Jorrvaskr was the last place Sálea wanted to be. She never, not once, thought they were an honorable group. They were ruffians, drunks, and well, severely lacking in manners. The redhead even insulted her! Called her weak! Her?! Weak?! She was the dragonborn. She could kill a dragon in her sleep! Well, not literally. But she's killed enough dragons to certainly feel like she could.

Sálea sighed as she climbed the steps leading to Jorrvaskr as slowly as possible. These people were arse holes. Rude. Mean. Bullies. She hated them, really. What had they ever done for anyone without the promise of money?

Belittle them? Talk down to them? Bully them? Certainly.

Why the Blades and the Jarl of Whiterun believed she had to hide with this bunch of ruffians was beyond her. So what the Thalmor were after her? She could kill dragons for Talos's sake! If Sálea hadn't been Whiterun's thane before the dragons showed up, she would have simply ignored the order. But alas, she had too much respect for Balgruuf.

Not even the people of Whiterun knew she was the dragonborn, by order of the Jarl. Of course, only the guards knew and were sworn to secrecy. This was done to protect her from the assassins and the thugs that attacked her outside of the city. It left them guessing whether or not they got the right person. Even with all of this, Sálea still didn't understand why they sent her to Jorrvaskr, of all places!

As Sálea neared the door, she could hear muffled yelling coming from inside. Internally groaning and stealing her face, Sálea pushed open the doors. It was as if a wall of sound had smacked her in the face. Far worse than a dragon's shout. Dragon shouts didn't come with the strong stench of mead.

In any case, it seemed a brawl had started and people were quick to gather around to watch. Many were placing bets and everyone was shouting insults to both fighters.

Taking a deep breath, she walked through the threshold and allowed the door to shut behind her as she searched for the old woman who worked for the companions. Tilma was kind and Sálea often ran into her at the market. The old woman was well aware of her opinion towards the "warriors" of Jorrvaskr. But she never made her feel lesser for it.

Spotting her near the fire, Sálea made a beeline towards her. "Tilma, my friend." She greeted once she was close enough to be heard over the wall of noise. "It is good to see you."

Tilma turned towards her and smiled, her eyes brightening. "Sálea, dear girl, what are you doing here? I never thought I'd see the day you would step foot in this place."

Sálea couldn't help but smile. "Yes, I rather not be here, to be honest. But the Jarl has commanded me to join the companions."

Tilma looked surprised. "The Jarl? Why, you don't hear something like this every day. You'll need to speak with Kodlak, my dear girl. Should I take you to him?"

Sálea sighed in relief and allowed her shoulders to drop. "If you could, I'll be forever grateful."

Tilma nodded, put down the spoon she was holding, and started to lead her toward a set of stairs. A pair of doors were at the bottom of the steps and Sálea rushed to open the doors for the elder. Tilma continued to lead her down the hall without question and stopped to knock on an ajarred door. Voices hushed before a man called out for them to enter. Tilma motioned for her to stay back and entered the room, closing the door behind her.

Sálea wasn't sure what was happening, but the longer she stood there, listening to a man yell about how she wasn't welcomed there, the more anxious she became. Though she didn't show it, Sálea was beginning to worry whether or not she was truly safe here.

After some more shouting, Tilma finally opened the door for her, gesturing for her to enter. With confidence she no longer had, Sálea strutted inside. A pair of men sat at a table in the corner, one young, one old. The younger man had his arms crossed and gave her a harsh glare. The elder, however, smiled at her and motioned for her to sit between them.

"Greetings, my Thane. How can the companions be of help to you today?" Sálea merely raised an eyebrow. Was this man really going to pretend she hadn't been outside his door long enough to hear how unwelcome she was?

Deciding she didn't want to get into all the insults that had been thrown her way, Sálea softly spoke to the man she assumed was Kodlak. "Harbinger, I come here today on orders from the Jarl. He has commanded that I join the companions."

The man on her left snorted and rolled his eyes. "Why would the Jarl command you to join? What skills do you have to offer the companions?"

Condescending ba—

"Vilkas! I will hear no more of this!" Kodlak scolded him, and Vilkas blessedly obeyed him and shut up. Kodlak turned back to her and continued. "My Thane, though I am honored to have you join us, I can not treat you any differently than all the others who come to us. Vilkas here must test your abilities, and should you pass, you must complete a trial in order to secure a spot among us."

Sálea subtly blew air out of her nose. Frustrated. Why couldn't they accept the fact that the Jarl commanded this? Maybe she should have asked Balgruuf to write them a letter.

"I will do what I must in order to complete the task given to me." She responded, trying to keep the edge out of her voice and her face impassive.

She deemed herself successful when Kodlak gave her a warm smile. "That's good to hear. Vilkas, take her outside and report back to me when finished. As for you, my Thane, please go easy on poor Vilkas here." The companion's leader seemed to find this hilarious and he started to laugh.

Vilkas and Sálea, on the other hand, did not. Vilkas merely rolled his eyes at the Harbinger and got off his arse with a comment to follow him. As she got up to follow, Sálea glanced at Tilma, who had remained in the room. Tilma stepped up to her and gestured towards Vilkas's quickly disappearing figure. "If you don't hurry, Vilkas will leave you behind, dear girl."

Sálea glanced between Tilma and Kodlak, the latter watching their interaction closely before she nodded and took off in a brief sprint to catch up to the man. Vilkas glanced down at her a moment before stepping through the doors and up the stairs.

As she followed him, Sálea tried her hardest not to say anything to the companions who now watched them. She did, however, give a subtle glare to the redhead who stared her down like she was a piece of meat.

Once outside, Sálea took a deep breath and sighed. Oh sweet, clean, mead-free air. How I missed thee.

Vilkas, unfortunately, took this as something it was not. He smirked and walked out onto the training grounds, wooden shield and sword in hand. "Don't worry, I won't hurt you. Much."

Sálea boiled. Th-that, that disgusting, cocky, arrogant, pig! She was going to bury him in the dirt! Stalking over, Sálea grabbed a wooden sword and stood in front of him. Vilkas was still smirking at her. "Just have a few swings at me so I can see your form. Don't worry, I can take it."

Sálea nodded, raised her sword in a ready position, and waited. A few moments passed and when Vilkas refused to move, Sálea decided to strike first. With quick movements, she rushed forward and swung her sword to the right. Vilkas predicted this and moved quickly to block her strike with his shield. He retaliated and made to jab her with his sword but Sálea spun out and away. But as she did, she managed to hit him in the side strong enough to distract him. Seizing the moment, Sálea lifted her sword up and struck downwards, her blade making contact with his shield with all the dragon strength she could muster. Was it cheating? Maybe, but the bastard deserved it. Vilkas was knocked down onto his knee, symbolizing her victory.

It was dead silent and only after people started whispering behind them did she become aware of their presence. Turning, she saw the companions from earlier watching her, the redhead in particular. Sálea looked back to Vilkas, and saw him still on the ground, breathing heavily. Maybe she overdid it. Just a little bit. Offering him her hand, Sálea watched as he hesitated a moment before allowing her to assist him.

"Not bad." Vilkas started, looking her in the eye. "Next time won't be so easy. You might just make it. But for now, you're still a whelp to us, new blood. So do what we tell you to."

Sálea below air out of her nose and nodded. Vilkas took his sword out and handed it to her. "Here's my sword. Go take it up to Eorlund to have it sharpened. And be careful, it's probably worth more than you are."

Sálea's mouth dropped. Not bad?! Next time won't be so easy?! Might just make it?! Worth more than her?!

Whelp?!

Realizing Vilkas was gone, Sálea growled. Oh, she was going to make him pay.

Dearly.