The Dovahkiin – An Unexpected Journey
Disclaimer: I do not own The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (new movies, old movies, books and any sort of etc. type stuff) which includes any of its characters or dialogue. I also don't own the Elder Scroll series or any other book, movie, song or character I may have mentioned along the way… except my OC of course. I just so happened to use it for non-profitable fun in my spare time.
Author's Note: We'll just ignore the fact that she'd be a werewolf. I'm also going to pretend I know everything throughout this fan fiction, so if I am confidently saying something that is completely incorrect… just go with it. I'm also sorry if anyone seems OOC, I try my best to not to or at least explain my way through it so that it is acceptable.
Chapter 1 – Her Skyrim
The first time Bryn felt like she had a home again was when she met the Companions.
She'd see the giant from a ways off and went running down the road toward it. As she grew closer, she could see a group of mercenaries fighting the creature but they seemed to be at their rope's end. She ran in with a roaring battle cry, war axes out, blonde hair flying and blue eyes ablaze. Using a kneeling mountain of a man, she managed to climb the front of the giant until she could reach its throat, slicing it clean and thoroughly. Balancing, she came down on the giant's chest as it fell backwards, her knees bent when it hit the ground.
The Companion's hadn't been impressed with her outwardly, mostly annoyed that a newcomer had taken their kill. Regardless, the woman- Alea the Huntress- introduced herself and the Companions, suggesting that the shield maiden try to join their ranks and become a shield sister. It hadn't taken Bryn long to search them out in Whiterun and join, easily rising up the ranks when they realized her skill and temperament. They became her new family to replace the one she'd lost so many years ago.
Kodlak had been the first to truly take her in, believing in her the second she came to him asking to join the Companions. While he'd been alive, he'd been the father of the Companions and when he'd passed, it had been hard on everyone, especially Bryn and Vilkas. Vilkas had tried to take the place of Kodlak as best he could and take care of the Companions as Kodlak would have done. Vilkas and Alea had always felt like her elder brother and sister, always looking after her and the other whelps of the Companions. They never seemed happy with what anyone did but Bryn knew that they were secret proud of all their shield siblings.
Farkas had been and would always be her favorite shield sibling whether she was willing to admit it or no. He had been a large, intimidating mountain of a man, his heavy steel armor adding to this persona. His deep voice had boomed down at her as he suggested she join the Companions. She didn't dare argue with him. But he wasn't as scary as everyone seemed to believe. His smile was as warm as the sun and appeared as often as the sun did. And he was afraid of himself more than others were. She noticed that whenever he was around others he was always overly careful; afraid that he might accidently hurt them if he wasn't careful. She loved that about him.
The Companions were her new family and she would do anything for them the same way they would do anything for her.
However, one can only do so much when their shield sibling is the Dragonborn.
Bryn got her first taste of the Voice- also known as the Dragon language or the Thu'um- when she'd been nearly executed and Alduin destroyed the poor village. She'd learned what she was the first time she'd killed a dragon, when she felt the soul of the dragon fill her to the brim with pour, searing at her nerve endings and burning her throat. She'd begun to understand when she'd been sent to learn from the Greybeards at High Hrothgar, their temple at the top of the Seven Thousand Steps to the Throat of the World. She began to see it in a new light when the Greybeards had sent her to their leader, the dragon Paarthurnax, who taught her what no human ever could about the Thu'um.
The Dragonborn was a warrior with the body of a mortal and the blood and soul of a dragon, whose destiny was to destroy the evil dragon, Alduin. Unfortunately for Bryn, he was flying about Skyrim bringing dragons back from the dead and she had no way to stop him. Yes, she could go around Skyrim killing the dragons he brought back, concussively killing them so that they would not return… but that was an awful lot of dragons and an awful lot of work for only one Dovahkiin.
So instead, with the help of the Greybeards and Paarthurnax, she was defeating Alduin in a more roundabout way… with the search of an Elder Scroll, the learning of the Dragon Rend and while searching for various other objects to guide her in her quest.
Bryn and her follower- the Khajiit caravan guard, Kharjo- walked along the coast of the Pale and Winterhold, headed towards the ice, snow and rocky cliffs. Bryn was currently in search of an item that would help her beat Alduin, just having finished finding some items for some friends and killing a group of bandits with Kharjo. She'd picked him up just outside of Dawnstar, asking him to join her on a few of her never ending stream of adventures. He'd been reluctant to go with her until Farkas had shown up to watch over the caravan in the meantime. Bryn had actually asked Farkas to go along with her in the first place but he'd refused.
"The last time I went on the road with you, little sister, I ended up with an arrow in my rump and lockjaw for a week until we could find an alchemist," Farkas frowned, down at her before he nudged her jokingly, nearly sending her into the nearest wall. "Next time. Just until I can get my favorite boots back from Eorlund. That Frost Spider really gave them a beating,"
But he'd agreed to some quiet guard duty with the Khajiit caravan.
"You are taking us someplace warm, I trust?" Kharjo asked.
Bryn snorted. "I wish,"
Kharjo sighed at this but bowed his head, gesturing for her to lead the way before him. "Khajiit walks in your footsteps, friend,"
Now the two were trudging through the sludge on the coast of the Sea of Ghosts. It was quiet except for the occasional howl of the wind or of a wolf in the distance. It was peaceful despite how much Bryn knew Kharjo didn't like it. He may have been better suited against the cold than the average Orc or Imperial but he certainly didn't like having to be in the cold. She could hear his teeth chattering from five feet away if she listened hard enough.
That was went they reached their first cave.
"We have found a cave," Kharjo told her in an obvious sort of way as they came to a stop in front of it, him shivering as they stared into the darkness of it. "I do not think there are warm fires and friendly faces inside,"
"With my experience, I thoroughly agree," Bryn murmured. "But you're shivering. We'll go through the cave and set up a camp so that you don't catch anything,"
"This Khajiit thanks you," he said with a bow of his head.
The two entered the cave and- surprisingly- found nothing in its depths. This, of course, was quite unusual for any cave in Skyrim but Bryn nor Kharjo decided to question their good luck.
"If anyone sneaks up on us, I will smell them coming… or I may not. We will see,"
Bryn smiled at him over her shoulder. "That is very assuring, Kharjo. Thank you,"
He bowed his head. "Khajiit guards your back,"
The two set up camp, building a fire to fight against the cold that blew into the cave and for Kharjo to dry his fur by. Bryn sat within the light of the fire, cleaning her war axes and organizing her gear that had become confused in the excitement of the day.
"These sands are cold, but Khajiit feels warmness from your presence," he commented from across the fire, his fur now almost completely dry and fluffed up. It made him look any pounds heavier than Bryn knew him to be and his face looked as if it were stuffed full of food.
She found it quite endearing.
"And I from yours, Kharjo,"
He smiled. "The fire helps,"
Bryn couldn't help but laugh at this.
At the sound of her laughter, Kharjo shook out his fur, his ears twitching about his head.
They slept in the cave that night with only a horker in the form of a disturbance, allowing the two to get a great deal of uninterrupted sleep. It was peaceful except for the constant cry of the wind at the entrance of the cave, the morning bringing the bright sun that warmed the ice.
Bryn was the last of the two to get up, stretching and rubbing at her face, remarkably not disturbing the green war paint on her face, smeared vertically down her cheeks from her from her eyes like tear tracks. She got up slowly, gathering her weapons and gear, pulling on her armor and tying her war axes to her side. Her Nord blonde hair hung down in loose locks that she typically braided back against her hair, pulled back into a high ponytail that hung down her back.
"By the Twin moons…"
Bryn looked up as she finished her last buckle, confused to find Kharjo standing near the entrance of the cave, stock-still.
"What is it, Kharjo?"
"You must see this with your own sight,"
Bryn approached slowly, coming to a stop beside Kharjo. Bryn's eyes were wide with awe at the portal, swirling in front of them like a whirl in the water at the bottom of a waterfall. She'd seen many of these things before but none appeared just out of thin air, popping up of their own free will.
"Where did it come from?"
Kharjo just tilted his head from side to side. "It had arrived before this Khajiit did,"
Bryn watched the portal for a long minute, waiting to see if any mad prince popped out at the two warriors or if a Prince of Debauchery would set her on a wild goose chase. None did. Not even a misguided magician appeared from the portal or from the nearby ice packs.
Bryn sighed. "I need to find out what is on the other end of the portal,"
Kharjo bowed his head. "Khajiit guards your back,"
"No, Kharjo. I think that it is time that we parted ways,"
He looked over at her with feline eyes wide with shock. "But it may be when you are in need of this Khajiit most,"
"Kharjo. I appreciate your worry for me but I do not know where this portal goes… and I do not want to be held responsible if you do not return to your caravan," Bryn placed a hand on his shoulder. "I can do this on my own,"
Kharjo was reluctant to leave his friend to go to some unknown territory on her own but he could see the determination in her eyes. She was going to go through the portal on her own and she was going to stop him if he followed. He also felt the tug on his heart strings that told him that he could not blindly follow her this time; he had his caravan to look after.
He accepted her order to leave her with a bow of his head. "Then, back home is where you will find me,"
Bryn smiled at her feline follower, reaching up on her tip-toes- because their height was very different- and kissed him on his furry cheek. He purred as she pulled away from him, the two smiling at each other as old friends tend to do when they are saying goodbye. Bryn turned toward the portal, taking a few confident strides toward it before she stuttered, coming to a stop before she turned back to him. Kharjo watched her; curious to what she had to say to him before she left.
"But if I do not return in the next few days, send Farkas,"
This earned her a toothy grin from the Khajiit. "As you wish," he nodded, tipping his head as he touched his fingertips to his forehead in farewell. "May your road lead you to warm sands,"
Bryn bowed her head to him and turned.
"Let's hope I'm just heading to Oblivion for a visit,"
And then she stepped inside, the portal swallowing her up before it disappeared with a blink of light, leaving the Khajiit alone in the snow.
Kharjo's ear twitched. "Farewell, Bryn,"
He turned and left, unsure of his friend's future.