It was always a tough life for Kari.

To her village, she was known as Sa'kari and was treated well enough despite her breeding. She was the daughter of a Khajiit father and a Nord mother; a rare child indeed. Her mother had died while giving birth to her and her father was executed for crimes he didn't commit, leaving her in the care of her parents' closest friend, Do'sakhar. Do'sakhar had taken her back to his village in the Tenmar Forest of Elsweyr where she had been raised amongst the Khajiit, finding a home when someone like her would have most certainly have been abandoned. Many of the adults accepted her as a member of their village, believing her to be a bridge between Men and the bestial races, but despite that she was bullied by the other children for being different- with her tail and ears being the only thing that showed her Khajiit heritage. She had often wondered why she was alive and cursed with such breeding, but Do'sakhar would always tell her than it was by Secunda's Grace that she was born. But despite his reassurances, Kari took to locking herself away and studying her books- only venturing outside when she was training with Do'sakhar.

By her nineteenth year, Kari had grown into a very shy and reclusive young woman. She found herself happier living in seclusion, away from the constant abuse she faced as a half-breed. It was by this time as well that Do'sakhar decided it was time for her to go out into the world and learn of her other heritage as a Nord. It was difficult for her to do so, but Kari worked up the courage to bid the only home she had ever known goodbye and venture down a path that had been lain out for her many moons ago.

Cyrodiil was at the heart of the empire, the cosmopolitan centre of all trade in Tamriel. It was busy, crowded, bustling with all manner of people. Kari had never seen so many different people in her life. It was warm and welcoming, completely different than what she found in Skyrim.

Skyrim was cold, bitter, and violent. She was faced with hardened Nords who disregarded her. She kept to herself, finding any place she could to read the books of the land or could sit and observe the people of this strange and hostile land who shared part of her heritage.

One night, while she sat alone in a local tavern, Kari was listening to the bard sing and play his lute. It was beautiful, light and gentle, unlike anything she had heard. As she listened, though, she heard some of the locals talking about Khajiit.

"Those damn cats... I swear every time they come through here, somebody gets robbed."

"They should just go back to where they came from."

"And take their skooma with them. Don't they know that shit's illegal here?"

Kari stood, going over to the table where the men were talking. "Excuse me?"

The men looked at her. "What do you want, runt?"

"The Khajiit aren't all as bad as you may think. Many of them who resort to thievery and smuggling do so out of desperation, but many of them are kind hearted farmers and traders, warriors and scholars. A few bad apples shouldn't spoil the bunch."

The men looked at each other, then eyed her with disdain, curiosity, and something Kari couldn't identify.

"What are you, some kind of cat lover?"

Kari felt uneasy. "I just believe that people should be more objective and less judgemental. Please, forgive the intrusion." Kari bowed and took her leave, making her way out of the tavern and down the street. She had played on camping out in the woods again, just as she had since leaving home, finding more comfort amongst the trees than in a cold, creaky building.

She heard footsteps behind her, heavy set. She felt her hair stand on end, her tail bristling beneath her dress. She picked up her pace, quickly turning into an alleyway and ducking down behind a stack of crates. She kept quiet, glad that her eye sight was as good as her Khajiit brethren as she scanned the area.

The footsteps passed by, fading into the distance. Kari sighed in relief, making her way down to the other end of the alleyway. As she stepped out and turned the corner, someone grabbed her from behind and covered her mouth.

She tried to fight back, her protesting muffled by the hand.

"I won't hurt you, lass. But they will if they find you."

'A man?' Kari wondered, but her attention was turned towards the sound of heavy footsteps- the same as before- and watched as the men who had been in the tavern sauntered by.

"Where'd she go?"

"Sly little one, that girl."

"Whatever, let's go back."

Kari stood quiet, the arms of the man behind her wrapped around her and his hand over her mouth still, as she waited for the men to disappear. The man behind her took a step back, just happening to catch the tip of her tail. She winced and tried to ignore the pain, but his weight was enough to make her bite his hand and squirm free.

"What the hell?"

Kari turned away, checking her tail. "I could ask you the same."

"Is your tail alright?"

Kari's ears perked at that and she looked at the man. "How did you-"

"I could feel it when I pulled you back." He stepped forward. "Sorry if I stepped on it." He extended a hand. "Name's Runar Calland."

Kari, unaccustomed to the gesture, cautiously extended her hand and watched as he shook it. "I am Kari."

"So what are you, if you don't mind me asking?"

Kari smoothed out the fur on her tail and looked at him. "My mother was a Nord, my father a Tojay-raht- one of the Khajiit."

Runar looked at her. In the moonlight, he could tell that she was fair skinned with dark teal eyes lined with black kohl liner and a deep brown powder, her hair a chestnut brown that hung to her shoulders in waves. She wore her hood up, but he could see dark teal leather string with lighter teal coloured beads that matched her eyes and her dress hanging down over her right shoulder. She was small, standing at about five foot four inches, and slender, looking like she weighed about one hundred and twenty or so pounds.

Kari felt uneasy under his gaze like that, but she took the opportunity to observe the features of the man who saved her from the drunken men she had approached earlier. Runar was a Nord- from his scent- and he was a tall, muscular man standing at about six foot four inches and had a good hundred pounds on her. He had mahogany brown hair, sapphire blue eyes, a dark blue band of war paint across his eyes. He was like a mountain of muscles with hands that made him look like he could crush a giant's head. She felt dwarfed next to him.

Runar reached up, lowering her hood to get a better look at her ears- noting that both bore cuffs near the top and were pierced with three hoops towards the bottom.

Kari found that she didn't mind him lowering her hood, but when he reached up to touch her ears she shied away.

"Sorry." Runar withdrew his hand. "I've never seen anyone like you before."

Kari glanced up at him. "Nor I you."

Runar chuckled at that, reaching up to muss up her hair. "I like you, Kari. Why don't you travel with me?"

Kari looked at him, confused and wary. "We only just met."

"And a pretty girl like you shouldn't be wandering around alone, especially when you clearly don't know how things work here."

Kari glanced away. "True, but still..."

"Are you afraid I'm going to eat you?"

"You're massive! Any smart or sane person would be intimidated by your sheer mountainous size alone!"

Runar laughed at that. "That's a new one." He smiled. "If you don't want to, I understand." He turned away, raising a hand. "Anyways, see you around, Kitten."

Kari watched as he started to leave the alleyway, thinking a moment. "Runar, wait!" She hurried after him. When he turned back to her, she found herself blushing. "I um..." She sighed and took a deep breath. "If I travel with you, could you teach me about the history of Nords?"

Runar smiled. "Where would you like to begin?"