This series began as a prompt fill from the Dragon Age Pairing Generator of "Leliana/f!Cousland, Letters" but will cover other letters sent to and from Elissa in the months and years following the end of the Blight. All events and characters mentioned throughout the series coincide with my continuity from A Warden's Duty, building on a combination of my gameplay and fic and Bioware's own canon.
(the following letter was undated, but delivered to Vigil's Keep with a large shipment addressed to the Commander approximately 22 Wintermarch, 9:32 Dragon)
Warden,
The elf informed me before he disembarked at Wycome that it is customary in your land to provide those you hold in esteem with an offering on the anniversary of their birth. The quantity of qahwa that accompanies this correspondence should reach you prior to that date, and it should prove to be a sufficient supply for many months. I regret that I was unable to teach you the proper methods of preparation, but the instruction I've included is simple, though precise. Follow it carefully.
30 Haring, 9:30 Dragon (this letter, though dated for a year prior, finds its way through various hands to finally reach Vigil's Keep approximately 1 Guardian, 9:32 Dragon)
Lady Elissa,
I pray this letter finds you safely. Mother, Ria, and I've been in Kirkwall for three months now, and my sister and I have been working for an elven woman who helped us pay our way into the city. Considering the debt she incurred on our behalf, we'll be working for her until next autumn at least. I know I should be grateful; so many refugees from the Blight have been forced into much more dire circumstances than we have, but I can't help but wonder at the gaps between the stories Mother told us of her childhood and the reality that Kirkwall has presented.
Oh! I almost forgot! I dreamed of you last night—that's why I'm writing now, even though I'm sure you're still fighting the darkspawn and won't get this letter for months at least. I don't remember much detail now, but you were in a fantastic hall within a mountainside, where the air was filled with glittering gems. But throughout that beauty was an incredible pain that I couldn't begin to describe but I know it was you being put through such suffering. So please, please be careful, whatever you're doing. We need you to make it through this safely.
…Athenril's glaring at me now, and I think she's afraid the ship she's hired will miss the tide if I make her delay it any longer. As I said in the note I left you in Lothering (assuming you've been back there to find it), I'll be sending this letter to Miriam in Redcliffe, so that she can get it to the Revered Mother and eventually to you. In the meantime, I think I'll sneak into the Chantry tonight and light a candle for you, and pray that the Maker will keep you safe.
You will never know how much what you do means to so many,
Bethany