A/N: I decided to skip over the Qunari, I hope no one minds. I apologize for the delay, so on and so forth... This chapter is an extension of Fenris's last companion quest, you'll see what I mean. This story is coming to a close, there may only be 2-3 chapters after this, and hopefully I get them up faster than this one... I'll be having a competition (which may or may not have a prize, maybe an OC cameo? Or a one-shot?) over the title of my next story (details in the bottom A/N), which won't be so much as started until after this and A Rogue's Discretion are finished, so it'll be a while. But anyway, read on!
The months passed as though nothing had changed, although almost everything had. The Qunari were gone, and Hawke had earned the title Champion of Kirkwall. She had defeated the Arishok in single combat and saved the city, not to mention Isabela, in one fell swoop. Anders was still gone, and Darktown suffered for it, but no one spoke of him. Orana, Bodahn, and Sandal, surprising as it was, had started to pick up the slack for him, using the passage in the basement of the Amell estate, though their non-magical talents and lack of medical training made them relatively inefficient. Soon after realizing this Merril, of all people, decided to chip in. She was getting absolutely no where with her mirror, and after a few weeks of settling in, the clinic was better than ever.
Varric was still telling stories, of course, not much had changed there, and Sebastian remained at the Chantry. Tension boiled in the Gallows, and more often than not Knight-Commander Meredith asked the Champion herself for aide, which she always gave. Although, Knight-Captain Cullen hardly even spoke to her, obviously upset by the rumors that surrounded her. They were the worst kind of rumors, too, they were true rumors. Suspicions and accusations surrounded the Champion. Of course she shrugged them off without batting an eye, but she was still the talk of the town. The noble Hawke had abandoned her long-standing family home to purchase an old Tevinter merchant's mansion, in which she lived, with an elven man. Many a noble had made attempts to visit her at this new dwelling, to confirm that which they had heard, only to be cast aside at the door, occasionally by the elf himself.
The two had decided that while it was best that Hawke turn away visitors, the rather persistent ones were best dealt with by Fenris. It was him they wanted to see, after all. Well, some of the women wanted to know how exactly the Champion lived, but in all honesty, aside from the two that actually lived there, no one had seen the inside of the newly renovated mansion, not even the weekly card games that Fenris used to host had taken place. Hawke decided that since they had finally finished fixing the place up it was about time the others got to see it, but Fenris was still skeptical...
"A dinner party? What does that even mean?" He asked.
"It means that Varric, Isabela, Aveline, Sebastian, and Merril come to the house, have dinner, chat for a while, and go home." Hawke explained.
"For what reason?"
"To be sociable, I suppose."
"Since when are you 'sociable'?"
"A fine point..." Hawke sighed, "I suppose I just feel like we should let them see what we've done with the place, everyone thinks that we live among corpses, blood stains, and broken furniture."
"And you care what everyone thinks?"
"No, I don't, I only care what our friends think. The rest of the world can shove it, and not a single soul in all of Thedas is getting through that door after this is over with."
Fenris pondered the situation for a moment, he was quite proud of his new home, and to his surprise Hawke had even put the deed in his name. Maybe showing off this one time wouldn't be so bad, after all, Hawke seemed very adamant about it and there really was no arguing with her. The 'dinner' part though... Hawke's cooking may have improved but it was certainly not wonderful, Fenris simply appreciated that she cooked for him at all. He would have to find a way to bring it up delicately...
"Alright, I think we can do this, as long as it's just this once." He agreed.
"Good! I'll start making arrangements, do you think it should be at the beginning or the end of next week?"
"Beginning, we need to get this over with. What did you, uh, plan on cooking?"
"Are you kidding me? I'm a terrible cook, how you stomach my crap is beyond me. I'm going to ask around for a caterer." At least Hawke knew it.
"You are not a terrible cook." Fenris objected, because she really wasn't, there were some things she could make perfectly. Stew, meat, potatoes, a couple of vegetables, well, basically stew and the things in stew. How she could have so many different variations on the same thing he couldn't understand.
"That's bull and you know it, but thanks anyway." She conceded, "And can you ask Varric and Sebastian, I'll take care of the rest of the invitations."
"Anything for you, dear." He rolled his eyes, arguing would be pointless in this case, like every other.
"Put it in the water, and... the bread, everyone should eat at least one of the two." The shrill voice of the quickly speaking woman frightened her unwilling apprentice.
"But I'd rather put it in the desert, they'll eat more of it, I'm sure!" A young boy argued.
"And what if they don't like it? What then? No, we do it my way, the bread and the water."
"But Aleen-"
"No Vincent, you will not argue with me! I own you until this job is done, we aren't taking chances. Every one of them has to ingest it, the rules were clear."
"What are we even doing this for? And what are we doing? I don't like this, the Champion will kill us if she ever finds out."
"Have you ever seen that woman and her friends fight?"
"No, what does that have to do with anything?"
"They pride themselves on strength and teamwork, but it is hard to see your leaders as strong when you've seen their nightmares, when you know what they're afraid of, when you've seen their weakest, most terrifying moments. This is subterfuge, sabotage, we are doing this because my boss knows that he cannot defeat them head-on. Luckily, he found you and your quite ingenious concoction." Aleen explained.
"We're going to kill them? No, I cannot do that! I don't care what you do to me, I won't kill the Champion!" Vincent argued.
Aleen's face twisted, she wanted to snap the boy's neck, but she needed him for this to work. He had engineered a poison that effected the mind. When it knocked its victims out, about twenty or so minutes after taking it (if the science was to be trusted, anyhow), they were pulled into consciousness in the Fade, only to find that their fate was locked in the hands of a demon. A demon that in this case, Aleen had made quite the deal with. How could someone so young could have happened across something like this? It didn't matter though, they had found him, "No, you fool child, we are not killing them, we are poisoning their minds, if your Champion is a strong as I'm sure you believe she is she'll survive, right?"
Vincent just nodded and went back to his work, he had too much to lose to disagree.
"Are you sure about this, Hawke? Even if it is just us you certainly aren't the 'dinner party' type." Isabela asked.
"I had the same conversation with Fenris, and I am quite sure. Besides, have you ever known me to be uncertain about anything?" Hawke replied.
"Well, no, I suppose you have a point. I'll be there, then, but could you... do me a favor?"
"What?"
"A favor, could you do me one?"
"I know what you were asking, what favor?" Hawke clarified with only the slightest irritation.
"Could you ask Fenris to come to dinner topless?"
Hawke tilted her head to the side to gape at Isabela, "Yeah," She said, sarcastic, "I'll be sure to ask him."
"Thanks love, it wouldn't be a good party if there wasn't at least one shirtless man."
Hawke just shook her head and walked away.
"Sebastian." Fenris spoke loudly enough to get his attention.
The former prince turned to face him, "Fenris? I thought we had a strict no-talking policy for when you came to the Chantry." He joked, it was by far a Fenris imposed policy. He and Hawke had started coming to services together at the beginning of each week, but even then he hardly spoke to him.
"Not this time, I'm afraid. Hawke and I decided that we're having a dinner party, first night of the week." He was very to-the-point.
"You mean 'Hawke decided and I agreed'?"
"More or less." Fenris shrugged with a light chuckle.
Sebastian chuckled back, "Alright, I'll be there."
"Oh Hawke! This is wonderful! I'm so glad you finally got him to agree, I've been looking for the perfect caterer for weeks!" Merril squealed in utter glee.
"Yes, yes, Merril, I know, it's absolutely phenomenal." Hawke's tone did not match her words, "Did you happen to find this perfect caterer?"
"Oh yes, I asked around and this woman named Aleen was absolutely thrilled by the idea of cooking for the Champion! She doesn't even charge!" Merril was quite proud of her find.
"Oh?" Hawke was skeptical, "This Aleen is offering to cook a fancy meal for seven people, free of charge?" No one did anything for free, not really. That had always been Hawke's opinion on it.
"Well, not totally, you have to provide her with the materials, but she'll cook and serve everything!"
"Ah, I see, that's more like it." Hawke was, of course, right, though she had no idea just how right she really was, "Tell this Aleen we have a deal."
"Oh, that is wonderful! She'll be so pleased!" Little did either of them know the terrible mistake they were making. Perhaps it could have been avoided if someone other than naïve Merril had met with the woman, perhaps if Hawke had been there to smell the magic on her the impending catastrophe could have been stopped, but of course, things never went according to plan. Not for Hawke.
"Wait, you're shitting me, no way you agreed to this." Varric looked at Fenris with raised eyebrows, slamming his mug on the half-rotten table.
"I did, I drew the line at dinner attire though." Fenris joked.
"Really? We could have seen Hawke in a dress and you nixed it for all of us? Isabela is going to be so upset." Varric shook his head, the only time anyone had seen her out of her armor was that one night all those years ago. It was an almost unimaginable thing, Hawke in a... dress.
"That is a sight for my eyes only, dwarf." Fenris warned.
"So you've seen it!" Varric exclaimed, "You're a lucky bastard, you know that?"
"I do." Fenris nodded, smug, "Are you going to come or not?"
"Oh, of course, I wouldn't miss this for the world."
"And you're serving what now?" Aveline asked, she had experienced Hawke's cooking once, many, many years ago, and she had never forgotten it.
"I'm not serving anything, so you need not worry, Aveline." Hawke assuaged her fears.
She sighed, "Well I suppose I can drop by, I can't stay for long though, I might not even be able to eat. I have a patrol that night, and Donnic and I were planning on... staying out late, if you know what I mean." A blush flashed its way across Aveline's pale cheeks.
Hawke had gotten much better at catching on to dirty things, but feigned innocence, "Oh, why for?"
"Well, uh..." Aveline was loath to admit this, but if she was going to tell anyone, it would be Hawke, "We're kind of... acting out a scene."
Hawke smirked suggestively, something she would have never been comfortable with doing in public. "A scene? From what?"
Aveline coughed, "Uh, well, actually..."
"Spit it out, Aveline."
"Hard in Hightown."
And Hawke laughed, the sound rang out so loud it practically shook the walls. "The- the one in the- the alley?" She managed around her chuckles.
Aveline's blush grew even more intense, "Yes, Hawke, if you must know."
"I had no idea you two were exhibitionists!" Hawke was still laughing.
"Oh, don't even get me started on you, I heard about that romp Isabela walked in on, you have no room to talk."
"Is that how she tells it? Walked in on! More like 'lock-picked her way into', that harlot." Hawke clarified.
"I thought there was something a little off about her story..."
"Indeed. Either way, just drop by and say hello, and then you can go off on your 'patrol'." Hawke winked, she was always out-of-character when it was just her and Aveline.
"Ugh, Hawke..."
The small room was dark, but just light enough that you could make out the figures within it. The walls appeared as a slate gray, and the floor was stone to match. The click of Aleen's heel would have made lesser men shiver, but not him. The Magister that sat in the room's only chair did not so much as flinch. She stood with her head held high for a few long minutes, awaiting orders, before he spoke.
"Aleen, my apprentice, do you know why I called you here?" His voice was grating on her ears, but only because she knew he stood between her and the title of Magister.
"I assume I have failed you in some way, and I am to receive punishment." Her jaw clenched around the words, it was always best to assume the worst.
"Quite the opposite, actually. I have called upon you because you are to be given a new task, a final proving, so to speak."
"Oh? What do you wish of me?" Her mood lightened significantly at the mention of a final proving.
"As you well know, my last apprentice met quite the gruesome end. I want you to succeed where she failed, but your task is to be... different." He droned on.
"How so?"
"She was ordered to, retrieve. I now know that this was a mistake, and so I have decided on a new course of action. I want you to observe, plot, and destroy. Your target is a very capable woman, a Templar, so you will have to disguise your magic, but her strength is primarily derived from her ability to lead. Those who follow her do so blindly, they believe her to be infallible. Destroy that, destroy their faith, and she will fall with it." The man stood up, a menacing gesture, "This woman has taken my most prized possession, and she will pay for it with her life."
Aleen smiled, cruel and cold, this was her favorite kind of job, "Does this woman have a name?"
"Hawke. I want you to destroy her, but do not kill her. I, and I alone, will have the pleasure."
She lit up, this was more perfect than she could have ever hoped for, "Of course, I will leave immediately." It is a shame she did not know that Danarius was setting her up to fall, the Champion would eat her alive.
Despite its residents the mansion had truly become a home fit for nobles. Each room was elegantly furnished, impeccably clean, and obviously not very lived-in. It was such a drastic change from what it had once been that it was only natural that jaws dropped upon seeing it for the first time.
"Oh... my..." Aveline started.
"Fucking tits, Hawke!" Isabela finished her thought, "What did you do to this place?"
"There's even a gawd-damn chandelier!" Varric exclaimed.
"Indeed, Varric, always the observant one." Sebastian jested, chandeliers were apparently quite common in prince-land.
"Seriously though, Hawke," he continued, ignoring the comment, "how long did this take?"
"Eight months, thirteen days." She answered from the other side of the room. She and Fenris were both in full battle attire, which wasn't exactly cumbersome for Fenris, but Hawke's Templar armor was overly hefty in the shoulders, probably because she had an affinity for ramming her way through doors, and people. Not that anyone else had worn anything special, but still, full armor for dinner?
"That seems like... a very Hawke answer." Merril finally piped in.
"You said it, Kitten." Isabela commented, "Now where's this food I smell?" Her eyes grew wide with an obvious hunger.
"In here!" A shrieking voice called from an adjacent room, and everyone started to head in that direction, save Aveline and Hawke.
"I'm sorry I have to go, plans, you know?" Aveline nodded to Hawke as she turned towards the door.
"Of course, plans... Have fun, Aveline, you don't have nearly enough of it." Hawke smiled as she left.
"And then, when I had completely ran out of bolts, he goes 'Why don't you just sweep the fucking floor?' So I did. With his hair." Varric finished his story with a smug smirk, along with his fourth helping of the dessert. Although, it had nothing on Merril's seven, albeit that was the only thing she ate. Either way, the girl could eat.
Everyone found Varric's story quite amusing, except,of course, Hawke, who voiced her opinion on the matter, "So, you shot up the whole house in protest, and then you did the job anyway?"
"Well, when you put it that way it's not nearly as funny." Isabela spoke.
"Just think of it as a story about sibling rivalry, not about sweeping." Varric explained.
"I suppose it is funny, I just would have done things differently." Hawke added.
"Eh? How would you have dealt with Bartrand, Hawke?" Sebastian asked.
"Yes, Hawke, how would you deal with that?" Merril inquired over her next bit of cake.
Hawke didn't even have to think before she answered, "I would have dealt with him the same way I dealt with Carver, I would have knocked him unconscious and walked away."
And everyone busted up laughing, even Hawke, for once. Fenris tilted his head and smiled at her, "How very Hawke of you."
"It's good to know you've always been yourself." Sebastian said with shake of his head.
"Who else would I be?"
"Stop taking everything so literally, Hawke," Isabela waved her hand dismissively, "he just meant that your personality hasn't changed."
"Oh yes it has."
"Is that so? Now this, I have to hear." Varric leaned forward to listen.
"I used to be very... charismatic." It took Hawke a moment to find the right word.
"Do tell." Fenris added from his place by her side.
"Well, I could talk my way out of anything, I had a bit of a silver tongue. And as far as siblings go I had Bethany and Carver both convinced that at night the sky was really a bright green, it was simply too dark for them to see it, and until my father called me on it they both thought I was psychic as well. I was really just a cheat."
It took everyone a moment to process the information they had just been given, but Isabela spoke first, "Hmm... that is what I've always thought charismatic to mean." And then the laughter began again.
"What changed, Hawke?" Merril asked over... more cake...
"What didn't?" Hawke grew somber, but snapped out of it as she stood up, the dinner had come to a close, "Anyway, this has been quite entertain..."
"Hawke, are you alright?" Fenris shot up as Hawke trailed off in a daze.
"Yes, just... stood up too fast." Hawke shook it off.
Sebastian got up next, "We should do this again sometime, I'm certain there are more stories to be had, but I do need to go. Elthina needed me to sort some... things..."
"Does anyone else feel that?" Isabela asked, holding her hand to her head.
"It feels like..." Varric started, "bad food..."
"No." Hawke said, "Poison."
"What do you mean, Hawke? I don't feel anything." Merril said.
"Then it certainly wasn't in the cake." Fenris said, starting to feel the effects himself.
"It's magic, it isn't regular poison, I feel it, it's... magic..." Hawke uttered as she finally collapsed.
"Hawke!" Fenris called as he fell as well.
"Get Aveline, Kitten, get..." And Isabela went down.
"The caterer..." Varric muttered as he plopped out of his chair, and out of the corner of his eye he saw Sebastian hit the floor too.
"Oh no! Oh no! What should I do? Oh, yes, Aveline, Aveline..." Merril got up and frantically scurried for the door, only to meet the caterer's assistant in the doorway.
"Why are you still awake!" He seemed more frightened than upset.
"I only ate the cake." She answered, temporarily oblivious. "No, wait! Did you do this?"
"No! No! It was Aleen, and she was mad enough that the Guard-Captain left, she's going to be furious when she finds out you're still awake. Can you please just, lay down with everyone else until they wake up?" Vincent's face was wracked with horror, not sure who to fear most, Aleen or the Champion.
"Why would I do that? I have to get Aveline." Merril's overtly stupid trust in people was getting the best of her, she couldn't see this young boy as a threat.
"No, I can't let you leave! She has my mother! It won't kill them, they'll wake up, just stay here."
"Hawke can help your mother, just get out of my way!" Merril spoke even faster than she normally did.
"No." Vincent pulled a dagger from a well-concealed sheath and Merril could quite obviously see from his change in demeanor that this was not going to end well, so much for overtly stupid trust, "I will not leave this to chance. I will not let her die. Stay back!"
They stared at each other for a long minute, Vincent prepared to lunge, Merril with an uncharacteristic sneer on her face. Unfortunately, Vincent was not going to live very much longer. Merril knew that her friends saw her as a child with too much power, and this was her chance to show them that in the end, she could do the right thing, she could save them for a change.
The poor boy didn't have a chance. One second he was ready to defend his family against one of the mighty companions of the Champion, and the next he was writhing on the floor, clawing at his own skin, trying desperately to free whatever evil was quite literally boiling his blood. Merril did not think about the pain she was causing, but about the fastest way to kill him, and it was fast, but agonizing. "I am sorry, da'len."
She ran through the streets, searching the back-alleys of Hightown, relieved, at least, that Aveline's patrol wasn't far away. Finally, at the farthest end of a long passage that no one really knew was there (it wasn't even on the map), Merril found Aveline and her husband. "Aveline!" She shouted.
The Guard-Captain wheeled around to face her with quite the look of shock on her face. "Uh, Merril... what brings you here?"
"Hawke! Everyone! They need help, now!" Merril was still quite frantic.
As relieved as Aveline was that Merril hadn't asked what she and Donnic were doing all the way back there, it still did nothing to quell the sudden rush of adrenaline, "What happened?" She asked as they rushed to the mansion.
"The food, it was poisoned or, or something! The boy with Aleen, the caterer, I had to kill him, he wouldn't let me leave- and I- I-"
"Calm down, Merril." Aveline said as she re-did the straps on her chest plate, which she was hoping Merril didn't notice in all her fervor, but she hoped in vain.
"Wait- Why were those undone in the first place?" Merril asked, rapidly changing subject, "Was it itchy? I sometime have to redo my straps because they itch."
Luckily Merril had provided Aveline the perfect alibi, "Yes, itchy."
It would have been rather awkward for Aveline, but they had promptly made it back to the mansion, seeing as they weren't that far away to begin with. It took Aveline and Donnic a few moments to make sure that everyone still had a pulse, well, everyone but Vincent, and of course it was in that last moment that Aleen decided to make her drastic appearance.
"Well, well, well," She crooned as she sauntered in, "I should have assumed this wouldn't be as easy as I thought it would be. But I suppose this is for the best."
"Who do you work for?" Aveline demanded, getting ready to charge.
Aleen just continued her speech, "Can you imagine how much more the Champion's spirit will break when she awakes from her most terrible nightmare to find that two of her best friends have finally met death? I may have been ordered not to kill her, but you..."
"Who, do you, work for?" Aveline repeated.
"A man named Danarius, if you really must know, not that you'll be around long enough to tell any-" Aleen wailed as she was bashed back into the wall by Aveline's shield, the force of which sent the chandelier crashing down to the table, a rightly terrible mess. Aveline had cut her monologue short, Aleen was obviously not used to combating such direct opponents.
"You bitch-born dog-lord! You will pay for-" And she was cut off once again, but this time it was by a hulking fist of stone crushing her skull back into the wall, quite effectively killing her and leaving a messy bloodstain. Hawke would be furious when she awoke, it took forever to get all the blood and corpses out of the mansion, now she had two more, not to mention the fucking chandelier. Oh yes, when Hawke saw what a disaster it had caused it would cease to be just a chandelier, it would be a fucking chandelier, and Hawke really wasn't one for such words.
"I don't see why we don't do that more often, why does Hawke always let them talk?" Merril asked.
"She says it's because everyone deserves to have their last words, but I think she secretly has a thing for theatrics." Aveline explained.
"I can see that." Donnic finally spoke up.
"What are we going to do about this, Aveline?" Merril returned to the truly pressing matter, looking down at her fallen friends.
"Well, the only thing we can do. We wait. They're still alive, we don't know of any anti-toxin, and she did say 'when she awakes', so I can only assume that this isn't deadly. I don't even want to try and figure out what this woman hoped to accomplish with this, but knowing Magisters it's probably cruel and unusual. Toying with their enemies, ugh. Fenris is not going to like what she had to say, hell, no one is. We should- Hey! Don't eat that, Merril!" Aveline gasped.
Merril was foraging the far end of the table that hadn't been touched by the shattering glass of the chandelier, "What?" She mumbled around a mouthful, "It's not in the cake."
Everything swirled around them, it seemed as though there should be a better word for it, but 'swirled' really did cover it. It was the melting of the colors around them, the walls dripped away and the floor crumbled. Everything passed and was built up again in a completely different fashion. A cold wind unaccustomed to Kirkwall blew through the new room as Hawke and her companions managed to stand back up.
"The hell are we?" Isabela asked through a shiver.
"If I didn't know any better I'd say whatever we took teleported us somewhere. But, where, and why?" Varric asked in reply.
"No." Was Hawke's simple reply, her voice held no emotion as she scanned the room. The walls were built from wood, and the floor was simply dirt. There was a circular wooden table with five matching chairs and a row of cupboards lined the wall above the dusty counter next to the cooking pot. There were two doors, one of which was slightly off its hinges, broken. There was a single window that looked out to a large field.
"What, Hawke?" Fenris asked, concerned by her subtle change in behavior.
She ran her hand over the table, as if to check that it was real, "This is the Fade."
"Are you sure, Hawke? This seems pretty real to me, it's nothing like that time with that, Fey-something kid." Varric doubted Hawke's conclusion.
"He's right Hawke, this is far too real to be the Fade." Sebastian agreed.
"I hate to doubt you, Hawke," Fenris said, "but you are the Templar. How do you know?"
"Wait!" Isabela exclaimed, as though an idea had finally come to fruition in her head, "The cold, and the smell! I knew it was familiar! We're in Ferelden! This is real!"
"That's what that is? It really does smell kind of like wet dog." Sebastian added. "I always wanted to visit here."
"I think they're right, Hawke," Fenris placed his hand on her shoulder, "all we have to do now is make the long journey back. Maybe we can stop by-"
"No!" She cut him off and pulled away from him, "This is not real. None of it! There is a demon, somewhere, toying with us!" She was almost shouting, "This place does not exist! Not anymore!"
As surprised as they were by Hawke's sudden outburst they did not have time to react, as a man and a woman easily identifiable as a younger Leandra walked through the doorway. The man was taller than any of them and he had a sharp, square jaw. His hair was dark and almost ragged, his hands calloused from work, and his eyes were a startling blue. The two of them entered the room without a single care for the people within it, in fact, when Sebastian stood in their way they walked right through him, as if he were a ghost.
Isabela, of course, the queen of the inappropriate comment, decided to speak up, "He is a tall drink of water, isn't he? Oh, if I could ask for anything, it would be ten of him." Hawke did not reply.
"Hawke..." Fenris said, his tone wary, "Is that, is that who I think it is?"
"Malcom and Leandra Hawke." Her voice was low, quiet. The two of them sat at the table without a word.
"This is definitely the Fade then..." Sebastian said, "I always figured you'd look like your father."
"Now that you mention it..." Isabela trailed off.
The apparition of Malcom spoke, "What are we going to do, Leandra?"
"The same thing we always do. We run."
"No, we can't, not again. The children are happy here, I can't take that away from them."
"What choice do we have!" Leandra's eyes welled with tears, "They're on to you, and I'm not going to lose you to the Templars, the children would rather have their father!" Malcom did not immediately answer her, but thought.
Hawke no longer looked at them, but to the door, she knew what came next. "Hawke?" Fenris asked.
"I know what this demon is doing. I know why we're here. This thing already has us and we will not be able to stop it until it's run its course. Hold fast."
"Wait, Hawke, what do you mean?" Varric asked, but there was no time for an answer.
Malcom spoke again, or tried to, "I'll find a way, Leandra, I'll-"
The door opened again, far more violently this time, and what Hawke knew to be a fifteen-year-old version of herself stood in the doorway, her tunic splayed with blood. "We have to go. Now." She demanded, gasping for breath.
Her parents stood instantly, "Maker's breath, girl, what happened to you? Where are the twins?" Leandra questioned, her voice panicked.
"I'm fine and they're safe, they're hiding in the barn. We have to go." The younger Hawke pleaded.
"Why? What are you talking about, and what is all this, blood?"
"Templars, mother, Templars! Bethany and Carver were playing some game and she got upset with him and then there was fire and I didn't see the man and I was- I was just too late and I had to- We don't have time for this, the patrol caught up with him, they know one of their men is dead and they-"
"Sh, child." Malcom calmed her, "You protected your sister, you did well. We're coming."
And everything dripped away again, leaving them in blackness. "Hawke... was that... you?" Isabela asked.
"Yes."
"Killing people when you were that young, and Templars, no less, why am I not surprised?" Varric smirked, but he would not have made such a comment if he had know what came next. Everything pulled back into focus, but they were in dark forest. It was a generic scene, trees and the like, if you didn't count the stand-off that was taking place. Malcom Hawke and his family stood to face eight Templars.
"On behalf of the Order, we are placing this woman in custody pending charges of murder." The man who was obviously in command of the unit stated.
"Woman! She's hardly fifteen!" Leandra objected.
"The law sees no age, ma'am, she faces execution regardless. We are willing to excuse that you attempted to flee, be glad for that."
"It is alright, mother. I will face the consequences of my actions." A somber Hawke stepped forward, Leandra's face showed terror, but in Malcom's was cunning, a plan.
The lead Templar stepped forward, "I am glad you are not making this harder on your family." An odd confusion spread across his face then, he obviously sensed something amiss. "You... you are not a mage, but you smell of blood magic."
Leandra then saw Malcom's plan, and could not believe that it had come to this. They had spoke of escape routes, but this... She knew it was the only option though, it was both her daughters or her husband. She did not speak, but tried to prepare herself for the oncoming tragedy.
The Templar looked intently on the family before him, and it took him several minutes to discern what was going on, or at least what Malcom wanted him to believe was going on, before he spoke, "Ma'am, take your youngest children and return to your home. We will return your eldest daughter to you shortly."
"What?" Leandra asked, "No! I'm not leaving my husband! He's a good man, he has done nothing wrong!" She played her part well.
"Ma'am, your husband is not who you think he is. I can explain this to you later, but I need you to go. You do not want to be here for this. Trust us, we are only doing what is best for you." The man showed true concern, he was doing what he believed to be right.
"Be safe." Leandra said as she hugged her husband one last time before she took Bethany and Carver away, she never looked back.
One of the other Templars spoke up, "She left a little too easily, didn't she?"
"No," the man in charge said, "she already knew something was wrong, she just didn't know what."
Malcom stood with a sinister grin on his face, one Hawke obviously knew was fake. "So, what now, boys?"
"You disgust me, using your own daughter to commit murder, you are a monster!" The Templar snarled.
"Father? Why are you doing this?" The young Hawke asked, although it was a far different question than the Templars assumed it to be.
Malcom ignored her, momentarily, anyway, "I assume this ends in my death?"
"Of course, you are a blood mage and a murderer, there is no place for you here."
"No!" She objected, "No, you can't kill him!" She stepped in front of her father, her arms out to defend him.
"Step aside girl, your father is not the man you know him to be."
"No! Father, what do we do?" She asked without turning to look at him.
"Feather, please, listen to me." He spoke in what was almost a whisper. Feather was his nickname for her, because she was light, and beautiful, and kind, and sweet, and all manner of other things he would tell her when he tucked her into bed at night.
"We fight, right? You fight for what you love, that's what you said, isn't it?" She was crying, her chest heaving from her labored breathing.
"Not this time, child, not this time."
"No! " She shouted, "You fight for what you love! Because if you don't fight you have nothing! I am going to fight for you!"
He stepped forward to pull her arms down and hug her. The Templars had not intervened, probably because they did not see the girl as a threat, and the man obviously knew he had no chance to take all of them.
"There are some things worth dying for, child." Hawke turned to face him as he spoke, "Just, remember this, Feather, you don't know how strong you really are, until being strong is the only choice you have. Be strong for your mother, it's all on you now."
She nodded at him, and stepped back. She was a child wise beyond her years, and knew that her father was right. There was no other choice.
The Templar spoke up, "Are you prepared to go peacefully?"
"Yes. Make it fast." Malcom agreed.
Hawke stepped away and turned her back to him, and after the sound of a sickening slice she felt the hand of the Templar on her shoulder. "This isn't what you think it is, child. Your father was not in his right mind, he used you. We did this to protect you and your family."
"I know." Hawke spit out the words with the least amount of hostility she could manage. She had no idea how drastically her opinion on mages would change over the next years.
"You did remarkably well at fending off the magic, I could sense how strong it was, and yet you combated it valiantly, without even knowing it was there. The Templars need people with passion and strength like you, have you thought about joining the Order?" He may have had no tact, but his question was what inevitably lead Hawke to become a Templar herself, and while she was angry now, it would only be two days before she took him up on his offer. The man who killed her father would become her mentor.
And everything faded out yet again. "Is that really how your father died, Hawke?"
"Yes, Sebastian, it is."
"You said he died in an accident." Fenris almost sounded accusatory and angry, Hawke knew that wasn't really the case though, Fenris just had a lot of trouble with emotions, everything sounded angry with him.
"He did. Bethany accidentally summoned fire near a Templar. I panicked and accidentally killed him.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because it didn't matter, just like everything else this demon is going drag up doesn't matter. It is over. It is only trying to break us, it will not succeed."
"Don't speak so soon, love." A voice that sounded unnervingly like her own sounded out in the darkness as a room with no discernible features materialized around them. "You have no idea how convincing I can be."
They turned to face... Hawke? Or a version of her, anyhow. It was no secret that demons could take the forms of other people in the Fade. "What do you want from us?" Hawke asked without a second's hesitation.
"I just want to show you some things, remind you of what used to be. And don't bother trying to kill me, to be entirely honest, I'm not really even here." A chair appeared as she went to sit down, "So why don't you just sit back and enjoy the ride, I'll even let you choose where we start."
"Who sent you?"
"Not even a little request? I'm a demon that specializes in memory, you really should try to take advantage of it before we get this show on the road." The false Hawke ignored the question.
"Who. Sent. You?" Hawke repeated.
"Fine, fine, have it your way, you overbearing ass. A woman named Aleen promised me a very profitable position if I could break the spirit of the Champion, make you easy pickings for her boss, some Magister or something, all I know is that they like to play with their food. I really don't give a shit though, fun is fun. So she got me some of your blood, Maker-knows-how, ha! Maker! Either way, it gives me access to your life, your mind, you'd be amazed at what's in blood." The demon laughed, long and far higher than Hawke's laughs ever were, "By the way... you've got quite the circus going up here," She tapped her head, "I'm honestly surprised you haven't offed yourself."
"Hawke, don't listen to this. It's not real. Demons lie." Isabela was serious for once.
"Oh yes," The demon crooned, "because we all know how sound Isabela's advice is." She laughed again. "Trust me, I know I'm not going to be able to convince you that any of this is actually happening, and that's not my goal, I just want to tell your friends a little bit about the infallible Hawke. I mean, what do they really know about you? You're so guarded and stoic all the time, why don't we show them a little emotion?"
"Must we?" Hawke retorted, unamused.
"We must. Who do you want to start with? Carver? Bethany? Leandra? I mean, we already went over Malcom and that poor Templar... Speaking of, how is that 'fighting for what you love' crap going? Seriously, how well has that worked out?"
"Do you really expect your taunts to work?"
"Sadly, no... But I do know what will!" The demon waited for a reply she was not about to receive, so she kept going, "Do you remember a man named Ser Clark?"
"Ser Clark?" Hawke replied in mocking, dismissive tone.
"Yes, Ser Clark! The Templar! You don't remember him?" The demon seemed awfully excited.
"That memory will not help you reach your goal." Hawke's tone was harsh, more so than usual.
"But if I fail at that, it will make me feel better."
Varric chose the moment of silence that followed to start talking, "Hey Hawke, doesn't it creep you the hell out to stand there talking to yourself?"
"Not really. Besides, it's a Tuesday, weird things happen to us on Tuesdays." She nodded sagely at the dwarf.
"And Wednesdays, and Thursdays, and Fridays..." Isabela trailed off.
"This is what you mortals call conversation? Ugh, I am so glad I don't live in your boring world, I'd rip my eyes out. Or everyone else's." The demon threw her head back in another shrill laugh.
"Can we kill this thing, Hawke?" Fenris's voice showed actual anger this time.
"We could try, but that isn't actually the demon."
"Awe, how original, the mage-hating slave is getting trigger-happy over a demon. Who would have ever guessed?" The demon mocked, "Well, we should get on with this then. Hmm... Carver's death is boring, and it's too soon to pull out Leandra... So Bethany! Yes, Bethany." The demon snapped and they were back in the Deep Roads.
Along with Varric, Hawke had taken Bethany and Aveline with her, so the only person among her current companions that had even been present for the event of Bethany's death was, of course, Varric. Both he and Aveline had refused to speak about it, and even when Fenris had questioned Hawke on the subject in private she had remained silent. 'She's dead, it is what it is.' He had even tried to ask Varric how bad it really was, he just said that it wasn't something he should talk about, that Hawke wasn't really Hawke that day. Fenris did manage to get a little more out of him, but it wasn't much. '
The second Bethany collapsed Hawke changed. It was heartbreaking enough to see her holding her dying sister, so when she asked Aveline and I to go on ahead, I didn't hesitate. When she caught up with us, she was alone, of course, but I couldn't help but notice that she had cried. Not that she shouldn't of, but Hawke? Crying? That alone was almost worse than Bethany dying.'
"You two go on ahead, I'll catch up." Hawke cradled her sister in her arms and the others simply nodded and walked on. Hawke knew what had to be done, and she knew that she would be the one to do it. This was it, her ultimate failure, the end of the line.
"Sister, please, don't let this take me, I don't want the taint to kill me." Bethany smiled at her, the same sweet smile she always wore.
"I know, Bethany, I know."
Bethany hesitated a moment before she continued, "Can you tell me now? You said... You said you'd tell me when I turned fifty, but I really don't think I'm going to make it that far."
"Bethany..." Hawke tried to force back her tears, "Of course. He... he said that there are some things worth dying for. Be strong."
"He didn't- he didn't tell you that he loved you?" Bethany asked, surprised.
"No. He didn't have to. I already knew. Besides, he knew I wasn't one for the mushy stuff." Hawke cracked a smile.
"Could you be? Just this once, for me?"
"Yeah, Beth, I can, just this once."
"Thank you, sister, don't forget to tell mother that I love her, and that I'm sorry. I'm sorry to you, too, you know? And I'm sorry that I never told you that."
"What are you talking about? What do you have to be sorry for?"
"I got Father killed, I never apologized for that."
"No! No, Bethany, that wasn't your fault." Hawke cried in earnest now.
"I could have just gone to the Circle, and he'd still be alive. It was me, Hawke, I know that. You always took the blame but it was me that caused it."
"No. No, you shut your mouth, it would have ended the same regardless. The Templar would have came to tell them they were taking you and dad would have killed him."
"You really think so?" Bethany's voice grew weaker as their final conversation passed.
"I know so." Hawke raised her hand to Bethany's face, "He loved you. I love you. Everyone has always loved you, Bethany."
Her smile was starting to fade, "I love you, too. Just, promise me this, keep mother safe?"
"I promise. Goodbye, Bethany." And it was over. She was gone. Hawke laid her down on the stone, "I'm sorry." She stood up and walked through the invisible onlookers, her face had returned to the same blank slate everyone knew it to be.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk." The demon had quickly return them to the nameless room, "Add that to the list of promises you've failed to keep."
"Are you quite finished?" Hawke asked, thoroughly unaffected, "Your ploy is obviously not working."
"Ah, but it is!" The demon leaped up from her seat. "Look at them, you know that look, Hawke. That's pity. It is festering in their minds, and I will cement it's place there. I promise you that."
The room blinked away once more, but it came back into focus at the Amell estate. "Are we finally back?" Sebastian asked, "Is it over?"
"No. It is not." Hawke said, she could still feel the Fade around her. She was glad for her Templar training, had she been anyone else she'd be lost in this nightmare.
"We're back at your place though, and there aren't any carbon-copies of any of us anywhere. I think we're good this time." Isabela stated.
"No. Why would the demon just send us back when she's obviously not finished?"
"So it can finish us off later, we should prepare, find out who sent it." Fenris stepped for the door, which opened in the same moment. The woman that walked through it was none other than Hawke herself.
"Spoke too soon, didn't I?" Isabela asked rhetorically.
The Hawke that had just walked in took her seat in front of the fireplace, and about thirty seconds in Varric voiced an irritated query, "So this bitch wants us to sit and watch you watch your fire? What the hell does this accomplish?"
"I wonder the same." Fenris added.
"I figured we were headed back to the Foundry, at the rate she was going, this is a nice change of pace though." Isabela shrugged.
"No, it's not. The demon didn't send us to the Foundry because aside from Varric, you were all there." Hawke watched herself, she knew it would only be a few moments before Gamlen charged in.
"Then what are we doing here? This obviously isn't a very dramatic moment." Isabela said as Gamlen entered, "Spoke too soon again, didn't I?" Hawke nodded back to her.
"Did you find her? Did you find Leandra?" He asked.
She didn't turn to face him, "Yes."
"And? Where is she?" Gamlen was irritated and angry, and rightly so.
"She's dead."
"What? What are you saying, girl?" He shouted.
"She's dead. There's not a clearer way to say that, is there?" Her voice dripped with hatred.
"You're full of shit. I know you don't like me, but damn it, you're not keeping my sister from me!"
"You're right, I'm not keeping her from you."
"This is not the time for your smart mouth!" Gamlen shook his head, he knew that with what the urchin boy had said and they blood they had found Hawke wasn't lying, he simply didn't want to believe the truth. "What happened to her?"
"Blood mage."
"Mages, it's always fucking mages." He muttered, "Did you kill the one who did this?"
"Of course."
"But why? Why her?"
"Does it really matter? Knowing doesn't change anything. She's dead."
"Stop saying that! It's your fault!"
Hawke clenched her jaw, but she didn't stand to face him, "You don't think I know that?"
"You'd be an idiot not to, and I suppose that's one thing you aren't. You should have saved her. You should have been faster, stronger! Your weakness got your mother killed!" He yelled. He needed someone to blame.
"Go away, Gamlen." Hawke's expression never faltered, she remained blank, just as she had in the Foundry.
"Or what? You'll let a blood mage get me? Or maybe an ogre? Or the darkspawn? You get everyone you love killed, Hawke, you ought to tell that elf to watch his back. And do me a favor, don't love me." Even though this had taken place before the two were an item, Bethany had noticed her sister's silent infatuation with Fenris, no one else did, of course, but no one else really understood quite how Hawke worked. Somewhere down the road she told her mother, who of course told Gamlen, because she told Gamlen everything. His words stung, but then again, they were supposed to.
"I think I can do that."
"You really are heartless, aren't you? You just watched your mother die and you aren't even going to bat an eye?"
"You do not know me, Gamlen." Hawke still hadn't looked at him, her eyes remained locked on the fire.
"I know you aren't even going to cry about this. You didn't cry about Bethany or Carver, or even your father. Why would you shed a tear for your mother? You disgust me."
"And how would you know that?" She asked, but to Gamlen it was as good as a confirmation.
"Your mother told me. After Malcom died, while everyone else cried, you just sat there and stared. Bethany, Carver, the same thing. Your mother might not have seen you for what you are, but I do. You're an emotionless bitch. I would have even chosen Malcom over you, at least he loved your mother." And Gamlen slammed the door before Hawke had a chance to reply.
"Why do I have the sudden urge to manually insert a bolt between Gamlen's eyes?" Varric snarled.
"We never got along, and he needed someone to blame."
"Does that really excuse saying something like that?" Fenris pointed out.
"No, I suppose it doesn't."
The memory of Hawke sat there for a moment, still staring, before she looked up to the window, "What do I do now, father? Everything is gone. Everything we had, destroyed. I failed you." She paused, but the scene did not yet fade. Hawke had no doubt that this monologue was the demon's true goal. "What do I have left? What is there that's worth dying for anymore?" Her voice was growing hostile, and she finally stood up and paced the room. "I fought!" She shouted, "I fought with everything I had! I did exactly what you told me to! And everyone is dead!" She grabbed the closest thing she could find, a large paperweight on her desk, "What do I have to fight for now!" And she threw it, and it passed right through Varric's head before it smashed into the desk with a massively loud thud.
"Ow, Hawke, you throw hard." He shrugged, his attempt to lighten the mood actually pulled a smirk out of her.
Then there was a knock at the door. She pulled herself together instantly and went to answer it. It was Fenris. Even though the scene faded out then, Fenris still took the time to comment, "So... that's what that crash was."
Despite everything, Hawke actually laughed, not much, but still, "Yeah, it was."
"After all that, you're in a good mood?" The demon asked from behind, and they turned to face her.
"Your plan has failed, apparently." Hawke believed that her team was stronger than anything this thing could throw at them.
"Has it?" Hawke felt magic in the air, the demon was preying on and multiplying the emotions of her companions, she clenched her fists and hoped they fared better this time than they had with their last trip to the Fade.
"Stand strong." Hawke spoke with the authority of a commander, it was her battle voice, "It cannot win if you do not let it."
"Is that so?" The false Hawke purred, "Isabela? Do you... believe in your leader?"
She hesitated. Isabela took a long time before speaking, which was unlike her, but in this case was much better than the alternative. "Yes." She finally managed. "Yes, Hawke has saved my ass more times than I can count. She's my best friend. You lose."
The demon growled, "Fine. Goodbye." She snapped her fingers and Isabela simply vanished.
"Where did she go?" Varric asked, slightly panicked.
"She woke up. None of us are mages, if she kills us we simply wake up." Hawke answered.
"Good thing Daisy isn't here." Varric sighed in relief.
"Enough chatter! Sebastian, you're next." Hawke could feel it in the air again as the demon spoke, she was redoubling her efforts, "Do you have faith in your Champion?"
Sebastian's pity was more than evident, he cared too much, but in the end he did not let it shake him, his will was strong. "Yes. She helped me destroy my family's murderers, and supported me in my decision to stay with the Chantry. I have faith in her. You lose." He repeated Isabela's statement with a smirk.
The demon growled much louder this time, "Have it your way." And Sebastian was gone. The demon was obviously using a tremendous amount of magic to try and turn them, and was furious that it was failing, "Varric! Would you trust her with your life?"
Varric didn't hesitate for a second, "Are you shitting me? I already do, constantly. If this story doesn't pan out I lose my whole retirement. Ugh, I don't really want to say this, but since it's a trend... You lose." Varric cocked his head to the side, "You know, I take it back, that's actually really fun to say. You. Lose!" He then pulled Bianca's trigger and a bolt lodged itself in the demon's chest, and Varric laughed.
The demon didn't so much as flinch, she glared down at Varric. "You know, I really don't like you." And Varric was gone as well. The demon pulled the bolt from her torso, leaving only a spreading bloodstain. "Do I even have to ask you, Fenris?"
"Not unless you really want to." Was Fenris's smug reply.
"Now send us back, demon, you have obviously failed, as I said you would." Hawke sneered at her.
"Oh no, you see, I'm quite upset that you've lost me my pay, and I've decided that if I can't destroy your team, I'm going to destroy your relationship. I can see it in your head, your greatest fear is for people to look at you as victim, and he'll never look at you the same after this." Hawke and the demon glared at each other, Hawke knew there was nothing she could do though, this was going to happen whether she liked it or not, and she most certainly did not. "Fenris," the demon said, "you're going to want to pay real close attention to this one."
A/N: I hope you liked it! I really do, this was kind of out-on-a-limb for me, let me know if it worked. I have all these ideas in my head that revolve around other companions seeing/living through the memories of the others, but I've never written any out. There might have been some confusion about the time-line, and even though I've already said that it doesn't follow the actual game at all, I hope that I didn't make any mistakes. The next chapter is going to be kind of dark, at least the Ser Clark part, then there's going to be some serious Danarius ass-kicking, which might be a little sad, but I'm not totally sure if I'm going to take it that route. Either way, R&R, I love you guys, sorry I take so long to update, all that good stuff! Oh, and I'm sorry that Hawke lost some of her anonymity there, with the nickname and all, I've tried to make her easy enough to imagine as your Hawke, but sometimes stuff like that slips through.
Side question: To anyone who has played the Mark of the Assassin DLC, did anyone else notice instantly what Tallis actually is? I suppose I probably only noticed because of how much Qunari research I've done for A Rogue's Discretion, but STILL. The emblem is right there ON HER ARMOR.
Alright, about that title competition I was talking about! Way up there at the top! It's not going to be very formal. I want my stories (at least the first three) to match. This is A Warrior's Heart. My other story is A Rogue's Discretion. But I don't know what the title for the next one is supposed to be! So your challenge is this: Fill in the blank. A Mage's _
The story isn't even decided yet, I planned on basing it on the title, so this is a big deal! I only know that the Hawke is going to be female, I can't write a male Hawke for some gawd-awful reason. Anyway, the winner won't be decided until I'm ready to start writing, or if one your titles hits my muse button really, really hard. The prize? It's up to the winner. I believe there will be two options, a one-shot designed specifically for you! Or I can put your original character in the story! Depending on how much I like your character, and how well they integrate with my plot, it might just be one chapter, or it could be much more, it just depends. I'll let you know beforehand in case you decide you want the one-shot more.
To enter, leave your submission in your review, or send me message! If you only want to enter a title, and not a review too, please send me a message. Alright, longest Author's Note ever is over. I love you guys.