Candlelight truly was it's own kind of magic. It took a dingy rundown bar and turned it into a warm environment that was as fluid as most of the patrons vision. A fireplace gave way to larger bursts of light and it felt hot and oppressing, it was strong enough to warm a home against the cold winter however, it wasn't delicate enough to make women's faces softer, to leave that little bit of mystery and cheek to a room. Maybe her occupation made her opinion a smidge biased, but life was nicer with a shade of candlelight to it.

Or that could be the lovely bottle of wine Varric had supplied her with when she got there. The evening had been wonderful so far. Most everyone had turned out, Merrill was sitting next to Varric staring intently at his cards. Siri smiled when she noted the hand Merrill held over her mouth. Apparently Varric decided until she understood the finer points of Diamondback Merrill was not allowed to ask questions about 'three pretty ladies'. Siri had never seen a table fold faster. She wasn't currently participating, no need to start handing out her sovereigns just yet. Besides, she was far too distracted to keep up with Bela's cheating antics tonight. Being a rather logical human being she was currently torn between confusion and elation. He had not let go of her yet. That arm was either curled around her waist or her shoulders. He was lucky he was absolute shite at cards, cause she had been able to see his hand all night.

The room was in high spirits, even Fenris had dropped his frowny ways. "Wouldn't it defeat the purpose if I told you what color they were anyway?"

"Oh the things I could teach you. Why must you tease me so?" Bela whined, contorting herself in a manner that heavily accentuated the pirate's assets, so to speak.

"You might not feel that way so often if you didn't look at existing as a proposition for sex." Fenris mumbled, ignoring the slight blush he knew he was sporting.

She cared for Isabela, she truly did, but the elf had a point. Aveline had swiftly hidden her grin behind emptying her cup. "Varric, what does it means when..?"

"Hands, Daisey."

The very muffled slightly reproachful sound Merrill made was nothing short of precious.

"Besides," Isabela huffed. "There are a few more requirements than just existing. I do have some standards."

Aveline may have hidden her amusement behind her cup again, but the sounds of the guard captain coughing and spluttering were tactfully ignored by the group, just short of Bela's glare.

Anders shifted towards her, leaning down a bit, "You seem to be enjoying yourself." She had been quiet most of the evening, most people would have assumed she was just tired. Anders knew better, she was content and for someone with her background it made sense that she would revel in such a feeling. The slight rosey hue to her cheeks spoke volumes and the small smile let him know she was enjoying her friends company. When she turned to him her smile only grew. "I am amongst family, safe, and happy. My mother has her estate, she is well cared for. Everyone around me is celebrating and the wine is glorious." She smiled as she pulled lightly off the bottle, handing it to her cohort. It was odd to see him drink, but the lazy warmth it brought to his face was gorgeous. "It would be a crime if I were not enjoying this."

That moment, just the way she looked and her casual acceptance of his arms around her. She had been curled into his right side all night. She was so close and she smelled wonderful. All it would take was one head tilt and he would feel those lips on his again. To the void with their friends, his fingers traced her jaw delighting in the feeling of her breath on his thumb as it brushed her lower lip. The tiny noise of want that she emitted when her lips closed around said thumb left Anders short of breath.

"Hawke, if you keep trying to fuck people on my table I might stop inviting you over." Varric groused. It seriously wouldn't have chafed nearly as much if she'd bothered to look away from Blondie before she mumbled a noncommittal answer.

Isabela's laughter floated across the room, "It's this table Varric. Nothing's sexier than a rough wood table."

"And here most descent people would think that splinters were a turn off," Aveline supplied while tossing her cards on the table. "And again, can you people think of nothing else? I fold and I need another drink."

Siri was in heaven and she dare not break the spell. Her left hand was playing with the hair at the nape of his neck and her right was held in his talented hands. She had never been the type for a massage but Maker that felt nice. His hands were slightly calloused, which just added to the allure, but when he applied pressure just below her thumb to all those little muscles that allowed the rogue to shift her daggers angle and position. The sensation made her toes curl. "When did you get so good at this?"

"You pick up strange talents in the Circle, not all of them are about magic," Anders quipped, eyes focused on the task at hand. He turned her palm so it was facing up, his fingers danced across the string of her muscles prying the tension out of each one before methodically moving to the next. The slide of his own skin across hers was blissful torment, the velvety feel and reactions it brought with were not only something he had long given up, but he had never felt this strongly. He glanced down to her face, eyes lulled half closed his feathers mixing with her silky black hair. It was special because it was her.

"We might have to disagree about the whole 'what you're doing right now' thing not being magic." Siri quietly decided she liked this spot, his arm and shoulder were comfy. The floaty sensation that came with the wine was glorious, especially when she closed her eyes, all she could smell or feel was Anders. And he was making her feel ever so nice.

It was poetic that her eyes were closed, really. That she would trust him this openly and this close. He couldn't wait. Their surroundings exploded into laughter and squeals as the game ended, Isabela stood as winner which of course raised concerns for cheating and Merrill proceeded to hurtle questions at the dwarf at a mile a minute. Siri smiled, she truly loved her friends. The smile that graced her lips as he leaned down made him wonder if she could see with her eyes closed.

The query died too quickly to be examined. Her lips were as soft as he remembered and she tasted as sweet as the wine she was drinking. Her inhale only opened further possibilities, he bit lightly on her lower lip before tilting her face and sliding his tongue along her's. The noise around them had stopped but neither had a clue. Her hand tightened in his hair as she yanked him closer, more by Andraste's flaming tits, she wanted more. The rough slide of his stubble was driving her mad.

Anders was hard pressed to keep his groan at bay. This woman was playing him like a fiddle, her lips and taste leaving his mind reeling and his body straining. Her left hand gripped his shoulder pulling him closer to her as her right, embedded in the hair at the back of his neck, yanked him closer with a voracity that spoke volumes. He found his own hands being just as studious, one gently cradling the side of her face and the other holding on to her hip for dear life, subtly pulling the rogue closer.

With a shift he surged forward in the kiss, moving his hand from the side of her face to the back of her neck, taking charge and forcing Hawke to allow Anders to explore her more thoroughly and on his terms. She relinquished her hold on his own hair and whimpered in pleasure under his magical lips and hands. She could feel the shift in his body, the tension underneath all those clothes, how she longed to run her fingers over all that skin without those damn robes in her way. Instead she ended up locked in his embrace, her hands flitting over his shoulders completely entranced by her healer.

"You are all a bunch of deviants!" Aveline cut in. "You," she gestured to Isabela, "should not be watching such things." She turned on Varric, "You should not be writing such things. And Merrill should not be exposed to such things, we'll spend all night awkwardly explaining things and making snarky references she doesn't know we're making." Aveline then turned on the two in the corner, both blushing from their head to their toes. "If one were prudent then the thought might possibly occur to you that this lot doesn't need any encouragement?"

Siri's gaze immediately fell on Varric. Yup, she was going to kill him. He knew she hated his penchant for publicizing her love life, fine he could write about her slaying dragons without lifting more than her pinky finger all day, but this, this required action. "Varric," she said silkily, slipping from her healer's grasp for the first time this evening. "We talked about this. Hand over the parchment."

It really did puff up her ego that the dwarf did not completely hide the nervous twitch of the hand holding said parchment. "You can't be serious?! That was epic. I've been waiting years to get insight into all that lovely tension, that I might add, was put on display in a public place!"

"I'll say." Isabela swooned, staring at Anders in a way that made Siri simultaneously want to agree with and skin the pirate. "You should let him keep it kitten. That was the stuff of legends."

Aveline scooted past Hawke retaining her previous seat and Anders busied himself with the bottle of wine in front of him, not nearly as bothered as Siri by the situation. Not after that kiss, he had had many lovers in the past but if that was just the opening act, he couldn't wait to see just what the rest of the night would bring. He could just imagine the noises she'd make with his tongue wrapped around her nipple or how soft her hip would feel as he moved inside her. Belatedly he was grateful that the patches in his clothing forced him into wearing multiple layers, he would not need to worry about his reaction being obvious.

"Fine, keep your blasted parchment and scribbles. Just know, there will be retribution for this."

She was so cute when she huffed.

"Is it warm in here or it it just me? Heavens, I need another drink. I'm babbling aren't I?" The elf tittered nervously. "Oh and look at that, I haven't stopped have I?"

"You're so sweet, kitten," Isabela cooed. Well it never did take Bela long to move on, Siri thought affectionately. A hand on her own returned her attention to her amber eyed apostate, oh his gaze was practically oozing sex right now. "Come with me." He captured her lips again, telling her what he dare not say in this public place. "Let me walk you home."

Siri concluded that Merrill had the right idea. She grabbed the bottle of wine she had been supplied and while glaring openly at Varric plucked one more from the basket by her feet. "This has been fun, but I require fresh air. I had a lovely time, good night."

"Sure Hawke, take the extra bottle as congratulations. See you two in a few days." She would kill Varric later, right now she had better things to be doing.

Outside the Hanged Man the cooler air nipped at the warmth that had built between the two but as far as Anders that was a wonderful excuse to keep Hawke closer. He did have a few things he wanted to say to her, but the serenity of the moment was difficult to break. "What changed your mind?"

Apparently not the difficult, although he shouldn't be surprised after three years of ignoring her advances. "There were a few factors," he mused, content to be slightly coy.

"Given the extreme patience I have shown, a little explanation is not unwarranted."

Anders chuckled, "I suppose you deserve an explanation. Although I'm loathed to admit it, Bela yelled at me after I put you to sleep on Sundermount." They were ascending through Lowtown, both of them trying to remain attentive, they weren't in a safe area. "She pointed out that, well, if I hadn't gotten there in time I would never have the opportunity to kiss you... Or tell you how I feel. Spending time with you these past days have tested me, being this close to you but not touching you was unbelievably torturous and wonderful at the same time."

He slid his hand to entwine with her own. "You, however," he paused to gather his thoughts. "I could never have imagined how badly three little words from your lips would tilt my world and not just mine. Justice has been very vocal lately and his opinion on my affections have shifted. Apparently, you've made quit the impression on him. He is still disapproving, but... Well, let's say that my world is not the only one that was left rocked by your confession."

Siri just knew her face was as red as a tomato. "In my defense, I truly thought I was dying."

They reached Hightown and both breathed a little bit easier, while not in the clear they were a bit safer. Anders halted their progress, wrapping his arms around her waist and effectively pinning her to a wall. "There was another event that weighed heavily on my mind." His mouth met her own in a brutal kiss. Hawke moaned drinking up his obvious affection, her hips ground against his running up against his very solid length had her just shy of keening and hopping onto his hips in the middle of the damn street. "I've actually been wondering if you remember. You're truly evil you know, promising not to distract me and then within hours of said promise you end up in my arms. That was the first time I tasted you."

Hawke would almost say she was overwhelmed, with Anders lips on her neck nibbling and talking and detailing that apparently not dream she had those few days ago. Throwing caution to the wind she braced herself on his shoulders and locked her legs around his waist creating the most delicious friction between them. "Anders... " she moaned, her body alight from his touch.

The shift in balance barely affected her apostate, using his grip on her hips he rocked into her body damning the cloth the kept them apart. He nibbled on her ear, his words low and rough as he held her to him. "You've seen the monster I can be, but I'm still a man, you can't tease me like this and expect me to resist forever. You say you love me, and I'm about to show you just how much I love you. As long as that is still what you want."

"Anders, if you stop now I will drug you, yank you back to the estate, and tie you to the bed," Siri growled, as her feet hit the ground again. "Wait... You love me?" Yes, if her very twitter-pated brain was relaying information correctly those words had tumbled from his lips. She openly stared at the mage, shock running rampant through her system.

A soft smirk adorned his face when he grabbed her hand and pulled her close, the atmosphere of the hug miles from the sexual tension it held moments ago. He pressed a kiss to her temple pouring all he felt into his own confession, she had to know this was more than sex, "I've never dared fall in love, it's too easy to be manipulated if you have someone you care about, but you are everything that I want and need in a partner. I love you with every fiber of my being, Hawke, and I need you just as badly. Apostates are forbidden to love, and this is the rule I will most enjoy breaking."

"You always were a rebel." Hawke mumbled happily.