Chapter 20: Home
The return trip to Kirkwall was surprisingly quiet, considering all they had been through.
Hawke led the way, once they had finally emerged from the now abandoned Carta base, he found himself turning back, taking one last look at the old abandoned warden prison.
He frowned.
It is done Father, he thought, Corypheus is dead, and no more mages will be needed to hold him imprisoned. What you sacrificed, what you gave up for Mother… was not in vain.
He glanced over at Isabela, she gave him a lazy sexy smile, he found himself blushing in spite of everything.
He did not know what the future held for the two of them, but it would be…interesting trying to find out.
Larius left them shortly after they emerged, his face hidden by a cloak he had borrowed from Carver. The tainted warden intended to return to the warden base at Ansburg, to inform them of Corypheus's end.
Carver commented that he did not think that wardens were supposed to return from their calling.
Larius agreed, but stressed the need to let the wardens know what had happened. Now that Corypheus was dead, the song had ceased in his head, or at least the one caused by the darkspawn magister had ceased. His mind was his own again. He suspected that he would not survive his meeting with the wardens, that they would likely kill him out of mercy…
After what he had endured in the prison, he welcomed that end. He said his good byes to Hawke and the others, and then he set out.
They would never see Larius again.
Carver and Arika walked side by side, the slaying of the Magister had freed her and Lin from his control. The reaver however, was extremely quiet as they made their way across the wastes.
She was clearly troubled, her heart was heavy with guilt, she blamed herself for almost killing Garrett, for letting herself be enslaved by the darkspawn.
Carver did his best to try and sooth her, but it had little effect.
This was something that Arika was going to have to work through on her own.
IOI
Lin and Fenris walked together, the two elves said nothing as they made their way across the wastes. Sometimes she would glance his way; he would meet her gaze for a moment, nod and continue on.
A hint of a smile tugged at her lips.
"You kissed me," she said quietly.
"I did," he replied.
Her ears twitched slightly, she expected…well…more.
"May I ask why?"
That was a good question he realized, she had been on his mind for most of this journey, he was not used to such distraction, normally, all he thought about was battle and what he would do when he finally encountered Danarius again.
Lin had become a distraction, a pleasant one to be sure, but a distraction none the less.
He found himself surprised to realize that he did not wish this particular distraction to end.
He could not tell her that of course, at least not yet.
"I needed to distract you, you were out of control."
She considered what he said, and nodded. That made sense she supposed, but…
"There are easier ways to distract someone Master Elf," she said, "For example, you could have…"
He realized that he did not want to talk about this anymore…
He could not tell her why he had kissed her back in that prison…
But, he could show her.
He decided to distract her again…
Fenris grabbed her wrist and pulled her into his arms.
He kissed her deeply.
Her eyes widened, but then closed, all thought faded, lost in the sweet fires of the kiss.
Lost in the fires of lust.
She moaned weakly as his tongue darted into her mouth.
She returned his kiss with all her power.
She…she had wanted this, wanted it since the moment they had met on the steps of the Amell Estate.
She intended to enjoy it to the fullest.
The world did not exist for them, they did not see the desert around them, nor hear their friends chuckling or the wolf whistles.
There was nothing in the world at that moment, just them.
He broke the kiss, leaving her panting and breathless.
He smiled at her.
"I did that, because I wanted to," he informed her.
She nodded, looking at him with hungry eyes.
Varric chuckled behind them.
"Get a room you two," he called out.
Now there was an idea, Lin thought…
We will have to look into that.
IOI
The Amell estate had been repaired, the broken glass cleaned up, the blood stains and burn marks dealt with. The bed in the master bedroom replaced.
Everything was back the way it was, the way it was supposed to be.
Garrett was in the master bedroom, he sat at his writing desk, putting down accounts of the last week in his journal.
So many things had happened, so many things that no one would ever believe.
There was much to be said about this exploit. Something's he left out of course, he mentioned nothing of what Corypheus truly was, or his use of blood magic.
If the Templars ever got a hold of this journal, such passages could be bad for him.
Shortly after they had gotten home, he had stopped by Anders's clinic in dark town, and informed his fellow mage what they had encountered in the Vimmark Mountains.
Not that it helped mind you.
Anders did not believe him of course, he refused to believe that the ancient magisters were anything more than a story.
It was then that Hawke produced an amulet from his robes.
He had taken it from Corypheus's body after the monster had fallen. He did not know what it was at the time, only that he could feel the magic humming within it.
Anders eyes had widened.
He recognized it; it was a Tevinter Amulet, one not worn in centuries. It was from an order that worshipped the old god Dumat. It was very rare, unique…
And it had been given only to the Magisters of old.
He said he needed to study it, he was sure it was a fake, but wanted to check it anyway.
Hawke left it with him.
He would let Anders draw his own conclusions.
Hawke put down his quill, a heavy sigh escaped his mouth.
How many mages had suffered over the years because of Corypheus and his fellow magisters? How many mages had been hunted and killed because a small group of them had decided to play god?
How many people had died during the Blights?
Hundreds, thousands, hundreds of thousands, towns burned, cities destroyed.
How many had lost loved ones, fathers, mothers…
Sisters?
Garrett snorted angrily, why had the Maker simply not struck down the Magisters? Why had he sent them back to Thedas where they could cause even more damage?
These were the questions that the chantry and scholars had been debating for centuries.
If they had not figured out the answers yet, it was unlikely that he ever would.
He rose from his chair; Rabbit looked at him from his place at the foot of the bed.
The Mabari whimpered slightly, sensing his distress.
You worry too much old boy, Hawke said giving the dog a wan smile.
Garrett gave his old friend a pat on the head, the dog's mouth fell open, panting happily.
Rabbit wanted so little out of life, good food and a good hard scratch every now and then, and he was happy.
A shame all their lives could not be so simple.
It was getting late, still part of him wanted to go down to the Hanged Man, perhaps a few pints and a game of wicked grace would take his mind off things.
Plus, he would get to see Isabela, and that was never a bad thing.
Perhaps he should go out for the evening.
He thought about asking Arika and Carver? The two were currently staying in the estate's guest room. Mother had not taken no for an answer.
He decided against it, after the last few days, his brother deserved a break from him, not to mention the fact that he was still trying to bring his reaver girlfriend out of the funk she had been in since Corypheus had died.
The two could use a little time alone.
The sound of tapping on his skylight drew his attention, suspecting another attack he summoned his staff to him.
Rabbit barked and growled.
"Hello Hawke," a familiar voice called down, "Mind if I come in?"
Garrett snorted, what in blazes was she doing up there?"
He gestured.
The lock on the skylight clicked open.
"I have a front door Isabela," he reminded the pirate queen, "there is no reason to go wandering across the roof."
Isabela lowered herself down from the ceiling; she dropped down with an almost feline like grace.
Garrett would be lying if he said it did not turn him on a little bit.
"Just making sure the route to that skylight is closed forever, Hawke," She informed him, "I don't know about you, but I don't think I want any more dwarves dropping in on us unannounced."
Garrett chuckled, in that, they were in agreement.
Isabela shifted uncomfortably, it was funny, normally being in here did not bother her, but after everything that they had been through lately…
She…she was not sure where she stood with Hawke anymore.
She liked him, she accepted that, but where did they go from here. Did they end it?
Or, did they move on to the next step?
The next step would likely mean a relationship, and those she avoided like the plague.
Relationships were not good in her eyes. They were like marriage, or underwear.
They were far too confining.
"I was just thinking about you," he confessed.
"Really," she gave him a lecherous grin, "Naughty thoughts I hope."
He grinned, "Pretty close to that, yes."
Rabbit sighed, the Mabari knew that his master would want to be alone with the female.
So, he left, hoping to find some food in the kitchens.
Hawke chuckled, sometimes the dog knew him better than he knew himself.
He took Isabela into his arms, his lips moved up her neck.
The pirate queen shuddered.
"Hawke," she groaned, "I…I…oh Maker, stop for a moment please."
He did, his eyes turned concerned.
"I think we need too slow down for a while," she informed him.
He frowned.
"Have I done something wrong?"
"No," she said shaking her head, "You have done everything right, that is the problem," her golden eyes were dark with troubled thoughts; there was no easy way to say this. So, she might as well get right to it.
"Hawke, I…I don't know where this is going, but I want you to know that I won't give up my freedom easily. When my Mother, may she rot in the void, sold me to Luis, I swore I would not be caged again, no matter how nice the trappings of that cage was. I don't expect you to like it, but I hope that you understand."
He considered what she said, she had told him a little bit about her late husband, this Luis had treated her like a party favor, she was a possession to him, property, not a person.
Hawke never wanted her to feel that way around him.
"I'm not trying to take anything away from you Isabela," he reminded her, "And I have never seen you as anything but what you are, a strong willed, stubborn, and beautiful woman. If you want to slow things down I understand, but please don't walk away from me."
The look he gave her almost broke her heart, and yes, contrary to popular belief, she did have one of those. She hid it well, most of the time, but she did have one.
"Please Isabela," he repeated, "Please."
His fingers brushed her cheek, the gentleness of his touch made her sigh.
Damn you Hawke, she thought.
"You're not going soft on me, are you?" she asked.
He smirked slyly.
"Oh Isabela," he chuckled, "I would never go soft on you."
The pirate queen laughed.
"You cheeky bastard," she grinned, "What am I going to do with you?"
"I have a few suggestions," he purred.
He kissed her again; they were small at first, shy…exploratory.
She returned them with a fury, passion burning away indecision.
He removed heartbreaker and backstabber from her back, then his fingers deftly undid her leather corset.
She sighed, giving in to her own desires.
"Stay," he whispered, "Spend the night with me."
She nodded, all thought of their previous discussion lost in the flames of desire.
She removed his shirt, while he removed her silken bodice, a few throwing knives fell from hidden pockets.
Grinning, he pulled her down into bed.
Tonight, there would be no interruptions…
Tonight…would be for them.
IOI
Carver woke, the nightmares continued to reach for him, trying to pull his thoughts back to the Vimmark Mountains.
He sighed, reaching across the bed…
And found it empty.
He sat up, Arika stood before the hearth, the guest room here at the estate was better than many of the inns they had stayed at over the last year, the softness of their environment made it hard to relax after all the hardships they had suffered recently.
Not that that was his lover's problem however.
She looked so sad, so distance. She stood there, hugging herself, she was wearing one of his shirts for a nightgown, normally he found that extremely sexy.
Tonight, he was just troubled.
He rose from the bed, came up behind her, and wrapped her in his arms.
"Come back to bed," he whispered.
Her brow furrowed.
"You should have killed me," she said in a low voice.
"Don't talk like that," he said.
"Why not?" she asked, "You know I am right, I tried to kill your brother, I tried to kill you. I….I'm weak, undeserving of you."
Carver hated seeing her like this, seeing that pained broken expression on her face.
He did not understand why she could not simply let this go.
"It wasn't your fault," he reminded her, "It was the song, Corypheus was controlling your mind."
She pulled away from him, she spun, her eyes flashing with anger.
"You resisted," she reminded him, " I should have been able to as well, I…I am a warrior born Carver. Why did I fall prey to such evil, while you were able to remain strong? Why?"
He found it hard to tell her, why had he been able to remain strong? Garret had helped of course, but…
There was another reason, one far more important than his dear brother.
"I had an advantage," he said, "Nigel trained me to resist mind domination attempts, Plus, I had something worth fighting for, it shielded me against Corypheus's promises."
Her eyes turned desperate, she had to know, she needed to understand!
"What were you fighting for Carver," she asked, "Please tell me…so that I might find my way back to being worthy of you."
He gave her a sad smile.
"I was fighting for you," he confessed, "What could Corypheus offer me when he had hurt you, nothing! After that, only his death would satisfy me, no one hurts the woman I love," he gently touched her cheek, she leaned into it, enjoying the warmth.
He sighed happily, gathering his courage.
Varric was right, he realized, sometimes a woman just needs to hear the words.
"I love you Arika. I know I might not say it enough, but I do love you. You are the reason I was able to resist Corypheus. I…I can't imagine my life without you, you are the one I want to be with."
She smiled at him, her eyes shining, a single tear ran down her face.
He wiped it away, his eyes warm, he…he never wanted her to feel unworthy of him.
He would make sure that never happened again.
She kissed him lightly on the nose.
"You are a good one Charity," she smirked, "Far better than I deserve."
He kissed her several times on the lips, he felt her weaken, her posture became less rigid.
"Come back to bed," he murmured, "Let me show you how worthy you truly are."
She nodded, and joined him.
He took her into his arms, determined to burn away any doubt that might remain.
He would not let what happened in that horrible place, taint what they had.
Arika was special to him, and no one will take that away from them, not even a tainted Magister.
She was his, and no one would take that it away from them.
No one.
A/N: I hope you have enjoyed the ride good readers. Only one more chapter remains in Love and Legacy, and that is the set up for my next Carver and Arika story, the Grey Return. Did you enjoy this version of Legacy? Would you like to hear more stories of Garrett and Isabela? Feel free to give me a review, I love reading them, they are the fuel that keeps me going.
I should have the last chapter of this story up in a day or so, so see you all then!
DG