He is a morning person. Of course he is. Dorian hummed as he bustled around the room. Picking a pen up, putting the pen down a centimetre from its original spot. Pace, pace, pace, back and forwards, opening cupboards, sighing, before closing them again. His head was running off thoughts a mile a minute, attempting to figure out what his former mentor was planning. Theories rushed through, only to be discarded a minute later. He was missing something, he knew but neither of us can figure out what.
I groaned and dragged my ass into a sitting position.
"Ah, you are finally awake," he said cheerfully.
"Apparently so," I ran a hand along my face, noting the stubble there with no small amount of distaste.
"Your fearless leader has already read the report," he said, inspecting the fraying curtains now."I will be going back to your base of operations apparently."
"You mean you are coming back to Haven?" I repeated dumbly, he quirked an eyebrow at me.
"I did say that, yes," he smirked as I blushed slightly, just slightly.
After a much needed wash, we were back on the road. Lilia for some reason had fallen back to chat with Varric, leaving Dorian and I leading the group.
"Please tell me you know where we are," I muttered to him.
"You don't? But you have already come from this way," Dorian stared straight ahead. "Do you think they have noticed we have passed that boulder 3 times now?" I looked at the rock in question and shrugged.
"No, not really. Bull has been staring at your ass to even notice and although I can't read her, I am pretty sure Vivienne is planning her gown repairs," I have never known someone to worry so much about fashion.
"Not much can repair that atrocity," Dorian muttered.
"Well it is better than a sack,"
"Hardly, I am shocked a flock of birds have not mistaken her hat for a tree branch," I laughed.
Haven was as white and dull as ever. I never thought I would miss roads and pavement as much as I do. Their idea of a road was a giant dirt track, the only highway they have is the Imperial Highway which spanned from Fereldan, through Orlais, Nevarra and finally ending in Tevinter. Our trip had Dorian teach me the basics of the common written language, the alphabet that is.
"It is very… Rustic," Dorian commented, as we approached the small village.
"It is suitable for our needs, although a complete rebuild would not go amiss," Vivienne sniffed, looking critically at the crude buildings.
"Dorian, Lewis, I want you in the war room as soon as," Lilia said from behind us. I groaned, I am so not made for this.
I wrapped my cloak around me for warmth and trudged in the direction of the chantry with Dorian and his constant commentary of the buildings making me want to just throw him onto the ice. The village was bustling around as always and I nearly sailed straight into a woman carrying a crate of potions. She scowled at me and hurried on.
We could already hear the arguing the minute we entered the chantry.
"It could be a trap!" Cullen's raised voice became clearer, I lingered outside the door, unwilling to just waltz in.
"It is a trap, Lewis has found out that much. But we need the mages support," Leliana countered.
"Fortunately, you will have help," Dorian announced as he dramatically made his entrance, I rolled my eyes and followed him in.
The plan was clear as day. Leliana's spies will infiltrate the castle using the secret passage she herself had used so many years ago during the fifth blight, Lilia, Varric, Bull and Solas will go in first with me and Dorian hiding out. Something will go wrong, something always goes wrong, what's the fun in it just working like it should?
"We will leave tomorrow morning," Lilia announced, I held back yet another noise of disapproval, evidently not well enough as I felt Dorian chuckle quietly from next to me.
Once back in mine and Varric's room, I found another bed had been placed in the room, alongside a mounted mirror on the wall. I grinned; Josephine must have been listening to my mirror rant.
Standing in front of the mirror, I stared at myself. I need to be manlier. I tried flexing and immediately started laughing at myself; I looked like I was trying to dance to dubstep. Ok, let's try walking. It is not a mystery why Varric calls me Butch. I practically mince my way along. A second attempt at walking towards the mirror, no hip swaying, arms casually by the sides.
"What are you doing Butch?" I jumped a foot into the air.
"Oh, hi Varric," I managed, trying to calm my breathing.
He shook his head at me, "We are having a game of Wicked Grace, you in?"
"I have no idea how to play that," I am terrible at card games.
"I'll show you," he grabbed my sleeve and dragged me downstairs.
Dorian, Bull, Solas, Sera, Blackwall and Lilia were all crowded around a table.
"Ugh finally," Sera complained, shifting over on the bench to make room for me. I liked Sera, she reminded me so much of some of my friends from home.
"Ok, so what am I doing?" I asked.
I lost. Bad. I ran out of money pretty quickly so had to start on clothes. I am currently sitting in my smallclothes, red faced. Sera had long since run off with my shirt, I think it was hanging off a support beam a minute ago, I don't even know how it got there. I didn't really care either; I was enjoying the buzz from the mead.
I leant back in my chair and watched the others play, I had nothing left to gamble with and could not really see straight anyway.
"Hey, you alright Sparkler," I glanced over at Dorian who was glowering at his cards.
"Yeah, you give those cards a piece of your mind," I said, Sera giggled. I smiled at him as the glowering was directed at me. His thoughts were jumbled and fuzzy, either drunken people are hard to read or I can't do it as well when I am drunk. Either way, I have no idea what is wrong with him. Oh, Alexius, right.
I sighed and stumbled outside for some fresh air. The constant white on white was making me disorientated so I looked up at the sky and at the breach. This was apparently after it had stopped growing, and it looked huge.
The door opened, I glanced over to see it was Dorian.
"Hey," I said, going to sit against the opposing wooden outer wall. He said nothing and moved to sit next to me.
"Worried about Redcliffe," I asked. He looked at me strangely.
"You can' just read my mind and tell?" he answered hotly.
I shook my head. "Apparently it does not work so well when I am drunk." He nodded, his posture relaxing somewhat.
"Tell me about your family," he said after a few minutes silence.
"Not much to say really. I don't remember much of anything before they found me on the Storm Coast," I said dryly.
"You sound Fereldan, You not being able to read would suggest a lower class family, yes?" I gave a short laugh. It would make sense I suppose, my own accent fits the Fereldan one closely I would imagine, at home I am working class which I guess is their equivalent of a place to live with a minor job. For a very long time I was homeless, no homeless shelters where I lived meant the streets, bus shelters and the like. Right up until my parents finally agreed for me to come back home.
"Probably," I said, letting him draw his own conclusions. "I mean it would make sense, right?"
Dorian nodded, he looked back up to the sky, playing with his moustache.
We sat there like that for a while. I have always been a lightweight; one benefit of this is that you sober up just as quick as you got drunk. By the time we dragged ourselves inside I had the beginnings of a pretty decent hangover forming.
I wondered to my room and gracelessly face-planted the mattress and fell asleep.
Redcliffe was much how we left it, just with a few more angry looking mages. Dorian and I had followed Leliana's agents and were hanging around near the back of the main hall.
"They know about the Venatori, father," Felix was saying, cutting over the magister.
"Felix, what have you done?" He looked at his son in shock. I looked at Felix, he looked older than what he actually was, his face lined and tired.
"Your son is concerned about you. He said you might be involved with something terrible," Lilia tried, taking the nicer approach than what I would have.
"So says the thief. You are trying to turn my son against me. Do you think that would work? You walk here with a stolen mark that you do not understand and you think that you are in control? You are nothing but a mistake." He sneered the last bit in anger.
"What is it supposed to be then?" Lilia pushed, a confused expression crossing her face.
"It belongs to someone much greater than you. You would not even begin to be able to understand its true purpose," he said. I wished he was not so far away that I could not hear his thoughts. On the other hand I really don't want to know.
"Father, listen to yourself. Do you know what you sound like?" Felix interjected.
"He sounds like every villainous cliché everyone down south expects us to be," Dorian came out from the shadows and into the main hall, I swore quietly and followed him out, why must he always make such a dramatic entrance? Does he even know he does it?
"Dorian," the Alexius' eyes widened in recognition. "I gave you a chance to be a part of this and you turned me down. The elder one has power you would not believe he will raise the Imperium from its own ashes." Well now he sounds insane, I thought idly.
"That's who you serve? The elder one? Who is he?" Lilia demanded.
"He will soon become a god," Alexius seemed a bit distant by this fact, a wistful look crossing his face.
"You can't involve my people in this," Fiona stepped forwards in anger.
"Alexius, this is exactly what you and I talked about never wanting to happen," Dorian edged closer to him in anger, I hovered next to Lilia. Leliana's agents were making quick work of the guards in the background; the Magister barely seemed to notice.
"Stop it father let the southern mages fight the breach and go home," Felix implored.
"He can save you, he promised there, is a way," Alexius' face turned desperate. I almost pitied him.
"Seize them Venatori. The elder one would have us undo the mistake at the temple," he commanded.
This was apparently the cue for the spies to finish killing all the guards, I noted looking around and watching them drop.
"Your men are dead Alexius," Lilia stated the obvious.
"You are a mistake," Alexius ground out. "You should never have existed." He pulled out an amulet and started a spell. Dorian, it seemed was ahead of us.
"No!" he dived across the room and flung out his arm, placing himself in front of Lilia and I. She grabbed my arm as a flash of green light filled the room.
Well great, it's wet again. I pushed myself up into a sitting position. That metallic taste in the air is back but so much stronger. There is magic everywhere. I looked around me for Dorian and Lilia and found them both still unconscious in the water.
"Blood of the elder one, how did they get in here?" My eyes widened as they focused on two Venatori soldiers, pulling swords from their back. I looked around frantically for a weapon. Not much here, we were in a dungeon. The two had come in and one locked the door behind him, putting the key in his pocket.
I edged closer to my companions in a fruitless attempt to protect them. What could I do? We survived all of this and now we are going to die regardless.
They charged. I screamed and flung out my hand. There was so much magic in their air, the metallic taste became almost overwhelming. A scorching heat filled the cell, I felt one of my companions shift behind me and a shimmering barrier materialised in front of us, protecting us from the heat. I stared in horror as the fire that had appeared dissipated and two charred corpses fell to the floor.
I turned around to see Dorian dispel the barrier and Lilia now sitting up and staring at me in shock.
"Please tell me you did the fire thing," I stammered out. He shook his head, still staring at me.
"My magic has never been that uncontrolled, or even that ferocious," he said slowly.
"Lilia?" my voice was shaking now. She shook her head mutely. So it was me. I curled up into a ball, my breaths coming in short sharp gasps. I did that. I burnt them so much they don't even resemble a human anymore. The smell of charred flesh filled the air and the sounds of their screaming, replayed in my mind. Dorian was afraid of me. I could hear his thoughts whirling around in his mind; I tried to tune them out. I tried to calm the choked sobs that escaped me.
"Now is not the time for that," I heard Dorian say from somewhere far away. I ignored him. I cried out in outrage as a palm connected with the back of my head.
"For the love of God, why did you do that?" I shouted at him, I ignored his confused look at my outburst and stood on shaky feet.
"We will figure out the mage thing soon," Lilia said calmly. "You didn't melt the key at least," she commented, picking off some black goo from the key. Eww.
"Well now we figure out where we are, yes?" Dorian said briskly.
You see, this is why I prefer to spend my days sleeping.
Whew, that was a longer one than normal. Apologies for not updating last week! Those days off were spent recording a DA:I lets play with a friend for his youtube channel. Message me if you want to see that.
But I have some twists in store for you guys, the mage thing is kind of important and should be fun. But we hit 20 followers *celebrates*.
Also thank you to EbonySapphire, Kitsu, Gemini-Fantasy, sandradee27 and debatable-cerealkiller for the reviews. Keep them coming! I'd love to know your thoughts on this.