Author's Note:

Only twenty chapters left to the end of the book :) I hope you're all excited O:)

Again, I wanna thank you all for your constant support and comments and readership :) You always make my day with your interest in my story O:)

There is more smut again at the end of this chapter :D So feel free to skip if you like.

Otherwise, enjoy :)

Chapter CXXX – A Simple Fix

The chirping of the morning wildlife woke them up before anyone else did.

Aeyrin turned around in Bishop's embrace and buried her face into his chest with a tired groan. Outside of Dawnstar, she didn't even remember the last time when she had such a restless night beside him. But last night, it seemed that even his soothing presence couldn't ease her turbulent thoughts.

Bishop didn't look like he got much rest either. She was pretty sure that the scowl hadn't disappeared from his face the entire night.

After some time, she forced herself to disentangle from his warm embrace and sat up in the bedroll, set on brushing her hopelessly tangled hair with her fingers. As secure as the braiding was before, it did not survive her constant tossing and turning, and neither did it survive Bishop's hands raking through her hair all night.

Bishop sat himself up by her side, a second later, and he promptly interrupted her struggle with her hair by stroking over her bare shoulders and kissing them gently on occasion. He's been like that all through the night, always pulling her closer, always tightening his grip on her as if he was constantly worried that she would disappear if he let go of her even for a second.

Neither of them seemed eager to talk after last night. Or rather, neither of them knew what more to say.

What else was there to say or do?

Neither of them had any other options than to roll with the punches that would inevitably come.

Bishop snaked his arms around her exposed stomach and pulled her closer to him before he spoke in between the continuous kisses on her shoulders: "So… what… now?"

"We still have our stuff in Markarth," Aeyrin sighed in response. She wasn't eager to go back after what had happened, but it would be better if she got to the bottom of this in any case. There must have been a reason why Thongvor had ambushed her.

Bishop nodded slowly against her but he seemed too lost in thought to speak. He was so strangely silent and pensive, even through things which would ordinarily never pass without a comment. Like when his hand idly brushed over her wrist and he noticed the new bracelet for the first time. He scowled, and the fact that she had received it from the Forsworn, likely from Cael, seemed to dawn on him instantly. But he did not say a word on the subject.

Aeyrin couldn't help but wonder about his silence. Was he worried about potential conflict and unpleasantness if he harped on things like that? Or was he in the same state that she was in right now? Things like silly gifts and petty jealousies just didn't seem important at all. Not when it still felt like the whole world was bearing down on them.

After some time of complete silence, only disturbed by the crackling of the dying fire, the entrance to the tent draped open and Cael walked inside with a brief nod and a faint smile on his lips. "Good morning, sparrow, Nord," he gave another nod to each of them. "I trust that you are ready to leave our camp," he sighed a bit sadly, but the slight smile was back on his face only a second later.

"Yes, Cael. I really can't thank you enough for everything that you did," Aeyrin returned a grateful smile to him. He didn't even ever ask for anything in return. No favor, no help in his cause. It was so refreshingly selfless. She couldn't recall the last time that anyone has done something like this for her without any expectations.

"Aye. You have nothing to thank me for. We are in as much danger from the beasts as the Nords. Losing you would not bring us any closer to victory," Cael inclined his hands somberly. "In any case, sparrow, I wish I could offer more hospitality to you, but after the Nord's behavior last night…" he gave a meaningful glare at Bishop, who instantly scoffed at him in disdain.

"It's alright, Cael, you've done more than enough. And we need to go back to the city anyway," Aeyrin replied quickly before Bishop could manage to come up with a snide retort.

"Are you pursuing the Silver-Blood now?" Cael's brows shot up in mild astonishment. Was it that unusual to go after one's enemies? Or to at least search for explanations?

"I think that I should," she shrugged, but she instantly felt Bishop's gaze on her back. She was sure that his face twisted into an even deeper scowl.

"Be careful, my sparrow. The Silver-Bloods are shrewd opponents," he said somberly. That was probably true, but what else was there to do? She needed to know why Thongvor had ambushed her like that, didn't she?

Aeyrin and Bishop got off the ground unceremoniously, a few seconds later, and Cael promptly approached her, clasping her hand into his.

"I hope that we'll meet each other again under better circumstances. Know that my people will not harm you in your travels through the Reach without good reason. I hope that you will give us the same courtesy. And I… hope that you will remember our meeting fondly," he gently ran his hand over the bracelet on her wrist while a fond smile played on his face. She could practically hear Bishop roll his eyes dramatically at the exchange, but he still did not say a word.

"Your equipment is waiting for you outside. Be safe in your travels." Once more, Cael raised her hand to his lips and kissed her wrist below the bracelet gently. Predictably, an angry annoyed groan echoed from Bishop's direction at that, but fortunately, he didn't say a word this time either.

His lack of aggression at the situation was still rather surprising to Aeyrin. But even though she wondered whether it was reluctant gratitude towards Cael for saving her life, or the exasperation from their current situation, it didn't really matter.

She was certainly glad that he did not create even more enemies for them in the Reach.

…

"I just want to know why. I can't fathom what Thongvor would gain from trying to kill me," Aeyrin sighed as they approached the Markarth city gates.

"He didn't try to kill you," Bishop mumbled absentmindedly while he followed closely at her heels.

"What?" she turned to him with a surprised expression. It sure felt like Thongvor had tried to kill her.

Bishop seemed a bit caught off guard by her question and his brows creased instantly in deep thought. "Well… you said that they were talking about bringing you to their boss or something. It sounds more like he tried to capture you," he feigned a pondering look.

"R-right… but that's even more confusing then! Who is that 'boss' that they wanted to take me to? They looked like bandits. What… what do you think?" she asked uncertainly, as if she was trying to gauge whether he'd have some unique insight into a bandit's mind.

Well… he kind of did, in this case, but it would be better not to share too much.

"I just think that it's safer to get out of here. The Silver-Bloods are the most powerful family in Markarth. And the Forsworn was right – they are shrewd. And vicious. Do you really want to risk your life by getting tangled into their political schemes too? Especially since we know that they don't have any good intentions towards you. Princess, let's just take our shit and leave. It's the best thing to do now," Bishop sighed before he gave her the most pleading look that he could muster.

"You want to leave while we have enemies at our backs?" Aeyrin scowled at him. It was an uncomfortable idea, knowing that the Silver-Bloods were after her and without any knowledge as to why. Maybe if she knew the reason, there'd be something that she could do to fix things.

"We always have enemies at our backs! We have the Stormcloaks, convinced that killing you will only be a favor to Ulfric, and the dragons are really keen on getting rid of you too, in case you haven't noticed. And it's not like you didn't leave another enemy seething in Solitude either," Bishop grumbled angrily. "The Silver-Bloods will be on alert now, since Thongvor failed. They will expect retaliation. The safest thing to do now is to leave and see what their next step is… from afar."

"I… I guess… it's just… if we find out why…" Aeyrin tried to make her case once more, but she was quickly interrupted by him again.

"Snooping around to uncover their schemes will only piss them off more," he exclaimed in exasperation before he fixed her with another pleading look. He stepped closer to her and wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him and beseeching her with his eyes. "Let's leave, princess. Please."

"I… Alright… maybe… maybe someone else could give us a hint. Maybe Karliah would know. She's got contacts everywhere," she tried to give him a smile, but she was still uncomfortable with leaving things so unresolved here. But… he was probably right. Thongvor would certainly expect some kind of revenge now. It was safer to give it some time.

Bishop swallowed nervously, but he nodded all the same. He needed information from Karliah too, and fast. Hopefully he would be able to handle everything covertly. Then, when the danger would be over, he could finally fess up and tell Aeyrin everything.

And then he could finally get rid of that suffocating guilt.

…

"He-Hey! You're back! And you won your woman back! Didn't think that would happen," the innkeeper snickered at Bishop meanly the second they appeared inside the Silver-Blood Inn.

"What?" Aeyrin threw a questioning look at Bishop.

"It's nothing. I was looking for you and he told me that you left with Silver-Blood. He thought that you left me for his money," Bishop rolled his eyes with a derisive scoff. As if that would ever happen. He might have had more luck with anything but money. Like some stupid conviction or a 'noble' cause or…

Ugh, don't think about this.

He quickly chased away the thoughts and looked over the tavern carefully instead. He needed to talk to Karliah's contact and he needed to do that without Aeyrin around. The man was sitting by the bar, nursing a tankard, while his eyes occasionally darted towards Bishop.

"A courier stopped by, looking for you, lass," the innkeeper's words ripped Bishop from his deep thoughts as he bent down to unlock a strongbox below the counter and pulled out a sealed letter for Aeyrin.

It looked like another message from her old Master. Good. It was the perfect opportunity for Bishop to take care of his business.

"I need to send the tracings to Karliah, sweetness. Go get your stuff and read your letter. We can leave right after that," he whispered to her covertly before he placed a brief kiss at her cheek and hurried off to one of the side hallways leading to the bathing room where he had met with the contact the last time.

When Bishop rushed off, Aeyrin took the letter from the innkeeper. She couldn't help but notice out of the corner of her eye that a man by the bar rose to his feet and promptly started walking towards the bathing room after Bishop. It must have been the contact. She shouldn't be looking at him. That could only bring unwanted attention to the transaction. Besides, she had a letter to concentrate on right now.

Hopefully Master Therien had some good news for her about Jora's initiative.

She could use some good news right about now.

…

He knows about the fort. There's a bounty on Aeyrin. I need a list of all his current associates to know who to avoid. And I need you to find a solid plan to deal with Thorn. He needs to die fast. Tell Raven. He'll know best.

Aeyrin doesn't know anything. Keep it that way. She's got enough shit to deal with.

Bishop

.

"Here. Make sure that she gets this. And no one else better get a hold of it," Bishop scowled at the man as he handed him back his quill and the folded parchment. Hopefully sending this with Karliah's contact was safe. Bishop had no time to make up some 'subtle' codes and he especially had no inclination to risk Karliah not cracking them and not doing what was necessary as a result.

As much as he wanted to drive a blade through Thorn's skull himself, this was the better option. If Karliah managed to get rid of him, Aeyrin could be left out of it entirely.

Killing Thorn wouldn't erase the bounty on her. But at least it would get rid of the worst possible fallout from it. And if they got rid of Thorn's bandits, scattering them by removing the 'head', Thorn's head to be more specific, they would practically deprive Mercer of his only 'army'. The Silver-Bloods would lose the protection for their mines, the bounty hunting business would go under and Frey wouldn't have anyone to protect him from the Guild members who would stand against him.

"The tracings…" the contact tapped his foot impatiently at Bishop.

Shit, he almost forgot.

He unfastened the metal document tube from his belt and handed it to the contact.

That journal better be worth all this trouble, after what has happened.

…

Aeyrin lay down on the stone bed in their rented room with the bedroll still splayed atop it.

The letter wasn't as thick as it usually was from Master Therien. His writing often took several pages. But maybe her old mentor was just wary of divulging too much information about the progress with Jora's plans in a letter.

She broke the seal with excitement and unfolded the single page of parchment hidden inside tentatively.

.

Dragonborn,

After the events during your last visit to Solitude, I have come up with a proposition which could benefit both of us greatly.

First, let me explain the nature of the favor I would ask of you. There is a historical artifact hidden in the halls of Korvanjund – an ancient Nordic ruin halfway between Whiterun and Nightgate Inn. I have it on good authority that the Stormcloaks are planning to launch an expedition into the ruin to retrieve the Jagged Crown – a legendary artifact which is a symbol of rightful rule over Skyrim. As my men are busy on other fronts, and our numbers are currently too depleted to venture into Stormcloak territory, I need you to beat them to it and retrieve the crown.

You will then present the crown to High Queen Elisif as an official proclamation of your loyalty to the Empire.

Now, as to my part of this bargain, if you did this for the Empire, I would gladly reconsider my plan to inform Jarl Balgruuf that the man you travel with is a wanted criminal in his Hold with a substantial bounty on his head. Which you are surely aware of – making you both in direct defiance of the Jarl's laws. I am certain that the noble families of Whiterun, particularly the Battle-Borns, who were most affected by the crimes of the Thrice-Banished, would be very disheartened at this news as well.

I am glad that we understand each other.

All the best,

General Tullius

.

Aeyrin sat up on the bed abruptly after reading those words and she continued peering at the letter as if she was hoping that its contents would change.

The gall of that man! To stoop to using an unfair ancient bounty like this! And how did he even know? Elisif wanted to keep things secret! Likely to prevent this exact thing from happening.

Elisif probably had no idea that Tullius even wrote her this letter. This was without a doubt a product of his own twisted little mind. Even after the man's presumptuous outburst when Aeyrin first met him, she still thought him to be better than Ulfric, better than that manipulative petty man who didn't stop at anything to rule over others. Apparently Tullius was no different.

This was the last straw!

She was not going to let the men who thought themselves above reproach bully her like that any longer! She let Ulfric humiliate her, she let his men taunt her and she let the Silver-Blood trick her. No more!

She was pretty sure that her rattled state couldn't stand another person making a pawn out of her.

She had to stand up for herself.

No matter the promises she had made…

Bishop would understand. It was the only way now. If Balgruuf heard it from her, she could convince him. The Jarl was grateful for hers and Bishop's help after all. And Tullius wouldn't send this information to Riften – that place was under Ulfric's rule. And Falkreath… she wasn't exactly sure if Falkreath was supporting the Empire, but Bishop stayed away from there anyway. It was not as if a bounty would change anything in that case. Whiterun was all the leverage that Tullius had.

Maybe Balgruuf could even placate the nobles.

Aeyrin was sure that this would work. Whiterun owed her, after all. This was the best way to handle this. A simple fix to undo years of uncertainty for Bishop.

But she couldn't tell him what she was planning.

He'd be too wary of the outcome. She knew that he would instead convince her to leave things be and simply avoid Whiterun… or to run away with him.

How she wished that it was possible.

But it didn't matter. There was no running from this. And why should they?! She had a way of making things right, no matter how much Bishop doubted it.

This would work. She knew that Balgruuf would listen to her.

Tullius thought that he had found her weakness, that by threatening the man she cared about, he found the perfect way to manipulate her. Ulfric thought the same thing.

They were both wrong.

Bishop was not her weakness. He was her strength. And when he was in danger like that, that's when she felt like all her own concerns disappeared and she could finally see clearly. She knew exactly what to do to help him.

Even if he didn't approve.

He'd thank her afterwards.

…

They found a nice cozy cave to camp through the night at the edge of Whiterun Hold.

Bishop seemed a little more at ease ever since he had met up with the contact and they left Markarth. Perhaps he was nervous about carrying those tracings around. They were stolen after all, even if he was sure that no one knew of his presence at the laboratory.

Aeyrin had burned the letter from Tullius in the small fireplace in their room at the Silver-Blood Inn instantly, before Bishop could get even a glimpse of it. He probably thought that the letter was from Master Therien anyway, just like she did at first. He never pried about those, so she didn't even have to make up some lies to cover it up.

She proclaimed her intention to go to Whiterun right after they were out of Markarth – to store her old armor, of course. She didn't want to drag so much metal around. And since they hardly had anywhere else to be urgently, Bishop didn't protest.

She would have to find a way to get rid of him inconspicuously in Whiterun to be able to speak to the Jarl on her own, but those concerns were left for later.

"Good?" Bishop interrupted her from her ruminations with a raised brow.

She barely even noticed that she had been silent the entire time while she chewed through the food he had made for them. It was uncharacteristic of her. Lately, she rarely took a bite without showering him with praise. He even looked a little insecure when he asked her about the food. Adorable.

"Sorry, I… got lost in thoughts," she smiled demurely and moved closer to him while she guzzled down the last bite of her serving. When she was all done with the meal, she nuzzled against him and gave him a brief peck on his cheek. "Very good."

He returned the gesture and planted a kiss at the top of her head while he wrapped his arms around her. "You want me to distract you from those thoughts?" he chuckled lightly before he pressed another kiss into her hair, this time longer, lingering.

"Always," she smiled at him. It might be just what she needed to finally stop obsessing over what to do in Whiterun.

Bishop didn't hesitate for a second. He grabbed her firmly by her hips and flipped her down on her back onto the bedroll. He propped himself above her and leaned his head down to kiss her deeply on her lips.

With a low moan forming in her throat, muffled by his insistent kiss, she started to roam her hands over his body instantly and it didn't take her long before she slid them under his tunic to feel his bare skin under her fingers. This definitely worked wonders to take her mind off things.

Bishop positioned himself between her thighs and he pressed his hip to hers firmly. He looked just as eager for the distraction as she did. He didn't waste a second before he started to grind himself against her with barely contained motions, rubbing the fabric of their clothes against each other. He ran a hot line with his tongue down the side of her neck before he moved to kiss her there languidly, soothing the sore skin. The dark bruise there was still a little visible, but it would be gone soon. Instead of spending more time in Markarth at the temple, she had healed her injuries on her own once more. It was far from perfect, and some of the deeper bruises still remained, but at least it wasn't actually painful anymore.

Her hand slid down to slowly sneak under the hem of his trousers while he continued in his motions. She eagerly grabbed at his buttock and pressed him even more firmly against herself while his cock rubbed against her through their clothing. A tingle of frustration and excitement shot through her body whenever he pressed himself to her a bit more and, with her other hand entangled into his hair, she had to dip her head back while he continued to slowly lick her neck and nibble his way down towards her cleavage.

After a while of that treatment, she hooked her hands under his shirt and yanked it off him, throwing it aside. Bishop didn't wait anymore before doing the same to her and eagerly returning to her breasts. He worked on sliding off her trousers and undergarments while he sucked on her nipples and nuzzled his head against her soft breasts. He almost looked desperate in his movements. It really felt like he needed to take his mind off their predicaments even more than she has.

Aeyrin moved her hand down the front of his own clothing and ran her fingers over his cock below the fabric. Bishop let out a loud grunt at the contact, but he did not let her tease him for long. He seemed to be intent on concentrating on her instead, since he moved away from her reach as his lips and tongue traced lines down over her breasts and her stomach until he reached her exposed groin.

He used his hands to part her thighs further and he ran his tongue between her folds languidly, eliciting an excited gasp from her lips. His fingers moved to her clit, pinching lightly, before he let his mouth suck on it, sending a strong jolt throughout her body. His tongue entered her slowly, moving in and out of her slick entrance in frustratingly slow motions.

She bit her lower lip in anticipation and also to stifle the moans a bit. His treatment was driving her wild. Her hands gripped his hair, pushing him towards her, but he didn't let her spur him on. The movements of his tongue continued in languid fashion, infuriatingly slowly, while she writhed under him, aching for release.

Finally she felt herself get closer to the edge. The soft scrape of his stubble against her skin was creating such a tantalizing contrast to the softness of his lips. He withdrew his tongue from inside her slowly and began running it down from her wetness to tease her even lower briefly, coating her with saliva. His lips left her a moment later, replaced by his hand. Two of his fingers thrust up into her wetness surprisingly fast, followed by a much slower motion of another finger sliding into her other orifice. She gasped loudly as another jolt of pleasure overpowered her with the sudden feeling and her whole body seemed to tighten at the contact. One of her hands gripped the bedroll firmly while the other still raked through his hair, although now she was more pulling at it and gripping the soft strands desperately through her gasps.

There were no more languid movements in his ministrations anymore. He thrusted his fingers in and out of her quickly, making her arch and tighten from the friction of his frantic motions. Her moans of pleasure echoed throughout the cave and her ragged breathing was unable to steady. When she couldn't stand it any longer, and her body got wreaked by a final jolt of electricity, she cried out loudly. Her hips buckled and her knees quivered while her release finally came, leaving her slumped down, heaving and panting.

Bishop kept his fingers still inside her while his other hand battled with the fastenings of his trousers until he managed to free his hard cock from them. He went for a few more thrusts of his digits before he withdrew, replacing his fingers with the tip of his hardness somewhat impatiently. He pressed it into her slit and rubbed it a few times between her folds until it finally rested on her wet entrance.

"Bishop… please…" she gasped heavily, begging him to enter her. She couldn't stand the teasing anymore.

He closed his eyes for a moment when she said those words, as he savored the sound of them. The eager need in her voice. He loved that sound more than anything.

He entered her with a slow thrust, eliciting a groan from the both of them. Her walls clenched around his cock firmly, while he slid himself inside her, and her hands gripped his buttocks again the second he moved his body to rest above hers once more. She moved her hips against him desperately, pressing him further inside with her hands along with each thrust.

Once more, his languid treatment was replaced by the familiar unbridled passion within a moment. He wasn't able to hold himself back any more than she was. As a testament to their mutual need, their loud moans rang through the cavern in unison while they moved against each other frantically.

She was so close again, crying out loudly with each thrust. The feeling of his cock rubbing over the excitable place deep inside her was making her head spin wildly. She felt like the whole ground was moving under her.

Bishop started thrusting harder, when he saw her need for another release and, with another few fast thrusts, he drove her over the edge. She pressed herself up against him, muffling her moan by biting into his shoulder, rather harder than she had originally meant to. She was sure that it would leave a prominent mark.

Not that it mattered much. It wasn't uncommon for their passionate nights to leave some evidence behind on either of their bodies, along with the pleasant memories.

When she managed to rile herself up a little from her release, Bishop suddenly withdrew from within her. He raised himself up from his previous position and sat back on the bottom part of their bedroll while he quickly ushered her to his lap. Her head was still spinning, but she still managed to move towards him, although somewhat clumsily.

When she reached him, he turned her around impatiently, until, with her back to him, her wet entrance lingered just above the tip of his cock.

Bishop's hands moved to grab her breasts possessively, squeezing them in his grip, while she slid down his length once more with a loud moan. When the feelings began to build up inside her again, she slid one of her hands down her belly towards her folds in order to rub herself while she continued moving up and down on him with fast and hard motions. His breath tickled the back of her neck whenever he grunted in pleasure and the kneading of her breasts was getting much more frantic as she continued along this pace. She could feel him throb and twitch inside her and the insistent treatment of her fingers on her clit got even more intense.

It didn't take long until she felt Bishop shudder against her and the heat of his release spread through her core. He bit into her shoulder in turn, as his hands continued squeezing her breasts mercilessly. She wasn't exactly sure if he did that to mirror her own previous treatment of his flesh, or if he didn't even realize it.

After his orgasm ebbed away, he stayed inside her and moved one of his hands down to her slit to replace her own. He started to rub her faster than she had managed to do herself, making her whole body shake and vibrate with tension. A moment later, she felt herself heat up insufferably again as the knot in her belly finally eased for the third time that night. She only let out a long satisfied sigh and slumped against him weakly while her body still buzzed after the intensity of their ministrations.

Bishop was pretty sure that he had managed to distract her from her plaguing thoughts completely, no matter what they were.

But more importantly, he himself, right at that moment, couldn't even recall what he had been worrying about all day. His mind was so blessedly blank and content that nothing could have spoiled his mood just now. All the crap from the last few days seemed to be completely forgotten and completely irrelevant.

This was the best and simplest fix for all their problems.

At least for now.