Not a morning went by without Lea waking next to a flower. Isa said nothing of them nor did he claim responsibility, but who else in camp would walk up the hills in search for flowers to place beside Lea? The others had taken to glare at Lea more than usual. Lea was certain that it was not the flowers that had them all upset but the extra servings of meat he received thanks to Isa. None suffered directly from it. Isa gave Lea a large portion of his share. It didn't make matters any better. Isa was the clan's most skilled hunter. They needed him to be at his best and they were all certain that with less food he was signing his death sentence.

Lea had struggled with putting up the tents all day. He had failed to secure the nails to the ground properly and on two occasions the ropes had loosened and the tents had collapsed. With bruised pride after a thorough scolding, Lea sat on a trunk nearby, rubbing his thighs that still ached with the long, day-consuming walks.

"Lea!" Isa jogged to him, still in his hunting attire. "Are you busy?"

"Only with licking my wounds. Parthon yelled at me for taking too long with the tents."

"Are you that easily wounded, Lea?" Isa teased. "You need thicker skin. Come, we have time before supper. Let's see if your thready arms can hold a bow."

"What?" came the voice of a youngster from a nearby campfire. "Are you going to practice with the shemlen? I thought I was next on the list!" Hatholdir, hunter in training, had been pestering Isa for tutoring since before Lea had joined the group.

"Oh, hush, Hatholdir," said another elf, small in stature but with great influence. Ienzo, the one with the Qunari. "Can you not see that our brother is hunting at the moment? Shame that his prey is as clueless as any other of his kind."

"Come, Lea," Isa urged.

It was a waste of time even trying to understand what the others said. With such disdain toward him, Lea had made it a habit to not listen to them. There were many frightening things about Qunari, but their notion of only granting time to those who were worthy was one Lea wanted to adopt wholeheartedly.

On top of a small hill, in the midst of pine trees, Isa had set up a wooden board. The face of a Highland Dragon stared back at Lea from the piece of wood. An Archdemon was nothing like an a Highland Dragon. It was like comparing apples to sea monsters. Lea brought it to Isa's attention while Isa put a bow and arrow in his hands.

"We all have to start somewhere. A Highland Dragon will do for now," Isa had said.

Archery was much more than aim and shoot. Isa complained about Lea's posture and used an arrow to urge him back into right form. The first hour, when pride had not worn off with physical exhaustion, Lea complied to the best of his abilities. But soon posture was the least of his worries. The string cut into his fingers. The drizzle and cold numbed his fingertips.

"Have you given up, soldier?" Isa asked as he paced behind Lea. "Back straight. Shoulders down. Chin up. Breathe."

Lea did not last much longer. He could scarce clench his fists when Isa took the bow from him. Every muscle in his body ached as it had his first weeks with the Dalish and he found himself glaring at Isa when he gently brought Lea's hands closer for inspection.

"Have you ever taken a life, Lea?" Isa asked.

"I… took that ram's life, didn't I?" Lea lowered his gaze onto his blistered hands.

"It is not the same. Killing the ram was necessity. The Blight does strange thing to people. It spreads an incurable illness. Killing Darkspawn is bad enough. You think you will feel better killing them, but seeing evil embodied, the awful things they do. It will change you. Are you prepared for it?"

"As prepared as anyone, I think." Lea was hesitant.

Isa dug in a pouch for bandage and glanced at Lea.

"Does it not frighten you?"

"Everything frightens me," Lea admitted. "I'm an apostate. Human amongst Dalish. In the midst of the Fifth Blight."

"Forced to fight a war that's not yours," Isa added bitterly.

"Or yours."

"Did you know of the Blight when you decided to escape?"

"The demons whispered of it. The Templars must have known beforehand. They had been insufferable. We were reminded daily that mages lay behind the Blight, of Darkspawns. Our world is always at risk of damnation due to our weakness. It did more harm than good, I think."

Lea tested bending his fingers and looked at the bandage covering his blisters.

"Is the world at all like you imagined it? Are you happy that you escaped?"

"Aren't you full of questions today," Lea smiled. "The Chantry warned us about the hatred for mages. I don't like admitting that it is hurtful to have verified it to be true. And now I'm disliked for being human, too. The Maker has a twisted sense of humor."

"I'm glad our paths crossed. Is that selfish?" Isa's eyes had the color of a summer sky, free of grey clouds, radiant with sunshine.

"I'm glad, too." Lea blushed and looked away. "As tough as it has been, you have given me hope that all is not lost for mages. You could have left me at the shore, told on me, left me to fend for myself. You are an invaluable friend to me, Isa."

Isa stepped closer. He sought eye contact. The cerulean blue, his aura of sincerity, lay Lea's soul bare in his unyielding gaze. Lea stood planted, fearing that any movement would have him spill all of his sins and secrets.

"I was hoping I could be more than a friend to you, Lea."

"More than?" Lea stuttered. He knew what it meant. Though highly forbidden, many mages had intimate liaisons, some even with templars. Most relationships Lea had heard of were of carnal desire. Few had the courage to admit openly to their feelings in fear of outing a weakness others could use for their own benefit.

"If you need time, I understand," Isa quickly added. "Know that whatever you answer, my friendship to you will remain the same. And, also, apologies, if I have burdened you. I realized, as I spoke, that there are many factors I failed to take into consideration before confessing…" Isa averted his eyes. His cheeks flushed red and he took a step back.

As dark as the world was, Lea was glad to have stepped into it, if only for the sight of Isa blushing for him.