SO CUTE!

FINALLY a happy ending for him :) You did good! Real good!

I read this and the last chapter together.

I'm glad that Maryden came around, I was starting to feel weird with her being all negative. I could understand her turmoil, very much so, but I hated seeing Cole hurt, and the two feelings clashed to make it rather difficult to read her parts. Still, I'm glad she finally saw the reality of the situation: Cole deserves some happiness.

The father-son bond is super strong and the 'sex talk' had me laughing. Looking forward to the epilogue :)

Loved the entire fic

THE FEELS! ;-;

Duty is becoming more real/human and Cole's guiding him along; it has a really strong mentor/student vibe to it, their relationship. It's a very interesting step he's taking.

Seeing Cole almost fall back on an old habit made me feel sad; do you really think he'd consider that in this situation? Thank God for Daddy Varric.

Ah-ha! I KNEW Maryden knew what she was saying was wrong, but she's too confused and embarrassed to admit it. I wanna say that she likely avoided Cole because of the things she said, though I think it's also cuz he didn't tell her the truth up front, even though he wanted to.
The fact that she took his damaged hat with her on her way out of a scary situation speaks volumes. Wonder if she caught him looking at it sadly before doing so...

Now's the time for reconciliation; three chapters to go, what will happen next?

So...the Mastermind revealed.

Poor Brice. Poor Duty. Dear Lord :(

The one silver-lining here is that Maryden's fear is melting away, her life-long conditioning to dislike Spirits has been bashed upside the head by visual proof that they're people too. Thus her confusion towards Cole is also melting away into understanding...here's hoping it sticks.

You're back! "hugs"

And that escalated real quick. Had several heart-attacks in a row when Duty had Cole in a bad spot :(

Okay...I WILL admit that Maryden's accusations and suspicions towards Duty and Cole are starting to get to me. And here I thought she was starting to heal...poor Cole, having to feel all her anger and terror. She thinks that Duty's responsible, thus shattering her weakly-built tolerance for Spirits; can Cole put it back together again?

Now we'll finally see who the true Mastermind is...

I found this story on AO3 and when it said there was another version of it here, I went to check it out. Maker's Breath! I was shocked to see that this story doesn't have nearly as much attention as I thought it had. Either way, this story deserves a favorite from me! Cole is one of my favorite Dragon Age characters, so its great to see a story with him as the main character. You've done well writing his character, highlighting his relationship with Varric, his reaction to being human, and his blooming relationship with Maryden. Excellent Work and Round of Applause!

...well, that happened o.o

So, De'Voir wasn't the mastermind of the operations, which leaves The Carta. Brice seems to be stuck in the middle of it all, but could she be involved as well? Doubt it, but I've been wrong before.

At least Maryden is getting comfortable around Cole, so perhaps she's rethinking the Tipping Point issue, but the anger at the half-truths is still there. We're at the part where a couple does the arm-folding, turn around, and stick their noses in the air...except only one of them's doing it, in this case. Cole clearly wants to talk and I honestly think they need to, especially since everything's about to hit the ceiling fan.

I gotta know more, the suspense, the mystery, the reconciliation!

"hugs Cole super, duper tight" ;-;

While I don't approve of him getting Cole drunk, Varric was a pretty good Daddy this chappie and he undoubtedly has some mischief to unleash on the nobles and possibly De'Voir XD Can't wait "smug grin" Seriously, Daddy!Varric is the best!

Also, LOVE how Cole is still awesome at what he does :)

A part of me, I will admit, is starting to get a bit angry at Maryden now due to her accusations. I know she's mad and the Chantry has her brainwashed, but the part of me is saying that she knows what the truth is, she just refuses to admit to it because then she'll be admitting that half her life - the belief system part - was a lie. While I most certainly can understand what an upheaval that is (having gone through a couple myself), I don't like how she's treating Cole as the Tipping Point.

Confirming that he's a good guy won't shatter her or the world, it'll just put it all into proper perspective. Sure, he made mistakes, but he thought he was doing the right thing (I still think he had a bit of reason to, f-ing Spire), my sister even commented that he likely had PTSD after what happened to the Original Cole. I think she needs to spend time with him again, take another look at the person she loves who she's trying to deny at the same time.

...and why do I get the feeling that the book she took might come into play later?

I'm not mad. I am NOT mad.

Compared to the multitude of things that could have happened instead, she actually took his explanation better than I thought she would. She listened to his past, listened to what he did for the Inquisitor, but the fear is still there and the confusion is heavier than the anger. She loves him and knows that he loves her, I know it, but it's clashing violently with what the Chantry told her.

He told her he was/sorta still is Compassion, that he helped the Inquisition, that he's here to help people, but then why lie to her, she asks herself. Well, babe, it might have something to do with you voicing every chance you get how beings from the Fade freak you out. You think he hurt your feelings, well, you hurt HIS just as much! Cole's a sweet boy, you've spent so much time with him and Varric, you KNOW that's who he really is.

It's time you learned what I learned long ago, Maryden: just cuz people with fancy titles says something is just so, doesn't mean that it IS just so. Stop letting their words rule you and you'll see the truth as it's always been.

"starts divulging in profanity until breath runs out"

Dammit! "HUGE sigh" At least Brice seems like a nice person, a friend behind enemy lines perhaps? And wow, Duty's acting wimpier than I thought he would. Not all orders should be followed, Doots, best get that through your head.

Also realized that a LOT of factoids have been dropped before Maryden that Cole is/was/sorta still is a Spirit of Compassion, including the fact that she didn't include Cole in her song :( She's gonna put the pieces together; they're locked in a room for who knows how long and all these hints have been dropped into her lap, she has the time.

And this is only Chapter 8 out of 17! What the heck is gonna happen next? O.O

Way to kill the mood, Duty!

Of course, the happiness they felt was tempered by the fear that Cole's trying to stave off. I wanna say that it wouldn't be as shocking as I dread, since Maryden seems to already know that something is up with him and, since Varric thinks the world of him, she may not fly off the handle. Of course, that could very well just be me in denial, as it could very well be that the bad guys spill the beans first.

All the same, you did a great job of explaining/exploring Cole's first...erm...time. "coughcough" Think I'll stick to this version; if the uncut version is as good as this, I don't think I'll be able to speak/type coherently :D

I'm both curious about what happens next, but I also dread it just a little; there's a cranky spirit in the room with them now, minutes after their happiest moment, and, given all the other times he's shown up, I can't help but start panicking.

Sweetness with Maryden aside, I'm going to go kill the Marquis now "picks up mage wand" If you'll just point me in his general direction.

But first "goes to hug Cole" Nobody takes advantage of him like this, nobody tries tricking him into becoming a lab rat. If I wanted to fry those Carta dwarves before, I want to bring down every elemental attack I can think of on De'Voir's head right now.

"hugs Cole again" ;-;

SQUEE~!

Sorry this took so long, I had a lot of crud pile up on me, but I FINALLY got it all cleared up. And HOLY COW! COLE'S FIRST DATE! D AND IT WENT SO WELL!

...well, until the end, at least. Poor Cupcake.

Trying to change Maryden's mind about Spirits has begun, though I had no idea she had a girlfriend before this all began. Her attitude makes a bit more sense now :( Hopefully she'll come around; Cole's a super sweet boy!

Oh thank God! And Maryden. Holy Cow, that was close... I'm ready to punch the Marquis now, if you please. And the tailor, though I'm sure the perfume will wear off.

I'm now starting to worry about Maryden's reaction, unless she figures it out on her own ahead of time. A new layer of mystery has been added to the plot, one that breeds many questions about De'Voir and what he wants with Cole. "growls" This is a wonderful piece you've made here :)