Why was he so giddy?
And how was he not freezing too? That fur couldn't have been that warm!
Aeyrin watched Karnwyr run around, frolicking in the snow, burying his muzzle deep into it and catching the snowflakes in his maw.
He really looked like he was in his element. Strange, since he was from the Rift. But he was probably just enjoying the change of scenery.
She was not.
There was snow as far as the eye could see. She thought that it was bad around Windhelm, but it became increasingly obvious that she's seen nothing yet. It was snowing constantly and the cold wind was slashing into her face without ceasing. Her cheeks and nose were bright red from the frost while her teeth were always trying to chatter unless she forcefully stopped them. She huddled desperately into the warm white cloak which she reclaimed from the ruins, trying to hide her face in it as much as she could.
"It's only about a half-hour journey at most, princess," Bishop draped his arm across her shoulders and pressed her to him firmly with a reassuring smile.
They didn't even rest on the journey – there wasn't any place for it. Everything was covered in snow and it wasn't really worth the hassle. Winterhold wasn't that far from the Dwemer structure from which they emerged was, but it was still several hours of journey. The nightfall was already steadily creeping in, by the time they got near the town.
They've been on high mountains before and in very cold places, but this was worse somehow. Maybe it was just the lack of action and fighting on the road. Or maybe it was the constant wind and snowfall.
She just wanted to thaw out by the fire already.
Although the tight squeeze that Bishop was holding her in helped at least.
"You look so fucking cute like that," he chuckled and planted a gentle kiss on the top of her head. That blush was always doing it for him, whether it was from cold, from being flustered or from embarrassment. It just reminded him of the sight of her flushed and breathless in his arms.
They couldn't get to Winterhold fast enough.
…
Karnwyr started barking wildly just as they approached the inn and he suddenly ran off in a different direction altogether.
What now? They were almost inside by the warm fires.
The wolf ran towards a Breton man in bright purple robes which were embroidered with white ornaments all over the edges – he was clearly from the College. Karnwyr stopped right in front of him, growling and barking as if he was ready to attack. But the man only gave him a curious look.
Bishop rushed over to them, leaving Aeyrin behind, ready to hold the wolf back. The last thing they needed was him attacking one of the mages. He didn't even want to imagine the mess that it would get them in.
Why was he freaking out like that?
Fuck, hopefully that wasn't another vampire or something.
"Clever animal," the Breton mage nodded approvingly.
"What?" Bishop knelt by the wolf and grabbed him by the fur behind his neck, just in case. Not that it would help if he really wanted to attack, but it would, at the very least, signal him that he should calm down.
"I have just been working with residual essences of creatures that surpass temporary animation to determine the source of their irregular abilities. It turns out that the process is less stapled in conjuration techniques and more in Daedric transmutation of blood cells. They are, in fact, capable of eternal perpetual existence beyond the scope of a raised entity which may only rise on certain conditions, such as disturbances of their resting locations," the man blabbered excitedly while he still watched Karnwyr with a measure of admiration.
What the fuck did all that mean?
Gods, it was starting already… skirt-wearing mages spewing some clever-sounding shit at him just so they could stroke their egos about how smart they were.
Bishop gave the man an annoyed level look while still holding the wolf at bay.
"Death hounds, my good man. They're not raised dead like the draugr, they are vampiric in their core," the man explained and rolled his eyes at Bishop, as if it was such a burden to him to simplify what he was saying.
"So you've been hanging around vampire dogs and you think he's clever for smelling that?" Bishop smirked at the man mockingly. Not that Karnwyr wasn't clever and cunning beyond any wolf he's ever met, but it certainly wasn't because he could smell dead dogs… Besides, that mage was annoying him already. He needed to be knocked down a peg.
The Breton smiled smugly and shook his head at Bishop in condescension. "He is clever for not attacking. He has great control over his base instincts. Unlike any wild animal I have ever seen," he turned his attention back to the wolf, studying him intently. "Hmm… young Nirya has taken an interest in wildlife lately. If you donate him for her research, I'm sure she'd part with some magical trinket or other in return," he rubbed his fingers over his chin ponderingly.
'Donate for research'? What the fuck was wrong with that man?
"Piss off, mage! And leave my wolf alone!" Bishop barked at him before he started to drag the wolf away forcefully.
…
Aeyrin shivered under the cloak while she watched the two men and the wolf from afar.
Bishop seemed to have things under control. She just hoped that Karnwyr didn't freak out around that man because he was another vampire. But he did do the same around the Companions and they definitely weren't vampires.
She wondered what prompted these reactions.
That man looked like a mage from afar though – he could have been doing some experiments before and working with whatever the wolf found unnatural and unsettling.
"What is such a rose doing out here in the cold?" a soft voice suddenly interrupted her pondering.
She snapped her head from the scene and looked over towards the tavern to locate the source of the voice. A young man was leaning over the railing of the inn porch while looking her over with an intrigued smile. He was wearing similar robes to the man that Bishop was currently preoccupied with – they were dark blue with silvery embroidery, very likely identifying him as one of the College mages.
"She's freezing," Aeyrin chuckled a little desperately in response. She couldn't wait for a warm meal and a bath. There was practically nothing else on her mind.
"My dear, why don't you join me inside for a while? There's no reason for you to suffer the cold out here," he straightened up from the railing and gestured towards the tavern door.
She smiled at him politely. He seemed nice and she really couldn't wait to get inside. But Bishop would surely only take a minute and it seemed odd to just disappear while he chased after Karnwyr.
"I'm just waiting for…" she pointed her upturned thumb sideways towards the center of the town without even registering that her companions were already on their way back towards the tavern.
"Surely there's no need for you to wait here and freeze," he chuckled at her.
Before she could answer, Bishop appeared at her back and he promptly draped his arm around her shoulder again. "Sorry, princess. Fucking mages…" he grumbled in annoyance. The young man on the porch raised his brow at him somewhat disdainfully.
Aeyrin quickly bumped Bishop with her elbow in his stomach a bit, so that he would stop complaining about mages in front of the man. She really didn't want to be part of his approach to antagonize anyone who they met right away.
"Sorry… uhm…" she gave a wry smile to the mage.
"Darren, dear. Now, come. Leave the dogs outside and join me for a warm drink," he folded his arms across his chest with a hint of contempt still etched on his face.
What in the Nirn was it about Bishop that made everyone so judgmental? Well… he did just complain about all mages in general right in front of him, but still…
"The fuck did you just say, magey?"
She pressed her hand on Bishop's chest immediately to hold him back, but she still threw Darren a mean look. If the man thought that comments like that would make her accept his invitation, he was sorely mistaken.
"Thank you, but I think I prefer the dogs," she scoffed and linked her arm with Bishop's before she practically dragged him to the tavern.
She ignored the mage completely and moved past him while he only glared at them in anger.
…
"I just don't get why being aggressive is always your first response to that…" she shook her head at Bishop while she kept munching on the bread and the pleasantly scolding broth. Finally some heat and food!
"What else would you want me to do? Trade insults with him while you freeze your ass off? How else are pricks like him gonna learn?" he scoffed in response and threw a mean glare back at the mage who was sitting at the other side of the tavern. He's been doing that ever since Darren came back inside.
"As if I would wait and freeze while you did that. I'm not as fascinated by creative insults as you are," she chuckled at him. "Besides, what's he supposed to be learning? I don't even get why he was trying to offend you… maybe he wouldn't have, if you didn't complain about mages right in front of them…" she pondered, after a spell, while throwing a brief contemplative glance towards Darren. She averted her eyes instantly when she noticed that he was looking their way. It must have been so obvious now that they were talking about him.
"Are you fucking serious?" Bishop raised his brow at her. His smirk was half-exasperated and half-amused. "You cannot seriously be this clueless about this stuff!"
"What?"
"That wasn't about me. That boy was obviously trying to chat you up, sweetness," he chuckled at her lightly. She must have been doing this on purpose, there was no way that she wouldn't notice his intentions – he was so obvious, even in the few seconds of their collective interaction.
"W-what? No he wasn't. You say that about everybody," she waved her hand dismissively, but an involuntary blush still crept up on her face. Darren did call her by some more 'friendly' names, but she was kind of used to that – a lot of people did that and most of them definitely didn't have such intentions towards her.
"He was just being kind, then you show up and… bring it out in people. I don't know why. Why is everyone we meet instantly trying to insult you? And you do it right back…" she laughed a bit but he merely threw her a skeptical look along with a shake of his head.
"No, he wanted to get you drunk on the pretenses that you need to 'warm up' just so he could show you his little 'staff' when your inhibitions are down," Bishop smirked and took a swig of the local house-brewed ale smugly at the sight of her deepening blush.
"You're awful! Not everyone has that on their minds constantly!"
"See? Now it all makes sense! Everything you told me about the people at the temple 'not tempting' the priests and shit. You just didn't know what was happening. You obviously can't tell when someone wants you," he laughed heartily.
Well… it wasn't as if she'd never been accused of that. But she still very much doubted that it was the case that often.
"No, you just keep convincing yourself that everyone has a gutter mind like yours so that you feel better about yourself," she giggled with her cheeks still flushed.
He shook his head with a smirk. It wasn't as if he minded – the naïve hopefulness that people were actually better than they really were was part of her charm. And besides, the fact that she didn't notice just how many men were actually slobbering after her was only good for him. This way, she didn't get curious about their affections. Not that he'd ever let anyone threaten what they had together, but still, it was easier this way. It was annoying enough how often he found himself getting pissed off just by someone checking her out.
"How did you even notice I wanted you? You did notice, right? For the record, I do. In case that wasn't obvious from how many times I've had you wrapped around me like a tight…"
"Bishop!" she bit her lower lip, flushing deeply. She looked over the room to see if someone had overheard their conversation instantly.
He smirked at her victoriously. It's been a while since he flustered her like this. She wasn't that self-conscious about these things out in the wilderness. Not that she didn't blush every time the topics of their conversations got more intimate, but she rarely stopped him in admonishment anymore. She was probably getting too used to his comments.
"I did notice, just so you know. You were hardly ever subtle!"
Bishop grinned at her unapologetically. Neither was that mage, but whatever. It was not like it would do him any good.
"Well… I'm gonna go take a bath. And I bet you that the magey over there tries to chat you up again the second I leave," his smirked widened, if that were even possible, and he got up from his seat.
"Just so you know, only talking doesn't count…" she grumbled at him while he leaned down towards her head briefly.
He teasingly nipped at the tip of her ear with a satisfied chuckle before he whispered to her in a low voice: "The usual stakes, sweetness."
Gods, that blush would never disappear now.
…
True to Bishop's suspicions, Darren approached her table almost immediately, once he was gone.
He sat down on Bishop's chair and sighed with a wry smile.
"My dear, I wanted to apologize for the… offence. I'm not sure what's gotten into me. I assure you, ordinarily, I do not stoop to such levels," he gave her a hopeful look, brushing his blonde hair back from his eyes.
"Umm… it's fine. But… maybe you should apologize to my companion instead of me…" she shrugged at him. Damned Bishop! Now everything Darren said made her suspicious of his intentions. This is exactly why she hated assuming these things about people.
"Oh, I'm sure he wouldn't be interested in that. I was just worried that you would think less of me. Not many new interesting people come by here. I've been stuck in this tavern for days now, desperate for a conversation with… other people," he inclined his head backwards subtly towards the innkeeper. Well… it wasn't Bishop and it wasn't her. He just seemed judgmental in general. She wasn't sure if it was the better or the worse option.
But he did look like he was from the College – maybe he could tell her more about it before they visited there.
"Stuck? Why are you stuck here?" she looked at him curiously. She's decided that it was best to ignore his disdainful looks for now.
"Because, dear, these close-minded villagers would get frightened of a simple familiar, let alone a clannfear! I got suspended for an entire month from the College, just because the villagers have never seen a mage of skill at work," he shook his head with another scoff. Oddly enough, he looked a little smug at the same time.
"You… summoned a clannfear in front of the townspeople?" her brows creased. She's never seen one, but summoning any Daedra without protection in the middle of a populated area was likely a very bad idea. No wonder he got suspended. She was surprised that he didn't get arrested.
"It was amazing, my dear! Phinis has peddled the transcription of the spell from a travelling scholar and I was the only one of his students brave enough to attempt its casting. It went flawlessly, but those fools got scared and got the guards involved…" he shook his head disapprovingly but that smug expression was still plastered on his face.
Why would he do that in the center of a town?
"I… uh… see. So… you study conjuration at the College?" she changed the topic, lest any further questions about the incident made her even more disheartened by his character. She just wanted to hear about the College.
"Conjuration and illusion – the more refined schools of magic. After all, any child can make some sparks and fires. And don't even get me started on the pointlessness of playing with rocks or tending to some scratches. A proficient mage never gets wounded anyway…"
Wow…
Well, he definitely wasn't interested in her in the way that Bishop suggested. He didn't seem to be interested in anyone but himself. She realized that he didn't even ask her name or anything about her this whole time. His condescending tone made her so oddly uncomfortable though. He was the type of person who would normally get her pretty riled up and angry, but for some reason, she only felt oddly judged and flustered.
"S-so… the College teaches all these disciplines to people?" she still tried to get some useful information out of him.
"To capable mages only, dear, of course. We can't let the uneducated masses threaten us with unmonitored magic," he chuckled haughtily.
You're one to talk…
"But if you'd like a tour of the College, I'm sure I could arrange that for you. I am very valued there. Besides, I know all the best places to see there. And the most private ones…" he gave her a meaningful wink.
Wait, did he mean…? Surely not. He was just showing off for some reason.
"Weren't you suspended?" she raised her brow at him skeptically.
"I… well… yes, but… It was just a formality… I am sure that they would do just about anything for me. They don't usually let curious travelers in, you know? You have to prove to be magically gifted to enter, but I can arrange things for you. Not for your… companion though. It will just have to be the two of us," he gave her a sly smile.
Gods, she couldn't stop analyzing every word and gesture he made. She kind of preferred being clueless about these things – at least she didn't have to scrutinize the people she was talking to so intently. She did become kind of conflicted though. Was he serious or was he exaggerating for all his posturing? Did they really not let people in unless they were proficient mages? The same was true for the Arcane University after all.
And did all of them scoff at restoration magic? If not, maybe her skill would be deemed good enough.
She didn't want to leave Bishop behind in any case. Who knew how long she'd be there? She wanted to see what lore they had on dragons, Dragonborn and Talos. And she wanted to learn more powerful healing spells. Even if, at times, he was only complaining and grumbling, she still wanted him around. She wanted to hear his input anyway. It was nice having him experience these things alongside her. They've gotten so used to spending every second together. And even now… she missed him a little. He was only in the basement and she missed him.
It was still both exciting and scary.
"I'm… not sure if that's a good idea. There's no need to go out of your way for me…" she gave Darren a weak smile. Besides, she's never even told him that she wanted to visit the College. Why would he just assume that? She certainly didn't look like a mage.
"My dear, I am certain you are worth it," he winked again.
He didn't even know her name!
Bishop finally emerged from the stairs leading into the basement and the baths. A smirk appeared on his face immediately when he noticed the mage at their table.
Dammit.
Now he would definitely insist that he was right and that he won the bet.
So annoying…
Or was it exciting? She flushed just at the thought of what would eventually come.
Bishop approached and grabbed a chair from one of the other tables, since Darren took his seat. He planted it very close to Aeyrin pointedly before he sat himself down and draped his arm over her shoulder. After a second, he gave the mage an expectant look.
It was pretty amusing how obviously he tried to 'mark his territory'.
She didn't mind. She understood how easy it was to get insecure or succumb to jealousy – not that he'd ever admit that. Besides, it wasn't as if she was hiding their relationship from the mage anyway.
"Did you lose already?" he chuckled quietly when he leaned towards her ear.
"I don't know, shush," she nudged him with her elbow and bit down on her lower lip.
It seemed like Darren was trying to seduce her somehow, but she still wasn't exactly sure of it. Half the time, it sounded more like he wanted to insult her.
"I was really hoping we'd get to talk some more without this… whatever, dear," he gestured towards Bishop contemptfully, purposefully avoiding voicing the insult. Surprisingly enough, it exuded even more disgust than before.
He just apologized for that! Did he think she was stupid? That she would just take this whole performance in stride?
"I'm not sure why we can't all talk, Darren," she gave him an innocent smile. For some reason, she was getting eager for him to voice whether he was actually trying to lure her away from Bishop.
Why would she be eager? She hated that kind of unwanted attention. Was she really that excited about the bet?
"My dear, I'm not sure he'd enjoy the conversation. I'm not even sure he can understand us…" Darren chuckled meanly and waved his hand in front of Bishop's face as if he was trying to see whether he was capable of any thought whatsoever.
Wow…
Bishop didn't seem angry. In fact, he smiled, rather conspiratorially. He looked at Aeyrin briefly with a smug smirk again. What was he planning?
"Alright, magey, let's get this over with. You wanna fuck her? It's fine. She's up for it and I don't mind," he nodded with a stony expression, eliciting an incredulous gasp from Aeyrin. She was left with her mouth ajar in shock.
What in Oblivion was he doing?!
"I… wha-… I mean…" Darren stared at him in a similar shock, but then he shook his head briskly, as if he was riling himself up from a delirium. His eyes went to Aeyrin a second later. He didn't even register her confusion, his eyes went straight towards her cleavage with a disturbingly lecherous look on his face.
"Sure! Let's go, dear!" he got up from the table quickly and extended his hand towards the flabbergasted elf.
"Hah! See?" Bishop smirked victoriously. He promptly turned his eyes towards the mage, narrowing them dangerously. "Dream on, magey. I wasn't serious. Now piss off and stop leering at my girl!"
Aeyrin flushed crimson red. She wasn't certain if she was embarrassed, shocked or… a little excited. For some reason, there was always that little jolt of electricity coursing through her whenever he called her his. And it was obvious now how eager he was for the bet to be settled so that they could turn to… settling debts.
It was still so embarrassing though! No matter the intentions beneath. Did he really have to be this abrasive?
Darren stared at Bishop in utter disbelief.
Although… it was hard feeling sorry for him. He didn't even acknowledge her presence through the exchange, or wonder if she was really 'up for it'. How was he not disturbed by such an offer in the slightest?!
After a while, Darren scoffed in disgust and turned to Aeyrin.
"Dear, let us get away from this repulsive barbarian. His distasteful jokes are sure to entertain the local masses much more than us," yet again he outstretched his hand towards her expectantly, pointedly averting his gaze from Bishop's amused scoff.
"Uhh… no," she gave him an uneasy look. Not that Bishop's strange joke was appropriate or endearing in any way, but how could that man still think that she found him in the least bit preferable after how he's been behaving the entire time?
"I told you to piss off already, mage," Bishop growled at him impatiently.
"Absolutely not. I am getting tired of dealing with you, imbecile. You obviously don't know how dangerous it is to anger a mage of my caliber," Darren clenched his fists and his eyes narrowed in utter disdain.
Bishop laughed at him dismissively in response. He did not look even a little fazed.
"You think I'm joking? Let us go settle our differences outside. The one left standing gets the prize," Darren nodded confidently as he pointedly inclined his head towards Aeyrin.
WHAT?!
"I'm sorry, do I get a say in it?!" she gave him the best disgusted look that she could muster. Not that it was hard to pull off after that…
"Well, you definitely are getting punched now," Bishop spat at him and he stood up from his chair too. The patrons in the tavern started to look their way curiously. Some of them even began to whisper to each other in excitement.
Gods, not this again…
"I am not afraid of you, mongrel! And I will gladly show all these simpletons right here why you shouldn't mess with a mage," Darren growled angrily while his fists still remained clenched.
Aeyrin quickly stood up too. The man was infuriating her, but this was not the way to deal with him. She raised her hands at them in an attempt to diffuse the situation.
Why couldn't he just leave them alone in the first place? Did he not get that his advances were unwanted? To be fair, she still wasn't even sure that he was interested in her in any way aside from having her as some sort of trophy of his superiority over Bishop and whoever else made him feel insecure.
"That's enough! Darren, just please leave us alone and nobody needs to get hurt," she scowled at the mage admonishingly.
"You will regret antagonizing me, dog!" he yelled at Bishop again, ignoring her completely. He didn't even look at her when she was talking. This was infuriating!
Darren raised his hand threateningly and his clenched fist turned into a splayed palm in a matter of a single second, lit with a menacing red light.
Was he really attacking? Aeyrin was worried about a brawl, but this?!
Instincts and anger took over. Bishop lunged at the man instantly, but she was closer. He didn't even manage to get past the table separating them before Aeyrin's fist connected with the mage's face firmly.
The magic dissipated and Darren yelled out in pain, clutching his nose with both hands. Some of the patrons erupted in cheers and laughter while the innkeeper's wife rushed over to them.
Bishop stared at Aeyrin, at first with shock in his eyes, but a second later with a measure of amusement and admiration. He did not expect her to resort to violence, but the mage did try to attack. It was really getting him pretty worked up. The way her eyes got all intense and fiery with the anger barely contained… Fuck, he wanted to take her right there and then.
"This is the last straw, mage! I told you to keep your foul spells away from our tavern and from our patrons!" the innkeeper's wife yelled at Darren angrily and started to drag him by the elbow away from them. "Do not set your foot here ever again!" The mage was forcefully thrown out of the inn, despite his muffled protests from under his clutched nose.
Aeyrin turned to look at Bishop – he had an intense look in his eyes, staring at her with a roguish smile across his face.
She got flustered all over again under his gaze and bit her lip nervously. The exchange did get her blood pumping somewhat. As angered as she still was, the familiar exciting trepidation took over again as she started to imagine what he had in store for her. She could still argue that Darren was more interested in stroking his fractured ego than anything she had to offer, but she didn't really want to.
Bishop leaned in after a while and he whispered in her ear in a husky voice: "Go down the basement and get yourself a bath, princess."
Well, she did not expect that to be the first thing he asked her to do. It wasn't as if she wasn't a bit filthy from the long road to Winterhold, but he usually wasn't one to mind.
She gave him a curious look.
"Come on, you lost. It's an order," he smirked at her and inclined his head towards the stairs behind the bar.
She turned on her heel without another word, grabbed her pack from the floor, and started walking towards the bathing room.
…
The basement was filled with several beds.
She didn't think people actually slept there!
There was a large tank at the back of the room, likely used for the house-made ale. There were other brewing contraptions around it, bubbling constantly and making the occasional loud clanking sounds.
How could anyone sleep in all that noise?
She located the door leading to the bathing area.
The room behind it was so small – there was only one wooden tub set into the ground. Surprisingly enough, steam was still coming out of it. It looked really tempting, even if she imagined doing something else by now.
She didn't even start getting her clothes off when the door behind her swung open, startling her.
Bishop closed the door behind him and leaned on the stone wall with the same intense hungry look he wore when she left him, watching her expectantly.