Warning: None that I can think of.

Rating: +15

Review responses:

the kid: Don't worry. The Couslands' love for anybody will be slow in coming as they are still grieving for what happened that night.

YoshisSupport: I thought it would be more realistic to have the attraction between them start out slow and steady rather than 'bam! I really love you, now.' And yes, I am setting up for a story after this one, but it'll depend on how everybody likes the Hawkes in this story.

David9999: Hmmm. That is a good question about the Awakening part. To be honest, I'm not sure yet. If so, this story will be novel-length and require a lot of patience. Hope you're up for that! :)

Alasse Telrunya: Yes! Another Hawke/Anders fan! M!Hawke right? I am strongly considering pairing Fergus with Zevran, since the elf is from Antiva as was his wife. Then again, who's going to carry on the Cousland name? I think I'll scare readers away if I do Mpreg. Hmmm...

Aki: Hawke will still be the Champion of Kirkwall. He'll leave Lothering way before the Darkspawn overrun it. We all want a chibi Alistair! He's so cute when he's flustered and hot when he's angry. Yes, I foresee a lot of smut between Hadrian and Alistair in this story, not to mention other pairings as well.

Dragon Age Fan: I haven't decided on whether or not the Hawkes will stay in this storyline or not. However, a Fergus/Bethany is an interesting pairing. I'll defn keep that in mind while I'm tallying votes for Fergus.

Btw (by the way), including the votes placed in reviews, Leliana and Zevran are tied. Deadline is fast approaching! (4 chapters away!) Vote now!

Chapter 22: We're Off to See the Wizards!

Hadrian woke up, looking more tired than ever. Deep circles decorated the bottom of his eyes, giving him almost a ghoulish appearance. He didn't really sleep the majority of that night as nightmares and hopeless dreams plagued him. There was an instance where he felt calmed though and when he opened his eyes that morning, he saw Regus sitting by his feet. Perhaps it was his Mabari friend that had come and guarded him even for only a brief moment.

He noticed that his sword and shield were out, with the family emblem observable to anyone coming in. His mother had given him that sword on that dreadful night and originally he hadn't wanted to use it, fearing that it would bring back memories he didn't particularly want to see. With all the blood it had consumed though, the blade itself had shown signs of wear and tear. There were some parts of it that were chipped away and a dull sheen covered the steel tongue, despite him having cleaned it every day since then. He really needed to buy another weapon.

Unfortunately, his close escape from Howe's clutches only permitted him to carry the essentials and the small pouch of money had room for 100 sovereigns only. He could have carried more but the clinking sound of money was like a beacon to every thief and desperate man in his vicinity. The last thing he needed was to be outdone for by a common beggar.

Maybe Bodahn would have a good sword for him to use and he could reserve his family sword for Howe's head.

Hadrian dressed himself into fresh clothes, another essential item that he packed, and stepped outside to find the campsite already alive with his companions moving about. The small bonfire from last night had decreased to pathetic little flames that barely covered the burning pine needles found nearby the campsite. Leliana was busy polishing her daggers by the campfire and she greeted Hadrian with a gentle smile. Sten though did not say anything to Hadrian. In fact, he barely acknowledged him with little more than a deep stare, giving Hadrian an impression that his mind was off somewhere else.

There was another campfire located a little further out and behind the dwarves' wagon. A small tent stood by some small shrubs and Hadrian could tell that the figure moving in and out of the tent was none other than Morrigan. Her skimpy clothes were like a marker to her. No female in their right mind would wear such an outfit without having a decency to blush or feeling cold.

The cold winter was coming. He could sniff it in the breeze. Great. Now not only does he need new weapons, but probably clothes too. Maker, at least at the Castle, they had spare clothes and blankets to be had in abundance.

The only person not found at the camp was Alistair and Hadrian grew worried. Wasn't Alistair supposed to keep watch? Then again, there was a Qunari standing still as a statue in the middle of the camp. Perhaps his friend was in his own tent.

He walked by Alistair's tent, which was set up between him and Leliana's, and saw movement occurring within. A second later out came Alistair already dressed in his chainmail armor, looking suspiciously afresh and smelling very clean, with a hint of something tantalizing underneath the clean odor.

"Hadrian? You're up already?"

His question confused the older Warden. Of course he was up! He promised Bodahn that he would go and talk to him at the break of dawn!

"It's two candlelights past dawn." Alistair nudged in the direction of the sun, which was almost in the middle of the eastern sector of the sky hemisphere. "Bodahn came by earlier but you were still asleep."

"I see," Hadrian replied and he rubbed his face tiredly with his hands.

"You ok?" Hadrian inwardly laughed at how that same question was thrown back at him.

"Yeah. Just-"

"Tired? I know. A lot of things happened lately," Alistair replied, understanding the reason for his friend's fatigue. "Food's ready though."

"Hmm? Food?" Oh crap. He forgot to hunt last night. He must have been really out of it.

"Don't worry about it. Apparently, Princess Stabbity knows how to track and hunt herself. See?"

A small pot of stew was bubbling quite nicely on top of a contained fire and Hadrian became confused when before he couldn't pick up the now aromatic smells that drifted towards his nose. He really needed a pot of good Antivan coffee. Antiva was not only known for being the best cheese maker but also for their local coffee. Their smooth coffee roast wasn't only praised by the locals but all of Thedas as well.

"Oui," the redhead affirmed and beside her laid three rabbit skins, freshly cut and now in the process of drying. So that's why she was polishing her daggers.

"Thank you for cooking," Hadrian said very courteously. Then he whispered to Alistair in a very quiet voice. "Is it good?"

"Wha? Oh yes! Much better than Morrigan's!"

Hadrian groaned and his hand slapped against his face when Alistair did not whisper in reply. In fact, he said it so loudly that even the dark-haired witch in the back was glaring at them. If looks could kill, they would both be dead.

The redhead laughed in her mellifluous pitches. "Why, thank you Alistair! It's always been my favourites! Rabbit brains are a delicacy in Orlais after all."

Alistair's face paled and the man hastily ran back to the bushes near his tent. Retching sounds could be heard, followed by Morrigan's laughter and subsequent shout of 'You deserve it!.'

Hadrian, while feeling a little bit queasy, managed to control the bile that threatened to crawl up his esophagus and out of his mouth. The soup still smelled good but imagining the slimy pieces of that particular organ made even him cringe.

"Would you like some too, Hadrian?" Leliana already had a small bowl of soup in her hand and Hadrian really wanted to say 'no' but couldn't. He reluctantly accepted it, not wanting to hurt her feelings. She did after all go through all the trouble of hunting and skinning the rabbits.

"Enjoy!" She said cheerily before turning her back on him, not seeing the man toss his soup at the side. The soup unfortunately landed on Regus, who was just walking his way to the fire. The Mabari yelped in pain and in retaliation, he headbutted Hadrian in the thigh not so gently, causing Hadrian to trip backwards and saying a couple of expletives that would have made a Revered Mother blush like a schoolgirl.

"Maker's Pits, Regus!" Hadrian shouted as he climbed to his feet. Regus growled back at him, not at all intimidated by his master. Hadrian snarled and Regus suddenly whimpered, clearly knowing who was the alpha of the pack. Looking chagrined at his canine's friend, he sighed and roughly slapped him on the rump, prompting Regus to jump at him and wanting him to pet him more. "Go away, mutt! I have to talk to Bodahn now!" The words were harsh but not the tone. Regus gave a small yip of acknowledgement before padding away to where Alistair was. Regus can take care of him.

Apparently, the two dwarves could cook as well for the smells of cooked rice with rosemary and thyme added to it wafted to his nose, causing his stomach to growl, despite the recent nausea that had erupted from Leliana's dish.

"Oh, you're up! I can see you that you're eyeing our breakfast," Bodahn said in a cheerful manner and, ust like Leliana, he offered the man a small bowl of rice with some strips of meat strewn across the top. It does smell delicious. "Sandal, fetch some utensils for him."

"Okay," Sandal replied back in a very slow way. Hadrian wondered if maybe Sandal was slow in the head or something.

Half of a candlelight later, the three of them sat down, talking and eating. Hadrian found that he rather liked the two dwarves, despite their secrecy to 'collecting' things from dead people. Practically ruled over anything else though if the objective was to survive and Hadrian told Bodahn, whose mouth was currently stuffed with his breakfast, he didn't mind so long as it wasn't from them or living people.

"Thank you so much, ser! You are a very good man."

The grateful dwarf beamed at him again and it gave Hadrian a warm feeling. There were some good people in this world after all.

"By the way, do you have any swords that I could use? Mine's done for and I need to have it repaired."

"Why, I'm glad you asked. In fact, I just traded with a merchant not too long ago,"

"Trade?" Hadrian raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, trade this time." Bodahn fervently nodded his head and, after placing his plate down, went off to the side of the wagon. It was kind of funny to see a tiny dwarf trying to clamber in the back of the wagon, emitting curses and other foul things, while searching for something. There was an 'ah ha' exclamation and the little dwarf climbed his way out and down to the ground.

In his hands was a longsword sheathed in a shiny leather scabbard. It didn't look like it saw much use in times of war for the leather was still in pristine condition. Hadrian unsheathed it and discovered that the blade was whole and untarnished with the usual scratches and pockmarks found on weapons that were used extensively on the battlefield.

"How much?" Hadrian asked, his eyes still inspecting the quality of the sword and scabbard.

Bodahn's eyes peered down in deep thought and the dwarf made a 'hmmm' sound.

"Since you were so kind to let us stay, how about 3 sovereigns?"

"That's a good price for a new sword. Here, I'll give you 4. It should cover any food expenses."

Coins tinkled in warm palms as the transaction occurred between friends.

"Well, ser. Where do you plan on going next?" Bodahn's question threw him off guard for a moment. Yes, that's right. The Darkspawn were coming and the first village in their destructive path was Lothering, which was not too far from where they had camped. Damn. Always have to be on the move. It was moments like these that made him wish it was all a dream, that he would wake up and find himself wrapped up in his wooly blankets back at home. Home.

"Ser? You're alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine. Just tired." He really was getting tired of saying that to everybody. He might as well put a sign on him that says 'I'm just tired. Now bugger off!'

"We need a healer in our party," Hadrian said. "I think the Circle of Magi would be our next destination."

"Oh really? That's a long way! It'll take us two weeks to get there."

Two weeks? Maker's pits, the full moon will be here in seven days…Already he could feel the itching sensation he would experience when the full moon was close by and his senses were getting sharper by the hour. He could almost smell the scents of the people around him. Bodahn and Sandal both smelt of earth and rock. It didn't surprise him since they were dwarves.

There were other lingering smells around him. The fresh scent of lavender and honey suckles were almost dominated by those of the Qunari. Then there was something else, something that burned his olfactory senses but in a good way. He couldn't tell from which the scent came from and so he locked it away for future use.

"Yes, which means, we better head out now. Pack your things and be ready before Midday."

Hadrian gave him a brief bow, to signify that the conversation was at an end and his subsequent leave. Both Bodahn and Sandal watched with curious eyes at their new sponsor and protector. The Paragons were indeed watching over them and Bodahn was never a dwarf to test his Paragons' patience by idling.

"Come on, me boy. Help me with this, will you?" Sandal gave a chirped reply. He happily helped his father douse the campfire and pack their various items into the wagon.

-o0o-

Traveling with a dark-haired witch and a templar was hard but amusing enough for the man taking lead. Going to the Circle Tower with an Orlesian redhead and a Qunari as well made it even more hilarious than Hadrian ever imagined.

By Midday, when the sun was at its highest point in its celestial course, the troupe was ready to head out. No one had really protested against going to a tower full of possibly crazed mages. No one except for Morrigan.

She was absolutely livid and Hadrian couldn't see why. She was to see other people with magical abilities, people like her. What was so wrong with that?

"I think it's rather demeaning for those with powerful abilities to be caged in like dogs," she opined, her topaz eyes glaring dangerously at the man who told her that she was going with him instead of asking her politely. "People should fear us."

Hadrian sighed in exasperation. She may complain a lot but she does often hit on the right points, especially on issues concerning mages and the abusive power of the Templars. He wondered if his own friend, Loren, was doing well. The last time he saw him was well over five years ago or more. Even now, the images of the imprisoned mages with their Templar dogs watching their every move made him shudder with revulsion at how quick a man could be demoted in society just because of his existence.

"Morrigan, like I said before, it's to get a healer. You should know by now that you excel in destructive arts, not the healing ones."

The witch crossed her arms beneath her bosom rather crossly. Maybe he shouldn't make her angry. She is still a Witch of the Wilds after all.

"Fine," she said, giving in to Hadrian's tactful persuasion on her joining them. "But if I see even one Templar make a move on me, I'm turning him into a toad!"

Sten, like Morrigan, also challenged him but for a different reason. The Qunari had been waiting for him patiently by the doused campfire. He was still clad in plain farmer's clothes, probably the same offered by the Revered Mother to cover up his heathen markings upon his discovery and then imprisonment. He bore no weapons but from the way his muscles flexed and tensed when moving, Hadrian could tell that Sten was not to be taken lightly in combat. Then again, neither was he.

"You are a strange human."

Well, that was one heck of a greeting.

"Uh, yes. So people have told me before," Hadrian replied, a little bit perplexed by Sten's statement.

"You carry yourself with noble intentions but are surrounded by people lesser than you."

Hadrian's eyes got big by that truthful statement. How did Sten know he was a noble? He had taken great pains into not exposing his tragic heritage. Maybe Alistair's tongue slipped. However, Hadrian couldn't recall his friend conversing with this six-foot monstrous being. In fact, Alistair was with him that entire time, using him as a shield against Morrigan's verbal assaults.

"These people aren't lesser than me," Hadrian said firmly. Despite being born a noble, his father made a great effort to inculcate the idea that being born a noble doesn't necessarily mean people will follow you. To be a leader, you must first serve and protect. That is a Cousland's first duty.

"Be that as it may be, since you have released me from my cage, I promise you my blade in return."

"I have a spare Greatsword. Do you want it?"

"Unless you much rather have me fight with my bare hands and expire so quickly in battle, then yes I want it."

That was a very long-winded answer for a simple 'yes' but Hadrian brushed it aside, thinking that maybe that was how Qunaris talk.

Leliana and Alistair, in comparison to Morrigan and Sten, were quite enthusiastic in going. Alistair's face was still pale from his vomiting session and Leliana still couldn't' figure out why he had gotten so sick. She was sure she cooked the meat all the way through.

"I heard that the Circle of Magi holds many secrets," the redhead said solemnly while she was cleaning out the pot she had used to cook the rabbit and a various assortment of vegetables.

"Yes, as do all other places," Hadrian replied back. And other people.

He watched the redhead, who was quite tall for the fairer sex, pack up her tent and her various items. The amount of stuff lying around suddenly made Hadrian think that they would possibly have to leave some things behind.

As if reading his mind, Morrigan walked up to him and she muttered a few words. A blue light shone from her palm and without warning, it started to suck everything in; the tents, the weapons not currently in use, even the packs stashed ready by the exit of the camp, all flew into the tiny ball of light.

"Hey! That was my cheese that just got sucked in there!" Alistair pouted. His lips and fingers were still covered in cheese crumbs.

"Too bad," Morrigan snipped back, "I got all the packing done in what would have taken you all a few hours at best. Since you are so bent on getting a healer, we need to leave now."

She huffed in indignation and stomped away. Sten regarded her with cold, disgusted eyes but she ignored it; the witch was all too familiar to expressions of disgust and fear on other people's faces.

"That still didn't change the fact that you stole my cheese!" Alistair shouted angrily at her.

"Alistair, don't piss her off. I don't want to travel all the way to the Circle as an ugly toad."

Ugh. What a daunting thought. Alistair shook his head in an effort to erase the image of Hadrian as a slimy, big, and fat toad. The toad Hadrian was immediately replaced by that of what he saw the night before and he was horrified to realize that he rather liked the sight. No! No! Think of him as a toad! A toad!

Thankfully the set of armor he wore was made out of chainmail, not clothe, and had hidden the growing bulge.

His eyes opened, only to see an amused Hadrian looking back at him. There was a slight wolfish grin plastered on that sun-kissed skin and for a moment Alistair panicked, thinking that Hadrian could read his thoughts. The blue eyes became intense for a brief second before becoming stoic again. What was running in that man's head?

"Let's go," Hadrian said abruptly, shouldering his new longsword and family shield. They were bound to find out one or another about his family so he might as well use it. Plus, it was the only shield he had anyways. We really need new weapons. I wonder if the Circle of Magi has a trading post there.

Everybody was waiting for the straggling trio and Hadrian threw one last glance at the empty clearing. He felt as if he was leaving something behind or maybe someone. However, Fergus could be lost in the Wilds, dead or alive. It would be a fool's errand to go back now and search for him, not with the Darkspawn roaming around. He lead his group out into the open world with a heavy heart and a weak hope that maybe he would see his brother again.

-TBC-

Next chapter: Fergus wakes up in friendly company and is given devastating news. What will he do now?

Also, with the full moon well on its way, Alistair becomes highly suspicious when he sees Hadrian leave camp and does not come back for hours. Will curiosity kill the cat?

A/N: I'm really sorry if this chapter sounds rushed but I hope you all enjoyed it! Have a good weekend! Thanks again for reading. Review, pretty plz? With a cute Alistair on top?