Source

She was horrified when she first saw the pictures. In one of the library's alcoves was spread an array of crumbling books, each opened to gruesome pictures of dissected bodies. Tendons and veins, stringy muscles, white bone peeking through marrow. She drew closer, fascinated despite the nausea twisting her gut. She had seen it all in battle before, but here it was painstakingly exact, drawing the eye and keeping it fixed.

'An old, long-dead Tevinter sect used to take apart the bodies of magisters in search of the source of magic.' The Inquisition's own Tevinter mage spoke behind Solana, startling her.

She found herself captivated by a drawing of an opened heart, so detailed and substantial that she could hear the faint echo of its beat.

'And were they successful?'

If she were to look inside him, would she see his magic? Would she understand him at last?

'Of course not.'

The heart seemed to writhe beneath her eyes. Abruptly, she turned away from the table. Dorian was watching her with a frown.

And if he were to take her apart, scrutinise and examine; would he find her empty, lacking? Lesser?

The set of Dorian's mouth grew grimmer. Solana hesitated, then forced herself to voice the words brimming on her tongue. 'Why is it; that some people are born mages and others are not? What does it feel like to have magic ready to summon just by willing it? What about the people who have none – how can we live without it while you never could?' Are we even people to you? she wanted to ask, but did not dare to.

He watched her closely, his handsome face for once lacking its usual arrogance. 'I know the answer to only one of those questions. To be a mage is in many ways more a curse than a blessing. It brings power; and the potential for still greater power – but with power comes responsibility, and the risk of abuse. Then there is the fear of possession, and the dread that one day our control might slip, wreaking havoc on those we hold dearest to us.'

Solana could feel a tense silence arising from the room below the library. 'That sounds like a terrible burden.'

Dorian was smiling now. 'Of course, but there is plenty of fun to be had too. If I told you that possessing magic was all doom and gloom and terrible responsibility, I'd risk invalidating my own account the next time you saw me in battle.'

'Yes, you do like to show off.'

'Ah, but I know how much you enjoy it.'

She bade him farewell, heading downstairs. When she passed Solas's room she kept her gaze averted, feeling his eyes on her back.