Author's Note: Written in response to a challenge on the Anders Thread on the Bioware Social Network. I was supposed to write a 300 word fic about Anders. I ended up passing that by about 100 words but hopefully it's still good. I wrote it in a rush when I woke up this morning.

Embodiment

Magic has a life of its own. A signature, a spark, unique to the one who yields it.

Hands that seem impossibly huge wrap around the twisted ankle of a small child. A gentle rebuke tempered by a reassuring touch. No matter how many times they had to run, she would be safe. No matter what happened, she would be loved.

Father.

Fingers numb from hours of training in the cold. She cannot fail them. She has to be stronger to protect them. To protect her. The lightest touch on her back cuts through the red haze of her anger and determination. Her sword falls to the ground and delicate fingers wrap around her own. Words of thanks punctuated by delicate heat. The light and warmth of a spring morning.

Electric blue eyes meet sunny golden brown. An old vow is renewed by another. No matter how many times they had to run, she would be safe. No matter what happened, she would be loved.

Sister.

Father and sister both are gone now. One lost forever to death's embrace. One locked away. Her heart despairs. As good as dead in Kirkwall. Hope is hard to see now. She failed them all. Her brother is also broken and gone. Now her mother...

She remains crumpled in the dirt, curled protectively around the thing that wears her mother's face. It's all she has left now. She cannot fathom letting go.

A subtle pressure on her shoulder, followed by a familiar warm tingle that travels through the back of her neck. Instead of calming she tenses.

Magic.

He embodies all of it now. That eternal presence in her life all tied up into one person. Magic did this, a dark corner of her mind hisses. Madness did this, another part retorts. She'd always been so sure. When did her mind become split?

Justice.

Where is the justice in this? Her mother murdered and mangled just for the crime of looking like someone else.

"You shouldn't stay here, love,"he says softly in her ear.

Lover.

Her fall. Her redemption. Her contentment. Her passion. Her madness. Her reason. He is all she has left now. He is everything to her.

Family.

She looks up at him. Hope pulses again and a vow is repeated deep in her heart. No matter how many times they will have to run, he will be safe. No matter what happens, he will be loved.

Anders.