Nell found Cullen out on the balcony when she came back up with the food. She couldn't see his face, but the way he was standing hunched over the rail, hand on neck, she could guess that he was berating himself for yelling.

Setting the food tray down, she went to lean against the door frame behind him, her arms crossing as she watched the ends of his hair and shirt flutter as the wind passed over them. "Cooling off?"

She had to stifle a laugh when he jerked around to look at her, his arm dropping so that his hands could flutter for a moment in some half realized attempt to settle on his hips. "No, um… No I was just clearing my head." He took a step towards her and seemed to hesitate for a second before reaching out to pull her arms apart and grip her hands. "I'm sorry."

"For?" She raised a brow then gave an exaggerated nod before pulling away from him and going back to the food tray. "Oh, that's right, you told me my story was wrong."

"I may have gotten a little… annoyed."

"With an unfinished story."

"Yes."

"That you didn't write."

"Yes."

"After you told me to prove you wrong."

"Yes." This time the word was ground out, annoyance coloring it even as he moved to her side and reaching for one of the bowls of stew. "Yes to everything. Is that what you wanted to hear?"

"Just making sure we're on the same page, Commander." She beamed at him when he simply glowered and took her food back to the couch.

She had just lifted the spoon to her mouth when he joined her. He sat too close, his arm bumping hers, and reached out to still her movement. When she frowned and tried to pull away he tightened his grip. "So are you going to finish?"

She looked at him and then heaved out a sigh. "Right now?"

"Unless you feel you need to teach me another lesson."

"Oh, I'd like to teach you a lesson alright," she muttered, wrenching her hand away and rolling her eyes when he simply grinned at her, that grin, the one that was tilted and charming, and that she had never quite learned how to say no too because damn if he wasn't even more pretty when he was wearing it. "You're annoying, you know that right?"

"So are you, I guess that makes us perfect for each other." He tugged at a piece of her hair before scooting down the couch to the other side, his bare feet settling comfortable against her leg as she frowned and ate a few bites.

She thought about telling him no just to spite him, but she wanted to get to the end almost as much as he did, if only to see his reaction to it.

"Fine." She settled back against the couch and shifted so that she could lean into the corner and took a few moments to swirl her spoon through her bowl before casting her eyes to the ceiling as she thought about how it was supposed to go. "The judge asked the princess what the answer to the riddle was, and she had responded with 'a raven'."

"Well shit, Curly. What now?"

The manservant's words brought the prince back from his thoughts and he glanced down before looking over to where the princess stood too still. "We knew this could happen. You know what you need to do."

The dwarf scowled a moment before nodding and heading for a door while muttering something about how he didn't know why they couldn't have found an easier way to do things.

He watched as a muscle ticked in the first judge's jaw before she asked the princess if she could explain how the answer was a raven. The princess nodded and glanced towards the prince again before giving a small cough. "Of course. The raven ate of a dead and poisoned horse and died from the poison itself. It was then eaten by twelve murderers who died from the poisoned flesh."

Her words came out muffled as her head dropped slightly, the dark rusted color of her hair strangely bright against the muted brown of her dress and the white stone that surrounded them. The prince could also just make out the bluish bruising beneath her eyes and wondered if she had gotten any sleep. He also wondered, again, for the millionth time, what exactly she feared so much that she would be so conflicted over her answer.

The judges conferred a moment between themselves and finally the second judge turned his gaze to where the prince stood, his bearded face serious and his voice solemn when he spoke. "That is the answer, is it not, Your Highness?"

"It is," the third judge cut in before the prince could reply. "It's the right answer, but she didn't want to give it. Why did you?"

The princess lifted her face to blink up at the pale boy as if she was surprised to see him there. She opened her mouth then shut it again before finally speaking. "Of course I wanted to give it. Don't be ridiculous."

It would have been more believable if she had been able to meet anyone's eye with her words.

The first judge cleared her throat to get their attention. "It doesn't matter why or how she gave the right answer, all that matters is she did. You know what that means."

"I would know what it meant if the princess hadn't cheated to get the answers," the prince responded and had all three judges looking over to him.

"Cheating is a serious accusation, Your Highness," the second judge stated and turned to face the prince more fully. "I'm assuming you have proof."

The prince offered a bow and took a few steps closer to the dais. "It is on its way, but until then I will let you know that the princess and some of her servants have spent the last three nights coming into my room in hopes of pulling the answer from me while I slept. My companion and I were able to pull their cloaks from them as they tried to flee after being caught."

The princess stared at him as he spoke, her eyes wide and her mouth slightly open before she reached out to him to yank his shoulder down and bring his ear in range of her mouth. "This was your plan? Is that why you took my cloak?"

He tilted his face towards hers, his lips curving up as he studied her expression of accusation. "I didn't take anything, you left it. Would you rather I go willingly to your hangman's noose?"

She let go of his coat and straightened to face the judges again even as the prince's manservant arrived back in the hall, his arms full of different colored cloaks that he dumped on at the feet of the judges when the prince nodded that way.

The judges each reached down for a cloak, the first judge pulling back one that was brown, the second judge getting one that was dark green, and the third judge being left with the bright dove grey. The color of it was easily recognizable to everyone in the room; it had always been the princess' favorite.

Forgetting the cloak in her own hands the first judge looked from the grey cloak to the princess. "That is yours, is it not?"

The princess did not answer, instead keeping her eyes trained on the foot of the dais while a dark blush worked its way over her face. The prince was tempted to ask if she was embarrassed or angry, but decided he probably wouldn't like either answer.

After several long seconds of silence the judges looked at each other and began to confer again. After a short while they turned back to everyone in the room and the first judge made a motion to the cloak that was still in the third judge's hand. "It is our decision that due to the fact that the princess had to receive the answer from the prince himself it is not valid. Therefore, in accordance with the rules that she herself put into place she and the prince shall be married."

The judges made to stand, but the prince paid little attention to it since he was focused on the way the princess' throat worked as she swallowed, and how she still hadn't looked up.

He nearly jumped when he felt a hand on his arm and jerked his head up to see three sets of eyes looking at him. "Yes?"

The third judge held the cloak out to him and he took it automatically, confused at the bright smile and the too knowing look that was being sent from behind unkempt hair. "Um… thank you."

"She's happy with the way things have gone. She won't say it, there's too much pride, but she did not want you dead. She doesn't want you to leave either." When the prince simply blinked at the words the judge patted his arm and turned to walk away.

The second judge followed out the third and the first judge started to before pausing and looking back to the princess. "You should embroider that cloak with gold and silver. It would look nice over a wedding dress."

The princess still didn't reply and the judge sent the prince a small shrug before leaving with the others.

The prince stared at the princess for a long time before he heard others starting to murmur. Suddenly not wanting an audience he took the princess' arm and tugged her out of the throne room and down the hall until he finally came to an empty reading room and pushed her inside.

They circled each other, the princess glaring even as the prince tried not to smile at how annoyed she looked.

"I feel like I should say first off that I have no intention of making you marry me, Princess. Not if you don't want to."

If it was possible her glare grew more pointed and she waved a hand at the cloak he was still holding. "If that was the case, why do that?"

"Just because I won't make you marry me doesn't mean I would gladly toss my life away."

"I wasn't going to let them kill you."

"No?"

"No." Her response was shouted and the prince realized, belatedly, that their voices had been rising since he had first spoken.

He took a beat and made sure his voice was under control before speaking again. "Why not tell me that then."

"And miss the look on your face when you thought you might be going to your death? I'm not as nice as all that." A smile twitched over her face with her words and he found himself letting out a laugh even as he took a step closer to her.

"So what now? It's obvious you don't want to marry and I couldn't possibly be the only person that can come up with a riddle you don't know the answer to."

The princess looked down at her hands, her fingers picking at each other in a nervous gesture. "You're wrong. I want to marry. I just didn't want to marry anyone who thought I was an easy prize."

The prince nodded and moved closer so he could study her down-turned head. "So you will start the contest back when I leave?"

"Or," she started then stopped and looked to the cloak, her teeth working at her bottom lip before she spoke again. "You could stay. The judge wasn't wrong about this making a nice wedding cloak."

He didn't respond right away and the silence stretched between them until the princess took a step back and looked up at him. "Just as a thought."

It made him laugh, a laugh that rolled up from his gut and burst out with enough force that the princess stepped back again. "I have a feeling, Princess, that if I stayed you would end up driving me insane," he finally said once the laughter had died.

"I won't lie to you, it's a very real possibility. Does that mean you're going to leave?"

The prince passed a hand over his neck and held the cloak out to her, their fingers brushing and tangling when she reached out to take it. "No, I think you're right. It would make a lovely wedding cloak and I would regret not seeing you in it."

And then he was laughing again and the cloak was crushed and forgotten between them as he leaned down and she reached up and their lips met in a kiss.

"And they lived happily ever after," Cullen shouted and Nell couldn't help laughing at the boyish smile on his face as he reached an arm up to pump his fist into the air. "I told you. I told you!"

"Yes," she laughed out and set her empty bowl on the floor. "You are brilliant."

"No, I just know you." He set aside his own bowl and half crawled across the couch until he could slide his arms around her and pull her into his lap. "As much as you hate to admit it you love me, and you would never have us not be together. Not even in a story about people who you keep swearing aren't us."

She forced herself to keep her face expressionless even as she drew her finger along the neckline of his shirt. "I like you well enough I suppose."

"You love me."

He looked so earnest, so sure and pleased, that she felt her face break into a smile and threw her hands up in annoyance. "Fine, yes. I love you. Happy?"

"With you? Always. I liked your story."

"I'm glad."

"You'll need to come up with another for me."

She pretended to think about it, her finger coming up to tap lightly at her chin. "Maybe Varric and I can come up with one for everyone to hear about a golden haired commander who likes to-" she cut herself off and leaned down to whisper the rest in his ear and then Cullen was standing from the couch and tossing her over onto the bed, and they were both laughing loud enough that the people in the courtyard below paused in their conversations as they tried to decide if the noises they heard were voices or just the wind.