Solas had been up since dawn studying and shuffling through books in his study, looking for hints or clues to this so called "rift in time". If this even truly existed, he had found no knowledge of it. He was going absolutely mad with all o this unknown knowledge that he couldn't tap into, that he couldn't find any whispers of in the Fade.
He groaned as he rubbed his eyes and sat back in the chair. His mind reeled as he pondered the possibility that she was crazy. He couldn't accept that, though. She seemed so convinced of her story, and she knew him. It was possible they had met somewhere before and he just didn't remember it, but the mark.. he just didn't know what to believe right then.
He needed a break from this work, he was becoming irritated the longer he searched and found nothing. It was almost noon and he assumed that Rihari may be looking for him.
He strolled out of the study and saw some servants slouching around. He snapped his fingers at them and they almost jumped out of their skin with embarrassment and fear. He didn't have the patience to deal with them at the moment so he just continued to the stairs.
On the second floor, ballroom, he saw her. She was looking out the window on the far wall. He walked over on soft feet and wrapped his arms around her waist. She smiled and touched her fingers softly to his arms.
"What are you looking at?" he asked.
She sighed and turned in his arms so she faced him. "The city," she said softly, "it's beautiful." A smile.
He kissed her softly, barely brushing his lips against her own. "Ma ina'lan'ehn da'ean." He brushed some stray hairs back from her face as he spoke. She hid her gaze as her cheeks turned bright pink, a soft smile pulled at the edges of her mouth. His heart was so full.
That memory always seemed to stay with him, the way her skin seemed to shine in the sun from the window. The glint in her eye when he called her beautiful, the softness of her hair against his cheek. Everything about that moment was perfect. It was such a simple moment, yet one that stayed with him.
He was clearly lost in thought when Varric strode over. He almost didn't hear him speak.
"My apologies. What did you say?" Solas asked.
"We're going to Val Royeaux. Gather your things." He repeated.
...
Solas saw her shaking her head and canted his head slightly. "What is it?" He whispered loudly as he approached.
She laughed. "This is ridiculous, yeah?" Heavens, he loved when she said that. When she added that "yeah" on the end of a sentence, making it a question. However, he didn't know what she spoke of so she continued, "this city, the people. It's like a show." He nodded his head in agreement.
"Well, would you look there," she said walking over to the edge of the upper city, peering over the ledge. "The Chantry sisters have finally arrived."
"What will you do?" Solas asked. He hadn't thought of it before, but now he was curious of her actions.
"Ask them to join or die." She looked over at him dramatically, and then laughed, a bubbly laugh that dragged a smile from him. "No. I will try and reason with them, maybe they can see that I am not against them."
"A fine plan." He nodded to her. Her smile was blinding in its beauty. It was hard to not like Rihari. His heart squeezed everytime her joyous eyes looked at him, everytime her smile lit up the day with the light of a thousand suns. It was hard to see past her, it had always been hard to see past her.
They made their way back down to the City streets, where they met up with Varric and Cassandra.
"Thank the Maker!" Cassandra rushed over to Rihari. "I was afraid you would never make it in time. We must hurry." She said excitedly, grabbing her wrist and pulling the Herald up towards the front of the crowd. When the Chantry Sisters saw the blasphemous Herald of Andraste, and that she was indeed a Dalish elf, they scowled deeply. Not a surprise, the humans had always thought less of the elves, it was in their nature to do so.
"Good people of Val Royeaux, hear me." She swept her arms up dramatically as she spoke. "Together we mourn our divine. Her naive and beautiful heart, silenced in treachery!" Here she dropped her hands, and walked forward slowly. Her eyes burned holes into Rihari's face. "You wonder what will become of her murderer. Well, wonder no more!" The woman raised her hand and motioned to where the blasphemous Herald stood. "Behold, the so called Herald of Andraste. Claiming to rise where our beloved fell!" The crowd chattered nervously. People around the Herald began inching away, not wanting to catch whatever evil she possessed. He was honestly disgusted by their actions.
The woman's face did not hide her disdain nor her anger towards the Dalish elf. "We say this is a false prophet! No servant of anything beyond her selfish greed. The Maker would send no Elf, in our time of need." Others in the crowd yelled their agreements with whoops and hollers. This disgusted and angered him further. What was the meaning of that statement?
Rihari stepped forward with a smile on her lips. "Dear Chantry Mothers," She spun and looked into the crowd as well. "Blessed people of Val Royeaux." She turned back to the woman on stage. "We came here in peace, only to talk. And this is what you do? I implore you, let us sit down together and discuss the real threat." Solas was watching the back of her head, staring into that abyss of black hair that he knew held a smile on the other side. He felt his lips pulling into a smile, he cleared his throat to be rid of it. Even after the insult of merely being Elvhen, she had handled the situation with spiteful grace, proving that she was better than petty jabs at her origin or other.
"It's true, Blessed Mother, the Inquisition wishes only to end this madness before it is too late." Cassandra stepped up to the plate and gave it a shot, however it was a lost cause.
"It is already too late!" The woman motioned to the approaching Templars. Solas found himself slatting his eyes at the warriors. "The Templars have returned to the Chantry. They will face this 'Inquisition' and the people will be safe once more." As she finished speaking a smile spread across her lips, but it was short lived as a Templar hit her in the back of the head. She fell to the floor of the stage with a cry. The people in the surrounding crowd all gasped and backed away. Rihari stood her ground though, head held high, another thing Solas thought was amazing. Was she not afraid of this small army? If she were, he couldn't tell.
One man moved in to help the woman up, but the Lord Seeker stopped him, shoving him back into his place. "Still yourself, she is beneath us." He said it loud enough for everyone to hear, then he turned his beady eyes on Rihari. Solas felt rage bubble up in his chest, if he were not so weak, and undercover, he would kill the man where he stood for even glancing at her that way.
She gave a dry laugh that Solas thought was similar to a hiss from a snake, saying "warning, don't try me, I bite". "What? Was that supposed to impress me?" The disdain slithering across the man's face was not lost on any of the bystanders. Perhaps she did not need his help, she was fierce all by herself.
"I think not." The man said curtly. "Her claim to authority is an insult. Much like your own." He turned to leave.
Cassandra went after him. "Lord Seeker Lucius, it is imperative that we speak with-"
He didn't halt his stride as he spoke. "You will not address me." Cassandra appeared to be taken aback, not expecting this from one of her own. Solas was surprised as well, but only vaguely.
"Lord Seeker?" She asked with heavy confusion.
Lucius turned on his heel, his face flushed red with anger. "Creating a heretical movement, raising up a puppet as Andraste's chosen. You should be ashamed." He turned his reptilian eyes on the crowd. "You should all be ashamed! The Templars failed no one when we left the Chantry to purge the mages." He raised his hand in a dagger point towards the Chantry Sisters. "You are the ones who have failed. You are the ones who'd leash our righteous swords with doubt and fear." He lowered his voice and slatted his eyes at Rihari. "If you came here to appeal to the Chantry, you are too late. The only destiny here that demands respect is mine."
"That doesn't matter! The breach has to be closed." Rihari told him. "Templars, join as Commander Cullen did! We need an alliance to help seal the breach."
The man sneered. "Oh, the breach is indeed a threat, but you certainly have no power to do anything about it."
Oh, how wrong he was. This man knew nothing of the Breach, or of what the anchor could do. Solas barely knew, it had been an unexpected side effect.
The man that had been conflicted earlier about helping the Chantry Mother approached. "But Lord Seeker, what if she really was sent by the Maker. What if-"
Another man stepped up to him. "You are called to a higher purpose. Do not question it!" The Seeker watched this exchange without a word.
"I will make the Templar order a power to stand alone against the void." He boasted. "We deserve recognition. Independence!" He leered at Rihari, "You have shown me nothing. And the Inquisition..less than nothing." He turned his attention to his soldiers but kept his eyes on the Inquisition. "Templars, Val Royeaux is unworthy of our protection. We march."
Varric approached from where the crowd had stood, but now was dispersing in a cloud of murmurs and anxious glances. "He's a charming fellow isn't he?"
"Has Lord Seeker Lucius gone mad?" Cassandra asked. "He was always a decent man. Never given to grandstanding. This is odd."
"Well," Rihari said with heavy sarcasm, "It doesn't look like we will be getting any help from the Templars."
"I wouldn't write them off so quickly. There must be those in the order that see what he has become. Either way, we should return to Haven and inform the others."
An arrow crashing into the ground caught their attention. Rihari jumped when it happened, swinging her bow over her head, ready to shoot whoever dared. There was no one.
"Look, a note." Solas motioned to the arrow. Rihari did not put away her weapon, but walked over and plucked the broken arrow up. She removed the red piece of paper carefully. Solas couldn't see what it said, but she folded it carefully and put it in her pocket.
.....
"Ridiculous!" She yelled at the closed door of their hotel room. "I can't belive elves can only have certain rooms here." Her face was blood red. A stark contrast to her pale skin and dark hair, still magnificently beautiful. Solas chuckled softly, and then regretted it when her fiery eyes landed on him. He thought of her lashing out, yelling at him and he couldn't handle the picture it created in his mind. Her lips pulled into a light smile, however, and her face softened before she laughed as well.
"I just think it's silly. We're part of the Inquisition. Why can't we stay with the others?"
"The people of Orlais are not fond of the elves." he smiled. When he had first woken up, he had been greatly insulted by the treatment he recieved. Now he didn't care, he had his cause, and he would stay true. "At least, not unless they are serving them food or scrubbing their floors." It was a horrible jab at a joke. It was something of an insult to them both, but they could do nothing on the matter now other than joke, and somehow it felt okay since they were elves themselves.
She snorted. "Right. Well, if they think I'm not gonna wreck this shitty hotel room they'd be wrong. Damn shems."
Solas nodded, but she was looking around the shabby room. She was calculating what to wreck first, he could see it in her eyes.
It didn't matter, they expected them to act like savages. Regardless of what they did, they would likely talk.
.....
He was drifting off to sleep when she sighed loudly. Loud enough that she could be sure that Solas heard. He smiled softly in the dark and rolled over to face her. It was cold, he could see her breath even now, but he had called on fire to warm him.
"It's so cold." She whispered to him, breath poofing out from her mouth as steam when she spoke. He smiled brightly, she was adorable. "Couldn't you cast a spell? Warm me up?"
He knew he could. He could call fire to his fingertips and rub them down her body.. he stopped that thought short. Creators, how he wanted to, but he would not. It would be too soon. "I am afraid not." He heard her scoff, saw a puff of white billow from her mouth. Was it that cold?
"I know you can cast warming spells. How else would you be able to never wear shoes?" She was still whispering like a child up after bedtime, which he found slightly silly.
"I can warm myself with the help of fire. But I cannot cast fire on your body."
"Uggghhh." She grunted. Then after a beat she asked, "What can you do?"
"I am uncertain." He stated quietly, though that was a lie. He could press his body against her, warm her with the touch of his skin. Memories of her smiling around his kisses floated through his mind.
"We could scoot the beds together." She shivered as she spoke. "You could cast it then, yeah?" He loved when she said that so much, but he didnt think moving closer was a good idea, his sleepy state made his mind foggy. He wanted to be closer to her every second of the day, but he didn't want to move things too fast. He wasn't sure they should even pursue a relationship, it would only lead to trouble when she discovered the truth.
"Please," she whispered, cutting through his train of thought. "I can't sleep, it's too cold."
He sighed. "Okay."
They moved the beds together into the middle of the room, against the far wall. And squeezed under their respective blankets. Her back pressed against his own through the blankets. Her body was cold beside him. Had they really thought this arrangement safe when they assigned them to it?
She rolled in his direction. "Will you help me warm up now?" He rolled over as well and looked at her messy hair and groggy face. He wanted to kiss her, to tell her how much she meant, how absolutely beautiful she was right now. His body ached with a need to touch her. How could he say no to her?
"How about we stack our blankets together. The body heat should then keep us both warm." She nodded, but he could swear he almost saw disappointment in her eyes. He was disappointed too, he wanted so bad to rub his hands on her body, to wrap his arms around her and hold her tight.
Under the combined blankets it was very warm. As he drifted off he had time to think. He wanted to touch her so bad, he had wanted to immediately say "yes", scoot the beds together, and rub his hands down her face, onto her perfect waist. He wanted to rub his hands on her thighs and feel her breath stall as he let fire warm her body. He wanted to press his lips onto hers and taste her mouth. He imagined slipping off her leathers, revealing her perfect skin, so smooth. His consciousness yanked at memories from a time long forgotten, her skin rubbing softly against his own. Their lips mingling together as he ran his fingers down her sides, leaving trails of magic that made her tremble.
In another moment he drifted off to sleep and slipped into the Fade, where he could truly visit his memories.
Sunlight pricked through his eyelids, stirring him awake. He laid with his eyes closed, just enjoying the early morning bliss of waking up. Rihari was curled up against his side, her leg over his leg, her arm slung across his body and her face pressed against his shoulder and bare chest. He smiled and rolled into her, wrapping his arms around her without waking her. His face instinctively pressed into her hair and breathed her in deeply.
A moment later he realized where he was. Reality came rushing back all at once. His eyes snapped open and looked down to her face on his arm, still asleep. His heart ached and big clunky butterflies flapped around in his belly. He lay there a few moments more watching her breathe.
He wanted to kiss her, and who would ever know he had done so? He shouldn't, he told himself he couldn't. But he did. He pressed his lips softly against her cheek, his eyes fluttered shut against the emotion that swelled through his entire body. It was selfish and wrong, he knew he shouldn't have done it, but he had.
He slid his arm out from under her carefully and slid out of bed. He dressed quickly and left the room without waking her. Time to get to work.
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Translations:
Ma ina'lan'ehn da'ean - my beautiful/gorgeous little bird.