"They claim not to be affiliated with anyone, but there are reports out of Val Royeaux of anti-Rift groups," Josephine said, flipping through a few papers, "though how organized they are is still up for debate."
"Anti-Rift sounds very much like anti-mage to me," Evelyn murmured, crossing her arms.
"I don't think anyone is going to argue that with you, Inquisitor," Josephine agreed. "It's just one more new magical thing for people to take issue with. First Kirkwall, then the Breach, and now this."
Evelyn's exhausted sigh said what nearly everyone was feeling. Eleanor was staring blankly at the map, trying to figure out the distance between Skyhold and Val Royeaux in miles for no reason except to try and do it. Cullen had his arms folded tightly and his lips pursed, but didn't seem to be looking at much of anything in particular.
"I think they're lying," Cassandra said, "I think they're protecting someone. They didn't get to Skyhold on their own. Everyone who was invited was one of our people."
"That's what we thought," said Josephine, scratching her cheek. "Perhaps one of our invitations was intercepted… I need to speak with the Divine…" she said, exasperated.
"They must be lying," Cassandra repeated, as the door behind her creaked open.
"You think everyone is lying, Seeker."
"Hello, Varric," Evelyn said, a smile creeping slowly across her face as the dwarf walked in. Eleanor gave him a grin as he approached the table.
"Here you're having problems with would-be assassins, Inquisitor. Must be Thursday."
"Sounds about right," Evelyn said, putting her hands on the edge of the table and bending forward. "Though it was Eleanor they made a move for first."
"Getting a reputation for yourself already, Farm Girl?" Varric said. "You'll wanna be careful with that."
"Yeah, I'm gathering," she said, raising an eyebrow.
"This is serious, Varric," Cassandra huffed.
"It's always serious, Cassandra, that's the problem." He crossed his arms and leaned back. "Do we know who we're dealing with?"
"Well, if you had seen fit to be here on time, Varric -"
"Harding caught me up on the way, I get it. They're not with anyone. But who are they? Names? Homes? What's their motivation here?"
"Well, I think it's safe to assume they're not too fond of mages," Cullen muttered, still surly.
"Yeah, but neither is half of Thedas - no offense," he put up his hands for Evelyn and Eleanor, "and you don't see them beating down the doors to stab the Inquisitor. Or any mages really. Well, not all the time, at least."
"The Rift -"
"I don't know. The Rift's not really tangible enough to be a fear. It's like the Blight, and there are people alive who've actually seen a Blight. But as long as it's not on their doorstep, no one cares."
"Well, alright, Varric," Cassandra challenged, "what do you think it is?"
"Me?" He raised his eyebrows. "I've got no idea, Seeker. Isn't that more your department."
"Alright, alright. We've all made our point," Evelyn said, propping her hip up against the War Table. "Josephine, I think our first line of inquiry is to find out just how these two got invited. Did we invite anyone with anti-magical leanings? Was this sort of a… oh, I don't know, a reverse Red Jenny situation?"
"Why not ask Sera?" Cullen asked.
The Inquisitor blinked as though the idea would never have occurred to her before leaning over to Eleanor and asking, "Do you ever feel like the thickest person alive?"
"Oh, all the time," Eleanor reassured her.
"Well as long as it's not just me."
"I can assure you, neither of you are thick. But Curly's right. Let Ruffles do her backtracking, but get Buttercup's people on this too." Varric pinched his chin. "Something about this doesn't feel right to me. I mean, between the five of us, I think we put ourselves in more than our fair share of danger, but this? Ah. Maybe it's nothing."
Evelyn cast Varric the most sidelong glance Eleanor had ever seen one person give another until she caught the look on Cassandra's face.
"Hey, come on! I mean, what do I know! I'm just a businessman!"
"Varric, out," Cassandra said, pointing toward the door.
"Come, now, Seeker -"
"No, she's right, we've done all we can here. We should all get out. Start searching. And you two," she pointed back and forth to Eleanor and Cullen, "are supposed to be having some kind of a rest. Which…" Evelyn paused and rolled her eyes, "...I admit, I have entirely kept you from." She ran a hand through her red hair and said, "We can take this from here. You've done enough for now.
"Inquisitor, I -"
"Commander, no. I apologize, but I won't hear it."
"No, it's not that… it's that… my quarters aren't really… equipped for two." He held his hands behind his back and stood up straight but diverted his eyes, a familiar sheepishness that made Eleanor grin.
The Inquisitor tilted her head slightly. "No, indeed. You're absolutely right, I'm sorry. I'll have new rooms -"
"Actually, I was thinking -" Cullen started and then stopped himself, looking down at Eleanor. He reached one hand up nervously and tugged on his ear.
Eleanor's eyes grew a little wider with impatience and she moved her index fingers in small circles to indicate that he should get on with it.
The commander took in a small quick breath and let it out just as fast. "I was thinking we might have a place of our own. Not… not at Skyhold. If we can't return to Indiana just yet." He looked at the ceiling the whole time he spoke, but then turned his gaze to Eleanor and said, "I'm sorry. I did mean to ask you, this morning actually, but we were a bit… sidetracked." He rubbed the back of his neck and then let his arm drop. "If… if it's alright with you."
Eleanor shrugged. "After this morning, that's what you're nervous about?" She rolled her eyes. "I mean, it's not like we haven't done this before. But if we're not going to be at Skyhold, wouldn't it be faster just to go back to the house? The Breach is kind of, you know. Right there."
Evelyn pressed her lips a little flat and said, "Well… yes, but with my needing to open the Breach and the turnaround time with communications and…" her eyes narrowed a little, not at anyone, but at a thought. "I'm wondering if maybe…" her voice trailed off.
"Evelyn?" Eleanor asked quietly, making a small move over to the Inquisitor.
She shook her head but slowly deigned to speak. "It's something I've been thinking about. When the Blight came, we didn't really have much of a choice. But the Breach, I… it's a hole. It's a tear. We spent so much time trying to close them. We might need this one we've made in the future, but… Perhaps we should… not stretch out the edges, you know?" Her voice was quiet, overly hushed for the room.
"Is everything alright, Inquisitor?" Cullen asked slowly, sensing the hesitance in her voice.
In that moment, the Inquisitor looked older and more tired than either Evelyn or Cullen had ever seen her look. But all she said was, "Just… a feeling." She closed her eyes for a moment and Eleanor noticed a slight curling in the fingers of Evelyn's hand, but as soon as she saw it, it was gone, and Evelyn was saying, "But of course. You two… absolutely. We'll find you somewhere quiet. But close," she said, and pointed an almost parental finger at the two of them, oscillating quickly back and forth between the commander and Eleanor. When she smiled again, the years seemed wiped away, and the Inquisitor once again looked young, younger than she was, with a playfulness in her eyes that was more effective than any cosmetic.
Cullen reached out and grasped Eleanor's elbow, pulling her a little closer him. "That… would be fine, Inquisitor. Evelyn. Thank you." He started to turn to go, bringing Eleanor along with him, but Evelyn stopped him.
"One last thing - Eleanor, if you would?"
Eleanor gave Cullen a small nod and nudged her head toward the door, indicating that she'd follow him shortly. He let her go and followed Cassandra and Josephine out, the women having left some moments before, but Varric remained, and gave the commander a sidelong glance as he went.
"Eleanor," Evelyn said quietly but firmly, "I hope yesterday didn't… put you off."
She shook her head with a little determined frown. "Take more than that to scare me away, Ev. I've fought an Archdemon."
The smile on the Inquisitor's face was bittersweet. "Now you sound like one of us. But," she said, leaning closer to Eleanor, "I mean it. Yesterday… didn't go exactly to plan. I think… I think we need to focus on talking to our people for now."
"You mean mages."
"I do. There's still a lot of infighting between the different Fraternities - such as they still stand. I can't help but think that this might be our chance to bring them back together. Find some common ground. This is a magical problem, first and foremost."
"Evelyn, I don't know anything about -"
"You know more than you think you do, Ellie. Not just in here," the Inquisitor tapped her temple, "but in here," and she put two fingers low on her chest, not at her heart, but along her sternum, that place, that hollow that Eleanor could feel welling, spilling, every time she cast a spell. "There were mages long before their was a College. And you have performed admirably thus far. You're well in control of your magic - and you are one of the strongest spirit healers I have ever seen, and without having trained. You brought the comman- well. There are things I can teach you about the Breach, about the Fade. But I'd like to find you a trainer. And I'd like you to continue your work here as well. Our first little soiree may not have worked out, but there's still much we can do. And there's still so much we don't know about that Rift."
For an instant, Eleanor was speechless. Evelyn was trusting her with so much, when she still felt so unsure in her own skin. When she needed her magic it was always there, but though it definitely took shape when it left her, a particular shape, a cold and harsh shape or a warm and caring one, it always felt so formless and unknowable inside her, and until she was acting, until she was doing, she was never entirely sure that what was going to come out was what she wanted. It often was, but it felt more like instinct than knowledge, and she thought - feared - that this was not the right or best way, and that one day it was sure to backfire. And while it was true that she probably knew as much about that Rift as any of the people at Skyhold right now, she didn't know how to put what she had thought and seen and felt into words - or not the right words. She couldn't talk about the Veil or the Rift except in vagaries and experiences. She didn't know anything about schools of magic or Colleges or Fraternities or the Chantry, and all she knew about the Mage-Templar War was what she had heard from Cullen and Dorian, two ideological extremes, and what she herself had been on the receiving end of. But a trainer…
Eleanor brought her hand to her mouth and pinched her upper lip before saying, "Alright. Yeah, okay. I'll do whatever I can. Let me… let me talk to Cullen."
Evelyn reached out and took Eleanor by the shoulders and said, "Thank you. You've been invaluable so far. I wouldn't want to lose you. But you and Cullen are absolutely entitled to a rest. I know you both just wanted to go back. And I'm happy that there's a back for you to go to. I wish I didn't have to ask any more of you. I… Trust me when I say I know what it's like to be in your shoes."
When Evelyn's green eyes met her blue ones, Eleanor didn't doubt her for an instant.
The Inquisitor released her. "Go. Be with him. We can talk more about this later. I'll see what mages I can get in touch with. No more politics - well, there's always politics. But let me see what I can do. And let me find you a place to stay," she said with a wink.
"Thank you, Ev."
"Of course, Ellie."
Eleanor walked around the table and made for the door, but Varric met her stride and asked, "So what happened this morning?"
"Hm?" The comment was so far behind her now, her mind so full of so many other things, that for a moment she honestly didn't know what Varric meant. Then, though, she remembered what she had said, and now she was purposefully vague. "Oh, that. No, nothing. We just had… a good talk. You know. Sorted some shit out." It wasn't untrue, but she knew Varric well enough now to realize that any specific mention of what had happened in the chapel would be turned into a two-chapter story arc that she had no intention of being in.
"Is that all?" Varric said, disbelieving.
"Yeah, pretty much. It's been a weird couple of weeks, y'know. A lot to…" she shrugged, "talk about."
"Alright, Farm Girl," Varric said, crossing his arms and propping himself up in the doorway that lead to the hall. "But you'll talk. Everyone around here eventually does. You look nice, by the way."
"Goodbye, Varric," she said with a wave, heading for the steps, but she got the feeling that somehow the dwarf had already won.
A/N: In case you missed it, I started posting The Inquisition, Indiana Holiday Special. Yes I know it's June. Don't ask questions.
