All Roads Lead To You (A Skyrim Romance Mod fanfic)

Chapter Thirty

Bishop sat in a corner of the tavern, sulking over a tankard of ale. Though he'd sworn his eternal sobriety just that morning, his encounter with Casavir seemed to warrant a few ales before bed. He picked at the plate of venison, bread, and cheese in front of him, but his appetite seemed to have deserted him. Besides that, Corpulus the innkeeper always overcooked the meat.

The Winking Skeever was crowded that night, with so many people in town for the upcoming festivities and the ambient roar of talking, shouting, and laughing made it hard to think. The tavern's bard, Lisette, was playing her lute, but that too, was nearly drowned out in all the clamor. Bishop closed his eyes and longed for the quiet moonlit forests outside the city gates. He knew of a beautiful spot on a ridge overlooking the sea. He and Karnwyr had camped there once and the thought of it made him want to seek it out. He was having some trouble remembering why he was sitting in one of his least favorite taverns, in his least favorite city, among people he could not care less about.

Then Aruna walked in with Casavir following close behind and all thoughts of leaving Solitude went out of Bishop's head.

Aruna and Casavir were deep in discussion and hadn't seen Bishop. They sat at a recently vacated table, continuing their conversation. Aruna said something with a wry grin, and Casavir's booming laugh seemed to rise above the din. Bishop gripped his tankard in his hand, glaring in their direction. Casavir got up and headed for the counter and Bishop's gaze fell on Aruna. Her smile was gone and she was sitting back in her chair, her eyes downcast. She was gnawing at her bottom lip and seemed deep in thought. She rubbed a hand wearily over her eyes and seemed oblivious to the people at the table beside hers, who turned to stare at her and whispered to each other.

A muscle twitched in Bishop's jaw as he took in the scene. He was halfway out of his seat when Casavir strode over to the table and said something that made the whispering patrons suddenly look very contrite. Bishop frowned and sat back, watching as Aruna looked up at Casavir's approach and sat up a little straighter in her chair, the smile once again on her face.

Bishop downed the last of his ale and got up from his table. He weaved his way through the crowd, towards the inn rooms. Upstairs, it was a little quieter, though he could hear murmuring and drunken laughter coming from behind closed doors. He located his room and shut himself inside. It was relatively quiet, though not as silent as he would have liked. He sat heavily on the edge of the bed and pulled off his boots, tossing them aside. Then he simply sat for a while, picturing Aruna looking very alone and very tired in the tavern. Bishop had never really concerned himself with anyone besides himself and Karnwyr. There had been a brother...but he rarely thought of him these days. At least, when he could help it. He had trouble imagining what it must be like to have the lives of so many people depending on him, the way they depended on Aruna. He'd seen her tired and he'd seen her injured, but he'd never seen her scared. He'd never seen her cry. She always seemed to have a wisecrack ready, and when that failed, she could be persuasive but was still always prepared to fight when it came down to that. There had been quiet moments when he'd stolen glances at her and saw her deep in thought. Once or twice, he'd been tempted to ask what was on her mind but had resisted the urge. It wasn't in his nature to pry, but he caught himself doing uncharacteristic things around this woman and he wasn't entirely comfortable with that.

Bishop laid down on the bed and gazed up at the wooden beams over his head. He thought of Casavir coming to Aruna's rescue like the white knight Casavir pretended to be and Bishop scowled. He knew Aruna was clever, but she was also kindhearted, and Casavir had a way of showing people only what he wanted them to see. Bishop groaned irritably. He knew he had no claim on Aruna or anything she did. If she wanted to take her chances with that paladin, she could do as she liked. Of course, he couldn't deny how good it had felt to tell Casavir that Aruna was Bishop's woman. The outraged look on the paladin's face had been satisfying. Casavir didn't need to know it wasn't true.