.ix.
"She's beautiful, isn't she?" Merrill watches as Isabela beams, looking out over the Docks with pride and love at her new ship, The Siren's Call II.
"I don't understand, why are all ships women? There aren't any male ships?" Isabela tosses her head back and laughs. "No, Kitten, no male ships. They're called 'she' because ships are like women."
"How so?" The little Dalish mage cannot manage to see any sort of womanliness in the vessel bobbing on the waves in front of them.
"Plenty of ways. They've always got men bustling around them, they'll take good care of you if you take good care of them, so on and so forth."
"That's really interesting, I'd never thought of them that way before," she nods without a hint of sarcasm. It's incredible how Isabela can make her see things in completely different ways. She thinks of the Aravels, the land ships of the Dalish, trying to see them as women too. She'd never known any of her people to refer to them as female before.
"Oh, it will feel so good to get back out there. You should come with me. We'll be beautiful pirate women together."
"I'm not beautiful like you," Merrill says shyly, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear to hide her smile. Isabela scoffs.
"Nonsense. You don't really believe that, I hope. You are gorgeous. Surely you didn't miss how my crew is already staring at you like they're smitten, the whole lot of them?"
Merrill turns to look, and sure enough, several handsome sailors are grinning at her, some brazen, some bashful.
"Oh! They are aren't they? I thought it was because they thought I was strange looking. Or because they were really looking at you."
"As I said." Isabela smiles brightly at her. "So what do you think? Want to earn your sea legs with me? Watch this insane city disappear on the horizon before those men in skirts go to war in the streets?"
"I would like to. But... I'm a mage. Anders keeps telling me that I should care about the plight of our people. I mean, I do! Oh I don't know. I want to go, sometimes. But I also want to stay. I don't think it's right, what they do here, to mages."
"Me neither, Kitten," sighing, Isabela leans on a stack of crates, eyes scanning the waters. They listen to the sounds of the dock workers talking, trading, laboring, and watch the sun sparkle on the waves. "Hawke won't leave it alone either. She's determined to protect this place, even to the grave. Her and her misplaced mercies."
"I didn't hear you complaining when she fought the Arishok to keep you safe."
The pirate smiles ruefully, tracing letters into the dust on the baked brick wall beneath her elbows. "You got me there. Wish she'd jump ship while there's still a ship to jump, so to speak. I can't really leave while she insists on fighting this stupid, suicidal fight, can I?"
"You could," Merrill shrugs, "But I certainly hope you don't. I'd miss you. We all would."
"Oh, you people have made me soft," she laughs, but it sounds like she really doesn't mind that much. "Next thing you know I'll- is that Varric?"
Merrill turns to see what her friend is looking at over her shoulder, and spies Varric, walking with purpose, Anders and Fenris in tow.
"Ooh, look at them. Looks like trouble. Think we can duck out without them noticing us?" She doesn't get a chance to answer; they're spotted.
"Daisy, Rivaini, what are you two doing out here?"
"Looking at my new, beautiful ship," she calls out triumphantly, gesturing to the vessel. "Hawke helped me purchase her, to make up for killing Castillon and making me all respectable. Why, what are you doing down here?"
"Hawke's missing," Fenris answers, looking well past the point of patience. "Someone lured her down here several nights ago pretending to be him, or so he claims." He jabs a pointed thumb in Anders's direction, who rolls his eyes and crosses his arms in response.
"When did this happen?" Isabela asks, levity draining from her countenance.
"Three nights ago, as far as we can tell. She left home and didn't come back."
"Do you have any idea what might have happened to her?" Merrill interjects.
"Templars, I'd wager," Anders offers. Fenris scoffs, and the former quickly defends his opinion. "She's an apostate mage, and you heard how Meredith spoke to her. She's just been waiting for the opportunity to grab her. Hawke even told me she feared for her life!" The muscle in Fenris's jaw twitches and Varric sighs heavily.
"We don't know who or why, that's why we're here. Looking for leads."
"Makes sense. I'll ask my men if they know anything. They gossip more than a sewing circle."
"I'll come with you, Varric, if you'd like, to help," agrees Merrill.
"Thanks Daisy, I appreciate it. We'll spread out and ask around, see if any one knows anything. We can meet back here in an hour." Every one nods, agreeing to the plan. "Good, let's move. Split up and search for clues." Fenris and Anders are off in a flash, before the sentence is even finished. Varric chuckles a little. "I've always wanted to say that."
"Why's that?" Isabela asks.
"It's from this story about this Mabari hound that talks and solves mysteries."
The look at him as if his head has magically transformed into a squash.
"Never mind. I'll tell you about it later."
With that, they head off.
Merrill manages to talk to several elves she knows from the alienage. They are all pleasant enough to her, but none of them know anything of Hawke's disappearance. Cold air rolls off the water and up the stairs, briny and sharp. And she worries.
She has a lot of friends now, Varric and Isabela and sometimes even Aveline even though it sometimes seems like the guard captain doesn't always approve of her, but Hawke was her first true friend coming to Kirkwall. It doesn't seem like six years have passed since she stumbled into the alienage, hoping that the kind mage that had taken her from the Dalish camp would be willing to come visit her in her new home. And surprisingly, she'd agreed. They'd become great friends since then, and Hawke had stood by her side, took the blame for her failings when Keeper Marethari died, and saved both her life, and the lives of her former brothers and sisters in the Dalish clan. She had even convinced her to cease all use of blood magic.
All of this has convinced her, in way, that Hawke is infallible. She didn't fall even when the Arishok had run her through with a blade longer than she was tall. She didn't break when her mother died; it took time for her to heal, but when she had, she was even more buoyant than before, always ready to help, to offer a kind word or a joke. Nothing seems to keep her down. It seems impossible that someone as strong as she is could be kidnapped. And not knowing where she is... She can't imagine how Fenris must feel about this.
Poor, poor Fenris, who still hides his vulnerability and doesn't open up to anyone (not very much, anyway) who didn't open up to anyone, until Hawke. She has watched her two friends (well, if she can call him a friend without fearing for her life) fall in love and fall apart. It's so very sad. Especially because they're both still so very in love with each other even though-
"-ignoring me for a reason?"
She turns. Standing behind her, Fenris glares with arms crossed.
"What did you say?"
"I said, 'Am I to understand you're ignoring me for a reason?'"
"Oh. No! Sorry, Fenris. I was thinking."
"Did you find anything?"
"Nothing. Nobody I talked had seen her three nights ago, or since."
He doesn't respond, just stares, brows knitted in frustration.
"I guess you didn't find anything either."
He grunts, and digs his heel into the ground.
"No."
"Well, somebody's bound to know something, right? We'll find her, wherever she is. Did you know, one time she came to visit and she brought Galahad with her. He got lost while we were talking and when we found him again he was up in the branches of the Vhenadahl!" She regrets the words once she finishes speaking them. Fenris probably doesn't care about that right at the moment-
"Isn't that some sort of sacrilege?"
"Not that I know of, but now that you mention it, oh my..."
Out of the corner of her eye, it looks as though he's smirking a little.
"Moreover, how did he manage to get up there?"
"I haven't the foggiest!" she exclaims, feeling a little bit of her anxiety ebb away. "Remember when he got stuck on the roof at Aveline's wedding? I just don't know how he does it."
She manages to keep her jaw from dropping when he lets out a humored huff. Lately he's been kinder to her, even stopped calling her 'blood witch' or 'weakling', but this is unprecedented. She doesn't recall ever having seen him come this close to a laugh before, least of all at anything she's had to say. She doesn't say anything else, she doesn't want to ruin the once in a lifetime moment.
"...if anything thing comes up," Isabela finishes, rounding the corner. Her first mate, a tall redheaded man with bulging muscles, is walking beside her. "If someone so much as thinks they might have seen her, I want to know about it."
"Aye, Captain," he nods. She dismisses him, and comes to join them where they stand outside of the entrance to what used to be the Qunari compound.
"Nothing?" she asks bleakly. They both shake their heads. "Huh. Me neither. None of those blighters have heard or seen anything."
Anders wanders back with nothing to offer but creases on his forehead from his frowning. Varric is last to arrive, with as much to offer as they do.
"I'll have my men keep an eye out. They're a savvy lot, ear to the ground and all. If there's gossip, we'll get it."
"We should not stop our search here. Perhaps someone saw her on her way here that night. We might be able to find someone who saw something," Anders suggests.
"I agree. We have little else to go on," Fenris adds. "She does not lack for renown. Someone is bound to have seen her." Anders' jaw actually drops when the fair haired warrior agrees with him.
"Thank you," Anders responds, still looking a little surprised.
"We'll spread out. We've already covered the Docks, so we'll move from here. Blondie, you head back to Darktown and see what you can find. Rivaini, you and Daisy can cover Lowtown. Broody, you head to the Gallows, and I'll go to Hightown and grab Mrs. Guard Captain and Choir Boy, to see if they've heard anything. If you find anything, head back the Hanged Man, and we'll meet there in a couple hours. Sound good?" With a few more exchanged words, they all set off in their own directions.
"Templars," Isabela huffs, as they take the stairs in two. "You don't think he was right about that, do you?"
"I hope not. Hawke told me she would rather be dead than be Tranquil. You don't think they'd do that to her, do you?"
"No. No, they haven't and they probably wouldn't survive the attempt should they be foolish enough to try. But speculation will get us nowhere. Let's go."
Author's Note: I really think 'aravel' should be the plural of 'aravel', but Dragon Age Wiki says 'aravels' so there you have it. Also, please ignore the Scooby Doo reference. I think I wrote this chapter at three in the morning while watching Zombie Island.
MidnightCarnival, I can't believe I didn't think of the whole 'killed the Arishok, got nabbed by Danarius' thing, that's brilliant! I might have to shamelessly retcon with that idea of yours. Seriously, that was a stroke of genius.
Hope you're all enjoying yourselves thus far. And things are just heating up! Next up: Our favorite gambling drunkard uncle makes an appearance! I gotta admit, I love the guy, even if he is a massive prick. Stay tuned!