Get ready for a double size chapter!

And this had to be done. Seriously.

Alistair finally gets to meet his sister.

"The market is bustling today."

Wynne observed all the people scattered around the Market, looking harried and moving quickly, their arms full of supplies.

Leliana responded to Wynne, trying to explain the discord that lay before us.

"People are scared. Many seem to be leaving the city and I for one do not blame them. This is most likely where the Darkspawn will strike."

Alistair chimed in.

"I don't think they'd bother with any other city considering the population of Denerim. But let's hope they don't get here before we have the surprise party ready and waiting for them."

We all walked towards the address that Alistair had written on the small piece of vellum in his hand and I could see him fidgeting already, fingers running through his hair.

Alistair stopped and turned to me.

"Um, could we...not do this? I'm sure Goldanna has better things to do than..."

I took Alistair's arm.

"Listen, you crazy person. You have been looking forward to meeting her for over a week now. You are going to meet your sister and we are going to come with you if you need us, all right? And yes- you look fine, Alistair."

Alistair giggled nervously and his fingers went through his hair again.

"But... what if she doesn't want to see me? What if she's just some deranged woman who I think is my sister? What then? We may have to slay her and I can't do that!"

I put my hand on Alistair's shoulder.

"Well, then my friend, if she truly is crazy than there will be no question that you two are related."

Alistair suddenly burst out laughing and we heard giggling from Wynne and Leliana behind us.

"You need to calm yourself, Alistair. She is just a woman who is your sister, not some marsh demon that will consume your soul...or, what if she is?"

Alistair's eyes bugged out and I laughed loud enough to cause myself pain at the still tender stab sites on my body but it was worth it for Alistair's expression.

"Why you..."

Alistair shook his fist at me then laughed with me, grateful for the distraction from his indecisiveness.

We got control of ourselves and I took Alistair's hand, dragging him with me towards his sister's residence.

"Let us go and meet your sister now, I will come with you if you want me there."

"Yes, I do in fact. You must stay with me in case she... tries to get me."

Wynne let us know that she would meet us at the corner of the market after she had picked up the herbs and things that she needed. Since Leliana had not been invited to go with us, she just went along with Wynne, both of them waving goodbye to us as we walked our separate ways.

Alistair had the address in his hand and kept looking at the vellum and then at the houses and then back at the vellum again as we walked.

"Are we going the right way?"

Alistair nodded, still repeating the same actions then he stopped short in front of the house before us.

"According to this information, this is it. This is Goldanna's house."

It was smaller than the houses that surrounded it but it looked homey enough. There was no way to tell the condition of the inside though.

"Well, you want to knock or should I?"

Alistair hesitated then moved onto the steps.

"No, no, I'll knock. Just give me a minute."

Alistair muttered things only he could hear and then knocked on the door quickly before he lost his nerve, drawing a deep breath directly afterward.

We heard a voice and footsteps on the other side of the door.

"Laundry is all done, Miss Teffren. I have it 'ere for you."

We looked at each other, questioning what we'd heard and the door opened up in front of us, a thin, pale blond woman on the other side.

"Oh, you're not...can I 'elp you? Need some laundry done?"

"Uh, no. Actually, we're...are you Goldanna?"

The woman stared back at Alistair.

"Aye, that's me."

"Um, this is going to sound a bit strange but...you see, I..."

Alistair was faltering and I put my hand on his arm to give him strength. I felt him take a breath and then he tried again.

"My name is Alistair and... and I think I'm your brother."

Goldanna stood at the door and just looked back at us, no apparent expression on her face. She remained quiet long enough for me to think she was no longer going to speak.

"They told me you was dead."

Alistair wasted no time.

"They... who? Who told you I was dead?"

Goldanna stood back a bit from the doorway, appearing to want a better look at the two of us.

"Thems at the castle. I asked after the babe when mother died but they told me the babe died, same as mother."

Alistair was shocked and sad as he responded.

"I'm sorry they told you that... I don't know what they were thinking but... the babe didn't die. I'm him...I'm the babe."

Goldanna stood there, once again expressionless.

"Would... would you mind if we came in to talk? I'd really like to talk to you if I could."

Goldanna eyed us up and down and Alistair knew she was wary so he guaranteed her that we were just to talk, nothing more. She seemed to accept it as she turned and left the door open behind her.

"Come in then if you're comin'. Wipe your feet."

We entered the doorway but found only a scrap of material near the door on which to wipe our feet but we did our best. Goldanna gestured to a simple and crooked wooden table with three chairs around it and we each took a seat.

Alistair hadn't a clue where to start as he stumbled over words for a moment but he worked it out.

"I... I just have so much that I'd like to talk to you about. How... how have you been all of these years? Where have you been? In Denerim this whole time? I'm sorry that I didn't come any sooner but I had just found out about you. I would have come much sooner had I known."

Goldanna seemed to ignore Alistair's questions, continuing on her own train of thought.

"I would offer you tea or somethin' but I don't get no company and can't afford them kinds of things."

"No that's fine, we're okay. So...have you been in Denerim all these years?"

"Not 'til recent, finally had the silver to move out to this house. Husband died and they brought me what was left of his pay but that didn't last long. Then I started washin' clothes for people and that's what we live on."

Alistair spit out another question before realizing he had skipped over the part of her husband dying.

"Where did you live before? Did you stay at the castle with the others?"

Goldanna shook her head.

"Sent me away they did, hid me in the Alienage. Gave me some coin to shut my mouth and left me to rot, just seven years old. I lived in the filth with the elves for years, but they was kinder to me than any family I ever had."

Alistair began reaching for Goldanna's hand, perhaps to comfort her, but then stopped, knowing she would be leery and not wanting to alarm her.

"And, I'm sorry about your husband...I. I'm just so excited to talk with you finally. Was it something serious?"

Goldanna shrugged.

"He picked up the Black Fever in Lothering, he did. It took him within a week."

Alistair was stunned and stumbled on further words of apology and I offered my own to his sister.

"I'm so sorry."

Goldanna simply nodded and looked at the table. Apparently she had numbed herself to the pain of it as she did not appear emotional in the slightest.

"He was a lout mostly anyhow, caught him cheatin' with the barmaid, I did. Never gave a damn 'bout his kids neither."

So he had been a cheater.

Alistair stuttered.

"Kids?"

"Yeah, I gots two boys from the lout, best thing he ever gave me. Never gave me a penny to help out neither. Took off to Redcliffe to be with his whore, he did."

Goldanna obviously did not care much for the husband-that-was and I cannot say I blamed her one bit.

"Two boys? You mean... I have...nephews?"

Goldanna looked at Alistair.

"I 'spose that you do."

What I can only describe as pure joy spread across Alistair's face and he asked where the boys were right now.

"They's outside, playin'."

I smiled as Alistair asked if he could see them, knowing he could not wait to meet them either.

"You want me to bring them in 'ere? Let me call 'em in."

Goldanna got up and went to the door, opening it then yelling out into the courtyard.

"Cyrocco! Drachen! Come in the 'ouse, boys."

Alistair stared at me across the table and whispered excitedly, beaming and grabbing my hand.

"I have nephews...nephews! Two of them!"

I giggled and was very glad that all had worked out between Alistair and his sister, considering all the stress that Alistair had created for himself beforehand. I was very interested in meeting these two little boys myself.

Alistair stood as Goldanna backed away from the door and two little boys came charging into the house, making noises galore and yelling about bandits and how they had taken care of them and the kingdom was safe once again.

The boys spotted us at the table and a sudden hush fell over them and you could see they were shy around strangers.

"Boys, this is...Well, he's your Uncle Alistair."

The boys simply stood there, grinding their big toes into the wooden floor, not saying anything but you could tell they were interested in our armor as when their eyes did wander from the floor, they inspected it as much as possible.

"Say hello, boys. You's bein' rude, you is."

The boys obeyed their mother and chimed in together, a monotone response solely for the purpose of pleasing her.

"Hi."

More toe grinding.

Alistair's eyes were glistening as I watched him stare at the boys; he had found his family at last. I was so happy for him at this moment.

The boys were adorable once you looked past the layer of dirt on them, presumably from playing outside. They wore tattered clothes which were patched in so many places that I wondered if that's what was holding them together. They were very thin as well, all three of them were. I shuddered to think of how many nights they may have gone without meals. That would end now and I knew Alistair would see to it.

One of the boys had blond hair while the other had dark hair. I was not surprised to find that the blond boy resembled Alistair and I smiled, picturing Alistair as tiny as the boy was, running around like a little crazy.

It was actually not too far from the present picture of him.

"Hi there, boys. I'm Alistair; I'm...your uncle... and I'm very happy to meet you."

Alistair squatted down to their height and they watched him, interested now that he was no longer so tall and scary.

Alistair pointed to the blond boy.

"Now who is Drachen? Is that you?"

The blond boy shook his head and pointed to the darker haired boy.

"Okay, so you're Cyrocco," he pointed to the dark haired boy, "and you are Alistair, right?" pointing to the blond boy.

The blond boy looked surprised for a moment then giggled and pointed back at Alistair.

"No you is Alistair."

Alistair was mixing up their names on purpose, trying to make them comfortable and I laughed as I looked on.

"Okay so I am Alistair, you are Cyrocco, but which one of you is Trorry?"

They went back and forth for a few minutes and Alistair actually had the boys giggling loudly with him as they used every boy name they could think of for each other, finding it hilarious to be called by another name. I giggled to myself watching them laugh together, it was contagious.

Alistair is right in his element.

Goldanna had taken her seat again and I noticed how aged she looked. She could not have been more than six or seven years Alistair's senior but from the looks of it, life had taken its toll on her.

There was a knock on the door that had just been closed and I told Goldanna to stay where she was, that I would answer.

"It's got to be Miss Teffren for her laundry."

I opened the door and was greeted by a haughty woman who looked me up and down before curtly requesting her laundry.

"I have it right 'ere, Miss Teffren. It's all ready for ya."

Goldanna was already across the room and carried a large basket of clean and folded clothes to the woman who took it from her and then dropped three silvers into Goldanna's hand.

"Next week I'll need the same service."

The woman did not thank Goldanna but gave me one last surly look before turning and departing from the doorway.

Three silvers? For all of that laundry?

Goldanna is being cheated by these cheap, arrogant city folk.

I noticed Alistair watching the transaction as well and he looked as concerned as I was that this is how Goldanna made her living but he was dragged away by the boys.

Alistair now had the boys in a frenzy as they bounded around him now yelling about dragons and such and he asked Goldanna if it was all right if they went outside.

"Sure, just stay 'way from the prickle bush 'round the corner. They loves to get stuck in that, they do."

The boys ran back outside followed by Alistair and I suggested to Goldanna that we might bring the chairs outside and join them. She agreed and I carried both chairs outside and placed them in front of the house and we sat once again, watching the three boys play outside.

Goldanna did not offer conversation and I did not want her to feel forced to engage with me so we simply sat and watched the ruckus before us, the noise level increasing with each minute.

Watching Drachen riding around on Alistair's shoulders brought a chuckle out of Goldanna and then of course Cyrocco wanted his turn and this went on for a while until Alistair told the boys that his head was going to fall off if any more rides were given.

They only laughed at him and pig piled upon him as he fell to the ground, acting as if they were wolves attacking him and the boys acted the part perfectly.

Goldanna was smiling a bit more now and I figured it had been quite a while since she'd had anything smile about.

Life should not have to be so hard for anyone and I hoped Alistair would see to that when it became his time to be King. Not only for Goldanna, but other citizens suffering the same fate.

Alistair rushed over to me suddenly, catching his breath a bit before puffing a request to both me and Goldanna.

"Do you think I could take the boys to the marketplace? I wanted to pick out a couple of things for them."

Goldanna waved her approval and I smiled, tucking a sovereign into Alistair's hand.

"Make sure you spoil them rotten."

Alistair beamed and I saw the twinkle in his eye as he was already planning to not bring back any change.

"Why don't you ladies come with us? It's so beautiful outside."

Goldanna refused the invitation, stating that she had to finish up some more laundry and there were dirty dishes to be done as well so I offered to help her with that and told Alistair to take the boys himself. I knew he would be fine and it would be a great experience for him.

Alistair agreed quickly and all three of them walked off towards the marketplace, one little hand in each of Alistair's on either side of him. I had to stop where I was and note how precious they were together.

I returned into the house and Goldanna was already at the basin with the dishes and I helped her by drying the wet ones.

"So you's Alistair's wife?"

"Oh no. We're not married."

"Oh. You's are just having the fun part then?"

I laughed briefly. Goldanna had assumed way too much.

"No, not that either. We are both Grey Wardens and that's how we came to meet and to be friends."

"Grey Wardens? Thems the soldiers that fight them Darkspawn creatures?"

"Yes, that's us."

Goldanna nodded and we talked no further until the door burst open a bit later, the boys returning from their shopping trip.

"We're back and we've got dinner! Or maybe it's lunch, I'm not sure. But we've got chicken!"

The kids dashed in behind Alistair now loaded down with gifts that they could barely hold in both arms.

"What's all this?"

Goldanna came over to investigate what was going on and her eyes widened as she saw the five roast chickens that Alistair held, piled in a box in his arms, the biggest smile on his face.

Fishing poles, various balls of all sizes and colors, wooden swords, toy horses, wooden boats and what appeared to be Golem dolls littered the floor as the boys brought everything in and then dropped everything into separate piles on the floor, admiring their treasure with much enthusiasm and squealing.

I smiled, remembering Alistair's story of his own Golem doll given to him by Arl Eamon and I see that he had chosen to continue the tradition.

I could not contain my laughter as I watched the Golems destroy the boats and then ride away on the horses that had been on the boats as green and red balls rained down from the Heavens as the boys had to try out all their toys at once. The boys very much loved coming out the heroes of the story and I knew exactly where they got that from, even if Alistair would never admit it.

After the boys settled down a bit, Alistair suggested that they take seats and have some chicken for lunch and that seemed fine by them as they bounded over to the table, each with a toy in their hands and chatting away.

I watched the boys eye the chicken and Goldanna did as well and I felt sad as they appeared to hardly ever see this type of food. Alistair noticed this as well and we shared yet another despondent look.

"Dig in, guys!"

I had brought the plates that we had just finished washing over to the table and told Goldanna to sit as I helped Alistair dole out portions of the chickens to each of them. We ate with little interruption and then I refused to let Goldanna get up at all, clearing the table of all dishes and washing them. It felt good to do something so mundane with little consequence for once.

As I washed the dishes, I looked out the window and noticed it was past mid-afternoon and I suddenly remembered we were to meet Wynne and Leliana at the corner they'd specified many hours ago, at least two by my guess.

Oh no! We are so late!

I hurriedly finished the dishes and walked to Alistair.

"Alistair, I need to..."

Alistair ignored my words and spoke over me, getting up from his chair.

"Come here."

Alistair took my hand and led me back towards what passed for the kitchen and we stopped there as he looked at me.

"I got you something at the marketplace. I hope you like it."

I sort of shook my head and watched in surprise as Alistair opened his hand to reveal a gold ring.

I just stared at it, wondering why he had gotten me anything at all.

"Alistair... what..?"

"Please, just try it on."

"I...All right."

I took the ring from between his fingers and tried it on my third finger and it was too loose so I slid it over my middle finger and it was a perfect fit. As I looked down at it, I noticed something etched into the gold. It was a tree and I was not sure what kind but the workmanship was beautiful.

"Wow. I don't know what to say, Alistair. Thank you."

"Just say that you like it."

"Oh I do, it's beautiful but..."

"That's all there is to it then."

Alistair's smile silenced me and I moved on to what I was trying to tell him earlier, not sure what else to make of his gift.

"Alistair, I need to go pick up Wynne and Leliana. They've probably been waiting over an hour for us."

Alistair smacked his forehead and swore that he had forgotten as well.

"Let me come with you, I just lost track of time..."

"No, you stay here. I can just bring them here and then you can introduce your family to them as well."

Alistair smiled at that idea, excited and proud to show his family off to his friends and I left the house quickly, leaving it up to Alistair to explain my hasty departure.