Varric Meets the Champion

"Alistair, hold still!" Bethany would get frustrated with her older brother sometimes … usually when he acted like a child.

"But, that hur-urts, Beth-a-knee! Ow! Ow!" he responded in his best whiny voice. Alistair wasn't used to fighting dwarves and they were able to come at him from uncomfortable angles. One of the dwarves got a good shot at his butt.

"They came close to your brain, but fortunately, they missed anything too vital." Carver followed that with a laugh.

"Oh, ha ha ha. You're so funny. I bet all the girls swoon at your glib humor," Alistair said into his crossed arms that his face was buried into. "Ow!"

The cargo they were supposed to have an easy time picking up turned into a brawl for no good reason. They yelled two words, "The Hawke!" and then attacked.

"Those were the weirdest Carta guys I'd ever seen … not that I've known a lot of Carta guys." Aveline was helping Bethany. "They went right for you three. I couldn't get one of them to look at me." She chuckled. "Made it easier to come at them from behind."

"Good," Alistair grumbled. "I'm glad I wasn't the only one gotten from behind."

"It was creepy. I think I heard one guy say that his 'master' demanded our blood. And, not just Alistair's … all our blood." Carver shuddered. He stood up from the dead dwarf he was searching. "And, the gems aren't on any of them."

From the beach next to the campsite, a weak voice spoke, "I have the gems … I'll give you four extra if you escort me back to Kirkwall." After a few tense moments, a dwarf stepped out from behind a large stand of tall beach grass. He told them that he'd barely had time to hide. He introduced himself as Javaris Tintop.

The "Carta" who attacked Alistair and company were crazy. They had killed all of Javaris' guards while he ran and hid. Then, they just waited around for the Hawkes to arrive. They didn't even try to look for Javaris, who sounded oddly insulted for being forgotten.

The trip back to town was uneventful and Athenril gave them twenty gold coins for the extra gems. She was going to give them ten, but Javaris insisted they were worth ten times that much. Happy to have any extra coin, Carver suggested a round at the Hanged Man to celebrate.

The place was packed. The regulars were crowded around Varric, the storyteller. Alistair assumed he was owner of the place because Carver told him the dwarf was almost always around. This was only the second or third time that Alistair had come here — the first as an upright male human. Unfortunately, his timing to appear as a human was really bad that night.

As they looked for a table, Varric seemed to quickly end his story and walk their way. "Hey, you're from Ferelden, right? I have a private room upstairs. I'll buy you a round and tell you a story about the Blight I just heard."

At first, they were a bit leery of the invitation, but Aveline soon spotted two men showing around a handbill with a drawing on it. She was the first to get that Varric was offering them a place to hide. As soon as they walked into Varric's room, he quickly closed the door. "There are two bounty hunters downstairs looking for Gamlen … something to do with you, Alistair."

"I didn't know you knew me." Alistair was surprised at first. But, it all became clear when Varric explained that he put Gamlen onto Athenril. "So, we have you to thank for ten more months of working for next to nothing?"

"Yeah … and I should ask for a finder's fee from Athenril. I've heard you've been doing really good work." Varric went to a cupboard and took out a bottle and a bunch of glasses.

"You could pay us for work, too." Bethany grinned.

"Sunshine, I wish I could, but my brother has all the family money tied up in an expedition into the Deep Roads." He started to pull the cork out of the bottle. "You know, maybe you could help out, but not right away. Bartrand won't be ready to go for a few more months. Maybe, since she's doing so well now, I can talk Athenril into letting you guys go early."

Aveline held up her glass and waited until Varric noticed. Once the bottle was opened and the dwarf was pouring out the wine, she asked, "You want to hire us as guards or something?"

Everyone heard a scuffle outside the door, but Varric didn't seem to pay it any attention. "We won't need more guards. What we need are partners to fund it."

Alistair almost spit out his swallow of wine and narrowed his eyes. "We can hardly make ends meet as it is, Varric. And, the very night we get a bit of coin, you mention an 'opportunity' to partner on an expedition into the Deep Roads … during a Blight." He looked around. "It's dark in that hole and all the Maker's nasty little creatures live there."

"I couldn't agree more with that description," Varric grumbled. "Hey, I don't want to take your last coin. Keep what you have and set aside a little from side work. I know of jobs around Kirkwall. I'll square it with Athenril …" A knock at the door made Varric pause. He motioned for Alistair to go into the bed's alcove and hide. He opened the door. "Corff? What is it?"

The bartender, Corff, slipped inside. "That guy … Gamlen … came in and those two bounty hunters were on him right away. They just dragged him into the room across the hall."

Bethany stood and grabbed her stuff. "We need to go save him."

Carver stepped up to the door. "Wait, sister, he might have found out. He could be turning Alistair in." As a mabari walked out of the alcove and barked loudly, even Carver laughed. "Okay, Bluster says we go."

Corff and Varric gave each other a look and then shrugged. Varric reached around the desk and pulled up the fanciest crossbow any of the Fereldens had ever seen. "Looks like we might need Bianca."

Aveline scoffed. "You named your crossbow?"

"And, why not! Isn't she a beauty?" Varric grinned as he opened the door and motioned for Carver — and Carver's big two-hander — to go first.

One of the voices inside the room said, "We know Maric's bastard is staying with you … tell us where to find him and we'll let you go with only being knocked out for a while!"

"I have no idea what you're talking about! My sister and her children are visiting, that's all!" That was all Gamlen got out before the group outside the room heard the smack of a slap on a face.

"Who told the bounty hunters about Gamlen?" Cassandra was pretty sharp when it came to details. Part of that Seeker training, Varric guessed.

"Turned out it was the guard they'd run into first on the dock in Kirkwall. He didn't know about the Maric's bastard part, but he told them that one of the families from Ferelden was looking for Gamlen." Varric chuckled. "Apparently, the guy was pissed at Alistair's questioning his authority and going over his head."

"I see … Go on."

Carver kicked in the door while Bluster ran in and knocked down the man yelling in Gamlen's face. There were several men in the room in addition to the two questioning Gamlen. Bethany froze one in his tracks. "Bluster! Just keep him down until we tell you to tear his throat out." Carver sneered at the wide-eyed fool on the floor. "Gamlen, you okay?" The other men just put up their hands.

Gamlen's eyes were pretty wide as well. "I … I … I think so. Do you know what these men are talking about?"

Varric picked up a flyer on a table and handed it to Gamlen. "Have you ever seen this guy?"

Carver and Bethany glanced at it and shrugged. Bethany said, "I've never seen him. Carver?"

"Yeah, I saw him. He got off the boat with us." Carver put the point of his sword under the chin of the man on the ground while Bethany renewed her ice spell on the other one. "But, I want some of that gold if I'm going to tell you."

"How do I know you're telling the truth?!" The man's eyes kept darting from Carver to Bluster's bared fangs. "You … you could just be trying to get rid of us."

"Coin first, then I talk." Carver was pretty good at the intimidation thing … especially with a hundred-pound mabari helping out.

The man slowly reached down toward his belt. Bluster's low growl made the man's hands shake just a bit. He grabbed a large pouch and tossed it up … into Carver's face. Then, he made the mistake of grabbing his dagger while yelling, "Kill them!" Bluster tried to bite down on the man's arm, but the guy was fast and the blade dug deep into Bluster's shoulder.

The other man unfroze at that moment and pulled his sword as the other three attacked.

The fight was short. Stupid bounty hunters thought they could overpower two tall, young fighters, a mage and a mabari.

Bluster shifted into Alistair. "Aaaarrgh! That hurt! First, my ass and now my shoulder. Bad day."

Varric froze … and then laughed. "I wondered where the dog came from! That was great! If you can't make it as a smuggler, you have a future as an entertainer." While Bethany was closing Alistair's new wound with magic, Varric opened the door to let Corff's men haul off the bodies.

They all reconvened in Varric's room … with ale and food. Varric was jovial and friendly until the barmaids left and he closed and bolted the door. He walked directly up to Alistair and waved the blood-smeared handbill. "Not a very good likeness, but good enough to my suspicious mind. Maric's bastard?!"

Alistair sighed and slumped in his chair. "And here I thought this night couldn't get any worse."

"I'd like an explanation about that one, too. I thought Malcolm Hawke was your father." Gamlen downed his first mug of ale rather quickly.

Aveline calmly took a bite of her sandwich. "So, you're not an Amell noble … but you are heir to the throne of Ferelden … that is, if you weren't a mage." She grinned. "You do keep things interesting, Alistair."

"Think I'll just stay in Bluster's form," Alistair mumbled.

"Yeah, well, that might be a good idea." Varric leaned against the wall and crossed his arms. "In fact, getting out of town for a while might be a better idea. But, for now, talk."

Alistair looked to Carver and Bethany who both nodded … so, he told the whole sordid story, ending with, "I've only known a month or two myself." He looked directly at Varric. "You have to promise me you won't tell anyone … ever. Trust me. I'm not going to start a war for the throne of Ferelden."

Varric laughed. "I'm a storyteller and you're gagging me on the best story I've heard in months?" Then, he got serious and sighed. "But, yeah, I can see why you'd want me to keep quiet. Okay … I promise … for now."

"Mother and father never mentioned it to me and Carver, either." Bethany squeezed Alistair's shoulder just enough for Alistair to wince a bit. "But, Alistair will always be my big brother. I don't care what the truth is."

"Sounds like something Leandra would do." Gamlen shook his head. "She always took in the strays." Then, he frowned. "Even a stray who could be a dog."

"Gamlen! He could have left you to die in there, you know." Bethany was red-faced angry. "All you've done is berate and complain. You should be more grateful."

Gamlen looked at Carver. "Thank you for the rescue." He glanced at Alistair. "Handy having a mabari guard dog like that."

Alistair looked at Aveline and raised his eyebrows, indicating it was her turn to make his life miserable.

Aveline looked around the room and ended with Alistair. "I've only known you a short time, Alistair, but, in that time, I've seen you defuse tense situations a number of times." She sent a glare toward Gamlen. "Usually, due to something your uncle has said or done. I've seen you defend your family and friends … even getting injured time and again, like tonight. I've seen you put up with all our bullshit … with grace … and what could pass as humor."

"Ouch." Alistair put his hand over his heart in feigned pain.

She leaned back in her chair and sighed. "But, I've never seen you turn coward and run. The real issue with these bounty hunters is that Loghain and his daughter will pay any price to destroy our country. And, there's not a damned thing we can do about that right now." She took a sip of ale. "Even if you weren't of royal blood, I would protect you from any sniveling bounty hunter Loghain sends after you to the best of my ability." She took a deep breath. "In fact, I would bend knee to you as monarch, if such a thing were possible."

The room was quiet for several minutes. Alistair was touched by Aveline's words. He didn't know what to say. He opened his mouth to say something and then decided that wasn't the right thing to say. After trying a few times, he just smiled.

"Well, at least I lived long enough to see him speechless. Well done, Aveline." Carver's words were playful and not snide. "I've told you already, you're my big brother … no matter who's in your blood."

Bethany's eyes were teary. All she did was give Alistair a hug, but they both turned when Gamlen stood up. "Look, I know I say things wrong sometimes."

"A lot of times," Bethany mumbled.

Gamlen sighed. "I will say this once, boy. You've done right by my family … your family. You count on them and they count on you. That's what I'd always heard about families … it's a good thing you weren't raised here in Kirkwall." He huffed. "Well, you'd be in the Gallows, if you'd been raised here in Kirkwall." He shook his head. "Maker, let's hope the Templars don't hear about this." He headed toward the door. "I'm going home."

When Gamlen said that, everyone jumped up. "Mother!" and "Leandra!" was voiced by appropriate persons in the room when they realized they'd left her all alone and it was getting pretty late. Varric tagged along as they ran to Gamlen's house and burst in the door.

Leandra jumped up and dropped the book she'd been reading. "Maker's Mercy! You scared me to death!"

They all took turns explaining what had happened that evening, ending with Varric asking, "I'd love to know how you got to be mother to the heir of the Ferelden throne, Mistress Hawke."

Leandra narrowed her eyes. "Who are you?"

They could all tell that Varric was embarrassed because of the bright red hue of his cheeks. They weren't covered by a beard, so it was more than obvious. He introduced himself and explained why he was along.

"The Deep Roads?!" She turned to Alistair. "You're not actually considering that, are you?"

Alistair turned toward Varric. "Well, I don't know yet. Why is your brother so hot to go? What's he after?"

"Bartrand is many things, but he's not stupid. He's careful about checking out information. He got word of a very old … very ancient … thaig. It's deeper than any thaig known to date." Varric shrugged. "You probably haven't heard about all the expeditions that have come back in the past few years … loaded down with gold and priceless artifacts. But, there have been some very wealthy men made from those expeditions." He motioned toward Alistair. "Loghain has sent any number of bounty hunters after Alistair. If Alistair were wealthy, Loghain couldn't touch him. Sad to say, money is the best protection Alistair could have right now … from Loghain and from the Templars."

"He has a point, Mother. And, I would love to see you in that estate again." Alistair came to sit on the edge of the table next to his mother's chair.

"I can't tell you all what to do anymore, but, please, Bethany, don't go along!" Leandra got up and took her daughter's shoulders.

Bethany sent a look to both her brothers. Alistair could tell she wanted to go along but couldn't turn down their mother. "It wouldn't hurt to have one of us stay behind with Mother, Bethany."

Varric interrupted. "We have a few months to make those decisions. For one thing, Bartrand needs to find a good entrance."

"He doesn't have an entrance yet?!" Carver sat down and sighed. "But, you're right. It's too far in the distance to take too seriously.

"Yeah, I think a few weeks out of town is what we need right now … at least, what I need right now." Alistair glumly sighed and put his hands in his pockets. He felt the amulet and pulled it out. "Hey, we still need to take this to Sundermount to that Dalish clan."

"Along with Ariel's letter." Aveline pulled a folded parchment out of her backpack. "I don't know how I got in charge of it."

Bethany laughed. "Don't you remember? Ariel said that Alistair would likely lose it."

"Right!" Aveline smiled and put it back in with her stuff.

Alistair turned toward Varric. "So, you said you had a story about the Blight. Was that true?"

"Yep! But, it's a sad tale." Varric waited for everyone to find a comfortable place to sit and told the tale of Warden-Commander Devon Cousland and Redcliffe. "After fighting off the risen dead all night, the wardens and Bann Teagan slipped into the castle the next morning. You see, Teagan had a key to a tunnel into the castle. Their foray inside began poorly as they found a dead man in a cell. He looked to have been torn apart by a trio of skeletons standing around a battered down door. Sadly, the warden mage recognized the man as a friend of his from the Circle."

Alistair stood up. "Was his name Jowan?"

"Yeah … what, do you know everyone in Ferelden?" Varric tried not to, but he looked surprised.

"No." Alistair looked crestfallen.

"Was he the mage you went to find?" Bethany held her brother's hand.

"Yes, he was a blood mage and escaped the tower before they made him Tranquil. After Jowan and Ser Irminric left for the Tower, Ser Bryant told me the story." Alistair looked at Carver. "Remember? Taosen told us he knew him and that he wasn't a bad man … just a confused one." Alistair motioned to Varric to go on.

"Wait … you worked with the Templars in Lothering?" Varric was going to get as much information as he could … to store away, no doubt.

"Oh, did I forget to mention that almost everyone in Lothering knew about my progenitors except me?" Alistair frowned. At Leandra's cocked head, he added, "Sorry, Mother … it's a tale for another time, Varric."

Varric clapped his hands. "Okay! So much for the harried apostate constantly on the run from the Templars."

"You've already started a story about Alistair?" Carver interrupted at the same time that Alistair groaned.

"Don't worry, Junior. You're in it too." Varric grinned.

"I hate it when you call me that." Carver frowned and crossed his arms.

Varric just grinned. "I know."

"I hate you, dwarf."

"Anyway, back to Redcliffe …" The dwarf told about the trail of battles with skeletons … undead who were once friends and villagers and staff of the castle. It all ended when they reached the audience chamber … and found a young boy sitting on a throne with a bedraggled woman beside him. "The boy was the Arl's son, Connor, and the woman was the Arlessa."

"The boy was a mage?" Bethany has a horrified look on her face."

"Yep … and his mother hired an apostate … Jowan … rather than see her son go to the Circle." Varric shrugged and a small yawn escaped his lips. "Maker! I'm so sorry to keep going on when it's so late!"

Alistair grinned. "Cheap trick, storyteller … finish."

"There's only one way to deal with the abomination the boy had become." Varric shrugged. "The Arlessa tried to plead with Teagan and Cousland, but it had to be done … and wardens always do what needs to be done, right?"

Bethany jumped up. "They didn't need to kill him! They could have gone to the Circle and gotten lyrium and a group of mages to let someone go into the Fade to kill the demon!"

"I guess no one there knew that, Sunshine." Varric looked sad as well.

"Taosen was a Circle mage! He should have known better!" Poor Bethany was beside herself.

Alistair stood and held Bethany's shoulders. "He had just passed his Harrowing, remember? They probably hadn't let him in on all the juicy secrets yet." Alistair turned back to the group with a frown. "Now, Morrigan … she probably knew and just kept her mouth shut because Devon didn't ask her directly."

Bethany shrugged out of Alistair's grip. "Damn the Chantry and the Circle to the Void. Damn Morrigan, too." She went to sit next to her mother … almost exactly how she used to sit at her mother's side when she was an upset little girl.

"What about Arl Eamon?" Aveline tried to move on.

"As it turned out, the mage was hired by Loghain to poison the Arl. No one knows if the risen dead were from the mage or the abomination Connor." Varric had to pause for Aveline to throw a dagger into the wall.

"Loghain again! Will no one kill that man?!" Aveline started to reach for another dagger but Alistair was able to ease it back into her boot.

"So, Arl Eamon was killed by Loghain?" Carver looked angry enough to start throwing things, too.

"Eh, no. Loghain didn't count on Connor making a deal with the demon to keep his father alive. Fortunately, when the wardens killed the abomination, the Arl didn't immediately die." Varric shook his head. "Here's the wacko part that no one will ever believe if I tell it: Arlessa Isolde had sent Redcliffe's knights on a quest to find the Urn of Sacred Ashes. Well, that's not so unbelievable. The woman was desperate. The unbelievable part is that the wardens took up the quest!"

"You know, people should be lining up to help the wardens, but it seems they all just want favors done first." Carver frowned as he sat down … without realizing he sat on the other side of their mother's feet. Alistair smiled at the scene.

"They had to go to Denerim to find the famous Chantry scholar, Brother Genitivi, who had found evidence of where to look." Varric stood. He really was getting tired.

"Denerim?!" Alistair's smile faded. "Right into the den of the monster?"

"Yeah, well, most of the common folk still believe it'll take wardens to end the Blight. Even though Loghain's a hero to Ferelden, many think he's off his nut about wanting to blame the wardens for Ostagar. They were safe enough in Denerim as long as they didn't go knocking on the palace door." Varric nodded at Aveline. "There are a number of soldiers like Aveline who were at Ostagar and attest to Loghain's timely retreat."

"Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt." Alistair was still frowning.

"So, Genitivi was gone, but his research was still there. Arlo, my buddy at the Gnawed Noble, overheard them talking about going to some village called Haven, stopping at the Circle on the way. Cousland put a time limit on the search because the Blight wasn't going to wait forever. They would give it six weeks total, including travel time … and then back to fighting the Blight without Eamon's support. Arlo sent me the details of what he heard." He shrugged. "That's all I know so far. And, now, I'm tired and I'm going home to bed. Let me talk to Athenril about the time off and ask around about the Dalish clan on Sundermount … not that I think I'll have a chance to find them."

Alistair walked Varric to the door and stepped outside with him. "Varric, thank you. I can't guarantee we'll go with you and your brother into the Deep Roads, but we'll give it proper consideration, I promise."

Varric looked at Alistair a bit oddly. "You're what I call 'an interesting character', Alistair. If it's all right, I'd like to travel with you to Sundermount."

"Certainly! The more people between my butt and the sharp pointy things, the better!" Alistair waved the dwarf good-bye and stepped back inside. "Varric wants to go with us to Sundermount."

"Beth, are you staying with Mother?" Carver looked at his twin who nodded that she would. "Varric's no replacement for Bethany, but at least it's another body."

"If it's all right, I think I'd like to stay behind with Leandra while Bethany goes with you. There are some daytime jobs with the city guard that I'd like to look into." Aveline grinned. "Who knows? Maybe they'll hire me after Athenril's time is done."

Leandra stood. "You know, I should argue that I can take care of myself, but I admit that I'll feel better with one of you here in the evenings. Especially if I'm going to be making myself a nuisance to Seneschal Bran in the Viscount's office."

"Bethany was right about the Ferelden Circle." Cassandra paced. "They have always been inconsistent in how they deal with things, but no one wants to replace their grandfather figure, Irving." She put her hands on her hips. "Taosen should have never been given to the wardens if he was newly Harrowed."

Varric's stomach rumbled.

Cassandra laughed. "I'll arrange for some lunch."

"Seeker, when I've told you everything … are you going to let me go?" It was a question that had been bothering Varric.

She stopped at the door and turned slowly. "If I continue to believe that you are telling me the truth, I will let you go."

AN: Thank you for all reviews, favorites and follows! Thanks, anesor, for the favorite on a story I'm just getting started on! :) Sorry to miss last Sunday. It seems that this site and Safari don't always get along. It wouldn't load the chapter. I ended up downloading Firefox's web browser to get a chapter up this Sunday. :|

Judy, glad you're enjoying this tale! Thanks! :)

The Invisible Pretender, thanks for the review! Hope you enjoyed the meeting of Varric and Alistair. :)