First Impressions
"Your Inquisitor!"
Cullen's call and the cheers of hundreds of men and women still rang in Herah Adaar's ears. The newly anointed Inquisitor still had a hard time believing that was her new title, despite that it had been near a full day since being appointed the formal leader of the Inquisition. She doubted she'd ever get used to it. Despite her fears though, she was eager to get to work.
Gazing up at the great castle of Skyhold now, the enormity of the challenge that awaited her settled uncomfortably on her shoulders. A ragtag collection of soldiers, workers and servants scurried around her to and fro as they worked about the fortress. Supplies were being apportioned, weapons stockpiled and repairs were being made. It was barely organised chaos. For so many decades and centuries the mountain fortress had been lying dormant, now Skyhold was a hive of activity. The re-emergence of the Herald of Andraste had rallied the weary pilgrims and now they worked with renewed vigour. Everyone seemed to know exactly what they were doing, where they were going. Herah envied their certainty.
As the qunari walked up to the great hall of Skyhold, she was bewildered by all the commotion. When each of the soldiers and workers passed by the sole qunari in the room, they quickly bowed their heads and murmured 'Inquisitor' her way, far too busy for a formal greeting. It was just another thing she doubted she'd ever get used to.
"Inquisitor!" One call rang loud over all the others. The qunari raised her head in response to see the hooded Leliana beckoning the grey skinned woman from the other end of the hall. Herah made her way over, awkwardly weaving and sidestepping her way through the mass of people.
Herah greeted the Spymaster with a nod. "What is all this madness?" She gestured at the throng of people buzzing around her.
The redhead responded with a slight smile, "This is merely preparation Inquisitor. There is much to be done if we are to make this our new home and base of operations."
Herah merely shook her head absently as she watched them go about their duties. She'd never seen people so thoroughly focussed on their work like this. "Is there anything I can do to help?"
"Not with this sort of work I think, Inquisitor. Though having the Herald of Andraste hammer together door and platforms could make for quite the image, no?" Leliana chuckled.
"If that's what needs to be done then-"
"No, Inquisitor," the Spymaster cut off the qunari with a humoured smile, "no I think you could be of better use elsewhere. Remember that friend of Varric's he mentioned when we first arrived here? I hear that he has managed to bring them to Skyhold."
"You hear? Surely you already know who they are, where they are and how long they've been here."
"Of course." Leliana smiled sweetly. "They are up on the battlements now if you wish to make introductions. I believe that it would be beneficial for the Inquisition if the Inquisitor herself were to make our new guest welcome, no?"
Herah nodded along with a sigh, already growing weary of her official duties as Inquisitor. She was a warrior, not a diplomat. "Alright, is there anything I need to know about them first?"
"Nothing that warrants concern. Besides, you won't always have my reports at your disposal. I think it might be beneficial if you learn to deal with such situations going in blind, so to speak."
"Very well, I'll go introduce myself." The qunari sighed again. Glad to have something to keep her mind busy at least. She raised a hand as a half-hearted wave as she made to leave the Spymaster.
The Inquisitor managed to squeeze her way out of the throng of busy workers and stepped out before the proud towers of the great fortress. It really was a sight to behold. The grand mountain stronghold of Skyhold was as breath-taking as it was remote. Hidden amongst the snow-capped peaks between Orlais and Ferelden, the fortress somehow seemed to survive amidst its frozen surroundings with its own little temperate ecosphere. Though the fortress had certainly seen better days and could use a fair amount of care and attention, it was more than suitable for their needs. Herah reckoned there was enough space to house all the Inquisition's troops and room to store months' worth of supplies. Better yet, it was perched in a strong, defensible position, able to withstand the sort of assault that a pretender god could throw at them.
She hoped.
It had been a blessing to stumble across Skyhold, especially when the Inquisition was on its knees after the blow of losing Haven. Though it had happened in a manner no one would want to repeat, gaining the mountain fortress was quite the upgrade from the frozen village of Haven. Since Corypheus' attack on the fledgling Inquisition, they had not only survived their trek through the mountains, they were thriving. Gaining a new base and home, new materials and weapons and, most importantly, new people. They seemed to stream in all the time, more and more pilgrims eager to lend their aid to the Herald and her allies, however best they could.
Herah narrowed her brows slightly as she looked up to the battlements, spying a pair of figures overlooking the fortress. According to Varric, this new recruit was supposedly someone who could prove particularly valuable in their fight against the ancient magister. At least, that's what the dwarf had promised. Despite that it was he himself who had brought the matter up, Varric had been rather reluctant to mention his allegedly oh-so-helpful friend, of that Herah was certain. The Inquisitor had noticed how the typically suave dwarf kept his voice low and cast his gaze about nervously, as if on the lookout for any dragons hiding behind the tapestries. She also noticed that he had taken a roundabout route to the battlements. A route that kept him out of a certain Seeker's reaches primarily. Questioning Cassandra had earned little clues, except that the Seeker was highly suspicious of Varric's behaviour, more so than she normally was. Her voice had been low and her eyes dangerous. The qunari had almost heard teeth grinding in rage. Eager not to be on the receiving end of the human woman's ire, Herah had hastened a retreat to find the troublesome dwarf herself.
Climbing the steep stone steps atop the battlements, Herah pondered for a moment whether she should arrange some sort of security detail for the dwarf. Just as a precaution in case the Seeker's rage tipped over the edge, swiftly followed by Varric himself. Whoever it was Varric wanted to introduce to the Inquisitor couldn't be that bad, surely? Herah took a deep breath to prepare herself for politicking as she made her way to her first official duty as Inquisitor.
Arriving at the platform, Herah was greeted by the dwarf at the centre of all this confusion and the armoured back of a human figure, gazing out over Skyhold.
"Inquisitor, meet Hawke, the Champion of Kirkwall." Varric offered with an unceremonious wave of his hand and a vague smile, one that didn't quite reach his eyes.
The human lazily spun around to face Herah. The other woman certainly stood every inch a Champion, with a confidant bearing, toned arms visible beneath her sharp, black armour and a warrior's physique. Sharp black hair cut short about her regal face. Crystal cut blue eyes burned into the Inquisitor. Herah couldn't decide if the Champion was glaring daggers and demons at her or if it was merely the natural intensity of the other woman. Either way, there was clearly something innately remarkable about her, which Herah doubted was all down to the lofty title of Champion alone. Gazing upon the rather striking human now, Herah could easily believe some of the wild and fanciful stories she'd heard passed around the taverns and highways of the land.
"Though I don't use that title much anymore." Hawke corrected the dwarf with a humourless smirk, crossing her arms irritably. Her icy gaze glanced over Herah once more for merely the briefest of moments before her attention averted to the side.
Something of a chill swept over Herah, she wasn't sure if it was due to the wind that gusted about the ramparts or not. Clearly something was off here. Some sort of underlying tension gripped the air.
Varric however seemed completely unaware of anything amiss, "Hawke, the Inquisitor. I figured you might have some friendly advice about Corypheus."
Hawke scowled at mention of the magister's name, more so than before. With what appeared to be great reluctance, she began her tale or how and what she knew of the ancient Magister. As it turned out, Corypheus was an old acquaintance of the Champion, and of Varric. Hawke told Herah of everything she had been through in that prison under the Vimmark Mountains. A wild, almost fanciful tale of the ancient Magister locked away in a Grey Warden prison, seemingly killed by the Champion yet now was resurrected to haunt Thedas.
Herah wouldn't have believed a word of it had she not faced the would-be god in person merely days prior.
The Champion's gaze was dark, sober and serious as she spoke of the Magister and Herah believed every word. The human even promised to help the Inquisition rid the world of the monster, though she didn't look particularly happy about it. Maybe that wasn't it, but there was clearly something that was displeasing the Champion so earnestly. Maybe Herah was simply misreading her. The qunari didn't have an awful lot of experience dealing with humans after all, other than as opponents on a battlefield.
Perhaps she was bad at reading dwarves as well. Varric seemed completely oblivious to the strange tension that undercut their conversation, but Herah was certain that something was amiss, some halla in the room. It was like there was something she was not aware of that the other two understood wordlessly. This shouldn't have surprised her where the silver tongued dwarf was concerned, the qunari thought with a mental eye roll.
Once the Champion was done with her tale, the human turned on her heel to leave. Briskly bidding the Inquisitor farewell with a clipped nod, she attempted to brush past the qunari.
"Hold a moment." Herah called out. The human woman stopped mid step, not turning around. "Hawke, is it?" The qunari questioned with narrowed eyes.
The Champion slowly turned to face the Inquisitor. Though she was still scowling there was a twinkle of amusement in her eyes. Was that amusement, or something else?
"Is there anything else you need, Inquisitor?"
The stress she put on 'Inquisitor' told Herah everything she needed. That and the fact that Varric had audibly sighed and rubbed at his in exasperation face at the same time. It was the qunari's turn to scowl now, taking a step towards Hawke and crossing her powerful arms as she did. The human woman was engulfed in Herah's shadow, highlighting the difference in size between human and qunari, though she wasn't even attempting to stand over the Champion … much.
"If you have a problem with me personally, I'd like to hear it." Herah's voice low.
To her credit, the human woman didn't back away. Hawke narrowed her eyes at the Inquisitor, whether in warning or making an appraisal, Herah couldn't say.
"I don't know you well enough for that Inquisitor, but I know your kind." The Champion commented slowly, with a deliberate, pointed glance at Herah's horns.
Varric put his hands up with a pained expression, apparently trying to silently urge the Champion to back off. Hawke was having none of it however.
"Qunari, or Tal Vashoth or whatever you call yourself, I've seen what your kind do to the people of Thedas. It always ends in blood. Anyone who can't defend themselves are either killed or indoctrinated."
Ah, so that was it, Herah thought with a sigh, another bigoted fool.
She rubbed at her eyes a moment. Why must humans be so suspicious and judgemental? It was something she had experienced all her life, ever since she was a young girl. A tall, grey skinned girl with stumps for horns, living in a world full of humans. She shouldn't have been surprised, even fabled heroes like the Champion were just people and plenty of people held such petty views. It was always the same, no matter where in Thedas she went.
"I'm no qunari, not in the eyes of the Qun at the very least. They'd sooner kill me than break bread." Herah stated calmly, raising her eyes to look directly into Hawke's. "I don't know what your experience with Tal Vashoth is, and frankly I don't care, but I'm no monster." Despite the calmness of her words, Herah's eyes burned with intense fire.
The human looked away and rubbed at her eyes wearily. "Maybe not," Hawke said and with a sigh turned back to the qunari, gaze still fierce, "I'm not blind, I've heard good things about you, and I know you have your merchants and traders and … everything, just like the rest of the world."
Herah said nothing, awaiting the inevitable 'But'.
"But when your kind picks up a sword, blood is spilt. A lot of it, usually innocent blood."
Herah could see the anguish in Hawke's blue eyes. She was willing to wager that those eyes had certainly seen a lot. Herah decided to ignore that little detail.
"And what of humans and elves, even dwarves?" The qunari jerked her horns sideways at Varric who looked like he wanted nothing more than to dissolve into the air and float away, "Bloodshed isn't the sole province of qunari. These lands have seen many ages of barbaric conflict before my kind ever set foot here." Herah spat sharply.
She wasn't even sure why she was even bothering to trade words with this human, there were thousands more just like the bigoted woman, and it wasn't like anything Herah said or did would change the Champion's views. As Inquisitor, Herah needed Hawke's sword, nothing more.
Maybe not even that.
Hawke raised a hand in concession, "Maybe so, but can you honestly say that the qunari, or Tal Vashoth, have ever been peaceful when it comes to the rest of Thedas? I was in Kirkwall, I've fought countless qunari – and Tal Vashoth – who threatened the people there. Many of them have claimed to want peace, yet look how that tuned out. You yourself are a warrior, a mercenary right? How many have you killed for precious coin?"
Herah scowled irritably at that. In truth, the grey skinned woman couldn't really deny the Champion's words. As the Champion said, she'd been a mercenary from long before the sky was torn asunder. She'd known of a handful of qunari who were scholars or merchants, or even simple farm hands, but they were in the stark minority to those who shed blood for a living. Herah chewed on that thought for a moment, her anger and frustration at the human woman's words only grew.
The Champion sighed and rubbed at her eyes, when she opened them again her scowl had receded. "If nothing else …" The human paused, seemingly making an effort to search for the right words, "You're capable. Take it as a compliment." Hawke seemed to smirk at that.
"A compliment? You think calling me a murderer, raider and Maker knows what else is a compliment?" Herah questioned with a quizzical eyebrow, anger unbalanced by the human's sudden change of tack.
Varric had seemingly abandoned trying to break things up and was silently face palming to the side of the two warriors.
"No, I mean- Just look at you! You're solid muscle!" Hawke gestured to Herah's imposing form with enthusiasm. "If you're half as good as Varric's told me then you'll cut down all of Corypheus' forces and anything else in your way! If you aren't a raider, you could seriously make a killing in that line of work." She finished with something of a humoured smile.
Was that a compliment? The qunari was momentarily frozen by the sudden and puzzling change in the human's behaviour. Moments ago the dwarf was trying to calm things down, now, Varric was struggling not to chuckle. Herah for the life of her couldn't see anything funny about the situation.
"You're suspicious of all qunari … just because we're strong?" Herah probed slowly, more bewildered than angry now by the absurdity of the human's comments.
"No just- Just call it me being cautious." Hawke continued, "You're the head of the Inquisition. You command an army that could challenge nations. Anyone with that kind of power needs to be watched, for the good of everyone." The Champion sighed again and went to lean on the wall of the tower, overlooking the courtyard below.
"And because I'm a dreaded Tal Vashoth, I need to be watched more thoroughly, is that right?" Herah ground out irritably.
There was a long, telling pause before the Champion answered. "Varric tells me you're different, and I'm willing to trust him." Hawke said, much more conciliatory. Perhaps the human regretted her outburst, though Herah couldn't tell for certain. "I hope you prove him right."
"I don't need to prove anything to you." Herah growled in irritation, making to move past her. She was done with this. She'd heard everything she needed.
Hawke smirked at that, a full bodied smirk that got under the qunari's skin. "Good." Was all she said in reply, humour twinkling in her clear blue eyes again.
Herah ignored her and carried on her way, throwing Varric a quick sceptical look before she left the battlements. She had barely reached the stairs before she heard a call behind her.
"It's Marian by the way, Marian Hawke."
Herah turned to face the Champion, she was smirking again, though her eyes were not angry this time, more … teasing perhaps? Or maybe mocking? Is that a human thing? She narrowed her own eyes a little in annoyance before continuing down the stairs, wondering whether she'd ever understand humans.
xxx
Marian watched the Inquisitor stride down the stairs with the bearing of a seasoned warrior. The grey skinned woman was certainly not human, more alien than dwarves or elves. That had set the Champion's nerves on edge a little. Yet there was something else about the Inquisitor that had struck Hawke as particularly noteworthy, she just couldn't put her finger on it yet. From first glance she could tell that the qunari was a formidable fighter. Unafraid of putting her blade to use, Marian reckoned. She was half surprised, and a little disappointed, that their little spat hadn't ended in drawn swords. There was always next time.
"Hey!" Varric hit Hawke on the arm a little harder than she felt was strictly necessary, drawing her attention away from the horned woman. The dwarf raised a stern finger. "What was that all about? You told me you'd play nice."
The Champion huffed off his concern. "We didn't stab each other did we?" She commented with an easy smirk, casually leaning back against the tower walls.
Varric sighed in exasperation. "Maker's balls, Hawke. Like I told you, the Inquisitor's good people. She's not like the Arishok and all the other horns we fought back in Kirkwall trust me."
Now it was the human's turn to sigh. "I know, I know, you already told me. Can't blame me for being careful now can you? You know how much trouble the qunari were in Kirkwall. In case you haven't noticed we never run into any qunari who aren't psychotic or brainwashed do we?" Marian looked straight into Varric's eyes, there was no small amount of disapproval there. "You want me to apologise don't you?"
The dwarf only answered with a pointed look.
The human sighed again. "Fine, I guess I could cut her some slack."
"It couldn't hurt." Varric replied with a small smile then all of a sudden his smile gave way to a grim, worried expression. "Look, you know what we're up against. The Inquisitor might be our best shot at this."
Marian feigned a shocked expression. "Why Varric, have you no faith in the Champion anymore?" She commented, only half joking.
"I'm serious Hawke, what the Inquisitor's done since she walked out the fade … well, I think even you would have a hard time topping it all."
The Champion regarded Varric carefully. "You really believe in her, don't you?" She muttered quietly. "That she's the Herald of Andraste and all those stories."
The dwarf chuckled again and rubbed at the back of his head. "Shit, I don't know about all that, but she's damn good at achieving the impossible." He turned a glinting eye to the Champion. "She's a lot like you really. You'd probably get along really well if you gave her a chance."
Marian laughed at that. "So, you suggest that we bond over killing giant monsters?" She paused for a moment in thought. "I'm game."
"There you see, you'll be friends in no time." Varric asserted with a smirk giving a playful punch to the arm. "Just make sure to only stab the monsters that don't walk on two legs, wear armour and go around closing fade rifts."
The Champion chuckled and turned back to look over Skyhold. She eyed the Inquisitor in the yard below, conversing with the Seeker Cassandra. The grey skinned woman seemed to still be angry, judging by her body language, or maybe she was always like that. The qunari certainly wasn't what Marian feared she would find in Skyhold.
Though to be honest, it would have been a bit of a stretch to find a mad qunari warlord who drank the blood of her enemies, whilst cackling maniacally.
"I'll admit," Marian started while watching the qunari idly, "she's more impressive than I'd have thought. Kind of like how the Arishok was compared to the rest of his men. Only, she's different somehow, maybe even more of a warrior than the Arishok was. Maybe even more of a threat."
Varric merely grunted noncommittedly in reply. Hawke could practically feel the roll of his eyes, even without looking at him.
Still watching the Inquisitor from her perch, Marian noted the woman's horns, which swooped back then up in an elegant curve, shepherding a rough wave of white hair that was tied in a loose ponytail at the back, the sides of the qunari's head were shaved close, giving the grey skinned woman something of a wild, tribal look. That rough look was tempered somewhat by the proud strength of the qunari's posture. Even without the height of her race and horns, Marian would have wagered that the qunari could practically stand head and shoulders above anyone else through sheer determination.
"Those horns do look kind of cool though." The Champion commented with an idle smile.
"Yeah, I'm sure." Varric remarked, tension filling his voice.
Brow furrowed in confusion, Marian turned to see her companion quickly making his way to the stairs.
"In a hurry?" The Champion called after him, one eyebrow rose questioningly. The dwarf was suddenly acting suspicious.
"Yeah, I've just gotta see a thing about a guy." Varric rushed out before turning tail and making for the stairs as fast as his stout legs could carry him.
Marian watched him go, none the wiser as he rushed along the battlement walls. Shrugging it off as a dwarven thing, Marian turned back to Skyhold. It was an impressive fortress, even more impressive that it had apparently been abandoned for centuries. Something didn't seem quite right about that. It was a perfectly serviceable fortress, if it had been known about before now it would have likely been fought over by Orlais and Ferelden. Some sort of powerful magic must be at play here.
The Champion was interrupted in her musings by some sort of exasperated huff from behind her, more of a growl really. She turned her head to find the Seeker, Cassandra standing before her, gazing at her, or glaring at her might have been more accurate. Fists clenched and scowl in place, the other woman did not appear happy.
"Can I help you?" Marian slowly offered, turning to fully face the Seeker. The other woman was clearly enraged by something. I haven't done anything to deserve this have I?
"I'm going to ring that little bastard's neck." The Seeker growled, more to the ground than Marian. At least she hoped that was the case, the woman before her was certainly intimidating. She was practically hear the grinding of teeth whilst the Seeker glared furiously at the stone floor.
"Do you … need a hand with that?" The Champion slowly offered, still none the wiser.
"No, thank you." Cassandra turned back to regard Marian again. "It's enough that you are here Champion, finally." She finished with a growl. With that she stomped off.
"Err, happy to be of assistance!" Marian called after the Seeker. The angry woman didn't appear to hear her and continued on her warpath. She nearly knocked a poor soldier over the side of the battlements in her haste.
The Champion shook her head in amusement. What a strange bunch Varric had found himself.
Just like old times. She thought to herself with a smirk.