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How to Adopt a Warden and Other Tales	By : Royality Category: +A through F > Dragon Age (all) > Dragon Age (all) Views: 2658 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragon Age, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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Maybe Duncan sensed it, the betrayal that came along with this battle? Maybe it was his Warden blood that allowed him to know that Loghain was a coward, a traitor, and a murderer? Maybe he just sensed that Darkspawn that were tunneling into the tower? Whatever the reason was, as Alistair stood on the banks of the swamp pacing back and forth, all of these thoughts came to mind. The question above all of them was; why was he still alive while everyone else was dead?
Another question came to his mind as he replayed the final moments in his head that he could remember. As the giant ogre came to smash an oversized fist onto Alistair's beaten body, for possibly the last time considering how battered he already was, why did it stop? Well, that was easy enough to answer, at least.
It was frozen.
He remembered a blinding white light and the monster suddenly freezing in place. It gave him just enough of a chance to jump up from pure adrenaline and stab the beast once, or twice, for all. It was that at moment where Alistair was trying to remember the rest while waiting outside of the hut which belonged to Flemeth.
He had, once again, found himself in the swamp staring out into the abyss of wilderness. The only other survivor was barely alive and all this Warden could do was simply wait. Still, what had happened? On top of the tower, yes, there was a mage, who was dead.
Pretty sure that getting picked up by an ogre and having your head bitten off meant death.
The other guard, who had followed the pair of wardens up to the tower, was also dead. Torn in half, the poor sod. This meant that the only ones who were left were Alistair, who himself couldn't even do a proper card trick, and Izarre...who...?
"You can stop grieving now, your friend is in one piece." Flemeth's gruff voice interrupted Alistair's train of thought long enough from him to be more concerned that he wasn't the only survivor and less concerned about darkspawn popsicles.
"You...You're alive," Alistair said as he saw his new friend emerge from the hut’s doorway. Holding a bandaged side, Izarre gave a reluctant nod. He had taken a nasty blow to the chest before being rescued. Alistair knew very well that that blow was meant for him and he had been shielded by this beautiful new companion. "...I'm sorry...about that. I should have been faster with my protection..." To his surprise, Izarre simply shrugged, not wanting to go into details about what may or may not have occurred before being saved by Flemeth. Flemeth wasn’t talking about it either, as she was much too busy teasing Alistair about being a Warden and giving him details about what happened to the rest of the army.
"But what about my brother? I need to find him," Izarre voiced worry for his still missing family member.
"Do not concern yourself with such small matters. There is a Blight to deal with and you are a Warden,” Flemeth dismissed him. Looking to Alistair, Izarre truly wondered if the Warden's even still existed between himself and the other man anymore. "And you have your treaties, you have other allies..."
"Can we really do that? Raise and army and take on the Blight?" Alistair had to question to logic behind this, if there was any to be found, and looked to Izarre for answers.
Izarre remained silent for a moment as his eyes narrowed."...We don't have a choice,” he said. “If stopping a Blight is what it takes to get revenge for my family and find my brother, then I'll stop it.” He turned to like at Alistair. “With or without you." The sharp words stung the other Warden in a way he did not expect.
"Well if you're going, then I'm going too. We need to work together."
"Mother, dinner is ready..."Morrigan finally emerged from the hut, only to be stared at. The sudden announcement of her departure was unexpected news to everyone. As Alistair loudly voiced his objection, Izarre gave a nod. Turning to leave, Morrigan's words suddenly stopped the Cousland in his tracks. "Two mages for this little hike through the woods isn't necessary, Mother. I don't need to..."
"Nonsense, girl. The more the merrier! That boy needs proper training . Think of it as an adventure." Giving a sigh, Morrigan caved.
"Very well, Mother..." Alistair had also turned to leave with his fellow warden, before overhearing the conversation.
"Two mages? Training?" Izarre only paused for a moment, before continuing to walk ahead in hopes that this wouldn't be dragged out into the open. "I knew it! You ARE a mage...why didn't you tell me? I mean...you're an apostate..."
"I'm not a mage! Stop calling me that!" snapped Izarre who shot another irriated look in Alistair’s directly while still holding onto his bruised side.
"You shouldn't be ashamed to be what you are, boy." Flemeth's voice was louder than even Izarre's constant protesting and current bickering with Alistair. Morrigan could only watch, rubbing her brow with an index finger and thumb. "Well, don't just stand there, girl. Be on your way." Sighing again, Morrigan walked to the pair of Wardens to stand directly in between them.
"If you two don't stop arguing, the Darkspawn will come to back just to shut you up.” The wild, yellow eyes turned to look directly at Alistair. “Especially you." Taking a step back, the older of the two wardens slightly stammered.
"Me? What did I do?"
"Must I state the obvious?" At least now, there was bickering was between Alistair and Morrigan, leaving Izarre's powers and origins out of the conversation.
"Enough already, or I'll throw you both at the horde and do this alone." Despite the threats that came from him, the Cousland cracked a smile.
"Fine, fine. But I'm keeping away from her. I much rather take my chances with you than some bitchy....spell flinger." Throwing up his arms, Alistair moved to walk side-by-side with Izarre.
"Bitchy Spell Flinger? My, my, that's so original..." Morrigan allowed them some distance before following as well. She gave a last look to the hut and her mother, her harsh expression dropping for just a moment as the feeling of regret washed over. When she turned back to face her new companions, the charade of icy and uncaring came back to mask the saddened face. Alistair remained silent most of the way, his thoughts dwelling on Duncan's final moments. His expression of grief nearly matched Izarre's, whose eyes searched desperately for any sign of Fergus, still believed to be lost somewhere in these woods. The sentiment was shared with Fergus's mabari hound as it sniffed heavily for any signs of its master.
The trail, or lack thereof, out of the Wilds and to the small town of Lothering was full of its own dangers. There were wolves and other wild beasts, driven out of their homes from the marching horde of the Darkspawn, were constantly alerted and attacked the group. There were giant rodents, insects, and other pests who would also attack in search of food or had been driven mad through Darkspawn taint. Morrigan, from her distance, watched the subtle closeness that Alistair shared with the other Warden. It was little things, such as holding up tree branches, offering a hand on slickened moss-covered rocks and logs, or even running ahead to make sure it was safe. She was all but surprised that he didn't cover puddles with a cloak. She also noticed that Izarre hardly ever took such offerings of chivalry, clearing brush with hurdled jumps, cutting away low hanging branches with a dagger, and found easier paths to walk around questionable areas.
However, the few times he did take a hand or duck under a held up branch, Alistair looked rather happy.
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How to Adopt a Warden and Other Tales