Someone was knocking my door. Blight take the bastard, I really didn't want to get up. I could barely even crack my eyes open, they were still so heavy. And Fen'harel's left ball sack but did my back hurt. In fact I hurt all over, but most prominently my back. I groaned loudly and buried my face in my pillow hoping the damned knocker would just go away. Come back later when I've returned to the land of the living. But no. They kept knocking, annoyingly so.
"Alright! I'm coming keep your hair on!" I groused, rolling out of bed. I straightened myself out as best I could and slovenly pulled open the door. The bright light of the day time proved too harsh for my eyes that had yet to adjust. Squinting however I saw in front of me, a girl. An elf, city elf presumably, she had no vallaslin. Her hair was cut bluntly and its blondness reflected the light. She seemed awkward, her eyes suddenly not meeting mine.
"Shite. Right. Erm, yea! I've been sent to collect you." She muttered. I was too tired, too asleep really but my temper was short and my hearing was still fuzzy.
"What?" I asked shortly and her head snapped back up and a look of offence crossed her boyish features.
"I said, you need to wake up 'cause we're going on a trip, yea? But fine whatever, stay in and sleep not like I care, don't even know you..." She muttered dejectedly to herself as she stormed off. I rolled my eyes at her childishness and slammed the door harder than was strictly necessary. I groaned again, ever so tempted to just flop back into bed. But apparently I was needed. I hoped it wasn't anything major. I really wasn't in the mood for another trek. I splashed my face with cold water to wake myself, quickly washed myself down and got dressed into fresh armour. I'd need to stop by the blacksmiths to pick up more arrows. That was done with my chin held up high, even when he scoffed and ignored me. Bastard. I was fastening my bow on my back when I realised how empty my horse's stable was. I gulped.
"Shit..." It came out as a sigh that I couldn't help.
"Whats the problem Trixy?" Varric chuckled as he walked up behind me, leading his horse. All I could do was feign ignorance and hope he wouldn't notice. I pointed at the empty stable. Luckily he was as surprised as I wanted to seem.
"Shit indeed." He said scratching his chin. "Seeker! I think we have a horse thief on our hands." He called as Cassandra marched over angrily.
"What?" She said indignantly. Varric mirrored me and pointed to the empty stable. She frowned, not frighteningly so, but it was a frown. "We will have another horse saddled for you, my apologies Lavellan. I will alert master Dennit." She said sincerely. I felt guilty then and bit my finger.
"Wonder what could have happened to him." I heard Trevelyan's soft voice float close by. She lead her chestnut mate behind her and had a worried look on her face.
"You could always walk. Thought you Dalish liked to rough it." Chuckled a deep voice behind me, it made me jump and I turned. Behind me, sitting casually on a stool was a giant Qunari, smirking and everything. He was fiercely intimidating, what with the eye patch, and from his deeper chuckle he could tell I thought so.
"Depends how far we're going." I quipped, smothering my surprise.
"Redcliff." Said Solas with an unnervingly smug look on his face. The rest of them seemed to go about getting ready, or going about their own business when he leaned in closer and said in hushed tones.
"Or did you not know that already?"
I tensed, visibly so. Partly because I could hear the accusation in his voice, partly because... Well he was very close wasn't he?
"I don't know what you're talking about." I shrugged.
He smiled and arched one of his brows. "I merely find it curious how a horse could simply vanish. Perhaps it wasn't stolen after all? Perhaps, it paid a visit to Val Royeaux." He said, louder now and I elbowed him harshly. He didn't seem too injured by it for he simply chuckled. I glared at at him.
"Or maybe the fade did it, eh Solas? The fade being the answer to any and all questions." I snapped and I could see him tense up at my remark.
"Makers breath, are you two at it again."
"No." We both answered in unison, though the bitterness in our voices spoke differently.
Varric only rolled his eyes and sighed. "Remind me to tell them about the champion of Kirkwall and the Broody elf on this trip, eh Herald?" He chuckled. Trevelyan laughed and looked utterly delighted as her eyes darted between us. I hadn't the faintest idea what he was on about frankly. I'd heard of The Champion, knew that Varric wrote a book about her but I'd never read it. I simply ignored the comment and thankfully took the new horse Cassandra offered me. Solas however, was slightly more agitated. If he was capable of showing agitation that was. But his eyes flickered, the tips of his ears went red and his nostrils flared. He mounted his horse without another word as our party got on our way once again to Redcliff. My stomach sank and I suppressed my sigh, really I'd seen enough of the Hinterlands to last a life time. But, at least the Herald was going to speak with the mages. That was something. Everything was going to plan so far.
On the trek if was myself, Solas, Varric, Cassandra, The Herald and that girl who woke me up. Sera. She hadn't said another word to me since our mild altercation and I felt slightly awkward about it. She laughed and joked with Trevelyan easily, something I yet could not do.
"I sense an elvhen artifact nearby." Solas said and the Herald nodded as if it were a perfectly normal thing to come off with. I however let out a "charming" (as he put it) snort of laughter. He glared at me then but it only made me laugh more. Gods he took himself so seriously.
"You 'sense' an artifact?" I laughed.
"I fail to see the humour in it." He said sombrely.
"What 'senses' might these be Solas? Your magical magic senses?" I teased.
"The same senses that sensed when the veil was 'thin', whatever that means." Sera joined in and I smiled. Glad that she was talking but also I laughed at the fact that Solas made comments about the veil being thin.
"Thin? What else can the veil be? Can it be think? Floppy?"
"I think it can be wobbly." Sera added again and we both laughed, at his expense, of course. He was absolutely furious.
"Oh you do get touchy about the fade don't you?" I pushed him further and I could see his indignation rise over his limit.
"Only because it is being mocked by a fool dalish who is too ignorant to understand it or its magic." He said and he utterly spat the word. I felt my chest constrict at the insult.
"Say that again." I said darkly.
"I have no need to, you heard me. You are just as defensive about your culture as I am about the fade. Perhaps you will learn not to throw stones in your glass house." He patronised.
"You are the most condisending arsehole-"
"I'm merely stating fact, take my words as patronisation if you wish." He interrupted me. Actually interrupted me.
"Dread wolf take me, but you are infuriating!"
"The feeling is entirely mutual I assure you." He spat, easing his horse into a trot to catch up to Cassandra, thus ending the argument. I sighed and felt the guilt of my words wash away my anger. Would it always be like this with him? Would he always see me as merely the Dalish elf who would never understand. I thought by now... After our friendlier truce... My hand ran through my hair in frustration.
It was Sera who scoffed, however. "Talk about a sense of humour failure." She said it deliberately loud enough for him to hear too. I cringed but I silently agreed.
"He does love the fade, you two picked on his sore spot." Varric chuckled as his horse caught up beside us.
"It's the fade its just a big wibbly wobbly magic thing, init? Whys he love it so much."
I shrugged, "I don't know why, it shouldn't even exist in the first-" The words fell off my tongue before I could stop them and I couldn't even tell you why. I shook my head and thought back over them. Why had I said that? Why shouldn't it exist?
"Thats not the point though is it? He should learn to take a joke, that's what." Sera reiterated her point and I shook off my confusion, putting it down to tiredness. One of these days I was going to have to confront all these strange uncomfortable things in my brain, but not today.
"Varric, I think it's time for the Broody elf story!" Trevelyan called back to us with a big smile on her bright face.
"What broody elf are you talking about?" I asked. I noticed Solas was further on ahead again.
"Please, spare us." Cassandra sighed but Varric only chuckled.
"You have all heard tell of the famed champion of Kirkwall, but have you ever heard the story of her Elven lover?" He asked mysteriously. I arched my brow, knowing all too well where this was going.
"Do continue Varric!" The Herald called, barely keeping in her giggle.
"Ah yes, it wasn't long after her arrival in Kirkwall that she met the elf. He was tall dark and handsome and had strange lyrium tattoos that allowed him to rip out men's hearts with his bare hands. For he was an escaped Tevinter slave, and it was his master who bestowed the markings upon him."
I sighed, "Get to the point Varric."
He smirked, "You really wanna know my point?"
"Trust me Lavellan, you do not." Cassandra interrupted gravely.
"Fenris and Hawke hated each other's guts." Varric continued, "So much so that they ended up in each other's beds, and there's no stronger love than the love for someone you used to hate."
I arched my brow in shock. What had love to do with anything?
"He means, that you two are gunna bump uglies, yea?" Sera tittered, pointing up ahead to Solas. If I was walking I would have tripped. Thankfully I didn't, but I was struggling to hide the blush creeping up my neck. For a brief moment I was speechless at such an outlandish implication. Soon though, I found my wit.
"In his dreams." I laughed, shaking off the situation like a damp towel. I didn't need to be thinking about that. Solas didn't hate me, he disliked me. He disliked what I was, who I was. The things I did and said. He thought me an ignorant child and that was that. How could anyone build a relationship out of such dislike. The line between love and hate is one thing, but scorn and distain? They couldn't be further from love. Not that I wanted him to love me, or even sleep with me for that matter. I wouldn't degrade myself enough to sleep with a man who disliked me.
"All joking aside," Varric began, "You two really need to put aside your differences. There are bigger things going on in the world than your pointless arguments."
Oh, I felt well and truly scolded then. His words and tone were on a par with Mahanon's whole, "I'm not angry, I'm disappointed" line. He was right, however. I would have to apologise and we would have to form another truce. We couldn't afford to be squabbling while the world fell apart around us. I looked at Varric and then to Cassandra. She begrudgingly nodded in agreement and I sighed in annoyance.
"Fine, I can be the bigger person." I grouced, trotting on ahead to catch up to Baldy. Strangely enough he had his eyes shut and his face was relaxed, like he was meditating. I almost felt like I was disturbing him.
"I'm sorry for taking it too far. You're right, I can dish it out but I can't take it back. There." I said, and I meant it, really I did, but I'll be the first to admit my tone sounded slightly confrontational. His eyes opened slowly and they blinked in the light. The sun made them shimmer almost, made the coolness of their blue seem warmer.
"Then I must apologise for insulting your people, it was beneath me." He said lowly, still looking out into the sun. It still felt annoyingly unresolved however, and did for the rest of the day until that evening when we made camp.
Sera, Varric and the Herald sat around the fire, chatting easily while Cassandra polished her sword a little off to nearer her tent. I however sat atop a boulder just outside of the camp, away from the fire and closer the shadow of the forest. I could see the stars clearer then, could pick out all the patterns and signs. The moon was merely a fingernail but it still glowed its sad and luminous light. I sighed quite contently, leaning back on my elbows and shutting my eyes. I could quite happily fall asleep here in this boulder. That was until I heard the snap of a twig nearby, I was then fully awake and ready to fix an arrow to my bow. However from the darkness emerged a rather apologetic looking Solas, carrying a bundle of kindling in his arms. I laughed slightly in relief and harnessed my bow, remembering the awkwardness that now floated between us.
"Sorry, thought you were a wolf." I said with forced cheer.
The corner of his mouth turned slightly downward when I said that but the look vanished and he smiled and small smile.
"Think nothing of it." Was all he said before making to go back to the camp. Mythal's tits, I couldn't just let this stale mate go on forever. I had to fix it.
"How'd you know it was me?" I asked suddenly and he stopped and turned, a smile appearing slowly on his face.
"I didn't, not until now."
Crafty so and so but I laughed.
"No really, I thought Dorian did a good job with it."
"Dorian being the mage who helped you cast such a spell?"
I nodded with slight sense of pride.
"He must be quite talented." Was all he said, before turning back again. I sighed, it still didn't feel fixed.
"Truly, Solas... How did you know?" I repeated and again he stopped. He sighed then and I could feel his annoyance, though it wasn't quite directed at me. He seemed to hesitate, almost reluctant. But eventually, whatever argument was going on behind his eyes was won and he turned back to me.
"Your spirit." He said simply.
"My spirit?"
He nodded, "It is... Powerful. Unique, not unlike your magic. I have not seen the like of it since..." He stopped himself briefly, "since my deepest journeys into the ancient memories of the fade."
Something about his words seemed wholly undeserved. They were close, quiet and almost confessional and they made my cheeks burn.
"Oh..." Was all I could muster, leaving us once again in a heavy and weighted silence. Good one, Nev. This probably made the whole thing even more awkward.
"I believe there is more to you than meets the eye, Lethalin." He said, taking a step closer to my boulder, thankfully breaking the silence. In the moonlight his eyes were cold and intense and they made the blush in my cheeks all the more apparent.
"And to you." I whispered, unable to force anymore sound from my throat. His eyes shimmered then and his lip quirked, as if my words were a challenge.
"Ma nuvenin." He replied, his voice low and sultry, enough to send a bloody shiver down my spine. And no my eyes did not linger on his lips, neither did they watch his arse as he walked away.
Well, Shit.