Zevran's eyes were on the cards in front of him, though his thoughts were elsewhere. The quiet click of hard soled shoes in the passageway beyond snapped him back into the present; he turned and smiled toward the doorway just before Nessa Cousland stepped through.
She paused on the threshold for a moment to let her eyes adjust to the dimness of the guards' dormitory. The room was long and narrow, illuminated only sparsely by a few battered lanterns. The only furniture of note aside from the long row of beds was the scuffed wooden table at which Zevran and his companions were playing Diamondback. The other three at the table wore the livery of off-duty guardsmen.
As Nessa spotted Zevran, he slithered to his feet, laying his cards face down on the table. One of his hands came to rest casually over them as if by accident.
Nessa was dark-haired and broad shouldered; she moved into the room with purpose rather than grace. Except for the long yellow dress she wore, she might have been a guard herself. Her cheeks were slightly flushed and her blue eyes were narrowed in an expression that Zevran knew very well. He felt a powerful temptation to add to her annoyance. If there was one thing Zevran loved, it was giving in to such temptations.
"The Hero of Ferelden has decided to join us," he announced to the others.
Nessa's lips tightened. He grinned, unrepentant.
"Did you come to play," he asked, knowing she hadn't, "or do you have need of me?"
"Do us all a favor and take him, please." The young blond woman who spoke twisted toward Nessa and smiled wryly. "He'll put us all the in the poor house. Penn here has nothing left but his shirt... and there's no one here wanting to see him naked."
Penn shrugged off the remark with a frown.
"The elf is cheating," he grunted. "I'd put money on it."
"You haven't got any," the third guard interjected with an unkind laugh.
"Maker take me if I can figure out how he's doing it, though," Penn finished, never moving his eyes from the table.
"Cheating? I'm wounded you would think such a thing," replied Zevran, glancing away from Nessa for the first time. He leaned over the table to give Penn a long assessing look. "Though I must admit I would not entirely object to seeing you naked."
His companions hooted.
"Personally," Nessa broke in, "I have no desire to separate any of the queen's guards from their clothing. Guard Captain Cauthrien would be displeased at the loss of supplies, if nothing else. Take a break from divesting them of their hard-earned coin and come walk with me for a bit."
"As you like," Zevran said.
He neatly scooped his winnings off the table, and slid them into a pouch at his belt. Penn grabbed at the cards he'd left behind, turned them over, and swore.
"I wouldn't play cards with Zevran anymore if I were you," Nessa said over her shoulder on her way out. "He has Andraste's own luck."
Nessa led the way through a series of long dim corridors without speaking. She bypassed the more populated areas of the palace and headed for the back stairs.
"So, my Hero," Zevran said as they climbed to the castle roof, "what is the news?"
"I've told you not to call me that," she said sharply.
"Ah, but it's so much more impressive sounding than Warden," he pointed out cheerfully.
Nessa frowned and turned to argue; instead she ended up tripping on her skirt. Zevran instantly reached out to catch her, but she shrugged irritably out of his grasp.
"Flaming skirts. I've completely forgotten how to walk in them; should have stopped to change." She hiked up the offending fabric and scowled her way up the stairs.
"You look lovely," said Zevran from behind her. "Like a golden beam of sunlight on a grey and dismal afternoon."
Nessa snorted. "You're just giddy from the shock of seeing me in a dress," she said. "Fergus insisted that I 'look like a lady and a proper Cousland for a change' and sent the queen's own dressmaker to ambush me. It's just a waste of fabric and money as far as I'm concerned."
They paused on the upper landing, momentarily blinded by the bright sunshine. The roof was empty except for a single sentry at the far end. He squinted at them for a moment, then recognized Nessa and offered a salute. Nessa lifted a hand in response, then lead the way towards the roof's edge.
"Anyway," she said, "you're trying to change the subject. I'm not your 'hero.' Why don't you try calling me by name? Or have you forgotten it after all this time?"
Zevran only smiled. "It is not a bad thing, now and then, to remind people of what you have accomplished. It smooths the way to getting what you want, does it not?"
"That entirely depends on who you're dealing with," she replied grimly.
"Ahh. So your meeting with the queen did not go well."
"Not exactly," said Nessa. She rested her elbows on the parapet and looked out across the city. "But it wasn't her fault. Now that we're officially done chasing the last of the darkspawn army, Fergus has gotten leave to return to Highever. The problem is… he wants me to come with him."
"I see," said Zevran. "And?"
"And I suppose I have to," she said darkly. "I'd rather go back to the Deep Roads." She picked irritably at one of her embroidered cuffs. "Fergus is right that there's a teyrnir to run. Someone has to look at the damage, visit the farmholders, see what's left. I just don't see why 'someone' has to include me."
She rested her head on her arms.
Several stories down, crews of workers were rebuilding the Alienage bridge. The sounds of sawing and the shouts of men and elves drifted up towards them.
"Fergus is trying to name me his heir," she eventually confessed to her elbows. "But he can't. When I took my Warden vows, I promised to leave my family behind. Duncan made it very clear that Cousland business was no longer my responsibility. I've explained this to Fergus — at great length — but so far he's refused to hear it."
She lifted her head and added with a frown, "And there's no Warden Commander in Ferelden at the moment to officially forbid it. He won't listen to me when I try to explain… and honestly there's no real reason I can't at least go help put things in order. Fergus might be an overbearing ass, but I guess it's not really fair to ask him to go alone."
She'd spent most of the last year firmly trying to block out her last night at Highever — the fires, the fighting, and the last sight of her parents before Duncan pulled her away.
There was a stir of air beside her as Zevran pulled himself up to sit on top of the wall. Nessa let out a breath of surprise.
"I don't know how you do that," she said. "A three story drop, and you look as comfortable as if it were only high as a pasture fence."
"As a point of fact, I find a castle roof far more inviting than a pasture fence," he answered with a grin.
"True. You're about as happy in the mud as I am in a dress." She looked down at her skirt, and her smile faded. "I'm sorry," she said. "We had planned to travel, but it's just been one thing after another."
He raised one shoulder in a graceful shrug. "A trip to Highever will be travel, will it not?"
"It's hardly what we had in mind. Besides, it's going to be mostly manual labor and family drama. I would get out of it if I could; why should you suffer? You don't have to come. Our debt is settled."
The corner of his mouth twitched. "So you have said. Of course, if you tire of my company… I don't wish to be in the way."
"No," she said, reaching out to rest a hand on his arm. "That's not what I am saying at all. It would be much easier with a friend. I just don't want you to feel like you have to."
"Then it is settled," he said, lifting her hand and bringing it to his lips.
"Cut that out." Her words were stern, but she smiled as she tugged her hand free.
He winked and continued, "We have stayed here in Denerim longer than I like anyway; there are too many comings and goings with all the construction, and far too much noise. It interferes with my beauty sleep."
He did look tired, she realized suddenly. There were shadows under his eyes she hadn't noticed before.
"It will be good to get moving again," Zevran continued, jumping down off the wall to avoid her scrutiny. "Who knows? It might be easier to slip away from your brother's estate than it is from the court. Perhaps this is only the first stage of our journey."
"Maybe," Nessa said, with a dubious frown.