"Claire, what's wrong?" Claire slowly realized she was in the Fade, and Anders was standing next to her.
"W-what happened?" She groaned at the headache, surprised she even had one in the Fade.
"I'm not entirely sure, one minute I was dreaming and then the next, I felt myself being dragged, only to find you here holding your head in your hands."
"The Tower is horrible, Anders, it's been completely infested with demons and there are hardly any people left, it seems. Templars and mages alike." Anders grimaced.
"So the rumors were true after all." He sighed.
"I am grateful more than ever now you escaped when you did. I couldn't bear to lose you." She grasped him and stared into his eyes. "Evan is fighting to save the tower, or at least the mages in it... I..." She blushed and wondered how she was going to tell him she rescued a Templar.
"What? What did you do?"
"I found Ser Daric. You remember him..." His expression grew dark. "I don't know if it was a mistake or not, but I couldn't kill him. I saved him from a Desire demon... I saved a Templar, Anders. The same Templar that tried to kill me, and I saved him." She put her head on his chest, not wanting to see his expression.
"You always have been too soft." He gave her a squeeze. "Did he say he was going to hunt you down still?"
"No, he was in shock, and he couldn't believe I would do what I did." She laughed. "I couldn't either."
He looked concerned again. "Are you all right? Do you remember how you got here?"
"Yes... I was trying to break through a blood mage's barrier and it drained me of my mana." She frowned. "I don't think anything will happen to my body, but there's nothing I can do about it either way. It won't wake up."
"Maker, woman, why must you make me worry so!" Anders clung to her a little tighter.
"I'm sorry." She said. "I don't mean to, but I can't sit idly by, you know that."
"Just promise me once this is done, you'll come see me?"
"We're supposed to be heading back to Redcliffe to save a boy who's been possessed, which is the whole reason we came here in the first place, because they needed the mages and lyrium..." Anders raised an eyebrow.
"You just told me that you saved a Templar who was possessed, and now you're telling me that you had to come to this tower, to get people and lyrium to do something you could do without thinking?" Claire wasn't sure if he was angry, disappointed, or what, but how would she explain that?
"They... I... I didn't tell them what I can do. I don't want them to know, it's too dangerous, and... and they had to come to the tower anyway, because of the Blight, so um, kill two birds with one stone..."
"You're flustered again." He shook his head and laughed a little. "Fine, fine, who am I to question my crazy woman? If she wants to charge into a demon infested tower to save Templars and risk her life for no real reason, that's her decision!"
She playfully shoved him, glaring while trying not to laugh. "Oh hush! There are lives to be saved here! Granted, I've only saved one and feel pretty much completely useless for once... but that's one life saved!"
"A Templar life..." The only response she had was to kiss him.
Claire wasn't sure how long it was before she woke up, but Anders stayed with her the whole time, just to make sure she would be all right. Finally she felt her body being responsive enough to wake up and was anxious to see what had happened. Oh Maker... Her head was hurting so badly she couldn't move, and her body was still too drained to heal anything. She listened for any voices, but she could hear nothing. Eventually she was able to reach into her pouch for lyrium and downed it, thankful for the relief it brought. She also downed an elfroot potion while she was at it and slowly got up.
Cullen was still behind the barrier, but he was staring at the door to the chamber, so she wasn't sure if Evan had come through yet or not.
"Cullen, was Evan here?" She asked. He turned and looked at her with haunted eyes.
"They're going to unleash blood mages on us all." He said.
"Evan knows what he's doing, have faith."
"They probably got into your head as well." He glared at her. "They get into everyone's heads and it doesn't go away..."
"I'm pretty sure I'd know if they'd gotten into my head." She grumbled, but he ignored her. She was about to try to make small talk when the barrier collapsed.
"Thank the Maker." Cullen said, taking a deep breath.
"Are you going to be all right?" She asked, knowing the answer better than he did.
"I will be better after all the mages in the tower are dead and the evil is defeated."
"Even me?" She asked. He frowned.
"I don't recognize you..."
"Oh, you're awake!" Evan said, staring at Claire as he came down the steps with Irving and the others. Claire smiled timidly. "We tried to rouse you, but to no avail, and couldn't keep Uldred waiting." Evan said.
"Yeah, I tried to deal with the barrier on my own. It didn't work so well." She said.
"Who are you?" Irving asked. "Another apostate?" She saw Morrigan made a face at the old man, but he didn't notice.
"Yes, ser, my name is Claire." She bowed. Wynne stayed silent, pursing her lips in annoyance.
"Introductions can wait, we need to get to the knight-commander." Evan said, glancing at Cullen. "Cullen..." But then he stopped and shook his head. The Templar ignored him, rage painted on his face. Claire followed them down to the main level, and she saw Ser Daric speaking with another Templar. Part of her wanted to just leave, but she was curious about him, about whether or not he changed his mind about her. She only half paid attention to Evan speaking with the knight-commander, noting it was pretty much the same as the game.
She noticed Daric had stopped speaking and was looking at her with a disturbed expression. He ran a hand through his greying hair and walked over to her, pulling her to the side, which made her nervous.
"I've had time to think about everything, or so I thought, but then I saw you and I don't know anymore." He gave an exasperated sigh. "So many years I've dedicated to being a Templar, to keeping mages in check, advocating to tighten the leash... not even viewing them as human... and you knew it. You knew it, and you still rescued me, and I cannot wrap my head around it. Why?"
"I suppose it would make more sense for me to have let you die at the hands of a demon, than to live and potentially hurt more mages..." She said. "But I couldn't. I hate demons more than I hate Templars, and Templars are at least human, and humans aren't all bad. There is good, too, and there is hope in that. Though trust me, I'm still struggling with my choice too, wondering if I'm going to regret it."
"I feel as if my foundation has crumbled away, at least in part, seeing something that goes against everything I ever believed in the face of such chaos." He looked sad and lost, and Claire was reminded again of how human they were.
"We're all human, Ser Daric." She said, cautiously putting a hand on his arm. "It's something so many forget, that we all have faults, that there are bad mages and Templars, and good ones as well. And right now, we need to come together more than ever to fight this Blight. We cannot afford to be divided now."
He slowly nodded. "It will take some time to figure out everything, but... thank you, for my life."
"After what you did... it was hard, but I guess I'm glad I saved you."
"I've gotten better over the years, I suppose now I'll have to reevaluate everything I ever thought I knew."
"Claire, we're leaving. Are you coming?" Evan asked, looking quizzically between her and Daric.
"You two know each other?" Wynne asked, perplexed.
Claire nodded. "We met... on the road about nine years ago..." She laughed awkwardly.
"That's a nice way to put it." Daric sighed.
"Take care of yourself, Ser Daric, and Maker be with you." She said.
"And with you." Claire followed Evan out, wondering what had just happened. The Templar who had instilled the fear of Templars into her at the very beginning, cordial and nice? Amazing what nine years would do. She could scarcely believe it, thinking it was all just some weird dream.
"I was unaware you were friends with Templars." Alistair said as they walked back to the camp.
"I'm not, not really." She shrugged. "He was the Templar who stabbed me and left me in the forest when I was a kid. But despite that, I still saved him from that demon. Go figure."
"You're a good person, otherwise Duncan wouldn't have let you stay and fight by our side..." Alistair had a sad look in his eyes and Claire wondered if he was going to cry.
"Apparently he saw more in me than I knew about myself." She laughed. "I think he did for everyone he chose, including you. I think before long we'll see the man he knew was in there, the man hiding behind the love of cheese and bad humor."
"Hey!"
"Got you to smile, even if just a little." She said, gloating a little.
"Speaking of cheese..." Alistair grabbed a bag near a tent as they walked into camp. "Care to join me?"
Claire decided not to follow the Wardens back to Redcliffe, since that was pretty basic stuff, and instead hung out with Anders as he went to Denerim. She kept in touch with Evan through the Fade, to make sure he didn't need her, but was otherwise content to laze about. It had been interesting, the first night she'd stayed with Anders. She'd been afraid of it, of what he might expect of her, while at the same time, wanting to go all the way.
He'd managed to find them a room in an actual inn, and she felt giddy as she closed the door behind her.
"Now that I have you all to myself for once, what shall we do?" He asked. Claire's mouth had gone dry and she merely shrugged.
"What does one normally do with one's love in their own private room?" She managed to ask. He smirked and gently pulled her to him, pressing her body against his. Pushing her fear to the side, she kissed him, and all the pent up energy that had been building between them exploded.
Between spending time with Anders and helping Evan out, Claire found herself losing track of the date. They'd finally healed Arl Eamon, and Evan decided to go to the Dalish for help. Claire made up her mind to accompany them mainly because she wanted to see the werewolves up close, but as they were wandering the ruins, it hit her; the spirit, trapped with its arcane knowledge, might hold the key to her being able to teleport. She wondered why she hadn't thought of it before, especially after what had happened at Ostagar. She began to look for it, wondering if it was real, or if it was a game only thing like many other things ended up being.
Eventually, Evan held it up and she had to contain her excitement. Unfortunately, she still had to wait until they were back at camp, after everything had been taken care of, before she could get the information from Evan. He didn't even question why she'd want the knowledge. Gaining that information spurred her on to make a goal of trying to find the battlemage abilities as well, if they existed. But, with the knowledge she gained, she might be able to work towards teleporting. It had to be a thing, she knew it was. She'd already done it, she'd just need to practice.
It was easy to practice while they were in Orzammar. She stayed on the surface, flew up to an isolated area, and began working on learning. The abilities of the arcane warrior were fascinating, and slowly she was able to understand how to do the Fade shield ability, where she basically straddled the Fade. All it would take would be one more step... just a little further... She could feel the Fade calling to her and after a while – she'd lost track of time – she slipped in.
There she was, physically in the Fade. She was elated. Everything looked different, though, and felt different. She'd have to be careful... there was no telling what could happen while physically in the Fade. She was reminded of the magisters who had stormed the Gold City, turning it black. Part of her wanted to see it, but she knew the corruption would probably get her and she wanted to avoid that at all cost. She decided she didn't want to attract any demons, and figured she needed to find out how to get out of the Fade.
That proved to be more difficult, something that was causing her to panic, especially with how hungry and thirsty she was getting. Calming herself down, she decided she would at least wander around in the Fade a little more before trying to open an exit. Despite her being in a physical form, she found a lot of the things she could do in spirit form were still possible, even bringing up portals to other places. Maybe she could find Anders when he fell asleep... She realized she had no idea what time it even was back in Ferelden. How was she to find him?
A wisp became curious about her and started following her about, and she mindlessly chattered to it, feeling small bits of emotion in response. It eventually grew bored and disappeared. She began thinking it wouldn't be a good idea to find Anders. What would it be like to see a dreamer? Could she touch them? Would they be physical themselves or like a ghost to her? She sat down and started contemplating how to get out. She went over the steps to get in, and focused on reversing it, pouring her will into it, wishing with all her might for a way out.
And there, after many tests, a portal out appeared. She quickly stepped through, not caring if anyone was on the other side. As it was, she found herself staring up at what she could only assume was Fort Drakon, and no one around. The sun was just rising, and she felt faint with hunger, and she could only wonder at how long she'd been in the Fade. Despite her experience, she was determined to continue trying, almost desperate to figure out teleporting. She found she didn't even have the energy to become a bird, and so wandered off to the marketplace to buy some food and drink.
As she ate, she wondered where Anders was. He said he was headed for Denerim, so she decided it'd be best to check their usual inn. The innkeeper knew them, and would be able to tell her.
"Hello, I was wondering if Anders had come back yet?" She asked as she walked in. The innkeeper didn't even look up at her as he grunted and pointed down the hall. "Thank you." She went and knocked on the door. It opened a crack, the Anders flung it open and grabbed her, dragging her inside before shutting the door.
"Where have you been?!" He yelled, taking her completely off guard.
"I... what?"
"It's been three days since you said you'd see me again and I couldn't find you in the Fade! You had me so worried!"
"It's been three days?" She gasped. "Maker... I... I'm sorry, I had no idea. I..."
"How could you not know? Where have you been?" He looked so worried and upset Claire wasn't sure she should tell him.
"I... well, Evan has to deal with the dwarves, and their king is dead, there's a civil war and stalemate going on down there, and I really wanted no part in it..."
"That's more than a five day trip." Anders wasn't believing anything. "But even then, you weren't in the Fade, did you not sleep?"
"Well, that's the thing, I... I was in the Fade." She cringed as he looked at her like she'd gone insane. "While with the Dalish, Evan discovered a class of mage called the arcane warrior, and they have this ability to step halfway into the Fade for a Fade shield and..."
"And you went all the way." His eyes widened in horror. "You went into the Fade, physically. Do you have any idea how dangerous that is?"
"More than ever, especially now." She said. "It took me a long time to figure out how to get out. I was going mad from no food or drink, and I suppose I didn't even sleep. I don't even know if time passes normally there or not."
"Please, love, don't... don't try it again. Please." She hugged him tight.
"I think I learned." She laughed. She wasn't going to promise anything, she had to keep trying, but she didn't want him to worry. She had learned, learned exactly what she needed to to figure out success. It would take a lot of practicing. He kissed her.
"I've finally found something the Templars can't take away, and yet the biggest threat to yourself, is yourself! I can't protect you from you." He said.
"I know, and I honestly am trying not to kill myself, but what would you have me do, sit in a room all day doing nothing?" She laughed.
"If it means keeping you to myself, then yes." He kissed her again.
"After the dwarves, all that's left are the humans." Claire said. "Evan will be going back to Redcliffe, where Arl Eamon will give the call to march for Denerim to call the Landsmeet. Then... we'll see."
"And you're still insistent on helping."
"I need to protect you, and the land you live in, so that we may be able to live in peace for once. But, if it helps, I'll keep you company for even longer, since I lost three days."