When Ulfric had not returned by the next night, Elenwen assumed he wasn't coming back. His pride wouldn't let him stay away for another week before returning. Whether he understood it or not, Elenwen had set the terms. Either come back the next day or don't come back at all.

It was fitting, she supposed. Hadn't she rejected him three decades ago? Sent him away when he wanted to be with her? When she had wanted to be with him?

She had secretly hoped that Ulfric could see how much she still wanted him. That the flirtations weren't just to drive him to distraction. It was too much to hope for. It had been too long, and his anger had too long to grow.

"I'm such an idiot," she muttered as she leaned her head back against the windowsill. The elf was sitting on the ledge as she watched the night sky. Skyrim didn't have much, but the winter lights were beautiful with the flickering colors in the sky. Sometimes she thought that's where all the color had leaked to.

The dress she was currently wearing was supposed to have been inspired by it. The bodice was a deep satin blue while the skirt was made of strips of many colors, its own rainbow. Elenwen knew it was gaudy by even Aldmeri standards, but as with all her clothes she had assumed she would never truly wear it and had bought it because it had pleased her.

"So stupid," she grumbled as she ran her fingers over the soft material. "Why would I think he would remember any of the good times? Why would I even hope he would have seen how I really felt instead of the mask I had to wear?"

Thirty years was a lifetime for a human. Their memories faded like the colors on a dress left in the sun. She knew that, but part of her had always felt Ulfric had an old soul. He had seemed so much older than his years that he hadn't seemed completely human. That damn Greybeard training had fooled her. His stoicism and patience had been byproducts of their training, not because he was anything other than a short-sighted human.

"Damn, and now I'm talking out loud to myself," Elenwen complained as she lifted the bottle of wine to her lips. A few drops came out, but otherwise it was empty. "Oh, that's right. It's because I've been drinking all night."

Sometime in the evening she had decided that if she was going to be stuck alone in this damn castle, then she would make the time pass as quickly as possible by being numb the whole time. There was an entire room full of the stuff, and she was going to do her damn best to empty it before she left.

She had started out with filling a glass like a normal person, but about halfway through the bottle she had decided it was easier to simply drink directly from it. Then she had decided to climb onto the windowsill so she could watch the ocean until the sun set. And now here she was watching the lonely night sky with an empty bottle of wine in her hands.

She tossed the bottle out the window. The amber glass tumbled end over end as it fell to the ocean below. Elenwen strained to see if she could see it crash into the water, but it disappeared from her sight long before.

The elf shivered as a cold ocean breeze picked up, ruffling her hair and dress. Her skirt flared out around her legs, temporarily blinding her with a cascade of colors. She shook her head. This was ridiculous. She needed something to do. She always did better when she was occupied.

Writing had become difficult. Her quills had broken, and she doubted she would get any more. Elenwen eyed the seagull's nest that was about ten feet from her ledge. She had managed to get a few feathers before, but that had been when she had her warm Thalmor robes and during the day.

She giggled as she stepped onto the outer ledge. She could just hop over and get a few more. Then she could write in her journal. Part of her brain, the part not pickled by wine, screamed that this was a stupid idea and that she should just go climb into her bed and go to sleep. The rest of her brain, overtaken by alcohol hours ago, said this was the most interesting thing to happen in days and she should definitely go for it.

Elenwen hugged the wall as she slid one foot carefully after the other over the ledge. All she had to do was get to the edge of the window sill and reach out to the nest. It was a bit of a stretch, but she had managed well enough last time.

The wind buffeted against her, making her body rock with the force of it. Her skirts, longer and looser than her robes, flew up, obscuring her sight again. She cursed as she almost lost her balance. Her right foot flew up, and her shoe fell off. It disappeared to join the wine bottle below.

She cursed again. This would be so much easier if she had her magic. Everything was so much easier with her magic. By Oblivion, if she had her magic, she would risk trying to scale down the seaside cliff the Blue Palace perched on. But she didn't. That bastard Ulfric had stolen it from her.

Well, she'd prove to him that she didn't have to have her magic. It was a tool. Useful and better than just her hands, but if her hands were all she had, then she'd accomplish anything using them.

Her feet were on the edge of the ledge. The cold stone was freezing her right foot without the protection of her shoe. Her left hand scraped against the hard stone wall as her right hand reached for the nest.

"Just a little more. Just a little more."

She lurched forward and gave a triumphant yell when she touched a feather. Her yell turned into one of terror as she kept falling forward, her hand brushing the nest with no purchase. She was going to fall to her doom along with her shoe and wine bottle. She only had time for the thought that she would never see Naule again.

"Ellie!"

Then a strong hand gripped her left wrist. As gravity took her full weight, she was swung in a clocklike pendulum. The free fall sensation left her breathless. When she reached the full arc, she was jerked back through the window and into her room.

"What in Oblivion were you thinking?!" Ulfric yelled. He had been the one to save her from dying! He had come after all.

"I needed a quill!" she wailed. Elenwen started crying as she threw herself into Ulfric's arms and buried her face in his wolf skin cloak. "I wanted to write in my journal, and I need a quill!"

"By Talos, I can't understand half of what you're saying," Ulfric muttered. Elenwen realized he had been hugging her when he took his hands away to brush back her hair. He cupped her face with his hands."You're a mess." He grimaced. "And you smell like a distillery."

"I needed a quill," she repeated with a sniffle.

"In the future, if you need anything, just ask me," Ulfric sighed. "I can't have you falling to your death because you want a quill."

"Because you need my ransom money."

"Yes," he said softly. He dropped his hands. "Of course. That's the reason."

Elenwen looked down and saw a stones board with the pieces scattered everywhere on the floor. "You made a mess."

"I did, because of you." Ulfric chuckled as he escorted Elenwen to her bed. "I was going to play with you like you suggested, but it looks like I got here too late."

"Not too late."

"No, I suppose not. Thankfully." He tucked her into bed. As he loomed over her, she couldn't help but notice how shiny his blue eyes were. "Don't scare me like that. If we're going to try this truce, you can't be doing things like that."

Elenwen yawned, suddenly tired. "Don't make me wait so long next time." She closed her eyes and fell asleep before she could hear Ulfric's reply.

The next month passed quietly in the Pelagius Hall. Ulfric would visit for an hour a day, usually in the late evening. He and Elenwen would usually play some board game filled with apparent meaningless talk, although he was always on guard to analyze for hidden meaning.

True to her word, Elenwen no longer actively antagonized him, but Ulfric could never shake the feeling that she was prodding for information from him. Although it was impossible for him to tell. She always had an inquisitive nature about her. Whether from years of being a torturer or it was her natural nature, he wasn't sure.

One day Ulfric accidentally shook Elenwen with a question. They were playing stones when he asked, "How are Lil and Calen?"

"You remember them?" Elenwen put down the piece she was about to move so she could regard Ulfric.

"Well, yes," Ulfric snorted. "I didn't personally meet very many people when I… lived with you. And they were kind to me. At least Lil was. I think Calen was jealous of me, afraid I was stealing what little attention he might have gotten from you."

"I suppose that was fair," Elenwen sighed. "You have to remember that they're adults now. Calen came of age about five or seven years ago. I was never close with them. Lil writes about four times a year, but I'm not sure what Calen is up to. Probably Thalmor Justiciar training unless he decided he wasn't cut out for it."

"Oh, that's right, you consider males lesser too, don't you?" Ulfric asked. He tried to suppress a feeling of jealousy. "Well, maybe when you're released you could go back to Alinor and finally have a daughter. I'm sure Ancarion would be more than happy to help you with that particular problem. At least it would get you out of my hair for a few years."

"That's mean and unfair, Ulfric Stormcloak," Elenwen said softly. She fiddled with her white stone, twirling it over the knuckles of her right hand.

"Are you saying the image of you bouncing a fat baby girl on your knee doesn't make you wistful?" Ulfric pushed. He was thinking thinking of said image, instead he was remembering Ancarion's smug expression and how the male elf used to try to insinuate himself into favorable positions while scraping for Elenwen's family's favor. "I remember how you regretted being burdened with only male children."

"Ulfric, that's enough."

"You could finally see your beautiful islands again. I know it's been at least fifty years if not longer. Even that's some time for an elf. You could wear all of your useless clothes, host your frivolous parties, and lord how much better you are over everyone again. I can't imagine you not missing your lap dog mate. I know how you randomly end up sharing his bed!"

"That's enough!" Elenwen placed her piece upside down on the board indicating she forfeited. She stood up slowly. "I'll have you know that Ancarion has been on mission on the island of Solstheim for the last ten or fifteen years. And even if he was available, I have absolutely no interest in him or having any more children with him. I'm quite happy with the ones I have."

"I wouldn't have known from the way you act," Ulfric said.

"Jealousy doesn't suit you, darling," Elenwen said. "At the very least admit to it if you're going to be making an ass of yourself."

"I am not jealous!"

"Really?" Elenwen arched her eyebrow. "I wouldn't have known from the way you act."

"If I was jealous, I would have asked you who 'Naule' was," Ulfric snapped.

"How do you know that name?"

"I saw it in your book." Ulfric gestured to the bookshelf where Elenwen stored her journals when he was visiting. "It's a salutation on every couple of pages." He raised his voice into a high falsetto. "'My dear Naule.'"

"How can you even read it? It's in Elven!" Elenwen demanded.

"I picked up a few things over the years," Ulfric admitted. "I can't read much, but knowing your enemy's' language is only useful."

"It doesn't even matter!" Elenwen snapped. "It's my private diary. You can't just read it because you feel like it!"

"Actually, I can," Ulfric chortled. "You're my prisoner after all." He waggled his finger at her. "And you're avoiding my question. Who is Naule?"

"She's my aide."

"Just your aide? Nothing more? Because that's an awful long letter for a simple aide," Ulfric sneered. "Was she your lover before you were captured?"

"Don't be disgusting, Ulfric." Elenwen walked over to the bookshelf and picked up the journal. She hugged it as if she could somehow keep Ulfric from reading anything else in it.

"By Talos, she is!" He had never imagined Elenwen as anything than heterosexual, but the Altmer had weird ideas about gender. Who knew what they considered normal between women?

"I think I'm going to vomit," Elenwen complained. "Please stop talking."

"Just tell me the truth. Why can't you just speak plainly?" Ulfric urged.

"Because I'm a horrible person who tells no one anything, least of all the utter truth," Elenwen sniped. "Don't you remember?"

"Whatever," Ulfric growled. He stood up. "Be that way. It's time for me to leave anyway."

As much as Ulfric tried, he couldn't let the matter drop. At least privately. He didn't try to get Elenwen to talk about Naule anymore. That woman was stubborn about not talking about something when she got a mind to.

Not that it really mattered. It really wasn't any of Ulfric's business who Elenwen bedded. It was already late Frostfall. Surely by Sun's Dusk she would be gone on some boat headed south. Any later and she would be stuck here because of the snow. Her people would want her back before spring. It wasn't profitable for them to cut it too close to the deadline.

"You seem deep in thought, Jarl Stormcloak," Elisif said, breaking into his thoughts. She was sitting stiffly on her throne as usual. The formal way she addressed him reminded him of Elenwen when she was teasing him. How could two women make the same two words sound so different?

"Just wondering when you're going to give me an answer to my question, Lady Elisif," he responded, referring to the wedding proposal Galmar had orchestrated with Falk Firebeard. "You've kept me waiting almost two months now about the matter."

"I'm still considering," she grumbled. "I'm sorry to keep you hanging. I know there are plenty of good reasons to agree, but none of them feel right."

"Take your time. I just ask that you don't wait too long." Ulfric wasn't too worried about Elisif's eventual commitment. She would fold on this matter as she had on all other matters. None of her advisors, except maybe Sybille Stentor, opposed him. Even if the Breton sorceress had any negative thoughts about the Stormcloak reign in Solitude, she wisely kept it to herself. In the mean time, the second Elisif agreed, he would don an amulet of Mara, propose to her, and be married within the week. It would be a proper Nordic wedding - quick in both turnaround and execution. There would be none of that ridiculous Imperial trappings Elisif seemed mired in.

The only snag as far as Ulfric was concerned was the wedding night. There was no way he was sleeping with her. Maybe side by side to fulfill any necessary legal requirements, but he absolutely would not have sex with her. It would feel too much like rape. She might agree to marry him for political reasons, but her hate for him made anything physical between them wrong.

In the meantime he would be nothing but kind and gentle with her. He personally didn't care if she saw him as an evil warlord, but it would make her doubt her ability to say no if he was well loved by the court. Meanwhile, the continued aid to the people of Solitude from his army would make him just as well loved by the people. If he could secure the support of the bards, who notoriously had stayed neutral during the actual war, then the path was secure.

"Jarl Ulfric," Thane Erikur said, "we were hoping you would join us for a short recess outside. It's lovely today, and we all know these warm days are numbered until summer. Let us sit in the sun while we can before we're all locked inside for the long winter nights."

"It would be my pleasure," Ulfric smiled. "Maybe we can even manage to eat dinner on the porch. I'm sure we can get a few mage lights set up by the bards who perform for the evening meal."

"That sounds delightful!" Erikur laughed. "I admit I'm surprised by your poetic ways, jarl. I would have imagined anyone who grew up with the Greybeards or came from Windhelm would be nothing but dour."

"I like to think of myself as the most complicated simple man you've ever met," Ulfric responded with a chuckle. He turned to Elisif. "Lady, will you be joining us?"

"No thank you," she said. "I have no time. I must take petitioners' requests."

"Oh Elisif, we all know Falk Firebeard can more easily do that than you," Erikur cooed. "Join us! It'll be good for you and Jarl Ulfric to get to know each other better." It seemed the rumor about Ulfric and Elisif's possible marriage were starting to circulate. Good, it was as Ulfric had hoped.

Elisif scowled. "All in good time, Thane Erikur. I have my duties to attend to. I do not wish to shirk them."

"Not now with you watching," Erikur said so only Ulfric would hear. He raised his voice. "Well, if you change your mind, you're more than welcome to join us." He took Ulfric's arm and lead him outside. "You must simply try this Redguard wine that came in on my most recent shipment. It's divine!"

Ulfric was feeling good that evening when he visited the Pelagius Wing. Better than good really. He had spent a beautiful late autumn day among his peers while drinking and boasting-the best Nordic activities. Erikur had been true to his word about the quality of the wine that was provided. And it never stopped flowing, a luxury during this time of war.

Even Galmar, old gruff protector, had drank a bit. After all, who was going to attack them now? Winter was on the horizon; they were protected by water and stone until the snows came. The Thalmor were, at least for now, evicted from Skyrim. Most of the prisoners had been ransomed home, and the money was being used to help make homes for those who had lost theirs during the fighting.

During the spring Ulfric would be crowned High King, and one of his first acts would be to send out seed to all the farmers who had lost their crops during the war. Well, after officially restoring the worship of Talos and seceding from the Empire of course.

But everything in due course. Ulfric would help his people see that they were not simple, backwater country folk who were to be looked down upon by the rest of the world. They were warriors and creators of fine traditions. And he would be the one to bring Skyrim back to the glory she deserved.

Ulfric's good mood was disrupted as he stepped into Elenwen's room. It was dark in there, which was unusual. Usually, the elf kept the room well lit with several candles and a built-up fire. Tonight, the fire was burned down low, almost to embers. Elenwen was standing in front of the fireplace with her back to him.

Despite it having been a lifetime, Ulfric knew that posture. It was how Elenwen stood when she was mad about something. Stiff back, hands clenched at the side. But what could possibly have her so angry? Ulfric's visits were never punctual by any schedule, and Elenwen had never complained or given any hint of being put out by the irregularity. She understood the demands of courtly life better than anyone else he knew.

She must have heard him because she whirled around to face him. The look of rage on her face was enough to make most men wilt. Ulfric had never known her to show her emotions so rawly.

"Is it true?" she demanded.

"Is what true?"

"That you're going to marry that mewling, soft spined milkdrinker!" Elenwen spat. "Is it true?"

"How did you know?" Ulfric sputtered. "Has someone been up here? Who?"

"It doesn't matter how I know!" Elenwen stalked over and reached into Ulfric's shirt before he could stop her. She pulled out the amulet of Mara he had been wearing in preparation of Elisif's agreement. "I honestly thought you were wearing your father's amulet of Talos so I couldn't see it. I thought you would want it close, but didn't want me to know that you cared. Instead I find that you're wearing this piece of trash so you can catch a trash wife."

"Why do you even care?" Ulfric snapped. He tried to move away from Elenwen so she would drop the amulet, but she held it too tight forcing him to stand uncomfortably close to her. "Can't stand the thought of your pet actually getting away from you? Did you have some grand delusion that I wasn't married because I pined after you?"

"I just figured you to have better standards," Elenwen sneered. She finally released the necklace by slamming it back against his chest. "I guess I should have known that you would want to rut with her. After all, every Nord sighs about how beautiful she is, how desirable. Is that the real reason you killed Torygg? So you could have a chance to make her your own instead of having to settle for second best like everyone else?"

"How dare you?! You know that's not true!" Ulfric had known there were some who whispered that rumor, but he never would have imagined that Elenwen of all people would have believed it.

"She's half your age, Ulfric. "Gods, she's younger than-" She seemed to catch herself. "She's young enough to be your daughter. Are you some sort of sick pervert that you want a girl that young?"

"You'd know, wouldn't you?" Ulfric threw back at her. "After all, I am younger than your youngest son. That didn't seem to stop you from using me however you see fit. If you like, I'll tell you every sordid detail of my wedding night."

"Good! I hope you do. That way I can tell you what you're doing wrong in the hopes that poor girl will at least be able to enjoy some sort of martial bliss since she hates you with her very core."

"Aren't you the one always spouting how hate is just misplaced passion?" Ulfric laughed. "Maybe she's been pining for me the whole time, but can't admit it since she's afraid of her reputation being stained. Maybe this will give her a chance to finally be free enough to be happy instead of just a little puppet for the Imperials!"

"I hope you're right! I hope she really does secretly love you. You deserve her with her thin hips and small breasts. She might be gorgeous by Nord standards, but by Aldmeri standards she's nothing but a cow." Elenwen laughed bitterly. "I guess you were just trying to find a new Ellie all this time. Well, congratulations. You have one."

Ulfric couldn't breathe. Elenwen couldn't have hurt him more if she had cracked his sternum open and pulled out his still beating heart. How dare she? How dare she! More importantly how could she? That name had been what had made him finally speak to her. It had been their shared private name.

His vision filled with red, and he was shaking so hard he couldn't even speak. Elenwen had made it very clear earlier than any lovers she might have were none of his business. Why was she so hateful to find out that he was obviously marrying Elisif for political reasons?

Fury washed over him like a tidal wave. Growing up as a pacifist monk, Ulfric had rarely been in a position to feel anger. And his training had been primarily learning how to control his Voice, and as an added result he had mostly mastered his emotions. He rarely ever did something without first thinking it through from all angles, favoring on the side of caution for the best results.

But when his hand raised, Ulfric felt like he was watching someone else. All the emotions of hurt, anger, and some undefinable jealousy washed over him in a matter of seconds before he slapped Elenwen hard enough to make her fall to one knee.

"You don't get to mock that name," he said coldly. It felt like someone else was talking.

Elenwen laughed bitterly as she wiped her hand over her mouth. "Well, it looks like you still have a bit of a spine after all. It's good to see that much has remained." She stood up, towering over him. It was impossible to forget Elenwen was a head taller than Ulfric, but right now it felt like she was ten feet tall as she loomed over him, deadly intent clear on her face. It didn't matter that she was wearing a dress more suitable on the beach than Skyrim, Elenwen was scary. "But you don't get to hit me. Ever."

The Thalmor Justiciar slapped Ulfric back, using all of her strength behind the blow. Elenwen might be missing her magic, but that didn't mean she wasn't physically fit. In fact, Ulfric knew personally how strong Elenwen was. And she definitely wasn't holding back.

"No, you don't get to hit me ever again," Ulfric spat a mouthful of blood on the floor. He slapped her again, hoping to knock her completely off her feet this time.

Unfortunately, the elf was prepared for the attack this time, so she did not lose her footing. She clenched her fist. "You just don't get it, do you? You're mine. You'll always be mine. I'd rather die than see you with a toddler like Elisif. I suppose you've gone too long without any training, and I need to rectify that."

Before Ulfric could react, Elenwen rabbit punched him in the neck, making it impossible for him to Shout. She reared back to punch him in the torso, but he managed to grab her wrist in time despite sputtered for air. Using the momentum of her attack, he flipped over over his hip so that she crashed to the ground on her back.

Elenwen might have decades of torturing experience over him, but she was used to having her magic supplement her strikes in combat. There was the barest second of hesitation as she tried to summon her magic. It was as if she had lost one of her senses and had to fight blind or deaf. She used to have Ulfric at her mercy once, but now he had the upper hand, and he planned on using it to his advantage.

The Nord stomped Elenwen three times in the stomach, hoping to stun her. Despite making direct contact on her solar plexus, she didn't even flinch. Instead, she spun around on her back and slammed both of her heels into Ulfric. He was only grateful that she was wearing her Thalmor boots today and not those heeled atrocities she had been wearing lately.

"You're nothing without me, Ulfric," Elenwen snarled. She kipped up and delivered a back handed slap. "I made you. Every step of your journey, I've been there. Watching you, directing you, controlling you. You think you're in charge, but you've never been anything but a pawn. And I'll be dead in the ground before I let Elisif have you."

Ulfric wanted to deny that he was hers. He wasn't her pet, he wasn't her puppet. He was his own man, following his own destiny. But he still couldn't talk from the punch to his throat. Elenwen continued to bombard him with accusations about how he was hers. He just wanted her to shut needed a moment to think.

He had no idea what to do, so he did the first thing that came to mind. He kissed her. Elenwen was in the middle of ranting something at him when he grabbed her on both sides of her head and pulled her close and kissed her as hard as he could.

It definitely shut her up. At least for a moment.

Instead of melting against him like he thought she would, Elenwen jerked away from him. Her face was red with anger. "Don't you dare kiss me now! I'm mad at you!"

"Shut up," Ulfric whispered, his throat still raw as he pulled her close again. He kissed her, this time focusing on how good she tasted instead of just trying to quiet her. "Just please shut up."

Rather than pull away, Elenwen returned his kiss, hungry and eager. But it didn't stop her from hitting him repeatedly on the chest, making a furious staccato rhythm. When he grabbed her wrists to stop her, they fell in a tangle on the ground. Somehow Ulfric rolled on top of Elenwen, his hands buried in her hair.

"Ulfric, Ulfric, what are you doing?" Elenwen asked. She sounded just as bewildered as he felt. Then her mouth was trapped by his again, and there was no time for talking.

With her hands free, Elenwen continued to hit Ulfric, her nails raking down his skin where she had slipped under his clothes. His wolfskin cloak had fallen off in the tumble, and his shirt was pulled open. There was a tugging at his pants string that didn't fully register until he felt his cock come free.

Then Elenwen's legs were wrapped around his waist, and he was thrusting into her. He moved from kissing her mouth to biting along her chin and neck. Elenwen bit him back, hard enough to break the skin. She chanted his name like a soft litany while her nails left rough tracks down his back. He grabbed her chin and pulled her mouth back to his, tasting the tang of blood on her lips.

Finally, that sweet moment of bliss came, and she screamed against his mouth as her body tightened under him. She trust her hips hard against him too many times to count before she collapsed bonelessly underneath.

Reason returned as Ulfric loomed breathlessly over Elenwen. Her hair was a wild fan around her head, her chin thrown back, her eyes closed as she panted. Scratches and the beginning of bruises covered her skin. Her torn dress barely hung on her body and drew attention to her sweat slick legs sticky with his own release.

Horrified, Ulfric jumped up and grabbed his cloak. He ran out of the room, ignoring Elenwen's call of his name. He flew through the abandoned hall, the echoes of his footfalls chasing him. When the door to the main court flew open, Galmar jumped to his feet, shocked by his jarl's upset expression.

"What happened?" the housecarl demanded.

There was no answer as Ulfric darted past him. He didn't stop running until he made it back to his quarters in Castle Dour. There he slammed the door shut and locked it, not even opening it when Galmar finally caught up to him and knocked on the door, demanding to know what had happened.

All he could do was fall against the wall, with his face buried in his hands. "What have I done?"