2021 Handers Gift Exchange
My gift for @factorykat of her Hawke, Wyatt, and Anders 'breaking in the bed' in the Inquisitor's quarters. x)
For the full lemon art either visit my Pillowfort or AO3.
@handers-time
A/n: Hey guys! This is the first time I’m posting a fic for Dragon Age. I have a huge soft spot for Carver Hawke, and since incest is a no-no, I decided to start a Reader-insert series. I’ve been writing reader-inserts for five years, so here’s a way for me to stay in my comfort zone and to be in my element! - Mod Ren
Word Count: 1,932
Summary: For your whole life, weapons and combat were all you knew. Crafting weapons became the family business, and it was quite a successful one. You and your older brother, Edyn, took the mantle and got to the top of the weapons trade in Kirkwall. You were taught that business and family were your priorities, and that was all you needed to worry about. Then came along Carver Hawke. He was brash, rude, and seemed to get on every last nerve you didn’t even know you had. But maybe the two of you had more in common than you realized.
You careened around the corner, trying to lose the small group of unhappy men behind you. They recognized you from the various weapons deals you organized specifically theirs. From the looks of it, they weren’t satisfied, and they were not going let it settle it verbally. Starting a fight in broad daylight was comical; you decided to run instead.
So, like you almost never did, you went into the Hanged Man to hide.
You burst through the doors, capturing the attention of most of the patrons, and you went straight to Varric’s room, or whatever he liked to call it. You knew him quite well; you met him after royally pissing Batrand off. Since then, a solid friendship formed.
You were moving so fast, your shoulder clipped the door frame and you tripped over one of Varric’s many books. A loud THUD resonated around the room, and you wouldn’t be surprised if the majority of the tavern heard it.
Varric stared at you as you pulled yourself back to your feet with a grunt. “Nice of you to drop in, (L/n),” he chuckled. “It’s been a while. What brings you to my humble abode?”
“Oh, you know,” you promptly noticed a woman and a man standing next to him; you assumed the two of them were related, but otherwise, you didn’t recognize them at all. “the usual.” You grabbed the edge of the table and pulled yourself up from the grungy floor.
“You never come here, so there isn’t a usual that I know of.”
You paused, and then nodded. “Ah, right. There were some people who aren’t very happy about their order they made a while back. I reckon they want a refund, be it by getting their money back or by causing physical harm in my direction.”
“I don’t know why I expected it be a normal friendly visit...” Varric sighed dramatically.
You just rolled your eyes and sat in a chair next to him. Might as well stay and chat for a while.
He re-situated himself and gestured to the two strangers. “This is Hawke and her brother, Carver. I’m sure you’ve heard of them.” Varric was eager to introduce them to you, or was it the other way around?
You frowned, trying to recall the names, but nothing came to mind. “Can’t say I have,” By all three of their expressions, they must’ve found it surprising. “am I supposed to know?”
“At least one person doesn’t know who you are.” Carver grumbled to Hawke.
“I don’t really make it a point to know everyone Kirkwall. There are only so many things worth putting my time into.”
He was already getting your nerves. “Like working for a seedy man who runs a mercenary gang?” You narrowed your eyes. How dare he call your job “back-alley deals.”
“So you do know who we are?” Hawke added; she wasn’t nearly as hostile as her brother.
You shook your head. “I recognize the armor; it’s weak. He doesn’t know what decent and nice-looking armor is. I bet your blades are shit, too.”
Tension was slowly rising, but Varric was adjusted with your behavior and personality, and knew just how to deal with it. “Her brother is the best weapons dealer and rogue Kirkwall has ever seen. Does his business selectively; if you piss him off, and you won’t be a customer.”
You gave the dwarf a death glare. “And I work with him! Don’t give Edyn all the credit; most of the time, I’m the one doing the real work!” You had a sibling rivalry issue yourself. Edyn was the oldest, strongest, and a man. Of course, he was more noticeable than you. However, you were the one who made the connections, got information, and secured the deals. Edyn always ended up stealing your thunder.
Varric held his hands up in surrender. “My bad, (L/n), didn’t know I would hurt your feelings.” He teased, but you just grumbled.
Hawke glanced at Carver, and you wondered if their relationship held any similarities to yours. Maybe you and Carver had more in common than you realized?
You threw your legs up on the table and got comfortable. “Since we’re on the subject, you’re our favorite customer Varric. Just finished some new arrows, and I did some work on them to fit Bianca. Sharpest arrows I’ve ever made.”
You and Varric launched into a deal as if Hawke and Carver weren’t even there. And you liked it that way; you didn’t know them, they didn’t know you. While you wanted to be acknowledged for you exceptional work, the less people who knew your name, the better.
-
Hawke and Carver had long since sat down, and eventually joined the conversation. You and Carver occasionally snapped at each other, but that irritation was quickly ushered away each time.
You heard heavy footsteps coming down the hall and you muttered, “Lovely...” Immediately after, Edyn appeared in the doorway with a scowl on his face. He looked very angry.
“Edyn! Come on in; stay a while!” Varric said with a hint of sarcasm. Edyn wasn’t exactly his favorite person.
“Varric,” Edyn’s voice was cold and deep. He looked down at you and his tone became sharper, “(Y/n).”
“Brother,” You said in a sickeningly sweet voice, with a smile to match. “nice of you to join me! Meet my new friends!”
“I’m not your friend.” Carver sneered.
“Shut it, Carter!”
“It’s Carver!”
Hawke pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. This was either going to end decently, or it was going to end in disaster. The latter seemed more likely.
Edyn introduced himself in a few syllables, but he took more time with Hawke. Smooth, and confident.
He told her, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Hawke.” He grabbed her hand and gently kissed the back of it, and she promptly pulled her hand away as politely as she could.
You scoffed openly. “You sure your wife is going to like knowing you greet other women that way?” You looked at Hawke. “You’re lucky; I can’t remember the last time he showed manners like those.”
“I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen any man with manners like those.” Hawke replied, and you grinned a little. You liked her more than you thought you would.
Edyn was not amused, “She wouldn’t believe you even if you told her,” his wife didn’t like you in the slightest.
“Of course she wouldn’t. I don’t know why you married her; the bitch that hates your sister and tried to kick her out of the house.” It was true; she did everything in her power to throw you out, but Edyn at least cared enough to keep you.
Edyn didn’t even try to deal with you as you insulted his wife. “Let’s get going; we have a buy in Hightown at midnight and we still have to get everything together.”
Like always, the only days he could spend time with you, were wasted with deals and purchases and trade-offs and what not. You missed the days when you actually had a brother, not a business partner. That was one of the few things that could make you shed a tear.
Growing up, you were taught that crying was a weakness. You weren’t supposed to get attached to anyone but family. Edyn didn’t seem to care about your well-being anymore, and it left you bitter and cold towards him. What’s the use in trying if he didn’t love his sister, his only living family, anymore?
“What a shocker. You’re never here to simply see me, your sister, only to get me because there’s a job.” You sighed. Edyn opened his mouth to say something, but you didn’t want to hear it. “Oh no, no need to apologize. Not that you would. Anyway, let’s get going to do the job you always take the credit for! What fun!”
Varric didn’t know if he should laugh at your thick sarcasm or stay silent as you walked out the door. Edyn had a death grip on the back of your chair and a scary expression on his face; he didn’t want to deal with any of your shit.
Upon seeing Edyn’s reaction, Varric courageously came to your defense. “She’s right, you know,” his input earned him a threatening look from the man two times his size. “(Y/n) does just as much work as you do in your family business, if not more. And Maker forbid you actually act like her brother.” It seemed like your friendship with Varric was stronger than either of you thought.
“I didn’t come her for a lecture, dwarf. Keep to yourself, will you?” Edyn snarled and he went after you.
-
Hawke stood there awkwardly after Edyn left. She didn’t know what to say. You seemed nice enough, Varric trusted you. And you clearly knew what you were doing, instead of being an immature rookie who bragged and over exaggerated.
She’d be a good ally; She’s sure of it.
“Quite the pair, those two,” Carver said. “they’re-”
Varric stopped him in his tracks, “I can tell that you and (Y/n) aren’t going to get along, but you really do need to be careful with your words. If we can get her and Edyn to supply us for the Deep Roads, we’d almost be untouchable,” He was completely serious. “I’m already getting the high-quality stuff. For me, at least. No doubt about it. Get on her bad side entirely, or both of them, you’ll be left with a dull sword and armor weak enough to be every-day clothes.”
“Isn’t he already on her bad side?” Hawke asked. She was amused by it. “Looks like you’ll be Darkspawn bait, Carver.”
“She’s very tolerant, believe it or not. You’ll definitely be able tell if she outright hates you.” Varric informed them.
Not only were you a close friend, but a very valuable person to have on his side. You were close enough for him to know your backstory, how you got to Kirkwall, where you lived, what makes you happy/angry/upset, things like that.
Varric himself had yet to make you angry. He once saw you get angry at a dishonest customer, but he had no idea how truly angry you could get. No one did.
“Two questions,” Hawke inquired, “first one, how do we stay in her good graces?”
“Simple. Don’t lie to her face and try not to be an asshole,” Varric yawned. “not hard at all. Next question.”
Carver knew the next one. “Where do we find her?” He assumed that you were going to be a hard person to find.
Varric grinned. “You don’t find her, she finds you. Usually. I know where she stays, but I found that out by accident and I’m not telling a soul.”
“Can I get a hint?” Hawke joked, “Just give me a general area. I won’t send a search party, I promise!”
“The only hint I’ll give, is that she’s in Kirkwall.”
Hawke rolled her eyes. “Thank you, Varric, that really narrows it down... Do you know if she and her brother sell staves?”
The dwarf shook his head. “No, I believe they only have staff blades. They’re not big fans of mages, so keep that in mind.”
“Why?”
“I don’t think she would care if I said anything, but I’m going to play it safe and keep my mouth shut. Sorry, Hawke.”
Hawke nodded, accepting the answer she was given. Granted, she wanted to know, but respecting your privacy was something she was willing to do.
