Author's Note:
So, full disclosure, the reason this plotline is the longest is not so much because a lot happens, but more because I made the chapters too long and needed to split them :D So I hope you didn't mind the chapters mostly spent talking and wallowing in the awkwardness that is dealing with nobility. There will be definitely some hopefully exciting adventures after the Solitude arc ;)
In any case, I hope you'll enjoy the ball :3 Thank you for reading :)
Chapter LXXVIII – Fun
The night had almost fallen, the sun was barely lighting the horizon anymore and the dim glow illuminated the fresh snowflakes in the air.
Of course it began to snow – it was a ball to celebrate the coming winter, wasn't it? Sun's Dusk was nearing its end already and soon the winter's cold would become harsher and more persistent. It was already apparent in the chilly air.
Aeyrin hugged herself instantly when they left Radiant Raiment. As beautiful as the dress was, it was hardly warm. And so much of her skin was exposed. No one else clearly had the same issue. Even Gisli's dress covered enough of her to keep her warm – she had long flowy sleeves keeping her warm with only her shoulders exposed. But she likely didn't mind that. She was a Nord after all.
"Just hang on, I'll get you your cloak," Bishop squeezed her around her shoulders reassuringly. He was going back to the Skeever for a spell anyway. He needed to stash back their previous clothes and any other stuff that they had with them at the shop and didn't need at the ball. Azshan was apparently paying someone to run his and Gisli's things back to the Castle and to wherever Gisli lived and he had offered to have the runner do the same for Bishop and Aeyrin, but they didn't exactly like the idea of someone going to their room at the inn. Who knew who this person was? And the Skeever was just across the street.
"No cloaks," Azshan shook his head at Bishop before he could disappear. "There's nowhere to put them and people trip over them when you toss them somewhere. Or you forget it and then come demanding it back the next day because it's a one-of-a-kind desert lynx cloak or something," he chuckled. It was clear that he wasn't referring to Aeyrin with that quip, although she would want it back if she had lost it there. She liked her cloak. "It's a whole thing. Nobody wears them to these events. Besides, it's not far. You'll be fine."
Aeyrin grumbled under her breath and rubbed her hands over her arms a bit faster. It was close and she had been through worse cold in Skyrim for sure. Still… it seemed so silly.
"You people have fucked up logic," Bishop rolled his eyes at Azshan. They went through so much unnecessary shit just to go by these stupid unsaid conventions. It was ridiculous.
"'You people'?" Gisli raised her brow at Bishop disparagingly.
What didn't she get? "Yeah, 'you people'. Nobles and… paladins playing nobles," Bishop gestured vaguely to Azshan. "All your fucking rules are stupid."
Gisli seemed even more peeved than before, but Azshan only dismissed him with a chuckle. "Just go. We'll wait here."
Bishop rolled his eyes again before he turned on his heel and headed back towards the Skeever with their clothes in his hand. He still needed to grab a few things for the ball – namely his knife and a few lockpicks, just in case. He never went anywhere without those. He would probably have to hide the stuff in his boots since these stupid fancy clothes didn't even have pockets.
Seriously, why did these idiots just make life harder for themselves for no reason? Stupid.
Aeyrin waited outside with Gisli and Azshan in the meantime, still shivering from the cold. Maybe she should have gone with Bishop, but then again, she still wasn't exactly sure-footed on her heels. It was easier to stay in place for now. She would get used to it a bit more again, surely. Probably when she would stop shivering too. That certainly didn't help.
Azshan stepped closer to her in a moment and wrapped his arm around her shoulder with a brief chuckle.
"Come here. You should have drunk more at the shop. That would have kept you warm," he snickered while she nuzzled herself more into his flank. That helped a lot. Bishop better hurry so that he could warm her up all the way to the Palace.
"Maybe you wouldn't have been so cold if you didn't wear a dress like that," Gisli scoffed at her derisively.
Gods, that woman was really annoying. Aeyrin didn't even have a say in what she was wearing. She shot the noblewoman a dirty look in return, but arguing seemed pointless. She just wanted to be unpleasant.
"Oh no, none of that," Azshan smirked. "You look gorgeous, Aeyrin. And you won't be freezing for that much longer, don't worry." He squeezed her tighter to his side.
Gisli didn't answer anymore, fortunately, and it took only a couple of more minutes before Bishop was back. He merely took the key to their room at the Skeever, two lockpicks and his knife, all securely stashed in the new brushed black leather boots that were too thin and soft to be actually functional. Hopefully they wouldn't fall apart and reveal his stash.
The second he saw Aeyrin nuzzling into Azshan's side for warmth, he quickened his steps and approached them. She didn't even manage to notice him before he wrapped his arm around her waist and yanked her away from Azshan to himself, pressing her against him.
He couldn't help it. Maybe he would never be able to stop feeling like this. It didn't matter that he was way past suspecting Azshan of having any intentions towards her. Every time he saw anyone this close to her, a wave of jealousy overcame him.
On the upside, however, Aeyrin didn't seem to mind in the slightest. She eagerly pressed herself into Bishop's embrace and her frown from the cold instantly turned into a satisfied smile.
"Alright. All set?" Azshan nodded at them determinedly. "We should go. There's a point where 'fashionably late' becomes just 'late'."
…
They didn't linger outside at the Palace courtyard and, without stopping to talk to any of the curious onlookers in fancy clothes gathered there, Azshan had ushered their party inside the large familiar ballroom.
It was about time – the snowfall was getting heavier by the minute.
When the large doors closed behind them, the glittering ballroom spread out in front of their eyes. There was something very familiar about that place – the marble floors lined with gold, the crowds littering the place, all dressed in their finest. The decorations were a little different this year, toned into dark red colors with crimson roses everywhere the eye could see, but that wasn't what made it feel so different this time around. Somehow, this felt more… comfortable. As much as both Aeyrin and Bishop hated these kinds of things, the lack of the nagging insecurities that accompanied them last year made it certainly more tolerable. And at least they knew what to expect now. There was no reason why they couldn't hide in some corner and spend the evening together, ignoring all the curious nobles around.
Bishop instantly squeezed Aeyrin tighter around her waist, pointedly accentuating that idea. It would be best to just concentrate on the fun things that they could actually do here while they would forget all the annoyances.
But a second later, a reminder echoed through the room, bringing them back to reality about how hard some annoyances were to ignore.
"Sir Azshan, of the Order of the Imperial Dragon, accompanied by lady Gisli, lady Dragonborn and sir Bishop." The announcer's loud voice boomed across the top floor of the ballroom and, within an instant, several people in the group's nearest vicinity quieted down and stared at them. It barely took a second before they all began whispering amongst each other with their stares still fastened on the four of them.
Well… it looked like Azshan got the attention that he wanted.
"Did he just call me 'sir'?" Bishop snorted with a hint of amusement in his voice. He had never really heard his name called out like that in that particular combination. It sounded beyond ridiculous.
Aeyrin's face instantly flushed as she noticed the attention that they got and she took a small step towards Azshan. She couldn't help but scowl at him. She hated this just as much as last year.
"Couldn't you have given them my real name?" she hissed at the Redguard. At least that would give her a little measure of anonymity. Wouldn't it?
"No. I need them to know," Azshan shook his head at her. He had already made it clear that he wanted people to think that the Order's relationship with the 'Dragonborn' was untarnished. It made sense that this was part of it, but it didn't make Aeyrin any less uncomfortable.
She quickly stepped back towards Bishop and pressed herself into his flank again. At least she felt a little hidden like that and his presence was always comforting, but she could still feel people's eyes on her and the whispers continued to permeate through the room.
Bishop noticed her attempts at hiding instantly and he leaned his head to her ear. His breath tickled her skin when he began whispering to her. "Great. He had his fun. You think we can get out of here right now? That dress is practically begging me to take it off you."
Aeyrin's cheeks flushed even more as she let out a faint giggle. That was of course not going to happen yet, but damn did it sound tempting. It was undoubtedly going to be the best part of the evening. But Azshan would likely not be thrilled with her if she bolted right after being announced to the whole ballroom. That would be even worse than if she wouldn't have come at all.
Bishop still remained angled towards her, warming her chilly skin from the outside with his breath. "You look so fucking gorgeous, sweetness," he whispered again as his hand around her waist slid a bit lower to rest on her hip. He didn't squeeze her, but even the steady touch pressing the soft fabric of her dress to her bare skin made a shiver run down her spine. "I can't wait to be alone with you again. I'm gonna rip that dress off you and…"
"Hey," Azshan suddenly turned towards them, interrupting Bishop, and inclined his head towards the stairs leading to the lower level. He didn't seem to notice that he was disturbing them in the least. "Let's head downstairs. We need to mingle for a while, talk to some people."
Bishop let out an annoyed growl as he straightened up again and slid his hand back around Aeyrin's waist. She couldn't help but feel a little disappointed by that interruption as well, but it was probably not a good idea to get even more flustered just then. Although as distractions went, Bishop always knew just how to divert her attention from the discomfort of the gossiping nobles around her. She let out an involuntary shuddery breath and tried to fan herself subtly with her hand. She didn't know whether she was still blushing from the embarrassment or from Bishop's words, but she really needed to calm down a little.
Azshan wrapped his arm around Gisli's waist gently and began leading the party towards the stairs.
They all descended down, although Aeyrin still did so on slightly unsure feet in her heels, and they moved towards the side of the large ballroom. The sound of music echoed throughout the place from a group of bards with various instruments, and a lot of couples were already dancing in the center of the room. As usual, the various tables littered with food were practically untouched, but the tables with drinks were all half-empty and vigorously attended by servants hovering around and trying to replenish the supplies. They were always scurrying about and disappearing into doors leading to the various side rooms downstairs, with trays filled with wine bottles.
The food and drinks looked very tempting, but those were clearly not on the agenda just yet. Azshan was already waving some people over with excitement, ushering a group of nobles to come and 'mingle'.
This was going to be exhausting.
…
"Are you serious?" one of the noblewoman gasped at Aeyrin. It was already a fourth group of them, clamoring for rumors and answers. Azshan was practically inviting them to talk and talk they did. They kept asking about the poisoning, about what happened the last time Aeyrin and Bishop were in Solitude. Ordinarily, she would be relieved that nobody asked about the dragons or told her to Shout right there for all to see, but this was worse. She did not have answers. Not ones that she was willing to give. She didn't want to make any of this mess even worse, even if she knew the culprit. She just wanted to move on from this. Why were they so eager to lynch Casavir this publically? Hadn't she made it clear that she didn't want to persecute anyone?
"You are not going to have the Order face justice for the harm that they have caused you?" the woman shook her head incredulously.
Aeyrin subconsciously pressed herself into Bishop's side even more. She was grateful that he was there the whole time, standing by her side, but they did not give him many opportunities to distract her. In fact, he was often barraged by questions just as much as she was.
"N-no… the Order didn't do me any 'harm'," Aeyrin sighed. What was she supposed to say? She didn't want to admit the truth in any way.
"Did their leader not frame you for the crime?" the noblewoman turned her eyes to Bishop while the rest of the clamoring nobles listened to the exchange, practically gobbling each word. "Do you not want him punished for this?"
Bishop rolled his eyes at her as he let out an exasperated sigh. This was so fucking annoying. He had answered this question a million times before. Truth be told, he did not understand at all why Aeyrin still didn't outright admit Casavir's involvement to anyone. That fucking tin-head made his bed. He should be punished. He was not going to tell anyone that Casavir was innocent. But… ratting someone out like this wasn't exactly something he wanted to do either, even if it was Casavir. He would have much rather made that fucker pay himself. But not when Aeyrin was so adamantly against that. She had a point – he was already kind of paying for it. Not as much as he should be, but Bishop still considered that a little victory.
"I don't give a fuck what happens to the Order or their tin-head. This shit is done with," he growled. His answer promptly elicited a few sparse giggles and few incredulous gasps at how he expressed himself.
"Ehm, yes…" Azshan chuckled a bit as he threw a bright smile at the nobles around. "As lady Aeyrin says, the Order itself did no harm to her. I am happy to say that we still have a very amicable relationship and that we all work together against the dangers threatening the people of Skyrim whenever we can."
It sounded so rehearsed by now. He had said the exact same thing so many times already. The conversations turned from uncomfortable to mind-numbingly boring. It was all the same all the time. Aeyrin understood that this was exactly what Azshan brought her there for – to reassure the masses. But it didn't change how uncomfortable this all was. And she just knew that the nobles didn't take these answers in stride. A second later, they would move away and begin whispering again with their eyes still pointedly fixed at her – they were likely discussing whether they were lying, whether this was all for show. And she could see that some of them were definitely discussing how she looked and acted at the event as their eyes conspicuously scoured her from head to toe.
She couldn't stand this much longer. She needed a distraction. Or a drink. Or both.
There were a couple more curious questions before the group finally dispersed again. Aeyrin was in no mood to watch them whisper to each other while Azshan approached even more people to do this dance all over again. She couldn't take one more minute of this just then.
"Azshan, can we stop this for a while?" she looked at him pleadingly before he had the chance to even move again.
"Hmm… I guess," Azshan sounded a bit disappointed, but he still gave her an understanding smile. "It's fine, I know you don't like the attention. Go get a drink or something," he nodded at her before he turned towards Gisli with a bright smile. "Lady Gisli, shall we dance?"
The woman seemed almost as relieved at the reprieve from mingling as Bishop and Aeyrin were. She had been under her own barrage of questions all this time, but they had nothing to do with the Order or Azshan. In fact, she almost seemed to be mocked by the present nobles, but it was often hard to tell with how subtle they were keeping the snide remarks. Everyone seemed to be interested in why she was there, since apparently, her family had been disgraced or something like that. It was all very vague, but everyone seemed amused at the fact that she had to come as Azshan's guest and not by her own invitation.
But who cared about her? A drink sounded like a great idea just then.
Aeyrin shot Azshan a grateful smile before Bishop practically dragged her away. He ushered her straight towards the tables with drinks and food before they stopped there and grabbed a goblet of spiced wine each.
"Finally. Fuck, that was so fucking annoying," Bishop groaned before he took a long swig from his goblet.
Aeyrin nodded in accord as she took her own sip. Her eyes went instantly towards the table with food nearby but, as always, the fact that nobody even approached it made her anxious and hesitant. She had no idea why she was still bothered by people whispering about her – it was not as if she cared about any of their opinions. But this was just something that she was never able to get used to, no matter what. She was really hungry though. She hadn't eaten anything since lunch. She didn't even have a treat during her preparations for the ball since Gisli would once again chastise her for it.
Ugh, she hated that she cared about things like that.
Bishop followed her line of sight and smiled at the sight of food, but before he could say anything, they were interrupted by another noble approaching them with an eager expression on his face.
"Excuse me, are you by any chance lady Dragonborn and…"
The man didn't get to finish the sentence. Bishop instantly raised a hand to stop him before he waved at him dismissively.
"Piss off. We're done with questions," he growled. These fops were fucking relentless.
The man looked positively shocked at that reception, but he did not linger to be talked to like that even more. He shook his head briskly and turned on his heel.
Aeyrin's face flushed from embarrassment instantly, but she couldn't help but chuckle a little when the man was out of earshot. She had no idea how Bishop was even capable of talking to these people like that. How he was not bothered by the fact that the noble would instantly go whisper to someone about his brash behavior. She really envied him that though. Whenever there was a place or an event that made her this anxious, she couldn't help but shut down instead.
"Come on, princess, let's go stuff our faces," he smirked at her and wrapped his arm around her waist again in order to take her towards the food table. Before she let him drag her away though, she gave him an uncertain self-conscious look.
He already knew what this was about. Why did she still care?
"Stop looking at the fops, sweetness," he chuckled at her bashfulness. "Look at the food instead."
She gave him a demure smile in turn and stepped towards the table with him. He was right. She really didn't want to care anymore. She tried to ignore all the eyes that she still felt on her as they stood in front of the table filled with various treats and fruits. It all looked so delicious. There were even actual grapes there! She hadn't seen grapes in ages.
She quickly reached out for one of the grapes and popped it into her mouth. She almost let out a little moan as the familiar taste spread across her tongue. That definitely managed to lift up her mood at least a little.
She only realized that she had closed her eyes to savor the grape when Bishop's affectionate chuckle snapped her back to attention. He was watching her the entire time with an amused expression on his face.
"You're so fucking cute," he smirked and he promptly reached out for one of the small dessert treats on the table. He stepped closer to her and presented the treat to her lips.
She almost looked back towards the rest of the room to check who would be watching Bishop feed her like that. But she resisted. She was determined to try and not care anymore. She concentrated only on Bishop's pleased expression as she opened her lips and let him place the small treat on her tongue.
A sweet taste of honey instantly overwhelmed her. She would never understand why the nobles would avoid these treats all the time when they were this good. She could spend the whole evening here.
And Bishop was quite content with just watching her enjoy herself. He almost even forgot to eat something himself.
It was definitely preferable to anything else that had been happening tonight.
…
Aeyrin and Bishop spent quite some time by the tables with drinks and food.
It was definitely an enjoyable way to spend the evening. They adamantly ignored anyone around them and only concentrated on each other. Bishop was determined to distract Aeyrin in any way that he could. He kept finding treats that she would like for her or urging her to drink more and, in between that, he would always find the opportunity to kiss her or touch her subtly or to whisper into her ear. Mostly about how eager he was to get out of this place and what he would do to her when they finally did.
It was getting tempting. Too tempting. Did Azshan still need them here? Aeyrin couldn't stop thinking about Bishop's teasing. Her deep blush was practically permanent by now. And as anxious as she was about the people murmuring about them whenever they kissed or nuzzled into each other more intimately, the distractions always proved effective in the end. She cared less and less by each second.
Maybe they could leave already. Maybe she should go find Azshan and tell him that they wanted to leave.
Bishop was currently holding her in a tight embrace after he had just put his empty goblet back down on the table. Instead of refilling it, he dipped his head down and nuzzled into her neck eagerly. Only a second later, she felt his lips on her skin and a gentle graze of his teeth. Her face heated up even more and another already familiar shiver went down her spine at that.
Gods. Alright. That was it. She knew that the wine made her even more susceptible to Bishop's teasing, but she couldn't take it much longer. The subtle touches were one of the few things she tried to concentrate on tonight and it proved too much to resist for long.
She needed to find Azshan.
With a reluctant groan, she pushed herself away from Bishop and she gave him a demure smile. She really hoped that Azshan didn't need her here anymore – everyone had already seen her with him, right? And she had already nodded along to his story about her friendship with the Order. That was what he needed.
She opened her mouth to tell Bishop her intention to leave – he would surely be excited about that – but before she could, another person approached them and started addressing them. It had been happening on occasion, but Bishop had always promptly chased them away.
Well… he could do that now too. The noblewoman approached Bishop, in fact, with a curious expression on her face. Aeyrin didn't even listen to the question anymore. She was determined to go and find Azshan. Then she would return to Bishop with good news. He could deal with the clamoring nobles in the meantime. He was good at that.
She merely gave Bishop a reassuring smile and turned on her heel. She wasn't sure if he had seen it though. He was quickly distracted by the noblewoman who had addressed him.
It didn't matter. Aeyrin would be back in no time. She stepped towards the dancefloor to try and take scope of the place to locate the paladin, but before she could actually find him in the large ballroom, she herself was approached by another noblewoman again.
Great. She wasn't that good at chasing them away, unfortunately.
She would have to try somehow though.
In the meantime, Bishop hardly even managed to wrap his head around what just happened. One minute he was enjoying his time with Aeyrin, the next someone was tapping on his shoulder to get his attention. When he saw that it was another one of the annoying nobles, though he wasn't sure what else he could have been expecting, he only waved his hand in dismissal before he turned back to Aeyrin. Except that she was suddenly gone. He barely caught the sight of the glinting dress and her exposed back weaving through the crowd of people.
Huh. Where was she going?
Bishop was going to follow, but another tap on his shoulder interrupted him once more.
"What?!" he turned around sharply towards the same noblewoman trying to get his attention. She almost jumped at the brash retort, but she let out a little snicker a second later. There were more of them gathered around already – it was worse than getting surrounded by Falmer. They appeared just as unexpectedly and attacked in numbers as well.
"Excuse me," the woman gave him an uncertain look, but there was a hint of eagerness behind it. "Is it true that you have insulted lord Frozen-Hand?" She gave him a strangely conspiratorial smile.
What? Bishop had kind of insulted a lot of people that evening. Well… they weren't exactly insults, he just told most people to fuck off. He may have made it a bit more colorful on occasion. But it was always a sure way to get rid of these fops. They were so outraged and they never had any comebacks.
"I don't know who the fuck that is and I don't care. Piss off," Bishop rolled his eyes at the woman. Much to his surprise though, she didn't leave with an indignant stare on her face like most of these fops usually did. In fact, none of the people gathered around him left. Some of them began to snicker and whisper amongst themselves.
What the fuck was this about now? He was already beyond annoyed. Everything in this place was fucking annoying whenever he didn't have Aeyrin around looking so ridiculously gorgeous and distracting. Fuck, he needed to find her.
"What do you want? Get out of my way," he growled again at the group of nobles.
"Oh… this one was a bit underwhelming," one of the men there sighed in disappointment.
What?
"What. The. Fuck. Do you want from me, you horker-faced fops? I don't have time for this," Bishop barked at them. He wasn't sure why he didn't just push through them. He definitely should. He didn't care about whatever this was anyway.
But instead of getting out of his way, some of the nobles started to chuckle while others gave him incredulously astonished looks. Ugh, what were they doing now?
"That was a little better," the man who had spoken before piped up again.
"It's like a gutter-skeever that found its way into a palace," another noble not-so-subtly whispered to someone else.
"Yes! Now do me!" another one clapped excitedly and gave Bishop an expectant look.
What the fuck?
Bishop's eyes went wide at them for a while. He did get caught off guard by the comments. He was quite used to nobles being disparaging about the way he behaved or dressed or whatever the fuck they had an issue with. And who cared? They were the ridiculous ones with their heads stuck up their own asses with no clue about how the real world worked. But this was… uncomfortable. He felt like some fucking entertainment for the masses to gawk at.
Poor Aeyrin. She was going through shit like this constantly with all that Dragonborn stuff. That reminded him that he needed to find her.
And he really didn't want to humor these shits for even a second longer.
He didn't say a word, which kind of began to bother him. It felt like he had let them get to him or some shit like that. He didn't care, right? Even just thinking about any of this was pointless. These idiots could try and insult him straight to his face all day and he wouldn't care, would he?
He pushed one of the nobles out of the way, making the man stumble back a few steps, and he made his way through the small crowd. He could hear more whispers behind him, but he didn't look back. His eyes scanned over the ballroom in an attempt to finally find Aeyrin.
He didn't see her anywhere, but at least he managed to locate Azshan some distance away. His bright red clothes were hard to miss.
Maybe he would know where Aeyrin was.
…
"I don't know. Please stop asking me about it," Aeyrin huffed in frustration at the constant prodding. She almost wished that people wanted to talk about the dragons. Anything but this.
She never found Azshan. She was instantly approached by a group of women who dragged her to the side of the room and began questioning her. They all seemed quite drunk. Much drunker than Aeyrin was at that point. It made them even more annoying. And they would not let her leave. She wished that they would ask her to Shout now – at least she would have been able to escape.
But Shouting here was probably not a good idea. It would definitely cause much more of a scene than she wished. She'd had enough attention already.
So instead, she was stuck here, assaulted by constant questions from a myriad of directions. And of course, all of them were about Casavir and the Order. It happened months ago. Did people still live off these rumors?
Then again, she shouldn't have been that surprised. People in Whiterun still lived off the rumors about Bishop. The Stormcloaks thought that she was just pretending to be the Dragonborn up until recently. Maybe some of them still did. Rumors never seemed to die down in Skyrim. Or maybe anywhere. Maybe she had never noticed because she was never the center of attention in this way.
She hated it so much.
She hated trying to dodge the questions about why Casavir did what he did when she didn't even want to admit that he had done anything. All that she could hope for was that the women would stop once they figured out that they would get no good answers out of her.
"What do you mean you 'don't know'?" one of the women poked her in the arm. "How do you not know who poisoned you? Was there not an investigation?"
These questions again. Everyone just wanted to hear her say it. They all knew it. They all thought it. They just wanted to hear the words out of Aeyrin's mouth. 'Casavir poisoned me'. Maybe she should just say it. It was the truth after all. But she knew what this could mean. Someone could insist on bringing him to justice. And this whole ordeal would last even longer.
"I just don't. I don't know anything more than you do," she almost growled the response. She should have stayed with Bishop. He would have chased these vultures away in no time.
The women were not pleased with her response, but they all piped down. Finally. No more questions about this all. Maybe now she could finally leave to find Azshan. Or Bishop. Anyone but these people. Even Gisli would have been preferable. At least Aeyrin didn't have to answer her snide remarks.
When the only sound disturbing the silence was the pleasant music, Aeyrin surmised that it was fine to leave. But before she could, another one of those women interrupted her with a bored tone in her voice. Apparently they were determined to get some information out of Aeyrin no matter what. Likely only to spread more gossip.
"I didn't think that dragon-slaying paid much," the woman raised her brow at Aeyrin curiously.
What was this about now?
"It doesn't. Nobody pays me for that," Aeyrin sighed in exasperation. Did they think that she went around the Holds, killing dragons and demanding money for it? Could she do that?
"Oh really? The dress looks like lady Taarie's work," another woman gaped at her in surprise as her eyes roamed over her dress.
How could they tell? Didn't Taarie say that this wasn't her usual kind of dress? Maybe there was something about her technique or stitching or something like that which distinguished her work. Aeyrin didn't know anything about dresses. Anything was possible.
"Y-yes. So?" Aeyrin gave her an uncertain look.
"How can you afford to have a dress tailored at the Radiant Raiment if you don't get paid for what you do?" another woman gave her a challenging look.
What? Did they think that she had no money at all? She still had to feed herself and stuff. Not that she had enough to splurge on opulent dresses, but still, why were these women concerned? They all seemed eager to hear her answer. She didn't understand their interest in this in the least.
"I… Azshan got it for me. I don't know why that's important," Aeyrin shrugged in confusion. How was this in any way gossip-worthy?
But instead of ending the very dull conversation there, the women all looked shocked at what she had said. What did she say? There was a bout of astonished 'ooohs' and 'aaahs' of realization from the small group and some of them even started to giggle.
"Oh. That's how it is," one of the women nodded knowingly.
What?
"W-what are you talking about?" Aeyrin asked uncertainly. This was making her nervous.
"You and Sir Azshan. It explains a lot," another woman giggled.
What?!
That was not what she had said! How did they come to this conclusion?
"N-no. No! We are not… he's a friend. I'm... I'm with someone else…" Aeyrin began to stammer. Not that it was any of their business, but didn't everyone already see her here with Bishop? Wasn't their relationship part of the whole story about the poisoning? She thought that everyone knew whom she was with. Why were they spinning another tale now? She really didn't want more people talking about her private life. It was bad enough already.
"Of course. We understand. Paladins don't do such things," a different woman smirked at her with a sly wink.
Oh Gods.
"And she even brought a decoy. How cute," another woman laughed.
Well this couldn't have turned out worse. All because of a stupid dress? Great. Aeyrin just got the impression that anything she would say would make it all only worse. Her face was burning and she really needed to get out of there before she accidentally started even more rumors. Why didn't she ignore them?
She just needed to get out of there. Just a moment of peace and quiet.
"Is… is there a restroom somewhere or something?" she stammered again while she looked around with rising panic. The women kept whispering and giggling amongst themselves.
"Back there," one of the women finally pointed to a door leading into one of the side rooms. Thank the Gods. Hopefully it would be empty. "Are you feeling sick? You don't look well."
"Oooh, maybe she's pregnant!" another woman yelped excitedly.
Why?!
No more talking. Not even a word. She needed to get out of this place.
Aeyrin practically forced her way through the women surrounding her. As she bumped one with her shoulder, she staggered on her heels, but fortunately she didn't fall. That would have been the last thing she needed.
She managed to extract herself from the situation, but she could still feel eyes on her as she marched towards the side room.
She just wanted to hide from everyone for a while.
…
"Hey," Azshan grinned at Bishop when he noticed him approaching through the crowd. "Having fun?"
"No," Bishop scoffed. This was really not his idea of 'fun'. "Have you seen Aeyrin?" If he could just find her at least he could spend time with her and not bother with all these annoying fops.
"Not for a while now. It's easy to get lost in the crowds," Azshan shrugged.
"Hmm…" Bishop grumbled. Hopefully she would show up soon. Then maybe they could get out of here already. He could definitely pass on the food here if it meant being away from all these people. "So… you got what you needed. We're probably gonna go now. As soon as I find her," he nodded resolutely at Azshan.
"What?" Azshan's eyes went wide. "We have barely been here for an hour."
"And it's already too long," Bishop rolled his eyes in response. It was fine when he was just with Aeyrin and ignoring all the fops, but they could be alone anywhere after all. Without interruptions.
"You can't leave yet, sorry. It's too early," Azshan sighed. He didn't look like he would budge on that. And Aeyrin would definitely not want to leave unless he was fine with it. But why did he still need them here?
"Who cares? They saw you with Aeyrin. That's what you wanted, right?" Bishop groaned.
"Leaving me here now will just make it seem like it was some forced appearance." Azshan scowled.
"It was," Bishop gave him a deadpan look in turn. He knew that Aeyrin didn't want to come here.
"I didn't force her," Azshan's scowl deepened as he exclaimed defensively. He didn't force her. But he knew damn well what he was doing for sure. He knew that she would never refuse him when he asked her for help.
"No, you just manipulated her into it," Bishop scoffed.
"Call it what you will," Azshan shrugged. His scowl eased, turning into more of a resigned expression. "She's here from her own volition. And so are you."
Bishop didn't answer anymore and he only grumbled incoherently in response. There was no point in arguing. And Azshan was kind of right – they should have refused outright. There wasn't much to do about it now though.
Azshan's expression turned into a sympathetic smile in a second and he briefly placed his hand on Bishop's shoulder. "Just make peace with it. It's gonna be a long night yet."
That was an understatement. Even a minute spent among these people felt like an eternity.
Didn't he say that this was supposed to be 'fun'?
"So… what exactly do you do here all night?" Bishop asked Azshan idly.
He seemed to be just hanging around and talking to all those noble fops. He wasn't even drinking – likely to preserve his pristine paladin-y reputation. It sounded like the most boring way to spend time ever.
"I talk to people," Azshan chuckled. These people? Ugh. "Hey, some of them have interesting stuff to say," he chuckled when he saw Bishop's expression. "And secrets to share," he winked. "If you and Aeyrin tried to get past the prejudice, you might just enjoy this sort of thing too."
"Hardly," Bishop scoffed. If these idiots weren't annoying him with meddling into his and Aeyrin's privacy, they would just be meddling in someone else's. And he didn't care to listen to stuff like that in the slightest. Why would he? "Besides, you know that Aeyrin hates shit like this. Why do you insist on dragging her here?"
"I know," Azshan sighed. "It's not like I want her to be miserable here. I would much rather spend time with her doing something we can both enjoy, but… I need this. After what happened, this is important. I know that you think that all of this is just petty drivel, but public opinion is much more important than it looks from the outside. I'm the one who has to live here and deal with it. You think that the dust ever settles? People harp on things for as long as they can if they feel like they've been wronged. I'm trying to prevent this from happening to me. To the whole Order."
Well… that was kind of understandable. It was not as if Bishop didn't know where he was coming from. He knew all too well what shit like this could do. People in Whiterun were apparently still bitter about all that shit with the bounties and while he rarely had to deal with it, others did. Like Lydia and Saadia. He knew that shit was hard for them there ever since all of this went down, even though they tried not to let it show. It was understandable that Azshan was trying to prevent people turning on him like that because of some petty grudges over things which he had no control over.
"Look there. See that guy?" Azshan pointed towards a blond Nord man some distance away talking to a group of nobles. It was a familiar scene. The man had an angry scowl on his face while the others in the group whispered and giggled around him. "He's done some bad shit," Azshan continued. "Abused his title and his power to hurt people. And then the truth came out and now he's reviled. He's trying to claw his way back in, but he will never convince them. His life on top is over."
"Isn't that good?" Bishop smirked. Why shouldn't he be reviled if he had done these things? If that was true. But lines like these often got blurred when the rumors took over. Who even knew what the truth was anymore?
"It is," Azshan nodded. "I just mean… this is what these people can do. They can make your life a nightmare if they want to. What I'm trying to do is to ensure that this happens to the people that actually deserve it. I'm trying to make sure that rumors don't get out of control and do… collateral damage."
"And you're the one who gets to decide if they deserve it," Bishop scowled. He made it sound so noble. But he was still just manipulating people into doing whatever he wanted.
"Someone has to," Azshan shrugged.
"Because you never make mistakes. Never accuse someone of something they didn't do," Bishop's frown deepened and he gave Azshan a challenging look. He sure as fuck wasn't concerned much with finding the truth when the court had accused Bishop of poisoning Aeyrin.
"It's not as if the evidence against you wasn't pretty damning," Azshan let out a sigh. "And things worked out in the end. Sometimes there's just some… bumps on the road."
"Right," Bishop rolled his eyes. If it weren't for Aeyrin's insistence about Bishop's innocence, nothing would have 'worked out in the end'.
"Oh, good. I think he's coming here," Azshan grinned with his eyes still fastened on the Nord man. Ugh. How was that good?
The man quickly rushed away from the crowd surrounding him and made his way towards Bishop and Azshan. He still looked really peeved when he reached them.
"Sir Azshan," he nodded at the Redguard curtly with a permanent scowl on his face.
"Lord Erikur. A pleasure to see you here," Azshan threw him a charming smile instantly. It didn't even look fake. "Are you enjoying the ball?" Bishop could have sworn that there was a hint of mockery in that sentence, but he might have been imagining it.
"Of course," the man, Erikur, answered through gritted teeth. "I am looking for my sister. I have been told that you are accompanying her tonight."
"I am," Azshan nodded. It looked like this Erikur was Gisli's brother, though that was hardly that interesting. "I haven't seen her for a while though. She was dancing with sir Bearclaw the last time I saw her."
"Right. Of course she was," Erikur rolled his eyes and he looked like he was about to leave, but Azshan stopped her before he could turn on his heel.
"Lord Erikur, let me introduce you," he smiled politely.
Bishop merely shot him a deadpan look. Why? He didn't want to meet more noble pricks. Though Azshan didn't seem fazed by that even a little and he gave Bishop a strangely conspiratorial smile in return.
"This is Bishop. He's lady Dragonborn's consort."
Erikur's eyes went wide at that and his expression morphed into an intrigued smile in a second. He looked… disturbing.
"Really?" He murmured, mostly to himself.
"Ugh. Don't call me her 'consort'," Bishop growled at Azshan. That just sounded so creepy for some reason.
"It's not an insult," Azshan chuckled slightly. He looked like he didn't think that Bishop knew the meaning of the word. He wasn't that stupid, even though he didn't care about what some fucking nobles called normal things. This right here was another reason why he should just marry Aeyrin. At least nobody would call him her 'consort' ever again.
"I know," Bishop growled. "But it still makes it sound like she's some fucking noble or something." He had only heard people call someone a 'consort' before when they were talking about some Jarl's not-so-secret lovers or something. Someone a person of such station could never be with officially. Maybe that was why it bothered him.
"You call her 'princess'," Azshan snickered in retort.
Well… that was neither here nor there.
"That's different," Bishop groaned. It may have sounded like it was the same thing, but he knew that it wasn't. He just couldn't really explain it…
"How exactly?" Azshan's amused tone continued to permeate through his words.
"Shut up. I don't know. It just is," Bishop folded his arms across his chest stubbornly. He wasn't going to justify his nicknames for Aeyrin here. What did he care what these two thought anyway?
"I have heard that you brought the Dragonborn," Erikur addressed Azshan again with a pondering expression on his face. "So she's here."
"She is," Azshan smiled politely. "Though… not here, obviously. Where is she?" He began looking around the ballroom, searching for her. It was no use. Bishop was scanning their surroundings often enough. He would have found her. She must have hid herself somewhere.
"Hmm… I'm gonna go look for her," Bishop nodded resolutely. He'd had enough of these pointless discussions. The only way he was ever going to enjoy the evening was with her anyway.
"You know what? I'll go with you," Azshan offered. It wasn't a bad idea to have two sets of eyes on this. She could have disappeared anywhere. Maybe she hid in one of the closed rooms on the side of the chamber.
Before they set off, Azshan turned back to Erikur again briefly, still with that polite smile on his face.
"Enjoy your evening, lord Erikur. I am sure it's going to be… memorable."
…
It took a while of wandering around before Bishop finally spotted Aeyrin.
She was by one of the walls of the room, almost pressing herself to it to make herself less visible. She looked anxious as her eyes darted from spot to spot, looking for something. Or someone. Likely him.
He began walking towards her instantly, almost leaving Azshan behind, but the paladin noticed him changing directions soon enough and caught up.
Aeyrin's face visibly relaxed when she noticed them approach and she threw them a relieved smile.
When he reached her, Bishop wrapped his arm around her instantly and she pressed herself to him. She looked like she needed that. And he kinda did too. Being apart in this place probably felt worse than being apart anywhere else in the world.
"There you are, princess," he leaned down to press a brief kiss to the top of her head, ignoring the amused smile that Azshan threw him at that nickname. "Where'd you go?"
"There," she pointed towards a door nearby leading to one of the side rooms. "It's a lavatory. With a lock. I just… wanted to get away for a while," she sighed. There were two doors inside and when she peeked behind the other one, she saw some kitchens or some food preparation area in any case. There was no lock on that door, but she assumed, correctly, that none of the servants that would potentially come there would disturb her in the lavatory. It was enough that the door leading to the ballroom locked. She just didn't want any of those nobles walking in with more questions.
"I'm sorry, Aeyrin," Azshan gave her a sympathetic smile. "I know that some of these people can be… a lot."
"Y-yeah," she bit her lower lip nervously. She should probably tell him what happened. She didn't want some rumors to catch him off guard. "Azshan, I kind of did something… well… no. I didn't do anything, but those women keep making things up," she huffed.
"What happened?" Azshan's smile turned into a concerned frown instantly.
"I just… they asked me about the dress and… how I could afford it," she sighed. "And I told them you bought it for me and… now they think that it's because… w-well… that you and I are… uuuh."
"Oh," Azshan nodded in understanding while she felt Bishop's grip around her waist tighten. He was probably not thrilled about that either. But, much to her surprise, Azshan did not look concerned any longer. In fact, he almost looked… intrigued.
"Hmm… it's alright. I don't mind," he smiled at her in reassurance. "You know… this might actually be good," he tapped his finger on his chin ponderingly.
What? 'Good'? Why?
Before she could question him, however, Bishop interjected with a sharp tone in his voice.
"What? I mind!" he growled. These fucking idiots gawking at him and poking fun at him at being a cuckold was really the last straw. And Aeyrin was his. Even if this was some false rumor, it still pissed him off.
"Why?" Azshan smirked. "It's just a rumor. I thought you don't care about those."
Bishop didn't really have an answer for him. He shouldn't care. He didn't care, right? Not beyond surviving tonight. Though… this was a bad idea in any case. If this shit got out of hand and everyone started talking, who knew what people would participate? What if that jeweler though to chime in, despite his reassurances. Bishop could never be sure with the rumors in this city.
"I fucking hate this place," he gritted his teeth. He really wished he could come up with some argument to that.
"I think I could actually turn this to my advantage. If I put the right spin on it…" Azshan continued plotting, seemingly oblivious to both of their discomfort. But fortunately, before he could get in his element, Aeyrin chimed in with a pleading look on her face.
"Azshan, please don't fan those rumors," she almost whined. "I really don't think that I can take more people discussing who I'm sleeping with." She buried her face in her hands in desperation and pressed herself closer into Bishop's side.
That did seem to move Azshan a bit. His expression turned a little more regretful at the sight. But he still tried.
"Sweetie, they're always going to be discussing that," he sighed.
"But… doesn't stuff like this get you in trouble with the Order?" she shook her head at him. Rumors like these could surely put his vows into question among his fellow paladins.
Bishop nodded vigorously at that. She was on to something. This was a good point. Hopefully it would convince Azshan.
"Oh please," Azshan chuckled. "There's rumors like that about every member of the Order practically with everyone in the city. It's not a big deal."
"Sure. Just look at the tin-head. Rumors aren't a big deal, right?" Bishop doubled down.
"Not when you know how to use them," Azshan grinned in response.
Dammit.
"Please, Azshan, don't use this one," Aeyrin gave him another pleading look. She was sick of the rumors already. The last thing she needed was her friend spreading more of them about her.
Azshan looked at her for what seemed like a long time, but his face softened at the sight of her expression. He let out a long disappointed sigh, but he still shot her a sympathetic smile after.
"Fine. For you," he nodded before his face twisted into disappointment again. "But that's very boring."
"Good. Boring's good," she sighed in relief. Right now, what the nobles and Azshan considered 'entertaining' was just a nightmare for her. She definitely wanted excitement, but a very different kind. At least she found Bishop again. Now she could once more just spend time with him instead and try to ignore everything else.
It was the most tempting prospect just then.