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Part 2 of Two Wardens Are Better Than One
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Published:
2014-07-30
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2015-12-04
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71/71
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The Sacrifices We Make: Consequences of Choice

Summary:

The Hero Queen of Ferelden and her best friend, Surana the Slayer, may have ended the Blight together but there are still threats around every corner. What happens when one of the Wardens arrives at the Keep early, before the attack? Not a simple retelling of either game. Will include the royal wedding, Awakening and eventually DA2. Rated M for violence, sex and language.

Included the main tags for the whole fic, other stuff will be updated along the way (as and when I remember to :P)

There is absolutely no need to read the 'first part' of this series, Sacrifices is completely stand alone.

Notes:

I'd like to give a massive thank you to my two lovely beta readers ElyssaCousland and lisakodysam as they are incredible. I hope you all enjoy this story, and feedback is not only welcomed but encouraged; I'm a chatterbox and could talk about DA for hours, just ask my betas :D

Chapter 1: The Laurel and the Hound.

Chapter Text

 

 My Surana, Neri for those who are curious.

We will have to pretend there are pointed ears poking out of all that hair, yes? 

 

  Surana the Slayer

 

 

 

 … Three months after the Archdemon was slain.

 

Neri Surana slipped past another servant as she zigzagged her way through the maze of chairs and tables laid out in front of her.

"And where d'yah think you're going, elf?" a woman with neatly pulled back grey hair snapped. "Get the name cards, at once!" She wagged a wrinkled finger at Neri's face.

Neri frowned slightly and gawked at her.

The woman snapped her fingers, her grey eyes narrowing in annoyance. "You 'ave ears big enough for all tah see! Yah deaf, girl?"

Neri shook her head, still not quite believing what this woman was saying to her. "I'm not a servant," she blurted with a quirked eyebrow.

The woman scowled and ran her shrunken eyes up Neri's petite body. "What are yah, then?" she mused, with a hand on her hip.

"Uhhh, the maid of honour?" Neri stammered.

In fairness, Neri was only in a simple cotton shirt, a boiled leather jerkin, some plain linen breeches and buff coloured boots. She didn't look very important.

The woman's mouth fell open, revealing her yellow crooked teeth. "B-begging yah pardon, m'lady! You ain't nothin' like they said at all."

Neri craned her head to the side. "And what did they say?"

"Ten feet tall they said you was, with glowing red eyes, and always dressed in the hide of tha' beast you slew." The wrinkles on her neck shifted slightly as she swallowed thickly.

A smile touched Neri's lips. She had spread the rumours herself. She hated being recognised and gawked at, although being mistaken for a servant was almost as bad.

"Ah, that's only when I'm fighting." Neri leant closer to the woman. "Lucky for you, today's my day off." She smiled sweetly. "Talk to any elf like that again and you will regret it," she uttered with a forced grin on her face.

She left the stuttering woman and continued to meander through the endless seats and tables. They were all beautifully decorated: each table was clothed in white, and at their centres, a beautiful bouquet of white and yellow lilies. Above her, stretching across the marquee's ceiling, was a net of daisy chains forming the image of two griffons intertwined together – a not-so-subtle nod to the royal couple. There was of course a large stage for the band and a long table for the new king and queen to sit at, too, and outside there was a patio so that guests could dance under the stars.

She finally found her way out of the massive marquee and onto the green beyond. She sucked in the smell of freshly cut grass and grinned as she continued walking. It didn't take her long to find the winding cobblestone path, the gate in the little white picket fence, or the flower garden beyond. She took another deep breath and sneezed as the pollen assaulted her nose. It was a beautiful morning: the sun was only just peeking over the castle walls, and a sliver of golden light glistened off of the dewy grass that lined this part of the garden.

Normally this area was peaceful and quiet. Today, however, it was a hive of activity as servants and Chantry brothers and sisters hurried around, making the final preparations for the wedding. Most were cutting flowers or arranging them. She noted two sisters plucking romantic-red rose petals, and smiled to herself; she knew exactly where those petals were going.

There was a man dressed in the brown and gold robes of the Chantry crouched next to the koi carp pond. He held a net in his outstretched arm, desperately trying to reach a water lily in the centre of the glistening blue liquid. Neri gave the flower a gentle push with her magic and it floated right into his net. The brother looked around, bewildered, until he laid his hazel eyes upon Neri's grin.

His face lit up with joy, dimples forming in his cheeks. "You have my thanks, my lady!" he hollered with a bob of his head.

Neri returned his smile and nodded in kind.

She found herself at a small tree, more of a shrub really; the mess of twigs and leaves wouldn't make anybody give it a second glance, usually. But today it was in bloom, with beautiful white and yellow flowers that smelled like freshly cut peaches. She plucked the fullest looking flower off of its branch and lifted it to her nose. She grinned at the sweet scent and let out a soft moan. She knew it would be perfect, and so made her way back toward the palace.

The people she passed were smiling and chattering away, mostly about the wedding. She heard some gossiping about some handsome nobles, and others were talking about the kind of dress the bride would be wearing. It struck Neri as entirely strange to hear, and she realised it was because these conversations were mundane. It made such a change to the conversations she had heard during the Blight. It was always, "did you hear about the destruction of such and such, or the death of so and so?" The people she passed were happy, they were hopeful. Perhaps all their hard work since the Blight was starting to pay off, or perhaps people were just choosing to focus on something joyful on such an exciting day.

It had taken a great deal of effort to remove all of the rubble from Denerim; reconstruction had begun on some buildings, but it was the harbour that had been prioritised so aid could be received. Focusing on the capital did, however, mean the other arlings were still in disarray. Teyrn Fergus Cousland of Highever had been sending aid and men to help the southern arlings, but progress was slow. Other areas were lost forever, including Lothering - where Neri had grown up - which would remain black with the taint for many years to come. She was grateful the ground beneath her feet was a luscious green; it almost made it possible to forget about the horrors they had all faced during the Blight, if only for a second.

Neri took the steps two at a time; this part of the palace was quieter than the rest, she was relieved to see, and she reached the door she had been seeking. She tapped on it gently, sensing the Warden on the other side of the door; the taint in her blood was tickling at Neri's mind, a sensation she was still getting used to as it had only begun to occur after the Blight had ended.

"As long as you're not my darling fiancé, you may enter!" Arietta Cousland called out in her singsong voice.

Neri grinned and opened the door. A gasp escaped her lips as she took in the sight of her friend, and now soon-to-be-queen, standing in front of her.

Arietta Cousland had always been a beautiful woman: her porcelain skin, her rosy cheeks, her bright blue eyes, her dainty, slightly upturned nose and her chestnut hair always made her look prim and proper, like the noble she was. Today half of her hair was clipped up; the other half fell gently over her shoulders in soft curls. Her eyelids were tinted with a creamy gold that made the blue of her eyes sparkle, and her cheeks were extra rosy as she smiled at Neri. It was the dress though that brought tears to Neri's eyes.

"Oh, Ari!" Neri cried.

Much of the bridal gown was ivory, with white flowers sewn into it that dotted the gown from the top all the way to the floor, but there was a slit at the front that revealed the golden fabric beneath. The bodice had a sexy laced back and the front was low-cut, revealing Arietta's ample bosom, and her cream heels only amplified her lithe figure.

"How do I look?" Arietta smiled sweetly, her eyes bright with joy.

"Beautiful," Neri whispered, her hand on her mouth to stop herself from squealing.

Arietta beamed and twirled for her.

Neri realised she was staring, but she really had no words for how beautiful her best friend looked. Arietta continued to swish her dress in the mirror, a huge grin plastered on her face.

"Oh, I have something for you," Neri exclaimed at last.

Arietta cocked an eyebrow and smiled curiously. Neri opened her palms, revealing the flower she had picked.

Arietta covered a gasp with her hands as her eyes brimmed with tears. "Neri, it's perfect!"

Neri giggled at her reaction. "Want me to…?" she said, pointing to the future Queen's hair.

Arietta bobbed her head up and down enthusiastically and beamed.

"You might need to sit, I'm half your height when you wear those heels," Neri said with a light chuckle.

Arietta giggled as she sat herself on a stool in front of her messy vanity table.

Neri placed the flower over the clip, slightly off-centre, and then secured it.

Arietta looked in the mirror and smiled. "Yellow and white," she spoke softly.

Neri nodded cheerfully. "It's a good theme."

It had taken them hours to decide upon it; most royal weddings were gold and some other colour. Eamon, Teagan and Leliana had suggested dark blue and gold; the dark blue was the background colour to the Cousland Heraldry, plus the two colours worked well together. There had been suggestions of gold and white, gold and silver, yellow and blue, green and yellow… and then Neri had suggested white and yellow. White represented a clean slate, a fresh start, a new beginning, and yellow symbolised hope, as well as sunshine. Together they meant the darkness had finally receded. There were other connotations too, of course: both Alistair and Arietta had been virgins at the beginning of the Blight, they were both virgins to ruling and governing an entire country, and yellow was Arietta's - sadly deceased - little sister's favourite colour. So when Neri had suggested it and explained, Arietta and Alistair had both eagerly nodded their heads in agreement.

"I love it," Arietta said jubilantly as she bubbled with excitement.

Neri rubbed Arietta's shoulders gently, caressing her supple skin. "You are going to look incredible walking down that aisle."

Arietta stilled and smiled sadly. "I just wish my parents could see it."

Neri kissed her head. "I know, but I'm sure they're watching, and you have Fergus."

Arietta squeezed Neri's hand. "And I have you and Leli."

"Always."

Arietta ran her eyes up Neri and then tilted her head with a half-smile. "I do hope you're not wearing that to my wedding," she said, gesturing at Neri's rough jerkin.

Neri snorted. "Well, I was tempted. I wouldn't want to accidentally look prettier than you on your big day," she teased with a crooked smile.

Arietta chuckled. "Off with you, there's only a few hours left now."

"Yes, my queen." Neri bowed deeply with a wicked smile.

Arietta shook her head and smiled. "Could you check on Alistair for me?"

"Of course, he's probably blubbering away," she mildly teased.

"Oh I hope not, the poor man," Arietta cooed.

"I'll sort him out, don't you worry." Neri winked at her, and Arietta rolled her eyes with a laugh.

Neri shut the door behind her and walked into her own chambers, grabbed her gift for Alistair, and then left before tapping on his door.

"Come in!" he hollered, his voice slightly higher than usual.

She opened the door; he was frantically lifting up cloaks against his silver and gold doublet and looking in the mirror at them.

Neri sighed and closed the door.

He looked at her and relief spread across his face, his shoulders losing some of their tension. "Oh good, you're here!" He lifted another cloak and scowled at the mirror. "I was just about to send someone to get you."

"Are you still undecided on the cloak, Your Majesty?" She dipped her head slightly.

He glared at her. "Ugh, keep calling me that and I'll have to call you by your full title, and I know how much you hate that."

She grinned. "I hate my title because it's ridiculous. Calling you 'Your Majesty,' however, is completely normal, you are king after all," she glibly returned.

They called her Surana the Slayer, Saviour of Denerim and Ender of the Fifth Blight. She hated the stupid thing. It was Arietta that had united the lands, gathered the armies, won the Landsmeet and led the charge to retake Denerim; it was, however, Neri who had taken the final blow… and survived, so apparently she was a big deal now.

He sighed. "Trust me, you do not need to remind me."

She craned her head to the side. "So, you're still fretting about the cloak?"

"I am not fretting!" He waved his arms in the air. "I am just very indecisive about which cloak to wear…" He blushed furiously.

"Riiiiiight."

There really was only a choice of two: a plain gold cloak or the Theirin cloak, a pale yellow thing with the two howling mabari sewn in gold in the centre.

"I might be king, but I am still a bastard. It feels wrong to wear the same cloak that Maric and Cailan wore; they put that cloak on Rowan and Anora. Would Arietta even want it over her shoulders? She doesn't like Anora. And if I wear the Theirin cloak it's like I'm forcing my name onto her and I know remaining a Cousland is important to her." He took a deep breath before continuing.

"So then I should go with plain gold, right? But then that's as if I'm saying she's not good enough to be a Theirin bride, and then there's the fact I don't know what kind of dress she is wearing. You said there was gold on it, so should I wear the gold? Will the yellow clash or match?" He was red in the face by the time he'd stopped blabbering.

"Alistair, take a breath, man."

He tried to open his mouth to speak again, but Neri lifted her hand to silence him.

"I have a solution, maybe." She handed him her gift.

He glared at the box. "What is it?"

"Open it and you'll see, dummy."

He narrowed his eyes at her. "I think I prefer you calling me Your Majesty," he sniped. He lifted the lid very slowly then gasped as he pulled the contents out. "Neri…"

"I've been sewing it for a while," she said, twiddling her thumbs nervously.

He looked at her and tears welled in his eyes. "It's perfect!"

It was a dark blue cloak, with yellow and white mabari warhounds sewn in the centre. Around each mabari's neck was a silver Cousland laurel wreath.

She breathed a sigh of relief and her lips turned up into a smile. "Good. I figured it would fix the problems you mentioned."

He was wearing his own cloak instead of the old king's, it incorporated Arietta's heritage, too, and as a bonus it would match her dress just fine.

His strong arms pulled her into a bear hug. "Thank you, thank you so much."

She giggled against his muscled chest. "I'm the maid of honour, it's my job." She airily dismissed his praise as she pulled out of the hug.

"I don't know what I would do without you," he gushed, as he gave her his trademark goofy grin.

She gave him an impish smile in return. "Probably flail around on the floor like a fish out of water," she teased.

He tried to smack her playfully but she dodged his swing and laughed.

She bowed ceremoniously. "If that is all, my king?" She really needed to go and get ready herself before meeting all of their charming guests.

"Yes, yes, shoo!" he playfully ordered.