A/N: SO! I've been playing through DA:I for the last few weeks, and I think the game is incredible! However, I feel like the Inquisitor can be a bit of a mary-sue type character, even despite picking aggressive options, so I wanted to write about an Inquisitor who went through the normal emotional range of a human being, without the fluffy editing of it and all. I also wanted Cullen to be a bit less stoic and more like a Templar, even though he's all but abandoned the Order to join the Inquisition. Cullen is one of my favourite DA characters, despite the seriously underwhelming parts he played in both Origins and Dragon Age II.
That said, here we go! I hope you guys enjoy this story! If you haven't already, please go and check out my other fic, "Evening Star" - a story about a snarky Cousland warrior who didn't want to follow her family duties and fell for a man she felt she didn't deserve.
[as of right now, this fanfic is UNBETA'D. All mistakes and imperfections are my own doing. If you are interested in beta-ing for this fic, please shoot me a message! Xx]
"Shit!" The word rang through the cold stone halls early one winter morning, and though it was not an unusual sound to hear around the keep, the desperate sound of clattering followed by a rather obnoxiously loud explosive noise had her advisors scrambling out of the temporary place they were holding meetings. They sprinted up the stone staircase directly to the left of the room, leading up to a stone bridge that connected a rather picturesque tower to the rest of the keep. At the front of the group was a rather athletic man with curly, tousled blonde hair wearing white-steel plate beneath a roughspun fur-lined overcoat. Directly behind him was a lithe young woman with ginger hair, followed by a pixie-haired warrior clad in black plate emblazoned with an eye in the middle of a bursting sun. In the rear was a noblewoman clad in a rather exquisite dress of multicoloured silks and ruffles.
It took mere moments for the mismatched group to reach the room that was the source of the offending noise, and from within came the sounds of many rather distasteful and colourful words unfit for anyone, let alone the woman they were being spoken by, to hear or say. Turning a head to his comrades and raising an eyebrow, to which the ginger haired female only laughed softly, he gently pushed the door open, the foursome quickly ducking as a frostfire bolt went whizzing over their heads, dissipating harmlessly against the stone wall just behind them.
The sight that lay before them was one of utter chaos – furniture lay overturned, some of it smashed beyond repair. Tapestries and maps were strewn over every inch of the stone floor, as were countless books, some who were no longer married to their linen covers. The bed that graced the centre of the room was a dishevelled mess, the silk linens every which way possible and one of the four posters collapsed. There were irritated, sporadic pockmarks all over the walls, several paintings now bearing the evidence of a magical tantrum. Other evidence, including a now smouldering set of robes, was heaped on the floor near the window, which was flung wide open.
"By the love of the sodding Maker, I'M FINE." was the sharp statement delivered in their direction by the woman who occupied the tower, venom lacing every word, especially the last two. The blonde haired warrior cocked an eyebrow as he looked around, the noblewoman sighing exasperatedly at the sight of the almost completely destroyed room. "Your ladyship, with all due courtesy, you cannot-"
"Shut the hell up, Josie." The noblewoman snapped her mouth shut instantly at the callous statement, and bowed curtly before pushing past the group again to exit the room, mumbling softly, "You lot can deal with this. I've seen enough to last all week." The sounds of her heels against the stone quickly disappeared back across the bridge and down the stairs.
"Now that was uncalled for." came the voice of the pixie-haired warrior, whose voice was gruff and unforgiving. "Josephine has done nothing to deserve your razor sharp tongue, yet you continuously lash out at her like a venomous snake. This behaviour is unacceptable, especially for you." The ginger-haired woman sighed softly, all traces of her previous mirth gone as she gently lay a hand on the warrior's arm before uttering, "Cassandra, let's go. We can talk about this when everyone has cooled down."
Cassandra wrenched her arm from her comrade's grasp, glancing at the blonde male. "Get this under control, Commander. This is getting to be ridiculous." He could only nod as the warrioress mumbled, "Let's go, Leliana." She turned sharply after throwing another rueful glance at their adversary, walking back the same way Josephine had disappeared to, the red-haired rogue following swiftly after.