Serana looked at the stone wall surrounding Winterhold as she and Akiseta passed underneath the arch. She glanced around at the buildings as they walked through the town, The only buildings of interest were the inn, the longhouse of the Jarl, and what looked like a blacksmith's shop a ways across town.

She knew the town wouldn't be like she pictured it all those years ago, since Akiseta had told her an event called the Great Collapse had taken out a great deal of the town.

"It really is a shell of a town, isn't it?" She commented.

"It is still far from what it used to be, but it's getting back on its feet. More people have come to make home here, the port down cliffside has been a big help too. And more travelers are coming up this way. Between my standing at the College, and Kraldar knowing how to handle relations between people, things are looking up for the city." Akiseta explained.

"You seem proud."

Akiseta shrugged, smiling shyly. "Well, yeah. It's nice to see the town doing better, and I'm glad I was able to help out a little."

"You helped out a lot, Aki. Stop being so modest. You've done a lot to help out, not just with this town, but everywhere else as well, it would seem. You're a special person."

"I wouldn't say I'm special. I mean, I guess I am, in some sense, being what I am. But.. I just want to help." Akiseta said. She let out a sigh. "I know what it's like to lose everything, to have the life you know get taken away. When I see things like that happen to others, when I see them want something, anything, that will help them, I want to do what I can."

"And your desire to protect a life worked hard to get is why you helped me?" Serana asked.

"I offered to help you back in Dimhollow because I wanted answers. I continued to help you because I want to stop Harkon from destroying this world. But, it is more then that now."

"Because we're friends?" Serana wondered.

Akiseta was quiet for several moments before she answered. "Yes. You were caught up in the mess your family became for so long, and you're still trapped by it. You deserve to be free from that hold. Your life is yours, not anybody else's.

"That's not entirely true, Aki, as much as I wish it was. Just as your lycanthropy makes Hircine a part of you, my vampirism, and my being a Daughter of Coldharbour means that..." She took a shaky breath. "That... He... will always be a part of me."

It pained Serana when the dreaded memories edged the surface of her mind. Just a mention of anything about him made her tremble.

They stopped by the edge of the bridge. Akiseta placed her hand on Serana's shoulder.

"He is not a part of you, Serana. And neither is what he... what he did to you. What he turned you into is. Memories, good or bad, keep parts of people alive in us. But how we view them makes those people part of us or not. My parents are a part of me. My lycanthropy is a part of me. Hircine is not. Molag Bal is not a part of you. He's a piece of your past. A shadow that clings to you."

Serana looked at the ground. A part of her wanted to scream that Akiseta didn't understand. She'd never been ensnared into the dark world like that, where shadows were in every corner. She never been forced to relinquish things she'd once embraced, lest it all be ripped from her for someone else's pleasure.

She'd never been violated and broken until death was what she craved, but could not beg for, or she'd be broken until there was nothing left.

Serana knew she was broken. Torn up from the outside and inside, simultaneously ripped apart. Stitched back together but never the same, never fixed. She was still broken, and the pieces had never been put back in place. She gripped them until they pulled her apart at the seams. How could Akiseta possibly understand?

Because she'd been broken too. A different pattern, but still broken.

The Argonian had been broken from the inside, and it tore at her until it could leak from the surface. She put her pieces back together, and when she couldn't, someone came along to help her. Maybe she did understand.

"How to I get rid of a shadow like that?" Serana asked softly, not trusting in her voice.

"You need only find a light." Akiseta replied in a similar manner, offering a gentle smile.

Unable to draw out more words, Serana offered a smile in return.

She followed Akiseta across the bridge. She looked at the Argonian, who walked slightly ahead of her. A rush of warmth in her face and chest made the cold stand out.

'I think I have.'


The courtyard of the College was lovely. Several tables lined the circle, and each had a little tree in the center.

Akiseta led her to a little hatchery of sorts in the corner, which had a little garden beside it. Grass and plants grew in the garden, untouched by the snow. A little shrine sat near the center, emitting light.

"That shrine creates a barrier that protects the garden from the snow." Akiseta explained.

Serana placed her hand over the garden, immediately feeling the cold be replaced by warmth. "This is impressive."

"If you think that's impressive, wait until you see the rest. We'll bypass the Hall of Attainment, since that's just where people room. But I will show you the Hall of the Elements, the Arcanaeum, and the Arch-Mages Quarters."

Serana found it hard to contain her excitement as Akiseta led her to the Hall of the Elements. She'd wanted to see the College all her life, and now she was getting a grand tour. And her tour guide was pretty amazing.

Benches sat against the walls of the Hall. At the far end of the wall stood a statue surrounded by light, and two small stone structures were off to the sides, emitting wispy energies.

Serana could feel the magicka from them. "What are these things?"

"The statue is for practicing offensive spells. The inscription suggests only simple spells be used, for safety reasons. Those other things are fonts of pure magicka."

"Fonts of pure magicka?"

"Yeah. They're from an age long ago. They draw magicka straight from Aetherius. They're enchanted to be used only for the purpose of study."

"Any idea how that works?"

Akiseta shook her head. "I told you, I don't really understand how deep magic like this stuff works."

Serana held her hand over the font, shivering as she felt her magic flare inside her being. It was impressive. "What's next?"

"The Arcanaeum. I've had the Dragon Scroll hidden there for safe keeping. Follow me."

The first thing to greet them in the Arcanaeum was an enchanting and alchemy set up that could have rivalled Valerica's study with ease. Little potters grew all sorts of ingredients, and small soul gems stood in their little displays. The most interesting thing was a small, peculiar cauldron with some weird ethereal liquid in it.

"What is this thing?" Serana asked, looking into the swirling pot.

"It's a soul gem converger. It lets you break down soul gems to make larger ones, or smaller ones."

"Seriously?" Serana looked at the converger in awe. "Mother would have killed for something like this."

"The College doesn't abide by violence."

"I wasn't being literal." 'Not entirely.' Valerica would have wanted something like this though. This nook was impressive.

The rest of the Arcanaeum was even more impressive.

Two long tables sat in between two stone alcoves. Six large books sat on small pedestals, each marked with a glowing symbol of the schools of magic. Several closed bookshelves sat against the walls.

Serana couldn't help but be in awe. There was so much knowledge within these walls, from even before she'd been locked away.

"You're quite impressed, aren't you?" Akiseta asked, keeping her voice down.

"You've got no idea. I've wanted to come here ever since I was little. It's.. it's even more wonderous then I imagined." Serana said, pushing her hood down. "There's so much knowledge, so much history, right in front of us."

"It's pretty amazing."

"It's more than amazing, Aki. It's... it's..." Serana contemplated how to put her current feelings into coherent words. There didn't seem to be any words to describe all this.

Akiseta arched her brows playfully. "Magical?"

Serana let out a chuckle. "Yeah."

"Come check this out." Akiseta led Serana over to a tome on a little pedestal in the corner. "This let's people make their own scrolls, using spell tomes. And that one," She pointed across the way. "We can uses that to recycle books that have been ruined by time and stuff."

"Recycle them into what?"

"Usable paper, for note taking. Or scroll crafting."

"And you again have no idea how it all works, right?"

"Right."

"How can you be surrounded by all this really amazing stuff, and not be interested in how it works?"

Akiseta shrugged. "Deep magic like this stuff has a lot of complexities. And you know magic outside of Restoration doesn't interest me. I know how to use this stuff, so I'm content."

"I would love to study these things, if we can ever find the time."

"I'll tell you what. After we deal with this prophecy, I'll bring you back here, and you can study to your heart's content."

"I'd really like that."

The thought of being able to study these things in depth, of being able to peruse these tomes, made Serana feel like she could burst with excitement. As they approached the orc behind the counter, Serana kept her head turned to the bookshelves.

"Welcome back, Arch-Mage. What can I help you with today?" The orc asked.

"Greetings, Urag. I'm in need of the Elder Scroll I entrusted to your care a few months ago."

"The Elder Scroll?" Urag asked. He cast a suspicious glance at Serana, who kept her gaze on the books.

"It's alright, Urag. She's a very dear friend of mine. She's helping me with a problem."

"What sort of problem?"

"Has anything... odd happened lately?" Akiseta asked.

"Well, about a month ago, vampires came into town, in broad daylight. Your former fellow apprentices were in town and helped stop anyone from being hurt, but it shook the whole town up."

'A month ago... around the same time Akiseta had said Whiterun got attacked.' Serana thought. She opened one of the bookshelves, and began reading the various titles.

"Hey, you be careful with those book." Urag told her.

"I would never harm a book." She called over her shoulder. "They were the only escape I truly had back home."

Urag gave Akiseta a questioning look.

"She came from an.. overbearing family." Akiseta explained. It was near enough to the truth.

"I see. Feel free to look. Just be careful." Urag said, turning back to Akiseta. "Now, how does the Elder Scroll tie into your problem?"

"I.. I can't say to much. I don't want to put anyone here in danger, and no one here can help me anyway. All I can say is that I need the scroll to help stop what's going on."

"Be honest with me, Akiseta. Is this anything like the problem with The World-Eater?"

"...maybe. It could get that bad. I need the scroll to se that it doesn't get to that point."

Urag closed his eyes, taking in a shaky breath. He went to the back of the room, and unlocked a small latch on the floor, and pulled it up. A part of the floor was hollowed out, and a long, covered case rested inside. Urag unlocked the case, and handed the Dragon Scroll to Akiseta.

"Please keep what I said to yourself, Urag." Akiseta insisted, slipping the scroll onto her back. Actually, if you see Tolfdir, you can tell him. But it stays between the two of you, alright?"

"Of course, Arch-Mage."

Akiseta rejoined Serana by the bookshelf. "Ready?"

Serana was about to nod, when a set of volumes caught her eye. "No way." She said, picking up the first volume.

"What?"

"These books. I used to read them all the time. It's a series about two adventurers, traveling the world. It's amazing."

She remembered how much she enjoyed the books. They were so well written, she could vividly picture every detail in her mind. Those books made her feel like she was out there too, seeing amazing things, fighting in fierce battles. And now, she really was.

"Would you like to take them with you?" Urag asked.

Akiseta looked at him in shock. "You're offering to let her take books out of the Arcanaeum? Out of the college?"

"They are fictional, so it's not like study material will be gone. As long as they are taken care of, and are returned as soon as she's finished reading them, it's alright."

"I'll take very good care of them, I swear." Serana promised. She carefully put the books in her satchel. It had the same enchantment Akiseta's backpack had. It couldn't hold all the stuff the backpack could, but the books fit just fine.

Akiseta waved to Urag. "Bye."

"Safe journey to you and your friend, Arch-Mage."

"Now, on to the last part of our tour." Akiseta said, leading Serana up more stairs to the Arch-Mages Quarters.


This room was as amazing as the rest of the college. A small table with a miniture garden atop it sat in the entryway. Inside the room, a curved table with a throne-like chair rested in front of a stone shelf. Several small artifacts Serana couldn't even begin to name lined the shelf, and some odd piece of machinery sat beside it.

The room also contained a little alchemy lab, enchanting set up, a magical workbench area, an oven, which Serana hadn't seen in a while, a sitting area, and a bed that looked like the most comfortable bed in the world.

A strange table along another wall caught her interest. "What is the world is this?" She asked, walking over to it.

"A staff enchanter, It makes staves, apparently. Savos got if from another wizard named Neloth."

"He a member of the college?"

"No. He's on an island to the west of here called Solstheim. Must be a pretty great wizard, to have a thing like this." Akiseta gestured to the staff enchanter.

"Tell me something. How can you be so calm around stuff like this?"

"I just.. got used to it. I'll admit, I was very overwhelmed at first. But I got used to all of it."

"Thanks for giving me a tour of this place. It really was magical."

"You're welcome, beeko. Now, I believe you said something about a bath?"

Serana had almost forgotten. "Yeah."

Akiseta motioned for her to follow, leading her through a small door to the bathing room. The bath itself was large, and made of smoothed stone. It reminded Serana of the one back at the castle. This one was smaller, and was built above the floor rather than into it. Small square shaped holes were carved along the bottom edges of it.

Akiseta walked over to a small well in the corner. She lowered a bucket into it, and brought water over to the bath.

"Does that draw water from outside?"

"Yes. It gathers it into the basin. Runes are engraved on the inside of the well, to remove any impurities and what not from the water." Akiseta explained as she filled the tub.

"Do you need a hand?"

"I'm almost done."

Serana turned her attention to the square shaped holes. "What are those for?"

"For heating up the water." Akiseta said as she poured in the last of the water. "Fire magic is used in the little holes. Magic keeps the flames hot and lit until the bath is drained. Would you like me to heat it up?"

"No, that's alright."

The idea of a flame burning beneath her made Serana's skin crawl. It didn't matter that there was stone between it and her. Whenever they'd set up camp at night, Serana seated herself close enough to be near Akiseta and feel the edges of the warmth from the campfire, but far enough the flames didn't bother her. That was as close to fire as she desired to get.

"Are you sure? It's cold."

"The cold doesn't bother me, Aki." Serana reminded her.

"I know, but still.. Even if the cold didn't bother me, I'd still want warmth."

"Which is why you'd make a terrible vampire. I don't think Argonians are suited for that life. Or... that unlife."

"I'll have you know that there is a sodality of vampires in Black Marsh. The Whet-Fang. They use magicka to keep victims catatonic so they can feed off of them."

Serana wondered if that was worse than being enthralled. "Did you ever encounter them?"

"Thankfully, no. But my father caught a glimpse of what they could do when he was younger. He used to travel a lot. He also used to work for a merchant company. He ended up meeting my mother in Cyrodiil, and they moved back to Black Marsh a few years later. Father taught me a lot about the dangers, both in and out of Black Marsh."

"What other dangers are there in Black Marsh?"

"Plenty. Some worse for landstriders. There's the Naga-Kur. They're very vicious, especially to outsiders. There's deadly animals and plant life. And bugs, poisonous ones. And werecrocodiles."

"Were... crocodiles?" Serana asked. She'd heard of other forms of lycanthropy, like werebears, and even the supposed werevultures of Valenwood, but werecrocodiles?"

"They're only in Black Marsh. I don't think landstriders can even contract it. My father saw one once. He told me a werecrocodile could rip a werewolf to shreds."

"...remind me to never visit Black Marsh without an escort."

Akiseta laughed. "Noted." She scratched the scales on her cheek. "Do you require anything else?"

"No. I think I can handle bathing on my own."

"Right, of course. Sorry." Akiseta scratched the scales along her neck. "Well, I'll leave you to it then. The little pull chain in the corner will drain the water. " She pushed the divider open to cover the bath, and exited the room.

Serana let out a soft chuckle, before disrobing and getting in the bath. The water felt nice against her skin. She let her hair out of its braids. She allowed herself to relax as she washed off. This was the first time she had truly been alone with her thoughts in a while. And she had a lot to think about.

Her first bout of thinking was when she had arrived at the castle, after Father had banished Akiseta. She'd been a little sad to see the Argonian go, but figured it was better that way. She would have become another ploy by Harkon to further his schemes.

Then Serana saw that Harkon still wanted to pursue the prophecy. And she was in no position to stop him. Not alone. Who did she turned to? The heroic stranger who freed her from the crypt. Now, that's what they were trying to do.

Serana still found herself unable to feel a damn thing when it came to thinking about Harkon, and what he wanted to do to her. That he wanted to kill her. She still wasn't sure if she'd already come to terms with it, or couldn't accept the reality. And that scared her.

She tried to think of her mother, but it just made her sad. Valerica was far away in the Soul Cairn, but at least she was safe. And she'd made a friend in Durnehviir. So she wasn't alone.

Serana decided to find a more pleasant road of thought. Her thoughts ended up turning to Akiseta. As they had done frequently.

The Argonian had been quiet as they finished the last stretch of their trip to Winterhold. She wouldn't even meet Serana's gaze. Serana wasn't sure what that had been about, but she was glad it went away when they got to the town.

She found herself thinking of some of the things that Akiseta had said to her before. Like saying she was a dear friend. One of the dearest. Serana felt honored, and proud that Akiseta thought of her like that. Feeling so important to someone, it felt nice. And Akiseta was just as important to her.

She thought back to when Akiseta had told her she was lovely. She'd heard things like that from members of the courts before. Hollow words from venomous lips. They were meaningless. But Akiseta had been sincere. It had come from out of the blue, but it was nice. Really nice.

She remembered she told Akiseta she thought the same of her. Which was true. The Argonian was lovely. Beautiful, really. The color of her scales was easier to appreciate in the dark, under moonlight. Candlelight worked too, but moonlight was better. It highlighted the purple undershade that blended into the black.

Serana bit her lip. Since dancing with Akiseta, this... feeling had persisted. She tried to pay it no heed, but it kept creeping back to her. The tour of the college had been a nice distraction, but now, alone with her thoughts, it was here again. Well, it never really left. It was at the forefront of her mind again.

This feeling brought about a craving. A craving to be close to Akiseta, like when they had danced. It was a longing, really. A longing for that, and for something else. Something Serana couldn't name. Perhaps, something she didn't want to name.

Akiseta was her friend after all. Her dear friend. Friend.

Serana wasn't sure what tormented her more, these thought and feelings she was having, or wondering if Akiseta had felt any of this as well.

It was ridiculous to think that. Wasn't it?

Letting out a sigh, Serana sank lower in the water. The cold of it was standing out now, and doing very little to ease the aches she was feeling.


Naga-Kur; Dead-Water.

A/N: So, the description of Winterhold and the college are different from the game canon because I am referencing two mods: Winterhold Restored, and The Magical College of Winterhold. Winterhold Restored adds some stuff to Winterhold like it's being rebuilt, and The Magical College of Winterhold makes the college look and feel like a place devoted to magical study.