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In truth, Fenris was unsure of how this even came to be. He was just at his Girlfriend's house, ready for just a usual night there. Curled up on the couch, reading a book silently while listening to the fire Crackle and the dog snore before eventually drifting off in to a comfortable sleep there. Possibly waking up the next morning wrapped in a blanket with her tucker in his arms, sleeping just as soundly as he had been. Or, should her twin return home with her boyfriend, be woken a few hours later, her sister's boyfriend demanding he return to his own apartment met with his beloved insisting he stay as it was late and "freaks of Kirkwall were out and may wish to do him harm." Which would lead to either her walking him home and staying the night at his place or Anders ultimately losing the battle and Fenris would merely relocate with Hawke to her bedroom for the night.
However, the Twin sister of his beloved Kaitlynn Hawke- Elenora Hawke- was insisting upon a group activity for the four of them to do. Forget that Anders and Fenris couldn't stand the existence of the other.
A haunted house.
He figure that Kaitlynn would have agreed to such a thing and when Fenris would move to protest spending a long time in a confined space with Anders of anyone else in all of Thedas, then Kaitlynn would just look up at him with those big blue eyes of hers and in that sinfully sweet voice ask "just for one night?" which would ultimately cause him to give in and undergo the undesirable task that Elenora was begging for. But, instead of what he expected, Kaitlynn was quite opposed to the idea of this haunted house.
"I just don't see the appeal of running around some abandoned house with cartoon ghosts and horror movie antagonists with all the fake stuff, ya know?" She said, leaning against her kitchen counter, tea in one hand.
"It'll be fun! Just a few jumps here and there to make us squeal like we're high school girls again." Elenora said. Kaitlynn scowled at her twin.
"Nora, You and I haven't been High school girls in almost seven years." She said. Elenora pouted.
"Katie, come on! It will be a good way to get you out of the house." She pleaded. She looked to her boyfriend for help, but Anders only drank his own tea while seemingly entranced by the Antivan Cuckoo Clock on the wall. Elenora then turned her brown eyes to Fenris, who refused to meet her gaze.
"Nora, I get out of the house literally every day." Kaitlynn said, taking another sip from her tea.
"Work doesn't count." Elenora argued, making her sister shrug. Elenora huffed, sparing another glance around the room for any assistance from the two men in the room, neither one deeming it quite necessary to step in on the sister debate of the week.
"Kaitlynn... Come on, we haven't spent much time together since you started these jobs around Kirkwall and since Anders and I got engaged. I noticed that you've been relaxing more since you started to date Fenris. Come on! Just the four of us. It'll be a double date. Please?" Elenora batted her eyes at her sister and Kaitlynn made that signature sneer that told Fenris she was about to give in. Seems that the batting eyes and pleading voice worked just as well on Kaitlynn as it did for her.
Finally, a heavy sigh escaped the woman. She turned her head and looked in to Fenris's eyes. Her blue eyes practically begged him to oppose.
"What do you think?" She asked. Fenris would normally say no to events like this, being content at just having his quiet time on the couch with Kaitlynn as they listened to the fire and lost them selves in the books they read. She was staking her hope on him saying no. He could almost feel Elenora's spirit being crushed, knowing the elf would refuse. Anders would swoop in and comfort her, saying that the two of them could do it with out the other two.
Fenris's shoulders rose and fell in a shrug.
"I don't see the harm." He lied. In truth, he would have rather stayed home as always, but Elenora had guilted him in to it just as she had with Kaitlynn. Damn those eyes. It had to be a family trait. A Hawke thing. How else could twin sisters that looked so different pull off the same trick so damn well?
"Really?" Elenora asked in shock. Kaitlynn sighed softly and finished off her tea, setting her mug in the sink.
"I guess we're going then." The words almost seemed forced. Anders turned from the clock and set his long empty mug in the sink with Kaitlynn's. He smiled kindly at the sisters, ignoring Fenris as always in encounters like these.
"Then let's be on our way." He said.
The four all climbed in to Elenora's car and went to the Haunted House set up in Hightown. Kaitlynn seemed to sink low in the backseat of the car, keeping here eyes out the window and refusing to look anywhere but at the fellow passengers of the vehicle. Fenris wondered if she was angry with him for agreeing to this, but he also couldn't help but wonder why she was so against it. It's not like she scared easily. This was Kaitlynn Hawke after all. A Ferelden thug that had looked multiple crimes that would make most average men shit themselves out of fear couldn't possibly be afraid of things like poltergeists and Chucky, right? The woman had seem people die and seemed entirely unfazed by the whole idea. But she was so against this haunted house filled with horror movie antagonists and cartoon ghosts and monsters... Was she just irritated by the novelty?
Finally, they pulled up to the haunted house. Elenora was excited. Anders seemed to be enjoying Elenora's excitement. Fenris felt indifferent to the whole thing. Kaitlynn was glaring at the pavement, as if it had killed her father or something.
Once inside, Fenris noticed that Kaitlynn was walking closer to him than she would normally. Her hands were jammed in to her pockets, and every time something leapt out at them, she'd flinch while Elenora squealed and jumped in to Anders's arms. Anders was clearly enjoying the reactions of his beloved while Fenris could safely say he'd seen worse horrors while living in Tevinter. Kaitlynn seemed to grow more and more pale with each room they'd pass through, while Fenris had to say he was bored, even if a few of the jump scares had caused him to finch a few times himself.
He suddenly felt a hand on his arm. He looked over and saw that Kaitlynn looked as if she were one of the Zombie attractions in the house. She seemed on the brink of illness or collapsing. her legs were shaking so bad you'd swear she'd walked out of an earthquake rather than a cheap haunted house meant to scare small children.
"Kaitlynn?" He asked, turning to her. Just as he reach out to touch her, a Grim Reaper stepped out and let out a shriek. It was only matched by that of the woman that shrieked beside him and almost fell. Fenris was quick to catch her as all remaining color drained from her face and her normally cool blue eyes were blown wide open.
"Kaitlynn!" He called as he pulled her closer. She shoved away and ran. Her entire body was shaking that it made her run slow. Anders, Elenora and Fenris were quick to catch up with her.
"Katie? What-?" Elenora started, reaching for Kaitlynn. The black-haired woman stuck out her hands to stop her sister's movements.
"Stop! Just stop! Just... Give me a second." She gasped. She bent over, her hands on her knees, breathing heavily. She might vomit. Fenris stepped forward and placed a gentle hand to her back.
"I'll take her outside. You two keep going." He said and waved over one of the workers dressed as ghostly doormen meant to escort out those it got to be too much for.
The man came over and lead Fenris and Kaitlynn out of the building. Fenris stayed by Kaitlynn, the woman held on to him like she would die the second she let go. He waited for her to calm patiently.
"You must think I'm something pathetic now." She breathed, looking away from him.
"Why would I think that?" He asked. She scoffed.
"Please, Kirkwall's great Champion can stare down Darkspawn and abominations and lyrium-crazed murderers, but a cartoon Grim Reaper makers her almost lose her tea? How is that not pathetic?" She asked. Fenris tugged her closer, encouraging her to lay her head on his shoulder. He stroked some of the short strands away from her sweat-soaked forehead.
"Not pathetic. Merely human." He said. She looked up at him in curiosity.
"You're just as human as the next guy. You can distinguish fear from fun. That's not pathetic." He said. Fenris kissed his beloved's cheek gently.
"Come on, let's get home." He said.
"...We came in the same car... It's either we walk or they do... Either way, Elenora will be mad at me." She said.
"Elenora can get over it." He said. For the first time that night, Kaitlynn cracked a smile.
"Let's go ahead and walk. I could use the air." She said. The two walked back to the Hawke estate and carried out their original plan of reading on the couch while listening to the fire crackle and the dog snore.
Kaitlynn was right about Elenora being upset. But just as Fenris said, she could get over it. After all, that night was filled with plenty of fun and fear as it was.