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2: Falling (in rivers, down waterfalls, in love all over again)

There was an almighty snap. Both beastfolk flinched and Katia raised her hands in preparation to cast her magic as she surveyed the area; this was Skyrim, after all, and perhaps their reputation or size wasn't enough to dissuade an ambush. The road beside a large ravine didn't have much cover.

Quill sighed and said, "Kat, relax... it's just my jerkin."

Katia looked at her partner and struggled with the urge to both stare or giggle. She managed to settle on a goofy, wide eyed smirk although if Quill took issue it didn't show as she was more agitated by her clothing.

The jerkin, once pulled tight with a hardy but narrow rope through iron grommets below the collar, had snapped and a deep crevice of soft green scales were not only obvious but to Kat but so vast the khajiit had to turn around in order to compose herself, as if she would 'fall' into it at any moment.

Quill's bust wasn't the most obvious issue though. The jerkin was riding high on her body as her midriff swelled beyond even her troublesome chest and a crude cut had been made to help give her belly space, although that was still covered by a blanket that had been stuffed into her coat either side of the bulge. It looked like she was smuggling a watermelon. It had only been five months since conception, but the unnatural way it came about probably skipped a month or two.

Quill-Weave held her back and sat on a large rock and growled at her deep cleavage. She pulled the frayed cord free and the huge, thinly scaled bosom sagged lower as the argonian readjusted the blanket, even if she struggled against the sheer mass of her own body.

"This is ridiculous, how much bigger are they... or just I gonna get!?" Quill snarled and groped her bosom, each swell as big as her head, but sighed as she leaned back on the rock, free of the burden for a moment which let her calm down. After a few quiet, motionless moments, she said, "I think I preferred it when I was just growing upward instead of outward."

As Quill settled down, Katia finished taking in the area, just to play it safe.

A balmy autumn was holding back the worst of the northern cold but their breath swirled as puffs of mist. Brown leaves scattered in the wind and they overlooked a beautiful river down a deep bank. Off in the distance to the north-west they could see Whiterun, the great walled city on a hilltop and its grand castle at the peak that rested in the plains and tundra called Whiterun hold. They were both glad for the better travelled path; there was a more direct route south beyond the tallest mountain in the empire, the Throat of the World which was so tall they couldn't see the peak through the swirling clouds around it, but considering Quill's condition against the harsher cold and presence of 'crones' (as the locals called them) they decided to take the patrolled and temperate route.

Longer, yes. But safer, warmer and easier.

Any threats wouldn't last long, Katia would see to them by her strength of body and magic, but they still had miles to go and the longer the journey took, the more of a risk she felt they were taking.

As she turned back to Quill, Katia offered a sympathetic smile but she couldn't hide her continued awe at the green scaled crevice. It stood out from her usual red scales in a way that caught the eye and she couldn't help but lick her lips but her fascination was at odds with their reasons for coming to Skyrim.

Ever since they agreed to marry (and after repairing Cheydinhal's city wall, which cost them a few days), they made all their every waking moment dedicated to planning and preparation. They had spent their hard earned coin on amulets of Mara, winter clothes and provisions, then they announced their plans to their superiors to travel to Riften, where the Temple of Mara offered all styles of marriage to all races and genders.

Their leave of absence was authorised,although they were ordered to be on their best behaviour, and Quill had to take something of a crash-course in destruction magic to learn how to drain magicka while Katia continued working for the empire. It had been a couple of months since the proposal but in the height of autumn they left in high spirit for Skyrim, but then things, most notably Quill-Weave's body, changed.

"I told you that theory made sense," Katia sighed and sat on the grass beside the Quill's impromptu seat, which left them eye level with each other. The khajiit gave a warm smile and rubbed Quill's back but the argonian tensed up all the same.

"Oh, you and that fucking theory! Distance from Blackmarsh indeed! I..." Quill grumbled and scoffed but the attempt at outrage weakened every moment she thought it over. " Okay, I get the distance thing. Maybe. But I certainly don't recall that theory saying anything about my tits tripling in size, and that's probably an understatement, or my child going from calm egg to a raucous, rampaging barbarian! This_isn't_ normal."

They both recalled the moment as silence took over.

A day past the northern border Quill's belly bulged and squirmed so fiercely it forced them to stop. Clearly in discomfort, Katia's used her healing spells to help and even asked, repeatedly, if they should return to Cyrodiil but Quill was insistent they remain; she had a 'hunch' or an instinct. After a hour of rest and a lot of Katia fretting, Quill expelled the fragments of her egg and the only reason they carried on was when the argonian's vast belly wriggled and shifted; she had gone from being gravid like a reptile to more traditionally pregnant. That was just the start, as every mile they travelled beyond Skyrim's borders, Quill felt her top grow tighter as her once pert and slight bust bulged and swelled to a degree that would make a classic buxom barmaid jealous.

"Well, I guess that's what your people get for being all mysterious. People have to guess and make up all kinds of nonsense to fill in the gaps." Katia smirked, bemused, but it turned more sympathetic when Quill's distress gave way to a scowl.

The khajiit sighed and raised her hands in defeat. "Sorry, I'm not trying downplay this. I'm just used to working my way through troubles by making sense of it all. So yeah, the theory seems true; the farther your people get from home, the more the body responds and compensates... for example, Seed-Neeus has a pretty impressive bust, so does Dar-Ma considering she hasn't had any kids and they live on the opposite side of Cyrodiil to Blackmarsh. I also have to admit I wasn't expecting this sort of change, but I mean it's not like there are any hist trees nearby and I'm pretty sure argonian kids have to get their sap. Here, lean against me and relax."

Katia spread her legs around the rock and pulled Quill back against her. The burdened argonian undid the clasp of her coat which exposed her immense, blanket shrouded belly and Katia rubbed it slowly and tenderly, which earned her a deeply appreciative sigh from her partner. They had no other clothes that could fit Quill-Weave's matronly physique and the clothes she had especially made for winter (or patrols near Bruma) didn't have much give. Even her unnatural strength was tested, as if the curse could sustain Quill's abnormal size but this was clearly too much.

The khajiit stole a glance down at Quill's absurdly sized tits that rested on the full term-sized swell of Quill's belly. She'd even developed little nipples which stood prominent against her clothes and more than a little strange on an argonian. The friction of the thick, coarse material against the teats kept causing Quill a great deal of discomfort (and arousal, Katia noted), so these stops were becoming more and more frequent.

This was an unnatural birth, even within bounds of the mysterious argonians, but Katia doubted it was supposed to advance this fast, so she could only assume that the child really was going to take after Katia in terms of her size and she hoped it wasn't going to be so drastic by the time of the birth as to harm Quill.

Quill broke Katia's wandering thoughts as she muttered, "I get I need to provide sap, I really do, but exactly how much is this 'little' kid supposed to drink? Any more and I'll take root!"

"They look good on you," Katia said, "I think the next time we share a dream, mind if I-"

"Oh, fuck off," Quill snapped, then clammed her muzzle shut with her hand. "Damn it. Kat, I'm sorry, I didn't mean that." Quill sighed with relief as Katia's comforting smile didn't diminish, she just nodded reassuringly before the argonian continued, "look, I'm all over the place with all these changes. I never even considered having a kid, let alone the way this one came about, or how it'd react with being the way we are and all. Just... give me time, alright? I'm almost pining for those 'peaceful' months of hunting bandits near Leyawiin again."

"We're in this together, as always, Quilly. I won't do anything you don't want to. But I do mean it; you look great. Like it suits you." Katia held out a beckoning hand in front of her soon to be spouse.

Quill grumbled but despite her tumultuous mood she placed her hand on the pink pads of Katia's hand and just held one another, fingers interlocked and she squeezed the soft yellow furred hand. "I don't_feel_ great. Here I am remembering what Eyes-In-Stars said about motherhood being 'the best adventure'. Hah. What a crock of shit."

Eyes-In-Stars. Katia had heard all about him (and briefly met him in a dream) after he became Quill's unborn child through a ritual where Quill imbibed as sliver of hist tree root suspended in sap. As Quill told it, Eiss (as he liked to be called by his nearest and dearest) was an extremely old argonian hist-shaman and alchemist. He was rescued by Quill while she was dealing with the Black Bow Bandits near Leyawiin to the far south and he helped her in return by assisting Quill gain some inner peace at a time struggled with her new place in the world.

Katia wasn't surprised to hear Quill was conflicted; she was, by her own words, a 'stick in the mud' who preferred her life of writing and occasional excursions to research her books. She was always a fan of settling down and picking her adventures and certainly not an imperial legionary, or a giantess archer with magic experience who was forced to strike out into the world at a moments notice.

Quill also wasn't sure about the curse's mental aspect had made her complicit, and even faithful, to the 'empress' aspect of Katia's psyche and the horror's she inflicted. Where that worship ended and any true attraction began was murky at best, but Eiss consoled and guided Quill down the path that brought her back to Katia to really try and make something of all this. Together, after nearly a year apart.

In that sense Katia also owed Eyes-In-Stars a great deal. That she was looking forward to helping raise a child was the biggest surprise, let alone a relationship with another woman that had made Katia so much more than she thought she would ever be. Like Quill, the khajiit had never considered having kittens, or a hatchling in this case, but with Quill and herself together it felt right. They would be a family, at least once they reached Riften and made it official. More than anything it gave Katia a greater sense of place in the world than she had ever felt before. That even if she lost all of her size and strength, that she belonged and was wanted.

Katia sighed and gently coaxed Quill to nestle against her more deeply and hugged her distressed lover. Her hand mingled with Quill's over her belly and they just looked each other in the eyes for a while. Once Katia earned a comforted smile back, they took in the scenery before felt a squirm and a kick as Quill grunted in pain. The khajiit gasped and said, "damn, he's strong as an minotaur."

Quill hissed and moaned, "feels as big and spiky as one too." They both sat in silence as the writhing continued before both mother and child settled. Quill nestled her head against the solid bulge of Katia's bicep.

"He totally gets this from you, by the way." Quill huffed, but Katia could see the corners of her mouth creep up.

"Right, because you're a tiny little waif, right?" Katia leered with a grin.

"Oh, please, little miss 'I can punt a dunmer through marble pillars.'"

"First, she kinda... flopped and broke against it. Second, I'm pretty sure all he might get from me is my eye colour, if the vision was anything to go by."

"It was more than a vision." Quill sighed and nibbled her lip. "Eyes-In-Stars' soul is within me. I'm actually a little worried if that means he won't be my child, just him as an infant. Wait... you said you see people as their spirits and souls when you dream walk. You could just look, couldn't you?"

Katia smirked and gave a dry laugh. "Yeah, no. In order for me to really know how to find someone when dream walking, I need to be familiar with them. I only met him in that vision and the details you told me which is great but I don't know how he feels or smells or whatever, or how he would react to me as a person instead of the formless shape I took when in your vision of him.

"Then the fact his soul is buried deep within yours as well just compounds things. Imagine..." Katia tilted her head and pursed her lips for a second before she continued, "okay, imagine trying to find a specific book in a library, only all the books are written in the same handwriting and the spines have markers that vary only slightly and you have a smeared picture of the markers.

"You get used to the look and feel of a book over time. You pick up and read a book enough times you know the little flaws on the cover and damage to the pages. You're that familiar book to me, but I only have that blurry picture of Eyes-In-Stars. I can find Tar-Meena because she was my handler when I first joined the legion and we traveled together a lot. I can even find Dar-Ma because of how I adopted parts of how you knew her from your dream, which was how I found her and even spoke to her when she was captured in Hackdirt, and she was super nice when you was recovering after all that mess and showed me around Chorral. I could maybe find Seed-Neeus because I've met her and such.

"Eyes-In-Stars is a total mystery to me. I suspect he's a mystery to you as well because of how much we didn't know about him and his past. Oh, and he holds a part of my soul inside of him, that part which he described like 'pruned branches' from my 'tree'... I'm getting myself confused with these metaphors now, but whatever. The important part is I can't see what I look like when I'm dream walking, so that doesn't help either. We'll just have to learn about him in a whole different way when he's born, eh?"

Katia gently stroked Quill's belly as the argonian sighed and pondered.

"I guess you're right. He told me some details but by the sounds of it he was hundreds of years old thanks to refreshing himself by some hist ritual. He even changed genders. But the real Eiss must have so much bound to him. Oh well. I still trust him."

"Even despite the reports of his attempt on the emperor? I'm not judging, I just want to be sure."

Quill frowned and stared into the distance. "Whatever he was doing, I'm sure if he meant harm he would have done so. The emperor's fine and Eiss still saved many lives helping to cure that plague in the imperial city. Yet he still died thanks to that asshole, Briarbird. I knew that gold-skinned fucker was trouble when we met when I was just a kid."

"Oh, yeah, the altmer agent. Yeah, fuck him. You hear he kept demanding we be dismissed or imprisoned and studied? Just a front to being killed because he hated beastfolk. Can't believe the empire kept him around. Wish I knew what sort of hist-trickery Eyes-In-Stars used though; that sort of detail would tell me a lot about him. I don't suppose you know much about hist rituals?"

Quill shrugged. "I'm not sure if I'm totally honest. You probably know more than me from your studies. I should look into it at some point; Eiss was pretty proud of the argonian ways. If my child still has his soul, I wonder if he'll still be like that or if he'll inherit more from me... or maybe even you!"

"Regardless what he inherits, with luck he won't get too much of the old me." Katia fidgeted and grumbled, "Beyond this size and strength I really don't know what else of value I have to give."

Katia was honestly not sure how much he would inherit since it wasn't from the blood. Both partners had seen him in the dreamlike world where Quill accepted his offer to allow him to be reborn and he truly did develop a combination of all three of their colours. His blue and purple twisted with Quill's own red and green yet Katia's yellow eyes.

"Hey, Kat, stop being down on yourself." Quill squeezed Katia's fingers. "After all you've achieved since the curse, it might not seem like it but I know you've always had strength within you. You were weak, but you grew so much in a short time after we met and I meant that besides the actual growth. Shit, you wouldn't have managed to join the mages guild. You've always carried on and never given up, and I guarantee that in time, you would have made a great wizard. Probably still will if you can keep studying besides your duties."

"Guess we'll see, huh?" Katia snickered but then sighed. As much as things had improved for her; a sense of purpose, duty, love, family. It felt like it was only because of her curse. Her size meant she was unmatched in a straight fight but that was all that was special about her. She looked at her arm and flexed, as if to study the swell of power; if she were her old, average height, she'd look every part a warrior as the hard peak of the muscle formed a hill beneath the yellow fur. At her height, she was truly monstrous, capable of destroying buildings with ease, and that was before she could grow to... Katia didn't even know how big she could grow, if she even had a limit.

How could she be truly proud if this was bestowed upon her rather than the hard-earned success she'd always craved? To earn respect, not fear masquerading as it.

Quill reached out and felt the mighty limb with an awe-struck expression. "It doesn't matter, Katia. What matters is now, and right now, you're the most impressive person I've ever met. You even have that cute face stacked on top of that amazing body, and if we were somewhere private, I'd make you do more with that body than just look gorgeous."

Katia's heart fluttered and took with it her maudlin thoughts; honest praise was still a huge deal to her. She kissed Quill on the neck. "Alright then. What's my best feature?" she asked as her smile grew wider.

Quill tapped her chin and drew out a hum as she pondered. "Well, besides the big, sexy ass, the perky tits, the adorable little pink nose, those pretty, intelligent eyes? Or the fact you're built like an orc with none of the ugly? Well, if you just have to put me on the spot to narrow it down to one attribute, I'd say... your spirit."

"My spirit," Katia said, flatly.

"Yep. Nothing more attractive to me than a tenacious woman who never quits. Strength of will and tenacity trumps body," Quill said and once more felt the bicep of Katia's arm and just appreciated the firmness and shape, the way it hardened and swelled as the khajiit flinched a little before the argonian continued, "the body is something to marvel at though."

"Ah, okay, I guess that makes sense. I've always wondered, after Dar-Ma and what's her name? Scribjella?"

Quill laughed. "You getting hungry, big girl? Casta Scribonia."

"Right. I mean, in your books, you always seemed to enjoy women of passion over anything else and she certainly was passionate by the sounds of it."

"And arrogant. Things really weren't going to last with that ego of hers. Dar-Ma was a real gem, unfalteringly kind and driven to help others but..." Quill's face flinched. She looked troubled for a moment but she bounced back when she looked into Katia's eyes and said, "well, that breakup was all on me. That's why I'm not only glad we got to bury the hatchet but I'm also really glad you got on so well."

"Dar-Ma's wonderful. If anything proved that my luck turned, it's that she wasn't my competition for you. Again, she had such a strong heart. Or spirit, I guess. Okay! Good pick, Quilly. Very profound."

A long silence besides the whistling wind and loud yet relaxing rush of the river.

"...well?" Quill finally asked.

Katia tilted her head and they stared at each other before the argonian's tail whipped against her leg.

Quill huffed through her nostrils. "You're still new to this whole tender relationship stuff, so I'll give you a hint; when your partner gushes over you, generally you should...?" Quill trailed off.

Katia tilted her head the other way, "...snuggle? Oh, do we kiss?... Fuck?"

Quill laughed so loud it caught Katia by surprise. It was a rare sound from the usually reserved argonian, but Katia couldn't help but join in.

"Try again, kitten. Think like an equal."

"Oh- oh!" Katia licked her lips and bounced a little. "Um. I guess, if I had to pick... I'd say the ass and tail."

"Wait, really? Is this to do with the first night we made love? I mean, a good tail-fuck is nice, but-"

"Well, sure, that's probably part of it." Katia interrupted and shrugged, then a coy smile emerged as she remembered that first night together. She shook herself from it and continued, "I guess I like a good chunky argonian tail and the hips, the ass... the whole area. Like, even before you changed, and probably thanks to Dar-Ma's aspect in me, you had a fucking amazing ass."

"I guess I did run a lot, plus the parkour." Quill shrugged and stood with effort from her belly, then let her hands pat around Katia's newly uncovered favourite spots of her as the khajiit licked her lips. "I suppose the additional size and strength only added to it, eh? A little extra on an already good thing?"

"Like you wouldn't believe! Rowr!" Katia pawed at Quill's hips and stroked as they both winked at each other. "I mean, that and_every thing you did for me. It meant the world anyway, but adding romance to it just made all the kindness extra special." She stood, but took a knee and wrapped her arms around Quill. They shared a deep, unrestrained kiss. "_You're extra special. It's just your ass is even more so."

She wrapped her hands around Quill and gave her tail and rump another squeeze.

"Alright, not that I'm at all eager to get to Riften so we can get some privacy or anything," Quill said and wiggled her eye-ridges, "but we've rested enough, kitten. Let's get moving." Quill clasped her coat together and grumbled as her prodigious frame made it a major struggle, although even after succeeding, her cavernous cleavage didn't exactly seem suitable for the cold air.

"I_could_ just grow bigger and carry us there in a fraction the time. You know that, right? Especially now you can drain my magicka and shrink me. I get you wanted to make this your last trip and exercise before settling down until the laying or... birthing or whatever, but that was before these changes."

"Right, our first excursion together away from the legion and I'll have to explain why Skyrim suddenly has giant khajiit footprints, flattened trees and, knowing our luck, some daft fool bandit who doesn't recognise when they're outmatched and you end up causing an avalanche or something when you stomp on them."

"Or you could risk your coat exploding because your hist-sacks keep getting bigger. I mean, I'll enjoy the view more, I guess, but if you_reeeaaaallly_ want to hoof it..." Katia slowly walked ahead, and stopped with a wag of her tail when she heard a deep sigh.

"For fuck sake, Kat. Fine!" Quill threw her hands up and let them droop in defeat. "Strip down and... oh, good, you've already done it. You've gotta explain how you do that some day."

Katia, naked except her growth inhibiting amulet, couldn't help but pose as she stuck her large, round ass out for Quill to get an eyeful. She then raised her arms and flexed.

"Feel free to sit back down and enjoy the show, Quilly. It'll take a little while."

With a dramatic tug, Katia's necklace popped free. While she was born under the sign of the atronach, a star sign that offered deep magicka reserves at the expense of no ability to produce her own, Katia was unique; some aspect of either the curse or her defeat of Mehrunes Dagon had unlocked a form (albeit slower) of the natural magicka recovery most others enjoyed. As her reserves peaked, the flow didn't stop. Instead it overflowed into her body and fuelled the curse. This wasn't a fast snap like in the dream, and being in a relaxed state, Katia drank into and enjoyed the feeling.

With every pulse, her blood carried with it a richness of magic and as it diffused into her body, more of her was needed to receive it. Katia knew part of the curse came from the conjuration school of magic, so in a sense more of her was 'summoned' from wherever the curse originated and became a real part of her, and then the next heartbeat repeated the process. At least that was her theory since she distinctly remembered many details except for how to cast it.

Restoration was another aspect of what was more of a blessing, as any damaged flesh and bone would knit and any aches were relieved, but most telling was the way her whole body felt like she was enjoying the worlds longest and greatest stretch after a deep and blissful sleep; it reinvigorated her and gave her what could only be described as a high greater than any drink she'd partaken in, any sex she had been party to (although this was now heavily contested, Katia gleefully admitted) or likely any drug.

Katia winked at Quill, who sat back down and watched with wonderment as Katia grew from twenty feet to twenty five, then she closed her eyes and widened her stance. Her feet dragged and fought against the ground, which made it feel like they pulled together as she grew and also meant she would be adjusting her position every few seconds.

As she hit thirty feet, and Katia settled into the gradual and impossible growth, she suddenly yelped as a blast of warmth hit her back and her size boosted in a rapid spike.

"What the fuck?" Katia spun about with hand raised and wreathed in flame, ready to counter, only to look at the raised hands of her partner. The classic mage hand position.

"As much as I'm enjoying the show," Quill said with a shrug, "I'd rather get to Riften before dark, so stand still while I speed things up."

Katia stuck her tongue at the now knee high argonian and her ears flattened back in mock anger. "Damn it I was enjoying that," she sighed. Rapid growth was more like gulping a shot of cold water on a hot day or a peck on the cheek rather than a long hug; great but short lived. It even spoiled the long, drawn out sense of her 'natural' enlargement. "Oh, alright. Go for it. And don't worry about hurting me; I'll heal even if I don't absorb it."

The khajiit spun about, thrust out her ass and wiggled it, complete with swaying tail, with a mocking, "do your worst, apprentice!"

"Oh, I will, journeyman," Quill-Weave snickered as she fought the urge to stare at the thick, delicious fuzzy peach before her. If it were anyone else Quill wouldn't risk even casting near another person; it had been drilled into her that you don't just throw magic around unless you want to be arrested.

With Katia, this was different. All people were born under star-signs that offered quirks and abilities; some had spells unique to their sign, others were especially wilful and tough. Katia, born under the sign of the atronach, had deep magicka reserves and, at least before the curse, no ability to produce her own magicka.

Katia usually needed to drink potions, find those weird mana wells back in Cyrodiil situated in ancient ruins or, mostly by her peers in the mage guild, have people cast spells at her. This was because the most interesting part of the atronach sign was that roughly half the spells used on her were absorbed and converted into the sign-bearer's magicka. Once upon a time this would be harmless spells as the effects as a precaution, but with Katia's growth also inducing an extremely strong form of regeneration and her sheer size meaning even a strong spell would likely just sting and perhaps cause a superficial wound at worst (as Katia had even mentioned), the lesser giantess decided to go for broke.

Quill hadn't really had a chance to unleash some of her newest spells so she let her reserves flow up to full and she readied her most potent spell; an ice bolt. The energy seemed to pull the cool air in between her fingers and condense into a hard spike of ice. She felt every inch of her power empty into her fingertips as she swung her hands up, around, together and threw it all at the now fifty foot tall Katia's back.

Only to be met with a quake through the ground and a ripple in the air as the giantess doubled in height with a flash of purple light.

Katia's feet crashed together and she stumbled, each footfall a deep thump and a tremor as her vast weight meant her feet tore long gouges into the ground instead of granting any sort of grip and showered the area in soil. Her arms and tail flailed wildly to correct herself but with a final spin she flipped head over heels down the hill. The ground quaked and a high crash of water sprayed up from the river as Quill hurried as fast as she could to the crest of the riverbank.

There, face down in the river with her legs sprawled up the opposite bank, complete with a respectable impression of two circular imprints in the distinct shape of a colossal khajiit's ass and a gouge from the tail, was Katia. She pushed herself out of the river and coughed up a few basins worth of water, then sat up and shook her whole body like a dog. It was like rain from the sheer amount of water that had seeped into her fur although the thicker, fluffier parts of her cheeks sagged.

Quill wasn't too worried; as Katia continued to grow, any potential unremarked injury would heal rapidly but all the same, she called out, "you okay, Kat? I'm sorry, but you did say not to hold back."

"I'm alright. I guess you were right about the prints thing, though." Katia sighed as her ass-craters finished filling with water as the river continued unabated and she crawled out of the ravine. She looked down at her lover who only stood twice as high as her ankle. "Whatever, this is way more than enough. We'll get there before sunset and then some! Not bad, Quilly! You're a damn good mage already!"

The now hundred and sixty foot khajiit cricked her neck and with a wag of her tail she accidentally dislodged an embedded rock from the hillside. With a gesture she purged her magicka with her wasteful spell in a flash of discordant lights. She then slowly lowered an open palm for Quill to climb onto. Quill gratefully hopped on, sat down, and relaxed against the firm pink pads and soft yellow fur of Katia's hand with her legs dangling between the fingers, safe in the feeling of being held by her soon to be spouse as Katia brought her up to her chest and settled into stride.

Katia_could_ walk quicker or jog but as she estimated herself to be thousands of tons in weight at that size (a size she had used for transporting building materials back home many times), and after being forced to help rebuild Cyrodiil's roads more times than she could count, she had learned to tread slowly and softly as well as to walk beside the stone path rather than on it.

Quill cast the occasional damage magicka spell on Katia's hand to help stop further growth, but beyond that they braved the upcoming landscape with a sense of adventure and togetherness.

* * *

They followed the river for a few miles and passed the occasional cave, a standing stone which Quill took note to investigate at a future date, but the real stand out was a high bridge over the river connected by a pair of old towers. A couple of armoured figures hastily retreated into the structures at Katia's approach but the pair gave them no heed; at her size, arrows were nothing more to Katia than being poked by a stick. Ahead, the river picked up speed and cascaded over and down an enormous waterfall as tall as Katia was at present which dropped into a pine tree forest and a narrow path to the south.

Quill looked up at Katia who eyed the drop with a mischievous grin, and the giantess' passenger immediately balked, "Kat, don't."

"What? It's a short drop. No big deal."

"For you? No doubt, if you weren't burdened twice over," Quill said and rubbed her taut belly which offered a responsive kick in return. "Also the ground's gonna be slick down there so you'll probably slip. Oh, and let's not forget you'll probably spook the wildlife for miles around from the impact. Odds are you'll be fine, even if you slip and break something, but what about if you draw attention to us?"

Katia pouted and her ears folded back. It would have been adorable if she wasn't a colossus built like she could break any tree in the area with a flick of her tail, let alone her rippling limbs.

"A break away from authority and Tar-Meena's brow- uh, eye-ridge beating and I still can't have any fun..."

"Kat, grow up. We're getting married, which is supposed to be a sign of being mature enough to want to settle in with someone for the rest of your life and we're going to raise a kid."

"What if I put you down here and jumped down? I could probably reach back up and grab you again."

"I said no." Quill pointed at the winding narrow (at least for Katia's current size) path to the south. "Just take the path slow and it'll be fine."

"I don't like the look of how narrow it is. I also don't want to risk falling while holding you, so I'll have to put you down and pick you up from the bottom. Which, y'know, I might as well leap down anyway, right?"

Quill snorted and snapped, "why is this so important to you?"

Katia looked around, then at the horizon, then back at Quill and said, "because I'm sick of having to constantly being careful when I'm big, or just always. I get it, I'm strong and dangerous, but not once have I been able to just... just let loose, you know? Really throw my weight and strength against something. When even poking something with a finger can destroy a building and just standing in the wrong spot makes everyone panic and freak out.

"Do you have any idea how often I imagine just running from one end of the continent to the other and stretch my legs to the full, as the land blurs beneath me? To feel the ground shake and fracture with every footfall because I'm just... existing? It's like the world's made of glass or like every structure is a precious vase or something, and if I accidentally lean on something, or make a wrong step, or even tread too heavy, I'm in the wrong. Mistakes that people take for granted every day, a dropped cup or even fucking sneezing when I'm not paying attention and everyone starts screaming at me.

"I just want to do something that'll let me scratch that itch. I can get away with more when I'm small, but I don't even know how a lot of things feel when I'm this big. I just want to experience the world at a size I'm probably supposed to be if the curse is anything to go by. I know you like swimming and you get cranky if you don't have a dip in the Rumare every so often. Or imagine if you could fly but you're constantly told not to? It's really frustrating."

Quill sighed and stared up at those bright yellow eyes. After a few laboured seconds she took a deep breath, gave a loud, exasperated second sigh and rolled her eyes.

"Fine, you enormous baby. Let me down and give me a second to brace before you shake Skyrim awake."

Katia lowered her arm at a slow and well practised pace. The year spent lifting and transporting building materials and people across Cyrodiil had made her very cautious whenever she was big. Every footfall could crush even the sturdiest of structures and even walking too near a farm could spook the animals and cause so much carnage. Her magically bolstered ability to move faster than most assumed she could while at her larger sizes could cause any cargo she held to 'float' from her grip. By any other standard, most people with Katia's abilities would be a monster, whether accidentally or out of maliciousness.

But Quill couldn't help but appreciate the comfortable pace of her descent or the way she brought herself to one knee to help keep the motion smooth for the giantess' passenger when she suddenly felt a wave of guilt. She had her own sense of unease while she and Katia were separated and on duty for the legion, both on patrol away from the khajiit's transportation of building materials for Anvil and as they were assessed for any behaviour that suggested a return to the carnage they had caused when first afflicted.

Quill had been frustrated. Angry even. At Katia, at the world and her situation. It was because of Eyes-In-Stars and his guidance that she overcame her angst and made the most of her new place in life.

Katia, though? Her guilt at what she did to Anvil led her to throw herself into her work with more diligence and commitment than a woman turned colossus probably should in such a short time, especially so early on in her attempts to reinvent herself. A woman who struggled with impulses and addiction and who had only recently gone teetotaller. A woman who could lash out and live her own life and nobody could have stopped her, yet chose to learn how to build, how to fight and still study magic and try to make Cyrodiil a safer place for everyone.

Quill felt her heart grow warm; she was so damn proud of Katia for putting up with her place in life, and all she wanted was to not be constrained for just a moment. Yes, as an argonian, Quill felt a desire to swim. It was like an itch that you couldn't scratch with a bath or even a heavy rain. To feel weightless in the water and breathe through the gills was heavenly.

Who was she to stop Katia from exploring a new and natural aspect of herself?

Katia's hand had reached the ground Quill hopped off. She grunted as she had to support her burdensome form again and rested against the slope beside the path.

Once in place beneath a smooth section of hill with fewer rocks at risk of falling, Quill called out, "Kat?"

The khajiit stood and her ears stood stood erect as she met Quill's gaze.

"I'm sorry. I was being inconsiderate. I've been difficult and snide while you've been nothing if not accommodating to my needs. I know a bit about how it must feel when an act as simple as leaning on a wall or even bumping into someone could be harmful, let alone live with the knowledge of how much of a risk you pose simply by interacting with people. You're doing a damn good job, Kat, and never think otherwise."

"Thanks, but... I get it. I'm not exactly the ideal person to be given all this power. It's difficult to really describe the feeling so I can't expect you to know, so I should really be clearer."

"It's alright, kitten. Do your thing. We'll have time to talk about it properly soon. We have the rest of our lives, after all." Quill smiled as Katia nodded and looked at ease.

The khajiit, who looked every bit the massive kitten as she rubbed her hands and wriggled about as she warmed up. The ground cracked from the tiniest hops she made before she looked over the precipice, licked her lips, crouched low, and sprung.

The reality of being an unnaturally strong giantess was never as obvious as that moment. Katia's bodyweight looked like nothing more than her normal weight if she were her old height, only with her far more athletic body. She leapt almost as high as she stood and off the edge of the falls as she tucked her legs up for the apex.

Quill braced herself as the air whipped up from a creature that big leaping that quickly. Leaves, grass and the soil from the kick off swirled after her and the ground shifted as though the land itself was relieved to be free of the burden of thousands of tons of khajiit.

Katia seemed to linger in the air for longer than she should, as if the reality of so much weight being hurled upward takes the world longer to make sense of it, catch up and drag her back down. But she inevitably did. Katia fell and her legs began to extend to receive the ground as she crested the waterfall's edge and vanished completely.

Quill pressed herself as hard against the cliff as there was what she could only describe as an explosion.

The ground cracked and the whole world seemed to shake. A geyser of dirt, rock and water was flung upward along with a yelp from Katia that echoed through the woodland. The treeline was alive with a vast swarm of birds as they scattered away from the impact and the argonian sighed for a third time and shook her head.

"Ow," Katia said once the rumble ceased. "I slipped and whacked my head on the cliff."

Another tremor, a little grunt of effort and once more, a yellow furred hand emerged from over the falls and opened like a gigantic flower, ready to receive Quill.

"You feel better?" Quill said as she struggled on again. She kept her tone serious but grinned like a maniac at the audacity of having a lover who could literally shake the earth and bit back an 'I told you so.'

"Hurt like a bitch, but it was nice in a weird way. Really messed up the ground, though."

"I'm sure the local... what're they called, jarls? I'm sure they'll send a complaint our way via Chancellor Ocato if it's that bad or noticeable."

"Hopefully we can find a nice secluded space somewhere so I can really relax and vent, but I got it out of my system for now. If I'm honest that's been building for a while."

"Okay, hold still, kitten. I'm climbing on," Quill said and patted the man-length index finger, then clambered back as she was before, secure on the rougher pink pads and soft fur.

Katia once again lowered her arm steadily as she stepped back from the waterfall and cradled Quill against her chest. The argonian peered over the edge of her lover's hand and saw the devastation her lover had made; the bedrock was a spiderweb of cracks all surrounding two foot-shaped craters as long as Katia was normally tall that streaked out to the side where she slipped. Halfway up the side of the waterfall was a big section of fresh stone where the old, worn material had fallen away. Katia's head looked fine but the stone and dust in the fur on the side of her head was telltale and her hand was wet where she had no doubt pushed herself up when she tumbled.

"Alright, let's see," Katia peered to the south to plan her route. "If I walk off the road, I can probably get us there a bit quicker; less stuff to damage except maybe a tree if it gets too tight."

With a nod from Quill, the couple once more ventured on towards their union.

Beauteous and lush forests gave way to volcanic springs and a boneyard of mammoths and other beasts. Both giantess' were in agreement that as much as they would both enjoy the warm waters, having to shrink Katia down and regrow her after their fun would have been too time consuming, so they agreed they would stop on the way back and even noted it might make a good birthing pool if they stayed here for longer than intended; one pool they tested and its warm waters were a fair approximation to the muggy, humid swamps of Blackmarsh.

A vertical climb up a narrow ledge barely wider than Katia's feet later and they were in a region known as The Rift. If it wasn't already obvious the year was on the wane, the sea of golden leaves stretched before them, half on the trees and the rest carpeting the ground in what few gaps were visible.

After a few steps into the forest, Katia mumbled, "eh, it's nowhere near as fun."

"What's that?"

"The crunch of the leaves. It's just not the same this big."

"Heh. It's funny the things we both miss being like this. I miss not blowing a months pay on theilul just to get a buzz. Not that I plan to drink like this..." Quill grumbled and glowered at her belly and earned a solid kick in response from the infant and she rubbed it again. "If I didn't know better I'd almost take that as a demand. The answer's no, kiddo. No booze until you're out of me."

"Oh, oh! There! I see Riften!" Katia pointed as she lifted Quill up to her eye level.

Quill glanced out and saw the city; the large stone walls on the edge of a vast lake, wooden piers venturing forth on the water and ships out and roaming as they fished and ventured for farther settlements. It was still some ways up a long incline and a nearly endless sea of golden trees.

"It's beautiful." Katia mused.

"Sure is. It'll be even more so when we find a place to bunk up for a few days and arrange things with the Temple of Mara."

"This is finally it, isn't it?" Katia said with a soft smile and her eyes glistened in the setting sun. "After everything I've just accepted would be my lot in life; the drunken whoring, the failures, the standing up just to fall over and over again... it finally feels like I've overcome it."

"Kat, hey," Quill called and tapped Katia's cheek. "None of that now; we're here. No tears of sorrow or pity. Just us." They just stared for a moment before Katia brought Quill against her cheek and the argonian did her best to hug the huge muzzle of her lover. They then looked at Riften once more.

"Well, I doubt we'll be especially welcome if we turn up with you shaking the earth. Let me down and let's get you back to something more manageable, eh?"

"Oh, right. Heh, just when this felt normal."

Katia let Quill down once more, purged her magic, and sat down with a final shake of the ground that sent more leaves tumbling to the floor in a pretty autumnal cascade. Quill leaned against Katia's thigh, placed her hand in a smooth, muscular bulge and began to drain the khajiit's already depleted power.

The effect was immediate. Katia's miraculous ability to push beyond her atronach limitations and develop her own magicka was still slow and Quill's continuous drain sent a cool, if somewhat uncomfortable sensation through the vast khajiiti's body and she dwindled in a slow, smooth rate. Her view lowered and her body dragged the leaves around her into a pile between her legs as she dropped below a hundred feet, then eighty. Quill slowly walked in alongside with the reducing limb until, with a cold prickle up the khajiit's body, she hit her twenty foot limit.

Quill stepped back, and in the time it took for her to check their surroundings for any threats, Katia had once more clad herself with her armour and overcoat from wherever she kept her things. She visualised it into a 'bar' (or so she said), but it just confused Quill-Weave enough that she didn't question it and Katia was glad she didn't need to explain it further. With a final flourish, Katia produced her amulet and secured it around her neck with a wince as the discomfort of her magicka reserves were reduced just a little.

It was strange; to have Katia as large as she was for so long that now her smallest height seemed truly tiny despite how she loomed over the argonian. Quill took her partner in again; a furred winter overcoat surrounded piecemeal armour suit several layers thick that made her nigh-impervious to common blades, complete with a surcoat depicting the ivy-like design of Cheydinhal. It covered Katia's body and especially her legs, considering where most blows would land on her, but her upper arms were only loosely covered in chain (it was still a work in progress). Her head was covered in a chain coif that exposed her ears and face, but she had a hard time seeing her 'little' foes with a full face helmet, and any blow could be healed by magic or by a simple tug of her 'drama clasp' necklace to instigate the regeneration tied to her growth.

Besides her armour, she had a massive cleaver tucked into a basic leather and wood sheath on her side. Cleaver was probably a bit over-kind; it was a slab of crude iron with a sharpened edge and a section rounded out for a handle. Apparently the legion were in the process of putting together a proper sized axe for her, although they had to find a wood and metal combination of the right size and strength to withstand her mighty swings. She had even been studying the Skyrim variant of spellcasting, something about being able to cast one handed while using the other for either a second spell or a weapon, which sounded useful. Apparently that was a form of apology from the K'vatch mage guild leader over something that Katia promised to talk about some day but seemed reluctant to for now.

Quill nodded and said, "you wear your armour well, Agent Katia Managan. Like a hero. I'd piss my britches if I saw you approaching and I was some sort of criminal scum."

Katia smirked, flexed an arm and said "still getting used to the 'being scary without my eye of fear' thing, considering I used to weigh like a hundred pounds soaking wet and now I'm... what was it? Four tons and a few hundred pounds spare?"

"Yep, and not a single ton spent wrong, if you ask me," Quill said and gave a playful swat on Katia's rump as she started on the path up the hill. "alright, let's go meet the locals."

Katia jogged up beside Quill and took her hand as they slowly walked amidst the scattering of autumn leaves, a backdrop of a waning year, with renewal in their hearts.

* * *