The usual cheering and laughter filled Jorrvaskr as the Companions drank their fill of mead and stuffed their bellies. Having gone outside for a bit of peace and quiet, Farkas sat in one of the chairs to listen to the rain as it started to really come down. He sat for a long time, the scent of petrichor in the air helping relax him after a long journey home. He had been taking job after job since returning to Whiterun, trying to keep himself busy after leaving Rayla with her brother and the other Stormcloaks, but it didn't stop him from thinking of her and regretting leaving her behind.

One of the doors opened and a man approached him, handing him a letter. "Word for you from Windhelm."

Farkas took the letter, smelling Rayla's scent all over it, and thanked the courier before he departed. He found himself anxious to see what she had written him and practically tore open the envelope.

"Dear Farkas,

Before anything else, I wanted to let you know that I am fine.

After you left me at the Stormcloak camp with my brother, Jondric brought me to Windhelm and Jarl Ulfric took me in as a member of his court. He's been good to me and helped to keep me safe, but not even he could keep Velanus from finding me.

Before you worry too much, just know that Velanus will no longer be an issue. He is dead and I am finally free. I honestly don't know what to feel about it, but I am free to do as I wish and I need to find answers to questions that I have had growing of late.

I am leaving Windhelm and going to Riften to see Lillan. From there, who knows?

Whatever has happened between us, I am glad to have met and known you, Farkas. You are an amazing man and I wouldn't have survived this long if it hadn't been for you. You mean so much to me and you always will. I wish you the best, my friend, and I hope that our paths cross again someday.

Rayla"

Farkas read through the letter a few more times, just to be sure he read correctly.

'So, he finally got what was coming to him, eh?'

Farkas sat back in his seat, processing the information in Rayla's letter. He wondered what exactly happened to Velanus and if Rayla would be OK to travel on her own.

'Should I check in with her..?' He looked down at her letter. 'She's glad to have met and known me, huh? Even after I left her alone like that?'

The winds shifted and he caught a familiar scent in the air, bringing him to his feet.

"It's been awhile, Farkas."

"Jondric."

Jondric offered Farkas a smile as he came to a stop just across from where he stood. "How are you?"

"Been fine, you?"

"Busy, but as good as one could expect given my line of work."

Farkas eyed him for a moment. "I heard you were in Markarth, what brings you here?"

"I'm joining the Companions, actually. Aela recruited me when we lent our assistance to her on the road to Rorikstead."

"What of Rayla?"

"Last I heard, she was in Riften still with Lillan and Brynjolf."

'Good. At least they can keep her safe and help her adjust.'

"You know, she was heartbroken when she learned that you had left her behind."

Farkas sighed and leaned against the post nearest him. "She was safer in your hands than with me."

"She kept wondering for days if it was something that she had done."

"No, that couldn't be further from the truth."

Jondric offered him a sympathetic smile. "I know and I believe she does, too, but you two grew close in your time together and it meant more to her than you or I may realize." He watched Farkas a few moments, his smile growing. "You should go see her." He put up a hand to stop Farkas as he made to protest. "You are seeking answers just as much as she is. Perhaps seeing her will give you what you need."

The doors of the mead hall opened and someone called Jondric back inside, leaving Farkas to think over his words.

'Perhaps he's right... but there's still much to do here.' Farkas sighed and looked to the skies. 'Divines, protect her and guide her until I can find my way back to her.'

Across the province, in Riften, Rayla sat in a pew as she looked at the shrine set up to honor Mara.

"You seem troubled, my child."

Rayla looked up, seeing an elderly woman approaching her. "It has not been an easy road."

"May I join you?"

"Of course, please, sit."

The elderly woman took a seat next to her and looked at the shrine. "What troubles you, dear girl?"

"Mara says to live soberly and peacefully, to honor your parents, and preserve the peace and security of home and family." Rayla said, her brow furrowing.

"You seem to have doubts about that."

"It's not necessarily that I have doubts, but I wonder more as to what happens when it all comes crashing down around you."

"You speak from experience?"

Rayla sighed. "Unfortunately, I do."

"Tell me more and perhaps I can offer some insight."

"My father said it was my duty to marry this wealthy man who could help restore the family to its former fortunes and glory. I did as I was told, not really given a choice otherwise, and I thought that perhaps I could make it work. Instead, I was forced to endure all manner of abuse at the hands of my husband. For years, I tried to cope with it all, but it eventually became too much to bear and I ran away. I was given aid by some Stormcloak soldiers who were camped not far from where my house was, one of whom even found me work at his sister's mill. I thought maybe I could start over and hide from my husband, have some form of peace of mind. But then he somehow managed to find me and I hired a Companion to act as an escort and body guard."

"Divines, child, that's horrible!"

"We were able to avoid detection for a time, but then my husband found me again and came with a small army of hired thugs. My Companion was able to get me safely out of the village and protected me as we tried to find another safe place to lay low, but it was as though no matter how many times we got ahead of my husband or his goons, we couldn't catch a break. My Companion was injured protecting me numerous times and I felt useless- unable to do anything but be a burden to him."

"I get the impression that he came to mean a great deal to you."

Rayla smiled at that. "He does. More than I ever thought he would." Her smile faded a bit and she looked down at her hands. "He left me behind, though, when we found my brother's camp. He must have figured that I would be safer with my brother and his men, but it was still heartbreaking to learn he was gone. For a long time, I thought that there had been something I had done to upset him or scare him off, but I soon realized that he was just trying to make sure that I was safe and protected. And it wasn't long after that that my brother took me to Windhelm and asked the jarl to look after me."

"That's a rather large favor to ask of a jarl. Did your brother know him?"

"He's a Stormcloak soldier himself and has done much for their cause. The Jarl trusts him as much as he does his second in command, so agreeing to such a request was no trouble at all. Ulfric took me into his court, saw to it that I had whatever I need from food and shelter to clothes and education. I owe Ulfric and his people much."

"I am sensing that this did not last long."

"There was a day when they had come home after being captured by Imperials. They had barely escaped the dragon attack on Helgen and came straight back to Windhelm when it was safer to travel. It was also then that I learned my brother had awakened as the Dragonborn."

"That couldn't be what ruined your sense of peace in the ancient city, could it?"

Rayla shook her head. "Just after Ulfric and his men returned to the Palace of the Kings, my husband and his men found me. He tried to feign adoration and concern for my safety, but when I refused to go back with him, he accused me of infidelity and being a harlot like my mother."

"And were you unfaithful to him?"

"I hated him with all my being, but no. There was never a time I had even considered being unfaithful."

"What happened next?"

"He tried to put his hands on me and when I stood up to him, he tried to run me through with his blade."

"In front of everyone?"

Rayla nodded. "I was able to grab a nearby guard's sword and defend myself, but it was at the cost of his life."

"So your husband is dead and you feel guilty?"

"That's part of it. I am free and he can never harm me or anyone again, but then I am reminded that we are still married before Mara and it breaks my heart knowing that he could do this to me again in the afterlife." Rayla's eyes began to tear up. "I never loved him, it was marriage through duty alone, and I am finally free to live my life how I choose, and yet I am doomed to suffer once again upon my passing? It isn't fair." She sniffled and looked at the shrine of Mara. "I just wish there was some way that I could ask Mara to annul the marriage and break all ties I have to that monster in the afterlife. I want to be able to choose who I spend my days with, who I give myself to, who my heart belongs to, but I can't."

The elderly woman wrapped her arms around Rayla as she cried, trying to comfort her as best as she could. She looked up as a priest came around the corner- stopping in their tracks with wide eyes and gaping mouth at the sight of her. She gestured for them to not a say a word and to give them some space, not wanting Rayla to know who she was just quite yet.

"There, there, dear girl. It's alright. I'm sure the Divines will judge this man for his sins against you and will not force you to endure another moment with him."

"Even if that were true, it is unheard of for anyone to marry twice even after the death of their spouse."

"But it does happen."

Rayla looked up at the elderly woman, seeing a youth and kindness in her eyes that she hadn't noticed before.

"Listen, child, and listen well: go live your life, with whomever you choose. Do not let the sins of a monstrous man taint your heart against the one you truly love. Go to them, tell them how you feel, and should they reciprocate those feelings, I will personally bless your union."

"Who... who are you, madam?"

The elderly woman simply smiled. "Someone who wants to make things right for you and see to it that you get the happiness you deserve."

Rayla sat back and let the elderly woman wipe her tears away. "Thank you. Even for just listening."

"Of course, dear girl. Now, I think it's best that you go find this special person and tell them how you feel."

Rayla looked down as the elderly woman pressed something into hand and saw that it was an amulet of Mara. When she looked up to thank her, she was surprised to see that she was gone- as if she had disappeared without a trace. She tucked the amulet into her pack and left the temple, feeling a heaviness lifting from her shoulders.

As she left the temple, the priest from before watched her from the hallway and jumped as the elderly woman appeared next to him.

"Lady Mara, really..!"

The elderly woman chuckled and patted the priest on the back. "Tell the others to be prepared for her return. I have a feeling that it will be sooner than you think."