.xxiii.
Fenris and Varric walk to the Docks as night falls. The dwarf has not left him alone for long since Hawke's disappearance.
"So how do I look? Travel wear suits me well, don't you think?" In order to keep a low profile, everyone has decided to change their usual wear for clothing less conspicuous. He has traded his armor for simple cloth pants, a tunic, and a cloak. Underneath, of course, he wears leather armor. Varric is dressed like the garden variety dwarven noble, sans beard, of course.
He snorts in reply, making a sharp turn at the stairs leading to the waterfront. "Quicken your pace. The sooner we arrive, the sooner we can depart."
"I have to say I'm surprised that you didn't just jump into the ocean and start doing the breast stroke to Tevinter."
"I have been tempted." Varric doesn't look like he knows if that's a joke or not. "It has taken too long to arrange this voyage. Hawke..."
"We did the best we could, Broody. You know that."
"I know. I am not laying blame at anyone's feet. I just-"
"You're worried. I know. And you have every right to be. But it's like Aveline said: whoever did this wanted her alive."
"You know very well who could be behind this. If such is the case, death may not be the worst fate to suffer."
Aveline had told him her theory on his old master's involvement. He hadn't wanted to believe it, but the more he considered it, the more it made sense. It would be a lie to say he had not considered the possibility after finding out what they had from their encounter with the slavers, but he had initially written it off as paranoia.
"Guess there's little comfort in me telling you she'll be alright for the millionth time, but we're on our way now. We'll get her out of there and take care of whoever is responsible, and when we get back, we'll get ridiculously drunk and celebrate."
"That sounds appealing. I'll hold you to that."
"And of course, I'll destroy you at Wicked Grace."
"You said that last time I beat you."
"That was luck, just you wait kid."
The Siren's Call II comes into view around the corner of a baked brick dock house. In the glimmering moonlight, he can make out Isabela, Merrill, Aveline, and Donnic all congregated near the boarding ramp of the ship, clustered together in the shadows, almost of sight.
"Aiming for 'fashionably late', you two?" the captain grins.
Fenris plucks at Varric's sleeve. "Just him."
"Why Varric! You look just like a real nobleman!" Merrill smiles widely. She has changed as well, green Dalish armor replaced by with the attire of a raider, surprisingly enough, though it looks a little loose on her. Her vallaslin are gone as well, perhaps hidden under makeup.
"As opposed to a fake nobleman?" Varric scoffs, feigning offense.
"Well, you're missing the beard, but aside from that, very convincing," adds Aveline, who has traded her Guard Captain armor for the gear of a soldier of Ferelden.
"You've all done well disguising yourselves," approves Isabela, who, in contrast, has not changed at all.
Merrill shrugs a little. "I figured it probably wouldn't be very good to run around dressed like a Dalish elf."
"You were wise to consider that." Fenris can't help but notice how shocked she looks at his words.
"The less attention we draw to ourselves, the better," Aveline affirms, and after a minute motions to several approaching figures. Gradually Carver, Sebastian and Anders come into view.
"Looks like we can finally start this party," Carver smirks, sounding just like his sister, confident and aloof. His Grey Warden regalia is gone and it's stead he wears his old Fereldan Man-at-Arms uniform. Sebastian too has foregone his plate for light leather armor. Anders however, looks mostly unaltered, though he has changed his robes for something a little less attention grabbing. They look like different people almost, outside of the garb he is accustomed to seeing them in.
"You managed to convince Gamlen and Charade to stay, then?" Aveline asks Carver.
"It was no small feat," he admits with a shake of his head, "but I told them I needed them to stick around in case my sister manages to make it back without our help. They agreed to keep lookout while we're gone."
"And I will as well," Donnic announces. "If anything worth reporting happens, I'll send word immediately."
"Thank you, love," Aveline squeezes his hand lovingly.
"Yes, thank you love," teases Isabela, jumping out of the way of the resulting swat from the red head.
"We'd better not waste any more time then," Sebastian advises. They all begin to board, however Anders hangs back, tugging Fenris back by the hood of his cloak. He is not pleased to be touched by the mage, but resist the urge to hurl him bodily into the water. Anders waves him away from the gang plank a little.
"You have something to I say, I would assume?" Their last confrontation hangs heavily in the air between them.
"I do. I... wanted to apologize."
Not quite what he had been expecting. "For?"
With a labored sigh, Anders brushes his hair out of his face. "I've been a little hard on you, since all of this happened. I know we aren't exactly friends, but-well, I mean, you haven't tried to kill me, and that's more than I can say for most. So before we do this: I'm sorry."
He studies the man for a few moments, who looks to be waiting on pins and needles for a response. He's not sure what to say. Where he had once felt distrustful and indignant, he now felt shamed for his behavior, for some inexplicable reason. He can't help but think of what Hawke would say to the two of them in such a situation.
Anders crosses his arms, with an indignant snort. "You don't make things easy, do you? Never mind, I shouldn't have bothered-"
"Apology accepted." Anders' jaw drops mid sentence.
"I have been less that charitable as well, therefore you have my apologies too. Let us leave it in the past and focus on finding Hawke."
"Huh. Didn't see it going quite like that." Before the mage can say something foolish and ruin the thus far tolerable interaction with something like a hug, he turns to board the ship, but he is stopped again.
"One more thing. I had a dream."
"As did I; one where I was allowed to board the ship."
Anders wrinkles his nose at the obvious sarcasm. "No, you don't understand. Justice spoke to me in the Fade. He told me he found Hawke."
His heart jumps in his chest. He isn't entirely sure of the significance of Anders' words, only that both he and Merrill had been trying to find Hawke there, efforts until now unfruitful.
"Your spirit found her? Not you?"
"Yes. He told me she was in a strange part of the Fade, a place usually cordoned off to your average mage. The kind of place usually populated by demons."
"What was the spirit doing there? Consorting with it's kin?"
"No! What do you think he does there, knit? Anyway, that's not important. He found her there, alone. No demons, nothing. She spoke to him."
"What did she say? Is she unharmed?"
"He told me she was disoriented, scared. And she told him she thought she was in danger, but she didn't seem like she was aware of the waking world."
"Are you mages not supposed to retain that awareness?"
"We are. So not only is she in a part of the Fade where she would not normally be, but she's being kept apart from her consciousness while asleep. I don't know what you know of somniari, or magic of this kind, but she is being held captive by a very powerful mage, or mages. I'm sure of it."
"I... appreciate you telling me this, but it changes nothing. We will still-"
"Your previous master is a powerful mage, isn't he?" He asks a question he already knows the answer to. "It makes sense, or at least, more sense than some random magister paying what they did to get her. If I'm right, we need to be very careful. This could be an elaborate trap."
The only image worse than his Hawke in the hands of an unknown magister is Hawke in the hands of his former master. In this case, the devil well known is not preferable to the devil unknown.
"It was my original suspicion. I-" he cannot convey the terror it makes rise in his throat, terror he thought he had rid himself of long ago. "Even more of a reason that I must do this, so I hope you aren't trying to dissuade me from going."
Anders laughs, a surprising sight from the man who has seemingly forgotten how to smile for the last several months. "Wouldn't dream of it. But if I let anything happen to you, Hawke will break my legs."
"Thank you again, for warning me. We should move on."
"Of course."
As they board, Isabela gives them a low bow. "Welcome aboard, boys. I'm taking bets on who will get seasick first."
"Is that really necessary, Bela?" sighs Anders.
"No, but it will be entertaining. We've got a long way to go. Might as well enjoy ourselves."
"Varric," Fenris bets, dropping a few silvers into the captain's hand, earning an indignant glance from the dwarf. Looking incredibly put out, Anders sighs and hands her some money, placing a bet on Carver.
He stores his baggage and takes a seat on a pile of crates. Merrill climbs up the mast and situates herself in the lookout, calling out to them with apparent excitement. Sebastian bows his head and whispers a prayer as Isabela orders her men to cast off.
They are underway.
Author's Note: In honor of it being my 19th birthday, I'm posting two chapters for you guys today! Thank you for staying with it this long!
Edit: Rewrote this one a bit to may the dialogue a little more clear, as per a request a received. Hope this is better reading!