Tonight it was only Lynette and Folkvar visiting Farengar, but that wasn't always the case. Sometimes Vilkas came, but also Leanwyn and Minline joined sometimes—separately, at first. Leanwyn started her visits within a week of their return, and Lynette was amazed by how speedily Farengar warmed to her. The three of them grew to be close friends.
Minline didn't visit them for a fortnight, out of wariness she told them, but luckily for her the spell she left on the townspeople persisted and they didn't recognize her. As for Farengar… Well, if Lynette was amazed by how kind he was to Leanwyn, then she was astonished by how well he got along with Minline. If she wasn't mistaken, they would become great friends.
The old her might have been jealous of their instant connection, but she knew Farengar's heart belonged to her, just as hers was his, and instead she was gladdened that he was branching out and making friends.
Leanwyn's and Minline's visits overlapped sometimes and Lynette introduced the two women. There seemed to be an instant connection between them, chemistry that could travel to romance, however Lynette wasn't talented at perceiving romantic intention.
But then they started visiting together, and now she couldn't help but picture them as a potential couple. Were they simply friends, or was there something more going on? Time would tell.
What was important was that they were no longer casualties of agony and tragedy; instead they were free and thriving individuals who could enjoy life again.
Lynette hurried up the stairs to Dragonsreach, out of breath but ready to be back at Farengar's side. He promised her dinner and…dessert. A grin wiggled its way onto her features at the thought of it. Divines how she loved that man and his dastardly tongue.
The guard nodded to her with a big smile as she reached the top. "Good evenin', Lynette. Hope you're doin' well." He even stooped to pat Folkvar on the head. Folkvar's tail wagged excitedly.
She returned his friendliness with a smile of her own. "I sure am! How do you fare? Are the wife and kids well?"
"They're swell! Rowdy as Oblivion but doin' well. Joan says you gotta stop by for some tea soon though."
"I wouldn't dare deny Joan a tea date. Tomorrow, perhaps?"
"I'll let 'er know. Take care, Lynette!"
He waved her off, she bid him farewell, and then he opened the gates of Dragonsreach for her. Once through, she forced herself into a nonchalant walk so she wouldn't sprint all the way to Farengar's quarters.
She and Folkvar found him in his office, as usual. He sat at his desk, pouring over a considerable stack of papers, but he didn't miss her arrival. He never did. As soon as she stepped into his doorway he was straightening his posture and giving her a fond look.
She adored how his eyes noticeably gentled at the sight of her; it filled her heart with so much joy that it overflowed throughout her whole body. So much happiness.
He beckoned her over and she stopped in front of his desk. Folkvar trotted up next to her, content at her side until he smelled the raw venison chop left in his bowl by the door. Drool dripped from his jaws as he made a beeline for it, and thought faked a pout, Lynette couldn't blame him for abandoning her.
At least it was raw and she couldn't really smell it. She was getting better with the scent of meat, but she still couldn't bring herself to eat again yet. Maybe with time.
"You're spoiling him," she whined as she brought her elbows to his desk and leaned across it, being dramatic for effect.
"He's a growing boy. He needs the protein."
She rolled her eyes. "I thought you didn't like dogs?"
"I suppose it just took the right one to change me," he mused, cocking his head to the side and giving her a smirk.
She grinned.
As Folkvar's noisy eating encompassed the room, Farengar tempered and became more serious, saying, "I wanted to talk to you about something."
"Oh?" she asked coyly, thinking he was going to spin this into a love-making session.
Most evenings ended in sex for them, and with the practice it posed, she thought she was getting quite proficient at pleasuring him as much as he did her.
"I'm sending you to Winterhold with a letter of recommendation," he stated matter-of-factly, without giving her any forewarning.
Her heart crashed to her stomach like a stone dropped in a lake. Within a single heartbeat she felt like her whole world was crashing down. Her world was a house she didn't realize was made of glass, and now Farengar was taking a warhammer to it.
"What!? But I thought… I thought you loved me?"
The tears were already welling in her eyes, blurring her vision. Farengar was going to break her heart after all?
Through her bleary vision she saw his eyes widen. "Of course I do! My love, you misunderstand. Come here." He took her hand and gently tugged her around his desk to where he sat. Then, encircling her waist, he pulled her into his lap and held her there.
She was sniffling so bad she couldn't speak, but being in his arms brought her relief. Pure, intoxicating relief. There was an explanation. He loved her.
He considerately gave her a few moments to get her crying in, and when she composed, he continued. "It would be inappropriate for me to remain your teacher now that we're together. That power dynamic would be unhealthy."
He drew her off his lap so he could spin her around and take both of her much smaller hands into his larger ones, squeezing them affectionately. "But you deserve an education, and you deserve to have your dream of becoming a trained mage come to fruition. If you agree, I would have you attend the college during the week, and then you would come back home to me on the weekends."
He intentionally met her eyes and held them, the corner of his mouth twitching into a smile. "I will make those weekends worth the wait and…unforgettable, I promise you." He brought one of her hands to his lips and placed a slow, deliberate kiss on her knuckles.
Her heart skipped a beat, then fluttered in her chest like a nervous hummingbird. Relief gushed from the wings, though there was some apprehension nonetheless, and that made her want to protest.
"But…but we just got together. Isn't distance a bad idea for such a new relationship?"
This feeling—being in a healthy relationship—was so new to her and she possessed little to no experience. And she never dated someone who was farther than a short horse ride away. Therefore she could only compare it to others, and the first that came to mind was the neighbor's daughter.
She and her girlfriend started their relationship as a long distance one. They, sadly, broke up within a month and the neighbor's daughter was so brokenhearted, she didn't leave her house for a month. Lynette didn't want that for them; didn't want to be hurt like that. She wished for them to flourish and…and, perhaps this was the starstruck maiden in her speech, but she also wished for them to stay together a long time. Forever, if she was allowed. Their romance might be in its dawn, but they went through so much together, and she already couldn't picture her life without him. For better or worse.
"Lynette, we survived a Daedric Prince. I have full faith we can survive a long distance relationship."
She nodded, but her throat tightened at the thought being parted from him for even a day.
"Then you agree?"
Again she nodded, her heart aching more with every moment. Having his support was priceless and it made her soft to know he valued her dreams so highly. And it was still her dream to attend the college, so it thrilled her beyond belief that it was coming true, but Farengar was another of her dreams now.
She knew going to Winterhold for five days out of a week wasn't choosing college over him, just as her feelings in this moment weren't her choosing him over college. She could have both, which made her so lucky, however she also knew there would be difficulties, and…
He read her like a spell tome he poured over nightly and plucked her back into his embrace. She sat on his lap again and rested her head on his shoulder, incapable of stopping a few more stray tears from leaking out. Like before, he gave her space to release her emotions, rubbing circles in her back, occasionally kissing the top of her head, and brushing the tears out of her eyes as they fell.
"We've got this, love."
Somehow that simple sentence was the puzzle piece she was missing; it clicked her mindset into place and she felt lighter. Reassured. Not confident yet, but she believed him, Believed in his words—in them.
She nuzzled against his neck, saying softly, "Okay."
"I was thinking we could ask your parents to come visit, before your classes begin," he blurted, his breath stirring her hair.
It made her bolt up, narrowly avoiding hitting his chin with her head. His eyebrows ascended while her eyes round with excitement.
"Would that be okay? I know you're busy…they are too, but I know they'd be willing to take a vacation if it meant meeting you."
"Of course it's fine."
"Are you sure? With your duties? Will the Jarl–"
He silenced her with a kiss and she thawed into him, returning it with equal fervency, wishing she could sink all the way to his bones and explore every part of him. Especially the compartments left untouched.
But the two of them had a lifetime to spend together, and there would be plenty of opportunities to plunder those hidden treasures. What mattered was the here and now, and her here and now was beautiful.
Lynette loved this man, loved Folkvar and her friends and family. She loved her life, and she would spend the rest of her days, grateful for being given it.
THE END
