Chapter 27

Notes: I'm alive! Right after my visitor left, I immediately started writing this chapter. Here's what happens next, hope you all like it!

Thanks to Lady Darksbane for her patience and for making the chapter legible enough to read!

Warning: If there are some of you who haven't played the Jaws of Hakkon DLC, here there be spoilers!

…

Beatrix's pregnancy was not a perfect one. She hated being told that she needed to rest, and hated that she was getting heavy with child. She tried to keep up with her dagger training all throughout. At least she thought she could. But when a couple of months had gone by, the size of her swollen belly made her change her thoughts about it all. She realized that she could barely walk, let alone fight. No fighting made her miserable.

However, she loved the child she was carrying fiercely and spoke to it all the time. Cullen would often arrive after a day of working at his tower or army inspections and would find her chatting away, her hand placed on her swollen belly, the look of tenderness on her face filling him with peace and love. There were times he also found her crooning to the child in her womb, singing lullabies to him.

Those times were the times when he wished time would stand still, to see the scene in front of him every moment and every time of the day for the rest of his life. He would certainly never tire of it and actually looked forward to catching her in those sweet, peaceful moments.

The Inquisition was still very active and there were still some rifts that had to be closed. They actually devised a way to close them that would provide safety for her and her baby. She would travel with her team and stand back, usually sitting in stealth until they had dealt with the demons, then she would direct her anchor to the rift and seal it. It worked very well, and since Cullen accompanied her, she was always kept out of the fight, no matter what. Presently, they had sealed all the rifts that had still been open and breathed a sigh of relief when it was truly over.

Exactly five months after Corypheus was gone, she gave birth to twins, making Cullen and herself the happiest parents in Thedas. During the birthing process Beatrix suddenly discovered that she was in her happy place. She had fainted since the twins had taken all her energy away.

"I knew you would come," Beatrix said as she turned to face Andraste. "I'm not sure why I'm here?"

"Exhaustion this time, little one," Andraste smiled. "You will be awake soon after our conversation."

"A conversation that is more questions than answers," Beatrix sighed, a frown following after she pursed her lips. "I don't like it when you don't answer my questions."

"If I did, you would not thank me," Andraste replied. With a shake of her head she sighed. "You have some time still. But the end will come, as surely as the sun shining in the sky."

"Poetical today, are we?" Beatrix muttered, her eyes flashing angrily for a few moments, before schooling her face back into a calm, detached look. "I don't want to die."

"Everyone dies, little one," Andraste spoke back, her yellow eyes sad as she looked deeply into Beatrix's. "I wish you were given more time, but know that you shall have a family in the distant future. That much is certain."

"Why do I even have to exist in this 'future'? Will I know my purpose? Will I remember all this?"

"Not at first, no," the Lady replied, her brow furrowing for a while. "I cannot say more."

"Would it kill you to tell me? I need some answers!" Beatrix's voice rose. "Why am I your chosen? Why do I come back to Thedas in the future? Am I needed there? Will I really remember all this? What about Cullen? I don't want him to hurt himself! He can't die after I'm gone…"

"Have faith, child, you and the man you love will see this through. The twins will grow to become great warriors. You should be proud." With these words Andraste disappeared right before her very eyes, and Beatrix found herself sitting up in bed, with more questions than answers.

…

Beatrix breastfed the twins for six months. Once the twins started having food along with their milk, they grew even faster, and the feeding times became a war zone with food being spit out, or flying across the room. Cullen enjoyed every moment of it, even though he and Beatrix had to clean a lot of the mess they made.

Soon, however, Cullen barely went through his daily routine with his army. He decided to delegate much of his work to Barris, which meant more time with Beatrix and the babies.

"How's my lovely mother today?" Cullen would ask every day he came home to their quarters.

"Doing better than you, dear father and love of my life," Beatrix always replied with a chuckle. Cullen would steal a kiss from her that left her breathless. He enjoyed watching the soon-to-be toddlers eating, marveling at the thought that these little ones were perfect in every way.

Even when they cried.

Still, Cullen would not change places with any man in Thedas, which gave an indication of how much he loved her and the twins.

When the twins were a little over a year old, a meeting at the war table room was called. Beatrix hurried to hand the twins over to Dorian, who was more than overjoyed to take care of them. They left their quarters waving at them and the Tevinter mage, while the twins decided to crawl or stand and take a few steps around their 'uncle' with big smiles on their faces.

Beatrix and Cullen arrived at the meeting slightly out of breath. Leliana and Josephine smiled at them, while Beatrix returned their greetings with a big hug.

"I'm afraid the news we have for you isn't as happy as you two appear to be," Josephine said with a guilty frown.

"Oh?" Beatrix asked, one of her brows raising in confusion. Leliana shook her head, but still wore a smile on her face, while Josephine sighed. "Shit! Don't tell me there's more fighting coming up!"

"We don't know, Inquisitor, but there may be some fighting up ahead for you," Josephine began.

"Josie!" Leliana interrupted. "Stop sugar-coating things. You know the Inquisitor doesn't like it."

"Neither does the Inquisitor's partner for life," Cullen reminded them, his hand clutching the pommel of his sword tightly. "What is it? Do not leave any details out, please."

Beatrix just frowned, her eyes looking at the table, noticing a brand new marker put on an area in the map that she was not familiar with.

"Frostback Basin?" she asked with a frown. "Are we fighting in such a desolate area?"

"We have received word from one of our 'agents' stationed there," Leliana began, but Josie looked straight at her and shook her head. Leliana closed her mouth accordingly and let Josephine do all the talking.

"We sent a professor from the University of Orlais to the Frostback Basin a while ago. He told me in a missive that he believed the last Inquisitor might be buried there. As you all know, our Inquisitor is not the first, and it behooves us to act on this."

"Behooves?" Cullen repeated with a scowl. "Just how does this help the Inquisition exactly?

"Commander!" Josephine exclaimed, her eyes as big as saucers. "You know very well that we are still under scrutiny. In fact, there is more scrutiny than there was before. The fact that the Inquisition may somehow reveal what happened historically to the Inquisitor may help us cement ties with Orlais. It could also relieve the stress between Ferelden and the Inquisition."

"There's bad blood between Ferelden and the Inquisition?" Cullen asked incredulously. "I can't believe that! We saved both Orlais and Ferelden!"

"Ferelden may need a reminder of that," Leliana smiled. "Even so, I suggest we focus on that when it becomes an issue. Right now, it's rumors at best. Nothing concrete."

"Inquisitor Ameridan and what happened to him is somewhat of a legend, is it not?" Beatrix asked her gaze on all three advisors. "He disappeared eight hundred years ago. I suggest we look into this."

"Of course you do," Cullen sighed. "What about the twins? I won't let you go without me. Are you thinking of leaving our children behind?"

"Of course not! There has to be a main camp settled before we travel. We can take the twins and everything we need there. Have them build some sort of cabin for our stay there. I doubt it will take long to investigate and discover what really happened to Inquisitor Ameridan."

"Hmmm. It could be made even safer if the main camp were enclosed by a good strong fence to keep predators out," Cullen added with a smile. "The cabin would lend us some privacy as well. It could include all that we need for our own necessities as well as the twins. I'll send some of my best soldiers and Master Gatsi to oversee the work. I suggest we wait for it to be completed before actually heading out."

"Agreed," Beatrix smiled. "This means I have some training to do. I'm a bit rusty, I'm afraid."

Both Leliana and Josie grinned at Beatrix's statement, while Cullen gave a bark of a laugh.

"I'll be more than happy to ensure your…training…is complete before we leave," Cullen nearly purred. Josie blushed while Leliana burst out laughing.

Beatrix beamed up at her Commander. She loved this bold side of him.

"I wouldn't wish it any other way," she commented in a sultry voice.

…

A whole two months passed before they could set out to the Frostback Basin. It wasn't far from Skyhold at all, and the trip was uneventful. Beatrix sat in a carriage with Dorian and the twins, the rest of her Inner Circle rode on horseback. Cullen was right next to the carriage on horseback and had arranged for twenty soldiers from his army to travel with them. Leliana and Josephine remained behind.

It took them two days to reach the basin, and only because they had to stop to ensure the twins have baths and regular meals. Beatrix rested while Cullen looked after the children while they camped.

The day they arrived they were immediately struck by the beaches and vegetation growing alongside it. The whole place was extremely jungle-like and lots of flowers and trees all around, which suited Beatrix just fine.

The whole main camp was enclosed, the high wooden fence secure and strong. They passed under the gates and everyone dismounted with Master Gatsi meeting them before they climbed steps to what resembled a hill in the enclosure. Scout Harding met them along the way and filled them in on their present situation. She also introduced the Chantry Scholar, Professor Bram Kenric.

Beatrix and Cullen's lodgings were a dream come true. They not only boasted working water faucets and a huge stone tub, but also had drains for when they finished their baths or washed up. The system had been designed in its entirety by Gatsi, taking water from the lake by underground pipes. Gatsi himself had also built the small house into the most resilient one there, with stone foundations and everything. Both Cullen and Beatrix had a bedroom with a large bed and the twins' room was through a door on the right. They turned with wide eyes and both thanked Gatsi at the same time, while the dwarf burst out laughing at their faces and beamed proudly at them.

They hurried to place the twins in the house, with Dorian and Scout Harding to look after them and walked to the cabin next to their home, which was occupied by Kenric.

"Professor Kenric," Beatrix smiled at him upon entering his cabin with Cullen. "I'd like to know about what you've discovered? Scout Harding told me you unearthed several things."

"Ah, yes, Inquisitor!" Kenric nearly clapped his hands for joy. But then he showed her a dagger and Beatrix, marveling at the craftsmanship took it in her hands and weighed it. It was splendid.

"See there? That is the Emperor's seal and initial!" Kenric finished off his monologue happily.

"The Emperor of Orlais?" Beatrix eyes widened in wonder. "Are we really talking about Emperor Kordillus Drakon, the first Emperor of Orlais? How do you know?"

"The craftsmanship firstly," Kenric babbled on. "See the gold inlays carved intricately into the smoothness of the silverite blade? This kind of blade hasn't been made in a long time, Inquisitor. Also the buckle I found tells me that a battle was fought on the beach a very long time ago, right around the time when Inquisitor Ameridan disappeared."

"You lost me at 'buckle'," Beatrix laughed. She smiled as Kenric rattled away, explaining his theory about the buckles.

"My assistant Collette will be able to assist you more on the topic. She knows everything I know, and is in the process of discovering even more! There are a lot of old abandoned Tevinter ruins around here. This must have been a great Tevinter outpost back in the day," Kenric explained. "I can pinpoint the direction where she was heading. If you can, please seek her out."

"It looks like she's heading north. Scout Harding mentioned hostile Avvar tribes?"

"Just one of the tribes is hostile, the ones in the north. The ones along the beach have been friendly to us," Kenric replied. "The ones to the north, well…they attack anything that moves towards them. Miss Harding is correct."

"She did say they called themselves the 'Jaws of Hakkon'?" Cullen immediately commented. "I'm sure Scout Harding can fill us in on the matter, love."

"Yes, there is something else. The evidence so far points to somewhere nearby. The local Avvar talked about an island in the middle of the lake. It is sacred to them. Maybe there was something left by Inquisitor Ameridan there?" Professor Kenric added.

"We've much to discover then. Let's be off, my love. Thank you, Professor," Beatrix turned to the professor briefly, nodding her head. He dropped to a low bow, which made Beatrix giggle and blush as she left the room followed closely by Cullen.

They stopped to talk to Harding, who told them everything she had discovered in the Basin, then walked towards the Inner Circle tents.

"We need to talk to the friendly Avvar. Maybe they can give us more information on the hostile group in the north?" Beatrix mused.

"Maybe," Cullen replied as he put an arm around her shoulders and quickly kissed her temple. "I'll go check the soldiers and arrange for a training schedule here."

"I'll meet you there right after I talk to our group," Beatrix promised.

…

They spent the night in the main camp. The twins had fallen asleep around sunset and both Cullen and Beatrix headed over to the tents where their companions were, leaving a couple of soldiers to watch over the children. They had their meal with their team and Harding approached them to warn them about some of the dangers in the basin. Apparently, scouts had seen rifts from a distance and reported this to Harding.

"Not only are the wildlife creatures a danger here, but the rifts as well, Inquisitor. I think the local Avvar have always avoided them. How else would they still be alive?"

"If I had known about this area a while back, I could have come here to close them all," Beatrix frowned.

"You're here now, Your Worship," Scout Harding smiled. "A hero in her own right."

Beatrix blushed, thankful for the darkness and wondering if her blush could be seen even in the dim firelight.

"Pfft!" Beatrix exclaimed, causing Harding to laugh at the noise she made. "I'm not a religious symbol."

"I beg to disagree," Cullen said as he took her in her arms, pulling her close against his chest.

Beatrix's blush grew, but she said nothing else. A short while after, they said their goodnights and went back to their cabin.

Cullen and Beatrix made love and fell asleep in each other's arms, content and happy for the time being.

The following morning they all met at the cabin. Cullen tried to be on the team that Beatrix was taking, but he had to look after the twins and train the soldiers.

"Promise me you won't play the hero and go and do something foolish," the Commander nearly begged.

"Don't worry, my love, I'll be very careful!" Beatrix replied happily as she kissed him goodbye. She paused for a moment and leaned down to kiss little Andreas and Eleanora, then turned to leave without looking back.

Cullen's face was sad for a split second, but he suddenly leaned down to grab the children, one in each arm. Throwing them on their huge bed, he started to tickle them, his laughter and the children's screams and laughter following Beatrix all the way to the gates.

Bull and Dorian followed Beatrix quietly, but Sera was very vocal about the wildlife and colorful as well. She freaked out over mosquitoes that landed hungrily on her arms and bit her, leaving angry red blotches. Beatrix, in the meantime, spent most of the time looking for hidden crystals. Amidst Sera's cursing, Beatrix reminded herself that as inhospitable as the area was, it was once the home of Tevinter citizens, who probably hid the crystals which very likely opened a secret door somewhere.

After putting four of the crystals in her backpack, Beatrix turned a worried expression to the left of where she was. Unsurprisingly, she had spotted one of the rifts which was close to where the main camp was. They quickly marched towards it and the rift popped to life, spewing out pride and despair demons.

Beatrix didn't know if it was the length of time this rift had been left alone, with no one approaching it, or if something else could have affected the demons that attacked them, but the truth was that they were far deadlier and more cunning – stronger even – than the ones she had battled before. Therefore, the task of killing all the demons in order to close the rift safely escalated alarmingly and became a matter of life and death very quickly.

Soon, she wished they had brought Vivienne instead of Dorian. She loved him fiercely, but healing was not his expertise. However, he fought and healed them as much as he could, the rest of the times they took turns chugging down a healing potion and ground their teeth, unable to leave the fray at all.

Fighting had never been so hard.

Ten minutes later, they killed the last Despair demon and Beatrix sealed the rift as quickly as she could. To her surprise the whole area was covered in fade-touched leathers and minerals as well as brightly lit rocks they didn't know about at the time, but discovered later they were also veiled-touched. They also managed to get a couple of awesome weapons and lots of gold, which Beatrix split amongst them.

"We need to stop somewhere to replenish, Boss," the Iron Bull said in an exhausted voice. "We've drunk all the potions and need more. That can't have been the only rift in this damned place."

"Alright, let's replenish at the main camp and head out again. I don't want to wander around this area at night, so we'd better move quickly," Beatrix agreed.

They did as they planned and this time Beatrix was quick to call Vivienne from her tent asking her to please help them out. The mage nodded, stood regally and grabbed her staff before she headed out, following Beatrix and the rest of the team. They also left the loot they had found after closing the rift in one of the tents and the crystals Beatrix had collected.

They walked directly to the body of water Beatrix had seen from atop the trees while searching for her crystals. It wasn't the ocean that the beach flanked, it was a huge lake. They soon discovered bogfishers and gurguts battling for territory amidst the shallows.

Upon noticing Beatrix and her team, the creatures attacked them. It was a good half an hour later before they rid themselves of two bogfishers and five gurguts. Beatrix's anger flared up and she started to curse.

"Maker forsaken place! Fucking animals wanting to eat us! Demons that THINK and PLAN their attacks coming from rifts! What the FUCK is wrong here?" Beatrix screamed, walking out of the carnage drenched in blood. "Fuck! Who's going to get all this blood out? NOT ME!"

She fumed past the rest, heading in the direction of a cabin near the lake, not very far away. Another rift stood nearby gleaming a soft green in the sunlight, looking perfectly innocent.

"Fuck! Another rift! Kill me now!" Beatrix yelled pinching the bridge of her nose with her thumb and forefinger. "Can our day get any better?"

Bull broke into a hearty peal of laughter and Dorian tittered right next to him.

"Inquisitor, you should watch your language, dear. The locals might mistake you for someone else," Vivienne cautioned.

Beatrix glared at the mage, then turned and advanced upon the rift.

And that's when all hell broke loose.

Literally.

…

Beatrix and her group finally made it to the cabin near the lake. She knew, according to Kenric and Harding, that there was an entire clan of friendly Avvar around. She also had to get to an island in the middle of the lake in order to discover more clues about Ameridan's final resting place. By the time she did manage to speak to the owner of the cabin, however, she had closed three rifts, killed even more gurguts and one more bogfisher. Needless to say she was feeling extremely angry. The last thing she expected to find was a pair of three hostile Avvar trying to bully the owner of the cabin into giving them some food and water.

Beatrix hated bullies.

She screamed obscenities at the hostile Avvar who called themselves the Jaws of Hakkon and then let them have it. They were dead long before the mages could even put up an arcane shield to protect her.

Her mark was crackling, emitting sparks and by the looks of it, giving her some discomfort because she started to wave her left hand about, holding it tightly with her right hand. The friendly Avvar man, who was the owner of the cabin, stood in front of her, gazing at her quite calmly with a curious expression on his face. He had clearly never seen anyone like Beatrix before.

"Hello," she said quite amicably, struggling to keep her temper in check. "I find myself in need of a boat. I need to get to the island in the middle of the lake."

"Ay," came the man's answer. "The Island of the Lady. No one dares go there. Too many spirits about."

"I see. Well, I'm not afraid of spirits, I can control them with this," she said, lifting her pulsating left hand for him to see. "I really need to get to that island."

"What if I lend ya a boat and ya die there? More lowlanders will come to seek retribution for your death. I'll not give ya anything," the man stubbornly replied. "If ye need to, then visit our Thane, Thane Sun-Hair. If she gives her blessing, then ya may have the boat."

Beatrix gave a deep sigh. There was no way she could convince this man to do her the favor of lending her a boat. She could see he had an extremely stubborn streak and that he was not intimidated one bit by her. Or her mark.

She turned around, acknowledging defeat and marched, her team following closely behind.

Everyone was quiet as they made their way up a hill and crossed a bridge that led directly to the 'Stone-Bear Hold, the clan of friendly Avvar. They were respectful and nodded to her at least. Beatrix herself was fascinated by the houses and the way they lived. As they approached, they could see a group of people gathered in a semi-circle shouting at something. It was clear there was some kind of competition going on.

They stood nearby silently, next to a raised wooden dais where two persons stood: a woman dressed in an Avvar leather coat lined with fur and a man with a goat helmet on his head, the horns curling out and up menacingly. The whole crowd seemed to be cheering at two men climbing a sheer cliff within the hold. Upon taking a better look, Beatrix noticed handholds along the block of solid rock, difficult to spot unless one was specifically looking for them. One of the men beat the other one and got to the top first and the whole crowd cheered at the victor.

The woman standing on the wooden dais proclaimed the winner and immediately turned to look at her with a kind smile and eyes nodding to her in acknowledgment.

"Welcome, guests! I am Thane Svarah Sun-Hair. Come! Follow me to my home where we can eat and talk."

…