Sorry, it's been a while guys. But I realized that I updated quite a bit last week, so I wanted to give other writers some spotlight on the front page. I have a couple more pleasant surprises coming up, so let's get started, shall we? Thanks for reading.

They stared at each other for a long while before Fenris finally decided to step aside and let Anders enter the estate. Neither so much as muttered a simple greeting. Anders made his way to the writing desk that held all of her letters and written requests from the city. There were many that had "Champion" scribbled on the top followed by paragraphs of praise and thanks. "How is she doing?" Anders asked, still keeping his back to Fenris. He placed the sack he had been carrying on the desk, careful not to disturb any of the letters.

"Better," Fenris answered. "She's able to stand on her own now."

"Glad to hear that," said Anders, pulling out several flasks and pouches from the sack.

"Mix this with her tea." He held up a green pouch for Fenris to see. "Half a spoonful should be sufficient. And this," he set down the green pouch and grabbed a black one, "should be mixed with her baths. It will help keep the swelling down and will help relax her muscles."

Fenris didn't say thank you or offer any gesture indicating that he was grateful. He merely grunted. Anders assumed the elf was too prideful and that was fine with him. Since their last encounter, both had tried to exchange as few words as possible with each other. Leandra had kicked them out of her home the day before when they continued to fight. The older woman scolded them for acting like children and she fretted over broken vases and her charred stairwell.

When Anders had told Fenris about the fate of his unborn child, Fenris went wild. He broke out of Anders' binding spell and every inch inside of the Amell Estate was lit blue. It wasn't a secret that Anders didn't care for the elf, but even he knew that Fenris was not himself. It took everyone's effort to subdue Fenris and get him to calm down.

Aveline acted first followed by Varric and Merrill. For a moment, Hawke's residence was a battlefield. When they finally managed to pin him, Fenris stopped fighting. Anders saw the hurt in Fenris' eyes and he decided not to provoke him further.

Aveline slowly took her hands off of Fenris' arm and shoulder and Merrill had lifted the freezing spell she inflicted on his body. "Have you lost your mind?" Aveline snapped at Fenris. "This is Hawke's home."

"I- I don't know what came over me," Fenris gasped, pushing himself up from the floor. He rubbed his temples and winced. "That has never happened to me before."

"I am surprised to hear that," Merrill said.

Fenris gave her a bewildered look. "What do you mean?"

"It's the lyrium," Anders added. "They are both a curse and a blessing to you. Much like how a mage and his abilities are."

Fenris spat out some words in a foreign tongue and he ducked his head in shame. "My apologies," he said.

It was then that Leandra marched downstairs and threw the lot of them out. The poor woman was completely distraught and so overcome with worry that none of them said anything when she kept shouting for them to leave.

It was only at Hawke's request that Leandra allowed any of them to return the following day. Though Lady Amell did not stop Fenris from breaking back into Hawke's room that very night to stay by her side.

Anders visited frequently, but he never spoke to Hawke. He only stopped by to drop off medicinal herbs and potions to help speed up her recovery then he would be on his way. Today was no different it seemed. The mage headed back for the door once he had emptied his sack of all its supplies.

"Wait," Fenris asked and Anders stopped. He did not know what compelled him to keep the mage from leaving, but there were words that needed to be said. "Abomination or not, there is no denying that you saved Hawke's life."

"I suppose that is the most appreciation I will ever hear from you," Anders said, still with his back to Fenris.

"I suppose it is," Fenris agreed. He had once said that he believed there were no doubt good mages in the world, but he never took the admission to heart. He only said that because Hawke was concerned about his aversion to mages, and she was openly being protective of her sister when they first met. He had no intention of harming the people who had helped him, and it was at that moment that Hawke had begun to sneak her way into his heart.

"I will come back tomorrow to see how she is doing," Anders said, and then he was gone.

XXXXXXXXX

The months came and went, and there wasn't a soul in Kirkwall that didn't know about Hawke, the Champion of Kirkwall. Everywhere they went, she was addressed with the utmost respect and she was adorned with gifts and other tokens of appreciation. Fenris stayed loyal to her and was by her side whenever she needed him. Isabella had surprised everyone, visiting Hawke every day and staying at the estate for several hours before she disappeared again.

All of them assumed that the pirate would disappear and they would never see her again. But each day at noon, she came back and stayed by Hawke's side loyally. When Hawke fully recovered, she requested that Isabella stay in Kirkwall to help rebuild it, to make up for what happened with the Qunari. Isabella agreed so long as Aveline would be at least a hundred feet from her. Fenris found that he did not have to keep a watchful eye on the pirate. Isabella was genuinely fond of Hawke, and she like Fenris, found her first true friend in Hawke.

During the day, Hawke played the role of the mercenary, accepting nearly every request made by the citizens of Kirkwall. She led them on many adventures. It didn't matter if she was rescuing children that were to be sold into slavery or if she was returning stolen goods to a lowly merchant who was trying to make a living selling trinkets and charms. Everyone that demanded her attention received it.

At night, Fenris held her, speaking to her in the Tevinter language. He told her how beautiful and strong she was, and he told her how precious she was to him, but he could never tell her in a language she understood. He had trained himself to keep up many guards, never trusting anyone but himself. But slowly, Hawke had taken down his guards one at a time. The final guard protected his heart, the core of his being. He would do anything for Hawke; all she had to do was ask.

For the last three months, the light of his life shared her bed with him and though she had recovered physically, he could see that she was driving herself to a breaking point. She did everything possible to keep herself busy, never allowing herself to mend emotionally. Fenris was at a loss. He knew how to kill and how to craft a fine blade, but when it came to matters of the heart, he did not know where to turn.

All he could do was offer her the support of his embrace and the warmth of his touch. But he feared that she was slipping away from him, that she was withdrawing into herself and he couldn't stop it.

"You look worried," Hawke gently said to him, brushing her fingers across his cheek. She moved closer to him, pulling the blankets over their bodies. "What's on your mind?"

"You," he said, drawing her closer. He loved the way she felt against his body, loved being close to her. And he felt honored that it was only with him that she was so intimate with. "You fought well today. I doubt those bandit will be back."

She smiled and rested her head under his chin. "Well, the bastards will think twice before they try to steal from those merchants."

"As they should," Fenris kissed her forehead. "Hawke… am I… doing everything right?"

Her body stiffened and she looked up at him with surprised eyes. "Doing everything right? Fenris, I couldn't be happier. Why are you asking such a thing?" She pulled away only slightly so that she could look into his eyes.

"I feel that I am… inadequate," he admitted. "I know you still think of Lita, and I do as well, but I feel that you place too much blame on yourself when you should not."

She averted her eyes and he knew that he was right. He didn't want her to respond. Any answer she would have given him would never express how she truly felt, and he didn't want to force anything out of her. He leaned in and kissed her. "I just want you to know that I'm here. Meeting you was the best thing that ever happened to me."

She blinked back tears and smiled, drawing him into another kiss. "Thank you," she said against his mouth. Hawke deepened the kiss and slowly climbed over him. Her fingers traced his lyrium markings and his body shuddered at her touch. Every day, he experienced something new with her and his hunger for her only continued to grow. He lifted his hand to touch her face, but she pinned him down. In an instant, his mind had shut down, and all he knew was the pleasure that Hawke sent coursing through his body.