Chapter 2

Arianna felt inexplicably and uncomfortably tense, she couldn't say why but it was there nonetheless, gnawing away at her.

Three weeks had passed since their first outing together and they had rarely been apart since but she found that his presence increasingly confused her. The sight of his wide chest and narrow hips encased in his new, gleaming, ebony armour stirred something within her that she wanted to neither acknowledge nor admit. His sweet smile did strange things to her and she could lose track of what he was saying if he unleashed that devastating weapon on her. And the voice that she had always recognised as pleasing tugged at her body in a way that it should never be able to. No man should ever have that sort of power over a woman.

Argis seemed completely oblivious to her turmoil as they trekked through the mountains along the snowy path that would eventually take them to Whiterun. She was hoping that they would get there before night fell. Being out in the wilds was dangerous and unpredictable enough without adding darkness to the equation.

"You hungry?" Argis asked suddenly, breaking the silence. Arianna shook her head. "Mind if we stop for a moment?"

She shrugged and watched him swing his pack off his back, and kneel to rummage through it, pulling out a loaf of bread and a hunk of the smelly blue cheese that he seemed to love. He set his helmet carefully down beside him.

Arianna smiled grimly to herself as she turned to survey the snowy landscape for any sign of danger. She was sure that Argis's main concern in life was his stomach. The man seemed to eat a colossal amount. She waited patiently though until he was done with his meagre meal and he stood, shouldering his pack once more.

"Let's go," she said, tersely and saw a flicker of hurt confusion on his face. "I want to get to Whiterun before it gets dark," she added to take the sting out of her words.

"We will," he grunted, covering his head and face with ebony once more.

The attack when it came was brutal and swift. Two archers high in the rocks and two more, a man and a woman dressed in primitive fur armour, brandishing huge two-handed weapons blocking the path. Argis roared in defiance, unsheathing his sword and raising his shield as he implacably advanced.

Against the backdrop of clashing weapons and cries of pain, Arianna took careful aim at one of the archers, focusing on the shape silhouetted against the sky, and felled him with a single arrow. She swung to take out the other, glancing at Argis to see him more than holding his own. He fought with a tightly controlled fluid grace that was almost beautiful to watch. He wasted no movement as he parried, blocked and stabbed.

One of the bandits was already down, kneeling in the snow trying to muster the strength to stand. Arianna finished him with a quick arrow to the throat and turned to find the other archer, crying out as an arrow struck her midriff and bounced harmlessly off her armour.

She took aim again and was just about to release the bowstring when Argis jumped in front of her, an arrow clattering off his shield as he did so. Arianna jerked her arm up, painfully wrenching her wrist and let the arrow fly, harmlessly, into the sky.

"Gods damnit!" she hissed.

The lone archer, all that was left of the small troupe dropped out of sight behind a rock giving her time to nock another arrow. Her arm was shaking as she tried to aim.

Argis glanced back over his shoulder at her and then charged up the rocky incline towards the bandits hiding place. It was over in a flash; a scream of pain and blood spraying in a shockingly crimson arc across the snow.

Argis jogged back down the hill, sheathing his sword and pulling off his helmet.

"God damnit, Argis," Arianna spat at him and watched his face cloud with angry confusion. "I nearly hit you, you idiot. Do not jump in front of me when I am about to take a shot. Do you want an arrow in the ass?"

"He hit you," Argis answered, heatedly.

"I have armour on!" She rapped her knuckles against the hardened leather for emphasis.

"He hit you," Argis repeated, stubbornly. "I am your sword and your shield."

"Which is no use if I shoot you myself," Arianna yelled as her anger and horror at what might have happened surfaced fully and she was swept away on a sudden, violent torrent of emotion.

"I-" Argis's face shuttered. "I was just trying to protect you."

Arianna deflated at his hurt expression and clipped her bow onto her back. "That's fine," she said, softly. "Just don't get in my way when I am about to take a shot. I nearly broke my wrist." She bent her hand back, wincing as she did so, and made her hand describe a full, painful circle. Her wrist throbbed and was already beginning to swell up.

"Are you alright?" His voice was stiff.

"Yes but I wouldn't be if I had shot you in the back." With force and at close range, she knew the arrow would have penetrated the ebony armour covering him.

His shoulders sagged, visible even under his heavy cuirass. He closed the gap between them and rested his gauntleted hands on her shoulders. "I just heard you cry out," he said, gently. The anger washed from his features.

"I suppose that it's going to take a while for us to get used to fighting together," she answered. She briefly covered one of the hands on her shoulders with her own and squeezed knowing that he couldn't really feel it through the gauntlet. "I'm sorry I got angry."

He smiled the sweet smile that made her heart pound in her chest. "I should have looked," he admitted. "I didn't think."

"Okay. Whiterun then?"

"Lead on, my Thane."

Night was falling when they entered the wide, wooden gates into Whiterun. Arianna could see the lamps blazing in the windows of her little house. She stopped outside Breezehome and looked back over her shoulder at Argis who had taken off his helmet and was tugging off his gauntlets.

"We'll stay here tonight."

He frowned. "How many houses do you own?"

"Three." She didn't tell him that she could purchase another two at any time.

His eyebrow rose. "Why spend so much time in Markarth?"

"I like Markarth," she said, not explaining that it was far out of Ulfric's reach and granted her a certain anonymity. Not everyone knew she was the Dragonborn in Markarth and if they did, they didn't seem to care.

Argis studied her for a long moment. "Is there an inn where I can stay the night?" he asked.

"An inn?" she echoed. "Why?"

"It wouldn't be right for you to have strange men traipsing in and out of your house."

"You're not strange," she objected, feeling strangely bereft at the idea. "You're my Housecarl."

"In Markarth. Not here."

One of the Whiterun guards stopped beside them, eyeing them curiously for a moment before he recognised Arianna. "Dragonborn," he said, solemnly, clasping his fist to his chest.

Argis's eyebrow shot skywards at the respect in the guard's voice. "The inn?" he repeated.

Arianna sighed in defeat and waved her arm in the direction of the marketplace. "The Bannered Mare. It's just up there."

"Goodnight, my Thane. I will see you in the morning."

She watched him stride up the road and realised that his refusal to stay in her house had done absolutely nothing to alleviate the peculiar tension in her body.

With a sigh, she opened the door and went inside. "Lydia!" she called, and smiled as the dark-haired woman appeared at the top of the stairs.

"My Thane." She smiled back and then her face darkened. "What are you doing here?" Arianna frowned. "Ulfric's men have been here looking for you."

"Why?"

"They didn't say but they have been asking everyone if they have seen the Dragonborn."

"Great," Arianna murmured to herself. "What did you tell them?"

"That I hadn't seen you in a while and I had no idea where you were."

"Good. Will you take some wine with me?"

"A pleasure."

Arianna grabbed a couple of bottles from the cupboard, walked up to the bedroom and joined Lydia at the table.

"Who was that man with you?" Lydia asked, taking one of the bottles and pouring a generous amount in to two cups.

Arianna's face flared red. "Nobody."

"I see." Lydia smirked. "A nobody that makes you blush like a maiden. He's certainly big."

"Witch." Lydia laughed aloud at that and Arianna had to join her.

"Why are you here?"

"We were close by. I thought I should check in with you. Make sure everything is alright. We'll be leaving tomorrow."

The next morning, Arianna awoke early and rather than donning her armour, she washed carefully and put on a light blue dress with knee-high, soft leather boots leaving her hair loose to curl in pale golden waves around her shoulders and down her back. Arming herself with just one dagger, she grabbed a couple of apples and quietly slipped out of the house as the sun was rising.

Arianna waved at Hulda, the Innkeeper, as she walked swiftly through the bar and up the stairs to the Bannered Mares only guest room. The double doors to the room were shut tight and Arianna was about to knock when she heard strange noises coming from within. She pressed her ear against the wood to listen and heard rapid, breathless panting and the unmistakable sound of the smack of flesh on flesh. She frowned, had Argis found a woman to lie with? The thought caused something inside her to clench with anger and, alarmingly, a gut wrenching envy.

Inside the room, the noises became more urgent before there was a series of grunts, a long drawn out moan and breathing slowly returning to inaudible.

Arianna squared her shoulders and rapped lightly on the wood. It was a few seconds before Argis threw open the doors and stood, gaping at her, his cheeks flushing a deep red.

"My Thane," he stuttered. "I thought you were breakfast."

Arianna had never seen him so discomfited. She glanced past him, her eyes quickly sweeping the room, which was empty apart from him and then saw the rag still wadded in his hand. A flush rose on her cheeks that matched his as she realised what he had been doing and they stood, staring at each other for a long, painfully drawn-out moment.

"How long were you outside?" Argis asked, slowly.

"Oh, not long at all." Her answer was too quick and they both knew she was lying.

"Arianna..." he began.

Arianna hastily waved her hands. "It's nothing to do with me," she said, her tongue nearly tripping over itself in her haste to get the words out.

"Is that what you think?" He laughed, almost bitterly, as his eye raked briefly over her body and he turned away from her throwing the rag into the corner of the room.