The sun shone brightly on the streets of Whiterun, warming the cool morning air as sellers headed to their carts and guards changed shifts. Belethor, a rather seedy little Breton, opened his trade shop, and next door Arcadia prepared her home for any looking to buy potions and herbs. The local drunkard weaved unsteady circles around the shop center's well, and the old woman Olava called out to all who passed that she was not in the mood to read fortunes that day. At the Bannerd Mare, a simple inn known for its flirtatious bard and good ale, a young Breton woman, fair of hair and skin, stepped out into the morning. A mage and a potion maker, she had traveled to Whiterun in hopes of finding new spell books to practice with. It hadn't been as successful of a trip as she'd hoped. She'd arrived at Whiterun in the afternoon the previous day, after a journey that had been miraculously uneventful. An abundance of ingredients found on the road and a lack of trouble had made her optimistic, so arriving to find that Belethor had nothing at all in the way of useful spells had been a let down. The only upside was that she had a chance to sell a few pelts, and some trinkets she'd picked up on the journey. She'd ended up spending the day with Carlotta and her daughter, keeping the single mother company while she minded her cart full of vegetables. When night came she'd drank her share of ale, given the flirtatious bard Mikael a stern talking to, and retired to her rented room.
"Good morning Anise! Heading back to Riverwood?" Carlotta called as the young Breton made her way down the front steps of the Bannered Mare.
"Yes, it's time for me to head home. Tell Mila I say goodbye."
"Of course, have a safe journey." Carlotta and Anise both waved goodbye, and Anise made her way down the dusty streets of Whiterun, through the front gate, and off to the road that led to her home in Rivewood.
...
The dust from the road caused Anise to sneeze, which startled a young bird that had been perched on a nearby branch. The startled bird alerted it's fellows, and the entire flock emerged from the trees, chittering and whistling as they flew away. This alerted the two wolves Anise had been trying to quietly walk past, and six ice spells and one hour later, Anise had two pelts and a fresh supply of meat over her back. The extra weight would keep her from collecting any more potion ingredients, but she could give the pelts to Lucian and Camilla in Riverwood once she arrived.
With the cold weather returning, it will be nice for the two of them to have some extra furs to work with. Anise thought. Or perhaps Camilla will make something for Faendal with this. Wood elves probably don't do very well in the cold skyrim winters.
Riverwood was a town that bustled and babbled just like the river it was named after. The trees dappled everything with shade, and the townsfolk conversed to each other as they passed on errands. Dorthe and Frodnar, the only two children in town, played tag, followed closely by Frodnar's dog Stump. Embry, the local drunk, watched the children with dizzy eyes. While Embry was certainly not the most clear headed man in town, he was a harmless sort with little else to do. It became the town habit to trust that he'd keep an eye on the children, provided that was all he was required to do. Mostly, he drank on the steps on the Sleeping Giant inn and called out if the kids were getting into any trouble.
"Well if it isn't my favorite little witch." Embry slurred cordially as Anise entered town. "Got any more healing potions for me? M'headaches back with a vengeance."
"Sorry Embry, I'll bring some to Lucian's shop tomorrow. Will you be alright until then?"
"Suuuuuure sure. Thas' what the ale is for after all." The last of Embry's words are swallowed by his tankard, and Anise gave him a worried smile before continuing on her way to the Riverwood Trader.
The familiar smell of Camilla's favorite perfumed candles greeted Anise as she steped inside. The Riverwood Trader had a pleasant warmth to it that came from the clutter of the shop and the hearth in the corner that always had something cooking over it. Coupled with the subtle scent of Camilla's candles, the shop never failed to remind Anise of her childhood home back in High Rock.
"You're back!" Camilla exclaimed. She had been sweeping up the shop when Anise walked in, but now she placed her broom against the counter to wrap Anise in a warm hug. Tall, kind and beautiful, Camilla was just as regal and graceful as an Imperial ought to be, despite her patched dress and simple lifestyle. It hadn't surprised Anise in the least when she'd found out that two men were competing for Camilla's affections.
"I told you I'd only be gone for a night." Anise said, smiling, when Camilla let go. Anise turned to Camilla's brother Lucien, who stood behind the counter as usual. "How are things here?"
Camilla and Lucien answer at the same time.
"Same as ever. Glad to see you back"
"But I worry about you when you go. Those roads aren't as safe as you're always saying they are"
Anise laughed and moved to the counter, pulling the wolf pelts from her shoulder to place them on the counter top.
"I have gifts at least." She said as she spread out the two pelts. Lucien, ever a tader, begin to examine them immediately, taking note of the quality of the fur and what it might be used for.
"It isn't much, but I thought you might be able to use these come Frost Fall."
"Of course we can, thank you Anise." Camilla said warmly. "Faendal always gets nervous when the cold comes around. Maybe I'll make him something nice to keep him warm." She said, coming over to run her hands over the softer of the two furs.
"Not the little elf again," Lucian sighed. "He's been alive a bit longer than you I'm sure. I've no doubt he can handle the chill of Frost Fall just fine on his own." Lucian had been grumpy ever since Camilla decided Faendal was the one she preferred of her two suitors. Anise had the distinct feeling that it wasn't Faendal's age or race that Lucian had a problem with, but rather it was the way Camilla and Faendal would spend their free time making eyes at each other by the hearth in the shop. As Lucian himself had once said, "Watching two buffoons in love is bad enough. It becomes even worse when one of those buffoons is your own little sister."
Anise sat down at the small table before the hearth and caught up with Lucian and Camilla for a time. In a small town like Riverwood, there was little excitement or gossip to talk of, and Anise's journey had been too uneventful to make a story out of for her friends. She caught them up on what was happening in Whiterun, with Mikael's incessant flirting and Carlotta's irritation. She informed them that the Companions were just as active as ever, and that the Gray-Manes and Battle-Borns were still as angry at each other as they'd been since the war began. Talk eventually moved to what Anise would do next, as neither Riverwood nor Whiterun were likely to get any spell books that Anise hadn't already studied.
"Do you really need any new spells?" Camilla asked as she put down her broom and joined Anise at the table. "That ice spell has kept you safe enough over the years, and you have that familiar you can conjure as well."
"My familiar spell isn't strong enough. It can handle a wolf or two, and help some against bandits. But remember those thugs? I'd be dead if they hadn't attacked me right in the middle of town. I'd have never been able to handle them on my own." Anise didn't like thinking about how close she'd come to death only a few days ago. A week prior, Anise had come from a two day trip to Whiterun to find that an old witch had taken over her little cottage and claimed it as her own. When Anise had told her the cottage was hers, the witch had flown into a rage and tried to attack her. Anise had handled her easily enough, but a week later a group of thugs had tried to attack her in Riverwood. They'd easily overpowered her, and if not for the guards in town she was certain she'd be dead. The guards had found a contract for her death (or at least grave injury) on one of the thugs bodies. Moira, the old witch's Hagraven sister, had felt her sisters death and hired the thugs to take care of her killer. As if that wasn't enough, the next day an assassin had come for her. She'd been able to handle him well enough, but she'd found a note on his body explaining that someone had preformed the black sacrament to get to her. She couldn't think of anyone other than the Hagraven that would want her dead, and certainly no one that would be willing to preform such a dark ritual. She'd known then that she'd need more than an ice spell and her familiar to keep get safe, especially if the Hagraven decided to finish the job herself.
"If the Hagraven decides to come after me herself, I won't stand a chance with what I know now. Sure I could throw some poisons at her, maybe a potion to cut down her strength or magic, but I'll still be dead before she is. Besides, with all this talk of dragons lately..."
"Oh don't you start with that." Lucian interrupted. "What happened at Helgen was nothing more than a spell gone wrong. Some idiot sorceror likely tried to summon three flame atronachs at once and burned down the whole town. Dragons may have existed once, but they're nothing but legends now. Tragedies like this happen, people make up stories in the excitement. If you've lost your entire home, you might as well have a good tale out of it. Makes them feel better."
"I thought that too," Anise argued, "but I went to Helgen after it burned down. That wasn't just some spell gone wrong Lucian, the town was gone. I can't imagine anything in this world that could have done that but a dragon. Creatures coming back from the dead isn't exactly rare in skyrim. Or have you never heard of a draugr?"
Lucian paused a moment and stared down at the counter, as though he was thinking very seriously about something. He looked up suddenly with a sharp nod.
"I see. So we have dragon draugr then do we?" He said sarcastically. "I'll alert the temple priests." He went back to cleaning the trinkets in front of him on the counter, ignoring the glare Anise shot him.
"I'm sorry Anise, but I have to agree with Lucian. The whole town burned down, it isn't surprising that people thought they saw a dragon. It's hard to believe that anything outside of a legend could destroy an entire village, but real life isn't some bards song or children's story. People see things when they're frightened. Didn't you ever see ghosts in your room when you were a small child, only to find it was a trick of the moonlight and your own fear?"
Anise had to admit that Camilla had a point, but some part of her simply couldn't believe it was something as simple as an out of control conjuring. Whatever had happened in Helgen, it didn't change the fact that Anise wouldn't feel safe until she got a few more offensive spells in her repertoire.
"I'd better get home," she said, standing from her chair and stretching a bit. "I've potions to make and a roof to patch up before the rains come. I've got a feeling we'll get some before the warm season is over."
"I meant to bring some food to Faendal anyway. I'll walk you out." Camilla said, grabbing a covered basket while Lucian rolled his eyes at her. He turned a smile to Anise, his stern face easing into the congeniality that Anise was used to.
"I'm glad to see you back. Stay safe on the road home alright?"
"I will." Anise replied, and she and Camilla went out the door and back into the afternoon sunshine.
...
Anise left Camilla by the mill where Faendal had been chopping wood. A polite and hard working wood elf, Anise was quite fond of him and was glad Camilla had chosen him over Sven, her other suitor. Sven was a handsome man, and a good bard, but was arrogant as well and hated to lose. He had no qualms about lying to get his way, and he and Anise did not get along. Camilla and Faendal gave Anise a quick wave goodbye before getting lost in each other, and Anise smiled to herself as she walked up the path to her home on tired feet. She was eager to spend a few days mixing potions and collecting herbs, and she felt some of the tension in her heart ease as she walked through the fields before her house. She still felt unprepared for the troubles that may or may not lie ahead, but at least she still had her quaint home and flowered fields. She smiled as her cottage came into view, It was a dilapidated old thing, with a rickety door and a hole in the roof where a plank had rotted last winter, but it was hers and she loved it. Just outside of Riverwood, it was surrounded by flowers and insects, and the sound of the water running nearby. She had a small garden, and a little chair out front, and a cellar where she could mix potions and practice her admittedly poor enchanting. It was everything a little Breton mage like herself needed, and she was more than happy with it.
It's nice to be home.
...
Anise woke before the sun the next morning, eager to be back to her usual routine of potion making. She climbed down the ladder into the cellar, careful to mind her step in the dim light. With only a few candles and the glow of her arcane enchanter, the cellar had a quiet darkness to it that was likely to make others uneasy. For Anise, it was the perfect place to clear her mind and concentrate on her potions. The rest of the morning was spent on her craft; mixing frost resist potions and potions to restore health, staining her fingers with plant matter and trying not to breathe in the fumes of her many poisons. The sun was high in the sky by the time she emerged from the cellar, and she took a break for some bread and cheese.
There's no better life than this.
She thought as she rested on the chair in front of her little cottage, watching the birds search for bugs in the ground and the bees flit from one flower to another. After her meal she packed up some potions and made her way down the path to Riverwood, stopping to collect herbs along the way as she went. She entered the Riverwood Trader to find Camilla and Faendal smiling at each other by the hearth, and poor Lucian polishing a sword with far more concentration then the task required. He looked up when Anise entered the shop, smiling his big shop keepers smile.
"Thank the divine, someone with a little sense to talk to."
"Oh hush," Camilla said in response to Lucian's greeting to Anise. "Just because you can't appreciate a little emotion doesn't mean that everyone who does is an idiot."
Faendal stood from his chair as Lucian rolled his eyes. "I'd better get going, before I get any more embarrassed." He laughed. "It's good to see you Anise, let me know if you ever want those archery lessons we were talking about."
"Thanks Faendal, I will." Anise replied.
Faendal made his way out the door, Camilla following him out to say goodbye, and Lucian shook his head at two of them once more to get his point across.
"Oh, don't look at them like that." Anise chided. "It's sweet, the way they act. They love each other."
"If that's love I pray I never find it." Lucian muttered. "Now, what have you got for me today?"
Anise pulled the potions she planned to sell out of her pack, and she and Lucian discussed business for a time. When Camilla re-entered the shop her face was flushed and her eyes were sparkling.
"Faendal asked me to meet him tonight near the mill where the torch bugs all gather. Oh Anise, I think he's going to ask me to wed him!"
The two women laughed together, Anise pulling Camilla into a hug as they shared their joy. Their laughter and fast paced discussion of how she should wear her hair that night was cut off when they realized there was a lack of expected grumbling from Lucian. Turning to face him, they found him polishing weapons again, seemingly unaffected by the news.
"Brother," Camilla started "aren't you at least a little...surprised?"
Lucian snorted, "why would I be? The way that boy's been mooning after you, what else should I expect?"
"Aren't you going to complain at all?" Anise asked.
"What gave you the impression that I'd do something like that?"
"He already asked your permission for my hand didn't he, Lucian?" Camilla said.
"I haven't a clue what your blabbering on about."
"Oh that- that silly little elf!" Camilla fumed, "he knows I am an independent woman! I don't need your permission to get married!"
Anise recalled the first time she'd meet Camilla, and how adamant Camilla had been that she could handle anything. A prized item from their shop had been stolen, and Camilla had insisted that she was strong enough to go and get it back. Anise, having had a bit more experience with bandits than the two siblings, had offered to go instead.
"No, but you have it." Lucian said. "That silly little elf, as you call him, asked me because he knew it was important to me. Even if I'd said no, he was well prepared to ask you anyway. Now stop ruining his proposal and pretend I never said a thing." With that, Lucian opened the door to the shop and moved the 'open' sign to 'closed'.
"I'm heading out for a bit," he said, "so you two feel free to plan whatever it is women plan for proposals." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, wrapped package. "A present for tonight." He said, unwrapping a necklace and putting it over Camilla's head. It was an amulet of Mara, a symbol that Camilla was looking for marriage, a tradition in skyrim.
"Can't expect him to ask you anything without one of those." With that he headed out the door quickly, a tale tell red coloring the tops of his ears as he fled.
Camilla smiled, a little surprised, as the door closed.
"Who'd have thought that that silly brother of mine could be so sweet."
...
Anise left Camilla as the sun began to set. They'd spent the entire afternoon preparing Camilla's hair, mending her best dress so that it looked perfect, and choosing what flower she should use to scent herself for the evening. They'd chosen a blue dress to match her amulet of Mara, and lavender to scent herself with. They hugged as Anise left, and Camilla promised to tell her everything the next day.
Anise made her way towards home, imagining Camilla on her wedding day, wondering what gift she should give the two of them, and what her children with Faendal might look like, should they have any.
A wedding is just what we need. Anise thought, something bright in these dark times.
Bandits, dragons, and civil wars. Anise knew that these were indeed times of strife.
And yet, she thought, I look around me and I see children playing in the streets, people living comfortably in their homes, birds and animals and plants alive in the forest. Whatever darkness has touched upon Skyrim, it feels as though Riverwood has been left behind it.
And it truly did, with the setting sun casting a warm and gentle orange glow over the hillside. The evening bugs had begun to stir, torchbugs lighting up the flowers they rested upon and crickets playing their tune.
Beneath the peace though, Anise felt a tension within her. There was still an angry hagraven out there somewhere, sending thugs and assassins after her. Even if bandits and war and maybe even dragons kept far away from Riverwood, the hagraven wouldn't.
...