3. The Healed and the Harried

He wasn't sure how long he had really been asleep, but knew it couldn't have been too long, for he awoke to the sound of soft-voiced-lady giving out orders in a short tone that still some how sounded more suggesting than commanding. He could feel that he was still being carried but had no idea where they were, and when he opened his eyes to spot the dwindling light of their campfire just a few yards ahead, he wagged his short tail happily.

They had made it.

The broad path allowed the pack to spread out in a fanned formation, grey-tainted-man walking nearly side-by-side with bronze-skinned-man and the others mostly centering themselves around him. Soft-voiced-lady walked a few paces ahead of the others, her eyes mostly fixated upon her own white tent, though they occasionally came around to land on one of the others and issue another order of business.

"Alistair, take her right to my tent, her exposed bedroll wouldn't be much better than the ground on that hill," he really couldn't recall when he had seen the older human look so determined.

"That and the lady is entitled to her privacy, despite Morrgan's arguments to the contrary." Elf-that-purred muttered to the right and behind grey-tainted-man.

Though he couldn't see dragon-eyed-lady he could imagine the glare that she wore.

"I only suggested that, elf, when it seemed that her life was still in the balance. Not that I'd imagine you'd have much of an argument against seeing her undressed."

"Most of my healing supplies are also in my tent." Soft-voiced-lady smoothly cut in before any more could be said by any member of the party, though even from his limited perch, he could see more than one dark look thrown about.

They were in the campsite now, and man-of-bronze-skin moved right to the dieing fireside, soft-voiced-lady moving right past it with grey-tainted-man close in tow, he watched as she ducked into her circular tent and held the flap open so that he could take his burden through the door without trouble.

Man-of-bronze-skin slowly knelt low to the ground and carefully lowered his weight to the ground. Never taking his eyes from the tent just ahead of him, he assisted his carrier by bringing his body back over his paws so that they held his weight and man-of-bronze-skin could pull his arms out from under his body with ease.

Once the man had withdrawn his arms fully, he dropped heavily to his stomach, still too tired to hold his own weight. He lay now closer to the fire than he normally did but, was still fairly close to mistress's open bedroll, which lay exposed to the sky not ten paces to his right.

Once questioned about her odd sleeping arrangement by grey-tainted-man, lady-who-sung, and elf-that-purred simultaneously, she had laughed and shook her head, explaining to them the limited space in her clan's landships, and that those not loaded with supplies were reserved for the very young, the very old, or those who were injured.

When prodded a bit further by grey-tainted-man's curiosity, she had then explained that her clan's tents were reserved for the months when most needed, in the rains and snow. The tents were hardy, like everything else they made, but were hard to replace, and didn't take down very swiftly. She had then shrugged and casually stated that it was important for the clan to be able pack up and flee quickly, least whatever human settlement nearby decided that they were a threat. The two humans looked away in shame at the reply and elf-that-purred went back to cleaning his blade, an unreadable look in his eyes.

He sighed slightly at the memory and hoped other moments like that one wouldn't be too far off in the future.

There were a few moments in the camp spent mostly in silence, all of them trying to hear the mumbled conversation going on inside the mages' tent, all standing awkwardly and unsurely around the fire, shifting their weight as if they didn't quite know where to stand.

Man-of-bronze-skin moved away from his kneeling position at his back and began stoically rousing the fire, bringing the fading embers back into the roaring blaze they were all accustomed to.

The rustling of the tent flap brought every eye back upon the tent of interest as grey-tainted-man strode out closely followed by soft-voiced-lady, the former looked as nervous and uneasy as the others around fire as he took a position next to dragon-eye-lady, the latter still looked calmly determined as she stopped and surveyed them all with a critical eye.

"I probably should have asked this question a long time ago, if just for prudence sake, but who here has any kind of medical skill?" she held up a hand to forestall any quick volunteers, "and I mean a moderately advance knowledge, not the basic 'throw down a healing potion and slap a bandage on' battlefield kind."

Well that left him out for sure, he had already licked the wounds he could see as clean as he could, and beyond that, there was less than nothing he could do. And judging from the looks of the others around the fire, their thoughts were much the same.

"I'm, much better at dispelling spells, not augmenting them…" Grey-tainted-man mumbled quietly, as if he was just saying something so that something was said.

Dragon-eye-lady merely waved one hand dismissively, not even looking at soft-voice-lady, probably thinking that no one was really asking her anyway.

elf-that-purred shrugged and said. "I stab people in the back with pointy things, that's about it."

To which grey-tainted-muttered. "Double entendre there."

A leering grin broke across a worried elven face. "Indeed."

Man-of-bronze-skin shook his head once.

Soft-voiced-lady was beginning to look exasperated and she quickly turned her gaze on lady-who-sung. "Leliana, in your many different areas of study as bard, I'd hope you might have at least a bit more knowledge that the rest here."

Lady-who-sung stood a little straighter, and her worried look melted into one much like that of soft-voiced-lady. "A little, yes. Not anything largely impressive by any standard, but it was a subject of study."

"Good, then you will assistance me." Soft-voiced-lady said with a tone that brokered no argument, though, judging by the look on the face of lady-that-sung, she wouldn't have gotten one.

The two woman disappeared into the tent, once again leaving the others to stand uselessly around the fire, after a few moments of the rapidly extending silence, he let out a long sigh and shifted his position, enjoying the heat of the fire after such a long night of cold. Wishing that he could be alongside his mistress, but knowing he would only be in the way.

Grey-tainted-man started slightly at the sound, then looked with dismay over at him. "Poor boy, we forgot all about you again didn't we?" he started over to him then paused, catching the eye of man-of-bronze-skin. "Well, everyone but Sten, obviously." now standing above him, grey-tainted-man looked down at him with scrutiny. "Let's… let's get you clean first, then we can see the damage properly." he knelt and gripped up one of the many buckets lying near the fire, dropping one hand on his head as he did so. "I'll be right back, my friend." Then he headed off to the shallow pool of spring water.

Across the fire, dragon-eyed-lady blew out a long breath. "Well, this has been an eventful night, but now that all the fuss is over, I think I shall retire to bed."

"Perfect timing it is, yes? Now you will be able to sleep all day and prowl at night in those shadows you are so fond of." Elf-that-purred said with a cheerful air.

The only reply the ex-crow got was the soft crunch off fading footfalls. Apparently, he mused, she was too tired to engage in any of her favorite tormenting games, but something elf-that-purred had said struck him and he lifted his head to the sky, staring off to the east.

The faintest edge of pink was creeping it's way over the horizon and reaching it fingers up into the deep black of night, signaling the beginning of the end of this years-long night.

Dawn was approaching, and as grey-tainted-man returned with a pail full of water, taking off his gauntlets and beginning to carefully clean the blood from his body, he closed his eyes and this time, really and truly relaxed.

He had done his duty well this night.

The moments that followed were mostly lost to him, merely scattered pieces in between blissful sleep. Most were gained when those tending his wounds slipped or became careless and he was jerked awake from the pain, but as the sun climbed higher over their camp, his own mind roused him more than once. Whenever lady-that-sung emerged from the tent to fetch more water, the others watching her every move and grey-tainted-man throwing her questions every step of the way,-to which her grimly determined look was his only reply,- and whenever there was any sound of particular interest. At one point, with the sun hovering almost cautiously over the edge of the forest, he awoke to find a irritated dragon-eyed-lady shoving a shallow pan filled with red medical potion under his nose. Somewhat suspicions, he gave the pan a careful sniff before indulging himself on the bitter, but soothing, drink.

"See? It is not so bad," came the voice of elf-that-purred somewhere behind the still glowering form of dragon-eyed-lady. "Everyone has had their turn at helping out the hound, now it's your turn And look, you aren't even bursting into flames for performing this one small act of kindness."

"I am only doing this because you refused to leave me to my sleep. I do not even like the mutt." was her curt response over her shoulder.

A chuckle, then. "I am surprised you did not set me ablaze or turn me into some small unpleasant animal."

The liquid in the pan was becoming shallow, and she tilted it just slightly so the liquid condensed in the corner nearest him, he had full witness to the evil smirk upon her face as she hissed out her retort. "Had I any energy left, you can be assured that I would have done so. In fact, once I do finally get the rest I so richly deserve, I will endeavor to fulfill that little statement of yours, though in what order, I shall have to ponder."

The pan's contents now comfortably emptied into his belly, she made a move to get up and walk away, and despite her insistence of her dislike from him, he gave her hand a gentle nuzzle. He barely registered the look of surprise across her face before fading into sleep again.

Fading in and out of fitful dozes and deep sleep, he was vaguely aware that the others in the pack were all taking their own turns between rest and watch duty, apparently having done as much healing to him as they could manage without magic.

He awoke again sometime later in the day, feeling mostly refreshed and in much improved health. His muscles were still sore from overuse and he still felt sluggish from blood loss, but the gashes along his side and back were sealed with salve and filled with a pleasant warm numbness. More importantly, he was hungry.

Getting tentatively to his feet, he was happily surprised to find that he now had enough strength to hold his own weight and probably to walk around a bit. But before he set off to get his food, he looked around camp to try and discern what the situation of the pack was.

The sun bathed camp was mostly silent, which wasn't such a surprise since everyone in sight was sound asleep. Over on the single log that was normally reserved as a bench during meal time lay grey-tainted-man, fast asleep, his spine lying right against the wood. Given the awkward angle at which he lay, it was likely that he was supposed to be on watch.

Elf-that-purred was half curled into a ball on the edge of the tents, man-of-bronze-skin leaned against a thick tree, and he could barely make out the lump that was dragon-eyed-lady a ways off in her animal skin tent. As to the last members, he could still make out faint sounds coming from the only occupied tent in the half circle, though they somehow sounded some what less rushed, which made him only slightly less nervous at how long they had been in there.

He suppressed a sigh and moved over to mistress's bedroll, carefully rooting his thick nose along the multiple pockets in her travel bag, until he rolled it over and reached for the largest pocket on the side, dried meat strips stuffed inside that she kept just for him. Part of him wanted to gobble them all down in one go, as hungry as he was, but he resisted, mostly. Mainly because he enjoyed the moments when she treated him. As he carefully pulled out a few of the longer stripes, he suddenly noticed the long sword and the dagger lying atop the rough grey bedroll, whoever had been thoughtful enough to take the sword away from the battlefield had also cleaned it, and the dagger as well. They lay, a perfect pair, gleaming in the warm morning sun, as though nothing at all interesting had happened, and it felt good to have them back where they belonged.

Crunching down upon the soft meat, he heard just the faintest hint of a conversation drifting from the tent. Not bothering to stop chewing his food, he looked up at the tent, watching carefully for any sign of movement. There was just the slightest flutter of the tent flap, and he stopped moving entirely, staring hard.

Lady-who-sung wearily pushed her way through the flap, stumbling very slightly as she did so, dark circles etched deep under her eyes.

His head came up and he woofed, taking all the energy he could and quickly jogging towards her, gladdened to see the small tired grin flicking across her face.

On the log, grey-tainted-man jerked awake at his sound, drawing in a quick gasping inhale. "I'm awake, awake…"

Almost shakily, lady-who-sung knelt down and stroked the top of his head, scratching behind his ears. "Hello there my friend, you are looking much better today."

He wagged his tail and licked the back of one of her hands.

"Nhugg… what's… Leliana!" Grey-tainted-man tried to jump to his feet, only succeeding in slipping on the log and crashing down loudly upon the ground, his amour creating a huge clatter. He scrambled up again, even as the others all stirred from the newest commotion.

"How's she doing? Where's Wynne? You look terrible, are you alright? Did she wake up ever? Do you know when she might be back on her feet." each question burred into the next, and lady-who-sung looked up confusedly at grey-tainted-man with mist in her eyes.

"What's going on?" Elf-that-purred trotted up and asked groggily, swaying slightly on his feet.

"That's what I was just asking." Grey-tainted-man replied, breathlessly.

Lady-who-sung still gazed up at them, looking drained and slightly out of it. Seeing no response quickly forthcoming, he twisted his head up at the two men and growled slightly, there was no need for them to be harrying her, not in the state she was in, not so much unlike his own mere hours ago.

"Makers Breath," came another worn voice from the tent. "the lot of you are making enough racket to wake the dead." soft-voiced lady passed out of the tent and stood just behind lady-who-sung. "And no, before you ask, that wasn't in any kind of reference to the warden in question."

"Then how is the warden in question?" Bronze-skinned-man seemed to be the only one who wasn't suffering any grogginess from lack of sleep, walking up to them as if he hadn't just been lying sound asleep against a tree.

He looked around again, whining lowly as he gaze passed between the two human woman, wagging his tail anxiously.

Soft-voiced-lady smiled tiredly at the group, but it was a warm happy smile. "She will be fine, a few day's rest and some good food, and she'll be well on her way to saving Ferelden."

Grey-tainted-man whooped, punching his fist in the air, and rushing forward to enveloped soft-voiced lady in a bear hug. Elf-that-purred sighed and grinned slightly, and bronze-skinned-man merely nodded his approval.

"Oh, Wynne, you beautiful old miracle worker, what would we do without you?" grey-tainted-man had actually lifted the older woman a few inches off the ground, grinning the biggest grin his face could hold.

"Learn to wash your socks, I'd hope." gasped the mage from his shoulder, half-way throwing an arm around his back for balance.

Grey-tainted-man gently set Soft-voiced-lady down with a hearty laugh, then turned to look down at lady-who-sung, who managed a weak grin.

"And dear, sweet Leliana," he dropped to his knees and enveloped her in another great hug, "voice of an angel to go right along with that heart of yours."

Lady-who-sung laughed outright, her eyes shining at the compliment. "I can hardly take any credit Alistair, Wynne did all the work, I merely held things and layered on bandages."

"Do not sell yourself short, my dear, your help was invaluable and I would not have made as much progress as I did without your assistance." Soft-voiced-lady was quick to put in.

Lady-who-sung flushed a bit and ducked her head. "but let us not forget the true hero of the day," she said easily. "If not for our mabari friend, our leader would have been lost to us."

In the next second he found the great arms of grey-tainted-man thrown around his broad neck.

"Yes, indeed, the greatest follower of us all, we all owe you greatly, you big lunk you!"

The arms pressed painfully against his sealed wounds, but he bore it in good cheer, quite pleased that grey-tainted-man was himself so happy. Sometimes the man reminded him of the boys who had helped care for him and his litter, so full of life and good spirits. The other warden kept the lightness in every moment, making everything more bearable for the rest of the pack (with the possible exception of dragon-eyed-lady).

"Is he intoxicated?" he just barely caught the question of bronze-skinned-man over the continuing compliments of the clinging human.

"Just overly tired, I think. Or perhaps he might have eaten something that Morrigan set aside for my punishment." Elf-that-purred replied quietly, then in a louder tone, "When can we see her?"

Grey-tainted-man quieted instantly, even as soft-voiced-lady smiled and shook her head slightly.

"Not now I'm afraid. I'd like to keep her resting and not overtaxing herself, maybe sometime this evening, if she says she feels up to it."

"She has awoken then?" Bronze-skinned-man queried.

It was lady-who-sung answering. "Yes, but only in the last hour or so, and very briefly. Thank the Maker she did not come down with fever, or she may never have returned."

"Did she say anything about what happened?" was the next question from Elf-that-purred.

"No, nothing. She just, sort of choked out a few elvish words, and passed out again." Lady-who-sung shuddered slightly, "she sounded, haunted."

"Then we should leave her. Such a battle can leave a warrior unsettled," Bronze-skinned-man said with finality.

"And now that's settled, I think we should all get back to our own rest." Soft-voiced-lady laid a hand on the shoulder of lady-who-sung. "Go off to bed now dear, you've earned your sleep. I shall keep a close watch over her."

The pale blue eyes grew determined again, and lady-who-sung shook her head firmly. "No, you have put out more energy this night than I have, I shall keep close by her side. You rest, take my tent, I insist."

Elf-that-purred cleared his throat. "Or, one of us fine gentlemen can take first watch, letting you fine ladies both off for a good rest."

"Good point," Grey-tainted-man stood back up, looking serious again. "We've all had a rest ourselves, why don't you let one of us take-"

But lady-who-sung shook her head firmly. "No, I insist, these next hours are the ones to be concerned for, if there is anymore concern to be had, and I do have the most medical knowledge other than Wynne."

At the doubting looks of the others, she smiled weakly. "Do not worry, should I find myself unable to fight off sleep any longer, I shall come out and retrieve one of you."

He woofed, seeing an opportunity that he was quick to take advantage of. Lady-who-sung giggled slightly and ran a hand down his neck. "I have no doubt of your sincerity, but I do not think Wynne would take kindly to the idea of you staying in her tent, even if for a little while."

Oh, he knew how to easily solve that problem, this was the least obstacle that he had gone over in the last turn of a day for mistress. He looked right up into the face of soft-voiced-lady, widened his eyes and lowered his jaw so that his lips pouted just slightly, then whimpered once.

On his right, Grey-tainted-man chuckled and said. "Oh, that's just not fair."

"I agree," soft-voiced-lady tried and failed to stare down at him with a stern stare, then sighed. "taking advantage of a tired old lady who has not the heart to turn you away."

He wagged his tail hopefully, whining slightly.

Soft-voiced-lady sighed again and shook her head. "Oh, very well, but you must do your best to keep my tent from smelling like dog by the time you leave."

He woofed his thanks happily, though he had no idea how accomplish the one request she put before him. He didn't smell that bad, did he? Mistress and he slept close together every night and she had never complained.

"Thank you Wynne, and please make yourself comfortable in my tent, it's the least I can offer you." lady-who-sung patted him on the head one last time before getting to her feet.

"Thank you kindly, dear." Soft-voiced-lady smiled and moved to the tent just left of her own, ducking into it with a relived sigh.

"Well, now that's all settled, I think I'll go hunt some breakfast, or is it lunch yet?" Elf-that-purred threw a hand in the air, grinning slightly. "No matter, I'll shall return with fresh meat either way."

Grey-tainted-man looked seriously at lady-who-sung as the shorter elf walked off. "If you get too tired, you come on and find me, yea? I mean it, don't go pushing yourself too far, Leliana."

She returned to her tired smile. "I appreciate the sentiment, but I promise I will not go too long, I will not risk her safety over the petty matter of pride."

He felt caught in the middle of a suddenly awkward moment as the two stared at each other, reading something in the body language of the other. Grey-tainted-man only just noticing it for the first time, lady-who-sung carefully gauging it as she had in so many other moments. If he had to guess, it probably had something to do with mistress, and not in her current state, but in general.

The moment was over rather quickly, as the grin of grey-tainted-man returned and he nodded in approval. "Good then. If she wakes, give her my best." then he turned and practically pranced off in joy, humming a quick tune.

"Well then," lady-who-sung said to him, moving back towards mistress's current resting place. "Shall we?" she brought the tent flap aside and stepped in, holding it open so that he could easily walk in.

And there she was, a small frame covered up to her chin by a light brown blanket, red hair now carefully untangled by caring hands, and a long white bandage that covered up the length of the cut on her face. The lines of pain upon her forehead that had blurred the elegantly curving tattoos into a tangled mess were all but erased. She had never looked so wonderful to him as she did in that moment.

Without preamble, he moved to her side and lay down, careful not to make contact least he accidentally undo the work of the healers. Lady-who-sung moved to her other side and knelt, her smile warm and caring.

"She looks so beautiful when she sleeps, no?" she said quietly, reaching out a hand to stroke a stand of hair away from the pale face. "So peaceful. I hardly ever see that look on her face…"

He grunted slightly in agreement, merely happy to be back at her side were he belonged.

The two sat in absolute silence, just watching the unlabored rise and fall of her chest.

Well, it was silent in the tent, outside was another story.

"Hey Morrigan!" They could hear grey-tainted-man nearly bellow somewhere nort west of their position. "She's going to be fine now! Isn't that just wonderful?" a pause then. "Hey, are you even awake, witch?"

There was a shrill cry of frustration. "Leave me be, you horrid little man! Leave me to my sleep least I decide to turn you into a pathetic little mouse and feed you to that impossible mutt!" dragon-eyed-lady practically shrieked out in response.

"She's going to be fine!" he yelled out again, clearing enjoying tormenting the already frazzled witch far too much. "I just thought you'd like to know that, since you're such a caring person, and-" his sentence was cut of with a yelp that nearly mirrored his own and the sizzling crack of a fire spell.

Quickly retreating steps and a few choice expletives were the next sounds they heard, and then a fairly loudly shouted threat. "The very next buffoon to come within ten paces of my tent will meet a very unpleasant end indeed."

Lady-who-sung chuckled slightly. "Such a very odd family we find ourselves a part of."

"You can say that again, what's with all the ruckus?"

The voice, as horse and cracked though it was, was better than the greatest songbirds tune anywhere in the world, and he nearly jumped to his feet in joy.

Mistress's forehead furrowed slightly before she opened her eyes, the wonderfully strange slant to them that was a part of her elf heritage-as well as the piercing blue hue-as great a sight as any he had seen in a long time. She blinked in the dim sunlight the tent let through then groaned softly.

"Teardra, you have no idea how wonderful it is to you awake." Lady-who-sung addressed mistress using her given name, her voice full of relief, a smile stretched across her face.

"Mmmm, I get the feeling it should feel it's wonderful to be awake." she tried bringing her arms alongside her body and pushing herself up, but hissed in pain instead, her arms crossing under the blanket to wrap around herself. "Judging how badly everything hurts, and by the last memories of my patrol run, I take it I'm pretty lucky to be alive?" her eyes snapped open again and she fixed lady-who-sung with a terrified look upon her face. "Drake, where's Drake? I remember him falling under the swarm, then such a sudden rush of fury, blood… then nothing… What happened to him?"

Hearing his own given name, he hummed a happy note in his throat, moved closer and gave her a long wet kiss on the cheek. Her face fell into joyful relief at the sight of him, and she brought her bandaged arms out from under the blanket to hug him closer. "Thank the gods." she murmured into his neck as he scooted closer to let her have a better hold of him. "you are safe, when I saw you fall..."

"The ash warriors would be proud to have you in their ranks." Lady-who-sung said softly, "From what we could tell, you finished off the entire party, and if what you say is true, you did it largely without the assistance of your mabari."

"Fought until the last enemy fell," she murmured against his neck. "I just couldn't stop, couldn't be stopped, I was so furious, I thought I'd lost him."

Lady-who-sung chuckled slightly. "In truth, without him, you would have perished."

Mistress loosened her hold on him and looked back to lady-who-sung, listening attentively as she described when they had found the battlefield and the darkspawn, what they had seen, and when they had been found. Lady-who-sung went to great lengths to tell of everything he had done to keep her safe, how much pain he had endured for hours on end, and how he had never left her side.

"Without Drake, we would have lost you…" Lady-who-sung finished, looking somewhat drained from the telling of the tale. "Everyone was so worried, I think even Morrigan was a little concerned about you."

Mistress had a soft contented smile upon her face, and while her hands still rubbed lovingly down his neck and back, she had a far off look in her eyes. "I see." she murmured softly. "I, feel very grateful to have so many people to worry about me. After I left my clan… I didn't think I'd ever find that again." she looked right into his large face and her smile widened. "Thank you, my dear friend, for always looking after me, I owe you my life all over again."

He woofed and wagged his tail, giving her another long lick on her cheek, to which she laughed.

Lady-who-sung watched them with a smile across her face, one that slowly slipped away into anxiety. She dropped her gaze to her lap and began fiddling with the hem of her amour nervously. "Teardra, I… there is something I wish to say."

Mistress turned back to the human and her face grew serious again, he followed her look and was surprised at how nervous lady-who-sung looked. She bit her lower lip and refused to meet mistress's eye for several seconds, before taking in a deep breath and forcing herself to meet the elf's gaze.

"When you didn't come back, I was scared. More scared than I have been in a very long time, and then, when we found you, when I saw you just lying there…" she twisted her hands around each other painfully hard. "I felt my world go cold, you were so wounded. I thought," she swallowed. "I thought I'd lost you, and I… I never had the chance to tell you, never had the courage to admit… how much you mean to me."

She bit her lip again, carefully studying Mistress's expression, then let out a very nervous giggle. "This, isn't really how I planned to tell you but, I want to say it before another moment passes me by, because, well, there might never be another moment." she took another deep breath. "I-"

Mistress's fingers were suddenly upon the full lips, stilling their movement and drawing a surprised look from the blue eyes above them. He watched in great interest as Mistress's slim fingers traced their way across the lips, her hand coming around to cup at the pale cheek.

"Leliana," Mistress began in a whisper, "If you were about to say what I think you were, could I perhaps ask you one favor?" she smiled with a deep affection in her eyes. "Would you perhaps consent to wait to finished that sentence until I feel fit enough to show you exactly how much you mean to me in return?"

Mistress began stroking her thumb along the cheek, and Lady-who-sung leaned into the caress. "I promise you that, if nothing else, I will make a moment, just for the two of us, and soon."

Lady-who-sung brought up her own hand to clasp around Mistress's, and she smiled, a thin line of tears under her eyes. She nodded.

Two legs had such complicated interplay, he thought, always drawing things out and making them harder than they had to be. But at least Mistress wasn't as clueless to the affections of Lady-who-sung as he thought, which made him even happier than he had been, if that were possible.

"Good, thank you, Leliana." Mistress sighed slightly and closed her eyes. "I am afraid that I feel greatly tired still," she smiled ironically. "Odd that, I was comatose all night and yet I am still weary this morn…"

"Then rest, my brave dalish hunter, so that we may have our leader returned, and so that you and I may have our moment." Lady-who-sung slowly let down the hand at her cheek, but intertwined their fingers in her lap, and then looked over at him. "and you as well, Drake, we'll have the both of you back on your feet before the week's end."

Mistress chuckled. "Good to know our timeframe, huh, Drake? Let's not keep everyone waiting."

He wagged his tail again, and carefully set his head down near her own, keeping himself as close to her as he could, the both of them settling back down for a long slumber. As he closed his eyes and began to listen to the rhythm of her breathing, a lyrical voice began a slow calming melody.

The two wounded warriors drifted off to sleep side by side, lulled along by the angelic voice of lady-who-sung. Outside of their resting place, the rest of the pack paused in the preparation of the meal, and listened to the melody, and though it sounded a little different to every ear, they all felt its synchronization.

Drifting upon the edge of sleep, he could still feel the newly strengthened pack sense of the group surge in triumph at the song, then he fell back into the peaceful darkness of rest. Knowing that Mistress and himself, were well guarded.

This was a really interesting piece to do, all from the eyes of the dog and mostly in suffering and worry, and yet I still managed to get all the awesome characters in there with fairly large parts of there own.

On that note, I started this story before I had actually made it to Orzammar, which means I didn't have Oghren on my team yet. I might go back and put him in if I feel he fits, but I might not. I'd actually like to see what others thought about it first.

Also, much love for Leliana here, there aren't enough femPC/Leliana fics out there yet. :)

I'd be eternally grateful for any reviews sent my way, I really enjoyed writing this story and I hope you enjoyed reading it just as much.