I wanted to write this story about my late brother Carver. He was a stubborn idiot, but we loved him anyway. This particular event happened around four years before the darkspawn invaded Lothering and we went to Kirkwall. He was just over 14, and finally beginning to realize the true implications of living with apostates...

-Hawke

Carver's Spite

Rathina Hawke leaned against a boulder in a clearing across from her house, whistling to herself. She was sharpening her daggers, her short, jet-black hair dancing around her face in the breeze. A few feet away from her, her fourteen-year-old brother Carver practiced with his sword. She watched him for a moment before her piercing blue gaze swept over to her sister Bethany, who was honing her elemental magic while their father Malcolm looked on. She twirled her staff and slammed the tip of it into the ground; a ring of fire sprung up around her.

"Whoops!" Carver smirked at Rathina as his sword swung over her head, just barely missing her hair. As fast as lightning, she leaped to her feet and flicked one of her daggers up to his throat, a finger width away from his neck.

"Do that again, I dare you," she said, but her blue eyes shone teasingly.

"Careful, you two!" Malcolm called. He frowned at them, and his sapphire gaze- identical to his eldest daughter's- were rebuking. "Those things are sharp, remember!"

"He started it," Rathina retorted, but she grinned and danced away. A jet of fire shot past her head; Rathina turned to see Bethany laughing at her.

"Bethany," Malcolm said warningly.

"I know. Sorry, Dad," Bethany giggled. He threw his hands up in the air teasingly and walked away, heading back to the house. Rathina watched him for a moment, narrowing her eyes in suspicion when he lifted his hand and pressed it to his temple, his shoulders drooping with what was obviously an exhausted sigh. Carver called to her then, demanding a duel, to which she cheerfully complied. After only a few minutes full of her flurrying daggers and his slower sword, she had him pinned to the ground with one knee and a dagger at his throat.

"I win!" Rathina announced, her gaze shining with amusement. He scowled at her for a moment before shoving her off of him and rising to his feet. His gaze scanned the small town while Rathina exchanged a triumphant glance with Bethany.

"Templars," Carver warned suddenly, his voice sharp; the girls' heads snapped around to see the mail-clad men walking on the road nearby. Bethany dived behind Rathina's boulder; the movement caught the templars' attention and they turned.

"Good evening, men," Rathina called charmingly, winking at them. Her short black hair framed her face, making her electric blue eyes stand out even more.

"Er- good evening," the templar in front said a little suspiciously.

"Beautiful day, isn't it?" Rathina said brightly. She moved closer to the men and started flirting with them; they unwittingly followed her away from the boulder.

"That was close," Bethany sighed, straightening once they were out of sight.

"Very," Rathina agreed with a sigh as she returned. "Good thing you saw them, Carver."

"You're welcome," he snapped. "Be more careful next time, will you? I won't always see them first." He stormed away. Bethany watched with raised eyebrows. She turned to look at her older sister, who had a similar expression.

"Strange," Rathina managed. They were both quiet for a moment. They shrugged at almost the same time and then Rathina slumped beside her sister to finish sharpening her daggers, a little halfheartedly. Bethany watched, a worried twist to her lips.

"Let's head home," Rathina decided after a while, her own gaze a little anxious. Bethany nodded and they turned and walked back to their small house.

Rathina pushed the door open to the Hawke house.

"Welcome back," Leandra said, smiling at the two from the kitchen. Her light almond-colored eyes twinkled at them, her brown streaked with gray hair pulled back loosely from her face. "Where's Carver?"

"He ran off." Rathina scowled. "I didn't see where he went."

"Can you go find him, Rathina?" Leandra asked, frowning. "Dinner's almost ready, and I don't want the twins running off after dark." Her gaze was on Bethany, who had difficulty refraining from rolling her eyes. Rathina, who was a little over twenty years old, did pretty much whatever she wanted. As long as she was back by midnight.

"Sure," Rathina agreed. "Where d'you suppose he went? The tavern?"

"The Chantry, maybe?" Bethany suggested doubtfully, ignoring her sister's quip. Carver would often go to the Chantry and listen to Sister Leliana's stories.

Rathina considered this.

"Good idea," she answered. "I'll be back soon, Mother." She left the house and headed to the Chantry. There she was greeted by the redheaded Sister.

"Hello," Leliana said, looking a little surprised. "What can I do for you?" She spoke with a soft Orlesian accent. Her gaze twinkled with some amusement as their eyes met.

"Have you seen Carver?" Rathina asked, getting straight to the point. "He ran off." Leliana's brows furrowed.

"I'm afraid not," she said apologetically. Rathina sighed.

"Thanks anyway, Sister," she replied with a frown. "Sorry to bother you." She turned away as Leliana bid her good luck.

Rathina's gaze turned to the darkening sky and a deeper frown crossed her face.

"Where is he?" she wondered aloud, brushing her short hair out of her face in agitation, her ice blue eyes flashing. "Stubborn idiot."

Rathina continued to search Lothering, checking at Carver's friends' houses and even poking into the tavern. Finally she headed to the outskirts of the small town, guessing that he'd gone to the pond out by the fields. An unlikely spot, but one of the few she hadn't searched yet. Around her, it was still dusky with the faintest trace of the setting sun in the west.

"Carver?" she called quietly, peering through a small copse of trees. Her daggers seemed to appear in her hands as she heard a low growl. "Carver!" she called again, louder now.

"Sister!" Her brother's voice was a yelp. She heard the scraping sound of a sword being drawn from its sheath and then another snarl. Carver appeared in her view through the trees as he leaped back, a bear lunging toward him. Rathina instantly disappeared, sneaking around the trees and hugging the shadows as she moved toward the bear. With her own cry, she flew forward, becoming visible again, to stab the bear in the side. It roared and turned on her as she danced away. Carver's huge blade came down on its neck and the body fell at their feet. They stared at it, panting, for a few moments as the adrenaline died down. Rathina glowered at her brother, who purposely avoided making eye contact.

"Let's take the bear home, maybe Mother will find something useful to do with it," she decided after a moment. Together they hauled the bear into a manageable position to carry back. Rathina took the lead and started back to the house.

"Carver, what were you thinking?" she asked suddenly. "You know that bears and wolves are always wandering around over there!"

"I didn't ask you to come after me," he snapped.

"And I sure as hell didn't want to have to come after you and save your sorry ass!" she retorted, her icy gaze glinting.

"Save the lecture," he muttered, dropping his gaze. "I'll be sure to get one from Mother when we get back." She fell into a thoughtful silence. She could see Carver contemplating his supposed victory until she spoke again.

"What were you doing, anyway?" Rathina wanted to know. Then her face slipped into one of exaggerated horror. "Maker's breath, don't tell me you were meeting with a girl!" She had the satisfaction of seeing a flush creep up her younger brother's cheeks.

"Even if I was, that wouldn't be any of your business," he retorted.

"Oh?" Her gaze glinted evilly. Then she shook her head and released a sigh. "Seriously... why did you run off like that? You looked really angry."

"It's those damn templars." Carver had an annoyed scowl on his face.

"Oh." Rathina grunted in surprise, shifting the bear corpse into a better position.

"I wish they weren't always searching for apostates and invading our lives," he complained. "The bastards are always poking their noses into everyone's business."

"You think it's bad, just imagine being an apostate," Rathina commented with some amusement. Her expression sobered quickly though. "At least they don't know about Bethany and Father, though. Yet." She sighed.

"Is the Circle really that bad, though?" Carver asked. Rathina looked scandalized.

"Carver, how could you even say such a thing," she hissed, shocked. Then she sighed and forced herself to relax. "If it wasn't that bad, Dad wouldn't have run away," she pointed out.

"I know, but still." Carver sighed. "I can't watch out for Bethany my entire life!"

"She's our sister, Carver," Rathina reminded him with a disapproving frown. "What would she do if your positions were reversed?" He fell silent. "Exactly." Rathina ran a hand through her hair. "We have to watch out for our family."

"I know." He scowled. "I just... it's not fair."

"Life isn't fair." Rathina sighed and shook her head, summoning up her energy again. "Try to cheer up a bit, why don't you? Look on the bright side of life," she suggested with a bit of a smirk, clapping her brother on the shoulder. "Mother's waiting for us, she's made a delicious dinner. Let's head home, before she gets too worried." Their dispute settled for the evening, the siblings returned to their home to clean up for dinner.