A/N: General rights disclaimer here... I don't own DAI or it's characters...
Wow, it's been a while! Depression is a hell of an emotion! Especially after my hard drive died and took all my stories and art with it. That'll teach me not to back up frequently! After going through the eight stages, you know, the begging for it to work again, the denial that nothing is wrong and if I just keep pressing the button it will come back to life, the anger of telling your computer you're getting a tablet next time... yes I talk to my electronics... okay, back on topic. This chapter is in no way as good as the one I had originally wrote so forgive me if it seems to jump around a bit. I was trying to remember each idea I had written down and it seems to only come to me in pieces. This is not beta'd so there might be a few mistakes. All of my own doing. I'm working on finding a beta that can keep my roaming thoughts in line.
Dorian glared out over the grassy plains in distaste. He didn't understand how Rise could navigate the land; each area looked the same to him. Gray, Green, Brown, oh and don't forget Mud. A large cemetery loomed out in front of him. Lovely. He leaned down and swiped at a mud stain on the tail of his clothing. A useless endeavor he knew but he had to keep up some sense of decorum, blights knew that no one else would.
Rise was yet again dragging him along on another mission through the muck. Well, dragging was the wrong word for it. Rise had smiled, batted those pretty gray eyes at him and asked him if he was up for something a little dangerous. Damn he was weak. Those gray eyes had won again. One day he'd be able to resist or at least put up a token of a fight. He had to talk to Rise about his choice in romantic mission locations though.
He had made excuses and moved ahead of the main group. His delicate nose couldn't take much more of Bull's stench. The big lummox had moved right past ripe to downright sour. Rise was being courteously oblivious to it. The man was too nice for his own good. He turned around to chastise their small band for being so slow and also to make sure he hadn't gone too far ahead of everyone but there was nothing. No one was behind him. Alarmed, he scanned his surroundings again. Still nothing. Fear tingled through his body and he swallowed hard, everything about this felt wrong. They couldn't have just disappeared like that. He couldn't hear any fighting and Rise would have caught up to him if he was planning to change their route. So where did they go? Rise, Blackwall, Cole… anyone?
A flicker of light in the distance caught his attention and he silently heaved a sigh of relief. Whoever had caused the delay was in for a vicious tongue lashing but the words died in his throat as more lights came to life in a marching succession. There must have been hundreds of them. This couldn't be his crew; Rise had said nothing about an all-out march especially in the middle of nowhere. He was beginning to think he was going a little bit batty when he saw someone he recognized. Morrigan.
She walked towards him and he reached out to her, she of all people would know what's going on but she didn't even acknowledge his presence. She strode right by him, her eyes never wavering from the path in front of her. Straight towards the cemetery, Dorian shuddered. As the lights came closer he could see just how large the march was. They didn't have marches this big for royalty. Inquisition flags waved high in the air as they were carried forward, but they looked off. They were black; none of the official Inquisition flags were black. Was Rise caught up in this? Was this why everyone had vanished? Someone needed to start explaining things to him and fast. Familiar faces passed him by like he wasn't there just like Morrigan had done.
Leliana looked somber but she always looked like that. Josephine looked like she was about to burst into tears. Varric passed with his head down making him look even smaller in stature. Vivienne for once had lost her look of smugness but the unhappy expression was still the same as always. Sera, was strangely subdued, no obnoxious jokes or quips… oh yes, something was very wrong here. Sera not acting like an annoying brat meant that the world was ending, or maybe just his world.
As the full brunt of the march neared him it parted and allowed the protected core to come forward. Cullen, Cole, Cassandra and Blackwall each held up the corner of a casket draped with another black Inquisition flag. This wasn't just a march; this was a funeral parade for someone high in the Inquisition. He looked around trying to see who was missing, trying to remember someone dying. Hawke? No he had made it out of the fade. Solas? No, that was very much impossible. Damn it, where was Rise at a time like this...and then it hit him and his knees almost buckled. Rise wasn't here. Rise was the one that was missing.
"No, no, come on Amatus don't do this to me." Dorian choked out as he made his way towards the casket. Rise would not and could not be in that box. " Fasta vass, festis bei umo canavarum Amatus." even they passed him by, keeping the casket high. He watched as the four made it to the cemetery where an empty plot waited to be filled. 'How convenient,' Dorian thought darkly as he walked towards them. He just needed to prove that he was right and Rise was not in that casket and his world would right itself again. He stopped when he heard Morrigan speak.
"Rest well my dear Inquisitor for you have done the world a great deed that will be remembered for generations to come…"
Morrigan's words faded away and he willed himself to move. She was lying and he would prove it to everyone there. He moved faster as he watched the pallbearers lower the casket into its plot.
Before he could even make contact with anyone a large meaty arm wrapped around his waist and drew him away, settling his back firmly against a rock hard chest. "Now, now don't be rude," a deep voice whispered into his ear and he recognized it immediately.
"Venhedis Bull! Let me go! I have to find Rise!" He screamed as he bucked against the Qunari. His leg swung back and he tried to kick the brute. He would not set his team mate on fire because Rise would be angry with him if he found out about the Qunari barbecue.
Bull seemed unfazed by his thrashing and lifted him off his feet, positioning him higher against his chest. This made it harder for Dorian to kick him. He leaned down, put his lips against Dorian's ear and smiled. "If I put you down you'd cause a scene. You need to wait until it's over." Bull lifted his free arm and pointed towards the cemetery. They had already begun to fill in the grave. Cole, Cullen, Cassandra and Blackwall worked in quiet concentration as they shoveled loose dirt onto the casket.
Tears stung Dorian's eyes when he felt Bull smile against his ear. How could the Qunari be so cold at a time like this? They had to open the casket before it was too late. He made another attempt to free himself from the Qunari, his magic flaring to life. Rise would just have to be angry with him. He could cast without his staff, not quite as effective but it would have to do. Aiming it at the arm that was wrapped around his waist Dorian let loose a small volley of fire. It would singe him as well but that was just a sacrifice he had to make. He hoped the pain would make the Qunari drop him but his spell fizzled out before it could do any damage. Dumbfounded he looked down at his hands and he felt his magic drift away. This couldn't be real, his magic had never failed him before and then realization hit him hard and he let his body go limp against Bull's.
"Are you a demon?" Dorian asked quietly. "You're a demon aren't you?"
Dorian had met a few demons in his dreams but they always tempted him with gold and wine. Chocolates and the most hedonistic pleasures you could imagine, but this was a nightmare. Was the demon feeding on his fear and pain? Would it try to possess him now?
Bull laughed loudly and Dorian could feel the rumbling against his back. No one looked their way even though the Qunari was laughing so loudly. That was further proof to Dorian that this was a dream. It had to be.
"No, I'm not a demon mage boy. I'm just guiding you to the truth in front of you."
"This is not the truth, I will show you! Let me go!" He looked again towards the cemetery but it was gone now. All around him the world fell away and Bull let him tumble with it into darkness.
"Rise!" Dorian shot up from the bed with a start, his hand going to where Rise would be but no one was there and the space was cold. "That was not real, that was not real." He repeated to himself. "Rise!" he called again. He tried to scramble out of the bed but his naked form tangled in the bedclothes and he fell onto the floor. "Ow." Pain, fear and lousy liquor came together and left him with nothing but misery.
Rise appeared from an adjoining room, half his face was covered in shaving cream and in his hand he held a straight razor. He brandished it like he did one of his knives.
"What? Are we under attack?" Rise asked as he scanned the room. Once he was sure that there was no threat to their safety he closed his razor and moved to where Dorian lay crumpled on the floor. He helped the smaller man into a sitting position, the bed clothes still bunched around his lower half. "You're alright now." He bent and kissed Dorian's crown as he let his hands roam over Dorian's top half feeling for injuries.
Dorian reached up with anxious arms and wrapped them around Rise's neck, pulling the big man close. How could he tell Rise that he wasn't alright? That everything was wrong and that he had a really bad dream. He reached up and touched Rise's face, wiping some of the shaving cream away. "Sorry," he murmured. That was all he could say at the moment now that the shock was fading away. Rise stood and Dorian clutched him alarmed. "Don't go!"
"Hush," Rise said gently as he tossed his razor on the bed and scooped Dorian up bedclothes and all. He walked them into the bathing chamber where Dorian could see that he had interrupted Rise while he was getting ready for the day. Clothes were neatly laid out, and toiletries littered a small table.
Dorian opened his mouth to apologize again but Rise set him on his feet and shushed him. He watched as Rise knelt down to gently untangle the blankets from around him. When Dorian was free Rise picked him up again and strode towards a large tub. Gently he placed his lover down into the hot water and Dorian felt his tense muscles relax. He let his mind drift a little bit as he calmed down. He wondered how the water could remain this hot and he peeked over the side rim and saw that part of the tub had a small magical heat source underneath it. Ah, the decadent powers of Orlais'. He pondered if he could recreate something like this at home. Thinking about such trivial things like this was a welcome distraction from his dream and it helped him pull himself together.
Rise pulled up a chair and sat beside the tub gazing down at him. "Better? Had a little too much last night? I always tell you to stop at three."
Rise was scalding him about his drinking but right now Dorian didn't care. He reached up and dragged Rise's mouth down to his. He gave the man a sloppy wet kiss that left Rise soaking wet where Dorian had sloshed him with water from the tub. He held on tightly and whispered against Rise's lips. "Don't ever go where I can't find you."