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Dragonheart: Of Black Wings Unfurled	By : Lady_Kae Category: +A through F > Elder Scrolls - Skyrim Views: 15055 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own any characters used from the game TES: Skyrim. All characters and game related material, save for original content, is property of their respective owners and no money is being made from this fiction.

Chapter List
- 11
- 12
- 13
Chapter 12: Resurgence Part 2

“ Children, Farkas?! She adopted two children and she didn’t tell any of us save for you?!” Vilkas bellowed at his twin as they both readied themselves to leave. “ And you! You didn’t tell me anything?! How could the both of you hide something like this from me?!” He irately shoved a few healing potions into his pack and he fought the urge to sock his brother across the jaw. Vilkas was exceedingly livid with both of them at the moment for keeping something like this from him!
After everything that they had been through, had experienced together, you’d think that one of them would have said something much sooner than this!
Farkas rubbed his face tiredly, as he was worried for both of his children and the woman who would soon be his wife. It was sad that he had seen this coming a while ago, though not to this extent. It had been a situation where the children had been in danger, but only from a kidnapping and ransom by bandits. Not the Silver Hand! Farkas had been sure that they had been obliterated after Kodlak’s death! No, without a single shred of doubt, this was definitely a worst case scenario. “ We were scared of something like this happening, but not to this extent. Tarrowlyn didn’t want the Silver Hand getting to the kids, hence all the secrecy. In the nearly three years that she’s been part of the Companions, this is only the first time they’ve ever gotten caught in the crossfire. We were trying to figure out how to bring you into the fold Vilkas, they’re your niece and nephew after all. Tarrowlyn and I were going to introduce you to them shortly after she became Harbinger, but her trip out to the Rift made that fall through. Then this mess with the vampires started, and it’s history from there. You would have learned of their adoptions next week when we brought them to Whiterun. I can promise you that. We wanted to give Rayya and Sinding some space as their child is due very soon.” Farkas replied, his voice barely a soft whisper of disquiet.
Vilkas stopped short as he mulled over what Farkas had said and the tone that his twin held. She was right to keep them as secret as possible, considering what had happened just today. If she had been fully public with them, there might have been more attempts for either kidnapping or; worse yet, even an assassination. Tarrowlyn had been the Harbinger for just over half a year by this point, and she had meant for him to meet the children much sooner than this. Farkas wasn’t lying that everything had gone to the wayside with the sudden rise of the vampires.
This was probably far from the way that Tarrowlyn and Farkas had wanted him to meet his new niece and nephew. Vilkas was understandably upset, but he rationalized that Farkas was bottling just how afraid he was for the woman who had pledged herself to marry him. The look of sheer panic that had crossed his twin’s face when he had laid eyes on the children after the attack was nothing compared to the fright Farkas had to be undoubtedly feeling for Tarrowlyn now. The only other instance Vilkas could remember seeing his brother look this haggard was when Farkas had brought Tarrowlyn back to Jorrvaskr near dead after the events of Bloated Man’s Grotto. No, not even that instance is like this one. The fear he was feeling is completely different, the look in his eyes, the scent...There’s something to be said about the bond between parents and their children.
Vilkas exhaled slowly, if a bit forcefully, and he turned to look at his twin once he had calmed himself a little. While it was justified, Vilkas was being selfish in indulging in his anger the way he was. He needed to put his mind to the more important task at hand. What mattered right here and now was that Lucia and Alesan, his niece and nephew, were safe. “ Things certainly went to shit, didn’t they, brother?” he chortled sadly as he settled his hand over the furs on Farkas’ shoulder. “ Let’s get out to Lakeview. The sooner we finish off this menace, the sooner I can spend time getting to know the children.”
Farkas nodded grimly as he grabbed his shield from the wall and then his own rucksack from the table. There was no telling what they were going to need when they got to Lakeview. One thing was for certain.
Tarrowlyn had better not have been killed or else there was no coming back from what was sure to happen.

Tarrowlyn kept looking between Vadresa and Sinding. Thank the gods for small favors, as he was only knocked senseless from the blow the mistress of the Silver Hand had delivered to him a moment ago. However, Vadresa had made the mistake of attacking on Tarrowlyn’s home turf.
In other words? This bitch was hers and Tarrowlyn would prove just who was the alpha female on these grounds, of this pack. She was going to sink her fangs into this wretched woman’s trachea before the next sunset!
Vadresa turned her wild gaze back over to the Harbinger’s companions, her shoulders heaving with as heavily as she was breathing. She paused a moment, drawing in a long, deep breath through her nose and her gaze narrowed on Sinding again in absolute disgust. Just a farmer indeed. She should have known that the copper haired bitch behind her would have drawn more of her kind to her. “ I’m the monster, little man? A monster?! Unlike you, I was given no choice! I can now smell the taint of the moonborn on you, you heathen. Another word from you, and I will slit your throat without hesitation.” she growled out. Her eyes had not lost the muddied golden color, meaning that her beast was just under the surface.
Tarrowlyn knew she had to time this just right. This was nothing at all like the times when she had been struggling against Tala for control. Tarrowlyn had always managed to come back to her senses after a few minutes. That would not be the case for Vadresa. That wolf was feral, more than likely driven mad from both bloodlust and hatred. If this dreg of the Silver Hand shifted while they were all here in the house, Tarrowlyn would be hard pressed to keep Rayya and Hadvar safe. Sinding would be able to shift as well to help her at the least, if his mind wasn’t too badly addled from that blow that was. The longer she looked at her friend, the more Tarrowlyn realized that he indeed had been knocked for a horrible loop.
Well, at least she had Hadvar to fall back on in a worst case scenario. In fact, the legionnaire was already picking the locks to his binds.
Tarrowlyn looked over her shoulder and she could have grinned at sight if the situation wasn’t as dire as it was. The bastard with the whip had moved out of reach in horror at Vadresa’s state of in between. That worked out perfectly for her. She quickly hauled herself up, pushing the pain of the silver burning into her skin away to the back of her mind to deal with later, though her teeth tore into the gag in her mouth from the agony. Angling her hand just so, the dragonborn reached into her bodice as best she could, but the lockpick wasn’t there. Damn them! It looked as if the Silver Hand had found everything she had hidden away after all!
Well, it was on to plan B then.
Tarrowlyn pulled the gag away and down her chin with one hand and her eyes glowed with power as she smirked broadly in triumph. In her study of the dragon language and the thu’um, she had managed to create her own. “ Uth Gron Gaar!” she intoned, making the air around her ripple from the power of her voice. The silver shackles popped open and Tarrowlyn allowed herself to fall to the table, landing in a crouch to help soften the impact to her knees. “ Hadvar! Get Rayya out of here and to Riverwood! Sinding will be fine after a few minutes!”
“ Right!” came the reply, though Tarrowlyn had to roll out of the way of a sword slash. Her booted foot flew out in retaliation and she smirked when the pommel smacked against its wielder’s temple, dazing him. The silver blade clattered to the floor, and uncaring, Tarrowlyn picked it up. She didn’t have a chance to get to hers at the moment after all, though she ripped the fabric away from her neck to wrap around the pommel and handle. The armory was too far behind her, though the kitchen was a good back up with all the knives she had in there. Tarrowlyn took a brief moment to look at the blade and she scoffed. She had about five parries and a few slashes with this thing before she had to resort to hacking wildly because it was a utter piece of shit.
Vadresa’s wild gaze darkened in rage and she turned over to the Harbinger as she stabbed the man who had just attacked her. The others were forgotten in than instant as she bore down on the opposition before her. “ You’re dead!” she bellowed furiously as she began running towards her.
“ Not a chance, bitch!” Tarrowlyn roared right back.
The two females clashed with an impact that made Hadvar worry for not only his friend, but for the strength of her home and if it could outlast the battle sure to come. The punches that were currently being traded were those befitting the moonborn, and Hadvar looked on at his friend in awe. He had known for a while that she had taken on the blood of the beast, but had never witnessed her utilizing the strength that came with it.
Not until today that was.
Without warning, Vadresa let loose a pain filled howl at a swipe from Tarrowlyn’s partially shifted hand and the mistress of the Silver Hand looked down at the bleeding wound in both shock and acerbity before turning her muddied golden gaze back to the were in front of her. She let forth an animalistic growl, her long wicked looking fangs bared to the other woman. She had drawn first blood! That bitch!
“ You dared challenge me in my territory, Vadresa. These are my grounds. You threatened what I consider mine. Back off now, or I will kill you.” Tarrowlyn snarled. She shoulders were squared just right to where it would rip her dress with ease if she transformed here at that very moment and her teeth were bared, showing off a magnificent pair of fangs that seemed to glitter in the firelight. Both of her hands were partially shifted to wicked curved claws and she looked as if she were gaining height the longer he stood there watching.
Hadvar couldn’t deny how terrifying and awe inspiring Tarrowlyn looked at that moment.
Vadresa was so enraged that she was trembling. Every single part of her was struggling to hold it at bay, trying to keep it contained. She had never shifted, not even once since that gods damned bastard Arnbjorn had infected her, and she would be damned if she allowed this moonborn bitch, deformed as she was at the moment, to push her that far.
The dragonborn’s shoulders were rolling to help compensate for her extra weight, and her now clear golden eyes were leveled on the contender before her. “ You threatened my children, you threatened my shield siblings, my lover, and my friends. You’re nothing but a hypocrite yourself, carrying the blood of the wolf, yet hunting your own kind. We may be half beast Vadresa, but we are still human. You’re still human. I warn you now, bitch. If you fight me here and now, you will not leave here alive. I repeat, Vadresa. Stand down and retreat or FIGHT!” Tarrowlyn finished with a commanding roar. Her thu’um slipped out with the command, sending her foe stumbling back a few steps and it rattled the manor threateningly, as if the home had no desire to be caught in this conflict whatsoever.
Pissed that she had been forced to give some ground, Vadresa screamed out her fury as she rushed the dragonborn and the sound became garbled and demonic the closer she drew to her. Gone was the carefully maintained control that she had kept over the beast. The breton’s only wish was to see this moonborn bitch dead, and her disgusting, tainted blood pooling on the stone floor. Matted gray fur began sprouting from all over her body and her jaw dislocated and elongated as her teeth grew longer and sharper. One arm swung out, misshapen and grotesque as she took a swipe at Tarrowlyn and the dragonborn dodged effortlessly to the side.
Tarrowlyn took that exact moment to shift to her beast form herself, though hers was smoother, more natural than Vadresa’s current attempt. Her copper red fur glowed like a living flame in the candlelight and Hadvar’s jaw dropped in awe. He would have missed the shift if he had blinked it had happened so fast!
This was just a taste of the power she wielded so effortlessly?
Tarrowlyn’s fingers wrapped around Vadresa by her claw and she whipped the gray colored were around until she was slammed snout first into the stone that made up the majority of her fireplace. Vadresa was knocked stupid from the impact, and her vision threatened to black out entirely. Shaking her great, furry head, Vadresa snarled savagely and she made another swipe at Tarrowlyn, this time catching the red wolf across the top of her muzzle and drawing blood. Tarrowlyn growled savagely herself before lashing out on Vadresa, allowing her claws and teeth to rip and tear into as much flesh as possible.
“ Die already, you tainted bitch!” Vadresa screamed. She tried to tackle the other were into the table, though Tarrowlyn quickly reversed it to send Vadresa’s sharp fangs into the wood. The gray lycan rounded on her quarry again and she lashed out with her claws once more, but unfortunately for her Tarrowlyn wasn’t there.
“ You’re one to talk!” Tarrowlyn snarled angrily. She had moved behind Vadresa faster than the eye could catch and she backhanded her adversary hard enough to break a normal man’s neck. Unlucky for Tarrowlyn, Vadresa had gained the endurance of the weres when she had been turned. “ You bastards better not have ruined my house in Whiterun!” She jumped backwards to avoid a savage slash, but one of the remaining dregs of the Silver Hand wound up being a casualty from the blow as his throat was roughly split. Despite how pissed she was, Tarrowlyn made sure to keep a cool head. That could be Tala’s influence, talking her through it in their way after all. The one thing that perturbed Tarrowlyn was the fact that Tala was honestly afraid of the werewolf fighting them.
Then she saw why…
When Vadresa had showed signs of turning, her eyes had been a muddied golden color initially. The sign of a wolf close to going feral. Slowly, but surely, as they continued to fight, Vadresa’s eyes were metamorphosing to a blood red color, not unlike the Blood Moon that Hircine called upon to force Farkas’ transformation that fateful night.
This was why Kodlak had wanted to rid himself fully of the beast blood. This was what Farkas was afraid of happening with Forlan, what she herself had feared of happening with Tala shortly after Gemaine’s assault.
Tarrowlyn recoiled as Vadresa landed a solid blow against her lower jaw that set her flying into; and through for that matter, the stairwell leading up towards the children’s room, and her eyes narrowed despite the pain flooding her system. The manor, more specifically all the furniture, was going to be a casualty in the fighting if she didn’t get them outside soon. Tarrowlyn lunged forward as Vadresa lopped over clumsily, snarling and frothing at her jowls. The breton’s wolfen half was drawing an immense amount of strength from the hate Vadresa harbored.
Besides the scars, what had happened to this woman? How was it possible for one woman to contain so much rage and hatred inside herself that it had literally driven her to insanity? Hadvar; who had been rooted to the spot as he watched in a daze, couldn’t help but wonder if something could have been done to help Vadresa before she had fallen on this path.
A desperate hand shook his sleeve as he was unable to turn his eyes away from the fight. “ Hadvar! We need to get to Riverwood!” Rayya hissed urgently, gripping her midsection for all she was worth. Her contractions were so close and so fast that it was hard to stay on her feet!
Hadvar nodded numbly as he slowly aided the steward of Lakeview Manor out the front door, looking over his shoulder all the while. Tarrowlyn and Vadresa had broken the thick wooden table dominating the center of the main hall and Vadresa was trying to lock her jaws around the copper wolf’s neck! Hadvar was forced to turn his eyes forward when two other members that had survived the initial onslaught of Lakeview Manor charged them. A large white wolf howled in defiance at this and jumped over the two humans to tackle to kill their attackers. “ You’re going to be alright, Rayya…” Hadvar whispered as he led her closer towards the stable where his horse was waiting. Sinding was right behind them after a moment, his clothing in tatters, and he scooped his wife into his arms when her legs buckled from the force of another contraction. There was a nasty bruise already forming across one side of his face where Vadresa had struck him, but as Tarrowlyn had promised, the man was already back on his feet and thinking clearly. “ Where’s the cart? I can hook it up to my steed!” he asked.
“ Over near the smelter. Ahhhh!” The redguard woman pulled at the tatters over her husband’s shoulders, successfully tearing a few as Hadvar began running for the other side of the manor. “ Oh gods! Hurry Hadvar!” Rayya cried out desperately.
The thundering of hooves drew all their attention and Sinding took a quick whiff of the wind. His shoulders slumped in relief as he recognized the scent and he rubbed Rayya’s shoulders. “ It’s Farkas and most likely his brother. Their scents are too similar to be otherwise. That means that Alesan and Lucia are both safe.” he murmured under his breath, silently thanking the gods above for small favors. The children had been sent off barely two hours ago. That meant that they had made good time getting to Whiterun.
“ Thank the gods.” Rayya finished with a grunt as Hadvar pulled the cart up behind his steed and he set to fastening it to the saddle as fast as he could.
“ Load her up in the back, Sinding. I need to get her to Gertur and my Aunt Sigrid in Riverwood now!” Hadvar ordered. He looked over to the incline as Farkas and Vilkas came galloping up at full speed. “ Hail Companions!” he called to them.
“ Hadvar! Where’s Tarrowlyn?!” Farkas demanded as he jumped from Thunder’s back.
“ She’s insi…” Hadvar began. The five of them heard the sound of wood shattering on impact and all heads turned towards the back of the house where there was a porch area over the armory. The growls and all out roars of contestation were nearly deafening to hear. Shaking his head, Hadvar clapped Farkas on the shoulder as he moved towards his saddle. “ I suggest not getting in the middle of this one, Farkas. I’ll see you back in Riverwood!” Hadvar hurriedly seated himself and he snapped the reins while spurring the stallion’s sides at the same time to get him moving. Rayya needed his aunt, and Gertur if she was going to survive childbirth at this rate.
Farkas looked over towards the back of the manor in curiosity, though he was genuinely surprised to see that Tarrowlyn was fighting another werewolf. He was certain that Lucia had told him that the Silver Hand had attacked here as well. “ What do you make of the situation Vilkas?” he asked lowly.
Vilkas took a deep breath in and he growled. “ I can smell five others here on the property that should not be here. We had better find and dispatch them before they get the drop on Tarrowlyn. I’m certain she’ll be fine against that other were.” he replied with a slight edge to his voice. He could feel the rage and grief from Kodlak’s death coming back to the fore again the longer the stench from these so called werewolf hunters lingered in his nose. Vilkas pulled his great sword from his back and he began making his way towards the side of the house. He could smell Serana’s intoxicating aroma all over the property as well, and what turned his stomach the most was that he could smell at least two of them where her scent was strongest. These bastards were in her bedroom! Vilkas didn’t want to even think of what could have happened if she had been caught unawares.
More than likely, she would have fed off of them though she would not have let them survive, he mused with a tight lipped smirk as he silently opened the heavy door to her mountainside abode.
Farkas could smell three other unfamiliar scents all encroaching on where Tarrowlyn was currently fighting the unknown werewolf, and it spurred him into action. Most likely, they would try to kill both lycan females without a second thought. He dropped into a slight crouch as he pulled the ebony bow and matching quiver of arrows from their spots on the weapon’s rack near the forge and Farkas held his breath as he crept around the side of the house.
Not that the three would have heard him over the uproar the other two shifters were making of course.
Tarrowlyn snarled as she and Vadresa circled one another for a few turns, but she soon made a lightning fast lunge that surprised the dull gray were. They tumbled over the raised rock face and into the stone circle that stood behind the manor Vadresa kicked instinctively in an effort to get the incensed alpha off of her. It didn’t work in the slightest, as Tarrowlyn’s clawed fingers wrapped around her throat and the copper furred lycan hauled the lesser bitch high into the air before slamming her down as hard as she could against the black stone altar there. “ Say hello to Hircine for me, and remind him that I am not his to claim.” Tarrowlyn growled out, her fangs bared fully.
In an instant, Tarrowlyn snapped her jaws and she locked them tight over Vadresa’s throat. Blood filled her mouth and flowed through the gaps in her fangs, turning the gray fur there into a muted scarlett. Beastial instinct took over for a moment, as Tarrowlyn refused to relinquish the hold until she was absolutely certain this trespasser was no longer twitching.
Vadresa, for what it was worth, clawed at Tarrowlyn’s head ferociously, though each swipe grew weaker and weaker as her vision darkened. Memories began racing through her mind, and Vadresa growled weakly as one particular vision raced by. Arnbjorn of the Dark Brotherhood finding her nearby as he slaughtered one of the members of her bandit clan, his shrewd, and heavily one sided bargain that they share a night together if she wanted to live, and the feeling of violation when he took her in his beast form despite that she had demanded he kill her.
The last thing she saw was the slight twinkle of the first stars coming out for the night.
She wasn’t sure how long it had been, but the sun was completely gone from the sky when Tarrowlyn finally released her hold, and she growled low in the back of her throat as she thought about all the needless violence that had befallen her family that night. Vadresa said that roughly half the force was here. There were only about ten left when the two of us clashed... She thought for a moment. Her ears twitched as she heard a set of dying cries echo shrilly off of stone, quickly followed by another gargling last wail of dismay. Two, maybe three are in the manor proper, two in Serana’s cove, Vadresa makes six. I smell at least three nearby.
Tarrowlyn could hear the fear induced pounding of hearts around her, but with night falling, she couldn’t make out where they were. A wolfish grin broke out over her face as she looked over her shoulder, knowing full well that Farkas was there and her tail twitched in amusement. She had been hunting with him enough to know the tempo of his breathing, to remember the way his heart sounded in his concentration. She barely heard the whistle of an arrow just over her shoulder, but she did hear the dying cry of a would be assailant not so well hidden in the brush nearby and Tarrowlyn turned her head to look at him.
“ Run now and he won’t shoot.” she finally said to the other two. She was tired of violence for the night, for some reason Vadresa’s death was bothering the ever loving Oblivion out of her. Tarrowlyn didn’t know why, but it did. She couldn’t help but wonder what had put her on this path, ponder why she had been like this to die this way.
“ Not a chance moonborn!” one screamed as they came barreling out of the brush.
Another whistle of air rushing through fletching and Tarrowlyn’s ears didn’t even twitch when the ebony arrow seated itself between the attacker’s eyes.
Tarrowlyn sighed heavily as she shook her large furry head and she turned her gaze to the left where she could smell the last of the remaining marauders. “ Are you willing to let go of this needless violence or do you wish to meet the same fate as them?” She pleaded with a slight whine in her voice.
A young man stood up straight, keeping an arrow pointed true on the russet furred wolf. He showed absolutely no nervousness as he stared down the ten foot tall behemoth. He had barely seen his seventeenth summer, Tarrowlyn noted. “ You’re asking me to live and let live? You and your pack are an abomination in the sight of the divines, beast.” he retorted with quiet passion.
“ My pack and I are seeking a means to cure ourselves of this affliction. Our days as werewolves are numbered, but I have something I must do before I rid myself of this power.” Tarrowlyn said softly. This young man was not much older than her son. She did not want his blood on her hands if she could help it.
“ And what would that be, moonborn?”
Tarrowlyn hissed a little as she felt her transformation begin to wane and she motioned to Farkas nearby for something to cover herself with. She looked over to the right as she smelled something familiar and she set to peeling the tatters of her dress away from her torso. Farkas was coming down the stairs from the door near their bedroom as she spoke. “ You heard of what happened to the Hall of Vigilants, yes?”
“ The vampires that attacked? Just a myth. Had to be bandits or something else. Even your kind.” the boy said matter of factly. He had yet to lower his bow, much to the Harbinger’s amusement. He was made of sterner stuff than most of her welps at Jorrvaskr. Certainly, they were brave, but they buckled a little if she gave them a stern glare. This lad either didn’t realize the danger she posed, even like this, or he didn’t care that his life could end in a moment’s notice. Tarrowlyn grinned a little to herself as she allowed the tattered scraps of cloth to fall to the ground. She wouldn’t mind recruiting this boy to the Companions in all honesty.
Not only that, but she could not wait to see his reaction to what was coming next.
“ You’d like to think that, wouldn’t you? It was my father’s clan that ravaged the guild into extinction.” came a voice from behind him.
The boy went stiff in surprise. He had pretty sharp hearing, and yet he had not heard this woman sneak up on him at all! He kept his arrow trained on Tarrowlyn still, refusing to give in an inch to this tainted creature before him. “ I don’t know who you are…” he began, keeping his voice calm. Maybe he could bluff his way out of the obvious danger he was in now.
“ Cut the tough guy crap kid. If she had wanted you dead, you would not be talking to either of us. Tarrowlyn is the Harbinger for good reason.” the amusement in the woman’s voice was hard to miss. “ Don’t tell me you’re going soft, Terr.”
“ I’ve had enough of all of this violence for one night, Serana. I’ll explain in more detail later, but he’s the last of the Silver Hand that attacked here. He’s also not much older than my son. That being said, I’m not going to be the one to kill him and I refuse to let Farkas or Vilkas do it either.” Tarrowlyn tied off the new gown and she caught the boots that came flying over one at a time without barely looking. She wasn’t sure if the boy knew yet or not, but Farkas now held Tarrowlyn’s crossbow trained on him while Vilkas was coming from around the green house. “ What’s your name boy?”
“ Adafing.” he replied resolutely. The lad had no clue what to expect from here, but he was sure it wasn’t good. “ Adafing Curse-Bound.”
“ Vilkas, Farkas, what do you think?” Tarrowlyn asked seriously. Adafing knew the secret of the Circle, knew what all three of them were and more importantly who they were.
The Companions would be ruined if their secret got out before they could cleanse themselves.
“ That depends, little sister. You’ve bound our hands when it comes to killing him, and I do not feel like inviting myself to a taste of your steel this evening considering everything that’s happened tonight.” came the reply.
Adafing looked up in surprise when a man clapped him on the shoulder, forcing him to release the arrow that he pulled taut against the bow string. His eyes turned over to Tarrowlyn in a panic, and he barely saw her hand move at the same time. The next moment, instead of laying on the ground bleeding or cursing him for wounding her, Tarrowlyn was inspecting the fletching on his arrow.
It took a solid minute for him to realize that she had caught the arrow…
It then dawned on Adafing that he had been an idiot following Vadresa here in her scheme to kill the Harbinger of the Companions. Now said Harbinger had two other members of the Circle here with her as well. Oh sweet, blessed divines…
He was going to die here, wasn’t he?
“ You made these yourself? I won’t lie, boy, this is almost master grade work and I’ve worked with the best Skyrim has to offer.” Tarrowlyn said, obviously impressed. Her green gaze, bright and full of curiosity even in the low light, leveled on Adafing again. “ Why do you hate the moonborn as much as you do?”
“ My father...He’s moonborn and he doesn’t care that he hurts people. I ran away from my parents because they wanted me to be like them. My father is the werewolf that turned Vadresa.” Adafing replied as he shouldered his bow. He was lucky to still be alive at the moment. “ She told me his name without me ever mentioning it. I was the only one that knew her secret, and that’s only because I knew what to look for. I confronted her barely three months ago, just before we started keeping the manor here under surveillance.” Adafing paused as Farkas came to stand beside Tarrowlyn, carrying a few lit torches, and he swallowed hard in his nervousness. He had heard about the slaughter that had happened the night Farkas had been attacked in Falkreath sometime ago. He had been told by scouts that had witnessed the carnage that the fight had been over in less than three minutes.
“ You have no reason to be scared.” Tarrowlyn said kindly, though the look in her eyes grew darker and infuriated. “ I would like to hear more about who your parents are on the way back to Whiterun. The Circle and I need to make a decision about what we’re going to do with you.”
“ Consider yourself lucky if you have yet to cross their paths, though admittedly there isn’t much to tell. They’re assassins.” Adafing replied timidly as Vilkas gently ushered him towards the slope that led down to the cobblestone path. “ My mother is the leader of Skyrim’s Dark Brotherhood, and of course my father is her second.”
Tarrowlyn smiled, flashing a little fang at the same time. “ I have a gut feeling that I’m going to be crossing their paths sooner or later. It’s all but assured with my luck.” she said confidently.
Adafing couldn’t help but find that wolfish grin unsettling.

The group paused in Riverwood for a while as Tarrowlyn refused to leave Rayya and Sinding while her friend was still in labor. Barely three hours after Tarrowlyn’s arrival to the small hamlet, the couple welcomed a sweet baby boy into the world.
Adafing was completely floored at the fact that these werewolves were not what he was used to seeing or hearing about. For all intents and purposes, they were human. They weren’t blood thirsty animals, nor had any of them turned anyone on purpose. In fact, he was amazed to hear that the woman who had slaughtered the Glenmoril Coven some months ago was in fact Tarrowlyn. Apparently, it was the witches heads that could release them from Hircine’s grasp.
Looking at Tarrowlyn as she gleefully showed off her godson to all who would look at him, it was hard to fathom that she was even part animal. She seemed so normal, so plain at a first glance, despite the fact that everyone here knew that not only was she the Harbinger of the Companions, but that Tarrowlyn was also the Dragonborn.
In hindsight, that was one fact that Adafing was unaware of. He had heard talk that the Dragonborn was the only person that could put a dragon down for good, and that they were needed to stop something devastating from happening. What it was differed by every city that Adafing had been to.
Was it possible for someone who had joined their spirit to the beast world to still be so human?
“ Do you know why she still seems human?” Farkas asked tiredly. The questioning gaze had been clear all over the boy’s face. He hadn’t liked the fact that Tarrowlyn had spared even one of those bastards, but it was her choice. She had met out justice against the one responsible after all. Maybe she was hoping to show Adafing that even though their blood differed, that they weren’t so different after all. “ It’s because she refuses to let go of what makes her human. The reason she took on the blood of the beast was to settle an argument, and not the kind you’re thinking of either. Did you hear any one tell tales of the other companion that was attacked the same night I was?”
Adafing nodded. “ I admit, that story sickened me to my stomach. That one woman could leave behind so much carnage is unbelievable.”
“ There were no survivors, so I’m not surprised that the whole truth hasn’t been told. All those men that were found dead? They took turns raping her.” Farkas’ throat grew tight as he thought of that night. He had been terrified that because of what had happened to her that they would have never had what they did now.
Adafing’s eyes grew wide in shock. “ You’re lying…” he whispered incredulously. “ The Silver Hand would have never done such a thing…” He looked over to Tarrowlyn next, who was staring at him as well, though now with a touch of trepidation. She must have heard their conversation from where she was. Her bottom lip began trembling a moment later and she had trouble meeting his gaze after that. Adafing noticed that even though she’d smile while looking at the baby, it was a heartbroken grin. There was no faking that kind of response to that kind of trauma. “ By the nine…” he murmured. “ She survived?”
“ Not without a price...All the abuse she was forced to endure that night rendered her barren.” Farkas finished forlornly. “ I still don’t know everything that happened, and I…” Farkas swallowed hard as the words refused to come at first and a few tears began stinging at the corners of his eyes. “...I never want to. I saw enough when I found her. But because of those men we will never know the joy that our friends do now, despite the fact that we adopted two children. All she’s ever wanted was a large family.” Farkas could remember her telling him that during their journey up to High Hrothgar, though that seemed as if that were an eternity ago now.
Adafing had no words for this revelation, but his heart ached at the injustices that had befallen the woman across main hall of the inn. Yes, he had grown up around assassins, but he had hated every minute of it. Adafing had never wanted to follow in his parent’s footsteps, though his father had taught him everything he knew about smithing. This only proved to show that just because someone’s intentions were just didn’t make them a righteous person. What Farkas had just told him, what that group of his now decimated guild had done to Tarrowlyn, ate at him uncomfortably. He had thought the Silver Hand to be a band of kindred spirits to him in wanting to rid the world of evil, daedra worshiping werewolves. He now knew how naive he had been for thinking that all werewolves were just like his father. Even though the Circle has those that carried the blood of the beast, it didn’t automatically make them wicked and malicious. It just showed that they had made a questionable decision in the past.
That they were, indeed, human.
Adafing, for the first time in a long time, felt ashamed of himself for allowing his hatred for his father to color his perceptions of people like Tarrowlyn, Farkas, Vilkas, and Sinding. They were good people trying to do good things for others. Adafing looked down at his boots a moment. Something Tarrowlyn had said had a new worry percolating in his mind.
I have a gut feeling that I’m going to be crossing their paths sooner or later.
Adafing’s gaze narrowed even further. Sooner or later, someone was sure to perform the Black Sacrament in order to contract the Dark Brotherhood to kill her. In the short time he had spent with Tarrowlyn, Adafing could not deny that she and the others had grown on him. They were the epitome of something he had always desired.
A real family.
Adafing’s gaze rose with a renewed purpose. The Companions would benefit from someone like him, even if it were only for his skill in smithing. He would broach the subject when they returned to Jorrvaskr.
Tarrowlyn had said the Circle needed to make the decision after all.

It was encroaching on one in the morning when Tarrowlyn entered Jorrvaskr with new tears running down her face. She had just learned of the fate that had befallen Lydia, and she now needed to prepare a funeral on top of making sure that repairs were made to both Breezehome and Lakeview Manor.
Tarrowlyn would fight tooth and nail to be sure that her dear friend received a send off worthy of her. While Lydia had not been a Companion herself, she had had the heart and fire of one. She was silent as she began making her way down to the living quarters, though Farkas stopped her at the top of the stairs. Her green gaze was both questioning and demanding to where she didn’t need to say a word.
“ I need to warn you. The kids did not come out of this unscathed, Tarrowlyn.” Farkas told her simply. “ They did well from what I was told however.”
Tarrowlyn’s gaze narrowed as anger welled up within her for what the Silver Hand had done to her family. If I could kill Vadresa all over again, I would in a heartbeat for ordering the death of my children. That is a line that should never be crossed. She thought furiously. “ How badly were they wounded?” Was Danica or the other acolytes not able to come heal them while you and Vilkas were gone?”
“ I wanted no one in or out of Jorrvaskr until we returned. Better safe than sorry. As for Lucia, she was shot through her arm. It looked like a clean through and through for the most part. Alesan has one severe gash on his side, could have been from a glance of a blade, he was taking on four of them at once when I joined the fray. He also cut his head, not sure how though. Could have been from a punch or a fall.” he explained. Adafing was sitting down at one of the benches as Vilkas stayed nearby. Both he and his brother would be wary for now until their Harbinger made their choice concerning the boy.
“ I’ll heal them and wake the others. Both of you take him to the Underforge. We’ll be there shortly.” Tarrowlyn replied.
“ I doubt anyone is truly sleeping Harbinger. More than likely, they are waiting for us to walk through that door.” Vilkas amended gently as he leaned against one of the support pillars. “ I also doubt you’re going to be just a few moments with your children. No matter what, you’ve always been a bit of a mother hen. I know for a fact that instinct is probably multiplied by ten when it comes to your own. We may want to approach this issue first before you tend to them. They are safe here, Harbinger.”
Tarrowlyn weighed Vilkas’ words and she nodded. She needed to remember the priority here. Alesan and Lucia were fine for now and they were sleeping. Adafing’s fate, however, still hung in the balance. She took a deep breath in through her nose and she looked over to Farkas next. “ I want him in the Underforge while I gather Ria, Athis, and Aela. I had better not come in there and find the three of you fighting.” Her gaze narrowed over to both Vilkas and Adafing at this. Vilkas was hotheaded, and she didn’t know the boy well enough to gauge his reactions. This was more for either of them than Farkas in all honesty.
“ Noted, as always, Tarrowlyn.” Vilkas replied with a chuckle as he carefully hauled Adafing up to his feet by one arm. “ Come now, lad. I’ll give you a brief history lesson while we’re waiting on Tarrowlyn.”
Tarrowlyn didn’t make for the stairs leading down into the living quarters until all three men had exited the mead hall and she shook her head as she opened the door. This had been one very long, and exceedingly trying day. What had the dragonborn stumped the most was the fact that the Silver Hand had struck again after all this time. She had been knocked stupid by that revelation in fact.
Worst yet, had someone betrayed her? She had been careful on who knew about Alesan and Lucia. Or had Vadresa been that clever to have tracked her down and discovered the children on her own? Tarrowlyn’s brow furrowed at that. She would never know for sure now, as she had crushed that bitch’s windpipe herself.
Not to say that Vadresa hadn’t deserved it in a sense. It just rankled Tarrowlyn to no end that she had more questions than answers in the wake of all this.
The shrill whistle of fletching brought Tarrowlyn back to her senses and she hurriedly shut the door. “ Stand down Companions!” she called out as she cracked the door again. Now she was even more pissed about all this. She should have known to announce herself. That hadn’t been Aela to fire the arrow after all.
Mixed shouts greeted her as Tarrowlyn opened the door fully and a good chunk of who was present ran to meet her at the entryway.
“ There’s no time to talk right now. Ria, Athis, Aela. Underforge, now please. The rest of you do not let anyone besides us down here until I know for certain everything is safe.” Tarrowlyn said, interrupting everyone in the process. “ Njada. Is Tilma in my quarters with my children?”
Njada nodded silently. “ No more need be said. I’ll stand at the door. Raz, you and Torvar keep in the middle here. Ki’Larra, grab a bow and take up position in the hallway. Warning shot at the door first, just like before, then aim to kill if they don’t answer. Hjommar, you stay right there at the door just to be safe...” Njada kept rattling off orders as the other four Companions made their way top side again.
Tarrowlyn had the grace to look impressed. It seemed that Njada had started coming into her own while the Harbinger had been away. “ When did that happen?” She asked as the door came to a close behind them.
“ When Hjommar put her in her place last week. Needless to say, she is not as full of herself as she used to be.” Athis whispered, quite amusedly for that matter, in the nord woman’s ear. “ And that isn’t all either…”
Normally Tarrowlyn was up for a bit of juicy gossip, but she needed to wait to get all of the dirty details out of the dunmer until later. “Not now, friend.” she replied softly. “ We do have business to attend to first and foremost. “
“ Understood Harbinger, I’ll get you up to speed when the time permits.” Athis chortled as they came to the top of the stairs. “ You’re going to either piss yourself laughing, or you’re going to spit your ale in shock.”
Ria and Aela both snorted, whether in derision or in amusement Tarrowlyn wasn’t certain, though she would put money down on the latter if she were a betting woman. There had been times over the last few years where Njada had been too much for any of them to deal with. There was no denying all three of them were confident in Athis’ prediction of her impending reaction however.
“ We’ll get to that when we can. As you three know, the Silver Hand not only launched a strike here, but also at my home in Falkreath. With the exception of one, the Silver Hand is decimated.” Tarrowlyn told them seriously. “ The lone survivor has his own reasons for having joined, but he didn’t realize just how depraved they were. He was astonished to hear about what happened to me.” She finished this softly with sad grimace on her face.
The expressions of the others’ faces softened as well, the light mood now gone. “ If we had only known better…” Aela whispered. She had been on a few hunting trips with that damned traitor before his deception had been uncovered.
“ Things happen the way Akatosh intends and for a reason, Aela.” Tarrowlyn said kindly. “ All of us will be going to decide what to do with the boy. He does not carry the scent of blood the same way we do, but he has the smell of a forge surrounding him. Burning wood, leather, soot...He’s a smithy, I swear it, or I will part with every bar of ore that I have.”
Athis snorted a bit. “ That’s a hefty bet, Harbinger. I’ll forfeit five hundred gold if you’re right.” the dunmer wagered with a confident grin.
Tarrowlyn return the grin. “ Be ready to count that coin out then, Athis.” she shot back as she pushed open the entrance to the Underforge. “ The only thing I ask is that we do not vote to put him to death. We may need him later on.” The others nodded as they cleared the entrance, and and her verdant gaze looked over to Adafing as he looked over Farkas’s old two handed blade.
“ Eorlund Gray Mane crafted this himself? Amazing...I’d give anything to apprentice under him.” the young man said with a wistful smile. His eyes were alight as his sharp gaze scanned the metal in his hands. “ There are no impurities at all, not even any divots or gouges. This blade is perfect.”
Athis groaned in dismay. The harbinger, as usual, had been right on the septim. “ I hate your intuition, Harbinger.” he muttered. The dunmer smiled even as he held his arm up as if to guide Tarrowlyn further inside. “ Let’s get on to business however.”

Tarrowlyn looked over Alesan and Lucia as they slept in her bed. She had already tended to their wounds, and silent tears were streaming down her face. She had never wanted them to get dragged into this silent war to this extent, not to where they could have lost their lives. “ This is all my fault, Vilkas…” she murmured when she felt his hands settle on her shoulders.
“ No, this is on all of us.” Vilkas replied sullenly, even as he gave her shoulders a comforting squeeze. “ Again, I regret nothing of what we did at Driftshade, but we should have made sure all of them were gone.”
“ We did, all of those who were in there. That doesn’t mean there wasn’t a sect not there that night.” Tarrowlyn shot back quietly. “ My children were in danger because of what we did that night, Vilkas! That is inexcusable!”
“ Then why did you come with me?” Vilkas asked her pointedly.
“ Because I wasn’t going to let what happened to Skjor happen to you. You would have gone without me if I expressed any dissent, and you would have died. I couldn’t do that after we had just…” Tarrowlyn leapt from the bed and she got face to face with her shield brother. Vilkas wasn’t all to shocked to see tears streaming down her face. “ Kodlak...No, everyone... would have never forgiven me if I had allowed you to go off on your own. I would have never forgiven myself if you had died that night Vilkas. There’s no beating around the bush here, no denying it. If either of us had gone alone, we would have fallen.”
Vilkas sighed heavily as he wrapped his arms around her and he looked over to where her children were still sleeping peacefully. They had to be exhausted after the day’s events. She was right to feel the way she did for dragging Alesan and Lucia into this. Vilkas felt the guilt as well. If she hadn’t joined him...There’s no sense in dwelling on the what if’s. All that matters is that what is done, is done. We all need to move on and go forward. Vilkas thought sadly. “ Dry your tears, Tarrowlyn. You’re right, as always.” he whispered. “ We can only go forward from here, little sister.” One side of his mouth quirked up in half a grin and Vilkas stretched out his arms to hold her at length. “ They did you proud, Alesan especially. You’ve taught him well. And Lucia is a crackshot with a bow and arrow.”
Tarrowlyn returned the grin with one of her own. “ Did you expect anything less of mine and Farkas’ children, Vilkas?” she asked him. She looked over to the bed again and her smile softened to a maternal one as she walked back over to bed. “You’re brother has done just as much as I have when it comes to training them. I am proud of them. I just wish things could have gone differently with how you met them.”
Vilkas chuckled as he clapped Tarrowlyn’s shoulder. “ At the very least, they made quite a first impression.” he chortled, drawing a chuckle from her as well. “ I’m not entirely certain if there’s going to be enough room here in the hall for everyone. We got lucky that Eorlund and Fralia agreed to take Adafing in.”
“ Farkas and I will sleep over at Breezehome. We were hoping to expand the cottage to better fit the four of us, but…” A heavy sigh escaped her as she shed another tear for her dear friend who was currently lying in state in the Underforge. “ Alesan can now choose between the room downstairs or Lydia’s old room. I’ll refuse another housecarl if Balgruuf tries to appoint one. I don’t think Lucia will take well to that either.” Tarrowlyn said as she began walking for the door. “ Farkas is already over there now taking care of the minor repairs and the doors. I do pity Adrianne though. I’ll stay here at the hall until Lucia and Alesan wake back up. They’ll just have to stay here until everything is set to go.”
Vilkas nodded silently as he shut the door behind him. “ You’re welcome to take my bed for now if you wish to rest, Tarrowlyn. You need it in all honesty. The lashes from the whip still haven’t healed completely, even with me casting a healing spell.”
Tarrowlyn shook her head as she went over to her desk. “ There’s no need, Vilkas. I'll brew up a few potions shortly once I'm done. Though, I daresay Serana’s already beat me there however.” she replied with a knowing grin. “ Where do you two stand anyways?” A lilting laugh escaped her for the glare Vilkas was affixing her with. “ No matter. I have paperwork to catch up on and some texts I need to look over if possible. Go enjoy yourself Vilkas.”
Vilkas rolled his eyes even as he left the Harbinger’s office and he quietly made his way over to his own room. He wasn’t all to surprised to see Serana sitting at the table he had in the corner, reading one of his own journals on lycanthropy.
“ Tarrowlyn had mentioned you were keeping a log of everything that changed when you took on the blood of the beast. It’s rather fascinating in all honesty. The only differences between us is the fact that you can walk in daylight, and that you don’t have to live solely off of blood. Other than that, we’re almost the same. Improved strength, speed, and dexterity. You’re immune to everything possible, even vampirism unless you’re passed the gift through a bite. It would be terrifying if there was a way to blend the two…” Serana told him as Vilkas stripped down from his armor behind his privacy screen. She had figured that he would want to be out of it soon, hence why she had sat down at the table instead of the bed. He didn’t seem to keen on taking things to another level right now as it was.
As far as Serana was concerned? She had millennia of forced celibacy to account for. Vilkas was the only man, alive or otherwise, that drew any sort of reaction out of her.
“ Let’s not give your father any ideas.” Vilkas chortled as he pulled on a fresh tunic before stepping out from behind the screen. “ Otherwise, you’re not wrong. Werewolves and vampires definitely seem to be two sides of the same coin.” Vilkas eased his bare fingers through her chestnut colored strands. He was pleased to see that she had taken the time to comb her hair and had yet to replace the style she normally plaited it in. It seemed shorter than the last time his fingers had been in it, but then again, it probably still grew at the same rate that it used to when she had been human. More than likely, Serana trimmed her hair not too long ago.
Serana sighed a little as a delighted shiver ran up and down her spine. It incited gooseflesh to pop up all over her skin and her head lolled back a little to keep Vilkas playing with her hair. “ You keep that up, I’m never cutting it again.” she whispered.
Vilkas chuckled even as he carefully drew up and separated a lock of hair in preparation to braid it. “ You won’t have any objection from me.” he replied. His fingers carefully wove her hair into submission, only to release it before he could tie it into place. “ Tarrowlyn needed help more times than I care to count in plaiting her hair. Lucky for her, I’m a fast learner.”
Serana laughed a little before a purr escaped her as Vilkas’ digits began their gently manipulations once more. “ I found that out myself when we first traveled together. She can’t do it on her own…”
“Unless she is looking in a mirror.” they both finished.
“ I happen to love having my hair played with.” Serana admitted. She couldn’t help the shiver that gripped her when his nails scratched ever so lightly against the nape of her neck and she lowered her chin instantly in response.
Vilkas let out a sultry chuckle as he leaned over to whisper in Serana’s ear. “ Lucky me...I happen to love playing with a woman’s hair as well.” His warm breath fanned over her cool skin, eliciting a new round of goosebumps for Serana even as she bit her tongue to hold back a moan at the promise in his voice. If she weren’t careful, Vilkas might be able to turn this into foreplay. Not that he wasn’t sorely tempted to. Again, he wanted to know everything that made her tick, not just bed her on a whim.
Serana sighed as her scalp tingled pleasantly from Vilkas’ ministrations. “ You might put me to sleep before daybreak doing that.” she breathed out. The vampiress was teetering on utter relaxation and arousal, and relaxation was winning out the longer Vilkas kept gliding his fingers through her hair.
“ If you want me to stop…” Vilkas began, pulling his hands away. He couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled out of him at the unamused glare Serana’s garnet colored eyes affixed him with. “ Fine, I’ll continue. Forgive me for being forward, but you may as well join me in the bed then. I’m ready for some rest in all honesty and my legs are protesting standing barefoot on the stone floor. I promise I’ll resume over there until the both of us are asleep.”
Serana nodded at the compromise and she took Vilkas’ hand as she got to her feet as well. After a moment, she had stripped out of her armor and boots and she eased both her belt and cowl over the back of the chair. Her brow pinched as she thought of the reason she had joined them all here at Jorrvaskr. Serana needed to tell Tarrowlyn about Dexion’s reading and what it entailed.
They needed to find Serana’s mother.
“ What’s on your mind sweetness?” Vilkas inquired as she padded over to his bed absentmindedly. She didn’t look to pleased with where her thoughts had gone.
Serana rolled her shoulders uncomfortably as she sat beside Vilkas on his bed. She wasn’t sure she should give voice to it, considering how sharp Tarrowlyn’s hearing was, but she needed to get it off her chest on the same note. She was worried for her friend and her family, but moreso about the ridiculous amount of danger that she was about to put the Harbinger into. “ I need Tarrowlyn’s help to find the next two elder scrolls. My mother, undoubtedly, has one and we need to find her. It’s been centuries if not a few thousand years since I saw her last. I don’t know where to even look for her. The other, well, I’m not even sure where to start looking for that one either. But if there’s anything I’ve learned in knowing Tarrowlyn; even for the relatively short amount of time that I have, it's that she has a way of coming up with a solution or three. I don’t want to pull her away right now. Not when Lucia and Alesan are going to need her. I’m pretty sure that we have a good time table in which to work in. My father more than likely will not get his hands on either scroll before we do. In fact, I’m almost certain he’s anticipating that we’ll find them first. It’s when we have them together is that going to be when he’ll try to take them.” Serana explained. She had relaxed while she had been speaking, but only because Vilkas’ hand had been ghosting over her shoulder and down her arm. He had laid them flat against the bed, curling her into his embrace and Serana sighed a little as his fingers resumed their gentle playing in her hair. She had never felt like this before. So calm, so…
Cherished.
“ I would definitely give her a few days to let all this simmer down. Not only does she have my niece and nephew to look after, but a funeral to arrange as well. I’m happy that not one member of the circle dismissed her motion to give Lydia the burial she deserves.”
Serana looked up at Vilkas, curious as to what that meant. “ Meaning?” she asked sleepily. She hadn’t been kidding that the man holding her was going to make her fall asleep if he kept playing with her hair as he was.
“ Lydia will be given the same sendoff that we Companions have, cremation on the Skyforge. Farkas and Tarrowlyn will more than likely finish out any minor repairs tomorrow, if Alesan doesn’t make a choice on a room that is. After that, they will need to find three sturdy cedars for Lydia’s pyre. I anticipate that a good majority of us will join them to help. It’s only right. We all knew Lydia and while she wasn’t one of us in the books, she had the heart and fire of a Companion and her flames will forge great steel. The heroes that we cremate on the Skyforge are who gives our steel and armor their strength. They imbue it somehow.” Vilkas explained sleepily. This was the first time in a long time he had ever felt this tired. In all honesty, he couldn’t remember falling asleep this easily before. His fingers had not ceased their gentle ministrations, and it was only then that Vilkas realized that Serana had dozed off sometime during his explanation.
Smiling to himself, Vilkas pressed a feather light kiss to the top of her head before closing his own eyes as well. It had been a long time since he had fallen asleep beside a woman like this.
But it was the first time that he had ever felt this content with life, despite all the wrongs that had happened that day.

Farkas strolled into the mead hall at midday for lunch and he smiled softly when he saw both Alesan and Lucia inspecting all the shields that lined the hall. Vilkas was beside them, explaining whose shield had belonged to whom and their history in the Companions.
Then they came to a rack that they had erected recently, initially in jest. Now, it served as a tally.
“ Whose shields are all of these?” Alesan asked curiously. There was something familiar about the make of them that he couldn’t put his finger on.
“ Your mother’s.” his uncle chortled. “ This is a tally of every shield she’s lost in fighting dragons. So far, as you can see, we’re on fifteen.” Vilkas heard Farkas’ amused snort from across the hall and he looked over to his brother. “ Anything to add Farkas?”
Farkas shook his head as he piled his plate high with smoked meats and cheeses. A half a loaf of bread soon joined and two tankards of mead, filled to the brim. “ Nah, I’d rather not catch her temper if she comes in an earshot. You know she hates this thing.” he finally said as he came closer.
Vilkas laughed out loud. “ We need it to keep a tally. There are bets placed on how many she’ll go through until this dragon business is done.”
Alesan choked back a laugh at that, though Lucia was not so subtle with her mirth. “ Luce, if we know what’s good for us, we will never make any mention of this to Ma.” he said.
Lucia nodded as she looked over some of the shields. The oldest looking one was leather that had been bitten through and charred. “ Do you know the stories behind each one, Uncle Vilkas?” she asked. Her bright brown eyes were alight with curiosity. Tarrowlyn never really went into any detail with her adventures for the companions after all.
Vilkas couldn’t help the feeling that swelled in his chest at hearing that and he gently tousled Lucia’s hair. “ Not all of them, but a fair few. This one here, the one you’re looking at? Eorlund told me that this one was broken by the first dragon your mother ever felled. In fact, she has faint scars on her arm from where he bit through. And this one here…” He pointed to a steel shield that was nearly unrecognizable from how mangled it had become. “...The dragon your mother fought with this shield nearly killed her and I both. In fact, she saved my life that day.” Vilkas’ chest swelled with pride as he thought of Tarrowlyn’s prowess in felling the mighty beasts. “ There’s no doubt about it, you’re mother is a very accomplished dragon slayer.”
Farkas nearly dropped his food as Vilkas’ proclamation spurred a memory to the forefront of his mind. He had wanted to ask Tilma if she knew anything about Jergen. There was something familiar about when Tarrowlyn had mentioned the Blades some weeks ago. Something that was important to his father. “ Vilkas, have you seen Tilma?” he asked suddenly.
Vilkas paused for a moment, as he had been about to tell the children another story about one of the other mutilated shields on the rack. “ The last I saw of her, Tilma had stepped outside to gather the plates and whatnot that the whelps left out on the porch from this morning.” he replied. His facial expression grew more perplexed the more he thought it over. “ What would you need to speak with her about? I might be able to help.”
Farkas shook his head. “ I needed to ask her about Jergen, Vilkas. I don’t think you have any more knowledge about him than I do.” he replied.
Vilkas’ brow furrowed slightly in thought. He had always harbored a resentment towards their father ever since he had left to fight in the Great War. He had never returned either. As far as Vilkas was concerned, Jergen had died then and that was that. “ I don’t see why you want to know more about a dead man, Farkas.”
His twin shook his head in the negative for a moment. “ I wanted to know if he was part of any other factions besides the Companions. There was something that Tarrowlyn brought up that was familiar and not at the same time. Tilma is the only one here in Jorrvaskr that would know for sure.”
Vilkas stopped short of the retort he had readied. That...That was actually a good reason to want to speak to her. Farkas was not wrong that Tilma was the only one who would know more about their father. Everyone else with the knowledge was no longer among the living. Now that he thought it over more, getting more insight on Jergen would not be a bad thing. At least this way he could be more informed when he decided to curse his sire’s name the next time Vilkas got drunk. “ I may as well join you. This way I know who else to curse when I get into a mood.” he joked. Vilkas did not want to admit that he was curious.
“ Who are you talking about, Pa?” Alesan asked, his blue eyes narrowed ever so slightly in his own curiosity.
“ Mine and Vilkas’ father. He left to fight in the war some twenty years ago and never came back. Vilkas and I were too young to remember a lot of him. I figured that now that I’m going to be your father, I should know what mine did so that I don’t make the same mistake.” Farkas replied, his tone and facial expressions bordering on serious.
Vilkas’ face nearly deadpanned at that proclamation. That made more sense for Farkas wanting to know more about Jergen than anything else he would have thought of.
“ I had asked Miss Tilma if I could help her earlier and she told me not to worry. Are you sure you’re going to get her to stop long enough to talk to you, Pa?” Lucia asked. She took one of the tankards from Farkas, as it was sloshing all over the floor by that point, as they made their way out onto the porch.
“ I’m sure she will, Luce.” Farkas chuckled as Vilkas opened the door. “ She’s known the two of us since we were younger than you. Your uncle and I were the youngest companions ever to join to date.”
Tilma chortled sweetly as she loaded the last of the dirty dishes into her large bucket. “ That’s right, my dears. I’ve known your pa and uncle since they were biting at everyone’s knees.” she teased fondly. Vilkas visibly was suppressing a groan of embarrassment. “ Getting ready to head back to Breezehome, Farkas?”
Farkas shook his head even as he set his plate down on the table. “ Need food and drink first. I was hoping you might be able to give me some information on Jergen, Tilma.” the Ice Wolf of Jorrvaskr answered. He took a deep drink from the first mug of ale that he had brought along and his steely blue gaze met the matron’s soft, worried one.
“ What brings this on, Farkas?” Tilma’s tone was near incredulous as she set her bucket down with a loud clank. Her hands flew to her hips in an instant and her brow furrowed.
“ I wanna know more about him so that I won’t become him. I don’t want to leave my children behind, Tilma. Not like he did. What other factions did Jergen belong to besides the Companions?” Farkas’ answer, while simple, drew more emotion than expected from Tilma.
The caretaker’s shoulders sagged a bit as she weighed the younger man’s words. “ Jergen, your father, was a grandmaster of the Blades.” Tilma began as she took a seat. “ Your mother died just after childbirth, but you both look remarkably like her in different ways. Her name was Roka and like your father and the both of you, she was a Companion who haled from Markarth. Jergen met her about three years before the two of you were born…” A sad smile spread across Tilma’s face for a moment before she looked at the twins again. “...Right where the two of you are seated now. They crossed words, a brawl between them broke out, and she won when she broke his nose. Roka was a force to be reckoned with, oh ho ho. Not unlike Tarrowlyn, Farkas. She had golden blonde hair, and the brightest kindest blue eyes. Those same eyes became cold and distant if you crossed her. You know, now that I think on it, both you you have the hues of her eyes.” Tilma couldn’t help but laugh a little as she shook her head. “ Vilkas looks more like your father than you do Farkas, but you have more of your mother’s facial features than he does. He has her expressions however. It’s amazing how alike and not the two of you are for twins.
“ When Roka died, the king allowed Jergen the time away to rear the two of you. So for seven years, your father raised the two of you here in Jorrvaskr. I can promise you that leaving was the last thing he ever wanted to do, Farkas. He had hoped beyond hope that the war would have been over by the time he had been called away. Unfortunately, just before the two of you turned eight, he received a summons from the emperor. Jergen’s predecessor had been slain on the battlefield and he was to take his place in the ranks. And so, he became Grand Master of the Blades and was whisked off to fight in the war. Like you, that was the last that I saw of him.” Tilma finished speaking with a heavy sigh. “ I don’t know anything else about him. Jergen was never around enough for me to get his whole story. Roka, on the other hand…” Tilma gave both men a sad smile. “...I had known for nearly as long as I’ve known the two of you. In other words, I have a lifetime worth of stories about her if you would like to know more.”
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Dragonheart: Of Black Wings Unfurled