After a long and frustrating journey by sea, the ship docked in the Kont-arr harbor. Hawke joined the other aspiring converts asking for passage to Par Vollen. It was the only way to reach the island without being attacked by the barrage of dreadnaughts that surrounded it. "Soon, I will be there. "Soon, I will see him again. And I will…" she paused, briefly cursing the lack of a valid plan to seduce him. Or at least, make him understand how she felt about him. She realized that she didn't yet understand the Qun well enough to find that one loopwhole she assumed she needed. That one weak spot in his heart's armor. She was good at finding weak spots, but this was going to be hard.
Par Vollen, on a bright, sunny day. Pristine sand, clear waters and a much welcomed breeze that made the heat almost bearable. She stepped off the ship full of confidence, hugging the backpack that carried the precious cargo: the copy of the gaatlok formula, along with the notes she took from the Tal Vashoth cavern.
Soon, the Ben-Hassrath started sorting the new converts. They were given new clothes, food and housing in what seemed to be some sort of barracks. Hawke, never being one to lack courage, asked to be taken to the Arishok. It was urgent and crucial, she said. It involved very important documents, taken from Tal Vashoth hands, she said. She was told, in no uncertain terms, that the Ben-Hassrath will take care of that and, if need be, bring the matter to his attention. Reluctantly, she emptied her backpack and handed them everything she had. Hawke could see the kossith woman's eyes getting wider and she knew this might just grant her the audience she requested. In worked. Just not how she expected.
"The Ariqun has to see this!" uttered the kossith, visibly shaken.
Hawke was in awe. She never saw a Qunari display any emotion that could be even remotely interpreted as weakness.
The Ariqun was a solemn presence and, if she wouldn't have met the Arishok before, Hawke might've felt intimidated by him. Although shorter and leaner than the warlord, the Ariqun wasn't, by any means, less imposing. Towering over her by about a foot, his eyes were gleaming with something very different than the Arishok's, something that Hawke thought was as close to tolerance as anything she ever felt from the Qunari. If she didn't know better, she could've sworn he took a liking to her. After countless questions and a lot of additions to what Hawke thought might be her viddathari file, she was dismissed without any explanation.
After lunch, the new converts were taken by the Ben-Hassrath to have their various skills tested. Hawke signed up for sparing and a few other things she knew she was good at.
The next day started with more tests in what seemed like an endless probing into all the aspects of her being. This time, she was being measured from head to toe by a couple of Tamassran. Hawke was feeling akward in the presence of the much taller women. The younger one was the most beautiful kossith female Hawke saw so far. Rich, white hair was caressing her bare shoulders. Her big, bright yellow eyes contrasted nicely with her otherwise small and delicate features. She held the same file Hawke saw in the Ariqun's office and silently wrote in it.
"This should do." said the older Tamassran after measuring the distance between her hip bones. "No restrictions." she added. "Give her to him."
The younger woman's bright eyes caught fire as she lifted her head to look the other kossith in the eyes.
"It is the demand of the Qun. And he asked for her. Her fighting prowess must not be wasted. Neither is her fertility." she said, staring the young Tamassran down.
"It will be done." the woman accepted, nodded and left the room.
"She discovered she was barren. You smell… very fertile. The Qun demands the Triumvirate's offspring" explained the old woman.
"Didn't she?" Hawke asked without thinking.
"It is not the same with kossith. We can't smell it as well as we do on humans. We rely on the speed with which a woman is impregnated. It is taking her far too long." the Tamassran replied.
Putting two and two together, Hawke froze. "That bastard! So he did like me, that son of a bitch!" she thought. It dawned on her that the younger woman was the Ariqun's mate, was rejected for being barren, and now he was asking for Hawke to take her place. "Oh, how Varric would love that!" she imagined her dwarf friend writing a dirty novel entitled "Hawke and the Triumvirate". Good thing the Arigena was female. Not that that aspect would stop Varric.
"Why do you shed tears?" the kossith asked.
Hawke didn't even realize when she started to cry. The absurdity of it all was too much. She took a moment to curse her own stupidity, the Qun and its rules, the Ariqun and his lust and even the Arishok. Especially the Arishok. "It won't happen again." she replied, wiping her face.
"Yes, it will. You're not the first human I deal with, Besrathari." smiled the woman, gathering her instruments.
Hawke's eyes brightened. "They assigned me a role. A not too shabby one, either. Andraste's tits, if it wasn't for the breeding part…" she thought.
Hawke was strolling lazily through the small garden next to the barracks, her fingers gently stroking the leaves of the bushes she was passing by. She was alone. Everybody else was having lunch, but she needed to think, to find a way out. One that did not involve fighting a whole island full of Qunari.
All of the sudden, she heard footsteps approaching and, out of instinct, leaped over the nearest bush and hid. She froze for a moment, and then a big smile joined the brightness in her eyes when she saw the man she loved.
"Arishok!" she screamed and jumped out of the greenery and into his arms, her ankles locking behind his back, before she realized what she was doing. In a split of a second, Hawke found herself on her back, his knee pinning her to the ground, threatening to crush all her ribs and drive them through her lungs.
"Besrathari? Explain!" the warlord retreated slowly, as if not wanting to cause her more damage than he already did.
The woman stood up, her hands shaking the dust off her bottom.
"You knew of the role I was given?" she whispered.
"I recommended it. It pleases me that you submitted to the Qun. Your place was not with those dathrasi, in that pustule of a city." he said, his tone devoid of any emotion.
"Thank you." Hawke blushed. She could still feel the lingering smell of him on her top. Tea… sweet spices… cinnamon, maybe?… and something else, very musky and masculine. As expected, that did nothing to reduce the redness of her cheeks.
"I would talk to you about the gaatlok formula." he continued.
"Arishok, I…" her tears choked her. She wanted more than anything to tell him about the Ariqun, to beg for some kind of rescue, but she knew he wouldn't care. He'll probably think it an extremely rare honor bestowed upon a human. And he would be right.
"I hold you no grudge, Besrathari. I am merely recognizing your worth." the Arishok said, looking at her sad expression. "Is there something you wish to tell me?"
"I was asigned a mate, it seems." She was going to tell him, but not go into any details. There was going to be no humiliating herself, she decided.
"I recommended that, too." the Arishok said, and it was the first time Hawke ever saw him smile. "You seem displeased." he noted.
"Did you recommend a particular person?" she asked fuming, her blue eyes as cold as steel, before giving way to tears.
"I did." he answered, watching Hawke's face giving off more hurt than he ever saw in a human before. "Did you meet him?" he asked, almost apologetically.
"No, not yet." she refrained from telling him she suspected who he was. "I assume they are going to take me to him." Hawke said, two big tears rolling down from the eyes that were watching him like it was for the last time.
"I am going to ask the Tamassran to give you a couple of days to get accustomed to the idea. Join me for tea tonight, in my office. Panahedan, Besrathari." he told her and headed for the barracks.