Chapter 4:
Sylina was gasping for breath and suddenly there was too much noise around her. There were a thousand voices and they were all screaming and there was a buzzing in her ear. She looked around, but everything looked fake. None of it was real, surely. Cullen was at her side asking her something, but she had no idea what it was. She saw templars moving onto the scene and mages being hurried away and she continued to sit on the floor. Her brain was blank. She didn't know what had happened. Had she just killed a templar? Was she going to be executed? Why hadn't she already been killed? Sylina looked around and found Cullen. His eyes were so wide, so full of worry but so full of relief at the same time.
She blinked at him. "Cullen?" she asked. "What...what happened?"
He shook his head and then a curt voice asked something Sylina didn't catch. Cullen nodded and moved. He put one arm under her knees and the other around her back and picked her up. Sylina gasped and tried to push away. Cullen made a soothing noise. "Shh, I am taking you to your dormitory. You need to rest." Sylina nodded because she felt incredibly tired. Cullen carried her down the rest of the hall to the dormitory. He walked in and put her on her bed. Sylina wondered absently how he knew which one was hers, but didn't ask. She found that she didn't have the strength to say anything. She wanted to ask Cullen what would happen to her or why he had been walking down the hallway since he was supposed to be on guard duty at the library. She was so full of questions and yet none of them would come to her lips.
Cullen went to move from her bed and Sylina grabbed his robe. He stopped and turned back toward her. "Please." She felt tears well up in her eyes and Cullen bent down to the bed. "Don't...leave." She felt ashamed for asking, but she was too afraid to be left alone.
Cullen nodded, "I'm not going anywhere Sylina, I promise. Knight-Commander Greagoir told me to watch over you and make sure nothing happened. I won't let you be bothered." His eyes were so earnest and Sylina could do nothing but nod, the tears falling down her face. Cullen moved his hand to her face, then he looked at his gauntlet and pulled it off. He wiped the tears from her face with his bare hand. She felt the calloused warm hand and she leaned into it. Cullen was so warm, his eyes, his hands, even his voice made her feel warm. She nodded and thought, Yes, Cullen is from a warm place and that is why he is warm and all the other templars are from cold, horrible places and that is why they are cold and horrible. In her delirious mind this made sense and, with these thoughts floating in her mind, she found herself falling asleep, aware of Cullen's warmth nearby.
Cullen sighed when Sylina had finally fallen asleep and regretfully stood up and moved away from her bed. He pulled his hand through his hair and then pulled on his gauntlet. He looked down at the beautiful woman now sleeping soundly. He smiled. Maker, she would be the death of him. Ever since she had run into him, he had scarcely gone a day without thinking about her. Whenever he saw her on his shift his heart would race and he would have to remind himself that she was a mage and he a templar. This wasn't allowed.
Then when she had been so cold to him earlier he had reprimanded himself and told himself that from now on he would leave her alone. It would be better for both of them. She obviously didn't feel the same about him and he should let her be.
But, of course, Sylina had proven him wrong. Her kind words and smile had disarmed him and he hadn't known how to respond. By the time she was moving away he realized what a fool he had been. She most likely thought he hated her or did not want to talk to her. He had beat himself up for a few minutes over his stupidity then realized he couldn't leave it at that. He had hailed a templar and asked him to watch his post for a few minutes and had gone after Sylina.
When he had found her with Pod, Cullen had felt sick. For a split second he thought this was what she wanted, until he saw her face. Tears running down her cheeks and fear in her beautiful round green eyes. He had felt furious that this man would dare to hurt something so wonderful. He had acted rashly, he knew that. But he had never expected Pod to try to kill him when his back was turned. And now Sylina was sleeping while the First Enchanter and the Knight-Commander decided what to do. She had killed a templar, but she had done it not only in self-defense, but to defend Cullen as well. Cullen had briefed both the First Enchanter and the Knight-Commander about what had happened when they appeared at the scene while Sylina was out. They had both looked grim. Cullen was hoping they would be fair and just. He sighed. Perhaps that was simply wishful thinking.