Disclaimer: I do not own Dragon Age II or any of the Dragon Age characters, they belong to BioWare/ EA Games, and I do not own those companies either!
A/N: There will definitely be a few OCs throughout the story and those characters are randomly pulled from my crazy mind! I hope you enjoy my story and please feel free to review! I love hearing from the readers and I'm always open to suggestions and ideas, just try to be polite, no one likes a hater :D
Johnnie nodded absently as her friend Traci talked on and on about politics. She enjoyed Traci's company and considered her a good friend but her mind was somewhere else entirely and she really had no interest in politics to begin with. A new exhibit had been opened at the museum that was supposedly all about magic and that happened to be one of Johnnie's favorite topics.
When Traci noticed the far-off look in Johnnie's eyes she playfully punched her in the arm. "Are you actually listening to anything I'm saying?"She laughed when Johnnie shrugged and turned towards her.
"Honestly?" Johnnie asked with a smirk. "Not at all."
Traci sighed and shook her head, eventually turning her attention back to the vocab resting in her lap, leaving Johnnie to her own thoughts once more.
When Johnnie's classes were finally over for the day, she quickly made her way out to her car. After throwing her bags in the back and then jumping into the Driver's seat, she wasted no time starting the car and heading to the museum. While Johnnie didn't really enjoy the idea of spending $35 on a ticket, she was still excited to finally see the exhibit and the wonders she hoped it would hold. She had always been into magic, mages, wizards, and so on but she supposed she just liked surrounding herself with talents she wished she could have, anything to make her special instead of being the ordinary college student she was now.
After 20 to 25 minutes of driving, Johnnie finally reached her destination. To her delight, there was almost no one there and it took only a few minutes for her to buy her ticket and find the exhibit. At the entrance, a large black sign with swirly white letter that read: "Mages: Do They Exist?" hung crookedly. All around the letters were blue and silver sparkles that made Johnnie chuckle quietly. "It's amazing how much people seem to use glitter these days." She shook her head at the glittery carpet under the sign as she walked over it. "That'll never come out."
Johnnie wandered around the exhibit aimlessly for a while before finally sitting down on one of the many benches with a huff. So far, she had found nothing that jumped out at her or really captured her attention. It was quite a disappointment to her. She pulled out her cellphone and checked it for a few minutes before finally looking at the display that was directly in front of her. Underneath a spotlight, that seemed to be tinted a light blue, was a beautiful staff. It didn't have an elaborate design or anything; in fact it was quite plain. It seemed to be made of a sturdy wood that twisted as it moved towards the top and at the top rested an onyx core. Since the staff seemed to be calling to her, Johnnie decided to get closer and read the description given.
"The Tiger's Eye. This staff was once owned by a powerful Healer. It was used to serve and protect the people of the ancient city of Kirkwall. Alongside the city's Champion, this staff succeeded in saving the lives of thousands."
Johnnie shrugged with a "Humph". It defiantly wasn't the best description she had ever read, but she got the hint that the staff could be very powerful in the hands of an experienced wielder. Johnnie glanced cautiously around her before carefully placing her hand at the bottom of the staff and then slowly moving her hand towards the top. When she reached the onyx core, it began to rapidly heat up under her touch and glow brightly. With a gasp, Johnnie fell backwards onto the floor and her eyes widened in amazement as the room was lit up from the power of the staff. 'Well, at least something is real in this exhibit.' Was her last thought before she was engulfed in the warm light and lost consciousness.
Sebastian ran his hand through his hair with a sigh. Anders and Fenris had been bickering back and forth the entire trip and he was amazed at how Hawke seemed unaffected. He hastily maneuvered around the bickering pair and strode up to Hawke's side.
Hawke turned to him with a smile on her face. "Did you need something, Sebastian?"
Sebastian raised an eyebrow in response and frowned. "How does this not bother you?" he glanced back at the other two.
Hawke heartily laughed and stopped walking, placing a hand on Sebastian's shoulder. "I'll take care of it. I've just learned to ignore them I suppose."
Sebastian stood where she left him as Hawke gracefully walked over to the two men. Instantly she had they're attention. It was amazing how fast the two of them would stop what they were doing to watch Hawke as she walked by; it was actually quite unsettling to him.
"Alright now you two, it's about time for you to give up this foolish argument is it not?" She put her hands on her hips and looked back and forth between the two. Anders sighed and looked down at the dirt beneath him while Fenris seemed to be watching the clouds float by.
"I'm sorry Hawke." Anders replied as he looked up from the ground and made eye contact with her.
She smiled in response and nodded. "Perhaps you two shouldn't be traveling so close together. That might prevent you from arguing so much."
Fenris finally looked down at Hawke and nodded. "Sorry Hawke."
She simply shook her head. "As long as you guys stop for now."
Hawke turned back around and made her way up to where she had previously left Sebastian. "See?" she smiled up at him and he couldn't help but smile back. "I told you I would take care of it."
Sebastian laughed. "Yes, I suppose you always do." Before Hawke could reply, Anders yelled at everyone to stop. Sebastian and Hawke quickly looked back at him with questioning eyes while Fenris huffed beside him.
"What is it now mage?"
Anders rolled his eyes at the tone of Fenris' voice but quickly made his way up to Hawke. "I'm not sure, but it just doesn't feel right." The four of them began to search the surrounding area for anything out of the ordinary but spotted nothing.
"Anders," Hawke looked back to him with an apologetic look. "I don't think…"
Before she could finish her sentence, there was flash of light behind her and a pulse that pushed her forward, causing her to stumble slightly. Sebastian drew his bow and stepped in front of Hawke, causing her to smile and roll her eyes; Fenris began to glow and already had his sword at the ready, while Anders began charging a spell, his staff securely in his hands. The light was a gone as quickly as it appeared, but in its place was what seemed to be the figure of a person. The figure was shielded by a soft glow, making it impossible to see who or what had just appeared in front of them. Hawke looked to Anders for answers but could see that he was as confused as the rest of them.
"This obviously has something to do with magic," Fenris started as he made his way to be with the rest of the group. Sebastian nodded and then looked at Anders.
Anders cocked an eyebrow. "Well, you can all stop looking at me, because I didn't do this." He pointed his staff at the figure and sighed in frustration.
Hawke began to walk towards the figure but Anders stopped her. "You stay here, Hawke. I wouldn't want you to get hurt." Although the two never really agreed with each other, Anders still considered her to be a great leader and without her, many plans would go awry and thousands of people could suffer.
"Okay, but at least take Fenris with you, just in case." Hawke looked back to Fenris who was scowling slightly. "For me, please?" Hawke made puppy eyes as she pleaded to Fenris and he huffed in defeat.
Anders shook his head. "Come on then, elf. We don't have all day." Fenris simply growled in response and Hawke began to regret her decision.
Sebastian laughed at the look on her face. "They'll be fine Hawke. They know when to be serious and even though they won't admit it, they'll always have each other's back in a fight." Hawke shrugged in response and watched worriedly as her two companions got closer to the figure.
As Anders approached, he could feel the magic coming off in waves. He felt Justice squirm slightly but continued onward.
"We don't know how dangerous this thing can be. Can you not feel that?"
"I do feel it, but we still have to find out who or what this thing is. Perhaps they could be helpful." Anders could tell that Justice saw the truth in his words.
"Perhaps they are just another mage that requires our help. It is our duty to help the mages."
Anders chuckled and knew he had one that little spat, if it could even be called that. Fenris scoffed as he came up to Anders' side.
"What is so funny? I see nothing funny about this."
Anders chose to ignore him as they finally arrived at the spot where the figure was resting. From this distance, Anders could see that magic was indeed being used. The figure was enveloped in a simple shield spell that he could easily dispel. He knelt down, laying his staff on the ground next to him, and waved his hand quickly over the shield. It instantly dispersed revealing a young woman. Anders was thoroughly surprised. The woman had to be one of the prettiest he had ever seen with long golden-brown hair, a cute button nose, and soft pink lips. Anders touched her forehead and sent a wave of magic through her to see if she was alright. In response the young women furrowed her brown and made a cute little noise before her head fell to the side. Anders smiled and brushed the hair from her face as Fenris came up behind him, his blade still at the ready.
"Well? Shall we get rid of it?"
Anders felt anger at Fenris' suggestion. For some reason, he felt the sudden urge to protect this girl and he could tell Justice felt it too. "You cannot let him harm this woman, I can sense her importance." Anders jumped up and took a protective stance, his staff stretched out in front of him. "You will not touch her!"
Fenris jumped back when he noticed the blue breaking through Anders' skin. "Calm down abomination! I'm not afraid to dispatch you as well."
Hawke and Sebastian decided that they should step in at this point. Hawke stepped to the right side of Fenris while Sebastian was at his left side. "Anders! Please calm down, if you believe this person is not a danger then we believe you." Hawke touched Anders's arm and he blinked a few times before the blue faded from his eyes. Hawke turned to Fenris and gestured toward his sword, telling him to put it away. He growled loudly and quickly placed the sword back on his back.
"We have no idea who this person is or where they even came from!" Fenris pointed at the woman and looked at her for the first time. To his surprise she was actually quite beautiful.
Hawke raised a brow in question to Fenris' strange behavior. He had suddenly stopped moving, his eyes wide and his finger still pointed at the new addition. "Fenris? What is it?"
Instantly Fenris turned on his heel and quickly walked away from the rest of the group mumbling under his breath the whole time. Once Anders decided the woman was no longer in danger, he placed his staff on his back and turned, gently picking her up off of the ground. Hawke stepped closer to examine her and instantly there was a motherly smile on her face. "Oh Maker! She is adorable."
Anders gave a lopsided grin and nodded. "We should get her to my clinic as soon as possible so I can properly examine her."
Hawke nodded. "I agree, she looks okay, but you never know." With that settled, the group began to make their way back to Kirkwall, Anders in the front, Hawke and Sebastian in the middle, and Fenris slowly following behind.