As I've been asked, I will be doing a mini series of one shots. I'm not posting them as a story because I will forget about what needs to be updated so this is safer XD Also, I've refrained from saying Hawke's gender. This allows you to make your mind up, depending on what pairings that you like.

The party ran through High town, making their way down to the docks, as Fenris suspected, Hawke took the side of the mages against Meredith. He couldn't bring himself to leave, even though for the last couple of months he had been spacing himself from Hawke. Who noticed almost instantly. Hawke turned up at his door complaining that they weren't as close as they used to be, that Fenris would refuse to go on certain errands. Especially if Anders was already going. Fenris simply shrugged and closed the door on Hawke, who reacted badly for it, but took the hint. Leaving him alone for a few days. Now, he had fought against Templars, unable to turn his back on Hawke; he sighed as they entered Low town, he had searched for the woman. Endlessly. But there was no sign of her. She wasn't joking when she said that she wasn't easy to find. Fenris had even gone as far as to ask Varric for help, and not even the dwarf could find her. The last hour or two was very hopeful though. Hawke had sent him away while Anders begged for his life. As much as Fenris would have liked to think that Hawke would finally come to senses and be done with the abomination, no. Anders' life was spared. Much to his and Sebastian's anger. He decided to scout ahead, to find a group of Templars, already dead. He examined the bodies and found quick deep slashes, most likely made by a dagger. They would have ambushed him easily yet here they were. He had his suspicions on who. Then throughout the fight, as they made their way to Orsino, more clues became apparent. A couple of Templars dropped to the floor, a sharp needle sticking out their throats. Guards fumbled for weapons that were there only moments ago. It irritated Fenris that she was risking herself, yet he couldn't locate her or prove that it was indeed her who was doing it. Now the fight was over he had hoped that she would show herself.

'Fenris! Come on!' Hawke shouted, as he began to lag behind. He shook his head and stopped. If he kept running with Hawke, he would probably never be free. Simply tied to his fate to be the glorified bodyguard. 'What are you doing?' Fenris couldn't reply, it was too hard. There was a time where he loved Hawke, and it hurt to even consider leaving. But as he thought about his past feelings, a certain face came to mind, with amber eyes and long brown hair. 'You're leaving?' Hawke said, the disappointment obvious.

'Yes. It is time,' Fenris said quietly. Hawke looked devastated. Anders couldn't have looked more happy if he tried.

'But-' Hawke began but Fenris shook his head again.

'Goodbye my friend,' Fenris said touching Hawke's shoulder. 'Be safe.'

'I would be safer with you by my side,' Hawke said with tears that threatened to fall. Fenris' heart panged in anger and sadness. This was the exact reason that he needed to leave. He looked at Hawke one last time before turning on his foot and walking away. He heard Hawke run after him and grab his hand. 'F-Fenris, you can't leave, you just can't!'

'I have to.' Fenris stated not looking back.

'I-I never got over you,' Hawke said in a whisper. Fenris closed his eyes slowly and breathed in heavily.

'I got over you,' he said truthfully. 'Maybe it is time you did the same.' He felt Hawke's hand leave his, he promised himself that he wouldn't go running back despite Hawke's efforts. He continued to walk froward towards the gates of Kirkwall. His blade was a heavy weight on his shoulders and back, he could feel the blood that he hadn't had time to clean off the metal, sink into his vest and armour. He had to run once out of sight of the others, the city was still in turmoil and it was easy to be picked as a target. He would get to the gates, make his way to Stark haven and join Sebastian from there. He was good friends with the prince. Lost in thought he barely noticed the arrow that went whistling past his ear. He skidded to a stop and looked for the archer. He was on a roof and was drawing back his blow when a shadow appeared behind him and slit his throat mercilessly. He half smiled, he recognised the person, as the body sank to it's knees, she dropped nimbly to the floor.

'Very touching I thought,' she said wiping her blade with a rag. Her face was covered with a bandanna, only her eyes showing. Her leathers were dark and covered in blood. He felt a little twitch of worry at the sight.

'You saw?' He said plainly.

'I heard it as well,' she laughed. 'Wow, Hawke really didn't want to let you go huh.' She pulled down her cover to show her smile. Fenris had to fight the smile that touched his own lips in mimic of hers. She placed the dagger in it's holdall at the base of her spine. 'Well, here you are, unscathed and finally free, how does it feel?'

'You helped Hawke,' Fenris said ignoring her last couple of comments.

'No!' She said shaking her head, she tilted her head to the roof where the archers blood had begun to run down the wall. 'I was helping you. You can be quite oblivious at times,' she laughed again. Fenris scowled, why he had wanted to find this woman was beyond him. She did nothing but insult him, but it for some reason made him content to be around her.

'I would have sufficed without your help,' he said plainly.

'Yeah, probably true, but I couldn't take the risk of you getting your clumsy arse stabbed or something.' She said with a wink. 'You're a little slow on your back swing,' she pointed out. Fenris ground his teeth, here they were in a burning city and she was giving him advice on his fighting technique. Her priorities were all wrong. It was true, he was slow on his back swing, but only because he still suffered from an injury that he received fighting the High Dragon. A couple of ribs that never healed properly.

'Regardless, we need to move,' Fenris said with a look at the devastation around them. She pulled a thoughtful face and nodded.

'Well, yeah, you're right there,' she said. 'I'll meet you at the gates. Don't be too long or I'm leaving without you,' she threatened playfully. Fenris raised a brow and watched as she backed up into the shadows and vanished. He sighed and began to run again. Only the Maker knew what he was doing, because he didn't have a clue. He got to the gates in minimal time and without hassle, although a guard did try to halt him as he got close, but after baring his teeth, he was let through, clearly not worth the aggravation. He loitered outside at the side of the trail, she was taking her time to get here. She finally appeared behind him.

'So elf, what's your plan?' She asked nonchalantly. There was something different about her but Fenris couldn't place his finger on it. She was now wearing a cloak, but that didn't seem to be a big deal. It was more of the way she moved, she spoke a little harsher as well.

'I have a friend in Starkhaven,' he replied tilting his head. 'You are welcome to join me,' he added. She rolled her eyes.

'Let me guess the Prince?' She said sarcastically. 'Sure go running to him. What about just making your own path, wolf?'

'There is nothing wrong with asking your friends for help. It has taken me ten years to learn that,' Fenris replied stiffly. She sighed.

'I will join you on the journey, but as soon as we reach that place, that's where our path ends,' she said simply. Fenris raised a brow. Clearly she had some issues about trust, for that he didn't blame her. He himself had once been a slave, it was obvious why. She didn't want to tie herself to another, be trapped. Fenris nodded and kept it at that. One thing was annoying him though, he still didn't know her name.

'If we are to travel together, perhaps you might tell me your name,' he said as they began to walk. She laughed, although the sound was edged with something else.

'You didn't find me,' she said with a chuckle.

'Very well, woman.' Fenris said with a half smile. She scowled at him.

'You can't call me that!' She protested.

'I have no other names, woman,' he said calmly. She growled and thumped him on the arm, causing a little shock between them. Fenris gave her a look, she knew a lot about him, clearly she was ignoring the fact that physical contact would make him feel awkward and uncomfortable. He gave a light chuckle, now knowing that calling her ''woman'' annoyed her as much as she annoyed him. She scowled and continued to walk ahead.

She didn't stop talking. Reminding Fenris of Hawke slightly. Although anything could remind him of Hawke, if he really thought about it, although the endless chatter didn't cease it wasn't boring. She would spot a random tree and reel off several facts about the tree, or the history that involved the tree; she could talk about anything. He didn't need to say anything, although after about an hour or so, she began to slow and look pale. Her constant one sided conversation became stilted and drifted off. Fenris paused a little ahead of her and looked at her carefully. 'Are you well?' He asked softly. She shook her head and brightened up, as if shaking off his concern.

'I'm fine,' she replied. That harsh tone hadn't left her voice the whole time she talked. Something was wrong. She was hiding it. Her physical signature, instead of being very smooth and graceful, she was stuttering and clumsy. Fenris didn't know her very well, but he had marked all her distinguishing features and the way she talked and moved the first time he met her, his bodyguard training doing the thinking for him.

'No, you are not,' Fenris stated stopping in his tracks. She scowled again and walked past him.

'You don't have to pretend to care elf. I'm not Hawke. I'm not going to throw a strop because I'm not the centre of attention,' she snapped as she passed. Fenris' brow furrowed.

'Hawke was not like that,' he said a little defensively.

'Oh wake up and smell the Mabari shit,' she rolled her eyes looking back at him. 'What happened if Hawke got hurt?' She didn't wait for him to answer, 'Anders would instantly start healing and you would block and protect from any threat. What happened when you got hurt?' Again she wouldn't let him answer, 'you had to wait and suffer until either the threat was over, or someone passed you a health potion.' She shrugged. 'Face it, compared to Hawke, everyone else is less important. Even made you start thinking it as well.' Fenris looked at her. What she said was true, but it sounded a little cold. 'What's the matter? Seeing Hawke properly for the first time in years?' She mocked. Fenris' expression hardened. 'Maybe it's about time.' She muttered. Fenris scowled at her and turned on his foot. Why he suggested travelling with this infernal woman he would never know. He would end up killing her before the night was over. She brushed off his bad mood and continued to talk. As if nothing had happened. He didn't know what annoyed him more. The fact that she threw more insults and mockery at him, than he could remember in the last ten years when he lived in Kirkwall, or the fact that despite her irritability, he actually liked her company.

He watched her walk as she walked ahead, there were breaks in her speech pattern of more then ten minutes, that wasn't normal. She also began to drag her foot ever so slightly. So when he was barely a few inches behind her and she collapsed, it wasn't much of a surprise. He took her weight, the surprise was at how light she actually was. He picked her up and took her off the track, he didn't trust other travelling parties. He found a concealed area, it was getting dark anyway, so he placed her at the base of a tree and began to build a fire. It would take quite a while to get to Starkhaven, he would be spending a few nights out rough. Luckily, he had the foresight to grab his pack before he left the city. He built the fire up and crossed over to where she was laying. She was very pale, she must be hurt somewhere. He didn't like the idea of prying over her, so he just settled for looking for surface wounds without actually touching her, or removing any clothing. He brushed her long hair from her shoulders and checked her throat, nothing, he checked her torso for blood, still nothing. It was when he tried to check her shoulder that he smelt the blood. The cloak was dark and it had done a very good job of hiding what she had tried to conceal. That's when he lost all preconceived notions of being a gentleman. He lifted her into a sitting up position, her head on his shoulder and he took off her cloak. He swore at the sight of her back. She had a very large, deep slash over the back of her shoulders, angled down towards her waist. It had tore straight through her leather vest.

'Get... off... pervert,' she gasped tiredly, as she woke up. He growled and ignored her. She tried to push him away but she was too weak from the loss of blood.

'Be still woman,' he commanded. She continued to struggle but Fenris cuffed her lightly around the head and she stopped. 'Why did you hide this?' He asked.

'Because I can... deal with it,' she replied. Fenris rolled his eyes.

'You collapsed,' he stated moving around her, he no longer held her head up and she drooped. 'I will have to cut off your leather vest,' he said awkwardly.

'Like... hell you.. will,' she said with a growl. 'Just... leave it.' Fenris weighed up his options, he could either do as she asked and leave it. She would probably become poisoned, and then have a hard time recovering. If she even did. Or, he could cut away her clothing, clean and sew up the wound, be beaten savagely for his efforts and then insulted. The latter option offered less whining, and at the end of the day she would probably have more than a thirty percent chance of surviving, then if the wound became septic. He sighed and took the blade that rested at the base of her back, using it to cut the ties at her shoulders and by her waist. The back of the leather vest could now be taken away, but the blood had caused it to stick. She swore and cursed at him, her weak state not affecting her mouth it seemed. Fenris ignored her latest threat to ''castrate him and use his bollocks as a mantle piece ornament,'' as he opened a skin of water and trickled it over her back, washing the grime and dried blood. She hissed in pain and promised him death as he gently pried the vest from her. He wasn't shocked to see the criss cross scarred skin that covered her back, it did cause a small stir of anger in his chest though. He took a small clean piece of cotton from his belt and began to clean the wound. He placed a hand on her shoulder to hold her up, he had taken off his gauntlets, he didn't want to catch her injury with the sharp metal. He felt her muscles shudder and spasm as he cleaned, he felt guilty for not having a health potion with him, or anything that could soothe the pain at all. He worked quickly and methodically, soon he threaded a needle and began to sew the wound together. She winced and twitched every time it pierced her skin but she made no sound. Only the fire crackled, he could feel her goosebumps under his fingers, he made a note to give her the larger blanket in his pack. A minute or two later he had finished and he tied off and cut the thread. The wound looked raw but it was clean and should start to heal.

'Be careful when you move,' he warned as he left her. She nodded and sat up a little straighter, since resting a little colour had returned to her face. She held the other half of the vest to her chest, with her arms. Fenris pulled a shirt out of his pack and passed it to her, turning around as she changed. He could hear her swearing as she had to lift her arms to pull it over her head. He faced her as she tugged her hair from the collar and over her shoulders. It made the ''male'' switch in Fenris' head click and he suddenly realized that she was incredibly attractive.

'Thank you,' she said quietly.

'I am sorry?' Fenris said as he was distracting himself looking through his pack for food.

She sent him a look. 'I said, thank you. You arse.' She replied rolling her eyes. Fenris tilted his head at her, she sighed. 'Thank you Fenris.'

'It was no problem,' he said pulling some dried meat from a bag. He handed some to her, she took it her fingers brushing his for a moment.

'Yeah, thanks for being a stubborn bastard and causing me a fuck load of pain,' she said tearing into the meat.

'Next time I will let you suffer,' he said dryly, taking a bite of his own. His reply made her laugh and she coughed as she almost swallowed a full mouthful. Fenris allowed himself a smile, while he looked at her.

'Holy mother of Andraste, I never thought you would make me laugh,' she said patting her chest with a wince. 'Maybe there's a lot more to you, than the simpering bitch that I watched tail Hawke for the last six months.'

'You never know,' Fenris said not rising to the bait. He figured he was going to get a lot of digs about Hawke, but where earlier it used to make him defensive and angry, even now, only a few hours later; it just made him smile. She yawned and shook her head to wake herself up. 'Sleep,' he said passing her the blanket. 'I will take first watch.' She raised a brow but nodded and pulled the blanket over her, she laid on her side, Fenris noticed that she had the dagger in her hand as she closed her eyes. He couldn't blame her. He would be wary too. He made a mental note to ask her how she was injured in the morning. She winced once or twice as she tried to get comfortable, but she soon drifted off. Fenris found himself watching her as she slept, until he caught himself doing it, then he mentally berated himself. He broke the link to Hawke for a reason. It was neither the time nor place to create another.

Although whether she was the right woman or not was another question.

Yet he still didn't know her name.

Review if you want me to continue.