#*cackles manically*

Icy blue, but curious eyes took in the seemingly ‘every day’ routines of the people who inhabited Haven. She saw that most were either soldiers or those belonging to the Chantry - easily pinpointed due to their crimson clothing and the symbol of the Andrastian religion emblazoned upon their robes. As Mhairi walked along the path that led up to the village’s gates, she could hear some of the faithful reciting parts of their ‘Chant’, and the feeling of loneliness immediately washed over her. This.. this was not a place the People walked often, if at all.

“Mythal’enaste.. Why am I so surprised? The Keeper had warned me about this..”, Mhairi murmured to herself - nervous energy causing her to crinkle the letter from the Inquisition that was in her hands when she could feel a few Chantry sisters giving her a sidelong glance - most likely because of her vallaslin. She sighed in an attempt to steady herself, “..But I need to be brave. Fane is here. Fane is here, and I have to see him..”

Despite the unease and discomfort Mhairi was feeling from being scrutinized, she knew none of that mattered right now. She hadn’t come to be preached at or to preach at another; she had come for her brother - she had come for Fane .

Mhairi turned her head down to the letter in her hands, carefully smoothing the delicate paper out on the palm of her hand from where she had crinkled it, to give it another quick read, “I need to find someone named..’Seeker Pentaghast’..”, she mumbled softly as she read the lines detailing who she needed to contact, “I’ve read about the Seekers, but I wouldn’t know what one looked like. Maybe I should have sent a letter saying I was coming..”

Mhairi had been puzzled by the nature of the letter; it was rather ambiguous, to be frank. It seemed to carry a heavier air despite it being short and straightforward. And truthfully, the letter that Mhairi had received didn’t ask for her in person. It merely stated that her brother was sick, and if she had any information about him that could help towards his recovery. She remembered thinking, ‘Why can’t they just ask Fane themselves?’. However, the moment she read the word ‘illness’, she had bolted out of the Keeper’s aravel - much to her mentor’s dismay - and had begun preparing for a long, but well meaning journey. This type of thing wasn’t something she could just leave, even if she knew Fane would be livid with her for coming to Haven. No, this was something she had to do in person - not with a silly letter.

Mhairi took another slow look around, pocketing the letter in the pouch attached to her hip before letting out a thoughtful hum.

“Maybe I should..ask someone? If Seeker Pentaghast is important, then I’m sure anyone would know them, right?”, she said to herself, tucking an errant lock from her braid behind a pointed ear as she continued to look around. “And if no one knows, I guess I could just find Fane myself..?”

Mhairi heaved a defeated sigh - frigid mountain air condensing into a tiny puff cloud as she did so. She was..lost - incredibly lost. Back when she and her brother were with the clan, Fane would be the one to handle situations involving people - which was ironic due to the fact that Fane vehemently stated that he was by no means a people person. If anything, Mhairi believed her brother was very much a people person, if only because he could read people - unlike her, who more or less took every word a person said at face value. No, Fane was as cunning as a wolf leading its pack, and as dangerous as a dragon protecting its hoard. Mhairi couldn’t count on both hands how many times Fane had successfully bartered with a merchant, or caught them attempting to swindle him - the merchant assuming her brother was just a ‘savage Dalish’ before her brother would glare down his nose at them, and as cold as ice, laid out an ultimatum that left him the profited party. It was one of the only instances where Fane was calm when someone was ‘messing’ with him.

And if anyone - be it from the clan or a human villager - had done something to slight her, Fane would materialize as if from thin air with the look of death about him - his two toned eyes like emerald trees alight with golden fire before a hard boot would meet a poor jaw or chest. Her brother was fiercely protective; a fact Mhairi had found herself constantly scolding Fane about.

More like ‘over’ protective. It’s a tad ridiculous, honestly. Mhairi thought with a tiny roll of her eyes before shaking her head with another sigh.

While Fane was more clever than most gave him credit for, he was also..difficult; Mhairi wasn’t afraid to admit that, and it wasn’t just because Fane could be overbearing. Her brother never meant to cause harm with his words or actions, but she could see that among strangers, Fane’s volatile demeanor would be problematic. The main problem was Fane’s unwillingness to socialize or explain why he had said or done something when a fit of rage took him. Usually, when they were with the clan, Fane would opt to stay away and watch any gatherings from a tree or any high vantage point - like he was simply observing the clan’s rituals, or he would deign to disappear altogether - choosing that the forest was a better companion than the other clan members. Her brother would begrudgingly join if Mhairi pressed hard enough, but she didn’t like to do that to Fane. There was a reason Fane wanted solitude. Mhairi just..hadn’t figured it out yet - yet.

And as to her brother’s fiery temper? That was far more complex. It was something even she didn’t fully understand, but she knew - just knew - it wasn’t everything Fane was. Her brother was more than his rage and indifference; he cared - perhaps too much, now that Mhairi thought about it. Every snide remark when hunting with the other hunters of the clan, every seemingly irritated sigh, every roll of his eyes towards the Keeper, every lonely look in jewel like eyes was a silent plea for understanding - a want that was always met with misunderstanding. No one - not even Fane - wanted to look past the anger he harbored towards the world around him.

There was fault on both sides, obviously. The clan had always believed Fane was an outcast - a monster , due to his white hair, large body, destructive temper, nonexistent faith towards the Creators, and two toned eyes. In turn, Fane believed the clan to be arrogant, pathetic, ignorant, cowardly, hypocritical, and a waste of his time. Both were stubborn, and such stubbornness eventually made her brother completely unwilling to engage with the clan and vice versa. Especially after Fane had gotten his vallaslin; her brother’s unresponsiveness towards the pain of the act solidifying the idea that Fane was a ‘monster’ - a vindictive husk. Mhairi did what she could to bridge the gap, but..again, stubborn . It didn’t help when Fane sealed himself up like a chest encased in hot lava, and it would seem her brother was acting very much the same with the Inquisition as he had acted with the clan. Which, to Mhairi’s dismay, was not a good sign, especially if Fane was sick. She supposed she understood now why the Inquisition kept asking her or the Keeper about her brother’s personality; Fane wasn’t sharing that information himself.

Why won’t you let people in, brother? What made you close up so tightly? Mhairi thought painfully, starting to crinkle the letter in her hands again before easing up with a tiny sigh.

Enough. Now wasn’t the time for reminiscing or feeling saddened by her brother’s one track mind. Now was the time to find Fane or this Seeker, and help him! That’s why she was here!

“Let’s start with the first idea - ask someone. But who..?”, she mused quietly, stopping along the dirt road that ran through - what she believed to be -the Inquisition’s training grounds.

Mhairi supposed she could ask anyone, but it would be more beneficial to pick out someone that seemed equally as notable. From what she knew of human hierarchy, if there was one important person, there were usually three more surrounding them - all equally as important, even if titles separated them.

I spy.. Her mind thought with a hint of playfulness as icy blue eyes scanned the training grounds around her - occasionally freezing subconsciously when a glint of metal would catch it. Relax. It’s just the sun.. Just the sun.. She mentally reiterated each time metal shone.

Mhairi continued to scan the large opening, hopping up on the balls of her feet to see over taller soldiers for anyone that would catch her attention.

“Hm..”, she hummed with a small pout when no one caught her eye before another glint of metal had her actively flinching, “Mmgh..”

Delicate arms wrapped around her torso as Mhairi hugged herself loosely, letting her eyes slip shut for a moment to calm down her now racing heart. It was okay. She was okay. This wasn’t the time to panic because of her own memories, but the sound of metal hitting metal and the glinting of steel nearly made her want to collapse into a ball.

“They’re just training. Just training.. Like Fane does.. The sword isn’t coming at you..”, she tried to comfort herself before the distinct sound of metal bouncing off of another sword wrong made her eyes snap open in panic.

Before Mhairi could even register what was going on, she panickedly threw up a magical barrier as the whirling of steel zoomed past where she was standing to wedge itself in the ground behind her. Eyes blown wide, she stared down at the errant sword as her hands shook violently with the restraint of keeping her barrier up and at the fear coursing through her. The..the sword..it..!

“O..Oh, Creators..”, she stammered out quietly before her arms fell to her sides limply - her knees buckling to send her to the ground backside first as her magic flooded back into the Veil.

Mhairi tangled her hands in her platinum hair - dislodging more from her long braid - as her whole body shook, pulling her knees up to her chest to make herself smaller as she cowered. A tiny whimper escaped her lips before she bit down on her bottom lip to stifle it. No, no! She had to get a hold of herself, but she couldn’t stop shaking! That sword had reminded her of..of..!

“Maker’s breath! Are you trying to kill someone, recruit?!”, a booming, angry voice had Mhairi’s trembling body freezing for a moment.

“Hm..?”, she hummed in question, not raising her head from her small balled body just yet.

“N..No, Commander! T..The sword slipped i..is all..!”

“Slipped?! You practically threw that sword!!”

“S..Ser! S..Sorry, ser!”

With a slow movement, Mhairi carefully lifted her head from where she had buried them in her knees - icy eyes looking around frantically for the source of the yelling, but unable to see anything from the slew of soldiers that were grouped around training. What was going on?

“Fane..? No, that’s not his voice..”, she whispered somewhat shakily - her chest still seized with panic. The rushed sound of boots crunching against ice had Mhairi snapping her head fully upwards as they approached. “Huh..?”, she uttered quietly.

Mhairi’s panicked gaze met an equally panicked, but shocked pair of amber colored eyes as the human man bearing them noticed where the sword had ended up. She could see the blonde human linking up what had happened before an enraged growl tore from his lips before he pinched the bridge of his nose in an attempt to reign in his anger.

“I will kill that man..”, the angry human spat out before sighing, “Maker, give me strength..”

Heh..he’s like Fane when he gets angry. Her frazzled mind thought fondly before the clearing of a deep voice had her refocusing on the human standing over her.

“Are you okay?”, the human asked her softly, large body coming down to her level - the sound of armor making Mhairi’s ears twitch slightly.

Mhairi’s eyes continued to stay wide, but not from panic anymore. No, it was because of the man in front of her - or more specifically, the human in front of her. A human..was talking to her! A human! She had never spoken to a human before! Well, not prolonged conversations, anyways! Still! A human! The concerned human furrowed his brows at her silence.

“Miss?”, he addressed her with mounting concern.

Mhairi visibly startled at that before she could feel her cheeks begin to flush - prior panic washing away with each moment she stared into honey brown. She opened her mouth a few times to attempt to say something, but clamped it down each time before breathing out a long sigh. She had to get a hold of herself!

“I..I’m okay.. Just..just startled is all..”, she said shakily, attempting a tiny smile when she saw the man’s worried frown deepen, “D..Do swords normally fly around here?”, she asked, trying to lighten the mood with humor.

The armored man blinked his amber eyes at her question before a small smirk cracked his worried mask. Mhairi felt her own smile grow at the sight. She liked that look on the stranger, and she wasn’t sure why. Strange.

“Not typically, no.”, he stated with a light chuckle before his face fell once more, “Are you certain you aren’t hurt?”, he asked after her again.

Mhairi continued to smile as she shook her head gently - her platinum hair whipping around softly from both the wind and the movement.

“I’m fine. Promise!”, she reaffirmed cheerily, starting to push herself up to stand, albeit somewhat shakily.

“Here! Let me..”, the man started hurriedly, rising quickly to hold a gloved hand out to her.

Mhairi blinked in surprise at the proffered hand. She hadn’t expected such..chivalry. Were all humans like this? If so, she would have to say ‘I told you so!’ to her brother. With a wider smile, Mhairi delicately took the human man’s hand - idly thinking about how warm it was before he pulled her up easily.

“Ma serannas.”, she thanked the man with a grateful smile before blanching in embarrassment, “Oh, I mean, ‘thank you’! Ir abelas! I..I mean, I’m sorry!”, she amended panickedly.

The blonde man stared at her in shock as she rambled - an odd twinkle in his amber eyes before it disappeared. Mhairi covered her face with her hands, groaning in embarrassment as she did so. Oh, now she’s made a fool of herself! She hadn’t meant to speak in elven! It was just second nature, so she hadn’t thought anything of it! Of course the human would be confused - maybe even annoyed - by her! A quiet chuckle had Mhairi snapping her head up at the sound - meeting amused amber eyes as they watched her. He was..laughing?

“You don’t have to apologize. I understand a few phrases of elven. Though, your voice makes the words sound a bit different.”, the man told her before his eyes went wide, “I..I mean..! That’s not to insinuate..!”, he stuttered out, a hand coming up to rub at the back of his neck in nervousness.

Mhairi couldn’t help the already large smile on her face from growing larger as she watched this large, seemingly intimidating human fumble over his words - much like how she had just moments before. She knew her voice was a bit different than most of the Dalish. The accent could be thicker on certain words, and if she was really excited, her voice liked to peak. Fane was constantly snapping at her every time she ‘whinnied’ - as he liked to say -, saying the pitch made his ears ring. However, the tone of this human’s voice had suggested that he had liked the way it sounded. That made Mhairi..happy. Maybe because not many people complimented the way she spoke? She gave herself a tiny shrug, her smile nearly making her cheeks hurt with how large it was as she continued to watch the flustered human.

He’s..endearing - cute, even! Her mind thought boldly before she shook her head to dislodge the statement it had made. Look at her! Fawning over someone just because they said her voice was different! She was so typical, wasn’t she?

Despite berating herself for her odd thoughts, Mhairi continued to smile as she looked up at the blonde man - noticing he was much taller than her before mentally slapping herself again - and opened her mouth to ease his nervousness.

“I understand what you meant.”, she said softly, feeling a soft blush not borne from the cold dusting her cheeks as she added, “I appreciate the open mindedness, and the..um..compliment.”

The human’s eyes went wide once more - presumably from Mhairi calling him out - before he brought a hand up to his mouth to clear his throat, but Mhairi could see a smirk threatening to break through before the man next spoke.

“Yes, well..”, he fumbled before clearing his throat harshly, “If you’re sure you’re okay now, I have to..um..get back to my duties.”

Mhairi blinked at the word ‘duties’ before her mind caught up to speed.

The armor, the yelling, the dominating presence, the formality.. He’s important! He might know where the Seeker is! Or even where Brother is! Her mind exclaimed excitedly.

“Wait!”, she cried since the human had begun to walk away from her - his head turning to look back at her in question.

“Yes?”

Mhairi smiled brightly before bounding over to the confused man - reaching into the pouch at her hip to fish the letter from the Inquisition out of it. She thrust the letter towards the bewildered man - waiting as he warily took it from her small hand to give it a read. As amber eyes roamed the words, she saw his face form into a hard, but perplexed expression. Mhairi tilted her head at the sight. He looked..troubled. Why?

“Is something wrong?”, she asked, her smiling face falling at the continued look of confusion.

The human let out a heavy sigh, carefully giving her the letter back before shaking his head slowly.

“No. It’s just..”, he started before continuing with an even more serious tone, “I’m surprised that Seeker Pentaghast and Sister Leliana actually contacted you. Especially given the circumstances..”

Mhairi blinked several times before a feeling of dread and panic washed over her. What did that mean?! Was Fane more than just sick?! Why wasn’t this man being plain with her?! She slowly began to crumple the letter she had taken back before looking up at the human man pleadingly.

“Where is my brother?”, she asked urgently.

The large man hesitated for several moments before he shut his eyes with a deep sigh through his nose. Mhairi felt her fingers tear into the paper before she stepped forward, icy eyes glaring with intense heat as she did.

“Where is my brother?!”, she asked once more - more panicked and loud this time.

Amber eyes reopened to look down at her with apprehension - the man’s mouth opening to say something before a mind numbing scream rang throughout the valley. It was piercing, roaring, and agonizing all at the same time! It made her body begin to tremble once more before Mhairi’s eyes went wide as saucers with realization, as did the man’s in front of her. That voice..!

“..Fane..”, she whispered with horror shaking her voice before she propelled herself forward - easily setting herself into a sprint as she cried once more, “FANE!”

“What the..?”, the human started as he looked around for the source of the scream, but snapped his gaze back to her as Mhairi bolted in the direction of the scream, “Wait!”

Mhairi ignored the human’s cries as she barreled down the snow covered path - nearly slipping a few times as she ran up the stone steps that led into the main village from how frantic her footsteps were. She didn’t have time for formality or procedure! She shouldn’t have even entertained that human when she already knew something was wrong with Fane! Evidently, it appeared to be worse than she thought!

All Mhairi could hear as she pushed the large wooden doors open - having to use a bit of her magic to actually get it to budge - was the deafening screams of her brother somewhere deeper in. She had never heard Fane scream like this - never! There would be angered yelling between Keeper or clan, but never screaming as if he was in some kind of horrific torment! Something was wrong - horribly, horribly wrong, and it wasn’t an illness!

Why is he screaming like that?! Is he being hurt?! Has he actually been injured this whole time?! Did these people do something to him?! Oh, Creators! Please, no! NO! I should have been here sooner! Stupid! Stupid! Her mind thought frantically as she finally managed to shove the gates open - immediately sprinting up another set of stairs as soon as she stumbled through them.  

Mhairi stumbled into several different people as she followed the sound of her brother’s screams - ignoring every bewildered look as she slammed into them, even when they seemed to be just as startled by the earth shattering screams that infested the whole village. However, her only concern was the source of those screams as her platinum hair tumbled from its braid from each person she connected with - flowing freely as she ran even faster before one begging statement resounded in her mind as hot tears began to escape her icicle colored eyes; the trails formed from them feeling frozen as the mountain air lashed at her cheeks.