Fic: For All the Flowers
Drabble for myopichobbit, featuring m!Hawke/Merrill. Again, a bit more than a drabble.
Also, I think, now that I've written it a few times, that Malcolm giving Leandra embrium blossoms is now my new headcanon.
Normally, when Merrill apologizes for her tiny home in the alienage being a mess, it isn’t actually all that messy. Sure, sometimes there are cobwebs on the ceiling since she’s far too short to reach them without relying on chairs (or bookshelves, or very long sticks), and there was the one time that winter storms rotted out a good portion of the bathroom wall. But it’s not normally messy, with things strewn here and there in haphazard fashion.
Today, though, things are a bit different.
“Oh, Hawke!” Merrill says, from somewhere. Truthfully, he can’t actually see her, because the room is absolutely filled with -
“That’s a lot of marigolds,” Hawke says, more amusement than confusion in his voice, though he is rather confused. “And daffodils. And...I don’t even know what those are. Or those.”
“They’re flowers, silly,” Merrill says, and he finally sees her, hidden behind the pile of flowers that covers the table.
“What do you need this many flowers for? Are you going to cover Fenris’ house with them? It might help disguise all the dead bodies in the corners.”
Merrill wrinkles her nose. “Ah, no. Not for Fenris. Isabela wanted my help with, um, something, and she said she didn’t have a place to store all of these -”
“Isabela wanted this many flowers?” Somehow, that’s very hard to picture. “I’m not sure that I want to know what these are for.”
Merrill steps out from behind the table, a small bunch of flowers clasp in one hand. There are also several tucked into her hair, and Hawke has to admit that she looks good surrounded by so many flowers. “Those are for Aveline,” she says, pointing to one of the bunches of marigolds. “And Donnic.”
Hawke grins, because they are marigolds, and he hasn’t yet forgotten how awkward and yet amusing the entire incident with Aveline and the guardsman was. “So, who are the rest for? Did you get me any?” He says it as kind of a joke, because it’s not as though he needs flowers or even expects her to give him any, but then a red flush spreads over her cheeks and she looks down and away from him, holding out the flowers in her hand to him.
His heart gives a bit of a jump, then decides to start running along without him, and he sort of feels like he’s thirteen again and trying to talk to the cute girl from one farm over.
“I got you these,” Merrill says, and he takes them from her and holds them very, very gently.
“You got me embrium,” he says, still a bit stunned.
Merrill looks up at him, her eyes wide. “Is that bad?” she asks him. “Oh, no, it’s terrible, isn’t it. I should have given you something else. I have a lot of flowers, um -”
“No, embrium is fantastic,” he tells her. “Embrium is perfect.”
“Really?”
“Yeah,” he says, looking at her, and the way she blush is the most adorable thing. “My father...he used to give them to my mother.”
“Oh.”
“It’s perfect,” he repeats, and, on impulse, leans down and presses a soft kiss to her cheek.
Also, I think, now that I've written it a few times, that Malcolm giving Leandra embrium blossoms is now my new headcanon.
Normally, when Merrill apologizes for her tiny home in the alienage being a mess, it isn’t actually all that messy. Sure, sometimes there are cobwebs on the ceiling since she’s far too short to reach them without relying on chairs (or bookshelves, or very long sticks), and there was the one time that winter storms rotted out a good portion of the bathroom wall. But it’s not normally messy, with things strewn here and there in haphazard fashion.
Today, though, things are a bit different.
“Oh, Hawke!” Merrill says, from somewhere. Truthfully, he can’t actually see her, because the room is absolutely filled with -
“That’s a lot of marigolds,” Hawke says, more amusement than confusion in his voice, though he is rather confused. “And daffodils. And...I don’t even know what those are. Or those.”
“They’re flowers, silly,” Merrill says, and he finally sees her, hidden behind the pile of flowers that covers the table.
“What do you need this many flowers for? Are you going to cover Fenris’ house with them? It might help disguise all the dead bodies in the corners.”
Merrill wrinkles her nose. “Ah, no. Not for Fenris. Isabela wanted my help with, um, something, and she said she didn’t have a place to store all of these -”
“Isabela wanted this many flowers?” Somehow, that’s very hard to picture. “I’m not sure that I want to know what these are for.”
Merrill steps out from behind the table, a small bunch of flowers clasp in one hand. There are also several tucked into her hair, and Hawke has to admit that she looks good surrounded by so many flowers. “Those are for Aveline,” she says, pointing to one of the bunches of marigolds. “And Donnic.”
Hawke grins, because they are marigolds, and he hasn’t yet forgotten how awkward and yet amusing the entire incident with Aveline and the guardsman was. “So, who are the rest for? Did you get me any?” He says it as kind of a joke, because it’s not as though he needs flowers or even expects her to give him any, but then a red flush spreads over her cheeks and she looks down and away from him, holding out the flowers in her hand to him.
His heart gives a bit of a jump, then decides to start running along without him, and he sort of feels like he’s thirteen again and trying to talk to the cute girl from one farm over.
“I got you these,” Merrill says, and he takes them from her and holds them very, very gently.
“You got me embrium,” he says, still a bit stunned.
Merrill looks up at him, her eyes wide. “Is that bad?” she asks him. “Oh, no, it’s terrible, isn’t it. I should have given you something else. I have a lot of flowers, um -”
“No, embrium is fantastic,” he tells her. “Embrium is perfect.”
“Really?”
“Yeah,” he says, looking at her, and the way she blush is the most adorable thing. “My father...he used to give them to my mother.”
“Oh.”
“It’s perfect,” he repeats, and, on impulse, leans down and presses a soft kiss to her cheek.