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Dailisa knocked Tamis' dagger out of her hand with the flat of her blade, then knocked the rogue on her ass with a solid blow from her shield. As she poked the end of her practice sword at Tamis' chest, she found a blade at her own throat. The Warden Commander froze as a deep voice spoke slightly above her head.
"You should have felt me behind you, Commander. I didn't even sneak. What if she had a partner?"
Dailisa kicked back, striking Nathaniel a glancing blow with her boot as he danced out of her reach with a smirk. She sheathed her weapon and helped Tamis off the ground.
"He's right, Tamis. I didn't have my guard fully up because I expected us to be alone. And I'd have gotten killed if it was for real." She smiled ruefully. "Even I need reminders. Now, off you go. I'll see you at supper."
She and Nathaniel silently put the practice gear away and walked into the Vigil.
"Do you get to tell me where you were now?" Dailisa asked as they headed automatically to her room at the top of the Keep.
Nathaniel looked down at her as they walked. She looked straight ahead and he sighed.
"I was running errands for the First Warden." As they walked into the room, he shut the door behind him as she strode to the window to avoid looking at him. He studied her back for a moment before sighing again then folding himself gracefully into a chair near the fireplace.
'You know why he asked me instead of you. You're needed here. You're too close to the King...and he knows you don't approve."
Dailisa turned around to face Nathaniel and leaned against the wall, her arms crossed. "You know I don't approve as well, Nathaniel. And yet..."
He narrowed his grey eyes at her. "I am not fighting with you about this. I actually have good news to share with you, if you'll stop frowning for a moment."
Dailisa raised one dark eyebrow at Nathaniel.
"I saw Anders."
Dailisa widened her eyes and crossed the room to sit in the chair facing Nathaniel. "Where? How is he? Justice?" Nathaniel smiled and held up his hands to stay her barrage of questions.
"Well, I..." He stopped here, appearing to think, before going on. "Well, I saw him in the Deep Roads."
Dailisa opened her mouth, but Nate put up his hand again before going on. "No, no. I, uh, well, you know Delilah lives in Kirkwall now, yes?"
She narrowed her gold eyes at him. "What does that have to do with anything at all, Nathaniel?"
"Well. Since what I was doing took me to the Deep Roads under the Free Marches, I stopped to visit." He said, somewhat defensively, before continuing. "She got worried when I didn't make it back as soon as I told her I would." He eyed her warily.
She crossed her arms and glared at him, nodding for him to continue.
"She hired the Champion of Kirkwall to come check on us because she was part of the reason we were down there anyway."
"And did you need rescued?"
"Andraste's Ass, Dailisa. Yes, we got into some trouble down there! Maker! Can we talk about that later?!"
Dailisa looked as if she'd like to argue. Instead she nodded curtly and said, "I still don't know what this has to do with Anders."
Nathaniel's scowl faded into a slow smile. "He was with the Champion."
Dailisa looked taken aback. "You're kidding. Just traveling around the Deep Roads with the Champion of Kirkwall?"
"They were looking for me, Dai. Maker, there were darkspawn everywhere, and if I'm honest, I was not sure I was good enough to get all of them. And I'd been separated from everyone else." He looked at his hands to avoid looking at her. "Then fire rained down just ahead of me. I will tell you, I almost panicked-I thought it was 'spawn. Then they were all dead and there was this small group of people, led by this tall redheaded woman with smoke coming off her hands. I recognized her as the Champion-that's all anyone in Kirkwall talked about. Then Anders stepped out from behind her."
Nathaniel smiled slowly and looked at Dailisa. "I was very happy to see him. He seems fine, still very Anders, but..." His brows furrowed as he looked for words. "He was...more quiet, more introspective, maybe. That's probably Justice's influence. And I got the impression that he didn't like the elf and the other man with them."
"Hmmm." Dailisa said, thoughtful. "Why was he with the Champion, then?"
Nathaniel smiled again. "Because he loves her."
Dailisa looked sharply at him. "He loves her? How does she feel?"
"Dai. They look at each other like we do. I think he's fine."
The two of them shared a smile. It was good, Dailisa thought, for Nathaniel to have some peace about Anders.
A knock at the door brought both of them to attention.
"Yes!" Dailisa called.
The door opened and Tamis' head poked around it. "Who's the new Warden? Is he single?"
Dailisa blinked and Nathaniel laughed quietly. "I was getting to that part. His name is Carver Hawke and you'll have to ask him yourself, Tamis. It wasn't something we talked about on our way here."
He turned back to Dailisa. "He's the Champion's brother, and he's...got a bit of a chip about living in the shadow of his older sister, so I brought him here."
Dailisa nodded knowingly. "Then I will go introduce myself to him before Tamis scares him to death."
* * *
When Dailisa walked into the Vigil's dining hall with her darning, she saw Carver hunched over a parchment, writing. She sat across from him, ignoring the open scowl he gave her as she began mending in silence.
After several minutes, he set the writing aside, leaned toward her on his crossed forearms and said, "So, what is it?"
Dailisa looked up at him and raised a brow, not saying anything. He narrowed his eyes.
"So, what sort of sage advice does the Hero of Ferelden have to impart on me?"
"Well, if I were giving advice, I'd start with, 'Don't be an ass to your commander unless she's been one first.'" Carver blinked and Dailisa went on. "But I'm not giving advice. I'm darning my socks. Since we're being blunt, though, how'd you end up a warden?"
Carver sat back and spat bitterly, "My sister."
Dailisa wore an incredibly skeptical face. "Forced you through the Joining at sword point, did she?"
Carver narrowed his eyes, opened his mouth, thought better of what he was going to say and went a different route. "Of course not!" He took a deep breath. "We...she signed us on for this scavenging expedition in the Deep Roads. We needed the coin and the status. She's an apostate...my whole damn family were. Except our mother. And me." Carver frowned at the table before going on. "Anyway, there were darkspawn. And my sister wouldn't let me die and made her magey boyfriend take me to the Wardens."
Dailisa looked amused. "Her magey boyfr...you mean Anders?"
Carver scowled again. "Yes. That crazy, shit stirring bas..."
"Enough!" Dailisa interrupted him, gold eyes blazing at Carver's shocked blue ones. "You'll watch you Makerdamned mouth about Anders. He's gone through shit you would die from. He's given more than you have to give to just be free, so that's the last time I'll hear you say anything at all about him."
Dailisa left her darning on the table and stood up to leave. Carver grabbed his papers and stalked toward the door, still scowling. As Dailisa neared the door way, Carver said from directly behind her, "Yes, but did you know he was an abomination?"
Dailisa turned on her heel and punched Carver in the jaw. Without thought, he grabbed her and put her against the wall beside the doorway, pinning her hands to the wall, and standing with his knee between her legs to keep her from kicking him in the balls. He leaned in, furious, and said, "Don't fucking hit me, lady. You're not MY Warden Commander, and it's not my fault you don't take care of the wardens who ARE yours!"
Dailisa struggled, and in an obvious black rage, she spit at Carver and he smacked her across the face.
She spit again and started shouting, "Take your fucking hands off me! I will gut you in your Makerdamned sleep! Let me fucking g..."
Dailisa trailed off as Carver's eyes bulged and his skin paled. Then she realized that there two knives at Carver's throat.
She heard Tamis say calmly from somewhere in the room, "I have a clear shot, Senior Warden. Should I take it?"
From behind Carver, Nathaniel said, "Not yet. Keep ready, though. Now, Hawke. All I really have to do is relax my arms and I can cut your head clean off your shoulders. I have done worse, with less warning when I have thought my commander in danger. Is she?"
Dailisa started struggling again, and shouted, "YES, SHE BLOODY IS!"
Nate calmly said, "Commander, shut up."
This shocked her enough that she did and Nathaniel went on. "I'm waiting for your answer, Warden Hawke."
"No. She hit me first, though!"
Nathaniel said, "Tamis, do not stand down. If he moves toward her, put one in his leg." then he stepped away from Carver. Carver whirled around to face Nathaniel and Dailisa punched him in the kidney. Nathaniel had expected something and was there, in that preternaturally fast way of his, to leg sweep her into a heap on the floor.
"I will have Tamis pin you to the wall. Knock it off!"
Dailisa jumped up and Nathaniel let her get in his face. Very quietly she said, "Fuck you, Howe." and turned to leave. On her way through the door, she called over her shoulder, "Warden Hawke, tell him what you told me. Just the same way you told me and see if Tamis will put an arrow in HIS leg when he stabs you in your fucking throat."