Someday the Dream Will End
To Sacrifice Love or the World
By: Memory of the Sky

A Note from the Author: The chapters are slowly being updated as I'm now taking more time and careful consideration when writing out these pages. I am learning to be more detailed in my writing so that I may bring you a world that I see in my own waking dreams.

Days had passed into a week and still Aura did not wake. The air within her tent permeated with sickness, suffocating any who entered with doubt. Solas breathed in stiffly and carefully lifted Aura's body while Irena quickly applied fresh bandages and re-clothed the unconscious mage. She was beginning to feel weightless in Solas' arms and the heat rising from her flesh burned away at the remaining faith he had in her strength. Solas focused his gaze to one of the tent walls, stifling all expression from his face. He could not bear to look at her.

On occasion, Irena would lock her deep green eyes with his and force a hopeful toothless smile. It was sort of a comfort to Solas in his state of declining optimism and served as a reminder that he had to persevere despite how dismal everything seemed to be. Irena reached out to him, laying her bare hand upon Solas' shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. She spoke a few hopeful words in their language, bringing Solas back from the despair his mind had wandered into. He looked to the raven-haired elf and thanked her in a whisper before she left.

Alone once more, he barely counted Aura as he laid her back in the cot. The Apostate finally breathed out a heavy sigh and mustered up the courage to look upon her face. He wondered what she would do if he was in her position. He imagined that she would be there by his side as he was by hers, unwilling to give up. He smiled a little to himself as he pictured her leaning in close to whisper words of encouragement to him.

The thought moved him, perhaps he would give it a try. Solas laid his hand over hers and ran his fingers through her loose messy braids, "You have been gone too long, my love," he said, wondering if his words even reached her. He watched her face carefully for any sign of subtle movements, a twitch of the eye or the lips, anything. "I refuse to accept that you would let this be your undoing, I know your strength, and I've felt it. Just..." he hesitated for a moment still waiting for the sign he longed for. "Do not make me come after you, because I will, and if that happens...I am afraid, Aura," he clenched her hand tightly, his strength leaving him as he thought of his next words. Solas leaned forward, kissing her cheek and then quickly left her tent.

Solas needed to be alone, and he passed through the small camp dodging as many of his agents as he could and made his escape into the woods. In these situations, he would long for the Fade and the comfort that the Spirits would bring him. Instead, he desired the waking world and found himself purposefully walking through the piles of crimson, brown and yellow leaves losing his mind in the sound of the dead foliage crunching beneath his feet. He breathed in the cool air deeply through his nostrils, and then a realization struck him as he longed to fall back into the pile of decaying leaves. This is something she would do, he stopped in his tracks and looked to the tops of the trees.

He recalled memories of their days in the Inquisition when she would slip away to be alone. Solas would search for her and find her enjoying the simple comforts of nature. Like climbing into trees, or swimming beneath the stars at night, or even laying out in the snow after a heated battle. The memories caused him to smile, and he gave into the joy he found in them. He kicked the leaves into a decently sized pile and then allowed himself to fall backward into it, the feeling of falling freed him of his anxiety. Solas reached into his shirt, his fingers wrapping around a thin chain that he kept hidden at all times. He pulled it over his head and entangled the chain around his long fingers. A silver elven locket dangled heavily at the end and he watched it swing gently, mesmerized by the shine that glimmered off its surface, it reminded him of her eyes. Solas opened the locket, resting his eyes on a piece of parchment that he had magically sealed inside with her image drawn upon it. He had stolen her away from her duties back then to secretly sketch out her face while he made every effort to get her to laugh. The visual imagery helped his sanguine disposition to remain, he dropped the trinket against his chest and allowed himself some rest.

His mind began to fill in with dreams of her; as it often did. Images began swirling and shaping into ancient dwarven ruins that were flooded in pale green light that began to dissipate following the sound of an explosion echoing throughout the abandoned caverns. The air vibrated with immense energy and when the light faded he found himself standing knee-deep in cold water. He instantly recognized this place and what memory had come to mind. Solas turned, facing a dais and found Aura standing upon it leaning against her staff. She was looking towards the recently closed breach.

"The rift is closed now, we should head back and inform the Mayor," she said brushing away strands of short wet hair that clung to her face. They were all drenched, but she particularly looked in a state of discomfort.

"That was a good thing we did," Cole announced and sheathed his daggers. "It is good to help,"

Aura smiled at the Spirit's approval and harnessed her staff to her back, "Right? Let's get out of this place, I'm ready to dry out by a campfire."

"I thought you liked swimming?" Blackwall asked taking a step down into the pool of water that Solas was standing in.

"Swimming is enjoyable, but being garbed in metal and leather; I'm feeling a bit... waterlogged," she followed Blackwall into the pool and began a slow fight against the weight of the water, "It's a shame that it's storming outside, I could use the sun right now," she stopped next to Solas noticing that he was staring off into the distance, looking towards a wall near the exit as though he could see right through it. "Is something the matter?" she asked, breaking his concentration.

Solas turned to look at her a faint smile curling upon his lips. He couldn't wait to share what his senses had discovered, "Do you feel it?" He asked, drawing her own attention to the faint presence he was focused in on.

Aura looked away in the same direction he had been so fixated upon. It didn't take her long to look back at him, excitement enhancing the beauty of her big eyes, "I do!" she said eagerly, "Let's go find it!"

He chuckled at how quickly she decided to deal with a few more moments of uncomfortably soaked garments all for the sake of finding the ancient device used to strengthen the veil. Her enthusiasm for Elven artifacts and anything related to the Fade never ceased to intrigue him. Solas loved to put her growing abilities to the test and he delighted in how much care she put into accepting his undisclosed challenges. Thankfully it wasn't far and she was able to find it knocked over, buried under a pile of drenched planks. He observed Aura reach around the sphere shaped device, the armored rings on her fingers scraping lightly against the smoothed stone.

She let out a little grunt as she tried to pull it upright, it was clearly too heavy for the Dalish Mage. Taking pity on her, Solas helped her to lift it and in return she gave him a thankful smile and set her gaze on the device. Aura hovered her hands around it, channeling her magic into the device. In a moment it began to emit a glittering blue-green glow that cloaked the immediate area in a faint warmth. "Very good, vhenan," Solas said, "that should keep any more rifts from forming."

The Inquisitor stood, fanning herself from the growing humidity, "It is nice finding these. I wish that there were more, perhaps I'll requisition Keepers for any knowledge they have on these artifacts, it would be wonderful if we could make and use these to prevent further breaches," she said stepping over debris to take the lead.

"Now there is an idea I'd be most interested in helping with," Solas replied with an air of enthusiasm, "The artifacts protecting Skyhold are most certainly worth a study." He followed her out into the main hall where Cole and Blackwall waited and for a moment she stood still to decide which direction they should go, down an unexplored hallway or in the direction from where they came. She began to lead them down the hallway they had not entered.

"Are you sure you know where you're going?" Blackwall called out from far behind them.

Solas watched as Aura stopped in her tracks, looking from one debris ridden corner to the next. She rolled her shoulders back slightly in a light shrug, "I think so," she said and reached up touching the air, "I feel a breeze," and continued on. It wasn't long before the Inquisitor had guided them to an exit and they had ascended into the upper levels of the caves.

"Look Aura! The sky has rewarded you with the sun," Cole called out pointing frantically to the light draping over the mouth of the cave.

Aura picked up the pace a little more and made a bit of distance between herself and Solas. She stopped just outside the entrance of the cave, her figure mostly drowned out by the intense light. She stretched her arms out with a sigh of relief and raised her face to the sun. She then cheered something related to the sun in Elven and marched off towards a pile of large rocks while she loosened her gear. The pieces of armor fell to the ground on her path, like a trail of breadcrumbs.

"Inquisitor, should we not head back to the town?" Solas asked while he followed her. He stopped in his tracks as he watched his woman wrestled herself out of her soggy leather overcoat and let it fall into the grass, "Wait," Solas said in confusion, "What are you doing?"

"Drying out," she replied without concern, "You heard Cole, didn't you? The sky has rewarded me, and I accept, graciously I might add. Don't worry the town is going nowhere, I mean not unless a dragon comes along," she teased and flashed him a coy smile.

"I'm with the Inquisitor on this one," Blackwall said tossing his armor off in a neater pile, "My boots are so filled with water I can barely lift my feet to walk, it won't do us any good anyway if we get sores from hiking in wet leather," He said keeping his back to them. Cole, however, seemed un-phased by the amount of water his clothes carried, instead he dropped himself into the grass and stretched himself out with a yawn.

"A benefit of Elven foot wraps, water drains easier," Aura called out in reply as she pulled her own boots off and proceeded to dump at least a pint of water out of each into the grass.

Solas couldn't argue their point, but he was becoming slightly concerned with just about how much clothing she intended to take off in the presence of her comrades. He began to discard his own garments and looked over to see her climbing up onto the top of the rocks and then laying on her back with an exasperated yet relaxed sigh. It wasn't long before he could hear Cole barraging Blackwall with a series of questions regarding his chest hair. Solas decided his attentions were best suited with Aura.

"Better?" He asked after climbing up to where she had settled herself. He laid down next to her with his head parallel to hers.

Aura turned her head to the side and looked to him, squinting slightly from the sun, "You have no idea. Though I'd be much more satisfied if I could take all of my clothes off," she said and flashed him a mischievous smile.

"I would be just as satisfied with all of your clothes off too," Solas quipped. He couldn't tell if it was the sun or the direction the conversation was headed that made him feel so warm so fast. Secretly, he was wondering what her clothes were hiding from him.

She tried to suppress her laughter, "That can be arranged," she said playfully yet in a hushed voice. Aura turned over onto her side to face him completely. Her eyes soft and a gentle smile on her lips, eager to hear his response.

He was grinning from ear to ear and he reached over laying a hand against her damp head and pressed a quick kiss against her lips. His mouth tingled with hunger, this was the only sort of physical interaction he would allow himself with her, "One day your teasing is going to get you into trouble, vhenan," he said with a hint of danger in his tone and sat up pulling his final layer of his tunic off, laying it out next to him.

"Trouble is my other name, if you haven't noticed," she said and laughed. He laughed with her, fully intending to tease her tenfold but his thoughts were broken when the sound of duty came abruptly calling.

"Sir!" Solas groaned and turned to look towards the source of whomever was calling on them.

"Fen'Harel!" His mind snapped awake to the sound of his ancient name. Solas found himself looking up into an amber shaded sky, illuminating him to exactly how much time he had spent sleeping. He yawned, hardly realizing the dire urgency the agent was expressing.

The rebel wolf turned his gaze to his agent who stood over him, "What is the matter?" Solas said not bothering to move.

The masked elf reached out, "Mistress Irena has sent me to find you," he said and pulled Solas to his feet. "It is Lady Lavellan, she's gone missing!"

Reality had never come crashing down so hard post-dream. His leisure demeanor was quickly overtaken with panic, he reached out and grabbed the operative roughly by the collar of his shirt and pulled him close. "Is everyone looking?" Solas demanded to know.

"Everyone!" the agent replied with a shaking voice.

Solas released him, realizing he had set the soldier into his own fear stricken panic. "Go," Solas said after a moment, but much more calmly than before. "I doubt she would have gotten too far. I will follow the river down, you go north from here." The soldier nodded, his shoulders dropping slightly as the tense atmosphere began to somewhat fade.

Before he could leave Solas reached out grasping him by his shoulder and the agent turned slightly, "Thank you," Solas tried to further make amends, "It was not my intention to frighten you."

The agent simply shook his head, blowing out an audible sigh beneath his wolf mask, "I know what it is like to lose someone you love deeply. We will find her," he said trying to reassure him.

Solas released him when the agent gave him a slight nod and the two parted ways. Solas broke into a sprint, following the bank of the river. On occasion he would pause, kneeling down while trying to feel for traces of her energy. At times he thought he could sense her nearby, and the moment he headed in that direction it would either vanish or call him to another direction. Solas knew that this was either due to her weakened state or his strong desire to see her was tricking his own senses into thinking that she was close.

It wasn't long before Irena and another agent came darting from the direction he was headed in. When they met Irena removed her ebony wolf mask and leaned over breathing out a few heavy long breaths before raising her face up to look at him. She was smiling wide, "She's alright!" Irena nearly shouted with excitement.

"Where?" Solas asked, hardly believing his ears.

"The waterfall by the ruins south of here. No one has approached her yet, hurry. Go!" Irena replied, pushing him to make haste.

The Apostate took off from them running further south following the river all the way down until he came to a thinner section of the forest marked by a rocky alcove. He could see the ancient elven ruins nestled into the mountain parallel from the one he stood on, marking the location Irena had directed him to. It didn't take him long to pick up on Aura's presence, gentle, faint, and fleeting but very close. Solas drew in a deep breath, preparing himself to meet with her at last.

He could feel the occupancy of the others under his command, watching and waiting for his signal. It discomforted him knowing that this moment would not be private. He raised a hand and motioned without a word, and in a minute he could feel the agents recede from the immediate area. He waited long enough to make sure they had all left and began to walk towards the edge of the cliff that was masked by an overgrowth of hanging vines and rock.

Aura sensed Solas from behind her, like a warm wind against her back that made her feel like she was being embraced. She inclined her head towards her left shoulder, closing her eyes, and imagined that he was really there with her. Silently she prayed that it wasn't another trick of the Fade. She was too afraid to turn around, too afraid that she was trapped in a dark dreamless sleep. The Dalish Mage rocked against the cold breeze that joined them, her muscles aching throughout her body as she steeled herself to remain standing.

"Aura?" Solas' voice was clear, concerning... real. The sound shook her to her core and brought her from her dazed state. His voice beckoned her to turn around. She wanted to see him.

She opened her eyes, anchoring them to the ruins on the other side of the waterfall out of fear of being disappointed again. The feeling of his presence intensified, she couldn't stop shaking as he came close. Something deep within her begged her to run, even though she wanted him most. Aura swallowed the tears that were beginning to pool beneath her eyes, this is what it meant to die. No, wait, she second guessed her fatal judgment remembering how real his voice felt in her ears. There was only one way to be certain, she had to put reality to the test. She wouldn't turn around until she was sure it was really him.

"Am I dead?" She asked with a voice that was cracked and dry.

"No," Solas answered, his own voice shaking, "Far from it, you did come close though."The Dalish Mage shook with internal laughter. She was amused by the grim disposition Solas had seemingly not lost, and it was more than enough to convince her that she had not perished.

"You should come down from there, here, take my hand," Solas said inching closer still.

Finally turning towards him, she looked over her shoulder, resting an exhausted yet scowling gaze upon him that consumed every fiber of his being. They had finally arrived at this moment, face to face, and he was washed out into an abyss of his own doubt and his only lighthouse was the warm silver radiating from her eyes. "The air," her broken voice pulled him back ashore, "it helps." Neither one of them broke eye contact.

"Come," Solas urged her, "If it is a chill you seek I know of a place." He extended his hand out closer to her, motioning with it for her to come along.

Her gaze shifted, glancing at his gesture with hesitation. After a moment she finally reached out, laying a heated, clammy hand into his. His skin tingled beneath her touch, sending waves of anxiety throughout his body. Solas helped Aura down the rocky slope before pulling her against his chest, wrapping his arms around her possessively and laid his lips against the top of her forehead. The fever emanating from her body soaked through his clothes in a matter of seconds. She trembled against him, and he pushed her back by her shoulders, looking down at her, "You are burning up," he stated.It was then that her strength gave away, her head lulled forward, dropping against his chest and she exhaled with exhaustion. Aura collapsed completely into his arms and he scooped her up wasting no time to carry her away back into the forest. A trail lead him to one of the many smaller waterfalls born from the river. It poured into a modest body of water that leaked out into a creek. Solas stepped in and paused when a sharp chill bit at his foot."It may feel quite cold to you," he warned her, "but I believe this will help, are you ready?"

Their eyes did not meet, but nodded to him and gripped his tunic tighter in preparation. Solas stepped in the rest of the way, as soon as the water touched her back she stiffened in his arms. He allowed her to sink into the water until it swallowed her body. He did not let go however, and after a few moments he could feel her relax as the frigid water drank up her fever. The wind began to wrestle the trees, drawing Solas' attention away from the Dalish Mage. The autumn foliage was grabbed from their branches and tossed them into the air where they floated down finding their resting place in a watery grave. Solas looked down at her, finding that she too watched the trees dance above them.

"Do you recall anything?" He asked her.

Aura looked at him, "Yes," she replied with a raspy voice. "You saved me twice now, in the waking world...and in the Fade," she raised a hand over her mouth and coughed slightly from the number of words stripping her throat.

Solas shook his head with a most sorrowful look, "I am sorry that I was not there sooner. I was too late," he said quietly. A moment had passed and she didn't say anything to him, instead she averted her eyes to the where the water poured into the small reservoir. He suspected that she had grown angry with him, and he wished that she had the ability to verbally and physically express whatever pent up frustrations she felt with him. This was enough for now he told himself, she was alive. His eyes lingered over her mouth, noticing a drop of water that slowly began to slip down from her chin.

It rolled down her slender neck to her collarbone and seeped into her clothing. The rebel wolf took notice of how the thin tunic clung to her skin, allowing him to see her curves more defined. He could feel himself grow hot with desire as he thought of stripping the tunic from her, longing to lay frantic, ravenous kisses against her flesh. If only he had been a man worthy of her love. If only things had gone according to plan.

"Let's go back," Solas said trying to escape the tempting reverie. She looked up at him when he broke the silence, "You must be famished, and we should change your bandages and clothes." He lifted her from the water completely.

Aura reached over, clinging to his shoulder as though he could not bear her weight. "How long?" these were the only two words she could muster up without exhausting her voice completely.

"A week," he shifted her in his arms so she didn't have to hold on so tight.

Aura asked a few more short worded questions on the way back to the camp. She wondered where they were and if that was really him who had helped her in the Fade. He felt stiff the entire way back, as if he were carrying a delicate instrument in serious need of tuning. Holding her this close after her absence for so long made him realize how much he truly missed her. Even if her words were minimal and she probably had a pent up argument that had been slowly brewing for three years, he longed for every bit of her.

When they made it back to camp he promised her they would speak more when she had time to convalesce. Irena was waiting for her to Solas' surprise. The eager recruit was already armed with a fresh pair of clothes for Aura and the warmest smile she had to offer. It was probably a welcoming sight to his current brooding demeanor. When he left her to Irena, Aura didn't breathe a word to him.

An hour later the sun was finally inviting in the evening sky. Irena had emerged from the tent while holding Aura against her while they walked. Color had returned to the Dalish Mage's cheeks and she was dressed in Irena's spare deep purple tunic and breeches. Which were a little more practical for her figure. Solas approached to investigate where exactly they were headed off to.

"She is stubborn, she insisted... abelas Fen'Harel," Irena said coming to a halt before the Dread Wolf and shook her head in apology.

"I am tired of sleeping," Aura tenaciously announced with a healthier sounding voice than before. She held one hand over her wound, clearly favoring it, but donned a look of determination. She wasn't going back to the tent, and she was prepared to fight anyone who would try to stop her.

Solas forced a smile, hardly agreeing that she should be out of bed but at the same time relieved to see her in higher spirits. He chuckled inwardly at Irena's distress, for he knew all too well about how stubborn Aura could be. He took pity on the raven haired elf and reached out for Aura, taking her in one arm. "It is alright, Irena," he said.

Aura did not hesitate in allowing him to help, she reached around his waist and gripped him with her arm, clinging to him.

"Are you sure?" Irena asked hesitantly.

Solas nodded to her reassuringly and Irena released Aura to him before turning back to the camp. "Where is it that you would like to go?" He asked while looking down to her.

She shifted against him, trying to find a comfortable position against his taller frame. Her face contorted when her stomach muscles pulled too sharply and she hissed under her breath in a feeble attempt to pacify the feeling of her stomach ripping itself apart. "The cliff?" she unknowingly dug her nails into his side, which he did not react to. "I would like to watch something other than the dark and dreary canopy of a tent."

Her request was reasonable enough, the cliff was not too far from the encampment. Solas offered to carry her again but she insisted on walking despite clinging to him like an awkward crutch. After a few minutes of potential tripping and clumsy steps he had brought her to the desired cliff side and helped her to sit.

Solas sat down next to her, tucking his knees ceremoniously beneath him. "You've grown your hair out vhenan, it suits you," he said adoring the tangle free tresses that fell to the middle of her back and over her shoulder like a river of pale white silk.

Vhenan. Her other name that she loved so dearly seemed to betray her feelings. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy it being spoken by him, but she couldn't understand why he still used it. She kept her eyes focused on the sun falling towards the horizon. Aura tried to feel thankful for being alive, for this sunset, for not having to lay in that damned tent. They didn't come here to talk about the length of her hair, but he made it difficult for her to maintain any shred of calm collectiveness when he dared to use that name.

" Ar avy unisala na," Aura finally said with a hint of hostility in her tone.

Her words didn't catch him off guard. In fact, Solas had half expected her to get angry with him on their walk to the cliff. Either way, her words did leave a mark, one that he hid behind a stern mask. She 'used to need him'. "I understand." Solas concealed his pain with calm accepting words. They looked at one another then, her brows were furrowed in disapproval and her lips pursed.

She didn't like how he refused to prove her wrong. His willingness to let her have full control over the subject put her on edge. She clenched her fist, digging her nails into the palm of her hand to the point where she was sure she was breaking the skin. Aura didn't want to be angry, but his words ate away at her like acid. This conversation was going to end either badly, or shortly if she decided to pursue it any further.

"I gather that my attackers are not alive to see another sunset?" she changed the subject which seemed to ease the tension lingering in the air.

"Unfortunately," Solas replied still looking at her, "They were relentless in their assault and left me no choice. Your refusal to coerce the elves into that parlay dubbed a treaty had forced Lord Ramsey's hand."

Aura didn't look surprised that he knew who was behind the assassination attempt. "Foolish," she said with a bit of frustration and looked back towards the sunset, "Though, I had a feeling that whether or not I would join him he would have come for my life. It was only a matter of time."

"You considered the treaty?" Solas asked puzzled.

She shook her head, looking at him with a faint smile, "Do you even know me anymore?" she said lightly. "I gather you probably know what his negotiating terms were. I would never endorse my people entering freely into slavery by a means of living." She became heated when she spoke of the treaty.

Solas looked away before the fury in her gaze could crush him. The sun began to touch the mountains, setting them ablaze with orange and golden hues. The sky itself began fading into dull dusk shades. He breathed in deeply and finally looked back at her. She too had turned to watch the sun slip away behind the mountains. In truth, he found the sight of her here in this moment with the sun's glow reflecting off her eyes to be more breathtaking.

"I know you didn't mean it," Solas finally said. Aura looked to him, confusion washed over her face. "About not needing me anymore," he bravely returned to the first conversation. "I've seen you wander the Fade."

She scowled a little at him, "You're mistaken if you think it was for you," she said hotly. "I had my own reasons for becoming a Dreamer Mage."

"Of course," Solas backpedaled trying to avoid an argument.

"Do not patronize me, Solas," it was too late, her frustrations had returned.

"I am not," he tried to reassure her, "I am merely...admiring you. We should not pretend that over the years our dreams did not lead us to one another. From those dreams your willful resolve was born. You continue to grow…impressively."

His eloquence always had a way of undoing her. He had picked the situation apart so effortlessly and as a result she could only silence herself. He wasn't wrong, but he also wasn't right, and she wasn't about to give in either. "I need to return," she changed the subject.

It wasn't what he wanted to hear, but he could sense her unwillingness to talk about her feelings with him. "Allow me to help you back," Solas said and moved to stand.

"No," Aura replied firmly, stopping him from standing completely. She spotted the rejection clearly in his face and felt her heart skip a beat when she realized that she had caused it. "I mean," Aura shook her head, backtracking, "I need to return home. The others will know I have gone missing and there's now the matter of collecting evidence of Ramsey's plot to kill me."

Solas leaned against his knee while considering her wishes. She was right to take care of these matters. In a matter of time rumors would begin to spread through all of Thedas that the former Inquisitor had gone missing. He imagined that such an event would not bode well for many Elves who looked to her as a beacon of hope. This wouldn't be the end of it though, there were always more questions than he had answers.

"Stay," he finally said. "I cannot expect Ramsey to just assume the deed had been done, after all I had incinerated every last one of your assailants. Allow me to send word to Skyhold, and you should stay, rest, recover and then I will see to it personally that you are returned home safely."

"Fine," she said stiffly.

She could see him smile at her out of the corner of her eye and he reached out for her hand. The Dalish Mage caught the slight movement and pulled her hand back, pretending to move her hair from her face. Midway through her masking actions she stopped and fixated her gaze upon the intricate mark on her left arm. Flashes of green light flooded her memory, barraging her with glimpses of Fade rifts and the battle that had left her in this predicament.

"Solas," she turned a concerning gaze over to him when she realized her arm was no longer missing. "Did you do this?"

Solas had already turned his attention towards her arm the moment she had entered her short trance. "No," he said and took her arm in his hand, fingering the raised surface of the mark with his thumb. "It is yet another result of my plans falling amiss." Somewhere in his eyes guilt flickered behind his stoic demeanor. He pulled the soft fabric of her sleeve back, revealing to her the sparse trail of marks that crept up her arm. "It seems I was unable to successfully draw the Anchor from you three years ago. It's been lying dormant, what I took was a mere fraction."

Aura flinched beneath his touch, finding that his admission of failure didn't settle the feeling of aching panic now coursing through her body. She remembered that heated final kiss they shared at the Crossroads three years ago. It took the Anchor from her, sparing her from an untimely death. It also had defeated her with a slow merciless severing of her heart while her arm burned away into nothingness for countless hours. The thought of enduring it all over again made her feel…frightened .

"There's more," Solas felt it prudent to reveal the rest of the marking by tugging the folds of her tunic away from her chest.

"Are. You. Mad?" she wailed, slapping his hand away and straightened her clothes back. Her cheeks were bruised a fierce shade of scarlet. Secretly, she was grateful for him pulling her back from her haunting memory.

"I...uh..." he stammered, feeling a warmth radiating in his own cheeks when he realized he had crossed the line. "I apologize, I didn't..."

Her lips parted slightly, an epiphany drawing in with a quick breath that silenced him from saying anything else that might earn her embarrassed anger. "You've seen the mark?" her voice trembled. "So, you've seen…"

"I understand your dismay, Aura. However, if I had to choose between your integrity and your life, well…" Solas trailed off, granting her a brief moment to consider his reasoning. "Your integrity takes little priority in the grand scheme of things. You know my intentions are pure and I would never take advantage of you."

She abruptly pulled herself up to stand, immediately doubling over with a grimace having irritated the wound. When she recovered she shot him a pointed look, causing a shiver to quake through his being. "Funny," her voice was icy. "Coming from you." She left him right on the spot.

Speechless and wounded by her sudden departure Solas turned back to the last moments of the light in the sky. For a brief moment he had slipped into the past where they had only indulged in so much as playful touches, leading into a world of heightened passions developed by starving kisses and a longing to own one another completely. Somewhere between losing themselves and reality they had managed to quell their desires before they got too far. Somehow they still found satisfaction in their unrealized frustrations in hopes that one day they could at last become one.

Solas had always sensed a flagrant eagerness in her, one that he shared with much enthusiasm. Her reasoning for hesitating was an unsolved mystery, one he satiated with guesses that she took great care when it came to deciding how far she was willing to go with him. Time had not healed the wounds he had inflicted on her three years ago. He could not blame her for her change in modesty. None of this had changed his unrelenting feelings for her.

When sky had finally turned a velvety black and stars began to glitter he had made his way back to the encampment. His small entourage of Fen'Harel agents had started a campfire that filled the air with an intoxicating musk of smoke and pine that seemed to purify the once dreary mood everyone had experienced the past week. Their laughter filled the air, recalling old memories of the Inquisition when they had time to enjoy peace. It wasn't long before he discovered that the source of their joy was not something as simple as a campfire but the sound of Aura's colorful laughter as she sat among them.

A soldier had hit the punchline of his story, sending Aura into a fit of giggles that disturbed the delicate situation of her abdomen. She buckled over hissing while the agent that had caused the fit was over her expressing his deepest concerns. The Dalish Mage held her hand out and shook her head, "It is alright, lethallan. The laughter heals my spirit," she said and offered him a laugh to prove it.

Solas decided to sit away from them, settling down at his own tent and reaching in for a book that he wasn't really going to read. He wanted to watch her.

"Hers is an older spirit," Irena's voice came from the right. She appeared in the corner of his eye and settled down next to Solas.

He eyed the raven-haired elf for a moment before propping his book open in his hands and began his reading façade. "Yes," Solas replied, "Your studies have come along well to detect such a thing about ma vhenan."

Irena smiled softly, clearly pleased with herself, "I fail to understand why you decide to keep her at arm's length, would she not make a great ally?"

"She would," Solas wasn't going to deny it. "I'd rather her not know of the terrible things I have done and must do in order to save the Elves. Unfortunately, the Anchor has made that wish difficult." He looked over to see Irena's eyes glassed over and her lips taut mirroring his exact feelings that he had trained himself to bury.

"So," Irena still managed her usual tone, "You will take her life then?"

He clutched the book between his hands so tightly that it put an unusual strain on his joints. He found himself looking over at Aura who had been coerced into wearing a thick green overcoat when the air began to dip into a sudden chill. "If it means righting the wrongs, then I must." The answer boiled slowly down to his gut and stung like poison. The mere thought of destroying the one person he loved as much as the Fade made him realize these words were but a lie. A lie in which he lingered. "She is convinced that there is another way to fix everything." Solas said trying to shift the mood.

Irena stood, "If I may then, Fen'Harel," she paused glancing back at the Dalish Mage, "Perhaps waiting to decide would prove useful. There may actually be another way." Irena furrowed her brows in thought, "If anything, it is a little more time with her before the deed must be done."

Solas found himself smiling at the thoughtfulness Irena was expressing, reminding him of the sincerity Aura often displayed. "You have a kind heart Irena, and a bit of a naive one."

Irena did not seem to take offense, she shrugged a little, "I did not join you because I hate the world. I joined you because I love the Fade. She…loves the Fade, I can feel it on her. She also holds a love for this world too. Perhaps, trusting her could do more good than harm. After all, you are the reason she is here."