Alrighty, here's the ninth chapter. Remember that link to a picture on DeviantArt that I imagine looks like Leto that I posted in an author's note way back? Or maybe you don't since it was a while ago. Anyways, I put that link in my profile so you don't have to hunt through all the author's notes of this story. Also, I'm too lazy to keep putting disclaimers in every chapter. The ones in the first eight should be sufficient. Not much else to say, so here's the story. Enjoy!


A loud, crackling bang jolted Avernus into consciousness. It was the distinct sound of a shock glyph being set off, which meant someone or something was attacking. Leto was awakened as well. She bolted out of the bedroll, grabbed her twin swords, and flung the canvas flap of their tent wide open.

It was still the middle of the night and the sky was pitch-black. The campfire was still going, though it wasn't as large as when it was used to prepare the stew last night, and sitting on a log next to the fire, slumped over a bit was one of the caravan guards. Protruding from his neck were the shafts of two arrows, and at his feet, blood was quickly pooling. It looked like he was just killed.

Over at the far edge of the camp, a smoking dead body lay between some trees, obviously having stepped on one of Avernus's glyphs. Beyond the tree line, Leto could make out the silhouettes of numerous figures, rushing back and forth. Another assailant tried to enter the camp, but he too met his demise as he stepped on another of Avernus's glyphs and was engulfed in a torrent of surging electricity.

These bandits looked odd though. They weren't dressed in the simple furs and hides like the bandit group that ambushed them on the way to Helgen; instead they were dressed in proper leather armour and some even wore scaled mail. Maybe they were mercenaries. Or maybe they were just bandits who were really successful at what they did. Leto couldn't tell which option was correct at the moment, but she had more important things to worry about anyways.

By now, Magnhild and the other guard had emerged from their tents, and Avernus was just hauling himself upright. Instead of charging their assailants, Leto, Magnhild and the other guard simply waited for them to try crossing the threshold into the camp; maybe one or two others would also kill themselves on one of Avernus's traps.

The party had no such luck however, as their assailants decided it would be safer if they crossed the threshold over the two corpses of their dead companions, where they knew for sure that there were no glyphs waiting to surprise them.

The first bandit who made it into the camp went to attack Magnhild, but she immediately went on the offensive. She swung her greatsword at him again and again, forcing him to block her deadly attacks without giving him much of a chance to make any attacks of his own. Magnhild's strategy was simple but effective: overpower the enemy before he can do any damage. With every swing, she staggered him just a little more, and his blocks were becoming clumsier and more desperate. The odd strike he managed to make either missed, or clanged harmlessly off Magnhild's armour. She swung once more and this time the bandit was knocked off balance entirely and crashed into the dirt. Another swing from Magnhild ended his life.

Meanwhile, a bandit had already engaged Leto. He was armed with a single longsword and nothing more. With her twin swords, Leto easily blocked his blows while making strikes of her own. Their blades had only just clashed when she caught sight of one of Avernus's undetonated glyphs and an idea formed in her mind. She continued to block the man's attacks, but instead of aiming to land a killing blow when she attacked, she struck in such a way as to try to catch the man off balance while manoeuvring him towards the glyph. When he was close enough, Leto blocked his attack and swung low and to the side, causing the man to twist around at an awkward angle, before kicking him in the side. The man fell right onto the glyph and was consumed in a crackling flood of electricity. Leto didn't get much of a reprieve however; as soon as she had dispatched her current foe, two more came to take their fallen comrade's place.

Meanwhile, Avernus had also been engaged, but his magic made it comparatively easy to dispatch the assailants. One foe charged at Avernus but received a fire bolt to the face for his efforts. Another man got closer and tried to swing his axe at Avernus's neck but before he could do so, Avernus sent a blast of pure telekinetic energy at him, hurling him into a tree trunk with enough force to shatter his spine.

Avernus turned his attention to his sister and found her engaged by three enemies. Leto and the other guard were also fighting their own foes, so they weren't available to offer Magnhild assistance. His sister was deadly with a greatsword, but there were just too many foes for her to deal with at the moment and she was taking more hits than she was giving out. Fortunately, her formidable armour was keeping her safe, but that would only last for so long; eventually, one of the assailants would get smart and figure out that he could slip a dagger in between the plates of Magnhild's armour.

"Magnhild! Come here!" Avernus shouted to his sister in Cyrodiilic as he began limping slowly towards her. Avernus's shout drew the attention of one of Magnhild's bandits, as well as an additional foe, and both made to engage Avernus. In preparation, Avernus wrapped himself in a cloak of swirling electricity. The electricity didn't harm Avernus, but whenever a foe approached too closely, a bolt of electricity would shoot out from Avernus's protective cocoon and strike the attacker. It wasn't lethal, but it was incredibly painful and debilitating. Avernus's two attackers tried to break through to their target, but were met with failure as bolts of electricity shot out from their target and struck them, causing them to collapse to the ground, writhing in pain as the electricity spread throughout their bodies. With one less foe to deal with, Magnhild found that she could manoeuver more easily. She kicked one man down and shoulder checked the other one out of her way as she tried to head towards Avernus.

"Tale my hand, Hilda," Avernus commanded as he actively prevented his cocoon of electrical energy from striking out at his sister. "Trust me!" Magnhild grasped her brother's outstretched hand and the electricity spread from Avernus and engulfed her body as well. Avernus then began to pour magical energy into the electricity, causing the tendrils to glow brighter, and crackle even louder, and twist and swirl around their bodies at a furious rate. By now, Avernus and Magnhild had five men surrounding them on all sides, trying to figure out how they could strike the two down without getting shocked themselves.

When Avernus felt he had put enough energy into the electricity, he released it and his protective cocoon of energy exploded outwards with a blinding flash and a resounding boom. The men surrounding him and his sister were consumed in a torrent of electricity, numerous tendrils of energy coursing through their bodies, and flung outwards from the centre of the blast. The men landed about ten feet away, and writhed on the ground in agony as the deadly energy overloaded their systems and wreaked havoc on their bodies, filling the air with their screams. Magnhild quickly thanked her brother before leaving to help the surviving guard with his attackers.

Meanwhile, Leto had one foe left to deal with, but he was surprisingly quick and skilled with a blade. Despite having two swords while he had only one, Leto was having a very hard time landing any hits on him. He easily blocked most of her attacks and dodged others. He simply wasn't there whenever she attacked with both weapons at once, having moved out of the way with unnatural speed just a fraction of a second before her attacks would have struck. The man attacked just as quickly as he blocked and evaded her attacks, and Leto was having a hard time defending herself as well. Every now and then, one of the man's attacks would make it past her defenses and he'd land a blow. It was nothing serious yet, mostly just gashes on her arms, but they were quickly building up and Leto could feel exhaustion creeping up on her. She knew that she would have to end the fight very soon if she wanted to survive. But how? That was the problem.

Leto continued to clash blades with the man. She blocked his swing – just barely – and countered with an attack of her own, swinging overhead and downwards in a diagonal arc. However, she apparently over-extended herself and her foe managed to evade the attack, quickly stepping to the side and slashing her arm as it went by, causing Leto to hiss in pain and anger. She quickly recovered herself and made to block the slurry of attacks that were surely coming, but instead she heard the man grunt in surprise as his arms were, seemingly against his will, forcibly lowered and his body slowly lifted about a foot off the ground. She saw the man's muscles twitching as he struggled to break free of whatever held him, but he found no success.

"Quickly, Leto, kill him now!" Leto turned upon hearing his voice to see Avernus standing close by, a couple dead bodies at his feet, with his hand outstretched and a look of concentration plastered on his face as he focused on keeping her foe suspended helplessly in the air. Not needing to be told twice, Leto turned back to the man and, with a shriek of anger, drove both her swords through his chest, nearly up to their hilts, causing the man to scream in agony and begin convulsing as the pain overwhelmed his body. Leto ripped her swords from him in as vicious a manner as possible and as soon as the blades left his body, he crumpled to the ground in a pathetic heap, Avernus having released the telekinetic forces that held him.

Her fight over, Leto doubled over in exhaustion, resting her hands on her knees and allowing herself a moment's reprieve. Her arms burned with fatigue and the slashes from the man's sword stung horribly. She panted heavily as she looked up to make sure she wasn't about to be struck down while she rested for a moment, and instead found Avernus limping over to her. On the ground were numerous dead bodies and nobody seemed to be fighting anymore? Over closer to the tents, she could see the two merchants, each with a small sword in their hands and both unharmed, and beside them were Magnhild and the surviving guard. Magnhild looked unharmed, but Leto could see blood dripping from the guard's armour. Whether it was his own or belonged to their foes, she couldn't tell.

"You're hurt," Avernus stated the obvious as a frown began appeared on his face. "Do you need help with your wounds?"

"No it's alright," Leto replied as she began magically sealing the gashes on her arms. While painful and extensive, they looked worse than they really were, and not all of the blood that coated her arms was hers anyways. Sealing her wounds was simple enough and within a minute, her injuries were taken care of. "Thank you for intervening, Avernus. I'm not sure I would've lasted much longer if you had acted a bit later."

"Best not to think about. I'm just happy you weren't hurt worse," said Avernus. "Shall we go back to our tent?" Leto gladly took his arm and the two began returning to the tent they shared.

Upon returning to the circle of tents, the pair was approached by Heinrik. "Hey elf! I owe you an apology for making a fuss about your magic traps. They probably saved our lives," he said as he turned his gaze towards the dead guard with arrows protruding from his neck. "Poor bastard."

"It's fine. I'm just glad they proved useful," Avernus replied.

"You're telling me!"

"Do you know anything about these men?" Avernus asked, "They look too well-equipped to be simple bandits or highwaymen."

"I'm not sure," Heinrik replied, "But I agree that they're probably not bandits. On top of being too well armed, there just seemed to be too many of them. If I had to guess, I'd say mercenaries hired by a rival company or something. With the rebellion destabilizing Skyrim and allowing for more bandit activity, it would be easy to ambush caravans and make it look like bandits did it."

"I see. That makes sense I suppose."

"Hey, do you know any healing magic? Our other man got wounded in the fight."

"I know a little, but not very much," admitted Avernus, "Leto probably knows more. I'm sure she'd be happy to offer aid."

"Thanks, I appreciate everything you've done for us," said Heinrik. Avernus nodded before turning to Leto and speaking to her in Falmeri.

"Do you think you'd be able to heal that man's injuries?" Avernus asked while indicating the surviving guard, "Heinrik says he got wounded in the fight and you know more healing magic than anyone else here."

"I can help him," Leto affirmed.

"Thank you, Leto," replied Avernus, "I'm going to go back to sleep. I'm tired."

"Okay, goodnight Avernus. And thank you again," she smiled wearily before leaving his side to tend to the injured guard. With that, Avernus limped back to his tent and carefully crawled inside once more. While he was indeed tired, the adrenalin in his body refused to let him sleep and for a very long time he lay awake, listening to the activities of his companions outside, but not really paying much attention. At one point he felt Leto climb back into the bedroll behind him. Eventually, however, sleep did manage to find him and his awareness was gently extinguished.


The caravan set off shortly after dawn the next morning and made good time as they travelled to Whiterun. The rest of the journey was thankfully uneventful and the group made it to Whiterun shortly after noon. The merchants and the remaining guard were helping to check the horses into the stables, while Magnhild, Leto, and Avernus, having just parted company with the former, were currently making their way towards the main gates of the city. Leto had once more drawn her cloak tightly around herself and had her hood up, trying to reveal as little of herself as possible.

The steps were the most annoying part, Avernus thought, as they were very difficult for him to climb, and Leto had to help him with each one. It was frustrating, requiring aid for something that small children could do on their own, but thankfully there were only a couple. Eventually, after crossing one final drawbridge, the main wooden gates finally came into view. A guard stood on either side of the gate, which was oddly closed shut. As the trio approached, one of the guards called out to them.

"Halt!" commanded the guard, "The city's closed with the dragon about. Official business only."

Huh. Well that meant that the Jarl was already aware that there was a dragon on the loose. Still, Avernus needed to keep the promise he made to Alvor. "We have news from Helgen about the dragon attack," Avernus explained, "We must have an audience with the jarl!"

The guard was silent for a while as he considered the request, looking over each member of the trio. With his helmet covering his face, it was impossible to tell where his eyes travelled, but Avernus had a feeling that they rested on Leto for longer than on him or Magnhild. "How did a cripple manage to get here from Helgen so fast?" he questioned skeptically.

"I fled to Riverwood and travelled with a caravan that was passing through on its way to Whiterun," Avernus answered truthfully.

"And your companion…" the guard continued, glancing down to Leto's uncovered, clawed feet, where his gaze lingered. "Uncover her." He commanded.

For a moment, Avernus simply stared back, reluctant to do as he was told, but if he refused to satisfy this guard's request, he might not be allowed into the city. "The guard requests you remove your cloak," Avernus turned and said to Leto in Falmeri eventually. Leto wordless obeyed, folding back her hood, slipping out of her cloak, and folding it over her arm.

The guard's only reaction was to continue his interrogation. "What manner of creature is this…thing?" he asked icily, venom creeping into his voice on the last word.

"Snow elf," Avernus answered impatiently, "Now may we enter the city now?"

"No."

"And why not?" Avernus demanded, anger creeping into his voice.

"We don't let monsters into the city. Now leave."

"I beg your pardon!" Magnhild exclaimed, taking a step forward, "Where in Whiterun's Code of Law does it state that Falmer are monsters?"

"Doesn't matter. It's common sense," the guard retorted, "Look at the thing! It's just like in the stories."

"You're basing your decisions on children's tales?" Avernus asked in outraged disbelief.

"They're based on fact!" the guard shot back.

"Based on fact." Avernus clarified, "That doesn't mean the stories are at all accurate. The stories also say that dragons are extinct, yet you clearly know otherwise. Also, are not the Khajiit also accepted into the city?"

"Well…yeah, but-" the guard managed before he was cut off.

"And are they not at least as dangerous or 'monstrous' as my companion here, seeing as how they also possess claws and sharp teeth?"

"I suppose they-"

"Then what makes this different?"

"Uh…I-"

"Furthermore," Avernus continued, "Would Jarl Balgruuf be pleased to hear that the bearers of news regarding dragon activity were turned away simply because the gatekeeper takes issue with their appearance?"

The guard was silent for a moment as he reconsidered his thoughts on the matter. "Fine," he relented, "You can enter the city. But we'll be keeping an eye on you!" The guard then unlocked and shoved open the heavy wooden gates to the city before resuming his position to the side. Avernus resisted the temptation to reply with a snide remark as he hobbled past the incompetent guard and through the city gates.

As Avernus finally set foot in the city he called home for half his life, he found himself flooded with emotions. Everything about the city, from the street layout and architectural style to the people who gave life to the city, was utterly familiar, yet, it also seemed as if he was entering the city for the first time. For ages he had been kept under tight lock and key, deep underground at the hands of monsters, and for ages he had imagined escaping and returning to his family. Now that he was finally here and only minutes away from home, he found that it was quite different than how he imagined it would be. He figured that being free and entering the city of his childhood at long last would be the most wonderful feeling he had ever experienced. However, while it did indeed feel great to finally be freed from his captors and safely far from their torturous, pain-inflicting clutches, after close to a week the novelty was starting to wear off. Instead, Avernus felt fear and anxiety over exactly that which he had longed for: to see his family once more. How would they react to him essentially coming back from the grave? How much drama would there be? How much attention would he receive? Before he had been captured, he had never liked being the centre of attention and after living through such brutal torture underground, he found that the idea of more attention focused on him was actually quite frightening. He knew his anxiety was completely ridiculous since his family loved him and had intentions that could not be any more opposed to those of his Falmer captors, and yet Avernus still found himself unable to dispel his apprehension.

Shortly after setting foot in the city, Magnhild spoke up. "I know you wanted to warn Jarl Balgruuf about Helgen and the dragon attack, but you're really not in any condition to climb all the way up to Dragonsreach," she stated, "I'll warn the Jarl instead, so you can go straight home."

"Thank you, Hilda, but I would, uh…like it if you were with me when we go home," Avernus replied somewhat shyly and uncertainly, "If that's alright with you."

"Of course," Magnhild replied, "But you'll have to wait for me then."

"That's fine," said Avernus.

As the trio made their way through the streets, they earned inquisitive stares from a good amount of people. While it wasn't as in Riverwood or Helgen, a crippled elf, an armoured woman, and a very tall, hooded woman covered nearly from head to toe (for Leto had re-cloaked herself) was still a strange sight. It got better once they reached the market district; the people there were more concerned with buying and selling their wares and most were too busy focusing on their monetary exchanges to pay the trio much mind.

The market district was an interesting place in the city; there was one large, open square (well, it was more circular than square, really) where many merchants gathered at stalls to sell their wares. Then around this central square were a series of streets and alleys where various shops and warehouses and taverns were located. Since Whiterun was located in the centre of Skyrim, it had become an important trading hub in the province where anything and everything could be bought and sold, from armour, clothing, and weapons to rare alchemical ingredients and exotic foods, and everything in between. Indeed, the family alchemy shop, Arcadia's Cauldron, which his grandparents had started and then gradually handed down to his mother as they got older, was located in one of the back streets of the market area, and as the trio made their way through the markets, Avernus wondered if his mother was in there now, preparing potions or healing the sick.

Since it was still early afternoon, the streets were fairly crowded and even though the trio had already passed the central square, they could still hear vendors hawking their wares and customers haggling with vendors over prices. Eventually, the trio approached a wide stairway that signalled the end of the Plains District, which contained the markets and most of the eastern part of the city, and the beginning of the Wind District, which consisted mostly of residences and comprised most of the western half of the city except for Dragonsreach, which solely comprised the third and final Cloud District.

At the top of the stairway, the street continued for a ways until it opened up onto another major square. This one consisted of water flowing in small manmade streams around a sort of island, with small wooden bridges crossing the streams and a carved wooden arch spanning the perimeter. In the centre of the island was a massive tree, the Gildergreen, that towered over the surrounding buildings and was easily as thick as a man was tall, and around this tree, facing outwards, were several benches. The square was located at a crossroads. If the trio continued travelling west, they'd eventually arrive at Dragonsreach while travelling east, back the way they came, led back to the Plains District. North would eventually take them to the ancient mead hall Jorrvaskr, and south led to the family home.

"Alright, I'll go relay the news of Helgen to the Jarl," Magnhild explained to Avernus as they approached the centre of the island, "It shouldn't take very long. Wait here and when I get back we can all go home."

"Sounds good," Avernus replied as he carefully sat down on one of the benches. "Thanks again for doing this for me, Magnhild."

"No problem! I'll be back soon," said Magnhild before turning and setting off in the direction of Dragonsreach.

The trio had been walking through the city for about an hour now and Avernus's leg was burning with pain and exhaustion, sending tendrils of pain clawing their way up his lower back. As he began to gently massage the ruined limb with one hand, Leto sat down next to him and watched Magnhild depart.

"Where is she going?" she asked in Falmeri as she grasped Avernus's free hand in her own, establishing a comfortingly familiar contact.

"Magnhild's going to warn the Jarl about Helgen for us since there are a lot of steps on the way to the Jarl's palace. See that building?" Avernus then pointed to a very large, elaborate building with many peaks that towered over the other buildings in the distance. "That's the Jarl's palace. It rests on the apex of the hill that Whiterun was built over. When Magnhild comes back, then we'll go home."

"Oh okay," Leto replied, before asking another question. "Is a Jarl the leader of the city?"

"Not just the city," Avernus answered, "Skyrim is divided into nine smaller administrative divisions called holds. A Jarl is the leader of the entire hold as well as the hold's capital city."

"I see. Interesting," Leto remarked.

"I'll show you a map when we get home."

"What's a map?" Leto asked in confusion, prompting a chuckle from Avernus.

"Sorry, I forget you don't know these things," he said, "A map is a scaled drawing of a certain geographical area so you can see where everything is in relation to each other. You'll see when we get home."

Leto just nodded and turned her attention to watching the people go by. She had never seen so many surfacers in one place before. There even seemed to be more surfacers in this city than there were Falmer back from where she came from. And they were very diverse too! She remembered Avernus describing all the different races on the surface and she saw a lot of what he described. For the first time since coming to the surface, Leto saw other elves! She saw a Dunmer man walk by, and thought he was especially interesting since Avernus was half Dunmer. She noticed how his skin was darker and greener than Avernus, and lacked the warmth that Avernus seemed to have. She also noticed how his facial features were similar to Avernus in that they had a similar structure and his features had similar lines and angles. And yet they were different also; this Dunmer's features were sharper than Avernus's to such a degree that Leto would describe his entire face as pointy while Avernus's elven features were softened by his human blood. Leto wondered if that Dunmer's features were typical for his race, or even of most elves since most humans had similar features despite the existence several races of humans.

She saw another type of elf walk by; this time it was a male Bosmer. Upon getting a brief look at his face as he passed by, Leto noticed that his features were much like the Dunmer who had walked by several minutes ago; they were quite angular and sharp, much more so than any human's, but not quite as sharp as the Dunmer man. It was very interesting, and Leto found herself wondering how elven women looked in comparison to their men. However, the most curious thing Leto noticed about the Bosmer was his unusually short stature. Indeed, he was shorter than most of the women walking by. Now that she thought about it, she recalled Avernus mentioning that Bosmer men were shorter than their women. Very strange, Leto thought. And interesting.

For a while, Leto continued to watch the people walk by, comparing what she observed to what Avernus had told her back underground. It was quite fascinating to be able to see with her own eyes what had only been described to her, but gradually she began to grow bored. Glancing back to Avernus, she found that he had a blank expression on his face and was staring at the ground. He wasn't usually very expressive unless he wanted to be, and Leto found it hard to judge his mood simply by looking at him, but after spending so long with him, she could usually tell how he was feeling based on other signs, and right now it seemed as if something was wrong.

"Are you alright, Avernus?" she asked him as she gently squeezed his hand.

"Yea, just nervous," he replied, squeezing her hand back, "They all think I'm dead, after all. And then there's…well, you. I'm bringing home an incredibly unusual guest. I don't mean to sound rude, but I'm sure you can see what I mean."

"Ah. So tell me again why you're nervous," Leto jested as she grinned at him from under her hood.

"Good point," Avernus laughed back. He found himself staring in fascination at Leto's teeth as she smiled at him, and he wondered for a moment what kissing her would be like. Wait, what? Where did that thought come from? Avernus thought before forcing his attention back to the conversation at hand.

"Well, you don't have anything to worry about," Avernus tried reassuring Leto, "Once my family gets over the initial shock of meeting you, I'm sure they'll be quite friendly and treat you no differently than any other guest."

"Thanks, but that's not really what I'm worried about," Leto replied, "Like you said, it's meeting them that I'm nervous about."

"Well I guess there's nothing we can do about that then. At least you're not alone. We're both a couple of freaks now," Avernus laughed.

"So I'm a freak, am I?" Leto asked with mock indignation, causing Avernus to chuckle some more.

"Leto, my dear, we're in Skyrim, where most of the Nord majority happens to think that the farther you are from a white-skinned, able-bodied human, the more of a freak you are. You and I stick out like sore thumbs."

"And yet you don't sound like you care much," Leto remarked with some amusement.

"Well yes and no," Avernus replied, "I can't say I like all the attention we get. But then, why should I care about the ignorant opinions of the idiots who hold such beliefs?"

"That's good," Leto replied, "Those people sound like the other Falmer back underground."

"They're the same," Avernus bitterly confirmed, "They judge based on superficial differences and they fail to see people as individuals, viewing them as merely members of a larger, opposing group instead, which makes it so much easier for them to react with prejudice and hostility to those they consider 'outsiders', as I'm sure you can very well imagine."

Leto hummed and nodded sadly in agreement. For a while, the pair sat in comfortable silence, merely watching the people pass by as they waited for Magnhild to return. Avernus thoughts wandered and ended up turning to Leto, unsurprisingly. He realized that for the past half a year maybe, Leto had been a major part of his life. Most of that time period was spent underground in considerable pain, of course, with Leto taking care of his injuries, but even when she wasn't, she made sure to visit him at least once a day. And since their escape about a week ago, they'd never left each other's presence; Leto had become such a fundamental part of his life that Avernus simply couldn't imagine going home to his parents without her, as if it were as much her home as it was his.

"I'm glad you're here with me, Leto," Avernus said sincerely after a little while as he disengaged his hands from hers and wrapped one bony arm around her, pulling her into an embrace. As Leto leaned into the embrace and reciprocated in kind, she realized with a small amount of glee that although there was usually lots of physical contact between them, this the first time that Avernus had initiated it. Strangely, with this realization came a pleasant, tingling feeling in her belly.

"So am I," Leto replied warmly as she tightened her embrace. Leto and Avernus remained seated in each other's arms until Magnhild eventually returned from Dragonsreach. Eventually, they caught sight of Avernus's steel-clad sister making her way through the streets. As she approached and saw her brother and the Falmer woman sitting arm-in-arm like lovers, she couldn't help the smirk that formed, to which Avernus just smiled back unabashedly.

"So, how'd it go?" Avernus asked her as she approached.

"Well enough," Magnhild replied, "The Jarl's housecarl is paranoid, but I managed to get the message delivered. He also wanted to me to run an errand for his court wizard, but I politely refused. Now let's go home!"

"Gladly," Avernus agreed as he started to shakily pull himself to his feet. Leto, not needing to be told what was going, stood up and offered Avernus her assistance.

The trio then set off once more, exiting the square and heading south. As they progressed through the streets, the density of other pedestrians gradually decreased, seeing as how they were in a mostly residential area of the city with few shops and other attractions around. It didn't take long to arrive at the house and within a short period of time, it came into view. It was built in a traditional Nordic style, as were all the buildings of Whiterun, and was two storeys tall. However, aside from being fairly large, there was nothing to distinguish it from the other houses of the city.

Magnhild stepped onto the small porch and pounded her gauntleted fist on the door while Leto helped Avernus up behind her. Within a few moments, the sound of a lock being disengaged could be heard and the door swung open to reveal an elderly woman standing in the doorframe. A look of joy spread across her wrinkled face when she recognized Magnhild.

"Hilda, dear!" she greeted as she rushed forth to envelop the much larger woman in a hug. "I didn't know you were back in town. Will you be staying long?"

"Hi grandma! Yea, I will; Heinrik gave me some time off and it'll be about a month or so until the caravan is back in Whiterun. But look who I found!" Magnhild then stepped aside to reveal Avernus and Leto, who were waiting quietly behind Magnhild.

"Who are-" she began to ask as she took in the very strange appearances of the two figures before her, but fell silent as her gaze fell on Avernus, recognition in her eyes and a look of utter shock on her face.

"Hello, Grandmother."


I decided to try and make Whiterun seem much bigger than it appeared in the game. After all, it's supposed to be a city, not a small town that's only slightly bigger than the other villages in the hold. Obviously the developers made it that small for gameplay reasons and this is why I'm not describing everything in my story exactly as it would appear in the game. I hope you can appreciate my reasoning.

And I decided not to do the encounter with Jarl Balgruuf after all. As you are no doubt aware, this is a significant diversion from the main quest of the game. Good! I'm tired of all the stories that follow exactly what happens in the game and basically turn into a walkthrough. So instead, I'm gonna try and be as original as possible. In fact, I'm debating whether or not I even want to keep going with the main quest; I'm thinking I might want to just have the rest of the story be about how Avernnus and Leto deal with the events that unfold in Skyrim whilst building their relationship, but i still have plenty of time to think about it since, even if I decide to continue with my original plot idea of having Leto and Avernus follow the main quest, they won't get back on track for a while yet anyways. Of course, I'd gladly take your opinions and wishes into consideration as well, so please leave a review telling me what you think. I really do value your opinions. Goodbye for now, and happy Father's Day! ^_^