Dear Fergus (and Heinrich, of course!),
How are you doing? I hope you managed to fix the windows in the entrance hall—can you imagine what Mother would have said if she had seen that? "What on…Oh, no, not the windows! Who did this? THESE WERE FROM ORLAIS!"
Speaking of Orlais, let me just tell you, you are both really lucky to be at Highever, because Celene is a total bi—
"Be careful of what you put down," Wynne said suddenly; Rowena jolted and looked up to see her reading over her shoulder. "Angry letters have a nasty habit of biting us in the arse when we least expect it."
"But in all fairness, Celene and Rowena already know that they hate each other," Alistair said from his chair next to the desk. "It's not like it'd be a huge scandal if someone else read this."
Wynne gave a faint chuckle. "Oh, believe me, this is the sort of naïveté that starts a war. Leliana, here, tell me what you think."
The bard set her book down and began to read Rowena's letter. With a gasp, she snatched it off the desk and threw the page into the fire.
"Hey!" Rowena cried indignantly. "There's such a thing as editing, you know!"
"Don't be silly!" Leliana said, eyes wide. "I've killed people for saying less than that!"
"Oh, please," Rowena scoffed. "No one's going to kill me."
"Funny. That's what most of my targets said too," Leliana said breezily. "Didn't end the way they planned, unfortunately."
"No one's going to kill Rowena," Alistair said quietly. "I can make sure of that, at least." She smiled and gently grasped his hand.
Suddenly, the doors to the study burst open and Eruestan stalked in carrying a small bundle of papers.
"I think someone's going to try and kill you two," he said seriously.
Alistair's face fell. "Well, that's…reassuring."
Rowena rolled her eyes. "Let me guess, this someone happens to be Guillame du Jader?"
"Well, yes," the elf admitted, blushing a little. "But I swear, I've got proof!" He quickly spread his papers on Rowena's desk. "See, I've been having him followed for a while, and…"
"You've been what?" Alistair and Rowena both said, staring at him.
"Having him followed…?" He raised an eyebrow. "Is something wrong?"
"You can have people followed?"
"Er…yes," Eruestan said slowly. "It's kinda in the job description…"
"Really, you two, what do you think a chancellor does?" Wynne asked wearily. "Eruestan has to make sure that he can intercept any threat to the both of you from wherever it may come. Of course he's going to have a team of spies."
"There's more than one?"
Wynne's smile became a little strained. "Oh, this is frightening."
"Anyways," Eruestan said loudly, picking up a sheet of parchment, "based off of what my men have found, the little weasel has been acting mighty suspicious lately. For example…April 22: Suspect holds meeting with three unknowns in an alley-way, all of whom disappear afterwards…April 24: Suspect seen outside the Pearl…"
"Oh, gross!"
Eruestan shot a stern look at his friends as he loudly continued, "…where he met with persons unknown. Suspect received a large bottle of a mysterious liquid. Suspect did NOT enter the establishment;" (two sighs of relief) "instead left for the palace."
The elf then pulled out a chart from the middle of the stack. "These are the dock records from last Thursday; apparently, a very large shipment from Antiva was registered under a 'Ser William from Montsimmard.'"
"Clever," Leliana said, smiling appreciatively. "'Guillame du Jader', 'William from Montsimmard'; if we hadn't been looking, it would've slipped right past us."
"Did they manage to find out what came in?" Wynne asked sharply.
He shook his head. "When they went to look, the boats were empty. Word obviously must have gotten out somehow. But there's more." He picked up the last of the papers. "These were stolen off of one of his couriers last night." He handed them to Alistair and Rowena. One was a map of the ground floor of the palace with several X's marked at certain entrances. The other was a letter written in a strange language.
"What's this written in?" Rowena asked, frowning. "It's not Orlesian or Anders."
"Or Tevinter," Alistair added.
"Look at the seal," Eruestan said quietly.
They both gasped. "The Crows!" Rowena said, looking up excitedly.
He nodded. "The Crows use a special written language that's almost impossible to decipher—we've been trying, but I doubt we'll make any headway with it. However, just the fact that the Crows are involved at all makes me a little uneasy."
"Well, let's not panic," Rowena said calmly. An eager glint lit up in her eyes. "After all, maybe he's targeting Celene!"
"Why would he wait till now to do it, then?" Eruestan asked. "He'd have a lot more opportunities back in Orlais."
She sighed. "A girl can dream, can't she?"
"This is not good," Wynne said worriedly. "This is really not good. The two of you are going to have to be very careful from now on."
"Don't you think we're all overreacting just a little here?" Alistair asked, eyebrow raised. "I mean, we don't even know if this has anything to do with us at all."
"Still, if the Crows are involved…" Leliana shivered. "I have heard terrible stories of some of their exploits. Once, they put the eggs of flesh-eating insects inside a man's dinner rolls. A week later, he went to bed complaining of a stomach-ache and was later found dead, with holes eaten through his skin."
"That's disgusting," Alistair said, turning a slight shade of green.
"That's just the beginning," Leliana said seriously. "The Crows are like shadows—even the bards fear them. One of their master assassins can almost do the impossible. Beautiful gowns seeped in deadly poison…knives that seemingly fly at you from nowhere…people found killed in rooms where all the doors and windows lock from the inside…I wouldn't take this too lightly."
Rowena shivered, suddenly cold. "B-but those are just legends, right?"
Leliana shrugged. "Who knows? Legends all have a basis in fact, don't they?"
Suddenly, the doors to the study flew open. With a yelp, everyone in the room leapt into fighting positions, tensed for action.
Empress Celene stood in the doorway, a blatant look of shock creeping across her face.
Behind her, Lady Dantine shrieked loudly. "THEY ARE MURDERING US! THEY ARE MURDERING THE EMPRESS!"
"Don't get my hopes up," Rowena muttered.
"Dantine, tais-toi," Celene said sharply. "It is obvious that they did not realize who was at the door. Otherwise, the king would have been more…gentlemanly." Alistair blushed and dropped his fists.
"Empress, Your Ladyship," Rowena said with a strained smile. There was a small bark from the hallway. "And Lady Lisolette. To what do we owe this…pleasure…?"
"I come to invite Your Majesties to a ball," Celene said smoothly.
The two of them froze. "A…w-what?" Alistair asked, horrified.
She frowned. "That is how you say it, yes? A ball?"
"Yes, you are right, Imperial Majesty," Eruestan said quickly. "They're just…speechless with joy, that's all."
"Yes," Rowena said hopelessly. "So full of joy."
"What's the occasion?" Wynne asked.
Celene bowed her head. "I feel such pain at having intruded for so long upon the hospitality of Ferelden," she said sadly. "Especially when one considers the awful history between our two nations. This is my way of showing both Orlais's thanks and friendship."
"That's so kind of you," Rowena lied. "But, surely you want to get to Antiva as soon as possible? You shouldn't delay yourself just—"
"Antiva can wait," Celene said calmly. "I would much rather do this for you. Oh, and before I forget, Queen Rowena, I would like to give you a gift." She motioned to her servant, who stepped forward and presented a heavy purple gown. "I hope you shall wear this on Friday."
"F-Friday? So soon?" Rowena asked meekly.
"Oh, yes. One must not wait too long for the things one wants, you know. Now, forgive me, but I believe a shipment of decorations is coming in." With a bow, she and her party left the room.
"Well, the fabric's nice," Leliana said dubiously, running her hand along the dress. "But the neckline is too high—you won't be able to show off your features. Also, look how heavy the sleeves are! And that hem is far too—"
"You can tailor it if you like, Leli," Rowena sighed.
She squealed excitedly and dragged Rowena to her feet. "Oh, thank you! You'll be absolutely gorgeous, I promise! Oh, and I know just how it's going to look like too! Oh, there's so much to do! We need to do your hair, and paint your nails, and find some jewelry…" She looked up impatiently. "Oh, why are you just sitting there? Come on!" She grabbed her by the wrist and started to drag her away.
"Help. Me." Rowena called.
"Trust me, I know by now not to get in her way," Eruestan said seriously. "Good luck!"
"Oh, don't listen to him," Leliana scoffed. "You know, I think I saw the perfect pair of shoes for you—velvet, with little ribbons flounced on the heels. Yes, I know you'll love them! Oh, isn't this fun?"
"Loads," Rowena said miserably.
What in the name of the Maker had she done to deserve this?
Hi! Just wanted to let you know that I'll be in Florida for the next week and a half, so there's going to be a bit of a dry spell. I'll be back ASAP, but don't hate me if it takes a few weeks for an update!
Everyone on here ROCKS—I'm really enjoying all the feedback! See you soon!
(Review, if you'd like! Constructive criticism welcome!)
