The dragon takes in the sight of Ria and I, then jerks his head backwards.
"Follow.". The gigantic male turns around and slides deeper into the woods. As we walk I shake my head at him. Tremendous prints are in the soft ground, his size is pushing aside ancient trees, and his scales are ripping off bark on the trees he doesn't push out of the way. I weakly attempt to cover up our tracks by kicking his prints away, but eventually the task becomes too much and I leave it be.
Hopefully, Odahviing has a plan to get rid of his trail once we reach our new home. Our new home is, unfortunately, a figurative pile of shit. A large, shallow cave in the side of the mountain is all the dragon could find. The small rock outcrop will barely protect Odahviing from the weather; we're on the ground where anybody or anything can reach us; and we aren't hidden in the slightest. I shake my head and ask my companion an obvious question.
"Is this the best you could possible do?". I hear a deep growl and turn to see Odahviing doing his best to glare at me.
"Nowhere in all of Skyrim is going to be as good as what we had, so I'd suggest you quiet down unless you wish to go find something.". I turn my gaze to my feet and remain silent.
"That's what I thought.". Odahviing slides into the tiny cave and motions for us to take shelter underneath his wing.
I slide underneath the thin membrane of skin and begin trying to soften the cave floor a little. My claws scratch the ground and dig up a little rock, but when I lie down the floor is still unforgiving. Ria cautiously comes over and slides down into a sitting position beside me before speaking.
"What now?". I close my eyes as Odahviing closes his wing around us and rests his head.
"We rest. We can think more about our problem once we've all caught up on lost sleep.". For a few minutes silence fills the air. Then, Ria interrupts my attempt at resting.
"Do you imagine there's a river nearby?". I shrug and try to ignore the woman in favor of getting some rest before we head out again.
"I'll go scout later. A good bath will do us all fine.". Instantly, I crush her dreams.
"Negative. You're still a risk to us. You could possible reveal our location or tell someone where we are.". My scaly 'friend' chimes in.
"She couldn't do it any better than you.". My face burns and I find it hard to breathe. I'm still fuming when Ria says something unexpected.
"You need to stop bringing that up. Reminding her of what she did won't get you two the mountain back. Just move on and try to think of the future.". A deep grumbling from Odahviing before he magically falls asleep in less than two seconds. Coincidentally, he doesn't have to talk anymore. I likewise remain silent. The Imperial stood up for me. Well, kind of. She basically told Odahviing to stop acting like a child and not to keep poking at me. It's not much, but it's something. A small amount of respect starts to build for the woman. However, she quickly dashes it.
"You and I can both go to find the river if you want. Don't you think a bath would be nice?". I haven't taken a bath, clipped my claws, cleaned my teeth, or shaved my pelt in over a year because we've been hiding. Starting now would just make me get use to being clean again.
"No.". Suddenly, fingers begin working their way into my pelt. I hold back a scream of fright, but I do begin trying to yank myself away from Ria. I'm a few inches away when her fingers get caught in my matted pelt and a chunk of my fur is pulled on. I sharply inhale at the sudden twinge of pain, then stop fighting. Apparently, Ria only grabbed my fur to prove a point.
"See? You need to clean yourself up, or you're going to get a skin infection.". I scoff at her logic.
"Skin infections aren't real.". A deep rumbling noise from Odahviing.
"What are you blabbering about? Skin infections are real. Animals that catch them usually die. It's called mange.". My entire body seems to tense up. Well, looks like I'm the stupidest person in the cave. I risk being deemed 'stupid' once more by asking Ria a question.
"Can I catch mange?". Ria gently removes her fingers from my pelt while answering my question.
"Yes. Anyone can catch mange. Have you felt anything crawling on you?". I shrug and Ria continues.
"Mites aren't too big, so that's not a surprise. Have you been itching?". I nod and she tries yanking me up.
"You're either itchy because of mites or because you're dirty. Either way, a bath is the solution.". With a sinking feeling, I realize the woman wants me to bathe for her own selfish reasons. She doesn't want to be around me while I stink. I push myself up and lightly shove the woman away.
"Don't follow me. I'll find the damned river myself and you can take a bath when I get back.". I storm past the woman, yank myself out from underneath Odahviing's wing, and walk in a general direction. I have no idea where water would be, but I'll sure as oblivion find the river before Ria. Namira must bless me because I find the stream soon enough. Technically, it's against my religious beliefs to bathe, but I know Ria (and by extension Odahviing) won't tolerate me for long while I smell this way. Besides, Namira would most likely prefer me alive and clean than dead and dirty. I begin taking off my pelts and preparing for a long, uncomfortable bath.
Ria POV:
I take in a deep breath of clean air the second the Khajiit is gone. Being in a cramped space with no air flow quickly got tiresome. I'm still sucking in air when Odahviing sticks his head under his wing. I smile as he turns his skull in order for one of his eyes to 'face' me.
"You need to go with her.". I don't even have the chance to ask 'why' before he keeps speaking.
"I don't trust her by herself. She might end up screwing up again unless someone watches her. I'm too big to baby her, but you can follow her.". I'm about to argue when Odahviing removes his wing and uses his back leg to kick me out of the cave.
"Be quick. Every second she isn't watched is another second she could get in trouble.". I inwardly groan and begin tailing the woman. Watching the Khajiit bathe isn't a strong desire on mine; however, Odahviing has a point. The Khajiit seems to have a talent for finding trouble, so someone watching her probably wouldn't be that bad of an idea. I quickly find the river, but no Khajiit. I'm scanning the water and waiting for her to breach when I hear a low whimpering. My knife is quickly pulled from my boot as I sneak through the underbrush. I find the source of the whimpering fairly quickly. The Khajiit is sitting down and thrashing violently. It quickly becomes clear what's causing the problem.
Her matted, filthy pelt is snagged on her clothing. Well, some of it. She's been able to remove her boots, pants, shirt, wristband, and underwear just fine. It's five tremendous necklaces made out of bones that are caught on her. I stand up and examine what's causing the problem. A large animal's tooth, three thin claws, and a jawbone are all wrapped in fur. It appears the Khajiit was wearing the necklaces underneath her clothing. Most likely the fur grew around the necklaces, or her daily movement and activities tangled her fur to it. I watch for about a minute before the Khajiit gives up and flops to the ground.
No sobbing; no screaming; and no reaction whatsoever. The Dovahkiin simply lies there on the ground in defeat. I know I'm going to regret it, but I step out into the clearing and walk over to her. The Khajiit doesn't even bother looking at me. Slowly, I kneel down beside her and gently place my knife on her back. No reaction. I use my free hand to take a matted piece of fur in my hand and begin moving it back and forth. The knot goes all the way down to the skin. I grab some fur that's tangled around the jawbone. Carefully, I cut the fur like I would carpet. A small square around the jawbone is carved. Once again, I carefully tug the fur up a little. Finally, I put my knife underneath the edge of the square and cut the remaining fur away.
Now the jawbone has a large chunk of matted fur connected to it, but it's free. I repeat the process with her other bones, the carefully remove the necklaces. The woman doesn't help in the slightest. In fact, she sits there like she's dead until I remove the final necklace. For a brief second she remains sitting. Then, she's in the water before I even know what's going on. I watch the giant disappear under the water and instantly pity her. Her fur's so tangled and matted that it's going to be a bitch to comb through. Suddenly, I realize the rancid smell from the Khajiit hasn't left my presence.
I look down at the pile of bones in my hands and cringe. Meat, fur (both animal and Khajiit), sinew, and fat are still clinging to some of the bones. I'm honestly surprised flies and maggots haven't begun to gather. The mess of gnawed, twisted, and dirty yellow bone is causing my skin to crawl. I quickly walk over to the lazily moving river and tie the necklaces around some rocks. I smile in satisfaction as the current wipes away the remaining 'animal' part that's stuck to the bone. Then, a mass of wet fur surfaces beside me. The Khajiit is grimacing in pain and I can clearly see why. Her wet, matted fur is weighing her down and constricting her movements. I don't even think about anything in particular as I rush to help her out of the water.
The woman briefly shoots me a glare, but allows me to heave her out of the water. Neither of us talk, but I begin helping. 'Helping' means beginning to hack off huge swatches of her fur. The woman's pelt comes off in great strips that hold together like a rug. Occasionally, I'll be too aggressive and end up nicking her. The Dovahkiin never says anything, but violently jerks each time I graze her flesh. Finally, I'm freed her knees, armpits, neck area, and hips. I'm about to stop when the woman looks at me and cocks her head.
"Aren't you going to help?". I go to pass the dagger to her, but her tremendous claws make her unable to hold it. The woman is still covered in a thick pelt that'll continue collecting dirt, smell disgusting, and make it easier for the Dovahkiin to (obviously) get extremely sick. She can't free herself and I'm the only one around who even knows she's alive. I'm the only one who can help her look like a Khajiit again instead of a monster. Briefly, doubt crosses my mind. Then, the thought of her in pain overrules my doubts and I set to work. I can only hope she appreciates it.