Sighing, he rubbed his forehead as he headed to the Herald's cabin. Fresh snow lined his way, the crunching beneath his boots told him that they had more to come. He's heard of Haven from Leliana. She had been here with the Hero of Ferelden back in the days of travel. Their first time here they had come across believers of Lady Andraste, who thought she would be reincarnated into a dragon. His eyes rolled at the very thought. The urn they found was only seen once by Leliana, after their departure from the town, adventurers sought out the urn for themselves. Since then he hadn't heard any new information regarding the urn, only that Haven had been transformed from a hellish society, to one of safe refuge. Looking down from his footsteps the snow left behind. Clearing his throat, he caught the attention of Cassandra, who appeared to be guarding the door. Made sense.
"How is she?" Cullen decided he needed to break the ice first. It had been at least two weeks sine his last encounter with Eva. His wounds have healed, with the help of Solas. His healing was intricate, stitching together the necessary part that may have been destroyed.
"She still rests," Cassandra broke him from his thoughts. His gaze was met with brown eyes that would usually scare any man out of their pants. However, they have known each other for some time now, especially with the building of the Inquisition. "I imagine she would be." Cullen said gently. "Has she been out at all?" He was pushing for information. Cassandra only sighed, keeping his gaze. "No, she hasn't wanted to come out because of the reactions of others, yours including. She hasn't forgotten your argument. Especially since we are marching to Redcliffe to secure the mages."
"She's afraid of my opinion on the matter." He stated, an eyebrow perked up. Cassandra sighed again, shaking her head. "The decision is already made. She will not budge on the matter, as she believes they will be able to help immensely, and of course from the Templar's reaction towards us when we ventured to Val Royeaux." Cullen nodded in agreement. How he could have forgotten the Seeker's reaction? He took the Templars along with him after Eva has returned. "You wish to see her, do you?" Cassandra once again interrupted his thoughts. Golden hues lit up as he nodded. Cassandra stepped aside but before Cullen even made a step toward the door, her hand locked onto his shoulder plate. "Be cautious, please. She is still in rough shape." Again, he nodded as he felt her hand slip away from him.
His hand pressed against the wood of the door and for a second, he thought about turning around. It this was absurd. The peace had to be made between them. Years ago, he wouldn't have even speaking and interacting with children and yet here he is. They had built a relationship as she spent her time here in Haven, and he refused to let that go to waste. The door creaked as it opened slowly. He squinted his eyes as he entered her cabin. The room was dimly lit, and he would guess it was for her rest. The door closed behind him as he stared further in. He could make out a bundle figure that was tangled up in blankets. He could hear a soft snore, followed by random mumbles and sighs. He laughed quietly into his hand. Not wanting to wake her, he stepped lightly towards her bed and grabbed the nearest chair. He looked closer at her features. He could vaguely make out where the stitches were put together. The right side of her face was mostly purple, recovering bruises. He sighed heavily, taking his glove off and gingerly placing his hand upon one of hers. "I'm so sorry, Eva." He whispered. "I failed as a partner, I failed as a protector, I failed as a friend." Cullen began to rub his neck with his free hand. "You discovered your niche and that is becoming a mage, along with your training with Leliana." He lifted his hand from hers, still feeling the warmth that generated. "I hope in time you will forgive me, little one. You have so much to do, and I want to be there every step of the way." He mumbled softly.
Cold bitter wind tore his attention from Eva and standing there in the doorway was a very disgruntled looking Solas. Cullen did not move but he met the ice-cold stare of the elf and for a moment they said nothing to one another. Cullen cleared his throat, looking back to Eva. "She's still resting. I came to visit." Why did it feel like he was a child about to be scolded? He had no reason to explain his appearance. Solas said nothing as he closed the door behind him. Oh, this should be good. Cullen thought as Solas came to the center of the room. He glanced at Eva for a moment before looking back to the Commander. "She is still healing. I have spent many hours to ensure she did not slip into a coma as she slept." He said abruptly. "I will not have you undo my work with your presence here."
Cullen narrowed along with his eyes. "I have no intention of harming her, you do know this right?" The question itself was ridiculously unnecessary. Solas approached Eva's bedside, looking over her once more. "I am aware of that Commander, but she has been out of sorts from everything that befell her." He nodded. "Leliana filled me in on what happened to her in the fade." Cullen said. A blue light formed within Solas's hand as he placed his palm gingerly on Eva's forehead. Cullen watched him; the way his eyes slowly closed, his breathing becoming focused, and of course his hand glowing as he transmits healing energy to the young elf. "She is safe," Solas said as he took a step back. Cocking his head to the side, Cullen gave him a most questioning look. "Of course, she's safe- Ah, you mean the fade. Yes, I remember mages having to be careful even within their own dreams…" Solas nodded.
"Extremely careful. I come here every day to see where she is and what is around her. The other mages cannot venture forth like I can," he said in a cocky tone. "Which is why I was worried upon you coming to visit. Your last encounter with Eva-," Cullen snapped his gaze at Solas. "I know what I caused. I know what I said and my visiting her has nothing to do with you."
Solas merely scoffed and shook his head. "Of course, it does can you imagine if she woke up and saw you?" That hurt. Have a little understanding, you bastard. Cullen sighed. "I understand your reasoning. She needs to know, directly from me, that she will never have to run away from me again." Solas retreated his hand and looked at Cullen. His features were stressed, but he nodded to the human. "Take care, Commander." It was a farewell and a threat wrapped into one. Solas made his way to the door and the bite of winter crept into the room. "Be mindful, Commander." That was the last thing he said before closing the door. Cullen sighed and covered his face with his hands. This wasn't going to be easy.
Even though she was asleep she had heard Cullen and Solas going on about what happened. She released a small sigh but did not move from her position. Slowly, her eyes crept open to see Cullen with his face in his hands. A small frown lined her lips at the sight. He didn't mean to hurt her; she didn't know about his past with mages. No one, including herself, had no idea she was going to become one. Cullen sat still as stone and Eva watched silently for a moment. He looked sad and upset, especially after what Solas said. Slowly she reached out to Cullen and gingerly placed a hand upon his arm. He jumped in response and tore his gaze away from his hands.
"I'm sorry…," Eva mumbled softly. Cullen was still as stone as Eva began to move. She was slow at first, wincing here and there. "I'm sorry," she said with a small sniffle. Tears slide down her cheeks as she sat up fully now. "I didn't mean what I said to you. I want you to still like me. I know I scare you because I'm a mage, and the accident with Bull." Cullen golden hues met her own. He gently placed a hand on hers and gave it a gentle squeeze.
"I should be apologizing to you, Eva. I let my past get the best of me when there is no need to fear mages now. I'm proud you found your niche and you're doing so well with Leliana. I have no doubts that you will make a wonderful mage." He gave her hand another squeeze. "I am just glad you're alright." Eva gave him a small smile. "I do have something for you, if you wish to accept it." He released her hand and began to dig around in his pocket. Eva watched in silence as the lucky charm was presented to her. The one from her birthday that he had made into a necklace for her to wear. He still had the good luck charm. "The choice is yours if you wish to keep it. I held onto it since the battle with the demon, and I wanted to find the right moment to offer it back to you.
Eva was silent as she looked at the coin. Tears began to well in her eyes as she forced herself up, ignoring the pain that followed. She latched onto Cullen and hugged him tightly. "I'm so, so sorry I threw that in your face." She sobbed. "I didn't mean it. Everyone was mad at me and I unleashed the demon on Haven. I can't control my powers yet and Solas said it was going to take time." She hugged him tighter, forcing her face into the crook of his neck. "You're my friend and you play with me while others ignore me. I'm sorry Cullen, I love you." Her breathing began to escalate as she sniffled and tried to wipe most of the tears out of the way. "Can—Can I have it back? I promise to keep it safe and it'll never leave my side again." She said with a sniffle.
Cullen hugged her gently, aware of the injuries she still had and while she sobbed, he had his own tears forming but refused to let her see them. "Of course, Eva." He pressed a soft kiss on the top of head. "You have nothing to worry about, Eva. I'm not going anywhere. We'll continue with training, but you must be aware I have to be there to supervise your training in case things go wrong." Eva nodded into his neck, understanding what he meant. Gingerly, Cullen pulled away, managing to wipe his tears away. Eva was upright now and watched him. Taking the necklace, he carefully placed his lucky coin around her neck once more. Eva began to fiddle with it, but only for a moment. "I promise to never take it off." She said softly, looking down at the coin.
Cullen smiled and patted her head. "We good, Eva?" The small elf nodded with a smile in return. "We're good, Cullen." He then sat up from the chair and dusted his clothes off before looking to the future Inquisitor. "Please get some rest, alright?" Eva nodded in response as Cullen headed to the door.
"Thank you for coming to see me…," Eva said right before he opened the door. He smiled again and nodded. "I'll be back with dinner for you. Just rest."