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Beginning Our Forever	By : TheDeathRae Category: +A through F > Dragon Age (all) > Dragon Age (all) Views: 1691 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragon Age or any of its expansions, nor do I own any of the characters. I make no money from publishing this FanFiction.

Chapter List
- 4
- 5
- 6
Chapter 5 – Walking

When I awoke, Wynne was busying herself by cleaning the room. She picked up various cloths and rags and dishes and stacked them on a desk near the door. Thankfully, it was about 7 A.M. Maybe I’ll get my normal sleep schedule back, I thought.
“Good morning, Wynne.”
She smiled warmly. “Good morning. Are you ready to get up?”
“Yes. But before anything else… I need a bath. Can you show me where it is?”
“Of course, dear.” She pulled back the sheets and helped me stand up. My leg wobbled underneath me, but I didn’t fall. It felt so good to stretch and stand. I curled my toes on the cold stone floor and breathed in deeply.
I kept a hand on Wynne’s shoulder and took a step forward, planting my left foot on the ground. It still hurt, but the pain was not unbearable. Wynne balanced me and we walked to the bathroom. It wasn’t too far and we didn’t see anyone on the way.
“Do you need anything?”
“No, I’ll be fine. Thank you, Wynne.”
She nodded and left, closing the door behind her. In one corner, there was a hot bath with soaps. A stool stood next to it, on which some clean clothes had been laid. I undressed myself and looked in the full-length mirror near the tub.
Maker, I need to eat, I thought. Even my thighs were looking a little skinny. I limped towards the tub and dipped a toe in the water. Mmm… this will be nice. I got in carefully and held my breath, submerging myself to get my hair wet. I stayed under to let the water work on my sore muscles, and came up when I was out of breath. I grabbed some soaps and scrubbed the dirt and sweat and dried blood off of me – what hadn’t been cleaned off by Wynne, anyway. My hair took forever because it was long and tangled, and I washed it twice to be sure that it was clean.
I stood up slowly and stepped out of the tub, trying not to slip. I wrapped one towel around my body and used another to dry my hair. Afterwards, I grabbed and unfolded the clothes on the stool… A dress? Well, I suppose pants might not have fit over the swollen leg… I put it on and looked in the full-length mirror again.
It was like I saw myself from a year ago. A ghost, someone who no longer existed. This is so… different. Strange. I look like who I used to be. Alayna Fey Cousland. The name is the same, but everything’s changed. I sighed. If only my mother and father could see me now. I’ll be queen of Fereldan soon… How soon? I suddenly realized that I didn’t know when my own wedding day would be. Holy Maker, I didn’t know anything about it! How much more have I missed?
I took another look in the mirror and decided to let my long brown hair hang in natural, wavy locks. My blue eyes sparkled with excitement: I was ready to surprise everyone. The bruises, cuts, and scars on my face were healing, so I forwent my usual makeup, left the bathroom and headed for the dining room. Thank the Maker there were railings on the walls, because I struggled taking just a few steps at a time, let alone going up stairs, and I had to pull myself up with them. I kept my left hand or arm along the walls the whole time to avoid falling and injuring myself again.
When I finally reached the dining room, everyone was seated. Alistair, Wynne, and Oghren faced the wall across from me; Leliana, Zevran, and Sten were on the other side. Zevran and Leliana looked deep in some private, hushed conversation and Sten picked at his food with his fork. He probably wanted cookies. Most of the others were done eating. When I limped in, Leliana saw me first.
“Alayna! You are better!” she exclaimed.
Zevran stood up and nodded to me, smiling. At the same time, Alistair nearly tripped jumping out of his chair to run to my side. He leaned down and hugged me tightly.
“I can’t stand on my toes, yet,” I joked as I threw my arms around him.
“Sorry.” He released me and put his arms under mine and lifted me gently so my feet dangled, and my leg felt better with the pressure off of it.
“You two are so cute,” Leliana said. “Some day, I will write a song about you and tell your story across all of Fereldan!”
Alistair put me down and supported me so I would not have to put all my weight on my right leg and foot.
I simply smiled. “All of Fereldan doesn’t need to know about my life.”
“Why not?” Alistair asked, turning to me and leaning down to my face. “You are so… interesting.” He rubbed his nose on mine.
I blushed and pushed him away.
“It is good to see you well, Kadan,” Sten said. He nodded and exited the room, apparently done eating his… well, uneaten food.
“I knew ye’d be up again in no time, heh-heh,” Oghren half-blubbered.
Seriously, is Oghren always drunk?
“Yeh two have fun!” Oghren shouted too loudly. He stumbled out of the room.
“How he fights like that is still a mystery to me.” I shook my head.
“Someone needs to teach him to use his indoor voice,” Leliana said.
“I don’t think he has one,” Zevran jumped in. “Now, Leliana, I believe we agreed to meet at the Pearl, yes?”
I shot Leliana an encouraging smile.
“Yes, we did.”
“Then let us be off, hmm?” His Antivan accent and speech pattern had always made me smile and laugh a little.
Leliana looked at me excitedly and walked out with Zevran. I giggled and smiled.
Alistair looked confused. “What’s all that about?”
“Oh, nothing. I just played matchmaker, and it worked.” I grinned.
“You are so mischievous.”
“I have to be. That’s how I was able to get you to take interest in me.” I walked two fingers up his chest to his lips and smirked.
“Ah, yes, that’s right. So when the Grand Cleric gets us married and someone asks, ‘How did you end up together?’ I’ll say, ‘Well, it was all her doing, really’.”
I laughed.
“So, are you going to follow through on that threat of yours? You know, ‘just you wait, Alistair Theirin’? Or are you too weak to test blades with me?”
I rolled my eyes. “Oh yeah, because I really want to injure my leg and dislocate my arm again.”
“Just checking.”
I growled at him. “You’re annoying sometimes, you know that?”
“Yes, but it makes me more attractive.” He ran his fingers through his dirty blond hair and grinned.
“Oh, whatever you say, Alistair.” He held my hand and helped me walk to the large table, still covered in food. I piled a plate high with eggs, potatoes, rolls, and a few oranges.
“You eat a lot,” Alistair teased.
“Well, I do get a lot of exercise,” I said.
“Even I don’t eat that much.”
I held up my arm and pointed to my face with my other hand. “Hello? I haven’t eaten in days and I’ve lost a lot of weight. I can eat as much as I want.”
He leaned back in his chair and said, “As long as you don’t end up weighing two hundred pounds, you can eat however you like.” He was smiling.
I stuck my tongue out at him, which made him chuckle, and resumed shoveling food into my mouth.
“Alistair, we’ve ran into – oh, hello, Alayna. It is good to see you well again,” Arl Eamon said. “Is your leg completely healed already?”
“Not completely. But I can walk on it.”
“Not really,” Alistair said. “More like limp on it and nearly fall over.”
I rolled my eyes but smiled.
“And your shoulder?”
“Well, it’s still sore, but I can eat with this hand and move this arm, so it must be getting better. Thanks.”
“You are most welcome. Now, Alistair, we must discuss the… rebels.”
“Of course.” Alistair stood up and told me he’d be back later.
“Don’t I get to know what’s going on?” I complained.
“I’m sorry, Alayna. I really want to involve you in this, but, you see, some other nobles are… well, they don’t believe you’re the real daughter of Bryce Cousland, just as they believe Alistair is really Maric’s son. They don’t want you to hear what’s going on, for the moment. And we can’t risk any more uprisings.”
“ ‘Any more’?”
Arl Eamon nodded. “We’ve been having trouble with Loghain’s supporters. Please, if we need your help, you’ll be the first to know.”
Alistair gave me his ‘don’t worry about it’ look and the two of them walked out.
I stared down at my empty plate and decided I was done. I walked into the kitchen and asked if I could help clean up the dining room.
“Nay, I’ll ‘av a couple o’ Elves do that, miss. Now, shoo!” The cook held out her spoon and pointed to the door.
I exited feeling completely useless.

)-(
A few days later, I decided to test my sword arm. I dressed in leather armor and retrieved Starfang from the armory. Wow, I thought. My sword feels so… heavy. The yard behind Arl Eamon’s estate seemed as good a place as any, so I headed there and practiced various techniques: dodging, ducking, rolling, and then those three with a lunge or vicious arc with my sword directly afterward. My shoulder and leg hurt a little from the exertion so I went back to the house. Wynne was waiting for me.
“How is your leg? And your arm?”
“Both fine. They hurt a little, though.”
“I know. I’ve been watching you for a while, just to be sure you don’t overexert yourself. You’re limping.”
“Am I?” I thought about it and said, “I suppose I am.”
“Perhaps you should rest,” she said kindly.
“I think you’re right.” I bid her farewell and went up to my room. Though I’d stayed here a couple of times before the Landsmeet, I was able to notice the beauty of this room for the first time. The bed was large, soft, and littered with pillows. Its sheets and the curtains and rug were a lovely shade of red and the floor was made of carefully cut and smoothed stone. In the center of the room stood a small table with two chairs facing each other. The wall to my right had a portrait of Isolde and an armoire stood against the wall. There was a fire on the far wall and a writing desk near it. I walked to the armoire and opened it: my clothes (what few I had) were already in the drawers and hanging in the space behind the doors.
“That’s not mine,” I said aloud when I noticed an unfamiliar dress. It was deep purple and navy – my two favorite colors. The seams were laced with silver thread. I pulled it out to get a better look. The neck line started near the shoulders and plunged down into a ‘V’ and I knew it would show my breasts a little. It hung down all the way to the floor but was my size. Embroidered on the waist band was my family crest – the Cousland crest. I choked up a little when I saw it. A string of pearls hung around the hanger and a note was attached to the back of the dress. In scrawled but legible handwriting, it said:
To Alayna, my dearest love. From Alistair.
I looked over the dress a few times and went to place it in the armoire but stopped. There was a corset hanging, too, but there was no note on it. Alistair would never get this, I thought. How will I even get this on? It’s too small. I won’t be able to breathe!
“Do you like it?” Leliana asked.
I jumped. “Leliana? Don’t you knock?... I thought you were on another date with Zevran.”
“I was. We had a good time.”
“Wait… weren’t you and I just in the Market District together? How long has it been?”
“Two, three hours.”
“Oh. I was practicing that long? Time flies, I suppose.”
“You never answered my question,” she persisted.
“The corset or the dress?”
“Both, silly.”
“The dress is lovely… but I’m not too sure about the corset.” I stared at it. “It might be too… small.”
“Oh, that’s all right. I can return that one and get you another.”
“You got me this?!” I scowled. “I should have known. I don’t want another.”
Leliana looked pained. “Oh, I see.”
Shoot. She was my best friend. I couldn’t stand to see her sad.
“I – wait… damn it, Leliana. Fine, I’ll wear it if you get me a new one.”
She clapped her hands in delight. “Oo, yay! I can’t wait to see you in your dress with it on! Alistair will be so surprised when he sees you…” She covered her mouth with both hands and flitted quickly out of the room.
“Wait!” I called down the hall. “Sees me… what? When?”
“You’ll see!” Leliana called back. She was already down the stairs.
“Maker’s breath, she’s fast.” I sighed. Well, the dress is too… revealing to be a ceremony dress. Whatever is this for? But I was too tired to figure out what she was up to, so I closed my door and lied down for a nap.

)-(
It was three o’clock when I awoke. The sun shone brightly through the space between the curtains and I could see flecks of dust floating in the air. I sat up stiffly, for I was still in the leather armor. I fixed the sheets and decided to wear my old green-and-yellow dress, since the new dress was clearly for some special occasion, and because my pants and shirts seemed to have disappeared. Leliana was probably trying to fix my style. Somehow, a new corset was already in my armoire.
“Leliana is going to owe me, big-time,” I said. I put on the dress and returned the armor to the armory. Sten and Oghren were jousting in the yard and I decided to watch them.
Neither had the upper hand as both had massive blades. Though Sten was much taller, Oghren was able to duck and dodge more easily. Oghren hurled insults at him while Sten remained focused on his opponent.
Zevran joined me, his shadow blocking the sun. “So, they have not killed each other yet? That is disappointing.” He tsked and shook his head.
“They are just practicing,” I said, laughing. “Your love for blood and death is a little revolting.”
“Some women find it ravishing,” he replied.
“Well, I don’t.”
“Ah, but my Leliana does.”
“Your Leliana? That was fast.”
Zevran smiled. “Ah, yes. She is a sneaky little Fereldan.”
I smiled back and turned to watch the battle.
Oghren was in a rage and slashed violently at Sten. But Sten remained calm and composed. He saw an opportunity and exploited it: he knocked Oghren down by putting his blade behind Oghren’s knees and pulling sharply. Sten steadied his sword near Oghren’s neck.
“You life is forfeit,” he stated. “And I win.” Sten sheathed his blade and walked past us back into the armory. Oghren still lied on the ground.
“That was foul play,” he spat and got up.
“Actually, it was an intelligent maneuver,” Zevran said.
“Soddin’ Elf,” Oghren muttered.
“What was all that about, anyway?” I asked.
“Bah. I challenged that soddin’ Qunari the a drinkin’ match, an’ when neither o’ us won, I said we’d settle it the good ol’ fashion way.”
“So you were both drunk? How much did you drink?”
“Eh… one, two…” he counted on his fingers. “Uh… can’t remember. Lots.”
I rolled my eyes.
“Where’d yeh get tha’ fancy dress, eh?”
“From a vault in Arl Howe’s estate. I think he took some valuables when he attacked my home.”
“Heh heh. Yeh look nice.”
“… Thanks.” A compliment from Oghren might as well have been an insult.
Oghren huffed and went to put away his sword and armor.
“So. Do you care to battle?” Zevran asked.
“Me? I don’t think so.”
“Oh ho, too scared to cross blades with Zevran, hmm?”
“Yes, that’s it. You got me.”
“Your sarcasm is confusing, but I will leave you alone. Besides, I could never fight an injured woman.”
That’s it! “ZEVRAN! I could best you and you know it!”
But he had already run into the house and was out of sight.
I scoffed, crossed my arms, and leaned against the house. The stones warmed my back quickly and the bright sun sank into my pale skin. I still couldn’t believe how undamaged the estate was. Only a few patches of grass had been burnt and the building was in great condition. I closed my eyes for a few moments, but when I heard a buzzing near my ear, they fluttered open and my blood ran cold. I was terrified of bees and did not want to get stung. I picked up my skirt and ran into the house and nearly knocked over Connor.
“Ow!” he yelled.
“I’m so sorry!” I apologized. “I didn’t see you!”
“That’s okay. Have you seen Father?”
I shook my head. “Not since morning. He’s out with Alistair, I think.”
“Oh, okay. If you see him, could you ask him to come find me?
“Sure.”
“Thanks.” Connor walked away.
Poor Connor. I hope he’s not having nightmares again. Morrigan said she’d taken care of the demon. Maybe Connor wants to talk to his father about going to the Circle. We told him it’d be safer there. If only Jowan… Jowan. I wonder if he’s still in that dungeon below Castle Redcliffe…
I decided not to worry about him for now. I walked to my room to freshen up.
I sighed. “Alayna Fey, you burn easily,” I said to myself when I looked in a mirror. My face and lower neck were already pink. “Maybe one day I’ll tan and not look like porcelain.” I applied some powder to conceal the pink and used a little mascara to bring out my eyes. The dinner bell rang and I practically ran downstairs.
I’m so hungry, I thought as I came to the dining room. Nearly everyone was there already… everyone except Alistair and Arl Eamon. I sighed but berated myself immediately. He will be king and has duties to Fereldan. Alayna-Alistair time comes later.
“Hello, everyone,” I said as I sat at an empty seat.
“Hello,” “Hey,” and “Good evening” were said through full mouths and quite out of unison.
I loaded my plate and scarfed down the food. Still unsatisfied, I helped myself to a second plate. There was not much conversation, but suddenly I was the talk of the table. Everyone who hadn’t been with me on Fort Drakon wanted to know the details.
“Alistair hasn’t said anything?” I asked, surprised.
“Not a word,” Zevran replied.
“He ‘as either with yeh er with Eamon the whole time,” Oghren added. “And yeh’ve been sleepin’ a lot.”
“And what about you?” I asked and turned to Leliana.
She pursed her lips. “I wanted to let you tell it.”
“But you’re a minstrel – a bard! You can tell it better than I.”
Leliana laughed. “That may be true, but surely the Hero of Fereldan wishes to tell it herself.” She smiled.
Ugh. Best friends…
“Very well,” I said and poured a pint of ale for myself. I began at the point where we received Sten’s message from the gates – at which point I said, “Well done, Sten.” He simply nodded. I told them how we saw Riordan fall and that we’d seen the archdemon crash on Fort Drakon. My account ended with the stone toppling above me, and all sat for a moment in silence.
“Well,” Zevran finally broke the silence, “that’s not nearly as exciting as my exploits in Antiva. There was this one time I—”
“Exploits?” I interrupted. “Let me guess… you found your contact, slept with her, then killed her, right? We got it, Zev,” I laughed.
“Ah, yes. Same old tale.” He sighed and I rolled my eyes, laughing again.
“Leliana,” said I, “you might want to write this down. You want to retell my whole life in as many taverns as you can, anyway.” I winked at her.
“Yes, that’s true…” She gasped. “I could turn it into a song!” She giggled with delight.
Arl Eamon entered, followed by Alistair. I stood up and bowed to them. Arl Eamon bowed slightly but Alistair raised his eyebrow at me.
“What ever are you doing that for?”
I stood up straight and blushed slightly. “I’m showing respect. What does it look like I’m doing?” I asked rather sarcastically.
Alistair sighed. “You’re being ridiculous.” He sat down in a chair two down and across from me.
That hurt. I sat down and didn’t speak for the rest of the meal.
When I’d eaten my fill, I excused myself and headed upstairs. After closing my door quietly, I flopped on my bed and lied there with my eyes closed. What’s up with him? I hope it’s just whatever happened at the meeting and nothing about me.
Not ten minutes later there was a knocking at my door. When I didn’t answer, it cracked open and Alistair popped his head in.
“Uh, Wynne asked for you… to check your leg.”
I nodded and brushed past him. He was quick, though, and gently grabbed my upper arm and turned me around.
“What?” I glared at him.
“Ow! Maker, your death glares are the worst.”
I didn’t react.
“Look… I’m sorry,” he sighed heavily, and rubbed his forehead. “I’m just so tired and stressed about everything.” He stared into my eyes. “I just thought it was silly that you bowed to us. I see you as my equal, Alayna.” He shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. What I did to you was wrong. Will you forgive me?”
I sighed and stopped glaring. “Yes, I forgive you. But you owe me.”
He smiled and said, “Uh-oh. This can’t be good.”
“When have I ever been good?”
“Was that supposed to be dirty?” He inched closer.
“Maybe. Anyway, I want you to tell me what in Andraste’s name is going on.”
He sighed. “Alayna, I really ca—”
“Forget it.” I tried to walk past him again, but this time he held me tightly.
“Let me go!” I half-yelled. I used my other arm and pushed him as hard as I could. He didn’t even budge.
Alistair chuckled. “You sure you want to try to pick a fight with me? Because…” He used one arm and roughly pinned me between him and the wall in a split second. “… right now I’m pretty sure I’d win.” He gave me a boyish grin.
I protested but couldn’t move, so I gave up trying to wriggle out.
“Alayna?”
I glared at him again.
“Will you forgive me if I let you in on what’s going on?” he half-whispered.
I sighed, but with his puppy eyes, I couldn’t refuse. “Okay.”
He smiled. “Come on. Let’s get you to Wynne.” He released me and offered his hand. I accepted it and we walked to the servants’ quarters together.
“By the way… You had better start lifting weights if you plan on shoving me again,” he teased, and I laughed.
Wynne used her healing magic to ease the soreness of my muscles and said, “Your leg is doing fine. Just don’t jump off anything or fall down any flights of stairs.”
I promised not to and we went back upstairs. Alistair escorted me to my room and kissed my forehead.
“Get your sleep,” he said kindly.
“You too, your Majesty.”
He smiled. “Unless… you know…” He nodded his head to my room and blushed.
He was so cute when he was nervous. I leaned into him and stood on my tiptoes, wrapping my arms around his neck.
“This is Arl Eamon’s home… Perhaps we should respect that.”
“You’re right.” He leaned down so our faces were only inches apart. “Besides, we’ll have plenty of time once we’re married.”
I blushed this time.
Alistair gave me a quick kiss. “Good night.”
I released him. “Good night.”
He walked away but stopped halfway down the hall. “One more thing…”
“Yes?”
“I’m staying here tomorrow. You and I have a date. Please, wear your new dress.” He smiled and retired to his room.
A date? I went to bed, giddy with excitement for tomorrow.
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Beginning Our Forever