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Elder Scrolls V Skyrim: Adventures of the White Wolf - Pieces of a Promise

Frost frowned as he looked up at the sky above them, angry looking black clouds were swirling around the top of the mountain that they were climbing as a light flurry of snow blew across his face. An unnatural charge was hanging in the air and was getting stronger as the two got closer to the summit. It didn't help that the trees that they were passing in the gray mountain landscape looked long dead but refusing to fully decay, leaving withered husks and rotted stumps along the path that they had to take. The sight was causing the fur on his tail to bristle out as his armored feet crunched softly in the mountain snow. He didn't like the look of it one bit.

“M'rissi don't like the look of this…" His companion said as she followed the mountain path behind him. “Let's go home, yes?"

Frost stopped and looked back at his companion. “If you're really that scared Fluffy, you can either go back to Dawnstar or head home."

The strange looking Khajiit glared at him as she wrinkled her humanoid nose. “How many times does she have to tell you, she is not Fluffy! She is pretty, and… cute."

“That she is." He said under his breath with a grin.

“And, M'rissi is not scared." She continued defiantly. “She is… Just worried. Yes. She is worried that you will get into trouble and you will drag M'rissi into it too. She doesn't want to be dragged into potential trouble."

“If you say so." Frost chuckled as he looked at her with a smile. “But right now we need to hurry to the summit and stop Silus. So you can either tag along or head back down the mountain."

M'rissi nodded, a bit dejected as she walked up to him. “She stays close."

The two continued to fight against the light flurry as they went up the snow covered path and Frost couldn't help but think about how odd the two of them must look. He was a wolf-like Lykaios mercenary slash adventurer with mostly white fur and a hair-like mane of light blue. He had been wandering for most of his life with a band of mercenaries that he had called family, The Howling Wolves. They were always on the move from one location to another, at least until they were all but wiped out and he was on his own from then on. He had come to Skyrim in search for his own gold and glory, perhaps more if he could ever find it.

She on the other hand was an enigma, her story shrouded in amnesia. He thinks that perhaps she might have been a regular Khajiit with more normal feline features once upon a time, but somehow she had been altered and given a more humanoid or elven face with raven hair and a mix of dark brown fur colors on her back, arms and legs. Their only clue to her identity was a note written to her and a strange ring that had been with it.

They were quite literally a cat and dog traveling companions, both looking for something that they may never find.

A strong wind drew him back out of his musings and the task at hand. Frost was the first to see the top of the summit through the haze and the sight made the rest of his fur stand on end. Barely visible through the snow was a form of a giant, four arm, evil-looking demonic figure that was carved into the stone peak . No doubt a follower's depiction of the Daedra, Mehrunes Dagon sitting upon a stone throne that was no doubt the entrance to his shrine.

“Do you hear that?" M'rissi asked as they got to the bottom of the shrine's steps.

Frost stopped and listened, trying to pick out what M'rissi might have heard through the wind. “Chanting." He said as he looked back at her. “We're close and by the sounds of it we better hurry." M'rissi nodded and followed him up as he ran up the steps, the steel plate armor that Frost was wearing clanked with every stride he took. No doubt announcing their climb had anything been paying attention.

As they approached the top of the steps, they could see the carved statue in all its glory. It was no doubt an image of Mehrunes Dagon looking very much like he was ready to pull himself out of the mountain peak, looking down at a carved stone altar and Silus standing next to it with the pieces of the Razor laid out on the altar.

“Mehrunes Dagon, The Lord of Change," The human Imperial chanted as he held his arms up to the statue. “We have brought your Razor to you. We beg you, please bring the blade's full glory to Tamriel again!" The wind whipped around the three but nothing else happened. “It's not working…" Silus muttered under his breath, trying to think of how to contact the god like being.

“Silus!"

The human turned and saw Frost and M'rissi standing at the top of the steps to the shrine. “Ah, good. You're here."

“Yeah, I'm here." The wolf growled as he approached the human imperial. “What in the name of the nine divines are you thinking?"

“I told you back at my museum, I'm trying to ask Mehrunes Dagon to reforge his Razor." He crossed his arms as he turned towards the shrine. “It's not working." He sighed in frustration which made Frost relax some.

“It's obvious that Dagon doesn't want anything to do with us nor does he want to reforge the dagger. Let's just grab the pieces and head home."

Silus just glared at the Lykaios. “With the pieces on the altar, Dagon should speak to us." His eyes lit up as a thought occurred to him. “Why don't you give it a try?"

“What?"

“Just try it." Silus said a bit more forcibly. “Just put your hands on the altar."

“I will not."

“Think of what a boon it will be to have the full Razor. Not just some old, fractured pieces." Silus argued, walking up to the larger Lykaios. “With a repaired Mehrunes' Razor, we could also use it to bring back the Mythic Dawn."

“Not interested." Frost growled, baring his teeth at the human. “I only got those pieces for you so you could have a little more to display at your museum. Not bring back some past cult that belongs buried."

Frost reaches for the cloth that the blade's pieces were on with the intent of removing them from the altar. However, as soon as his hands were over the stone surface, Silus reached out and pushed the Lykaios' hand down. As soon as Frost's hand touched the surface, a sonic boom emanating from the shrine's entrance that was between the carving's legs knocked both Silus and M'rissi back away from the altar.

“You." A heavy voice boomed from everywhere, yet nowhere. “Mortal. You are worthy of speaking to." Frost assumed that the voice belonged to Mehrunes Dagon, though he wasn't completely sure. “You have claimed the pieces of my Razor." The voice sounded almost pleased as the Daedra spoke. “It has been an amusing game to witness. Though some instances were… Disappointing."

“Glad to be of some entertainment." Frost said, a bit of defiance seeping into his voice. “If you excuse us, we will be leaving now."

“Stop." the Voice boomed again, almost knocking everyone off their feet from the shockwave. “Dagon does not declare a winner while there are pawns on the board. Kill them. Silus and his family have served their purpose. Isael's toy is of no interest to me. Kill Them. Kill them both."

'Israel? Who is that?' Frost thought to himself. Then it dawned on him fully what Dagon had said, causing the Lykaios' eyes grew wide. “Wait… What did you say?"

“Kill them. Take your rightful place as my champion, or…" The voice grew more threatening. “I will crush you."

“Wait. Wait," Silus said in disbelief. He quickly picked himself out from where he had landed in a snow drift. He quickly ran up to the wolf and grabbed him. “Don't kill me." He pleaded, shaking the Lykaios in desperation.

“M'rissi told you she had bad feelings." The feline hybrid scolded as she picked herself off the ground. She was very lucky that the two sonic booms didn't simply knock her off the mountain.

“There… There has to be another way." Silus continued to beg. “Gold… I-I will give you a generous amount of gold. I will take the pieces back home to complete my collection and nobody has to die."

Frost shoved the human off of him. “I don't care about your gold." He snarled as he looked at the human as he placed a hand on the hilt of his sword, making the imperial shrink away in fright as a hand went to a dagger in his belt. Frost ignored the human and turned to M'rissi. “Take Silus and get off the mountain. In fact, make sure he gets home to Dawnstar and stays there."

“But…" M'rissi started as she came up to him. “What about you? M'rissi will be worried for you, she knows that you will need her help."

“I know, but I need you to make sure Silus gets to town safely. I will follow as soon as I can, I promise." He said as he placed a hand on her shoulder, looking into her eyes. “You know me well enough now that if I make a promise..."

“You keep it..." She looked up into his eyes and she could see that he didn't want to be separated from her anymore than she did, but they both knew that things were getting dangerous. “Don't die on her." She said and gave him a quick hug.

“Kill Them." Dagon's voice commanded as a dark swirling vortex appeared where the entrance of the shrine was. “Kill them all."

M'rissi hurried over to Silus and grabbed the front of his robe. “Let's go, yes?" She said as she shoved him towards the steps, spurring him into action.

She followed after Silus, but stopped at the steps down from the mountain shrine. Her ears twitched as she heard grunting like someone speaking some unknown language. She couldn't help but to look back, spotting two large red skin humanoids that had black horns arching above their heads that were approaching Frost with their weapons drawn. Without giving it much thought, M'rissi grabbed her bow and notched an arrow as she skillfully drew the bow back in one fluid motion. In the span of a few seconds, the arrow went from being in its quiver to flying through the air and striking one of the approaching Dremora between the eyes. The red humanoid's head flew back from the force of the arrow hitting him but much to her dismay though, the Dremora simply lowered his gaze down at her before reaching up and snapping the shaft that was protruding from his head.

"Another who seeks Death!" It taunted, reaching towards her as a red energy emitted from his outstretched hand. "Fall before me!"

The reddish energy washed over her like a wave, causing her to react by falling onto her rear as her heart started to beat faster in her chest. She tried to will herself to move but her body refused to budge. A feeling that she hasn't felt in the past few months since she had been traveling with Frost washed over her, an emotion that she had all but forgotten about.

Fear.

Shards of forgotten memories started to creep back from the lock depths of her mind, freezing her in place. Images of people and places that felt both foren and familiar flashed before her eyes, causing her body to shut down and feeding the hex that the Dremora placed on her. The Dremora gave her a toothy smile as he approached her, blade already at the ready and was being raised to strike. M'rissi could only watch in horror as her body screamed at her to move and the Dremora got within striking distance of her. Just as he started to swing his sword at her, a black blade with an angry blood red glow enveloping it emerged from the Dremora's chest armor. The Dremora gurgled up blood as the katana blade was pulled out of his body and was spinned around only to be striked across the cheek by another blade, sending him sprawling across the snow as black blood splattered across the snow.

Her view was blocked as another form stepped in front of her as a white tail swished inches from her nose, breaking her out of her trance. Frost stood protectively in front of her with each hand holding the two unique blades that he carried with him, the katana and a smaller wakizashi. She could see that both of the black curved blades glowed with an unnatural aura, the katana enveloped in a deep crimson like sheath of energy that had gone through the Dremora while the wakizashi was emitting a deep purple like charge. In her travels with the Lykaios, she had never seen the strange swords glow like that.

Frost looked over his shoulders at her. “Run!" He barked. “Get out of here, hurry!" M'rissi could see that the two Dremora were picking themselves up from the ground, moving in a way that showed they were obviously injured but not out of the fight yet. “RUN!" He shouted again as he changed the closest Dremora.

M'rissi collected enough of her wit that as Frost charged the two, she scrambled for the steps and rapidly made her way down the snowy mountain stairs. She quickly caught up to Silus in the gray haze and continued to make their escape as the sound of the fight was slowly replaced by the howling wind…

. . .

It was well past midday and the sun came out and cleared the snowy haze as the citizens of Dawnstar went about their daily lives, some following a daily schedule while others were doing various tasks that they needed done. The only one not moving about was a smaller Khajiit hybrid that stood at the end of the Windpeak Inn's porch as she watched the road that descended into the town. Since arriving in Dawnstar, M'rissi has taken up watch at the edge of the in to keep a lookout for her companion through the gray haze that has settled on the land. She couldn't help but feel a bit of guilt because running away from the fight and leaving Frost to fend for himself against the two demonic Dremora. In their short time together, they had been inseparable for several adventures and never once did they seperate for very long. Not like this anyway.

The sound of the inn's door opening caused her ear to twitch as she heard their voices clearly.

“I assure you, my son." The one voice spoke, belonging to the local dark skin, long ears priest. “There's nothing wrong with you. There's not even a scratch on you that I could find."

“I just want to make sure that you haven't missed anything." Silus said as he chased after the Dunmer or Dark Elf as they were more commonly known as. “There was a Deadric involved, are you sure you didn't miss a hex or curse mark?"

“I assure you, I checked you over for any kind curse, hex, or diseases." The elf said with a bit of frustration. “I assure you, you are perfectly fine. Now go with Mara's blessings."

“But…" Silus looked like he was going to say more, but thought better of it “Fine… Thank you, Erandur."

“May the Light of Mara guide your path." Erandur said as Silus started down the road that would lead to his house. The dark elf just shook his head and sighed as he watched the imperial head for his home before turning his attention to M'rissi. “Greetings child," He said as he walked up to her. “What has you so troubled that you feel that you must stand vigilance by the road?"

It took a bit of will power not to simply hiss at the elf and attempt to drive him away. She still harbors a deep hatred for elves and disliked being anywhere near the “Long-ears" for any length of time. Though, with Frost's help and having to interact with a few herself, had shown her that not all the elves were the same. So now M'rissi was at least able to tolerate them now without instinctively hissing at one.

“M'rissi is not a child." She told him, not taking her eyes off the hill where the road crests over it. “She is waiting for her companion to return. She is… Worried for him. He is taking too long to come back to town."

“The white wolf that you were with earlier today?" Erandur asked, which M'rissi nodded. “Take heart. Faith in each other will bring the two of you together again." He said as he stood next to her. She looked at him quizzically. “It is only natural to worry for one that you care for, but remember that you each have traveled separately before arriving together. Trust in Mara…" Erandur said as he patted her shoulder. “Her divine power protects us in all the dark places."

As he was finishing speaking, the sound of armor clanking drew their attention to a Khajiit warrior coming down the road towards them. “This one Greets you." He said, a bit out of breath as he approached them. “You are a priest, a healer yes?" He asked the Dark Elf.

Erandur nodded. “Yes I am a priest that is well versed in the healing arts. What can I do for you, my son?"

“This one's caravan found a warrior-traveler in need of assistance. Kharjo was sent ahead to find the town's healer."

M'rissi spoke up. “This traveler. His name is Frost, yes?"

Kharjo just shook his head. “This one does not know. Only that he's a stranger to these parts. Like a Khajiit, but a man-wolf with white fur and a blue mane."

“That is Frost!" She jumped from her spot and ran to the Khajiit. “Please, tell M'rissi where he is."

“He is with the rest of Khajo's Caravan. Short ways over that hill, up the road." As soon as he had finished and had pointed back the way he had come, M'rissi took off running. Though not as fast as the smaller Khajiit-hybrid, both Kharjo and Erandur chased after her.

M'rissi was moving at a full sprint as she ran up the snow covered road, her feet kicking the white powder as she crested the hill. At the top of the hill, she could see the forms of the caravan coming towards her. She could see one Khajiit, a female, leading a mule drawn cart loaded with supplies with another armored Khajiit following behind it. At first the feline was confused till she saw the movement of two sets of ears at the back of the cart, one dark and the other almost as white as the snow around them. She quickly sprinted her way to where she saw the movements, ignoring the young female feline leading the cart as she passed and made her way to the back of the cart. The warrior seeing her come around grabbed the hilt of his sword till a hand gesture from one of the figures that was riding the cart told him to relax and let her come.

“Zaynabi." An older female's voice spoke as M'rissi rounded the edge of the cart. The female Khajiit brought the Mule to a halt while the older one that was riding in back got off. “Greetings young one." She said to Mrissi. “This one assumes that you are looking for our guest, yes?" She stepped off to the side to reveal the bloodied Lykaios.

Frost slid his feet off the cart and did his best to gently lower himself to the ground. Several parts of his armor was smeared and caked in dried blood as well as being dented, punctured, and ripped from powerful blows. In fact, the armor of his left arm was completely missing, revealing red stained fur down to his wrist. Frost limped away from the cart towards M'rissi, holding his injured left arm close to his body. He gave her a half hearted smile.

“Hi Fluffy…"

The Khajiit hybrid glared at him. “You made M'rissi worry!" She hissed as she gave the wolf's left arm a hard punch, making him yip in pain. “She told you going up to that shrine was a bad idea!" She hit him again. “And she told you that she's not Fluffy!" She punched him harder, making the bigger Lykaios cower back much to the amusement of the other three Khajitt that were watching them. She raised her hand again to which Frost winced away reflexively, waiting for her to strike him again. Instead she pulled him into a tight embrace as she rested her head against his chest. “She is glad that you are back."

Frost wrapped his right arm around her and nuzzled the top of her head. “I made a promise to you. What kind of person would I be if I didn't keep it?"

The two stood there for an unknown time before someone cleared his throat to gain their attention. “I'm sorry to interrupt, but I'm afraid that I need the two of you to… separate so I can see the extent of his injuries." Erandur said with a slight smirk.

. . .

After their display by the caravan, Erandur had escorted Frost and M'rissi back to the Windpeak Inn and paid for a room for the night. Once they had the room, Erandur and M'rissi took the battered armor off the white wolf so the dark elf could inspect Frost's body, nearly marveling at the beating that the Lykaios took. The priest started by casting healing magic on the wolf, but soon switched to applying various potions to some of the larger bruises and cuts as well as bandaging the wounds that were still bleeding. He had sent M'rissi to the Mortar and Pestle to retrieve a growing list of needed potions, however after the third time, he had a bar maiden to fetch the medicines after the guards started to harass the small Khajitt hybrid. After he was done, Erandur informed the two that the wolf needed to rest and that Frost should only get up to take care of his body's needs before bidding the two farewell for the night.

After his morning prayers, Erandur came back to find the wolf up and about looking over the damage to the armor that he wore. The Dunmur reminded the Lykaios that he was supposed to be in bed resting so his injuries could heal, to which the wolf apologized and replied that he was never good at following simple orders. Erandur had the wolf sit so he checked him over again to check on how the Lykaios' wounds were healing, as he did he couldn't help but to remark on how quickly Frost's body was recovering even with the potions and magic. The wolf just dismissed it saying that he was always quick to heal. However, Erandur was a bit worried when he discovered that the wound on the wolf's left arm was still bleeding and seemingly refusing to close. The Dunmur started to focus his efforts on the wound, trying to both stop the bleeding and to close the gash along the arm. The Dark Elf ended up procuring some string and a needle to give the wolf stitches to close the wound, much to Frost's annoyance. It was close to midday when Erandur bandaged the area and was satisfied enough to give Frost a clean bill of health, though he did tell him to take it easy for a while and to keep an eye on his left arm.

. . .

Silus was wiping away the small amount of gathering dust on the display cases, thinking to himself. Now that Mehrunes Dagon had tried to have him killed, he couldn't help but to think that the court wizard Madena was right. Opening the museum was a mistake as well as the sudden illusions of possibly restarting the Mythic Dawn. A knock on his door drew him out of his musings.

“It's open." He said loudly enough that the person could hear him. He half expected to see Madena standing there when he turned around, no doubt came back to lecture him about the events that had transpired yesterday. The town's people were already whispering about it, no doubt speculating on what had happened on the hill. What he wasn't expecting was the white Lykaios adventurer and his hybrid companion standing there at the door. “My friends." He said as he approached them with open arms. “It's good to see…" Something else that the Imperial wasn't expecting was to be interrupted by a furry fist to the face, knockinging him on his back.

Frost went over to the human and picked him up by grabbing the front of his robes and slammed him against the wall. “Good to see you too… Friend…" Frost said with bared teeth.

Silus grabbed the arm that was holding his robe. “Wh-what are you doing? I thought that we were friends… Friends don't treat others this way."

“Friends'' also listen to each other. They don't force them to do something that they don't want to do, including speaking to a Daedric!"

“I… Well… Could we forgive and forget, maybe?" Silus stammered, slowly feeling the feel of the floor leave his feet.

“You made M'rissi angry!" The Hybrid hissed at him. “You made her worry for Frost. You nearly got him killed! M'rissi won't forgive and forget."

“Wh-wh-what do you want?" SIlus stuttered, sweat starting to drip from his brow.

“I'm only here to inform you that I will be listening."

“What? Listening?"

“That's right." Frost growled. “I'll be listening to the whispers and rumors, and if any of them ever mention the Daedric Mehrunes Dagon or the return of the Mythic Dawn cult beyond the scope of this museum. You will be the first person I'm going to be looking for. If you try to run, I WILL hunt you down and I AM going to find you AND you will be sorry that you had EVER met me!" Frost let go of Silus's robes, letting the human fall to the floor. “So run your museum. Just know that if you try something again, our paths will cross again and I will shove my boot so far up your arse that you will be spitting metal chunks well into the afterlife..."

. . .

“This one greats you." The old female Khajiit said from her tent as she noticed Frost and M'rissi coming over to where the caravan was set up. “Ahkari is glad to see you heal from your injuries. Though this one can't help but to think it's rather soon for you to be out and about from what she remembers from meeting you yesterday."

Frost shrugged as he approached the merchant. “What can I say? The priest was good at his craft and mostly healed me up rather well yesterday."

“Perhaps." Ahari said skeptically. “But, what can this one do for you?"

“I was perhaps wondering if you could help me with a puzzle that I am faced with." Frost said as he produced a peculiar looking ring with an oversize topaz stone that was set in it with odd carvings made into the stone. “I took it to a jeweler in Markarth but they had no idea where it was from."

“May Ahkari see?" The Khajiit purred and reached out to take the ring that Frost handed to her. She moved it around as she inspected it, making a slight scowl as she did.when she was done she gave the ring back to Frost. “Ahkari believes that this ring was made by Khajiit hands. Markings are proof, but this one does not recognize the markings. Who made it or where it came from, this one doesn know."

“That doesn't surprise me any." Frost sighed as he put it back in his pouch. “That's about all the information that we can get."

“This one is sorry that she can't help you further, but perhaps she can point you to someone who can."

“What do you mean?"

“This one knows of a jeweler that is well versed in many types of jewelry from all over Tamriel. Perhaps he would be able to help you."

While Frost was talking to the caravan leader, M'rissi was browsing the jewelry, nick-nacks, and other gift items. One particular necklace caught her eye, a teardrop shape pendant attached to a silver chain. She picked it up and held it up to her body and turned to Frost getting his attention.

“Can she keep it?" She said, almost too quickly to catch. She felt a furry hand gently grasp her shoulder and she looked over to see the younger female of the caravan smiling at her.

“Khajiit has the wares," Zaynabi purred to her, rubbing her fingers and thumb together. “If one has the coin."

Frost looked and blinked at M'rissi before sighed and shook his head with a chuckle before asking Ahari to add the necklace to his tally since he was focused on trying to get a few extra food items and ingredients for the next leg of their trip. The two continued to browse longer as a few of the town's people came up the road to purchase some goods. Frost was about done when he noticed one of the armored Khajiit look up at the sky and give a soft growl as he stared off into the distance.

“Something a matter?" Frost asked as he walked up to the grizzled Khajiit.

The Khajiit just gave a small sigh. “This one does not mean to worry you, but Dro'marash had a feeling that the weather will turn bad soon."

“You sure?" Frost asked as he followed the Khajiit's gaze westward. “It hasn't been exactly the best recently anyway."

“Dro'marash's whiskers has never lead him astray yet. Heavy snow is coming this way soon, perhaps in the next day."

“Hmm… Hey M'rissi."

“Hmm?" M'rissi, who was distracted by talking to Zaynabi, turned and looked at the Lykaios. “Yes, what?"

“A question for you." Frost said, getting her full attention. “There's a strong chance that there's going to be a bad snow storm happening soon, would you want to wait another night or two for the storm to pass or risk it and hope we beat the storm by going south?"

M'rissi thought it over for a few seconds before answering. “M'rissi thinks that we should get going. She doesn't want to stay where it's so cold. Plus you promised to help her find out who M'rissi is."

Frost nodded before turning to Dro'marash. “Well, you heard the boss." He jested to the Khajiit warrior.

Dro'marash gave a light chuckle. “May your road lead to warm sands."

“Safe travels, friend."

“The brave and the pretty, on the road again." M'rissi mused after they had started on their journey again. It was well over an hour since they had left Dawnstar and the Khajiit caravan behind.

“That begs a question," Frost said teasingly. “Which one is the brave, and which one is the Fluffy?" There was a moment of silence between the two and just as Frost was about to turn around, he felt a snowball hit him in the back of the head that made him yip in surprise.

“M'rissi keeps telling you, she isn't fluffy! You… You are the fluffy one, with your… Your dog fluff. She is pretty and brave." She meeped when another snowball hit her in the arm.

“Yeah, brave alright." He grinned as he packed another snowball. “How many times have you scared yourself because your tail hit something?"

“She was not scared." She hissed at him. “She was… startled. That's it, she gets startled."

“Sure Fluffy." Frost said as he tossed the snowball at her.

She gave a growl as she picked up more snow and threw it at him, making him chuckle as the powder hit his face. The two were soon playing more than traveling as the white flakes were once again flying in the air from where they had originally fallen as the feline and wolf chased each other around the trees that grew along the road. The two were giggling as they tried to pelt each other with snow, till M'rissi surprised him by charging him and tacking the larger Lykaios. Knocking both of them to the ground and rolling in the snow as the two of them wrestled to be on top, finally stopping when Frost rolled onto his back with her straddling him.

“M'rissi told you she is not fluffy, she's strong and brave."

“You're still a fluffy kitten to me." Frost said as he licked her nose making her pull back by reflex.

“Tsk. Disgusting dog with your slobber." She said.

“Then why put up with me if you don't like it?" He grined as she punched him in his arm, making him yip.

“M'rissi needs to train you, yes? Perhaps to do tricks."

“Oh yeah? Like what?"

“Maybe fetch, or shake. Maybe… speak and roll over… Eek!" M'rissi let out a surprise squeak as Frost suddenly rolled the both of them over so that she was now on her back and he was over top of her.

“Arf."

M'rissi couldn't help but to giggle at his antics, she gave him a peck on his lips and giggled again when she seen his tail wag. He smiled and nuzzled into her before crawling off her so they could continue their journey. However, M'rissi noticed that her paw was still wet and when she looked at it, her paw was covered in blood. At first she was confused until she looked at the sleeve of her wolf companion.

“You're bleeding!" She exclaimed as she twisted Frost's body around so she could look at the drenched arm. She quickly had him take off his tunic and confirmed that the bandages were completely soaked through. Using her claws, she tore the old wrappings off and got her first true look at the wound on his arm. His white fur was soaked red from where it was bleeding and despite the stitches there still intact, the wound across his forearm seemed to refuse to close and heal. Applying more medicine to the stubborn gash, the feline hybrid wrapped it back up with extra gauze and bandages. She made a mental note to make him see a healer again once they got to a town with one, as most of the wounds that Frost had gotten would usually heal rather quickly.

After Frost was wrapped back up and wearing his tunic again, the two headed back to the road and began to follow it up into the mountains. It wasn't until sometime after dark that the two finally stopped to make camp. There was hardly a star in the sky, let alone one of the moons to help light the night for travelers. It was only because of the two's natural night vision that they were able to set up camp with any kind of efficiency. Exhausted from the last few days' events, the two quickly fell asleep nuzzled against each other.

. . .

Frost murred as he nuzzled into the soft, furry warmth that he was holding as the fog of sleep slowly left him. In all honesty, he could drift right back asleep holding the Khajiit hybrid in his arms. For some odd reason since he had met M'rissi those weeks ago, he couldn't help but feel a bit of contentment when he was with her. The feeling was almost foreign to him, having been a literal lone wolf mercenary for most of his life. Then things had turned upside down that day when he ran into that Thalmor patrol and their Khajiit prisoner they were escorting. Had the elves not paid the Lykaios any mind on the road and picked a fight with him, he would have never met M'rissi or started their adventures together.

He was brought out of his thoughts when the reason he woke up reminded him of what he had to do. As carefully as he could, he slowly untangled himself from his feline companion. Though he was trying not to disturb her, the movement was enough to start rousing her from her sleep.

“Morning already?" She asked with a purr. “Let's take a nap." She pulled the furs that they were using as extra covers for the sleeping bags tight to her cheek.

“Sorry Kitten, but you got to get up too." Frost said as he rubbed her shoulder gently. “Even as tempting it is to curl back up, we still have a ways to travel."

She whined in protest much to Frost's amusement as he shifted himself around in the tent so he could crawl out. Though as soon as he opened the flap of the tent, he was hit in the face by a cold blast of air with several large flakes of snow thrown in seemingly for good measure. The feline shivered and pulled the furs over her head.

“Brrr! M'rissi don't like the cold!"

Frost gritted his teeth and continued on out of the tent. It was quite obvious the blizzard that the older Khajiit warrior warned them about had blown in while the two of them were sleeping. Looking around, he could see that the campsite was buried under a rather thick layer of snow with a heavy flurry in the air adding to what was already on the ground. While the landscape certainly had a rather majestic view that one could get lost looking at, the rational side of him told him that they needed to get moving to either try and get out or more than likely find better shelter from the storm.

The two hastily made a quick breakfast and broke down their camp before attempting to continue their journey. It was a fight for them to continue on their way as the further they went, the deeper the snow. As it was, most places the snow had already reached knee deep on the road for Frost and M'rissi was forced to walk in the path that the Lykaios was carving as he walked. It was mostly through previous experience that the wolf kept his bearings, but the blizzard grew heavier as the two made their way on what they hoped was the road. It was sometime around midday that things got bad enough that they finally pitched camp near a rocky outcropping and hunkered down till the storm blew over. Using as much natural cover as they could as well as a bit of ingenuity, the two had dug out a campsite that used their tent and a makeshift igloo so they didn't have to expose themselves to the elements as much as possible.

It was perhaps just after nightfall seeing how dark it was outside that they found themselves curled up together next to the small fire. M'rissi was leaning against Frost's chest while he had his arms wrapped around her, holding the fur blanket over them for warmth. The only sound was the crackling of the fire as the wind howled outside, easily heard by the hole in the top of the snow carved structure. Frost reached down and stirred the soup he was making with their supplies, not quite trusting the Khajiit hybrid to do any of the cooking yet. Especially since her first attempt nearly sent him straight to the afterlife.

It was just after they had ate that M'rissi broke the silence with one of her musings. “Cats… Don't like dogs… And, dogs don't like cats…"

“So they say." Frost said as he put some of the stuff back in their packs.

“But, you like being with M'rissi. Yes?"

Frost chuckled. “Of course. We are together, aren't we?"

“Yes… but M'rissi can't help but to think of how different we are, you a wolf and M'rissi a kitty. What will happen in the future?"

“Kitten…" Frost said as he shuffled in the confined space so he was sitting in front of her. “M'rissi, listen. I do not know how our people treat each other, by the divines, I don't even know that much about my own people." He sighed as he took her hands in his. “I don't know what the future holds for us, that is something better left to those touched by the divines. All I can tell you is that I made a promise to you to find out the truth behind your past and with any luck, we will find the answers together."

“You... and your words…" She sighed but smiled at him. “You know what to say to make M'rissi feel better."

“I try my best." He said before kissing her on the lips.

M'rissi responded by holding their kiss longer and suddenly pulling the wolf on top of her as she laid back onto the sleeping bags. He couldn't help but to yip in surprise when the small feline suddenly rolled the two of them over so that he was now on the sleeping bags and she was laying on top of him.

“M'rissi didn't tell you, but she had a dream a few nights ago."

“Oh? What was it about?" He asked as he stroked her cheek.

“In the dream, we were playing cats and dogs." M'rissi crossed her arms over his chest and rested her chin where they crossed as she looked at them. “You were the dog and M'rissi was the cat."

“Really?" The Lykaios said coyly. “What happened in your dream?"

“You were chasing M'rissi, and then you caught M'rissi. Then you…" Her voice trailed off into a mischievous giggle.

“And then… what?" Frost said softly, brushing a stray strand of hair out of her face.

“And then… You made M'rissi feel wonderful."

“Did I?" Frost looked into her emerald eyes as his hand stroked her ears. “Would M'rissi like to feel that way again?"

“M'rissi would like that." She purred softly as Frost leaned in to kiss her again.

He caressed the skin of her bare cheek, making her purr as they continued to kiss. Breaking away with a murr, he rolled them around so M'rissi was lying on the sleeping bags again and he was kneeling over top of her. Two sets of hands went for the faciners of the tunic he was wearing, one set working the clasps that held it together while the other pushed their way under the fabric and roamed the fur on his chest.

“M'rissi told you that you were the fluffy one."

“You're still fluffy to me." Frost said, making her giggle as he licked her humanoid nose. “You're my fluffy kitten, and always will be."

“Heh, you and your dog slobber."

“Dog slobber huh?" Frost moved down to her neck and purposely made excessive slobbering noises as he licked where her fur started to grow on her neck causing her to laugh and pushed him away playfully.

“Stop, you're tickling M'rissi."

“Maybe that was the point." He said coyly as he came up to finish removing his clothes. M'rissi looked down at her body and finally noticed what the Lykaios did.

“You… You sly dog." She said in surprise seeing that her tunic was now open. She couldn't help but to shiver with the now bare skin of her chest and stomach exposed to the chilly air of their makeshift igloo-tent combo. “You make her sh-shiver. She needs to get under the furs so she don't catch cold."

“I'm warmer." He said as he pulled the rest of her clothing off and crawled back over her.

M'rissi shivered again feeling the ends of Frost's fur brushing and tickled the bare skin on her belly but once she was locked back in his embrace, she felt her body warm up under him. Her arms wrapped around his neck and pushed on his head, pulling his muzzle closer to her lips as her hands ran through his mane of blue hair. She moaned as she felt him kiss her lips several times before he moved his head so he could nibble and lick along her neck, something the Khajiit hybrid rather enjoyed and he knew it. She couldn't help but to gasp as she felt his member touch her folds. She didn't realize it till feeling him against her on how wet she already was in anticipation of what was to come.

“Well… Looks like someone is excited."

“Oh hush."

It was here when the size difference between the two became rather notable for them. Frost, being a head taller than her had to release her from his embrace and shuffle his body so he could enter her innermost sanctum. He looked into her emerald eyes, silently asking her if she was ready. She nodded for him to continue and gasped as his tapered shaft started to enter her, push her walls apart. Slowly and carefully,he pushed further into her, letting out a murr as his flesh was enveloped by her tight, silky folds.

She winced and started to curl up in pain as Frost's shaft was about half way in, making him stop. “It hurts." She cried as she gripped his shoulders, claws digging into his skin. He held himself where he was, letting her body re-adjust to his girth. While this wasn't the first time that they have made love, her body was still young and tight so he still had to take things slow with her. He didn't think he was really that big and girthy, but he might as well be a horse compared to her small frame until her body adapts to him.

He stayed like that for several long moments, stroking her ears and nuzzling her to try and comfort the young feline. Slowly, M'rissi's grip on his shoulders relaxed and her breathing slowed to a more normal pace.

“You know that I'd never intentionally hurt you."

M'rissi looked up and into his eyes before stroking his cheek fur. “M'rissi knows." She coos as she settled down from being stretched. “M'rissi is better."

Frost kissed her forehead as he started to extract himself from her depths till only the tip was left in. Watching her body for cues, he slowly started to move his hips and sunk back into her silky folds. He stopped short of where he had stopped before, still giving her time to adjust to him. Her body was adopting to his girth entering her as each time they made love he was able to sink deeper into her instead of having to slowly stretch her intimate tunnel. Her body would eventually yield to him, allowing him to sink most of his tool into her but one thing he had yet dared to do was to try and knot her. It was a part of his biology that he shared with his feral cousins, a tapered shaft that ended in a bulbous knot that grew when he got close.

She was moaning now as his warmth started to fill her innermost depths, her body finally conforming to the intrusion that was working its way deeper into her. The feel of him filling her sent pleasure all throughout their bodies, giving them a high that neither one truly knew how to describe. Every movement was causing them to shiver with excitement as they edge closer to their peak. She could feel that bulbous knot hit against her outer folds and wondered if the thing would ever end up inside of her. She didn't know much about biology but just from what she had observed, if he ever knotted her they would be stuck together for some time.

Frost groaned as his motions grew shorter and a bit more forceful, holding her tight to him as he moved. She responded by wrapping her legs around him, limiting him on how much he could pull out. His bulb grinded against her outer lips with each thrust, threatening to enter her but her body wouldn't allow it. Not yet.

“I… I'm close…"

“M'rissi's ready." M'rissi mewed in pleasure as she closed in on her peak too.

Frost let out a groan as he continued to push his now sensitive length into her. It wasn't long till the Khajiit hybrid was yowling in pleasure as she reached her peak, her velvety walls gripping and working his shaft tight as she came. Frost's instincts kicked in and howled as he felt his seed leave his tip and enter into M'rissi. He held his member still, the bulb tight to her as his seed traveled his length and entered her with an electrifying pulse with each squirt. Slowly both came off their high and Frost rolled onto his side and pulled the feline tight to him, holding her close as he pulled the fur blankets over their bodies.

M'rissi purred as Frost stroked the fur on her arm, his chest pressed against her back as she laid there against him for both warmth and the feel of his presence. She wasn't sure why but she felt so content, so... Safe in his arms. Somehow, it was a welcoming feeling. Like she never truly experienced it before. But there was a nagging thought that crept in the back of her mind.

“Frost?"

“Yes M'rissi?"

“Do you think we will ever find M'rissi's memories?"

Frost stopped petting her. “I don't know." He said honestly. “But I do believe the clues are out there. We just got to find them and follow them to see where they lead."

“But, what if we can't find any more? What if the clues are so well hidden that we never find them?" She let out a mew when he wrapped her in his arms and held her tight to him.

“They are out there, Kitten. We just need to find them. But right now all we can do is wait for this storm to pass and follow the leads we find."

She sighed. “You are right. She can't help but to let her mind wander like that. She wants to know who M'rissi really is."

“And we will find out one day." He said as he nuzzled into her cheek. “We just need to be patient. We will find out who you are. I made you a promise and I plan on keeping that promise."

“... Thank you Frost."

“Anytime Kitten. Now get some rest, we'll try and continue on tomorrow."

. . .

It was an hour or so before the sun would normally rise for this time of year that the blizzard let up from the harsh furry to a lighter flurry in the air. The Storm wasn't done with its squall, but it was letting up enough to allow some of the creatures to roam around before it picked up again. Thoughts of these creatures were simple in some cases, find better shelter for some and find more food to last the rest of the storm.

One group was already on the hunt. The smell of fresh prey hung in the air since just after the storm started in earnest and the tantalizing scent just drove them into a near feeding frenzy. As soon as the storm let up enough to allow movement, they had left their nest to track the prey that had seemingly blundered into their territory…

. . .

Frost woke up from a sound sleep with a start with his senses feeling like they were on overdrive. A quick glance around the darkness revealed that he was still curled up with M'rissi in his arms and that embers of the little fire they had was nearly out. The only thing he could smell was the scent of the dying embers were emitting and his ears picking up on the fact that the storm had died down, perhaps temporarily.

So what woke him up and why was his heart pounding so hard in his chest?

It was then that he realized what had woke him.

It was a side of him that he usually kept hidden and rarely came out. He had nearly let it loose when he was fighting the Dremora, but due to luck and stupidity; he had won the day against them. Now the beastal instincts was screaming at him, warning him. Danger was coming and it was bringing company.

“M'rissi… Wake up..." Frost whispered in earnest as he shook her shoulder. “Wake up, kitten." M'rissi stirred slightly but wasn't quite awake yet. “M'rissi!" He nearly shouted as he gripped her shoulder.

“Mmm… What..?" Frost cupped his hand over her mouth to silence her and listen for a moment before he gripped her tight to him and rolled. M'rissi made a startled cry from the motion but soon understood why Frost had done what he did.

A spiny leg the size of a child's arm came crashing through the icy wall they had built and curled up near. M'rissi let out a pitch scream as the Frostbite spider's head forcibly made its way thru the wall next. Frost jumped up and crashed into the spider's head as he drew his katana, forcing the spider out of the destroyed igloo that they had been using. The creature tried to use its weight to stop the Lykaios but Frost had too much momentum in his tackle. Frost dug his feet into the snow for leverage as he added more speed into his charge, forcing the giant spider onto its back before getting punctured by the black blade. Frost barely dodge a sticky goo of webbing and poison that another spider spit at him.

Getting himself into a fighting stance, Frost mentality counted their opponents. Two sizable Frostbite spiders were poised to attack him with at least another three more a little distance away. The spiders had them at three to one odds till he had killed the larger one that had dug them out. An arrow sailed from behind him and found its mark in the head of one of the approaching spiders, causing it to collapse the ground in a chittering cry of pain before it laid still. Frost grinned and glanced back at the Khajiit.

“Nice shot."

“M'rissi is the best with the bow." She boasted as she notched another arrow. “You're going to do something, yes"

“Hard not to get distracted in your presence, Fluffy."

“Dumb dog. She is not Fluffy!" She hissed as she let another arrow fly, striking another spider.

Frost returned his attention to their attackers and had to roll out of the way as one charged him. He came out of his roll and kicked out with his leg to change his trajectory in a lunge that neither spider had predicted. With a well timed swing, he cleaved through two of the spider's legs making it screech and rear back awkwardly. The thing tried to back away from the wolf, but with two of its legs missing it couldn't figure out how to properly move. Frost put it out of its misery with a jab of his katana. The other spider charged Frost in attack, primed to knock the Lykaios down and inject him with its deadly venom. He met the attack head on with one of his own, slicing off its front legs as well as slashing the spider across the face and killing the thing instantly.

A yowl of pain drew his attention behind him and he nearly collapsed to his knees at the sight. M'rissi was standing there in nothing but her traveling cloak on and a small Frostbite spider half the size of her was on her back, fangs dug deep into her shoulder. She lost her grip on her bow and the arrows in her hands before staggering to her knees as the poison took hold.

“M'RISSI!"

Frost dropped his katana without thinking, intent on running to her side before she dropped fully into the snow. The Lykaios might have forgotten about the spiders, the spiders didn't forget about him. The remaining two spiders knocked the wolf to the ground and promptly bit into the flesh of his body. Frost howled in pain as he felt his strength leave him, the spiders crawling over their now captured prey.

'Not like this…' Frost thought to himself as he watched multiple more spiders converge on their hapless victims.

'Not… Like… THIS!...'

. . .

Aldnon gave a slight groan as he stretched in the chilly morning air as he walked out onto the back part of the wraparound deck to the front of what was apparently a part of his family's legacy. At least according to the lesser Daedra spirit residing within the establishment, the Luxury Suite. The place was a modest bath house and inn, a nice place for a kind of relaxing vacation for a day or more or a place to impress a girl but not the kind of place that a wandering adventurer would want to randomly walk into. The Bannered Mare was still the ideal place for travelers.

The sun had just started to peak over the mountains though it did nothing to relieve the chill he felt. While the Nords were used to such temperatures and he wasn't an exemption, something about this morning felt… Off. Very, very off. Earlier, just before dawn, he was awoken by what he could have sworn was some kind of beastal howl and since then, he couldn't will himself back to sleep. Having given up on trying to sleep, he had decided to come outside to help clear his mind.

This past year had changed his life, all because he had been hunting near the border and ran afoul with an imperial patrol and was accused of being a Storm-cloak scout. Then the events of Helgen happened and his life was forever changed. The days seem to be flying by and blurring together since then and now he was waiting on word from Delphine about the task she has in store for him. Infiltrating a Thalmor party so he can find out what the high elves might possibly know about the return of the dragons.

The sound of agitated animals reached his ears and he walked to the front of the building to check things out. Looking across the road, he could see that the livestock from the Battle-Born farm were spooked. Something in the air was making the animals anxious and he didn't like it one bit.

“Good morning Aldnon." A female voice said as they came up the road. “You seem to be up rather early."

“Hail Companion." Aldnon greeted her as she came close to the steps of the building. “Indeed I am. What about you Aela? Are you going off on an early hunt to the north mountains or are you here to get an early start on the suite's hospitality?"

The huntress shook her head. “Afraid not. Something happened this morning and while the others had chosen to ignore it, I want to find out what it was."

Aldnon nodded in thought. “I too felt something call out a bit ago. I do not know what, but if you are willing to wait for me to retrieve my blade I shall join you if you have me."

“Then I shall wait." Aela said as she crossed her arms. “I would prefer to have a Shield-sibling with me, but you will do. Who knows what we shall find in the mountains."

“We shall soon find out." Aldnon said as he turned to enter the establishment to retrieve his gear.

Once Aldnon grabbed his gear from inside, the two set off north along the road. It wasn't very far when they reached the outer fringes of the storm and were hit by the winter flurry. Though moving slower with caution, they continued north towards the area known as Blizzard's Rest on the map. However, they didn't get very far when the two noticed something coming their way.

“What is that?" Aldnon asked as he drew his greatsword.

Aela had already notched an arrow getting ready to draw her bow back. “It's a beast." She stated, more than ready to put it down. “I think maybe either a snow bear or an ice troll, stand ready." The two stood their ground as the creature approached them at a run. As it drew closer they could start making out more of its details.

“By Ysmir, that's no troll. That's a werewolf!"

“Stand ready," Aela commented as she drew her bow back, arrow ready to fly.

Aldnon watched with his sword ready to strike as the white werewolf approached them at a run, but the more he watched the large werewolf the more something felt… Off.

“Wait." Aldnon said as he placed a hand on Aela's bow, dropping her aim at the ground.

“What is it?" Aela couldn't help but let her irritation seep into her voice.

“I think that I recognize it."

Aela looked at the Nord with some disbelief. “You recognize it? How?" Before Aldnon could answer, the werewolf slid to a halt before them. The white werewolf gazed at the two, snarling at them as if challenging them to either withdraw or attack.

Aldnon lowered his sword though he kept it ready to defend himself. “He has come to my aid at least twice before." He said as he made calculated steps towards the creature.

“Are you sure?" Aela asked skeptically. “It seems that he has gone feral to me"

“Take a closer look." He pointed at the snarling werewolf. “He is obviously wounded, but he's not cradling any of his injuries."

Aela gazed closer at the werewolf, now taking note of several key things that she missed the first time she had seen it through the snow storm. For one, instead of having a pure white coat of fur, she could see that the mane on top of its head took on a blue hue that faded down its back. The more she looked at it the more she noticed certain features that she was also familiar with. The huntress could see that there were several wounds over the werewolf's body, several bite marks that could only be from giant size frostbite spiders as well as a bloody gash along its left forearm. That was when she noticed the fact that it was cradling something protectively in it's injured arm, something wrapped in a burlap bag... Or something similar.

“I think I'm familiar with the beast too," Aela said as she relaxed her stance but she still kept her bow and arrow ready to shoot the thing if it tried to attack. “However, it looks like he's been worked into a frenzy. It will be quite hard to calm him down so we can find out what happened."

“Let me try." Aldnon stepped closer to the changed beast to which its reply was to growl louder with its fangs bared at him and pull what it was protecting closer to its body. The Nord took his Greatsword and stabbed it into the ground and held his hands up in a non-threatening manner as he could, taking a few measured steps towards the werewolf. The wolf pulled back some but didn't run, it did snarl a warning at the human when he got close. Aldnon took a deep breath.

“Kaan... Drem Ov!"

The words that the Nord shouted came out like a shockwave and washed over the werewolf. Soon the werewolf visibly relaxed and moved closer to Agminn. At first, Aela pulled her bow back ready to shoot the beast but Agminn held his hand to motion for her to stop. Seeing the motion the giant wolf stopped for a moment before approaching a little closer. While there was no mistaking it as a werewolf, the creature was notably bigger; perhaps larger than a werebear. Aela couldn't help but think that the beast could dwarf her in her own beast form. Both humans watched warily as it came closer.

The werewolf came within a few feet of Aldnon and placed what it was carrying onto the ground before backing away a bit. It gazed at the two with a pleading look on its face.

“Help… Her…" It growled the plea before it collapsed on the ground.

Aldnon looked back at Aela before both humans ran to the fallen werewolf and what they soon discovered was the body of a Khajiit hybrid like they had never seen before…

. . .

Frost felt warm, not overly so but a comfortable warmth. His body felt like it was on some sort of soft material that he could just melt into. Slowly, he opened his eyes to find himself on a luxurious bed in a cellar; if the dark stony walls were any indication. The motion of a candle flickering drew his attention off to the side where he seen a Nord man sitting, reading a book. He tried to sit up but the wolf's strength left him before he got very far.

“Ah, good you're awake." The man said as he closed his book. “You had us all worried there for a bit."

“Ha… How long have I been out?" Frost asked, noticing that his voice was rather horse.

“Two days."

“Two… Days?"

“Yes, you've been asleep for at least two days." He said as he came over to the side of the bed. “At least that is how long ago since I've found you in that blizzard."

Frost looked around the room, trying to place it if he could. “Where… Where am I?"

“You're in my family's business, the Luxury Suites." The Nord said matter of factly as he noticed the Lykaios' confusion. “Do you recognize who I am? As it is hard to forget someone like you Frost."

Frost took a moment to look at the human and searched his memory. “You're the Nord that I helped in that tomb a month or so ago, looking for that stone tablet. Al… Ard… Adgon"

“Aldnon, Aldnon Ironhand." He said as he handed the wolf a cup of water.

“Thanks." Frost said meekly before taking a sip. “How did I get here?"

“Me and Aela went to investigate the road into the mountains and found you with a strange Khajiit girl. Took a bit of doing but we managed to drag you both back here."

“Strange Khajiit?" Frost thought for a moment trying to shake the cobwebs out of his head. Soon the memories came flooding back. “M'rissi!" He tried to get up, but his body and Aldnon held him down. “Where is she? is she alright?"

“She's alright. In fact she was actually in better shape than you were."

Frost looked at him confused and Aldnon helped him into a sitting position. “While Frostbite venom is quite potent, she actually got bit by one of the smaller ones with a lot less potent venom so she was alright once she got an antidote potion. You on the other hand was fighting off a more potent dose of the venom, as well as being weakened from the amount of blood loss you had. Though it was lucky that you were as it kept the poison from spreading too much." Frost didn't say anything and just looked at the cup.

“So tell me Frost," Aldnon offered up, breaking the silence that they fell into. “How did you get that wound on your shoulder? It was done by a Daedric blade, wasn't it?"

“Yeah." Frost sighed. “Someone up in Dawnstar was trying to have the Mehrunes' Razor reforged by Mehrunes Dagon himself. Things went sour quick and he sent several Dremora after us. It was a hell of a fight to stop them."

“No doubt. Dramora are nasty warriors, as well as their weapons. You're lucky that I have someone skilled in the arts of Restoration and Alteration in my employment. From what she told me, the blade that had cut you altered your body around your wound so it wouldn't close naturally and most priests wouldn't recognize the wound for what it was." There was a knock at the door and Aldnon turned to face the direction before he called out. “Yes?"

The door opened and a Breton woman walked in. Frost could see that even though she looked rather young, her face showed that she had years of experience. Experience with what, he wasn't sure, nor was he sure he wanted to know.

“I'm glad to see that our guest is finally awake." She said as she walked over to the bed. “How are you feeling?"

“Sore, tired." Frost answered honestly. “Like I've been drained of all my energy honestly."

“For what I had to do, I'm not surprised." She said as she started to check over his bandages. “You should heal normally now, but I would suggest that you get more bed rest so you can recover your energy." There was a slight squeak at the door and the three of them turned to find M'rissi peeking in the doorway. “I best leave you be as I am sure that your companion would like to talk to you." She said as she stood up to leave.

“If you need anything, just holler. Otherwise, I will have one of my employees come down and check on you two later."

“Thank you again Aldnon. I'm Not sure how I'm going to be able to repay you..."

Aldnon held up his hand. “Consider this as payment for venturing with me into Bleak Falls Barrow." Aldnon continued on his way out the door, pausing long enough to give M'rissi a caring smile before leaving.

Once they were alone, Frost watched M'rissi close the door and came over to the bed. He was silent as she sat in the chair next to him, it was very unusual to him for as much as the young Khajiit talked and commented on everything.

“Hey… How are you doing, kitten?"

She was silent for several moments, fingers fidgeting in her lap before she answered. “M'rissi is feeling better now." Silence fell between them again as both of them tried to figure out what to say.

“M'rissi… I…" Frost was cut off when the Khajiit pounced on him and squeezed him tightly in her embrace.

“M'rissi was so worried for you. She got careless and let that mean spider sneak up on her and she seen you worry for her, even got hurt more because of her." She started to sniffle as she went on. “She seen you get upset that she got hurt and try to help her only to be overpowered by them nasty spiders. M'rissi's sorry that despite her boasting, she's nothing more than a weakling kitten. She doesn't want to see anyone else hurt because of her…"

Frost hushed her and gave her a reassuring squeeze. “It's alright kitten, it will take more than a bunch of spiders to take me down. They only got lucky because of what the Dremora did to me."

“But, M'rissi could have done more…"

“No, you did what you could given the situation. I'm the one that should apologize since I'm the one that acted without thinking." He stroked her hair to calm her down, slowly she started to purr. They were quiet while he waited for her to calm down fully before looking around the room with a sigh. “In some ways I wish I was able to grab our stuff. Everything is probably gone or destroyed by now."

M'rissi pulled off of him and looked at him with a slight grin. “The one that Aldnon was with, Aela, went to where our camp was and got most of our stuff. M'rissi tried to offer her some gold in thanks, but she said that it was free since... You are one of them?"

“More ways than one." Frost chuckled.

“So…"

“So…"

“You are a werewolf, yes?"

“No hiding it from you now. Yes, I'm a werewolf. Been one before I join the Companions."

“She sees…" She said with a nod. “Can Frost make another promise to M'rissi?"

“What's that?"

“Let her know the next time you change so she can climb a tall tree and shoot arrows at you."

“... I'm not making that promise, Fluffy."