The horse twitched its ears in the early dawn light as Zevran removed the bulky saddle bags from its back and dumped them on the ground. The brightness of the day contrasted with the dark threat that Zevran could only assume now lay just beyond the hills. Although the silhouette of the Archdemon against the moon had vanished after a few moments, it was clear the peace was only temporary. At least, it had been clear to him. Leliana had not agreed. And despite the logic of his arguments followed by a multitude of snide comments, he had been unable to dissuade her from tending to Elissa. So now, hours later, they remained with only the hills between them and the Horde.

Zevran let out a sigh. There was no use pretending. Leliana could hide behind her damned sentimentality but he couldn't. He could have left. He should have left. Left both women to the consequences of their choices. Any reasonable person would consider his agreement with Elissa null and void. And he had no obligation to Leliana whatsoever. The elf shook his head with a tut. In truth, it wasn't the fact he had stayed which bothered him. It was more than that. It was the fact that he had chosen to stay. Zevran was aware he was many things but he was quite content to acknowledge that 'hero' was not one of them. Yet here he remained. Perhaps it was better to simply acknowledge that there was nowhere else for him to go and leave it at that.

And maybe Leliana's fool insistence on staying had been rewarded because Elissa continued to cling onto what life remained in her. The Bard had succeeded in removing the poisoned arrow tip from Elissa's shoulder but despite the numerous healing poultices she placed on the wound and the endless drops of healing potion she had tenderly forced into Elissa's mouth, the Warden had remained unconscious. Even the presence of the Archdemon had not provoked any response from her. Zevran had witnessed the effect of the nightmares both she and Alistair had suffered from during his time in camp. More than once, he had been relieved from his turn at guard before time because neither she nor Alistair could face closing their eyes again. He had little hope for her recovery if Elissa was now even beyond dreaming.

With all equipment from the horse removed except for its saddle, Zevran led the creature back to the outcrop of rocks. Having given up attempting to reason with Leliana during the night, he had busied himself by removing the darkspawn bodies from the vicinity and now the horse allowed itself to be guided nearer to where Leliana and Elissa were sheltered by the rocks. At the sound of the horse's hooves, Leliana glanced up.

"We must leave."

She sighed but gave a small nod, consenting at last. She had done all she could for Elissa for the moment.

As the Mabari prowled round the horse to prevent it from backing away, Zevran and Leliana dragged Elissa up into a standing position and manoeuvred her nearer the horse. With an unceremonious heave, they hoisted her onto its back and Leliana mounted. Together they manipulated Elissa's limbs so that she leaned against Leliana and Zevran passed up some bandages so that both women could be bound together to prevent Elissa from sliding off.

The horse snorted its disapproval, eyeing the Mabari behind it.

Leliana patted its neck in reassurance before signalling Zevran to climb behind Elissa. "Ready?"

Zevran took a step back. He could have left but he hadn't. And now he had to accept the consequences. "Go."

"What?"

"The horse cannot bear all three of us."

Leliana stared at him, momentarily unable to process what she was hearing. Finally she blurted out, "Zevran, I am not leaving you here!"

"Of course not, you are leaving me to walk back to Denerim." He forced the joviality that was expected of him into his voice. "Do not think I will forget it either."

"The darkspawn..."

"I have no intention of dying, dearest Leliana. And I have an excellent track record of avoiding it, one way or another."

The Mabari gave a bark and settled himself next to Zevran, tongue lolling out.

"And apparently your friend is willing to stay with me."

The Bard shook her head in disbelief. Zevran studied her, any attempt at maintaining his usual exuberance evaporating from him. It really did escape him how she had ever been a successful assassin. She had the unfortunate habit of becoming emotionally attached to anyone around her. But then who was he to talk; here he was declaring his intention to remain behind for the benefit of two women he had only known a matter of months. Life had certainly taken an interesting turn since leaving Antiva.

"Why?" Leliana asked the question he had shied away from answering.

Suddenly the answer didn't seem so difficult. It made no sense but it wasn't difficult.

"I don't know. But it seems to be what I've chosen."

The Mabari whined and butted Zevran with his nose.

The elf gave a long-suffering sigh but a hint of a smile crept onto his face. "What we've chosen."

The dog gave a short bark and wagged his snub tail.

"With the Horde so near, no one will be able to search for you." Leliana warned him.

"Then perhaps you will do me the courtesy of searching afterwards." Zevran continued to look at her. "That is if you are to content to chase after a lowly elf rather than mighty Wardens?"

Leliana nodded a silent promise.

"Good. Though now it is a case of professional pride, I refuse to be saved by an Orlesian Bard." The flippancy returned to his voice as he scoffed at her.

"Never fear. I will enlist your old colleagues to help with the search," she forced herself to match his tone. "I am sure the Crows will be most eager to be reunited with you."

Zevran let out a laugh and a sense of acceptance passed between the two. Leliana reached out a hand to him, unable to do much else from her position on the horse. He acknowledged the gesture with his own hand and she squeezed his fingers.

"Come back to us, Zevran."

The request was simple enough but even now he couldn't offer her the false promise he knew she wanted to hear. "If I can."

The return to Denerim was swift for Leliana. No longer scouting for traces of Elissa's trail, she was able to direct the horse straight towards the city. She avoided what darkspawn she could, bolted past ones she could not and shot through with her bow and arrow those who gave chase. All the while Elissa slumped against her, a dead weight.

As she neared the city walls, shouts rang out along the battlements as the City Guards recognised the red-headed Bard who accompanied both Warden and King. When Leliana clattered through the gates, the Captain was already there to greet her.

One look at the form behind her made it clear that action was required. He signalled for his men. The horse was held and a sword sliced through the bandages securing Elissa, hands reached out to catch her as she slithered off the horse. As Leliana dismounted, more hands were there to steady her as her legs readjusted to supporting her own weight. All the while the Captain fired questions at her.

Somehow the Bard was able to condense the main points into a coherent stream. She heard herself mumbling something about the Horde lying towards the Coastlands. That the army needed to be recalled. And that Elissa needed healing. The Captain issued rapid instructions to his men even as she spoke, taking her fragmented reports and turning them into action points.

"You, summon a scout. The army must be turned back. And you, inform the Revered Mother that the Warden needs healing. The rest of you, carry her to the Chantry and for Maker's sake, be gentle..."

"No! She needs magic!" Leliana interrupted.

The man spared her a second of undivided attention. "There are no mages in Denerim. But there may be healers among the Circle mages travelling with the army."

"She will die without..."

The Captain took a step towards her and grabbed her by the arm. Leaning close, he hissed in her ear, "It is one thing to bring news of the Horde to an undefended city; it is another to destroy all hope."

She gritted her teeth but kept her voice low. "Fine. But she will die without a healer."

"Then you had better assist the Revered Mother," the Captain released his grip on her and turned to resume issuing his orders. He paused before throwing a quiet afterthought over his shoulder. "And pray to the Maker that we can find the army in time. For all our sakes."