Disclaimer: Bioware owns all, except what I most humbly imagine. While, at times, I will take verbatim from the game, I attempt to use the events of the Dragon Age games, expansions and universe as a loose structure around which to construct my re-imagined tale. If you are looking for a strict canon piece, I have no desire to offend, and so I warn you upfront that I will divert from the traditional tale.

When reading these stories, I hope you can easily imagine it being told by the very best of storytellers in Varric Tethras (from DA:2). In my version of events, Varric meets "The Hero" (Elissa Cousland) in Kirkwall during the time period of DA:2. I mention this only so that readers can understand his connection along the way, and so I don't have to mention and rehash it again and again as I make my way through the tale.

A/N: As I've been writing what has now become an epic, tiny bits of things are constantly popping into my head. Most of the time I can work them into the larger story which has now made it into Book Four, but occasionally there are pieces like this one that just don't seem to fit within the confines of the books I'm writing.

Remnants is a collection of these pieces.

For this collection I am also open to "requests". If there is anything you've wondered or wanted to ask or know about Nathaniel or Elissa or the two together, feel free to send it to me via IM and I'll attempt to address it with a small story.

Enjoy!

-Frayed One


1. Boast

Nathaniel leaned against the stone wall at the back corner of the courtyard staring at something on the ground. It must have been interesting, whatever it was. He'd been staring at it for the past thirty minutes. Elissa should know. She hadn't stopped watching him since he walked in several hours before.

He'd done his precursory loop around the room, likely at his father's insistence. She doubted Nathaniel would have ever done such a thing of his own accord. He hated these gatherings, perhaps more than she did if his current body language was to be believed. He was polite enough – speaking when spoken to, always following the well-established guidelines of noble protocol – but if you knew what you were looking for it was easy to see he'd rather be anywhere other than where he was.

He'd ditched his family and made a beeline for Fergus as soon as he was able. It had become the routine for these types of gatherings years before, much the same way as she and Delilah would ultimately gravitate toward one another. Soon after they'd met up, Fergus began gathering the sampling of noble girls that always flocked to him within an hour of his arrival. He sat at a table now, surrounded by them, looking for all the world as though he was having the time of his life. It made Elissa want to punch him even more than she usually did.

She glanced at Nathaniel again, wondering if his focus had shifted from the staring contest he'd been having with the ground, but it hadn't. She was certain there were several of the girls - now fawning over her brother - who had originally come to see Nathaniel, quickly losing interest when he didn't respond to their advances. There were rumors that it wasn't women catching the eldest Howe's eye, rumors that resulted in an exceptionally harsh response from his father, but Elissa knew they weren't true. She'd watched him for too long. She knew the subtle responses in his behavior that most people would miss. He absolutely appreciated at least the physical beauty of many women, though something kept him from acting on it. She could wager any number of guesses, but in all honesty, even Elissa had no idea what it was.

"What do you think, Elissa?"

The sound of her name drew her attention back to the group of noble girls clustered around the table behind her, though she had no idea what they'd asked her opinion on.

"Hmm?" She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and mustered up a smile.

"Don't bother asking her. She hasn't a clue what we're talking about. She's been staring at that Howe boy all night as usual."

"No I haven't." Elissa shifted her eyes over to Anora, narrowing them slightly in response to her tone.

"Yes, you have. It's pathetic really… fawning over someone like that." Anora folded her arms with a smile, listening to the light flutter of laughter that began to circulate through the girls around her.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Anora." She folded her arms and turned away, but there was a moment when she caught Delilah's sympathetic eyes in which her mask must have slipped. It was all Anora needed.

"Oh yes you do." The blonde chuckled as she stood up from the table and walked to Elissa's side. "The saddest thing about it is that he doesn't even know you exist!"

"He knows I exist. We're friends. Good friends." It was a boast; an unjustified boast and Elissa knew it. Most days they barely tolerated one another.

"If you're such good friends, why don't you go and ask him for a dance?"

And there it was, bluff called. Elissa could hear the whispers starting already and her heart started to pound.

"Nathaniel doesn't dance." It wasn't a lie, so far as she knew he didn't, though being noble she doubted it was because he didn't know how.

"Rubbish. All nobility dances, you're just making excuses." Anora folded her arms and broadened her smile, sensing blood in the water and moving in for the kill. "I think you're afraid to ask. I think you're afraid to ask because you know he'll decline the invitation."

"I'm not afraid. I'm not afraid of anything." Elissa could feel her temper rising as she glared at the older girl.

"Prove it." Anora barely whispered it, leaning in close to Elissa's ear with a malicious grin, but it was loud enough she could be certain the entire crowd of girls behind them heard the dare.

Elissa swallowed, feeling her heart thump harder in her chest. Her palms started sweating and she squeezed hard at the insides of her elbows where she'd folded her arms just to keep herself from visibly shaking. "Fine."

She didn't look at Anora. She didn't look at any of them, but she knew they were watching as she stalked across the room.

Nathaniel looked up when her movement caught his attention. Though it may have appeared he'd been lost in thought, he was clearly far more observant of his surroundings than she'd given him credit. She glanced over at Fergus who had also noticed her approach, and knew that with his attention focused on her the other girls had to be watching as well.

"Dance with me." Elissa spat the words out before she could lose the nerve, feeling her pulse pick up again as she waited for his response.

"What?" Nathaniel's eyes widened slightly, but he didn't move from where he leaned against the wall.

"You heard me." Elissa reached out and grabbed his hand, tugging hard enough that he was forced to stand up straight or fall over and dragging him in the direction of the dance floor. Once she reached it she spun back around and put a hand on his shoulder, holding the other one out and waiting for him to take it and start the dance, but he didn't move. Other couples twirled around them and Elissa could feel the eyes of everyone in the room drifting in their direction because they were standing still. She thought her heart might explode. "Nathaniel, please!"

He glanced over her shoulder, catching sight of the gaggle of noble girls she'd been standing with all night at the edge of the tile. Noble girls were cruel, Nathaniel knew the explicit details of just how cruel from the humiliations handed out to Delilah who worked to fit in. Elissa didn't even try, and though she never complained, he could imagine just how vicious that made them toward her. Tonight's behavior was entirely out of character. Elissa was demanding, but never in a setting like this. Whatever it was the girls said to her must have been dire to push her into coming to him in search of rescue.

He looked back down at Elissa, but she'd closed her eyes and he noted a slight tremble in her bottom lip. She'd obviously decided he was going to abandon her there in front of everyone. It was the first time he'd really seen any proof that she doubted herself, and that was enough to make his decision.

She opened her eyes when she felt the press of his hand at her hip, and Nathaniel could read the surprise and then the relief in her eyes when he took her hand and began to lead them into the crowd of bodies already moving across the dance floor. She couldn't have picked a more complicated dance if she'd tried, but if she had any trouble with it Nathaniel didn't notice. However he turned them, she adapted to it perfectly.

He smiled. It was slight, but he knew that she caught it when he saw the minute curve of her own lips in response. If it was a show the girls wanted, he could certainly give it to them. Perhaps they'd both get a moments peace from their respective pressures in response.

Nathaniel upped the pace of his footwork, adding in steps, turning Elissa fast enough at times that he worried she might lose her balance – but she never did. Whatever he threw at her, she responded to it as though she'd known what he planned to do before he ever decided to do it. It was enough to catch his attention and hold it until the music started to slow in the background signaling that the dance had reached its end.

He turned her one last time with a flourish, before tucking her hand into his elbow and leading her back over to the gaggle of noble girls now standing open mouthed in front of their table. Except for Anora. If steam could have come out of her ears, Nathaniel had no doubt it would be right now.

"My lady." Nathaniel brushed a kiss across Elissa's knuckles, catching his sister's eye long enough to see the grin she wasn't showing twinkle in her eyes, and then turned away.

Elissa watched him move back through the crowd with a smile. If she hadn't been lost before, she certainly was now.

"You know his father is in negotiations with mine for a betrothal already. If I wanted him, I could have him right now." Anora stood, waiting for a response, huffing off a moment later when she didn't get one.

Elissa knew about it. Everyone did, but as she caught Nathaniel's eyes one last time before he went back to staring at the floor, she was certain Anora's boast would never be true.