BioWare owns all but all the stuff that is mine. : )
ALERT: I am going to cover the sensitive subject of rape in this chapter, I am not going to write a rape scene or describe it, so this isn't NON CON. But it might bring up unpleasant feelings or memories for some. There is nothing graphic or explicit. Still, I wanted you all to know, I have known women it happened to, including my best friend when we were ten by the neighborhood creep. I wanted to warn you all. And I am in no way equating what happens to an OC character with the Catholic Church's recent problems with pedophile priests, I don't want to insult anyone's religion either, this is purely for storyline purposes. So with that said, I want to be sensitive to my fans while still keeping with my story.
I hope you enjoyed Gnat's story and it gave you more insight into our littlest scrapper. SPOILER ALERT: There was a little confusion as to the Emperor of Orlais being Celene's uncle in some research, but the letter in RtO says they are putting their father's disagreements aside. And I tweaked it so they had a small secret meeting before they meant to meet again according to her letter in RtO to Cailan. I must go with the Emperor of Orlais being her uncle, as if he had been her father, then she would have been in line for the throne against siblings not cousins as she would be the closest blood relative to the king and thus direct heir to the throne. But that is just my take, maybe BioWare and Mr. Gaider had other ideas.
Oh and a special shout out to Violet Theirin! She has written a story of her own, her first fanfic "The Rose of the Alienage." Please read it and give her some love. It is a wonderful story, so read and review. I saw Misame already did. : ) Go VT! And I am so, so sorry I didn't do this sooner, sweetie. I love your story. VT's story is for all you Swoopers. : )
And a shout out to Riannya and her story "MisIntention." For Zev fans, it is a must read. Please give her story some love too.
And TannithAeyrs has a story "A Grey Warden's Honor," which is most excellent. Please check it out!
In fact, I am going to go through my list of fans and give all your stories shout outs. I am sorry your author here was a moron and didn't even get it into her silly, fluffy head to check them out. I will rectify that ASAP, such talent and smarts. Of course I knew that already with your lovely reviews and your suggestions, but really, I should smack myself, Andraste's flaming knickers, you would think I am not that bright. GAH! : (
Thank you both VT and Ria for giving my story a shout out on yours. I am so flattered. Sorry I didn't give you a shout out sooner too, I promise to smack myself on the back of the head.
A shout out has to go to Phoenix Fire Lady for the insight in her last review. She touched on it, and so here is a part, we have a brief run in with the mage Tower, but it was small. We get more of a lead in for making an alliance with them in this chapter, I hope you enjoy.
Which leads me to a possible SPOILER ALERT for Awakenings, I will be mentioning briefly and a little Anders, the mage from the new expansion. It is brief, but I like to give fair warning, I don't want to mess with anyone's game playing enjoyment.
Another shout out to Night Hunter MGS for the comments about what hidden compartments in shoes could also be used for, which I had not thought of. : )
*Le Renard Blanc refers to a fantastic story told by my wonderful friend and fantastic writer in her own right Ladyamesindy (she has so many great fics). Her tale of Eleanor and Bryce during the occupation, please check it out. Please check all of her stories out, they are worth it!
Blessings! : )
The town, if it really could be called one, had no real name. It just grew up around the inn and the Tower at Lake Calenhad, and basically consisted of houses, a small marketplace and the smithy up the hill past the ruins from the inn. It was clean and well kept, and the buildings were in good repair thanks to "The Silver Griffon." Kai remembered how bad it looked when she'd first come through on her way from Redcliffe to one of the other safe houses, right after Anora tried to poison her. When they passed through, the houses were falling apart. The darkspawn had trampled and tainted everything, the gardens and crops were black and dead, and the people had been starving and sick. Many had died, mostly the elderly, the frail and the young. There had been so many funeral fires burning that the air had been thick with a greasy, black smoke and ash, the combination left oily smears on everything when one tried to wipe it off.
One incident in particular stayed in her mind from that trip, a man named "Timothy" had been holding a bundle in his arms. Kai thought it was a little doll, but it had been the corpse of his infant daughter, the babe had obviously starved to death. The man had been so broken, he had refused to let anyone take her from him, and they'd finally had to knock him out so they could take the poor little moldering corpse and cremate it along with the rest. Kai, who was newly pregnant herself, had been sick and extremely angry that Anora had not even moved to do anything for the people.
It was that visit to the town that started Kai on the idea of "The Silver Griffon." She'd remembered reading the tale "The Black Fox", and the childhood tales of her parents' adventures during the rebellion with "Le Renard Blanc*" who'd helped Ferelden during Meghren's occupation. Those stories inspired her, and from then on, any monies reacquired from the nobles who were over taxing their people that they liberated during their travels were all to be distributed back to the people of Ferelden instead of being used to build one monument after another to Loghain.
She'd met the dwarven smith who lived here while in Denerim, he'd helped one of Kai's people who had been waylaid in a small back alley by a gang out looking for easy pickings, and it didn't hurt that Oghren knew the man from his visits to the tavern. Anora's idea of law and order consisted of her own personal army dedicated to her own personal protection, with the rest of Ferelden could happily rot, for all she cared. One Scath, an elf from the Alienage, had been a ripe target for a bunch of drunken men. The dwarf, Talan Hennslin, and his son, Aulber, helped beat off the men with weapons they had made to sell in the marketplace. They started talking with her spy, and he found the Hennslin clan sympathetic to the cause. Both dwarves being surface born, they considered topside their home, and they did not liked what was going on with Anora. So, they had been let in on "The Silver Griffon" and the Scath and the Scathach.
Talan moved his wife, two sons and one daughter out of Denerim to the town outside of Lake Calenhad. They helped the people rebuild their homes and built the smithy. On the surface, the smithy made pots, pans, tools, parts for wagons, carriages and shoes for Ceffyls, among other sundries, and they smithy repaired all of those things. But behind the scenes, Talan and his children made weapons and armor for Kai and for all the men and women soldiers Kai allied with. He was the one who forged and made a gift of her daggers. His daughter was the leather worker and made all the leathers that any Scath rogue wore, along with any leather needed for other armor and weapons. It was her idea to put thin bands of dwarven steel in the knuckles of the gloves, the elbows, the knees and the toes of the boots, not enough to make them too heavy, but just enough to hurt an opponent. Kai meant to see her about putting secret compartments in the heels of their boots like the one in Gnat's boot.
She, Zev, Jarren, Argus and Gnat all made their way up the path past the arching ruins and into the town. Jarren made his way to his assigned houses to distribute monies to the families, while Kai and Zev made their way to see the unofficial mayor of this little community. People out and about doing the day's business waved and smiled at them, even at Gnat. Kai was struck once again by how much respect and trust she was given by these people, it always made her squirm, that they would give her that much power over their lives. She made a mental note, as she always did, to respect their trust and to never forget it.
Her father always said that the people they were leading-and he always called it "leading," not "ruling"-commanded respect, they were the strong back and the legs the kingdom stood upon. He had taught her and Fergus that the station they had been born to, one of privilege came with certain responsibilities. Responsibility had been drilled into Kai's and Fergus' heads at a young age by both their father and their mother. Her parents always told them that servants were people, with families and lives, they got sick, lost loved ones, and had bad things happen to them. They were not tools or furniture, but people, and that included non-humans as well. The alienage at Highever was not really a separate place, walled off from the rest of the town like alienages in other cities. It was more like a part of the city where most of the elvhenan chose to live. The mingling of humans and elves and the casteless dwarves all took place in peace in Highever. Kai and Fergus took the lessons of their parents to heart. Kai was glad to see that the town here had accepted Talan and his family and fit them in as seamlessly as if they had been here all along.
Kai walked on looking for the "mayor" and found Timothy at the fountain in the town's square. He looked like a completely different man from the grieving, starving, tormented individual they had found clutching his dead infant daughter. He was talking to a young elven man, Khenys, one of the townsfolk. Kai had meant to wait until he was done speaking before getting his attention, but the young elf saw her first and his face split into a wide grin.
Timothy spun around to see who was there, and his own face lit up in a brilliant smile. He swept Kai up in his giant arms for a breath-squeezing hug, "My Lady Cousland, it has been too long!" Kai laughed and patted his back until he put her down,"How are you, I heard about the darkspawn and that you were hurt, I am glad to see you are up and about. We burned the bodies, especially that ogre, and we were very careful." He held up a hand in case she should make a comment, "We are just glad not to be burning you along with them."
"You and me both, Ser Timothy" Kai smiled at him.
"I will echo that sentiment, my good man" Zev grinned.
"Hm, I find myself agreeing with Zevran more and more," Alistair's voice said in her head with a mental smile of his own and she just chuckled at him.
"Timothy, how many times have I asked you not to call me 'my lady,' or 'my Lady Cousland', honestly, a man who hugs me like a rag doll need hardly stand on such formality, I am just 'Kai,' for the Maker's sake," Kai jokingly admonished the man.
"My lady, that you would throw all the rules of the classes aside and allow us all such informal access to you is wonderful even as it is, odd, shall we say, but some decorum must be kept. I call you 'my lady' as a sign of respect, for you, not your title as a Cousland of Highever, nor even as 'The Hero of Ferelden,' or at least the living hero." Timothy grinned harder as she blushed.
"You sound like my mother, Timothy, when you speak of decorum, are you sure you aren't related in some way?" Timothy only shook his head and gave her a hearty laugh.
"Of a certainty I am not, iIf I was, I would brag about it to all and sundry." He grinned at her and gave her hand a shake, "So, I take it you are here for 'The Silver Griffon's' usual delivery, and I heard that apples, honey and potatoes are all coming from Highever. I have a missive from Redcliffe that salted fish and flour are to be arriving soon by ship from the lake. Your idea of trading for the goods that our dwarven smith and his family make was genius, and as you can see, we are doing well." Timothy waved a hand to encompass the village, "If this keeps up, we will have to come together and name our thriving community so we can officially be put on the map" Kai grinned at him. "I also understand that our stout friend has been working on some things for you, my lady, the good news is that he is doing so well, he now has three apprentices along with his two fine sons. Khenys is one of his newest, so, the repairs to the armor and weapons you brought should be done sooner than expected." Timothy grinned at her, "And one of his sons has taken on the merchant duties and travels, taking his father's wares to different places, he's in Orzammar now. I also know he's been unofficially spying for 'The Griffon.' As a merchant, he hears many things that people do not think he hears. They talk in front of him, forgetting he is there – a part of the background, if you will."
"It may be you should make him a Scath, no, not all of your spies have to be warriors or rogues. I had not thought of that myself, but why not ask a merchant to be one?" Zev's voice held a musing tone as he looked at Kai with a raised eyebrow.
"I had not thought of it either, it's brilliant, it's something we can propose to him when we see him next" Kai smiled at him.
"As well you should, my Lady Cousland, we are all on your side should you ever call on us."
Timothy smiled a warm smile at her, "We will not forget what you have done here. Did I tell you, Nila and I are expecting our babe in the autumn. If it's a girl we want to name her Kaidana, and if it be a son, Alistair." It was Timothy's turn to blush, "Nila and I hope you don't mind."
Kai could only gape at the man. She didn't really know what to say. He really wanted to name his child after her, Alistair she could understand, he was the true "Hero of Ferelden," not to mention being part of Calenhad's line, but her? "Why ever would you want to saddle the poor lass with such a name as mine? Better to name her Rowan after Maric's wife and a true hero in her own right" Kai felt her own blush deepening to match Timothy's.
"Ah, my love, I know exactly why he wants to name her after you" Alistair's voice was tinged with love.
Timothy's blush abated and he laughed, "You are far too modest, my lady, you saved this town, you saved me from doing myself harm, you are saving our country. I know of no name better suited than yours, may I please have your blessing to do so, my lady?" he asked her softly, Kai blushed more, but nodded.
"I hope she isn't as much trouble as I was growing up" Kai joked with him. Kai heard Zev chuckle, and she turned and grinned at him.
"My lady, there is another matter which I would beg you to look into, it is a sensitive matter and involves the tower and, I am afraid, the Templars." Timothy gestured for them to follow him. He led them to his house and went in, Nila turned from the table where she was cutting up vegetables and meat for the evening's meal, she greeted them with a smile. Timothy went to her and kissed her while putting a hand on the gentle swell of her belly, "My love, I have another visitor for you."
"My lady, it is a pleasure, and you brought your friend Zevran" Nila held out her hand.
Kai shook it, and Zev brushed his lips over Nila's knuckles, "It is a pleasure to see you again, dear lady." Zev used his most charming voice, making Nila blush.
"Oh ho, I see why you like seeing him again, my wife" Timothy grinned as he teased her.
"Hm, more men should take a page out of his book, husband," Nila wrinkled her nose at Timothy.
"See what you do, causing marital strife everywhere you go." Kai jabbed Zev in the ribs with her elbow, causing him to grin and chuckle out loud.
Timothy laughed, smiling at Zevran, "It is good to see you again, friend, and I see you have a new face following you today" Timothy stuck out his hand to Gnat.
Gnat took it and winked at Timothy, who seemed enraptured by Gnat's exotic looks, "I am indeed newly recruited to help 'The Silver Griffon,' good ser, and you may call me Gnat."
"Oh ho, husband, I see I need to watch you around this one" Nila laughed as Timothy blushed, "And did you say 'Gnat'?"
Gnat nodded and laughed, "It is what I go by, dear lady, I am small, and my daggers bite, so, that is the nickname I was given. I have been Gnat for so long, I would not recognize my own, proper name if you called me by it." Gnat grinned, and Nila laughed and shook Gnat's hand.
The exchange had given Timothy time to collect himself after meeting someone as exotic and beautiful as Gnat, "My love, I thought that our lady would like to meet our guest, I thought maybe she could help."
Nila nodded, "She was sleeping, poor thing, last I saw. And no offense, but she is a little, well, touchy around men, and with good reason. So I hope that Zevran won't mind staying out here with my Tim." Zevran shook his head and took a seat at the table to wait.
Nila led Kai and Gnat back to a second bedroom where she knocked on the door, a small voice bid them enter. Nila walked in first, and Kai and Gnat followed, a heavily pregnant young girl was sitting up in the bed. Her rounded face and her tight belly had her in her eighth or the beginning of her ninth month, from what Kai could estimate. The girl had to be all of sixteen years old, if she was a day, and, Kai was willing to bet, just barely sixteen. She wore the mage robes of the tower, she looked frightened, and Kai didn't blame her. Wynne had her own son taken from her when she'd given birth. It was one of the long tallies of things that Kai had on the special "Reasons-I-Hate-the-Chantry" list she had running in her head.
"These are friends, Drysi, in fact they work for 'The Griffon.' I know it will be hard for you, but I want Kai here to know what happened, I didn't want to tell your story without your permission."
"I am so ashamed," Drysi flushed and bit her lip. She looked down and started to cry, Nila just stroked the girl's hair and back.
"You have nothing to be ashamed for, it was not your fault," Nila handed the girl a handkerchief and lifted her chin, "You were powerless, and you had no choice. I think that my friend here can help, may I tell her?" Drysi nodded and looked at Nila, her face flushing before she looked down at her swollen belly, "I guess I should begin at the beginning. A young male mage, named 'Anders,' I think, and Drysi showed up in our village about two weeks ago, he managed to escape the Tower. He told us this was his seventh escape, in fact. On this get away, he took Drysi with him."
"Is he the father, did he abandon you?" Kai asked the girl gently, who shook her head vehemently and sobbed harder.
Nila shook her head, "No, in fact he helped her destroy her phylactery. He found hers when he went searching for his own. Then, he helped her escape with him. He knew the Templars were coming, so he drew them off, knowing they were looking for him. He said he had information that some of the phylacteries had been moved for safety from the Blight. His was one, but he didn't know where, so I have no idea where the young man went. But he told me to keep Drysi safe, and he left as quickly as he could, like a fox hunted by hounds. The Templars came through and kept on going, thank the Maker, he was a very brave soul. No, a Templar did this to her, the rotten bastard!" Drysi made little mewling noises, Nila just rubbed her back and told her to try and sleep while she motioned for Kai and Gnat to go back out. Kai and Gnat went back out to the main room, where Zev and Tim sat, to wait for Nila while she got the girl situated.
"So you know?" Tim asked her, and Kai just nodded.
By the time Nila came back out, Kai's personal tally had just gotten longer, and she could feel the cold, cold anger of her own personal abyss infringing on the edges of her humanity.
"Do you think you can at least get that Templar taken care of? I doubt Drysi is his only victim," Nila's eyes had an angry look that mirrored hers and Gnat's.
"Be sure of one thing, dear lady, I think our dear Kaidana will make sure that he is 'taken care of.' I know that look, and if you are talking Templars, then a trip to the mage Tower is in our future, no?" Zev gave his cold, hard, assassin smile.
Kai's own smile was frosted with Winter, "To be certain, my dear friend, we have a Knight Commander, a Head Enchanter, and one child-raping bastard to have a little chat with."