They arrived in Hightown without incident. Fenris had to look away on more than one occasion due to Jennifer rubbing her rear to alleviate soreness. When she caught on to his snickering she glared at him, but when he turned back his expression was completely neutral. Turd!
They made their way to his dilapidated mansion and she stopped at the door. Suddenly her cheeks flushed and she scuffed her boot along the cracked stone edging the entryway. He walked ahead, opening the door and stepping aside. When he noticed her still a step back, he looked at her quizzically. "Is something the matter?" He asked, his cadence faltering on the border of concern.
She scuffed her boot again, looking at the doorway. "N-no! Nothing's wrong. I-" She turned around, fighting the blush creeping across her cheeks and nose. "I-I just wanted to make sure you got home alright, and… and I'm still mad about what you did!" She turned around and stomped her foot, she knew she was acting childish, but she needed time. She needed to stall to give her time to think. To go inside, or not to go inside. Holy crap balls…
"Mad? If I upset you about laughing-" He began, but Jennifer stepped towards him, a deep frown on her face, making him pause.
"Not that! You could have killed yourself. You could have died. You using your lyrium like that was, wreckless, and needless, and uncalled for and stupid and every other derogatory thing I can think of!" She threw up her hands in a hopeless gesture before scratching her head and peering at him with one eye.
"It was not needless. If there was a way to turn you from being tranquil MINDLESS, I would die gladly for it." He folded his arms glaring at her.
"And what makes your life any less valuable than mine? Because you were a slave? Because you're an elf? Or are you that eager to die?!" She stepped up to him a mere foot away, her brow furrowed deeply, a sincere expression of her displeasure.
"What? No! You wouldn't even begin to understand, you have no idea what you do to me. To anyone! You would honestly expect us all to leave you as you were? To leave you as a shell of your former self? Every time you would smile it would remind us of everything we lost!" He stared at her in disbelief, his green eyes burning dangerously and passionately. Ooooh he's pissed. Crap! What do I do? WHAT DO I DO?!
"Fenris, wh-" She stepped back.
"You can't sit there and say you don't know. That you don't see how we see you. How I-" Fenris stopped, he lifted his foot off the ground as if to move towards her before turning sharply on his heel and entering the mansion. "Have a good night, Jennifer." She shut the door. Jennifer stared at the scarred wood for minutes on end. What was he saying? Why was he so mad? HE'S THE ONE WHO TRIED TO KILL HIMSELF! TURD!
She stomped away angrily, unbeknownst to her, leaving behind a glittering trail of energy in her wake. She mumbled to herself, running the conversation along in her mind. When a man stepped from the shadows, she glared at him, fire seeming to lick at her lashes as she pinned him still with her stair before he scurried off and she continued back to Gamlen's hovel.
-ooo-
Morning came, Bethany gently woke Jennifer up from a fitful dream and smiled as Jennifer groggily rubbed her eyes and slipped her hair behind her ear. "C'mon, Jennifer let's get started before Bartrand tries to leave without us."
Jennifer nodded in her compliance and quickly dressed before making her way out to the main room where she found a yawning Hawke who winced as she closed the door on a sleeping Leandra. "Please don't slam the door…" He whined helplessly.
Jennifer snickered and he groaned.
They walked towards the Hanged Man, finding Varric just outside it's doors as chipper as he could be. When Hawke dragged his feet to the stout dwarf, Varric only chuckled and patted Hawke on the back. "That's what you get for drinking yourself into a stupor. How was your night with Isabela?"
Hawke glared at the dwarf, "If anything happened, I wasn't aware of it. I don't even remember how I made it home last night, especially with all my coin intact."
"You didn't." Varric exclaimed. "You left it with me for safe keeping." Varric handily held up the jingling pouch and dropped it into Hawke's hand. Hawke chuckled then groaned again before waving the others onward. They stepped into Hightown as the sun rose above the stark grey buildings, brightening the tapestries marking the Merchant's Guild. They found Bartrand near the large statue in the square, when Varric proclaimed that Hawke had become a benefactor, Bartrand eyed him suspiciously. When Hawke handed Bartrand the fifty gold that he needed, Bartrand was estatic. And when he mentioned a passage into the Deep Roads, Hawke handed him a Grey Warden map and Bartrand looked as though he was a kid in a candy shop.
So it was done, the expedition was set, and Hawke was ready to set off. "Let's not waste any more time." Bartrand yelled for the other crew members of the expedition to gather around. Yay! Pep talk! Jennifer was bouncing in her shoes for fame, fortune and adventure!
Bartrand paced the length of the group. "We've chosen one of the hidden entrances. The Deep Roads there will be nice and virginal, ready for a good deflowering. Ha!" Eww…
Varric leaned close to Hawke, just in front of Jennifer and whispered. "Heh. Now there's an interesting image." Hawke chuckled before looking back at Bartrand.
"It'll take us a week to get to the depth we need. There are bound to be left over darkspawn from the Blight. Big risks, big rewards." He looked to Hawke, a smug smirk on his face.
"We shouldn't take any needless risks." Bethany whispered.
"This isn't some foolish endeavor. This will work. Now before we—wait! Who invited the old woman?!" Bartrand groused.
Jennifer turned to see Leandra walking up towards the party, a worried look upon her face. "I'm sorry to interrupt, Ser Dwarf, but I need to speak with my children." Hawke and Bethany stepped forward, Jennifer looked at the two with interest.
"Mother, we talked about how important this is." Bethany explained, peering around.
"I just want to know one thing: Are you planning on taking Bethany with you?" Leandra asked, pulling at her fingers nervously.
"I hadn't decided yet." Hawke replied, and Bethany eyed her brother with a scowl.
"I'll be fine, Mother." Bethany pleaded, looking once again at her mother's worried features.
Leandra frowned at Bethany. "It's not fine! You can't both go. What if something were to happen to you?" She looked to Hawke. "You I understand wanting to go. But leave your sister here, I beg you."
After much debate and Leandra's worried exclamations Hawke decided it was best for Bethany to come along. Jennifer wanted to say something to comfort Leandra, but felt it wasn't her place. As they left for the Deep Roads, setting out along the Wounded Coast for the entrance, Jennifer looked back and sighed. It was a long road ahead, Jennifer grasped for her maces once again, reassuring herself that they were secure and present.
Anders walked up towards her as she was lost in thought and smiled. "Never thought I'd be going down there again. I bloody hate darkspawn, almost as much as I hate Templars."
"Now that's saying something. The Almight Anders quelling in fear of nasty monsters." Jennifer gestured with her fingers as fangs making a scary face.
Anders chuckled, "You will understand when you have spent months on end in the Deep Roads. Luckily, we should only be down there a few weeks. Two at best. But never fear! I've been told I'm rather good at getting out of hopeless scraps, I didn't escape the Circle seven times with nothing to show for it." He puffed up his chest and Jennifer choked.
"Seven times?!" She blinked incredulously at Anders as she stumbled over a rock.
Anders gripped her by the arm and steadied her with a grin. "Yep, I'll have to tell you about them sometime." His grin slowly faded as he looked towards Hawke, then farther ahead along the path on the Wounded Coast. "If I can." He murmured softly. Jennifer heard, but decided not to press. Anders and her walked side by side, Anders helping her avoid other debris along the path and Jennifer enjoying the companionable silence. Morning turned into afternoon then to twilight before they finally hit the entrance to the cavern that would lead them into the Deep Roads.
Tension spilled from Anders being as he gripped his staff tightly, Jennifer looked at him with concern only to me met with a fake smile and a placid. "I'm fine."
AN: So now the real fun begins! So leave me a review and tell me what you think so far. I love hearing feedback from you all. :3 Until then, Later my pretties!