~—~

Epilogue

Shouts and screams rang through the courtyard of the school, but Sarai did not move from her post by the gate. Instead, she glanced over her shoulder and smiled at the sight of her Mabari playing with a group of mage children. He was eagerly licking their faces, to their delight and dismay.

She turned back to the task at hand: overseeing the new arrivals. The school had been growing by leaps and bounds over the months since Ferelden had officially endorsed it. Voldrik had expanded it dramatically over the summer, quadrupling the number of students they could support. Now mages were coming from all corners of Thedas to enroll in or visit the school.

The latest batch was a group of children whose parents could not afford to make the journey to the school themselves. Desperate letters had been sent, and Bethany had agreed to undertake the trip to collect the prospective students. Now she was trying to make the young mages stand still long enough to be enrolled.

The school's influence was extending beyond the scattered mage population. The villagers of Wheat's End, initially suspicious, had been won over by the surge in people—and coin—passing through. Being the closest settlement to the school, the village was rapidly becoming a town, catering to the visiting mages and their families.

Bann Teagan visited regularly. Anora herself had come to see the school when the expansion was completed. In the meantime, the Queen was wrestling with the Ferelden nobles who had opposed her idea. Sarai was grateful that politics stayed in Denerim and she could stay at the school.

She heard Anders coming, but pretended not to, a little smile curling up the corners of her mouth. Does he really think he can be stealthy with those huge boots? Then strong arms enveloped her and stubble ticked her neck.

"Hello, my beautiful wife." He kissed her neck, making her lean into him appreciatively.

"Hello, my beautiful husband."

"New students?"

"Indeed. Seven more. Two of them already show an aptitude for healing—your class will be full."

"Why can't Wynne teach healing, again?" he said with a frown. "She's the one who taught me, after all."

"Because Wynne is old and deserves to rest," Sarai responded. "And because you get antsy if you're not making yourself useful. You needed a job."

"I thought my job was keeping the school's security... satisfied."

"That's your night job," she said, catching one of his hands and kissing the knuckles.

Anders gave a happy sigh. "We did it. We really did it." He kissed her neck again, this time deeper and with more passion, and she swatted at him playfully. Dissuaded from further affection, he said, "A world where our children can be born mages, and free."

Sarai felt a brush of sadness. "Someone's children, anyway."

"I'm sorry, love..."

"No," she said, finally turning around so she could put her hands on his shoulders. "I made my choices. I never wanted to be a housewife raising children for some Lowtown thief, though Maker knows I might have been. I wanted—I want—you. Besides," she added, sweeping a hand over the courtyard, "I have nearly a hundred mage children to look after. This is the family we made. And I love it."

"I love you," he replied.

"Of course. That goes without saying. Now go, you're supposed to be teaching."

Sarai watched as Anders walked back across the courtyard and into the building. She turned back to her sister and the newest students with a smile. She had chosen this life, and she would cherish it.

~—~

The End

[Thanks for all the wonderful feedback! I have already posted the first chapter of my new story, a prequel about Sarai Hawke and Anders called Thin Blue Flame. You can find it through my profile!]