Be warned! There's a bit of a love scene...

Forever Bound

"It was Mara that first gave birth to all of creation and pledged to watch over us as her children," the priest, Maramal said. "It is from her love of us that we first learned to love one another. It is from this love that we learn that a life lived alone is no life at all."

Farkas couldn't keep his eyes off of his bride. She couldn't be real; this had to be a dream. Eleni looked up at him with her sparkling sapphire eyes. She felt her heart swelling with joy.

"We gather here today, under Mara's loving gaze, to bear witness to the union of two souls in eternal companionship."

The rest of the Companions sat in the pews, watching the ceremony. Vilkas and Sahana sat up front, their fingers laced between them. As much as she tried to enjoy the ceremony, she couldn't stop herself from looking over at Vilkas. Whenever she would glance up at him through her dark lashes, he would get this small, knowing smile that she wanted to kiss right off of his face.

"May they journey forth together in this life and the next, in prosperity and poverty, and in joy and hardship. Do you agree to be bound together, in love, now and forever?" Maramal's eyes fell on Farkas.

"I do," he said, a smile cracking the marble that was his face. "Now and forever."

Maramal turned his head to look at Eleni, "Do you agree to be bound together, in love, now and forever?"

"I do. Now and forever." She was so giddy that it looked as if she were bouncing up and down. It was strange to see while she was wearing such an elaborate gown.

With a smile, Maramal said, "Under the authority of Mara, the Divine of Love, I declare this couple to be wed! I present the two of you with these matching rings, blessed by Mara's divine grace. May they protect each of you in your new life together."

Farkas and Eleni turned, hand in hand, to face their family. Eleni flushed when they actually roared with happiness. The shy little bride looked up at Farkas and laughed. "I love you, you know? I always will."

Farkas wrapped an arm around her shoulders, bringing her closer to him. He leaned down and whispered, "Would it be rude to leave now?" His grin was wolfish. "I want you to myself."

She turned her head and placed a sweet kiss on his cheek. "We have the rest of our lives," she murmured into his ear.

"That we do…"

With the ceremony now complete, Farkas and Eleni were approached and congratulated. Some of the guests started leaving for home afterwards, needing to get back to business. Farkas and Eleni understood; they would be heading back to Jorrvaskr in the morn. For now, they'd be staying at the Bee and Barb to celebrate in their own way.

Vilkas and Sahana walked around Riften, not quite ready to start the journey back to Jorrvaskr. Vilkas kept pace with her, keeping an eye out for trouble – Riften could be a pretty dangerous place. Sahana wandered aimlessly, occasionally bumping into him. She claimed that it was an accident, but that little smile that she got each time she did it told him otherwise.

"How do you feel?" he asked her. She only glanced in his direction – a look of warning. She was no fool, so she knew what he was getting at.

"Physically, I am well," she told him. "I'm better than that, really. I can relax, my teeth do not ache…" She sighed heavily, but then offered him a small smile. "You want to know what the best part about it all is, though?"

"What's that?"

"The sleep." Her smile broadened. Vilkas returned her smile, nodding in agreement. "I cannot recall any dreams that I had when I had my wolf, at least not ones that were not filled with the smell of blood and the sound of death." Her lashes lowered to veil her true expression, that ghost of a smile still there. "My dreams are pleasant enough now," she mumbled.

"Are they? What do you dream about?"

She looked up at him and then quickly averted her gaze. She hesitated only a little before admitting, "You, mostly." He didn't look surprised, just smiled with all of his male smugness. Sahana rolled her eyes, punching his arm lightly. "For all you know, I could be dreaming about strangling you to death!"

"That's not what the look on your face told me," he said, smirking.

"Do you want to die? I'll rend you!"

"If that's what gets you all hot and bothered, go right on ahead. It's a little sadistic, though, don't you think?"

Her expression was priceless. "I cannot believe you would go there."

"I go wherever I want," he told her.

"You're an idiot," she said laughingly. She didn't fight him when he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into his side. She leaned into him, hugging his waist.

He loved this side of her. She was playful and affectionate. She seemed like a new person. He wondered briefly if he seemed different to her. With their wolves gone, there was nothing there to hide who they truly were. It was as if they'd been sleeping for too long and were only just now waking up.

Vilkas's hold on her tightened and she looked up to meet his gaze. "Are you all right?" she asked him. He nodded in response. "I'm glad," she murmured, rubbing her head against his chest like a cat would. "I like walking with you like this." It was true. She loved how they took steps in sync, his closeness and especially his scent.

Sahana was working her magic on him as she always did. His chest tightened painfully and he felt hot. He didn't realize he was smiling until she was staring at his lips.

"You want to kiss me?" she wondered aloud.

"That's a stupid question," he mumbled, leaning close to touch his lips to hers.

Sahana sat at her desk a week later, staring at some letters that she'd received from desperate farmers and wary travelers. A knock on the door brought her out of her thoughts. She looked over to see Vilkas standing beside Farkas and Eleni. With a snort, Sahana rose from her chair. "I feel like the two of you haven't come out of your bedroom for a sennight."

Eleni went a few different shades of red while Farkas just shrugged his massive shoulders, saying, "That might be true, but we're ready to get back to work." Eleni nodded in agreement.

"Married life must be really great if it can make you forget about the world for so long," Sahana said, smiling.

Farkas returned that smile. "It is pretty great. You should try it." Sahana lost her smile and Vilkas pinned his brother with a fierce glare.

Sahana sniffed and looked at her papers. "Well, if you're really ready to get back into the swing of things, I've got something that needs your full attention."

"What's that?"

"An angry sabre cat," she said with a wicked grin.

"This couldn't possibly be pay-back for what I just said, right?"

"Couldn't possibly be!" Sahana's smile broadened. She stood up, looking over the information she'd jotted down. "Here are the details. Mind yourselves! Try not to die!"

"You're really evil, you know that?" Farkas looked at Eleni, "Let's get going."

Eleni nodded, waved goodbye and followed Farkas down the hall. Sahana turned and went back to her desk, arranging papers and stacking others that needed to be disposed of. The door closed and she listened as Vilkas approached her.

"You gave him shit for it, but…it wasn't too bad of an idea."

Sahana whirled around. "What?"

Vilkas smiled, wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close. Her hips cradled his perfectly. "Honestly, can you see yourself with anyone else? I mean, I'm pretty amazing, aren't I?"

"Oh, here it comes…" Sahana rolled her eyes.

Vilkas laughed and leaned down to nuzzle the side of her neck. "I'm offended. You're not taking me seriously at all."

"It's hard to when you're saying such obnoxious things." She tilted her head a little to give him more room. He was driving her mad with his ticklish kisses. "If you're done fooling around, I have work to do."

"Work can wait," he murmured against her skin. "And I'm not fooling around. I can't be with anyone but you now," he admitted quietly.

"Is that the truth?" she questioned as he started walking her to her bedroom.

"You know it is. You know you feel the same way about me."

"Do I?" She tried hard to keep from smiling even when he had her lying back on her bed, staring up into his intense eyes. "Okay, so I do," she acknowledged. "And that means we just jump right into it, then? Tie ourselves together irrevocably?"

She gasped when his fingers stroked the scars his wolf had left behind. "We were always tied together irrevocably – it just took me a while to realize it." Sahana let out a shaky breath and he told her, "I'll admit, what's between us, it scared me before. But now, I don't want to have to live without it."

"Neither do I." Sahana's eyes sparkled with unshed tears and she lowered her lashes to hide from him. He leaned down to place a kiss on her forehead, both of her cheeks, her chin… She wrapped her arms around his neck and simply hugged him. "I always missed you," she found herself saying. "When I was away, when you were away, when we were standing within each other's reach, but we – no, I – was too scared to do anything about it!"

"I put that fear in you, didn't I?" Her eyes widened and she shook her head frantically, messing her hair. "Don't protect me," he said with a small smile. "I know I troubled you – at least, now I know. I'll make it up to you, so you'll forgive me, right?"

Sahana turned her head to capture his lips with her own. She licked and nibbled on his lower lip before answering with, "There's nothing to forgive."

Vilkas was already pushing at her clothes, kissing her wherever he could. His hands wandered, groping, massaging and teasing. Sahana bit into her lip to keep from making any noises. When they joined, Vilkas laced their fingers and leaned down to capture her little endearing cries in his mouth.

He loved this side of her, too. She was gentle, shy, sweet and giving. This was a side of Sahana that only he was allowed to see. She was a gift, a treasure to be cherished until he died. He wanted to give her something, something more than just words. She deserved so much more.

He wanted to give her everything, he thought as he stared down at her. Her skin was flushed and bruised from his mouth. She was staring up at him with her big, brown eyes, desperate for relief. He'd give her that. He'd give her everything he was.

Sahana threw her head back, letting out a long moan as she shattered around him. Her body called to his, coaxing him until he finally went over that edge with her. He collapsed beside her, panting heavily. Sahana turned and nestled into him, reaching up to stroke his sweat-drenched hair and then run her fingers over the long, jagged scar that her beast had left him with.

When Vilkas could move again, he stood and grabbed a white cloth to soak in the basin near the bed. "What're you doing?" Sahana asked. She went to sit up, but he wouldn't allow it. "Vilkas?" He took the rag and ran it over her inner thighs, cooling her where he'd just made her so hot. The water trickled along her pale skin and he had this urge to lean down to lick it up.

He'd give her the world if he could. He'd give her the stars, even. But the only thing he had to offer was…himself, really. Could that ever be enough?

As if she knew his thoughts, she spoke, "You're unbearably moody and, as you said, oftentimes very difficult. You're kind of arrogant – don't even try to deny it. In short, you're a real pain in the arse." She sounded incredibly bored as she went on to say, "But you're my pain in the arse. I don't need some guy in a dress stealing from my coin purse just to tell me that I can live forever by your side. I was going to do that, anyway – even if you didn't want me there."

"I'll always want you there," Vilkas told her. "But if you insult me again, I'll have to take you over my knee to punish you…"

Sahana offered him a smile. "That doesn't sound too much like a punishment to me."

"Don't tempt me, woman."

Now she laughed. "You're the one tempting me!" she said jokingly.

Vilkas shook his head with a sigh. "You'll think about it, though?" he asked suddenly. "Maybe later? When we've got the coin to spare and you're ready?"

Sahana frowned. "It's really important to you, isn't it?" He didn't reply, just stared at her. "If you want it to be official, then we'll do it, of course." Now he was smiling. "I've never seen a man so eager and happy to throw away his gold… But then, I guess you're not like other men."

"No, I'm not. And you'd do well to remember that."

"Yes, sir!" she said with a little giggle. She pushed herself up so that she was standing toe-to-toe with her man. "Are you going to kiss me?"

"That's a stupid question." He kissed her, long and hard, branding her his with his fiery hot mouth. There was no Vilkas without Sahana, and no Sahana without Vilkas. They were connected, their very souls intertwined – making them one and the same. That was how it would be for an eternity because they were far too strong to allow anything to take that away from them.

Final chapter. STORY END! I didn't want it to end! I'm sad and happy at the same time! I want to thank all of the people who read this, those of you that followed this/me, and definitely those of you that left me reviews (they all made me smile. I was so very touched that you would take the time to do that for me!). I definitely plan on writing more Skyrim stories, so please, keep your eyes open for those! With much love, Odd