Disclaimer: I own nothing from Elder Scrolls V Skyrim, the characters from the awesome mod Skyrim Romance by Maralightfeather, or any other mod-related content referred to in this story. This is purely fan-made and I only claim ownership of the character I'm playing as created in-game.

Note: Just a quick note, the follower I used for the upcoming character in this chapter -at least visually if you're checking out the screenshot version on Skyrim Romance's main website- comes from Shadowfake's Follower mod. It took me awhile to settle on which non-custom follower I'd use for this character, and by non-custom I mean he doesn't have a quest, custom voice actor, or anything to him aside from his outward appearance. Simply put he's like a blank slate. I give full credit for the actual follower to its rightful owner and hope it's ok that I'm using him to represent someone in my story.

Chapter 10: Far From Home

Laying on the bed in the storage room Noir's half-laden eyes staring unfocused at the wall beside her until some decorative feathers caught her attention. They reminded her of those distant days when she used to weave feathers into her hair. It was such a long time ago, but maybe since Noir was thinking about telling Bishop more about her past too those memories surfaced to the forefront of her mind.

Especially the memory of that man. The one who stole Noir from her home. The man that was even now, hunting her...

Since it was so long ago the memories of her actual capture was blurred, though perhaps that was largely due to the drugs they'd given Noir to prevent her from using magic to try and escape. One day, Noir was minding her own business when suddenly someone grabbed her from behind and some sort of metallic potion was forced down her throat. Noir tried to scream for help but strong hands kept her immobile, waiting for the drugs to start working as she thrashed and tried to bite them.

When the potion finally took effect Noir felt horribly cold and weak, like she was drowning, then everything went black. There were a few sparse memories in between her brief moments of consciousness such as the sound of several taunting voices boasting about how easy subduing her was and wondering how much much gold they'd get off of her as she lie curled up in an iron cage, then there was the scent of dust and mold as a carriage brought her to the nearest port, and finally, there was the rocking of a ship that spirited Noir all the way across the sea far from her home. A home to which Noir hasn't seen since, nor her aunt or the rest of the tribe so she could only wonder who among them could betray her like this when she did nothing wrong.

A few days must have passed before Noir finally became lucid enough to comprehend her situation. She was locked in a small cell next to another stranger in rags who stared at her curiously but otherwise remained silent, keeping to himself. Food was left for her but Noir didn't trust any of it. Not after her captors force fed her whenever the drugs wore off. After all, it was a long journey from that end of Elsweyr to the sea and they didn't want to risk letting Noir escape.

Eventually though, hunger won out and Noir tried nibbling on a piece of bread to test it and when it seemed alright she finished the rest. It was cold, but not dry or crusty as expected so it must have been baked recently and brought to her cell. Still, Noir was scared out of her mind. None of her aunt's training could have prepared Noir for this. Sure she knew how to pick a lock but what then? They were on a ship and who knows how far out at see they were now or how long she'd been out. All there was left to do, was wait and pray to the Divines that they returned to land soon so Noir could get her bearings again.

Despair set in when Noir sensed someone with strong magic coming closer to where she was being kept. She didn't dare look up to see who the presence belonged to until they came to a halt before her cell door. It was a dark elf mage wearing a dark ash gray -and rather expensive looking- silk hood and robes, fingerless gloves, and golden beads woven into his long groomed beard. And like many dark elves, his eyes shone like rubies in the darkness or a scarlet moon as they peered down coldly at the frightened girl...

"So you're the magically gifted Khajiit girl I've been told so much about? Hmm, I was expecting someone much older. Not a mere child. But no matter. Come here," he ordered, waving a hand towards himself. "Let me take a closer look."

And in response Noir shrunk back from them, shaking her head, "Noir does not want to. She wants to go home..."

"I'm afraid that is no longer an option. Now come here," the mage asked again a bit more forcefully.

Mustering up a little courage, Noir asked him, "Who...are you? Why is Noir here? D-did you hurt her clan mates?"

His face hardening into a hard steely glare, the mage replied, "If you want answers then I suggest you act a little more cooperatively. I will not ask you again. Come here."

Biting her lip, Noir finally nodded upon realizing she had no choice and rose to her feet, swaying a bit since her legs had fallen asleep from being curled up to her chest for so long. Then nervously Noir edged towards the stranger. She could tell he was appraising her with every tentative step she took, taking in every detail down from her sleek black fur, the tribal dress she wore with a sleeveless red top and sandy yellow tasseled skirt, up to her strikingly human face with shining amber eyes and folded ears, each with a white patch on the back of them, and the long black braid she wore her hair in with bird feathers woven in.

Swallowing hard once Noir was face to face with him she spoke again, "Well, here I am. Now what do you want with this one?"

"Your manner of speech will need to be corrected first I see," the mage muttered under his breath and her ears twitched, having caught every word. Realizing this, he straightened himself up proudly, like some kind of lord, and put both hands behind his back before he replied. "My name is Galius and to answer your earlier question no, I did nothing to that trivial little tribe of yours. The simple fact is that you've been betrayed. Someone from that very clan sold you to me and as of this moment you are my property. Your life, your future, everything belongs to me now. I heard rumors of your unique gifts and was the first to inquire after the rarely colored Khajiit being sold on the black market, with fur as black as the Void itself. You should be thankful my dear that it was I who bought you and not some ne'er do well who didn't know about your other talents and merely wanted a pretty slave or a new pelt for their wall. Believe you me, I have seen and heard of some of the foulest things befalling your kind so consider this a mercy. For what I am interested in is your power. I could tell the moment I saw you that aside from your rarity as a sub-species of Khajiit that there was real untapped power buried within you. With training you could become a deadly weapon against my enemies. And with time you could grow into a fine companion as well. I do not mean this in a romantic sense of course, but merely as one who can fill the silence of my home and tend to the more mundane tasks of daily life. If you serve me well and willingly, you will earn privileges and some freedom. If you disobey however, there will be no second chances. You will become a test subject for my spells and nothing more. Are we clear?"

Fighting off tears, Noir nodded.

"Good. Then put those useless thoughts of home and rescue out of your mind. That place is no longer your home. I AM your home. I alone with provide your protection and means of survival from now on. And I alone will be the one to hunt you down should you attempt to run from me..." turning his back to her, Galius added, "We will be arriving shortly and I expect you to be on your best behavior..."

"Huh, I must have nodded off," Noir mused when she drifted back from her day dream only to realize it had become a full dream when she fell asleep in the middle of reminiscing.

It was still late, since moonlight could be seen peeking through small slivers in the roof and she sat upright. Now that she was calmer about it Noir realized she'd been acting quite childish and wanted to make it up to Bishop somehow. Thinking back on it now maybe it was obvious why Bishop turned Neeshka away. Bishop was probably only proving to her that he was a one woman man now and truly wasn't interested in anyone else. That being said Noir knew what she had to do to show him that she understood that now.

Peeking out of the storage room, Noir listened for any sounds of movement and was thankfully greeted only by soft breathing or the occasional snort and the crackling of the dying fire. After that, well, being a Khajiit had its perks and she silently lept up onto the banister and climbed over the railing onto the balcony where the two of them ate dinner before. Karnwyr of course smelled her and woke up, whining softly at her until Noir hushed him and scratched behind his ears until he practically fell over from leaning into her touch so much.

Smiling once he settled back down and seemed like he still trusted her Noir stood up and peered down at Bishop. He was undoubtedly fast asleep but something about his somewhat stiff posture told Noir he could wake at any time to address any threat to his life. She was once just like that, and at times still was, but it made her sad to think Bishop was still so tense.

Blushing a bit and testing her luck, Noir eased into the bed watching his face for any signs of waking. Little did she know he was already awake but kept his eyes closed to discern who was trying to have a moonlit tryst with him. If it was Neeshka again he swore to all the Divines he would cut that pretty face of hers until she finally got the message that he was taken. However, when a familiar brush of fur passed over his leg Bishop groaned.

"Karnwyr you damned mutt, how many times do I have to tell you? You can't sleep with me on the bed when we're at an actual inn. We're lucky they let you in at all with-" Bishop opened his eyes and stiffened with surprise when it was Noir's face there to greet him and not Karnwyr who was happily snoring away again.

"Hey, I thought you said he wasn't a pet?" Noir smiled, stifling a laugh. "So much for that cover story. It looks like you two DO cuddle a lot."

Bishop rolled his eyes, releasing his grip on the dagger under his pillow while the other hand came to a rest on her shoulder. "Speaking of cuddling...what brings you here Ladyship? I thought you were mad at me?"

Getting comfortable, Noir blushed, "I wasn't mad at you. I was mad at myself for acting like such a child. Before, back at your old home you told me you wanted me to be a part of your life, that you trusted me. And how did I repay you? I doubted your feelings for me when you let that woman cling to you like that and I didn't know what to think. I just wanted to get mad at SOMETHING other then myself and took out my frustration on you. So, I came here to tell you that...I'm sorry. And what's more, um, that room is really cold..."

Smirking, Bishop leaned forward and kissed her brow. "Apology accepted. And say no more, I'll keep you warm tonight. I guess...I'm sorry too. I forgot just how gullible you are."

Noir opened her mouth to correct him then thought better of it and let Bishop pull her close to his chest. Her heart instinctively began hammering hard against her chest because apart from them kissing she never let him this close to her. Or any man for that matter. It was a little nerve-wracking but nice. And his scent, oh that wonderful scent of the forest and the wilds, it was so easy to relax when that warmth enveloped her. Now she could only hope he was content with this since Noir wasn't quite ready for anything else. From here, it was now Noir's turn to show him her trust. And that would begin with showing him her home the next morning and once there...telling him the other reason she wanted his help from the moment they met.

"Hey Bishop?" Noir commented while they were packing up their gear and getting ready to head back out of the city.

"Uh oh, here comes trouble," Bishop grinned. "Something on your mind?"

Smiling secretively back at him, Noir asked, "How do you feel about surprises?"

Raising a skeptical eyebrow, Bishop scoffed, "Wasn't last night a surprise? I didn't take you for the kind of woman who enjoyed a good tryst. Then you had to go and chicken out on me. So much for being the oh-so-brave Dragonborn."

"Bishop..." Noir warned, her ears going flat against her head even as a blush rose to her cheeks at the memory of sleeping in his arms all night. "Don't make this weird. I'm trying to be serious here. Now then-" she perked up, smiling again mischievously, "-if you behave, maybe I'll share my surprise with you. Or we'll skip it for now and go back to our current fetch quest, your choice."

"Oh Ladyship you are asking for it!" Bishop laughed, taking his chances to tickle her sides a bit. He was in such a good mood after just enjoying her warmth and knowing she wasn't angry at him, just shy and jealous just as he suspected all along. And the fact that Noir was opening up to him, allowing him to touch her in any way besides just kissing was a victory in his eyes.

The sound of her laughter as Noir squealed and squirmed in his arms was music to his ears and he couldn't stop himself from laughing too. Meanwhile Karnwyr started feeling left out and pounced on them both, licking their faces before either of them could push him off. This was a small but precious thoughtless happy moment when they didn't have to worry about anything or anyone else. The world could wait. Bishop simply wanted this moment to last. A moment where Noir didn't have to look so worried or deep in thought about something. A moment where she was a beautiful woman who felt safe and content in the arms of a man who loved her. He wondered at times if she really understood that. They weren't just 'dating,' no, Bishop was going to make damned sure that Noir never ended up with any other man besides himself. They belonged with each other, and Bishop had never loved anyone so fiercely as her before, nor would he ever. And this all happened in such a short time to. But with life being what it was in Skyrim or anywhere else in the world, if you didn't strike while the iron was hot, one or both partners would wind up dead...

Ugh! He could take it anymore! Once Noir finally got Karnwyr to back off Bishop pulled her to him and kissed Noir with wild abandon. She flinched in surprise at first then melted in his arms. It wasn't until they were both out of breath that they parted, already tired before the morning even began.

"W-well then," Noir began, patting his broad chest with both hands and averting her gaze shyly. "I'll take that as a yes about making a little side trip?"

Bishop nodded, giving her sides one last playful squeeze before she scurried away. "Yeah, I'd do anything to get out of this stupid mission but you ARE the Dragonborn so this sort of thing comes with the territory." He sighed dramatically. "Mind if I meet you at the front gate? There's something I'd like to take care of before we leave. And before you ask, no I am not exterminating fleas. As tempting as it is to rid the world of that pest. There's some shopping I'd rather get done on my own and there's all the latest junk we've picked up that we keep forgetting to sell off. It's making my pack weigh a ton!"

"Alright alright I get the message," Noir snickered. "I'll try to curb my loot-every-corpse instinct from now on and only keep the stuff we can actually use. So sure, I'll meet you there. I've got something to take care of too. See you in a bit Bishop," giving him one last peck on the cheek, Noir skipped the door altogether and jumped down from the balcony, startling a few patrons. The female innkeeper gave Noir a look but she just shrugged with a smile, waved up at Bishop, then made her way outside.

But not before pausing and giving Neeshka a quizzical look when she heard her mutter bitterly, "You're lucky to have him! If I was you, I wouldn't let him slip through my fingers."

Not feeling obligated to respond, Noir left the inn, wondering where things were going to go between them from here on out...