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“Ma se…se…r-ra…”
“Serannas.”
“Right. Ma seranias.”
A giggle. “No, not ser-ah-nee-ass; ser-ah-noss.”
Cullen sighed in frustration as he sunk further into his bed where he and Arian were laying side by side. “You’d think after being with you for this long I’d catch on to the whole Elven language,” he uttered sheepishly. “Suppose I’m just too Ferelden.”
The elf shrugged halfheartedly, offering him a sympathetic smile. “It’s no simple matter to learn a language. You’ll get it eventually. Don’t fret, lethallin.”
“Leth-ah-len. That means… cousin, right?” Cullen asked, then looked down at the woman expectantly, who was currently curled into his side.
“In a way… it’s more or less used to refer to someone who is close to you. Could be relatives, friends-”
“Lovers?” Cullen intercepted, kneading his fingers into Arian’s hip. The woman hummed in response, raising her head to press a kiss to his jaw.
“Possibly. There is a specific phrase for that, though.”
The man looked intrigued. “Really? I’ve yet to hear you say it.”
Arian laughed out loud. “Oh, I’ve said it. Mostly under my breath, though. I wasn’t going to just go around spouting it when we weren’t even together yet.”
Cullen offered her a smirk as he pulled her closer, his eyes squinting from mirth. “You’ve been in love with me for that long?” he questioned, his tone practically in awe.
“I have,” Arian murmured, kissing his cheeks, then his nose, and making him chuckle softly. “Ma vhenan.”
“Vhenan.” Cullen repeated perfectly, then smiled. “I have heard you say that, now that I think about it. It means… love?”
Arian twisted her lip in consideration. “Sort of… my people actually translate it as ‘my heart’. Means a lot more, that way.”
Cullen’s brow quirked at her comment, and so she decided to continue further.
“Love is just… well, it can be said at any time and not mean much. But vhenan, it’s serious. It means you’ve formed a bond with the person of interest. It means you’ve found a home with them, that they carry your heart for eternity.”
Cullen was silent for too long after that, and Arian felt a nervous cloud settle over her. Had she overstepped something?
But then, he shifted them so they were looking into each other’s eyes, and Arian's breath caught as she gazed into his brazen gold depths - filled to the brim with adoration.
“And… do you feel that way for me?” Cullen asked, his voice uncertain. His hand came up to cup her cheek, his touch akin to a person handling porcelain.
Arian didn’t know how to reply at first, but that didn’t stop her from slowly leaning forward and slanting her lips over his. Their kiss was solid, imperishable, and spoke so much more than words - in his tongue or hers, could even possibly hope to in that moment.
“Yes,” the elf finally breathed into his mouth. “Ne'emma sa’lath, ma vhenas, mir vhenan, bellanaris.”
“What does that mean?” Cullen inquired of her as he planted heated kisses down her throat, his voice a hoarse whisper.
Arian gasped when he left a suckling kiss to her collarbone, then replied, “Y-you are my one love, my home, and my heart, forever.”
The man pulled back slightly to look at her with a heartfelt expression, his eyes lidded and his breathing heavy.
“My one love,” he recited throatily, leaving a kiss to her forehead. “My home,” a kiss to her cheek. “My heart,” a kiss to her chin. “Forever.” And then he kissed her lips, rendering her breathless.
“Now repeat all of that back to me in Elven,” Arian challenged as they parted, giggling when Cullen left a tickling kiss to her nose.
“Ire abelas, ma vhenan,” he replied - almost accurately, “Doing so would likely butcher your beautiful language into utter nothingness.”
Arian quirked a brow at him, then tutted as she pulled away and sat herself upward - to Cullen’s confusion.
“Ir, not ire,” she corrected him, then shook her head in mock disappointment. “Such a shame, so very close.”
Cullen instantly smirked and reached for her waist, bringing her back into his arms and prompting her to squeal in laughter.
“You little minx,” he growled playfully, pressing stubbly kisses all over her face.
The two stayed curled up in one another until the Chantry bell rang from the gardens below, signalling the start of the working day for Skyhold and specifically the Inquisitor and her Commander.
They took their time in getting ready - both pausing quite a few times to admire the other, offer a suggestive touch, or exchange a kiss (or four).
Once they were finally situated, Arian stepped up to Cullen - whose enamored gaze was settled on her face, and smoothed out the front of his cloak. The sun’s soft rays were filtering through the cracks of wood in the ceiling overhead, casting a warm, comforting glow around the two lovers.
When his presentation was satisfactory, the elven woman tenderly looked up into Cullen’s eyes, which were a nearly shimmering molten amber, and offered him a bashful smile.
“Nehn elgara’ena, emma lath,” she whispered, and Cullen tipped her chin with his thumb and forefinger so he could plant a soft kiss to her mouth.
“Good morning, my love,” he echoed, smiling against her lips.