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Dailisa was met as she entered the main hall by Teagan Guerrin, who smiled and hugged her before she could put her things down. "You are a wonderful sight, My Lady." He stepped back and became serious. "Let me find someone to take care of your things. I know you probably want a bath and some food, but the King would like to talk to you in his study."
Dailisa gave him a curious look and he gave her a guarded one in return so she went in search of her husband.
She heard the shouting before she got to the door of the King's study. She threw the door open to hear, "She needs to be held accountable, Your Majesty! I know that she's your wi..."
"Enough!" The King did not raise his voice but the man in front of his desk stopped abruptly. "I will discuss this presently in the audience hall, Ser. Go there." Dailisa moved inside the door as the man, someone she recognized as one of the nobles from the Amaranthine arling, scowled openly at her on his way out. She tilted her head at Alistair and opened her mouth to greet him, but he held up his hand to stop her and said flatly, "Shut the door."
After the door was secure, she strode around his desk to embrace him, but he stopped her. "What happened to Amaranthine?" Dailisa blinked several times.
"Is that what he was going on about?"
Alistair started pacing across the length of his office, getting more intense the more he spoke. "Yes, that's what he was 'going on about'. People tend to get upset when someone burns their biggest city and center of trade to the MAKER FORSAKEN GROUND, DAILISA!" He stopped for a moment to glare at her, and regain his composure. She was standing in the same place, blinking into his tirade. He took two deep breaths and went on. "Why would you do that? What possible justification could you have?"
She spoke calmly, choosing her words carefully. "The darkspawn were attacking the city. By the time I could get there, 'attack' was an understatement. Alistair, the scouts hadn't seen anyone for a good while before we got there, and you know as well as I do that anyone left would have been tainted by the time we could get into the city."
Alistair had stopped pacing again and stood with his arms crossed, still glaring at his wife. "You didn't even try to get into the city to see for yourself?"
Dailisa sighed, but met Alistair's glare with a steady gaze of her own. "You weren't there, Alistair. It was...horrible. But the city was lost when I got there."
The King scowled and started pacing again. "You can't know that for sure if you didn't go into the city. There had to be somethin..."
Dailisa had had enough. "Stop. Alistair-You can second guess me all you'd like, but You.Were not.There." He stopped in front of his wife and shook his head.
"No, I wasn't. But Nathaniel Howe was, wasn't he?"
Dailisa flinched as though he'd smacked her. Alistair looked as shocked at his own words as she felt, but he didn't say anything more, he just held her gaze, waiting.
"Of course. So was Anders and Sigrun and Captain Garavel and a handful of his men. Your point?"
He turned away from her and threw his hands up. "I have no idea what my point is. Garavel has been telling me for days the same thing you just told me." He turned back to her, his amber eyes pleading at his wife. "There really was no other option?"
She wiped a hand tiredly across her face. "No, Alistair. I don't believe there was. If it helps, I'll probably always smell the burning wood and burning taint and burning flesh." Dailisa turned away from him and covered her face with her hands and wept, for the first time, for the people of Amaranthine.
Alistair looked sadly at her back for a moment, then strode to embrace her from behind. "You're right, love. I wasn't there. Go upstairs and get some rest. I will...deal with the nobles."
::**::
Later that evening, Dailisa was lounged in a chair near the fireplace in the main room of the Royal suite, one leg thrown over the arm of the chair, her eyes closed as she took a moment to just be still. She heard her husband come in, chuckle- presumably at her- and walk through to the bedroom. After a moment or two, she rose from the chair and went into the room to see her husband standing naked in the middle of the room, scratching his chest and yawning. She leaned against the doorframe to admire the clean lines of his body. He turned and smiled, seeing her watching. "Shall I dance a bit?" She returned the smile and shook her head.
As she moved into the room, she shut the bedroom door behind her, then climbed up onto their huge bed. "I want to talk about earlier." Alistair was tying the drawstring on the cloth pants he'd just pulled on.
"About Amaranthine?" Dailisa shook her head as he climbed onto the bed to sit beside her and run his hands through his hair.
"About Nathaniel." Alistair stopped mussing his hair and avoided looking at her.
"What about him?" He asked evasively.
Dailisa smacked her hand down onto the feather mattress they sat on. "Don't give me that. What?"
"If I asked you a question, would you answer it?" He asked, looking at her through his eyelashes.
She raised her eyebrows and gave him a stern look. "Yes, of course I would. So be sure you really want to know the answer."
Alistair gave her a distasteful look and muttered, "Well, that's almost answer in itself, isn't it?"
Dailisa gave him an exasperated look in return. "No, it's not. What is it, Alistair?"
He looked down, apparently studying their coverlet. "Did you sleep with Nate Howe?"
She held her hands out and looked at him, bewildered. "Yes. You told me to."
Alistair leapt out of the bed. "No! I told you if you weren't my wife, that's what I'd tell you!"
Dailisa looked at her husband incredulously then dropped her gaze to look down at the bed and said nothing. Alistair glared at her for several seconds, waiting for her to speak.
Finally he said, "You won't say anything?" He stood beside the bed, his arms crossed with an expression somewhere between fear and frustration.
Without looking up, she said, "What should I say? I did something that has hurt you. I should have realized that it was going to, regardless of what you said, and I didn't. I don't know what to say to fix it."
Alistair gave her a helpless look before he sat down on the bed. "Do I make you happy?" Dailisa looked at him then, her golden eyes confused.
"Of course you do. You always have. What does that have to do with anything?" Alistair gave his wife a searching look, then sighed.
"You really do think Nate and I are separate issues." It was a statement, but Dailisa addressed it anyway.
"Yes. You are. I love you and I will be with you until the darkspawn take me, unless you send me away. I cannot help what I feel for him, any more than I can help what I feel for you." She finally looked at her husband softly. "I can't help but love you, fool."
"I know. It's my sparkling personality, I'm sure." He reached out to touch Dailisa's arm and said, as she moved into his embrace, "Just the one time?"
She sighed. "Yes. Would you like a detailed account?" "No, no. Not necessary." He held her as they stretched out in their bed, kissing the top of her head.
"Dailisa, I love you a damn sight more than is healthy for either of us." She breathed a laugh across his chest, her head resting in the crook of his arm.
"Oh, my bastard king, I love you back. I wish you'd remember that."