Authors Note: A short chapter this time, but an interesting one none the less, in my opinion.
Chapter Ten - Strangers in the Halls
The Northern Lights were out in full force, and that meant that Anna was wide awake, despite the late hour. She tried several methods to pass the time until the sky went to sleep - reading hadn't held her interest for more than a few pages, she couldn't think of anything to write about, and counting non-existent sheep was just boring. Finally, she threw on a robe and went wandering the halls, looking for something to do.
Her first stop was the kitchen, looking for chocolate. Unfortunately, the cooks all knew of the royal sisters' love of the treat, and had grown quite proficient at hiding it over the years, so Anna moved on feeling slightly disappointed. She decided that Joan might have thought of a new way to pass the time, and set off towards the gallery to talk to the painting, taking a shortcut through the servants wing she had discovered a few years ago. About halfway there, though, she stopped. Someone was picking the lock on a door, and seemed to have just finished, because he quietly opened the door and slipped inside.
On an impulse, Anna followed him, and almost immediately wished she hadn't. Bending over a sleeping servant was a figure Anna almost recognised, but couldn't, thanks to the poor lighting. The figure had opened his mouth to reveal a set of teeth that were longer and sharper than natural, and seemed about to bite the neck of the snoring servant, but suddenly stopped and looked directly at Anna. Before she could get a good look at his face, though, he simply vanished. Anna was suddenly shoved to the side by invisible arms, heard disembodied footsteps running down the hall, and gave chase. After a couple of minutes, she turned a corner and saw Hjadvaar strolling towards her, dressed in normal clothes rather than armor for once.
"Your Highness." he said, sounding surprised. "I didn't expect to run into you this late. What are you doing running about the castle at this hour?"
"The sky's awake." Anna said, stopping to catch her breath. "Did you hear anyone running? I saw someone look like they were about to bite someone, but they looked at me and just disappeared!"
"The only person I've seen or heard in the last quarter-hour is you, Your Highness, but I'll keep my eyes and ears open. Shall I escort you back to your bedchamber?"
"Please, Hjadvaar, call me Anna, and I'd actually been on my way to the gallery to talk to Joan."
"Shall I accompany you to the gallery, then, Princess Anna?"
"Okay! I'll introduce you to Joan." They started walking towards the gallery with Anna in the lead and Hjadvaar following not far behind. "So, why were you walking around the castle?" Anna asked to stave off silence.
"An old wound was acting up." the huge Nord replied, putting one hand to his neck. Anna looked at the area where his fingers had come to rest, and saw a scar in the shape of a bite mark which had previously escaped her notice.
"How did you get that?" she asked.
"A man believed he was a vampire and bit me. I disillusioned him later."
"That must have been painful." Anna said, shuddering at the thought.
"Not so painful as the time I-"
"No no no, that's okay, I don't need to know about your worst injuries."
"Of course, Princess Anna. My apologies." They continued in silence for a few moments.
"So, what was that thing where you threw people around and set people on fire by yelling at them?" Anna asked to ward off the awkward silence.
"That was a Thu'um, or a Shout in our tongue. It is the bending of reality with the Voice, as the Dovah do." Hjadvaar explained.
"Dovah?"
"Dragons, in our tongue. They refer to themselves as Dovah, or as Dov to refer to dragonkind."
"Dragons?" Anna asked, excitement creeping into her voice. "Real, actual dragons? Where are they? Can I see one? What do they look like? Do they speak our language?" Hjadvaar chuckled.
"You're just as bad as Farengar." he said. "I will tell you all about dragons later. For now, you seemed excited when I demonstrated Restoration magic. Would you care to receive instruction?" Anna was stunned. Her, learning magic? It seemed impossible. But, Hjadvaar had said it wasn't hard.
"Could I?" she asked, not daring to hope.
"I would not be able to educate you to the same degree as the professors at the College at Winterhold, but I can instruct you in the basics, though magic is not my specialty. We can begin after I'm done training the guards tomorrow. For now, we seem to have arrived at the gallery."