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Dragon Age- Fanfic Part 1

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Stephanie put down the controller and blinked burning eyes to peer at the clock. 2:30 a.m.! Where had the time gone so fast? At least tomorrow was Saturday. Sighing heavily, she turned off her Xbox 360, flicked off the lights and trudged upstairs, yawning as she ruffled her cat's ears on the way. She performed her bedtime ablutions mechanically, brushing her teeth, pulling her shoulder-length, wavy brown hair back in a loose ponytail, and slipping into a baggy t-shirt for sleep.  She turned off the lights and wearily climbed under the covers, snuggling down into her comfortable bed with a heavy sigh. She stared at the ceiling, watching the streetlights flicker through her closed blinds and play strange patterns on the walls.

Between one breath and the next, she suddenly found herself standing on a columned portico surrounding a large courtyard bathed in moonlight. She stumbled back in shock and promptly tripped over the long curved sword strapped to her waist. Catching herself against one of the fluted columns, she received another shock. She was wearing a billowy-sleeved shirt, secured by a snug bodice that exposed far more bosom than she was altogether comfortable with. Glancing down, she saw her legs were clad in form-fitting leather breeches and soft, knee-high leather boots with the tops turned down. A long bandana tied around her forehead held her hair back from her face. She blinked around her in surprise, breathing deeply the cool night air.

"Ok, Stephanie, this is just a dream, get a grip. You've had vivid dreams before," she said quietly. But not like this, another part of her mind whispered. She could hear the soft susurrus of the wind rustling the leaves on the massive tree that dominated the courtyard, she could hear the faint sounds of people talking at a great distance, and the air smelled cleaner than she ever remembered having smelt before. Not knowing what else to do, she slowly began walking around the portico, keeping to the shadows and praying she would not get in trouble if anyone found her here. The sword kept painfully banging into her legs and she grimaced, wondering how the adventurers managed to get used to the clumsy things.

She suddenly caught sight of a beautiful fountain and stepped toward it, thinking to rest by it, for she was still as exhausted as she had been when she lay down in her bed.

"Hello," a low voice said, nearly right next to her. Gasping in fright, she lurched backwards and tripped over her sword yet again. A strong hand reached out and steadied her and though she could not make out the man's face with the moonlight behind him, she thought she heard a soft chuckle.
"I take it you don't use that sword often," he said, sounding amused. As soon as she appeared to regain her balance, he removed his hand. He crossed his arms and settled comfortably against the column, just staring at her.

Thinking quickly, she knew she had to come up with some story. "Yes, well, usually simply wearing the sword is enough to deter most people." She felt a dark flush creeping into her face and hoped the moonlight would wash it out and make it unnoticeable.

The man seemed to accept her story for he did not comment further. "You look like a sailor. Are you a merchant, here to trade?"

"Ah," she glanced down at her clothing again. "No, just a traveler," she finally said, somewhat truthfully. He stared at her in silence for long moments and she began to shift uncomfortably. "I uh... I'm sorry, I didn't know anyone else was here."

The man waved a hand negligently and she wished that she could see his face instead of just a dark silhouette. "No one knows I'm out here. Ruling a kingdom is hard work and this is the only time I can get a little peace and quiet. Where are you from? Forgive me, but your accent is certainly not from Ferelden. I'm quite familiar with the accents of my own people, yet neither does yours sound like Antivan or Orlesian."

Stephanie felt her legs go weak and she leaned heavily on the pillar beside her. Surely, she must have misheard him. Ferelden, Orlais, Antiva; these were all cities in the game Dragon Age, which she had been playing before bed. She must be dreaming, there was no other explanation. She often dreamed about things she had been doing just before bed. Believing it was simply a dream, if an unusually real one (she could feel the grain of stone beneath her hands!), gave her some courage to play the part she appeared.

Clearing her throat a bit nervously, she simply gazed out over the courtyard and said, "There are no maps in your kingdom that would show the land I am from." If she was in Ferelden, and this man was truly king as he claimed, she wondered if she were speaking to Cailan, or (and here her heart lurched fitfully) was it Alistair whom she had always been unreasonably attached to, despite him being only a fictional character in a videogame. She tried to control her breathing and get a grip on herself, reminding herself once more that it was all just a dream.

"Is that so?" the man asked quietly. She silently prayed he would not question her further because she had never been very good at improvising.

Before he could say anything else, there was the sound of metal ringing on stone, heavy footsteps from the far end of the walkway and someone called out "Alistair? Are you out here again?"
Her companion cursed softly and she felt her heart leap into her throat at the knowledge that she was conversing with Alistair as she had hoped. "Shhhh!" he whispered, taking her hand and pulling her with him as he ran down the walkway. He ducked into a shadowed alcove that housed a large statue of a woman, arms raised in supplication. Her heart thundered in her chest as his strong body pressed against hers in the small space behind the statue. She held her breath as Alistair gently placed a finger over her lips, the footsteps drawing nearer. She could hear a high-pitched nasally voice complaining that this was so like the king, to wander off when he was needed. She felt Alistair stiffen in anger, but he remained hidden in the shadows, barely breathing until the footsteps had long faded into silence.

Stephanie felt a thrill of disappointment as he removed his finger, but he did not move away from her. She could hear his own breathing coming quickly and dared to wonder if he were having the same feelings she was. But no, he was King, and even in the game he had been shy and virginal. She blushed hotly at the very thought, glad the darkness concealed her face now.

"What is your name?" Alistair asked softly, still standing very close to her.

"St-Stephanie," she said hesitantly, heart fluttering nervously.

"That is a beautiful name," he said, and she realized he was leaning even closer to her, his face very near her own. "It's so refreshing to talk with someone who sees me as a person, and not just the Crown. Sometimes, I just want someone to see me as just Alistair, instead of the king."
His proximity was making it difficult for her to think.

"Well, no matter our stations, at the end of the day, we're just people-"

His lips pressing against hers effectively cut off that train of thought and she clung to him weakly, unable to believe this was happening. This is a dream, it's not real, you're just having a really vivid fantasy dream. She kept repeating those statements over and over in her head, for it was far too easy to believe this was really happening. She had to keep her head, somehow.

After what seemed an eternity, he finally released her, breathing as raggedly as she was. "I- I'm sorry. I've never done something like that before, forgive me." He moved to step away, cursing himself for trying to force himself on a woman. She caught his arm and he froze, expecting condemnation for his actions, but instead, she pulled his head down and kissed him deeply.

"Who said I didn't like it?" she asked him as she released his mouth. If this was all just a dream, then there was no harm in indulging in a few of her fantasies, was there?

"I... you're not angry with me?" he asked in shock.

"Why ever would I be angry with you?" She squeezed past him to glance both directions up the walkway. "Perhaps we could go somewhere a little more... private and... comfortable?" She couldn't believe her own audacity, asking that of a man she had never met before.

She heard him gasp in surprise. "You... you want to go to my chambers?" he asked, in obvious disbelief.

She turned around to face him, hands on her hips. "Well, yes, unless you want to continue in this cramped place?" she asked archly.

He was silent for so long that she worried she had pushed her luck too far. Finally, he said, "There is a secret passageway to my chambers not far from here. It's how I sneak out here every night." He took her hand and began leading her stealthily through the shadows. "It was built as an escape route if the castle were under siege. I find myself under siege daily from my advisors and visiting dignitaries." His voice was heavy with disgust. She pressed near him, her eyes huge as she tried to keep watch for anyone that might see them.

Several times on the short trip, they had to duck into dark rooms, or into shadowy niches to avoid patrolling guardsmen. They were giggling like mischievous children by the time they reached a heavy statue that Alistair said marked the hidden passageway. He moved the statue aside with greater ease than seemed possible from the size of the statue, before pushing aside the hanging tapestry and motioning her inside. She stepped past him and froze in the darkness as he let the tapestry fall back into place behind him.

"Just a moment," he said, and she could hear him fumbling around in the dark. A moment later, a bright flare of light stung her eyes and she quickly threw her hand up, but not before she finally got a good look at the man she was with. He was every bit as beautiful as he had been in game and she felt her breath catch again. The reddish blonde hair carefully sculpted up in the front made her smile and he gazed at her with an endearingly honest expression. "Are... are you having second thoughts?" he asked worriedly. "I... truly, I have never done this before, bringing a woman back to my chambers. Please don't think me some cad," he said earnestly. He could not know how much she truly knew about him. To be sure, she was astonished she had managed to talk him into even this much, for he had always placed a great importance on personal relationships and was most certainly not a man to take a woman to bed lightly.
Stepping away from my usual writings for this one. This is, obviously, part 1 to a two parter. So after always reading :iconmeibatsuren:'s fanfic, I felt motivated to write one of my own. Especially as she is always so mean to Alistair, so I thought I'd write one being nice to him. j/k! =) I am a total fangirl for Alistair so I wrote something for all the other girls who are Team Alistair.

Part 2: [link]

Alistair, Dragon Age, Antiva, Orlais, Ferelden, etc. are all property of Bioware. Stephanie is mine.
© 2010 - 2024 AzureMosquito
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XxEllithainxX's avatar
I like this a lot! :) You get right to the point of a good fanfic lol ;) none of the dancing around the subject like I too often do lol :) ahh Alistair... he's so cute...