Doom Upon All The World

Chapter 1: Vhenan

The house was alive with noise. The echoes of laughter and chatter boomed through the halls. The few voices were sweet and surreal in Maeve's ears. She'd heard this sound often and every time it was better than the last. It was like an addiction. She needed to hear this noise. This beautiful melody of giggles and chirps and low roars and thunderous chuckles was a siren's song to her. The exuberant energy it gave off fueled her day, it moved her in the morning, put her to sleep, helped her to smile. Everything was made better by this perfect racket.

The footsteps that resounded from the floor above her pulled at the corners of her mouths as their voices loomed down. It forced her into a large smile. She let it fill her up and take over her body. Maeve stood in the kitchen, over the wooden table in front of the brick oven. The knife in her hand was different from the many she'd wielded during her Inquisition days. It was steady and she guided it down on the vegetables with ease. The swift chopping noise was nearly muted by the stomping and yelling above her.

She chuckled at the noise and shook her head slightly. They were always so loud. Their running around and laughing and telling stories and training made the house shake with reverberation. Their voices were soft in her ears. Their tones reaching down through the floor and begging her to go up there and join in. But dinner had to be made and she wanted to do it. This was the reason they had moved so far away. Out in the wilderness and exotic surroundings of Orlais they went to live in peace. They lived a ways away from the local village so that they could have privacy.

Halamshiral was a wild place at times but being near it kept Maeve at ease. She could stay close to Val Royeaux in case of emergency but she was also close to the Elves and the Dalish. She wouldn't lose all of her culture and she could keep a close eye on them. The thundering above came to an abrupt stop and she crooked an eyebrow at the food on the cutting board. She continued making thin slices, throwing the ingredients into the pot over the fire and adding the herbs after them.

They were up to something. Being quiet was extremely uncharacteristic unless they were in the company of strangers. They weren't. Which could only mean they were plotting. The three of them, together up there, could come up with plans that would doom all of Thedas. She smiled at the thought. There was some literal meaning in that notion. Then, as if the Gods were suddenly raining terror down on the world, the eerie solace was shattered, the resonating rumble beginning again.

This time it was different though. The sound was directed and moving. They were coming down stairs. She chuckled as it got louder and louder. Their voices became clear and distinct. The sweet lull of giggles and squeals mixed with the deep growl and inflection of joyous chase made Maeve's heart thump with pride. Her face and pointed ears heated up with pink, happy blush. It was so warming to hear them enjoying themselves.

She loved to just rest in her chair in the sitting room all day, listening to the sound of their sweet, soft voices talking, fighting at times. Their footsteps echoed against the wooden floor boards making her picture their movements above. She heard them coming towards the kitchen just before the door swung open and they entered. The patter of feet on the stone floor drew her attention from the food and she turned from her work.

Solas ran through the door way with a big grin on his face. He was happily calling to the other two. One of them rested firmly on his shoulders, his dark hair hanging in his green eyes. The other cause of the noise entered just behind her father and ran into Maeve, wrapping her arms around her waist, hugging to her tightly. Her sleek black hair flowed around her in a gorgeous sheet of straight strands. It framed her pale face but fell to her lower back. It contrasted with her bright blue eyes. She was by far the most beautiful child Maeve had ever seen. She was so striking and perfectly oblivious to it all.