A/N: Again, wasn't expecting to update this soon, but I managed to finish another chapter, so I'm still at the rate I want to be and therefore, you guys get another chapter to read. So...notes for this one...umm...well, for those of you who aren't familiar with the A Song of Ice and Fire universe, the age of womanhood is considerably younger than it is for us today. Therefore, it would not be weird for a girl in her early to mid teens to be in a sexual relationship. Well, not like it's not happening these days, but it's not frowned upon in their time period. And then, for those of you who aren't familiar with Skyrim, there will be some things that will be unclear, but I promise that they'll be explained later on. Enjoy! Many thanks to my beta reader (and sister) GrowlingPeanut.
Disclaimer: Not mine. Everything is Bethesda's and GRRM's except for Jed. He's based off of my first PC in Skyrim.
Rating: M for language and sexual references.
"Arya!"
Taking her focus off of her training partner for a moment, Arya Stark glanced up to see the recently appointed Harbinger of the Companions standing beside one of the long tables under the balcony by the training yard. Her two second break in concentration earned her Vilkas' sword at her throat and she glared at him out of the corner of her eye.
"Vilkas, let her go. I need to speak with her."
The older of the two resident twins slid his sword back into the belt at his hips and gave the young Nord an amused look. "What did you do this time?"
"Nothing," Arya grumbled, replacing her own weapon and rubbing the spot of blood off her neck. "And I'll get you back for that."
"I'd like to see you try."
Before she could respond, she heard the Harbinger call to her again and she threw one last nasty look in Vilkas' direction before walking over to the leader of the Companions.
Kodlak's replacement was a young, stern Imperial known only as Jed. The general consensus was that his lack of a house name was somehow related to a former run-in with the law. Aela had yet to report her findings on the matter.
After Jed's promotion—once he'd 'cured' himself of his lycanthropy and taken Aela as his wife— Arya had claimed his former spot in The Circle. The feisty huntress he'd married became pregnant suspiciously fast, but still refused to cure herself despite her husband's urging. About a week later, Farkas had chosen to follow the path of their Harbinger in order to protect his own new bride from that aspect of his now former life. Vilkas highly recommended that his twin rethink the decision, but Farkas was stubborn, adamant, and in love. With The Circle short two members, Vilkas and Aela turned to Arya Stark, a promising new recruit who was soon added to their dwindling number, receiving the coveted spot and all its added benefits.
"Yes, Jed?"
"I need you to go get a shipment of weapons from the Skyforge. Give them to Vilkas when you get back; or Farkas if you find him first." Arya was one of the few people who could easily tell the twins apart, so she knew she'd have no trouble finding the elder upon her return.
She frowned and was about to retort when Jed lifted a hand and gave her a disapproving look. "I know that you're a part of The Circle now, but you're still a young recruit. It does fall to you to do the errands on occasion, whether you like it or no."
"Does the little she-wolf need a lesson in respecting her elders?" Vilkas stalked up and sent a barely perceptible smirk in her direction. "I can punish her as need be." Even though most of the Companions knew about them, Arya thanked the gods that that sounded like something he would say to any young recruit.
A bright blush crept up Arya's neck and she glowered at the Nord, earning a toothy grin in return.
Jed's deep green eyes flicked between them and a glint of what might have been amusement shone in his gaze. "No, Vilkas, that won't be necessary. She needs only to pick up our latest weapon shipment. You know what to do with them when she returns."
The younger man nodded and turned back to Arya when their leader had left.
"Weapons?"
"I'm part of The Circle now, and he's still treating me like new blood!"
"That's because he doesn't know you as well as I do..." Vilkas glanced toward the street beyond Jorrvaskr before pulling her to him and nuzzling his face against her hair. "Just do as he asks so you can be back in time to hunt. The moons are nearly full tonight."
Arya nodded against his chest and fingered the wolf's head on his armor, smiling up at him, her barely sharpened teeth peeking out from beneath thin lips. "And it's been too long."
Vilkas nodded in agreement and gave her a grin that showed off his impressive fangs. "Aye. Now go on. I'll be right here when you get back."
Pulling away, Arya turned and made her way up the steps to the Skyforge, her mind on anything but skyforge steel. When she and Vilkas had first met, he and his twin had both agreed that being moons-born was a curse, but between the time that they had started a relationship beyond that of merely comrades and when Jed discovered the cure for their lycanthropy, she had managed to change his mind. It certainly made their interactions more interesting.
She could hear the sound of the forge before she spotted its master, so she called out in his general direction to announce her presence. "Eorlund! It's Arya Stark, for the weapons you apparently promised to Jorrvaskr."
When she reached the top of the stairs, she was surprised to see that the aging Nord blacksmith had been replaced by a young Imperial who appeared to be a few years her senior. He was tall, with broad shoulders, shaggy black hair and bright blue eyes.
"Oh..."
The man looked up and smiled charmingly. "Arya Stark I presume? Here for the weapons that Eorlund apparently promised to Jorrvaskr?"
Arya nodded mutely. He looked like Vilkas might have in his youth, when he was still fully human and had yet to be sculpted by his years in the Jorrvaskr training yard. The thought was...distracting.
"I'm Gendry Waters, Eorlund's new apprentice." His smile was friendly and he wiped the sweat from his brow with the sleeve of his tunic. "I guess you're one of the Companions then? I've only ever met Athis before. I'm glad to see they sent someone a little more friendly this time."
The mention of a name she recognized brought Arya out of her reverie and she could feel a flush rising to her cheeks. "Yes. He does take some getting used to."
They stood for a moment in silence as Gendry appraised his company and Arya cleared her throat when she began to feel uncomfortable.
"You have some weapons for me?"
The blacksmith nodded and gestured toward a pile of steel sitting on the edge of the forge. "It's all right there."
Vilkas won't like this new apprentice, Arya thought to herself as she went to pick up the assorted items. They fit a bit awkwardly in her thin arms and she turned back around with some effort, dropping a sword on her way toward the stone steps and cursing under her breath.
She could hear Gendry Waters laughing behind her and he moved forward to retrieve the fallen blade, taking a few others from her arms to lighten the load. "Let me help you."
"I can get—"
"Don't be daft. I'll get a few and that'll save you a trip or two up and down these steps."
Arya gave him a defiant look then mumbled her thanks when she realized there was no viable reason to refuse his help. They made their way carefully back down to the Companion guild hall and just as he'd said, Vilkas was waiting right where she'd left him when they entered the training yard. The Nord stared suspiciously at the apprentice blacksmith through narrowed eyes and got an equally distrustful look in return.
"Who are you?"
"Gendry Waters. Apprentice to Eorlund. And you?"
"Vilkas."
Arya didn't like the reaction they were having to one another so she let the weapons in her arms clatter to the ground as she took the ones Gendry had and gave him a dismissive smile.
"Thank you for your help."
The Imperial looked back at her and nodded. "Of course. I suppose I'll see you around, then?"
Smiling thinly, Arya nodded and placed the tips of her fingers against Vilkas' arm as a silent warning. "I suppose so."
Even after the younger man had disappeared from view, Vilkas continued to glare up toward the Skyforge and Arya sighed, turning his head in her direction.
"He's gone now."
Her fellow Companion huffed and turned to face her, trailing one of his nails lightly down her arm. "I don't like him."
You just don't like the way he looks at me. "I can't imagine why. All he did was help me get those down the steps."
"He's an Imperial. For all we know, he could be a spy for the Empire."
Arya couldn't help laughing quietly as she put her arms around his waist. "You're too distrustful for your own good. And besides, the Companions have made sure to stay out of the Civil War, so it wouldn't make a difference even if he was."
"Aye, but did you tell him your name?"
She nodded.
"So he knows that they're led by your brother. Stark is not a well-liked name in this city. You're with the Stormcloaks through association even if you're not in their army or fighting their battles."
Arya scowled. "I'm not with the Stormcloaks. Or with the Starks. Robb may be second in command to the namesake of their cause and the killer of the king, but..." She realized that she wasn't helping her own case and sighed. "...that doesn't concern me."
Vilkas frowned. "Be that as it may, you're still the Young Wolf's sister. Be careful; that's all I'm asking."
Aye, his youngest sister. And what's happened to the eldest? Knowing Sansa she's probably been married off to some lord or knight and is raising their children as we speak, happily oblivious under Lannister captivity. "Alright." She looked up toward the darkening sky and smiled at the sight of the rising moons. "But for now, to Oblivion with caution."
Following her gaze, Vilkas couldn't help but grin and he pulled away from her. "Go make sure Jed knows you've done as he asked while I put these away. I'll meet you in our usual spot. And make sure the guards don't see you." Aela had been seen the last time she'd hunted, and her husband was none too happy to hear that she'd killed the witness to keep him silent.
Arya nodded again and opened the door to Jorrvaskr, smiling when she was greeted by the warmth of the fires and friendly cries of welcome from the people seated at the long tables for their supper.
"Somebody get some mead for the little she-wolf!" Athis called out toward the serving women, tossing an empty tankard in her direction. Vilkas' affectionate nickname for her had quickly caught on, and now it was almost as commonly used as her given name.
Smiling wider, she caught the mug and walked over, accepting a drink which she downed before slamming the tankard in front of the Dunmer. "Sorry Athis, but I can't stay. I have places to be tonight. Things to do."
Smirking, he replied in a low but far from conspiratorial whisper. "Things to do? Send Vilkas our regards."
Arya grinned and snagged a piece of cheese from Athis' plate. "I'm sure I don't know what you mean."
"I'm sure..." Jed repeated incredulously, looking up at the young Nord from where he was seated between Aela and Athis. "Is it done?"
Nodding, Arya took a drink of Farkas' ale and handed it back with a smile. "Delivered and given to Vilkas, yes."
"Then go on. Enjoy yourself, but be careful."
"The night is dark and full of terrors," Ria warned ominously.
Arya laughed and stalked toward the exit. "Aye. And I'm one of them."
Making her way through the nearly empty streets of Whiterun, Arya lifted her head and took a deep breath. The evening air was crisp and cool and the scent of pine carried on the breeze along with the lure of the night's hunt. She could almost taste the salty, metallic flavor of blood on her tongue as she inhaled. When she reached the hollowed out rock that she'd discovered a few weeks prior, she stripped off her armor and the clothing beneath, looking down at her body for a moment in disappointed contemplation.
A scrawny girl of fifteen years, Arya was graced with none of her older sister Sansa's beauty or poise, instead receiving their father's long somber face and their brothers' love of fighting. She had thin brown hair that was cut short, light grey eyes and limbs that were long and bony, jutting out at awkward angles. She'd inherited the Stark look as opposed to that of the Tullies as her four other siblings had. The only other one who looked somewhat like her father was her bastard brother Jon Snow, and even he had turned out far more handsome than she was beautiful.
The only thing that she and Sansa had in common was their long, slender fingers, but while Sansa used hers for embroidery and the lute, Arya's wrapped easily about the pommel of her sword.
Much like Aela, Arya loved the power she had outside of her human form and something about the adrenaline that raced through her veins during the hunt made her feel more alive than she ever had before.
Quieting her thoughts, she let her beast-blood take over, sending a long howl up to the moons before loping off into the forest. The earth churned beneath her claws as she ran and the wind ruffled her fur, whistling through the trees around her as she returned the call of some of her wild brothers. A deer she'd caught the scent of darted out from between the trees and she lowered down to all fours, sprinting after her prey as it fled in a blind panic. She was just preparing to leap when Vilkas came snarling out of the tree line and took it down, claws glinting in the moonlight as they tore through flesh and bone.
Arya narrowed her grey eyes and knocked him away from the corpse, swiping at his shoulder when he growled. She found herself on her back beneath him and she spat, snarling angrily as he effortlessly pinned her to the forest floor. The look of amusement in his pale blue eyes made her double her efforts and she sent him tumbling down, biting at his throat and nipping playfully at one of his ears. He managed to get back to his feet and swatted her on the head, lumbering over to their meal and ripping a bloody chunk of meat off its haunch. Prowling over to join him, Arya ate eagerly, tearing off strips of flesh and gnawing at the bones once the majority of the deer had been eaten.
Since the feeding of animals did nothing to prolong the duration of a transformation, Arya could feel her human mind slipping back in and she started off toward their destination before she ended up naked and unarmed in the middle of the forest.
She could hear Vilkas following behind and by the time her own footsteps grew soft and her now bare feet padded across the wet ground, she heard the same from her companion. Vilkas remained strangely quiet as they walked, and when they reached the cave that they'd claimed as their meeting place, the silence continued.
Stepping into the warm darkness of the cavern, Arya pushed Vilkas against the wall and tangled her fingers in his hair, pulling his head down to meet her lips. The kiss she got in return was lacking its usual passion and when she pulled away, her lover looked troubled.
"Vilkas...what is it?"
He sighed and furrowed his brow, putting one hand on her hip and running his thumb absentmindedly along her stomach. "Eorlund's new apprentice...the Imperial, Waters."
When he hesitated, Arya smiled teasingly and pressed up against him, kissing his jaw. "You're just jealous." One eyebrow rose and she could feel his heartbeat quicken against her bare chest, but he made no move to reciprocate her advances.
"Arry, listen to me. Before I met up with you, I ran into him, with a group of hunters. Or...so I thought, before one drew his sword."
Arya's sharpened canines sank into his bottom lip and she slid her hands slowly down his torso. "And...? Was he there to fight you in order to win my affection?" Her voice lowered to a whisper and she kissed him again, a smile playing across her lips. "Because you know that I'm yours..."
Vilkas met her gaze and stopped the path of her hands before they reached their target. "No. It's worse than that. Arya, he's part of the Silver Hand."