What did you do today in DA? [Spoilers]

Head canon I have for my Hawke:
So this Hawke would be a warrior, very much butting heads with Carver because he views it as yet another "casting shadows" actions on her part. Of course she'd view it as wanting to protect her family from any and all danger. Loosing him is a hard blow to her, making her need to protect Bethany and Leandra all the greater.

Kirkwall is...not what she expects, putting it mildly, and she fears constantly that Bethany will be found and taken away. So Hawke tries anything and everything to gain more power in order to do so. In my head canon a traveling mercenary tells her about the Reaver powers, and she becomes one after the events at the Bone Pit (in the game you fight a dragon there, seems like a good fit for when she gets her abilities, even if the game itself allows you to pick them at level 7).

As for mages...all she's ever known about magic comes first hand from her father and sister, so seeing all these corrupt mages in Kirkwall confuses and frightens her. In response she starts to measure the individuals according to their actions. Therefore allowing Merrill to keep practicing Blood magic since she harms no one but herself, and doesn't turn against Anders because of his healing skills. Every other mage though...either put to the sword or turned over to the Circle, even as she knows it's a horrid place.

This mellows slightly over the years (for example she let's Feynriel go in Act 2, despite having turned him over to the Circle in Act2), but turns on it's head after All That Remains, she becomes suspicious of mages (though continues to support Merrill), and finds solace in the fact that the Templars remain to assist.

Fast forward to Act 3, and that's where things come to a head...Anders trying to blackmail her, the mages part of On the Loose...and then the Last Straw happens.