"Well, isn't this impressive."

Alistair looked around Skyhold, amber eyes wide with wonder, taking in all the sights as he and Alex walked through the battlements towards Cullen's office, where her advisors had gathered while Varric, Hawke, Blackwall and Vivienne rested.

At the sight of the spymaster, Alistair grinned, "Leliana, it's great to see you!" And he actually went forward and hugged her.

"And it is good to see you too, Alistair." Leliana said, hugging the man before separating from him, "Thedas really is a small place if we could be in the same castle again."

Alex smiled and raised her hand, "Alistair, this is Commander Cullen, the leader of our forces, and our diplomatic ambassador, Josephine." She turned to the two people and pointed at the Warden, "This is Alistair. He's Hawke's Warden contact, and my… brother-in-law."

At the introduction, Josephine and Cullen looked at each other, and when they looked at Alex again, the Commander was blushing slightly as he came forward and extended a hand, "Welcome to Skyhold, Warden Alistair."

"Cullen, right? I could've sworn I've met you somewhere…" Aistair said as he shook his hand and squinted at him, before he finally smiled, "Ah, right! I remember now! You were a templar at the Kinoch Hold Circle! You were there when Uldred took over the tower… and you admitted to Solona that…" He blinked as they finally stopped their handshake and he let go of the commander, "Ah… right… my embarrassing moments continue. Sorry about that, Commander."

Cullen's face grew redder at Alistair's declaration, and he looked down at Alex, who had her eyebrow raised. He coughed, "That was almost ten years ago, Warden Alistair. I hope you can forgive me for my demeanor that day, and hope that our past will not deter us from our present goals."

"Oh, no it won't. I think our current issues are more important than previous accidental declarations of love towards my wife, yes?" Alistair blurted out suddenly as he turned to shake hands with Josephine, causing Cullen to cough out loudly and Alex to scowl a little, "It's an honor to meet you, Lady Josephine."

"Ahh… the honor is mine, Warden Alistair." Josephine said, looking behind the Warden to look at Alex and Cullen. The Inquisitor had crossed her arms and was looking down at the ground with a scowl, while the commander's face was red, and he was scratching the back of his neck again. "Leliana has sent scouts to the Western Approach to investigate the area, but you must be tired from your journey. I shall show you to your quarters."

"That would be great, thanks. Do you have any cheese?" Alistair said as he and the ambassador walked away, leaving Alex and Cullen alone.

"Commander Cullen, I would like to speak to you alone." Alex declared suddenly, and Cullen looked up to see her face set in a grim look. "Alone? O… of course."

Alex nodded and headed out of his office towards the battlements, and he followed her. He saw her take a deep inhale, and he scratched the back of his neck again, "It's a… nice day."

She blinked and looked up at him, "What?"

"It's… there was something you wished to discuss?" Cullen asked as he looked at her, and Alex's eyes widened when she realized what she had just done. Oh Maker… I got him alone, She thought as she opened her mouth, should I tell him? Maybe I should. But…

"Cullen, I care for you and I…" She said out loud, and Cullen's eyes widened in surprise. Oh blast… now I've done it. She thought as she sighed.

The man looked down at her gently, "What's wrong?"

She looked up at him, "You left the templars but… do you trust mages? Could… could you think of me as anything more?"

This time, it was Cullen who sighed and he ran a hand at the back of his neck before walking a bit, "I could, I mean… I do… think of you and… what I might say in this sort of situation."

She followed him, standing in front of him as he gazed out to the forest beyond Skyhold, "What's stopping you?"

"You're the Inquisitor." Cullen said, as he looked back at her, "We're at war… and you…I didn't think it was possible."

Alex smiled at him, "And yet I'm still here."

"So you are." He whispered, stepping even closer to her, and Alex felt her heart flutter as she felt his breath so close to her, "It seems too much to ask… but I want to… so much…" His warmth enveloped her from the cold again, and once again she smelled the scent of his soap. Oh, Maker… she though as she looked up his eyes, pleasantly surprised to see shades of brown amidst his amber eyes that it made them look like cat's eyes. She felt his hands at her waist, and she felt herself blushing at the closeness of their proximity. She breathed in through her mouth just as Cullen drew closer, his lips a few inches from hers, and she felt his breath against her cheek…

"Commander!"

Alex jumped a little, drawing her face away as she blushed, as one of Leliana's scouts opened the door from Cullen's office, and started walking towards him, "You said you wanted a copy of Sister Leliana's report."

She heard Cullen growl a little by her ear and saw his hands close into a fists, gritting his teeth and scowling as he turned to the scout, "WHAT?!"

"Sister Leliana's report?" The scout said again, "You said you wanted it delivered without delay."

Alex looked away as Cullen drew nearer to the scout, and though she couldn't see his expression, she knew that the Commander was giving him an almost-murderous stare from the look on the scout's face. The man looked at her, with her face still red from embarrassment, and she saw the look of comprehension dawn on his face, "Or… to your office. Right."

The scout quickly ran back to the office and closed the door, and Alex sighed, "If you need to…"

But her sentence died in her mouth when Cullen rushed forward, capturing her lips in his own as he held her face and kissed her, his tongue reaching in to taste her as he gently pushed her back so that there was no distance between their bodies. Her gasp turned into a small moan of pleasure as she kissed him back, tasting the remnants of spiced wine in his mouth. Her body moved in their own accord, grasping at his waist, as he kissed her.

Finally, Cullen drew away, licking his lips but looking shyly at her, "I'm sorry… that was… pretty nice."

Alex blinked, and she smirked at him, "If I'm not mistaken, that was a kiss, Commander. But I can't be too sure… it was all a blur."

The man blinked at her teasing, before he laughed a little, "Yes… well…"

Alex giggled a little before his lips descended on hers once again, and she eagerly kissed him back, wrapping her arms around his neck while his arms pulled her body closer to his. She realized that since they were practically kissing on top on the battlements, that anyone who looks up would probably see them. And then she realized she didn't care and was happy for it, and she ended up kissing him deeper.