Chapter 3- Severed Ties…
Hawke awoke to that noise… that annoying, annoying sound… the 'Cock-a-doodle-doo!' of the families rooster. Slowly her small eyes fluttered open, and things began to come into focus. Hawke released a gasp of surprise. She was staring up at the barns wooden rafters and the now open shutter that had not been closed all night and showed the yellow/orange morning sky above.
She had no covers, but was not cold. She rubbed her eyes as she rolled to her left, then felt something touch the tip of her nose, as well as something brush against her arms. She felt her cheeks become hot and knew that they had turned bright red as soon as she realized that it was Anders that she was lying next to. Their noses were touching, but Anders was still asleep and snoring softly.
Faster than she thought possible, she had gotten up and backed up into a wooden beam, which held reigns for the horses and bells for cows. They clanged together loudly from the impact, and this caused Anders to wake up suddenly. He moaned and roll onto his back and stretch out his arms and arch his back as he yawned.
"Is it morning already?" he asked.
Already, Hawke thought to herself while still blushing. She didn't even remember how or when she managed to fall asleep in the barn and not retire to her own room. She was also worried that her parents or siblings might already be awake. What would happen if they discovered that she was not in her room, or even the house for that matter?
"Yeah… I guess so…" Hawke said nervously as she rubbed the back of her head.
As Anders sat up and rubbed his eyes, it seemed that even he began to realize what had happened, "Oh… did you stay here all night with m-"
"You know what! Breakfast is probably ready! I should head inside and get some breakfast for the two of us! Be back soon!" Hawke said with rosy red cheeks. And before Anders could say another word, Hawke pushed her way through the wooden double doors and proceeded towards the house at a jog.
But the single light in the kitchen showed that trying to sneak in would do no use, people were up and about. Hawke thought about sneaking up the drain pipe to get to her bedroom window on the second floor, but that was cut short by, "Hawke! Breakfast is ready! Come on inside out of the cold!" It was her mothers voice.
Hawke sighed, then proceeded inside. All the while, excuses and lies flowed through her mind. What would work best? I was awake early and went for a walk! Couldn't sleep… all night! Were just some of Hawke's ideas.
As soon as she entered the kitchen, she saw Malcolm, Bethany and Carver all sitting around the kitchen table. And before them was a grand feast; mounds of toast, a big bowl of porridge, eggs, fried potatoes, even strips of bacon.
Leandra Hawke was at the kitchen counter, next to a mound of freshly squeezed oranges. Once the jug of orange juice had been stirred, Leandra set it down, looked towards Hawke and smiled, "Good morning, Hawke! Come join us for breakfast!"
This was odd, no scolding about why she didn't come back into the house, or even questions as to why she stayed in the barn all night. Grateful for this, Hawke made her way towards the breakfast table and began to pull her seat out. But Leandra put her hand on top of it and stopped her.
"Wait! Aren't you forgetting something?" she asked.
"Oh… right… I guess I better go and wash my hands first," said Hawke.
But Leandra shook her head, "No… I mean your little friend. I'm sure he must be hungry as well!"
"W-what!" Hawke asked in sudden surprise.
Malcolm smiled as well, "Your little friend out in the barn. It would be rude to ask him to go unfed you know."
Hawke was dumbfounded, "H-how d-do you know about-"
"We're your parents, Hawke," Leandra stated calmly, "We know everything that goes on in our children's lives."
Hawke was slightly ashamed that she tried so hard to keep his identity as secret, even from her own parents, "Mother… Father… I-"
Malcolm shook his head, "You better go get your friend, before his meal gets cold. We seat the table for six!"
Hawke hadn't noticed, but indeed, the table was set up for six people, and the only two seats left made Hawke and Anders sit side by side.
"A-alright… I'll go get him…" Hawke said softly. She then jogged back out the front door and towards the barn, all the while thinking, They're not mad… I always thought they'd be furious if they discovered that we were hiding an apostate right under their noses.
Moments later, she slide the barn doors opened and spotted Anders making his way towards the backdoor, a small pack of supplies flung over his shoulder. By the look on his face, it spelled out clearly that he had been caught. "Oh! Hawke! You're back… I thought that you were going to have breakfast with your family. I was sure that I had enough time to-"
"sneak out unnoticed?" Hawke asked with a smirk.
"W-well… I…" Anders started as he rubbed the back of his neck and thought about what to say.
But Hawke raised her hand and shook her head, "You know what, Anders… It doesn't matter anymore!" Hawke said excitedly, "My parents know about you, and they're not the least bit mad! In fact, they want you to stay for breakfast!"
Anders look surprised beyond words, "W-wha… a-are you… r-really…?"
Hawke grinned ear to ear, "Absolutely! Heck, maybe after this they'll let you stay with us for good! And why not? Our family already has three apostates living in it!"
Anders thought for a moment with his hand against his chin, then tears of happiness built up in his eyes and he nodded his head. Perhaps his days of running were over far sooner than he had ever expected them to be. This family had lived outside of the circle their whole lives, maybe now he could look forward to that dream as well.
A short time later, Hawke and Anders arrived back at the house. Hawke had her arm wrapped around Anders shoulders and was proudly showing him off to the rest of the family. Everyone around the table smiled brightly, nodded and acknowledged young Anders. Then, they all sat down and ate together… as a family.
Once breakfast was finished with, Malcolm looked towards Anders and asked him, "I imagine you must be wanting to get out of those robes and into something new, am I right?"
Anders was still shy, so he blushed and simply nodded, Hawke rubbed the top of his head and chuckled, "No need to be scared, little Anders!"
Malcolm then started down the hall and up the stairs as he waved Hawke and Anders over, gesturing for the two of them to follow. Hawke grinned, then grabbed Anders by the wrist, and while laughing giddily, she followed her father up the stairs with Anders in tow.
However, as soon as Hawke and Anders were headed up the stairs, Leandra, Bethany and even Carver noticed a lot of movement just outside the window. They were team of knights on horseback, and were dressed in armour that would make any mage, circle or not, tremble in fear. Worst of all, they were heading towards the barn. Leandra ordered Bethany and Carver to stick to the plan, while she ran outside as fast as she could.
Meanwhile, all of this had gone unnoticed upstairs. Malcolm then led Anders and his daughter towards his room. Once they arrived, Malcolm walked towards his closet, opened it and dragged out a large trunk suitcase. He opened it and began to sort through its contents. Soon he found what he was looking for and released a happy, "Ah, Ha!"
He then pulled out a small set of mages robes; a full tan overcoat, with tan pants and a pair of leather boots. Over that was a lighter blue half coat with slightly strange feathery pauldrons attached to the main coat. Hawke didn't like it. But Anders walked towards Malcolm and was trembling with excitement. They were beautiful to his eyes and something that wouldn't be as noticeable as his tattered blue mage circle robes that he was currently clad in. His first step to being set apart from the circle tower of magi.
"Marian, care to lead our guest to your room to let him change?" Malcolm asked cheerfully.
"Sure thing, Father!" Hawke replied just as cheerfully. But just before she left, she turned to her father and said, "And Dad! Call me 'Hawke'!"
She then grabbed Anders by the shoulder and ran towards the room where she, Carver and Bethany slept. Malcolm crossed his arms worriedly and looked out the window. The Templar's and their horses had just disappeared behind the family barn, Leandra being the one who led them there.
Moments later, Anders was changed into his new clothing. As soon as he got back to Malcolm's room, he held his arms out and spun around in a circle, showing off his new outfit to Malcolm Hawke.
"Oh! So glad to see that my old clothes fit you like a glove!" Malcolm replied.
"Thanks! Mr. Hawke!" Anders replied happily.
Malcolm then clapped his hands together, "Oh, that's right! If you're going to stay here, then you'd better get your gear and bring it inside, am I right?"
"Ok!" said Anders with a chuckle and a smile. He then started for the staircase while skipping in glee.
"Wait, Anders! I'm coming with you!" Hawke shouted, but before she could catch up, Malcolm placed his hand on her shoulder and stopped her.
"Just a moment… Marian… there's something that I need to tell you…" said Malcolm as he limped towards the bed. It was the first time that Hawke noticed this strange movement from her father.
"What is it, Dad?" Hawke asked worriedly.
At the same time, Anders reached the main floor and skipped past Bethany and Carver and waved to them. Then hummed happily as he opened the front door and headed towards the family barn. However, as soon as he was out, Carver and Bethany both bolted towards the front door, locked it and stood side by side and guarded it. No one gets back in, and no one gets out. Those were their orders, given to them by Leandra and Malcolm Hawke.
Bethany couldn't help but feel that this an unnecessary precaution. There was no way that Marian could overpower their father. She was gifted much more strongly in magic than Bethany, but not Malcolm.
Upstairs, Malcolm was now sitting on the bed with Marian Hawke right next to him. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close, "Listen, Marian… about that boy…"
"What about him?" Hawke asked curiously.
"I know what he is… an apostate from the nearby circle of magi, located at Lake Calenhad, correct?"
Hawke swallowed nervously, "Y-yes… he is… but-"
A sudden and terrifying scream halted Hawke's sentence… and it could only belong to a young boy. She remembered how Carver used to scream whenever he saw spiders or a nest of them, and that scream didn't belong to him. There was only one conclusion… it was Anders!
"Anders!" Hawke screamed shrilly. She got up and was just about to run towards the doorway, but she felt strong pressure around her right wrist. She looked back and saw her father holding onto her tightly.
"Marian, Don't!" Malcolm ordered.
"Father… w-why are you-"
Another shrill scream make Hawke turn her head back towards the doorway, in the direction of the staircase. She leaned forward and pulled with all her might while screaming, "LET GO! LET GO~!"
"Stay here, Marian! It's too late for the boy! The Templar's have him now!" Malcolm shouted back.
One more shrill scream from outside made Hawke do something she never dreamed possible… she raised two fingers from her left hand and pressed them against her forehead, in the space between her two eyebrows and closed her eyes.
Mind blast! She thought in her head, but in an inner scream. The next thing she heard was a grunt from her father, as well as glass breaking and other large and small objects being shot around the room. As soon as she reopened her eyes, she looked back and saw her fathers feet hanging out from behind an overturned bed. All the other objects in the room were littered in a 360 degree pattern directly from where she was standing.
She was running on a adrenaline now, so she didn't even process what she had just done in her mind. Rather, she bolted out the door and started towards the front door. But she ran straight into the waiting arms of her younger brother and sister, each grabbed an arm and held on as tight as they could.
"Don't go out there!" Carver desperately cried.
"It's too late!" Bethany advised, trying to get through to her older sister.
Unfortunately, they were near a window this time, and Hawke had enough time to look over and see two large Templar's dragging Anders, kicking and screaming away from the barn. Now, even more adrenaline surged through her body and before she knew it, both of palms crackled and glowed a whitish/blue color, and were ice cold.
"Marian, what are you-" Carver started.
Bethany noticed as well and let go of Marian, then shouted, "Let her go, Carver! Don't let her touch you!"
"What?" Carver asked, then felt a cold, stinging sensation wrap around his wrist. He cried out in pain and looked down, and there was ice forming all around Marian's hand and crawling up Carvers skin and freezing it.
Bethany threw one of her hands towards Marian and pushed her away with a concussive 'physical' blast of energy and Marian let go of Carver and hit the wall hard.
At the same time, Malcolm was limping down the stairs as fast as he could. Just in time to see Marian begin to unlock the front door, while Bethany was inspecting Carvers frost wound around his wrist. Only another few seconds and Marian would be out the door and possibly try to attack the Templar's next in an attempt to save Anders.
Now out of options and time, Malcolm risked a major magical spell just as Marian opened the front door and headed out. He clapped his hands together and disappeared in a cloud of black smoke.
Hawke didn't even make it three steps out of the house before she felt an enormous weight throw itself against her from behind. Followed by a pair of arms wrapping around her shoulders and tightening so much that it nearly squeezed the air out of her lungs and she gasped loudly.
Thankfully, the team of five Templar's were so pre-occupied with stopping the young and wildly kicking apostate boy that they didn't notice the small bit of magic that Malcolm Hawke had just preformed.
Leandra Hawke had been pleading with the Knight Templar in charge to not handle the small boy so roughly, but then looked over and saw Malcolm pressing their daughters head into the grassy ground just as roughly, if not even more so. She cupped her hands over her mouth in horror for a moment, then ran as fast as she could towards them.
Marian kicked her small legs and feet against the ground as Malcolm sat on top of her, and writhed back and forth in protest, "Let go of me!" Marian screamed.
Malcolm pressed the side of her head and face against the grass with one hand, while the other pressed her shoulder towards the ground more forcefully than he ever had before, "Keep still, Marian!" he ordered, he then moved his mouth towards her ear and whispered harshly, "Don't you dare perform any magic! Not here! Not in front of these Templar's!"
A second later, Leandra arrived and pushed Malcolm off their daughter, but he remained sitting on her lower back. "Stop! You can't treat our own daughter this way!" Leandra pleaded.
Hawke now pushed her self slightly up off the ground and looked towards Anders and now saw his hands being bound behind his back by rope, as well as a metal collar and chain being fitted around his neck… like an animal!
"How can they do this! He's just a kid! Like me!" Hawke cried angrily as tears started to well up in her eyes.
The Knight-Templar in charge looked over, annoyed by all the racket and warned, "You'd better restrain that child of yours or we'll have to do it for you!"
As Malcolm continued to hold down young Hawke, Leandra position herself in front of the two of them, and while remaining on her knees, she held her arms out in a 'T' formation and replied with, "She's only a child, Knight-Templar Zook! She doesn't know anything about Mages and Templar's and the fact that you're only doing your job!"
Knight-Templar Zook looked over at the family through the eye-slit of his helmet and glared, "And why is that?" he asked as he approached them, "Surely all loyal subjects and servants of our mighty maker know the role of his Templar Knights… Or are you a bunch of heathens!"
He then reached back and grasped the hilt or handle or his sword while glaring.
"That's enough! Knight Templar Zook!" Another approaching Templar on horseback shouted. He lead another team of Templar's, but unlike the others, the Templar in the lead had metal wings attached to his helmet. Behind them, a large carriage pulled by a team of four black horses was following.
Knight-Templar Zook released his sword handle and replied, "Knight-Lieutenant Marcus? What are you doing here?"
Malcolm breathed a sigh of relief and whispered, "Oh… Marcus…"
Knight-lieutenant Marcus then dismounted from his horse as soon as he reached the other team of Templar's and their horses. He started walking towards Knight-Templar Zook.
"What's going on here?" he asked as he noticed how close Zook was to the Hawke family.
"These parents were having trouble restraining their child. She seems to have taken offence to all of this."
"Hmmm… I don't blame her…" Knight-lieutenant Marcus replied. He then looked over at the team of Templar's crowded around Anders. One was holding onto the chains from behind, the other three had their swords drawn and were pointing them at Anders from all sides.
"So many Templar's to capture and secure one small boy… anyone would be troubled at a sight such as that…" Marcus advised.
"Yes, sir… We simply didn't want to take any chances."
"Really?" Marcus asked in an unsure tone. "How much trouble could that small boy have given this many Templar's?"
Zook shook his head, then turned to the Hawke family, "What should we do about the family, sir? They were obviously helping this boy, and that goes against our laws-"
"So does hiring mercenaries to do our job for us, Knight-Templar Zook!" Marcus replied angrily, "I just got word from Lothering that a mercenary claimed that he was hired by you a few days ago."
"S-sir, I-"
Marcus then pointed at Malcolm Hawke, "Even if that weren't the case, this man here contacted me the moment he discovered the boy and allowed us to come and retrieve him. Because of this reason, we shall allow both he and his family to be spared any form of punishment for harbouring this young mage, understood?"
Knight-lieutenant Marcus then headed back to the large carriage and opened the door, a small staircase automatically flipped down. He then held out his hand and an older mage stepped down with the help of Marcus.
The whole time, Anders had not said a single word. Not against the Templar's, not against the Hawke family, or to the Knight-lieutenant. But his eyes opened wide in horror and he gasped as he recognized who it was, "F-first Enchanter Irving!"
"Hello, my boy. You gave us quite a scare back at the tower, I must say." Irving said with a smile, "For one so young such as yourself to have successfully escaped from the tower… I don't mean to boast or praise, but it certainly is remarkable! Nothing short of a miracle, I will say!"
Anders lowered his head and tears fell from his eyes as he held back sobs and choked on them loudly, "I… I don't want to go back!"
As First Enchanter Irving started towards Anders, Knight-lieutenant Marcus quickly approached Malcolm Hawke, "Come, Ser Hawke, I must speak with you privately."
Malcolm got off of Marian and Leandra took over and held her hands on top of Marian's shoulders, keeping her in place as they looked on at Anders and Irving.
"I know, my boy…" Irving said sympathetically, "You are young and brave, young Anders. But your place is in the tower, where you can be trained properly and amongst your own kind. The outside world is not the place for you, not at this young and crucial age, little Anders. Believe me when I say… you will eventually come to accept, maybe even love the tower as your home. Just give it some time, my boy."
First Enchanter Irving then turned to the Hawke family and smiled brightly, "And you, you all have my eternal thanks for helping us locate our little lost mage. I doubt he would, but I'm glad we found him before he caused any accidents or harm to others with his untrained magical skills."
Two tears fell from Hawke's eyes as she lowered her head towards the ground, "I… I won't struggle anymore, Mother. Just… let go of me…" she begged.
Leandra looked down at her daughter, then up at the First Enchanter. He simply nodded, then waved over the team of Templar's that were holding onto Anders. They began to approach, while Leandra climbed off her daughter and took a few steps back. Malcolm had returned and now took hold of his wife as they looked on.
As soon as Hawke was to her feet and dusting off her pants, she looked over at her mother and father. Malcolm approached, then tried to reach out and take Marian by the chin, while apologizing with his eyes. But Marian turned her head and shut her eyes tight as even more tears escaped from her eyes. Malcolm retracted his hand, knowing how angry Marian must be feeling towards him for what he had done. He then backed up and rejoined his wife and held her.
Marian then turned towards Anders in time to see First Enchanter Irving wave the guards away, as well as unclip the chain from around his metal collar, which still stayed on, then removed the rope from his hands. Hawke and Anders then walked towards each other. They then stood just a foot apart, but kept their hands at their sides and looked away in opposite directions. Neither spoke a word.
Leandra and Malcolm, along with First Enchanter Irving and the Templar's backed up a few more steps, giving the two some space and privacy.
Once he was sure they were far enough, Anders whispered, "Tell me why…? Did you really just keep me here to let the Templar's catch up?"
Hawke began to cry and stammer, but was able to reply, "No! I swear, I had nothing to do with this. If I ever even suspected that this-"
Clearly, Anders saw how upset Hawke was, maybe even more than he was, so he cut her off, "It's alright… I… believe you, Hawke."
Then, they cried together, but remained apart. The sight broke Leandras heart, as well as Bethany who was now supporting Carver on her shoulder and looking out from the front door of the house.
Then, to everyone's surprise, Anders reached up, took Hawke by the back of the head with one of his hands, while the other pulled her by the shoulder and they pressed their lips together.
Bethany gasped, so did Carver. Leandra and Malcolm looked at each other in concern. And a few of the Templar's grasped their sword handles, but stopped as soon as First Enchanter Irving raised his hand up, looked back at them and shook his head. He then looked forward once more, crossed his arms and smiled, "Young love… It's a shame that the boy won't remember any of this very soon…"
Hawke and Anders then separated and moved their faces away from one another. Hawke raised a hand and touched her lips with her finger tips, then asked, "W-why…?"
Anders rubbed the back of his head, "I hope I did it right…" Anders said in embarrassment, "I've read that a kiss is meant to be the ultimate gesture of affection and giving thanks."
"Thanks?"
"You gave me two unforgettable days of fun, excitement and friendship, Hawke. I don't think I'll ever know as much fun back at the circle. So I wanted to thank you before I left…"
Hawke blushed, turned her head and nodded with her eyes closed.
"Alright, young boy, time's up…" Irving said with regret in his voice, "time to go back home."
Hawke then rushed up to Anders and embraced him in a hug as they cried against each others shoulders. Then she whispered, "Don't give up… I'll come and find you as soon as I can, before you get back to the tower."
"Hawke, don't-"
"Hold onto that hope, Anders… that we'll be together once again!"
Anders hugged Hawke tighter, "Alright… we'll be together again, I promise you! I escaped from the tower once, and I can do it again."
The two friends then let go of each other just as First Enchanter Irving reached them and began to lead Anders back towards the carriage. The Knight Templar's falling into order behind him or returning back towards their horses.
Hawke looked on with cupped hands until the moment Anders was loaded into the back of the carriage and Irving climbed in as well. She then started back towards the house at a fast and determined walk. Malcolm attempted to reach out to her just as she started past, but she pulled her head away once more and looked away as well.
"Marian…" Malcolm said in despair.
The black carriage and its team of Templar's then began to head back towards the circle tower at a slow trot.
Leandra wrapped her arms around Malcolm's neck and pulled him close, "Oh, Malcolm!" she sobbed, "Did we do the right thing…?"
Malcolm watched the carriage continue on into the distance for a moment, then closed his eyes and sighed loudly, "…Yes… We did," he concluded, "The Templar's got their runaway back… there were no repercussions against our family or home for housing an apostate, and the children remain safe and undiscovered."
"But what about our little Hawke? Will she ever forgive us?"
"She is still young, and her heart was in the right place. Maybe one day she'll realize it was better to sacrifice one young apostate to save her family…"
Meanwhile, Anders was looking out the window at the passing farm houses and fields, and even Lothering and its giant windmill in the distance, wanting to admire all this beauty for as long as he could. Before his surroundings became the stone walls and floors of the circle tower.
"you obviously meant a lot to that young girl, Anders. She protested so strongly against you being taken away." First Enchanter Irving said with a smile.
"She was a friend… my first ever outside of the tower…"
Irving nodded as he reached over and flipped up the sticks holding the shutters open and the inside of the carriage became wrapped in darkness. Irving then turned up his palm and a blue swirling ball of magical energy began to form in his palm. It spun faster and faster, and flashed wildly. The whole time, Anders could not break his gaze from its beauty, even if he wanted to.
"I know that girl meant a lot to you, young Anders, as you meant to her. It pains me a great deal to have to take all those memories of her away from you now… But I must…"
Outside the carriage, small beams of blue light suddenly began to escape from the small cracks between the carriage window and its shutter. A loud humming sound rang out as well, and then… Anders cried out loudly. The Templar's outside didn't know if it was from pain, anger or sadness. But it was long, and it was loud.
Hey Readers, just thought I'd squeeze some Anders lines in here; "You should been in the Ferelden circle, everyone was kissing everyone" Thus the Hawke+Anders moment :P
And I really feel that I should have played Legacy or Mark of the Assassin and the other DLC's before writing this. Perhaps I coulda discovered more about Malcolm and his character, so if I'm way off base, it's because I never played any of those DLCs and this is a pretty old fic, but I don't really wanna change it even if I discover something new.
Anyways, please read+review afterwards :) Thanks for the previous comments and encouragement. I think I can finish the story in 2 more chapters after this. Kinda short one here.