Chapter Thirty-Nine

As a child, Yosa'Min had only one other person in her life she could trust and rely on. Of her entire family; her mother, her absentee father, her elder siblings, only one of them ever expressed love and care for her. The one who took her from their neglectful mother and away from her abusive siblings, and raised her himself. In many ways he was more a father than an elder brother to Yosa'Min, a provider, a teacher and a protector. She'd spent her entire life around the man, nearly everything she did was involved with him in some form or fashion. That was of course, until two and a half years ago.

"Vastin?" She asked, stepping back from the hug with a swirl of mixed emotions. "What are you... How are you... What?"

A small smile dawned the redguard man's face, and he curled a finger under her chin, tilting her face up towards him. "You've changed a lot little sister." His blue eyes were drawn to the three jagged lines that cut across her face. "Went and got you your own scars huh?" There was a small scar on his left cheek, and another long one on the same side of his skull, splitting into two as it moved towards his forehead. "What... What's happened to you sister?"

She stared up into his face, trying to pick out every detail, and then gave a heavy sigh. "You're not real..." She muttered, shaking her head and stepping away. Vastin frowned heavily. "I just encountered all my... friends in this place and it was far from real, whatever trick this is Ideal Masters I won't fall for it."

"Yosa'Min... I'm no trick."

"Of course you'd say that," she sneered, the bitterness and hurt in her voice staggering the man.

"Listen to me," he urged, stepping towards her, "I'm as real as I possibly can be in whatever weird state I am."

"Lies, all of it," she accused, "It was nice to see your face again but you're speaking clearly, you're not limping and you're thinking far too fast."

He laughed, shaking his head back and forth with unnecessary exaggeration before speaking. "Min you're supposed to be clever," he said, Yosa'Min taken aback by the nickname. "The limp, the slowness and the voice... That was all a physical condition, it wasn't reflective upon my soul nor was it who I truly was."

"Soul? Is that what this is?" She blinked. "Are you trapped here?"

A grimace dawned Vastin's face, and he gave a slow shrug. "Honestly? I don't know... I know I'm bound here in some form but... I'm not like the other spirits. I still have control over myself and just look at me I've got a body!" He held up a hand, the faint tendrils of blue light flickering around him. "Well, mostly. I promise I won't go 'boo' at any point."

"Not even like how you did when I was a kid?"

He smiled. "Fine just once..." Putting his hands to the side of his face, he gave a playfully menacing snarl and shuffled towards her. "Boo!" She smiled widely.

"Tell me brother..." Yosa'Min said slowly, staring into blue eyes. "When does the hunter strike?"

Vastin gave her a knowing look, smiling softly. "Only when the prey thinks it's safe."

"Divines... It really is you..." Yosa'Min breathed, stepping forward and pulling her taller brother into a fierce hug. She could feel tears well in her eyes, joy surging up to consume every thought she had. "There's no way these things could have known that." He wrapped his arms around her once more, almost as if he was afraid of letting go. "Vastin... It's really you!"

"It's really me..." He cooed, one hand caressing what remained of her hair. "Please Min... What's happened to you? You left to go hunting and then never came back..."

"What happened to me?" She balked as she stepped far enough back to look into his eyes. "What happened to you! You died Vastin!"

"I know..."

"How did that happen? Why did it happen?" She begged, hands balling into fists.

"I think it has to do with you more than me..." Vastin said slowly. "You know that too... Don't you?"

"I-"

"I know what you are Min," Vastin said, stepping away towards the chair he'd been in earlier. Yosa'Min followed him, taking a seat nearby. "Dragonborn."

Sighing, she gave a heavy shrug. "Yeah I don't know how either."

"Fate, Min... It's a powerful thing."

"You know how I feel about all that," she grumbled, "I don't fancy the idea of powers influencing and controlling me because they want to. Nothing controls me but me."

"Are you sure about that?" Vastin asked slowly, a heavy gaze baring down upon his sister. "Just look at yourself Min, what are you?"

Shouldering slumping forward, she sighed. "I'm a vampire... I... There's so much that's happened since... What do you remember?"

"My memories are blurry most days. I remember foggy details and random things. The taste of a freshly cooked fish you and Vifla caught or sitting by the lake watching you try to learn how to swim." He stared into her eyes, sorrow swirling in blue orbs. "I remember orcs breaking down the door and dragging me out of my chair. The feel of steel cutting me is impossible to forget... As is the sensation of my head being severed and my soul leaving my body... only to be trapped somewhere it did not belong." The anger that edged his voice wasn't shocking as to why it was there, it made perfect sense, but to actually hear him upset was jarring for Yosa'Min. He'd always been so happy, even after he'd been lamed. To hear him speak in such a way was disorientating. "They kept asking me about you, demanding to know where you were or how to find you. So please, explain to me why I died and what has happened to you."

The words struggled to escape her, stopping in her throat. She never dreamed she would have to confess this to Vastin himself, imagining one day she'd meet him in the afterlife and they'd swap stories and explanations and that'd be the end of it. Instead, she was still alive in some form, and here he was trapped in a place for souls. It was so unexpected and surprising she was still simply processing it all. Then she caught the pleading look in his eyes, and she could keep it from him no longer. "Do you know what the Dragonborn is, not just the title but what it means?" He gave a nod. "You always were smart and loved stories... Well, I'm the last Dragonborn and was foretold to kill Alduin the World Eater. I did. Someone must have wanted to hurt me or control me and they tried to capture you or use you as leverage... You fought back and they killed you. I haven't heard one word from them since."

"But how did you... I heard rumors you were in Whiterun and killed a dragon," Vastin said with obvious confusion and uncertainty. "Then everyone was celebrating something and the next day the orcs arrived."

"I killed a supposed god... Actually he might really have been a god."

"That doesn't explain the vampirism Min."

"Well... Do you remember how sometimes things would turn up in the house that we didn't have the septims to afford?"

Vastin's jaw stiffened. "You're still doing that Min," he said in exasperation, "I begged you to stop."

Yosa'Min bristled instantly. "I'm sorry I didn't have the skills to get a job, not like anyone would hire me either! Hunting only gets you so far brother!"

"Stealing just leads to trouble though Min! It's part of why we had to leave Hammerfell in the first place!"

"We left because the men there tried to rape me," she snapped, "and they wouldn't have stopped until they had. There was no other choice than to leave."

The bearded redguard gave a scowl. "There was a reason why the townsfolk didn't trust us, after we arrived their stuff started to go missing. Do you still steal Min, are you still a thief?" She couldn't meet his gaze. "I tried to teach you what honor was, the difference between right and wrong... Now I'm just wondering where I failed."

"Brother..." She gasped softly.

"No Min," he said firmly, "you're a grown woman now I can't treat you like I did when you were a child. The world is a cruel place and I know you've learned this well but that doesn't excuse what you've done. The only difference between a bandit and a thief is one of them is willing to kill you to get your stuff."

"I was trying to provide for you!" She shouted, on her feet now. "I was hardly an adult and I was having to take care of you in a strange new land. Of course I was going to rely on the only things I knew how to do. Hunt and steal. Stealing is how I afforded ingredients for your medicine, and I hunted so we could eat. I used those skills to kill Alduin, and those skills are what drew me into one mess after another. I'm not going to lie, I'm under no delusion that stealing is acceptable but it's what I had to do."

"But do you have to do it still!" He shouted, on his feet and towering over her. "There has to be some point in your life when you can stop. When you don't have to keep taking what doesn't belong to you."

Yosa'Min gritted her fangs and gave a heavy shrug. "I don't know brother... I... I've tried so many times to stop, truly, but it is so difficult. Once you're tainted it's nearly impossible to get clean."

Placing a hand upon her shoulder, Vastin gave a firm shake of his head. "I know you're better than that," he said, "you're a woman that when she puts her mind to something nothing can stop her. Why did you defeat Alduin? Why didn't you just come home the moment that you could?"

"Because I wanted to save you."

"Just me?"

"Yes. You were my world back then. The only two people that mattered to me were you and Vifla and no matter what you were always more important than she was. So when I found out that there were dragons attacking Skyrim just one town from where we lived, I ran to Whiterun to tell the jarl. Then he tasked me with finding some old tablet and you can't really say no to a jarl... One thing led to another then I was fighting a dragon and after a bit of aerial combat I killed it. I went back to Whiterun to tell the jarl and then the sky shook as an order of old mystic men summoned me to the Throat of the World and told me I was destined to kill Alduin or he would swallow us all."

Vastin was smiling when she finished, further confusing her. "To think I raised such a powerful and formidable fighter... A few lessons on how to wield a blade and shoot a bow and suddenly you're taking on gods?"

"Well just the one god," she said, excited to hear the pride in his voice. They both sat back down, the younger redguard eagerly recalling some of her greatest slain foes. "I've fought dragons and giants, ancient dragur, dragon lords, dwarven contraptions, vampires, traitors, trolls!" She gave an angry growl, pointing at her face. "That's what did this to me, ugly bastards."

"Language young lady."

"I'm not that young anymore," laughed Yosa'Min.

"Speaking of youth," said Vastin with a hint of concern, "how is she?"

"How is who?"

"Your one and only friend aside from me, hunting partner and general mischievous spry little bosmer; the unforgettable and utterly unique Vifla."

"Oh... Well I don't know. I haven't seen her in years... Not since the day I left. I asked around after your death but her parents hadn't seen her since you died either. I don't know if it's connected or not. Who knows, she could have died, left or gotten lost. As far as I know she could be in the Imperial City sipping on fine wines and commanding a business empire."

Vastin shook his head. "That elf was as loyal as a dog. If she's gone missing I doubt it's without good reason."

"She was always talking about leaving as soon as the twins were old enough," said Yosa'Min with a shrug. "I wouldn't be shocked if she did."

"Vifla was nothing but talk," said Vastin with a heavy shake of his head. "Have you forgotten her already?"

Yosa'Min dipped her face, and shook her head. "No I haven't. I try not to think about her but I can't forget someone I spent nearly a third of my life with... Even if the memories are muddled."

"You're too young for that," said Vastin, reaching over and messing up her hair.

Patting down the ruffled black strands and giving him a sour look, she shrugged. "Guess not."

"Do you still remember me?"

"Every waking moment of the day. Vastin... You meant everything to me, and still so much."

He smiled a bit. "What means the world to you now Min? Got a sweetheart? Am I going to be an uncle? Am I one already?"

"Don't get your hopes up," she chuckled, "our lineage isn't continuing on through me."

With a wave, his smile remained. "Ah yes, that's right, you prefer the taste of women not men. Can't say I blame you. Most of us are a bit too... straightforward for a lady like yourself. I'm sure we'd bore you with terrible attempts at romance and displays of manly power."

"I still like shows of strength," she countered.

With a brow raised, Vastin gave her an easy smile. "Let me guess, she's nothing but muscle and beauty."

A sad smile replaced the more comfortable one, and she gave a heavy sigh. "She is... But I doubt anything will ever happen between us again."

"Look Min, I've tried my hand at romance before and- don't you dare give me that look I was lonely too!"

"Is that why that woman kept coming by in Elinhir!" She gasped, eyes wide with shock as she suddenly understood. "And why you'd send me to the archery range at the most random of times?" At his toothy grin, she swatted his knee. "Divines dammit Vastin! Do you know how many times I thought I'd done something bad and you were punishing me with practice?" He burst into a bout of laughter, having to clutch at his sides to calm down after a few minutes. They grew quiet after he'd settled down, sadness tugging at their faces as Yosa'Min stared down at the floorboards beneath her. "I missed this..." She confessed softly, rubbing the base of her thumb with her other hand. "I've missed you so much."

"I know... And I've missed you as well. I've spent every aching moment here thinking of you, hoping you were doing alright, that you would manage without me. I see in many ways you have... But in others... I'm going to be honest with you Yosa'Min because I don't know if I'll ever get this chance again." She swallowed dryly as he spoke, unable to look up and meet his gaze. "I am disappointed with you."

"Why?"

"It's not just that you're a thief, though that's certainly a big part, but that you're this... Creature now."

She bristled, glaring up at him with orbs of fire. "I didn't decide to become a vampire."

"But you've decided to remain one."

"It's not that simple!" She stood up, her emotions once more swelling to overwhelm her. It was nigh impossible to get a lid on them on, anger and indigence rising sharply over her fear and panic at letting down the one man that mattered. The one person she'd always thought would love her. "Serana needs me and her father is a threat and I would never be strong enough to fight him as a mortal. Not to mention I've pretty much burned all the bridges to my past."

"So you're staying like this out of duty? Or just simply fear?"

She scowled. "I'm not ashamed to admit I'm afraid. You taught me not to be."

"I did. I also taught you not to let yourself be corrupted by power and promises... Or I tried to at least."

"Corrupted?" She snarled briskly, "I'm not corrupted. Harkon wants to do something terrible to the sun and I fear it means something bad for Serana. She's not just my sire she's my friend and I'm not going to abandon her to this fight. You also taught me to be loyal, even when it might bring trouble."

He gave a grimace, and simply shrugged. "I'm not saying it's an easy matter Min, I understand that there are things I'm unaware of. But you also can't just shut every other door because you're too scared to face what's inside. One way might be easier, to simply go along with what's happened to you, but another might be better for you. Are you happy?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Are you happy like this? Are you okay with what's happened to you?'

She narrowed her eyes, and gave a defensive hiss. "Of course I'm not. I've hurt my old friends several times or led to them being hurt and they just won't give up. Serana is the only other vampire I can trust and her father threatens to kill me every other second or use me for some undoubtedly nefarious end. He wants to change me again so that I'll be blindly loyal to him instead of Serana's fledgling and I've spent almost every moment either terrified, repulsed or numb. The only times I'm happy is when Serana is happy."

"Sounds like you care an awful lot for her."

"I do. She... She saved me."

"From what?"

"Two things; herself and myself." He gave her a heavy look of confusion. "I met her because I was depressed. I'd made a huge mistake, lost the woman I loved, and was falling into a pitfall of stealing just to feel alive. I had friends, they tried to help, but nothing was working. One day I tried to steal from a group of vampire hunters. I failed, got slapped with a quest to redeem myself, and ended up awakening Serana who'd been trapped in a crypt for gods know how long. She was so ravenous from all that time she attacked me, and took so much blood I was surely to die. Instead, with no other choice, she turned me and saved my life. Serana had every reason to just walk away, let me die, anything other than save me... But she did anyways."

"She was fixing a mistake," he offered.

"Is that what I am?"

"Yosa'Min don't you dare think that!" He said tightly. "Gar'del and Jazbel were full of hosedung and you know it. You don't need to prove your worth and you don't need to apologize for existing. You are not a mistake, you are a blessing, even if they refused to see it."

"If it wasn't for me you'd have never had to leave the farm, or even the noble's estate," she argued, "you'd have been able to live a nice life in Hammerfell. That means you'd have never left home, you'd have never been thrown in jail several times protecting me, you'd never have had to cross the border and you'd have never been lamed. The last ten years of your life wouldn't have been such agony if I'd simply never been born."

He took hold of her tightly, hugging her for all he could and she didn't bother struggling free. "Do you know what made every day worth it after I was injured?" Vastin asked with a thick voice, she mutely nodded against his chest. "You. Knowing that I was still cared for and loved, that when I woke up you'd be there waiting to take care of me. You could have kept running like I'd told you to, I would never have blamed you if you had. Instead you came back and found me, nursed me back from the brink and never gave up on me. Ten years you did that, ten years. I might have raised you out of childhood for fourteen, but you owe me nothing." He pulled back enough to look at her face, tears welled in her eyes once more. He wasn't certain if they were of sorrow, joy or relief, but wiped them away with a small smile. "You are my little sister, and while I am sad with the path you have taken I do not regret taking care of you."

"Vastin..."

"I love you Min, never doubt that."

"I love you too brother," she whimpered. "It's just... It's not just you that would have had a different and probably better life if not for me. I've hurt so many people. The women I love, my closest friends, the people who became my family after you were gone. They would never have suffered because of me if I had simply never met them or never existed. I would have spared them so much pain by never being. Being a vampire... It means I don't have to see them again, that it'd be best for me to not even! I can save them from all the grief I would have caused them otherwise."

Vastin gave a hearty shake of his head. "You forget all the good you've done as well Min," he urged, "and it saddens me to hear you speak like this. Do you not remember that time you saved Vifla's brothers from a bear? Or the fact that if not for you the world would be over by now? I don't know everything you've done but I know damn well that things wouldn't simply be better or easier without you. Perhaps you caused some pain as well, but you brought light into their lives also. Tell me something that you did that would have been terrible otherwise."

She sniffled softly, struggling to think before finally coming up with an answer. "Vex... Probably wouldn't have realized the truth about Mercer until it was too late. She might have been killed next like he tried to kill me."

"So you being there might have saved her life. Tell me another."

"Lydia... She might have gotten an even worse thane somehow... One that would want her to be their servant and been cruel and acted her superior. Or never took her anywhere, she truly loves adventuring."

He was smiling a bit wider, and gave a nod of his head. "Nothing's worse than being stuck in one place unable to do what your heart dreams of, I can attest to that. One more, I'm sure you can come up another."

"The world would have ended."

"Exactly!" He clapped her shoulders with enthusiasm. "The entire world would have ended if you hadn't been born. No king nor peasant would have been safe from that. You my dear little sister, are a hero. You have value and you have worth and you should never doubt that. You may make mistakes and you may bring pain to others but running away from that is not the answer. You're not perfect, no one is, and you're allowed to occasionally screw up. The problem comes when you let those mistakes rule you rather than own up to them and accept them. Do you remember that time I insulted that nobleman's son and called him a liar?"

"You got whipped for it."

"I could have run from my punishment but instead I faced it, and those scars faded. I had been angry and stupid when I discredited his honor and the only respectable thing I could do was accept what he intended to inflict upon me for justice. Sometimes, that's all you can do."

She gave a disgruntled huff, and stepped away from him. "It's never easy."

"I know. If it was then everyone would do it."

Sighing, Yosa'Min stared up into blue eyes. "But what if I'm not forgiven?"

"Then at least you can say you tried. Running away is never the answer, and I'm afraid that's all you're doing right now. Perhaps there truly is a threat to the sun and Serana's father is a very bad man, but don't let that be an excuse for you to run away from your fears and owning up to your mistakes."

"When I see them though I just get so angry brother... An anger I'm not used to and that scares me too."

Vastin gave a soft snicker. "My my, look who's afraid of everything again. I'd get you a candle to light the night but I'm afraid you're going to have to do this on your own."

"Yes I'm afraid," she uttered, "I'm afraid of Harkon. I'm afraid of this place and losing Serana and failing her and hurting my old friends and of Mjoll never forgiving me but most of all I'm afraid of myself. Not just the vampire but of me... of who I've become as a person."

"But Min," he countered softly, "you're the one who decides who you become. What you fear is of your own doing."

"That's what scares me most."

Vastin shook his head slowly, and gave a sigh of his own. "My little sister, slayer of a god and many other evils, afraid of herself... Why does that not surprise me?" She gave a shrug. He looked up to the side, eyes narrowing with thought and then turned to her quickly. When he spoke, there was a certain edge in his words that sent Yosa'Min reeling. "Just listen to me Min, no matter what you do I will love you. I forgive you for whatever small hand you may have had in my death, and I hope that in the end you find happiness. However I beg of you, please, do better than what you have. I know that deep down there is a courageous woman and you just need to find that part of you. There are many challenges and trials before you I'm sure, and your struggle is not yet over."

"Why are you talking like that?" Yosa'Min interrupted, shaking her head quickly. "You're acting like you have to leave," she said quickly, horror rising up her. "Vastin I can't-"

"You can't stay here Min... This place is very bad... I have enjoyed talking with you, but you must leave now."

"No!"

"Yosa'Min," his tone grew short, the redguard woman blinking up at him. "Please... I would hate for you to be trapped here like I."

"There's a portal!" She blurted desperately. "It's how I came here. Maybe you could leave through it!"

Vastin gave a sad shake of his head. "It wouldn't work. I am bound to this place sister... As I said I don't know how exactly but I know I cannot leave like you."

"Please Vastin... I can't lose you again!"

He gave her a sad smile, and hugged her once more, kissing her brow. "Don't be silly, you never lost me. I just... went away for a little while. We'll see each other again some day I'm sure."

"I'll find a way to free you!" She vowed, "I don't know how but I'll get you out of here Vastin!" Something beat through the air, heavy and powerful, a terribly familiar noise to the redguard woman. Her spine shot with a cold chill, and she dared look away from Vastin long enough to scan the cabin. Nothing in sight, she turned back to her brother only to see him gone. "Vastin!" She screamed, spinning about frantically. "Vastin come back! Please Vastin!" The sound grew louder, roaring through the air, splitting the trees and then wood shattered above in an explosion of splinters.

She glared up at the newly formed hole, fury rising up her body far swifter than before, as a draconic head pushed through the ceiling. Pale green scales like rotten bone covered a serpentine face, two pairs of curved horns with one splitting in two adorned its skull while eyes of yellow rot glared at her. "Zu'u lost ruun hi! I have found you!" It roared with almost delight before snapping its massive jaws at the redguard, spittle the consistency of goop and green in hue between its sharp fangs. She rolled to the side, caught a hold of one of its horns and clutched tightly as it reared back and took flight above the grove of dead trees. The small little cabin faded away as she watched, the branches swallowing it whole before the grove vanished entirely.

"You're gonna wish you'd stayed away!" She shouted furiously of the roar of wind and beating wings, drawing her dagger and plunging it into the dragon's eye. It roared in agony, twisted up and began to spin in the sky, Yosa'Min struggling to keep her grip as the purple world danced around her. It didn't take long before she felt like she was going to vomit, and the dragon went into a steep climb into the clouds. For a few agonizing moments as it had hung in the air, she could see the castle like structure to the side and a ghostly horse galloping across the dead hills. Lightning dashed across the sky, and zoomed past the airborne pair, the energy making Yosa'Min's hair raise on end. She twisted her dagger desperately, trying to wound it further and force the mighty beast down aside from using a shout that would send it crashing, bringing her along with it for the painful impact.

Then the dragon went into a nosedive, Yosa'Min having to fight the urge to scream as the Soul Cairn whipped past her, fingers curled tightly around the hilt of her dagger and a horn, legs wrapped around the long spiked neck of the beast. Her eyes were streaming tears as they dove towards the ground, only for the dragon to open its wings at the last moment, twist as it caught itself and dipped its neck just enough for Yosa'Min to slam into the hard stone below. She cried out in agony as her grip failed, and she tumbled away from the dragon as it continued to glide past. When she finally gathered her strength enough to pick herself up, the dragon was landing a little bit away from her. She gaped at the half decomposed wings it possessed, and the other undead features to its form while streams of green ichor dripped from between its scales, something keeping it going though she had no idea what.

"Did you enjoy your talk?" Sneered the dragon.

"Shut up," she spat, tasting blood in her mouth while her head spun. She struggled to her feet, clutching a nearby rock for support and her other hand held her side as pain pulsed through it. "That's none of your business."

"Nahlot, silence," the dragon replied, head rising up and he cackled. "The Ideal Masters thought you'd like seeing your brother again."

"No!" She shouted furiously, "That was him! That was really him!"

"Perhaps..." The dragon smiled vilely, lowering his maw some until his rotten eyes were glaring into her burning orbs. "But in a world like this how can you be sure? The Ideal Masters shape this very plane of Oblivion to whatever they desire. They have quite the taste for the dreary and dismal wouldn't you say?" He was laughing at her. "Your brother's soul is theirs, and they will do what they wish with it."

"You speak lies lir."

"Ah, so you know my tongue do you not?" The dragon said with interest. "I am no worm, no, I am what the worms feast upon for centuries, an endless meal for death! I am Durnehviir!" He spread his wings in a display of vanity, his one damaged eye already healed and the dagger fallen to the side.

"And I don't care," snarled Yosa'Min, her body starting to shimmer. Darkness began to swim in her vision and she felt her bones begin to shift and pop. Rage boiled up her body, and her mind was soon consumed with madness. Durnehviir watched her, stunned almost, as she fell forward, hands turned into claws catching her while shadows swirled around her. Agony shot through her and scales erupted from her flesh, covering her body with blood staining their glossy sheen. Her jaw extended, rows of jagged teeth with a pair of eager fangs hissing at the dragon as horns curved away from her skull. The sound of wings bursting free from her back was louder than anything else, and her tail extended as she slumped down in pain.

The dragon tilted his head, and gave a soft growl, swooping forward before she could finish her transformation. His claws grasped her face, still smaller than a dragon of his mass, and he dragged her into the sky. Yosa'Min snarled ferociously, lashed out with her claws and flapped her wings to wrench herself free of his grasp. They hovered in the air, glaring at each other for a few long moments as lightning flashed around them in the purple clouds. Then Durnehvirr cocked a grin. "What fun this shall be." Yosa'Min only opened her maw in a snarl, shadows slipping out from around her tongue, and dove at him. Durnehviir met her with eager claws.

AN: On a bit of a roll here it would seem. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and would love to hear what you think! Thanks for reading!