07

Talia shut the book in front of her and leaned back in her chair with a sigh. Whatever free time she had was used in figuring out the mystery that was the Hero of Ferelden and her appearance in Thedas. There were many things about her that seemed fantastical, but one of the things about her that had caught Talia's attention was that they called her Stormcrown. She'd been taken aback and she'd asked how the Warden had been accorded that title. Cassandra had given her a bemused look and told her that that was the Warden's name, not her title.

Savith Stormcrown.

There was no way it was her real name, especially if she had lived in Skyrim. Nobody used Talos' name as theirs while in Skyrim and lived. Nords were particularly touchy when it came to Talos. She'd made the idiotic mistake of questioning the legitimacy of his divinity at the bar in Windhelm, and ended up with a black eye and a split lip.

A sharp knock on her door jolted her out of her thoughts. Before she could say anything, the door was kicked open and Varric entered, holding two mugs in one hand and a plate full of rice and smoked venison in the other.

"Why bother knocking if you're going to barge in anyway?" She rolled her eyes as he made himself at home in her small cottage.

Varric mock-gasped. "Everyone knows you have to knock before entering. Andraste's ass, didn't they teach you any manners in that world of yours?"

Talia rolled her eyes at the dwarf. No matter how determined she was to dislike Thedas and every being on it, Varric slowly wormed his way into her heart. His easy smiles and funny stories brightened her rather dour countenance.

When he'd noticed that she was reading a book during one of their nights in camp, she could tell the exact moment his face closed off. Against her better judgment, she'd confessed her situation to him that night. The dwarf had thought she was making fun of him and proceeded to give her the cold shoulder for a few days, until Cassandra, of all people spoke to him and confirmed the story. Solas raised an eyebrow at all of them when he came back from scouting and both Cassandra and Varric immediately shut up. He didn't pry, but the knowing look he gave her made Talia feel like he already knew all about her situation.

It had taken a while for Varric to warm up to her again, but when he did, he'd asked if he could make a fictional book about her world, and she'd answered by hitting him on the face with the Chant of Light.

"What do you want, Varric?"

"What, I can't visit my favorite Herald?" He asked innocently, but Talia simply gave him a look. "Fine, I thought you'd been cooped up in here too long and I'm here to force that," he pointed to the food. "into you."

"That's nice, Varric. But unless you're hiding a sweetroll in your jacket, I doubt I'd be able to eat any of the food you're giving me."

He crossed his arms. "What's it gonna take for you to actually start eating properly? A fainting spell in the middle of a mission?"

"I do eat, Varric. Not as much as you or Cullen, but I eat plenty."

"And when was the last time you ate a proper meal? And no a handful of grapes does not constitute a proper meal."

"I had breakfast," she muttered as she turned back to her notes. He was almost as bad as Lukas, who was only worse because of that one time he'd tried to hold her down and force feed her some ham and bread.

"What are you working on anyway?" He asked as he peered over her shoulder. "Well, I have no idea what those squiggly lines mean." He pointed at her notes, then at the stack of books near it. "But those books at least are in a language I can read. I don't think you're going to get much accurate information about the Hero of Ferelden from those."

"Well what choice do I have?" she sighed. "It's not as if anyone here has actually had a conversation with the woman."

"Uh, I actually did."

At his words, she turned around and gave him an incredulous look.

"What?" He blinked.

"You've met her, and you didn't think to mention this to me?" she asked.

"You never asked?" Varric shrugged.

Talia pinched the bridge of her nose. "Consider this as me asking then. When did you talk to her?"

"Hmmm, tell you what. You start on that venison, and I'll tell you what you want to know."

She leveled him with an unimpressed look, but she reached for the plate, and Varric gave her a smug smile before settling on her bed.

"So you have met her?"

"It wasn't under the best circumstances," Varric flicked an insect off his jacket. "And I think she wasn't at her best either."

"What do you mean?" Talia prodded.

"Well for starters, we first met her at the Deep Roads, and we were harboring a Grey Warden deserter. So it didn't make for a nice little reunion."

"How bad was it?" She shoved some food in her mouth when Varric gave her a pointed look.

"Well," he drawled. "When she saw Blondie, she cast this spell and the idiot was sailing across the hall and cracking his head on the wall. I've never seen Hawke so mad, he gave this war cry and tackled her to the ground. I think he forgot he was a mage for one moment." Varric rolled his eyes. "She knocked him unconscious with one punch. Junior—Hawke's little brother tried taking her down, but anyone with eyes could see the Warden was a better fighter and she kicked his ass too. And then she proceeded to beat the shit out of Blondie. Took three of her men to pull her off him, and I think that's just 'cause she allowed them to do so."

"And what were you doing the whole time?" She asked.

"If you're asking if I did anything to stop her, the answer's no. I'd only known Blondie for a few weeks, and Stormcrown can be pretty fucking scary when she's mad. Besides, somebody had to look after Hawke, what with how hard she brained him. And, we still needed her help."

At her questioning gaze, Varric continued. "Both Bethany and Carver contracted the Taint, all of the Wardens there noticed. They supposedly could save them, but they could only do it if they're sworn to secrecy. For a moment, all of us thought Stormcrown wouldn't take them in. Because, I quote, 'The Order isn't a charity case. If you want to join, you'd better pull your weight.' Hawke looked ready to throttle her, but I think the huge bump on his head served as a reminder not to try any idiotic moves."

"You have to join the Wardens to get cured?" Talia asked curiously. She'd read that the Wardens were a secretive order in general; it was one of the main reasons people never really trusted them, despite their saving the world no less than five times.

"I don't know if they're doing any curing at all," he grunted. "When I saw Sunshine—Bethany again, she looked so jaded and cynical. Couldn't look Hawke in the eye. But it could have been Carver's death."

Talia quirked an eyebrow at him. "They weren't able to cure him?"

"Well, they were…supposedly. After a few months, a March Warden, Stroud, came to Hawke's house and relayed the news. Said he was killed in the line of duty, and he gave gold as compensation, but Hawke just threw it back at his face. He couldn't believe that Carver had been killed by darkspawn; he was too good a fighter for that. Blondie knew something, but he never did tell. Said he couldn't give out any more order secrets."

"And when did you get to talk to her?" she asked again.

"Her other wardens went to go and bring Sunshine and Junior back to their headquarters in Tantervale, but Stormcrown remained to 'deal' with Blondie." He grinned at the memory. "We'd never seen Blondie as subdued as when he was in her presence. Both he and Justice were quiet as a mouse. They had an incredibly long talk, which ended with Stormcrown screaming so loudly, her voice rattled walls and windowpanes…literally."

"Literally?" she asked skeptically.

Varric raised his hands and drew an 'x' mark across his chest. "Cross my heart. It at least discouraged us from eavesdropping any further. The way they talked." He shook his head. "Seemed that they shared more history than just commander and warden. Made Hawke so jealous he stopped talking to Anders for a week."

The Hero and the Terrorist? and wait jealous? This…Anders actually became lovers with two heroes?

The dwarf laughed at her expression. "Oh yes. Apparently, they'd been lovers of a sort before Blondie made his disappearing act. No wonder she was so mad when she saw him. After their 'long talk', I invited her to the Hanged Man. I figured she'd need a drink after dealing with him."

Talia allowed herself a smirk. "You just love befriending all these important people."

"Not my problem if all you hero types naturally gravitate towards me," he smirked. "I learned not to pry much about her, but she was free with her stories. Told me a lot of shenanigans they got into during the Blight, but she never wanted to mention anything after the battle. Also told me a lot of stories about her time as a member of a thieves guild."

Talia hummed thoughtfully as she sipped the warm cider Varric had brought. A member of the Skyrim Thieves Guild? Perhaps someone who joined after she'd left? As far as she knew, Drayven was the only dunmer there at that time.

"What does she look like? I assumed she took off her mask? I don't think she could have drunk with it on," she said wryly. When they were in the Hinterlands, Talia had seen a wooden mask being sold in one of the stalls. She had a feeling she'd seen it before, although she wasn't sure where. Upon asking the storeowner what it was, he had given her a strange look, but said it was a carving of the metal mask Stormcrown was known for wearing. Talia had likely seen it in Skyrim, but she wasn't sure where.

"Well, both of you are of the same race, obviously," he said. "You both have the same hair color and eye color. But I think her skin's a bit bluer. Honestly, it was such a long time ago, I don't remember much," he admitted.

"I'm surprised your meeting with her wasn't included in your book. I'm sure even a mention of her would've increased your readership," she said. She had skimmed the Tale of the Champion, as she did other books, searching for any mention of the Hero of Ferelden, and found nothing.

Varric looked uncomfortable. "When I asked about her and Anders, she looked tired. Defeated. Blondie's disappearance hit her pretty hard. It didn't seem right to take advantage of someone like that."

Sometimes, it surprised Talia how thoughtful some of her companions could be.

"I asked her if she enjoyed being a Grey Warden."

"And did she?"

"No, and there wasn't even a hint of hesitation when she said it," he said. "Said she would have preferred never meeting the previous Warden-Commander. She couldn't help being angry at him, but she told me she understood more than anyone that Wardens do whatever needs to be done."

Talia frowned at that. "What does that mean?"

"The tales say she joined the Wardens because she couldn't bear seeing innocents die when she had the power to stop it."

She couldn't prevent herself from rolling her eyes. "The masses love their romantic bullshit."

"Don't I know that." He winked at her. "But she said she didn't have a choice. Mind you, this was after her sixth mug of ale, so she wasn't making much sense."

"Did she say anything about our world?" she asked hopefully, but Varric shook his head.

"No, the only thing I guess could have alluded to it was she said she didn't belong here, and that she no longer wanted to be here. She wished she were a mage, so she could figure out the shit that's happened to her and leave when she finally did."

"Anything else?" she prodded.

"Nothing that I can think of," he said. "Most of her stories centered around the Blight, and nothing really before or after that." He paused. "You know, if you really need to know more about her you could ask—"

"Leliana, I know." She felt guilty for her curtness, but it was annoying to realize she had no choice but to talk to the Spymaster. She still didn't know what she thought about Leliana, but Talia knew that if she asked the red head anything about Stormcrown, she would have to answer a few questions herself.

"She's not that bad," Varric encouraged, "A bit scary when she wants to be, but you have to remember she's on our side, Rubes."

Talia barely suppressed the urge to groan. "Rubes?"

Varric grinned. "You know, rubies? Red eyes?"

"I suppose it's better than 'Red-Eye' or 'Glowy'," she surrendered.

"I think this one might stick," He winked. "Now that my job here is done…" Talia blinked. When had she finished her food?

"Maybe you should replace Josephine as our ambassador," she offered. "Your negotiation skills are pretty good."

"Nah, Ruffles is a whole different animal. You should see her talking to merchants and noblemen."

There was a moment of comfortable silence as Varric gathered her empty plate and mug and gulped down the last of his ale. As he stood up and made his way to the door, Talia spoke.

"Hey Varric," she said quietly.

"Yeah?" He looked back.

"I—just…you know you didn't have to bring me dinner," she finally said. The dwarf was kind to her when he had no reason to be, and she wasn't sure if she deserved it.

Varric gave her an understanding smile. "Rubes, if there's one thing I've learned about you hero types, you always seem to have the weight of the world on your shoulders. And if there's one thing I learned after our little episode in the Hinterlands, it's that I don't mind sharing in that weight. Might be a bit cliché, but for what it's worth, I'm just here if you need to talk to someone. I won't even charge you for it!" His smile turned into a full-blown grin as Talia let out a soft chuckle.

"Thank you, Varric." She gave him a small, but genuine smile.

He saluted her with his hand carrying the mugs. "Don't mention it, Rubes."

After he left, Talia updated her notes before retiring to bed. She spent a few hours tossing and turning, unable to sleep. There were plenty of things plaguing her mind: the Inquisition, Stormcrown, theories of how she appeared on Thedas…

When it was apparent that she wouldn't get much sleep, she dragged herself out of bed, grabbed her dagger and opened her door. She stepped out of her cottage and was met by the bitter, cold breeze of the Frostback Mountains. It was utterly silent around Haven, the only others awake were sentries posted sparsely around the village. She approached the stone fence overlooking the training grounds and leaned on it. The harshness of the wind and the coldness of the stone numbed her to everything, and even her warring thoughts settled the longer she stared at the dark nothingness in the horizon.

She wasn't sure how long she'd stood there, but her fingers grew stiff, her eyes dry, and her ears frozen. It was a testament to how weary she was that she didn't have the energy to lash out when she heard someone approach. Talia already recognized who it was based on her light footsteps, but she wanted to ignore her. A heavy fur blanket was settled on her shoulders, and she subconsciously wrapped it around herself.

"Leliana," she finally acknowledged after a long while.

"Couldn't sleep?" The soft voice asked, and Talia turned to face her.

For once, Leliana wasn't wearing her official Spymaster uniform, but a simple, long-sleeved tunic and breeches under a thick fur coat.

"No," she replied. "Did you need something?"

"You sound troubled."

There was a brief silence, punctuated only by the howling wind. But Talia could only ignore Leliana for so long. She opened her mouth to answer, but the bard spoke first.

"I think some tea would do us a world of good," she said almost absentmindedly. With a swish of her white coat, she turned around and started walking slowly, only pausing to look back when Talia didn't move. "Join me?"

Against her better judgment, Talia followed Leliana back to one of the cottages near the Chantry. As they stepped in, Talia took in the sparse decorations and lack of personal belongings. The only things of hers that Talia could see were her bow and quiver, which was on a desk at the far end of the room. A kettle was already sitting upon the stove when they arrived, and although Talia already knew, it confirmed the fact that Leliana had been waiting for her.

Talia took a seat at the small dining table near the door, and watched Leliana as she prepared their drink. The bard filled two cups and set one in front of Talia before taking the seat opposite her.

"Thank you," Talia said politely and warmed her frozen fingers by clutching the cup.

Leliana took a sip from her tea and a glitter of amusement passed her eyes when Talia did nothing more than roll the cup around her hands. "I assure you, I have no intentions to poison you."

Talia gave her a sharp smile. "Never even crossed my mind."

Well, this is going swimmingly, Talia thought sourly, as Leliana smiled.

"I'm glad your excursion to the Hinterlands went well. The refugees can rest easily knowing the Inquisition has disbanded the Templars and Mages in the area. It's a shame that none of the Templars were willing to surrender themselves to our cause."

Talia nodded. When they'd hunted down the main bulk of each faction, they had given them the chance to join the Inquisition and "end the threat of the Breach". To her surprise, at least half of the mages in the Witchwood had laid down their staffs and surrendered, which caused dissention in their ranks. At the end of the fight, only a handful remained, and Talia had instructed those who knew Restoration to stay with the refugees to help. The rest were brought back to train as battlemages. The templars however, were a different case. They refused aid once they learned there were mages among them, and Talia was forced to cut them all down.

"It wasn't a pretty job, but I'm glad it's over and done with," Talia said.

"As am I. Cullen wasn't very pleased at the thought of more mages, but he has treated them as he would any other soldier under his command."

"As he should. Those mages have gone through a lot, and I promised them a place where they can practice their craft freely." On their way back, with the Horse Master and a few other brave souls, Talia had gotten to know the few mages that accompanied them. Most were young, and had no choice but to join the rebels when the Circles fell. A few were apostates and have been running from Templars and the Chantry since they were children.

They talked about their life in the Circle, how there was no privacy, and everything they did was watched. Their research would be put to an end whenever the templars deemed it "too dangerous", which usually meant every time. Thankfully, not all templars were the same. They spoke about the Knight Captain and a few others who were kind and friendly, and helped them get out when the Circle fell.

When the mages started talking about the Harrowing, it had taken a fair amount of control not to rage and hit someone—preferably Chantry officials. To force someone into a meeting with a demon to test them was not something that any decent person would do. It sounded as if they were setting the mages up for failure.

Magic was something to be celebrated; no mage should ever have to live in fear of their abilities.

"You feel very strongly about mages," Leliana commented.

"No person should have to live as a slave to somebody else's fear. Precautions must be made for possible possessions, but suppressing their right to freedom is not one of them," she said.

"I believed the same," Leliana said as she sipped her tea. "When we got to Kinloch hold back during the Blight, a group of blood mages had taken control and it was overrun by abominations. The Knight-Commander had called for the Right of Annulment."

A shiver ran up Talia's spine. "What exactly is the Right of Annulment?"

Leliana was silent for a moment, but her expressionless face grew solemn. "It is the Right of templars to annihilate all mages in a Circle. It's a last resort, but it's been exploited in the last few years."

Purification… a soft voice whispered in Talia's mind, and she tightened her grip on her cup.

"Luckily, we were there to stop them." Leliana looked pensive. "There were so many of them still alive when we went through. Children and elders alike."

"As much as I dislike templars from the first-hand accounts of mages I've encountered, I don't think the idea of killing children and elders would sit well with them."

"But they would still go through with it," Leliana argued.

"Of course," Talia agreed. "But sometimes, we all must do things we don't want. There are just some orders that we cannot disobey."

The time has come to test both your skills, and your loyalty to Sithis.

Leliana's silence was an agreement in and of itself. The Spymaster was someone who looked like she'd gone through a lot and made plenty of difficult decisions she had to live with. Perhaps there was a time Justinia had ordered her to do something against her will, but as Talia said, there were simply some orders that could not be disobeyed.

Talia sipped her tea to prevent her from saying anything else. Chamomile, honey and a hint of cinnamon, a popular blend in Morrowind. Her expression must have been telling, because Leliana spoke.

"It was taught to me by Savith," she said quietly, and Talia looked up sharply as she did, and found Leliana watching her with an expressionless face. "She said her parents used to sell them at their stall when she was little."

"It's a blend commonly sold around Morrowind, my homeland," Talia finally said.

An uncomfortable silence stretched as they broached the topic of Talia's world.

"I've been wondering why you haven't approached me and asked me about Savith." Finally, Leliana had seemed to tire of their small talk. "When you have asked all others about her."

Talia brought the tea up to her lips as she contemplated her answer. She thought of saying that she thought Leliana would be uncomfortable with the topic. Or she could point out that Leliana never really talked about her at all.

"I don't trust you."

Perhaps truthfulness was needed just this once.

The surprised look on Leliana's face told her that the bard didn't expect her to be so blunt.

"May I ask why?"

"I can tell that you were a bard, that you used to be an assassin and spy by trade. It's in the way you speak and lie, the way you can effortlessly manipulate people to do what needs to be done. Don't take it as an insult—I think you're very good at what you do. Being a Spymaster is something that requires these abilities." She paused. "You do not give without asking for something in return. I haven't approached you because I don't know what you'll be asking from me by giving me this information."

The passive expression was back on Leliana's face as she answered. "It takes one to know one, I suppose."

Talia inclined her head. "I haven't done much spying in my life, to be honest."

Leliana narrowed her eyes. "What are you then?"

"I'm fairly sure you already have your ideas." Talia crossed her arms over her chest. "Whether you can give me an incentive to confirm or deny these is entirely up to you."

The redhead sat up straighter and gave her an appraising look before speaking. "You may ask me whatever you wish, and I will answer your questions honestly and to the best of my ability." She looked at her through slitted eyes. "But whatever is spoken here must never be repeated to anyone outside."

Talia pursed her lips. "Very well. I will answer your questions truthfully, but I reserve the right not to answer questions that are too…personal in nature."

"I agree."

"How will I know you speak the truth?"

"How do I know you speak the truth? You have been lying to us since you got here," Leliana countered.

"And can you blame me? What reason have I to tell any of you the truth about me?" She didn't bother denying her lies. Leliana was smarter than that. "Should I bare myself to Cassandra? Who has already threatened to condemn me for a crime I had nothing to do with? To Cullen? Who would sooner see me beheaded for whatever magic I have?"

Leliana acknowledged her words with a sharp nod. "I understand your hesitance, but you must see it from our point of view. You staggered out of there—the only survivor of that explosion, bearing a mark on your hand similar to that of the Breach. Add to that the fact that you said you were the leader of a mercenary band, but your possessions say otherwise." At Talia's raised eyebrow, she said, "I am not stupid enough not to recognize an assassin's arsenal when I see it."

Talia inclined her head in agreement. "And I am not stupid enough to trust people I barely know."

"Then we are at an impasse. There is nothing left to do but trust each other to be honest." She cocked her head to the side when Talia kept silent. "We are all in the same boat, Talia, and I would prefer it to sail rather than sink."

She stretched out her hand, and after a momentary hesitation, Talia took and shook it.

"Very well. What is it that you wanted to ask?" Talia offered, she needed to organize her thoughts and questions she could ask Leliana. It was likely the last time it would happen, since neither of them was the kind to allow others to know much of their history.

"I saw your black robes when you were unconscious," Leliana said, and Talia immediately stiffened. "I recognized the insignia as the Dark Brotherhood's."

Talia forced herself to answer. "And what do you know of them?"

The Spymaster leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms. "I know that they are a guild of assassins who dedicate their kills to their god, Sithis. I know of the Night Mother, how they keep her corpse and how she whispers to the Listener. She told us a little about hierarchy—the Black Hand, Speakers and such."

"These are the brotherhood's secrets, none but the children of Sithis know this. Was Stormcrown a member then?" Either a fellow sister or a traitor. Did the woman work with Bellamont? Members of the Family never talked about the Brotherhood to outsiders. Of course, unless Leliana could cross back to Nirn, her knowledge about the Brotherhood couldn't affect them. However, it still irked her that Stormcrown would willingly give out this knowledge.

Leliana watched her impassively. "Yes, although we did not know right away. She didn't part with this information so quickly, it took months on the road before she admitted to being an assassin. She was burdened by a lot of things, and we were willing to listen to her. In truth, she told it to Zevran first, who was also an assassin, and the rest of us found out a few weeks after."

"And how did you take the news?" She asked curiously.

"Not very well, admittedly." Leliana stared at the fireplace, a distant look in her eyes. "I became afraid of her, and I often prayed to the Maker to save her soul from her Night Mother. Zevran didn't care much, nor did Morrigan or Sten. Wynne was disgusted with her, and things between the two of them became tense for a very long time. Alistair was horrified, and it took him a while to come to terms with it, but he accepted her."

"Why did you not tell the others of your suspicions?"

And now, the truth was bared: she wasn't just an assassin, but a member of a cult performing ritual killings. Knowing how they felt about blood magic, Talia was not sure what the others would do if they found out what she was. Probably kill her in a fit of self-righteousness.

Leliana threaded her fingers together and placed her hands on the table. "I serve the Maker, and as such, I wish everyone would convert and see the truth that lies with Him. I used to believe I was chosen—as some say you were—but I am not as naïve nor as optimistic as I was ten years ago." She paused. "Your being a member of a cult disturbs me, but does not matter in the long run. You cannot practice your faith in this world, as your Night Mother does not exist here, nor does your god Sithis. If you do not go around killing random people, then we will get along splendidly. I only care about how you and your abilities can aid the Inquisition in its goals. The others are not as…open-minded as I am. Hostility among the key members of the Inquisition is the last thing we need right now."

Mass killing sprees? she thought wryly. Some of her Siblings loved killing, but Talia didn't enjoy it enough to murder random people. "I've already pledged to help the Inquisition in any way I can."

"And so you have." Leliana gave her a brief smile. "You've been performing very well, actually. The quotes from the Chant of Light, giving people your blessing, maintaining an aura of calm and peace but still retaining enough fire to encourage the people—it's obvious you have experience in manipulating a crowd."

"Or," Talia countered. "I could be very good at being a leader."

"I think it's a bit of both. Are you the new Listener of the Dark Brotherhood then?"

Talia wanted to lie and say no, but maybe she should keep her word just this once. "I've been leading the Brotherhood for two years."

"And who was the Listener before you?"

"Ungolim," Talia answered. "He led the Family for many years before he was killed." Before I killed him.

"Ungolim?" Leliana mused. "Savith wasn't quite sure who would be leading after her disappearance."

"She became Listener?" she asked in bemusement. Perhaps there were more years in between them than she had thought. Talia had never heard of any assassin called Savith. "I've never heard of her."

"What about the name Cicero?" Leliana asked, and Talia raised an eyebrow at the challenge in her tone.

"Unless you mean Cicero, the man who works at my local newspaper company, then no, I do not know who he is."

"Talia often told us stories about him. He was as mad as they came—dressed like a jester and sang about disemboweling people. She said he was the Keeper."

"Keeper?" Talia felt herself getting a headache. The Night Mother hadn't needed a Keeper since the Second Era. It was a high-ranking position, separate from the Black Hand, but second only to the Listener. According to their texts, the Keeper was the only member of the brotherhood who knew the Binding Words, and could verify if one was truly the Listener. "I think I would have heard of such an…eccentric character."

"You agreed to be truthful." Leliana's tone grew flat, and it grated on Talia's nerves.

"Perhaps it's your friend who's been filling your head with lies about herself," she snapped.

"Then answer me this: you lived in Skyrim for a time, did you not?" After a short nod from her, Leliana continued. "Then why is it you've never heard Savith? She was as famous as they come—she's the Dragonborn."

A beat passed as Talia stared at Leliana in disbelief.

"And that is how I can tell that your friend is a liar. All Dragonborn since Talos have been from the Septim bloodline, and the last of them passed two years ago. I spent thirteen years in Skyrim, and I have heard nothing about Savith Stormcrown!" How dare she? A Dragonborn? The gall of someone to pretend to be a part of the Septim bloodline!

Leliana, as predicted, did not take too kindly to the accusation that her friend was a liar. Her tone was icy as she replied, "Savith Stormcrown was a hero. Not just here in Ferelden, but in Skyrim as well. She ended the Dragon Crisis and the Civil War. If you were truly a member of the Dark Brotherhood, you would have known her. She assassinated the previous Emperor."

Talia dragged a hand down her face in a rare show of frustration and annoyance. "Dragons are extinct! There was no Civil War! Pelagius Septim IV died from a sickness, and his son, Uriel Septim VII was killed by the Mythic Dawn. Not by the Brotherhood. Martin Septim was the last of their line, and he died saving Nirn from Oblivion!" Talia didn't particularly care if Leliana wasn't familiar with half of the things she said, her temper had burned hotter as she spoke. What kind of lies was Stormcrown spewing? And why? What was her agenda?

Leliana had deflated sometime during her rant and looked contemplative. "Martin Septim? I've heard that name before," she murmured.

"If Stormcrown arrived here years before I did, then it is quite impossible for her to have known the existence of Martin Septim."

Leliana's lips thinned. "Savith has not lied about her being the Dragonborn. I have seen her use her Shouts—what did she call it…Thu'um?—her voice is loud and powerful enough to shake the foundations of the earth."

The dunmer fell silent. Hadn't Varric mentioned something about it as well? Her voice shaking windowpanes? She shook her head. "Having the power to harness this…Thu'um doesn't mean she's a Dragonborn. It's not possible, Leliana, but let's say for a moment, I suspend my disbelief and accept that she is Dragonborn; there would still be the issue of her nonexistent Dragon Crisis and Civil War. And her imaginary Keeper. If she were truly a past Listener, I would have known of her existence. But she was based in Skyrim, that in itself sounds dubious, as Cyrodiil has been the main headquarters for the Brotherhood since the beginning of the Third Era."

Leliana closed her eyes. "There would be no reason for her to lie. She has little magical talent, but I've seen her call the spirit of an assassin to help her more than once. She said it had been a boon given to her after she completed a contract."

"It only means that she's a more accomplished mage than she lets on." Talia pointed out.

"Don't all members of the Dark Brotherhood go to the realm of their god when they die? If she is able to summon one of your number, surely it's because your god allowed it?"

"And does this spirit have a name?" she asked with veiled sarcasm. "Are you quite sure he was a member of the Brotherhood?"

"Lucien. Lucien—"

Although she knew it couldn't be, Talia found herself asking, "Lachance?"

"Yes. A disconcerting fellow, but reliable. Savith didn't summon him often; he was very…morbid." Leliana cocked her head to the side at her reaction. "You recognize the name then?"

Talia opened and closed her mouth several times, but her voice failed her. She shook her head, no, it was not possible. "No," she choked out. "The Lucien I know had died recently. There is no chance it could have been the same person."

Her hands were shaking as it gripped the cup, and Leliana noticed. "Your Lucien was important to you then?"

My Lucien…the thought was almost laughable.

Talia took a deep breath. "He was my mentor." was all she said. Expanding on their relationship was not something she was inclined to do, least of all with Leliana.

"The spirit never went away unless he was 'killed' so to speak. Sometimes he spent days roaming around with us, and he had this certain propensity to talk," Leliana said. "He often spoke about how he was betrayed, how he was killed most gruesomely, and," she paused, giving Talia a meaningful look. "How proud he was that his protégé became the leader of their Family."

Talia's breath caught, and she took a gulp of her now-cold tea to calm herself. She tried telling herself that it was a coincidence, but her gut was screaming at her, telling her it was him. "And how did he die?"

There was a hesitance in Leliana's words. "Tortured slowly by his fellow assassins in an abandoned house. At the end, he said he was no longer recognizable—" She never finished her sentence as Talia's cup slipped past her fingers and fell to the floor.

Every fiber in her body froze. It was him.

The air, heavy with the metallic scent of blood; his dismembered corpse, hanging from the rafters; his eyes, plucked out and laid down beside the tools they used…

The warmth of something being pressed to her hands snapped her out of her thoughts, and she looked up to see Leliana hand her a new cup of tea.

She took a sip of her drink, relishing in the burn it left on her tongue and her throat—distracting her from thoughts of her Speaker. She focused back on the issue at hand. If Savith could summon Lucien's spirit from the Void, then she was truly a favored daughter of Sithis…but for her to be able to do so, she should have existed after Lucien's death.

"Talia?" Leliana asked softly.

"It's not possible," she muttered. "Lucien died only two years ago…if Talia arrived ten years before me, how could she be able to summon someone who wasn't dead yet?"

Stormcrown was the from the future? Perhaps…Talia had always seen time as a linear thing. It didn't even occur to her that time in this world didn't run parallel to that in Nirn. Talia rubbed her eyes in exhaustion.

"It sounds ludicrous…but I think that she's from the future, or that I'm from the past. Either way, it means that we weren't brought here by chance…" Voicing her thoughts made it easier to accept. Surprisingly, Leliana simply nodded and considered the idea. After hearing of parallel worlds, how could the idea of time travel sound ridiculous? Everything about their situation was already unbelievable—what was one more thing?

But a Dragonborn? Then that meant Savith truly was the heir to the Stormcrown.

And whoever brought them to this world had the power to transcend space and time.

She was sure that somehow, somewhere, Akatosh was laughing at her.

A/N: Sorry for the late update. Yay for MotherHen!Varric. I think he's a wonderful friend, and will do wonders for Talia's gross inability to trust people.

As for the talk between Leliana and Talia, I honestly wasn't sure how to handle it, so it became somewhat jumbled. But I like to think that it takes a lot for a chronic liar to actually answer every question honestly. If you're worried that Talia didn't really learn much about Savith, the next chapter is still a continuation of their conversation. I simply thought it would be too long to be put in a single chapter. Rising tempers are a rarity between these two usually controlled individuals, but I'd like to think I kept them both in character. Why does Leliana remember these things with great detail? She's a bard, she thrives on stories. Of course she's going to remember details about her friend.

Also: I'd like to say that in case you have questions about this fic, especially about the whys and the hows, just because they weren't answered yet doesn't mean they never will be. BTW, questions like: Why did she use the name Stormcrown? So is she a thief or an assassin? How did she get transported to Thedas? etc, will be answered in the next chapter.

Ta-ta.

NH

Answers to reviews:

RinYun913: I was referring to the Hero of Ferelden. I haven't decided if I wanted to include any kind of romance between Talia and anyone on Thedas. That being said, there will be a lot of background pairs. (From this chapter, you can see that there's past F!DB/Anders and current M!Hawke/Anders)

Questioner: Yes it is, it will be addressed in later chapters.