Ron woke with the grinning faces of his two best friends hovering over him.
"He's awake!" Hermione called. A human woman in a homely yellow robe appeared.
"How are you feeling?" She asked. Ron smiled.
"I don't know what you did to me, but I feel great! My leg feels brand new. Where am I?"
"You are in the Temple of Kynareth. We priestesses here are devoted to our Divine, and we heal the wounded here." The woman's voice was soft and kind.
"How long have I been here?" Ron asked.
"A few hours." The priestess replied.
Ron was incredulous. "Only that long! A broken leg usually takes ages to heal the Mug- I mean, normally it takes days, doesn't it?"
"We priestesses of Kynareth are skilled in healing magic." The priestess frowned at him, perplexed.
"Oh." Ron shrugged. He swung his legs over the bed and stood up. He felt strong and revived. His eyes sparkled as he remembered the dragon. He looked around, taking in the lavender in long pots, the priestesses tending to the wounded on beds like his, the arching ceiling, and the crystal clear water in a pool in the centre of the temple. Amdesa was leaning against a pillar.
"Hello Ron." She smiled at him.
"Hi Amdesa."
"Ready to go?" She asked them.
"Where? Why?" Hermione asked.
"I think it's time for you three to learn how to protect yourselves properly. So, I will show you what there is, and you can choose. Let's go outside." The trio followed Amdesa outside into a small square with a large, dead tree in the centre. They jogged down some steps into another square with some stalls. Amdesa stopped quickly and bought a slice of cheese and a loaf of bread. Then they turned and ran towards the gates. They passed through and turned right, walking towards the drawbridge. Instead of walking straight over, Amdesa crouched by the edge and jumped off.
"Come on." They heard her call. Hermione looked back at Harry, and shrugged. She swung down after Amdesa, and the boys heard a small splash as she landed. They leapt down, and once underneath, they watched as Amdesa took a key from a pocket and unlocked a wooden chest that was perched on a rock that kept it out of the small stream that ran under the drawbridge. She unlocked it and lovingly removed a smooth and polished wooden bow. She handed it to Harry.
"Be very careful with that." She warned him. He nodded seriously. She turned back to the chest and pulled out three books. She passed them to Hermione with another warning. Each book had the same symbol on the front, a flame with a circle inside it at the bottom. The whole thing reminded Hermione of a hand. The last item to be pulled out was a beautiful aquamarine and gold sword. It had an elegant and fluting hilt design that reminded Hermione of wings. Amdesa wrapped it in cloth and handed it carefully to Ron.
"Do not drop it. Be very careful." Ron solemnly nodded. They climbed onto the bridge, Amdesa last as she stopped to lock the chest. Outside the shadow of Whiterun, they found a small open and deserted space, and Amdesa sat down with them in a circle.
"These five weapons are what you have to choose from." She opened the cloth that had wrapped her sword and laid it down. She picked up the sword first.
"One handed sword. I thought that warhammers, axes, greatswords and shields are a bit heavy for you. The one handed sword is helpful, as if, say you are wounded while fighting, you can use a healing spell with the other hand. These swing faster than greatswords and heavy weapons, giving you more strokes and more intricate movements. However, you have to work hard to not leave any open spaces for your opponent, especially when thrusting." She showed them a few moves. She was very skilled.
"Next: Bow and arrows. These are good for when your opponent has an advantage over you, because if you have space and somewhere that they cannot see or reach you, you can just fill them with arrows." She drew an arrow, nocked it, drew the string and shot a mudcrab in the stream nearby in less than ten seconds. She smiled at their awed faces, and retrieved her arrow. "Unfortunately, it is less than useless for hand to hand fighting. If you really like bows, either have backup to occupy them while you shoot, or take another weapon with you." They nodded. She laid the bow back on the cloth next to the sword and drew one of her black daggers.
"I like a dagger. They are great for close fighting, but not really for anything else. Almost impossible to block with, so it is the weapon for the quick. It gives you great manoeuvrability. The dagger is quiet, light and deadly. Again, like the sword, you can use magicka at the same time." She smiled, and drew her other black dagger.
"Dual daggers; my personal favourite. Just like the first dagger, but you can attack with one and block with the other; feint one way, and stab the other. And, with something dumb or big, you can hack at something twice at the same time." She laid them on the cloth.
"Finally, magicka. You can find or buy these books in many places. You learn the spell from the book by reading it, which destroys the book. Go on, one each." The trio picked up a book each and opened them. They saw only a glimpse of the strange writing before the books turned to dust. "Okay, now hold out your hands like this." Amdesa held out her furred hand, giving them a lovely view of her sharp claws. They held out their hands. "Think of a flame. Then draw some energy from your soul, and project the image onto your palm." The Khajiit concentrated for a moment, and then a flame grew on her hand. Sparks crackled, but she was not hurt. Hermione was the next to gain a flame, and hers burnt even brighter than Amdesa's. Harry quickly followed, then Ron. Neither of them reached Hermione's brightness, however.
"This is so cool." Hermione murmured. Amdesa turned and aimed her flame at the grass.
"Try to push it forwards." She scorched the grass. Hermione quickly followed, and soon they could all aim spurts of fire. "It is not always fire, this is just one type of Destruction magic. There is Destruction, Conjuration, Alteration, Illusion, Enchanting and of course, Restoration. I will show you an example of each. You have seen Destruction." She threw a fireball into the air.
She pointed to an area near them, and a ghostly, see through dog appeared. It snarled, looking for enemies. She dismissed it. "Conjuration."
Next a ball of hovering light appeared near her head. "Alteration." She concentrated again. Suddenly, she disappeared. They started, looking around for her. A voice near Harry's ear said "Illusion." He jumped, and she chuckled before winking back into visibility. Her hand filled with a glowing, gentle light. She aimed it at Hermione, then Harry, then Ron. They each sighed as the magic infused them and they felt so comfortable, like they had just surfaced from a long and relaxed sleep.
"What about Enchanting?" Hermione asked. Amdesa picked up her daggers again. She passed them to the teenagers. "Do you see the red sheen on that one," She indicated to the dagger that Harry held, "And the white on that one?" Amdesa pointed to the one Hermione held. "Both these daggers are enchanted. The white is frost enchanted – as well as hurting more of the health of those I cut it with, it also eats at their stamina. The red is absorb health. It steals some of my target's health and sends it to me. Between the two, I can take down almost anything!"
Later, the trio tried out each weapon. Amdesa helped them on each, showing them how to hold, block, stab, draw, and aim. At lunch, they had some bread and cheese. By the time the sun started to set, each had chosen their weapon. None of them could draw the bow, so no one had chosen archery. As they walked back, Amdesa turned to Harry. "What do you like?"
"The sword." He replied.
"Interesting. Ron?" She asked.
"I don't know… one dagger and Destruction?"
"Okay, but you should learn dagger before magic." Ron nodded, and Amdesa turned to Hermione.
"What do you want?"
"Magic." Hermione asked. "Just magic." Amdesa smiled.
"Tomorrow, I will find someone who can teach you your chosen weapons better than I. For now, we will stay at the Bannered Mare." They returned to Whiterun, Amdesa rented the four rooms and they collapsed, tired.