Chapter 23 - Celebrate?

So the day had taken an eventful turn, Isabela had insisted that they go out for what Makatza would call pre-drinks, even though she lived at a bar. Isabela wanted to go into High town to a particular place and it wasn't until they were at the door and Makatza realised where she was that the fun really started. She should have known by the scantily dressed people around the area that they were in a place of negotiable affection as Sebastian would call it. She had protested but the Pirate won, stating that they were just window shopping and having a couple drinks, Makatza didn't have to do anything she didn't want to. So now she was sitting at the bar feeling quite awkward but at the same time a little tipsy. She giggles as she watches Isabela dance with one of the many beautiful men that were about that night. She sips her drink and smiles, it wasn't as bad as she thought it was going to be thank goodness, Izzy had pointed out a couple of men that she thought was the young woman's type but Makatza made it very clear that she wasn't looking to have a casual encounter. 'So! Nobody has taken your eye yet?' Isabela said as she sat down heavily on the bar stool and grabbed her pint. She whistles at the handsome partner she had as he continues to dance.

'Nope, though I have been offered a job and propositioned twice,' Makatza laughs as she sips her wine. 'Apparently 'all elves are gagging for it' at least that's what the last guy said,' she shrugged not caring.

'Ew, which one was it? I'll give him something he's clearly gagging for,' Isabela said pointedly as she stabs her dagger into the side.

Makatza laughs and pulls it out not wanting her friend to get in trouble for damaging property, 'as long as you shove it up his arse,' she smiles while shaking her head. 'Don't worry about it, it doesn't bother me. People say stupid shit when they're drunk. Also, he's not wrong, I am gagging for it,' she said purely to watch Isabela's reaction. She wasn't disappointed, the pirate sprayed beer everywhere.

'Say no fucking more!' Her best friend said as she shot up and looked around. 'There was this cute elf around earlier, where the fuck did he go? He was gorgeous, black hair, that dark skin... ooh like a little chocolate,' she said as she peered over the heads of the other patrons.

'Izzy,' Makatza said grabbing her arm and getting spun in her chair with momentum, 'I told you I don't want just a fling,' she says to the empty air as Isabela ran off. 'Fuck!' Katza swore as she rolled her eyes and turned back to her drink. It was only a few minutes later that she returned dragging an elf in tow.

'Here! Here he is! Just for you! A nameday present!' Isabela bounced. He was very good looking, his black hair had a lovely curl and bright blue eyes, not to mention his skin was the colour of melted caramel, Makatza stared for a moment before sanity kicked in. He smiled softly at her and took her hand.

'You did not tell me that she was beautiful, I'll be sorely tempted not to charge you at all,' he says with a cheeky grin. Makatza blushed heavily and stuttered.

'I-I'm sorry!' She squeaked a few octaves higher than she usually spoke. 'I'm just not looking for that kind of thing!' Makatza said feeling her face erupt. 'She just doesn't take no for an answer!'

'Oh I've heard,' he laughs; a sweet melody that made everyone near smile. Makatza crossed her legs, she could feel her heartbeat in certain parts of her body with pinpoint accuracy. The temptation was immense, it's not like I couldn't, I mean, I could. I just thought it would be different, I kinda want it to be with someone I care about, not that I think it'll be bad. It'll probably be very, very good, she thinks to herself as he stares into her eyes. 'Do not worry yourself my beautiful one, for you, I will be available at any time,' he says kissing her fingers and leaving them with a wink. Makatza breathed out heavily once he had left earshot and glared at her friend.

'Oh come on! He was tasty, admit it,' Isabela grins.

'Izzy. I've never even been kissed properly, let alone, well you know,' Katza says simply. Isabela's jaw dropped.

'Fuck off,' she says simply. She sits back down in her chair. 'Girl, you have got a lot to catch up on. I mean, come on!'

'It's not like I don't want to, I just have never been in that situation,' she replies with a shrug. 'I'm not holding out for someone or anything, I just, I didn't go out when I was a teenager and boys always just used to make fun of me. So it just never happened,' Makatza said as she ordered another wine. 'I think the closest I've been is when Sebastian gave me CPR,' she adds thinking about it, 'that's fricking sad.'

Isabela nods, 'I get it, I do. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable,' she apologises which Makatza waves away. 'Come on, a couple more drinks and then we'll go down to the Hanged man, yeah?' She suggests.

Makatza raises her newly filled glass in agreement and the Pirate beams. 'Sounds like a plan,' she nods. It doesn't take long for a couple drinks to turn into a few and before they realise it's later than they want it to be and they've still got to get to the pub. 'We're not late are we?' Makatza asks as she takes her cloak from the attendant.

Isabela shook her head, 'na we've got a good hour yet. Gonna have to be careful going into dark town though, getting close to the time that the gangs come out to play,' she says feeling annoyed. 'I can still fight but I'd rather not get you involved,' Isabela checks her weapons and waits for her friend by the door. They walk out into the street, the brisk air biting at their bare legs. Makatza had taken a leaf out of Isabela's book and wore the same type of clothing that the Pirate usually did but with a longer dress, this one actually covered her arse. Wrapping her cloak around her they began to walk into down town, it wasn't until they were halfway down the immense staircase that they ran into trouble. 'Ach shite,' Isabela swore as a couple of men appeared from the shadows and another couple perched on the wall alongside the stairs. 'The trash has come out early has it?' She said as she counted targets. 'Can we not do the whole, what do we have here routine and skip straight to the part where I'm removing my dagger from your balls?'

Makatza felt her heart drop, they look more than a couple of men looking to take advantage of a pair of women, they looked like they meant business and going by the one that she had spotted with a bow and arrow, it was terrifying. Isabela reached down slowly and patted her thigh, Makatza looked at her and realised that she wanted her to take the spare dagger that she had. Makatza moved closer so that her cloak covered the weapon as she gently pulled it out the sheath, it wasn't as large as Isabela's normal weapons but it was sharp and that's all that mattered. 'Sure you wanna do this?' Makatza whispered to Isabela.

'First chance, run,' Isabela murmured back without moving her lips. Makatza nods a little in agreement and then without warning Isabela darted over to the one that was closest and stabbed him in the groin before starting to leg it down the stairs. Makatza swore as she wasn't quite as ready, but she took several steps at a time praying that her momentum would keep her upright. 'Get that arse moving!' Isabela called back as she looked over her shoulder, the men were angry and going by the arrow that dropped past her elbow they were looking for blood. 'Shit!' Isabela curses as they get to the bottom of the stairs and stumble. Makatza can't slam the breaks on well enough and catches her shoulder on the corner of the building as they run around the corner. She's pretty sure they've gained some distance on the thugs when they run into Garrett and Fenris. Isabela grabs Garrett and shoves Makatza into Fenris' arms, 'take her. Gang on tail,' she directs at the elf.

'We were wondering where you two were-' Hawke began, Isabela covered his mouth and shook her head as she panted.

'Gang. On. Tail,' she says simply as she stares at him. She looks over to the elf that was still holding Makatza by the shoulders in shock, 'what are you doing? Take her to the pub!'

'You're not going to be able to stop them with just you and Garrett,' Makatza said moving away from Fenris and shaking her head. 'I won't fight but I can make it to the pub on my own, I don't need Fenris, he can help you,' she says simply, there wasn't time for an argument as the group of men appear at the end of the alley. 'Shit,' Makatza swore simply. The alcohol wasn't helping her sudden fearless attitude, she still had Isabela's dagger and she felt pretty pissed off. Fenris grabbed her gently but firmly by the arm and moved her behind him as he unsheathed his sword, his markings shimmering into light. Backed up by her lover and his friend Isabela grinned as she turned to the idiots that were trying to cause trouble. The fight was quick and brutal, the companions were of a clear higher skill set. Makatza did her best to stay out the way and not cause any more hassle, it was tricky but she managed to avoid them all. A thought went through her head that she should just go back to the pub but she was sure they would just worry about her getting there in one piece. Before long they were all dead or dying.

'Well, Aveline will be both happy and pissed about this,' Hawke said as he checks Isabela for injuries, mostly scratches and scrapes. Fenris had a slight cut on his cheek and was wiping his blade with a cloth when Makatza spotted one of the dying men move. He had reached over and grabbed a crossbow sighting at the elf that had stabbed him.

'Fenris!' Makatza said sharply as she shoved him to the side, she felt the sharp sting and then a burning ache as a bolt lodged itself into her ribs. She looked down at her clothes that were rapidly becoming stained as she gasped, each movement of her breathing sending a spike of intense pain through her chest. Fenris stumbled, having dropped his sword and looked over at the young woman.

'No!' He exclaimed as she began to stagger backwards and fall. Garrett finished the thug off with a simple blast of fire while Isabela grabbed Makatza's arm in an attempt to steady her.

'Katza, no!' She said as Fenris caught her, half holding her up. 'D-Don't touch it, don't pull it out! It's fine, you're gonna be fine! We just gotta get you to Anders,' she says in a panic.

Makatza winces, feeling tears drop down her cheeks, 'this really hurts. Didn't think it would hurt this much,' she babbled. Her breathing had quickened as her body started to go into shock. She could hear Fenris, Garrett and Isabela talking but for the life of her she couldn't make out any words. Looking down all she could see was the shaft moving in and out with her breathing, a deep wet ring of blood had blossomed on the cotton of her dress. She started to shake and she felt herself get picked up, the weight being taken off her feet. She couldn't help it, with every movement that was made, made pain shoot through her with a groan of protest. 'Fuck!' She swears as she grips tightly with her hand, almost digging her nails into the shoulder of whomever was carrying her, keeping her eyes closed helped her cope almost. Her other hand was on her stomach as she tried to steady the arrow. 'Oh god I am never doing this again!' She says in an attempt to make herself feel better with humour.

Warmth rushes over her as the door to the Hanged Man is shoved open by Isabela. 'Varric's rooms! Quickly!' She instructs.

'God, the stairs are the worst!' She says as she opens her eyes and sees Hawke carrying her with a pained smile, each step upwards felt like it drove the arrow in further.

'I'm trying to be gentle,' he apologises.

'You're failing,' Makatza said through gritted teeth as she winces. She caught the look on Johnny's face as she was carried through, his expression pale. 'Carrying me like this means everyone can see my arse,' she adds making Garrett smile genuinely for a moment. She gasps in pain and fresh tears flood down her face. 'Ah, Fuuuuuck!' She moans as she flicks out a leg in a way to cope with the pain. Hawke carries her into Varric's room, everyone had jumped up to greet them, the cheerful atmosphere suddenly turning dark as they realise the situation.

'Where's Anders?' Garrett demands as he's directed to Varric's bedroom and goes in to put Makatza down.

'He's cannae come, he's busy,' Merrill pips in as she follows, Aveline could be heard asking Isabela what had happened and Sebastian was on Hawke's trail, close behind Merrill. 'I can go see if he has any potions though,' she offers in worry.

'Aye, I'll come with you, we'll take Aveline as well. Isabela and Varric know how to patch arrow wounds,' Garrett says as he takes the young woman back into the main rooms leaving Makatza with Sebastian.

'What happened?' Sebastian asked as he knelt by her side taking her hand. She was breathing in and out slowly in a hiss, clearly trying to control the pain. The windows vibrated and there was a loud snap as a crack appeared over one of the panes of glass. She was trying to control her mana but it wasn't going well.

'Some daft bastards picked a fight,' Katza said quickly between breaths. 'One wasn't quite dead. I pushed Fenris out the way,' she tried to explain through a moan of pain. Sebastian shushed her softly and looked at the wound.

'I can try to help you, it wouldn't be the first time I have treated this type of injury,' he says simply. Makatza holds his hand and nods squeezing his fingers tightly. 'Fenris wears armour, you shouldn't have put yourself in danger.'

'I could heal... but I can't concentrate,' she winces ignoring his comment. 'It just... just burns and I can't think properly,' she groans.

'I'll have to cut your clothing-'

'Seb! I think we're waaay past giving a shit about seeing skin or underwear,' she scolds as she lays her head back onto the pillow. She understood that he was just trying to be considerate and make sure she was comfortable but she hurt too much and her adrenaline was wearing off. Sebastian blushes sometimes he just didn't think, he takes his dagger from his hip; the one he usually used to whittle arrows and begins to gently slit through her dress.

'It looks like it's a good inch and a half deep,' he says softly as he examines her wound.

'I can feel it, I can feel what needs healing I just... I can't do it, not with the bolt in me,' she says wincing as she looks down. Great, I'm half naked in front of a guy I have a crush on and there's a great big fucking arrow sticking out of me! She mentally screams. Sebastian tried to stay professional but he could see the curve of a tattoo on her hip and trail up to her ribs where it disappeared around to her back, it looked like ivy. 'Just pull it out!' She said simply.

Sebastian looks apologetic, 'I can't just pull it out, it's acting as a plug, I pull it out and it'll start bleeding. A lot,' he explains. Varric comes in with gauze and cloths, needle and thread on a tray with a bowl of water, Sebastian thanks him and puts it on the night stand.

'Just fucking pull it out and I can start healing!' She swore at him making several panes shatter in her desperation. Varric raised a brow and gingerly sat on the other side of the bed taking her hand. 'Please, please Seb, just take it out,' she begged. Varric exchanged a look with the Prince and nodded. They had to trust her and if it didn't work they could both easily manage to treat it. She screamed as he grabbed the shaft, she bit down hard on her hand feeling blood burst under her teeth as he swiftly with a sharp tug pulled the arrow from her. She kicked out a leg and moaned in pain, Sebastian dropped the arrow and took her hand placing his other hand on her shoulder.

'Breathe, just breathe and concentrate, you're only going to have a couple of minutes before Varric and I have to start treating you,' he says as he tries to calm her. Makatza whimpered and nodded her head hissing in pain as Varric cleans up her blood with a cloth. She breathed in deeply and closed her eyes as she began to concentrate. The waves of mana that had been pouring from her started to lessen and concentrate, a small glittering dome pulsing over her wound. She moans in pain and grips his hand tighter as he watches her body heal. Gasping she stops, the wound had been healed to almost completion, a scab over the entrance.

'Internally... I'm fine,' she pants. Sweat had gathered across her brow, 'I'm just too tired to heal the rest. It'll do...' she says quietly. The ache was still there but she was content as the deep internal pain had subsided. Sebastian smiled and brushed her hair from her eyes as Varric cleaned up the mess that had been made.

'Well done, Katza,' he says softly. 'You should sleep,' he adds.

'Everyone-'

'Everyone will be here when you wake up. The night is still early yet, Petal,' Varric interrupts her as he pats her hand and pulls a blanket up over her. 'Sleep for a couple hours and then we can celebrate okay?' He reassures. Makatza sighs and smiles.

'Thank you. Both of you,' she murmurs as she closes her eyes.


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