"Gale, may I have a word?"

Gale looked up from where she was working to find Leliana standing in the doorway. "Of course, Sister."

"In private, if you could spare a moment?"

Gale nodded, giving directions to her staff before wiping her hands with a towel as she followed Leliana out of the kitchen. "Is everything alright?"

Leliana sighed, handing her a letter. "The scout I sent to bring the money to your father returned with this."

Gale opened the letter, reading through it- her heart sinking a bit. "Da..."

"The scout informed me that your father looked unwell and anxious. She also informed me that several men- nobles or wealthy merchants from the city by the looks of their attire- were harassing him."

"Those damned pigs..." Gale sighed, angrily, and looked up at Leliana. "How easily would it be for me to return to Denerim?"

"You would be missed, but it can be arranged." Leliana said, a mischievous gleam in her eye. "Or, if you would rather, I can have these men dealt with and someone stationed as a guard for your father's protection."

Gale shook her head. "I appreciate the offer, but I need to deal with this situation personally. Those men have been hounding my father for months, deepening his debt even further the moment he starts to pay it off."

"Then we can arrange an escort to accompany you. The roads are still a bit tumultuous; it would not be wise to travel alone."

"I can't ask anyone to take the time to come with me, Sister, there's still too much going on here that is more important than my own personal matters."

"I'll go."

Gale and Leliana looked up as Samuel joined them.

"Then it's settled." Leliana said with a curt nod, not giving Gale a chance to protest. "Gather what provisions you need for the journey and I will have someone ready some horses immediately."

Before Gale could utter a word, Leliana disappeared- quick as a shadow. "This is all unnecessary..."

"The Sister is right, the roads aren't safe to travel alone." Samuel said. "Besides, with horses, we can reach Denerim in half the time as on foot."

Gale sighed, looking up at him. "Why would you offer to come with me? We aren't exactly on the best of terms."

Samuel shrugged. "I overheard you talking and with repairs nearly complete, I can afford to accompany you. Besides, someone needs to look after you if bandits show up."

Gale glared at him a bit. "I'm not some damsel in distress that needs to be rescued. I can handle myself."

Samuel just turned away and started heading towards his own room. "Even so, I'm coming with you. Whether you like it or not, you're stuck with me. Now hurry up, we should get on the road while we still have daylight."

Gale sighed, watching him as he disappeared around a corner. "That man is so infuriating sometimes..." She turned to go back into the kitchen. 'And I was just starting to like him, too...' She gave directions to her staff, informed them that she would be returning home to Denerim for a time and would return as soon as she was able, then hurried to her room to pack her things. Having grabbed some of the extra food they had stocked in the kitchen, she wrapped the lot with cloth and tucked it into her pack along with a change of clothes. She grabbed her bedroll, strapped it to her pack, then shouldered it and headed towards the stables where the horses- and Samuel- were already waiting.

"Ready?"

Gale nodded, ignoring Samuel's hand as he offered it and climbing up into her saddle.

Samuel shrugged, mounting into his own, and took the lead as he urged his horse forward. With Gale quickly falling into step next to him, he made his way through the inner gates and across the bridge to the mountain road. He glanced over at Gale as they descended the mountain road, seeing the irritation she held for him dissipating and being replaced with worry. 'The situation must be much worse than it sounds for her to be this worried...' Returning his attention back to the path ahead, he urged his horse to a slightly faster gait. 'We should try to hurry, then.'

The whole trip would take a little over nine days from Skyhold to Denerim and Samuel was considering their best route once they reached Lake Calenhad. He sat on his bedroll, looking down at the map in the lamplight as it flickered against the tent walls.

"Samuel, what are you still doing up?"

Samuel looked up from the map and over at Gale, who had gone to sleep a few hours ago. "Just going over the best route once we reach Lake Calenhad."

Gale rolled her eyes, crawling out of her bed roll and over to him- pulling the map from his hands and rolling it up. "Let's figure that out in the morning over breakfast, alright? For now, get some sleep?"

Samuel sighed in defeat, knowing better than to argue with her- especially when she was tired. He lay back on his bed roll and stared at the ceiling of the tent as Gale blew out the lamp and crawled back into her bedroll. He closed his eyes, listening to the sound of crickets, the occasional owl, the gentle snoring as Gale fell back asleep. His eyes had finally adjusted to the darkness and he looked over at Gale as she slept, turned towards him.

'She looks so peaceful...'

He reached over and pulled her blanket up to her shoulder, then sat for a moment just watching her. 'Why did I offer to come with her?' he wondered, thinking back on what she had asked back at the keep.

Having grown up in a noble family, Samuel and his relatives never really knew what it meant to be poor or of a lower stature. Even while working as a mercenary, Samuel didn't have to worry about money. One mention of House Trevelyan, a flash of coin, was enough to get him whatever- and whoever- he wanted. So perhaps it was because of that that he wanted to help Gale out, as if to preserve what little she had and get a glimpse into what her world was like.

Sighing, Samuel went back to his bedroll and settled down as the pangs of sleep started pulling at him. 'Maybe I'll figure it out during this trip, whatever this feeling is...'