I woke up hearing Broody and Blondie coming towards my room and no doubt it was Broody banging on the door. I look over and Hawke is still asleep and seemingly not in pain. 'I should probably get up and answer it before she wakes up and kills everyone here.' I got out of bed and went to the door after putting my hair up. I open the door and Broody falls while Blondie is doing a face palm. They have now gained my full attention. "Let's talk outside of the door Hawke is sleeping." They nod at me and I quietly close the door.

"Varric, I have analyzed the poison from the arrow. It was indeed poison but it's not deadly...to her..."

"Blondie you better start explaining..." I was growing more and more frustrated, what was she shot with!?

"It was meant for you, and they obviously missed."

"Well, what's in it?"

"According to the mage, it is deadly to dwarf but for a human...it can cause them to become more honest with themselves and those around them the longer the poison sets in. It was made with magic so it will take magic to fix it." Broody spoke up and seemed worried in his own way.

"So what would have been the effect on me other than death?"

"It would have made you feel like you were drunk before killing you slowly and painfully." Anders finished with a frown that would put Broody to shame.

"Well...that's just peachy...Hawke said something last night about feeling like she drank a bunch of wine and that she felt similar to being drunk off of wine." I unconsciously look back behind me at the closed door and then back at them as soon as I noticed what I had done. "I'll take care of her until you find an antidote...Maker knows that she can't be near her uncle at a time like this. How long do you think it will take?"

"I am not sure...I haven't worked with anything like this before. It will be much more difficult than simply healing someone with magic...I have to completely break down the poison and find the right componets to..."

"Enough of the sciencey mage stuff...If you don't know than I will wait...can you heal her wound as it is?"

"Unfortunately no...because the antidote will have to go through the hole...if I heal it completely now I will have to reopen it later. This is a very dark magic Varric...whoever did this either wanted you dead or wanted Hawke out of the picture for a while...I still strongly believe it was meant for you though..."

"I understand Blondie...Alright...I'll go tell Hawke."

"Oh and Varric...you may want to be careful...The more and more she has the poison the more and more she will be honest and eventually it will reach her actions as well. Do NOT under any circumstances piss her off."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. If anything it's him who really shouldn't piss her off... "Of course Blondie, I wouldn't dream of it."

Once I made it back inside I noticed that there was snoring and I really hoped that it was Hawke and not Rivaini again. "Varric is that you?" I heard a sleepy voice call as I got closer. Yup it was Hawke. I smiled to myself as I saw her wrapped up, looking somewhat helpless. Not even I knew how to get her out of it. I can't blame her though...it is a very comfortable blanket.

"No, it's an ogre come back for revenge, you killed my mother remember?"

"Oh how disappointing...are you as ugly as her?" She laughed and I put my stuff down and saw that there was an empty mug of beer.

"HA! I'll have you know I am very dashing." I turned around and saw a messy haired Hawke. "However, I can't say much for you in this state."

She got up and looked me in the eye with a smile. "Admit it Varric, this is your perfect fantasy."

"Actually it's not." That earned me a thrown pillow and a pout that would kill dragons.

"Well, it can't be helped I guess. So what did Anders say?"

"You heard he was here did you? Well, First off there is indeed magic inside of the poison. It will take a while for him to find a cure but it only seems to be deadly if it enters a Dwarf's blood stream, for anyone else...especially Humans...it makes them more themselves. So I basically get to wait around until you show me your true colors. This should be interesting."

"Not really...Nothing is going to change much."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm already myself when I'm with you. However, I think it would be best if I only saw you, Fenris, and Anders for the time being. I can't promise I will be kind to anyone else but you three."

"So are you yourself when you're around them?"

"Not exactly. what they see is about as much as they are going to get. With you I feel like I can relax without hearing, 'Mages are bad or Templars are evil...' I can actually be me. The person who is related to someone who is a mage and who would've made a great Templar...despite his hatred for me." She made a look I hadn't seen before.

"Hawke, I don't think he hated you. I haven't met him...but if he hated you he probably wouldn't have talked to you freely."

She seemed to take some thought into what I said before saying, "Thank you. You always know what to say." I walked closer and eventually sat on the bed next to her.

"I've heard I make a good shoulder to cry on." I said as I scooted closer. I had never seen her like this and I certainly have never heard those words come out of my mouth before!

"Who told you that? All of your admirers?" I could tell she was being sarcastic but it actually hurt my heart for some reason.

"Well, no one actually but I am here if you need me."

"Awe, Varric, I will always need you. You're my trusty dwarf. Hey I was wondering...you give everyone else nicknames, but why not me?"

"Because you don't need one. Hawke fits you perfectly. You're beautiful, majestic, fast, and Maker help the poor sod that double crosses you."

"Thank you Varric you're very sweet." I was about to say something back, something probably sarcastic or even witty...but it all went away when I suddenly felt her kiss my cheek.

"W-What was that for?" Was all my 'masterful silver tongue' could get out.

"Once you find my book or even a page of my book you'll know."

"The poetry book we were talking about?"

"Yup. You will get all of the answers your 'Dashing' Heart desires.

"Sure...Um...What will be my reward for finding it...?"

"You'll know as soon as you read it."

She yawned and laid back down and my head was running around in circles, my heart was pounding like war drums, and my stomach felt like it was doing summersaults. I guess I'll have to start my look tomorrow.

Please tell me what you guys thought of this chapter and how the story is going so far. :) Reviews make me happy! Also I will see you guys in the next one!