A/N: Written because in the X-Box version of the game, at least, Morrigan's makeup makes me think that she taught herself and she needs to tone it down. I can't help myself, I kept on thinking it through the whole game and since Leliana's a girly-girl, it only makes sense she'd try to 'help' Morrigan.

Makeup

Leliana nimbly stepped through the underbrush of the scarcely-used forest path that the Grey Warden opted to use for reasons she did not care to ask. Security from enemies, perhaps, it would be difficult for them to find us here, she thought as she saw Morrigan walking near her out of the corner of her eye. It was awkward to be around her especially after their recent conversation on the Maker. She didn't particularly like Morrigan, but they should at least be on speaking terms. Perhaps it would be best to help her in an area Leliana always knew she was lacking.

"Morrigan?"

"What is it now? I've no desire to talk of 'the Maker' that you seem to adore," Morrigan said after a moment's hesitation and did not move her gaze to match Leliana's, instead keeping it in front of her. Leliana frowned. They were not close, that was to be sure but Morrigan could at least be polite.

"It's not the Maker that I want to talk about," she said as she changed her speed to walk side by side with Morrigan. "There's something that I've been wondering about you for some time now."

"You've been 'wondering' have you?" Morrigan said, not masking the distaste she must have been feeling. "Out with it, then. I've no time for preamble of what 'tis presumably an insult."

"An insult?" her eyes were wide, that was the last thing she wanted Morrigan to think and with this in mind she decided to use a bit more tact to what she was going to say next. "Oh no, no, I believe that you've misunderstood me. I simply want to know where you learned to use makeup."

Morrigan stopped for a mere moment before she continued on, and Leliana knew that this was in surprise. "Where does any woman learn to use makeup?"

"I suppose most young girls learn from their mother," Leliana said upon consideration. "I, however, learned to use makeup first from Lady Cecilie when I was but a curious girl wanting to be as feminine as possible."

"You did not learn from your mother?" the tone was genuinely curious and this encouraged her to speak further.

"I am sure that if my mother had lived she would have been the one to teach me but she died when I was a young girl. It was the lady whom she was serving, Lady Cecilie, that raised me after that. She was so kind," Leliana said and she smiled fondly at the memories that ran through her mind. "She allowed me to use whatever makeup she was finished with and even let me wear some of her old dresses and hats so I could pretend to be grown-up."

"Ah, I see. That is a rather nice way to grow up," Morrigan said, and for once her voice and features were genuine. Yes. "To answer your question I have grown up in the wilds and Flemeth did not teach me how to use makeup, or even what clothes to wear. 'Tis something she thought was frivolous, I suppose, or perhaps she thought it something best I learn alone. I've learned how to use makeup from what I've seen of women wearing."

"I see, that explains it," Leliana said with a hand to her chin, studying Morrigan's face thoroughly.

"Explains what?"

"I mean you no offence, Morrigan, but your makeup looks like it could use a few adjustments. A little tweak here and there and it'd be perfect."

"How am I not to take offence from that?" she didn't seem as though she took Leliana's comment as anything but an insult.

"I don't mean to say that your makeup is bad or anything, especially since it's self-taught with no instruction," at Morrigan's silence, Leliana continued. "Your foundation happens to be very lovely, it matches the skin on your neck perfectly and you don't use more then is necessary. That is a common mistake, you would not believe how many young ladies I would see walking down the streets in Val Royeaux with the skin of their faces not matching the rest of their skin, and you can well imagine that these young ladies were rich enough to afford having people to give them advice on such things."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"Oh, you should, it was meant as one," Leliana said, encouraged by the response. "The contouring, however, leaves less to be desired. You contour your cheekbones to accentuate them but it is so harsh! You need to blend it more and use less product if you wish it to be less noticeable."

"I desire it to be noticeable. Is that not the point of using makeup?"

"Not at all. The whole point of makeup is subtly, in order to accentuate the features you already have and I hate to say it but there is no subtly in yours. I am sure that you want it to have a bold statement, no? But your eyeshadow and lip colour have the opposite effect. If you want to stand out you should put the bold colour on one of those, not on both. If you do that the eye does not know where to look first, and it does not give a good impression-"

"Ah, could you save this advice for someone that would have a use of it? Alistair, perhaps?"

"Hey," came Alistair's voice from behind them. "I do not need any advice on makeup."

"Are you quite sure? 'Tis not 'natural' enough, from what I've seen," Morrigan said with a shrug of her shoulders before she quickened her pace, to get away from Leliana it seemed.

"It is not polite to eavesdrop, Alistair," Leliana said without turning around to see his expression but somehow felt that talking to Morrigan about such things would prove futile. She sighed, if only there were someone that she could talk to about these things, someone that would listen.