"Zireal," a voice called from the mist in the Elder Speech. "Zireal, you must listen to me. Seek the stone book, the history set in stone, the forgotten temple. The dragon shall lead you, and we shall return to the world of the Aen Seidhe."
Ciri woke up from her dream shivering. The voice that called out to her belonged to no other than Avallac'h, she was sure. She just didn't know what he meant by, 'the stone book'. He did mention a dragon, his obscure way of saying Brynjar. She got dressed and went downstairs to find breakfast waiting for her, but no Brynjar. She looked around for a moment to find him, before finding a note by a bowl:
"Come find me in the market."
Ciri discarded the letter and sat to eat breakfast. She felt a bit lonely without Brynjar making jokes or giving her looks. She quickly downed the cold breakfast and headed out the door.
The streets were buzzing early, people going about. Ciri passed by several merchants trying to haggle with her, before coming to a wine merchant.
"Morning, sir. You wouldn't have happened to see a man, with long black hair today?"
The toothless man grinned. He pointed to the stall across from him and sure enough, Brynjar was standing over a jewelry stall.
"Ciri! Morning. Sleep well last night?"
Ciri walked over to where he was. She noticed the jewelry was in cases and was obviously high quality. "Mhm, yes. What brings you here this early?"
"Well… I'm…placing an order," he answered. The jeweler showed him a very elaborate necklace with a dragonhead pendant on it and was encrusted in rubies. Brynjar's eyes widened and he motioned to the jeweler to put it away. "Right. Anyways, do you want to look around some? The Khajiit caravan's in town."
"I guess."
Brynjar smiled brightly. "Great!" Brynjar started forward, but noticed Ciri stayed behind. "Oh wait. What's weighing on you?"
"I need to get home, Bryn. I had a dream last night, Avallac'h spoke to me. He told me to 'seek the stone book' and that you could help me find it."
Brynjar frowned. "Stone book? Did he say anything else? There's a lot of things recorded on stone, I'm afraid."
"Something about a history set in stone and a forgotten temple," Ciri watched as his eyebrows went up in recognition. "That sound familiar?"
Brynjar nodded. "Yeah, now it does. I think he means Sky Haven Temple. There's a wall there that tells how three Nord heroes defeated Alduin."
"How far is it?"
"Maybe a day's ride south," Brynjar held Ciri's hands and looked in her eyes. "Ciri…are you really going to leave? I mean, I know you will, but maybe-,"
Ciri smiled sadly at him. "I must return Bryn. I need to defeat the Wild Hunt. Only Avallac'h can help me, maybe Geralt and Yen," She linked her arm in his. "So while I'm here, let's make the best of it."
Brynjar smiled again. "So…the Khajiit caravan, then?" The two walked arm-in-arm through the busy streets down to the very large Khajiit stall.
"Wares from Valenwood and Elswyr! Rare fruits and foods! Moon sugar so fine, Azura herself blessed it!" A Khajiit merchant shouted, gaining attention from passer-bys. Ciri spotted some strange looking fruit at one side of the stand.
"What's that? She pointed at a pink fleshy fruit.
The Khajiit smiled slyly. "That, my comrade, is the tigerfruit. It is sweeter than melons and softer than cotton, and juicier than a grape," He pulled out the knife and cut it in half. "Have a taste?"
Ciri took the fruit and handed the other half to Brynjar. At the same time, they bit into the fruit, and juices dribbled down their chins.
"Mmm," Ciri slurped. "That was fantastic! How many more do you have?"
"Several more crates, enough to last the rest of the day."
"We'll take a basket-full of them," Brynjar said. The Khajiit gave him a carrying basket full of the tigerfruit, all for 20 septims.
"But wait, there's more!" The Khajiit merchant motioned for them to follow and led them to a stall covered in deep brown, sweet smelling bars. "This," He offered a piece to Ciri and Bryn. "This is chocolate. It is sweeter than honey and melts in your mouth, a beautiful melody of sweetness. Try it."
Ciri took a bite of the chocolate as Brynjar watched. She liked it so much that she swiped Brynjar's piece and devoured it.
"Hey!" He protested.
The Khajiit smiled. "It is marvelous, isn't it? Here, try more." The merchant let the two try several other chocolates, some which he called truffles: dark, bitter chocolate with fruit inside, light chocolate with creamy caramel. So many that Brynjar ended up buying 4 boxes of chocolate.
Ciri and Brynjar continued exploring the market, haggling prices, trying exotic foods. They bought a bottle of wine and some furs from Valenwood, banana beer from Elsweyr, silks and scents from Hammerfell, and more wine, distilled from moon sugar. They both ate so much, their stomachs were near bursting. Ciri bought a special gown, which she refused to show Brynjar. By the time the sun began to set, the streets died down and the two returned to Proudspire.
Brynjar poured some of the moon sugar wine for the two of them. He sat across from her on his bed, while Ciri sat cross-legged on the other end.
"Enjoy yourself?" He handed her the glass.
Ciri smiled tiredly and sipped the wine. It gave her a slight tingle down her throat and she felt a weird intoxication already. "I did. I had no idea I could eat so much."
Brynjar smiled. "I know. One day I hope to travel to Valenwood and Elsweyr, travel to distant deserts and jungles. And I hope…that you'll come with me when I do."
Ciri finished the glass swiftly. "You know I won't be here forever, I simply can't. But I hope that won't get you too down in the dumps, because I have a surprise for you." Ciri ran up the stairs and Brynjar heard a door slam.
Brynjar smiled, guessing what might be in store for him. He quickly finished his wine and threw off his shirt. He sprinted up the stairs and waited by the shut door, already slightly hard. The door swung open to reveal Ciri clad in a golden see-through nightgown. She motioned for him to come closer.
"I figured, might as well go all out." Ciri kissed Brynjar deeply, loosening his pants. They fell together on the bed and only thought about each other for the rest of the night.