#mostly plot

1975, a random fall Tuesday 

I don't know how it even happened, or how I met him. At the time I was living in a small town in Columbia run by Americans, keeping to myself, not drawing any attention to myself. He walked into my cafe and got a small black coffee. He stayed a while, reading his small novel.  

“Hi there, stranger, I got your coffee”, you said as you set down his drink. “Anything else?”

“No ma’am. Thank you”

“No problem”, you went to turn away but you had to know, “Um, hey?”

“Yes?”

“You've come in before.  What's your name?”

“Javier”

“Javier. I'm y/n. Let me know if you need anything. Maybe next time you could try a latte”, he lets out a snort. You go back to cleaning. It was extremely slow today so you got the go-ahead from your boss to close up early. 

“Miss?”

You turned around and saw Javier leaning up against his truck with a smile. 

You grasp your chest. “You scared me. I didn't notice you there.”

“Were you about to walk home?”

“Yes”

“Would you mind a ride?”

“My apartment isn't that far from here, but thank you I appreciate it.”

“Anytime.”

And like that, you were walking home, enjoying the weather. It was chilly and the leaves were falling beside you everywhere. You didn't mind the ten-minute walk to your apartment. You don't even get in the door before your cat starts meowing at you. 

“Avery, give me one moment. I'll feed you I promise.”. You love the hell out of the black cat but the girl is so needy.

You flick off your shoes by the front door, bending down to pet Avery. You walked past her to shake some food into her bowl. With how she rushes to it, you'd think she never got fed. Silly girl. You walk over to the couch and lay out, grabbing the blanket to get comfortable, a few moments pass and your cat hops up to snuggle up to you. You flip on your tv to find something to have in the background and settle on Hawaii Five O. There's something about cops that attracts you so much. You find yourself falling asleep, Avery radiating heat on your stomach. 

---

You were woken up the next morning by your alarm clock; another day, another dollar. You were on second shift today so you didn't have to be in until 11. You got up and made yourself toast and eggs, making sure fatso had her food too. 

“Pretty girl”, you say scratching her chin and heading towards the door, adding an “I’ll be back later. Byeee”

The walk to the shop today was extra nice. You can smell the aroma of a pumpkin pie as you pass the houses in your neighborhood and hear the sounds of children playing outside. The giggles brought life to the quiet afternoon. As you come closer to the city, the more you hear the sounds of cars passing and smells of bread being baked at the bakery down the street. The bakers wave at you as you pass the front window. You hold up two fingers, gesturing back. Two shops down is Mrs. Rivera trying to hang up plants, struggling to steady herself, AND the hanging ivy pot.

“Here let me help you.”, you say as you come behind her and catch the pot, succeeding in hanging it up on her awning.

“Thank you, sweetheart!”, she says as she wipes her hands on her apron.

“No problem. I have to get going but come by for a latte?”, you ask.

“Yeah. I’ll see you” 

And with that, you were back to it. Half a block down and you come to the shop's front door. It dings as you enter.

“You're late”, your boss, Maria, gets on to you.

“Mrs. Rivera needed help again.”

“Uh-huh. Get your butt back there”, she snorts. She's not mad. Thank god.

“Been busy today?”You ask about taking off your backpack and hanging it up. The shop was basically vacant. The only customer you could see was a college kid studying in the corner. You walk around to pick up mugs and empty plates from various tables.

“Not really. The usuals mostly… Oh! A guy was asking about you! He asked if I knew if you got home safe?”, she asked, confused.

“Ah yes, Javier. He offered to take me home last night.”, you say while walking the dirty dishes to the back.

“He’s cute. You should get in there, girl”, she yells to you. “In there?”, you come around the corner and scoff, “I'm not that interested in dating right now.”

“You should. You can't just spend all your free time with your cat and nonexistent characters in your books.”

“Can.” You point out “And will” 

“You're only 24, do you really wanna throw away that opportunity?”

You could only muster up an eye roll.

----

The rest of the shift went off without a problem. Maria went home shortly after her talk with you. The next few hours included a couple of customers but mostly some cleaning. Mrs. Rivera actually came to see you, even getting a hot chocolate for her grandson when she got her latte. You hold a conversation with her for a while, talking about her daughter’s new job at the school. Maria said something about that a couple of weeks ago. The rest of the regulars got their usual drinks, only sticking around long enough for their drinks. The clock soon hits 7 pm.

“Another tea?”, you ask the college student in the corner. He’s been here for your whole shift and has gotten two hot green teas with sugar.

“No ma’am. I'm about to leave but I appreciate it.”

‘Alright. Don't be a stranger”, you say, taking his cup and saucer to the back to clean it off. You place it in the strainer to left it air dry. As you are in the back, the customer packed up and left, leaving the shop empty.

You walk past every table, wiping it down and stacking chairs on top, then grabbing the broom. You quite enjoy the quiet chill night, humming a simple tune. The night offers an array of noises through the open door: Grasshoppers chirping and the soft whistle of the breeze. You finish sweeping and put up the broom. “The tips were pretty good today”, you think, pushing the money into your pocket, removing your apron, locking up, and heading home.

----

You had Thursday off and planned to spend it accordingly. You slept until you couldn't anymore, got up, and fed Avery, offering extra pets to the needy cat. She snuggles up to you on the couch, laying in the space in front of your stomach. Your newest interest? Murder mysteries. So you are relaxing on the couch reading Agatha Christie’s Death on the Nile. 

You get pretty far into the book before hearing a knock at your door. Weird. Then walk to unlatch the door, swinging it open.

“Uh... hello?”, you questioned the man in front of you. He’s standing there with his hand to the back of his neck, looking nervous

“Hi. Umm, I'm new to building. I live across the hall. I’m Anthony”, he reaches his hand out. You take his hand and shake it.

“Y/N”, you respond, smiling.

“Nice to meet you, Y/N”

“Would you like to come in for some coffee? I just put on a fresh pot”, you invite.

“Yeah, that sounds nice.”, his face sparks up in happiness. He takes your invitation and walks into your apartment, you close the door behind him.

‘Wow. Nice apartment. How long have you been living here?”

“Eh, a while”. Boy, you have NO idea.

He sits down at your dinner table and you bring over two coffee mugs.

“Cream? Sugar?”, you ask.

“Yes. Both please”, he responds and you hand him the containers of cream and sugar.

“Just moved here?”

“Yeah. From Arizona. The owner told me that you're one of the only Americans renting here. Thought I might come by and say hello.”

“Arizona, huh?”

“Yeah. I used to live in Georgia when I was a young girl but I’ve been around the world a lot. Been a while since I’ve been in the United States”, you drift off for a second but reel it in. “ Where in Arizona are you from?”

“Tucson. Wasn’t a bad place to live but I went to college for a major in the Spanish language. I wanted to visit places where I could hear the different dialects and see the different cultures. Thus, I am in Columbia.”

“Ah, you see I just wanted to see the world. I’ve been almost everywhere”

‘What was your favorite place to visit?”, he asks, fully focused on the conversation and not realizing Avery’s furry body rubbing against his shins. She meows. “Oh, well, hello there pretty girl. What’s your name?”. He reaches down to pet her back.

“That’s Avery. But back to your question, I was living in Greece for a while and I just adored the blue waters and sandy beaches.”

He takes a sip of his coffee and asks, “So what brought you here?”

“Need a change of scene. I had a friend who lived here but she passed away a couple of years ago”, you reply back nonchalantly, shrugging your shoulders.

“Oh, im so sorry to hear that. Not too pry but we’re you close?”

“Yeah, We knew each other for a while.”

“How’d she die?”, he asks further

“Old age”, you let slip.

“Old age? he responds surprised.

“Uh... yeah. A family friend.”, you try to make up a better story to keep suspicion off of you.

That conversation kind of ended before it started, instead opting for a conversation about Anthony’s studies in places like Cuba and Spain. The talk circled around to different places you’ve visited, Rome being a topic that seemed to trail on and on. The sun outside seems to start to set.

“I’ve got to get going but it was nice to meet you, Y’N”

“You too, Anthony. Let me know if you need a cup of sugar or anything”, you say following him towards your door. He steps through and across the hallway to his front door. When he shuts his door, you follow suit. You turn around and you can feel Avery’s judging eyes on you.

“I know, I almost blew my cover”, you tell your feline friend. She meows.

-----

You weren't wrong when you told Anthony you’ve been living in Columbia for a while. The problem is his definition and your definition of “a while” were completely different. The truth is you lived in Columbia for 40 years and in this town for about 20. You didn’t age. The only person who could possibly know is Mrs. Rivera but she is very good at minding her own business. You were one of the only ones who came to her husband’s funeral a year ago. You’re practically family. The town’s oldest residents have passed and the owners of the apartments change every couple of years. The rent is paid in cash and the tenets come and go. Every couple of decades you move to another small town in another country. 

You lived a normal life but you didn’t know your parents. You lived in the orphanage until you were 18. It was then you took up a job, reading in your spare time, and traveling when you could. You didn’t even realize your immortality until you were 40 looking 20. And then 50 looking 20. You did try to date but soon came to realize that you’d outlive them, leaving a trail of broken hearts. You were pretty sure you were incapable of love. 80 years old and not prepared for what happened next.

When coming into darktown, the first thing you notice is the stench. It follows like a sad puppy and cloys like a scared kitten, a reminder of the death and disaster dealt with by people on the fringe of the society.

Kirkwall was a city founded on injustice and its historic walls and statues were only too quick to remind you. Rainwater pooled like tears at the base of the giant twins' eyes, and then spouted off like geysers, spraying cold water into the trapped sea below. 

Outside of the clinic the rock was damp and slippery, puddles of muck pooled in through the doors as Anders searched on the floor for anything that needed to stay elevated and dry. He'd awoken that morning to find his manifesto half-soaked, ink running down the pages. He tried not to be too envious of his friends whose homes stayed dry and clean, tried not to think about why their papers were safe and his were not, and instead told himself it needed revising anyhow. 

Anders heard scratching on the door, the telltale sound of big paws furiously digging through water-damaged wood. Anders put away some gauze and opened the door. The brown mabari rushed in, tongue lolling out the side of his mouth, tail wagging, and running circles around the blonde mage. 

"For the last time Hawke, no dogs in my clinic!" Anders said, expecting Hawke to come in and restrain the dog. Hawke did not restrain the dog, in fact, Hawke did not enter the clinic at all. He simply was not there. 

"Hawke?" Anders called. 

The dog chuffed and whined. 

"If Hawke's not here, why are you?" 

The dog threw his head back. 

"Go away. Go find Hawke." 

The dog chased his tail, and then looked up at Anders.

"What are you trying to tell me--hey where are you going?" Anders asked as the dog ran off. The dog stopped to check that the mage was following and then ran off to The Hanged Man. Anders used his staff to help him move more quickly over the slippery ground of the former quarry and met up with the dog at Varric's private suite. 

The dwarf was asleep in his small bed and snoring softly when he was pounced on and licked by the slobbery mabari. "Maker get off me, you're gonna crush me to death." He said, trying to push the hound off of his chest. The dog kissed him twice on the cheek and sat down at his bedside, wagging his tail. 

"Blondie? I didn't expect to see you here. Where's Hawke?"

"I don't know. His dog brought me here. He seems to be on a mission." 

The dog threw his head back. Varric scratched him between his ears. "Maybe the old boy is trying to tell us something about his master." 

Anders shifted his weight. "Maybe… We should check if Hawke's home." 

As soon as Anders finished his sentence the dog ran out of the bar, running through the legs of someone opening the door. Varric and Anders ran after him into the street. 

"Now where's he gone?" Anders asked. 

"No idea. Maybe we should check the Hawke estate."

They went to hightown and caught sight of the dog again. "You go catch him, I'll look for Hawke!" Anders said to Varric before running off in the other direction. 

"I'm not the one who has immobilization spells, Blondie." Varric muttered under his breath. "Or long legs." 

Anders slipped unnoticed into the passageway in front of Hawke's door and knocked. Bodhan answered the door. "Oh hello. You're one of Hawke's friends, I see. He left early last night, but I can tell him you stopped by." 

"He left? Did he say why?"

"He said he was going to find a ring. I might have assumed one of you lot would go with him." 

"Did he bring his dog?" 

"Yes, he almost always does." Anders' face paled. "What's wrong?" 

"Nothing. I need to go." He said, turning on a heel to go find the hound. 

The hound, as it turns out, was sitting in Aveline's office, making puppy-dog eyes at the guard captain. 

"What's wrong, Fido? You don't want to play with the guards?" Aveline asked.

Varric bolted into the room. "Oh there you are!" He said, clearly out of breath.

"Varric! What are you doing here?" 

"The dog went and gathered me and Blondie. I think he wants us all together for something." 

The dog barked happily. 

"Where's Anders, then?" Waiting outside?" 

"He went to see if Hawke was home." 

Anders ran in and closed the door behind him. "Hawke's missing."

“Well that’s not good.” Aveline said. “Where was he last seen?”

“Bodhan said he left last night, taking his dog with him.”

“Should we follow him?” Aveline asked.

They all looked over at the dog. “Where’s Hawke?” Varric asked him.

The dog barked and scratched at the door. 

Anders and Varric nodded. They let the dog out and followed him into Lirene’s Fereldan Imports.

“Oh not another maba-- Anders! What are you doing here?” Lirene said in lieu of a greeting. 

“I’m looking for Hawke. Have you seen him?” 

“Oh! Yes, he came in here looking for a ring. He didn’t specify what kind, and after I showed him what we had he just thanked me and left.”

“How long ago was this?” Asked Aveline. 

“Last night, just as I was about to close up shop.”

“Did he have his dog with him?” Varric asked.

“Yes. He was on good behaviour, too.”

“Him or the dog?” 

Lirene rolled her eyes.

“Thank you.” Anders said, leading them all out of the shop. 

“So, where to next?”  Varric asked.

“He was looking for a ring… something ferelden. Maybe he went to hightown?”

The dog barked.

“Hold on.” said Varric. “Maybe we should ask if Isabela saw him, first. She’s closer, and I hear they’ve got something going on. Maybe he found the ring and gave it to her.”

“They have something going on?” Anders asked.

“Isabela’s got something ‘going on’ with every handsome man she meets. They’re probably just flirting.” Aveline said.

Varric bowed his head in acknowledgement. “Still, we should check with her.”

The dog whined. 

“All right.” Aveline said. She, the dog and Anders followed Varric to the hanged man. They approached Isabela. 

“Oh hey Anders. Rough night?” She said, winking.

“What?”

She raised her eyebrows. “Uh, nevermind…”

“Rivaini, Have you seen Hawke?”

“He went to a lot of trouble just for a ring.” Remarked Aveline.

“I saw him last night.” she slurred. “Oh, not like that!” She frowned. “He… came to me for a private mission. Again, not like that.” She motioned over Varric and whispered in his ear.

“Oh.” Varric said, looking up nervously at Anders. “So we know he was looking for a ring, and Isabela told him about some buried treasure on the Wounded Coast.” He said, before muttering, “He should have just gone to hightown.”

“Come on, boy.” Varric said to the mabari. “Let’s go find Hawke.”

The group followed Isabela’s rough napkin-sketch map to a cave on the wounded coast. Outside of the cave lay freshly killed corpses, blood washed away by the rain. Clearly Hawke’s handiwork. As soon as they got inside, the hound started sniffing around everwhere. 

“Is he nearby?” Varric asked the dog. He kept his nose to the ground and walked through the tunnel. They walked past skeleton archer corpses until they reached a locked dwarven door. 

“I got this” said Varric, kneeling down to pick the lock. It opened and they followed the dog deeper into the tunnels, letting him choose which paths to take.

At the end of a short tunnel the dog lurched forward and pawed furiously at a door without a handle. As he whined, Hawke began to stirr on the other side of the door. Aveline went up and knocked. “Hawke? Are you in there?”

“Mmm? Aveline? Is that you? I must’ve hit my head…” 

The dog growled.

“Hang on Hawke, we’ll try to come get you. Is there another way into the room you’re in?”

“I can’t… I can’t see anything.” he rubbed his eyes. “I think there’s three other doors. This place is like a big hallway or something.”

“Blondie, is there some spell you can do to blast the door open?” Varric asked.

Anders shook his head. “It’s dwarven. Even if it could I think it would hurt all of us more than it would the door.”

“We should go further in.” Aveline said.

“Are you leaving?” Hawke croaked.

“We’re going to go around.” Varric said. 

The dog pouted at his traveling companions, not wanting to leave Hawke alone. 

“Come on pup, we’ll need you. We can’t do this all by ourselves.” Anders said, for Hawke’s sake more than anything. The dog panted once and stood up off the ground. 

Aveline led them deeper underground. The tunnels were carved out of the same stone most of kirkwall had been dug from, with red accent stone and fine dwarven carvings, eroded by the corrosive limestone dripping down from the ceiling. The lime must have been hiding the smell of the corpses littered everywhere, some of which were half-mummified, others bloated and drowned. Varric found a chest, picked the lock, and discovered it was empty. “Hawke must have looted this.” he thought.

The tunnel shook and stalactites dislodged themselves from surrounding rock and hit the adventurers on the heads. Shades clawed themselves out of the fade as demons possessed corpses. They were surrounded by eight corpses, four skeletal archers, and two shades. Varric started firing off crossbow bolts indiscriminately, moving in a clockwise circle. Anders cast a protective barrier around himself and Aveline took on the shade closest to Anders. The Mabari leaped on the nearest corpse and shred it’s flesh from bone.

The skeletal archers rained arrows down from above as Anders threw three fireballs down from above, scattering the enemies. They all ran past their fallen bodies so that they would only be encountered from one side. Just as Anders cast Elemental Weapons, Varric’s crossbow jammed. 

“Bianca, now’s really not the time!” he said, pin in his mouth.

Aveline put up a shield wall and stabbed at the corpse directly in front of her. Anders continued to fire off spells from Aveline’s cover until Varric fixed Bianca. “I’m ready-- do the thing!”

Aveline taunted the enemies, who rushed into Anders’ cone of cold and were shattered by Varric’s hail of bolts. 

Anders healed everyone as Aveline finished the rest of the demons off.

They heard clapping from behind them. “Well, well well. Very well done, all four of you. Don’t you think it’s time for a little break?”

“A sloth demon! Don’t listen to it-- kill it!”

Aveline and Varric looked dizzy, The dog just looked confused.

Anders sighed exhasperatedly. “C’mon boy, sicc him!”

The demon laughed. “That dog doesn’t take orders from you! When have you ever given it a reason to trust you?”

The dog whined and set his head down on his paws.

“I’ll give you treats!”

“Treats?” A feminine voice said from afar. “That’s my job.” A desire demon said, floating out from behind a wall. “Do you want a treat?”

The Mabari growled. 

“Oh I know what you want even more than a treat. You want your master to let you back into bed with him. You must be very jealous of the mage who took your place.”

The dog whined. 

“That’s not fair.”

“You wan’t him gone, don’t you? You could do it, right now.”

“Be quiet!” Anders shouted, summoning up enough mana to cast a fireball at them.

“You’re not enough.” Sloth said. “That spell must have taken a lot out of you, don’t you want to take a rest?”

“Guys, snap out of it!” Anders said to his friends. 

“I’m… Trying…” Varric said.

“Aveline... “ The Desire demon began. “It must be so tiring, every day, protecting so many people, day in and day out, missing Wesley. Draw your sword and cut your throat with it.”

Aveline drew her sword. “N-No! Anders, Help us!”

The dog, sensing the desperation in aveline’s voice, growled at the demons. 

“Good dog.” Anders said. “Sicc ‘em.”

The dog Leaped on the Desire demon and finished her off for Anders. The sloth demon tried to escape in terror, but weakened it’s hold on the party long enough for Varric to shoot it in the back.

“Sorry blondie.” Varric said.

“Don’t mention this to anyone else.” Aveline said. 

“Let’s just find Hawke.” Anders said. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” He said to the dog, who began wagging his tail.

Varric kicked in the door and found Hawke passed out on the floor. They all ran to him.

The dog licked all over his face and tried to drag him by the arm, before being shooed away by Varric. “Hawke, wake up! We’re here!”

Hawke was covered in sweat and clutching something tight to his chest. Aveline pried it from him. “It’s an… Engagement ring.”

Anders felt his face get hot. “Oh, you fool…”

Varric Grimaced. “So blondie, can you heal him?”

“...I’ll need some help. Let’s go talk to Merrill.”

The three of them brought Hawke to his bedroom in the city and went to Merrill.

“Merrill I know we don’t get along--” Anders began.

“What do you mean? We get along great!”

Varric grimaced.

“...Right. Well, I need a favor from you. It’s about Hawke.”

“Is he alright?”

“He’s… bewitched. We found him in a cave with some strange magic. I believe his consciousness is in the fade.”

“What? But he’s not even a mage!”

“I know. I need the help of your keeper.”

Merrill whined. “But I hate talking to the keeper without Hawke’s help. But I do love Hawke--I mean we all do, right?”

The dog tossed his head back. 

“Oh right.” Varric replied sarcastically. “My mistake.”

“Some of us love him more than others…” Varric muttered under his breath, looking pointedly at Anders.

“What?” Anders squawked. “Don’t believe everything a Demon tells you.”

Merrill smiled confusedly. “What are we talking about?”

“It’s nothing.” Aveline cut in. “Will you help, or not?”

“Of course i’ll help! It’s Hawke we’re talking about. So I assume you’ll all be helping, too.”

“What do you need?” Aveline asked.

“If the keeper comes here, we’ll need someone to keep her safe.”

Aveline nodded. “I’ll help. Of course I will.”

“Anders? Will you help me talk to the keeper?”

“Why me?”

“I don’t even know what Hawke needs. You could convince her better than me, right?”

“It’s worth a shot.”

The five of them departed for sundermount. When they arrived at the camp, two hunters stopped their egress. 

“Shem are not welcome here, Merrill. I’d like to say the same about you, too.”

“But I am welcome here, and so are my friends. We need to speak to the keeper.”

The female elf sighed. “I’ll go get her. She’ll want to speak with you.”

The hunter returned with the keeper. “Merrill.” Keeper Marethari said, her eyes crinkling in smile. “It is good to see you. Bring you bad news?”

“No, keeper. I bring Anders, Doctor of Darktown. He needs help with a patient.”

“The patient is Hawke.” Anders added.

“Very well, how do you need my help?”

“Hawke went to find some ring but it was… possessed. I believe he is fighting off demons, similar to a circle mage’s harrowing. It’s not too late to save him, but we need to reach him in the fade.”

“I see. Can he be brought here?”

“That would take too much time. It may already be too late.”

The keeper inclined her head. “Very well. I will go. Take me to see him.”

“But keeper, we need you here!” One of the elves spoke. 

“Child, I will go where I am needed most. I will return. Dareth Shiral.”

The hunter looked down. “Dareth Shiral, keeper.”

The group left sundermount and arrived with the cover of night at Hawke’s hightown estate.

Anders unlocked the door and let them inside, earning a quirk of Varric’s eyebrow. 

They entered Hawke’s bedroom where he still lay, breathing in shallow slow breaths.

“Who are you taking with you?”

Anders recalled his earlier encounter with demons. “I’d rather not take any of you.”

“I’m sorry, blondie, I’ll try to make it up to you this time.” Varric said.

“I’m not sure I want to mess with demons.” Aveline said.

“I’d be happy to go with you!” Merrill said.

Anders sighed. “I’ll need all of them, since I can’t bring the dog. He can protect our bodies while we sleep.”

The three mages began casting spells and one by one the team opened their eyes in the fade. 

“Go quickly.” the keeper’s voice rang out in the back of their minds. “I cannot keep this up forever.”

In the fade it was nearly impossible for Anders to control Justice and the others were startled to see Anders’ skin glowing.

He walked stiffly in long strides into Hawke’s dream. They were in the cellar of the Amell estate, from after Gamlen lost it but before Hawke bought it. The greenish fade air distorted the walls like stained glass might.  Merrill gazed about and kept her back guarding Anders’. Varric marched on to keep pace and aveline crossed her shoulders and withdrew inwards.

They went into the next room and saw Hawke hitting a training dummy as his father looked on disapprovingly. He seemed not to notice them come in.

“Push yourself Garrett. Make me proud.”

Hawke’s voice came out strangled and boyish. “I’m trying! Why can’t you see that?”

“It’s okay to ask for help.”

“I don’t need help! I can do this!”

Justice stepped forward. “That’s not your dad.” he said.

Hawke whipped around. “Anders? I don’t understand!” He looked between his dad and his lover.

The pride demon stepped towards him. Hawke dropped his daggers and ran away.

“Nonsense! Make me proud, boy!” The demon said.

“That is a pride demon. Resist him.”

“Great.” Varric said. “You spooked him.”

“You! You spoiled my plan!” The demon said, morphing into it’s true form.

He summoned two electric chains and tugged Merrill and Aveline to the ground. Varric fired off shots at the demon’s massive chest as Justice calmly stepped forward and ripped the demon’s heart out.

The demon begged with his eyes before Merrill froze it and Varric shot it.

“Damn blondie! That was mental!”

Justice shrugged him off and kept moving. 

Next they checked the broom closet. When Justice realised what was going on, he slammed the door shut behind him. Hawke was in his finery about to open the robe above a kneeling anders when he saw the real anders.

“Justice?!” Hawke cried, stepping back in surprise.

“That’s not Anders. It’s a desire demon.”

“Oh.” He squinted. “Is it?”

The demon rose from the floor. “Yes you fool. I have so much more to offer you than the real anders. Help me beat him and Justice will never spoil your fun again.”

“No… I… When I fell in love with Anders I accepted Justice with him!”

The Demon spat.

“I wish you could be here.” He sobbed. “I might get engaged soon.”

Hawke pulled his pants up and ran through the walls. Justice opened the door and let his group take care of the Desire demon.

They searched through the remaining rooms and found Hawke in his mother’s bedroom, crying on the bed as a ghostly Leandra fed him sad memories.

“How could you get married without your mother in the audience? You shouldn’t go.”

“That’s not your mother.” Justice spoke. 

“How do you know?” Hawke cried. “You didn’t know my mother! Maybe this is her spirit!”

“See you said maybe, Hawke. You have no way of knowing what’s real here. Don’t let her taint your memories.” Varric said.

“You’ll want to remember her as she was.” Aveline said.

Hawke looked up and nodded. “You’re right. I must resist demons.”

“Are you ready to wake up now?” Justice said.

“No! You cannot forget this pain!” The demon drew back and transformed itself into a snake, coiling around hawke. Aveline charged at it and slashed away at it’s regrowing tail.

Merrill and Anders united their mana together and cast a strong ice spell, freezing just the serpent, and Aveline hacked the brittle beast to bits.

“Yeah.” He sniffed. “Thanks, Justice.”

They all awoke from Hawke’s dream in his room.

Hawke sat up fast. “Where’s the ring?”

Anders eased him back on the bed and held his hand. “You don’t need one. The answer is yes.”

“But you’re pretty. You deserve a ring as pretty as you.”

Anders scoffed. “I’m offended you think a bit of twisted metal could ever look as gorgeous as I do.”

Hawke smirked “Did you geta pride demon plus one in there? Are we making this relationship a foursome now?”

Varric cleared his throat. “We’re still here.”

“Oh I know that.” Hawke said, throwing his head back in laughter. 

“Thank you Keeper Marethari. I am truly in your debt.”

“It was nothing child. If you must help me, ease my way home.

Hawke grabbed his arm and silently begged him not to leave. 

“You guys go on, I’ll make it up to you some other day. And take the dog, I don’t want him to stick around and watch.”

Merrill made a face. “Yuck. I’m going.” 

The rest of them left and the couple was all alone for the night.

“Well, maybe I was overblowing the animosity between us. I wouldn’t want you to think of me as untrustworthy just because I’m a cat person.”

“You know, your dog really does not like me.” Anders said, caressing Hawke’s arm.

“Doesn’t he?” Hawke frowned. “Well you’re not exactly the nicest to him. I’ll have you know I have no trust for someone my dog distrusts.”

Hawke smiled. “Did you mean it, when you said yes?”

Anders nodded against his shoulder. “I still think it’s crazy that you’d openly live with another man--an apostate. Aren’t you scared?”

“No. Not at all. Are you?”

“I should be.” he smiled. “Right now I just feel warm all over.”

“Hmm… Maybe we should get you out of that stuffy robe then.”

You’re going to be faced with many choices in life, my loves. You’ll feel certain about some, and completely at sea about others. Both experiences are natural; try not to fret too much about how you do or don’t feel, and instead keep focused on keeping to the right path.

Whatever you do, make sure it’s something you would be willing to defend if confronted. You won’t always be right, but your conscience will rest much easier for it.

“You’re certain.”

“There’s really no mistaking human experimentation, General.”

Okoye braced herself against her desk and grimaced. “Bast dammit. And here I was hoping General Ross wouldn’t sink that low.”

Jhanvi’s projection mirrored her grimace. “I mean, it gets worse. I’ve been watching all the video feeds on the Raft for three weeks now. I only gave you the basic rundown.”

“Put the details into a report and send it in. Right now, we need to focus on just what we’re going to do next,” Okoye said.

Across the desk --and out of Jhanvi’s field of vision with the projector--Ayo crossed her arms over her chest. “How far into the system are you?”

“I’m basically settled in the whole thing. Their security measures and firewall systems are nothing compared to Shuri’s. It’d be pretty easy for me to open the place up if you wanted to break in.”

“That may be our only option at this point,” Djabi said with a concerned look at Okoye. “If they’re using the vibranium for human experimentation, we can’t afford to sit back and wait for a more diplomatic way of cornering General Ross.”

Okoye drummed her fingers against the surface of her desk. “I don’t disagree, but I’d rather not put HYDRA’s focus on Wakanda if it can be helped.”

“Well, no one knows that HYDRA’s in possession of the vibranium other than them, Agent Ross, and us,” Aneka pointed out. “It’s not like they can start a war with us over it. They’d have to disclose their theft of the vibranium to do that.”

Okoye shook her head. “There are other ways to start wars. Smear campaigns. False journalism. Espionage.”

“This is human experimentation,” Ayo said. “We don’t have a choice.”

She’s right. Bast dammit, how did this get so messy? “Jhanvi, how long would it take for you to have full control over their system?”

“A couple days, give or take.”

“Do it. Aneka, contact Agent Ross once we have Jhanvi’s report. Let him know what’s going on and that we’re making plans to break in. We might need him to keep an eye on his brother. Ayo, Djabi, I’ll need you two to help me run simulations so we can figure out the best way to handle this. I’ll bring the King up to speed.” Once she’d received nods that confirmed everyone understood their duties, she ended the call with Jhanvi and stretched her back. Before she even had time to think about where T’Challa might be at this hour, her kimoyo beads started chirping.

Dewani’s worried face stared up at her when she answered. “I need your help.”

May Bast and M’Baku forgive me for stepping into whatever shitstorm’s been brewing for the past couple months. “I’m on my way.”

Dewani had filled her in while she’d grabbed her go bag.

“Look, this is going to sound crazy, but I’ve been trying to help rescue someone from the cult territory. Problem is... they got caught. I think they’re dying.”

“I’m not a doctor, Dewani.”

“Yeah, but you have a ship and stabilizing equipment that they give out to all the soldiers. I just need help getting them out of the cult territory and to Shuri.”

“Does Shuri know what you’ve been up to?”

“...No.”

She’d sighed, rolled her eyes, and packed the extra medical equipment in her bag before slinging it over her shoulder and jogging towards the main hangar. “You know, we might’ve been able to prevent this if you had told someone what you were doing in the first place.”

“I couldn’t! It’s --it’s complicated, I know--”

Complicated didn’t begin to describe the mess she’d landed in. The cult territory was in the remotest part of the Jabari lands. There wasn’t any place for Okoye to land her ship nearby without drawing certain attention.

There wasn’t really any place for Okoye to land other than the courtyard of the Great Lodge.

Fuck it, she decided as she steered the ship around an outcropping of rock. Dewani chose to keep secrets, she can learn that doing that can bite you in the ass from time to time.

M’Baku was already at the main door by the time she’d landed, confusion evident on his face. “Okoye? What are you doing here? Not that I’m not happy to see you--”

“Dewani’s in trouble,” Okoye cut him off. “She’s in the cult territory, trying to rescue someone --and she’s pretty sure they’re dying.”

M’Baku froze, closed his eyes, and inhaled slowly. “What?”

“She didn’t explain any more than that. You know everything I do.”

“Hanuman. Dammit.”

“She’s trying to help someone,” Okoye repeated, softer this time. “She’s trying to do the right thing.”

“Yes, in the absolute wrong way.” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “I keep telling her not to be so impulsive --wait, why are you here? How do you even know all this?”

“I told Dewani that I’d help if her she needed it. She called me, so here I am.”

That brought a slight smile to M’Baku’s face, though it did little to temper the stress that made his brow furrow and his jaw clench. He kissed the top of her head gently. “Thank you.”

“Of course. Now, how do I get out to the cult territory.”

“Easy. I’m walking you there.”

Okoye frowned. And he thinks Dewani’s impulsive. “Are you sure that’s a good idea? You’re the Chief--”

“I’m not going to let you go off to dangerous territory by yourself, let alone to search for my sister.” He strode back towards the Lodge, barking orders at his guards. “We’ll help her together.”

The hike to the cult territory was almost like something out of a horror movie.

Granted, most of the trek just showed off more of the stunning Jabari scenery. They rode most of the way on Jabari land craft, until they reached a cave opening on the side of a mountain at the end of a lone path. Black, withered roots reached out of the cave mouth, clinging to the face of the mountain.

Okoye grimaced as she eyed the roots and the impenetrable darkness inside the cave. “Well. That’s auspicious.”

M’Baku inhaled deeply and clenched his jaw, visibly steeling himself for what he was about to do. “If the coordinates Dewani gave you are accurate, we shouldn’t be too far away once we reach the other end of the tunnel.”

Okoye activated her spear and started walking towards the entrance. “Let’s get this done, then.”

The territory occupied by Ravana’s followers was an utter hellscape. All the plants were black and gnarled, and the sky was deep, blood red color.

Okoye stared up at the scarlet sky, eyes wide and mouth agape. “How... how is this even possible?”

M’Baku shifted his weight from foot to foot. “We need to be as fast as possible. This way.”

She followed him into a dense forest of dead, blackened trees, trying to keep to the narrow, barely visible trail as best as she could.

She wasn’t sure the forest wouldn’t swallow her whole if she deviated from it.

They heard the sounds of arguing before they saw the girls.

“If we had just taken the path--”

“The path that goes right through the center of the main village!”

“Better than being lost in the middle of nowhere!”

“Right, because being held hostage by a bunch of demon-worshipping cultists is so much better than being lost. Good thinking, Izgebe.”

“Will you two be quiet? I’m trying to remember the prayer for pain relief!”

Okoye threaded the gap between two trees and almost ran smack into Dewani, Fukyana, Abayomi, and Izgebe. “There had better be a good explanation for all of this.”

The four girls jumped --and again when M’Bak and his men joined her--but before they had time to start spinning excuses, Abayomi grabbed Okoye’s arm and yanked her down to the ground.

“She’s dying. She needs help.”

Okoye recoiled as she latched eyes on the cause of Dewani’s recent secrecy.

A young woman lay crumpled on the ground, visibly crippled and deformed even in her current state. Her breathing was shallow and thready, and one of her eyes was completely scarred over. Blood was crusted around her swollen, crooked nose, and a faint sheen of sweat covered her whole body.

“What on Bast’s green earth--”

“She wants to be a follower of Hanuman,” Dewani explained quickly. “We tried to help her escape, but we got lost. Do you have anything that could stabilize her?”

“If I do, it won’t help long term,” Okoye said as she started digging through her bag. “We need to get her to the Princess. Quickly.”

Shuri and Jhanvi were waiting for them at the lab when they arrived.

“Do you know what caused her injuries?” Shuri asked as she hooked the young woman up to a better life support system and began scanning the readings for signs of where to start treating the wounded individual.

“It’s been an... ongoing process,” Abayomi said weakly.

Jhanvi peered at the screen displaying the young woman’s vital signs. “Are you seeing this? It’s almost like...”

“Yeah,” Shuri mumbled. “Almost like... there’s an energy field around her.”

Dewani cleared her throat and rubbed the back of her neck. “She, uh, might be a conduit for... Ravana.”

M’Baku fixed his sister with an exasperated glare. “So, she’s possessed.”

“No, she’s a conduit,” Abayomi pushed back. “There is a difference.”

“Possessed, conduit, whatever,” Jhanvi interjected. “Point stands, she needs surgery and she needs it now.” She let out a ragged sigh. “Shit, her eye’s almost completely gone. Have you ever built a optical nerve from scratch before?" 

Shuri grimaced. “No.” 

“Me either. Let's get to work.”

“How in hell did she manage to get herself mixed up in this?”

Okoye watched as M’Baku paced back and forth in his suite at the palace. “As far as I can tell, she found someone that needed help and did her best to help them.”

“A women possessed--”

“Conduit.”

“Whatever!” M’Baku closed his eyes and took a deep breath, nostrils flaring as he tried to reel in his anger. “Normally, I’d applaud Dewani’s instincts to help those in need, but this is a step too far! Several steps too far!”

“For helping someone who looks like they were nearly beaten to death.”

“Ravana is a demon king,” M’Baku said tersely. “This woman --whoever she is--could pose a serious threat to all of us if she truly is a ‘conduit’ of his powers.”

“She was almost dead when we found her,” Okoye said in a low, even voice. “I doubt she could be a threat to anyone, even if she wanted to.”

“Okoye, I appreciate your trying to get me to take a balanced view of the situation, but you don’t know the Jabari beliefs as well as I do. If she’s really a conduit, we are all in danger.”

Before she could respond, her kimoyo beads started beeping.

“The first round of surgeries are done,” Shuri said once she answered. “The... patient is awake. She wants to speak with Chief M’Baku.”

Okoye raised her eyebrows at her partner. “Your presence is requested in the lab.”

M’Baku growled under his breath and took her hand in his as he stalked out of his suite. “I’m going to regret this.”

The young woman was barely awake when they walked over to her. Her nose was reset and some of the swelling was gone, but now that they were in the bright lighting of the lab it was all too easy to see just how much damage had been done to her body.

She lay at a horrifically crooked angle; the visual display of her spine showed several breaks and fractures that had healed and broken again that made the bone set improperly. One of her legs couldn’t straighten out all the way, and the other one was covered in jagged scars. Her left eye was still covered with scar tissue, and one of her hands was missing three fingers.

Okoye grimaced and looked away to keep from ogling her. She’s been through hell in back.

“Don’t try to sit up!” Shuri exclaimed when the young woman saw M’Baku and T’Challa approach her bedside. “Your ribs are still newly healed!”

“Please,” T’Challa insisted, holding up a calming hand. “You need to rest.”

M’Baku crossed his arms over his chest and kept more distance from the bed than the others. “You wanted to speak to me. Now’s your chance.”

She drew in a raspy breath. “Chief M’Baku. I must beg your forgiveness. I did not mean to draw your sister into matters of the darkness.”

“You needed help!” Dewani started.

“And you should’ve thought of your trial,” the young woman retorted, cutting Dewani off. “I would’ve managed.”

“You nearly died!”

“Then it would have been my time.”

M’Baku held up a hand, silencing the two. “What’s happened has happened. None of us can reverse it. I appreciate your apology...”

“Adesina.”

“Adesina. Why did you need my sister’s help in the first place?”

Adesina grimaced as she drew in a sharp breath, scarred leg twitching against the bed. “The priestesses of Ravana foretold my birth --that I would be a perfect vessel for his powers, and that through me he would bring for the age of the Eternal Night. When I was born, I was offered up to the demon king to see if the prophecies were true. He looked upon me with favor and granted me access to his powers and the powers of Simhika.”

M’Baku’s eyes narrowed. “So, you are a host for them.”

“I am a conduit --and none of this was my choice. I was an infant. I had no say in what I became,” Adesina spat out through gritted teeth.

“How did you get hurt so badly?” Shuri asked gently. “There’s evidence of years of abuse here.”

“I grew up in the temple of Ravana, away from my parents. Even though the priestesses kept an eye on me, it was easy enough to escape to explore the forests. When I was seven, I found the tunnel that led to the rest of the Jabari lands --and met a priestess of Hanuman named Olufemi.”

Okoye watched M’Baku’s eyes widen in recognition. Perhaps Dewani did have visions of her grandmother in the hall of the dead, and Olufemi helped Dewani find Adesina.

“She taught me the tenants of Hanuman and how to combat the evils that had been instilled in me. Eventually, the priestesses of Ravana found out and began beating me for my defiance. I tried to escape to the rest of the Jabari lands but was chased away each time by villagers who knew what I was --and each time I returned to a beating worse than the one I had received before.”

“And you came to know my sister how?”

“Abayomi began visiting me after Olufemi’s death, to continue teaching me the path of Hanuman. When she realized my condition was deteriorating, she asked Dewani to help me escape from my captivity.”

“So that’s what you’ve been doing these last few weeks,” M’Baku said as he looked over to his sister.

“Presumably,” Adesina confirmed.

“We need to start the next round of surgeries,” Shuri said as she started gathering equipment. “I need everyone who isn’t working with me to clear the lab.”

“That’s fine,” M’Baku said as he continued to stare down his sister. “We’ve got a lot of talking to do, anyway.”

Once everyone had given M’Baku, Okoye, and Dewani some space to talk things out, M’Baku leveled a stern look at his sibling. “What you did was incredibly dangerous, borderline foolish. The cult territories are strictly forbidden to the followers of Hanuman! You knew better!”

Dewani, for her part, didn’t cower or look frightened. Instead, she stood up to her full height, set her shoulders, and looked M’Baku straight in the eye. “Yes. I did. And, if I was in the same situation at a different time, I’d do it again. I’m not going to let someone die just because the rules say I should.”

M’Baku sighed heavily, looking to the ceiling, then to the floor. Then, he met his sister’s steady gaze and held out his arms to her. “I’m proud of you,” he murmured when she accepted his hug. “You nearly gave me a damn heart attack, but I’m proud of you for doing the right thing.”

Dewani squeezed her brother tighter. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you, I just--”

“You were in over your head?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, I don’t think I could’ve prepared you for something like this, but if you... if  you ever find yourself in a similar situation down the road --and hopefully you won’t--just tell me what’s going on, okay?”

“I didn’t want to risk anything getting back to the priestesses of Ravana,” Dewani explained. “Adesina had it bad enough already.”

“Well, even in your attempts at secrecy, our uncle still managed to find out --which will definitely make for a nice mess at your trial.”

“But I saved someone’s life. I brought them out of the cult territory so they could follow the teachings of Hanuman freely. How could that possibly be a bad thing?”

“F’Tendi is a man of prejudice,” M’Baku said resignedly. “And people of prejudice seldom have problems spinning even the most noble of acts into sinister tales. On a different note--” he pointed to Okoye “--you owe her a massive thank you. She shouldn’t have been roped into all of this.”

“Excuse me? The last I checked, I’m your partner. Since when does that mean I wouldn’t help your sister if she asked me?”

“Even for deadly ventures into lands run by cultist to rescue the ‘conduit’ of a literal demon?”

Okoye shrugged. “I don’t see why not.”

“Still,” Dewani said as she stepped forward and hugged her. “Thank you. I don’t know what we would’ve done if you had said no.”

“I wouldn’t have said ‘no.’ And I’m glad you’re alright.” She pulled away from the hug and clasped the teen’s broad shoulders fondly. “Now, I think you need some rest. M’Baku and T’Challa still need to figure out what will happen to Adesina when her surgeries are completed.”

T’Challa drummed his fingers against the desk in his office. “This is a... precarious situation we’ve found ourselves in. I feel a great deal of sympathy for Adesina, but I don’t know if keeping her here is the wisest choice, all things considered.”

“I can’t take her back to the Jabari lands,” M’Baku insisted. “Even if she is a student of Hanuman, there’s no way the other Jabari would accept her, given her connection to Ravana. She wouldn’t be safe.”

“Well, we can’t just send her back to the cult territory,” Nakia said, placing her hands on her hips. “We all saw what they did to her. They’ll kill her if we send her back.”

“Perhaps we could hold her in one of the prisons,” Okoye suggested. “Not as an actual inmate, of course, but so that we can keep a better eye on her.”

T’Challa shook his head. “She doesn’t deserve to be locked away. She hasn’t done anything wrong.”

“How many people know that she’s here --that she even exists?” Nakia asked. “Some of the Jabari, the cultists, a few of the Dora, Jhanvi, Shuri, Dewani and her friends, and us. I mean... if she’s here, there’s not much the cultists can do to get her back, right?”

M’Baku nodded. “They’d be killed on sight if they stepped over the threshold between their territory and the rest of the Jabari lands.”

“And it’s not like the Jabari would listen to them if they mentioned Adesina being missing, provided that you could assure your people that they weren’t in any danger.”

“...I suppose not.”

“What if... what if we kept her here? At the palace? We’ve got more than enough space to keep her from running into anyone we don’t want her to. She’d be close to Shuri’s lab so that she could keep up with her treatments.”

T’Challa grimaced. “And what if she proves dangerous?”

“I doubt she will --but, if she does, Ms. Maximoff and the rest of the renegade Avengers are close enough, should we need the back up.”

“I think that’s our best option,” M’Baku said after a moment of thought.

“Correction,” T’Challa said. “It’s our only option.”

When they walked back into Shuri’s lab, Jhanvi was in the middle of installing a cybernetic eye where Adesina’s left eye had been scarred over.

“I forgot what it was like, seeing things with two eyes,” Adesina murmured as Jhanvi worked. “It’s disorienting.”

“Your brain will adjust quickly enough,” Jhanvi assured her.

“Can we have a minute?” T’Challa asked.

“Not really,” Jhanvi grunted as she kept soldering wires into place. “There’s not really a pausing point for installing a fucking eye.”

“Is it alright if we speak with her?”

“Knock yourself out.”

T’Challa rolled his eyes subtly before stepping over to the right side of Adesina’s bed. “How are you fairing?”

“All things considered, not bad. It’s--” she gestured vaguely at Jhanvi and the cybernetics “--a lot to take in.”

“I’m sure. I wanted to let you know that you’ll be staying in the palace once your main surgeries are done. You’ll have full amnesty with us until Chief M’Baku and the Jabari elders decide what to do with your case.”

Adesina’s face morphed into a mixture of pain and gratitude. “I don’t know how to thank you, your Highness. You don’t have to do anything like this for me.”

“A simple ‘thank you’ will suffice. And on the contrary: it’s the only option any of us have right now.”

“If you’re certain. And thank you.”

T’Challa smiled. “You’re welcome.”

Okoye followed T’Challa out of Shuri’s lab, mulling over the situation they’d just landed themselves in.

She didn’t think Adesina posed a real danger to any of them; she was just a badly broken woman in need of healing and a safe place to rest.

But, then, there was the very real chance that she was, in fact, a conduit for a demon. M’Baku seemed certain of it, as did Dewani and her friends.