A/N:
My dear readers,
Here I am with a new chapter for my story. You're wondering why it took me so little time, aren't you? Well, let's say that all your reviews, private messages, follows and favorites really helped me find the motivation to keep going!
Speaking of reviews: I want to thank MeanE and Releqah for their wonderful comments. Many people are thrilled about Laenara and in this chapter we will finally get to meet her, although we will have to wait some more for her to interact more actively with Agda. Also, in this instalment we will get a very quick glimpse of the new friendship between Agda and Vigdis (yay!) and will come across with a lot of new and old characters alike. Will Agda be able to face all these changes?
Let's find out!
23rd of Sun's Dawn, 4 E 203:
Agda carefully eyed the girl who was sitting on the other side of the library. Vigdis had told the truth about Laenara: after having her face altered, the young Altmer had become a true red-haired beauty with almond-shaped amber eyes and perfectly chiselled traits. For being an Altmer, her skin was surprisingly pale, whereas her built was lean, elegant and agile. Whenever the girl walked, the other members of the College couldn't help but stare in awe and admire her grace and composure.
Feeling Agda's gaze on her, one of the newest recruits of the College raised her eyes from the book she was reading.
"May I help you with something, Archmage?", she timidly asked.
Feeling embarassed for the way she'd just been caught staring at the girl, Agda tried to come up with a decent explanation.
"It-It's okay, Laenara. I was just wondering what you are reading".
In reply to Agda's question, the girl abandoned her place and moved closer to her. Her face was lit by a passionate smile.
"It's a book about the Doomstones of Skyrim", she said, her amber eyes full of enthusiasm and happiness. "I know Drevis did some research on that topic, so I was intrigued to find out more about it. I like travelling and I think I may help him with his study sooner or later".
As Agda noticed the passion in the Elf's voice, she couldn't help but smile.
Laenara had joined the College two weeks earlier. The two Altmeri women who had agreed to play her aunts had met her in Dawnstar, where the girl had turned up after an alleged boat-trip from Valenwood. The choice hadn't been casual: Dawnstar was controlled by the Stormcloaks, so there was no way the Thalmor could pry into the arrival of that strange High Elf in Skyrim.
Laenara had spent some time in Dawnstar in order to socialize with her fake aunts, then the three of them had travelled to Winterhold. Once there, the girl had been accepted into the College.
In order to make her arrival at the school pass unnoticed, in that very same week Agda had cunningly asked other possible recruits to visit the College. Many curious people had taken that chance to explore the halls of the school before going back to their daily routines, others instead had decided to stay. Agda was happy about that: she didn't want Laenara to feel weird for being the only new recruit at the College and she was relieved to know that there were other people who were ready to share lessons, homeworks and boring magic tomes with that young girl.
To the Archmage' surprise, that year the College of Winterhold had found six new apprentices. Agda was very happy about that and she was sure that the new recruits had a bright future ahead. Vivienne Onis was a wanna-be healer from Solitude, where she had gathered an impressive knowledge of alchemy thanks to her aunt Angelina; Idgrod the Younger, the daughter of the Jarl of Morthal, shared the same goal as Vivienne and was looking forward to becoming a wise guide for her people; Malborn, a former ally of Delphine, had been accepted into the College as a simple servant, but was already showing a lot of talent for Alteration; Belrand was a mercenary who, after a close-encounter with death, had chosen to strengthen his magical skills; last but not least, Illia was a promising mage who had once managed to destroy a lair of Hargraven on her own.
Luckily for Agda, all the new recruits had been quick to adjust to life in the College and seemed very eager to learn more about magic. Laenara got on very well with the other apprentices and had already become good friends with Vivienne, Idgrod and Illia; Malborn and Belrand instead had socialized after discovering they had some common friends back in Solitude.
Despite the friendly atmosphere that was reigning inside the College, Agda was afraid Laenara may soon grow bored of the life she was leading in Winterhold. The Thalmor were right about her: that young girl had an incredible talent for everything, from alchemy to archery, from casting spells to using weapons, from telling jokes to playing Skyrim traditional songs on the flute. Agda was constantly amazed by her skills and, at the same time, she couldn't help but think about what would happen if such a talented fighter ended up growing in the wrong environment. For this reason the Archmage was trying to keep an eye on her brightest recruit whenever she could.
"I don't know if Drevis is still studying the Doomstones of Skyrim, my dear", she carefully told Laenara, sympathy well evident in her voice. "And even if he is, you still have a long way to go before you can accompany him on his journeys".
Agda regretted those words as soon as she uttered them: overrun by disappointment, Laenara lowered her gaze and suddenly looked distraught by the news.
"I... I don't understand", she complained, her voice feeble and full of confusion. "The Thalmor thought I could kill dragons and become a God, you instead..."
As soon as Laenara mentioned the Thalmor, Agda immediately shushed her and stood up from her chair.
"For Talos' sake, Laenara, what did I tell you about mentioning the Thalmor while we are in the library?"
Despite the menacing light in the Archmage's eyes, the young Altmer wasn't frightened at all.
"See? This is exactly what I mean! The Thalmor thought I could help them rule Skyrim, you think I cannot even name them in an empty room!"
"You cannot name them, Laenara, because you don't know what they are capable of!", Agda hissed in reply. It was late at night and the two women were alone in the library, sure, but the Archmage nonetheless didn't want to run the risk of being overheard by the other people who lived in the College. "You think you're safe now but believe me, every time you think you've managed to leave them behind, those filthy bastards will reappear in your life and start ruining everything once again".
"So this is what happened with the father of your child, isn't it? You somehow angered the Thalmor and..."
As she noticed the little magic sparks radiating from Agda's hands, Laenara abruptly stopped speaking. Only then did she realize that she had just crossed a very dangerous line. Yet, it was too late for her to apologize and prevent the Archmage from getting mad at her.
"Yes, my dear Laenara, this is exactly what happened with the father of my child", Agda snorted, anger well evident in her voice. "Thank you for bringing that up, by the way. After all, it's not like I lie awake every night thinking about the fact that I'm about to raise a child as a single mother just because the Thalmor decided to take control of my husband's mind and to use him for their own means. You know what, girl? You should definitely be grateful to the Gods for my personality: if I were as cruel as Elenwen, or as snappy as Delphine, by now I would have already turned you into ash. We're trying to keep you safe here in Winterhold and we're also trying to give you a normal life where you can be whoever you actually want to be. If you have chosen to turn youself into a stupid whiney girl, however, you can leave this place and never come back: you don't need the College of Winterhold for that".
Surprised by the outburst of rage of the usually calm Archmage, Laenara tried to apologize. Agda, however, didn't let her: cursing in rage, she turned her back to he girl and retreated into her private rooms. She was struggling with her pregnancy and with the leadership of the only magic school in Skyrim and she clearly didn't need to add a spoiled teenager to her impressive list of worries.
Over the following days, Laenara tried hard to gain Agda's forgiveness for herself: she cooked the Archmage's favourite meals, she collected rare alchemy ingredients around Winterhold, she even waited for hours outside her office in order to apologize. Agda, however, had very different problems on her mind. Sure, Laenara had been very annoying, but the Archmage knew that it wasn't easy to fit in the shoes of a simple student after having been treated as a possible alternative to the Dragonborn for almost two years. Also, teenagers were famous for being nasty, incostant, insensitive little creatures. For this reason Agda was more than ready to forget her fight with Laenara. Yet, she had no way to ignore the letter she had just received from Whiterun.
Apparently, the Dragonborn was finally ready to face the fight against Odahviing. Agda knew why it had taken Steinarius so much time: after she had left him, the Thalmor had done everything in their power to turn the Imperial warrior into a weak, miserable shadow of his former self. After Laenara's alleged death, however, Elenwen's party had been forced to rely on Steinarius' powers once again. Dragon attacks were becoming more and more frequent and even the Thalmor had begun fearing the ancient prophecy regarding Alduin and the end of the world.
In that situation, Steinarius had been forced to regain part of his former strength and of his now rusty skills inside the Thalmor Embassy, where his enemies could keep a close eye on him. In the meanwhile, Whiterun was getting ready to host the decisive battle between the Dragonborn and Odahviing, Alduin's lieutenant. In order to prepare his city to that epic fight, Jarl Balgruuf had decided to turn to all the different factions of Skyrim - and that included also the College of Winterhold.
As she read the carefully written letter Balgruuf had sent her, Agda sighed and took her head in her hands. She knew how to deal with dragon attacks and she also knew that her magic skills could come in handy during the battle between Steinarius and Odahviing. Yet, the thought of returning to Whiterun didn't appeal to her at all.
"Steinarius won't be in Whiterun", Vigdis mentioned one night. The thief had found out about Balgruuf's attempt to rally the leaders of the most important factions of Skyrim and had visited Agda in order to give her some support and advice. "The Thalmor are still keeping him hidden in their Embassy, probably becaise they don't want his friends to see him in his current state. This means that, if you decide to turn up in Dragonsreach, you won't have to deal with him".
Agda felt relieved by that fact, but at the same time she was afraid of the memories that a visit to Whiterun could cause her. Whiterun was the place where she had got married, the place where she had told Steinarius about her pregnancy, the place where she had felt safer than ever before. For this reason she was afraid that returning there was not a good idea. On the other side, however, the Archmage hated the idea of leaving the inhabitants of the city to their fate. She had done a lot to protect Winterhold from dragons and she knew that her experience could be very useful when it came to protecting the people of Whiterun from Odahviing. Still, the girl was having troubles choosing her sense of duty over her desire for a peaceful existence.
One day, however, Agda received a letter that helped her make up her mind. Although she had now become one of the most famous people in Skyrim, the girl had never forgotten her friends in Riverwood - and when the inhabitants of the small village asked her to help the Dragonborn in his fight and expressed their fears for the possible destruction of their quite home, the Archmage of Winterhold knew she had to do the right thing.
Agda arrived in Whiterun on a crispy morning. The snow had already begun to melt in the southern city, but the freezing wind nonetheless forced the mage to bury herself deeper inside her cloak. Besides her, many of her colleagues looked as uncomfortable as her.
After deciding to help Jarl Balgruuf, the Archmage of Winterhold had immediately asked her colleagues for help. To her surprise, all of them had been eager to offer their contribution to the safeguard of Whiterun: Sergius and Enthir had enchanted dozens of weapons for the local guards, Faralda had taught her most powerful spells to the new recruits so that they could contribute to the cause too, Colette had prepared lots of healing draughts. Nerya had been more than pleased when Agda had left her in Winterhold with the task of running the College on her behalf, whereas the Archmage had invented a miracolous potion that could prevent wooden houses from catching fire. It was a very innovative discovery and her older colleagues knew that the young Nord was likely to be invited to the Imperial City to discuss that impressive result with her fellow mages from all over the Empire.
As well as the teachers of the College, also many of the students had volunteered to help the Dragonborn in their fight against Odahviing. After her heated discussion with Agda, Laenara had avoided expressing her wish to join that important mission; yet, the Archmage had been kind enough to let her travel to Whiterun too. Nonetheless, two important conditions had been agreed between Agda and her pupil: Laenara was not allowed to turn up at Dragonsreach, just like she was not allowed to take part in the fight against Odahviing. The girl perfectly understood the reasons behind those choices and was more than willing to obey - after experiencing freedom for the first time in her life, she didn't want to destroy everything by revealing her true identity to the Thalmor.
For the first days after their arrival in Whiterun, the mages drew everyone's attention to themselves. At the beginning the local guards and the city inhabitants were quite skeptycal and suspicious, but they soon understood that Faralda's destruction spells were incredibly good, just like Colette's healing potions and Sergius' enchanted weapons. Also the newest recruits had their chance to shine, as one day they grouped up under Drevis' guide and killed a giant who was roaming too close to Riverwood. As for Agda, her comeback in the city was full of bittersweet memories, but also of welcomed reunions. Everyone immediately understood that her newly invented potions were going to extremely useful in the fight against Odahviing; also, everyone who had known the Dragonborn was quick to show their support and their affection to the young mage.
Right after her arrival in the city, Agda was summoned to Dragonsreach by Jarl Balgruuf. The mage had expected the man to explain her what he needed from the College, therefore she was extremely surprised when he simply invited her to have dinner with him and asked her many personal questions about her wellbeing. Throughout the whole evening Balgruuf never mentioned Steinarius, a fact that Agda extremely appreciated.
On the following day, while she was walking down the main road of Whiterun, the mage was almost swept off her feet by a girl with a mane of raven-black hair and wonderful hazelnut eyes. Adaeze was quick to invite her best friend to have lunch with her and with Hadvar, who were both very sympathetic towards the young mage. Also Lydia showed up during that meal and almost burst into tears of happiness when she realized how well Agda was doing.
'I was forced to stay behind when the Thalmor took Steinarius to their Embassy', the Huskarl said out of the blue towards the end of that lovely lunch. 'By the way, I'm glad you escaped those hateful creatures, Agda! Had you stayed with the Dragonborn, they would have probably driven you mad, just like they did with him. My poor Thane is losing is mind and the worst is yet to come'.
Before Agda could ask for an explanation, Adaeze shot Lydia a murderous gaze, while Hadvar was quick to take the young Huskarl by the elbow and suggest she went on a nice walk with him. Aware of the mistake she'd made, Lydia was quick to blush and leave the room together with the soldier. Actually, the inhabitants of Whiterun seemed to have made a promise to each other: whenever someone mentioned the Dragonborn in Agda's presence, all the other people felt obliged to change the topic of discussion. Thanks to that strategy, the young Archmage spent some lovely days during which the memory of the Dragonborn almost did not bother her at all.
Things started to change when the fight against Odahviing became closer. As the days went by, the factions of Skyrim joined together against the common threat: court mages from Falkreath and Morthal, Jarls from Winterhold and Dawnstar along with their Huskarls, sellswords from Markarth and Riften, all of them rallied up to support the Dragonborn in the upcoming fight. General Tullius and Ulfric Stormcloak didn't personally show up in Whiterun, but their men were allowed to offer their help to the city - and just like Hadvar and Adaeze, many other Legion soldiers and a huge amount of Stormcloak rebels immediately accepted the challenge.
In order to coordinate the impressive group of fighters that had gathered in Whiterun, Jarl Balgruuf decided to give the leadership of the military operations to the Companions. Proud of that choice, Kodak Whiteman was quick to organise a battle plan and to coordinate the inhabitants of Whiterun in those exciting days. Many people, such as Adrianne Avenicci and her husband Wulfberth, did not hesitate and immediately decided to take up arms together with the other warriors; others, instead, did not feel like fighting - and for them, Jarl Balgruuf and his helpers found escape routes that were meant to lead them to Riverwood shortly before the beginning of the crucial battle against Odahviing.
Considering that she was pregnant, Agda did not feel like taking up a place in the front of the battle; for this reason it was soon decided that she would lead the people of Whiterun to Riverwood and defend the village in case Odahviing attacked it. Laenara was meant to go with her, just like Lydia, Hadvar and many local guards. The rest of the College, however, was more than determined to fight at the forefront in case Odahviing directed his attention to Whiterun rather than focusing only on Dragonsreach.
As the city became more and more crowded, the meetings between the different factions in Dragonsreach became more and frequent. Agda soon realized that she got along very well with Vilkas from the Companions, who on a glorious evening even asked her out for a nice dinner at the Bannered Mare. Feeling tired and uncomfortable, however, the mage turned down the offer of taking a romantic walk on the city walls. People all over Skyrim already talked a lot about her pregnancy and she didn't want to give them any further reason to gossip.
Unfortunately, together with the Legion, to Whiterun came also the latest news regarding the Dragonborn.
Apparently, shortly after Agda had left Skyrim after her argument with the Thalmor, Aburius Crepusculus had done the same. Sick of his wife's behavior, the former soldier had returned to Cyrodiil and abandoned his only son with the Thalmor. Agda knew that it was heartbreaking to see Steinarius suffer so much, but she couldn't forgive Aburius for running away from the Dragonborn right when the boy needed him the most.
While Cornelius had left his family behind, Lucretia Galantis had never abandoned her son's side - that was, until the Thalmor had decided to ban her from their embassy. That breaking news arrived to Whiterun on a cold crispy morning, while Agda was drinking a hot cup of cocoa with Adaeze and Hadvar.
"Poor Steinarius", the soldier sighed. "I just cannot imagine how he must look like right now. He was in terrible shape when you left, Agda, and I'm sure that now he's doing even worse".
"There's no need to imagine how he is doing", a voice suddenly said. When Agda turned around, she was surprised to see Laenara on the threshold of the small room she had rented in a farm just outside Whiterun. The young Elf looked excited and worried at the same time. "You can see it for yourself, Archmage: after all this time, the Dragonborn is finally here".