Akiseta breathed in deeply as she and Serana walked into Whiterun. Gods, how she had missed the comforting scents of the city.
"Been feeling a little homesick?" Serana asked.
Akiseta nodded. "Yes. Mainly for my daughter." She'd missed Lucia something awful all this time.
After checking at Breezehome, and finding it empty, they went to Jorrvaskr. Lucia was there, making little circlets out of flowers with Lydia and Farkas.
Lucia turned her head, and brightened up. "Mama! You're home!"
Akiseta crouched to embrace her daughter. "I'm home, my little flower."
"I missed you so much!" Lucia hugged Akiseta tightly. "I was so worried about you. I mean, I knew you'd be okay, but I was still worried."
"It's alright, sweetie. I'm okay. I'm here." Akiseta gently ran a hand over Lucia's hair comfortingly.
Lucia pulled back from the hug with a bright smile. She looked over at Serana. "Serana! You're okay too!" She rushed over and gave the vampire a hug. "I'm happy to see you too!"
"Uh, thanks, Lucia. It's nice to see you as well." Serana said, returning the hug.
Lucia smiled at the vampire. "Oh, we're making flower crowns! Come join us."
Akiseta and Serana walked over. There was a little pile of flowers on the table by the chair Lydia was sitting in, and another pile on the floor between Farkas and Lucia. Lydia and Farkas were working on threading flowers together into circles. Farkas also had a flower circlet on his head. Akiseta fought to hold back a snort.
Farkas looked up at her, narrowing his eyes. "Not. One. Word."
"I wasn't going to say anything."
Akiseta and Serana sat down, and began working on crowns. After a bit, Lucia picked one up. "This one's for you, Serana." She said, placing the crown on the vampire's head.
"Aww, you're too sweet. Lucia, thank you."
"You're welcome. You look so pretty. Doesn't she look pretty, Mama?"
"Yes, she does." Akiseta said, giving Serana a sweet smile.
Serana smiled back, turning her attention to the flowers in front of her, color coming to her cheeks. She looked cute when she was flustered.
"Oh, here, Mama." Lucia picked up a couple of the crowns, and untied the ends. She wrapped the flower strands around Akiseta's horns. "There. You look pretty too."
Akiseta smiled. "Thank you, Lucia. If you'll all excuse me, I need to see the forge about my armour." She gave Lucia a hug before going outside. She stopped by her house to get some material, then headed to the work area.
Adrianne looked up from the from the forge. "Aki! Good to see you again."
"Good to see you as well, Adrianne."
"What's with the flowers?"
"Lucia was making flower crowns. Mind if I share your workspace?"
"Not at all."
Akiseta got her things out and went to work.
"Damn, looks like you took a bit of a beating out there."
"You've got no idea." Akiseta said, thinking back on the fights with the Keepers and Durnehviir.
"Well, I'm glad you're still in one piece. And that friend of yours, too."
"Well, on both our behalves, thank you."
"Sooo, anything interesting happen out there?"
"Aside from things trying to kill us?"
"I meant, with you and Serana. You were out there for a while. Together. Alone."
"I know what you're getting at, Adrianne."
Adrianne leaned against a post. "Well?"
Akiseta sighed, looking over her armour. "We... we kissed. But that's all."
"The last time we talked about this, you said it wasn't like that."
"Well, things... changed."
"I'm happy for you, Aki. You deserve to have someone special in your life."
"Thanks, Adrianne." Akiseta went back to fixing her armour. 'Just need to fix this boot, and we're good.'
"So, you just kissed her?"
"Yes, Adrianne."
"Well, you are home now."
Akiseta bit her lip, feeling her cheeks heat up. "Adrianne, please..."
"Oh, come on, Aki. I know it's been a while for you."
Akistea shook her head. "Shut up, Adrianne."
"Need advice on setting the mood?"
"We aren't having this conversation." Akiseta insisted firmly. Adrianne wasn't far off from how Akiseta had been feeling since the spring. She wanted to, and she knew Serana wanted to. But this wasn't a conversation she wanted to be having.
After finishing with the flower crown, Lucia decided to show Serana around the city. Serana listened as the child acted as a tour guide. They ended up in the park. The tree called the Gildergreen had shed most of its leaves for the cold weather.
"You should see the tree in full bloom. It's so pretty."
"I'd like to." Serana said. "Do you have a lot of friends here?"
"I have some friends. The kids at Dragonsreach are mean, and I don't like them. But I'm friends with Mila, and Lars. And Braith. Kind of."
"Kind of?"
"She's been really mean to us before. I got into a fight with her once."
"Really? You, in a fight?"
"Yes. She was trying to boss us around, and I was tired of it, so I told her to stop. She told me to make her, then she pushed me. She I pushed her back. And then it got a little out of hand."
"It sounds like the little brat had it coming." Serana couldn't imagine anyone wanting to hurt a sweet little girl like Lucia.
"That's what I thought. Mama broke it up. I told her that Braith started it. She yelled at Braith, and then she started yelling at Braith's parents, going off on them about how she wouldn't be such a brat if they paid more attention to her."
"They don't pay much attention to her?"
"Her dad does, kind of. But he doesn't answer any question she askes about.. you know, boys and stuff. And her mom reads all the time, instead of playing with her or anything. I think they've been working on being better parents now, though. Anyway, Mama sat me and her down together, and we all had a really long talk to try and work things out. Braith's better now, mostly."
"I'm glad to here your mother worked things out."
"Me too. She's just so amazing. Don't you think so too?"
Serana smiled. "Yes, I do."
"Hey, can I ask you a personal question?" Lucia asked, lowering her voice.
"Sure."
"Did it hurt when you became a vampire?"
Serana felt herself stiffen. "Yes, it did."
"Were you attacked by one?"
"No. This was... a choice."
"Why would you choose to be.. you know, like that?"
"It wasn't really my choice. It was my family's. I just.. got dragged into it."
"Couldn't you have said no? Or left or something?"
"It wasn't that easy, child!" Serana snapped harshly. She bit her lip guiltily when she saw the hurt on the child's face.
"I'm sorry, Lucia. It's just... If your mother ever wanted to move out of Whiterun, would you be upset?"
"Well, yeah. I love it here. I don't want to leave."
"Neither does your mother. But if she wanted to, you'd have to go with, whether or not you wanted to. It was kind of like that with my family. I didn't get a say in any of this."
"Oh, I see. I'm sorry I made you upset."
"Don't be sorry, Lucia. You didn't know. It.. it wasn't you."
"Is any of your family still around?"
"Sort of. My mother is."
"What about your father?"
Serana thought about how to answer that. "He's... gone." It was true, in a sense. The man she had know as her father was gone. The man he was currently, the one he'd been for so long, wasn't someone she knew.
"Is he dead?"
Serana gave that some consideration. Her father, Harkon. The man who wanted to put out the sun, the man who wanted to doom mortals and vampires alike. The man who wanted to kill her. That man wasn't her father. Her real father had died a long time ago. The person he was now? That was something else.
"Yes, he is." It made her feel a little better to admit it to herself.
"I'm sorry."
"It's alright. It was a long time ago. Now, shall we go see your mother, milady?"
Lucia laughed, and nodded. They wandered over to the blacksmith's. Akiseta was putting her stuff away.
"All done?" Serana asked.
"Yep. It's getting a little late, so I was thinking we could head back out in the morning?"
"Sure."
"Hey, Mama?"
"Yes, my little flower?"
"Can I stay over at Mila's tonight? I told her and her mom that I would clear it with Aunt Lydia, but since you're home, I figured I should ask you. So, can I?"
"Of course you can. Lucia."
"Thank, Mama." Lucia gave Akiseta a hug. Serana couldn't help but smile. They made a cute family.
After getting Lucia situated over a Carlotta's house, Akiseta set her bag down by the nightstand in her room.
She looked over at Serana, who was sitting in a chair by the little table. She looked at little distracted.
"Are you alright, Serana?"
"I guess. I'm just thinking."
"About what?"
"Things. Everything. I'm just worried about what might happen in the glade."
"I'm worried too, Serana. But I also have faith that everything will be okay."
"I'm trying to do that. I really am."
Akiseta didn't like seeing Serana so down. She walked over to her, and held out her hand. "Care for a dance?"
Serana smiled, and took her hand. "I'd love too."
Akiseta pulled her close, holding her the way she had back in Solitude. They slow danced in silence for a little bit.
"Your daughter is really something special, you know that?"
"I know she is. She's so precious to me. I was planning to talk to her tomorrow, about us, if that's alright with you."
"Of course it's alright. She should know, whenever you're ready to tell her. And, hey, I wanted to thank you."
"For what?"
"Everything you've done for me since we first met. It's all meant so much to me. Your kindness, your understand, your friendship, and.. this. You mean a lot to me."
"You mean a lot to me, Serana. I haven't me anyone who's made me feel this way since Thari-Na. And even then, with you, it's different."
"Is it a good different?" Serana asked. Her tone sounded worried.
"It's a great different. I can't really explain what it is, but it's nice, and I like it."
"I do to. I've never felt these things before, but... it's pretty great, I know you cared about Thari-Na a great deal, and I know you were hurt pretty bad. But you didn't lose her. She lost you." Serana looked up at Akiseta with a smile. "And that worked out pretty well for me."
Akiseta smiled, feeling warmth in her chest. "It worked out for me, too." She leaned her head down, pressing her lips to Serana's.
She felt Serana's arms wrap around her as the vampire leaned in to the kiss. Her lips were cold, but gods, were they soft. She let out a soft groan as she slide her tongue across Serana's, pulling the vampire deeper into the kiss.
Serana pushed her against the wall beside the door, before kissing her again, gripping her shoulders tightly. Akiseta grabbed Serana's arms, resting her tail around the vampire's waist. Her heart was racing, and she could hear Serana's racing too.
She panted as Serana finally pulled away, breathing hard too. The vampire met her eyes, and there was an all to familiar look in her eyes, the same one she'd had back in the spring.
