They had only just gotten the path the Keeper showed them when Anders heard a strange sound. It sounded like a gust of wind blowing threw over an empty bottle. The mage looked at the rest of the group, and by the looks of their faces Anders could tell that they heard it too.

"What was that?" Varric asked.

"I guess we'll find out," Marian said as the air suddenly felt very heavy, just like at the mansion.

Anders kept one eye of Hawke. Just like at the mansion, her cocky smile was gone, and Carver was giving her that same worried look when he thought that no one was looking. There is something they are not telling us about Hawke's magic… Anders thought remembering how Justice reacted that night.

Once they rounded the corner, they saw an elfin woman sitting on the ground. Anders could not see her face, but he was able to see part of her tattoos. Her brown colored hair was short with every strand in a braid. Her clothing was similar to the Keeper's, but hers was a vibrant forest green. A staff, that looked just like the Keeper's, hung from a leather strap at was attached to the back of her clothes.

"Oh, I didn't hear," The elfin woman stood up and walked over to them. "You must be the ones the Keeper told me about. Aneth ara."

A panicked look suddenly appeared on the woman's tattooed face. "I'm so sorry. I didn't ask your name. Unless… it's not rude to ask a human their name, is it?"

"I'm Merrill." The woman did a small bow to everyone. "Which you probably already knew already, I rambling sorry."

"I am sorry to say," Marian said with a small laugh, "You'll have to work a lot harder than that to offend me. My name is Marian Hawke."

"Thank you," Merrill replied, relieved. "I'm afraid I'm not very experienced with your kind."

"Do you want to introduce yourselves or should I?" Hawke asked the rest of the group.

Everyone introduced themselves to Merrill while Marian stood a few feet away from the elf which Anders found strange, Although he did not know Hawke for very long, she was normally shaking hands with almost everyone they had met: elf, human, or dwarf. This just didn't seem like her.

"The Keeper said you came from Ferelden," Merrill stated. "I spent most of my life there. We only came north a little while ago. Are all of you from there?"

"Just me, my brother, Aveline, and Anders," Marian answered.

"Oh, have you been in the Free Marshes long?" The female questioned. "Do you like it here?"

"After a year of living there, I can say that it is a good place for a fresh start," Marian looked up the path.

"Really? I hope that you are right," Merrill said. "We should go your task is for Asha'bellanar. It's not wise to keep her waiting."

"Do you know the woman who sent us here?" Aveline asked.

"Not personally," Merrill admitted. "My people tell stories of her though. "You're very lucky. Most people who meet Asha'bellanar wind up in little pieces…hanging from trees."

"Then let's get on with it then," Hawke started walking up the path.

"Well I hope that you brought confortable shoes it is a long walk," The Dalish elf started after Hawke. "But we need to be careful, there are dark things about."

"Of course!" Carver groaned, as they started walking up the mountain.

Fenris did not like the looks that Merrill was giving him. The elf had enough on his mind without the Dalish elf giving him strange looks. The air felt the same as Danarius's mansion had that night, and, just like before, his markings felt like something was crawling on his body. When he felt it before, the elf had assumed that it was the work of his former master, but now he was not sure.

"Why are you watching me like that?" Fenris finally asked Merrill.

"You have vallaslin." Merrill pointed at Fenris's markings. "The same markings the Dalish have. Are you…"

"I'm not Dalish!" he retorted. "Yours are not made of lyrium."

"No, they are made from blood. Our blood," Merrill said off handedly. "That's what vallaslin means: blood writing. It's a mark of adulthood."

"Mine were carved into my flesh against my will, in a ritual." Fenris watched a look of horror appear on the girl's face. "I only remember it for the agony it caused me."

"I'm…so sorry," The Dalish elf gave him a pitiful look.

"I don't want your pity!" he snapped, hoping that would shut her up.

"Fenris," Marian gave him a small cocky smile. "Don't be so mean. How was Merrill to know considering she has only known us for a few minutes?"

Fenris looked away from Hawke, feeling very awkward.

Marian stopped and pulled out her dagger. "Son of a bitch!"

Suddenly, a three dozen zombie skeletons dug themselves out of the ground. Marian decapitated the closest one to her with her dagger in one motion and raised her arm at the rest of the undead creatures. BANG! All of them were knocked down by a burst of her magic. Unlike the demons at the mansion; however, the skeletons stood right back up, unharmed.

"Shit!" Carver attacked with Marian right next to him.

Aveline and Fenris quickly joined the fight with Varric's crossbow quickly shooting bolts past them. Anders and Merrill shot spells at the zombies while Fenris and Carver hacked the corpses with their large blades. Aveline was cutting through several of the creatures while Hawke attacked with both magic and her dagger. The male elf would have cursed his luck about being accompanied by another mage, but several dozen more skeletons jumped out of the ground surrounding them. We aren't going to be able to defeat them! Fenris thought.

"Everyone get down!" Varric shouted, raising his crossbow up in the air.

The group did as the dwarf ordered, and Varric fired a huge hail of arrows at them, shredding the skeletons into tiny pieces.

"Maker, Varric," Carver looked at the crossbow as if he had never seen one before. "What was that?"

"A reason one should never anger Bianca, Junior," Varric replied, lovingly stroking his weapon. "Regrettably, she won't be able to fire for at least an hour."

"Well, please thank her for saving our asses," Marian requested.

"The Keeper didn't say that you were a mage," Aveline said, giving Merrill a suspicious look.

"I imagine it's difficult to give away what no one wants," Fenris spat in a harsh tone.

"All Keepers know a bit of old magic," Merrill put her staff back on her back. "The stories tell us that all elvhen once had the gift, but like so many things it was lost. It's a Keepers job to remember, to restore what we can."

"Does the Chantry know about Dalish mages?" Anders questioned.

"Oh they know," Merrill gave a small shudder. "Keeper Marethari told me that was one of the reasons we never camped too long in one place. They usually won't pursue us if we stay away from the cities and towns and keep moving."

"You have no idea how good you have it," Anders gave Merrill a small smile.

"But the clan is in more danger, having lost our halla." A small tear ran down the Dalish mage's cheek.

"Can't demons possess Dalish mages?" Marian asked.

"It can happen." Merrill hung her head. "And when it does, the clan must hunt and kill their own Keeper."

"You do know that Kirkwall has among the highest number of Templars in the Free Marshes, and that they will label you as an apostate," Marian warned with a small shadow in her eyes. "And trust me they can be real assholes."

"I know," Merrill gulped. "But if I don't go to Kirkwall, I'll be alone. A solitary elf is easy prey for anyone. In the city I can get lost in the crowd."

"Well… um.. thanks for… pitching in back there," Carver stated, which was the first thing the elf had heard him say that wasn't a complaint.

"Oh! Your welcome," Merrill blushed. "I wasn't sure that I'd be much good. I've done a little fighting before, but it was always alone. I'll try not to hit anyone. On our side, I mean… I'm babbling again. Let's go."

As they started up the path again, Fenris could not help but give a Hawke a quick glance. The last time he had seen her use magic; Marian was tired and obviously weakened. (For some reason, he needed to make sure was fine this time.) Unlike last time, however, Hawke seemed fine, and Anders was whispering something to her…

"Are you alright?" asked Hawke in a hushed voice so no one else could hear.

"I'm fine, Anders," she replied, giving him a strange look. "And why are we whispering?"

"Marian, are you sure that you are okay?" Justice had told him during the fight that there was something wrong with Marian.

"I think Carver might find Merrill cute," Hawke gave her brother a very mischievous look. "He only ever talks that way whenever he finds a girl cute. I'll have to tease him about it later."

"Hawke," Anders started.

"Oh, look another Dalish!" Hawke pointed to a black haired, male elf standing in a small clearing not too far ahead, not allowing the mage to finish.

"So the Keeper finally found someone to take you from here," The male Dalish elf gave Merrill a spiteful look that Anders thought gave Fenris's hateful look a run for its money.

"Yes," Merrill did not look her fellow Dalish.

The black haired elf turned to Hawke. "Finish your task quickly human. We cannot be rid of this one too soon."

"I have made my choice," Merrill stated as the black haired elf went down the path toward the Dalish camp. "And I will save our clan, whatever you think."

"So…Sundermount looks very…mountainous today, doesn't it?" Carver said to Merrill after a short, but awkward silence. "Lots of rock…and hillside…and…"

"We should go," Merrill started to walk up the path toward the summit, not reacting to Carver's comment. "We will need to enter a cave a few more feet up the path in order to reach the top."

"Junior, you really need to practice on how to talk to women," Varric jokingly retorted, giving him a gentle slap on the back.

"It doesn't matter," Marian gave her brother that cocky smile of hers. "Carver has never been able to talk to women."

Carver shouted a few choice swear words at the two as the group once again started walking. Hawke was walking just far enough from Anders to keep him from whispering anything to her. Anders was no certain that there was something wrong with Hawke. Why she didn't want him to know, the mage had no idea. For the rest of the climb to the cave, Anders could not help but keep an eye on Hawke. The mage watched her beautiful rapier like form quickly catching up to Merrill. Anders shook his head. What was he thinking?

"I'm sorry," Merrill said once they got to the cave. "You are not really seeing the Dalish at their best. We're good people that look out for each other. Just not today, apparently."

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Marian asked.

"It's kind of you to ask." Merrill gave Hawke a small smile. "I'm fine. Even if my people don't appreciate my efforts, I must see this through. Let's go. Asha'bellanar is not known for her patience."

With that they entered the cave.