The sunlight was unexpectedly harsh after the dim light of the hold. It took Nessa a little while to spot Teagan. He was seated on a crate, out of the sailors' way — hands clasped loosely before him, face into the wind and eyes closed. His nose and forehead were growing pink from so much sun. She supposed he was trying to soak it up while he could. If Anora decided to put him in Fort Drakon, who knew when he would see it again?

She went over and sat next to him. He opened his eyes slightly, nodding when he recognized Nessa, and then closing them again. They sat together in silence for a little while, each hoping the wind could clear some of their anxiety away.

"How is Alistair?" the Bann asked eventually.

"Better before I went to talk to him than he is now," she admitted. "He could probably use a friend, when you're feeling up to it."

"Poor Alistair," said Teagan. "His life has not been an easy one."

Nessa frowned.

"No, it hasn't. But these aren't easy times we're living in. You have to make a choice to pick up your burdens — they'll follow you whether you agree to it or not."

"I suppose that's true," said Tegan. He rose to his feet and walked away. Nessa sat in the sun and thought about her own burdens for a little while.

It was time to talk to Zevran. Whether he agreed to it or not.

Nessa searched the whole ship for Zevran and found nothing. She cursed him inwardly — stupid assassins and their stupid ability to hide in plain sight. After circling the entire ship three times, she knew she needed to change tactics. She pulled a page from his playbook, instead — grabbing an oiled rag and a whetstone, she planted herself casually in a corner of the passageway across from his cabin door. It was a not the best place to sharpen her blades – not only would anyone passing by trip over her, there was hardly any light — but she didn't care. If he wasn't hiding behind the locked door of his cabin as she suspected, he would still have to come this way eventually. She'd work on her blades slowly, by feel. It's not like she had anywhere else to be.

She'd finished her sword and was working on one of her daggers when his door finally cracked open.

"I will say this for you, my Warden; you are terribly persistent."

Nessa gave her dagger a last wipe with the rag before looking up, unable to keep the grin from her face. She set her things down on the floor and stood.

"I learned from the best," she said.

Zevran sighed and stepped out into the hallway.

"Indeed you did. Remind me to be more careful who I teach in the future," he said. "Now. You desire something of me?"

"Yeah. I…" She bit her lip. Now that she finally had his attention she floundered. She'd wanted to confront him, but it was hard to stay angry when he looked so tired and wary and utterly unlike himself.

"I wanted to apologize?" she said tentatively. "Again. I've done something to upset you, and I don't..."

She couldn't quite look him in the eye, and as her gaze wandered she noticed that part of his collar was folded under the neck of his shirt. She couldn't recall ever seeing him not perfectly put together. It made her oddly uncomfortable, and she stepped forward and reached out with both hands to ease it free. She folded the fabric properly back and pulled it straight.

But now that she'd touched him… she found it difficult to pull her hands away. She smoothed the shirt across his shoulders instead.

"What I'm trying to say," she said, forcing her eyes up to his face, "is that I miss you."

She was startled when he lunged forward. He'd never kissed her this way before – there was no gentleness, no tease – only teeth and tongue and fierceness. She clutched at his arms and kissed him back. Forget that there was little privacy on board ship, forget whatever may or may not have been going on with the captain, forget that they were blocking the sodding hallway. Who cared? He was touching her again.

"If this is what you wanted," he growled between kisses, "why did you not simply say so?"

She wasn't capable of answering. It didn't matter now anyway. She fell back against the wall, bringing him with her. He made a noise deep in his throat, and slid both hands down and around, yanking her hips up against him. She shifted, trying to find the perfect spot as their bodies separated and crashed together. One of his hands fumbled with the buttons on her shirt. She wrapped one leg around his, pulling him closer, trying to find the right angle.

"Someone comes," he said abruptly. He moved his hands back to her waist and pushed firmly; she obediently unwrapped herself and allowed him to step back. She gave a breathless laugh, and set about re-buttoning her shirt.

"To be honest, great as that is it's not exactly what I meant..." she looked up and found herself speaking to an empty corridor. "...when I said I missed you," she finished to the air.

"Pardon?"

Nessa turned to find Captain Rafi strolling down the hallway towards her, a slight smile on his face.

"Captain," said Nessa, blushing and hoping she didn't look as disheveled as she felt. "I'm afraid you've caught me talking to myself."

He chuckled. "I suppose we all do that from time to time."

"Apparently I do it more than I realized," she said with a tight smile. "Don't mind me, I'll just take my... one sided conversation somewhere else." She stooped hurriedly to gather up her things.

"My dear, don't let me interrupt you," he said with a wave of his hand. "I was simply looking for Zevran."

"Ahh," said Nessa, dropping one of her daggers. Stupid fingers. "So was I. I thought he might be in his cabin but..." she indicated the open door and shrugged. "Good luck."

She quickly gathered up the rest of her things and hurried into her own room, shutting the door tightly behind her.