Rayla sat with the Companions for hours, quiet and unsure of what to make of their boisterous hearty nature as they drank their fill of mead and stuffed their bellies. It was so different from what she was used to and it made her a bit uneasy. She quietly slipped away and stepped outside for a moment of fresh air, standing beneath the covered patio at the back of the mead hall. She leaned against the wall, her hand to her chest and her eyes closed as she tried to calm herself.

Having also gone outside for a bit of peace and quiet, Farkas sat in one of the chairs to listen to the rain. When he heard the door opened and the laughter escape outside for a moment, he looked over to see Rayla and he could hear her heart racing, thanks to his beast blood.

'She's like a mouse.' he noted to himself and watched her move from the door to one of the patio posts where she stopped to calm herself.

Rayla felt her nerves calming and sighed, turning from the mead hall to stand at the edge of the patio and look out at the rain. She leaned against one of the posts and reached her hand out to feel the rain for a moment, a gentle smile crossing her lips as the raindrops splashed coolly against her skin.

"Needed a break?"

Rayla jumped and spun around at the sound of a sudden voice behind her, but her foot slipped in a small puddle and she started falling back- only to have someone grab her hand and pull her back. She landed against cool steel armour and looked up into silvery eyes.

"Didn't mean to startle you. Are you alright?"

Rayla nodded, her heart pounding once more as the arm keeping her steady pulled her a bit closer. "T-Thank you, Farkas..." She searched his face for a moment, unsure of what to do or say, but then- as lightning danced in the sky behind her and the light reflected off of his silvery eyes- flashes of Velanus looming over her crossed her mind and she tore her gaze away. She pushed back from the Companion and instinctively tried to make herself smaller. "S-Sorry..."

Farkas was confused, having seen something close to admiration in her eyes for just a moment before it was replaced with fear- and not the kind of fear he would see in the eyes of people or animals that happened upon him whilst in his beast form. "Is something wrong?" He could also hear her heart rate increasing once again, her breathing uneven as she fought against what appeared to be a panic attack- even if it were only for a moment.

Rayla felt so ashamed. Farkas was nothing like Velanus, but six years of abuse left such an impression on her. "N-No... please forgive me... I just... I'm so sorry..." Out of habit, she felt like she had to keep apologizing and beg for his forgiveness. But she was surprised when Farkas reached up and brushed her hair out of her face, his thumb lingering over her lips as he shushed her.

"Whatever it is, I'm sorry." he said, feeling how soft and plump her lips were beneath his calloused thumb. "I'm not going to hurt you, though, that much I can promise."

Thunder boomed and lighting cracked overhead, causing Rayla to jump and move closer to Farkas as she turned to look out over the stone wall. She loved the rain, but she wasn't too fond of the thunder- it reminded her too much of her father's voice when he yelled at her in his usual drunken stupor.

Farkas chuckled and wrapped his arm around her waist. "Scared of a bit of thunder, little mouse?"

Rayla ignored him and tried to hide her flustered cheeks, turning away from him as she stepped back. As the thunder started to die down a bit, Rayla looked up at the dark skies. "This storm... it's not going to let up any time soon..."

"You're welcome to stay in Jorrvaskr as long as you need."

Rayla didn't want to impose and Farkas could sense that as she hesitated to answer.

"You're not imposing, so don't worry about it. Come on, let's see if we can find you a bed."

Rayla followed him inside, sensing she wouldn't be given much of a choice on the matter, but when they entered the warmth of the mead hall once more and started making their way back to the living quarters, Rayla sensed something amiss in the atmosphere and scanned the room.

Farkas could sense something was wrong and looked down at Rayla as she ducked out of sight- using his body as a shield. She was white as a sheet. He took a look around, keeping Rayla behind him, and spotted a strange man standing at the front entrance. He was an Imperial by the look and smell of him, someone who worked with or around miners. He could feel Rayla's unease getting stronger and stronger by the second and knew that he was the source of it. He ushered her downstairs, keeping an eye on the strange man. However, that was not enough to save them and the man spotted them as they ducked down behind the banister of the stairwell leading to the living quarters.

"Please..." Rayla begged in a very hushed voice. "Please don't let him find me..."

Farkas didn't ask any questions and simply hurried her through the door and down to his room. "Stay here, I'll take care of it." He left her standing in a secluded corner of his room, then stepped out into the hallway just as the Imperial man came into the living quarters.

"Excuse me, was there a woman with you just now? Long black hair? Blue eyes?"

Farkas looked him over, a sense of danger emanating from him. He could take him; he was stronger and faster just by looking at him. But there was something else about him that threw him off while also answering a few other questions: he had something tucked into his pocket that smelled of mint and juniper- something that smelled just like Rayla.

"Nope, sorry, can't say that there was. Perhaps you mistook one of the women among our ranks as the person you're looking for."

The Imperial looked him up and down, sizing him up just as Farkas had did of him, but he had the smart sense to back off. "Perhaps you're right. My apologies."

"It's no trouble. However, these are the living quarters for Companions and unless you're looking to join, you best clear out."

By this time, some of the other Companions had heard the commotion and were coming out of their rooms to see what was going on. The Imperial was clearly nervous around so many men and women alike that could beat his ass and ground it into the dirt, so he simply apologized once more and hurried off. Farkas motioned for one of the newer Companions to follow after him and see to it that he leaves the mead hall entirely, then turned to go back to his room.

"He's gone, you can come out now."

Rayla peeked out from her hiding place as Farkas closed and locked his door. "A-Are you sure..?"

"I sent Torvar to make sure that he doesn't come back."

Rayla sighed heavily, releasing the tension that had been building up. "T-Thank you..."

Farkas set his greatsword off to the side and began stripping out of his armour. "Want to tell me what the hell just happened?"

Rayla began pacing and wringing her hands. "That man... he's... my husband..."

"Your husband?"

"A few months ago, I... I ran away... I couldn't stand it anymore..."

"Couldn't stand what?" Farkas asked, coming to stand in front of her and stopping her from continuing to pace.

Rayla looked up at him. "He... he's been abusing me... didn't matter what I did... what I said... he just..."

Farkas pulled her into his arms as the tears broke free, unsure of what else to do. He really sucked at this sort of thing, but Rayla was terrified and needed someone, and well, there he was. He held her as she cried for a few moments, then looked down at her as she pushed away from him and reached up to wipe her tears dry and smooth her hair back.

"How long?"

"S-Six years..."

Farkas was beginning to put two and two together and felt like an idiot for not realizing it sooner. "Why didn't you leave him sooner?"

Rayla sniffled and looked down. "M-My father... he married me off to Velanus to rebuild the f-family fortune..."

Farkas walked her over to the bed and sat her down. "Alright, tell me everything."