horror, and may I say it suits you. At least people will object if you start decking Skyhold out in Hermaeus Mora statuary.
Anyway, Liriel is out in the Western Approach already so in her absence I took the liberty of opening the letter you sent her. I don't make a habit out of reading her mail but I do when you're involved.
So Alistair wants to find his birth mother, eh? You're in luck. We can help with that, and we do owe you for the Shout that saved three of my people, so there's that. Expect a delivery to Skyhold of a box. A heavy one, six feet long. Get it somewhere safe and away from direct sunlight, and make sure it's opened by you, and only you, at night. I suppose you can have Alistair and Dorian with you. Send everyone else away.
The portal idea between our keeps is also a good one. The portal team will be accompanying the box. Find somewhere they can set it up and make sure your Templars and that Seeker Cassandra don't interfere. I doubt they'll be fans of the ritual required to set it up, but don't worry, we'll only need to sacrifice a ram. Fortunately the Inquisition staff here have been rather more accommodating. Charter's a credit to your organisation.
The delivery's already on the way, hopefully this will get here before it does.
Madanach
King of the Reach
Husband of the prettier Dovahkiin
Miraak tucked the letter into his waistcoat pocket. It still felt strange being out of his Dragon Priest robes but Dorian had been insistent he branch out a little wardrobe-wise. So here he was in one of the more outdoorsy outfits they'd had on offer, some ensemble called Night's Watch in the catalogue which Dorian swore would look fantastic with pale skin and blonde hair.
The letter had been on his desk when they'd got back and after spending the afternoon in bed satisfying mutual needs, Miraak had gone to check his desk and found a reply to the letter he'd sent from Redcliffe. He'd spent the next hour complaining to Dorian about pain in the backside in-laws, and at least he could keep the Pavuses at a distance. He was stuck with the Reach-King. Dorian had fussed over him and told him he was by far the prettier Dovahkiin in Dorian's opinion and that… had actually helped and taken Madanach off both their minds for a bit.
The box had arrived the following day. He'd had it moved to the Inquisition undercroft underneath the Great Hall, with non-Templar guards on it, relieving the Reachmen who'd accompanied it.
The Reachmen had got a lot of unnerved looks, and only two of them were using translation magic, but he'd been able to find them beds with the former rebel mages, and the portal link was going to be up and running within three days.
He'd already had both Vivienne and Cassandra complaining about it. He'd ended up pulling rank on them both, tersely telling them the practical benefits outweighed any other considerations and if Liriel's people were managing to get it to work without demon incursions, he was sure Skyhold wouldn't have a problem. Thankfully Leliana had been an enthusiastic backer, and Josephine had advised on how to keep this as a classified piece of Inquisition efforts, and despite definitely losing approval from both of them, Miraak had got it through.
Now he was here with Alistair and Dorian, everyone else sent away, all three staring down at the box. He'd shown Alistair the letter. Alistair had responded by hugging him and telling him he was near certain he'd been conceived on the Wardens expedition that both King Maric and Fiona had been on, and almost certain Fiona might be his mother. Except he had had no idea how to go about it. Leliana had also handed her information over and it was looking more and more likely. But in order to confront her, they needed the final proof. Hence the box.
"So, I don't want to state the obvious here, but it's got the dimensions and weight of a coffin with a corpse in it," Dorian said, eyeing it. "Anyone want to guess why King Madanach is sending us a corpse? Because I can think of several, none of them what you want to hear."
"It doesn't smell like one?" Alistair volunteered, but that didn't mean a lot. Smells could be disguised.
"LAAS!"
No sign of life in that box. Ominous. Still, all they could do was get it open. So Alistair and Miraak crowbarred the lid off to reveal… a velvet drape and cushions underneath it.
"So. Who wants to be brave and pull that back," Dorian said brightly.
A pause because despite all the horrifying things they'd all seen in their lives, no one knew if this was going to be an addition to that list or not, but in the end Alistair stepped forward.
"What the hell, it can't be worse than the Blight," he sighed and pulled the drape back.
Underneath was a deathly pale woman in purple and black and her eyes flicked open to reveal a striking orange colour.
Dead women should not be able to do that.
"Serana?" Alistair gasped. "Are you…? Are you all right?"
"I should say not, she's dead," Dorian said, necromancy skills clearly working just fine.
"She's a vampire," Miraak said wearily. "A corpse animated by a demon, reliant on blood drinking to sustain itself. You've met her before?"
"Yes, she was with Liriel and Madanach when I met them, and could smell the Blight in my blood," Alistair said, stepping back nervously. "Because she's a vampire. Right. Right! Oh god."
"The vampire who only showed up here to help with your family, Alistair," Serana said irritably, sitting up. "Look, I'm not a threat. I brought blood potions, I'm fully fed, won't be snacking on anyone in Skyhold. Unless the Templars start hassling me. Or that Seeker woman."
"We'll keep them off you," Miraak promised. "You know how to cast the spell that could track down Dragonborns? And you could do the same to track down Alistair's mother? We have a suspect. But we need to confirm it."
"Know the spell?" Serana scoffed. "I came up with the Dragonborn version. Yeah, sure, it's easy. Help me out of this thing."
Miraak held out a hand, pulling her to her feet and helping her step out of the crate. It was well-made, he gave it that. Extreme measures but presumably essential for a vampire.
"Did they cart you all the way from Caer Bronach in that thing?" Miraak had to ask. Serana laughed.
"No, of course not. We travelled by night. I slept in it during the day. Only got into it once we got close to Skyhold. It's not the most comfortable thing but it's safer than Chantry people on our case. I guess I got too used to the Reach. No one cares there. A few like it. Actually, scratch that – a lot like it. I've not had to feed on the unwilling since I moved there."
"No wonder only the three of us could open this," Dorian sighed. "Cassandra would be impaling you round about now."
"I heard," Serana said, bristling. Behind her, Alistair finished replacing the lid then followed after, and then something else occurred to him.
"Wait. Waaaaittt a second! You've got the same eyes Madanach has, and he could smell the Blight on me too. Is he a vampire? Does Liriel know?"
"Know?" Serana laughed. "She asked me to turn him! She had a year old baby, an elderly husband, he didn't want to orphan his son. It worked out. Come on, Alistair, you never realised why his office at Caer Bronach always had the windows shuttered?"
"No…" Alistair whispered. "I wasn't even sure vampires were real. I thought they were more… demony."
"Oh, I can go demon if you want," Serana said, smiling and showing the fangs off. "But I prefer looking like this."
"OK," Alistair whispered. "I mean, fine? I mean… can we get this over with? It's only just gone sunset. Still early."
It was, and so Miraak let Dorian take Alistair and Serana upstairs, while he went in search of Fiona. Dorian indicated for the pair of them to conceal themselves on the balcony above Miraak's bed, the stairs to which were hidden behind a closet door. Fiona might not even realise it was there, never mind that they were there. All the same, Serana had Alistair arrange a few storage crates as cover.
"You're a vampire," Alistair whispered. "A literal maleficar abomination. The Chantry would literally want me to kill you."
"I'm aware," Serana said, shivering a little. "Madanach didn't even want me to come. I'm not sure I would have if the portal team weren't coming. But… you're all right. And I know all about dysfunctional families that just use you as a pawn, don't tell you things you've got a right to know and have agendas of their own that don't align with your interests. Remind me to tell you about my parents some time. Things with my mother are still… awkward. But she's trying and she's still my mother. When I heard you were looking for yours… I owed it to you and me both to help."
Alistair stared at her, lump in his throat because you did not expect abomination maleficars to talk about their families and offer to help because your story reminded them of theirs. Especially at great personal risk to themselves, because Miraak might not be able to protect her if her vampirism was discovered.
"You're taking a risk," Alistair whispered. "If they find out…"
"I know but it wouldn't be the first time I knowingly walked into a nest of vampire hunters because it was the right thing to do," Serana said, smiling. "Don't worry about me. I can take care of myself. Also I'm not staying long. Long enough to do this and sort the portal out, and then it's home time."
"Well, if you need help, let me know, I can fake arrest you if you like," Alistair whispered, warming to her. He wasn't exactly sold on vampirism but this one was brave if nothing else, and had that same Nordic sense of honour Miraak did. Alistair could respect that.
Then the door to the bedroom opened and Miraak could be heard talking.
"Thank you for seeing me, Grand Enchanter. I appreciate this is a little unorthodox but the war room is too cold for even me at night. And everywhere else is too public. Don't mind Dorian. He's too busy trying to conjugate Dovahzul verbs."
"He really is learning the language?" Fiona said, surprised.
"Yes," Miraak laughed. "He is. Trying to at any rate. He needs practice. Don't you, fariiki."
"I'm concentrating, Miraak," Dorian said pointedly. "How about we all concentrate on our respective jobs instead of distracting hard-working mages, hmm?"
Serana took Alistair's hand. He'd already removed his gauntlet and Serana quickly wiped his hand with a sterilising liquid and then did the same to the small steel blade she had. Then one swift flash of metal and Alistair was bleeding before he knew he'd even been cut.
Serana's eyes went black and the blood started to glow and then glowing threads shot out – two golden ones, one of which hit Miraak and the other shooting west, no doubt to find Liriel. Then a reddish-gold thread that also went west and that made Serana gasp.
But the one that had Alistair's attention was the solid red thread that had shot out from him and was lighting up Fiona like a candle.
"Can she see that?" Alistair whispered.
"No, it's only visible to you and me," Serana murmured. "But… it's a match. She's your mother."
Serana shut the spell off and quietly healed Alistair's hand, skilled enough in illusion magic so that no one heard the chimes. Alistair barely noticed. All he could think was that that was his mother. Grand Enchanter Fiona was his mother. People must have known. Someone must have known. Fuck, Fiona surely knew. And yet she'd never said anything.
The Wardens wouldn't have let her keep me. Nor would the Circle. She must have taken me to my father. I don't suppose she could keep in touch.
Of course, she could also have told him at any point during his Inquisition membership, but he supposed that wasn't the easiest conversation to have. But…
Eamon must have known. Eamon surely knew Alistair hadn't been born to any of his staff. And yet no one had ever told him. Why?
Alistair couldn't take it any more. Getting up, he made for the stairs and kicked the door open.
Miraak looked up sharply, but surprise rapidly gave way to enlightenment dawning as his gaze went to Fiona. Dorian likewise carefully laid down his quill, marked his page and closed his books and got up, carefully positioning himself between Fiona and the exit.
"I think an explanation might be in order," Dorian said, folding his arms.
"Indeed," Miraak purred. "Krosis, Grand Enchanter. I may have dissembled to get you here. The real matter I wanted to discuss is certain evidence that turned up in Denerim and Redcliffe. Evidence indicating that Alistair was not born in Redcliffe to one of their servants but somewhere else, to someone else. We're not sure where exactly but we did find out Alistair was born nine months after King Maric took a leave of absence to go on an expedition to the Deep Roads. An expedition you were also part of. Grand Enchanter, I did note your interest in me adopting Alistair. I wondered why at the time. I believe I now know."
Fiona had gone pale, green eyes flicking from Miraak to Alistair, horror on her face… and then she lowered her head, defeated.
"So you know," was all she said. "Inquisitor, I'm sorry…"
"SORRY?" Alistair practically exploded, room throbbing as his developing Thu'um started rising. "You're my mum, no one ever told me, if it weren't for Varric of all people guessing, I still wouldn't know, and that's all you can say and not even to me?"
"You weren't supposed to know!" Fiona cried. "You were never supposed to… oh Maker."
Fiona sank to her knees, hands over her face, quite possibly crying, and all eyes went to Alistair who was staring at her in shock.
"You were in on it," Alistair whispered. "You were in on it too? Everyone lied to me my entire life and even my own mother… why? WHY? What was wrong with me?"
Tear's rolling down Alistair's face, voice breaking, pain not able to hide any more as all the old wounds ripped open at once.
"Nothing's wrong with you!" Dorian gasped, staring at him and seeing a man whose wounds mirrored his own, and the growing electric charge in the air rather akin to a storm brewing indicated someone else disapproved too.
"He asked you a question, Grand Enchanter," Miraak growled, and the reverberation he normally played down was out in full force, a reminder his voice itself was a weapon. "I suggest you answer it."
Fiona nodded and lowered her hands, still not meeting Alistair's eyes.
"It was not you, my son," Fiona managed to get out through her own tears. "It was never you. You were beautiful and perfect back then, and you still are. It was me. You deserved better. Elf-blooded, mage-blooded… I could not do that to you. I asked your father to make sure you never knew your mother was an elf. I wanted you free of the shame…"
Alistair was shaking his head, not understanding at all.
"Why would I be ashamed?" he whispered. "You led the mage rebellion, you're a hero!"
"Most don't see it that way," Fiona said bitterly. "Not even all mages see it that way. I wasn't even expecting the Inquisitor to see it that way. And I'm still an elf. In Orlais the most shameful thing you can call someone is elf-blooded. I could not do it to you."
"You asked my father to keep my entire past from me because you were ashamed of being an elf," Alistair said softly, anger gone at least, but there were still tears. Fiona nodded, still not looking at him, and Alistair did approach her then, kneeling before her and tentatively reaching out, fingers ghosting over her hair and then settling on the back of her head, pulling her to him and taking her in his arms.
"You've got nothing to be ashamed of," Alistair gasped. "Fuck Orlais. Fuck the Chantry. Fuck the Circle in particular. I wouldn't have cared, Mum. I wouldn't have cared about being elf-blooded. Not if it meant having a mum. I… suppose the Circle stopped that as well."
"I'm so sorry," Fiona whispered. "I'm so so sorry."
"It wasn't your fault," Alistair told her, founding to his surprise he meant it. "I forgive you. Will you… I mean, do you… will you be my mother now?"
Fiona looked up, startled.
"What?"
"Will you be my mum," Alistair said softly, because despite all the levity and jokeyness, he could be serious when it mattered and it mattered now, more than anything. "Please. I don't care you're an elf. I definitely don't care you're a mage. I just… I just want my mum."
Alistair put a hand to his face, feeling tears on his cheeks again and realising he was crying and what Fiona must be thinking of him right now, he had no idea. So it was when he felt her hand on his cheek, he almost cried out in surprise.
Fiona nodded, tears rolling down on her own cheeks and then she'd put her arms around him, taking him in her arms and holding him.
"Yes," Fiona gasped. "Yes, I'll be that for you. If you need me, my son… yes."
Alistair did burst into tears then, holding on to her and crying, and Miraak looked on this, saw, smiled and even the heart of a proud Dovahkiin could be warmed by some things.
"Come, lokaal, let's let them have their privacy," he said, taking Dorian's hand.
"Yes, let's, I think I hear the tavern calling me," Dorian said, smiling wistfully back at the two of them. Miraak held the door open and waited while the swarm of bats fluttered over his head then stepped out, Dorian with him.
It was strange, this feeling in his chest. This odd lump in his throat. He'd helped his brother. He'd helped him reunite with his long-lost mother. Miraak hadn't remotely thought this would affect him other than basking in the resulting gratitude.
But it was. Miraak's emotions were all over the place. Miraak felt… happy. No, more than happy. The vennesetiid were singing again. The wuldsetiid was… pleased with him?
The wuldsetiid was pleased with him. As if he'd done the right thing.
"Amatus. You're smiling."
"So I am," Miraak said, grin fixed on his face. "We did the right thing tonight, fariiki. I can feel it. The currents of time are delighted with me right now."
Dorian's eyebrows shot up and he broke out into a broad grin, and Miraak fell in love with him all over again.
"Kyne, Stuhn and Mara, you're beautiful," Miraak breathed, leaning in for a kiss.
"Only the best for my Dragonborn hero," Dorian murmured back as his lips met Miraak's for what would have been a truly deep and passionate kiss that would definitely have led to more had someone not coughed.
"Er… you two should know I'm still here."
Gods damn it. Miraak broke off from Dorian, doing his best to hide his irritation.
"Serana. Thank you. That went as well as it could have. There will be payment, of course. Did you need anything else?"
"Well, I don't know where my room is yet, unless I'm sleeping in the crypt. Fitting for a vampire, I suppose," Serana said, shrugging. "But… well… there was something else. An unexpected result on the test. I didn't use a standard kinfinder, I used my Dovahkiin variant. Our casting revealed three Dragonborns other than Liriel. We found two but we're still curious about the third. All we know is that they're in Orlais, south of the Waking Sea. I was hoping to see if I could get additional information on their location by testing from Skyhold. And I did but not what I was expecting."
"What were you expecting?" Miraak asked, irritation fading as he realised this was worth interrupting the kiss for. Another Dragonborn? They'd not mentioned this before.
"No, we didn't but we didn't have much information ourselves, only that they existed," Serana told him. "We still don't know much but… they're north-west of here, so they're between Skyhold and the Waking Sea coast in that direction. That narrows it down a lot, but it's not the most interesting result. For kin, the kinfinder bonds are red. For Dragonborns, they're gold. This one – on Liriel's blood it was gold but with Alistair – red AND gold. And it's a strong bond. A very strong bond. A bond so strong, you only find it with parents and children, or full siblings. Alistair doesn't have any full siblings because Fiona never had any other kids. His father's dead. We found his mother. That just leaves…"
"He's got a child?" Miraak breathed, and he'd really not been expecting to have the reaction he was to that news.
"Apparently so, and it's got his dragon blood," Serana said, smiling. "I think we might need to have a word with Alistair in the morning. He never mentioned any kids to us."
"Nor us," Dorian said thoughtfully. "He'd have mentioned any children with Bethany, I think."
He would, and Miraak knew Alistair would never have been unfaithful to her. Alistair was also thirty years old, meaning this child was thirteen at the absolute most and likely younger – Alistair had said that most of his sexual experience had been with Bethany, he'd likely not got started until relatively late, unlike Miraak who'd got started not long after coming of age and escaping to the temple.
A child Dragonborn. A young child Dragonborn, somewhere between around seven and thirteen. Gender unknown. Heritage of mother unknown. Potentially vulnerable. Miraak had to know more.
"Say nothing of this to anyone," Miraak warned them both. "We cannot have this child's life risked until we find them. And we will find them. Serana, you need to take this information back to Madanach, then contact me again, I can put you in touch with Leliana's people in that area. We need to find them, make sure they're safe, bring them to Skyhold if possible. They probably don't even know they're Dragonborn and they're vulnerable. Their only protection is that no one else knows it either."
"Yeah of course, no problem – wait. You're actually worried, aren't you?" Serana said, sly grin on her face. "The great and powerful Miraak's worried about a little kid. That's adorable!"
"Isn't it," Dorian said, arms wrapping around Miraak's waist. "He's a big softie really. Don't tell anyone."
"Hush," Miraak scolded, turning around and pulling Dorian to him. "That is our nephew or niece's wellbeing you are talking about, don't tell me we shouldn't care."
"You know nothing about this child, Miraak," Dorian said wearily. "Don't adopt the poor thing out of hand. Maybe they've got a mother already!"
"They need a Dragonborn uncle," Miraak said, refusing to be talked out of this one because children! Children kin to him! A young Dragonborn to teach and nurture and… ah, damn it all, Miraak wanted kids and he had a feeling Dorian possibly didn't. Well, perhaps a mother being already there was a good thing in that case.
"Perhaps, but we won't know until we find them," Dorian said, and then despite himself, he smiled. "So I suppose we should do that. I suppose I should get used to being Uncle Dorian, shouldn't I."
"Yes. You should," Miraak said, kissing his forehead and hugging him. "Now. I have a guest to see to. Serana, I will show you your room. Dorian, meet me in the tavern, yes? Serana, you're welcome to join us if you want."
"I'll have to pass, too many people to notice I'm not eating anything," Serana told him. "But perhaps I'll have a look round, if that's OK?"
Miraak assured her it would be fine and escorted her out, mind still buzzing with the thought of being an uncle. An uncle! A child to teach and mentor and nurture with Dorian, and presumably Alistair and this child's mother as well!
Miraak's mood could not get any better.
A/N: Dragonborn Four is of course Kieran, but Miraak doesn't know that yet. It'll be a while before they make an appearance, but you can believe Miraak will be all over a new member of Clan Dragonborn. Morrigan might be rather less pleased about this.
Serana won't be at Skyhold permanently, but I think she's going to be a recurring character for at least part of this. I even have a potential ship in mind. You'll see next chapter.