Chapter 68: Christmas Eve in Whiterun
[23rd – 25th of Evening Star 4E 201]
After the events in Solitude, where I had also again met Fiona, the Dragonborn, our party had hurried back to Whiterun, as the Imperials had threatened to hunt us. We had met Ralof, the Stormcloak, and he had quickly moved on towards Windhelm, whereas the rest of us had been invited to Dragonsreach for dinner.
While most of the other guests were seated at the large table directly next to the fireplace, Jarl Balgruuf the Greater had led us to a smaller table on one of the galleries overlooking the main hall. Fiona was at the Jarl՚s right side and I was on his left, while I had Janina sitting to my right; our housecarls filled the remaining seats. This arrangements had the advantage that whatever was said at our table could not be easily heard at the main tables downstairs. Once Jarl Balgruuf the Greater had said a few words to everybody and prompted his steward to get the meal started, servants brought all kinds of delicious looking filled plates, and we were soon indulging and enjoying the great food. My own body, being tall and muscled and weighing, according to my rough estimation, at least around 150 kg or so, needed a lot of calories, and I had not eaten much so far on that day, so that I used the opportunity to catch up. Proventus Avenicci had even thought about my two saber cats, and a servant brought a bowl with water and two large bones with meat out for them from the kitchen.
Fiona, with her petite frame and probably less than 50 kg, was done with eating much faster, and once Janina had been properly and formally introduced to Jarl Balgruuf the Greater, he used the opportunity to ask the Dragonborn how she had fared during the last weeks. The young Bosmer was apparently unsure about what she could say and what she'd better keep for herself, and she replied:
"My Jarl, I have been able to collect some confidential documents, and I cannot reveal most of the details, or else some people might get hurt or killed. However, based on one of those documents, it seems to be true that the Thalmor do not know more about the dragon resurrection phenomenon than we do."
"Is that a fact?"
"It appears to be, indeed, my Jarl. At this time, what bothers me more is the attitude the Imperials have been showing towards us."
"What about it?"
"You know, of course, that B'lushona and I were both Imperial prisoners in Helgen when Alduin showed up. As far as I know neither of us had done anything wrong except for being at the wrong place at the wrong time. There was no trial and no specific accusations, but we were destined for the block, together with the Stormcloaks. Now, in Solitude, when B'lushona and I met again, we had a chance to do a few favors for Jarl Elisif, and she made him a Thane of Haafingar."
The Jarl now looked at me, and I just nodded, as I was not done with eating yet. If I had a choice, I intended to finish eating first before I had to talk. Fortunately, Jordis, my Haafingar housecarl, chimed in for a moment:
"Indeed, Jarl Balgruuf the Greater, this is correct. My name is Jordis the sword-maiden, and I was assigned as housecarl to Thane B'lushona by Jarl Elisif the Fair of Haafingar."
Fiona continued to explain, and I had to admit that the way she spoke was different from the way she had been speaking when I had first met her; she had learned to appear much more confident, and the constant usage of the local language had apparently also honed her choice of words and such:
"General Tullius and Legate Rikke called us into Castle Dour to question us about a Thalmor attack, one of several I have been exposed to already, but one where also an Imperial soldier was killed. Rather than getting our view on that, though, the general recognized us from Helgen and ordered his guards to move us into prison right away. Only the intervention of a senior hold guard, acting and speaking for Jarl Elisif, prevented us from that fate, and the Jarl՚s emissary claimed that the general could not just imprison a thane without valid and specific accusations, which the general did not have. We were given a grace period to go, and we had to apply caution when getting back here to be safe. As it is, we have to expect to be attacked by any legion soldiers in any of the Imperial controlled holds."
While Fiona had spoken, the Jarl՚s face had started to show some concern, and he obviously did not like what she said.
I had finally managed to still my worst hunger and could afford a break, although I was keeping my eyes open for potential dessert offerings, and I added:
"When traveling back from Solitude, we had to make a detour, and we were lucky to meet Ralof, the Stormcloak, who joined us for some time. Yes, it is really disappointing that somehow the legion holds a grudge against us, and they have not even bothered to tell us why. I do understand that the presence of the legion in Solitude is justified, with the province being a part of the Empire, but maybe they should have found someone enforcing that presence in a different style than what General Tullius does. After we had to endure a Thalmor attack close to Rorikstead and killed a dragon on the next day, legion soldiers even dared to attack us in your hold, off the road close to Gjukar՚s Monument!"
Jarl Balgruuf the Greater was obviously worried about that and asked:
"And what did you do to them?"
"We disarmed them, my Jarl, kept them bound for a night and sent them home without any weapons. As far as we can tell, they have left the hold."
The Jarl still looked concerned and responded:
"I am glad to hear that you were able to handle them without excessive bloodshed. But overall, this is not really what I like to hear. I do know that the legion sometimes kind of overextend their authority, but I had not idea that they behaved like this. They should have realized that the Thalmor are after you for some reason, and not just seize you once again. Somehow I even understand the attitude; General Tullius probably has clear instructions to avoid anything which might antagonize the Thalmor, but he's going way too far."
"It's a pity" Fiona mentioned. "I like Solitude, the city I mean, and I would like to see some other holds, too. Actually, if I am supposed to continue my work as Dragonborn, I may have to go to Imperial controlled holds at some time, and this will be difficult or even next to impossible if I have to watch out all of the time. The general did not even give us a chance to discuss this."
"Same here" I nodded. "Being stuck in Whiterun and Stormcloak controlled holds would be a pity. Jarl Elisif is certainly going to officially complain to the general, but I wonder if you might want to send him a letter as well?"
"You bet" the Jarl agreed, while he shook his head. "This is really too much. After all, you two are my Thanes here, and I will insist that the general either sends a written statement on what you have done to be arrested and sentenced or desist. You know, so far I have been leaning towards the legion side in the war. Jarl Ulfric has some good reasons for his rebellion, but his racist views have alienated me. Although, I have heard that this may have changed in the last months."
"My Jarl" I suggested, "sooner or later I would like to travel to Windhelm and see about that myself. With me being a Khajiit, I am likely to get a first hand experience on any racism still being applied, and I really would like to learn more about Jarl Ulfric՚s cause. Where I come from, there is a phrase which is 'audiatur et altera pars', and it means that one should make sure to listen to the arguments from both sides. I have been exposed to Imperial treatment sufficiently, and I would like to learn more about the Stormcloaks, too. When I have a chance to travel to Windhelm, I will of course provide a detailed report to you. In addition, I suspect that I may not even be allowed in the city without being able to identify myself as your messenger."
"Will you go as well?" the Jarl asked Fiona. The Dragonborn shook her head and replied:
"No, I believe that I need to get to Riften next. There are some hints that a person with valuable information related to dragons may be hiding there, and I probably should seek them out. I would like to see Windhelm, too, but maybe at a later time. Anyway, for the next few days, I need some rest, and what better place to rest and relax than in your beautiful city!"
She had learned to make the Jarl smile, and it sure worked. While we finished our meal and enjoyed delicious dessert, too, we talked more about various topics, and finally the time had come to leave again. The housecarls found their way to the guards barracks, Fiona went for the Bannered Mare – by now she had more than enough money to pay for her own room, of course – and I entered Jorrvaskr. Naturally, some of the Companions were still sitting in the big mead hall and drinking and eating, and I had to sit down for some time and also tell a little about what I had experienced in and around Solitude. They almost could not believe that I had gained another Thaneship, and I had to promise to introduce them to Jordis soon. Eventually I managed to get upstairs to my attic room and found my bed. Hanni and Nanni were getting a little big to both join me, and for this night they'd both curl just in front of the bed.
When I looked into the kitchen in the next morning to get some early breakfast, Tilma was not yet there. Even though I had stayed up later than usual last night, I still woke up early, and most of Jorrvaskr was apparently still asleep. While looking around I had a quick look at the calendar on the wall, where Tilma had made some notes about special events, food to shop for and such, and I realized that today was the 24th of Evening Star. I still needed some time to correlate that to the calendar I was used to, and then I found that this was 24th of December – start of Christmas!
Wow! Back home Christmas had always been a very important holiday for me, not only because of the religious implications, but also because the church community I had been a member of had been very busy, and I had sometimes helped with some preparations and work, including church services, preparing the church interior, proof reading announcements and online sermons and such. Lacking a family of my own, celebrating the holidays with people in my church community had been a good alternative, but now I was here in Skyrim, still without a family of my own, but with some friends at least. With the possible exception of Fiona, I could not expect anybody to know what Christmas was, of course, but for me that was quite important, even in Skyrim.
After I had grabbed some food for breakfast and eaten something, I went out into the city, and when I entered the marketplace and looked at the vendors preparing to open their stalls, my attention was first claimed by Mila, Carlotta Valencia's daughter, and Mila enticed me to play with her for some time while her mother prepared the food for sale. Once those preparations were done, I noticed Fiona coming out of the inn, and once I had greeted her, I asked:
"Fiona, do you know which day it is today?"
"No, not really, I totally lost track of the flow of time here in Skyrim. Is it important?"
"Well, it is for me at least. Today is the 24th in the month of Evening Star, and this month is equivalent to the month December on Earth!"
It took a few seconds to register until her face lit up and she replied:
"Christmas!"
"Indeed, it is. Would you want to celebrate the holiday a little, and do you care at all?"
"Of course I care! I was raised a good catholic, although I kind of lost some of my believes as a teenager. Yes, let's do something, please!"
"So, what about getting a Christmas tree?"
She liked the idea, and we headed to Jorrvaskr first to ask if anybody would mind if we organized a small tree and rigged it in the main hall. When I talked to Vilkas and Aela about that, a young female Breton stepped next to us and chimed in:
"A tree to set up? Maybe also handing out small gifts? This would be just like Saturalia at home – yes, please!"
We had not been introduced, and Aela did that now:
"B'lushona, Fiona, the Breton lady here is Irene, and she just joined us as whelp a few days ago. Irene, this is B'lushona, a Shield-Brother, and Fiona, the Dragonborn, who is always welcome as guest here in our mead hall."
Irene was not really impressed when being told about Fiona, but she asked:
"Dragonborn? What is that supposed to imply?"
"Of course, you are probably not familiar with the legends and the current situation here" I explained. "According to the legends and to the history books, some past Emperors of Cyrodiil had been Dragonborn, with special capabilities. While their line is supposed to be extinct and dragons had not been seen for many centuries, they have returned, and a new Dragonborn has been revealed – Fiona."
"So, what's special about being 'Dragonborn'? This is obviously not meant literally, right?"
"Fiona can shout with the Thu'um, the dragon voice, and she can absorb a dragon's soul when it has been killed."
"Wait, dragons have not only been seen again, but she has already killed some?"
"You have not heard about that yet?"
"No, I haven't. You see, I only very recently arrived in Skyrim, and this is the first place where I really stopped for more than a night or two. I used to live in a small town in High Rock, and we did not hear much about events in other parts of the world there. So, what about those dragons?"
"There have been dragons around for a few months so, and I have indeed killed a few. Well, not me on my own, but me together with others. I am not really strong enough to kill a dragon just by myself."
Irene was now really impressed, but I decided to get back to the original topic:
"So, what about the three of us go out into the forest, cut down a small tree and bring it back here? Then we can find some decorations and maybe have time left to prepare gifts, and in the evening and tomorrow we can celebrate together."
Both ladies agreed, and a few minutes later the three of us plus my saber cat cubs were on our way out of the city gate. There was no real large forest very close to the city, but I knew that there were plenty of smaller trees south and southeast of Pelagia Farm, and that's where we were headed. When we got there, I felt a little bit like in my old home, when I had a few times gone to a similar place to cut a Christmas tree in some kind of tree nursery, just there was no cashier here and we could pick whatever we wanted.
There were a number of small and medium sized spruce and fir trees around, and while I explored the options, I smelled a group of trees sticking out from the others. I asked Irene if she knew what those trees were called, but she did not know. Lacking the local name, I decided to call them 'Douglas fir', as the smell reminded me of a tree species with the same name on Earth. The smell was more intense than that of most other conifers, but very pleasant, at least for me, and I suggested:
"Fiona, Irene, I would like to get one of those. Is that all right for you?"
The Breton just shrugged her shoulders, but the Bosmer smiled:
"Yes, this is a nice smell, and it reminds me a little bit of home. Yes, please!"
"It does, really?"
"Yes, indeed. Next to the place where my aunt and uncle owned a small cabin on a slope of a hill, there was a tree nursery, and they experimented with Douglas firs. I love the smell!"
Fiona picked a tree and I used my weapon to cut it; my glass axe sliced through the tree very easily.
I had planned ahead and had a large net with me, and I wrapped the tree with it to make it easier to transport. I had seen that so many times when my parents and I had purchased a Christmas tree together, and we had watched the vendor to wrap it for transport. It worked here as well, and although my wrapping was not perfect, I could easily carry the tree on one of my shoulders.
Fiona asked:
"Now you carry the tree; what can I do?"
"What about you organize some decorations for it?"
"That is something I would love to do! Yes!"
As I had learned she was Catholic, while I was Lutheran. However, finding joy around a Christmas tree was clearly something both denominations shared, and the significance to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ was of course something all Christian denominations had in common, although not all commemorated that event on the same day; if I recalled correctly, some orthodox groups had Christmas in early January rather than late December. What 'Saturalia' was about, I did not really know; I had never bothered to learn much about Skyrim holidays, and the only one I could recall was 'New Life Festival' on what I thought to be New Years Day. Well, Irene might be willing to explain something, and on the way back to Whiterun I asked Irene if she would be willing to share something about her background; while she seemed to be reluctant to talk a lot about her family, she told us:
"My family's ancestry reaches back to the First Era, and we were already at home in Malabal, High Rock, at this time. One of my earliest ancestors was even in Cyrodiil at the time of Alessia's slave rebellion, and we own a set of diaries from that time written by him. Maybe at a later I will share some of that with you, but we've been kind of minor nobility for a long time. Believe me, this is not always a good thing."
She wasn't willing to tell more, and that was understandable; we did not know each other well yet, after all.
As soon as we were back in Jorrvaskr, we worked together to get the tree indoors and find a nice place to set it up. Of course we did not have a proper stand, but we managed to improvise with some spare parts, and as soon as the tree was properly fixed, Fiona and Irene started to organize some decorations. Janina joined us and asked what we were doing, and some Companions who passed asked the same questions. Patiently one of us explained that we were decorating a tree for Saturalia, and while not everybody felt inclined to celebrate on that day, they at least liked the idea with the decorated tree.
Fiona and I had in common that Christmas started with what we called 'Christmas Eve' in the afternoon and evening of December 24th, and gifts were handed out on that day. In some other countries on Earth, as I recalled, gifts were only given and opened on the morning of 'Christmas Day', December 25th.
None of us had any gifts prepared to hand over to our friends, but that was all right. When dusk settled in and the fire roared with a goat being roasted over it, we looked at the Christmas tree in the corner and admired the decorations the ladies had improvised, and it did remind me of home, my former home of course. I did not get homesick, though, but I got thinking for a few minutes about the real meaning of Christmas and to what extent God's gift also extended to this world. But surely an Almighty God was not limited to just one planet, but also kept a check on other planets, in other solar systems or even other galaxies, right?
Anyway, I was glad that I was not alone. There were the Companions, and I was part of their family, and there were Fiona and Janina, two interesting and fascinating ladies, all here in the big room, the Jorrvaskr 'Mead Hall'. My two saber cat cubs sat quietly at my sides, one left and the other right, and from time to time they looked at me with what I almost considered adoration and devotion. I had never had children of my own, but I loved them almost like they were my children, my girls.
The songs and conversations started by some Companions later on during the evening did not really fit the theme of the day, though. Torvar was probably already drunk, and he more bawled than sung the first few lines of 'The Dragonborn Comes'. When I looked over to Fiona, I was not sure if she was more amused or irritated, but she tried to smile at least. For a moment I pondered the possibility to teach the Companions a real Christmas song, like 'Silent Night, Holy Night', but no, this would not go well. Before I decided to retired, I asked Vilkas about the next day:
"Say, Shield-Brother, how many of us are going to be here tomorrow?"
"I guess most of us, actually. Business is a little slow right now, and unless we have some urgent requests coming up tomorrow morning, we are going to have a full house, more or less. Why do you ask?"
"Well, Saturalia tradition calls for a festive meal on the 25th of Evening Star, and I wonder it some of us should help Tilma tomorrow preparing something special."
"Feel free to do so, sure; I would not mind some variation. I am not complaining, of course; Tilma cooks great!"
So that was decided, and I quickly talked to Fiona, Janina and Irene; once we were in agreement, I approached Tilma and asked her permission to help her in the kitchen on the next day, which she gave after some deliberation. Yes, she was getting older, but she took great pride in being able to take care of her big family.
When I took my leave from the party, with most of the others still drinking, eating, talking, and singing, I climbed the steep ladder up to my attic room and stepped outside on the small roof-deck to call my saber cats up. While they obeyed and climbed up to the attic via the roof, I looked around, and to my surprise I saw some isolated snowflakes falling down around me. I was not much, at least not yet, but I was happy to see that. Back in my old life, having snow at Christmas had become a rare event, probably due to global warming.
So, this was my first Christmas Eve in Skyrim, with hopefully more to come. I spoke a prayer before I went inside again, and for myself I dearly hoped and prayed that, for Christmas in a year, I'd have a loving female partner being with me.
[Author's Notes: Irene hints about diaries written by one of her ancestors in High Rock during the time of the slave rebellion in the First Era. There will be more on that later on, mostly in book B, and this will be tied to the amazing story "Tales of the First Era: Alessia" here on FFN, written by "Blackvvater"; I received the author's friendly permission to weave some links into my own story.]
