To the Void and Back Ch25

Title: To the Void and Back
Author: ElCapitan18
Game: Dragon Age
Characters/Pairing: F!Lavellan and Cullen
Disclaimer: All recognizable content belongs to Bioware


Cullen always knew that mornings were not Delani’s most favorite time of day. However he hadn’t anticipated her hating them completely. When he had woken up beside her in the past, he had taken her oversleeping as the end result of their… excursions. It was only when he had started to share her room on a permanent basis that he realized that, no, Delani just liked to sleep in as late as she could get away with.

It had taken some time for him to get accustomed to her late mornings. Where Cullen would mostly wake with the sunrise, Delani would remain dead to the world for hours still if he allowed it. This morning was not to be one of those mornings. There was work to be done, and Cullen had promised Josephine that he would convince Delani to get started on her paperwork.

Hidden beneath a fortress of pillows and bedsheets was an elf curled up into a tight little ball. It had already been over a week since he’d moved into her chambers, and it still amazed him how Delani managed to get smaller and smaller the higher the sun rose over the horizon. The night would start with her fully stretched out on the bed and, by the time the sun was up and the day had started, she was rolled up into a ball of easily irritated malcontent. She’d nipped at him enough times for him to have learned to keep his distance if he wanted all of his fingers.

Straightening the mantle on his shoulders, Cullen grinned at the sight of Delani buried under a mountain of bedding. He shook his head at the outrageousness of her and risked sitting beside her on the edge of the mattress. As he made sure the laces of his boots were tight, Cullen glanced at Delani’s form and smiled.

“Wake up, ma atishan,” he started, speaking loud enough for her to shift in protest under the sheets. Cullen was half tempted to dig around in that pile of down feathered pillows and sheets, and find Delani within. Stealing a kiss from her lips was almost worth the risk of losing his fingers in the process. “We’ve a lot of work to do today.”

Delani’s sleepy voice was hoarse when she croaked, “Five more hours,” muffled behind layers upon layers of sheets.

His replying laugh escaped him unbidden. With a shake of his head that she couldn’t see, he rebuked, “Five more hours and the day will have started without you.”

“It can end without me too,” she growled, scrunching herself into an even tighter ball. Voice filled with displeasure, Delani whined, “I never want to leave this bed.”

Staring at the bundle of bed sheets, Cullen considered his options. He could leave and let Delani sleep in just a bit longer, or he could try a bit harder to get her out of bed. The first option would result in a strongly worded letter from Josephine about the importance of upheld promises. The second could result in one of his limbs being broken. Grinning, Cullen decided to risk it.

He crawled over to Delani and started to search for her under the mountain of fabric. When his hand made contact with the skin of her waist she groused, “Unhand me, you fiend, or be prepared to lose your limb.”

Cullen smiled in reply. “Come now, my love,” he purred as he dug her out from under the sheets, grinning as she tried to roll away from his grasp. “A new day awaits us.”

When he pulled down the sheet covering her face Delani rolled over and buried her head in the pillows. “It can wait a little while longer.”

“Maybe,” he conceded before grinning widely. Cullen added, “But why leave it waiting when we can face it together,” and he tickled her ribs.

Delani’s voice filled their room with a shrill scream as she tried to flee from his grasp. “Cullen!” she shouted, her feet kicking while she struggled for freedom, but Cullen would not relent, not until she was out of bed. “Stop! Cullen!”

At the sound of her delighted laughter his own amusement burst out of him. Cullen weighed her down with his body, stopping her swinging arms and kicking legs from catching him in the face or causing him injury, and continued to tickle her until she was laughing so hard she couldn’t even articulate language.

Unable to help the laugh that came out of him, Cullen offered Delani a way out from her tortured captivity. “Say you’ll get up,” he prompted.

“No!” she refused.

The prodding of his fingers intensified and her laughter grew louder. “Say it!”

“Never!”

Cullen quirked an eyebrow before muttering, “So be it,” and tickling Delani without restraint. Her screaming laughter filled the bedroom as she thrashed, attempting to free herself without success. Even as she hollered that she couldn’t breathe, he called her bluff and continued his assault until she finally gave in. He knew Delani. She would call all the stops before accepting defeat, even if it meant faking suffocation.

It was only when she screamed, “Fine!” that his fingers stilled on her ribcage.

“Fine what?” he pressed, needing her to give voice to her surrender before he could properly claim victory.

Delani rolled her eyes. “You really want me to say it?” When he replied by tickling her again, she struggled a bit before submitting to his terms. “Okay, okay, you win!”

Glaring at Cullen, she muttered, “I’ll get up.”

“What was that?” he asked, tilting his ear toward her mouth. “A little louder, I didn’t catch that.”

With a heavy and dramatic sigh, she appeased him. “I, Delani Lavellan, Herald of Andraste, last hope for Thedas, sealer of rifts, and famously beautiful and deadly Inquisitor, hereby surrender to the terms of the mighty,” she smiled up at him, “handsome,” she wrapped her arms around his neck, “and inconceivably nettlesome Cullen Stanton Rutherford, Commander of the Inquisition, and General of her armies.”

He was grinning down at her, his breath stolen by the amazing creature that she was. Pursing his lips, Cullen challenged, “Nettlesome, huh?”

With a shrug she rebuked, “Also mighty and handsome.”

Laughing, he shook his head before placing a kiss on the tip of her nose and freeing her from his weight. He stood at her bedside and, after straightening himself out, he offered her his hand. With a smile he said, “I accept your surrender.”

When she placed her hand in his and allowed herself to be pulled out of bed, he added, “I might have preferred something with a little less sass, but a surrender is a surrender.”

Delani stuck her tongue out at him and he chuckled in response. Pressing a kiss to her lips, Cullen pulled her to his chest and into the warmth of his embrace. Maker, he loved this woman. He could hardly remember who he was before her. Always he had felt as though there was something missing from his life. And here she was, the final piece that made him whole, living proof of the Maker’s plan.

He broke the kiss before the heat of it could disrobe him and pull them both back into bed. Holding Delani by the nape of her neck, he stared into her sea green eyes and smiled. “I love you,” he whispered.

The corner of her mouth lifted and her face filled with warmth. “I love you too,” she sighed before placing her hands on his plate covered chest and shoving him away. “Now go,” she barked, a teasing shine in her beautiful eyes. “You’ve gotten me out of bed, now go tend to your other responsibilities.”

Though he was loath to leave the warmth of her company, Cullen knew that she was right. He stole another lingering kiss from her lips before turning toward the stairs. “I’ll see you in the war room this afternoon, Lady Inquisitor.”

As he descended the steps that would take him from their room, his smile grew at the sound of her reply with a discontented growl. “Fucking paperwork,” and left their chambers. His grin persisted until his hand was met with the cold iron Handle of the last door dividing him from the main hall. He straightened out his features and reclaimed his ‘commander face’. The expression had placed him on the butt end of many of Sera’s jokes, but the facts remained unchanging. The front kept his men in line and the nobles at a distance, and that was how he preferred things to be.

Once in the main hall, he took his first right into Josephine’s office. The ambassador was standing in front of the hearth, reading over reports from the nobility in Orlais, or whatever it was they sent her that kept her so busy. She looked over her shoulder at the sound of Cullen entering her office and a smile quirked the corners of her mouth in welcome. Turning to face him, a knowing and approving shine lit up her hazel eyes.

“Commander,” she said in greeting, her smile widening as he approached her.

Nodding in acknowledgement of her greeting, Cullen returned, “Ambassador,” before cutting straight to the purpose of his visitation. “Have the preparations been made for the coming emissary?”

Josephine nodded happily. “Of course, Commander,” she assured him, the approving warmth in her eyes shining brighter as she regarded him. “When our guests arrive they will have our finest quarters awaiting them. And I’ve spoken to the cook about serving culturally specific dishes for dinner on the night of their arrival.”

Excitement coursed through him, sparkling through his bloodstream like tiny bursts of static electricity. Returning Josie’s grin with a small simper of his own, Cullen bowed his head gratuitously and said, “Thank you, Josephine. I knew my confidence in you was not misplaced.”

A fluttering giggle rippled from her, and she pressed a delicate hand to her lips to stifle her amusement. Waving Cullen off, she said, “To suggest otherwise is insulting, Commander. Now off with you. Some of us have work to do.”

Cullen smiled as he left her office. Before he was through the door he looked over his shoulder and replied, “As do I, Ambassador. To suggest otherwise is insulting.”

Wiping the smile off of his face as he stepped back out into the main hall, Cullen had just one more stop to make before he went to speak with Captain Ophelia. He made his way down the main hall toward the atrium, but was pulled to a stop at Varric’s writing desk by the knowing look in the dwarf’s eyes. Cullen’s heart tightened. The knowledge of what he had planned should have been restricted to Josephine, Leliana, and himself. If Varric knew anything, he knew too much, and Cullen needed to know what the dwarf was smirking about.

“Ser Tethras,” Cullen said in greeting to the simpering man.

The corner of Varric’s mouth tugged up into a lopsided grin, and he returned, “Curly,” before observing, “You’re up to something.”

Cullen narrowed his eyes in reply. The dwarf’s statement made it clear that Varric didn’t know what exactly it was that Cullen was up to, but it also implied that Cullen was not being nearly as tactful as he thought he was being. That or Varric was much too observant for his own good, perhaps it was both.

Cocking an eyebrow, he stared at the stout man and palmed the pommel of the sword at his hip. “What makes you say that,” he asked, wanting to know what his tell was so that he could force himself to stop doing it immediately.

“Oh, come on, Curly,” Varric replied in amused exasperation. Chuckling at the sight of Cullen, he stated, “You get this look in your eyes when you’re about to do something for Scarlett. Don’t forget who helped you with that romantic picnic in the garden, after all.”

Cullen hadn’t forgotten, although Varric had unwittingly volunteered himself to the task at the time. But he didn’t think it worth mentioning. “I don’t know what you are talking about, dwarf.”

Eyes glittering with mirth, Varric hummed, “Mhm. Of course you don’t,” before shaking his head and chuckling. “So what do you have planned? Are you going to propose to our illustrious leader?”

Cullen blanched. “W-what?” Blinking hard, he brought a fist to his mouth and cleared his throat before trying to speak again. “No, that’s ridiculous.”

Varric’s face was flat as he stared up at Cullen, even if his internal roaring laughter was clear to see in the brown of his eyes. Tsking with a disappointed shake of his head, the stout man replied, “How badly you’re blushing is ridiculous, Curly. Wanting to spend the rest of your life with the woman that you love,” he shrugged, “significantly less ridiculous.”

“I’m not proposing,” Cullen assured the other man with narrowed eyes.

Another shrug bounced the smaller man’s shoulders. “You’re still up to something, something big by the looks of it.” Offering Cullen a friendly simper, Varric said, “Let me know if you need help with anything.”

Brows jumping up with surprise, Cullen assured him, “I’ve got everything covered, Ser Tethras. Though I appreciate the offer.”

Varric’s grin grew victorious. “Ha!” A bark of laughter expelled from him. “So you do have something planned! I knew it. What is it?”

Cullen’s face burned at the realization that he had just given himself away. “I’ve business to attend to,” he stated in self-dismissal. Passing Varric and opening the door to the rotunda, Cullen gave the other man a departing, “Good day to you, Varric.”

The dwarf’s voice chased after him as he retreated, “See you around, Curly.”

Shaking off the embarrassment and irritation that Varric had unearth inside of him, Cullen cut through the atrium, toward the stairs. He gave Solas a brief nod in acknowledgment before ascending the steps to the library. Cullen was surprised to not find Dorian in his nook, nose deep in a book, researching this or that. Probably at the tavern, he mused to himself. When the Tevinter mage wasn’t attending to his scholarly interests, he was bound to be entertaining a biting repartee with Iron Bull; ‘foreplay’ as they liked to call it.

He rounded the library and climbed the last stairwell between him and the rookery. When he was greeted by fluttering wings and deep caws, Cullen found the spymaster tending to a crow at the far end of the circular room. Her gaze was on the bird as he approached her.

“Commander,” Leliana said by way of greeting, without pulling her attention from the avian perched on her forearm. Offering the crow a square of meat, she watched the bird as she continued. “I was expecting you.”

There wasn’t a sliver of doubt in his mind that she actually had been expecting him. Especially since Cullen had been hounding her for the better part of the week, after the same exact information that he was in pursuit of at present.  Clearing his throat, he ignored her mildly unnerving welcome and carried on to the point of his visit.

“Have you received any word on the progress of the coming emissary?”

A smile toyed at the edge of her mouth and she gave him a sidelong glance. “I have,” she stated before moving toward an empty cage and opening the door. Leliana’s focus remained solely on the bird as she lifted the crow toward the cage and prompted it to enter. When the black feathered beast hopped off of her forearm and into the cage she shut the door behind it and gave it another hunk of meat as reward.

Clapping her gloved hands together, she finally turned to face Cullen and he could clearly see the amused sparkle in her eyes under the shadow of her hood. Leliana turned to smirk at him, giving him no more information than that.

He set his jaw and waited for her to supply him with a better answer. When half a minute passed without another word passing between them, Cullen prompted, “And?”

Smile growing wickedly across her lips, Leliana shrugged and said, “And, the envoy is expected to arrive any day now.”

Nervous excitement ricocheted through him, heart bouncing off of the walls of his ribcage as he took a second to fully appreciate what that meant. His planning had mostly been entirely last minute but, with Josephine and Leliana’s assistance, everything was progressing vastly more smoothly than he could have ever hoped for. Now all that was left was for the emissary to arrive, and then his surprise gift to Delani would be complete.

Rubbing the stubble lining his jaw, Cullen fought the smile from his lips; with little success if the bright sparkle in Leliana’s eyes was any indication. “That’s good,” he replied, feeling his heart start to beat in his ears. He needed this surprise to go perfectly, anything less was unacceptable.

“So,” Cullen cleared his throat. “Everything is in order then.”

Leliana’s smile became more obvious. Nodding, she replied, “It appears so.” Crossing her arms in front of her chest, she regarded Cullen the way a cat eyed a mouse and Cullen set his shoulders in reply; an attempt to show her that she did not intimidate him, even if she did a little bit.

Eyebrow arching in question, Leliana wondered, “Was there anything else that you needed, Commander?”

He cleared his throat again and shook his head. “No, that is all.” Backing away from the spymaster, he bowed his head and departed with a polite, “Thank you for your time, Leliana.”

“I will see you later, Commander.”

Cullen swiveled around and left the rookery, feeling Leliana’s amused gaze on his back as he descended down to the library once more. Now that he had received updates from both Josephine and Leliana there was nothing left for him to do. With another nod to Solas, Cullen stepped out of the rotunda and made his way across the ramparts toward his office. When he pushed the door open it was to find Captain Ophelia and a handful of lieutenants waiting for him.

“Sorry to keep you waiting,” Cullen said as he approached his desk and found his place behind it. Scanning over the small group of soldiers surrounding him, Cullen placed his hands on the pommel of his sword and nodded for them to get down to business. “Let’s get started. Captain Ophelia, what news do you have from the Western Approach?”


“They’re a small family, Inquisitor,” said Josephine, her hazel eyes alight with a plotting mischief that was a little disconcerting. The normally well mannered and slightly reserved Antivan sometimes adopted the look when it came to the infamous Game, and the playing thereof. “A few well placed rumors in influential ears and they will no longer be so much of an annoyance.”

Twisting her lips, Delani reread the report in her hand. This ‘small family’ was making quite the fuss in regards to the rapid growth of the Inquisition’s influence. Though Josephine had initially proposed leaving them be and allowing the situation to blow over on its own, at the sight of Delani’s hesitation she had allowed her claws to come out a bit. It was mildly terrifying.

Delani considered the consequences of silencing a minor noble family. Not knowing the rules of The Game, nor that of nobility for that matter, she didn’t really see the downside. With a shrug, Delani nodded at her ambassador and said, “Work your magic, Lady Montilyet.”

Her morning had consisted primarily of paperwork. After Cullen had managed to coax her out from under the covers, Delani had sat at her desk and hadn’t left her seat until the mountain of parchment had become a hill. It had been the exact moment that her stomach had decided that it was physically impossible to carry on if she did not eat. So, Delani had left her chambers in search of food, only to get cornered by Josephine and sent back to her quarters to finish the remaining pile of papers. The Antivan woman had been kind enough to send up food, if only to keep Delani’s rear firmly planted in her desk chair.

When finally everything had been read, signed, approved, or dismissed, Delani was allowed to stretch her legs. And that short stroll had led her straight to the war room where more work awaited her. Upon entering the war room she had caught her advisors in the middle of a discussion that immediately ceased with her arrival. Josephine and Leliana had both regarded Delani with amusement in their eyes, wheels turning as they addressed her. Cullen had coughed into his fist and rubbed the red away from his neck. Assuming that they had been poking fun of Delani’s evasion of paperwork, she had shrugged them all off and dove right into the dozens of mission markers covering the map strewn table.

Now, nearly two and a half hours later, Delani was starting to get fidgety. There were still several markers that needed to be addressed, but they would have to wait for another day, because she simply could not stay cooped up in the round room for a moment longer. She was dying of boredom. Staying for even one more second was a death sentence and Delani wanted to live.

“Alright,” Delani said, holding her hands behind her back and assuming a pose of authority. “I think that we’ve done enough for today. I don’t know about all of you, but I could use a break.”

“A break she says,” Leliana stated with a shake of her head. She glanced across the war table to where Josephine was standing. “Good luck trying to get her back into this room.”

Josephine also shook her head and let loose an exhale heavy with disappointment. Gesturing toward Cullen, she remarked, “I’ll leave that to the Commander.”

To which Cullen immediately scoffed. He held Delani’s gaze with a glimmer of amusement in his eyes when he stated, “You’re both lucky I managed to even get her out of bed this morning.”

Both women’s attention snapped toward Cullen and Leliana cocked a teasing eyebrow. Her voice was thick with playful suspicion when she asked, “And how did you manage that, Commander?”

His face turned beet red in a matter of seconds, and his hand started to rub the back of his neck like it always did when he found himself in this position. “I-it’s not like—“ his gaze was on Delani, pleading for her to either rescue him or back him up.

Delani turned her nose at his request and crossed her arms in front of her chest. Pursing her lips in challenge, Delani prodded, “Well? How did you get me out of bed, Cullen? The woman asked you a question.” Both Josephine and Leliana snickered, happy to have the Inquisitor on their side for once.

Cullen’s blush deepened, even though they both knew that there was nothing blush worthy about their morning. But the mere suggestion that they discuss their sex life in front of the other two advisors was enough to set his features aflame. Delani was much too delighted by his reaction, yet she didn’t have it in her to mind her cruelty.

After a moment of trying to gather his bearings, Cullen glared at the three of them and gritted out an annoyed, “Maker’s breath. Are you ladies enjoying yourselves?”

She, Leliana, and Josephine all shared a look before returning their attention to Cullen and nodding in unison. Cullen groaned in response and made his way around the war table toward the door. He’d had enough of their teasing and was making a break for it. Unlucky for him, they were following his lead.

“Oh, come now, Cullen,” Leliana purred. “Do share with us all of the juicy details.”

Opening the door to the war room, Cullen stepped aside and allowed the three women through. He rolled his eyes at Leliana’s relentless teasing. “And give you more fodder to use against me? No thank you.”

She made a dissatisfied noise. “You’re no fun.”

Cullen met Delani’s gaze and gave her an exasperated look. Offering him a small smile, she decided that perhaps it was time to come to her lover’s defense. “I disagree, Sister Nightingale.” She smirked at the spymaster and felt Cullen tense at the sound of her playful tone. “The Commander happens to be a lot of fun if you know what he likes.”

“Oh, do tell,” Leliana replied.

“Do not encourage her, Lady Levallan,” Cullen warned, a slight panic in his voice. “Maker knows what she’ll do with that information.”

Leliana glanced back at him over her shoulder, a wicked sparkle in her eyes as she regarded the commander. “At least take some comfort in knowing that I would never do anything to jeopardize the Inquisition.”

“The Inquisition, no,” Cullen easily agreed, his eyes narrowed on Leliana as he regarded her almost like she was a serpent coiled to strike. “My sanity, however, is another matter entirely.”

Shrugging her shoulders, Leliana looked over at Delani and allowed a mischievous smirk to twist the corners of her mouth. With a teasing laugh in her voice, she agreed, “Well, he’s not wrong.”

Beside them, Josephine giggled at their back and forth and shook her head. “Now, now, children. Play nice.”

The three of them stepped into Josephine’s office where the Antivan woman started for her desk only to stop short when her office door burst open. In came a soldier, appearing breathless after rushing to reach them as quickly as possible. Standing at attention, the man didn’t clarify his purpose until Cullen instructed him to do so.

“You wanted to be informed the moment that the envoy arrived, Commander Cullen, Sir.”

Delani’s brows furrowed with confusion. An envoy? Shouldn’t she have known something about this? She racked her brain, sifting through the memory of all the reports she had read and signed. Nowhere in any of the endless pile of parchment had she come across any mention of a coming envoy. Delani looked up at Cullen, hoping to find answers in his face, and being met with nervous surprise instead. The furrow of her brow deepened. What was going on?

“Already?” Cullen asked to no one in particular, and yet Leliana answered him anyway.

“They’re right on time, by the looks of it.” She offered him an encouraging smile, even if there was still a glint of teasing amusement in her eyes. “I told you that they would be arriving any day now.”

To the soldier, Delani demanded, “Who is this envoy?” To her advisors she asked, “And what are they doing here?”

It was Cullen who answered her questions. “Foreign dignitaries here to discuss race relations,” he said and Leliana and Josephine snickered from somewhere behind Delani. Placing his hand on the small of Delani’s back, Cullen gestured for them to start for the main hall. “Come, we should greet our guests at the gates.”

She was regarding Cullen suspiciously. What was his interest in these dignitaries? Whenever some haughty noble came to visit Skyhold, Cullen was usually the first one to call a retreat to his office. Him not only wanting to greet their guests, but also taking charge of the introduction was not only strange, but completely unlike him.

Tossing a confused look over her shoulder, she searched the other two women for an explanation behind Cullen’s behavior. But all they did in reply to her wordless question was grin and wave her off to go with the Commander. They were walking several feet behind them, but it was clear to see that they had no intention of being part of the first wave of the welcoming party.

Delani looked from her other advisors, back to Cullen, and narrowed her eyes at him. “Cullen, what is this?” She hated surprises, hated walking into a situation without knowing what to expect, and this whole situation felt suspiciously like a surprise.

“This is a part of our responsibilities as leaders of the Inquisition, my Lady Herald,” Cullen answered, a sly turn of his lips playing at the corners of his mouth. Offering Delani an encouraging look, he stated, “Trust me, ma atishan, you will not dislike our visitors.”

She set her jaw and glared at him. Whatever this was, Cullen was behind it, and now he was walking her blindly into a meeting with people she didn’t know, to discuss topics she had no knowledge of. Delani would repay Cullen for this, she just had to think of how best to do it.

Past the doors of the main hall, they stepped out of the keep and into the frosty mountain air. The skies were greyed by clouds heavy with snow, and already white flakes were falling from the heavens. It was winter in the FrostBacks, and the cold was as unrelenting as it was dangerous. Delani had requisitioned better living arrangements for the pilgrims in preparation for the weather, she just hoped that it was enough to keep everyone warm.

They descended the steps to the main courtyard before taking the second stairwell to the lower courtyard so that they might meet their guests at the gates. Delani clenched her jaw to keep her teeth from clattering. First she would welcome her surprise guests, and then she would usher them all inside, where she wouldn’t risk hypothermia from standing in the cold.

A few curious people had gathered to see what the commotion was about, and to see who had come to visit the Inquisition; though not nearly as many as she had expected. The cold had given them a semblance of privacy at least for a moment. Standing in front of the drawn gates, Delani peered into the grey winter climate and made out the shape of the coming envoy. Her heart started at the sight of a familiar green. Delani’s gaze shot to Cullen, her expression wide with confusion. When he simply grinned down at her in reply, she refocused on the approaching figures and shock started to stiffen her her body until she was standing motionless, holding her breath, and trying to convince herself that what she was seeing wasn’t a product of her imagination.

Each member of the inbound group was riding atop white mounts with winding horns. The creatures were tall, their movements lithe and graceful, and there was an intelligence about them that Delani had never seen in another animal. Halla, which meant that these ‘dignitaries’ were Dalish. Their warm clothing were in earthy tones of green and brown, lined with fur. She almost assumed that they were just any Dalish emissary, until she noticed the staff on the back of the elf riding at point. The ironbark staff was shaped by two long pieces, wound together like a lovers embrace, and at the top, where a enchanted bloodstone was nestled, were two halla standing on their hind legs and dancing in combat.

That was her mother’s staff. Delani would recognize it anywhere. Her mouth fell open as she watched the small group enter Skyhold’s gates. There were six of them in total, her mother, and then the five hunters who had been chosen to accompany her. Delani’s eyes were wide as she watched her mother dismount from her halla. She was afraid to blink. Delani was terrified that the moment she shut and reopened her eyes it would be to discover herself back in her bed, and find that this was nothing more than a dream.

But then her mother lowered her fur lined hood to reveal her face, to remind Delani of her ageless beauty, and Delani allowed herself to risk it. She blinked and, when she opened her eyes again, her mother was smiling at her. Delani fought for control of her muscles. She banished the weight of her shock from her limbs and took a step toward the Keeper.

“Mamae?” said Delani before breaking out into a sprint and cutting the distance that had stood between her and her mother.

She nearly tackled the older woman off of her feet. Tears stung her eyes as she clung to her mother for dear life. Delani breathed her in, taking in the scent of her and storing it to memory. She had almost forgotten how much her mother smelled of lavender and pine. She had almost forgotten how easy it was to wrap up the woman in a tight embrace, and feel as though she might break her. Delani had almost forgotten how good it felt to have her mother stroke her hair, and rub her back, and murmur into her ear how much she missed her. She had almost forgotten how much she needed her mother, until this very moment. And it was abundantly clear, Delani had missed her mother more than she could ever put into words.

Keeper Milathara squeezed Delani in return, just as tightly. They held each other for a long while, Delani struggling to control her emotions, and her mother content to just be held by her only daughter. When finally they did break apart the sting of the winter wind pricked Delani’s cheeks and, as the Keeper dried the moisture from her face, she realized that she hadn’t been able to hold back her tears.

Holding her by the face, Keeper Milathara held Delani’s sea green eyes with the evergreen of her own, and murmured, “Ir tu suledin ma, da’mi,” before pressing a kiss to Delani’s forehead.

Delani’s voice broke when she returned her mother’s words, “Ir tu suledin ma, mamae.” And truly she had missed her mother with every fiber of her being.

At the sound of footsteps coming up behind her, they broke apart. Delani kept her arm around her mother’s waist as she turned to face Cullen as he approached them. There was a welcoming smile on his lips, a happy sparkle in his eyes, and Delani knew without a shadow of doubt that this was his doing. She had told him how much she missed her mother, and he had gone through the trouble of bringing clan Lavellan’s Keeper all the way to Skyhold. This man had no equal.

To Keeper Milathara and the hunters, he said, “Sulgaras in el arla. Ir nehnelgar na shiral dareth sa,” and everyone within hearing distance of him stared at Cullen in speechless surprise. Even Delani, who knew how well he was learning her tongue, was shocked by how much he had said and how well he had said it. She wondered how long he had been rehearsing those lines. Creators, just when she thought that she couldn’t possibly love him any more.

Her mother blinked back her surprise, a happy and approving grin spreading over her lips as she bowed her head in acknowledgment of his welcome. “Ma seranas, el falon.” Grin growing, her pine green eyes shone with maternal pride as she observed, “Your Elvish is impressive, Commander.”

Behind them, Josephine made a noise of agreement, and Delani remembered that introductions were in order. She grabbed her mother’s hand and pulled her toward the advisors. “Mamae, these are my advisors: Ambassador Lady Montilyet, and Lady Leliana the Left Hand of Late Divine Justina V.”

“It is a pleasure to meet you both,” her mother bowed her head in greeting before accepting both of their hands. “Delani has told me great things about the both of you.”

“Ladies,” Delani said, addressing her advisors. This half of the introduction was unnecessary, but she did performed it anyway. Delani was just too excited to have her mother at Skyhold. She intended to introduce the Keeper to damn near everyone who called the fortress home. “This is Keeper Milathara, my mother.”

It was Josephine who said, “It is so nice to finally meet you, Keeper. It is nice to be able to put a name to a face. Especially to someone so important to the Inquisitor.”

“You are kind, Lady Montilyet,” her mother returned with a soft smile.

Waving off the formality, Josephine insisted, “Josephine will do just fine, Keeper. You are family, after all.” When Keeper Milathara grinned at the warmth of Josephine’s welcome, the ambassador dove right in to her ambassadorial duties. “Our Horse Master, Dennet, will be able to assist with the care of your halla.”

Keeper Milathara looked over her shoulder and instructed the hunters to take the halla to the stables. When she returned her attention to Delani and her advisors it was with a smile on her lips. To her daughter, she stated, “So this is the Tarasyl'an Te’las of legend. It is a fortress befitting the Inquisition.”

Delani looped her arm through her mother’s and said, “Come, allow us to show you around before you retire to your quarters to rest from your travels.” Before taking a step forward, Delani paused and turned her attention to her advisors with panic in her eyes. Clearly painted on her expression was the question, ‘they do have quarters, don’t they?’ and Josephine nodded in reassurance that everything had already been taken care of.

Relieved that Cullen and the others had taken care of all of the details, Delani led her mother up the stairs from the lower courtyard and then into the Keep. Cullen stayed close to her side, a grin on his face as he watched Delani with her mother. All it took was a look at him to know that he was pleased with the result of his surprise and, later, Delani would have to thank him properly for bringing her mother to see her. The gesture was so incredibly thoughtful, and words alone would not be enough to demonstrate her gratitude.

As they stepped into the main hall, Keeper Milathara patted her daughter’s hand on her arm and offered Delani a warm smile. There was worry in her green eyes, and Delani was startled to see it. Before she could ask her mother what was wrong, the Keeper explained herself. “There is something that I must ask of you and your advisors, da’mi.”

“Anything, mamae,” Delani returned wholeheartedly. Her mother could ask for the sun and Delani would break every law of nature if it meant retrieving it for her.

Before the Keeper could make her request, Josephine suggested that they move the conversation into the privacy of her office. They passed by the nobles loitering inside of the Keep, stopping occasionally to introduce her mother to the nobles worth noting, and smiling pleasantly to the others. Once they were safely inside the privacy of Josephine’s office, Keeper Milathara looked all of them over and allowed a small, reluctant smile to lift her lips. Gripping her staff in one hand, the Keeper turned her attention onto her daughter and allowed the full extent of her concern to shine through her eyes.

“I have taken the clan west for the winter, and we have found ourselves near Wycome.” Delani was familiar with the route, as it was one that they took often. There was good trade to be done near Wycome, and the people were friendly enough, though far from welcoming. They had rarely faced problems before, Delani wondered what had changed this time around.

Scanning over the others, Keeper Milathara stated, “Their city has fallen prey to Venatori influence, and I am afraid that I will not be able to break it without your assistance.” The weight of her words filled the room with tension. Venatori, in Wycome? How could that have happened?

“I will send men right away,” said Cullen, straightening his shoulders. There was a seriousness in his eyes, a determined set to his jaw. He would protect clan Lavellan and defend Wycome at all costs, but Keeper Milathara shook her head at his suggestion.

“No,” she said. “I fear that force will only worsen the situation. I have left my First, Dashanna, in charge of the clan so that I could come, and she informs me that the Duke is paranoid and aggressive. If he were to see the Inquisition’s forces coming down on his home…”

Then the clan and the citizens of Wycome would all be in danger. They could not use force in this matter. They would need discretion, and there was only one of her advisors that Delani trusted to infiltrate Wycome without detection. Before she could give the orders for Leliana to send spies her mother explained the situation further.

“I’ve left Dashanna with the instructions to help the people of Wycome as best we can. But it will be impossible for our people to get near the Duke.”

“Not for mine,” Leliana replied, and looked to Delani in search of approval. When Delani nodded that she had it, she said, “I will send spies into Wycome and we will deal with this Venatori problem, without the bloodshed of your people.”

Keeper Milathara bowed her head. “Ma seranas.”

“And I,” Josephine added, “will speak to our contacts inside of the city and see how deep the Venatori’s influence goes.”

Delani sighed through her nose and ground her teeth as she considered what more they could do. When no answers came to mind, she said, “If that’s all that we can do—“

“It is enough,” her mother assured her, squeezing Delani’s shoulder in reassurance.

She hoped so, if anything were to happen to her clan Delani did not know what she would do. Placing her hand on top of her mothers, she forced a smile onto her lips and gave voice to an agreement that she did not stand completely behind. “It will have to be.”

With a shake of her head, she put the thoughts of Wycome from her mind. There was nothing that she could do from Skyhold, and she trusted Leliana to handle the situation with both tact and finesse. Until they received word otherwise, Delani was going to assume that her clan, her family, were going to be fine. She held her mother’s gaze and allowed an excited and happy grin to spread over her lips.

“Garas, mamae. Allow me and Cullen to show you around Skyhold.” Cullen was at her side in an instant, ready to accompany them on the tour.

Keeper Milathara removed her hand from her daughter’s arm and instead moved toward Cullen. When he offered her his arm, she took it with a grin and Delani had to fight from rolling her eyes. At least she knew that her mother approved of her taste in men. Her mother smiled up at Cullen and said, “You will have to walk slowly, lethallin. These old bones are not as spritely as they once were.”

Starting for the exit, Delani walked ahead of them and held the door open as she argued, “Don’t let her fool you, vhenan’ara.” Grinning at her mother, Delani confessed, “It has been a while since I’ve been with the clan, but she was racing children before I left.”

Cullen made an understanding sound before commenting, “So that’s where you get it from,” and they stepped back out into the main hall. First, she would introduce her mother to Varric, and move on from there. They had a lot to see before she allowed her mother to rest for a bit.

Excitement and contentment burned in Delani’s chest, warming her from the inside out. She linked her fingers with her mother’s free hand and squeezed. It had taken being away from her mother for so long for her to truly appreciate how much she missed her. Delani would never be able to thank Cullen for this. But she would try, and she would enjoy her mother’s company for as long as she could.


Cullen rolled the tension from his shoulders and rubbed his back. He and Delani had spent the entire late afternoon, and a better part of the evening, showing Keeper Milathara around Skyhold and introducing her to everyone who crossed their path. It had filled his heart with such warmth to see Delani with her mother, to see her hug and hold, and reach out and touch her mother without even noticing that she was doing it. The way that both the Keeper and Delani spoke about her father had made him think that Delani had been closer to him than her mother, but seeing her with her mother made him understand. Delani loved her parents in equal measure, but a Keeper’s devotion was to the whole clan, as where her father’s affections could be singular to Delani.

Somehow, after hours of walking around, they had managed to circle back to Cullen’s office, where Keeper Milathara was seated in front of Cullen’s desk listening to Delani as she told her mother about Captain Ophelia and how lost Cullen would be without her. Leaning back into his desk chair, Cullen made himself comfortable as he listened to Delani marginalize his ability to operate without the help of his second in command. She was teasing him to get a reaction out of him and he knew it, but Cullen was much too content seeing Delani’s beaming smile and the knowledge that he was the one who helped put it on her lips.

Now if only he could convince Delani to give him a moment alone with her mother. He had invited Keeper Milathara to Skyhold for Delani’s benefit, but there was something that he needed to ask of her as well, and he couldn’t do it with Delani present. But it wasn’t as though he could ask her to leave. That would garner Delani’s suspicion, and she would refuse. Cullen had managed to pull off one surprise today, she would not allow him to even attempt another.

As though she could hear his thoughts, Keeper Milathara gave her daughter a maternal smile before patting her leg and saying, “Da’mi, emma asha, would you please be so kind as to find Argo’lan for me? He has my herbs and I would like to make us all some tea.”

Delani placed her hand on top of her mother’s and squeezed it tightly. Pushing herself off of the edge of Cullen’s desk, she placed a kiss on her mother’s forehead before doing what was asked of her. She threw a glance over her shoulder before leaving his office, and said, “I’ll be right back. Try not to have too much fun without me.”

“We will try, da’mi,” the Keeper assured her and they both waited for the sound of the door closing being Delani before they met and held each other’s gazes.

Suddenly Cullen was filled with nerves. He had thought over how this conversation would go many times. He had rehearsed what he would say, and he had thought of any argument that she would pose against him. Cullen knew the words that had to be spoken between them, but now they were escaping him.

Clearing his throat, Cullen awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck before finally finding his voice. Keeper Milathara was watching him closely, inspecting his features in search of something and, whatever it was, he hoped she’d find it. “Keeper Milathara,” he started, nervously scratching the back of his head as he regarded the older woman. “I was hoping to speak with you privately.”

She bowed her head in understanding, a smile ghosting over her lips as she returned, “And I with you, Cullen. And now it seems we have our chance.”

Eyebrows arching with surprise, he said, “You wanted to speak to me as well? What about?”

With a wave of her hand she dismissed his questions and instead pursued his reasons for wanting to speak in private. “We will get to that. What is it that you wanted to discuss?”

“I-I…” the words were now impossible to articulate with any semblance of eloquence. Still Cullen tried to get them out. “Delani and I… this sounded much better in my head.”

Keeper Milathara laughed softly and her smile grew with her amusement. Pine green eyes regarded him kindly as she said, “Go on, lethallin. I promise not to bite.”

A small smile lifted his lips at the sound of her words. There was so much of the Keeper in Delani. Their senses of humor were  so similar, and the mischievous sparkle in their green eyes was unmistakably identical. Everything about them, straight down to their appearance was similar, and Cullen wondered what Delani’s father had looked like; which traits had she inherited from the man.

Shaking the wandering thoughts from his mind, Cullen returned himself to the conversation and took a deep breath. Holding Keeper Milathara’s gaze, he started with the easy, undeniable, irrevocable truth. “I love your daughter, Keeper, more than I ever thought possible.” Her smile grew and Cullen pressed himself to continue. “She is my heart, and I would not be the man you see before you today without her support and love.”

Leaning forward in his seat, Cullen rested his arms on the desk’s surface. Lacing his fingers together, he held the woman’s gaze and tried to impart with his eyes exactly how serious he was on the topic, and how much her support meant to him. Swallowing hard, he forced his nerves back down, and shoved away the anxiety shadowing his thoughts.

With much more confidence than what he was feeling, Cullen admitted, “When the threat of Corypheus has ended, and we’ve healed the sky, I would like to marry Delani. And I was hoping to receive your blessing.”

Her eyes widened with surprise before she schooled her expression back to neutrality. Holding her hands in her lap, Keeper Milathara maintained Cullen’s gaze as she searched his eyes for the sincerity in his words. When she was satisfied with whatever it was she found, She exhaled heavily through her nose.

When she next spoke, her words caught Cullen completely by surprise. “Delani was not my first born child.”

Cullen had little choice but to sputter out a confused, “She wasn’t?”

With a shake of her head, Keeper Milathara explained, “I had a son before her. He was a stillbirth.”

“I’m sorry,” Cullen stated, unsure how to reply. The two words felt so lacking. He could not even imagine what that must have been like for her. And still he tried to find the words appropriate for what she had endured, “That must have been—“

“Terrible,” she nodded that he had guessed correctly. “Yes, it was. For many years I cursed the gods for taking him from me, for allowing me to love my son as he grew in my belly, to have dreams and hopes for him, only to take him from me the moment of his birth.”

She rubbed her barren belly, recalling what it must have been like to be with child. Her expression was no longer neutral and had turned thoughtful as she considered the child that fate had deprived her. When she finally met Cullen’s gaze again a faint smile edged her lips.

“Not a day goes by that I do not think of the man that he would have become. Would he have been loyal, confident, would he have been protective, intelligent, wise, and observant. Would he have been anything like you?”

Cullen’s breath caught in his throat with her question. She compared her son to him? She could not possibly understand how profound an impact her words had on Cullen. He had been prepared for outright rejection, had thought of every argument in his arsenal to make her see reason. For her to say that she imagined, that she had hoped, that her late son would have been like him… it was humbling.

“I tell you all of this because the gods work in mysterious ways,” she said, her smile growing as she regarded him. “They took my son, but they gifted me with a daughter who is my entire world. And through her, they have given me a son once more.”

His eyes widened and she nodded that he had heard her correctly. “You are everything that I would have hoped my son to be, and your love for my daughter is the greatest gift a mother could ask for. When the time is right, and the land knows peace once more, when you are both ready, I would be more than happy to see my daughter paired to a man such as you.”

Jaw falling slack, Cullen could do little more than just stare at the Keeper for a moment. With a shake of his head, he snapped his mouth shut and breathlessly murmured, “Keeper, you humble me.”

She shook her head in disagreement. “I am merely honest, Lethallin.”

“Thank you,” said Cullen, breathless from his surprise. “I do not know what I expected but it certainly wasn’t this. Thank you.” He would never be able to thank her enough for the gift she had given him.

Keeper Milathara laughed at his needless gratitude, unaware that had Delani been in his position, speaking to his mother, her reception would not have been nearly as kind. “I only wish for my daughter to be happy, Cullen. And you make her the happiest I have ever seen her. I will be delighted to call you son when the day comes.”

He could not help the grin that expanded over his lips. Rubbing the back of his neck, he pressed on to the next matter of discussion. “This brings me to my next question. How do the Dalish propose marriage?”

Her eyebrows shot up with surprise before an approving grin spread over her lips. Pine green eyes glittering with contentment and excitement, Keeper Milathara was happy to answer his question. “In our clan a union is proposed by offering the hide of a freshly hunted beast. It symbolizes one's ability to provide for one's future family.”

“Thank you, Keeper.” Would it ever feel like he had thanked her enough? Cullen seriously doubted it. She could not possibly understand how much her acceptance meant to him. She could not know how happy she had made him by welcoming him without a moment’s hesitation. And still he tried to help her understand how deeply her approval had affected him.

“You cannot possibly understand how much it means to me for you to accept me to easily.”

“I want my daughter to be happy,” Keeper Milathara repeated with a smile. She gestured to the carved halla and lion decorating Cullen’s desk and her simper grew with love and affection. “And you make her so happy that she’s carving again.” With a shake of her head, she admitted, “My daughter has not carved a single thing since we lost her father. To see her taking it up again.”

When she looked up at Cullen again there were tears in her eyes. “I am happy that you two have found each other.”

Cullen opened his mouth to reply but, before he could, the door to his office swung open and Delani sauntered in with a tray loaded with a tea kettle and mugs in hand. “I hope you didn’t scare him off, mother.” Winking at Cullen, she added, “I like this one.”

Smile growing into a grin, the Keeper agreed with an amused, “You and I both, da’mi.”

He felt his features flush. This was not what he had been expecting, but Cullen was pleased by the surprise either way. Delani got to see her mother again, and Cullen got to live with the knowledge that their union would be accepted by the Keeper and her clan. When he did finally propose to Delani, there would be one less thing standing in their way. And the knowledge filled him with excitement.