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The day was over and they made camp. Actually, Alistair made camp and Morrigan brooded by her tent and Saffron lay on the ground whining for several minutes.
"Not our best day by far," Alistair mused, stirring a pot of another traditional Ferelden meat stew over the fire.
"I'm dying," Saffron whimpered from the dirt.
"We'll do better tomorrow. If for no other reason than we've lowered the bar so far today," Alistair continued.
"I can feel every bruise."
"Me too."
"I think I have broken bones."
"I definitely do."
"I can't do it," Saffron sat up and pulled his knees to his chest, his long black hair falling in his face. "How are we going to do it?"
Alistair looked thoughtful for a moment and then said, "I don't know. I'm just cooking dinner right now. Tomorrow we'll make it to Lothering and we can assess."
In the firelight, Saffron could still see the injuries on Alistair's face, his split lip and swollen eye. He was so much taller and broader than Saffron, but after their day today, with his armor shed and his focus on cooking a meal, he seemed so much younger and gentler. They were both just boys, Saffron realized, a thought that quietly grounded him.
"Okay..." Saffron took a few moments to breathe, slowly blowing each breath out. He wiped a tear with the palm of his hand, knowing that he was probably just smearing dirt on his face. Alistair sat down on the ground next to him and handed him a bowl of stew.
The mabari whined next to them, his chin on the ground as he looked up at them with pleading eyes.
"You've had your dinner," Alistair scolded him. "You're not getting any more tonight."
Saffron stared down at his bowl, a watery broth with mystery meat and a few stray peas floating in it. The dog whined again, a high pitched whimper that turned into a growling rumble.
"Quit begging!" Alistair snapped at him as he shoved a spoonful of stew in his own mouth. Morrigan was sauntering up from her own tent at the edge of camp. She managed to look miserable while presumably only approaching them to seek some food as well.
"Have you all sufficiently recovered?" she asked, sounding like she didn't care at all about the answer. "I don't see how you're going to survive the blight at this rate if the darkspawn are giving you so many problems already."
"Don't insult us! I don't see you stepping in for healing!" Alistair replied, pointing an accusatory finger at her.
"I am as talented a healer as you are a swordsman," she said with some satisfaction in her voice.
"Do you think this is what the original Wardens had to deal with?" Saffron asked weakly, interrupting Alistair before he could argue further with Morrigan.
"What, dragging along a mangy mutt and a nasty witch?" Alistair sighed. "No, I think they originally had griffons instead."