Riordan's body language was enough to tell her what this was about. She could see it in his eyes, see it in the way his shoulders hung over his body, in the slight crease of his brows.

"You're all here," the Warden said, taking his time to make sure he had all of their attention. "You're new to the Wardens and you may not have been told how an Archdemon is slain. I need to know if that is so."

Alistair frowned as Elissa edged further back, towards the door her and Aedan had just entered the room from. "You mean there's more to it than, say, just chopping off its head?"

Riordan's already downtrodden expression fell even further. She swallowed, felt her muscles tensing, preparing to run back out to the wilderness. Aedan had only just dragged her back after she spent the night sitting, staring off into the stars. He had dragged her back for this, for the conversation she'd known was coming, for the very thing she had been dreading for weeks, and he hadn't had any idea.

"So it is true. Duncan had not told you. I had simply..." He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, pacing a few steps before returning to his starting point. "Tell me—have you ever wondered why the Grey Wardens are needed to defeat the darkspawn?"

No, she hadn't, and Elissa wished she could go back to being so blissfully ignorant.

"I always assumed it had something to do with the taint in us," Aedan said, folding his arms across his chest.

"That's exactly it," Riordan continued. "The Archdemon may be slain, just as any other darkspawn, but should any other than a Warden do the slaying, it will not be enough."

She felt Aedan's eyes on her. Elissa couldn't look at him. He was probably confused, hoping to see something similar in her eyes, but she couldn't lie to him. Not like that.

"The essence of the beast will pass through the taint to the nearest darkspawn and will be reborn anew in that body. The dragon is all but immortal."

"Then how the hell do we kill it?" Aedan demanded. "I didn't... We didn't come this far to find out we're fucked." He gestured to herself and Alistair, and the pair exchanged glances. He almost looked embarrassed, sheepish, but she knew Alistair enough to know he felt guilty. Aedan would still speak for them, protect them, and they had abandoned him.

Riordan raised a hand, motioning for peace, and said, "If a Grey Warden strikes the killing blow, the essence instead passes to the Warden."

"And...what happens to the Warden?" Alistair asked.

"A darkspawn is an empty, soulless vessel. A Warden is not. The essence of the Archdemon is destroyed...and so is the Warden."

"Meaning the Grey Warden that kills the Archdemon...dies?"

"Yes, Alistair. Without the Archdemon, the Blight ends. It is the only way."

Silence hung over the room. No one wanted to broach the subject, not even Loghain, who looked like he definitely had something to say. It was a lot to process, even for her, who knew exactly what was waiting for them. Part of her had hoped against hope that this was some silly dream, something that wouldn't come true, just like every other dream she ever had. She had seen Aedan die on that damned road, killed by darkspawn, and here he was, standing as tall as ever, looking far more upset than she could understand.

He swallowed deeply, folding his arms across his chest. She knew that look. He had come this far; he would see it through. "So it's up to us to kill the dragon."

Riordan nodded, mouth set in a firm line. "In Blights past, the eldest of the Wardens would decide which amongst them would take that blow. If possible, the final blow should be mine to take. I am the eldest, and the taint will not spare me much longer. If I fail, Loghain would be wisest to take my place as the taint will not give you much time, either. But if all else fails..." He turned from the general to the three of them. "It'll fall to you. The Blight must be stopped here or it'll overtake all of Ferelden before the rest of the Wardens can respond.

"But enough," he said, sighing deeply. "There is much to do tomorrow and very little time to rest between then." He gestured to the door. "I will let you return to your rooms."

Loghain moved past first, and then Aedan, and Alistair stopped alongside her. He looked to Riordan and said, "We'll see you when the army assembles tomorrow, then. I guess this ends soon...in one way or another."

Elissa pushed past abruptly, voice stuck in her throat, and marched into the hallway. Behind, she could hear Riordan say, "That it does, my friend. That it does."

She wanted to be lost. So desperately, Elissa sought...something, a solace. Relief from who she was, where she was. She wished she could pretend she was elsewhere. Nothing here, no one, would be able to comfort her now. It was like a child who had hoped for a certain gift despite knowing he wouldn't get it. That was the disappointment she felt.

A hand locked around her arm as she rounded a corner. Aedan.

"Can we talk?"

She hadn't spoken since yesterday. Not to Aedan, not to Fergus, not to Alistair, not even to Leliana. Something about his crying had hurt her more than she could express.

"About what?" His grip on her was soft, gentle, but Elissa ripped her arm away regardless, eyes narrowing.

Confusion riddled his features. He didn't deserve this. No matter how angry she was about the Blight or the Wardens or Loghain being alive, he didn't deserve it.

Her face fell and her shoulders sagged as she let out a breath. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't be so..." Elissa waved a hand.

"No, it's...it's okay. That's a lot to take in," Aedan agreed. His eyes looked past her, focusing on something over her shoulder, and she turned.

Alistair marched past without a word, shoulder ramming into Aedan's in a childish show of disappointment.

Aedan pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a frustrated sigh. "He won't even let me apologize."

"Can you blame him?" Aedan started to speak, but she cut him off. "If I told you I let Howe walk away in Denerim, wouldn't you have a bone to pick with me? Andraste's ass, Aedan, Loghain practically did to him what Howe did to us."

"I suppose," he grumbled.

Elissa swallowed and took a step closer, reaching out to rest a hand on his arm. "It's all right, brother. Alistair will either forgive you eventually...or you'll just have to let him go."

He nodded. His eyebrows furrowed as Aedan looked down the corridor Alistair vanished into, Adam's apple bobbing ever so slightly. When he turned again, he said, "For what it's worth, I'm sorry I..." His voice caught in his throat. "I'm sorry I did what I did. I know you can't be happy about it, either, and to be perfectly honest, neither am I, but..."

"I understand," Elissa said.

Aedan nodded again and took a step back, looking at his feet. "You should get some sleep. I'm gonna...go spend some time with Fergus, I think. Just, uh, in case, y'know?"

Probably a good idea. He was reeling from the news of his family's death. It wasn't wise to leave him to his own devices, regardless of whether or not they'd need to rest. He deserved to spend time with his brother, both of them. It would be good, she thought.

It might even be good for her to spend some time with family.

"Do you mind if I tag along?"

Aedan snorted. "Why would I?" She returned his small, mischievous smirk. It was the same one they'd shared as children, right before they inevitably got caught getting into something they shouldn't. "I want to clean up first, but in an hour, do you want to meet us outside on the bridge?"

Elissa nodded. "That sounds great. I should probably go te—" She caught herself as Aedan's eyebrows rose.

"Tell?"

"Talk!" Elissa said. "Talk. To Leliana. Before, uh...this. In case...?"

He smirked again, but this was different. It was a knowing little grin, like when he'd catch her sneaking into the larder at night. He knew. Elissa didn't know how she could've ever hoped to keep something like this a secret from him, or how she ever believed he might've been too thick to notice.

"Everyone already knows," he whispered conspiratorially.

With that, Aedan spun on his heel and briskly marched towards his room.

Elissa sputtered, and then said, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

He just shrugged, but she heard his laughter as he disappeared, and for some reason, that made it okay.


Most nights, it was Elissa finding herself buried into Leliana's arms, scared or upset. There was something deeply fulfilling about having someone out there who would protect her of their own accord and not a familial duty.

Tonight, however, as soon as Elissa crawled under the covers, Leliana was there, burrowing into her shoulder. She was a welcome warmth. Cold winds could bite through the thickest of coats, and the jacket and cloak Elissa possessed couldn't be called heavy. It took serious effort in the mornings to tuck every inch of bare skin under a hat or a glove.

Oh, how she missed the warmth of Highever. It never got this cold at home. Sure, it wasn't always blistering hot, but a day that wasn't comfortable was rare. Snow was an even rarer occurrence; Elissa hadn't seen her first snow until she was seven, having travelled south and into the Bannorn.

She remembered that day clearly. The absolute fascination and wonder of seeing small white flecks falling from the sky, seeing her own breath in front of her. It was winter well and true those few weeks, and Elissa oftentimes thought of it as a child. Not so much anymore, save a fleeting thought when they'd rencountered the fluffy stuff.

The childhood wonder, however, was replaced by a bitterness. Elissa was accustomed to warm weather and heavy rains, not biting wind and shivering. Snow and cold made camping difficult—if they didn't locate a properly sheltered area, their fires would be blown out no matter how many times they were lit and tents could be upended with one powerful gust.

She missed the smell of the sea. This freshwater, the lake, wasn't the same.

"Elissa?"

She forced her eyes open, realizing she was threatening to doze off. "Hmm?" A yawn threatened to close her eyes again, but Elissa stifled it. "Sorry, I'm just so...so tired."

How long had they been walking? An hour? Two? Three? What time was it? Elissa couldn't recall. By the time the three of them had returned to Redcliffe, Elissa's legs had been sore and her throat throbbed from so much talking. Memories had been shared—silly things Oren had done, dastardly deeds committed by Sam, pleasant but sad stories of their parents. Was that what family was like?

Leliana sat up on an elbow, fixating her gaze on Elissa. She still remembered that first time she'd really looked at the bard's eyes and how embarrassed she'd been to even think about Leliana. They'd been walking on the same very road they'd be walking on tomorrow. Elissa had been pouting over something stupid, as usual, and Leliana had taken it upon herself to annoy Elissa for what was probably the tenth time that day.

And then, Elissa had just...looked, and part of her had known this was where they would end up. Leliana had such beautiful eyes; Elissa could get lost in them forever.

"What do you want to do when the Blight is over?"

Elissa frowned at the question. Hadn't they talked about this? Hadn't Elissa told her what she'd seen? "Leli—"

"Just humor me."

"Very well," Elissa said. She sighed and leaned back into her pillow. Leliana's eyes were still intently locked on her, but Elissa had to look away to think. "I want to go home, I think. Just to see it one last time, and then... I don't know. I told Aedan before I wanted to sail. To where, I don't know, but I don't think I could stand staying in Ferelden after all of this." She returned her gaze to the bard's, one eyebrow raised, and asked, "What are you going to do?"

Leliana almost laughed. "Me?"

"Humor me," Elissa repeated.

She made a face and returned to her own pillows, folding her arms under her head. "Return to Orlais, perhaps...or attempt to overcome my sea sickness."

Elissa averted her gaze almost instantly. "If it means anything, these dreams... They don't normally...happen."

"I am trying not to think about it."

Silence overtook them, and Elissa found herself at a loss for words. What was she supposed to say? She had said it herself; they have rarely, if ever, come to fruition. As a child, before her magic truly manifested, she would have them constantly, and not once had any of them been as real as her own death, but then, neither had any of them ever shown her something she hadn't seen before. Somehow she had known about Riordan, and she hadn't met him for a few days afterwards.

It had been so strangely specific Elissa feared the dream would come true.

She sat up. "Here, I want to give you something."

The guilt she'd been feeling for dragging Leliana into this, whatever they had, was insurmountable. She loved her, and it was such a sickening mistake to continue their relationship. It was so unfair, and yet, Elissa couldn't stop herself.

She went to her pack. There, buried under dirty linens and herbs, was her Warden pendant.

"What is it?" Leliana asked as Elissa placed it in her hands.

"All Grey Wardens receive these after they go through their Joining. We..." Elissa scratched the back of her head, briefly wondering if it would be right to share their secrets. "To become Wardens, we have to drink darkspawn blood. Some people die after ingesting it, and those that don't become Wardens. It's so we don't forget the sacrifices that got us here, I guess."

Leliana raised an eyebrow.

"That's what Alistair said, anyway."

For several minutes, Leliana was quiet. She just stared at the blood swishing around inside, swallowed once, twice, and then finally met Elissa's gaze.

"Thank you."