Chapter 7….let's DO THIS! Yes…I'm strange.

Bioware owns Dragon Age. I own Saura. Score one for me!

Chapter 7:

In the two weeks they spent together nursing the refugees back to health, Saura learned bits and pieces of Fenris' past. She'd been careful not to push him when he spoke of serving Danarius, because she knew the subject was literal torture to him. She merely listened and bit her tongue at all the sappy "Oh, I'm so sorry!"'s that were itching to escape, because she knew that was not what he wanted to hear. He did not want her pity. He was merely relaying a tale. She had already heard all the rumors of the man's past, but to hear it directly from him was completely different. The two were folding blankets side by side in the warehouse one day as he told his story.

"These markings are the first memory I have. I can still feel a ghost of the pain I felt as they were burned into my flesh." There was so much emotion behind his words that Saura felt her breath catching in her throat. She looked at him inconspicuously out of the corner of her eye to find his face void of that emotion in his voice. He kept his face completely blank. "As the lyrium was burned into my skin, it took any resistance I had away, and transformed me into a compliant slave. Danarius would force me to do the most inane tasks, and as a reward, he would frequently withhold my meals, or order me to spend the night out in the freezing rain…" Fenris trailed off, his mind completely lost in his tortured past.

Saura was at an absolute loss for words. What did one say to another when they've lost everything?

"Well, if I'd been there I would have kicked his ass." Saura blurted. There was a moment of utter silence in which Saura immediately berated herself for the comment. Nice Saura! Way to say the stupidest thing you could have said! Saura squeezed her eyes shut and wished to Andraste that she could take those words back. She waited for his explosion…but it never came! What happened next was so unbelievable, so entirely contrary to Saura's expectations that she gaped.

Fenris laughed.

Saura turned to look at him full and briefly wondered if he'd gone mad. His laughter started out as a few deep chuckles, and escalated into a true belly laugh, which seemed to resonate through her entire being as she watched in complete surprise. Her mind went blank as she watched him laugh. His face was upturned and his white hair thrown back, his eyes shut. But what truly caught her attention was his smile. It was absolutely breathtaking. It was at that moment that Saura decided she would make it her personal mission to make him smile more often, because he was so damned beautiful when he did so, it was a crime to withhold it. Saura found that his laughter was contagious and she began to chuckle as well.

"Oh, I suppose I should thank you for the thought," Fenris managed to say in between chuckles. " As absurd as it is."

"Hey, shut up! I'm trying here you know." Saura mumbled, blushing. He turned and grinned at her, still coming down from his temporary high. Her heart was threatening to beat its way out of her chest the longer he gazed at her with such mirth on his face. She was definitely sure he could hear it.

"I do not know the last time I've heard something so ridiculous." He chuckled.

Saura got up abruptly, partly to help the young boy she saw struggling to tie his boot strings, and partly to get away from Fenris and the strange way he was making her feel.

Fenris watched her go with a smile still playing on his lips. When was the last time he'd laughed like that? More than a year ago playing cards at the Hanged Man with Hawke, Isabella, and Varric. He'd had quite a bit to drink that evening and Varric had told the most inane joke. What it was now, he couldn't remember. But experiencing this feeling now…he didn't want to let it go. He'd watched the young woman over the last two weeks helping the refugees, and one by one they had recovered enough to leave the warehouse and enter the city. What they did from there was their own choosing. He had watched her the day before, weeping as she held the small girl close to her. He could see how much she'd come to care for the young girl, but the girl needed to go home to her mother.

"I can take you there myself! It's not that far, and I—" Saura began.

"No, Saura." The girl named Rosa said, wiping away Saura's tears. " I can make it on my own. Like you said, it isn't far, and you are needed here."

In the end, Rosa saw that Saura would not allow her to leave the warehouse alone, and had left as Saura slept, in the night. She left behind a note. Saura had read it that morning and had wept silently. Later, Saura revealed to him that Rosa had thanked her and hoped she would one day come and visit her at her home. She had left the address.

Fenris watched her now as she helped the last refugee, the teenage boy, gather some food in a pack and hand it to him.

"Take this." Saura stopped the boy on his way out the door and handed him 50 silvers. " Do with it what you will, but spend it wisely. And be careful. Write when you are safe and have settled." He thanked her, turned to go, but then stopped. He turned back around, kissed her quickly on the cheek and ran red-faced out the doors and into the city.

"You've got an admirer." Fenris said, coming up behind her with an armful of blankets. Now that the last of the refugees had recovered and left the warehouse, they needed to begin clearing out.

"He's a cute kid. He'll do well." Saura said this in a wistful tone that told Fenris she was already missing the company of their newfound companions.

"Where did you get the coin to give to that boy?"

"I didn't steal it if that's what you're asking. I helped serah Tellegan clean his shop front yesterday. I gave the boy my earnings."

"So how are you paying for your room at the inn?" Fenris asked, already knowing the answer. Her small frame seemed to deflate at the question.

"I'm….not." She admitted at last. " I wouldn't be at all surprised to find my belongings on the street by now."

"And yet you give your coin away so freely?" She turned to look at him at this. One eyebrow was raised as he looked at her quizzically.

"Alright, I'm not good with my coin. Satisfied?"

There was a pause between them and Fenris looked into her eyes for a moment before answering.

"I think it is admirable to give so much when you have so little." Fenris found himself saying. "Even if it isn't at all logical."

Saura sighed, but couldn't stop the smile from forming on her lips.

"Another backhanded compliment." Saura said grimly. " Should I answer it in the same manner?" She asked, raising her hand threateningly. Fenris smirked.

"No need. It was more compliment than anything else." He turned away from her, determined that she would not see the way she had somehow managed to break down all of his walls. He felt defenseless, and yet somehow… liberated.

Saura was astonished to find the innkeeper had kept her room for her. However, he did give her a friendly warning that if she didn't manage to pay the fees by the end of the day she would find her belongings out on the street. She promised compensation and immediately left to find work.

She arrived back at the inn several hours later, the sun had already set and she was tired, but happy to have made just enough coin to pay her rent. However, as she went to pay the innkeeper, she was astounded to find that her rent had already been paid through the week.

"Yes serah, a surly young man I must say…but who am I to judge your suitors?" The innkeeper grinned to reveal crooked, decaying teeth and Saura chuckled at the absurdity of it. She knew exactly who had done this, and headed back out the door and down the street toward his place. Several minutes later Saura was knocking on Fenris' door and tapped her foot as she waited. Sure enough, moments later Fenris emerged with a bland look on his face.

"It's nice to see you too." Saura said sarcastically. " Can I come in for a moment?" Fenris shrugged and allowed her entrance. He stepped aside and she walked through the threshold into a large entryway, which led into an even larger living space. In fact, she could have fit her own room into this one several times!

"Whoa! Looks like I got the short end of the stick." Saura mumbled, stepping over a heap of dirty laundry. Indeed, the large room was littered with clothes and half-eaten foods. Saura lifted a brow at this, but made no further comment. Who was she to lecture about cleanliness when she was no master herself?

"Is there a reason for your visit? I wasn't exactly prepared for company." Saura turned at his bitter tone and realized he was in plain black trousers, and that was it. He held a half-eaten apple in one hand and looked over it at her suspiciously. Saura felt the heat rise in her face as she attempted to avert her eyes from his very muscular chest. The shining white lyrium tattoos spiraled delicately down his torso, and as much as she wanted to trace over the lines with her eyes, she looked away.

"I…I just wanted to ask you about my tab at the inn. I know it was you that paid it. And…well…" Saura wasn't sure how to thank him, and her mouth was drying up, making it very difficult to speak.

"I needed you within the city. It was my only demand, and since I knew you couldn't afford the inn, I paid it for you. I'm not ready to stop monitoring you." Fenris said in a matter-of-fact tone, and then took an enormous bite of his apple. Saura felt something inside her drop. Her whole body seemed to sag at his words, and she scolded herself silently for feeling so let down. She knew of course he wouldn't have done it out of the goodness of his heart. But she had fervently hoped he had paid her bill because he thought her a friend, and he did not want to see her leave. She sighed and forced down the sickening disappointment that threatened to drown her.

" I see. Well, I'll pay you back as soon as I can." Saura rubbed some dirt off her gauntlet just to have her hands busy and headed for the door without looking at him. "Thank you." She added, more out of duty than anything else. She stepped out of his room and shut the door behind her before he could respond.

Weeks went by, and the visits continued as usual-cold and indifferent. Saura made it a point to put a wall up between them since meeting him in his room that night. She realized she'd been warming up to Fenris considerably and knew that behavior had to stop or she'd get hurt. He obviously didn't consider her a friend.

One evening, Fenris walked into The Slaver's Quarters, the bar they had first met at, and found Saura sitting by herself in a dark corner with several empty shot glasses and a bottle of something he couldn't read from this distance. He strode up to her to find her cheeks flushed and an utterly defeated expression on her face.

"Here you are." Fenris grumbled. Saura looked up at him with far away eyes and a silly little grin.

"Hey Fenris! Sit! Have a little of this fabulous stuff with me!" She knocked the bottle over, but righted it quickly and held it out to him. He looked at the nearly empty bottle, which said The Wench's End in bloody looking letters down the side.

"Fabulous?" He asked in spite of himself.

"Ok, it's shit. But it does the trick!" Saura poured two shot glasses full of the noxious stuff, pushed one across the table to Fenris, and knocked hers back like a champ. Fenris set the shot aside and gazed at Saura with narrowed eyes.

"Alright, what's going on?" He asked. " You don't drink often. And when you do it isn't something so…wretched." He gestured to the bottle.

Saura's head was hanging in a way that told him she did not want to meet his eyes. There was a moment of silence. Then—

"What do you care? As long as I'm no blood mage or abomination I'm clean. End of story." Her voice was pitched in that low tone she'd used on him these last couple weeks, and inexplicably, Fenris found himself hot with anger. He slammed his hand down on the table, knocking several shot glasses on their sides.

"Damn it Saura!" He hissed.

"What?" Saura's eyes glittered in her fury, and stood abruptly, knocking her chair back in her haste. Fenris followed her lead and stood to match her. "It's true isn't it? Look at me!" She held her wrists out to him as proof. " No blood magic performed in the last Age. Promise. Now be on your way." She went to sit again, but he snatched her wrist out of the air and held it firmly.

"Listen to me." He ordered softly. Her wide blue eyes locked onto his and he fumbled with his next words. "Don't assume to know me."

"You've made it quite clear on several occasions what this is—" She waved a clumsy hand in the air between them. " And no offense, but I don't feel like hearing about what a horrible apostate bitch I am tonight. I have enough on my mind without that." Saura said harshly.

"Is that truly what you think?" Fenris asked slowly. He couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"I…don't know." She whispered.

It was at that moment that Fenris realized how very little space was between the two of them, even with the table in the middle. He could feel the heat of her body and smell the alcohol on her breath. He nearly gasped when he looked down to find he still held her wrist, although now he held her delicately as if afraid she may break under his grasp. He released her as if he'd been burned and watched her sink back into her chair, as if all strength had left her. Fenris knew he needed to say something…anything…but he was so bad at this!

"Saura…" He was searching for the right words to say. " You may be officially classified as an apostate, but I've seen you in battle on more than one occasion, and you've not once used your magic, where countless others would have. I meant you no disrespect in my suspicions. I just…in my past…" Fenris groaned and put a hand to his forehead in embarrassment. He was getting sidetracked. " Anyway, you helped me in the raid against the slavers when you were not obligated to do so. In fact…it took no more than my asking you to assist for you to join me. I would never have expected that from anyone else. You are…different. And on top of which, you could have let that slaver's arrow kill me, and you would be free of any hold I have over you. But instead you chose to knock the arrow away and save my life." Their eyes met at this, and he watched as her eyes widened. They had never spoken of this before. She hadn't realized he'd remembered such a thing… "You are a talented warrior, one that holds my respect. I do not look down at you in disgust. I do not look at you as an apostate, but a fearless warrior." Oh Maker, he felt like a fool sitting there beside her and saying all of this. He tried to ignore the thumping of his heart and the warmth in his face. He was thinking of how he had left out the most important part to this speech…that he did not truly feel he needed to monitor her. He could not tell her this, because he still needed an excuse to stay close to her. He was shocked to find that he craved her company. Fenris looked up from the spot he'd been staring at on the table and into her face, and all thoughts of embarrassment left him. A brilliant smile was forming on Saura's face, her eyes glittering now, not in anger…but with something else…

"I don't believe you." She said. Fenris held his breath at the words, unsure of how she meant them. " Say it again!"

Fenris blew all the air he'd been holding out at once, ruffling his hair as he did so. He stood to leave when a delicate hand seized his arm, somehow finding his flesh between pieces of armor. A dull pain radiated through him at the contact, and his tattoos responded by glowing an ethereal blue. The pain had him stiffening, but otherwise he made no other indication of the discomfort. The eerie blue light faded as quickly as it had come.

"Please stay Fenris. I'm joking!" He turned and she lifted her hand. The smile was plastered on her face, making her entire being seem to glow. Her eyes were still twinkling in a way that made his stomach clench rather uncomfortably. She looked so utterly…beautiful! Fenris nearly fell to the ground at the discovery. His eyes widened as he looked at her. She was pouring him a shot now, and was unaware of his scrutiny, but his mouth had gone dry. Yes, she was magnificently beautiful sitting there with her dark golden hair held up in a modest ponytail, tendrils of which fell loosely across her cheeks. The freckles that dotted her nose and cheeks were absolutely adorable, especially when highlighted as they were now in her flush.

"You have…freckles."

Saura's head shot up at his words and her face suddenly turned a brighter shade of red.

"Yes. I hate the blasted things." She was practically squirming in her insecurity. Fenris smirked.

"Really? I rather like them."

"Yes…well…" Saura needed an excuse to get out of his presence at once. She stood and gestured that she was heading for the bar for another bottle when she tripped on her chair and went tumbling to the ground. Only…she never reached the ground, because Fenris had caught her. He'd seen it coming a mile away with the amount she'd been drinking this evening, so when she began her downward fall, he'd been prepared enough to shoot out of his chair and catch her. He was squatting when he caught her, and her knee a mere centimeter from the ground. She touched her knee down to stabilize herself now, but found that both of her arms were wrapped around Fenris' neck.

"Oh…" Saura was looking into his wide green eyes that for once weren't narrowed in suspicion or anger. He was looking at her in a way that had her heart racing and her breath catching. The contact of her hands on his neck had lit up his tattoos again, but it was his lips that held her attention. Oh Maker how she wanted to kiss him in that moment…

Fenris pried her hands off him and jumped back up onto his feet as if she were a snake. Saura felt a pang of bitter uncertainty in herself as she watched the horror play across his face. Was she really that disgusting?

"I'm sorry. I get rather clumsy when I drink!" Saura stood and laughed uncomfortably. "Well, I'll go get us another. The clumsier I get, the more fun I'm sure you'll have laughing at me!" Saura practically ran away to the counter, to hide the disappointment and dejection she was feeling.

REGROUP! Fenris was inwardly screaming. What in Andraste's name was he THINKING? If he had let himself hold her a moment longer he would have kissed her! He just could not let that happen. If something were to happen between them, he knew without a shadow of a doubt she would eventually leave. He was too full of hostility and resentment that she would ultimately decide she could not put up with his constant darkened moods. And who could blame her? No. He needed to keep his distance. He was not ready for this kind of emotion, nor did he know how to deal with it.

"Here."

Saura was before him again, holding a shot glass out to him with a small smile playing on her lips. He took it without looking at her and downed it in one gulp. He savored the burn as it went down.

"I apologize. I'm acting a fool tonight." Saura said, sitting down across from him. Fenris smirked and took the opening.

"Not much more than usual."

Saura shot him a look that was supposed to be offended, but her eyes still glittered playfully, ruining the effect.

"Although," Fenris continued, pouring himself another shot, " I've never seen you so…"

"Drunk?" Saura supplied with a low, throaty chuckle. "Well, this is a rare occasion. You see, I've heard news of my father. I think he's now within the city."

"And that should lead you to drink until you can no longer stand because…?"

Saura sighed and shook her head. Her shoulders slumped and all of the energy he'd just witnessed seemed to be seeping out of her, leaving her looking sad and defeated.

"He blames me for the death of my mother." Saura said at last. Fenris thought back to their previous conversation about her past.

"I thought you said a Tevinter magister murdered her." He was searching her face now for some kind of clue, but instead all he found was a devastatingly hurt young woman. Saura nodded at his comment and poured another glass, sloshing the amber liquid onto the table as she did so. She downed the shot and slammed the glass down on the table. The noise echoed dully throughout the nearly empty tavern.

"Yes." Saura finally whispered. " But that didn't stop my father from placing blame upon me. You see—"

"There you are you filthy bitch!"

The coarse voice shot across the tavern as if it were a weapon. Those caught within its path froze immediately. The hatred weaved into every word of the sentence caught all by surprise and had the barkeep looking up from his cleaning in alarm. Fenris looked over his shoulder to find the voice had been directed at them. Saura however, made no move to get a glimpse at the source, because she already knew whom it was.

"Hello father."