Chapter Four
The day started off cloudy, though the weather continued to hold. Teagan and Neria set off for the Cousland estate in high spirits despite the angry skies.
In his home, relaxing, Teyrn Fergus was a totally different man from the outraged young man they had seen last night at the party. He was friendly, warm and kind to her, and Neria started to relax in his household. Teyrna Leah was kind and gentle, though Neria sensed strength under that gentleness. Though he was at first a bit distant to her, which probably had more to do with his wife, Anora, than his personal feelings, Teyrn Michael warmed up to her. Anora was coldly polite to her, but she felt that was to be expected.
After the meal, they went to the nursery to see the babies. Neria loved children although she never expected to have any. Between the taint and her own fear of a mage child, she didn’t want them. It didn’t stop her from appreciating the beauty of these little ones. Bryce was the quiet baby, peeking out at the world from blue eyes seemingly seeing everything around him. Eleanor was the more active and vocal of the two, often howling petulantly when she was being changed or bathed.
In the garden later, Neria was admiring the flowers Leah was growing, especially the roses. Though it brought up memories of the rose Alistair had given her, it didn’t diminish her love for the scent and sight of them.
“I never got a chance to thank you, Neria. Oswyn tells me you were the one who rescued him from Howe’s dungeons,” Leah said.
“That’s right. I remember Teagan told me you were Bann Sighard’s daughter. I was happy to help him. He seemed a nice young man.”
“He’s a royal pain is what he is,” she giggled. “But I adore Oswyn. He always looked after me when we were kids and I was getting into one scrape or another. Fergus and I have spoken, and I just want you to know that you and Teagan will always be welcome in Highever.”
Tears stung her eyes and she bit them back. Not all nobles would look disapprovingly at her. Some would see past the physical to the person she was inside as Teagan had.
A splattering of wet hit her head and then within moments they were all sent laughing back into the estate as the heavens finally opened up in a drenching rain. Fresh linens were brought to dry themselves as they stood regarding the downpour from the large balcony doors in the study.
“Well, you can’t go home in that,” observed Fergus, shaking his head. Then, with a grin, he added, “I guess this means you’ll simply have to stay the night.”
Though officially not a couple, no one assumed Teagan and Neria would be sleeping apart, and later in their room after making love, they lay entwined in the huge feather bed.
“Today was wonderful, Teagan,” Neria said. “The Couslands are so nice.”
“They really are, aren’t they? I’ve known the boys since they were little. Fergus told me we would always be welcome in Highever.”
“Leah said the same.”
Teagan smiled. “Happy, love?”
“Lying here beside you how could I not be?”
A scream and a call to guards brought them both into action, Neria throwing on her tunic and Teagan pulling on his trousers and reaching for his sword. In moments, they were out the door to see six men in the hallway attacking Fergus and Leah. He was fiercely defending his wife, but a dagger in his back was sapping his strength and he was beginning to falter. Leah pulled the dagger out of his back and wielded it against one of the men trying to flank her husband.
Teagan began an assault on the one closest to him and saw Michael coming now to assist.
“The children!” Fergus insisted. “Check the children!”
Neria nodded and raced down the hall to the nursery, passing a white-faced Anora who turned and followed the mage. It was quiet, but she had spent a year with Leliana and Zevran, watching the way both moved with such grace—neither made a sound when they tread. She knew roguish ways even if she wasn’t one herself.
She opened her hand casting a small flame spell, controlling the strength to allow light to penetrate the room. Against the back wall she saw a deeper shadow slipping into the shadows by the balcony.
An arrow slammed into her shoulder, knocking her back, and fury ignited the ball of fire in her hand. She flung that in the direction of her assailant and there was a scream as he erupted in flames, collapsing just as he reached her.
The insistent wailing of both infants, wakened so rudely and abruptly from their sleep, penetrated the haze of pain from her shoulder and pulled her to answer their cries. There wasn’t time to remove the arrow safely—she had the babies to protect and the paleness on Fergus’s face concerned her. She pulled first one then the other into her arms and carried them out of the darkened nursery.
Anora stood in the doorway nearby and Neria passed the babies to her. She held them gingerly as if she had just been given two squirming mabari pups and Neria moved toward the fight.
Only one man was left standing and she saw Michael strike him down with the pommel of his sword. Fergus was kneeling, blood pooling at his feet, Leah trying to staunch the flow of blood with one of her nightgowns, but it was coming too fast.
While Michael grabbed the ties off a nearby curtain to bind the living assassin, Teagan tried to get Neria to sit so they could attend her, but she shook her head. Fergus was too badly wounded to afford her time for that. Standing over him, summoning the energies, blue fire began to flow from her fingers to his body as she spoke the words of power.
Leah watched in amazement as the hole in her husband’s body closed and the bleeding stopped. The color even returned to his face.
Then, the adrenaline of battle leaving her, Neria sank to her knees with a low gasp.
“All right, Teagan, now you can remove the arrow,” she relented.
* * *
Later, wounds attended to, Leah and Fergus reassured their children were safe, they stood over the man Michael had managed to capture, who was refusing to talk.
“I say we beat the stuffing out of him until he tells us everything we want to know,” said Michael. Fergus was in wholehearted agreement.
“You’re teyrns. You’re above that sort of thing,” Neria’s smile was wicked. The assassin frowned. “You know I’m not though, don’t you? Grey Wardens do what they must to get the job done. And I can be a lot more creative with how I ‘beat the stuffing’ out of you.”
A ball of flame burst over her hand, spinning and swirling in upon itself.
“Your compatriot shot me. As if that didn’t put me in a rotten mood, he shot me wearing my favorite tunic. Do you know how hard blood is to get out of cloth?”
She heard Teagan start to laugh and turn that into a cough. “I think maybe you’ve been spending too much time with Regina, love.”
“You’re right, that isn’t the hot issue here. All right, you are going to answer any questions these nice gentlemen ask, and you’re going to tell the truth. Or I guarantee you’ll learn what it feels like to be prime rib.”
“Laying it on a little thick, aren’t you, love?” Teagan whispered in her ear.
Shrugging, she smiled at him and whispered back, “He doesn’t know that.”
“I’d do what she says, she’s been really cranky lately,” Michael was obviously enjoying making the man squirm.
“Look, I don’t know who hired me. I got the feeling he was working for someone else. Someone wants someone dead, I just do the job and get my pay. Someone wanted Teyrn Cousland dead, the one from Highever.”
“I hope you got paid a lot to risk your neck like that,” Fergus did not sound amused.
“Actually, they couldn’t quite make my usual price, but it wasn’t all I got. I ‘acquired’ that dagger the teyrna has in her hand as well when he wasn’t looking.”
“It’s nice. A bit too ornamental for my tastes, but serviceable,” said Leah.
“Wait a minute, let me see that,” Fergus came to his wife and took it from her hands. “I know this…. Michael, remember? Father gave this to Loren years ago as a gift. We’ve finally got the slippery bastard.”
* * *
The nobles began to filter into the Landsmeet chamber. Teagan and the Couslands had already arrived and were waiting for everyone. Neria stood nearby, ostensibly as the Hero of Ferelden, but mostly just observing the proceedings. Having received yet another injury from this conspiracy that almost killed her, she had a vested interest in seeing this through to the end.
As a pleasant surprise for Neria, Leliana was also present and stood back, watching everything with acute interest. They hugged in greeting but she put her finger over her lips to urge Neria to silence. Then they turned back to the assembly.
Eamon was there, but he was closed to any overtures from his younger brother had Teagan even wanted to approach him.
The Landsmeet began.
The relief efforts to the affected areas of the Bannorn were going well, better than could be hoped for. Trade had begun to flow once more in Amaranthine and the influx of goods to and from the city and ports far distant was helping the local economy. Ferelden was finally seeing the end of some of its worst troubles in reconstruction.
Fergus stepped forward then and addressed the assembly.
“My lords and ladies, the troubles with the conspiracy have not died down. Two nights ago I was attacked in my own home by assassins.” Loren shifted from foot to foot nervously. “Why, Bann Loren, do you seem so nervous? Could it be you know one of the assassins lived long enough to tell us who had hired him?”
At that point, Loren tried to make a run for the doors, but guards quickly subdued him and brought him forth.
“Your Majesty, it wasn’t I,” Loren pleaded. “I’ve only ever served the Crown!”
Neria noticed Eamon and Alistair exchange glances and the chamberlain brought papers forth at Alistair’s beckoning.
“These papers would prove otherwise. They show troop movements prior to the previous Landsmeet and afterward. And I believe I don’t need to remind you what I said when I last saw you about precisely what would happen if I learned anyone had orchestrated these raids? It would seem you never disbanded them, though I suppose you were biding your time. The raids stopped, but you couldn’t afford to maintain them and hire your assassins could you? You taxed your own people into near starvation to cover all this,” Alistair sighed.
“How did you…?” Loren gasped.
“A little bird sang a song for me,” Alistair replied with a grin.
Next to her, Leliana giggled and whispered in Neria’s ear.
“I had forgotten how much fun the game could be until you reminded me. Arl Eamon paid me well, but when I heard you’d been hurt trying to investigate this, I would have done it for free. You should leave the intrigues to the bards, little mage.” She giggled again. “Thank you, Neria, for being my friend. We can talk later.”
Her soft lips brushed Neria’s cheek and she slipped out quietly.
“Those are forgeries, your Majesty,” said Loren.
“Is this a forgery?” Alistair produced the dagger Fergus had given him. “Teyrn Cousland tells me this was a gift from his father to you six years ago. Did they also forge this? This was removed from the teyrn’s back two nights ago. Were it not for Ne…the Hero of Ferelden healing him, Fergus would be dead now.”
Teagan shot a questioning look at Neria and she nodded in confirmation.
Loren’s shoulders slumped. He was caught at last. To Neria he just looked like an old, tired man now.
He was led away to the tower, there to await further questioning and execution for his crimes.
“And now for a more pleasant topic,” Alistair said. “Lords and ladies of the Landsmeet, I’d like to introduce to you my betrothed, your future queen, Arlessa Edwina Wulff.”
Edwina detached from the throng to step up to Alistair, her eyes sparkling. It was evident to everyone present how much they loved each other.
Neria couldn’t help leaning over to get a look at her, this woman who had won Alistair’s heart. She had a sweet face, pretty without being overly so, long blonde hair and solemn grey eyes. There was about her an aura of quiet strength and nobility, and Neria knew Alistair’s heart was in good hands. She felt Teagan’s hand slip into hers, quietly supporting her, but she smiled at him reassuringly. Giving her hand a little squeeze, he dropped it to begin applauding.
Alistair looked up at Neria, his face suffused with joy, and mouthed to her, “Thank you.”
Epilogue
In the following five years, Ferelden recovered.
Loren talked, revealing all his co-conspirators. The quickest of them had already escaped from Ferelden to other parts of the world, though there were still a few acquaintances who joined him on the execution block.
After a year’s time, Amaranthine was restored, and five years later, Vigil’s Keep was rebuilt, becoming the base for Ferelden’s Grey Wardens. The new Warden-Commander, a young woman by the name of Leonie Caron, took charge in the restored keep. She soon had more volunteers to increase the ranks of the Grey Wardens under her command. There were no further troubles with darkspawn in the region, though they did have occasional sightings.
During a bandit attack on Teyrn Fergus Cousland, Nathaniel came to his aid, saving his life. Fergus was forced to admit he was wrong about the young Howe, and in gratitude restored some of his family’s land to Nathaniel.
Nathaniel bequeathed the land to his sister and her family, and married Regina, moving to her estate in the Southern Plains.
Fergus and Leah’s two children were joined by a third, adding to their family. They continued to be a strong voice in the Landsmeet, often leading the assembly when Alistair wasn’t present.
Gwaren and Highever prospered as Anora came up with a brilliant plan to use the seaways as trade routes, opening up new opportunities for both merchants domestic and abroad. Several ships were built to ply this trade, finding friendly ports in other nations, freeing Ferelden from Orlais’s lock on foreign trade.
The King and his new Queen were married four months after the Landsmeet, and traveled the following spring through the Bannorn and to West Hills to assess the recovery efforts and make further plans for reclaiming the arling.
With Alistair married, and Neria staying in Denerim for a time, Eamon was no longer needed in Denerim. He and Isolde returned to Redcliffe. Two years later word came to Teagan of Isolde’s pregnancy and difficult birth, dying giving Eamon a daughter. That spring Eamon finally broached the subject of his estrangement with Teagan. It had been Isolde’s dying wish that her husband heal the breach with his brother.
He didn’t look well and Teagan relented when Eamon apologized. For her part, Neria was glad they had made their peace with each other—Teagan was obviously much more relaxed in the months afterward. The following year, Eamon passed away in his sleep. The physician said his heart, weakened by the poisoning he had experienced during the Blight, had finally given out on him. His daughter, Gwyneth came to live with Teagan and Neria, and when Teagan assumed the duties of the Arl of Redcliffe, they returned there to live.
While she didn’t have children of her own, Neria opened up a small school where she taught regular studies to the children of Redcliffe, elf and human alike. In a sense, she felt that by mentoring them and helping Teagan to raise his niece, she was contributing to the next generation to come.
For the Hero of Ferelden and her love, life was good.
Modifié par sylvanaerie, 10 septembre 2010 - 07:19 .
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This is great work. Can't wait for you next stories in the future. I will be looking out for them 
