Chapter Text
It was a question left unasked.
Oh, they had had their discussions, and many questions were answered in these long talks. They went through all the particulars that couples have to go through when learning to share a life together. Whose money was whose (The answer was three accounts, two private and one shared). Where did they see themselves in the future (While happy was the simple answer, happy, successful, and still in love was the ideal). What religious practices did they share (None, but they could respect that). How would chores be divided (Fenris does the yard work, Anders cooks, and they share cleaning duties with the children).
And speaking of children, which house would they live and raise their family in (Anders’s, because shoving a family of four with a dog and a cat into a two bedroom apartment was not advisable). Which schools should they send the children to (The best non-Chantry schools, obviously). Which parent should discipline which child? How do you even discipline a child who is only yours through marriage? Should they adopt each other’s children? They eventually decided on shared discipline, and conversation before any punishments were implemented. They tabled the adoption talk for when the children were older.
So if they were going to get married, where was the best place to do it? Anders refused to get married in a Chantry, and Fenris felt uncomfortable just signing a paper in a courtroom. That felt like a business contract, and Fenris had his fill of contracts. If he was signing his life away, he wanted it to be different from his time with Danarius. It would be somewhere outside, Fenris decided, with enough room for their friends to witness them, a contract that would not chain him but set him free, with a canopy to stand under with Anders and their children, good food, and music to dance to once the ceremony was finished. Anders only wanted a ring on his finger and Fenris’s word that they would try their best and never go to bed angry at each other.
All these conversations, all these questions answered, kaffas they live together now, but there was one question they never asked.
”Papa, are you saying you haven’t even asked?!” Victoria shrieked as they drove towards the Hightown shopping centre. Fenris picked the children up from their mage counseling sessions with Ms. Leliana and Ms. Evelyn, and casually mentioned that they may or may not be shopping for Satinalia gifts for Anders. And Fenris may have told the children that he needed their particular help picking out a small bit of jewelry so he could finally ask a question that had not been asked.
”We have had conversations, Victoria.” Fenris replied. “We agree that we want to marry. I just haven’t proposed yet.” It had to be perfect, and the moment was never perfect.
”Has Dad asked?” Nick asked quietly. Fenris looked back at Nick through the rear-view mirror. The boy was biting his lip and hugging his backpack to his chest. Next to him Victoria was a bouncing ball of blazing indignation.
”No, Nick. Your father has not proposed to me yet.” Fenris said gently. “So I will ask him.” Nick nodded in agreement and his grip on his bag loosened. His expression smoothed out into contented smile. Fenris parked the car and got out, and made sure the children were out safely before holding their hands and walking towards the shops. They were thankfully at the age where hand holding was mostly okay, save for the rare occasions when they might be spotted by a fellow classmate.
”Papa, we have to buy a ring!” Victoria exclaimed, tugging both Fenris and Nick through the parking lot with excited little hops. The shopping centre was decked out with Satinalia decorations. Wreaths of pine branches and bunches of holly hung from every lamp post and in every shop window. A Chantry sister stood in an entrance with a bell and a donation bucket, and the sound of Free Marcher Satinalia carols rang through the speakers. Nick looked at a coffee shop and bakery with great longing before Victoria pulled them into the jewelry store. The dwarven woman behind the counter waved at them. Her black curls were falling out of the loose bun on the top of her head.
”Good afternoon! How can I help you?” She asked cheerfully. “Looking for something for a special someone?”
”Yes!” Victoria said loudly. “We need a ring.”
”An engagement ring.” Nick added hastily. “For a man.”
”It’s a surprise for my… my fiancé.” Fenris told the woman once he was close enough to have a private conversation. “We’re already planning a wedding, but the ring never came up.”
”Then we’ll have to find a ring for you, then!” The woman declared, and she led the group of a glass case filled with rings. Nick and Victoria immediately began scanning the rings, Victoria immediately looking at the rings covered in jewels and engravings.
”Papa, look!” She pointed to a gold ring with a big yellow stone set in it. “It’s the same color as Pounce’s eyes!”
”Oh, that’s amber. Not the most durable stone for a wedding band.” The dwarven woman clucked her tongue. “But it is very pretty. You have a good eye, little lady!”
”I don’t think a fancy ring will work, Victoria.” Fenris said. Anders loved fine and fancy things, but he had an eye for the practical as well. He would want a wedding ring that would last. And he wouldn’t wear such an elaborate ring when he had to work with his animals all day. No, Fenris would have to pick something else.
”Maybe this one?” Nick suggested, pointing to a more delicate ring with a ruby stone next to Victoria’s showy ring. “Oh, but the size is wrong. Dad’s ring finger is a size nine.”
”I see.” Fenris said. Nick flushed and looked away, a clear sign of guilt if ever there was one, and Fenris wondered just how Nick came across this information. He decided not to press further. Nick was already embarrassed and Fenris didn’t want to make the boy feel more uncomfortable.
It was as he turned his head to look back at the selections that he saw it- a ring made of three strands of silver braided together. The braid tied different threads together into an unbroken whole. And wasn’t that a perfect bit of symbolism, Fenris thought wryly as he looked at the size of the ring. A nine. Perhaps there was such a thing as fate.
”This one.” Fenris told the woman, pointing to the ring in the display. “It’s perfect.”
-
The children planned the proposal over cups of hot chocolate at the café Nick gazed at earlier. Fenris sipped his black coffee and listened as Victoria and Nick debated where the best place to propose would be.
”Papa, don’t do it in public because that’s rude.” Victoria said with all the confidence of an authority on marriage proposals. “Auntie Isabela says it’s very nasty to propose in public because it makes everyone else a part of your relationship.”
”Auntie Isabela is right. I will propose in private.” Fenris promised.
”We can go to Hawke’s for a sleepover!” Nick suggested. “Or at least he can watch us so you and dad can be alone together.”
”For a date.” Victoria added. “You have to dress up, papa.”
”And if you go out you shouldn’t propose in a restaurant because that’s what everybody does.” Nick said. “You should surprise him.”
Fenris drank his coffee and let the children debate over the perfect proposal. Fenris slipped his hand into his coat pocket and patted the silver ring. Now that he had the ring, everything was falling into place. When the moment was right he would know.
-
When they returned home the children dumped their shoes and coats in the entryway before taking out their homework and hurrying to the kitchen to set their books down on the table. Fenris knew they would play for a little while before going back to the kitchen to settle down and get to work. Victoria would struggle with her spelling, and Nick would patiently plod through his math worksheets. Anders’s obnoxious cat would jump on the table and sit his fat, furry body on top of the scattered papers as they worked. Anders would return home from the clinic, full of stories about his animal patients. Fenris would trade stories from the dance studio, and the children would pipe in with their own tales.
Then they would eat dinner. There was a paella recipe Fenris saved on his phone that reminded him of his childhood, so he would cook tonight. Anders would wash up and Fenris would pack up the leftovers. Afterwards they would spend time together as a family. They would walk the dog, look over Victoria and Nick’s homework, and either watch television or play a board game. When it was eight thirty Fenris would urge the children to go upstairs and get ready for bed. While the kids got ready, Anders would prepare the coffee maker for the morning and Fenris would rearrange the coats in the entranceway. After they made sure the children were dressed with teeth brushed, they would tuck Victoria and Nick into bed and go back downstairs. Private adult time included more serious discussions, but it also included cuddling and kisses. When it was finally late they would walk around downstairs and turn off all the lights (Anders) and lock all the doors (Fenris). Then they would head upstairs, change into pajamas, and tumble into bed. It was a daily pattern that Fenris treasured, an easy rhythm that felt as natural as breathing as Anders cuddled up to him and wrapped his long limbs around him as they fell asleep.
Fenris wondered when he could suggest a date night so he could propose. Perhaps before dinner? He would suggest that they go on a dinner date, where he would wine and dine Anders before going on a walk through the park. He could propose in front of that duck pond under the glow of the street lamps. He couldn’t promise Anders the world, but he could promise to share his life and love, and that was more than most people could offer.
Or they could go to that Par Vollen fusion café and share dessert after watching a movie. And while Anders ranted about some aspect of the film that was just so very wrong Fenris would hand him the ring and let him know how much he mattered to him. He could not promise forever, but he could promise him the rest of his years so they could spend them together.
Or they could ice skate together, slipping and sliding across the ice and falling into each other as they found their footing. And when they walked home holding hands with their noses cherry red from the cold Fenris would tell Anders how much his life changed for the better for having him in it.
Or perhaps they could go dancing. Fenris was always better expressing himself physically instead of with words. He could lead Anders from a paso doble to a tango to a waltz, a story of aggression turning to passion turning to tender love. Fenris could not always say what he wanted, but Anders always tried to understand him.
There were many ways to ask questions, but Fenris did not know the perfect way to ask.
While Fenris daydreamed over the near future, Victoria and Nick went off into the living room to play with Bear. Anders was running late today, probably because of an emergency patient at the clinic. It was normal for Anders, because the man loved his animals and was a workaholic. Fenris began to cook dinner when the front door opened and Anders cheerfully called out to the household.
”I’m back!” Anders shouted. The children yelled their own greetings, and Fenris emerged from the kitchen to greet Anders.
Anders had taken off his hat and was shaking his head, his blond hair beautiful in the late afternoon sunlight. Beautiful. Fenris stared as Anders pulled off his jacket and unwrapped his scarf from around his neck. His neck was long and elegant and pale, dotted with little orange freckles down the back. The hair at the nape of Anders’s neck was darker than the hair above it, and clung to the skin in wispy curls.
”How was work?” Fenris asked, his attention focused on the tired smile on Anders’s lips and the excitement that lit up his brown eyes. He was exhausted and so perfect it hurt to look at him. His hair was mussed and falling out of his elastic hair tie in golden red waves. The little wrinkles at the corners of his eyes were clearly visible, and Anders’s scruff was messy and dark on his cheeks. There was a little nick at his jaw where he had cut himself earlier that morning. He wasn’t perfect, no, but at that moment he was everything Fenris ever wanted. There was his steady ground, his safe harbor, his calm in this crazy, crazy world. When Fenris grew and changed, Anders grew right alongside him.
Love wasn’t static. Love wasn’t easy. Love was a challenge. It was a trial. Love was hard work.
But for Anders, Fenris would work.
”Miss Prissy Paws had her litter!” Anders gushed as he hung up his coat. His scrubs were hideous, a pale blue covered in patchwork outlines of cats, and it hung in a wrinkled mess on his skinny frame. “Two little kittens as big as my thumb, and so sweet! Fenris, you have to see them!”
Marry me, Fenris thought desperately. I don’t have the words but please, please understand me like you always do, please.
”Fenris? Is everything alright?” Anders asked, his warm brown eyes full of concern. “Are you feeling well?” Anders placed one cool hand over Fenris’s forehead, and his smile was so tender, so sweet, what was he supposed to do now that Anders was staring at him with so much concern and love-
”Marry me.” Fenris blurted out. He reached into his back pocket and fumbled with the silver ring, the braided metal gleaming in its bright circle as he held it up to the light and offered it to Anders. It was nothing like he imagined or planned, his impromptu proposal in their messy hallway with Anders in his scrubs and the sun shining on his golden hair. But this was real.
Anders smiled and leaned down to kiss him, soft and easy, and Fenris felt Anders take the ring in his hand. When Fenris pulled back Anders held up his left hand, the ring gleaming on his ring finger.
”Of course.” Anders said, and then he bent over the bench and pulled out a box from his coat pocket. He offered the box to Fenris and opened the lid. There was a plain silver band nestled in the blue velvet.
”I was going to take you out on a date.” Anders said, his cheeks pink and smile bashful. “I thought we could walk around the botanical gardens, or go ice skating, or give it as my Satinalia gift, but you sort of beat me to the punch. I didn’t even realize we’ve been planning our wedding and hadn’t properly proposed until Nick mentioned it.”
Fenris took the ring and put it on his finger, admiring the way it glittered in the sunlight. He wrapped his arms around Anders’s waist and held him close.
”Victoria was furious with me.” Fenris laughed. “The lecture was impressive.”
”I’m certain it was.” Anders teased. His chin rested on top of Fenris’s head, and Fenris cuddled closer. “So, what did my fiancé make for dinner tonight?”
”Perhaps my fiancé should come into the kitchen and see.” Fenris joked, and they walked into the kitchen hand in hand, their matching rings shiny and new on their hands.
It was a question finally asked and answered.
Will you marry me?
Yes.