Summary: As per my usual style, an ofc changes the original storyline, falls for a badass lady, and trouble ensues.

A gamer woman from our world wakes up in cold, snowy Thedas with no idea of how she got there. She stumbles over a magic sword, finds herself in Skyhold, falls for the ruthless spymaster, battles demons, douchebags, and broken hearts, and makes her mark in history.

The Leliana of Inquistion was so brilliantly dark, ruthless, haunted, and cold... Loved her! Now, she needs a little love too :)

Heavy Inquisition spoilers. If you haven't played, you'll be lost.

A/N - Couldn't help myself. This has been half-finished since I completed the game back in December. Despite my other projects, renewed vigor for TFHOP and positively DROOLING over Furious 7, this demanded my attention. It's still not complete, but it's pretty well on its way, and I'm really enjoying working on it. Also, I blame a woman. So... without further ado, I give you my latest epic.

Andraste's Fire

Chapter 1

Snowy Whispers

"The man that tells the tale is the one that decides history. He tells it wrong, and you have nothing more than a pretty story. He tells it right, and you have a legacy. You want a story told right, you ask someone who helped make it happen. And if that someone is me, I'll make it awesome." -Varric Tethras

Shivering, Sydney groped for the blanket she must have kicked off in the middle of the night. Wind moved her hair around her nose, making her snort. Annoyed at the fan blowing on her, she rolled over and groped for the blanket again. Her hair continued its dance, the blanket remained out of reach, and a distinct feeling of a wet pillow fully shoved her from sleep. "Alright, what the fuck is my roommate up to?"

Blinking into the incessant wind, she shoved her wet hair from her face and sat up. Her jaw threatened to fall off. There was no fan, no blanket, no pillow, and she was definitely not in her Miami apartment. It wasn't a bunk on one of the cruise liners she spent months working on either. Brutally, she slammed palms to cheeks. She yelped. Oh, hell yes, she was awake and that snow blowing into her face was frigid and real. A more powerful tremor raised even more goosebumps on her sun-kissed skin. What sun there was, it was hidden behind the thick walls of blowing snow and the evil clouds they billowed from. Pointed shadows loomed all around her. Being actually visible, she figured they were probably huge. Big shadows, snow, cold, wind. Mountains?! The closest mountains to Miami that carried snow in the summer were states away!

Sydney rubbed at her arms, felt a new weirdness. Thick, furry-feeling-lined ash grey gloves covered her hands, similar boots on her feet. Her body was relatively snug in heavy, quilted fabric. It looked like red-dyed wool, but felt like real silk on the inside. Had to be layers upon layers. Wide and sturdy looking, a grey leather belt was around her waist. Wind tugged at a weight hanging around her shoulders that turned out to be a grey, woolen cloak with a hood. The wind kept yanking on it. Shivering, she yanked it back and wrapped it tightly around her body and head.

"Fuck this noise! I hate snow." She stamped, to expel anger, to warm up, and sank several inches. "Oh, shit. Oh, shit. Oh, shit!" Her surroundings entered her thought process, old memories with it. Curses taken by the wind as soon as she opened her mouth, she cursed more. "I'm alone and freaking out, and this is a fucking blizzard!"

The wind threatened to pick her up and throw her, probably off a cliff, to a ravine full of bones and roaches. Not having a better plan, she let it push her along. At least it felt like she was heading downhill. Occasionally, an evergreen tree would appear in front of her, and she would give it a wide berth. Falling into a tree well was a danger she was familiar with from ski trips with friends. She had no idea how deep the snow was and those odd wind-carved wells that formed around mountain trees could swallow her alive.

Dying in the snow was the last way she wanted to kick it. "I will not bow," she muttered. "I will not break." Bitterly, she hummed one of her favorite songs.

Ahead, a shadow appeared. Yet another tree to circle. A couple of minutes, and she stopped, confused. The tree was still in front of her, and it was getting closer. One solid lump, it was not. "Not a tree!" Her heart thumped a terrified beat. Whatever animal was stalking her couldn't possibly be friendly. Predators stalked and...

Four long legs, wide back, giant rack of antlers. It looked like a rather magnificent bull elk. From it came that whistly-squawky noise she'd heard a few times hiking with her dad as a kid. She couldn't back away fast enough before its huge nose, covered with white fur and whiter snow was in touching distance. An elk, that close, was massive. She'd driven cars smaller than this beast. Its seven-point antlers were sharp, longer than her arm, and a dozen documentaries said those antlers were more than capable of ripping her open.

"Please don't kill me."

Its nose snuffled at Sydney's face. Fetid, slimy, warm, its tongue licked her. Shaking, she reached out with a hand to touch the nose, had it bumped into her hand, and she stroked it. The elk whistled and turned broadside, showing that it wasn't a bull, but a mare, and she wore a saddle. She tossed her head, reins flapping along her neck. When Sydney didn't move, the elk, or maybe giant reindeer, stepped sideways, putting the reins practically in her hand.

"It's official." She tentatively put a hand to the saddle horn. "I'm hallucinating."

Lots of heaving, grunting, and swearing later, she managed to mount a saddle for the first time in her life. It was surprisingly comfortable to settle into, but the way it spread her legs, that horn thrusting up between them, she couldn't shake the unsettling mental image it gave her.

The elk whistled, turned, and headed into the wind.

"Hey! Where are you taking me?"

The elk swiveled to look at her, snorted, but didn't stop. Sydney had forgotten to keep hold of the reins and they were now impossible to reach. She quickly gave up, throwing her hands to the sky.

"Fine. Alright. You win. Elk one, Sydney zero." She was already hallucinating, so it was okay to admit that the elk laughed at her.

While the elk turned them into the wind, she wished for a hot, sunny beach and wrapped her cloak tightly around her Miami-heat-acclimated body. For hours, they continued through the freezing winds. Only the pitiful sunlight growing even weaker was an indication that the day was over. When it was gone, it would get even colder.

"I'm going to die here. I'm going to die and no one will even know!" Sydney suddenly screamed at the sky. "What the hell did I do to deserve this?"

There was no reply except the elk turning its great head to blink at her and snort.

"Sorry! I amend my earlier statement. I'm going to die and only an elk will know."

Another snort and shake of head replied.

She kept her thoughts to herself until she realized that the elk had stopped. The wind wasn't biting quite as hard, blocked by stone, and the sunlight was little more than cool thought behind them. A shake from the beast under her encouraged her to slide out of the saddle and waddle with sore legs deeper into the wedge of rocks they were sheltering in. At her side, the elk nosed her.

"What?"

The saddle was looked at.

"I don't know how to take that thing off."

She was stared at.

"Fine. But don't go kicking me if I can't figure it out." Trying to ignore her aching legs and butt, she bent over to inspect the underside. "I've seen this in movies. Shouldn't be too hard, right?"

There was a buckle on the other side, and she grunted in annoyance. Around she went, and proceeded to yank, tug, and curse until the frozen thing came off and the saddle, and saddle blanket, slid away. The elk made a noise that seemed pleased.

"You're welcome." She dropped to her knees and pried at the saddlebags' buckles. "Anything good in here?"

A nose brushing her cheek made her squirm. Hot breath steamed at her face. "Get that away from me."

The elk groaned and nosed the bag.

"I'm working on it. Move your big head so I can see."

It moved, but not far. Right behind her, breathing on her head, the elk hovered. Amused enough to chuckle at the insanity, she went back to struggling with the buckle. A few minutes later, she was rewarded with frozen, dried fruit that the elk instantly snatched. While it was busy chewing, she managed to stuff one into her own mouth and suck on it. There was also a bag of jerky, little canteen of harsh alcohol, a small loaf of bread, and a wedge of cheese. All frozen. She stuffed it all in her own coat, hoping it would thaw and went after the other bag.

Decent knife, useless rock, dented pot and cup, length of rope, and a jumble of metal pieces later, she realized that there was a blanket tied to the saddle. Unrolling it revealed that it was actually two blankets. She spread one out, wrapped up in the other and sipped from the canteen. It burned as bad as it tasted, but it was liquid, and it helped warm her belly. Logically, she knew the warmth was a lie. Knew that it was dangerous if she drank too much, but she took another healthy swig anyway. She broke off a bit of jerky and chewed vigorously.

The elk sank to its belly right beside her. Its nose prodded at the saddle blanket.

"What? You want that back on you?"

Another prod. Yes.

"Let me get that for you." She raised herself up enough that her butt complained and settled the blanket on the animal's back. "Better?"

A snort and the giant head settled to the icy stone.

She gave half a though to the safety of it and rearranged her own blankets so she was cozied up to the elk's side. When she wasn't kicked, bitten, or gouged by antlers, she sighed and leaned on its chest. She popped more alcohol in her mouth along with another bite of jerky and resigned herself to a frigid night.

Stinking breath and a wet tongue sliding across her face woke her. She argued with the elk, but it insisted that she get up, figure out how to re-saddle it, and climb back up for a grueling day of aching ass and hungry stomach. The wind hadn't let up. Snow as still obliterating the world. Signs of life were nowhere to be seen. Yet the elk plodded forward, a destination set in its head, and she was along for the miserable ride.

When she remembered the food in her coat, it was the brightest part of her day. The bread, cheese, and jerky were frigid, but no longer frozen. It washed down well with the alcohol. She was hungry enough to stuff it all in her face, but held back enough for dinner and a bit for breakfast.

By evening the next day, she wished that she'd saved more. The elk agreed. That night, she went to sleep listening to not only her own, but her steed's grumbling stomach. Next day, her chafed thighs, bruised rear, and black mood completely outweighed the fact that the storm had finally finished. By the time the western horizon was a sea of orange and lavender, she wanted to kill someone, take a hot shower, suck down a dozen painkillers, eat a cow, and wash it all down with a bottle of decent brandy. In that order.

What she got instead was a shadow flying through the air at her and gouging lines of vicious fire across her leg. Pain ripped out of her as shrieks of immediate hysteria. She stared at the blood turning her thigh dark, barely registered the elk screaming too. Another shadow leapt, and she clutched frantically at the saddle horn as the elk bucked into a gallop.

Adrenaline calmed the pain enough that her brain morphed the shadows into discernible shapes. Cats. Big, giant, hungry cats were chasing them. Two. No, three. Snow flew as they ran, and Sydney remembered the knife in the saddle bag. The elk screaming, jolting, throwing her from the saddle into the snow cleared all thoughts of fighting away. It had fallen to its side, having tripped or slipped or something. Two of the shadows fell on it, the third stalked toward her.

"Get away from me!" She scooted backward, thrusting with her good leg. The cat snarled. It was close enough that she could count its whiskers. "Get the fuck away! Go eat something else!" Frantically, she got to her feet, waved her arms wildly.

Shrill noises came from the elk, and the cat turned to look. One of its friends went flying, kicked by the elk's powerful hind leg. The elk scrambled and got her hooves underneath her again and lowered her antlers toward the remaining kitties. Sydney took a hopping step backward. The cats didn't notice, and she moved farther, then farther. Antlers swiped at a cat. It jumped away, and the other tried for the elk's flank.

Sydney turned around, and her leg gave out. Crying, she crawled. A flicker of light caught her eye, and she instinctively scrambled toward it. Behind her, the noises of battle continued. Terrified of looking back, expecting one of the cats to be only inches away, she thrust forward. The light grew closer, and she became aware that she was in a cave. Shadows flickered. Fire. There must be people here! Excited, she called out.

"Help! Someone, please! Help!"

A low, threatening snarl responded.

Quivering, Sydney slowly turned her head. Twin golden eyes flashed in the light, floated above a million sharp, dripping teeth. The giant cat took a step forward, another. Sydney crawled away, her eyes fixated on her stalking killer. It paused at the same moment her shoulder hit hard stone. Having seen it on the Discovery Channel a million times since she was a kid, she recognized the way the cat dropped its shoulders, slightly wiggled its butt. That moment of realization let her dodge its deadly leap, roll away as it crashed into stone.

It must have been stunned, because it panted and shook its head. Sydney glanced around, hoping for a rock she could pick up, bash against the cat's head. There were rocks. Lots of them. And a sword. A freaking sword sticking up out of really big rock. The light was coming from it.

The cat sneezed, and its focus settled on her again.

She dove for the sword. Her fingers wrapped around the hilt as claws ripped open her opposite arm. As she was falling, sword somehow in hand, the cat was already turning around and sinking its teeth into her already injured leg. She wacked it with the blade.

Hissing, it released her leg. She swung again and missed.

"Call the fire," whispered through the pain.

"Fire?" Her mouth asked.

Glaring white erupted, and the great cat yowled, jumping away from the tongue of flame. Blood dripping from its muzzle, the cat glared at her and growled. Sydney waved the sword at it, and it jumped away, hissing and snarling. Thrilled, she thrust at it, followed it as it backed away. Pained screams from the elk awakened a bit of brave loyalty in her heart.

Yelling, she hobbled after the cat and into the fading light.

"Your heart knows the fire now. Use it." Again, the whisper in her head coaxed her.

Fire, burn those stupid cats! Sydney roared and cut the air with the sword. A wide arc of fire flew at the beasts. It struck one of the cats, and it howled in agony. Horrified, Sydney stared as the flames slowly, mercilessly consumed the creature, reduced it to a smoking pile. By the time she blinked the world back into focus, the other cats were gone, and the elk was limping toward her.

She became aware of fire inside her own veins, the vicious pain radiating from her leg. Fresh screams ripped from her throat. White flames were dancing everywhere, over her, over the elk.

"Be calm. The flames are burning away the poison."

Heart walloping at her rib cage, lungs rattling away beside it, she yelled. "What the hell is going on? Who are you? Where are you?"

"Put the sword through your belt." The whisper ignored her. She wanted to yell more, to demand answers, but found herself sliding the blade under her belt, her heart slowing, and her breaths coming more easily.

The elk knelt in front of her, put the saddle at an almost easy to reach level. She noted that the flames were gone.

"Get on."

Sydney draped herself over the saddle.

"Use the rope. Tie yourself to the saddle."

Fumbling, she managed to yank the rope from the saddlebag and wrap it around herself and the horn. Sloppy knot later, she slumped forward.