Dragon Age Inquisition Short Stories

School Days

She headed towards her balcony. After extremely stressful and seemingly-pointless meetings with the War Council she often was found either on her balcony or in the rotunda, watching Solas paint his beautiful, intricate murals. They reminded her of the drawings and other artworks she had seen in the Keeper's books. They seemed colorful and bright when you first looked at them, but soon became a portal for their true darker meanings and stories.

She loved that about Solas. He was challenging. She liked picking him apart. She enjoyed the surprised wonder on his face when she said something that had surprised him. When she was different or progressive in her ways, he gained a twinkle in his eyes. A spark that spoke of his past she had yet to understand.

But like his paintings, he was sometimes hard to understand. Well, more often than not in fact. He didn't often speak of his past. He spoke of his adventures and findings but never of his personal journeys. She hated it. She hated that even though they had become so close and kissed, even if just the one time, much to her dismay, she still knew next to nothing about him.

She knew he grew up on a farm and often shirked his duties when young. She knew he was not Dalish, well at least not fully. She knew he viewed the Dalish as wallowers; too lost and too fixated on being the victim to even be helped. And sadly, she agreed with him sometimes. Her Keeper for instance was one of those wallowers.

She hated how right he was about everything to. He was very progressive. Even if he did sound like an old soul most days. He had this idea of how we should be taking care of each other and learning from each others mistakes. He was very wise.

But he also had a playful side. He often encouraged Varric's teasings. He had flirted with her back and forth. He was very sarcastic. "Grim and fatalistic," as he called it. He enjoyed being tested. And she liked that.

He was mysterious. Too mysterious for his own good. His shroud of mystery he wore like as a mask had egged her on from the very beginning. Whether he knew that or not. She loved his pride. His complete confidence he made everyone believe he had. She saw under it though. He got scared. He felt disappointment and sadness to. It was just that no one was ever really allowed to see it.

When she had made it to her room she quickly grabbed her coat. Skyhold was in the Frostback Mountains. The coldest place within a thousand leagues. The cold wind practically knocked the air from her body. She had never been somewhere so cold. She didn't exactly dislike it. She just didn't quite enjoy it either yet.

She pulled the tall glass doors open and walked into the chilly air. She summoned the magic deep within her and lit a small flame that danced between her fingers. She could hear some children gathered for a school lesson down in the garden far below her stone balcony.

She decided to head down and sit and watch their lesson. She found it was hard to find time to simply watch lately. She also wanted to gain the perspective of the very people she worked to serve and protect. Even if they were children. They were the future. She knew their opinions mattered because the world would one day be there's.

She headed downstairs and past Josephine's office and Solas's rotunda toward the door leading to the courtyard she had come to treasure in this frigid mountain range.

She saw Mother Gisselle under the small pavilion over in the corner of the garden. The children, all aged between probably five and eleven. They were all sitting in the grass or on the stone path cross legged or with their legs in front of them with their hands behind them bracing themselves.

She envied their simple troubles and minds. They didn't need to worry about the people of Thedas or the self-named god Corypheus. She was glad that their lives still had some sort of normalcy however. That they still had school lessons even if they did hate them.