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Chapter Text

The night fell on Solitude like a veil that begins to obscure things.
Alyx, Viarmo, and Giraud decided to pass by The Winking Skeever to take a few jugs of mead and talk about the events of the day.
That night the inn was quite full and it took them some time to find a table where they would not be disturbed.
They asked for something to drink and when they had the pitchers they began to ask themselves questions and comment on other things.

"It still seems unfair to me that the Jarl does not let us celebrate the burning of King Olaf...".

The girl sighed rather dejectedly and drank from her jug.
The two men understood her perfectly, since it was a tradition that they had been doing for many years and enjoyed that time of the year.

"We can not do anything, not anymore...".

Giraud ate a piece of bread and Viarmo finished his jug in a few drinks.
The night continued very lively and they could enjoy the impressive voice of Lisette with some of her songs.
At a certain hour almost everyone started to leave and Alyx decided that it was also her time to go to rest.

"Gentlemen, if I may, I think it is time for me to retire".

She rose from the table as she finished her jug of mead.
They both said goodbye to her and saw her getting out a little dizzy from the establishment.
The huge starry sky stretched over Solitude and its streets were full of silence except for the scattered guards who came and went.
She arrived at the college shortly and met some of her classmates who greeted her cheerfully.
Given the time almost everyone was sleeping, although from somewhere unidentified place she could hear a lute and a sweet and sharp voice.
The bard came into her room trying not to stumble and fell flat on the bed.
It was not long before she fell asleep, for at the touch of the soft sheets sleep fell upon her like a wild beast.

She woke up quite late and with an extremely unpleasant headache as was normal on hangover mornings.
Alyx noticed that the college was more uproar than usual, so she decided to prepare a little before going down to see what was due.
She washed her face with icy water and dressed with the first thing she could find, which was a dark green blouse and black pants.
She descended the stairs slowly as a multitude of voices surrounded her.
As soon as she saw Giraud, he approached her.

"What's going on?".

He smiled broadly and hugged her with all his might.

"We will be able to celebrate the burning of King Olaf!".

At that moment all she wanted was to kill him, but she managed to deal with the incessant stabs of pain that pierced her head every second.
Joy seized her, and she smiled so hard that her cheeks ached.

"How did you do it?".

"If you wait here for a moment, I will bring you to the responsible of this wonderful event".

Giraud ran off to another room on the ground floor, and several minutes later he returned with a female Bosmer who was accompanied by a brunette nordic woman.
The elf was blonde and her skin was quite clear.
Her orange eyes locked on Alyx, whom she greeted with a slight nod.
The brunette woman also greeted her and approached the elf more to say something in her ear.
As she pulled away, she moved to a nearby bench and sat down on one of them.
Giraud wrapped his arm around Alyx's shoulders and gave her a slight squeeze.

"I left the presentations to you, because I must attend to more important issues, have a good day".

Both women said goodbye to him and approached the other who had sat before.
They sat around a table and Alyx could not stop looking at the blond-haired woman.
Her hands sweated slightly and she smiled.

"I would like to thank you for what you have done, I have been living this celebration for many years and it would have been a shame to never be able to do it again".

"It was nothing, neither was it so difficult to get those lost verses".

The girl looked at her closely for a long moment as she spoke to her companion, unable to stop thinking that she had already seen that woman somewhere else.
The elf realized that she had been watching her and she blushed so much that for a moment she lost the ability to speak.

"By the way you look at me for a while I'm starting to think there's something you want to ask me".

"Yes, and I'm sorry if I disturbed you in any way, I did not mean to stare".

"Do not worry, it's not your fault, many people are dumbfounded looking at me, but without entertaining us more, ask me what you want".

Alyx cleared her throat and took a deep breath.

"Have you ever been to High Hrothgar?".

"Several times, any special reason to ask?".

The girl remained silent for a long time until she realized.
She rose abruptly and opened her mouth so wide that it seemed as if she were about to disengage her jaw.

"You are the Dragonborn!".

At the reaction of the girl the other two women laughed and the elf smiled.

"I am the Dragonborn, my name is Elyel and this is Lydia".

The Dragonborn pointed to her companion, who could not stop laughing at the sight of Alyx's face.
Once she had calmed down, she sat down and rubbed her forehead with her hands.

"You must think I'm rude, my name is Alyxa, but everyone calls me Alyx, it's a pleasure to meet you both".

"The pleasure is ours, we have heard of you on occasions and we are surprised that someone as young as you has such an incredible voice".

"I have had very good teachers and a lot of time to learn everything I needed".

She got up and went to a nearby table in which were laying several packages whose contents she did not know.
Yhe girl picked them up and said goodbye to the two women before leaving the college and heading to Castle Dour, where General Tullius was waiting for her to give them to him.
When Viarmo asked her to deliver them, she flatly refused, for she felt a great hatred for the Imperials, and wanted to see them out of Skyrim at any cost.
Even so, she finally agreed when she knew the amount of money she would receive and sighed bitterly before leaving the packages on that table to deliver them when she could.

She went out into the street with the packages under her arm and the sunlight struck her face so that she could not see anything until she had become accustomed to the light.
The girl walked slowly down the street trying to dodge several of the children playing in it.
When she arrived at Castle Dour, guards prevented her from entering, and she was very annoyed to explain the reason for their visit, after which they let her in.
The General was standing at a table above the map of Skyrim, full of red and blue flags.
Everyone present turned to her as she entered, and Tullius put his hands on the table.

"What a surprise, I did not expect you to be the person who came to deliver the packages".

Alyx frowned and set the packages on the table.
The rage began to boil inside her body and all she wanted to do was punch that bastard's face but she held back.

"I would like to receive my money so that I can get out of here as quickly as possible, if it does not seem bad to you".

He beckoned to one of his men, who handed her a bag full of coins and returned to the place where he was before.

"You would fit very well in our ranks girl, are you sure you do not want to join us?".

That was the last straw.
She threw the bag to the ground and left without saying a word.
When she was back at the college she took the first bottle of wine she saw and sat where Elyel and Lydia were, who looked at her in surprise.

"Has something happened Alyx?".

"The Imperials think they can do whatever they want".

She poured herself a glass of wine and emptied it in one gulp.
Elyel knew at the time that it was a Stormcloak and hated the Empire as much as Ulfric himself.
Although she did not blame her, she had the right to be angry if they addressed issues that did not seem appropriate.

"At some point all this will be solved".

"I know, but until then it will only be a nightmare".

They were silent for a long time, and Elyel spoke.

"Lydia, I've decided that we could go to Windhelm".

"You know I'm not opposed to your decisions, so we'll do whatever you want".

The woman rested her hands on her lap and smiled sweetly at her companion.
Alyx looked up after hearing Windhelm's name.

"When will you leave?".

"We'll leave in a half hour".

"Can I go with you? I have family there and I'm tired of being in Solitude".

"Of course, and you'd better get ready as soon as possible, we'll wait for you out of town when we're ready".

They got up and said goodbye to the girl before leaving.
She went up to her room to put everything she needed into a bag, and after she had finished she grabbed her sword, hung her bow on her back and left the room with the bag in her hand.
She spoke with Viarmo about her departure, and after having left her the greatest of luck on her journey she ran to meet them at the city gate.

"Ready?".

"Of course, it's just that I'd like to stay and see the burning of King Olaf".

The girl looked at the floor and drew small circles with the tip of her boot.
Elyel came up behind her and put her hand on her shoulder.

"We do not have time to wait for you, or you come with us or you travel alone".

"Then let's not waste more time here".

The three of them set off to try to get to Windhelm as quickly as possible before any storm or anything worse interrupted their journey.

Chapter Text

After a week of travel the three women arrived in Whiterun due to an unexpected change of plans and they set up a small camp to rest.
The bard kept looking at the city, and that caught the attention of the Dragonborn.

"Whiterun is a good place, you could ask the Jarl for a job".

The girl chewed on the piece of meat she had taken to her mouth and drank some wine.
She watched as the sun hid behind the city and disappeared solwly.

"It's not a bad idea, but I do not really like the idea of playing at the court of the Jarl, I would like something simpler and I know the tavern is already occupied, so that place is discarded".

Elyel thought for several minutes and had an idea.

"There is a place called Jorrvaskr, where the Companions live, I could try to get you to work there, although I do not promise anything".

Alyx grinned from ear to ear and hugged the Dragonborn.
The elf laughed at that lovely gesture and hugged her too.

"Thank you very much, I owe you one".

"It's nothing, if I can help somebody I do, and now it is better that we go to sleep, Lydia and I still have some days of travel".

They tried to sleep as much as they could and the next morning they went to Jorrvaskr.
The Companions, as Alyx had realized, were living on a boat that had been turned around, which surprised her greatly.
They approached the door and Elyel opened it.

"I'll go in alone, Lydia".

"Okay, I'll watch Alyx, do not worry".

The blond woman entered the building and left them sitting on the stone steps.
Several children were playing around the square, screaming and laughing.
The girl took her lute out of her bag and placed it on her lap.

"Would you like to hear some music Lydia?".

"Sure, it's never a bad time for it".

She tapped the strings several times trying to find the perfect pitch and began to play a cheerful melody that made people stop to listen and some members of The Companions came to see who was the person that was playing.
Once the song was over, everyone applauded and returned to their chores.
All but the children, who watched her waiting for another song.

"I'll play some other song later".

The kids ran away and kept playing.
After a while, Elyel gave no sign of life and that worried Alyx a little.

"Do you think she will be all right?".

"Don't worry about her".

They remained silent for a while, until the door opened and two identical men came out.
One of them was bigger than the other and had hair at shoulder height.
The other had a shorter hair and looked at them a little pissed.

"You are blocking the way".

His icy blue eyes stared at Alyx, and the two women turned away from him.
When they had disappeared from her sight she cursed under her breath several times.
Soon the door opened and Elyel stepped out.

"Have you achieved anything?".

She nodded and put her hand on her shoulder.

"You have to come with me, he wants to see you".

The elf took Alyx's hand and carried it with her.
The interior of Jorrvaskr was all that the girl had been able to expect, but she could not see much as the Dragonborn dragged her constantly forward and did not let her stop.
From the corner of her eye she could see that on one side was a fight involving a woman and a Dunmer.
Elyel took her downstairs where they met an old woman.

"Hello, Elyel, it's good to see you".

"Hi Tilma, I'm glad to see you as well".

They continued down the hall until they reached a door that was closed.

"Stay here, I'll be right back".

The elf opened the door and entered.
She appeared shortly afterwards and told her to enter.
The door swung open and she saw that there was an old man with white hair.

"I thought it was an older person, not a child".

The man looked at Alyx steadily and she was even more nervous.
The Dragonborn came out in her defense and put her arm around her shoulders.

"Believe me when I tell you that you will not be disappointed, I have heard her play and she is good".

"Then let's see it, girl, play something".

They sat on chairs at a table, and Alyx clutched the mast of her lute.
She placed the lute in a comfortable position and played a melody that had always been very popular and praised among college members.

"Not bad, but I want you to sing something, so I'll know if Elyel is cheating me or not".

The old man took a more comfortable position in his seat and looked at the elf.
The girl tuned the strings a bit and began to sing along with a somewhat slow and sad melody.

"Spirit of the wolf.
You, who wander through the wild lands.
You, who stare in the silent shadows.
You run and jump
Among the moss-covered trees,
Lend me your strength,
And the wisdom of your bright eyes.
Teach me to relentlessly track my desires,
And to stand in defense of those whom I love.
Teach me the hidden ways and the fields of the moon.
Fierce spirit,
Walk with me in my loneliness,
Howl with me in my joy
And protect me as I move through this world."

Alyx lowered the lute and breathed deeply trying to calm her nerves and looked at the old man.
From the bottom of her heart she hoped he would have liked it, but now she only waited for his decision.
He rose from his chair and approached her.

"I need you to leave one moment".

"Of course".

Alyx left the room and closed the door behind her.

"What do you think of her Kodlak?".

"I may give her a chance, but it does not depend on me alone".

"I know, I'm sure everyone does, but I have my doubts about Aela and Vilkas".

"I'll take care of them, do not worry".

"I believe you, but you know how they are, Farkas would like her right away, but you know that Vilkas at first gets out of everybody and can be cruel at times".

"And Aela will be no less".

They both laughed at that remark and drank some mead.

"When you go, tell her to come in and I'll talk to her".

"Okay, I'll tell her to come in, I'll try to visit her from time to time to see how she's doing".

"See you soon Elyel".

The elf got up and left the room.

Chapter Text

Alyx watched something nervous as the door opened and the elf came out.

"Kodlak wants to talk to you, maybe when you're done we're not here, but I promise we'll come to see you when we can."

The two women hugged and the brunette smiled.

"Good luck on your trip, I will look forward to your visits."

"Take care of yourself, little one."

After the farewell Alyx entered the room in which Kodlak was and Elyel went out to meet with Lydia to continue towards Ventalia.
The girl shyly opened the door and slowly entered the old man's gaze.

"Did you want to talk to me, sir?"

"Yes, close the door and sit down."

He pointed to a chair that was next to hers and smiled slightly to reassure her, since the poor girl was a bundle of nerves.
She sat down and put her hands on her lap waiting for some response, whether good or bad.

"I will give you a chance, tomorrow we will celebrate a small party and I want you to play in it, it will be then when I decide if you work for us or not, a man named Farkas will go to the inn."

"Thank you very much, I will not disappoint you."

The girl's face lit up and she smiled full of joy.
He made a small bow and left the room.
He opened the huge wooden door to leave Jorrvaskr when something hit her.
He tried to keep his balance, apologized and ran away.
He found the inn relatively quickly and entered.
Inside there was a very good atmosphere and you could hear how a bard sang the song of Ragnar the Red.
Alyx approached the bar and sat on one of the stools.
The woman on the other side approached her.

"Good afternoon girl, do you want to rent a room or do you prefer to buy something to eat?"

"I would like both if possible, thanks."

"Right away".

She turned around and a few minutes later she put a steaming bowl of tomato soup with pieces of meat in front of her.
The girl thanked her with a slight movement.

"When you finish eating, I will take you to your room".

She left behind the counter and went to the kitchen, where she began talking with another woman with brown skin.
The girl ate without much haste listening to the songs of the bard that was in the room and after finishing, they showed her her room.
She left her things on the bed and paid her the fifteen coins she owed her.

"Go quiet, Saadia will watch your stuff while you're gone".

Alyx smiled and they went back down to the ground floor.

"If you need anything, ask for Hulda and I will gladly help you".

She returned to the place where she was before her arrival and the young woman went outside.
The square was full of people coming and going and everywhere the laughter and shouts of children playing in the city could be heard.
Alyx thought about going to the smithy to buy a new dagger, since the one she had was somewhat rusty and not sharp because she had not used it for a long time.
She went down the stairs and in the middle of the square, an old woman stopped her.

"You are not the girl who was playing before in front of Jorrvaskr?".

"Yes ma'am".

"I really liked how you played".

At the comment of that kind old woman she could not help smiling broadly.
It had always filled her with joy to play for people and make them happy just for a few moments.

"Thank you".

"My name is Fralia Melena Gris, my husband works in the forge of heaven in Jorrvaskr."

"I am Alyx, delighted."

"I know that it will seem to you that I am a gossip, but since you surely work with the Companions, I would like to know more about you."

That caught her off guard and made her blush, since no one had ever really stopped to ask her that kind of thing.

"Don't worry, it doesn't bother me."

They sat on one of the benches that surrounded the large tree in the center of the square.

"I've never had much to tell, but hey ..."

The streets began to empty of people with the fall of the sun.

"And that's it, I think I haven't left anything ..."

The brown-haired girl raised her arms over her head and made a small noise as she stretched.

"You have an interesting story."

"That depends on who is told."

Both women got up from the bank and smiled.

"It was a pleasure to hear you little girl, now I have to go home."

"The pleasure has been mine to have been able to hang out with someone as kind as you, I must also return to the inn, until tomorrow Fralia."

They said goodbye with a tender hug and each one left by their side.
She entered the inn, had dinner and went to bed a little nervous to know what the future would hold in Whiterun.

The chirping of the birds echoed everywhere and Alyx slowly opened her eyes, while listening to a great noise on the ground floor.
She muttered something between her teeth and stepped out from under the blankets.
At that moment Hulda opened the door and left some water before leaving her alone again.
She shoved his hands into the bowl and shivered slightly when she noticed how cold it was.
She tried to wash herself as thoroughly as she could and once dry,s he took a beautiful violet dress from her bag.
She brushed her hair several times leaving it loose, grabbed the lute, ate breakfast and went outside.
She waited in front of the inn for the person who would come looking for her and watched as one of the two men she had met the day before approached her.

"Are you Alyx?".

"I don't think there are any more around here."

Both laughed loudly.
When they stopped that man showed up.

"My name is Farkas and Kodlak has sent me to look for you."

"Nice to meet you Farkas, my name is Alyxa but everyone calls me Alyx."

"We have to hurry, they are waiting and everyone is curious to hear you."

"I will try not to disappoint you."

"That's the spirit".

Inside Jorrvaskr there was a festive atmosphere, everyone laughed and drank, even Kodlak, something that surprised her a lot.
The old man approached her and placed his hands on her shoulders.

"I'm glad you came and now we would love to hear from you."

He led her to the center of the group of people telling her to sit in a chair.
He pushed down slightly to make her sit down and walked away to join the rest.
Everyone was quietly waiting for her to begin and out of the corner of her eye she watched as Farkas' brother entered and leaned against the wall watching her with total lack of curiosity.
Alyx took a deep breath trying not to think about all the eyes that were on her and began to play.
Her first song was one she learned during her first trip to Elsweyr with her father and her little sister.
Images and memories of that trip began to emerge in her head.
She missed traveling to distant lands and wondered if at any time she would do it again.
Once the song was over, she looked at everyone trying to find out if they would have liked it or not.

"Where have you learned that song?".

"I learned it during a trip I made to Elsweyr with my family."

"It seems very complicated."

"It is".

Kodlak got up and offered her a glass of ale.
She thanked him and drank a little.
Near them sat a dark elf who wore his hair in a high ponytail.

"Do you know any song that is sung here?".

"In the bard school they taught us all kinds of songs so yes, I can say that I know quite a lot of songs around here."

She rested her lute against her chest and took some air.

"The wolf approached the great
Jorrvaskr, to meet
with the children of Ysgramor.

They said what it was, a
omen, to leave us
Desperate and helpless.

The wolf discovered his
fangs and extended their
claws, and tore his
own skin.

Drink the blood, and be thirsty
my children, or at dawn
you are not going to survive. "

She lowered the lute and waited for the public's reactions with some fear.
Instantly applause and shouts of approval were heard throughout the room.

"Do you think it's good or not?".

Everyone nodded at Kodlak's question and the occasional pat on the girl's back.
Despite how accustomed she was to the crowds, she could never avoid blushing slightly.
Alyx lifted her head slightly and looked at Vilkas, who broke away from the wall in disgust and went out into the courtyard.
The old man realized this and put his hand on her shoulder.

"He's like that, don't worry."

"There's always someone who doesn't like it, I'm used to it ...".

The party continued several more hours without decaying in the slightest.
Everyone present drank, laughed and screamed from time to time.
Somewhere in the room a fight was taking place but nobody was doing anything since they knew it was nothing serious.
And at one point Farkas looked at Alyx somewhat worried.

"Are you okay?".

"Yes, it's just that I think I drank a little more tha usual, I'll go out a little to get some air."

"Great and if you need anything do not hesitate to ask."

"Thank you".

With a trembling step, Alyx went outside through one of the doors leading to the courtyard.
She left the lute on the floor and leaned on one of the wooden columns that supported the roof covering the area where there were several tables and chairs that the Companions used to rest while training.
The night seemed calm and the stars shone brightly in the sky.
Without realizing it, she began humming one of the songs her father used to sing to Dennara and her when they were little.
The moon rose in the sky and covered Whiterun with its silver glow.
During the last minutes the girl could not help feeling that something was watching her and she looked around the area until she stopped suddenly.
From the furthest part of the courtyard, completely covered in shadows, large blue eyes watched her.
She tried to move, but those eyes didn't let her.
She swallowed and tried to look away, but it was impossible and she was increasingly attracted to them.
The courtyard door opened with a great rumble and several people fell to the ground while fighting.

"What...?".

She pulled away from the column as they approached with a clean punch.
Each time they were closer to her and she didn't know where to go to avoid them.
Panic ran through her slightly and she felt something huge around her waist and tug at her.
She shouted but calmed down when she saw who he was.

"What a scare you gave me Farkas."

"Sorry, it wasn't my intention to scare you."

"Thanks for getting me out of there."

"Is nothing".

The huge Nordic released her and smiled.

"Should we stop them?".

"Do not worry, they will stop when they can no longer."

They remained silent for a few minutes.
Alyx couldn't get those blue eyes out of her head no matter how hard he tried.

"It's late, you should go to rest a little."

"I will do that, I feel a little exhausted."

"See you tomorrow".

He inclined his head slightly as a parting.

"See you tomorrow".

Alyx gave him a light kiss on the cheek as she took her things and left.
She entered the tavern and lay on her bed thinking about the three or four months she had left to sleep peacefully in the inn.
She tried to sleep but the image of those blue eyes returned every time she tried.
She wondered several times what that would be.
She closed her eyes again and after a while she managed to fall asleep.

Chapter Text

The weeks went by without many changes in the city.
Alyx continued to sing in Jorrvaskr some nights and was paid due for her performances.
The children who were always playing in the streets adored her and asked for songs over and over again.
Even some of them asked her to show them how to play.
On a morning when the weather seemed to get worse and worse, the girl decided to take a walk through the woods near the city.
After a while she sat on some rocks, closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
Quickly all the sounds of the forest absorbed her and she began to feel a great peace, until three wolves that did not seem very friendly came to her.
She opened her eyes slowly and tried to remember the scream that probably calmed them.
She let them get closer to her and shouted.

"Kaan Drem Ov!".

Her Thu'um reached the animals which soon after ran off.
The tranquility returned to the clearing but unfortunately it did not last long.
In the distance shouts were heard and the metal collided so she knew someone was fighting.
With a quick step she decided to approach to see what was happening and hid behind a tree that had a huge trunk.
She watched the scene carefully trying not to be seen.
Among the trees several bandits faced a single enemy.
Alyx could not identify him but noticed that he was definitely outnumbered.
She decided to help that person either later friend or foe.
She prepared her bow and stealthily approached the fight.
She shot some arrows at the trees to distract them.
The leader of the group laughed and attacked his enemy again.

"It seems someone has come to rescue you".

"Well, I think they have come to rescue you instead...".

After that phrase the bandits attacked that individual but in his place was a huge werewolf.
Alyx did not know where it had come from but an irrational fear seized her and ran with all her might to the protection of the walls while behind her the bandits found their end in a horrible way.
She hated being such a coward but at times like that there was no choice but to run away.
She took refuge in the inn and spent several days without leaving her room.
The nord girl could say that few things scared herbut the ones that terrified her were werewolfs.
She had had some encounters with those creatures in the past and was lucky to stay alive.
Shee still wondered who that person would be since she couldn't see his face but what worried her most was knowing that if he had been there that day he could be inside the city and she wouldn't know.
Despite that event she tried to continue acting as if nothing had happened and that morning she asked Farkas to train with her.
She hadn't had a chance to do much lately and she didn't want to lose practice.

"If you keep getting distracted you are going to lose an eye".

"Sorry, I have many things on my mind".

"Well, let's drink and I'm sure everything will be clear".

Alyx laughed and followed the Nord inside where they sat on one of the benches and chatted while pouring some bottles of mead.
Since she met him she had gotten along with him and they considered themselves as friends.

" I haven't seen your brother in a few days, is he all right?".

"Kodlak sent him to a job".

"It seemed to me that everything was pretty quiet".

"Do you have any brothers Alyx?".

"I have a little sister named Dennara but we don't see each other much lately, I travel a lot and she is at the College of Winterhold".

"You'll get some time to go see her".

"I hope so ".

While they were still talking, Aela approached them and claimed Farkas.
After saying goodbye to her they left the girl alone who after a few minutes returned to the inn and spent the rest of the day in her room.
Alyx opened her eyes suddenly trying to catch air.
Her pulse was shot and her body was trembling strongly.
She had had another nightmare.
She went outside the inn to get some air but in the end she remained there until dawn.
She returned to her room and lay on the bed, which made her fall asleep.

"Kodlak I need to talk to you".

The old man turned when he heard the girl's voice.

"Of course, what is it about?".

"You see, tomorrow I plan to leave for High Hrothgar and I wanted to let you know so that you would know and not think that I was gone so as not to return".

"Will you go alone?".

She nodded and sat in the chair next to the man.

"It can be a dangerous path and I'm not sure you should go alone".

"I have been alone many times but if you consider that someone must accompany me I will not argue".

"Excellent, you prepare everything for your departure and I will send someone to accompany you".

"Thank you Sir".

"Is nothing".

Alyx left the room and was preparing throughout the day everything she needed for the trip.
While taking a small walk outside the city she found a small fox that fled from her but shortly after returned and did not stop following her.
She tried to make him leave but in the end she decided to keep it when she saw fail her attempts to scare him away.
She named him Rivet.
Already at night she returned to the inn, had dinner and retired to her room so she could sleep a little before the sun rose.
When she woke up she collected all her things, put on her armor and picked up some food that Hulda had left her.
She said goodbye to the woman and left the inn.
The streets were still deserted and for them there were only the guards.
Since her conversation with Kodlak she had wondered who would be her traveling companion and waited excitedly to be Farkas but instead it was Vilkas who was waiting for her on the road.

"Do you have all your stuff?".

"Good morning to you too, of course I have everything, let's get going...".

They undertook their journey in silence without paying much attention to each other.
At last with the fall of the night they stopped.
They set up a small camp and ate something light.
Vilkas offered to make the first guard and Alyx got into her sleeping bag.
At dawn they continued their journey and remained the same, neither spoke and seemed to have no intention of it.
Rivet followed them at a distance and only approached them when they stopped to rest.
Alyx had noticed that the animal was getting a little nervous near Vilkas but could not guess the cause.
Ivarstead was still several days away but she wasn't in a hurry to arrive and the weather was not accompanying them too much.
The nord girl had tried to talk to him but she always ended up thinking twice and was returning to her affairs.
Within everything that could happen during the trip everything was going normally until a night when they stopped to sleep in a small cave.

Vilkas had gone out to look for some more wood for the fire and for a long time he had left.
She knew that he was fine but she still couldn't stop worrying.
The girl decided to go looking for him sword in hand and searched the area.
She did not find him but found his armor lying on the ground.
She frowned slightly and tried to think where he could have gone.
She took his armor to the cave and went back to look for him.
Alyx passed through some bushes and searched the road.
Everything was silent but something was not right, she could notice the tension in the air.
Something moved through the bushes but stopped immediately.
The girl turned slowly in that direction.
She froze at the sight of the pair of red eyes that were fixed on her.
She thought about what she could do but panic seized her when a huge werewolf emerged from between the plants.
She knew that the worst thing she could do was run but she had to get away from that thing.
She tried to distract him and when she saw an opportunity she started running.
The icy air filled her lungs and soon her legs began to burn.
The nord girl couldn't stop running, if she did she was dead.
With so much darkness she couldn't find any place to hide.
Her vision clouded slightly and she realized she was crying.
She stopped momentarily behind a tree to clear herself and it was when she saw it.
Among some rocks there was an opening large enough to hide.
She advanced as much as she could in the hole and breathed something quieter.
Alyx still wasn't out of danger but now she knew she could rest a little.
The creature continued searching for her incessantly until it discovered the hole.
The giant beast tried to reach her but luckily between them there was enough distance for it to fail.
Alyx screamed so high that it echoed and she thought she will pass out.
It seemed as if the night was never going to end and that nightmare would continue.
After a long time the creature stopped and ran out, which reassured the girl.
She sighed with relief but did not dare to leave her hiding place.
Alyx remained there exhausted and sore until the sunlight became visible through the hole in the rock.

Chapter Text

Alyx slowly crawled out of the hole and returned to the camp.
The terrain showed traces that the creature had been there.
She searched the surroundings for Vilkas but found no trace of him.
His armor was still there and it didn't look like they had taken anything.

"Vilkas!".

She shouted his name several times but there was no answer.
Rivet approached her and began to pull the leg of her pants.
He seemed to want to guide her towards something.
She did not hesitate and followed the little fox.
The trees made it difficult to see but they reached an area where they were more spaced.
The area seemed deserted but what caught her attention was the smell.
It seemed as if a dog had spent too much time in the water.
The closer you were the more intense the smell became and she finally found its source.
At the foot of a tree she found the member of the Companions completely naked.
She panicked when she saw that he was naked and she covered him with her cloak and from a certain distance pricked him with a stick to try to wake him up.
At first he didn't move but when she hit him he reacted.

"Wake up come on".

She pricked him several more times and threw the stick.
She moved a little further away from him and waited for him to get up.
Vilkas grunted and sat up.

"Happy?".

"Ver much".

He without saying anything else went naked to the cave leaving her alone.
Alyx growled after uncovering her eyes and picked up her cloak from the floor.
She was about to return as well when she noticed something near where the nord had been moments before.

"What is this...?".

Among a tangle of leaves and branches she found a thick piece of red cloth.
She pulled hard and watched surprised as her scarf or rather what was left of it came out of the tangle.
She couldn't understand how it got there but she knew it had to be because of Vilkas.
Somewhat angry she returned to the cave ready to confront him but she did not see him anywhere.

"Why did I thought this trip would be a good idea after all?".

She was starting to get fed up with all that but could not return, if she did she would probably disappoint Kodlak and that is not what she wanted.
She ran her hands over her face and sighed before going to get something to eat in her bag.
She pulled out a couple of apple dumplings.
It was not the most ideal meal but she was starving and was not in the mood to create a bonfire.
Once she had finished, she looked in her bag for some of the soap she had brought for cleaning but did not find it.
She thought that it might have fallen and decided to approach the river anyway to cool down a little.
Upon reaching the shore she took off several of the layers she wore until she was in a white sleeveless shirt.
She got rid of her boots leaving them aside and rolled up her pants to the knee.
Her feet were cramping but the water made that sensation calm a little.
To be honest, her whole body felt sore after the events that happened during the night.
She knew that creature was Vilkas because he was the only one with her in that place but she didn't dared to bring up the subject.
She was afraid of what might happen.
She shook her head to focus on what she was doing and tried to clean the dirt off her skin as much as she could.
She noticed that in certain areas where her skin was exposed there were scratches and cuts produced by the rocks.
They weren't serious enough to spend a potion or magic on healing them so she let them be.
She dried herself sitting in the sun while watching the landscape.
Compared to the rest of the days they had been traveling, it was being hotter than normal.
Without realizing it, she fell asleep against the rock she was leaning on without knowing that Vilkas was nearby.
Last night's memories still floated over the Nordic's head.
They were not specific things not very detailed but he could not forget the crys of Alyx.
It almost made his blood run cold.
Despite that he tried to reach her by all means.
The beast wanted to devour her despite everything he opposed.
He did not have control of the situation.
Deep down, the look on her face hurt when he woke up but he didn't blame her and he wouldn't recognize that it bothered him either.
He had already gotten used to it but that young brunette called the beast in a way that had not occurred in a long time.
It puzzled him so much that the best thing he could do was try to avoid her.
Everything was frustrated when Kodlak asked him to accompany her.
He tried to refuse but the old man unleashed his fury on him and sent him to meet her.
A nearby noise brought him out of his thoughts but he calmed down when he saw that it was only a rabbit.
With his fingers he brushed his wet hair from his face and realized that from where he was he could see the girl.
From there he could feel her pulse and blood running through her veins.
Her breathing was quieter than normal and he decided to approach slightly to realize that she was asleep.
He knelt beside her and was surprised to see that she did not react to his presence.
It was the first time he could be so close to her and watch her carefully.
He noticed the small scars and freckles that covered some areas of her skin and how some strands of hair covered her face.
He sighed and decided to take her to the camp.
He carried her on his shoulder and picked up her things.
When he arrived he laid her on her sleeping bag and covered her with the cape she had covered him with before.
He let her rest and focused on putting on his armor again.

Chapter Text

Alyx noticed something wet on her face and when she opened her eyes she saw Rivet.
He was trying to wake her up and she caressed him to see him sit by her things.
She got up slowly and tried to clear herself.
Last night's events had left her exhausted and the lack of sleep was her worst enemy.
A noise to her left caught her attention and she turned her head.
She blinked several times trying to get rid of the heaviness she felt.

"How did I get here?".

The Companion finished adjusting the armbands of his armor and fixed his icy eyes on her.

"You fell asleep by the lake and I brought you here."

"Thank you".

Without exchanging much more between them the brown haired girl put on her armor.
They picked up the camp being careful not to leave any possible trace in case someone could follow them.
They continued their trip without any other altercation and in four or five days they arrived at Ivarstead where they rested a while before climbing the mountain.

"Is it really worth it climbing up there?".

"Of course, they are like my family".

The girl drank some of her mead.

"I don't understand you and I think I prefer it to stay that way because I will never be able to do it".

Alyx smiled broadly and approached him slightly.

"Oh come on, deep down you know you like me".

"Not even in your dreams".

She heard him growl and left the inn ready to face a climb of seven thousand steps.

The icy air hit them but it did not stop them.
The nord girl tried to warm her nose with her hands without success.
She sighed defeated shaking her head.
They continued up the steps until the nightfall made them stop and set up a camp in one of the few places suitable for it.
The bonfire slightly helped them get warm.
While they were having dinner, Vilkas asked her what were the stone steles they had seen during the day and she proceeded to tell him everything she knew about them trying not to overwhelm him.

"Interesting...What exactly does say the one behind you?".

Alyx approached the stone and read it aloud.

"The Tongues at Red Mountain went away humbled;
Jurgen Windcaller began His Seven Year Meditation;
To understand how Strong Voices could fail."

She approached the fire and took out some flowers that she placed next to a few septims on the rock.

"All these emblems tell how dragons dominated humans and once they learned to use that power they defeated and ruled them instead, creating great empires, but they failed".

"I never paid much attention to all that, I always thought they were fantasies and myths that people had invented to scare children at night".

"Well, you see that on the contrary it is very real".

"It was very clear to me the day one of them attacked Whiterun".

"I heard what happened in the city, pretty nasty business but I never thought she would be the Dragonborn".

"There are always people who are destined for big things".

"True, but in my opinion, for her it is an immense burden".

"It may have been her destiny from the beginning".

"If she had known what she was getting into, she would surely have run away".

Both smiled at the comment and remained silent.
She embrced her knees against her chest and a question stormed her mind.

"Can I ask you something?".

He looked at her and nodded.

"You were the werewolf who attacked me the other night?".

The dark-haired man ran his hand over his face thinking how he could say it but only a single word came from his lips.

"Yes".

That answer caught her off guard because she didn't expected he would admit it so easily but she didn't wanted to pressure him, although if she was sincere with herself she still felt some fear being alone with the nord.

"Ask Kodlak when we come back, he can talk to you about it, it is not a topic I am comfortable talking with you, not after what happened".

"I understand, I will not bring up the subject again, my apologies...".

They got into the sleeping bags after fueling the fire a little more and tried to sleep a little.

"We don't have much food left...".

"It could be a problem".

"Is it too far yet?".

"We have a little left".

They ate some bread and cheese and continued the ascension.
Upon reaching the ninth emblem they saw a woman sitting in front of it.
They decided not to disturb her and remained silent until they had moved away a few meters.
They climbed up some stone stairs and despite the strong wind a roar reached their ears.
They waited full of tension until a frost troll emerged behind some rocks.
Alyxa drew her sword and used a fire spell against it which caused the creature to step back a few steps but not enough to be safe.
She looked for Vilkas to make sure he was with her but she didn't see him anywhere.
That little distraction cost her much as she suddenly noticed how a huge force crashed into her.
She flew out towards a rock wall and all the air in her lungs escaped her body.
Her side burned and her vision became more blurred at times.
She knew that would be her end.
She thought of her family and how desolate they would be upon hearing of her death but the final blow never came.
Despite her bad vision she observed the battle that took place before her.
Vilkas fully transformed attacked the other creature, ripping its head in the process.
Finished the battle he adopted his human appearance and he approached Alyx.
He shook her a couple of times but saw that she was unconscious.
He lifted the girl from the snow and carried her on his shoulder without forgetting to take her sword.
He didn't knew how much was left to reach their destination but he continued walking surrounded by wind and snow.

Chapter Text

Before them stood majestic High Hrothgar.
Everything was very quiet except for the times when Alyx's groans reached Vilkas's ears.
Her breathing didn't sound too good, probably because of a rib-punctured lung.
He tried to hurry as fast as he could to get her to the Graybeards.
He pushed open the front door, knocking it against the stone wall, and the air pushed them inside.
The noise alerted the inhabitants of the monastery and several of them approached to find out what was happening.
They were surprised to see the nord with another person on his shoulder.

"We need help, we have been attacked and she is getting worse".

The Graybeards approached them and caught the girl.
They took her to a bed and laid her down to examine her.
Master Arngeir held his breath momentarily when he saw that it was Alyx.

"What happened?".

"On the way a frost troll attacked us throwing her against a rock wall".

"Did you kill it?".

"Yes".

The old Graybeard sighed and opened a small red bottle.
He brought it to the girl's lips and she drank its contents with disgust.
Slowly he removed her armor until she was slightly lighter, and covered her body with a pair of thick fur blankets.
He got up and placed his hand on the nord shoulder.

"Come with me, we must let her rest and I think you will like to clean up all that blood that is on you".

The old man took him to an area where he could have some privacy and gave him what he needed.
The werewolf discarded his armor leaving it on the ground.
The shirt underneath had large dark spots and was sticking to his skin.
There seemed to be no way to save it.
Taking it away, the breeze that crept through some gap made his skin stand on end.
He wet the cloth they had given him and rubbed the dried blood.
He knew that none of this would have happened if Kodlak hadn't forced him to accompany her, although if he thought about it from another point since he hadn't been there, Alyx probably wouldn't have been so lucky against that troll.
That didn't mean that he thought of her as useless either since what she did not know is that the day he confronted the bandits he caught her scent and knew that she had been the one who fired those arrows.
A scream brought him out of his thoughts and before going to see what was happening he put on the shirt that had been handed to him.
He walked through the temple to the opposite side as fast as he could.
As he crossed the arch and went down the stairs, he saw Master Arngeir kneeled beside Alyx.
When they became aware of the nord's presence the master turned to him.

"I need to go get another potion, stay with her and if you can give her water please".

Before he could say anything the Graybeard left.
Vilkas sighed.
He filled the glass on the table with water and held it out to the girl.

"Come on, don't make me force you to drink".

He helped her up slightly and brought the glass to her lips.
Alyx drank slowly, and the werewolf noticed that her temperature was somewhat higher than normal.
It wasn't fever, but it must have beenbe because her wounds were healing.
Having broken ribs was no fun, but they both knew it could have been much worse.
Master Arngeir returned with various potions and gave one of them to Vilkas.
He exchanged it for the glass of water and almost laughed when he saw the girl's face when she was drinking it.
They waited in silence for it to take effect to let her rest but when the nord tried to get away from the bed she took his hand and squeezed it tightly.
He felt her pulse quicken and the smell of fear emanating from her body reached her nose.
Defeated he sighed and sat next to her.
The brown-haired girl seemed so fragile at the time that the warrior found it surprising since on the few occasions he saw her in Whiterun she always went from side to side full of energy.

"I'm so sorry Vilkas, this wouldn't be happening to you if Kodlak hadn't forced you to come with me...".

She kept her eyes closed and gasped in pain.

"True, but it would have been much worse if I hadn't been by your side".

Their voices were mere whispers between the stone walls.
They didn't know if it was night or day but the nord saw how the Greybeards prepared a place for them to sleep.
In that corner, they placed sleeping bags next to several fur blankets and a small lantern.
Suddenly Vilkas noticed how the pressure in his hand disappeared.
He looked at Alyx and checked that she was completely asleep before moving away and getting into one of the bags.
The old master offered him a bowl full of hot stew and he nodded his thanks.
When he finished he laid in the sack and covered hinself with some of the furs.
He felt his body relax, although not everything he would have liked.
His head for some reason did not allow him totally.
He closed his eyes and tried to sleep to stop thinking about everything that had happened that day.

A loud slam of the door made him sit up and yawn wide.
Some rays of light filtered through the windows, giving the room a somewhat lighter atmosphere than it had been before.
He stared at the bed Alyx was in to check that the girl had disappeared.
Her scent still hung in the air and he decided to follow it.
He covered himself with one of the blankets and went outside through one of the heavy metal doors.
Outside the sun was beginning to rise and he saw the girl sitting on the ground watching the show.
She didn't seem to have noticed his presence.
He looked at her for a moment and approached her.

"It seems that you are much better already huh?".

Alyx bounced lightly on the spot and turned her head to look at him while smiling.

"I was finally able to use healing magic and I am completely sure that everything is cured".

"It is good to hear".

The werewolf noticed that she motioned for him to sit next to her and he did.
Neither of them spoke for a few minutes until Alyx turned to him.

"I want to thank you for helping me, I know that the idea is not very pleasant to you and that you are here because they forced you but I still want to thank you, I don't know what would have happened if I had been alone, I probably wouldn't be talking to you right now...".

Her eyes looked sad and he placed his hand on her head.

"You don't need to thank me, Kodlak ordered me to bring you to Jorrvaskr in one piece, and that's what I intend to do, besides, I feel that my brother has grown fond of you and I don't want to see him sad".

"It is true that Farkas takes every moment he can to give me a bear hug and I don't want to see him sad, he always behaves very well with me".

Vilkas ruffled her hair and stood up.

"When you tell me when we leave I will prepare everything".

The bard watched as he entered the building and tried to straighten her hair while her cheeks were red.
She couldn't say that she liked Vilkas but there was something about him that despite the panic that had happened in previous days made her think of him.
She shook her head trying to push those thoughts away and entered the temple again.

Chapter Text

"Are you going to visit the Grandmaster?".

"I want to see him before we leave tomorrow".

"He'll be glad to see you, it's been a long time since the last time you were here".

"I'll be back before is dark".

The girl carried a small bag over her shoulder and smiled.
The reunion with the old dragon filled her with joy.
He had taught her many of the things she knew about dragons for which she was very grateful.
The Graybeards welcomed her into their temple with open arms and instructed her on the path of voice.
She was not as strong as the Dragon-Born but she had enough power to face her enemies.
Her eagerness to learn was insatiable and before they knew it, she mastered the most basic shouts.
She was very proud of her power and happy to know that Ulfric was also there in the past.
The climb to the Throat of the World was less complicated than she remembered.
She laughed loudly remembering the first time she walked that path and how scared she was.
Little was left of that girl.
She was forced to grow up early but she never blamed her family, she blamed Skyrim.
Her footsteps slowly led her to the top and there she sat in front of the Word Wall.
From the bag she had brought she took what was necessary to build a fire and waited.
The air was loud and some snow began to fall.
She thought she would meet him upon arrival but was surprised not to see him.
She wanted to call him but knew she had to wait.
Minutes later she heard something approaching and looked at the sky.
There she saw the old Greybeards Grandmaster who slowly descended to land on the Word Wall.

"Greetings, wunduniik, it's been a long time".

"Greetings Grandmaster and yes, you're right, it's been a long time".

Alyx bowed her head slightly in reverence.
The old dragon did the same and watched her with his clouded eyes.

"Tell me little girl, what brought you here?".

"I wanted to see you master, I have so many things to tell you".

"I am glad to see that you have so many adventures and I see that you did not come alone".

"He is a member of the Companions in Whiterun, he has accompanied me here".

She smiled a bit flustered and began to tell him everything that had happened since the last time they saw each other.

"You'll be glad to know that I've met the Dovahkiin".

"And what do you think of her?".

"I think she will be able to defeat Alduin".

"We will see how events unfold".

"Yes Grandmaster".

The old dragon listened carefully to the girl's stories, asking her occasionally about something he wanted to know more about.

Blood, the blood was everywhere.
Its scent was so powerful that it blocked everything else.
The ground felt cold under his feet and he noticed it was covered in snow.
Suddenly the forest surrounded him and someone appeared in the distance.
They both slowly approached until the nord saw who it was.
The figure of Alyx seemed to float over the snow and was dressed in a dark-colored skin from which hung the head of a wolf.
The girl's hands rested on both sides of his face and she looked directly into his eyes.
Her expression was calm although he did not think the same.
It looked as if she had fallen into a river or lake and had not bothered to dry up.
Her hair stuck to her face and she smiled slightly.
Vilkas wanted to say something but she got closer to him and his nose brushed hers.
There was something that kept him alert but he could not know what it was.
Her thoughts were interrupted when she kissed him.
That caught him off guard and tried to push her away but couldn't.
Every time he tried, they got closer.
It had to be a dream, he was sure of it, but no matter how hard he tried he couldn't wake up.
The wind blew harder with each passing minute until it stopped abruptly.
In the silence that had formed it could be heard as if something was choking.
It was at that moment that he realized that the sound came from Alyx and the taste of blood flooded his mouth.
He tried to pull her away from him again but in horror he watched his hands, now claws, sink into the throat of the girl who fell to the ground with blank eyes.
Vilkas thought he had killed her but his eyes widened when he started to laugh and gushes of blood stained the snow.

"You won't be able to run away no matter how hard you try and when you least expect it this is how she will end...".

Her voice was raspy and quickly laughing louder as Vilkas ran in the opposite direction as fast as he could.
He couldn't believe what had happened and he tried again and again to wake up but everything went black.

Alyx noteiced with concern how much the nord moved in his sleep but when she tried to get closer he sat up violently desperate to breathe.
She picked up a glass of water and walked towards him but stopped dead in her tracks as the werewolf's icy eyes locked on her.
The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end and a shiver ran through her body.
She sensed that she was in danger and prepared in case she needed to defend herself.
The attack never came which relieved her but did not make her feel more relaxed.
She decided to move away from Vilkas and approached the exit of the room trembling like a leaf.

"Prepare your things, when the sun rises we will leave".

Alyx left him alone after taking her things and going to another place to prepare, she did not want to be near him at that moment.
Vilkas groaned and when the smell of fear reached him he realized what had happened.
He cursed under his breath and brushed his hair away from his face.
He tried to calm down as best he could, and when he did, he prepared for the journey back to Whiterun.
When he went out to the main temple room, he saw the nord girl saying goodbye to the Graybeards and go out the door.
He also said goodbye to them and thanked them for their help.
He left the temple and sped up a little to catch up with her as it was a few meters away.
He knew a somewhat unpleasant return trip awaited him, but he still gritted his teeth and walked a safe distance behind her.

Chapter Text

The sun was finally shining after two days of continuous rain and they decided to continue traveling.
Neither of them had said a word since they left High Hrothgar.
They came to a fork in the road and the girl approached the wooden sign.
Windhelm could be read on one of the arrows pointing to the right.
Vilkas knew that it was the home of the Stormcloaks, the faction that was facing the Imperials in Skyrim.
At that moment he wondered if Alyx was part of that group.
The nord girl turned to him and looked at him with a serious expression.

"There are some issues that I must resolve at Windhelm".

Vilkas felt a lump in his throat but still managed to maintain a normal tone.

"Let's go and then we'll go back to Whiterun".

Alyx shook her head and crossed her arms.
She walked to the center of the road and stopped.

"No, I will go alone, it's something delicate".

"Okay, I'll tell Kodlak when I get to Jorrvaskr".

"Perfect".

Without saying another word, they both continued on their respective paths.
It was not the way she would have liked to say goodbye to him but under the circumstances it was the best.
No one knew she was coming home but it would be a pleasant surprise.

She stopped her steps in front of the huge metal door and took a deep breath.
It had been several years since she had stepped in that place having lived at the Bards College.
She was glad to come back and be able to see her loved ones again.
She entered the city and headed towards the Palace of the Kings.
Along the way everyone she came across turned out of her way and looked at her in surprise.
The guards guarding the palace gates slightly bowed their heads before letting her pass.
The interior was warm and she got rid of some of the warm clothes she was wearing, which one of the servants picked up when he recognized her.

"Welcome home my lady".

"Thanks, it's been a long time".

She broke into a huge smile and started searching for Jarl.
The girl walked the entire room until she heard his voice.
She entered the room to her left and saw that he was next to Galmar.
At first neither of them noticed her presence until Ulfric turned.

"Alyxa lass, is that you?".

"Who else could I be?".

They both laughed and the Jarl hugged her.
Galmar ruffled her hair and smiled.

"We are glad to have you back among us".

"I am also glad to be back and I must admit that I was a little scared when I found out what happened in Helgen and that you were there".

"Everything went well in the end so you shouldn't worry anymore".

They chatted for a few minutes and she decided to let them continue what they were doing previously.
She made a small bow and left the room.
Alyx returned to the main hall to eat something when a small scream caught her attention.
She directed her gaze towards the source of that sound and smiled from ear to ear.
Across the room was a girl with brown eyes and light hair.
She didn't look much older than Alyx but she was slightly shorter.
They both ran and when they met they hugged each other tightly.
They hadn't seen each other in years.

"Why did you take so long to come see me?".

"I've been pretty busy, I'm so sorry, little sister".

"A sorry is not enough for me".

Her little sister pinched her cheek and Alyx rubbed the sore area.

"Do you want a fight, Denna? You know you will be in danger".

She smiled a little at which Denna laughed.

"I don't want to fight, what I want is for you to take a bath, you smell like a wet dog".

At that comment they burst out laughing and Alyx let her sister prepare a bath for her.
The room was full of steam and the bathtub was very tempting.
She helped her undress and they chatted as she let the hot water relax her body.

"You have new scars, you promised me you would be careful ...".

Alyx's expression changed completely and she looked down.
She heard Denna sigh and walk over to the tub.
To her surprise, she began to wash her hair while humming one of the many songs they both learned during the trips in which they accompanied their father for some years.
Without realizing the combination of the two elements made her close her eyes for a few seconds.

"Hey, don't fall asleep, I'm talking to you".

Denna gently tapped her on the forehead and smiled when her sister gave a small jolt.

"Excuse me, it's been a little strange for a few days since my trip to High Hrothgar".

"You went alone?".

"Yes, I travel faster that way."

She didn't like lying to her like that but with what she was going through she didn't feel comfortable talking to her about Vilkas.
The younger nord girl helped her to dry her hair and untangled it with a comb.
Alyx dried herself as best she could and dressed in the clothes Denna had brought.
It was a blue dress with gold embroidery.
Because most of the time she traveled from one place to another, being able to wear such beautiful clothes made her happy.

"Do you want me to style your hair?".

"Sure, you're better at it than me".

"You are not that bad, come here".

Denna sat her older sister in a chair and tied her hair in a bun leaving a lock of hair which she braided and wrapped around the bottom of the updo.
They picked up the mess they had organized while they talked and left the bathroom clean.

"I need to eat something, I'm starving".

"Me too, let's take a look".

They went down to the main hall and approached the long table in its center.
They looked at the food and sat down to start devouring those delicacies.

Chapter Text

Jorrvaskr seemed calm in the moonlight.
The streets of the city were deserted at that hour and only the barking or meowing of a dog or cat could be heard.
Vilkas entered the mead hall quietly.
Turning around, he was surprised to see his brother still awake.

"Glad to see you're back, where's Alyx?".

"We parted on the way, she said she had some business to do in Windhelm".

"Didn't you go with her?".

"She didn't leave me, she said it was private".

"Maybe she's being sweet to someone over there".

Vilkas shrugged and emptied a pitcher of mead.

"It has been a long journey and I want to rest, good night brother".

"Good night".

He left his twin alone and descended to the lower floor.
Most of the Companion members slept.
The werewolf entered his room, closing the door behind him.
He deposited his travel bag next to the table in the corner.
He detached himself from his armor leaving it on a chair and went to get some water.
On his return, he lightly soaked a cloth.
He tried to clean up the dirt from his trip as best he could.
He dipped his hands into the water, let the excess drip, and ran his fingers through his hair to comb it back and away from his face.
He sighed exhausted as he got into bed.
Vilkas covered his body with one of the blankets and turned to the side to try to sleep.

Someone touched his face causing him to wake up.
Vilkas blinked a few times until he could see who was with him.
Alyx's sweet smile greeted him.

"How do you feel?".

He was silent, causing her to frown slightly.

"Is everything okay? Since we came back you worry me, you hardly sleep and when you do you don't talk to me".

Her questions were still unanswered but her expression softened.
She pressed her body against the werewolfs and rested her head on his shoulder.
It was then that Vilkas began to feel something grow in his chest.
It was mild at first but the feeling grew stronger and stronger, so much so that it became impossible to hold back.
He lunged for her, holding both arms on the mattress so she couldn't move.
The werewolf growled which made her laugh.
Vilkas began to bite and lick her neck causing her body to shake.
Everything seemed to be going well but it didn't last long.
The only sound that could be heard was Alyx's laugh which grew louder and louder.
This caused Vilkas to pull away from her, covering his ears while closing his eyes.
Opening them again he saw that he was alone in the bed of his room in Jorrvaskr and everything was silent.
He got out of bed posing only one foot on the floor and noticed something strange on its surface.
It was wet and sticky but he still rested his remaining foot.
A noise to his right made him look in that direction and he saw Alyx.
He knew it was impossible for him to be there but he got up.
He took a few steps to get closer to her but something prevented him from moving any further.
Suddenly he noticed how something was holding his ankles.
When he directed his gaze to the ground, he observed horrified that the floor was covered in blood what was holding him were two pairs of claws that dug into his flesh.
He tried to escape it's grasp but it was impossible.
While he struggled Alyx approached him and made a sinister smile.

"Didn't I tell you that you couldn't escape?".

Her voice sounded heavily distorted.
With each word the sound of bones breaking could be heared along with the smell of blood.
The girl's eyes began to spin rapidly in their sockets and she laughed.
It was one of the most disturbing scenes he had ever seen and the worst of it was that he couldn't run away.

"When are you going to understand that whatever you do or no matter how far you move away from it, everything will end the same".

As if by an invisible claw on Alyx's neck, horrendous wounds appeared from which a profuse quantity of blood flowed and fell noisily to the ground.
Despite that, she continued to laugh maniacally until a loud creak caused Vilkas to wake up violently.
His pulse was skyrocketing and it took him a while to process what had happened.
He looked at the room from where he was and realized that he was on the floor and not on the bed.
Since becoming a member of the Circle, nightmares had interrupted his sleep but had not been as horrible as the ones he was experiencing now.
That Alyx had entered his life had been the worst thing that could have happened to him.
Inside him he wanted her not to return since he feared what might happen but he knew that no matter how hard he tried she would want to be with him since it seemed that on certain occasions during the trip
they both let their guard down and allowed the other to come closer.
It had been a wierd thing, but strangely, it didn't seem like a bad thing to him, since after all he was surprised by the girl to see that she was more than just a bard.
The werewolf returned to bed to try to sleep but it was of little use.

"So the reason she didn't come back with you was to go to Windhelm?".

"Exactly, it was there when we separated our ways and I returned to Whiterun".

Kodlak lightly scratched his beard and looked at Vilkas.

"Was there any problem?".

The Companion hesitated whether or not to tell him the truth but after sighing he spoke.

"Unfortunately yes, there were several incidents along the way, the first one occurred during the full moon and we were lucky that she managed to hide in a place that I could not reach and the second occurred when
we were close to our destination, we were attacked by a frost troll that left her quite badly injured".

"I see, what unfortunate events but from what I see she is fine".

"Fortunately, yes, but I am concerned about her return...".

The Harbinger frowned and waited for Vilkas to explain himself.

"Since we were in High Hrothgar I have been having horrible nightmares featuring her".

"Do you hear the call of the blood when you are with her?".

"I'm afraid so".

"Do not worry about it, you will overcome it, what you see in your dreams it won't come true if you are strong enough".

"I hope so, I hope so".

Chapter Text

Alyx dodged the small fiery projectile her sister had launched and glared at her.

"Before I made it very clear that it was not allowed to use magic and this is the third time we have to stop".

Denna lowered her sword and looked at her sister with a sad expression.

"I'm really sorry, I can't help it, I'm more used to magic".

"But you should also get used to using a weapon, you don't know the situations you can get into and I assure you that it is something that can save your life".

"I know and I'm very sorry".

The older nord approached her and ruffled her hair.

"Let's go have breakfast, I'm starving".

They both entered the Palace of the Kings to rest a bit.
They had been awake since before dawn.
Denna managed to convince her sister to train but it had been quite arduous.
Alyx understood that her sister depended more on magic but she feared that it would not be enough to protect herself.
If something happened to her, she would be devastated.
The bond they shared was deeper than they thought since having grown up without a mother and with a father who traveled so much, they always had to support each other.
They had always thought they had more family somewhere but when they tried to ask their father, he avoided the topic and said that one day they might meet them.
When they were younger it bothered them a lot but over the years they thought that it was because talking about it caused him pain.
That is why they put that issue aside and never asked him again.
At the end of breakfast the two of them went to their room.
Denna pulled out a sewing kit from one of the drawers of the dresser that rested in front of the window.

"Here, while we were on the patio you told me you needed to fix some of your clothes".

"Thank you, if you give me a hand, we will surely go faster".

Alyx went through the clothes in her bag and thankfully she had only a few items to fix.
They were black pants that had been ripped off one side and a red blouse that looked quite worn.
Denna took them and checked them.

"They are not so bad, I can fix them in a few minutes, put some thread on the needle and pass it to me".

The older one did as she was asked and watched carefully as the little one performed the task.
Each stitch was fast and precise and the needle on many occasions seemed invisible because of how quickly the young woman used it.
No matter how many times Alyxa saw it, she was always surprised.
When he finished Denna cut the thread and concentratedly reviewed the work she had done.
You could see that those pants had been widely used since in other places she saw some other patch.

"They are finished, be careful with them or they will break again".

"I'll be careful don't worry".

Alyx kissed Denna's cheek and put them in her bag.
They left the room and went outside.
They walked through the icy streets to the port.
They positioned themselves in an area where they knew they were not disturbing and spent the rest of the morning watching the ships enter and exit.

"Are you leaving tomorrow?".

Alyx nodded and hugged her sister.

"I'm sorry if it bothers you that I'm leaving so soon, I know you'd like me to stay longer".

"It does not bother me, considering that there have been times that we have spent several years without seeing each other, any opportunity we have to be together even for a short time makes me happy".

Those words made Alyx's eyes water and a tear fell down her cheek.

"I'm really sorry I'm not the kind of sister you expected".

The two looked at each other and Denna smiled.

"You must be crazy to say that, I couldn't ask for anyone better to be my sister".

The hug tightened and Denna let Alyx vent.
She knew something had happened to her that she didn't want to tell her, but she couldn't force her to speak either.

"Why don't you get some rest?".

Alyx separated from her sister and felt slightly.
The light-haired girl covered her with a blanket and let her sleep a bit.
Knowing that she would be leaving the next morning, she thought about preparing something special for her.

One of the maids woke Alyx and helped her get ready.
The brown-haired girl didn't knew what was going on but she let the other woman help her.
She dressed in a gorgeous deep purple dress that had black embroidery.
She gathered her hair into a bun and donned her favorite earrings.
Ready, the two women left the room and went down to the throne room.
Alyx didn't knew what to expect but when they saw her appear they all started cheering.
Ulfric walked over to her and led her by the hand to the front of the table.
He offered her a drink and ordered everyone to shut up.

"Tonight we celebrate the departure of our beloved Alyxa, may her travels be safe".

Everyone effusively repeated the last words and toasted.
They sat around the huge table for dinner.
Many of the dishes they served were the favorites of the girl who couldn't stop laughing at all that.
Dennara took the place next to her sister and kissed her on the cheek.

"You like it?".

"Of course, it's been a long time since anyone celebrated anything for me".

"But it's normal for people to want you to play and sing at their celebrations, you have a very good voice".

Alyx blushed slightly and drank from her glass.
The celebration was going better than they expected and soon the entire room was filled with music and dancing.
They all looked very happy and that filled the girl with joy since for one night the civil war and Alduin seemed distant problems.
When Alyx noticed sleep was taking hold of her she said goodbye to everyone and went to rest.
Denna followed her and helped her undress.

"When you wake up in the morning it's probably gone so I want to give you this before I forget".

The brown-haired girl walked over to her bag and took out of it a silver necklace that had a large sapphire in the center.
She hung it around her sister's neck and smiled.
Denna held it between her fingers.

"You always know how to make goodbyes sweet...".

She looked sadly at Alyx and managed a small smile.

"I'll be back to see you more, I'm in Whiterun now so it won't take me that long to travel between the two cities".

"Or I can go see you".

"It would be a good idea".

The brown-haired girl hugged her and kissed the top of her head.

"Do you want to sleep with me?".

"Yes".

Denna changed into her sleeping clothes and the two of them got into one of the beds.
She snuggled against her sister and before falling asleep for a few moments they felt like when they were little and they were not separated from each other.

"Good night Alyx".

"Good night my little girl".

Windhelm had been left several days behind and Whiterun could already be seen in the distance.
She felt bad leaving her sister alone again but at least now she could go see her more often.
Those days she was somewhat calmer but now that she had to return she felt somewhat restless.
She knew that one way or another she would end up crossing paths with Vilkas, which she didn't think was so bad but not so appealing.
She tried to move as fast as possible and stopped at the city gates when she saw Farkas.
The two greeted each other and she was surprised to see him with someone she didn't knew.
He was a man of similar stature to that of the other nord, his hair was black and his eyes were greenish.
From his looks Alyx thought he could possibly be a Breton.
She couldn't see him well but noticed that he might had a scar on the left side of his face.
Farkas brought her closer to them.

"This is Riordan, he joined us recently".

The black-haired man greeted the girl.

"It's an honor to meet you, you must be Alyx, Farkas has told me a lot about you".

She blushed slightly.

"The honor is mine Riordan".

All three were silent and Farkas cleared his throat.

"We should go, we can't take longer to go to Dustman's Cairn".

"We'll see you when you come back, be careful".

Alyx said goodbye to them and went through the city gates to rest a bit at The Bannered Mare.

Chapter Text

After finishing her second jug of ale, she paid for them and left the establishment.
She thought the wisest thing to do would be to go talk to Kodlak to inform him of her return.
Alyx sighed and started on her way to Jorrvaskr.
Upon entering everything seemed quiet since she did not see anyone in the main hall.
She descended the stairs to the lowest floor and walked down the huge hall that led to the old man's chambers.
On the way she passed Aela and Skjor.
She waved to them and they nodded.
Alyx's heart was pounding but she took a deep breath trying to calm it down.
The door to the room Kodlak was in was open so Alyx knocked on the wood a couple of times to announce her presence.

"Come in lass, come in".

She came in and sat in the chair opposite the man's.
He offered her something to drink.

"Glad to see you're back, how was the trip?".

"I would say it went well except for some incidents that you already know because I'm sure Vilkas has already told you".

"Indeed, but I want to hear how you feel about what happened".

Every time the girl remembered the incident, her whole body felt cold and her face paled.
After several minutes of silence she finally mustered the courage to speak.

"It is true that in the past I have had some encounters with werewolfs but I can tell you with certainty that that was one of the times that I have been most scared in all my life, the worst of all was knowing that it was Vilkas who attacked me but I don't hold a grudge against him, it's something he can't fully control and even so when I'm close to him I can't help feeling nervous and panic takes over me... ".

Kodlak placed his hand on the girl's knee and gave it a slight squeeze when he heard the tremor in her voice.

"Don't worry, it's normal to be scared of these things".

"Maybe yes but it's the only time I remember screaming so loudly, I thought I would pass out".

They were both silent for a while.
Kodlak tried to get her to stop thinking about that by taking the conversation elsewhere, and it seemed that this calmed the girl.
Alyx sniffed and drank from her glass as she listened carefully to the story the old man was telling her.

Time passed in a breath and when they realized it Aela appeared and told Kodlak that Farkas and Riordan had returned.
The two left the room and the old man asked the girl to fetch her lute and return to the main hall.
Alyx did as he was asked and upon returning to Jorrvaskr most of The Companions were gathered by the fire drinking and feasting.
Athis approached the girl and placed a drink in her hand and then carried her along with the rest.
A few minutes later Kodlak entered followed by Aela and Skjor followed by Vilkas, Farkas, and Riordan.
These last two approached her as soon as they saw her.

"How was Dustman's Cairn?".

Riordan smiled widely.

"Well, considering that you have the new member of The Companions in front of you, I would say pretty good".

"I'm very happy for you".

The black-haired man noticed the lute the girl was holding.

"Are you a bard?".

"Indeed, I studied at Bards College for several years".

"So you won't mind if I ask you to play something?".

"Not at all, it will be a pleasure".

Alyx tried to find a good place to stand and ended up sitting on the stairs in front of the fire.
She drank some water and prepared the lute.
She began to play the first song that came to mind and many of them stopped their conversations to listen to it but for those who did not her music became a pleasant background sound.
After that she played several more in a row and at the end of the last Riordan took her aside with him and Farkas to drink.

"You must be very popular in the college".

"I can't say I'm one of the best but I have enough skill to make good amount of money".

"It seemed like a fantastic performance to me".

"Thank you very much".

While the two were talking, Farkas got up and walked over to his brother.
Alyx out of the corner of her eye saw him try to get him to join them.
Having failed he returned with some food and dropped into the chair.
The girl got up for a moment to take a piece of the cheese wedge and a knife to cut it.
As she went to get the knife, Torvar ran into her and made it fall to the ground.
She clicked her tongue and reached down to catch it.
From that position she could feel someone looking at her and when she raised her head her eyes and Vilkas's met.
It was for a moment but it seemed like an aternity to her.
There was something about them that took her breath away.
Alyx panicked and returned as fast as she could with the other two men.
Seeing her return, Farkas frowned slightly as he noticed a slight smell of fear in her.

"You're good?".

"Yes, don't worry, I'm tired from the trip that's all".

"If you want to go to rest, we can accompany you, it's not a problem".

"No, it's not necessary, I'm fine, maybe eating a little will help me".

She tried to downplay the matter by asking Riordan all kinds of questions and gradually learned more about him.
He was born in High Rock but some years later his entire family moved to Cyrodiil and when he was old enough he dedicated to traveling around the north of Tamriel.
She also revealed some things like she had a little sister.
They were having a good time from how much they laughed between drinks and stories.
During one of the stories the breton and the nord girl heard a thud and realized that Farkas had fallen to the ground.
When they got closer to see if he was okay, they laughed when they saw that he had fallen asleep.

"Let's get him to his bed, it would be very uncomfortable if we left him sleeping here".

"I think it's a good idea".

Between the two of them they lifted him off the ground and carefully led him downstairs.
They entered his room and Riordan laid him down on the bed as Alyx stood by the doorframe.
While she waited her sight went to the door in the other side of the hallway, which was half open.
Through the small opening she noticed that Vilkas had not yet fallen asleep as there was activity inside the room.
At that moment her mouth went dry and her face began to burn.
He was turned around with his back to her.
The nord girl couldn't look away and was startled when she noticed Riordan's hand on her shoulder.

"I'll accompany you to the inn".

"No need, I can go by myself, good night Riordan".

After that she left Jorrvaskr as fast as she could and locked herself in her room.
She felt very embarrassed but thought it would be the fault of how much she had drunk.
She changed her clothes and tried to sleep to avoid thinking about what had happened, hoping that no one had noticed.

Chapter Text

The Bannered Mare despite how early it was was full of people.
Alyx woke up with a horrible taste in her mouth and a severe headache.
It had been quite a while since the last time she drank that much.
At times like that she thought it would be a good idea to check if there was a place in the city that she could buy to live in and thus be able to be somewhat calmer.
The idea of having a stable place to live was fantastic.
She left the room after making herself as presentable as possible and locked the door.
As she descended the stairs she realized that Riordan was there.
When he saw her, he greeted her and placed his hand on the stool next to her.
The girl sat on it and asked for something to eat.

"How do you feel?".

"As if a Mammoth had stepped on me".

They both laughed and he waited for her to eat and recover a little.
They chatted in low voices for a while and went outside after paying.
They went to a somewhat secluded area and sat on a stone edge.

"I heard a house is being sold here in Whiterun".

"Which one?".

"Breezehome, it's next to Warmaiden's".

"Oh yes, I usually pass by it several times but I didn't know it was for sale".

"The Jarl probably knows something, we can go ask".

"Don't you mind coming with me? I'm sure you'll have better things to do".

"You don't even need to ask anyway, with yesterday's celebration I don't think any of us are well enough to work".

"Right, I vaguely remember that the alcohol ran out".

Riordan ran his hands over his face and stood up.
Alyx did the same.
She felt somewhat more clear.

"Let's go to Dragonsreach and see if we're lucky".

They walked slowly through the streets now filled with their usual inhabitants.
They climbed the stairs that led to the area where Jorrvaskr was located but instead of heading there they continued straight ahead and climbed another set of stairs.
Dragonsreach met them behind a bridge that was guarded by several guards.
They entered the building and looked for someone they could ask.
They came across a man who was dressed in rather elegant clothes and Alyx decided to ask him.

"Excuse me, could you tell us if it is true that there is a house for sale in town?".

The man grinned and walked over to them.

"Breezehome is for sale, are you interested in buying it?".

"I need a place to stay other than the inn, I have been there too long and I would like to have a home of my own".

"Perfect then, I can take you to see it and decide what you want to do".

"Thank you emm...".

"Proventus, Proventus Avenicci, it's a pleasure".

"Alyxa and the pleasure is mine".

"You are the bard who came here a while ago right?".

"Yes sir".

"It was simple curiosity, well, let's go see the house".

Proventus led them out of Dragonsreach with a book, ink and pen in hand, and when he reached the tree in the square Riordan saw Farkas who began to call him.

"I have to go, if you end up buying the house then show it to me".

"Of course, don't worry".

After he had left the two of them continued towards the house and Proventus opened the door.
They entered the building and the smell of closed aire and dust greeted them.

"I'm sorry it's in this state".

"It's understandable considering it's for sale, don't worry about it".

"You can look freely, I'll stay here".

"Thank you".

The girl began to explore the ground floor.
At that time the few pieces of furniture in the room were a table lined with a couple of benches, a fire in which to cook, several wooden boxes and some chairs.
To the left was a door ajar that revealed a small empty room that could be a bedroom.
She went upstairs and saw that there was another empty room to the left.
In front of her was a closed door.
When she opened it she saw that it was a somewhat smaller room but it was full of wooden boxes.
She proceeded to look at the last room in the house.
It was the largest on that floor and inside it was a large bed and an empty chest.
Alyx stopped thoughtful and smiled.
The place seemed good enough to buy, and in the long run she would have yet another place to rest during her travels.
Satisfied, she approached Proventus.

"If I decide to buy it, what is its price?".

"It would be 6,800 gold and I can provide you with everything you need to furnish it, but you have to tell me what you want".

"It seems reasonable to me, in that case I want to leave the room on the left on this floor empty because I still don't know what I'll do with it but the one on the top floor I would like to have an alchemy lab".

"Perfect".

He wrote down everything the girl had told him and smiled.

"Congratulations, Breezehome is yours, I hope you enjoy life in Whiterun".

"I will do it".

"You can pay for the house when we have finished furnishing it and place everything if it suits you and I will also give you the key to the front door".

"Okay, you just let me know when it's ready and I'll go to Dragonsreach with the money".

They both left the house and Proventus closed it again.
They walked together to the second level of the city and there they separated after saying goodbye.
Alyx entered Jorrvaskr and sought out Riordan to give him the great news.
She looked everywhere for him but had no luck.
She sighed in defeat and something behind her startled her.
Turning around she saw that it was Vilkas.

"If you're looking for Riordan and my brother they left a while ago to do a job".

"In that case I will leave and wait for them to return, I don't want to bother".

Her heart was pounding and she began to get nervous.
They both stared at each other for a few moments in silence until they broke eye contact and Vilkas cleared his throat.

"Farkas told me that you asked him to train today".

"Yes, but since he's not in Whiterun right now, I'll have to wait".

"True".

Alyx looked curiously at the nord face, he didn't look nervous but his slightly furrowed brow indicated otherwise.
Neither of them mentioned a word until he spoke again.

"I was wondering if since he's gone, you'd want to train with me".

The girl's eyes widened and a lump formed in her throat.
What had happened the night before came back to her head and she blushed slightly as she nodded.

"Of course, it would be an honor to train with such an expert warrior".

"Let's not waste time then".

The werewolf smirked and Alyx followed him into the training yard with her heart in her throat.

Chapter Text

The girl fell to the ground with a thud and lay there motionless to catch her breath.
Vilkas crouched next to her.

"I just need a moment, it seems that after all I am still somewhat affected by drinking so much last night...".

She felt a little dizzy and her vision was full of colored dots.
She closed her eyes for a moment and could hear how Vilkas left but returned shortly after.

"Have some water, it will do you good".

Alyx opened her eyes and saw that the nord was offering her a glass.
She rose slowly and took it.

"Thank you".

She drank its contents slowly and a few drops of water ran down the sides of her face, leaving fine lines in their wake that disappeared under the slight opening of the front of her shirt.
That slightly got his attention.
He watched her out of the corner of his eye to keep her from noticing.
The brown-haired girl rested the glass on her lap and with her other hand ran her thumb over her lips to wipe away the water, then licked it off.
It seemed as if she had forgotten that he was there.
She pushed her hair away from her face and stood up.
She set the glass gently on one of the tables and turned to the werewolf.
In the seconds it had taken her to perform that action, he had risen to his feet.
Alyx realized that they were forming a habit of staring at each other for a few moments without saying a word and she had to admit that it made her a little nervous because she didn't know what he was thinking but she felt that he could know what she was thinking.

"Want to try again?".

"Sure".

They positioned themselves in the center of the courtyard, prepared and without warning Vilkas attacked.
Alyx dodged him without difficulty and attacked as well but he blocked her.
The clash of swords echoed across the courtyard and attracted the attention of several of the Companions who watched the combat with curiosity.
This time she wasn't going to make the same mistakes as before and she was determined to beat him.
For a long time they limited themselves to surrounding and attacking each other from time to time, but neither of them dared more until Alyx detected an opening in the nord's defense.
She launched attack after attack on that area until with a strong movement of her sword Vilkas disarmed her.
The brown-haired girl jumped back to get away from him.
Vilkas smirked slightly and rested the tip of her sword against the ground.

"I think we are done for today".

"I do not think so...".

After those words Alyx ran towards him but at the last moment she turned to his right as she drew a dagger from her boot.
The werewolf narrowly dodged that attack and quickly grabbed her arm with a strong grip.
This made her emit a small whimper but she didn't tried to run away, what she wanted was to get him down.
With her left foot she destabilized him and came up behind him and stuck the dagger to his neck.
They both fought to catch their breath and between breaths Alyx spoke.

"Now I think... we're done...".

She could not be more wrong, since in a blink Vilkas had her lying on the ground with her own weapon against her chest.

"Nice try, but it will take more than that to beat me".

She wanted to continue but her body felt heavy.
She took the dagger from Vilkas' hands and their fingers brushed for a few seconds.
Alyx's pulse shot up again and they rose so fast they nearly bumped their heads against each other.

"I think I'm going to go now, I have things to do and I don't want to leave them for later...".

"Yes, it will be for the best".

"Thanks for training with me".

"It was nothing and remember to avoid creating openings on your left side".

"Of course, don't worry, I'll see you later".

She said goodbye to him without giving him time to respond and left as fast as she could with her face red as a tomato.
As she descended the stairs from Jorrvaskr she met Farkas and Riordan.

"How was it?".

"It was easier than we thought".

"That's great, come eat something with me, I'm starving".

"Sure, let's go".

The two men followed her and sat at one of the empty tables and Saadia served them a generous portion of meat with a succulent garnish accompanied by mead.
Between bites Farkas told her about the work they had to do.
They had to deal with someone who was causing trouble at Riverwood.
Alyx was glad that Riordan had adapted so well to the lifestyle of The Companions.
Despite the short time they had known each other, they felt comfortable in the presence of the other.
They still could not officially consider themselves friends but she was convinced that there was little left for that.
They spent the rest of the afternoon together until Aela came looking for them.

"Farkas, Riordan, I need you to come with me, Skjor wants to talk to you".

She pointed to the latter and the two followed her after saying goodbye to Alyx.
The nord girl went up to her room and spent the rest of the night reading one of the books she had in her backpack while Rivet snuggled against her.

Chapter Text

Finally after a few weeks the Breezehome was almost furnished.
The nord girl went to take a look and made sure everything was in place.
It was not the most luxurious house in Tamriel, but for her it was enough and it was totally hers.
She spent most of the day moving her things from The Bannered Mare to the house.
At that time it was not much but there were still things to put there.
As agreed with Proventus, once it was finished, she handed him the money and he gave her the key to the front door.
After that Alyx traveled to Windhelm to collect some of her things.
Denna and two of Ulfric's men helped her pack everything into boxes and loaded it into a cart.

"Well, before we go I would like to remind you that it is best if you dress in civilian clothes, I do not want to have problems with Jarl Balgruuf and that he thinks that the Stormcloaks are infiltrating the city or something similar".

The two men left to change and Alyx and Denna went to the stables.
The two girls knew they wouldn't fit in the cart so they thought they could ride a horse together.
As they approached the stables Denna entered the building while her older sister approached a gray mare.
Its mane and tail were black and its snout and legs were speckled with small black spots.
The animal, seeing its owner after so long, rubbed its snout affectionately against her hand.

"How much I've missed you".

She hugged the mare's neck and led her out of the stable.
She fed her a couple of carrots before putting the saddle on her.
After a long time Alyx watched her sister leave.

"Everything is ready, whenever you want we can go".

"Perfect".

They got on the animal and traveled with the cart, making sure nothing fell.
During the night while they were camping it began to rain and they quickly covered the cart to keep it from getting wet and set up a makeshift tent to take refuge in.
It had been a long time since they last saw it rain like this but they ignored it and tried to stay as dry as possible.
When they finally reached Whiterun Alyx smiled.
They stopped in front of the city gate.

"Wait here, I'll be right back".

She got off her horse and disappeared down the path that led to the front door.
She returned shortly after, and the two sisters left the horse in the stables.
Between all of them they carried the boxes home.

"Where are you going to put what's in this one?".

One of the two soldier tapped the largest box.

"In that room in front of the stairs".

"Well, let's get to it".

They opened the box and from it they took out a large metal bathtub.
They carried it up the stairs and carefully placed it into the room that would become the bathroom.
Despite how large it looked there was still room to move easily.

"I was convinced that it would fit without a problem".

They closed the door and went downstairs again.

"For today it's fine, I'll take care of the rest, let's have a drink".

Everyone laughed and after closing the house they went to The Bannered Mare.
Alyx paid for a round for the four of them and they spent a few hours there before they decided to leave.
The two soldiers rented a room for the night, and Denna would spend the night at her sister's house.
They both entered the house and Alyx began to prepare something for dinner.

"Since when do you have the house?".

"For a few weeks but it was only until a few days ago that I was able to move into it, it was almost empty when I bought it".

"If you're happy with it, I'm happy".

"I know and so you will also have a place to stay when you want to come see me".

Denna smiled widely and hugged her.
That could be the beginning for them to recover all those years they spent apart.
The brown-haired girl kissed the other's forehead and her hug tightened.
A few minutes went by like this until they slowly parted.
They had dinner in silence and after cleaning they changed their clothes and got into Alyx's bed.

"I know it will seem childish but I would like you to tell me the story that you always told me as a child".

"You know you don't have to ask me, come here".

They snuggled against each other and Alyx quietly began telling the story until they fell asleep.

After breakfast they joined the two soldiers and headed to the stables.
They prepared the cart to leave.
The brown-haired girl drew Denna aside.

"I'm going to miss you a lot but I know that now we will be able to see each other more often and that's also why I want you to have my mare, she won't be of much use to me here and I know you will take good care of her".

"But I can't accept it, it's been yours since she was born".

"I know but I want you to keep her and take care of her for me".

"I will, I promise".

The two hugged tightly and Alyx could hear Denna cry.

"Oh come on don't cry, it's not like I'm going to disappear and you'll never see me again".

"I know...but I feel very sad...".

"I'll go see you in a few months, don't worry".

"You promise?".

"I promise".

She wiped the tears from her sister's face and smiled.

"Come on, the weather could get worse and i don't want to catch the three of you on the way".

"You're right".

Denna mounted what was now her mare and after kissing her sister's cheek the three of them left.
Alyx stroked the sides of the mare's face and lightly leaned her crete against her.

"Be nice to Denna."

The mare snorted slightly in response.
The nord girl stood there watching them until they disappeared from her sight.
She sighed slightly and wiped a tear that fell down her face.
She entered the city again and concentrated on slowly ordering everything she had brought.

Chapter Text

Alyx looked at the fruits of her labor with satisfaction and smiled.
The interior of the house had been quite good.
The atmosphere was very welcoming.
The nord girl went up to the second floor and opened the door to her bathroom.
She looked at the huge metal bathtub.
Under it, at a certain height from the wooden floor, there was a plate of the same material that made the bathtub and the water heat up when placing hot objects in it.
She filled it with water and took a jar from one of the shelves on the wall.
She spread a layer of fire salts over it and ignited them with a fire spell.
While it was warming up, she went into her room and got some clean clothes.
She folded them tightly on a chair as she dipped her finger slightly into the tub to check the temperature of the water.
She undressed completely and let go of her hair before stepping into the water.
The pleasant warmth covered her body and slowly caused her to relax.
It had been a hectic few days and she was grateful to be able to rest even for just a few moments.
She spent a long time in there doing nothing, just letting the hot liquid wash over her.
She put her head under the water to wet her hair.
When she surfaced, she grabbed a bar of soap and began to wash.
At that moment she remembered that she had promised to show Riordan the house when it was finished.
When she finished she got out of the bathtub and dried herself as quickly as she could.
She gathered her brown hair into two braids and dressed.
She got rid of as much water as she could, closed the door, and let the rest evaporate thanks to the heat that still remained in the metal.
She went out into the street after closing the door to go find the breton.
She found him with Eorlund Gray-Mane in the forge.
The old nord was teaching him the most effective way to sharpen the sword in his hands.
Alyx watched the scene silently and waited for them to finish.
When Riordan saw her he waved to her.
Eorlund gave him permission to go and they went down to the courtyard.

"How are you, do you need something?".

"I wanted to show you the house, for now I have finished furnishing it unless I can think of what to do with the room that is empty...".

"Now?".

"If you have nothing to do I would like you to come".

"Of course let's go".

The breton smiled and they headed for the girl's house.
Upon arrival she gave him freedom to see what he wanted while she cooked.
She decided to make meat with a few potatoes.
The smell of the stew reached Riordan who came downstairs to see what she was cooking.

"It smells great".

"Thank you, do you want to stay for lunch?".

"I would like nothing more".

Alyx smiled and when it was finished she served it in a couple of bowls.
They accompanied the meat with some mead.
They chatted quietly about various topics until she saw that the breton had a bandage on his forearm.

"When did you got hurt?".

"Yesterday training with Farkas but don't worry i'm fine, you know how he is".

"He gets quite excited, he looks like a big puppy".

"But in this case that puppy can rip your head off".

At that moment Riordan covered his mouth with his hand as if he had said something wrong.

"Don't worry, I already had my run-in with Vilkas and I'm not surprised Farkas is one too".

"Sorry to hear that, i bet it wasn't nice".

"Not much really but we were lucky and I have to admit that it was the first time that I was in a situation like this since on the few occasions that I met one I managed to go unnoticed long enough as to flee".

"There is always a first time for everything".

At that comment, the two burst into laughter and, laughing, cleaned up the remains of their food.
While they put things away, the brown-haired girl couldn't stop looking at him and he realized.

"Something wrong?".

The girl's face turned crimson and she tried to hide it but that only made him laugh slightly.

"No, no, I'm sorry I stared at you like a dead fish but I was wondering if you would let me braid your hair...".

It was at that moment that Riordan realized how long his hair really was now.
He always used to cut it when it reached a certain length but this time he had neglected it and it went down to his chest.

"If you are excited you can braid it and you will leave it just as well as the two that you wear".

Alyx smiled and ran to her room to get one of the several combs she had.
During the years that she had worn her hair long, she had destroyed what could be called an army of them.
It became so entangled that at a certain point she was constantly wearing it very short.
She was thinking about it during the days when she furnished the house and decided that at some point she would cut it again.
She went downstairs and sat in a chair with Riordan's back to her.
She dropped the little updo the Breton had to push the hair away from his face and slowly brushed the black locks.
When it was enough, they changed position and she sat him in the chair.
With a mastery that surprised the boy a lot, she made a side braid that fell down the left side of his head.
The lower part of the braid reached the area that was above the chest.
Hee couldn't see himself in a mirror but he knew Alyxa did a good job and smiled.

"How do I look?".

"It suits you much better than me, you make me a little jealous".

"We can't all have hair as beautiful as mine".

They both burst out laughing to the point of crying.
Several minutes passed like this before they finally stopped and wiped their faces.

"It's been a long time since I had such a good time with someone other than my sister".

"I'm glad, I can say the same, I like being with you and I always have a great time".

A knock on the door interrupted them and when Alyx opened it she saw that it was Aela.

"Goodnight".

"Hello, I have come to find Riordan, it is important."

When he heard her name, the breton went out into the street and after saying goodbye to the girl they left.
She watched as they walked away until they had disappeared and went back into her house, locking the door.
She blew out the candles that were lit on the ground floor and went up to the second.
She cleaned up the remains of fire salts and made herself more comfortable to get into bed.
Se covered herself with blankets and from the drawer of the table she took out the book she was reading and continued where she had left it.

Chapter Text

The day passed quite calmly but at nightfall the atmosphere became lively.
Alyx didn't knew exactly what was celebrated on Jorrvaskr but she knew it was in honor of Riordan.
This time she was going as a guest but decided to bring the lute in case she needed it.
She put on her best dress and let her hair down.
Upon arrival, everyone present greeted her and in a blink she already had a drink in hand.
She talked animatedly with Athis and Torvar until Farkas and Riordan almost dragged her outside.
They ate and drank cheerfully and even she and the breton hugged several times.
While they laughed outside Kodlak and Vilkas still hadn't joined the rest.

"At some point you will have to apologize to her for what happened, I know she has nothing against you but I think it would be a good idea".

"And how do you expect me to approach her if she's always with Riordan and my brother?".

"Well, it's as simple as you go up to her and ask her to speak in private, those two shouldn't have a problem with it".

"I don't know, they look like her guard dogs".

At that comment, Kodlak laughed and ran his hand over his face.

"You do what I tell you boy, you'll see how you don't get no for an answer, Alyx is a good girl".

The nord said nothing more and retired for a few moments to his room.
He decided to wash a bit and then put on a clean shirt.
He pushed his hair away from his face and brushed it back with his hands before leaving and going upstairs.
Once there he scanned the room looking for her but did not see her anywhere.
This time he used his nose to find her and followed the trail to the training yard.
There he saw her accompanied by the two men who laughed out loud.
She approached with a determined step and watched as Riordan tapped her arm lightly to let the girl know he was there.
When he was within walking distance of them he stopped and spoke.

"Alyxa".

The brown-haired girl turned and stared at him.

"Yes Vilkas?".

For a few moments the werewolf's mouth went dry when he saw her in that pretty dress.
He shook his head slightly to clear it and looked back at her.

"I'd like to talk to you if you have a moment".

"Of course let's go".

Alyx got up and followed him toward the Skyforge.
As they left Riordan noticed the expression on Farkas's face.
He did not seem very happy and suddenly emptied what was left of his drink.
When he lowered the mug his expression was the same as ever.
He stood up with the jug in his hand and took Riordan's.

"Do you want another one?".

"Yes of course".

Farkas left him there alone and that was when he began to wonder if something had happened between them that caused him to react like that.

When they got to the Skyforge they sat on some rocks.
They were silent for a few minutes looking up at the night sky.
Vilkas noticed that Alyx's pulse was high but he didn't understand why.
He thought that it could be because she still feared being with him alone, but if that were so, she would not have agreed to come to that place.
His gaze scanned her and he wanted to tuck her hair behind her ear but knew it wouldn't be appropriate.
Their gaze met and she quickly looked away.

"What did you want to talk about?".

The werewolf cleared his throat slightly.

"I wanted to apologize for everything that happened between us, I didn't mean to hurt you".

"I know it wasn't your fault you don't need to apologize, after all if you hadn't been by my side that Frost Troll would have probably killed me so I must thank you for saving me".

"I did it without thinking, when I wanted to realize it I had already transformed and tore the head off that thing".

"So I don't think the wolf is such a bad thing".

"Depends on the situation".

Alyx brought her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them.
The temperature had dropped slightly and the fine fabric of the dress did not provide the coat she needed.
The nord realized it and without thinking for a second he wrapped his hands around the girl's to warm them.
They were freezing but slowly they were warming up.
For a few seconds Vilkas thought he heard Alyx stop breathing.
When her hands were warm he released them and pulled away slightly from her.

"Sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable."

She started laughing and looked at him.

"Not at all, it's just that I find it strange that someone like you does something like that, you always seem so cold and distant."

"I usually give that impression but I'm used to it."

Alyx covered her face with her hands for a few seconds and looked at him again.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to offend you".

"Do not worry".

In the background, Vilkas could hear Alyx's heartbeat increasingly rampant and he feared something was going to happen to her.
It looked like a hammer was hitting it.

"You seem to get along very well with Riordan and my brother".

"Yes, they are good friends and they always make me laugh, I couldn't ask for more".

"Do you know that they are both werewolves?".

"Indeed, when you transformed I began to think that Farkas could be one too and Riordan had my doubts but when I saw him eat a whole raw steak I knew something was wrong".

"I'm telling you because I trust you won't say anything".

Alyx looked at him in surprise.

"Do you really trust me?".

"Why shouldn't I?".

"I could tell what you are, which I will never do, but I doubt that anyone would listen to me".

"And that's what I like about you, you're smart and you know when to do and not do things".

Realizing what he had said they both fell silent.
They did not dare to look at each other.
Alyx felt like her head was going to explode and her chest would open and her heart would shoot out into the courtyard.

"We'd better go, you're going to get cold and that's the last thing you want, I'll walk you home if that's a good idea...".

"Of course, these are not hours for a young woman to go out there alone...".

They both got up in unison and started walking toward the girl's house.
On the way they were silent again until they reached the door.
Alyx opened it and stood on the threshold.

"I liked talking to you and I appreciate you apologizing".

"I think it was something I should do considering how bad I put you through".

She smiled slightly and rubbed her shoulders to warm herself.

"Good night Alyx".

"Good night Vilkas".

Just before he could leave she walked up to him and kissed his cheek and then entered the house and quickly closed the door.
Without changing she jumped on her bed and covered her face with the pillow to stifle a scream.
She couldn't believe what she had just done and felt her face burn.
On the other hand, Vilkas had returned to Jorrvaskr and the same question kept ringing in his head over and over again.
Was he falling in love with her?

Chapter Text

After that event so shameful for both of them they began to avoid each other again.
When she told what happened to Riordan, the breton couldn't believe it, but at the same time it got on his nerves.
For the breton it was so obvious that they were pining for each other but either they didn't realize it or they had decided not to.
He had decided to accompany her during the morning to collect certain ingredients for her potions and they sat on the shore of a small lake.

"I wanted the earth to swallow me, I didn't know what to do and I closed the door in his face, what a shame I was through...".

"Vilkas doesn't look bad at all, it's normal for you to react like this especially after that".

"I want to talk to him but I'm so embarrassed that I hardly even want to go to Jorrvaskr".

"Well don't worry, give yourself time and you'll see that everything will get better".

"I hope you are right".

"I'll try to talk to him and see if I can get something out of him, but the one who worries me lately is Farkas".

"What's wrong with him, did something happen?".

"I don't know, it was for a moment but I didn't like the face he made when you left with his brother".

"Yes it is true that I have noticed that now he comes to visit me more often but I don't think he is jealous".

"When one brother leaves the road, the other enters in his place...".

"I feel terrible for him but I don't have the heart to tell him that he is just a good friend to me, nothing more".

"But he doesn't see it that way".

Alyx moved slightly closer to Riordan until their shoulders touched.
The breton turned to her and they stared at each other.

"What do you think?".

It was the first time that both of them were so close to each other.
Riordan rested his hand against Alyx's cheek and for a few seconds they stood very still until he gave it a pinch.

"Hey that hurt!".

The girl tapped him on the shoulder and he laughed.

"Sorry, I couldn't help it".

She rubbed the sore area and leaned against the boy's shoulder.

"Look, the way I see it is that they are both in love or falling in love with you and Farkas is just jealous that you prefer Vilkas over him".

"It may be but I can't help it, every time I see it my pulse goes up and I feel like my brain is melting and I don't know how to act".

As she spoke those words her cheeks turned red.
He knew how she felt, he had also been through something similar.
It had not been pleasant and it was one of the reasons that made him leave Cyrodiil.
Alyx placed her hand over the breton's and gave it a light squeeze.
That reassured him and made him stop thinking about it.

"I wanted to ask you something since we are talking about Farkas and if you don't want me to because you think it's too personal, I'll understand".

"Don't worry, go ahead".

The nord girl took a deep breath and asked.

"You like men?".

Silence gripped them for what seemed like an eternity.
She became more and more nervous and cursed herself for having asked that question since she did not know how it would affect their friendship.
They didn't need to look at each other but he knew she would burst into tears at any moment.
He put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her against him in a hug.

"It is so obvious?".

"No but it's just that sometimes I notice how you look at Farkas and that made me wonder if maybe you were attracted to him...".

"It is true that I like men but I still don't know how I feel about Farkas".

"Why does this all have to be so difficult?".

"Love is like that, my little one, but you will see that in the end everything will work out, listen to me, I know it".

Alyx hugged the breton as tightly as she could and smiled.
He thought that now that she knew it the relationship between them would be different but for her it was not like that, for her he remained the same regardless of who he was attracted to.

"Thank you".

She looked at him with narrowed eyes and leaned her chin against his chest.

"Why?".

"For not treating me differently now that you know".

The girl's eyes moistened slightly.

"You're kidding right? I'm not going to treat you differently because of that, nobody chooses who they love, you are one of the best people I know and I will always love you, no matter what happens, you will always have me by your side".

This time it was Riordan's eyes that began to fill with tears.
Alyx hugged him tight against her and for a long time they cried against each other.
When they returned to Whiterun only they would know what happened there that day.
The girl wiped the tears from the breton's face and he did the same to her.

"We should go back, they are wondering what we do out there for so long alone".

They both laughed and got to their feet.
Riordan gave her a kiss on the cheek and helped her carry all the things they had collected to the city.

Chapter Text

If someone had told them how bad that day would be, they probably wished it never came.
News of Skjor's death struck Jorrvaskr like burning metal on skin.
No one expected someone so strong to fall to the Silver Hand.
It was then that she learned that this group was dedicated to hunting and killing werewolves.
That made her think of the dangers her friends might face, and she couldn't help but worry.
She thought about approaching them but she decided that the best thing would be to give them space, the last thing she wanted was to be a nuisance and be in the middle.
She spent the rest of the morning cleaning the house.
Alyx finished making the bed and opened one of the windows a bit to let in air.
She filled a bowl with water and some soap and washed as she did not feel that a full bath was necessary.
She dressed in a dark green shirt and black pants.
She gathered her hair into a ponytail and went downstairs.
She made something quick for breakfast but left the plate on the small table she had in her alchemy lab.
The girl rummaged through the multitude of vials for the ones she needed and set them aside.
She ate something from her plate while she mixed some herbs in the mortar.
The sound of the rain hitting the window pane created a pleasant melody that made her shoulders relax.
She suddenly remembered that the second floor window was still open and she climbed the stairs as fast as she could, sometimes even jumping two steps at a time.
She entered the room and left it tightly closed.
She went down again to continue what she was doing to her while she covered her shoulders with a blanket.
At the end of breakfast she washed the plate and silverware.
From the trunk that she kept at the side of the room she took out several small bottles and added the mortar mixture to the small cauldron whose contents were orange.
She stirred the mixture several times before turning over the hourglass resting on the right side of the table.
She watched for a few seconds as the blue sand began to fall.
To pass the time she continued reading one of her books, snuggling further into the blanket.
When a slight smell reached her, she removed the mixture from the fire, she stirred it a couple of times and let it cool so she could put it in the bottles.
She wrote on some labels the type of potion it was so as not to get confused and take something dangerous instead.
She placed a container of water on the fire to warm it and from a cabinet she took out a cup along with a wooden box.
From the box she took two of the numerous sachets and put them in the water.
She knew that perhaps tea was not the most common thing in skyrim but that was not going to prevent her from taking it even once in a while.
While the water was heating she returned to the laboratory and poured the potion into the bottles.
She corked each one and carried them to one of the empty shelves.
When the tea was ready, she poured it into the cup and she sat by the fire to continue reading quietly.

At dusk the rain stopped and the activity returned to the streets.
Alyx took the opportunity to go out for a while and get some fresh air.
She donned her favorite boots that had been a gift from her father.
Thinking about him made her sad.
It must have been very hard for him to raise two daughters without a mother.
If she and Denna were honest they didn't know much about her mothers, only that one served the empire and died in combat and the other was a travelling merchant.
That had been all until during one of the many trips she made with her father, she learned that his name was the same as her.
Alyxa.
Those who knew her in her lifetime could affirm that her daughter was a living image of her except for her eyes.
Many said they were the same as her grandmother but again, she never met her even though she knew she was alive.
When she was little, every time her father called her by her name, his expression changed slightly.
She always wondered why she was named after someone who made him feel sad when he remembered it.
It was something she did not understand.
They may not have both had the same mother, but unfortunately they had both grown up without her.
They only had her father but they were happy.
They always had what they wanted and visited more places than any child could dream of.
Her footsteps led her to Arcadia's Cauldron.
She entered the store and Arcadia greeted her cheerfully.

"Good afternoon Alyx".

"Good afternoon, did what I asked for arrived?".

"Yes, wait and I'll bring it to you in a moment".

"Thank you".

The Imperial apothecary disappeared through one of the doors and returned shortly after with a wooden box.
She gave it to the girl and she paid her.

"I was able to get almost everything you asked for".

"Thank you very much, there were some ingredients that I ran out of too quickly and here I didn't have access to them".

"Well, that's what I'm here for, come whenever you need it, you know that".

Alyx laughed and said goodbye to the woman.
She went out into the street again and returned to her house.
She spent about half an hour placing and storing the ingredients that she had purchased.
Finished that task she wanted to go to Jorrvaskr but when she opened the door she got a huge shock.
She didn't scream when she saw Kodlak at her door but she did flinch slightly.

"Sorry I scared you little one".

"Do not worry".

"We are having a small ceremony in honor of Skjor and we would like you to attend".

"Of course".

The girl locked the door and followed the old man.
The atmosphere in Jorrvaskr was sad and gloomy.
Speeches were made and nice words were said and little by little the alcohol was flowing.
Sadness gave way to happiness and party.
Everyone laughed remembering things about the fallen Companion.
The air in the mead hall turned hot and the girl came out to cool off.
Like a couple of puppies Farkas and Riordan followed her and the latter hugged her before giving her a jug of mead.
They got hooked and drank and laughed out loud as they talked nonsense and told absurd stories.
Alyx noticed that Farkas seemed more nervous than usual and was drinking his mead at a speed she had never seen.

"Farkas, are you okay?".

"Yes, yes, don't worry".

His answer hadn't convinced her much but she didn't think much about it either.
Riordan let go of her and went in for more drinks.
As soon as Vilkas saw him she approached him.

"Riordan, is Alyxa with you?".

"She is she outside yes, in the courtyard".

"Thank you".

The werewolf walked away from him and out into the courtyard.
He closed the door and turned around.
What was happening in front of him paralyzed him.
Farkas had Alyx against a column but something was wrong.
The cups that they had been holding earlier were now lying on the ground, spilled.
He noticed a great discomfort emanating from her.
The wolf inside him began to stir, and anger rose inside him.
He only saw red and he did not think clearly.
When he wanted to realize he and his brother were fighting.
At first it was like humans but with the passage of time and the blows the two wolves tore everything in their path to get out.
Alyx watched the scene in horror, not knowing what to do.
She evaluated the possibilities that she had but they all seemed very, very risky.
She did not understand why this was happening or how she had gotten into this situation.
She tried to separate them using magic but it was useless.
Tears welled up in her eyes but she was determined to end this.
During the seconds that the two creatures were apart, she stepped between them.
She tried to talk to them.
That was a fatal and foolish mistake.
She wanted all of this to stop and be as before.
She didn't want that.
It was because of her.
If she hadn't been there, nothing would have happened.
But it was too late for that.
The fight between the brothers did not stop and a faint smell of blood filled the air.
They weren't fatal injuries but enough to cause damage.

"Vilkas, Farkas, stop is enough!".

Her words were useless just like she was at that moment.
Everything was so fast that in her head that memory was only fog.
But she remembered the terrifying scream that escaped from her lips freezing the blood of everyone who heard it.
She, too, remembered the pain, an immense pain that ran through her back like tongues of fire to end up being cold as ice.
Her hands trembled and she felt life fleeing from her body like a murderer who had successfully completed his work.
She fell to the ground struggling fiercely to breath but to no avail.
Everything started to look black but nothing hurt anymore.
Everything was calm.

"Vil...kas...".

Chapter Text

From within Jorrvaskr everyone present could hear Alyx's terrifying scream.
Riordan, Kodlak, and Aela ran out into the courtyard to find a shocking scene.
The nord girl was lying facedown on the ground, bleeding profusely from a series of wounds on her back.
The smell of the twins blood was everywhere.
The breton approached her, fearing the worst.
The girl looked very pale but still had a pulse although it was very weak.

"We must take her to the Temple of Kynareth and you Aela, try to locate them".

"Right away".

Aela ran out as fast as she could and wandered through the city streets until she was in an area where she knew she could transform.
After completing this process, she began to search for the two members of the circle.
Meanwhile Kodlak and Riordan led the girl to the temple, leaving a trail of blood in their wake.
Danica Pure-Spring greeted them with alarm and they placed her on one of the spare beds.

"What has happened to her?".

"We found her outside the city, she may have been attacked by a bear or something similar, she doesn't look good at all".

They weren't going to be stupid enough to tell her the truth, so that would be the best for everyone.
Danica began to remove her top so she could clean the wounds.
She stared in horror at the five lacerations that covered the girl's back.
They were clean, without ragged edges and did not look infected but very fresh.
She applied a disinfectant liquid on them.
She casted several healing spells but none of them closed them completely, especially the central one.
That was the biggest and deepest of all.

"I will need to sew some of them, my power is not enough to close them".

Kodlak whispered something in the boy's ear and left.
Riordan nodded at the priestess's comment.

"Don't let her die, I beg you".

The breton approached his friend and took her hand.
It was slightly cold but he knew she would come through.

"She is very important to me, I don't know what I would do without her...".

A tear fell down his face and he squeezed her hand tighter as if trying to show her that he would be by her side no matter what.
He watched as the girl's wounds were stitched up and helped bandage them.

"You should apply this mixture to the wounds several times a day and bandage them again for at least two or three weeks".

"Understood, thank you very much".

Once she was ready, he carefully took her home.
He unlocked the door with a copy of the key she had given him and laid her face down on the bed.
Carefully he changed her clothes into something clean and more comfortable and covered her with a blanket.
Downstairs the front door was heard opening.
Riordan looked out and saw that it was Kodlak.

"How is she doing?".

"She seems more stable, but they had to stitch up some of the wounds".

"As long as we are careful I am sure that she will recover and do not worry, I had the blood cleaned, in the morning it will seem as if nothing has happened".

"I'll stay here with her in case something happens, she has another room so I'll use it".

"Take good care of her, I'll stop by from time to time to see if there's news".

"Perfect, good night".

"Good night lad".

The Harbinger left the house leaving the breton alone with her.
Riordan tried to sleep but couldn't.
He kept tossing and turning in bed.
He got up and walked around the house several times before checking Alyx again and went back to bed.
This time sleep caught up with him quickly and he slept until dawn.

In the morning Aela woke the breton.
If he was completely honest, she would be the last person he thought would walk into that house.
It was obvious that she and Alyxa weren't the best of friends but she still went to see how she was.
They entered Alyx's room and he sat on the side of the bed while Aela stayed on the threshold of the door.

"I still don't believe this has happened".

"Neither you nor anyone else and the worst thing is that she was right in the middle of everything although I always thought that something like this would happen if someone appeared who both liked at the same time".

"And if the wolf wants something, it doesn't matter what it is, it will always end up taking it".

"Did you manage to find them?".

"Unfortunately no, I lost their trail, but I assure you that in time one of them will return".

"When she wakes up we can find out what happened".

"It only remains to wait, I will go to inform Kodlak about the situation, take care of her".

"Don't worry, I'll do it".

Aela left the house to go to Jorrvaskr.
When she got there she went down to where Kodlak was.

"What is the situation?".

"Unfortunately I lost track of both of them, I don't know where they could have gone".

"And Alyx?".

"Riordan is still with her and remains stable for the moment".

"Let's hope it continues like this".

"I'm sure that at some point one of us will return".

"Hopefully so, now the best we can do is rest and wait".

Aela left Kodlak alone and retired to her room.

Chapter Text

Time went by and with it the seasons.
The cold again gave way to more pleasant temperatures but you could still feel the cold at night.
Unfortunately, no one had managed to find out the whereabouts of the brothers.
Alyxa's condition continued to improve until she was able to spend most of the time conscious.
Kodlak and the rest wanted to ask her about what had happened but they knew it was still a little early.
No matter how well she looked, she was still in terrible pain.
To alleviate them she took a mixture of different herbs.

"I want to take a bath, can you help me?".

"Sure, I'll go get it ready, wait here".

Riordan left the room and filled the bathtub with water.
He made sure that the water was neither too hot nor too cold.
Alyx's wounds were still tender and she had hardly ever managed to cast some kind of healing spell.
The breton felt sad to see her so fragile.
Her skin was already a more natural color but the dark circles under her eyes were still quite marked.
He helped the girl up and slowly led her to the bathroom.
He checked that the water was at a comfortable temperature and helped her friend into the bathtub.
The sensation of the water against her skin was not painful but somewhat unpleasant.
The nord girl sat hunched in the center of the bathtub and let her hair fall over her face, hiding it.

"Ready?".

She shook her head slightly and after that Riordan began pouring water over her slowly.
Thanks to the soothing herbal mixture, she was able to keep still but every now and then she would press her hand against the edge of the tub until her knuckles turned white.
The breton washed her very carefully, leaving her back for last.
His movements were precise so as not to hurt her.
At first glance the healed wounds did not seem so serious, but if he spent several minutes observing them he realized how deep they really were.
There was still a long time to go before they were fully healed.
By then everyone hoped that the pain she felt would disappear since they suffered a lot when they heared her scream in the middle of the night to find her bent over in pain.
Every time that happened, she blamed the twins because if it hadn't been for them that wouldn't have happened but it was too late to regret it.
The important thing at that time was to get the girl to recover her health completely.
Riordan dried her out of the tub once and she stared at him.

"Is everything alright?".

"Would you cut my hair?".

He did not know where that idea had come from but he was not the one to contradict her, if she wanted to do something and was sure of it, he would not stop her.

"How do you want it?".

Alyx began to gesture with her hands and when he thought he understood what she wanted, he went for the utensils he needed.
He sat the girl on a chair and began to cut her hair.
Thick strands fell to the ground with each cut and the weight of Alyx's head was relieved.
It had been a long time since she'd last worn it so short.
It was during the time she was traveling with her father.
Now everything was different.
When he finished cutting her hair, he placed her head on the bathtub and wet it to remove the loose hairs.
While Riordan emptied and cleaned the bathtub Alyx had sat in front of the mirror in the corner and after drying her hair, she combed it back.
The nord got up and walked slowly to her room.
It was still quite exhausting to move.
She lay down on the bed once dressed and the breton wrapped her body in a blanket.

"Thank you".

"You're welcome little one".

Riordan kissed her friend's forehead and left everything she might need close to her in case she woke up.
He left the bedroom door ajar and left the house.
Since the incident he had been living in the girl's house and had hardly set foot in Jorrvaskr.
He thought it would be a good idea to see how the others were.
On the way he caught a familiar scent and followed it to the inn.
He walked over to the counter and ordered something to drink.

"It's been a while since I saw you around here, didn't Alyx come with you?".

"No, she is visiting her sister in Windhelm".

"I see, I hope she have a good trip back, here you go".

"Thank you".

He would not be the one to tell her what had really happened but until all that was solved, lying was the best.
As he drank that smell it came to him again.
He climbed the stairs to the next floor and down the hall that led to the smaller rooms.
He stopped in front of one of the doors.
He checked if it was closed or not and when he saw that it opened he was quite surprised.
He looked inside the room through the crack in the door but could only see a man sleeping in the bed.

"It has to be a joke...".

He slowly opened the door and entered the room.
His nose hadn't fooled him, none other than Farkas himself slept in that bed.
Anger seized the breton at that moment and abruptly woke the nord.
Farkas blinked not understanding what was happening until he saw Riordan's face.
The werewolf moved to one side of the room and they both stayed like that for a few moments.

"You have a lot of courage to come back like this after everything that happened...".

Farkas said nothing and just looked down at the ground.
Riordan at the time just wanted to strangle him.
Having him in front of his face made him remember that night and the despair he felt at being able to see her best friend die.

"I know I shouldn't be here, I know, but I had nowhere else to go".

"I'm sure Kodlak will be delighted to hear that you are back, he wants a good explanation although I'm sure Vilkas would be better in that regard...".

He knew it was hurting him by saying that but he had the right to be angry with the twins.
The more he looked at the huge werewolf's face the more angry he felt but he took a deep breath.
He didn't want to cause any more problems to add to the ones they already had.

"I will not tell anyone that I have seen you here today, but I mean it, think about how you are going to apologize to Alyxa because she will not be so benevolent when she sees you".

Without a further word he left the room and left the inn.
He headed for Jorrvaskr and descended to the bottom.
When he found himself in front of Kodlak's door, he took a deep breath to calm himself and kept to himself having seen Farkas.

"Can I enter?".

"Sure boy, come in".

The breton opened the door and closed it again behind him.

Chapter Text

"Again".

"I don't think it's a good idea, you're pushing yourself too hard...".

"Again!".

Alyx tossed her practice sword to the ground.
She kept screaming the same thing over and over again until finally some tears fell down her cheeks.
Riordan knew she was frustrated but she had to be careful.
For her that situation was the worst thing that could have happened to her, she felt so helpless, more than she had ever been.

"Let's rest for a while, let's go eat and I'll put a little ointment on the scar that has to bother you".

"Not so much anymore...".

The breton put his arm around the girl's shoulders and they entered the house.
Since the girl was able to start doing things for herself again, the werewolf began to train her slowly since due to all the time she spent incapacitated she lost practice.
He did not want her to go to Jorrvaskr in case they ran into Farkas.
The two men had not seen each other since that conversation.
Riordan would get in a very bad mood every time he thought about him and prayed that Alyx wouldn't find him as he couldn't predict what would happen but he knew it wouldn't be pleasant.
Between the two of them they prepared various dishes and sat across from each other.

"I'm really sorry for getting like this, it frustrates me not being able to do it like before...".

"Don't worry, you'll see that sooner than you think you'll be back in shape".

"I hope so".

Alyx laughed lightly and that made her friend smile.
It had been a long time since he had seen her so happy and it seemed that she no longer felt much pain, although some nights she would wake up in cold sweats and very nervous.
He knew something was up but she never told him anything and said it was okay.
He didn't want to pressure her.

"Now that I think about it, I don't know much about your sister".

"The truth is that there isn't much to tell, neither about her nor about me".

"There's always something".

"We have the same father but not the same mother."

"Did you meet them?".

"No, but well, we have each other and I love her more than anything in the world".

"I'm sure of it you are a good girl and anyone would be very lucky to have you".

Alyx blushed slightly and smiled.

"You've got siblings?".

At that question the expression on Riordan's face changed slightly and his lips formed a sad smile.

"If you don't want to tell me, it's fine, I understand that it may be something delicate to talk about, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked".

Alyx started to panic but Riordan took her hand and gave it a light squeeze.

"Don't worry, you're my friend and it's something I've wanted to tell you for a long time, I always know more about you than you know about me and it seems fair to tell you".

They finished picking up the remains of the food and went up to Alyx's room.
They sat on the bed and Riordan placed a pillow on his lap.
The nord girl wrapped herself in a blanket and took a more comfortable position to prevent her back from bothering her.

"If I remember correctly at that time we were seven or eight years old, we still lived on the farm with my grandparents and Damian and I were playing on the wooden bridge that my grandfather built when they had already told us several
times it was dangerous but of course, we did not listen".

"When we are children we do not listen, we care more about going to play".

"True, but in this case I hope we did it because when we wanted to find out Damian had fallen and I tried to save him but he got hooked on something and it was too late, I didn't have enough strength to get him out of the water".

"I'm so sorry Riordan, it's horrible to lose someone from your family like this...".

"Don't worry, it was a long time ago, I got over it".

Alyx tried to change the subject so as not to remind him of all this.
She told him about several of the trips she made with her father through Morrowind and Cyrodiil while he smeared some ointment on her wounds.

The grass felt cool under her feet and Alyx wiggled her toes.
Before her stretched a vast, windswept green meadow.
Everything seemed very quiet until in the distance the cawing of a crow could be heard.
A chill ran through her body and made her leave the meadow to seek refuge in the forest.
It was full of huge, old trees.
Some of them were very close together almost forming a wooden wall.
The further she went through the forest the green gave way to gray and gray to the white of the snow.
It must have been a dream, it was impossible for something like this to happen, but why did it felt so real?
She walked silently through the now dead forest until she came to a cave.
It seemed uninhabited.
Still, Alyx entered it and was surprised to see a fire pit in the center of the spacious room.
Crowds of bones littered the ground, leaving little room for walking.
She couldn't shake the feeling that she wasn't alone.
She went deeper into the cave through winding stone corridors that were soft to the touch and seemed to be wet with some substance that she could not identify since she could not see it well.
She put her hand to her nose but didn't smell anything.
She decided to continue down the narrow corridor until she reached another large room, having this other fire but this one was near a small lake.
There were small shrubs and some trees in that area but the girl did not give them much importance.
Despite the fire, the air felt chilly and something immediately caught her attention.
Near the water, crouched, was a huge figure.
She didn't knew if it was human or not.
She approached cautiously and found that it was another human being or so she thought.
Accidentally she hit a stone, rolling it into the water.
The figure slowly turned towards her and the nord girl froze.

"Vilkas?".

She wanted to run towards him but something stopped her.
Vilkas approached her slowly with a small smile on his lips.

"You have finally found me my love, I have spent a long time waiting for you".

His voice sounded slightly hoarse, as if he hadn't spoken to anyone in a long time.
He closed the distance that separated him from the girl completely and hugged her.
His skin felt like fire against hers and it was impossible to stay glued to him for long.

"Come on, I have prepared something to eat, I am sure you will be hungry...".

Alyx followed him like a little lamb and sat next to him.
He offered her a bowl of something that looked like stew.
She ate a spoonful and felt her stomach turn upside down.
She put the bowl on the floor and swallowed.
A faint taste of blood covered her tongue but she decided to ignore it.

"Eat some more, I made it especially for you".

Vilkas's lifeless eyes turned black for a split second but returned to normal with a sound that seemed like a snap.
Alyx obeyed and continued eating without paying attention to what she put in her mouth until she noticed something round and squishy.
She took it out of her mouth and saw that it was an eye.
At that moment she wanted to vomit but couldn't and her eyes filled with tears.
Beside her Vilkas stepped closer to her and rested his dirty hand against the girl's frozen cheek.

"It was good?".

"Yes".

"I'm glad, now comes the best, dessert...".

A sinister smile appeared on the nord's face and before she could open her mouth the other hand of the man held her head tightly and with the one that had previously been on her cheek lightly caressed the lower part of the woman's eye.
Without a word, he inserted his finger into the socket of her eye and pulled her eye out by the roots.
The scream that came out of Alyx's mouth could only be described as inhuman and she fell back, covering her face with her hands.
As she screamed Vilkas gnawed at her eye and licked his fingers.

"Oh come on it's just one eye, we've only just started".

His eyes turned completely black and his teeth were now razor sharp.
He hoisted himself over Alyx, pinning her to the ground and attacked her neck, ripping her flesh off causing studs of blood to shoot out.

The nord girl woke up between screams and a frightened Riordan who did not understand what was happening.
She hugged him as tightly as she could while crying in terror.
Her body wouldn't stop shaking and her face was pale.
The breton tried to calm her as best he could but had to give her something to put her to sleep.
He felt more and more worried when those episodes happened, he knew that she had nightmares but when he tried to talk about it Alyx simply changed the subject and avoided it.
He knew she would talk about it when she was ready but he couldn't help but worry.
He decided to sleep with her in the same bed in case it happened again.
He kissed the forehead of the now sleeping girl and interlaced his hand with hers so that even though she could not feel it, she would feel safe and protected.

Chapter Text

During the night as out of nowhere Rivet began to jump on the bed trying to wake Alyx.
When she saw the little animal she reached out to stroke it and it rubbed against the palm of her hand.
He snuggled against her for warmth.
Riordan, still asleep, rolled over and faced the girl's back.
He clung lightly to her and put his arm around her.
Alyx didn't give it much thought and the three of them continued to sleep cuddled together.

After waking up the next morning they both bathed and prepared a delicious breakfast.
They would go to the forest to continue Alyx's training.
Today they would focus more on strengthening her physically than on using the sword.
She was still struggling to perform some tasks and so she asked the breton.
They prepared everything they needed and headed to the place where they would know no one would disturb them.
They did a series of exercises to warm Alyx so that they could see to what extent her back could be a problem.
When making certain movements the girl noticed a slight sensation of tension but it was not very annoying.

"Here, bandage your hands, let's see how you fight without a weapon".

"I've always fought with my bare fist, it will be interesting".

He taught her the best way to do it to avoid getting hurt.
The slight pressure on her hands was not unpleasant, but she did notice how they periodically warmed over time.
They got into position and Alyx raised her fists.

"I won't do anything, you just try to hit me".

"Agreed".

Riordan dodged the girl's first blows but that didn't stop her.
She was determined to try at least hitting him once even though it was proving more difficult than she expected.
Her body felt heavy and still somewhat weak.
She stopped for a few seconds and took a deep breath.

"Are you okay?".

"I just needed to get some air, don't worry".

"Take the time you need, we're in no rush and the last thing I want is for you to hurt yourself".

"I know and I appreciate you worrying about me".

"That's what friends are for".

They both smiled and the girl resumed her fighting stance.
She tried to hit him over and over again without success.
They stopped several times to rest.

"Enough for today or do you want to try one last time?".

"I want to try again, please".

This time at the beginning Riordan noticed something different in the girl's eyes and tried to avoid her but noticed how she gave him a light blow on the forehead with the palm of her hand.
They looked at each other for a few seconds and he carefully lifted her off the ground to hug her.
He gave her a couple of turns while they laughed and put her back on the ground.

"We're on the right track, with a little more time you can take down anyone".

"With your help I'm sure I will".

"Let's go now, I'm sure you'll want to get some rest".

Alyx nodded slightly and they began to gather things up.
They walked slowly back to the city and along the way the girl sang some of the songs she knew.
When the breton asked her about it, she told him that it was her father who taught her.

"He may not be a bard but he sings pretty well".

"You will have inherited it from him".

"Probably, I'm eager for him to come back to tell me more stories or bring me some strange objects".

"When was the last time you and your sister saw him?".

"If I remember correctly the last time was three years ago, we do not know where he is but we do know that if something had happened he would have returned".

"That's a lot of time".

"I know but we are used to it, it has been like that all our lives and we will not be the ones who tell him to stop, it is what makes him happy".

"No wonder you had a childhood full of adventures".

"Not all of them were pleasant".

"That's life I guess...".

The nord girl at that moment stopped in her tracks and curled up on herself clutching her sides.
A stabbing pain ran through her body and caused her to fall to the ground.
It felt like a hundred blades were digging into her back.
Riordan panicked and tried to help her the best he could.
He took the calming herb brew out of the bag and made Alyx drink it.
He snuggled against her and the girl held his hand tightly.
She wasn't crying but her eyes were glassy.
Until Alyx was better, they would not move from there.
The breton knew perfectly well that he could have picked her up to carry her home but she had already made it clear to him that this was not what she needed or wanted, it would only make her feel more useless.
She wanted to show herself that she could take pain even though if she was honest with herself it was the worst pain she had ever felt.
It felt as if at any moment her back was going to split open in half.
In the silence that covered the area, interrupted only by the chirping of the birds, Riordan could hear footsteps approaching them.
When he raised his head he froze.
It was Farkas.

Chapter Text

Riordan did his best to prevent Alyx from seeing him but to no avail.
When the girl raised her head and saw him, everything turned red for her.
Before Riordan could react and stop her the girl ran towards the werewolf.
She conjured a dagger in one hand and a cold mist could be seen in the other.
She began to throw large ice spikes at him which hit the trees except for one that brushed the arm of the nord.
Farkas tried to avoid her as much as possible but she wouldn't stop.
She looked like a rabid animal.
He didn't blame her, after all, everything she had been through was his fault.
The werewolf stopped and stared at her.
Alyx stopped in her tracks somewhat confused but at that moment everything went black for her.
Riordan had hit her on the back of the head.
He held her down so she didn't fall to the ground and leaned her against a tree trunk.
He turned to Farkas.

"What are you doing here?".

"I wanted to try to talk to her but in the end it wasn't such a good idea".

"Next time I won't stop her".

The breton looked very angry.
He couldn't help it, he had hurt his friend and when he had the opportunity he would also talk to Vilkas.
That would be if they could find him.

"Help me take all this to her house and you go back to the inn, I'll try to talk to her".

The nord said nothing and just picked up the things while Riordan picked up the girl.
They went back to Alyx's house, put things away, and Farkas left.
Riordan laid her on the bed and covered her with a blanket.
He left the house, leaving her alone and went to the inn.

She went up to the room in which the nord was staying and entered.

"I want to talk to you".

"About what?".

"Alyx wants to go find Vilkas, but she is still a little weak to travel alone, so I want you and me to accompany her because I'm sure she won't stop until she finds him".

"You've seen how she gets when she sees me, it's going to be impossible".

"I'll try to calm her down and make her understand that you want to help".

"Well good luck with it".

Riordan sat down in a chair and sighed heavily.
He ran his hands over his face and stared at the ground.

"I hope we can find him, especially for her, she is not well and I am worried that she may do something stupid".

"Is it that bad?".

"She has such bad nightmares that she wakes up screaming and many times when I talk to her it seems as if she is not there".

"If we find my brother it will do them both good because I'm sure he is also suffering".

"Hopefully you're right".

The breton got up and went to the door.

"I'll go talk to her, if I come back for you it will be because we are going to look for him".

"Agreed".

Riordan left the inn and returned to Alyx's house.
When he went up to the second floor he saw the girl sitting on the bed with Rivet on her lap.
Her expression was sad and the fox was trying to make her feel better.

"Why did you do that?".

"Because you looked like you were going to kill him and I wasn't going to let you do it, you're not an animal".

"I just want this to end".

"Well that's not the best way to do it".

"Then tell me which one is the best".

The breton sat on the bed and hugged her.
He knew it would be of little use but when he noticed that she was hugging him too, he smiled a little.

"We will find Vilkas, you'll see, but for that you have to let Farkas come with us, he is the one who knows his brother best and he will be of great help to us".

"I refuse, between you and I we will find him".

Riordan pulled her slightly away from him and placed his hands on her shoulders.

"Be reasonable please, I know you feel a lot of anger against him but it will be good for him to accompany us, in case Vilkas refuses to return, perhaps talking to Farkas will succeed".

Alyx pouted and her friend laughed.

"Trust me, you don't have to talk to him either, you can ignore him, but the best thing is if he comes with us".

"If he comes with us, you will be responsible for him".

"Okay, whatever it takes so you don't kill him".

"Well, we'll wait a few days to get ready and we'll start looking".

"Seem right".

They got out of bed and went downstairs while Rivet followed.
On one hand Riordan was glad that she was letting Farkas go with them but on the other he was worried as things could get unpredictable.
He sighed slowly and looked at the girl.

"Are you hungry?".

"I'm starving".

They grabbed a few ingredients and began to prepare something to eat.

Chapter Text

At last the day Alyx was waiting for arrived.
It was not dawn yet but they still made sure not to forget anything important.
Before leaving they had breakfast and left everything in order.
Alyx locked the door and hid the key in a place only she and Riordan knew.
They loaded the backpack on their back and headed to the entrance of the city where Farkas was already waiting for them.
Riordan greeted him but she kept going and out the great door.
The sky was clear, perfect for traveling.
Still the girl knew that at some point it might rain.
They walked to a stop near one of the farms and Alyx pulled out a map.

"I'm not sure where to start, but I think Dawnstar and Markarth are far apart and can be a good place to hide".

"Well we could go to Dawnstar first and then go west to Markarth and see what we find".

"Sounds good to me, let's get going".

Without wasting a second they headed north.
With the passage of time and the further they advanced, the colder the environment became.
When it began to snow as night fell, they decided to stop and set up camp.
They stood guard in shifts and the first was Alyx.
She sat by the fire wrapped in a blanket and placed her sword in front of her legs in case she was going to need it.
The small snowflakes fell slowly and lightly covered her hair white.
The howl of several wolves could be heard in the distance but she knew they would not approach.
Her pulse quickened slightly when she thought of Vilkas, she felt very worried.
Not that Vilkas needed her to worry about him but she couldn't help it.
She was also somewhat afraid of what they might meet and she was afraid that he would not want to return.
The touch of Riordan's hand against her shoulder brought her back and she smiled.

"Time to change, you can sleep in my sleeping bag if you want, it's still warm".

"Thank you".

She got up off the ground and wiped the snow from her hair.
She quickly crawled into her friend's sack letting the heat engulf her, leaving her asleep almost instantly.

With the first light of the morning they cleared the camp and erased any possible traces they might have left.
They continued with their journey having luck on their side since they did not have any incidents along the way.

When they saw the city of Dawnstar, they looked for the inn and rented a room for several days in which to stay and shelter from the cold.
It had been a long time since the girl had been there and some of the locals recognized her.
She greeted them and they talked for a while before entering the establishment.
After resting and eating something hot they began to ask.
They spent the rest of the day asking all the people who came and went to the inn if by any chance they had seen the nord but had no luck.
Riordan decided to share a room with Alyx since he didn't want to leave her alone.
The girl sat on the bed with her knees to her chest and he sat in a chair that was next to her.

"How are you?".

"Well, I know I shouldn't because he can take care of himself but I can't help it, it worries me".

"I'm sure Vilkas is fine and it's normal for you to worry about the people you love".

Alyx's face turned slightly red and she flopped onto her side, covering herself with her hands so her friend wouldn't see it.
The breton laughed and sat down on the bed next to her.

"When did you realize?".

"Well, I think it was when we traveled together to High Hrothgar despite everything that happened, although what scares me is that he doesn't feel the same way about me".

"Life can take many paths but I'm sure he has feelings for you, otherwise he wouldn't have reacted like that when he saw how Farkas kissed you".

"You may be right but the important thing now is to find him and convince him to come back with us".

"Right, the important thing is to find him, hopefully we'll have more luck tomorrow".

"Hope so".

Riordan got up from the bed and went to the door.

"I'm going to see Farkas, sleep, I'll try not to wake you up when I get back".

Alyx laughed lightly and and she winked at him.

"Have fun".

He sighed and smiled slightly.

"And then you tell me I'm the bad guy".

"No, but I like to tease you a little".

"I'll give it back to you when you least expect it".

"We'll see".

They both laughed and she watched as he left the room.
She knew that Riordan was in a certain way attracted to Farkas but a small thorn stuck in him when he thought that her best friend could go wrong.
In both cases, it only remained to wait and see what would happen.
She lay down on her side of the bed after changing and tried to sleep as best she could.

Chapter Text

As they thought the next day they had the same luck.
They returned to the inn somewhat discouraged.
But they would not stop searching.
Together they sat around one of the tables and while they ate Alyx checked the map again.

"Since we haven't had much success here, I think it would be a good idea to go to Markarth as soon as possible, it's a pretty big place and it might take time".

"The sooner we leave the sooner we get there, the trip there isn't exactly short".

Farkas rose from his seat and moved away from the table.

"I'll pick up my things and wait for you outside".

Alyx looked him straight in the eye and nodded slightly.
The werewolf looked away quickly and headed for one of the two rooms they rented.

"You know I'm going to do nothing to him, after all he's helping us to find his brother".

"I know but I can't quite trust you with him yet".

The breton leaned back in his chair and drank some of the wine that was left in his jug.
The girl leaned slightly towards him and after giving him a pat on the arm she smiled.

"How was last night?".

"We just talked, nothing more".

"Are you sure?".

"Yes".

"I was expecting something more, to be honest, every time you look at him without him noticing it seems as if you wanted to drill a hole in his face".

"And what do you want me to do?".

"You could talk to him".

"Not yet, not after everything what happened and not knowing how he really feels about you".

"Sorry, forget I said anything, I'll go get my things ready...".

Alyx got up from the chair and after giving him a kiss on the side of the forehead she entered the room.
Riordan sat in the chair for a few minutes and sighed heavily before he, too, went to pack histhings.

The journey to Markarth began without incidents, but the peace did not last long.
During one of the rainiest days, they were attacked by a couple of bears as if out of nowhere.
Between the three of them they finished off without much problem and Alyx healed the possible injuries that would have resulted from the fight.
When they were resting in the camp, while Riordan watched, he spotted Rivet, the fox of the nord girl, on several occasions.
She had been right when she had once told him that he appeared from time to time and did not know where he had been or how he had reached her.
He seemed somewhat disturbing but being harmless, the breton did not give him much importance.
Until they reached the city they suffered the odd attack from animals and a small group of bandits believed they were strong enough to rob them, but they made a mistake and ended up dead.
When they finally saw the gate of the huge city, they were relieved and entered.
The market area seemed quiet until they witnessed the murder of a woman.
The entire area was quickly filled with guards and they decided it was best to get out of the way.
They entered the Silver-Blood Inn.
Farkas and Riordan sat by the fire while Alyx approached the inn keeper.

"Welcome traveler, what do you need?".

"I need a room for several days, we are three people".

The inn keeper thought for a moment.

"Look I'll tell you what we will do, give me 50 gold and you will have two rooms and something to eat".

To Alyx it seemed a bit more than what she was used to pay, but after all she was with two other people.
She took the money out of her bag and handed it to him.

"We will be by the fire, if you could bring us something hot to eat we would appreciate it".

"Right away, when you finish eating I'll show you where your rooms are".

"Thank you".

The nord girl returned with her companions and sat in the chair that had been placed there for her.

"Tomorrow we could start looking, you two stay inside the city and I will go to the farms to see if we are lucky this time".

"Seems right to me".

While they were talking, they brought them something to eat.
It wasn't the best they'd ever had, but it was edible.
It was enough to leave them satiated.
The fatigue of the trip became more and more present.
Riordan yawned and leaned on her friend's shoulder.

"Let's go to sleep, come on, you're going to hurt yourself".

The three got up and the inn kipper pointed out where their rooms were.
Farkas took Riordan with him to one room and Alyx went into the opposite.

Chapter Text

The trip to the farm and then to the mine had been a total waste of time, no one had seen or heard anything.
Alyx was starting to get frustrated.
She returned to the inn defeated and along the way she encountered the two werewolves.

"How was it?".

"At the moment nothing, we only made one area, this afternoon we can try again on another side".

"Sounds good to me, let's eat something and continue later".

This time they sat at the bar, devoured the food they were given quickly, and left the inn again.
Riordan went one way while Farkas and Alyx stayed together.
They decided to go to the upper parts of the city and began to ask questions.
They approached an old man who was playing with a child.

"Excuse me, I would like to ask you something".

"Of course girl, what is it about?".

"Have you ever seen a man like him?".

She pointed at Farkas and the old man looked at him.
After a few minutes he shook his head.

"I'm really sorry but no".

"Thank you very much, have a good day".

They said goodbye to him and went to ask somewhere else.
Having asked so many people and didn't get any positive response, they ended the search.
If nobody had seen anything in a city like this, it was the signal they needed to go somewhere else.
While drinking at the inn they spent a long time looking at the map to decide where to go.
The girl's gaze stopped on Morthal.
She placed her finger on the location and looked at her companions.

"What if we try here?".

Riordan fiddled with one of the buckles on his armor and nodded slightly.

"We do not lose anything by trying, it is an area with marshes, if I were hiding it would be the perfect place to do it, they are not areas that many people go to".

"Well, no more talk, tomorrow we will go there".

They retired to their respective rooms.
Alyx made sure to leave the door securely closed before changing and enter the bed.
The stress and exhaustion of the past few days were taking its toll on her.
She closed her eyes and after a few minutes that seemed eternal she fell asleep.

The crackle of the fire made her eyes open slightly.
The room felt too warm and she realized that she was wrapped in a blanket.
She pulled it off her and set it on the chair she was sitting on.
She looked at the room she was in but couldn't relate to anything she knew.
What she was clear about was that it was a house since in front of her, with the door half open, was a kitchen.
Something cold touched her hand causing her to jump.
Turning around, she realized that it was a dog.
She leaned over slightly and stroked him behind the ears to which the animal responded with small noises of approval.
Following the animal, she decided to enter through one of the doors that were to the left.
When she opened one of them and peeked inside, she saw that the room they led into was a bedroom.
In it there were all kinds of furniture but what caught her attention the most was the huge bed that was against one of the walls.
She entered without making much noise but before closing the door she turned to the dog.

"Stay here and be a good boy".

She petted him again and the animal backed away from the door.
Alyx closed it behind her back.
Everything seemed normal but that did not make everything stop being something strange.
She could hear a door open and she ran to sit on the bed.
She turned her back on whoever had entered.
She didn't know who it could be but she didn't take long to find out.
She heard footsteps heading toward her and a pair of arms went around her.
She turned her head to the side and when she saw Vilkas's face she definitely knew she was dreaming.

"I have gone to look for you to take you to bed and you were gone".

"I woke up and came alone, I didn't want to bother you".

The werewolf, having her pressed against his chest, fell on his side, dragging her with him.

"You seem a bit tense, is everything okay?".

"Everything is fine, I was just thinking about some things...".

As she spoke, she saw how he rested his forearms on her knees.
He smiled and Alyx could swear she saw a fang.
In a very subtle way he raised the girl's dress and spread her legs open.
A chill ran through her body and they looked at each other.
Before Alyx could say anything Vilkas placed his head between them and started to eat her out.
She threw her head back almost immediately and closed her eyes.
It was a different sensation from the one she remembered but she was somewhat surprised to feel it so intensely in a dream.
After a while she felt something hairy brush against her leg so she looked down slightly.
When she saw the huge werewolf that had replaced the nord she felt a great pain that woke her.
She fell off the bed and searched frantically for the herbal mixture that would make the pain subside.
When she found it and with staggering steps she put some in a glass of water.
After drinking the contents, she returned to bed and lay there waiting for the pain to stop.

Chapter Text

They gathered by the fire and while they had breakfast Riordan noticed that she did not look very well.
He knew that she had had a nightmare.
He placed his hand on her knee to let her know that if she needed to speak she only had to ask.
Alyx placed her hand over the breton's and gave it a light squeeze.
When they finished they went to collect their things but this time Riordan entered Alyx's room.

"Can I help you?".

"Please".

Together they put all the things in the girl's backpack and left it on the bed.
The breton noticed the length of the nord girl's hair and ran a hand through it.

"If you want me to cut it again you just have to tell me, it's already a bit long".

"I'm letting it grow, but I also want to keep the whole bottom short".

"Next time we set up camp I'll take a look at it".

"Thank you".

The girl hugged Riordan and he slammed her tight against his chest.
They stayed like this for several minutes before Farkas knocked on the door.
The breton and the nord parted ways.

"The sooner we leave the sooner we will reach Morthal and hopefully we will find Vilkas".

"You're right, thanks for helping me".

"You know I will always help you, whatever it is".

"You know that I would do the same for you".

They took all their things and left the city.
They knew that the journey to their next destination would take some time but they tried to see the bright side.
Alyx had a feeling they would find him this time.

The marshes were somewhat difficult to overcome but when they finally saw the first buildings their bodies were filled with relief.
As they walked through the streets, many of the people they passed looked at them and whispered among themselves.
The three of them did not know if it was a good or bad thing but they decided to ignore it.
They headed straight for the Moorside Inn.
As soon as they entered a redguard woman approached them.

"Welcome travelers, my name is Jonna, how can I help you?".

"We would like something to drink and if possible three rooms".

"How many days do you plan to stay?".

"Two or three tops".

"Great, I'll show you where the rooms are and then I'll get you something to drink".

The woman took them to their respective rooms and each one settled in one of them.
When they finished they went to the main hall and sat by the fire.
Jonna brought each of them a jug of mead.

"Well, now that we are here, we have to think about how we will do it".

"I think the best thing is that we rest today since it is quite late and tomorrow we start asking as many people as we can".

"And if that doesn't work out, we can try looking around the surrounding area".

"It's a good idea, I like it".

Alyx emptied the contents of her mug earlier than expected and stood up.

"I think before I retire for today I'm going to go to the alchemy shop to buy some potions".

"Be careful".

The two werewolves watched her go, and when they were alone they chatted animatedly as they continued drinking.
The air was chilly at this hour and made the hairs on the back of Alyx's neck stand up.
As Riordan promised, the moment they stopped and set up camp he cut her hair again, but only the part of the back of her neck, the rest he left it long and now she was wearing it in a bun.
When the girl entered the store she greeted the woman behind the counter.

"What do you need?".

"I was looking to replenish some potions and buy certain ingredients".

"I'm sure I have everything you need".

The nord girl had a good time selecting the ingredients and the owner, Lami, put them in a small bag.
She handed her the potions along with the bag and Alyx handed her the money.

"Thank you very much, come back whenever you want".

"Thanks to you".

Leaving the shop, she returned to the inn and went straight into her room.
She put her purchase in her backpack and changed.
Before going to bed she put one of her books on top of it and left her room.
She went to Riordan's and knocked on the door several times.
The breton opened it and smiled.

"Hello".

"Hello, I was coming to say good night".

"You are so cute".

Riordan kissed her cheek.

"Good night Alyx".

"Rest well".

Her face turned a little red and she went back into her room and spent some time reading before going to sleep.
She blew out the candle on the table and let the darkness of the room envelop her.

Chapter Text

During breakfast, different tasks to be carried out around the city throughout the morning were distributed.
Alyx would ask at the alchemy shop, Riordan would ask the Jarl and Farkas would ask around the streets.
Whatever happened, they would meet again at the inn to see how they had done.
That place had an atmosphere that she didn't like too much, everything seemed very sinister, especially when she found out what happened to the house that was in ruins.
A terrible fire broke out and it was rumored that vampires were in the area.
That unfortunately turned out to be true, but luck would have it that Elyel took care of that matter.
The girl entered the establishment again to speak with Lami.

"Hello again, are you coming to buy something else?".

"No, this time I came to ask you something".

"Whatever it is, I'll try to answer you the best I can".

Alyx leaned against the counter and looked at Lami.

"Have you seen or do you know if anyone has seen a dark-haired, blue-eyed nord?".

The woman thought for a long time and shook her head.

"I'm sorry, but no, it doesn't sound like I've seen anyone like that and visitors aren't usually very common around here so if someone had seen them I would know".

"So hasn't anything strange happened around here lately?".

"Now that you mention it, many of us have realized that for a while many of the animals in the area have disappeared".

"Did they run from something?".

"We don't know, they just disappeared although sometimes we found a trace of blood but we did not dare to follow it".

That information was enough to draw Alyx's curiosity, since if it was not a predator in the area, it was possible that it was the werewolf who was hunting the animals.

"Could you tell me where was the last time somebody saw a trace of blood?".

"Of course, my husband Jorgen can take you there, he was one of the last people to see something like that".

"Thank you very much Lami".

Before she left the store, the woman showed her where to find her husband.
Alyx followed her directions and made it to the mill.
She approached a man who was chopping wood at the time.

"Sorry, are you Jorgen by any chance?".

"Yes I am, who's asking?".

"Your wife told me that maybe you could help me, I need you to take me to the last place where you saw traces of blood, me and my friends are looking for someone and we think they may be in danger if the rumors I have heard are true".

The nord continued chopping wood for a few more minutes until it stopped.

"I'll take you, but it won't be free".

"I did not expect otherwise, 30 gold will be enough?".

"Perfect".

The girl handed him the money and he took her to the place.
At first glance it seemed that everything was normal but once she began to observe the area she soon found a trace of dried blood.
Jorgen left without her noticing, leaving her alone.
The nord girl followed the trail of the blood that stopped abruptly next to a tree.
A faint rotten smell reached her nose and she followed it until she found the corpse of a half-decayed deer.
A chill ran through her body.
This carnage wasn't like a troll or a chaurus did it, but something much worse.
She decided to explore the area carefully.
After several hours feeling that she had lost her time, when she wanted to leave, she came across a cave.
She did not know if it was inhabited or not, but if she knew that it would be risky to enter it alone, so she decided to return.

The inn seemed more crowded than usual at this hour.
She looked around for the two werewolves and found them sitting by a wall.
When they saw her they were relieved since they had not heard from her for a long time.

"I hope the reason you are coming back now is because you found something, you had me worried".

Alyx ordered some wine and when they served it she sat with them.

"Have you been lucky?".

"Unfortunately no, nobody knows or has seen anything".

"I may have found something, I'm still not entirely sure but luck may be on our side this time".

"What is it about?".

"There are rumors circulating that there is something loose that is killing the animals in the area or making them flee, so that is why we did not see almost any when we arrived".

"And do you think it could be related to Vilkas?".

"I think so, this morning Jorgen, Lami's husband, the owner of the alchemy shop, took me to an area from where I followed a trail of blood that led me to the corpse of a deer and through the state in the that something was found very big must have attacked it ".

"Did you find anything else?".

"A cave, but I didn't want to go in alone, anyone knows what might be inside and I didn't want to risk it".

"If you remember how to get there tomorrow we will go, now that we finally have something solid to hold on to as soon as we go there the better".

"Right, then tomorrow we will explore the cave".

All three toasted and finished their drink in seconds.
Somewhat happier they decided to retire to their rooms to rest as much as possible.
They did not know what awaited them in that cave, but they would be prepared to face anything.

Chapter Text

As Alyx promised, she led them to the cave.
It took them a long time to find it due to the fog, but luckily she made sure to leave several marks to show her the way.
As they were passed, she was in charge of erasing them.
When they reached the entrance they stopped.

"I don't know what we will meet inside so be careful".

Once inside the cave Alyx casted a spell and a small sphere of light rose above them.
At first glance it seemed uninhabited but they advanced on one of the sides.
All three had the feeling that the stone corridor would never end.
Alyx wrinkled her nose for a few moments.

"Do you smell that?".

"It smells like raw meat".

They reached another larger part of the cave and decided to stop.
So far they had not had any complications but they did not know how long they could continue like this.
After taking up position on the side of the room, they tried to speak as low as possible.

"I don't know if it will be a good idea but I have thought about getting ahead alone".

"And if something happens to you? Don't even think about it".

"If something happens I'll scream, I'm sure you'll hear it and I also prefer to be the only one, if you come with me we may not have the opportunity to talk to him".

The nord gril smiled.
The breton sighed and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Okay, be very careful, we'll stay here".

"We will make a bonfire and wait for you".

"Perfect".

The girl walked away from them and continued exploring one of the side corridors.
This time the road descended and in some parts created somewhat dangerous ramps.
She helped herself to the wall she managed to get down.
The light that she had conjured had long since gone out but when wanting to cast another one she realized that later on there was light.
Being as stealthy as she could, she was slowly approaching the light.
In the center of a small semicircular room there was a burning fire.
Despite that, there seemed to be no one else but her down there.
What struck her the most was the smell, it was not unpleasant, but it was very strong and she could not identify what it was.
She slowly approached the fire and began to look at everything there.
Along a wall on a flat stone were several pieces of raw meat.
Some boxes were stacked in the corner.
On the opposite side was a sleeping bag and there was something that caught her eye.
She came closer and as she bent down she saw what it was.
It was the necklace that she had been looking for so long and she thought she had lost.
He must have taken it with him the night of the incident.
A noise to the right of her caught her attention so she pulled the dagger but something jumped at her causing her weapon to end up disappearing somewhere.
She ended up lying on the ground on her back with a pair of hands around her neck.
As hard as she tried to release the tighter the grip was.
She lost her vision for a few seconds after which a pair of blue eyes were fixed on her.
The hoarse voice of Vilkas reached her ears.

"You are dead...it's impossible...I killed you...".

The girl shook her head as best she could and felt the hands on her neck withdraw.
She automatically turned to the side and began to cough violently trying to catch air.
She felt like her lungs were burning and her pulse was off.
She tried to sit up but as she did so she felt stabs of pain in her back.
She took a deep breath to calm herself as her gaze never left the werewolf's face.
Since the last time she had seen him his hair and beard were much longer and she could see that he was only wearing pants.

"Why are you here?".

"Because I have come to find you, you have to go back, everyone is very worried".

She reached out her arm and tried to touch Vilkas's cheek but he stopped her and held her wrist gently in place.

"No, you have to get away from me, I don't want to hurt you again".

"It was an accident, I was the one who got in the way".

"But I shouldn't have lost control like that".

"It was an accident...".

Vilkas turned away from her and sat on his sleeping bag.

"Go away, it's better for everyone that we don't see each other again".

At that moment rage took hold of the girl who got up.
She had never looked at him that way before and he knew he had managed to infuriate her.

"If that's what you want, fine, but you have two options, the first is to stay here hiding like a rat for the rest of your life and the second is for you to return with us to Whiterun because we have done everything possible to find you" .

Vilkas passed his hand over his face and sighed.

"Why do you insist so much on it? I don't want to go back, wake up and understand that everything is not going to turn out the way you want".

Alyx clenched her fists until she hurt herself and her eyes filled with tears.

"I insist so much because I love you, but if you are so blind as not to see it then I am wasting my time...".

They were both silent for a few moments which seemed like hours.

"Go away".

The nord girl turned and full of helplessness and with a quick step left the place, leaving the werewolf alone.
He stood for a long time looking at the place where she had left but did nothing.
When Riordan and Farkas saw her again they were very concerned and without saying a word from her they followed her out of the cave.
The breton tried to hug her to comfort her but she did not let anyone approach her.
Between sobs and with her face full of tears she scream.
She felt useless for not being able to do anything.
The other two left her space to calm down.

"I think I'm going to go, I don't want to be here anymore...".

"And where will you go?".

"To Solitude, I need to be alone for a while, you guys go back to Whiterun, you will only waste your time if you stay here".

Without another word, she left them alone and went to the inn to collect her things.
After paying Jonna for some food for the trip, she left Morthal to head to her new destination.
Alyx couldn't believe that after all they had done that had been the result.
She felt sad as she hoped that somehow he had been glad to see her.
She tried not to think about it and focused all her attention on the journey that lay ahead of her.

Chapter Text

A month passed since all that and Alyx remained inside her room at the college.
She only went out on certain occasions and always at times that she knew there would be no one else.
She didn't really want to be with anyone, but Viarmo had other plans for her.
One morning he knocked on her door.

"Meet me at the entrance, I will not repeat it again".

The Altmer moved away from her door and the girl climbed out of her bed.
She sighed and began to change.
She chose a fairly simple outfit, a dark green blouse, black pants, and boots.
She brushed her hair several times and left the room.
She went to the place indicated by the headmaster and saw that two people were next to him.
Until she was with him she did not see how really young they were.
They were a boy and a girl, both blonde from what she deduced that they must be nords.
By their appearance they could not be more than 15 or 16 years old.
Viarmo turned to her and placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Now that you are here I want to introduce you to Euri and Nariss, they are new students".

The brown-haired girl greeted them with a slight wave of her hand.

"Guys, this is Alyx and she will be the one to show you around the college today so you can become familiar with everything, when you finish find me and I will show you your rooms".

The elf pushed her slightly towards them and left them alone.
None of the three said anything for a few moments until she motioned for them to follow her.
There was no possible way she could get rid of it so she thought it best to obey.
Together they spent much of the morning touring the building.
Alyx explained in an impeccable way each room, how you could get from one place to another without getting lost and she also told them about the teachers and many of the things they would learn.
At first Euri and Nariss thought they would be bored to death but even though she didn't feel that way, she managed to get the children excited.
She told them all kinds of stories about the place and even some anecdotes.
After finishing the visit, she took them to Viarmo.
She said goodbye to them and returned to her room.
At that moment she was inspired and thought that perhaps she could compose something.
She placed everything necessary on her desk and took a deep breath.
It had been a long time since she had sat down to write the lyrics or sheet music for a song.
She missed the smell of ink and as on many occasions her hands ended up stained with it, leaving them partially black for days.
She tried to let her imagination run wild and by the time she wanted to realize it the entire surface of the table was littered with papers.
Some were more readable than others but if she tried hard she could decipher their content without much problem.
She decided to take a break.
For some strange reason, having guided those kids through school made her feel better and she went to the tavern to drink something.
There she met many of her acquaintances.
They all welcomed her with open arms and kept telling her how much they had missed her.
They all sat together with a drink in hand and exchanged all series of stories and songs.
Lisette sat next to the girl.
The two had known each other for quite some time and considered each other friends.
She handed her another jug full of wine.

"All good in Whiterun?".

"Yes, I can't complain".

"I'm surprised you didn't come back sooner, we missed you".

"I also missed you a lot".

The breton bard noticed that something was wrong with her but avoided thinking about it and smiled.

"Come on, sing with me, you know what they say, there's nothing like a good song to lift the spirit in troubled times".

Alyx tried to stop her but in the end they ended up singing a song together for everyone present.
A sea of applause surrounded them and they thanked those present for their attention.
They went back to where they had been sitting before and continued drinking.

Her head wouldn't stop spinning so she didn't want to get out of bed.
She hadn't had enough to drink to feel that way but she thought that maybe something she ate made her feel bad.
After a long time she decided to get up and wash herself with some cold water.
As she was more awake, she changed her outfit and gathered her hair in a high ponytail.
She had it long enough for it and thanks to what Riordan taught her she learned to keep her undercut as good as possible.
She left her room and went down to the kitchen to get something to eat.

"Good morning Bendt".

"Good morning Alyx, if you are going to get something to eat hurry up, I'm making lunch".

"Yes, yes, calm down, I'll be leaving right away".

The girl grabbed a boiled creme treat and she left the kitchen as quickly as she could.
She left the school and headed to the area where King Olaf was burned.
She there she sat on one of the stone steps and ate her sweet.
After a while she heard someone come up behind her.
When she turned around she saw that it was Viarmo.

"Sometimes you are difficult to find, I've been looking for you for a while".

"If I'm not inside, you will most likely find me here".

"A good place like any other".

"What did you need?".

"They brought this for you".

The Altmer handed her an envelope.
She drew a letter from within it and read it carefully.
When she finished she put it in her pocket.

"Thank you very much, now I will return to my room",

"Have a nice day".

"You too".

Alyx walked away from the headmaster and back into the building.
In the privacy of her room, she left the letter on the table.
She didn't know who it could be from and the idea of meeting someone like that made her slightly suspicious.
She luckily had the rest of the day to figure out what to do.

Chapter Text

After thinking about the idea a lot, she decided to go to the Winking Skeever.
She didn't know what was waiting for her once inside but going unarmed was not an option.
She hid a dagger in her boot and headed for the inn.
Upon entering, she went directly to the bar and sat on one of the stools.
Corpulus leaned against it.

"Welcome friend, what do you fancy?".

"Mead, please".

The imperial disappeared for a few moments and returned with a jug that he filled in front of the girl's eyes.
He placed it in front of her and she paid him.

"Hey Corpulus, has anyone come to the tavern out of the ordinary?".

"I think so, he sat in a corner and has been here since yesterday".

He with a small gesture pointed to the place where that person was sitting and when she looked she saw that it was Riordan.

"Do you know each other?".

"Yes, he is a friend, thank you".

Alyx got up and walked to the table where the breton was sitting.
When he saw her, he got up.

"I thought you were not coming".

"Well, as you can see, I'm here".

The nord girl approached him and hugged him.
It had been her first show of affection for a long time, and he felt the force with which her arms were around him.
Riordan also put his arms around her and leaned his head against the side of the girl's.
Surrounded by the silence that had formed in the inn, they held each other for a few more moments until Alyx led him upstairs.
There they sat at a table.

"Tell me what you came for, because I don't think it was just because you wanted to see me".

The breton scratched the back of his neck.

"Kodlak asked me to come, he hasn't heard from you for a long time and he was worried".

"Well, when you return, tell him that I am fine and apologize for not having written to him".

"But you can do that yourself".

"And why would I come back?".

"Because we all miss you and Kodlak asked me to come find you, he wants you back".

"What if I refuse?".

Riordan sighed and took the girl's hand.

"Please, do it for me, come back with me and I swear I will never ask you for anything in my life".

Those words combined with the boy's gaze made her heart break a little.
She knew that he did not like to ask for things but if he had come to do it, it must be something important.
Alyx gave the breton's hand a little squeeze.

"I'll go with you, let me get my things and we'll meet at the entrance to the city".

"Perfect, I'll be there waiting for you".

They left the inn together and she went back to the college to prepare all the things she would need.
Alyx was feeling quite nervous.
She didn't know how she could stay in front of Kodlak after everything that had happened since after so much searching she had been unable to get him back.
She shook her head several times and focused her attention on what she was doing, she didn't want to make her friend wait any longer than necessary.

When she reached the entrance to Solitude she saw Riordan leaning against the stone wall by the door.
When he saw her, he approached her a little and they left the city.

"Let's go to the stables, I have a horse there".

"Did you buy one?".

"No, I only rented it for a while".

"Oh, I see, that way we'll go faster...".

When they reached the stables they approached a light-colored mare.
They both got on it and started on their journey to Whiterun.

Chapter Text

They had arrived in Whiterun at night, but there were not many hours until dawn.
When they entered her house, her whole body felt heavy.
They left all their things on the side of the ground floor.

"I'm going to Jorrvaskr".

"Okay, try to rest".

"Thank you, I'll come get you when it gets dark so you can talk to Kodlak".

"Perfect, see you later".

When Riordan was gone, the nord girl crawled into her room.
She felt so tired that after she changed she didn't even bother to put anything on and she got into bed to sleep for at least a few hours.

She didn't know exactly what time it was, but she decided to eat something and then take a bath.
She prepared a beef stew and served it with garlic bread.
She sat by the fire and watched the flames as she ate.
When she finished she washed the bowl she had used with some water and went up to the bathroom.
She grabbed something to dry off and left the door ajar.
Then she went into the bathtub and after washing she stood there for a long time, staring at the ceiling.
She felt a certain regret for having returned, but she did not want the old man to worry more, she would go talk to him and if she had the opportunity, she would leave again.
She knew Riordan would be mad at her and she didn't blame him, but it was exhausting not trying to remember what happened.
She inadvertently had sunk to the bottom of the bathtub and when she ran out of air she realized what had happened.
She rose to the surface quickly and tried to catch her breath.
Feeling better she dried her body and hair and entered her room.
She took the lute that was leaning against the wall.
She sat on the bed and began to play.
She was so focused that she didn't realize that it had already gotten dark.
Just as he promised Riordan came looking for her.

"Did you sleep well?".

"Like a baby".

"I'm glad".

"I change and we go to Jorrvaskr".

"Regarding that, can I help you with it?".

"Sure, you do my hair better than I do, I always go for the simplest thing".

"Well, let's not wait any longer, everyone is anxiously waiting to see you".

Riordan sat her on a chair and combed her hair several times to undo any possible knots.
He rummaged in the girl's closet until he found the perfect dress for her.
He put it on the bed and she saw that it was a blue one with little silver embroidery.

"In that box there I have some hair accessories that I bought during my travels because I found them beautiful or because they were given to me".

The breton approached the small chest and emptied its contents on the bed.
He rummaged through the multitude of objects until he found a silver ribbon that had flower petals stamped on it.
He put it all away again and stepped behind Alyx.
He gathered her hair into a low side ponytail and tied it with a strong leather ribbon.
Then he covered it with the silver ribbon.
He helped her put on her dress, which was supposed to be tied at the back.
When he finished he circled around her a couple of times and smiled.

"If I liked women I would probably ask you right now to marry me".

Alyx's cheeks turned red and they both started laughing.
That comment was not expected but she knew he was trying to cheer her up as much as possible.

"Ready?".

"Yes".

Under the night sky they walked together towards Jorrvaskr.
The closer they got, the more the noise of celebration was heard.
When they opened the door and saw her, everyone began to shout her name full of joy and many approached her to greet her.
That reception filled her heart with joy.

"Guys, guys, you'll have time to talk to her later, Kodlak asked me to bring her to him".

They all looked a little sad, but they let him take her to the lower level.
Once down, Riordan led her to Kodlak.

"Come in, sit down, I'll go get something to drink with Riordan and be right back".

The girl nodded slightly and entered the room.
She sat in one of the chairs to wait but a noise caught her attention.
No one else was supposed to be there besides her, but at that moment the door to her left opened.
The girl's face was filled with surprise and terror when she saw who it was.
It was him.

Chapter Text

Alyx wanted to scream and her head kept asking her to try to get out of there as fast as possible.
She approached the door with a fast step but when she wanted to open it she saw that it was locked.
She struck the wooden surface with her fist.
She knew that she would not get out of there and she was furious that she had fallen into the trap.
She leaned her forehead against the door and sighed heavily.
She was starting to get tired of all this.
She turned and looked at the werewolf.
His expression was very similar to hers so she assumed they had done the same to him.
They stared at each other but neither of them said anything.
They just tried to stay as far away from each other as possible.
Outside the room, Riordan and Farkas kept a safe distance from the door, waiting for the moment to open it.

"How will we know?".

"Don't worry about it now, it looks like we're going to have to wait".

After a while, inside the room everything was the same.
Alyx was still pressed against the door and Vilkas remained seated in one of the chairs.
The girl noticed that the nord was wearing a shirt similar to the dress she was wearing and found it funny.
But at the time, she didn't really want to laugh.
The silence and tension could be cut with a knife, and the werewolf's icy eyes never leaving her made everything more complicated.
They both thought what to say or what to do but they couldn't.
At that moment Vilkas's voice filled the entire room.

"Why are you here?".

Alyx didn't answer the question which made him slightly angry.

"Why?".

He rose from his seat with the intention of approaching her but stopped.
Alyx's voice left her body like a whisper that no one else could hear, that made Vilkas raise his voice.

"Tell me why are you here!".

The nord girl had had enough and glared at him.

"Well, for the same reason you are here, damn it!".

It was at that point that they began to yell at each other.
But despite that neither of them approached the other.
When they finally fell silent they were back to the way they were before and neither opened their mouths again.
Outside the other two werewolves began to worry as they had heard the screams and Riordan thought about intervening but Farkas grabbed him by the forearm and shook his head.

"They have to figure it out on their own and you don't have to worry, he won't hurt her, not when he knows we're here".

"I hope you are right".

Alyx sat down on the ground defeated.
She didn't know what to do or how to escape from it.

"Why are you doing this to me?".

"I could ask you the same, do you like torturing me that much?".

"You tried to kill me twice, if that's not reason enough I don't know what it is".

With each word the anger increased in both of them, so much so that they were about to throw themselves at each other's neck.
But they didn't.
Not when he saw several tears fall down her cheeks.
He felt bad about himself for making her cry and wanted to get close to her to comfort her, but he didn't know if she would leave him.
Several minutes passed until he finally decided to get closer.
Before she could react Vilkas put her against the door and held her by the shoulders.
His grip wasn't strong but she tried to release herself as she hit his chest through tears.

"Why do you hate me?".

Alyx kept repeating that question over and over until he wrapped his arms around her.
That was the gentlest hug she had ever received and it made her froze.
Vilkas, seeing that she didn't responded, moved slightly away from her and wiped the tears from her face with his fingers.

"I don't hate you Alyx, I've never hated you and I feel stupid for giving you that impression".

She felt that she should keep quiet and let him continue so that's what she did.
The werewolf hugged her again but this time he noticed she did too.
Her arms were shaking but her grip was strong.

"I am very sorry to have put you through all this, I do not deserve you to be here with me now and much less hope that you forgive me after so much suffering, I don't want to hurt you again...".

The girl could hear how the nord's voice broke slightly followed by several sobs.
She pushed him away slightly to see that he was crying.
She had never seen him like this before and she was shocked.
She hugged him again and lightly stroked his hair.

"I'm so sorry Alyx...".

She let him vent whatever he needed and when he had finally done it she wiped his face like he had done before with her.
She brushed aside several strands of hair that had fallen over his face and they looked at each other in silence, still in each other's arms.
All the anger that the girl had contained disappeared the moment she saw the werewolf eyes.
They silently asked her to forgive him over and over again.

"You were right when you said I was blind, when we were in the cave and you told me what you felt I wanted to go find you and apologize a million times and tell you that the great idiot in front of you also feels the same".

The atmosphere began to feel warmer and Alyx noticed how Vilkas pressed her lightly against the door again.
They were closer than she had imagined, their noses almost touched and their gazes did not separate.
The girl's pulse increased rapidly and all the blood flowed to her face.

"The wolf also wanted you and when I saw how my brother kissed you I lost control, I could not bear that you were in his arms and not mine".

Alyx didn't knew what to say, she felt a little dizzy from all that storm of emotions.
The pressure on the door grew stronger and she wrapped her arms around the werewolf's neck.

"Now that I know what the wolf wants, what do you want?".

"You".

Vilkas kissed Alyx so tenderly that when they parted, she kissed him again.
The moment their tongues met they felt like they couldn't stop.
Now that they knew the feeling was mutual, there was nothing on their way.
They continued kissing until behind them they heard a key enter the lock of the door.

Chapter Text

Just before the doors opened Vilkas pulled Alyx away from them and they let go.
They both looked somewhat agitated but tried to regain their composure as best they could.
When they opened the door the two saw Riordan, Farkas and Kodlak.

"Everything is alright?".

"Perfectly fine".

Kodlak walked over to them and put his hand on Vilkas's shoulder.

"I owe you guys an apology, I'm sorry I tricked you, but this whole thing couldn't go on like this".

Alyx smiled slightly.

"I know what you should do but if it had gone wrong it would have been chaos".

"Probably".

"At least it seems that the matter is settled for the moment, let's go upstairs, I need a drink".

Riordan laughed at her words and the five of them went up to the main hall.
The calm did not last long since as soon as the rest saw her they took her with them.
Riordan, Farkas and Vilkas sat on benches at the side and began to drink, waiting for her to return.

When she was finally released she sat next to the werewolf and he gave her something to drink.
Behind them, without anyone seeing them, they intertwined their fingers.
They drank in silence until Farkas addressed Alyx.

"Can I speak to you in private?".

The girl looked at Riordan and he with a small gesture indicated that she go with him.
She got up and together they walked out the front door.
Farkas sat on the stairs and she stood a short distance away.

"What did you want to talk about?".

The werewolf cleared his throat and looked at her.

"I want to apologize, I had no right to do what I did and I can't stop feeling bad about it".

"You had no right no, I appreciate your apology, why did you do it?".

He stayed silent for a few minutes after which he got up and turned to the girl.

"I did it because I wanted to know that what I felt towards you was genuine or I was just deceiving myself".

"Because your heart actually directs those feelings towards Riordan, am I right?".

"You're not wrong, I love Riordan but I don't know if he feels the same for me...".

Inside her the girl wanted to yell at him that of course the breton felt the same for him, but as they had done with her and Vilkas, it was something they had to resolve between them.

"Talk to him alone, tell him how you feel, you may be surprised by what he has to say".

Alyx hugged him and he lifted her slightly off the ground.
She kissed his cheek and he laid her on the floor again.

"Thank you".

"I'll tell him to come out and listen to me, open your heart to him and tell him everything you feel and he will do the same".

The nord girl entered Jorrvaskr again and returned to Vilkas's side.

"Riordan, I think Farkas wants to talk to you, he stayed outside waiting for you".

They both watched as the breton drank his mead in one gulp and left through the same door that Alyx had entered.

"They'll be fine?".

"I think so, don't worry".

"Later I will have to talk to my brother, since I returned I have been avoiding doing it, I think it is time".

"If I were you I would wait until tomorrow, something tells me that we won't see either of them until then".

"You're right".

As they spoke unconsciously Vilkas began to stroke the inside of Alyx's hand with his thumb.
Despite the little white scars that covered them and how much she had done to them over the years they felt very soft.
He hadn't had a chance to tell her how beautiful she looked in that dress of hers but when he saw the way she was looking at him, his brain stopped working for a few seconds.

"We're going for a walk?".

"Sure".

They left Jorrvaskr and saw that Farkas and Riordan were no longer there.
Alyx sighed in relief and they went downstairs.
They walked the path that led to the front door while talking quietly.
At some point along the walk, Vilkas's hand brushed hers and then took it.
She blushed slightly but luckily as there was not much light it was not noticeable.
They sat on a stone wall and gazed at the stars.
The girl rested her head on the werewolf's shoulder and he put his arm around her shoulders.

"I'm glad you're back".

"Me too, if I hadn't done it, I would have lost the opportunity of my life".

"And how do you know that you are not wrong?".

"I just know, it feels right being here now".

Vilkas kissed the girl's forehead and stood up.

"Come on, I'll take you home and I will return to Jorrvaskr, I feel exhausted after so many emotions".

He held out his hand and she took it to stand up.
They walked holding hands and when they reached her door she opened it and leaned against the threshold.

"Tomorrow I will go to Jorrvaskr to speak with Riordan, I'll see you there?".

"Sure, I'll be waiting for you when I talk to my brother".

They both stoped talking and looked at each other for a few moments.
Neither of them knew what the other would do but for Vilkas it was proving a daunting task not to be on top of her.
The scent she gave off drove him crazy and he wanted to make her his right there but he knew that if he did he would lose her again and this time it would be forever.

"See you tomorrow then...".

Alyx cupped the nord's face with both hands and kissed him deeply.
Vilkas's hands went to her waist and stayed that way for a while until he slowly pulled away from her.

"Rest well".

She watched him walk away from her and when he disappeared from her sight, she entered her house, leaving the door firmly closed.

Chapter Text

The breton after getting some liquid courage went to meet him.
He wasn't feeling nervous, but he didn't know what to expect either.
When he was outside he saw that Farkas was standing.
His face looked calmer now that he had had a chance to talk to the girl and fix things.

"She said you would be here waiting for me".

"Let's go".

With a small gesture he motioned for him to follow.
He wasn't sure where they were going but he didn't want to stay within the city.
Riordan just followed him and they ended up sitting by a small lake with a river flowing into it.
They sat on the shore and Farkas tried to find a way to start.

"I thank you for coming, I didn't expect you to".

"And why do you think that?".

"Because you're still mad at me for what happened".

Riordan chuckled slightly.

"It is true that I am still somewhat angry but I came because I wanted to give you the opportunity to tell me why you decided to do it".

"Before I tell you, I want you to know that even if you stop talking to me or ignore me, I will always be there for you...".

The breton was surprised by that since he had never seen the nord in that way, with him it was always laughter, drink and simple conversations.
He knew it must be important to him and he was trying his best.

"I know Farkas, I know, I would do the same...".

The nord sighed in relief and changed his posture slightly.
He brushed his hair away from his face and began.

"Everything that happened I know is my fault, but I did what I did because I got tired of continuing to deceive myself when the truth was always in front of me and I refused to see it because I was afraid, afraid of what all of you might think and because above
of all my brother, we have always been together and his opinion is the most important thing for me so it would not have been surprising if he had looked the other way and ignored me completely or told me that he never wanted to see me again".

Riordan understood him to a certain extent, he too felt that way for a long time being surrounded by his family, but now that they were gone, Alyx was the closest to that for him and what the girl thought about him mattered to him.
During the conversation the breton moved closer to Farkas and placed his hand on the nord's shoulder with a certain tenderness.

"I'm very sorry if this is all confusing, Alyx told me to tell you everything but my thoughts are all over the place and I can't focus".

"You don't have to tell me everything at once, take the time you need, I'm not going anywhere".

Farkas placed his hand lightly on the other man's and gave it a light squeeze, then released it.
Riordan's brown eyes locked with the werewolf and he smiled.
That was what it took Farkas to continue, he felt calmer, but he was still somewhat nervous.

"I kissed Alyx because I wanted to know if what I felt for her was true or if I was just using it as an excuse, a wall, so as not to have to accept who those feelings were directed toward".

"And in doing so that wall came down and you finally accepted the truth".

"I couldn't stop feeling like the biggest idiot in the world and thinking that this person would know how really stupid I am".

"You are not stupid and I am sure that person does not think so".

"And how do you know?".

"Let's say I know that at first that person considered you scary because of how big you are but that when he got to know you he realized that deep down you are a big softie who doesn't want to hurt the people he loves".

"Wow, I didn't knew".

They both lay on the grass staring up at the starry sky.
The night was calm and the only noise they could hear was that of the water and their own breathing.
It was a bit cold but the alcohol made them not feel it.

"And I also know that person feels something so strong for you that when it's by your side he cannot stop torturing himself because he cannot tell you and for not knowing if you felt the same".

"Well, if what he feels is so strong I would like him to tell me since he now knows it...".

Slowly and believing that they did not realize it, they got closer until they were next to each other.
Riordan was still lying down while Farkas had risen slightly.
His gazes met again and the nord forgot how to breathe when the breton grabbed his face and pulled him down to kiss him.
Farkas's hair hid their faces and they stood there alone without being disturbed hidden by the dark.

Chapter Text

Since she hadn't heard from the two werewolves since last night, Alyx decided to go to Jorrvaskr.
She was a bit worried, but she had a feeling that everything had gone well.
She entered the mead hall and looked everywhere for them with no luck.
When she opened the door she collided with Vilkas and he had to hold her so that she did not fall.

"Are you okay?".

She nodded slightly and laughed.
The werewolf hugged her and her face turned a little red.
The scent he gave off was very pleasant and made Alyx rub her nose against his neck.
It was evident that he had recently bathed as she noticed how some of the strands of his hair that brushed her face were a bit wet.

"Do you want me to pick your hair up?".

"Sure, I'm sure you will do much better".

Alyx laughed again and kissed the werewolf's cheek.
She took him by the hand and sat him on one of the stone steps at the entrance.
The girl began to run her fingers through his hair to undo any knots that he might have.
To her surprise she noticed that it was softer than she had expected.
Vilkas found that sensation quite relaxing and she could feel some small vibration coming from his chest.
Alyx tried to gather his hair back in the same way that Riordan had done to him before.

"There, I think it turned out pretty good".

She got up and stood in front of him to see the result.
For a few moments she forgot how to breathe.
She was so used to seeing him in war paint and some dirt that she never realized how breathtaking he really was.
She placed her hands on either side of his face and stroked his cheeks with her thumbs.
At that gesture Vilkas closed his eyes and noticed that they were somewhat cold so he covered them with his and turned his head slightly to kiss the palm of her left hand.
Instantly she felt Alyx's pulse race and he chuckled.

"Are we going to look for them?".

"If you want yes".

"Let's go".

The werewolf got up from the stone step and together with the girl they started walking towards the city gate.
If they were lucky they would meet them on the way.
They left the city and when they reached the stables they were seen in the distance.
Alyx waved to them and she and Vilkas stopped by the wooden fence.
Almost without a word Riordan grabbed the girl by the hand and Farkas grabbed his twin by the arm and they were led off in opposite directions.
Neither of them knew what was happening but they got carried away.

She and Riordan stopped by some rocks and he lifted her up to sit her on a rock.
Alyx looked at him even more confused but she tried to figure out what was going on as Riordan kept pacing.

"Was everything okay last night?".

"Everything went perfectly".

"You don't sound like it was".

The breton stopped short and looked directly into her eyes.
In his head he tried again and again to try to explain what had happened but he couldn't find the words so he said what he felt.

"Farkas and I fucked last night".

Those words weren't what she expected to hear.
Riordan sat on the rock next to her and couldn't help smiling.

"Look, I feel like an idiot but I don't regret what happened, now I know that he feels the same for me".

"I'm very happy for you two , at least now you know the truth".

The two were silent for a few minutes until Alyx tapped him with her elbow as she cracked a small smile.

"Who started?".

"Me".

"So you were the one on top?".

"Not quite...".

At those words Alyx's face turned red as she realized what that implied.
They began to laugh uncontrollably to the point of running out of air and a few tears fell down their faces.
As the breton calmed down, he wrapped his arm around the girl's shoulders and leaned his head against hers.

"And how was it?".

"The truth is that there are no words to describe it but but i thought i'd lose my mind".

"If you are happy I'm happy, but hey, keep your secrets to yourself, I don't need to know the details".

"Maybe one day I will tell you and who knows, if one brother is good, the other will not be left behind either".

Unable to help it, they began to laugh again.

"I don't know first there are several things we have to figure out".

"I know and don't worry, I know nothing bad will happen again".

"I hope so...".

Riordan hugged her friend and they sat there on the rock for a good part of the morning.

Chapter Text

Although everything seemed calm in Whiterun within Jorrvaskr it did not feel the same.
They did not know what it was but a slight tension hung in the air and the members of the Circle could tell.
Between Kodlak and Riordan they finally managed to find a possible solution to their problem.
They couldn't ignore that Alyx's life had already been in danger twice and they couldn't risk it happening again.

"Then we just have to get the wolf inside Vilkas to get used to Alyx's scent and associate it with something he must protect otherwise I will be forced to make the girl go away for her own safety".

"I will get something that has the smell of her and in the meantime I will make her lose her fear, after everything that has happened I am sure that if we transformed in front of her she would faint".

"That is why it is best to go very slowly because now it seems that they are fine but deep down I know that it is not like that".

"It is the best we can do to avoid problems in the future because if it happens again we will not be so lucky and we will have to bury a body or what is left of it".

"Well, let's get going, the sooner we start the better".

Riordan nodded and went to find the girl.
Once he was alone with her he would explain everything.
He knocked on her door several times and when she finally opened it she let him in.

"Has something happened, do you need something?".

"Everything is fine and I know you are going to find this strange but I need you to give me a piece of clothing that you are not going to use for a time".

"Give me a moment, I'll see what I find".

Alyx went up the stairs somewhat confused and started looking for something that she could give him.
After a long time she handed him one of the clothes she used to wear to sleep.
She didn't know what he would use it for.

"Will this be enough?".

The breton sniffed it slightly.

"Perfect and don't worry, I'll give it back to you in one piece".

"You better, it's one of my favorites and it wasn't cheap".

The werewolf ruffled her hair and smiled.

"Later I will come to look for you".

"Whenever you want".

Riordan left the house leaving Alyx very confused and went to bring the item of clothing to Kodlak.

The nord girl did not know exactly what her friend was up to when he took her to a secluded area.
They sat on the grass and he began to explain.

"I have brought you here because I am going to help you slowly lose your fear".

"My fear?".

"Every time one of us transforms you turn so white that the first time I saw it I thought you had died".

The girl covered her face for a few moments and sighed heavily.
She couldn't deny that what he was saying was a lie.
Because of the previous two attacks she had developed a deadly panic towards werewolves even though they were her friends.

"And how do you plan to do it?".

"Telling you would ruin it, all I need is for you not to move no matter what happens".

"Okay, but I only agree to do it because I trust you".

"With me you will be safe, I swear".

"I know".

"Well then we can try now if you want, if not then we will return to your house".

Alyx hesitated for a few moments but when she thought about it she wanted to do it since she was tired that every time she was with one of them her body would be tense and her head would think all the time that they would transform.
It was time to face it as she knew that she could not run away forever and she did not want to get away from Vilkas now that things were finally starting to go well.

"Do I just have to sit still and do nothing?".

"Exactly".

"Well let's do it".

The girl sat on the ground and watched Riordan disappear into the trees.
For a while she could only hear the wind and the occasional bird.
Some bushes moved to the right of her and as she turned she saw her friend transformed.
Riordan stood still in that place without intention to move.
The idea that he had had was once transformed, he would stay still and with the passage of time he will shorten the distance with Alyx until he would be next to her without her being scared.
The girl's pulse began to get faster and she was completely sure that he would be smelling the fear she was feeling.
Her head screamed at her to run as far as possible and some tears fell down her cheeks.
Her entire body was shaking but she was paralyzed.
She felt that at any moment her heart would explode but instead she ended up fainting.
When he saw that, Riordan returned to his previous appearance and after dressing he approached her.
He tried to wake her but it was impossible.
He knew it was bad, but not that bad.
He took her in his arms and led her to her house to rest after something so intense.

Chapter Text

"Are you ready?".

"Of course, we can go whenever you want".

"It's still sunny so let's go now".

The nord girl and the breton left the city and looked for wooded areas where there were animals.
This was the last test the girl had to pass before meeting Vilkas again.
It had been a tough few months since they had rarely been allowed to be together.
Both were forbidden to tell the other what was happening but they knew that it was for their good so they tried to put up with it as best they could.
For Riordan to be sure that he was done with her, Alyx had to help him hunt.
When they finally reached the right place they set up a small camp and he transformed.
Alyx readied her bow and arrows and they proceeded with the task.
She found it incredible to have gotten there when only a month ago she still felt terrified.
She knew that Vilkas would be going through something similar.
They tracked down their prey and when they finally found a deer the girl hit it with an arrow but the animal ran away.
Riordan chased after it, passing inches from her.
She also ran and as she crossed a row of trees she saw that the werewolf had killed the deer.
They dragged the corpse into the camp and skinned it so that they could get all the meat they could.
Alyx threw a piece at her friend and he caught it in mid-flight before starting to swallow it.
As she cut more meat the breton regained his human appearance.

"It wasn't bad, I almost brushed past you and you didn't move a muscle".

"Does that mean we're done?".

"Yes, when we return I will inform Kodlak but now let me help you with that, you still have enough left".

He knelt beside her and with his knife continued to cut the flesh.
They wrapped it all in small packages almost the same and on their return they distributed some among the locals.
Inside the girl's house they cleaned themselves up and the breton went to talk to the old man.
Jorrvaskr was quite quiet at that hour which surprised him a bit.

"Kodlak, Alyx is ready".

"Vilkas is too."

"Then we can proceed".

"Indeed and you and Farkas will be there in case something happens".

"And when do you want to do it?".

"Tonight, in the Underforge, they will both enter blindfolded, Alyx first and then Vilkas but only she will keep the blindfold on until she wants to take it off".

"I'll go tell her".

Riordan after saying goodbye to the old man returned to the girl's house.
She poured him some tea and they waited for nightfall.

The two went to the courtyard of Jorrvaskr and before entering the breton covered her eyes.
At the sudden blindness Alyx's body tensed but she tried to relax as much as possible.

"Give me your hand, I'll guide you, don't worry".

"It's fine".

She felt the breton link his fingers with her's and lead her into the Underforge.
The air felt cold and Alyx could hear a few drops of water falling from the ceiling.
Riordan set her still to the side and stepped away from her.

"You can take off the blindfold when you see fit but you must stay still".

"Sure, of course".

The breton approached Farkas who had been talking quietly with his brother.
The nord asked Vilkas to transform and he did.
Once completed the werewolf caught Alyx's scent.
He moved slightly closer to her but stopped.
He could tell that she was feeling a little nervous but there was no fear in her.
The brown-haired girl felt something very hot approaching her and she reached out to touch it.
She was trembling slightly but as her hand came into contact with the werewolf's fur she felt calmer.
She doubted on several occasions whether or not to remove the blindfold that covered her eyes but she ended up doing it.
It didn't take long for her to get used to the dim darkness in the place and the first thing that caught her attention were Vilkas's eyes.
They glowed in a way she had never seen and were so close to her that she could feel the air he was exhaling.

"Vilkas?".

The werewolf shook his head under the girl's hand.
She never thought she would get to see him so closely.
Vilkas moved closer to her and rubbed his snout against her cheek.
Everything was going better than they had thought but they must not let their guard down.
The best thing they could do to make sure that all the work they had done in the previous months did not go to waste was to keep them there all night.
It was the only way to verify that it had worked.

Chapter Text

With dawn Farkas and Riordan left the place where they had been hiding all night and smiled when they saw Alyx and Vilkas.
The nord was back to normal and they were sitting leaning against one of the walls.
Alyx was in his arms and it was one of the first times they had seen them so calm.
Farkas went to get some clothes for his brother and when he returned Riordan went to get enough food for them to have breakfast.
They left everything on one side and then they left them alone.
When the werewolf woke up he buried his face a little against the girl's hair and smiled.
He still couldn't believe that he was holding her like that in his arms knowing that he would never hurt her again.
He watched her face for a while and found it to be the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.
Her expression was so serene that he couldn't help but caress her cheek.
It made her wrinkle her nose a little and she turned closer to him, burying her face against his neck.
He saw the clothes and food that were next to them and delicately despite how comfortable she looked he woke her up.

"Alyx...Alyx...wake up...".

He drew small circles on the girl's shoulder and waited a few moments.
With a small groan she opened her eyes and sat up on his lap.

"Hello".

"Good morning, where are we?".

"At the Underforge".

"Jorrvaskr?".

"Yes".

The nord girl crawled to the place where the food was and gave the clothes to the werewolf.
He pulled away from her and dressed as quickly as he could.
He did not know when he had regained his human form but what he was clear about was that she had stayed like this with him to give him warmth.
What they experienced during the night had been so unique that they both doubted they could ever do it again.
When Vilkas returned with her, he began to laugh when he saw how she ate.
It wasn't messy but it was the first time he'd seen her so comfortable in his presence.

"It's good?".

Alyx nodded with a mouthful of fruit but turned slightly red when their gazes met.

"Don't be shy, we are both hungry and manners are out of the question".

In a few minutes all the food was gone and only a tray and a plate remained on the floor.
Despite having slept, they both felt a little tired so they left the Underforge with the intention of getting some more sleep.

"Alyxa, meet me at the Bannered Mare".

"When?".

"Tonight".

"Yes Sir, see you tonight, get some rest".

"You too".

Alyx hugged him as tightly as she could and they each retired to rest.

In the evening the two met at the Bannered Mare.
They ordered a drink and some dinner and occupied the area from which the rest of the tavern could be seen from above.
From the moment they saw each other they couldn't stop looking at each other.
Alyx blushed when she noticed that the braid the nord wore was the same as the one she had shown Riordan and that black somehow suited him a lot.
Vilkas couldn't stop looking at the dress she was wearing.
He hadn't had many opportunities to see her like that and the fact that she wore her hair down made her look spectacular.

"I know we have a lot to talk about, but I don't know where to start".

"Neither am I if I'm honest".

While they thought, unconsciously Vilkas caressed Alyx's hand and she entwined it with his.
In a long time there had been no situation in which they felt so calm as in this one.

"Could you tell me why Riordan needed my clothes?".

"Oh, that was so I didn't associate your smell with food".

"If you think about it, it seems like something you would use to train...".

"A dog?".

Alyx lightly covered her mouth with her hand and looked away from Vilkas feeling embarrassed.

"I'm really sorry, that's not what I meant to say".

The werewolf placed a finger under her chin and turned her head so that she was looking back at him.

"It has worked and that's the important thing, don't worry".

"Are you sure?".

"Very, don't worry about it anymore and let's toast, I have no idea about what but let's do it".

They both picked up their glasses and they hit each other with a small metallic sound.
They drank some of the contents and put them back on the table.

"Riordan told me you have nightmares".

"Since our trip to High Hrothgar I have had them from time to time".

"Well you're not the only one, I've had them too".

At that phrase the nord girl slightly opened her mouth full of surprise.
She didn't expect him to have them too.
During the night they talked about all kinds of things and Vilkas again asked her forgiveness for all the damage he had caused her.
She accepted the apology over and over again and smiled to make him see that it was in the past.
The werewolf accompanied her to her house when he saw that the tavern was almost empty.
The girl opened the door and led him inside.

"I know this may seem sudden to you but...would you like to stay the night?".

Vilkas smiled and took the girl's hand.

"I would like nothing more and I'm sorry to be honest and you can call me selfish but now that I finally have you with me again, I don't want to let you go".

The two stared into each other's eyes and before knowing what was happening he closed the door and they kissed.
Alyx felt like crying, it was the first time in a long time that she felt so happy.
After so much time and effort neither of them were going to let everything go wrong again.

Chapter Text

Vilkas tried to get out of bed but Alyx stopped him and snuggled against him.

"Don't go yet...you are really warm...".

The werewolf smiled and kissed the girl's forehead.
That had been one of the few nights when they had both been able to sleep and rest.
At first the two of them stayed on their side of the bed but as the night progressed and they felt more comfortable they hugged each other and never let go again.
Sleeping with Vilkas was the closest thing to being next to an oven that she could feel but luckily for the werewolf it was more of an advantage than an inconvenience.
Since the environment was somewhat cold, she took every opportunity she had to snuggle against him for a few minutes somewhere that was out of sight of everyone.
For the moment they preferred to keep everything they could private until they talked about it.
Lying there they felt that nothing bad could happen to them.
The werewolf stroked Alyx's cheek.

"You want breakfast?".

She nodded slowly with her eyes still closed and he laughed.

"I give you five minutes to get out of bed, if not I will come back to get you out".

Alyx rolled to the side of her bed and covered herself lightly with the sheet.
Vilkas put on his shirt and went downstairs.
The nord girl lay there a little longer and snorted slightly.
After getting out of bed, she gathered her hair into a ponytail and went downstairs to meet the werewolf.
Between the two of them they prepared something to eat and sat by the fire.

"What are you going to do today?".

"Probably see if there is any work and I'll take Farkas with me".

"Be careful".

"Of course, don't worry, what will you do?".

"I'll make some potions, I finally have the ingredients I need".

Being together in such a casual way seemed a bit strange to them but they felt happy.

"If I have returned in the afternoon, would you like to train a little?".

"Sure, it'll do me good".

"Good, I'll see you later, I'm leaving now".

Vilkas picked up his things and kissed Alyx.
Neither of them wanted to separate but he bit lightly on the girl's lower lip and turned away from her.
She protested but let him go.
She went up to her room and put on some clean clothes.
She entered the room where she had the lab and prepared everything to start creating a few potions.

Alyx didn't know how long she had been in the lab but she had managed to fill most of the flasks.
She heard someone knock on her door and went to see who it was.
Opening it she saw that it was Riordan who had a huge smile.

"You seem very happy, did something happen?".

"Not me, but a little bird told me that someone did not sleep alone last night...".

Alyx's face turned a little red and made him enter the house.
They sat in the lab and she finished her potions as they talked.

"We only slept, nothing more, you know we want to go slowly so that nothing happens again".

"I'm glad to see that you are happy, it has taken a lot to get here if I'm being honest".

"I know".

"Does your back still hurt?".

"Not as much as before, sometimes it bothers me but it's not that horrible".

"You'll see that there will come a time when it won't hurt anymore".

"I hope so".

Alyx left the room and returned shortly after with something to eat and a bottle of wine with two glasses.
She poured the wine and handed one of the glasses to the breton.

"How does it feel to sleep with Vilkas?".

"It's like being stuck in an oven".

"I know right? With Farkas it is the same".

"It doesn't bother me either, I'm used to the heat".

"Good for you, it doesn't bother me but sometimes it's too much".

They both laughed and drank some more.

"From what I see you are doing well too".

"More than fine, just to tell you that I haven't felt so happy in a long time and I can't stop seeing stars, in the good way I mean".

Riordan winked at her and Alyx started laughing when she understood what he was referring to.
She was very happy to see her friend like this with the person he loved.
Farkas might not be the smartest but she knew he put all his effort and passion into the things that he liked.

"I'm going to the market later and I was wondering if you'd want to come over, I might need an extra pair of hands to carry things".

"Sure darling, I'm going with you for whatever you need".

Chapter Text

It had become customary for Alyx and Riordan to stay together when the twins left.
It had been a couple of weeks since the last time they had seen them so they assumed that the work they were going to do had been complicated.
Alyx could not stop worrying despite her friend telling her that they would be fine, after all they were both werewolves and they could face their enemies without problem.
Riordan at some point also had to go to work and the girl was left alone.
She tried to occupy her mind by doing all sorts of things.
She spent a large part of the morning organizing the books that she had in the lab.
At first it didn't seem like there were that many but after a few minutes she realized the immense amount she had.
For her it was not strange since during her travels she always used to take books that she found interesting or books that she had never heard of.
She decided to sort them by color and she was quite satisfied with the result.
The four shelves were each full of books of the same color, very satisfying.
Finished the task she focused on cleaning the lab.
She returned some ingredients to where they belonged and kept the empty glass jars in a safe place so they wouldn't break and she would have to buy more.
Once collected she left the room and took some food.
She made a fairly simple stew and sat quietly eating it while she read.
The Aetherium Wars had become a fascinating subject for the girl.
She was devouring the contents of the book slowly without raising her head once, causing her to lose track of time.
They knocked on the front door several times and when she went to open it Vilkas was in front of her.
The werewolf looked tired and very dirty.

"By the Nine!".

"I'm fine my love".

"I'll go right now to prepare a bath for you, there is some food ready in case you are hungry".

"Thanks".

Vilkas kissed Alyx's cheek and Alyx smiled.
Both nords entered the house and the girl went upstairs to heat some water while he ate.

The hot water completely relaxed the werewolf's exhausted body.
His gaze was fixed on the ceiling but it made way to the door.
He watched as Alyx walked in to give him something to dry off with.

"Do you need more soap?".

"I haven't used it yet".

"Oh I see, do you want me to wash your hair?".

"Of course".

Alyx smiled and walked over to the tub.
She stood behind the nord and began to wash his hair.
Vilkas did not expect the sensation to be so pleasant.
The gentle massage the girl was giving to his head relaxed him even more making him sigh.

"You have very long hair, it has grown quite a bit lately".

"Do you want me to cut it?".

"Do not even think about it!".

Alyx's reaction made him laugh and he rested his arms on the edges of the tub.

"Okay, okay, don't worry, if you like it so much I'll keep it that way".

"Well of course I like it...".

She rinsed his head and dried it a bit.
Vilkas took her hand and looked into her eyes.

"Get in the bathtub with me".

Alyx's face turned red and she didn't know what to say.

"Please Alyxa, I've missed you I want to be with you".

Hearing her full name come out of the werewolf's mouth made something inside her twitch.

"If you ask me like that, I can't say no...".

She went to the side of the room and with her back to Vilkas and began to undress.
She felt a bit nervous since it was the first time they were completely naked.
Alyx realized that he had closed his eyes and laughed lightly.
She sunk her body under the water and leaned her back against the werewolf's chest.
She knew he must be noticing the scars and she realized he hadn't seen them yet.
She moved slightly forward and exposed them.
She could feel Vilkas's soaked hand against her skin.
Vilkas finally saw the damage caused, they were five scars whose direction was the one of an animal's claw.
They seemed to have healed quite well and he slowly ran his fingers over them.
It was such an intimate act that the girl's heart couldn't help beating rapidly.
Many of the areas he touched she couldn't fully feel but she didn't care much about.

"I'm so sorry...".

"You do not need to apologize again, for me they are another addition to the collection and I know few people who can say that they have survived something like this".

"But...".

Alyx rolled onto her side on his lap and covered his mouth with her hand.

"Shhh, just relax and let me hug you, I've missed you a lot too and I was worried...".

"You know I'm always careful".

"Yeah but still I can't help it".

Vilkas embraced her, pulled her closer to him, and kissed her.

"I will never tell you not to worry about me and being with you after a job is the best".

The girl leaned her head against the werewolf's shoulder and pressed her nose against his neck.
They were silent for a long time, enjoying the warmth of the water and each other's company.

Chapter Text

The bath had made them like new and they felt calmer.

"Is it okay if I stay the night?".

"You already know that you can stay whenever you want".

Alyx picked up a comb and began to untangle the werewolf's hair.
It was still a bit wet so she tried to dry it more.
After a few minutes of brushing it, she was satisfied with the result.

"I finished".

"Thank you my love".

The nord girl kissed his cheek and held him for a few moments.

"I have a shirt that I can leave you, give me a moment and I'll bring it to you".

Vilkas followed her with his gaze as she left.
Alyx began rummaging through her closet until she found what she was looking for.
From inside she pulled out a gray shirt.
It wasn't the prettiest thing in the world but it was comfortable.
She returned to the bathroom and put the garment on the chair in the corner.
She went back into her room to get dressed.
She didn't knew what she wanted to wear but when she heard footsteps approaching her she took the first thing she could get her hands on and got dressed as quickly as possible.
The werewolf noticed that her pulse was slightly racing.

"Everything's fine?".

"Yes, yes, don't worry".

She closed the closet doors, looked at him and couldn't help but smile.

"I'm glad that at least one of us can put it on, it's too big for me".

Vilkas rested the palm of his hand against her cheek.
She kissed the space that wasn't pressed against her face without breaking eye contact.
The werewolf exaled weakly and ran his thumb across the nord girl's lower lip.
They had both agreed to go slow but could not deny the enormous tension that could be cut at that moment.
In a blink, Vilkas had her against the wall without being able to stop kissing her.
She instinctively buried her hands in his hair and pulled him down to press him closer to her.
He without much effort lifted her off the ground and placed his forearm under her so she wouldn't fall.
They continued kissing until they almost ran out of breath and that was when the werewolf changed places.
He playfully bit the girl's earlobe and licked the side of her neck.
That made her bite her lower lip, trying to suppress a moan.
Suddenly someone started knocking on the front door.
They tried to ignore it but it was really persistent.
They both snorted and Vilkas put Alyx back on the ground.

"I'll go see who it is".

The girl went downstairs and saw that it was Riordan.
She tried her best to hide her anger and smiled slightly even she knew he could feel it.

"Hello".

"Hello".

"What's up, do you need something?".

"I was looking for Vilkas, Kodlak told me that he needs to talk to him about the work he and Farkas did".

"But hasn't Farkas talked to him about it?".

"Yes, but he wants Vilkas to do it too in case Farkas forgot something".

"Wait a minute, I'm going to find him".

Alyx closed the door and went to find the werewolf.
She found him sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Riordan is looking for you, he says that Kodlak wants to talk to you".

He ran his hand over his face somewhat annoyed.
He didn't want to keep the old man waiting but he didn't really want to go either, he just wanted to stay with the nord girl.

"I will have to go but it won't be long".

"I know but you can't go like that...".

Alyx pointed to the prominent tent in his pants.
She approached him and with a light push on his shoulder she made him lie down.
The werewolf's breathing stopped for a few seconds as he realized what she was going to do.

"You know it is not necessary...".

"Yeah but I want to do it, we had already started so be a good boy and don't move, the sooner I finish the sooner you can go".

The nord girl knelt between the werewolf's legs and pulled his pants down a bit.
She knew that she did not have much time to lose so she licked the sides of his penis several times and introduced it into her mouth.
It was something bigger than she had imagined and her mind raced wild.
She noticed how he tensed slightly but when she began to move that tension disappeared.
Vilkas rested a hand against her head to help her keep up.
She looked so beautiful that way that he couldn't stop looking at her.
When her eyes met his the girl noticed how his cock twitched and she could swear it got bigger.
Alyx continued bobbing her head for several minutes until Vilkas's hand grabbed a handful of her hair and groaned.
She knew he was close so she increased her speed.
After so long without receiving that kind of attention, the werewolf couldn't help but hold the girl's head in place which caused him to hit the back of her throat before he came.
Without thinking twice she swallowed the hot substance and pulled away from him trying to catch some air.

"I'm sorry...I couldn't contain myself...".

Vilkas got up and walked over to her to see if she was okay.

"If you let me know next time I would really appreciate it".

"I'll make it up to you, don't worry".

He kissed her and helped her up.
He sat her on the bed and went to find something to clean himself with.

"I'll try to get back as soon as possible".

"I know, say hi to Kodlak for me".

The werewolf, after repositioning his clothes and wetting his face a little, left the house and with the breton went to see the old man.
While he was leaving Alyx cleaned the bathroom and tried to keep herself busy until he returned.
Unfortunately for the girl, it got dark and he still hadn't returned, so she decided to go to sleep.

Chapter Text

In the middle of the night Alyx opened her eyes somewhat uneasily.
She didn't know what would have triggered such a reaction.
She was still alone in bed but for some reason she felt that there was someone else in the house.
She got out of bed, wrapped a blanket around her body, and picked up a dagger.
She walked as silently as she could and came down the stairs very slowly.
The room was slightly lit by the small fire that was reluctant to go out and the girl could see a huge black figure next to that fire.
She lit a candle so she could see better.
She approached slowly and sighed when she saw that it was Vilkas but for some reason he had transformed.
She gently stroked the werewolf's head and he opened his eyes.
Recognizing her, he sat up slightly and rubbed his muzzle against her cheek.

"What a scare you have given me, I thought they had entered to steal or something worse...".

Vilkas made a sound that sounded like an apology to her and his ears lowered.
The girl hugged him and she let the heat emanating from him warm her since she felt a bit cold even with the blanket around her shoulders.
They both ended up sitting on the ground and the werewolf let her snuggle against him.
His fur was so soft that the girl couldn't help but bury her face in it.
She felt as if one were wrapped in a huge ball of fur that was very hot.
Alyx spent several minutes talking to him in a whisper and inadvertently fell asleep.
The nord took a little longer but he too fell asleep.

When they woke up again it was daylight but they did not know exactly how much they had slept.
The nord girl stretched and wanted to get up but the werewolf had her hugged against his chest.
She began to trace small circles on one of his pecs and waited for him to wake up.
She found it a bit strange that during the night he had remained transformed inside the house instead of going outside the city.
To be a bit more comfortable, Vilkas put her on top of him and hugged her again.
Alyx kissed him tenderly and he opened his eyes a little.

"I'm sorry I scared you last night, I didn't mean to".

"Don't worry, when I saw that it was you, I calmed down".

"I'll try not to make it happen again, I don't want to scare you anymore".

"I know my love but I have to admit that I find something adorable that you snuggle with me like that to sleep".

"Like a giant dog".

"Yeah".

"We got up?".

"Yeah, but wait a bit, it's so warm I don't want to move".

"If you're cold, put your shirt back on, when did you take it off?".

"While you were sleeping, it was so hot that I couldn't help it but if you want me to put it back on I will...".

"Don't even think about it, I prefer it as it is now, so I can feel you against me without obstacles, you are very soft".

Alyx's face turned red and the werewolf smiled at that reaction.
He always thought she was the cutest thing he had ever seen when she blushed.

"Do you want me to make breakfast?".

"Sure, but later, now there is something better that I want to eat...".

The nord girl gasped a little when she felt Vilkas's hands on her butt.
He pushed her up until their foreheads were pressed together.
He knew that she was feeling a little nervous but he also knew that he would not do anything that she did not want.
He held her face gently with one hand and they began to kiss.
As the minutes passed the nord girl could feel something quite hard pressing against her.
She shifted slightly to ease that pressure but that made her rub herself against it more and Vilkas's hold on her tightened.
They both knew where all this was going and were willing to accept it.

"Wouldn't you rather we go to bed?".

"Here is fine, as long as we can do it I don't care about the place".

They kissed again this time with more fervor.
Alyx moaned when he bit her lower lip.
At that moment Vilkas wouldn't admit it but he loved hearing all the sounds she made because of him.
He found them delicious and made his desire to possess her increase.
But that would not last long since, like the previous time, they were interrupted again.
They both grunted and Alyx hit the ground.

"At this rate I'm going to end up killing someone! If they ask about me, say I'm not here, I don't want to see anyone".

The girl got up, took her clothes and went upstairs.
The werewolf could hear her slaming the door to her room quite hard and he got up too.
He wrapped the blanket that had been covering them around his waist and walked to the door.
Opening it he saw his twin.

"I'm glad you're awake brother, we have a job to go to, that's why I came to look for you".

"And you couldn't go with Riordan?".

"No, they told me it had to be with you".

Vilkas growled and realized that his brother hadn't even noticed that he had interrupted them.

"Wait for me outside the city, I'll get my things and meet you there".

"Okay".

The nord closed the door and tapped the wall next to it before searching for his things and leaving.
He couldn't believe they had been interrupted a second time.
That made him begin to think of some way to avoid it and that for once they could be alone and in peace.

Chapter Text

The nord girl and the werewolf had gone several weeks without seeing each other.
They had both been quite busy and Alyx had to go to Windhelm to see her sister.
She stayed with her for several days during which they trained quite frequently.
Alyx wanted to make sure Denna could defend herself adequately.
She knew that her little sister wasn't much of a fan of going on a solo adventure but she was never wrong to be prepared.
Her father was not eternal and they both knew that he would not be there forever to protect them.
They knew he was in Elsweyr and that he was fine from a letter Denna had received.
They both wanted very much to see him again and could not wait for the day that he returned would finally arrive.
Denna felt somewhat sad when Alyx left but she was aware that she could not expect to always have her by her side, after all each had a life and a path to follow.
Upon her return, Alyx decided to go to Jorrvaskr to see Vilkas.
Upon entering she looked for him everywhere but she did not find him.
She even asked Kodlak and Aela but neither of them had seen him.
She searched his room for clues that would indicate his whereabouts but she was unsuccessful.
She somewhat upset decided to leave.
As she returned upstairs, Athis approached her and handed her a note.

"What is it?".

"I don't know, Vilkas just told me to give it to you".

"Thank you Athis".

"You're welcome lass".

Alyx went outside and read the contents of the note several times once she got home.
She didn't really understand what was happening but she did what he told her to do.
At sunset she covered herself with a cape and took a lantern.
Before leaving the house, she took out of a drawer two bottles containing a greenish substance and a darker colored one.
She drank the clearer liquid and set the container on the table.
After a few minutes she left the city and walked for a few minutes until a wolf stopped in front of her.
Alyx prepared to attack but when she saw that the animal did not move she put her weapon away.
She approached the animal cautiously and offered her hand for him to smell.
The wolf rubbed against her and lightly stroked her cloak to signal her to follow.
The nord girl lit her lantern and watched as the wolf began to guide her to her destination.

The girl did not know how much time had passed but she did not stop following the animal.
It seemed as if he was leading her to some important place since from time to time he would turn slightly to look at her and see that she was following him.
They climbed a hill and crossed a passage that ran between rocks until she saw light in the distance.
As she got closer she saw that it was a fire on which there was a pot in which something was cooking that smelled quite good and on one side there was a tent.
There seemed to be no one in the place, just a few more wolves.
The one who had been guiding her joined the rest and they settled around the fire.
The entrance of the tent opened and Vilkas came out, who smiled when he saw her.

"You finally arrived, I hope it hasn't been a very long road for you".

"Not at all, I'm used to walk a lot".

"Have you eaten?".

"Not yet".

The two of them sat by the fire and he filled two glasses with mead and two bowls with the contents of the pot.
They drank several of them and ate without much haste.
For a long time Alyx couldn't stop staring at the wolves and she wondered how it was possible that they were still there and hadn't left.
Vilkas's hand on her shoulder made her jump a little.

"Come".

The nord got up and took Alyx by the hand to lift her up.
He led her to the tent and kissed her cheek.

"Go inside, I'll be back in a second".

The nord girl smiled and went inside.
The interior was lit by several lanterns.
On a table rested several bottles of wine and some food.
The floor was covered with a couple of rugs and on these in the center of the room were a pile of furs, blankets and some pillows.
It was the perfect setting in which to spend a romantic evening.
Alyx set her cape and bag on the table.
She was feeling a little nervous about what was going to happen and a chill ran down her spine.
She filled her empty glass with wine and drank from it several times while she thought how she could surprise him when he returned.
Several minutes later she had an idea and smirked.
She put her glass on the table and walked over to the pile of furs.
She arranged them so that they were comfortable along with the pillows and she began to undress.
She tossed her dress over the chair that her cloak was on and sat on the makeshift bed.
She let go of her hair, tousled it a bit, lay down covering herself enough with one of the blankets and waited.

Chapter Text

Vilkas returned carrying a couple of buckets full of water and some meat.
He left one of the buckets and the meat near the wolves and he carried the other inside the tent.
He came in on his back and put the bucket on the floor.
He let go of his hair and got rid of his shirt.
He felt very hot and that relieved him a bit even though it was cold outside.
A small noise caught his attention.
Turning around, the werewolf was surprised by what he was seeing.
Alyx was staring at him and by the way the blanket fell over her body, Vilkas noticed that she was completely naked.
It took him several seconds to react but when he did, he moved closer to her.

"Couldn't you wait a bit?".

"I couldn't help it, come here I want to hug you".

The girl lifted the blanket slightly and the werewolf joined her.
Instantly she was pressed against him and hugged him.
Vilkas wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her forehead.
Alyx giggled and buried her face in the curve of the nord's neck.
They were like this for a long time until she straddled him.
She descended until their foreheads touched and she began to kiss him.
Vilkas held her by her hips to keep her from falling and returned her kisses with the same fervor she was giving them.
He could feel her breasts pressing against his chest with every movement she made.
Slowly within them began to grow a passion that longed to be released, they had waited long enough and they were not going to waste that moment.
The werewolf grabbed her with a little more force and turned until he had her under him.
He kissed her on the lips, then on her cheek and he descended to her neck where he spent a long time kissing, licking and biting.
While his mouth was busy with that task, his hands focused on her breasts.
They were quite soft to the touch except for a small scar that he found but that did not mattered to him.
Alyx was whimpering and he decided to go down.
With his mouth he focused on one nipple while with the other hand focused on the other.
Several moans escaped from the mouth of the nord girl who grabbed a fistfull of the furs she had underneath.
The werewolf did the same but this time in reverse and felt Alyx's hands on his shoulders.
He did not expect that for something as simple as that she would feel so excited but the thought passed through his head that perhaps it had been a long time since her last time.
He pulled away from her and noticed how her body trembled slightly.
Wearing his pants was becoming more and more uncomfortable but he would wait, now he just wanted to make her feel good and make up for all the times they had been interrupted.
He descended leaving kisses in random places along the way until he reached the place that he really wanted.
Alyx for a moment thought that she had gone crazy since she noticed the brush of fangs on her skin but when she looked closely she realized that when he slightly opened his mouth she could see them.
She felt Vilkas breath on the inside of her thighs and he left kisses or bites on them.
The look that they both shared in that moment was full of passion and lust and she encouraged him to continue while a chill ran through her body.
She knew what was going to happen and she was ready for it.

"Do you want me to continue?".

"Yes".

With that single word the werewolf placed one of his hands under the girl's rear and lifted it slightly for better access.
At first he went slowly, trying to figure out what she would like the most.
With each lick Alyx felt like she was going to melt and she wanted more.
She buried one of her hands in the werewolf's hair and bit her lip to avoid screaming even though she knew the only witnesses to all this would be the wolves outside the tent.
It felt better than her imagination and those nightmares of hers had led her to believe and she didn't want Vilkas to stop.
As if he had read her thoughts, his licks grew stronger and longer and she felt him insert a pair of fingers inside her.
Vilkas moved them slowly as he continued to eat her.
She was wetter than he had thought and he still had not put his cock inside her.
He added a third finger and eventually a fourth and continued fingering her.
He didn't want to risk not preparing her properly and hurting her.
He noticed how she lightly tugged on his hair to get his attention and she looked at him with half closed eyes and labored breathing.

"Vilkas please I want you inside me...please...I want your cock...".

Vilkas still pressed against her smiled, pulled his fingers out, leaving her empty and took a few more licks before setting her back on the floor.
He pulled away from her and sat between her legs for a few moments to catch some air.
With a piece of cloth he wiped his face and tossed it aside.
He placed some more pillows under Alyx's head and kissed her.
The wolf from inside him incessantly begged him to make her his and the erection that imprisoned his pants became more and more annoying.
He quickly got rid of the garment and Alyx gasped when she saw what she was against.
It was true that it wasn't that long but she did not expect it to be that thick, more than she had ever seen.
She instinctively licked her lips and wanted to put it in her mouth but he didn't let her which made her protest.

"Later, now I want to sink so deep inside you that you can't stop screaming my name...".

A small moan escaped Alyx's lips and she spread her legs again, inviting him to continue.
With great care Vilkas inserted himself into her until his dick had completely disappeared.
She was so tight around him that he thought he wouldn't last long.
He let a few minutes pass for her to get used to it.

"Can I move?".

"Yes, it's fine, it doesn't hurt".

"Good".

The nord established a slow but strong rhythm and Alyx wrapped her legs around his waist to bring him as close as possible.
They had both waited so eagerly for this moment that it all seemed unreal.
The scent emanating from the girl was intoxicating to him and he couldn't help but speed up his thrusts as she moaned loudly.
He took one of her hands and their fingers intertwined as they looked at each other.
Alyx's eyes were glassy and Vilkas's seemed to be on fire.
The nord continued to move until he could feel her squeeze him and he knew that she was close.
He held Alyx tightly and with a few more thrusts he made her come screaming without being able to stop saying his name over and over again.
Her eyes turned white and the grip she had on the fur grew so strong that her knuckles turned white as well.
He was also close and the fact that she was squeezing him so hard only after several quite erratic thrusts made him come inside her with a loud growl.
Vilkas came out of her slowly.
That had been better than he had imagined and he smiled.
He lay down next to her and hugged her as they tried to catch their breaths.

Chapter Text

Alyx came out of the tent still somewhat asleep covered with a blanket and hugged Vilkas from behind.

"Good Morning...".

"Good morning, did you sleep well?".

"Yeah, I was exhausted".

"It doesn't surprise me".

The werewolf laughed and took one of her hands and kissed her palm.

"Are you hungry?".

"I would eat a cow right now but first I'm going to get dressed".

"Sounds good to me, it's not cooked yet, I've left you some clean clothes and water".

"Thank you dear".

The nord girl entered the tent and put the blanket on the pile on the floor.
She took the bucket of clean water and washed her body thoroughly.
After drying herself she went over to the table and dressed.
She gathered her hair into a ponytail and stepped out of the tent.
She sat by the fire and warmed her hands a little.
She still felt some pain in her legs but she thought it was normal after having had several rounds.
As she ate she realized that the wolves were gone and she looked at Vilkas.

"When they saw that I had gotten up they left".

"They have been good guards".

"Yes".

"When we come back do you want to spar a little?".

"Yeah sure, it's been a long time since I had a chance".

"Well, let's collect all this and go back".

Between the two of them they began to dismantle the tent and loaded all the things onto a cart.
They got on it and returned to Whiterun.

"If you turn so much you create an opening".

"I didn't realize...".

"Try like this".

Vilkas made the move for her to see and try to replicate.
Alyx did it several times and they put it into practice.

"Very well".

"Thank you my love".

She kissed the werewolf's cheek.

"I have to talk to my brother and to Riordan".

"Okay, I'll stay here a while longer and go home, will you come later?".

"Sure".

"Well, see you later".

They said goodbye and he entered the building.
Alyx picked up the bow and arrows and began to practice with the target she had in front of her until something caught her attention.
She could hear someone running towards her and as she turned around she saw three armed men.
They did not carry any symbol that she could identify but when they began to attack her Alyx did not think twice and began to shoot arrows.
She finished them off easily enough but more came in their place.
Vilkas joined her and together they defeated all of her enemies.

"What's going on?".

"The Silver Hand is attacking us, let's go inside!".

The werewolf took the girl's hand and they entered Jorrvaskr.
Inside were several members fighting and they could see Kodlak.
In horror they watched as a Silver Hand member pierced him with a sword.
With what seemed supernatural speed Alyx fired an arrow and killed the enemy but it was too late.
After finishing with the rest, she, Vilkas and Farkas approached the old man to verify that he had died.
Silence fell over the mead hall.
They couldn't believe what had just happened.
Alyx had knelt with Farkas next to Kodlak and the nord girl couldn't stop crying.
Njada also approached them with a sad expression.
The nord girl did not accept that someone so important to her had died.
Farkas hugged her and together they mourned the old man's death.
Vilkas looked very angry and when Riordan walked through the door with a sack over his shoulder the werewolf couldn't help but yell at him.

"Where were you while they attacked us?".

The Breton dropped the sack he was carrying on the ground and his eyes fell on the old man's corpse.

"Kodlak sent me on an errand".

"And what was important enough to disappear like this?".

"He knew a way to heal himself and he sent me to get it".

Everyone was silent and Vilkas sighed.
He picked his sword and sheathed it.

"These bastards are going to pay for what they have done, I will not stop until I have killed the last of them!".

Alyx got up and took his hand.

"I know I am not part of the Companions but if you are going let me go with you, I want to help".

"Okay, come on, grab your weapons and armor and we'll go".

Having said that, the girl ran to her house and prepared herself for what awaited them that night.

Chapter Text

Vilkas went looking for the nord girl and met her right at her door.
He saw that she had a nordic carved armor that he hadn't seen before.
It was dark in color and he saw that in her hands she was wearing a helmet that looked like the head of a bear.
He also saw that she was carrying a pair of daggers and her bow with a considerable amount of arrows.

"Vilkas I'm ready, where are we going?".

"We have to go to Driftshade Refuge, it's located southeast of Dawnstar".

"Well, let's go now, it was dark recently so if we hurry we can take advantage of the darkness to travel faster".

"Smart girl".

The werewolf lightly ruffled his lover's hair and they left the city.
Despite the great distance they had to travel and the armor they wore, anger and adrenaline ran through their bodies causing them to not notice their fatigue.
It was an inhuman feat that they got there at dawn the next day.
Near the fort they had to enter they found a cave.
They decided to stop for a few minutes in it to plan a strategy that did not end up killing them.

"We will have to be careful since we do not know how many of them will remain inside".

"True, but the most important thing is that you stay behind me as much as possible, I don't want to hurt you".

"Does that mean you're going to unleash the beast?".

"Exactly".

"Don't worry, I will keep my distance as much as possible and use the bow as much as possible, I only ask you not to put yourself in unnecessary risks".

"Same to you, we have enough with a funeral, I don't want to have two".

"Get ready, I'm going to scout the area and be right back".

Alyx emerged from the cave and carefully paced the area around the fort.
From her position she could see that there were two of them standing guard outside the fort, one above the main building and one in front of the main gate.
Returning to Vilkas she saw that he had removed his armor.
She told him what she had seen and he crossed his arms.

"Do you think you can finish them all with your bow?".

"I can try, is there anything else I need to know?".

"We must recover the fragments of Wuuthrad, those bastards stole them".

"Wuuthrad?".

"It was the weapon of Ysgramor, the founder of the Companions".

"If it's something important to you we'll look for them".

"Perfect, go ahead, I'll meet you right away".

The nord took the girl's hand and brought her closer to him.

"Be careful".

The werewolf kissed her and she hugged him very tightly.

"You too".

They parted ways and she walked away to start the party.

When the last of the enemies outside exalted his last breath, the girl gathered up all the arrows she had used and approached the entrance gate of the fort.
Vilkas was waiting for her already transformed.
She opened the door and let the werewolf enter first.
They walked slowly through the interior, killing the enemies that crossed their path.
Until that moment it had not been very difficult.
After killing all the members of the Silver Hand that were in the room they had entered they found the fragments of Wuuthrad and Alyx put them in her backpack.

"Now we just have to kill these bastards".

Vilkas rubbed his muzzle against her cheek and they continued forward.
During one of the fights Alyx accidentally knocked down a lantern but they didn't give it much thought at the time.
They both knew that there must be few members left alive when they reached the room in which a man who looked like the leader was standing.
He was well protected but not for long.
Alyx used the rest of her arrows and when they were gone she drew her daggers.
As she finished off the man in front of her, her attention turned to Vilkas, who at that moment had ripped off the leader's head from his body.
That scene made her stay still watching as it was the first time she had clearly seen how he did it.
It struck her as something astonishing and horrible at the same time.
With all the members of the Silver Hand wiped they had one less problem and would feel more secure.
Vilkas regained his human form and grunted a little.
He was completely covered in blood.

"Come on, let's find something to clean you up while I go get your armor".

The werewolf followed the girl into what looked like a kitchen.
They found some water and some rags and she left him alone.
She returned to the cave and took all the parts of the werewolf's armor.
When she returned to him she laid the armor on a table.

"I'm going to take a walk while you finish, we will meet outside at the door and if you have the opportunity check the cells in case someone is imprisoned".

"Sounds good to me, don't let your guard down anyway".

"I tell you the same thing".

Alyx returned to the room where the leader of the Silver Hand had been killed and began searching the chests there for something interesting.
To her surprise there was nothing interesting except some money and an elven dagger.
She kept it in her bag and would give it to her sister since the poor thing had lost the one she had.
She wrinkled her nose slightly at the slight smell of smoke but she ignored it.
She made her way to the entrance to meet the werewolf.
After a while Vilkas saw that she was taking too long so he decided to enter the fort.
The first thing that caught his attention was the strong smell of smoke in the air and the temperature had risen slightly.
In the distance he could hear screams and knew that it was Alyx's voice.
He ran through the hallways as fast as he could to find many of them on fire.

"Alyx!".

When he received no response he screamed louder and this time he could hear his name over and over again.
When he finally found Alyx his face turned pale.
The nord girl had been trapped under a beam against the wall.

"I can't move my arm!".

The werewolf used all of his strength to lift the beam and threw it to the side.
He caught the girl in his arms as tightly as he could and ran with her out of the fort.
Once in the cave he left her sitting on the ground and helped her remove the gauntlets from her.
The arm that she had caught was visibly broken and it was pointing in the wrong direction.

"If you're going to use healing magic I have to reposition it first, bite this".

Vilkas gave her a thick leather strap that she placed between her teeth and bit into it as hard as she could.
Without warning he moved it to it's original position and an immense pain ran through the girl's body.
She couldn't help screaming and several tears fell down her cheeks.
She used a healing spell as fast as she could and healed the injury until she could feel it completely healed.
She pulled the leather strap out of her mouth and ran her hands over her face to calm herself.

"Do you feel better?".

"Yeah, it will hurt for a couple of days but at least it's cured, we better go back, they will worry if we take longer".

Vilkas hugged her and caressed her cheeks with his thumbs.
He wasn't crying but she could tell the great relief he felt just by looking into his eyes.

"I'm sorry I worried you, I shouldn't have gone back inside".

"It's okay my love now you're safe".

They both got up and left the cave to return to Whiterun to Kodlak's funeral.

Chapter Text

They both entered Alyxa's house exhausted.
They knew they must have had informed the other of their return but they felt very drained.
They ate a good dinner, bathed, and snuggled under the blankets on the bed.

"How is your arm?".

"Better, it doesn't bother me so much anymore".

Vilkas pressed the girl closer to his chest and kissed the back of her neck before rubbing his nose against her warm skin.
Her heartbeat calmed him down enough and he closed his eyes.
Alyx smiled as she felt his grip on her relax.
That he felt that way around her made her extremely happy.
She wanted to close her eyes but she couldn't.
She remembered Kodlak a lot and that the old man was no longer with them seemed unreal to her.
She couldn't believe someone like him had died.
The nord girl shook her head slightly being careful not to wake Vilkas and closed her eyes to try to get some sleep.
It had been an extreme experience and she was certain that Driftshade Refuge was still burning.

"Are you sure it's a good idea for me to go to the funeral?".

"Completely sure and if anyone has a problem with it, the have to speak with me directly".

Alyx's face turned somewhat serious and Vilkas lifted it so she could look at him.

"My love stop worrying about that, Kodlak was very fond of you and I'm sure he would have wanted you to go".

"But I am not part of the Companions".

"I know but that doesn't matter, Riordan, Farkas and I want you to be there".

They were both silent for a few moments and she sighed.

"Okay, let me prepare and I will meet you at the Skyforge".

Vilkas kissed her and leaned his forehead against hers.

"I love you".

"I love you too".

"See you at Jorrvaskr".

"I will try to take as little time as possible".

Vilkas parted with her and he went to Jorrvaskr.
On the stairs he met Farkas and Riordan.
They were both seated and he saw that the breton had one of his brother's hands in his.
His faces looked quite tired since most likely they hadn't gotten much sleep.
When they noticed the presence of Vilkas the breton tried to leave but Farkas stopped him since he did not have to leave just because his brother was there.

"Everything is ready, we just have to go to the Skyforge, is Alyx coming?".

"She will come, give her a few minutes".

The werewolf looked at Riordan.

"We have to talk, come".

The breton rose and they both entered Jorrvaskr.
The place was empty and they sat on one of the benches.

"Look Riordan, I didn't want to have yelled at you and it wasn't your fault what happened, if the old man sent you on an errand he would have his reasons and I want to apologize for it".

"I understand that you did that, the death of a loved one is not easily accepted and if would have known that this would happen, I would have stayed".

"I know".

The two men were silent for a long time until Riordan got up.

"We should go to the Skyforge, everyone will be there by now".

"Yeah, we should go".

Vilkas also got up and his face was filled with surprise when the breton hugged him, making him see that he accepted his apology.
When they parted they both smiled slightly and Vilkas put his hand on his friend's shoulder.

"I thank you for taking care of my brother, this is not being easy for him and I am glad that he has someone like you by his side".

Riordan blushed at his words and smiled wider.

"He is the most important thing I have, I would give my life for him".

"And he would give it for you".

The door was suddenly opened and Farkas entered through it interrupting them.
He supposed they had been talking about something important but he decided not to ask at that moment, he would do it when he was alone with Riordan.

"Alyx just arrived, we have to go".

"You two get going, we will be with you in a moment".

"Okay but hurry up".

Farkas closed the door and joined Alyx to go to the Skyforge.
Before leaving the two werewolves drank in honor of Kodlak and joined the rest.

Chapter Text

Every member of the Companions was there and Alyx still couldn't help feeling out of place.
Aela noticed how restless she was and moved closer to her.

"Are you okay?".

"Yeah, it's just that...".

"You don't feel like you should be here".

"Exactly".

The red-haired werewolf rested both hands on the girl's shoulders and looked directly into her eyes.

"Kodlak would have wanted you to be here so join us and honor his memory".

The nord girl felt somewhat confused by the woman's actions since she had been able to experience something like this on very few occasions.
She shook her head slightly and smiled.

"Thank you Aela".

"You're welcome, go with the others".

Alyx nodded and joined her friends.
Kodlak's body was on a pyre above the forge and everyone was placed around him.
Alyx saw that even Eorlund was there.
Everyone was silent until he spoke.

"Who will start?".

Aela stepped ahead of the rest and picked up a torch.

"I'll do it. Before the ancient flame...We grieve".

"We grieve".

"We grieve".

"We grieve".

"At this loss...We weep".

"We weep".

"We weep".

"We weep".

"For the fallen...We shout".

"We shout".

"We shout".

"We shout".

"And for ourselves...We take our leave".

"We take our leave".

"We take our leave".

"We take our leave".

Aela set the pyre on fire and it quickly engulfed in flames.
They all watched with sadness and some tears escaped Alyx and Riordan's eyes.
Their respective lovers comforted them and silently honored the old werewolf's death.

Aela approached Farkas and Vilkas and they retreated to the Underforge.
Riordan along with Alyx at the request of Eorlund entered Jorrvaskr to retrieve the last fragment of Wuuthrad so that he could reforge it.

"Was it difficult to get them back?

"Not much but there were more enemies than we first thought".

"I'm glad that everything went well and you came back in one piece, because I was afraid that something might happen to both of you".

"You know when we are together I would never let anything happen to him, how is Farkas?".

"A little better but it will take him a while to get over it".

"We will all take a while I guess".

Once in Kodlak's room they searched for the last fragment and handed it to the blacksmith.

"Thanks".

They both nodded and returned to the training yard.

"What will you do now?".

"I had thought about drowning in mead".

"I like that idea, let's go together".

Riordan put his arm around Alyx's shoulders and they headed for the Bannered Mare.

"From what I see you and Farkas are doing quite well".

"It's better than I expected if I'm honest and if you don't mind me asking, where were you two a few days ago?".

At the question Alyx's face turned extremely red.
Riordan started laughing and patted her on the back a few times.

"It was about time although it seems strange to me that you had to leave so you two could fuck".

"If you hadn't stopped interrupting us all the time we probably shouldn't have fucked in a tent in the middle of nowhere but I have to admit that I liked it quite a bit".

"I'm sorry, but it's not my fault you get horny at the worst times".

At that they both laughed and refilled their drink.
They had sat in a corner so they could have more privacy and spent much of the night crying, laughing and drinking.

Chapter Text

Alyx expected anything when she woke up that morning, but it wasn't one of them that Elyel showed up at her house looking for her.
Vilkas ushered her in and they waited for her to get out.
The nord girl frowned slightly when she saw the Dragonborn.

"What brings you here?".

"You have to come with me to High Hrothgar".

"Is there a problem with the Greybeards?".

"No, no, I just need you to help me convince them to hold a peace council there, until it is done I won't be able to defeat Alduin".

"Then I suppose Balgruuf won't help you until that matter is resolved".

"Exactly".

The nord girl sighed and she and Vilkas looked at each other for a few seconds.
On the one hand she wanted to help her friend but on the other she did not think it was a very good idea to leave the werewolf alone since he was still affected by Kodlak's death.

"I assume you are not an ally of either the Imperials or the Stormcloaks".

"In that regard, I am neutral, my priority is to avoid the end of the world, not to see who wins this senseless war".

"Maybe for you it doesn't make sense because it's not your home but it's not something I like to discuss either, when do we leave?".

"As soon as you are ready meet me, I will be waiting for you with my horse in the stables".

"Perfect, see you in a bit".

Alyx and Vilkas watched as the Dragonborn left the house and the werewolf helped her prepare whatever she needed.

"Are you sure it's okay for me to go? I don't feel very comfortable leaving you here alone...".

"Don't worry about me, I have Farkas and Riordan, I'll be fine".

"I'll be back before you know it".

"I hope so, be careful".

"Being with Elyel nothing will happen to me".

The two hugged each other tightly and the nord girl left her home.
She ran to meet the elf and after getting on her horse they began their journey.

After much effort they managed to convince them and messages were sent to the leaders of both factions.
Now they only had to wait for their arrival.

"Is there anyone else who should join the meeting?".

"The Blades".

At the mention of that name, the girl's expression changed drastically.
Everything they had done was not unknown to her, and their presence there posed a threat to Paarthurnax.
Despite her protests, they were allowed to attend.

"While they are here I will not take my eyes off them, at any sign of threat I will not hesitate to kill them and it is the last thing I will say about it, I will withdraw until this begins".

Alyx disappeared down one of the corridors and she remained hidden until all the assistants arrived.
Elyel went to find her and together they entered the huge room where the event would take place.
She saw many familiar faces but frowned at the Thalmor's presence.
She knew that Ulfric would object against it and she was not mistaken.
She watched in silence as events unfolded.
Despite being a peace council, there were many occasions when the atmosphere was so tense that you could cut it with a knife.
Elyel tried to handle the situation as well as possible and being neutral she was not in favor of one or the other.
Alyx for her part wanted the best for the Stormcloaks but she was not as extreme as Ulfric and many of the soldiers he had under his command.
She knew that when the war resumed again she would have to fight as did her sister.
But for now they could breathe easy.
After the council, both factions left the place and Elyel took her with her.
Alyx noticed that the elf's face looked a bit worried but she tried not to make it so important.

"I have to go through Whiterun on the way to Falkreath, I'll take you back".

"Thanks".

The two of them descended from the mountain and mounted the horse again.

"Where is Lydia?".

"At the College of Winterhold, we were unlucky inside some ruins and she sprained her ankle, I have left her there to recover and she too can get some rest".

"When you see her give her my regards".

"Sure, she will be delighted to hear from you".

Alyx smiled and they spent the rest of the trip talking about all sorts of things.

Chapter Text

Aela, Vilkas, Farkas and Riordan met at the Underforge.

"The old man had one wish before he died and he didn't get it, it's as simple as that".

"Being moon-born is not so much of a course as you might think, Vilkas".

"That's fine for you but he wanted to be clean, he wanted to meet Ysgramor and know the glories of Sovngarde but all that was taken from him".

"And you avenged him".

"Kodlak did not care for vengeance".

"No, Farkas, he didn't and that's not what this is about we should be honoring Kodlak, no matter our own thoughts on the blood".

"You're right, it's what I wanted, and I deserved to have it".

"Kodlak used to speak of a way to cleanse his soul from him, even in death, you know the legends of the Tomb of Ysgramor".

"There the souls of Harbingers will heed the call of northern steel but we can't even enter the tomb without Wuuthrad, and it's in pieces, like it has been for a thousand years".

"And dragons were just stories and the elves once ruled Skyrim, just because something is, doesn't mean it must be, the blade is a weapon, a tool, and tools are meant to be broken and repaired".

At that moment in the conversation Eorlund entered with Wuuthrad in his hands.

"Is that? Did you repair the blade?".

"This is the first time I've had all the pieces, thanks to our Shield-Brother here, the flames of Kodlak shall fuel the rebirth of Wuuthrad and now it will take you to meet him once more".

The blacksmith turned to Riordan and handed it over.

"As the one who bore the fragments, I think you should be the one to carry Wuuthrad into battle and he rest of you, prepare to journey to the Tomb of Ysgramor".

"Thanks".

"For Kodlak".

Everyone present responded with the same and watched as he left.
Riordan stared at the weapon for several minutes and looked at Aela.

"I know we have to go to the Tomb of Ysgramor but I would like to wait for Alyx to come back, I know she will want to come with us".

"Okay, as soon as she returns we will march north".

"Thank you Aela."

Alyxa's face was filled with concern when she saw how the four wolves waited for her in front of the door of her house.
As she got closer to them she saw that they carried everything they needed to travel.

"Has there been a problem?".

"No, but we were waiting for you to come back so you can come with us and I need to take what I kept at your house".

"That sack that smelled so bad?".

"Exactly".

"Give me a few minutes and we can go".

The nord girl entered the house and from the trunk that she had in her laboratory extracted the heavy bag.
She left it by the door and went upstairs to change her clothes for clean ones.
She shoved some food into her backpack and saw that Farkas had taken the sack and was carrying it on his back.
The girl closed the door, being sure to lock it securely, and they set off on their journey.
Aela was at the head of the group, Farkas and Riordan in the middle and she and Vilkas at the end.

"So are we going to the Tomb of Ysgramor?".

"We believe that there will be some way to heal Kodlak's soul".

"I know he would be very happy about what we are going to do".

"Yes my love I know he would".

The werewolf kissed her cheek and took her hand.
They walked very close to each other and spoke in low voices so as not to disturb the rest.
Most of them were questions Vilkas asked her about the meeting she had attended.
She told him everything she could and smiled widely.
She was glad to see him happy again even if itonly went for a few moments.
At night they decided to stop and set up camp in a wooded area.
They built a fire and ate what Aela had managed to hunt.
They took turns to stand guard, and Farkas and Riordan decided to be the first.

"Are you sure?".

"Of course, go to sleep".

The breton lightly squeezed his friend's shoulder and smiled.

"You must be tired from the trip before and now this, sleep".

"Good night".

The nord girl hugged him and when they separated she approached Vilkas.
They would both sleep in the same bag to keep warm.
Already lying down, the werewolf wrapped his arms around her lover's waist and leaned his face against the curve of her neck, which made her blush.

"Good night Vilkas".

"Good night Alyx".

They tried to sleep as much as possible since they did not know if they would be the next to keep watch.

Chapter Text

The tomb was to the northwest of Winterhold.
When they finally found it, the five of them went inside.
They carefully inspected the room containing a huge Ysgramor statue.
They hoped to find some kind of door but there was nothing.
Alyx moved closer to the statue and studied it carefully for a long time.
At last an idea popped into her head and she approached the breton.

"Give me Wuuthrad".

"What are you going to do with it?".

She didn't respond and just took it from him.
She approached the statue again and placed the weapon in it's grip.
At first nothing happened but a few seconds later a noise could be heard and a passageway opened before them.

"I'm somewhat concerned about what we might find inside".

"I'm sure you'll only have to worry about the original Companions, their finest warriors rest with Ysgramor and you'll have to prove yourself to them but it's not that you're intruding, I'd wager they've actually expected us
and they just want to be sure that you're worthy so be ready for an honorable battle".

"Nothing is ever easy huh?".

"It usually isn't".

Alyx and Riordan laughed and prepared to enter.
Near the stone arch Alyx realized that Vilkas was not following them and they stopped.

"Are you not coming?".

"Kodlak was right, I let vengeance rule my heart and I regret nothing of what we did at Driftshade but I can't go any further with my mind fogged and my heart grieved".

The nord girl looked at Riordan and he understood what she wanted to do.

"Stay with him, the three of us will follow ahead".

"Thanks".

She watched them disappear down the corridor and returned to her partner's side.
They sat on the stairs in front of the statue and she placed her hand on the werewolf's leg.

"I know this is not easy for you and I will do my best to make you feel better".

"Just hold me, it's all I need".

She wrapped her arms around him and let him rest his head against her shoulder.
She gently began stroking his hair.
She didn't know how long they would stay like this but she would try to calm him down as much as possible.
After a while in the silence of the tomb, footsteps heading towards them could be heard and they were surprised to see Farkas.

"And the others?".

"They have moved on, I couldn't".

"What happened?".

"Ever since Dustman's Cairn, the big crawly ones have been too much for me and I couldn't take it, that's why I'm back".

"It's okay, we each have our weaknesses and fears and admitting them is not being a coward".

Farkas sat next to them and the three of them waited for Riordan and Aela to return.

It seemed like forever since they left but all three were relieved to see them appear.

"Its done?".

"Kodlak's soul is clean, he can go to Sovngarde".

Everyone breathed more relieved.
Riordan took Wuuthrad and the passageway they had opened closed.

"I will leave it in the hall on the stairs, it is the place where it should be, we can go whenever you want".

Aela came out of the tomb leaving the four of them alone.

"Riordan, I'm not going back yet, I'm going to look at some of these carvings, I wonder if Ysgramor ever set foot here while he was alive, I'll see you back at Jorrvaskr you have some stories to tell the others, huh? ".

"Okay Vilkas, we'll see you in Jorrvaskr, be careful".

The breton left and Alyx turned to look at him.
She couldn't help feeling a bit worried but he assured her that everything would be fine.

"When I'm done here I'll be back, I promise".

"I know".

Vilkas turned to his twin and he didn't seem to have any intention of leaving.

"I'm going to stay with Vilkas, I still don't feel like going back".

"I'll inform the rest and we will go, be careful".

Alyx kissed Vilkas's forehead and went outside.
Aela and Riordan were waiting for her and the red-haired woman crossed her arms.

"They do not come?".

"No, we can go".

"When they come back we have to organize a big celebration, this is all over and I think we deserve a break".

"We can think some things along the way, let's go".

The three of them packed up their things and headed back to Whiterun.

Chapter Text

During the day Jorrvaskr became one of the busiest areas in the city.
They all dedicated themselves to carefully preparing everything necessary for the celebration that would take place during the night.
The pantry was filled with succulent meat and more alcohol than they could count.
Thanks to Alyx they had managed to bring a couple of bards there so that she didn't have to play all night and she could have fun too.
They decorated the mead hall a bit and made it more comfortable to spend the celebration there.

"I hope Farkas and Vilkas are here tonight".

"They will be there don't worry".

"We successfully completed the task that the old man gave and I am happy to know that he is in Sovngarde".

"I feel happy too".

Alyx hugged Riordan and he ran his hands through the girl's hair.
He was impressed by how much her hair had grown since he last fixed it.

"Do you want me to cut your hair again?".

"Don't worry, I'm letting it grow".

"Okay, but if you need it, you know I will do it".

"Thanks".

The two parted ways and went back to what they had been doing before.
They had been deciding what to wear for a long time.

"I've never seen you wear this, you could try it".

The nord girl gave the breton a sand-colored shirt and gave him a small mirror for him to see.
Riordan was not very convinced and he started to take it off but she stopped him.

"Wait, let me try one thing before you take it off".

The girl approached her dresser and from it she took out a small box in which she kept accessories for her hair.
She placed it on the bed and put three small gold cylinders in the palm of her friend's hand.
She came up behind him and released his hair.
In a few minutes she made three small braids in which she placed the cylinders at the end, creating a small cuff.

"What about now?".

Riordan looked at himself in the mirror again and was surprised at the difference.
That color suited him much better with his hair down and the gold of the ornaments stood out on his black hair.

"You are my heroine, you always have a solution for everything".

"Not always, but I do what I can".

They both laughed and the breton helped Alyx with her dress.
She had chosen a light gray one with a black belt.
Her dress was tied in the front and he adjusted it so she was comfortable but her cleavage stood out since he knew that a certain person would enjoy it very much.
As for her hair, Riordan sat the girl in a chair and tied it up in a rather loose bun except for a lock that he gathered in a braid which he wove with a gray ribbon with dark embroidery.
He wrapped it around the base of the bun and held it tight so it wouldn't move.
He handed her the mirror so she could see the result.

"You look gorgeous".

"Thank you, you always manage to do wonderful things with the four strands of hair that I have".

"Don't talk nonsense, you have a lot of hair and the longer it is, the more I will want to do hairstyles, it does not matter what it is that always looks good on you and if someone I know doesn't nibble on you even a little, I'll feel pretty sad".

Alyx laughed and got up from her chair.

"I'm sure he will".

The nord girl put on a necklace with black stones that her father had given her but that she had never had a chance to use.

"We should go to Jorrvaskr, it will be dark soon and I want to check that nothing is missing, because I will not be the one to go and look for something if it runs out...".

"Very true, let's go".

The nord girl and the breton left the house and went to the mead hall.

While Alyx stayed with Aela, Riordan went to Kodlak's old room and from a drawer took out an envelope that he put in his pocket.
When he left, he met Vilkas and they gave each other a little hug.

"Glad to see you Vilkas, I hope you and Farkas have returned without any problem".

"I'm also glad to see you and there was no incident, Farkas is finishing dressing in case you wanted to talk to him".

"Thanks, Alyx is upstairs and be careful because if she sees you like this I can't guarantee that you will leave early".

They both laughed at his comment and Vilkas gave him a light grip on the shoulder.

"I'll go see her then but I may be the one to take her first".

Both werewolves withdrew to see their respective lovers and the breton knocked softly on Farkas's door.
As he saw that he did not open it he decided to enter.

"Vilkas told me you were almost ready".

"I just have to put this on and we can go upstairs with the others".

Farkas held a red shirt in his hands and brushed his hair slightly from his face.
Riordan held his breath slightly for a few seconds.

"I've never seen you wear red".

"It's not a color that I use regularly but I thought today would be a good idea, by the way, you look very good...".

The nord came up to him and kissed him, hitting him against the closed door.
It was a long time since they had had a moment for the two of them alone.
Riordan wanted to close the door shut and spend the rest of the night there, but he knew they couldn't.
The two of them parted for air and looked at each other.

"Tonight is important and we cannot miss it, when it is finished I will be all yours".

"Don't say things that you may regret later".

"I will never regret it and you know it".

Riordan gave Farkas a small kiss on the lips and smiled.

"Finish dressing, I'll wait for you outside".

The breton left the room and went to the stairs that led up to the mead hall.

Chapter Text

When everyone was finally gathered, the celebration began.
Food and drink began to spread around the room.
Riordan seeing that everyone had something to drink in their hand got up.

"If you could pay attention to me for a moment there are some things I would like to say".

They all stared at him, expectant for what he would say.

"First I want to thank you all for being here, tonight we will honor all who have fallen".

The breton raised his mug and they all did the same.
They had a couple of drinks and he continued.

"I also want to tell you that from now on I will be the new Harbinger of the Companions, Kodlak named me his successor and I want to assure you that even though he is no longer there, the honor of the Companions will remain intact".

They all cheered and drank again but knew he wasn't over.

"Alyx come here".

The nord girl looked at Vilkas in panic but he lightly squeezed her hand and smiled.

"Go, everything will be fine".

She sighed and walked over to the breton.
She stood next to him and looked around at the people present.
He took the old man's letter out of his pocket and read it aloud.
When he finished, Alyx looked at him tremendously surprised.

"It's true?".

"As of today you are a member of the Companions, Kodlak wanted to have told you in person but it was not possible".

A few tears fell down the girl's cheeks and the breton hugged her.
The silence that had formed gave way to cheers and more screams.
Everyone was happy that she was part of the group as she spent more time there than anywhere else.
They all came up to her and started giving her huge hugs.
Alyx's gaze focused on Aela who to her surprise approached her and hugged her as well.

"Welcome home".

Riordan got out of the chair and emptied his drink in a couple of gulps.

"And now celebrate all you want, there is plenty food and drink to spare!".

Music filled the room along with more screams and laughter.
The nord girl and the breton sat in their usual place where Farkas and Vilkas were waiting for them.
Vilkas returned her drink and he sat her on his lap.
The emotion of the moment still ran through her veins and he could feel it.

"Are you happy to be one of us?".

"Yes, I never thought something like this would happen".

She hugged the werewolf without being able to stop smiling.
The four of them toasted and continued drinking and talking for a long time.

Alyx and Vilkas sat down to catch their breath.
They had danced several songs in a row and were feeling somewhat tired.
The nord girl went to get something to drink for both of them and grabbed something sweet.
She handed the jar to the werewolf and popped a piece of the food into his mouth.

"It's good?".

"Very good but not as much as you".

Alyx blushed and drank trying to hide her face a bit.
She still on certain occasions when receiving signs of affection from Vilkas in public felt a little nervous but not in a bad way.
On the contrary, something twisted inside her and she knew he could feel it.
The werewolf placed his hand on the girl's thigh and moved closer to her.
He began to whisper in her ear all the things he would want to do to her if they were alone at that moment, making her blush even more.
At first he didn't liked very much the idea of talking dirty to her in public without others finding out but as time went by he found it amusing.
He did not consider it as if he was doing something bad but he liked to see how she was stirring in her seat while his words made her more and more wet.
It was at times like those that Alyx appreciated that no one was paying attention to them, especially Farkas and Riordan, who had disappeared a long time ago.
This time it was she who pressed against his ear.

"I'm going to talk to Riordan for a moment and we could go".

"Perfect".

The brown-haired girl got up and walked out of the mead hall into the courtyard.
She looked everywhere for the two werewolves until she decided to look at the Skyforge.
As she climbed the stairs she could hear some moans coming from the top.
She shook her head and smiled.
It had been a bad time to go since she didn't want to interrupt them.
She descended the stairs again and entered the hall.
With a shake of her head she indicated for Vilkas to follow her and they went out into the street.

"That was quick".

"They were busy and I didn't want to disturb".

By the way she said that he knew what she meant and he put his arm around the girl's shoulders.

"Shall we?".

"If we take longer I think I'm going to explode".

She laughed at her own words and gave a small cry of surprise as Vilkas lifted her off the ground and carried her onto his shoulder.
The werewolf made sure she was secure and he walked as fast as he could towards the house while she giggled.

Chapter Text

Vilkas lowered Alyx from his shoulder and placed her on the floor at the foot of the bed.
The pulse of both was so fast and so strong that they thought that the other could hear it.
The nord girl began to loosen the knot that held the front of her dress but he stopped her.

"Let me do it".

She nodded slightly and lowered her hands.
The werewolf turned her around and pressed her back against his chest.
He raised his hands to the front of the garment and tugged on the string until it was fully open.

"If it hadn't been for everyone who was present I would have fucked you right there...".

A chill ran through her body.
Her skin crawled as he began to drop her dress until it piled up at her feet, exposing her.

"Sit down".

She obeyed and sat on the foot of the bed.
She watched as Vilkas undressed and couldn't help but lick her lips.
When he was close enough to her she didn't hesitate twice and shoved his cock into her mouth.
The werewolf growled and watched with narrowed eyes as she sucked it.
At first she was slow as if she was playing with it but when she found one of the places that made him twitch she increased the speed and encircled the base with one of her hands to help herself.
She could see how he tensed for a few seconds and placed his hand on top of her head.

"If you continue like this I don't think I will last longer...".

At his words she withdraw her hand and began to take it deeper, more than she had ever done.
This caught Vilkas by surprise who held the girl's head to keep it from moving.
Unable to stop he began to thrust hitting the back of the nord girl's throat.
Her eyes filled slightly with tears but at the same time she felt she was wetter than before.
With each thrust she could feel that he was getting closer.
It was shortly after that the werewolf came without warning.
The warm fluid filled her mouth and it began to work its way down her throat.
She saw that his eyes were closed and his teeth were clenched tightly.
Vilkas pulled it out of her mouth catching his breath and when he opened his eyes he was intoxicated by what he saw before him.
Even though Alyx had swallowed much of it, some of it had spilled.
The mixture of saliva and cum covered her chin, neck and a bit of her breasts.

"I'm sorry my love I couldn't help it".

Alyx stood up.

"Don't worry if it's yours it doesn't bother me, I like it".

"You are dirtier than I thought".

She laughed with her cheeks a little bit red and cleaned up the mess as much as possible.
She threw the cloth on the floor and lay down on the bed.

"Come on I want you to fill me up, please".

Without wasting a second Vilkas climbed onto the bed and placed himself on top of her.
He wanted the same thing as her at that moment but he knew that if he wasn't careful he could hurt her.
As he kissed her he moved his hand to her core and ran a finger across her folds.
He couldn't believe how incredibly wet she was and how easily he slipped a couple of fingers inside her.
Alyx protested but he kept kissing her while he fucked her with his fingers.

"Vilkas...please...please...".

"Just a little more and I'll give you what you want...".

He continued to use his fingers on her until he made her come.
A somewhat strangled cry escaped the girl's lips and she dug her nails into the werewolf's shoulders so hard that she left red marks.
Vilkas pulled his fingers from her and licked them under her gaze.
The girl's body trembled from her orgasm but it didn't make her stop.
When she had relaxed with a little push she knocked the werewolf onto the bed and sat on him.
Vilkas placed his hands on her thighs and waited to see what she would do.
Alyx kissed him and came down to his neck to bite him.
He knew she wouldn't hurt him but when he felt the girl's teeth on his skin he couldn't help but tighten the grip he had on her thighs.
She laughed and kissed him again biting his lower lip.
She sat up again and he saw how she rose a little from the bed and with one of her hands she took his penis and aligned it with the entrance of her pussy.
Thanks to how wet she was, the member entered to the base without any problem.
They both groaned and immediately she began to move.
To help herself she rested her hands on his shoulders and he held her waist to give her more stability.
Alyx established a fairly fast pace and he felt her squeeze him.
Despite the fact that he liked that position, inside Vilkas's head, the wolf was increasingly restless, wanting to get out even for just a second.
When she kissed him she noticed that he had fangs again like the first time they had been together so she was not surprised when he changed the position again.
This time he placed her on her knees with her bottom in the air and her torso leaning against the bed.
He stepped behind the girl and entered inside her again, after he leaned his chest against her back he ran his tongue lovingly over her scars several times.
The new angle allowed him to penetrate her more deeply and he let himself be carried slightly.
She felt her pussy stretch more as he moved again.
Vilkas covered both of the girl's hands with his and their fingers intertwined as he penetrated her.
Alyx noticed that the werewolf's hands were slightly larger than normal and darker in color but she stopped paying attention to them every time her vision blurred.
Their moans and screams filled the room like a symphony and with each thrust they got closer and closer to the end.
With a loud roar Vilkas ended up inside her so deep that Alyx's eyes turned white from the force with which her second orgasm came, almost causing her to lose consciousness and she felt the werewolf's teeth dig into her shoulder without breaking the skin.

"Did I hurt you?".

"Everything is fine don't worry, come to sleep, you'll be tired".

"I'll go get something to drink for both of us and I'll be right back".

"Thank you ".

The werewolf went downstairs for a jug of water and a couple of glasses.
Upon returning he gave one to Alyx and filled it.

"Drink".

She emptied it's contents in a few moments and lay back on the bed.
Vilkas also emptied his pretty quickly and got into bed.
He put his arms around the girl and pressed her against him.

"I love you".

"I love you too, more than anything".

Vilkas smiled and they tried to take advantage of the few hours that remained until dawn to get some sleep.

Chapter Text

"Are you sure you're okay?".

"Completely".

"I'm sorry if I was too rough last night, I couldn't help it".

Vilkas kissed the mark that could still be seen on the girl's shoulder.

"You don't have to apologize, I wanted the same".

"And was it what you expected?".

"It was so much better and I think it's the first time that I almost fainted".

"I tried to control it but it got a little out of hand".

He rested his cheek against her shoulder and she smiled.

"It is part of you and I love it as much as I love you".

"Many would not think so".

"So what? I don't care what other people think, I'm with you and whatever happens I'll continue to be".

Alyx hugged him tightly to make him understand once and for all that she would not go anywhere especially because of everything they had to go through to be like this now.
He began to trace small circles on her back, noticing the texture of her scars.
He still felt guilty for having done them but with each passing day he got used to seeing them more and more and he thought that they had already become something that characterized her since she repeatedly told him
that having them made her stronger.
Alyx thought that someone who didn't have at least a few scars hadn't been able to experience life to the fullest.

"You don't know how lucky I was to find you".

"I could tell you the same".

The two of them smiled and rubbed their noses against each other.
Despite how comfortable they were, they decided to get out of bed.
The nord girl lightly covered with a balm the bite mark that Vilkas had left on her and also did it on the red marks that she had left on his back.
They weren't sure what time it was but their stomachs roared.
They dressed in some clean clothes and went to Jorrvaskr.
Alyx wanted to see how Farkas and Riordan were and they would eat with them.

During the time that the four were together, the nord girl and the breton could not stop looking at each other and start laughing.
They both predicted they were going to have a nice night and they did.
Many of the Companions looked as if they had been up until dawn.
They finally decided to go outside and sat on one of the benches that surrounded the huge tree in the square.

"If you had gone higher you would have seen us".

"That's why I left".

Alyx laughed and he put his arm around her shoulders.

"You wouldn't have stopped us either so it doesn't matter, everything okay with Vilkas last night?".

"More than fine but it's private and I won't say anything, my lips are sealed".

She gave him a mischievous look and made him laugh too.

"Nothing at all?".

"Well, I just thought for a moment that the bed wouldn't last long but that is all I'm going to say".

They both laughed uncontrollably again and the breton wiped tears from his eyes.
He was so glad to see her so happy, after all she deserved it to make up for all the pain she had to go through.
Alyx brushed her hand against Riordan's shoulder, and Riordan hissed.
She went into a slight panic because she didn't know what was going on and he tried to calm her down.

"Don't worry, we went pretty hard last night but it will heal in no time".

The nord girl got up and took him to her house.
She sat him in a chair and took off his shirt to get a better view.
She was surprised to see the multiple bite marks and scratches, his entire torso was covered in them.

"Doesn't it hurt?".

"They just bother me a little, it's not serious".

"Well, it doesn't seem that way to me".

Alyx took the same balm she had used on herself and Vilkas out of a drawer and began to spread it over the marks.
When she finished she allowed several minutes for him to dry and he put his shirt back on.

"Here, put it on Farkas too and be careful".

"Yes don't worry, let's go back".

"I agree".

Together they returned to Jorrvaskr again and sat with the other two werewolves.

"Farkas next time, be more careful with him, you will make yourself look like maps".

Vilkas upon hearing that couldn't help but laugh and while he did, his laugh made the others do it too.

Chapter Text

Joy filled all of Skyrim when the Dragonborn finally managed to defeat Alduin.
It had not been an easy task but thanks to it everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
But that calm did not last long.
As soon as they heard the news, both factions resumed their war.
It didn't take long for the Stormcloaks to overtake the Imperial Legion, taking over different areas and controlling them.
To Alyx's fear, Whiterun ended up being taken over by Ulfric's soldiers.
She was afraid that someone she knew might die during the attack but that the city would pass to her side not so much.
Despite the new ruler and the new guards, they did not change many things in the city.
Life went on as usual.
The nord girl and the werewolf were finishing their breakfast when there was a knock on the door.
When she opened it, she saw a Stormcloak soldier who handed her an envelope.
She read it when she returned to Vilkas and her face turned pale.

"What happen?".

"I have to go to Solitude, the Stormcloaks want to take the city to end the war once and for all".

"I thought that even you were one of them you wouldn't go to war".

"I don't want to, but it's written by Ulfric and I have no choice, I'm afraid of what might happen if I refuse".

"For your sister?".

"Exactly, I know that she will also go and I do not want her to die, she is from the little family that I have left and it would destroy me to have to bury her".

Vilkas hugged her tightly as he understood her fear.
He would go through the same thing too if it was his brother.

"You'll see that everything will be fine".

"I hope so".

"Do you need help getting ready?".

"I would greatly appreciate it".

Alyx threw the letter into the fire to burn and together they began to search for everything she needed to take.

"Be very careful and if you see yourself in great danger, do not hesitate to run".

"I'll have it and if I get to that point believe me I'll run as fast as I can".

They kissed and she hugged him like it was the last time she would see him.
The werewolf watched as she slowly disappeared into the distance.
He knew that she would return safe and sound.

The door to the Palace of the Kings slowly opened before her.
Inside it there was a frenzied coming and going.
Everyone prepared certain things until it was time to leave.
Alyx searched for her sister and found her training with some of the soldiers.
When they saw her, they stopped and greeted her.
Denna walked over to her and hugged her.

"When have you arrived?".

"A little while ago, I wanted to see you before we leave".

The youngest smiled and led her sister into the room they shared.
On both beds was armor in the colors of the Stormcloacks.
They helped each other put them on.
After finishing adjusting her armor, Alyx noticed some discomfort.
It was true that some time had passed since the last time she wore armor but this time she felt a little crushed inside it.
Trying to adjust it to make herself feel better, she noticed that her lower abdomen had grown slightly.
She until that moment had not noticed it since she used to wear looser clothes.
She shook her head several times to clear her thoughts and focused her attention on what was about to happen.
They made sure several times not to forget anything and joined the rest of the soldiers.
Most of them recognized her and began to talk to her animatedly as they walked.
To Alyx many of them had familiar faces but others wasn't familiar to her.
Denna took her hand and began to wave it to get her attention.

"What?".

"I am a little nervous, it is the first time that I will be part of something so big".

"It's normal, don't worry, I'm also a little nervous".

"If we win this will end, right?".

"If everything goes well, yes".

"Together we will succeed".

"We will make dad proud of us".

"I hope he comes back soon, we haven't heard from him for a long time and I'm worried".

"When we're done we'll go to Morthal to see Cassandra, maybe she can tell us something".

The younger nord girl hugged her arm, smiled and they continued walking like that.

Chapter Text

The tension before the battle was palpable and Alyx was sure everyone could feel it.
They had gone over the action plan countless times but that didn't make her any more sure.
She and Denna had agreed that whatever happened they would stay together.
They had managed, after much persuasion, to convince Ulfric to allow them to use magic and thus remain somewhat withdrawn from direct combat.
Under the eyes of many it would look pathetic and lacking in honor but that did not matter to them, they did not seek glory or fame, they just wanted it to end.
When the city gates were finally opened, the soldiers rushed in.
Huge numbers of Imperial soldiers flocked to meet them, and that was when the battle began.
Alyx and Denna tried to get into an elevated area to get an advantage.
They killed several of the archers who got in their way and they were placed behind a stone wall.
The nord girl gave several potions to her sister.
They both summoned an atronach, Alyx a flame atronach and Denna a frost atronach.
The daedra began attacking their enemies as they cast spells from their position.
With each one of them that they threw they noticed how their magicka diminished.
When they saw that the number of enemies had decreased slightly, they abandoned their position and finished off the rest of the archers when one of their arrows brushed the cheek of the brown-haired girl.
After that they reunited with the rest of the Stormcloaks and advanced to the next level of the city where Castle Dour was located.
They fought all the Imperials at that level and tried to hold them back long enough for Ulfric and Galmar to enter the fortress.
Before Alyx could say anything the two nords took Denna with them.
The two sisters looked at each other in some panic but Alyx would know that she would be fine.
She continued to fight with her companions until many of them told her to step inside to see if something had happened to Ulfric or the rest of them.
The nord girl ran inside.
She quickly walked the distance that separated her from them and when she arrived she saw that General Tullius and Legate Rikke were lying dead on the ground.
It wasn't a very nice scene but that meant they had won.

"Everthing is good here?".

"The battle is over, I suppose some kind of speech is in order".

"Then I'll go tell everyone".

Denna joined Alyxa and they started down the path she had come.
The brown-haired girl stopped abruptly and her sister looked at her worriedly.

"Are you okay?".

"Yeah, I'm fine, it must be that the battle has left me exhausted...".

Denna moved closer to her and saw that a thin layer of sweat cover her face.

"You don't look very good".

"I just need to rest, don't worry."

They started back outside, but when they were near the exit Alyx stumbled slightly and collapsed.
Denna managed to catch her before she hit the ground and began yelling for help.
Several soldiers entered and without a word took her to one of the tents where they treated the wounded.

When the nord girl woke up she did not understand what had happened.
The last thing she remembered was being with her sister and then everything went black.
The heat that she had felt earlier was gone but she still felt slightly bad.
Denna was very worried about what had happened to her but she assured her that she was fine, it was just the weariness of the battle.
Deep down she knew it wasn't and the same thought kept spinning in her head.
When she was good enough to be able to walk well she gathered all of her things to leave.
Denna knew it was useless trying to stop her and after she hugged her and saying goodbye to her she let her go.
Alyx made her way to Morthal to see Cassandra.
She was a healer, an old friend of her father who was gone for many years and returned to Skyrim intermittently.
The nord girl knew that this time she would be there so she tried to get there as quickly as possible.

Since the last time she had been to Morthal nothing had changed and along the way she was about to change course several times but she did not.
Many mornings she woke up dizzy and she felt like she was starving.
She wanted to see Cassandra so that she could inspect her and confirm what had been on her mind for a long time.
If what she was thinking was true, how would Vilkas take it?
Alyx was so scared that she didn't know if this was a good idea.
When she got to Cassandra's house, she knocked on the door several times and after a few minutes a black-haired woman opened the door for her.

"Alyx?".

The girl smiled when she saw that she had recognized her immediately.
Cassandra ushered her into the house and served her something warm to drink.

"How long without seeing you little one, how are you and your sister?".

"We are both fine, we are managing as best we can".

"I'm glad, let's see if your father comes back, I'm sure you've not seen him for a long time".

"Some years now".

Cassandra looked at the girl and noticed that she did not stop fiddling with the cup that she was holding in her hands.

"Is there something that worries you?".

The expression on Alyx's face changed completely and she stared at her.

"I've been feeling ill for a while and I'd like you to take a look at me more than anything to confirm if what I'm thinking is true or not".

"Sure honey, whatever you need".

Alyx blushed slightly and set the mug on the table.

"Tell me what symptoms have you noticed lately".

"There are many mornings I wake up a little dizzy and no matter how much I eat, I never feel like it's enough and I can't stop".

"Do your breasts hurt?".

"They feel swollen and yes they hurt".

Cassandra got up and took Alyx's hand to lead her with her.
She placed the girl in an area where there was a lot of light.

"Are you wearing something under this?".

"Yes".

"I need you to take it off so I can see better".

Alyx obeyed and took off her shirt, keeping another one that was a little tight.
Cassandra only had to lay her eyes on her for a few seconds to know what was happening.

"May l?".

Alyx nodded and felt the healer's hands come to rest on her belly.
She examined her for several minutes and made her put her shirt back on.
They sat down on the chairs and Cassandra started asking her questions.

"Are you with someone?".

"He is in Whiterun".

"I assume he doesn't know".

"No and up to now neither have I, I thought I was just sick and that's what had made me eat so much during this time".

"Well, you're not sick, you're pregnant, I can't tell you since when right now but you are".

Hearing those words, the girl's brain stopped working for what seemed like an eternity and fear took hold of her.
She did not know how she was going to say that to Vilkas and she was afraid that he would get upset.
Cassandra placed her hand over Alyx's and gave it a little squeeze.

"Why don't you rest a bit? You must be exhausted from the trip".

Alyx simply nodded and let the black-haired woman help her.

Chapter Text

Alyx spent several weeks with Cassandra until she felt better.
During that time she contacted Vilkas to let him know that she was fine and the battle went well.
The imperial woman taught her how to make new potions as well as teaching her methods that would make her feel better if she felt unwell again.

"Always take a good look at the leaves, otherwise you will end up making poison and I don't think it's something you want to drink".

"You know I'm always careful with those things, especially after what happened last time".

"I know little one".

The two of them sat down to have dinner and Cassandra noticed that Alyx looked somewhat distracted.

"Are you okay?".

"Yeah, I'm just thinking how can I explain this to Vilkas".

"You'll see that everything goes well and if not, you already know that here you have a place where you can stay".

"Thanks".

"So are you leaving tomorrow?".

"I have already decided, I will leave before dawn and also I can not ignore it forever, the sooner I solve it the better".

"It may be the best, you know that I wish you the best in the world and I hope that at some point I can meet your child, be careful".

"You know I always play dumb but not this time, if something happened to the baby, I wouldn't forgive myself".

Alyx rubbed her belly gently with her hands and smiled.
Cassandra hugged the girl with great affection and was about to cry.
She had known them since they were very little and had watched them grow.
She knew that Alyx in one way or another regarded her as something like a mother but she knew that no one could ever replace her.
She was a very special woman and Alyx became more and more like her with each passing day.
After parting, they continued eating dinner while talking and Alyx soon went to sleep.
She felt so exhausted that if she could have she would have fallen asleep in the chair.
She had to gather strength for the journey that awaited her.

The temperature at that time was somewhat low so Alyx tried to bundle up as much as possible.
She brought her essentials with her and took one last look at Morthal before leaving.
It wasn't going to be a very long journey but that didn't mean she lowered her guard.
She started the trip walking as fast as she could but without forcing herself since now for some reason she got tired faster than before.
It was something she hadn't realized when she was in Solitude.
As she crossed an area full of snow and rocks she noticed something was following her and she drew her sword.
She braced herself for what might come.
She heard a noise to her right and when she got closer she saw that it was Rivet.
She sighed and lowered her sword.

"Someday you are going to give me a heart attack".

The fox approached her and rubbed against her leg.
Alyx had no idea where he had been or how he had found her but she was glad to see him.
Accompanied by the fox she continued the journey until she set up a small camp in a shelter.
After dinner she got into her bed roll and watched as Rivet laid his head gently on her belly and stayed in that position the rest of the night while she slept.
Alyx's journey became more enjoyable now that Rivet was with her but despite that she couldn't stop thinking about Vilkas.
Misfortune forced her to have to make a detour since on several occasions she encountered small groups of Imperial soldiers who were still there.
That took a long time and delayed her considerably.
At last seeing Whiterun she sighed in relief.
When she entered there seemed to be no one at first glance but she could hear Adrianne Avenicci working on her forge.
When they saw each other they greeted and she continued on her way until she reached her house.
She slowly opened the front door and saw that there was no one downstairs which seemed a bit strange to her.

"Hello?".

"I'm up here".

Vilkas's voice came from the bedroom and she came up the stairs quickly.
She tossed her things into the hallway and went into the room.
She stared at Vilkas for a moment and smiled.
He had his hair semi-tied and was wearing one of the shirts that she really liked.
The werewolf hugged her with such emotion that he lifted her off the ground.
Alyx wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him deeply.
When they parted for air they both smiled and she pressed her forehead against the nord's.

"I've missed you".

"Me too, you have no idea...".

Vilkas hugged her again and she laughed.

"Do you want me to prepare a bath for you? You must be exhausted".

"I would appreciate it my love, thank you".

She kissed him again and he put her down before going to the bathroom.
Alyx waited patiently for him to call her.
Vilkas closed the door and let her bathe quietly.
She may not have noticed but he did, for some reason the scent that came from her was different but he did not know why.
He wanted to be with her but he knew she was feeling pretty tired, he could tell.
He went down to the living room and after taking something out of a drawer he sat by the fire.
The nord girl when she finished bathing she put on clean baggy clothes to be comfortable and took all the courage she could before going down.
She stopped at the foot of the stairs and stared into the werewolf's eyes.

"Vilkas I have to tell you something...".

Chapter Text

The werewolf made her sit next to him and wrapped his hands around her's.
He could tell how much she was shaking and tried to calm her down as much as possible.

"You know whatever it is, good or bad, you can tell me".

"I know but I find it somewhat difficult...".

"We have all the time in the world, don't worry".

Vilkas cupped one of Alyx's cheeks in his hand and when she looked at him he smiled.
She also tried to smile but couldn't.
The lump that she felt in her throat grew stronger and stronger and she breathed deeply for a few minutes.
The two of them were silent during that time and he noticed that her tremors became somewhat milder.

"I'm...I'm pregnant...".

The atmosphere became somewhat tense for a few seconds and Vilkas's eyes widened so much that she thought they would fall out of his sockets.
Her nerves caught her back in it's spiral but they were soon replaced by enormous fears and she wanted to let go of his hands but he would not let her.
To the surprise of the nord girl his eyes began to fill with tears and he pressed himself against her to hug her.
She also hugged him and tried to comfort him.
When he felt a little better he placed his hands on the girl's shoulders.

"How long have you known?".

"For a few weeks but I didn't know how to tell you, I was scared".

Vilkas kissed her at that moment and she noticed the huge smile he was giving her.
The nerves and fear that she had were slowly disappearing and she felt calmer at last.
When he separated from her he hugged her again.

"You always manage to make me feel like the happiest man in the world and I couldn't ask for anything more but I think something is still missing".

Alyx looked at him somewhat confused as he got up.

"Close your eyes and don't move".

She nodded and closed her eyes as tightly as she could.
In the silence of the room she could hear a metallic noise and felt something cold against her neck.

"You can open them now".

As she did so, Alyx automatically turned her gaze to the pendant that adorned her neck.
It was an amulet of Mara.
This time it was her turn to cry and she got up from the chair.
With teary eyes she turned to the werewolf and put her hands around the amulet.

"Really?".

"I've been thinking about it since you left for Solitude and I want to spend the rest of my life with you, especially now that I know we are going to have a child".

Alyx began to cry uncontrollably and hugged the werewolf again.
After everything that had happened to them that now they felt so happy it seemed something unreal to both of them.

"I would have to be crazy not to want to marry you".

Alyx kissed him deeply and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I promise you that I will be the best husband and father you have ever seen, I will not end up like mine".

"You don't have to promise, I know you will be, I have no doubt and you're not going to end up like him".

Vilkas wiped away her lover's tears and kissed her forehead.
As they stood together, he could tell that her belly was noticeably larger.
The last time he had seen it he thought it was because of how much she had been eating but now he knew there was a reason for it.

"May l?".

"Sure".

The werewolf bent down slightly and lifted the girl's shirt to expose her belly.
Gently he placed his hands on her and closed his eyes.
He at first noticed Alyx's still somewhat accelerated pulse but shortly after he noticed another lighter pulse and then another.
The expression on his face totally changed and that made Alyx worry.

"What's wrong?".

"I have noticed two other heartbeats besides yours".

"What do you mean by two others?".

"It's what I've felt".

"That means we...".

"We are going to have more than one child".

The two looked at each other in surprise but soon after began to laugh.
Vilkas kissed the nord girl's belly and stood up.
He knew that she was calm because she knew that lycanthropy was not inherited.

"You will never stop surprising me".

Alyx laughed again and they made something warm to drink.
They sat by the fire again and he laced his fingers through the girl's, unable to stop smiling.
He still couldn't believe that he was going to be a father.

Chapter Text

Everyone who received the good news from the couple was overjoyed.
Farkas never expected to be an uncle and Riordan couldn't stop smiling as he told Vilkas that now he should take care of Alyx and not let her work too hard.
She laughed at that and admitted that she would probably have a hard time letting him do almost everything but neither of them was worried.
To celebrate it, she and Riordan prepared a spectacular dinner and the nord girl brought out an alcohol that she kept for special occasions that she could not drink unfortunately.

"Don't worry, when you can drink again, I'll pay".

"I didn't doubt it".

They both laughed and she laid her head on Vilkas's shoulder.
Alyx hadn't felt so calm for so long that with everything she'd been through she found it strange.
But the most important thing of all is that she was going to marry the person she loved and she would also have children with him, that filled her with happiness.
Neither of them could stop smiling.

"It looks like someone is falling asleep".

Riordan chuckled slightly and they all looked at the girl who turned away from the werewolf.
She tried to deny it but they could tell by her face that she was tired.
Farkas and the breton decided to leave to let her rest.

"Rest, see you tomorrow".

"You too".

Vilkas closed the door and gathered up the remains of dinner while Alyx finished her drink.

"Do you need help to go to bed?".

"I don't think so but I feel pretty tired".

The werewolf approached her and carried her into his arms to the bedroom.
Once in the room he sat her on the bed and helped her put on her nightgown.
Alyx covered herself with the blankets.

"Do you need anything else?".

"No, honey".

Vilkas kissed her forehead and smiled.

"I'm going to get water and go to bed too".

She watched as he disappeared for a few minutes and returned with a pitcher and a couple of glasses.
Since she had some trouble going down the stairs he began to leave everything she might need in the room overnight so that she didn't have to move much.

"Water?".

"Yes please".

The werewolf handed the girl one of the glasses and she quickly emptied it.
She put it on her nightstand.
Vilkas joined her shortly after and they hugged.
The heat emanating from him engulfed her completely and inadvertently made her fall asleep.
The nord stayed awake for a few more minutes listening to her breathe calmly and also closed his eyes.

As time passed, she had begun to feel more tired and sometimes spent most of the day sitting or lying down.
Riordan as Harbinger allowed Vilkas to stop accepting work so he could stay with Alyx to help her with whatever she needed.
Denna also went to Whiterun to be with her and help her.
They had not seen each other since the battle of Solitude and as soon as the young nord girl received a letter in which her sister informed her of those two wonderful news from her, she did not hesitate for a second and decided to go see her.
Unfortunately in the house there was no longer a room in which visitors could sleep since it had been transformed into a room for the babies and she had to stay at the inn.
Alyx paid for a room for a few days and Denna left her things at her house, only going to the inn to sleep.
For the nord girl, having her sister there made her feel happy since she reminded her of when they still lived together and did not separate to travel to different places.
While Denna was preparing the food Vilkas helped the older nord girl to take a bath.

"The water is not very hot, is it?".

"I'ts perfect darling, don't worry".

The werewolf washed the girl's hair slowly as they talked and laughed from time to time.
The bond they both shared had grown stronger than ever.

"When we go to bed if you want I can continue reading a little".

"I would love to, but this time try not to fall asleep my love".

Alyx laughed.

"I can't promise anything, lately I'm falling asleep anywhere".

"Don't worry too much, it's normal".

He rinsed her hair with some water and let her wash her body.
When they finished Vilkas covered her to dry.

"What clothes do you want me to bring you?"

"The red dress and the other things I put on the bed, please".

She finished drying off while he went to get the clothes.
When he returned, she was waiting for him sitting on the stool that they had always had in the corner while she dried her hair.

"Give me a few minutes to dry it."

"No problem, I'll see if Denna needs help".

"Great, thank you".

She watched him leave and continued drying it.
Noticing that she was almost finished she got up and tried to dress herself.
She managed to put on some of the clothes but her dress fell to the floor.
She tried to catch it several times but she couldn't and she sat on the chair.
She thought of catching it with her foot and dragging it towards her but she didn't want to get it dirty or wet with some of the water on the floor.
Performing some tasks had become more difficult due to all the weight she carried but there was always someone to help her.
Vilkas returned to the bathroom and watched as she tried again to pick up the dress from the floor.

"Honey, let me take it".

"Sorry, I still haven't gotten used to everyone doing things for me, it feels strange".

"I know how you feel but you already know that for me it is not a problem to help you, we are in this together and I will be with you until the end no matter how hard it gets".

Alyx smiled widely and rose from the chair to hug him.

"You always know what to say".

"Not always but I try, after all I have to take care of my wife and children".

The nord girl's face turned red and he laughed.

"We are not married yet".

"I know but we will be soon".

Seeing her like that filled him with joy, but deep down the worry about what would happen when the babies were born appeared inside him.
He didn't want to lose any of them.
Alyx noticed something in his gaze and placed her hands on his cheeks.

"Everything will be fine, I'm sure of it".

"I know but this is new to me and I can't help but think about it".

"I also think about it sometimes and I feel scared but this is not going to separate us, it will make us happier".

"I look forward to the day that I can hold them in my arms".

"I don't think it will be long".

Alyx lightly kissed the werewolf and then he kissed her deeper, being careful not to squeeze her.

"I put the dress on you and we go down to eat, I'm sure you will be hungry".

"I am, I could eat a cow by myself".

With a small smile on his lips he helped her to dress and they went down the stairs holding hands.

Chapter Text

Alyx stared in amazement at the mountain of clothing that was piling up on her bed.
Since she could no longer put on her old dresses or her pants Denna took care to bring her some clothes that she was comfortable with, much of which was from Cassandra.
The nord girl looked a bit sad but her sister tried to cheer her up as best she could.

"You'll see that before you know it you can put them back on and everything I brought you can be put away, you never know when you may need it again or you can even give it to someone you know who needs it and can use it".

"You're right, it's just that I look huge and I don't like it".

"It's normal, Cassandra told me that you could feel like that but don't worry after all if what Vilkas said is true, you have two inside so it's understandable that your belly is bigger than if it were just one".

"True, the truth is that when he told me I was very surprised, I expected at least one, but that does not mean that I am not tremendously happy to have two children".

"Have you decided what you are going to call them?".

"Not yet, we have talked about it lightly but there is nothing definitive".

Denna smiled and hugged her older sister.

"I can't wait for them to be born, I really want to be an aunt".

"I know honey and I'm sure you will be the best aunt in the world, they will adore you".

Alyx kissed her sister's forehead and they held each other for several minutes.
They could both hear footsteps coming up the stairs and Riordan appeared through the door.

"Did you start without me?".

The two smiled.

"We have only taken everything out, now we have to sort it out".

"Perfect, let Alyx tell us how she wants it and we will take care of it".

The nord girl sat on a chair to rest a bit.

"Thanks for helping me, with you two we will go faster than if I did it alone".

"It's nothing dear, we will kill a bit of time until Farkas and Vilkas return, they will probably arrive tonight, I'm sorry I didn't go with Farkas but he insisted on going with his brother".

Alyx took the breton's hand.

"Don't worry, we already know that when something gets into Farkas's head there is no one who can take it out".

"Yeah you are right".

At that moment the two began to laugh under the gaze of Denna who did not understand what they were referring to.
Maybe that way it would be better, there were things she didn't want or she needed to know.
She was glad that her sister had found someone who loved her as much as she did.
She hadn't seen her that way in many years and she knew that she still kept that necklace somewhere in the house.
It would be a crazy idea for her to get rid of it.
What she went through left her scarred for the rest of her life.
The young nord girl wondered if she had told Vilkas that story, but with Riordan there she didn't want to ask.
After drinking something, Alyx began to tellthem how she wanted to have everything organized and the two of them were able to fold up and put the clothes in the closet and the dresser.

The three of them watched the result with pride.
Everything that she still could not put on was placed in the highest part since it was the least used and they made everything that she now used more frequently more accessible.
They tried to put it down as well as possible so that she wouldn't have a hard time picking it up.

"You have done a great job, you are the best".

"And you know if we can make it easier for you we will".

The breton looked out of the window and saw that it was already dark.

"Denna, are you going to the inn?".

"Yes, I want to go get a drink and I'll probably go to sleep, I'm a little tired".

"Well, let me accompany you and since we are there I'll buy you to a drink".

"Thanks".

Alyx smiled seeing that they got along so well.
Denna always had very few friends and she found it amazing that she had come to trust him so quickly even though to be honest he had that effect on people.
He was good at dealing with others.

"Before you go, could you help me down and I'll wait there for Vilkas".

"Of course".

Between the two of them before leaving, they left Alyx sitting comfortably by the fire.

"Denna, take it easy on the drink, huh? remember what happened last time...".

"I know, I don't want to worry you, one drink, only one".

"Thank you".

The breton with a somewhat confused look escorted the youngest to the inn.
Alyx spent time reading until she could hear the front door open.
Her head snapped in that direction and she saw the werewolf walk through the door.

"Darling I'm back, how are you feeling?".

"Welcome back my love, better now that I finally see you".

He walked over to her and kissed her tenderly after putting all of his things in a corner.

"Have you had dinner yet?".

"Not yet, I wanted to wait for you".

"Well then I'm going to wash up quickly and prepare something, you know you shouldn't move a lot".

"I know, don't worry".

While Alyx returned to her reading, Vilkas went up to the bathroom and half an hour later came downstairs dressed in clean clothes and his hair down.
She looked at him and leaned her chin against her hand.

"Something wrong?".

"I think when we have dinner I'm going to cut your hair a little, but just a little, I won't cut it short".

"Okay, you keep reading, I'll be done cooking in a while".

"Thanks my love".

"Anything special you want?".

"I don't think so and whatever you do, I'm sure it will be delicious as always".

She watched the werewolf's cheeks turn slightly red as he walked into the kitchen.
She chuckled and waited for him to return.

The haircut had been better than they both thought, and now the werewolf's hair fell slightly below the shoulders.
That it had been so long before and reached below his chest had only been a slight annoyance to him but he held back the urge to cut it because he knew she would want to.

"Do you like it?".

"Very much and believe me that it feels somewhat lighter, before it was a nightmare to pick it up, now it's easier".

"I am glad my heart".

They both fell silent and she turned her gaze to the ground.

"What are you thinking about?".

Alyx snuggled closer against Vilkas on the bed and rested her head on his shoulder while he turned off the lights.
Despite being completely dark, Vilkas could see the nord girl and intertwined his fingers with hers.
It was a gesture that calmed them both.

"I know we have only talked a little about this but I think we should think about what we are going to call them, I don't think there will be much left for them to be born".

"We do not know if they are going to be boys or girls but we must not discard any option".

"Yeah, I would like if one of them is a girl to be named after my mother, I know that I did not get to know her but my father told me so many stories about her that I think it will be a suitable name and if the other is a boy it will be called Kodlak".

"Sounds good to me, I would like one of them to be called Kodlak, he was like a father to me".

"Well, for now we are staying with those two, and later if we have to change our mind we have time".

"Yes, don't worry about it, sleep, we'll continue talking tomorrow".

"Good night my love".

"Good night darling".

Chapter Text

The day they were waiting for had finally arrived and their nerves were running high.
They had made sure everything was perfect, after all you didn't get married every day.
Between Denna and Riordan they had helped the bride and groom get ready.
The younger nord had stayed with her sister while the breton stayed with the werewolf.

"Is she going to wear flowers in her hair?".

"Yes, why do you ask?".

"I also want to wear some, I know she will like it, she never misses an opportunity to put some in my hair when we go for a walk or when she makes crowns with them".

Riordan smiled at that and went to grab a few.
When he returned he placed them on the side of the small ponytail in which Vilkas had gathered some of his hair.
That way they would be visible.
He thought it was a very nice detail from the nord.

"Try to relax, everything will be fine".

"I try but this is something so important that I cannot help it, especially knowing that we are going to have children".

"You will be great parents".

"Thanks".

While they were talking there was a knock on the door and Denna's head appeared through the gap.

"Are you ready?".

"Of course, I'll take Vilkas to the temple and after about ten minutes bring Alyx".

"Perfect".

The blonde haired girl disappeared and she returned to her sister.
Alyx looked somewhat concerned at her sister when she returned.

"Is everything alright?".

"Don't worry, I just wanted to talk to Riordan for a moment".

"Sorry, I'm nervous and the little ones just kicked".

Denna walked over to her sister and lowered herself slightly, placing her hands on her stomach.

"That's because they notice that it is an important day for their parents and I'm sure they already want to go out to meet you".

They both smiled and Alyx wrapped her sister's hands in hers.

"Thanks for being with me in this, I don't know what I would do without you".

"I know you would manage but that's what the sisters are for".

The two hugged and Alyx felt like crying but held back as best she could.
Vilkas and Riordan left the room to go to the temple.
Inside all the assistants took their seats.
On the part of Vilkas all the members of the Companions would have come but it could not be wise since they could not leave Jorrvaskr empty.
Instead it was Riordan, Farkas and Aela.
On Alyx's side they were her sister, Cassandra, Galmar and without her knowing it, her father had managed to attend the wedding accompanied by someone very special.
Both the College of Winterhold and Bards College sent someone to the wedding since she had been and was someone important to them.
Elyel, Lydia and Marcurio also appeared, even Brynjolf from the Thieves Guild attended since she was part of that guild for some years.
It was not something she was proud of but it was difficult times and she saw no other alternative.
The breton left Vilkas at the altar with Maramal, the priest who would marry them.
After the time that the breton had indicated Denna took Alyx to the temple.
The two of them stopped in front of the door.

"Wait here a minute and come in".

"Okay, run to your seat".

Denna laughed and stepped inside as fast as she could so she wouldn't see anything.
Everyone when they saw her knew what it meant and waited impatiently on their seats.

Alyx took a deep breath to calm her nerves and stepped inside.
The assistants turned to look at her and she advanced slowly towards the altar where a smiling Vilkas awaited her.
She stood to Maramal's left and the werewolf to the right.
The two looked at each other and blushed while grinning widely.

"Now that the bride is here we can begin".

Alyx felt Vilkas's hand approach hers and grasped it as the priest spoke.

"It was Mara that first gave birth to all of creation and pledged to watch over us as her children, it is from her love of us that we first learned to love one another, it is from this love that we learn that a life lived alone is no life at all, we gather here today, under Mara's loving gaze, to bear witness to the union of two souls in eternal companionship, may they journey forth together in this life and the next, in prosperity and poverty, and in joy and hardship ".

Their hearts were beating so hard that they were sure everyone could hear them.

"Do you agree to be bound together, in love, now and forever?".

Maramal looked at Vilkas, waiting for an answer.

"I do, now and forever".

He then looked at Alyx.

"I do, now and forever".

The priest seemed satisfied and continued speaking.

"Under the authority of Mara, the Divine of Love, I declare this couple to be wed, I present to the two of you with these matching rings, blessed by Mara's divine grace, may they protect each of you in your new life together" .

He handed a ring to Vilkas who put it on Alyx's finger and she did the same when the ring was given to her.
After that and full of joy they kissed.
Some tears fell down the girl's cheeks and the werewolf wiped them away with his thumbs, unable to stop smiling.
They couldn't believe they were finally husband and wife.
Applause from the audience filled the room and they both turned to look at them.
Alyx froze in place but she soon walked over to one of the benches and hugged a blond haired man.
Meanwhile Farkas, Riordan and Aela congratulated Vilkas on their union.
Out of the corner of her eye he saw her calling out to him and stepped closer.

"Vilkas, I want to introduce you to my father".

In front of him stood that man with blond hair who smiled.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, my name is Vilnach".

"The pleasure is mine".

They talked for a while but Alyx's father disappeared for a few seconds to be accompanied by a somewhat elderly Dunmer woman.
When she saw Alyx, she smiled.

"It was a beautiful wedding".

"Thank you".

Ilnach stood next to her daughter and rested his hand against her upper back.

"Alyx I want to introduce you to Thilndrisa, your grandmother".

Chapter Text

For the next few minutes no one dared to say anything and the nord girl looked at her father extremely confused.

"She is my grandmother?".

"As much as it may be hard for you to believe it is the truth, she brought you to me when you were a baby".

Alyx's face turned pale.
Denna and Vilkas led her out of the temple to get some fresh air.
Thilndrisa understood that this was a normal reaction to a situation like this.

"I'll talk to her later, there are so many things I want to tell her".

"She will want to know everything related to her mother, when she was little she used to ask me questions about her but I never told her anything, I wanted to wait until the day you met so she would know everything".

"She looks so much like her...".

"The more time it passes the more she looks like her, in a few years it will be like seeing her reflection".

"The last time I saw her she was just a baby, she has grown a lot".

"You could have come to see her".

"I know, but I didn't want to be in and out of her life all the time, it wouldn't have been fair to her and if I had stayed more she wouldn't have let me go".

"I also have guilt in that, when they were little I spent a lot of time with them and took them with me on my trips but as they have grown older we were lucky we might see each other several times a year".

Thilndrisa laughed lightly and placed her hand on his shoulder.

"It's something you can't avoid, that's why Sidara loved you so much, you're just like her in that".

"I know I could have been a better father".

"I know they love you and respect you a lot just by seeing Alyx's reaction".

"I am fortunate to have been able to attend her wedding, Sidara would have liked to see it, I am sure of it and I know that Vilkas is a good man and will take care of her and their son".

As they talked, they both watched as Vilkas and Denna entered the temple and joined several people.
Riordan looked concerned.

"Don't worry, we've left her sitting outside to clear herself up a bit, finding out that she has a grandmother that she didn't knew about has left her somewhat shocked".

"No wonder, poor thing".

Farkas looked at Denna and tapped her on the shoulder.

"But isn't she your grandmother too?".

"No, Alyx and I are not daughters of the same mother, so she is not my grandmother".

"But still that doesn't make you any less sisters".

"Thank you Farkas".

The werewolf hugged her tenderly and they both smiled.
Vilkas rubbed his hands over his face and sighed.

"Let's hope they can at least talk so that she can tell her why she's here".

"Right, she has appeared out of nowhere and I'm surprised that even her father managed to come to the wedding".

Denna laughed and crossed her arms.

"I threatened him with a very slow and agonizing death if he didn't show up".

The breton trembled slightly when he saw the gaze of the nord girl.

"So you too...Alyx tends to make that expression from time to time".

"It had to come from somewhere, something in the family I suppose, my father usually does it too".

Vilkas broke away from the group and went outside to meet his wife.
He sat down next to her and held her hand up to his.

"Are you feeling better?".

"Yes, but I still don't believe it's true that a dunmer is my grandmother".

"Does that bother you?".

"I do not care what she is or ceases to be, I do not care but seeing it from another angle that would explain many things...".

"I'm glad to hear that".

The werewolf kissed her forehead and stood up.

"I suppose she will want to talk to you, I can stay here if you need it".

"I'll be fine and if something happened you would notice so I'm not worried in that sense".

"Okay, be careful anyway, I love you".

"I love you too, more than anything".

Alyx kissed the werewolf and smiled.

"If you could go find her I would appreciate it".

"I'll be right away".

Vilkas entered the temple again and gestured for the dunmer to step out of it.
Thilndrisa walked over to her granddaughter and waited.

"Come and sit".

Alyx tapped the empty space next to her a few times and the elf sat down.

Chapter Text

Both women stood silently staring at the sky for a long time until Alyx turned to the elf.

"Why are you showing up now after so many years?".

"I figured it was about time you met me, now that you're an adult and I can tell you everything".

"It would have been nice to have done it years ago without telling me anything".

"I didn't want to be constantly in and out of your life".

"I would prefer it a thousand times before having spent so many years without knowing you existed".

"I asked your father not to tell you anything, after all, why would you want to know from someone who was not even going to be able to be with you?".

"That would have been much better than keeping it hidden, at least I could have come looking for you".

"I know, but I couldn't bear to think about how you would feel when after so much effort to get to know me I left your side again".

"In the past it may have been hard for me but for many years I have no problem with it, after all Denna and I have spent a lot of time alone while our father was away".

"I guess that's why your mother would fall in love with him, they were both the same".

A small smile appeared on Thilndrisa's face and she felt Alyx grasp her hand.

"Is it true that my mother is dead?".

"Unfortunately my girl, she died shortly after you were born but I assure you that Sidara was the happiest woman in the world when you were finally in her arms".

The grip Alyx had on her grandmother's hand grew stronger but somewhat shaky.

"That was why you took me to my father".

"Exactly, I would have loved to take you with me and have raised you but my travels were full of dangers and I would not have borne losing you too".

Thilndrisa's eyes began to fill with tears and Alyx hugged her.
She understood that this was hard for both of them so she did not back away and let her vent.
After a few minutes the elf regained her composure and took a deep breath to calm herself.
When Alyx saw that she was better she smiled widely.

"I suppose you want to know about your mother".

"Yes, dad says I look a lot like her but I don't know if it's the truth or he's teasing me".

Thilndrisa put her hands on either side of the nord girl's face.

"You are so similar to her that if I had seen you in passing I would have thought you were her, you have her eyes but not her nose, that is your father's".

Alyx laughed and the dunmer's heart melted.
She until that moment had never realized how much she had missed her even though she was only a baby the last time she saw her.
Seeing her now she felt very proud of all that she had accomplished.
Since she had met Vilnach on the way to Skyrim, he had told her all sorts of stories about the two girls, and although Denna was not Sidara's daughter, the little time they had spent together they had both enjoyed immensely.
She did not want the girl to feel excluded because she was not really her grandmother, so she wanted to give her all the affection that was possible.

"You and Denna are fantastic, you get along really well".

"We have always been together and we have had each other, we have also had our problems but we have managed to fix them, I don't know what would become of me without her".

"I am glad to see that the fact that you do not have the same mother has not caused a separation between you two".

"It is not something that has worried us much, we have the same father and we have grown up together so we never saw a problem in it".

The two continued chatting and the old dunmer told Alyx all kinds of stories about her mother.
Thanks to that she finally understood many of the things that had happened over the years and why it was so easy for her to learn and use magic as well as the slightly higher resistance she had against fire.
With each story that her grandmother told her, Alyx, became more fascinated by her mother and she felt somewhat sad that she had not been able to meet her.
Both Denna and she when they were girls envied the rest of the children because they did have mothers and they did not and many of those children messed with them.
On many occasions they had ended up fighting and returned home covered in bruises, scratches and some blood that may or may not be theirs.
Every time her father saw them that way he would scold them severely but they always tried to justify their actions and refused to be the entertainment of the other children.
That is why they were always the ones who trained and studied the hardest no matter how difficult it was.
They wanted to become something that their father was proud of so they always liked to be taken with him on his travels.
In the few years they traveled, they saw more parts of Tamriel than many people would ever see in their lifetime.
During their talk the two realized that Vilnach had left the temple and was approaching them.

"I think your father wants to talk to you, if you want later we can continue talking".

"I would like it very much".

The elf rose from her seat and kissed her granddaughter's forehead before entering the temple.
Vilnach sat next to his daughter and she leaned against his shoulder.

"What do you think of your grandmother?".

"It's better than I imagined".

"I'm glad darling, she is a good woman and she has always fought for what she has wanted, your mother was the same as her in that respect".

They were both silent for a long time and the nord girl looked at her father.

"What did you think when you saw her appear with me at Windhelm?".

"I felt very sad and happy at the same time since I knew that if she had brought you to me, it was because something had happened to your mother and that was something that I spent a long time without wanting to accept as if she was going to at any moment enter through the door to stay with us and be a family but it was not like that, she was dead and you were with me instead".

"If at any time you have believed that I was the culprit of her death, I apologize for it father".

Vilnach hugged Alyx and when he separated from her he held her face with both hands.

"What happened to her was not your fault, she couldn't take it anymore and she was very lucky to spend a few days with you".

"Was she sick?".

"She was too old I guess".

The nord girl looked at her father somewhat confused.

"Your mother used magic to prolong her life that it already was a bit longer since she was the daughter of a dunmer but that did not seem enough and her body ended up paying the price".

She knew that talking about her mother caused him pain since she was one of the few women whom he had loved with all heissoul.
For this reason, despite the fact that he loved Denna's mother, it was never the same and that is why she left, leaving the girl to him to take care.
He thought she would one day come back for her but she never did.
He was very mad at first, but over the years he realized that Denna probably wouldn't have been as happy if she had tooked her with her.
They may not be a perfect family but in their imperfections the three of them had found happiness and they would not change it for anything in the world.

"I'm glad you approved our union even though you didn't meet Vilkas in person".

"Your sister told me some things about him in the letters she wrote to me and I am glad to see that it is true, he loves you very much and I know he would do anything to protect you".

"It has not been easy to get here and if I am honest, we have had a lot of problems along the way but I feel happy".

"Life is never easy, you know that".

"Yeah".

"I think we better go inside, it's starting to get cool and your husband will want to see you".

Father and daughter got up but before they could get going she stopped him.

"You don't know how happy it made me to see you here today, I couldn't have asked for anything better".

"You already know that for you I would do anything and I was not going to miss my daughter's wedding even if I had to fight an army of Thalmor to get here".

Alyx hugged him tightly without avoiding shedding a few tears.
Vilnach hugged her too and tried to calm her down.

"Don't cry my girl, I'll always be here for you, whatever happens".

"Thanks dad".

The two remained embraced for a long time and when they separated he wiped her tears and offered her his arm to lean on him and helped her to enter the temple again.

Chapter Text

Everyone was feeling somewhat anxious because they knew that Alyx could give birth at any moment.
Vilkas did not separate from her for a minute which made her laugh.
She assured him over and over that everything would be fine but it was normal to be nervous in a situation like that, especially with the risks involved.
Thilndrisa had stayed with them in Whiterun to help her during her delivery since she was the one who helped her mother when she was born so Alyx had total confidence when the time came.
To try to distract themselves a bit, they all went to Jorrvaskr to have a good time.
Riordan sat Alyx in the most comfortable place they had and the rest settled around her.
For a long time they chatted with each other and exchanged stories of their adventures until they broke into small groups.
The nord girl was glad to see her grandmother talking so animatedly to Athis.
Torvar was completely asleep leaning on one of the tables while some of the others had already retired to sleep a while before.
All the wolves were sitting around Alyx and every now and then they would burst into laughter at something they had said.
She knew that her relationship with Aela had improved a lot since they met but she was surprised to see her sitting so close to her.
For several minutes the two of them were the only ones who spoke to each other, sharing hunting stories while the other three listened attentively.
They were very happy to see how well they got along but the bumps they had at the beginning since the nord girl was always sure that at some point she felt threatened by her arrival but little by little that feeling disappeared.
When Skjor died she tried to help the huntress with the loss.
With that Aela saw that Alyx wished her no harm and she was the kindest and most loving person she had ever met but still she decided to keep her distance.
Now after everything that had happened the two were closer.
The werewolf saw that the girl was somewhat uncomfortable in her seat.

"Are you okay?".

Alyx moved closer to her and whispered that she needed to go to the bathroom.
Aela chuckled a bit before getting up and helping her.
Vilkas watched the two of them descend the stairs to the lower level and sighed.

"This wait is killing me".

Riordan placed his hand on the nord's shoulder and smiled.

"These things take their time, my father was the same when my mother was pregnant with my brother and you will see that everything will be fine and before you know it you will have them in your arms crying".

Hearing that Farkas began to laugh.

"You can prepare now brother, if with just one it may be difficult, we'll see with two".

Vilkas and Riordan laughed too but stopped when they felt something was wrong.
The three of them got up and ran to the lower level.
Thilndrisa, seeing that, also ran out and followed them.
When they reached the two women, Thilndrisa quickly approached her granddaughter.

"Has the water broken?".

"Maybe, I'm not sure".

The dunmer examined the fluid at the girl's feet.
Without wasting a second they led her out into the corridor and Vilkas switched places with the two women.
Seeing his wife like this broke her heart.

"Thilndrisa, what should we do?".

"You have to put her on a bed and then I need you to bring me some things".

The werewolf led Alyx into his room and laid her on the bed.
Thilndrisa indicated everything she needed and when they brought it to her she and Aela locked themselves in the room with Alyx.

They did not know if hours or minutes had gone by but the more time passed the worse the wait became.
Every time Vilkas heard Alyx scream the wolf inside him writhed and tried to get out.
He knew that if he got in there he would only make things more difficult so he forced himself to remain seated on the floor of the hallway in front of his door.
Riordan and Farkas paced back and forth, stopping from time to time.
Their nerves were eating away at them.
Vilkas looked at the ring that adorned his finger and pressed it to his lips.
He had never felt that way and he wasn't about to lose the woman of his life.
The three of them would come out of this and be a happy family.
Ever since she told him she was pregnant he always wondered if he would make a good father and he felt a little scared but he was determined to be a better father than his had been.
He would not abandon them and protect them no matter what.
At one point everything was silent and the three looked towards the door fearing the worst but sighed in relief when they heard the cry of a baby.
Despite that they knew that it was not finished, there was still another one.
Shortly after the nord girl could be heard screaming again but this time it was not so long until they could hear crying again.
Vilkas got up and leaned against the wall.
The three men stood silently waiting for the door to open and as Thilndrisa and Aela came out smiling.
The three of them hugged each other happily.
The dunmer with a small gesture told Vilkas to enter the room and he closed the door behind.
He walked quickly to the bed and sat next to Alyx.
As much as he wanted he couldn't look away.
She might look exhausted and sweaty and her hair was a mess but he could swear it was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen.
When she saw him, she smiled slightly.

"How are you feeling my love?".

"As if they had given me a beating but it was worth it, they are finally with us...".

The two chuckled and Alyx gave one of the babies to Vilkas.
Visually, being wrapped in a blanket, it was difficult to know their gender but the werewolf knew that he had his daughter in his arms after having captured her scent more carefully.
Sidara moved slightly in her father's arms and he lightly rubbed his nose against her forehead to calm her.

"You have done very well darling, they are beautiful".

He gently stroked his son's forehead with his fingertips and smiled widely.

"The credit is also yours, without you they would not be here".

"I know and I am sure that they will become as great as those who gave them their names".

"And with us as parents I am sure of it".

They spent a few more minutes together and Thilndrisa entered the room.

"Are you feeling better?".

"A little bit, but I still feel very tired".

"It's normal, do you want us to take you home?".

"Yes please...".

Vilkas put Sidara in Thilndrisa's arms and he took Alyx and Kodlak into his.
With great care they went home and the werewolf left the nord girl on the bed.
Thilndrisa left her great-granddaughter in one of the cribs and went to find her brother so that her parents could sleep.

"Don't worry about them Alyx, you sleep, I'll take care of them".

"Don't you mind doing it?".

"Not at all, I'm used to it, rest".

"Thank you".

"Anything for you".

The dunmer picked up the baby and placed him in the other crib before sitting down with a book.
Vilkas helped Alyx wash up a bit and dressed her in some clean clothes.
As he got into bed he hugged her and kissed her forehead.

"Rest my love".

"I love you".

"I love you too".

Chapter Text

From the beginning Vilkas and Alyx knew that it would not be easy to take care of two babies but they were grateful that they were so calm.
Thilndrisa told some stories of when Alyx was just a few months old and the nord girl realized that she had also been just as calm, quite the opposite of her sister who wouldn't stop crying unless she was in her father's arms.
Because they hardly cried there were times when they were worried but seeing that they were always healthy and happy they relaxed considerably.
She often found Vilkas sleeping with the twins in his arms, a scene that she found adorable and tried not to wake them up.
Everyone was helping them a lot with Sidara and Kodlak and even Denna stayed with them for a while.
Alyx still remembered how much her sister cried when she saw the babies because she was so excited to be an aunt.
For many years it had always been the two of them taking care of each other but now they had a big family that loved them very much.
Between the two of them and Thilndrisa they took care of the two little ones while Vilkas, Riordan and Farkas did jobs for the Companions.
When he returned, he began to develop the habit of kissing his children's foreheads if Alyx held them, and then showered the girl's face with kisses.
She always laughed at that and slightly wrinkled her nose which in the eyes of the werewolf made her look more adorable if that was possible.
The two of them spent many nights talking in whispers, and he kept telling her over and over how lucky he felt to be married to the most beautiful woman in all of Tamriel.
Alyx always blushed when she heard those words, it was something she couldn't help no matter how many times he said them and they ended up sleeping peacefully hugging each other.
One morning when she woke up she heard a knock at the door and after tidying up a bit she went to open it.

"Good morning, sorry to bother you, are you Alyxa?".

"Good morning, yes it's me".

The man handed her a letter and after exchanging a few more words she gave him some coins and he left.
After closing the door she went back upstairs and sat on the bed.
Opening the letter she immediately recognized her father's handwriting.
After reading the letter several times her chest filled with joy as her father wanted to come meet his grandchildren.
A couple of knocks on the wood got her attention and when she raised her head she saw Vilkas with Sidara in his arms.

"What makes you so happy, my dearest wife?".

"My father wants to come to meet our children, my dearest husband".

They both laughed and the werewolf handed the girl over to her.

"I think she is hungry, Kodlak is still asleep".

"While I'm feeding them, could you make breakfast?".

"Of course, anything in particular you fancy?".

"Not really, you're totally free to cook whatever you want".

Vilkas kissed her and lightly rubbed his nose against his daughter forehead.
Sidara lifted her little hands trying to catch his face.
Alyx's heart melted at the sight.

"Do you need help getting them downstairs?".

"I can by myself, don't worry, at the moment they don't weigh that much".

She chuckled and as Vilkas went down the stairs she went to get her son.
With both of them already in her arms, she descended the stairs very carefully and left them for a few moments in the crib that was against a wall.
The two had placed it there so they wouldn't be cold and comfortable.
After picking up Sidara again she sat by the fire and began to breastfeed her.
Vilkas poked his head slightly behind the kitchen door frame.

"Do you want something hot to drink?".

"If you offer it to me, I'm not going to say no".

That answer made the werewolf smile and he came out a few minutes later with a cup in his hands.
He handed it to Alyx and kissed her before returning to the kitchen.
As she continued to feed her daughter after a while she realized that the little girl had fallen asleep.
She carefully left her next to her brother.
Kodlak, seeing his mother, raised his arms and opened and closed his hands several times.
Alyx took him and began to cuddle him until she sat down with him and fed him.
When she finished she put him back in the crib and covered him with a blanket.
Now that they were satisfied she went to the kitchen and hugged Vilkas from behind.

"I'm hungry...".

"Still a while to be done".

While he was cooking and she was glued to him, the nord girl noticed something strange.

"Are you okay?".

"Why I wouldn't be?".

"You seem tense".

"It's no big deal".

Alyx released him and turned him slightly.

"Vilkas".

"I'm fine, it's nothing, I'm just a little tired".

"I know you are, with these two little ones there are not many moments to rest".

They both fell silent and when the werewolf's eyes met the girl's he quickly looked away.

"My love you know you can tell me anything, I'll be there for you always".

He didn't say anything but he sat on a chair and ran his hands over his face as he sighed.
Alyx crouched down beside him and took his hands in hers.
If he didn't want to talk she would understand perfectly and would leave him space until he was ready.

"Do you want me to go away for a while?".

"No dont go".

This time it was him who grabbed her and sat her on his lap.
She didn't understand what was going on but she hugged him as tight as she could.
Vilkas also hugged her and she noticed that it was a little tighter than usual.
They stayed like that for long minutes until he spoke.

"Did you ever have any doubts about having children with a werewolf and what would happen if I hurt them?".

Alyx pulled away from him and placed both hands on the sides of his face as she stared into his eyes.

"I would have had no doubts even if you could transform into a fucking dragon, you are the man I love and marrying and having children with you has been one of the best things that has happened to me in a long time besides Kodlak at the time told me that lycanthropy cannot be inherited so it was never something that worried me and I know that you would not harm them, the wolf knows that they are his blood and if he wanted to do something to them he would have to go over me first".

With all those things said, she noticed how Vilkas's pupils dilated slightly and she smiled.

"We're going to be fine, you'll see, you'll be a great father and soon they won't stop chasing you around the house to play with you and they won't even want to see me and also you can feel if something is wrong with them long before I do".

"Don't say that love, you know as well as I do that they will love us equally".

"Maybe".

They both smiled and she kissed him so deeply that she could hear the area of the chair he was holding creak.
After whispering something in his ear, she got up and he went after her emitting a low growl.

"If you don't want to have another one soon, don't go there, otherwise you already know what awaits you".

Alyx smiled playfully and walked over to the fire.

"It's very tempting but it's still early, with two of them in our hands we are full enough for now, when they're older maybe".

"We'll see".

The two of them laughed again and continued cooking while Vilkas hugged her.

Chapter Text

Farkas and Riordan surprised them with a visit.
They had both been busy with work for several days and had returned a couple of hours earlier.
Alyx poured them something to drink while Vilkas held Kodlak on his lap and Sidara slept peacefully in the breton's arms.

"It continues to amaze me how well behaved they are, not a single cry since we've arrived".

"They are quite silent, yes, but I'm afraid that will change when they start to get their teeth...".

"Well, when that time comes, we'll be here to help you".

"I will always be very grateful to you for that".

The nord girl kissed the breton's cheek and returned to her seat.

"The work you had went well from what I see".

"For a few moments we doubted that we could achieve it since it was more difficult than we thought to go through the cave and to add salt to the wound it took us forever to find the hostage".

"It's normal Riordan, after all he was a kid and he hid too well".

Alyx's eyes widened and she looked at Farkas.

"A child?".

"Yeah, he was the son of the couple who put in the job, it was impossible for them to pay the money they were asking for and they asked us for help".

"Poor little thing, he must have had a really bad time".

"He surprisingly didn't have any bruises or injuries".

"That's fine considering that his kidnappers were bandits".

"The poor guy came running to us unable to stop crying when he was finally safe".

"How old was he?".

"I can't be too specific but because of his height, maybe eleven or twleve years old".

"At least he's safe now, though I guess he'll take some time to recover".

Riordan gripped his glass a little tighter, then relaxed.

"I swear that my soul fell to my feet when I saw him because his parents never told us how old he was and of course we assumed that he must have been a little older".

When Riordan put the drink on the table, Farkas took his hand and laced their fingers through his.
The breton rested his head on his partner's shoulder and closed his eyes for a few moments until Sidara began to move slightly.
At this the two werewolves looked at the little girl and couldn't help but smile.
Vilka and Alyx glanced at each other with a small smile on their lips and she stood up.

"Riordan honey, could you help me for a moment?".

"Yes of course, whatever you need".

He very carefully placed Sidara in Farkas's arms and escorted the girl upstairs.
The two entered the bedroom and she closed the door.
She sat at the foot of the bed and tapped the free spot next to her.
Riordan sat down and they were silent until she spoke very softly as she knew the two nords would be able to hear them downstairs.

"There is something I want to ask you but I don't know if it will be a somewhat uncomfortable topic...".

The breton took his friend's hands in his and smiled.

"Do it, don't worry".

Alyx lay down on the bed for a bit thinking how to ask and she sat up slightly afterwards.

"Do you want to marry Farkas?".

Riordan's face quickly turned red and he covered it with his hands.
Alyx laughed at his reaction and pulled him down to lie with her and hugged him, resting his head on her shoulder.

"From your reaction I can deduce the answer but I prefer that you tell me if you want of course, you know I wouldn't force you to do anything".

Riordan hugged her tightly and sighed.

"Of course I want to do it Alyx, since you and Vilkas got married that thought hasn't left my head but I can't find the right time, we're always busy".

"Very very busy?".

"Well...I mean, maybe there was a time when I could have asked him but he was so focused on breaking my back and rearranging my guts that I thought I forgot how to speak".

At those words Alyx couldn't help laughing uncontrollably and some tears fell down her cheeks.
Riordan pressed his face against her to hide it as his ears grew redder.
Running out of breath, she finally stopped and stroked the werewolf's cheek.

"Sorry for laughing, I didn't mean to".

He raised his head when he noticed the slight change in the girl's voice and, looking at her, the breton thought that she could start crying at any moment just thinking that she could have offended him.
Careful not to crush her, he leaned up slightly and placed a kiss on her cheek.

"It's okay Alyx, please don't cry, I'm not angry".

Riordan this time hugged her to his chest and rolled over to lie on his back with her on top of him.
He gently stroked her hair until she stood up and flashed a small smile.

"I really don't blame you for not having been able to do it yet because of that, I know what it feels like, if it wasn't like that we wouldn't be changing diapers".

This time it was Riordan who laughed and sat up.

"It's Vilkas we're talking about so it didn't surprise me too much when you told me".

The nord girl's face turned a little red and hit her friend's thigh.

"We should go down now, it's not long before dinner and I'd like to start now, otherwise we'll end up eating very late".

"Of course, I'll help you".

"Thank you".

The two left the room and went down to the other floor.
Alyx walked directly into the kitchen followed several minutes later by Riordan who had been staring at Farkas.
The poor man had fallen asleep with his niece in his arms.
The two looked so calm and happy that Riordan couldn't help but melt at the sight.
The third time Alyx called him he finally snapped out of his thoughts and walked into the kitchen a little red.

Chapter Text

That morning started out a bit slow as no one in the house was in a hurry to get up.
Sidara and Kodlak's crying was what finally got them out of bed.
While Alyx nursed the babies, Vilkas made breakfast for both of them.
Already satisfied, she returned to leave them in the crib and went down to eat something.

"I think we should bathe them".

"Sure, when I'm done I'll prepare the water and they'll be clean again in no time".

The werewolf served food on two plates and they ate it as they talked.
Having finished she took them to the kitchen to clean them.
Vilkas prepared the bathtub for the children making sure it was not too hot or cold.

"Alyx you can bring them now".

She went upstairs and entered the children's room to carefully carry them both in her arms.
Entering the bath she gave Sidara to the nord.
After undressing them, they put them in the water and each one was in charge of washing one of them.
They were always trying to make bath time fun and they always ended drenched with water.
While the little ones laughed and played with the soap, they both heard someone knock on the door.

"I'm going to see who it is, I'll be right back".

She got up and after putting on something dry she went down to the other floor.
The last thing she expected when she opened the door was to see her father.
The two embraced so tightly that Vilnach had to lean against the door frame to keep them from falling.
As they parted, she let him in and closed the door so the wind wouldn't get in.

"Make yourself comfortable, if you're hungry there's still some breakfast left".

"Thank you but don't worry, I ate something at the inn".

"Okay, give us a moment and now we'll go down".

She went up the stairs and into the bathroom.

"Have the little beasts behaved while I was gone?".

Vilkas laughed as he very carefully rinsed Sidara's little head.

"Of course".

"I'm glad to hear that".

"Yes love, is your father here?".

"You have a good ear, it was quite a surprise but it's normal, he wants to meet his grandchildren".

Alyx kissed her husband's cheek and Sidara tried to grab the sleeve of her mother's dress with her little hand.
She smiled and wrapped Kodlak up to dry him.

"I hope they don't cry".

"They're pretty quiet, I don't think they will do it...".

"Hopefully you're right, you never know".

Without much haste, they both dried the babies and dressed them in warm clothes.

"Go down with him, I'll be with you shortly".

The nord girl went downstairs and her father's face lit up when he saw the baby.
For a few moments he felt a small lump in his throat but when Alyx put Kodlak in his arms he relaxed considerably.

"He is so small, I never thought I would hold a baby again...".

"Why do you say that father?".

"You and your sister have always been busy with your travels and I didn't see that at some point you would find someone to settle down and start a family".

Alyx chuckled slightly and sat down next to Vilnach.

"You could say that more for me because the truth is that I always thought Denna would get married and she would have children long before I did".

While they were talking, Vilkas, dressed in other clothes, went downstairs with Sidara.
Alyx picked up Kodlak again and her sister reached into her grandfather's arms.
The old nord stared at her for a few seconds and a tear fell down his cheek.
The two of them looked at him with some concern until he placed his free hand on her daughter's.

"She looks so much like you that for a few seconds I felt like the first time I held you in my arms...".

At those words, Alyx's nose began to turn red and her eyes a little teary.
Father and daughter looked at each other for a few seconds in silence and the old man's hand gently caressed the girl's cheek.

"They both look very strong and I'm sure that when they grow up they will be good warriors just like their parents".

"We don't doubt that, before we know it they'll be running around with a sword in their hands".

Sidara started to play with the braided laces of his grandfather's outfit which made the man laugh.
That scene for Alyx and Vilkas was quite emotional since they were both happy that the children could enjoy one of their grandparents.
The brown-haired girl rose and placed Kodlak in Vilkas's arms.
Both men watched as she entered the kitchen and came out a few minutes later.

"I am going to the market quickly, I have seen that we need some things".

"Take Vilkas so he will help you bring the things you need and I will watch over the little ones".

"You're sure?".

He laughed and wiggled a little at the cord that Sidara was still playing with.

"You say that like I haven't been through something like this already".

"You're right, sorry, I'm still not used to go anywhere without them".

"It's normal, but don't worry, when you come back everything will be perfectly".

"Don't worry we won't be long".

She took a basket that was by the door and a pouch and they left the house.
After so long it was strange for them to do things alone again.
They had already gotten used to the routine and dynamic they had established with the children and it felt like a little breath of fresh air.

"Everything will be fine, don't worry, we won't take that long either".

"I know, I know".

The werewolf wrapped his arm around his wife's waist and kissed the side of her forehead.
She smiled and took his hand to pull him where they needed to go.

After shopping, they both ran into Riordan who greeted them effusively.

"How strange to see you two alone".

"My father has stayed with them and we have taken the opportunity to go buy some things that we needed".

"I'm glad to see that he has finally met them".

"It has been a very beautiful moment".

Alyx realized at that moment that something was missing.

"Where's Farkas?".

"He went to do a job with Athis".

"Hopefully they'll be back soon".

"I couldn't agree more with you, do you want to come have a drink with me?".

The two looked at each other and then back at Riordan who started to laugh.

"Come on you two, I'm not asking you to kill anyone and I still owe you that drink you couldn't drink while you were pregnant".

He winked at Alyx and she's chuckled.

"Okay, but just for a while".

The werewolf celebrated quietly and the three of them went to Jorrvaskr.
Once inside, they sat on one side of the huge central table and helped themselves to alcohol.
Despite the time it was, none of the three saw any problem in what they were doing, after all it was just a drink.
While they talked, Alyx drank slowly since it had been a long time since the last time and she was somewhat afraid that it would take effect too quickly.
While there, the two of them realized how much they had missed being in there drinking and having a normal conversation.

"How does it feel to drink after so long?".

"Well, as if it were the first time I've done it in my life, I didn't remember that it was so strong".

The three of them laughed at those words and Vilkas sat Alyx on his lap, rested his head on her shoulder and placed his hand on her belly.
She blushed slightly and hid her face in the curve of his neck.
It was something he had started doing since he found out she was pregnant and even though that was no longer the case the two continued to do it.
Riordan found it tremendously adorable and couldn't help but smile.
From the bottom of his heart he felt very happy that two of his best friends had something so beautiful and he thanked the gods for having met them.

"How about another one and I'll let you go?".

They both nodded and the Harbinger refilled the tankards.
After a good while and a lot of laughter later, the two said goodbye to their friend and went out into the street.
Vilkas under Alyx's protest took all the things they had bought and returned to the house.
They carefully opened the door so as not to make noise in case the two little ones were asleep.
What they saw upon entering filled their chests with tenderness.
Vilnach had fallen asleep in the chair next to the children's crib and Kodlak had held one of his fingers in his hand without intending to let go even though he was also asleep.
Sidara, on the other hand, was somewhat apart from her brother and while she slept peacefully she hugged one of her dolls.
With a slow step they went to the kitchen and between the two of them they put away all the things they had bought and began to prepare lunch.

"Your father is going to be a great grandfather, I'm sure of it".

"Me too love, he will bring them so many things from his travels that we won't know what to do with them".

"We'll figure something out".

Alyx hugged him and nuzzled his skin.
He did the same and several minutes passed until they heard how the old nord woke up.
The two separated and she leaned over the threshold of the door.

"We've been back for a while and we're preparing lunch".

"I'll keep watching them until it's ready".

"Thank you".

"You don't need to say thank you, a father does anything for his daughter".

At those words she went to hug him tightly and kissed his cheek before disappearing again through the kitchen doorway.