A Bitter Pill

A Bitter Pill is the companion quest for Fenris in Dragon Age II.

Acquisition
Leaving Kirkwall with Fenris in your party headed toward Soundermount in Act II will trigger an ambush by slavers and begin the quest. You may have to do some main quests before it is triggered.

Walkthrough
When the slavers hold your way, a short dialog will start.

'Let's work out a deal!'

'Die, slaver!'
 * No change in friendship/rivalry

'He's not a slave!' The dialogue will end either way with Fenris yelling enraged that he's not a slave, and the combat begins. After you kill them another dialog with Fenris will start.

If you tell him that he should calm down

If you tell him to go look for Hadriana

Visit the new area on the map outside of Kirkwall, Holding Caves. There will be a couple of groups of slavers, they should be easy to take out. Before you enter the cave Fenris will start a dialogue. You will enter a room where there is an elven slave surrounded by slavers. Kill them. Once you do that, a dialog will begin. If you chose to answer in the course of dialogue:

I'm sorry; then 'Come work for me' and explain to Fenris that she would came as paid help and not a slave

If you chose "They don't care about you" then "Not our problem"

Proceed until you reach Hadriana. The battle is not very hard if you concentrate all your damage towards her. Once she's down a dialog will start. She says that Fenris has a sister and offers information in return for her life. If you let Fenris decide he'll promise her to spare her life for the info, but afterward he will kill her.

If you choose the star answer, and the romance option:

Result

 * Fenris will leave your party temporarily he will be at the Hawke estate the next time you return.
 * The next time to talk to Fenris it will be a key relationship conversation.

Rewards

 * The crafting material embrium & glitterdust is found in the holding cave during this quest.

Bugs

 * PC version 1.00 and PS3 and Xbox version - It is possible to begin the quest without Fenris in your party. After entering the Holding Caves it is impossible to leave the area to reform your party. During cutscenes, you will hear Fenris' voice and the camera will pan to where he should be standing, but there will be nothing there. You can still receive friendship and rivalry points with him, despite his not being there. However, killing Hadriana will not trigger a cutscene and it is then impossible to finish the quest, even if Fenris is later brought to the caves. This can be avoided by adding Fenris to the party through the use of "runscript zz_dae_debug" in the developer console prior to defeating Hadriana.