Under Darkness [AU]

[Marian Hawke]

"Uh..." she flushes. "All of the above, he says. Depending on -- I'm not unstable, Rhys, Anders, I'm just... having a bad day."

[Tethras Clan]

For months now, all three Delvers think in unison.

"Alright, so we can't destroy Abomination. What can we do? It's not safe to just let her roam about as is." Aveline glares at the bound captive at her feet.

[Marian Hawke]

"What about Pet?" asks Tethras, quietly. 

[Tethras Clan]

"What about her?" Aveline asks with a frown. "She's not a threat, not to any of you at least." Varric likes the both of you for one.

[Marian Hawke]

Tethras shakes her head. "None of this is making a lot of sense. But. From what Marian says, if you kill one of us here, it changes the flower world. Right? So if you--"

"You are not hurting Pet!" hisses Marian, furious. 

[Tethras Clan]

"Agreed!" Aveline and Varric says firmly, then Varric continues at Aveline's gesture. "Remember, if any of you die, for any reason, it will do great harm to Hawke. Prime Hawke I mean." The dwarf shakes his head a little. This is so very (interesting) strange. "Hurt needs to be helped, not killed. Hells, I'd almost think we need to..."

"Varric?" Zevran asks after a moment.

"Huh? Oh, sorry, had a thought- Anders, how are aspects formed? How do they change?"

[Marian Hawke]

Marian frowns. "Ah, he says, apparently it's a natural process as the mind grows and changes over time."

[Tethras Clan]

"Can it be induced, encouraged, in any way?" Varric presses.

[Marian Hawke]

"Uh, therapy? He says? He says that any mind healing will be reflected in here. He also says professional courtesy demands that he admit there's other ways but he doesn't recommend any of them." She scowls. "Can I just say how incredibly disturbing all this sounds?"

[Tethras Clan]

Alright, so merging Hurt and Abomination (Hawke...) to balance each other out is probably not an option. Maybe. "I can imagine," Varric admits freely. "Just try and remember you're all part of Hawke, so good for one, good for all. And vice versa. What about containment? Can we imprison or at least depower Abomination so she doesn't terrorize and attack the others?"

[Marian Hawke]

"She's never been like this before!" protests Marian.

"Which is why you were hiding in that crypt," Champion points out, her arm still tightly around Pet. 

[Tethras Clan]

Varric gives Tethras a 'as the lady says' gesture. "Either we figure out how to secure or depower her... or we can't leave." He shrugs. "We can't risk any of you and it's clear you need back-up to win that fight."

[Marian Hawke]

Marian shakes her head. "I'll be fine." A pause. "You see? Anders says the danger is only this bad because there's a Delve in progress. It exposes the id, makes it vulnerable. So it's fine. I'll be fine." A moment later, she pales a bit, though she doesn't elaborate.  

[Tethras Clan]

"Yeah? Ask Anders where he punched me to confirm that," Varric asks, watching Marian closely. It makes senses... but it's also self-sacrificing (they're all so very Hawke, aren't they?) and convenient for her.

[Marian Hawke]

A moment passes. Her expression darkens. "Stop being childish and answer the question." She's still staring at empty air, so clearly not talking to Varric.