Family secrets

John awoke with a start when Jade began jumping up and down on him. "John! Wake up, wake up, wake up!" He shifted from his back to his side and tried to fall back asleep. "Uhh, but it's so early.

"It's only 7 you lazy bum, now get up. Time to eat then train" She pulled his covers hard and he fell out of bed with them. "Now get up." She left the room where he was staying with a few other Companions. He pulled himself up and took his warhammer off the weapon rack. He put it in its holster on his back and headed upstairs. The room smelled of mead and meat. He took a place next to Jade and looked at the food. It looked amazing, like a meal fit for a king. He took a plate of two slaughterfish slabs and a sweetroll. The food was as amazing as it looked. He stuffed his face to prepare for the day ahead. Aela came over in front of them. "Hi Aela!" Jade greeted her.

"Hello sister." She replied. She turned to John. "So, this is the welp then?"

"Wait, what?" John asked with half a mouth full of food.

"Don't worry, it's just a term we use for new recruits, and yes!"

"Well then, Dragonborn or not, well still expect a lot of you. Don't disappoint." And with that she walked away and John was left confused.

"Don't worry about her, she means well she just wants to push the welps, err I mean newcomers, to be all they can." Jade reassured him. They continued to eat and when they finished they went out to train. Jade asked Vilkas to size John up and give him some help. He agreed and met John in the yard with a sword and shield. "Alright, show me what you've got. Don't worry, I can handle it." John still felt a little uneasy but took out his hammer regardless. He struck two not so hard blows which Vilkas easily blocked. "You have potential for strength, but.." John swung against but Vilkas struck up on the hammer with his shield, John held it up by one hand in the air. He didn't have to worry about losing control of it, because next Vilkas turned his back and stepped in to John. He swung his leg behind John's foot and swept up while pushing hard against John's shoulder, causing him to lose balance and fall hard on the ground while the hammer skidded to the side. "If you don't know what you're doing, you'll die in real battle." He held his hand down and helped John back on his feet. "Now again, this time strike form the side and turn your hips as you." John struck again as Vilkas instructed. "Good, but more in your hips. If you're using a weapon like that draw power from your waist." John tired again and spent some time practicing his swing. After about half and hour passed Vilkas stopped him. "Good, now let's take you out for a test."

Jade sat on a downed tree next to Vilkas. "Thanks for helping Vilkas." She said as she reached around in her knapsack.

"Well if he is Dragonborn, he needs all the help he can get."

"Yeah, it's kinda weird though. My brother is the Dragonborn. I never thought something like that would ever happen. I brought some treats, want any?" She pulled out cream tarts and offered them. Vilkas shook his head.

"No thanks."

"How about you John?" John could not answer as he was busy running away from a bear.

"Jade, this isn't funny!" He jumped over a log to try and escape the pursuit.

"Come on John, kick his ass!" John turned and the bear stood on two feet and roared. John swung his hammer and the bear deflected with his claws. John kept running. Jade sighed knowing he wouldn't win. She got up to help. John turned back and kept running. He then saw Jade in mid-air. She did a flying double kick and knocked the bear down, and made him roll backwards. The bear stood up again and both it and Jade yelled. It tried to swung but Jade did another jump kick and knocked it on it's back. It tried to get up which was met with a spinning jump kick to the head. The bear then turned and got up, running away. "Yeah, you better run!" She shouted. She then offered her hand and helped John up.

"Overkill much?" He asked her. She just laughed and gave him his hammer back.

"Alright, maybe that's a little too much for you." Vilkas told him. "I'll have you take on a job we were given that should be easier. Go with my brother Vilkas to Windhelm, someone needs some muscle over there and paid us to help." They all traveled back to Whiterun together from the woods near Riverwood. When they got to the carriage Vilkas told John to wait there until Farkas came down. So he did and after a few minutes a bulky Nord with long black hair and steel armor came down. John knew that was Farkas. "So, you must be the new blood." Farkas said to him. "We're going to Windhelm to help settle an argument, are you ready?"

"Yeah." John replied. They both got in the back of the carriage and rode to Windhelm. It was about a 6 hour ride to the city, and the sun was going down by the time they arrived. They entered the large city gates and John looked around. It was much colder there than in Whiterun, snow covered the ground and roofs. John followed Vilkas to a fire pit where two men were standing by, warming themselves up. "Which one of you is Rolff Stone-Fist?" He asked. A man in a cap walked over to him. "I am, what off it?"

"We've been asked to deal with you attacking Dark Elfs."

Rolff crossed his arms. "Is that so?"

"Yeah, now are you going to back off or are we going to have to settle this?"

I ain't settling nothing with no damn gray skin lover." He put up his fists as did Farkas. Rolff threw the first punch which Farkas blocked. Farkas struck him in the shoulder pretty hard which made Rolff stumble back. Farkas was much bigger than he was. Rolff friend then tried to jump in. John decided he should help. John tried to stop the man from getting at Farkas, but John had no clue what he was doing. He had only one idea. Then the man threw a jab, John stepped to the side and spun in. He pulled the same move Vilkas pulled on him at training. He swept up and pushed back. Then man lost balance and fell off a ledge, hitting his head below and keeping him down. Farkas managed to beat down Rolff easily. It wasn't long before Rolff surrendered after a beating. "Are you going to do as we as know?"

"Fine, i'll leave the damn vermin alone." Rolff limped away and Farkas and John left. The took the same carriage back. "That was a pretty good move back there, where did you learn it?"

"Oh, Vilkas used it one me this morning during training."

"Well, you learn quick then."

"Thanks." The rest of the ride was quiet there was one point when they got into the Whiterun hold when they started talking again.

"You know, you have a lot of responsibility being the Dragonborn."

"Yeah, I know. I mean I really didn't want this. I just like wake up one day, then bam! I'm Dragonborn and have to save Tamriel."

"You may not have wanted this, but it's happening and you have to train."

"Yeah, I know..." It was dark when they got there and they both headed straight to bed at Jorrvaskr. John spent the next week training, only going out on two actual mission, both time he was accompanied by a shield-brother. He had progressed a lot in that short time though. His strikes had more form to them and his footwork had progressed. After a week of training, he awoke one night to Aela making him get up. She told him Skjor was upstairs and wanted to speak to him. John got up and went to the main hall. Skjor was standing there waiting for him. "There you are. We have an important mission for you, this will be your trial."

"Why so late?" John asked sleepily.

"We got this information pretty late, but a scholar came to us and told where we could find a fragment of Wuuthrad."

"A fragment of what?"

"Really, no one ever told you? Wuuthrad was the weapon of Ysgramor, the first Companion. You'll be going with Jade as your shield-sister, she'll answer any questions you have." Sjkor left downstairs on that note. John felt his sister's hand on his shoulder as she was all ready to go. "Hi John! Ready to go?"

"Sure, where are we going?"

"Dustman's Carin, it's a burial ground not that far from here."

"Anything to worry about?" He asked her.

"Probably a few draugr, but don't worry, they're not very tough."

"What are draugr?"

"They're like decrepit corpses that are doomed to walk the old Nord burial grounds. They carry weapons but they're usually not tough or smart. Sometimes you get that one at the end of a dungeon that's really tough, but not always. Don't worry, we'll be fine." She pulled him by the wrist and led him outside. It was a short walk to Dustman's carin, a small hole in the ground with a spiral staircase down to it. Jade was the first to enter, and pushed open the metal doors. The first thing John noticed was the stench of death. "Ugh, this place smells horrible!" Jade walked in a few steps and looked around.

"We're not the first ones here, someone else has been here." She pulled out two Skyforge steel swords. "Stay on your guard." He pulled out his hammer and followed her in deeper. The next room was full of old dead bodies. Jade stopped when they heard a noise. There was a growl around the corner. Then, one of the dead bodies was walking around the corner carrying an old looking sword. It swung ant Jade, and in a swift double move, she deflected his attack and stabbed into him. John heard another growl and found another dead body coming at him. He now realized these must be the draugr. He swung his hammer and smashed the draugr's head against a wall. Jade took out another one and she and John were back to back. There was a space between them where a draugr snuck up behind Jade. John noticed it though and struck above it's knee. The draugr's knee went limp and it half split, half stood up. Jade spun around and decapitated it. They had killed all the draugr in that room. "Those were draugr, huh?" John asked.

"Yeah, see they aren't tough. We should keep moving though." She continued on and the corridor led to stairs. Down those stairs was a large open room with a gate blocking the tunnel out. "Alright, look for a lever or something, there's always some way to open these things." John looked around and found a small part of the room that split off a little with a lever in it. He walked over to it. "Here it is." He pulled it.

"John wait!" an iron gate shut behind him. Jade ran up to it. "Sometimes there are booby traps, we're lucky there were no poison dart. Let me see if I can get you out of that... huh?" A group of five bandits came all around her and formed a wall. "There she is!" One cried.

"Time to die Companion." Another shouted. She began to back up more and more as they circled her and had her back against the gate.

"Which one is that?"

"It doesn't matter, she wears that armor, she dies!"

"Killing her will make for an excellent story." The one female bandit said. Jade dropped both of her swords on the ground.

"Too bad you won't be alive to tell it." Then something happened. She crouched down and began to sway a little. Her skin was turning black and it looked like fur was starting to cover her. Black mass began to envelope her and soon she transformed into a half wolf half man creature. She let out a howl which made the bandits back up. She swat at the female one who dropped dead instantly. Another swung a greatsword at her. She swat at him and he flew against a wall. He died on impact. She tore into the last three and John watched in horror as the monster that his sister turned into killed all the bandits. When it was over she ran into the hallway and the gate opened. John was backed up in shock still. Then Jade ran back in appearing as her normal self. "Sorry about that John, I hope I didn't scare you too much."

"Jade... what the FUCK WAS THAT?!" He cried out.

"Yeah, well... i'm kinda a werewolf now..." She said rubbing her foot in the ground nervously. John didn't respond at first, still taking all this in.

"Jeez Jade, do the others know?

"Yeah, they are too!'

"Wait what?! You're telling me the Companions are werewolves... and you want to turn me into a werewolf?"

She chuckled a little. "No, only the circle are werewolves and know about it. It's only Me, Aela, Vilkas, Farkas, Skjor, and Kodlak. But Kodlak is trying to find a way to cure himself."

"So he doesn't want them to be?"

"He himself doesn't want to be anymore. You know about Aetherius and how there are different realms of it?"

"Yeah..."

"Well Kodlak wants to go to Sovngarde, where all the Nords go. But werewolfs are claimed by Hircene after death to go his hunting grounds. Kodlak wants to cure himself so he'll go to Sovengarde when he dies instead. He may be a fierce warrior still but he is old."

"So, are you going to turn me into a werewolf?"

"I dunno, probably if you make it into the circle." John thought about this and took it in rather uneasily. Would things ever stop being weird and unexpected? He thought not. "Come on, let's get going." Jade said as she led him out and continued their quest

-Jade is a Companion to be a werewolf, like dog tier. That is why.
-I might not make John a werewolf somehow, I don't know. Accepting the gift just seems out of character for him to me.

Hope you enjoyed, please review and thank you for reading.