Disclaimer: I tragically do not own Dragon Age.

Author's Note(s): This story is set pre-Leliana's personal quest to Valence.

Lost and Found
Chapter 1

When the bright flash of green had lit up the rookery, Leliana ignored it at first. It wasn't the first time Dorian had being practicing some untoward magic that got out of hand in the library, much to Grand Enchanter Fiona's irritation, and she very much doubted it would be the last. Naturally, she had her people keep a close eye on what he was doing, but for the most part Leliana chose to leave the man to his own devices. There was no point in pretending she understood the intricacies of magic beyond the scraps of information she had picked up from her Warden over the years.

One of her birds cawed loudly and she paused. The library had fallen suspiciously quiet. Until-

"Dorian," Solas' voice called from somewhere below them all. "What did you just do?"

"Nothing," Dorian's voice sounded just a mite too casual. "Nothing at all, good fellow. Everything is fine. Nobody was...uh...caught in the crossfire of a spell gone amiss." There was the sound of books toppling to the ground. "No need to come up here if that's what you're suggesting." A crash of what sounded like armour and muffled cursing in a language Leliana was only partially familiar with.

She sighed and laid her quill down on the desk in front of her. She could already hear one of her agents racing up the steps two at a time. Never a dull moment.

"Sister Nightingale," the dwarven woman panted before she'd barely entered the room.

"Yes?"

"I think you'd better see this," the dwarf said with a wild look in her eyes.

"And I should be expecting..." Leliana prompted, as she rose gracefully from her chair.

"Um...Well Lady Pentaghast was..."

Leliana picked up the pace. Not a force in Thedas would be able to stop Hurricane Cassandra from murdering Dorian if she'd been caught in some kind of magical experiment. It was hard for the woman to keep her prejudices at bay at the best of times and the lack of angry shouting from said woman was most alarming.

She was almost at the bottom of the spiral staircase when the bickering started. Although bickering was probably not the correct word to describe the angry rant that Grand Enchanter Fiona seemed to have launched into.

"Just what were you thinking!" the woman yelled, waving a book in her hand at Dorian like she was about to beat him with it. Leliana paused in the doorway and took in the scene from across the library. Even for an elf Fiona was an exceptionally short woman, and yet somehow she cut quite the frightening figure even as the other mage towered over her. "Of all the irresponsible-" Fiona stopped as though she wasn't even sure how to describe her utter irritation. "Did you learn nothing from Redcliffe?" Leliana frowned at that, still not able to see whatever crime Dorian had actually committed.

"My good woman," Dorian said, seizing the chance to interrupt the flow of anger while still stepping back nervously, but Fiona was having none of it.

"I just hope for all our sakes you know how to reverse this!" Fiona gestured to something low on the floor. "Things are hard enough for the mages without you undoing any amount of goodwill with your selfish experimentations and total disregard for the consequences of your actions!"

Having seen enough, Leliana pushed herself from the shadows and edged her way around Helisma's research station. It was late in the evening so the library was quiet save for one of her agents lurking behind a bookcase and Dorian and Fiona herself...and apparently Cassandra, though Leliana worryingly had yet to spot her.

"Dorian," she said. The two mages turned to look at her and all colour drained from the man's face.

"Sister Nightingale. I was just-" He stopped when Leliana held up a hand.

"Where is Cassandra?" she asked.

"Ah...well." Dorian straightened out his robes nervously. "About that..."

"She's here," said Fiona, pointing to behind the bookcase she was stood closest to. The scowl on her face softened and that set off warning bells in Leliana's head like nothing else could. Rarely had Leliana seen the elf's face display anything but a displeased glower.

"It's not as bad as it looks," said Dorian hurriedly as Leliana brushed past Fiona to see what all the fuss was about.

She froze in place.

"It was an accident!"

"That is quite the accident, Dorian," said an accented voice behind Leliana, and only years of training kept her from jumping in fright. Somewhere during her distraction, Solas had entered the library.

Leliana forced herself to walk forward, stepping over a scattering of books, and knelt down before the unconscious woman. Or girl would probably be the more accurate noun, for that was who lay uncomfortably on the ground in front of her. Nothing more than a child. Her black hair was longer, reaching just below her shoulders and her face was fuller, but the person in front of her was still undeniably Cassandra Pentaghast. Behind her she dimly noted Solas and Dorian discussing the magic that had been used and something about a disturbance in the fade with the occasional interjection from an angry Fiona.

"Cassandra?" Leliana said, reaching forward to run a gentle finger down a no longer scarred cheek. The girl didn't stir. She turned back to the mages. "Can you fix this?"

Dorian opened his mouth but it was Solas who answered her. "Without more research it would be to dangerous to attempt another transformation so soon. We don't actually know what Dorian did. I take it this was not the intended consequence?"

Dorian shook his head rapidly. "Of course it wasn't!"

"Then what exactly did you think you were doing?" Fiona folded her arms and glared.

"I was just...toying with some of the magic we discovered in the future at Redcliffe. I had no idea the Seeker was standing so close...or that it would have such a dramatic effect."

Leliana stood up then and the three mages fell silent, watching her warily. "You were told not to touch that magic again," she said, keeping her voice low. "In fact, I believe you were told to destroy all of your research on the subject."

"Yes, well..." Dorian shifted nervously and Leliana's lip curled into something resembling a snarl. She'd read every single report that had crossed Josephine's desk about the incident at Redcliffe, and the destruction of everything to do with the dangerous magic being used that day had been the first thing all three of the Inquisitor's advisors had agreed on since they'd decided to form the Inquisition all those months ago. Nobody should have that kind of power.

She made sure to keep her voice even but just below the surface her blood simmered with rage. "You will find a way to fix this and then you will destroy every last piece of knowledge you have ever gathered in this area of magic. When that is done you and I will revisit this discussion. Do I make myself clear?"

With wide eyes, Dorian nodded. "Of course, Sister Nightingale." He laughed awkwardly. "How could I refuse such a reasonable request from such a beautiful woman."

Perhaps seeing the murder in her eyes, Solas took a small step forward. "It is possible that in time this magic will wear off on it's own, but if it does not we may never find a reversal spell without Dorian." Solas paused. "Stay your hand, Leliana." She pursed her lips, not even having noticed the twitch she'd made towards one of the hidden daggers by her hip. "For now at least."

"You wound me, Solas," said Dorian, clutching a hand to his heart. Fiona's hands balled into fists.

Behind her, there was a quiet groan and in an instant Leliana was back on her knees in front of Cassandra. The girl's eyelids were fluttering and she shifted awkwardly in the metal breastplate that was now much too large for her. Leliana's hands found the buckles to the armour and began to undo them.

"Cassandra?" she asked. The girl groaned again and her hands twitched.

Solas knelt down beside her and peered at Cassandra with a critical eye, making Leliana stiffen. There was something about the elven mage that made the hairs on the back of her neck prickle. Of course the man had done nothing to deserve the mistrust as far as she knew. She just always felt like there was something he was holding back and by now Leliana had learned to trust her instincts. She brushed the thoughts aside as Cassandra finally managed to open her eyes.

Leliana held her breath as the girl stared at her uncomprehendingly. Then her eyes widened with fear and she tried to scramble back but got caught in the armour.

"Here, let me," said Leliana, quickly undoing the last buckle and pushing the metal weighing down the girl's chest.

Cassandra leapt to her feet and stumbled away from them, the oversized clothing tangling between her limbs and making her unsteady.

"It seems she does not know who we are," Solas observed, needlessly, before rising to his feet and resuming his academic discussion with Dorian.

Mentally, Leliana cursed them both for leaving her to deal with the frightened child alone. She tried to smile but the expression felt foreign on her face and it must have shown because if possible the girl looked even more panicked than before.

"Cassandra, it's okay," she said, in the softest voice she could muster.

"How do you know my name?" Cassandra asked in Nevarran. Tears were forming in her eyes now. "Where am I? Where is Anthony?" The last question caused a twinge of pain in the heart Leliana no longer believed herself to possess. Long before the Inquisition and even before Divine Justinia's coronation Leliana had learned everything there was to know about Cassandra Pentaghast, from her ascension to Right Hand to her love of trashy romance novels. The tragic fate of beloved older brother, Anthony Pentaghast, was one of the first pieces of information she'd gathered.

"My name is Leliana," she finally said in her best Nevarran. She was a little rusty in the language but was sure she knew enough to get by with a child of...six? Perhaps seven.

"Hello, Leliana," little Cassandra sniffled. "Where is Anthony, please?"

Leliana noted that the child did not ask for her legal guardian. "Your brother brought you here so we could take care of you while he hunts a dragon in the Hinterlands," she lied.

Cassandra's stance relaxed but her eyes narrowed in suspicion. It was a look Leliana was very familiar with on the other woman's face and that thought brought out a smile more believable than her last. Apparently some things never changed.

"Fiona," she then said, knowing the woman was hovering somewhere behind her. "Please could you fetch Lady Montilyet? And the Inquisitor. I believe they are in Josephine's office." There was a brief pause before Fiona replied in the affirmative and Leliana listened to her short-gaited footsteps quickly take her away from the library.

Ellana Lavellan trailed after Grand Enchanter Fiona rather miserably. She'd been so close to coaxing Josephine away from that small mountain of work piled up on her over large desk and back to her quarters for a glass of wine when the interruption had come in the form of sharp knocking on the door and a perpetually angry elf demanding both their attention. Ellana had been in half a mind to refuse and just drag Josephine to bed but then the words 'Sister Nightingale' had been thrown out there and well...nobody refused Leliana if they knew what was good for them. Not that Ellana was just a little bit terrified of their spymaster. Not even one jot. She didn't still jump at sudden shadowy movements out of fear it was Leliana come to reassert herself as Josephine's personal bodyguard and shank her for defiling her friend. That would just be ridiculous after all.

"And we're going to the library?" Ellana asked.

Fiona huffed and cast a disparaging look backwards at her. "As I told you less than thirty seconds ago, the problem at hand is better seen than explained."

"So what you're saying is-"

"My lady," Josephine interrupted. "Perhaps our time would be better spent reaching our destination than bothering our guide."

She opened her mouth to protest but then thought better of it. "Very well." The grateful look Josephine shot her made it completely worth it. She knew her ambassador had been working diligently to foster better relationships with the mages in Skyhold for months, and though she denied any longer being the Grand Enchanter, keeping things cordial with Fiona went a long way towards that. A lot of the mages still looked to her for guidance.

They followed the elf through the main hall, waving to Varric in greeting as they passed. He barely looked up, however, thoroughly engrossed in whatever he was writing. Definitely going to the library then, Ellana thought, as they then passed through Solas' empty room and moved to the stairs. Or maybe Leliana's creepy bird room. Every time she went up there Baron Plucky or Lord Featherbrain or Countess I-Want-To-Peck-Your-Eyes-Out-And-Consume-Your-Soul...it was something like that...would stare at her and caw aggressively until she left. She was almost certain the spymaster had purposely trained them to react poorly to her presence. Ironic, that someone with as firm religious beliefs and ties to the Chantry as Leliana could keep such unholy demon beasts as pets.

Thankfully, the person they were looking for was in the library along with Solas and a...strangely guilty looking Dorian. Oh no. That couldn't be good. Ellana briefly wondered if she should have brought her knives with her.

"Inquisitor!" said Dorian, as he side stepped to block her view of Leliana and whatever it was she was doing on her knees. "What a pleasant surprise. And Lady Montilyet, you are looking particularly lovely this evening."

Ellana felt her eyes narrow. "What did you do, Dorian?"

"Yes, Ser Pavus," said Fiona, sliding past Josephine and making her way over to where Solas was leaning over some documents at Dorian's usual research station. "Why don't you tell the Inquisitor exactly what the problem is here and who is responsible." She continued muttering darkly then about arrogant nobles until she was out of earshot.

Before Dorian could answer, Leliana rose to her feet and beckoned the two women over. The hood that usually cast dark shadows over her face was pushed back allowing Ellana to see the troubled glint in her eyes.

Sidestepping the mage and a rather sizable pile of books, Ellana and Josephine made their way over to the bard.

"Good evening, Leliana," said Josephine, a polite but curious smile playing about her lips. Ellana caught herself staring at said lips and quickly looked away. That was when the small hand clutching at Leliana's robe caught her attention and she frowned. A child?

"Josie," Leliana replied in greeting with a shallow bob of her head. "Inquisitor. I'd like to introduce you to Cassandra Pentaghast."

Leliana took a short step to the left, revealing the small, dark haired girl trying to hide behind her.

"Oh my!" Josephine clamped her hand to her mouth. Ellana just blinked stupidly. "What happened?"

"Our resident Tevene mage happened," said Leliana, her lilting accent just a little more pronounced than usual. The man in question caught attention turning to him and made quite the show of looking like he was very busy picking up books from the ground. "Using magic that was expressly forbidden I might add."

Ellana wasn't even sure what to say about that. Oh wait. Yes she did. "Well...shit."

"Indeed," replied Leliana. Young Cassandra refused to meet anyone's gaze and nervously played with the fabric of Leliana's robe. "As of yet we are unsure how to reverse the spell."

"That is...most unfortunate," said Josephine. She was already scribbling away at the ever-present clipboard, nose scrunched up in thought. "Of course she will need some new clothes."

For a moment, Leliana looked relieved that someone else was taking charge but as soon as the expression appeared it was gone. Ellana couldn't say she was surprised; what she knew of their spymaster didn't lend itself to the idea that she was particularly good with children. Still, it amused her to know that the unflappable Sister Nightingale was at least a little...flapped by this twist of events.

"What are we going to do with her? I mean..." Ellana stopped for a second and thought. "There are children in Skyhold, right? What do they do in the day?"

"You're knowledge of the workings of your own castle are astounding," said Leliana. She said it so pleasantly it was almost possible to miss the deep sarcasm in her voice.

"Leliana," Josephine chided.

"Leliana," said another voice. Three sets of eyes dropped to the child tugging at Leliana's clothes and she seemed to shrink into herself at the attention.

The response Leliana gave was not in a language Ellana understood, but Cassandra seemed to and replied in kind. Seeing her confusion, Josephine leaned over and quietly explained that at this age, Cassandra would only be able to speak in her native tongue. Ellana nodded, unable to drag her eyes away from the tiny form of her fearsome colleague. It was hard to equate the strong, determined woman she knew with this fearful little girl. Somewhere in the back of her mind Ellana had imagined Cassandra to have been born as a fully formed adult, Seeker armour and pointy sword included.

"This is Josie and Ellana," Leliana told the girl.

"Oh! Yes," said Ellana quickly. Cassandra peered up at her curiously. "Hi, Cassandra." She held up a hand in a semi-wave.

"Hello, Lady Cassandra," said Josephine, offering the girl a kind smile. Cassandra frowned though, seemingly not caring for the title placed before her name. She said something to Leliana in Nevarran and it made the woman smile and Josephine giggle. Ellana shot a glance at the latter.

"You speak Nevarran?"

"At a conversational level," Josephine told her with a coy little smile. "Cassandra was asking if you are an elf. I think she wants to touch your ears."

Ellana had to laugh at that. "I'd rather she didn't." She already couldn't wait for Cassandra to get back to normal so she could poke fun at her for this. Maybe. She did still value her life so it would depend on what kind of mood the Seeker was in she supposed.

"Of course not, my Lady," Josephine acquiesced. Her eyes sparkled with good humour.

They turned back to the problem at hand just as Leliana finished explaining whatever it was she was talking about with little Cassandra. The girl looked sullen but less frightened of them than she had when they'd first arrived.

"Right, so does anybody have any idea what we're going to do with her?" Ellana asked. "If she doesn't speak our language we can't very well put her with the rest of the kids." She paused. "Can we?"

"Of course not," Leliana said. Then quieter, "And I don't think Cassandra would thank us for it later, no?" The frown on the girl's face deepened at the sound of her name and tone in which it was being uttered. Ellana's heart went out to her. She must be so confused. "Josie, is there anybody else in Skyhold who speaks Nevarran? Someone trustworthy."

Josephine thought for a moment. "Other than you and I? I am unsure."

"It's a bit late to start asking around for a babysitter," Ellana pointed out. "One of you will just have to take care of her tonight."

"The rookery is not a suitable place for a child," Leliana said quickly.

"I..." Josephine began, then she sighed gently. "Of course for one night I can keep an eye on our new houseguest."

That bottle of wine left open to breathe out on Ellana's balcony was looking further and further away but she forced her expression to remain neutral despite the disappointment brewing in her gut.

Hesitantly, Josephine passed her clipboard to Ellana and knelt down before the child and said something in halting Nevarran. Cassandra regarded her for a moment before shaking her head violently. Obviously, Ellana did not understand what the girl said in reply but the word 'Leliana' was unmistakable, as was the look of alarm on the woman's face.

"Well," said Ellana brightly as Cassandra buried her face in Leliana's purple robe. Her evening plans with Josephine were coming back into focus. "The kid has spoken. Looks like she's staying with you tonight, Sister Nightingale."

Josephine rose to her feet and looked between the two women. "Perhaps-"

"Very well, Inquisitor," said Leliana, her face now impassive.

"Excellent," replied Ellana, clapping her hands together. "I'm glad that's settled."

Author's Note(s): Hi :-) Okay so I know this trope is super cheesy and overdone but I'm totally new to the fandom (and the games) so I'm still sort of finding my feet with these characters and the Dragon Age world and I thought I'd try something not too dramatic. If anyone spots any mistakes or anything that doesn't really work then I'd be grateful if you'd drop me a line and I'll try to fix it. Also, I'm in the market for a beta reader if anyone is not too busy and wouldn't mind lending a hand.

Thank you for reading :-)