They had arrived at the Winter Palace two days prior and Dorian was immensely thankful Elisa had the mind to drag him to Orlais early. The Inquisition's inner circle were allowed rooms in the palace again, and the younger wasted no time in finding theirs and all but throwing him into bed so he could sleep off the seasickness. Thankfully, Dorian recovered overnight, and the two were able to catch up with friends and gather information about the Exalted Council. Currently, the mage was listening to the Ferelden delegate prattle on about how the Inquisition needed to be disbanded, and desperately trying not to yawn from the boredom. Between his feet, Kit had no problem showing his own yawn as he scratched his head with the back of his foot, his collar clinking quietly at the movement. Dorian had donned him with one as soon as they got to Tevinter so he was not taken in case he wandered too far from the estate. It also helped when they traveled back and forth between Minrathous and Skyhold.
"A letter for Ambassador Pavus."
Out of the corner of his eye, he watches Elisa approach the servant and take the letter before returning his attention to the still rambling Ferelden (and people thought he talked too much). Dorian may have recently been given the title of Ambassador, but he was already getting letters, and some of them did not require his immediate attention. So while he dealt with the emissaries, Elisa monitored his letters and let him know if one of them was important enough to pull him away from an 'important' conversation. From the look on her face when she opened the letter though, this was one of those important missives.
Elisa approaches the two after her mask falls back into place. "Excuse me, but an urgent letter has arrived for Dorian."
Arl Teagan eyes her disdainfully and Dorian takes the letter from Elisa. "Perhaps we can continue this conversation later?"
The mage walks away with Elisa before the Arl can say anything, and they make their way over to the couches until the younger redirects him to the palace and then to their room. Dorian raises an eyebrow in query but otherwise says nothing as they enter their room and Elisa gently nudges him into a chair. Kit, who had trot after them at the first sign of movement from Dorian, takes his place in the necromancer's lap. Elisa takes a seat on the arm of his chair as he reads the letter, and after a few moments, the paper crinkles under his grip as Dorian shakes.
"Tell me this isn't true."
Elisa reaches down and folds the top of the letter down to show him the broken Magisterium seal, and Dorian covers his face as his eyes mist over. The seal was proof enough that the contents of the letter were true. A letter that told him that his father was assassinated and that he was the new Magister of House Pavus. All cheerfully of course.
Kit, sensing his distress, uncurls himself and stands on hind legs to lick Dorian's face until he pushes him back down. "Not now vulpeso."
"Dorian…"
"I didn't know I was still his heir." He wipes away unshed tears until Elisa stops him.
"It's okay to be upset. You might not forgive him for what he tried to do, but he was still your father." She gently cards her fingers through his hair and Dorian closes his eyes. "I think he knew and that's why you have this new fancy title. It was a way to send you away from the danger."
Dorian opens his eyes and looks down at the letter again, rereading the words, and then beginning to believe that Elisa might be right. Halward did seem genuinely sorry in Redcliffe, and when Dorian thought about his second trip back home to Qarinus, he couldn't help but recall the one-sided conversation that Elisa had with his father.
"Why exactly are we sneaking around your childhood home?"
Dorian shoves his sister into his room before one of his father's approaching slaves can spot them and he closes the door softly before turning and moving about his room to gather the wanted items and books.
"You are with me this time. As much as I would have liked to leave you in Minrathous, I do need help carrying some things back."
"That doesn't explain the sneaking."
Dorian winces at her words as he pulls a few books from their shelf. "I would rather not find out how much my parents know about you. I don't know how they would take your presence."
Elisa takes the sack that Dorian hands her in silence, and when the mage finishes grabbing what he wants, they make their way to the front door. His earlier glimpse into one of the sitting rooms confirmed that his mother was indeed drunk again, enough that she wasn't aware of their presence, and Dorian could only assume that his father was still absent. His wish had gone unheard though when a cleared throat stops the two in their tracks. With a defeated sigh, Dorian turns around and comes face to face with his father.
"Father."
"Leaving without saying goodbye?"
"I never said hello."
Halward frowns before glancing behind Dorian. "This must be the Lady Umbra I have heard about." Dorian winces. "I have heard stories about the Winter Palace and Adamant Fortress, but I have wanted to hear the truth from you. What is she to you?"
The younger Pavus straightens. "Family. At least what family should be."
Halward sighs. "I only wanted what was best for you."
Dorian opens his mouth, fully intent on yelling at his father again, but Elisa beat him to the punch. "What's best for him or what's best for you?!"
Both Pavus males stare at the young lady as she steps out from behind Dorian with a look that could kill.
"I know all about what you tried to do. No father should ever try to change his child! It's sad that a legacy is more important than Dorian's happiness. Look at your own life. I'm sure there's little to no love between you and his mother, and you want to force that on him? How dare you!"
Dorian really did try to silence Elisa but every time his mouth opened, no sound came out. In truth, he didn't want to stop her. She had effectively silenced them both, and the bewildered look on his father's face was too good to be true. Dorian was surprised from both her defense and her outburst, and he knew she only really spoke like this when she thought it important.
"Dorian has so much love to give and you taught him to hide it. To be ashamed of it." Elisa's glare disappears and she shakes her head. "If you can't accept him for who he is, you don't deserve him."
The necromancer was then grabbed by the hand and dragged out of the Pavus estate when his father said nothing, and it took the walk to their horses for Dorian to finally say something.
"I'm going to remember that look on his face for the rest of my life."
Dorian looks up at Elisa with a soft smile. "You might have had a hand in my title sorora."
Elisa wrinkles her nose. "Why do you say that?"
"I think my father liked you."
This earns a delicate snort from the young warrior, but she follows it with a hint of a smile nonetheless. She then takes the letter from his hands and replaces it with her own as she pulls him to his feet after picking up Kit and placing him on the ground. The fennec gives her a huff of annoyance but otherwise sits next to their feet. Elisa reaches up to fix the small mess she made of Dorian's hair with her fingers, and when she finishes, the mage takes her hand and softly kisses her knuckles before releasing it. She had always looked out for him, even in Tevinter, making sure he took care of himself when he got too lost in his work. It usually happened when Maevaris came to visit and Elisa took it upon herself to find him some food and a bottle of wine when the two worked late into the night. She sometimes replaced candles that burned low, and other times she would direct him to bed when he had gone a number of days without an adequate amount of sleep.
She was well liked by Maevaris and the house staff. Dorian had given the slaves their freedom, and those loyal to him stayed as servants, but Elisa tried not to ask them for much. She wasn't comfortable having people at her beck and call. She barely accepted the fact that she was viewed as the Lady of the house. If Dorian asked not to be disturbed, the servants went to her. She did rather well with simple questions and tasks, but if something was beyond her power or if she didn't know how to proceed, she would be the one to disturb Dorian.
"Do you need more time before you brave your talk with the Orlesian delegate?"
The mage laughs. "I will be fine. Besides, I hear that Nolan, Josephine, and Cullen will be arriving this afternoon."
Elisa grabs his arm when he moves toward the door. "Does being Magister change our plans?"
"Not in the slightest. We will be going back to Skyhold when this is over."
Dorian gently pats her hand and she releases him as she follows him back to the delegates' location. She returns to her position a few feet away, but still close enough to come to his aid in case any others tried to harm him. Something rare but had already happened twice during their trip to the Winter Palace. Now that he was taking his father's seat in the Magisterium, it was only a matter of time before the rumors spread and the attacks grew more frequent.
He would never admit it out loud (Elisa wouldn't be amused), but he found it rather funny when his sister took his assailants by surprise and quite literally knocked them on their asses before they got close. She was quick enough that he didn't even have to throw a barrier around himself for protection.
"So about that evil laugh that Sera asked about…" Elisa starts.
Dorian grins.