#with kassandra.

[warplanet]

continued from here, with @yharnum

when she hears the tent flap flourish in the afternoon air and sees the eyes of those around her dart upwards, hypatia knows kassandra has joined them. kassandra, a rugged and dynamic warrior far taller than anyone else in the group, has provided many a detail, a fact, a helpful tidbit of knowledge to benefit the baby inquisition— and now, it seems, she seeks something else, something beyond that. who is hypatia to argue against this camaraderie if it benefits both of them?

indulge my cooperation, kassandra offers, and i can help you find ways to slow the venatori. that, alone, makes her advisors nearby stand at attention. they are silent, however, allowing hypatia (so new at this) to do the honors of negotiation. how lucky she is. "you know we'd be thrilled to have you fighting alongside us, kassandra," she offers, and while hypatia tries to hide her elation, it's evident in her smile. she likes kassandra. she admires her. peering upwards at the towering warrior, she goes on. "this arrangement furthers us both. you get what you need, plus a taste of battle as we deal with these venatori, and we get your assistance in tracking them."

she glances at leliana then, waiting for a nod of approval. when it comes, hypatia beams at kassandra. "you are even welcome at skyhold, if you'd like, our base of operations. i did not know your reasons for approaching us at first, but now... i am assured. you're a helpful sort." a bit of her true self peeks in. she prays it doesn't lessen kassandra's view of her. "may we speak in private after this? we can discuss payment."

[warplanet]

with @yharnum, hypatia and kassandra. — kassandra bids her time, the right moment to intervene; when the inquisitor refuses to halt her training to rest, she does not argue with her, only obliges with a gesture of her arm for the hero to continue. yet when the moment does come where the inquisitor at last falters, as she anticipates, the scoundrel is the first one there to catch hypatia. a hand on her back, and her arms moving swiftly— she wipes her off the floor and into her arms, grinning broadly. only a plume of dust remains where hypatia had once been standing. ❛  well then, have you had enough?  ❜

she's afraid that if she tells kassandra she wants to stop, the other woman will think less of her and assume her endurance is poor. maybe she'll assume hypatia is lazy and doesn't want to keep training. maybe she'll gaze into the tired eyes of an unpracticed warrior and scoff. how can this woman be expected to lead the mighty inquisition into battle if she can't even hold her own in a training session? that's why hypatia demands they continue, despite her own body screaming at her to cease. all the muscles in her arms throb with overuse, and her legs are nearly ready to give out. this will help me, she tells herself. kassandra is helping me. i'm not allowed to give up.

of course, she does falter. she does stumble. that last blow makes hypatia lose her balance, and she fully expects to go tumbling into the ground, faceplanting, maybe bruising her face or breaking her nose in the process. instead, kassandra catches her. it's... fluid. it is as effortless as a breeze sifting through the branches of a tall tree — she's falling, and then, seconds later, she's safe. the herald of andraste curls perfectly in the warrior's arms, sheltered, cautiously entwined in a haven of her strong arms. the inquisitor turns to blushing, cheeks burning, the sword she'd been carrying now deposited somewhere on the ground by their feet. wherever it is, she doesn't care; she cares far more about the warm smile, the pleasant laugh, and the kind, steady tone of the woman now cradling her in her arms. "oh." blinking, hypatia coughs. "you... i thought..." her messy black braid, half-unfurled from training, falls over her shoulder as she tries to look away... but maker, it's hard to look away. "thanks for catching me." hypatia meets kassandra's eyes as steadily as she can (without choking on her own tongue) and feels herself bite her lip. "maybe i should... call it a day. what do you think?"