Pronunciation key:

Aria: Are-EE-Ah

Lenobia: Len-Oh-Bee-Ah

Naida: N-Eye-Duh

Chapter 1

The Beginning Of The End

"Aria!" One shouted.

"Hawke!" Another yelled.

I was standing in the middle of chaos with all of them coming at me. This isn't the first time this has happened, but it is different from other occurrences. Varric why couldn't you just keep your mouth shut? No time to think and this is the last thought I will have… Wonderful.

"Aria!"

"Aria? Are you up?" Someone said the smile evident in his voice.

I opened my eyes groggily and lay there for a moment registering his arm around me and his chest against my back.

"Well I am now." I said turning over a smile creeping onto my lips as I laid eyes on Fenris's face.

"Good. I thought you would never get up." He smiled and kissed me. I looked at how close we were how much we were touching and saw the pain in his eyes. I scooted away.

"Yes, well, it was a long night. But of course you know that." I smiled raising my eyebrows.

"Apparently so." He smiled back at me and it reached his eyes. Some of the pain was gone though not all of it. I wish there was something I could do but the only thing I can do is make the pain from his markings worse. "You have visitors." he added.

"What?" I asked jumping out of bed. "And no one told me? How long have they been waiting? Have they been served properly? And by the maker why did no one wake me sooner?" I asked hurrying around the room I shared with Fenris in my estate. They suggested as Viscount I should live in the Keep but I couldn't give up my estate. Not with all of its memories, both good and bad.

"Calm down will you?" He chuckled. "They aren't even here yet."

"What?" I asked shoving him playfully. "then why would you have me start about like that instead of letting me rest in the warm bed?"

"Because they will be here soon."

"Hold on. If they aren't here yet how do you know they are coming?"

"The maid was in and told me."

I hit myself on my forehead. "Of course the maid…why didn't she wake me up?" I mumbled to myself getting my robes out.

"Because you are an impossibly heavy sleeper. I swear we could march ten armies in here and you wouldn't wake up to it." Fenris teased.

"I wouldn't need to," I smiled at him over my shoulder and continued, "I could kill them all in my sleep." He laughed and shook his head as I finished dressing and he went to get the same armor he had been wearing since we met out of his armoire. "So who is paying me a visit anyhow?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

I was brushing my hair in the mirror and looked at him in the eyes through his reflection in the glass, "After all we've been through I think I would believe you if you told me an ogre was coming over for a cup of tea."

"It wouldn't surprise me much either. But this tends to be less believable…even for me."

"But its not the ogre?" I asked raising eyebrows.

He chuckled, "No not the ogre. Not that you would let it live anyhow."

I shook my head smile fading. "No. I would kill every last one of the bastards if I had the chance." I said suddenly angry. I couldn't even see my reflection anymore all I saw in the glass was Bethany being broken by that ogre over and over again. Fenris's hands were on my shoulder suddenly.

"I may not know what it is like to have family but I know what it is like to lose them and be betrayed by them. You have avenged your sister well. Although I also know that sometimes revenge cannot help." He told me staring at my reflection in the glass as I stared back at his.

I sighed. "Yes I know." I paused for a long time. We had both been through so much with completely different circumstances yet most of the pain we felt was the same. I had been betrayed by my uncle, lost my mother and my sister, forced out of my home and into this unknown world and I was constantly hunted and watched because I am an apostate. Fenris had lost his mother, also lost his sister to betrayal. Was hunted for being an escaped slave and he too was forced into this unknown world of Kirkwall. We each had little choice and I think it is one of the things that brought us together. I shook my head as if trying to shake away the frown and I turned towards him smiling. "But enough of this. Let us go to the keep to start our day and meet these unbelievable guests." We walked out of my room and down the stairs. I averted my eyes from the window. Mother had said she looked up through it all her days as a child and when I watched her, I would still see her look up through it. But when I averted my eyes, they landed on the now empty table that used to be sandals so he could do enchantments. I sighed. "Remind me to write Bodahn and Sandal, okay?"

"Of course." Fenris nodded walking out the door by my side. "The boy, Sandal, is an interesting one. He possesses some kind of power that none of us will ever understand."

"Yes well freezing an ogre as a statue is an unlikely talent." We walked through high town nodding hellos to anyone who bowed or greeted us. Well I nodded hello's Fenris was stiff as stone. He hated the public. We climbed the stairs and walked into the Keep. Once again, nodding hellos and calming those down that wanted to be in to see me right away. We no more turned the corner into my room when a dagger flew at us. Instinctively I reached out and froze it in mid air letting it drop to the ground.

"Damn your good." My eyes darted to my chair where who else but Isabella sat.

"Isabella? Is this the guest you were talking about?" I asked looking over to Fenris.

"No." He shook his head, "But still equally unexpected. And annoying."

"Yes, well, I thought it'd been to long since we last saw each other. And much, much too long since we last saw each other when we weren't covered in someone else's blood." Then she turned to Fenris and added, "Well your not exactly Mr. Sunshine yourself."

I smiled. "What brings you here, though?"

"More importantly who let you in here? Isn't this place supposed to be secure?" Fenris asked in a rough tone. He made it look as though he were angry at Isabella being here but I wasn't fooled. He was worried about me not being protected enough. Silly and unnecessary but I've come to realize he doesn't want to lose me and its become more flattering than annoying.

"As though she needs protecting, look at what she did to my poor heartbreaker." She said kneeling to pick the frozen dagger off the floor. "And I came here to see if you two lovebirds were married yet." She grimaced, "Ugh, married, I hate the word."

I laughed. "Well at least you haven't changed. No we are not married, why?"

"Well why not?" Isabella countered.

Fenris shook his head. "Marriage is unnecessary."

"Well if you enjoy being called her 'special friend' all of your lives that is fine with me. I was just letting you know that gossip about you two is never ending."

"Wait," I said before Fenris could get another word in, "Isn't Varric the one supposed to be filling me in on gossip?" I asked a bit sarcastically.

"Oh, he's too busy making it to fill anyone in on anything."

"I am hardly surprised." Fenris said sitting down in the chair they had placed next to the usual chair for a viscount.

"Well Varric is definitely a…different brand of dwarf."

"I know he doesn't even have a beard!" Fenris and Isabella exclaimed at the same time then looked at each other confused and appalled that they would think alike, which made me crack up with laughter.

"Shouldn't you be seeing to the helpless townspeople of Kirkwall's endless requests by now?" Fenris reminded me.

"Oh yes. I should." I said moving to take a seat.

"Well I guess that means I should go. The reason I came though is to tell you that you should see my new ship down at the docks soon!"

"You got a ship? What are you going to do with it first?" I asked putting on my crown.

"Who knows! The possibilities are endless! I might even steal the queen of Antiva!" She laughed, "Just please, please, please, come down and see my ship before I leave alright?"

"Alright we will." I said.

"I cannot believe you are subjecting us to the smell of rotting fish to see a hunk of wood." Fenris rolled his eyes.

"Good! Well I'll go now!" She said practically jumping with excitement into the hallway that is when she must've ran into someone. "Oh shit. Sorry about that." I heard her say in the distance as she continued to run off.

"Viscount Hawke you have guests." The Seneschal informed me appearing in my door way.

"Well send them in." I looked form him to Fenris and back. "I am dying of curiosity." It hadn't even been a whole year since the tower's unfortunate annulment and Meredith going crazy and trying to kill me. Who could be so unexpected?

"Hawke good to-" He paused when a woman elbowed him, "Er, I mean Viscount Hawke how good it is to see you again." King Alistair said bowing his head slightly and I did the same rising at the same time Fenris did.

"And it is also good to see you are well after all that has happened." A woman with short bright red hair said. She was standing next to him her arm in his and she had on Reapers Vestments robes as well as a Winters breath staff. She was a mage and powerful at that. It was not Alistair's turn to elbow her. She glared at him with a smile and turned to me. "Forgive me for not introducing myself I am used to my husband doing it properly," She clearly teased him as he rolled his eyes, "I am Len- Queen Lenobia of Ferelden." She bowed her head slightly.

I smiled, "It is a pleasure to meet you your highness and to see you again your majesty."

Fenris cleared his throat at me. "What?" I asked confused

He shook his head but I could see the small smile on his face, "Excuse her, she slept in too late and it must've messed with her head. This is Viscount Aria Amell Hawke and I am Fenris." He said bowing. I knew he hated to bow. He used to have to bow after everything Denarius said.

"Oh sorry. I forgot that…and oh, maker please come in and sit down! Sometimes I wish we could just forget all this formal stuff."

They both sat in chairs across from us and smiled. "Yes can we?" King Alistair asked. I saw Fenris give him a confused look.

"You see, we really hate all the formalities and trying-not-to-step-on-anyone's-toes attitude of these meetings. Alistair and I prefer much more casual settings although we rarely say anything because it can upset a great many people."

I saw Alistair shoot her a warning look. But I breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh thank the maker. It is really to early for me to be worrying about formalities please just call me Aria and of course call Fenris by his name." I said and Alistair relaxed in his chair.

"Please call me Alistair and this is my wife Lenobia as I'm sure you heard. I don't really like this king business much." I saw Fenris relax in his chair.

"Should you really be telling people that?" Fenris asked with careful curiosity.

"It doesn't matter if people here know it. And all of Ferelden already knows it. He used to stay out of the palace as much as possible just to avoid being in court." Lenobia told us and Fenris chuckled.

"Sounds like someone I know."

I smiled at him, "So what keeps him in the palace these days?"

"Our children, Bryant and Wisp."

"Yes I heard you went to great lengths to adopt them."

"Do you two have any children."

Fenris and I shared a look and I turned to them. "No…we aren't even married." I said cautiously. That one could get us on their bad side. Its hard to tell with people and I could feel Fenris worry beside me. He was of course good at hiding it from everyone except myself.

"Oh well I know how that was. We were together for quite a few months before splitting up." Lenobia told me.

"And she is persistent she chased after me for nearly two more years to make me open my eyes and see that she was the one."

"Well I know what you mean by having a persistent woman." Fenris said threading his fingers through mine.

"Which isn't a bad thing? Right?" Lenobia and I both said at the same time in the same tone. Everyone laughed.

"Well you certainly are Amell's." Alistair said.

"Oh that's right! I nearly forgot that you were an Amell. What is your mother's name?"

I swallowed hard and smiled, "Leandra."

I saw her eyes widen. "My mother was Leandra's eldest sister."

"I wonder why I never knew of you then." I wondered aloud.

"Perhaps because your mother was only five years old when mine left for a quiet farm life in Ferelden."

"Funny how all the Amell's seem to end up there and then here again." I mused aloud.

"Well we really cannot stay long but since this is your second week as Viscount we thought we would offer our congratulations." Alistair said clearly needing to leave.

"And we wanted to let you know Ferelden will give its support if it is necessary for the rebuild of Kirkwall." Lenobia added.

"You have Kirkwall's gratitude and my thanks." I told them to end on a more formal note. I could see the ease of it all slightly bothering Fenris he isn't used to much that we do around here. We bowed to each other.

"Have a safe trip home and know that when Kirkwall is stable you will in turn have our aid should you need it." I told them. But something unexpected was exchanged in a look between them. I can't tell what though, maybe surprise. Caution? Danger?

"Thank you. Good day to you both."

"Good day." Fenris and I said at the same time.

"Well, we have endless complaints to listen to." I said sitting back down.

He scoffed, "Yes the farmers need you to make it rain and the merchants need you to forge gold in front of them. Yet another fun filled day of impossible requests. Let's get it over with."

"I swear, if you and your ever bright outlook on life and people weren't by my side everyday I might have slaughtered all of Kirkwall by now." I told him sarcastically and he smiled as the Seneschal led the first person in.