He was surprised to say she already knew how too, and wondered why in the world then she didn’t carry one with her, or at least a dagger…something. However when she continued on to say she didn’t have much skill in it he understood further. “It would help protect you. At least enough to escape” Living in a place like this…a person had to learn some kind of defense, no matter what it was. Perhaps they didn’t want to kill, but they at least should know how to buy themselves time to be able to run away. Of course if the person trying to harm them was a soldier, sometimes it caused more issues to harm them then to not, but the captain of the guard was a fair man, he did not let soldiers get away with things simply because of their status.

He nodded “You may” It was a compliment in his eyes. Though many soldiers strived to do their best to achieve status, to work in Teledahn and be married to an aristocrat woman, Hawke had no desire for this. He nodded again to confirm he was in fact ten then spoke “Being a soldier is all I know, and I am content. I am not married and I have no family.” There were other soldiers he could say he was close too, one’s like him who wanted justice and had high moral standing, but Hawke wasn’t one to really be chummy and create lasting friendships. He did his job. The end. He glanced around “Are you married?” A married woman had enough to worry about around here, but a woman all on her own? Even more dangerous. He then frowned "I am sorry...perhaps that is not proper to ask"

Cece had seen enough brutality in her day to last her a lifetime. She had defended herself before, and done exactly as he said: she bought herself time to run. “That is exactly why I’m fast.” She said and gave him a small smile. She preferred to run even before there was trouble, but often it was her own mouth that got her into that trouble.

He was content, but was he happy? She searched his face for any sign of this but found none save for the smile he had shown her earlier. “Do you have any hobbies, besides saving people?” It was her turn to smile gently at him, but it faded when she remembered to be serious in front of the soldier. She giggled a melodic little sound when he apologized for asking if she was married. “No, if I was you would not be sitting there.” She paused, glancing over her shoulder to the door then back to Hawke. “Actually I am married, and when he comes home he’ll hang you out to dry, soldier. So keep your hands to yourself.” Ironically as she said this there was a small crash in the kitchen, then the sound of very light footsteps as a white cat came out a few moments later. The feline paused to examine the soldier, then jumped up onto the couch next to him to stare. Cece laughed a little at the cat, then drank some more of her water as she leaned back against her seat, stretching her legs out in front of her in a sleepy stretch.

One couldn’t say he was a happy man. Depressed? No. Unsatisfied with life? Not really. He was just…content. Neutral. Ok with things. He had never been in love to miss it, never had a family to yearn for the lack of one and never had great friends that he regretted loosing. The people he cared about were the strangers on the streets he helped every day. If he could at least help save one person a day, then his life was a good one. Hobbies? “I cannot say that I do” Other than duty, he didn’t do anything else. There was no knack that he was found of that he enjoyed repeating on a daily basis. He glanced over to the paintings then to her “You enjoy painting” That had to be her hobby, she had many paintings.

Her giggle was…well, it brightened him, even though it didn’t show much in his expression. When she said she wasn’t married he didn’t do much but nod a bit, but then when she changed her mind he looked suddenly uncomfortable. “I…I am sorry. I do not wish to intrude and my intentions are not to touch you.…I shall leave. “ A single man in a married woman’s home when her husband was gone? Absolutely wrong. It was a disrespectful at, and he did not want her to get in trouble or him to get in trouble. He didn’t worry about the husband, not that trouble, but anyone finding out he had been alone with a married woman. If that got back to the captain, he’d be in big trouble. He stood right as he heard the crash and looked over, not looking alarmed, but he was a bit worried this husband had returned.

When he saw it was just a cat slinking from the kitchen he relaxed some, but still he did not realize she had been joking, and still intended to leave.

Someone with no family, no love, and no hobbies? It wasn't as though she would admit it but Hawke had already weaseled his way into her soft side. She nodded when he mentioned painting. "It is a nice release... a nice escape from daily life." There was a slight sadness in her voice but she cleared her throat to get rid of it and drank a bit more of her water. She shoul have gotten herself a glass of wine. "I could show you sometime." What?! Was she already inviting him back? Maybe her water was wine.

When Hawke immediately became apologetic and said he wasn't going to touch her she bit her lip to stiffle a smile. When he looked to the cat she laughed a little harder then put her hand over her mouth to stop herself. A smile reached her eyes then and she tried to calm him. "I was teasing you, Hawke. Relax, I am not wed. I'm no one's bride, believe me." She said it as if it was hard to believe someone would marry her and shook her head at the thought. "Please stay, you have not even touched your bread or water." She didn't know what she wanted from the Urun soldier, but she knew she wasn't done with him yet. He intruiged her, and (very secretly) made her feel safe from the hooligans and theives outside.

He heard the sadness in her voice and felt for her, knowing how she felt. Not personally, he never bothered to take the time to feel sad for himself or others, but not because he was an emotionless asshole, but he felt it was a waste to take the time to feel sorry for people instead of doing something about it. He met many people in his life and they all had something to feel sad about in their lives. There was always worry or darkness in their eyes, that’s why he stayed here, where he could see that in people and aid them. In Teledahn…he never saw that. Those people never worried or cared or felt down trodden, and he couldn’t dream of spending every day around their vacant, selfish gazes.

When she offered to teach him how to paint he chuckled and shook his head “I have no talent for it” Him? Paint? He did not have an artistic bone in his body, but of course he had never tried, but he had never had any urge to be creative. Wielding a sword was his art, wielding a paintbrush? He’d fail miserably, he was sure. Her laughter when he was ready to throw himself out made him pause, wondering again if she was in fact crazy, until she stopped her giggling for a moment to speak. He was confused for a brief moment, wondering which was the actual truth, until he realized once again she was teasing him. He wasn’t used to such joking, it wasn’t in his personality to be playful and he wasn’t accustomed of it from others.

Not all soldiers were in the same mold as he, they could laugh and have a good time and be jovial, but they had lived differently than he had. Though not all, most had been able to have some resemblance of a childhood and family, while he had not. Joking and playing around escaped him “It is hard to believe” Was his reply as he sat back down. A woman like her not married? He knew a prostitute once that got married and an aristocrat woman who looked like a horse got married at fourteen , so how could she not be? He picked up the cup of water and took a drink from it, than another after realizing how thirsty he was.

Patience was a virtue given to Cece. She may have had a mouth on her when it came to the wrong people, but she at least had patience. "Talent takes practice. We are not born good at something, we must work at it." Was her kind, patient spirit shining through that she was a teacher? That was her day job. Her night job was to ward off predators and drink wine while painting.

"Why is that?" She questioned with a slight tilt of her head. "It is strange that you are not married, or at least involved with some poor Eder Kemo girl, saving people all the while breaking her heart." He must have been a heart breaker. Look at him! He was gorgeous, but it wasn't something that Cece was going to admit out loud.

She watched him drink and seemed pleased that he finally took her offer. "Would you like another glass? Or perhaps something else to quench your thirst?" Anything to keep the intruiging soldier there for just a bit longer.

[Sorry for typos! I'm writing this on my phone]

He chuckled some “Well, that can be true I suppose, but I believe people are born with talent” Like being a soldier. Many men tried and tried and tried, but no matter what they failed training and never become a soldier, they just weren’t cut out for it. Hawke had taken to it immediately and succeeded with flying colors, he had been born with the talent for it. He was certain no matter how hard he tried he would never be able to paint well, especially trying it out so late in his life. He wasn’t creative, as a child his imagination had never been encouraged but rather crushed so the abstract elements of painting or any other type of art escaped him.

He had cornered himself. He never had a big mouth, but he didn’t always know when to say something or not say it, especially when it was something he should know he would have to explain., like being surprised she wasn’t married. Maybe some other men would skirt around the question or lie, but Hawke didn’t particularly like behaving sneaky or sly if he didn’t really have too “You are very beautiful, is why” A woman like her, hell, he could see even a lower aristocrat taking the risk in marrying her even though she was a commoner, just so he could show her off. He shrugged “I do not have much time for women” He also wouldn’t even know how to begin courting a girl, but then again he had never met anyone who made him think about it.

He shook his head “I am fine, thank you” He knew clean water was precious, he would not take any more from her. He had drank enough to soothe his dry mouth and that was good enough for him.

She mulled over the concept of people being born with talent but shrugged. “Even the greats need practice.” The petite girl glanced over at her own paintings stuffed in the corner, telling herself mentally she needed more practice. Before her mother had been killed she was artistic, but didn’t paint nearly as much as she did now. The paintings were her escape. They reminded her of the beautiful places she’d been, not the place she was stuck now.

Cecelie looked the soldier over, still wondering why she felt so comfortable around him. When he complimented her a blush rose to her cheeks. “Is beauty all that matters to men?” Why was she asking him such in depth questions? Cecelie smiled and laughed softly. “I should not ask you such intrusive questions. I hope I do not make you uncomfortable.”

The sound of a crash outside followed by voices caught Cecelie’s attention and she quickly looked over her shoulder before rising from the couch. She went into the kitchen since it had the best view for the outside and glanced out the window. Outside there was a small group of men fighting, but it wasn’t an uncommon sight from her humble kitchen window.

When she blushed he became temporarily sheepish and glanced down for a few moments before quickly composing himself and returning to looking at her “I apologize. It was not my place to say such a thing so boldly”. Although he was no stranger to women and had shared a bed with a few here and there, it hardly meant he was experienced with them. The women he had shared a night or two with had seduced him; women in his past that he had friendships with and those friendships had temporarily became lovers when a man’s needs just couldn’t be held off any longer. But he was not suave or charming and did not search out to bed women, he never took the company of a prostitute like many other soldiers’ would. Her question however took him a while to try and find the right words he wanted to express.

“Beauty is not everything, no. There are many beautiful women who are ugly women” He paused for a moment “Strength and wisdom are important as well. And a kind heart. But that is merely my opinion, other men differ” He then shook his head “No, I do not feel uncomfortable. I have asked you intrusive questions, only right you may ask them in return” Like asking if she was married and blurting out she was beautiful…things he shouldn’t have done but he did, so he felt it only fair she return the favor. The sound of the crash also caught his attention and he quickly stood, his stance quickly turning defensive and ready for to battle an army if he had too. A soldier was too always be prepared, even when he was in a relaxed situation.

He followed her to the window and looked out over her shoulder, sighing when he saw the fight. Small domestic disturbances were common for him as well, he was constantly breaking up fights and they always seemed to be over the stupidest things. He took a step back and glanced to her “I need to handle this. Excuse me” He bowed his head to her curtly before turning and going outside to handle the fight. Usually he just knocked a few heads and used a stern voice to end these types of feuds, but sometimes other measures were in order.

Come away to the slaughter part 2

Days had passed since Cecelie met the man that saved her and her classroom. It had actually been two and a half weeks, but Cecelie Atreyu had lost track of the days she had known Hawke. Her head was swimming in what felt like a school girl crush growing by the day. He had come back to fix the door, and every day one of them seemed to make an excuse to see the other. Life in Eder Kemo was finally starting to look up.

The young school teacher wasn’t noticed only by Hawke. Sure, there was the baker and the grocer boy, but a much more deviant eye had noticed her as well. The soldier who had initially broken into her school room had been watching her and the heroic soldier. His intentions that night were out of boredom, but now they were roused by revenge; and that night when he and the other two soldier’s followed her home they weren’t going to be as foolish as they had been the first night. They played a smarter game this time, and when they broke into her house they shut and locked the door quietly behind them.

Her screams were hardly a new noise in her neighborhood. Just the other night a young man had been killed in a fight only a minute’s walk away, so her neighbors kept their heads down when they heard her scream. The soldier’s muffled her right away. The dark haired, tall young soldier shook her like a ragdoll after he slapped her face and left a cut across her cheek. By now she had learned not to waste her energy on screaming and kneed him inbetween the legs when he tried to push up her dress. Cece managed to scramble away and raced across her living room, breaking one of her paintings and spilling red paint everywhere. A befitting look of blood smeared across the room and onto the soldier’s hands as he tackled her, the other two keeping a look out and cutting some of her paintings as they did so. The young dark haired soldier grabbed her with his red painted hand and left his hand print over her breast, cackling after he did so and left another smeared hand print around her throat as he gripped it to silence her. “Keep quiet, little miss, and this will be easier for you. I need to deliver a message to that soldier of yours, and I am going to have you be the one to tell him.”

Hawke wasn’t certain exactly what he was doing, but he kept doing it, and that was to see Cecelie as much as he could. The first time was simple, he returned to fix the classroom door as he said he would, but then after that it got a little harder to make excuses to be near her. He used the excuse of keeping an eye out for her for a few days, to make sure the soldiers who had harassed her didn’t try to return to retaliate. After that excuse was done he came up with an excuse that he knew someone that loved art and if she ever sold her paintings, than it was he was just making the rounds and thought he’d stop by, than it was he had been given a cake as thanks for helping someone and thought he’d share some with her….and the list went on and on, and each excuse got lamer, but at least he was trying and she wasn’t rejecting him.

Today it was…ok, he didn’t have an excuse today, he really could think of no more. He hoped maybe when he saw her his mind might think of something clever, but he doubted it. He of course, as always, made sure to do his duty first and wandered about Eder Kemo looking for any trouble and checking in on people, but nothing seemed amiss so far tonight and with that, he headed to her home. He wasn’t certain of all the etiquette that needed to be used when having a friend that was a woman, but Cecelie wasn’t like any other woman he had ever met and she did not seem to mind him coming to visit her in the evenings. Hawke had reported the soldiers to the captin, but these things took time to be resolved. An investigation of the soldiers actions was in the process of being confirmed, but until than they were allowed to keep their status and continue their work. Hawke hadn’t seen them since the incident, so he had assumed they had gotten the message or ran to Teledahn with their tails between their legs. He had been wrong.

He went to her door and paused for a moment, taking a last minute to try and make something up for why he was there….when he heard the commotion inside. Reacting quickly he all but tore the door down and stepped inside, drawing his sword. It was only a second that he took the scene in before him, enough to process what was happening and who the men were, soldiers such as himself, but not long enough to know if the man above Cecelie had already began his nefarious deed or not. Anger surged him immediately and he charged forward, kicking the soldier in the side trying to defile Cecelie, flipping him off her and onto his back before pointing his sword at his neck and pressed it against his skin “HOW DARE YOU PLACE YOUR HANDS ON HER!” He roared

“Do you like my art, teacher?” The soldier asked and nodded down to the red hand prints along her pale dress. She sneered and rolled her head around before spitting on the soldier. Cecelie may have known how to be sweet, but she had a fire within her that had yet to be smothered. The soldier leaned back and groaned, wiping his face clean before shoving his hand under her dress and up her thigh. To her thigh was as far as he got when Hawke stormed in.

The other two soldiers were quick to move and draw their swords, protecting their disgusting leader with ferocity. “Stand down. You have no business here.” The blond soldier said with his sword pointed directly at Hawke. The dark haired alpha rolled onto his side and tucked himself back into his pants before quickly readjusting him. Cecelie scrambled backwards to get away from them, pulling a knife out from under her dress when she thought no one was looking. Backing herself into the corner, the little teacher held the knife behind her back and crouched down. It wasn’t safe in there, but it was no safer outside to wander with less soldiers roaming the streets.

“You thought we were done with her?” The dominant soldier laughed as the others stepped closer. The last to speak didn’t bother with words and he thrust his sword at Hawke to distract him while the unraveled alpha grabbed his sword and swung, ready for a fight.

Hawke’s angry gaze flicked to the two other men and he sneered “I have no business here?! You have no business here!” He snapped furiously “You shame the status of a soldier! The three of you disgrace us all!” He was not shaken to stand against three men by himself. He had fought seven men by himself once, they had not all had swords and were not trained soldiers but it did not matter, he had defeated them all and he certainly felt he could defeat these three villains as well. He gave their leader a venomous look before back to the other two “You both are lackeys. You follow him blindly, but never have any true involvement” He had seen it back at the schoolhouse, it was their leader who had been harassing Cecelie and the other two just made sure to cause havoc and watch his back and this time it was the same “If you stand down and speak against him, punishment for you both will be far less” He was giving them a chance to not fight, to not screw up their lives, but it seemed they did not care.

If it was a fight they wanted, it was a fight they would receive.

He blocked the first soldier’s thrust of his sword, using all his weight to propel him towards the man to not only knock him back but avoid the sword from the alpha soldier. He then quickly spun around and slashed at the alpha before striking out the second soldier than back to their leader all in one fluid motion.

It was too late for the other men to change their minds. They were involved. Once you touched honey it was far too hard to remove the stick from your hands, and it would only spread. The blond man watched Hawke, sneering and twisting his hand around the handle on his sword. “You should have left when you had the chance, hero.” Little did they know how long this soldier defending the teacher had been trained. The three men in the small home were new, young soldiers who had far too much to prove.

As the fight broke out Cecelie tried further to hide herself. She scooted back behind her torn paintings and managed to maneuver herself to be hidden behind the couch and the large easel, and bit her lip to silence her breathing. Even though her hatred for soldiers was soaring she couldn’t bare to watch Hawke be harmed. He had saved her.

The three soldiers were up on their feet, swords in hand and swinging at Hawke. The alpha shouted when Hawke’s sword slashed his arm, tearing it open but he swung back at him with vigor. Throughout the chaos the soldiers failed to notice the missing girl. They only cared about cutting Hawke to shut him up, but in the heat of the moment wound up with gashes and blood of their own. Still, they were relentless and were thirsty for the blood of the heroic soldier. The blond soldier was first to back up, staring at the fight as though he was looking for his next move but in reality he nursed his cut leg and bided himself time until the alpha would back down.

It was only a moment until a small foot caught his eye and the blond soldier saw Cecelie hiding. In a less than graceful motion he pulled her out from behind the couch, pulling her hair and shaking her like a scolded child. She growled like a feral cat, kicking and digging her heels down until she pulled the blade in her hand and shoved the small knife into the soldier's side. It was small, but the blade hit the softest spot on the blond soldier and he stepped back, clutching the handle and gasping for breath. Cecelie's heart raced as she watched him step back and her eyes went wide as she watched him gasp.

Hawke managed to keep on his feet, twisting and moving his body to avoid as many blows as he could from the other men’s swords. He felt knicks and gashes spill open on his body and felt blood leaking under his armor and sticking there, but he kept fighting without wincing once from any of the pain inflicted. He had learned to shut the pain off when he fought, to ignore it until the battle was over and it was safe to tend to his wounds and show some weakness…but now was not the time for it. Although the three men did well in inflicting damage, Hawke was still doing better, but he was holding back. These were fellow soldiers, and he did not want to kill them regardless of what they had done. He merely wanted to scare and intimidate them enough for them to stand down and go back to Gabreesen like the flea bitten dogs they were.

He noticed the blonde one was the first to back down, and for a while Hawke though that was progress. One was already learning the battle was not to be won for them, and he hoped the other two would follow, though he could tell their leader would need more damaged inflicted on him to get the point. He was just ready to unleash these damage to put him in his place, when he heard the commotion. He, like the others, had temporarily forgotten about Cece. He would have assumed she ran out of the house, maybe to the school, but it seemed she had tried to hide inside. If only he had realized he would have told her to get out and to safety, but the fight had happened to quickly and he had only been able to focus on fighting. He watched as she plunged the knife in his side and came to the realization that perhaps he too needed to take more drastic measures with these men to stop the madness.

He turned back to the remaining two and stepped towards the other solider, plunging his sword into his thigh before pulling it back and swiping the blade to mar the alpha’s face. If he had to kill him…then he would. What was important above all was keeping Cece safe.

If Cece had been more skilled in battle she would have run. Her instincts told her to run, but she didn’t know where to. Atreyu had never taught her much more than to defend herself. They weren’t hiders, they were just nomads. Nomads didn’t stay long enough to gain enemies (or so she had once thought).

The blond soldier hissed and tried to pull the knife out of his side, spitting curses at her as he did. “Wretched bitch!” The knife was jagged and shaped like an arrow, so when the soldier pulled at it he froze and groaned. Knowing the knife was stuck he glanced to the other soldiers before turning on his heel and retreating out of the front door.

The alpha didn’t notice the blond leaving. He was too preoccupied with the sword that swung at his face and he put up his forearm, but the blade cut open his arm enough to nearly show bone. The wounded soldiers realized their battle was lost, and after a few more swings they maneuvered to the door and ran high tail after the blond soldier.

Nearly as quickly as they had left Cecelie was at her door, locking every bolt and lever she could. Her heart raced and she couldn’t seem to catch her breath as she turned and looked to Hawke, brown eyes wide with adrenaline. For a moment she stood staring as if he were another man not to be trusted, her battered body proof that men were not her favorite sex. After a moment of uncertainty Cecelie rushed Hawke and threw her arms around his neck, pressing herself tightly to him before she grabbed his face and kissed both cheeks. “Thank you, thank you, thank you.” She kissed his cheeks again, then quickly kissed his mouth in thanks before she went back to hugging him with her ear pressed against his chest. “Are you alright?”

He was relieved when they finally decided to back down, for he had beginning to think they wouldn’t stop fighting until they were dead and Hawke would have been disappointed with the outcome if it had come to that. When they ran out he lowered his sword and took in a few deep, much needed breaths to try and calm his super charged nerves. He needed to report to the caption of the guard about the incident before the men had a chance to flee. Some guards preferred to keep at least some of their pride and own up to their mistakes, while others were cowards and fled to other Ages to avoid being punished. Those men were certainly cowards, and if they weren’t caught soon they would leave. However there was something to attend to first.

His eyes focused on Cece and he stared at her as she did to him, a frown touching his lips. He could tell she was bewildered and like a frightened animal, she probably could not tell in that moment who was friend or foe when he looked like the enemy. He carefully put his sword down on the floor while his eyes stayed on her “I’m not going to hurt you” He told her, keep his voice careful and low. Suddenly however she rushed towards him and hugged him and he made a surprised sound, blinking in surprise for he was not expecting such a reaction. He kept his hands off her and did not return the hug. The kissing made his eyes widen more, before he realized he needed to get over his shock of her happiness and find out if she was the one that was alright.

He backed up and gently grabbed her arms and looked her in the eyes “What did they do to you?” He expected the worse. He had seen one of them on top of her and he had no clue if the deed had begun before he got there or if he had stopped it in enough time.

The first time Hawke had saved Cece she had wondered if he would hurt her, but now it seemed he made a habit out of being her hero. Her head was swarming with the events of the night when Hawke pulled her back to ask her what they’d done. The petite girl frowned, still feeling a bit out of breath before she swallowed hard.

“They broke in and they… they…” Finally she took the time to look down at herself. Her pale dress was stained red with hand marks over her breasts, stomach, and hips. Her wrists were already beginning to bruise from being gripped so harshly; and though she could hardly see if her cheek was a little purple and swollen with a small cut from where the soldier had slapped her across the face.

“I… They said,” No, she didn’t need to pass along their message. “They only pinned me down before you came in.” There had been some touching, but not enough to take her virginity, and she really didn’t want to share those minute details with Hawke. She looked him over, tilting her head and frowning at his appearance. “You’re hurt, Hawke.” Yes, change the subject. “Remove your armor so I can dress your wounds.”

Her stammering and uncertainty of words was murdering him. It was only making him think by the second that the worse had actually happened, and he had been too late. If it was just a no, then wouldn’t she merely say no, they hadn’t raped her? How long it was taking her to answer was making his blood boil to dangerous degrees as he became convined his fears were correct. He’d kill the damned bastards himself, he would. It was against the laws for him to take matters into his own hands when it came to other soldiers but damn it, they had harmed her and he would skin them alive and give it to Cece to paint on! He would not let them get away from taking away her innocence, he wouldn’t stand for it not even for a second!

However his temper was brought down a few notches when she told him he had come just in time to save her from what they had wanted to do. He gave her a skeptical look, obviously not believing her and instead thinking she was covering the disgrace up to protect herself “Cecelie is they wronged you then you must tell me” He insisted, his hands still on her arms as he stared her down. If she didn’t speak out against them then they would not be charged for their disgusting crimes. When she switched to worrying about him he dropped his arms and looked upset, shaking his head harshly “Forget about me, Cecelie! I’m trying to worry on you!” He raised his voice merely a few octaves from shouting, and quickly realizing he was letting his anger get to him he tried to reel himself back in and lowered his voice but it was tight “This is normal to me, I will be fine. The focus is to be on your safety and well-being, not mine”

If there was one thing Cecelie didn’t like it was anger. Anger was a dangerous emotion, one that was not to be trusted, especially when it came to men. Unconsciously her body tensed from his body language, and only tensed more at the tone of his voice. “Of course they wronged me! Look at my home! My paintings…” When he raised his voice she flinched and leaned back from him, pulling her arm away in one quick motion.

“Do not speak to me like that, soldier. I told you the truth. They pinned me down, but they did not ruin me for my future husband. They tried, but you came in just in time. So I thank you for that.” With that she went into her bathroom and got a wet cloth. When she returned she touched Hawke’s arm, then reached up to wipe away blood from a cut on his face without another word; upset with him but trying to fix him nonetheless. She pursed her lips and looked him over, frowning at the sight of him. "How do you get used to this?... Surely there must be safer places for you to report to. I do not enjoy seeing you hurt." The teacher admitted and her voice trailed off as she tried to clean him up rather than bother fixing herself.

“That is not what I mean. You know what I am talking about” But her reaction to his anger made him quickly pull back and regret his momentary inability to keep himself in control. He didn’t want to frighten her, but that was hard not to do when he himself was so frightened, and Hawke was not one to feel fear. They could have raped her and scarred her for life, not just physically but mentally. He had met woman who had been raped, and many of them were never the same as there former selves. But she also could have been killed…no, she absolutely would have if he hadn’t ever shown up. Those soldiers wouldn’t have left her alive, they wouldn’t leave that risk open for her to talk and report them. If he hadn’t been there, so many things would have gone wrong and he was very hyper aware of it all.

He was able to calm down significantly after she confirmed they had not done anything to her and he took in a breath before quickly releasing it “I apologize…I did not mean to yell. The fighting merely agitated me. I will not yell anymore” To make up for his behavior he made sure to stand still and let her fix him up however she wanted, now that he knew she was alright he would let her focus on him if that was what she truly wanted “There are safer places, but I am not a soldier to stay safe. I am a soldier to help people and stop things like this” He motioned around the room. Sure he could cop out, work in Teledahn in luxury and lift his sword perhaps three times in his entire life of duty, but why even bother being a soldier in the first place if not to help others every single day?

In her life Cecelie had always been over confidant that she could take care of herself. Some of that confidence had drained after her mother had been killed, but she was still reckless. She roamed the streets alone at night, she lived alone without fear, and it was all going to catch up to her some day. As these thoughts rained in her mind she looked over Hawke, frowning as he apologized. “I wish you were safer, but I am blessed that you were here to protect me.” With that she leaned up and kissed his cheek again, lingering just long enough to make her heart race and a blush rise in her cheeks.

To distract herself long enough for the blush to go away she went back into her bathroom and brought out a make shift first aid kit. She set it down next to Hawke and laid out a towel on the couch. “Sit.” She gestured to the couch and took his hand to pull him towards it. As she did she looked him over, finally noticing a rather deep wound on the side of his thigh. “Hawke, can you feel that?” Blood had seeped all around the cut in his pants and dripped down to the floor with a nauseating amount. “Sit down.” She said more sternly and opened up the kit quickly to pull out bandages to stop the bleeding. The amount of blood began to make her heart race and she pulled herbs out of the kit, pressing them onto his wound without looking up at him to see if he was alright.

The kiss on the cheek registered surprise on his face, but he was always surprised when she touched him o did something particularly kind to him. She had told him she didn’t like soldiers…yet he never saw that hatred from her when she was with him, and he didn’t quite understand why he was the exception. But he found himself smiling, rather like an idiot for a moment, before he was able to once again maintain his more steely composure and nodded to her “No thanks is needed. It is my duty” And that was his reply to anyone who ever thanked him. He did what he did because it was simply the right thing to do, he never thought a thank you was necessary.

He had come to learn arguing with Cece was useless, so he sat down as she instructed. He was fine, and any wounds he had he knew he should merely go to a doctor to tend to them, but she wanted to do this so he would let her and he would go later and make sure he truly was a hundred percent. Not that he didn’t trust her skills, but because of his profession he was always encouraged to see a real doctor when harmed. He blinked and looked down “Feel…?” He began to question and only when he saw the wound did he feel the pain. He shook his head, looking unaffected “It looks worse than it is” Maybe so, but he was still bleeding a lot. He sat there perfectly fine, but even he had only so much resolve and soon he began to grow pale and he sat back against the couch, making a face at the light headed feeling he was experiencing. Alright…maybe he wasn’t as fine as he thought.

Cecelie began to wonder if Hawke knew anything but his duty. He wasn’t the same as other soldiers. He didn’t seem to know how to unwind and relax. Nor did he ever talk of times where he wasn’t on active duty. He never spoke or times growing up, or things he did in his spare time. As these thoughts grew in Cece’s head she knitted her brows, perplexed by the mysterious soldier.

It seemed she wouldn’t have time to linger on those thoughts. As soon as Hawke sat down she kneeled in front of him and tore the gap in his pants larger so she had more access to his wound. The herbs she put against his skin may have stung but she’d never know from his lack of expression. The teacher placed some thick clothes over his wound and pressed her small, delicate hands against it to help cease the bleeding and hoped the herbs would act quickly. In her struggle to get him to stop bleeding she looked up and noticed the look on his face. “Hawke, look at me. Hawke, stay awake please.” The petite woman shifted and rearranged herself to stand up while keeping pressure on his leg, and made one hand free long enough to touch his face and tilt his chin towards her. “Do not fall asleep, Hawke.” But her words would be useless if she didn’t act quickly. Letting go of his face she began feeling his body and armor, searching for anything sturdy enough to make a tourniquet. She lifted his armor high enough to see his waist and thanked whatever God would listen that he was wearing a belt. After some careful and quick hand motions she pulled his belt out from his waist and wedged it under and around his thigh, pulling tightly and tying it harsh enough to make the blood slow to his leg. Finally it seemed the blood was coming to a halt, but would it be too late to save him from fainting… or worse?

Hawke never spoke about when he wasn’t on duty because…he never was. He took a few days to sleep and eat back at Gabreeson every once and a while, but it wasn’t to relax and have fun and have time alone, it was merely to restore himself so he could continue his duty properly. He never really grew up per say, he had been a grown up since a child, so what was there to talk about? He didn’t think he was mysterious at all, he was just merely not a fascinating individual with stories to tell or a life to share to others.

He merely leaned his head back and closed his eyes, taking in deep breaths to try and keep himself steady from the light headedness he was experiencing. He had been trained to block out pain and so that is what he did, focusing on his strength and resolve and not the wound as she tended to it. When she spoke he opened his eyes calmly and raised his head to look at her, but when he did the world spun and his vision blurred and he closed them tight for a few moments before opening them again “I am not sleeping. Merely trying to relax my head” He explained, though his voice seemed a bit…off. He then rested his head back against and closed his eyes once more “I will be fine” He insisted, but his mind kept floating further and further away, so by the time she started rummaging for a belt and tying it around his thigh, he was already passed out.