The morning sun's warm kiss on her cheeks was the first thing Trevelyan noticed as she stirred out of the Fade and back into hazy consciousness. Yawning softly as she blinked herself awake, she indulged in a lazy stretch of her arms before taking in her surroundings, still heavy-lidded.

Cullen was curled up on his side to her right. Obviously caught in deep sleep, his expression was almost ethereally peaceful. His curls, in their naturally unruly state, had fallen into his forehead; his usually furrowed brow was relaxed and his mouth hung open in silent awe at an unknown dream. Trevelyan's chest tightened with a surge of affection, and she reached out to cup his cheek, gasping when he seemed to lean into the touch and his lips curved into the tiniest of smiles. She ran her index finger over his scar then pressed a fleeting kiss onto his forehead, careful not to rouse him.

With recollection of last night's events slowly setting in- along with an acute awareness of being completely nude under the light duvet-, she turned towards her left, her palm tracing a path along the ruffled sheets to find…

… an empty spot. Had he already left?

She sat up, the pang of disappointment quickly dissipating when she noticed the figure leaning over her desk at the far end of the room.

He was in his smallclothes, exposed to her curious scrutiny, back muscles playing under smooth skin as he seemed to be cutting something from last night's impromptu buffet.

"Your Ma-", she snickered before correcting herself. "Alistair."

Spinning around like a child caught emptying the sweets cupboard, he began spluttering in that very un-kingly manner of his. "Oh! Good morning. I was just, ah, helping myself to some bread and cheese", he slowed down, smiling sheepishly, "well, cheese mostly. Would you like some?"

She cocked her head to one side as her eyes roamed down his front, taking in the light speckle of freckles on his chest, the fine dusting of hair on his strong thighs, the lean stretch of his feet.

She held out her hand. "I'd like you to come here."

His eyes narrowed while his grin widened. "I think that can be arranged". He swiftly crossed distance to where she was waiting for him in the sturdy Free Marches-style bed that served as her comforting reminder of home whenever she needed it.

Sitting down beside her, he handed her a small piece of hard cheese, which she accepted gratefully, chewing while looking at him.

Alistair let his voice drop an octave. "Did you enjoy yourself last night?" Uncertainty lingered under his sultry tone, and she noticed how he wouldn't let his gaze drop below her shoulders.

Trevelyan swallowed quickly, flashing him a reassuring smile. "Very much", she whispered as she leaned in for a tentative kiss, warm and just as sweet as it had tasted hours before. Her hands closed around the back of his head, grabbing small handfuls of ginger hair while his arms wrapped around her waist as the kiss deepened.

When they broke away, a little out of breath, she rested here forehead against his. "Very much indeed."

"How much time do we have?" he whispered against her lips.

Glancing at the ornate timepiece on the nightstand behind Alistair, she huffed in mild frustration. "We've just over an hour before your address in the main hall."

"Well", that familiar glint of mischief lit up Alistair's face, highlighting the flecks of green in his honey eyes as he crawled across the bed to where Cullen still seemed fast asleep. "Better wake our commander then, eh?" Before she could react, Alistair yanked the covers away from the still body, revealing an invitingly bare backside- which he then smacked with his flat hand, hard enough to produce a sore, fleshy sound.

Cullen woke abruptly, jerking up onto his knees while his mind was taking longer to find its way back into an alert state.

Blinking in drowsy confusion, he stared back at the two of them for a moment. Trevelyan was covering her mouth, trying to supress her giggle. "Good morning, my dear", she offered.

Cullen's back straightened as he ran a hand through his hair, his eyes widening for a second as recollection began to set in- along with anticipation.

He relaxed, sitting back on his heels, naked as the Maker had created him, and cleared his throat.

When he spoke, his eyes lit up with a smile as bright as the sun itself.

"Good morning."