Merrill Hawke walked weary eyed into the living room of the house she shared with her husband , dressed in an old dark red robe she'd found lying on the floor in the bedroom she shifted uncomfortably with the sudden realization that said garment was about two sizes too big for her petite figure. Still trying to shake herself fully awake the elven girl curiosity peaked as the knocks on her door increased in ferocity with each passing second. A silent curse when she banged her knee against the desk on her way across the darkened room and Merrill opened the door, cursing once more for all but ignoring her husbands constant advice of asking who it was before granting entrance to their home. Thankfully that fact mattered little, she immediately recognized the grinning dwarf on her doorstep despite the many years it'd been since their last face to face encounter.
"Varric!" she exclaimed, choosing to lower to voice for fear of waking the neighbors. "Oh it's so great to see you again, please come in it's far too cold outside".
After he'd taken a few steps into the house the dwarf found himself instantly stopped when Merrill fell to her knees and embraced him in a tight hug. Varric's smiled widened as he returned the gesture. "It's great to see you too Merrill, sod it all this time and you still have that same innocent look about you, it does my heart good to see the war hasn't affected everyone in Thedas".
Merrill simply nodded to her friends comment, afterward quickly lighting the small fireplace on the opposite side of the room. Before long the entire living room was filled a faint orange and yellow light. Confident the fire would stay lit Merrill gestured for Varric to take a seat on one of the two lounge chairs that sat close to the fireplace. "You should have sent a letter to let us know you were coming, I'm sure Hawke will want to know you're here, give me a moment to wake him". A small chuckle was aimed at herself as Merrill exited the room through a door leading into a short hallway. "I should probably get dressed as well, I'll just be a moment".
Varric sat alone by the fireplace for several minutes, the fire did a decent job of warming his cold skin from the harsh weather outside and truthfully his legs didn't protest to a quick rest either. Though he'd never admit it the trek to the small unmapped town where he knew his closest friends had settled down in was anything but easy, but, in the end, it would make for a good story. And other then that, what else really mattered?. Varric had just started to laugh at a familiar ball of twine he eyed on a table in the far corner when Hawke finally entered the room. Dressed in a simple dark red shirt and black pants the man ran a quick hand through his short brown hair to straighten it, his eyes quickly meeting that of his friends when he walked further into the room and sat down in the chair opposite Varric.
"This is rather unexpected my friend" Hawke said in a friendly tone. "Don't get me wrong it is wonderful to see you again, you just don't seem the type to drop by for no particular reason. I hope nothing's wrong".
Unable to meet his friends gaze at the moment Varric instead looked to the fireplace across from him, watching intently as a few pieces of ash rose into the air and slowly came back down to settle on the burning logs they'd came from.
Aware only through her light footsteps that Merrill had reentered the room the dwarf forced himself to speak, a heavy hint of both anger and sadness in his voice. "You got my letter about a year ago?, the one regarding the chantry members who forced me to tell your story".
Both Hawke and Merrill nodded, a clear sign for Varricc to continue. "That question has been in the back of my mind ever since I sent it, it's good to hear my sources managed to stop it from being intercepted. To be completely honest I'm actually here for two reasons, one is something personal I'd like to speak to you about in private, the other regards both you and Daisy, if I can still call her that?".
Merrill smiled warmly as she nodded her answer, leaving time enough for Hawke to think of what to say next. It was with a terrible knot in his stomach that the former Champion of Kirkwall rose to his feet. Something about the way Varric was acting was starting to trouble him, the wisecracking dwarf simply wasn't himself. But there would time later on to fulfill his own curiosity, right now all he wanted to know was why he was up at this blighted hour.
Seeing as he'd formed a strong friendship with Varric during their years together in Kirkwall (one that went so far he'd even taken to thinking of the man as a brother much like the one he'd lost during the fifth blight) he decided to ask the question a bit friendlier than he originally intended. "You said there was something that involves both me and Merrill, I assume you meant a message of some sort?".
Varric nodded "from the King of Fereldan himself, strange as it sounds the man ambushed me alone when I was on my way to find you. After a short struggle, a struggle I would of won by the way, he revealed himself to be none other than King Alistair. Lucky bastard too, if he hadn't removed his hood this conversation might have been entirely different".
Her always wide eyes now filled with excitement Merrill stepped closer into the conversation, her usual green garments grazing against the floor as she knelt down to be eye level with Varric. "The King gave you a message for us?, I can't believe he even remembered me. When we met in Kirkwall I only had the chance to ask him how he kept his armor so sparkly, he patted me on the head and walked away".
Varric leaned back into his chair as he continued. "Word of what happened in Kirkwall spread fast Daisy, you can't expect to fight half the Templar army and turn a crazed Knight Commander to stone in the name of freedom without turning a few heads. I don't know what it is exactly the King wants, but he told me he would be forever in my debt if I was able to convince the Champion of Kirkwall and his well known Elven lover to meet with him in Denerim. I was already planning on coming here so I had no choice but to accept, the King can be...very persuasive".
As Varric finished Hawke had to grin when the faint jingle of coins could be heard from the dwarfs pocket, no doubt the King had also agreed to pay him handsomely for the hard task of going to a place he was already planning to go to, although he was sure Varric chose to keep that fact his little secret. After a few minutes to consider all the information he'd just been given Hawke switched his gaze from Varric to Merrill, the girls eyes did their usual job of bringing a smile to his face. "I gave up making my decisions alone the day you took my surname" he said seriously. "If the King has summoned us I believe we have little choice but to answer the call, but I will not go without you by my side".
Merrill's bright smile looked to envelope her entire face, it took no more than the blink of ones eye for her to make her decision. "I agree, the King would not ask for help if it wasn't important, we must go".
Hawke stood to his full height "that's enough talking for one night, I'm sure there's more to discuss but it'll have to wait until morning. Varric we have a guest room you're more then welcome to use, we'll all get a good nights sleep and make for Denerim by noon tomorrow".
^0^0^0^
The following morning Hawke woke up a few hours earlier than usual, intentionally so. A soft moan from Merrill turned him around when he slowly rose out of their bed, kissing her forehead was always enough to will the girl back to sleep, today would be no different. Roughly an hour of searching the many closets scattered throughout his home and he manged to find an old pair of light leather armor, the armor was far from brand new and a number of wide cuts in the leggings and chest would make the clothing useless to stop a rouge bee let alone an arrow, but for now it would suit his needs.
His twin silver daggers were much easier to find, as he knew she would Merrill had chosen to keep the now dull weapons close by the front door in a small desk. It wasn't often trouble would find its way into the small town they called home for so long now, but more than once both himself and his wife had raised a blade to defend themselves from the occasional petty thief or idiot slaver. Quietly strapping the blades to the back of the armor that now covered him Hawke stepped out the front door of his house and turned a corner into the backyard. The small grass yard gave way to a large pond only a few meters beyond his fence, and much as he did every day Hawke took a deep breath of the crisp air and looked out towards the pond.
The crystal clear pond that now filled his view was one of the few reasons Hawke had chosen this town to start his new life with Merrill. Although his original intention of teaching the girl how to fish was ripped from him when he realized she could not only fish, but could do so without the use of any of the tools he required. It was with a warmth in his heart that Hawke thought back to the first time he'd watched wide eyed as the Elven girl took only two steps into the waist deep water and plucked a fish from a spot he'd sworn was empty the second before. The look on her face was priceless, the look on his own, he faintly remembered falling face first into the water upon seeing his reflection.
It took all he had to not lose himself in his thoughts, a physical shake of his head brought Hawke back into the present. A quick look to insure his neighbors were not yet awake and he pulled the twin daggers from his back, slowly remembering his old swings, blocks, and tricks to evading as he practiced with the weapons best he could. A thick sweat had just begun to form on his forehead when Varric stepped into the backyard, a sly grin on his face. "Afraid you're not what you used to be?, not everyone can be bo
Merrill Hawke walked weary eyed into the living room of the house she shared with her husband , dressed in an old dark red robe she'd found lying on the floor in the bedroom she shifted uncomfortably with the sudden realization that said garment was about two sizes too big for her petite figure. Still trying to shake herself fully awake the elven girl curiosity peaked as the knocks on her door increased in ferocity with each passing second. A silent curse when she banged her knee against the desk on her way across the darkened room and Merrill opened the door, cursing once more for all but ignoring her husbands constant advice of asking who it was before granting entrance to their home. Thankfully that fact mattered little, she immediately recognized the grinning dwarf on her doorstep despite the many years it'd been since their last face to face encounter.
"Varric!" she exclaimed, choosing to lower to voice for fear of waking the neighbors. "Oh it's so great to see you again, please come in it's far too cold outside".
After he'd taken a few steps into the house the dwarf found himself instantly stopped when Merrill fell to her knees and embraced him in a tight hug. Varric's smiled widened as he returned the gesture. "It's great to see you too Merrill, sod it all this time and you still have that same innocent look about you, it does my heart good to see the war hasn't affected everyone in Thedas".
Merrill simply nodded to her friends comment, afterward quickly lighting the small fireplace on the opposite side of the room. Before long the entire living room was filled a faint orange and yellow light. Confident the fire would stay lit Merrill gestured for Varric to take a seat on one of the two lounge chairs that sat close to the fireplace. "You should have sent a letter to let us know you were coming, I'm sure Hawke will want to know you're here, give me a moment to wake him". A small chuckle was aimed at herself as Merrill exited the room through a door leading into a short hallway. "I should probably get dressed as well, I'll just be a moment".
Varric sat alone by the fireplace for several minutes, the fire did a decent job of warming his cold skin from the harsh weather outside and truthfully his legs didn't protest to a quick rest either. Though he'd never admit it the trek to the small unmapped town where he knew his closest friends had settled down in was anything but easy, but, in the end, it would make for a good story. And other then that, what else really mattered?. Varric had just started to laugh at a familiar ball of twine he eyed on a table in the far corner when Hawke finally entered the room. Dressed in a simple dark red shirt and black pants the man ran a quick hand through his short brown hair to straighten it, his eyes quickly meeting that of his friends when he walked further into the room and sat down in the chair opposite Varric.
"This is rather unexpected my friend" Hawke said in a friendly tone. "Don't get me wrong it is wonderful to see you again, you just don't seem the type to drop by for no particular reason. I hope nothing's wrong".
Unable to meet his friends gaze at the moment Varric instead looked to the fireplace across from him, watching intently as a few pieces of ash rose into the air and slowly came back down to settle on the burning logs they'd came from.
Aware only through her light footsteps that Merrill had reentered the room the dwarf forced himself to speak, a heavy hint of both anger and sadness in his voice. "You got my letter about a year ago?, the one regarding the chantry members who forced me to tell your story".
Both Hawke and Merrill nodded, a clear sign for Varricc to continue. "That question has been in the back of my mind ever since I sent it, it's good to hear my sources managed to stop it from being intercepted. To be completely honest I'm actually here for two reasons, one is something personal I'd like to speak to you about in private, the other regards both you and Daisy, if I can still call her that?".
Merrill smiled warmly as she nodded her answer, leaving time enough for Hawke to think of what to say next. It was with a terrible knot in his stomach that the former Champion of Kirkwall rose to his feet. Something about the way Varric was acting was starting to trouble him, the wisecracking dwarf simply wasn't himself. But there would time later on to fulfill his own curiosity, right now all he wanted to know was why he was up at this blighted hour.
Seeing as he'd formed a strong friendship with Varric during their years together in Kirkwall (one that went so far he'd even taken to thinking of the man as a brother much like the one he'd lost during the fifth blight) he decided to ask the question a bit friendlier than he originally intended. "You said there was something that involves both me and Merrill, I assume you meant a message of some sort?".
Varric nodded "from the King of Fereldan himself, strange as it sounds the man ambushed me alone when I was on my way to find you. After a short struggle, a struggle I would of won by the way, he revealed himself to be none other than King Alistair. Lucky bastard too, if he hadn't removed his hood this conversation might have been entirely different".
Her always wide eyes now filled with excitement Merrill stepped closer into the conversation, her usual green garments grazing against the floor as she knelt down to be eye level with Varric. "The King gave you a message for us?, I can't believe he even remembered me. When we met in Kirkwall I only had the chance to ask him how he kept his armor so sparkly, he patted me on the head and walked away".
Varric leaned back into his chair as he continued. "Word of what happened in Kirkwall spread fast Daisy, you can't expect to fight half the Templar army and turn a crazed Knight Commander to stone in the name of freedom without turning a few heads. I don't know what it is exactly the King wants, but he told me he would be forever in my debt if I was able to convince the Champion of Kirkwall and his well known Elven lover to meet with him in Denerim. I was already planning on coming here so I had no choice but to accept, the King can be...very persuasive".
As Varric finished Hawke had to grin when the faint jingle of coins could be heard from the dwarfs pocket, no doubt the King had also agreed to pay him handsomely for the hard task of going to a place he was already planning to go to, although he was sure Varric chose to keep that fact his little secret. After a few minutes to consider all the information he'd just been given Hawke switched his gaze from Varric to Merrill, the girls eyes did their usual job of bringing a smile to his face. "I gave up making my decisions alone the day you took my surname" he said seriously. "If the King has summoned us I believe we have little choice but to answer the call, but I will not go without you by my side".
Merrill's bright smile looked to envelope her entire face, it took no more than the blink of ones eye for her to make her decision. "I agree, the King would not ask for help if it wasn't important, we must go".
Hawke stood to his full height "that's enough talking for one night, I'm sure there's more to discuss but it'll have to wait until morning. Varric we have a guest room you're more then welcome to use, we'll all get a good nights sleep and make for Denerim by noon tomorrow".
^0^0^0^
The following morning Hawke woke up a few hours earlier than usual, intentionally so. A soft moan from Merrill turned him around when he slowly rose out of their bed, kissing her forehead was always enough to will the girl back to sleep, today would be no different. Roughly an hour of searching the many closets scattered throughout his home and he manged to find an old pair of light leather armor, the armor was far from brand new and a number of wide cuts in the leggings and chest would make the clothing useless to stop a rouge bee let alone an arrow, but for now it would suit his needs.
His twin silver daggers were much easier to find, as he knew she would Merrill had chosen to keep the now dull weapons close by the front door in a small desk. It wasn't often trouble would find its way into the small town they called home for so long now, but more than once both himself and his wife had raised a blade to defend themselves from the occasional petty thief or idiot slaver. Quietly strapping the blades to the back of the armor that now covered him Hawke stepped out the front door of his house and turned a corner into the backyard. The small grass yard gave way to a large pond only a few meters beyond his fence, and much as he did every day Hawke took a deep breath of the crisp air and looked out towards the pond.
The crystal clear pond that now filled his view was one of the few reasons Hawke had chosen this town to start his new life with Merrill. Although his original intention of teaching the girl how to fish was ripped from him when he realized she could not only fish, but could do so without the use of any of the tools he required. It was with a warmth in his heart that Hawke thought back to the first time he'd watched wide eyed as the Elven girl took only two steps into the waist deep water and plucked a fish from a spot he'd sworn was empty the second before. The look on her face was priceless, the look on his own, he faintly remembered falling face first into the water upon seeing his reflection.
It took all he had to not lose himself in his thoughts, a physical shake of his head brought Hawke back into the present. A quick look to insure his neighbors were not yet awake and he pulled the twin daggers from his back, slowly remembering his old swings, blocks, and tricks to evading as he practiced with the weapons best he could. A thick sweat had just begun to form on his forehead when Varric stepped into the backyard, a sly grin on his face. "Afraid you're not what you used to be?, not everyone can be bo
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