Chapter 14
The Waking Sea
Bethany and Riona had been led out of the Crossroads by Cole, emerging back into the lands of Thedas somewhere in the Dales, north of the mighty forests of the Emerald Graves. It had taken them three days to reach the Imperial Highway and from there, the closest of the large cities of Orlais, Lydes, on their way to the port city of Jader. Fortunately, by the time they arrived in Lydes, the news that Empress Celene and Marquise Briala had survived the destruction of the Winter Palace had already spread across the land and the squabbles for the suddenly not so empty throne had stopped just as quickly as they had originated, and Orlais had returned to a semblance of normality.
In Lydes, Bethany had arranged for a trusted courier to collect all the documents she had gathered during their crazy adventure and rush to Jader via Halamshiral ahead of them. The collection of parchments would be sent straight to Josephine in Antiva City, and Bethany's beloved would then arrange for translation of the papers in Qunlat while Bethany and Riona planned to first visit Kirkwall, dropping off Riona before Bethany continued onwards to return home to Josephine, impatiently waiting for her.
"You look as if you're very busy plotting," Bethany was stirred from her thoughts by her sister as they sat at a table in a luxurious guest cabin of a Montilyet trade vessel making a routine run from Jader to Kirkwall, the pair looking out at the crashing waves of the Waking Sea trying to toss the ship around, but incapable of harming the sturdy vessel.
"What?" Bethany blinked as she pulled away from watching the white foamy caps of the waves and turned her attention back to her sister. "Oh… yes, I guess I was. Just wondering about what to do, exactly, and who to bring in on this. There's so little that we know about what they're planning, and I would rather not worry those who cannot do anything to help us in this matter."
"True enough," Riona admitted. "I'll have to tell Morrigan, though. I'm still not sure if she's going to be deterred by that warning not to use the eluvians."
"Probably not," Bethany sighed.
"I just think the whole thing is completely crazy," Riona grumbled. "If we had known about his plans from the start, maybe we should have helped the Viddasala instead. In the end, we did him a massive favor by purging the qunari from the eluvian network."
"Eh, he could have done that himself with only a bit of an effort," Bethany shrugged. "Besides, the qunari weren't there to stir trouble with Fen'Harel, not to begin with, anyway. They were all about starting a war with the South, and we couldn't allow that." Riona let out a reluctant grunt of agreement at that. "Besides, if you remember what Solas did with the Viddasala and her lackeys… I think it's becoming quite clear that we can't stop the Dread Wolf in a direct confrontation. Either we need to come up with some clever solution or we have to convince him to abandon his plans to tear down the Veil."
"He should be smart enough to realize the stupidity of his plan," Riona sighed. "I mean, just look at his track record, it's pathetic. How many world shattering events has he caused for this supposed greater good?"
"Greater good of the elves, you mean," Bethany remarked pointedly.
"Well, yes," Riona nodded quickly. "But what I mean is that his plans always seem to backfire because he hasn't taken something into account. Why should we believe that this time it will be any different? He's clearly not as smart as he thinks he is. History proves it."
"I agree," Bethany replied. "But if they hatch their plots behind the eluvians where we are told we cannot traverse, we will have very limited abilities to learn anything about what exactly they are planning to do."
"We could decide to ignore his warning," Riona pointed out.
"Something tells me that wouldn't be wise," Bethany shook her head. "I'm quite sure there's a way for Fen’Harel to know if someone is using the eluvians. The Crossroads are the Dread Wolf's domain now. I don't think we should risk entering that place, unless there are no other options."
"Eventually there might not be other options," Riona sighed. "And of course, what Merrill said about trying to persuade Solas to seek a more gentle and considerate path that would not destroy our world outright… after what happened, do you think she's still motivated to guide him down this more lenient path?"
"Probably not… I’m not sure," Bethany ground out, still hurting from how their parting with Merrill had ended. "Do you think I should have stayed behind with her?"
"What?" Riona blinked in surprise. "No! I don't think I would have left you behind there with her. Beth, I don't know how it all looked to you because I know you are still influenced by some lingering feelings for Merrill, but I'm not… and I could see just how much our old friend has changed. She has truly gone off from the deep end, Beth… sometimes I could barely recognize her as the Merrill we once knew."
"Maybe," Bethany shrugged indecisively. "Still… if me staying behind would have helped to save our world from being destroyed? I could have helped to save everyone we love and care for. Ri, if we fail to stop Solas from putting his plans into action… I'm always going to think back on that moment, and I'm going to blame myself."
"We'll stop them, Beth," Riona spoke in a steely voice, reaching out across the table and squeezing her sister's hand. "You've already given so much, you have nothing to blame yourself for. Besides, I would not have allowed you to sacrifice yourself."
"I suppose you’re right…" Bethany finally conceded, even if she still felt and looked uncertain. "Maybe some of what I said actually got through to Merrill. Perhaps she won't be utterly consumed by anger and bitterness, and will still continue to preach leniency and compassion to her master… as long as she can remember what those things are."
"It's not impossible, but I would rather prefer that all our plans to stop Solas didn't hinge on Merrill's mood swings," Riona sighed.
"No… and to that extent, I've been thinking about something," Bethany replied. "Do you remember when Solas said something about how we have already inadvertently helped him while working for the Inquisition?" Riona nodded at that. "What do you think he meant by that?"
"Well… that we stopped Corypheus, of course," Riona spoke firmly, then looking surprised when she saw her sister shaking her head. "What, do you think he meant something else?"
"Oh yes," Bethany nodded. "Stopping Corypheus wasn't really Fen'Harel's goal, not as such. It was just dealing with an unintended consequence of his overarching plan. No, I think we must have done something else… perhaps something he tricked us into doing…"
"And do you have any idea what it might be?" Riona asked with bated breath.
"I do, actually," Bethany said with a grim nod. "Do you remember those ancient elven artifacts that suddenly began to pop up all over the place after the creation of the Breach? Those glowing little spheres present almost in every ruin we explored, the ones that Solas showed us how to use?"
"Oh…" Riona blinked with realization. "But they served to strengthen the Veil! That's the opposite of what he wants!"
"Ah, but how do we know that it can only strengthen the Veil?" Bethany pointed out. "We know that it somehow controls the Veil. What if it also allows him to weaken the Veil and perhaps even outright destroy it?"
"Good point," Riona nodded, then snapping her fingers in instant realization. "And of course, Solas was the one who just somehow knew how to use those things, right? So… perhaps all those ages ago, he used these very artifacts to create the Veil? In that case, he could also use them to tear it down!"
"That's where I was going with this, Ri," Bethany said, smiling thinly. "The way I see it, right now this is our only avenue of exploration. What I want to do is to recover some of these artifacts and bring them to my arcane university for serious study. Maybe there is something we can find out about them. Perhaps we can manipulate these things to make the Veil impossible to destroy? I don't know… but we must try. I'd love to bring both you and Morrigan in on this research. You could both contribute in a big way."
"This… this could be big, Beth. But you're right, this is something we should explore. Whoa… I think I need a drink to stop my head from spinning. You?" Riona asked, rising from her seat and looking at her sister, Bethany responding with a shake of the head. Riona walked over to the drinks cabinet of the splendorous cabin usually reserved to diplomatic envoys making a trip from Orlais to Antiva or the Free Marches, returning to sit at the table with a bottle of expensive wine in her hand, pouring herself a glass, then another, and another.
It was only at the end of her third glass that Riona did speak up again after a lengthy silence. "It happened around five months after Mal's birth," she spoke up slowly. Bethany turned to look at Riona, about to ask what her sister was talking about, but then noticing the serious look on Riona's face and deciding to simply let her sibling continue. "It was a dark and dreary autumn evening at the Hawke Estate and I was getting annoyed with everything and everyone, snapping at those who got in my way. The babies were particularly insufferable and impossible to calm down, and I ended up chewing out one of the servants for something completely inconsequential. I was about to snap at Morrigan as well, but then she called me out on being an annoying bitch, telling me that I badly needed to get laid."
"Ah…" Bethany exclaimed, finally realizing where her sister was going with this story. Unfortunately, her exclamation made Riona hesitate and pause, as if she was no longer certain whether she wanted to continue. "Please, go on Ri," Bethany urged softly. "I can sense that you really need to share this."
"Well… I snapped back at her that yes, perhaps I needed to get laid, but then so did she because she was just as insufferable most of the time," Riona eventually decided to continue. "To my surprise, she actually agreed with that and we spent the rest of the evening laughing about it and drinking copious amounts of wine. We were about to call it a night when she suddenly out of the blue made this offhanded remark about how we could possibly help each other with this 'needing to get laid' matter. It took me completely by surprise, and like a complete idiot I could only mutter that I don't really like women that way. In response to that, Morrigan only grinned and whispered to me that it won't be a problem, telling me to go to my bedroom and wait."
Riona took another big swig from her wine glass, refilling it before she continued to speak, setting the by now empty bottle aside, swiftly polished off all by herself without Bethany's help. "I guess curiosity got the better off me, because I decided to go along with it," she said eventually. "When Morrigan came to my room a little later, she was… changed. The smartest thing probably would have been to just send her away, but she had changed into someone… well, very handsome, and I had had quite a lot to drink that evening, so I figured… what's the harm? And… well, I must say, I don't regret that experience," she confessed, her cheeks turning a dark shade of red. "I guess it was because underneath her changed shape was still a female mind, knowing acutely just how to please another woman, so it was quite unlike with any other partner before. I don't want to compare, but…"
"You don't have to worry, sister," Bethany smiled. "I've only ever had two partners and they both are women, so I think I understand what you mean."
"Well, not really, I don't think any of them had a-…" Riona cut herself off at the last moment before saying something quite lewd, both siblings blushing darkly at that. "I mean, the toys just don’t feel quite the same," the older of the sisters pointed out embarrassingly. "Anyway… what I wanted to say is that it felt amazing, but at the same time really awkward."
"I can imagine," Bethany nodded seriously. "How did you react afterwards?"
"Morrigan snuck out after we were done having sex, and I spent most of the night thinking of just what to say to her the morning after," Riona sighed. "But Morrigan made it really easy for me. She simply made sure not to give me a chance to even bring it up. It was as if it had never happened."
"Somehow, I'm not surprised," Bethany rolled her eyes. "So, was that the only time it happened?"
"Err… no," Riona muttered, blushing yet again. "Over the past year and a half, it has happened on six separate occasions… and I remember each one of them very vividly. It just… happens, and the aftermath is always the same, she just won't allow me to even bring it up. I honestly don't know what to think anymore."
"I can only imagine how confusing that would be," Bethany sighed, shaking her head. "Given the opportunity, would you want to be with her? I mean… a more meaningful relationship than friends with benefits?"
"That's the problem, Beth," Riona sighed deeply. "I'm still not attracted to women. Can you really be together with someone if you can only enjoy intimacy with them when they are changed into someone they're actually not?"
"Mhm…" Bethany mused thoughtfully. "Is the thought of sleeping with the female Morrigan truly repulsive to you?"
"I… if I'm perfectly honest…" Riona hesitated a little before replying. "I feel as if it becomes a little less objectionable every time I sleep with her when she has shape changed. So, I don't know… maybe I could? Oh, I just don't know! Anyway, it's all moot speculation, I doubt she's really interested."
"I don't think she would lay with you even when shape changed if she truly felt nothing for you," Bethany pointed out. "Ri, if you're serious, perhaps you should just corner Morrigan and confront her about what she feels. What you both feel, really."
"Perhaps, but there's an added complication, Beth," Riona said. "Remember that Morrigan is living with a sword point hanging above her head. Given my previous relationships… I don't think I would dare to get romantically involved with someone like her. I feel as if she would be cruelly taken from me the moment we decided to be together as a couple. That would just be typical of Flemeth, wouldn't it? As soon as someone finds some happiness in their lives, she immediately shows up to extinguish it."
"Right… and I think that must be the reason why Morrigan refuses to even talk about it," Bethany mused. "She probably feels like she can't get involved with you, not when she has to live under this constant threat from Flemeth. That's why she pretends to be so aloof and brushes you right off, that has to be it. It's… very depressing, really," Bethany sighed, shaking her head in sadness. "To live in the shadow of death like that… robbing you even of thoughts of happiness. I feel so sorry for her."
"Just don't tell her that, I don't think she would appreciate it," Riona said, Bethany nodding in understanding.
"So what are you going to do now, Ri?" Bethany asked.
"I don't know yet," Riona shrugged helplessly. "No, actually I do know… once the children are a little older, I'm going to help Morrigan with what she has been working towards for the past decade. I’m going to help her break free from the curse of being the daughter of Flemeth."
~***~
Hawke Estate, Kirkwall
Even though Bethany was more than eager to resume her journey back to Antiva City where Josephine waited patiently for her return, it had been some time since she had last visited Kirkwall, so her stay became extended from the initially planned two days to four. There was certainly plenty to do, starting from visiting with her uncle Gamlen, his wife Orana, as well as hanging out with her and Riona's cousin Charade, both sisters having become increasingly fond of the young woman who loved to frequent the seediest parts of Kirkwall, not limited to the Hanged Man, eventually revealing to Riona and Bethany her secret role as the Red Jenny of Kirkwall.
Most of Bethany's time in Kirkwall was spent entertaining her beloved nephew Malcolm and his favorite playmate, Morrigan's daughter Keira, two inquisitive and bright children, their time together filling Bethany with almost painful maternal urges. The children took to her very well, almost shadowing her steps all the time during her visit, something that Bethany did not object to in the slightest, and something that the two mothers appeared quite relieved about, finally having a little time to themselves. During the days of Bethany’s stay in Kirkwall, Riona brought Morrigan up to speed with what had happened in the Crossroads, the dark witch promising to help in whatever capacity she could, but whether her sister had decided to bring up the topic of their relationship with Morrigan, Bethany could not tell, the dark witch's facial expression never giving away anything, always cordial, but distant at the same time. In any case, Morrigan still appeared to be taking the threat of Flemeth very seriously, never leaving the estate in broad daylight, only daring to go out under the cover of the night, or while shape changed.
On the third day of Bethany's stay in Kirkwall, a package arrived from Antiva City, Josephine promptly sending back the translated qunari parchments so that Bethany and her sister did not lose any valuable time. Studying these translated documents revealed some interesting new discoveries, while at the same time confirming many things they already suspected about the qunari plans. Perhaps the most telling information was the confirmation of what Bethany had already surmised, that the Triumvirate of the Qun had been very close to formally severing all ties with the Viddasala and stop funding her operation, after the Ben-Hassrath reports had been found in conflict with the Viddasala's own reports about how the operation in the South was proceeding. With this knowledge in mind, Josephine asked everyone involved to try and suppress the information that the qunari had been behind these terrorist attacks across the Southern Thedas. With the Triumvirate clearly not trying to start an all-out war, Bethany and Riona agreed with Josie that releasing this information and inciting the powers of the South to retaliate would be highly irresponsible. While they were still doubtful whether the truth would not come out even despite their efforts, none of them wanted to be the one to break the news and then have the blood of hundreds of thousands on their hands as a result.
Josephine was also quite detailed in her account of just how much damage the qunari attacks had done across Thedas. While Bethany and Riona had already picked up some of the rumors while traveling, it was very helpful to receive such a detailed report from their most trusted source in Thedas. Orlais had escaped disaster when Empress Celene, Marquise Briala and Divine Victoria had all managed to evade the attacks, but many a fortress and palace had been destroyed, and the Council of Heralds had been thinned quite considerably. In Ferelden, the only attack of note had been on the Royal Palace, and while it had caused a staggering death toll, Alistair and his pregnant wife had managed to escape by sheer good fortune. In Antiva, life continued without a hitch as the merchant princes squabbled about which insignificant noble to prop up as a figurehead for their country with no actual power in their hands. The Free Marches had been hit harder, but not all cities had suffered similarly. In Starkhaven and Tantervale, the holdings of many noble families had been reduced to rubble, and there were reports of Markham and Wycome also experiencing devastating explosions. Ostwick and Kirkwall, however, had remained untouched, whether through sheer luck or something going amiss in the qunari plans. In the nearby country of Nevarra, the consequences had been the most notable, finally solving the power struggle between the Pentaghasts and the Forsythias, driving the survivors of the long ruling Pentaghast family into exile in Orlais, where they would undoubtedly plot and plan to take back what they considered theirs.
The evening before Bethany's departure back to Antiva City, a small private party was being thrown at the Hawke Estate, featuring some of the oldest and dearest friends of the Hawke family. Varric, forgiven for writing his lewd and tawdry book, was in attendance, together with his slightly frustrated looking wife, Lace appearing perfectly in agreement when Morrigan time and again reminded the dwarf with a stern glare that she had not forgiven him just yet. Aveline had also managed to free an evening on her still busy schedule, the Orlesian Marcher starting to show some signs of aging from the rough life she had led, but the set of her jaw was as firm and steely as ever. Her husband Donnic sat next to her, as always kind, smiling and full of jovial cheer, the perfect counterbalance to Aveline's grim seriousness. Morrigan had been expected to sit down with them, but the dark witch had instead decided to remain a little on the sidelines, sitting down only to quickly nibble on some of the food on offer, afterwards appearing only episodically here and there throughout the evening, having to deal with the arduous task of putting the children to bed. However, Bethany could not help noticing the way Riona now and then kept looking for Morrigan, the youngest of the sisters left wondering just what the future held for her older sibling and Flemeth's daughter.
"You must visit again soon, Bethany," Aveline spoke up following lasting silence after the dinner, during which everyone was recovering from the rich serving of the chocolate mousse dessert. "And bring that lovely young lady of yours with you. She was such a delight to have around the last time you visited Kirkwall together."
"Yes, Josephine would like to visit soon, I'm sure," Bethany agreed with a smile. "But our duties get in the way all too often," she added with a sigh. And unfortunately, I don't foresee a change for the better now that we have learned about the Dread Wolf and his plans. Together with Riona and Morrigan they had spent the evening before discussing whether to bring any of their Kirkwall friends into their plans to counter Solas, eventually deciding against it. There was really no point in bringing Aveline and the Kirkwall Guard into it, at least not yet, as they would only be of any help if Solas suddenly began to operate in Kirkwall, which seemed extremely unlikely. Varric and Lace were potentially much more useful accomplices, but even so, Varric's spy network was focused on Kirkwall and loosely around the Free Marches, concentrating on the urban centers of civilization and the rumors constantly circulating therein, while the information that Bethany sought after was usually left buried somewhere in remote ruins out in the wilderness, not something that Varric's sources could help with. For that reason, they had decided to withhold the truth from Varric as well, at least for now, but allowing for the very real possibility that his help would likely come in very handy at some point later.
"Well, you could take some time off and go visit them in Antiva," Varric pointed out, grinning at Aveline. "I have to remind you all that this is a woman who has only taken off time from work once, and that was to go on her own honeymoon."
"Shady operators like you would certainly want me to take off more time, I'm sure," Aveline glared at the dwarf.
"Not just them," Donnic quipped with a suffering look on his face.
"Not you too," Aveline gave her husband a betrayed stare. "I took a day off on Harvestmere festival three years ago!"
"Only because you stabbed your foot on the chipped end of a spear and it got so badly infected and swollen that you couldn't get it into the boot," Donnic sighed. "Let me tell you that rushing to the Chantry for a healer so that my wife wouldn't die or have her leg amputated was not my idea of a relaxing day off."
"Exactly, I'm glad you agree," Aveline grinned smugly. "Days off are overrated, so it's much better to just spend our time working."
"Gah!" Donnic buried his head in his hands. "You are impossible to argue with!"
"So, Bethany," Lace spoke up as the others were still laughing about Aveline's exchange with her husband. "I saw you at the Hightown market with the children earlier today. It seemed like you have really taken to each other."
"Oh, you better believe it," Riona sighed. "I'm not looking forward to all the crying when they find out she's leaving tomorrow."
"What I meant to ask, though, was whether you and Josephine have thought about children of your own?" Lace asked, surprising Bethany a little.
"Well… I'm sure you can see how that could be a problem for us," Bethany replied with a light blush. "I know how that issue is sometimes settled amongst the nobility, but I don't think either of us wants to go there. I fear it could be damaging to a relationship."
"She speaks about a man making her or Josephine pregnant," Varric whispered to his confused looking wife, loud enough for most of them to overhear.
"Oh! Goodness, no!" Lace blushed, shaking her head vigorously. "I was thinking more about adoption!"
"I think I would be alright with that," Bethany nodded. "But unfortunately, Josie's mother is rather obsessed with blood purity… it's almost a little Tevinter in that regard. Josie's child would be first in line to inherit the estate from their mother, so Josie’s parents insist that the child must be of Montilyet blood."
"Why are nobles always acting so ridiculously?" Lace shook her head. Even though marriage to Varric had elevated her to a position of reasonable importance in the higher societies of Kirkwall, requiring her to attend many balls and soirees, the dwarven woman had clearly remained true to herself in almost every aspect.
"That's just what being a noble means," Varric shrugged.
"And what about you, Varric?" Bethany asked. "You've been tightlipped about your plans this evening."
"Oh, I'm sure he's plotting on how to unseat Bran and become the next viscount," Riona laughed. "He just doesn't want to say too much because he's worried that Morrigan and I haven't truly forgiven him, and that we might do something to thwart his plans in revenge."
"I would never think that about you, Hawke," Varric clutched his chest, looking mortally offended.
"I'm sure you wouldn't," Riona rolled her eyes. "Anyway, there better not be any ridiculous books penned by you seeing the market in the near future."
"Oh, trust me, Hawke, I've learned my lesson with that," Varric spoke with a slightly worried stare directed at his wife.
"Yes, I do believe he has learned, Riona," Lace announced with an air of superiority that made everyone around the table chuckle.
"Well… I actually do have some stuff ready to be published, but I can assure you that those will be mere embarrassing smear pieces about Bran," Varric grinned knowingly.
"You'll be the most crooked viscount in the history of Kirkwall," Aveline sighed, shaking her head. "Let me assure you, Varric, all your activities will be monitored especially closely."
"You might be too busy dealing with some of the restructuring initiatives I have planned for the Kirkwall Guard," Varric replied with a wink that held clear promise of much shouting, bickering and arguing coming soon, especially in the case of Varric's promotion to the viscount of Kirkwall.
"I think that's enough discussion of politics," Riona said as she got up from the table and walked over to the drinks cabinet nearby to pick up a pair of bottles of wine, exchanging a few quiet words with Morrigan away from the ears of the others before returning to the table and passing the bottles over to Donnic to open them. "This is Bethany's last evening in Kirkwall before she departs again," Riona spoke up, raising a glass at her sister. "Perhaps we should talk of something more interesting than Varric's political aspirations, which I often suspect are motivated only by his eagerness to play around with the keys of the harbor."
"That's true, he talks in his sleep about raising and lowering those huge chains," Lace sighed at that, making Varric actually appear a little embarrassed and red in the face.
"How can you not miss all this bickering over there in Antiva City?" Aveline smiled at Bethany before accepting the refilled glass of wine from her husband.
"I do miss it a little bit, now and then," Bethany smiled back. "But right now, I'm really starting to get homesick for Antiva City and the Villa Montilyet," she added, taking a sip of the wine, feeling content as the friendly chatting and arguing around the table continued long into the evening and towards midnight. As their little private party slowly drew to a close, however, the image of her beloved became more and more prominent in Bethany's thoughts, filling her with almost painful longing. Suddenly, despite how enjoyable her stay in Kirkwall had been, she could not wait for her departure the following morning.
