Josephine laid her head down on her desk in frustration. She loved her work, but some days it was the most painful career she could have chosen, and today was one of those days. She had worked through the morning, and all afternoon, and she was hardly even started on the veritable mountain of paperwork on her desk. And these latest treaties were the worst: Orlesian nobles demanding this trade contract, or that concession, working as though they were the Maker's chosen.
"Josie?"
She looked up, and immediately felt better. Her Inquisitor, Cantis Trevelyan, stood in the doorway to her office with a concerned look on his face.
"Are you okay?"
She smiled. "Yes, vita mia, I'm fine, it's just..." She rested her head on the back of her chair, and breathed. "It's just already been a long day."
He smiled back at her, and walked over to her desk. She held her hand out, and he took it, placing gentle, sweet a kiss on it.
"Well then," Cantis smiled. "I came to ask if you wanted to go out to dinner, but now I'm not giving you a choice." He pulled her up. "Come."
"But I," She protested even as she stood. "I have so much work to do. There are letters to be written, alliances to be-"
She was cut off by a deep kiss, and immediately silenced herself as she felt his stubbly beard brush against her chin.
"And none of that will happen if our Ambassador works herself into the ground. I'll sit down and help you when we get back, but for right now, we're going out."
At the La Sirène, Val Royeaux
"My lord," Josephine cooed. "This is such a lovely place."
And indeed it was. The La Sirène was in an incredibly beautiful location, with the entire restaurant being outside in a hanging gardens that were in full bloom, with fountains running through the middle of it, and incense burning in the rafters.
In other words, it was perfect.
He smiled at her. "I knew you would love it out here. The instant I saw this place, I knew I had to bring you here."
Josephine smiled back. "It's absolutely perfect. Thank you, my lord."
Cantis shook his head. "Oh, come now Josephine. You don't have to be so formal."
"Alright... amore mio."
"See?" He laughed, having learned Antivan specifically to know his Josephine just a little better. "Much better."
And dinner had been wonderful as well. They had been served a carefully hand-made Pot-au-feu, served with red wine and a lovely Strawberry Savarin.
The perfect place had served the perfect dinner as well.
"This was so lovely." She leaned over, and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you so much."
Cantis had the widest smile on his face. "You deserve a break. I think you work harder than anyone else at Skyhold."
She shook her head. "You're silly. What about you? I've never had to face down a High Dragon during my daily duties"
He chuckled. "True enough, but I don't have to deal with entitled Orlesian nobles. I'd take a dragon any day."
She giggled. "Fair enough, mo chroí."
"I love you." He placed a hand on her cheek, and leaned to kiss her on the forehead.
"I love you too."
Cantis stood, and took her hand in his. "Come." She stood too, and followed him.
"Where are we going?"
He turned, and smiled at her. "I ordered some of those Carnations that you love so much. We'll pick them up, and then we can go back to the apartment I rented for us."
Her eyes widened. He had remembered her favourite flowers?
She held him close, snuggling closely into his side.
A loud, sharp crash broke them from their little romantic bubble.
Two men and a white-haired woman were standing in front of a small Dwarven woman, who was cowering, pressed up against a wall, and her whole body was shaking. The man closest to her, who Cantis guessed was the leader, had a freshly broken bottle in his hands with a brown sludge still pouring out of it. Whether it was a very strong liquor, or cleaning fluid used like liquor, Cantis couldn't tell.
"We've been very patient with you, you bloody fuckin' rock!" He sneered, holding his bottle out menacingly. "Now you pay us right now, or you're comin' with me!"
Cantis sighed. "Just once, I want one day, just one day, without getting into a fight." He let go of Josephine's hand, who sighed too. "Alright, now that you've ruined the evening for three different people, what's going on here?"
The man turned a little. "Nothing. Go back to eating your birds, Orlesian." Then he turned back to the woman.
"Well, your antics have ruined my date, so I figure it is my business as of right now."
"Look." One of the other men drew a short machete. "The man said go away, so I'll give you one more chance. Get the fuck out of here, or I'll carve you a new one."
Cantis sighed, and his hand passed over the knife he had hidden in his belt. He pulled it out in a lightning fast movement, and jabbed the blade into the man's throat. Cantis ripped the machete from that man's hands as he fell, and stabbed it into the lower back of the leader.
He turned and, before he could do anything else, was met by a sharp slash across the face from the blade of the white haired woman, and cried out sharply, stumbling. Her blade had made a deep gash across his cheek bone, and it immediately began to bleed profusely.
She started to swing again while he was reeling, but Josephine met her with a swift punch to the back of the head, dazing the criminal woman completely. Cantis stepped forward through the haze of pain, and stabbed the bandit through the heart, killing her before she hit the ground.
Cantis dropped his machete, and leaned against a nearby wall, clutching his cheek, blinking away the black spots in his eyes. She had got him good.
"Thank you, messere!" The Dwarf woman cried out, and threw her arms around him. "Thank you so very much! I owe you my life I do!"
He smiled a little. "You're very welcome, madame."
"Madame?" She cried with a laugh. "You're a proper gentleman, you are. No one's ever been so polite to me in my entire life, no ser."
He chuckled. "Why were those men after you?"
She let go of him, a smile still on her face. "I borrowed money from them, I did. I had to feed my children, I couldn't do anythin' else. I'd paid them back ten times the amount of money I borrowed, but they just kept gouging me for more. Bunch of rotten crooks, the whole lot of them."
Cantis nodded, understanding. "Well, they won't be troubling you any more. Here," He pulled out a smattering of coins from his pouch. "This should help you feed your children."
She looked up at him with worried eyes. "Oh no, ser. I can't keep paying off loans, and I-"
He held his hand out a little further. "This isn't a loan. It's for your children, I won't let any little ones starve on the streets."
She smiled, her eyes a little wet, and accepted the money. "If I can ever repay you, milord, I will, I swear by the Stone, I will."
"That isn't necessary." He turned to Josephine, who was smiling with her perfect white teeth. "If you'll excuse us, we have to be somewhere before the sun sets."
"Of course, and thank you so much." She turned, and walked away.
"Alright." Cantis turned to his Josephine. "You ready to go get some flowers?"
She laughed a little, and cradled his face in her hands. "Are you alright?"
"Sure." He breathed in hard, and smiled, a little weakly. "But we really should get going before they close."
She shook her head. He was clearly covering up how much it hurt for her benefit. He was silly that way.
"The flowers can wait." She insisted, and moved his hand that was still covering his fresh wound. He had been cut deep from the cruel blade, and she could see his cheekbone from the gash. "You're such a brave man."
"It looks worse than it is." He insisted.
"Even so," She pulled back, and smiled that dazzling smile again. "I think that you need to be taken care of."
He smiled and leaned in for a gentle kiss, and Josephine obliged him.
"Alright, but first we have to go and pick up those flowers for you before they close ."
Later that night
Josephine giggled, and cuddled closer to her absolutely naked lover, pulling the velvet crimson blanket on top of them.
"What's so funny?" His voice was a warm, happy purr as his hands stroked her back.
"Nothing." She smiled. "You're just cute."
"Oh, am I?" He kissed her on the top of her head. "You're pretty adorable yourself."
She rolled her eyes. "Oh, you silly man. Alright, you are quite handsome." And it was quite true. He was the picture of masculinity. He was a mighty warrior who wielded a massive two-handed sword, with strong muscles and a sharp jaw.
And he was fun to cuddle. That was a must for Josephine.
"And you," He kissed her again. "Are quite beautiful." And that too was true. She had strong hips and full breasts, long flowing hair that glinted when the sunlight touched it, not to mention her mature, olive skin that was so incredibly smooth.
"You know, Ser Trevelyan," She giggled. "You shouldn't distract you Ambassador from her duties so much, or nothing will ever get done at Skyhold."
He chuckled. "You do know, Miss Montilyet, that you work for me. If I suddenly decide that you should go on vacation, I'm afraid you would have to listen."
She laughed. "And just how much of this... vacation would be spent in your chambers, milord?"
He kissed her on the head. "You'll just have to find out, won't you?"
She purred. "I cherish these moments together, vita mia. Together and alone with one another, just you and me. I love you so much."
"I love you too. You're as precious to me as the sun and stars themselves."
They laid in silence for several minutes more, basking in the gentle warmth of each other in the cool of the night, feeling the pulse of each other's hearts as they drew breath.
Cantis was the one to break the silence.
"Have you thought about what we'll do now that Corypheus is dead?" He asked quietly.
Josephine made a pondering noise. "I don't know." She said slowly. "The world still needs the Inquisition, at least for the moment, but after? I don't know." She put a hand up on his chest. "But mo chuisle, whatever we do next, we will do together."
He smiled that snow white smile at her. "You're so amazing, Josephine. I don't know what I could have ever done to deserve you."
She giggled. "Is averting the apocalypse twice not enough?"
"For a woman like you? No."
She smiled at him, her heart soaring at that. "Well, perhaps I shall have my parents come to Skyhold sometime, introduce you to them?"
Cantis nodded. "That sounds lovely. Perhaps we'll invite my family as well, make a whole event of it?"
She nodded as well. "I will send the invitations tomorrow."
"You know, any marriage of ours would make the strongest family in all of Thedas. We would have the Trevelyans, the Montilyet's, and all of the strength of the Inquisition."
"Are you proposing to me, dearest Inquisitor?" Josephine giggled.
"Weellll." He said slowly. "That depends on what your answer is."
"Yes, of course I will, silly."
He smiled. "Then yes. Yes it was." He kissed her on the head. "Although do expect me to do something more... extravagant later on, and ask you again."
He snaked his hand down, and entwined their hands together, and cuddled together.
"I love you, Josephine." He murmured. "I've never been happier than I am right now."
"Me either." She admitted. "You're amazing."
"It's incredible how you can do that: Read my mind like you do."
She shook her head. "Sometimes, your words are so sweet... they ache."
Together they cuddled on their soft bed with silken sheets, and the most wonderful person in the world in their arms.
There were to be wed, and that made them happier than either of them could had ever imagined.