There was a hurried kiss at the bottom of the stair and then Evelyn had exited the room before him, anxiously buttoning the sleeve of her jacket as she entered the main hall, Josephine pausing in her circular pacing to rush to The Inquisitor's side. "I am sorry, your grace. I was told you did not wish to be disturbed, but your brother is..."

"My brother is an insistent little shit, Josephine. I know."

"I would not have put it quite like that, but he was determined that I wake you."

Evelyn tightened the messy bun at the back of her head. "Where is he now?"

"The tavern, your grace. He's been buying rounds for the past hour."

Evelyn pinched the skin on the bridge of her nose. "Of course he has." She strode briskly toward the front entrance, Josephine hesitating for a moment before following. The door closed behind them and the hall fell into an eerie silence, leaving Solas standing alone.

With the commotion surrounding their guest now fully contained in the tavern and the area immediately outside it, he considered the pile of unfinished notes stacked on his desk, the various sketches of areas where more keystone shards might exist, the books with pages now covered by a layer of dust, neglected for so long. He stooped to blow across the pages of the closest, swiftly righting himself once more as the courtyard door sprang open. "Why on earth are you coming in that way?"

"Solas. I wasn't expecting you in here this early. I'd heard you were sleeping in." Dorian closed the door behind him. "I took the long way around, thought I'd enjoy the sun."

"You are returning from Iron Bull's room."

"Nothing gets past you!" Dorian skirted around the desk. "Not that it's any of your business, but the whole building was becoming a bit rowdy for my tastes. I'm rather surprised you're not in there." Dorian waited for a reaction, and receiving none, poked further. "Brother appears mysteriously, sister rushes to speak with him. I wonder, what could possibly be the topic of conversation?"

"I am working, Dorian. Whatever she has to say to her brother is none of my concern."

Dorian paused, his voice carrying an edge of disbelief. "You're serious."

"Completely."

"Oh come on. Not even you can possibly be this stoic."

Solas leaned back in his chair, fingertips pressed together beneath his chin. "And I suppose you would spy, were our roles reversed?"

"Absolutely. Without question."

"Well then," Solas leaned back over his book. "Very good luck for both Evelyn and myself that I am not you."

Dorian made a small sound of exasperation and headed for the stair. "You know," he said, pausing at the doorway, "we could just go down together, grab a drink. Have a friendly conversation in some out of the way corner and - "

"No."

"Fine. Be stubborn and remain in the dark about the forces conspiring against you until they're running you out the door."

Solas didn't look up, slowly turning a page. "They would not be the first to try."

The door slammed in irritation.