When she woke, she panicked for a moment as her eyes focused on unfamiliar surroundings. Where- her hand touched warm fur. Roger. Right, she was at Cullen's sanctuary, in what she supposed she could call her room. Diana yawned as she sat up, Roger's ears perking as he noticed she was now awake.

"Hi," she said to him, stretching as she stood. Her body ached from the strange position she had napped in, thanks to Roger's massive form. He seemed to feel no guilt over it; the mabari stood and looked well-rested and pleased with himself.

Diana wandered into the washroom. There were several buckets full of water that hadn't been there earlier; she wondered if Flora had brought them while she had been napping. She dipped a few fingers into the water and found that it wasn't hot, but was warm enough that she could take a bath without freezing to death.

She did just that, emptying the buckets into the deep tub with a little difficulty. The oil and herbs were right where Flora had said they were, tucked away in a small cabinet in the corner of the room. The former Inquisitor selected a few and added them to the tepid water before stripping herself of her clothes and lowering herself into the water.

While not outrageously dirty from her last stretch of travel to the sanctuary (she had bathed a few times in some inns along the way), she still felt renewed as she washed and scrubbed at her hair. Roger sat on the floor next to her, chin resting on the edge of the washtub. Every once in a while he'd let out a low whine and she'd scratch his ears until he relented.

Eventually she dressed herself in a clean, soft green tunic and dark pants. Diana and the mabari left the guest quarters. The sun was beginning to set. Roger instantly shot across the grounds in a sprint; she guessed he had somewhere important to be.

"Diana!" She turned as she heard her name, using her hand to shield her face from the light of the setting sun as it squeezed down below the hills. It was Cullen who had called her name. As he approached, she noticed his hair was damp and he had changed his shirt; apparently he too had bathed since the last time they had seen each other. He was also carrying a little pack over his shoulder.

"Finished with all your… what's your title here, anyway?" Diana questioned.

"Officially, I believe it's 'overseer,' but no one here really uses titles."

She smiled slightly. "Well, did you finish all your overseeing?"

"I'm officially done for the evening - everything else can wait for morning," he said, then cleared his throat. "I - I was wondering if you'd eaten anything yet."

Diana shook her head, then motioned toward the dining hall. "Not yet. Do you… want to go to the dining hall with me?" Her stomach did that fluttery thing again.

"No," Cullen said, then his eyes widened slightly. "Not that I don't want to eat with you - I just don't want to go to the dining hall. Not that there's anything wrong with the dining hall, but I, ah, had Leo pack us some food. I thought I might... show you the surrounding area. There's a pond and it's very relaxing and-"

"Cullen," she said evenly, strangely emboldened by his unsure rambling. "Let's go."

He led her along a faint path through the hills. For the most part they were silent as they made their way up the gentle slopes; there was only an occasional thanks as he extended his hand to help her up the rockier areas of the incline.

Finally, the pond came into view and Diana found herself smiling. It was a small pond, fed from a stream that was making gentle gurgling noises. Reeds lined the water and as the sun did its final sinking below the horizon the water was set ablaze with orange, blue, and pink. A gentle breeze made the reeds rustle together softly.

"It's beautiful," she said.

"It is," he agreed, then motioned to a flat rock that jutted out into the pond. They sat and he unpacked their meal, setting out cups and a small flask of water. The conversation was easy between them.

Dinner was rabbit leftover from lunch, but she didn't mind; Leo was an excellent young cook and it had been a long time since she had wanted to eat more than one meal in a day.

"How was your first day?" Cullen asked her.

"It was good. Busier than I'm used to, but I like that," she said, wiping her mouth with a napkin.

"Being busy makes things easier, in my experience."

"Mine, too," she said, then remembered her reunion with his mabari. "I saw Roger. He's very good at tackling, isn't he?"

"I imagine he was very excited to see you. I'm surprised he's not here right now. He must have known that I…" Cullen trailed off, apparently losing his nerve for a moment. After a clearing of his throat, he continued with a slightly unsteady voice. "That I would rather be alone with you right now."

The fluttering stomach and racing heart was back again. She looked away from his face, gaze settling toward the water. The sun was gone by now; only the gentle glow of the lantern Cullen had brought illuminated the pair as they sat. Slowly, lightning bugs emerged from the damp grass around the pond.

"I come here often," he confessed. "It reminds me of a lake I would visit when I was a child, whenever I wanted to get away from my brother or sisters. I haven't been there in a long time. Not since leaving for templar training… Branson gave me this on that day."

He reached into a pocket, pulling out a small object that he offered to her. She took it, examining it in her palm. "A coin?"

"He told me it was lucky," Cullen said, looking off into the small pond. "I very nearly threw it away a few times that I felt anything but lucky… but I'm glad I kept it. I'd like you to have it."

She flushed, holding the coin out to him. "Cullen, I can't, it's important to you-"

"So are you," he said, his voice so quiet it was barely more than a whisper. He looked at her and she thought his blazing eyes would set the sky on fire all over again. Diana studied him for a long moment before slowly tucking the coin into a pocket in her pants.

She didn't know what to say. Thank you seemed insufficient for the sharing of such a private, personal memory, nevermind the gift. Cullen nodded gently, his gaze returning to the water that was now deep shades of green, blue, and black.

Diana studied his profile. She wasn't quite sure what exactly Cullen was to her, but she knew she enjoyed his company very much and there was an unspoken understanding between them. They had both been through the same kind of horrors and they both had to wake up every morning knowing there might be an inner demon to fight. He was like her, in some ways, and that made her more at ease with him than anyone else.

She hesitated before she leaned over ever so slightly, so that her shoulder was pressed against his as they sat side-by-side.

Cullen inhaled quietly, then tilted his head so that his cheek rested on her curly hair.