She opens her mouth and then closes it again. It would be easy to tell him that he will not be able to save her, that he cannot prevent what is inevitable. But that seems too cruel. Robb is hopeful, carrying light where he may to bring her comfort. Who is she to dash his hopes and concerns? She exhales instead, nodding, her eyes on Grey Wind and the fire and nothing else. For a moment, she cannot face him.

But then he takes her hand and squeezes it, and she feels her heart thunder uselessly in her chest.

In Thedas, she was called fearless. She had faced an Archdemon and killed it. She had sacrificed everything for the people around her. She had become a commander in the face of adversity and destruction. But all of this pales in comparison to how Robb has made her feel and the kindness he has given her. It is overwhelming, all of it poured into a well in her heart that is now too full. She has never been very good with feelings or with romance. In the years after the Blight, she had a few dalliances, all of them physical and nothing more. She had sheltered her heart in stone.

Intentional or no, Robb was coaxing it out.

At length, she squeezes his hand back, tender in the gesture, and speaks softly: "I cannot thank you enough for your kindness." It sounds formal at first, and foolish, and she sighs. "You have given me more than you know, Robb. I am...incredibly lucky to have you beside me."