A/N – Sorry to interrupt but a quick clarification is needed before we go on. I have changed the in-game romance somewhat – in two ways specifically. First, I added scenes in my imagined version and so, that is also true in this. I think I mentioned an additional scene ages ago (like chapter 4 I think) but there is quite a lot that I created to amuse myself. Not sure what I will include but there will be some.
Second, a factor of it that always bothered me was the timing – all a bit fast for my tastes and not unavoidably given that the majority of what they discuss in the dream sequence relates to things that happened right at the beginning of the game so it could, in theory, be much earlier on. With that in mind, I always changed the timing in my imagined version and thus that is true in this story. The dream sequence in my version occurred while Haven still existed (never bothered with the semantics of precisely when but I was probably going for around the time you properly start doing either the mage or Templar quest) followed later but still in Haven by an added scene that you will get a piece of below. Second in-game scene (the balcony) occurred very shortly after they reached Skyhold and so on. Hopefully that makes some sense.
Second point - We are reaching the depths where I am going to have to start abandoning some of the established lore in favour of my own. Some of these have lore-based justifications and others, not so much. I want the story to go a certain way and to achieve that I have had to make some presumptions and form my own opinions about things that are not explicitly stated and thus I will very likely be proved entirely wrong. This is not that much of an issue now but it will be going forward. I say this just so I can iterate clearly that I know some of this does not tie in with the lore. Hopefully that does not bother anyone and you can just enjoy it for what it is but if it does, I am sorry for that.
Solas never looked happier than when he was explaining something. It was thoroughly distracting for Ellana; an adorable sight that made an inexorable warmth rise inside of her. What he was saying was certainly interesting but even still she started to fidget, legs moving uncontrollably against her chest. It was a pleasant feeling, the Fade allowing her the lithe form she had before pregnancy but still unwelcome. She clutched her knees tighter in the hope that he would not notice her lack of attention but by acknowledging it, she just drifted further. Her eyes glazed, vacant smile fixed as she watched him.
"Ellana!"
The sudden change in volume jarred her away from some pleasant thought about the angle of his jaw. She shook her head slightly in surprise as Solas looked on, no longer amused.
"Are you paying attention?" he asked with clear annoyance. "You were the one who wanted to do this and you are not even listening!"
"I was listening!" Ellana interrupted desperately, dropping her knees to her side. "It's just…" she looked away and her cheeks turned rosy "…you're so distracting!"
He stared blankly at her until it dawned. "I am distracting…" he finally repeated, lack of amusement betrayed by a half-smile. "Is that supposed to be some sort of joke?" She looked away, reddening fully. "What could I possibly be doing that is so distracting?"
"Everything! All of it!" she cried in a flustered voice. A full smirk formed across his lips. "That! Stop smiling!"
"Stop…being…happy?" he uttered looking decidedly smug.
An unwelcome shiver ran down her spine. "Oh gods, even smug you turns me on," she lamented.
Solas just laughed. "If you are so…distracted…perhaps we should call it a night?"
"No! I am listening!" she argued desperately.
The smug smile came back. "Is that so? Well, if you were listening then you will have no problem repeating what I just said?"
Her expression dropped. "I…uh…" she struggled as he looked on, amused once again. "…something about emotion and magic...and fuel? You definitely mentioned fuel…"
"Yes. Literally the least you could have taken in beyond nothing but…accurate," he said, sighing as he brushed a hand across his head. "I think we should give up, vhenan, you are evidently not learning anything…"
"No! I'm trying! I will listen, I promise!" she interjected as she rose to her knees.
Thoroughly enjoying her pleading stare, he made her wait a little longer than was really necessary. Finally he pried her hands from his legs and took them in his own.
"Fine but you had better listen," he remarked before releasing her hands and lying back on the grass with a dull thud.
Ellana leaned back on her hands and curled her legs to the side. "I promise."
"As I was saying," he started no longer visible lying back but clearly still annoyed. "Emotion is an essential but often misunderstood component of all magical talent. It is similar to the fuel for a fire in that an amount is essential but the specific amount has to be disciplined - too little and the fire goes out…"
"Like in those that are made Tranquil?" Ellana asked, shuffling herself slowly closer in an attempt to see more of him.
"Yes, to a degree. Too much and the user runs the risk of losing control. That is why so many homes are burned down as a result of enraged young mages accidently using their talents for the first time," he went on.
Ellana could picture the self-satisfied grin he almost definitely wore but still could not see it. She damned her random but unstoppable desire of late as she tried as hard as she could to focus on his actual words.
He kept on going, seemingly oblivious, "The Chantry recognises this to some extent but in their typical way they demand complete control; a goal no free-thinking being can achieve." He let out a long sigh before sitting up. "The reality is actually a lot easier than they make it seem. It is just like any other discipline."
Ellana's brow furrowed. "Well no, it's not really the same, is it? Having that much control over something as natural as emotions is surely far more difficult?"
"Hardly," Solas remarked with a laugh. Her look of mild hurt made his soften. "It is like breathing, vhenan. Something so natural; a part of you that you cannot deny but yet one can still control it. Just as you could take a long breath, you could also will yourself to feel a strong emotion. You do it when you fight, do you not? Force a sense of calm to maintain focus."
"You mean through imagination? Like if I was to think of a time you seriously pissed me off and nothing else?"
Solas's expression dropped. "Not the example I would have used but yes, that is essentially what I mean." He regarded her for a moment before lying back down. "Try it."
"But it won't work for me…I am not a mage," Ellana replied with a doubting stare.
He shrugged against the grass. "You never know."
Still wearing her scepticism, Ellana outstretched a palm. She decided on a suitable memory contrary to what she had proposed – the time she had been happiest. She closed her eyes as she became lost in the memory. Joy flooded her, rising in her chest with uncomfortable ease. She opened her eyes to the sight of an orb of light dancing in her palm and let out a gasp. Solas suspiciously remained on the ground despite her obvious surprise but she was entranced, too much so to notice. The wisp of light danced about her palm and then went out. She let out a dissatisfied whine but as she did she caught sight of another glimmer of light – right where his eyes likely were. Before he knew what was happening she was on top of him, pinning him to the floor.
"That was you!" she yelled. "Here I was thinking I had just discovered some profound magical talent and it was you all along!"
With a smug smile painted on he waited beneath her for the tirade to end adding, "That was for not paying attention."
In response she let out an angry noise. "I was trying to, you twat, but it's not my fault you are so damn enticing! You are the one who made me baby-free with your Fade-Walker ways! What is that supposed to make me think?!"
He laughed. "Maybe if you thought about that a little less you might learn something." Ellana let out an angry scoff. "If the Fade would allow me to mould your focus…"
"Yeah, well, it doesn't without ruining me so you will just have to deal with it," she interrupted.
He smiled up at her. "I would be lying if I said that truly bothers me."
Taken aback her gaze softened and she loosened her pinning grip. "See, that's exactly what I'm talking about," she said bringing a hand to graze his jawline. Solas's eyes widened slightly as her lips drew closer to his. "You are just too…"
He moved his head to the side at the last second and her kiss fell uselessly against his cheek.
"Do I need to remind you what happened last time?" he remarked.
Ellana sat back up. "No, you don't." She giggled mercilessly. "That desire demon got really in to it." Solas glared at her from below. "And watching you get rid of it was hilarious."
"It was not!" he contended huffily.
"It was. In my personal opinion you should deal with all demons naked but who am I to…"
To her surprise he kissed her, cutting her off mid-sentence. Even once he had pulled away the intensity of it left her speechless.
"That was a private moment between you and me and I would hope it remains so irrespective of how 'hilarious' you found it," he said sternly. "This is the Fade, vhenan; this is where I am in control so you are going to be a good girl…" Ellana nodded along hopefully, loving where this was going. "…and wake up."
Just like that she was unpleasantly torn from the dream. Realising what had happened she let out groan of disappointment and shoved Solas's arm at her side.
"You are such a bore!" she whined, shoving him again as he woke.
"Sometimes I have to be," he added, rolling on his side to face her. "I prefer the real you anyway."
"I'm too big out here! I'm never comfortable in the real world!" she whined. She looked up from her position lying back on the pillows but could no longer see him. "Solas, where have…" The feeling of a warm hand against her inner thigh cut her off with a surprised gasp.
"I relish a challenge," he said, now a voice beneath the covers.
Ellana hurt all over. They had been standing around going over the plans for the forthcoming battle for less than an hour but for her, it felt like an eternity. In terms of execution it all seemed simple enough but success was another matter entirely. To win they were relying on Dhaveira and Ellana had made little progress on that front. Worse even than that, current estimates suggested they were going to be outnumbered to the point of absurdity and thus the expressions around the table were unsurprisingly grave.
"Are we all clear?" Solas finished, the only one who appeared at all confident.
Each individual nodded in turn. When it came to Ellana she only just managed to join the tradition, worry and physical pain making a haze of the world around her. With little more than a couple of weeks to go until the date they were to meet on the battlefield she had already heard the plan so many times she had lost count. It was brilliant, as she had come to expect, but it still amazed her that Solas never seemed to tire of discussing it. Even more so, given that he devised it before they had even met with the Inquisition.
"Then with that understood we all have work to do," Solas continued, shooting her a worried glance. "Any queries refer to your designated Commander."
He did not wait for anything further, turning away and taking Ellana by the arm. He sat her down in his office as their people filed out.
"You seem so sure about this," she remarked quietly, not wanting to show any weakness to the others.
"It does not matter if it is one man or ten thousand they are still just men," he replied, the ghost of a smile forming slowly.
"One man is far more easily influenced than thousands, Solas," she added.
"Not if that one man is brave but put brave men amongst cowards and even they can be influenced."
He was right but even still she remained sceptical. "And what if the majority are brave? Your plan rests on the presumption that most people are cowards or at the very least fools…"
"And they are, hence the plan," he retorted in a slightly annoyed tone. Coming to her side his expression softened. "Even if the core principle fails, we can still out-manoeuvre them. Fear not, vhenan, I would never allow any harm to come to you."
"It's not myself I am concerned for," she said, shifting uncomfortably in her seat. She let out a groan as a spasm ran through her back. Mercifully no one other than Solas remained to see her pain. "In my entire life I have never been this uncomfortable!"
"I know, vhenan," he comforted. "You are fit to burst. Will I fetch Mirwen?"
"What is she going to do? Talk the baby in to coming out?" Ellana replied with misplaced anger. "She already told me there is nothing to do but wait." She rose carefully from the chair. "It doesn't matter anyway; I need to go and see Dhaveira."
Solas grabbed her arm as gently as was possible. "You are not going anywhere."
"Everything rests on this, Solas!"
"I do not care," he interrupted sternly. "My first concern is you and at this time I will not allow you to undertake anything more than rest."
Her face turned red with anger. "Allow me?!"
"That is what I said," he replied, not giving an inch. Leading her by the arm in to the bedroom he went on, "You know perfectly well that you will not make it that far alone so you do not have a choice." Conceding his point she stopped resisting and allowed herself to be led to the bedside. "Now lie down and rest. If you would ask anything of me I will gladly oblige but understand that you are not leaving this tower until you are able."
"I am perfectly able!" she tried but the look he gave her quickly put a stop to any more argument. She sat down reluctantly on the bed.
"Good," he said, relief flashing briefly over his features. "Would you like me to draw you a bath?"
A hesitant smile formed across her lips. "Would you have time? You have so much to do and I…"
"Consider it done," he interrupted, moving straight in to action with his own smile. "But you are not to move from that spot until it is, do you hear me?"
"I hear you," she mumbled as she pushed herself back on the bed and arranged the pillows behind her. With the sound of splashing water in the background a yawn escaped her. "Thank you, my love."
He emerged from the adjoining room replying, "Knowing that you are well is thanks enough…" but tapered off at the sight of her fast asleep.
Ellana was aware that she was dreaming and with Solas nowhere to be seen, it was a first. The area around her was barren but familiar and a green tinge seemed to cover everything, the mark of the Fade. In front of her lay the only distinguishing feature - a small lake. She willed herself to move but no matter how hard she tried her legs ignored her every attempt. As if the dream could sense her futile efforts, a figure on the opposite side of the lake suddenly appeared out of nothing. She peered across and recognised it as Solas seated on the ground and staring in to the waters. She tried with everything she had to call out to him but her body remained ever silent. Black liquid rose up from the lake but even as it reached out to pull him in, he remained unaware. Panic rose within her as she fought fruitlessly to cry out and warn him. As the darkness seemed poised to drag him into the depths, screams sounded in her ears so loud that she could do nothing but cower.
Seconds later she woke up in a cold sweat. Dark as it was, the familiar sight of their shared room still brought her some comfort. Reaching out in to the bed beside her she felt the reassuring warmth of Solas sleeping next to her. She let out a sigh of relief but it was short-lived as a dull pain rippled through her. She grasped on to the sheets and cried out. As the pain subsided she finally felt the wetness beneath her, clearly more than just sweat, and suddenly it dawned.
"Solas!" she shouted out in a panicked voice.
But it was not loudly enough; he barely even stirred. She sat up and turned to shake him. That at least earned a dissatisfied groan.
"Solas, you better wake up or I am going to make you regret it!" she yelled as she shook him more vigorously.
He swore loudly in his mother tongue before turning fully to face her with eyes still scrunched shut in denial. "I am awake! What could be so important that…?!"
"I think the baby is coming!" Ellana interrupted but before she could explain another pain took over.
His eyes snapped open. "What?!"
No reply came other than pained moans. With a flick of his wrist a small blue flame erupted in the air to cast light on the room. He took a moment in his sleepy haze to study Ellana's wriggling form and the clearly soaked sheets.
"Solas?" Ellana asked uselessly, the pain finally having abated once again. His face was completely drained of colour, eyes wide but eventually he seemed to notice her speaking.
"I should get Mirwen and the girl," he finally stated, getting up from the bed in a panicked rush.
"Solas, wait!" Ellana called after him.
He had left the room in a matter of seconds but the sound of his racing feet came to a sudden halt and his ashen face appeared back in the doorway just as quickly as it had left. Ellana pointed in his direction as he gazed at her, uncertain.
"Clothes!" she prompted with a smirk.
Once he had dressed, Solas had rudely woken both Mirwen and Firanni. The commotion woke others and by the time they had assembled in the tower he could hear the mutterings of a crowd forming down below. No doubt the rumour mill was working to keep them informed but either way he did not care. All he cared about was Ellana. Mirwen looked on as he paced about the office waiting on a verdict. At long last Firanni emerged from the bedroom still looking sleepy but undeniably pleased. Abandoning his normally composed appearance, Solas rushed to meet her.
"It is time!" she remarked with a hint of excitement. "From what I could feel the baby is the right way round so it should be a smooth birth…"
"Good…good," he muttered before moving to pass her in to the bedroom.
To his surprise, the girl stopped him with a hand, "Our clan's traditions dictate that the birthing room is no place for a man…"
An amused look overcame his features but the girl kept stern. He glanced back at Mirwen with disbelief.
"Your traditions mean little to me, girl," he replied derisively, staring down at her hand still unwisely touching him. "I will be by her side when our child is born but you are welcome to try and stop me if that is your desire."
Firanni removed her hand and he pushed past her with ease. Mirwen let out a groan and started over but Firanni was relentless.
"I will not lend my aid to someone who abandons tradition so readily," she replied.
Solas came to an immediate stop.
"As is your right," he began, rounding back to her with a cold stare. "But I must warn you, if anything were to happen to her or my child as a result of your absence… Well, you can imagine how I might …"
Mirwen reached them before he could finish. "Firanni will remain and lend her aid in whatever way she can," she said, planting a hand firmly on the back of her First's neck.
Solas took a step to the side so the Keeper could lead the girl through the doorway. To his amusement he could hear the old woman muttering quiet reprimands as they went. Face whiter than he had ever seen it, Ellana lay on the bed with a worried look. Clearly she had realised they were having some sort of issue but luckily for him she must not have heard it. He knelt at her side and eagerly she took his hand in hers.
"All is well?" she asked weakly.
Up close he could see she already looked exhausted, droplets of sweat falling readily from her brow.
"All is well, ma vhenan," he uttered quietly just as Firanni joined them. Mirwen's dressing-down must have worked because she no longer looked peeved. Solas turned back to Ellana. "How about you?"
"Hurts like a bitch but I'm surviving," she replied, still managing a weak smile. Her expression quickly turned worried. "They said it's going to get worse..."
"I know, vhenan," he interjected apologetically. "But I am here for you. Whether you are crushing my hand, swearing at me or just need reassurance, I am here."
From the end of the bed Firanni let out a quiet scoff but no one other than Mirwen paid her any mind.
"Thank you, my love," Ellana whispered.
The two gazed at one another until Ellana's face contorted in to one of pain. She clutched at his hand but he was too concerned about her to notice the hurt. In the periphery of his awareness he could hear their two attendants arguing.
"It is too dark, I cannot work to my best under these conditions," he heard Firanni complain.
"You will do as you are told," Mirwen stated in response.
The pain having lessened Ellana released his hand from her grip, panting from the effort. Solas tore his attention from her to take in the room. To give the girl her due it was the middle of the night and light was hard to come by. He turned back to Ellana.
"I will be right back," he said, relinquishing her hand to the bed.
Using his now free hand to steady himself he rose from the bedside to open the curtains. With only the moon in the night sky the act alone offered little help. From the doorway to the balcony he gestured, eyes a glow, and out of nothing veil fire burst forth. It built and built, hanging like a sun over the balcony, light pouring in to the room and across the valley. Once the illumination had reached even the gasping crowd gathered below he stopped and wandered casually back to his place at the bedside. Both Mirwen and Ellana gazed at him with amusement.
"Will that suffice?" he asked earning a dumbfounded nod from Firanni.
"Show off," Ellana remarked with a proud but tired smirk.
Ellana had of course heard babies cry before but never had it made her feel like this. Long ago her mother had warned her that there was nothing in this world that could come close to having a child but, too young and headstrong, she had just dismissed it as typical parent talk. How wrong she had been. The moment she heard her daughter cry out for the first time something shifted inside of her. It no longer mattered that she was exhausted, in pain and struggling. Nothing mattered other than the tiny creature making that cry. All too quickly they took her from her. She could not fathom that it was only to give her a clean; she just knew she was gone. It was Solas that brought her back, a tiny bundle in his arms. Ellana did not know it but at that moment she was crying along with her daughter. Aware of nothing but the bundle, she could not see the fear in her lover's eyes as he placed it in to her arms. It cried out, skin red and wrinkled; a tuft of silver hair tickling against Ellana's chin.
"Hey…" she whispered, her heart rising in her chest. "Hey, little one. It's alright…" Gently she ran her thumb across the tiny thing's head, feeling the soft, wrinkled skin beneath. "Mummy's here."
The cries became less frequent, more controlled as Ellana kept stroking her head. The baby opened her eyes and for the first time Ellana gazed down in to them, grey like hers, knowing that her mother had spoken the absolute truth.
"She has your eyes," Solas commented, observing the now quiet baby cradled in her Mother's arms.
Lying against his chest Ellana lifted a hand, fluttering her fingers and bringing the baby's focus to her. In the morning light she could see every detail including the flecks amongst the grey.
"Then what is that? Lilac?" she questioned with a gesture to the child. She brought her palm up over her shoulder to touch his cheek. "That is not me, my love."
"Parts of us both then," he conceded with a smile that she could feel beneath her fingers. He chuckled. "She certainly has your hair."
Ellana turned up to him with a smirk. "No doubt about that, is there?"
Before she could laugh he planted a kiss on her lips. She lay back against him, stroking the baby's silver hair as she had been for hours. Over the time sounds had come from outside the room but both had been much too distracted to pay them any mind. Unfortunately it was inevitable that they would have to face the world eventually.
A disgruntled shout broke the blissful silence, "For fucks sake it's been four fucking hours! It's a baby! How long do they need!"
The door opened slightly but was quickly closed again from the other side. Angry muttering followed. Ellana let out a long sigh.
"Your public is waiting," Solas remarked with a hint of amusement.
Ignoring his mocking she fluttered her fingers again. "It's not me they're here to see, is it?" she replied focused on the baby.
Carefully Solas dislodged himself from behind her and got up. He stopped abruptly at the side of the bed and knelt down to touch the child's hand, too fixated to leave entirely.
"Can we come in yet?" asked Lis's quieter voice from beyond the door. "I'm not sure we can keep Shivra out here for much longer…"
Ellana's eyes met Solas's and he nodded.
"Yes, come on in!" Ellana exclaimed excitedly.
Commotion erupted beyond the door and Solas rose to his feet at last.
"I'll give you a minute," he said with a somewhat forlorn expression.
He got out of the way just in time as her friends careened through the door. Not unlike if she were something dangerous they stopped a distance away from the baby, all turning surprisingly hesitant. They gathered at Ellana's side just as Solas wandered off in to one of the adjoining rooms. Lis, closest to the front, let out a small gasp.
"Ellana, she is beautiful," she uttered.
Lori shared in her awe. "Look how cute!" she purred to Lis.
Shivra jostled to the front of the pack.
"She's so wrinkly!" she remarked, smiling happily until Lis elbowed her in the ribs. "Ow! What was that for?!"
"She is not wrinkly, she's gorgeous," Lis replied in a breathy tone. She turned her full attention to the little one. "Aren't you just beautiful? Yes you are!"
"She is, isn't she?" Ellana replied, unable to wipe the smile from her face. "Would you like to hold her?"
Lis looked up at her with sudden nerves. "I… Hold her?" Ellana nodded reassuringly. "I…I would love to."
Ellana lifted the baby off her chest and reached her out towards her apprehensive friend. Behind them, Ellana could see a not so subtle Solas keeping an eye on everything from the doorway.
"Place her against your arm, like this," Ellana instructed as she handed her daughter over. It was strange how unnatural it felt. "Yes, make sure you are supporting her. See? You're a natural!"
Lis jumped as the baby cradled in her arms let out a tiny noise. She looked up at Ellana with worry but was met by a reassuring grin. She gazed down at the little one and slowly tears welled in her eyes. Even Shivra stayed silent.
"She is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen," Lis uttered.
Droplets started to fall from her eyes, too weighty to bear. Ellana reached out and touched her arm knowing that Lis cried not for Ellana's child but in mourning of her own.
"I'm going to need some help to look after her. She's going to need her Aunty Lis when Mummy and Daddy can't be around," Ellana said quietly. Lis met her with a disbelieving stare. "Do you think you could help me?"
Lis gazed back down at the child and then back up at Ellana. Finally she nodded, tears left as only stains upon her cheeks. In the background Solas was by the door again smiling proudly at Ellana.
Her friends did not stay long after that. Each one took a turn holding the child, even Shivra but after all the glad tidings were said they all finally filed out one after another. Solas practically skipped back in to the room as they departed, sitting down on the bedside eagerly. Ellana doubted the baby could actually recognise him but it certainly seemed like she did, letting out a soft sound as he neared.
"Yes, my darling, that's your Daddy," Ellana murmured. Carefully she placed the tiny girl in his arms. She looked in to Solas's downturned eyes. "Your Father."
Solas stared down at the baby in silence.
"Lis had a child, didn't she?" he finally asked as he kept his forlorn look perpetually down.
Ellana was slightly taken aback but nonetheless impressed by his perception. She considered for a moment whether it was appropriate to share another's dearly kept secrets.
"Yes…well…more the promise of one," she started carefully. "But the chance to meet her child was taken from her."
Solas kept his gaze fixed on their little one, dozing off in his arms but for the briefest of seconds' unbridled rage flashed across his expression.
"That is horrifying," he finally uttered. He turned to Ellana. "It cannot diminish her loss but, if it would help in any way, I would have no objection to her spending as much time as she wishes with our little one." He turned back to the baby, brow furrowed.
"I'm sure she would appreciate that," Ellana replied softly, love for him feeling like it may burst free from her chest. She moved closer on the bed, arms wrapped around his neck from behind. "What about you? Is your resolve holding up?"
A light laugh escaped him. "Honestly, I do not know. It is just so…"
"Overwhelming?" Ellana interrupted with a smile.
"Indeed." He kissed her on the cheek before turning his attention back down to their sleeping daughter. "What I do know is that there is nothing I would not give for her. What that means for…well…for all of this, I could not tell you. I want her to have everything and lose nothing…"
"Even if that means you have to lose everything?" she interjected.
He turned to her, look utterly resolved. "Yes. There is nothing I would not give."
"Good. I'm glad to hear it," she replied, breaking eye contact. "I could not bear the thought of anything happening to her."
He looked down on her again, "I agree…"
"So, promise me…" Ellana interrupted, hand forcing his chin to the side and his eyes to her. "Promise me you will not let anything happen to her, no matter what may come."
Beneath her determined gaze something in his eyes faltered. A glint of sadness formed just as he looked away.
"I promise you, vhenan."
"Well now you're just being unreasonable," Ellana uttered in exasperation as her baby kicked out yet again. "How am I supposed to dress you when you're being like that?" As though replying, the baby let out a loud grunt. "Fine, if that's the way you want to be then Daddy will just have to try, won't he?"
Holding the baby up against her shoulder she made her way in to the office.
"Still fighting?" Solas asked, not looking up from his desk.
"Like a damn warrior," she replied. Handing the little one over her eyes fell on two familiar items on his desk. "Are those sending crystals?"
In Solas's arms the baby stopped struggling entirely and he dressed her with ease. Finally he looked up at Ellana with a self-satisfied smile.
"Yes, they are. You have knowledge of them?" he replied sounding somewhat surprised.
"Some, I guess…" She trailed off as Solas started playing with the baby, a far too adorable sight to ignore. Perching on the desk to his side she joined in. "When Dorian left for Tevinter he gave me one so we could always reach one another."
He stopped his games all too suddenly. "And when you departed? What happened to it then?"
"I left it behind with everything else. It is probably still there I imagine," she replied, undeniably hurt by the reminder. "Anyway, that's not the point; why do you have them?"
"Is it not obvious? They are a means to project sound over great distances and thus a perfect solution to our dragon calling problem. Although a useless one if your theory proves correct."
"Okay…that would make sense if we were two people but how exactly are you going to teach a dragon how to use a sending crystal?"
"I am not. She would have to be constantly using it and thus capable of hearing you whenever you call," he replied with evident frustration. "However, none of this matters unless I can manipulate them to project at least some level of emotion as, by your estimations, it will not work without it…"
"You agree with my theory?" Ellana interrupted disbelievingly.
His brow furrowed. "Yes? You expected otherwise?" Ellana rolled her eyes. "While I have not tested it personally you do spend a rather large amount of time with the beast; I would not presume to suggest you do not know what you are talking about…"
She laughed. "Uh-huh…because you never presume?"
"I think your mother is trying to imply something, little one," he grumbled to the baby. He met Ellana's glare with a smile. "Any further on a name? I am running out of terms of endearment that I have not already used to excess."
"No further whatsoever," she replied with a groan of frustration. "It's bloody hard. How do you come up with a name that says 'this person is the thing I have always been dreaming of but never knew I needed'…"
"Emmaera…" Solas whispered more to himself than anything.
Ellana's eyes shot up. "What did you just say? Emmaera?" She paced to his side and stared at the little girl. "Em-ae-ra," she sounded out once again. "You know…I actually like it!" She took her from him, jiggling her in her arms. "Emmaera… Little Emi! I actually like it! What do you think?"
"As long as you are happy and it is something I am willing to shout when she runs off, I am content," he replied, tiredness showing.
"Emmaera…" she murmured once again, barely listening. Finally registering the details of what he had said she turned to him wide-eyed. "She is five days old and you're already thinking about her running off?!"
"She is your daughter, vhenan, she is bound to give us trouble," Solas replied with a smirk.
She advanced on him, unamused, and hit a playful slap across his shoulder. Before she could land a second he grabbed her in his arms and she struggled jokingly against him.
"That does nothing but prove my point," he went on with a laugh. Finally she stopped struggling and he relinquished his grip. "We should get going."
"You don't have to come with us, you know?" she replied with a hint of a whine. "We will be fine."
"You are introducing my baby daughter to a monstrous beast…" Ellana let out a doubting snort. "…a tame one maybe but a beast nonetheless. I am entirely unwilling to take the risk."
She kissed him lightly on the cheek. "Normally I would be annoyed at your lack of trust but the protective father thing you're doing…adorable and hot at the same time."
Solas winced. "Please can we not discuss such matters in front of our daughter…?"
"Ha! If it were not for those 'matters' she would not even be here!" she retorted, jostling him towards the door.
"A valid point but not one she needs to understand until she is much, much, much older."
Outside the tower her friends eagerly awaited their arrival and with them in tow they made quick progress to the Eluvian. Ellana knew that they were no doubt there for the sole purpose of seeing off the public but she thought it unnecessary. In all honesty she loved the adoration, well aware that it was no longer focused on her, and basked in the pride that it brought. Solas, however, did not seem to share in her contentment; pride beaten for once by the desire to protect.
Once they had passed through the mirror at last her friends hung back, a tell-tale shriek shaking the rocks around them. Ellana reached out for Solas's hand, instantly feeling his tension but before she could offer words of reassurance a massive blur of ivory came barrelling at them. Solas shook free of her hand and strode out to meet it. Dust rose around the beast as she came to an abrupt stop inches from his outstretched palm and let out a disgruntled hiss.
"Calm yourself, great one, lest your journey end here," Solas stated, absurdly tiny in comparison but entirely unwavering in his manner.
In response, the dragon let out a gentle shriek, defiant but conceding nonetheless. He stroked her nose softly and whatever annoyance she had evaporated as if it had never existed. Ellana took an apprehensive step forward.
"Dhaveira," she said as confidently as she could muster. At the mere suggestion of her voice, the dragon looked up to sound another shriek with tendrils outstretched in greeting. "I have brought you someone…someone who would like to meet you…"
Ellana made her way over as the baby stirred in her arms, the shrieking too loud to sleep through.
"Calmly," Solas prompted, keeping a hand fixed firmly to the side of the dragon's head. "Calmly…"
Both parents held their breath as the beast came forward. Monumental head within inches, the hot air leaving and entering her nostrils blew Ellana's hair back and forward rhythmically. The baby let out a small cry but the dragon only looked on in confusion, head cocking to one side. As another cry followed, more resounding than the last, Dhaveira emitted a low rumble and her eyes glinted with knowing. Predictably given what she was faced with, Emmaera started to cry and her father tensed up even more. Dhaveira's head turned from one side to the next, processing the sound as well as she could until finally sounding a loud trill. The crying stopped briefly before starting up again. A smile formed on Ellana's lips.
"This is amazing…" she whispered to herself.
The dragon let out another trill and looked on expectantly but the baby kept up the wailing, only opening her eyes just enough to look. Not willing to give up so easily, Dhaveira let out another determined shriek before raising her head and releasing the faintest puff of pale blue fire. Grey eyes twinkling in awe, Emmaera instantly fell silent. She squealed as the beast puffed out more. Ellana felt a wonderful weight of emotion press against her chest.
"Success?" came a shout from behind them.
Ellana turned to look just as Shivra and Lis reached them. Too focused on the baby the dragon only offered the slightest of trills in greeting before puffing out yet more pretty fire.
"Isn't she just the cutest little thing?" Lis asked the beast in a babying voice.
The beast let out a quiet rumble but unfortunately, the peace ended there. So quickly that no one saw it coming, the dragon raised her head, eyes fixed to the two remaining friends lagging behind. With surprising speed she snaked in between Ellana and them, her roar shaking the ground beneath them. Miris bravely ran forward between the beast and Lori, the apparent source of her aggression, but she need not have put herself at risk. Solas, eyes glowing, was already on the move.
"Stop!" he roared just as a bolt of lightning struck the ground inches from the beast's hide. She wisely recoiled, hissing at him as he neared. "Leave, now!"
She did as she was bid without question, snaking quickly away and up the cliffside. A dissatisfied whine emanated from her as she remained watching intently.
"I am so sorry!" Ellana shouted, running forward to comfort her friend. "She doesn't know you and I didn't think…"
Shivra came to stand beside the still tensed Solas. "Funny…" she remarked quietly. "She didn't know me when I met her but all she did was make that trilling noise…like a fucking cat…"
"Funny indeed…" he pondered in response.
Ellana was still apologising profusely ahead of them, unable to hear.
"So now you'll listen!" Shivra started angrily, clearly hurt. "What am I going to have to do? Wander about with a dragon to get you to…"
"No, what you are going to do is never let that girl out of your sight. I do not care how you do it; convince her she is your friend; do whatever but nothing she does is to go beneath your notice, do you hear me?" Solas interjected, fixing her with a stern stare.
Surprise flitted across her eyes to be replaced by similar seriousness. "Loud and clear."
Fatherhood had come surprising easily to Solas. The second he laid eyes on his daughter his focus had changed, so much so that everything he did for her, he did without hesitation. Fitting it in around work had also been far simpler than he had expected; he quite simply did not. If either of his girls needed him then work just had to follow him to them, others be damned. His ability to function on little sleep also helped immeasurably as she still cried for much of the night. She seemed to quiet more easily with him so even as the exhaustion built he still cherished their nights. It was a love like any other but still markedly different. Just like her mother, she was his but he had not had to earn it like he had with Ellana. Little Emmaera was his both in name and by instinct; a fact few actions could ever change. Even still his resolve had only grown. He had meant every word of what he had said to Ellana; only pausing at the thought she might hate him for it in the end. He would give his daughter everything no matter the cost.
Much of the morning had passed sadly without his two loves. The tower was unpleasantly quiet in their absence and he took the first opportunity he could find to seek them out. Groups of elves, eager to catch a glimpse of the new arrival, marked the way to them. At the sight of him they gazed with increased reverence, an act he detested but ultimately blamed only on himself. The veil-fire sun had been an ill-considered decision in hind-sight. He powered through them until he came upon the familiar encampment of her team. In the centre, Ellana loudly fought off both Lori and Miris at once. Even with such pressure she still seemed dissatisfied. He could not help but admire her fighting so fiercely with the birthing pain she no doubt still felt. An amused Shivra flitted about near the fighting, watching eagerly. Lis sat a comfortable distance away, the only one still, with Emmaera cradled in her arms.
"Thought you probably wouldn't be far behind," Lis uttered quietly, not taking her eyes off the bundle she held.
A warm smile formed on his face as he sat down next to her. He reached out a hand to his daughter and she greeted him with a happy squeal. In the distance, Ellana stopped fighting and looked over. Miris took her opening and unceremoniously hit her across the back and an angry shout followed.
"Yes, that's your Daddy," Lis babied. She turned to Solas with a smile. "You want her?" He replied with a nod and she carefully handed her over. "We may have our issues but damn do you make cute children…"
Solas looked up at her, slightly taken aback. "Nothing to do with me; she has her mother's looks," he replied with a dismissive gesture. His focus returned entirely to his child as Lis watched him with a warm smile. Feeling uncomfortable beneath her stare he looked up at her again. "What?"
Lis turned away, complexion noticeably rosy. "I dunno… Understanding it for the first time, I guess?" He met her with a confused look. "You and Ellana. Never got it before but the more I see you with little Emi…finally it's making some sense."
He gazed down at his daughter, unsure what to make of that statement. Emmaera grabbed at his finger, holding it tight.
"I dunno, it was probably a bit of jealousy on my part if I'm honest," Lis went on. "She was like this entirely different person for so long, someone I thought I knew and then you come along and suddenly it's like I barely knew her at all…"
"What was she like?" Solas asked, finally looking up. "Before…when you first knew her?"
"Thought way too much and felt far too little. It's like she was wandering; searching for the next thing that could make her feel something, anything. Once she found it it was like she was awake for the first time," Lis explained in a matter-of-fact tone. "But it never lasted and then on she went; always chasing the next thing that might make her feel alive again."
Emmaera breathed quietly in his arms, falling further in to sleep with each exhale. With a heavy heart he stroked her hair, remaining silent.
"You can relate, I'm sure," Lis started up again taking care with her words. "From what I have heard you were much the same."
An unexpected chuckle escaped him. "That is not even accurate. At no point did I think anything could ever fill the hole Ellana left behind…" He trailed off as a thought suddenly dawned. "Oh Shivra, you foolish girl. If she keeps sharing her pillow talk with Varden then I will be forced to share what I know with Ellana and I think that is the last thing she would want…"
"Quite," Lis replied, smirking with shared amusement. "She would be relentless!"
"She always is," Solas uttered quietly as the subject of his affections finally gave up her fighting to make her way over to them. He handed the baby back to Lis. "An impressive display, vhenan, but your defensive capabilities against magic-users are still sorely lacking…"
The embrace Ellana was about to give him turned abruptly in to a shot to the ribs. "How dare you!" she chastised. "My technique is not lacking!"
"Maybe not against a mage like Miris," he replied with a wince of pain. "But against a pure magic user? I saw several openings that could have easily led to your end." He turned to Miris with an apologetic look. "No offense."
"None taken," she replied with a dismissive nod.
An undeniable hint of angry red crept in to Ellana's pale skin. "Well she isn't a pure magic user so piss off! If I was up against one then I would alter my strategy..."
"Would you? I have seen nothing to prove that," Solas interjected sternly. "The Inquisition may have a shortage of skilled mages but I can assure you the Imperium does not. You will have to learn before long…" All Ellana's friends took a wise step back readying themselves for the inevitable tirade.
"I do not need to learn, you twat, I am well versed in fighting mages!" she shouted back.
"Then prove it…"
All the steam that had fired up Ellana evaporated instantly as his words lingered uncomfortably in the air.
"Awesome! The Dread Wolf versus the She-Wolf! My money's on him," Shivra exclaimed hopping excitedly from one foot to the other.
"No way!" Ellana interrupted angrily. "I can't fight you!"
"Why not? I would allow no harm to come to you, vhenan, you know that," he vehemently replied. A smirk formed on his lips. "What is it? Are you scared you will lose?"
Ellana gazed at him disbelievingly. "Not scared, certain; I am certain I will lose!"
"You can still learn from the fights you do not win," he argued, already moving in to position. Seeing her enduring reluctance he let out a frustrated sigh. "You intend to stand with me to topple the Imperium, do you not? Face up to the greatest mages of this world?" She nodded. "Then you must prove to me that you can hold your weight, vhenan, and I am the only suitable candidate so – to use your words - 'bring it on.'"
Even if he went easy on her there was no way she was going to win, Ellana knew that much, but she was not about to just give up.
"Fine. If that's what you want then give me your best shot," she defiantly replied.
He laughed. "My best shot?! No, I would rather not destroy my home, thank you very much," he added, voice thick with foolish pride.
His smugness did nothing to lessen her boldness, just as he no doubt hoped. His eyes glowed briefly and a hue came over her skin to match their colour.
"A barrier," he explained. "To keep you nice and safe."
"No such luck for you," Ellana sneered.
"Ooo! She's mad," Shivra remarked excitedly as she thudded down next to Lis. "This is going to be good!"
Ellana came to a stop a distance away from him before pacing back and forth like a caged animal ready to pounce.
"Ready for your first lesson?" he asked still wearing his unbearably smug smile.
"Bring it on."
Scarcely letting her finish, he threw out his first spell followed by several others. She dodged them expertly.
"Projectiles, the crutch of all mages," he remarked lazily. "We use them to create and maintain distance, our greatest ally."
He sent out several more as he spoke and each time she dodged successfully. Every so often she managed to dodge forward, gaining ground slowly but surely.
"A skilled fighter knows this and thus works to close the gap with every passing moment; just like you are doing right now," he went on.
Constantly changing his rhythm, the projectiles now came in flurries of varying forms and severity but somehow she dodged them.
Still he kept going, "Against a poor mage, defeat is only a matter of patience…" Dodging one final icicle brought her within inches of him. "…but any mage worth his salt ensures they are dangerous at any distance."
The air crackled around them and Ellana knew instantly what was coming. She dodged back again just in time as the air in front of her ignited. She could no longer see him through the flames but luckily he suffered the same hindrance. She flitted around at the edge of danger, hoping once it cleared she would be behind him. He would need more time to recover from that one and she intended to take full advantage. The second she saw his shadow, she lunged but he was already gone, propelled out of reach on a sheet of ice.
"And a good mage always ensures they have the means to reform the crucial distance," he remarked before casually sending out yet more projectiles. "This way I change the game in to one where my patience wins the day."
Ellana kept on dodging just as she had before, slowly gaining ground. At long last she was within inches but, once again, he propelled himself away before she could strike. Distance regained, yet again, he sent out yet more projectiles. He was completely dominating her but he no longer wore even a hint of smugness or his usually happy explaining demeanour. Instead, he appeared stone-faced and serious in his role.
"With each repeat of the cycle you will tire and a mistake becomes inevitable. All I must do is wait for my opening," he instructed.
Just as he predicted, no matter how hard she tried the cycle kept on repeating and Ellana could feel herself starting to tire. There were a couple of occasions where she very nearly got him but every time he emerged the victor. On one such occasion, a swipe she sent out at the last second very nearly hitting him, he propelled himself back one final time.
"The problem comes if I lose patience as many mages, too spirited and thus prone to frustration, often do," Solas went on as she neared. She was still far off striking distance but she could feel the air already building and knew this time it was going to be different. "Most mages consider themselves beneath such tactics and thus end up taking out opponents with one big, flashy bang. The dreaded area-of-effect spell; that which leaves no other option than to run…"
Ellana knew a good idea when she heard one. Spinning around to the side just in case, she turned on her heels and ran back towards her friends.
"Fucking hell!" Shivra gasped in the distance as hot air beat against Ellana's back and the sound of an explosion, miniature by Solas's standards, brought wringing to her ears.
She turned back just in time to see the remnants of it sinking away in to smoke. With the ground still burning she caught a glimpse of a shadow beyond and just like that, she made her decision. She broke in to a run again, this time towards the smoke and jumped straight in to the flames. Her false arm skilfully took the brunt of the flames as she flipped on it but once she landed the heat licked at the rest of her body. She knew that if not for his barrier she would be in pain but that alone would not have been enough to dissuade her. With the air still thick with smoke, Solas only noticed she was there at the last second. Before he could react her leg met the back of his knees and he came crashing down to the ground. She was on top of him, pinning him to the ground long before he recovered from the fall. A proud but satisfyingly surprised smile formed across his lips.
"Well played," he remarked, eyes glowing briefly to dissipate the flames.
"Says the man who just got beaten by his little lady," she teased, still embedded on top of him.
"It was not real," he whined, forcing himself up in to a sitting position and taking her with him. "If it had been real you would have suffered some severe burns."
"I may have been somewhat singed but I still would have emerged the victor and that's what matters," she said, face inches from his.
"Right… Because I would have just lay here and let you kill me?" he sarcastically added.
"Oh shut up! You may have been going easy on me but I still beat you and judging by your little face…" She playfully squeezed his cheeks between her fingers. "…you were not expecting that!"
Hands pressed to her back, he pulled her in for a long, deep kiss. "You are going to be intolerable about this, aren't you?"
"Maybe for a little while…" she replied, stroking his cheek before kissing him again.
The smoke was clearing now but they failed to notice they were no longer alone.
"Um…do you need a minute?" Miris asked sheepishly.
Ellana practically jumped away from him at the sound of her voice. Looking around she reddened as she saw not only her friends but also a rather large crowd of elves watching them eagerly. Solas chuckled beneath her. With a hand to her jaw he forced her to look at only him.
"I certainly do," he said before pulling her in again.
Once the intensity of the kiss was over, Ellana bit her lip and took a long breathy, exhale. "Okay!" she exclaimed, suddenly rising from the ground and pulling him up too by the hand. "It's been lovely, everyone but we have to go!" She no longer cared about the crowd or anyone else but him for that matter, ushering Solas away as quickly as he would go. "We have stuff to do…important battle plans and uh…stuff!"
Solas slowed to a stop and even pulling at his hand, she could not get him to move. She turned to him in annoyance.
"I think you have forgotten something," he prompted. She met him with the blankest of stares. He gestured back towards the crowd. "Our child, vhenan?"
"Oh crap!" she angrily exclaimed before marching back towards the crowd.
Ellana played her part just as she remembered. Music sounded somewhere off in the distance and despite her best attempts to resist she was slightly tipsy. Snow fell hard on the make-shift streets of Haven and she struggled in her inebriated state to stay upright on the uneven ground. At last she came to her destination, certain she would find him here. She had not been surprised by his absence at the celebrations. His proficiency for everything social had been unexpected to say the least but in spite of it he still seemed to shy away from others whenever possible. Not from her though; that too had been unexpected. She had thought him to be a mere distraction, suitable for a bit of teasing and nothing more but he had surprised her yet again. The dreaming kiss played heavily on her mind even now. Her pride still stung as she waited patiently for him to make a decision. Perhaps that was why she was there now, hoping that she could make it for him. At least that was what the drink was telling her.
He sat at his desk absorbed in something as he always was. Nervous, she wanted to avoid being the first one to speak. With a flick of her foot she kicked out to make a small but very deliberate noise that caught his attention just as she had intended.
"Ellana, I… I presumed you would be celebrating…" he started, sounding satisfyingly flustered. "Closing the Breach is certainly an achievement worthy of…"
"I could not have done it without you," she interrupted, keeping him off-balance, "and yet you are entirely absent…"
He leaned back against the desk, regarding her in considered silence. The longer it went on the more frustrated she grew but just as she was about to break he chimed in.
"Why are you really here?" he asked.
The look of knowing on his face broke something inside of her.
"Why am I here?! You think I like spending my evenings being told how fucking wonderful I am?!" she yelled at him, the sheer volume of her voice clearly taking him aback. "I am nothing! I'm just some girl who wandered in to the wrong place at the wrong time and now I suddenly matter?! Bullshit! And here you are the one person whose opinion actually does matter to me for some fucking reason and you don't even care!"
Just as quickly as it had started her rage petered out.
He waited a moment, staring down thoughtfully before speaking, "I was waiting for you, actually…"
Disbelief clouded her expression, "Waiting…for me?"
He nodded slowly in response before taking a slight step towards her. "And for the record, I do care…not about them or their misguided opinions but about…"
Before he could finish she was upon him. Her lips crashed to his, hands forcing him so close their body heat melded together as one. He was slow to respond but finally he threw caution to the wind, his skin touching hers in the most delightful way.
Unfortunately that was where Ellana's experience ended. A tap to her shoulder pulled her abruptly out of the memory; her self splitting in two, leaving behind the imagined form to press her lover against the wall.
"Ah…what a memory," sounded Solas's voice from behind her. She turned to face him with a disgruntled look. "Apologies for the interruption but my task is done."
An alarm call sounded outside, harkening the fateful first arrival of Corypheus on the scene. Ellana turned back to the pair ahead of her just as they pulled apart.
"Fun part is over anyway," she remarked.
"I could restart it if that would please you? However, it seems somewhat tame by our current standards."
"I know but look at you!" she exclaimed, pointing to the other Solas with amusement. "Look how scared you are! I never picked up on that when it was actually happening."
"You were busy," he added with a smirk. "Home?"
Ellana turned back to the image of herself, naive in every sense of the word, running out to battle unaware the actual cause of her strife followed just behind.
"Home," she finally replied, waking up in their bed seconds later.
"So, you were successful?" she asked Solas, already sitting up at her side. He nodded in response. "How did she take it?"
"Surprisingly well considering I was setting a crystal to her hide."
Ellana got up and made for the nursery door to check on the little one, still fast asleep.
"Did it hurt her?" she asked perched in doorway.
"No more than a cut would. She is a dragon, vhenan, she can endure much."
Ellana let out a sigh of relief. "Good… Did it work?"
"As far as I could tell but we will know more once we are done." He came to her and took her hands in his. "Ready?"
"I guess. Is Lis here yet?"
Solas smiled down on her. "Waiting in the office."
"Then off we go!" Ellana replied, feeling more apprehensive than she would ever let on.
The area had a bleak quality to it but Ellana still found it oddly peaceful. There was nothing for miles around but rocks and wildlife. Somewhere out of sight she could hear the waves crashing and taste the salt in the air. She had never held much of an opinion about the Storm Coast. On the one hand it was untamed, undisturbed which were both qualities she valued but that somewhat inevitably made it an unforgiving place. Even after so long she could still remember the sting of the bruises an equally untamed Giant had inflicted upon her. It was a strange thought that a place she had so little feeling towards could so easily become a place of real significance.
Holding the crystal in her hand the sound of the crashing waves quieted. She had only used the sending crystal Dorian had given her a few times but this was noticeably different. Solas, in all his tinkering, must have made it his own. The more she focused the more she could hear – waves on the open ocean, roars, shrieks and diving - but the sounds were only for her. It was not just the noises either. She could feel the tension, the excitement; feel the hunt as if it were her own.
"She's hunting out on the ocean," Ellana finally uttered, looking up at Solas with an impressed smile.
He nodded thoughtfully. "Good… If you can tell that much then it should function both ways."
Ellana gazed down at the crystal resting in her hands, quiet now without her concentration.
"So call her?" Solas prompted, all too aware of her blatant reluctance.
She looked at him blankly and then back down. She turned away from him, taking the crystal in her ungloved hand and pouring everything she had in to it. She heard the roars again and felt the bond they shared.
"Dhaveira!" she yelled out, utterly determined, unwavering in her certainty.
In her mind she heard the trill, felt the confusion but nothing more. A shriek sounded out, just for her.
"Dhaveira! Come to me!" she tried again, voice wavering with doubt.
Another two shrieks, questioning, defiant.
"She is not coming, is she?" Solas asked from behind.
But Ellana refused to give up, "Dhaveira! Please!"
Solas grabbed her by the arm. "Vhenan, she is not coming."
"But she has to! Without her we'll lose everything! We…!" she yelled out desperately, the pressure in her chest rising.
"Calm yourself…please…" he uttered quietly, pained to see her this way. "It is not over yet."
"But if we can't…!"
"We will!" he interrupted, somewhat too sternly. "We will… She is a dragon, vhenan, an intelligent beast…"
Ellana felt beside herself, hope lost. "I know that, Solas! Intelligent enough to know exactly how much I need her!"
"But you do not," he interjected earning a look of angry confusion from her. "The crystal worked, vhenan; it allowed you to practically see what she was doing. What do you think she saw of you? You and I bored from our journey, hoping she would come but not in need. Would you come running for that?"
"But the plan…!"
"A plan she can have no way of knowing," he interrupted. "All she knows is the here and now; everything beyond that may as well not exist."
"So what are you saying? It's not going to work, like this?" she asked having finally calmed down.
A half-smile formed across Solas's features as he took her arm. "Not like this, not the first time." He shot her a sideways look. "But I have a theory…"
Ellana felt hopeful at last but seeing his expression she let out a groan. "Should I even ask?"
"No…You will not be pleased…"
"Wonderful," she groaned yet again.
The day was waning judging by the dimming light. With the windows covered, Ellana could not see the no doubt pretty sunset but orange shards of light still pierced through in to the war room. The assemblage was the biggest yet, the final formal briefing, and normally she would have found that intimidating but not today. She held her daughter in her arms and nothing could extinguish the light that she brought.
"This is madness!" Cyrrian practically yelled to the otherwise quiet room. "From what scouts have told me the Inquisition will number in the thousands and yet you intend to face them with so few?!"
To the side Ellana noticed Solas tense and raise himself to his full height; a small gesture but significant by his standards. He had no doubt picked up on precisely what she had and was preparing for the appropriate reprimand. Unfortunately for him, she did not need him to defend her.
"Scouts you say?" Ellana asked evenly, coming forward in to the fray. "What scouts would those be exactly? Your concerns now lie with Tevinter, do they not? It is far beyond your remit to involve yourself with any scouts watching the Inquisition."
"Some still hold loyalty to me and they…well…keep me informed," Cyrrian started, weakening beneath the increasingly disapproving stares of the gathered crowd. "But I am still…!"
"Informed as a courtesy or at your request?" Ellana interrupted, earning a sly smile from Solas.
"What does it matter?!" he yelled back, clearly losing control just as she had hoped.
Unfortunately the volume of his voice awoke the sleeping baby in her arms. Emmaera started to fuss and then cry. Cyrrian seemed to take this as some form of win, likely believing it showed her as weak but she would prove him wrong. She handed the baby off to Solas and with the mere presence of her father, the crying stopped as quickly as it had started.
"It matters because those are men who should be loyal to our cause and thus, as the chosen to fight the Inquisition, loyal to me," Ellana went on, growing ever closer to Cyrrian. "Men that are loyal to me otherwise they would no longer be here. It matters because by enticing them away you would be sowing doubts that need not be there, doubt in me. With doubt comes weakness and with weakness our cause will die." Cyrrian's face grew ever whiter, a sight Ellana thoroughly enjoyed. "So…Commander…have you been weakening our cause?"
The room was deathly silent except for Cyrrian's telling stutters. Ellana returned to Solas's side.
"As good an answer as any," he remarked, handing the contented baby back to her mother. He turned back to a noticeably shaking Cyrrian. "Consider yourself lucky; in the presence of my child you find me in a forgiving mood. Never again or else next time I may not be so forgiving…"
The threat hung heavy in the air although Ellana knew that in actuality it was likely empty.
"Anyway, to answer your veiled question, Commander," Ellana continued, brushing past the disquiet. "I am well aware of the disparity in numbers and I agree wholeheartedly with our Leader's perspective – numbers will not lend to our victory. Even if we threw everything we had at them, every available warrior, there would still be a disparity and the risk is too great. The more we bring, the more we stand to lose." She turned to Solas with a knowing smile. "Protecting fewer men costs us less and affords us more to use against our enemy."
"Further, to use our full complement would mean revealing our hand in its entirety," Varden added. "We have always worked in the shadows and some of that should remain."
"One reveal at a time," Ellana said more to herself than anyone as she fluttered her fingers for her quietly squealing daughter.
"The dragon…" uttered old man Getros from across the room.
Solas pried his eyes away from Ellana to focus on the old man but before he could say anything Cyrrian just had to comment yet again.
"The dragon none of us have even seen."
Judging by the gesture he made, Varden only just managed to stop himself from letting out a groan of frustration at the foolish boy's obvious desire for trouble. Ellana did not know if Cyrrian was actually trying to achieve something or just stupid but judging by the look in Solas's eyes he would no longer be forgiven. He had just, intentionally or otherwise, implied both Ellana and Fen'Harel himself were liars.
Just as she was about to take pity on him, Varden chimed in yet again to save the day, "I have seen the beast with my own eyes. Would you deride me by suggesting I am a liar?"
Cyrrian, for once, looked genuinely hurt by the suggestion. "Of course not! I just…!"
"I know exactly what you intended, foolish as it was," Varden went on. Much to Ellana's amusement, Cyrrian wore the appearance of a child being chastised by a parent. "If you cannot behave peaceably then I suggest that you take a step away from the proceedings right now."
"I can behave peaceably," Cyrrian replied sheepishly, looking anywhere but at Ellana.
Varden sighed. "Then with your assent…" he nodded to Solas "…shall we move on?"
With that finally resolved the discussion moved to the more logistical side of things. Troops had been fully organised, ready for deployment and the planning and training had been completed. As far as everyone was concerned they were as ready as they would ever be. At least that was how it was portrayed. The plan started with Dhaveira as they all knew but at no point did Solas mention the fact that they had yet to successfully move her to the Storm Coast or even call her at all. Ellana wondered if he was just trying to avoid unnecessary worry but in her mind they needed to know. Without the dragon there was no plan and without a plan they would certainly lose. Throughout the whole meeting she knew that she could say something and bring it out in to the open but something stopped her. She could not decide if it was faith in him or fear. Eventually all was said and done and everyone filed out. He had said little following his dressing down but still Cyrrian saw fit to give her one last glare as he left.
"What is that man's problem with me?" Ellana asked once she was in the presence of only Solas and Varden.
Emmaera had started to fuss towards the end of the meeting and now that Ellana thought about it she was due a feed. Struggling slightly she removed a breast from her clothing to oblige her daughter. Varden looked away politely.
"Is it not obvious?" Solas replied with a knowing look to his old friend.
Varden returned it with an added roll of the eyes. Ellana's brow furrowed in annoyance at the joke she clearly did not get.
"He's jealous of me or something?" she tried.
Jumping up to sit on the table, Solas let out a laugh.
"Has she always been so oblivious to the affections of men?" Varden asked him, chuckling as well.
"Affections?! You call that affection?!" Ellana interjected before Solas could answer.
Solas kept on chuckling. "Do you remember that boy you told me about? The one who bullied you relentlessly as a child and then one day kissed you out of nowhere?"
"Yes… He was my first kiss, bizarrely, but I can hardly see how that is relevant," Ellana replied angrily.
"Well apparently Cyrrian has not developed beyond the level of a child when it comes to the fairer sex," Varden explained with amusement.
"What?! But that's ridiculous!" Ellana replied with equal parts amazement and utter disbelief. "That would just be idiotic given…" she turned to Solas "…given, well, you…"
"Unless he is a threat I see no problem with it and it does not seem like you would consider him a worthy threat, vhenan?" he replied.
Ellana could not help but laugh. "No! Of course not! The guy is a twat!"
"I seem to recall her calling you something similar?" Varden asked with a nod to Solas.
Solas smirked. "I do too. Let us hope she does not have a type."
"Will both of you stop!" Ellana interrupted, reddening uncontrollably and making for the door.
Once she had abandoned them both, Solas dislodged himself from the table.
"Well…that was amusing," he said, still smirking.
A/N - It is so nice for me to finally be able to introduce Emmaera in to the world. May she survive long enough to become as much of an incontestable badass as her father. Let it rain, little one.