Chapter 4
College of Winterhold
Brelyna
Brelyna couldn't help but widen her eyes in surprise upon hearing the statement from the Vampire known as Serana. She was surprised to hear that she knew that piece of information. Did Tolfdir tell her that in his letter to the Dragonborn? Speaking of the Dragonborn, where was he? Was he occupied and had to send Serana in his stead? Was he alright? And was Serana the best person to deal with this situation? She was trustworthy and wise, that Brelyna knew, but the Dunmer wasn't sure she was the best for this situation. As far as she knew, the Vampire had no experience with children. She and the Dragonborn, in addition to not being able to sire children with one another for obvious reasons, didn't adopt anyone. Thus, she wasn't sure she was the right person for handling the child. That seemed to not bother Tolfdir as the old mage made his way towards Serana. The old mage had been present in the Hall of Attainment to speak with Onmund when Serana arrived. Stopping before Serana, Tolfdir spoke to the vampire.
"Yes, that's right, my dear." Said Tolfdir, more than a little surprised to see her instead of the Arch-Mage. "We've found this child in the anomaly that the Jarl told us about some time ago. We found nothing truly outstanding from the child with the exception of the presence of another soul within him. A fragment, yes, but still another soul, nonetheless.
"I see." Said Serana as she placed her hands on her hips, processing this. "Well, if you don't mind, I'd like to see this child. See for me if there isn't anything more special of the child than just another soul in them." Tolfdir then lead her to where Brelyna and the child were. As the vampire was making her way to the Dunmer, Brelyna thought about Serana and her affiliation with the Dragonborn.
Sometime after the defeat of Alduin, the Dragonborn received a message from a group of Vampire hunters called the Dawnguard. Incidents and disasters involving Vampires had been apparently growing in number in Skyrim and a former member of the Vigilants of Stendarr, a group of warrior-priests dedicated to Stendarr, the God of mercy and righteousness, to revive an ancient order of Vampire hunters called the Dawnguard. That former member, a man named Isran, had a message sent to the Dragonborn. To enlist their aid in dealing with this matter. The Dragonborn, having faced dozens of Vampires during their time in Skyrim, was more than willing to help them, having seen the danger they are and what they can do to the various holds in Skyrim. One thing led to another and the Dragonborn found Serana, sealed away in a cave with an Elder Scroll, a powerful artifact of unimaginable power and danger. Though she was a Vampire when he discovered her, the Dragonborn must have seen something in Serana that made her different than most Vampires he met in Skyrim and thus led her back to her ancestral home when she requested it.
It just so happens that her father, a man named Harkon, was responsible for the increased activity from the Vampires in Skyrim. The man was obsessed with fulfilling a prophecy called the Tyranny of the Sun, which, if conducted, will blot out the son and allow all Vampire kind to roam the world without fear of the sun. Upon seeing the man even once, the Dragonborn knew that the man needed to be stopped. Thus, with the help of both the Dawnguard and, surprisingly, Serana, the Dragonborn killed Harkon and locked away one of the objects required to perform the prophecy, the ancient bow called Auri-El bow, preventing the prophecy from ever being completed. Though Harkon and most of his closest followers were slain, lesser Vampires and those that survived the attack on Harkon's castle still roamed Skyrim, causing trouble to its people, thus the Dawnguard devoted its attention to dealing with this threat to Skyrim and all of Tamriel. Serana, despite being a Vampire herself, helped them in this quest for a time before leaving the Dawnguard to be with the Dragonborn.
Brelyna didn't know when exactly this occurred, but Serana found love with the Dragonborn, who reciprocated such feelings and the two became lovers. Perhaps it was their constant travels with each other. Perhaps it was Serana's looks, though that was perhaps not it as there weren't many external things with Nord women that actually attracts an Argonian, if any at all. Or perhaps she felt comfort from the Dragonborn that she couldn't get anywhere else since she was a Vampire. Whatever the reason was, Serana became the Dragonborn's lover and Brelyna couldn't be happier for the two.
Though she was initially skeptical and more than a little scared about the Dragonborn being in a relationship with a Vampire, Brelyna was pleasantly surprised to discover that Serana was enjoyable to be around. Though possessing a dry sense of humor along with being sarcastic with a cynical outlook on everything around her, Serana had more than proven herself to be a worthy lover to the Dragonborn and a fine friend to be around. On occasion, Serana had visited the college with the Dragonborn. She claimed that it was because she wanted to see how the only magical institution in Skyrim fared in a province that distrusted or outright despised magic users, but Brelyna had reason to suspect it was more to spend time with the Dragonborn and those she thought would, at the very least, tolerate her more than most other cities, villages, and towns in Skyrim on account of the College's reputation with the Nords.
Despite being in a relationship with the Argonian that had saved Skyrim, and likely all of Tamriel, people still regarded her with distrust and fear on account of her being a Vampire. It was a justifiable fear, yes, but it prevented Serana from truly interacting with most common folk without fear and paranoia plaguing them whenever they saw her. Even with the Dragonborn around her, very few people that knew what she was wanted nothing to do with her. It hurt the Dragonborn that Serana had to hide her true nature from the public, but the Nord people have ever been stubborn people and it took a lot to change their minds on even the simplest of things.
The College, also regarded with suspicion and paranoia by the populace of Skyrim, at least the Nords, welcomed Serana, making it one of the few places where Serana can socialize in without fear and paranoia affecting her interactions with other people. Granted, when they first learned about her being a Vampire, many of them regarded her with fear and suspicion. Although, when asked by her lover, she replied that the reception that she got from the College was still better than most other places she went to when they found out she was a Vampire. And over time, the College staff and its students have become accustomed to Serana. Thus they no longer cared much if Serana was around the College. Even more so when the Dragonborn was around.
Though she got along, relatively well, with everyone in the college, Serana held better relations with others in the College over others. Brelyna was amongst those select few.
Perhaps it was their mutual respect and affinity for the Dragonborn. Perhaps it was their interest in arcane art. Or just the Dragonborn putting a good word for her for the Vampire, thinking it would help the both of them to get along with the other. Regardless of the reason, Brelyna got along with the Vampire despite their personality differences. Enough that Brelyna no longer acted in fear of the Vampire whenever she arrived. Just because they got along now, didn't mean that Brelyna wasn't afraid of the woman when they first meet.
Walking towards Brelyna, Serana raised an eyebrow at the boy that was wrapped up in some heavy wool and held tightly in Brelyna's arms.
"Have to admit, I never thought you would be a mother." Said Serana as she observed the child, who looked back at her in curiosity. Minus their eyes, one would have easily mistaken the child as Serana's own child with the boy's dark hair and pale skin. Fortunately, no one was foolish enough to say so to the Vampire or else they'll need the teacher of the restoration arts, Colette Marence, present to heal those that draw the ire of Serana.
Brelyna, upon hearing Serana's comment, blushed hard and was about to protest when Serana smirked, causing her to sigh in exasperation.
"Serana, please don't tease me like that." Said Brelyna as she held the child. "It's not like he's going to be with me for much longer anyway. We're planning on giving him to a respectable orphanage once we're certain he's no harm to anyone."
"Really?" Asked Serana with a small smile. "Somehow I doubt that." Before Brelyna could ask what she meant by that, Serana turned to Drevis and spoke to the other Dunmer. "So, what exactly is the problem with the child that you sent my lover a letter concerning him? Was that just a courtesy note?"
"Both, my dear." Said Tolfdir, catching Serana's attention. "The letter was not only to inform the Dragonborn about the situation here in Winterhold but also to inform him to come back to the College to provide aid in case the child is not what our initial thoughts were regarding him."
"I see." Said Serana. "Well, I'm sorry to say, but he can't come here to deal with this anytime soon. General Tullius has ordered him to do standard legion activities in Skyrim along with being there for the negotiations with the An-Xileel."
"The An-Xileel?" Asked Tolfdir in shock. "Isn't that the Argonian group in charge of Black Marsh at the moment? What are they doing here?"
What Tolfdir was referring to was the An-Xileel, an Argonian political faction that currently ruled Black Marsh. It was the An-Xileel, along with the mysterious Hist trees, that led the Argonian people to victory during the Oblivion Crisis, being the only province in Tamriel to not just push back the invading Daedric forces of the Daedric Prince, Mehrunes Dagon, but actually invade the Prince's realm, forcing the Daedric forces to close the Oblivion gates that connected Tamriel with Oblivion, the realm of the Daedra, in Black Marsh. Because of this, along with other details that no outsider knew of sadly, An-Xileel became the dominant political faction in Black Marsh and steered the Argonian people to becoming an independent province in Tamriel, depriving the Empire of another province in the process. And the Empire was too weak to do anything about it on account of the war they had with the Altmer Dominion at the time.
If that wasn't enough, the An-Xileel took things even further and assaulted the province Morrowind, the home province of the Dunmer, for all the generations that the Argonians had to endure the Dark Elves enslaving and raiding Black Marsh's outskirts. Though the Argonian army was pushed back by House Redoran, the Great Houses known for its martial prowess, An-Xileel held firmly the territories it still had in Morrowind, and rumors abound in Morrowind and even Skyrim that the Argonians are preparing another army to fight against the Dunmer people. Though both provinces and people are no longer affiliated with the Empire anymore, it seems the Empire was in the process of negotiating with them. Or at least the An-Xileel. Serana clarified things for Tolfdir.
"Well, to answer your questions, the Emperor wants Black Marsh and Morrowind back into the fold of the Empire." Said Serana as she looked at Tolfdir, momentarily avoiding the reason she was there. "I don't know the full details, myself, but I imagine the Empire wants both the lizards and the elves back into the Empire because of the Aldmeri Dominion. Heard that the Dominion is preparing for another war and the Emperor wants both Morrowind and Black Marsh back into the fold of the Empire. I'm guessing because of their armies and as an extra deterrent for the Dominion to not go to war with the Empire."
"Both my people and the Argonians despise one another." Said Brelyna. True she was friends with the Dragonborn, who was an Argonian, but that was just an unlikely friendship between friends that care little about each other's species. As a rule, their people despise one another for several reasons. Her people saw the Argonians as little more than slave fodder and lesser beings unworthy of anything else while the Argonians despise the Dunmer for generations of raiding Black Marsh and enslaving their people. "How can the Empire bring both of them back into the Empire?"
"No idea." Said Serana honestly. "Guessing they think him being Argonian, the Dragonborn can help negotiate with the An-Xileel into allowing Black Marsh to be apart of the Empire again. Doubt it, of course, but Tullius thinks it's worth a shot. Before I left, he was still in negotiations with the An-Xileel in Solitude."
"I see." Said Tolfdir as he heard all this. "Then I wish him luck with the An-Xileel. But if I may ask, my dear, how did you manage to get a dragon to take you here from Solitude?"
"My love summoned one to take me here." Said Serana dryly. "Odahviing, if I recall correctly. The damn dragon didn't like that he was being used to carrying me here, but he did so on the insistence of the Dragonborn. Speaking of which, can we hurry this off? Nothing is more annoying than dealing with an impatient dragon. Believe me, I speak with experience." Upon hearing that, Drevis spoke up, not wanting a dragon to go about attacking College grounds or Winterhold for that matter. Again.
"Well, in that case, I can safely say that we can remove the soul fragment in the child if we wanted to." Said Drevis. "Unfortunately, that decision is up to Brelyna and I doubt she wants to do it now in fear of it harming the boy. Then again, it may be best to do it later when he's old enough to understand it's for his own good. Nothing more annoying than a magical kid crying about being hurt and sending fireballs everywhere." Serana scoffed at that.
"I can imagine much worse things." Said Serana before looking at the kid. Seeing the kid wasn't crying and just looking at everyone in childlike curiosity amazed Serana slightly, thinking he was the typical child or baby that just plain out cried or made a big fuss over everything. "Well, if Brelyna wants to hold it off until he's old enough to understand it's necessary, then I say go for it. She's his caretaker, thus she should decide what she thinks is best for him. Of course, having another opinion can help. In which case," Serana then held out her hands, anticipating Brelyna to hand over the child to her. Once Brelyna realized this, she reluctantly handed the boy to Serana. Though she trusted Serana, she felt a bit reluctant to be deprived of the child, much to her shock.
Holding the baby with an experience that Brelyna was surprised at, Serana inspected the boy while rocking him, slowly driving him to sleep.
"Hm…" Said Serana as she inspected the boy while he slept. "He feels fine and I don't sense anything wrong with him." She then cast a spell on the boy and felt nothing wrong with him. "Soul-wise, he's fine. Aside from that other soul, of course. It's not doing anything in hurting him right now and ripping it off may just cause a stunt in his development because of the trauma it'll inflict if we try to extract the soul. So, I think you should avoid extracting the soul until he's of appropriate age. I'd say when he turns thirteen or somewhere around there. I'd say that because that's more than enough time for you to toughen him up for the rough nature that is Skyrim. Unless, of course, Brelyna wants to give him up." Upon hearing that, Tolfdir looked at Brelyna in surprise.
"Brelyna, my dear, do you intend to keep the boy?" Asked Tolfdir in surprise as he looked at the blushing Dunmer woman. Throughout the time that Brelyna held the boy in her custody, Tolfdir noticed that Brelyna was becoming closer to the boy under her care. He at first thought it was just something that would fade away in time, but what Serana said made him think otherwise.
"W-well." Said Brelyna with a blushing face as she tried to think of what to say. Upon seeing this, Serana decided that this was something that she best handles alone. Thus, she told Tolfdir and Drevis to go. Giving a glare in the process. After making both men leave, Serana sat down in a chair in the room they were in and asked Brelyna to sit as well. Once the Dunmer woman sat down in a chair opposite Serana, the Vampire spoke.
"I honestly didn't expect you of all people to want to adopt a human child." Said Serana as she held the boy expertly with her hands while looking at Brelyna with an amused smirk. "Then again, maybe I should have expected that. The only question is are you sure you want this and it's not something out of the whim?"
"I…*Sighs* I honestly don't know." Said Brelyna as she looked at her hands, unsure of what to think about this. "I'm beginning to like taking care of the kid. He's been behaving well and even doing the worst parts of tending to a child leaves me with a joy that I can't describe. I know it's only been a short time since I took care of him, but since then, I've wanted to be there for his entire lifespan. To see him grow up and see him get married and have a family of his own. But,"
"But you don't know if this is the right choice for you." Said Serana, finishing for Brelyna. When she nodded, Serana looked at the sleeping child and spoke. "Well, I'm glad that you have that thought because raising a child is more complicated than you know. They need constant attention, not to mention are a huge monetary cost to maintain, and they need to be carefully raised too. Can you do that while doing your own studies? You and I both know that the magical arts leave very little room for raising a child. Even more so if you want to excel in them."
"I know." Said Brelyna as she looked at the child, slightly jealous that Serana managed to make him go to sleep so quickly. The last time she tried to make him go to sleep it took her several hours, eventually forcing her to use a sleep spell to make him sleep. "And I've been trying to think of logical reasons why I can't be his adopted mother. That is one of the most critical. The other being his birth parents are no doubt looking for him and are worried sick. I…I don't want to get in the way of him getting to know them and being seen as an alternative mother to his real one. But every time I try to think these thoughts, I just look at the kid and can't help but wish to be around him. To…"
"I know. I know. No need to repeat your reasoning." Said Serana in slight annoyance before speaking up again. "Okay, let's do this. If you decide to adopt the child yourself, can you maintain your grades in this College right now? Can you get your friends to help out along with your teachers?"
"Tolfdir and the other teachers have been helping me during the time I've been forced to take care of the child." Said Brelyna as she looked at Serana. "Same with Onmund and J'zargo. And my academic position in the school hasn't been impacted much. I'm still one of the best here. Though, considering there's a handful of us, that's not saying much. I'm sure they'll be understanding if I decide to adopt the child myself."
"What about money?" Asked Serana. "You're not exactly the most financially secure in Skyrim. Then again, knowing my love, he'll give you some gold and jewels to help this."
"I…I can make do, even without the Dragonborn's help." Said Brelyna, realizing that this may be the biggest hurdle. "I don't really spend that much and the College provides much of the food and material we use. And I've earned some money from doing the various adventures I went on with the Dragonborn and doing College work in Winterhold. I can imagine I can get a job in Winterhold for extra money, but I don't think money is an issue."
"Okay, last question." Said Serana. "If the kid's birth parents come and turn out to be abusive or benevolent, what will you do?" Brelyna, upon hearing the question, thought about it for a minute before giving Serana her answer.
"If they were abusive and intend to harm him, I'll hurt them and prevent them from ever." Said Brelyna with enough emotions that Serana can tell she would do it without hesitation. "But if they care and are worried sick about him, I'll give him to them willingly. It'll hurt, especially with how long we're together, but it's the right thing to do. I know it." Serana, upon hearing that, saw a tear go down Brelyna's face. Her mouth twitching, Serana sighed before standing up and walking over to Brelyna. With Brelyna looking at Serana, red eyes meeting near golden ones, the Dunmer woman was a little surprised when Serana handed the child to Brelyna.
"Well, with those questions, I think it's safer that you take care of the child rather than giving him up for adoption." Said Serana as Brelyna took the child from Serana. "Considering your answers, I'd think it's best to have him stay with you rather than take a chance in an orphanage and parents we have no idea will give him the love you clearly have. Plus, if it doesn't work, then I can just take care of him. I'm sure my love will like having a kid, even if it's a bad idea for us." Looking at the sleeping child in her arms, Brelyna looked at Serana, who just gave a small smile. Not her usual smirk.
"I…t-thank you, Serana." Said Brelyna with a smile as she held the child. "I'll do my best to live up to your expectations."
"Yeah, sure." Said Serana as she went back to her usual dry, sarcastic self. "Just don't have him turn out to be a necromancer or bandit, okay? I'd hate to have to deal with him later." Brelyna winced upon hearing that, knowing that Serana was right on that, before looking at the child and smiling.
"Guess I'll have to name him." Said Brelyna. "I wonder what's a good name for him? Should I go for a human name or a Dunmer name?"
"J'zargo can help with that." Said J'zargo as he popped his head out from Brelyna's door, stunning Brelyna. "J'zargo figured that you wish to keep the boy. Thus, J'zargo did some digging into the materials that came with the boy. J'zargo found things that identify the boy's name." J'zargo then brought out a book from his person and handed it to Brelyna. "J'zargo found this amongst the snow. It was heavily damaged from both burn marks and the snow, preventing much of the book's contents from being readable. What was left was written in a language that J'zargo does not understand. It took much of J'zargo's time, but J'zargo has figured out the language written in the book. And thus have figured out the boy's name."
"Really?" Asked Brelyna, surprised at this and touched by J'zargo's efforts. "What's his name then?"
"J'zargo will say that he does not know if this name is for the boy, but it's likely better than being called boy or whatever name that J'zargo's Dunmer friend will give the boy. That and it's better than the other one that J'zargo found." Said J'zargo. Before Brelyna can be offended at what the Khajiit, J'zargo spoke. "The name that J'zargo found is called Harry. A strange name, but better than the other one, which was Lily. J'zargo knows not much about human naming conventions, but J'zargo says that this is better for a female than a male. J'zargo says to take that name, Brelyna. If not for its convenience, then for the child's birth parents, who we do not know if they love or hate the boy. Better to think it's the former, no?"
"Agreed." Said Brelyna. "Besides, that sounds like a lovely name. Harry Maryon. I like the sound of that. What do you think Serana?"
"Please tell me you're not asking the woman that's out of date with her naming conventions?" Asked Serana bluntly. When she saw the pleading look on Brelyna's face, Serana sighed. "It's fine. But don't come crying to be if he gets bullied because of his name."
"J'zargo thinks that would be the most unwise of decisions to do that." Said J'zargo with a chuckle. "Brelyna may not be as strong as J'zargo, but she is not someone that you wish to anger. J'zargo can attest to that." Sighing at J'zargo's words, Brelyna looked at Harry and smiled. Even if it's going to give her a lot of work, she was more than happy to have the boy as her son. She can just imagine the look of everyone when they learned of this. Holding the child in her arms, Brelyna placed him near her chest and wondered what the future held for her and her new son. Whatever it was, she'll take it in stride.
Unbeknownst to her and everyone else, a small cloud of black sludge that floated in the air in the corner of the room, observed what was happening before disappearing. Once it did, if one could hear and focus on it, a faint laugh was heard. A faint laugh of satisfaction.