Chapter Text
A loud explosion and Varric’s frantic shouting was the only warning Fenris got before moaning and creaking sounds turned his attention to the stony ceiling above. Dust got into his eyes and the elf cursed when it took away his vision, making him tear up.
Then the rumbling started and the ground Fenris stood on shook violently. Varric was still shouting but Fenris could barely make out the words over the noise. Something hard and heavy hit his left foot, tearing a surprised, pained shout from his throat, before he felt a strong push and tumbled backwards, still not able to see anything.
His back hit the ground hard, the impact driving the air out of his lungs. Fenris gasped, then immediately coughed then the dusty air attacked his airways. Something cool and comforting washed over his body, making his toes and fingertips tingle comfortably and the pain in his foot subsided.
And then there was silence.
With a grunt, Fenris rolled to his left side, rubbing frantically over his eyes before slowly cracking one open. For a moment, he panicked when his vision was completely black, his eyes only slowly adapting to the darkness surrounding him. Eventually, he could make out schemes, dust glittering as it slowly sank to the ground. His ears caught the sound of Varric still yelling; calling the elf’s name. The dwarf’s voice was muffled.
“Fasta vass,” the elf cursed as he slowly got back on his feet. In the dark, he finally spotted a wall of boulders where he’d been standing only moments before. Hands roamed the cold stone, pushing occasionally to see if something would give. “Varric?”
“Elf!”
Fenris actually sighed in relief.
“The cave collapsed.”
“Tell me something I don’t know”, Fenris shot back dryly.
“We don’t know where everyone is.” Varric sounded concerned. Varric never was concerned, at least not enough to let it color the tone of his voice. “Stay where you are. We’ll get you out of there. Hawke? Hawke!”
Another sigh escaped Fenris. Now that his elven eyes had fully adapted to the darkness, he was able to look around and regard the situation. This certainly wasn’t how he’d imagined his day to go.
He glanced at his left foot curiously. It didn’t even show the hint of an injury and Fenris was pretty sure he’d felt his bones being crushed; he would at least have expected a rather nasty cut or bruise. Then he remembered the cool, gentle sensation he’d experienced before he fell.
Fenris eyes widened.
“Varric, where’s the mage?” he shouted.
“Are you injured?” Hawke, not Varric, but Fenris was relieved to hear his friend’s voice.
“I am fine. Where’s the mage?”
“Fenris, there’s utter chaos over here right now, give us another moment!”
“I’m right here.”
Fenris froze and whipped his head around. Indeed he could spot Anders only a few steps away, trying to get to his feet. He was on all four, breathing heavily. Next to him was a boulder that seemed to have burst into hundreds of pieces and the elf felt a lingering sense of magic in the air.
He quickly strode over and knelt next to the blond man. “Are you alright?”
“I don’t think so!” Anders replied with a smirk; it was accompanied by a grimace before his arms and legs gave in and he let himself fall to the ground, groaning loudly at the impact.
“Mage…”
“Don’t worry about me. I’ll just need a moment,” Anders murmured as he slowly rolled on his back, gasping loudly. “Damn these dwarves and their blighted explosives! Knew Varric shouldn’t have brought that Carta friend of his along.” There was a hitch in his voice and Anders’ hand flew up to clutch at the right side of his chest.
“Heal yourself, mage,” Fenris demanded before returning to the wall separating them from the rest of their friends. “Have you found everyone by now?” he shouted.
“All but Anders,” came Varric’s reply.
“The mage is here with me.”
“Oh good…doesn’t have me worried in the slightest.” Knocking sounds and curses followed Varric’s slightly bemused statement. “We’re getting help. Dwarves know best how to handle stone. Try not to kill each other in the meantime, alright? Blondie, you okay?”
Anders wheezed in reply, still clutching his chest.
“Venhendis, mage, heal yourself already! I will not listen to you moan and bitch just so you can annoy me!” Fenris snapped.
“…can’t…”
Fenris frowned.
“What do you mean, you can’t?”
Another wheeze, then a strangled cough. “Fighting those disgustingly huge spiders already had me low on mana. Getting that rock off me took the last of it.”
Fenris let his eyes wander to the boulder in question. “That…thing fell on you?”
“Crushed me almost completely,” Anders confirmed. His breathing didn’t sound good at all. Shallow, like it took a lot of effort.
Fenris returned to the mage’s side and knelt, checking for injuries. He found a few cuts and bruises, yet nothing that would explained the strained breathing. “How bad is it, mage?”
Amber eyes opened, gazing into his without knowing, since human eyes were not as suited for complete darkness. “I told you not to worry about me, Fenris.”
“Can’t you answer a simple question, mage?” the elf growled. Anders closed his eyes at that, deciding to concentrate on breathing rather than a snappy elf. Fenris scowled at him, but remained beside the other man, listening to the wheezing breaths and the muffled sounds coming from the other side of the wall.
“You probably suffer from internal injuries, if you were buried under that rock,” Fenris eventually spoke up again, calmer now.
“You are probably right.”
Slowly, Fenris extended a hand to run over Anders’ upper body and check if he could feel any broken bones, but the mage’s free hand caught him by the wrist as soon as the elf’s made contact with his body.
“Don’t…don’t touch me.”
Now the elf was slowly growing concerned.
“How bad is it?” he murmured.
“I was crushed by a rock, Fenris. Do the math.”
“Fasta vass!” Fenris jumped up and returned to the wall once again. “The mage is injured!” he yelled. “He is too low on mana to heal himself!”
“Anders?” came Hawke’s concerned voice.
“I’ll be okay,” Anders gritted out. “Just…just give me a moment to restore some mana.”
“Hurry up!” Fenris barked to the people on the other side before turning around once again and searching the ground for the small bag he usually carried with him, containing food, herbs and the occasional potion.
When he finally spotted the bag in question, he grabbed it hurriedly and searched for a bottle.
He was out of luck.
“I don’t have a potion with me,” he murmured.
“Not surprising, since you hardly ever come to the clinic anymore to have me stock you up.”
Fenris paused at that, his gaze slowly travelling to the mage’s almost limp form on the ground. He hadn’t been in the clinic for a while; the last time he’d been there had ended with a lot of confusion on his and discomfort on Anders’ side. He had not been able to look the mage in the eye since, not knowing how to deal with the conflicting emotions.
That kiss. That kiss before they had parted. It…
The elf shook his head and crawled over to the other man.
“Anders.”
“What?”
“How bad is it?”
It was probably meant to be a sigh but out came another wheeze. Amber eyes opened slowly, blinking into the dark, searching for the elf’s face. Fenris slowly extended a hand again, this time to touch the tips of his fingers to the mage’s cheek. The skin there felt cold and Anders had paled visibly over the past few minutes.
“I’m right here,” Fenris murmured.
“So dark,” Anders breathed out. “Way too dark…”
Fenris let his brands light up, surprising himself and the mage. It only spent little light but at least Anders was now able to see Fenris’ face and look him in the eyes.
“Thank you,” Anders whispered. He sounded a little amazed.
“Calm yourself,” Fenris answered. “You need to relax to regain mana faster, mage.”
“And since when do you know what I need to do in order to regain mana faster?” Anders asked with a teasing smile. “Despite what you may believe, you’re not an expert on mages.”
“You’ll recover faster if you stop talking and save your breath”, Fenris growled. The corners of his mouth fought hard to stay down and not offer a smirk in answer.
“You do actually have a point”, the mage conceded, eyes closing once again as he willed his body to relax. Fenris took the chance to really take a look at the mage. Even those beautiful, pink lips had paled by now. For a moment, he was lost in the memory of biting into them, kissing them hard until they were swollen and blood red; remembered their sweet taste when he’d bestowed a gentle kiss on them, all those weeks back.
“Mage.”
“Hm?”
“Stay with me.”