Cleaning Up the Warden's Home

If she'd been told a week ago that they would all soon have a proper roof over their heads and wouldn't have to sleep out in the open anymore, Caterina would have whooped for joy. Now, as she walked through the crumbling halls with only the echo of her shoes on stone for company, she had half a mind to retract that previous thought. The worn and beaten walls served as evidence of the earlier fighting, and where there wasn't any structural damage to remind you, the stench of rotting darkspawn wafted about to make certain you didn't forget. Most of the upper level had been cleared of the bodies, and all of the immediately necessary rooms as well, but there were still corpses around, and they needed to be cleaned up as soon as possible. To avoid the risk of infection in anyone sent to do the job, it had, naturally, fallen to a Warden. And who happened to be one of the only Wardens without a reasonable excuse to avoid the task but her?

It wasn't so bad. At least she had Bowen with her to do most of the heavy lifting, since the bodies needed to be carried out to the courtyard to be burned. It was a supremely bad idea to attempt to burn them where they'd fallen inside the keep - the smell alone would make the place near uninhabitable, and that ran rather counter-productive to their task. She only had to wander ahead of the Nevarran man, finding where there were bodies still lurking about (and, one more than one occasion, finding there there were note-quite-dead darkspawn and finishing them off) so that she could direct Bowen to them, where he would then carry them to the cart, etc.

"I hope you had fun killing all of them without me," she complained as she kicked a helmet out of her way, calling a little over her shoulder so that Bowen could hear her from where he was a little further down the hall. "You left me alone with all of those refugees, your horrid man, and with that Orlesian harlot as well. I had no idea what to do with most of them, and Sinjan was no great help. I would have preferred to be fighting here with you."

The Tamassran was helping with cleaning up, as he had little else to do. He was a little glum lately due to the impossibility of his task the Ariqun sent him on, and none of the group he travelled with seemed interested in learning the ways of the Qun, much less following it. He did know that they had been pairing off without his consent and not following his recommended pairings for optimal offspring, so he had to make do with what was given.

Already at least one of the women was pregnant, and he would educate the child as was his job to, as well as any children of the others so long as he was journeying with them. The Qun demanded it of him. He used his massive frame to lift stray bodies of Darkspawn and dump them in the furnaces below before heading back upstairs to sweep the floors, muttering Qunari prayers to himself as Caterina and Bowen passed him by.

Bowen looked at Caterina apologetically while carrying a large hurlock over his massive shoulders.

''Hey, I am the one carrying these stinky pigs out of her and yet you're complaining... Don't you know this mess means we can have a bath afterwards? I promise I'll rub your back''

The Nevarran laughed, in a good mood even with that horrible mess and with that awful task, but it had to be done. Mostly because each time one of the survivors happened to wander into where they were cleaning (the not cleaned yet zones were still closed), the poor guy or gal turned green and ran away. Ah, that was life. And here he was, stuck carrying corpses.

''Like a sodding oaf'' He muttered for himself, mumbling under his breath while carrying the hurlock out. Then he returned, and bowed his head a bit in salute to the Tamassran. Well that was a curious guy. He wondered what the large qunari was up to, and soon his thoughts wandered about how nice it was to not be the only 'tower' of that group. Hell, even him had to look up to even glare at the qunari. It was funny in some way

''Can I help you with something?'' He asked, with his feisty tone

She inclined her head towards the qunari, flicking a short piece of white hair out of her face as she watched the massive man move past them with surprisingly silent steps. She could appreciate the grace inherent in the movement, but it also served to make the man even more imposing - huge, quiet, and foreign, there was little comfort to be found in knowing that he moved quietly though dank, echoing halls. Of course, she supposed that there was his assurance that he was merely a teacher, a man of peace, but with what she knew of the qunari, she would keep that assurance with a grain of salt. It helped little that she didn't care much for his preaching.

Bowen found the courtesy that she hadn't thought to offer, and she stretched her ear to listen as she kicked open the door to another room, boredom roughening her usual stealthy instincts. If there were any darkspawn hiding in these rooms, being quiet about opening the door wasn't going to do her any favors, anyway, not with the racket they were making in carting the bodies away.

As the Qunari watched Bowen and Caterina move along, Bowen stopped to greet him. This had mildly surprised the snow-haired giant, his golden eyes looking down at Bowen's. "I am just assisting in removing the bodies from the halls, and cleaning. Though it is not my job." he grunted. His face never changed expression from that perpetual frown of his, only really seeming happy when speaking to those who would listen, such as Jezarine.

"Perhaps I can convert those stationed here at the Keep to the Qun. My task is impossible enough, but I endure."

Bowen laughed and patted in a friendly way the enormous qunari shoulder.

''It isn't my job either. I mean, it is my job to get rid of darkspawn, protect the innocent, stand vigilant, and so on... But cleaning it's not my strong point, I'm afraid''

The tall Nevarran shrugged, playfully pushing a genlock corpse all the way out. When he came back, he brought with him a waterskin and offered it to the qunari. ''Here. Let's stop for a bit, shall we? Preciosa! He called Caterina, smiling. ''Leave that poor door alone for a moment and come here. We deserve a break''

Without meaning to, she smiled and, with one final look around the room, made her way back to the door, poking her head around it to offer the massive man (the blond massive man, since she seemed to be in the company of giants this evening) a grin that he could see. "You do not have to offer twice, querido." She felt positively up to her knees in darkspawn gore, and her leathers would need a spectacular scrubbing tonight if she ever wanted to get the smell out, so a break felt more than deserved, even if it wasn't as private as it might otherwise have been, considering their quiet company.

In less than four quick and quiet steps, avoiding the patches of dried blood on the floor, she was at Bowen's side, and she offered the qunari man another inclining nod as she met his eye. "You worry about conversions," she noted with an air of partial interest, "but the going seems poor. I do not see what you hope to achieve here when your ways seem so strange to most. As for this one," she looked up, her head leaning back far enough to rest on Bowen's chest, "cleaning seems an equally impossible task. And just who do you think is going to get those stains out of your shirt sleeves, lifting these corpses up like that? I would swear that you were showing off, since dragging them would complete the task just as well."

The Tamassran frowned. The lack of people who's job it was to clean the Keep was disheartening. It disrupted the order of things. He addressed Caterina next, feeling slightly put off. "The Ariqun sent me to Fereldan to prevent a war by converting the populace. I wish to avoid the bloodshed that is to come but your people are deeply rooted in their beliefs. It brings sadness to my heart." he frowned deeper, shaking his head. "I knew my task was impossible to start with. But if I can save one life by converting them, it would be worth it." he said, giving more insight about himself than he had ever revealed before. It was an uncomfortable feeling, his stoicism cracking under pressure.

Bowen nodded knowingly, and now that they both were distracted, the Nevarran walked over the next room to start removing corpses. The only thing he wanted was them to have a couple of minutes of rest. Specially Caterina. She was a Warden, but such delicate hands shouldn't be busy with dirty task like that.

''I prefer this to draggin them'' He huffed, but smirked. ''At least this way they are not leaving a bloody trail on the floor. We're going to have to wash everything with boiling water anyway''

She frowned, not liking the idea, but knowing it was true. Getting rid of the darkspawn corpses was only the first leg of the cleanup - sanitizing everything would have to come next, and scrubbing the floors and walls to make sure every speck of darkspawn blood was cleared up was a far more tedious task than simply moving the bodies. Still, they owed it to the safety of the Keep's workers to keep them safe from the Taint, and only a Warden could do the work safely without the risk of contracting the sickness, even if the work was far below a Warden's typical standards.

"Maybe one of the mages can do it," she mumbled to herself as she watched Bowen walk off to find another body. "The walls are all stone - they could simply set the whole corridor on fire to get rid of the infection." Of course, then they'd just have to be cleaning the scorch marks off the walls instead, but at least the Keep's servants could do that, knowing that the germs and darkspawn blood had burned away.

Her eyes found the qunari, watching him carefully. His kind's view on magic was hardly a secret, and she wondered if he would take it poorly to hear of her mentioning mages so casually. Well, she didn't care if he did. Mages were people like any other, and if their powers could be useful in a situation, then there was no reason they shouldn't use them - some paranoid priest wasn't going to stop her from putting it forward as an idea.

It seemed his murmurings were unheard, which partially relieved the Tamassran. Still, he was a bit grumpy about the inevitable scrubbing. This was the job of a servant, or pasheraa bas not one of his station. But he did not wish to idle. Then the suggestion of using saarebas was made by Caterina, and his golden eyes flicked to her cautiously, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up on end. "You would let saarebas use magic without a leash? That would invite trouble. Alas, I can never get any of you to see reason. If there's going to be a saarebas cleaning, let it be the orange one, Jezarine. She is at least reasonable."

[I fucking forgot Bowen's account password. I have no desire of breaking my brain trying to figure it out or sending a recovery mail, so I'll post with this account and tomorrow when it's bright and sunny I'll think about it]

''Maybe they could'' Bowen nodded, again with his handsome badass smirk, and ruffled Caterina's hair passing her by. ''But Jez is busy teaching Takara about healing, and actually taking care of the wounded, and checking for taint signs in them. Sophia is hiding somewhere, surely trying to steal some tea from Maker knows whose satchel. I don't even know where that shapeshifter kid is. Am I forgetting someone...? Oh yes, Maddox. Poor guy, I don't know which tasks has Nygozy asked from him, but he surely is busy.''

Again, the Nevarran smirked, and now that he had his hands free, lifted Caterina's petite frame in his arms to have her to his eye level and kissed her, hard. He knew that most likely would piss the Tamassran off, as the large qunari had tried once or twice to talk them into his weird ideas of pairings. Much to his dismay, every already established couple had politely avoided talking of that matter. Bowen was almost anxious that he would start all over again, because it had been funny as hell to hear the crack pairings the guy had invented.

((Hope no one minds me jumping in))

Khael was anxious, aggitated, frustrated. He knew something was very wrong in Amaranthine, but him and his group had been unable to find out what. He wanted to be there, continuing the investigation. But everyone's priority right now was the Keep. He understood why, and would follower orders but that didn't mean he had to like it.

He had been glad to find Takara and the others returned from the fade when he got to the keep. He was still having trouble wrapping his head around the fact that a year had passed for those in the Fade, while only a few weeks had passed for him. He was shocked too by the changes in Takara. Shocked, but happy. And greatful to have the sister of his heart back with him. But she was busy helping with the wounded and didn't need him hovering right now.

The dwarf had asked around and learned that a clean up party was underway. He thought some hard labour would help clear his mind, or at least wear him out enough that he could sleep. So he went off to help out.

"Hey-a!" He called as he approached Bowen and the others. "I heard you could use a hand taking out the trash." The dwarf said with a laugh. He didn't know any of those assembled all that well, but he figured now was as good a time as any to change that. "Where would you like me to start? I may be short, but I'm all muscle." He said with a mock wink at the white haired woman, hoping he wouldn't get a knock on the head from Bowen for it.

She was surprised, but not unpleasantly so, when she was suddenly lifted off her feet, held high up in Bowen's strong arms. A smile found its way to her lips in the moment before his mouth was on hers, and it was all she could do to remember that there was someone else in the hall with them. Not that it mattered to her - she didn't care if they made a show of themselves or not. For the span of a heartbeat, the kiss was all there was, and she clung to Bowen tightly, weighing no more than a child in his arms. Then she broke the kiss with a small, satisfied sound, and rested her chin and hand on his shoulder just in time to see a dwarf coming down the hall to where they were.

As if she hadn't just kissed her warrior in the middle of a corpse-littered hallway, she offered Khael a playful smirk. "We could very well use another hand. This pair seems occupied." She waved a hand around to the hall, shrugging. "Start wherever you would like."

Caterina had no wish to be put down yet, so she didn't make any move to suggest otherwise; rather, settling into Bowen's arms seemed like a wonderful plan. Arguing with the qunari about the threat mages presented was not something she wanted to do, and if she had to do it, she wanted to be comfortable while doing it.

"Cleaning is not work fit for Jezarine or our lady storyteller. It is not even work fit for me," she added with all the pampered selfishness she could muster in her voice, the effect somewhat marred by her amused smile. "Make Nygozy's prisoner do it. I heard he was responsible for half of these corpses anyway."

[Same. I forgot Bowen's password, so until I remember it or change it, I use this account]

Bowen smirked and nodded, then set Caterina down on her feet, although he didn't wanted to.

''Hey there, Khael. Be welcomed, lad. We could use another pair of hands here for sure'' He greeted the youngster, pleased to see him. ''How is your lovely sister doing with Jez's lessons?''

That was something he liked. A dwarf and an elf, calling themselves brother and sister. Much like Calliara and him. He wondered what his sister was up to... And then, the Wolf appeared from where Khael had come in first place, with an enormous pile of papers in her hands and reading them while walking, and arguing with one of the stewards.

''Miss, we really can't...''

''That's bullshit and you know it. Stop trying to fool me. Just burn it down''

''But Miss...! Where else can we...!?''

Calliara sighed dramatically, and waved a hand to Bowen, Caterina, Khael and the Tamassran. She was looking tired, and angry. The constant whinning of the Keep's servants wasn't helping.

''You can't use that again. Creator's mercy, it's full of darkspawn corpses and worse things. Tell them to build another one in the other side of the yard and burn that thing down. Until then, they are allowed to use the Keep's ones. And if you keep protesting, you'll be the one digging a new hole to shit on instead of them, do you understand. Now, what's the paper about the supplies...?''

The Wolf and the almost crying steward disappeared through the opposite door. Bowen kept looking, quite imagining there was some problem with the yard's letrines, and smirked, but he was also worried. It was obvious that Calliara was getting worse in her worryness about Drake. It was a matter of time, but eventually she would just break. He wondered what Caterina could think about the matter, and not for the first time, he silently cursed the man for being away for so long. The Nevarran was worried for him as well, but what he could see was his sister slowly assuming Drake was dead and not coming back.

He shook his head, and turned to face his companions, all his good mood gone. ''Let's continue. Khal, help me with the next room. There are two large hurlocks there''

She landed lightly on her feet as Bowen set her down, hopping away a few steps to give him space to greet Khael. Turning away to reach down and grab at one of the bloodied pieces of armor on the ground, she attempted to hide her smile at Bowen's question of the dwarf. It was plain to hear the affection in his voice, and she understood well enough that he saw some of his own relationship with Calliara in the dwarf's own sibling-like relationship with Takara. She briefly wondered what it was like to have that kind of brother figure watching out for you - she'd never had any family, and the one she'd made for herself at the orphanage had made her feel more like a mother than a sister. Having someone watch your back, to care for you like you were blood whether you were or weren't, seemed comforting in a way that was difficult to imagine.

Then there were footsteps, and she turned her head, looking up from her crouch to see the elf she'd just been thinking about. Her eyes narrowed as she looked at her, though, noticing just how tired Calliara looked. Soon enough, she'd walked past, frazzled attendant in her wake, and Caterina stood, watching after them with a frown.

"Bowen, querido, would you mind very much finishing the cleaning here with Khael and our Qunari friend?" She strode to his side, laying a hand on his strong arm. "It seems to me that perhaps your own dear sister could use someone to speak to, hm?"

The Nevarran nodded lightly, placing his hand on Caterina's

''I'm not sure if you'll be able to make her talk, but I am grateful for you trying'' Bowen smiled softly, almost lovingly looking at the Antivan ''What would I do without you, Cat?''

[short post is short and crappy, but I don't care]

"Find yourself with a cold bed at night, I would think," she said with a wink, patting him on the arm one last time before turning out of the hallway, eager to put that gory mess behind her as she stalked after where Calliara and the steward had gone.

It was more than clear that the elf had been under a great deal of stress from a great many sources lately, and as close as she and Bowen were, there were some things that a woman could not talk to a man about, even her own "brother." Caterina wasn't one to presume, but if there was anything she could do for the elf that she was so very fond of, then she would do it, even if she was only asked to go back to the clean-up.

They had gone through this door after disappearing from the hallway, and this was the only corridor . . . ah! As she stepped into another hall, she could see the pair through the doorway to a room, seemingly discussing something in a fairly agitated manner. Whatever it was - more about the Keep repairs, the state of the city, the hiring of new servants - Caterina decided that it could wait until she'd had a proper talk with Calliara.

Stepping lightly over the stones, she poked her head in through the small office and knocked, looking between the man and elf. "Pardon me - am I interrupting?" She knew she was, but that was quite beside the point.

Khael smiled and said hello to everyone, even giving a nod to the tall Qunari silently working behind the others. The Tammasran had some interesting tales, but his attitude toward mages always put Khael on edge.

"Always glad to help. Cleaning up the corpses of evil things is certainly better than making corpses of your friends." He'd started the sentance meaning to make a joke but by the end of it there was a frown on his face and a sad look in his eyes. He shook his head to clear the thoughts and smiled at Bowen's question. "Takara is doing very well, although Jez keeps her so busy I haven't seen much of her. It's still hard to wrap my head around how long they were gone compaired to how long it was for us."

The dwarf paused and watched as Calliara swept through the area with her terrified steward. He had great respect for the Wolf, and like the others, he was worried for her. He was glad when Caterina went after her.

Khael followed Bowen into the next room with the Hurlocks and began helping him move the bodies. Despite his youth and his size he really was suprisingly strong. Years of daily hard work fighting and training would do that to anyone. "I think the fade really changed Takara. She's still my loving, caring, kind sister. But she's also... more. In some ways she has grown and matured so much. Yet in other ways she's still just a frightened child. I can't imagine what it was like for them. Have you ever been in the fade?"

The Tamassran had spent most of his time cleaning, silent. There was no one talking to him, therefore, no need to speak. His huge frame made transporting the dead Darkspawn relatively easy, casually dumping them down the incinerator. He still despised doing someone else's job, but it also occupied his time. The young dwarf, Khael had joined them in the mean time, and he regarded the boy in thought. Perhaps he could educate both him and the boy's saarebas friend on the Qun and its virtues. They would make excellent Qunari. The possibilities swam through his mind, thinking carefully on what the results would be of their joining. Khael could become one of the Antaam, maybe.

Calliara rose her head in the middle of a patient explanation to the steward, and saw Caterina there, and for a moment a sincere, full of relief, smile blossomed on her lips. Then it disappeared and the icy look came back.

''Of course you are, but it won't stop you, I guess'' The Wolf grinned and looked at the steward, who was looking at Caterina with gratitude. ''Dismissed. I'll talk to you later. And I don't want to repeat my orders. Burn those letrines down and seal them''

The steward almost run out the office, and the Wolf sighed while leaning her back against her chair, motioning to Caterina to make her take a seat.

''Please sit down. And thanks for not letting me bite that poor fool. I swear he was getting to my nerves. Why is that difficult to understand that darkspawn corpses rotting in letrines is not a healthy thing to shit in?''





''No, I haven't'' Bowen shook his head while moving the hurlock's corpses with Khael. He wasn't keeping his voice low, so the Tamassran could hear them, in the case the large qunari wanted to join the talk. ''You know, I am like a dwarf, completely unable to any kind of magic''

The tall Nevarran smirked, and patted Khael's back once they succeeded with the corpses. ''A little rest and we continue. And I think she'll do well. Difficulties are what make us stronger, if not wiser. But definitely we grow when we are pushed far beyond our will. She'll do well, and if she doesn't, you're here to keep her from falling. And we all are here to prevent you two from falling. We are brothers now''

"Aye. I'm sure she'll be just fine. A brother just worries." The dwarf sighed and then grinned. "At least I don't have your white haired sister. She's a force to be reckoned with. You must have some serious stones taking her as a sister!" He said with a laugh, looking up at the large man.

"How did you end up together anyway? If you don't mind my asking." Khael asked, curious about this new family of his. He knew this was the place for him, deep in his bones he just knew. But he still knew so little about his new brothers and sisters.

She moved out of the way of the poor man, stepping into the room as the door shut hurriedly behind her, and she spared it an amused glance before striding forward to sprawl in the offered chair. For a long moment, she said nothing, only watched the elf as she went on about the incompetencies of the Keep staff.

"To be fair to the man," she said with an amused smirk, "I imagine his experiences with darkspawn are fewer than our own." To a Warden, it was an obvious and grievous mistake – perhaps to someone less versed in the ways of darkspawn gore, however, it was less so.

As annoying as the persistent bumbling of the citizenry was, however, the assassin wondered if that was truly the reason for why Calliara seemed as tense as she was. She had seen the fond, almost relieved look in her ice blue eyes when she'd first walked in, quickly masked behind cool indifference to hide from the wary gaze of the steward – there was clearly something bothering the bard that went beyond this matter. The question was, did the elf want to share it, or would she have to drag it out of her?

"Is there something on your mind, dear wolf, or do I have to drag your brother in here to talk to you?"

Calliara rolled her eyes, putting her feet up on the table as she'd seen Nygozy do often. Then she started preparing her smoking pipe, sighing.

''Poor Bowen. He'd sit there where you are, and stare awkwardly aroung him while speaking about the weather, the comfy furniture and running in circles until he dared to get to the point''

The Wolf grinned sadly. ''I have many things in my mind, Caterina. We all have. I am surprised Macha hadn't assaulted me yet, but I guess she is a busy as I am. You all girls seem to be very perceptive about what other girls feel'' Again, the relief in her eyes, and some kind of gratefulness in her voice. Whatever it was what worried her and was killing her, she was thankful that there were people around her that cared.

Once she had prepared the pipe, she was about to lit it up when she changed her idea, and set it on the table, the put her feet down and sat properly, proud and stiff. It was clear she was unsure of how to open her heart, or even think about it.

''It's been... many months...'' The Wolf started, looking outside through the window, avoiding Caterina's gaze. ''And... he... they... we haven't heard anything about them yet... Drake and Rakot... and Ostef is still unconscious in the infirmary and can't tell us anything... and... and...''

And there it was. The mask cracked and fell down, and the intense pain and fear appeared in all their glory on her face. The Dalish leaned her back against the chair and folded her arms on her chest, still looking away, as if the window held the meaning of life.

''I... must assume they are not going to come back... Drake is not going to come back...''



--


''Aww man, a brother just worries. That I know'' Bowen nodded, agreeing with him heartedly. He was comfortable having the young dwarf around. Where Calliara was all mamma wolf around anyone, specially the youngsters, Bowen was some sort of papa bear as well. Maybe that was why they got along so well.

''How did we end up together? Well... that's a short story, lad'' The Nevarran smiled. The memories still haunted him, but he had learnt to welcome the pain. It was a bittersweet pain now. He knew he could not get rid of it, and he didn't want to. He loved Caterina, but there would always a place in his heart for those he lost too soon.

''I left my country when I was young, and became a mercenary. After some years traveling here and there, I finally settled down with a woman whom I married, and started working for her father as his caravan guard chief. He was a rich merchant, you know, rich enough to not be insulted by others for having a half elf daughter''

Bowen smiled, remembering his Luccia. Her mother had been an Antivan former slave. He never met her because she died when Luccia was young, and then her father devoted his life to his precious daughter. ''We were happy for a couple of years. Then, my father in law prepared a caravan to go from Redcliff to Highever, and from Highever to Amaranthine and Denerim, where he had decided we should move, to live at the capital and expand his business. So there we went''

The Nevarran kept cleaning, apparently calm even if the memories hurt. He didn't care who was listening. He had nothing to hide.

''Darkspawn attacked our caravan. I don't know where they came from. Later we knew they had attacked a little village we had just passed the day before. We were few, but well prepared, but that didn't save us. They fell upon us as rabid beasts...''

There he had to stop for a second, then continued with the same voice tone, calm and firm. ''It was a carnage. But then, Duncan, the former Warden Commander, appeared with one recruit, Calliara. They happened to be traveling to Denerim to attend to the recruit's Joining. Duncan had sensed the darkspawn and tried to help. Luckily, they all were just genlocks and one Emissary, and once Duncan killed the Emissary, the rest were 'easy' to kill for us. But it was late for most of the people who traveled with us. Three passengers, two guards, my father in law and I were the only survivors''

The Nevarran didn't dare to look at the Tamassran or Khael. Instead, he continued after another second or two. ''My wife was eight months pregnant. I first met Calliara when she was desperately ripping my dead wife's womb trying to save our baby. It was a boy. My son lived for six minutes and twenty-two seconds, and died in my arms, grabbing my finger''