Sorry for the wait, here is the next chapter. Thanks to Jaden Anderson for the review, hope there are less typos in this one :)
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He growled in annoyance when his arrow hit the dummy, several inches off target. Had it been a darkspawn it would have slowed the creature down but certainly not killed it. Teagan picked up and notched another arrow before releasing it. Again it landed several inches off. Ellenna bit her lip in an attempt to not smile, not that he could see her. It was early evening and what little light there was fell on the patio where Teagan was practising. She could hear the music inside where the rest of the Couslands and Guerrins were still socialising.
"I take it archery isn't your strong point, my lord?" she called, startling him enough for the next arrow to shoot into the bushes. He looked around and failed to see her.
"Up here," she called and Teagan finally saw where she was perched on the rooftop. He smiled when he saw her, which pleased her for reasons she wasn't quite sure of.
"Rowan was the archer, she tried to teach Eamon and I but we always preferred swords," he chuckled, a sad smile gracing his face at the memory of his sister. Ellenna waited for a few moments, unsure of what to say, before deciding to lighten the situation.
"Perhaps she saw potential," she suggested before hopping from the roof with remarkable grace and landing a few feet away from him. She walked over to the rack and collected one of her own bows. Returning to his side, she notched an arrow and sent it straight between what would have been the dummy's eyes. Teagan sighed in defeat.
"Glad to see someone can do it," he told her before walking towards the rack.
"And where are you going?" she called and he turned back to her with a look of confusion, "I don't intend to see your sister's efforts go to waste, my lord, come here," she instructed in a tone that would have been inappropriate were their families not so close. He did as he was told and stood by her side. He notched an arrow and lifted the bow. Before he could release it, she placed her hand on his and lifted it.
"Aim a little above the target and slightly towards the wind," she murmured, very aware of their close proximity and inwardly scolding herself for being so bold. Teagan took a deep breath and released the arrow, watching it sink into the dummy's chest. Not a perfect shot but certainly an excellent one.
"Your sister was right," Ellenna told him with a satisfied smile.
"Thank you, my lady," he replied, matching her smile.
Ellenna, in her weakened and delirious state, couldn't comprehend why she was thinking about that event. She heard the distant murmur of voices that she partly recognized. Her eyes were still shut as it took too much of an effort to open them but with the warmth that spread from the hand holding hers she knew at least that she was safe. Her mind tried to clear away the confusion, revealing flashes of fire and darkspawn. The shock must have made her shudder as the voices grew louder and the hand squeezed hers tightly.
"Ellenna?" she finally heard a clear word and recognized Leliana's voice. She managed a muffled groan in reply before attempting to finally open her eyes. The light in the room, wherever she was, was dim and after a few blinks she managed to open her eyes fully. What greeted her first were two rogues.
"Praise Andraste!" the bard gasped and Zevran put a happy arm around her.
"It is a relief to see you alive, my dear warden," the Antivan elf greeted her with a smirk. Ellenna attempted to smile back and slowly sat up.
"What happened?" she asked, wincing at the ragged sound of her voice. Leliana began her report on the final battle.
"So everyone's alright?" the warden asked with a relieved smile as she scratched her mabari's ear. Hero just panted happily, clearing having known all along that his master would be fine.
"Yes, though very concerned for you, our new King has barely slept, Wynne is rarely away from this room, Sten and Shale don't trust the guards to patrol this corridor and Oghren has stopped drinking."
"Stopped drinking? Maker's breath, how badly was I hurt?"
"Very badly, for a while we thought you wouldn't make it," Leliana told her in a quiet voice and Zevran gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze, "the whole country has been waiting for you to wake up, Teagan looked crushed when he lef-"
"Bann Teagan? He was here?" Ellenna interrupted, regretting it immediately as her head throbbed.
"Yes, he lead reinforcements to Denerim, he wasn't far behind us when the Archdemon was defeated," Zevran explained, "but Arl Eamon needed him to return to Redcliffe and he was very reluctant to go, obviously," he added with a wink and Ellenna wondered how much he knew.
"BY THE FLAMING STONE! YOU'RE AWAKE!" they all winced as Oghren bellowed upon entering the room. Ellenna greeted the red-headed dwarf with genuine warmth though queried her friend's sudden dry routine.
"Ah…ale don't taste that good when you got other things on your mind," he replied. Ellenna almost commented that he still drank when Branka was missing but instead accepted the hidden complement and smiled.
"It is good to see you recovered, kadan," Sten greeted after following Oghren.
"I hope I didn't cause too much fuss, Sten," she told the loyal Qunari to which he replied that such concern was to be expected. Leliana informed her that Alistair would want to know she was awake and the group agreed to head downstairs as soon as the warden was able to do so.
…
As they continued their journey up the King's Highway Teagan wondered if they had chosen too large a group. They had decided horses would draw too much attention but still he detected the rustle of leaves and echoes of growls on the wind at every corner.
"What are they waiting for?" Ser Perth muttered next to him while trying to keep his face neutral.
"The perfect time to strike," Teagan muttered back, his expression grim. Ser Perth returned his gaze to the road ahead. The men were becoming increasingly nervous. They were not a small group but not all were entirely recovered from the events in Denerim and it was becoming apparent that the darkspawn waiting to attack were large in number. Teagan's hand instinctively moved towards his sword and he was given only a few seconds to draw it before the darkspawn were upon them. There were more than even Teagan had anticipated and the group soon found themselves surrounded. He guessed they were one of the larger groups left from the horde that attacked Denerim. The swing of a knife dangerously close to his face brought Teagan back to the moment and he began to parry the blows that came his way. Three of his men were already on the floor bleeding and many others were struggling against the overwhelming numbers. Before Teagan could signal the retreat, however, he heard a blissfully familiar yell and turned to see men coming out of the trees and hacking at the darkspawn, all bearing the Highever crest.
"Fergus!"
The heir to the Cousland estate paced back and forth with his hands tugging at his shirt. Teagan smiled upon finding his best friend in such a state.
"Fergus, she's a woman not a wolf, you don't need to be so nervous," the young Bann of Rainesfere attempted to reassure him. Fergus looked at him and offered a weak chuckle.
"She's Antivan and rumoured to be related to a Crow, a wolf might be a safer option," the young man weakly replied. Teagan just chuckled more.
"This isn't a signed contract, Fergus, if you don't like her you don't have to marry her," the noble argued and Fergus appeared to contemplate that option until his father entered.
"Well, my lad, are you ready to meet your betrothed? She's a fine woman, you know, from a wealthy family, she'll make an excellent wife for you," the Teyrn of Highever commented happily before patting his son on the back.
"Not a signed contract, indeed?" Fergus hissed to a very amused Teagan who opened his mouth to reply but was beaten by the ladies' arrival. Eleanor entered followed by Ellenna with a very attractive woman on her arm.
"Oriana, may I present my idiot brother, Fergus," Ellenna announced with a wink for her sibling. Teagan expected to hear a retort from his best friend but found Fergus hadn't taken his eyes from Oriana. The Antivan woman appeared to be equally distracted by him.
"Fergus!" the teyrna hissed and Fergus finally remembered to bow, giving the offered hand of his betrothed a soft kiss. It didn't take long for the pair to find their own spot in the room and fall into conversation, while Bryce and Eleanor chatted happily with Oriana's parents. That left Ellenna to converse with Teagan.
"Your brother seems rather smitten, my lady," Teagan commented as he handed Ellenna a drink. She smirked as she glanced at the betrothed pair and then shrugged her shoulders.
"I knew they would be as soon as I met her, she's perfect for him," she replied confidently, "They'll be married within two months, I would wager my inheritance on it."
"All of it?" Teagan asked and she nodded, "That's very confident but I must say I agree with you, Fergus has met many beautiful ladies and none provoked a reaction like that," he added and glanced at his best friend who was now laughing at something Oriana told him.
"I suppose I should hope the wedding is delayed for as long as possible," Ellenna then commented with a sigh.
"Why would you hope for that?" Teagan asked with a confused frown.
"Well, once he's married off they'll be after me next, I doubt I'll enjoy the fiancé bartering any more than Fergus has," she explained with a resigned expression, "Mother's at it already but I swear if her choices so far are anything to go by then all the eligible bachelors in Ferelden are hopeless fools," she added and Teagan inwardly winced.
"All of them?" he asked quietly. She held his gaze for a moment before smiling and looking away.
"Yes…but with one or two honourable exceptions," she replied quietly, still smiling as her parents beckoned the pair over to join their discussion.
Remembering the other Cousland sibling hurt Teagan more than any injury the darkspawn were inflicting upon him. Turning his attention from the Teyrn of Highever to the task at hand, Teagan sliced the head off the darkspawn next to him before cutting down three more. The Redcliffe soldiers, buoyed by the presence of their new comrades, hacked at the darkspawn with renewed energy, assured that victory was near. Despite the turn in odds, the darkspawn continued their attack, only to be brought down one by one until the handful remaining saw sense and attempted to retreat. The rogues of each group finished them off with a few arrows to their backs.
"Fergus…" Teagan gasped in disbelief. His friend offered him a relieved smile before the pair hugged warmly. They walked a few yards away from the soldiers, who immediately set about treating the wounded.
"How are you here? We thought you were dead, lost to the Wilds…" Teagan asked and his friend's expression turned grave as he explained the attack on his scouting party, not just by darkspawn but by assassins he assumed were hired by Arl Howe. The villain's name brought dread to Teagan's heart.
"Fergus…your family…" he began without knowing how to explain. Fergus' eyes were filled with sadness as he nodded.
"After I recovered from my injuries in the Wilds, I gathered what few men remained and went back to Highever," he told his friend and Teagan knew that every word was painful, "a few villagers heard of my arrival and met me at the border…they told me what happened and urged me to flee from Highever before Howe's men found me…so we travelled, gathering what men we could find, we were on our way to Denerim when we heard you were nearby," he added, gesturing to the men that stood yards away from them.
"I'm so sorry, Fergus," Teagan weakly replied.
"They burned all the bodies…my wife…my son…I can't even bury them," Teagan placed a hand on his friend's shoulders when it became apparent Fergus was struggling to cope, "I should have been there with them…father, mother, Lena..."
"You didn't lose Ellenna," Teagan interrupted, though he felt his heart clench when he realised he might be unintentionally lying, "she survived Howe's betrayal and thanks to her Howe is dead." Fergus looked up in shock, hope sparkling in his unshed tears.
"Lena's alive? But Howe's men told the villagers she was dead with our parents," Fergus replied with confusion.
"He lied, Ellenna was rescued and recruited by the Grey Wardens, she was the one who defeated the Archdemon in Denerim," Teagan told him while the clench of his heart remained. Was she even still alive? Or was he giving his best friend false hope?
"My sister? A Grey Warden? …where is she now?" his friend asked the inevitable question.
"She…is at Eamon's estate in Denerim, she was…badly injured in the final battle and defeating the Archdemon left her especially weak…" Teagan explained and gave Fergus a moment to comprehend the information.
"Why isn't she at our Denerim estate?"
"Howe left it in bad shape, Fergus and she didn't want to be reminded of… She thought you were dead, she still does."
"Let me accompany you back to Denerim," he insisted and Teagan immediately agreed. Without another word they returned to their men and, once the injured were treated, recommenced their march back to Denerim.
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When she finally persuaded the others to let her have some time alone Ellenna used the stealth techniques she had learned as a rogue and made her way to the royal estate. Slipping past the guards with relative ease, she found Alistair in the landsmeet chamber, listening to Eamon's latest lecture on Ferelden politics. She smiled with sympathy and when he finally saw her his face lit up. Without a word he rushed over and lifted her into his arms. She chuckled as he spun her around and caught a glimpse of Eamon's curious expression. They must have looked like lovers. Alistair would have to clear that up with him at some point.
"They said you had woken up but they wouldn't let me see you," he complained with an expression that made him look childlike. She chuckled again and ruffled his hair.
"I needed a little time for my brain to start working again, we can't all live with empty heads you know," she teased and he gave her a light punch in the arm.
"You'll never guess the message I received this morning," Alistair told her with a smirk though his eyes were full of excitement. Ellenna offered no guess and his smirk broke into a wide smile.
"Teagan is returning to Denerim," he began, pausing to watch the barely concealed relief on her face, "and he's bringing a group of Highever soldiers he met on the road."
"Highever?" she gasped and he nodded.
"Lead by…Fergus!" It took her a few moments to comprehend what he had told her. Her first instinct was to not believe it but then her heart told her Alistair would never lie to her. When she finally accepted the news, tears began to fill her eyes.
"It's been so long…with no word…I finally accepted he was dead." Alistair pulled her into a warm hug and she sobbed with relief.
"They will both be overjoyed to see you recovered," Eamon told her. She looked into his eyes, saw the warmth there and suspected that maybe he wasn't oblivious to the truth after all.
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