Sunlight streamed in through my bedroom window and I sat upright in bed, stretching and smiling. I couldn't ever remember feeling so peaceful and content. The enticing smell of bacon drifted up from the kitchen downstairs and I followed it, hungrily, to find my mum and Emily already sitting at the kitchen table. As I entered the room, my dad turned around from the stove with a frying pan in his hand, wearing his Kiss the Cook apron, and smiled brilliantly at me.
"Good morning, sunshine! What will it be? Pancakes and syrup? Or pancakes and bacon?" He asked, winking.
"Why not both?" I replied, shrugging, and my whole family burst out laughing. My dad walked over and ruffled my hair, affectionately, and my mum gestured for me to take the seat beside her. A pot of fresh coffee had already been served and I poured myself a mug, breathing in the delicious aroma
"Pancakes, bacon and coffee." I muttered. "What's the occasion?"
"Well, you are, sweetie." My mum gushed, stroking my hair. I frowned in confusion.
"What did I do?" I asked, and they all laughed again. I was still confused, but their laughter was so infectious, and such a wonderful sound, that I didn't want to do anything to spoil the mood. Besides, it's not like I had anything to complain about. And with my Grey Warden appetite...wait, what?
"Something's...weird." I said, slowly lowering my coffee mug back to the table.
"What's weird, honey? Is there something wrong with the coffee?" My mum asked, flashing me a warm smile. I met her eyes and blinked, shaking the feeling off.
"No. I don't know. It's probably nothing." I smiled back. "I think maybe I was having a nightmare, or...I was supposed to do something..." I trailed off. I knew I was forgetting something but every time I thought I had it, it slipped further and further out of reach.
"Well, whatever dream priority you think you're supposed to be achieving right now, drop it and eat up." My dad said, placing a heaped plate of food in front of me.
"Thanks, dad." I grinned, and he kissed my forehead, just like Grayson had a few nights before. I shook my head, that weird sense that I was missing something obvious creeping back up on me. I looked at Emily and she rolled her eyes at me and stuck out her tongue.
"I feel like I haven't seen you in a while." I said, slowly. A sharp pain shot through my temples and I dropped my cutlery to the table with a clatter, holding my head in my hands.
"You see me every day!" She exclaimed, digging into her own plate of food.
"I do?" I asked, more to myself than anyone else.
"Lauren, your father worked very hard on breakfast." My mum said, gently. I looked up at her kind face and nodded.
"You're right. Sorry, I just...I have a bit of a headache." I said, apologetically. "I think I might be coming down with something."
"Aw, honey." My mum cooed, placing a cool hand on my forehead. I shrugged her off, good-naturedly.
"Well, maybe this will make you feel better." My dad said, as he took his seat at the table. He slid an envelope towards me and I looked up at him.
"What is it?" I asked, suspiciously.
"Open it." He replied, exchanging an excited look with my mum. I didn't have to be told twice. I picked it up, curiously, ripped open the top and pulled out the tickets inside. I gaped at them in disbelief.
"Is this real?" I gasped, scraping my chair back as I stood up, shaking my head incredulously. "I'm going touring with the Foo Fighters? No! This can't be...how is this possible?"
"Surprise!" My mum cried, clapping her hands together. "Happy birthday, sweetie! You and Emily will both be staying with them and, if they think you've got the stuff, they've even agreed to record a song with you."
I screamed in excitement and hugged both of my parents, unable to speak. Just when I thought things couldn't possibly get any better, Dave Grohl appeared in the kitchen doorway.
"Happy Birthday, Lauren. I can't wait to jam with you. I've heard you can really play." He said, grinning.
"But you...but he's...you're...oh my God, this isn't happening. This isn't happening!" I cried, blinking back tears of joy. Then something in my mind suddenly snapped into place and the smile slid from my face. "This isn't happening." I realised. "This is...I..."
I bent double, squeezing my eyes shut as I forced myself to keep remembering. The details were hazy, but I had it now. "I'm a Grey Warden...I was in the Circle...it had been overrun by demons...we came across a Sloth demon..."
"Chill, Lauren."
"Shut up, Dave Grohl!" I yelled, holding a hand out for silence.
"Lauren, you are being very rude." My mum said, folding her arms. Emily stomped over to me and grabbed my arm.
"What are you doing?" She hissed, her face flushed. "You're embarrassing me in front of a living God."
I blinked, and started to stutter an apology, before shaking my head again.
"No! You're not Emily. You're not my parents. And you," I spun around to a very confused looking Dave Grohl. "You are not Dave Grohl. You're the pretender."
"That was clever, Lauren." He said, smiling appreciatively. The compliment almost disarmed me, but I gritted my teeth, fighting against every one of my senses to stay in control.
"I know it was clever. I said it." I snarled. I backed away from them, looking around frantically. The only weapon in sight was the still sizzling frying pan and I grabbed it, brandishing it in front of me. "You can all drop the act now."
"Lauren, your mother and I are very disappointed in you." My dad said, irritably. I laughed, bitterly.
"Oh, now you start sounding like my actual father? It's a bit late for that." I snapped, still backing away.
"Lauren?" Grayson stepped into the room in full armour, his sword drawn. Before I could move, Dave Grohl, my mum and my dad snarled and hissed, turning on him and lunging at my friend. Emily stayed put, watching with an expression of calm indifference. With a few deft strokes of his sword, he cut down my parents and then turned to Dave, driving his sword through his chest. Demon Dave gasped and fell to the ground, dissolving into nothing.
"There goes my hero." I muttered.
Grayson started to walk towards me when he froze. He looked from me to Emily and back again, the confusion clear on his face.
"Lauren?" He asked again.
"Obviously." Emily replied before I could speak. "Would you hurry up and kill the demon already?" She gestured to me. I blinked, taken aback, as Grayson took a step towards me.
"What? No, I'm not the demon. She's the demon!" I shrieked, pointing accusingly at her. "Kill her!"
"Oh, please." She drawled, walking slowly towards him, her hips swaying as she moved. Grayson lowered his sword, still looking back and forth between us, hopelessly.
"Grayson." I said, seriously. "Kill her, now."
"Grayson, how can you not tell it's me? What are you waiting for?" Emily asked, indignantly.
"Grayson."
"Grayson!"
"Okay, both of you shut up!" He cried, exasperated.
"Sorry." Emily apologised, batting her eyelashes at him.
"Don't tell me to shut up!" I snapped.
He moved so quickly that demon Emily didn't have a chance to react and in one smooth motion, he swiped her head clean off of her shoulders. By the time it landed on the floor, it no longer resembled my sister, but instead I was staring at the grotesquely beautiful face of a desire demon, it's features frozen in an expression of shock. I breathed a sigh of relief and dropped the frying pan to my feet, where it disappeared in a wisp of smoke.
"How did you know it was me?" I asked, closing the gap between us and pulling him into a brief hug.
He shrugged.
"The demon was more polite." He replied. "You have a real attitude problem, you know."
"Whatever." I rolled my eyes. "Thank you."
He gestured at the room.
"When we get out of here, I'm going to need you to explain all of...this." He looked around at the modern kitchen appliances like they might spring up and attack. "I'm guessing...your sister?" He asked, nodding at the already disintegrating body of the desire demon.
"A pale imitation." I confirmed. "The others?"
"I found them in different dreams. They all disappeared...you're the last."
"Hey" I exclaimed, as he seemed to grow less solid before my eyes. "What's happening?"
The scene dissolved, and instead I found myself in a barren wasteland, stretching on as far as I could see. As my surroundings took shape, I couldn't help but grin a little to see that the others were already there. Larry barked and tackled me, and Grayson appeared from behind me, clapping a hand on my shoulder.
"That's everyone. So what now?" He asked, looking around.
"My, my." A voice boomed, seeming to come from nowhere and everywhere all at once. "What do we have here? Some rebellious minions? Escaped slaves?" The sloth demon materialised before us, laughing cruelly. "Playtime is over. You all have to go back now."
"I couldn't agree with you more." Grayson said, drawing his sword.
"If you go back quietly, I'll do better this time. I'll make you much happier."
I could feel the power in the demon's words and it took all of my strength to resist.
"Don't...listen to it." I snarled, through gritted teeth.
"I'll make my own happiness, thank you." Grayson replied, drily. He seemed to be less effected by the demon's power than the rest of us, or maybe he was just better at hiding it.
"I made you happy and safe. I gave you peace. I did my best for you-"
"Make it stop talking!" I cried, grunting with the effort it took to keep my mind clear.
"You wish to battle me? So be it...you will learn to bow to your betters, mortal."
As soon as the demon morphed into an ogre, the spell was broken and my head cleared. My armour and weapons were back, and we surged forward as one.
When the ogre fell, a large rage demon took his place. Morrigan and Wynne fired Winter's Grasp at him, freezing him in place, and Alistair surged forward, shield-bashing him and shattering the demon into a thousand pieces. The moment they hit the ground, the shards swirled around and came together to form the same hideous sloth demon who had ensorcelled us in the first place, but he couldn't hope to stand against all of us. Sten ended the fight with a mighty blow of Asala and the second his blade fell, my eyes opened in the real world.
It only took me a few seconds to realise that I was lying on top of Alistair, and I remembered trying to catch him as he fell before succumbing to the demon's thrall myself. I looked down at his face and he cleared his throat, pointedly. I scrambled to my feet, looking around. The rest of our companions were starting to stir, but Grayson appeared to still be deep in slumber. I knelt beside him, shaking him gently. Just as I was starting to panic, his eyes flew open and he gasped, gripping my arm.
"The Litany." He whispered, his voice hoarse. "Niall, he spoke to me..." His eyes fell past me to the body of the mage on the other side of the room. "The Litany of Adralla. We have to take it from...his body.
"How long do you think we were asleep?" Alistair asked, rubbing his neck.
"Too long." Wynne replied, sternly. "We've wasted precious time. We must reach Irving."
"I hate demons." I muttered, kicking the now lifeless body of Sloth as I passed. Grayson knelt by Niall's body, and Leliana placed a hand on his shoulder, muttering a few words that I assumed were part of the Chant of Light.
We continued on, feeling surprisingly refreshed after our enchanted slumber, dispatching demons, shades and abominations alike without much difficulty.
The drakes were more of a challenge. One of them almost took my arm off before Alistair shoved me out of the way with his shield and thrust his sword up through the roof of it's open mouth. Leliana pulled me to my feet and I nodded my thanks to Alistair, who didn't respond, but instead threw me a decidedly dirty look and just kept marching forward.
"Really?" I turned to Leliana. "Even in a life-or-death situation he's still ignoring me."
"Men." She shrugged, and I shook my head, following the others. Before long, we rounded a corner and I let out a strangled gasp of surprise. How could I have forgotten? I brushed past Grayson and knelt down beside the praying templar, separated from us by a magical barrier.
"Cullen?" I said, softly. He didn't look up, but I heard his breath hitch in his throat.
"You know this man?" Alistair asked, surprised. I closed my eyes and silently cursed myself.
"Uh...no, not really." I replied, hoping that the urgency of the situation would spare me from having to explain any further.
"I know this trick." Cullen said, looking up at me with dark, mistrustful eyes. "It won't work. I know what you are."
"The poor boy is exhausted." Wynne said, sadly. "And this cage...I've never seen anything like it. Rest easy. Help is here." She said, kindly, but Cullen closed his eyes again, tighter, and rocked back and forth, muttering to himself. It was devastating to witness. This man, who I knew would go on to become a hero, a commander of armies...he was completely broken. No wonder he had nightmares for the rest of his life. I could only imagine what they'd done to him.
"Enough visions!" He cried. "If anything in you is human, kill me now and stop this game!"
"He's delirious." Leliana said, numbly, her eyes glazed over. "He's been tortured, and probably denied food and water. I can tell..." Grayson and Alistair exchanged a significant look and I wondered if the bard had even realised that she'd let her pretence drop, if only for a moment.
"It's okay, Cullen. We're here to help. Uldred and the others...are they in the Harrowing Chamber?" I asked, knowing the answer. He looked up at me, uncertainly, and nodded. "We're going to take care of it. We've fought our way here. Greagoir sent us to clear out the tower." I left out the part where we were planning on saving the mages, not wanting to cause him further distress, and hoped that knowing he hadn't been left to die here was enough.
"Good. Kill Uldred. Kill them all." He pleaded. I nodded, and rose to my feet, looking at the others.
"Wynne...can you do something about this barrier?" Grayson asked. Wynne studied it, doubtfully.
"There may be a way...it would take me some time to figure out the correct spell."
"Or we could just go and kill Uldred. The cage should break when he dies, right?" I asked.
"Assuming it was he who cast it." Wynne replied, thoughtfully.
I looked at Cullen, who was slowly rising to his feet. He nodded, in confirmation.
"Alright then. We'll be back for you, Cullen." I promised, trying to convey all of my compassion with a look. He regarded me with a look of obvious suspicion, but he at least seemed to be convinced that we were real.
"Maker turn his gaze on you." He said, in a hollow voice.
Wynne led the way into the Harrowing Chamber, and my first thought was that it was aptly named. There were more dead mages strewn across the floor than I had been prepared for, and four large abominations surrounded a bald man in the centre of the room.
"Uldred!" Wynne called, horrified. "What have you done?"
I scanned the room, and breathed the tiniest sigh of relief when I noticed a group of survivors huddled in a corner with Irving at their fore, shielding them.
"Ah, Wynne. And you've brought some friends. Care to join in our...revels?" Uldred rasped, and his voice sent a shiver down my spine. I shook myself, and moved to stand beside Grayson, who was still surveying the scene with a grim look on his face.
"Sure. We brought party favours." I growled, flourishing my daggers pointedly.
"Fight if you must." He replied, unperturbed. "It will just make my victory all the sweeter."
"Don't forget the Litany. It will thwart Uldred's attempts to control the mages." Wynne murmured to Grayson, as the blood mage pitched forward onto all fours, glowing white and growing in size until a twelve foot tall Pride demon stood in his place.
Alistair, Grayson and I attacked the Uldred-demon as one, while Wynne and Morrigan hung back, firing spells into the fray. The hounds lunged at the abominations, working with Sten and Leliana to take them down. My fellow Grey Wardens assaulted his legs, keeping his attention focused on them while I moved around behind him. He bent down to swipe at Alistair and I took the opportunity to leap onto his back, using the ridges along his spine to climb up to his shoulders. He swatted at me, but I kept my balance and plunged my daggers into the base of his neck, severing his spinal cord. He fell backwards with a blood-curdling shriek and I threw myself off to the side to avoid being crushed under his weight. I landed hard on my back on the stone floor with very unladylike grunt and propped myself up onto my elbows, looking around to see the last of the abominations fall, disappearing in a whirlwind of snarling teeth and brown fur as the hounds overwhelmed it. Alistair reached down and helped me to my feet.
"Are you okay?" He asked, his eyes full of concern. I nodded.
"I think I landed on my head, so...you know, no real damage." I replied, wincing. He rubbed a thumb over my temple and smiled, gently.
"Bet you miss that Stupid Helmet now, eh?" He started to grin, then, apparently remembering that he was supposed to be ignoring me, dropped his hand and the smile vanished so quickly from his face I might have imagined it to begin with. The sudden change in demeanour threw me, but Wynne's voice brought me back to the situation at hand. She was fussing over Irving and the other mages, casting healing spells on those who needed it, and I took the opportunity to put some distance between myself and Alistair. The shadow behind his eyes when he looked at me was one demon I wasn't prepared to face today.
While the others spoke with Irving, I slipped back into the room we had come from and saw that Cullen was free of the magical cage, but he still had the haunted look of a prisoner in his eyes.
"Cullen." I smiled, as I slowly approached him. He eyed me, warily. "Uldred and the blood mages are dead. The tower's safe again."
He looked like he might collapse, with relief or exhaustion or a combination of both, and I quickly shouldered his weight, wrapping my arm around him to support him. He took a few deep, steadying breaths and looked down at me.
"Who are you?" He breathed. I managed a small smile.
"I'm just...Lauren." I replied.
"How did you know my name?" He asked, studying my face. I shrugged, with my free shoulder.
"You're worth knowing." I said, quietly, averting my eyes. I had meant it to sound glib but the fact that I truly meant those words shone through in the sincerity of my tone. I felt my face grow hot. Cullen had been my Inquisitor's love interest, and I was forcing myself not to think of him romantically. He wasn't the Cullen I knew, not yet. The poor guy had just been through Hell. After seeing the carnage in the tower first-hand, I knew it was truly incredible that he was still standing.
He raised a hand to my cheek and I almost dropped him in surprise. There was nothing romantic in the gesture, but I still hadn't expected it. I looked up at his face, but his eyes seemed to be looking through me.
"I didn't dare to dream I would ever make it out of here." He murmured. "I think Andraste herself must have sent you."
A cough from behind me made us both look round to see Alistair coming down the steps, followed by Grayson, Irving and the rest. Cullen stiffened at the sight of the mages but I hushed him, reassuringly.
"They're safe." I said, firmly. I'm not sure if it was my absolute confidence that what I was saying was true, or the fact that he was just so exhausted, but he reluctantly nodded in acceptance.
We made our way slowly down the tower. Grayson appeared at Cullen's other side to help me support him, and Sten carried Irving, bridal-style. It would have been funny if the situation wasn't so serious.
When we finally arrived at the doors, Irving called for Greagoir and the templars let us through, much to everyone's relief. I knew we were all desperate to get out of that tomb. Grayson and I lowered Cullen to sit against the wall and I stayed with him while Grayson, Alistair and Wynne spoke with Irving and Greagoir.
We sat in silence, watching the exchange, and I smiled and nodded at Wynne when it was agreed she would be joining us. I turned to Cullen, who was watching me curiously.
"There's something different about you." He said, quietly. "I can't quite put my finger on it."
"Charm and charisma?" I suggested. Incredibly, he let out a low chuckle, but I couldn't help but notice that the mirth never reached his eyes. "Listen...Cullen." I took a deep breath. Flemeth had warned me that my knowledge of the future was dangerous but if I thought I could bring him even a moment's peace I had to say something. "I'm sorry this happened to you. You don't know me. You don't really have any reason to trust me...except for the whole saving your life thing." I reasoned, before continuing. "And I know it might not seem like it now, but I promise you that it will get better. You will recover. You're going to go on to do great things." I took one of his hands in mine and gave it a comforting squeeze. "You're a good man, Cullen. The world needs more men like you. And you're stronger than you think you are. I promise."
He watched my face, his emotions morphing from confusion to wonder and back again.
"You talk like you know me." He said, with the ghost of an accusation in his voice.
"I..." I trailed off, as unable to explain as I was unwilling. I shook my head, dismissively. "I don't know you, but you remind me of someone. You'll get through this, just like he did. Find someone to talk to, if you can. Don't carry it with you. Give the pain life."
Dark shadows passed over his face as he looked at me, but there was a ghost of something like hope in his eyes.
"Lauren." Alistair called, grimly. I looked over to see him watching me, with a scowl on his face. He jerked his head to the group, who had already started to file out of the tower. I released Cullen's hand with a final squeeze.
"I have to go. Duty calls. Time to save the world again." I grinned. "Take care, Cullen."
"Wait." He whispered, grabbing my arm. "Will I see you again?"
I considered this for a moment, before shaking my head.
"Honestly, I don't know. I hope so." On an impulse, I planted a light kiss on his cheek, before pushing myself to my feet and leaving without a backwards glance. I really did hope I would see him again. And I really did hope that my words would provide him with some comfort to tide him through the future struggles I knew he would face.
There were dark days ahead of him. There were dark days ahead of us all.
AN: Two chapters for the price of one. Don't say I'm not good to you.
Thank you again to my beta, Kira Tamarion, for all of your insight.
If you're looking for an amazing fic, check out Kira's story 13 Years. You can find it in my Favourites list. It's on there for a reason.
Thank you as always for reading, leave me a wee review if you get a chance.