Walking through the streets of Haven was disconcerting, given the stares of vitriol had changed to those of worship. Natasha stalked past her admirers and naysayers, head raised high, toward the church-like building she assumed was the Chantry. At least she was warm now, wrapped in fur and leather, the enchanted staff thudding into the ground with each measured step she took. Her knives, of course, were strapped to her body, easy to access if necessary.

Varric was tending to his own fire, but took the time to wave, so Natasha waved back. Other than him, everyone else seemed to be human, or of elven descent, and she smiled at all who smiled at her, slinking through the crowds. Already, she was confident that this was a Tolkien-esque world, or comparative enough for her to use his identifiers.

She slipped through a side entrance into the Chantry and blustered her way into the meeting between Leliana, Cassandra, two unknowns, once Roderick had stormed out. She was introduced to Commander Cullen and Ambassador Josephine, and greeted them with a smile, far more polite than Cullen bothered to be.

Who even is she?" He turned to her. "Who even are you?"

"I'm Nat."

"Nat," Cullen repeated. "Nat who?"

Natasha raised her eyebrows and didn't answer. Giving them more information would only waste their time with an investigation into someone who didn't exist in their world, which would be far more suspicious than simply refusing to tell them who she was. There was an awkward pause as he seemed to work his way up to asking again, when Josphine cut in.

"If you have family, we can notify them of your survival," she offered. "They will be happy to learn you still live and surely must be worried sick."

"My family are dead, Ambassador, but your offer is kind."

"Dead family, a name plucked from the ether… can you give us nothing?" Cullen pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head like a dog.

Natasha eyed the sweat beading at his brow and instead offered Josephine a sheepish smile, hoping to win her over.

"There is no one in this world I would call family. I'm sorry, I know that's not what you want to hear."

"You lie!" Cullen growled, slamming his hand on the table. Natasha watched as it trembled and he clenched it into a fist.

Leliana had been watching this interrogation in silence, but finally she spoke.

"She's a mage, Cullen. Why do you think she does not want to tell us where she comes from, hmm? Do you think there could be a reason for her silence?"

Cullen flushed a delicate pink and nodded his head.

"She has demonstrated bravery and a willingness to fight with us," Cassandra declared. "I say that we can trust her, for now."

It was sweet of Cassandra to vouch for her and Josephine was obviously sympathetic to her plight. Natasha settled her gaze on Leliana, who stared back placidly.

Like recognised like. There could only be one reason that Leliana had decided to defend her to Cullen and that was that Leliana possessed knowledge Natasha hadn't realised she'd shared.

Or rather, hadn't realised whom she'd shared it with. Her Glocks and batons had been missing since her awakening on this planet. It stood to reason that Leliana had been the one to strip her of them. A cursory investigation would reveal they were unlike anything this planet had seen before. Leliana seemed to be an accomplished woman. She was their spymaster, had been the Left Hand of their cult leader, and had a history besides that. She would understand there was more than met the eye. Natasha welcomed the conversation that was to come.

Cullen threw up his hands, aware he was outnumbered and outvoted. "Very well," he muttered. "Let us hope our faith in you is not misplaced, Herald."

Natasha offered him a tentative, humble smile. "I will do my best to prove it is not," she said. His shoulders relaxed somewhat as she showed him what he wanted to see. A woman determined to right the wrongs of the world without arrogance or thirst for power. Someone who was not a threat.

Further matters of housing soldiers and messages sent were discussed before the meeting was adjourned. Natasha turned to Leliana, who inclined her head.

"Let me show you where you're sleeping," she said.

"Thank you," Natasha replied and checked that she had easy access to the triggers to the bites on her wrists.

Natasha was led past a bedchamber, which Leliana commented would be hers, and into a private study at the top of a seemingly abandoned tower. The attic room was dusty and filled with broken furniture, but there was a lockbox that was obviously new and a pallet beside it. Natasha leaned against the cool stone wall and nodded for Leliana to say her piece.

"At first I thought you were a Qunari spy," Leliana said, crossing her arms and staring her down. "But you are nothing like the Viddithari I have encountered. There is a certain blank expression they have perfected that gives them away when confronted with something that clashes with their knowledge of the Qun. No, your reactions are perfect, your act impeccable. So then, I wondered, could you be one of the Orlesian bards? Yet I would have heard of one like you, I think, and I have not."

Leliana paced, while Natasha kept her own council, wondering if the woman would work it out, or if it was too fantastical to even contemplate.

"But there is something strange about you. Your act is too good… you are too adept a listener… your clothes are too strange… you do not ask the questions that perhaps you should. The others, they think it is a quirk of yours, an attempt to disguise who you are. It is not, though, is it? Hmm. But why could that be?"

Leliana suddenly knelt and unlocked the box, blocking it from view with her body. Tempted as she was to peer, Natasha knew that her position currently depended on Leliana's goodwill. There was a click as the box was relocked. Leiliana turned, placing Natasha's Glocks on the desk and holding up the batons.

"I have never seen the like," she said, pressing the trigger to turn them on. "You have harnessed lightning, yet I do not believe it to be magic. So then… my guess…" Her curious expression turned canny. "Are you from the future?"

Natasha watched the sparks of electricity dance along the length of the baton. A single touch would render either of them unconscious and from the look in Leliana's eye, she knew that. However, Natasha had withstood a taser before. Had Leliana experienced the same exposure? Perhaps she had magic that allowed her to withstand the shock. It wasn't a risk worth taking. Not when she wanted to ingratiate herself with this new world she had found herself in.

Weighing up her options, Natasha decided that sharing the truth was in her best interest, despite her instinctive reluctance.

"I think the truth is even stranger than that," Natasha admitted. "I believe I'm from another planet entirely."