Hey all! Than kyou so much for the people who have reviewed and yes this is my first time writing a fanfic :3

So I hope to have a few more uploads this week when I can!

Love you all and remember to follow and review. I'm open to any comments. (Soz if any mistakes)

-Rosey 3

Chapter 7

The sound of a hammer against heated iron filled the air as Hana and Vilkas walked through Ivarstead. It was mid-morning by the time they reached town and there were few people on the streets.

She went around town and asked about the high, daunting mountain and what to expect. Many had said that it was an easy climb; others said that it was for those who had a death wish. Many had not came back from their journey up the mountain, said that they fell to their death or eaten by a troll or wolf.

Hana followed Vilkas over the bridge to that ended at the beginning of the mountain. An old man was leaning on the side of the worn down bridge. He looked to be in his fifties, and the harshness of Skyrim's brutality was showing on his face.

"Hello, are you alright sir?" She asked the old man, who looked down upon the young Nord.

"Aye, I'm fine, just preparing to journey up the mountain to High Hrothgar. Been going up each month, well when I can to deliver supplies to the Grey Beards. Someone has to give them food and needs." He sighed pushed himself off the bridge ledge.

"We may be able to help you with that. I'm Hana, and this here is Vilkas," she pointed at him, whom rolled his eyes and walked further in front. "We're on our way up the mountain ourselves. We would happily take the supplies for you." She smiled at the man.

The old mans eye lit up with joy. "Oh that would be marvellous! Here, take this and place it into the big wooden chest at the front of the fort. I know this isn't much but here's some gold for your trouble." He handed over the cloth bag and a small pouch of gold. Hana smiled and nodded at the man before she took off, catching up to Vilkas.

When she looked up at the burly Nord, he scowled at her. "Why did you offer to take that?" He gestured to the back that was handing off her pack. "You just bought yourself more weight than you needed to."

She blinked at Vilkas and scoffed. "Well sorry I was being kind and generous. You know, you should try it."

She bit back any other comment that was going to follow when she noticed his back had straightened and gloved fists were now clenched. She laughed to herself as they started to ascend the steep mountain.

0o0

The climb had been pleasant half way through, only encountering a stray ice wolf. As usual, they didn't talk as they climbed higher up the mountain. Hana had occasionally stopped, to Vilkas's disgust, and read the pilgrims path tablets. She left a septim at each stone and continued walking next to Vilkas. "Do you have to do that at every stone?" He scoffed at her.

She, in turn, rolled her eyes and kept walking on, leaving Vilkas behind her. She was going to kill her brother for making her put up with the stubborn headed Nord. Never had she ever wanted to push someone of a mountain as much as Vilkas. All he did on the way up was just scowl and made snarky comments at each other.

They had made it halfway up the mountain when a wild snowstorm hit, tearing at Hana's armour and bare skin. The freezing winds attacked at her milky brown hair, sending it flailing in to the wind. The path a head was hardly visible, only for a few meters could be seen as the snow and wind pushed on.

There was a sudden roar ahead of the companions. They drew their weapons, ready for what they couldn't see. Hana looked at Vilkas and nodded. She slowly urged further into the snowstorm, carefully placing her feet down, not wanting to slip back down the mountain.

All the air in her lungs was forced out of her as she was flung into the side of the mountain by an un seen force. "Hana!" Vilkas yelled and ran towards her, only to be thrown to the side as well. Hana shifted and looked up, her vision fuzzy from the impact. Standing before them, was a humongous white beast, it's three eyes staring down at Hana, ready to throw her again like a rag doll. She managed to roll to her side, avoiding a blow from the troll.

Vilkas was already up on his feet, attacking and dodging the troll's attacks. About to rush in, Hana grabbed for her weapon and shield, but they were thrown away from her. She searched what ground she could see for axe, but when she finally saw it, it was under the foot of the white beast.

Vilkas had been fighting the troll while Hana thought of a way to grab her weapon. "Vilkas step to the side!" She yelled at him.

"Can't you see I'm kind of busy here!" He grunted.

"Just do it!" She ran forward, grabbing her silver dagger from her side and pegged it towards the hideous troll. It screamed in pain as it hit its stomach stumbling back. "FUS!" Hana shouted at the beast, making it stumble back further. She rushed in towards the troll and grabbed her axe, bringing it down on it shoulder. It screamed in pain again and flung it other arm around, hitting Hana in the chest sending her flying across the side of the path. She slid further to the side of the mountain, gripping at the snow, trying to stop herself from falling off the side. The snow kept giving way and she couldn't get a grip on anything. "Vilkas!" She screamed as she was nearly off the edge of path, she had managed to grab hold of a small clump of ice, but was loosing her grip.

She saw Vilkas impale his sword in the white troll and ran towards Hana, dropping his sword in a hurry. Just as Vilkas reached down to grab her, her hand slipped and started to fall. A cold hand held her wrist, just before she started to fall, hovering her over the edge. She looked up into Vilkas's eyes, his breaths were deep and heavy. He grunted as he pulled Hana off the side of mountain. As he stood back, his foot slipped and fell backwards, pulling Hana with him.

Hana, her back on the cold mountain path, opened her eyes to see Vilkas's face only inches from hers. His breath hitting her face in sharp and quick bursts. His strong arms on either side of her shoulders. Looking away, Hana blushed slightly, reaching from her neck to dust her cheeks with bright red. She looked back at Vilkas, who himself had started to go red under the grim on his face.

He shifted his body, moved from a top of Hana, and stood up, holding a hand out for the girl. She looked up at him and back to his hand that had been outstretched. She took his callused hand, and slowly pulled herself up. As she stood up on her feet, a sharp pain struck her body and started to fall down again. Vilkas swooped her up in his strong arms before she hit the ground, stopping her from damaging herself more. Her ankle throbbed as she tried to move it and whimpered in pain.

"And the mighty Hana is defeated by a sprained ankle." Vilkas chuckled as he placed her down on the side of the path, well away from the edge.

"Shut it, Wolfy," she snarled and stretched to grab her axe and shield. Attaching her shield and axe to her body, and fastened the strap of her pack tighter on her shoulder. Using the wall to help herself up, she hobbled along the path, straying away from Vilkas.

"You can't be serious if you think you can make the rest of the way in your condition." She heard from behind him.

"I will be fine you grump." She spat and continued on the wall. As she hobbled along, her foot slipped on an uneven step. She waited to hit the ground but was caught by Vilkas again and sighed.

"Hand me your pack." He commanded her. She nodded in agreement and undid the strap of her pack, handing it to Vilkas. The weight on her shoulder ceased as she handed her pack over, but the pain in her ankle still throbbed.

She felt Vilkas place a hand on her waist, grabbed her arm and wrapped it around his masculine shoulder. She blushed slightly at the feeling of Vilkas's hand on her waist, but continued on through the blizzard. Each step hurt as they walked through the storm. She was getting colder as each minute passed. Her pelt already wrapped around her, and despite her Nord blood, the cold wrapped around her body, making her shiver violently.

Vilkas must have realised and halted, sending a wave of pain through Hana's body. He let her sit down and he untied his pelt from his pack. The pelt was larger than Hana and covered in snow. He wrapped her up in his pelt and lifted her up from under her shoulder and knees.

"Didn't think I would have to carry you like this again," he huffed as threw continued.

Hana, who had rest her head on his shoulder, looked up at the man with confused eyes. "What do you mean again?"

She heard Vilkas chuckle. "When you were in Jorvaskrr after the dragon attack. I had finished doing your hair and you fell asleep on my shoulder minutes later," he said in a calming tone. "So I picked you up like this and laid you down on my bed."

She had not realised that he had taken Hana to his bed. She thought that Farkas had. "Oh. Well thank you and I hope this is the last time you have to carry me like a child." She blurted.

She felt Vilkas laugh, rattling through his body. "Oh but you are a child. You have been acting like one since you came to Jorvaskrr."

She was about to scowl at him, but realised he had been right. Since she stood into the hall, she had acted like a typical child and prancing around like everything was a joke.

"Aww has the little fox realised that the wolf was right?" He teased as they continued up the mountain. She didn't even nod, but buried her head closer to his chest, hiding her face that had a blush increasing over her.

0o0

Vilkas had been carrying Hana for a good hour by the time that his arms started to tire. Her pack weighed a ton and for someone that had such a tiny physic, she was heavy. Vilkas glanced up and saw what their whole journey had been for. In the wind that ragged on the mountain, the red banners that were on the side of the fort flapped from side to side. The steps underneath Vilkas had turned to stone as he got closer to the Grey Beards home.

He looked down at his chest and saw that Hana had stirred from her slight nap and was looking at the fort, only her eyes and forehead were visible from under the warm pelt. Vilkas passed the chest that they were meant to put the supplies on but didn't bother. They were heading inside anyway.

The storm had slightly picked up at the higher altitude, making his dark hair lash at his stinging face. He neared the tall doors of the building, Hana clutching at his chest. He was about to knock on the door but had already began to open. He looked down at Hana with an eyebrow raised. She nodded towards the door. Vilkas sighed as he pushed against the door.

He stepped into the fort, and was welcomed with slight warmth. His metal boots rang down through the inside of the hall. Old pots were scattered across the floor of the hall and an old matted rug laid on the floor. Vilkas shifted Hana and slowly set her down on her feet. She kept most of weight on Vilkas but he didn't mind.

A robbed figure came from around the corner of the hall. He neared the two with a smile.

"Welcome to High Hrothgar. I am Arngier, speaker of the Grey Beards," he spoke in a low tone. "What is it that you want pilgrims?"

"You summoned me? I should be asking you." She spat at the old man, pain written on her face. Vilkas slightly elbowed her in the side for attitude towards the old monk.

"So you're the one that used the voice. To make sure that you are who you say you are use your thu'um at me."

Vilkas raised an eyebrow at the old man. They had walked all this, well carried half of the way to the castle and yet he didn't believe them. Now Vilkas understood why no one knew must about the Grey Beards.

"It's alright child, your thu'um won't hurt me. I am trained to master the voice." He assured her.

He heard her growl at the word 'child'. Still leaning on Vilkas for support, she took inhaled and shouted at the ancient monk. "FUS!" It shook the whole building, particles of dust flew through the air. The monk stumbled slightly but regained his balance.

A broad smile was raised on his wrinkled face making Vilkas cringe slightly. "Welcome, Dragonborn. And what of you?" He asked pointing towards Vilkas.

"I'm here to accompany the Dragonborn while her business is here. As much as I would love to ditch her here for you, I have to stay." Vilkas snorted.

"Very well. Any 'friend' on the Dragonborn is welcome in our ancestral halls." He nodded. "Your room is down the hall to the left. I hope you too don't mind sharing, we do not have many guests here."

Vilkas had to try to stop himself from laughing. 'Oh I wonder why.'

Hana interrupted his train of thought. "Thankyou Master Arngier for you generosity. As much as we would love to chat, my ankle is killing me and I just wish to rest for a few hours."

The grey monk nodded and spoke, "That is fine Dragonborn. There is a bath in your room if you wish to clean yourself. When the sun goes down, supper will be at the long table." With that, the monk turned around and left the two in the hall.

"Well aren't they welcoming," Vilkas scoffed, Hana mumbling in agreement. They walked as best as they could to their room. The hearth hadn't looked like it had been lit in years and but the entire room was clean. At the end of the room, was a stone bed with a single, festy looking pillow. The stone walls echoed off every sound that they pair made as they shuffled in the room.

Vilkas carried Hana over to the bed and sat her down.

"Vilkas. You can hand me back my pack." She said in a sharp tone. With out looking back, he threw her pack at her over his shoulder. He sat his own pack down in the corner of the room and spread out his bedroll.

He strolled over to the fire hearth and placed wood onto the cold heap. He turned to get some more wood, looking what when he heard the sound of a raging fire behind him. He looked back at Hana who had managed to get part of her pelt smouldering. He chuckled at the girl's clumsiness as we grabbed more wood from the corner of the room and placing it on the fire.

Looking back at Hana, he noticed at how much filth had managed to build up on their days of travelling. Dirt and blood covered her face and her hair was a complete mess. He didn't too much better himself. He looked at his reflection through his gauntlet. His black war paint had been smudged everywhere around his eyes, he too had blood and grime covering a majority of his face. Fatigue was written all over his face from the climb and having to carry the access weight that was sitting on the bed.

"You can have your bath first, I will have mine later." He said over his shoulder, leaving Hana with a dumbfounded look on her face. He chuckled to himself and left the slightly warm room.

0o0

As soon as Vilkas had left the room, she wriggled herself out of her armour and was left in her tunic and undergarments. The cold air in the room nipped at her bare skin, making goose bumps crawl up her tanned skin. She hobbled over to the bath, relying heavily on the stone wall to keep her upright.

She dipped her fingers into the clear water. She retreated her hands from the ice cold water and sighed. Her magika had regenerated enough, so she decided to use her fire spell to warm the water.

Place her hands in the water, warms spreads through her body and to her hands as she concentrated on the basic fire spell. Slowly she could feel the water around her hands warm up, soothing them. She removed her hands from the bath and went to her pack. She grabbed her soap wrapped up in cloth and a small bottle of clear liquid. She uncorked the vile and let a few drops fall into the bath. As soon as the liquid hit the water, the smell of Lilies and berries filled her nostrils.

She had managed to steal a few bottles from her home before she left. It was rare that she ever has to use the essence, as she never really had a proper bath. She stripped herself of her clothes and looked at her body. She had a few bruises on her sides, on her wrist and her ankle was swollen. She sighed as she dipped into the bath.

In an instant, she could feel her muscles relax from the warm water. The pain in her ankle dulled to slight ache as she laid in the water. Loose dirt and blood floated around in the bath, making the water turn a darker colour.

She dipped her head under the water and grabbed for her soap. She scrubbed at her hair, washing away any caked blood and dirt that had formed in her chocolate locks. She couldn't help but think of the way that Vilkas had acted around her while on the way up. Him, willingly carrying her up the mountain after the attack made her smile slightly. 'He only did that so he could get up to here and get this over and done with' she scolded herself. She sighed and continued to scrub herself clean.

An hour had passed as the water slowly grew colder as she sat in the bath, soaking herself. The water had turned a muddy brown her scrubbing all the dirt and grime of her body. At least she smelled a whole lot better than before.

She struggled getting out of the bath and towards the hearth of the room. Earlier she had laid out her damp clothes from that morning events. She still had to get Vilkas back for throwing ice-cold water on her. She changed into her under garments and put on her creamy coloured tunic and leather pants.

She glanced over to the window; a slight orange haze could be seen. The room had warmed up slightly from the roaring fire. Hana walked over to the fire and placed more damp wood into the raging heat. There was hissing sound from the fire as it heated the wood. Sitting down on her bed, she carefully pulled on her leather boots, not wanting hit her ankle badly. She rummaged through her pack in search of weak health potion. Finding what she was looking for, she uncorked the bottle and tipped the vile liquid down her throat. It would take at least half an hour for the potion to take effect relieving her from pain in her joint.

There was knock on the door which made Hana jump. "Your room too you know!" She yelled over her shoulder.

There was another bang on the door. "I was trying to be polite you child!" Vilkas squabbled. "I don't particularly want to walk in on you naked!"

The door opened into the room and Hana spun around to see Vilkas. He had changed from his armour into a tunic and pants as well. All war paint that had been around his eyes had vanished. His black hair soaked with water, little droplets of water coming off at the ends. All dirt had been cleaned from his face, leaving his slight stubble and icy stare.

She had to admit, in this state, he looked quiet handsome. His muscles peaked through his shirt and his broad shoulders filled out the shirt. She looked back up at his face and saw he had an eyebrow raised.

"You done staring?"

Hana felt her face heat up and looked down, in a failed attempt to mask her red face.

"There is food on the table outside. I would suggest you get something to eat." He said blandly and left the room.

Hana could still feel the heat on her face from her blush. She kicked herself mentally for even allowing herself to stare at Vilkas's body. Sure he had the looks of someone that she would fall head over heels for, but his attitude kept her at bay.

She walked out of the room, the rushed back in to grab her book and charcoal. She closed the wooden door to her room and walked towards the dining hall. When she reach the room, the four Grey Beard had where sitting down. They all worse the same grey attire, robes that fell to the floor and hoods that covered most of their worn faces.

"Hello again Hana, please sit down, we have much to discuss." Master Arngeir greeted her as she sat down at the cold stone table, opposite to Vilkas who having a drink out of metal tankard.

0o0

The whole conversation bored Vilkas to the point that he was about to leave High Hrothgar. The Grey Beard, Arngeir, was the only monk able to speak normally. The other three monks, Borri, Einath and Wlfgar, had given up their own voices to study the way of the voice. It did intrigue him as to how they learnt new thu'ums but how would they use them? Master Borri had spoken Dovahkin to Hana to prove that he could no longer speak properly. The stone trembled from his voice, making stray stones fall from the ceiling.

"If you shall excuse us Dragonborn, we are off to go and rest. I recommend that you don't stray to far from rest as well." The monk stated before he left the table, leaving Vilkas and Hana by themselves. Noticed a figure in the corner of the room. She was a small Breton, though just taller than Hana, cleaning off plates and cups. 'Makes sense that they would have someone to look after them.' Vilkas sighed and left to go to the main room, to warm his cold body.

He noticed that Hana had left the table and walked towards the Breton, giving her a few septims and thanking her. The Breton girl smiled and nodded.

Hana caught up to Vilkas, who was sitting wooden chair near the hearth of the fire. He could smell her even from earlier when he had gone to get her for dinner. She smelt of lily and snowberries. It was enhanced when she sat next to him near the fire, book and charcoal in hand.

She must have noticed him staring at her book and looked at Vilkas. A small smile was on her face, giving her more beauty. "Don't you have a book you could be reading?" she smirked.

Vilkas raised a dark eyebrow at the woman and sighed. "I never take books with me on trips in case I ruin them or lose them."

"Fair enough. I have lost this book 5 times on the way to Skyrim. Had to back to track just find the damned thing." She laughed, echoing along the stone floors and walls. Her eyes were striking in the light from the fire and glistened.

They sat in silence for a while, the sound of Hana scribbling in her journal was one of the only sounds that could be heard in the night.

Vilkas sighed and got up from his seat. "I don't know about you but I'm heading back to our room." He got up to leave but stopped when he heard Hana giggle slightly.

"What? You're not going to carry me back?" She teased.

"Last time I checked, you can walk well enough of your own and you're not asleep. So no I'm not." Vilkas scowled at the girl, who only laughed in response.

He walked off and just reached the door to their shared room.

"Good night, Wolfy." Her voice echoed from behind him. He shook his head and sighed before entering the room. If he had not known better, he would have thought that she was growing on him.