Leola was quiet as she moved towards the door of Erith's room in the inn, biting her lip nervously. She held the amulet of Mara gently in the palm of one hand, her fingers curled shut around the beautiful pendant. Her blue eyes rested on the wooden door before her as she came to a stop, nervously lifting the other hand. She knocked against the door three times before taking a step back, wondering whether or not Erith would even answer.
There was a moment of silence, and Leola could feel her heart sinking. She was sure that Erith wouldn't come. The door suddenly opened, and she saw Erith standing across from her. The brunette's pretty face was streaked with tears and the skin around her eyes was reddened. Her lower lip was quivering and she looked wordlessly at Leola.
"Erith…" Leola said in a soft voice, unsure where to begin. She hung her head. She had hurt her best friend, and she knew it.
"Come in," Erith replied in an equally soft, shaky voice. She stepped aside and Leola moved quietly past her, turning as the brunette shut the door.
"Erith, I'm sorry," Leola whispered. She could feel tears welling up in her own eyes. It was as if her body just wanted the two of them to curl up and cry together – Erith's body seemed to feel the same way, as a couple tears fell from her pretty brown eyes.
"I know," Erith said in a soft voice. "It wasn't your fault, Leola."
"I shouldn't have listened to her though," Leola replied quickly. "I didn't mean what I said. I really didn't, Erith."
"I know," Erith said again. "She was controlling you. It just kind of hurt at the time – it's okay. It really is." There was a pause and Erith's brown eyes fell to Leola's hand grasping the necklace. "What do you have there?"
Leola blushed, holding up the amulet. "Aventus said I should bring this and give it to you to show how sorry I am," she replied.
A smirk crossed Erith's full lips and she reached out a hand. Leola handed over the amulet and watched quietly as Erith turned it over in her hands, feeling the beautiful turquoise gemstone beneath her fingertips and admiring the craftsmanship.
"This is an amulet of Mara," said Erith softly, looking up at Leola.
Leola nodded slightly, wondering why there was a smirk on Erith's lips.
"Leola, do you know what an amulet of Mara means?" she asked, and Leola shook her head.
"Yes – kind of - Aventus just said I should bring it. He had one with him because he carries it around in case he needs it to settle things with his girlfriend," Leola replied softly.
Erith took a small step closer to Leola, her smirk becoming a smile. "But Leola, an amulet of Mara means you want to be more than friends with someone."
Leola smiled a bit, her eyes falling to her feet, staring awkwardly downwards. There was a slight flutter in her heart at hearing what Erith said. Aventus was definitely clever, she had to give him that. "I…um…yes," she said softly, and she heard a giggle escape Erith's lips.
"So this is why you didn't protest when I said that you might want a Queen instead of a King?" she asked teasingly, and Leola lifted her gaze to look up at Erith, smiling a bit.
"Yes," Leola said sheepishly, gazing into the Breton's pretty brown eyes.
"Now, what will your father say about you being with someone who isn't a Nord?" Erith asked, taking another step closer and reaching down to gently take Leola's hand in hers.
"He'll just be glad you're not an elf," Leola answered, and Erith laughed even though Leola hadn't intended her words as humourous.
"There you go. Now, stop being all shy and sheepish about this. It doesn't change anything. We're still best friends." Erith leant forward and placed a soft kiss on Leola's cheek, and the blonde felt her cheeks heating up. "And more. But everything else is normal."
"Okay," Leola said, smiling.
Erith moved to sit on the bed, and Leola went and sat beside her. "And to be fair, you were right."
"About what?" asked Leola curiously.
"When you were under the Daedra's control… you said I shouldn't be keeping things from you…" Erith bit her lip slightly, setting the amulet of Mara down gently on the nightstand.
"You didn't want to talk about it," Leola said quickly. "You don't have to if you still don't want to."
"No, Leola," said Erith. "You deserve to know."
"No," Leola said quickly. "No, Erith, don't tell me until you're ready."
"I'm ready," said Erith, taking one of Leola's hands with both of hers.
Before another word could be said, however, the door burst open and Sond stepped in with a grin on his face. He suddenly stopped dead in his tracks, seeing the two.
"I – uh – should I come back later?" he asked. His face seemed unsure what to do – it clearly wanted to smile, but it was twitching slightly at smiling so gleefully around the two teary-eyed lovers.
"No, it's okay," Erith said softly. "What is it?"
"Runa had her baby!"
Leola and Erith looked at one another and grinned, both their eyes lighting up. A sensation of glee coursed through Leola and she jumped to her feet along with Erith. Both girls seemed to be feeling the same thing.
"What are you waiting for? Take us to her!" Erith exclaimed, and Sond laughed.
"I knew you two would be excited," he said, turning and leaving. The girls followed him quickly as he led them down the stairs. Aventus was waiting in the main room of the hall, and as he saw them scurrying past, he quickly hurried after.
"How did it go? Where are we going? What's happening?" he asked, lightly jogging along behind Sond and the girls, and both girls laughed.
"Runa had her baby!" Erith exclaimed with a grin.
"Oh!" Aventus said, grinning. "Alright, I'll come along for that!"
The group left the inn and Sond led them to a house nearby, nestled against the city wall. He headed up to the door and knocked, and a moment later, the door opened. A middle-aged Altmer woman with greenish skin and light brown hair appeared, smiling.
"Come in, come in," she said, stepping aside to let them enter.
"Leola, this is Niranye," said Erith quickly, and Leola smiled nervously, apprehensive about the presence of an elf.
"Hello," she said softly.
"It's lovely to meet you, Leola," said Niranye. Across the room, Leola saw Samuel and Runa sitting at a table. Runa had a blanketed bundle in her arms, and Leola grinned over at the other woman, who smiled back.
The group moved towards Runa, and Runa stood up, smiling. Samuel also stood, moving to put a proud arm around his wife's waist.
"This is Sillina," Runa said in a soft voice, gently pulling aside the blanket to reveal the baby's face. It was slightly pink and her eyes were shut, but she was beautiful nonetheless. Leola grinned at seeing the baby.
"She's beautiful, Runa," said Erith softly. "May I hold her?"
Runa nodded, carefully moving closer to Erith so as to pass off the baby without having to outstretch her arms too much. Erith cradled the infant close to her, grinning as the baby's dark eyes fluttered open and she cooed slightly.
"Congratulations, you two," Aventus said with a grin as he looked at the couple.
"Thank you," Samuel said. He glanced towards Leola. "Before you go, may I speak to you in private for a moment?"
"That's probably not a good idea," Erith said suddenly, and Leola looked curiously over at Erith.
"Why not?" she asked softly. Erith froze, looking towards Leola, and then towards Samuel. She bit her lip slightly, then looked back down at the baby, whose eyes were locked on her.
"I…okay, I'll wait for you outside though," Erith said. Leola looked curiously at the Breton for a moment before returning her gaze to Samuel, giving him a nod.
"Alright, we can talk before I go," she said, before returning her attention to fawning over the baby.