It's been a week now since recruiting Bull. I haven't spoken to him yet considering I had planned to help out some civilians in the Hinterlands, like now for example. But things are different, I don't know if it's the air or if it's just me overthinking things but Fen is quieter, more tired, more lost in thought. The others have noticed too, Varric was the first to spot it and when I spoke to him about it.
"I know that look," He sighs tiredly.
"That look?" I question quirking my head to the side, ignoring the faint chill of my spine from Haven's soft snow.
"Sometimes…Fen gets this look in her eye, the space look, she' lost in deep thought. Its best to give her space for now, if you approach she'll only distance herself even more and repair the wall she made around us," Varric sighs tiredly as I raise a brow at his depressing yet bitter happy tone.
"She's like a cat," I whisper.
"Yes, wary not that I can blame her," Varric sighs.
"Why?" I ask eager for answers.
"Sorry Bookworm, not my story to tell, but for now just give her space, she'll come around eventually. Looks like I got kitchen duty again," He grumbles as I merely sigh at the concerned dwarf trying to use humour to lighten the concern he has for his friend.
Silently, my foot brushes against the thin fibres of the greenery as we help find the map locations for these tall towers to help defend the farm, now that Dennet's on our side thanks to Cassandra, we are now helping out the farm, first with the locations markings of the towers then dealing with the wolves, attacking the farmer's produce.
"So who do you think is the toughest Josephine, Leliana or Cassandra?" Varric questions smiling at us as I raise a brow at the thought. Hmm, Josephine is defiantly out, she could hurt people with her words or political connections but not on her own physically, Cassandra and Leliana are both powerful but Leliana is stealthier while Cassandra is stronger…hmm.
"I'm right here you know!" Cassandra scowls at Varric who merely smirks in reply.
"That's doesn't rule you out Seeker," Varric snickers.
"If anything it's between you and Leliana," I encourage her smiling.
"Oh don't you get involved in this," Cassandra grumbles making me smile at the warrior.
"Cullen's not up for consideration," Solas smirks.
"Curly, they just keep him around to look pretty," Varric jokes bringing a groan to Cassandra a smile to Solas and a snicker from me.
"What do you think Fox?" Varric smirks turning to the quiet figure causing a few to frown and go silent when they find the white head not in sight. Panicked, I feel a wave of fear as my forest green eyes scan the hinterlands until I spot a familiar figure standing up with hide in hand, relieved I release a breathe of relief. Thank goodness…
"She's like a child," Cassandra sighs.
"Knowing her she would have a quip to speak of," Varric tries to be positive only to falter as Fen simply stares at the group, both tired and bored.
"He isn't wrong, but hey Cullen can fight, he was a Templar after all," I point out smirking.
"A violent one," Fen mutters making me pout at her uncaring expression as we continue walking.
"She isn't wrong besides this coming from the girl who has a crush on curly," Varric smirks as I feel a sudden wave of nervousness and my face turn ruby red
HUUUUH!?
"W-WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!? I barely know the guy!" I scream at him scowling.
"And yet I caught you drooling, staring at him through the window twice yesterday," Fen brings up.
"H-hey you said you'd keep that a secret!" I point out at the traitor who merely shrugs.
"Sorry about this Cassandra, but I think Leliana," I confess.
"Explain," Casandra raises a brow curious but I detect a sense of defensiveness in her tone.
"Well you may have your strength, but Leliana has experience, more knowledge than all of us, plus while you tend to fight with your brute power, you fail to notice rogues and Leliana is one who could use her shadow coat thing to turn inviable and stab you from behind," I explain as Cassandra nods, taking my words to use to improve in battle.
"You know Seeker, you never told Fen and I why you dragged us to Haven," Varric brings up as we continue our work on to the final post.
"I mean what could Fen and I have told the Divine that you couldn't say yourself?" Varric questions.
"I thought she needed to see the chest hair herself," Cassandra grumbles.
"What?" Surprised, Solas and I raise a brow at her mumbling while Varric frowns and Fen is well…Fen.
"Er…say again?" Varric frowns, his eyes glancing at the stoic Fennic.
"I thought she needed to hear it from the horse's mouth as it were. I also knew she would ask for both of your help, she also wanted to meet the famous Fennic Fox," Cassandra glances at the pair of them, a smirking Varric and silent Fen.
"You hear that Fen you're famous," I point out only to falter when I see her blink as I reach out to snap her out of it. Startled, she looks like a deer in headlights taking a step back.
"I…I see," Fen recovers pretending to have had listened.
"I'm going to go on ahead, find those roots or whatever," Fen grumbles as I frown.
"But we already have them," I whisper calling out her weakly only to release a heavy sigh at the clouded judgement of Fen…
"Varric how much longer do we have to wait?" I ask him making him stop in his tracks as he reliefs a heavy sigh.
"I don't know, it depends on her," Varric answers.
"We cannot have a distracted ally in our midst," Cassandra scowls.
"Agreed, she may need her space but still, perhaps there are other alternatives than becoming a zombie like state," Solas reasons and we all nod in agreement.
"Maybe I'll go talk to her…" I whisper nodding my head in conviction to the idea as we continue on in the Hinderlands…