Author's Note:
Hi again. I am soooo sorry that I didn't get this up here before, I didn't realize how busy I was going to be over the holidays (plus I'm a really big procrastinator, if you haven't figured that out yet...) I was originally hoping to have it up by Christmas, which obviously didn't work out xD. Well, I guess I can say "Happy New Years". I'm working on the second part of the Night Terrors story now, with any luck it'll be up within the next two weeks. I hope you guys had an excellent Christmas (I did- I got Dragon Age: Asunder and it is awesome!) and a grand welcome to the new year :D
By the way, this takes place somewhere between Best Served Cold and The Last Straw. Some of the dialogue at the end is borrowed from the game and altered slightly to suit the story.
Hey, look, it's snowing outside...
Well, today is Winter Solstice, and I'm bored as hell. We can't exactly go outside to enjoy the snow like those idiot kids out there for fear of being caught, but I still wish we could. I'm positively itching to go outside. Maybe we can go tonight, after it gets dark and everybody's asleep. I haven't been the best sleeper as of late anyway.
Since it's Winter Solstice and I have nothing better to do, I've written another story. This one isn't exceptionally important to my life story, but it's fairly significant to me. This is about the last Winter Solstice I shared with my band of misfits, just before Anders blew up the Chantry and Knight-Commander Meredith completely lost it. Ah, memories...
~Hawke
Hawke and Co. were gathered in her dining room yet again, but this time it was for a celebration.
Outside, snow blanketed the streets and the roofs and windows. Few people meandered around out there, but the ones who did were red-faced and cheerful with holiday spirit.
Hawke tore her gaze away from the window, a slight smile playing on her lips. She registered the slightly prickling feeling of being watched, and she glanced sideways. Fenris was gazing at her curiously. She smirked at him, and his green eyes lit up almost imperceptibly.
She turned and surveyed the rest of the table. Everybody was in animated conversations, all slightly tipsy from the wine, except Donnic, who'd come with Aveline, and Sebastian- of course. Varric and Isabela were discussing some guy they'd seen at the Hanged Man the previous day with Anders listening, Fenris, Aveline and Donnic were discussing sword tactics, and Sebastian was telling Merrill about the Chant of Light, the little elven girl listening with wide eyes. None of them knew it would be the last time they would sit together and enjoy a merry meal.
"Hey guys," Hawke interrupted, and they all turned to face her. Her blue eyes twinkled maliciously.
"Oh, no," Varric groaned. "You have that look on your face again."
"What?" Hawke asked innocently. "I was just going to suggest a snowball fight." Isabela whooped and grabbed Merrill's hand, tugging her to her feet and dragging her to the door. Merrill, in turn, lashed out and grabbed Varric, dragging her out behind them. Out of the corner of her eye, Hawke saw Fenris lift an eyebrow, and she sniggered, covering her mouth and passing it off as a violent coughing fit. Aveline rolled her eyes at Hawke, but she stood up and headed outside with Donnic.
"Are you sure this is wise?" Fenris murmured to Hawke as the others went on outside.
"Not at all," Hawke giggled. "Come on!" Fenris rolled his eyes, but he chuckled and rose to his feet. She reached out and gently took his hand, leading him outside.
The others had already divided themselves into two teams. They'd agreed on the men against the girls. She could already see Varric taking bets on exactly how long it would be before the teams disintegrated entirely and it turned into a free-for-all, which she doubted would take very long. Hawke paused on her doorstep and gave Fenris a quick kiss on the cheek- to several catcalls and one wolf-whistle- before she darted down to stand at Isabela's side.
"Kinky," Isabela chuckled in her ear.
"You're one to talk, whore," Aveline retorted, grinning. Isabela scooped up a ball of snow and threw it at Aveline, who dodged, snickering.
"Hey, cut it out," Hawke warned, but she was smirking, too. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw somebody handing Varric a few silvers. "No fighting amongst your teammates!" Suddenly a hard ball of snow hit her in the side of the head, and she whirled around, glowering. Anders was sniggering and even Sebastian was chuckling quietly, but Varric was whistling innocently. He met Hawke's gaze and leered.
"Oh, that's it," Hawke growled teasingly, scooping up her own snowball and chucking it at Varric, who snickered and ducked. A snowball from Hawke's right sailed forward and unerringly hit Varric square in the face. She glanced over and saw Merrill with a concentrated look on her face as she threw another one straight at Anders, who blocked it with magic. It drew to a total standstill, and then Anders thrust his arms forward and it flew back over to hit Aveline. After a few minutes, Hawke realized that she didn't know where Fenris was, and indeed, Isabela was missing, too. She felt one collide with her back and whirled around, her eyes locking with Fenris's amused leafy green gaze. Behind her, she recognized Sebastian's Starkhaven accent as he yelled in annoyance, and she guessed that Isabela had been found. She glowered teasingly at Fenris, who just smirked at her.
"That's cheating," she complained, distracting him with words as she slunk forward a few steps.
"How so?" he asked, grinning.
With the blinding speed of a rogue, she dropped to her knee and scooped up another snowball, flinging it at his head so fast that even the elf couldn't dodge. It hit him in the side of the head, showering his already shockingly white hair with snow flecks. She giggled at his startled expression and took a few steps forward for better aim, snatching up more snow as she moved. He threw another snowball, but this time aimed at her head. She ducked, but not fast enough; it hit her forehead and her own jet black hair was sprinkled with snow. She blinked it out of her eyes to see him laughing at her. She glared at him through the lock of hair that flopped across her eyes, dislodged by the snow.
"Hawke!" She spun around to see who had called her name, just in time to see Isabela hurl a ball of snow at her. She ducked, and the snowball flew over her head. She heard a slight whoosh of air, and guessed that the snowball hit Fenris, although it sounded a lot closer behind her than it should have. Isabela winked and danced away, exchanging fire- snow?- with Anders. Hawke grinned back and jumped up, glancing back at him. With a start, she stumbled back; he was standing right behind her. She saw the intent in his eyes before she found herself in his arms, her lips pressed against his.
"Cheater," she murmured against his lips, pulling away briefly before kissing him again. He just chuckled.
"Get a room!" Varric shouted at them, and Hawke giggled, shoving Fenris off of her. As she did so, she saw a flicker of movement in the corner of her eye, and he stumbled sideways, snow coating the side of his clothing. Hawke flashed a thumbs-up at Isabela, who stood several yards off, and darted away, still giggling. Isabela slunk back into the shadows, snickering too.
Several hours later the whole gang staggered back inside, shivering and laughing. After a few minutes of snow wars with teams, the whole thing did indeed dissipate to every-man-for-himself when Isabela threw a snowball at Merrill. At that point, Hawke and Fenris paired up, and they worked as well together as they did in battle.
"To Hawke and an excellent snowball war," Varric chuckled, lifting his wine glass. Hawke guessed that he'd won all his bets.
"Aw, you flatter me," Hawke teased, her eyes widening with fake modesty.
"To Hawke!" Merrill chirped, her eyes shining brighter than usual as she downed her glass.
"I have presents for you guys," Hawke announced once everyone had toasted her.
"We all brought presents for you, too," Aveline answered, eyes twinkling, gesturing to the others.
"Well, you guys can have mine first, as I'm the hostess," Hawke retorted, grinning. She called Bodahn over and whispered a few words in his ear. He listened, then smiled, nodded, and strode out of the room. He returned a moment later with Sandal; both dwarfs carried thin, silk-covered rectangular packages, all different colors and all the same size. Hawke accepted them with an excited grin. She sifted through the gifts and selected one with forest green colored silk. She handed it to Merrill, whose eyes brightened eagerly, and cautioned her not to open it until the others got their presents from her. She gave the presents to the others in a similar manner, using the silks as a color code. Varric got brown silk, Sebastian was given the white one, Anders got a midnight blue color, Isabela's was a deep violet, Aveline's was a shimmering gold color, and Fenris received the gift wrapped with red silk. She handed him his present last; their eyes met, both glittering with amusement.
"Okay, guys," Hawke said cheerfully, "happy Winter Solstice! Go ahead and open them, but don't tear the silk, you can probably use it for something later." The others chuckled at this and gently pulled aside the silk wrapping. There was a moment of stunned silence as they stared at their gifts. Hawke's grin grew even wider.
"Oh, Maker's breath, Hawke," Aveline breathed, setting her silk aside. Her emerald eyes were wide and full of awe. "Whenever did you find the time to get these made?"
"I made them all myself," Hawke answered, gaze twinkling. "If you don't believe me, ask Fenris. He watched me do most of them them. Stayed up several nights in a row working on them."
"I didn't know you could paint!" Merrill exclaimed.
"It's Hawke, she can do just about everything," Varric pointed out with a chuckle, eying the gift with pleasure and some surprise.
The newly unwrapped gifts were all portraits of her friends on the battlefield. She had tried her best to capture the different aspects of their personalities in each picture by their battle stances and their expressions, and judging by their reactions she had done well. They all praised her for excellent handiwork; she accepted their compliments awkwardly, as she was never good at dealing with gratitude.
"Oh, this will look beautiful on my wall," Merrill gushed, gazing wide-eyed at the picture of her in a defensive position, lightning crackling out of her staff toward some unseen attacker.
"Would you mind if I hung this in the barracks?" Aveline inquired, lifting her own portrait. Hawke had depicted her with her shield held up and her sword pulled back against her side, as if she was preparing to stab her own attacker, her eyes narrowed with focus.
"They're yours now," Hawke responded, grinning. "Do whatever you like with them. Although, I'd appreciate it if you don't throw them out. I did work very hard on those."
"Thank you, Hawke," Sebastian said seriously. She blushed a little.
"Aw, it was nothing," she insisted with a half-shrug.
"Well, Hawke, now that you've outdone everybody else," Isabela began, her gaze glittering teasingly, "we have our own gifts to give."
So, by the end of the night, everyone had exchanged gifts enthusiastically, leaving her wondering how all that crap had been carried over to her house. She ended up receiving yet another manifesto from Anders, a brand new set of leather armor from Aveline and Donnic (as her old armor was getting worn), a journal published by an Orlesian traveler from Sebastian (which looked interesting enough), a Dalish ring from Merrill with a wolf carved onto it ("It's our god Fen'Harel," Merrill had explained excitedly. "I thought it would remind you of Fenris. It's inscribed with protective glyphs, too, so he doesn't have to worry when he's not with you!"), a form-fitting, icy blue dress from Isabela, who staunchly refused to explain where she got it, and a thin, finely decorated book from Varric. The cover was leather, and a flower was engraved on the front, but there were no words on the leather. The flower took up most of the front cover; she ran her fingers over it wonderingly.
"Is that a... lily?" she asked, eyes wide.
"It is," Varric answered, smirking, "but you should see what's inside the book."
"Oh. Right." She caressed the leather one last time before she opened the book.
The first page was completely blank except for a few words in the middle of the page, written in flowing handwriting- there was the title. She leaned a little closer to decipher the words, as her vision swam a little with the effects of alcohol. It read Rise of the Champion: Hawke's Defeat of the Qunari in Kirkwall.
"Wow," Hawke breathed, turning the page. It was filled with more of the graceful handwriting, as well as ivy vines curling around the edges of the paper. She was only vaguely aware of the others peering at it over her shoulder. "Varric, did you write this?"
"I did," he answered proudly.
"Maker, this is beautiful..." She smiled and shut the book gently. "Thank you."
"Ah, it was nothing," Varric responded affably. "I hope you enjoy it."
"Oh, I'm sure I will!" Hawke chuckled. She set it down on the table and glanced up at the clock in the corner of her dining room. "Oh, dear me, look at the time," she sighed.
"It's late, isn't it?" Merrill agreed, yawning. "I think I'm going to go home, I'm really tired. Thanks for the party and the picture, Hawke!"
"Anytime, Merrill," Hawke replied with a grin. The little elf girl hugged her before she headed for the door, staggering confusedly.
"Daisy, wait up, I'll walk you home!" Varric called after her. He clapped Hawke on the shoulder, grinning. "We should do this more often," he laughed.
"Oh, definitely!" she agreed, snickering. "See you tomorrow, Varric." He exchanged a nod with Fenris and said goodbye to the others before they left, Varric supporting Merrill as she tried unsuccessfully to keep from tripping over her feet.
"Donnic and I are headed home as well," Aveline added, walking up to Hawke with a slight smile. Next to them, Donnic walked over to Fenris and they started to speak quietly with each other, to Hawke's amusement. "We'll see you around, Hawke." She paused, the smile slipping from her features and leaned forward, lowering her voice. "You need to be more careful. The Knight-Commander is getting angry and cracking down harder than ever. There's too much tension, Hawke. Something is going to snap, and it's going to happen soon." Hawke's own smirk disappeared, as if wiped from her face.
"I know," she sighed. "Good night, Aveline- you too, Donnic." Donnic, having returned to his position next to his wife, nodded back to her. Aveline smiled again and took his hand, leading him out of the house.
"What were you and Donnic talking about?" Hawke asked casually, turning to Fenris. He'd been rather quiet all evening after the snowball fight, although he had never been the talkative type. Now a smile quirked the corner of his mouth.
"The game of diamondback we played last week," he answered. She chuckled.
"Who won?" she asked, lowering her voice to a sensual purr. She wound her arms around his waist, leaning her head against his chest. He chuckled quietly.
"Can't you guys wait until we leave?" Anders complained, wandering up to them.
"Ah, I'm not complaining," Isabela retorted, her gaze glittering. Hawke rolled her eyes, but she disentangled herself from Fenris.
"Thanks for dinner, Hawke," Sebastian said graciously, smirking despite himself.
"Anytime, Sebastian," Hawke replied, grinning too. "I'll see you later. Thanks for the book, by the way."
"It was nothing," he answered modestly. "Good night, Fenris."
"You too, Sebastian." The Prince of Starkhaven left as well, followed by Anders. Hawke saw Fenris relax visibly from the corner of her eye and imagined what he was thinking. Probably something along the lines of, Good, the damn abomination is finally gone.
"You did well on the paintings, Hawke," Isabela praised her, leering.
"Why, thank you," Hawke answered, smirking. "I am glad you like them! I put a lot of time and effort into making them."
"I'm sure you did," Isabela chuckled. "See you tomorrow, Hawke." Her gaze shifted over to Fenris, twinkling mischievously. "You too, Fenris." The lean elf just rolled his eyes.
"Thanks for the dress," Hawke added as Isabela made her way to the door. Isabela just snickered and waved as she let herself out.
"I can't wait to see you wear it," Fenris remarked in her ear. Hawke grinned, realizing that he'd crept up behind her again.
"Hmm. I'll try it on and show it to you... later." She turned to find Fenris standing less than a foot away from her, a slight smile relaxing his features. She lifted her hand and brushed it tenderly along his cheek before stopping it at his neck. She leaned in and pressed her mouth to his. He responded in kind, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her closer, causing her to rise up on her tiptoes.
With a regretful sigh, she pulled away a moment later.
"I have something for you," he told her, before she could speak. She detected nervous excitement in his mossy green eyes, and she couldn't blame him, as she herself felt the same thing.
"I do, too. For you, I mean." She blushed a little at her awkwardness. "It's upstairs, though, so why don't you go first?"
"Alright." As he turned to rummage through his bags, she reflected that it was a good thing Isabela was gone; she undoubtedly would've found something dirty in her words.
Fenris turned back to her, holding a little dark violet pouch in his hands. He handed it to her wordlessly. She accepted it, running her hands over the smooth velvet. She lifted her gaze, watching him with wide, curious eyes. He smiled and gestured for her to open it. She gently opened the bag and turned it over, spilling the contents into her hand. She heard a sharp intake of breath, and realized it was her own.
It was a beautiful necklace. The chain was long and silver, glinting with the light of the dying embers in the fire. A teardrop-shaped sapphire pendant dangled from it as she lifted it up to get a better look. The sapphire was a deep, light blue color; she had to gape at the shocking beauty of it all. She lifted a wondering gaze to meet Fenris's own nervous eyes.
"It's beautiful," she whispered. "Thank you." He smiled with relief.
"I picked it out because it matches your eyes," he told her, and she realized with a start that it was almost the exact same shade as her own icy eyes. "I'll put it on for you," he offered. She smiled gratefully and turned away from him, holding up the necklace. He took it and deftly clasped it behind her neck. She giggled and shivered with pleasure when he placed his hands on her shoulders and brushed his lips against her neck. She lifted her hand and gently intertwined her fingers with his, glad that he'd finally taken his gauntlets off.
"Come on, I'll give you your present now," she said, grinning nervously as she tugged him up the stairs to her bedroom by his hand. He chuckled, allowing her to lead him on. She led him inside and shut the door behind them. She brought his hand to her mouth and kissed it before she let it go and backed away.
"Shut your eyes," she whispered, her own eyes glowing, her whisper a caress. He complied, and she grinned, elated. It had taken her a long time to get him to trust her, and only recently had he begun trusting her so completely. She irritably scrubbed her eyes and shook her head, turning to her closet. She reached inside and pulled out a large sword. It was heavy but well-balanced, although that wasn't why she'd chosen it to give to him. She walked back to him and placed the hilt in his hands, wrapping his fingers around it. She saw the confusion cross his face and she bit her lip, hoping desperately that he would like it. She gave his fingers a final squeeze before she backed away.
"Okay, you can open them now." His eyes opened, and surprise flitted across his face when he saw the sword. He looked almost... disgusted, yet fascinated at the same time. Her shoulders sagged slightly with disappointment at his reaction. Maybe this was a bad idea...
"I never expected to see one of these here..." he murmured, as if to himself. "Do you know what this is?" he asked.
"Erm..."
"It's a blade of mercy. You can see them often enough in the Imperium, replicas of the sword Archon Hessarian used to kill Andraste. This one looks... finely crafted."
"So they sell these at every market stand in Minrathous," she stated flatly. Damn, she was hoping it would be something of worth. He laughed, and she relaxed a bit.
"Hardly. Look at this." He ran his fingers down the blade, and it glowed orange in response. Her eyes widened. "These are gifts of honor, given to those who have performed a service for the Imperium. I seem to recall that Danarius coveted them."
"Kind of ironic for you to have it, then," Hawke observed, now eying the blade a little warily. He chuckled again.
"Indeed. I'll think of that as I wield it." He stroked the blade again, and it flared up once more. "Thank you, Hawke." He lifted his eyes as he spoke and their gazes locked. She almost gasped at the intensity she saw flickering in his gray-green eyes, which probably matched her own expression. His eyes never wavering, he leaned the sword against the wall behind him and crossed the room till he stood directly in front of her. They watched each other for a moment before he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her against him, pressing his lips against hers with a fiery intensity that had been restrained earlier.
"That's the reaction I was hoping for," Hawke whispered, swinging him over to the bed.