Chapter Text
It was a beautiful day, and Josephine was fairly sure that she didn’t simply think so because of what had happened the night before. But certainly that didn’t hurt. (And what a wonder, that something so quiet, so tentative, so gentle–just a few words spoken, the clasp of hands, the warmth in Cassandra’s eyes, a single kiss that she could still feel upon her lips–should have the power to lift her heart, to bring new brightness to the world.)
It was a beautiful day, the sky a blue so deep it was nearly painful to the eye and the sun warm for once even at this elevation, and that was why she decided to take a mid-afternoon walk on the battlements for some fresh air. That was certainly the reason, and not the word that Cassandra and Cullen were sparring in the courtyard.
(She was very nearly able to convince herself of this.)
She stood looking down at the practice yard, arms folded on the cool stone and the wind attempting to tug her hair free of its chignon. It did not surprise her, much, to hear footsteps and then to feel as much as see Leliana settling next to her, mimicking her posture. “If you moon after her, Josie,” Leliana said, “people will notice.”
“I will have you know, I am far, far too dignified to moon,” Josephine said loftily, and laughed when Leliana nudged her with an elbow. “Yes, I know,” she said. “But I happened by, and she is a sight worth watching.”
“Oh you happened by, did you?"
"Mm.” Josephine said. “I notice you are watching as well.”
“Naturally,” Leliana said. “But everyone knows what a menace I am. No doubt I am simply plotting something deeply nefarious and not… enjoying the view. Enjoyable though it certainly is.”
They watched in silence for several minutes. Cassandra and Cullen were relatively evenly matched; Josephine didn’t know enough about sword-and-shield combat to assess them, but she knew it had to be true by how long the bout had gone on. Granted, she was paying less attention to their footwork and… sword-work, was that a word? …than she was to the lean grace of Cassandra’s body, the fluidity of her muscles beneath her armor, her agility and her fierce strength.
(She would make a wonderful dancer with just a bit of guidance. Oh, that was a lovely idea. Perhaps if Josephine was very careful and everything went well she could look forward to a dance at Halamshiral. Perhaps, perhaps….)
“You could just say something to her, you know,” Leliana said, breaking the silence. Josephine said nothing, just let her smile widen fraction by fraction until Leliana caught her breath and said, “Josephine! You did!”
“I am quite pleased with myself that I managed to go nearly three-quarters of a day without you finding out.”
“Last night, then?” She could see the wheels turning behind Leliana’s eyes, putting the pieces together. “After that dreadful–”
“Yes. I only meant to–well, I ended up saying more than I intended to when I sought her out. Fortunately… it worked itself out far better than I would have hoped.” She knew she was smiling so fondly, so foolishly, but she couldn’t help it, remembering Cassandra’s long fingers cupping her cheek, hope blooming in her golden-warm as the dawn.
“Well, then,” Leliana said, “I suppose I cannot blame you for mooning–or not-mooning, as the case may be. And I shall leave you to glow in peace.” Far below, Cassandra disarmed Cullen and knocked him back with her shield. Even from this far up, Josephine could see the wild exhilarated pleasure on Cassandra’s face, the companionable way she offered him a hand up. “But,” Leliana continued, “if you do not find me and tell me every detail before the week is out, I will hunt you down and wring it out of you.”
“Such threats, Spymaster,” Josephine said around the curve of her smile. She could not help but be a little smug, could she?
Down in the courtyard, Cassandra clapped Cullen on the shoulder, then turned and–oh. Josephine could tell the exact moment her eyes caught on her figure on the battlements (well, her clothes were designed to stand out, not to blend in). She considered for a moment pretending that she wasn’t watching, but… no, how foolish. What else could she possibly be up here for? So she decided to make a virtue of necessity, and lifted her arm in a silent salute. After a moment, Cassandra did the same.
“Mm, and you are found out,” Leliana said, pushing herself away from the wall. “The gardens are quite romantic at this time of afternoon."
"I don’t–” Josephine began, but Leliana was already gone.
The gardens were quite romantic at that time of afternoon. And nearly deserted. Mother Giselle was at her prayers in the chapel, and the herbalist was pottering around the planters, but that was all.
Josephine waited five minutes, and was just beginning to feel silly when Cassandra arrived, still in her training clothes and flushed with her exercises and incredibly beautiful, so much so that Josephine felt abruptly shy. (She wondered exactly what magic Leliana had worked to send her here, so quickly.)
“You… were watching?” Cassandra asked out of nowhere, not one to dance around a question.
“Well,” Josephine said, feeling her cheeks warm, “you are well worth watching. There was an entire circle of people around you two observing, after all."
Cassandra colored slightly. "They were watching for training reasons. Techniques. It can be useful to watch veterans spar."
Josephine wondered whether Cassandra really believed that, that her entire audience was simply there to pick up combat tips. It was quite possible: the woman could be most bafflingly modest. "Well, perhaps,” she said, and then, feeling bolder, “For me, it is simply that you are breathtaking when in your element."
The color rose higher in Cassandra’s cheeks, but she smiled, that soft smile that made Josephine’s heart threaten to stop. Her fingers found Josephine’s, her grip warm even despite her leather glove. "I am not good at… this. Compliments. But you, you are breathtaking always.” And for a moment Josephine thought that Cassandra would kiss her, but–no, not somewhere so public, not so soon. Instead, she lifted Josephine’s hand to her lips and pressed a kiss to her knuckles, warm and gentle but lingering just a moment longer than the simply courtly.
“You flatter me,” Josephine said, her breath lost in her throat.
And Cassandra smiled, really smiled, eyes crinkling at the corners. “Ask Leliana how often I resort to flattery,” she said, dryly, and then gestured to the door, and Josephine laughed as she followed her indoors.