A/N: thank you for viewing and reviewing it's very much appreciated! Here's to another chapter! *cheers*
The following few weeks passed quickly with the constant routine of resting, bandaging my wounds and waiting for them to heal. I spent my evenings disjointed from the other Companions with the occasional company from Vilkas or Aela or in the Bannered Mare where I waited for the return of the woman who never appeared there again, when mentioning this to the Inn keeper Hulda she told me the woman worked in the Sleeping Giant Inn in Riverwood, a woman named Delphine. When my wounds were partially healed into new pink ridged scars I started to train again, buying a new Skyforge steel sword from Eorlund Gray-mane and practising on the straw dummies, learning how to fight one handed. My lack of power behind one-handed attacks frustrated me to no end but my determination to become as strong as the others was rekindled.
Training for hours each day and pushing my stamina and body to new limits was not a new experience to me, I had done exactly the same routine when I had first joined the Companions, encouraged by the others I practised to get stronger so that one day I would fight proudly alongside them pn the battlefield, strong enough that I was able to protect my new family. Repeating that process now was allowing me to become an even stronger warrior, proud enough to stand beside Kodlak, my Harbinger.
The days were longer and the night's short as I spent them in Vilkas' bedroom quarters, curing and relieving my frustration with him, falling for him more than I should have. We had talked about things, many things but it always seemed that the mention of our relationship had become a taboo subject and we were still left hanging precariously in no man's land where confusion and lust mingled together ripe and lustrous.
The secluded moments hidden in the dark corners of Jorrvaskr were moments that were always unforgettable.
"The others..." I breathed as he kissed my neck; I pulled away from his prying hands pushing myself up further against the wall; the little jagged nooks in the wall catching and grinding against my metal armour.
"What about the others?" He asked between kisses, pulling me back down as I squirmed away. I let out a small gasp as his probing fingers rode up my chest plate stroking his nails down the spine of my back; I shivered and let a giddy shriek.
"Vilkas stop it!" I pleaded in a hurried whisper as he continued to peck my neck and nibble my earlobe. He let out a low chuckle and forced my legs around his hips pushing me further up against the wall. I chewed my bottom lip with adolescent excitement and tried hard to resist temptation.
A door down the hall creaked open, the only noise present except for the haggard breathing between us. Footsteps approached us and then faded, another door creaking as the tired Companion walked into the main bedroom quarters. The panic of getting caught sent thrills through me and I pulled his jaw up and forced my lips against him, passionately kissing him until we both gasped for air, my heart pounding in my chest. Vilkas gave me a devilish grin heat rising from his body enough to cause a bead of sweat to billow down the side of my neck. He kissed me again, much harder, crushing himself against me. I smiled between kisses sucking on his bottom lip. Another creak came from the corridor again, ignoring it, Vilkas proceeded to tug at the strings keeping my armour together, I giggled and ran my fingers through his thick coarse hair.
A loud tapping sound and a clearing of a throat came from beside us. I snapped my eyes open, blood rushing to my face as my cheeks burned.
"H-harbinger!" I shrieked, shoving Vilkas away from me with all my strength. I dropped to the floor, pain searing through my calves. Vilkas looked bashful for a moment, scratching his head nervously and trying to hide the protruding member in his leather trousers. I pursed my lips to prevent a grin spreading across my face. Kodlak raised his eyebrows at us, his grey beard twitching.
"Kodlak," Vilkas let out awkwardly.
"Vilkas," Kodlak replied in a fatherly tone. I turned my face away from them hiding the unintended smirk. A long uncomfortable pause erupted between the three of us. I fidgeted, watching Vilkas grind his teeth.
"I," I piped up, "Should go to bed," They both looked at me; I lowered my head feeling like a tortured adolescent scolded with the silent treatment from a parent.
"Goodnight Susi," Kodlak replied, his voice calm and paternal. Vilkas gave me one last reluctant remorseful look as I walked away. Smiling to myself as I thought about how Vilkas would struggle in such an awkward situation.
I headed for the bedroom and undressed to my undergarments in the dim light of the room. The other Companions were wrapped up tightly in their bed rolls and animal fur blankets. I crawled inside my own bed roll and felt the heat of passion disintegrate, at least enough for me to fall into a trance of sleep. I was comfortable being like this, the occasional indulgent moment but for now I was fine with the circumstances, I was not distracted enough to warrant an end to our fling. However, if it blossomed into something more serious I would think of myself as a failure as a warrior, and what if one of us were to leave? If things developed and deeper feelings formed the heartache would become unbearable. I was certain that he too, felt the same and those passionate nights spent together would go unspoken to the other Companions and would always try to go unseen but always unforgettable. We planned to always keep things simple; well, as simple as any attraction could be.
I followed the path down south from Whiterun to Riverwood, the refreshing breeze and the warmth of the morning sunlight shining down on the back of my neck. My footsteps echoed around the boulders and ferns, the thick trees overshadowing and eerie. I had left Jorrvaskr early in the morning, my embarrassment of the previous night forcing my cheeks to burn at the very thought.
"What's wrong?" Vilkas asked suddenly, I have him a nervous look and pursed my lips, he began to smile and I was sure he could tell what I was thinking of, "I see," He continued in a proud manner.
"Shut up," I scoffed, pushing him and watching him stumble and trip on a lonesome small rock in the middle of the road.
The crashing of the river could be heard on our right hand side, the callings of birds flying through the air and occasionally diving into the river to catch the fish. The journey had gone unnoticed by any other creatures except for the occasional elk fleeing from us, and by the time we reached the wooden palisades of Riverwood we hadn't even drawn our swords.
I had visited the small town on many occasions, and did my best to avoid Alvor, the blacksmith; our last encounter had not been entirely innocent. I was thankful that at the early hours the town wasn't as busy as usual. We headed straight through the centre of the town towards the Sleeping Giant Inn, it wasn't a place I liked to visit, the common drunkard Embry, a man who just liked to get in fights, and when with Torvar was a very deadly concoction of drunken madness.
I pushed the door to the Inn open and it creaked upon entry, and we stepped into the warm smoky tavern prepared to do more than just buy drinks. After asking Hulda about the Breton woman I wanted to track her down and find more about the suspicious woman. It wasn't that I was necessarily curious about the dragons anymore, but it her I was most inquisitive about; her suspicious personality was not unusual in Skyrim but her especially, something was different.
Vilkas perched himself in front of the fire in the centre of the room, warming his hands and watching me as I sauntered towards the bar, a middle aged Nord male with long shoulder length dark brown hair stood behind the counter.
"What can I do for you?" He asked as I took a seat in front of the bar on a stool, I looked suspiciously around the Inn seeing no sign of the woman.
"An ale please," I replied, making eye contact and then looking away. Behind, Vilkas coughed and clanged his armour together as he shifted his position.
A door creaked open from the right, a shadow casting across the bar;
"Orgnar," The voice called out, I turned my head, slyly smiling as I noticed the Breton woman standing in the doorway to a room, dressed in the blue gown with the same brown leather corset. She briefly looked at me, her old eyes seeming to remember me from somewhere, "Are you listening to me?" She snapped after the man didn't reply, I heard him sigh.
"Hard not to," He grumbled, sweeping the bar down with a dirty linen cloth.
"The ale's going bad," The Breton continued, her tone turning angry, "Did you hear me?" She retorted again after the man ignored her for the second time. I heard Vilkas clear his throat, and I took my chance to intervene.
"Delphine?" I interrupted as she began to open her mouth to say something. She snapped her head in my direction and frowned, her wrinkles prominent.
"Yes?" Her tone was softer but still strict.
"I would like to have a word," I rose from the stool and walked towards her.
I followed her into the room she had come from and she sat herself on the bed whilst I leant up against the cold wall, for some reason I had an inkling feeling that Delphine had some other agenda in this room rather than just sleeping.
"What is it?" She suddenly asked, ruder than before.
"I want to know why you are so secretive," I replied, folding my arms across my chest. My reply seemed to shock her and her body went rigid; she crossed one leg over the over and pursed her lips together like an old woman.
"You shouldn't involve yourself in my business," Delphine replied, looking at me with a deathly stare. I stirred in her presence, her eyes seeping into the core of my bones.
"Are you running from something?" I questioned, her mouth twitched and she licked her lips anxiously.
"Do not get involved in my business Nord," She snapped her tone more aggressive. My nostrils flared and I ground my teeth together as the growing frustration rose up through me.
"But-," In one swift movement she had risen from the bed and stood in front of me, smacking my head against the wall as she pressed a blade to my throat, cold against my skin.
"Get out," She growled, "We are finished here," She lifted the blade from my throat and I narrowed my eyes at her, now, I definitely knew she was hiding from something, "I never want to hear you speak of this again."
I left Delphine and walked back to Vilkas, I dragged him out of the Inn and into the fresh air, my throat sore from the pressure of the blade, not hard enough to bleed out but strong enough that it would leave a bruise.
"Find out what you wanted?" Vilkas looked down at me with careful eyes as he slunk a strong arm over my shoulders. I frowned and shook my head, rubbing the spot where the blade had been, "We can always force her to tell," He smirked punching his fists; I shook my head again and let out a cautious sigh, walking through the town and leaving Riverwood in our wake.
The old Breton woman was more dangerous than I had first anticipated, but for now curiosity and delving in her past would have me end up with a slit throat, and she definitely was not worth dying for. I told Vilkas never to speak of her and what had happened again, if I ever wanted to find out more about dragons then I could hunt for books and read instead of questioning strangers that roam the lands of Skyrim. That would certainly be a safer option.
When we returned to Jorrvaskr the afternoon was changing into evening and the sky darkened from a glorious blue, fading to oranges and purples as the sun began to set, falling into the horizon beneath the mountains. We ate with the other Companions and I listened to how Ria retold a story about how she killed a bear today, questioning the others on whether they had killed anything, unfortunately for me and Vilkas we were the only ones who hadn't.
"I'll meet you at the gates later tonight?" Vilkas suddenly piped up next to me, I turned my head and looked at him, confused.
"What for?" I asked, tearing a piece of chicken away from the bone.
"I think you know," He smirked; I blushed and devoured the rest of the chicken, watching him rise up from the table and desert the main hall. My pulse quickened thinking about the adventures of tonight.
A/N: Hehehe