"Honey bars," Maly exclaimed happily as Jaxon placed the tray on the table beside her bed. He chuckled at her childlike enthusiasm and handed her a mug of tea.

"There. We should be set for the rest of the night," he gestured to the tray and the piles of food, "I didn't know what you would want beyond the honey bars."

"You are very good to me, Jaxon," Maly sipped her tea and regarded him over the rim of her cup, "Why?"

"Well, I will admit to being intrigued by your lack of death," Jaxon reached for a honey bar and took a bite, absently chewing. He swallowed and shrugged, "Aside from that, you are interesting and well, I like you. That is why I am good to you, as you call it."

"I suppose you should hear my story before you go much further then," Maly's lips thinned as she stared into the distance, "You may not find me as good as you think."

Jaxon was quiet as she shifted in the bed to face him better. Her eyes were dark and haunted by the past. She sat her mug on the table and took a deep breath, readying herself.

"I suppose the story starts at Ostagar when I met Alistair. I am certain you have heard the rumors of our relationship," she waited until he nodded, "Well, they were true. Alistair and I were close," she snorted and shook her head, " More than that. We were wildly and stupidly in love. Definitely stupid on my part. I knew better than he. A mage and an elf could never be with a human, let alone the prince. But, despite warnings from Wynne, I let myself believe it would be different for us."

Maly paused, reaching once again for her mug. Jaxon saw how her hand trembled. Her tale hurt her, he could see that. But, he made no move to stop her telling. He had to know. Maly cradled the mug in her hands as she returned his gaze.

"At the Landsmeet, I had it set for Alistair to become king. He would have made a fine one. He was a good and honest man who cared for Fereldan. There was compassion within him, something that that bitch Anora lacked," Maly wrinkled her nose in distaste, "How I loathed that woman. But, I digress."

"Everything went according to plan! Eamon was so pleased, he was all but chortling as we retired. We all gathered in my sitting room, waiting to congratulate Alistair. It was everything we had all worked for. I was so happy. And then, he walked through the door."

Maly's voice trailed off and she shook her head. The lines in her face deepened with sadness. She swallowed and forced herself to continue, "Before any of us could say a word, he took two steps towards me and started talking. Such things he said, about how the nobles would never accept an elf and mage as queen, how he would have to find a queen to give him an heir, that we were finished. Even now, it feels as though I've been punched in the stomach. It hurt to have him toss me aside as he did, but," she raised her eyes to Jaxon's, "to do it in front of our friends, I was mortified. I didn't know what to think or to do. He had taken everything I had thought we had and dashed it upon the floor in that sitting room."

Jaxon reached over and took the mug from her shaking hands and set it aside. He then covered her hands with his, "You know, Maly, the records always said he was a fool."

She chuckled softly, "I had hoped not to see him until the battle the following morning, but it was not to be. We had to meet with Riordan. Seeing him there, waiting in the hall for me, was another blow. He refused to meet my eyes and simply ushered me through the doorway. It was there I offered to take the final blow against the archdemon."

"You did? No one speaks of this," Jaxon gasped.

"Of course they don't," Maly grinned at him, "I was the only one of that group left to tell the tale, silly boy."

"But why?"

"Because Fereldan needed a hero and Alistair firmly planted himself in that spot, the sodding nug-lover."

She made a face and continued, "I was prepared to take the final blow. I even wanted it, honestly. And there we were, on top of the fort, the archdemon floundering around, and that bastard comes up and takes the sword from my hands. He tells me that he loves me too much for him to let me die," Maly's cheeks flushed with remembered anger, "Let me die! As if he had control over me. And then, off he goes, killing the archdemon and ruining everything we had worked to achieve! The Thierin bloodline destroyed, Anora on the throne…"

"You still alive with your hurt," Jaxon spoke up.

Maly nodded, seeming to collapse into herself, the anger gone, "Aye, the hurt. He told me it was because he loved me, but honestly, I think it was because he was too afraid to be king and I hated him for it. His heroic act for Fereldan was the most selfish thing I had ever seen."

"And so, there I was, the only Fereldan Grey Warden left, alone in a sea of politics, doing everything I could to keep us afloat. The Orlesians came and that created another set of problems. The mages requested my help as well. It seemed every where that I turned, there was someone needing something from me," Maly shifted in the bed as she relived the memories, "And there was Avernus. He offered me a chance to do everything I needed to do, be everything people wanted me to be," Maly paused and sighed softly, "More importantly, he offered me a chance to forget."

Jaxon leaned forward anxiously, "To forget what?"

"That I carried something far darker than the Taint within me."