"Something doesn't feel right." Serana said in a low tone. She sat behind Akiseta on Arvak.

"What do you mean?" Akiseta asked, looking over her shoulder.

"Can't you feel it?"

"I can feel the cold. It's winter."

Serana shrugged, gripping Akiseta's shoulders. Akiseta frowned, and turned her gaze forward. The plains of Whiterun Hold were covered in snow, which crunched under Arvak's hooves.

Akiseta shivered. Despite the bright sunshine, it was still freezing.

Arvak's chain was cold, so cold it was beginning to burn. Akiseta let it go, hissing. She needed to warm herself up. Or heal her hands.

She tried, but the magic wouldn't even come. She felt weak, Her body was constantly aching. She felt brittle.

"What's the matter, Akiseta?" Serana asked.

'So... thirsty. And hungry.' Akiseta thought, swallowing dryly. She closed her eyes. 'I need to hunt.' The scents filled her nose. Werewolves. Argonians. Blood. Vampires.

'Kill. I want to kill.'

"You can't, dog." Harkon taunted. "There's no help from your Huntsman here."

Akiseta let out a growl, struggling against her restraints. They burned constantly against her skin and scales. It was humiliating, being trapped like this. She couldn't move, couldn't fight. She was powerless.

"To think my own daughter shared a bed with the likes of you." Harkon said with disgust, tracing a cold finger along the bite marks on Akiseta's neck. "Tell me, Dragonborn, where is the aid of your dragon-blood father?"

'You're dead!' Akiseta hissed in her mind, blood burning.

Harkon grabbed her horn, twisting her head painfully to the side. He leaned close to the side of her head.

"And what makes you think you're not?"

His fangs pierced her skin, and she tried to scream through her clenched teeth. But no one could here her. She was alone, and her life was over. She was going to die here, cold and alone.

Akiseta felt something touch her in the darkness, and she snapped her eyes open. Letting out a snarl, she sat up and slashed her claws at whatever it was. Her claws narrowly missed Serana's face as she vampire shrank back with a shriek.

Panting, Akiseta looked at the startled woman in front of her. Her mind slowly pieced things together. They were in a makeshift camp in the plains of Whiterun, far from the castle. She had been dreaming. And nearly hurt Serana.

She shot up from her bedroll, and ran from the campsite, ignoring Serana's call for her to wait. The snow crunched under her bare feet. She heard more footsteps behind her.

"WULD"

The Shout carried Akiseta across the snow, and she crouched beside a frozen pond, panting hard. She shivered, and took a few deep breaths, and tried to clear her mind.

After everything that happened at the castle, Akiseta hadn't wanted to wait the days it would take the boat to get to Windhelm, or the further days from Windhelm to Whiterun by carriage, so she had called on Odahviing.

The dragon had been happy to see her, and she was more than happy to see him. Flying on his back had been an incredible experience to relive, and Serana had enjoyed it as well, after getting over her initial fear.

Odahviing had brought them all the way to Whiterun Hold, and they were spending the night out in the plains. They would reach the city tomorrow. Akiseta could see it in the near distance.

The whole flight from the castle, Akiseta hadn't put any thought to her ordeal. And now it had invaded her dreams.

Akiseta leaned close to the pond, looking at her reflection in the ice. A dragon-like Argonian with a tired look in her violet-red eyes stared back at her. Burn marks, shaped like chain links, circled her snout, with a line extending across each cheek, and the bridge of her nose. The burns were harder to see along most of her face, since they almost matched most of her scales, but they stood out along her cheeks when they crossed over her scars and her tattoo, and along the bridge of her nose, where the scales became red.

Akiseta looked at the circular burns on her wrists, the same ones that were on her ankles. There was no way to get rid of them. Florentius had tried. She had tried herself. They were always going to be there. Always reminding her of what Harkon did to her.

Akiseta looked back at the reflection in the ice pond, and shook her head.

"YOL!" The small flames struck the little pond, melting most of the ice, creating a little mist.

"I'm cold." Akiseta said as Serana sat down beside her.

"Well you did just run across the snow with bare feet. I'm not surprised."

"I'm sorry. About.. earlier."

"It's alright. Now we're even from when I tried to hit you when we had our first fight." Serana said in a lighthearted way. Akiseta looked back at the water, not feeling in a jovial mood.

"Do you want to talk, Aki?" Serana asked.

"I thought vampires had a great healing capabilities, like werewolves do." Akiseta said, looking at the scars along Serana's lips. They were fainter than they had been at the castle, but not even the healing spell she had used on the vampire made them go away. At least the ones on her arms were nearly invisible.

"We do. But these," Serana gestured to the scars. "Got exposed to sunlight. That does negatively affect our healing, like fire does. And these aren't the first scars I've gotten." Serana reminded her, lifting her shirt to show the scar she'd received from the injury she'd gotten in the Soul Cairn.

Akiseta remembered the injury. Just thinking about how close Serana had come to losing her life made Akiseta tremble. "Don't remind me. I don't even want to think about that. I still don't understand why that wound scarred."

"Well, you said yourself that it would have been a fatal injury if you hadn't known that spell."

"So?"

"Restoration magic isn't intended for undead things. The school may applicate magic to most normal body functions, but healing spells were intended for living flesh." Serana explained. "Therefore, it aids your healing factor when you're a wolf. But, vampire powers are more unnatural, and a Restoration spell that heals us is even more so. So, the spell's healing and my own healing cancelled each other out, as if I didn't even have a healing boon."

"You really do know a lot about magic."

"Well, a few thousand years does give a little insight on things. I've experienced a lot of things, including things I wish I could forget. I've known horror, and I've known trauma."

"You're not making me feel better, Serana. I know what you've been through is worse than what I was put through."

"I'm not trying to compare our pain, dear. Trauma is trauma, regardless of what form it takes. Ignoring it doesn't make it go away."

"Do you blame me for wanting to forget?" Akiseta asked, hating how her voice wavered. "Every time I look at my wrists, or my ankles, or my own damn reflection, I'm always going to see what he did to me. It'll will always be right at the forefront of my mind, no matter what I do. A memory that ceases to be a memory."

"Someone once told me that memories, good or bad, keep parts of people alive in us. But, it's how we view those memories makes them a part of us."

"I wonder what fool told you that." Akiseta said with a small smile.

"The same one who helped me learn that I couldn't keep shutting away what was hurting me the most. She taught me to open up, and to let some of the pain out. She taught me it was okay to be vulnerable."

Akiseta looked back at her reflection in the water. Looking at it, she could still see herself in that dark, cold dungeon, still feel the burning from the chains and restraints, still feel the pain in her body from the mixture she was poisoned with. The pain, the cold, the darkness, it was all right there, staring back at her.

Serana's arms slowly came around her, and before Akiseta knew it, she was crying, her forehead pressed into the vampires shoulder.

"I was in so much pain." She sobbed. "The restraints, the mixture, being so hungry and thirsty... and so tired... I couldn't use any magic, couldn't Shout, could hardly move... I was powerless. It was humiliating. He beat me. He broke me." Akiseta buried her face against Serana's shoulder, her body trembling as her sobs came on harder.

Serana held her tightly, gently stroking her feathers in a soothing manner. Akiseta wasn't sure how long they stayed like that, but eventually, she stopped most of her tears. Her eyes stung, and felt dry from crying so much, and her nose and throat hurt. She moved her head away from Serana's shoulder, and wiped her nose on her sleeve.

"He didn't beat you, Aki." Serana said, brushing a few remaining tears from her face. The cold from her hand made her scales sting from how cold they already were, but Akiseta was grateful all the same. "We beat him."

"He still broke me... a shadow I'll always have.."

"Everyone breaks in some way in there life, Aki. It doesn't mean that's all our life is. You will be okay, in time. And until then, I''l be right here for you, for whatever you need. That beautiful fool who taught me to be vulnerable also told me that, to get rid of a shadow, you need only find a light." Serana placed a hand under Akiseta's chin, and tilted her head up a bit. The sun was coming up.

"That's a nice light. But," Akiseta looked back at Serana. "I think I've got a better one."

Serana smiled. "I'd kiss you right now, but it's so cold, we may get stuck together."

Akiseta grinned. "I wouldn't mind that."

Serana chuckled. "There's my girl. Come on, let's get our things and go home."

Akiseta breathed a sigh of relief as she trotted Arvak along the path to the Whiterun gates. It felt good to see them again.

The guards greeted her warmly as she walked into the city. Snow covered all the roofs and most of the ground, with a light frost coating the streets. Even in the middle of winter, the city gave off a warmth.

Adrianne was working at her forge, bundled up in warm clothes. She turned briefly from the forge, and noticed the two women. "Akiseta, you're back! I almost don't believe it." The blacksmith said. She frowned. "What happened to you? You look a little lopsided."

"Kind of like your blades, eh?" Akiseta joked.

Adrianne shook her hammer at Akiseta in mock threat. "You can insult me or my husband if you wish, but never my work. Seriously, what happened?"

"Long story. Point is, I'm... fine."

"And is your 'friend' there fine too?"

"She is. She wouldn't kiss me earlier, though. She's convinced it's so cold, we'd have gotten stuck together."

"She's probably right. Though, I would have liked to see that."

"You'll have to stick to your imagination." Serana said.

"Be careful saying things like that, especially around Aela." Adrianne warned. "She's got an active imagination."

"Like betting on.. certain things?" Akiseta asked, crossing her arms.

Adrianne held up her arms. "It was her idea."

"But she did say you won." Serana pointed out.

"What can I say? She thought Akiseta wouldn't... take her advice, and I figured she would."

"We aren't revisiting that conversation." Akiseta said, feeling her cheeks warm up. "I'm going to go find Lucia."

"Alright. See you later."

Akiseta and Serana made their way to the park. The Gildergreen was draped in snow. Lucia sat beside the roots, making little snowmen. She looked up as Akiseta and Serana approached, and smiled brightly.

"Mama! You're home!" She exclaimed, running over and throwing her arms around Akiseta.

Akiseta crouched to give her daughter a proper hug. She hugged her tightly. "I missed you so much, little flower."

"I missed you too, Mama." Lucia looked up at Akiseta, and frowned. "Mama, your horn... and your face.. what happened?"

"It's.. it's a long story, Lucia."

"You promised you would always tell me when things happen, even if they were hard to hear."

"And I will tell you, but not today. A lot has happened lately, and I would like to spend some time with you. I'll tell you tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? So you're staying?"

"Yes. I don't have to leave again. We're home for good."

Lucia looked over at Serana. "You're staying too, right? Are you going to live with us?"

"Well, I had planned on it, but if I'm intruding-"

"You're not, you're not!" Lucia said quickly. "I want you to live with us."

Serana smiled. "Well, I am happy to hear that, milady."

"Wanna see what I'm making?" Lucia asked them, gesturing to her little snow creations.

"I would love too in a little bit, little flower. But, I do need to talk to Danica." Akiseta said.

"Oh."

"Lucia, why don't you show me what you're doing while your mother talks with Danica?" Serana offered.

Lucia smiled. "Okay!"

Akiseta smiled at the two, and made her way to the temple.

The temple was warm inside, a big relief from the cold weather. The temple was empty, save for Danica. It was a better sight then seeing wounded inside.

Danica was tending to the shrine. She looked over at Akiseta, and smiled. "Akiseta, so good to see you."

"Good to see you too, Danica." Akiseta walked over to the shrine, joining Danica on the bench.

"I heard about your latest adventure, and I prayed for Kynareth's winds to guide you safely."

"I appreciate it, Danica. You know the full story of why I've been gone lately?"

"Yes, and about you and the, uh, the vampire. Lydia and Aela spoke to me about it on a couple of occasions. I hope you aren't angry."

"Of course not."

Being the head priestess of the temple, and one of the only proper healers in town, Danica had been let in on a number of secrets, and kept each one. She was the only person who knew that there were werewolves in the Companions.

"I hate to pry, but you look like you've been through Oblivion itself."

"I feel like I have. That's... that's why I'm here."

"You are in a safe place, Akiseta. You can tell me anything. I will do what I can to help you."

"I know you will, Danica."

Akiseta took in a breath, and began telling Danica what had happened, recounting from when she'd left to find the glade, to what had happened to her in Castle Volkihar. She didn't go into detail about everything, like Sinding or the vale where she's found the bow, or Gelebor and Vyrthur, but explained the important parts of the tale.

Recounting what had happened in the castle had been hard. Everything was still so fresh in her mind, she swore she could still feel it all when she though about it. Bringing it back up again brought on more tears, but Akiseta was grateful she wasn't sobbing. She brushed the tears away after she had told Danica everything.

"I am so sorry, Akiseta. I wish I could heal those burn marks away."

"Florentius and myself both tried. They're permanent, I'm afraid. It's not the burns that bother me. It's.. what they remind me of."

"That kind of trauma leaves many scars on the mind. Talking about it helps let it out, but it will take time before it becomes just your memories. As you adjust to being back home, focus on what is in your life right now. It will help. Meditation can also help. And I know you aren't a person of devotion, but the temple is always open."

"Thanks, Danica. Maybe I will stop by. I could use all the help I can get."

Akiseta went back outside, shivering in the cold. Lucia and Serana sat by the roots of the Gildergreen, next to a bunch of now mostly destroyed snow people.

"What happened over here?" Akiseta asked, coming over.

"There was a raid while you were gone." Serana said.

"A raid?"

Lucia nodded. "Yeah. The bad people are most of the snow piles here. A few of the good ones didn't make it, but we still won."

"That's good."

"Can we go play now, Mama?"

"Of course we can. What do you want to play?"

"Well, Mila, Lars, and Braith wanted to have a snowball fight. Can we do that?"

"Sure. Sounds like fun."

"Yay! I'll go let them know!" Lucia said, taking off. Akiseta couldn't help but smile as she watched Lucia run off.

"She certainly has a lot of spirit." Serana remarked.

"She certainly does. So, you in for a snowball fight?"

"Sure, why not?"

Akiseta had made sure too keep the snowball fight away from the streets, to avoid hitting anyone by accident.

Despite the cold, Akiseta didn't mind getting hit with snowballs. It was a nice change from everything that had happened of late. It was nice to be able to relax, and have some fun. The children had so much fun as well. They were always so happy whenever she played games with them.

Serana had seemed to enjoy herself as well. It must have been nice to do something she'd probably never got to do before. Akiseta noticed the vampire was keeping her throws very light. Fortunately, her hood had stayed up during the game.

After the game, they wanted to make snowmen. Akiseta and Serana help them make several large ones. After crafting them, the kids asked Akiseta to destroy them.

Akiseta made a show of scattering most of them with her blade.

"Hey, you can do magic, right?" Mila asked Serana.

"Yes."

"Can you destroy one with magic?"

"Hmm.. I suppose it wouldn't hurt."

Serana stepped up to one of the remaining snowman. She called her lightning magic to her hands, and arced a small ball of it at the snowman. The snow exploded in a small flurry, and the kids all cheered excitedly.

"Mama, can you use your Shout to destroy the last one? Please?" Lucia asked, followed by a chorus of pleads from the other kids.

"Now how could I resist such an adorable face? Oh, alright."

Akiseta stood in front of the snowman, and took a breath.

"FUS RO DAH!"

The Shout struck the snowman, completely obliterating it into snow drifts. The kids cheered and clapped.

"Hey hey hey. What's going on over here?" A guard asked, coming over.

"Just playing with the children." Akiseta said.

"Everything's alright?"

"Of course."

"Alright."

After playing some more games with the children, Akiseta took Lucia and Serana back to Breezehome when the hour had grown late. Lucia went straight to bed, and Akiseta found herself something warmer to change into.

"I think I'm going to like living here." Serana commented as Akiseta walked back downstairs.

"I sure hope so. I'd hate to have to move, considering my closest friends and my work is here."

"You don't need to worry. Living here will be a welcome change in my life. And most importantly, I get to be here with you. I'd say I'm a very lucky woman."

"I'm the lucky one." Akiseta said, putting her arms around Serana.

"We're both lucky, love. So, what should we do now?"

Akiseta smiled, swishing her tail a bit. "Well, it is warm in here."

Serana returned the smile, and leaned up to give her a kiss. Akiseta pulled her closer as she leaned into the kiss. The vampire's lips were still soft as ever, and the natural cold from them was always welcome. Serana's mouth had a constant, lingering taste of blood. The metallic taste threatened to dredge up Akiseta's current mental struggles, but she forced those thoughts away.

A knock sounded at the door. Akiseta pulled back from the kiss with a hiss of mild irritation, which Serana chuckled at. She went over to the door.

"What do you want, Aela?" She asked, opening the door.

"Nice greeting, Aki. What's up with you? Did I... interrupt something?"

"Not what you're thinking."

"If you say so. You look like hell. Are you okay?"

"I'm alright. I'd rather not go into things right now."

"I understand."

"Did you need something?"

"Yes. We've decided to have a little celebration of your return over at the Bannered Mare. You'll be coming, right?"

"Well, it wouldn't due to miss my own party. We'll be along shortly."

"Great. See you there."

"A celebration in your honor." Serana remarked as Akiseta closed the door. "You really do mean a lot to the people in this city."

"I do at that, and they mean just as much to me. But this won't just be my party. This is our story, Serana. We did all of this together."

"Yes, we did. But you're the hero."

"So are you, whether you wanted to be or not. You killed Harkon, not me."

"But I never could have done that without you, Aki."

"So I reiterate, this is our story. This celebration is for us."

"Alright, fine. You win. You're awfully good at this."

Akiseta smiled. "That's why I win. So, about this celebration. I doubt I'll be able to keep some attention off you, and people may be confused about you hiding your face."

"Asking me if I have a way to blend in?"

"Yes."

In response, Serana closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them, they looked changed. They weren't golden-red anymore, but the most lovely shade of green Akiseta had ever seen in someone's eyes. Her sclera were now as white as any humans.

"I think this should work." Serana stated. Her fangs weren't visible when she spoke anymore.

"I've seen this before. This type of magic, I mean." Akiseta said. "I think Alva was using it the first time I saw her. She looked completely human. I could only tell she wasn't by her scent."

"It's a simple spell we can use. It 's a great way for a vampire to blend in to towns and cities. This way, I can properly enjoy this celebration."

"Did you choose for your eyes to be green?"

"No. They become green when I use the spell. It was their color before.. before I became a vampire."

"They look lovely, in either color. All of you is, you know."

"You're so sweet." Serana leaned up, kissing Akiseta's cheek. "Now, let's go and enjoy this 'party'."

The whole tavern had been delighted when Akiseta walked in. After warm greetings were shared and drinks served, she was beset with questions, ranging from the attack on the city all that time ago and why she'd been gone so long, to her missing horn and burns visible on the bridge of her nose.

Akiseta didn't go into full details about any of what had went on. Much as she loved the people in the city, the less they knew, the better. She told them that there had been a bit of a vampire problem, and she'd been gone so long helping the Dawnguard deal with it. When questioned again, she explained her injuries were results of the situation, though she didn't elaborate how so.

"The problem had been solved, but I didn't do it alone. I never could have done it without Serana." Akiseta gestured to the disguised vampire.

Serana seemed quite uncomfortable with the sudden attention she got. "I didn't do much, really."

"You're too modest, iluukai. She was right by my side through the brunt of all this. She's just as much a hero as I am."

Aela was the first to raise her mug. "To Serana! To Akiseta!"

The rest of the patrons followed with the cheer, lifting their mugs. The scene reminded Akiseta of the celebration in her honor after Alduin's demise.

"You didn't even try to keep attention off me." Serana said as the commotion died down and the patrons celebrated in their own ways.

"You deserve due credit, kal iluukai. You truly are a hero, even more so then these people will ever know."

"I don't feel very heroic."

"I know. I get it. I've felt that before too. We were both caught up in prophecies and destinies we wanted no part of. It's something we can share."

"We can share more then that, Aki."

Akiseta knew what Serana was referring to, and she turned her head.

"I know I can't pretend I'm not hurting, Serana. Bur for tonight, I want to forget. Just for tonight. Please, let me have that. Please." She pleaded quietly.

"You can have that, Aki. You can have all the time you need. We have plenty of it, now."

Serana placed her hand over Akiseta's in a comforting way, and offered her a smile. Akiseta couldn't help but return it, and she gave the vampire a kiss. The illusion spell didn't hide the cold from her body, or her scent.

'There's nothing else in the world but this moment, here. Just for tonight."

Kal: My

A/N: We're reaching the end of a very long road, one I've enjoyed traveling with all of you. The time for fighting and danger is over for these two, and now is the time for rest, recovery, and healing.