Chapter Three:

Riverwood and the Barrow

Hadvar met us on the road and we continued on to Riverwood, only meeting two wolves and a bandit. After the Dragon, I didn't really mind the gnashing jaws of wolves as I killed them with my bow and arrows. And the bandit was a vacation.

When we passed the gate into Riverwood, Hadvar slowed to a walk and seemed to be taking-in the small village. At the second house I saw, a man with long brown hair and a beard was working the forge tirelessly.

"A Dragon!" a woman cried suddenly, sending me immediately on edge. "I saw a Dragon!"

A man beside her sighed. "What is it now, mother? Another of your wild tales?"

"Not wild! I saw a Dragon flying in the sky earlier this morning."

The man shook his head. "Not now, mother. Just go back to your chair."

The mother glared at her son. "You'll see! It was a Dragon! It'll kill us all and then you'll believe me!"

He shook his head and moved on. Milos shook me by my shoulder gently to get me following Hadvar again, who was already speaking to his uncle. The blacksmith saw us and seemed to be sizing us up.

"Come in," he said finally. "I'll get Sigrid to fix you something to eat."

The inside of Hadvar's uncle's house was small, but quaint. There wasn't enough room for everyone to sit at the table, so Milos, Hadvar and I sat at the table while Hadvar's uncle and aunt, Sigrid, stood up. Their daughter hopped onto a bed and sat, staring at us, but mostly Milos. I didn't blame her.

"Hadvar!" Sigrid exclaimed, putting a hand on her nephew. "We've been so worried about you! Come, you three must be hungry. Sit down and I'll get you something to eat."

"Thank-you, aunt Sigrid, uncle Alvor." Hadvar bowed his head. "Thank-you for taking us in."

Alvor's lips pursed. "Now then, boy, what's the big mystery? What are you doing here, looking like you lost an argument with a cave bear?"

"I-I don't know where to start," Hadvar admitted honestly. "You know I was assigned to General Tullius's guard. We were stopping in Helgen when we were attacked... by a Dragon."

Alvor's eyes widened. "A Dragon?" he repeated in disbelief. "That's... ridiculous! You aren't drunk, are you boy?"

Sigrid, who, at the mention of Dragons, nearly let go of the pot she was carrying, composed herself. "Husband! Let him tell his story."

"Not much more to tell," Hadvar said. "This Dragon flew over and just wrecked the whole place. Mass confusion. I don't know if anyone else got out alive. I doubt I'd have made it out myself if not for my friends here." Hadvar paused a moment, and then seemed to come to a decision. "I need to get back to Solitude and let them know what's happened. I thought you could help us out. Food, supplies, a place to stay."

"Of course!" Alvor looked at Milos and I sincerely. "Any friends of Hadvar's are friends of mine. I'm glad to help however I can. But... I need your help. We need your help. The Jarl needs to know if there's a Dragon on the loose. Riverwood is defenseless... We need to get word to Jarl Balgruuf in Whiterun to send whatever soldiers he can. If you'll do that for me, I'll be in your debt."

Milos nodded. "Of course. We'll let him know as soon as we can. How do we get to Whiterun from here?"

"Cross the river and then head north," Alvor replied. "You'll see it, just past the falls."

"Thank-you," Milos said. He and I started to get up, but immediately sat back down when Sigrid announced that dinner was ready.

Ah, Milos hasn't changed, I remarked. It doesn't matter how much he eats; somehow, there's always room for more. I remembered when Milos was a tiny little Argonian, and how he used to look at people with his huge eyes in order to get food from them. He was cute then, but now he was downright intimidating. He had muscles where I didn't think muscles had even existed.

Sigrid had cooked some venison and rabbit in a stew with carrots, put some bread on the table, and put a bottle of Honningbrew Mead on the table. I knew some people from Bruma who'd come to Anvil who particularly liked the stuff, but I'd never been old enough to try it.

Milos didn't seem familiar with it either and eyed it warily, but his attention was divided between it and his stew. The stew won. I reached for the bottle and examined it. Hadvar and Alvor, in turn, were examining me.

"Never tried it?" Hadvar asked.

I shook my head. "I've never been old enough to."

"How old are you?"

"Twenty."

Hadvar's eyebrows rose, as if he was surprised. I frowned. I look twenty! ... Don't I look twenty?

"And you, Argonian?" Hadvar asked.

Milos frowned. "It's not 'Argonian'. It's Hides-His-Heart, but call me Milos."

"Why Milos?"

He shrugged and jabbed a thumb in my direction. "She gave it to me. Ask her."

Hadvar, Alvor and even Milos looked at me expectantly. I sighed and put the bottle down. "I'm not telling."

"And that's what she's told me every time I've ever asked," Milos informed the two Nords.

Hadvar shook his head with a smile. He was close to laughter. "Well, back on topic, how old are you, Milos?"

"Three."

In unison, Alvor and Hadvar blinked.

"I was joking," Milos grumbled, and then looked at me. "They know I'm joking, right?"

"Milos is twenty," I said, shaking my head. "We grew up together."

Sigrid smiled. "Where, exactly?"

What is this, twenty questions? By the Nine... "Anvil."

"So, both of you are from Cyrodiil then?" Hadvar inquired. "I thought Milos said he was from Black Marsh when we..." Hadvar cleared his throat, suddenly aware that we were prisoners in his home. Escaped prisoners. "Well, earlier."

"I came from Black Marsh originally," Milos clarified. "I was sold into slavery and brought to Anvil. The slavers realized that I was nothing but trouble and were going to slit my throat when Taryn leapt on one's back and started beating him in the head. Mind you, we were seven at the time. When he finally got her off of him, she thrust some money in his hand and took me away."

"And this idiot thought I'd bought him as my own personal slave," I added.

Milos shrugged. "I thought you came from a rich family. Imagine my surprise when you walked into the orphanage. Plus, I figured out you weren't just a volunteer when the old crone who watched over the kids started to beat you for giving away the money she'd given you for one of her many debts."

"Hey, it was a good investment!"

Hadvar shook his head and stood up. "Well, thank-you, but I must be off. Solitude and General Tullius await."

Alvor, Sigrid and their daughter held Hadvar close before he departed through the door. Their daughter came over to me then and smiled.

"Pleased to meet you," she said, "I'm Dorthe."

"Taryn," I replied. "And yes, Sigrid, thank-you for the meal. We should be off to Whiterun."

"Make sure you stop by the general store, just-in-case you're carrying too much or too little," Alvor said.

I nodded. "We will. Thank-you all."

Milos and I left the home in time to see Hadvar crossing the bridge out of Riverwood. He didn't see us though, so I decided not to wave like an idiot.

"The general store's right across from here," Milos said, crossing the road in broad strides.

I followed after him and entered quietly, but it seemed that we walked right into the middle of a discussion.

"Well, one of us has to do something!" a woman stormed.

"I said no!" a man retorted with equal stubbornness. "No adventures, no theatrics, no thief-chasing!"

"Well what are you going to do then, huh? Let's hear it!"

The man slammed his hand against the a counter he was behind. "We are done talking about this!" The man looked over to us and immediately turned red. Not in an angry way, but he looked sheepish. "Oh, customers! Sorry you had to hear that. I, uh, don't know what you overheard, but the Riverwood Trader is still open. Feel free to shop."

The woman passed in front of us and sat in a chair by the fireplace, glaring daggers at her brother.

"Did something happen?" I asked, leaning against the counter.

He seemed hesitant to talk about it. "Well, yes. We did have a bit of a... break-in. But we still have plenty to sell. Robbers were only after one thing. An ornament, solid gold. In the shape of a Dragon's claw."

I looked at Milos, who rolled his eyes. I grinned. "We can help you get the claw back."

"You could?" the man exclaimed. "I've got some coin coming in from my last shipment. It's yours if you bring my claw back. Now, if you're going to get those thieves, you should head to Bleak Falls Barrow, northeast of town." He smiled mischievously. "Yes, so now you don't have to go, do you?"

The question was directed at the woman, who glared at him again. "Oh really? Well, I think your new helpers here need a guide."

"Wh—no... I... oh by the Eight, fine! But only to the edge of town!"

She got up and exited the shop, not even casting a glance at the man at the counter. Milos sighed and followed her out, and I followed him.

"We have to go through town and across the bridge to get to Bleak Falls Barrow," she informed us. "You can see it from here, though. The mountain just over the buildings."

I looked up to where she was pointing. The Barrow looked menacing and... broody. Like it was just daring someone to come and explore it.

She started walking, lost in her own thoughts. "Those thieves must be mad, hiding out there. Those old crypts are filled with nothing but traps, trolls, and who knows what else! I wonder why they only stole Lucan's golden claw. I mean, we have plenty of things in the shop that are worth just as much coin. Lucan found the claw about a year after he opened the store. He never quite explained where he got it. He's a tricky one."

I stubbed my toe on a jutting stone and nearly tripped into her, but managed to stop myself before she turned around to face us. Milos was hiding his smile with his hand as well as he could.

"This is the bridge out of town," she continued, oblivious of my most recent endeavor. "The path up the mountain to the northwest leads to Bleak Falls Barrow. I guess I should get back to my brother. He'll throw a fit if I take too long. Such a child..." She blinked. "Oh, I'm Camilla by the way. Camilla Valerius. My brother was the man inside the shop, named Lucan." She waved as she headed back into Riverwood. "Good luck."

Milos waved back sheepishly. He caught me looking at him. "What?"

"She was looking at you funny," I told him as I started on the bridge. "I think she likes you."

"You think?" Milos asked, taking another look at her. "Hm... Maybe you Imperials think I'm just that attractive."

"Twenty Septims that she asks if you're available when we come back with the claw."

He grinned. "You're on. Do you even have twenty Septims?"

"Not yet," I admitted, "though Nordic tombs are infamous for their treasures. I figure we could find something to sell to the Riverwood Trader."

We made it to the other side of the bridge. "Speaking of which," Milos said, "we didn't sell or buy anything while we were there."

I facepalmed. It had totally slipped my mind.