[sandbox]

[bringspeopletogether]

Back to Skyhold. Back to work.

Alistair resumes training with the Chargers a few days after his and Cullen's return; the company got back from Halamshiral just before the Basin group showed up, Bull explains, so he was giving them a rest before picking up exercises again. Krem fills Alistair in on all the details as they're exchanging blows. Some of it is just Orlesian Worst Game Ever nonsense, but since it ends with a whole lot of shamefaced nobles with no mercenaries to their names, Alistair's pretty damn pleased.

(Maybe he can get the new mercenaries in on his plan to dress up the training dummies in Orlesian garb. Hmmmmmm.)

Cullen's in a war room meeting by the time Alistair's done. He throws some water on his face and heads for the kitchens -- maybe he can split a small meal with Kieran before Morrigan's return.

Comments

[bringspeopletogether]

Alistair's head turns at the sound of the roar. It -- doesn't seem like a frightened sort of sound? Maybe?

"Stay here," he murmurs to Kieran anyway, and rests his hand on the pommel of his sword as he moves next to the door.

Which means his ear's right next to the wood when Cullen knocks. Alistair jumps about a foot; about a quarter of a second later, he yanks open the door.

[howtoactfereldan]

Cullen's grin is as bright as it's ever been -- at least, toward Alistair.

Without a word, he pushes his way inside and goes to sit across from Kieran, clasping his hands between his knees.

"Corypheus is gone. Your mother is alive. She got knocked around a little, but her injuries won't prevent her from traveling. They ought to be here in a few days."

[bringspeopletogether]

Kieran's whole face lights up. "We won?"

Alistair covers his mouth, too stunned to say anything. A great chasm's opening inside of him, the same yawning disbelief that overtook him when he saw the corpse of the archdemon ten years ago -- and Warden Cousland, battered but alive, standing next to it.

We won.

We're all right.

It's really over.

[howtoactfereldan]

"Yes."

Cullen turns the grin on Kieran.

"In short. We won."

He glances at Alistair. "All of the Inquisitor's companions will be coming home as well."

[bringspeopletogether]

Everyone survived.

It feels like the chasm's about to split the floor open, too. Alistair doesn't care. He's light enough to float above it: everyone survived, Corypheus is dead, we won --

"Right." His voice is giddy with laughter as he gestures to both of them. "On your feet, both of you. You're getting hugged right now, don't complain about it -- "

[howtoactfereldan]

"One at a time," Cullen insists, "he's not wearing armor -- "

(But he's getting to his feet anyhow.)

[bringspeopletogether]

Much as Alistair would like to sweep them both into an enormous group hug, Cullen's got a point.

Kieran's on his feet, starting to laugh, too; Alistair wastes no time in pulling him into as fierce a hug as he dares, mindful of the armor. "We won," his son repeats as he flings his arms around Alistair.

"We did." Alistair's face is already starting to hurt from grinning so hard. "Maker's breath. We won."

And then Cullen. No worries about hugging too tightly there. A whoop of delight builds in his chest, rides free on more laughter as he swings Cullen around.

[howtoactfereldan]

All Cullen can do is hold on; he even manages to hold in most of the noises he'd like to make -- the ones that sound like an angry cat.

He does spare a moment to think about the other letters he's going to write, soon. (Not everybody's alive.) But it's true: though the costs were heavy... they could have been so much worse.

This is the real reason he does not protest Alistair's manhandling.

[bringspeopletogether]

Alistair appreciates the (mostly) lack of complaining!

"So," he says cheerfully once he's let go. "Sleep for a week?"

[howtoactfereldan]

"Work to do first." Wry. "Have to let them in on the terms for the celebration. Those that stay on duty get first turn off when the Inquisitor comes home."

[bringspeopletogether]

"But you can see that long, glorious nap on the horizon."

He pats Cullen's cheek.

"Come find me again whenever you're done?"

[howtoactfereldan]

"Unless I elect the nap first."

Cullen rubs the back of his neck.

"Won't take long."

Commander's privilege: he can issue the orders, and then -- finally -- go to sleep.

...or maybe go to the springs. At long last.

[bringspeopletogether]

"'Whenever you're done' can also include the nap," agrees Alistair, laughing. "All right. See you soon."

[howtoactfereldan]

It... really doesn't take him long at all. He passes the word to two of his captains, tells them they know what constitutes an emergency, and then tells them to find him if there is one.

And that's it.




He very carefully puts his armor in its place on his stand. He can polish it later.

He climbs in the bed.

And almost instantly, he's asleep.

[bringspeopletogether]

The crowd in the yard has been getting steadily noisier and more jubilant. "I want to see," says Kieran; Alistair's more than willing to agree.

The wine's already flowing freely, courtesy of a few casks someone rolled out of Herald's Rest. Most everyone's cheering; here and there, some are crying, too overwhelmed to do more. Alistair basks in the noise, beaming, and then someone's passing a glass his way -- and it'd be rude not to partake, wouldn't it?

Between that glass and the next one, Kieran spots a girl Alistair recognizes as Samantha, the healer's apprentice who helped with his torn shoulder. "I'm going to talk to her," Kieran informs him, "I'll find you if I need anything," and then he's vanished into the crowd to reappear at Samantha's side.

Alistair, very resolutely, does not say anything. (He may be grinning for an entirely different reason now, though.) He downs his second glass.

And...that's enough to do it, far sooner than he expects. Giddy celebration can only carry you so far after a poor night's sleep, especially a poor night combined with alcohol. Fifteen minutes later, Alistair looks up at Cullen's tower, sets the glass aside, and works his way through the crowd to the battlement stairs.

He's completely, utterly unsurprised to find Cullen curled up in their bed. Carefully, Alistair lowers himself alongside.

He dozes off soon after.

[howtoactfereldan]

It's somewhere around the middle of the afternoon when Cullen half-wakes. The noise down in the courtyard registers, and so does the presence of something (someone?) beside him.

Alistair? Alistair.

The noise in the courtyard is happy noise, not frightened noise.

Nobody's knocking on the tower door, or yelling up the ladder.






Criteria satisfied, Cullen turns over and limpets himself on Alistair again, and goes back to sleep.

[bringspeopletogether]

Wait what did someone just --

Oh. It's a good someone. The best someone. All right, then.

Drowsily, Alistair slings an arm around Cullen in kind. Roused just enough that he can't fall back asleep right away, he watches the tree branches stir, listens to the crowd still cheering in the distance. (There's singing now, too. He can't quite pick out the tune.)

One hand finds its way to Cullen's hair; his fingers track through it, idle and slow, in a steady rhythm.

[howtoactfereldan]

A few minutes later, Cullen wakes, still convinced that somewhere he's very small, walking through fields of ripened wheat under a cloudless sky, with the soft hissing of the plants in the wind making a friendly beat with every step he takes.

He exhales, heavy, slow.







"Alistair?" Smaller than he intends.

[bringspeopletogether]

"Mm?"

His hand keeps moving through Cullen's hair.

[howtoactfereldan]

"It's happening? Outside?"

Still small. "It wasn't -- I didn't dream it?"

[bringspeopletogether]

He cracks a tiny smile. "You didn't dream it."

Alistair presses a kiss to Cullen's temple.

"Corypheus is gone. We won."

[howtoactfereldan]

Cullen shuts his eyes tight. His fingers fist in Alistair's shirt.

He nods. There's a lump in his throat.

[bringspeopletogether]

Alistair's arm tightens around Cullen, just a little. He returns to running his fingers through his hair.

"And Inquisitor Lavellan will be home safe in a few days' time, with all her companions in tow."

[howtoactfereldan]

And I didn't fail anyone this time.

"We can start sending people home to their families."

[bringspeopletogether]

"Yes."

His smile grows.

"We can. People can rest again."