The Champion

            A few weeks go by while Mel and Fen fall into a new routine that now included Marian Hawke and her many companions.  Mel and Fen would hunt and patrol the Wounded Coast most late afternoons and all nights and Mel would sell her goods in the city or trade with the Dalish by day.  For the most part, Mel kept out of Hawke’s mission to earn money to join Varric and his brother’s venture into the Deep Roads as her assistance wasn’t often required with the all the volunteers at her disposal, whom possessed a wide range of weapons and abilities.  But her lack of involvement in Marian’s personal mission didn’t stop Mel from running into the rogue or someone else in her “group” at some point every day.

            Every other day, when she would go into the city to visit market, Mel would stop by Merrill’s place and talk with her friend.  She wouldn’t stay long though and often left feeling frustrated as their conversations always eventually turned to one on the elf’s usage of blood magic.  In an attempt to gain understanding, Merrill had shown her the creepy mirror that she kept in a back room and called an Eluvian.  She claimed it was a piece to the Dalish’s missing history and was trying to “fix” it.  She couldn’t share much more and when Mel brought her questions to her former clan, the Keeper refused to provide answers and Mel quickly saw that just mentioning the mirror to the other elves caused them to become a little jumpy.  None of this gave Mel any understanding and only increased her desire to stop her friend from resulting to such dark magic.  But her friend was quite stubborn and talks on this topic usually ended in the slamming of doors.

            During many of these visits, Mel would also run into the rogue pirate, Isabela.  Actually the only time she saw the pirate was either with Merrill or when she happened to run into Marian while she’s doing a job and Isabela happened to join her on it.  And the occasional game night with Varric in the Hanged Man.  Mel’s opinion of the self-proclaimed pirate queen had changed very little during this time.  She still couldn’t bring herself to place any trust in her but she could see how she made Merrill happy and that the emotions she showed the elf mage were in fact genuine.  So she tolerated her.  Which was certainly better than Fen who would constantly growl at Isabella anytime they met.

            Varric she saw the most, almost every day as a matter of fact and she started to wonder if he purposely sought her out when he would show up on the Coast if he missed her at market.  He still appeared to be on a mission to get her to share more about herself with him and honestly, she was finding it more difficult to not just tell him everything.  At this point she was just being stubborn and knew that it was only a matter of days before she broke down and told him about Dayton.

            Mel had become good friends with Marian, running into her on the Coast from time to time and meeting with her in Lowtown for drinks and the occasional sparring match.  As good of friends as they had become, Mel had formed a closer friendship with Bethany, visiting her often at her home since it was too dangerous for her to go out during the day and she rarely desired to join her sister when she went out to deal with bandits and other Kirkwall thugs.  Bethany had introduced Mel to her mother and uncle, the former being warm and welcoming and the latter rude and a little crude.  Mel, Bethany and Leandra would share stories of their times in Ferelden and Mel quickly befriended their mabari, Lady.  Mel enjoyed these visits as they reminded her of her time in Ferelden, leading her to writing Rox and Leliana more often, but a couple of times she would catch Leandra studying her carefully and she would feel nervous at the searching look.

            During these passing weeks, Mel hadn’t grown much closer with Anders nor Aveline as well, despite them both coming from Ferelden before Kirkwall as well.  While she might agree with Anders’s opinion on the treatment of mages, she found him a bit too radical for her and she was still wary of the spirit of Justice that shared his body.  She had thought about writing Rox about him since both he and the spirit had made claims on knowing her, but Mel didn’t wish to cause the Queen worry and instead avoided speaking of mages and their lot in life when around him.  As for Aveline, the Captain of the Guard was clearly still not comfortable with her and what her chosen nightly activity was, so Mel made sure to not run into her too often so as to make things a little less uncomfortable for them both.

            Then there was Fenris.  Mel had tried to figure him out but every time she thought she finally had, he would do or say something that would confuse her all over again.  When they were near each other, he would either ignore her, criticize her, or be strangely polite.  Most of the time it would be the criticizing and this often led to them at each other’s throats.  Yet, despite all of this fighting, Mel found herself thinking about him often and looking forward to seeing him whenever she went into Kirkwall or saw Hawke.  She was often confused by her reactions to his actions, to his voice, his eyes…  And not helping her understand any of this was Fen, who seemed to enjoy her constant state of confusion and would tease her whenever Fenris was near with various huffs or by pushing her into the elf, forcing Fenris to catch her when she would stumble.  Mel was sure the warrior believed her clumsy and his opinion that she was a fool had not doubt increased during this time.

            She was currently puzzling over these new feelings while she hunted along the Wounded Coast, dressed as the Red Hood since she hunted with Fen.  They had already taken down a stag further inland and she figured after catching a few nugs they would have gotten enough meat and leathers that day.  She paused when Fen gave a warning growl before rushing ahead quietly, peeking around some rocks.  She sighed when she saw that it was just Marian with Varric, Fenris, Isabela, and Merrill and was going to question Fen as to why he indicated danger when she saw where they were heading.  Shit.  That’s Tal-Vashoth territory.  Shit shit!

            She and Fen ran stealthily to intercept the group, jumping in front of Marian, startling the leader into pulling her blades.

            “Maker damn Mel!” shouted Hawke as she sheathed her daggers.  “Don’t jump out like that!  I could’ve thrown a dagger or – something!”  When Mel started to smile, Marian angrily pointed at her.  “I’m not kidding, I could’ve killed you!”

            Merrill raised her hand a little.  “Um, you’re not supposed to say her real name…”  Mel waved a hand, indicating that the slip wasn’t what was important.  Fen gave a low growl at Isabela.

            “Just wanted to give you a warning.  Tal-Vashoth a head, a lot of them.”

            Marian smiled.  “We know.”  At Mel’s concerned expression, she explained about the dwarf they helped earlier with some giant spiders who had then offered them a deal.  They clean out this area of Tal-Vashoth for him, helping him with a deal he made with the Qunari in Kirkwall, and he would give her a good percentage of his profits.  “Something about an explosive powder I think.”

            “Foolish to get involved,” muttered Fenris.  Mel had glanced at him when he spoke then looked away quickly but not before Varric had noticed.  Fen had somehow noticed as well, making a huffing noise that indicated his amusement.  She struggled not to slap him.

            Instead, she looked over the group and arched a brow.  “So you only brought four other people with you?”

            Marian shrugged.  “Well, yeah.  This is how many I had when I encountered the dwarf and I didn’t see the point of returning to Kirkwall to grab anyone else.”

            “Besides,” spoke up Varric, “We knew we were bound to run into you and Fen out here.”

            Mel shot him a knowing look and said, “You did, huh?”

            “It seemed like the type of situation you couldn’t resist.”  Mel glared at Fenris while Fen huffed in amusement again.  Mel agreed to join them in ridding the area of the Tal-Vashoth, after all it would make the area safer for travelers as well as take out a large chunk of the Tal-Vashoth population on the Coast.

            As they drew closer to this particular group’s territory, Fen’s hackles rose and he began to let out a snarl.  They all drew their weapons and froze when a lone Tal-Vashoth appeared on the path ahead of them.

            He held up a hand and spoke to Marian, “No further human.  Tal-Vashoth control these passages.”  Mel was surprised by the warning, something she had never heard of these rogue Qunari doing.  She glanced around to see that she wasn’t the only one to appear surprised and that Isabela was giving the Tal-Vashoth an appreciative look.

            “I am more than capable of meeting any threat,” Marian replied, indicating herself and her friends with a wave of her daggers.

            The Tal-Vashoth looked them all over slowly, lingering on Fen before speaking again.  “So I see.  I had expected to warn a caravan, not well equipped trackers.”  He gestured to his right.  “The path ahead is littered with my kind.  If you are as skilled as you appear it would please me if you killed them.”

            Mel’s jaw went slack while Varric spoke in surprise, “Awful lot of people wanting the same thing for once.”

            Marian gazed at the Tal-Vashoth, skeptical of his actions.  “And I should trust you?”

            He gave no indication of being insulted by her suspicion.  “I have no history of betraying your people, only my own.  I did not like my role so I left the Qun.  I do not wish to be a murdering thief so I left these Tal-Vashoth to warn their victims.  You are no victim, so now I will leave.”

            “It’s good to know that leaving the Qun doesn’t automatically mean you’re evil,” muttered Mel.

            “It’s always a matter of perspective,” replied Fenris.  Mel wondered if he was aware of the irony of his words.  She turned back to pay attention as Marian attempted to encourage the Tal-Vashoth to help them in killing the others.

            “Do I really need you to do the right thing?”

            “I have already done more than was demanded of my own choice.”

            “He’s got a point,” Mel whispered to Marian.

            “You have my word of caution, human.  Heed it or not.”  With that, he vanished among the rocks and Mel wondered what he would do now.

            “The more they talk the less I understand.”  Varric shook his head and smiled at Marian.  “Only you Hawke would try to convince a Qunari to join our little group.”  They all ignored Fenris when he attempted to correct him.

            “She wouldn’t be the first person to do so,” said Mel, thinking about a Qunari warrior she knew long ago.  “I liked him.”

            “Me too,” Isabela purred, earning a confused look from Merrill.

            Mel rolled her eyes.  “Different reasons I’m sure.”

            The group continued forward, soon finding the Tal-Vashoth they were looking for.  The fight was fairly quick with Mel, Varric and Merrill providing cover while Fenris, Isabela, and Marian charged at their targets.  Fen stayed out of the main fight and instead took out any reinforcements that came from a cave further up the rocky hill.  Once they had dealt with the Tal-Vashoth, Isabela and Merrill went up to the cave to see if there was anything worth taking, Fen going with just in case there was any lingering danger.

            Varric looked around, Bianca still armed and ready in his arms.  “Killed the lot.  I bet that dwarf is waiting in the compound.”

            Mel looked over.  “Mind if I come with?”  She had seen the entrance to the Qunari compound by the docks and had wondered about it often, curious about the Qunari within.  Sten was the only Qunari she had met, not counting the Tal-Vashoth, and she was curious to see if they had a similar personality. 

            “No!”  Everyone turned and stared at Fenris in surprise.

            “What?  Why?” demanded Mel.

            He stared at her a moment before answering, “You will draw too much attention to yourself.”

            “I wasn’t planning on entering Kirkwall dressed as the Red Hood or with Fen.”

            Fenris looked away.  “The Arishok will know.”

            Mel opened her mouth to state that she could care less what the Arishok knew, but Marian cut her off.  “She can come if she wants,” she snapped, not in the mood for another argument between the two.  Maker, she thought, I wish they would just kiss and get it over with already.

***

            Mel watched as Isabela and Merrill walked away, finding the pirate’s sudden and not even remotely believable excuse strange.  It was almost like she had been uneasy with the idea of meeting the Qunari which didn’t make sense when compared with her reaction to the Tal-Vashoth that had given them the warning.  Shrugging it off for now, she turned to Fenris to focus on another mystery while Marian spoke with the Qunari on guard.

            “Okay, care to explain why my presence would draw more attention than say Marian?”

            Fenris appeared to be high alert as if he expected the Qunari to attack them.  He didn’t spare her a glance as he kept his eyes on the guard.  “The Qun does not care for anomalies.  Particularly dangerous ones that are not properly controlled.”

            Mel raised a brow.  “I’m a dangerous anomaly?”

            “Yes.”

            Mel looked down at herself, inspecting the civilian clothing she wore.  Other than the daggers hidden in her boots and sleeves, she was basically unarmed.  Certainly less than the Hawke and the others.  “How?  Marian is just as ‘dangerous’ as me and more of an anomaly.”

            “Hawke does not travel with a red lion.”  They all moved forward when the gates opened and Mel thought on his words.  She could see how she was an anomaly to the Qun as she was a woman that fought.  Sten had shared his confusion about the contradiction once before to her back in Ferelden.  But he had never indicated that he thought her dangerously so due to her association with Fen.  Or perhaps his seemingly emotionless stance kept any uneasiness he felt towards her hidden. 

She glanced around at all the Qunari within the compound that watched them in turn as they passed.  They appeared to be casually observing them but that didn’t fool Mel.  They were alert and battle ready should they make a wrong move.

They approached a large set of stairs that lead to a large strange bench that stood empty.  At the bottom of these stairs stood a dwarf who glanced at them as they approached before turning back to the Qunari standing before him.  “Ah, my right hand arrives.  Summon your Arishok.  The bargain is done.”  The Qunari stared down at him a moment, a look of mild disgust on his face, before walking up the stairs and taking a right, disappearing around the bend.

The heavily bearded dwarf turned to face Hawke fully and frowned at Mel.  “Who are you?”

Marian glared at his tone.  “A friend.”

He shook his head.  “You split what you get, don’t ask for more.”

“He’s friendly,” said Mel and Varric let out a snort when he attempted to hold back a laugh.

The other dwarf ignored her and kept talking to Marian.  “About time you showed.  I’ve been here for hours.”

“The Tal-Vashoth were feeling a bit chatty,” replied Varric.  Mel almost added her own smartass comment but stopped when Fenris moved closer to her and she saw how much more tense he appeared.  She followed his gaze and witnessed as another Qunari approached the strange bench.  She let out a heavy breath as she saw how large he was, much more so than the other Qunari there and Sten.  His horns were just as much longer as he was larger and she also noted that he wore more clothing, although what skin was revealed bore the red markings the others had.  The Arishok stared down at them all a moment, his eyes on each and every one of them.  Then he sat and glared down at them while remaining silent.  Mel startled when Fenris stepped forward as if she had been in a trance of some kind.

“Arichokost.  Maraas shokra.”  Fenris lifts a hand and makes a sweeping wave before dropping it again.  “Anaan esaam Qun.”  Everyone stared at him in surprise, none understanding what he had said.

But the Arishok did and appeared to be surprised as well, though the degree of it was difficult to determine as his expression barely changed.  “The Qun from an elf?  The madness of this… place.”

Marian looked at Fenris.  “Friend of yours?”

            “Friend of no one.”

            “How -”

            “Talk about it later,” the dwarf cut off Mel, who glared at him.  The dwarf looked up at the Arishok.  “I’m here to report that your hated Tal-Vashoth were felled one and all.  Right?”  Marian nodded.  “Yes, they were.”

            “Just about,” whispered Mel.  She almost jumped at the warning glare Fenris shot at her.

            “So, I’m ready to open negotiations for the explosive powder.  As we agreed,” said the dwarf.

            “What’s his name,” Mel asked Varric, ignoring Fenris’s glare.

            “Javaris,” he whispered back.

            The Arishok gazed down at them in silence for about a minute before speaking, “No.”

            Javaris’s eyes widened and a hint of panic was in them.  “He’s not getting it.”  He looked to Marian for help.  “Make your chatty elf say something.”  Fenris looked about ready to kill him.

            Mel glared at Javaris.  “Awful bossy as well,” she said, not bothering to keep her voice down and the dwarf glared at her.

            Marian sighed and asked Fenris, “Any insight that would help?”

            He looked up at the Arishok.  “Qunari do not abandon a debt.”  Louder to the Arishok.  “I humbly request clarification from the Arishok.”  Mel whipped her gaze to him, wondering where that polite speech had been all this time.

            The Arishok tilted his head.  “I have a growing lack of disgust for you.”

            “Wow,” spoke Mel.  “Qunari really are all alike in personality.”

            “I will gag you,” growled Fenris.

            “The dwarf imagined the deal for the gattlok.”  Javaris made a sputtering protest that was ignored.  “He invented a task to prove his worth when he has none.”

            Fenris bowed his head in a show of respect.  “Then we have wrongly inserted ourselves in your affairs.”  He looked back up and gestured to Javaris.  “Would you have us kill this dwarf?”

            Said dwarf took a step back.  “Wait.  What now?”

            Varric stared at Javaris.  “Bianca’s tempted.”

            Mel looked down at Javaris, tilting her head as if curious.  “Fen’s never tried dwarf before.”

            All joking forgotten, Varric shook his head.  “That we might want to hold off on.”

            The Arishok seemed to give Mel and Varric a slightly more irritated glance than the one he’s had the whole time, but it was difficult to tell for sure.  “If you faced the Tal-Vashoth, he is not worthy of dying to you.  As he was not worthy of dying to them.”  He turned his gaze to Hawke.  “But you… you keep good company.”  Nods toward Fenris.  “Let the dwarf live.  And leave.”

            Marian stepped forward boldly, taking advantage of that show of approval.  “He had big plans for your recipe.  I was promised a piece of that.”

            Mel warily looked up at the Arishok and whispered, “I know you need the money and normally I’d say fight for it, but this might not be a good time to.”

            The Arishok spoke to Javaris, anger in his voice though still absent from his face, “Dwarf.  Did your imaginary bargain make promises on my behalf?”

            It seemed to dawn on Javaris that he had made more than one mistake that day, possibly a very large one.  “I… expected your wisdom to be more profitable.”

            The Arishok looked down in thought and in the silence all of the other Qunari in the compound moved into a more physically ready position.  Then the Arishok stood, his entire body now betraying his anger, and ordered, “Then you will pay on my behalf.”

            Javaris threw his hands in the air.  “Sod it all!  Take your coin.  Take whatever!”  Marian caught the coin purse thrown at her and they watched as the muttering dwarf began to walk away.  “Horn head oxmen and mongrel dog lords.  Suck your own powder and blow your head off.  Sod it!”

            Mel looked at Marian confused.  “Mongrel dog lord?”

            Marian appeared insulted.  “If Fen wants to give dwarf a nibble, I don’t think anyone would miss that one.”

            “Hawke, Mel.  No,” snapped Varric.

            The Arishok looked down on them.  “You will leave as well.  There is no more coin for you here.”  He then sat dismissively.

            “Well now I feel cheap,” said Marian, but she pocketed the coin purse all the same.  They all turned to leave when…

            “Red Hood.”  Mel froze at the deep rumble and slowly turned to face the Arishok, whose gaze was solely on her.  When she met his gaze and refused to look away, he continued, “You command the red lion that prowls outside this wretched place.”

            Mel’s fingers itched for a dagger and she glared up at him.  “I command no one.”

            The Arishok narrowed his eyes in turn.  “You do not control the beast?”

            Mel opened her mouth to reply but found her arm in a tight grip and a voice hissing in her ear, “Do not give him a reason to see you or Fen as threats to be dealt with.”  Fenris then spoke to the Arishok, “The beast listens to her.”

            The Arishok turned his gaze to the elf.  “And to whom does she listen to?”

            Fenris gave Mel’s arm a warning squeeze to remain silent and stated, “Me.”