#who were the ‘grown ups’ taking care of carver and leandra

[h-awke-a]

malcolm was an educated man—moving between circles (read:escaping from) for most of his younger and adult life had afforded him that at least, and when theo was young and an only child his father would teach him to read and write, give him occasional little lessons when they had time, and theo was awed by him, by the way their neighbours would come to ask him questions, seemed to respect him as an educated person, would pay him for lessons, but soon those paid lessons and the mutual attempt between father and son to make money for the family meant that theo’s lessons fell to the wayside—malcolm could see that theo didn’t have a focus or particular talent academically, he was certainly no mage, so he thought to let the boy just learn the basics and not bother him with all the rest

then, when the twins were born, malcolm was convinced that one of them, at least, would manifest magick—and from the time they could toddle he was passionate about educating them in all he knew (much of his advanced education was of course magickal scholarship), eventually his focus shifted to bethany because he correctly sensed her aptitude, and he spent almost all of his free time educating his daughter one on one, giving her almost all of his attention

carver developed a deep resentment over this—theo i don’t think ever resented it so much as it fucked up his sense of self worth further, he just internalized the idea that he hadn’t been intelligent enough to really warrant his fathers focus the same way, of course it would have been a waste to pass all that onto him, it also gave him this inherent idea that mages are, in general, more intelligent than him, more educated, of a higher strata in a class-based way, the hawkes grew up in extreme poverty and theo only attended a few years of the paltry free schooling the chantry offered before leaving to take work to make money—carver attended for much longer, and attached himself to the chantry much for the reason that the sisters there seemed willing to show him the special attention that his father reserved for their sister in their little private school at home

of course, the root of all malcolm’s focus on bethany wasn’t favoritism—it was fear, he was desperately trying to equip her with the knowledge she would need to keep herself safe and secret from the templars, always living with the crushing fear that if anything happened to him she would be utterly alone and unprepared to deal with her own magicks unless he could teach her everything he knew while there was still time, it was loving for bethany, the special focus of her father, but it was also suffocating, and terrifying, and a constant reminder of how frightening her future was going to be

[heroofshield]

Whumpcember Day 10- Freezing (Dragon Age 2 FemHawke & Varric)

Takes place during Act 1 before the mission in the Deep Roads.

@whumpcember

--

Growing up in Ferelden, Marian Hawke had experienced her share of cold; especially in Lothering where during the winters the snow could pile up almost to the roof. Escaping to Kirkwall, she'd thought that the winters would be somewhat milder since the city was by the Waking Sea.

She was wrong.

"Maker, this wind is brutal." Marian groused as a gust of wind whistled through the streets, drawing the shawl she had closer around her. "How do you deal with it?"

"Layers. Lots of layer and furs if you can afford it." Varric replied, dodging a pile of near frozen horse droppings. "This isn't even the coldest it's gotten. I remember ten years ago when the harbor froze nearly two miles out. Ice was so thick that you could walk on it no worries. Another time there was a blizzard so bad that it took the city the rest of the winter to dig out."

Marian let out a groan, "Don't say such things, Varric. You're just going to jinx it."

Turning the corner and seeing the entrance to The Hanged Man, Varric just smiled, "It's your second winter in the city, you should be used to it by now."

Marian sighed as they walked into the tavern and the warmth surrounded her like a welcome embrace. Flexing her near frozen fingers, she threaded her way through the crowd towards the stairs and Varric's suite of rooms. Standing in front of the fireplace, she felt her muscles start to warm up and relax. "I don't think I'll ever get used to it."

--

They needed money for firewood.

The winter had been usually cold, at least that was according to those who'd grown up in the city, and they'd had to spend more than usual to keep Gamlen's house heated. So if Marian wouldn't have to dip into the funds she'd been setting aside for Varric's expedition, she needed to take a few jobs. Her reputation working for the smugglers meant that those that knew were approaching her with 'job opportunities' since she knew the best routes in and out of the city to avoid detection. And while Marian knew those guaranteed a payout, she was trying to find more legitimate jobs.

"But those are few and far between. Not everyone wants to work with a Ferelden still." Marian thought as she stared at the household accounts. She'd promised Bethany that she'd take care of Leandra and Carver, and over the past few years she'd realized that that meant she'd have to do things that her younger sister might not have approved of.

"Guess that it's the smuggling jobs until something else comes along." Marian thought as she memorized the details of the job that would get them the coin they needed to get them the firewood that they needed plus some in case the winter decided to stretch itself out.

--

Hawke was missing.

She'd asked Varric if he was up for a quick smuggling job, but he'd replied that he was knees deep in his latest novel and didn't want to stop mid-stream; if he did then who knows if he'd ever finish the draft before his editor started sending daily letters asking where it was.

Hawke had just let out a laugh and said she better get to read it first before he sent it off before bounding down the stairs towards the main floor of the tavern, calling over her shoulder that she'd be back the next day.

"That was yesterday and normally she'd at least stop by to see if she could get a few free drinks from me in exchange for telling me about it for my next serial." Varric thought as he idly tapped the end of his quill against the paper. "She could just be resting at Gamlen's, it snowed pretty awful last night; had to make the mountain pass difficult to get through."

But the feeling in his gut told Varric that something wasn't right.

So he cleaned up his drafts and hightailed it to see Carver, and somewhat discreetly see if Hawke wasn't just sleeping it off, but she wasn't at home so her brother agreed to help look for her. Then it was to the City Centre and the guard's quarters to ask Aveline if she'd seen the quick witted warrior. She hadn't either and reluctantly agreed to join their small party to go hunt down the woman. One last stop in Darktown for Blondie just in case they needed a healer and they were on their way.

In the interest of time, and hoping that Aveline would ignore the fact that they were traveling through smuggling tunnels, Varric decided to use the Merchant's Guild route he knew would get the to the highlands the quickest. Stepping out into the snow covered pass, the cold air slapped Varric's face and he wished he'd brought his fur lined jacket. "Or at the least my shirt that closes all the way up." he thought, trying to suppress a shiver.

Glad for the snowshoes so he wasn't head deep in the snow, Varric called out Hawke's name as loud as he dared without causing an avalanche, "Hawke!"

"If she's unconscious she won't hear us." Aveline said, drawing her cloak tighter around her.

Varric chose to ignore the statement and continued trudging forwards, "Hawke, you out here!?"

"Marian!" Carver called out, narrowing his eyes against the brightness of the snow.

"Hawke! You still owe for those fines last month!" Aveline called out, knowing that if the woman could hear her then she'd protest. But silence greeted them.

"Search the ground for any signs of footprints, there would not be many traveling through here this time of year." Fenris said, starting to scout ahead of the small party.

They fell silent after that, spread out and focused on the ground-hoping for some sign that Hawke was still alive.

After what felt like an eternity, Carver let out a whistle to draw everyone's attention and they made their way towards him. "Look, footprints." He pointed to the ground where an indentation could just be seen. "Looks like they go off in this direction."

Varric looked in the direction that Carver indicated and in the fading sun could just make out the outline of a cave. "Even if it's not her, we need to find shelter soon. Otherwise we'll be icicles when they find us."

"Maybe who ever made the footprints is still in there and can tell us what happened." Aveline said, unslinging her shield from her back and making sure that her sword wasn't hindered by her cloak.

Anders nodded in agreement and readied his staff while Varric got Biance out and Carver made sure that his sword was ready as well.

Inside the cave it was a touch warmer than outside, but not by much. Their breath still created white clouds in the air and Anders created some mage lights so they could see.

What Varric wasn't expecting was for Marian Hawke to be illuminated by said lights; propped up against the cave wall, eyes closed and slumped over herself.

"Maker's kickers." he cursed as Carver sheathed his sword and made a beeline towards his sister. "Blondie, you're up."

Anders nodded, setting his staff against the wall and kneeling opposite of Carver.

Marian was freezing. The snow had been heavier than she'd expected it to be and that had caused all sorts of problems until she'd realized that she'd be stuck in the mountains without any supplies to get her through the cold night. It had been luck that she'd found the cave and had hoped that Carver or someone would miss her enough to come looking.

Feeling warm for the first time since setting out, she opened her eyes expecting to be greeted to the damp of the cave-not the whitewashed walls of a room in Ander's clinic. Confused, she tried to sit up and discovered that she was nearly being held down by multiple blankets.

"You gave us quite a scare."

Marian looked over to see Varric in the doorway, a bowl of something in his hands. "Oh?" she asked in a rough voice. Clearing it, she tried again, "Did I get bitten by wolves and almost turn into a warewolf?"

"Not as dramatic. Nearly became a human icicle though." Varric carefully set the bowl of hot soup on the small nightstand by the cot. "Good thing we brought Blondie along, he said that a few more hours and it would have been off to see the Maker for you."

Marian carefully pushed back the blankets so she could sit up and brushed the stray hairs out of her vision, "At least you missed me enough to go looking for me."

"Y'know Chuckles, if you needed the coin I would've let you borrow it. Didn't have to be so dramatic and nearly freeze to death."

Marian huffed in amusement, "You know me, I have to make a statement. Besides, we'd just gotten out of the smuggling guild-what makes you think I wanted to go into debt right after that?"

"Could've called it an advance on our delving findings." Varric shrugged, knowing that the casual way they were talking was the way they communicated; through jokes and playing it off like it was no big deal. "Unlike the Merchant's Guild I have reasonable terms. At least you wouldn't lose a limb if you couldn't pay it back."

At that Marian let out a laugh and knew the words that they weren't saying. "At that, how can I say no?"

"Just promise next time you decided on a 'quick job' you at least take two other people."

"I promise to cut other people next time."

"Good. Now drink your soup so I can go back to my writing."

[mahalzevran]

Here are the OCs in my canon Dragon Age timeline for the first day of @filipinoocweek .

They are: Rhian Surana, Kaia and Alden Hawke, and Luwalhati Lavellan (Lu’s screencap was taken by the lovely @rhunae ). Info about them under the cut since I don’t want to take up people’s dashes.

(All four OCs have Seheron ancestry since that’s the closest place in the Dragon Age setting to the Philippines. The Amells were originally from Seheron and Clan Lavellan had previously merged with a Seheron clan a while back)

Rhian Surana

Age: 18 at the beginning of the Fifth Blight

Height: 4′11

Gender: cis female

Sexuality: Asexual

Class and Specialization: Mage | Spirit Healer and Arcane Warrior

Romanced: Zevran

Bio: Rhian’s parents were born in Kirkwall (separately) and have ancestry from Seheron. They met while they were working under the Couslands, fell in love, then had Rhian. Rhian’s magic manifested at around age 4. Her parents did a pretty good job at hiding her magic until one day Fergus walked in on her casting a spell. The Templars came in the next day to drag her to the Circle. Her father tried to stop them and was ultimately killed.

During her time in the Circle, Rhian befriended Jowan and Eadric, then eventually became friends with Anders and Karl as well. Rhian showed a natural talent for magic which led to First Enchanter Irving offering to mentor her personally. Rhian quickly rose in rank among her peers causing her to receive her Harrowing not long after her 18th birthday.

Shortly after, Rhian was involved in an incident with her friend Jowan that forced her to either join the Grey Wardens or become Tranquil. After Loghain’s betrayal, Rhian was forced to take charge of uniting Ferelden against the incoming Blight. She was not pleased with this as she hadn’t been outside in more than a decade. Rhian gained many companions along the way. She ended up becoming close friends with Leliana, Morrigan, and Alistair as well as falling in love with Zevran. Rhian would eventually make the ultimate sacrifice in order to save Thedas from the blight and a statue was erected in her name. However, there are rumors that she did not actually die and is currently with Zevran and Alistair elsewhere.

As a token of affection from Zevran, Rhian wears a gold hoop earring on her right ear. She is also visibly chubby.

Kaia Hawke

Age: 23 at the beginning of the Fifth Blight

Height: 6′3

Gender: cis female

Sexuality: Aro/Ace

Class and Specialization: Mage | Spirit Healer and Force Mage

Romanced: No one

Alden Hawke

Age: 23 at the beginning of the Fifth Blight

Height: 5′11

Gender: cis male

Sexuality: Homosexual

Class and Specialization: Dual-Weilding Rogue | Shadow and Assassin

Romanced: Fenris

Bio: The twins Kaia and Alden were born in Lothering to Malcolm and Leandra Hawke. Kaia’s magic did not manifest itself until the age of 6, about one year after Carver and Bethany were born. Malcolm took it upon himself to teach his daughter how to control her magic. Once Bethany’s magic also manifested itself, Malcolm taught the two together, though Bethany quickly surpassed her older sister in skill. After Malcolm’s death, it was up to the older twins to take care of the family. Alden would take on odd jobs, which helped him develop his stealthing skill, and Kaia worked hard not to be discovered by the Templar.

When it was revealed the King Cailan was looking for volunteers to join his army, Carver and Alden immediately signed up and left for Ostagar. Alden and Carver survived the battle due to the fact that when it became clear that Cailan had been betrayed, Carver heaved Alden onto his shoulder and ran all the way back to Lothering.

Due to the impending darkspawn threat, the Hawke family fled to Kirkwall along with Aveline Vallen, another Ostagar survivor, where they were united with their Uncle Gamlen. It was here that they met Varric Tethras and his brother Bartrand. Soon, the twins become a partner in Bartrand’s expedition with the promise of becoming rich and head for the Deep Roads using maps provided by the Grey Warden Anders. It is here that tragedy strikes and Bethany and Carver are forced to join the Grey Warden order or succumb to the taint.

As a result of the expedition, the Hawke family is able to petition for their name back and are now reinstated to the noble class. At this point, the Kirkwall Crew has grown to include Isabela, Merrill, Fenris, Varric, Anders/Justice, Aveline, and Sebastian. Soon Alden and Fenris get together. Three years after the expedition, their mother is horribly killed and the Hawke twins somehow manage to stop a Qunari invasion. Kaia is named the Champion of Kirkwall as it was she who landed the final blow against the Arishok.

Three years later, the tension betweent the mages and the Templars reach a breaking point. Out of desperation, Anders blows up the Kirkwall Chantry. Kaia and Alden are then forced to defend the mages from the Templars with the help of their companions. After hearing about what happened, they are also joined by Carver and Bethany. It was soon found out that Knight-Commander Meredith had gone mad due to the red lyrium idol found years prior. The Hawkes leave Kirkwall and the companions go their separate ways, save for Fenris.

Luwalhati Lavellan

Age: 28 at the time of the Conclave explosion

Height: 5′00

Gender: cis female

Sexuality: Demisexual

Class and Specialization: Mage | Fire Necromancer

Romanced: Solas

Bio: Luwalhati was born to a hunter and the hahren of Clan Lavellan. Her magic manifested at around age 5. Growing up, Luwalhati grew very interested in the stories her father would tell the clan. She always listened intently and often asked for more during bedtime. While she loved hearing her father talk about Dalish history, she also loved hearing about the day’s hunt. She would wait very excitedly for her mother to come back. Her mother would always tell her about the different animals she came across and how to listen to nature to know when to strike.

Luwalhati only had two close friends, a warrior and a rogue, in the clan as she was often deemed too serious and unapproachable. This was even furthered when Luwalhati received her vallaslin. Throughout the ritual, Lu kept a straight face and barely flinched. This caused a few of the clan members to not only respect her but also slightly fear her. Lu is a hard worker and loves to learn new things. When she was chosen to become the First, she was elated as she had been studying and training her whole life.

When Divine Justinia called for the Conclave, the Keeper sent Luwalhati, along with her two friends, to the spy as the verdict would likely affect their clan. Unfortunately, Lu’s two friends were part of those who did not survive the explosion.

In the beginning, Luwalhati wanted nothing to do with the Inquisition. It seemed like a shem problem and Lu’s only goal was to return to her clan. She had mistakenly assumed that complying with the advisors would make the process go faster so she could return faster. It was not until after saving the mages at Redcliffe and the attack on Haven that she finally took the Inquisition seriously. Finding out that it was Corypheus who caused the explosion that killed her friends was a big factor in her drive to defeat Corypheus.

It was difficult for Luwalhati to get along with her companions at first because she was a proud Dalish elf and tended to have a stick up her ass. It was Varric who convinced her to let loose a little. Lu had tried to befriend Solas first because he was both an elf and a mage and she had mistakenly assumed that there would be solidarity. Their conversations often led to debates until Solas finally learned to be more understanding. Eventually, the two would get together.

As Inquisitor, Luwalhati left Stroud in the Fade as she knew how much Hawke meant to Varric. She also had Celene and Briala rule together. Lu also chose to drink from the well. It would not have been her choice if she could, but she did not feel right letting Morrigan have it since it was her heritage in question. Luwalhati would also eventually have Leliana as Divine. 

Trespasser was particularly difficult for Lu, she found out that her ex not only killed her two best friends but was also the one person she was supposed to stay away from and was planning on destroying the world. Though Lu had initially thought she was over Solas, she ultimately ended up vowing to redeem him if possible.