Ostwick- Family of Trevelyan.
Kara Trevelyan, youngest daughter of the current house of Trevelyan, walked through the high walled spacious interior of the entrance hall. Statues of various patriarchs and matriarchs of the family flanked the hall, and she averted her eyes, staring at her feet and at the floor below her. I always feel as if they are watching me, judging me. And their judgment is not exactly pleasant. After all, Kara Trevelyan was not what you would call a model representative of her family. Quite the opposite in fact.
Her preoccupation and the position of her gaze made her not notice where she was going, too carefully, so she nearly barged head first into the family's regent. She came up short and blinked at him.
"You're late." He said by way of greeting.
"Am I?" She returned smiling pleasantly.
"Indeed, your mother is waiting for you in the viewing room."
Kara responded with a simple nod and swept forward into the rest of the house. Just as ornately covered and decorated as the entrance hall. Furs from great bear hunts were rugs, a few drake skin tapestries hung along the wall, and the chairs were a rich deep mahogany color. But it was all an act, simply to impress any commoner unfortunate enough to come here.
She marched up the first flight of stairs into the second level, then darted into a half concealed chamber beyond to another flight of stairs which led every upward.
Finally, she got to her destination, knowing it by heart. Exiting into a brightly lit room, the afternoon sunlight pouring into the room from a series of large windows which overlooked the city below them.
Her mother stood there aside one of them, the one farthest from where Kara had entered, looking imperiously down at Ostwick below her. She was a regal woman standing there straight of pack, straight of posture, still plump and had still most of the curves of her youth. One of my better inheritances from her, Kara thought. Her age had not had the effect it would on most people, certainly not most commoners. Her hair even though it was gray, it still sheened regally, and was held in a tight bun. Her skin, though wrinkled, was not destroyed, and she carried herself with a strength and an arrogance which would have been most impossible in anyone else without the diet due to her wealth or her occasional dalliances with Circle healers.
Of course since the disillusion of both the Kirkwall and Starkhaven Circles that has become few and far between. With the mage war…it has made those downright scarce.
Yet if she was weakening due to her treatment over the last few months, she did not show it.
The rest of the room was as grand as she was. This was more real though. Kara's footsteps echoed off the marble floor as she approached her mother. A painting was behind her, showing a landscape and a pile of flowers. Along the wall just behind her was a series of pictures and statues. One was of herself. One was of Ostwick, and another was a mountain which overlooked the city.
On the other side of the room, divided by a door which Kara was now crossing, was another large picture. Depicting a battle between the Darkspawn and the forces of light. One of her ancestors helped lead Ostwick into battle, against the Darkspawn, trying to beat them back. A successful battle. The most prominent bust in that part of the room was one of the greatest of the Trevelyan's, Makon, who was one of the leaders of the Free Marches defense against the Qunari. Weapon's, swords, bows, and models of warships flanked him. Right next to him was a bust of a Qunari head, its features contorted in pain, its eyes bulging as if it was just beheaded from its body. Relics of the military might of the House of Trevelyan.
"You're late," Her mother breathed as Kara finally got within fifteen feet.
The young woman stopped up short, and blinked, hardly believing she heard her, but yet she shouldn't have been surprised by it either.
"I headed here as soon as the messenger found me," Kara objected truthfully.
Her mother regarded her out of the corner of her eye for a minute, "And if you weren't outside the city in the forest hunting then the messenger would have found you easier. And then you wouldn't be late." The slight tilt to her mother's voice made it plain that she considered stalking out in the forest and hunting most unseemly behavior. "You are filthy." She regarded her daughter, and her daughter couldn't help but hear the sneer in her voice.
I really am not, Kara thought. Only some leaves and maybe a single bit of dirt clung to her armored pants line, just the cuffs too. But, she didn't bother to waste her breath on her dear old mom.
Her mom, apparently noticing, sighed and turned to face Kara fully. "There is rumors of a meeting happening. Between the Templars, the Chantry, and the mage leadership. Its somewhere in Ferelden, though we don't know exactly where yet."
"And you want me to come?" Kara asked.
"Precisely."
"Sounds…fun." Kara remarked, deadpanning.
Her mother sighed, "You need to learn. You need to move on, you are twenty six years old Kara. You need to find a nice husband, some noble, and start making your way in the social climbing of the Free Marches. With your talents, and your ambition you could be almost anything…"
"And what if I want to just be a hunter?" Kara asked. And then forged forward over her mother's sudden splutters of protest. "I can hunt, I can forage for my own food. I can build a fire, and make a camp, I have more survival skills where I can survive out on my own."
"Like a commoner." Her mother tried not to sneer, but couldn't quite manage it again. "And if you want to hunt so much, and your skills are so formidable, you can always join the Templar Order. They are always looking for hunters and trackers."
Kara arched an eyebrow, "So what? Become a Lyrium addict? One day become addled? And hunt down people, who may or may not be guilty in the first place?"
"If they are a mage, then they are guilty. They have been cursed by the Maker."
"Like my brother," Kara snapped, heat rising into her cheeks.
"Yes," Her mother said dispassionately, "like your brother."
Kara took a couple of deep gasping breaths, trying to calm down, and rally her defenses. It took an extreme effort, but it was still worth it.
"And what of the Templars? And the Chantry? You want me to be a good respectful Chantry citizen don't you? A good servant of the Maker?" Kara challenged.
"Yes," her mother said brightly.
"But the Templars have broken away from the Chantry, haven't they? They are now no longer good servants of the Maker?"
"A temporary situation, one that this summit will hopefully rectify, as soon as we put the mages back in their place." Her mother sniffed.
"I see," Kara said, deflating dully.
"So, I suggest you prepare yourself for travel, we will be leaving at Week's end." Her mother spun around and began marching for the other end of the room.
"And if I don't want to come?" Kara challenged.
"You will come," her mother turned around, "maybe you can learn something from them. Maybe you will be inspired by what you see there, by the Chantry at its finest, ending wars, to do your familial duty."
Fat chance, Kara thought bitterly.
As soon as her mother's gown disappeared through the door Kara spun on her heals and tore off back the way she came. Down the side passage, down the stairs, and out the front door leaving the regent staring after her in her wake. She heard him call after her, but couldn't make out the words.
Instead, she put on her boots, and tore off into the backyard of the house. By the livery, the stables, and the servants quarters.
She headed for the latter. Marching in long strides, quick, but yet composed. In case any of her other family members saw her and declared her uncouth. She didn't want to draw attention to herself.
Thus, it took her a moment to get to the back of the servants quarters, her heart pounding. Afraid of potentially getting caught.
The morality of what she was doing tugged at her. Not at getting caught by her family, but what she was doing to the servants. One of the good things about being a noble was the effective and potential ownership over the commoners in their service, thus, by law, what she was doing couldn't possibly be considered theft, yet it still rankled at her.
Besides, it's not like the family doesn't know I am doing this. Kara thought. She had a good relationship with this particular servant's family, who were owned by the Trevelyan's, and they allowed her to take this piece of property.
Namely, an intricate bow design, finally crafted and of a beautiful and rich color. The string was taught in the string, quite able to do what was required of it, killing any man or animal. Yet it was small, not as large or grand as the long bows used by some of the hunters she hung around in her youth, and the City's Guardsmen she passed on the streets as she headed for the lands around the city.
The only condition for its use by her was that she bought it back clean to them, and she was quite happy to do so. Taking a quiver she wound it over her back, and wound her body through the bow attaching it to her back.
Next, she made her way over to the stables. The other part of being a noble she really enjoyed, her own horse. A birthday present given to her by her uncle when she was sixteen, which promptly got said uncle banished from any of the parties hosted by her mother or father, though they couldn't exactly forbid her from keeping the horse.
She went over to it and rubbed its flank lovingly, it snorted at her.
"Come on old boy, I am sorry about earlier, but once more out, if you are up for it?"
It neighed down at her.
She got its saddle off the back, and placed it on its position, got on the horse, and off she went, tearing off down the streets back to the forest. After all, she still had a week.
AN: Well, here I am with another brief fan fic. The Dragon Age main website has posted backgrounds for all the various Inquisitors. Now, I have been playing around with potential Inquisitors off and on while waiting for the game to be released. Backgrounds, character stats, moods, personality, etc, etc etc. So I had a pretty basic character in mind. Though the DA website changed things significantly then my 'original' thought, but yet, the ideas of my Inquisitor's personality, and even some elements of the back story, still filled in smoothly. So quickly, I came up with this revision. And because I was a bit bored and had nothing else to write today, I decided to give this a whirl.
As always, read and review please, and BioWare/ EA owns Dragon Age, etc etc etc ad naseum.