Author's Notes: Voici chapter ten! Yet again, some more intriguing moments brought to you by Hawke and our Warden. If you couldn't tell by now, I was incredibly intrigued by the fact that the Amell blood line ran in the Hawke line as well, and since Thayer doesn't really know his family...I had to make a connection. Haha. These two are really great together; they provide a lot of interesting insight, and they were always fun to write. :)

Gatorsnacks: I have a feeling Anders has a hard time hiding things from Thayer, given their relationship to one another. I always felt Anders held a lot of admiration (where possible) for him because of his decision to not kill him, and because of their similar backgrounds. It's a ship I never explored, but had Thayer not ended up with Alistair, he very well could have gone to Anders. ;)

Please enjoy everyone!

Later that night at the Hawke estate, something weighed heavily on Thayer's mind.

He recalled their battle at the DuPuis estate and seeing Garrett rub a wound on his arm. That might have been easily missed by anyone who didn't understand blood magic, but for someone who had actively practiced it for months? Unlikely. He'd thought about it off and on all evening, growing more and more assured in his belief that it had been blood magic. He wondered, should he bring it up? Would it be too forward? He and Garrett had gotten along up until now and he didn't want to cause a rift, especially seeing as he and Alistair were guests in his home.

This presented a unique opportunity. The two shared blood through their mothers. While it may have not been as powerful of a bond as brothers and sisters shared, it was close enough. Perhaps his research didn't have to stop.

No, he told himself. Thinking about this would lead him down a dangerous path he had managed to veer himself away from.

Still, the temptation was strong. He couldn't help but wonder.

Just before retiring to his room for the night Thayer wandered past Garrett's room. The door was ajar, revealing his cousin standing within near a roaring flame burning away in the fireplace. He had his back to the entrance and his arms folded over his chest. He appeared to be deep in thought.

Against his better judgment Thayer knocked lightly on the door. He caught Hawke's attention. Surprised, the other young man turned around.

"Oh, Thayer. Heading to bed?"

"Yes. Just thought I'd say good night."

"Ah, yes. Good night. I'll see you in the morning."

Thayer hesitated. His previous wild notions about his cousin using blood magic rushed into his head again. He opened his mouth to say something, only to catch himself.

Hawke raised an eyebrow. "Something on your mind?"

"Do you mind if we speak privately for a moment?"

"Sure. Come in and shut the door."

Too late to turn back now, Thayer thought. He wandered into the room, shutting the door behind him. He held on to the handle for a moment too long, apparently, as when he turned around, Hawke was staring at him curiously.

"I need to ask you something," Thayer stated.

"All right. I'm all ears."

"It's about the DuPuis estate."

"Mm?"

Hawke didn't seem to know what he was talking about. He still wore that curious expression. It made Thayer scratch his throat.

"I don't want you to take what I'm about to say the wrong way. I'm simply making an observation."

Hawke's expression faltered. It was minor—just his eyebrows falling—but it was enough to let Thayer know that he had caught on.

"You…know, don't you?" Garrett asked.

"Blood magic. Right?"

He hesitated. Turning around, he faced the fireplace again, sighing. "It's true."

Thayer realized that Alistair had rubbed off on him. Even despite having expected that response, he still felt surprise—and mild disapproval—at it. He quickly brushed that aside, knowing he had no right to disapprove. He'd done it himself.

"When did you start?"

"I don't really remember. I don't do it often."

"Enough to know how to do so with stealth," Thayer commented.

Hawke chuckled. "Touché."

"Listen. I realize that this is hard to admit, especially to someone you just met. But you did, so I can, too. I've done blood magic before."

Garrett turned around and waved his hand almost dismissively. "I feel like every mage has dabbled in it at one point or another. Especially apostates. But you? The Grey Warden? Why would you ever need to use it? Aren't you souped up on power from your tainted blood?"

"That was the exact reason why I started using it in the first place."

"Wait, what?"

Thayer shook his head. "It's…a long story. To keep it short, I tried to use blood magic to remove the taint from me. I went through a dark period over the last few months, though I'd done it prior to then, as well. No matter what I did, though, it never seemed to work. It was a colossal failure."

"What in the world would prompt you to do that?"

"Grey Wardens…" Thayer paused. "We live a limited lifespan. We may survive the Joining, but it comes at a grave cost. Slowly, but surely, we slide down an irreversible slope where we become ghouls. Nobody can escape it. I found this…journal, I guess you'd call it, that belonged to a very powerful blood mage. It taught me practically everything I know about blood magic. I used what I read."

Despite the clear shock in Garrett's expression, his eyes seemed alight with curiosity—almost like a child listening to their parent telling a story.

"Prior to coming here, I encountered a sentient darkspawn who called himself the Architect. He explained some very interesting things—namely that the blood of Grey Wardens helped interrupt the call darkspawn hear from the Old Gods. I thought maybe by transfusing out the tainted blood from my body and refreshing it with blood from another that I might survive and live the life I deserved."

Thayer never thought he would admit that aloud to anyone ever again. In a way it felt good to do so, but on the other hand, he was gushing his emotions out to someone he'd really only just met. It very well could have just been a stupid decision. For now, it was one that made his palms sweat slightly.

Garrett was quiet for a long moment. He seemed to study Thayer with his eyes, taking in what he'd just been told. He eventually said, "That's an incredibly intriguing concept. In a way, I think it's horrible that you pondered such a thing, but only in that you had to do so in the first place. Didn't you say you joined the order willingly?"

"Maker, no," Thayer said. "I didn't know what I was agreeing to. I was conscripted. After that, I really had no choice, unless I wanted to be killed. Had I known then what I would become, I would have never gone along with it."

"Never say never," Hawke said. "Look where you are today because of what you've done, cousin."

"I reckon you're right."

Thayer and Garrett both laughed. Thayer continued, "I told Alistair I wasn't practicing it anymore. He…came here, you see, after he found out what I was doing. It sparked a huge fight and he left Amaranthine."

"No need to say any more. Lover's quarrel. Been there, done that."

"I'm glad you can empathize. Does Anders know?"

"Heavens, no. And he never will. As I said, I don't do it often. And when I do, it's strictly to help myself. I never use the blood of others."

There were a lot of things Thayer wanted to say in reply to that, but he kept silent. Hawke was a grown man who could make his own decisions. Despite that, it was hard not to offer advice to someone who was going through something very similar to what you had.

"This stays between us," Garrett said firmly. "Right?"

"Swear on it."

"Good. I have to admit, at first, I thought you were going to chastise me and tell me to change my ways."

"My morality has grown awfully grey over the years," Thayer admitted. "Things that used to upset me don't anymore. Likewise, things I used to feel passionately about, I've become almost numb to. For a Warden, duty always comes first. Everything else is a far second."

"Well, in my home, you're not a Warden. You're an Amell, and Amells do what they want, when they want, however they want. So I suggest you go back to your room, get a good night's sleep and be prepared for me to tell you what to do in the morning. Although bossiness is more of a Hawke trait." Garrett smirked.

Thayer had to admit, having someone else take the reins for once was a very welcome change.

"Good night, Garrett. We'll talk in the morning."

"Good night, Thayer."

. . . . .

"You're coming with us, aren't you?"

Alistair nodded. "If I ever want to get back up and running…"

Thayer was glad Alistair had chosen to come along. They could have used one more person handy with a blade when they'd gone into the DuPuis estate. Given that they knew there was a trap awaiting them, having that extra manpower would give them the upper edge.

It seemed almost too easy, finding out that there was a trap lying ahead of them. The killer didn't even seem to be trying to protect himself…

"Got all your gear?" Thayer asked.

Alistair twirled his blade around him with little effort. He smiled. "Apparently I'm not as rusty as I thought I was."

"All the better. We'll need your help for sure."

They traveled downstairs to the main hall where they met up with Hawke, Anders, Varric and Fenris. After a few under-the-breath comments about Fenris' attitude and his tattoos from Alistair, they were off to meet up with Emeric.

They moved quietly under the night's cover. Dark clouds floating in the sky above shrouded the moon; the only light came from the lampposts scattered about Hightown. When they stepped into the back alley where Emeric had told them they would meet, unsurprisingly, no one was there.

No one, except for a Templar's corpse.

"Emeric!"

Hawke jogged over to the Templar's body which sprawled across the ground near a collection of empty barrels. His body was worse for wear—with a slit throat, stab wounds penetrating his armor and what appeared to be a broken elbow, it was obvious he had been made into an example.

"Well, this is unexpected," Fenris said, snorting.

Before anybody could add something, from behind the shadows appeared several Shades. Everyone jumped back and into position.

"Take them out!" Hawke ordered, blasting one with a burst of ice from the tip of his staff.

Thayer and Alistair paired up against another Shade. The mage released a wave of frost that froze the creature in place, giving Alistair the chance to bash it with his shield. It collapsed into a heap of bloody pieces at their feet.

Just as Thayer turned around to fight off another, he watched in amazement as Fenris suddenly began to glow an eerie shade of blue. His body almost fell out of focus, as if he weren't entirely there. He moved with superhuman speed and literally dashed through one of the Shades with his blade, cutting it clean in half.

By the time Thayer recovered from what he saw, the group of Shades fell, giving way to a set of Abominations that rose up from the ground beneath them and starting the battle anew.

"Watch out!"

Garrett's warning made Thayer look in his direction. Varric, Fenris and Anders all jumped back, but before Thayer had the chance to, Hawke sent an arc of ice shards flying across the ground. He stopped those aimed in his direction using a wall of flame, but the force of the spell caused the now wave of water to splash over him, knocking him to the ground.

Each of the remaining Abominations were quickly taken out. Thayer stood, sputtering and trying to get his hair from his eyes. Despite the situation, he couldn't help but laugh.

"Nice to see you can find some humor in the situation," Varric said, his own lips curled into a faint smirk. "Hawke doesn't give much warning before those blasts are let out. You learn fast to position yourself appropriately."

"Or just disappear," Alistair said. He pointed at Fenris. "That was absolutely wicked. What in the world did you just do?"

The platinum haired elf folded his thin arms over his chest. He eyed Alistair. "You think these tattoos are just for show? I've got a few tricks up my sleeve."

"I'll say. That was brilliant!"

"The novelty wears off eventually," Anders said flatly. He and Fenris shared a look, one that was none too friendly.

"Is that the last of them?" Thayer glanced around the small back alleyway.

Their battle had done plenty of damage to the surrounding environment, including the destruction of three or four barrels, half the ground beneath them and also one large chunk of a building's wall.

"So it would seem."

Garrett sheathed his staff and went back over to Emeric's body. He knelt down to tilt his head to the side but his focus suddenly shot over his shoulder. Moira, the Templar from before, was rushing down the alleyway toward them.

She wore a horrified expression when she saw Emeric lying on the ground, lifeless. "Goodness, what happened?"

"Emeric was murdered," Hawke said. He moved to stand. "It wasn't DuPuis like he thought. It was someone else."

"Are you sure?" Moira asked.

"Positive. And he or she is still at large. The guard needs to keep an eye out. I'll alert Aveline if you'll keep your Templars on watch. Whoever killed Emeric is a powerful mage—they summoned demons from the Fade."

Moira ran her gloved hand down her face, a look of fear glimmering in her eyes. It soon hardened. She nodded firmly. "I'll be sure to let the others know. If he or she is in the city, they won't escape."

Once Moira left, Hawke rubbed his hands together. "This man needs to be found. Varric, see if you can't dig up some dirt on him from DuPuis."

Varric nodded. "No problem, Hawke."

"Once we get more information about him we'll work with DuPuis to find him and eradicate him before any more women fall in danger."

Thayer was sure that Hawke had the right idea, but something seemed very off about the way Emeric was killed. When he looked at Alistair, he appeared to have the same thought in mind.

Something's weird, his expression read.