The ride back from Crestwood that day was not nearly as awful as the journey to Crestwood. Granted, it took some time for Ellie and her companions to digest what horrors were going on with the Wardens. While the bad news still undoubtedly weighed on everyone, Varric and Dorian were always good at breaking awkward silences and distracting people from their issues with their witty banter. Now that everyone was back to feeling like themselves and suffering through an agonizing hangover, the two male's charm worked wonders at relieving the tense mood; even Cassandra seemed less pensive.
But when they did cross the stone bridge that led into Skyhold, all Ellie could think about was sleep. She was in a much better frame of mind, but it was late at night when they had arrived and most of the people within the fortress were already presumably sleeping considering how quiet it was. The only life in the darkness was the guards running their nightly paroles and the low buzz of the tavern.
They dismounted their horses and unloaded their gear in a bit of a daze; everyone was weary from the quick journey to and from Crestwood and they all longed for the comfort of their beds. While Ellie knew that the situation in the Western Approach needed prompt attention, sleep was a more pressing need for her in that moment. Besides, while it was an urgent matter, it didn't warrant waking up her advisors to brief them in the middle of the night.
As she left the stables, her eyes flicked up towards the one person who she assumed wasn't sleeping yet. To her surprise, there was no light emitting from the Commander's office. Usually even at this hour he was still awake. She wondered with a small flicker of hope that he might taking her advice by finally listening to his physical needs and he was actually getting some sleep. Or least attempting it anyways.
Though the thought lingered in the back of her mind, her legs seemed to have their own mind as they carried her automatically to her quarters to catch up on her own rest. Still, despite her exhaustion induced foggy brain, she resolved to ask Cullen about how he had been coping with his withdrawal symptoms since she saw him last.
Ellie barely had a mind to remove her clothes and boots before crawling into bed, her body craving a peaceful slumber. Tossing articles of clothing every which way until she was free of them and kicking off her boots lazily, she all but flopped onto her soft bed and instantly fell asleep.
The next morning, Ellie woke up feeling infinitely better. She'd had a completely dreamless sleep and when she did wake, she was in exactly the same spot and position that she had fallen asleep in. It was exactly what she needed and she was grateful for it.
The Inquisitor had sent word to her advisors she would brief them about what she discovered in Crestwood and to figure out their next move in order to stop the Wardens dissent into desperation and panic. The War Council meeting would take place later that morning, giving Ellie a little extra time to get some things sorted out before then.
She didn't even want to bother unpacking since she had a feeling she would be leaving for the Western Approach promptly. She would need to add to her travel pack before they left, considering the desert was significantly farther away than Crestwood, but she would tackle that when they had a set date for their departure.
During the morning, no one seemed to need the Herald for any urgent business so she stayed in her quarters for most of it getting caught up on some paperwork while she sipped at her tea. It was probably the most stress-free way to spend going through reports and letters so Ellie took full advantage of it while she had the opportunity.
As she was working, her thoughts would frequently get sidetracked drifting off to images of curly, blonde hair and warm brown eyes. At first, Ellie tried to stay focused. As soon as she felt her mind going in that direction, she would quickly divert her attention back to her work, inwardly scolding herself for thinking like some lovesick teenager. Yet every single time it happened, Ellie's stomach would start doing tiny flip-flops and a dreamy smile would make its way across her face.
Get ahold of yourself, woman! Ellie yelled inwardly at herself, becoming increasingly agitated by a state of mind that was so unlike her. She needed to be guarded, she needed to focused on the work she had to do, and most importantly she couldn't allow her heart to become so enamoured by a man that it would put her in a position that would just cause her more heartbreak in the end.
She cared for Cullen, sure. And of course she thought he was attractive. Maker was he ever attractive. Who could deny that?
But that was only the surface. The more she got to know him, the more sides of him she got to see. When he was training his troops or giving them orders, he was everything a military commander should be: Firm, tenacious and imposing, yet not so cold or intimidating so as to earn an unhealthy fear from his soldiers. On the contrary, they all looked up to him, their loyalty to him unyielding, and they held with the highest esteem and respect possible. As his title would imply, though, being that kind of commander was part of his job and he was damn good at it.
It was the other sides of him that stood out to Ellie most though. How passionate he was about their cause, how he always stood up for what he believed in, how kind he could be. Ellie adored how bashful and awkward he could be at times, though he seemed to inflict that on her just as much. Like how he would surprise her sometimes with a carefully hidden flirtatious side that made it hard for Ellie to resist him. In her heart, she didn't want to either. But part of her still held onto the belief that she had to for her own sake. It was a belief that was slowly starting to dissolve every time she thought about him and…
I'm thinking about him again, Ellie's face dropped into her palms and she let out an annoyed groan.
Standing up from her desk, she concluded that she needed some fresh air to clear her head. It would soon be time to go to the War Room anyways, so she figured a quick walk along the battlements would be a good idea before she had to come face to face with the man she was trying not to dwell on for her own sanity's sake.
Surprisingly, the ramparts were fairly quiet for that time of day. The sun was shining brightly and crisp, cool air almost instantly put Ellie more at ease. Her gait was casual since she wasn't going anywhere in particular and she would flash a friendly smile to any guards that passed her by. Even though she was the Inquisitor, she never wanted to make it seem like she was unapproachable or dismissive; that wasn't in her nature anyways.
Ellie stopped at the part of the battlements that overlooked the gardens. It was the one location in Skyhold that always looked so serene even though there were a number of people there. Ellie was growing accustomed to the cold, snowy mountains of the Frostbacks but she relished being in lush, green environments. Skyhold's garden was the closest she had to that.
Leaning on her elbows, chin resting on her hands, she began picking out familiar faces below her. Even though she was a ways above them, she could still make out a few people that she knew well enough. The only one that really stood out to her though was Dorian who appeared to be in another argument with Mother Giselle. It made Ellie sigh softly knowing that Mother Giselle would never truly get over her predjudice towards Tevinters, even though Dorian was so unlike most of his countrymen.
"See something interesting?"
The familiar male voice behind her startled her so badly she jumped and let out sharp gasp. With one hand now grasping her chest from shock, Ellie whirled around to see who had just scared her half to death. While she was somewhat surprised to see a smirking Cullen standing behind her, the very person she was trying so hard not to think about, she was too busy steadying her nerves to let that register fully.
"Maker's breath, how do you even do that? Sneaking up on me with all of your armor on," Ellie exclaimed, still trying to catch her breath.
The Commander's smirk only grew as he came to stand beside her, "I'm not entirely sure. You're supposed to be the expert on stealth. Maybe you're just losing your touch."
"Or perhaps you're just purposefully trying to give me a heart attack," Ellie countered, matching Cullen's coy tone.
He let out a low chuckle, "That would be quite the achievement. The Inquisitor, who can defeat a high dragon, countless demons and other creatures, succumbing to a heart attack because someone startled her when she wasn't paying attention to her surroundings."
"Yes, I'm sure it would be a glorious day for you," Ellie said sarcastically, giving Cullen a soft, playful shove, "Seriously though, you should consider being a bit more noisy when you're walking around."
The Commander's smirk grew into a full grin at that, "I don't know. Your face was priceless just now, I might try and take advantage of that when I can."
"Is this payback for what Sera and I did to your office?"
A flash of mild annoyance swept over Cullen's face, "Perhaps. Though I still haven't found out exactly what you two did."
That time it was Ellie's turn to laugh, "Really? You still haven't figured it out?"
"No and Sera refuses to tell me still," Cullen responded, a hint of irritation coming through in his tone, "But I know you did something. There's something in my office that just feels… Off."
The Inquisitor giggled as she reflected on her and Sera's successful prank but at the same time, she almost felt sorry for Cullen because it had been a few days and he still hadn't discovered what they did. "I'll give you a hint. Try looking around your desk."
"You think I haven't?" He asked incredulously sending Ellie into another fit of laughter. "You think you're so clever, don't you?"
She glanced over at Cullen who was now leaning against the stone wall of the ramparts like she was. It was one of the few times she could evidently see the smile that had reached his eyes and his body seemed more relaxed than normal.
The friendly banter between her and the Commander made Ellie's heart soar. Not only because she got to be in close proximity with him or because she thoroughly enjoyed the handsome man's company, but also because they both seemed so comfortable and unguarded around each other. While some voice in the back of her mind told her that letting her defences down around him was the last thing she should do, a larger part of her felt like he was the one person who she could let her guard down around.
"You like it," Ellie replied slyly before she really realized what she said. Maybe she should have listened to that small voice after all. She refused to look over at Cullen at that point, knowing that as soon as she did, the confident, flirty air she had put on would falter. With her eyes glued to the garden, she couldn't see the pinkish hue the Commander's face had.
"I do," Cullen breathed, his voice so low that Ellie barely heard it.
The quiet admission had Ellie's head spinning. Perhaps she heard him wrong? Perhaps he simply meant something strictly plutonic? Surely he couldn't have meant anything more from that, right? Her mind raced in denial, coming up with all the reasons he couldn't possibly have implied anything more.
They stood quietly a moment longer, Ellie feeling like she needed to break the silence somehow so her brain didn't implode. "Are you starting to feel any better?"
"I am," Cullen replied after taking a deep breath, "The pain still comes and goes but I feel more at peace with it now. I believe I have you to thank for that."
"Me?" Ellie asked in slight disbelief.
His head turned to look at her and she followed suit. Their eyes locked but not how it had previous times when you could practically cut the sexual tension between them with a knife. There was something deeper in the gaze that they held, something more compassionate and caring.
"You gave me the reassurance I needed. You may not have known it at the time, but your faith in me has reminded me of why I joined the Inquisition and why I had to stop taking lyrium in the first place. I don't know when or even if the withdrawal will ever go away completely, but my determination has never been more strong." The words Cullen spoke were genuine and heartfelt and Ellie couldn't help the relieved smile that formed on her lips.
"I'm glad," she said, warmth radiating into her tone, "Have you been able to sleep much since I left?"
"I can manage to get a few hours here and there. I fear that peaceful sleep will always elude me," he answered honestly. Ellie offered him a kind smile in return but stayed silent, unsure of what to say. Cullen stayed quiet for a moment longer too, but gently placed a hand on the Herald's arm and held it there before speaking again, "I think it's time we made our way to the War Room. Leliana and Josephine might already be waiting for us."
Ellie nodded and the two walked in silence towards their destination. She knew the unnerving information that needed to be discussed in their counsel today and it had created an anxious know in her stomach, effectively kicking her brain into Inquisitor mode. Even though her advisors were excellent at keeping a calm disposition, Ellie knew that they wouldn't waste anytime doing everything in their power to get her to the Western Approach as soon as possible.
When Ellie finally arrived back from the Western Approach, it was the first time she was actually thankful that Skyhold was in the middle of snowy mountains and not in the middle of a desert. They had left for the area two days after Ellie had informed her colleagues of the situation with the Wardens and had been gone for nearly a fortnight. Ellie was almost positive that it would take her years to get all of the sand out of her hair and clothes.
The events that unfolded at the ancient Tevinter ritual tower made Ellie's skin crawl but at the same time made her anger flare. She wasn't a Grey Warden and granted, she didn't know the depth of how far they were willing to go to save Thedas from the Blight. But to turn to mass blood magic was an absolute outrage as far as she was concerned.
If it was possible, Garrett Hawke seemed more angered by what had happened, vowing to do everything he could to help stop it. Ellie appreciated that for once he was more than eager to help and during the brief time she was with him in the Western Approach, not once did she catch him sneering at her or Dorian. She did find it peculiar that Fenris hadn't accompanied Hawke again, but this time she didn't breach the subject and simply accepted his help with stopping the Grey Wardens before it was too late.
To add to the Wardens drastic course, the fact that their actions were overseen by a magister didn't help, either. Even Dorian fully admitted that this Erimond was as evil and slimy as they come, saying that people like him were the reason Tevinter had such a bad name.
So when Ellie had arrived back to Skyhold and immediately convened her advisors to brief them, the horror on their faces was evident. Ellie knew that relating the story was nothing compared to witnessing it. With Cullen's military insight and Josephine and Leliana's connections, they devised a way for them to break into Adamant fortress to stop the madness.
"Before we make arrangements to send our forces to Adamant," the ambassador piped up, "I want to also inform you that I have found a way for you to personally speak with Empress Celene before Corypheus reaches her so we can prevent her assassination."
"Oh?" Ellie inquired, intrigued by the progress Josephine had made in that regard. While Orleasian politics wasn't exactly a point of interest, saving the Empress was another key to foiling Corypheus' plan.
"At the urging of Grand Duchess Florianne, the Empress is holding a ball. Absolutely everyone will be there," Josephine explained, barely containing her excitement at the thought of attending a ball, "During the festivities, Celene will be meeting for peace talks with the usurper Duke Gaspard and ambassador Briala."
"The assassin must be hiding within one of those factions," Leliana concluded with confidence.
Ellie paused for a long moment, weighing out the two different options before her. Preventing both the Empress' assassination and the creation of a demon army were pressing matters, ones that needed to happen to stop their enemy in his tracks. Deciding which one was to be tackled first was the question.
"I think," Ellie started, pausing while she made sure in her mind that this was the best course of action, "I think we should go to the Winter Palace first and ensure the Empress' safety. In the meantime, that will give our army the chance to be as prepared as possible and it will give us time for the siege equipment to be deployed and ready."
With a collective nod of agreement, the four began working on the necessary arrangements for their next steps in defeating Corypheus.
Thanks for reading!