"Gather around dear children!" Mage Erikuson shouted before he sat down in his favourite chair in the firelight.
"Oh! Grampa! What story will you tell us tonight?" The children asked in excitement as he pulled the heavy tome onto his lap.
"What would you like me to tell?" He said laughing gently as one of the younger children settled into his lap leaning her arm against his round soft belly.
"The one of the Dragonborn!" One child shouted and then all the kids agreed. Mage Erikuson smiled and then he said, "Alright then." He took in a deep breath as all the children finally settled and he began to a sonorous voice.
"Long ago...there was a Septim, his name was Tiber Septim the High King of Skyrim." He began, his eyes looking at each of the children as he spoke, several of the other mages stood by the doors as he sat there entrancing the children with the power of story-telling. He was very hypnotic when he spoke, his voice rose and fell with a bardic utterance and the children loved it.
"He had a great power that the Almighty Akatosh had bestowed upon him, the great power of the Thu'um." He looked at the child sitting in his lap and he smiled looking at her.
"Then one day...something happened." He said sadly, reliving the memories of when High King Torygg Septim had been shouted at by Ulfric.
One of the younger children amongst the youngsters then said, "What happened?"
Erikuson smiled and then he said, "The High King soon passed away and his son succeeded him and whose son succeeded him and now to where the High King Torygg reigned...but things started to change." Erikuson's face turned pale.
"What happened Grandpapa?"
"He was killed...by a man named Ulfric Stormcloak." He said gravely looking at the children.
He was in the room when the High King was killed, many of the other mages knew that Erikuson and his wife were also shouted at by Ulfric and he nearly died from having half of a pillar collapse on top of him, while his wife Vokunvahdiin retaliated against Ulfric.
Many of the children stirred in interest as the man sitting before them took in a deep breath and he continued speaking.
"Soon the entire kingdom fell into chaos...but then." He stopped looking up into the crowd with bright eyes and he smiled before one of the children said aloud, "But then what grandfather?"
His smile grew wide and he smiled at the young woman standing in the doorway before he said, "The Dragonborn was brought back into the light." He smiled gently and then several of the children looked back at the woman standing in the doorway and then she said, "Well little ones...shall we get you to sleep and let Grandpapa rest?"
All of the children looked at her and then they shouted, "Grandmama!" and many of them went up and hugged her tightly.
She smiled and laughed before she said, "Alright children. Let us go." She took the little one from Erikuson and then she said, "Have fun tonight?"
He chuckled lightly smiling and then he followed her as they began to tuck the children into bed, one of the little boys in their care, he had his bed taken by another boy bigger than him and he was crying quietly in the corner and gently Erikuson took him into his arms and he said, "Come on, you can sleep with Grandmama and I tonight."
The boy had a look of joy on his face as he wiped his tears off his chubby face and then he got into his nightclothes.
Erikuson was just getting into a light robe when he smiled feeling his wife's presence behind him.
"Oh...Vokunvahdiin." He said gently before he turned and looked at her.
She was in her own nightgown, long flowy sleeves that almost touched the floor, white as snow and her ivory skin pale and fair, her green eyes gleaming in the torch light and her long red and black hair was down and curled gently down to her waist and the wedding ring still bore proudly on her left hand.
The two of them met in the center of the room and she said, "One little one sleeping with us tonight?"
He nodded his head and then she said, "Well...let us go then." She took his hand and then he smiled turning her back to him and then he leaned her over, kissing her. She smiled and then said, "Let's go."
She walked into the room and she saw the boy already sitting in the bed and she said, "All ready for sleep little one?"
The little boy nodded his head and then he snuggled into the bed as Erikuson got in one side and then she got in on the other and they met in the center of the bed.
Erikuson gently wrapped his arms around his wife and the boy sleeping between them and he said, "Good night you two." He kissed his wife gently on the forehead and then the boy groaned, "Eww...girl cooties."
Erikuson smiled and then he looked at the boy before he said, "I lost my battle with girl cooties the day I met Grandmama." The boy smiled and then he snuggled into Vokunvahdiin's chest and then she smiled before she said, "I missed you so much dear."
Erikuson smiled and then he said, "I missed you too dearest one." She smiled and then she rested her forehead against his and she began to drift off.