Author notes: I stuck fairly loyally to the proper DAII script but ad-libbed and took liberties once Fenris had been recruited.
I immediately set off to Hightown to meet Fenris who had marked the location of the mansion on the map. "Is this even worth doing, sister?" asked Carver. "I'm sure runaway slaves don't have money and we're supposed to be investing time in raising funds for the deep roads expedition!"
"Maker, Carver! That's cold. Even for you," I gasped in shock. "What would father say? Remember what he would drill into me and Bethany? 'My magic will serve that which is best in me; not that which is most base.' What would he say if he knew I was investing my time and my gift chasing money after turning down somebody clearly in dire need?!"
"She has a point, Junior," Varric interjected. "Money or no, this broody looking elf is clearly in trouble. And Hawke is helping to serve what's best in her." Varric caught my eye and winked. "She definitely is not pursuing her more base needs." Damn that dwarf – he could see right through me. I knew soon a story about the daughter of a fallen noble saving a disaster addled elf would soon make its way around the hanged man.
"I don't have any magic," Carver spat bitterly. "I'm under no responsibility to serve what's best in me. I don't know why I'm even coming."
"Nobody is forcing you to stay, you know," Aveline pointed out.
Fortunately, we reached Danarius's mansion before an argument could break out. I noticed Fenris immediately. He was stood by the door, moon glinting from his silver hair, looking very uneasy. "No one has left the mansion. But I've heard nothing within," he updated us. "Danarius may know we're here. I wouldn't put it past him."
"He may have prepared some magical defences," I warned.
"They will not keep me from him," Fenris insisted darkly.
I allowed Fenris to take Carver's place as his glowering was really annoying me. We tentatively entered the mansion and were met by a trap. Varric deftly worked at it and disarmed it with ease. "Piece of cake," he gloated. Before I could survey the mansion properly, we were ambushed by shades. We made short work of them and I took the time to admire the way Fenris swept through the shades with incredible accuracy and strength. Fenris was a talented fighter. We forced our way into the mansion, destroying shade after shade. Not even the rage demons were a match for Fenris's skill and resolve.
Before I realised it, the mansion was devoid of any activity but our own. The place had been less eerie when it was full of shades, I thought as I noticed the bodies and wreckage lying around the mansion. Danarius was clearly an evil man. "Gone," Fenris said, looking around him. "I had hoped… no, it doesn't matter any longer. I assume Danarius left valuables behind. Take them if you wish. I… need some air." Fenris left and I fought the impulse to check up on him by opening nearby chests. If I didn't take the opportunity to loot the evil bastard, Isabela and Carver would give it to me both barrels.
"Oh, a string of pearls!" said Varric, putting them around his waist. They looked ridiculous but I knew how dwarves were about their treasures, so I held my tongue.
Outside, Fenris was leaning pensively against the wall. "It never ends," Fenris despaired. "I escaped a land of dark magic only to have it hunt me at every turn. It's a plague burned into my flesh and my soul." He turned to me, with a look which mixed curiosity and mild aggression. "And now I find myself in the company of yet another mage. I saw you casting spells inside. I should have realised what you were." Maker, for somebody so handsome, Fenris was fairly oblivious. I was wearing full apostate robes attire and carrying a massive staff which let off sparks. I could not have been more obvious if I had tattooed "MAGE" to my forehead. "Tell me, what manner of mage are you? What is it that you seek?" I bit back the urge to snap at him. I had done him a favour and he was questioning my intentions. I didn't want to fight with him. I felt the need to prove to this enigma of a man that I was serving what was best in me.
"You want me to tell you and spoil all the fun?" I responded light heartedly. I had no intention of laying all my cards on the table yet. I wanted to hook him, as he had already hooked me. Let him find out what was driving me as I discovered what drove him.
"You are skilled – I know that much." Fenris admitted. At this point, Aveline surprised me by stepping forward and standing up for me.
"Not all mages are alike," she reasoned. "Or I'd be the first to act." Aveline struck an imposing figure in her guard's armour. I hoped her testimony would be reliable enough for Fenris that he could learn to trust me. Good, reliable, trusty Aveline.
Fenris appeared to notice he had committed a faux pas. His expression softened and he said, "I imagine I appear ungrateful. If so, I apologise. For nothing could be further from the truth. I did not find Danarius, but I still owe you a debt." Good thing Carver didn't hear that, I thought, or he'd be shaking Fenris upside down to get coin from his pocket. "Here is all the coin I have, as Anso promised. Should you find yourself in need of assistant, I would gladly render it."
"Your old master must want something more than just a runaway slave," I pointed out. I wanted to glean some more information from him before he left.
"He doesn't want me at all," he said. "Just the markings on my skin. They are lyrium, burned into my flesh to provide the power Danarius required of his pet. And now, he wishes his precious investment returned, even if he must rip it from my corpse."
"Seems like a waste of a perfectly handsome elf," I blurted before I could help myself. I blushed vividly but Fenris chuckled to himself – a delicious sound. "Um, would you even help a mage?" I fought back for some control.
"You are not Danarius. Whether you are like him remains to be seen."
"Well, I'm planning an expedition I might need help with," I said. His sword would cut through darkspawn as if they were butter.
"Fair enough," said Fenris determinedly. "Should you have need of me, I will be here. If Danarius wants his mansion back, he is free to return and claim it." Fenris nodded at us, and went back into his mansion.
Varric turned to Aveline and said, "Well, that was enlightening. How about a drink at the hanged man? Once I've flogged these pearls, I'll be buying."
"Yes, okay – why not?" Aveline said. "Are you joining us Hawke?"
"No, I should get back to Carver," I lied. Varric smirked at me knowingly and walked off with Aveline.
"Well, Blondie will be upset. He was so looking forward to seeing you. Bye then, Hawke. Just be careful – he's like some sort of angsty porcupine. All covered in spikes."
"I've never noticed that about Carver." Aveline said, clearly puzzled. I grimaced.
"Bye you two. Don't drink til you're blind again this time Varric. There's only so many times that "Blondie" Mage can heal you." I walked around a corner and waited until their footsteps had faded out. That renegade mage, Anders. Shoot, I should let him down gently. I set the problem aside for a later time and then slipped into Fenris's mansion.
I entered the main hall and heard the clinking of bottles in an upstairs room. I went up the stairs and tentatively knocked on the door, hoping to find a good reason to be there so I didn't sound crazy. Fenris opened the door, his lyrium glowing. "Oh, it's you," he said. He let down his guard and stopped glowing. "What did you need?"
"I was hoping to talk," I shyly suggested. He looked at me curiously and walked back into the room, leaving the door open for me. He had started a roaring fire and had recovered a stash of wine from within the mansion. A bottle of white wine had already had half of its contents polished off.
"Agreggio Pavali," he explained, waving a bottle of red wine at me. The name meant nothing to me. He opened the bottle and looked at it for a moment, weighing up whether or not to use a glass. He decided against it and with his head back took a hearty drink. "I used to pour this for Danarius and his guests. He liked the way my appearance intimidated them apparently."
"Not that I keep company with evil slave owning blood mages, but if you had served me, I wouldn't have been put off." Fenris raised his eyebrows and gave me a quizzical look.
"You don't hold back, do you? At least it's reassuring to know you can be frank with me." Fenris gulped back a third of the bottle of wine, looked at the bottle and threw the remainder casually at a nearby wall.
"Just because I'm not a guest of Danarius, doesn't mean you can't offer me some, you know," I joked, looking at the puddle of wine and glass shards. "But then, it decorates the place so nicely." Fenris laughed and stopped abruptly. He clearly had issues letting his guard down around me.
"I've been on the run for three years now. It's nice to know I can still enjoy the small things." Fenris sat down, and I took a nearby seat.
"Have you considered returning?" I asked.
"To Seheron? No, not yet. I need to weedle Danarius out. Have him come to me so I have the advantage in an attack." Fenris turned to me with a slightly pained look on his face. "I've never had an ally. Nobody of substance. But I think you… I mean, if Danarius returns, though I won't expect it, I should like you fighting at my side." I smiled at Fenris and nodded. "I should thank you again, you know. For helping me against the hunters."
"Yes, you should," I say. And I surprise myself by leaning towards him. The smell of fine wine coming from him is intoxicating and I wonder what it would be like to taste the wine straight from his mouth. It was probably the wine, even though at the time I kidded myself it was mutual attraction, but he didn't pull away from me."
"Had I known Anso would find me a woman so capable…" he began and sat close to me. His face was a few inches from mine. "I might have asked him to look sooner." The scent of his breathe was intoxicating. His lips hypnotised me.
"You flatter me," I whisper. Fenris leaned closer to me, as transfixed by my lips as I was by his. "Maybe I should be thanking Anso."
"Maybe you should," Fenris responded with a slight slur. Oh, Maker. The wine must have been strong. And he was probably drinking on an empty stomach. I pull back from his him. I couldn't take advantage of somebody who was drunk. I turn from him and Fenris places a hand on my arm. "Perhaps I'll practise my flattery for your next visit? With any luck I'll become better at it."
"You're pretty good now," I say, turning back to Fenris. His green eyes drew me in and I had to stiffen my resolve. "I should go."
Fenris grips the arm he had a hand on and leans in, placing a feather light kiss on my lips. My breathe catches and I lose myself in the feeling of his kiss, brushing my lips as lightly as a butterfly's wings.
"I think you might be more intoxicating than the Agreggio," he whispers into my mouth. I gently pull myself from my grip and painstakingly remove my lips from his.
"I think you have that the wrong way round Fenris." He was clearly intoxicated by the wine. I stand up to leave. "I have to go to Sundermount tomorrow and deliver something to the Dalish. I'd appreciate your support. If you would come." I don't know what foolish impulse gave me the courage to ask him to join me. Yes, I could use his sword if anything dangerous appeared but I was more in need of an excuse to be near him.
"I'm at your service," Fenris replied.
I left the mansion. The feel of his lips lingered on mine, returning later to haunt the dreams of my restless sleep.