In a Hopeless Place

by Tihosra

The Temple of Sacred Ashes Has been Destroyed. All who attended the Conclave is dead. Only one being can help rebuild the Inquisition. Miklo Lavellan. She may be young but she is the Herald of Andraste and she will save Thedas and put a stop to Corypheus's plan of domination. FemLavellanxCassandra Pairing

14. Chapter 14

Dragon Age Inquisition: In a Hopeless Place

Chapter Fourteen

They returned to Haven the following night. Exhausted, Miklo climbed off of Kaliiou and hugged the large horse around his neck; simply resting her head against him when a tired chuckle came from behind her. She turned her head to see Varric beside her.

"I'm beat, gonna hit the hay. You know where to find me." He kindly patted Miklo on the back before heading to his sleeping quarters.

Solas moved to follow, "I am going to retreat as well. Good night all." Miklo gave him a tired wave and sleepily buried her face in Kaliiou's neck, smiling as he nickered contently.

A softer chuckle caught her attention, "Are you going to retire as well?" Miklo shifted her head to where it was still pressed against Kaliiou but was also able to see a tired but amused warrior.

Miklo let out a sleepy yawn, "Yeah, eventually…whenever my feet decide to carry me there."

Cassandra couldn't help but chuckle at the exhausted girl. She stepped forward, "Here." She held out her arm. She smirked as she watched Miklo look down at her arm and then back up.

"Wassat?" Miklo mumbled. Cassandra shook her head fondly and moved to wrap her arm around Miklo's waist, pulling her slightly away from the horse. "Let's get you to your house."

Miklo let out a tiny sound of protest but didn't fight to get away. She gently ran her hand down Kaliiou's nose, "Nigh buddy." She allowed the warrior to guide her She is sooo nice and warm. She snuggled into Cassandra's arm, burying her face in Cassandra's neck.

Cassandra flushed darkly at the innocent yet intimate action the girl bestowed upon her. This girl will drive me to insanity. They finally reached Miklo's hovel and Cassandra gently nudges the younger woman. Miklo lifted her head up and looked to see her door in front of them. She merely pushed the door open and Cassandra frowned, "You don't lock your door?" She helped Miklo inside and let go when the elf seemed steady.

Miklo hummed as she made way to her bed, dropping her daggers onto the floor, and promptly fell into the bed, "No…no lock…" She buried her face into her pillow for a moment and then popped her head up, turning to look back at the warrior still standing in the room. "Do you want me to walk you to your quarters now?" She asked as she sleepily kicked off her boots.

Cassandra grinned as she made her way to Miklo's bedside and grabbed her blanket, "No, I can make it there by myself thank you. Get some rest; I will meet with you in the morning." She gently prodded the girl to move and helped pull the blanket out from underneath her and placed it on top of her.

"Mmm ok…nigh night Cassie." Miklo finally succumbed to the darkness beckoning.

Cassandra shook her head fondly, "Good night Miklo." She turned to exit the hovel and locked the door behind her before making her way to her own sleeping quarters.

Several candlemarks later, the sun had decided that Miklo had slept long enough and made itself known with a violent beam of light right on the sleeping elf's face. Seeing bright red beneath her eyelids, Miklo began to stir and blink her eyes open. Instantly regretting it as the light caught her in the eyes. "Noooo…go way." She whined as she turned to bury her face into her pillow. She sighed happily as the evil beam of light no longer pierced her eyes when she felt familiar feeling building in her bladder. "Ah…why?" She huffed as she rolled out of bed. Blinking the sleep away she made her way to the lavatory to relive her bladder of its burden.

A few moments later she lay back down on her bed hoping to catch a little bit more sleep but found herself now wide awake. With a annoyed sigh she got back out of bed and decided to go take a swim in the lake to help wake her body up a bit more. She gathered her red tunic, underclothes, and her bath towel and made her way out to the lake. A few citizens greeted her, to which she politely smiled and waved back.

Finally reaching the lake, she looked down at her silver tunic and decided to leave it on, "It needs to be washed anyway." She shrugged. Dropping her towel and tunic onto the pier, she ran and jumped into the lake. The chilliness of the lake shocked Miklo's body and mind into full awareness. Shivering, she swam over to the other side of the lake as her body slowly adjusted to the water's temperature. Reaching the pier, she paused a few moments leaning against the wooden structure. As her brain finally decided to function a little faster, a thought hit I snuggled Cassandra! "Oooh that's not good. Whyyy?" She cursed herself. But she was so war- no! No more thoughts! She smacked herself in the forehead. "I'll just apologize, no biggie.' She nodded to herself.

Deciding to head back, she turned and began to swim back across the lake, enjoying the burn she felt in her arms. As she reached the other dock, she pulled herself up and grabbed her towel, running it over her face and through her hair. Wrapping the towel around her, she looked over at the training camp to see the soldiers hard at work training. Shrugging, she made her way over to the stables to get dressed and greet Kaliiou.

"Hi sweet boy," She called out to the horse. The chestnut stallion nickered at her in reply, nodding his head. She walked up to him and placed a sweet kiss between his eyes. "Do me a favor…Stay right there and don't move okay?" She asked. The horse whinnied and Miklo moved to stand behind him. She gazed around for a moment before throwing her towel over the stall railing and quickly changed out of her wet clothes and into her dry ones. She threw the sopping tunic over her towel and moved in front of Kalliou, "Thanks for the cover, I'll come back in a while with an apple for your helpfulness." She rubbed her hand up and down his neck and then kissed his nose once more. She gathered her wet items and made her way back to her hovel.

Pushing open the door, she threw her towel over the chair by the washbasin and draped her tunic over it. She ran a brush through her hair and was slipping her boots on when a knock came on her door. She looked up at the door, "Come in." She looked back down to finish tying her boot.

"You should really consider locking your door." Miklo looked up to see Cassandra standing in her door way. She couldn't help the smile that came over her face.

"Eh I think about it every now and then and then I decide not to worry about it." Miklo chirped back.

Cassandra rolled her eyes with a small grin on her face, "Suit yourself, did you get enough rest?" She couldn't help but ask.

Miklo looked up at the warrior and gave her a sweet smile, "Rest yes, sleep never. After all this mess is over I'm going to hibernate."

Cassandra chuckled, "That's fair."

Miklo finished tying up her boot and stood up, "So I suppose we should meet with the counsel now?"

Cassandra nodded, "I was on my way there and I figured I would stop by."

"Alright, let's see where we are going next." Miklo replied as she walked towards the door. When Cassandra merely raised an eyebrow at her, she answered. "What? They always send us out somewhere, wouldn't be surprised if they did again." She closed the door behind her as they headed towards the Chantry. Okay now apologize for treating her like a stuffed toy. "And you, how did you sleep?" That wasn't an apology.

Cassandra glanced at the elf and smiled, "Like a rock, I suppose I needed it more than I thought."

Miklo giggled as she opened the Chantry door and gestured for Cassandra to go through first, "I know the feeling." Now apologize she thought as she followed Cassandra inside. "So about-."

"It's good you've returned." Josephine had spotted them before they even made their way to the war room. "We heard of your encounter."

Miklo and Cassandra exchanged a look, "You've heard?" Cassandra asked just as Miklo noticed Leliana and Cullen approaching.

"My agents in the city sent word ahead, of course." Leliana replied as they stopped in front of them.

Cullen frowned and crossed his arms over his chest, "It's a shame the templars have abandoned their senses as well as the capital."

Miklo sighed, "At least we tried and now hopefully we have an idea on how to approach the mages and templars."

Cassandra glanced at her, "Do we? Lord Seeker Lucius is not the man I remember."

"He was an ass!" Miklo blurted out. Cullen smirked while Leliana raised an eyebrow and Josephine hid a giggle with a cough.

Cassandra however looked shocked, "Miklo!" She scolded as they all began to make their way towards the War Room.

"What?! He was!" Miklo protested.

"True he has taken the order somewhere, but to do what? My reports have been very…odd." Leliana mused.

Cullen hummed, "We must look into it. I'm certain not everyone in the order will support the Lord Seeker."

"Or the Herald could simply go to meet the Mages in Redcliffe, instead." Josephine piped in.

Cullen whirled around to face her, "You think the mage rebellion is more united? It could be ten times worse!"

Miklo groaned, "Okay bickering is not going to help matters, we need to just make a decision."

Cassandra nodded, "I agree."

Josephine pointed out, "We shouldn't discount Redcliffe. The mages may be worth the risk."

"They are powerful, Ambassador, but more desperate than you realize." Cassandra stated.

Miklo turned to face her, "Do you think Fiona's invitation could be a trap?"

Cassandra nodded, "If some among the rebel mages were responsible for what happened at the conclave…"

"The same could be said about the templars." Josephine finished.

Cullen rubbed the back of his neck, "True enough, right now I'm not certain we have enough influence to approach the order safely."

"Then the Inquisition needs agents in more places. That's something you can help with." Cassandra added.

Josephine nodded, "In the meantime, we should consider other options." With that Cassandra, Josephine, and Cullen all parted ways.

"Wait, what?" Miklo started as she watched them walk away. She sighed and scratched the back of her head when she noticed Leliana hadn't left and was approaching her. She felt a slight trickle of anxiety go down her spine, as the last time they were alone they had gotten into an argument.

"There is one other matter." The redhead stated her blue eyes meeting Miklo's green. "Several months ago the Grey Wardens of Ferelden vanished. I sent word to those in Orlais, but they have also disappeared. Ordinarily I wouldn't even consider the idea they're involved in all this, but the timing is…curious."

Miklo nodded, "That does sounds off, I agree."

"The others have disregarded my suspicions, but I cannot ignore it. Two days ago, my agents in the Hinterlands heard news of a Grey Warden by the name of Blackwall. If you have the opportunity, please seek him out. Perhaps he can put my mind at ease." Leliana advised.

Miklo was slightly hesitant, "And if he can't?"

Leliana replied, "Then there may be more going on than we thought."

"Okay, yeah we can go and seek him out." Miklo said reassuringly. Leliana nodded in response and took her leave. Miklo sighed and paused Why were we heading for the War Room if no one was actually going there? She shook her head and turned to leave the Chantry. Lost in thought, she absentmindedly pushed open the doors.

"Excuse me?" Miklo jumped as she took in the sight of a lone soldier standing just outside the chantry doors. He looked slightly apologetic, "Sorry, I've got a message for the Inquisition but I'm having a hard time getting anyone to talk to me."

She took in the sight of the young soldier; he looked to be at least a few years older than her and had short cropped brown hair with warm hazel eyes.

Miklo nodded, "Can I ask who you are soldier?"

He nodded, "Cremisius Aclassi, with the Bull's chargers mercenary company. We mostly work out of Orlais and Nevarra. We got word of some Tevinter mercenaries out on the Storm Coast. My company commander Iron Bull offers the information free of charge. If you'd like to see what the Bulls Chargers can do for the Inquisition, meet us there and watch us work."

Miklo was surprised, "So wait your group wishes to join the Inquisition?"

Cremisius grinned and nodded, "We're the best you'll find. Come to the Strom coast and you'll see us in action."

Miklo grinned back, "Alright, give us a few days." The soldier nodded and saluted before taking his leave."

"Herald." Miklo jumped again and turned to see Cullen behind her.

"Cullen, what can I do for you?" Miklo asked.

The ex-templar rubbed the back of his neck, "I understand you already have your hands full, but I wondered if you could assist me with something?"

Miklo frowned, "Of course, how can I help?" Cullen gestured for her to walk with him as they headed towards the front gates.

"I've sent a group of soldiers to the Fallow Mire, to stake out some resources but it has been days and I haven't heard from any of them." Cullen answered. "I have heard from Scout Harding and she said she hasn't heard from them either but that there is a group of Avaar warriors skulking about. They have something to do with my missing patrol." He paused, "If you can go to the Fallow Mire and find them, I would appreciate it."

Miklo nodded, "I can try, I don't want to make you any promises that I will find them but I do promise that I will at the very least find out what happened to them." She reassured him.

Cullen smiled slightly in relief, "Thank you, whatever you need don't hesitate to find me." Miklo grinned and nodded, playfully saluting the other blonde. He saluted back and went back to the training grounds. Miklo looked up at the sky noting it had to be at least midday by now. A low grumble came from her stomach and she giggled, "I guess it's time to eat." She made her way to the Singing Maiden tavern, waving to some of the civilians walking passed.

Reaching the tavern she pushed open the door and was greet with the sound of Maryden's lovely voice, crooning. Miklo grinned and walked over to the bar, waving when the bard caught sight of her and smiled.

"Hello Lady Miklo, your usual breakfast?" Miklo turned to face the Innkeeper behind the counter, a kind young lady who always had a smile on her face.

Miklo beamed, "Hiya Flissa, yes please!"

The Innkeeper chuckled and nodded. "I will have Dolyn start on it right away." She turned and walked over to the kitchen door and yelled, "Dolyn! One ram and cheese toastie with a snowberry cider."

"What?!" A male voice called out and Flissa sighed. Miklo giggled as she watched Flissa roll her eyes and enter the kitchen. She shook her head and turned away from the bar. She spotted Sera sitting at a table in the corner of the tavern, listening to Maryden. Deciding to go make nice with the other elf she headed over and paused at the table, "May I sit?" She asked.

Sera looked away from the Bard and grinned up at Miklo, "Go for it." Miklo sat down. "So this is it, huh?" Miklo shot her a questioning look. "Oh no it's fine yeah? It's just I thought it'd be bigger." Sera laughed, "Pfft, that would've been hilarious if you were a man right?" Miklo titled her head in confusion. "Wasted, anyway stopping wars should earn more sovereigns than this. Need things to go back to normal for coins to be flowing again. Another reason for the mages and templars to be sat down."

"I'm pretty sure the conclave proved it wasn't that easy." Miklo pointed out.

Sera protested, "Yes it is."

Miklo shook her head, "No not really."

Sera frowned, "Why not? Because someone yelled it real loud? Make them prove it, they're too busy to look up where the real questions are."

"Well that's why we're here, to help guide everyone back from the brink." Miklo replied.

Sera smiled briefly at that, "The religious ones tell you that? That's important right? But it doesn't make it all about that." Her smiled turned into a scowl. "Seems like believing too hard is what's got everyone here. And here is stupid and smells of horse. Really, what everyone needs is to get everything back to normal and proper and profitable." She smirked, "Sound good to you, all touched Lady Herald?"

Good grief the mood swings on this girl Miklo thought as she gave Sera a little grin, "Well I'm ready to give it a shot the question is…are you?"

"I'm in, its an investment yeah? Better pay off too, stupid war and…everything. I had things to do." Sera replied.

"Here you are My Lady" Flissa placed Miklo's food in front of her. "Do you need anything else?"

Miklo smiled sweetly, "No thank you."

Flissa smiled back, "Okay dear, let me know if you need anything." She turned to head back to her counter.

Sera looked down at the other girl's food, "Is that a toastie?"

Miklo picked up her toastie, which happened to be a slice of ram meat and cheese between two slices of bread. "Yup." She went to bite into it but paused midway. "Want some?"

Sera shrugged, "Sure why not?" Miklo grinned and pulled the toastie into two pieces, remembering her manners she politely handed over the slightly larger half to the other elf. Sera bit into it, "Mmm you're a right one you are." She pointed at Miklo, to which the other girl merely grinned as she bit into her own half. They ate their pieces in a comfortable silence, which surprised Sera. She assumed that the Herald of Andraste would be really 'Elfy' for her to be able to really get along with, but this one seemed alright, not too 'elfy' at all.

As she finished off her food, Miklo took a good swig of her cider and stood up, "Thank you for talking with me Sera but I have a few things I need to run around and do."

"Sure sure." Sera replied with a grin, "Go do your thing."

Miklo grinned back and picked up her plate, taking it over to the bar. She waited patiently for Flissa to acknowledge her before she placed the plate onto the counter along with a few silvers.

The innkeeper smiled and walked over, "Anything else I can get you?"

"Can I get an apple please?" Miklo reached into her money pouch and placed a few coppers onto the counter.

Flissa chuckled, "Keep your coin, it's an apple." She pushed the coins back to the elf.

Miklo shook her head, smiling as she pushed away from the counter, "Keep the coin anyway."

Flissa sighed but accepted the coins before retrieving an apple, "Stubborn one you are, here you go."

"Thank you!" Miklo replied, grabbing the apple and headed out of the tavern. She made her way over to the stables and greeted her horse once more. "Hi handsome boy, I brought you a treat." Kaliiou whinnied and happily munched on the apple Miklo held out to him. She waited patiently for him to finish eating before she began her regular routine of brushing him.

"You know, this reminds me of an old friend of mine." Miklo admitted. Kaliiou's ears flicked in her direction as he listened to the girl speak. "He was kind, patient, very clever, I called him Alcairn. He never liked to play with the other Halla but he would always let me goad him into playing with me. Halla are not meant to be ridden, not like the wonderful beasts like you." She giggled as the horse lightly nipped at her hip before allowing her to continue her brushing. "But he would always let me hang all over him. All of the Halla were really sweet and gentle, but he was so stoic when I first started tending to him. Once I got him to let me brush him, he became such a softie. He eventually learned how to play nice with the others and actually sired a little one of his own, Manwe." Miklo finished brushing and wrapped her arms around Kaliiou's neck, she kissed him on his nose, "Turns out, you're a huge softie too."

There are still things that need to be done and decisions that need to be made but right now…well right now I just to stay right here for a little longer.

A/N: Imma be honest with you guys…I have I ginormous crush on Jennifer Hale…and Claudia Black. Every time I hear their voices, especially Commander Shepard and Morrigan…*sigh*.