"Hawke please sit down."

"I'm fine Fenris, just relax."

"I cannot relax while you are in peril. Please sit down."

"Makers BREATH you are worse than my husband!"

"I fear that were I your husband I would have been driven mad long ago. Now please…" Marian glared at the elf's smirk but resigned herself to inactivity as he removed the ever increasing stack of firewood from the pregnant woman's arms.

Not one to be defeated easily, Hawke walked beside the elf as he continued the task she had started. "You know my mother was carrying twins and looking after me when my father was running from the Chantry. I remember we once traveled for nearly a week without rest before finally settling down for a while."

The elf nodded and attempted to quell his grin as he continued to gather dry branches from the ground. "Is that so?"

"Yes. And she birthed two very normal healthy children."

"I do not understand what that has to do with you."

"Fenris! I promise I will not meet my end over a little manual labor!"

The elf straightened as anger steeled across his eyes. "Your mother did not carry a tainted abomination." Immediately he regretted his words. "I am sorry Hawke. I did not-"

"It's all right Fenris. I know." They continued to gather fire wood together in silence before making their way back to camp.

Fenris had made no secret that he detested the creature that grew in his friend's body as it ate away at her life. For nearly eight months the small group had traveled through the more remote areas of Ferelden in an attempt to stay far away from anything having to do with Kirkwall, the Chantry, or the Circle.

Their time in Orzammar had been particularly trying. Despite Varric's dwarven heritage he disliked the underground city almost as much as his companions. Feelings of smothering claustrophobia prompted plans of travel but not before Anders' past had caught up with him.

"Anders?"

The mage froze. It wasn't possible. There was no conceivable way she knew he would be here. But as he turned toward the swift armored footfalls storming toward him Anders knew this was it. This was the end. Maker help him he was about to die.

Fierce blue eyes narrowed with rage as armored fingers grabbed the facing of his coat and roughly dragged him away from prying eyes. He barely had time to make out the figure following them as he was tossed haphazardly into a back alley. Anders hit the ground hard and stared up at the person he was certain would be the cause of his immediate execution.

Warden Commander Elissa Cousland towered over the mage as she stood with her hands on her hips. Nathaniel Howe stood behind her, cringing for his friend, but unwilling to intervene.

"Commander…"

The slim woman's voice rebounded menacingly off the stone walls of the alley. "Do not speak." She crouched over the fallen mage and glared down at him menacingly. "Do you have any idea what you put me through?"

"Commander, I-"

"Oh no!" She slapped the side of his head roughly. "You will be silent for once in your life you obstinate self-centered craven! How dare you leave us to mourn for you while you've been gallivanting around the Free Marches! I was utterly convinced that you were slain by that bastard Rolan! We gave you a hero's farewell and I nearly killed a Knight Commander to avenge your death." Another slap, harder this time. "And then last year Nate comes back from the Deep Roads claiming you saved him! That you've been alive and well all this time! Tell me, what is it like to lose all literacy?"

The question caught Anders off guard. He cocked his head in confusion only to earn another blow to the side of his head. "That MUST be why I never received word from you because I KNOW they taught you how to read and write in the blighted Circle tower." The angry commander seemed to calm before another thought caused the fire to reawaken in her eyes. She leaned closer. "And Justice, don't think I've forgotten about you! If anything you should be more ashamed! I almost understand Anders running off without a word, but not you. One would think a spirit of virtue would know better than to leave loved ones mourning needlessly."

Guilt squirmed through both the mage and the spirit that possessed him. It was true they had given little thought to how the Wardens would react to his desertion, thinking only of escaping at the time. But now faced with Elissa's accusations both beings were wrought with shame.

The commander stood and took a deep calming breath before glaring down at the mage crumpled at her feet. Anders didn't dare rise for fear of being pummeled again, however his anxiety proved unfounded as Elissa sighed and offered him a hand. "Maker's breath Anders, stand up," she cursed as she helped him regain his footing.

"So… you aren't going to execute me?"

"For the love of… Dammit Anders!" Another blow met the side of the mage's head, this time playful. "You may not wear a griffon on your robes but you're still a Warden."

"You haven't heard then?"

"What, about that business in Kirkwall? Anders, everyone has heard. It has been a never ending source of dispute at mealtimes. You've got some fans at the Vigil."

"Really?"

Nathaniel scoffed from behind the commander, making his presence known for the first time. "When Carver returned it was all anyone could talk about. Since then Alistair has been making a game out of how many times the word 'mages' can be uttered without inciting a debate."

"I'm glad to know it has gotten people talking."

Sighing heavily, Elissa put a hand on Anders' feathered shoulder. "Listen… I don't know what sort of trouble you're in over this. But you always have a place with the Wardens."

"I don't think you can protect me from this Commander."

The grin that spread across the woman's face reminded him of a cat with a canary. "Watch me."

They'd eventually traveled on after receiving a letter from Isabella urging them to join her in Highever. Their pirate friend assured them that the port would provide ample anonymity so long as they didn't go out of their way for "do-gooding." But the extensive journey was beginning to take its toll on Hawke; the longer they travelled the more difficulty she seemed to have. The amount of ground covered each day began to shrink as she grew weaker despite Anders' nightly magical administrations.

One particularly trying night the group sat around the fire, each cringing as Marian retched her way through the evening meal. The mage was having what her companions referred to as "a bad day," where eating and sleeping became grueling chores as the taint made her stomach weak and gave her powerful nightmares.

"You cannot keep going like this Love," Anders chastised gently as he worked healing magic through her ever trembling figure. "I had hoped that if we slowed our pace it would help, but I fear it is getting worse."

"I'm fine," she insisted.

"No you are not," Fenris growled as he came to crouch beside the two mages. Anders glared murderously as the elf firmly caught Hawke's chin in his gauntleted hand, forcing her to look at him. "You are wasting away. It is past time we rid ourselves of the problem."

"No!" Marian backed away from her friend quickly as she covered her swollen belly with one hand and conjured a small fireball in the other. However even her gifts had begun to fade as the fire flickered and died leaving the stunned mage staring at her empty hand.

"I think that's quite enough!" None of the men dared to move or speak. Merrill rose from her seat by the fire and moved to her ailing friend, whispering comforting words none but the two could hear. When she looked back toward Anders and Fenris, Merrill scorched them with a glare that put even the brooding elf to shame. "I think you're both being rather selfish. It's not about what you want; it's about what Hawke wants. And all of this stress is not good for her." The small elf put her arms around Marian and moved her closer to the fire.

Shame burned Anders' cheeks as he looked down at his hands helplessly. He quietly joined his wife next to the fire, making slow and deliberate movements under Merrill's protective glare, and pulled her against him. There they sat until the rest of their party began readying themselves for bed.

"I'm sorry," Anders whispered as he gently ran his fingers through her hair. "I should never have let it get that far with Fenris."

"I'm sorry too. I know you're just worried about me."

"I am. Do you truly believe you can keep this up for another month Marian?"

"It's simply the travel making me weak. I promise once we get to Highever and settle down everything will even out."

"Sweet tits of Andraste Hawke, you're huge!"

Hawke grinned despite her fatigue as Isabella pulled her into a tight embrace. She hadn't realized how much she had actually missed her swashbuckling friend until the pirate woman had left them. "Oh Bella, you know just what to say to make a girl feel alluring and attractive."

"Oh come on Kitten! You know I'll always serve at your pleasure!" She glanced at Anders with a smirk and lowered her voice to a whisper. "Is it true about your senses being heightened when you're with child? I imagine the sex is-"

"Isabella!" Fenris' scowl made the Rivani woman chuckle. "You can discuss these matters when you are alone."

Anders eyebrows rose as he glanced at the elf. "I think that is the first time we've ever agreed on anything Fenris."

"Spoilsports."

Isabella put one arm around Marian, the other around Merrill, and made her way down the dock to her ship as the three women whispered and giggled conspiratorially.