When Dibella awoke, she was laying down on the floor of the Pantheon. As she looked around, it seemed to be empty. The thrones hadn't been shined in a while and they looked as if they had been vacant for too long. The only noise she heard was the trickling of water from the beautiful fountain in the back of the cathedral. As she stared at the fountain for a moment, she jumped, startled. Akatosh had suddenly materialized before her, his old eyes looking even more tired.
"You look weary, Father," Dibella said fearfully.
"Dear girl, I'm as weary as I've always been. But now you have seen the world. You can recognize the stress that I bear."
"Oh…Is that a good thing, Lord?"
"Perhaps, but you have bigger concerns now."
"What? What do you mean?"
"Beware. Protect her heart, Dibella."
"Akatosh, what are you saying?"
"You'll know what to do, I have faith in you. But you will learn so much about yourself from this."
"Wait, father!"
But he was gone when she reached out for him.
Looking around helplessly, Dibella felt alone again. As she searched desperately for some hint of truth, her eyes landed upon her altar. It was a beautiful gold-plated pyre behind her throne. It was there that she would shape and create love, see images of the future, and shape women's lives to follow their fate. Eagerly, she began to run towards it.
But as she ran, the marble tiles below her feet collapsed and fell down to the earth. Cursing, she ran fasted. But the faster she ran, the quicker the Pantheon collapsed around her. Eventually, she lost her footing, and fell fast.
She woke up with a start, panting heavily.
Morning sunlight danced on her bed sheet. She must have slept through from yesterday evening. Judging by the sense of stillness in the large house, she guessed Fastred and Aquillius had headed to work long ago.
As she rose out of bed and made her way down to the kitchen, the warning from Akatosh played again in her head.
"Beware, protect her heart."
What could that mean? And, more concerning, why couldn't she figure it out? Hearts dealt with love, which was her domain. She must have been away from the Pantheon for too long. She could feel her divine wisdom floating away alongside her powers. She felt more and more mortal with each passing hour.
As she made a breakfast for herself consisting of sweet rolls and honey nut treats wrapped in salmon steak. After she quickly scarfed down her food, she searched around for some mead. She was going into withdrawal, and she felt the need to down a bottle consuming her essence. As she scavenged the kitchen she did take a moment to acknowledge that Aquillius' house was very elegant. It was filled with fancy architecture and expensive furniture and cooking ware. His job must be earning him a pretty penny.
Finally, she found a bottle of Mead with Juniper Berry stashed in a cupboard. As she chugged it, she found herself rather enjoying the extra kick provided by berry. It was nowhere near as good as divine mead, but good mead nonetheless. As she sat drinking, she took a moment to look out the window. Across from his house was a large manor. She gazed at it for a while, admiring the beautiful architecture of it.
Quick as a flash, a crimson phantom sprinted across the lane and disappeared into the shadows of the terrace. Dibella rubbed her eyes and gazed at the spot where the figure had appeared only moments ago, but she could see no sign of any life having been there. She must have been imagining things. Shrugging it off, she stood up and began to do what she does best… judge men.
Due to her inquisitive nature, Dibella spent a good hour snooping around the house. There had been one room in particular that sparked her interest. The walls and furniture were the same style as the rest of the house, but all of the wardrobes (yes, she even went through those) were filled with elegant women's clothes and jewelry. The room smelled faintly of roses and cinnamon. One thing that drew Dibella's attention the most was a beautiful laurel crown resting on the bed. It was a stunning piece embellished with white roses and red ribbons.
Aquillius shouldn't mind if I borrow some of these clothes, thought Dibella. I won't stand to be trapped in this house all day, and he won't need these.
So, she chose an elegant red robe and adorned it with sapphire necklaces and circlets. Glancing at herself in the mirror, she smiled, pleased with her appearance. The gash on her arm was covered and the garment clung to her body just as well as her other white robe, which had been ruined by the blood from her vampire incident.
Feeling extremely confident with the boost from her newly healed outfit and body, she took her coin purse and walked out onto the front terrace. In the midday sun, she squinted for a moment, inhaling the sweet air and smiling happily to herself. As she descended down the stone steps, a figure in ebony armor sprinted right into her, and Dibella found herself being slammed into the hard stone wall.
"Hey!" She yelled, annoyed and dazed. "Watch where you're going!"
The figure turned around and Dibella shrunk back, intimidated by the stranger's appearance. The ebony armor accentuated all of the wearer's muscles in a frightening manner. A four foot-long glowing blade was drawn at-the-ready and a dark ebony helmet hid the person's face. But something seemed odd. The style of the armor around the chest…and the way it dipped seemed very odd. This man must have gotten his armor homemade. It had a very feminine look to it.
But as the stranger took off his helmet, Dibella realized that there was a good reason as to why the armor was so curvy. He was a she…And a very familiar one at that.
The woman gave an apologetic smirk. "Dianne!" she laughed. "Fancy 'running' into you here!" giggled Elysa.
"Elysa! My goodness, fancy meeting you here!" said Dibella. "What brings you into the city?"
"Well…" the Dragonborn faltered, thinking about her next words. "Let's just say I had some….business to attend to."
"I see. Well, do you have an hour? I was just on my way to go to the marketplace."
"Umm… Well, I suppose I can stay for a little while longer. But when the time comes I must leave immediately. I have other…err... duties, to attend to."
"Splendid! Walk with me,"
As they strolled, Dibella told Elysa about the vampire encounter. In turn, Elysa informed her about the Dawnguard, a whole organization dedicated to fighting vampires. It pleased Dibella to hear of the mortals taking the fight to the Daedra (pesky Molag Bal in particular).
They shopped for a bit and chatted. Elysa told her about the Blue Palace, parties at the Winking Skeever, and festivities at the Bard's College. She kept glancing off into the distance every once in a while and she seemed to be deep in worried thought at some moments.
As Dibella was browsing through some wine in the marketplace, a terrible scream erupted from somewhere outside the gates. A guard ran in with his helmet off, his cheeks red from crying. A hush fell over the gathering crowd as the guard fell to his knees and shook with heavy sobs.
"I saw it myself…Gods, I wish I hadn't," he choked. "Good people of Solitude… the Emperor of Tamriel lies dead on Solitude's coast. Emperor Titus Mede II has been murdered. "
For a moment, no one said anything. The city was deathly silent. Then people began to say things like,
"In our own land…"
"It can't be true!"
"Gods, who would do such a thing?"
"Elysa, did you hear-" Dibella whirled around, but the Dovahkiin was no longer standing next to her.
Guess she had to go, thought Dibella.
As she looked at the panicked faces of the people, she was filled with a sad feeling of helplessness. In fact, she could relate. Being away from Akatosh for so long was like losing her leader. But she would get to see him again, and these mortals would not. Death was a curious thing. She didn't like to indulge herself in those thoughts, though. That was what the Daedra do. Well, the Daedra and Arkay, for that matter, but its two very different concepts between the Aedra and Daedra perspectives. She wasn't quite sure how to explain it, either.
The rest of that day Dibella spent at the temple and strolling along the palace terraces. It was very relaxing for a change. But even though she was at ease, she would sense that the city was tense and mourning from the death of the Emperor. The other provinces of Tamriel would not view Skyrim the same once they discovered he was cut down in warm blood there. The palace was especially radiating tense energy. It was concerning.
Around eight o'clock, Fastred and Aquillius returned home. Dibella heard the front door open, followed by lots of laughter. As she came up into the entryway, Dibella saw Aquillius dump a whole bag of gold into the table, and Fastred whooped with glee.
"What's all this for?" Dibella asked.
"I'm rich!" cheered Aquillius, as he threw up a handful of gold septims. He laughed as they clattered to the floor. "With the Emperor dead, I've been promoted to President of the East Empire Company! Oh, if only Vittoria could see me now…"
"I made a two-thousand septim bonus today as well!" said Fastred as she rubbed some of the coins giddily. "We got off of work around five when news broke of the murder. Then we got our raises and Aquillius took me around Solitude for a bit."
"On our way up," said Aquillius. "There was a cave bear sitting right on the trail. But Fastred whipped out her bow and killed that sucker in three shots! It was riveting!"
Fastred blushed and giggled, "Oh, it wasn't that big of a deal. But then Aquillius took me to the forge and showed me how to make all sorts of jewelry and arrows. Gods, it was a fun night."
"And it ain't over yet!" laughed Aquillius. "Come on, girls. Let's party at the Winking Skeever tonight. Drinks are on me!"
When they entered the inn, it was full of all sorts of people. Drunks, nobles, and beast folk alike were al gathered for some good songs and drinks.
Aquillius pulled up three chairs around a table where a balding Nord was chugging some mead. "Belrand!" he called. "How's mercenary work going?"
"Ah, Aquillius," sighed Belrand. "I spend all my hours here wasting away. But its nights like this when I'm happy to be safe, sound, and hopelessly drunk!" His attention turned over to Fastred and Dianne. "Ooh, what have we here? Is one of them for me, Aquillius?"
The girls both stepped back, disgusted. Aquillius shook his head and laughed. "No, no, Belrand. These are some, ah, associates of mind. They're new in town and I thought I'd take them out for a drink or two."
"I see then," said the Nord disappointedly. "But ladies, keep me in mind if you're looking to spend some time with a mercenary man like myself."
It was then that Aquillius noticed what Dianne was wearing. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her aside.
"Where did you get that robe?" he demanded with a stern look on his face.
Taken aback by his force, Dibella straightened up and took a deep breath. "I found it, and I liked it, so I wore it. It's simply a stunning piece."
Glancing at her body, she saw him raise one eyebrow slightly in approval. "Well… I suppose I can let you wear it. But in the future you should ask before taking things that don't belong to you." With that, he turned around, put his arm around Fastred and began to boast with the other nobles in the tavern.
Well that was odd, thought Dibella to herself. Feeling the urge for a pick-me-up, she walked over to the counter and placed an order.
"Sorex!" she called to the innkeeper's son. "I'd like some spiced wine, please. Place the charge for Aquillius Aeresius."
"Dianne!" he said with a smile. "Where have you been these last few days? We've been holding your room for you, you know."
Dibella sighed. "Yes, it was most unfortunate. I got into a bit of a dilemma and was wounded for a bit. Aquillius took care of me and Fastred for the time being, but we should be returning here tonight and stay for the next four days."
"Wonderful! Here's your spiced wine," Dibella took the cup and they talked for a while about the death of the Emperor. Fastred came to join them a while later.
"Sorex, hello!" she cheered as she sat next to Dibella at the bar.
"Fastred," Sorex smiled widely. "You're looking well."
"This is a wonderful party. Does this happen every week?"
"Hah, more like every night."
"I can't believe I missed this those first few days. Have you met Aquillius?"
"We've talked once or twice before."
"Oh, he's a true gentleman. Gave me a job, some food, and comfort. I'm very lucky."
"I see… Is he courting you?"
Fastred blushed and giggled innocently. "Why heavens, no! He's just my friend."
"Sure, sure, if you say so. Well, I do hope you girls stick around a while longer. Lisette should start playing soon and then the fun will start."
"Our bard in Ivarstead never sang. I can't wait to hear some songs. Well, we should be off. I'll catch up with you soon, Sorex!"
"Goodbye Fastred! Dianne,"
Just as the two girls reached the other side of the inn by Aquillius, a blonde haired woman came in carrying a lute. Everyone hooted and hollered at her, and she held up her lute triumphantly.
"In memory of Emperor Titus Mede II, I dedicate this song to the legion," she said. Dibella liked this woman's voice very much. It reminded her vaguely of Mara, who also had a very kind and lovely voice.
All of the men in the room held up their drinks and cheered, "TO THE LEGION!"
She strummed up her lute and began to sing in a beautiful voice,
We drink to our youth,
To the days come and gone
For the age of aggression is just about done
At this point, everyone in the inn grabbed someone and began to dance and sing. Fastred was grabbed by Aquillius, and Dibella walked over to Sorex. Everyone began to yell along, raising their mugs every once in a while to toast the empire as the song continued. The next lines were sung loudly by everyone.
"WE'LL DRIVE OUT THE STORMCLOAKS AND RESTORE WHAT WE OWN
WITH OUR BLOOD AND OUR STEEL WE WILL TAKE BACK OUR HOME"
"Ready?" Sorex whispered to Dibella. "Follow my lead,"
He took her hand, and everyone else in the inn stepped into a circle along with him. Raising their hands and sloshing their drinks, a cry went up so loud they had to hear it back in Ivarstead.
"DOWN WITH ULFRIC! THE KILLER OF KINGS!
ON THE DAY OF YOUR DEATH WE WILL DRINK AND WE'LL SING
WE'RE THE CHILDREN OF SKYRIM AND WE FIGHT ALL OUR LIVES
AND WHEN SOVNGARDE BECKONS, EVERY ONE OF US DIES!"
As the song finished out, Dibella collapsed laughing into Sorex's arms. But his gaze lingered elsewhere, and she wasn't sure where. It didn't concern her at the moment, and she was drunkenly laughing and staggering. At some point during the night, she had blacked out, and remembered nothing.
A/N: Poor Dibella...she seems to pass out a lot :P This chapter was really fun to write. I've always wanted to try to describe a bard's song in writing and, well, I took a shot:) Hope you guys enjoyed! Thank you, you reviewers in particular. You guys have given me lots of amazing ideas, and I loved finding ways to integrate them into the plotline I have envisioned. :*
-mm235678
