"Sera, you should probably wait outside." Cassandra had no qualms about wanting the unorthodox elf to stay far away from the nobles before they entered Madame De Fer's saloon. Max couldn't blame her after their meeting in Val Royeaux.
"Oh fine, have fun with your arse biscuit nobles!" The elf snorted walking away from the estate gate, leaving just Cassandra and Max alone.
"Good choice, I can't possibly imagine what fun Sera would have if we let her go in with us!" Max said to Cassandra who strode forward to enter the mansion. The last few weeks the two had spent a lot of time together, but Max had failed to get much further than basic polite speech with the conservative seeker. He wanted to change that, but never knew how to, so he settled for what he was given from the Nevarran.
"You should take the lead, Madame de Fer did request to speak with you personally, after all." Cassandra looked around the foyer with no particular interest for the frill of nobility, yet Maxwell felt right at home. It wasn't that he lavished the lifestyle like these Orlesians did, it was just something he was used to being around.
"Lord Trevelyan of Ostwick, representing the Inquisition." Maxwell's announcement got the attention of two nearby Orlesian nobles.
"A pleasure, ser. We so rarely have a chance to meet anyone new. It is always the same crowd at these parties. So, you must be a guest of Madame de Fer, or are you here for Duke Bastien?"
"Are you here on business? I have heard the most curious tales of you. I cannot imagine half of them are true!"
"Ah, well I'm sure…" Max was never one to gloat much, but then he thought of the Josephine's advice that every word spoken in favor of the Inquisition mattered, even the exaggerated ones. "Everything you've heard is completely true, my lady."
"Better and better! The Inquisition should attend more of these parties!"
"The Inquisition! What a load of pig shit!" Max would have kept up the idle chat with the nobles if they hadn't been interrupted by a man at the top of the nearby staircase.
"Washed up sisters and crazed seekers. No one can take them seriously." Max glanced over his shoulder to see a fuming Cassandra barely holding back her disgust for the pompous noble, calling them out for the whole room to see.
"Everyone knows it's just an excuse for a bunch of political outcasts to grab power." The man met Maxwell at the ground floor, standing arrogantly but Trevelyan would have none of it. He refused to let this man walk over him.
"This is a divine calling! We're trying to restore peace and find who murdered the Divine!"
"Of course you are. I'm sure your army is scouring the hills for her murderer as we speak." His light sarcasm did nothing to lessen the rising anger Max felt in his chest, and the man stepping within his personal space didn't defuse the situation either. "We know what your Inquisition truly is. If you were a man of honor, you'd step outside and answer the charges." Max automatically moved his hand to his sword hilt when he saw the noble reach for the weapon on his back, but before Max had a chance to react, someone was already stepping in.
"My dear Marquis." A regal woman appeared on the second floor to intercede, she cast a freezing magic on the marquis, startling Max in the process. "How unkind of you to use such language in my house, to my guest." Madame de Fer made her way almost seductively down the stairs to join the pair, her walk only portraying an exuberant amount of confidence and experience.
"You know such rudeness is intolerable." Max exchanged looks with Cassandra. He could tell she didn't trust the mage, but was glad the man was being put in his place.
"Madame Vivienne, I humbly beg your pardon…" At that point, Max was beginning to feel like a third wheel to this whole thing, trying not to stand around like an awkward buffoon while the mage berated the man.
"You should, whatever am I going to do with you, my dear?" Lady Vivienne turned to address Max. "My lord, you're the wounded party in this unfortunate affair, what would you have me do with this foolish, foolish man?"
"I think the Marquis has seen the error of his ways, Lady Vivienne." Max had to hold back from rolling his eyes as the mage dramatically let him go.
After his meeting with the enchanter was finished, Maxwell met back up with Cassandra in the foyer.
"You handled that situation well. You stood up for what was right and still you chose to spare his life. Even though you could have punished him." For the first time that night, Cassandra looked directly into Max's eyes. Her expression softened, like the careful guard of a seasoned seeker was starting to peel away at the edges.
"Thank you, Lady Cassandra, I appreciate that." His gaze narrowed in on her lips, the curve on top subtly reminded him of a heart. He kept staring until Cassandra awkwardly coughed.
"Yes, well we better be on our way then!" She shifted on her heel and they were headed back to their horses, and not another word was said about it.
With two members for the Inquisition conveniently recruited after their trip to Val Royeaux, it was time to move forward gathering enough power to close the Breach. The question of who to approach, however, was a more delicate task.
"Luckily, the Inquisition has two Herald's. We have time to meet with both the mages and templars!" Max was the first one to suggest this idea at the war table once everyone had made it back to Haven.
"It's not a bad idea, it could be done." Leliana and Josephine were the most amiable on the idea, whereas Cullen and Evelyn had their doubts.
"We'd be splitting our forces down the middle, we couldn't guarantee there'd be enough backup if things went wrong." Max couldn't deny that he was a little intimidated by the commanders expertise on an area like this, but one reassuring look from his sister gave him courage to speak up.
"We've had reports of the mages joining forces with a magister in Redcliffe. We can't let that stand, and we know after our encounter with the Lord Seeker something's not right with the templars. We have to try getting both groups. Even if we don't necessarily need both to close the Breach, it's the right thing to do." He stood firm in his conviction, earning an approving smile from both Evelyn and Cassandra, making him almost beam with pride.
"Well, then. How shall we go about this? I need to make preparations." Leliana said, regarding both Max and Evelyn.
"Looks like we're going solo again, brother. I'm going after the mages." Evelyn spoke first, just as Hawke walked in. She knew him all too well to go after the templars with Cassandra.
"And you'll have a few of us to tag along. We're not letting you take any chances in Redcliffe on your own." Behind Hawke stood Varric, Solas, and Blackwall.
"Good, then I'll just assume the others will be going to Therinfall with you, brother." Evelyn patted Max on the shoulder as the meeting adjourned. The room emptied, leaving just Cullen and Max the last ones to leave.
"Maxwell, I was hoping to have a word privately?" The commander almost looked sheepish, which surprised Max since he always seemed so put together as a key part of the Inquisition.
"Sure, Cullen. What's up?" Max crossed his arms, curious to why he had to talk to him in private.
"This is a little embarrassing, but I was wondering if you could help me with something." He ran a hand through his blonde tresses. "I was hoping you could tell me what flowers your sister likes."
"Oh, well I certainly wasn't expecting that." Max gave a short laugh, not surmising before the former templar looked at his sister that way.
"She's never been big on flowers, but I do know she likes the ones that bloom from the crystal grace plant." Maxwell was certainly approving of this change, he knew the commander was an honorable man, but he didn't know how his sister would feel.
Max went on with preparations to leave within the next couple of days for Therinfall when it dawned on him, Hawke was interested in Evelyn too!
"Maker, she's gonna kill me if she finds out!" Maxwell lamented to himself when he realized it was his fault that two men were now vying for his sister's attention.
"Or she doesn't have to know…" A devilish smirk pulled at the corner of his mouth, Max thought this new development would certainly make things more interesting around Haven, as if it needed it to begin with.