An unpleasant silence was hanging heavily in the air, and in the murky room, Fenris and Yin were sitting at the opposite ends of a table.

''So... so, what are you exactly?'', risked Fenris, ''I considered all possibilities, and... you are not a demon, obviously, since you can exist outside of the Fade; you can't simply be a person possessed by a demon, or you'd be an abomination. What is it you are?''

Yin looked at him, befuddled, not knowing what to answer. ''I-I never gave it much thought''

Another deep silence fell down.

''The collective nomenclature of Fade is exceedingly inaccurate. It implies that it is a single metaphysical realm, when in reality it accounts for several thousands of separate dimensions''

The flatness of Yin's speech was unsettling, which wasn't at all helped by her lack of facial responsivity; Fenris thought she sounded just like a Tranquil. Her appearance was definitely unusual too, there was a certain occult aura in the whole eerie pale-skinned brunette thing, and certainly the red eyes didn't help, but underneath it all, she just looked like a creepy, lifeless porcelain doll.

''A powerful mage disguised as a doll'', he thought in disgust.

''I am no mage'', she replied.

Fenris coughed uncomfortably from this ominous feeling of mind intrusion but was intrigued by Yin's bold statement.

''Magic in this reality is a natural phenomenon in which mortals can manipulate existing forces from their environment through the flowing of innate mental energies, a process that requires a fuel, namely lyrium. You are quite familiar with this substance, aren't you''.

''Your point being?'', questioned Fenris, petulantly.

''That magic necessarily follows the rules which govern this world. I, on the other hand, can warp and shape these rules, alter the very foundations of reality, and make it so that the ones inhabiting them don't even realize that anything has changed"

Isabela entered Fenris' mansion and called his name a few times. Upon hearing it, Fenris, alarmed, instructed Yin to hide, which she did without asking, effortlessly. He came up to greet her.

''Maker's breath, Fenris, you look awful''

He felt a bit insulted, ''Is there anything you want?''

''Actually, I came to see how you're holding up, but I can see that you obviously haven't slept in at least a week. Hawke called out for you, you didn't show up. In a rebellious mood, maybe? That's fine, I like a bad boy'', she grinned.

''Want something to drink?'', the elf offered.

She nodded and they walked their way to the kitchen. They discussed for a while about impersonal affairs when Isabela took the initiative.

''So, wanna tell me why you are seemingly so preoccupied lately? Got something on your mind?"

''It's nothing'', Fenris replied coldly.

''Perhaps you need a little... distraction'', said Isabela suggestively while seizing Fenris' left arm and approaching him slowly.

The lyrium scars glowed and Fenris backed off violently.

''I'm s-sorry, I didn't know... is it always like that?'', she mumbled, startled.

When Fenris got back to normal, he lowered his head and said ''It's not your fault, it's the scars. The pain is even more intense when they get touched, it's... it's...'', he uttered with resent and angst as he picked up the chair that had fallen and threw it against the wall, breaking it to pieces.

''On the plus side, you killed the chair which was looking shifty'', Isabela joked.

The two of them then went off to join Hawke for the mission.