Brelyna POV

Despite Brelyna and Kayci having to sleep in different rooms for the night Resh seemed most anxious to leave. From the sounds of what had happened Resh got off pretty easy with the assault cases, and even got to humiliate Ulfric. Brelyna was confused as to why he would ever want to leave now, considering the accomplishments he had done in such a short time.

But then again he probably wanted to get Kayci sorted it immediately, he made it pretty obvious about that when he rushed into Kayci's room and slung her over his shoulder as soon as the first signs of sun appeared. Kayci didn't seem to like this morning wake up and yanked hard on his hair, although it didn't do much due to her condition's effects on her strength.

Brelyna could only imagine how hard the ordeal was on Resh, she may have been Kayci's lover, but Resh was her best friend, and had been for so many years the other Nord considered him like her only family. They were probably closer than she would ever be to her, the two of them acted like Elves in a sense, as if they had been friends for centuries. But Brelyna knew that wasn't possible as Nords had quite a short lifespan.

She was still sure Kayci loved her though, so despite her and Resh's family-like love Brelyna would always be hers romantically.

After a few moments of struggle Kayci relented her timid attempts of escape and let Resh carry her away, seemingly no longer caring about the indignation of Resh holding her up with one hand and dressing her with the other. Brelyna should have been annoyed at how he was manhandling her, but she sure as oblivion didn't want to do it, Kayci could get grouchy in the mornings. And when she was half asleep like she was now, her earlier thrashing at Resh's invasion could have been dangerous for the small Dunmer if she had done it.

Once ready Resh headed straight for the door, he wasn't particularly in the best of moods and it wasn't hard to notice, obviously something had happened with him and Ulfric which troubled him greatly.

Brelyna wasn't in the mood to ask about it, Kayci's actions the day before had also struck a nerve in her, whatever it was Kayci was lying about something yesterday, and Brelyna had a pretty good idea what it was, the context of her little breakdown was more than enough to make an educated guess. It was almost making her start to wonder if taking Kayci to the College was such a good idea after all, let alone inviting her to stay there.

But then again there wasn't really any other choice, it was the only place where she could be healed in time, Whiterun was good, but not good enough. Winterhold was the only place she could be saved.

Brelyna reckoned that if they were lucky Kayci would be able to walk around again by herself, although it was unlikely she would be able to fight like how she used to, the extensive nerve and flesh damage might be too much for even the best restoration wielders in Skyrim to fix. As for the eye and her skin there was no doubt that was going to remain how it was, Brelyna didn't mind though, she loved Kayci for her personality, not her looks, which still remained beautiful despite the burn marks.

Kayci POV

What Brelyna didn't know was that the skin damage was the least of Kayci's concerns, as soon as she got the chance the Tsaesci would just shed and all would be well when it came to her appearance. Kayci decided she wouldn't tell Brelyna about her race just yet, it would be too funny an opportunity to waste when she gets to see Brelyna again after her skin returns to normal.

It must've looked odd to the people of Windhelm to see the group run along, the man who caused a stir yesterday was striding through the city with what appeared to be a half burnt to death prostitute on his shoulders, followed shortly by a worried and embarrassed, due to Kayci's clothing, looking Dunmer.

And then the dishevelled Nord. Lydia seemed to have a very slight limp ever since having woken up with Resh this morning, no surprises how it got there… he was massive, so the chafing must've hurt, it was no wonder she moved awkwardly after her nights with him.

Not just her, but Kayci had to sympathise with him too, Resh was probably going easy on her, they were two completely different species and he was far stronger than her so if he went full on like he used to with herself he might accidentally snap Lydia in two. Kayci would have hated it if she had to restrain herself when fucking, it would really take the fun out of it.

Now she had woken up properly Kayci could fully grasp the situation, at first it had just seemed strange and she didn't really know what was happening, thus her first response was to thrash and pull Resh's hair. But now she actually knew what was going on she was slightly embarrassed about acting so rashly and hoped she didn't hurt him when he was trying to help.

Considering that she was shook up about accidentally tugging his hair Kayci's mind reeled when thinking about what it would be like telling him she was going to stay with Brelyna at the College. She couldn't imagine he would be overly pleased, and she knew that if she made him upset she would get even more upset in turn, and then probably cry, which wasn't something she needed Resh seeing as he would tease her for years about it.

Kayci had to put those thoughts to one side when she braced herself for when Resh put her down, she would have to have some serious talks with him about what he called gentle. She didn't appreciate being carried along like a ragdoll.

"To Winterhold College please, get there as fast as possible, I'll pay double if it's within today," Resh told the man, tossing him the pouch of coins Brelyna had left over from her shopping, which was all of it.

The man seemed more than eager to get the next some of money so whipped the horse in front of him into action to move as fast as possible. Unfortunately the added speed made the carriage bump a lot more, which wasn't very good for the injured woman, so Resh, yet again, had the job of holding her, this time so he could cushion the blow.

Resh POV

Fortunately for the group the carriage ride had been extremely fast considering how many of them there were. The driver really knew what he was doing and they were at the College by late night the same day they had got on.

Despite the speed of the journey, Resh still hadn't liked it, although it wasn't something he could really blame on the driver, who seemed to understand the rush. Kayci had spent the entire time shifting around and generally making things very uncomfortable for Resh. Everytime he had adjusted to the new position she would move again and subsequently jab another bony elbow into him.

In some ways he guessed it was revenge for dressing her like a child earlier, he couldn't bring that theory up though, Kayci was injured and would complain he wasn't being sensitive enough and accidently hurt her, and then Brelyna would get angry and set him on fire. So instead he just had to sit there and take it, acting content with the feeling of Kayci's arm lodged into his chest. Nice for her, not so much for him.

Resh hated to admit it, but there driver was actually a very pleasant man… for a mortal. He joined the conversations, keeping both friendly and professional, which must have been difficult, and was very sympathetic. So much so that he attempted to let them get off the cart for free, Resh almost had to force him to accept their money.

Once he had taken it Resh had wasted no time in hoisting Kayci over his shoulder and running to the College, almost with no regard for safety as he dashed along the smashed up bridge. Brelyna would've liked the nice sentiment were it not for Kayci being in danger too.

Needless to say the rush was necessary, Kayci hadn't attempted to scratch his back or hit him at all as she was carried along, which could only be a bad sign. It was clear she had gotten a lot weaker, and Brelyna was surprised, but extremely thankful, that she had survived even this long.

She had no time to worry about that though as she directed Resh to where the College's restoration teacher probably was, hoping that the woman would know what to do, and save the woman that probably should have been killed immediately by dragon fire.

2 hours later

The procedure had been lengthy, and tense to say the least, but Colette knew what she was doing, and despite the atmosphere of unease managed to do the job to the best of her abilities. It didn't help that she had both Brelyna and Resh peering over her shoulders the whole time she worked, but at least it meant some people at least were taking an interest in the very valid school of restoration.

Colette finally finished what she could do and the magic stopped flowing from her hands, the Dunmer, and the Nord man were both about to speak up but the Breton mage quickly silenced them, "I did the best I could. She has a load of permanent muscle damage, so fighting again is an unlikely prospect, and her skin and eye will be irrecoverable, but she'll live. I managed to stop any infection, blood loss and organ damage she had, which was a heck of a lot."

The two immediately sighed in relief after hearing that, although Resh seemed slightly less happy about the turnout than Brelyna did, "I should think so, a dragon torched though practically all of her with its breath, you could practically see the fire pass all the way through her it was so bad."

Colette recoiled, "This was from a dragon!? how did she survive this? I just assumed she got burnt by mages, but a dragon, this is incredible, she should be nothing but ash," the Breton noticed how Brelyna flinched at her words, so corrected herself hastily, "She must be a very amazing person to survive like this, no one I've heard of could survive a full on breath like she did, let alone heal so well, especially after so long without magical aid."

"Thank you," Brelyna told the woman, "Do you mind if we have some time alone?" she asked. The Breton nodded and left the group alone to the room.

From the looks of it Kayci was asleep, which was understandable really, considering all they had gone through was a hundred times worse for the woman everything was happening to. The Tsaesci needed rest more than anything.

Brelyna stared down at her for a few minutes before looking to Resh, "I probably should have said earlier, but now seems… like a terrible time to say it, but I'm going to get it out of the way now while we're all happy about Kayci's survival. I can't carry on travelling with you two anymore, I have lectures to go to, and have to stay at this College, I've had long enough."

Lydia, who had remained silent throughout most of the evening looked at her in confusion, "Two of us? what about Kayci?"

The Dunmer sighed, the very fact the other two hadn't picked up what was supposed to be obvious in her choice of phrasing, was enough proof of that, "Yes, because Kayci is going to stay here with me."

The sudden look on Resh face was heartbreaking, it wasn't going to be anything she could forget, as it would be burned into her mind forever, more so because she had caused it herself. She could definitely understand where he was coming from though, the two had practically been family for so many years, and were inseparable. It must've been devastating for Resh to have someone that close to him taken away.

"It won't be all bad," she tried to reaffirm him and cheer him up, "She said she would write to you as often as she could."

Resh snorted both in derision and snide humour, "Don't make me laugh, Kayci can't write. At the very most she would get you to be a scribe for her, but you won't have time to anyway because of all the work you'll be doing."

Brelyna was shocked at that, but had to admit, it was probably true, she wouldn't have much time to write these letter for Kayci, in that case she would just have to find time to make things work for the two friends.

She didn't rise to the cynical remark he spouted and tried to act as the voice of reason rather than get in an argument about who Kayci should go with, "I don't care, I'll do what it takes to keep you two in touch, I have no intention of ruining your friendship just because the two of us can't go on your Dragonborn adventures."

Silence fell and Resh's expression had changed again, he looked absolutely mortified, almost as if literally the worst thing that could ever happen had just transpired. "Dragonborn?" Kayci murmured, starting to wake up at the sound of those words, "Resh…?"

"Oh come on!" Resh shouted in exasperation, his emotions getting the better of him as he raised his voice even more. "We've been travelling for months now, and I've even absorbed a dragon soul in front of her, and of all times it's now she finds out. Could no-one just keep their mouths shut for another minute?!"

Suddenly Kayci started writhing madly and thrashing around as the realisation, "I'll kill him!" thankfully her condition allowed Brelyna to hold her down easily, but that didn't stop the flow of anger from her mouth.

The Tsaesci sighed, trying not to listen as she yelled obscenities, and about how she was going to 'hunt him like prey' and 'eat him alive'. He knew this day was coming, undoubtedly it would be the end of their friendship, but luckily he would still be able to live another day as Kayci couldn't attack him.

Brelyna didn't seem to know what the apparent mood swings were about, so started apologising profusely at Kayci's behaviour and chalking it up to hallucinations and delirium.

Resh knew the truth, and Kayci was acting just like any good Tsaesci would. True how it was that Kayci had often referred to herself as 'not the best Tsaesci' but even she followed some of their peoples traditions, unfortunately one of them involved hunting, which she was already very fond of, the greatest prey, dragons.

Brelyna POV

Even when Resh had sulked out of the room Kayci didn't stop her writhing, fortunately she was making less noise but she still seemed dead set on killing her best friend. "Kayci, stop it!" Brelyna hissed at her, not wanting her girlfriend to draw attention from other students, or professors.

"No!" she struggled, not getting very far however, "He's a dragon, and needs to die!"

Brelyna stared at her incredulously, "Have you gone completely out of your mind?! I know you're recovering so probably not in the best state of mind, but you can't act like this in front of your friends, I think you hurt his feelings."

Kayci snorted, attempting to sit up again, before growling in pain and falling down again, "Good, when I finish healing I'm going to fucking kill him."

The crazed woman yelped in pain when Brelyna lightly pressed a finger against her arm, "Somehow I don't think that'll be any time soon," the Dunmer smirked before turning serious again, "But really, you have to stop it. Have a rest, you're not acting at your best so wait until you've recovered before pouting unnecessary hatred. I get the feeling you'll change your mind after a proper nights sleep."

The Tsaesci almost seemed angry now, "I won't, that thing doesn't deserve life. Resh is a dragon, how are you not getting th-"

Brelyna put her hand over her lover's eyes, "Just go to sleep now, when you calm down we'll talk about settling in at the College."

It was clear Kayci wanted to argue more, or start trying to kill something, due to the furious gleam Brelyna could see in her eyes from between the gaps in her hand, but it was just as obvious that she was very tired, so after a few tense moments Kayci relented, and dropped asleep seemingly instantly.

The Dark Elf sighed, wondering what had got into Kayci. It seems crazy that she would act that way to Resh, the sudden change in emotions wasn't something anyone had expected. Fortunately it was most likely just a problem with her lack of sleep and injuries affecting her, so when she woke up she hopefully won't remember anything she said.

Resh POV

"Are you okay?" Lydia asked as he paced around, head hung low.

Resh looked up only to glare at her, "What do you think? I've lost my best friend, and she's probably going to end up killing and eating me."

The Nords eyes flashed with shock for a moment before realising the situation, "I'm sure she won't, she was just under the influence of all that magic and her burns. I think it'll take more than having the soul of a dragon to ruin a friendship as good as yours."

"Well you think wrong, you can't even begin to understand how much tradition means to my kind. It would be like asking your kind not to have an irrational hatred of people who drink milk," Resh argued, despite knowing she would never understand.

"Only children drink milk, it's a sign that they are still whelps, that's why we mock 'milk-drinkers', because no one wants to continue to be associated with being a child," Lydia informed him, slightly annoyed that he had tried to compare his kinds ridiculous traditions with her owns Nordic ones.

"And just like you we have our own reasons for our culture," Resh snapped, the ignorance of Nords was limitless, "You can't just say your own is better than our because you're not familiar with our customs. I am a dragon; I hate that fact, and would have offed myself almost a year ago when I found out if my culture didn't dictate I'm not allowed."

Lydia was astounded that he seriously meant his words, she could barely even imagine a world without Resh, it would be horrible to know that he committed suicide. "Yes I can, it's because your tradition is wrong. How can you hate something about yourself that irrelevant? it's not even your fault, surely you can see that?"

"It's not my fault, but it's still my problem. As I said Kayce is probably going to kill me, so I think it's worth leaving right now," Resh muttered, not really wanting to have an argument when there was so little time.

"I'm not going anywhere, I'm tired and want sleep," she stated bluntly, after seeing Resh about to talk she continued, "Besides, I'm sure she won't kill you, she's bedridden for Divines sake, she can't even manage it if she tries."

"You don't know her as well as I do, even if she were just a head and a spine she would find a way to kill me, I want to get as much distance between us as possible, I don't plan on dying by her hand," Lydia wasn't having any of his rushing, and stood firmly, ignoring him as he tried to pull her with him to leave.

"I don't care, I'm not going anywhere, I need rest. So you're just going to have to deal with your own problems, and before you try protesting again I'm the pregnant one, you have to do what I say, so let go of me," she snapped, staring him down when he glared at her.

Resh didn't have time to respond before Brelyna left the building as well and strode over, "Resh can we talk? I'm not angry at you or anything, but why is she acting like this? I think it might just be the blood loss, but I want to apologise for what she said, you look upset."

The Tsaesci sighed, he guessed he would probably have to explain the whole situation to Brelyna as well as Lydia. It should probably be Kayci telling Brelyna that she's a Tsaesci rather than him, but how much madder could she get at him?