A/N: OLAF! IT'S ME, IFYOUCOULDFLY! Okay, so yeah. Cursed. The Ensis story. Sorry, but right now, I can't continue that story. My computer crashed, and took all the files with it (including Cursed), so until it's fixed, I can't continue.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, then cool. Welcome to a little project I've been thinking about for a while now, and I just felt like writing it. So, here you go. Not much else to say, except that I do not own Skyrim, or any of the Elder Scrolls games and characters. Nor will I ever. That being said, please, read on :)!

"Rise and shine!"

I groaned, stuffing my face deep into my pillow. "Don't wake up," I thought, squishing my eyelids shut. "It's so warm in bed."

"Kae, hurry up already! Unless, of course, you want Jaymin going hunting by himself..."

At that, my eyes shot open. A faint glow surrounded the darkened room, the glow of sunrise. In my book, that was much too early to be waking. Even after three years, I couldn't manage to heave myself out of bed on time.

I glanced upward, where Mei, my best friend, stood, a triumphant grin spread across her face.

"There you go. That wasn't so hard, was it? Now come on. I want eggs for breakfast this morning, and you'd better get me some."

With that, she barreled out the door and into the chilly air of the Reach, her long, honey locks trailing after her. Despite my dreary state, I nearly laughed. Even at 5:00 in the morning, Mei had enough energy to run the length of Skyrim's border twice.

After pulling myself out of my bedroll, a difficult task in itself, I ambled over to the half-broken dresser and tugged out the typical uniform; worn-out leather armor.

I gave a little sigh, running my finger along the spiderweb pattern of tiny cracks that ran through the hardened leather.

"One day," I whispered to myself, "I will make this place the most beautiful in all of Skyrim. In all of Tamriel. I just need the money."

Once I had pulled the armor on, shoving my feet into the too-large boots, I glanced at the mirror on the wall.

It could be hardly a mirror at all, really. One day at dusk, Poarch had hauled in a massive mirror, and we had all been amazed, wondering where he would put it. Instead, he took his old sword and cut the mirror into rough chunks for each of us.

So really, I glanced at the chunk of mirror on the wall. A girl of about twenty stared back.

Long, dark curls fell just past my shoulders, contrasting strangely with my pale skin. Large eyes, filled with swirling colors of blue and gray and green, shadowed over a small nose and mouth. My ears, the tips just barely poking out of my slightly tangled mass of hair, were slightly pointed at the ends, though I was truly an Imperial. That was what my father was. They probably came from my my Wood Elf mother.

I breathed, the freezing air forming pale whisps of air that curled around the room until fading away to nothingness. I could be pretty, I had long ago decided, but never beautiful. If I were beautiful, my skin would have the same sunkissed tone of Mei's. If I were beautiful, I would have a warm smile, instead of the slight frown I always wore. If I were beautiful, I wouldn't have that faint white scar running from just beneath the edge of my left eye to the bridge of my nose.

I shook my head, whipping my head around to the open window. Faint, yet vibrant, shades of pink and orange burst across the horizon, and I knew the sun would follow.

"Shit," I cursed under my breath, grabbing my hunting bow, which lay across the wooden chest full of all my belongings.

I dashed out the door and into the clearing, ready to start the day.

As usual, I felt a surge of determination wash over me as I looked around Slen.

That was the name of this place. Slen. I couldn't quite call us a village, or a town, or a camp. We were just that: Slen. The word was in the Dragon Tongue, and meant "lost". That was us. We were the lost.

There are twenty-four of us in total. All of us come from different backgrounds, with different personalities and beliefs, but we all shared one thing in common: we were the rejects. Those who didn't belong in society. They either didn't want us, or they wanted to kill us, or, in my case, wanted to use us.

When we couldn't find a place in Skyrim, we found a place with each other. In the beginning it was just Jaymin and Larkly, and they built this...community in the rugged landscape of the Reach. Away from those who sought to bring us down.

Now, there twelve shacks layed out in a circle around a clearing. In the center was a firepit, and the only border between us and the dangers of Skyrim's wilderness was a thick ring of clustered trees.

This had been my home for the past six years. Sure, it was difficult. We had twenty-four people, two of them children, living in the middle of nowhere with no connection to civilization, and we had to find a way to care for them. Still, it was my home, and we managed to keep Slen as productive as Whiterun itself. At least, Whiterun when I last visited. I hadn't seen the place since I was fourteen, after all.

We worked different sorts of jobs. Poarch and Larkly were suppliers for Khajiit caravans that would often pass through Markarth, and they brought back all sorts of trinkets from their trades. Mei and Harpen were farmers, growing all the food we needed. Rava and Yema were our best thieves, slipping down to Markarth at sunset and arriving the next morning with hefty sacks of stolen goods.

And then there was me and Jaymin, the hunters. We were the best in the group with weaponry, and had been hunting partners for six years, supplying Slen with enough rabbits, foxes, and deer to help keep us alive and healthy. Between Jay's sword and my bow, we were unstoppable.

Jaymin, Mei, and I protested daily that no, Slen did not have a "leader", we led ourselves as a team, but we all knew that wasn't true. The other twenty-one looked up to us three, and we guided them naturally.

I loved it here. I really did, with all my heart.

"So are you just going to stand there, Kae, or will we set out?"

I whipped around to see, of course, Jaymin, his mouth spread into a toothy grin. I rolled my eyes, but ran to him, falling in step beside him as we plunged into the dense forest.

"Rava came back yesterday saying the marketplace is buzzing with rumors of a huge den of bears, enough to feed us for weeks. Of course, Rava's not exactly the most reliable source of information, but it's worth checking out." Jay began, his voice a deep, quiet hum.

I nodded. "Any ideas where?"

I watched as his brow furrowed his mouth tightening into a grim line. "Dangerously close to us, it sounds like. The fool who spotted it, a poacher," he spat the word with disgust, though that was exactly what we were, "was near the falls, as the rumor goes, when he was chased out by five bears at once."

My eyes widened fractionally. I knew the forests and mountains of the Reach like the back of my hand. Every cliff, every tree, every pebble was accounted for. I knew right where the falls were. About a mile from Slen, sure, but that was far too close for us. If we were found out, we'd all be forced to return to our lives within the walls. Some of us would be sent to a life behind bars.

"Let's go, then." I announced hurriedly. "We'd better get rid of these bears before people come out looking for them."

Jay nodded, the familiar glint of mischief returning to his stormy-gray eyes. "That's what I like to hear, Kaelina. Let's go!"

We set off along the hilltops, managing to easily slay three birds and two rabbits along the way before, finally, we arrived at the falls.

A low, moss-coated cliff loomed over a small pool of water. From the top of the cliff, three streams of water showered down into the pool, the droplets sparkling in the wavering light that beamed from the newly risen sun.

"Look for tracks." I muttered, keeping my voice low, and he nodded, kneeling down and gently examining a yellow-and-orange leaf.

I crept along the banks of the pool, making no sound at all as I went. Jay and I were the hunters. Making the slightest noise could cost us a kill, which could cost us a meal, which could cost us somebody's health. Therefore, once a weapon was in our hands, we became sabre cats, padding along the frost-covered ground with the swiftness of the mountain wind and the silence of Death itself.

And then, I spotted it. From behind a cluster of trees, hidden from our sight, there was a deep indentation in the earth. I approached - and gasped.

It was a massive print, one I had never seen before, with the size of a mammoth's print and the talons of a bear's. And even more peculiar, the shape of a lizard's.

A small suspicion had nestled its way into the pit of my stomach, and I found it hard to breathe. "No," I told myself silently, "that's not possible." To my dismay, another part of my mind shot back, "as impossible as you being..."

I never even finished my thought.

"Oh, my gods!" I heard Jaymin shout, and all the breath flew from my lungs.

A shadow fell over the falls, blurring out the feeble light of the slowly climbing sun, sending my world plunging into chaos.

I turned, a million decades passing by each millisecond...and saw it.

Its head, a great and wicked image, was narrow and bony, coated in a layer of shimmering bronze scales, its teeth, sharp as daggers, jutting out from its snarling mouth. Two twisted horns sat atop its head, a crest of spines trailing down its scaled neck.

The feet matched the print perfectly, massive talons ready to tear at them. From its torso fell a long, spiked tail, swinging back and forth with each beat of its wings. Oh, and its wings.

The bony outline of what could have been a hand held a thin layer of stretched skin in place. In some areas, the skin was ripped, battle scars from previous adventures. They beat back and forth endlessly, causing it to hover just feet above me and Jaymin.

It wasn't possible. Dragons didn't exist. All those years, me wandering, and I'd never known there were really dragons. Not even that day in Bleak Falls Barrow. Not even then.

But here it was, in all its glory, a dragon.

And its eyes were hungry.

"Kae, move!" Jay screamed, and I snapped out of my shock as a ball of fire hurtled towards me. I dodged neatly, but the heat hit me in waves, my skin boiling.

The dragon let out a roar of pure fury, shattering the sky and even sending a boulder tumbling off the nearby cliff.

I knew what I had to do, but I'd promised myself I'd never do it again. Six years ago, I promised. For the safety of these people I loved...

"Argh!" Jay screamed, and I watched as he narrowly missed a ball of flames.

A wave of rage and panic washed over me. "Screw it." I muttered under my breath.

With all the courage I had in myself, I stood, tall and proud, and stared the dragon in the eye. And, with all the strenghth I possessed, I shouted.

"FUS, RO DAH!"

A/N: Soooooooo...how you like it? Hehe I'm trying for something a little different here, something long and cool I can work on for a while, and I'm hoping you guys enjoy this :) Anywho, thank you sooo much for reading, and it would help me out A LOT if you would leave me a review! Keep reading/reviewing/being awesome!-FLY