The morning's early rays shone through the dirty windows of the Inn, lighting up Dominae's face as she sat drinking a goblet of water. Though the sun had risen almost an hour ago, she had been awake far before that. The offer that had been given to her the day previous had floated around in her mind and plagued her like a nasty sickness. Needless to say, not much sleep had come to her.

Dominae had spent most the night and morning deciding how to answer, and once she had picked, another part of her brain had tried to argue with her. The Dragonborn had never felt this conflicted about anything.

The woman sat on a bench close to the fire for warmth, her light blonde hair down and framing her face. A little bit of dirt still lingered on her face from the day before, but the war paint surrounding her eyes was bright and emphasized her light eyes, those of which were staring into the flames.

Another hour passed without incident, and once Dominae had announced it a reasonable hour to leave and find Vignar, she left a note for Lydia—who was still sleeping—beside her beside pinned under her helmet. It held instructions to gather a list of supplies before meeting her back here at nightfall. With that task done, the armored woman set off to find Jorrvaskr.

With a little direction from the friendly Whiterun guards, who all seemed to know who she was, it was easy to find the place formerly mention, and Dominae was very impressed. The building itself was large and stood proudly, taking up a good amount of land, and next to it was what seemed like many stairs leading up to a forge that the Companions owned.

Before the woman had a chance to use the front doors, her sensitive ears picked up noise coming from the back; the involuntary grunts as two or more people charged their weapons at a target. Finding this far more interesting, the curious Dragonborn walked around to the back of Jorrvaskr to come upon exactly what she had imagined.

A man and a woman were attacking straw figures with their drawn weapons, practicing their skills as well as almost destroying the targets. There were two more men sitting at a table, watching them. The lager man looked almost identical to the man who was training, and the other man happened to be Vignar.

Seeing Dominae approach, the elder man's ever present grin widened even further. She was here early, something he admired and had been hoping for. It had been the only reason he had stayed in the Jorrvaskr halls instead of his own home. The dark skinned man stood up and opened his arms in welcome, signaling to his friends that someone had come to them.

"And like an answered prayer, you come early like I had hoped. Hopefully you came to give me good news in the form of a yes?"

"Is this the recruit you were talking about Vignar?" Aela interrupted, sheathing her weapon before staring at the unknown woman. Dominae just gave her an uninterested look.

"That she is. If you've been listening to talk around town, you'll know her reputation precedes her. She'll fit right in here."

"You need Kodlak to finalize her initiation Vignar, don't get the poor girl's hopes up for nothing," Vilkas commented, copying Aela's movements. Farkas was quiet, though he had moved forward towards the group.

"Good thing I'm right here to overlook her then, isn't it?" A deep voice said from behind, causing everyone to turn.

"I am Kodlak, Harbinger of The Companions. Who are you?"

"I am Dominae, the Dragonborn. Your friend here found me yesterday after my chat with the Jarl and invited me to come upon your domain. I hope my time was not wasted for nothing," the woman said, looking Kodlak straight in the eyes.

He smiled at her, and it showed wisdom far beyond her years; he was someone that Dominae could see herself respecting. "There is something about you that I like; a certain strength and spirit. And though the Companions hardly leave Jorrvaskr, I have heard whispers of you. I agree with Vignar, you are an excellent choice for a new recruit."

"What is most important at this time is how strong her arm is, Kodlak. Her spirit is of no importance to us right now," Aela said, staring down the woman, trying to read her like she was a book.

"You are right Aela. We Companions are fighters, and if you wish to join, you must prove to us your strengths. Vilkas assess her skills, will you? I have some business to attend to." He turned to the Dragonborn then. "I have been blessed to meet you, Dominae."

No one made a move until the man had walked inside, but then Vilkas stepped forward, gaining the woman's attention.

"The strength test is nothing difficult. I want you to take a few swings at me with your weapon and then we'll see just how strong you really are. Are you up for the challenge?"

Dominae wanted to tell the man that he would be nothing compared to the dragon she had faced the day before, but remained silent. All she did was take out her steel war hammer in preparation. "I am."

Vilkas moved them to the middle of the training field, that way no others were at risk, and took out his trusted shield. No matter who it was that wielded a war hammer, the weapon could do damage on its own.

Farkas, Aela, and Vignar stood by the table and watched the two as they prepped. Aela looked over at Farkas, who looked very intent on his brother and Dominae.

"She fights two-handed, just like you Farkas. And I thought we'd gain an archer through her."

The big man smiled and watched the way that the sun shined off of the blonde's weapon. "It just means she knows what deals the most damage. It's a smart move for a warrior."

Dominae concentrated all of her focus onto the first strike against Vilkas. Her aim was true and her swing powerful. Metal pounding into metal rang out through the morning air, making some people jump, and Vilkas grunt as he tried to keep his body up. It had been a nice hit, he had to admit, and he signaled to Dominae for another.

This strike wasn't as powerful, but was dangerous all the same. It was a quick swipe that was unexpected and brought the man down to his knees. He dropped the shield and tried to regain himself. Dominae smirked in triumph and stood back, putting her war hammer away.

"Not bad, though next time it won't be so easy," Vilkas was able to force out, feeling a bruise on his arm already forming, "You just might make it here in the Companions. However, you're still a whelp to us, so don't go getting on a high horse or anything."

"Way to make her feel welcome Vilkas," Aela said sarcastically, shaking her head with a smile.

"Your first task," the man continued on while ignoring the woman, "Is to take my sword up to Eorlund to have it sharpened. And be careful with it. It means more to me than you do at this point."

Dominae was un-amused by the man's hard attitude, but didn't comment on the matter. She just took the sword, which wasn't all that impressive, from his hands before walking off. She thought it best to do at least a couple little things for them first before shoving off to visit the Greybeards.

As she walked past the other three Companions, Dominae's eyes landed on Farkas, the one who looked exactly like Vilkas, though he was much stronger and thicker. The Dragonborn gave him a soft smile that was returned with a shy smile of his own.

The four of them watched her leave and waited until she was out of ear shot to talk anything about her. "How are you brother?" Farkas asked, coming out of his little daze to question his brother's health. Vilkas just signaled him away.

"Those two blows were great; I'll wear the bruise I get from it with honor. I hadn't expected her to be that strong."

"Or that pretty, right Farkas?" Aela teased, pushing the man hard so he stumbled a bit. He was able to cover up his embarrassment with a hard stare her way.

"She is a Shield-Sister, Aela; that is all."

"Do I know how to pick them or what?" Vignar stated proudly, his hands on his hips. He looked almost like a father that had just been told his son was now Jarl of Whiterun.

"Don't get too attached to her yet," Aela said quietly, pulling out her bow to start practice, "she may be good out here, but our missions are dangerous. She might not make it."

"Have faith in the lass, Huntress, or you'll send all that negative energy her way and get her killed."

Dominae had successfully, and easily, handed over the sword to be sharpened and had been given another task of giving Aela her shield. Again, not the hardest task in Skyrim, but it was a starting point. Afternoon would be here all too soon, and Dominae wanted to set off as soon as she could for the Greybeards.

The blonde found Aela talking to another Companion member in one of the spacious rooms of the living quarters, but they both stopped talking when she entered the room.

"I have your shield," Dominae stated and handed the wood to its owner. Remembering Vignar's words, she gave her a rewarding smile.

"Thank you, I've been waiting for this. Skjor, this is our new little pup," the dark haired woman introduced. He gave the girl a once over look.

"I've heard about you already. Word travels fast in Jorrvaskr."

"When you deliver a thrashing to Vilkas, it travels even faster," Aela laughed. Skjor smiled softly.

"Don't let him catch you saying that, or you'll be digging your own grave."

She rolled her eyes and turned her body to Dominae. "I saw your fighting skills, even if it was only briefly. Do you think you could take him in a real fight?"

"I don't like to boast about my abilities," Dominae said carefully, she really didn't need a false interpretation to follow her around, and a cocky reputation was not something she needed.

"That's a good quality to have these days. I can't wait to see you progress here. We'll let Farkas show you to your quarters then you can be on your way."

Skjor called out for said man, and with what seemed like almost superhuman hearing, the large brute came to the call, looking tall and intimidating. "Did you call me?"

"Of course we did, ice brain."

Dominae frowned at the name, but kept quiet as they talked. Farkas was given orders to escort her, and that's what he did. The two of them walked out of the room and down the red carpeted halls.

"I saw your face in the room," the man said, turning his head so he could see the smaller woman behind him, "Skjor and Aela like to tease me, but they're good people."

"Is that how people tease? It makes it seem like they really think of you as below them."

Farkas shook his head, making his shaggy brown hair move slightly. He slowed down a little so he could look Dominae in the eye. "They don't mean it that way, though others do. Some people think I'm dumb," he smirked after that, "those people get my fist. But you, I like. You're trying to defend me when you barely know me."

"I like you too Farkas. You seem like a good man; a good fighter who will back up his friends. I can only do the same for you."

The smile didn't leave the brunette's face as he showed her the sleeping quarters. "This is where you can stay whenever you're here. If you're tired, just fall into a bed and sleep. There's not really any rules. Do you need anything else, like a starting job?"

Dominae shook her head. "No, I can't right now unfortunately. I don't know if you heard yesterday, but the Greybeards sent out a call for me. I need to come to them as soon as possible. However, once my business is done there, I'll be sure to come straight to you."