Chapter Twenty-One

Real Food


As soon as we landed back at the group, I began passing out covered meals. Alistair said, "So… how do you intend to make up for throwing me to the wolves like a lamb to the slaughter back there?"

Leliana looked stunned as I flinched and rubbed my neck, "To be fair… I didn't expect Genn or Alleria to start calling me Queen when I haven't been exactly crowned yet. As yet, I should still be Princess-Consort of Stormwind, Queen of the Illidari, Duchess of Northshire and Regent Lord Therons' daughter. I didn't expect them to all start acting like I'm the High Queen… I do apologize that I sort of threw you under the bus and let it back over you a few times… but I'm not good at ruling or… or… I don't have that charisma like you do! You were shaking hands and kissing babies like it was natural – I get all nervous…"

"Uh-huh – you still said you would make it up to me…" he was smirking now.

"And I will – you just have to pick a prize and I'll damn well do it. You got a Griffon, so you can't complain about being the temporary Prince-Heir of Stormwind – especially as that will be Cullens' title when you take Ferelden, so it isn't permanent. You tell me you want a pet Dragon, I can do that for you – you want the wildest night of your life; consider it granted. You did well playing Prince – so… pick a prize and it's yours."

He was bright red, "Er… I-I'll think… on that…"

Aedan sniggered, "So… you had him shaking hands and kissing babies?"

"Don't all princes and kings do that at some point?" I asked.

"Not here…" Daylen sniggered.

"Yeah – and they mocked Ferelden cuisine too! Right in front of me," Alistair pouted.

"Honey… look at me… Ferelden Cuisine is hearty and filling… but oh my goddess I wouldn't eat it if I was starving because it's so bland and mushy and lacks a proper texture that I associate with food. That Lamb and Pea stew you made that first night I knew you just cemented that fact for me."

"You knew what it was?" Lyna asked.

Alistair blinked, "Wow – you knew it was Lamb and Pea? Most stews kinda look the same…"

"I will tell you what – I will make you Irish Beef Stew tomorrow and you can tell me if I'm right or wrong to bash on Ferelden Stews. But – if my stew beats yours then you get to clean the dishes for the rest of the month."

"… Okay – you know what? I'll take that bet; all stews are the same in my experience."

"Awesome – I'll invite Genn and Liam; they love my Irish Beef Stew and haven't had it in years."

Alistair swallowed, "Genn is… kind of imposing."

"Nah – he's a big teddy bear if you don't piss him off. So what if he doubles my height in wolf form?" I shrugged.

Sten looked fascinated, "Tell me more about this… Genn."

"White fur, blue eyes, 10 feet tall, wears leather armor and has fangs that make a wolf look tamed when he's in wolf form. In human form, he's only 7 feet tall with short white hair and blue eyes. He's awesome with a sword and shield, but he's deadly with tooth and claw."

"A Worgen?" Aedan asked.

"Yeah – the King of the Worgen people; Gilneas was the sight of a plague and a curse that started the whole… Worgen thing. If someone is afflicted as a Worgen, they accept Genn Greymane as their King."

Alistair shrugged, "I don't think I'd like to stay in Azeroth for long at a time… the shortest person I saw was 5 feet…"

"That was a Dwarf – the Gnomes are 4-4 and a half feet tall."

"Dwarves are fucking tall in Azeroth!" Sereda cursed.

"Yeah – to most of Azeroth… you are pocket-sized, Sereda," I said with a grim tone and a smirk.

She shot me a rude gesture and I laughed as I called Genn. He answered, "Missed me so soon, cub?"

"I'm making Irish Beef Stew tomorrow – your breakfast, but my dinner – you and Liam are invited."

"We will be there – it's been more than 2 years since the last time you made it!" Genn rumbled.

"Bring your sword – the Warmongering Qunari wants to spar." I said and Sten sat up and straightened.

"Not sure what a Qunari is, but okay – Liam will bring his too; he wants to spar with you."

I laughed, "Very well – the boy is almost 25, so I suppose… very well."

"He insists that he is a man grown," Genn couldn't hide the smile in his voice.

"He's still a pup to me – as my pseudo son, he will always be a pup to me."

Genn rumbled a laugh, "I hear you have two actual sons."

I sighed, "I do…"

"Liam wants to meet his new brothers," Genn got right down to it.

I coughed, "Well… they don't er… know that I'm… you know… their mom… I will be meeting them on Tuesday with Inas and Anduin…"

"Oh… okay – but Liam will insist if things go well at this meeting."

"If things go well, then I will be on cloud nine… I have to go – someone is approaching the camp."

I cut the connection off and stood… my jaw almost dropped when I saw who was approaching.

"Carver?"

He waved a hand cheerily and dismounted the horse he was on, "Hello again! I made sure Rin, Garrett, Bethany, mom and Aveline were all on the boat to Kirkwall before using Warden status to commandeer a horse in Gwaren from a rather brave fellow shouting how it was their Teyrn that betrayed the King and not the Wardens. He was more than happy to give me the horse with tack and his blessing. I gave the 200 Sovereigns to Aveline – she seemed a more reliable sort than my brother at least."

I stumbled – suddenly glad I'd said 11 people instead of 10. There had only been me, Lyna, Sereda, Aedan, Daylen, Alistair, Morrigan, Leliana, Sten, and Wynne after all – but I'd ordered enough for one extra Warden. Carvers' eyes lit on Fiona and Silverite playing near Aedans' feet, "Are those Griffons?"

I passed him a plate, "I… one is – that one is Fiona, Alistairs' Griffon. This one is Silverite, my Larion. You were supposed to go with them."

"Ah well – I figured I could get an allowance from you and send them money every so often and it's one less person to earn a bribe for, so that money goes to lowering their sentence with whatever they have to do to get in to the city. Can I pet them?" Carvers' eyes had not left the Griffon or Larion cub while he spoke.

"Yeah… wait – this means that Lothering is destroyed now?" Carver was instantly sitting on the ground beside the two cubs as he played with them happily.

"Yeah – a week after you left for the tower, Rin showed up. 2 days after that, the Horde did too. Took us several hours to get to Aveline Vallen – poor Wesley though; blight took him – when Aveline heard I was a Warden she looked so hopeful… but I didn't know how to go about the Joining… but once I was reasonably certain my family and Aveline was safe, I started walking. I was going to meet up with you in Redcliffe since I knew you planned to go to the Tower first, but didn't know a general layout for after; but when that man saw my warden armor, he practically threw the reigns at me for the horse."

I hung my head and groaned, "I am a terrible seer – I saw none of this. I truly expected that you would follow them to Kirkwall. Alright – 5 sovereigns a week is your allowance – it's what I've been giving Daylen since he asked. The horse can carry a litter for our gear so we're less burdened during our walks. We walk at night now, Carver. Another little development would be that I am now married to Anduin."

Carver sniggered, "You owe Hawke."

"Not at all – the Betrothal was broken… a god simply interfered past that to link as soul mates as a boon for his unwavering faith. And that's exactly what Anduin will tell Hawke when asked."

"Also – she's mine," Alistair said firmly.

I grinned and said, "Yeah – I'm also set to marry a Templar and Alistair has agreed to court me and see how things go. So all three of my mates are currently… mine."

"Good to know… not that any of them need to worry about me – you're not my type," Carver shrugged.

"Another reason I thought you'd go to Kirkwall – your future wife will be there and you'd meet her in about a year. Merrill is so sweet too…"

"Woah – you can't mean my former first." Lyna said. I smirked, "One and the same – she's a mage and Carver is Templar trained, but… oh, that's another thing – Alistair will take back up on training you as a Templar. We'll need that anyway. Anyway, I'll keep Carver with me past the Blight as my 'Templar' escort when I go to Kirkwall. Fuck it – the Circle knows I'm a mage anyway, so it'll be a show of good faith for me to keep a Templar with me. Right – I'm going to sleep since we have a long night ahead of us tomorrow and then a meeting with the Gilnean King for supper."

Silverite purred and snuggled deeper into Carver. I snorted and said, "Looks like you have a cuddle buddy tonight, Carver – be good to him, he nips."

Carver was on cloud nine as I headed into my tent.


The next day, Daylen was sniggering as he glanced at me, "So… commander… you really didn't know Carver would return?"

I shook my head, "Not a clue."

Alistair grinned, "Well – good to know you can still be wrong and surprised."

"How else did I manage to be married to Anduin," I quipped.

"A fair point," Morrigan said.

We continued for a while before I heard Alistair – quietly – asking Wynne, "Why are you smiling like that? You look suspiciously like the cat who swallowed the pigeon."

I heard other companions listening in too; oh this was going to be good. "Canary," Wynne corrected.

"What?" Alistair sounded genuinely confused as Fiona chirped from his shoulder.

"I look like the cat that swallowed the canary," Wynne said patiently.

"I once had a very large cat, but that's not my point. My point is why are you smirking?" I couldn't help a snigger at that point – causing Leliana to smile, "So our fearless leader knows why Wynne is smirking?"

I nodded but looked ahead.

"So then why?" Alistair pressed Wynne.

She chuckled, "You were watching her. With great interest, I might add. In fact, I believe you were...enraptured."

"Well, yes – she is our leader; I look to her for guidance… of course." Alistair said. he was so confident that I almost believed him… almost.

Wynne clucked her tongue, "And… what guidance did you find in those swaying hips hmm?"

Instantly – realizing he'd been caught red handed – he went bright red and stammered, "No, no; I wasn't looking at...you know her...hind-quarters… I gazed...glanced, in that direction, maybe, but I wasn't staring...or really seeing anything even… ugh – I hate you; you're a bad person…" he gave up when he realized she wasn't buying it.

I let out a laugh, "Feel free to look, Alistair – I know I have a great ass… my boobs are pretty great too. It's what's in-between that isn't that awesome. But I do take great pride in having an ass this good. It would be a crying shame if people didn't check it out from time to time."

Daylen hummed, "She has a point – it is a great ass. If Alistair won't look, then the rest of us will have to – because an ass like that does deserve appreciation…"

Alistair growled a bit – causing Fiona to start a small growl of her own… it sounded so adorable! "So… are you gonna check out my ass or are you giving other permission to do so…?" I asked teasingly.

He moved closer, "If I admit I was looking, will they stop?"

"Most likely, yes," I grinned.

"Then I was looking," he flushed. The others all passed coins between each other. I had known this conversation was coming – they had placed bets on how to get him to agree when we were getting up. I held out a hand and coins were placed into it. I was the only one that seemed to think I could get him to admit he was looking. The others all thought it was Wynne that would get him – or Daylen.

Alistair groaned, "What bet was I the butt of now?"

"Exactly that, my love – they were betting to see if anyone could get you to admit you've been staring at my ass. I was the only one that thought I could get you to admit it. Other bets included Daylen or Wynne. You simply didn't speak up until I said something."

He sighed, "As long as they don't all suddenly start looking… at you…"

"You are going to hate the assassin I plan to pick up, my love. That's his whole thing – complimenting the ladies or men in hopes of getting them into bed. He even flirts with Wynne about her magical bosom."

"My what?" Wynne looked completely taken off guard.

I mimicked Zevs' Antivan accent, "But it is a marvelous bosom. I have seen women half your age who have not held up half so well. Perhaps it is a magical bosom?"

"Stop talking about my bosom," she appeared flustered. And since it was the line from the game, how could I not continue? "Zev will avoid talking about his past to you by redirecting it to your wonderful chest, Wynne. And don't deny it – you secretly like that the amorous elf will be flirting with you."

She flushed, "How… how do you know that – I would never admit it."

"Because you don't kill him when he won't stop talking about your magical bosom. Oh you threaten to pull his brain through his ears, but you don't even give him a slap on the wrist like you would if Alistair pushed it and asked you to mend his shirt without that boyish whine in his voice."

Alistair flushed, "I… may have a shirt that may have a whole… I would mend it myself but… sometimes I pick up too much fabric and it ends up all puckered and the entire garment hangs wrong afterward."

I grinned and mimicked his voice, "And you're... you know, grandmotherly. Grandmothers do that sort of thing, don't they? Darning socks and whatnot. You don't want me to have to fight darkspawn in a shirt with a hole, do you? It might get bigger. I might catch a cold."

I was so glad I had a knack for voice mimicking – I could also do sound effects.

Wynne flushed again, "Oh – give me the shirt."

"I'll patch the elbow when you're done," I added. Alistair coughed, "Maker – you're good at that… impression thing… did Cullen show you that he could do that?"

I shook my head, "No – but he did tell me that he taught you how to blend tea…"

"I take it you want some?" he asked with a grin.

"It would be nice – and maybe after that, you can draw a picture to show why Cullen thought it was a fair trade."

He flushed deeply, "I walked right into that one – I swear that one day I'll see the signs before I get hit with the ship mast waiting for me."

We stopped for the day and I began making the stew.

I had Alistair peel the potatoes, Aedan washed them and the baby carrots, and Leliana chopped onions. I had Carver cutting the beef. Lyna minced the garlic. Sereda chopped the peeled potatoes into chunks before Aedan washed them.

This recipe called for veggie oil, beef, garlic, beef broth, tomato paste, a hint of sugar, dried thyme, Worcestershire sauce, butter, potatoes, onion, carrots, parsley and bay leaves… pretty simple actually.

Before it was even all in the pot, I opened the portal for Liam and Genn.

Liam came rushing over – he was 6'9 with shaggy red hair that he inherited from his mother, his fathers' blue eyes and tanned skin that covered muscles that had been well used in the battle of Gilneas. He was very good looking.

He plopped down right beside me and rested his head on my shoulder despite it being slightly awkward – even with me on a log and him on the ground. "I missed you."

I snorted, "You're a puppy."

"If I had a tail, it would wag," he quipped back.

Alistair coughed a laugh, "I take it this is Prince Liam?"

Liam grinned, "You must be Prince Alistair. Nice to meet you – dad says we'll get along swimmingly."

I hummed and nudged Liam, "Genn, Liam – this is my unit. Prince Alistair Theirin is my mate, Aedan is a Dukes' son, Carver is from a noble house but has no title, Lyna is Dalish and was second to her clan, Sereda is an exiled Dwarven Princess, Daylen is Carvers' Cousin and a mage, Morrigan is a Witch of the Wilds, Leliana is a Bard which means she can kill you and make it look like she was trying to brush dirt from your robes if she was even caught, Sten is a Qunari which is akin to being a Dragonkin, Wynne is an Archmage, and the pups are smarter than either of you… that one is Hero and this is Shana. Silverite is my Larion and Fiona is Alistairs' Griffon – from Nias' Last Clutch."

Liam instantly zoned in on the dogs – as a Gilnean citizen, he loved dogs of all shapes and form. Shana huffed and sat in front of him with a tilted head before allowing him to pet her.

Genn tossed something at Alistair – he caught it and blanched at whatever it was, "No, no, no – this isn't mine… it's Cullens…"

Oh – they sigil of the Heir of Stormwind. I smirked, "Until I marry Cullen and you take your crown of Ferelden, you are the Heir of the throne of the Alliance."

"Oh – I just remembered something," Carver interrupted. We all looked at him. "What is it?" I asked.

He coughed, "What Loghain is saying about you. We knew he was branding the wardens as traitors… but he's going further than that. He must want your connections – he's saying we kidnapped you and are holding you hostage since you are a Queen and betrothed to a High King… he's making it sound like we're using you for your connections. So… there is a bounty to capture you unharmed – the elf with the purple hair and glowing eyes, covered in tattoos. The bounty to 'rescue' you is higher than the bounty for the heads of all 6 wardens combined. You are worth 100 sovereigns unharmed. Loghain doesn't want a scratch on you when delivered. Good news is that if you manage to be rescued then you'll be pampered like the Queen you are – bad news is that people will be trying to capture you desperately."

Genn frowned, "We should assign a guard to you…"

I groaned, "But daaaaad…"

"No buts – especially not yours. You will have a guard or Anduin will join you personally."

"I already offered that – Anduin came to an agreement with Alistair that Anduin only comes over one or two nights a week though."

"Then you will get a different guard – at least if Anduin were here, we wouldn't have to worry about injuries… as a Priest, he specializes in healing, though he is trained as a warrior too… tsk – it's hard to find a balance like that."

"So find a Paladin – he can help train Alistair over there. I get the Paladin Aura from him from time-to-time anyway. Healing and Melee fighting all wrapped up in one. Alistair would do well as a Protection Pally over Holy Healing. Maybe Retribution, but… I am getting serious Protection vibes from him. I checked my whole group for markers – they're there but they aren't awakened. This world hasn't been utilizing their abilities very well. But especially with the specific ability that is only available to Protection Pallies – the uh… the Guardian of Ancient Kings – he would do much better in combat. As it is, I'm already tired of having a constant healing aura on just to keep him from dying when he runs in like they called out 'free cheese'!"

Alistair was brightly flushed, "I… I'm the only one with a damn shield past Sereda… I can't let anyone else just… run in…"

"I see what you mean… maybe we could get him a round shield too – so he can throw it at people." Liam hummed.

"Don't forget the crystals for the return so that he only loses his shield for a few seconds and then it comes back to him – Avengers' Shield."

"Right – and their Rebuke ability can interrupt spellcasting on an enemy… okay – I'll conscript Rulen Lightsreap from Dalaran. He will heed the call of his Lord Regents' daughter – especially if he hears that someone is trying to capture you so soon after you married Anduin. Rulen still recalls when you defended Anduin in the Siege of Lordaeron while he revived all those fallen soldiers… they were so close to death and Anduins faith brought back almost the whole army." I hadn't realized the Blood Elf had witnessed that…

Carver hissed, "That's the power of a Priest from Azeroth?"

"The stronger your faith, the more powerful your abilities – and there are none that believe as strongly as Anduin. Anduin brought back thousands of people from the brink of death. He truly deserves the faith that his people place in him," I smiled softly.

I shook my head, "And on that note – Paladins use a type of Mana; like mages, priests, or druids do. The biggest reason Alistair is a Paladin is likely that magic is hereditary here in Thedas; and Alistairs' mother is a mage. Alistair simply never manifested mage magic."

Alistair paled, "So I do have magic?"

"Of a sort – but it isn't… Paladins use holy energy, my love. You would be wielding the Makers' Will or something similar. Carver over there would be a Warrior through and through, Daylen is a Shaman, Lyna is a survival hunter, and so on. Believe me – I'm used to looking for the markers. Here – the stew is ready."

Alistair – upon digging into his bowl – hummed, "I will happily admit defeat… Makers' Breath; this stew is so good."

Genn laughed, "I'll have Rulen contact you by tomorrow evening – when you should be waking up."

"How do you plan to contact him?" I asked.

"Through the Azeroth communication bracelets. I'll call your step-father and he will call either Vereesa or Rulen directly. Vereesa won't mind letting Rulen go from the Silver Hands for a while to defend you through this."

I sighed, "Oh… fine… I may as well call Father myself at that rate."

Genn smirked, "He'd be overjoyed to hear from you – he almost went crazy when you jumped into the Maw right in front of him."

"I always feel so awkward talking to him, though – he wants to pamper me and treat me like a little girl, but I'm a grown woman now." I muttered as I pulled out the bracelet and went through it looking for the Golden Eagle charm that represented my step-father.

Surprisingly – or maybe not – it was my fathers' lover that answered; Thalyssra was the First Arcanist of Suramar, "Fae?"

"Er… it's Atarah – or just Tara… though if you end up marrying dear-old dad, you can call me Iris like he does. Is dad around?"

There was a slight shuffling before my fathers' deep voice came through, "Iris?"

"Hey… daddy… I need a favor…" I flushed – Lor'themar insisted I call him dad, daddy or father… if I wanted my way, I would call him daddy – otherwise it was usually Father.

He seemed to perk up, "Name it and it will be done."

"I need Rulen Lightsreap as a bodyguard-slash-trainer. My life has officially been threatened for capture…"

A sharp bang sounded as I assume my father fell out of bed – rustling indicated he was getting hastily dressed as I hummed at looked around. I heard the sound of him kissing Thalyssra real quick before he said, "I'll be back, my love – a quick trip to Dalaran."

She replied in the background, "I'll keep the bed warm."

I was so desensitized to it by now… but that didn't mean the others around me were. Red-faces all around!

After about an hour, Father said, "Alright – I am at the teleport orb in Dalaran now… Ah; Vereesa – just the woman I was looking for."

"Lor'themar – what can I do for you?"

"I need Rulen Lightsreap – Iris has been threatened and needs a capable paladin – she requested him by name."

"I will have her contacted in the hour…"

Father said, "Did you get that, dear?"

"Yes – thank you Daddy," I was flushed again – I really hated sounding like a child. When we hung up I was expecting to be ribbed about it – but no one said a word while we scarfed down our food… a lot of stuff to think on I guess…