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[otiosity]

You've reached Hawke! Leave a message on this thing that I don't even remotely understand and I'll fumble my way to figure out how to answer your most important request.

Probably.

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[otiosity]

[She doesn't respond because she's just fallen into a nap. It's one of her amazing skills: she can nap anytime and anywhere. Give her a place to flop down and it becomes almost impossible not to nap.

Though she'd probably be disappointed that she missed his messy hair. Watching him write at his desk late at night or early in the morning while she dozed in the bed was one of her favorite activities. There was something soothing about the scratching of his pen on parchment and honestly, just him in general.]

[neverheardofhim]

[Well, she may have missed out on the messy hair, but his presence certainly wouldn't be missed. Though it took him a few minutes to rustle up a few bottles of booze ("Variety," he said to himself, though there was always a chance of them being gone by the morning). Soon enough, he ambled into the room in his usual, slow pace.

Varric liked to pretend that he was one of the few people lucky enough to see the former champion of Kirkwall in a state like this. He liked to craft stories in his head, ones where Varric was the only one she trusted enough to let her guard down with. The truth of the matter was a lot more frustrating Hawke could sleep anywhere, and often Varric found himself fretting over her safety.

Not now though. Now there was an elaborate security system protecting them, and plenty of time for him to simply watch the slumbering hero. After setting both the bottles and his collected glasses to the side, he shifted toward the woman. A rough palm was placed against her forehead, before sweeping back into her hair.

If nothing else, he was one of the few people that could do that.]

Hawke. It's drinking time. Don't leave me alone with these bottles. I'm afraid of what they might do to me.

[otiosity]

[Hawke does show a vulnerability in front of of Varric that no one else ever sees. One of the few she can trust to not hurt her. To not leave her. To not take her for granted. It's no fault of his own that getting Hawke to talk about her feelings is about as easy as teaching a cow to fly.

At the sensation of the familiar rough hand on her forehead, Hawke's blue eyes flutter open and she blinks sleepily at him.]

Don't worry, I'm here to prote-[She yawns massively as she sits up, stretching her arms over her head, sneezes, and rubs at her face.] Mmm, protect you. As always.

[neverheardofhim]

[If nothing else, he could at least write a story about a flying cow. It might not fetch well with his usual readership, but he had heard that children's stories were a bit of an untapped market. He'd consider it, if the smut stories ever stopped selling.

For now, though, Varric could only smile, that warm sort of thing that only his closest confidants saw. He could keep up a wry smile all day, but he could count on one hand the number of people who brought out the -- admittedly embarrassing -- warm and fuzzies.

Only two of those had made it to Thisavrou.]

I certainly need protection. This bottle of booze is threatening to poison me, you know that? [Said bottle was torn open, and a clear liquid poured out into their glasses. One was held out to the woman, while the other remained in Varric's large hand.]

Help me slay yet another beast?

[otiosity]

My, you're asking a lot of me. But I suppose for you, I'll endure the fight.

[She takes the glass of liquid and takes a sip, shuddering a bit at the taste of alcohol before raising the glass.]

Cheers.

[neverheardofhim]

Cheers.

[He clanked his glass against hers, then sat back to down it in one. Lowering it, he peered at her expectantly -- she wasn't going to disappoint him, was she?]

Come on, I know you're better than that, Chuckles. Don't let me down.

[otiosity]

I just woke up. You're lucky that I'm even talking to you coherently right now.

[Hawke pouts a little but is throughly shamed into knocking back a huge gulp of the liquid. It's a little rough on her somewhat empty stomach but she doesn't make an sort of indication of that.]

What's the occasion? Or are we just making one up?

[neverheardofhim]

How about... [He sucked in a breath. At least Varric was good at thinking on his feet.] Celebrating a good nap?

[Without even asking, he reached over and grabbed the bottle, pouring them both another serving or two. It'd been a rough month of doing nothing.]

[otiosity]

Sounds good.

[Except the word "nap" makes her yawn hugely again and she stretches her arms up above her head, revealing the pale skin of her navel. Then she reaches over to take the glass.]

We also need pizza.

[Which is Hawke for "Varric, I'm rich but hungry. Buy me food."]

[neverheardofhim]

[That brief tease of skin might have made a lesser man give into temptation, but for Varric? It was nothing more than another late night with a shameless woman. He'd seen worse back in Kirkwall, when he'd had the misfortune of walking in on her and her paramours not just once, but a handful of times.

Besides, the dwarf didn't need to see her skin to know that she was beautiful. He'd written a book about her, described her appearance in painstaking detail. Critics and commoners alike had asked him about the subtext, questions that he had openly mocked.

It wasn't like that, he'd said.]

Heaps of vegetables on it, right?

[otiosity]

[Hawke wasn't even sure if she was teasing him. She trusted Varric more than anyone. He stood apart from other friends and any lover that she'd ever had. Everyone doted on her. But she wanted Varric's attention. She actively tried to get his eyes on her. It was vexing and even she didn't understand.

So when she drops her arms she puts on a great pout and walks over to flop dramatically against him.]

Varric. I'm wasting with hunger and you're making jokes?

[neverheardofhim]

Now, Hawke, [He didn't even have to think about slipping his arm around her. He blinked and it was there, crushing the lithe woman against his side, right where she was always supposed to be. The Maker, Andraste, the Nightmare, whoever or whatever deemed it fair to take her from him, could be damned to the Void for trying otherwise.

You and I both know that if I didn't tell jokes, you would be miserable.

[otiosity]

Tell that to my poor stomach that's currently twisting and gnawing on itself.

[She takes his hand to rest it on her stomach just as it gives a good loud grumble.]

It doesn't have a sense of humor.

[neverheardofhim]

[There was something about the warmth of her skin that made his own stomach twist. Hell, if he didn't know better, he'd say his heart was beating just a bit faster. Maybe it had to do with his earlier thoughts, of how much he had missed her when he believed her dead. When he knew she was dead. Warmth meant life, and this was nothing more than elation over the reminder that Marian Hawke was very much alive.]

Alright, fine. No more jokes. What do you want on it?

[otiosity]

Pineapple and sausage.

[she's one of those people. She reaches over and takes her drink and downs it with a hiccup.]

[neverheardofhim]

[Just like that, the moment came to an end. Rather than feeling the faint stirrings of sentimentality, Varric simply felt at ease. This was a normal night with Hawke, no need for him to be feeling odd around her.]

Got it, princess. [He pulled out his tab and tapped away on its projected surface, thoughtful frown pulling at his lips.]

That it?

[otiosity]

Varricccccc.

[She flops down across from him on the couch and pokes at him with her feet in a way that she knows he hates.]

Do you really hate pineapple that much? It's an awful big frown.

[neverheardofhim]

I don't hate anything. [Aside from Red Lyrium, the Nightmare and the Guild, with a few other minor grievances sprinkled in between. The point was, he was hardly bothered by her pizza selection. If any of it bothered him, he could pick it off. And that was implying he didn't just order his own piece, or that he was hungry at all in the first place.]

I'm an old man, Hawke. I can't be expected to know how to order a pizza at the top of a hat. That's all I'm frowning over.

[Still staring at the screen, Varric clapped a hand down on Hawke's feet, holding them in place while he finished ordering.]

[otiosity]

I suppose I can wait if you're waiting on me. It's hard to get good help these days.

[She twitches her feet playfully under his grip.]

You should get spectacles. They'd make you look clever. Exactly how you'd imagine a writer.

[neverheardofhim]

[Hawke's first words netted only a scoff and a shake of the head. It was a weak attempt at getting a rise out of him, one that the dwarf wouldn't even grace with an a serious response. Or at least, that was what he told himself. They both knew that he was at Hawke's mercy, that Varric would do what ever she needed, without so much as a question.]

Never going to happen. I'm showing my age bad enough as it is.

[otiosity]

I dunno. I think you've aged handsomely.

[Hawke taps him playfully with her toes. It's the honest truth. He's always been a handsome dwarf and age has been kind to him. He looks... wise and almost respectable. It's a funny sort of charm.]

The spectacles would just add to it. Give you some authorial authority.

[neverheardofhim]

Let it go, Marian.

[He pressed a button, sending the order off, before turning to her. A stern look was fixed upon the woman. It did a poor job of covering up the underlying affection, however, but Varric wasn't sure whether or not that was a good thing or a bad thing.]

It's like you're telling me you don't like me the way I am.

[otiosity]

Of course I like you the way you are.

[She reaches out to pat his arm, trying to just roll past the use of her surname and just get to trying to get him to crack a smile.]

But everyone looks better in spectacles. Or well, at least already beautiful people do.

[neverheardofhim]

[Varrics will always smile for Hawkes. Whether the dwarf liked it or not, he was helpless in the face of the woman and her ways. It didn't take long for a smile to spread over his lips, even if it did come with a roll of his eyes.]

If that's true, then I'd certainly be interested in seeing what you looked like in glasses.

[otiosity]

I wore them when I was a super genius and used them to really drive home my cleverness. Everyone agreed they brought out my eyes.

[Actually, Tony called her a stupid hipster but she didn't know what that was so she decided it was a compliment.]