Disclaimer in Ch. 1
She was exhausted by the time they made it back to Whiterun. She had not realized until starting out to Dustman's Cairn with Farkas just how spoiled she had become with her horses. On top of the trek to and back from the Cairn, what should have been a simple infiltration and recovery had turned into a fight for their lives. A frown tugged at her lips when she recalled Farkas shifting into his werewolf form and a long forgotten overheard conversation tugged at her memory. She adjusted her pack and trailed behind Farkas up the stairs towards the Wind District as she thought. They were just reaching the steps of Jorrvaskr when she remembered the conversation she had overheard between Vilkas and Kodlak when she first came to join the Companions nearly three months earlier. It had been something about the calling of blood. Surely the ability to shift had been what the two were discussing.
"Ah, you are back. We have been awaiting your return." She looked up, startled to see Vilkas waiting on the steps so late at night. From what she had observed in her time spent so far with the Companions, by this time of night he was long gone, off to the Bannered Mare to flirt with Carlotta or Hulda and drink what seemed to be his own weight in mead.
She slipped her pack off her shoulder and let it drop at her feet. "Why were you waiting for me?" she inquired.
"Come follow me," he said and turned, heading towards the back of Jorrvaskr. She looked over at Farkas, eyebrow raised in question.
He grinned at her and picked up her pack, easily shouldering it. "Let's go," he urged, herding her in the direction his twin had disappeared.
"They are not going to sacrifice me or something are they," she murmured to the larger man, smiling as his grin dropped to a confused frown.
"Why would we do something like that?" he asked, genuinely concerned. "If you were not fit to be a Companion, you would just be turned out, not sacrificed." He flinched at the thought.
She laughed, "I was joking Farkas. Too much time spent with the occasional Daedra worshipper I guess." She motioned and half-bowed. "Lead on Shield-Brother," she instructed.
He smiled uncertainly at her and led the way to the back of the building where the rest of the Circle had gathered. Kodlak motioned for her to stand before them and Farkas carefully placed his pack and hers down next to the steps before taking his place next to Vilkas.
Kodlak leveled his gaze to her. "State your name and intention," he ordered.
She cleared her throat and stood up straighter, "I am Elise and I wish to join the Companions."
"Brothers and sisters of the Circle, today a new soul asks to join our mortal fold. This woman has endured, challenged and shown us her valor. Who will speak for her?" Kodlak stated.
Farkas cleared his throat and responded, "I stand witness to the courage of the soul before us."
"Would you raise your shield in her defense?" Kodlak returned.
"I would stand at her back, that the world might never overtake us." Farkas replied.
"And would you raise your sword in her honor?" Kodlak inquired.
"It stands ready to meet the blood of her foes," Farkas vowed.
"And would you raise a mug in her name?" Kodlak added.
"I would lead the song of triumph as our mead hall reveled in her stories!" Farkas declared.
"Then the judgment of this Circle is complete. Her heart beats with the fury and courage that have united the Companions since the days of the distant green summers. Let it beat with ours, that the mountains may echo and our enemies may tremble at the call." Kodlak finished.
"It shall be so," the rest of the Circle echoed.
Farkas walked over to her, clapping her on the back. "Welcome to the Companions, Sister. You have earned it."
"Thank you, Farkas," Elise responded. The pair walked over to where he had laid their packs earlier. She hefted hers up and secured it over her shoulder. "I cannot wait to just fall into a bed and sleep."
"And miss your own induction celebration?" Aela asked, coming up next to them. "Where is the fun in that? And we need somebody to tell us what happened at the Cairn. Icebrain is not the best story teller."
Elise glanced over at Farkas and he shrugged good-naturedly. "It is true, I am not. You are not going to skip the celebration are you?" He looked at her pleadingly and she laughed.
"I will come for you Farkas, because without you I would not have made it out of that Cairn alive. I would like to clean up and change into something a bit more comfortable first, alright?" Elise tilted her head in question.
"Sure, I need to head down to the Mare to pick up some ale anyway. You can use my room. Give you a little privacy," Farkas said.
"Thank you, Farkas." Elise turned and headed down the stairs, rolling her shoulders to work out the kinks as she walked through the empty hall. She located Farkas' room and edged open the door, dropping her pack on the floor just inside and pushing it shut. She stripped off her armor, laying it in a careful pile before locating a small basin of water. She dug around in her pack and pulled out a linen cloth, dipping it in the cool water and running it over her face to wipe away the dust and blood that had dried there.
Once she was cleaned up she returned to her pack and found a plain tunic and breeches, along with her favorite pair of boots. She pulled them out and laid them on the bed and then tugged her breast band off, tossing it in a messy pile on the floor next to her armor. She reached for the tunic, nearly dropping it in surprise when the door slammed open. "Farkas, do you have my –" Vilkas stopped midsentence and gaped at Elise. She squeaked and started to turn away from him, stopping about halfway and turning back to face him, the tunic clutched to her chest.
Vilkas looked her over and sneered, "Just what are you doing in here? Planning on lying in wait until Farkas comes down and then try and sleep your way into a higher rank?"
Elise pulled back in shock at the fury and disgust that laced his voice. The fire of anger slowly built through her veins and she stood straighter, careful to keep her tunic against her chest. "How dare you," she snarled, "I know you do not like me Vilkas, but to think that I would ever stoop so low."
His eyes narrowed and he took a step forward. She forced herself to stand her ground. "I have done my research on you," his voice rumbled low, filled with disdain, "The Mage's College, The Thieves' Guild, The Dark Brotherhood? Oh yes, I know about all of them."
"You know nothing," she murmured and turned away.
"By the Nines," Vilkas breathed and she cringed. "Do you have any sense? You never should have gone with Farkas with wounds like that." She knew he was looking at the three parallel gashes that ran down her back from her left shoulder to her right hip. They were barely scabbed over and constantly looked as if the wrong movement would tear them open and send a cascade of blood down her back. "You could have gotten him killed if you were unable to fight."
"They are fine," she sighed.
He snarled and she jumped in surprise. "I may not like you, but if you are fighting with one of us you must be in top form." He strode over to Farkas' shelf of potions and began rummaging through them. "He has to keep some healing potions in here," he groused.
Her hand closed around his wrist and he looked at her. "They will not help," she whispered. "The wounds, they are over four months old. I have tried everything, healing potions, spells, nobody at the College of Winterhold has been able to help."
She turned away from him and moved back to the bed where the rest of her clothes lay. His hand fell heavy on her shoulder and he tugged her tunic up, holding it with the hand on her shoulder while the other skimmed lightly over the wounds. She bit her lip and suppressed the shiver that tried to run through her at his light touch. "What kind of creature caused such wounds?" he asked.
She stepped out of his grip and tugged on her breeches, lacing everything up as she turned to face him. "Alduin, the World-Eater," she stated.
His face went from concerned to incredulous and he rolled his eyes. "You expect me to believe that?"
She gritted her teeth and sat on the bed, tugging on her knee-high leather boots and beginning to work at those laces as well. "I expect nothing from you, Vilkas."
"Elise, are you still down here?" Farkas pushed the door open and frowned. "What are you two doing?"
"Just having a little chat, though I think Vilkas originally came in here looking for something." Elise finished with her boots and stood from the bed. "Can I leave my armor in here Farkas? I will collect it tomorrow."
"Of course you can, Sister! Anything that is mine is yours," he added, throwing an arm around her shoulder and tugging her into the hall. "Now, if you want there to be any mead left, we better get upstairs."
"That sounds grand. I could use it after today," Elise responded. She could see Vilkas glaring at her from the side of her eye and chose to ignore him, instead turning her attention to Farkas and his amusing commentary on how different she looked out of her armor.