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The Storm Coast. Again.
The quartet were making their way inland, searching the areas Scout Harding had said the Inquisition scouts had sighted Darkspawn on the surface. There was a large cavern at the mouth of the river they were tracing. It was a perfect place for the creatures to emerge from and disappear into.
Cole, constant companion and much loved friend, was splashing alongside in the shallow runoff, pausing every now and then to examine the ripples around his ankles or the rainbow of rivulets over the smooth river rocks.
The Iron Bull was just behind the rogue, a huge axe strapped to his broad grey back. Head up, always on the alert. The dawnstone great-axe Leaf had had crafted for him shimmered with his movement in the misty air. It was an oddly cheerful sight, considering its purpose.
Leaf Lavellan sighed as he heard the first drops of yet another downpour beginning. He normally didn’t mind the rain much at all, but –
“Fasta Vass.”
-the presence of a delicately tempered-
“Venhedis. Footing's rather slick around here.”
-and rather grumpy when wet-
“Kaffas!”
-necromancer was beginning to put a bit of a damper on his spirits.
“It’s just rain, Dorian,” Leaf smiled, hoping there was no incorrect tone to his words. “Makes flowers bloom and trees green.”
“Cool drops on sunburnt skin. Soothing liquid sliding through throat and belly. Better than any ale in the tavern.”
“It can also catch in the lungs and make breathing quite wretched,” Dorian complained. “Not that this is something that happens to me personally. But it happens.”
“But, I thought you liked the humidity?” Cole asked, perplexed.
“I could do without the cold.” Dorian groused. “Why is it always so cold? How do you southerners stand it?”
“If you aren’t killed by the cold, you do realize we’re in loose, rocky hills? Stones, kicked loose by a ram or a halla as we walked under a mountain trail, could also fall on our heads and dash our brain out across the ground.” Leaf shrugged as Dorian glanced up. “It happens. Now wouldn’t that be a glorious end to our little band of travelers?” Leaf grinned. “Imagine the obituary Varric would have to write.”
“What was it he said about one of his books? ‘Rocks fall; everyone dies’?” Dorian asked, pleased to have something to distract him from the rain.
“Yeah, he had to re-write the ending to that one because it pissed so many people off.” Iron Bull added, his eyes focused ahead on the bend in the river. “No sign of the Darkspawn yet, but we’re getting closer to where the scouts said they saw them. Stay alert.”
“It must be nice, being an author,” Dorian said to no one in particular. “You can completely change the world of no one quite likes it.”
“It’s never that easy,” Cole said quietly. “Someone always likes it better the way it was.”
*** *** ***
“I am very much looking forward to a hot bath and an even hotter meal.” Dorian sighed as they exited the cavern. “This place reeks of rot and ruin.”
“And spiders.” Cole added.
Leaf shuddered. He was becoming less and less fond of rather grotesquely large bugs.
“Yes, and spiders. Fortunately, they all burn quite nicely. Thanks for your help, Dorian.” Leaf smiled. He hoped Dorian’s fire and lightning spells would be effective against the Darkspawn, and they had been. Dorian and Leaf were able to keep their distance from the creatures, trapping and distracting them while Cole slipped in behind and ended their miserable existences. The Iron Bull was at the most risk, the majority of his skin bare to the corrupting contagion. Fortunately, the Bull had several vials of Vitaar for extra protection.
“Where’s you learn to make that fire vial anyway?” Iron Bull asked as they began their trek back to the nearest Inquisition camp.
“Found the recipe at the Crossroads, of all places. Adan taught me, back at Haven. It’s, pretty much the only one I seem to have a talent for. I leave the rest to people who actually know what they’re doing.” Leaf ran his fingers through a section of his hair, the curls trapping him quickly in their damp, soggy knots.
“The little ice elf has a talent for making a bottle of fire. I love the poetry of it,” Bull chuckled, reaching out a hand to smooth over the wild brown tangle of Leaf’s sogging mane. He brushed the back of his knuckles across Leaf’s cheek, smiling fondly.
Leaf gazed up at the tall qunari, struck for a moment by the intimacy of the action. The shiver of heat in his belly brought a blossom of colour to his cheeks.
“Your horns look like obsidian in the rain.”
Leaf reached out to rest a hand on Bull’s chest, over Bull’s heart. The rise and fall as he breathed, the warmth of his skin, it was such a source of comfort. The sounds of the rain, the river, the wind in the trees. They blended together and faded away as Leaf look up into Bull’s beautiful grey-green eye; the rain moving in a slow, sparking waltz down the dark patch that covered the space where the other used to be.
“Ever kiss in the rain?”
“No. Why?”
“Want to?”
“Yes, please.”
Leaf stepped closer to Bull, tilting his head towards the grey sky. Bull’s arm wrapped around his waist and pulled him in closer still, pressing their bodies together as he bent down, down, down so their lips could touch. Leaf sighed happily, feeling their smiles meet, reaching up to wrap his arms around Bull’s thick, strong neck. Just a moment longer.
“There’s a footstool back at camp, you know!” Dorian called out.
Leaf and Bull broke apart with a quick bark of laughter.
“There’s nothing stopping you from going on ahead, ‘Vint.” Bull shook his head as he straightened up.
“Poor Dorian,” Leaf giggled as he and Bull walked up to join the other two men. “It’s your own fault at being so talented with magic, you know. Your fire is such a compliment to my lightening, and the howls of terror make things easier for Cole, what with everyone frozen in fear. You’re just too wonderful.”
“Charming, witty, and well-dressed. That’s me,” Dorian bowed with a flourish of his staff and a flash of white teeth as Leaf laughed. The Iron Bull sighed and shook his head, but his grin was obvious. Cole looked from Dorian to Bull, then back again.
“Dorian, am I handsome?”
“Are you what?” Dorian repeated incredulously.
“You say you're handsome all the time. Am I? I can't tell.”
“You're all right.” Dorian patted the younger man on the shoulder. “Might want to rethink the hats.”
“But I like my hats,” he pouted.
“Your hats are lovely, Cole.” Leaf wrapped his arms around Cole’s shoulders for a quick, gentle hug. “Now, let’s go back to camp before the bears catch our scent again. And we’re going to need to send a raven to Cullen, let him know the Darkspawn are taken care of for the moment. One less thing to worry about.”
The group headed back down the river; Dorian leading, Cole following, Leaf and Bull, side by side, trailing just a little behind. If they stopped a few times more to share a quick kiss, no one was in the mood to complain.