Chapter 2
Sebastian had accepted the dwarf's suggestion that he take Hawke to the Chantry in search of peace and quiet. He however was forced to promise that no sermons were to be said to the broken girl unless she accepted the offers. In the room he was allowed to stay in thanks to Elthina, the prince found himself motionless on his bed as his friend silently cried into his chest for a third time that day. He had felt uncomfortable removing his armor in front of a woman after his vows of chastity, though it was a silly feeling seeing as it was done out of consideration and he had clothes underneath. Even with all of the strange positions he had to adopt to allow her to relax in his small quarters, the most difficult thing happened when Isabela dropped off a set of less mage-like clothes for Lucy to change into to avoid too much attention. The strong leader had a habit of becoming like a doll after crying and so he was faced with the dilemma of removing and replacing her garments.
With a new found conviction and after a quick prayer to the Maker and Andraste, he set to work carefully peeling off the complicated robes that the mages preferred. He had to bite his lower lip to stifle a gasp when the lack of clothing revealed bruises in the shape of handprints and the lack of underclothes allowed him to unwillingly catch sight of what looked like bite marks on her breasts. Unconsciously, he reached out to gingerly brush over the blackened marks and traced the reddened skin that stood out against the paleness of her chest. For once he wished he was blessed, or maybe cursed, with the power of healing as he leaned down to gently kiss the painful welts on her otherwise flawless body. He did not find himself needing to pray once more for the strength to remain strong in his vows as his faith reaffirmed him that what he did now was not out of lust, but out of a need to protect what the Maker had turned his eye to.
He continued to undress her after placing the new garments on her upper half with some difficulty. When he was not having trouble getting her to move her arms the right way, he was mesmerized by her unfortunate wounds that could no longer be hidden from his innocent mind. When the skirt was dropped on the floor, he could not look away from what almost looked like the gore found at war grounds, bleached slightly by sun and quick rain. The insides of her thighs were blemished by finger-sized marks and cuts. As soon as he had finished dressing her, he noticed that she had turned to him with a smile on her face.
In the dank home that once belonged to his master, Fenris watched the female mage as she almost mindlessly cleaned some random corner of his room. He could understand that she was trying to do so as quietly as possible, but the rustling had been burned into his ears. Never could he properly communicate with the woman without the aid of her brother or the annoying dwarf, but it had never been as necessary as it was now. Finally, after another bottle of Danarius' expensive wine, the warrior finally turned loose on his ward.
"Can't you stay quiet? I have never heard so much noise in a home. For a dumb woman, you are quite the collection of disruptive clatter." He stomped over to her in his rage and grabbed her by the arm. The closest thing to a cry for mercy escaped her usually silent mouth before he shook her violently. Before he knew what he had done, he threw her nearly halfway across the room, her body slamming into one of the tables stacked with unused books. The impact caused them to tip over; covering her in words she could not read. The pile was motionless and silent, save for the sliding of books. He returned to his seat to open another bottle of wine. When a whole hour had passed without any movement from beside the far table, Fenris became worried underneath his anger. He looked over his shoulder, to see if she was still there. She had not moved, he was sure, and it worried him further. Slowly, he got up from his chair and carefully walked towards the heap on the floor. Her face was covered by a larger book that he did not recognize.
"Hawke?" he asked quietly as he removed some of the books. When her face was revealed, he was greeted with a face that had a new mark and a completely emotionless expression. In a fit of panic, he flung all of the books off of her body, held his hand to her chest to feel for her heart, and relaxed as the steady beat caressed his hand. As he picked her up and moved her to the bed, he noticed a dried trail of tears on her cheek. Out of pity, he wiped it away and whispered a sincere apology. She did not move for a while, making it hard for him to tell if she was alright, but her steady breathing reassured him that he had at least not killed another innocent person.
Anders was sure that hiding the other mage in his clinic was a terrible idea and when Varric and Aveline had agreed, he felt disappointed that he could not watch after the gentle woman. However, the time came when he could, the suite in the Hanged Man being left empty of its patron in favor of hearing what the Guard Captain had found out. Lifelessly, Lucy was sprawled on the bed that had been bought for her and was shoved next to the one that had already been there. Varric had told him that some nights she would never sleep and others he would wake up to her thrashing at nothing. Carefully he removed his boots and coat and went to lie down beside her. Whether it was Justice or Anders that spoke, he wasn't sure, but he was thankful that the iridescent blue was not reflected by her skin. "Why did you go to Varric, and not me? Or anyone, for that matter?"
Her face slowly turned to him while she thought. She held up one finger, indicating that she was going to answer his first question, and proceeded to make a circle with her two index fingers and thumbs, her sign for mages and the Circle, but then she stuck her two middle fingers together to form a line through it, meaning Justice. As she formulated her second answer, Anders relaxed, knowing that she was right to have excluded him while the Templars were involved. Five fingers were shoved in his face while he thought, remembering that the once rude gesture was her sign for how many companions she was talking about. She charaded some of the qualities of the other companions that she deemed too strong to turn for help to. When she was done calling Aveline angry, Fenris and Sebastian Templar-lovers, Isabela a joker, and Merrill naïve, the healer was certain that Varric was the most understanding of the group, though they had all taken their turns at watching over their leader, save for Isabela and Aveline.
He was startled out of his thoughts when he heard sobbing and looked up to see her face hidden behind her hands. Repeatedly he asked what was wrong and if she needed anything, but he was only answered with a sound that took him a while to realize was her struggling through years of silence to say his name. He pulled her into his arms and rocked her gently against his chest. Anders could feel her tremble and shudder while tears fell freely. Though he was certain he misheard, he swore he heard a small feminine voice whisper a thank you.
Aveline looked up every now and then to look at Hawke as she polished the shield that once belonged to Wesley. Lucy had found it once more, buying it off a grubby merchant near the docks. Only when her hand began to spit flame did the dwarf hand over the shield for half of what it was worth. Carver had explained later that his sister had felt terrible when she watched her friend hand over the last part of her husband in exchange for a few silver used to buy Leandra a replacement dress. The Guard Captain no longer used it, but hung it up on her wall as a reminder of the life she cherished. Now, after collecting dust for a year, it was reflecting rays of light as the small hands worked the polishing silk into all of the crevices. She had been doing it for a good hour and had ignored the rumblings signaling her need for food.
"Hawke, you have to eat eventually." The younger woman looked up, eyes wide in question. She sighed, placing the silvery aegis back on its mount and putting the cloth back where she had gotten it. Just before leaving the room, she looked back, and without waiting for her to ask in her complicated way, Aveline simply called for Donnic. The man had said Lucy reminded him of his sister, and so he was more than kind with her when she came to visit, though it was not often that she came alone. While he was leading her to the kitchen and telling a joke, Aveline sighed and muttered an apology.
When it was Isabela's turn that week, Varric had heard from one of his 'connections' that the mage had been patiently sitting at the Hanged Man for four hours waiting for the Rivaini woman. The dwarf became genuinely angry and stormed off to first check on Hawke and then to kill the pirate. However the chair and room was severely lacking one mute human. Varric rushed off to find Aveline and the others.
Hawke was missing for three days before anyone had caught sight of her. Sebastian nearly dismissed her presence as he saw her walk slowly by the Gallows. Quickly, he turned back around only to see her surrounded by a group of templar recruits. They laughed, pushed her around, and tugged at her robes. Initially they were surprised by her calm demeanor as they began to fondle her back side and whisper vulgar things to her. Silently they were allowed to explore her lean body in a dark corner where no one looked. In a similarly dark corner, the archer prince watched, glued to the ground as his leader's robes were ripped from her body and lustful mouths clawed at her exposed chest. Sebastian begged his legs to move, his hands to remove the bow from his back, for his arrows to find their mark, but no muscle was moved as he watched the girl being passed around like a common whore. She was left in the corner, shivering and crying, naked and exposed. He watched as the Templars walked away, looking pleased with themselves. Finally he was free to move, but his mind was sent to a screeching halt when he heard his name croaked from a torn throat. She was looking up at him, holding her clothes to her body to hide it from him, and looked positively terrified. All he could do was run away from her, towards the Knight-Captain, tell him what happened, and watched sadly as Cullen took his place in picking the mess off the wall and yelling at the fleeing recruits. He retreated to the Chantry, not wishing to see those terrified blue eyes any longer.
While everyone was crowding around the table in the Hanged Man, listing off places they had not seen Hawke, the Knight-Captain walked in with the subject of panic hiding behind him. He explained the incident with as much detail as he was allowed to give, stating that Meredith was not tolerating the knights responsible for both of the happenings that she admitted had convincing evidence. The knights in question were found guilty, he assured them, and any further judgment was going to be the work of the Viscount now that the men had been stripped of their knighthood. Gently he removed the woman from his side and sat her down in an empty chair. He said goodbye firmly when her hand refused to let go of his and he quickly left the seedy bar.
Hawke could feel the stares of all those at the table and even those of people around the room. Anders was the first to walk up, checking to see if she was still okay. When she nodded, he gave her a quick hug, saying that he was glad she could come back. Isabela was nowhere to be seen, Merrill had been hidden away in her home for most of the day, and Aveline was directing the guard to search for the vulnerable mage sitting next to them all. Varric took a long drag from his pipe as Fenris walked up to his liberator. Slowly he knelt down to her level and offered her a strangled smile that she returned weakly. He wanted to ask her something important, but he was cut off by the feel of her hand on his head, gently stroking his white hair. Looking up, he noticed her warm expression and watched as she unexpectedly said his name in a creaking voice. He stood up quickly, scaring the innocent mage, and looked from Anders to Varric, then back again.
"I heard her trying to say my name the day I took care of her… I think it may be magic, or maybe her muteness was a result of a sickness that is only now wearing out. I can't be sure of either," Anders offered, placing a hand on her shoulder to calm her down. Fenris seemed to accept the open-ended answer and whispered a small apology to Lucy. Varric shooed the men away and led the shaky girl to her bed.