[01] Public Video (+Private Action w/ purramedic)

[laughingstawke]

[An intense-looking woman stares through the pokegear, looking at... something. As intimidating as she tried to come off, her brows were knitted together not in aggression, but in confusion. Anders had done what he could to instruct her, but when it came down to it, he didn't know much more than she did.]

[More magic, she figured. Just like the long-distance mirrors she'd seen in "her" house.]

This is a... "broadcast," I suppose? [She lifted a hand to perform air-quotes.] Anders told me he had seen a significant number of these. I figured it best for the public to become familiar with my face. It is only a matter of time until I have to be a hero.

... again.

So... fear not, dear public, your champion has arrived.



[Anders and Hawke wasted little time in setting out the only discernible path. For the most part, their trip was passed in, if not silence (Hawke certainly loved the sound of her own voice), but in a distant manner. Eager as Hawke was to run her mouth, she wasn't willing to run it at her companion.

There were too many unresolved threads of emotion, too many questions with the potential to disrupt the very core of their relationship.

But eventually, even her conversations subsided, and the silence was the only thing left between them.]

Comments

[laughingstawke]

[Despite her earlier amusement, the guilt was plain on her face. She turned to Dog Two who, sensing the pending scolding, quickly scampered away, tail between his legs. He too finds himself at the tree, pawing desperately pawing at the bark as if begging Pinsy to come to his rescue.]

[The whining was nothing short of pitiful.]

[With her immediate plans falling short, Hawke turned to Anders, an apologetic look replacing the stern one that had previously occupied her face. She moved over to kneel beside him, while her hands began fumbling with her backpack.]

Do you want to wear mine? I don't know if you'll fit but it certainly beats dog piss.

[Admittedly, she was proud of herself for staying so strong. She wanted nothing more than to burst into hysterics, pointing and laughing at Anders until she couldn't breathe. Perhaps later she would. But with everything that had happened, seeing him angry was, surprisingly, upsetting.]

[purramedic]

[Well. Maybe he's being a little hard on the beast. Really, though, he only feels bad because of the sharp look Pinsy directs at him from her perch, and the fact that Hawke of all people is trying to appease rather than tease him.

Suddenly, he's very self-conscious.]

No, no. I'm sure I have a spare pair in my bag.

[Anders really does like his boots -- there's a reason he's kept them instead of putting on the new pair he's currently fishing out of the pack -- but...]

I'll manage.

[He isn't quite ready to apologize to or forgive the dog, but he does sigh and give it an at least neutral glance after he adjusts the new pair.]

[laughingstawke]

[Unluckily for Anders, a neutral look is all that D.T. needed. He immediately pranced back over, pawing at the mage's bare foot. His tail wagged rapidly, and his tongue lolled out of his mouth. All was forgiven on his end, at least.]

[Finally, Hawke let out a snort.]

Good thing, that. Imagine if you wore my boots. They are not exactly your style. A bit too... ostentatious, really. Would clash with the feathers, I think.

[purramedic]

Far too heavy. I don't know how you traipse around in all that metal.

[He tugs his foot out of the reach of the dog, and takes a firm but not harsh hold under its muzzle. His other hand points to its nose in a chiding manner.]

Now, these are all I have left. You're not to do that again. Do you understand me, DT?

[laughingstawke]

[D.T. gives a yip, followed by a long series of licks to Anders' hand. Whether or not he actually understood remained to be seen. He certainly didn't quite have the intellectual ability of his predecessor, of course.]

There, all better. [Hawke clapped her hands together.] Now we can be one big, happy family once again.

[purramedic]

Not quite.

[With a bit of a grimace, he sighs and looks around for something to wipe the slime off of his hand with. After a moment's consideration, he deems the best bet to be Hawke's scarf, the length of which he snatches on his way past her and drops again once his hand is sufficiently cleaned.

At Pinsy's tree, he peers into the hole and offers his good hand for her to sniff.]

I'm sorry for frightening you, Princess. Would you care to come out now?

[The Skitty is skeptical at first, but she decides to join Anders again when he shifts a bit, and only because his shoulder seems a soft enough perch.]

[laughingstawke]

[The scoff Hawke offered him was sharp and loud, just as the glare she fixed on him was icy. She shook her head at him, before fixing her scarf and examining the offending portion with narrowed eyes. A glance at D.T. brings a sigh to her lips. If not Anders, it would be the pup eventually.]

I'd recommend running while you can, Princess. Won't be long until he's convincing you to run around in sewers, saving mages and cats alike. [Her expression, though amused, wavered in the slighted.] Though if you are anything like me, you will love every minute of it.

[Maker how she longed for those 'simple' days.]

[purramedic]

[It isn't the jesting that bothers him to any extent, but how quickly she "rights" it. What he wouldn't give for the past few years to be changed in their own ways... Now that he's here, he can hardly begin to work through his feelings and actions, much less justify them. And Hawke has made it clear enough that she has no interest in discussing them, either.

He offers Pinsy a scratch behind the ear before fumbling a bit with the clean boot.]

Suppose I could bring it along. Sell it for leather scraps, at best.

[laughingstawke]

[Since she doesn't see any negative reaction, Hawke doesn't feel all that bad and quickly moved along. She had shown a little bit too much feeling with her last utterance, and she needed to rectify it.]

[Time to break out more jokes.]

Ah, yes. Take this piss boot and make it a piss jacket. Perfect plan!

[purramedic]

[His eyes narrow as he tucks the boot away and finishes preparations to start moving again.]

This is the clean one, though you're more than welcome to carry the other for me. Perhaps someone in this horrid place could clean it.

[laughingstawke]

[Hawke knew she should have held her tongue. There was no way that what she had to say would make things right between them. But being the impulsive creature she was, she couldn't help herself.]

Horrid?. Need I remind you that you were going to be burned at a bloody stake in Kirkwall? And that's begging the question that they would be merciful. This place is paradise compared to home.

[She did feel guilty. There were many things she missed — magic being the most prevalent. But to hear him gripe about it, when it had been his escape from certain death, likely by her hands, though she would never admit it...]

[It was infuriating]

[purramedic]

[Well, that's unexpected. The shock of it is just enough to stir some residual spark of anger in his heart and evoke a bit more incivility in his voice than is probably wise.]

If I cared for freedom outside of magic, I'd have been the first volunteer in line for the Rite of Tranquility. At least if I'd burned at the stake, I'd have died a mage -- not that the Templars would dare give me the same holy death as their precious Andraste.

[Again, his being worked up is enough to disturb Pinsy, who is visibly frustrated at feeling like she needs to leap down. Now she simply walks along in the general direction they were continuing, willing to lead the way if it means staying a good distance from the bickering.]

[laughingstawke]

[The fact that he rose to her jibes only serves to invoke Hawke's own fury. She glowered at him for a moment, none too aware of the skitty, nor the fact that D.T. opted to join her.]

[For a moment, her tongue was still, and for the first time in ages, she considered her words carefully.]

No, you'd rather leave your fellow mages to suffer that fate. As if destroying the chantry is going to give them a fighting chance. For all we know, Kirkwall's circle has been razed by this point.

[And for all the thought she had given her speech, the next words spilled out, half-formed and bitter.]

You would not have made it to their pyre. I would have put a knife in your heart first. Better that they know that not every mage supports your extremism.

[Hawke shook her head rapidly. Sickened by her thoughts, she followed the two pokemon, unable to look him in the eyes after her admission.]

[purramedic]

[Some part of him wants to argue, wants to defend himself, but when it comes down to it, that part feels less real and more like a ghost. He doesn't want to think about what happened when they left Kirkwall, or what is happening now as a result; Hawke strikes that nerve with cold precision.

Somehow, he isn't so bothered by her latter statements. Of course, it hurts, enough that he can practically feel that knife, but on some level... He knows that at one point or another, he would have begged her to do it.

Things are different here, however. Much as he hates it, there is no longer anything he can do to fix things or help the mages of Kirkwall's Circle, and Hawke knows it just as well as he. Finally fallen silent, he trails after her and their Pokemon as long as she doesn't cast him away.]