~Mark of the Assassin Part 1, Wake Up Call
"You want me to what?" Valera yawned loudly, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.
It was the dead of night when Boris had just woken her saying that a golden eyed man and a red headed elf woman were in her home asking to speak to her. Golden eyed could only be one person. Garrett Hawke was seated across from her, a small table laden with tea and small sandwiches between them.
On this right stood an elf she had never met before. The woman was pretty in an elvan way, her eyes nearly white they were so silver. Her hair was red and tied back in a long tail. The leather outfit she had on was rather revealing and Valera found her eyes drawn to the woman's bunched cleavage, a tact the elf probably used to distract men.
Valera wrinkled her nose at the woman's poor taste in tactics.
Biting into the small meat and cheese square, Valera watched while Hawke leaned forward, a conspiring gleam in his eye. "I need you to travel to Orlais with me. I've been hired for a rather odd job and having someone who knows the court would be a great help. Unfortunately, Avalene is the only woman I know who meets said requirements and… well the thing is…"
"We need to steal something." The red headed elf input helpfully and hastily. She seemed in a great hurry, pacing back in forth behind Hawke.
"Why are you asking me this in the middle of the night?" Val asked, the sleep in her eyes not completely dispersed. She found the elf was really grating on her already taunt nerves. The scalding warmth of the tea helped to ease the weariness just slightly. "Couldn't it have waited till tomorrow?"
"We have to leave tonight if we want to make the tournament they're holding."
"Who else is going?" Valera asked, another sip of tea going down her throat, its burn welcome.
"Fenris. He knows a thing or two about the court." Hawke smiled ruefully. "Just us four, I want to keep it small."
"Ah." Now that he mentioned it she had seen the unfairly handsome elf standing in the foyer as she had passed. Setting down her teacup, Valera eyed the Hawke, hands clasped at her knees. "So the real question is, what's in it for me?"
"Do we really need her?" The red headed elf said to Hawke impatiently. Valera really didn't like the other woman then.
He held up at hand in her direction silently asking her to be quiet. "Any treasures you or I may acquire will be cashed and half the money donated to Anders Clinic."
Ah, low blow. Hawke knew she would do anything for the apostate. Valera clenched her hands and glanced into her closed fists. Her Templar salary was barely enough for her to survive on, if she gained extra money from this job Anders would be able to live comfortably for months.
"Just in and out? No alerting the nobility or the like?"
"We hope so."
"I'm in. Let me get geared up."
BREAK
~Mark of the Assassin Part 2, Flirt
"Manservant." Fenris grumbled as they walked away from the Duke.
Valera cringed, knowing how upset that probably made the fair elf. "At least he didn't take your clothes off with his eyes." She conceded, remembering the leer the older man had passed her way. Apparently, heavy plate armor and duel swords were a turn on for the old Duke. "He looked at me like a fruit he wanted to peel and eat."
"And what a tasty fruit you are. One I wouldn't mind peeling and having a taste of again." Fenris rumbled and Valera blushed and coughed awkwardly. It was no secret that they had shared a night (or two) when too much wine and liquor had been involved. Fenris though was now in a (sex-only) relationship with Isabella, but Valera didn't doubt they had room for one more. Isabella was apparently into that sort of thing.
"Are you asking me out Fenris?"
"Focus on the job you two." Garrett chuckled at the pair. "You can sex it up when we get home."
Talis just scowled back at Valera, quickly turning back to the front. The red headed elf had been passing her nasty glares ever since they had left her mansion a few days ago. It didn't bother Val in any way, she just figured the elf was jealous, of what though she had no idea.
"New sword?" Val asked Fenris conversationally as they walked through the woods, looking for wyvern bait.
BREAK
~After Hours
"How have things been?" Valera asked conversationally kicking her legs dangling off the side of a tall table in Anders Clinic. It had shut down just an hour ago, the lantern above the door snuffed out for the day. Valera had been making her evening rounds of Lowtown before slipping inside the Clinic just as the apostate had been closing the door. Not that she planned it that way, well not exactly…
Anders was cleaning the clinic as best as he could with such meager supplies. Many of the blankets were torn and covered with a variety of unmentionable fluids. Patient cots were worst for wear, many rotting, ready to collapse at any moment. The new oak desk that Valera was perched on was the only actual solid piece of furniture in the facility. Even then it was moderately made, its surface unpolished.
"Busy. Running low on elfroot potions, but other then that, can't complain." Anders grunted flicking a sheet to remove a layer of dust from the floors off its surface. "How's things upstairs?"
"Terrible." Valera replied, thumb rubbing at an invisible smudge on her leg plates. "Mother is getting more fanatical. She thinks every mage is a maleficar. Cullen's been protecting as many as he can, but he's only slowing things down for her. If she had her way, we'd cast the Right of Annulment on the whole city. I sometimes think that she forgets that she birthed a mage herself."
"How can you stand to let this happen? You know they're innocent." Anders asked finishing his cleaning, coming over to her side. He seemed to be taking the news rather well, no blue skin was showing yet.
Valera frowned, looking up at him. He stood taller then her even if she was sitting on the desk. "I have no power here Anders. If this was Ferelden, my voice would be heard. I was a somebody there. Here, I am but her puppet, used only for public relations. She won't speak to anyone other then Cullen and myself and we've tried to reason with her." Valera scoffed, flicking her gaze to the dirt floors of the clinic. "I can't stand to see her this way. It's like nothing exist but the evils in her head. She sees what she wants to see. I want to hate her, but no matter what she is still my mother."
"Val." A calloused hand cupped her cheek and tilt her chin to look up at him again. There was no pity in his eyes, how could there be when she was one of the people that had enslaved his kind since Andraste had marched thousands of years ago. Instead he was smiling at her, not Valera the Templar, but Valera the Woman. "Things will get better. Someday."
"Run away with me." She whispered suddenly, grasping his hand in her own. "Let me take you away from here."
"We'll be on the run for the rest of our lives. We'll never be able to live in a city, be married, have children without fear of the Chantry. Besides, a Templar and a mage run away together?" He chuckled, "it sounds like a bad romance novel."
How she wanted to say, I don't care about any of that. I'll run forever with you at my side. Anywhere with you is my home. Instead she said, "Heh. I guess so. An epic love story of a mage, who was once a Grey Warden, possessed by a spirit of Justice who falls madly in love with his captor, a woman who chases mages, a Templar with a twin who is the very thing she hunts."
"I might read it." Anders shrugged with a lopsided grin. "The mage sounds like an interesting enough character. I bet he's devilishly handsome too."
"He is." Valera felt her toes curl at his smile. Armored arms slid around his waist and pulled him close. He allowed her, stepping between her parted thighs, arms wrapping around her neck. Hazel eyes where taking up her entire vision. "Even if he is the thing she's not allowed to have most in the whole world. She still wants him. Every moment of everyday. And really wishes he would at least concede to move in with her where she can hide him away. Tie him up in the basement and keep him to herself forever."
"Hmm… why does that prospect excite me?" Anders whispered leaning in, their foreheads brushing.
Valera impatiently closed the last few inches between them, catching his lips softly. His pressed against hers more urgently, the kiss deepening immediately. Exploring fingers caught in her hair, pulling the pins free. Golden curls tumbled down her back like a waterfall. The world was tilting and Valera found herself lying on her back, Anders body covering her own.
The kiss broke, both taking deep gasping breaths of air. Lips crushed again roughly, tongues combating in an a familiar dance. The air around the pair was beginning to heat up, Anders magic going wild while Valera's templar powers suppressed the magic instinctively. It smelled of ozone and the spicy tang of magic.
Nimble fingers unclasped the metal buckles of Valera's breastplate, the metal becoming loose before being pushed aside. Her leg plates disappeared next, as she kicked off her boots in haste.
Blazing fingertips trailed the bare skin of her thighs, sliding up to grasp the taunt flesh of her backside. Anders gave it an appreciative squeeze, the templar moaning loudly in his mouth. His free hand trailed a path up her stomach and ribs, pausing to kneed her breast through the thin layer of her under-leathers.
Valera broke the kiss, gulping great amounts of air, plated hands rushing through his hair, snapping that annoying hair band in the process. His hair fell down in a red gold curtain.
Anders unperturbed, attacked the sensitive skin of her neck, licking and biting across her shoulders, stopping to suck particularly hard at the pulse point of her neck.
Valera moaned appreciatively, scratching his scalp, nails digging in in ecstasy.
"WHOA!" A sudden cry shattered the moment, both heads snapping to the source of the cry. Garrett Hawke was standing in the doorway, a large hand covering his eyes, the other held out defensively. "Sorry! I'll come back later!" He squeaked before turning to dash out of the clinic.
Valera couldn't help it, she burst into laugher. Seeing such a large man such as Garrett squeak and run away like a little mouse was too much.
Anders pouted above her, laying his chin gently between her breasts, hands stroking gently on the undersides of her knees. "What a buzz kill." He grumbled, a small smile on his face as he watched her laugh.
~END