Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Age or its characters.
I don't care how bad Merrill messes up, everyone loves her and you cannot convince me otherwise. I like the idea of Fenris and Anders being like big brothers to Merrill, despite not approving of her actions. Therefore, they are rueful members of the Merrill Protection Squad.
Also, don't get me wrong, I know Merrill isn't stupid or utterly defenseless, but she can get a tad naive when it comes to city life.
These stories are a little out of order, but they take place in act I, except Fenris' and Isabela's stories, which take place in act II mostly.
~*Fenris*~
"Oh, not again!" Merrill groaned, coming up to another dead end alleyway. She turned around and tried to find her way back out.
'Lowtown is a huge maze of alleyways, practically designed to keep slaves confused back in Imperial days.' That's what Hawke often told her to make her feel better about getting lost so often. As a born and raised Dalish elf, the city has always been an enclosed space that Merrill had a hard time navigating in. It was especially disorienting in the dark, when everything looks exactly the same and there was no way to tell where she was.
She had been trying to get to Gamlen's house, because she knew how to navigate her way back to the alienage from Hawke's old home. But at this point, she'd be glad to find anything that looked familiar, even the stalls selling goods. At least then, she'd know she was close to the Hanged Man and could ask Varric to walk her home. Merrill knew that Varric will probably berate her for forgetting her yarn, but she was willing to listen to his lecture if it got her home safely.
She turned a corner and came to another long alleyway that broke off between two buildings. Merrill let out a whine, very sure that she was going in circles now. The elf clung to her shopping basket nervously as she tried to find her way out of the alley. Nighttime was dangerous for anyone in Kirkwall, especially a mage elf. Thankfully, she was not without a weapon to protect herself. She had her staff on her and a knife so she could use her blood in case of dire emergency. Plus, she would've liked to shank someone at least once.
Merrill breathed a sigh of relief when she came to a wider street. Those alleys made her claustrophobic. She was about to continue going straight, hoping to find a familiar marker, when she saw two men coming toward her from that direction. From their unstable movements, they were drunk and their clothes suggested they were from the wealthier side of Kirkwall. The elf immediately turned on her heel and walked the other way. She knew better than to call attention to anyone. However, they had already spotted her.
"Hey pretty girl! Are you lost?" One of them slurred. His friend laughed. When she didn't answer, he shouted louder. "Oy! Come w' us and we'll git you someplace nice and quiet!"
"Go away!" Merrill called back, trying to walk faster. She came up on a turn and took the one closest to her, but she could feel the two men follow her. For being drunk, they were pretty fast. One of them ran over to her and put their arm around her shoulders. She tried to wriggle free, but the other one caught up and kept her boxed in.
"C'mon, lets go have fun together." He breathed in her face, reeking of alcohol and meat. She coughed at the gross smell and got ready to reach for her knife when the other one grabbed her arm.
She was about to yell when the one clutching her arm suddenly doubled over with a choking sound. Merrill could see… something… sticking out of his stomach.
"Wut in the-!" The other guy let go of her to try and back away but an armored hand grabbed him by the front of the shirt and dragged him behind Merrill. She didn't dare turn around, but smiled gently in relief when she heard a familiar deep voice speak.
"Take a good look at your friend here and decide for yourself: is this worth dying for?" the voice growled. "The girl said to go away. I suggest you take that offer before you meet the same fate." There was a scuffling sound and an oof before Merrill turned to see the drunken guy run away screaming. His friend was on the ground, groaning in pain and possibly unconcious but not dead. Standing over him was a certain broody friend of hers.
"Fenris! Thank goodness you showed up when you did." Merrill huffed, just then realizing how fast her heart was beating. "I thought I was going to have to use my knife on them."
"Are you insane?" She jumped a little and frowned when she saw Fenris looking at her angrily. "What the hell were you thinking!?"
"Oh, I don't mean blood magic. Well, if it had gone any further, than maybe, but I was just going to stab them a little." Merrill shrugged. Fenris pinched the bridge of his nose.
"No, Merrill, I meant you being out alone at night. We've told you how dangerous it is."
"I didn't mean to be out at night. I had been shopping and was about to go home, but I stopped by this cute little stand selling trinkets and I got myself this little ring, then I found this weapon shop with the coolest staves that I had not been to before–" She began rambling about her purchases before Fenris interrupted.
"Merrill, can you reach the point before it becomes daytime?"
"Oh, sorry." She apologized sheepishly. "It got late and I couldn't find my way from the stand to the alienage. I took a few alleyway paths, but they just made me more lost."
"Where's the yarn that Varric got you?"
"I left it at home." Her voice got small and she looked at the ground while Fenris stared her down. Finally, he heaved a sigh and gestured for her to follow him.
"Come on, I'll take you back to the alienage." He told her gruffly. Merrill was happily surprised, walking beside him.
"Thank you! That's nice of you, as was saving me earlier."
"Well, if Hawke were to find you dead in the street, she would not be pleased." Fenris waved off her compliments.
"It's good that you look out for Hawke's best interests, then." She giggled, the broody elf shooting her a look from the side before they walked in silence for a while.
"Hey, Fenris? What were you doing in Lowtown, anyway?" She asked. Fenris blinked and stared at her for a moment before he started to chuckle and shake his head. "What? What did I say?"
"Merrill, you were in Hightown when I found you." Merrill stared back at him before groaning out a swear in elvhen, which made Fenris laugh a little more.
"Okay, so what were you doing walking around Hightown at night?" Her eyebrow rose at him. Fenris thought for a moment before he answered.
"I was taking a walk."
"A walk wheeeeere?" She smiled and nudged at him. He leaned away from her elbow.
"None of your business."
"Awwww." She pouted and spent the rest of the walk trying to guess where he was going until Merrill saw the familiar tree from the Alienage. The male elf walked her up to the door, but went no further.
"Next time, take the yarn with you." He told her as she went inside. Merrill nodded.
"Yes. I won't make that mistake again. Are you still not going to tell me where you went?"
"Good night, Merrill." Fenris gave her head a pat, turned, and walked away while she pouted. She had noticed a small red sash tied to his wrist, though, which made her curious. She closed the door, wondering how he got it. With a shrug, she decided to ask Isabela about it. She usually knew more about those kinds of things.
~*Anders*~
Merrill smiled as she looked into her basket. She had various bundles of flowers that she brought from the mountains. Because she wasn't allowed in the Viscount's garden anymore, she had to make-do with wildflowers and weeds. She picked some particularly small white flowers that smelled really sweet. She was hoping to give them to Isabela; she loved pretty smelling things.
Her train of thought was derailed when she accidentally bumped into someone.
"Oh, sorry!" She smiled at the woman, who gave her a nasty look before continuing to walk. Merrill kept going as well… until she realized that she had no idea where she was going.
Merrill thought, when she returned to Kirkwall, that it would be a good chance to grab some mushrooms for Hawke. Her friend often complained that she was running low on supplies to give to her potion makers. However, her detour took her to Darktown, where she got lost almost as often as she got lost anywhere else in Kirkwall.
Merrill looked around frantically for an exit that she recognized, but she got increasingly flustered when people kept nearly walking into her, yelling at her to get out of the way or to watch where she was going. It was stressing her out to be yelled at so often.
"Merrill?" Her head jerked up to see a friendly face, looking down at her from atop some stairs with a confused expression.
"Anders! Good, a friend!" She squeaked and ran over to stand beside him, away from the crowds. He too was holding a basket.
"Did you get lost again?" He frowned at her in disapproval.
"I wanted to get some herbs for Hawke when I got a little sidetracked and lost the exit." She rubbed the back of her head. Anders frowned deeper, his eyebrows creasing as he looked from the elf to his basket. Merrill noticed that the healer looked a little disheveled, like he had been running.
"Well, can you find your way back from here?" He asked. Merrill looked around, but nothing seemed familiar. She shook her head and Anders sighed a little. "Alright, come on to the clinic. I'll send for someone to bring you home."
"Okay." Merrill followed the healer a little further into Darktown until they reached his clinic. The place had every cot filled with sick people and a few sitting against a wall and waiting. Merrill's eyes went wide; she had never seen the place so busy. Anders crossed the room and put his basket on the table, hurriedly pulling out a bunch of jars that were full of different liquids and salves. He spoke to her without looking up.
"Just go sit on that stool and wait for me to finish with these patients." Merrill nodded and went to sit on the wooden stool next to the table. While she patiently waited, Anders was running around like mad, applying salves or feeding medicine to some of the sick Darktown citizens. She watched him go, amazed at how much he had to do.
"I always thought you just used magic to heal people." Merrill asked when Anders took a moment to breath, some people having already left the clinic and were being replaced by the ones sitting on the floor.
"I've had to tone down the magic, what with the templar activity increasing. Besides, I don't have nearly enough energy to heal everyone in this clinic with just my magic." Anders explained, wiping the sweat from his forehead. Slowly but surely, the clients were leaving the clinic in better shape. They still had problems, but they were healthy for the most part.
Merrill started working on flower crowns in the meantime, getting bored of watching Anders work. She made a dandelion one that ended up being too big for her head, so she walked over and gently put the crown on Anders' head. It surprised him and he chastised her for distracting him, but the flowers fit perfectly with his hair and the shape of his head. She smiled when he left it on and finished his work while wearing the crown. Some kids called him the Healing King and he was not shy about playing along with them.
In his frantic state, he forgot to send a messenger to get Hawke or Varric to bring Merrill home. Once the clinic closed for the night, Anders walked the elf home himself.
"Sorry for inconveniencing you today." She told him as they neared the alienage.
"It wasn't too much trouble. Besides, I am but a patient king." Anders said with an exaggerated and pompous sort of tone, making her laugh a little. When she got home, she set aside the other flower crowns for her friends to be delivered the next day. They would all be kings and queens for a day.
~*Isabela*~
Merrill was at the Hanged man one day, having accompanied Hawke to a game of Wicked Grace with the others. She didn't play because she didn't know how to, but she enjoyed watching the others play it. They often get rowdy once they've had enough drinks and, once, she's seen Anders break down and cry because he lost to Fenris again. It was an adventure, as was any day that the group got together.
At some point, she went to go get another drink at the bar. The regular beer was too gross and strong for her, so she often got water. Sometimes, the bartender would serve something sweet for her. Someone bumped past her as she got to the bar, but she took no notice.
However, when she went to pay for her drink, Merrill couldn't find her little pouch of coins. She looked in all her pockets and her satchel, but couldn't find it.
"Oh no, I must've dropped it." She frowned. The bartender frowned in disapproval and some patrons complained that she was holding up a line.
"Missing something, kitten?" Merrill turned to see Isabela holding up her little coin pouch.
"Oh! Thank you, Bela!" Merrill chirped happily, taking out the coins needed and going back upstairs with her drink. Isabela stayed close behind her and, to the elf's surprise, wrapped her arm around her waist.
"Bela? Are you okay?" Merrill noticed that the pirate was glancing behind them with a glare on her face. When she looked at Merrill, however, she smiled and waved off her comment.
"Sure, sure. Go join the others, I'll be right there." Isabela ushered her friend into Varric's room, where she was met by the boys all arguing about their hands while Hawke collected the money from the center of the table. Meanwhile, Isabela walked back down the stairs and walked over to a far corner of the bar. A crowd of people was gathered to look at a man who was sobbing and clutching his arm.
"Alright, move along, boys. Nothing to see here." She ushered them away and the crowd dispersed. She reached down and yanked the man back up to his feet, getting in his face.
"Spread the word to your little friends." She told him. "Try and pickpocket her again and you won't have hands to pick pockets with."
~*Varric*~
Varric was sitting in his office, writing up some letters, when Merrill came in and knocked on the door.
"Daisy! What can I do for you?" He smiled up at her.
"I have a present for you!" Merrill pulled out a flower crown made of daisies. "Ta da!"
"Aw, you shouldn't have." the elf put the crown right on Varric's head and had him look in his mirror. He looked a little silly, but still smiled for his friend. "It's very pretty, Daisy. Thank you."
"You're welcome! I have a bunch to give to everyone. I ended up making too many when I was stuck in Darktown while Anders worked." She looked into her basket, which held her many flowered crowns. She had already given one to Isabela, which made her smell very pretty. "Now you're King Varric!" The dwarf chuckled at that.
"Speaking of your little Darktown adventure, I have a little present for you too." He rummaged through a chest full of things and pulled out a ball of yarn. It was bright green and thick. Merrill took it and held it in her hands.
"It's very soft. Thank you, Varric!"
"It's for helping you get around Lowtown. You tie one end to your door and hold the bundle in your hand, then follow the string home when you are ready to go back." He explained.
"Oh! Okay! But what if it runs out?" Merrill frowned.
"If it runs out, you know you've gone too far by yourself." Varric patted her arm gently.
"What if someone cuts it? Or trips on it?" Merrill kept worrying.
"Now now, don't worry. If someone complains, you tell me. If it gets cut, you can get a new one from me. Sound okay?"
"Well… okay. Thank you, Varric. This is a really nice gift!"
"My pleasure. Now go distribute your crowns to the other monarchs." He smiled and waved as she skipped out of his office with her basket. If all elves were as cute as she was, maybe they'd be easier to talk to. The broody elf in particular could benefit from being more like Daisy.
"How Hawke can handle hanging out with him is beyond me." Varric thought to himself, shaking his head. Just then, his messenger came in. As Varric gathered his letters up to be delivered, he noticed the man look at the crown of daisies on his head and hold in his laughter.
"When you're done smirking, take these to the right people. Remind the coteri that all names on that list MUST be protected at all costs. They will see their payment by the end of the week." Varric ordered the man. He nodded in affirmation.
"Understood, and very nice crown, ser." He commented before leaving. Varric grumbled to himself about wise guys, then looked in the mirror again.
"Huh. King Varric." He chuckled to himself again. It had a certain ring to it.
~*Aveline*~
Merrill walked around the garden, humming to herself while picking flowers. The Viscount's garden is by far the most beautiful abundance of flowers that she has seen since her time in Ferelden with her clan. She collected a few in her basket to later put into vases and maybe make a few into crowns. She had recently seen a little elven girl make a few and was even taught how to properly weave flowers into a crown. She would love the practice.
As she picked the flowers and hummed, she did notice a few of the guards staring at her sternly. It confused her, but she ignored them. After all, it's not like she would break out the magic in the middle of such a lovely garden.
Meanwhile, the guards at the gate were leading the captain of the guard over to the garden. When they were in sight of Merrill, one of them pointed.
"Is that one of yours, captain?" Aveline saw Merrill and rubbed her own forehead. She had gotten an urgent notice from the Viscount saying that one of 'her people' was hanging around the garden. She assumed it was Hawke or Anders playing a joke on the viscount again.
"Yes. I'll take care of it." She assured the guards. They went back to their posts while Aveline went to the elf. "Merrill."
"Oh, hi Aveline!" she smiled up at the guardswoman. "Have you come to look at the flowers, too?"
"I– … yes, I have." Aveline changed her mind mid-sentence. "They're very pretty."
"I know! I picked a few to take home with me." She held up the basket and Aveline resisted the urge to facepalm.
"That's… great, Merrill. But now the garden is being closed off for the day. The gardeners need to prune and water and such." Aveline lied. Merrill frowned but nodded.
"Okay! I'll head home to put these in some water." Merrill walked to the gate. Aveline followed close beside her.
"I think I'll accompany you. I need to stop at the Hanged Man anyway." She said.
"Getting yourself a drink?"
"Oh yes."
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