Two Sides of the Same Coin
Two Sides of the Same Coin
Title: Two Sides of the Same Coin
Rating: T (for now, may change to M later)
Genre: Drama/Romance/ and a touch of humor
Summary: Love hurts, literally and metaphorically. That is one lesson every Crow learns early. But there is another side to that particular sovereign. And sometimes, you learn it in the place you least expected. m/m
Relationships are beginning to shift, just a bit, between some of the party members. Zevran learns what happens when he decides to push the boundaries just a little. Enjoy! And, as always, comments & feedback are always welcome.
Zevran Arainai
From anyone else, I would have considered the manner of my Warden’s response shameless teasing. From him, it was a challenge. And such a sweet challenge. I smiled at the thought of those soft-looking lips, so close to mine that I felt the warmth of his breath against my face as he spoke. As for his answer, well, it was good to know that any advance I made would be welcomed. Though how close he would let me come was still a question.
I resumed looking out over the water, enjoying the cool breeze slipping over my skin. The day had just gotten much warmer. For I really did fancy him for the reasons I’d told him. Ah, Zevran, it’s reassuring to know you haven’t lost your touch in this harsh land. I was turning these thoughts over in my mind when he returned, carrying bread and a wedge of pale yellow cheese, and two small flasks of wine.
“I thought you might be hungry,” he said, holding out a flask. A suggestive response hovered on the tip of my tongue, but something in his eyes and the set of his mouth stopped me. His story still lingered in his heart. So I just nodded and accepted the flask.
The wine was better than I expected, slightly sweet and fruity. We ate in silence, breaking off chunks of bread and cheese and trading them back and forth. And I didn’t even have to worry about them being poisoned. In the weeks we’d traveled together, he hadn’t seemed to worry about my poisoning the food, either. He trusted me to keep my word, and had from the first moment he’d accepted my pledge. There were no silly rules, no pointless and cruel games for me to prove myself. The stones around my heart loosened a little more. And, to my surprise, I didn’t want to put them back in place.
“The captain says we should reach the tower just before evening. Though, we’ll have to wait for morning before we can sail back. The wind comes from the wrong direction at night,” Darrian said. He glanced at Alistair, still curled up and snoring on the deck. “I was wondering if you could teach me some of those moves I saw you use last night.”
Training prompted me to say no. But the Crows were far away. Besides, if I taught him it increased my own chances of survival when they came looking for me. And, sooner or later, they would.
“So, are you planning on becoming an assassin now, as well as a Grey Warden?”
“No, but fighting this Blight… I’ll take every advantage I can get.”
I chuckled. Intriguing and practical, this Warden. “Why not? If you’ll teach me how to make that poison I saw you coating your blades with before the fight last night. Quite effective against those walking dead.”
“Agreed.”
We finished off the wine, and he tucked the empty flasks into a small chest bolted to the deck.
“So, you killed an arl’s son,” I said. His hands tightened on the railing, and then relaxed. “Hmm, if you’re going to kill off a nobleman, you should at least have gotten paid for it.”
“He’ll never bother Shianni again. I consider that fair payment.”
“Perhaps, but such a thing is not without consequences,” I said carefully.
“I know that,” he said, so sharp and sudden that I kept the rest of my words behind my teeth. He stared at his hands gripping the railing.
“I know that,” he said again, in a softer voice. “Not a day goes by I don’t think of what those might be. But if I had left him alive, he would have returned. And Shianni…Shianni and who knows how many others would probably be dead now.” He turned to me, and in the bright sun there were flecks of turquoise in his gray eyes. “Tell me, Zevran, your masters in the Crows, are they human?”
“The Crows buy humans, as well.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
I saw no reason to lie. “Yes.”
He closed his eyes. “Not so different, you and I, are we?”
“Oh, there are differences enough, I think, to make us interesting, yes?”
“Are there?” he murmured.
“Of course. You, my dear Warden, are amber and smoky quartz, wrapped in steel and fire. Me, well, I suppose I am gold and amber wrapped in…” I glanced down at my armor. “…very tight leather. An appealing sight, yes?”
He laughed, the kind that comes from the belly. It was good to hear.
“You should laugh more often. It suits that handsome face of yours far better than frowns.”
There was a snort behind me. “What…did I miss the punch line again?’ Alistair said, climbing to his feet and covering a yawn. Darrian only laughed harder.
“What?” Alistair said, shaking off sleep.
My Warden’s laughter subsided, but left a smile behind it. The ex-templar smiled back, then glanced at me, puzzled and shrugged his shoulders. Now that reaction was not one I would have expected from him. Not towards me. Hmm, yes and he had fallen asleep while I was awake. Interesting.
Alistair stretched and wandered over to us, then his gaze settled on the tower, looming larger with every passing minute.
“I just hope they have enough lyrium for the rite or…,” Alistair said, and a shudder passed through him.
“Why wouldn’t they?” I asked. “Or are the mages here prone to hoarding?”
“All the lyrium used in Ferelden comes from Orzammar,” Darrian explained. “And lately, none has been shipped out. Rumor says there’s a dispute over the kingship and the city’s closed to trade till it’s settled.”
I chuckled. “Yes, politics is usually bad for business…or good for business, depending on which side you’re on. I’m sure the smugglers are making a fortune.” I tilted my head. “Perhaps I’m in the wrong business after all.”
“Have you no morals?” Alistair said, banging his fist on the railing.
“Now there’s another interesting concept. It’s been my experience that morals are generally espoused to make people feel guilty about what they should be enjoying. Usually sex.”
“They’re not…they’re supposed to…to …That is…oh, I give up,” Alistair said and stalked off towards the stern, his cheeks bright red.
“Is he always so easily embarrassed about sex?” I asked Darrian.
My Warden’s voice was soft, pitched for my ears alone. “Don’t bait him, Zevran. I don’t care if you do it with me. But Alistair…” He looked down at his interlaced fingers, then at me. “He deserves better than that.”
So, my Warden was far more perceptive than I first thought, and very protective of his friends. For a brief moment, a heartbeat or two, that bothered me in a way I didn’t quite understand.
“Ah, is this something I should beg pardon for?”
He straightened and motioned towards the stern. “I’m not the one you need to apologize to.”
I sighed, a bit dramatically, I’ll admit. But if I wanted to stay in the good graces of my Warden, I had to apologize. We would be spending many weeks, months even in one another’s company. Prudence demanded that bad feelings be minimal. I was rather attached to my head and limbs, after all.
I nodded and headed for the stern.
Previous chapters can be found here: Fanfic:Two Sides
Title: Two Sides of the Same Coin
Rating: T (for now, may change to M later)
Genre: Drama/Romance/ and a touch of humor
Summary: Love hurts, literally and metaphorically. That is one lesson every Crow learns early. But there is another side to that particular sovereign. And sometimes, you learn it in the place you least expected. m/m
Relationships are beginning to shift, just a bit, between some of the party members. Zevran learns what happens when he decides to push the boundaries just a little. Enjoy! And, as always, comments & feedback are always welcome.
Zevran Arainai
From anyone else, I would have considered the manner of my Warden’s response shameless teasing. From him, it was a challenge. And such a sweet challenge. I smiled at the thought of those soft-looking lips, so close to mine that I felt the warmth of his breath against my face as he spoke. As for his answer, well, it was good to know that any advance I made would be welcomed. Though how close he would let me come was still a question.
I resumed looking out over the water, enjoying the cool breeze slipping over my skin. The day had just gotten much warmer. For I really did fancy him for the reasons I’d told him. Ah, Zevran, it’s reassuring to know you haven’t lost your touch in this harsh land. I was turning these thoughts over in my mind when he returned, carrying bread and a wedge of pale yellow cheese, and two small flasks of wine.
“I thought you might be hungry,” he said, holding out a flask. A suggestive response hovered on the tip of my tongue, but something in his eyes and the set of his mouth stopped me. His story still lingered in his heart. So I just nodded and accepted the flask.
The wine was better than I expected, slightly sweet and fruity. We ate in silence, breaking off chunks of bread and cheese and trading them back and forth. And I didn’t even have to worry about them being poisoned. In the weeks we’d traveled together, he hadn’t seemed to worry about my poisoning the food, either. He trusted me to keep my word, and had from the first moment he’d accepted my pledge. There were no silly rules, no pointless and cruel games for me to prove myself. The stones around my heart loosened a little more. And, to my surprise, I didn’t want to put them back in place.
“The captain says we should reach the tower just before evening. Though, we’ll have to wait for morning before we can sail back. The wind comes from the wrong direction at night,” Darrian said. He glanced at Alistair, still curled up and snoring on the deck. “I was wondering if you could teach me some of those moves I saw you use last night.”
Training prompted me to say no. But the Crows were far away. Besides, if I taught him it increased my own chances of survival when they came looking for me. And, sooner or later, they would.
“So, are you planning on becoming an assassin now, as well as a Grey Warden?”
“No, but fighting this Blight… I’ll take every advantage I can get.”
I chuckled. Intriguing and practical, this Warden. “Why not? If you’ll teach me how to make that poison I saw you coating your blades with before the fight last night. Quite effective against those walking dead.”
“Agreed.”
We finished off the wine, and he tucked the empty flasks into a small chest bolted to the deck.
“So, you killed an arl’s son,” I said. His hands tightened on the railing, and then relaxed. “Hmm, if you’re going to kill off a nobleman, you should at least have gotten paid for it.”
“He’ll never bother Shianni again. I consider that fair payment.”
“Perhaps, but such a thing is not without consequences,” I said carefully.
“I know that,” he said, so sharp and sudden that I kept the rest of my words behind my teeth. He stared at his hands gripping the railing.
“I know that,” he said again, in a softer voice. “Not a day goes by I don’t think of what those might be. But if I had left him alive, he would have returned. And Shianni…Shianni and who knows how many others would probably be dead now.” He turned to me, and in the bright sun there were flecks of turquoise in his gray eyes. “Tell me, Zevran, your masters in the Crows, are they human?”
“The Crows buy humans, as well.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
I saw no reason to lie. “Yes.”
He closed his eyes. “Not so different, you and I, are we?”
“Oh, there are differences enough, I think, to make us interesting, yes?”
“Are there?” he murmured.
“Of course. You, my dear Warden, are amber and smoky quartz, wrapped in steel and fire. Me, well, I suppose I am gold and amber wrapped in…” I glanced down at my armor. “…very tight leather. An appealing sight, yes?”
He laughed, the kind that comes from the belly. It was good to hear.
“You should laugh more often. It suits that handsome face of yours far better than frowns.”
There was a snort behind me. “What…did I miss the punch line again?’ Alistair said, climbing to his feet and covering a yawn. Darrian only laughed harder.
“What?” Alistair said, shaking off sleep.
My Warden’s laughter subsided, but left a smile behind it. The ex-templar smiled back, then glanced at me, puzzled and shrugged his shoulders. Now that reaction was not one I would have expected from him. Not towards me. Hmm, yes and he had fallen asleep while I was awake. Interesting.
Alistair stretched and wandered over to us, then his gaze settled on the tower, looming larger with every passing minute.
“I just hope they have enough lyrium for the rite or…,” Alistair said, and a shudder passed through him.
“Why wouldn’t they?” I asked. “Or are the mages here prone to hoarding?”
“All the lyrium used in Ferelden comes from Orzammar,” Darrian explained. “And lately, none has been shipped out. Rumor says there’s a dispute over the kingship and the city’s closed to trade till it’s settled.”
I chuckled. “Yes, politics is usually bad for business…or good for business, depending on which side you’re on. I’m sure the smugglers are making a fortune.” I tilted my head. “Perhaps I’m in the wrong business after all.”
“Have you no morals?” Alistair said, banging his fist on the railing.
“Now there’s another interesting concept. It’s been my experience that morals are generally espoused to make people feel guilty about what they should be enjoying. Usually sex.”
“They’re not…they’re supposed to…to …That is…oh, I give up,” Alistair said and stalked off towards the stern, his cheeks bright red.
“Is he always so easily embarrassed about sex?” I asked Darrian.
My Warden’s voice was soft, pitched for my ears alone. “Don’t bait him, Zevran. I don’t care if you do it with me. But Alistair…” He looked down at his interlaced fingers, then at me. “He deserves better than that.”
So, my Warden was far more perceptive than I first thought, and very protective of his friends. For a brief moment, a heartbeat or two, that bothered me in a way I didn’t quite understand.
“Ah, is this something I should beg pardon for?”
He straightened and motioned towards the stern. “I’m not the one you need to apologize to.”
I sighed, a bit dramatically, I’ll admit. But if I wanted to stay in the good graces of my Warden, I had to apologize. We would be spending many weeks, months even in one another’s company. Prudence demanded that bad feelings be minimal. I was rather attached to my head and limbs, after all.
I nodded and headed for the stern.
Previous chapters can be found here: Fanfic:Two Sides