Tirdas 16 Midyear 205 4E 12:00 AM
Jordis the Sword-Maiden sighed as she rolled onto her side. It was always hard for her to fall asleep on the sleeping roll in her room in the basement of Proudspire Manor. There was no furniture in her room at all. The only decorations - and Jordis used that term loosely - were old wooden boxes, remnants of the previous owner, stacked on top of each other.
At least it was warm in here thanks to the fire pit in the next room. With no rugs or furs, the room would have been unbearable otherwise. Solitude wasn't as far north as Dawnstar or Winterhold, but it still got very chill at nights, even during the summer months.
The strawberry-blonde Nord really wished her thane would remember to furnish her room, but unfortunately the Dragonborn was rarely ever in Solitude. And when she did show up, it was always a whirlwind of activity before she rushed off to wherever she was going. There had been more than one occasion where the Dragonborn had swept into the capital, visited Jarl Elisif the Fair, and left without Jordis even knowing she had been in town at all.
Leaving Jordis without a bed.
Jordis had been given the "privilege" of being Diana Dragonborn's housecarl back in Hearthfire of last year when she had presented her ward, Aventus Aretino, to the Blue Palace court. Elisif had taken an immediately liking to the boy, not surprising given his patron, and had decided that it was only appropriate that the boy have a guardian during his time in the capital. At eighteen, Jordis was the youngest member of the court and the closest to Aventus' age, so it seemed natural for her to be chosen as his protector.
Aventus had been enrolled in the Bard's College and would be learning the trade of the songsters for the next couple of years. Since the boy was old enough to be apprenticed, normally no one would give two thoughts about him. The Bard's School was the least violent faction in Skyrim and every member was well liked across the land.
Unfortunately, because of the false Dragonborn who had joined Ulfric's rebellion, the name of the Dragonborn was now spit upon instead of revered. The legacy of the thu'um should have been enough to stay anyone's hand who would think to do the boy harm, but instead it was now a reason to incite hatred. Very few knew that Diana was the real Dragonborn and Lydia, her former housecarl of Whiterun, was a mere identity thief.
Although Diana had made Elisif promise to not give her ward special favors or recognition, which seemed perfectly reasonable, Elisif had still insisted that the boy be given his own bodyguard. The restriction meant that Jordis couldn't guard Aventus while he was in classes and definitely not at night when he was sleeping in the freshmen dorm. It drove Jordis to distraction. It was highly impractical for a housecarl to leave her charge's side. How could she protect Aventus if he was always away from her?
And there had been the various times when the boy had decided to spend the night because of a holiday or he wanted some time away from the other students. Jordis had tried to assist him with his bath, a standard housecarl duty, and the boy had just about died of embarrassment. The Nord didn't understand what the problem was. She had heard how the Imperials had orgies all the time down in Cyrodiil, so what was the big deal about her bathing him? It's not like she wanted to scrub him all over. She had merely tried to fulfill her duty like a loyal housecarl should.
The floor felt particularly hard tonight. Jordis sighed as she turned over again. If only if she had a cot or something down here. She missed her room at the Blue Palace.
The housecarl thought back to the first time she had met the Dragonborn. When they had returned to Proudspire Manor from the Blue Palace, the small Imperial woman had turned to the younger people.
"Look, I'm gonna have only one rule in this house," she announced. She stamped her foot as she pointed up the stairs. "No one is to use my bedroom while I'm gone. I don't care if I only use this place one day out of the year, that's my room and it is only for me."
"What about Cicero?" Aventus had teased.
"Him too," Diana said as she blushed.
"Who's Cicero?" Jordis asked.
"He's my," Diana looked like she was about to bite her own tongue on the last word, "husband." Frankly, Jordis thought it was weird for someone to grit their teeth so much when talking about the person they were supposed to spend the rest of their life with, but Imperials were strange folk.
Jordis had heard a lot about the natives of Cyrodiil. Since their capital was full of legionnaires, it only made sense to know as much about their allies as possible. She knew that Imperials were incorrigible (whatever that meant) flirts, they loved money (she had heard they could squeeze a septim out of a carrot), and they were remarkably good at light infantry, which was at least something Jordis could understand.
Oh, and they had orgies every night. Can't forget the orgies.
"Will you be having an orgy before you leave, my thane?" Jordis had asked. It seemed like a good idea to show that she was aware of their cultural niceties.
"What?" Diana and Aventus had both asked. Jordis worried that their eyes were going to pop out of their sockets.
"The orgy, ma'am," Jordis had said formally. She briefly wondered if she was saying it wrong. "I hear Imperials have them all the time."
"Jordis, do you know what an orgy is?" Diana asked carefully.
Jordis wasn't exactly sure what an orgy was, but she was pretty certain that it was some sort of fancy party. Imperials seemed the type to be good at throwing parties with all of their money and flirting.
"I have never been to one, but it would be an honor to be invited," Jordis replied. She hadn't been to a party ever.
"Um, no orgies," Diana had said. Her entire face had looked as red as a tomato. "Do you mind if I talk to Aventus for a bit?"
"No, my thane," the housecarl said, trying to hide her disappointment. She never got to do anything fun.
"I don't think she knows what an orgy is," Aventus whispered.
"Me neither and I have no plans on correcting her," Diana responded. "I'm going to head out in the morning. Do you think you have everything you need?"
"I'll be fine," Aventus promised.
The trio had spent the rest of the day at the market, picking up various necessities for Aventus. Diana had made arrangements with Falk Firebeard, Elisif's steward, to completely outfit the house, so none of them had known that Jordis' room was bare. By the time she had realized it, Diana had already left for whatever adventure she had planned after leaving Aventus.
So, now Jordis was stuck sleeping on the floor.
"You know, hon, if you want, you are more than welcome to go back to the Blue Palace when I'm out of town and Aventus has to be in class," Diana had offered that day. "I don't see any reason for you to be alone in such a big house."
"Thank you, my thane, but it is my duty to guard your possessions if you do not need my services otherwise," the girl had responded. She probably would have answered differently if she had known the circumstances better, but she had given her word and so she had stayed. A Nord always kept her word and a housecarl was always loyal to her thane. To her very bones and soul, a housecarl exemplified loyalty.
"Was Lydia like this?" Aventus had asked Diana as they returned home.
Jordis had fallen behind because she had insisted on carrying all of the packages and one of them had fallen out of her grasp. She had desperately tried to pick it up with her foot, but the darn thing was not cooperating.
"No, not really," Diana had said with a soft voice as she looked away. "She had the same sense of duty and desire to serve her thane, but there was more fire and wit there."
"Well, it's good they're not alike," Aventus said with a nod. "Maybe I can learn to like her since I know she won't betray me."
"I guess," Diana had said, but she had sounded doubtful.
Tirdas 16 Midyear 205 4E 1:00 AM
Jordis awoke to her side hurting. She lifted up her bedroll and found a big pebble had been poking her side. How had the darn thing gotten there to begin with? She tossed the offending rock aside and laid back down. Sometimes she wished she could sleep in Aventus' bed.
Oh!
Jordis sat up with her mouth in a little 'o' shape. Aventus' bed! She hadn't been ordered to not use it. He had seemed really nice the few times she had been around him, surely he wouldn't mind if she borrowed his bed until she got a real one. She just had to be sure to tell him that she needed a bed and she bet Talos to Talons that he would get one for her.
The strawberry-blonde giggled happily as she gathered her things and headed upstairs. When she entered the main entry room, she paused. The Nord could hear noises coming from the top floor. Oh gods, intruders!
Thankfully, she was there to protect her thane's possessions! Oh, Diana and Aventus were going to be so happy when they finally came home and she told them how she valiantly ran the thieves off. Screw those thieves!
Jordis carefully put her sleeping gear on the ground out of the way. It wouldn't do if the thieves tripped over it. She gathered her sword and shield from the weapons rack before heading upstairs. She tried to move quietly, but it was hard to do with her bulky weapons. At least she wasn't wearing her steel armor. Not that it really mattered. These were really loud thieves.
Oh gods, the noises were coming from the master bedroom! There's where Thane Diana kept all her things! Well, the stuff she bothered to leave here, anyway. All that grunting and moaning must mean they were trying to steal the furniture.
Jordis kicked the door open and cried, "Halt, thieves! In the name of Solitude, I am arresting you!"
She had been prepared for many reactions. Denial, an attempt at escape, or maybe even a straight up fight. Jordis had not been prepared to hear a woman screaming.
For a moment, the young housecarl stood there, blinking as she tried to adjust her eyesight to the dark room. There were two figures kneeling on the bed and they were holding up one of the blankets to cover them. One of the figures leaned forward and lit a candle to reveal an Imperial man and woman both naked as far as Jordis could see. The blanket covered a whole lot and she could only see to their shoulders.
"Who in the Void are you?" the woman shouted.
"My thane?" Jordis said weakly. In the light, she now recognized Diana Dragonborn despite the fact the woman's face looked cut and bruised. "Um, welcome home?"
"Get out!" the Dovahkiin commanded. The walls shuddered at the force of her Voice.
Nords by nature are brave warriors. They will face overwhelming odds time and time again to prove their physical prowess. Jordis still ran like a small child back downstairs at the order of her thane.
Tirdas 16 Midyear 205 4E 1:05 AM
"That was too close," Hecate sighed as she lowered the blanket. Jordi would have been shocked to discover the lovers were not naked. Instead she and Cicero were still wearing the bottom half of their motleys. "I cannot believe we forgot about the housecarl."
"Hecate may have, but Cicero didn't," the Keeper smirked as he stretched out on the bed. He grabbed Hecate and pulled her to him. "The possibility of being caught is half the fun."
"Maybe for you," Hecate frowned. Cicero could have at least reminded her about their houseguest, but given how immersed they had been in kissing when they had stumbled into the house, she supposed she couldn't fault him for not taking the moment to remind her.
The two of them had traveled to Solitude to rest for the night before moving onward the next day. They had been in high spirits from the success of their most recent contract and could not keep their hands off each other. The Listener had been surprised they had waited to get back to Proudspire before things got too hot and heavy.
Hecate had not planned on making an appearance as Diana in the capital, but now she was going to have to since they had been discovered being in town. It would look odd if the Dragonborn did not attempt to visit the jarl when she was in Solitude. It was inconvenient, but at least it wouldn't take a lot of time. She'd just pop into the Blue Palace tomorrow and maybe have a word with Elisif about the housecarl.
The girl seemed nice enough, but Hecate didn't like having some stranger in her house while she was gone. There were some conveniences to keeping someone in the house, like having a fire already going to keep the place warm, but it made using Proudspire as a base much more inconvenient.
Cicero leaned over and kissed Hecate. "Hm, where were we?" he murmured. His hands drifted over Hecate's body, making her sigh with pleasure. His thumb pressed against her nipple and circled it. "Cicero believes about here seems right."
The Listener moaned happily as her lover moved so he was over her and rubbing his body against her. It delighted her to feel velvet against velvet and her Keeper's expert hands touching her in all the right ways.
Then she heard crying from downstairs.
"Oh, for Mara's sake," Hecate complained as she pushed the Keeper away. The Listener sat up and pulled off her curly toed boots and striped pants.
"You're going to go comfort the girl," Cicero said. It wasn't a question.
"Yes," Hecate agreed as she pulled on a sleeping robe.
"My Listener is too kind," Cicero teased. He was lying on his stomach with his feet in the air. "Don't take too long or Cicero will have to Keep himself."
"Don't threaten me, Fool," Hecate shot back as she swatted the jester's head as she walked by.
As she descended the stairs, Hecate took a deep breath as she mentally put on her Diana mask. It was important to her to keep her identities as separate as much as possible. She had never had the problem of her past lives intersecting just as she had never had the problem of being famous before.
She might occasionally use her position as Dragonborn to drop some rumors in the right ears in the courts and to keep an update on the civil war, but in general Diana and Hecate were two separate people as far as she was concerned. She wasn't an actor like Cicero who could adopt a personality appropriate for a situation at the drop of a hat. She was just herself.
The only difference was that Diana was a hero and Hecate was a villain.
When she opened her eyes again, Diana saw the girl sitting at the small eating table. The Nord was bent forward so her face was in her hands and she was weeping loudly. Diana bit her lip as she watched the heart-wrenching scene. She hated to see people upset or in pain, but she didn't really know how to make them feel better if there wasn't something to retrieve or someone to beat up.
The Dragonborn tentatively placed her hand on the other woman's shoulder. She patted awkwardly. "Um, there, there. It's okay."
"No, it's not!" the housecarl wailed. "I walked in on you and your husband – well, I think that's your husband. I really don't know, but if it isn't then I'm not judging because it's not my place to judge. You can have sex with all the strange men you want. Anyway, I walked in on you and that guy and you were naked and you were probably about to have sex because I cannot think of anything else a man and woman would do naked in the dark, but that might just be my inexperience talking. That doesn't really matter. What matters is that you were gone months and months and when you come back, I charge into your room and yell about arresting you. I'm a terrible housecarl."
At the end of her rant, the girl threw back her head and started to bawl in earnest.
"Oh goodness. Look, um," Diana paused. She suddenly couldn't remember this girl's name. Jordan? Joldi? "Look, dear, it's okay. You were just trying to protect your home. I cannot fault you for that."
"Really, my thane?" the girl sniffed. She looked up at Diana, hope shining in her eyes. "You're not going to send me away?"
"No," Diana answered, mentally wishing she could. "I haven't been able to successfully send a housecarl away yet. Now, how about we tuck you into bed, get some sleep, and maybe talk about this in the morning when we're rested?"
When the housecarl hung her head in shame, Diana asked, "What's wrong?"
"I don't have a bed," the girl admitted.
"What do you mean you don't have a bed?" Diana repeated, the anger in her voice making the room shake. Jordis flinched from the action.
"My room is empty. Well, there are boxes in there, but they aren't mine and I don't know where to put them."
"Show me," Diana demanded.
The two women went downstairs and Jordis showed Diana to her room. The Imperial's eyes widened in horror when she took in the sight. This was not a room someone should be living it. She remembered that it had been the room they had kept Commander Maro in when Babette tortured the Pentius Oculatus leader to find out where Titus Mede II was. Shivers ran down her spine at the memory.
"You've been living like this for the last nine months?" she asked, aghast.
"It's not so bad most of the time," Jordis said humbly. "During the day, I stay upstairs. I clean or read or train. It's just at night. Well, the floor is hard." It wrenched Diana's heart that the Nord was trying too hard to sound like she wasn't complaining.
"Why didn't you say anything sooner?" Diana asked plaintively.
"You weren't here. Aventus is rarely here. Or when you two are, you're both so busy that I forget to say anything."
"This won't do at all," Diana muttered as she nibbled on the end of her thumbnail. "Come on."
"Where are we going, my thane?"
"You can sleep in Aventus' bed tonight if that doesn't bother you."
"My thane is so smart!" Jordis beamed.
Tirdas 16 Midyear 205 4E 1:30 AM
Cicero was lying on top of the bed wearing only his loincloth. He had disrobed the rest of his motley and put it away with Hecate's in one of the dressers when his Listener had gone downstairs to deal with the housecarl. It was unlikely that the girl would come back in here tonight, but it was better to be safe. The jester image was quickly becoming linked with the Brotherhood thanks to his Listener's actions, and it wouldn't do for their allies to know the truth.
A shadow fell across the bed and when Cicero looked up he could see the silhouette of his Listener in the doorway. The jester smiled widely as he stretched across the bed in his most seductive pose. "Welcome back, my Listener," he cooed. "Cicero was hoping he wouldn't be left alone in this big, cold bed."
A sob tore from the Listener as she hurled herself onto the bed and wrapped her arms around the Keeper. Cicero mentally sighed as he hugged the weeping woman. He had suspected that she would come back in this state. His lovely Listener couldn't stand to see others in pain.
"I'm a terrible person," Hecate wailed as she curved into the crook of her Keeper's arm.
"Did you kill the girl?" Cicero asked. That would have been unexpected.
"No," the Listener said.
"Did you threaten or hit her?"
"No."
"Call her names? Tell her that she's fat?"
"Now you're just being silly," Hecate scowled, looking at Cicero with bloodshot eyes. At least she wasn't crying any more. "The poor girl has been sleeping on the floor for these last nine months."
Cicero snorted. "Sounds like her own fault to Cicero."
"I'm a bad person because I didn't know," Hecate insisted as she pounded her fists on Cicero's chest. "I should have checked on her. She's my responsibility."
"Listener," Cicero said laughing. "We just killed an entire fort full of men and this is what made you feel like a bad person?"
"That's different," she grumbled, her forehead wrinkling in thought. "We were assigned to do that."
"Oh really?" Cicero pretended to ponder the idea. "Cicero recalls a Black Sacrament for the captain. Were there more Black Sacraments that poor Cicero was unaware of, hm?"
"No," Hecate admitted, trying to not giggle.
"Then letting a foolish Nord sleep on the floor for a few months hardly compares, does it?"
"Ah, my wise Fool," Hecate smiled as she nuzzled the Keeper. "You always make me feel better."
"Cicero must Keep his Listener," the Fool grinned. He leaned forward and kissed the Listener, picking up where they had been interrupted before.
"The girl might hear us," Hecate stammered.
"Cicero recalls this place having very thick walls," Cicero murmured. "Besides, I doubt she'll make the same mistake of barging in on us again tonight."
Tirdas 16 Midyear 205 4E 10:00 AM
"Why, Diana, what do we owe the pleasure of your company?" Jarl Elisif the Fair asked.
After getting up and grabbing breakfast with Cicero and the housecarl, Diana had given him a list of items to pick up from the blacksmiths while she ran to visit the Blue Palace.
"I was in town and thought I should visit," Diana smiled cheerfully. "Seeing you always makes my day a bit brighter."
"You flatterer," Elisif laughed.
The two women shared small talk for a bit. They both carefully did not mention the war to each other. Both had strong reasons to avoid that topic. Elisif never liked discussing her husband's murderer and Diana couldn't deal with the pain of Lydia's betrayal.
"You should come and see us more often," Elisif insisted.
"I'll try, but it's difficult," Diana hedged. "We're both pretty busy."
"I would always make time for you, my friend," Elisif smiled, making Diana's knees weak.
After leaving the jarl, Diana searched for her steward, Falk Firebeard. "You were supposed to decorate the entire house!" she snapped. "My housecarl has been without a bed the entire time."
"Why didn't anyone inform me?" Falk shot back. "I can't fix a problem I am unaware of."
"No one told me either," Diana huffed. "Given that was the case, you may wish to train better housecarls. Meek is fine in some situations, but being able to take initiative can be just as important."
"Like your last housecarl?" Falk said sharply. When Diana's face fell into one of misery, he immediately regretted his words. "Forgive me. That was unfair."
"I want the house properly stocked," Diana growled. "I expect to get what I paid for. In fact, since my delivery has been delayed for so long, here's an adjustment I want done." Diana gave the steward a written list of changes and with that she left him.
As she was about to walk out of the front door of the Blue Palace, the portal swung open to reveal General Tullius. The man looked good despite currently losing the war against the Stormcloaks. Maybe because his hair had turned silver a long time ago and his face was already wrinkled from years of countless battles, it was hard to tell if the ravages of war had affected him.
"Ah, Dragonborn," he said in way of greeting. "What brings you to our fair city today?"
"Just dropping by, General," she said stiffly. Diana had never had much of a relationship with Tullius. Although he had been there during Helgen, she had never begrudged him for it. Her near-execution had been because of a harried captain who had died that day, revenge enough for her. Still, they had little in common and the general was too prone to ask her to join his army instead of being happy with niceties.
"I heard you got married. Congratulations," Tullius said. "When will I have the honor of meeting him?"
"Not today I'm afraid," Diana said shaking her head. "He's in the market right now picking up some necessities. Maybe the next time we're in the capital for a ball."
"I'd love to meet him," Tullius said. "I have been wondering what kind of man would capture the eye of a Dragonborn."
"I'll be sure to let him know," Diana chuckled. "Now, I must be on my way."
"Feel free to come by Castle Dour any time," Tullius insisted.
"Yeah, right," Diana grumbled. She doubted either man would like the other very much. Tullius was too serious and Cicero was too inane. Undoubtedly both men would immediately hate each other and that was something Diana would rather not have to deal with.
Tirdas 16 Midyear 205 4E 10:30 AM
"Then he stood up and looked the man in the eye and said, 'Fuck you, clown,'" Cicero laughed as he ended his joke.
Jordis fairly screamed with laughter. It was so naughty of the Dragonborn's husband to swear like that, especially since they were in the marketplace, but it was so funny too.
She was really glad that the man she had found in her thane's bed last night was her husband. And she really liked how nice Cicero was to her. He had remembered her name, unlike Diana who kept calling her Jordan all morning. And he had asked her to accompany him to buy some things while her thane was at the palace.
Jordis had wanted to accompany her thane as was appropriate, but Diana had left without a word. She had looked a little mad this morning too, so maybe it had been a good idea to not go with her.
"Well, let's go shopping, shall we?" he had asked as they had piled the dirty dishes in the sink. He winked slyly at her. "As soon as we get these dishes clean. They don't clean themselves."
Cicero and she had chattered the whole time as they cleaned up. He had asked her questions about her life before becoming a housecarl and what her likes were. Then when they went to the market, he had insisted that she buy something for herself. Jordis had picked some perfume because she liked the way it smelled.
"I hope you don't begrudge my sweet Diana," Cicero said suddenly. "I think she would have been kinder to you, or at least more aware of your needs, if it hadn't been what happened with her and Lydia."
"What happened?" Jordis asked around a mouthful of sweetroll that Cicero had bought her.
"Did anyone tell you?" Cicero asked. Jordis shook her head no. "Lydia was her housecarl from Whiterun. They were very close. But Diana had to go away and didn't get a chance to tell Lydia. Poor Lydia thought she was dead and it made her very sad. She ended up joining Ulfric's army thinking that she would honor her thane's memory, but it was the worst thing she could have done. Now they are bitter enemies."
"That's sad," Jordis said softly.
"It is very, very sad," Cicero agreed. "That's why she can't allow herself to get to know you. Because she's afraid she'll get to like you and you remind her too much of Lydia. So she keeps you at arm's length. Not just to protect herself, but to protect you too. She feels she ruined Lydia and she doesn't want that to happen again."
The two of them ascended the stairs to Proudspire Manor with Jordis deep in thought. She had to prove she was a good housecarl to Thane Diana. She just had to.
"We're home!" Cicero called out in a sing-song voice as they put away their purchases.
"Welcome back!" Diana responded as she descended. She came over and kissed Cicero on the cheek. "Did you find everything I needed?"
"Yes, yes," Cicero fussed. "Of course. Cic- I always get whatever you need done, don't I?"
"Hm, usually," Diana agreed as she hugged him. Jordis thought they looked like the perfect couple together. "Oh, Jordan, I need to talk to you."
"Her name is Jordis," Cicero corrected.
"Hmph, why didn't you tell me?" Diana asked, looking irritated.
"I didn't mind," Jordis said. "Whatever my thane wishes to call me, I'll answer to."
"Please speak up in the future," Diana scowled. "And that's an order. Goodness. Anyway, come with me."
The trio descended to the basement level. "I feel we've gotten off on the wrong foot," Diana started. Jordis felt nervous. The phrase "We need to talk" was the worst phrase in the world. "Each side had certain assumptions about the other. That has to change. I will not have a housecarl who is sleeping on the floor. It makes me look bad."
Oh, here it comes. She was going to give Jordis the axe, hopefully not literally.
"So, I went to Falk Firebeard and told him I wanted that furniture and I wanted it today. Thankfully, it arrived while you were gone." Diana threw open the door to Jordis' room to reveal a fully furnished room.
There was a closet, a full length mirror, a full array of cosmetics, and a bed! It wasn't just a single sized bed either. It looked big enough for at least three people and had a beautiful canopy over it. It dominated the room, but Jordis didn't mind in the slightest.
"Oh, thank you, my thane!" she squealed as she grabbed Diana into a tight bear hug. The smaller Imperial woman grunted at the force of her housecarl's grip.
"There's a condition," Diana wheezed as she broke Jordis' grasp. "You have to write to me once a week to update me on what is going on here and how you are doing." She gave the younger woman a piece of paper. "Just send it here. I'm not always there, but I'll receive anything you send me eventually. I'll try to write back whenever I can."
Jordis carefully tucked the piece of paper away as Diana continued. "Also, I set up an account for you at the exchequer's. I should have given you an allowance when you were first assigned, so I put back pay for you. That is your money to use as you wish. You will also receive additional funds every month from my personal account."
The Nord burst into tears at all of this. It was much more than she could have hoped. "You're the best thane I've ever served under," she gushed.
"Although I suspect I'm the only thane you've worked for, thank you," Diana smiled. "We're going to head out too, but if you need anything that cannot wait, then just talk to Aventus and he'll take care of you."
Jordis thought she would fairly explode with happiness.
"Is there anything else you need?" Diana asked.
"No, no, I'm fine," Jordis said.
"Good," Diana said with a nod. "We're going to head out now. I look forward to your letter."
The Dragonborn gave the housecarl a hug and swept out of the house. Cicero bowed and kissed Jordis's hand which made her giggle. He winked and followed his wife.
Once they were gone, Jordis climbed onto the bed. She spread out on the comforter, enjoying how soft and warm it felt. The girl glanced from side to side, making sure no one was around. Then she stood up on the bed and jumped up and down, pouncing on the springs.
She screamed with delight for the longest time.
After a while the screams turned into gales of laughter.
