Knight-Captain, the first group of new transfers from Starkhaven have just arrived," one of the templars informed his superior.
"Very good, thank you."
The Knight-Captain rubbed his neck and went to greet the new transfer mages. They were to be getting a lot more transfers to the Kirkwall Circle Tower from Starkhaven- too many refugees apparently. He saw at least six mages in this first group and they all seemed to be clinging to one mage in particular. The mage looked up at him as he approached and her eyes widened.
"Cullen?"
Cullen stopped in his tracks when he realized who the mage was. "Nadia?"
Nadia managed a smile and made to hug the templar, but she stopped herself before she could and a sudden flashback of their kiss and his betrayal popped into her head. "What are you doing in Kirkwall?" she asked, her smile fading.
"I'm the Knight-Captain here. After what happened at the Circle of Ferelden, I needed to get away and make a fresh start, so I came to Kirkwall." Cullen explained. "Come, I will show you to the Circle Tower. You are to meet with First Enchanter Orsino."
Nadia led the other mages as she followed Cullen to the office of the First Enchanter. The Gallows, the name given to the courtyard that separated the mages' Circle Tower from the Templars' headquarters, was eerie and frightened the younger mages that clustered around Nadia. They were just children that she had taken under her wing, children from Ferelden who had lost their parents during the Blight and fled to Starkhaven. She was their teacher and when they were to be transferred to Kirkwall, Nadia asked to go with them to ensure that they made it there safely and were looked after. She had heard the rumors about Knight-Commander Meredith.
"Excuse me, First Enchanter, but the new transfers are here. I've brought them to you as requested." Cullen said, knocking on Orsino's office door.
"Very good, thank you, Cullen," the elf said.
Cullen looked at Nadia as the children entered the office. "It's good to see you again after all these years, Nadia."
Nadia managed a smile at that, despite everything that had happened. "It's good to see you, too, Cullen." She went into the office and closed the door behind her, leaving the Knight-Captain alone in the hallway.
Six years had passed since then and Nadia had begun to grow closer to Cullen. When the Qunari invaded and attacked Kirkwall, Nadia had gone with some of the senior mages to aid the Templars and the City Guards in stopping the Qunari. She ended up saving Cullen from one of them and started to heal his wounds as the Knight-Commander came over to them.
"What is your name, girl?" she asked, a coldness to her voice.
"Nadia, Nadia Cousland, ma'am."
"You fought well today, Nadia. Not many mages here have done enough to earn my respect and gratitude, but you have tonight. I am in your debt for what you have done for the city tonight. Please take care of the Knight-Captain and when this is all done with, come see me in my office." Meredith said.
Nadia was dumbfounded but agreed and went back to treating Cullen as the Knight-Commander headed off with someone named Hawke to retake the Viscounts' Keep.
Cullen winced and groaned at the pain in his shoulder as Nadia tried to remove the armor to get to the wound.
"By the Maker, Cullen Stanton Rutherford, I swear that if you don't sit still and let me heal you I will turn you to stone and throw you into the harbor!" Nadia said, snapping at him.
Cullen stopped fidgeting and looked up at her as the anger dissipated and was replaced with caring worry. "Nadia..."
"After all these years, I still have to patch you up. I'd have thought you'd learned by now." Nadia said, using her magik to her the gaping wound on his shoulder.
Cullen sat there, looking at her as she healed him. She had grown a lot in the years since she left the Circle of Ferelden. Her hair was longer, her cheeks were more defined and not as chubby as they were when they were younger, and her figure was more well-defined and curvy than before- especially her chest, he noted. She went from being this adorable and cute young little teenager to the gorgeous woman before him. He blushed when he thought back to the night they had kissed, but his stomach knotted as he recalled telling Gregoire and Irving about it, fearing that Nadia would be severely punished or expelled from the Templar order for kissing her. When she looked up at him with her forest-green eyes, he blushed and looked away.
"You have to be more careful, Cullen," Nadia said, finished healing his wound and placing the armor back on. "I won't always be around to save your butt."
Cullen chuckled and looked at her. "Too bad, I rather enjoy you coming to my rescue."
"Oh, really? Well, don't go throw yourself in front of Qunari or darkspawn any time soon." Nadia said, laughing a bit. She stood and helped Cullen to his feet, looking up at him as the clouds cleared and revealed the moon.
Cullen's eyes widened as he saw how beautiful she was in the moonlight. "Nadia, I-"
"Nadia!"
Nadia turned and looked at the children who had accompanied her to Kirkwall. "What are you doing here? I told you to stay at the tower!"
"It's the First Enchanter! He's hurt bad!" one of them said.
Nadia followed the children as they took off in the direction they came from, leaving Cullen standing there with his words unspoken, his apology unheard, his feelings for her resurfacing and catching him off guard.
'I can't do this to her, not again.'
The Grand Cleric was dead, the Chantry was destroyed, all because of a mage named Anders. Nadia stared at the beam of light shooting up into the sky and she felt terror.
"How could you?" she demanded, turning to the mage responsible. "How could you kill the Grand Cleric? She could have ended this feud between the mages and templars!"
"We were at a stalemate, there was no chance of a truce!" Anders said.
Nadia looked at the Knight-Commander. "Meredith, please, let us punish him! It's one mage's actions, do not let it condemn us all!"
"You are but one mage, Nadia Cousland, who has earned my trust and respect. However, a mage killed the Grand Cleric and it will lead to rebellion among the other mages. I must rectify the situation. I invoke the Rite of Annulment."
"Meredith, please! There are innocent people- children- at risk who follow your orders and your judgment blindly! Do not punish them for one man's insanity!"
"Nadia, enough," Orsino said.
"First Enchanter, this cannot happen!"
"Reason is not our ally right now, Nadia," Orsino said.
Nadia looked to Cullen, who stood by Meredith's side, and saw that he too was shocked that she would invoke the Rite of Annulment.
'No, I can't lose her again.' Cullen thought as the fear and realization that he may lose Nadia forever sank in.
"Champion, you must stand with someone," Meredith said, looking at Hawke.
"Hawke, you must decide!" Orsino said.
Nadia couldn't take it anymore and she turned to run, heading to the Circle Tower to try and find the children. Behind her, Cullen watched her slip away, glad that it was unnoticed by the others who were too engrossed in having Hawke side with one or the other.
Nadia searched the halls and found the children, taking them and the other mages to the secret underground tunnel that led out of the Gallows. "The Grand Cleric is dead and they have invoked the Rite of Annulment. I want you to get out while you can," she told the mages, only stopping one of the mages, a young girl named Lonnie. "Please look after the children, Lonnie. You are the only one I trust them with. Please, go and hurry, try to stay out of sight. Use that spell I taught you to hide your tracks."
Lonnie nodded and took the children. Nadia closed the door behind her and hurried to find any stragglers, but that was when Orsino, Hawke and the other mages returned to the Tower, the templars in hot pursuit.
"First Enchanter, what do we do?" she asked, drawing her staff.
"We fight," he said. "Did you get the others out?"
"As many as I could find within the Tower walls. Lonnie knows a spell to help hide their tracks so that they could escape unseen."
"Very good. Now get ready, because here they come!"
Nadia shuddered at the memories, taking a moment to catch her breath. When she was asked if she was alright, she merely nodded.
"You don't have to continue, it's alright."
"It's fine, I just haven't spoken about this before."
"Take your time, then, but only if you're ready."
Nadia nodded, then continued to relay her tale.
Bodies were everywhere, the streets bloody, the air thick with the stench of death and smoke from the explosion at the Chantry. Nadia roamed the streets in horror as she helped the surviving mages and the Templars collect the bodies of those who perished in the battle.
"Maker, how could this happen?" she said to herself.
"Are you Lady Nadia Cousland?" a voice came from behind her.
She turned and looked at the source of the voice, seeing the Champion approach her. "You are the Champion."
"Yes. I am Annabell Hawke. I came to find you and see how you were doing."
"I'm lucky to have survived this... But all these people..." Nadia said, looking around.
"I know... I'm sorry that it was one of my friends that caused all of this..." Annabell said.
"Why...? Why would he cause all of this suffering, all this death...?"
"I don't have that answer..."
"Nadia, there was another reason that I came to find you," Annabell said. "The Knight-Commander wants you to go with the next caravan of civilians- this one is for the mages who survived this ordeal. He sent me to fetch you so that you could leave immediately, to return you to Highever."
"I need to help rebuild the city, Champion. I can still be of use here."
"His orders and they are final," Annabell said. "Please, Nadia, he's right to send you home. When the templar reinforcements come, they won't be kind to any remaining mages and Cullen doesn't want to see any more people get hurt. I could tell he especially didn't want you here when they came. The templars they are sending are going to be ruthless and will carry out the Rite of Annulment on any surviving and remaining mages within the city. Please, you've helped so much already. Go home to your family."
Nadia sighed and begrudgingly agreed. She followed Annabell to the main gate of the city and joined the next caravan to leave. Cullen wasn't there to see her off and he didn't give any explanation; the Champion did that for him. 'Why, Cullen?'