A/N: This one has been floating around in my head for a while, so I decided to put this up first.
Enjoy!
She had arrived with Stroud a few months ago and she still managed to get certain feelings to rise from him, intentional or not. He was completely confused by this. She was a human, and a mage. He didn't care about the mage part, but that fact that she was a human and was able to get him to feel… different around her, despite his deep hatred of humans… It simply confused him.
Her name was Bethany Hawke, and she had been found in the Deep Roads along with Anders, who convinced Stroud to recruit her. He had overseen her Joining and, for some reason he couldn't understand, was actually relieved when it was determined that she had survived. He had fought hard to keep his usual uncaring demeanor, but he still couldn't figure out why it had been so difficult.
It was obvious that Velanna didn't like her, but that wasn't unexpected. One of the reasons he was such good friends with her was because of their shared hatred of humans, though she was somewhat... off, mentally. Oghren treated her like any other recruit, telling his stories and constantly bragging about how skilled he was. Sigrun seemed to get along with her for the most part. Then again, Sigrun tended to get along with most of the recruits anyway.
He was sitting in his room, looking through the various reports around the arling. All of them were addressed to him, Darrian Tabris, the Hero of Fereldan, Commander of the Grey. Another revolt… These blasted shems don't know when to quit.
There had been several revolts after he ordered Amaranthine burned to the ground. Each time, he put them down hard. Sure, he could have gone with a more diplomatic solution, but he wasn't about to waste the time and effort to do so. He considered it payback, considering how humans would purge an alienage if the elves there revolted. Not many in the arling liked him, but he didn't care. None of them would dare to attack him, not with the Vigil so well-fortified.
He glanced at one of the reports, which mentioned something about a few Wardens were wounded during one of the routine patrols he had going around the arling to check for new darkspawn incursions. He stopped when it mentioned that Bethany was one of the wounded.
He immediately became concerned, though he beat it back down quickly. He had an urge to check on her in the infirmary. Some of the other wounded were elves, giving him a bit more incentive to go down to the infirmary. He decided to go ahead and do it. The only thing stopping him was himself anyway.
He left his room and headed down to the infirmary, which was located in the main grounds of the keep. He walked in, nodding to the healers as they acknowledged him. He had some respect for them, considering how they helped anyone in need, no matter their race.
He noticed several empty lyrium flasks lying about on the table that rested in the middle of the infirmary, surrounded by the cots that lined the perimeter. The elves that had been wounded were either unconscious, or sitting up and moving around with some stiffness in their joints. The other wounded Wardens were in similar condition, though he found his eyes being draw toward Bethany as she lay on her cot, her left leg bandaged at the thigh. She was conscious and massaging the area around the bandaging, possibly because it was sore, her long black hair resting on her shoulders.
She must not have noticed that he was approaching her- he barely realized it himself- because she quickly looked up and nearly jumped back in surprise.
"Oh! Uh… hello, Commander," she said, seeming like she was trying to regain her composure. "Do you need something?"
He simply shook his head, glancing at her wounded leg. He had a sudden urge to massage the area for her, but he quickly beat it down with a stick. Foolishness. "What happened?" he asked. He had read the report, but he was curious as to how she had wounded her leg.
It took her a few seconds before she responded, likely because she hadn't expected the question from him of all people. "Took an arrow straight through the muscle. The healers say I was lucky it didn't hit anything major."
He felt a smile appear on his face and soon forced himself to return to his usual indifferent expression. Unfortunately, it wasn't quick enough for Bethany to not notice. She raised an eyebrow in response and seemed to shift uncomfortably.
"Are you… alright, Commander?" She had a somewhat confused look on her face, her eyes seeming to pierce his own.
He nodded. "Get some rest." He turned around and left the infirmary, suddenly feeling a bit sad that he was leaving her presence. Again, he beat that feeling down. He had to constantly beat down those types of feelings when he was around Bethany, too much so and too often for it to be coincidence.
He was so deep in his thoughts that he almost ran into Oghren, who simply grunted in greeting.
"Hey, Oghren," he said, shaking himself out of his thoughts. "Do you need something?"
"I saw you go in the infirmary," he stated, crossing his arms across his chest. The sides of his moustache rose somewhat, indicating a smirk. "You were talking to that recruit. What was her name…? Bethany, right?"
"What are you talking about?" He furrowed his brow.
"You got a soft spot for her. I'll admit: she does look good… Never woulda thought you'd be interested."
"What are you talking about, Oghren?" He was starting to get annoyed.
"Oh, for cryin' out loud… You got the hots for her." He gave a wink.
Darrian gave an incredulous scoff. "That's ridiculous."
Oghren gave a scoff of his own. "If you say so." He turned and walked away.
Darrian couldn't help but think about what Oghren had said. Is he right? Do I have… feelings for her? He sighed. Sod.
A/N: Let me know what you guys think. Feel free to post prompt suggestions in the review section.