Days later Marian and Anders made their way south of Jader, followed closely by a dwarf and two elves. Hawke smiled sadly at their decreased numbers, but said nothing. Aveline and Donnic had insisted on returning to Kirkwall to restore order and, as much as Marian hated to admit, it made sense. The two were known and respected in the city by both the Templars and the rabble. She only worried about their being associated with the two apostates. "If they give you any trouble," Hawke had told her, "just tell them I made you do it. Magical mind control. That sounds like something a villainous apostate would do." Aveline had simply smiled and reassured her that they would be fine.

Carver had, to no one's surprise, returned to the Grey Wardens. "It's my place sister," he'd told her patiently as she tried to convince him to stay. But he grinned as he teased, "Besides, I can't go back to living in your bloody shadow after all these years!"

And Isabella had agreed to transport the lot of them at Hawke's request. "You know I love you Kitten but nothing is worth putting up with your fool brother… unless you're willing to let me have a go at that Grey Warden stamina?"

"If you can manage to seduce Carver he is all yours."

The pirate had simply raised an eyebrow and responded, "That's not who I meant."

Marian pressed a hand to her stomach as she resisted the urge to wretch. Weeks of travel through the wilderness had taken its toll on the small group and the feeling of weakness that had begun in Hawke's limbs had spread to her entire body, causing her pace to slow. There was something wrong, she could tell that much. But she was no healer and she stubbornly refused to pester her husband with a trivial illness. However there was little she could do to disguise the issue when her vision swam and knees buckled.

"Mage!" Fenris called sharply as he caught his friend and lowered her gently to the ground. Hawke's skin had paled and looked gaunt on her thinning face, alarming the elf. She grimaced up at him in a daze, resisting his help as she tried, and failed, to stand on her own.

"Marian!" Anders knelt quickly beside his fallen wife. "Fenris what happened?"

"I do not know. She simply collapsed."

"I'm fine," the woman muttered. A weak hand attempted to wave the worried group away but the blood left her face and she wretched, bringing up nothing but bile and water. All strength left her as she surrendered and rested on the ground, exhausted. Slowly the nausea was soothed as blue energy weaved through her ailing body.

"You're sick love," Anders whispered as he lifted her to his chest. "When was the last time you ate anything?"

"I don't remember. My stomach has been…unwell. I didn't want to make it worse."

A deep rumble from the chest of her beloved indicated that he was not pleased. "Why did you keep this to yourself? You are not invincible." Anders picked her up, despite her protests. "We need to make camp for the night."

"I think I saw some caves up the trail a ways," Varric offered.

"Oh! I could go hunting! And I saw some berries and mint leaves I could gather!" Merrill lightly bounded off the trail before anyone could protest.

Fenris picked up Hawke's pack and staff. "Lead on Varric."

Worry plagued Anders as he studied the form of his sleeping wife. Though her face retained its look of exhaustion some of the color had returned to her cheeks. The companions had, after several hours, coaxed Marian into eating some cooked meat and tea made with Merrill's mint leaves. She claimed to be feeling better and had fallen into a restless sleep not long after. However Anders' current cause for concern lay in the dark tendrils that snaked wickedly through her aura. If he had not been by her side continuously since leaving Kirkwall he would suspect she had been wrestling with Darkspawn.

Their cave was quiet, the only sounds echoing from the crackling of a small camp fire and the oblivious snores of Fenris and Merrill as they slept soundly before their respective guard shifts. Anders was so engrossed in aiding his suffering wife that he did not notice Varric's approach from outside the cave.

"What is it Blondie?" The mage jumped at the sudden disruption, then managed a trembling breath as he ran his hand down his face nervously. "Come on Anders. You wouldn't be such a wreck if this were a simple fix. What's wrong with Hawke?"

"I… don't know," he answered quietly. "It feels as though she's been tainted."

"Like Carver?"

"Yes. But that is not possible. We haven't encountered Darkspawn since Sundermount and that was months ago."

Varric chuckled to himself as he rested Bianca across his shoulder. "The only tainted creature that could come close to challenging Hawke is Carver and I don't think he's that stupid. I saw the two of them spar once and it was terrifying. She set his clothes on fire before he knew what… Blondie?" The mage had frozen in place, staring down at his wife with wide horrified eyes. "Blondie? Hey, come on now you're making me nervous."

"I did this," came the broken whisper.

"What?"

"By the Maker, I didn't sense… I was too distracted by the taint to realize… We had never considered…"

A heavy hand broke through the shock and Anders looked up at a visibly alarmed Varric. "What in the Void are you talking about Blondie?"

"Marian… she is with child." His words seemed to hang in the air as he stared down at the love of his life. Conception for a Grey Warden was so unlikely that they had not thought to be careful, had given no consideration to the possibility. Fear for his wife caused the mage to begin pacing around the cave as he frantically thought of possible solutions. "There are herbs," he said finally. "They would use them in the Circle if two mages conceived a child by accident-"

"Wait a second Blondie. What's the problem? Don't get me wrong, I'm don't consider myself 'kid friendly' but isn't this a good thing?"

"No! Varric, the child is tainted. The taint is already making her ill and it will only get worse."

"How much worse?"

Anders sighed. "I do not know. It is a rare thing for Wardens to conceive children. This may be a first."

"Well don't go making any plans until you've discussed the matter with Hawke. I'm sure she will have plenty to say about it."

Wrapped in her cloak and sitting against the wall at the mouth of the cave Marian could easily see why Varric had chosen this spot to rest. The position was easily defensible, even if caught unawares in the dead of night.

A gentle wind coursed its way through the trees, the sound leaving Marian with a sense of peace. She rested a hand protectively over her middle and smiled as she looked out over the view of the forest below them. In the fading light, and with her being ill, she could not appreciate the serenity of this place when they'd settled in the cave the night before. But the rising sun cast brilliant light over the landscape and for the first time since leaving Kirkwall Marian felt completely safe.

Soft footsteps brought her sleep tussled husband to her side. He sat next to her but said nothing as he draped the heavy blanket from their bedroll around the both of them. She rested her head on his shoulder, earning a soft kiss, before sighing contentedly.

"How long have you been awake?" Anders asked softly as he put an arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer to him.

"A few hours. Varric snores louder than a feral Mabari. I told Merrill to get some sleep. There's no need for two of us to keep watch."

"True enough." Anders was quiet for a moment. "Marian… there is something I need to tell you."

"I already know." He seemed startled and looked at her in surprise as she chuckled. "It is easier to sleep through Varric's snoring than your fretting Love."

"How much did you hear?" he asked quietly.

"Enough. The answer is no Anders."

Her husband stood abruptly and walked to the cliff's edge where he took several deep breaths to steady himself. "How can you say that?" he asked after a moment, his voice trembling. When Anders turned to face her dread marked every feature clearly. "Do you not understand? The taint is making you ill already. It will only get worse. It may kill you! You cannot expect me-"

"Anders, please." Her quiet plea brought her husband the several paces back to where she rested. He knelt in front of her, gently taking her hands in his own.

"Please Love. Do not ask me to watch you die. Not for this."

Marian smiled indulgently and placed a gentle hand on his cheek. "And what would you have me die for if not this?" Tears threatened to spill down Anders face as she drew him closer. "Nothing is certain. And I will not cast aside our child for fear of what may happen."

"Marian…I can't lose you…"

"How many times have I told you? You are NOT going to lose me!"

Anders gently placed a trembling hand on her stomach and sent soothing magic through her. "If this is what you truly want then I will be here. And we will see this through together." His wife's smile chased the mage's fears to the back of his mind for the time being and he grinned at her. "Although… I don't have much experience caring for babes."

"Not to worry. I helped my mother contend with two infants at once. It's not as bad as it sounds."