Freija stretched and sighed contentedly as she awoke to the smell of food. Sitting up slowly, she took in her surroundings; it was a cozy little house, warm and inviting. Freija glanced down at Ralof's sleeping form still cuddled into the blankets of the bed they shared and shook her head. She didn't know how she was able to get any sleep with the volume of his erratic snoring.

"Ah, you're awake. Did you sleep well?"

"Wonderfully. I don't remember the last time I slept in a real bed. Thank you."

Gerdur, Divines bless her, had graciously opened her home to Freija, allowing her to catch up on some much needed rest. Granted, she had to share a bed with a man that snored like a bear.

Freija swung her legs out and gingerly got to her feet, and stretching her still sore muscles again, she walked over to join Gerdur at the cooking pot.

"That smells delicious, Gerdur. You really didn't need to all of this."

"You saved my brother's life. It's the least I can do for you," Gerdur said with a gentle smile.

Freija returned the gesture and was made to sit down at the table as Gerdur placed a steaming bowl of apple cabbage stew in front of her. The smell of the stew eventually stirred Ralof from his sleep and he stumbled his way over to the table as well.

"You should really think about joining up with the Stormcloaks, the true children of Skyrim. You've seen the true face of the Empire. Skyrim needs someone like you."

Freija slowly finished chewing her bite of stew and swallowed before answering.

"I don't know about that, Ralof. What the Empire has done is undoubtedly inexcusable, but I don't really like getting in the middle of these kinds of things. It's a civil war and I haven't been in Skyrim for years. I somehow feel that it isn't my place to get involved."

"I see… Well, if you change your mind, head to Windhelm. Speak to Ulfric Stormcloak."

And with that Ralof rose to his feet and headed downstairs to prepare for the day.

Freija smiled as the sunlight glinted and gleamed off of her newly purchased great sword. This was unquestionably her weapon of choice. It dealt significant damage, but wasn't so heavy as to hinder her ability to swing it at a decent speed. Alvor, Riverwood's blacksmith, chuckled heartily at the obvious joy that graced the young woman's face as she examined his handiwork.

"Fond of it, are you?"

"Very much so, sir. It's beautiful craftsmanship. Well-balanced."

"Anything else that you'll be needing to purchase while you're here in Riverwood?"

"Yes, actually. I'd like to take a look at your heavy armor selection. This cuirass feels too flimsy."

After counting out the gold she had made from selling Alvor some salvaged Imperial armor, Freija purchased a set of steel armor, relishing in its comforting weight and the security that it brought her. On her way out of town, Freija decided to stop by the Riverwood mill to say her farewells and give her final thanks to Gerdur.

"Gerdur!" Freija called out upon approaching the mill, "I'm heading out."

"Oh! I'll be right down!" Gerdur peeled off her work gloves and mopped her brow with a nearby rag before joining Freija at the water's edge. "Listen, I'm sorry, but I have a favor to ask of you."

"Nonsense. Anything for you, Gerdur. I'm in your debt."

"Would you mind heading to Whiterun? Jarl Balgruuf has to know that there's a dragon on the loose. Riverwood is defenseless."

"Of course. As a matter of fact, I was headed there anyways. It's where I grew up."

At this, Gerdur's face broke out into a wide smile. "Oh that's good then. I'm glad that it won't be too much trouble."

"It's no trouble at all. Thank you, Gerdur, for everything that you've done for me."

"Talos guide you on your travels."

Night had fallen by the time Freija rounded the bend overlooking the outskirts of Whiterun. Her journey had been fairly low key, only running into some wolves here and there, but she was nevertheless relieved to be upon her destination, her home that she hadn't seen in years. She breathed in the cool night air and gazed up at the glimmering sky before continuing down the path. As she drew closer to Pelagia Farm, she became aware of a fight that had broken out. Drawing her great sword from her back, she ran towards the shouts and clashing of weapons. She could then see that three armored warriors were engaged in combat with a lone giant in the fields of the farm. Jumping over the fence and brandishing her sword, Freija came to their aid. She alternately lashed out at the giant and dodged its devastating blows, and the four of them together brought the giant down to its knees.

Before the giant could struggle back to his feet, Freija rushed forward and viciously sank her sword up to the hilt into the giant's chest. She watched and felt as the giant's warm lifeblood poured out from the wound and coated her hands and face. The giant breathed its last and fell heavily to its side, its blood soaking into the earth beneath it. Freija wiped the giant's blood from her face and spat the metallic taste from her mouth before yanking her sword out of the corpse of the fallen giant.

She walked over and knelt down next to the giant's head and reached out to gently close its glassy eyes. Upon standing up she became aware that the other warriors were quietly observing her. Turning around to face them, she took in their appearances; on the left, there was a red-haired Nord woman with bold face paint and a proud posture, in the center stood a smaller, younger Imperial woman with dark hair, and lastly there stood a hulking Nord man with familiar silver eyes.

"Farkas?"

"Who's asking?"

"Farkas, it's me."

"…Freija? I'll be damned. It's been, what, four years? Remind me, where in Oblivion did you disappear off to, again?"

"Nearly five. I've been in Elsweyr. I'd decided that it was about time for me to return home." Freija smiled to herself has she further examined her old acquaintance. He had certainly bulked in size since the last time she saw him as a scrawny teenager. She used to be confident that she could, quite frankly, beat the shit out of him, but now she wasn't so sure. She was interrupted from her musings when the red-head on the end spoke up.

"Hey icebrain, if you're done reminiscing about the past, would you care to introduce us to your friend here?"

"Oh right. Freija, this here is Ria," he said as he gestured to the Imperial girl by his side, who gave a wave and a wide grin. "And the loudmouth over there is Aela," who at that gave an indelicate snort. "Shield-sisters, this is Freija. She grew up in Whiterun with me and Vilkas."

"Vilkas and I."

"Whatever, Aela."

Her smile growing, Freija turned to the women and greeted them. "It's a pleasure to meet the two of you. Your combat skills are quite impressive."

Aela simply stared at her for a second before looking over at Farkas. "I like her. She's a fierce fighter. Seems smart, too. Are you sure you two know each other?"

"Very funny."

And with that, the four of them began walking to the gates of Whiterun, chatting and bickering the whole way.


A/N: Well, there's chapter two. We're starting to get into more original content now. Yay. Let me know if you like the direction that this is heading in.

Oh and I forgot to mention a disclaimer in the last chapter, so here I go:

I don't own Skyrim or it's content in any way, shape, or form. Bethesda does. But you probably already knew that, right?

Love,

NettleBat