Disclaimer: As usual, I do not own any part of Dragon Age Inquisition. Please review if you like!
Chapter 2
Haven
When Elanna came to her senses, she felt more rested than she had in days. She also noticed she was in clean clothes and in a bed. She sat up, stretching, and looked around. She was in a small cabin with two beds, her brother occupied the other bed, snoring away. A light thump and a gasp drew Elannas' attention to the foot of her bed. An elven woman was there picking some rolled linens up from the ground. The woman went to her knees, bowing as Elanna stood.
"I'm sorry!" the elf apologized. She spoke quickly, stuttering. "I should get Lady Cassandra. She said to let her know when you both woke up. At once she said." The woman fled the room not giving Elanna time to respond.
Elanna sighed. She looked to her brother, snoring peacefully. To wake or not to wake? 'Wake,' she quietly decided. She walked to the bed her brother was sleeping on, like her he wore clean but unusual beige clothing adorned with silver colored buckles and buttons. She lightly poked his face to see how deeply he was sleeping. He didn't even budge at the gentle prods. 'Excellent,' she thought to herself before grabbing the edge of the blanket he was laying on top of. She gave the blanket a hard yank, pulling it out from under him causing him to fall sprawled across the floor.
Eirlan hit the floor with a shout of surprise and half lifted himself up "WAHG! Who? Where? What?" His head turned this way and that looking around the cabin in confusion before finally settling on his sister who was laughing at his misfortune.
"Oh, ha-ha very funny sis," he grumbled before pulling himself off the hard floor and stretching his arms out slowly. "You couldn't have let me sleep for a few...more...min...where are we?" He finally registered that he is not back with the clan sleeping in a tent. He looked down at himself seeing the odd clothes. "And what am I wearing?" he asked pulling at the neckline of the shirt. "And who in the hell stripped me while I was sleeping?"
"Good questions brother," Elanna said, hands on her hips. "Would you like to ask another or go see Cassandra and find answers?"
Eirlan sighed and slapped his face a couple of times to wake himself up. "Yeah, might as well. Here's hoping the shemlen go easy on us 'Knife-Ears' in the 'trial'," he muttered making air quotes while talking.
Elanna shook her head and opened the door. She stopped in confusion, not exiting the doorway. Outside the cabin a line of soldiers with their right fist placed upon their left shoulder lined the road leading away from the cabin, all of them standing perfectly straight as though they were saluting the siblings.
'Oh dear,' Elanna thought to herself. The two walked side by side through the small village. The townspeople whispered among themselves mentioning the 'Heralds of Andraste'. Elanna ignored them as she lead the way up to the Chantry building. Once inside, she let out a sigh of relief. There were no soldiers or normal people staring at her or her brother. Vaguely, she heard arguing behind a huge oak door at the far end of the Chantry. Curious, she made her way over to it, Eirlan close on her heels.
Eirlan stayed close to his sister the entire way to the Chantry. He was half expecting to be attacked by the humans surrounding them. 'These shemlen are weird. Just yesterday they wanted to tear us apart limb from limb. Now I wouldn't be surprised if they all started bowing at our feet,' he thought, desperately wishing he had a sword or staff or some other kind of weapon. Upon entering the nearly empty Chantry his nerves were about frayed. As they got closer to the oak door they could make out the discussion on the other side.
"Have you gone completely mad? They should be taken to Val Royeaux immediately, to be tried by whomever becomes Divine." One voice loudly shouted, the voice sounding like the Chantry cleric they had met in the valley.
"I do not believe they are guilty," That voice, female, belonged to Cassandra.
"The elves failed, Seeker. The Breach is still in the sky. For all you know they intended it this way!" Roderick once more shouted
"I do not believe that," was the calm response.
"That is not for you to decide. Your duty is to the serve the Chantry." Eirlan could practically see the human wildly gesticulating with his arms, like a child throwing a tantrum about not getting their way.
"My duty is to serve the principles on which the Chantry was founded, Chancellor." A thump could be heard as though something was hitting a table with some force. "As is yours."
Eirlan stepped forward and grasped the handle of the door pulling it open. Inside Cassandra, Leliana, and Chancellor Roderick stood around a large table covered in books, maps, and other assorted odds and ends, by the door stood two soldiers standing guard. Everyone turned to the door and saw the siblings.
"Chain them!" Roderick ordered the guards, "I want them prepared to travel to the capital for trial!"
"Disregard that and leave," Cassandra ordered. The two soldiers saluted her and walked out of the room, closing the door behind them.
The Chancellor scowled at the elves first then at Cassandra. "You walk a dangerous line, Seeker" he said trying to cow the armored woman with his glare. Seeker Cassandra was not moved.
Elanna cleared her throat audibly. When all eyes were on her she leveled her gaze at Chancellor Roderick. "Why not listen to the Seeker?" she asked him. "Obviously she cares more for fixing the current problem at hand than you do. True the Breach is still there, but from what I can see it is stable. Instead of fighting, we need to focus on the Breach and make sure it gets closed and not opened again." Elanna's glare unnerved the Chancellor. Her eyes were so bright and controlled that he feared the power behind those eyes.
The Chancellor's face grew red as he sputtered for a few but Eirlan spoke first before he got the chance. "Besides we did everything we could and nearly died trying to close that thing."
"And yet you both still live. A convenient result insofar as you're both concerned." He snapped back glaring daggers at the elves.
"Have a care Chancellor, the Breach is not the only threat we face," Cassandra stated before any more arguments could break out between them.
"Someone was behind the explosion at the Conclave. Someone Most Holy did not expect," Leliana spoke for the first time and turned towards the Chancellor. "Perhaps they died with the others… or have allies who yet live."
"I am a suspect?" Roderick asked in astonishment.
"You and many others," she responded
"But not the prisoners!" He roared at the two human women.
"I heard the voices at the Temple," Cassandra explained. She kept her voice level, though the emotion showed behind her eyes. "Most Holy called out to them for help."
"So, their survival, that thing on their hands is all a coincidence!?" Roderick sputtered, his voice rising several decibels with each word.
Cassandra on the other hand, stayed calm, though she really wanted to hit the Chancellor. "Providence," she explained. "The Maker sent them both to us in our darkest hour."
"You do realize we are elves, right?" Eirlan asked. He pointed to his ears for further effect. "Dalish elves at that."
Cassandra smirked. "I have not forgotten," she said. "Dalish or not, you are exactly what we needed when we needed it."
"The Breach remains and your marks are out only hope of closing it," Leliana explained.
"That is not for you to decide!" Roderick butted.
Cassandra ignored the Chancellor, instead grabbing a four-inch-thick book from a back table in the room. She dropped it with a loud 'thunk' on the main table. The deep brown book had no title, only a symbol on its cover that matched Cassandras' chest plate. "Do you know what this is Chancellor?" she asked. When he said nothing, she continued. "A writ from the Divine, granting us authority to act. As of this moment, I declare the Inquisition reborn!" The siblings shared a look of confusion as Cassandra continued to attack Chancellor Roderick, physically poking the man in the chest, moving him into a corner of the room. Elanna had to stop herself from laughing at the sight. Roderick would step away from Cassandra only for her to step forward following him. "We will close the Breach, find those responsible, and restore order with or without your approval."
Having no more words to spout, Roderick left the room, slamming the door behind him.
"Finally," Eirlan said. "I thought he'd never leave." Elanna rolled her eyes at her brother, resisting an urge to hit him. The two humans ignored him.
"This is the Divine's directive," Leliana explained to the siblings. "Rebuild the Inquisition of old. Find those who will stand against the chaos." She looked to Cassandra. "We aren't ready. We have no leader, no numbers, and now no Chantry support."
Cassandra nodded, sighing. "I know, but we have no choice," she answered. "We must act now." She directed her gaze to both Lavellans. "With you both at our side."
"You really want our help?" Eirlan asked astonished. Elanna elbowed him in the ribs earning an "OW!"
"What my brother means to say, is that we will help in any way we can," Elanna said. She shook hands with Cassandra cementing their pledge.
"We shall get things started then," Leliana stated. "Give us a few days to get things together then we shall discuss the matter further."
As promised, Leliana called the siblings into the War Room two days later. As they entered, there were several new people around the opposite side of the table with Leliana while Cassandra stood next to the table closer to the door.
"May I present Commander Cullen, leader of the Inquisition's forces," Cassandra introduced a blond man in full armor, the same one Elanna remembered had helped a soldier off the field. Eirlan had spoken briefly with the Commander after the battle.
"It was only for a moment in the field," Cullen replied. "I'm glad you both survived.
"Cassandra continued with the introductions. "This is Lady Josephine Montilyet, our ambassador and chief diplomat."
Lady Josephine bowed slightly, keeping her clipboard level so as to not spill wax from the burning candle. "Andaran atish'an," she said with a heavy accent.
"You speak Elvhen?" Elanna asked.
Lady Josephine ducked her head slightly. "You've just heard the entirety of it, I'm afraid," she replied sheepishly.
"And of course, you already know Sister Leliana," Cassandra continued.
Leliana bowed slightly. "My position here involved a degree of…" Leliana started.
"She's our spymaster," Cassandra said bluntly. Leliana sighed.
"Yes," Leliana said. "Tactfully put, Cassandra."
"Pleased to meet you all," Elanna bowed her head slightly. She nudged her brother in the ribs.
Eirlan nodded as well. He kept quiet for the moment, waiting for the point. He wasn't sure why they were doing there with the leaders of the Inquisition. That alone didn't set well with him.
"The marks may not have closed the Breach, but Solas believes that they just need more power to be able to close it for good," Cassandra explained.
"Which means we must approach the rebel mages for help," Leliana imputed.
Cullen shook his head. "And I still disagree," he said. "The Templars could serve just as well."
"We need power, Commander," Cassandra explained. They had already had the argument before, but his skull was as thick as a set of bricks. "Enough magic poured into that mark…"
"Might destroy us all," Cullen interrupted. "Templars could suppress the Breach, weaken it so…"
Leliana interrupted. "Pure speculation," she said.
"I was a Templar," Cullen reminded them. "I know what they are capable of."
"Unfortunately, neither group will even speak to us yet," Josephine imputed tactfully. "The Chantry has denounced the Inquisition and you both specifically."
"That didn't take them long," Eirlan snorted.
"They are calling you, sibling Dalish elves, the 'Heralds of Andraste'," Josephine continued. "That frightens the Chantry. The remaining clerics have declared it blasphemy, and we heretics for harboring you both."
"Chancellor Roderick's doing, no doubt," Cassandra commented.
"Either way, it limits our options," Josephine said. "Approaching the mages or Templars for help is currently out of the question."
"Oh joyous," Elanna rolled her eyes. "First the Chantry against us, the Breach stable but also not, and we can't even ask for help to close it. Did I miss anything brother?"
Eirlan snorted. "Only that the Chantry believes that a pair of Dalish twins are Heralds for their deity," he commented.
"Of course, I missed that one tiny detail," Elanna replied.
"Wait, twins?" Cassandra asked. "You look nothing alike! Half siblings maybe, but twins?"
Eirlan and Elanna looked each other up and down. True they were both as opposite as they come. She had dark hair pulled back into an elaborate braid, bright blue eyes that glowed nearly white, her nose and ears small even for an elf, and her vallaslin a dark blue representing Falon'din the Friend of the Dead. Eirlan on the other hand had short hair a white as snow, his nose and ears bigger than his twins', his eyes were such a deep brown they looked black, his vallaslin a dark purple representing Dirthamen the Keeper of Secrets. The twins' skin was so fair that Eirlan looked almost a sickly pale with his white hair while Elanna's bright eyes shown even more under her dark brows. They dressed similar, in tunics of the forest with winter gear. Elanna had a staff strapped to her back while Eirlan sported a single blade at his left hip. Elanna wouldn't tell the others of her hidden blades though. Even Eirlan had lost count how many she carried each day.
Elanna shrugged. "Not half I know that. This poor bastard is my younger twin," she explained. "I learned magic from our Keeper and became her first while he studied with the hunters."
"Younger by only a few minutes!" Eirlan insisted.
"Either way," Leliana interrupted. "There is something you can do. A Chantry cleric by the name of Mother Giselle has asked to speak to you. She is not far, and knows those involved far better than I. Her assistance could be invaluable."
"I can go see what she has to say," Elanna said. "There's no harm in talk."
"Unless you get buried," Josephine warned.
"You'll find Mother Giselle tending to the wounded in the Hinterlands near Redcliffe," Leliana finished.
"Look for other opportunities to expand the Inquisition's influence while you're there," Cullen imputed.
"We need agents to extend our reach beyond this valley," Josephine explained. "And you both will be better suited than anyone to recruit them."
"In the meantime, let's think of other options," Cassandra said. "I won't leave all the work for the Heralds. There must be some small areas we can go and send our soldiers to assist."
"Our soldiers can labor for money," Cullen offered. "Without the Chantry behind us, we will need every coin that we can get our hands on for supplies."
"I'll keep ears out for anything that comes up," Leliana promised. "For the Hinterlands, it would be wise to send scouts out first to make sure of safe paths through the fighting. I will have them get ready. They will leave in a few days."
"I will go with them," Elanna said. All eyes turned to her wondering, weighing. "I am good at defensive as well as offensive magic. My barriers can hide people even in brush. That tactic has saved many scouts from an ambush back home."
Leliana and Cassandra shared a look. At Cassandra's nod, Leliana sighed. "Report to Lead Scout Harding for direction then," she recommended. "I'll let her know to expect you."
"If there is nothing else?" Cassandra asked. When everyone shook their head, she said, "Then dismissed."
The days passed quickly at Haven. News of the Inquisition spread like wildfire. Recruits poured in from all over Ferelden, eager to work, train, and meet the 'Heralds of Andraste'. Even though both Lavellans insisted they were not, people still came to call them that. Silently, they both agreed to just accept it for the time being.
Elanna spent much of her free time with Solas, learning about his experiences in the Fade and memories that he had seen. He in turn, asked after her mark, probing it with his magic. After an afternoon of being poked and prodded, Elanna sat alone overlooking the frozen lake. The landscape was beautiful, the village and areas all decked out in pure white snow. Even with the green glow of the Breach, Elanna felt at peace for the first time in months. She meditated there, drawing the peace and silence into her, clearing her mind of all thoughts. The magic in her hand itched, but she ignored it, willing it to the back of her mind.
Silence reigned in her head once more. No outside noises besides her breathing. She relaxed into the silence, thankful for its reprieve.
"I suspect you have questions."
The voice she had grown to know well snapped her out of her meditation. Elanna's eyes shot open, searching for Solas. She was alone. Solas was at camp, not talking in her ear. That meant only one thing.
Her visions were returning.
While Elanna learned magic from Solas, Eirlan attempted to keep himself busy helping out the people of Haven. Whenever someone would try to talk him out of helping them with some menial task because he is a Herald of Andraste, he would simply respond with, "Back when I lived with the Clan, everyone had to carry their own weight. Unless they were sick, young, old, or pregnant. Seeing as I am thankfully none of those, I'm going to help out everyone as best I can, glowing hand or no."
He would go out and find deposits or iron for Harritt in the smithy, collect elfroot for the cranky Adan, and help out Threnn with any odd tasks that she might need done. Many people found it odd that someone as important as him would help them out, but soon stopped questioning it, though they seemed to give him easier, or less demeaning, tasks than they gave to others that showed up to help the Inquisition.
The morning Elanna disappeared for her meditation, he walked down to the training grounds with two blunted sparring swords in hand and his normal carefree smile on his face. "Sir Cullen!" He called out to the former Templar and military commander of the Inquisition.
"What can I do for you, Herald?" He responded, not fully turning away from the recruits but not fully turning to Eirlan either. The look he had was one of mild annoyance.
Eirlan held up the two practice swords and said, "I was hoping you could spar with me. I haven't had a chance to test myself against a trained human swordsman before and you use yours better than anyone I've seen."
The Commander raised an eyebrow and turned the rest of the way towards the elf. "I don't think that would be proper Herald," he said. "What would people say if we injured each other? And besides, I have to oversee the training of the troops."
"Oh, come on. the blades are dull, the worse we might get is a cracked rib. Besides it can be a firsthand demonstration of proper swording techniques." Eirlan fired back, refusing to back down. "Plus, the only other person I could ask to spar is Cassandra, and she kinda scares me."
Cullen was about to respond when a look of confusion crossed his face. "I'm sorry, but did you just call it 'Swording'?" He asked and several of the people nearby snickered.
Eirlan's pale cheeks turned a light red. "I...is that not how it's called? We always called it swording back in the clan, 'cause there weren't many of us that used a sword. Most Dalish warriors prefer a bow or daggers, so our clan only ever had ten sword users at most." By the end of it Eirlan was looking towards the ground in embarrassment. 'Well I've really done it now, haven't I? I just made all Dalish look uneducated in their eyes,' he thought bitterly.
Cullen sensed the embarrassment in the young elf and stepped towards him. "I would be happy to spar with you Eirlan, and perhaps the recruits won't be the only ones to learn something," He said, hoping to cheer up the suddenly despondent elf.
Almost immediately, Eirlan's mood flipped and he tossed one of the two swords to Cullen who caught it reflexively. "Excellent!" he cheered and got into a ready stance while the onlookers backed up to give them room.
'It's amazing how quickly his mood can change,' Cullen thought while picking up a nearby shield to go with the sword he caught. He studied his opponent's stance looking for any openings he might exploit while the two of them circled each other. 'It's obvious that he doesn't have formal training,' he thought with a frown. 'Just look at all the holes in his defense. It's a bloody miracle he survived the charge up to the temple, let along the fight within it.'
With that he lashed out at the elf expecting to score a solid hit to his ribs but was surprised when his blade met nothing but air as his opponent danced back around the blade. Again, he struck out at an opening in Eirlans' defenses and again the elf nimbly dodged out of the way. 'So that's it, he relies on his speed to dodge more than he does on blocking.' Cullen though before hastily bringing his shield up to block a retaliatory strike. For several minutes this went on, Eirlan dodging out of the way of strikes. He didn't feel comfortable blocking with Cullen taking blows on his shield in return, until finally Eirlan lunged forward trying a stab and Culled turned aside and brought the blunted edge of his sword against the elves wrist, causing his sword to drop onto the ground.
Eirlan leapt back clutching at his wrist while letting out a hiss of pain. "Fen'harel's wrinkled pargail!" He grunted between clenched teeth while slowly flexing his fingers and backing away from the lightly panting former Templar. "Well, guess you won this round Commander," he said with a strained voice, trying to smile at the human but it came off more as a grimace.
Cullen drove the point of his sword into the frozen ground hard enough for it to stand on its own. "Perhaps we should get you to a healer, Herald," he recommended while moving towards the injured elf to see how he might be able to help.
"No need Commander," Elanna said. She had watched as Eirlan horridly danced around the Commander. Speed was one thing, but skill was another entirely. "Did you break your wrist again brother?" she called to him. Eirlan winced as she went to him and poked his wrist. Sighing again she said, "Not broken but cracked. Vyn esaya gera assan i'mar'av'ingala."
She gathered a healing spell within her left hand and grabbed his wrist. He yelped in pain, "Fenedhis!" He cursed and sent a glare to his sister but didn't pull his hand away. "Can't you be gentle for once?" He exclaimed while gesturing with his left hand.
Slowly the pain in his wrist began to dissipate until all that was left was a dull throb and Elanna let go of her brother. "Thank you asa'ma'lin," he sighed out and once more rubbed at his wrist before looking at the gathered soldiers and recruits who watched not only the spar, but the spectacle afterwards. "So," he called out to them in a loud voice and a carefree grin back on his face. "As the Commander just demonstrated, the best way to win a fight without killing is to disarm your opponent, if our swords were sharp it would have been literal."
Elanna resisted the urge to sigh again. "Not always will there be a healer around to fix every minor cut or bruise," she said instead. "Keep your shields up and resist the urge to dance around your opponent. Cut them down quick and efficient then move on to the next. If you do get injured, move away from the battlefield. No heroics. Each life is precious. Don't waste yours because you see an opening."
"Yes, and remember not everyone you face will fight the same way. Try to practice against different people as much as possible," Cullen instructed, turning back to the recruits. "As you saw, the Herald relies on his speed to avoid blows, but that won't always work on everyone and can leave you more tired than those that simply use a shield to block. Plus, there is always the chance that your opponent will be faster than you, so be prepared for that eventuality."
Eirlan stepped back and leaned against the wall surrounding the town and looked to his sister. "So, I heard you're planning to be head out with the scouts this afternoon to get the Inquisition a foothold in the Hinterlands," he commented with concern in his eyes. "Be careful out there, as much as some people look up to the Templars, the ones down in the valley probably wouldn't think twice about killing you, or worse."
"Worried about me little brother?" Elanna teased. "Who was it that saved you from the rogue Templars back home last?" Her eyes glinted mischievously.
He let out a small chuckle and shook his head. "Of course, you won't let me live that one down." He laughed before turning serious again. "I'm serious Elanna. You've got the more dangerous part here. I know I take a lot of risks and joke around about them," he held up his right hand for emphasis, "but this will be different than the bandit skirmishes and rogues we faced back home. There's a war going on out there and we are smack dab in the middle of it."
"I know well brother," Elanna hissed quietly. "You're not the one who has to see the different outcomes of what may be."
"Have you started sensing yet?" she asked changing the subject. She kept her voice low so the soldiers and people walking by couldn't hear their conversation.
"A little," he sighed. "I still feel the Breach and our marks more than anything else, but I am starting to notice other people's magic again. It's sort of like when you burn your tongue and can barely taste anything for a week. I can feel Solas from about twenty feet away and you maybe twice that far."
"What about you?" He asked. "You seeing anyone yet? Or are still just listening in on people's conversations?" He joked.
"Just listening for now," she replied. "Gotta love doorways. Most of the time they're closed. I hope to shove one open soon."
He leaned in closer pitching his voice even quieter. "What have you heard? Anything useful?" He asked while giving a quick look around for anyone that might really be eaves dropping.
"Nothing concrete yet," she answered her voice just as low. She told him of her meditation the earlier morning by the river and Solas' words. She thought for a few moments. "I think with the Breach's' magic how it is, it might be interfering with our own gifts. We'll have to grow them again to make them useful. Yours especially."
"Mine'll probably work better when we're not right under the bloody thing" Eirlan grumbled, not wanting to do more work than he had to. "You have a point, but the only way for me to practice mine at the moment would be hide and seek around the town, and how would we explain that to anyone that asks? I mean if we had an enchanted doodad you could hide it and have me find it and just tell people you're mad at me and are trying to keep it from me."
"Who's to say I haven't already done that?" Elanna asked sweetly.
"...What could you have hidden?" Eirlan asked sounding truly dumbfounded. He scratched his head trying to think of anything they had gotten since the explosion that was magical.
"That I'll leave to you to discover," she said. "We did get some of our things from home. And I may have gone through your bag..."
"Wait, we got stuff from home? When?" He demanded while turning on his sister.
"A few packages arrived a few days ago," she explained. "You'd know that if you weren't out drinking so late." She stuck her tongue out at him, blowing him a raspberry. "I'm off. I need to meet Scout Harding. See you in a few weeks!" She wandered away quickly, weaving through people so he would lose sight of her.
He stood there dumb founded before tearing off through the town back to their shared cabin, dodging around villagers and practically vaulting over Varric who had his back to him while talking with a person holding a book.
Upon entering the cabin Eirlan spied two boxes, one at the foot of each of their beds, and started going through the one by his. "Ok let's see here, clothes, a couple of my whet stones, my good knife, a couple of books, and some preserved meat." He mumbled to himself while going through the box. 'Damnit Elanna, what all did you take?' He angrily thought while he stood and left the cabin to search the town for anything that might be his.
Eirlan closed his eyes and stretched out his senses. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he could feel little flickers of his sisters' magic all over Haven, they were like fireflies in the distance He let out a low sigh and started heading towards the gates of Haven. "Might as well get started then," he said to himself.
He looked out over the tents set up for the recruits before sighing with resignation and setting out into the camp. Following the feel of his sisters' magic, he started to hear metal hitting wood. "Oh, this can't be good," he muttered and rounded a tent to see Cassandra mercilessly hacking at a practice dummy. Eirlan looked around slowly, hoping the Seeker wouldn't notice him while he tried to find what Elanna had hidden there.
Not seeing anything but still sensing his sisters' magic nearby, Eirlan crept towards the armed woman, trying not to draw her attention from the training dummy. His searched proved fruitless, so he closed his eyes and concentrated, hoping to pinpoint the location of his missing item. "Ah, Herald, I was hoping to speak with you." Eirlan's eyes few open in shock. Cassandra now faced him. With his focus elsewhere, he hadn't heard her stop swinging.
"Ah…bu…wha…" he cleared his throat. "What about?" Eirlan inquired, his color rising in his pale cheeks.
"I watched your spar with the Commander and I think it would be better if you switched to a two-handed sword," she stated simply. "You can't let your off hand do nothing, but a shield would not work with how you move around."
The elf's lips quirked into a sly smile. "But Cassandra, if I started using a two-handed sword, people might start to think I'm overcompensating for something."
"You are," she deadpanned, oblivious to his tone and body language.
Eirlan's mouth fell open and he gaped at her for a few moments. "Hey! I have nothing to be compensating for!" he retorted hotly.
Cassandra lifted one of her eyebrows in confusion. "What are you talking about?"
A thought clicked in Eirlan's head and he smiled. "Oh, you are surprisingly innocent. I'm going to enjoy taking that from you. And I'm gonna make you smile when I do," he said wiggling his eyebrows at her.
Cassandra only shook her head making a grunt of disgust. She turned back to the practice dummy resuming her routine. "I meant what I said though," she continued. "You should try using a bigger sword. It will work better with how you fight. And it might not crumple when you set it on fire."
The elf sighed, rolling his eyes. "Yes, dear." The Seeker faltered in her next swing, hitting the dummy in between the armor striking straight wood. Her cheeks flushed red. She ignored him and continued swinging, hitting her target dead on with just a bit more force than necessary.
Eirlan looked around the area and found the spine of a book peeking out from inside a bucket behind Cassandra. Looking closer, he saw the cover of the book held a red headed woman in armor. He snatched up the book and quickly made his escape, hoping Cassandra hadn't seen him take the book. 'How did I know she would hide this?' he thought as he hid behind a tent and turned the book over in his hands. A red silk ribbon caught his eye at the top of the book. Eirlan raised an eyebrow. 'That's odd, I don't have any book marks like that.' Opening the cover his eyes widened in shock. 'SHIT! This isn't my book!' His copy had doodles and Elvhen writing on the inside cover while this book was completely blank. He shut the book with a snap and peeked around the side of the tent, eyeing Cassandra. She was still swinging her sword at the dummy. Color drained from his face as he realized what he had just done. "Shit! This is hers! I can't go back there yet without raising her suspicions. I'll just try to slip it back there tomorrow," he muttered quietly to himself. He set off looking for the rest of his hidden belongings, the stolen book tucked safely into a pouch on his belt, hidden from sight.
After several hours of searching, Eirlan had formed a small bundle of his missing belongings. He had gotten a few strange looks from the people of Haven as well and members of the Inquisition, but a quick "My sister decided to hide my stuff to screw with me" worked to assuage their concerns of the Herald being a compulsive hoarder. Upon getting back to the cabin, Eirlan dropped all of his things in an unceremonious pile on the floor. "Stupid Elanna, lying bout magic shit, Stupid inquisition not telling me the clan sent me shit. Stupid fuckers fucking with my shit." He flopped face first into his bed then grumbled, "Great. Now the stupid pillow is uncomfortable." He lifted himself to his knees and fluffed his pillow. As soon as he picked up the pillow, he found the problem. A mask made of red leather roughly in the shape of a wolf's head was hidden underneath the pillow. "Fenedhis lasa!" he cursed. He picked up the mask and replaced his pillow. He sat back down on the bed, looking over the mask. 'The mask of Fen'Harel,' he thought. 'If the Keeper had any idea what this actually was she would have skinned the both of us for stealing it one and two for not letting the clan know we had stolen it.'
Eirlan sighed and closed his eyes. He concentrated hard on the feeling of magic around him. Even with the Breach blazing in the distance and the mark upon his hand, he could feel the ancient magic of the mask shining like a beacon as he held it. He once more familiarized himself with the dormant power before his eyes shot open in shock. "I've felt this magic before. Recently." He muttered aloud. "It feels just like Solas' power. But that can't be right. No two mages have ever had the same magic. Even parents' magic is different from their children. For the mask to be the same as his, he would have had to create it." Eirlan paled at the implication. Elanna was not going to like this.
For the next few days, Eirlan tried his best to avoid Solas. He kept the mask hidden within the cabin. He had found some loose floorboards underneath Elanna's bed. He wrapped the mask in fox fur and placed it under the floor.
He had also decided to follow Cassandra's advice and got himself a great sword from the smithy and spend the majority of his time getting a feel for the cumbersome weapon. 'Gotta say that woman knows her weapons,' he thought while at practice.
Once the sun had set and he was sure that Cassandra had retired for the night, Eirlan snuck the book back to the bucket he had found it in. He had left a note inside the front cover that read, "Sorry I took your book. Thought it was my copy. Hope you enjoy it, and maybe when the sky is fixed we can talk about our favorite parts. –E" As soon as he replaced the book, he made a beeline back through the town gates, intent on going to sleep. A voice interrupted his plans.
"Hey Snowflake you got a second?" Varric called seeing the white-haired Lavellan.
Eirlan froze, turned toward Varric, and raised an eyebrow. "Snowflake?" he asked incredulously. "Really? As if my clan wasn't bad enough for naming me 'Snow Child'." He walked over to the dwarf and gave him an overly embellished flourished. "What do you need Master Tethras?"
"Ruffles, Curly, and Nightingale wanted me to let you know that tomorrow we'll be heading out to the Hinterlands to join up with the scouts and your sister. So, get yourself a good sleep and pack your bags cause the Seeker is going to be riding us hard to make up for lost time," the dwarf explained. A good-natured smile adorned his lips.
"Hey if she wants to ride this knife ear, I'm not going to complain," Eirlan joked and stretched his shoulders wincing when they popped back into place. 'There's a few things I need to talk to Elanna about anyway so the sooner we get there the better,' he thought to himself. He started back to his cabin then called back to Varric over his shoulder, "See you bright and early dwarf. And on the way maybe we can discuss some of your books."
Varric let out a loud laugh. "Always happy to discuss my books with a fan," he called back. "Just don't mention the Tale of the Champion in front of the Seeker. Last copy she saw she punched a dagger through."
With a lazy wave, Eirlan walked back to his cabin to rest. He wanted to enjoy the feeling of a warm bed for the last time before setting out, knowing it might be the last time until his return to Haven.
A/N
Elvish used in chapter with thanks from FenxShiral's An Elvish Lexicon:
Pargail = scrotum
Andaran atish'an: Enter this place in peace. A formal Elvhen greeting.
Vyn esaya gera assan i'mar'av'ingala. = You would try to catch an arrow with your teeth.
Fenedhis! = Curse
Fenedhis lasa! = Curse
asa'ma'lin = sister
isa'ma'lin = brother
If I missed any, let me know in the comments!
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