(AN: I'm very grateful for your reviews, but please, point out my logical and grammatical errors! I usually don't have time to fix everything since if I type it up off-line and then submit it to the fan-fic Doc Manager, ALL my work gets wiped except for the title! So I have to type all the stories while online or not at all, it's rather frustrating, and therefore i don't always have time to fix grammatical errors. Please, point them out! I might not always have time to fix them when I first read through my story, so please, point them out.)

(In other [good] news, I had some more inspiration for this chapter. Since, obviously, they are still in winter, the Rift - filled with deciduous aspen trees - would not look like Lothlorien. It would look more like the Forest of Dean from the film version of The Deathly Hallows. Really beautiful stuff. Also, I needed to get the Companions to have a bit more screen-time and, while it might not go over with several of you and may or may not be lore-friendly, I felt like I had to give Aela some deficiency. I know she's a fan-favorite, but she seems to have so many things going for her, being the de facto co-Harbinger and everything, I felt that she needed to be lacking somewhere!)


Tragedy

When morning rose, Eirik found that the Circle had returned from their midnight hunt with news of the outlying land. The wild beasts were still mostly in their dens for the winter months, while any bandits had fled with the rumor of the Imperial Legion. Any who still remained were taken care of, but Eirik did not care by what means the Companions had brought this about. He had a long day ahead of him, one that would see him hopefully in the doors of Riften before the night fell. He then went about in the cold morning air awaking the others. They had one last trek before them ere they reached the walls of Riften.

As they passed further south on the plateau and the woods of the Rift appeared before them, they saw that the usually golden woods of the Rift were empty and truly in the winter. All the golden leaves lay in molding browns upon the ground beneath a foot of snow, while the trees gave off the appearance of silver-gray skeletons, seasoned with rime. This was not the Rift of the autumn days when Eirik first came here and all the trees were clad with gold. While this was not entirely unexpected, as the Circle had told him that the plateau of the Rift was covered in snow, it was indeed a surprise to see the Rift blanketed in ice and snow. Nevertheless, it meant that any one out and about would be easy to spot in the cold forest.

The cold weather also seemed to do wonders for those who were Nords in their party, meaning almost everyone. They were more alert, walked faster and breathed deeper. By mid-day, still clouded over, they neared the northern watch-towers of Riften. By Eirik's recommendation, they left the main road and made a rough line southward, trying to keep the scant woods between them and any unfriendly eyes in the towers that might take note their approach.
Without any great event, they soon arrived outside the gates of Riften at about mid-afternoon. To their right they could see Lake Honrich's shores having frozen, with the middle portion of the lake still like a mirror. As they prepared to reach the gates, Lydia approached Eirik.

"I don't think we should just announce our name to the guards," she said. "When last I looked, the Empire had control of Riften."

"Aye," Eirik said. "But the war is over. Surely news has reached them now. Besides, how many of the soldiers do you think have gone off north for the siege?"

"If we plan on staying here," Galmar added. "It wouldn't be wise go in with our blue cloaks."

"Do we have enough blankets to hide any incriminating badges or cloaks?" Eirik asked.

"A few," added Galmar. "But it won't last long under a determined search."

"Nevertheless," Eirik said. "I must enter here."

"Well, if you must enter," Galmar said. "I see no reason to endanger the lives of the men. We'll wait out here until you give us the signal to enter."

"Very well," Eirik said. "But I won't go into Riften alone. The Thieves Guild is still at large here."

"You're dressed in rags, my thane," said Lydia. "What would they try to steal from you, your staff?"

"I don't trust them as far as I can throw them, or Shout them as the case may be," Eirik added.

"Then we'll go with you," Aela said. "Everyone in Skyrim knows and respects the Companions. If you enter as the Harbinger of the Companions, searching for new members, it will doubtless go easier on you than if you enter at the head of a group of Stormcloak remnants."

"Aye," Eirik said. "But I feel that we need a new name. Ulfric Stormcloak is dead, his cause is ended."

"We will call ourselves Stormcloaks still to honor his memory," Thorald Grey-Mane spoke up.

"No, we need a new name," Eirik said. "One that will tell all those who hear that name that we are not for one man, but for all of Skyrim."

"Ulfric was for all of Skyrim," Galmar stated.

"We will talk of this when I return," Eirik said, turning to those around him. "Or when you are permitted to enter Riften. For now, who will accompany me into Riften?"

"I will go," Lydia added.

"So will I," said Aela.

"And I," Farkas added.

"I will as well," said Vilkas.

"If the Circle and the Harbinger are going," Ria said. "Then I am going. Might as well stay somewhere habitable, and the Bee and Barb would be better than the cold hard ground."

"Well, then," Torvar stated. "I sure as hell won't pass up the chance to visit the home of the Black-Briar family and taste their famous mead."

So it was that seven approached the gates of Riften. As they came to the gates, two Imperial guards approached to halt their passage.

"What brings you to Riften, traveler?" one asked.

"Cassius, show some respect!" the other guard added.

"Whatever for?" the first one retorted.

"Don't you see that there armor?" the second guard said, gesturing to Vilkas. "These here are the Companions."

"So?" asked the first soldier. "You're just a group of mercenaries, just like the Fighter's Guild."

"Don't be impugning the honor of the Companions, Cassius!" the second guard spoke. "They've been around longer than your Fighter's Guild in Cyrodiil. In fact, some say that the Fighters' Guild was inspired by the Companions."

"Rubbish, that," said the first guard, turning back to Eirik and the others, addressing Vilkas. "Are you their leader?"

"No," Vilkas replied. "He is." He pointed to Eirik.

The Colovian soldier snickered. "This one? He's not even armed or armored! He looks fit to lead a farm, not any group so mighty and noble as the Great Fighters' Guild of Tamriel!"

"Show some respect!" the second guard stated.

"Why? They're not my people, they're yours! Show respect for the both of us!" He turned back to Eirik and the others. "We're here to guard the gates of Riften, no matter who you are."

"Maven Black-Briar," Eirik began. "Has hired us for an important pest removal. Surely you wouldn't want to report to the Jarl that her time was wasted by two over-zealous gate-guards. I heard she has powerful friends in the Imperial City."

"Is that a threat?" the Colovian soldier retorted.

"Shh! Not so loud!" murmured the second guard, obviously a Nord. "Jarl Black-Briar has eyes and ears everywhere!"

"Stupid superstitious Nord," the first one said, rolling his eyes. "There's no way anyone has that much power, not even here in Skyrim."

"You watch what you say!" said the second guard.

"Or what?" the first one retorted. "You'll fight me? I'll have your number to Legate Fasendil, and nobody would believe you if you said I hit you first. Everyone in the Legion knows you Nords love starting brawls. Hell, all the camp-fights are started by Nord soldiers!"

The Nord lowered his head, while the other soldier turned to Eirik. "Well, what are you looking at? I'll get the gate open already!"

The gates were opened and Eirik and the others walked into the streets of Riften. They were lined with quite a few beggars, and they all kept their eyes on them and on their purses and pockets. Here and there fights would rise from one beggar having stolen the blanket of another or over a piece of food, which the guards attended to unenthusiastically. Other than the beggars, the streets of Riften were closed to all save a few sitting on the pier-like streets, fishing through holes drilled into the icy lake below. While they were walking, Eirik noticed someone dressed in a heavy winter cloak giving food and septims to some of the beggars on the streets. When he briefly turned his face to him, Eirik recognized him immediately.

"Aerin!" he called out.

Upon hearing the familiar voice, the Imperial turned and his expression lightened when he saw Eirik. He practically threw his arms around Eirik, then backed up when he realized the suddenness of the gesture and the look of surprise on Eirik's face.

"It's good to have you back in Riften, Eirik, old friend," Aerin said. "By the Eight, it feels like only yesterday when you came in here and riled up the Thieves Guild with your antics in the Ratways. I hope you bring good news..."

"No, only bad," Eirik replied. "But first tell me, where is Mjoll? Did she come back here?"

At this, Aerin's face fell and he turned around to his house, crammed narrowly in between the already cramped houses of Riften's dry-side. He made his way to the door and opened it, ushering them in out of the cold streets of Riften. One by one they filed in, with Torvar and Ria eager to be in out of the cold. Once the Circle entered, Lydia halted before the door, massaging the side of her head that had struck the base of the arch-way in Windhelm, leaving Eirik still outside.

"Can you please move?" Eirik asked.

"Hmm?" she returned. "Ohh! My bad." She stepped into the house, allowing Eirik to enter, closing the door behind himself.

"So tell me," Eirik said. "Is she here?"

"I'm sorry I haven't been around more often," Aerin began, speaking in a grim tone with head looking down. "The former guards of Riften have been running their raids on the Imperial garrison, and they've more or less recruited me to be their inside man whether I wanted to be or no. Because of this, my hands have been tied for a long while."

"Just answer my question," Eirik said, starting to get frustrated.

"Mjoll is not here, Eirik," Aerin replied, shaking his head. "But..." He reached into his cloak and pulled out a note. "I received this. I was told to give it to you."

"To me?" Eirik asked.

"It happened in the dead of night," Aerin said. "Someone put a knife to my throat and told me to give it to you. They gave a pretty good description of you: tall Nord with long dark hair and dark eyes, short beard. Though there are honestly quite a few people who fit that description. But they seemed to know your name as well. They said to give the note to one fitting that description who went by the name of Eirik and who calls himself Dragonborn."

Eirik took the letter and tore it open. The writing was in the Common tongue, measured and legible. There was no name on the front of the note, nor anywhere in the contents of the letter, but the actual contents made Eirik's blood run cold.

To Eirik who calls himself Dragonborn,

I have taken back my wife Mjoll the Lioness, rightly ordained for me by the Eight and the Hist, from your theft. I give you no clues to where she has been liberated or any demands of money or persons, only the knowledge that you will never see or touch my wife again. Know that she will utterly forget you and come to love me as her true and only husband.

PS - I have powerful friends. If you try to look for her, I will kill you.

PPS - I have also learned that you defiled my beloved wife. For that, I will surely find you and kill you for this heinous rape of my wife and erase your seed from existence.

Eirik let the letter fall from his hands as he realized that, once again, he had failed. He had gone to Windhelm on a mad death-charge to Ulfric Stormcloak's aid instead of returning to the Tower of Dawn over Dawnstar. Perhaps, he wondered, if he had stayed in Dawnstar rather than hastening all to Eastmarch, he might have found Mjoll before this monster did and prevented her capture. But Mjoll was a strong warrior, how could she have been captured? Then he remembered that she was with child, whom this monster threatened to 'erase from existence.' And where was he to protect his beloved wife and unborn child?

Suddenly, and to the surprise of all, Eirik struck Aerin across the jaw with his fist, sending the smaller-framed and shorter Imperial sprawling onto the ground.

"Idiot!" Eirik shouted. "Impotent fool! Coward! Milk-drinking little shit!"

"What?" Aerin asked. "What did I do?"

"You let her be captured!" Eirik shouted.

"I didn't know where she was!" Aerin defended. "I couldn't have..."

"Excuses!" Eirik roared. "You-You could have done something. You were her friend, you-you loved her. You should have done something to protect her, anything! It was your duty as her friend!"

"My duty?" Aerin asked. "You're her husband, isn't that your duty?"

Eirik leaned over Aerin, fist raised to strike him again, but he halted. Every word that Aerin had said was true, and he realized in horror that the person he was angry at was not Aerin. In truth, there was nothing he could have done. He was here for a long time, afar off from the Pale, and had no means by which to leave Riften.

The one person Eirik was truly angry at was himself.

He had let her be captured. He should have been the one to do something. He was her friend, her lover and her husband. He should not have fled to Windhelm on a fruitless quest of glory and honor but hastened to her side to protect her from this monster. It was his duty as her husband. He could feel his eyes moisten and his throat constrict. Every fear he had felt when he told Thorald Gray-Mane of the death of Clan Gray-Mane he now felt again, only they were not half-thoughts and whispered fears; they were very real.

He did not notice as Ria helped Aerin onto his feet and Lydia picked up the letter. Aela took the letter but, being illiterate, handed it over to Vilkas who read to her and to Farkas.

"Why not send us to look for your wife, Harbinger?" Aela asked. "I've yet to compare battle-scars with her and, as I said last night, we are your shield-brothers and sisters. If this nameless milk-drinker stole your woman, he has offended all of us and we must repay him for this brazen act nine-fold!"

"You heard him, or her," Eirik said, his voice breaking. "They said they would kill whoever tried to search for Mjoll."

"It said they would kill you if you went looking for Mjoll the Lioness," Vilkas added. "This person might be unaware that you're the Harbinger of the Companions. Our presence will be unnoticed, perhaps even overlooked, searching all the caves and bandit holes in Skyrim."

"My brother is right," Farkas said. "And we are more than you. We can cover more ground than just one."

"You don't even like me!" Eirik retorted.

"But you're my shield-brother, and our Harbinger," said Farkas. "Honor dictates that I fight your battles with you."

"We'll leave at once," Aela stated. "Searching for the Harbinger's Lioness and our hunt won't interfere greatly. Where was the last place you saw her?"

Eirik did not answer, being too overwhelmed by anger and grief. Lydia spoke up. "The Pale, around the Tower of Dawn just south of the town."

"That's where we'll start," said Aela. "We'll send you a message if we discover anything."

"We won't rest until we've found her," Farkas said. "That's a promise."

"I'm terribly sorry," Vilkas said. "Mjoll was a fine warrior. The Nine give you peace until we have returned with her." He walked over to Aerin and helped him off the floor, then opened the door back outside. Aela, Farkas, Ria and Torvar followed him outside, closing the door behind Eirik, Lydia and Aerin.

"Uh, can we have some time alone, please?" Lydia asked Aerin. The young Imperial nodded. "I'm sure he didn't mean to hit you." Aerin nodded again and walked back upstairs. When he had left, Lydia turned to Eirik, a look of sadness on her face.

"I'm sorry, my thane," she said. "I...I spoke too soon."

"Stay here," Eirik said to her, keeping his vision away from Lydia. She had been the one to tell him that Mjoll had not returned from the Tower of Dawn, but he had ignored her warnings, much to his dismay and sorrow. He turned towards the door and walked out. Looking this way and that, he saw only the beggars lining the frozen streets of Riften and, in the distance, the Companions on their way towards the gates of Riften. Doubtless they would go and collect Hermir and take her with them on the hunt for the Lioness.

He turned left and passed down the street, ignoring voices and cat-calls going after him as he went. Another left and he found himself approaching the gates of the Temple of Mara, where he and Mjoll had walked down the aisle united on the Twenty-Fifth day of Frostfall. But now there was no mirth in this hallowed stave temple, only the chanting of the priests about their daily devotions. Eirik threw the doors open, ran to the altar, with its image of Mara, hands held out in supplication with tears streaming from her eyes, and then he let loose the tears and cries from his own voice.

"What have I done?" he cried. "Is this not enough? Have I not served the Divines faithfully all the days of my life? Why must this happen to me?"

There was no immediate answer. Once more the voice of Crixus floated back into his mind, taunting him about how the Divines were false and that all his prayers were in vain. They felt in vain this moment, speaking only to a wooden wall and a golden statue. At length, Eirik threw himself upon the floor of the temple, caring not who heard him as he opened up his heart to the goddess of love and wept aloud.


(AN: Whether or not this is enough remains to be seen. But I've tied together another sub-plot that I had started in The Dragonborn and the Lioness. This is, of course, a very desperate time for Eirik. Him attacking Aerin was, of course, wrong and the others [Lydia, etc.] will have things to say about it, like how Ria objected to the use of Odahviing in their escape.)

(Any reviews, people? We've come to one of the big moments in this story, so now would be the best time to review.)