Cearbhail:

Um... a lot of stuff happens. A lot.

Enjoy. =^^=

[Vara Crolsuh'Akha]

This land was a wreck. I walked from Leyawiin all the way up to Chorrol. It took me a few days, but I managed to make it. Leyawiin was devastated from my old troop's antics. Just a few nights ago, we lit a huge cart full of moon sugar on fire and rolled it down to Leyawiin. The smoke rolled into the town, making everyone high as the moon. It was for a good laugh, but also to send a message… that the Renrijra Krin was still alive, and that we were coming to take Leyawiin in the name of Elsweyr's Khajiits. The mission of the Renrijra Krin was to reclaim the stolen land of Makapi, the area surrounding Leyawiin, and most of the Topal Bay. That area belong to Elsweyr not too long ago, but some Imperial Knights decided… their empire deserved that land instead, so they took it, and pretty much made the Khajiits and Argonians living there second-class citizens.

I belonged to an organization that works in secret within the Empire. We're called the Blades. We're the bodyguards of the Emperor, but act as his spies, his assassins, whatever we need to be. Our Emperor died about five years ago, and we're still evaluating who is going to become the next Emperor. We had the High Chancellor Ocato, some old Battlemage, that was running the Empire, while our chosen hero, an Imperial Blade by the name of Adam Tullius, was on some secret mission I didn't have the clearance for. He was going to find another Dragonborn to sit on the throne. That much… I knew. He left on his own, leaving Grand Master Jauffre in charge of the Blades.

It was Grand Master Jauffre that gave me the mission to infiltrate the Renrijra Krin, and I did. I managed to join their ranks by posing as one of their own, and because of my actions… of my decisions, Leyawiin witnessed one of the most brutal city burnings in its history: the Firefly Nights. While I was 'rescuing' the leaders of the Renrijra Krin, all in the hopes that I could infiltrate their organization and find their headquarters, the Imperial Legion decided to burn the city down. The Renrijra Krin worked to save the innocent lives in the town… innocent lives that were burning to death because of the Imperial archers shooting at the town from a nearby hilltop outside the walled city. I watched in horror as my Empire… betrayed its own citizens.

As I looked down at the town, I could see that it was no better than how I left it. But… I was at war with the Empire now… or Leyawiin anyway. I wanted to earn that city back for the Khajiits that lost their homes and loved ones. I was a rogue Blade. Go figure. We do this kind of shit all the time.

As I walked north, things… things got worse. Settlements burned, corpses bloodied, torn to shreds, blasted to bits. No survivors. Some cut with swords, some heads exploded… it was wild. I never saw this kind of carnage before, not even during the Oblivion Crisis, while I was working as my mother's apprentice in the Blades. Bravil was under siege as I came up to the town. The bridge was burned down, the town on fire on the inside of it. I could hear screaming inside the town, but… it was an isolated town, sitting on its own island. The only way to reach the town was from the bridge… which there wasn't one. So… even if I wanted to get into the massively walled off town… I'd have to somehow swim through slaughterfish-infested waters, find a weakness in the wall, and then somehow infiltrate the town, and either help it… to destroy it. And I'm a one-girl army, I'll admit that… but I'm on a mission.

You see… a couple days ago, on the 15th, I learned that my grandmother, a Blade, died in combat protecting Chorrol from an invading army of flying Orcish monsters. I want revenge for her death by joining whatever army that exists and taking the fight to these monsters once and for all. I figured the best way I can do that is to track down the greatest Blade of all time… Adam Tullius. And if anyone knows where he is, it would be my mom. She had the clearance to know about his mission. Or Grand Master Jauffre. So, I'm on my way up to Cloud Ruler Temple, the headquarters for the Blades in Cyrodiil. But first, I'm going to stop in Chorrol to pay respects to my grandmother. I want to go see her grave… if they made one for her. I don't know if anyone is even alive in Chorrol anymore. I need to see it for myself, maybe find Grandma's body, give her a proper burial, if I'm able.

And that's where we come into today, right now. I'm standing at the gates to Chorrol. I can smell the blood, but… I can't see the damage. The walls look… brand new. The gate looks… good as new. I grew up in this town… and it's never looked this good before. There were some changes though. The magic runes covering the walls surrounding the town. Huh… I wonder what that's about. I have some training under Restoration, every Blade had some training in Restoration, and with that training, I was… completely incapable to knowing anything about this magic stuff. Just a bunch of circles and runes. Whatever. I just hope it's set up to help instead of blow up the town once I open the gate. I could hear voices on the other side of the wall… so… that's cool. Very promising. My tail was sticking up, almost wagging at the thought that… Chorrol might be safe after all.

As I stood there, in front of the gate, I saw a head poke over a tower window, overlooking the gate. He saw me standing by the gate, dressed in my black leather armor, my bow slung across my back, my katana hanging off my hips, and my tail flicking crazily happy.

I knew the guard, I hung out with him all the time. He was a Blade, like me. He lived at the Weynon Priory, my home away from home. My grandmother loved it there. So did I. The garden was always pretty. It's gone now. The priory, I mean. Oblivion Crisis happened, and the Mythic Dawn destroyed it. Of course, they rebuilt it… but it's just not the same. Still isn't. No one was there when I visited on my way up here. I thought the worse until I saw the town's walls still up. And Phillip looking down at me.

"Hey, Phillip! Can you let me in?" I screamed up to the young man, the young Imperial who handed me a tulip one day, asking to be my boyfriend. Happens a lot to me. I don't know why.

He looked down at me, almost squinting. "Vara? Is that really you?"

I crossed my arms, looking away. "No, I'm the magic Lady of the Lake, come to give you the Sword of Destinies. You've been chosen by the gods to lead the armies of Aetherius into battle against the mighty… kangaroos." Okay, I admit… I couldn't think of a threat more troubling than kangaroos. Elsweyr has some weird animals in it.

Phillip smirked, laughing a bit as he pulled on the lever. "Welcome home, Vara! I haven't seen you around in a while. How was your mission?" He looked down at me as I waited for the gate to open.

I shrugged, watching as the gate split open, opening out for me. "You know… infiltrated a Khajiit gang of Glass Arrows, stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. It was weird… they're… really… really… nice. They're like a family. Like us. The Blades, I mean." I had to correct myself as I saw Phillip's face brighten up when I mentioned that he was like a family to me. He… he kind of was. He and I were the same age, and we both trained as Blades. His father worked in the Weynon Priory. His father's name was Piner. He's the only person still there, honestly. That's why the flowers aren't in bloom anymore. Maborel used to take care of the flowers. Without him, the gardens just don't feel the same.

Phillip waved me through the gate. "Please hurry. Ogres and trolls have been on the rise lately."

Yeah… I don't want to fight any of those. "You should know something. Bravil's in trouble. The town's burning down."

He frowned at me. "Do… do you know what's going on in the world right now?"

Oh! Great! Phillip can tell me everything. "Actually, no. I don't. Do you have a full understanding? Like… the latest intel and all that?"

He nodded. "Yeah. Once you get in here, I'll brief you."

I walked into the town, surprised that the town looked… normal. Some parts of the road looked… really clean. Like, freshly repaired. Buildings had new wood and stone filling in what looked like fallen walls. Some bits of ground had grass longer than others. Huh… I'm thinking Chorrol was hit after all. But… it was repaired quickly… really quickly.

"Phillip? What happened to the town?" I looked up at him as he walked down the tower's spiral staircase.

"First thing's first." He said, nodding to me. "A history lesson. Come with me." He waved at me to follow him.

Okay… this is not like Phillip at all. He's changed in the past year. I began following behind him as he led me through the streets. "In the first era, in 242, the ancient Ayleid elves encountered a flying elf, blue-skinned, orange-robed. They were suspicious, but the thing was flying off the ground. The Ayleid elves worshiped the Daedra, so, when they met the flying elf, they thought him Daedra. They asked the elf to identify itself, and instead of talking, the elf stuck his hand out, exploding one of the Ayleid's head off." Exploding heads? Yeah… saw a lot of that on the way down here.

"The other Ayleids attacked the elf. Some blasted magicka at it, and others charged in with swords, others shooting with bows. Magicka had no effect, swords never got close to touching, and arrows ricocheted off some invisible barrier. The archers that saw the sword swingers explode, melt, or turned to dust, all turned to run. Only one managed to escape with his life. The thing is, he reported the news of this Aedra to his town. They didn't believe him, but… they were suspicious enough that they were going to prepare for an attack. They set up their defenses, got their strongest mages, best sword fighters, and archers all lining the towers of their great city.

"And the elf marched, orange-robed, blue-skinned, eyes blindfolded, marched up to the town. At first, the town fell to silence, watching this elf approach their town. Some chuckled at how easy this fight was going to be. And then… according to the history book, the sky turned orange. It blocked out the sun. When the Ayleids looked up, they saw hundreds of the same elf, flying in the sky. You can imagine what happened next." Phillip waved his hand around Chorrol.

That brought me to the next question… or… I guess my first question. "So… what happened here?"

He continued walking up the road, leading us to the either the Fighters Guild, or the Mages Guild. It's hard to tell. There wasn't much else in that direction. "So, the town was attacked by these orange-robed monsters. They have a name, one we've discovered. They're called Aedra, as in… the Aedra. Only, the aren't gods or anything like that. They're like the Daedra we had to fight during the Oblivion Crisis. They're minor Aedra. And even though that makes it seem like a really simple solution… just kill them, right? You begin to find out that killing them is a lot harder than you think. The Aedra are blind, but they use a spell Detect Life to find people. And then, they use their invisible Restoration magicka to collect magicka in a certain spot and then let it pop. Like an implosion setting off an even bigger explosion. Any time we hit them with magicka, they just absorbed it. And whenever we managed to hit them with arrows or swords… they just heal. They're wickedly fast, able to evade most of what we hand over to them, and… they're relentless. I've never met an enemy like them. No one has in this era."

Okay… not what I hoped to hear.

"Spymaster Arabhi went after the Aedra when they showed up in town. She managed to chase them out of the town."

I grabbed Phillip by his arm. He stopped to look at me. "That's kind of why I'm here. Was her body recovered? Does she have a grave? I want to… I need to…"

He blinked, smiling. "She's not dead. She survived the encounter. She's alive."

That hit me hard, and I found tears forming in my eyes. I tried to keep myself from crying, but it was a losing battle. Phillip wrapped me up in a hug. He patted me on the back a few times, telling me it was okay. He let me stay like that for a few minutes. After a minute or two, I managed to collect myself.

I tapped Phillip on the back. "Okay, I'm okay now." We broke our hug, and I looked him in the eye. "If she's alive… where is she? Is she in town?"

He shook his head. "No, she went to the Imperial City. The Imperial City was hit worse there than it was here. She's helping the citizens there collect themselves. Help rebuild their lives. Do you… do you want to go to the Imperial City? It's not safe to go alone. You should take one of these." He pulled off a ring, handing it to me.

Okay, I'm not good with magic, but I know an enchanted item when it's handed to me. "What's it enchanted with?"

"Soul Separation. The Aedra coming after us can't see us, remember? They can only Detect Lives. This ring has a spell that masks your soul. You can't be detected by any detection spell. Our town is surrounded by a bubble of the same spell. I'm sure you noticed the runes on the walls outside. Whenever a wave of those Aedra come by, they fly over the town. They already razed it before… so to not detect any lives here is unquestionable to them. Anyone that wants to go outside needs to have these rings. It's the only way we're safe. But, the Aedra aren't the only threat. It turns out that the Aedra are able to… corrupt people's minds, turn them into thralls. If you leave, you might run into their thralls. They're not blind. And they'll try to kill you."

I wondered. Seeing people killed by swords and bows… I wondered if humans were doing this. And it turns out… yeah. Yeah, they are. Bravil wasn't hit by flying Aedra. I saw none of them. The town was just… under siege. Probably by thralls. I should have found a way to infiltrate the town.

I nodded to Phillip. "Thank you, Phillip. Listen, I'm on my way to Cloud Ruler Temple. I'm going to go find Spymaster Tullius."

He scratched his iron helm. "Really? He's been gone for years. Why are you going after him?"

I growled. "If anyone can defeat this enemy… it's him. And… if I know my mom… she's going after him too. If I find him… I find her. And vice versa."

Phillip nodded. "So, thinking you lost your grandmother made you want to find your mother? Well, if anyone knows where the two of them are, it would be Grand Master Jauffre. And he is at Cloud Ruler Temple, so I guess that's why you're on your way up there?"

I nodded again. "It's a bit of a walk, but… it's better than walking around in circles trying to find clues. He can just call Mom up, or Tullius for that matter."

"Speaking of which." He pulled out his crystal ball. "I have Jauffre's number on my crystal ball. Spymaster Arabhi's too. You could just call them."

That… that seemed really simple. I took the crystal ball from his hands. "This… this is so much better than walking across all of Cyrodiil." I opened the ball's frequencies and thumbed Arabhi's name. The ball vibrated a bit as it tried to reach Grandmother's crystal ball, ten miles away.

I wondered what I would say. It's been so long. Almost a year. The ball connected, and I could see Grandmother's graying muzzle forming in front of me. "You have news, Ph… Oh, what an unexpected surprise. If you're calling from this crystal ball, you're home. How was your mission, dear?"

I fought the urge to cry in front of her, but I couldn't help but react with a deep breath and a cracked voice. "It was… going well. Until the Empire tried to kill me, and the Renrijra Krin saved my life."

Grandma nodded. "I heard. I wondered if your loyalties would be tested. They feared that using a Khajiit that hates Black Marsh was a good decision for the mission. Especially one that could destroy the entire town on her own. I trusted you would be okay. And here you are… still standing. You are making yourself into a wonderful Blade, granddaughter."

I smiled, nodding. "Thanks, Grandma. So, I've been thinking. I'm going to find Mom. And Spymaster Tullius."

"You don't need to." She replied. "He's on his way home."

Well…

This entire mission is wrapping up nicely. "So… my entire self-discovery mission where I single-handedly save the world is…"

"Completed." Grandmother clapped her hands, smugly looking at me as she did so. "Congratulations, Vara. You've successfully completed your mission."

"Not yet. I still need to get to Mom and Spymaster Tullius."

"You're needed elsewhere." She replied. "A couple of scouts have spotted a cloud of Aedra heading towards Bruma. Towards Cloud Ruler Temple. I'm needed here, and I'm old. Now that I've located a wonderful Blade who is not assigned to any post." She pointed at me. "I'm asking you to go up to Cloud Ruler Temple and assist the evacuation, if there is to be one. The Cloud might show up in a matter of days. It depends on how long it takes for the cloud to get there."

Oh, man. I wanted to spend a night in my old house and get some sleep. "Okay, I'll head out as soon as I can."

"Girl, get some rest, and groom your fur. You look like you haven't slept in days."

"I HAVEN'T!" I screamed at the crystal ball. "I was wrecked with the thought that you were dead! I thought… I heard you fought those monsters… and you didn't return. I thought… I thought you were dead. I came up here to see your grave, and then Phillip tells me… you're not dead. So… I had to call you. I wanted to apologize for what I said when I left. About… not wanting to be you. Not being like Mom. People who just… meet some random man, get pregnant… and then ditch them. I'm sorry for saying that. I didn't mean it… I mean… I never got to meet Dad. And…"

"I understand, Vara. We'll have time for that chat later. But there is something we need to talk about." She pulled the crystal ball away from her, and aimed it to a group of people dressed in mage robes. There was a tall elf with long golden hair tied back in a ponytail, and a Khajiit… who looked just like me. Only, he was a boy.

"Vatu, we need to talk." Grandmother yelled. Oh great… is she trying to pair me up with another Khajiit? This is so typical of her. She finds out I'm not dead, and she's already trying to set me up with another boy. I'm still angry about Jowinpan; I'm not ready for some boy… who looks almost just like me… lapping his tongue over my facial fur. That just seemed weird. I don't want to make out with myself, no matter who cute I look.

The Khajiit looked over to Grandmother, smiling. "Yes, Grandmother?"

Grandmother? What? Wait…

What?

"Come say hi to your sister, Vara." When she said that to him, his ears perked up, and I could see his eyes glowing as he rushed over to the crystal ball.

He took the crystal ball from Grandma, holding it up to his face. "Wow… we really do look alike." He paused as he just looked at me. I was just as… focused on him too. My heart was pounding, and my mind whirring. I think I mentally shut down, because he was already talking, and I realized I hadn't been listening. "And that's how I learned about you."

I shook my head. "Wait? What? I'm sorry… I'm… still in shock. You're my… brother?"

He nodded. "Yes. We're twins. My name is Vatu Raz'akha. We were separated at cubhood. Sort of. Your Aunt Abhuki took me in when we were cubs. She's technically my mother, since she raised me. I was raised by our dad and your aunt Abhuki. They never told me about you. Anyway, I was hoping I'd get to meet you one day. And… we'd be a family. You have a little sister, by the way. Her name is Nisha."

I couldn't stop myself from smiling. "I do?" This was a little too much for me at the moment, but… I was enjoying it. I never had siblings growing up… and suddenly, I have two. And I have a little sister. Someone I can do girly stuff with. Like teach her how to cut a bitch in half with a katana. And braid our manes! I always wanted to do that with someone other than my mother. "I can't wait to meet you both."

Vatu pulled out his crystal ball. "I can give you my frequency if you want it."

I suddenly realized… I need a new crystal ball. Or, I could use the one I obtained when I infiltrated the Renrijra Krin. "Um… sure. I'll just give you a call. And then, you can give my number to Grandma… and…" My head was spinning. I handed the crystal ball back to Phillip, reaching into my pocket. "Um… okay. Give me the frequency."

"ABN 143-76."

I nodded, adding his frequency to my crystal ball. "That's… a battlemage frequency. ABN?"

I nodded. "Yeah. I'm a battle-mage. Well… I'm a War Mage."

War Mage? My fur started to rise. "Wait… that's… a classified experimental program of expendable battlemages. That means…" The War Mage Protocol. They enacted it? And my brother… he's one of them? "You're… a War Mage?"

He nodded. "Everyone here dressed in robes just graduated the training program. We're about to get our orders." He smiled. "I was actually going to take my first few days off to come down to Leyawiin to find you. I was just talking to Erandur about it." He pointed to the Altmer behind him. "Now… I guess we don't have to. Unless… you want me to come visit?"

That brought a small smile to me as I shrugged. "I mean… I'm not in Leyawiin, I'm in Chorrol. But… I'm not staying. I'm heading up to Cloud Ruler Temple. I have some people who may need help. But… sure. We'll find time to meet each other. And… thanks. For reaching out. It would have been easy to just… not care."

Vatu smiled even deeper. "Hold on… I should get Nisha. You have to meet her. She'll love you." I tried to keep my face from leaking tears as he took off in a mad dash, sprinting through a camp filled with more and more of the expendable mages. And it made my heart sink to see them all. All of them… mostly our age. Kids. I was trained as a kid to be a knight… but them. Most of them… just wanted to study magicka, or something of the sort. And they look battle-hardened already, but with that slight air of naivete, innocence. I could see it in their eyes. They were still children. And here they were… going up against some impossible to beat foe.

"Nisha… you're going to love this!" Vatu drew my attention back to the crystal ball as he handed the ball off to a smaller ball of fluff. She looked… young. Pre-teen. "Nisha… this is your sister."

Nisha looked confused for a second, and then looked up at Vatu. "So… your mate then? You…" Her eyes went wide. "You finally found someone you like?" I'm guessing Vatu's not exactly a ladies man then.

Vatu sighed, rubbing the bridge of his muzzle. "No… she's my twin, Nisha. She's your sister. Just like how I'm your brother."

Nisha's facial fur puffed out as she looked down at the crystal ball. "I… I have a sister? An older sister?" She looked me in the eye, looking me up and down. "She… she looks just like you! Wow… a girl Vatu."

I chuckled at the thought. "My name is Vara."

"Vara…" She smiled thickly. "I like it. I… when are we going to meet?"

I shrugged. "I'm… not sure. I have a mission to attend to first. I'm a Blade." Stupid! You shouldn't have told her that!

"Oh, like Grandma!" Nisha purred.

Vatu rubbed his hand over Nisha's head. "Yup, just like Grandma."

This was… a day. Just a day. I went from coming to Chorrol to visit my grandmother's grave, to learning that she's alive, to learning that I have a brother… and a sister, and that they were both War Mages. I couldn't believe how this day had evolved.

Philip was just standing off to the side, watching the array of emotional reactions coming from my face. From the joy on my face from seeing Grandma alive, to the overwhelming joy at learning I had a brother, as well as a sister. Not to mention the fear I was hiding at learning he was… a disposable mage.

I just spent the next few minutes just talking to them. Both of them. Vatu told me about his upbringing. I learned how he grew up in the Imperial City with our dad and my aunt Abhuki. Our dad was a priest of Talos, and that explains how he knows our mother, since she's a Blade. Vatu told me about our Uncle J'skar. He told me about how his two parents died at the end of the Oblivion Crisis, and how he and Nisha were homeless for almost five years. And I listened patiently until he got to a certain talking point.

"And one night, while we were sleeping, I heard someone sneaking into our camp. I heard them grab a bag of chips… and when I opened my eyes, there was this green-scaled Argonian… child… about my age. They… quickly used their Shadows to vanish, making me question if it was a dream or not. I didn't know until the next morning when they approached me, handing me a few fish, apologizing for stealing my chips. They told me their name: Jowinpan."

"Jowinpan?" My heart came to a full stop. "Wait! Go back! Jowinpan? Is he… did you… spend a lot of time with him?"

Vatu paused for a second. "Um… yeah. We're totally best friends. He followed me…"

A blue-scaled Argonian came out of nowhere, appearing around Vatu, wrapping her arm around his neck. "Vatu… what did I say about using that name?" She glanced from him over to the crystal ball in his hands. Her eyes went super wide. "What…"

Vatu looked at the Argonian. "I was just getting ready to tell Vara about…"

The girl choked him for a second. "My brother? Oh… of course, you were!" She chuckled loudly, looking Vatu in the eye. "I'm sure… he…" She almost gagged the word out. "would have been happy to hear about you meeting his girlfriend. But…" She looked over to me. "He's dead. I'm sorry to tell you…"

"He's dead?!" I screamed. "How? How did he die?" My heart was racing all over again. I just learned that my old boyfriend might still be alive… and he was taken away from me… all over again! I'm sick of this game of emotions wrecking my life today!

Vatu looked at the girl. "Pra'ja… I'm… I'll give you two a moment." He grabbed onto his sister and led her away. "Let's let the two of them have a moment." He looked back at the girl. "Pra'ja… maybe… you should tell her the truth… about what happened to… you know who."

…

[Pra'ja Vanderma]

Oh boy. Vatu, I fucking hate you. You sprung this on me too quickly. I… I had to plan this out. I had to think about what I was going to say… and we were going to go on a journey to find her… and then… I'd ease her into this conversation! I didn't… I couldn't…

"Um…" I saw the face of my old girlfriend looking me in the eye. "Excuse me, Argonian? What was your name again? Pra'ja?"

I nodded. "Yup. That's me." I pointed to myself. "That's my name. Never… never anything else." I chuckled. "Pra'ja Vanderma."

Vara, the girl I used to spend all my childhood with, nodded. "Yes! That was Jowinpan's last name too! So… you really were his sister? How come I never met you? Were you two like Vatu and me… separated at birth?"

I shook my head. "No… we… we…" I sighed. "We're the same person." That look on Vara's face was almost priceless… in the bad way. She looked confused. Of course she'd be confused.

"Wait…" She nervously chuckled. "Like…" She shook her head. "In the same egg? I… I don't understand."

I almost had to laugh at such a thought. Sure, Argonian twins share an egg sometimes, but usually it's two eggs. "Nope. I'm… the person you grew up with. We met when we were really young. I had green scales, spikes on my head, big annoying floppy gills… a scar… right here on my arm." I reached down at my right arm. "From where you scratched me when we sparred with each other. You… you used to sneak out with me to the gardens in Weynon Priory… where we would lay in the grass, surrounded by yellow and pink flowers. We would talk about our dreams. And then… I had to leave. I left with my parents for Black Marsh, and we were attacked. I survived. And when I got home… you were gone. My family was dead, and my house was sold to some new family. I had no place in Chorrol anymore. So… I left. And then I met Vatu and his sister. I thought Vatu was you, honestly. And then… I stuck around because… it was like being near you. I could pretend that I was… still near you. I never knew he was your brother until just a few days ago."

Vara, just sat there patiently, listening to me. "So… how… why did you change?"

I guess she was talking about my body. "I never really liked…" I looked away. "I'm not comfortable talking about it. I'm still… new to this body. It's only been a few months. While I was at the university… I learned in an Alteration class that… the Hists in Black Marsh… can… alter an Argonian's body… if they are worthy of the change. So… I went. I petitioned for a sex change. And… apparently… it's actually pretty common. More common than I thought it was going to be. And one of the Hists that actually agrees to do the ceremony allowed me to… make my body the way I wanted it. I had my entire body reformed inside a Hist. I came out like this." I waved my hand over my blue-scaled body. "Once I learned I could do this… I knew what I wanted. And… I haven't wanted to go back. I'm staying like this." I paused as I looked Vara in the eye. "I hope… I mean… I wanted you to get to know the new me… before I told you. I didn't want you to judge me before you got to know me."

She stayed silent for a second. "I spent years… YEARS… thinking you were dead. Every moment hating Argonians for crimes they committed against you and your family. And suddenly… you're… alive? I… I need a moment." She pushed the crystal ball away from her hands, shoving it into an Imperial dressed in Blades armor.

I watched as she paced away, crossing her arms, and tapping her feet on the ground. And, I knew she wasn't going to accept the new me. She was angry that I wasn't… what she expected me to be. I shouldn't have told her. I knew I shouldn't have told her.

…

[Vara]

Fuck!

This is too much!

This day just won't fucking let up! Grandma's dead! Fuck, I'm sad! Grandma's alive! Fuck yeah, I'm fucking happy! I have a brother! Fuck yeah, that's awesome. He's a fodder mage. Shit fuck, that sucks! I have a sister! Fuck yeah, that's the best thing I've heard all day! She's a fodder mage too! Shitting fucking shit, that's… that's just bad. Oh… Jowinpan's alive! That's the fucking best news I've fucking heard in my whole fucking life! And then the girl tells me he's dead. The fucking world fucking would fucking fucking fecking fucking… fuck. And then the girl tells me she's him. He's… he's a she now.

…

That's the best fucking news I've heard all day. My old friend is alive and well! But… I'm emotionally drained now. I can't deal with this emotional stuff anymore. I need to shove some pie in my face. I need to take a bath, think about this… and then… go kiss my new girlfriend. I sighed as I turned around. Guess I better tell Phillip he doesn't have a chance with me. I've crushed too many men's hearts these days. Too bad… he's kind of cute. But… Pra'ja… I guess is her name now, is who I've been waiting for this whole time.

…

[Pra'ja]

I stood there, crushed as I watched Vara angrily approach the crystal ball. "Phillip, I appreciate you… I really do, but…" She took the crystal ball from him, holding it up to her face. "Pra'ja. I'm going to be calling Vatu, and having him send me your frequency. We'll have a better chat later. I'm tired, girl. So fucking tired. It's been an emotionally taxing day, and learning you're still alive… is beyond what I can handle at this second. But… girl, if you think I hate you or something… don't. I fucking love you. And when I see you, we're going to have so much fun together… if you still want me, that is."

I nodded. "Yes! So much."

Vara smirked. "Great. I can't wait to see you again. We'll talk later, but… I really need a bath. Tell Vatu to send your frequency to me. Or… you could just call mine. I'll have to call Vatu first though. So… anyway… I'm done talking… Good night."

She closed off the crystal ball, and I was left… standing there.

I…

I have a girlfriend. I have my old girlfriend back. I'm… Vara's girlfriend!

I need to go find Vatu. And tell him I'm his sister now.

…

[Vara]

I hung up the ball, letting myself fall off my legs and onto my knees. I can't believe it. I can't fucking believe it.

"So… you have a girlfriend?" Phillip asked me.

I nodded. "Yup. Sorry if that upsets you."

He shrugged. "I have a boyfriend." He placed his hand on my shoulder. "Welcome to the club."

I chuckled as I took his hand, allowing him to pull me back onto my feet. "Thanks, Phillip. Listen… is there a place where I can wash this day off me?"

He pointed to a nearby building. "This place has the best mead, or wine… or whatever. And the Fighters Guild has a bathhouse. That store over there sells the best-smelling lavender bubble bath. I don't use it, but Greg loves the stuff. Anyway, get yourself cleaned up. You're safe here in Chorrol. And in the morning, I'll see you off."

I can't believe today. I just can't believe it. "Can you pinch me? I really need to make sure I'm not currently sleeping."

He slapped me on the face a few times. "Is that good enough? It's hard to pinch Khajiits. I could pull your whiskers."

No… not necessary. I felt those slaps. I'm awake. This is real. "No thanks. I'm sure Pra'ja will be pulling my whiskers soon enough." I… I have a girlfriend. This is real. "Well… I'm hungry. And tired. Want to get something to eat?" I asked Phillip.

He nodded. "Of course. I'll show you the best place to eat. The town's been holding a lot of feasts lately to raise morale. With you back home… even if just for today, I think spirits will be even higher than ever."

That's good to hear. I'm glad to be home.

Cearbhail:

So... that happened. Okay, let me explain. I never intended on Vara calling up her grandmother. I never expected her to meet Vatu this early. I never expected her... meeting Pra'ja... to happen this fast. BUT! I don't plan this shit. I plan characters, and their knowledge and motivations... do this. Phillip would have a crystal ball that connects to Jauffre... and to his superior... Arabhi. So, of course he'd offer that way of contacting her. Arabhi already wanted to tell Vara about Vatu, and since she was at Vatu's graduation ceremony... because it was held in the Imperial City... duh! So, of course Vatu would meet her, talk to her, introduce himself and his sister. And of course, Pra'ja, his best friend, would be nearby spying on him. She always does that! So, of course when she heard Vatu using her old name, she'd come in to kidney punch him into forgetting it ever existed. And then... seeing Vara. Being conflicted. Wanting to tell her, but being scared of what she would think, of how she would accept her.

It's all very real. I can't just BS this stuff in a slow way when there are options for a faster route. Routes every one of us would take if they existed. I wanted this to be played out the whole story, HELL, I never expected Vatu to actually meet her. I wasn't going to force their meeting. I had planned on Vatu and Erandur meeting the Renrijra Krin and having a small scuffle before asking about Vara, and learning she'd left for Chorrol to visit her dead grandmother, and then learn... she's not dead. And then the leader would call Vara up, explain the situation. Because... that's what I believed where this was going. But it didn't! And I don't care! This was great! I loved how this came together. Onto the next chapter. We're getting weird now!