Anna was in the exercise yard, beating the crap out of a wooden dummy, when the quartermaster approached her. He did so cautiously, because he had learnt the hard way to do his best to stay away from Anna while she was practicing. He had two of his best gladiators put in the hospital for doing so, and one of them was never going to swing a sword again. He waited until she took a break to catch her breath, and then he called out to her.

"Hawke!" Anna turned to look at him. She was very pretty, he thought, with her high cheekbones and golden hair. If he had predilections in that way he would probably have been after her. But he preferred his bed partners pretty, young, dark-skinned and male, so therefore Anna did not need to be on her guard in his presence.

"Quartermaster" she nodded curtly as a show of grudging respect.

"You have a visitor" He said. Anna blinked in confusion.

"Who the heck would visit me?" She demanded.

"I don't know, but he'd be handsome if it weren't for those nasty scars." Anna was half-way across the field before he had time to notice her moving.

"Where is he?" She demanded.

"In your quarters. He seemed to be in a rush so if you want a tumble you better hurry up." She gave him a scathing glare but did not stop to respond, merely hurried into the gladiator area.

Fenris was pacing the tiny room that was Anna's like a hungry tiger in a cage too small for its bulk, and Anna had to fight the temptation to wind herself around him like a snake around its dinner and kiss him until neither of them could breathe. Well, for a moment or two, at least.

"Hi sexy" she purred, letting her eyes feast on his bare arms. He spun around as if startled, a glow of blue fire surrounding his raised fist. When he saw that it was her, he lowered his hand again and made an impatient gesture.

"Where were you?" He asked, clearly irritated. Anna rolled her eyes.

"Training. Not much else to do here, really. Still two days to go to the second part. I'll have you know that this 'wait thirty days between each challenge'-thing is ridiculous." He ignored her comment, instead he stuck his hand in a well-hidden pocket in his armour. To be fair, she hadn't know he even had pockets. Finally he managed to pull out a small object and Anna had the pleasure to stare blankly at a small glass vial full with what appeared to be ink. She was not impressed.

"Ink." She said, dryly. "You give me ink, but neither quill nor parchment. What am I to do with it? Finger-paint on the walls?" The scowl that met her didn't even make her blink. He was always scowling, sometimes it even made her wonder if that was just the natural shape of his face. But he was great in bed - especially that thing he did with his tongue - and could be quite deadpan and funny, so she could live with the brooding and scowling.

"It's a potion" he said, and she smiled encouragingly.

"Very good, Fenris, thank you for stating the obvious. Now let's try an explanation!"

"Shut up, Anna." He growled, but Anna just kept grinning. He did that nearly as often as he scowled, and it didn't faze her at all. Fenris rolled his eyes at her.

"It strips the drinker of one of their senses."

"That's nice, babe."

"You don't understand. If you drink this before the first battle, it might take your sight." Anna stared at him like he'd just told her he was going to run off and join the circus.

"Why the blazes would I want to be blind during battle?" She demanded.

"Because you will be facing a gorgon."

"Bless you" she replied, clearly clueless as to what that meant. Fenris sighed deeply. He had planned to be in and out quickly, before anyone figured out that he had left, but it seemed as if that wasn't going to happen. Honestly, sometimes this woman was as thick as two bricks. If it wasn't for the fact that he couldn't relax anywhere but in her arms, he would have washed his hands of her weeks ago. He leaned against the table, sighed deeply, and set about explaining what a gorgon was and exactly why it was dangerous. About halfway through his admittedly garbled explanation, he realised that Anna wasn't paying attention. When he demanded to know what she was thinking about, she told him honestly.

"I'm wondering how sturdy that table is. And whether it would hold my weight while you're having me." She leered at him in that familiar way that always set his blood on fire. And considering the fact that he was already late returning to the Manor, he might as well nourish that fire. He pulled her close, pressing open mouthed kisses to her sweat-soaked neck.

"Let's find out" he murmured as his hands found the clasps holding her hauberk closed.

The day that Anna was to face the first part of the Challenge of Cunning came with early spring rain, turning the snow covering Minathrous into a brown sludge that insisted on covering everything, especially boots and trouser legs. By the time they reached the arena, Fenris was absolutely filthy from walking next to his Master's horse. His feet were freezing in the too thin boots and he was completely exhausted, since he had lain awake the entire previous night fearing that the potion would not work, that it would take something else from Anna than her sight so that she once again would be without protection from the gorgon. And even if it did work and Anna was rendered blind, he had no guarantee that she would manage to fight without being able to see her foe. He hadn't thought of that when he had stolen the potion, but it made his mind churn with worry and anxiety now. Anna, Anna, his Anna, what if he had just ensured her demise?

He had stopped briefly, and the sudden hard tug on the chain connected to the hated collar around his neck made him lose his footing and he ended up on the ground, covered in the cold sludge. It was humiliating, even more so when several of the soporati walking by to enter the arena laughed at the poor slave on the ground. Danarius gave him a furious glare and yanked hard again, making a low sound of impatience. Fenris crawled to his feet and tried not to glare back. He failed, and when he unblinkingly stared back at his master his eyes were dark with hatred. Danarius just looked amused.

"Let's go, little Pet. Today will prove amusing, I do think."

Anna stood by the gate, waiting for it to open. The potion was hidden under her leather jerkin, resting against her skin. She didn't know how long the effect would last, so she wanted to wait until the very last moment before drinking it. She shifted from foot to foot, chewing on her lower lip in trepidation as she waited. The gate would open at high noon to let her in to face the foe of that day. If she won, she would face the second part tomorrow and the third part the day after that. If she survived. She touched the place where she'd hidden the vial again, thinking of her reasons to stand here waiting to face a monster out of her nightmares. She had another reason now, a new reason that she wasn't sure how she felt about. She wanted to tell someone, tell Fenris, but she didn't dare. Maybe someone would find out, and in the position they were in the less that could be used against them the better. No, she wasn't going to tell him about the new reason just yet.

"Five minutes, Hawke" the quartermaster said as he came up to stand beside her. "You ready?"

"As I'll ever be" Anna said quietly, adjusting the sword strapped to her back. It was heavy, but she was used to carrying a heavy blade. The two-handed sword had been her constant companion since she was old enough to start training, and she could not imagine going into this without such a weapon. Now she just wanted the quartermaster to leave or turn his back for just a moment, just long enough to drain the little vial pressing against her skin. Time ticked by. They waited. Then, the quartermaster spoke again.

"It's a gorgon" he said, his voice barely audible.

"I know" Anna said. "I… have a… secret weapon." He looked at her intently for several moments and she wondered if she'd just signed her own death sentence.

"Good. Use it." She gave him a small, surprised, nervous smile. Then she pulled out the potion that Fenris had given her, uncorked it, and drained it in one gulp. It tasted foul, but potions usually did. Now all she could do was pray that it worked. It was impossible to know with the darkness all around them. Then she heard it; the clanging, grinding noise of the heavy gate rising to let her into the arena. Anna felt suddenly elated; she could feel the sun's warmth on her face - but all she saw was darkness.

She was blinded.