Thank you for reading thus far. I'm trying my hardest to release chapters as soon as possible, but I want to make sure that it's what I want before I upload anything. :)

Chapter 4: Don't Steal from Cassandra

Elise happily squealed at the message. She had been worried for her older brother ever since he left to Redcliffe. Vivienne had been telling her of all the suspicious activity taking place in the area, which led Elise to try and convince Nicholas to not go there, but to no avail. He insisted that sending Cassandra and Varric alone on a mission was doomed to be unsuccessful, and he ended up going with them. She ran up to the scout with a wide-toothed smile.

The news of the Herald's arrival instilled a sudden fear to overcome Cullen. The Commander was always against the Inquisition helping the mages harbored in Redcliffe. He was no longer a Templar. He knew that. But the thought of what could be frightened him. He would wake up some mornings in cold sweat, tortured by demons. Though the other advisers had convinced him otherwise, and Nicholas had promised that this would be wiser than assisting the now corrupted Templar order. Cullen eventually complied, although begrudgingly.

But why was the Herald suddenly here? His note had arrived only a few hours ago, and it explicitly said that he was to return in "a few days." Cullen put aside the thought for later, as he noticed Elise running towards a figure appearing at the main gates.

"Nicholas!" she screamed gleefully as she wrapped her arms around the young man's waist.

Cassandra stood behind the siblings looking inwardly annoyed, as her clothes were cluttered with dirt and rips. Hard battles, no doubt. "Herald, we must report as soon as possible to the advisers. The situation is dire," she said in her thick Nevarran accent, as she crossed her arms along her chest plate.

The Herald turned to Cassandra, letting go of his little sister, but keeping one heavy hand perched on her shoulder. "You know, Cassandra. After all we've been through, I was hoping for a long bath. Maybe a snack, too. Oooo I know there's some fine cheese in the kitchen with my name on it," his eyes were lit with humor, and his deep voice flowed out like water. "Then, we can tell everyone what happened."

Cassandra grunted and her eyebrows furrowed in disapproval, "You are joking… right?"

Nicholas looked at her for a moment, and began to heartily laugh, "We'll go now. I promise." He smiled widely at her.

"You're humor is concerning."

"Concerning?"

"Yes, especially after what you did."

"What?"

Cassandra's cheeks turned red. "Gah! You are impossible." She tightened her shield to her side and fumed.

Varric walked in, while covering his chest with his sleeves, an unknown man following close behind him. "You know, snow and short legs don't work together," he mumbled.

The man behind him grinned. "And I thought this would be chance for you to test your chest hair's vitality against the cold."

"Chest hair has nothing to do with short legs, Sparkler."

Elise's eyes lit up curiously at the dark-haired foreigner. "Sparkler?"

Nicholas looked down at her, "Ah… no. His name is Dorian."

Dorian smiled kindly at the young girl, his moustache curling up. He walked up to Elise and gently lifted her hand to kiss it. "You must be the sister I've heard about. Ella was it? No… Elli-"

"Elise," she softly said.

Dorian laughed slightly. "Elise. I apologize. With all of this time magic, my head has been spinning."

"Time magic?"

"Ah, it seems that you have not told them yet," he said turning to Nicholas.

Nicholas sighed heavily, his previous humor now covered with seriousness. "I sent a note a few days ago, but-"

"We've been having issues with sending letters," Cassandra interjected. "I must speak with Lelianna about this. It is most annoying." She humped at the thought.

Elise peered her eyes at Cassandra. Something was wrong with sending letters? She turned to Nicholas and noticed a hint of worry in his eye. Was it a problem with the ravens? Suddenly, Elise heard the crunching of snow behind her. She turned to Cullen, who holding a note in his hand.

"Herald," Cullen began with a smile on his face. "Welcome back."

"Commander, it is good to see you." Nicholas nodded at him.

"I received your letter today only, and it said that you were arriving in a few days?"

"Yes, there has been some… concern with the ravens," Nicholas replied carefully.

"Concern? Do you think that someone is possibly intersecting our messages?"

"No… I don't know."

Cullen looked at the new mage and Elise. "Let us speak of it with Lelianna later then. We should make our way to the Chantry to discuss the… matter."

Nicholas nodded his head tiredly. His hair, a darker shade than his sister's red hair, had grown long since the Conclave's explosion. Strands of red had plastered along his forehead unevenly, with striking blue eyes below. And a stubble light on his strong jawline. Even with the apparent humor on his features, Cullen could tell that the Herald was exhausted from his travels. After the war council, he would tell one of the servants to give Nicholas a hot meal.

Looking at Dorian, Nicholas outstretched a hand in the direction of the Chantry. They all began to walk towards it. Varric had stopped at the campfire outside, having little interest of the following talks. Cassandra; however, was close behind, and Elise had also begun to trail the group.

She fell into step with Cassandra, who was a good distance from the Herald, Cullen, and Dorian.

"You like him," Elise muttered.

"What!?" Cassandra exclaimed. "Like who exactly?"

"My brother."

"I do not!" Cassandra blushed with a frown. "He is absolutely inappropriate. You do not know what I had to bear with him on our travels."

Elise simply smiled. "Oh and what did he do?"

Cassandra turned her face, trying to hide the redness, "I'd rather not say…"

"Oh come on. What did he do?" Elise amused.

Cassandra looked at Nicholas' back with a look that could kill. "…He stole… my underwear…"

"What?" Elise looked at her in disbelief. Her older brother would do that. The same older brother that scolded her when they were young? The same man who protected her and argued for her… stole Cassandra's underwear? How much change was caused by him joining the Inquisition? The man walking in front of her was not the same Nicholas. That was now obvious. The Inquisition had polluted him, corrupted him into someone Elise did not know.

"I will speak to him," Elise said with hooded eyes. She had to get her brother back.

Cassandra turned to her. "I did not mean that I wanted you to speak with Nicholas," she stated. "I will speak to him myself about his little pranks." With that, she walked ahead to converse with Dorian, leaving Elise in the back with an angry look plastered on her face.

Since Elise came here, she was appalled by the way she was treated by those lower than her. The comments that Elise used to make at home, were not welcome here. It was customary for her to order others and not have them talk back, but here was different. Ferelden was different. Only Vivienne had been able to connect with Elise. Josephine tried, but Elise could see that the kind words were only to keep Nicholas happy. Cullen. Cullen had not been able to come under Elise. He was a Commander. She was a noblewoman. He was handsome and she was beautiful. Their pairing would be perfect, if Cullen's past had not come in her way.

She glared at Cullen's back now, angry at his surprising rejection. He was talking to Nicholas, most likely about his adventures. But he should have been talking to Elise. If only that damned "Solona" woman had never existed in the first place.