'Why the hell are they here?! This place was supposed to be safe!' It was all she could think about as she watched them from within the small house. Outside was the small smithy she had been spending the last few weeks building, just like the one her father used to run. She had barely begun putting out horseshoes and other bits when they'd showed up. Now all she could do was stay in her house and watch them tear it apart. 'Damn Templars… Damn war…' Her face must have showed her anger, because he noticed.
"As if you could do anything about it."
Lara turned and looked at the man standing beside her. He was in full templar armor, helm included, so all she could really see were his eyes. She hardly saw any emotion in them and his comment only caused her to roll her eyes. She glanced out the window to see one of the others kicking at the forge as if they could break it apart with force before she turned her eyes back to him. "As if I'm hiding a mage in the damn coals." She retorted, rolling her eyes yet again. "I told you I was hiding no mages, and you can plainly see I'm not. Just leave and let me get back to my business."
She had pissed him off. She could see the anger flash in his eyes before he moved. His hands lashed out and snatched her by her hair, yanking her to her knees with a snarl before her hands could even come up over his. She knew she could fight him, but she forced herself not to. Even as he dragged her out of the house and she struggled, she refused to actually try and strike him. He threw her to the ground by the forge as his two friends started back towards them, the other two grinning at the way she was being treated. "You think I care what you have to say?!" he said, launching a kick at her face with his armor plated boot, sending blood into the dirt. "Maybe I say you are hiding something, huh? Or someone? Who is going to disagree?! No one!"
"So? You going to tell me what happened?"
Lara had paused in her story to correct a soldier on his form, and couldn't help a laugh as she returned to the sidelines with Varric to watch the trainees. It was probably the third time the dwarf writer had stopped by her training ring to talk to her, and this time he had talked her into telling him how she was picked up by the Inquisition. "Well clearly I picked a fight, won, and someone saw." She replied all too simply.
Varric threw his hands up in mock exasperation and shook his head. "No, come on, details. The details are what make the story great, and what you're giving me is barely a summary."
Lara grinned and outright laughed, silently wondering when the last time was that she genuinely laughed like this. "You're the writer, not me, make it up." She grinned at him briefly before her eyes turned back to her soldiers. "Isn't that your method?"
Varric returned the grin. "Okay, you've been talking to someone haven't you? The grumpy Seeker?"
"No, like everyone else I just stare at her ass and hope she doesn't notice." Lara returned, shaking her head. "Hold on." She stepped around the fence again and walked right up to a pair of soldiers, suddenly reaching down and grabbing one by the back of their pantleg, yanking them down into the splits. The man yelped in pain, and Lara noticed Varric make a face out of the corner of her eye. "Yeah, screw up your stance, your jewels are at risk. Consider that a friendly warning. Next time I'll kick them myself." She told him harshly before turning away to walk back to the fence, snapping her fingers over her shoulder. "Again!"
"Damn!" Varric said as Lara approached him again. "Not even gonna let the poor boy get up, huh?"
Lara had a smart remark prepared in return, but she held her tongue behind her teeth and shook her head as she took up a place beside him again to watch her soldiers return to their maneuvers. "You know at some point you're going to have to tell me what suddenly sparked your interest in talking to me." She said instead.
"Eh…" Varric shrugged. "Let's just say the higher ups aren't… interesting. Well. They're boring."
Lara snorted and rolled her eyes. "Seriously? You're in the middle of all the names that are going to go down in history in this organization, maybe in the history of our world, and you're calling them boring?"
"Ugh, don't get me started." Varric shook his head, laughing briefly as he seemed to think over his answer. "I think everyone knows what I think of the Seeker."
"Yeah, that's common knowledge."
"Politics… Templars… do I really have to get into it?"
"Hm…" A strangely playful look crossed Lara's face for a moment before it turned into a smirk. "Get me a shot at the Commander and I'll let you out of the question."
"Cullen?" Varric asked in shock, laughing. "Unless you mean a shot at a spar I don't think I can help you."
"Do it, maybe I can kick his ass and get his attention that way."
"I'm not betting on you!"