I wasn't planning on updating so quickly, but I like to reward reviewers with updates-and I got a nice amount of reviews. Thank you!


Isabela laughed happily as a drunken patron, easily ten years her senior -if not more-handed her another drink. Another man, his face rough from stubble scratched his chin along her stomach, drinking a shot off her abdomen. She curled her fingers into his hair absentmindedly, her eyes drifting towards the door. A mild feeling of irritation coursed through her, where was that Blighted Hawke?

Her ears perked up as the door swung open, and she was disappointed to see two city guards walk in. She sighed and rolled her eyes; Hawke was not worth the attention she was giving him. If he was interested, he'd of arrived hours ago. She turned her attention towards the blonde haired man licking circles round her exposed belly button.

He was here.

Hawke was not.

Hawke's loss.

She tightened her hands around the mans hair, pulling him up from her bellybutton. His eyes were glazed over and he gave her a sloppy grin. She pushed her lips to his, tasting the stale whiskey on his breath. Not for the first time, she found herself marveling at how the smell had repulsed her little over a decade ago. Now, it was familiar. His hands moved sloppily down her sides and she allowed herself a small shiver as he moaned desperately against her lips.

She jumped down from the table, finishing off her whiskey. She grabbed the hem of the man's shirt and pulled him up the stairs after her; he'd do.

The Next Day:

"Well, it's nice to know some things never change," a gruff voice chuckled, rousing Isabela from her sleep. Isabela groaned and felt the weight of a warm chest against hers…but the chest didn't belong with the voice…

Isabela winced as she opened her eyes, one hand moving to cover them as the other moved instinctively towards the dagger under her pillow.

"Easy girl," the voice added. "It's just me."

The accent sounded familiar and Isabela shot up, pulling her blanket around herself as she went. "Martin?" she grinned at him happily. She frowned as she took in his appearance, "What happened to you?" she gestured to the grizzly mark across his neck.

He rubbed itself consciously. "A business deal went south," he offered vaguely.

The man next to her stirred and blinked sleepily as he opened his eyes. His eyes instantly settled on Isabela and he moved in towards her. She lay a hand politely against his chest to stop him and when he didn't get the hint she shoved him forcefully from the bed with a sigh. He landed on his ass, completely naked.

"Bitch," he hissed, rubbing his head, which was probably throbbing from a Hangover, if her head was any indication.

She shrugged, unfazed by his callousness. The man finally noticed Martin, and thought better off forcing the issue. Grabbing his pants, he left quickly.

Martin chuckled, "So, up to your old tricks still aye?"

Isabela smiled suggestively, "I never use old tricks Martin," she replied coyly.

He laughed, "Isn't that the truth."

He offered her a glass of water she hadn't noticed him holding, and she took it gratefully, careful to keep one hand on the sheet she had pulled around her. The pirate was unsure where her strange sense of modesty was coming from; he'd seen it all before, even if seeing was all he'd ever done-or would do.

"What are you doing here Martin?" She rubbed her eyes, "And why so early?" she added irritably.

"It's past noon Isabela," Martin barked. "And I'm here because I have some work that needs doing. If you're interested. It'll take a couple people to do properly."

Why her brain instantly thought of Hawke, she didn't know. "I might be able to help you out," she admitted slowly. "How long are you going to be around?"

Martin shrugged, "Dunno. Kind of depends on this job I need you to do," he stared at her intently, as if deciding whether or not he could trust her.

"Martin," Isabela chided with a grin, "I'll get it done," she assured him.

He nodded and stood stiffly. "Good," he muttered, trying to sound gruff, but the relief was evident in his gravelly voice.

Hanged Man: Main Pub:

Hawke rubbed his neck as he entered, trying desperately to work out the kink in his neck that had developed after sleeping hunched against the side of the hovel. He desperately hoped Varric would be at the pub. True, returning the Witches Amulet to the Dalish camped at Sundermount had nothing to do with the dwarf, but the dwarf was always looking for good stories and adventures; and this seemed to have all the makings of a grand adventure. Or Varric would end up writing his eulogy. Either way, the dwarf would be of use.

And he was a good shot. If the Dalish didn't warm to the idea of letting humans into their camp, any back up they could get would be useful.

"Hawke!" The silky voice sounded surprised to see him.

Grinning, Hawke turned towards the voice, and watched as Isabela descended the staircase into the pub. She grinned coyly at him, but winced as a patron loudly smashed his glass against the table. He chuckled, "Guess I missed quite a party," he raised an eyebrow.

"Indeed," she agreed, fighting the urge to smile back at him. Did he always have to have that confident smirk plastered across his face? It was obnoxiously infectious.

The former pirate captain saunter by him, making sure her shoulder brushed against his, and took her usual seat at the bar. She threw a coin at Coriff and gratefully accepted her drink. Patting the seat next to her, Isabela gestured for Hawke to join her. He did silently.

"You're not drinking?" she asked dejectedly.

He laughed, "And you are? You're still hungover," he pointed out, his lopsided grin spread further across his face.

"If I get drunk again I won't even notice," she replied diplomatically, taking a sip of her drink. He didn't need to know she'd bought water. "Come on," she nudged him playfully, "Live a little," she encouraged with a wink.

His smirk widened, but she saw the slightest blush creep to his cheeks, and a stray thought danced into her head : she would annihilate him in a card game. Ideally, they'd be playing for clothes. "It's still a bit early for me," he replied diplomatically, still grinning.

Isabela shrugged, and finished her cup "Time is just a matter of perspective sweet thing," she said lightly, allowing her free hand to ghost over his arm. She flagged down Coriff again, ordered two drinks, and handed one to Hawke.

He raised an eyebrow, but tipped his glass to her in thanks, "If you're still around after this Deep Roads expedition, I owe you one," he promised.

She snorted, "I better not still be here," she smirked. She spun towards him, twirling her finger around the brim of her glass as she considered her words, "So you are working for Varric on this expedition of his hmm," he nodded. So that's why he'd helped her; the expedition was desperate for funding. Isabela bit her lip. "I might have some work for you, if you're interested?"

Hawke took a sip of his whiskey and stared at her thoughtfully, "Not to look a gift horse in the mouth…but what exactly is this…work?" He flashed her a crooked grin.

"I have a friend who could use some help."

Now he looked interested, "A friend? Or a friend?" he grinned suggestively.

Despite herself, she felt a grin stretch across her face, "You almost sound jealous Hawke," she teased lightly, reveling in the way his face pinkened ever so slightly, "You had your chance last night goose," she added coyly, moving in closer to him, pressing her upper body against his, just in case he'd forgotten what he'd missed out on.

She felt him inhale shakily, and as he exhaled, his hot breath hit her neck, causing her to shiver and rethink her pledge to reject him should he come 'round looking for company. "Who's this friend Isabela?" he asked quietly, his breath hitting her ear. Her lips twitched in a mixture of amusement and annoyance; he kept ruining the moment to talk business.

She smiled and pulled back, taking a sip from her glass before she answered, trying to will away the fluttering excitement in her belly. "His name is Martin, and he wasn't particularly forthcoming," she said calmly, "But I'm sure it's nothing you can't handle," she added with a wink.

"Well, I'd hate to disappoint," Hawke chuckled.

"He's upstairs, a few doors down from Varric," Isabela elaborated, "If you want, I'll introduce you."

Hawke ran his hand through his hair. The amulet felt heavy in his pocket-he wanted it gone-, but they definitely needed the coin for the expedition. He nodded, "I'd be delighted," he smiled at the pirate. The amulet had waited this long, he could postpone fulfilling his end of the bargain another 24 hours.

"Lead the way Isabela," he bowed his head slightly, a playful grin on his face.

She rolled her eyes as she bounced to her feet and grabbed his wrist, able to feel his pulse beat through the thin leather of his gloves. She weaved them expertly between the tables and patrons and up towards the living quarters.

Her stomach fluttered again as she realized how easy it would be to distract Hawke from his job. He was following her willingly, not opposed to letting her drag him along. She could shove him through the door of her room, slam it behind them, shove him against the wall and…she shivered. But no, he'd missed his chance; the offer had been a one night exclusive thank you. And now, she was repaying him by getting him work for his expedition instead.

As she passed by her door she gave it an evil glare. It looked so nice and sturdy for throwing Hawke against. She quickened her pace and knocked on Martin's door before she could contemplate that line of thought further.

"Who's there?" Martin's gruff voice holler through the door.

Isabela rolled her eyes; Martin had always been wary, but Andraste's ass, she'd only talked to him a bit ago. "It's only me, Martin," she said dryly and she listened to the scuffing of a chair against the cheap wooden floor as Martin moved to open up for them. She chuckled as he opened it, unable to resist the urge to tease him, "What happened to the dashing, fearless raider I used to know?"

Martin sneered at her and she felt Hawke stiffen behind her.

"I'm just an honest merchant nowadays Isabela," Martin directed the comment to her, but his eyes were on Hawke.

"Please Martin," she retorted, "You wouldn't know honest if I tied you up and spanked you with it."

"Right. You tie him up, I'll go find some honesty," Hawke quipped, an odd twinge to his usually light voice. She turned to him in confusion. His typical lopsided smirk was plastered across his face, but the amused glint didn't quite reach his eyes. "What's this job you need help with?" he added, cutting right back to business.

"I'm not a raider anymore. Lookin' to make an honest livin'," Martin growled, "But some damned raiders stole my cargo. It was my ticket to startin' over," he explained.

"Why would raiders want your cargo? Was it valuable?" Hawke asked, keeping his voice light. Isabela raised an eyebrow…Hawke was acting strangely.

"How should I know why they'd want it," Martin sneered, "It was nothin' but spices and herbs," he shrugged.

Hawke starred at Martin for a long moment before nodding, "I'll look into it for you," he promised the ex-raider. He turned to Isabela, "Have you seen Varric? Looks like we have some work to do," he paused, the typical mischievous glint returning to his eye as he smiled at her, "I assume you're tagging along?"

Isabela felt her own face stretch into a grin, "I love killing raiders," she agreed and they bid Martin goodbye, "And if we kill them, we get to take their stuff," she added as an afterthought. She watched as Hawke's face burst into a large genuine smile of amusement, and she felt a warm stirring in the pit of her stomach. Damn him. That stupid smile of his was too damn attractive.


...I'm probably the only person in the world who wishes that the scar on Martin's neck was an optional tattoo/scar...yes...in some weird alternate Dragon Age 2 universe I want the Hawkes to have literally been run out of town by a mob eager to kill the family mages...wow...that was really dark...

Well whatever.

Enjoy and Review!