"Amore?" Josephine called, and Cantis looked over his shoulder to see her standing there in her trademark gold silks, and smiled at her.
"Hey." He smiled at her, and she gave a tiny smile back. "You need something, or you just here to say hello?"
She shook her head, looking around his Skyhold bedroom, making him raise an eyebrow. "Have you seen Vera?" Vera was their adopted dragonling that he had taken in after he had been forced to kill her High Dragon mother.
Cantis shook his head. "No. I thought she was downstairs with you."
"I did too." Josephine sighed, looking around. "I swear, that girl will be the death of me."
"Calm down." He insisted, standing up and pushing his chair in. "It's not like she could have gone far. I mean, she's a dragon. Even a baby dragon has to have been seen by someone."
Josephine shook her head again, raising a hand and rubbing her forehead. "That's what I thought, but Leliana said no one's seen her since she came downstairs with me for breakfast. I had hoped she might have come back up here with you."
"Josie, I'm sure she can't be far. Girl doesn't even have her wings yet, and I'm certain someone would notice if she went through the gates. Or the gardens, or the barracks, or the kitchen. She's probably just hiding somewhere quiet." He walked to Josephine and clapped her on the shoulder. "Come on, I'll go find her."
"Hey, Varric." The dwarf turned away from his conversation with Hawke when he heard his name, and smiled at the Inquisitor standing there.
"Hey." He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall, standing side-by-side with the Champion. "You need something, or are you just here to admire the dwarf?"
Cantis shook his head. "I'm looking for Vera. You seen her?" Varric shook his head, and Cantis looked to Hawke. "Have you?"
Hawke raised an eyebrow. "Is that one of your soldiers?"
"No." He laughed. "Dragonling, with green scales like Veridium."
"Dragonling?" She threw her head back and laughed. "You keep a dragon for a pet?" He nodded, and she laughed again. "Well, no, I have not. I'll be sure to let you know the instant I do." She turned to Varric with a smile. "Reminds me of Merrill's Griffon."
Varric chuckled. "How is Feathers, by the way?"
Hawke smiled. "He's fine. Merrill brought him when we came to meet you the first time, and sister Leliana's been keeping him with the birds in her Rookery."
Cantis grinned, having seen just how much the tiny Dalish elf loved that Griffon, but he turned to continue searching for his dragon.
"Inquisitor!" He hadn't taken two steps when Vivienne called for him, and he turned to face the very, very angry mage.
"What's wrong?" He asked shortly. The two of them were on awful terms, but she was useful, and wasn't an unreasonable woman, so he kept her around. And he as hoping this was about Vera.
She crossed her arms angrily. "That Sera has gone too far his time."
Cantis groaned, knowing this to be another chapter in their pointless rivalry. Sera hated entitled nobles, Vivienne despised people with a lack of proper etiquette and respect. And all of it got in the way of the Inquisition's efforts. "Vivienne, I don't really have ti-"
"She broke into a sealed correspondence to the remaining Loyalists." Vivienne cut him off, and he sighed, rolling his eyes and stepping back. If she wouldn't leave, then the fastest way out of this was just to shut up and get it over with. "She stole fifty sovereigns inside intended for restoring the Circle's library."
"Wait." He held up a hand and raised an eyebrow. "She stole from you?" She nodded, and his face scrunched up, trying to figure it out. Sera could be an arse, and she was always screwing with people, especially Vivienne, but this wasn't her style. She tended to play pranks on people to keep morale up, and to bring people their comeuppance. To just out and steal something without any motive... "You're sure it was her?"
Vivienne nodded. "Of course I am. Who else could it be?"
He shook his head. "Did you see this?" She shook her head slowly. "Do you have any evidence it was her?"
"Who else could possibly have any reason to steal it?"
Cantis looked over his shoulder at Varric, who smiled. "You know who else likes shiny things?"
"A dragon."
Just then, a woman wearing servant's clothing burst in to the hallway, and they all turned. "Milord!" She shouted. "We've, er... found your missing dragon... stealing spoons from the kitchens."
When he went with the servant to the kitchens, the staff pointed them down the hall, and he found Vera in the Vault, rolling happily in a pile of coins, a collection of silverware around her.
"Vera!" He cried out, laughing at the sigh of the emerald green dragon rolling in a mountain of coins and spoons. "What are you doing?"
At the sound of his voice, the dragonling rolled back onto her feet and held her tongue out, panting like a dog and looking absolutely happy.
"Sweetheart." He chastised, sitting next to her. "You can't just steal people's coins and cookware."
She gave a sad meep at him, and lowered her head as if she was sorry. A moment later, she nosed a coin at him, as if that was her way of apologizing. Cantis laughed, and scratched her head. "I love you. Just... do try to only steal my things, okay?"
She gave a happy cheep and rolled over on her back again, her teeth shown in a happy smile. For a moment, he considered picking her up and taking her back upstairs with him, but then he shrugged.
"When in Denerim." He laughed, and rolled on the coin pile beside her.
"She's so cute!" Merrill cooed, scratching Vera's head. "Yes you are!" She leaned in and kissed the dragon on the nose. "Yes you are!"
Everyone laughed sitting at the dining table at that, seeing the tiny Dalish girl fawning over the dragon. "Want to see her do tricks?" Cantis offered from his seat, and Merrill's eyes lit up, nodding. "Come here, girl." He plucked a marshmallow, one of Sera's treats, from the bowl on the table. "Here." He tossed it at Vera, whose head shot up. She breathed a spout of fire onto the treat, roasting it mid-air, and jumped up and caught it in her teeth, swallowing the roasted treat in one swallow.
"Good girl!" Merrill laughed, petting the dragonling's scales. "You're so smart and talented! Yes you are!"
"I don't think you should be teaching her to do that." Josephine disapproved, but the smile on her face said otherwise.
One of the servants came out with a cut of pork for Vera, and she dashed for her bowl, happily meeping at them when they threw it in.
"She's so cute!" Merrill gushed at the Inquisitor as she stood to take her seat at the dining table, beside Hawke and Varric.
"I'm glad you like her." He chuckled. "She certainly seems to be full of energy."
The door to the dining room was nudged open by another small animal, and Merrill smiled when she saw who it was. "Good morning, Feathers!" She teased. Feathers slept most of the day, and he looked exhausted, his fur all ruffled and his eyes blinking slowly.
Vera stopped eating very suddenly, a piece of meat stuck between her teeth, and she turned to face the Griffon, digging her claws possessively into the stones beneath her feet.
"Now you two place nice!" Hawke warned, but Feathers just pranced happily over to the dragon, who was regarding him suspiciously.
"Vera!" Cantis called out. "Don't immolate our guests!" And, for a moment, the whole room was tense. Vera had claimed this place as her home, and was already very territorial.
A moment later, Feathers leaned his head up and licked the side of the Dragon's head. Vera blinked in confusion, and then rubbed her head on the Griffon in acceptance. A moment later, she dipped her head into her food dish, and ripped off a strand of meat, dropping it on the ground beside her and nosing it over in an offering to Feathers.
"Wow." Cantis said in awe. "She tries to bite off my hand if I so much as try to touch her food. I've never seen her so friendly with anyone."
Hawke threw her head back and laughed. "I think someone's in love."
They all laughed, but Merrill threw her hands over her mouth, making a girlish squee. "Awww!" She would have bounded on the balls of her feet if she hadn't been sitting down. "That would be so cute!"
Hawke laughed even harder, throwing an arm around her wife. "He'd have learned all about cross-species romance from us."
Merrill smiled widely, and kissed Hawke on the cheek.