It was dark when I reached the trees that bordered Dragon Bridge. I saw no carriage, or any sign of Serana, and I laughed as well as I could in this form. Behind an outcropping of rocks, out of sight of any guards or soldiers, I shifted back. The bag dropped away from my smaller frame. Unlike the other times I had shifted back recently, there was no pain in this. It was much the same as sinking into a cool stream after a long and arduous fight.

When I was dressed appropriately, and my bag was modified back to something I could once again carry, I trotted back to the road and into Dragon Bridge. I got a few suspicious looks from guards, but that was to be expected. It wasn't every day you saw a Nord woman with a grin on her face walk into your town after dark. Frankly, if they hadn't been wary, I would have been concerned for their intellect.

I bought a room with strict instructions to have Serana directed there when she came in, as well as a pheasant roast and some mead. I ate and drank happily, unconcerned about intoxication. I could drink enough mead to kill a dozen Nords and suffer no ill-effects besides a belly-ache, because that was a lot to drink. When my meal was finished, I curled up on the floor with the wall at my back, sated and at peace.

"Enjoying the honeymoon?"

I slung my arm off of my eyes and stared blearily at the figure in front of the closed door. "Whazzat?"

My eyes focused to see Serana grinning widely at me. "The innkeeper wished us a happy marriage. What did you say to her?"

"That I married a vicious harpy that doesn't want me to get any rest," I muttered, hiding my head under my arm again.

I heard more than saw as she knelt by my head. A moment later, I felt a hand running through my hair. "Wasn't running supposed to improve your mood?" she asked, voice still full of mirth.

"Heh," I said, shifting my arm so I could see her. "It did. It gave me time to think, which was nice."

Her hand paused for a moment before continuing its motions. "What about?"

"The future," I said through a yawn. My eyes were still bleary, so I blinked a few times. "What I'll do after the Tyranny of the Sun is dealt with."

Her voice gentled as she asked, "What did you decide?"

I sat up to face her, pushing myself up with my arms to rest on my knees. "Well, I'll need to defeat Alduin." I nodded slowly. "That would need to be taken care of. After that, I don't know. I think... I'd see if you wanted me to stick around, after all this was done and over with." I hesitated, quickly trying to phrase what I was about say as tactfully as possible; something I always found difficult. "You mentioned earlier about me becoming a vampire for you."

Her response was immediate. "I shouldn't have-"

"No," I interrupted. "It was a fair question, and I meant what I said." I grinned teasingly. "If you're willing to put up with my pain-in-the-ass self for eternity, I'd be happy to stay with you."

The smile on her face was wistful, like she almost didn't believe it. "We'll see," was all she said, before moving to sit on the bed. "It's still daylight, but the sun will be setting in about seven hours. We should rest up while we can."

I fixed an expression of mock outrage on my face. "And I'm sleeping on the floor? You weren't even going to ask me?"

She looked up at the ceiling in exasperation. "Didn't you say last time that you were perfectly happy on the floor?"

"And now I'm not!" I said cheerfully. I stood and threw myself on the bed from the end, tucking myself against the wall. "There's plenty of room for both of us, and I'm sick of hard surfaces." I shut my eyes, feigning sleep.

I heard quiet laughter, and her hand settled in my hair again, and I fell back into a dreamless sleep.