ACT II: When The Walls Close In
Note: Thank you once again to my beta, Sakura. They've been a great help making sure these chapters are coherent! Thanks to the rest of you, I do read your PMs and your reviews, and they are a great encouragement!
The next morning my head had a bit of a twinge to the temples, but I was alive. I vaguely remember having one or two more drinks before my body decided to shift into hibernation. I don't recall how I got to bed, but given that someone had to carry me from the tavern, through the Main Hall, up a couple flight of stairs, and then into bed, it narrowed it down to Krem or Bull.
Man, and I missed it. Another time, then.
Washed, dressed in my tunic and pants, boots to my knees and a coat to keep me warm, I was out the door a little after sunrise. The fort was already alive with the rest of the earlier risers, merchants setting up their shops for the new day, the tavern switched to a morning breakfast house, the distant sounds of soldiers training floated on the chill air with the smell of food.
I wandered from my part of the fort toward Josephine's office. The Hall was empty, but the fireplace by the entrance was lit and crackling in the dim light of morning. Josephine's door was unlocked and after a polite knock, I stepped into her office. Warmth swam over me, her own fireplace blazing merrily over the logs. It and a few torches were the only source of light and despite that, the room was aglow with energy.
"Inquisitor!" Josephine greeted me with a smile. She placed down her quill and moved to stand from her desk. I held up a casual hand to stop her and she slipped back into her seat. "Good morning. I wouldn't have suspected you to be up at this hour."
"Why, because I got drunk yesterday?" I laughed, dragging one of the spare chairs toward her desk to sit across from her. Josephine gave me a prim, practiced smile with the crinkle of amusement touching the corners of her eyes.
"Perhaps. It was difficult to avoid hearing Bull crashing through your door." Josephine explained with a huff of laughter.
"Oh, god." I snickered. "The door was intact this morning, so it couldn't have been too bad."
"Considering he was trying to be quiet when he left a few moments later, we can appreciate that." Josephine said with a nod. She reached around for a few parchment pieces and turned them toward me. I glanced at them, my reading comprehension manageable after the year of lessons.
"We have a few issues we need to settle." Josephine started and pointed to the first paper, "Cassandra has requested to speak with you, she's currently in the War Room. We've found some leads on the Seekers and she would like to make contact with them."
"Noted." I answered with a nod.
"Then, we've heard word that the Qunari may be moving along the Storm Coast or closer." Josephine snuck a peek up at my face. "Bull hasn't received word of any movement yet, but Leliana would like to make you aware the issue may arise with him."
"Yeah, I'll keep an ear out for it." I replied, highly doubtful. Bull's not likely to tell me first, but it doesn't hurt to see if something slips.
"And of course, you've been made aware that Mother Giselle is requesting an audience. A private one." Josephine lowered her voice to a high whisper. "You'll have use of my office for this, if you'd like."
"Please."
"Very well. After that, we've gotten word that our soldiers have found Gregory Dedrick running along the King's road to Orlais." Josephine sighed and shifted the papers to show a delicately written warrant. "I require your signature here, as he is a citizen of Ferelden and thus under King Alistair's protection."
"Is my signature going to be enough?" I asked even as I reached for the quill she offered me. "I don't necessarily have the clout to oppose a king."
"No, ordinarily you wouldn't, but we have evidence, a confession, and you led the investigation." Josephine clarified, accepting the parchment and dusting it so my signature wouldn't smudge. Sounds logical. King Alistair may not want to spend the time to redo everything.
"There." Josephine rolled the parchment and secured it with twine. "We've made some headway with obtaining an invitation to Empress Celene's event. We haven't gotten the physical invitation yet, but we're in talks."
"Meaning I need to behave and not do anything to smear our good name." There was a laugh in my tone, but the seriousness of the matter was glued tight to the back of my ribs. Losing the Empress means we lose the country to chaos and then Corypheus gets lost in the smoke.
No, thank you.
"Precisely. Please, be on your best behavior." Josephine pleaded lightly. "No beheadings, no riots, no wild rampages across the countryside."
"What the fuck, am I suddenly The Iron Bull?" I chuckled, but Josephine's worried eyes rounded it up to a laugh. "Josie! I promise, on my life, we'll be good kids and not set anything on fire." She blinked at me and slowly, a smile graced her lips.
"What?" I asked, caught off guard by the smile.
"You called me Josie." She continued to smile, pleased.
"Oh. Uh, I'm sorry?" I amended, confused by her expression. "I… don't know if you mind or not?"
"I do not. It's a pleasure to be found in the Inquisitor's good graces." Josephine pepped up happily, but then just as quickly, because she wasn't a diplomat for nothing, she added: "It means I'm less likely to meet death."
"Oh my god," I stood from the chair, adding a small touch of dramatic flair that had her smile widen to a grin, "Whatever, Josephine. See that? Demotion. I am not bloodthirsty. Good day, madam!" I took to stomping my way toward the door that led into the War Room, Josephine's laugh echoing behind me. The hall went quiet as the door groaned closed and my boots echoed through the space. Part of the wall was still busted open, but the space needed the natural light.
I would not be saying that when the first blizzard hit.
Into the War Room, I could see Cassandra not far off to the corner by one of the windows that was pushed open. The maps and battle plans were held securely by figurines or books and unlit candles. Cassandra had pulled away toward a smaller table in the corner, a map spread out and held down by small rocks. I wandered up to her, quiet, with my hands behind my back.
"I can keep staring at this, but I won't get any closer." Cassandra sighed. She glanced at me briefly and I leaned over against her side to see the map. It wasn't of a town or city, but a fortress. Blueprints? I turned to her, curious.
"Is this something I can help you with?" I offered softly.
"Yes, possibly." Cassandra turned to me fully, her stern face pinched with worry. "We saw so many Red Templars when we took over Therinfal and found the demon Envy in the Lord Seeker's place." Her hands curled into fists and rested against the table, her brow heavy over her eyes.
"Cass?" I treaded lightly, uncertain where her temper would take her.
"Do you realize what we didn't find?" Cassandra asked me, her sharp eyes riveted to my face. "What we didn't see was Lord Seeker Lucius himself. No body. Nothing." I blinked at her, and then reeled back in surprise because holy fucking shit, she was right. I was so preoccupied with clearing out the Templars and bringing them into line that I hadn't realized we never recovered an actual body for the Lord Seeker like we had with his officer.
"Ooooh no." I said vehemently, my eyes going wide. "Are you telling me they might have skipped out?"
"Indeed," Cassandra nodded, her lips white from stress. "I've seen no hint of any Seekers amongst the Red Templars, or anywhere. I have a growing suspicion Corypheus has imprisoned them." My thoughts immediately set to the race and I turned away from her piercing expression to snag the threads together.
"Could they be dead? Why imprison them?" I murmured to myself. My hands came up to my chin and mouth, tapping lightly as I thought. "He didn't take the Wardens — but he wouldn't need to if he can force them into a suicidal spiral. Couldn't he kill the Seekers just as easily?" I turned the question to Cassandra because there was very little that I actually knew of the Seekers and their skill sets.
"Not easily," Cassandra amended heatedly, "but — yes, they may be dead. But the Seekers began this war against the mages. They cannot have simply vanished." She was right, because the Seekers had been numerous according to the old records Leliana had of the Divine's forces. People who could root out corruption and dark magics, I just wish I could figure out how.
"Corypheus has the ability to trigger The Calling in the Wardens through the connection they share with the Blight." I posed the question to her, holding my neck with my hands laced behind my ears. "Are the Seekers susceptible to anything like that?"
"No. We care not for lyrium or magic. We use only the skills given to us by faith." Cassandra answered readily. "There must be a trail we can follow, yet so far I have only discovered hints. I hoped you would see what I could not." The weight of her confidence in me stuttered my heart and my throat tightened.
Not a time to fuck up, then. Christ.
"Finding them obviously means a lot to you." I replied, unsteady on my feet. Cassandra glanced at her own feet and her hands gripped into fists as she controlled whatever emotion rolled through her. She sighed and raised her chin to meet my gaze.
"I left The Order, but I can never abandon them. I understand Cullen's insistence to be at the trial for the Templar." Cassandra exhaled roughly with a twitch to her eye. Loyalties to be tested, and she didn't think she'd be one of them. I offered her a faint smile because to forgive her meant I faulted her in the first place.
Cassandra avoided it, "I cannot even claim that rescuing them would be beneficial — they wouldn't look kindly on the Inquisition. But even so, if there's a chance…" Cassandra would never plead. She wasn't Josephine who could wheedle for favors from me with a smile, or Leliana who could ask with a smirk. Cassandra struggled to bow her head, not out of pride, but because she never knew to want things for herself.
"I told you, Cassandra." I reassured her with a nod. "Anything for you."
Cassandra relaxed with a sigh, "If we can spare the resources to follow up on these leads, Inquisitor, I would appreciate it."
One down. Thousands more to go.
-0-
Mother Giselle was seated before the fire with a cup of tea in her hand and a saucer in her lap. Cassandra bowed her head politely to the Mother before leaving the room with Josephine in tow. With our small audience gone, I moved over to Mother Giselle and took up the seat next to her. She was dressed in her usual garb of light pink and white (with less blood stains), but her headdress was gone and her hair was bundled up close to the top of her head.
Mother Giselle was silent until the door whistled shut. She shifted slightly in her seat to face me, the teacup set on the saucer delicately, her worn hands holding the porcelain steady.
"Mother Giselle." I greeted her quietly with curiosity bubbling under my tongue. She smiled at me as warm as she could, but the corners of her smile didn't reach the edge of her eyes. Something heavy seemed to weigh on her shoulders and slow her movements. What happened?
"My Lady Inquisitor, it's good of you to speak with me." Mother Giselle started politely, she fiddled with the handle of her teacup. "I have news regarding one of your… companions. The Tevinter." With a douse of icy water, my curiosity swirled from bubbly expectancy to immediately defensive. The Tevinter?
"Is that a note of distaste I detect, Mother Giselle?" I warned her without adding a threat. It took a while to make sure I wasn't using Vint like Bull was, but still. She blinked at me and then angled her chin, not so much ashamed of the words she used, but mindful of them.
"I… admit his presence here makes me uncomfortable, Inquisitor, but my feelings are of no importance." She answered with measured and practiced tones. My brow ticked on my forehead; not true if you're not going to call him by his name. She took a sip of her tea to give herself a moment and I didn't push her to continue until she was ready.
"I have been in contact with his family; House Pavus, out of Qarinus. Are you familiar with them?" She asked politely, trying to keep the conversation from nose-diving south. For once, she was doing a poor job of it. Aside from the rude, knee-jerk comment of 'no, an orphan would not' I decided to go onto the higher road and not be an ass.
"He mentioned it in passing. They don't appear to be on good terms." I said minimally. There was a hot coal in my hand, the Mark sputtering between my fingers silently, heating up against my skin. That's probably mine, then. Chill out, Jaime.
"Yes, I believe you're correct." Mother Giselle nodded gently, the teacup resting on a pinky over the saucer, holding it with a slight tremble. "The family sent a letter describing the estrangement from their son and pleading for my aid."
A red flag went up. I stayed quiet.
"They've asked to arrange a meeting. Quietly, without telling him. They fear it's the only way he'll come." She continued, unaware of the sudden barrier I had erected between us. "Since you seem to be on good terms with the young man, I'd hoped…"
"And you're sure this isn't some kind of trap?" I immediately asked. "Because the secrecy makes it a trap."
Mother Giselle reeled at my verbal slap. "That — did occur to me. What if it is a plot of those mages… The Venatori? It was another reason to put this in your hands, Inquisitor." I deflated mildly. I shouldn't be so quick to accuse her of harm. But her discomfort and the way she addressed Dorian were too heavy to ignore. I pressed on, looking for more.
"Just what kind of meeting do they have in mind?" I couldn't imagine it would be a pleasant one. Though I could swing any which way myself, I had been extremely lucky in having parents who were content as far as I was content. There was no guarantee Dorian's family was the same, not after the stories he had told me.
"I believe they just want to talk, to understand why Dorian felt he had to come here." Mother Giselle explained, the teacup drained of the last of her drink. "Somewhere private. Away from Skyhold, but not in Tevinter." Right, because if he and Krem were in the same boat, no one would be kind to them in Tevinter.
"I lead Skyhold." I replied, leaning back in my chair. "That doesn't pose a problem?"
"You make them nervous, I think." Mother Giselle agreed, setting aside her cup on the footstool. "They don't understand why he's with the Inquisition. They want him to come home." Dorian's words of a gilded cage, screaming on the inside echoed vividly through my head. No, I thought with a grimace, that stopped being home a long time ago.
"What happens if Dorian doesn't agree?" I wasn't going to be the one to lead him back into the cage. Too many times I had seen friends yanked back into toxic families because they had nowhere else to go and if Dorian had come here to escape, then I was going to be the best damn guard dog.
"Hopefully that would be the end of it. If not… well, that's why you should be there." Mother Giselle murmured. I was uncertain if she was attempting to play on my empathy for my companion, or that I would bow my head to her request because I wanted to avoid tarnishing the Inquisition's reputation. Something else still lingered in the darkness of my thoughts.
"Could you answer for me, Mother Giselle, why his family would contact you?" I asked politely, hoping for a lead. "From the sounds of it, connections with Tevinter make you uncomfortable." She rallied under my gaze, realizing that a few slip of her words had painted a different picture than she meant.
"Because they don't know you, Inquisitor. They know of no one here who could reach their son." Mother Giselle answered readily, her shoulders squared as she spoke. "I'm not of the Imperial Chantry, but they know what I represent."
"Mother Giselle, I know this is well-meant, but I couldn't do this to one of my own in my ranks." I answered. Dorian Pavus may have been of Tevinter, but he like all my other soldiers, had agreed to the risks to answer the call as the world ended. I couldn't betray that. He left all that he had so that he could fight.
Mother Giselle's lips drew thin, "These are parents concerned about the welfare of their son. How could I not do whatever possible? I would speak to the young man myself, but… he does not care for me."
"No," I replied thinly, "I don't imagine he would."
"Thus," she continued, taking the comment with a wince, "I come to you. If any good can come of this, we must try." A silence settled between us, moments passed as she contemplated my expression. I was thankful for the scars across my face now as they hid much of the twitching I had from my nerves.
"I'm not going to lie to him." I startled her briefly, her eyes fluttering to my face. "He needs to know what he's walking into, people do stupid things when they're caught off guard."
"I suggest against it, Inquisitor. The letter mentioned he may refuse, and that he'd have cause to do so." Mother Giselle sighed with a shake of her head. "His parents regret what has happened, they only wish to speak. Would it not lead to a greater kindness if there is a potential for reconciliation?" My shoulders tightened under my neck; now it's sounding like an intervention rather than just a chat. What the fuck do they want?
"It's not my place to play games." I answered firmly. "Dorian is a grown man and he must live with the consequences of his choices, as we all do." The same as Cassandra, I wouldn't have thought months down the road that I would have been arguing with Mother Giselle, a woman who had appeared intimidating when I first met her in the Hinterlands, her elbows covered in blood.
"As you will, Inquisitor." Mother Giselle tipped her head politely, but defeat tugged at the corners of her mouth. "I will pray for the best outcome for all." She excused herself from her chair and left the teacup on the footstool. I watched her as she exited Josephine's office and slumped into my seat.
The day isn't even half through and it's already exhausting. I tapped the armrest under my right palm and pondered over my thoughts, my gaze trapped in the flames of Josephine's fireplace. That whole conversation was a mess. I still don't trust it. I can't have Dorian walking into a trap. Not when he had already nearly died with the second Rift he's ever encountered.
I also need to follow up with Breaker Thram. My nerves rattled under my skin and I stood from the chair and wandered over to Josephine's desk. My Ambassador hadn't returned yet, so I set about searching for the contract with my trainer on my own. Here it is. Most of the materials had already been collected by my soldiers (thank you, Leliana). All that was left was a copy of the book and according to Josephine's notes…
Bull has a copy.
Perfect.
A soul deep sigh escaped me. Alright. I need to have feelers put out for the Seekers. I need to address the issues with the Hinterlands. We need to get to the Western Approach. I leaned my hip against Josephine's desk and held the contract in my hands, hoping for guidance. Wardens or the dragon? We didn't know how many Wardens had gone to the Western Approach and I couldn't leave the populace of the Hinterlands to the whims of a dragon.
Breaker Thram, first. I decided, leaving the contract back on the desk. Let's see what training she has for me, maybe it'll help figure out where best to use our resources.
Out the door I went.
