A/N: So, I had a DA:O one-shot up earlier this week, but I took it down because I didn’t like it, simple as that. So I decided to write this instead. Let me start off by saying I am a huge Alistair/Female Noble shipper, and I don’t feel that there are nearly as many fics about the two as there should be.
That’s where this story comes in. It will have sex later on (lots of it). It will have wonderful fluffy romance, and it will have action here and there. The story follows the regular story of the game, but most of these chapters will be the camp/slow scenes in between. The story starts off after Alistair and Elissa are rescued from Ostagar and leave Flemeth’s hut. Also, in a few chapters, I will definitely spice up their first night in the “tent” (because in the game, they are clearly NOT in a tent, but I digress). Anyway, here you go. Let me know what you think! ---
JOINING
Chapter 1
The night was eerily silent, considering the massacre that had just taken place less than twenty-four hours prior. In the darkness of the Kocari Wilds, three figures moved silently, their shadows dancing around them in the light of the full moon. If it wasn’t for their soft footsteps, it would almost seem as if the three were floating, moving quickly and swiftly. The figure in the front was a tall woman, with glowing yellow eyes and raven hair. The two other figures were a man and woman.
The woman was of tall, with flaming red hair and deep blue eyes. Her frame was curvy and she was clearly quick on her feet as she was able to keep up with the raven-haired woman without a problem. The man was tall and muscular, with blond hair and not so light steps. His armor made it difficult for him to be stealthy.
"Must you stomp so loudly,” Morrigan hissed over her shoulder. “T’is similar to just shout for the darkspawn.”
Alistair rolled his eyes. “I’m moving as quietly as I can,” he snapped. “You try walking around in chainmail that weighs a ton.”
“Morrigan, leave him alone,” Elissa said, feeling as though it was the tenth time she had that evening alone. “It’s also hard to be stealthy when you can’t see where you are going. How close are we to getting out of here?”
“T’is not far,” Morrigan said. “And you seem to have no problem being quiet, unlike your bumbling companion over there.”
“Tell me again why we couldn’t leave her with her mother?” Alistair asked Elissa, his eyes firmly planted on Morrigan as though he wished she would just burst into flames right there.
“Enough both of you,” Elissa said with a sigh. “We’re not even a day into our journey and I already want to strangle you two.”
"Why me?” Alistair asked, his voice filled with mock hurt.
“You did not help your cause earlier today when we saw a pack of wolves running and you told Morrigan to go join her cousins,” Elissa explained to him.
“Oh yeah.”
The fell into silence once more, but it was more from exhaustion than anything else. They had declined to rest until they had gotten as far away from Ostagar as possible. While they had been assured that the bulk of the horde had moved passed them, Elissa and Alistair had pushed forward. The failure at Ostagar and the loss of their friends and loved ones weighed heavily on them now, and the only thing that helped them not think about such things was to keep moving.
But Elissa was personally reaching her limit, and after about another hour of walking, she stopped. “I can’t go any further,” she said. Her limbs were aching and her leather armor suddenly felt as if it had turned into plate. “We should make camp soon.”
“I agree,” Alistair said from right next to her, making her jump. The moon had disappeared slightly behind the trees and she had not known he was so close. Evidently neither did Alistair because he took a few more steps and bumped right into her back, almost knocking them both over. “Sorry!”
“As you wish,” Morrigan said, not sounding the least bit tired. “I suppose we can afford the rest. Mother warned me that neither of your strengths are fully returned yet. I’m amazed you made it this far without falling over.”
“Thanks for caring, Morrigan,” Elissa said sarcastically, dropping her pack and squinting in the dark. She could barely see anything.
“T’is not my job,” Morrigan said, grabbing her staff off her back. She waved it a few times and there was suddenly a warm, glowing fireball suspended in mid-air. “Find me some wood so I can make this into a campfire.”
Elissa wandered around for wood, while Alistair dropped his own pack and helped her. Within minutes they had a cheerful fire and both the Grey Wardens sunk onto the cold earth. Morrigan moved a few feet away and Elissa saw her start to set up her own tent. She sighed, wishing she and Alistair had tents.
As if reading her mind, Alistair made a noise of annoyance. “Thanks for offering us any shelter,” he muttered under his breath, removing his gauntlets and sighing. “Maker this armor is getting to me.” He reached down and began to remove his boots.
“I don’t know how you can wear that stuff,” Elissa said, pulling her pack over to herself and unclipping her bedroll from it. “You look like you can barely move.”
Alistair shrugged. “But I take less direct hits with it,” he said, starting to remove bits and pieces of his armor.
“Is that your way of teasing me about my armor?” Elissa asked, removing her gloves and shoes. She unfortunately did not have anything more comfortable to change into. She had not had a chance to grab any clothes before she left Highever, and there had been no time at Ostagar, nor a shop for such supplies.
“Oh yes, I’m going to make fun of a woman clad in all leather,” Alistair said flirtatiously, causing Elissa to smirk. She was surprised to learn that she enjoyed his humor at times. Back in Highever, she probably would have found Alistair’s whit incredibly annoying, but after all the loss she experienced within the last few days, it was a relief to know she could still smile and laugh occasionally.
She unrolled her bedroll and laid down on it, but as tired as she was, she didn’t feel like sleeping. Alistair finished removing the bulk of his armor, until he was clad in the light pants and shirt he wore under it. He settled on his bedroll as well and they were silent. Now that they weren’t walking and trying to dodge darkspawn, their minds wandered to the things they hadn’t wanted to think about earlier.
Elissa allowed a few tears to fall as she thought of the family she lost, hoping desperately that Fergus was still alive somewhere. Alistair’s thoughts turned to Duncan, Cailan and the loss of his fellow Wardens. The air began to grow heavy around them, and both knew what the other was thinking.
“Are you alright?” Alistair asked in a soft voice.
Elissa shook her head before she answered. “No.”
They grew silent for a few more minutes before Alistair turned on his stomach, allowing himself to face Elissa. She quickly dried her eyes before she repeated the gesture. They lay on their stomachs, their chins resting on their hands, staring at each other.
“Are you alright?” she asked.
“No,” was his response.
Elissa sighed and turned to look at the fire for a moment. “It’s…hard to imagine that they are gone,” she said finally.
Alistair nodded in agreement. “I keep expecting to wake up and realize this is all one big nightmare,” he said, more to himself than to her. All she could do was nod in agreement. What does someone say in a situation like this? They both looked back at the fire.
There was sadness and tension between them now, and Elissa wanted it to go away. She didn’t want to grieve; she shouldn’t have to. Her parents should still be alive, and so should her sister-in-law and nephew. Duncan and the king should still be there and Elissa and Alistair shouldn’t even be in the Wilds. Elissa didn’t have time to grieve and she forced her tears back, determined not to give in to her sadness. She looked back at Alistair, who did not seem to have the same internal debate as she had.
His grief was written all over his face, and she needed to do something to take his mind off things.
“So, tell me about the dress,” she said.
Alistair turned to look at her, complete confusion replacing the grief. “What are you talking about?” he asked. He looked at her as if he thought she had gone mad.
“You said that you would draw the line if the king told you to dance around wearing a dress,” Elissa reminded him. “When I told you that I would like to see that, you said only for me and it would have to be a pretty dress.” Understanding passed over Alistair’s face. “So, what does the dress look like?”
Alistair smiled slightly. “Well, it’s got flowers on it,” he said.
“Really? What kind of flower pattern?”
“No, not a flower pattern! Real flowers! Great big, yellow daises stuck on in random places,” Alistair clarified, his small smile turning into a small smirk.
Elissa smiled back. “I see,” she said. “What color is it?”
“Well of course it’s pink. What other color would it be?”
“Really? I could have sworn it wasn’t just pink, wasn’t there another color swirled in?”
“Oh yes! The lime green really brings out the yellow of the daises and the pink of the rest of the dress.” His smirk was a full blown smile now and his amber eyes were dancing with the excitement of the joke.
“Sounds breathtaking!” Elissa exclaimed, her face twitching as she tried to keep it straight.
“Did I mention that there are ruffles?” Alistair asked excitedly.
Elissa gasped. “NO!” she exclaimed in mock excitement.
“Yes! White, frilly ruffles along the hem of the dress, and the sleeves are huge and puffy, with bumblebees stitched on…”
By that point, the image in her head of Alistair in said dress was so ridiculous that Elissa had to laugh. Once she broke, Alistair did too and the two of them laughed harder than they had ever laughed before in their lives. Morrigan was clearly annoyed and confused as to what was so funny, but she paid the two no mind.
Alistair and Elissa laughed until their sides hurt and eventually calmed themselves down.
“I must say, that picture in my head was quite ridiculous,” Elissa confessed pulling herself into a seated position and reaching up to undo the bun on her head. She usually kept her hair up because it was so long, but she was starting to get a headache and wanted to be able to rest her head down comfortably. She removed the pins from her hair, and it came cascading over her shoulders in soft, reddish-orange waves, curling at the ends.
She combed her fingers through it to remove some knots, before she caught Alistair staring. “What?” she asked.
He shook his head slightly as if startled. “Huh? Oh, nothing,” he said. “I just didn’t realize how long your hair was.” Elissa missed the slight blush on his cheeks.
“I know, my mother only lets me cut it occasionally,” Elissa said, rubbing her sore scalp. “All noblewomen in Highever have long hair. But it’s not very practical when you’re fighting, if you ask me.”
“Do you ever leave it down?” Alistair asked.
“For special events sometimes,” Elissa said with a shrug. She suddenly realized how odd the conversation was that she was having. She looked at Alistair curiously, her hand paused in her hair. “Why do you ask?”
Alistair blushed some more and half shrugged. “I think it looks nice that way,” he said, his eyes following the waves and curls. He seemed to realize what he was doing and looked away.
Elissa was puzzled as to why he liked her hair. She saw nothing special about it. She shrugged and gave her scalp one final at before she lay down on her side, taking the time to carefully drape her hair over her shoulder. Her eyelids were suddenly very heavy and she realized that she would not be awake much longer. She yawned loudly and tried to rub the sleep from her eyes. It was no use.
She heard Alistair shift and yawn as well and knew he too would soon join her with sleep.
“Elissa?” he asked, his voice heavier than it had been moments before, proving he was just as tired as she was.
“Yes, Alistair?”
“Thank you for…” He didn’t finish his sentence.
“No problem.”
Within minutes of those last words the two were fast asleep, though their dreams were anything but peaceful.
--- A/N: A little shorter than I normally write chapters, but I just had to get this all out. Please review and let me know what you think! Most fanfiction writers live for reviews! It lets us know that people actually are reading our work and want us to continue!
