Silent Night (FIC)

[ashstoner_021]

I don't know why I never bothered posting this here.  I think I just plain forgot to do so!  Just a big fluffy thing that apparently wanted to get out of my head.  Be sure to brush your teeth after reading!

 

The first thing that Arianna noticed when she stirred was that the bed seemed uneven. A glance toward the curtained windows told her that dawn was several hours away still, and with a long stretch and a jaw-cracking yawn she turned to the opposite side of the bed only to find it empty. Sighing and rolling her eyes, she was completely unsurprised at this fact; Anders had been going on several of his manifesto-writing tangents lately; he was probably downstairs in the study scribbling away at the moment. After tossing and turning several times in a vain attempt to get back to sleep, she realized that such an event was no longer possible. With an irritated huff, she rose from the bed, sliding her feet into her slippers. Even though the estate was warm, the stone floors in several rooms still bit into her feet if they were bare. Winter was in full swing in Kirkwall, and according to the local townsfolk, this particular yearly season was so-far shaping up to be one of the coldest the area had ever experienced. After having spent a good portion of her life in Ferelden, however, Arianna shrugged off the very thought; Kirkwall winters had nothing on Ferelden ones. After leaning down to give Sparky a reassuring pat on the head, she made her way quietly out of the bedroom and toward the stairs.

 

The estate was silent at this time of the night, and if one stopped to listen hard enough, the entirety of Hightown seemed to be deathly quiet. Turning her eyes toward the giant windows in the upstairs antechamber yielded her knowledge that it had begun to snow at some point during the night, and she scrunched her nose in slight dismay. It wasn't so much that Arianna disliked snow, in fact she found it rather pretty. The idea of traipsing around Kirkwall running errands for everyone and their dog, however, was what she disliked the most. Realizing that glowering at the window was going to be completely unproductive to her search, she continued down the stairs and cracked open the door to the study. After scanning the dark room quickly, she opened the door fully and stepped inside, brows furrowed slightly; the room had clearly not been used in the past several hours. The desk was still tidy (thank you Bohdan), the lamp unlit, and the hearth cold. Clearly the mage hadn't been there recently.

 

Blowing a tuft of bangs out of her eyes in frustration, Arianna leaned back against the door frame. Where in the hell could he have disappeared to? A thought struck her, and she grinned a bit, the kitchen maybe? Perhaps the infamous 'Grey Warden appetite' struck him and he's scrounging for a snack. Changing her tactics, she continued to creep through the great-room and down the hall toward the kitchen. The servants' quarter was nearby, and she did her best to keep quiet in order to not wake Bohdan, Sandal or Orana. Once again, however, her search yielded no results; clearly the kitchen had been abandoned since that evening's dinner.

 

Chewing her lip absently, Arianna shrugged and turned to head back to the bedroom. Perhaps Anders had decided to return to the clinic, and hadn't wanted to wake her. Or perhaps he had something important going on that he didn't want to disturb her with. Thinking that perhaps she should respect that, she stopped quickly when her eyes absently landed on the door leading out of the mansion and onto the veranda and toward the yard outside. Blinking slightly, she had a hard time believing that either Bohdan or Orana could have forgotten to close it; both were usually quite astute in their proper ways.

 

Not wanting to think twice about it, she crossed the kitchen toward the door in order to seal it closed; she'd speak to them in the morning about the incident. Before she could shut it, however, she froze, eyes widening. Out past the veranda in the middle of the yard stood Anders, still as a statue and head turned toward the sky. His expression was unclear, as his back was turned to the house, and Arianna could barely contain the chuckle that threatened to escape her lips. Shaking her head, she quickly and quietly crept back through the great-room and dressed herself in clothing deemed acceptable for standing out in the snow, then slipped out the door into the yard.

 

The night air was still, and she was surprised to find that it was not unbearably cold. The snow had clearly been falling for sometime, as there was a layer thick enough to cover most of the grass, and to cap the tree branches to make a lovely view. Thick, fluffy flakes were still falling steadily, and she smiled as she felt them land on her cheeks and lashes, only to melt quickly from the heat of her skin. If Anders heard her approach, he made no mention of it, only jumping slightly when he heard her clear her throat.

 

“What are you doing out here?” she asked, barely masking a giggle at his surprise, “you're going to catch your death if you stand out here all night.”

 

Recovering quickly from his fright, Anders smiled slightly, motioning for her to join him, “back when I was in the tower, we never really got to experience snow. The windows were all very narrow to prevent escaping, so it was hard to get a good look outside.”

 

She nudged him lightly with her elbow, “I'm sure you knew first hand that they were too narrow, what with your brilliant escape attempts and all.”

 

He chuckled, returning the gesture, “but of course, how else was one to learn such a fact unless they tried? The cold also kept me from attempting any escapes in the winter. I knew for a fact that the lake never froze completely, and attempting to swim to shore would be complete and utter suicide,” he paused a moment, “I suppose it was just another one of those things you stop thinking of, once you're trapped inside constantly.”

 

“What about after you became a Warden?” Arianna pressed, glancing up through her bangs at him, “surely you had chances to experience it after that, right?”

 

Here he smiled again, a fond reflection in his eyes, “my first winter as a Warden was an eye-opener. I remember nights very similar to this one. I would make my way out into the courtyard of the Keep and just... watch it snow, with no one to interrupt me or drag me back inside to lock me up. It was a good feeling... and hauntingly beautiful.”

 

The answer satisfied her, and the two continued to watch the flakes fall silently for a time. Soon, a chortle from her interrupted the quiet, “it's kind of amusing that you are so fascinated by snow. You know that as mages, we are perfectly capable of replicating the action with our own hands, right?”

 

He felt a grin tug at his cheeks as he shook his head, “it's not the same, though. Sure we can produce it on a small scale, even the best of us can create a blizzard of miniature proportions. But this,” he gestured to the yard, and in a sense, out into the entire city itself, “this is different. This is the world working at it's finest. Something so wild, so uncontrolled... it's humbling, in a way.”

 

“Hmm,” Arianna turned the thought over in her head for a moment, “I suppose I never thought of it that way.” She smiled up at him, “you've given this a lot of thought, haven't you?”

 

“Sweetheart, you have no idea,” he laughed, reaching toward her face to trace away a few stray hairs stuck to the edge of her lip. “It's funny though... Justice sees the entire fascination as frivolous.”

 

She snorted slightly, “of course he does, he's Justice,” pausing to think on this, she cocked her head, “wait, he's a spirit of the Fade... does he even understand weather?”

 

Anders 'hmm'ed slightly, looking inside himself to the resting spirit, “he does to a point. Apparently he had a conversation with the Commander about it once. She tried to explain it to him, but knowing Alexiandra, she just confused him more instead of clarifying anything. It was her way, after all.” He chuckled at that, “but to answer your question, yes he understands weather, but he deems it unnecessary to be so absorbed by it.”

 

“About what I would expect. After all, it makes perfect sense, coming from his point of view.”

 

The two fell into a comfortable, companionable silence once more, letting the silent night soak in around them. Arianna shuddered suddenly, realizing that her housecoat was not exactly the best choice to fend off the chill of the air. As she furiously rubbed her upper arms for warmth, she jolted when she felt a warm, comfortable weight drape across her shoulders. Looking up, she realized Anders had draped his coat over her shoulders in order to keep her warm.

 

As she was ready to protest, she was silenced by his fingers against her lips, “hush, love. I'm warm enough,” cocking a brow, he gave her a wry smile, “as a matter of fact, you are going to be the one to catch their death with the way you're dressed. Your legs must be freezing.”

 

She smiled and shrugged helplessly, burrowing into the warmth of his too-large coat, “I wasn't expecting to stand out her for so long,” she stepped into his embrace when he silently gestured for her to do so. He then wrapped his arms around her, sharing his warmth. She sighed, “however, I can't say I'm not happy with my choice.”

 

“Of course you are,” he murmured, kissing the top of her head, “but if you're sniffling and flushed tomorrow, don't come crying to me.”

 

“But you're my healer, that's what I'm supposed to do!”

 

The mage found himself groaning at that statement, and rolled his eyes, “Andraste's knickers woman, it's impossible to win with you, isn't it?”

 

Arianna grinned up at him, “how long have you known me now? You should know that the Champion always gets her way in the end. I am just that amazing.”

 

“And humble, clearly,” he drolled, unable to keep the smile off his face. He tightened his grip around her shoulders and rocked a little, “you're a role model to future Champions everywhere.”

 

“Oh I do love when you boost my ego like that,” she giggled, “feel free to do it whenever you wish.” She squealed as a small jolt of electricity found it's way into her side, and decided he'd had enough of her silliness for the moment.

 

“You know,” Anders murmured after a few moments, prompting her to glance upward at him. His eyes were still to the sky, and a yet-unreadable expression was on his face, “the winters at the Keep were tolerable... even the ones in Kirkwall so far haven't been so unbearable... but this particular one is probably my favorite so far.”

 

Her brows furrowed in confusion, “just how can you tell that? The winter has barely started, you know.”

 

“I know,” he smiled, looking down to meet her gaze, “but having someone to spend it with... especially in moments like this? That, my dear, is what makes it all worthwhile in the end.”