They sat, crowded into the tiny room at the back of the shop, munching on pastries that had been provided by Marie. Elissa had to admit, they were good – and Alistair was currently showing his approval by reaching for his fourth. Zevran had refused to sit down, and was standing by the door. Old habits died hard, and Elissa knew that he rarely let his guard down in a strange place. Leliana was chatting to Marie in Orlesian, and she caught her eye and nodded. The bard was less threatening than either of the men, and Elissa still wasn't sure of the situation, wanting to sit back and observe.
"So, Elodie. Shall we get to the point?" Leliana asked the question in Fereldan, and Elissa was grateful. Leliana would be handy to translate anything that the woman couldn't manage, but it would be useful to hear her first hand. "What kind of help do you need?"
Elodie signed heavily before beginning. "My husband. He's around 6 foot tall, blond hair, blue eyes. He was taken just over a year ago, by bandits. He and my daughter were out picking apples when it happened. They attacked them both, but Marie played dead and they left her, but took him. As they left, she followed them – they took him to an underground hideout in the woods. Every time we've been there, it's been heavily guarded, and neither of us have the skill to get past them," she looked down at her hands, twisting them agitatedly in her lap.
Leliana's eyes met Elissa's as she asked "You said, 'he and my daughter,' - is your husband not Marie's father? What is his name?"
"No...," the woman cast her eyes downwards. "Marie's father left a long time ago. My husband – Mark - he is not really my husband. He is human, and neither Dalish nor Chantry would marry us. But we live – lived – as though we were, and he treated us both well, as his own family. I love him. He loves me. I want him home. Marie can take you, she can show you where they took him. I just want him home!"
"How do you know he's still alive?" asked Leliana, gently. She reached for the woman's hands and held them softly, and raised her eyebrow surreptitiously towards Elissa, who was busy watching Marie. The teenager was watching her mother intently, eyes wide and unblinking.
"Well... well, they took him to a hideout, didn't they. They wouldn't have done that if they were going to kill him, they would have done it there and then!" Elodie pulled her hands away from Leliana's, and stood up, pacing away from them in the small room. "They have him as a slave or something, they must do! Please...," she turned back towards them, eyes pleading, "you have to help me, you have to find him,"
Elissa stood too, at that point. "No," she said, bluntly, causing Alistair to look towards her in shock.
Elodie stuttered before her. "But you said... you said you would help me,"
"No. He said he would help you. She said she would help you," she stated, indicating Alistair and Leliana. "But I asked your name, and said nothing else. I am in charge here, and I won't lead my friends into a potentially dangerous situation where I don't have all of the information. There is something you are not telling us,"
"I am telling you everything! My husband has been taken by bandits, I believe him to be still alive as a slave, I want you to rescue him!"
"Mother..." Marie interjected quietly, but Elodie silenced her with a wave of the hand.
"He needs your help,"
"But Elodie... If a team of bandits wanted a slave, would they not have taken Marie? A small eleven girl unable to fight back, or a grown man – a grown human man? There is a reason you are so certain that he's alive, and him being a slave is not it,"
The two women stood, eyes locked. The tension in the room was palpable, but was broken by a shrill voice. "He's a noble!" Marie all but shouted. "He's a noble, he's important, that's why they wanted him. That's why she knows!" she ducked as Elodie wheeled round to clout her, but Elissa caught her arm to prevent it.
"Is this true?" Elissa asked hotly "your husband – your partner - is highborn? How did you meet him, did he give up his holdings to be with you?"
"Ran away with the boss, did you?" quipped Zevran from the doorway, before being silenced by Alistair's glare.
"It's true," admitted Elodie, but she cast a sharp glance at Zevran. "But he was not my boss. We were captives when we met, on a slave ship. I didn't know who he was, I thought he was just a captive, a slave like me. It felt like months that we were on that boat, but he was always charming, always trying to cheer us up, always sharing rations even when we had almost nothing. He took a beating once when he stopped one of the crew from... hurting... Marie. We grew close, but I thought I would never see him again. But then something happened – the captain, the crew, they cast us off the ship, freed us and told us to disappear. So we decided to disappear together," She swallowed hard. "He had a piece of jewellery – a ring. He sold it to a travelling merchant who gave him 11 sovereigns for it. No normal man has jewellery worth that much, I thought that he had stolen it and that maybe that was why he was a prisoner. But he assured me it was his, told me that it was the last thing remaining of his old life and that he didn't want that any more. That the money was to start a new life with us," A tear rolled down her cheek, and Elodie swiped it angrily away. "We came here, found this place, bought this shop. That, Antivan," she spat the word out, glaring at Zevran "is how I come to run my own shop,"
Elissa nodded, thoughtfully. "So who is he? Mark? I know of no Ferelden nobles by that name. Is he Orlesian?"
"I don't...," Elodie caught Elissa's warning look, and sighed. "I can't tell you. I'm sorry. He doesn't go by his old identity any more, he left that life behind. His name is Mark, and that is all I will say. If that means that you won't help, then so be it,"
"No. That will do. We leave tomorrow at dawn. Be ready to guide us,"
