Chapter One Hundred Five: Waiting Game
After a bit more discussion, Theron put his helmet back on and disappeared back into the Barracks. Nathaniel followed him because, despite his status as an Arl, he wasn't willing to evict any of the current occupants from their rooms, especially the women. I suspected he was trying to avoid Kallian entirely, and while I couldn't blame him, it was going to be awkward eventually.
Might as well get it over with now.
After that, waiting several days for the Landsmeet was...really, epically, boring. We went out to the taverns and estates of sympathetic nobles so Aedan and Alistair could meet with them again, with several of us posing as guards. Alistair, Aedan, Duncan, Theron, Nathaniel, and Eamon met several times to iron out their plans. In contrast to their first official tavern visit, Alistair remained largely sober, to my relief.
Oghren, Bel, and Faren asked permission to leave Denerim and head to the Calenhad docks; I was surprised the ginger dwarf had convinced his fellows to go along with it, but perhaps they were just bored, or being supportive friends. Despite their initial dislike for the Casteless dwarf, Bel and Gorim had actually become friends with him; Faren was such a good-natured guy, it was hard not to like him. And Oghren had never cared about Faren's social status, only whether he could swing a sword. Once Faren understood he'd been accepted, his bitterness receded and a solid friendship developed.
I contemplated warning Oghren off of Felsi, but wondered if having a child wouldn't actually be good for him. His drinking had moderated to some extent, so he wasn't so often passing-out-drunk, but I still doubted he was stable emotionally. I did, however, threaten him to within an inch of his life before he left.
"Listen, Oghren. You go and impregnate that girl and then leave her, I'll personally kick your short ass from here to Orzammar and back. If I hear about a little dwarven baby with no father near Lake Calenhad, you'd better hope you can run faster scared than I can mad."
He laughed loudly and belched in my general direction, but I saw Zevran hand him a suspiciously familiar little vial of contraceptive powder before he left, and I hoped that meant he'd at least thought about it.
Anora stayed stubbornly in her room, apparently angry with Aedan and unwilling to face us, the unwashed masses. Zevran tailed Erlina, and was quite convinced that she was using a drop site to pass messages, but he wasn't able to intercept any of them.
"She's good," he stated, almost looking impressed. "I can't be sure exactly where the drop happens, and all of the possible locations are protected from snooping."
"She's a bard," Leliana agreed. "Well-trained. The thing I don't know is whether she is working for Anora, or against her."
"I'd hope Anora would vet her inner circle well enough at least to be sure she isn't working for Orlais," Aedan mused.
Theron just glowered.
She did call me in to talk to her a couple of days into the wait. I went in determined to act the meek, unassuming, stupid noblewoman, while simultaneously sidestepping any direct questions and avoiding anything resembling the truth. The invitation was for me alone, so I wouldn't even have Aedan there to help out. Eamon was positively piddling in his drawers, convinced I'd mess up and give away everything.
Leliana helped me dress up as a proper noblewoman, in a dress with a corset – which I hated – and my hair braided in an ornate style. I took Kallian with me as my 'handmaiden', after double-checking with her that she didn't mind the ruse; I hoped she could help me if I ended up in too much trouble. Just having a friendly face around would hopefully help, and Kallian seemed to hold no deep respect for the Queen after her experience with Fereldan nobility, which couldn't hurt.
It was with significant trepidation that I knocked on the door to Anora's room. Erlina answered and ushered us in, and I stepped inside and then curtseyed to the best of my ability – which admittedly wasn't much. Erlina frowned, but Anora seemed to ignore my fumbling attempt at courtesy. She held out her hand, which I briefly touched without squeezing, as Leliana had shown me.
"Lady Cousland," Anora murmured. "Thank you for joining me."
"Your Majesty. It is my honour. Please, call me Sierra. Lady Cousland is how I think of my mother."
I kept my head down, avoiding eye contact, instead glancing around the room. Anora's room was larger than the one I theoretically shared with Solona, even bigger than Alistair's. Somewhere she'd found two small tables and some chairs, and there was tea set up at both – a fancy set at one table, which also boasted a silk tablecloth with a beautiful floral centerpiece, and a plainer set at the smaller table clearly meant for 'the help'. I stifled my grimace and turned my attention back to Anora, who was watching me closely.
"Yes, your mother. Dear Eleanor. She and I were friends, did you know that? She helped me greatly after I came to Denerim as a girl. I was very sad to learn about her..."
"Murder?" Anora flinched, and I winced. "Sorry. It's a touchy subject, your Majesty. I never got to meet my parents before they died."
"So you said." She gestured to the table, and we both sat down while Erlina and Kallian fussed with our dresses and poured us tea. "I admit, I'm curious how that came to be?"
"I don't honestly know, your Majesty. The people who raised me either didn't know, or never said. I only knew I was the Cousland's daughter and that I had a twin brother." I took a small sip of tea as an excuse to keep avoiding eye contact.
"And do you have proof of this bloodline?"
"No. Not that it matters for Aedan or me."
She gave me a strange look, but changed the subject anyway. "And where were you raised, did you say?"
I wasn't fooled; Anora knew I hadn't said, but was hoping to catch me in a lie. "I didn't say. Far away from here. I'm afraid I'm not at liberty to say exactly where."
"Not at liberty to say? Why ever not?"
"The people who raised me would prefer to remain unknown. It could be dangerous for them if someone sought to use them – or me – against my brother or, since he joined, the Grey Wardens."
I wonder if she has any idea that I'm lying through my teeth? Hopefully she puts it down to evading her questions.
