Ollo! (just watched Megamind)

I believe I will continue this for a couple more chapters. Thank you to everyone who has been favoriting the story. It's comforting to know that a few of you out there enjoy it. Happy reading all!

"I forgive you," was all Hawke had to say to bring Merrill to tears. The Dalish elf slumped in her chair and kept her head low, clearly ashamed of her actions.

"I don't deserve your forgiveness… I am so sorry. Ma serranas," she said sadly. She looked at her hands as if she couldn't believe they were her own. "I cannot believe I turned on you."

Hawke sat down in the chair across from Merrill, touched that Merrill was showing genuine regret. She knew that the elven aged slower than humans, but the childish nature in her friend was astounding. There was so much that Merrill had to learn. "You are in more danger than other mages, Merrill. I know you would never hurt me, but just please be careful." When Merrill looked at her for reassurance, Hawke smiled at her. Merrill's expression brightened a bit.

"Being First to the Keeper, I should have been more prepared. It will not happen again," she said. "Thank you for being such a good friend to me, Hawke."

For the next hour, they talked about Dalish history and about mages in general. Hawke was relieved to see that their friendship had returned to a normal state again. When Hawke first met Merrill, she was disoriented and completely nonfunctional in a society ruled by humans. It took time for Merrill to open up, but Hawke discovered, blood magic aside, that Merrill was very much like a normal youngster seeking the approval of her family and finding her place in life.

"Speaking of mages…" Merrill interrupted their debate on templars and mages, "you should probably speak to Anders. He had quite a fit when you awoke after you came back from the Fade. He looked almost… angry. And even that is perhaps an understatement."

"Ah, yes," Hawke sighed. "It was not a pretty scene after you er… left. Apparently Justice has no idea what teamwork is. But you're right, I do need to speak with him. Thank you for the tea, Merrill. I enjoy your company." With a hug goodbye and a promise that she would visit Merrill again soon, Hawke made her way to Darktown.

XXXXXXXXX

Hawke always made it a point to carry more coin on her when she visited the less fortunate parts of the city. The first time she visited Darktown, her purse had been lifted. She caught up to the thief with ease, and it tugged at her heart when she found out that the boy was only ten years old. She pulled a silver from her purse and handed it to him. At first the boy thought she was trapping him and backed away, but when she left the silver on the ground next to his feet and turned to leave, she heard him say a quick "thank you" and ran the other way after picking up the silver.

Since then, she had established a sort of relationship with the orphans of Darktown. She gave them extra silver when she could, and she encouraged them to find work and make an honest living. Of course, she would leave out finding a fortune in the Deep Roads, but she did her best to see that the children had something of a future that didn't involve living on the streets and stealing from others.

Anders' clinic came into view and she braced herself for what would inevitably be a heated discussion. She hoped that Justice would not be making an appearance; dealing with one angry man was enough. A crippled woman walked out of the clinic, clutching a flask to her chest. Anders was escorting her outside, patting her gently on the back. "Come back if the pain returns. And use the potion once a day," he instructed.

"Maker bless you, young man," the woman said then hobbled off.

Anders' smile immediately disappeared when he saw Hawke approaching. He turned his back on her, but he didn't slam the door shut. That was an invitation to talk, Hawke thought with dread. She entered the clinic and was glad to see that it was empty. She closed the door behind her, and she unsheathed her sword. After leaning it against a table, she slowly walked away from it to show him that she had no intention of harming him.

"Well, you've given the demon sufficient time," Anders snapped. "Was his promise worth it?" The anger in his eyes would probably have been frightening to a stranger, but she knew that she could get him to calm down. She just needed to be careful with the wording.

"Anders…" she started, but he cut her off.

"What was it that made you sacrifice that poor boy? Wealth? Power? What kind of perverse happiness did you settle for? And were you happy that you killed me? I have been wracking my brain trying to figure out why you would betray me." He squared off with her. "Was it exciting for you to drive your sword into my heart?"

Right words be damned, she was mad. As much as she wanted to punch him while she was wearing a heavy plated gauntlet, she slapped him instead, pleased that he now looked at her with surprised rather than hate. "Did you even think that I would not have gone through with such a deal?" she retorted. "Torpor is dead, and Feynriel is free. I was never going to take him up on the offer. If you were paying attention, neither of us was capable of directly fighting a demon. So I thought to trick him to make him drop his guard."

She let the information settle in. Any hint of aggression from Anders was now gone. "You mean… "

"That's what I wanted to tell, but you just had to bite my head off didn't you," Hawke remarked. She let out a breath, forcing herself to calm down. Now that they had both said their pieces, she didn't feel as much tension between them. "He's not possessed Anders. I tricked the demon and killed it. But Justice didn't quite agree to the plan."

"I had no idea…" Anders breathed. "With Justice, there is no reasoning, no patience, only action or non action. Had I been in control of my own body, I might have been able to sense your intentions. But I was overcome by his rage." He stopped himself. "No, that is only half true. My own pain of your supposed betrayal was also what blinded me."

Hawke massaged her forehead, trying to be sympathetic to his situation. "I understand, Anders," she said finally. "Well, I will note that we should just charge every demon we encounter in the Fade and have absolutely no strategy on how to defend ourselves," her lips broke into a smile.

Anders returned it but winced slightly, rubbing his now pink cheek. "Oh, no, we are not doing that again. It won't be easy to rid my mind of the memory of you striking me down, but I suppose you had no choice."

"You're damn right, I didn't," Hawke shuddered at the memory of Justice charging her. He was wild and uncontrollable. Had they been in the real world, it was very likely that one of them would be dead by now. "I believe you are the better half of the two though," she said.

"I… apologize," Anders said sincerely. He held out his hand, a simple gesture that displayed peace between them. Hawke pushed his hand aside and hugged him instead.

"I forgive you and Justice," Hawke said, placing her hand on his shoulder. "I cannot forgive one and not the other. But I do wish I could have slapped Justice instead of you."

They laughed and it felt good to know that any negative feelings were gone. "Don't think I came away from this unscathed, Anders," she admitted. "To see you fall by my hand… I never want to go through that again. I would never want to lose a good friend in such a manner."

Anders was going to respond, but there was a knock at the door. "Anders?" asked a childish voice. The door was pushed open timidly and a small child limped in. "I fell… and it hurts," said the little boy. His knee was bloodied and bruised. True to his nature, the healer walked over to the boy and picked him up.

"Let's take a look at that," he said, being careful to avoid direct contact with the gash. He looked to Hawke. "Shall we continue this later?"

She smiled, "I would like that." She retrieved her sword and waved good bye to Anders and the boy he was tending to. Hawke was relieved that things were slowly returning to normal. All she had to do now was speak to Fenris. Her pace slowed and her heart began to beat faster. What would she say? His reactions to her were not consistent. If she was trying to be serious, he would either be ambivalent or angry. Although, he did chuckle at her jokes most of the time, he rarely smiled or laughed. Maker… how had she fallen for such an enigma?

XXXXXXX

Aggregio bottle in hand, she made her way up the stairs that led to the living space where Fenris spent most of his time. It was now late at night, the moon was high above Kirkwall and the guards were dispatched on their routine patrols. Thanks to Aveline, the guards rarely came by Danarius' old mansion. She found Fenris standing next to the fireplace, seemingly lost in thought. Hawke placed the wine bottle on the table roughly, intentionally creating noise to announce her arrival.

He turned to meet her gaze, and no matter how many times she came to visit him, she always found herself admiring the way the fire reflected off of his lyrium tainted skin. "An apology," she said, gesturing to the bottle.

"You're apologizing to me?" he asked in confusion. "If memory serves, it was I that turned on you. I should be the one to offer an apology. I thought myself above such influence…"

Hawke poured herself a glass and gave the rest of the bottle to him. "You said yourself that the Fade was no place for people like you or I, yet you volunteered to come. Why?" She had her suspicions on the answer, but she wanted to hear it from him.

Fenris took a sip from the bottle appearing to be lost in thought. "You were entering a magical world with two unstable mages. I would not leave you to fend for yourself should the worst occur. It was obvious that Aveline and Isabella were unwilling to go. And Varric well, I did not trust him to have your back, literally."

Not the answer she expected to hear, but she would have to accept it. "Well, in the end, it seemed it did not matter," she said. She was not angry or disappointed; she was stating fact. "I was scared, you know." It was only around Fenris that she would admit such a weakness. Somehow, they had trusted each other enough to the point where they could share stories and feelings they would otherwise keep hidden from others.

"I imagine seeing me lose control would scare anyone," he said angry at himself. The base of the bottle began to crack under the pressure of his fingers.

"I wasn't scared of you," Hawke said. "I was scared that I had no choice but to hurt you… and I did." She closed her eyes, remembering the weight of his body falling on her, the resistance of his flesh against her dagger when she stabbed him, the hurt and pain of killing someone dear to her. What a horrible memory. "I can't explain what I feel, but it is heavy on my heart."

She felt so childish. It was a small admission, and she was too embarrassed to look at him to see his reaction. She kept her eyes closed and waited. He moved closer to her, and took the wine glass from her hand. Shortly after, his fingers intertwined with hers gently. She opened her eyes and saw that he was kneeling in front of her. He brought her hand to his lips and kissed her fingers. "No one has cared for me before," he said. "Thank you, Hawke." With his other hand, he caressed her cheek. "I don't remember everything that happened, but I do know that I hurt you. Your hands… your face. I will never be so foolish again."

They shared into each other's eyes for a moment. It was so comforting to know that she was not alone anymore. With Bethany and Carver gone, she had no one to turn to as she could never bring herself to share any of her personal burdens with her mother. Even when she and Fenris didn't agree on certain topics, he always listened to her. It had taken years for him to improve, but he had more patience now and he was more open and understanding to the idea of companionship.

She had even agreed to teach him how to read and write. Somewhere in keeping the peace between templar and mage, fighting rogue Qunari, and ridding the streets of gangs, she found the time to visit him. For the longest time, she tried to convince herself that she was giving Fenris a chance at living a normal life. He needed to learn how to read, and at the very least write basic sentences. But deep in her heart, she knew she was just finding any excuse she could just to see him. She wanted to be part of his life. Her visits were encouraged when he asked that the first word she taught him to write was "Hawke."

The Maker had a strange sense of humor indeed. Hawke never would have thought that an elf turned ex-slave would capture her heart. But here she was leaving herself vulnerable by showing him open affection, and here he was, accepting it and even reciprocating. She stared at their joined hands, absentmindedly caressing one of his lyrium markings with her thumb. "They're beautiful," she said. Fenris frowned but did not move away. "They are a part of you, Fenris," Hawke explained. "What's the point of loving someone if you only love one part of them? These markings, your love of fine wine, your strength, your passion for the freedom of all slaves, even your hatred for mages… they are all a part of you."

"And these are things that you accept wholeheartedly?" he asked.

"Well… I think I can work to tame your distaste for mages," she chuckled, "but yes. I always have. Who knows, if you stay with me, I just might convince you to defend all the mages of Kirkwall in some glorious life or death battle."

"Doubtful," Fenris said, but there was a small smile on his face. His fingers tightened around hers slightly. "Hawke, if Danarius comes back for me-"

"You will not be alone," she promised. The fear of losing him was almost unbearable, and she vowed to do everything in her power to keep him safe. "You won't be alone," she repeated.

He leaned in closer to her. "I have not merged with a demon, and yet here you are." Just before his lips could touch hers, he hesitated. "What I desire most is-"

Crash!

They both stood to their feet, grabbing their weapons. Hawke could hear someone walking around the lower levels of the mansion. Perhaps a lone thief found the abandoned mansion and sought to raid it of left behind belongings. She heard more footsteps and looked to Fenris. There was a whole group that broke into the mansion. This was more than common burglary.

"Hunters…" he snarled. Hawke was not far behind him when he ran out of the room. Fenris aimed to fight them head on. She could see the lyrium markings glow, assuring her that the elf had no intention of leaving anyone alive.

They saw men pouring into the hall of the first level. Hawke counted five men, but there was no telling how many more were waiting for them outside. Their leader, a mage, pointed up at them. "You are in possession of stolen property," he said to Hawke.

She had never felt so enraged in her entire life. How could anyone think that Fenris was a commodity, a thing to be used? She drew her sword and pointed it at the mage. "Fenris is a free man!" she shouted. "The only way you'll take him is over my corpse!"

"Hawke…" she heard Fenris say.

The mage barked out orders to his men. "Keep the slave alive, and I don't care what you do with the woman. But if she lives, we might be able to sell her."

The lyrium markings were now glowing bright; Hawke could see the magic seeping out of Fenris' skin. "I am not your slave!" he yelled. The hunters drew their swords and attacked; the battle for Fenris' true freedom had begun.