A Warming Hearth
A/N: Ulfric has been haunted by the woman who sat next to him on the ride to Helgan. Her voice was like honey to his ears and he never would have expected in a million years for her to show up at his palace, let alone help him take his place as High King of Skyrim. Now a year has gone by and he can't get the Dragonborn out of his mind. Finally he seeks her out, fed up with the pushing of his steward and housecarl to find a queen for Skyrim and bring an heir to the people. He goes off to search for the woman who ever made his Nordic blood run hot.
Chapter 2: The Dovahkiin's Challenge
"And then what happened?" Hroar asked excitedly, gazing up at the king with large eager eyes, hungry for the next bit of the story.
Ulfric smiled as all eyes were on him, Rana and Hroar waiting excitedly, smiles plastered on their faces as they gazed at the King adoringly. The bard had a scroll and quill out writing down every word, hoping for anything that would get his name into the books as a great Bard, and a story from the King himself was just what he needed. Sylvia and Calder drank their wine with some amusement. "Well, we finally beat down the doors to Solitude, your mother at one side my other General, Galmar Stone-Fist, and we faced the whole Imperial Legion. General Tullius was standing at the head of the Legion, he yelled for us to drop our weapons and surrender to the Justice of Skyrim." Ulfric snorted. "Justice of Skyrim my pale ass, those dogs knew nothing of what Skyrim justice was. So with the Jagged Crown resting proudly on my head, where it belonged, Your mother and I turning to look at one another before releasing a Thu'um so powerful that we knocked the entire Legion back." He grinned triumphantly as he took a drink of his wine.
"Who's Shout was stronger? Yours or Mothers?" Hroar asked, causing Sylvia to snigger behind her goblet and Ulfric to choke on his wine.
"Yeah if you and mama had a Shouting match who would win?" Rana asked.
Sylvia shook her head, "Alright you two, why don't you help clear the table and clean the dishes. I believe Ulfric came for a reason, and that's not to entertain you with wild stories."
"But mom!" They pleaded.
She shook her head. "Now, now children, if you don't help Calder you can't have any desert." She watched with amusement as the children scrambled to help Calder gather all the dirty dishes. She laughed and shook her head as she grabbed her goblet and stood up. The bard stood up as well and bowed.
"Thank you for the hospitality and the wonderful story. I will be in Riverwood staying at the Inn. And I will be back midday tomorrow?"
Sylvia nodded and held out a small bag of coins. "Here, thank you for such talented playing and I look forward to listening to you sing and play for us again tomorrow." She smiled as he bowed again and left the house. She looked back at Ulfric, "shall we head to the parlor to talk?" She motioned for him to fallow.
Ulfric stood up and fallowed her into a fairly large room near the back of the house. She opened the doors leading to a well lit room filled with trophy stands holding different stuffed trophies of her conquests all over Skyrim. He walked over to the bone head of a large Dragon and ran his hand over the smooth bones. "It still surprises me every day that I know you are strong enough to bring down a Dragon by yourself."
She walked up to him and stood next to him. "Surprises you…or scares the hell out of you?" She asked softly.
"Sylvia, nothing about you scares the hell out of me. You amaze me, a natural talent for the Thu'um and a strong fighter. You are the ideal Nord woman. Strong and quick, but you also think of what is best for Hearth and home. Your blood lies with people you would let around your children; you safe guard your family and your friends. Any man would be lucky to come home to a hearth and home if it included you." He said not looking at her, hoping that she caught the hidden meaning, and knew just how much he wanted her.
Sylvia felt her heart quicken as she held her breath, she had always prayed to Mara to bless her with the love of a true man and knew that the one she wanted was Ulfric. Even now it seemed as if he wanted the same thing, but she had to be sure. "I can't always be home Ulfric, but even away my children are safe. I trust Calder with my life and with the lives of my children. I send letters home regularly when I am away for long periods of time."
Ulfric simply plucked her goblet out of her hands and set both their drinks down. He turned to her and grabbed her by the arms pulling her closer to him. His grip lessened and he slid on hand down to rest on her waist and the other up to cup her face. "I admire the love you hold for your family Sylvia, and I wouldn't dream of asking you to give it up. If having you means having your children too then I will do that. All you have to do is ask it of me." He said as his thumb stroked her cheek under her eye. "My beautiful Dovahkiin." He said softly as he bent his head to capture her lips.
Moments before he kissed her the doors flew open and yells sounded through the room. "NO!" Rana and Hroar screamed as they ran into the room. Hroar pushing himself between Sylvia and Ulfric and glaring up at the High King. "You will not touch our mother!"
Sylvia stood shocked, "Hroar? What in the world has gotten into you?"
Hroar whipped around to face her, tears shinning bright in his eyes. "You promised!" He screamed at her accusingly. "You promised you wouldn't give into any man who couldn't beat you in combat and withstand your Thu'um! You promised Rana and me that the man you chose to be our father would be as strong as you! So we wouldn't lose either of you!" He sobbed his fists clenched as his head bent, his shoulders shaking.
Sylvia sank to her knees in front of her son and looked at him. "Oh Hroar…I am so sorry…I know what I promised, and I fully intended to keep that promise. Oh my sweet boy." She pulled him into her arms and continued to make soothing noises at him and opened her arm for Rana to join in. The girl ran forward and embraced her mother and brother. "My little darlings." She whispered hugging them tight. "My precious little ones."
"I'll do it." Ulfric suddenly said making the trio look up at him. "I will take your challenge, if only to prove that I am the husband for you."
Sylvia slowly stood up a hand on each of her children's shoulders. "You are not the first to attempt this Ulfric, many men have been carried away broken or worse because they couldn't withstand me. Think carefully before you-"
"I am tired of thinking carefully, of meticuasly examining each and every little thing. I know what I want Sylvia Goldenheart and that is you. I want you as my wife and I want you as Skyrim's Queen, mother to our people. I have wanted you the moment I saw you helping my fellow Stormcloaks in that tower in Helgan and I still want you, with everything that makes me a Nord. Mara as my witness Sylvia I will have you." He said fiercely his blue eyes flaring with an inner fire of their own.
She nodded once. "Rana, Hroar, show Ulfric to the fighting ring while I slip into my gear. They will tell you the battle rules and tell you what you need to do in order to be their father." She looked at Calder. "Come Calder, let's prepare."
She turned and left the room with Calder and the children lead Ulfric outside. The moon hung high in the sky, its full silver light causing the lake to shimmer as it rippled in the semi warm night. Ulfric was lead to a small ring resting on the banks of the lake, fire light mixing with silver moon light. "What are the rules Hroar?" He asked the boy.
"No weapons, just your fists, and no magic. Magicka runs out and you can easily be disarmed left with nothing but your fists and your Thu'um." Hroar said easily, as if he had said it a million times before. "The ring is specially spelled; Rana and a few of the mages from the Mages College have laid runes around the ring to make sure no one gets seriously injured. But what mom said was true; many men have been carried from this ring broken and sometimes worse. Sometimes, if they aren't strong enough, they will die once leaving the wards."
"But I don't think you will King Ulfric, you're strong. Strong enough to withstand the voices of the Grey Beards." Rana said softly as she checked the runes. "Anyone who can withstand their combined voices surly can hold his own against mom." She said softly.
"Your mother withstood their voices, and she was never trained. I was trained from the moment I first Shouted and discovered I could use the Thu'um. She was not."
"But mom is Dovahkiin, born with the Voice. She was meant to use it not just learn it. That's what it means to be Dragonborn." Rana answered.
Ulfric gazed at the girl highly impressed. "You are very smart Rana, where did you learn all that?"
She gave a shy smile. "Master Urag gro-Shub, he gave me books the last time he visited mother to see if she had anything new for him. He visits every once in a while, I think he admires my mother's love of books and the secrets they hold. He gave me books that he had locked away teaching about the Dovahkiin, even talking about Talos himself."
Ulfric laughed, "of course he would have those, even if the Empire still had a foothold in here, he would have to hide those, lest they be burnt." He sat on the bench near the ring and waited for Sylvia to come out, chatting lightly with the children.
Sylvia fidgeted nervously as Calder began to braid her hair. "I can't do this Calder."
"Of course you can Sylvia." He said calmly, knowing it was just her nerves that were getting to her. "Ulfric is strong, you know this. He is more than worthy to be your husband."
"I don't want to fight him Cal…Ulfric…he's the King, I don't want to hurt him, Skyrim needs him." She turned pleading eyes to her friend, begging him to help her out of this.
"You need to do this Syl; you know that better than I. You need a strong husband and your children need a strong father." He put his hands on her shoulders and smiled. "Don't hold back Ulfric will know if you do. Go out there and show him that you mean what you said that any man has to be strong to be your husband."
She nodded as she stood up and hugged him. "Thank you Calder, but if you are wrong I'm going to skin you and use your hide as new bedding."
Calder gave a mock shudder. "I don't think I'd be very warm for you."
She laughed and they walked out to see Ulfric schooling Hroar on simple grabs and breaks. She hung back a moment to watch as her small son tried to wrap his hands around Ulfric's large wrists in an attempt to break the hold the older man had on him. "Good Hroar, don't worry that you can't fully grab me, as long as you can hit that pressure point in the wrist you can make anyone let go." Ulfric said with a smile. He looked over and noticed Sylvia watching them and ruffled Hroar's hair. His eyes slid over his heart's desire and he had to stamp down the instant flare of arousal.
She was dressed in a simple leather top that bared her mid-section and tight soft leather pants and on her feet were simple leather shoes. If she wasn't known as a hero of Skyrim anyone would mistake her for a simple hunter dressed like that. Her long hair was pulled back from her face in a braid that fell down to her hips and he noticed the scars lacing her chest and midsection and he felt a strong desire to run his lips and tongue along every scar. He shook his head and rolled his neck. "I'm ready when you are Sylvia."
She shivered as his voice slid over her and she noticed that he was wearing nothing but his pants and his boots. She was more than ready to throw her challenge out the window if it meant she could fall into his arms and stay there. But she knew she had to do this, not for herself but for her children. "You've been told the rules?"
"No weapons, no magic, just The Voice and my own two hands. Anything else?" He asked, his eyes dancing with challenge.
She smirked and shook her head. "Just make sure you don't hold back, because I won't." She walked over the ring and stepped inside. Ulfric fallowed her in and noticed that the spots between the torches began to shimmer and he looked around them seeing that the odd silvery green light went all the way around the ring. He turned back to see her in a fighting stance.
He smiled as he slid into his own fighting stance. They slowly began to circle each other, the children and Calder watching with anticipation. Sylvia was the first to attack but Ulfric caught her by the waist and sent her sailing over his head. She countered by planting her hands on the ground and wrapping her legs around his chest flinging him back. He grunted as he hit the wall of light and slid down, he rubbed his head and slowly stood up to see her crouched.
"Yol Toor Shul!" His breath left him as pure fire and he smiled.
"Fo Krah Diin!" She countered her own icy breath meeting his in a flurry and erupting.
Before the flurry died down he made his move, diving through the eruption of ice and fire and tackling her to the ground. She let out a startled yelp as she was pinned in her surprise she let out her Voice again. "Fus Ro Dah!"
Ulfric heard the first syllable and growled as the Thu'um tore through him and he let out a roar refusing to use his own Voice and he withstood her Shout. When the Shout ended he looked down at her, panting as blood dripped from his nose and ears. "You are mine!" He roared as he bent down and claimed her lips forcefully. Sylvia trembled under him, under the force of his claiming but knew in her heart that this was what she wanted. She brought her arms around his neck and kissed him back. When they finally parted for air she looked up at him.
"Yes, yours." She whispered and gasped when his hand came up and ripped off her Amulet of Mara.
Ulfric glared at the little medallion and crushed it in his hand before tossing it away. "Mine," he growled possessively as he kissed her breath away again.
Sylvia surrendered to it, letting the sensation of finally being claimed flow through her, until a cough brought her back to reality and she looked to see Calder covering the eyes of her children and said children giggling uncontrollably. She blushed hotly and nudged Ulfric off of her. She slowly stood up and kicked the ring away the light fading and she walked to her children and knelt down. "Does this satisfy you both? Will you accept Ulfric as your father?" She asked them both.
Rana and Hroar launched themselves at her and hugged her tight. "Yes!" They both cried.
She smiled as she held her children close until she felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see Ulfric smiling down at her. She slowly stood up and took his hand. "Come, let's get the children to bed, we have things we have to talk about." She said softly leading her now whole family into her home.
A/N: Whew long chapter, but worth it, soon through this story will be done, a few more chapters I think. We shall see hope you all like it.