CHAPTER 1

Another gust of wind hit the side of the mountain, and although there was a forest in its surroundings, it barely did anything to hold back the merciless onslaught of the weather. Slumped against the trunk of a tree—between shivers and clattering teeth—Marian Hawke muttered several obscenities directed at the cold.

She was starting to wonder why she had taken this assignment in the first place. After four years in Kirkwall, she didn't have any need for horrid endeavors like this one anymore and yet, she had accepted. It hadn't been out of just her noble inclination toward righting the wrongs of the world, because she could've brought the others for that. It certainly hadn't been about the coin—the Hawke family now had enough to throw away. So, if Marian Hawke had to put her finger on one main reason for her undertaking this mission on her own, it was the fact that she wanted to get away from everything.

Although her life had improved in many aspects after the expedition to the Deep Roads, it had also deteriorated in many others. Not only had Bartrand—flesh and blood of her good friend Varric—betrayed them all, but she had returned to find her sister being taken to The Gallows. Years of being careful had vanished just like that, in an instant. Now her sister had to join the other mages in that awful prison the Templars liked to call a Circle of Magi. Even worse, Bethany would surely suffer their scorn for being an apostate for years.

With her sister gone, Marian had very few people around that could support her in her times of need.

Isabella didn't want to be deeply involved with anyone, and after that playful romp in the new Hawke estate, the pirate had made herself quite scarce. Merrill was supportive and a good listener, but her culture and views of the world were too different for Marian to handle at this time.

There was Varric too. He was always willing to have people open to him, but even though he was an excellent listener, he didn't have much to contribute when it came to the matter of feelings. That, and the fact that Marian did not wish to add to the dwarf's troubles, he was after all the person most directly affected by Bartrand's betrayal.

Speaking of not adding to people's troubles, Marian had avoided worrying her mother any more than absolutely necessary ever since their arrival at Kirkwall. Mother had enough in her plate with the untimely death of Carver, and not too late afterward with Bethany being spirited away to that Maker forsaken place. This was the natural thing for Marian to do. With her brother and sister gone, she had to be strong for her mother, because losing two of your children in such a short span of time had to be more than devastating.

Was there even a point in considering Fenris and Anders? One was so consumed with his quest for vengeance that he barely noticed what happened around him, unless it was an incoming attack—one really had to commend his combat awareness, it was as if the elf had a sixth sense. Then came the latter of the two, who was absolutely absorbed in something entirely different—his own suffering. Anders was the master of self-pity, definitely not the kind of person you could bring your troubles to, unless they were of a purely physical nature—the man truly was an outstanding healer.

At the end of the list came Aveline, who obviously had enough to deal with and then some, since she had come to Marian for help. Although it wasn't the best option, or even one she would consider under different circumstances, Marian had decided to undertake the search for the criminal all on her own. Wanting to protect the others and not add to their current troubles was the perfect excuse for her to put a little distance from all the troubles in Kirkwall. If she had no one to support her, she might as well take some time away to think and find some inner peace. Ultimately, the mission had provided her with an opportunity, and so that was the main reason why she took it.

For several months, one criminal had been the scourge of Kirkwall. All over the city was the chaos left in his wake. From robberies to murders, from the filthy rich inhabitants of Hightown to the starving beggars in Lowtown. None had been spared. The city guardsmen knew it was just the one person behind all the crimes, because every witness although failing to provide an accurate description of the perpetrator's appearance, had agreed on one thing. The criminal seemed to enjoy having a chat with its victims—after he had sent them to the afterlife—and the accent in his voice was unlike anything else they had heard before.

When Marian had read the testimonies, the first thought that crossed her mind was that these people were all cowards of the worst kind. If they were able to identify this person's voice, yet could provide no description of his appearance, it meant that at the time they had been hiding in fear, but still had been morbid enough to remain in the vicinity. Maybe Kirkwall was beyond any redemption after all.

Once her angry thoughts had somewhat dissipated, she had noticed something else. This meant that the person in question obviously wasn't from Kirkwall or the Free Marches. Not even a Fereldan, since the number of refugees that had run from the blight to make the city of chains their new home was large enough to cause their accent to be known all over the place. Such a detail would surely prove pivotal in tracking and preparing to fight against this person.

At some point, the crimes had simply ceased, and not too long afterward, the city guardsmen received information about a suspicious stranger leaving the city and traveling northeast. In order to follow such a weak lead, which could very well turn into a wild goose chase, Marian had come alone to the middle of nowhere. After days of traveling away from Sundermount, she had crossed a bog and stumbled upon an elven camp near a mountainside forest, much like the one that used to be Merrill's home. The difference was that being so far into the wilderness, these elves had had even less contact with humans, and proved to be rather hostile.

During her initial visit, Marian had learned that another interloper had been through the camp, and had been seen coming and going up the mountain. She assumed that if this person were indeed the criminal she was pursuing, he was keeping a low profile until things calmed down back in Kirkwall. The most likely theory that went through her head was that the criminal was hiding in a cave up in the mountains, and was periodically coming down to the camp in order to resupply his food reserves. How he had managed to establish a commercial relationship of sorts with these rather distrustful elves—when she had been almost immediately run out of the place—was beyond her comprehension, and it was in fact unimportant. She was here to bring this man to justice, not to learn about diplomacy.

Still, one thing bothered her greatly. How was it that even the Keeper of the clan had been unwilling to be more accepting of her? As far as her experience went, Marian had assumed that keepers were by measure of their wisdom, more open-minded. Of course, her experience was basically limited to just Marethari. Then again, the hostility she was met with probably wasn't something inherent to this clan of elves, and the most likely answer would have to be that they had no shortage of trouble with humans.

Out in no man's land, the vagabond disguise Marian had donned in order to track the criminal in a covert fashion, had fortunately proved reasonably successful. Her hosts had at least accepted her continued presence right outside their camp, although still nearly every elf that walked by gave her an angry stare. Even the healer, who came to check on her from time to time, apparently did so out of an absolute sense of duty and not real concern toward the human invader.

Several days went by as she waited for her target to appear in the elven camp, and Marian noticed that her food reserves were dangerously coming close to their end. It wouldn't be long before she had to attempt trading with the elves—in fact, she would be lucky if the situation could be postponed for another day or two. Being polite through diplomatic conversations with people that were likely to treat her as the worst kind of vermin wasn't something she was looking forward to. It actually was something she had never been able to do before, and the mere thought made her stomach turn a little.

At the time that she was trying to come to terms with this idea, Marian Hawke would receive what in her current situation was the most unexpected and pleasant surprise.

While she hugged her legs close to her body in order to fend off the cold of this particularly chilly day, Marian noticed out of the corner of her eye that one of the elves was walking toward her. Already anticipating being met with another scowling face, Marian inhaled deeply in preparation for a drawn out sigh. However, what happened next derailed her thoughts and the sigh was caught in her throat.

"Aneth ara, stranger."

The elven woman spoke in a calm, yet at the same time mirthful voice. It was an exotic mixture of Merrill's and Keeper Marethari's voice. There was no hint of venom laced in the words, and the fact that such a greeting was used almost exclusively amongst elves, made Hawke quickly turn her face to look at this elf with great curiosity. When their gazes met, Marian saw no scorn or recrimination in the other woman's eyes. There was only an extraordinary calmness and otherworldly beauty to them.

If the elf woman noticed Hawke staring at her, she made no mention or gesture about it, and while taking a seat right beside Marian, she simply smiled before speaking again.

"My name is Luine, what is yours?"

Once the elf's face was level with Hawke's, she couldn't help but notice that this woman couldn't be much older than she was, yet seemed to be far wiser than anyone she had met.

"Marian, Marian Hawke."

The words had left her mouth all on their own. Even if it was for only a moment, Marian was completely lost in the eyes of this Luine. How big a coincidence, and how fascinating that an inhabitant of the forest had eyes of a deep green color pierced by streaks of gold. It was very much like looking skyward in the midst of the forest and seeing the sun coming down through the leaves.

"It is very seldom that we have visitors around here, Marian Hawke, and I love learning about different people and different lands. Since you look like a traveler, I could wager on the fact that you have extraordinary stories to tell. Would you share them with me?"

Marian found it hard not to comply with this elf's request. She had a disarming smile, was interested in learning about different cultures, and last but not least, she wasn't as angry and taciturn as the rest of her clan appeared to be. Quite a welcome change in this bleak landscape.

That was how they started talking, and in days to come would do so until the sun hid in the horizon. Since Luine had seemed so honestly interested in every bit of story Marian told, she found it easy to ramble about her life with the young elf woman. She told the elf about the last year of her stay in Ferelden, and how the blight had chased the remainder of the Hawke family away from their hard-earned reprieve. Conveying the amount of hardship her family had gone through, meant that Marian had to tell the story of her mage father and sister. Which of course encompassed the challenge such a situation presented when arriving to Kirkwall—a city where mages were seen as barely less than the scourge of Thedas and any lands that might exist beyond.

As she told her tale, Marian found no judgment or contempt in the elf's eyes. There was only interest and perhaps a little fascination, and of course as Marian would learn later that night, the fact that Luine was herself a mage.

With the sun now gone behind the silhouettes of faraway mountains, and whatever little warmth it could provide gone with it, the cold reaffirmed its presence with quite some fervor. Marian's teeth started clattering once more, which seemingly provided quite the funny interruption to their chat. At this, Luine simply placed a comforting hand on Marian's shoulder and grinned in such a way that seemed as if she was just about to start laughing.

At the suddenness—and quite frankly in her current situation, strangeness of the contact—Marian jumped a little and turned to look slightly wide-eyed at Luine. This obviously broke whatever resistance the elf had left, and she started openly laughing at her human companion as she stood up. Equal parts indignant, angry and embarrassed, Marian let out a huff while an obvious pout came to her lips. This for some reason made Luine's laughter soften and almost immediately turn back into just a smile. The same candid and disarming smile Luine seemed to display almost naturally. Hawke found difficult to remain angry at the elf—who, while looking straight into her eyes spoke in a soothing tone.

"I am going to bring something you will surely enjoy, Marian Hawke."

There was something in the way Luine had spoken her full name—twice now—with such formality, as if she were some kind of important emissary. It became Marian's turn to feel a little amused by her companion.

When she let out a snort quite unbecoming of a lady taking residence in the Hightown area of Kirkwall, Luine started laughing again. As they both shared the mirth of the moment, Marian could feel a certain warmth washing all over her weary body. It seemed as if it had been years since the last time she laughed at simple things like these.

Lost in the moment, Hawke reached out and casually took Luine's hand in her own. "You know, just Marian will do. There is no need to be so formal."

"Very well, just Marian it is then."

After letting go of the elf's hand, Marian immediately regretted what she had done. There had been a slight change in Luine's demeanor after she grabbed her hand, Marian was certain that she had picked something in the elf's response. However, as Luine turned around and started walking toward the camp, she never stopped smiling. Perhaps no harm had been done; maybe she hadn't crossed some form of border.

A moment later, she saw Luine disappear into one of the tents, which Marian assumed would be the one belonging to her. While waiting for the elf's return, Hawke started wondering about the twists one could stumble upon while walking on the road of life. It was here of all places where she found the reprieve she needed, and with a stranger nonetheless. Here, in the middle of nowhere, with the kind of weather that would make her grateful to have even Uncle Gamlen's hovel to protect her, and amongst people who could compete in a contest of unfriendly faces with the Qunari. If there was a fate, it certainly had a special sense of humor.

Hawke was still a bit lost in thought when Luine returned, her gaze transfixed in the darkness of the woods ahead instead of looking at the approaching elf. Suddenly, Marian's cheek was nudged by something furry, which greatly startled her. Yet again, she acted well out of her norm by letting out a girlish squeal and trying desperately to swat away the offending object with both hands, much like a child attempts to get rid of a bug that has landed on its clothes.

"Oh Marian, you are so anxious! You need to relax!"

The mirth in Luine's voice was obvious, so Marian's expression turned into a scowl and her lips puckered in anger. This time though, it was more in mock anger, a playful gesture she found easy to let out around this unexpected friend.

Soon after that, they were both happily giggling again. As they did, Marian noticed Luine sitting snug close to her, and what surprised her most was the fact that it wasn't as uncomfortable as she had assumed. Resting on the elf's lap, she noticed the object that surely was used to nudge her face, and it was in fact a large cover made of animal furs. Then, as if it was the most common thing to do, the elf nimbly unfolded the cover and in one swift movement sheltered them both with it.

Marian felt quite perplexed, but that didn't last very long. All too abruptly, Luine's face was so very close to her own, and she could feel the elf's breath on her cheek as the words left her lips.

"So Hawke, will you tell me more about you?"

It was said in a low voice, lower than what Marian had previously heard from Luine. Gone was the strange mixture of chirpy mirth and calmness, and it had now become so much like the sultry tone Isabela used to seduce people. Of course, Isabela's tone had a tinge of jollity to it because that's what seduction meant to her—a game. Luine's voice on the other hand had come out too serious altogether. When she felt her face getting just a bit flush, Marian became a little flustered, and tried to cover it by speaking while hoping none of her emotions were showing.

Hawke carried on with the story of her life until the wee hours of the night when sleep finally claimed Luine. By then, Marian was also quite tired so it wasn't long until she also drifted off into a comfortable sleep.

The next morning, they both woke up snug close and leaning against each other, but neither said or did anything about to raise the point to attention. Luine probably didn't care, and Marian decided it wasn't worth making a fuss over—especially since she had slept so well, even though they were outdoors and on rough bedding.

That day just kept improving from there. Later that morning, Luine disappeared into her camp and emerged moments later carrying some freshly cooked breakfast for the both of them, which Marian practically devoured. Although there still was some food in her sack, nothing could compare to a warm meal just out of the fire.

While Marian ate as if she had been food-deprived for days, Luine took her portion in quite calmly, and the smile that played on her lips made it obvious that the elf was again quite amused by her human companion. Marian noticed it wasn't a judgmental or criticizing smile. Luine was truly just entertained by Marian's demeanor, which probably was peculiar to at least every other elf in this particular camp. However, there was a radical difference between her elf and the rest of them over there in the camp. Even though Luine had surely gone through the same predicaments as the other members of her clan—she was curious, interested in learning, and open to different things.

At some point during their meal, Marian found herself reciprocating Luine's content smile. Perhaps this mission wouldn't be as grim as she had assumed at first.

After finishing their meal, Luine offered to show Marian around the camp and the routes up to the mountain. Besides the obvious tactical value of knowing the layout of her surroundings, Hawke had already decided to allow herself some relaxation. Moreover, even if her target were to notice her presence, he would assume that given her closeness with this elf, Marian was a recurring visitor or a friend to the clan. The killer would never imagine that the person sent after him all the way from Kirkwall would be close friends with one of the locals. The prospect of spending her time in relative relaxation along with her new friend had Marian anticipating the days to come.

Marian Hawke would not be disappointed. The following days were indeed quite similar to the ones following her meeting with Luine. They would share meals, have walks through the forest surrounding the camp, talk until very late every night and then sleep together under the twinkling light of the stars. During this time, Marian noticed there were occasions when Luine would remain in the camp for several hours. When she finally decided to ask, the elf revealed that she was to become the next Keeper of her clan. Now that would be quite an abrupt change. Hawke was mildly amused by the sharp change in direction Luine would bring into the way of life of these elves.

Around the sixteenth day after her arrival, Marian started wondering why her prey had never descended the mountains to resupply at the elven camp. Although she had been enjoying her time in this place, she was starting to get restless and worried. After all, this wasn't merely a vacation trip, and the killer she had tracked all the way here had been supposed to make his appearance days ago. Had he perhaps taken note of her presence and fled? Little did Marian know that the criminal no longer posed any threat, that there were things about to occur, which would once again make her life take a turn for the better, and for the worse.