A small messenger boy came to the barracks early that day demanding to see the captain of the guard. After a small fuss the boy raised from a few guardsmen denying the scraggy child entry, Brennan took the his notice to Aveline and sent him away with a few spare coins. She entered the captain's office and stood at attention along with a short greeting.
"At ease," Aveline said, quickly finishing her signature at the bottom of the paper. A moment later she pulled her gaze up from the parchment and placed her pen down in a nearby inkwell. Brennan took a few steps forward and placed the notice on her desk. The captain stared at it.
"What's this?" the redhead asked.
Brennan shrugged and said, "Dunno. Kid wanted this brought to you. Said it was important."
"Do you know who it was from?" her superior asked.
"He didn't say," she replied.
Aveline frowned slightly, then picked up the rolled up paper, opened it, and scanned over its contents. Satisfied, she nodded.
"Thank you, Brennan. You are dismissed. And send my husband to me if you see him," issued the captain. The subordinate stood at attention and left the room.
Aveline informed Donnic that she would be home late and, that evening when she usually left the barracks, went straight to the Hanged Man. When she arrived, she walked up the stairs to Varric's suite where he, Isabela, Anders, and Merrill were already seated and waiting. She sat down with the others and waited as well. Sebastian came as well after several minutes, and finally Fenris a while after that.
"Where's Hawke?" Sebastian asked while Varric ordered a round of ale.
"She did not wish to attend," Fenris stated.
"This is about her - she should be here," Aveline said.
"I'd rather not," Varric grumbled, "It would be real awkward, especially for me. I'm not so tactless to make her sit in a meeting about how we're going to 'fix' her."
Anders shrugged and said, "Either way, we're here, she's not. Let's get this meeting underway, shall we?"
"Right," the dwarf mumbled, then spoke up, "I don't know how many of you have been paying attention but Hawke has been outside the political sphere for a few days now. By now the nobility's kind of used to her just disappearing for a day or two, but soon people will start asking questions and, honestly, I have no idea how to answer them."
"Say she's sick," Isabela shrugged, "It's true enough."
"That won't work forever," Anders commented.
"Do we have to hide it, though?" Merrill piped up.
"I agree," Aveline interjected, "This should be taken to the Circle."
Hands slapping the table, Anders announced, "Absolutely not!"
"Aveline raises a valid point, Anders," Sebastian said to placate him, "This issue will become noticeable within days. Lying may do more to hinder Hawke's recovery than aid it."
"Have you seen the Knight-Commander lately?" Anders challenged, "She's insane! If she found out Hawke might be possessed, she'd have Kirkwall's Champion beheaded on principle!"
"Then you and Merrill will take care of this alone?" Aveline pressed, "You run a clinic, and I know you're involved with the Mage Underground, on top of that bloody manifesto I keep finding in my office - which is harassment, by the way. How do you suppose that your efforts will be better than if the Circle were to investigate?"
"Meredith has been losing a few marbles for years now, you have to admit," Isabela commented.
"Meredith is concerned, and rightly so considering the number of maleficar that we have run into alone," Sebastian said calmly.
"I don't know much about this magic business, and I don't like to get involved in these kinds of conversations, but out of respect to the person who isn't here I don't think Hawke would want Meredith or Orsino in her business," Varric muttered.
"We're not even certain if Hawke is possesed," Merrill said, "Can we really trust the Circle with this sort of doubt?"
Anders rolled his eyes.
"Whether or not you believe me, Anders, the fact is we really don't know anything," the elf defended, "We've made a lot of assumptions based on what we can see, but in this case it's not the same."
"Alright, I missed something," Varric interjected.
"Merrill came down to my clinic the other day with the most inane idea I've ever heard," Anders supplied.
"What is it?" Aveline asked.
Merrill explained her theory to everyone at the table.
After a few moments, Sebastian coughed and said, "It's... a unique concept."
"That's really interesting, actually," Isabela commented, leaning against her hand with her elbow propped on the table.
Fenris snorted.
Everyone turned to look at the other elf, who was curled around himself and holding his sides with his shoulders shaking. Another second and a few short chuckles escaped from his lips, and shortly after laughter burst from his mouth and filled the room. He threw his upper body backwards against the chair, head tossed over the edge of his seat. Still laughing, he drew his right hand up and covered his eyes and nose with the stretched palm and fingers. A minute passed before his hearty laugh faltered into chuckles, and another minute until he calmed down, smile still slapped on his face.
"Well well, he does have a sense of humor," Anders muttered in mild astonishment.
"So... How do we figure out... Is that possible?" Aveline said, holding her head.
"It isn't," Anders stated, "Hawke has not been swept away to some mythical Thedas and replaced by a doppelganger - that's utterly nonsensical."
"I don't understand any of this," Varric muttered, burying his face in his upturned fists.
Sebastian cleared his throat and inquired, "About how long do you think it would take for you to find the root cause of Hawke's situation, Anders?"
The human mage blinked and fell silent for a few moments. None of the others interrupted the quiet, the babble of the Hanged Man's crowd from below and the sighs of a pair of lovers next door barely breaching the walls of the suite. Then Anders eyes snapped up to Sebastian.
"Give me one month," the mage said, "If I cannot find a solid explanation for Hawke's situation, I will not stop you from seeking the Circle's aid. But if anything should happen to her, it will be on your head."
Sebastian smiled, nodded, and replied, "Thank you Anders."
Anders nodded back.
"We should work together," Merrill said, "I could go back to Sundermount and study the runes some more."
"If you do, try bringing back some impressions of the engravings," Anders instructed, "Fenris seems to be the only one capable of getting more than six words out of her. Fenris-" the other elf looked at the blond, "See if you can get her to talk about her memories; perhaps they'll provide us with some sort of clue."
"I can do that," the tattooed elf said with a shrug.
"In the meantime, I'll look into that collar," Anders continued, "I've been meaning to for a while now."
"I suppose that means I'm going to have to keep the nobility from poking their nose where it doesn't belong," Varric said, "Though I still have no idea what I'm going to say."
"Oh, you'll think of something, Varric," Merrill smiled, "You're very good at telling stories."
"My family has a small hunting lodge in the Starkhaven countryside," Sebastian offered, "Perhaps she could be escorted there to make things more believable."
Fenris shook his head and said, "No. Relocating her will do nothing for her memory."
"What about bringing her to her home town?" Isabela asked.
"No good," Aveline responded, "The darkspawn decimated Lothering. Even if it was being rebuilt, it wouldn't be the same."
"I can't help her if she isn't here anyhow," Anders said, "I still have a clinic to run."
"Has anyone talked to Carver yet?" Merrill interrupted suddenly. A few of the others glanced around.
"Maker, I feel like an ass," Aveline muttered, "How could we forget her brother?"
"He's a Templar," Anders pointed out flatly, "Tell him and we may as well be reporting to Meredith."
"But she's family," the elf girl insisted.
"And he has sworn an oath to his order," the human mage countered.
Sebastian sighed and said, "Merrill, I see where you're coming from, but Anders does have a point. Even if he were not to share this with his superiors, hiding such information… could become problematic for him. For now, perhaps it would be best to keep him uninvolved."
The group continued speaking and debating for a few hours, often cycling back to the original topic, most hardly touching their drinks when a round of ale was eventually ordered. Anders was the first to excuse himself, leaving his half-empty pint on the table as he darted back to the sewers. Shortly after, Aveline gulped down the remained or her drink and left to return home, then Sebastian. Fenris eventually excused himself as well. Isabela stood from her seat and walked around the table to Merrill then patted the elf girl's back.
"Don't worry about what those boys think," the pirate said.
"I appreciate the concern, but I'm fine," the mage replied with a smile.
"Bullshit," the human said, "You were ready to deck Fenris; I could tell." Merrill just chuckled awkwardly. After a few minutes, the elf said her goodbyes and returned to her little home. She took a few blankets and packed up papers, books, food, and other necessities, wrapping said blankets around them and using it as a bag. By the time she set out, the sun was beginning to set, sending orange and violet across the lightly clouded sky.
At Hawke's mansion, she and Fenris lounged on her bed.
"Has it always been so quiet?" she eventually whispered. He shifted so he could look up at her face while she gazed distantly at the door.
"I suppose there was a bit more activity when your mother was alive," he confessed a bit awkwardly.
Her head turned to the far right corner and she asked, "That's her room over there, isn't it."
He grunted in confirmation.
A few more moments and she said, "Do you think there should be music playing?"
"What for?" Fenris furrowed his brows.
"I'm not sure," she admitted, "The house just feels so... empty."
He reached to touch her hand and wrapped his long fingers around her palm. She looked down into his eyes in response and he saw a warmth that he had not basked in in days. He wanted to kiss her hand, but settled on stroking it with his thumb so he did not startle her back into her self-imposed cage.
"How are your memories?" he asked.
Her eyes fluttered upward and to the side as her mind reached to gather the bits of information she had and said, "Well enough, all things considered."
"Has there been anything that seems more defined?" he continued.
"There was... Something. In the keep, there was... A large man... And a crowd... And you were there... And a lot of running," she said.
"You must be speaking of the duel with the Arishok. Though I do not recall being present," he said.
"I fought the Arishok?" her mouth dropped.
"And won. Though it was a close call," he confirmed.
They lounged together in silence after that. As Fenris was enjoying the affection in peace, he decided that further questions about her mind could wait a day or so. She was overwhelmed enough and continuous probing of the subject may make her feel pressured to remember whether or not the thing her mind told her was true. As well, asking about her memories as a slave could prove to be too raw, real or not.
"I would like to visit Anders tomorrow," she broke the silence.
"You were rather vehement when he tried to examine you before. What changed?" he noted with a slightly raised brow.
"...I haven't been feeling well," she chose.
He regarded her a moment then grunted with a brief nod. A while longer they laid together, not watching the windows or bothering to draw the curtains. It was dark enough outside that her room needed a few candles, but still neither grew out of their lethargy to gather and light some. He watched her silhouette from where he was on the bed, just close enough to border a lover's affection and a man's respect. She was still to the point where he could no longer tell if she were awake or asleep. Eventually, he shifted and pushed himself up from the bed, planting his feet on the ground.
"Will you stay?" her voice spoke softly behind him.
He turned back around, crawled back to and leaned over her, pressed his pursed lips against her forehead, and whispered, "As long as you shall have me." A second time he moved away and stood, then wandered over to one of the wardrobes, quickly undressing and grabbing one of her sleeping gowns from its collection. She snickered.
"Go ahead and laugh," he said plainly. The room was filled with silence again. After a moment he returned to bed and tucked himself under the covers, Hawke following his lead. When they were both comfortable and facing each other, he took her hand in his and held it, placing their hands between their faces on the pillow, and she held in return just a little more firmly.
In Another World
Fenris followed his master down the steps into the dungeon, three paces behind and on his left, checking on his disobedient property as was routine. First he stopped in front of the cage of an elven boy caught stealing food before it reached the master's table. After being properly chastised, the guard reported that the boy would be ready for release by the nightly cleaning duty, provided he behaved appropriately. The only other person locked away at the moment was the concubine, and they soon passed by a few cages, cells, and a torture chamber while crossing to the other end of the dungeon where she stayed.
When they reached the cell, Danarius spoke to the Templar guard standing watch over her. She was leaning her weight against the metal bars, watching the three of them in silence. He permitted himself the indulgence of letting his gaze to linger on her a moment longer than necessary before turning his back to her in his place at his master's side. As the two other men spoke, he felt something soft tickle the inside of his fingers.
The Templar guard's eyes snapped to a spot behind Fenris.
"Stop!" the guardsman announced, stepping forward and reaching out. He grabbed a hold of something behind Fenris, who swirled around to see the first man snatch the woman's wrist in the air. In her hand was a slip of linen charred along one curved side and slender burnt-out lines that carved out his name, which the guard ripped from her grasp. The shred of cloth was placed in Danarius' open palm, who scarcely glanced at it.
The magister smiled slightly and said, "If you believe a slave can read, then you are truly foolish." Fenris' eyes widened for a brief moment.
"I swear, Danarius," she spat his name like poison sucked from an open wound, "as soon as I get out of here, I'll-"
"You'll what? Kill me?" Danarius mocked, "Dear, you've already tried that once before. One ought not to make idle threats, particularly in your position." He tucked the strip away and said, "Now I have more pressing duties to attend to; but don't worry my dear - your turn will come soon enough."
Just as the magister turned to leave, Fenris came up close to the bars, dropping the guard in his eyes before her but speaking in a low and menacing whisper, "I will be watching you."
She did not smile, but her eyes reflected a firm determination and trust when she replied softly, "Well I hope you like the view."
Though he was not expecting a response like that from her, he quickly recovered his mask and slipped into his place at his master's side, three paces back and on the left side.