CHAPTER THREE:

QUEEN OF HEARTBREAK

About two months had passed since her incident. She had tried to sleep as much as she could, but nightmares of her past still weighed on her mind. Many times she had attempted to sleep alone, but she always ended up walking from her house to Jorrvasker to rapture Farkas and take him back to her home so she would have his comfort next to her. It seemed to help.

In the past few weeks, to her relief, people have slowly started to treat her normally save the few hyper-religious priests that would fall to their knees when she filled their view and praised the gods for her coming and existence. She hoped that would fade too.

Her mind always seemed to go back to Hadver. After her dream, the thought of him always lingered her mind. She had felt guilty for not visiting him or his family in some time so she sent a letter ahead to Riverwood to tell of her upcoming visit. This time bringing long-deserved gifts of thanks and such just to help ease her guilt.

"… Alright, got my changes of clothes, a spare set of armor, extra health and stamina potions, my bedroll, tent, a blanket, and my-"

A sharp knocking interrupted Rowina and she heard Lydia call up the stairs, "My Thane, do you mind getting the door? I'm just now getting out of the bath and I don't believe you'd like me to answer the door in nothing but my towel, would you?"

She laughed, "Okay, okay, I'll get it Lyd." She placed her list on her bed and made her way out of her room, down the stairs –somewhat tripping over the hem of her blue cloth dress-, and got to the wooden front door. Her hand turned the knob and pulled the door open. Standing outside, a thin looking teenage boy held a small box with a rolled up parchment tied to the top.

"Ex- Excuse me, miss. Are you the owner of this residence?"

Noting he was a shy boy, she smiled gently, "I am," Her soft voice seemed to relieve him, "How my I help you?"

His tense body relaxed and he rolled his shoulders to appear a bit more confident and erect, "I've been looking for you. I have a package for you."

"From whom?" She asked, tilting her head.

The young boy shook his head, "I'm not sure," He glanced up at her and shrugged, "He said he was a friend of yours."

'He?'

Rowina gingerly accepted the package and handed the boy a small coin pouch, "Thank you for your hard work and diligence to bring this to me." She said with a genuine grin causing the dusky teenager to smile back.

He opened the pouch and his face went wide with awe and he looked at her with concern, "Miss, this pouch holds about a hundred septims! There must be a mistake, ma'am! I never get-"

"No, I meant it." She softly placed her slender hand on his shoulder and crouched slightly to meet his eye level, "Use it to take care of yourself and your family." Her face beamed with kindness.

Before she knew it, boney arms wrapped around her neck and his chin rested her shoulder blade making her stiffen with surprise at the sudden action, "Thank you, Miss! Thank you!" her body relaxed and she held him close.

The boy released his grasp from her neck and his ebony eyes twinkled with joy, "I can use this to get some food and medicine!"

"Oh wonderful!"

She waved the Redguard boy 'goodbye' as he happily dashed away then closed the door behind her.

By then, Lydia had gotten dressed in her steel armor with her dark hazelnut hair twisted into a quick bun and finished making breakfast, "My Thane, come and eat. I always feel better when you have a meal before you embark on journeys."

The scent of ham and eggs filled the household's air, mercilessly invading the imperial's senses. Even if she wasn't hungry before, she was now.

Rowina sat down at her dining table and fleetly wolfed down the food placed before her. She wasn't sure if she could ever live without her housecarls cooking, but she knew she had to.

"Thank you, Lyd," swiping a finger across her glass plate and licked it not wanting anything to go to waste, "It was delicious!" She stood up from the bench reluctantly, "I had better finish packing, unfortunately."

Before she could walk two steps, her housecarl called out, "Wait, my Thane. Don't you want a sweetroll for dessert?"

The evading woman stopped in her tracks, "Damn it, Lyd," Rowina cursed aloud and turned back to face the woman, "You know I have a weak-spot for sweetrolls…"

The two women laughed, Lydia placed the plate into the wanting hands and watched with delight as the imperial ravaged the treat joyfully, "I'm sure my sweetroll obsession is an Imperial thing," mumbled the slightly shorter woman with a mouthful of sugar, "And your divine cooking skills are a Nord thing."

"That's a little racist, don't you think?"

"Not if it's the truth."

They shared another laugh; Rowina licked her icing-covered fingers and spoke again, "Now I really should finish my packing. I'll need to head out in a bit if I want to make it to Riverwood before nightfall."

Lydia nodded, "I understand, my Thane."

"Oh! I almost forgot," the imperial exclaimed when her eyes landed onto the package that sat on her dining table, "I'd better take this too."

"What is it, my Thane?"

"Not sure, but I'll open it before I leave"

She made her way back into her room and wasted no time in untying the rolled parchment and let her eyes scan the note that read:

Red,

Your dearest friend found something on his cart and realized that it belonged to you, sweet Red. So he just had to send it back because you helped him, but refused any payment. He hopes that he is no longer in debt to you so he won't ever feel guilty for not repaying his dear friend.

He sends his gratitude,

Cicero.

She gasped, 'Does this mean-?' Her mind completely passed over the name signed at the bottom and her hands swiftly ripped open the package and looked inside the box. There in the very box was a carefully placed ring that lightly shone the familiar blue hue.

Rowina hugged her housecarl and promised to be home within two or three weeks. She waved and went to open the door, but someone stood outside her door with a hand up, ready to knock.

"Farkas!"

Shutting the door behind her, she threw her arms around him, teetering the man slightly, but he none-the-less returned the gesture, "Hey, Rowina! How are you, my love?"

"I'm fine," she loosened her grasp on him and rested her hands on his broad shoulders to see him better, "Just now leaving to see a friend in Riverwood. How about yourself?"

The glow emanating from Farkas' face dampened, "Now?" she noticed his expression and slowly nodded causing him to sigh, "Well, you may have to postpone that visit," the shine in her azure eyes dulled, "We got an emergency job. Up in Windhelm, bandits are causing trouble and the city's Jarl hired us to take care of the problem because his own soldiers are pretty thinned out there."

'I guess it was a good thing I didn't write an exact date of my arrival on my letter. So much for a leisure trip…'

A sigh escaped her pinked lips, "Understood," She glanced up at him with a sudden mischief adorning her features, "But I'll only go if you're my Shield-Brother."

He snickered, "Who else could deal with a woman like you?"

"Excuse me?" She asked dramatically with a playful look.

His hand slid to her lower back and pulled her to his chest, "A wonderful, stubborn, beautiful woman like you."

The couple shared a laugh before Rowina fixed her small arms around his neck and quickly placed a light kiss on his lips.

But she retreated from his embrace with a puzzled gaze, "Wait. The Jarl of Windhelm?"

Farkas copied her face, "Yes, what about him, love?"

"Well, shit…" Her hand rubbed her eye then weaved her fingers through her hair, "He's Ulfric Stormcloak, isn't he?"

"Oh," he donned with realization, "I didn't even think of that."

They both sat in silence for a time before Farkus piped up, "Well, we could still do the job without gaining Ulfric's presence, but still get paid."

"That's true. We could just stay at 'The Candlehearth Hall' there rather then the Jarl's home."

"Sounds like a plan."

They nodded in unison and Rowina turned to the door still looking over her shoulder, "I'll tell Lydia the change of plans."

But before she could open the door his hand firmly, but kindly, gripped her arm making her look back at him, "What is it?" She asked with a conflicted look.

"You need to know this," Farkas replied with a seriousness, "You look lovely in that dress." A teasing smirk etched his face.

"Farkas!" She exclaimed while lightly punching his arm, "You scared me with that stern look!" Her hands covered her blushing face and giggled, "But thank you."

She entered into her house and Lydia was found sitting next to the fire deeply indulged in a book without noticing Rowina, "Lydia,"

"Ah!" the housecarls voice squeaked with surprise and she looked up to the woman beside her, "My Thane! You startled me!"

A soft laugh escaped her mouth, "Sorry, Lyd," She apologized, "I just wanted to tell you that my visit to Riverwood has been canceled for the time being and instead we're going to Windhelm."

The Nord's face went perplexed, "We?"

"Me and Farkas."

"Oh?" Her confusion was replaced by a joking glare, "And just what is it exactly that you two will be doing up there?"

The imperial's fair complexion pinked, "Nothing of the sort! Just a job then we'll come back! No funny business!"

Lydia howled with laughter before she added, "What kind of job?"

"Lydia!"

The steel-clad woman nearly fell out of the wooden chair as she doubled-over with an immense fit of giggles when she saw the small woman next to her already pink face go beet red.

Finally, she wiped the tears from her face, stood up, and looked down at Rowina who was a good two or three inches shorter, "Sorry, my Thane. I couldn't help myself."

She merely shook her head, "Its fine. I need some good laughter in my life anyway."

With one last hug, Rowina pivoted on her heel and left her home.

The wooden cart bounced along the rocky path. The bitter cold night nipped at Rowina's bare face. She huddled close to her lover letting his arm hold her tight. The cold didn't appear to bother the Nord, but it damn sure bothered her and the blanket around her small shoulders felt like it did nothing against the biting wind. Her head rested on his broad shoulders and her eyes inspected his face. He bore a neatly chiseled structure; small to larger scars littered his tan skin, narrow chestnut eyes had a look of seriousness, but had a gleam of child-like curiosity. She smiled, that was one of the things she loved about him.

Her sapphire eyes wondered his appearance, but got caught when he looked down at her and his thin lips grinned, "What is it?"

"Nothing," she said with a shake of her head, looking ahead of her, "Just thinking about how lucky I am to have someone like you to love."

He chuckled, "I'm lucky to have you too."

His warm lips kissed her icy forehead making her forget the chill of the evening. She looked up at the night sky, its peaceful aura and mesmerizing colors made her chest flutter. Being embraced by the two things she loved most almost felt like a dream to her.

"Oh, did you find your ring?"

She glanced at her hand resting on his chest and nodded, "Yeah, someone found it and figured it was mine. They were right thankfully."

A grin engraved his face, "That's good!" but his appearance fell into confusion, "Who sent it."

"Uh…" she searched her mind for the name of the sender, but no anvil, "I don't believe I remember. I can check the note when we return home." She replied shaking her head apologetically.

Her mind fell short of reality and she resumed her trance.

"Whoa! Whoa girl!"

The milky white horse whinnied when the cart driver tugged on the reigns, disrupting her daze. The middle-aged Breton man looked over his shoulder, "Alright ya lovebirds," he announced, "Here we are in the city o' Windhelm."

The couple thanked the man and stepped out of the cart. Rowina paid him his fifty septims and the two walked up to the city entrance, but they were stopped by the pair of guards that stood there, "Halt. In order to enter the city of Windhelm, you must pay an entrance fee of a hundred septims."

"A hundred septims?" The woman exclaimed, "Listen here you little sons of bitchs, we've just traveled two days non-stop to get here and do a gods damned job for the shitty wuss you call a Jarl and I have not felt a cleansing bath at all in those two days of travel and I won't hesitate slit both of your sorry throats! And this 'entrance fee' you have is all a dumb-ass scam so you can get some extra change in your pockets only to be spent on barrels of mead to get drunk off your asses!"

A thick tension filled the air between the two pairs. Farkas looked down at Rowina with shock and the guards stood stiffly as they looked at the fuming woman in front of them. They simultaneously gestured to the large door allowing them in.

She smiled, "Thank you gentlemen! Have a good night!"

With a sudden pep to her walk they passed through to front gates ignoring the voices whispering behind them. The town before them looked large, but poorly kept. Snow layered the moist dirt under their feet; beggars looked up at them with a gleam of hope for a septim or two. Stone walls looked ready to crumble at the slightest of bumps and people argued in the streets. Mainly the fights were just drunken Nords shamming anyone who wasn't their own race.

Farkas' face was stained with the look of shock as he looked down to the woman holding his hand, "Rowina? What the hell was that?"

"What do you mean?"

"You just yelled at the guards at the gate! What caused you to do that?!"

She laughed, "Hey, I wasn't about to pay a hundred septims just to get inside the city, so I acted like a bitch to get in. Truth be told, it really was a scam because they noticed I was an Imperial. Not a Nord."

"But I'm a Nord." He added with a raise of his eyebrow.

"It doesn't matter," She sighed, "Even though you're a Nord, they still saw me and they labeled you anyways."

He snorted, "Well that's not fair. Why are they so racist here?"

"Ulfric is the Jarl here."

"Oh."

They held hands in silence on their way towards 'The Candlehearth Hall'. The cold air sent a chill down Rowina's back. The Nord noticed this and wrapped his muscular arm around her waist and pulled her close.

But she heard something faint in the background to her left, "Swee… ther…, et… oth…, end… nto…"

"Do you hear that?" she questioned Farkas.

"Hear what, love?" he asked.

She strained her ears to hear the noise again, but all she heard was the falling snow, "Must've been my imagination…"

The two reached the inn and paid a week worth for a room. The innkeeper showed them to their room and bid them 'goodnight' with a wink and a smirk. The imperial went red in the cheeks when she knew what the innkeeper was thinking.

To her relief, both Rowina and Farkas were plum exhausted and left no energy for the 'funny business' Lydia and the innkeeper were inferring to.

Without caring to blow out the few candles surrounding the room, they collapsed onto the fur bed and immediately fell asleep.

Four days of planning slowly passed for Rowina as she and Farkus were preparing themselves to clear out the band of outlaws and bandits that made home near Windhelm. Planning was never her favorite, but she knew it was necessary in some situations –especially dangerous ones. Still, she was itching for a good fight and some action and she was sure Farkas was feeling the same. The two were hunched over a small table bearing a quill, inkwell, charcoal, rolled parchments full of notes, and a small map of Windhelm and beyond. Their heads were throbbing from days of thinking and making strategies. The skin on their fingers were red from writing and blots of ink and charcoal dirtied their hands and fingernails.

A masculine sigh broke her train of thought and a wisp of warm breath tickled her cheek, she looked up to see the bored man before her relax in his chair and lean back, "Something the matter?"

"Kind of," he said with another sigh, "Just getting tired of making plans and using my head non-stop."

She let out a small laugh, "I feel the same," she rested her back on the wooden chair and paused before she contemplated an idea, "Hey, why don't we just take a well deserved break and order some mead, eh?"

His face brightened, "Good idea, love."

Rowina scanned the room around her in search of a barmaid until her eyes rested on a blonde woman with the signature apron, "Excuse me, Miss!"

The sun-kissed Altmer woman turned, looking for the voice who called. The Imperial waved her hand to grant her attention. The barmaid noticed, smiled, and flounced over to their table. When she arrived is when Rowina noticed how busty the woman was, the low-cut dress she wore left little to the imagination, "How might I help you two today?"

"Two- err…make that four meads please."

With a quick nod, the elf evaded the table gracefully. The ebon-haired woman looked back at the man across her only to find him idly watching the barmaid walk away with curious eyes.

"Hey," she called to him, but he didn't respond, "Yoo-hoo!" her still raw fingers snapped in front of his face breaking his reverie, "What caught your attention?" She asked feigning ignorance.

He shook his head, "I was looking at our barmaid,"

'Well,' she thought, 'at least he's honest…'

"Why's that?"

"Not sure," He shrugged, "There's something about her."

Her head began to feel hot as the snake of jealousy rose from her stomach and sunk it's fangs in her heart, but she planted a false smile and 'joked' with him, "Don't tell me you fell in love her at first glance!" she acted.

"Oh no," he jerked and sat up straight, "I have fallen in love."

She felt her heart sink and let it show on her face, "Oh yeah?"

"To the most beautiful woman it all of Skyrim," He inched his torso over the table and his brown eyes pierced her blue ones with affection, "You, my love."

The fang puncturing her heart snapped and her chest felt warm with happiness, "Aw Farkus," she cooed, "You startled me for a sec-"

She was cut off by a quick peck to her lips. Her body went stiff with surprise and he laughed, "I will love no other, but you."

Heat rose to her cheeks and she giggled, "Damn it, Farkas. You know I can't sing honeyed words like that! I have no skill in romance talk."

"Sure you do! You just have to em-"

Before he could finish his sentence, the elf approached the two. This time with a small tray of mead, "Here you go," she placed the four warmed bottles onto the table making her shoulder-length hair bounce and she grinned, "If you two need anything else, my name is Sonja-Belle."

The coupled uttered their thanks and each grabbed a glass bottle. Two small 'pop's' rang out when the corks were flicked off and they simultaneously gulped down a half of their bottles.

"Whew! What a fight they put up!" Rowina commented as she threw open their rented door and strutted into the room with pride, "They never saw us coming!"

Farkas was close behind her, his laugh filled the atmosphere, "It almost felt too good to be true!" he shut the door behind him with a thud, "I think we did a good job on this mission."

"I agree. I can't wait to get the reward we deserve!"

"May I give you a reward?" his mischievous smirk danced on his features.

She glanced at him, puzzled, "Huh? Reward for wha-?"

He didn't let her finish her question, "Reward for being my only lover." His lips sealed her own and she tensed, but he placed one hand on her waist and another on her neck, holding her close, healing her stiffness. The kisses he showered her mouth with became deeper and slower. Their tongues began to intermingle and he gently pushed her down onto the cushy bed resting his body on top of hers. The hand resting on her waist gingerly unclasped her dragonscale armor and tugged it off making it clatter onto the floor. He pulled off her gauntlets as well as his own and cradled her jaw to kiss her deeper. The kiss remained unbroken; she copied him, making another noise of fallen armor, and her feminine hand pulled at his dampened tunic. He drew back from her hungry lips and quickly threw off the roughspun tunic, kicked of his steel boots and resumed the fiery kiss. She felt her body grow hot and her mind began to fog, her hands traced the indentions of his muscles on his chest noting that his skin was warm as well. Farkus' rough fingers found the ties of her shirt and began to untie them quickly.

"Wait," Rowina broke the kiss and gently pushed his chest, her mind cleared, "I- I don't think I can do this."

Surprise rippled through the face looking down at her, but he quickly smiled, "Don't worry about it. I'll be gentle, love"

She shook her head, "No, that's not it." she pushed him off of her made him stand up while she followed suit. She looked up at him with a twinge of guilt, "I… um…" her eyes fell with embarrassment, "I'm… waiting to do this… until I marry…"

"Oh," he went pink in the cheeks despite the recent affair, "I understand, my love."

Her eyes searched his face to figure out wither that was true or not, "Are you sure you're okay? I just rejected you."

He shook his head, "No, I'm fine, my love, but we should get some sleep." His eyes fled her own and looked out the window, "It's about 3:00 in the morn."

With a nod, they slipped under the bed covers to go to sleep, but Rowina found that she couldn't. She tossed and turned with what happened only an hour ago putting pressure on her head. Just when sleep was about to take hold, a quick rapping at the door pulled her back, 'What the hell?' she whispered mentally, 'Who is knocking on peoples doors in the middle of the night?'

She ignored the first knocking in attempt to go to sleep, but another round of knocking, this time harder, struck their door again.

"Oh for the love of Mara," she groaned, but removed herself from the bed and answered the door, "What is it?"

The innkeeper stood at the door and he yawned, he probably was awakened just recently, "Someone is here to see someone called 'Farkas'."

Puzzled, she asked, "Why is someone looking for him so early in the morning? Can't they come back at a more reasonable time?"

He shook his tired head, "I'm afraid not, madam. They say it's urgent and they just want him in private." He responded with a shrug.

"Who's 'they'?"

"Sorry madam. They won't allow me to say."

With another groan, she walked over to the opposite side of the bed and shook his shoulders, "Farkas. Wake up. There is someone here to see you."

He rolled over to his back and squinted his sleepy eyes, "Who wants to see me so early?"

"Not sure, but its urgent." Said she as she tugged at his limp arm to sit him up, "So you should get up and get it over with so we can go back to sleep."

With a sigh, he crawled out from the bed covers and stood reluctantly. He shuffled to the door with Rowina not far behind him. He met the eyes of the innkeeper, "Where are they now?"

The old innkeeper's frail finger pointed down the stairs, "They should be down below at the table in the far corner, you can't miss it," Farkas nodded and the two started their way down the stairs, but the man placed a hand on the woman's shoulder, "Sorry madam," he apologized, "Unfortunately, they asked for him to be alone."

Farkas looked back at Rowina, "Don't worry, love," he weakly grinned, "I'll take care of whatever the issue is down there then I'll be back in bed next to you in no time, okay?" he said to comfort her confusion and worry.

"… Fine, but don't be too long. You'll worry me."

They shared a smile before she pivoted on her heel and reentered the room. The door clicked close behind her as she shuffled to the bed and wrapped the warm furs around her. She let the darkness around her soothe her in hope of gaining sleep, but she still felt restless. Her mind made up several scenarios of what her lover could be doing and who the caller could be.

'Could he be meeting with a Khajiit and buying skooma and moonsugar?' her wandering thoughts conjured, 'No, he doesn't have a druggy persona… Could he be meeting a seller for stolen items? No, he's too clumsy and dim-witted to steal something or even sell it for a decent price…'

She realized she couldn't take her monstrous thinking or her quickly rising anxiety level anymore. With newfound energy, she sprung from the bed and opened the door from her room. She crouched and silently crept down the creaky stairs. Finally she reached the bottom of the staircase and looked to the right side of the large room of tables, but she saw no familiar faces; she then searched the expanse of area before her, but once again, no anvil. With her hope slowly fading, she inspected the left side of the room and found whom she was in search of.

But she felt her heart shatter in her chest at what she saw.