Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or Dragon Age.
Morrigan shivered as the bird's cries echoed deep into the very core of her being. She had a flash of a golden mirror she had once briefly held, that then giving way to the speed and agility from the first time she had ever shifted into a wolf, the joy at running on four legs so much faster than she could have in her normal form, and...
And the kiss from earlier that morning. As well, the brief sense of calm security she'd awoken to, the overwhelming rightness of being curled into the side of Harry Potter. The man that was driving her crazy.
The man that was currently smiling as the bird flew down and landed on his outstretched arm.
"Welcome to the land of Ferelden," he said.
Sirius gasped. "Harry, is that-"
"Say hello to Fawkes."
The bird let out a pleasant little tone and Sirius laughed. "Damn, Harry, I haven't seen him since the seventies."
"Really?"
"Yeah, it's not like he came to many of the order's meeting or anything," Sirius shrugged.
"Come on, Fawkes," Harry laughed. "You weren't being much of a mascot, then."
The bird turned and let out a squawk of protest.
"Oh, that makes sense," Harry nodded. "He didn't want to be in Grimmauld Place."
Sirius snorted, "I can definitely relate to that. Whatever happened to that dump?"
"I eventually ended up doing some serious remodeling and turned it into a place that your mum would have absolutely detested," Harry grinned. "All sorts of muggle technology, fresh new decorating, you name it."
"Did you ever figure out a way to get rid of the damn portrait?"
"Yeah, but I waited until after the first of my 'blood traitor' children was born, just to rub it in the old bitch's face."
Sirius barked out a laugh and clapped him on the back as he helped Harry to his feet. "Good man, Harry."
The bird sang a pleased but questioning note and Morrigan could feel it staring at her.
"Oh, right, sorry," Harry said as he helped her to her feet and held the bird right in front of her. "Fawkes, this is Morrigan. She bears your other wand."
"Hello?" she said as Fawkes peered into her eyes. It felt as if she was being judged, but the bird turned back to Harry and let out a soft note.
"I believe in her," Harry replied.
Fawkes trilled happily and flew over to the bed of Arl Eamon.
"Right, I suppose we should get to the part where you save the day," Harry chuckled.
"Maker's breath, what is that bird?" Teagan asked.
"This is Fawkes, a phoenix who has been so kind as to travel from very far away in order to save your brother," Harry answered.
"How?"
"Phoenix tears are the most powerful source of healing I've ever found." Harry strode over to the unconscious man and leaned over his prone form, prying open his mouth. "Do your thing, Fawkes."
Fawkes leaned its head over Eamon's mouth and slowly a tear drop fell into it. The phoenix let out a happy cry and then took to wing again.
It was only a few seconds later when the Arl of Redcliffe began to stir.
"Teagan, who are all these people?"
"So, let me get this straight," Eamon sighed as he began. "Our king is dead. The rest of the Grey Wardens are dead as well. Most unfortunately, that includes Alistair. The Blight has already begun, and Ostagar was only the beginning as towns in the far south are already being overrun.
"And last but not least, Loghain has chosen this time to seize power and instigate a civil war."
"It may be even worse than that," Teagan said. "Before I fled Denerim, word had reached me that Howe was also using this chaos to betray the Couslands and make a play for the Arl of Denerim."
"That doesn't surprise me," Eamon replied. "He always was a despicable bastard. Perhaps his counsel has made Loghain's paranoia that much worse."
"Paranoia over what?" Harry asked.
"For roughly a century, the Orlesians had control over Ferelden. It was only about thirty years ago that my old friend King Maric, Cailan's father, regained his crown after driving the foreigners out. Logain was his right hand man, and Loghain hates Orlais with a passion. The fact that Cailan had invited Grey Wardens from Orlais to join us in repelling the darkspawn obviously did not sit well with him."
"Would that be enough to cause him to betray the king?"
"Apparently so."
"That is very bad news," Leliana said. "I assume we cannot count on any reinforcements from Orlais reaching us then?"
"No," Teagan answered. "Loghain has ordered the borders closed. We are on our own."
Fawkes took the pause in the conversation as an opportunity to trill out a hopeful little melody to cheer the room up. Harry winked at him and said, "Thanks for the encouragement."
"Your bird is unlike any I've seen before," Eamon said. "How can it affect our moods so just with its song?"
"Well, I think first I should correct you in that Fawkes isn't merely a pet," Harry replied. "He's more like an old friend, and he's much more intelligent than a normal bird. Plus, phoenixes have a number of magical abilities, including their ability to enhance moods with their voices."
"I greet you then, Fawkes," Eamon said with a little bow. "I understand that I also have you to thank for my recovery."
Fawkes squawked in approval. The others might not have caught it, but the ageless bird was actually joking that it was about time that someone appreciated his grandeur and Harry had to stifle his own chuckle in response.
"With the nobles of Ferelden divided, perhaps we should focus on other forces for help," Sirius suggested. "The dwarven kingdom was the next place we were thinking of going."
"That may be for the best," Eamon nodded. "While you work on gathering more allies there, Teagan and I can see what we can do about bolstering our forces and hopefully we may come up with something to do about Loghain."
"It sounds like we have a plan then," Wynne said. "Our friend Shale was looking forward to journeying into the Deep Roads anyway."
The group made their way out of town and began to look for a suitable quiet spot where Harry could get out his flying carpet and whisk them away to Orzammar, hopefully while saving them weeks of travel time.
Unfortunately, they ran into a very upset woman on the road.
"Oh, thank the Maker!" she said as she ran up to them. "We need help! They attacked our wagons, please help us. Follow me, I'll take you to them."
Sure enough, just around a bend, there were a couple of damaged wagons. However, the woman ran up to an elven man with a tattoo on his face and Harry just knew it was once again trouble.
"They Grey Warden dies here!" the assassin shouted as archers revealed themselves upon a small hill and several warriors with melee weapons came out from behind the wagons.
"Fucking ambush," Sirius growled as he chained several bolts of lightning at the charging men.
Harry conjured up a shield to block two arrows from striking him while Morrigan went on the offensive next to him, summoning a veritable Blizzard of cold upon the archers.
Shale merely laughed while striding forward, backhanding one of the men and sending him reeling. The golem's next punch took his head off.
The elf leapt forward to meet them and Leliana was barely able to parry one of his blows with a dagger before he sank one of his blades into her shoulder. Seeing his skill, Harry unleashed a Crushing Prison on him, freezing him in place and making him seize and shake from the spirit energy.
Padfoot was angered by seeing the redhead he'd been interested in get attacked, so of course the old dog shifted forms and barrelled into the elf, biting into his arm as soon as the effects of Harry's spell ended.
Wynne began treating Leliana's wound while Shale smashed another of the warriors to death.
Seeing the last melee foe backing away in fear, Morrigan smirked as she used a a cold spell to freeze him in his tracks, allowing Shale to stomp over and shatter the frozen man into pieces.
While the golem wasn't looking, Harry fired a couple of cleaning charms to get rid of some of the splattered gore covering its body.
"Ah, get off me you damn mutt," the elven assassin yelled, trying to free himself from Padfoot, but the grim had already knocked him to the ground. Before he could get loose, his throat was bit and a stream blood began to soak the ground around him.
With the others all taken care of, Harry stepped forward. "Back off, Sirius. Give me a moment before our assassin dies. He may have information."
Padfoot howled angrily but released his prey. The elf gurgled as he grabbed his throat, trying to stop the flow of blood.
"That is a nasty wound," Morrigan muttered as she stepped behind him.
"I could probably save him," Harry replied. "But let's see if there's any reason to do so first.
"Legilimens!"
Harry tore into the dying elf's mind and saw that had he taken the contract to assassinate him from Arl Howe on Loghain's behalf, an attempt to get rid of the last of the Grey Wardens (an assumed survivor of Ostagar) while tying up a loose thread and preventing more enemies gathering against them.
It wasn't the first time an assassin had been sent to kill him, Harry had nearly lost count over the years, and it almost certainly wouldn't be the last time either.
Interestingly, Harry also saw why this elf named Zevran had chosen to attack them. His guild of assassins had framed his lover and Zevran had killed her on their behalf, only to find out later of her innocence. That betrayal had shattered him.
Attacking the Grey Wardens would be an incredibly difficult task- but this was a man who wanted a suicide mission. And Harry could definitely relate to that sort of guilt and pain.
With the elf having no other useful intelligence, Harry pulled out of his mind.
He sighed as he looked down at the dying man. "Be at peace, Zevran. May you find Rinna on the other side and know forgiveness. Because if she loved you as I saw, then she will be waiting for you."
Harry allowed himself to do something he hadn't in a long time. He touched upon the magic of the Hallows and let the serenity of the void flow down into his hands.
Zevran's last breath faded out of him as Harry reached over and closed his eyes, a slight touch of Death itself easing the elf's passing.
"If you had saved him, having an assassin bound to working for you could have been quite useful," Morrigan pointed out.
"He'd had a hard life," Harry shrugged in response. "I think he deserved peace."
"I believe that tattoo marks him as one of the Antivan Crows," Leliana said. "They are dangerous enemies to have. We should keep on guard in the future, especially when we go to any larger cities."
"Just for safety's sake, in the future none of you should mention the Grey Wardens then," Harry replied. "Let me shoulder that burden and I will deal with any potential assassins in the future."
"Are you certain?" Wynne asked. "That is a large burden to bear."
"I can handle it."
"I don't like it," Sirius grumbled. "But Harry is probably right."
"Excellent," Shale clapped its stone hands together. "Then why don't we get a move on? I'd like to ride that flying carpet again. It is the most useful piece of magic I've ever seen."
"Are you saying you approve of us lowly mages?" Harry asked with a grin.
"Let's not get carried away, little mage," the golem snorted. "It is almost tolerable at times, but I won't be going soft anytime soon."
"Of course not," Harry nodded.
A few moments later, after searching the bodies for any more information (or loot, as Leliana and Sirius laughed), the group was once again zooming through the air on a disillusioned magical carpet.
The next stop would be Orzammar.
It was late that night by the time they stopped a few miles from the cold pass that led into the mountains where the entrance to the dwarven kingdom lay. Harry decided to pull out the tent and get a good night's rest before they moved on.
With the frigid air and howling winds, everyone was quick to agree. Even Shale decided to come inside for once.
Morrigan had a smirk on her face as she bid Harry goodnight before going to bed. He grinned as he watched her go. If she wanted to wait before progressing things, he could handle that.
Or if she were going to be playing some sort of manipulative game, perhaps trying to get him to make the next move... that could be amusing as well.
"It is surprising to me that this little mage is not engaging in any disgusting nightly rituals," the golem said as it watched Harry stay behind. "I can assume the elder mage is beyond reproductive age, but the swamp witch does seem young enough to be fertile. Isn't that what you fleshy things are made for?"
He laughed and smiled at the stone face looking down on him. "I've never had a big interest in philosophy, so you may be right. Most people I've known have separated themselves from animals, but at our core level, passing on our genes to future generations is the purpose of life. Or one of them anyway. That leaves out the question of golems like you, so you'll have to forgive me for not having a better answer."
"Then why is it sitting out here with me?" Shale asked. "The dog mage was fast to follow after the sister into her bed chamber. I would think you would behave similarly."
"Not everything in life is simple," Harry replied. "The swamp witch as you call her intrigues me because of her layers."
"I suppose it won't be making any new annoying little mages too soon then," the golem snorted. "I can take that as a positive."
"You know, magic can make the world more interesting. Isn't that better for you in the long run? I would think boredom would be your greatest enemy."
"Second greatest," Shale corrected him. "After those flying, feathered menaces."
"Right, forgive me," Harry grinned.
After thinking about it for a minute, the golem sighed. "I suppose some mages could help keep me from getting too bored in the future."
"I'm glad to be of help then."
"It should not stay up too late then," Shale instructed him. "You puny creatures do tend to get so whiny if you haven't had enough sleep."
"Good night, Shale."
Harry was undressing and preparing for bed when he briefly considered throwing his old cloak on and sneaking into Morrigan's room next door. It could have made for a much more fun end to the day.
Of course, there was also the chance that it could have gotten him slapped.
Which was still probably worth the risk.
But Harry did have a big day coming up. And he was a little drained after being inside the elven assassin's mind earlier that day. It had been easy for him to relate to a man with a death wish, longing to be reunited with the woman he loved in death. Harry had only felt similarly for more than thirty years, after all.
As he put out the lights and set his wand down on the night stand, Harry realized that he was truly starting to disassociate from that old pain though.
He'd had several nightly visitors telling him to seize this second chance with all he had. Who was he to argue?
"Blimey, Harry! Look at this place!"
He found himself in the Fade once again, this time sitting on a couch in front of a fireplace, a chunk of the Gryffindor common room torn from his old memories. And opposite him was one of his oldest friends, another someone who had died decades ago.
"Ron! Damn, it's good to see you."
"Yeah, but what is with this crazy place? I'd think it was something Luna would've come up with."
"No, apparently it has something to do with this world I'm in now," Harry shrugged.
"Merlin forbid they just have dreams like normal people, eh?" Ron snorted. "So, what's this I hear about you turning down sex? You of all people! Merlin, all the times I had to cover for you in fifth and sixth year when you were sneaking off-"
"Hey, that was necessary," Harry protested with a grin. "I had to stay sane some way or other, didn't I?"
"Now, I wish I had thought of that excuse," Ron laughed. "You think that might have helped me get under Lavender's robes?"
"I think you were terrible with girls back then," Harry scoffed. "Later on too."
"Oi, I wasn't that bad," Ron scowled.
"Should I remind you of the one date you and Hermione went on?"
"Okay, but that was at least partly her fault too. And I can't believe you were there spying on us."
"I was told by two brilliant and beautiful witches that it was bound to be an epic disaster, and therefore, far too funny for us to pass up the chance to watch the sparks fly," Harry replied with a grin.
Ron huffed. "At least you kept up a silencing charm or something. I think Hermione and I might have unleashed some accidental magic if our argument got any worse."
"Most people don't have bouts of accidental magic in their twenties," Harry laughed.
"Yeah, well most people would have been smarter than to have two stubborn fools go out just because they thought there was some chemistry or something," Ron said. "Hey, you think I could blame it on Snape? Maybe some residue from Potions that scrambled our brains or something?"
"You can tell yourself that if it helps."
"I think it was a good thing in the long run," Ron smiled. "I'd heard Neville muttering something about it being unresolved sexual tension, but he was dead wrong. And after that, we went back to being friends soon enough."
"It was two years later," Harry snorted. "But I guess you were distracted by that witch from Romania."
"Ah, Tatiana," Ron grinned widely. "I don't think I ever thanked Charlie enough for introducing us."
"Anyway, what's this crap about me turning down sex? I've only kissed Morrigan once," Harry argued. "And I don't want to rush things just because she's fucking gorgeous. If you had been paying attention, she's also been raised by a crazy, abusive old witch who practically brainwashed her-"
"Wait up, mate!" Ron threw up his hands. "I'm not talking about your swamp witch. I meant the succubus chick here in dreamworld. Now, that's a fine piece of tail."
"Ugh, that's a terrible pun," Harry groaned.
Ron looked pleased with himself. "You know, it doesn't count as cheating if it's in your dreams. Not that you or your potential new lady have figured out that you're both crazy about each other."
"I figured that out a long time ago."
"Then, what's the hold up?"
"I'm being patient."
Ron snorted. "Sounds boring, mate. You're turning into a really old man."
"I am a really old man," Harry smirked.
"You're just lucky you don't look it," Ron laughed. "Imagine if you had a long beard like Dumbledore. That would be one way to keep the chicks at a distance."
"Unless they had some kink for grandfathers or something."
Ron grimaced. "I really don't want to know where someone would even come up with that."
"How did you possibly make it halfway through the twenty first century without having your brain rotted by the internet?" Harry joked. "Before we go off on another tangent though, are you here for a reason?"
"A reason? What, can't a bloke catch up with an old friend?"
"I was just wondering if you had a message for me or something," Harry shrugged. "Some cryptic clue about the things going on around me or the foes I'm going to face. Something like that."
"Nah, I was pants at Divination, remember?"
Harry laughed. "Yeah, me too. Maybe next time you could bring Lavender with you."
"Assuming she isn't still mad at me," Ron sighed.
"About what?" Harry asked.
"Who knows? With that woman, it could have been anything."
"Excuse me," a voice interrupted them.
Harry stood up and walked over to a window, throwing it open. Outside, there was the elven assassin from earlier that day floating next to a beautiful woman.
"I wanted to thank you before I moved on."
"Tell the truth, Zev," the woman added with a smirk.
"Yes, Rinna wanted me to thank you," Zevran replied with a grin. "I was too busy begging her for forgiveness and then trying to kiss every inch of her body and-"
She clamped her hand over his mouth. "I don't think we need to get too graphic."
"I can understand," Harry smiled. "I wish you both the best."
"May you find peace someday as well, Harry Potter."
The two spirits flew away arm in arm.
"Luna was right, you know?" Ron said once they were alone again. "Things never do get boring around you, mate."
Harry woke up the next day enthused about the progress they had made. He had a feeling today would be a good day. Ron's mention of Luna reminded him of how much she would have loved to see an underground dwarven kingdom.
He wondered if they would all have big beards and wield battle axes. Of course, that was maybe just Tolkien's influence, but those Lord of the Rings movies were pretty great.
The rest of the group met and ate breakfast while listening to what Leliana, Wynne, and Shale could tell them about Orzammar. Unfortunately, it was all second hand knowledge and rumors. The golem believed it had been there before, but its memories had faded.
By the time they had packed up the tent and started following the path up into the mountains, the sun was at least giving them some small amount of warmth despite the snow on the ground.
As they reached the gates of the city though, they once again ran into an annoying complication.
A human in armor was practically shouting at the dwarven guards. "King Loghain will not suffer the delay of his appointed messenger."
The lead dwarf wasn't having any of it though. "Veata! This land is held in trust for the sovereign dwarven kings. I cannot allow entry at this time."
The human sneered at him. "King Loghain demands of the deshyr or lords or whatever you call them in your Assembly! I am his appointed messenger."
Harry was amused to think that Loghain had apparently now proclaimed himself king after betraying and effectively murdering the previous one. Of course, from all he knew of the history back in his home world, that was one of the more popular ways to seize a throne.
And on a more happy note, all of the dwarven guards did in fact have beards, and at least two of them had axes as well. Luna would have been pleased.
"Excuse me," Harry interrupted. "We're here on Grey Warden business and need to speak to someone in charge."
It was no surprise when the human reacted to poorly to that news. "The Wardens killed King Cailan and nearly doomed Ferelden. They're sworn enemies of King Loghain!"
"I assume you weren't actually there, or you would know that it was Loghain that betrayed the king to his doom. And now, seizing the throne from his widowed daughter as well?" Harry snorted. "Shame, shame."
"How dare you!"
Harry really wasn't in the mood to deal with this idiot. This was supposed to be a good, productive day. His wand snapped into his hand.
"Avada Kedavra!"
As the man fell to the ground, his companions drew their weapons. Harry rolled his eyes and fired a few more killing curses to finish them off.
"Fuck, Harry," Sirius gasped. "What's gotten into you?"
"He was a terrible diplomat and we've got work to do. I don't have time for fools like that when we're trying to save the world."
Morrigan laughed. "Well said."
He grinned at her. "Thank you, my dear."
"Next time, at least leave one so that I can crush his head," Shale grumbled.
Author's Note: Well, people were happy to see Fawkes arrive last time, but I'm sure a lot of you are going to be disappointed by Zevran's fate. I actually really like the character- he's got a ton of funny lines and his voice actor did a great job.
But... when he attacked the Grey Wardens, he did have a death wish. And Harry saw freeing Zevran from his guilt, anger, and pain as a kindness. In large part due to his past and his own regrets, but also, wouldn't the Master of Death see death as a release and not a punishment? Luna did recommend that Harry come to terms with his connection to the Hallows, after all, so...
Draw what conclusions you will. ;)
This was a bit of a transition chapter. I'm not certain how long the dwarven arc will take, probably several chapters. Hope you're all doing well. Till next time!
