A/N: Hey everybody! I just got a job a few days ago, so if i slow down a little in my updates you now know why. In the meantime, here's Chapter 7!
It wasn't long before they crossed into the Imperium. The wide fields that greeted them would probably be much prettier by day, Vex decided. After another two hours, a town popped into view. It wasn't very big, yet it looked well-off, likely from the volume of travelers from the south that would likely pass through it.
"This is Oppidum Parvum," Kieran spoke at last as they left their mounts at the town stable. "I've stopped here before while heading to Minrathous. That large building over there with the bronze bed sign is the inn, in case you're too tired to figure it out."
"Who, me? I could go all night," she said with a wink.
Kieran blushed. "I…don't doubt you, milady," he stammered, and Urthemiel laughed at his blustering. Once they were at the inn, Kieran handed the innkeeper a small pouch of gold. "We'd like your best two-bed room for two nights." The innkeeper, a mustached young dwarf, led them up to third floor, to a room in the far corner. The room really was their best, Kieran guessed: the beds looked fit enough for a minor lord's estate, with real bedding and carved wood frames. Wall sconces kept the large room well-lit.
Kieran retired almost as soon as he was settled. He woke up to find the other bed empty, and Vex was not downstairs in the inn's dining area. Kieran quickly grabbed a warm roll and ran out of the inn. Where did that girl run off to? She should know not to stray off when in a strange land. To his great relief, she hadn't gone far, and was bartering with a fruit vendor.
"There you are," he said, face reddened. "Next time, don't head off like that without telling me, especially since you've never been to Tevinter before."
She smirked at her companion. "You're so cute when you're all flustered. I was just picking up a few supplies for the road. I'm not sure when we'd be stopping next, so I thought that it would be a smart idea to stock up. Better too much than not enough, you know?"
"I suppose you're right. It would be practical to grab supplies while we have a chance. We're riding straight to Minrathous next." Kieran joined her in picking up a few things from the marketplace.
After shopping in silence for some time, Vex spoke up. "I remember you visiting Skyhold with your mother a few times when I was still a little girl. What always struck me about her was her demeanor. She was always kind to me and friendly with Father, but seemed so cold and distant to everyone else."
"Yes, that sounds exactly like Mother. Grandmother raised her that way: be practical, not emotional. Exploit advantages and people, but never get too close. Get what you need, then leave before anyone realizes it. It's how they survived in the Wilds for years."
Vex did recall her father mentioning that Morrigan's mother was Flemeth, the fabled Witch of the Wilds and apparently also some kind of elven goddess as well. "Yet, she married your father, instead of just using him for her own ends."
He chuckled. "'twas her intention at first, from what I've been told. They had a common goal: stop the Blight. Her plan was to help him, then use her newfound freedom to put as much distance between her and Grandmother as she possibly could. They used each other for…fun at first, I've been told. His willingness to help others just for the sake of helping them irritated Mother to no end, and his kindness to her where nobody else – especially Uncle Al – trusted her at all perplexed her. You could say that spending time with him started a slight change in her. She became a little more willing to trust certain people. Your father happens to be one of those people, since he was willing to help us so much when he didn't have to." Kieran paused thoughtfully. "Mother once told me that he reminds her of Father, except with a manipulative streak."
"She picked up on that, did she? Father tries to keep that from the people who don't piss him off. He tells me it's only a last resort, like when he went to the Winter Palace a few decades ago. The Grand Duke, the Empress, and the now-Marquise were all squabbling and plotting like Orlesians are so fond of doing and it was pissing him off so terribly. So he used all the evidence he had against them to make them work together. And work for him as well."
Kieran just stared at her for a second. Impressive, do you not agree? Very Tevinter of him to do. He shook his head to clear the dragon's voice from it. "So then the rumors are true. Your father is the real power behind the Empire."
"Yes, Emperor in all but title. Empress Celene, Grand Duke Gaspard, and Marquise Briala cannot so much as sneeze without asking Father for permission," Vex said, and Kieran could swear he heard pride in her voice.
"So I'm curious," he said, "should something happen to your father, would you become the next Inquisitor?"
"Planning on having him killed so I can take his place and you can control my actions, are we?"
"W-what?! No, not at all Avexis, I would never –"
"That was a joke, Kieran, a joke." She smiled at him, making him flush even further. "To answer your question, though, I have no idea. My father is the first Inquisitor in many ages; I guess he picks his own successors. Not that I wouldn't want to succeed him: Lady Inquisitor Avexis Trevelyan does have a nice ring to it."
"Indeed it does, milady," he replied with a grin as they made their way back to the inn. That daring personality, the way she teased him without trying to be hurtful, how full of life she was…she reminded him so much of Luca, the dwarven woman his hart was named after. Thinking about that dwarf again? Urthmiel interjected. Avexis is so much like her, I agree. For your sake, my friend, I do hope that she does not meet the same fate as her.
"Shut, up, you sodding dragon," Kieran mumbled.
Vex looked at him curiously. "You do that a lot, mumble to yourself like you're arguing with someone. Wait, are you? Do you hear voices or something?"
"Something like that."
"So you're secretly a little mad. And here I thought you were just perfect."
"Was that another one of your jokes?"
"Only half of it was," she grinned.
A/N: The romance is veeeery slowly starting to take shape! we have a long way to go, don't you worry. The next chapter will be something a bit different, but the good kind of different, I think you'll agree. I'm writing it as we speak so an update is pretty imminent. Keep those follows/favs/reviews coming, you guys are my motivation!