This is a direct follow on from a one-shot I wrote called 'Distraction'. My thanks to the people who've reviewed, story alerted and favourited that story. I have a feeling this story may be more than just a three or four part story... Enjoy :)!

Distraction part II: The Truth

Teagan Guerrin watched his immobile brother being healed by the circle mage. You could hardly call it healing when no response was to be had, Teagan thought dispiritedly. He sat with his head leaning against the back of the chair in the far corner of Eamon's bedroom. His thoughts drifted back to the person he had tried not to think about all day. No word yet again, no letter and no messenger. It had been almost eight weeks since Lydia, Alistair and the group had left Redcliffe to go and find the Urn of Sacred Ashes. In that time, Lydia and Teagan had written to each other, her saying where they were headed next so that letters may reach her. How long had it been since her last letter? She said they had just arrived at Haven, after a wild goose chase that had led them all over Ferelden. Three weeks, he realised. It seemed a lifetime away and he was starting to worry. He was debating sending some of the Redcliffe knights to track them down if there was no word by the end of the week. Just a few words maker, please he thought. Then he realised what he was doing and nearly laughed aloud. This woman has me praying for her! Maker knows what Isolde would say were she still alive, he thought. She would have dragged me straight to the Chantry, thinking it was a miracle at least one of her husband's family were religious.

The door opened and in walked Connor, his brother's son. In the almost two months since Isolde's death, uncle and nephew had grown closer. Teagan noticed the young boy beginning to flourish away from the overprotective wings of his mother. However, that didn't change the fact that Connor would have to leave Redcliffe to go to the circle tower. If Eamon didn't survive, Teagan would have to make that difficult decision. How different would he be from Eamon, sending Alistair away all those years ago?

Connor stood watching the rituals the mage performed and then walked over to Teagan.

'Uncle Teagan?'

'Yes, Connor?'

'Have you heard anything from Auntie Lydia today?' Connor asked hopefully, as he always did, every few days.

Teagan realised his thoughts were becoming maudlin and a darkened sick room was not the place for a young boy, even if it was his father who was ill. He stood and touched him on the shoulder.

'No letter so far. I promise when I hear something you'll be the first to know.' Teagan smiled. 'Now, how about that chess re-match I promised you?'

'Yeah! And this time, I bet I'll beat you!' Connor smiled and led the way out of the room.

'I have no doubt that you will.'

They were sat in Eamon's study playing chess when Alice, one of the new servants walked into the room.

'Knock Alice, please!' Teagan tried not to smile at Alice's haste as she came barrelling red-faced, through the door. She had only worked at the castle a few weeks and there was a lot she had to learn.

'Oh! Sorry ser, just it's a letter come for you by messenger. Ser.' Alice added. She curtseyed at the door and walked to the desk. Teagan took the missive from the nervous servant and waited for her to leave.

'That will be all, thank you Alice.' She curtseyed and backed out of the doorway, nearly tripping over the edge of the door on the way out.

Teagan opened the seal on the letter and he swallowed hard as he saw Lydia's neat script on the page.

Teagan,

We are coming back to Redcliffe. We have the ashes, having found the Urn. I hope that everyone in Redcliffe is well. We should be about a day behind the messenger.

Yours,

Lydia

'Well Uncle?' Connor said, trying to read the letter upside down.

'Lydia should be back tomorrow.' Teagan smiled.

Barely were the words out of his mouth than Connor cheered. 'Yay! Auntie Lydia and Angus are coming back!' He ran round the desk and hugged his uncle in such a spontaneous display of emotion that Teagan was surprised. There had been little enough for this child to smile over for the last few months.

'Bann Teagan, the grey wardens have arrived, ser.'

'Thank you Jameson. See them in.' It was mid-afternoon of the following day and Teagan had been waiting to hear those words all day. Now she was here, the nerves had set in. He was trying not to stare as Lydia and the rest of the group walked into the Great Hall. Blessed Maker, he had forgotten how beautiful she was. Although she was wearing her leather armour, her long brown hair was plaited and worn over one shoulder, providing the perfect view of her neck and décolletage. His mind began to wander before he realised that as the host, he was supposed to be welcoming the group.

He stepped forward and took her hand in his, bending to kiss her hand. He thought he felt her flinch at his touch. Surely not?

'Lydia.'

'Bann Teagan.' Lydia's voice was so icy, he raised an eyebrow at her quizzically. That's when he saw how pale and exhausted she looked.

'Auntie Lydia!' Connor ran across the room from where he'd been stood, and she crouched to hug him.

'Connor! Have you been a good boy?' Connor nodded.

'Did you bring the ashes to heal my father?' Connor said.

Teagan looked at her face, her eyes bright with sudden fear.

'We're going to help your father, I promise.'

Teagan and Lydia stood in Eamon's bedroom, watching the healer perform the ritual. For the first time in months, Teagan saw his brother respond. He let out a sigh of relief, not realising he had been holding his breath.

'Teagan!' Eamon's voice was barely a rasp. 'But where is Isolde and Connor?' Teagan moved next to his brother's bed, barely noticing Lydia leave.

'Connor is waiting to see you as soon as we've spoken.'

'And Isolde?'

'We have a lot to talk about brother.'

An hour later, Teagan stood on the balcony that opened off the Great Hall. He watched the town and the people of Redcliffe, feeling a pang of envy for the simplicity of their lives. He gripped the stone rail tightly, grinding his hands on the rough rock, using the dull pain as a way to drive out the thoughts of his conversation with Eamon. No-one should have to tell their own kin that their wife was dead. Nor how she died. He watched Eamon run the gamut of every emotion. He knew that Eamon and Isolde had not been close since her pious attitude and over protectiveness towards Connor had eroded their relationship but she had been his wife and Eamon still loved her, that was for certain. He had not seen Eamon cry since their father died when they were children so to see Eamon sobbing for his wife, although not at all unexpected, had been unsettling. He sighed and heard the door open to the balcony as he looked round. Lydia's eyes met his and she seemed surprised to see him there.

'Oh! Bann Teagan, I'm sorry I'll go.' Lydia looked shocked as if she had intruded on an intimate moment. She turned, her leather boots squeaking on the smooth stone floor.

'No, stay please Lydia.' He crossed over to the door. 'I don't want to be alone with my thoughts right now.' He could tell by the look on her face that information had surprised her.

'Bann Teagan, I'm not sure I'm such good company for you at the moment either.'

'I don't understand why you're suddenly so formal with me.' He opened his hands, wanting so much to reach out to her.

Her eyes welled with tears. 'I need to go. Excuse me.'

Teagan watched her leave and he sat heavily on a stone seat, his need to follow her extinguished by her iciness. What, by Andraste's holy knickers was wrong with the woman?

That night they held a dinner to thank the wardens group for saving Redcliffe and healing Arl Eamon. That had been no small feat. The group seemed in jovial spirits, although so far there was no sign of Lydia. Teagan was beginning to wonder if the dress he had put on her bed as a present had been too much, if he had scared her away. He was talking to Alistair when he heard the room go much quieter. There, by the door was Lydia wearing the emerald green dress he had gifted to her, her dark hair loose over the shoulders. He heard Alistair mutter under his breath. Teagan heard a wolfwhistle, from Zevran, one of the new recruits. He saw Lydia blush slightly. Teagan ignored the slight tang of jealousy and intercepted her.

'You look gorgeous in that dress.' Teagan said in a low voice.

'I.. Thank you but there was no need.' She said, blushing again.

'As the leader of the group who saved Redcliffe and who helped bring my brother back to consciousness, there is every need. I owe you a debt of honour that I can barely hope to re-pay.' He smiled and faced the rest of the group.

'Come my friends, let us feast. As my way of saying thank you for healing my brother and rescuing the town of Redcliffe, consider yourselves always welcome in Redcliffe Castle.' Teagan turned back to Lydia and put his arm out and she held onto it. He led her to the top of the table and pulled a chair out for Lydia to sit down. She nodded and smiled slightly. He sat at the head of the table next to her, in his brother's absence.

Leliana was sat to Teagan's left with Lydia on his right and Zevran and the rest of the group spread out down the table. Most of the group were in excellent spirits and due to become even more cheerful when they went to the Tavern after the meal. Teagan had backed out. As his brother's stand in, he wasn't sure he should go. Lydia had also decided not to go with them, claiming tiredness as an excuse. There were a few raised eyebrows as Lydia said this and some pointed looks in Teagan's direction but Lydia kept her eyes down. During the meal, she spoke little enough to be polite but not enough be friendly to him. He was puzzled by her behaviour, her change towards him.

While Lydia was talking to Zevran, he started speaking to Leliana and realised what an interesting person she was. He also understood very quickly exactly how much she knew about Teagan and Lydia's relationship, if you could call one night together and some letters a relationship.

'Your family knew Lydia's family, am I right?' Leliana said quietly to him.

'Yes, pre-Blight and poisonings of course. It's such a shame about what happened to her family.' He motioned towards Lydia who was engrossed in a conversation with Zevran about his past in Antiva. She laughed and Teagan found he was watching her ease with the rogue rather than his lovely companion. Leliana seemed not to mind.

'Lydia told me that her father and the Arl were looking into an arranged marriage for the two of you.' Leliana smiled a mischievous smile and ran her finger round the rim of the wine glass.

'Ah, I see where this is going, Leliana.' Teagan chuckled.

'Really Bann Teagan, I have no idea what you mean.' Leliana looked at him innocently. 'I simply meant to say that the Maker seems to have a hand in your relationship.'

Teagan looked at her sharply, not sure he had a relationship. Their conversation continued, moving onto other subjects. As soon as the toasts had been made and the dinner ended, he saw Lydia get up to leave, excusing herself as she walked over to the balcony door.

Teagan watched her go and was so deep in thought, he barely registered that Leliana had even spoken to him, until she touched his hand.

'Go to her, you both need to talk.'

'Lydia has made it quite plain she does not want to speak to me.' Teagan slumped back in his chair.

Leliana shook her head. 'I hate to break a promise to such a good friend as Lydia but I have a excellent reason. There's something you should know...'

A few minutes later, Teagan excused himself and walked over to the balcony door. It was still unlocked so he quietly opened the door. Lydia stood in exactly the same spot as he had earlier. She stared out looking at the town below, yet not seeing anything. Teagan closed the door silently behind him but not quietly enough as Lydia whipped round.

'Bann Teagan, please just let me be.' Her voice was weary but with a trace of anger. He felt his anger rise at her constant rebuffal of him.

'No, Lady Cousland.' His voice was sarcastic and hard. 'The time for you being alone is over.'

In the dimly reflected light from the hall, he saw her turn to face him as he moved next to her.

'How many times do I have to tell you I am NOT Lady Cousland!' Her voice rose as they faced each other, barely a foot between them.

'And how many times do I have to tell you that Bann Teagan is only a title. My name is Teagan, something you were quite aware of when I bedded you!' He heard her gasp as he continued on 'Maker's breath Lydia, you can be so damn stubborn at times. Fergus was right!'

The slap when it came was hard and not, he realised, totally unexpected. I deserved that, he thought as the burning pain hit his skin in the cool night air. He caught hold of her hand to make sure she didn't go for a second round.

'How dare you mention my brother's name when I don't know if he's even alive!' Her voice changed to a pained whisper at the end which made him unhappy at what he had said. He knew he had handled this all wrong. His usual charm made him feel like a bumbling teenager around this woman.

'I'm sorry I shouldn't have –'

'Enough.' She wrenched her hand free from his hold and strode to the door. He had to stop her or they would never sort this out.

Teagan took three long steps and leapt in front of the door, pulled her resisting frame to him. As he kissed her, he thought she was going to slap him at first and she did say something but what she said was lost as they kissed. He knew she was enjoying it by the noises she was making so he moved his hand behind him and CLICK, turned the key in the lock.

That was when it dawned on her what he'd done. She pulled herself out of his arms and yelled 'You Bastard!' at him.

'Now, now, is that anyway for a lady to behave?' Teagan smiled, taking the key out of the door.

'Give me the key.' Lydia held her hand out to him and used her group leader voice.

'I don't think so. In fact, to make sure you don't escape I'm going to do this.' He walked forward and threw the key off the balcony. They both heard a splosh as it hit the water below.

'You idiot! Why would you throw the key in the water?' She rushed over to the edge of the balcony but it was far too late.

Teagan walked to the back wall and sat on a stone bench.

'I did it to make you listen to me. If locking you in a room with no way out is the only way to do it, then I will happily throw away as many keys as it takes.' He watched her pace the room like a caged animal.

'I can climb through the window.' She pointed above his head at the narrow pane of glass, the width of which would barely fit a skinny child, never mind a full grown woman.

He laughed. 'You'd get stuck.'

She threw him an irritated look and walked over to the rail.

'And don't think you're throwing yourself off the balcony. You're not getting out of this that easily.' Teagan watched her lean over the top of the rail as if seriously considering the jump, her long brown hair streaming out in front of her in the breeze. She walked back over to the door and rattled it again.

'Don't you think it's time to tell me what's going on, Lydia?' He said in a more kindly voice.

'Teagan, you can be so bloody annoying at times!' Lydia sat dejectedly next to him but not too close he noticed.

'Why didn't you tell me you collapsed in camp a few weeks ago and you've been ill ever since?'

She stared hard at Teagan 'Who told you?'

'Leliana.' He saw no reason to hide the truth and Leliana would probably confess her reasoning to Lydia.

'I might have known since you were so friendly with each other tonight.' Lydia leant forward putting her head in her hands.

'Why are you jealous, Lydia? I was simply talking to her because the beautiful woman sat on my right seemed to be pointedly ignoring me all night. What was I to do?' Teagan grinned at her jealousy and put his hand on the small of her back. She didn't move away this time.

'I can understand Leliana being worried about you. That's why she told me.'

Lydia wiped her eyes with the side of her hand. Teagan moved her curtain of hair gently away from the side of her face and tucked it behind her ear.

'It was about two weeks ago. We were near Haven when I fainted after tea in the campsite. That caused a stir and the next thing I knew, Alistair was carrying me into Wynne's tent.' She paused and carried on looking at her feet. 'We talked for a bit and she asked me some questions about my monthly cycle.' She blushed slightly as she said this. 'I didn't realise until then but... I'm carrying your child.'

Lydia turned to look at him. He wasn't sure he'd heard her right.

'Maker's Breath! Are you sure?' Teagan exhaled.

'I've been feeling sick a lot, I have sore breasts and I'm much more emotional than usual.'

Of course, he thought. That would explain her asking for water to drink instead of wine and the lack of appetite. Teagan had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach and felt as if he'd been punched in the gut.

'I need some air.' He stood up and walked shakily over to the balcony edge. He remembered that when he was younger, Eamon would tease his younger brother about his reputation, he probably had illegitimate children in every bannorn in Ferelden. Yet as far as he knew this was not the case. This was the first time he had ever got a woman pregnant. Out of all the people it could be, the Champion of Redcliffe too. All through a one night stand. How stupid he'd been! He rubbed his head as if it would magic the impending headache away. Yet if he was so stupid and he hated the idea, why was he also grinning inanely?

'I'll go. Forget I told you. You don't need to be involved in this child's life.' Turning round he saw her stand up and make her way across to the exit. He watched Lydia frantically trying to open the door, tears streaming down her face.

He walked over to her, dragging her away from the door. She sobbed violently into his chest. When her tears had subsided, he lifted her chin and kissed her hair.

'I want us to have this child together.' He held her head in his hands and saw relief in her hazel eyes. No having to do this alone, he thought. The how's and why's would have to be sorted out but now was not the time for that conversation.

She sniffed. 'I thought you didn't want to do this. I thought you were going to tell me to go. It's me who wanted distracting that night, remember?' Her words tumbled out.

He laughed. 'That's true but I didn't exactly turn you down, did I? We both wanted that night but we need to deal with the consequences now. That doesn't explain why you've spent the day avoiding me and why didn't you tell me sooner, by letter?' He admonished gently.

Lydia looked down guiltily. 'I wanted to talk to you about it. I thought we would be back much sooner than we were. Instead I've been thinking about nothing else except this child and us.' He saw her eyes fill with tears again. 'I was scared. As soon as I got here, I tried to harden my heart against you then if you rejected me, us...' Her voice trailed off in the night air. Then it wouldn't hurt so much, he added silently.

'I would never have rejected you.' He kissed her lips, slowly at first but quickly escalating into a long, hot kiss that made his heart beat faster. After all eight weeks is a long time to spend away from each other, he thought.

When they broke away breathless, Lydia said. 'Take me to bed, Teagan.'

He stroked her cheek with one hand. 'Are you sure? I mean, I don't want to hurt you.'

Lydia smiled and rolled her eyes slightly 'So far only you, Wynne and Leliana know about my condition. Last night in camp, Wynne made it quite clear that it would be safe for 'you and your young man to indulge', as she put it. Unfortunately, Alistair overheard. Wynne managed to convince him we were talking about cheese I think. His reverie about Redcliffe brie was most enlightening.'

'In that case, let's go and indulge, my darling and I'm certainly not talking about cheese.' He winked at her as they walked to the door.

'I hope you know where there's a spare key?'

'We don't need a spare key. I have the original.' He sat on the bench and began taking his boot off.

'But I saw you throw it in the water!' Lydia said surprised.

'You saw me throw something in the water. As a rogue, you should know that what you think you see is not always what's right in front of you.' Teagan pulled his boot off, put his hand underneath as he tipped it up and the key bounced off the palm of his hand and went skittering across the floor.

'Uh oh, now I need to find it...'