The Dragonborn's Apprentice

There he was, the Dragoborn. Handsome in his own right, a Nord with dark yellow hair and bright green eyes. His beard was scruffy, like he hadn't been keeping too well care of himself, but that didn't take away from the child-like grin on his face. He sat alone at a table across for me in the Winking Skeever, singing along with Lisette, as she renditioned him in the only song he ever requested' "The Dragonborn Comes". Of course everyone was too intimidated to speak to him, he was dressed in the heaviest black armour I've ever seen, and it even seemed to have glowing streets of red on it, too. I've never seen anything like it before, and yet, he seemed to be perfectly comfortable in it. I watched him for what felt like hours, drinking alone, having a good time by himself. He may not have needed company, but I was too many drinks in to realize that. I stood, gathered my skirts and shuffled over to his table. He smiled at me, but that smile faded as he realised I was about to sit with him.

'And how can I help you, little lady?' he asked, so very sure of himself.

I couldn't stop the giggle from coming up, as he took a generous swig from his tankard. 'Well, I have a proposition for you,' I spoke like I had something he wanted, but in reality I knew it was a long shot.

He raised his brow at me, slamming the cup down onto the table. 'If I've said it once, i've said it a thousand times! I won't take your purity, it's too special to your father, no doubt.' He laughed at himself, leaning back in his chair.

'No, it's not that... I want you to train me to be a warrior like you!' I threw my hands up toward him and smiled, but his face melted into a frown.

'You... Are you...?'

'I can be useful! I have talents...' I said, trying to defend myself, knowing exactly what he was thinking. I was too small, too fragile. A "lady" whatever that meant, and surely I'd have no place on the battlefield.

He laughed at me, and folded his arms. 'Have you ever been in a fight before? A brawl at a bar even?' He snickered.

'No, but I am a hunter. I'm very good with a bow,' I said. I felt my arms falling to my side in defeat. 'Just let me show you, I can do it.'

The Dragonborn shrugged. 'Alright. Go and get your bow, I'll meet you outside in, I don't know, a few minutes or so,' his words were slurred as he dismissed me. I hadn't had the forethought to realise I wasn't in the best condition to handle a weapon, but that didn't stop me. I was far too excited, and so I ran out of the bar to fetch my bow and arrows. When I returned to the WInking Skeever, I waited outside like he had told me.

And I waited. And waited. He never came out.

The next morning, I woke in my bed groggy. Annoyed, I dressed myself in my hunting gear; simple brown leather pants and long sleeved shirt. It provided little protection, but was light enough that I could move silently in. In high hopes, I packed a small bag with some bread, apples, a few changes of clothes, and threw it, with my bow and quiver over my shoulders, and returned to the bar where I was supposed to meet my destiny. When I arrived, the Dragonborn was just headed out of the gates to leave Solitude. I thought it was rude of him, to not even try to find me. I meant to call out to him, but I only just then remembered I didn't even know his name. Everyone just called him "The Dragonborn". As quickly as I could, I ran to stop him before he headed to the stables.

'Dragonborn!' I called out to him. He turned his head to look at me, but kept walking. 'You said you'd give me a chance!'

He shrugged in his massive armour, spiked shoulders moving only slightly. 'Sorry friend, I'm afraid I don't remember that.'

By now I was beside him, and he kept his gaze forward, avoiding my eye. His pace quickened. 'Last night, you said you'd let me show you how well I could hunt, so that you would train me to be like you.'

The Dragonborn skidded to a halt, and stared me down. 'You want to be like me?' He asked, sounding conceited. 'In what way do you think you could be like me?'

'I want to go on adventures, and help you take down the dragons! I want to fight bandits and restore order. I want to help you-'

'That's enough,' he said, raising his hand. he turned, and walked away from me again, headed toward the stables. 'You don't have what it takes to be me.'

'Well, I don't have to be you, I just want to help.' He seemed to ignore me, as he rushed to retrieve his horse. However, i was not deterred, and I was fully committed to getting his help. 'At least just let me try. Having someone to help you may not be so bad! I mean, I-'

'There's something I need you to understand,' he spoke over me again as he mounted his horse. I followed him as he guided his steed back to the road, and ranted on about how he could never trust me. 'With all due respect, I am a Nord, am I am a Stormcloak. You, on the other hand, are a High Elf, and are exactly the kind of person I do not want to hang around. I don't trust people with magic, because they always turn on me, or die. They can't protect themselves like a real warrior could.' He struggled with his gauntlet, trying to get it over his armour while his horse walked away from me, with him on it. Frustrated, I swung my bow off my shoulder, and as he pulled the other gauntlet from under his arm to force that one on his hand too, I shot an an arrow to knock the gauntlet from his hand. He stopped ranting about how he could never fully trust an elf mage, not bothering to understand I wasn't a mage, nor was I Imperial, and stared at me with a growing fury in his eyes.

'You are not invincible. I heard how you returned from slaying the World Eater, and you were nearly dead yourself. I've heard of you rushing to healers to help your wounds. You bleed just like the rest of us,' I was shouting at him, nearly out of breath for the growing heat in my chest. I'm not sure why I mouthed off to the Dragonborn, of all people, but I regretted it as soon as he jumped off his horse.

His boots struck the cobblestone like thunder as he approached me, pointing his un-armoured finger in my face. 'How dare you ruin my gauntlet. Do you have any idea how expensive they are? How hard they are to make?'

'Well, allow me to pay you back by working for you.'

The Dragonborn tightened his lips and balled up his fist, seemingly unable to come up with a response. Despite my fear, I didn't cower from him like everyone else did. I was determined to become something great, and he was my best chance at doing so.

'Fine.' He finally said. 'Follow me. Come to my house and clean it for a fortnight and we're even.' he then turned on his heel and stomped off to retrieve his gauntlet. He pulled the arrow out and mounted his horse again.

I sighed, having to nearly run to keep up with him. Again, he kept his eyes forward, not even glancing in my direction.

'I'm not a mage, you know. Nor am I Imperial. I just thought you should know.' I said, already huffing.

'I don't care. I'm not teaching you to do something I know you cannot do.'

'You don't even know anything about me, Dragonborn.'

'Because, you know so much about me?' This time, he glared down at me. His expression so intense, I almost wished he'd go back to not looking at me at all. 'You know nothing of me. I'd wager you don't even know my name. All you know, are the stories of my successes.

'I may not know your given name, but I know you're the Hero of Skyrim, and if anyone can help me prove my worth, it's you.'

He was silent for some time, then he stopped his horse. 'My name is Dorn,' he said, offering my his hand. I took it, and he swung me up onto the saddle before him. He kicked the horse into a lope, and remained silent until we reached his home.

For nearly a half day we rode, until we were far south into the mountains near Falkreath. The whole ride, I had wondered if he was really going to make me walk the whole way. I had also wondered why he seemed so cold and cruel, when usually he was portrayed as warm and heroic. The Dragonborn I had heard of would have never backed out of a challenge, or turned down a chance to help someone in need. If anyone was needy, it was me.

'Come, I'll show you through the house,' he said blandly. When we entered the manor, it was pitiful. Plates were strewn all across the table in the main hall, there was a small fire pit with an old pot containing cold stew I could smell from the moment we entered the house, and to the right of us, there was an armoury of sorts that had swords and axes just laying about. There were even other sets of armour hastily thrown onto armor stands. I wanted to ask him how he lived like this, until I realised he probably spends very little time here at all.

'The stairs to your left will take you to a bed where you can sleep. Don't go into the alchemy or enchanting towers, because I have everything in there exactly where it needs to be. I'm headed out now, I don't know when I will return.'

I sighed, dropping my bag down onto the table. 'What am I supposed to do?'

He looked back at me, expressionless, and shrugged. 'Whatever it is you think you came here to do. Except, be at my side while I travel around.'

I threw my head back, sighed, and waited for him to leave the house before I kicked a chair over. 'Do whatever you think you came here to do' I repeated him, mocking him. I grabbed my bag and pulled out an apple, the only thing I would probably eat today. Obviously he didn't care I was here, but it was better than being at home with my mother. I slumped into a chair, staring at the armoury before me as I ate the apple as quick as I could. I decided my first job would be to organize all the weapons, and properly care for his armour, instead of letting him be a slob about it.

After I had completed my first task, the sun had fallen and I was exhausted. Though mesmerizing, all the weapons were heavy, and chest pieces so dirty they had to be scrubbed down for quite some time. I had finally found my way up to a bed, but just before I fell into it, I heard some strange noises coming from outside. Never having lived outside of Solitude, I hadn't been prepared for all the dangers that would come with living out in the open like this. Frozen in place, I listened for a little longer. The sound of trees bending and branches snapping, loud stomps steadily approaching, unintelligible groans... There was a giant outside. If I was lucky, I could run down to the armoury to get a better bow, and be back up before it attacked the house. But it would be faster for me to use my bow right before me. Though, after some internal conflict I decided to take the risk to get a better weapon. I practically flew down the stairs, nearly falling face first into the bottom step, and grabbed a bronze bow with wings on it, that looked like they might be made of water, and their corresponding arrows. I ran back up the stairs, hoping there would be a window I could perch from, and I followed the sounds of the giant to the back of the house. Against Dorn's wishes, I went into the alchemy tower, and found a ladder leading to the roof. It was perfect for me to perch from.

The I peeked over the side of the hatch, I could see the top of the giant's head as he looked around, scoping out the house. I wasn't sure if he heard me scurrying inside, but he seemed to be interested in the garden, or the two cows and several chickens I wasn't even aware were there. I readied an arrow, unsure if I should try to kill it, but when the giant reached for the livestock, I let the first arrow fly. I watched it soar right into the giant's eye, but there was no time to celebrate my immaculate aim. I pulled another arrow from the quiver, one after another, shooting the giant in it's head, chest and knees until it finally went down. It's head fell out of my view, but I could hear the moans of pain. Worried they would attract more giants before it bled out and died on its own, I ran back down the stairs and into the armory, to grab a sword. By the time I burst through the front door, sword in hand, Dorn was standing over the now dead giant with a bloodied sword of his own. He looked to me as he removed his black helm, and raised his brow.

'Why did you kill him?' He shouted at me.

I threw up my hands, frustrated to not get a thank you out of him. 'He was trying to take your livestock!'

Dorn seemed to almost smile, and shook his head. 'And? Once in awhile, one will come around, take a cow or a chicken, and no one is hurt. Now I have a dead giant in my front yard, and he's going to start stinking soon.'

My chest deflated as I dropped the sword into the ground. 'Well I'm sorry. I thought I was helping.'

Dorn shook his head as he approached me. He picked up the sword at my feet, and headed toward the house. He didn't wait to see if I'd follow, but of course I had. 'It's alright. In time I'll use his body to feed the garden. Sell his bones once they're cleaned off.' He stumbled into the house, and threw his pack and weapons onto the table once in the main hall. 'I'm not so sure you belong here,' he said, falling into a chair.

'I'm not either. But I'm sure I belong out there, with you, as my teacher.'

'Look kid, I'm not looking for-'

'My name is Miri.' This time, I cut him off. There was no way I was going back to Solitude, and I was going to make him believe me. 'I'm half elf, yes, but my father is also a Stormcloak. And one of the Tongues.'

At the mention of this, Dorn's interest peaked. 'He was, was he?'

'He is. And before he left, he taught me to Shout, too.'

Dorn's brow raised, as he leaned back in his chair. 'Is that so?'

'I only know one word, but I can do it. I've been hunting since I could walk, and I have the best aim in all of Northern Skyrim, with the tokens to prove it. I can sneak up on anyone, and I'm great with people, and I-'

'Show me.'

'What?' His sudden interest in me had come as a shock. When he told me to show him I could shout, I suddenly wondered if I still could. I would have tried to tell him that I hadn't trained with my father since he and my mom went separate ways since the civil war started, but if it was my only shot, I would have to try. Apparently, he was eager to see, since he didn't even want to step outside. So I turned to the wall, drew in a deep breath as I dug deep within me to try and shout.

'YOL'. As the Word of Power passed my lips, so did a wave of fire, swelling up the stone wall, unable to set anything ablaze. Behind me, Dorn started laughing, and he clapped his hands.

'Wow,' he said. I turned to face him, to see if he was pretending to be impressed, but he seemed genuinely excited. 'Does it hurt you when you do it?'

Dumbfounded, I suddenly forgot to speak, and shrugged my shoulders. Dorn stood from his chair but didn't approach me.

'Is that why you wanted me to train you? Because you can Shout?'

I nodded my head. 'If you thought being half elf made people hate me, I bet you can imagine this makes them hate me even more.'

'They don't hate you,' he said, softly. His shoulders relaxed as he approached me. 'They fear you.' he placed a hand on my shoulder, and offered me a slight smile. 'We'll have to get you better armour.