its_not_tuesday | it's like taking a guess when the only answer is yes (closed to Jo)

Going along with the playfulness of the moment, she chuckled as she turned to present her back to him and the door of his room. She even went so far as to slide a hand over her eyes so that he could be sure she wasn't peeking. "Just let me know when I can come in."

Alistair dashed inside rather quickly and took stock of the situation--no socks, thankfully, but he could still stand to pick some things up, make sure all the dishes were in the sink rather just sitting on the table and some grocery bags and empty wrappers were properly thrown away.

"All right," he called, running up to the door and sticking his head outside to smile at her. "I think it's safe! Nothing smells, anyway."

She listened as he rushed around the room, causing her to chuckle softly to herself because a mess wouldn't have bothered her. Not in the slightest and not after living with Ash. Still, she waited for him to summon her inside before she turned with a smile.

"I'm sure it's fine." She commented as he let her in and she glanced around. "Looks good to me."

"Thank you, I try not to be a total slob." He smiled a little and stepped back to let her in. "If you want something to drink, I have, ah...water. Oh, and soda! Orange and grape soda."

"Well, you don't strike me as one." She smiled, pausing to take off her shoes so that she didn't track slush or mud all over. "Grape soda sounds great to me, thanks."

"The Chantry was rather particular about cleanliness," he remarked with a bit of a sheepish shrug, moving to dig a few sodas out of the fridge. "Ah, just make yourself comfortable!"

Obviously the village had tried to make Alistair feel a bit more at home, since the inside of his hotel room was a strange hodgepodge of modern technology combined with the decor he was more used to.

"So is a Chantry kind of like a convent or something?" She asked, raising her voice a little as she wandered around his sitting area. Then she took a peek outside just to see if she could catch a glimpse of the dragon but she didn't see anything.

"Ah, a what?" He blinked a little as he came out of the fridge with two bottles of grape soda. "The Chantry is just...I think you call it a church. It's where people go to pray, for spiritual guidance--they also take in orphans, give shelter and succor for those in need."

"Sounds like a convent." She nodded her head, glancing around again as she took a seat on the couch while watching him with a small smile. "Mom threatened to send me to one once or twice."

"Dare I ask why?" he asked with a hint of amusement. "It wouldn't have anything to do with the vow of chastity thing, would it? There was a running joke of overprotective fathers sending their daughters to the Chantry for that very reason."

"There's a good chance of it." She admitted with a chuckle. "But she never did actually follow through on her threats. I would have probably got kicked out though since I'm so wicked, right?"

"Well, I can't speak for your convents, but the Chantry's fairly forgiving so long as you're not a maleficarum," Alistair quipped with a slight smile.

"A what now?" She blinked at him.

"A maleficar," he repeated, glancing at her and blinking at her blank expression. "Ah, an apostate?...I guess there're no mages where you come from?"

"Mages...oh, witches and stuff." She nodded in understanding now, tucking some hair back from her face. "Yes, I could see how they wouldn't really be popular there."

"Most people feel that the mages brought the Darkspawn," Alistair remarked, taking a sip of his soda. "So the Chantry keeps a close watch on them--that's sort of the Templar's job. Any mages outside of the Chantry's control are branded apostates. Maleficarum."

"So the Chantry is big into control and all that. Doesn't like the people who like to run around and not be controlled?" She guessed, sipping her soda.

"It's not like that," Alistair protested, sighing a little. "All right, you have these...demon things, in your world, right? And they possess people. So, think for a second--if these demons could only possess a very, very small part of your population, wouldn't you want to watch those people very, very closely?"

"Well, we would." She agreed with a nod of her head. "Then we can try and get the demons out once we've realized they have in fact possessed someone."

"Except that once a mage is possessed by a malevolent fade spirit, the best that we can do is kill the vessel." He didn't look at all pleased by that fact, but it was still, just...the way it was. "So, we put them through a test when they've learned a certain amount of control--if they can resist the temptation that a fade spirit offers, then they earn the right to leave the Circle tower."

He paused again. "But...we always have their phylactery. Just in case."

"Their phylactery?" She tilted her head to the side, watching his features closely.

"It's a vial of blood," he explained. "It can be used to track them if they ever go rogue."

"Oh, I guess that's definitely handy." She nodded her head, still studying him. "Do you still do that? Hunt mages and stuff?"

"No." Alistair shook his head. "I'm a Grey Warden now, and I never took any vows as a Templar. Technically, I still...could, hunt mages. Everything I learned in Templar training, I still know and can use."

"Right, I remember you saying something about that." She crossed her ankles as she leaned back, settling to make herself more comfortable. "Do you ever think about what you would have done if you hadn't been a Templar or a Grey Warden?"

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