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After defeating the Arishok, Hawke had hoped that things may quiet down for a bit, so that Kirkwall's Champion could finally get a bit of rest. But of course, life never went that way.
For weeks, the Carta had been trying to kill both her and Bethany. Sick and tired of these attacks, she had Varric look into the matter, the trusty dwarf tracking the group responsible down to the Vimmark Mountains.
Bringing Varric, Fenris and Anders along, she figured it would be a simple matter of confronting the Carata on their turf and putting an end to this once and for. It only it had been that easy.
Now Hawke and the others found themselves in the Deep Roads once again. Someone, or something called Corypheus sought out Hawke's blood. And this part of the Deep Roads they were in, was a prison meant to keep this Corypheus at bay, one that Hawke came to learn was due to her father's magic creating the seals necessary to do so.
That wasn't all that was on her mind though.
Anders had never liked the Deep Roads, having told her as much the first time they'd gone down there during the Expedition years back. But this time around he was more affected than usual. It seemed that Corypheus was affecting Wardens somehow, causing Anders to hear voices similar to the Calling.
Seeing the man she loved in distress caused guilt to coil within Hawke's gut. She could have just left Anders at home after all. Let him remain in the comfort of the estate. But then considering how wracked with worry he may have been while she was away, perhaps it may not have been the better option.
The closer the team got to Corypheus, the worse Anders' state seemed to get, until he eventually grunted in pain. "Ugh.. I can't. The voices, the taint in my blood. Its too much", he held his head between his hands, face wracked with pain, eyes meeting with Hawke's, "Help me love". He grunted again, the influence of Corypheus becoming overwhelming for the mage, "I will not_".
His voice was cut off then, the familiar static of Justice taking over filling the air as the spirits voice boomed, "BE CONTROLLED".
Justice slammed Ander's staff to the ground, summoning demons that attacked the others. Fenris was quick to draw his sword, yelling out, "He'll kill is all is we don't do something Hawke!".
"I know!", she yelled back, "You and Varric give me an opening alright? Let me try to talk to Anders". An arrow from Varric shot through the air, "You sure about this Hawke? Blondie is not exactly himself right now". Hawke nodded, "I got this".
Varric and Fenris shared a look of understanding, the pair keeping the demons busy as Hawke did her best to get close to Anders.
This was not the first Hawke had seen Justice take over. But something about this situation was different. Whatever Corypheus was doing clearly had riled the spirit up into such a state that it would blindly lash out at those Anders cares for. But Hawke would not allow that to dissuade her, calmly approaching.
"Justice you need to stop. I know you want to keep Anders safe but this isn't helping".
Justice simply stared at Hawke, not speaking but not openly attacking either, though the magic around Anders body continued to spiral around him as Hawke continued, "I promise, we will stop Corypheus. We'll stop whatever he's doing. But you need to let Anders come back".
She took another step closer now, the energy coming from Anders was almost too much. But she reached for him all the same, hand making contact with his cheek. "Please, come back to me love".
With that, she kissed him. The sensation of her lips against Anders while Justice was in control was quite a contrast to how he feels normally. It was his body of course but there was something different, energizing almost in a way that Hawke could not fully explain to herself. She could feel Justice kissing back for a brief moment, a bit stiff yet not unpleasant. The moment ended as quickly as it started though, with the familiar warmth of Anders seeping through now. The mage cupping Hawke's head within his hands as if she was a fragile treasure, "Thank you love. I guess its true what they say. You can never really leave the Wardens. I just hope I can keep my composure from here on out".
Fenris let out a grunt, glaring at the mage, "You'd better". The elf clearing his sword of the remains of the demons while Varric placed a reassuring hand on Anders back to show he had no hard feelings.
Eventually Corypheus was defeated, and Larius, the Warden who'd been helping Hawke and the others, left to tell his order what had transpired. All that was left was to go home. Still, Hawke still could not stop thinking about what happened with Anders, nor the guilt she felt about the situation.
Back in the safety of the estate, she sat on the edge of the bed, feet swinging uncomfortably. Anders came into the room having washed up, noticing the warriors distress. "Hey, what's wrong love?". She sighs, "I still feel bad about what happened. I knew you hated the Deep Roads yet I had you go down there anyway". He took her hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze, "You weren't to know it would have led to that. And as for what happened to me in there, that was all Corypheus' doing, not you. If anything, you saved me. I don't know what would have happened had you not been there to pull me back".
He kissed the crown of her head, pulling her in closer. "I promise you, I'm alright". She sighs again, settling against him and focusing on his heartbeat. There were still things on her mind of course. Like what she learned about the Calling and how one day, it could come for Anders one day. But she chose not to focus on that right now.
No, right now the world outside no longer existed, all that mattered was the two people within the bedroom enjoying each others company.