Saeris’ sword thrust forward, the blackened blood of the darkspawn before him spilling onto the earth as he yanked the blade out. It slumped to the ground - the last of the hoard. For now, anyway. 

Cheers were ringing out through the bloodstained courtyard, but Saeris’s eyes landed on a single figure near the gate - the person who had brushed against him in the battle. Her hair was long and braided now, but he could see the glimmering gold of her hair clip.

It was the match to the one he wore around his wrist, tied together with the lover's knot.

But he had known her at a glance, had known her in his bones, even at only the barest touch between them. The spirit inside him had sensed her in an instant, but he hadn’t been able to stop as three hurlocks had rushed towards him.

But with the threat now gone, Saeris could hear nothing, see nothing but the woman across from him. His sword clattered to the ground as he crossed the courtyard, the world around him slowing as he stepped closer.

Grief, love, pain, despair all coiled tightly around him, feeding both his doubts and hopes in a way he had not felt in the years. Not since the Inquisition had given him her gold earring and told him of her passing. The earring still rested over his chest now, but it had never felt lighter.

He was mere paces away from her, and he could see her wiping the blood from her blade and sheathing it. Saeris pulled the cloth from his face, his heart pounding as he dropped it away.

“Talenna,” he croaked, his throat dry as he tried to speak a name that was almost foreign on his tongue, now.

How long had it been since he’d used it? He couldn’t remember.

She turned, her golden eyes meeting his. He could sense a strange sort of cold shock in seeing him. She was likely just as shocked as he was, he imagined.

There were others with her, but he paid them no mind as he stepped closer, almost within arm’s reach. He would have closed the distance, but a very tall qunari stepped between them, holding out a hand.

“Whoa, there, who are-” they started to say, but Saeris shot a dark look at them.

“I’m her bondmate,” he said in a low, warning tone, making the message clear. Back off.

The qunari glanced back at Talenna in surprise, but took a small step back, seeming to gather that no one was in immediate danger.

He softened immediately as he met Talenna’s eyes again. She looked different - there was a tiredness behind her eyes that hadn’t been there before, and a darkness that hung a bit too heavy around her.

But she was here. She was alive.

The halla horn earring still dangled from her ear - the symbol of their bonding, just like the twin stars dangling from his own left earlobe. There was so much he wanted to say, so much he had to tell her - about their clan, about the twins… but that could wait. He wanted to hold her first, to feel that she was truly real.

He wanted to know that this wasn’t just another dream.

Saeris pulled off his gloves, letting them fall to the ground as he reached for her, the warmth in his heart blossoming for the first time in ten years.

“It’s really you,” he breathed as his fingers nearly brushed her cheeks. "Ma'sal'shiral."

She flinched away, taking a step back from him.

An icy knife sank in his heart as he stilled, his hands slowly lowering to his sides. Did… she not recognize him? Had he changed that much?

“Tal,” he said, his voice breaking as he took a step forward, trying to reach her again. “It’s me.”

“I think you have the wrong person,” an accented voice said beside them.

A man stepped between them, holding a hand out. He was Antivan, and human. And, based on his armor - a damned Crow. The human had the nerve to give him a sympathetic look.

Battle adrenaline still coursed through Saeris’ veins, and it boiled. He could feel Devotion rising to the surface, their magic curling around his skin.

The Crow stepped forward, purple magic rising to the surface around him as well. He was possessed, too.

“Spite,” Devotion said through Saeris.

The spirit possessing the man seemed to scoff. “Devotion,” he said with no small amount of disdain.

But it was not just disdain that Saeris felt - no. He felt the ties between this man and Talenna. The loyalty, the… care.

This man cared for her. Deeply. 

A hand touched the man’s shoulder as Talenna stepped out from behind him. But before Saeris could even think to be jealous of that touch, of the clear familiarity between the two of them, she spoke. 

“Lucanis,” she said, her voice as low and beautiful as Saeris had remembered. “Leave him. He’s not a threat.”

She didn’t even look at Saeris as she said it - she barely acknowledged him. She simply turned away, leaving him alone as he had been for the last decade.

But this time, the emptiness was sharp and suffocating, like breathing in glass. A pit grew in his stomach as Devotion quieted inside him, trying to grasp at the small tether between them. Still there, but… faint. Frayed and fractured. Unwanted. 

It was as though he were nothing more than a stranger.

--

Translation:

For the barest moment, Talenna’s gaze wavered. She had sensed her misstep as soon as he had, and as though it had never been otherwise, Saeris felt the walls on her mind fall seamlessly back into place.

She straightened. “Of course I do. You’re my closest friend, Saer.”

“You know that’s not what I meant,” he said solemnly. He took a step towards her, trying to close the distance, but Talenna immediately widened it again, taking a defiant step backwards. The set of her shoulders was a line drawn in the sand.

“Not all of us are mind readers,” she said flatly, her ears still pinned in clear disapproval. She never had liked it when he used Devotion to read her, but it was only now that he was finally beginning to understand why.

“You love me,” he repeated again, more insistently this time.

“Like I said-”

“Stop lying to me.” The words snapped out of them harsher than he’d intended, but with this realization came the rush of memories– every single instance before now that she had told him ‘I love you’. How long have those words been hiding a deeper truth? How long had Talenna been swallowing her own meaning while plying him with a friendly glance and a grin? Why was no one ever just fucking honest with him for once?

Talenna opened her mouth to respond but he continued. “Just stop. I’ve had enough of that with Solas, but I thought-” He stopped himself, and swallowed. “Don’t start lying to me, too.”

Now it was his silence that stilled the air.

A bevy of emotions flashed behind Talenna’s eyes, too quick and fleeting for even him to discern. If nothing else, it at least seemed like she was considering his response, opting for silence instead of another excuse. She quieted, simply staring at him, as she formulated her answer.

Patiently, Saeris waited. She was the first one to break his gaze.

“And if I did?” she asked, her voice low. Tired, but also dangerous. She ducked her head away and folded her arms in front of her. “If I were to say that you were right, what would that change?”

“Depends,” he forced out. “Is that what you’re saying?”

Talenna’s ears flattened further. “Why does it matter? My feelings are my own, and irrelevant besides. No matter how undeserving he is, you love Solas, and have chased him halfway across the continent to prove it. How I feel toward you or anyone would have no bearing on that, except only to be another guilt for you to carry. And I refuse to become that.”

Saeris had to bite back his objection. As if she could ever. Gods, Talenna was smart, but she could be so stupid-

“You don’t know that.” The words were out before he even finished thinking them. The snarl of emotions in his chest tightened, tugging painfully as though it were a knot made of barbs. “You never asked.”

That made Talenna scoff. “And if I did, your answer would change?”

Saeris crossed his arms defiantly, mirroring her. “Maybe.”

He knew he was being difficult, but he was done with letting the people he loved lie to him. No matter how many circles she tried to talk around him, Saeris wouldn’t let up until he had a clear answer from her. He needed to hear it. He wanted-

Talenna blew out a harsh, disbelieving laugh.

“You,” she said pointedly, lifting her angered gaze back to his, “-are an incomparable arse.”

Of that, she was probably right, but he was too distracted by the faint shine of hope in her eyes to care though. Their deep shade of whiskey gold, equally piercing as they were warm.

That gaze swept over his face as Talenna assessed him in his silence. Assessed his meaning, and the risks held within them. Something in her steeled, and with a fluid sureness, she stepped back towards him.

“Fine,” she sighed, “You win. Tell me, Saer– have your feelings changed?” She took another step, and tilted her face closer to his as she closed yet more distance between them. “If I told you that I loved you– was in love with you– would you stop chasing Solas and choose me instead?”

The question hung in the silence, and speared him in place like a frightened deer.

Would he? He’d pressed her to ask, but stupidly, he hadn’t considered his actual answer to that question. He… loved Solas. Or, at least, he was supposed to. Saeris had spent so long chasing after him, trying to prove to him that he could be loved, if only he’d allow anyone to get close. He’d been so sure, to the point of suffering through years of struggle just to try and make Solas look at him again.

But now…?

Devotion whirled in his chest as they were tugged sharply in two separate directions. One towards Solas and the dedication he had so stringently clung to, and the other towards Talenna. The friend who he adored. The woman who had refused to leave his side even once for all this time. The person who’s near confession made his heart leap, though whether out of excitement or fear-

“I asked you first,” he forced out, his throat tight. Suddenly, it was he who could not meet her eyes.

Talenna made a flat, unimpressed noise. “Really, Saer?”

He nodded.

Incredulously, she laughed. “Fine.” It sounded like she took a deep, calming breath, and then in a smooth motion, Talenna stepped back into his line of sight. She was smiling at him.

“Fine,” she repeated, softer than before. “You were right. Saeris Lavellan, I have feelings for you, and would very much like to know how you feel about me in return.”

Excitement. His heart leapt in excitement.

Saeris stepped forward, instantly closing the gap between them. He wasn’t really sure what he was doing– a slight panic quickened in his pulse – but before he could even fully process what was happening, his fingers were tangling in her hair and his lips were crashing into hers.

The first thing that registered past the thundering of his own heart was ‘soft’. Talenna’s lips were soft, and surprisingly delicate. Pliant and sweet as he kissed her deeper. In all the times his mind had accidentally slipped to that place of wondering, he had always imagined her quick tongue and sharp smiles. Forceful and bold and unafraid.

Instead, kissing her was like a sigh. Like a deep breath in.

It was… relief.

He groaned softly against her lips, before pulling back. “Tal-”

Hands suddenly fisted in his shirt and he was tugged forward, sent nearly stumbling into Talenna as she fiercely dragged his mouth back down over hers. Her whole body tangled around him, and without a second thought, he welcomed her whole-heartedly. He drew her in. He wrapped around her and held her close. He kissed her as though it were natural to him, like he’d done it a hundred times before.

Like how he had wanted to.

He kissed her until they both were breathless. Chests heaving and dizzy, they separated, having to lean on one another so that neither toppled over.

Talenna blew out the faintest of laughs, her brow touched affectionately to his. “Can I take that as your answer?”

“I can always give you another if the first one wasn’t clear enough,” he chuckled, his cheeks burning still. “It was… at least decent, I hope? I haven’t kissed anyone in a while.”

“‘Decent’?” Talenna echoed with a laugh. “I suppose you could call it that. It certainly wasn’t a terrible first kiss, all things considered…” Her voice trailed off with a curl of playfulness. Any offense he might have taken was quelled quickly by the squint of joy in her eyes and the quirk of a smile resting in the corner of her lips. In the way she looked at him, without a single ounce of doubt or regret. “I do think your technique could use some work though.”

Honestly–

“Are you suggesting I need practice?” he breathed, trying and failing not to laugh. He was still processing all of this, but joy like sunlight broke in his chest and began to spill into his veins, filling him. He… couldn’t remember the last time he’d been this happy.

“It couldn’t hurt,” Talenna responded, all too glib. “And I just so happen to have the key to an empty bedroom that would provide the perfect space for it.” She raised her finger to dangle a small iron key between them. “It’s very private.”

They were both smiling now. Two grinning idiots standing in the middle of a shem inn deep in the heart of the Anderfels. There was so much they still needed to talk about. What this meant for them, for his hunt for Solas. Nearly a decade spent chasing him was a lot of time to simply toss away on a whim. But none of that really seemed to matter to him anymore, at least not right now.

The woman he’d spent the last seven years with was inviting him to her bedroom, and he’d already wasted too much time being a fool as it was. She had been waiting for him for so long– he wouldn’t keep her waiting any longer.

Saeris took her hand, the key clutched between.

He grunted and took her hand, choosing to lavish her palm with his attentions in place of her still-exposed thigh. “Good. You work too much, already.” 

“I work as much as is needed,” she corrected, once again pulling away from his mouthing to tilt his head back further. Her thumb and forefinger gripped his chin tight and forced his face up, until his storm silver met her rather unimpressed gold. “And if I recall, is it not your duty to ensure that I can continue to do so?” 

“As your guard, it is my duty to keep you safe,” he corrected quietly, taking gentle hold of her wrist. His thumb was like rose petals as it traced down her arm, skirting tendon and tender veins. “And as your lover, it is my duty to keep you satisfied. A difficult enough thing to do as it is without you sneaking from bed after promising last night that I could return your favor come morning.” 

“I would have already been done by now had you left me alone,” she pointed out. 

Hungrily, his eyes danced across her form, long hair unbound and body draped still in her sleepwear: nothing but a whisper thin gown of sheer linen. She knew how she must have looked to him, but still she held her ground, her gaze, and was not entirely displeased by the look of yearning she saw. 

“You ask an impossible task of me,” he murmured, voice thick. She grinned. 

Stooping, she stole a gooseberry kiss from his lips, and then another when she couldn’t resist the sweetness of him. “But I ask it regardless,” she whispered. “Return to your post, Captain Lavellan. I promise I will be along shortly, and from there you can attempt to satisfy me to your heart's content as promised. Otherwise, I will need to order you from this room.” 

His eyes flashed dangerously with her promise. “I would like to see you try it.” Still, he stood and went, and Talenna took plenty of joy in watching him go. He really was such a distraction to her. But even so, she would need to convince him to go about naked more often. It was a very good look for him.