Gabrielle and Bull drank deeply from their cups, celebrating their first dragon kill. When the alcohol hit the back of her throat Gabrielle choked and coughed. Bull laughed slapping her on the back.
"Don't worry, the more you drink the easier it is to swallow!" his robust voice carried around the tavern.
Gabrielle lurched forward slopping her drink on the table from Bulls hefty slap.
"What is this?" she asked staring into her mug. The drink wasn't unpleasant, just strong. It burned her throat and warmed her belly. She felt her face flush from the heat.
Bull just laughed and poured her another drink.
This time when she took a tentative sip, the burn wasn't as bad, but still made her cough. It tasted even better the second time around…or the alcohol had burnt her taste buds off her tongue.
After a few more rounds and many toasts to dragons, killing dragons and fighting in general, Gabrielle felt like her head was floating three feet above her shoulders. Definitely drunk.
"Hey Ironbull?" she said
Bull wasn't looking too sober either.
"Hmm?" he grunted, his head was resting on the table.
"Maybeweshould….celebrate…more often when wekilldragons…"her words slurred together. Maybe not talking would be good. The room had started spinning and she wasn't sure that was a good thing.
"That's a great idea Gabby." Bull said trying to give her a hearty slap on the back and missing almost slapping her in the back of the head instead.
"Gabby? WhendidIbecomeGabby?" She asked, her head starting to feel like it weighed a ton.
"You tol' me to call you that 'afore." Bull said, his tone peevish, his speech just as slurred as hers.
"Oh. Alright then." Gabby nodded then slumped forward. She just had to lay her head down and rest it for a minute. So tired all of a sudden.
It could have been an hour or a minute later. She felt Bull pick her up. Maybe he wasn't as drunk as she'd thought. She cracked open an eye, he was taking her to her chambers by the looks of it. Good. Sleeping in her warm comfortable bed sounded brilliant right now.
"Hey Bull?" she said not opening her eyes. There was a moment of silence then he grunted.
"You know Cullen?" Another pause and another grunt.
"I'm so in love with him." She said with a sigh. Still not opening her eyes. She had a feeling that if she did, the world would be spinning and the drinks she'd had wouldn't stay where they are.
Bull's steps faltered a little and she heard him draw in a sharp breath, before continuing up the steps to her room. When she slipped against him a little he adjusted the way he was holding her a little. She snuggled against his fur lined cloak.
"I didn't know you had a cloak like that." She slurred, "So warm. Hmmm smells like Cullen." She said rubbing her face against it.
When her head fell back against his arm, Cullen knew Gabrielle had passed out. Again. He hurried her to her room and gently laid her on the bed, brushing her hair away from her face and kissing her forehead. They would discuss this later, he thought, running his thumb lightly over her bottom lip. Gabrielle sighed in her sleep and turned her head into the caress.
Cullen turned and left as quietly as he could. A silly grin on his face. Tomorrow would come soon enough.
The next morning Gabrielle woke up with a roaring headache. She clutched her head and gingerly sat up. There was a pitcher of water and a glass next to her bed, she forewent the glass and chugged the water straight out of the jug, spilling some down her front.
"Oh Bull, I hope you feel as bad as I do this morning!" after washing and changing into clean clothes, she gingerly made her way down to the tavern.
Surely they had a hangover cure of some sort. When she sat down at the bar and asked for something to help her head the bar tender laughed at her and poured her a glass of…something. She stared at it for a moment then took a cautious sip.
When it stayed down, she continued to sip and felt a little better after a few minutes. She gave the dwarf behind the bar a grateful smile.
"What is it" she asked
"Secret recipe" was all he said
When Bull lumbered up beside her and sat down, head in hands, he was given the same drink and grin she had gotten.
"You look like I feel." Gabrielle said to Bull who still had his head in his hands. He grunted, then sipped his juice.
"Oh, by the way, thanks for taking me to my room last night. I don't think I would have made it up there myself."
Bull stared at her for a moment then gave her a sly smile.
"That wasn't me." He said downing his hangover cure in one gulp.
"What?" She stammered out. "Then who…?" She felt her stomach clench. Remembering rubbing her face on a fur lined collar.
"Well," Bull said, "We were both pretty out of it. So when Cullen came in and saw you slumped over the bar he picked you up and took you to your room."
"Oh. Crap." Gabrielle felt the colour drain from her face then bounce back in.
"Oh. Crap." She said again. "I have to go." If she hurried she could make it out of the tavern before Cullen showed up for breakfast…or lunch as the case may be.
She hurried over to the door and quickly walked outside, making her way up the steps into the main hall of Skyhold. She kept her head down and concentrated on her feet, thankfully at this time of the day the hall was virtually empty, everyone was out doing whatever they needed to do during the morning hours.
Nearly there, her quarters were just a few feet away. She sped up just a little bit and made it to her door. When she grabbed for the handle the door swung inward suddenly.
She stopped and stared at the one person she had been trying to avoid. Cullen looked at her from the dimly lit hallway to her room, his eyes glinting in what little light there was.
Gabrielle felt her face flush red. She made a slight squeaking noise and did what any high powered leader of an Inquisition would do. She turned to run away.
She didn't get very far. Maybe half a step before strong hands shot out and grabbed her shoulders, jerking her back into the alcove behind the door, slamming it shut behind them.
He pushed her up against the wall with his hands on either side of her head and leaned in close to her.
"Where were you going?" he narrowed his eyes. Was he angry?
"Uh…to find a hole to fall into?" she said with a slight shrug, trying not to stare at the scar that bisected his upper lip.
"So you remember last night?" he said smirking a little, "I'm surprised considering how drunk you were."
"Well, Uh, about that. I think that maybe…I mean…" she couldn't come up with an explanation when he was looking at her like that.
Cullen leaned in further almost touching her lips to his.
"I believe you said you were 'so in love with me'" he said tilting his head to the side slightly, his eyes seemed to have become a brighter shade of blue in the dim light of the hall.
"Y-yes." She said, feeling her face grow hot again.
"Oh, good." He said and leaned in the rest of the way, sliding his mouth over hers. One of his hands snaked out to curl around her hip and pulled her into him, while the other remained on the wall, trapping her there against him.
Gabrielle made a small whimpering sound in the back of her throat and leaned in to the kiss. Wanting to be closer to him she slid her arms up around his neck and she pressed her body against his.
When his other hand slid down to reach around her and press her more firmly against him, she moaned a little and rubbed against the hardness she felt pushing against her belly.
Cullen groaned and grabbed her hips, lifting her so her legs wrapped around him, he pushed her up against the wall and ground against her roughly.
He pulled his mouth away and rested his head on her shoulder for a moment. Both of them were panting, Gabrielle's head thunked against the wall. She was still clinging to him like a limpet. No way was she getting of this ride until she was ready.
"Perhaps we should slow down a little." He said, gently untangling her from him.
She gave him an embarrassed smile and tried not to melt into a puddle at his feet.
"I…don't really know what to say." She said, thinking, I don't want to slow down, if anything we should speed up!
They stared at one another for a moment, when Cullen leaned in to kiss her again, she opened her mouth, ready for him. But he stopped just shy of her lips.
"No, that's not a good idea." He said moving away a little. She immediately missed his warmth and shivered a little.
"Why not?" Gabrielle tried not to sound accusing and winced when she did.
"Because I'll end up taking you against a wall right behind your front door where anyone could walk in and catch us." He looked a little frustrated. She'd noticed that look before at the war table.
"Just as well this is in the door then." She said and leaned over to turn the key that she always kept in the lock.
Cullen smirked, "Where were we?" he said bending his head back to hers.