My Random Skyrim Stories

First Love (3)

Vilkas still didn't open his eyes, or even move the arm he'd draped over his face, but to his surprised confusion, Lysabelle didn't pull her hands away either. In fact, she began gently running her fingers through his hair.

"I'll go get a room at the tavern so we can clean him up," Farkas's gruff voice sounded over head. He sounded just a little less angry now.

"He should eat something too," Lysabelle replied quietly.

"Yeah," Farkas agreed bluntly.

Moments later Vilkas could hear his brother's heavy footfalls as he stomped back toward Deadman's Drink.

"Vilkas," Lysabelle said gently again, "please tell me what's wrong... this... this isn't like you... what happened?"

Vilkas just sighed heavily. There didn't seem to be a lot of way out of this now. Farkas would just run him down again if he took off. Maybe if they knew they'd leave him alone...

"I never got over my first love," he admitted in a whispered grumble.

Her hands paused in his hair. "And that warrants running off in the middle of the night without a word to your family and nearly giving yourself alcohol poisoning?" She asked in disbelief.

Vilkas sighed again. It hurt a little more that she didn't seem to connect that he meant her. "I overheard her agree to marry another," he replied dejectedly.

"O-oh..." she mumbled and her hands pulled slowly away from him.

Vilkas sighed heavily again. He immediately missed her touch but at the same time he knew it was for the best. He couldn't handle her treating him like a brother.

"H-how old were you when you fell for her then?" She asked in a soft voice.

Vilkas's brow furrowed underneath his arm. Why in Oblivion did she sound hurt? And how could she possibly not have realized he meant her?

"You would know better than I," he grumbled bitterly, "I've only ever had eyes for one woman."

As he admitted that, he was struck again by the realization of how many fond memories had now become bitterly painful ones.

After that first time he'd kissed her he'd begun leaving flowers on her windowsill at night, and then small notes. When she began leaving notes in return for him their exchanges had eventually developed into genuine love letters and several more stolen kisses.

But then they'd grown apart when her father sent her to study at the Mages' College. Vilkas had tried not to let it show, but he knew she could tell he wasn't comfortable with her learning magic. She never mentioned what she was learning, and then she'd gotten busy with her studies, and Vilkas had gotten busier with his training... and couriers cost money... their letters became fewer and fewer and eventually stopped altogether.

Vilkas thought it was over. He'd tried to move on, but no other woman ever actually held his interest.

And then Lysabelle had come back and actually joined the Companions once she'd discovered she was the Dragonborn.

She'd been excited to see him, and Vilkas tried to rekindle their relationship, but the beast blood made it difficult. She could tell something was different about him and he couldn't tell her what it was... not to mention she had changed over the years as well, but Vilkas still loved her... he just seemed to have forgotten how to show it...

They'd at least been friends. They could sit and talk for hours... about different sword techniques, the latest books they were reading, ancient myths and legends, dragons, battles they'd seen, crypts they'd delved into... anything really...

Except she hadn't come to him when Skjor offered her the beast blood... or when Kodlak sent her after the Glenmoril witches...

He'd lost his temper with her after the Silver Hand attacked Jorrvaskr while she was away, and she'd gotten distant after that.

Then Kodlak named her Harbinger and they'd all been cleansed of the beast blood. Vilkas thought he had a chance to fix things then, but she'd almost immediately taken off with Lydia to fight dragons.

Vilkas didn't get so much as a single letter from her while she was away, but Farkas got a chance to go help her kill a dragon... that had really been his only clue that his brother had taken his place in her life.

Then Farkas was telling him about the property Lysabelle had purchased to build a homestead on so she could retire after defeating the World Eater.

Then finally Alduin was defeated, and Vilkas had gotten the opportunity to congratulate her. He told her he wasn't surprised, he'd always known she could do it... and they'd sat and talked again... Vilkas had listened for over an hour to the stories of how she'd finally faced Alduin in Sovengarde. He thought she was amazing, and he told her that. He thought he was finally on his way to rekindling that relationship they'd had when they were younger...

And then he learned Farkas had been out secretly building on that property she'd purchased... working on building a homestead...

And then he'd overheard her talking to Farkas in her bedroom that night. He couldn't hear clearly through the walls, but he'd heard enough... the house was ready, an amulet of Mara, a trip to Riften...

Vilkas felt misled and betrayed.

He'd left Jorrvaskr hoping that time, distance, and alcohol would help, but of course it hadn't...

Now he felt even worse than the night he'd left, and Lysabelle didn't even realize what she'd done to him...