Snippet #1582827

"I thank you, Serrah. Give me half a day, for they are not in Starkhaven, or even in the Freemarches." Michaline smiled at him as she quickly departed the alleyway, it was strange, going out on a limb for another after such a long time in seclusion, but Hawke knew it was the right thing to do. Had he not been given a chance at life as a young mage, he wouldn't have lived long enough to become The Champion of Kirkwall, or possibly even reach adulthood.

Hawke didn't reply to the woman, he just slid into a seated position and quietly watched her leave, remaining in the dirty alley to be alone with his thoughts. It was odd, he had just made the huge decision of taking children into his custody on the fly, it was impulsive and foolish, and it reminded him of his old self. This day had certainly not turned out as he expected, and he could only hope that it didn't get any stranger than it already had. A gut feeling told him otherwise, his luck had a way of always pulling him into events much larger than himself, the poor unknown Apostate becoming the mighty 'Champion of Kirkwall' was proof enough of that.

The ominous luster of his black plate armor shone in the small ray of sunlight that slipped over the roof of the tavern and into the alleyway. Hawke sat with his back to the wall of the bar, staff sitting horizontal across his lap, His thick black hair was messy and he was sure he needed to trim his unkempt beard a little here and there. Constant travel doesn't often permit one with enough time to clean themselves up, but there was a mirror at the inn, maybe it wouldn't be too much trouble to have a quick rinse and a shave.

The lone mage's thoughts were interrupted by the appearance of an elf at the corner of the bar, raising her hands as she came into view, apparently as a show of good faith. She was far shorter than himself, with brown-ish red hair and a slender figure, all around, easy on the eyes but what caught his attention was the color in her cheeks, which meant she was either flustered or nervous, either way she was hardly what he considered a threat. Hawke remained seated as she approached, but turned a bit to face her as she began to speak.

"H-Hawke?" His name escaped her lips in a small voice, almost as if he were an old friend whom she was surprised to see. So everyone in this town knew who he was and had perfect directions to find him? Somehow he knew today was going to be different, but two separate women visiting him within just minutes of each other, and both identified him as if they had a portrait of him on hand, that... was different. What the elf said next was just as unexpected. "Y-You're Hawke... but you know that. Silly me. Me. Right. I-I'm Lain...uhh...Laina Kunnas. I've been...Er...Hello?" Laina, a nice name, Hawke had always been fond of elven names, but he kept his complement to himself, seeing as Laina was stricken with nervousness. Hawke couldn't help but cock his head to the side in confusion, a lot of things had happened in the past week, but this was by far the most 'interesting.' The pair shared an awkward silence due to the fact that Hawke had absolutely no idea how to reply to what just happened, but when she opened her mouth again it only got worse.

"You wouldn't happen...to be doing anything...erm...exciting, would you? Shit...you must think I'm crazy...I'll just...leave." Holy shit.... His jaw dropped... This just couldn't make any less sense to him, it was like a boulder of confusion was fell right in his lap, and she turned and left him with no idea of what just went on, but then he heard her sigh. It was faint but there, everything clicked, and he felt like a fool for it not being apparent sooner, the girl was infatuated with him, there was no doubt about that. He stood to call her back, but the sound of his pauldron scraping the stone wall was enough, she jolted back towards him, beaming with delight. "Can I come with you? I won't let you down, I promise!" Hawke had made it through the entire conversation without a word, he figured it may be time to speak, maybe alleviate her nervousness.

"Somehow I'm positive it won't make a difference if I say no. As I'm sure you.. 'overheard,' I have kids to take care of, so an extra pair of hands would be helpful." His acceptance seemed to have the girl fighting back tears, there was no way he could say no to her, he just secretly hoped she was up for wiping a few snotty noses because he wasn't sure if he could handle children on his own. "I was just about to clean myself up, I have a room at the inn on the other side of the district... Hurry up before I change my mind." The comforting sounds of his armor rattling resumed as he left the alleyway and made his way back to the mass of people in the center of the market district. Before he entered, he looked back to see if Laina was still behind him, which he wasn't surprised to see she was. She looked at the crowded street and then at him, at which Hawke shook his head... With a huff, he took the elf by the hand and pushed forward, disappearing into the street.