When Zinnia awoke, she was alone. No Njada, no Ria, no Torvar, no Athis, but all of their beds were neatly made. Then the realization dawned on her: she overslept. Zinnia immediately shot up from the bed and hastily shoved her feet into her boots. Seconds later, she was out the door and bounding up the stairs to the mead hall. Her first real day as a Companion and she already wasted half of it asleep!
The mead hall was fairly empty when Zinnia entered it. Kodlak and Farkas were engaged in a conversation at the long table in the center. A couple of other men were seated at the other end of the table, dressed in clothes rather than armor. Aside from those four, no other Companion was in sight. They were likely outside enjoying the sun's rays.
Great.
Farkas's eyes fell on Zinnia and his face broke into a smile at the sight of her, waving her to come over.
"There's the newcomer!" Farkas greeted merrily. "I was beginning to think you fell into a coma."
"I'm so sorry-I didn't mean to oversleep-I promise you I'm not usually like this-it'll never happen again-" Zinnia quickly apologized, taking a seat beside Farkas. Both Farkas and Kodlak erupted into chuckles at the frazzled Breton.
"We don't care about that, child," Kodlak informed calmly. "This life is not an easy one. Some days are harder than others, so we know the value of a good night's rest."
"What about the jobs that need to get done?"
"This isn't the Imperial Legion. As long as you show up and do your job, there's no schedule," Farkas assured. "The only times you need to know are meals. Breakfast is served every morning at eight, lunch at noon, and dinner at six. But there's no requirement for you to be there."
"Are there any leftovers, by chance?" Zinnia asked.
"Sure. I saved you a plate," Farkas pushed a wooden plate filled with bread, cheese, and a pheasant breast towards her, "You do have to be careful. Sometimes the food at breakfast runs out quickly. I figured I'd save you from learning the hard way."
"Thanks!"
The breakfast plate didn't last very long. Farkas told her that most of the Companions were either training or out on jobs. He also introduced her to Brill and Vignar Gray-Mane. They weren't Companions themselves but they lived in Jorrvaskr with them and were always available for chats.
"So, Zinnia, what was your life like before you came to Whiterun? Do you have any family?" Farkas's question caused Zinnia to nearly choke on her cheese.
What was there really for her to say? She didn't have any parents. She and her sister grew up in the Riften orphanage until they aged out of it. Then they were left to fend for themselves in the streets of Riften. Her sister was the one who kept her fed while Zinnia kept her out of trouble. Though she couldn't keep her from joining the Thieves Guild. Or the Dark Brotherhood. But she wasn't in the position to fight with her on that until recently.
Kodlak was watching her intently for her answer. Zinnia swallowed.
"I don't really have any family." Lie. But she wanted it to be true. She didn't want to have the sister that she did. She didn't want her to be in her life.
"Most people who join the Companions don't, child," Kodlak said. "So know that you are not alone, nor will you ever be."
"Vilkas and I have been here since we were little whelps. Our father, Jergen, raised us here. Even Vignar couldn't remember Companions younger than us!" Farkas shared.
"So you and Vilkas are brothers?" Zinnia mused aloud.
"Yup. We're twins if you can believe it." Zinnia nearly choked on her cheese again.
"Twins? You two must be pretty close then."
"Of course! After Jergen left to fight in the Great War, we only had each other. I mean, the Companions have become my family, but Vilkas was always there for me. I don't know what I'd do if I ever lost him." And just like that, her sister was back in her head again, just when Zinnia thought she banished the thought of her. "I hope the Companions can be a family for you too, Zin."
Me too, friend. Me too.
"I'd love to get started on some work today," Zinnia said, eager to change the subject.
"You were right, Kodlak! She does have good spirit!" Farkas said with a hearty laugh. "I've got a job for you. But first, we got some training to do."
"Training?"
"Come on! Let's not waste any time."
Zinnia gave Kodlak a small wave goodbye and he nodded kindly in acknowledgment. Farkas took her out back to where Vilkas tested her arm. Most of the Companions were out there, sitting under the awning or hacking away at the dummies.
"Are we training with weapons today?" Zinnia asked, filled with regret, as her sword was all the way inside by her dresser. Thankfully, Farkas shook his head.
"No weapons today."
This could only go as well as yesterday did. Farkas was by far nicer than Vilkas but that doesn't mean Farkas can't and won't beat the crap out of her as Vilkas did. Zinnia was still feeling an ache in her abdomen from Vilkas's fist.
Thankfully, Farkas wasn't the one throwing punches. Instead, he had Zinnia take her position. Once she did, he straightened her shoulders, moved her elbows, and nudged her feet apart to fix her form. Then, he had her swing at his palms he held up. This wasn't another test for Zinnia to pass. It was a lesson. Farkas taught her proper form and technique for fighting unarmed for opponents bigger than her (aka all of them). He taught her only a couple of specific moves and had her practice them over and over again on him. If it hurt Farkas, he didn't show it. Landing the hits was more tiresome than being on the receiving end of them. But Zinnia was beyond grateful to have someone as patient and friendly as Farkas to teach her the basics. There was no way she'd survive had it been with his twin.
Speaking of the devil, Zinnia noticed Vilkas in her peripheral, sitting with his arms crossed under the awning. He wasn't there before. He was watching her, regarding her carefully.
"All right. Good. You've got the hang of it," Farkas complimented after what felt like hours. Zinnia was drenched in sweat and trying to catch her breath, wondering how in Oblivion Farkas wasn't breaking a sweat. "Ready for your first job?"
No.
"Yeah. I'm ready," she panted, pushing her hair out of her forehead.
"Great! We've got trouble right here in Whiterun. It's nothing we can't handle. Skulvar Sable-Hilt has been causing trouble for some people. You need to remind him of his obligations. I just need you to go out there, look tough, and scare this milk drinker into submission. Think you can handle that?"
It took everything in Zinnia not to burst out laughing at Farkas. He can't be serious.
"Are you serious?" Zinnia asked quietly.
"Aye." He nodded.
Shit. He was.
"So you want me to go intimidate someone?"
"That's right."
"The Whiterun stable master?"
"Yes." Farkas frowned at her. And then he asked, very sincerely, "was I not clear?"
"No, no! You were very clear," Zinnia bit her lip. How in Oblivion was she supposed to rough a guy up? The stable master was going to laugh in her face. No one was going to take her seriously. There's no way she can do this. "Yeah, I can do that."
But she was going to try anyway.
Farkas grinned at her, "great. Go get yourself washed up and head over there. And don't get too carried away, all right? I don't want to hear you killing anybody."
Now he's got to be joking.
Zinnia was quick to obey her new orders. She went back inside Jorrvaskr to wash her hands and face. After brushing her hair and putting it back in a braid, she strapped her sword to her waist and was out the door on her way to the Whiterun stables.
Part of Zinnia wondered if Farkas truly believed she could do this job or not. He was definitely among the nicest of the Companions. But maybe he was too naive. Maybe he believed in her too much. Or maybe this was another test. It had to be. She had to prove that she was able to do the work of the Companions, starting with something simple like roughing someone up.
If only it were so simple.
Or maybe it was a cruel joke. Like the gods choosing her to be Dragonborn. Gods, what a disaster that is. It was either do this job for the Companions or head up to High Hrothgar. Public humiliation from this intimidation attempt sounded better than getting eaten by a dragon in an attempt to fulfill her Dragonborn destiny. Yeah, public humiliation all the way.
Zinnia banished the negative thoughts from her head. Like her sister always said, she has got to stop overthinking these things. This was only the beginning of her new life. She had so much to see, so much to do, so much to learn. There's nothing stopping her now.
The Whiterun guards acknowledged Zinnia as she walked out of the city's gates. She didn't make it very far. In fact, she stopped dead in her descent to the stables attending sight of someone approaching her. Dressed in the unmistakable dark brown leather armor with a hood pulled over their face, Zinnia instantly recognized them, and the hair stood up on the back of her neck.
The member of Riften's Thieves Guild stopped too. She pulled her hood back, letting loose a full head of the same fair colored hair and revealing a face identical to Zinnia's. There was one difference, though; the other girl was grinning wickedly.
"Hey, sister!"
Writing this definitely felt like writing a filler chapter. Sorry about that! But it was necessary to move the story along. The real action begins the next chapter and Zinnia will actually start having a personality lol. Hopefully, I'll be able to upload it soon! As always, please lemme know what you guys think!
Thanks for reading! 3