Ellana scowled as she clicked the notification to open the chat log and send a reply. Her frustration clouded the ability to form a response, so she threw the phone on her bed. She was going to ignore it the meaning of the text. She had to. Solas had already planted temptation in her mind, and Ellana would not allow it to take over.

Muffled by the comforter, the text tone rang again. Ellana stared down at the surface of her desk until she was overcome by the need to see what the new message was. She flopped on the bed and unlocked her phone.

Solas – 1:50AM

I see that you read my message. Good. On nydha.

She let out the breath she was holding. That was it. No more texts that suggested she visit him in the dark like a creature of the night. No more reminders of how much she wanted fresh blood again. It wasn't as though she hadn't had it before – she had. It's just that it all felt different now. She felt like she needed it. Wanted it. The daily habit of drinking blood and eating specific foods always quelled her body's requirement for it.

Why was that changing?

Before the group could go forth and explore the leads Leliana had provided them, they were all instructed to go through self-defense training. Ellana was to go on each expedition, due to her hand, and she was required to at least have Iron Bull, Cassandra, or Blackwall accompany them on their trips.

Despite taking them, it was heavily insisted that the others go through training to learn the basics. It was highly doubtful that they would run into any significant trouble, but it was in the case that they came across any stubborn people working for the Black Divine.

For a week, the group attended these lessons. Not surprisingly, Solas and Varric were the best out of them. Ellana figured that they probably knew much of this already. In Varric's circumstance, she knew it was probably tied to his illegal businesses or something related.

Dorian, Sera, and her struggled. Many times they were flipped on their backs or landing harshly. Because this was expected of beginners, Cassandra and Iron Bull taught them proper ways to break a fall in order to minimize the damage of the impact. It took numerous mistakes to realize how important this was.

Aside from the bodily aches incurred throughout the week, it was growing increasingly tense between her, Dorian, Varric. The two of them hadn't said anything but small sentences to her, and even then they were extremely curt. Ellana didn't take it personal, though. She knew if she were in their position, she'd be the same way. Although this did end up bringing her, Sera, and Solas together as a group often.

Ellana learned fast that Sera and Solas did not get along. Sera would often mock Solas' cryptic statements, and he would become irritated at her demeanor. The good thing about their back-and-forth banter was that Ellana was often left out, meaning less awkward and vague conversations with Solas.

Ellana staggered into her room after the final day of training. Everything hurt. Cassandra was not one to hold back when sparring. Even though the Seeker looked innocuous dressed in sweatpants and a t-shirt, she most definitely was not. It was clear the Cassandra wanted people to learn from consequences. Ellana had failed to block a punch to her right side. The Seeker apologized but also explained how much worse the situation would be in real a situation, and that this accident would remind her to take more caution in the future.

She gritted through her teeth as she peeled off her clothing to take a shower. Against her own common sense, she turned the shower water as hot as she could handle. Ellana gratefully stepped in and allowed the water to run down her body. The temperature of it would hopefully soothe the mottled purple bruise that was forming. She leaned against the tiles, their slight coolness complimenting the heat.

After she finished bathing with care to not hurt herself further, she hurriedly got dry and did her post shower routine. Ellana reached out her left hand to grasp the corner of the sink when she finished dressing, and her hand flared brighter than normal. Everything momentarily swam around her.

"Fenedhis!" Ellana yelled and knocked a lotion bottle to the floor. Why wasn't she better by now? She didn't want to have to depend on others anymore, it was tiring. And irritating.

When she felt well enough, Ellana went to get her phone. The ends of her hair were dripping with water and soaking the back of her shirt, but she paid no mind. As soon as she made the first few steps, the world began to swirl again. Ellana made the decision to go as fast as possible in the hopes of reaching her bed.

Ellana's legs gave out a few seconds later but was close enough that the majority of her body landed on her comforters. Her breathing was now labored. What caused her to feel this way? Did she spend too long in shower?

She placed the crook of her right arm across her eyes and took deep, steady breaths. A few moments later she took hold of her phone and typed out a text.

6:15PM

I won't be able to join you for dinner tonight! Eat lots :)

Sera – 6:16PM

wha? no! ur leaving me alone with solas :(

Sera – 6:16PM

pls come

Sera – 6:16PM

pls

She laughed at the rapid texts, making her feel a bit better. As she began to type her reply, a call came in from Sera, Ellana picked up.

"Hey! Why aren't you coming to dinner?"

"Hi to you too, Sera."

"So?"

"So…"

"Is not answering questions a Dalish thing? Ugh."

"Sera! No, it's not, haha. I'm just not feeling too hot."

"What do you mean? You look fine."

"I meant internally, Sera."

"Oh."

Ellana laughed again before replying, "You'll be fine. Go talk to Iron Bull, I'm sure you two will get along."

"You want me to fraternize with the enemy?"

"The enemy?"

"He works for that stuffy Divine, the reason we're all here to begin with."

"I'm sure the Divine has her reasons."

"Yeah, and that's what I'm here to find out. Anyway, I'll let Elfy know why you can't make it."

Before Ellana could tell Sera not to say anything about her feeling unwell, the line clicked.

Once her discomfort eased enough, she threw herself into the paperwork at her desk. Leliana wanted everyone to discuss the first location that they should visit. So, Ellana studied the different options they were presented. The location that seemed the safest was Redcliffe in the Hinterlands. It had a wildly unstable past but was now a stable location known for its gentle wildlife and farming. Perfect. Scouring a farm was far easier than traveling to the Fallow Mire or the Brecilian Forest. Or Minrathous.

She wanted to be fully prepared for anything in these areas, so she dove into their history and conflicts. Ellana didn't want to be caught off guard again like in the catacombs. Through research, despite the fact that it wasn't well documented or taught to children, the catacombs were filled mostly with the bones of elves. Historians had theories as to which wars were responsible for the tombs, but the history of the area was too compacted to tell for sure.

Throughout their conflicts with humans, many elves were killed, and they needed a somewhere to place the dead. Because of the urgent situation and the growing number of bodies, they couldn't bury each and plant trees for them all. Underground was a good solution, especially because many of the tunnels were already created and abandoned by dwarves. Depressing stuff.

The lightheadedness eventually came back, and she found herself squinting at the papers in front of her. She checked her phone for the time. A little over half past midnight. Ellana stretched and went to grab a bottle of blood from the fridge. She had been lightly snacking throughout the night and hadn't eaten a full dinner. Ellana sat back at her desk and twisted the plastic cap and took a drink. She grimaced at the taste and instead of the normal head rush that occurred, a painful pang came from her left hand. The anchor fizzed in the silence of the room.

Was she unable to drink the blood? Impossible. How would it even be possible? Something like this had never happened to her and didn't happen at all to other elves. She had just drunk some this morning and she was fine. It tasted like it always had. In fact, she was with Sera at the time, and her left hand no reaction. What was so unusual about now?

Ellana unconsciously touched her bottom lip with her right hand. She recalled how good she felt when drinking his blood. How at ease she was. How natural it came to her.

She placed the bottle down at her desk and exited the room. There was practically no staff in the hall. She quietly tried to remember the path Cullen had taken. Ellana stopped at a door, the one she assumed was Solas'. If it wasn't, she'd have to create quite the excuse as to why she was visiting someone this late at night.

Her heart began to speed up ever so slightly. She knocked faintly. Perhaps there was a chance he was already asleep or didn't hear her. Then she could return to her room and suffer in silence. Yes, that would be the preferred alternative.

The door opened marginally, and Solas' voice said from inside, "Come in, Ellana."

She shut her eyes tightly. It was still an option for her to return back to her room. To ignore how bold she was being.

Her feet moved forward, and she pushed the door open with her left hand. In the darkness of the hall, it casted an aura against it.

She closed the door behind her when she entered. The only light on in his room was the small desk lamp. Solas was sitting at the desk and typing something on his laptop. He didn't turn to her or say anything. Did he want her to be the one to ask him? To initiate the action she came here for?

"Solas."

"Give me a moment."

He typed for a few more seconds then shut the lid of the laptop and turned his body to face her.

"I assume you are here because the supplements have been inadequate."

She got closer to him and slightly leaned in. "How did you know they would be?"

"It was an assumption that ended up being correct. Magic is not only drawn from the Fade, but from the person who casts. It would not be far off to think that your left hand is constantly doing the same to you, requiring your body to produce more energy to sustain it."

She harshly exhaled from her nose and stepped back from him.

Solas stood and asked, "Now, you are not here to learn about the Fade, are you?" The faintest smirk seemed to grace his lips.

"No."

"I thought as much," he paused and continued, "is there a specific area you prefer?"

She focused her eyes to a corner of the room, avoiding his gaze. "It doesn't matter to me."

"It should, some areas bleed faster or slower than others."

"Solas…please just choose."

He began to roll the sleeve up his right arm, and she saw a faint scar across the inner forearm.

"Is there anyway we can do this without leaving a scar?" She felt bad that he had one from before.

"The scar is my own fault, I cut too deeply. And it will eventually fade, it won't be permanent."

Solas opened a desk drawer and took out a pair of scissors and handed them to her, she simply stared at his hand.

"Take it. You will be applying the cuts to my skin; it will be easier for you that way."

Ellana wordlessly took the scissors. When he finished rolling the sleeve above his elbow, Solas sat back down and placed the back of his hand against his knee, letting her know that he was ready.

"Please, when you are ready. Remember, shallow cuts."

She stared at him sitting in the chair. To make the situation even worse, she would have to kneel in front of him. Between his legs. Of course.

As much as the thought of this would have embarrassed her, the need inside of her clouded it. She slowly kneeled and opened the scissors vertically. Ellana made a cut about two inches long near the inner forearm. As soon as blood surfaced, she brought her lips to it and licked it away. She softly sucked at the cut for a few seconds before creating another and doing the same to it. Ellana didn't register the sharp inhale Solas made.

She made another cut and her teeth grazed over the other two cuts as she focused on the third one. It tasted exactly as it did in the catacombs and gave a rush of adrenaline. As she drank, it gave almost a burning and tingling sensation inside her mouth. When the bleeding eventually lessened from the final cut, she gave them all a final lick and raised her head from his arm.

Ellana simultaneously turned away and covered her mouth with her left hand as her mind buzzed from the drinking. Her sudden skittishness disappeared when she realized her hand had stopped reacting. Instead of the glowing, fizzing, and pangs of pain, there was only a lightly colored streak on her palm.

"I will admit that I bended some of the truth," Solas began to confess as he walked to the bathroom to dampen a few hand towels.

He handed her one and resumed, "I can cast magic – some, that is. Although, not in the traditional way. I can only control a small amount, and that has to be through a form of blood magic. Because of the circumstances, extremes need to be taken for the smallest amount of casting."

"What did you do?"

"Healing. It is all I can really do, as it doesn't require to draw much from outside. Much it relies on the body of the injured. The majority of it is matter manipulation. Blood magic does not rely on the Fade."

"And you learned this through your travels."

"Yes. That and very old books," he chuckled. Ellana returned the bloodied towel to him and he placed them in a basket. He sat at the end of his bed while she sat in his desk chair.

"Give me an example."

"An example?"

"Of you learning something in the Fade."

"Do you ask because you don't believe me or that you are genuinely curious?"

"I'd say a bit of both."

"I appreciate your honesty in that regard. I'll tell you."

She motioned for him to begin.

"I assume you have been reading the reports and such, yes?"

"I have."

"Then I'm sure you've read about Redcliffe Village in Ferelden?"

"Parts of it. It's actually where I'm going to push for our first trip."

Solas nodded, pleased. "It's a good place to start. As you have read, it was a central location during the Fifth Blight. The village was completely ravaged by it. The townspeople fought with the Grey Wardens."

"Oh yeah, that included King Alistair's ancestors. I remember reading about the scandal when it was discovered that his family had direct ties to the historical Wardens."

"That is right. The hypocrisy is astounding from humans at times. The Grey Wardens are the most distinguished military branch, yet people would rather not have ties to them. Simply due to the group's history of protecting against darkspawn."

Ellana didn't reply, so Solas continued, "Anyway, darkspawn nearly took over the village. After the battle occurred, many people were grievously injured. Those who had large chances of survival were prioritized by healers from the Circle. In the echoes of these memories in the Fade, I saw how the healers strategically combined magic and the physical.

"Healing would not need blood magic then. The healers easily drew from the Fade and their own mana. They created currents of energy that they ran through the person's body. This allowed them to get a sense of what was occurring internally."

"Like an x-ray."

"Like an x-ray. I saw the healers argue amongst one another when they couldn't get a clear mental image, especially if there happened to be heavy internal bleeding. They applied those currents of energy to areas they knew they could provide immediately relief to, such as deep cuts or broken bones and bruising.

"They would direct the currents to a specific area and focus on stimulating cell regeneration. Just like doctors now, healers had extensive knowledge of the body, perhaps more so. If they were healing a stab for example, they had to have intimate knowledge of the anatomy. With magic they were able to perform surgery of sorts without tools. This only goes so far, though. Sutures, poultices, and the such were all still needed.

"I will admit, I am no medical professional. But what I learned from watching those healers, I was able to apply in a small way on you. I focused on your hand; it should hopefully give you less problems for now."

She sighed. "For now. That doesn't sound promising."

"Your hand will keep taking from you."

"And you're the only one that can help me." She rubbed her forehead in an aggravated manner.

"I would assume so."

"I don't trust you, Solas. Any of this."

"And I don't expect you to."

"Fine. You don't need to worry; I won't tell them about you being able to cast."

"Ah."

"Ah?"

Solas admitted, "Leliana is already aware. She is the only one, however. She understands the need of keeping something as important as this hidden. If I hadn't told her, I would not have been able to help them treat you."

"…And that is something else you lied about. You said you only provided advice."

"I omitted information, not lie. I did provide them with advice along with treating you myself."

Ellana examined Solas. "What do you get out of this? Out of all this?"

"Observation of the Fade and the Veil. To study your hand and how the magic bound itself to you."

"This, huh. Such a small thing causing so much trouble." She twirled her hand in the air in front of her face before standing and adding, "Well, it's late. I should get back to my room."

"That is a novel suggestion. Wouldn't want anyone getting the wrong idea."

Did he just make a joke? An inappropriate one at that? Ellana slightly pursed her lips in reply to his comment and returned to her room soundlessly.

The engine of the plane roared as Iron Bull, Solas, Sera, and Ellana boarded it on a bright morning. Cassandra and Varric were not eager to join them, and Dorian wanted to avoid her still despite his own curiosity. So, it was the four of them that were going to Redcliffe that day. Iron Bull made a joke about how they were the pointy ear group, eliciting a snicker from Sera and annoyance from Solas.

The private plane was spacious, which Iron Bull seemed extremely thankful for. They all sat in separate sections and accustomed themselves. The plane proceeded to take off in the process.

Ellana looked around and saw them settle in different ways. Iron Bull reclined his seat and opened up a file to read through. Sera placed her small digital camera to the side, plopped herself down, and was glued to her phone. Solas sat in his seat and opened the book he was reading; it was something about the dwarven myths of titans.

"Oh, you're wearing the silver plate over your eye patch," Ellana commented to him when she noticed it.

Iron Bull raised his head. "Yup. It also took you a while to notice."

"Did it? How long?"

"Little over a week."

She gave him a sheepish smile and ended the conversation there. Seeing Iron Bull and Solas read reminded her of Varric's book in her bag. They were all able to visit their residences before leaving to pack anything they may need for the trip. When rummaging through the counter's desk at her store, Ellana had seen the book and decided to take it with her. If she finished it, it could prove as an opening to speak with Varric.

Before she picked up where she left off, she sent a quick text.

7:17AM

Don't forget to lock up at the end of the day.

Merrill Mahariel – 7:20AM

Lethallan, don't you worry! I will take of it :)

7:21AM

Please also leave stuff in their proper place. Like, in the store.

Merrill Mahariel – 7:24AM

I'll put everything back in the cases when I'm done!

7:30AM

What? Merrill!

There wasn't another reply from Merrill, and Ellana rolled her eyes as she threw the phone in her bag. She tried to take her mind off what the elf was doing in her store and opened the book. Thankfully, because it was so far off from being published, the cover of the book was just a solid grey with no picture or text.

He gingerly caressed the soft skin of her chest, tracing the length of her clavicle and drew line down from the dip of her collarbones. He lifted the tunic above her head and stared down at her, pupils dilating in response.

"Aveline…" He whispered as he kissed her again, though not as passionately. Donnic slid her hair tie off and her hair spread out, creating waves of red.

Aveline traced her hands downward, resting them at his hips before she took off his tunic. They kissed again; bodies pressed closer together. She felt his need pressing against her, and their passion became chaotic once more. The rest of their clothing was soon discarded.

Intent on pleasing his hero, Donnic made his way lower, kissing the entire way down. A gasp came from Aveline when his tongue–

Nope.

Ellana momentarily forget where she was in real life and shoved the book in her lap, feeling somewhat flustered. To her relief, no one noticed. She decided to skip ahead a few paragraphs.

She palmed the area where–

Ellana didn't finish the sentence and turned the page.

Faster and faster until they–

The book was suddenly plucked from her hand, and Iron Bull was standing over her.

"What is it that has you making such a fuss over here?"

Ellana went to grab the book back from him, but he raised it above his face as he read. She uselessly attempted to get the book back.

"In the short time I've known you, I didn't peg you to be the type of person to read this."

"Bull, give it back to me. Now."

He looked at her and gave breathless chuckles. "You eager to get back to reading it?"

All the commotion between the two of them gained Sera's attention.

"What's going on over there? I want to know." Sera walked over.

Shock filled Ellana and she mouthed to Iron Bull to not tell Sera. Iron Bull then reached over Ellana and passed the book to Sera.

"Oh. Oh! Ellana, this is dirty. Nice," Sera exclaimed. She then giggled and went to where Solas was. He was ignoring the three of them.

As Sera snatched the book he was reading and placed Varric's book in his hands, she told him, "Try this instead, I guarantee it'll be more interesting."

Solas' eyes lazily skimmed over text before he asked, "Ellana, would you like your book back?"

Sera tried to get the book from him again, but he tightly held it until Ellana took it from him.

"Boring," Sera said as she returned to her chair. Iron Bull went to his as well and resumed reading his files.

Ellana sat and put the book away, but close enough that she'd notice if they tried to snatch it. It would probably be best if she didn't try to read the book in public again.