Disclaimer: The characters and plot are owned by Bioware and EA.

Author's Note: Man this chapter was a pain in the butt to write, because it was essentially me writing a thesis as to why Blackwall should be freed. I am no expert in law but I like to think I know enough about logic to make this a valid argument. Anyway, what we got in the game was entirely unfulfilling, treated like any other two-bit minor antagonist instead of "Holy Andraste, this is our companion who has been lying to us this entire time and did really sketchy things in the past!" Because it gets so drawn out, I figured both the reader and our Inquisitor would need a break, so you get a bit of Cole dialogue to help break it up. Here we go...

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"For judgement this day, Inquisitor, I must present Captain Thom Rainier, formerly known to us as Warden Blackwall." Josephine's voice echoed off the stone of the main hall. On cue, two guards dragged the seemingly lifeless man down the center aisle, his shackles clanking with each step. They stopped before the throne of the Inquisitor, who picked a spot just over their heads to focus on so her discomfort would not be noticeable. With a final shove, they pushed him before her and stood back. He only hung his head. "His crimes…well, you are aware of his crimes. The decision of what to do with him is yours." Bowing respectfully, she withdrew, leaving the Inquisitor, her lover, and every eye in the room fixed on them.

It would be a drama for the ages, or so the nobles in attendance thought, something to describe in great detail to their friends back home, a great piece of gossip. The leader of the Inquisition somehow handed one of her own inner circle for judgement… They could smell scandal; certainly some strings had been pulled to achieve this fortunate turn of events for Thom Rainier. Would she handle herself with dignity and pass fair judgement or blatantly flaunt a disregard for justice in favor of her subordinate?

The advisors and inner circle had other thoughts. Every one of them was curious, if not anxious, to know what their headstrong leader would do with their fellow member, fallen from grace. Though most did not realize the extent of their relationship together, it was understood that they had something going on between them, adding to their nerves. Cassandra, Josephine, and Cullen in particular looked like they would be physically sick and were standing on pins and needles waiting for her to say the wrong thing. She did her best to ignore them. Leliana, Vivian and Solas could not be read, their faces devoid of any emotion. That was almost equally unnerving, the cold looks they radiated. The Iron Bull, Sera, Dorian and Varric looked concerned for her, and had some equally concerned glances for him as well. As for Cole, who knew where he was? Probably floating around there somewhere reading people's thoughts…

She took a deep breath, sat up straight, folded her hands in her lap, and began the seemingly impossible task. "As per court procedure, the accused is allowed to say a few words on their own behalf before we begin sentencing."

"I deserve death," he stated simply, staring into the floor, then nothing more.

"A heavy statement, one the court should devote to memory. We'll get back to that in a second. To be efficient, we'll start with the earliest charges and work our way forwards through each offense until a final verdict is given. The Court of Orlais saw fit hand you over to us, and I intend to do right by them for their trust in the Inquisition. Let's begin with the Calliet incident.

"For those in attendance not familiar with the crime, Captain Thom Rainier accepted a sizeable sum of gold from Ser Robert Chapuis to have his men murder General Calliet and his guards. Chapuis hoped to gain the favor of Duke Gaspard by killing one of Celene's loyal supporters, and so commissioned the hit. Here is the first mistake in the entire ordeal: you do not hire a military captain to kill your enemies. Had he been playing the game correctly, an assassin specialized in hits would have been called in, and quite honestly, no one in Orlais would have been in such an uproar over the crime. It was unprofessional for Chapuis to use the route he did, and it resulted in the unintended deaths of Callier's wife and children along with his own. In a respect, the heart of the crime rests with Chapuis, who committed suicide shortly thereafter."

Before the crowd could react to this analysis, she quickly continued. "Of course, Rainier has a great deal of guilt in this affair, though the murder does not rest squarely on his shoulders. The crime specific to him is taking money in an unprofessional and under-the-table manner to do a job he had no business doing and was not capable of doing cleanly. A man of his profession and rank should never have gotten involved, and he disgraced his office by doing so. The punishment for this misconduct is clearly dishonorable discharge from the military of Orlais. As it stands, this has already been carried out." As the first sentencing was concluded, the courtroom buzzed with chatter. The Inquisitor had essentially given him a free pass while assigning the bulk of the blame on Chapuis for the death of the family? The few Orlesians in the crowd did shake their heads in understanding; they were all too familiar with the game, and her logic made sense to them. Even Josephine had to acknowledge her leader's insightful interpretation of the situation in Orlais, and silently praised her for using it to Blackwall's advantage.

He was frustrated along with the Fereldens in the room. As he had told her in the prison, game or no game, getting involved with killing Calliet was wrong and evil. The lenient sentence was a joke. "But I…!"

"Silence!" she declared, glaring at him. "If you are not pleased with the lack of severity in the verdict, you can just wait; there are plenty more charges to address, Thom Rainier." He growled and continued staring at the floor.

She cleared her throat. "The act which he committed brings us to a more serious charge: treason. He acted against the Empress Celene when he agreed to murder one of her supporters, directly opposing the military which he was sworn to serve. In most cases, this would be a very cut-and-dry case of instant death. However, in the unusual circumstances of the Winter Ball of Halamshiral, Gaspard very nearly wrested control of Orlais from Empress Celene. Rainier could have thrown support with him in hopes of earning pardon, as his crime was carried out in support of Gaspard. However, he took up a sword along with a select group of Inquisition Circle Members and prevented the death of the Empress with his own two hands, drawing blood from her enemies to keep her alive and on the throne. This demonstrates a clear regret, and a making of amends for his past action against the throne. While we of the Inquisition may be rewarded for the part we played, he shall receive no special payments or privileges with the rest of us; his reward for his service to the throne of Orlais is his life." This at least made more sense for all of the people gathered. It was a stretch, and they wondered what she would have done if Halamshiral had never happened, but it did no good to speculate.

Her collected expression began to darken. "Perhaps the most heinous of the crimes we will describe today in court is the next: the betrayal of the men under his command, letting them take the fall for him. They were not told of the circumstances behind their mission, they simply carried out their orders unknowingly. When the truth came out, Rainier was long gone, leaving his men who had sullied their swords with the Calliet family's blood to answer for the crime in a society desperate for justice. Though they protested they had not known, they were tried and executed all the same without his confession. Even more so than the family's blood, it is his soldier's blood that stains his hands." For the first time, she grew silent. Muttering could be heard from the nobles, and everyone within the Inner Circle who knew her and knew him held their breath, wondering what verdict she would pass on this.

Having refocused her thoughts, she breathed deeply. "Dying is easy. You remember how quickly he requested it when given a chance to speak? That is because as long as he lives, he hurts. He feels the guilt weighing on him. He understands the gravity of his crime and believes there is no way possible to atone except for his life. Living takes courage, and as we all know from his actions, Thom Rainier was not one for courage. Now I assure everyone, if this crime were committed with the deliberate intention of seeing them die, a pre-mediated murder, I would never let him see the light of day." Her eyes grew hard and her frown severe. "But what led to their deaths was not ill-will, but cowardice, fleeing from responsibility. Recklessness, thinking he wouldn't be caught." She steadied herself. "Most of us here know how justice finally caught up with him, and while it may be convenient for us to forget, the truth of the matter is that after living his life running away like a coward, he finally showed bravery when he walked into Val Royeaux and stopped the execution of one of his remaining soldiers. There is hope.

"Most everyone in the room will wonder then, if he does not die, how will the deaths of his soldiers be avenged? When I say everyone, I mean everyone, right down to Rainier himself." She looked him square in the eye for the first time, and it took all the strength she had. "Adding corpses to the pile does not make anything better, or equal. Neither does running free. Neither does rotting in jail. Lives cannot be replaced. But, meeting every one of those families that you tore apart, telling them the truth, letting them curse you and beat you, showing them just how sorry you truly are… that may be the only way for them to heal, and it may be the only way for you to heal as well. It is going to hurt like hell, but it is the only true justice there can be. In addition, for loss of primary breadwinners for these families, he will need to make financial reparations. We will discuss those specifics a bit later. Right now, I declare a ten minute break. Have him escorted to the war room to wait, please." With that, she rose, and with as much composure as possible despite how shaky she really was, she exited the main hall for her quarters, leaving a stunned audience.

As the soldiers led him away, he could hear the talk already starting. "I knew she wouldn't sentence him to death. How can she justify letting a monster like that live?" "I don't know, she justified it very well. If she has bias, she's not letting it show in her thought process…" "But she can justify a means to the end she desired. She won't allow him to die!" "I heard the Empress herself allowed the Inquisitor to hold this trial; surely she wouldn't do that if she knew the Inquisitor was not going to be fair…" "Everyone is corrupt! The Inquisition is no better than anyone else!" And as he walked, he felt the eyes burn into him, filled with contempt, though a few held pity. His face did not turn red for himself though, it was only for his lady who was sticking her neck out for him. She really was doing a good job of appearing in control, of making every decision seem logical and fair, but he knew why she had called the break: she was losing that control as she discussed his crimes. He wasn't a very religious man, but he found himself praying to the Maker, Andraste, anyone who would listen, that she would not burn herself trying to save him from the fire. Not for scum like him…

On the other side of the door, she sat on the stone steps and took several deep breaths, nearly losing tears in the process. She knew it was going to be hard, but this…this took superhuman strength. She had spent the past week, ever since she had met with Celene, contemplating which crimes to accuse him of and how to sentence him, not to mention how to validate her decisions. She poured over his case, researched Orlais and the game for precedents, even flipped through Skyhold's copies of Andrastrian scripture for ways to back up her decisions. She had never researched anything so thoroughly in her life; it was one thing she could not leave to instinct. More than anything now, she was tired. She was trying to carry out her duties like nothing had happened while also devoting her every other waking thought to Blackwall and how she could save him. And no matter what she said, all he kept saying was that he deserved to die. Why did she even bother?

Suddenly, a gentle voice began to chant: "Exhausted, spent, no room to think, no room to cry. What for? Why should I care? I could just give him what he wants, but I don't want that. I want him. I shouldn't…"

"Cole…" she warned, rubbing her head. "I don't need this right now…"

"Why? Why does she kill herself over me? I want her safe, I want her to smile like she did in the moonlight surrounded by hay. Let go of me so you can be happy. A lady shouldn't cry for me."

She looked up at the form materializing beside her. "Let me guess, you've been poking around in his head too?"

"Not poking, prying, the thoughts scream out at me, like a speech meant to be heard. The feelings are strong though the words won't be spoken."

"It's a real mess, isn't it?" she sighed, fidgeting with her hands.

"A tangled mess, but the knot at the center is strong and the two ends will not be pulled apart. He loves you, and you love him. Everything else just gets in the way, but every tangle is unraveled with patience."

"You make it sound so simple…" she murmured.

"It can be as simple or as complicated as you decide it should be," he nodded, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I want to make people happy. I want to make you happy. But right now I think the only one who can do that is him."

Finally, she gave a small smile. "Oddly enough, you are actually helping, Cole. Thank you. Though…" she paused in thought, "…if you could peer into other people's thoughts, that means you knew who he was all along. And you didn't say anything?"

"I talked to him about it, but I don't talk to other people," he said seriously. "Just like I haven't told anyone that you…"

"Ah ha ha, that's enough Cole, I get it," she held up her hands. "I feel violated somehow, but at least you keep it to yourself. Thanks."

"Of course. Now, are you ready to finish? The hardest part is done."

"Yes, I suppose I am. Let's go."

She pushed open the door, finding Cole had disappeared into thin air once more. All heads snapped in her direction, watching every move she made as she calmly sat in her throne once more. "Bring him back out and we will finish." A soldier in the audience nodded, entering a side door, and reappearing with his fellow guards and the prisoner. This time, instead of looking down, he looked at her, worry evident on his face. She gave a brave smile before turning her attention back to the crowd.

"We will now move on to the issue of Thom Rainier's false identity as Warden Blackwall. To begin, I must inform the court that I personally went to an unmarked grave on the Storm Coast escorted by Thom Rainier himself where I observed the remains of several darkspawn and a single human skeleton. I did not know it at the time, but now I realize that this was in fact the real Warden Blackwall, evidenced by the Gray Warden badge found buried in the grass near the bodies. This matches the story Rainier gave me in prison regarding how he came to meet the good Warden and how Blackwall died. I tell the court this to clarify that Gordon Blackwall was NOT murdered to assume the identity, but rather died in the line of duty with Thom Rainier present, as he was to be recruited.

"How do I know the recruitment part of the story is true? There may never be proof, but to me, why else did a single Grey Warden and an uninitiated member battle darkspawn? To receive the blood necessary for the Joining ritual. In that sense, Thom Rainier's claims to be a Warden were only partially untrue. He learned the more basic truths of the order from Blackwall, and went to get the blood for the Joining. The only reason he did not officially become a Warden was due to Blackwall's unfortunate death. He could have gone to Weisshaput, but would they have taken his word to have been recruited? Would they have assumed guilt in Blackwall's death? He put on the armor and left the site of the attack a Warden in spirit at any rate. This is further evidenced by the speech he delivered to the Wardens at Adamant; upon hearing his words to them spoken like a true Warden, many lives were saved as they turned away from their erroneous actions. Perhaps the Joining is a mere formality. It gives powers and weaknesses, but if the heart is in the right place as it clearly was, well, who's to say he wasn't one?

"Now, undoubtedly some people will. This organization will have to deal with our apparently invalid demands for reparations using Warden contracts we assumed we could have due to our "Warden" member of the Inquisition. It will be a sticky situation to handle every group who provided goods in good faith. We can only hope they see reason for donation, being that the sky is currently being torn apart by rifts, but if they do not we will have to pay them back or get permission straight from Weisshaupt for the contracts. This will be a huge headache for Josephine, and any wrath she or the groups we got contracts from will be incurred on Thom Rainier as they see fit. In the meantime, for waving around a title never officially given, Thom Rainier will need to communicate his use of the title and his actions while using it to the officials of the order in Weisshaupt. Any punishment they see fit will be awarded by them.

"And lastly, the using of a false name. It is an interesting case. Most often, stolen identity is used to take goods illegally or ruin a reputation. Neither holds true in this case. Thom Rainier hid behind the name but did not slander it, only added to the good reputation of the original owner who had died in battle. It was a lie, one that has injured our organization to the core." She looked around at her advisors and teammates, who despite whatever viewpoints they held all nodded in agreement. "It injured the very reputation of our organization. However, the fact remains that as far as lies go, it was not done out of malicious intent. The lie was in words, but in action and deed he never did wrong by us, only stood and defended this organization. Due to lack of any slander, subterfuge, or any ill-intentioned action associated with the false name, it really is not a matter to be tried in a court of law. Amends for the deceit will be handled on a personal basis. Until amends have been made to all parties injured by the deceit, he is removed from the inner circle of the Inquisition and demoted to base rank." At that she shot him a pointed look, causing him to bow his head meekly.

"In conclusion, the man known as Thom Rainier has in many respects already died. Cowardice morphing to courage. Selfishness into selflessness. Lies turning to confession. Arrogance now self-depreciation. A long road still lies ahead, but he will walk that path to make amends for his crimes as he has already begun to do. I understand how many here today struggle with this verdict. Perhaps you were one of those personally wronged by this man. If that is true, there are two things you need to keep in mind." Slowly, she rose from her throne, meeting the hard gaze of the entire room.

"The first is that the Inquisitor herself was once a hardened criminal before receiving Andraste's mercy. I would hope you see the change between then and now as I work to live a better life, one of service to others." Many in the crowd were not shy about whispering commentary in front of her face at this admission. Her advisors were clenching their hands and grimacing; this was a subject they had purposely tried to gloss over when talking about their leader, the Herald of Andraste. She ignored them, and looked right at Rainier. Her next words left him shocked, eyes wide. "Second, you should know that I take full responsibility for my verdict today. The guilt will be mine for any further crime he commits and punishment will be handed to me alongside him if he strays." Her gaze went back to the crowds, now gaping as well. Her advisors more accurately were about ready to pass out from dismay. "This is how firmly I believe in my rulings. Now, court is dismissed. Guards, release him."

She did not stick around to hear the talk, nor to see him released from his chains. Just as before, she ducked into the hallway leading to her quarters. It was finished, and now she just needed time to think. After all, there was still her personal trial left…

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Author's Note: I absolutely HATED how he brought up their relationship in the middle of that courtroom. No way he would embarrass the both of them like that. In my version, he is definitely going to wait until they are alone to discuss personal matters (and Maker knows they have plenty to discuss there...).