Daehyun cleared his throat and slipped back into the crowd, a smug expression plastered on his face. He could have simply just stealthed and made it back but the thrill of almost getting caught was too addictive to ignore. He probably should have felt some shame for what he did, especially since Dalish had a bunch of traditions against it yet all he really felt was accomplished. He slipped past the group in his path only for it to be blocked by a pissy looking Youngjae. “Whatever it was, I didn't do it.”

 

Youngjae tapped his foot against the dirt, arms crossed. “Is this a joke to you?”

 

Daehyun couldn't help his grin, every time he tried to pull a straight face it forced its way back. “No. How do you know I'm not serious about her?”

 

Narrowing his eyes Youngjae started to circle his brother, “Hm. So you're fully prepared to be tied down to her? You'll surely be able to handle the marriage to her. If not be ready for a lot of angry Dalish. She might get cast out but I'm sure you know that and have promised to look after her when she's abandoned.” With each word Daehyun's smugness faltered, beaten back just by the thought of the whole thing. Youngjae held back his need to smirk and continued, stopping at Daehyun's side to wrap an arm around his shoulders. “She'll be struck with grief so I know you have a plan to ease the hit. Not everyone can be ripped.. No, thrown from the only family they ever came to love and come out unscathed. Though I know you, brother so if you're truly serious then I trust you have it all thought out.”

 

“I.. Uh..” By the look on his face Daehyun was experiencing panic.

 

“Oh wait! You don't do you? Because you're a Grey Warden. You can't be with her because you're in this for life remember? You have a duty. So you'd have to leave her all alone in some unfamiliar city. How sad. She'd probably forgive you for ruining her life though, I mean you both love each other after all. It wasn't like it was a fling.” He finished, that clever smirk of his unable to hold back any longer.

 

Daehyun's shoulders dropped, defeat written over his entire demeanour. “Okay so I'm not serious about her. I'm Antivan. I can't help it!”

 

Youngjae released Daehyun and crossed his arms again, glaring daggers at him. “You never can.”

 

“Hey! I'm not as bad as Himchan.” He growled at him, shooting the hawk a glare to match. 

 

“At least he hasn't bedded anyone.” Youngjae sneered.

 

Daehyun rolled his eyes clearly agitated by the other Warden. “I'm sorry how is this any of your business anyway?”

 

The Orlesian scoffed and raised his hands to show he'd back off. “Fine. But don't come running to me.”

 

“Like I would.” He scowled as Youngjae turned and walked away. The only thing that really annoyed him about this argument was that it was stupid. Youngjae had never spoke up any other time he slept around and now suddenly he was mister moral? The way Daehyun saw it was that he was letting his interest in that Dalish hunter get to him. He always use to turn a blind eye or back him up. Apparently not with the precious Dalish. Grumbling he decided it best to leave the festival, going to the more secluded part of Ostagar.

 

Back in the centre of Ostagar Kai leant against Lyonna's aravel awaiting the mages return. She knew she'd have to come here to sort herself out so it was no surprise when she rounded the corner with a dopey smile. “You look awfully happy with yourself.”

 

Lyonna jumped at the sight of the hunter but quickly composed herself. “Well it's a party isn't it? It's a joyous time.”

 

“Mhm. You've got a little...Leaf here.” Kai smirked, picking the leaf from the girls messed up hair. “Seen Daehyun around?”

 

The brunette scrunched her nose up, fully aware of what she was implying. Well she wouldn't give her the satisfaction of looking surprised. “I might have. Can't see how it matters though, he could be anywhere by now. Do try to have fun, Kai. I know it might be hard sometimes.” She smiled sweetly though her voice was laced with venom.

 

“You'd know all about hard things wouldn't you?” Kai retorted, eyebrow twitching upwards indicating she knew all about her adventure with the Antivan. She flashed the mage a cocky smile before sauntering away to rejoin the festivities. 

 

Lyonna remained rooted, shocked for a brief moment. Once she snapped herself out of it she looked over her shoulder at the retreating rogue, eyes narrowing into a death glare. She had tried to be civil for Keo's sake but it seemed she had an enemy regardless of what she did. One thing was for sure, she was done playing nice. Lyonna hid it well but she was quite cunning and manipulative when the need arose, perhaps this was something Kai sensed when they first met. Kai had took a dislike to her instantly so if she wanted to make a villain out of her then that was just what she'd become.

 

Kai stopped by Himchan to watch him play the lute with a few of the band, stunned at the human. Not only did he play beautifully he looked beautiful too. If any human could pull off the Dalish armour it was this one, apparently some of the girls wanted to see him in it so convinced the Keeper's to allow him to wear one of the hunters sets. The greens and golds only seemed to bring out a noble look to him while the golden face paint he'd been given to look like he had a Vallaslin tattoo highlighted his features quite stunningly. Normally a human would look foolish if adorned with such things yet he managed to still look handsome.

 

Himchan peeked an eye open to see Kai standing with agape and flashed her one of his grins, the type that would make normal girls swoon. He had went from beautiful to handsome and then adorable in a matter of seconds. Though he was unaware he was even doing it. 

 

Kai furrowed her brows and motioned for him to go back to focusing on the music which earned a chuckle from the Warden. He certainly was one to watch yourself around. He'd already won the hearts of majority of the females in camp. Even Keo admitted he was trouble and she was impenetrable when it came to feelings for people. Sure she could admit when they were good looking but that was it, there was no feeling there however. So when her sibling had told her that he was too handsome for his own good Kai knew it was a bad sign. Heartbreaker seemed a fitting title for the shem. When Himchan returned to his lute playing she moved on for a bite to eat.

 

Yongguk was soon joined by the peckish crow who looked just as lost as he did when met with the table of assorted goods. “Can't decide either?” He asked, giving her his gummy smile.

 

Kai frowned and glanced his way, though the stripes caught her full attention. “By the Creators..You're a tiger!”

 

He was supposed to act like the leader and the oldest but he found himself making a clawing gesture towards the elf. “Grr.” He grinned, his naturally deep voice making the effortless growl sound scarily accurate. Sure enough his costume had black stripes though the fur was a snow white and stretched over his right shoulder like a sash, the armour it decorated looked distinctly like Ash Warrior armour. Well suited for the Berserker. The brunette gave his hair a ruffle, re-spiking it back into the style Zelo had given him.

 

“FFFF.” Was all that managed to come from the girl, she genuinely couldn't stop herself from hugging onto him resulting in another gummy smile from Yongguk.

 

“Like tigers I take it?” He smiled, sharing a love for the big cats. All he got was a nod so he figured it must have looked better than he thought. He'd been complimented quite a bit through out the night but paid no heed to it. 

 

Once she had managed to get over the whole tiger thing Kai released the man and bowed her head, going back to trying to decide what to eat. “Is that Ash Warrior armour?” She questioned, raising an eyebrow when she gave up.

 

He had already gathered a plate full when the question came up so he motioned for them to sit somewhere. Once seated he placed the plate in between them to share and picked up one of the cakes. “Yeah, I'm a Berserker so..Yeah. This actually wasn't the armour I was given to wear with it.”

 

Kai nibbled at a chicken leg while he spoke, head tilting. “Why are you wearing it then?”

 

Yongguk began to pick at the pastry, smiling nostalgically down at it. “The man who conscripted me was a dwarf. He trained me to be a Berserker then gave me this armour. I'm not an Ash Warrior but I keep it for sentimental reasons.”

 

“Sounds like a story there.. How did you join the Warden's anyway?” She asked, curiosity getting the better of her. She'd heard some Warden's went through hell and had to become Warden's out of necessity.

 

“Well..” He began, setting the pastry to the side since all he was doing was feeding birds with it. “He was at the tournament I entered and scouted me when I won. I only really won it because of the training I received previously with the Qunari warriors I stayed with for awhile.”

 

“Woah! Hold up.. You were trained by Qunari!?” This completely caught her off guard. Now Kai was interested. “Start from the beginning.”

 

Yongguk chuckled and rubbed at the back of his neck, “Alright.. The Qunari saved me believe it or not, I was wounded pretty badly from being attacked by some thugs, anyway, they took care of the thugs easily and took me back to their camp. Apparently they'd seen some of the fight and thought I had honour, so when I was healed up they offered that I join the Qun. I refused seen as I already have a belief and they respected it so offered to give me some training instead, that way I wouldn't get beaten to a pulp if I encountered some more thugs. They were tough bastards.” He shifted part of the pelt to show her one of his scars he'd received during the training. “Eventually they had to move on to continue their mission and we parted. I'd never really fought before, believe it or not I'm a pacifist. I learned from them that fighting and violence were two completely different things.”

 

Kai just stared at him, awestruck, mouth once again agape. She'd met a Tal Vashoth before but she'd learnt that they weren't Qunari. Still this human had quite the story. “Wow..That's amazing, so.. How does the dwarf fit into this?” 

 

“Ah, well.. I decided I wanted to become a Knight. That way I'd be fighting for something important. So I joined a tournament for full Knight hood. I never expected a Grey Warden would be scouting in the audience so when I won imagine my surprise when a dwarf with a big burly beard told me I had spirit. He recognised the fighting style to be of Qunari origin so he proposed a dual saying that if I won he'd teach me how to be a Berserker.”

 

“Aaand you won.” She grinned, chin now resting on her palm. She had been completely pulled into the mans story, one thing was for certain he was ten times cooler than before.

 

A small scoff came from him then, though he seemed happy with the memory. “Actually he thrashed me. Even with Qunari training at my disposal he was still a seasoned warrior. I kept challenging him to re-matches though...I never did beat him but he offered to teach me anyway, something about determination being rare these days. When I'd finished my training he said he was leaving for the next city, I challenged him to another dual and we fought for hours. When I came to he gave me one last proposition, I join the Grey Warden's and go with him. And here I am.”

 

Kai laughed a bit and flashed him a smile. “Thanks for telling me. It really is an amazing story though, please tell me you have more.”

 

“I can tell you the story of how I met Himchan in the canyons with Pyral, he's the dwarf by the way.” He smirked, watching her light up at the mention of it.

 

While Yongguk was busy telling stories Jongup had only now just stopped dancing with Keo, the two completely exhausted and dizzy on Keo's part. They collapsed in a heap by the deserted aravels and attempted to catch their breath.

 

“Kay we're never dancing again, I'm pretty sure you tried to kill me a few times.” Keo sniggered, rolling so she was flat on the grass instead of crumpled in the most horrid looking way.

 

“Sorry.” Jongup laughed, propping himself up on his elbows. “Can't handle my stamina?”

 

This caused the elf to break down in a giggle fit. The entire night they'd been passing awkward comments that sounded very innuendo in an attempt to get the other to have a laughing fit. She'd reached her limit.

 

He smirked and tipped his head back to stare up at the stars, “Gotch'a.” 

 

“Alright you win.” She reluctantly admitted between laughs.

 

“Pay up then.” He shifted his gaze to look at her from the corner of his eye, his smirk only growing.

 

Keo crinkled her nose up then let out a sigh, clearly defeated. “Fine.” Slowly she got to her feet and peered around the aravel, unfortunately there was a large group of elves nearby. “Damn it.” She turned back to face him and crossed her arms. “Why did we make that bet again?”

 

His smirk turned into a cheeky grin in that moment, “Because it's fun.”

 

“For the victor.” She mumbled bitterly. “Give me a boost then.” Keo was actually a great climber for a mage she was simply lazy.

 

Planting his hands on the grass he spun himself around, kicking himself into a stand in one fluid movement. Now he was just showing off. “Alright.” The Antivan side of him showed itself for a brief moment as he stepped closer and rested his hands on her hips, cocky smirk and all. Had he been with another girl and not this one he probably would have more but it seemed that was all he could manage so he lifted her up onto the window of the aravel so she could climb up onto the roof. 

 

If it hadn't have been Jongup and they hadn't been dancing previously Keo most likely would have been stunned or scared but considering how close they had to be due to the tricks she was unphased by his actions and simply climbed up onto the roof. She glanced down at him and stuck out her tongue before turning to face the crowd of gathered elves and in her loudest voice she began shouting, “Jongup is the king of awesome!! We should all bow to the god that is he! He's so skilled and amazing we pale in comparison to his epicosity!! Kneel before Jongup!” Once done she flashed him a mischievous grin and turned back to the now full crowd and waved her arms to gather more attention. Once satisfied she started, being completely over dramatic. “He's the king of eh! I mean psh, have you seen that body? Dayum! And his ! Mm! Girls you know what I'm talking about, he's so hot it's a crime. I would! You could probably grate cheese on his abs! The things I'd do to that bo- Kyah!”

 

Jongup had instantly grown flustered when she started shouting about his appeal, there were elders and children out there. Not to mention he heard girls actually agreeing with her. Out of embarrassment he climbed up half way and hooked an arm around her stomach, dragging her off the roof and back behind the aravels, managing to cut her off before she went into detail. His hand instantly clamped over since she went to continue, his cheeks burning a nice pink. “I swear you're the reincarnate of the archdemon. You have no shame.”

 

She only reacted to this by muffling something into his hand and wiggling her eyebrows suggestively which got him laughing. Granted the scene would look bad to anyone who chose to pass by seen as he kept a hand to and arm around her waist, it looked pretty dodgy. Luck would have it Daehyun was that someone though his only reaction was to raise both eyebrows and continue on his walk.

 

The sudden wetness on his hand brought Jongup out his laughing fit and made him instantly release her to wipe the saliva on his trousers. “How are you a girl?”

 

Keo grinned and put her hands on her hips, chest puffing out proudly. “I got the s.”

 

Jongup instantly dropped to his knees in a laughing fit again, she actually had no shame and she was so weird. “Please don't change.” He said once he'd finally settled. His fit had went on for awhile since she kept that pose and kept pulling derpy faces every time he looked up. Eventually she gave him time to calm down and sat down in front of him, smiling away. Truth was he needed a good laugh and without thinking he pulled the elf into a hug, head dropping onto her shoulder. “Thanks.”

 

Keo tensed a little at the abrupt affection but the second his head made contact with her shoulder she hugged back which only made him tug her closer and tighten his arms around her. Something was troubling him, she saw it every time he thought no one was looking. He kept his smile but it was saddened when eyes weren't on him. “Any time.” She smiled to herself, patting at his back lightly in the soothing manner Kai did to her when she was upset. His head shifted so he was hiding his face in the nape of her neck and he slowly gripped at the fabric of her dress until he was clutching it for dear life. Keo's smile vanished, replaced with a concerned frown. She couldn't ask if he was okay since he clearly wasn't, that would be the dumbest question she could ask so she remained silent. If he wanted to talk about it he would.

 

They remained like that for ten minutes, he saw his behaviour as pathetic but all he could really do was cling to her. There was no point in talking to her about it as the Warden's would most likely finish their business and move on soon, so he kept it to himself. Why unload his troubles then vanish? Besides she'd called him a hero, it was time he acted like one. Slowly he lifted his head and released her, moving back a little to create a reasonable space. “Sorry, I just really wanted a hug.” He gave a meek laugh in an attempt to assure her he was fine.

 

Keo watched him carefully though the fact he was unable to meet her gaze said it all. “Bull.” She raised her hands and cupped his cheeks, making him look at her. “I know we haven't known each other for long but you're my friend, don't lie to me.” Hazel eyes studied his face, waiting for a sign he'd be alright but all she was met with was a kicked puppy. She could see the pain in his eyes yet he continued to smile which crushed her, she found herself wanting to cry but she blinked back her tears and threw her arms around him again, this time refusing to let go.

 

Confusion kicked aside any grief he had when he caught a glimpse of her tears. Was she crying for him? Somehow he felt the need to assure her he was alright, at least so she wouldn't worry or cry. Some shield he turned out to be. “Hey, I'm alright.” He placed his hands on her shoulders and pulled her off him to look her in the eyes. “I swear.. I just... I would tell you but..”

 

Keo sniffled and shut her eyes tightly, forcing back the tears before re-opening them to peer up at him. “You can't. It's alright, I'm use to that with Kai but.. Just know I'll always listen, okay? I'm here if you need me.”

 

He flashed her a genuine smile and ruffled her hair. “Thanks, Dragonling. I'll be here if you need me too, think of me like.. A shield.”

 

She had to find something to better the atmosphere so she nodded, took his hand and led him back to the where the music was. “Can the shield keep up?” She smiled as she began moving to the beat, he raised an eyebrow and followed her movements. She only had to go through it once with him and he'd already grasped it so by the time the music picked up the beat they performed one of the clan dances together. Gradually the Jongup she liked best started to return as they placed their palms together and skipped in a circle for four before swapping hands and doing the same again. She took a mental note to use dancing as a way to cheer him up. Jongup followed along with ease, a grin appearing at the little waltz part.

 

By now Kai had dragged Yongguk up for a dance, good thing too he'd ran out of stories for tonight. He clumsily followed her lead until he managed to grasp the dance though he made little mistakes every so often. At the spinning section he had to look around at the other males dancing with their partners to understand what to do. Elven dances were so fluid, somehow he felt graceful even when messing up.

 

Himchan had been given a break quite some time ago but for half the night he sat with the band and continued to play, it was only now he took a break only to be whisked away by Lyonna to join the dancing. It looked like majority of the clans were up dancing, even a few of the Keeper's and Hahren's had joined in. He'd spotted Zelo at some point dancing with one of the kids. It was rather adorable to see Zelo who's costume resembled a griffin dancing with some little girl dressed like a kitten on his feet. All he really was doing was spinning around in circles which resulted in a series of giggles to ring through the air. He smiled and shook his head, dancing along with Lyonna.

 

Youngjae and Daehyun were dancing together, having made up not that long after their fight. They were like that. Now they were being their usual jokey selves. Since they didn't know the actual dance they stuck to waltzing dramatically at the side.

 

The festivities continued long into the night and it was then Kai and Keo reunited, deciding to go for a walk. Half of the Warden's were now drunk so speaking with them seemed a horrid plan to the two non-drinkers. Anywhere they went in Ostagar they found a drunkard somewhere so it was no surprise why they started to cross the bridge that had seen better days. 

 

“You're pretty close to that Jongup guy.” Kai pointed out, smirking to her sibling.

 

“As are you with Youngjae and Yongguk.” Keo returned, eyebrow raising. “Don't give me the look when you've got two.”

 

Kai's mouth dropped and she shoved the mage lightly. “I've got two friends yeah. That's it.”

 

“I know. I never implied anything else.” She smirked, hands clasping behind her back as she began hopping along the old bridge.

 

Kai laughed and shook her head. “You can't walk normally can you?”

 

Due to this comment Keo unclasped her hands and started marching, arms now swinging back and forth with each stomp. “Nope.”

 

It didn't take long for them to reach the end of the bridge and enter the spot where Mahariel had met King Cailan with Duncan for the first time. It was there they decided to settle. Shem's had been sighted in the woodlands further on though scouts had said little about them only that they were dressed strangely. Much like sailors.

 

“What are we going to do anyway?” Kai piped up, looking to the older sibling.

 

“About the bonding thing?” Keo frowned and tipped her head back, letting out a loud noise of frustration. “Honestly? I don't know. The Keeper's are getting restless.”

 

Kai sighed and sat down on the ground tossing pebbles towards the bridge in hopes of throwing them off the edge. “Can't we just tell them we don't want to be bonded with anyone?”

 

“To be bonded is to grow up and not be a child any more.”  Keo mimicked one of the Keeper's tones. “I already asked. They said we'd have to go through with it or be deemed children forever.”

 

“Being a kids better than the end of your freedom.” Kai mumbled, clearly growing more annoyed with each pebble toss.

 

“Y'mean the end of your lif-”

 

Kai suddenly shushed the mage, eyes locked on something in the distance. She was alerted to something but before she could figure out what, a voice caught her off guard. Her pupils shrank in shock as her eyes widened. When did he..?

 

“Well look what we have here, boys.”