Disclaimer: I own neither Harry Potter nor Dragon Age, sadly.
Entering the land of the dwarves, they first came across a grand hallway with carved statues of the Paragons- famous dwarven heroes, renowned for bravery, invention, skill, and whatnot, those whom all dwarven society were meant to admire and attempt to emulate. There were a few guards as well as civilians who were paying their respects, if not outright offering prayers.
"Ancestor worship, hmm," Harry muttered as they headed further on. "I can respect that."
"It never would have worked in my family," Sirius scoffed. "Most of them deserved to be forgotten."
"Think about it on a larger scale though," Harry suggested. "The four founders of Hogwarts were still held in high esteem a thousand years later."
"Fair enough," Sirius allowed.
"It seems like a sign of a culture that is both stable and yet also perhaps too hidebound and conservative," Morrigan offered. "The dwarves have been losing ground for centuries. 'Tis said that they have less than ten percent of their original kingdom still under control."
"The darkspawn have seized much of the Deep Roads," Shale added. "It is possible, though unlikely, that other pockets of civilization may still exist. The dwarven Thaigs were all meant to be nigh impenetrable strongholds after all."
"Which makes it all the more worrying that so many have fallen," Morrigan replied.
"The swamp witch does have a point," the golem said. "Of course, that means there will be that many more foes for me to crush."
They were led through another large gateway and entered out into an enormous cavern which held an entire city carved out of the rock. A long road stretched out in front of them with two others branching off to the sides.
"Oh my!" Wynne gasped. "It is even more marvelous than I had imagined."
"Dwarven craftsmen are renowned for good reason," Shale said as they walked further inside.
A large number of dwarves were gathered in the middle of the roadway, right in front of them. It was easy to spot the tension in the air between them.
An older fellow with grey hair was speaking. "It is the Assembly who makes a king, and a king who nominates his successor. None of it is carried in the blood."
Across from him, a younger dwarf argued back, "Or as now, when someone tries to use the Assembly to try to pull a coup. Who's to say what my father said in his final hours when the usurper Harrowmont was the only one by his side?"
"I'll have you thrown in prison!"
"You've bitten off more than you can chew!"
A third dwarf stepped in between the two sides and tried to calm the situation. "Handlers, separate these deshyrs in the Diamond Quarter! I will not have Bhelen incite a riot!"
"You will not speak that way about the man who should be king!" A dwarf clad in silver armor standing next to Bhelen drew a rather wicked looking morningstar and attacked his opposite number. As he fell, the rest of the two groups split and ran off.
A different dwarf began loudly complaining about the whole affair. "Stone-blind idiots! I won't have fighting in the commons! Especially in front of outsiders."
"Too late," Morrigan whispered to Harry, who tried to keep his chuckle to himself.
"If I find that sodding fool, I'll have him in the legion," the dwarf continued to mutter. When Harry and company walked up to him, he grumbled even more as Harry introduced himself as the captain of the guard. "One more thing we really don't need now- Grey Warden business on top of all this nonsense."
"I would have preferred a less turbulent time as well," Harry replied.
"Just tell me who needs to have their heads stomped on and we'll get this all sorted out nice and quick," Shale offered with a grin.
"If you have one of the fabled golems on your side already, perhaps you are just the people to help end the stalemate," the dwarf answered as he stared up at Shale. "The problems all started with the former king's two eldest sons. The middle child was the public's favorite. It is said that he slayed his eldest brother in an attempt to gain the throne for himself, only to be discovered. Codswallop if you ask me. I knew the young commander Aeducan, and he was an honorable man."
"So, what do you think happened then?" Sirius asked.
"Well, it depends on which rumor you listen to and which camp it comes from. The Harrowmont story is that Bhelen set everything up and framed his brother, which drove our king to his early grave. And Prince Bhelen is quite cunning, so I believe that could be possible.
"On the other hand, he claims that Harrowmont is trying to cause unrest and that he poisoned his father against him. And frankly, Harrowmont is a wily old politician who has been a part of the Assembly for a long, long time. Could he have orchestrated everything to try to seize power for his own family? Maybe. In either case, it's left us in a precarious position."
"And the timing couldn't be any worse," Harry sighed.
"For you topsiders, maybe," the dwarf snorted. "A Blight on the surface often gives us a bit of a break. We've been fighting the darkspawn constantly, for centuries, even while the humans and elves have largely ignored them."
"I hadn't thought of it that way, but I suppose you do have a point," Wynne said. "Perhaps if we can help you now, it will allow some dwarven forces to aid us in return."
"That's probably the best you'll get, no matter which fool ends up on the throne."
"We should probably start looking around then," Leliana replied.
"And where better than to start looking for leads at the nearest tavern?" Sirius suggested with a grin.
"We could split up and look for multiple leads," Harry suggested. "We hopefully won't be getting into too much danger while we're in the middle of the city."
"That would be nice, for a change," Sirius snorted.
"Why don't you help me look around here?" Leliana asked Sirius. "We can talk to the common people and see how they view things."
"If you're interested in talking to the bigwigs that think they're in charge of things, you'll want to head to the Diamond Quarter, where all the stuffy nobles live," the captain of the guard suggested. He pointed the way out to Harry who thanked him.
"I'll go deal with the nobles."
"Would you like a little company?" Morrigan asked.
"I'd never turn you down," Harry grinned.
"Perhaps I should go along to keep an eye on the little mages," Shale said.
"A golem bodyguard will turn heads wherever you go," the dwarf added.
"Perfect for us if we want to make a strong impression," Harry agreed. "Thank you for the help, Shale."
"Then I suppose I will keep an eye on the other two youngsters," Wynne chuckled before turning to Harry. "Do try not to get us involved in too much political intrigue, please."
Harry laughed. "I'll do my best."
"Ooh, look how cute!"
Morrigan sneered at the cheerful voice of Leliana behind them as they headed for the stairs leading up to the Diamond Quarter. Harry felt it was hilariously on the nose that the upper class actually lived in the higher levels of the city, literally above the lower classes.
Once they had finished the climb, a city guard gave them directions to the Assembly where yet another meeting was taking place about the current deadlock, as well as the Shaperate further down the path.
Apparently, the Shapers of the memories there were not mere historians, but also those who watched over the societal rules and an odd sort of variation of a church, what with how the dwarves revered their ancestors and how obsessed with family lines they could be. Harry decided to start there as he was not in the mood for dealing with politics.
"I would worry if it was interested in politics," Shale chuckled. "The little mage should keep its mind on the battles to come."
"Whereas I would be more disappointed," Morrigan added. "From what I have seen, your abilities place you beyond what normal humans are capable of. 'Twould be such a shame for a skilled mage to play at the typical power struggles of the aristocracy, but even more so for someone like you, Harry."
"Don't worry about that, I very much agree."
The building they entered looked much like a library, only with many more statues and carvings upon the walls. As they began looking around, Shale bumped into a young dwarven woman.
"Oh, pardon me," she said. "Were you looking for a particular volume? Not that I could really help. I'm here doing research myself. You see, I'm doing research about my family."
"What about them?" Harry asked.
"I was searching for information about the Ortan Thaig," she replied. "It was lost during the last Blight, and unfortunately, there aren't many records left. But I know they were a noble house once, descended from the Paragon Ortan, who composed the grand epic of the Seven Brothers and the Ortanic Symphony. My mother's family believes they were descended from Kelana Ortan, who was training in Orzammar when the thaig fell. My name is Orta, and I'm even named for the house."
"It's nice to meet you, Orta," Harry said. "But I don't understand what you're looking for."
"Any records would be buried in the ruins, somewhere in the Deep Roads," she answered. "If I could somehow find those records, I could prove to be one of the nobles. My family and I would be elevated socially."
"And a noble that owes us a favor could prove quite handy," Morrigan smirked.
"I have been wanting to go into the Deep Roads anyway," Shale added.
"I'm sure we'll end up there one of these days," Harry sighed. "I'll tell you what, Orta. If we find anything, we'll be sure to let you know."
"Thank you."
They spoke with a couple of the Shapers there as well. One of them pleaded for help in recovering a stolen volume- he claimed that he had seen a bald fellow with a brand making off with it.
That led to the knowledge of what 'the brands' were- otherwise known as the casteless. People who all bore some sort of facial brand marking them. The bottom of the totem pole, families who could not claim a place among the warriors, miners, smiths, and whatnot. In effect, it was a group bound to lives of poverty, with crime being the only way many of them could find a way to better themselves.
"That seems a foolish thing to do," Morrigan said. "The dwarves are effectively making their lowest class that much more dangerous. Any cornered, starving creature is bound to lash out."
"You're not wrong," Harry shook his head. "I've seen it before. Such things are common across many cultures."
"Perhaps the swamp witch was right to suggest that the dwarves are stagnating," Shale added.
"Since they have so little contact with the outside world, I think that's pretty likely," Harry agreed. "I suppose we can't really put off going to peek in on the... what did they call their politicians?"
"The deshyrs," Shale replied.
"Right."
There were more stairs leading up to the highest point in the city and one of the largest buildings. The guards outside respectfully allowed them inside, marveling at Shale. Down a hallway, another guard bowed and said they could go inside, but warned them to be silent as they were only allowed to watch.
The nobles were already yelling at each other as Harry, Morrigan, and Shale tried to slip in unobtrusively.
Shale made that a bit hard to do, but the arguing covered up their entrance for the most part.
"Your mind has gone to dust if you think we should pass such a writ. Half our houses would go broke without the surface trade."
"The proposal is only effective until we have a king to ensure we are respected by the surfacers."
"Leaving you conveniently positioned to take over all contracts. I'll see your head on a pike first!"
A weary older man in the center of a large pit at the bottom of the atrium tried to calm the squabbling. "Deshyrs, lords and ladies of the Assembly, I've already doubled the guard to prevent violence. Must I summon even more?"
One of those arguing loudest responded to him. "Steward Bandelor, Bhelen's sympathizers are tying our hands with trivialities. They may as well open us to the sky!"
A woman cut in, "I suggest we put the matter to a vote."
"And I suggest you have a taste of my family's mace!"
The steward cut in again. "Enough! The Assembly is in recess until the members can regain control of their emotions!"
Harry and Morrigan stood out of the way as the dwarven nobles cleared out of the building while grumbling. Thankfully, there were multiple exits and no one came to blows. A few of them did stop and stare at Shale along the way though.
Bandelor came upon them and immediately began to apologize. "I'm sorry you had to see such a thing, Grey Warden."
"You know who I am?"
"Word spread quickly from messengers sent by the gate guards of a Grey Warden with one of the mighty golems as a companion," he replied. "No doubt you are here to search for more allies to help with the rumored Blight that has already reached the surface."
"Indeed we are," Morrigan answered.
"Unfortunately, you won't receive a proper hearing until we have a king on the throne," Bandelor said. "Right now, we are at a deadlock, and the city groans with displeasure at the chaos. I am left hoping that not too much blood will spill before we have a resolution."
"Is there anything we can do to facilitate such a resolution?" Harry asked.
"Your best bet would be to speak with one of the seconds working for the two leading candidates," the steward sighed. "Dulin Fuernder, Harrowmont's man, can be found at the Harrowmont estate. Vartag Gavorn, Prince Bhelen's second, is often here in the Assembly. I truly cannot say who would be the better candidate at this point, but perhaps the wisdom of a Grey Warden may be able to help Orzammar in our time of need."
"In other words, no pressure, little mage," Shale chuckled.
"This is why I hate politics," Harry sighed.
Bandelor grinned sadly. "Sometimes I do too."
A few minutes later, they were back out in the entrance hallway of the Assembly and speaking with this Vartag. He was a fairly young dwarf, clad in chainmail armor, and with enough of an edge to him that Harry would have guessed he'd seen at least some combat before. Not quite the spoiled noble he might have expected.
"Ah yes, the Grey Warden has arrived," he said. "I'm sure such a distinguished man could be of great use to Prince Bhelen, and thus would become a trusted ally. However, too many spies and assassins have been seen lately, so I would need you to prove yourself first, before I allow you to speak with the prince."
"What sort of proof?" Morrigan asked.
Meanwhile, Harry was using legilimency on a brief surface scan. Vartag wasn't exactly lying, but he certainly wasn't telling the truth either. And when he got to the 'proof' that he wanted, Harry knew he was full of shit. Harrowmont supposedly double dealing a couple of the other nobles- while seeming quite possible from what Harry had seen of politicians, Vartag was blatantly lying.
It was written deep in his eyes.
"We'll look into it," Morrigan answered a moment later as Harry nodded to her.
Taking a few steps outside, they were approached by the other faction.
"Greetings Grey Warden and honored golem!"
"I'm beginning to really like it here," Shale said with a smirk.
"Allow me to introduce myself, I am Dulin Furender, advisor to Lord Harrowmont," the dwarf said with a bow. He too was wearing armor, and Harry wondered slightly at seeing such a large amount of the city populace so well armed. "Word is spreading that the surface may be suffering a Blight. It is shameful that we are not in a better position to help."
"But perhaps we can do something to change that position?" Morrigan asked the leading question and Harry could have kissed her at that moment. Reading surface thoughts was even easier when he didn't have to talk.
"There is a Proving scheduled for tomorrow, and the deshyrs take it very seriously." Dulin sighed. "Unfortunately, Bhelen found some way to blackmail or intimidate House Harrowmont's best fighters into stepping down."
"If we were to solve this problem, surely you could see fit to bringing us before your lord?" Morrigan again prodded.
"While that could be useful, it would be even better if you would enter the Proving as his lordship's champion. With your order's reputation, I've no doubt the ancestors would favor you in such a contest."
Harry held back a sigh- the truth was more that Dulin assumed they would do much better than Harrowmont's own men.
And with Shale there, even ignoring their magic, he was almost certainly right.
But that didn't mean Harry was happy about having both sides trying to manipulate him.
The trio began their trek back down to the lower level of the city a few moments later and soon came across a burly red haired dwarf complaining to one of the guardsmen.
"It'll be two years tomorrow! By all the holy sodding ancestors, how can you people just ignore that?" he grumbled in a deep voice.
"Branka didn't go alone, Oghren," the guard replied. "She took her entire house with her. Except for you."
The redheaded Oghren scowled at the smirk he was receiving.
"So, why don't you just head on over to Tapster's and drown yourself."
This guard really was a smarmy asshole. Harry kind of wanted to slug him on behalf of this Oghren fellow. Of course, after all his years, he also had to admit that he was more than a little biased in favor of redheads.
None of the Weasleys could ever grow such a magnificent beard though- and Harry definitely had to wonder at how much time it took to braid the two longest strands as well.
"You think I'm afraid of some cub warrior who's barely off the teat?"
"You lift a weapon or attack a single citizen of Orzammar, and you'll be stripped of your caste and exiled. Even you can't be such a fool as to have forgotten. Now get out of here."
"Worthless bunch of sodding bastards," Oghren muttered as he left.
Shale sighed. "All is definitely not well in this city. If the one living paragon has forsaken Orzammar, we should note how bad it's gotten. Perhaps we should just ignore all this nonsense and head directly for the Deep Roads?"
"You may have a point," Harry agreed.
They headed back down the stairs to the center of the city.
"Hey, good timing!" Sirius smiled as they all converged near the stairway that led between the different levels of the city. "We were just having an interesting conversation with this young lady."
He motioned to a young female dwarf with short red hair. Harry chuckled to himself- more redheads.
"My name is Dagna, and I was hoping that you surfacers could help me get in touch with the Circle Tower at Kinloch Hold," she grinned and bounced on her heels. "Especially since so many of you are mages. You're so lucky! I wish I could change the very nature of the world just by thinking something and then... blammo! A bolt of lightning that zaps my enemies!"
Harry laughed. "Well, Sirius is the one who's been using electrical magic the most, so-"
"Unfortunately, dwarves cannot access the Fade, and therefore, are unable to use magic," Wynne explained.
"But I just want to study it," Dagna interjected. "We may not be able to cast spells, but we are more capable at using lyrium than anyone else. And we can craft runes that boost magical arms and armor on top of what our best smiths can fashion. So, really, I could be of benefit to the Circle as well."
"So, what's the problem?" Harry asked.
"The problem is that I've been unable to get in touch with anyone there who could give me permission to go there to study."
"You would become casteless then," Shale added. "Unable to return to Orzammar in the future, if you should do such a thing."
"It would be worth it to me." Dagna remained sure of herself. Harry liked that type of determination, and he hoped that she would feel the same in the years to come.
Leliana looked at him with a smirk. "We were hoping that you could... get a message to them," she winked, "and help fulfill her dreams."
Harry nodded. "Couldn't you do it, Sirius?"
"I haven't tried... um, that," Sirius waved his hand, "that type of magic since we got here. I'd hate to screw it up, especially since this place feels a little weird. Haven't you noticed?"
"It's all the lyrium," Morrigan replied. "It magnifies magical strength, among other things."
"I get it," Harry sighed and he turned to the dwarf. "I'll do what I can, Dagna. I have a feeling everything will work out, but have you considered exactly what this will mean? What about your family? Are you ready to leave them behind?"
"It's just my father, and he's never understood," she shrugged.
"I think you may want to talk to him one more time before you make this decision and leave," Harry suggested. "You could end up regretting it if you don't at least get a chance to say goodbye."
"But you'll help me?"
"I will."
"Oh, thank you, thank you!" she cheerfully tried to hug him. Harry bent down to accommodate her. "Janar armorers is my father's shop. It's just on the other side of the commons. You can meet me there whenever you find out... hopefully the good news!"
Leliana and Wynne were giggling as they walked off.
"I love seeing that sort of fire and determination in the young," Wynne said. "I am fairly sure that Irving will be pleased to let her join."
"It could help make the Tranquil less necessary too," Harry said.
"I understand why they bother you so, Harry," she replied.
"Someday I'm going to see if I can fix the whole damn process. I went to school with hundreds of children learning to use magic, and while some of them did turn out to be evil little bastards, the idea of ripping away their ability and their personalities at the same time is something that should be used only in the worst cases." Harry sighed. "But then, I am somewhat of an optimist, I guess. My last... student, I guess you would have called him, was just a boy when I found him. He had been captured by a branch of the military who was trying to see if they could mould young mages into weapons- child soldiers really. It struck a nerve with me. And after I killed the dozens of people responsible for what was done to him, I took him with me and taught him how to control and use his magic for the next several years. He turned into a good man."
"What happened to him?" Sirius asked.
"Several of us had set up a refuge, a place just for witches and wizards. I had cast the Fidelius charm, so you would have thought we would be safe, but a battle came too close... and bombs eventually fell."
"Oh... shit."
Harry shook his head. "I did tell you that everyone I had ever known and loved had died back home. But, my point was that a boy who had been tortured and experimented on still didn't lose control of his magic. I know things are different here because of the Fade and the Veil, but I am going to figure out a way to make things work better."
"You are very sure of yourself," Leliana said. "I hope you are right."
"I do have one big advantage over most people." Harry smirked, "I've got all the time in the world."
"Well, let's get off all this serious talk and head to the bar already," his godfather interrupted. "After all the people we've talked to today, I could use a drink."
"You go ahead, I want to check out Dust Town."
"Dust Town?" Sirius asked.
"The poor part of the city."
"Okay, well...," Sirius huffed. "I guess I don't need to tell you to be careful, do I?"
"I will go with him," Morrigan offered. "It seems like a good idea for someone to try to keep him out of trouble."
"We'll be back soon."
After they parted ways, Harry eventually turned to smile at his lovely companion. "You know I appreciate your company, but you don't have to make it seem like such a chore to be with me."
"I merely want to see more of the world," she countered. "Until recently, I spent basically my entire life in the Korcari wilds."
"You know, you could just admit you like spending time with me. It doesn't hurt to say something like that." Harry stopped her and stood right in front of her. "Morrigan, I enjoy spending time with you. There, now you try."
"Don't we have work to do?" she rolled her eyes. "Something about one of the brands stealing a priceless book from their Shapers. I wonder what sort of reward they'll give us. You probably should have asked that, you know?"
"One of these days, you'll say that you like me. In public even!"
"Keep dreaming."
Harry chuckled. "You know how you've been sticking with me here in Orzammar? We've been watching each other's backs as we've dealt with the various problems we've run into, and you know what that means?"
She walked past him. "I have no idea what you're talking about."
"It means that not only are we comrades in arms on this little quest to save the world, but that we trust each other."
Morrigan almost missed a step and Harry quickly caught up to walk next to her. He didn't bother mentioning the slight flushing of her cheeks.
"Maybe I just want to keep you alive so that I can continue to learn more magic from you."
"And maybe I just want to keep you close to me because you're gorgeous," Harry countered.
"Exactly. It is an exchange based upon our personal desires, nothing more."
"I suppose on some level you could say that's true about all societal interactions. But there is much more to life than such a clinical interpretation of things." Harry leaned in to whisper in her ear. "And I want to keep you close for a lot of reasons, not just for your beauty."
If she shivered slightly, neither of them said a word.
They were soon walking down a dusty path into the lowest part of the city. The buildings were much more shabby and ramshackle.
"No wonder they call it Dust Town," Morrigan muttered frostily.
"Yeah. I'm glad I don't have allergy troubles."
A bald man in leather armor saw them coming and immediately drew a couple of short swords. "So, the Shapers have even got a mighty Grey Warden doing their dirty work now? I won't tell you anything!"
"It seems we've found our man." Morrigan turned to Harry with a look of boredom. "Shall we kill him and get on with it?"
"I've a better idea." Harry drew his wand. "Imperio! Tell us everything you know about this volume you've stolen."
The thief immediately spilled his guts, including how his contact was apparently meeting yet another party to sell it somewhere in the Proving grounds. Harry dismissed him and told him to forget about encountering them.
"That is a spell I need to learn immediately," Morrigan had a gleam in her eyes.
"It's certainly useful. On the other hand, it was highly illegal where I came from."
"I can see why."
Harry shrugged. "Yeah, bad things happen when the wrong people have the power to dominate anyone's will. In the end though, it turned out to be too useful for me not to learn it- for things like what you've just seen. But, imagine if I used it to force that man to go off and kill others on my orders."
"You can do that?"
"I could," he nodded. "I generally try to avoid using it to do anything too awful."
"Is there no stopping such a spell?" Morrigan asked.
"It is possible to learn to defend against it," Harry replied. "Very difficult though, especially depending upon the caster of the spell. You need a lot of willpower."
"So, you could use it to make someone do-"
"Pretty much anything," Harry said. "I imagine it might not have worked on Flemeth, but..."
"But you could use it on me," Morrigan paled.
"I don't want to force you to do anything. Haven't I made that clear by now?"
After staring at him for a moment, she nodded. "'Twould seem so. You are a confounding man, Harry Potter."
"Thank you, my dear," he bowed before her and came up smiling. "I probably should cast it on you at some point, so you can understand the spell and learn to defend against it. That's how I learned to fight it off. Even beat out old Tom Riddle himself when he tried it on me, but then I always was stubborn."
"The defense is based upon the strength of one's will?"
"Yeah." He took her hand and kissed it. "That's why I have faith that you'll be able to put up a good fight. You are a very willful woman."
She took her hand back. "Thank you. Now, why don't we get out of this dump and go meet the others. Even I could use a drink after today."
"As you wish."
Author's Note: And so we begin the dwarven arc of the story! Orzammar is huge, so there's a lot to get to, including a ton of sidequests. And several of them offer some interesting little parts that I can throw into the story- for obvious reasons in Dagna's case.
And yes, we get our first look at Oghren- more with him next time. :)
Anyway, I've got several things I've been working on, but I hope the next chapter of this will prove a little quicker to write. On top of that, I've got the next chapter of True Auror which will probably be finished next and I'm hoping to have more of Does Voldie Even Lift done one of these days as well.
Hope you enjoy!
