Daughter to Dragons- a Skyrim inspired fantasy

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Eighteen

As I stood, watching the sun rise with a bowl of warm stew in my hand, I felt a pair of arms slide around my waist and pull me close. I breathed a soft, relaxed sigh as I settled into the curves of his body. His head reached around and pecked a kiss on my cheek and I smiled so comfortably.

In a single night, all of my worries and stress had just melted away like butter on a hot summer's day. I could finally breathe again and it was such a freeing feeling.

I would give myself this moment, I had decided, before I would have to return to reality. It was not reality I wished to return to, one full of responsibility and duty, of pain and hardship. But it was the reality that I had been sculpted for. What was I but a piece of clay, molded by my parents to do my duty to the world?

No, I couldn't think of this. Not while I was still in this blissful moment.

"This is nice," Rhythe breathed in my ear, his breath sending tingles down my body. He rested in chin on my shoulder and gently swayed back and forth.

"It is," I agreed, smiling. "More mornings should begin like this."

Rhythe motioned to the smoldering fire pit just outside the shack. "Did Vulfa ever come back last night?"

I rolled my eyes as I spun around to face him. I placed the bowl on the counter before wrapping my arms around his neck. "That's not what mornings like these should involve," I said bringing my face closer to his. My eyes stared deep into the grey-green pools that were his own. "But yes," I continued, "she was here. She'll be back before we leave."

At that statement, in the barest span on a moment, I saw his face drop before he caught himself. He placed a quick kiss on my forehead before pulling away, turning to face the kettle of stew. "When are we leaving?" he said, trying too hard to keep his voice even.

I shrugged, even though I knew he couldn't see it. "Today, I guess. Windhelm is scarcely a day away now. We could leave this afternoon and spend the night in Kynesgrove before continuing on to Windhelm, if you'd prefer to rest."

"We should make haste to Windhelm," he said, turning back to face me. "I know how long you've been waiting to get there. We can't dally now that we're so close."

He was right. I hated him for it, but he was right. High King Ulfric was waiting to hear from my father... from me. It had been months in the making, and I was finally so close. I took a step forward, narrowing the distance between us and smiled up at him. "Have you ever been to Windhelm? It's quite a sight. Every single stone in the city oozes history. I think you would like it."

"Is it anything like the Imperial City?" he asked.

I shook my head, chuckling. "Nothing at all. Windhelm in the epitome of ancient Nordic engineering. It is strong and sturdy, and that is what gives it its beauty."

"And it's cold," he added.

I chuckled again. "It's always cold in the north," I said. "That's what makes us Nords so tough."

He smiled at me, a warm, genuine smile, as he brushed my cheek. "You're not a full Nord though, Dragontooth. Despite how much you look it with your blonde hair", he curled a piece of my hair around his finger, "and blue eyes."

"Well, I'm mostly Nord! My father was a full-blooded Nord and my mother was half Breton, half Redguard. Still, mostly Nord."

"Well, that explains it."

I cocked my head quizzically. "That explains what?"

"Why you are so much more beautiful than all the other Nord girls."