-Cultural Clash-
[Family Gathering (1)]
[5E, 42, 19th of Sun's Dawn.]
Have you ever had that moment where you would hear something so outlandish, so absurd and so bizarre that you just know what you are hearing is completely impossible in the realm of reality, yet still cannot stop yourself from wanting to learn more about it? Henrietta knows because that is exactly how she is feeling as she found herself captivated in the tales Erik, formerly known as 'The Slayer' by the populace of Skyrim and Tamriel at large, is currently regaling to her and everyone interested in listening, going on and on about the countless adventures he and his would-be Wife gone through after they have apparently prevented the End of the World itself at a maw by a being known as Alduin, which involved the two traveling to a Ruin on a Dragon's Back, entering a portal to the afterlife itself, a place that sounds strangely like Valhalla from the way he described it, and slew the ancient draconic Tyrant, banishing him from the Physical World and have his soul return to Akatosh, the Chief Deity of the Nine Divines.
Not long after that, they would join a Vampire Hunting Organization, subverting the ambition of an undead Lord to blot out the Sun thanks to his estranged daughter, and traveled to an Island known as Solstheim to once again save the world from another long-forgotten threat, before following it up with going to the Province of Cyrodiil to thwart a conspiracy that threatens the life of Emperor Titus Medes the Second, making their way to Hammerfell in order to persuade them into assisting the Empire with the upcoming Conflict, ventured into High Rock where they ended up playing a pivotal role in resolving a Succession Crisis of the Kingdom, going to Morrowind thereafter to help the Dunmer Population with their Plight, bringing them to Black Marsh to negotiated with some kind of Talking Tree according to the Nord, then finally ending their journey after exploring the land of Elsweyr to tell the Khajiit population the truth behind the event known as the Void Nights, which lead to Erik proposing to Louise when they returned home to Skyrim, with the wedding taking place in the Imperial City when the Second Great War arrived to its conclusion.
Sounds like a plot of a Novel, and in any other circumstances, the Crown Princess of Tristain would have little reason to trust in the validity of these tall tales. However, given that everything he has said line-up with what she has learned thus far about this World, not to mention that they did end up in this foreign land through a book of all things, she is more inclined to believe them, though she suspected that some of it might be an exaggeration, like the part where they entered the Paradise of the Nord, since as fanciful as the idea of reaching Heaven to do battle may be, and would certainly make for an interesting premise in a work of fiction, no such thing truly exists. Then again, she is trapped in a realm vastly different from her own, so maybe Louise and Erik got sent to another plane of existence through that portal and mistaken it for the mythical Sovengarde. Such an idea is more probable if she was going to be honest, not that she will say it out loud, instead just letting the Grizzled Man finish his story.
"-My father was really proud of me being elevated to the position of a Noble after that, though it did scold me for participating in the War without his consent." Came a sheepish laugh from the Slayer, vividly recalling the tirade his father gave him after he vanished for months, only to reveal that he went to War against the Aldmeri Dominion with his soon-to-be daughter-in-law, where both of them might never returned had it not for fate favoring them. Erik doesn't blame him for being upset after he basically went missing for months and came back to tell him that he fought in a massive, continental-spanning conflict. If anything, he got off lightly with a slap on the wrist at worst for risking his life in a Conflict he has no reason to be involved himself with, and could have potentially brought great grief and anguish to his parent had he perished on the Battlefield if he did not have his Wife watching his back at the time, "So after the Wedding, we settled down to raise our Sons and Daughters, until they came of age and went on their own way in life. Now it's quite rare to see them all in one place, so we decided to make it a tradition in the Family to come together on the day we married, and it has been that way since."
"Oh my, so today is the anniversary of your Marriage?" Henrietta could not help herself from forming a wide grin on her face as she gained a nod from Erik. How romantic. If only her own love life could be half as beautiful. Sadly though, that is something never meant to be for the Crown Princess, considering that she is set to marry Emperor Albrecht the Third of Germania for political reasons so that she could gain an ally for her Country, sentencing herself to a hollow union. At times, she wondered how pleasant it would be had she been born a commoner so that at least she could live an existence devoid of political strife and the Burden of the ungrateful Crown, where she could marry someone she truly loved. However, it was nothing but idle fantasy at best. Should there any solace to be found though, the scheduled wedding would not come for a while, allowing her to savor what little time she had left as a free Woman, and as enviable as it may be, she was glad that her Best Friend were able to have a loving relationship with her husband, despite him starting off as a peasant from the story, letting Henrietta know how much Louise has changed. Back then, she would not even entertain being in the same presence as those of lower status, let alone having any meaningful connection with them. But now, she is celebrating the 41st anniversary of what must have been the happiest day of her life, "That's wonderful!"
"Indeed. And she might get some more surprise this time around than just the gifts she would be getting from our children." Chances are, his wife is not aware of Henrietta being here at all, and as tempted as he was to use the Communication Mirror to inform her about it, the Nord ultimately decided against it in the end, finding it more enjoyable to keep it as a secret for now so he could surprise Louise later, "Speaking of which, what did you get us this time?" On a related note, the Patriarch of the Valliere Family questioned his adopted children, curious as to what kind of present they would be getting for their parents on this occasion. This may be hypocritical of him to want them to reveal what they were trying to keep close to their chest at the moment, but he already had a good idea of what they were planning to give to their beloved Mother and Father, going by the pattern of the last few years.
"I got us some rare Alto Wines. The real stuff, not those cheap, watered-down kind the Inns keep selling." Goes Blaise, the dutiful Son and Steadfast Legate of the Imperial Legion, taking out the crate of the liquor he mentioned, brewed from high-quality Juniper berries specifically cultivated for the alcohol. It was costly, but given that these things are so difficult to get ahold of, he supposed the price was warranted.
"Nothing special from me, just some jewelry from Dushkub." In Aelsan's hand was a small container, housing all sorts of precious gemstones and other luxurious accessories, having commissioned them from a famous artisan from an Orc Stronghold in the Wrothgarian Mountains, renowned for his type of Metalwork that is not regarded highly by his fellow Orsimer, not that he cared when everyone else in Tamriel always desired to obtain his products.
"I have some Scrib Cabbages with me. Planned to make Biscuits out of them." In Valsei's hand were indeed the flora native to the Homeland of the Dunmer, a rare ingredient nowadays, with only a few places left in the devastated Province of Morrowind still have them. He and Viarir have to fight several Argonians Horde to get their hands on these. Worth it, in his opinion, because the Balmora Biscuits that you can make from these are amazing.
"Me too, but only the regular kind..." Now Lucia felt inadequate in comparison, even the products she grows are top-notch in quality. Oh well, at least she can be the one that bakes the Biscuits that her Dunmer Brother wants, seeing that she has some practical experience when it comes to cooking up the cuisine of other Provinces.
"Well I, for once, got something new! Behold! My latest Novel!" As for the Altmer among them, in his hand is a pristine copy of his latest work, 'Luhn-Silvar: Azura'm Gah'amer', roughly translated as 'Moon-and-star: Azura's Champion' in the tongue of the Dark Elves, Viarir's attempt at a narrative biography of the Legendary Hero who defeated the Sharmat in the heart of the Red Mountain, saving Tamriel from the Blight; the Nerevarine. While this is far from the first attempt of someone trying to compile the Saga of the Reincarnated Chimer Saint's Journey through the isle of Vvardenfell in discovering his place within the Prophecy woven by the Daedric Prince of Dusk and Dawn, these instances are merely just lackluster, insipid accounts of the fabled figure, lacking any sort of flair to them as they deserved, which the Bard find to be absolutely abhorrent, a complete Anathema to a Writer like him, leaving him to take the matter into his own hand and composes an Account in the style of a storybook, proving to be yet another success, particularly with the Ashlanders and those that have converted to the Reclamation. With this, he is confident that his Mother would love it, especially when she enjoyed his books about the Hero of Kvatch he published several years back.
Quite a shame that the Champion of Cyrodiil was not the same man told in these Novels of his.
"Oh come on! That's hardly fair! How am I supposed to compete?!" Foul play, Doetnel says, Foul play! The only sort of gift someone of her position could procure is various animal carcasses she personally hunted that the Bosmer intended to give her Mother to cook up. No way could she surpass Viarir with that alone! Not helped by the fact that their Mother loved reading novels!
"Come on now you two, this is not a competition." Before an argument could break out, Sofie does her best to play the role of a mediator, trying to appease the two Elven siblings to stop them from escalating the situation further. Quite ironic that she is now fulfilling the role of the peacekeeper between the siblings when back then, she was prone to start bickering between them first. Times truly have a way to change people.
"Nay, it's a tournament…and I intended to be the Champion!" And leave it to Odgrub to completely undermine her effort at trying to maintain some semblance of order, "Your fancy Book cannot match mine, Viarir! Feast your eyes on this!" What he took out from the pouch strapped on his Bone Armor caused nearly every eye to widen in disbelief, much to the confusion of Henrietta, her Knight, and the Blonde Elf, who saw the Orc take out what appeared to be some kind of Blue, luminescent Crystal, radiating a strange gleam, refined into the shape of a crest with strange markings carved on its surface, decorated by a bronze gear enveloped its edge. It certainly looks pretty, but none of them can tell what the significance of it is supposed to be. However, the sheer value of this mineral was not lost on the rest of his family, for this is none other than-
""AETHERIUM?!"' They could not believe their eyes, seeing the treasure that was being held by the Orismer Sibling of the Valliere. Growing up, they have heard about this particular material in one of their parents' stories at the dinner table, in which their Mother and Father cross paths with the restless Spirit of a Dwemer Scholar and a fellow adventurer who sought to reclaim her stolen achievements by trying to uncover this legendary Ore, leading to the trio to travel all across Skyrim to obtain four Shards of Aetherium before they rediscover the Forge needed to smelt this crystal into Artifacts of immense magical power. At the time, Louise and Erik believed it was the only one left in the entirety of Tamriel, and thus it was their only chance to use it, ending with them forging a Crown from the substance. But it would seem that somehow, through some means, Odgrub was able to discover another, and right now, it is in his hands, proudly presented for all of them to see.
"How?!" Viarir demanded, unable to take his gaze from the proud Orc, who merely let out an infuriating smirk, or something that resembled a smirk, at his disbelief.
"Found some inside several Dwemer's Ruins in Hammerfell. Victory is mine!" At his Declaration, every Valliere Siblings falls onto their knees in utter horror and absolute despair, knowing that the Orismer is right. Nothing they have could surpass his gift. Frustration seeped into their collective visages as they quietly grumbled to themselves, with Doetnel slamming her fist onto the wooden floor, simmering with rage, all the while Henrietta and Tiffania watched the sight unfold before them with no small amount of amusement that pooled into their features. However, they do have to wonder, just what is this 'Aetherium' thing that could that made it so valuable from the sounds of it that it could beat out Alesan's gift of expensive-looking jewels? Perhaps it is magical in nature? The two of them could certainly feel some kind of Power that was practically oozing off the crystal Crest, accompanied by the fact that it was practically glowing faintly, not from reflected light, but from the mystical energy that held within it. An artifact then?
"Hmmm...I wonder what she will do with it..." Erik mused, thinking of the sheer possibilities that this newly discovered amount of Aetherium could bring. The Nord has no plan for the Crest himself, but his Wife would likely know what to do with it. Probably going to travel to the Rift and make use of the Forge again. What she would forge from it this time, he was not sure, but she always looked forward to expanding her Collections of Artifacts, considering her habit of taking anything that captured her attention, like a crow toward shiny objects, and putting it on display just for the sake of it. Odd habit, for sure, but he is not going to judge. The thought aside though, once the far-off ringing of a bell reached the confines of the room, the Slayer shifted his attention back to reality, recognizing the meaning of the chime, "Oh, we've arrived. Let's get a move on."
Right after he said that, just about everyone picked themselves up from their respective seats, starting to make their way out of the quarter deck and head up to the upper level of the vessel, where the first thing that greeted them upon stepping foot into the outside is a structure resembled a dock, not dissimilar from the one in Solitude, and it seems they are not alone either, with another humongous Ship moored to their side, decorated with bright crimson paints on its hull, though other than the vibrant color, the most eye-catching feature of this Boat was the figurehead, fashioned in the same of a fearsome, snarling Dragon. While there are many imitators out there trying to replicate the form of this Drake, none could capture the Majesty of the craftsmanship, allowing the Valliere to discern the identity of the Ship right away.
"Ah, Bramman is already here." Observing from a safe distance, Valsei let out a small hum, recognizing the Ship that the 'disgrace' of the Valliere Household is the Captain of. Been a while since he and his siblings had seen their Argonian Brother, with the last time they met him being a year ago during the last Family Gathering, in which he told them about the conflict he got into with the Maormer, or more informally known as Sea Elves' navy fleet when they were sailing near Pyandonea. Thankfully, nobody was severely injured in the battle, though the Sanguine Galley was nearly destroyed by one of the giant domesticated serpents that their attacker tamed for seafaring navigation, and when the situation called for it, Combat. Good thing that it did not actually happen, otherwise Bramman would have died on that day, or worse, captured by the enigmatic race of Elf, "Hope he got those Shadowbanish wines all set up. I've been looking forward to trying them again."
"I'm more partial to Stumblefoot's reserve myself." Shadowbanish is all well and good, but in Alesan's opinion, it just doesn't compare to his favorite, a liquor that is just as rare.
"Hope we got Sujamma this time around." Viarir whispered to himself. While many Altmer, mainly from the now defunct Thalmor of the Aldmeri Dominion, condemned him for his fondness toward 'Lesser Races' swill' as they so generously put it, as someone who grown up in Morrowind before being adopted by Louise, he has grown up drinking leftover Sujamma that was thrown away due to the polluted water of the Province being less than ideal as a source of hydration, and it quickly became his favorite. Help that by drinking the brew, he got a lot more creative when it came to writing, "But enough talking, let's go, Mother is waiting."
Resuming their journey, the group began to move across the black beach of the island, going around the side of the imposing Keep that drew the eyes of the Halkeginian, taking in the sight. When it comes to appearance, it looks far less attractive than the royal castle back in Tristain, being a far more simple design than the extravagant, over-elaborated one in Tristania, but the size of this place is differently comparable to it, making Henrietta wonder if this has once belonged to a Noble Family of some kind. Perhaps this is granted to Louise when her family name becomes recognized by the Empire? Well, she would get her answer soon enough, as they finally reached the entrance, knocked on the double door, with it swung wide open after a few minutes of waiting, and the one that greeted them was.
"There you are! I was starting to get worried- Wait, H-Henrietta?!" Though she has grown older, almost to the point that she was beyond recognition, there is no mistaking that flowing hair of bright pink shade, those crimson red eyes that shone brilliantly, or that voice, though deeper than what she could recall, still retain that distinct tone unique to one person that the Crown Princess is quite familiar with. The woman in front of her, though aged considerably, is her best friend, Louise De La Valliere, whose features were colored by a picture-perfect example of surprise, but before anyone could utter anything, the look of shock on the Matriarch of the Valliere Household morphed into one of delight, as she went for an embrace, wrapping her arms around the Scion of the Tristain's Royal Family, one that she immediately returned with no small amount of enthusiasm herself, "...To think you would be here too..." After meeting her parents and Sisters that she has yet to learn how, the effect of Henrietta's presence here was far more subdued, but it was no less blindsiding to the Dragonborn.
"Neither would I thought that I'd see you again either...Good to know that you are doing alright, Louise." A smile was shared between two friends, as the emotion spread to all the bystanders, watching the Pink-haired woman reuniting with one of the few people she had a positive relationship with. However, it soon left her features when she saw someone in the distance, whose face soured her Mood greatly. Confused by the sudden change of mood in the air, everyone traced the direction that Louise's gaze was directed toward, where their eyes laid upon a certain pair of people, an uncertain expression on their faces as they locked eyes with their daughter, "Duchess Valliere? And Duke too?"
"Wait...Duchess and Duke? That means...You-!" Odgrub may not be the smartest of his siblings, but when given enough pieces to work with, he can assemble the full picture quite quickly. When he heard the Princess addressed the two unfamiliar people, one of whom look eerily similar to his Mother, as Valliere, it left him and his Siblings confused, since they were fairly certain these people were not part of their family, but in a span of the time it took for the heart to beat, it dawned on them, recalling who else that bears that Family name; Their Mother's side of the Family, and when that clicked in place, the Orc's visage twisted into a fierce growl, drawing the Hammer of Malacath, intended to caved their skull with it. However, it was stopped when a hand placed on his jagged pauldron, by Louise of all people, the last person he expected to stop him, "Mother?"
"Don't. I invited them here. They are our esteemed guests. Treat them well." With a voice dripping with palpable sarcasm, making Karin and Centurion flinch, Louise huffed, twisting the heel of her boot before returning to the inside of the Castle, beckoning the rest to follow her. At first, there was an awkward standoff between the group and the two Vallieres, until Odgrub sheathed his Maul, yet did not take his focus off the two, a glare of seething hostility clear in his Ruby-colored eyes, an emotion spread to all the Valliere siblings, with the only one that did not in the group being Herneitta and her Knight, confused by the suffocating tension in the air. Tiffania, who remains oblivious to the whole situation...And Erik, who merely frowned.
Not to Karin and Centurion, but at the dismissive attitude of his Wife toward her parents. He knows her reason for why she behaved this way around them. But...
He had to do something about it.
To be Continued...
