The Champion

            Mel moved through the busy Lowtown market, expertly weaving her way between the crowd as people loudly bargained or argued over prices.  She took a deep breath in, enjoying the smell of freshly cooked stag and decided that if she had enough coin left over, she’d buy some strips for lunch.  Her coin purse was heavy with the coin she had just recently earned that morning after dealing with Lirene and selling what she had left in the market place and she was on her way to a merchant’s booth that sold finely crafted weapons.  She had spotted a bow there the other day and she now had enough coin to purchase it.

            “Enchantment!”  Mel stopped at hearing the familiar voice and turned, her eyes widening in surprise when she spotted the speaker.  Then she smiled, undeniably happy to be seeing an old friend.

            “Sandal!” she returned the greeting, making her way over to the dwarf and his adoptive father.  “Bodahn!”

            The older dwarf returned her smile, equaling as happy to be seeing her alive and well.  “Messere Mel!  Oh how wonderful to see you again miss!  I had wondered if we would see you here in Kirkwall.”

            “Oh?”  Mel wasn’t sure how to feel about that.  As happy as she was to be seeing them, she remembered that Bodahn was a talker and enjoyed bragging a bit now and then.  If he had been on the lookout for her, whom else had he told?

            Bodahn nodded sharply, his brown beard braids waving about with it.  “Yes, ma’am.  It’s just as I told Messere Roxana, I mean her Highness, when I left her employment that me and my boy sure hope to see Messere Mel when we travel north.  Right my boy?”

            Sandal’s smile was as large as always and he jumped a little with his excitement.  “Enchantment!”  He looked around before turning his hopeful gaze back to her.  “Kitty?”

            Mel shook her head.  “Fenthorn’s out on the coast.  Cities like this aren’t very welcoming to big boys like him.”  When Sandal’s expression fell, she added, “But maybe I can try sneaking him in some time.”  Not exactly a lie.  There was always the possibility that Fen might enter the city.  It just might not be under peaceful circumstances.

            Sandal jumped some more and clapped his hands.  “Enchantment!”

            Mel smiled and turned back to Bodahn.  “Why did you leave Ferelden?  Last I heard from Rox, you two were staying in the Circle there.”

            “For a while yes.  The Enchanter there had taken an interest in Sandal’s talents but,” he looked to his son, worry in his eyes, “my boy began to feel uncomfortable there.  To be honest, so was I.  King Alistair and Queen Roxana may have saved the tower and helped the Order and mages a great deal in cleaning things up, but… it didn’t feel safe.  Made my skin crawl.”

            Sandal frowned and said, “The whispers were scary.”

            Mel frowned as well, not liking the sound of that.  She wouldn’t be surprised if the Veil about the Circle was weakened after the events there and she hoped that either they found a way to strengthen it or perhaps a new location for the Ferelden Circle.  “So why come to Kirkwall?”

            “We heard that trade in the Free Marches had experienced an increase due to all the refugees in the region.  And when me and my boy arrived, we heard about an expedition to the Deep Roads.  It promises to pay well and we wouldn’t mind one last adventure, right my boy?”  Sandal nodded.

            “The Deep Roads expedition?”  Seriously, how does everything and everyone end up connected to Hawke?  The world is not that small!  She remembered the stories Rox had written her about the Deep Roads and the horrors found there.  “You’re not worried about venturing down into darkspawn territory?”

            “Not with such fine protection!  Bartrand Tethras and his brother are leading the expedition and they’ve hired many men for the job.  I’ve also heard that there is a young lady interested in becoming a third partner and that she will be offering her own services to make sure everyone remains safe.”  He looks to his right and pointed.  “Matter of fact, here she comes now.”  Mel turned to look and wasn’t surprised to see Marian walking toward them, followed by Fenris and Aveline.  Mel ignored the feeling she got in her stomach at seeing the warrior elf and instead focused on the fact that all three of them were rather heavily armed.  “Hello again Serah Hawke!”  Mel resisted the urge to smirk, knowing that it was petty to feel smug about the difference in greetings.

            “Hello Bodahn,” said Marian.  She smiled at the younger dwarf.  “Sandal.”  Then, “Mel.”

            “You know each other?” asked Bodahn.

            Mel crossed her arms and smirked.  “Hawke has a habit of being everywhere and knowing everyone.”

            Marian smiled but Mel could see the curiosity in her eyes.  “How do you know these two?”

            Before Mel could answer, Bodahn took it upon himself to do so.  “Messere Mel traveled with us for a time in Ferelden.  She and her… friend, Fenthorn, helped us out of many problematic situations, yes they did.”  Mel felt someone’s intense gaze on her and turned to see it was Fenris.  The elf appeared to be studying her and when she raised a questioning brow, his eyes only narrowed further.

            Marian was intrigued by this information but decided to leave her questions for another time.  Instead she teased, “That seems to be their habit.  One I was hoping to take advantage of today.”

            Mel frowned, instantly suspicious.  “Oh?”

            “Well, we won’t take up any more of your time then,” said Bodahn.  “Sandal and I need to get back to the Hightown market.  Good to see you again ma’am.  Come visit me and my boy some time.”

            “Good to see you too,” she replied, not bothering to make any fake promises to visit.  She couldn’t bring herself to do that to them.  It wasn’t their fault they weren’t aware of why she didn’t like to risk stepping foot into Hightown.  Once the two dwarfs had left and the rest of them had found a narrow alleyway to talk in private, she asked, “So, what’s wrong?”

            “The Viscount’s son has gone missing,” Marian stated.

            Mel tilted her head.  “And you’ve volunteered to find him.”

            Marian nodded.  “Apparently he’s been associating with the Qunari and was last seen leaving for the Wounded Coast with one.”

            Mel crossed her arms.  “Is he actually missing or is this a case of a disapproving parent overreacting?”

            Hawke shrugged while Aveline seemed annoyed by Mel’s causal words.  “Could be either one but there’s a band of mercenaries already on their way that are only interested in getting paid and won’t hesitate to spill blood.”

            “You’re worried they may hurt him?”

            “The reward is for bringing him back alive.  Not unharmed.”

            Mel shook her head.  “Poor wording.  It can kill.”

            Fenris let out a groan.  “You’ve been around Varric too much.”  Mel smirked at him before speaking to Marian.

            “So you need the Red Hood and Fen to help you track him.”

            Marian nodded.  “And protect him if necessary.”

            “And what of the Qunari?  The last two run-ins with them that I’ve been there for couldn’t exactly be called successful.”

            Fenris spoke up.  “The boy seems to have formed a bond with the Qunari.  He may even be giving thought to joining the Qun.”  Mel frowned.  These last two run-ins hadn’t given her a positive view of the Qunari and the Qun.  Parts of it she could understand, such as the search for order and sense of duty, but the strangling need for control, the lack of choice, and the abuse of their mages… she couldn’t look past those.  “They may not be allies in this but they wouldn’t be enemies.”

            Mel huffed in amusement and smiled at him.  “You always know just what to say to make me feel reassured.”  Fenris glared at her.  “I’ll help, no problem.  I will need to… change.”  She only ever brought her Red Hood armor into the city when she was visiting Dayton.

            Marian shook her head.  “There isn’t enough time.  We need to reach Saemus before the mercenaries.”

            Mel kept her calm appearance but her pulse had picked up speed.  “I can’t be seen with Fen as,” she held out her arms indicating herself, “this.”  She wasn’t worried about the Qunari as they already know and the mercenaries probably won’t live to see the sun set but the Viscount’s son?  Revealing who she was to a nobleman and one as high up as this Saemus… that was the worst risk she could take.  Nobelmen talk… a lot.

            “Here.”  She startled out of her thoughts when a low voice spoke near her and turned to see Fenris holding out a large strip of red cloth.  She took it and found that there were two holes cut into it, creating a mask.  She rubbed her fingers over the material and wondered why her chest was filling with warmth.

            “Thank you,” she spoke softly.  Fenris seemed surprised by her tone and hesitated before nodding and stepping back.

            Marian watched the exchanged with interest.  “I’m sure you’re armed but you’ll need more than a couple of daggers.”

            Mel smiled and ran her fingers over her coin purse.  “Don’t worry.  I got that covered.”

***

            Once they had reached the edge of the coast, Mel had tied the mask about her head and gave a high pitched whistle which was answered by a mighty roar.  Soon after, Fen had appeared and after producing a shirt of the missing nobleman for him to sniff, began leading them through the rocky coast.  Mel had questioned why they needed Fen to track when they had Lady and Marian had mumbled something about not leaving her family defenseless in Lowtown.  After that they had remained mostly quiet with some small talk.

            “You traveled with Roxana Cousland, now Theirin,” stated Aveline.

             “For a time,” Mel replied, keeping her eyes forward.

            “You never said anything.”

            Mel shrugged.  “Didn’t seem worth the mention.”

            Aveline looked at her sharply, disbelief on her face.  “You didn’t think that you traveling beside the Hero of Ferelden during the Blight was worth mentioning?”

            Mel rolled her eyes.  “When exactly would I have mentioned that I am friends with the Grey Wardens, Rox and Alistair?”

            Aveline looked to Marian for aid, but when all the rogue did was smile and shake her head, the warrior turned back to Mel with a suspicious glare.  “Friends with the Queen and King of Ferelden.  What else are you hiding?”  Mel returned the glare and Fen began to give a warning growl, though he maintained his progress.

            “I understand you’re named after a famous knight?”  Both women looked to the elf, who was staring expectantly at Aveline.

            “Excuse me?” she asked.  Mel realized what Fenris had done and hoped he noticed her look of gratitude before she moved closer to Fen.  She continued to listen to the conversation though and shot Fenris another look, this time one of sympathy, when he shared how he didn’t remember his birth name, that his current one is was what Danarius had given him and that it meant “little wolf”.  Eventually though, Fen stopped moving and began growling again and Marian gave the order for quiet.

            They slowly moved forward and Fen’s growls grew more aggressive.  “He smells blood,” Mel whispered and they all drew their weapons.  They made their way around the rocks and found themselves at a small beach.  Scattered about were multiple mercenaries and standing over a large bleeding but still form was a lone woman.  The slain body belonged to a Qunari and kneeling beside him was a young man that Mel assumed was Saemus.

            The woman’s smug voice spoke loudly.  “And the world’s rid of one more Qunari.  Easier than I expected.”  She ordered her men.  “Call the men back.  We’ve got an appointment with the Viscount.”  She sneered down at the young man.  “Isn’t that right, Saemus?”

            Saemus’s broken voice had Mel’s fingers twitching.  “Ashaad… you killed him.”  He stood up quickly as shock left his face and anger replaced it.  “You… you vashedan bitch!”

            The mercenary leader laughed and Mel gritted her teeth at the condescending tone she spoke with next.  “That one of their words?  See, that’s why you need to be dragged home.  You’re playing too nice with those things.  I’ll wager you’ve gone even further than that.  Haven’t you, brat?”

            With that, Marian led them all to the mercenary and Saemus, drawing everyone’s attention.  The mercenaries all drew their weapons but hung back, wary of the red lion stalking beside Mel.  Marian spoke as they drew nearer, “Sounds like he doesn’t want to go with you.”

            The leader scoffed and pretended not to be intimidated by the big cat.  “Competition?  Well, you’re too late.  The Winters… I have already claimed him.”  Mel glanced around at the other mercenaries – the Winters – and noticed a few glaring at their leader.

            “Serah.”  Her attention was drawn back to the young man as he spoke to Marian.  He appeared resigned.  “If I must go back, so be it, but I will not see these… murders rewarded!”  He glared at the leader whose face became twisted with rage.

            “Spoiled shit!”  Saemus stepped back from the raging woman, clearly frightened by the anger erupting from her.  She drew both her short swords and spat, “I will cut out your tongue and charge extra for bringing you back quiet!”  Fen let out a snarl, bringing her attention back to their little group.  “And as for you… I could do with some entertainment while we wait for the oth-”

            Mel sank an arrow between her eyes and the leader of the Winters dropped dead.  Everyone gave her a look and she rolled her eyes.  “Please you all knew that was going to happen.”  The fight that followed was a short one, with Fen and Fenris taking out the most.  Saemus wisely kept out of the way, though he remained near the corpse of his Qunari friend.  When the fighting was done, he stood up and glared at the dead.

            “Dead and good riddance.  But… she said she was waiting for more.  A lot more!”  He looked at Marian, worried.

            Aveline allowed the ocean water to wash away the blood on her sword.  “Then we ready ourselves.”

            “Fen,” Mel ordered.  “Go.”  The great beast took off without a sound, disappearing quickly amongst the rocks.  Not too long after, screams and shouts of surprise could be heard followed by a roar.  Mel looked at Marian.  “They’re on their way.”  She smiled.  “Though perhaps not as many as that bitch thought.”

            Marian returned the smile.  “Then let’s ready a fitting welcome.”

***

            After the final fight and the last mercenary was dead, Saemus ordered to take him back to his father all while mumbling about attempting once more to make him see that the Qunari weren’t as bad as the Viscount feared.  When Marian had offered to burn the Qunari as was tradition, the young man had said that it was not the Qunari way and to leave him.   For a while, they walked in silence with the nobleman glaring at the ground.

            “The Viscount is clearly concerned about your safety,” spoke Aveline.  Mel shook her head, knowing this wasn’t the smart thing to say.

            Sure enough, Saemus turned his glare on the Ferelden warrior, his eyes a mix of anger and grief.  “The ‘Viscount’ sends thugs to do a father’s job.  I was in no danger until his ‘help’ arrived.”

            “You could have told him this was your wish,” Marian added.

            Saemus rounded on her.  “Keep your assumptions!”  He started to advance on her.  “You don’t understand anything!”

            Mel threw herself between the two, placing an open hand to the young man’s chest.  “Stop!”  She waved at Marian to back up and the rogue did so.  Mel turned back to Saemus, sympathizing with his grief and anger.  “You’re right,” she said.  “We don’t.”  Though she probably did, much more so than any present.  “But we’re not the bad guys here.  You can trust us to listen if that is what you need right now.”

            “Trust?” he scoffed.  “You?  A girl in a mask?”  Mel stared at him a moment, struggling with a decision.  She sighed and untied the cloth, removing it from her face.  Everyone stared at her in surprise at the action, though Fenris almost seemed angered by her action, his fists tightly clenched at his sides.

            Mel carefully folded the cloth and tucked it in her belt.  “Better?” she asked.

            Saemus searched her face and blushed, as if embarrassed by his outburst.  “I -”  He sighed and bowed his head.  “I cannot talk to him.  He doesn’t hear me.  He is as tired of being disappointed as I am of bearing it.”  He closed his eyes.  “And now Ashaad is dead.  It is not right.”

            “No,” agreed Mel.  No matter what she thought of the Qunari, what had happened to the one on the beach wasn’t right.  “But the ones responsible are dead.”

            Saemus glared at her.  “He sent them.”

            “And us,” spoke up Marian.  Mel waved a hand at her to shut up.

            “Your father is a man with a great deal of power and high expectations for his child.  He attempts to control your life and expresses fear when there is a slight deviation that he cannot understand.  It can be difficult to live up to those expectation and even more so to live with the man.”

            Saemus stared at Mel for a moment.  “You speak as if you’ve lived through this.”

            Mel gave a small smile.  “I have.”

            “Then you do understand.”

            “I understand how you are feeling.  But to be honest, I feel a little envious.”

            “What?”

            Mel kept her eyes on his, refusing to glance at those listening.  “The man who called himself my father may appear similar to yours but for one great difference.  Yours tries to be what a father is expected to be.  He does everything out of a need to do right by you.  He sent those people because he was worried for you.  Mine never even tried to be a father.  He was only focused on what he wanted, not on the wellbeing of his children.  If it had been him who sent those people, he would’ve had them rough you up before bringing you back where he would’ve beat you some more.”  She clenched her fists and Fen came over to offer his comfort.  “Your father isn’t perfect, there probably is no such thing.  But he is trying.  And you need to keep trying to.  If you both stop, things can only get worse.”

            He sighed and appeared humbled.  “I will keep trying to talk to – with – him.  Starting with when I return.”

            Mel’s smile this time was large and full of joy.  “Excellent.”

            He gave her a pleading look.  “Can you be there?”

            Mel’s eyes widened.  “What?”

            “Not for the conversation,” he hurriedly explained.  “But would you wait around?  I suspect tonight won’t go well and it would be a comfort to have a friend there to talk to.  I don’t have many – well any really,” he added softly.

            Mel internally groaned, hardly believing she was doing this.  Not only was she going to enter Hightown but she was going into the heart of it.  But she felt a need to heal the rift between this son and his father and couldn’t say no.  “Very well.”  Hopefully I’ve met my quota of trouble for the day.

            They continued on and as they walked, Mel missed the look Fenris gave her though if she hadn’t, she probably wouldn’t have recognized it.  The elf didn’t even know what he was feeling, only that he wasn’t happy with this turn of events.  But Aveline saw the look and recognized the emotion behind it.  It was one she had seen many times on her late husband, Wesley, early on in their relationship any time another man got too friendly with her.  It was the look of jealousy.