She stared in shock at the Inquisitor's statement, her heart pounding in her ears as the white sands swirled around them. Pale green eyes stared deeply into hers; daring the seeker to say the words Cassandra had been practicing for days. She had imagined this scenario a thousand times in her own mind, yet here she was and the words would not come. She could only stare into the defiant gaze that seemed to strip her to the very core, unaware of the storm brewing behind them.

Evelyn felt a hot rage consuming her as the menacing warrior stared at her in silence. Silence. She was through with it. The seeker had remained silent for months and now, now she was refusing to answer a simple question. The rogue took two steps forward until she was chest to chest with the warrior. She tilted her head up glaring at the difficult woman in front of her.

"I asked you a question Seeker Pentaghast. I've asked you many questions over the course of these past few months – none of which you have done me the honor of answering. My patience is not inexhaustible seeker and you have sorely tried it with your unending silence. I shall not ask again."

Cassandra could hear the frustration laced within the deceptively soft tone. The nearness of the other woman made it harder to think, harder to form the words she needed to say. She stepped back a half step, surprised as a low growl escaped the rogue in front of her. Without warning she felt the hard impact of the rogue's gauntlets against her breastplate and grunted in surprised as she lost her balance on the shifting sand, sliding further down the slope. Cassandra scowled and found herself, for once, looking up at the Inquisitor. She felt a hand against the base of her throat, fingers searching and curling into the fabric of her tunic. She found herself yanked forward; her lips captured in a punishing kiss; the gentleness she had grown used to experiencing from the other woman was gone.

Their tongues tangled and their teeth clanged together as each sought to dominate. This was need and fire; a heady mix of anger and passion that the Seeker had not yet felt before. Regalyan's kisses had always been hesitant and gentle; the Inquisitor's much the same but this… this was new and it awakened something buried inside her. She groaned and sucked at the tongue that was invading her mouth. Cassandra winced as gloved fingers tangled in her hair, yanking her head back as the rogue's talented tongue undulated against her own. She slid her hand up around the rogue's waist to pull her closer and stopped as she felt another solid push against her breastplate. She felt her footing slip and muttered a curse as she slid to her knees in the sand. She looked up only to see the retreating back of the Inquisitor as the woman moved back up the dune towards the direction of the camp.

"Wait."

Evelyn turned around, hiding the combating emotions that were wrecking havoc within, and gave the seeker a blank stare as she sought to master the quaking of her body. Damn her for wanting this woman and damn the seeker for allowing her to. She watched as the warrior struggled briefly to regain her footing and waited as she ascended the slope to meet her. She could not stop the snarkiness of her next comment.

"She speaks! Maker's balls it is a miracle."

Cassandra scowled at the blasphemous remark and snorted softly.

"I speak Inquisitor. In fact there is much I want to say but I do not know how. Words are not my weapon of choice, and I do not wield them well. You deserve to hear an answer and I apologize that it has been so long in coming."

Cassandra looked at the Inquisitor and motioned to the sand.

"Sit with me."

Evelyn felt her anger melting slowly. She just wanted the endless ache of not knowing to cease. She sighed and sat down on the soft surface, refusing to look at the tall woman who remained an arm's length away. They sat there, saying nothing. The silence between them had never felt so awkward. Evelyn clasped a handful of sand and watched it pour through her fingertips slowly as she waited for the silence to cease. She was surprised when the seeker chose to speak first.

"I would fight the attraction I feel towards you even if you were a man."

Evelyn turned to look at the seeker, a reply ready on her lips, but the far away look in the seeker's eyes stopped her.

"I have only ever been with one lover, a mage I traveled with in my youth. He was the first one to reach past my anger and try to get to know me; the first mage I ever allowed to touch me. He helped me save Divine Beatrix and he taught me that, even though I would always put duty first, I could still love and be loved in return."

Evelyn heard the sadness in the warrior's tone and reacted instinctively. She reached across the sand to lay a comforting hand across the seeker's.

"He sounds like a remarkable man."

Cassandra looked into the pale green eyes that stared back at her and nodded.

"He was, but as I said, my duty came first and we grew apart."

The Inquisitor frowned slightly at the statement but she was not surprised. She tilted her head as it occurred to her that she never heard mention of any mage in connection with the warrior beside her. Curiosity drive her further, her brow furrowed in thought as she continued.

"Where is he now?"

She watched as the Seeker looked towards the heavens, grief briefly etched across her face.

"I have to trust that he is with the Maker now."

Cassandra saw the confusion on the younger woman's face and clarified.

"He was at Haven before…"

She watched as the Herald nodded, her eyes looking off into the distance – deep in thought. It felt good to speak of him to someone besides Leliana. He had been a good man in every regard, but his love had not been enough to keep her from her calling. Cassandra could feel the restlessness pouring off the Herald and she had to credit the woman for having the patience that had allowed her to continue the conversation at her own pace. She waited a few more minutes as she considered her next words; surprised when Evelyn turned back to her, breaking the silence.

"So you are attracted to me then? I have not been imagining things?"

Cassandra felt the corners of her mouth twitch at the question and nodded.

"There is a certain spark that exists between us that makes that fact very hard to deny Inquisitor."

Trevelyan felt a fleeting thrill at the admittance and fought to still the optimism that bloomed in her heart. She stared into the warm hazel eyes of the warrior beside her and asked the question she most wanted answered.

"Why do you fight it so hard?"

Cassandra closed her eyes and sighed. Of course the Inquisitor would spearhead the very root of the issue. She turned away and lay back against the dune as her eyes took in the beauty of the heaven's above. She wondered how much of herself to reveal to the woman beside her. They had not known each other long and their relationship was tumultuous at best, but Cassandra felt more at ease beside her than anyone else she had ever known. It felt almost natural to speak with her and the seeker found that she had missed this easy friendship made complicated by desire.

"I fight because that is what comes naturally to me."

She felt the Herald's gaze but kept her eyes forward to the stars as she continued.

"I fight it because you are my commanding officer and the leader of our cause. I fight it because neither of us can afford to become distracted. I fight it because I have rarely felt such feelings in my life, and never for another woman. The pull between us is strong and it terrifies me."

The admission startled Evelyn. She could not imagine the confident woman lying before her being scared of anything, least of all feelings for her. She felt the seeker's gaze on her but resisted turning to meet it. She hugged her knees to her chest and rested her chin against them, the words tumbling from her lips before she even realized she was speaking them.

"It scares me too Cassandra."

She paused. She had not admitted that to herself but now that she said the words she realized that they were true. She'd had many lovers in the past, both male and female, but none had created an emotional rollercoaster like the one she rode with the woman beside her. The seeker inspired her to do more, fight harder, to be the Herald that everyone expected her to be. No other person had wrought such change in her character and the thought chilled her to the core. There was nothing this woman could ask of her that she would not do. She turned to look at the sculpted face awash in moonlight and twisted her body so that she faced the seeker.

"These feelings between us are dangerous and intoxicating, but I would stop pursuing them if you asked it of me. There is nothing I would not do for you Cassandra."

Cassandra looked down at the younger woman, stunned by the admission. She envied the rogue's ability to be so candidly open with her feelings. The warrior shook her head.

"Do not say that. I am nothing; merely a shield against the darkness. You are the Herald of Andraste; sent forward from the fade by the Maker himself… I should not possess such power."

Evelyn rose to her knees and dared to wrap her arm around the seeker's waist, her lips brushing against the other woman's ear.

"And yet, you do."

She felt the shiver that shook the warrior's body as she nuzzled the jagged scar that marked the sun kissed skin of the seeker's cheek. A sudden movement caught her eye and she sprang away from the warrior as a flash of red spiked through the sand she had just been kneeled upon. She looked up as a derisive tone cut through the silent beauty of the night.

"Well well… look who we have here. It's the Inquisitor herself, oh, and a seeker. Fancy meeting you two out here so far away from your camp."

She glared into the glowing eyes of a Tevinter mage as he laughed derisively, her eyes quickly moving onto and assessing his companions. They were easily outnumbered two to one, although most of the men facing them were magic users. Evelyn kicked herself for pushing Cassandra further down the slope of the dune and away from any prying eyes that might have been on lookout from the encampment. They had left the majority of their weapons at the camp when they had come out here to talk but she still had two daggers she could make use of. She stole a look at the Seeker who stood firmly in front of the taunting mage. Unless Cassandra had secreted weapons on her person, she would be entirely dependent on hand-to-hand combat. She slowly moved towards the Seeker until their backs touched. She strained to hear the soft voice that whispered in her direction.

"If you have any magic in your blood Trevelyan you must tell me so now."

Evelyn shook her head, wondering why that fact would be of any importance at a time like this.

"No, none that I am aware of."

She felt the Seeker tensing against her, her rich voice rasping slightly in an effort to do what, the Inquisitor was not sure.

"I need you to focus your attacks on the two rogues that travel with them. I need you to keep them away from me and if you begin to feel like you are burning from within you must get as far away from here as you can for I cannot control whom this power will effect. Now, ready yourself and on my word… attack."

Evelyn shook her head, confused by what the Seeker was saying.

"Wait, Cassandra what are you talking ab…"

She stopped feeling a surge of energy pouring from the seeker as the woman shouted for her to go through gritted teeth. Instinct forced her into action even as her mind tried to wrap around what exactly was happening. She dashed forward, sinking her blade into the neck of the closest rogue as she yanked the double-bladed dagger from his belt. Her eyes sought the other rogue, dodging as she felt the air split beside her, the blade of the dagger missing her by a hair. She thrust the double bladed dagger, stolen from his companion, into her attackers stomach, yanking it free as the world around her began to glow red. She let the man fall to his knees, heard his gurgled pleas for mercy but she stood, stunned into silence. The screams from the mages surrounded her and she watched as the veins of their bodies' glowed iridescently red through their skin. Blood wept from their eyes, noses and ears as they screeched in agony. In the middle of it all stood Cassandra, her normally hazel eyes were almost black in her fury as her lips moved in a wordless chant, her fists clenched to her sides. Evelyn stepped forward towards the warrior when she felt a searing stab of pain in her left thigh. She looked down to see her muscle cut open and the man, who she had counted for dead glaring at her with all the hatred in the world upon his face.

"Take that you bitch."

Evelyn ignored the fire in her leg and flung her remaining dagger at him, burying the blade deep in his chest. She watched as he fell and listened as the screams from the dying mages slowly came to an end. She turned to look at Cassandra only to find the seeker had fallen. The Herald tore a strip of cloth from the dead man's tunic and wrapped it tightly around her filleted leg; it did nothing to lessen the intense pain but keeping the muscle together was more important at this moment. She hobbled towards the fallen warrior, moving only inches before falling into the sand; her leg refusing to support her weight any longer. She crawled, dragging her leg behind her through the sand as her chest tightened. She did not understand what had just happened but she refused to believe that the Seeker would have sacrificed her life so carelessly. She heard voices coming closer and saw the spray of sand as Iron Bull came into view at the top of the dune, his war horn filling the night with its familiar cry. She motioned, or at least, she thought she motioned for them to come closer. The world was spinning and Cassandra was still so far away. She crawled closer, fighting the scorching pain in her thigh. She reached out towards the Seeker one last time before darkness claimed her and she felt pain no more.

Cassandra groaned as she felt hands moving over her body, divesting her of her armor. She tried to swat them away but found her arms too heavy to move. She hated how calling forth the lyrium left her body useless; it was why she rarely used the power that had been gifted to her by the faith. She felt something cold and foul being poured into her throat and she gagged; spitting the liquid back up. A lulling voice chided her and returned the fetid liquid to her lips, telling her to take her medicine like a good girl. The seeker glared up at the indistinguishable shape, her vision still murky from the toll of the battle. She turned and could see that she was not the only one being fussed over. The flash of red and a steady stream of blasphemous curses told her that the Inquisitor was alive, if not fully well.

"Oh for the love of Andraste, it's a scratch Dorian! Now heal me already!"

Evelyn glared as the smirking mage reminded her that she was lucky she still had a leg to stand on with all the sand she had allowed to get into the wound and that magic was not miraculous. The enemy had struck well and had almost severed her muscle from the bone. According to the mage, even with magic, the injury would likely take weeks to heal completely. Growling with disgust, the rogue threw herself back down on the bedroll as she cursed the Maker. She looked over and saw that her seeker had awoken. Her seeker? When did that start she wondered? The dark fury was gone from her eyes and she looked drained but she was alive! Evelyn gave her a half smile, surprised when she received one in return and she noticed that, for the first time since meeting the stalwart warrior, that she wore no armor. She could not resist letting her eyes roam hungrily over the previously hidden curves now revealed by the fact that the Seeker was clothed in just a breast band and fitted leather breeches. Training had left the woman sculpted to perfection and battle had left her scarred.

"Do I pass your inspection Inquisitor?"

She looked back up into the questioning gaze on the Seeker's face and shot the woman a sheepish grin.

"As usual, you exceed all expectations Seeker."

Cassandra felt her cheeks warm from the compliment and the husky tone in which it was given. She turned away and lay back against the bedroll, staring at the top of the tent and internally scolded herself for caring what the redheaded Herald thought of her. She could not believe she had been so foolish earlier. She had put both their lives at risk; the whole of Thedas should be cursing her stupidity for almost losing its savior. She did not know what had possessed her to think that taking a stroll in a desert teeming with enemies and wild animals was a good idea. A soft voice broke through her thoughts, ending her self-reflection.

"Were you hurt badly?"

Cassandra shook her head, "I was not wounded, but I exceeded my limits."

Evelyn studied the seeker for a moment, "What was that back there?"

Cassandra sighed and turned towards the younger woman, unsettled by the haunted look in her eyes.

"I am sorry you had to witness that Inquisitor. What you saw is the power I was gifted with as a Seeker of Truth. After my vigil was complete, I awoke to find that I could set aflame the lyrium that resides in the blood of mages and templars. It is this, and other skills like it, that allowed my order to command both groups. I have never used it in battle, until now I have only applied my abilities to interrogate or disarm. I did not know I could use it in battle or what such an application would cause."

She furrowed her brow as she remembered the screams of the men she had killed. It had been more horrific that any of the hundreds she had slain in previous battles. It shamed her to think that such a power existed and it had appalled her to know that she had lost control – allowing her rage at being surrounded and weaponless to color her actions. The smell of burned flesh was still heavily in her nostrils. Cassandra felt her stomach turn as closed eyes brought back a vision of what her rage had wrought.

"I will never use it like that again."

The rogue looked at her, concerned by the darkness of her tone. It had been terrifying to witness but had the seeker not used that ability the two of them would have, in all likelihood, not lived to see another day.

"I am glad you had that ability to draw on Cassandra. It saved our lives back there. You shouldn't regret that."

She waited patiently as the seeker sighed and rolled to side, refusing to look at her, her voice raw with emotion.

"I do not regret that it saved us. I regret the fact that I put us in that situation. Had I not pulled you away we would never have been in danger. I should not have left the camp unarmed. I risked everything just so that I could speak to you…"

The seeker stopped, stiffening in surprise as a long pale arm wrapped around her waist and warm breath tickled her ear as the Inquisitor whispered softly, "and I'm glad you did Cassandra."

She frowned slightly as she fought the desire to sink into the unexpected embrace and closed her eyes as she felt soft lips nuzzling the outer shell of her ear. The rogue seemed uniquely able to distract her and Cassandra sat up to distance herself from the feelings she did not want to feel; her mood was still dark from earlier thoughts. The arm that had been around her fell away and the seeker felt the rogue shifting to sit beside her.

"Cassandra, look at me."

The seeker huffed and turned to face the Herald, glaring as she steeled herself against her body's innate response to the rogue's closeness. She felt a hesitant touch on her hand and her world narrowed to that single point of contact. The hollow feeling in the pit of her stomach warmed under the light caress, spreading slow tendrils of heat through the rest of her body as the Inquisitor's soft voice filled the air around her.

"I know you don't want to want this Cass and I know you fear both of us becoming distracted from our responsibilities but… I also know you feel the same as I do. I've never felt something so strong and I want to know more… more of this feeling, more about you. We can go as slowly as you need to or not at all but all I am asking for is a chance… a chance to change your mind, a chance to explore what it is about you that I can't walk away from."

Cassandra closed her eyes as she felt her resistance slipping. The whispered words felt as though they had been ripped from the pages of one of her favorite romance novels, but if they had it was not from any book she had ever read. She was finding, to her dismay, that she enjoyed the way her given name rolled off the Herald's tongue. There was passion in the words that had been uttered; understanding too as well as the promise of more to come. As sweet as Regalyan had been, he had not been able to unlock the secret part of her heart that seemed to always be melting in the Inquisitor's presence. She willed herself to pull her hand away from the light caress and took a deep breath before speaking.

"You cannot court me Inquisitor. It is impossible."

Of all the responses the seeker could have given, the Herald had not expected that exact one. The word "courting" had never even entered Evelyn's mind, yet if that was what the seeker expected she was not above giving the beautiful woman what she wanted. She flashed the solemn warrior a grin.

"Why is it impossible?"

Cassandra raised an eyebrow at the devious look the younger woman was giving her. She recognized the cockiness behind it and scoffed haughtily.

"Because you are the Herald of Andraste. The world hinges on your very actions and your time is not your own; you cannot waste any in order to court me properly."

Evelyn resisted rolling her eyes and reached forward to gently grip the seeker's forearms.

"You're wrong Cassandra. My time is my own and I alone choose what to do with it and who to share it with. I have never courted anyone before but if that is what you desire then it will be my pleasure to do so."

Cassandra sighed and pulled her arms away from the rogue's touch, shaking her head at the woman's stubbornness. She found it hard to believe that she was even having this conversation. She found it equally hard to stop her mind from wondering down the endless paths of imagining being courted by the passionate woman in front of her.

"This is foolish. How would it look if you were seen giving me flowers or reading me poetry by candlelight? What would everyone think?"

Evelyn found herself smiling at the nervousness laced within the seeker's husky tone. She didn't give a rat's ass what anyone would think. Usually all it took was a knowing smile, a few lightly tossed compliments and a caress or two before she was gifted with what she wanted; she had never had to work so hard to woo a woman – especially one who wanted her too. Perhaps that was a part of what drew her to the seeker… she seemed to be the exception to that rule. While everyone else actively sought to find a connection to someone, this warrior strove to fight that natural instinct. The "why" was a mystery that the Herald had yet to unravel. Deciding that she had invade the warrior's personal space enough for one night, Evelyn shrugged and slowly shifted her body away from the warrior and back to her own bedroll. She lay back and turned to look at the hard gaze that was glaring her way. She couldn't help but smile at the seeker's frustration.

"It would look like I was courting a beautiful, noble and fierce woman. As far as what they would think... well I suppose it would matter who they were to me for me to even care what their opinion would be about the matter."

She paused as the seeker's brow furrowed and laughed lightly before continuing.

"Get some rest Cassandra, tomorrow we break camp for Skyhold and once there we will speak more of this proper courting you would have me do."

Cassandra stared incredulously as the Inquisitor closed her eyes turned away from her; dumbfounded by the idea that the woman could even remotely be harboring thoughts of actually courting her. She lay back down and stared at the top of the tent, exhaling noisily as her body settled into a comfortable position on the tightly packed ground. She would rest for now and hope that when she woke up she would find that this had all been a dream; a crazy, beautiful and infuriating dream.

Notes:

Thank you for reading and for all the kudos and comments :) They are appreciated! I'm glad I continued this, its been fun to play storyteller with these characters since that dream job at Bioware simply hasn't panned out for me yet ;)