Chapter Twenty One

Orzammar

We trekked towards Orzammar. Aedan had told Morrigan we could go 'take care' of Flemeth and Ostagar when we were headed back to Denerim. I had pointed out that we would have Eamon with us, so he conceded that we could take care of Ostagar before we returned from getting the Dwarves.

We had the Shriek Ambush abought half way there, and let me tell you… I suddenly remembered why I hadn't slept naked in Thedas before getting with Alistair.

Aedan had turned bright red when he saw me fighting in only a robe that wasn't even closed properly. Alistair, at least, had been on watch, so he was in Armor… when Aedan asked why I hadn't been ready for the ambush, I told him the truth… it hadn't been supposed to happen this soon. It wasn't supposed to be until after we had fulfilled all the treaties, and since I hadn't seen it ahead of time… well, I decided to stick to the 'it wasn't supposed to be so soon' part.

Avernus had contacted us about my blood. He'd been so excited to discover that I did share some common DNA with Thedasians; meaning that this body had originated on this world even if my 'soul' did not. And indeed, he had been able to cure himself of the taint with a small vials worth of the blood I'd left him, though the old mage had stockpiled his tainted blood to keep his research going.

Curing himself had actually restored some vitality, causing Avernus to become closer to what Zathrian had been; he would have a lot longer to experiment that he had in the games now that the Calling wasn't trying to take him. Avernus had also learned that my blood, when he had used it to cure himself, had another side-effect… his magic was more potent, stronger; the bulk of the effect had only lasted a few days, but his magic did retain a permanent boost… spells he hadn't quite been able to master came easily and other such 'fascinating' things.

Upon learning this, Aedan had sworn Alistair and me to secrecy. No one needed to know this unless it became vital, or I deemed a person family; the results of this getting out would mean the Chantry, the Seekers, the Wardens… everyone would want a piece of me. Alistair had agreed so fast, I knew he hadn't needed to think about it. I, however, now had more questions than answers.

If my new body belonged here on Thedas, where did it come from? How was I even here? Was there another species on Thedas; one that wasn't known to the rest? I was beginning to worry that if I did find the answers, I wouldn't like them.

I knew there were Scaled ones, and the Kossith – but did my new race come from the Qunari original homeland like the Kossith or underground like the Scaled Ones? If the answer to that was neither… then where had I come from and how did I get here?

As we got closer and closer to Orzammar, I pondered these questions. I may have time to look around the Shaperate for descriptions of non-elven elves. I could even look around Ortan Thaig, Bownammar, Cadash/Cad'halash, or even Caridins' Cross. Though, I would bet my money on Caridin being the one to know anything if there was anything to know.

After all, the Shaperate did occasionally rewrite or remove certain memories for various reasons. It didn't happen often but if my new race hadn't been seen in Thedas before – or at least in the last thousand years – the Shaperate may have purged the information thinking that the species was extinct… if the Shaperate had any information to begin with.

It was certainly worth a look in the memories – but the question remained on how to do that without playing my hand of being a different race.

When I brought it up to Aedan and Alistair, the former said, "We could always say that your family found mention of a new race of winged elves from the time of Arlathan and you were curious if the Shaper had any knowledge of it since they keep better records than anyone else in Thedas."

I nodded, "That could be a good idea – but it could also get us thrown in the loony bin."

Aedan snorted, "The what?" Alistair laughed too.

"Uh… it means the place for crazy people…"

"Hmm… I see your point, actually. In that case, we should wait until we find the paragon you were talking about to broach the subject. We can ask him first and if he doesn't know then we ask the Shaper because at that point they'll respect us too much to call us crazy."

"That… might work. Let's go with that. Oh – do you think the Shaper might buy my soap formulas?"

"If not the Shaper, then some of the noble-sponsored craft houses," Leliana chimed in. "After all, Orzammar is actually the richest kingdom in Thedas – due to their domination of the Lyrium market. Lyrium being controlled by the Chantry means that it is exclusive in legal trade, but that does not make it less expensive. You thought the Pearl paid you well… you may end up gaining a whole house with full followers just by selling the soap. Unless you have some other invention they would like – they'd pay for that too."

"Hmm… I can think of a few things that the dwarves might like. If they're interested in electricity – non candle lighting at the very least – I could pitch the thermoelectric generator. Those convert heat into energy and seeing as they are surrounded by heat… or maybe they might like Ice Cream – a sweet dairy treat… no wait, they don't have any way of keeping things super cold… for extended periods of time… Maybe Compasses; those are little baubles that can always point true north. I could also pitch Penicillin – an antibiotic drug that helps people to get better from certain illnesses."

Leliana – and everyone else – watched me blankly. She said, "I did not realize just how extensive your knowledge was…"

I blinked and flushed, "I, uh… I liked to read – as I've said – and some of those books were how to guides: How to make this – how to do that… how to find certain things. Some of them were called 'Dummies guide'. It was simplified explanations of how to do, make, find or such for people who couldn't understand complex explanations. Thermoelectric Generators are also called heat generators – it's the simpler term… and even if I don't know how to make something, we can always reverse engineer it. Break it apart to see how it works and put it back together. A lot of things are made that way."

Alistair – of all people – looked fascinated, "Really?"

"Sorry – I'm rambling. I know a lot of somewhat useless facts."

People scoffed, "Useless… how is reverse engineering useless?" Zevran pointed out.

"Oh… I guess it isn't here since it isn't common knowledge…"

I was embarrassed at this point. Alistair stepped in to save me – my hero, "What useless facts do you know?"

"Chocolate chip cookies were created by accident when a baker ran out of bakers' chocolate and thought the chunks of chocolate would melt to make a chocolate cookie. They held their shape and thus the chocolate chip cookie was born. Salt was once used as a currency before gold, silver and copper. There are 32 muscles in a cats' ear. Junk food like Pizza is just as addictive as dugs. Honey is the only food that never spoils – and in fact a jar of it was once found after 3000 years of being 'hidden'; it was still good."

"Someone tested that by eating it?" Wynne looked a little ill. "Oh – no… they tested it in comparison to recent honey. There were minute differences, but the main thing was that it was still good – only then did they let someone consume a small amount of it to test that for certain with healers standing by. So no; honey doesn't spoil ever."

Sten said, "That is not a useless fact – it can greatly improve chances of survival to bring honey on a trip with you knowing this. Honey has many uses in the Qun; it can sooth burns, people who have trouble eating sweeter foods can consume it for the sweet flavor without normal side effects, and it can dress most wounds. Knowing it can also be consumed after long periods of time will mean that many of the Qunari may pack Honey for lengthy trips."

I shrugged. Zevran cut in, "And the fact about pizza – no wonder we all want it so much."

"Any junk food will have that effect. Pizza, Ice Cream, Candy, cookies and many others are considered junk foods. This is because as we eat junk food, the brain neurons pump out more and more dopamine, giving us a feeling of pleasure. In simpler terms… sugar makes the happy chemical in the brain. Your brain likes being happy so it demands more sugary goodness. It is a never-ending cycle. Not to mention it triggers the reward center of the brain – you feel like you did something good to deserve the sweet, so your brain makes you feel good about doing good thing. That's the main difference in drugs versus junk food – junk food makes you happy, drugs make you oblivious."

"Lyrium doesn't make people oblivious…" Alistair argued. I shot him a look, "Yes it does. The longer a Templar takes Lyrium, the more his brain breaks down. You know what happens when Templars are cut off from their supply, Alistair."

He sighed, "Point taken."

"That is a question – why let Alistair use the Templar Shampoo if it is bad for him?" Leliana asked.

"Alistair has a high resistance to it. Besides, he is Templar trained – and that's good enough for the Lyrium to not fry his brain when he uses it. New topic – Aedan and I will confront Loghains' guard while the rest of you hide out of sight. Let's face it; this group is too outstanding for the dodo to not realize he's being played if we all go up to the gate. Once Imrek is gone, the rest of you will be joining us. Aedan, you tell the guard that he's been recalled for some reason – make one up – and if anyone asks why you have an elf with you… tell them that I'm your servant."

They all agreed and we split up as we approached the gates.

"Imrek; Stand down! Loghain has recalled you, something about the Wardens being sighted? He trusts you more than us, so we are here to swap places with you," Aedan himself called out. I kept my face carefully blank.

Imrek straightened instantly. Thankfully, Loghain hadn't known what Aedan looked like because Loghain hadn't been on close enough terms with Bryce Cousland to know what Aedan looked like these days… since the Teyrn of Gwaren and Hero of River Dane hadn't seen Bryce's youngest child since Fergus got married to an Antivan a decade past.

Imrek said, "Then I wish you more luck here than I've had. I'll make my way back to Denerim straight away."

The Dwarven Guard watched us wearily when we didn't immediately barrage him with demands to enter the city proper; instead we waited till Imrek was gone and then I nodded to Fen who walked off to gather the rest of our party. Said guard was pale – normal for those who lived underground – with black hair and an amazingly intricate beard that reached his mid-chest. His grey eyes told that he was over-worked and needed a break from the dog we had just shooed away. I was happy to note that Dwarves didn't reach any higher than 5 foot even… and that those ones were few and far between. This meant I would be several inches taller than the tallest of Dwarves!

The small town outside Orzammar was… well, it was a town. Homes, markets, stalls, restaurants… it didn't have that Alienage feel either, it felt like a proper little town.

Once we were all grouped back up, we finally approached the Guard.

"Well, outsider, I must admit… your group certainly is different from that fool who's been barking to get in the last week."

I snorted. "Just wait till he finds out the Wardens are the ones who sent him back to his master… when he's meant to be looking for us to begin with. He's a Dumbass," I snarked.

The Dwarf roared a laugh that was so loud, the guards on the inside of the massive door peaked out to find out what was going on. When they heard, they couldn't help but chuckle too.

"Regardless, I can't let you in. King Endrin is dead, and until the Assembly can pick a new king, my hands are tied."

"Actually, Aedan here has an ancient Treaty compelling aide from the Dwarves in times of blight. As it has the official seal, only the Assembly can deal with it… you let us in, we help the fight for a new king, and we get aid… it's a win for all of us," As I spoke Aedan handed over the mentioned treaty.

The Dwarf gave me the biggest smile as he looked up at me – that felt nice, since he was only 4'6 – and said, "If you were about a foot shorter I'd think you might have been a Deshyr. You're right, of course. I have to let you in, thanks to that little paper there. You help break the deadlock, and I'll follow you into battle myself, outsider."

Alistair stiffened only slightly as he realized that the Dwarf in front of us was flirting with me. "Oh, hun, you'll make me blush with talk like that," I winked and he laughed again as he let us in.

"Eadrek; if you have need of me my house name is Nevvin and any messenger can get to me if you ask. The Warden compound in the Diamond Quarter is available and stocked for use," he gave me a slight bow as he spoke.

I thought for a moment before turning to one of his… coworkers inside the door she was 4'4 with cropped black hair and brown eyes. "Pardon me, hun, but could I trouble you to take over Eadreks post? Alistair and Aedan are too new to the Wardens to know where the Compound is, and I've never been to Orzammar before… I'd be most obliged," I will admit I let my southern accent out as I bit my lower lip to look worried. I doubted it would work seeing as I wasn't that persuasive to my knowledge.

The woman I asked thought for a moment before nodding. "Eadrek just have Hildred report to post over here when you get to the Diamond Quarter. You can stick with the Wardens while they're here; we wouldn't want something to happen before we can get a new king."

Eadrek looked slightly startled but nodded, giving me a smile and motioned us to follow. "Just how did you know Sigge was in charge?" he asked once we were far enough away.

"Oh… I didn't. I just figured if someone could cover your post you'd be able to show us the way… as I said, I've never been here and the two actual wardens are too new to know their asses from their faces here without a flashlight, a map, and a guided tour," my words were met with protests from said wardens, but laughs from everyone else.

"You got some good sayings there, Salroka, mind if I use them?" Eadrek chuckled. "Be my guest! It's a common saying where I'm from, so just stick around awhile and you'll hear more like it. My personal favorite is when someone asks me the time, and I don't feel like checking," I winked.

This, of course, piqued Alistair's curiosity. "What's the saying?"

"Half past a monkeys ass, a quarter to his balls," Sten even snorted as the others began laughing.

The expected fight between Harromont and Bhelen happened as we exited the hall of Heros, but there was no death to it.

"Those two will tear Orzammar apart at this rate," Eadrek sighed. "Eh, they can try, but if it gets to that point we can just toss the less popular one into the lava pit below, right?" I shrugged and Sten was nodding as though that was the plan we should take from the start.

Eadrek snorted, "If it were that simple, do you think we'd have a deadlocked Assembly?"

"Nope, but unless I can drag Sereda back in the arms of Paragon Caridin, looks like we'll be siding with Bhelen. I hear he's a nug-humper but he'd make a good king," Eadrek roared a laugh just as we entered the Diamond Quarter. A voice was heard, "Eadrek? Aren't you supposed to be on Gate duty?"

A female in armor similar to Eadreks asked. "Ah, just the person we were looking for. Hildred, Sigge has reassigned me to guard this Lady here. Well, her exact orders were to guard the Wardens, Ancestors forbid something happen to them before they can break the deadlock, but since it was this one here who asked, I'm just gonna stay with her."

"Hi, I'm Arvaala, though everyone calls me Ara," I stuck my hand out. Hildred clasped my upper arm and gave me a firm shake before saying, "In that case, I'd better report to Sigge. Nice meeting you, My Lady… keep your guard up around Eadrek though; he's a charmer."

I chuckled as Eadrek looked affronted. "I make no promises. He's kinda sweet after all," I winked at Hildred who chuckled and gave Eadrek a clap on the shoulder. Alistair was pouting as he put an arm around my shoulders, but he didn't seem too upset. I had warned him back at the tower that I was flirt, and with that mystery tattoo, it was likely that he wouldn't be my only partner… his words to me still floated in my head. 'I can handle sharing you if that what this means, but I refuse to lose you.'

I snuggled into Alistairs arms, causing Eadrek to look a bit startled. "Ah, didn't realize you were… taken," I giggled as Aedan snorted and Leli and Wynne giggled.

"I'm… flexible. I flirt with almost everyone, but I was raised in a culture that's a bit different. Alistair knows that. Not to mention, he's going to need a noble wife soon enough," I shrugged as he growled.

"No. I told you; I'm not marrying anyone else. You're the only one I want. I'm yours. I may end up having to share you, but you won't be sharing me," he was holding tightly to my shoulders. They all looked stunned at his words, but I smiled at him.

"And, uh… just how do you propose to keep Eamon from trying to find you a wife over the next decade, my love? He will push and push… I mean, I suppose you really could marry Anora…" he snarled at that, yanking me to stop to lean forward and kiss me.

"I will not be marring the Ice Queen! She may have been my brothers' wife, but that does not mean I want her. Besides, I've already married you," he was holding me, and I pouted. "I won't force you into anything, love. I just don't feel it's fair to you if you must share me, and I get you all to myself. It's very selfish of me."

He snorted, "I think I can decide what is fair to me. I love you – and I only want you. I think I can find a way to side-step Eamons' attempts at marrying me off to some unknown noble woman. Besides, your brother will have my back when it comes to that, yes?"

Aedan nodded, "You know I will, Alistair."

Eadrek smirked at that and took up flirting again.

When we finally reached the compound, Eadrek said, "I can get a couple of people to work the compound while you're here; cooking, cleaning, picking up supplies and such. Just let me know if you want that; I've got a few people in mind. Most are working caste but if you don't mind, there's one or two among the castless that are good for their word," Eadrek had just raised higher in my respect as I smiled.

"I think the casteless should have priority; I'll make sure their paid fairly for their work, so if you're vouching for them then bring them on over. We don't need many, maybe 3 for the kitchen – one for morning meal, one for evening and one for switching off so they each have a day off each week… maybe two for the errands, and 2 for cleaning? I doubt we will be that messy or demanding, but I want to hire as many casteless as possible so they can have that money to eat and such. I'm willing to pay a Sovereign per two week period. I know it's a lot, but I'm a sucker for that kind of thing…"

I trailed off when I noticed Aedan, Leli, Alistair and Wynne all smiling at me and Eadrek looked like he had just fallen in love. "I'll get right on it then. 7 casteless is no problem, and each of them being offered honest pay for honest work; they'll be thrilled. My sister certainly will be," I grinned.

"His sister is casteless, but he isn't?" Alistair asked me once Eadrek hurried off to go find us some workers.

"It… well a child takes the caste of the parent whose gender they share. Eadrek being a male in the guard means his father was noble or warrior caste, his sister being castles means his sisters' mother was casteless. They may be half siblings, or full siblings, however if they were full siblings that would mean his sister is older; if she were younger his mother would have been adopted into his fathers' house for having a boy…" Aedan and Leli were nodding along, but Alistair looked sick.

"Just think Alistair, the casteless here are similar to how the Elves are treated in Alienages," he flinched and muttered something about trying to make that better. I smiled and squeezed his hand as we all went and chose rooms.

Aedan and Leli had finally started sleeping together about the time we got to Honnleath and have had their own room in the tent so naturally they chose a room together, Alistair and I taking the one across the hall. Zev tried and failed to flirt his way into sharing with Wynne, but there were plenty of rooms for us all. While I trusted the casteless that Eadrek would bring us, that didn't mean thieves didn't exist among the rest of the population, so I warded our rooms against theft before we all met up in the dining area to make our plans.

I told everyone exactly what we would face here, and how I had already decided that we would help Bhelen, because that's what the more honorable one, Sereda, would want. I also explained that if we could, I'd like to take Sereda with us when we left. She wouldn't be able to come back to Orzammar as a noble unless it was declared by a king or paragon and Gorim said she didn't want that anyway, but if she hadn't joined the Legion, I'd see if she wanted to be a warden.

Aedan agreed to see if she wanted to join us, but tried to argue against supporting Bhelen.

"Aedan, I know you don't like it – neither do I, if I'm being entirely honest – but Harrowmont will cause the Dwarves into a cycle of Extinction. He's too traditional, he'd rather see the castles die off rather than allow them to move above what he deems is their lot in life; not to mention he doesn't have enough support to do anything. Bhelen may have killed his brother and framed his sister, but he will move the Dwarves into a better future. He plans to marry Rica Brosca, a castles woman who just had his son; he plans to reform Orzammar from the inside out. Just because I don't like the bastard doesn't mean he won't make a decent king. Harrowmont is too soft, Bhelen is a prick… the options suck, but I'm not gonna doom a kingdom because of it," Aedan had deflated mid-speech.

Sten was nodding and even added, "The Qunari pick their leaders based on who can make the hard choices and live with the consequences, not based on blood. This… Bhelen would make the better option based on what I've heard."

"Well, that settles it, doesn't it? Even The Qunari and Fairy agree. It will support Bhelen then?" Shale just wanted to find more shiny rocks in the market; I just knew it.

"I suppose so, Shale. Ara is right; we can't just doom the dwarves to extinction because we don't like the better king," Aedan sighed, rubbing his hand over his face.

"Hey Shale, I think I saw a vendor that had really shiny rubies…" Leli coaxed, and off the two went with a pouch of coins to look for shiny stones. At that moment, Eadrek returned with 8 other Dwarves… only 1 wasn't casteless; Dagna. I would recognize her anywhere.

"Dagna; I wasn't expecting to run into you so soon," I grinned as she looked stunned. She was 4'3 with red hair that was up in a bun. Her eyes were a soft green and she had such cute freckles.

"You… know me?"

"Ah… ahem; let's start over. Hi, I'm Ara, a seer working with the Grey Wardens to end the blight. I've already spoken with First Enchanter Irving on your behalf, Dagna… he will accept you for study, and the Circle could certainly use any extra hands they can get at the moment. If you want, you can head there now or you can wait and travel with us and we can make a quick stop at the Circle on our way to retrieve something from… a battlefield," Dagna looked like I had told her I was a Goddess and nodded.

"I'll go pack my bags now! It's best if I stay here until we leave or my father will try and force me into a marriage to keep me from leaving, and it's not safe to go alone," she rushed out the door faster than anyone else could see.

Eadrek smiled at me, "A Seer, huh? So that's how you all knew Imreks name when you sent him away from the gates."

I smirked, "Damn Skippy." The casteless with him looked slightly confused so I explained that it meant damn right, causing them to chuckle.

"Right then, I ain't sure if Eadrek told y'all how much you're getting paid, but it boils down to 50 silvers a week. If at any time you need to leave, do not hesitate to say something; we are not going to keep y'all from your families or other important things. This is a job, not a jail. If you feel uncomfortable, speak up; if you need something… y'all are just as emotional as anyone, and I will not have anyone of ya being hurt or bullied, understand?" I grinned when I got nods and relieved smiles from them all.

One in particular stood out. She looked like she could be Eadreks twin so I knew she was his sister, but she was pregnant.

I pointed to her, "You especially, if you need breaks, or just to snack on something, do not hesitate, you hear? I had a baby of my own once, I know what it's like to be pregnant and working. Okay?" she gave me a grateful smile and thanked me while nodding. Eadrek himself looked ready to cry at my damn feet… it was gonna be an interesting time.

Alistair looked somewhat sad – thinking of our lost one again. I knew it would weigh on him for some time to come. He wasn't really distracted enough to keep his mind off of it. Truth be told, neither was I.

I got the rare pain in my chest thinking about what could have been. But I spoke true when I said that it wasn't the right time. We needed to fight the Archdemon at the end of this – I'd have been 6 or 7 months along by that point… I wouldn't be able to fight. And the baby would have been taken from me anyway.

Knowing Eamon, my baby would have been raised in the palace – and not in a good way if Eamon had his way. Alistair likely wouldn't even know that our baby was treated horridly by Eamon behind his back – and with Eamon gas-lighting the kid like he did to Alistair… the poor kid wouldn't even have the confidence to speak up about it when he or she could speak.

I snuggled into Alistairs arms. He gave me a small smile as the dwarves began introductions.

Eadreks' sister, Althild, asked, "Did… something happen to your child? You said you were a mother…"

I nodded, "I lost my son in a house fire – and lost another I didn't know about when I was slammed against something hard."

She looked a little distressed, "That's terrible."

I sighed, "It is – but the recent one… wouldn't have had a good life if they were born this early. But enough about that – I'll let you all settle what jobs you'll be taking; and as I said, don't hesitate to take breaks or talk to us about leaving. I like to think that I'm a pretty reasonable person."

Eadrek chuckled, "Salroka – you're more than reasonable. Taking in the castless before anyone else is downright paragon-status here."

"Another thing – this place seems to be big enough for a whole retinue of Wardens, so I think you can pick rooms and live here while you work. It makes it easier if you aren't running back and forth, for one – for another, I think it might just be more sanitary to live here. I'll provide soap too – I'm a crafter of many things and need to go see the Shaperate about that while I'm here. The soap you use here will be free so don't worry about that – think of it as a job benefit. You, Althild, will be using my personal scent because of the massive amount of health benefits to it."

She smiled and rubbed at her tummy – she was 7 ½ months along, give or take a week on either side. Eadrek looked so damn happy that she was receiving common decency that I wanted to storm the palace and demand Bhelen get the throne and speed up his plans.

"Do we need to cook tonight miss?" one of the men asked. I shook my head, "Nah – for the most part, I'm paying you to sit around. We already ate today and half the group will be heading into the Deeps soon. And call me Ara."

They all looked so relieved and most went to go get settled into rooms.

Eadrek approached me, "Thank you… thank you. I've been trying to find loopholes to get my sister into better housing since she turned up pregnant. The father said he'll only acknowledge her if the babe is male when born – and he refuses to do anything in the meantime. He couldn't care less if she starved. If that babe is a girl then… her only hope would be aiding in founding a new house. And I think we both know that isn't going to happen – Paragons are gods among us so naturally they're rare."

I nodded, "I get that. Oh, when is the next assembly meeting?"

"First thing in the morning – should I wake you in time to go?"

"Well… if you don't mind, I'd love that. I have buissness with the Steward before I go to the Shaper about a few inventions that could benefit Orzammar and knowledge that they may not have but need."

"I usually need to go to the blasted things anyway – I provide security since most of the Deshyrs' seem to trust me enough for that. I was only on the Gate today because there were no meetings planned."

I chuckled, "That's fair, I suppose. Out of curiosity; who do you support?"

"Bhelen – you already know his plans for the casteless and who he plans to marry."

Alistair looked confused, "What?"

"Bhelen is set to marry a casteless woman name Rica Brosca. He fell in love with her and she's pregnant. He would normally only be allowed to marry her if the kid is born a male – if Bhelen is made king, he is going to reform the casteless so they can raise their stations through work and skill. Anyone that wants to acknowledge their castless or surfacer relatives supports Bhelen. If they want things to stay the same, they support Harrowmont. It's a pretty even split at the moment."

"No wonder you said Bhelen is the better king… he's revolutionizing Orzammar. You think I can do that?"

I snorted, "Without Divine Intervention, you really can't marry me in the Chantry, my love. The nobles of the Landsmeet would shoot it down every time."

He sighed, "At least I can make things better for the dwarves and elves in Ferelden when I take the throne. My first order of buissness will be making the Alienages better."

"No – the first thing is to minimize the destruction from the Blight and increase country morale. The throne won't be stable so you'll need to make things better."

"Right – second order of buissness then…" he smiled cheekily. I couldn't help it – I kissed him.

"I love that you have such a kind and helpful heart, Alistair."

Eadrek laughed, "He'll be a good king – I'd follow him, at least."

Alistair flushed but I said, "Absolutely."

Aedan called out, "Alright, you two – bed time. We need to get things over with so we can end the Blight and we've seen how Ara gets without proper sleep."

Eadrek gave me an amused look, "I haven't."

"I get loopy – imagine the drunkest Oghren you can and make him Lyrium addled to boot."

Eadrek flinched, "That's pretty bad. Stumbling around muttering about non-existent things…"

"Yeah – or rattling off useless facts like… domestic cats' meow but wild ones don't because only kittens need the 'loud' vocals to communicate. I know a lot of useless crap and when I get drunk or sleep deprived, I rattle them off."

Eadrek looked stunned, "Wild cats don't meow?"

"No – they communicate through low frequency growls, purrs and body language. Only Kittens meow. When cats found out us hairless kittens couldn't purr or understand them, they watched us. We communicated with the Kittens though the meowing, so they adapted to meow at us to communicate. In the eyes of cats, we are big hairless kittens."

Alistair sniggered, "What do dogs think?"

"Dogs see us as different from them, but friendly and loving. They adopt us into their packs and call us family. In the wild, it's been known to happen that wolves will adopt any newborn creature and try to nurture it. Kids, cats, goats – you name it."

"Seriously – bed time," Aedan snipped.

Eadrek said, "We can talk more later on."

Alistair nodded and led me back to our room. I was tired enough to just crash when my head hit the pillow.