Vilkas watched Cry from across the mead hall. She was sitting with Kodlak and Farkas, as well as one of Kodlak's men. His eyes narrowed when she laughed loudly at something Farkas said, and he turned away with a huff.

Someone sat down beside him. "You know," Aela said, "she's waiting for you to go talk with her. She missed you, and she feels really bad about earlier."

"If she wants to apologize, she can come over here herself," Vilkas replied, taking a long drink from his tankard. He lowered the tin cup after a moment and sighed. "Why didn't she pick me to go with her to talk to Kodlak?"

"Because she knew you would be able to keep things under control better that Farkas or I?" Aela asked, glancing sideways at him.

Vilkas sniffed in response. "I still don't understand it. I'm her husband."

"Perhaps that's another reason," Aela told him. "She didn't want you to change her mind in what she was going to say. She already knew what it was going to be; she didn't need you down there telling her to say something else."

Vilkas put his tankard down and stood. "Fine. If she doesn't want my opinion, she doesn't need it." Without another word, he marched from the mead hall and down to the living quarters, passing several ghosts who were lounging around Torvar, who, along with the other whelps, was suddenly best friends with the dead Companions.

He wasn't sure where he should go once he was in the living quarters; technically, the Harbinger's quarters were his as well. But with the way he was feeling about Cry right now, he didn't really want to go in there. Sighing, he slumped over and headed to his old room. When he reached it, he shut the door slowly before sinking down onto his bed with a sigh.

Why was Cry acting so distant? If she was worried that he was upset about earlier, all she had to do was tell him so. Vilkas wasn't upset with her; he was upset with Hircine. And Cry didn't have to worry about that anymore. She wasn't a werewolf any longer.

Vilkas's brow furrowed. She wasn't a werewolf any longer… right?

He shook his head immediately. Of course she wasn't! Why would she lie to him about something like that? And there was no reason she would still be a werewolf, anyway. She hated being a werewolf; why would she stay one when she had the perfect opportunity to change?

No, Cry was definitely not a werewolf anymore. She'd told him so herself, and Vilkas trusted her. She was his wife, after all.

Speaking of his wife, he heard the familiar sound of her boots coming down the main hall of the living quarters, towards the Harbinger's chambers. Quickly, Vilkas stood to pretend he had been looking for something in his room, instead of sulking.

"Vilkas?" she said softly, and he heard his door open behind him. He turned, holding up the first thing he pulled from one of his drawers. She lifted an eyebrow when she saw what it was. "Why are you holding a pair of underwear?"

Vilkas glanced at his hand, and saw that he was in fact holding a pair of undergarments. He lowered his arm and put it behind his back. "No reason. Hello."

Cry smiled at him. "Hi." She glanced at the ground awkwardly. "Listen, I'm sorry. About… well, today in general."

"Don't think too much about it," Vilkas responded. He put the clothing back in the drawer and turned around again to face her. "I know it wasn't you who was trying to attack me."

"I'm not just talking about that," Cry told him softly, raising her eyes to meet his. He understood immediately and shrugged.

"I get why you did it," he murmured. "You didn't want me altering your words."

"No!" Cry exclaimed. She stopped herself and lowered her eyes again. "I mean, that's not why I did it at all. I trusted you to take care of things outside, better than Aela or Farkas would have. Definitely better than Farkas would have."

"Speaking of Farkas, what happened to him?" Vilkas questioned, deciding to change the subject. "I would have thought he would have been away from the Tomb of Ysgramor by the time you got there."

Cry seemed grateful for the subject change. "Well, the army kind of tied him up and left him in there. I almost tripped over him when I went inside."

Vilkas shook his head. "No wonder he decided to wait for you," he said after a moment. "He loves you."

Cry glanced at him. "Like a sister."

"Right," Vilkas corrected himself. "A sister."

There was another awkward pause. Vilkas hated it was like this between them.

Hoping to lighten the mood, he smiled at her. "Why'd you come down here?"

"To apologize," Cry admitted. She shrugged, and the corner of her mouth lifted in a half-grin. "Which I guess I've done."

"Yes," Vilkas agreed. "You have."

Cry dipped her head and backed out of the room. "Are you going to come back upstairs?"

He wanted too. He really did. But he didn't feel like having a merry time any longer. So he shook his head. "No, I'm pretty tired. It's been a long day. I think I'll stay down here."

Cry gazed at him for a moment, and he thought that she was going to leave. But instead, she reentered the room and closes the door. With a moment of hesitation, she's in front of him, arms around his neck in a hug.

"I really am sorry, Vilkas," she whispered.

He returned her hug immediately, glad that she was close to him again. "It's all right, love. I could never be angry with you over something stupid like that."

Cry pressed her face against his chest. "Vilkas… there's something I need to tell you."

Vilkas looked down at her. "What is it?" Cry hesitated, and he hugged her tighter. "You know you can tell me anything, Cry."

There's another moment of silence, and then the Harbinger raised her head from his chest, smiling up at him. "I love you."

Relief flooded through him, and he grinned at her, kissing her forehead gently. "I love you, too."

She glared at him. "A forehead kiss? Vilkas, you can do better than that!"

Vilkas's grin grew wider, and he bent down to kiss her on the lips. Cry met his lips eagerly, leaning up on her toes to get full access. They kissed for a moment longer, and then Vilkas pulled away. Cry yawned once they were apart, and blinked at him.

"I really am tired."

"Then it's time we get to bed," he replied. He detached himself from her and pulled open the bedroom door. "Let's go to our room."

Cry smiled and scooted past him, heading to the Harbinger's quarters. Vilkas followed immediately with a smile of his own. They'd be having a peaceful sleep tonight for sure.

Hircine smiles warmly at her as Cry approached him, greatsword on her back. "Good evening, Cry."

"Evening," she replied, forcing a smile back. "What're we doing tonight?"

Hircine led her to a wooden table in the center of the werewolf camp in the middle of the blood-stained forest. Across it was a map, but it wasn't one of Skyrim. In fact, it was of a place she couldn't name. Hircine pointed to a section on the map. "You see, here we are," he said, and then he splayed his fingers across the whole map, "and this is the rest of the Hunting Grounds."

"Your plane of Oblivion," Cry concluded, studying the map.

Hircine glanced at her approvingly. "That it is." He pointed to another area on the map. "We believe this is where Kodlak Whitemane has his camp set up. Is this true?"

"I don't know," Cry admitted, because she didn't. "I've never been to the main camp."

Hircine didn't even try to question her. "Well, we have plenty to show that it is in fact the location. And you're going to go find out for us."

Cry blinked at him. "Why do we need to know where the camp is?" she asked, stalling. "You don't plan on taking the fight straight to them, do you?"

Hircine shrugged. "I will if we can't wipe them all out beforehand." He fixed her with gray eyes, the rest of his face hidden behind his mask. "I can trust you with this task, can't I?"

Cry was exhausted, truly, but she wasn't about to let this Daedra see any weaknesses. She shrugged nonchalantly. "Why not? Just give me a map and I'll be back by morning."

Hircine pulled a smaller version of the map on the table from a drawer and handed it too her. "Run, my little wolf," he whispered.

Cry put the map in her mouth and removed her armor before changing into her wolf form. Hircine watched this occur, a faint smile in his eyes. When the change was complete, he nodded to her, and she set off through the forest in the direction of the supposed location of Kodlak's camp.

As she ran along, she heard painful howls coming from wolves and humans alike. The sound made her ear fur twitch, but she shook her bulky head and continued to run along without stopping. Without stopping, that is, until she came across a fight directly in her path.

It was between a gray werewolf and Benolak, the male Kodlak had brought with him earlier that evening to the parlay. The gray wolf leaped in front of the warrior from the bushes nearby, snarling. Benolak already had his weapon drawn, and he held it before him.

"Come on, wolf," the Companion growled. "Give it a go."

Cry wasn't sure if she should interject in the fight or keep going. Besides, if she did jump in, which side would she fight on? No, she needed to stay out of it, avoid any trouble. She curved around the fight, hoping neither saw her pass, and scurried along, not looking back.

After about an hour of running, she paused to catch her breath and check her map to make sure she was heading the right direction. She dropped it onto the ground and opened it with a big paw, studying it. Before she could roll it back up again, however, someone snatched it from her. Cry leapt back, snarling, and rounded on whoever had taken it.

Her eyes widened, however, when she saw it was Benolak.

"What do you have here, wolf?" he teased, holding up the map. Clearly he didn't recognize her in her wolf form. He waved the parchment. "A map of important locations, eh?"

Cry growled deeply in her throat, not knowing how to convince him it was her. She couldn't just transform in the middle of the Hunting Ground; Hircine would see everything. She could only gaze helplessly up at the map and wonder what in Oblivion she was supposed to do now.

Benolak spread out the map and gazed at it for a solid minute before he turned back to her. "Well, this is a lovely bit of information. Why haven't you tried to kill me yet, wolf?" He grinned. "Companion got your tongue?"

He slipped the map into his armor and held out his arms. "C'mon, I'm not gonna stop ya." He sneered at her. "Take it."

Cry lowered herself to the ground, snarling. Give it back, please, she was begging silently. I don't want to hurt you.

Before she could jump at him, another wolf beat her to the punch, layering the Companion to the blood-colored dirt. It was a big black wolf, and he could only be one wolf in particular. Go, Cry, Hircine growled in her head. Get to the camp. I have this one.

Without hesitation, Cry darted into the fight, grabbed the map from Benolak, and sprinted away into the trees. She didn't want to be around when Hircine finished off Kodlak's friend, and she definitely didn't want to be blamed for it.

Another half hour brought her to the area on the map that signified Kodlak's camp, but the clearing she was standing in was empty. She let out a relieved sigh; Hircine didn't know where they were located. She heard rustling in the trees behind her, and she scented Hircine as he came through the undergrowth to stand beside her. His large, wolf shaped head skimmed the area before he snorted angrily and morphed into a human. Cry's heart stopped when she recognized Benolak.

"They must have moved," he muttered. A wave of his hand sent Cry changing into a human, and before she knew it, she was standing beside him, naked. She would have felt exposed if she hadn't been so upset about Benolak's death. "What do you suppose we do?" he asked her once she was changed.

"I don't know, my lord," she replied quietly. "I don't have any idea where they could be."

"But you can find out," he murmured softly. Hircine glanced at her with Benolak's eyes. "I know that there is a truce between your Companions and Kodlak Whitemane's, similar to the one we share."

"There is," Cry lied. "I'm playing both sides of this war, for the true hunters."

Hircine studied her a moment longer, and then turned away. "Figure out where their camp is," he mumbled to her. "And I will reward you greatly."

"How so?" she questioned, genuinely curious.

Hircine is quiet for a moment. "A free, war-less night to do whatever you wish." His form changed to his favorite, normal human with a stag mask. "With Vilkas, or with someone who can supply you with a bit more… excitement." He put a hand against her cheek and stroked his thumb against it. "Love between two wolves is very… passionate."

"I would imagine," Cry responded stiffly. She jerked away from his hand. "I'm sorry, my lord, but I am faithful to Vilkas."

"Loyal," Hircine purred, blinking. "Good news for him, and myself as well. I will see you tomorrow night, love."

The forest around her disappeared, and Cry sucked in a deep breath, flying awake. She sat up swiftly, and blinked a few times, breathing heavily. She was in her room, with Vilkas beside her. Her husband was breathing in deeply and slowly, a sure sign that he was dead to the world, and fast asleep.

Upstairs, she could still hear the drunken singing of the living whelps, so she hadn't been asleep for too long. Her breaths calm now, she curled up into Vilkas, knowing he wouldn't be able to protect her from whatever happened because of Benolak's death, but still wishing he was capable.

To her surprise, his arm wrapped around her, and his warm breath was against her neck. "Not a bad dream, I hope," he murmured into her ear.

"Nothing like that," she answered. He kissed her neck gently, and she had to take a deep breath before going on. "The whelps woke me with their singing."

She heard him chuckle, and the stubble on his face brushed against the bare skin on her shoulder. Cry didn't care what Hircine said; she didn't need the love making from him. Being this close to Vilkas was enough for her.

"Do you want me to go yell at them?" he asked, kissing her again. "Because I will."

"No," Cry told him. "It's all right; let them sing all they want." She turned so that she's facing him, able to see his features clearly in the dark because of the wolf blood, even though she knew that he couldn't see her completely. "You stay right here."

"As you wish," Vilkas replied. His lips met hers in the darkness, and a burst of passion shot through her. She slid on top of him, unable to help herself. Her husband sucked in a breath as she started to kiss his neck. "You sure you want to do this now?"

Did she? It sure as Oblivion felt like she did. Perhaps that's just what it was. A feeling. The wolf wanted her too.

With a disappointed sigh, she rolled off of him. "No, I guess not."

Vilkas's arms wrapped around her, and he pulled her into his chest. "Maybe when we've had a good night's rest, eh?" he suggested.

"Good plan," Cry responded, eyes closing.