Chapter 57: Sharing a room

[13th – 14th of Evening Star 4E 201]

Athis, Antonius and I had joined with three pirates from the 'Red Wave' to explore 'Wolfskull Cave'. The Jarl՚s steward in Solitude had received some troubling reports about strange things going on in there, and while there seemed to be no need for a full blown investigation by the legion or the hold guards, he had been happy to get volunteers to have a look. I had a vague idea about what we might find, and that's why we had joined forces with the pirates of the 'Red Wave'. As I had suspected, some necromancers and conjurers had indeed tried to summon Potema, the Wolf Queen, and we had been in time to stop that process. In one of the rooms in the small fort inside the cave we had found a prisoner, a female Redguard named Janina, and I had promised here to help her get to Solitude.

Outside we found ourselves in late afternoon, and we estimated that we had less than two hours until sunset. None of us wanted to stay outside overnight if we had a choice, but Janina was in a deplorable condition and barely able to walk for more than short distances; she'd probably need a few days of recovery before she was her normal self again. Thus I suggested to do what I had done before in another situation, with the Dragonborn on our way up to High Hrothgar:

"Janina, I do not want to impose, but I believe that it would be best to get to Solitude quickly rather than camp outside in the cold. As you are still looking quite battered – pardon me for saying so – would you mind if I carried you?"

She looked down to the ground for a moment. I recalled how Fiona had reacted when I had suggested to carry her up some way up to High Hrothgar, and I understood that Janina might have similar concerns. Thus I explained further:

"You might prefer somebody else for that service, and I understand. However, you are quite a tall person, and I may be the only one among us actually being able to carry you for an extended period of time."

"No, it is not that" she responded. "I just hate it to be a burden. I am used to being on my own and being able to take care of myself, and I feel ashamed to have to rely on others. But you are right; I will not be able to walk much, and I thank thee for thy kind offer and gladly accept it."

She had this habit of alternating between ancient and more modern language from time to time, and I wondered if there was a story behind it. I gave my backpack to Antonius; after all, he was sworn to carry my burden, right? Next I got down to my knees, and Athis helped Janina to climb on my back. She wrapped her arms around my neck, I made sure that her legs also found some hold around my waist, and I got up again. She was sure much taller and heavier than Fiona, but I'd manage, for some time at least. In addition, we were not going uphill, but level or downhill mostly, which made my task easier. Antonius had this special smirk on his face again, but I refused to run into the trap and ask him what that was about.

Fortunately, Solitude was not very far, and we simply walked back the same way we had come, almost at least. Rather than getting down the shortcut via the steps to the temple and status of Meridia, we followed the road west for a few minutes, turned south at the next road crossing and finally, when we met the main road between Dragon Bridge and Solitude, turned left again.

As I had expected, we made it in slightly less than two hours, and I was proud of myself, as I had done my task and carried my burden with only a single brief break. I had managed to carry her all of the way, with quite some effort, but happily. Well, I was not quite sure why I felt happy about that, but I did; having her on my back gave me a good feeling. But that was understandable; like when playing the game back on Earth, I had just helped to save a 'damsel in distress', and that was supposed to be a good thing, right? Also, Stendarr had asked me to 'protect the weak', and at least for now, Janina was very weak.

When we were at the branch road down to the docks, I asked everybody:

"Now, do we separate here? I guess that you want to get back to the ship, right?"

The latter was addressed to the three pirates, and they nodded. Antonius also claimed that he wanted to be with Sabine for one more night, if that was all right for me, and Athis suddenly stated that he was going to visit some relatives in the area.

"But wait" I objected. "This implies that I am all alone with Janina, or rather she is all alone with me!"

"But, my Thane, isn't that what you'd want anyway?"

Antonius now openly declared what he thought, and I could see and hear the others agreeing.

"What? Why would I want to be alone with her?"

"Well, judged by the way you two look at each other it's quite obvious, Shield-Brother." Athis explained.

What was going on here? Were they now all plotting against me? While I was pondering that, a small part of my mind claimed that, yes indeed, being alone with the pretty young woman would be quite nice, thank you. Another part of mind rejected that idea, warning me that I might make a fool of myself. As a human being I would probably have blushed, but my Khajiit fur saved me from showing any of that.

Janina, though, made her wishes clear:

"B'lushona, you have saved me from a very bad fate or even death, and you have carried me all of the way. I'd appreciate a lot if you could further take care of me, if it's not too much trouble. And I would rather not sleep alone tonight, too. Your cubs are going to be with us, too, right?"

Had I just heard that right? She wanted to spend the night with me? In the same room? She did not expect me to share a bed with her, or did she? And did she expect Hanni and Nanni to be something like chaperones, really? My facial expression must have shown my confusion, and Antonius and Athis looked at each other like they had just won a large bet, while the pirates wolf whistled at us. Way too quickly they were all gone, and I was alone with the young lady; well, and my cubs of course. I tried to recover from my surprise as much as I could and offered:

"Well, I have to admit that it will be an honor and a pleasure for me to take care of you, my lady. Shall we find the inn?"

"That's the right spirit!" she almost laughed.

She managed to walk on her own from here, next to the watchtower, to the city gate and from there to the inn, albeit slowly. I had booked the room I had shared with Athis before for a few more nights, and it had two separate beds at least. I helped her up the stairs and into the room by offering my arm, and soon we both sat down on our respective beds.

"Do you feel like having dinner?" I asked.

She nodded: "I haven't had a proper meal for a week or so, and I am starved."

"Please excuse me for stating the obvious," I replied, "but you could sure use a bath and some other clothes first. If you go down to the taproom like this, some might mistake you for a woman of a lower level. No offense, lady."

She looked at herself and sniffed at her arm, and then she nodded:

"I believe that you are right. May I impose on you again and suggest that you find a bath and some clothes to change into for me, if it's not too much trouble?"

"I will do that, and while you get cleaned up, I will try to find proper clothes for you."

I excused myself and went down to the taproom, where I found Minette Vinius, the innkeeper's daughter. She was cleaning a table, and when I asked for a bath for a lady, she smiled:

"Yes, I have seen her with you, and I agree that she needs a bath. I will get that started right away, and it should be ready in about twenty minutes, mister."

"Will you please be so kind to pick her up from our room and show her the way?"

"Of course!"

I gave her a few extra septims for the service, and I also ordered dinner for later, with a double serving for me, of course, as usual, a big bone and a jug of milk for my girls, and a mix of various dishes for Janina, and then I went over the Radiant Raiment store. They were just about to close, but all too happy to learn that Jarl Elisif had liked the clothes I had worn. I mentioned that I urgently needed some female clothes for a tall lady, and the two owners were more than willing to help me out. Of course we had to estimate the proper size, and I had no idea at all about proper female underwear. Did they have any bras in Skyrim? I got something which was called a 'breast band', and that might do for a start. Out of modesty, I had the ladies wrap my purchases, and I left the store again, thanking them for their valuable assistance.

Back at the inn I was told that dinner was almost ready and that Janina was in the inn's bathroom. I handed over my purchases to Minette and asked her to deliver them to Janina, and while I waited for her to get ready, I took a seat at the corner table the girl had reserved for us. While I started to drink from my juniper berry juice, I started to relax from the efforts of the day, leaned back, and felt happy to be in an inn again, already looking forward to a soft bed. I had just taken a large sip, when my eyes noticed a beautiful young lady coming down the stairs, looking like a noblewoman. My heart jumped and I almost choked on my juice, and eventually I recognized Janina. She looked like a completely different person now compared to just one hour earlier, freshly bathed, with her hair properly done, and wearing one of the dresses I had purchased for her. I did know, of course, that clothes can make a big difference; I had read the book 'Kleider machen Leute' after all. On her, the new clothes, very nice ones from the store, admittedly, looked amazing. She looked like a young princess from a fairy tale, and I had to be careful not to ogle her and have my tongue dropping out of my mouth. With considerable effort I managed to get up and guide her to our table.

When we were seen by all of the patrons, conversation stopped at most tables, and I could observe at least one middle aged woman looking angrily at her male companion for staring at the lady at my side. I had to admit that I could understand that, and I was feeling very happy that she was my companion tonight. A small section of my mind reminded me that I might be quite happy to have her as companion for an extended period of time, but that would have to be seen. Of course, if she indeed planned to travel to Whiterun, she might accept my company getting there, so that I could hope.

Sorex Vinius, the owner's son, served our meal, and his young sister Minette helped by bringing drinks over. For now, we had a bottle of snowberry juice, a bottle of juniper berry juice, and a jug of milk, plus a big bowl for my cubs to drink from. I placed the bowl on the ground, poured half of the milk in it and allowed Hanni and Nanni to start drinking. Then I returned my attention to the young lady opposite from me:

"I forgot to ask what you prefer to drink, but I thought that mead or ale might not be good for you before you have fully recovered."

"As a matter of fact, juniper berry juice is one of my favorites, thank you."

I liked to hear that; it was rare but nice to find an adult person around who was not so much into mead. She started to indulge in the food, and I had to remind her a couple of times to eat slowly. I assumed that she had not been properly fed for a week or so, and so her stomach probably needed time and effort to start digestion again; after all, I did not want her to get sick quickly. She admitted to still be hungry once she had eaten her part, but I managed to convince her to wait until the next day, so that we soon rose again and left for our room.

Once we had the door closed behind us, Janina stated:

"Your were absolutely right. Having a long bath after that time in the cave was just wonderful, and I was very happy to get rid of the rags I had been forced to wear for a week. Of course, I probably could call myself lucky that they at least allowed me rags rather than forcing me to cower in the cage without any clothes at all."

That comment caused my thoughts to wander off for a moment, and I had big problems not to imagine a naked Janina for too long. Fortunately, another issue came up to discuss, and this distracted me a little bit at least. Skyrim did not have much in terms of nightwear, and I usually just slept in a loincloth; with my fur, that was good enough, although I might reconsider in winter, which was about to start. On the other hand, I had not slept close to a lady since I had arrived, except for that one night with Ria, and I did not know if she might have a problem with that.

"Oh, B'lushona, please don't go out of your way just because of me. If you ask me, I feel inclined to admire the beautiful coloring of your fur, or rather I would, if the light was good enough for actually seeing much."

She liked my fur color? That was good. We only had a single candle lighted, which was more than good enough for me. Janina stripped down to her underwear without hesitating, and I was very glad that the underwear I had bought for her was a very modest one. Of course, I had no clue if anything even remotely resembling underwear from 'Victoria's Secrets' or so was available anywhere in Tamriel, but then I recalled some mods like the 'Apachii Goddess Store' in the 'Oblivion' game and the Skyrim equivalent, the 'Apachii Divine Elegance Store'. If something like that was actually around, I'd certainly love to see it, and once again my mind was in the gutter. Naturally, when playing both the 'TES IV' and 'TES V' games, I had visited those stores frequently, and I had spent considerable time to find out how certain clothes looked on my female followers, and I had not always decided to stick with more or less lore friendly options.

Fortunately, within a minute we were both under the covers, and when her regular breathing told me that she was asleep soon, I blew out the candle. It took longer for me to get to sleep, with many thoughts racing through my mind. I was not used to having a woman that close to me when sleeping, and while she was not directly next to me, I could hear her breathing and smell her body odor, thanks to my Khajiit senses, and when my thoughts eventually settled down somewhat, I found that her presence made me feel quite good. When I had had Ria next to me some time again, that had been different, and my feelings for the female Imperial were more like towards a cherished sister.

I did not know how late it was, but there was no sign of dawn yet, when one of my cubs touched my snout with hers, waking me up. At first I thought that there was some danger around, but my saber cat cubs would have growled. I listened, and I could hear some whimpering from Janina՚s bed. Right, the young lady we had rescued was sleeping in the bed on the other side of the room. Judged by her movements and the sounds she made, she was probably having a bad dream, but what was I supposed to do? The whimpering got louder and more intense, and I finally decided that I needed to wake her up. How to do that? My gut feeling suggested to kiss her awake, but my mind discarded that thought right away; I would not misuse her trust like that; no way. If she was going through something like a nightmare, it would certainly not do to replace that with my face and snout touching hers.

I got up, stepped next to her and shook her shoulders and arms, and eventually she woke up. Being able to see in the almost dark, I had not relighted a candle, though, so that she was probably almost blind in the darkness, and she struggled a lot. I tried to soothe her, moved back, lighted the candle, and waited, and she calmed down.

A few minutes later she told me:

"Sorry for my reaction. I had quite a bad dream, and when you woke me, I did not really know where I was for the moment."

"That's all right, my lady; I really should have lighted the candle first. Are you ready to get back to sleep now?"

"If you don't mind, would you listen to me for a little bit? I might not be able to fall asleep easily anyway…"

I would have much preferred to sleep, but I nodded nonetheless.

Janina did not talk much about her past, but she mentioned that she had originally been in Hammerfell, then stationed in High Rock for some time, and had to flee due to a misunderstanding. She had planned to get to Whiterun to visit a distant relative, and she was not afraid of wild beasts or bandits, as she was quite capable of fighting and defending herself.

"A week or so ago" she told me, "I was close to the cave you found me in, and a couple of bandits jumped on the road ahead of me. I had my scimitars out in no time and I was giving the two quite a fight. I had them retreating and was about to disarm them, when a third one, whom I had not noticed, came up from behind me and clubbed me on the head, making me faint. I must have been out for a few hours, as I woke up in the iron cage you found me in, dressed in rags only. Fortunately a fire was always lighted in the room, so that I was not freezing too much, but they did not feed me, and I only got some water twice a day; the anti-magicka collar made me feel even worse. My situation was totally humiliating, and I did not know how I could get out of there. When you arrived with your companions, I had more or less given up any hope, I had barely any feeling left in my legs, and I was mostly delirious. Thank you so much for coming for me."

"Janina, if I had known that you were in there, I'd have come earlier."

She looked directly into my eyes and said:

"Yes, I think that you would have done that."

I also told her a little bit about myself, and soon she was asleep again. I blew out the candle and also slept, and this time my sleep was not interrupted until the first sun rays tickled my nose. Janina still had her eyes closed, and when I looked at her, with her black hair framing her face, she looked like an angel. I just could not look away, and I was almost embarrassed when she finally opened her eyes, noticing my view on her. She did not seem to mind that, though, and she asked:

"So, you have watched and guarded my sleep?"

"Well, to be honest, I slept as well, but when I awoke and saw you sleeping, I just could not look anywhere else. You are the most beautiful lady I have encountered so far in this big land, and I find it hard to believe that you actually wanted to share a room with me."

"Oh, that was just because of those cute saber cat cubs of yours" she teased, but she obviously did not mind my calling her beautiful. As if her statement needed to be proven, one of my cubs jumped right into her lap and demanded some attention. I gulped and found myself wishing I could also jump on her lap, or that she might want to jump on mine. I'd better focus my mind on something else, I thought.

"Well, what about breakfast?"

"Splendid idea – let's go!"

She jumped out of bed and was half way to the door, still in her underwear. While I did not mind the sight at all, I decided to remind her:

"Eh, are you sure you want to go like that?"

"What?" She looked down at herself and started to laugh: "Oh, of course, no, I better should get dressed."

I had brought two different sets of clothing for her yesterday, and she picked the other one today. Similar to the day before, her entrance to the taproom got her the brief attention from almost everybody in there, and I was not quite sure if I liked that or not. I mean, people also usually looked at me when I entered a room, but the looks I got were different from the ones she got. If she was my wife or at least my girlfriend, I'd get very jealous, but she wasn't, and I could not really blame others, specifically males, for ogling her.

While we had breakfast, Janina asked:

"Did you by any chance find my armor and weapons in the cave?"

"Not sure about that. What did they look like?"

"My armor is some kind of light chainmail, modified Alik'r style, in light red and light blue colors, and I had two scimitars."

"I don't recall, but let's ask the others later on."

Once we had eaten, we met my housecarl and the pirates at the city gate, and I repeated the question Janina had about her armor and weapons. The pirates had all of the loot we had found with them to sell in the market, and indeed we found what Janina had been looking for. She was of course getting her belongings back, deposited the stuff in our room, and then we went to the market together.

[Author's Notes: The book 'Kleider machen Leute' is from the Swiss author Gottfried Keller, and you can find a brief summary on Wikipedia. The English translation is called 'Clothes make the man'. I read that book when I was at school.

In this story mostpotions do not work immediately and with full effect. A very exhausted person will sure benefit from a stamina potion, but that will not return the person to be 100% fine right away, like within a blink of an eye as in the vanilla game. For playing, I use the mod 'Apothecary – An Alchemy Overhaul', and one of the changes it does is 'Restore Health, Magicka, or Stamina Potions work over 10 seconds'.]