[ Alex hasn't minded keeping his pace slower to keep Varric from being left to catch up- even with the scientists needing rescue ASAP, splitting the party before you get to the mission is never a good plan, even if that split is just a few yards of distance. Also, he'd feel (rightly) like an asshole if he outpaced him.

Also, he's probably been caught a couple times admiring Bianca. Sorry. She really is a great crossbow, and he can't help but think of the kind of work that went into making something like that in what he's gathering is a pre-industrial society.]

I'm getting the impression you're probably someone she'd enjoy a drink with. Of course, given her habit of traversing universes like she's got a dimensional Park-Hopper Pass, the possibility that you have had a drink with her isn't entirely non-existent.

[Grandma Alice does this kind of thing on purpose. At least she doesn't use eggs as dimensional gateways... that he knows of, anyway.]