Written in response to a prompt from an Anders group on the BSN. The prompt was "misguided." Although this is applicable to so much Anders does, I decided to go a more ridiculous route.


"Hawke."

Adel froze at the sound of Aveline's voice. At her side she could see Anders tense and that made her tense as well. What did you do? she asked him silently with an arched brow. He offered her an expression that was probably supposed to look innocent but came out looking like he was having stomach problems. So he had probably done a lot of things. But any that Aveline would know about? Or bother her about?

She grabbed on to Anders' hand and spun around to face Aveline, turning Anders around as she did. Aveline was still making her way down the many stone stairs from the Keep. Adel moved a little closer to the Estate, eager to move whatever scolding was about to come somewhere a bit more private.

When Aveline got closer, Adel noticed that there was a sizable stack of parchment tucked under one of the guard captain's arms. Considering the number she found scattered throughout her house before Anders had ever moved in, the first thing that came to her mind was his' manifesto. He seemed as genuinely confused as her, though, so she dismissed that thought.

"Good morning Aveline," she said brightly as the ginger haired woman finally reached them.

"I'm surprised you're up and about so early," Aveline said by way of reply.

Vague memories swirled back from the night before. Everyone had gathered at the Hanged Man. Adel usually avoided getting drunk if only to keep Anders company in his forced sobriety. However, she'd made the ill choice to accept when Isabela offered to buy her another drink. What exactly been inside of that mug, Adel still didn't know but it had left the rest of the night a blur.

"Oh, Anders took care of the hangover," she replied. She pat the mage in question on the arm. "That's the handy thing about having a Healer in the house."

"I'm not talking about you getting drunk, Hawke. I'm talking about what came afterward," Aveline said with a deep frown. Her voice was flat and tight.

"I don't really remember anything past... singing? I think I remember singing," Adel explained.

She looked at Anders but he held up his hands. "Don't look at me," he said. "You sent me home when I tried to get you to stop drinking whatever foul thing Isabela had gotten you. You declared that Justice was a prick, and not the good kind."

Adel winced slightly. Though he surely would have known she hadn't meant it, she was sure the comment had hurt Anders at the time.

"I thought you deserved a night of fun," Anders said. There was a small frown pulling at the corners of his mouth that betrayed his mixed feelings on the matter. "Besides, I thought our good Captain was supposed to bring you home."

Anders sent an accusing glare at Aveline. Clearly that wasn't how things had turned out, but Adel couldn't remember anything. She had no idea how she'd gotten from the Hanged Man to her bed.

"So... you didn't I take it?" she asked Aveline.

Aveline sighed and pressed a palm against her pale forehead.

"I tried. You declared that you had finally convinced Isabela to use her 'talents' to help the mages," she said. "I did not want to stick around to see what that meant."

Adel scrunched up her face as she tried to remember anything more from the night before. She had brief flashes of giddy triumph. She gave Aveline a sheepish smile.

"So I take it that's what you're here about?" she ventured.

Aveline took one of the sheets out from under her arm and thrust it at Adel. "It's time to come down hard on the Grand Cleric's inaction." she read aloud. Adel blinked in confusion for a moment and then her blue eyes went wide. "Maker, is that... Sebastian? What is he-"

Before she could think what to do with the offending piece of parchment, Anders snatched it out of her loose grip. A wide smile broke out across his face followed by raucous laughter. Passersby started to stare, so Adel shuffled everyone into the Estate.

"Oh. That is good," Anders practically purred when he finally managed to contain his glee.

"Found nailed to the door of the Grand Cleric's office," Aveline sighed. "And that's not the worst one."

Adel was too mortified to ask what else she and Isabela had done. Anders, however, was quick to grab the rest of the stack from Aveline.

"No staff should be bound by the hands of the Chantry. Why have I never seen a staff carved like that?" Anders waved the picture in front of Adel's face. Scarlet tinged her cheeks. Anders flipped through the rest of the stack, reading each one out loud as he went. "Let your mage pride show. Huh. I'll have to start calling it that."

"Please don't," Adel pleaded through the hands that were now covering her face.

"The touch of magic is not a curse but a gift. Wait. That looks like me. Although, I can't say I've ever tried to heal anyone in the clinic quite like that," Anders mused.

By this point, Aveline was looking resolutely at the wall. She was doing her best to look stern, but not entirely succeeding. She seemed an equal mix of embarrassed and horribly amused.

"Oh look. This one has both of us. The Champion of Kirkwall- On top of the mage cause."

"WHAT!"

Adel snatched the stack of parchment away from Anders. The red on her cheeks spread all the way to her ears and up into her scalp. Anders peered over her shoulder.

"That's not a bad drawing," he commented lightly.

"That was nailed to the door to the Viscount's Throne Room," Aveline commented.

"Wait," Adelynne said, squinting at the image in front of her. "How did Isabela know I have a tattoo there?"

"I didn't notice any tattoo," Aveline said. She started to look over when Adelynne chucked the whole pile into the fireplace.

"Wait, what do you mean you don't remember seeing a tattoo?" Adel fixed the Guard Captain with a mortified gaze. "You looked at all of these? Even this one?"

Aveline coughed lightly. "I didn't find all of them myself. I had to make sure what my guards were saying was true before I started making any accusations. But I'll let you off this time Hawke. Just make sure not to try any more drunken campaigning with Isabela."

With that Aveline quickly excused herself before Adel could stop her. Adel buried her face in her hands once again.

"Too bad you threw them in the fire. Those might have gone nicely with my manifesto," Anders quipped. "Although that last one I might have kept for personal reference."

Adelynne groaned. "I can't believe Aveline saw that. And the other guardsmen. And who knows who else!"

"While I appreciate Isabela and your efforts, Kirkwall might not be ready for your sort of mage revolution," Anders said. "Next time leave the crusading to me."