I don't own Dragon Age or the mods listed. Warning: slight profanity.

Chapter 5: The Ambush/Traveling to Redcliffe (Part 2)

Malcolm kept watch, telling the others to sleep, when Leliana woke up. Leliana sat up confused as to why there's a blanket on her, until she saw Malcolm, still awake and keeping watch. "Hey. Still awake?"

Malcolm turned his head. "Yeah. Couldn't sleep. You were a bit cold, so I put a blanket on you."

"Thanks. But why did… nevermind. I remember why. But still you need your sleep."

"Not when you fall asleep. Not being mean, but if you fall asleep I need to watch over you."

"Why?"

"Because, you're my friend. I only have three friends left, and I will not lose anyone else." They sat in silence.

They continued on like that for a few days. Then one day, the group was walking, when what looked like a farmer ran up to them. "Help. My wagon has been attacked. Help me, please."

Malcolm told her, "Calm down. What happened?"

"M-My wagon has been attacked by bandits. The others can't get away. Please help us."

"Where? Where are they?"

"I can show you. Follow me please."

Malcolm unslung his Warden's Sanctuary and pulled out sword. The other's followed suite and followed the farmgirl as she led them. When the woman went around the next turn and disappeared from sight, Malcolm had a bad feeling about this.

When the group went around the corner, they slowed down. In front of them, there was a wagon destroyed and a few bodies, but the girl was not in sight. Malcolm heard something to the left. When he looked, a tree was falling. Without thinking, he grabbed the nearest person, Leliana, and dived to get clear and cover them both with his shield. He then turned around and saw the girl, with electricity coil up her arms, standing behind an elf. As the elf pulled out his sword and dagger, he yelled, "The Grey Wardens die here!"

'Of course. It was a little too convenient. But I should have known she was a mage,' Malcolm thought to himself. As he got up, he told the group, "Need him alive. Alistair, mage." He saw movement out of the corner of his eye. He covered him and Leliana with his shield, as arrows rained down on his position. "Halia, Leliana, archers."

When there was a pause in the arrows, he rolled away from Leliana and at the hostile elf. He got up and parried the sword attack. "Agh." He got a cut on his sword-arm from the dagger, however it wasn't enough to make him drop his sword. He blocked another sword strike with his shield, and dodged the dagger this time. He couldn't come up with a plan to disable the elf, even though he has some practice, he just wasn't used to fight someone dual wielding weapons, so the best he can do is to play defense and learn the elf's attack pattern. Then an arrow grazed the elf's leg just enough to leave an opening, which Malcolm took and used the pommel of his sword and knock him out.

After the battle was over, Malcolm walked over to the elf.

Sten asked him, "Why did we not kill this one?"

Malcolm looked at qunari, studying him. "He has some information that we can use." He looked at the group. "Does anyone have any rope?"

Alistair walks up. "I have some bandages that we can use." He hands them to Malcolm.

"Good enough." He kneels down and ties the elf's arms behind his back. He then grabs the elf by his arms, dragged him to a rock, and sat him up. After a minute of waiting, Malcolm slaps the elf, who awakens.

"Mmm… what? I… oh. I rather thought I would wake up dead. Or not wake up at all, as the case may be. But I see you haven't killed me yet."

Malcolm slapped him. "Quiet! You'll answer when spoken to!"

"Ah. So it's questions you have for me, is it? While I do enjoy a good beating from a handsome brute, let me save you a bit of time and get right to the point. My name is Zevran. I am a member of the Antivan Crows, brought here for the sole purpose of slaying any surviving Grey Wardens. Which I have failed at, sadly."

"What are the Antivan Crows?"

Leliana speaks up. "I can tell you that. They are an order of assassins. Very powerful, and renowned for always getting the job done… so to speak. Someone went to great expense to hire this man."

Malcolm turned back to the elf. "Who hired you to kill us?"

"A rather taciturn fellow in the capital. Loghain, I think his name was? Yes, that's it. But it was someone else who brought me to him."

"Who?"

"I think his name was Who, no wait… Howe. Rendon Howe."

Anger swelled in Malcolm's chest when he heard the name, which showed in his eyes. He grabbed Zevran by the neck, threw him into a rock, and started choking him, screaming, "YOU SONOFABITCH! I'LL KILL YOU!"

Leliana, Halia, and Alistair tried to peel Malcolm off. When they couldn't do it, Halia turned her head to Sten. "Sten, help us." Mumbling, Sten came over and looped his arms over Malcolm's, and with the four of them, pulled Malcolm off. As Zevran slumped to the ground, coughing, Malcolm fought against Sten, with tears in his eyes. When he stopped struggling, Sten let him go and Malcolm slumped to his knees, put his hands on his face and started crying.

As Leliana walked over and hugged him, Halia turned to Zevran. "When were you to see him next?"

Still coughing, Zevran replied, "I wasn't. If I had succeeded, I would have returned home and the Crows would have informed Loghain of the results… if he didn't already know."

"Why are you telling us this?"

"Why not? I wasn't paid for silence. Not that I offered it for sale, precisely."

"Aren't you at least loyal to your employers?"

"Loyalty is an interesting concept. If you wish, and you're done interrogating me, we can discuss it further."

"I'm listening. Make it quick."

"Well, here's the thing. I failed to kill you, so my life is forfeit. That's how it works. If you don't kill me, the Crows will. Thing is, I like living. And you obviously are the sort to give the Crows pause. So let me serve you, instead."

"You must think I'm stupid. What's to stop you from finishing the job later?"

"I think you are tough to kill. So if I try to kill any of you, well, I don't think we would have this talk again. Even if I did kill you now, the Crows might kill me just on principle for failing the first time. Honestly, I'd rather take my chances with you. Besides, someone from your capital wants you dead, so you'll need all the help you can get."

Halia grabs a dagger and pulled Zevran up. After looking him in the eyes for a while, she turns him around and cuts the makeshift rope off. "We will keep our eyes on you, but you're right. We will need all the help we can get." She turns him around so he can face her. "But if we get even a feeling you're leading us to an ambush, I'll let Malcolm finish his job."

"Of course. I hereby pledge my oath of loyalty to you, until such a time you choose to release me from it. I am your man, without reservation… this I swear." He gives a small bow.

"Whatever." She looks at the sky. "We need to make camp soon."

Zevran starts to walk, "Of course. I'll go scout-"

"No, you won't. You will stay with the group." She looks at Sten. "Go find us a good place for camp."

"Very well." He walks off.

She then turns to the crying form of Malcolm. All Leliana is doing is just hugging him. "We'll give you some privacy."

Leliana just nods as the group walked away. When the two of them were alone, she asks Malcolm, "Hey, you feeling better now?"

"I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"Right now, I can only tell you one thing from my past, since it was brought up." She let go, and they both stood up. Malcolm walked to a rock and leaned forward on it. "Howe was the one who betrayed me. This, this is why I can't let my heart lead me."

Leliana walked up to him. "I understand that it's painful. You trusted him."

"Yeah."

"Malcolm, I don't know what I can say to help you, except that I'm here for you."

"Thank you. I just have to hope that I can get through this."

She puts a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, you will. Now turn around." He turns around. She holds a hand out. "Give me your hand." He gives her his left hand. "No. The other one."

As he gave her his other hand, he asks, "Why?"

"You have a cut on your arm," she replies as she takes his gauntlet off. When she got it off, she looks at the cut. "It's not deep or serious. But unless we put a bandage on it, it will get worse the more you use your arm. Come on." She leads the way to the group. When they got back to the group, she looked at Alistair. "Alistair, I need a bandage."

Alistair tossed her a roll. As she finished putting it on Malcolm's arm, Sten came back. "Found a place. Follow me." When they got into the clearing that Sten found, they started to make camp. Halia went to search for food, while everyone else kept watch and made tents.

After they ate, Zevran walked by Malcolm and Leliana on his way to Morrigan's tent. Malcolm leaned closer to Leliana. "Hopefully, Zevran will say something to her and be set on fire." Leliana giggled. "Say, Leliana?"

"Yeah?"

"Since you grew up in Orlais, you must know their language. Would you mind to maybe, I don't know, teach me some?"

"Oh, mon ami. Si vous prenez le temps, je pourrais vous apprendre."

"Really. I could only understand a little of that," he says teasingly with a smile, and playfully pushes her away.

She laughs. "Okay. So what did you understand?"

"Just, 'oh, mon ami'. Which is just, 'oh, my friend'."

"Okay. Repeat after me. Si vous prenez."

"'Si vous prenez'."

"Le temps."

"'Le temps'."

"Good. You're a natural. Now put it together. Si vous prenez le temps."

"'Si vous prenez le temps'."

"Good. Now, Je pourrais."

"'Je pourrais'."

"Vous apprendre."

"'Vous apprendre'."

"Good. Je pourrais vous apprendre."

"'Je pourrais vous apprendre'."

"Good. Now put it all together. Si vous prenez le temps, je pourrais vous apprendre."

"'Si vous prenez le temps, je pourrais vous apprendre'."

"Very good. So that means, 'If you take the time, I could teach you'."

"Really. I find out that you will teach me, after you made me say it!" he says again in a teasingly way, and again pushes her away with a smile on his face. Again, she laughs. "I swear, you women are too complicated." At that time, Zevran ran past them, with a small fireball chasing him. They both watch him, smiling, as he jumps into the small river beside the camp. They looked at each other. "Well, most of the time." They started laughing. When they were done, they continued to look at each other, into the other's eyes.

Leliana broke the silence and the gaze by looking at the ground. "You know, I… have a confession to make. I enjoy these kinds of nights. Quiet, peaceful, especially when we keep watch. The nights that we talk to past the time. By we, I mean mostly me; you just listen no matter what it's about. Sometimes, I fall asleep, and wake to find you still awake, watching over me."

"Well, I would be a pretty bad leader, if anything should happen to you. W-When it's our shift, I mean."

She looks at him. "Of course. You would hate to have anything happen to one of your friends. What I mean is… is that… I feel comfortable around you, like there's nothing to be afraid about."

"You don't have to be afraid when you're around me."

"I mean… we're friends… b-but… but… I feel that… m-maybe… we could… could be m-more. Maker look at me, tripping over my words, like an ill-educated peasant girl. Some bard I am."

"You're cute when you're embarrassed."

"I'm not embarrassed. I'm just… flushed because… of the… heat."

"I also have a confession to make. I feel the same. I have since our first watch. I want to be more than friends."

"Wait. Y-You feel the same. N-No one told me. You felt the same way! You made me say all those things! Why couldn't you say it first. Oh, you… oh, how very awkward…"

"Wait. I thought you were comfortable around me," he says as he gets closer, trying to keep the smile hidden.

"Well, yes, b-but… d-don't question me! I am a woman and I reserve the right to be inconsistent! Oh, chivalry is so dead. Making the lady spill her guts like that…" He didn't give her time to continue her thought. He brought his hand to her head, at the same time as he brought his lips to hers, kissing deeply. She was shocked just for a second, then she kissed him back, putting her arms around him. They couldn't stop, so after a full minute, Malcolm pulled his head away. "Well… I… hmm… I guess that settles it then." Malcolm smiles at her. "Or maybe, just to be sure…"

She went in for another kiss, a kiss that lasted only a few seconds, this time. As Malcolm and Leliana pulled away from each other, Malcolm says, "Now, that settles it." They smile at each other as Leliana grabs the hand that is touching her head.

"Well, someone is about to relive us, but just one more before…" They share one last kiss a few minutes before Halia and Alistair relives them.

Halia watches as Malcolm and Leliana walk away. She knew, or at least has an idea, about what happened between them. Alistair notices that she is thinking about something. "What are you thinking about?"

"Their behavior. Watch them." Alistair watches as Malcolm escorts Leliana to her tent then lays down not far from it. He shrugs. "Creators, you have no idea?"

"No, do you?"

"You are dense."

"Maybe it's because I was raised in stables when Eamon watched me."

"Wait, this Eamon raised you?"

"Did I say that? I mean the dogs raised me. Big slobbery dogs."

"That explains smell. Tell me more about your life."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

Alistair tells her about how Eamon raised him and even mentions his mother's amulet. He then goes on telling her about life in the chantry, and being trained as a templar, and about how Duncan recruited him, all while Halia just listened. "You know, I just told you about my life. I want to hear yours."

"Well, us Dalish are always moving trying to reclaim our history…" She goes into some of the history of the Dalish, about their religion beliefs, and more. She talks about some of her personal experiences, about how her and Tamlen met and fell in love, how they were about to be wedded a few days after the day they ran into the mirror.

She gets very quiet. "I'm sorry, Halia."

"Yeah. But I'm not the only one who's lost family. Malcolm cannot know about what I'm about to tell you. It's personal with him. I don't even know why I'm telling you. You heard of Arl Rendon Howe?"

He nods. "Yeah. He was the one who brought Zevran to Loghain."

"There's more. Malcolm is the last of the Cousland line."

"Wait. You're saying that our leader, is a lord."

"Not quite. This is what he told me. The Howes and Couslands were great friends. In fact, Malcolm's father fought alongside Howe during the Orlesian occupation. They were brothers-in-arms, as you humans say it. But, for some reason, Howe betrayed them and slaughtered everyone. His mother, father, sister-in-law, and even his kid nephew. Only Malcolm and Duncan survived. It's still a sore-spot so, just don't bring it up. Okay?"

"Yeah, don't worry."

"Thanks. He cannot know I told you. He only told me, because I went through something similar. But how could you not see that there is something between Malcolm and Leliana?"

"What do you mean?" Halia stood up and she walked off, while shaking her head. "What?"