A/N: After the Warden prompt, I had to do one with some of my Hawkes!
Also, I wasn't planning on doing a continuation of the Warden one, but I might consider it if I get some good ideas.
Reviews/suggestions welcome and loved!
The title of Viscountess hadn't been kind to Lena Hawke. Rebuilding a city while helping her husband take back his city and raising two kids was much more difficult than she would've imagined. It was worth it, though, and nothing quite convinced her like coming home to her estate after an exhausting day at the Viscount's Keep.
She was used to seeing a guard posted out front, or sometimes Aveline or Fenris waiting for her to get back, but when she rounded the corner she found Sebastian sitting on the front steps, holding an arrow out to Ben, who was staring at it incredulously.
The archery lessons hadn't gone well that day, she assumed.
As Lena approached, Sebastian stood and told Ben to go play in the back courtyard with his sister. "You're late," he noted, turning back to Lena.
She cocked an eyebrow. "Is there some occasion I wasn't aware of?"
"Apparently," he sighed, all teasing gone. "You have some... uh, guests waiting in the sitting room." They shared a light kiss, then Sebastian left with a promise to keep the kids under control until Lena was finished.
With a sigh, Lena headed for the sitting room, not certain what to expect. Nobles trying to get on her good side, she assumed. Of course, it could always be much worse; there was never a quiet day in Kirkwall. Whatever she did expect, it wasn't what she found.
Sitting in one of the armchairs in front of the fire was a woman with a short, strawberry-blonde ponytail and a splatter of freckles covering her face. On the side table near her, a second woman was sitting on top with her legs crossed; she had bright green eyes and long, unnaturally red hair and was wearing a long, dark robe. On the other side of the room, leaning against the writing desk, was a man with dark hair and a scruffy beard. When Lena walked in, he and the woman on the table erupted into a cheer.
"Another one!"
"Another one?" Lena echoed. "What's going on?"
"Garrett," he introduced himself, holding a hand out to shake. "This is Evangeline-" the woman on the table corrected him with a quick Eva! "-and that's Marian." He nodded to the woman sitting in the armchair.
"That doesn't answer my question." Lena crossed her arms and leaned against the doorframe.
Garrett shrugged and began pacing; as he turned to face the windows, Lena saw he had two daggers strapped to his back. She felt suddenly uncomfortable without her armor. "I think you're out of luck, then," he shrugged, facing Lena again. "Last thing I remember, I'm passed out in this little tavern somewhere in Nevarra, with Isabela laughing because she can still out-drink me. I woke up near the Wounded Coast and thought, 'Well, either the last few years were just one big long dream, or Isabela lied about how strong that stuff was.'" He shrugged again. "I thought I'd check out the estate, and you can imagine how surprised I was to see Sebastian."
"Me too!" Eva chimed in. "Well, not the drunk-in-Nevarra thing, but everything after. I went to sleep last night like normal, with Anders and my Mabari and I even managed to remember to put out all the lights."
Lena pursed her lips. "Anders is dead."
"That's what Sebastian said," Eva pouted. "And there's no way. I wanted to check his clinic, but..." She trailed off, looking down at her folded hands.
"He did mention that Fenris is still living in his mansion," Marian piped up. "Is it true? And what about the others? Varric and Merrill and Aveline?"
"Varric left recently, Merrill's been gone for years, and Aveline is still Guard-Captain."
Plopping down in the armchair across from Marian, Garrett interjected, "You're all missing the most important part."
"And what's that?" Lena asked, rolling her eyes.
He grinned. "Serah Hawke?"
Three voices answered in unison.
There were dozens of scenarios that had passed at the Hawke Estate dining table in the name of diplomacy and politics, but this was a new one.
Lena, having convinced Sebastian to take the children and visit Aveline and Donnic for the evening, sat at the head of the table, with Marian on her right and Garrett and Eva on her left. The latter two traded witty remarks all through dinner, prompting several sighs from Marian and more than one exasperated eye-roll from Lena.
"So," Eva began after they'd mostly finished eating, "how's Carver doing?"
"Carver?" Lena and Garrett questioned in unison.
"I swear, if either of you did anything to my brother-"
Lena cut Eva off with a stern glare. "Carver died years ago, on the way from Lothering. I did everything I could to save him, and if there's one thing I would change about the past fifteen years, that would be it."
"I lost Bethany then," Marian added quietly. "Carver joined with the Templars."
Lena nodded in understanding. "It's the right place for him. I lost Bethany in the Deep Roads and sometimes I wish she would've had the chance to join the Wardens."
"My Bethany's with the Wardens," Garrett informed them.
"So's my Carver!" Eva exclaimed, and they shared an impromptu high-five. Tearing off a bit of her roll, she asked, "So you said you're with Isabela?"
"With?" He laughed. "It's more like I just follow her around Thedas and hope I can convince her to stay on land. I get dreadfully sea sick," Garrett informed them. "And you- you're with Anders?"
Eva's eyes got wide and she nodded. "Yes! And you should see our kids-well, not real kids, but our little puppy and kitten!" After a moment, she amended, "Well, they've grown a bit. They're not babies anymore. But still."
"How long has it been since the war began?" Lena cut in sharply.
"Since the Chantry incident? A couple of years. Why?"
"Hmm. Just curious."
Marian, who'd been mostly quiet, spoke up. "It's only been a few months for me. It's strange how it's all been different times for us."
But Garrett and Eva were no longer listening, caught in their own conversation again. "That's what I told him," Garrett was saying, enthusiastically jabbing the air with his fork for emphasis. "All that hard work I did for the mages - I was practically an honorary mage myself - and he doesn't even tell me he's going to blow up the Chantry?"
"Right?! It's like, we're sleeping together and I bought you a cat, you can tell me when you're planning murder." Eva paused, staring down at her food for a moment before adding softly, "I mean, I was mad at him, sure, and I understood the secrecy, but I figured if he told anyone it would be me."
"He probably just wanted to give you a chance to walk away," Marian offered. "He always seemed like he expected everyone to leave, and I think not telling you - or me, or anyone - was his way of preparing for that."
Eva recoiled, looking hurt. "I would never leave him. He should know that."
Lena groaned before Marian had a chance to reply. "It doesn't matter. He's dead." Anders had caused more trouble for the city than the Qunari had, and Lena wasn't about to let him be the focus of the evening.
Planting her elbows on the table, Eva rested her chin in her hands and grinned up at Marian, ignoring Lena. "So you and Fenris. I've always wanted to know - what color are his underclothes?"
"Let's hear it." Copying Eva, Garrett stared expectantly across the table. "It's embarrassing how many times me and Isabela have debated this."
Marian's pale cheeks flushed a rosy pink. "I-um, well..."
"Ooh! And what about Sebastian?" Eva asked suddenly, turning to Lena. "I mean, there's some things the Chantry can't teach, am I right?" Waggling her eyebrows, she elbowed Garrett and they both began laughing.
Suppressing the urge to walk out of her own home, Lena buried her face in her hands and sent up a silent prayer that whatever madness had caused this mess would soon end.