The cover is taken from Nexusmods.com /K ENB Pure Light Gildergreen/ Uploaded by PandoraTremere
*****
When they were walking down the street, a woman in a dark hood approached. She stopped before them, revealing her face, then smiled. Gaihla noticed the unnatural glow of her eyes.
"Serana! It's been a while. How have you been?" Yngvar greeted.
The beautiful woman smiled. "Couldn't have been better." She instantly noticed Gaihla and gasped in awe. "Why didn't you ever tell me that you have a daughter?"
Yngvar sighed and chuckled. "Serana, I've never been with a woman so how is it possible for me to have a daughter?" he asked jokingly. "What brings you here anyway?"
"I was traveling and happened to pass the hold. So, I decided to pay a visit, in case the busy Dragonborn, thanes of several holds, is present." She answered with a smile.
"Come, let's talk inside the house."
As they shared tiding, Gaihla went straight to her room. After her encounter with Alduin and Yngvar, she felt more tired than usual.
But as soon as she fell asleep, she was awakened by the voices. Gaihla shook her head and covered her ears. That was when she accidentally heard the conversation downstair between Ynvar and Serana.
There was a burst of faint laughter then he spoke, "Why do you keep on saying she was my daughter? Gaihla is from Cyrodill. I met her this month and we barely knew each other."
"Cut it out, Yngvar." Her feminine voice rang. "We vampires could sense the blood well." Then carefully she added, "When you tried to save me by letting me suck your blood, I still remember how it tasted. If you let me just take a drop of her blood, I could prove it. She is tied to you by blood."
Yngvar went silent. So, Serana continued, "Besides, you don't need a vampire to tell. I am sure I am not the only one who thinks she was your daughter. You guys just...I don't know, same? He got your eyes. Or why don't you ask your werewolves friend in Jorrvaskr. I am sure they sense the same scent from you and her."
Gaihla gulped. Had she been just practicing among werewolves? But who? And now she got a vampire in the house. She was amazed by Yngvar's capability to make friends with such unique creatures. For her, even just befriending a human was quite challenging.
"I am sure I have never been with any women until now." Still, he persisted.
"Oh really. But you once told me you didn't remember your past."
Gaihla curled up on her bed. She didn't mean to be nosy but it's difficult to shut the world up with her current condition.
*****
Not so long after the 'daughter' topic, Serana excused herself for she wanted to resume her journey at midnight. He took her to the front door, bid her goodbye, and retreated to his seat by the hearth fire.
From his even breath and unmoving pose, it was easy to tell that Yngvar was deep in thought. This made Gaihla wonder what was on in his head; was he thinking about the same topic? or was he still considering her to fight the dragon?
All of the curious thoughts were suddenly put to a halt. She immediately closed her eyes when she heard Yngvar walking to her room. As a guest under his generosity, it would be considered extremely rude to eavesdrop on someone's conversation—particularly the owner of the house. So she did her best to pretend to sleep.
The wooden floor was well-made that it did not creak when someone was stepping on them, but her acute hearing was an exception. Her heart was beating faster when the door of the room swung open. Gaihla tried his best to hide her surprise when the mattress sunk as Yngvar sitting on the bedside. She felt his gaze on her and did not miss him exhaling.
To her surprise, he pulled the blanket up and covered her body, making sure she was well-tucked, then gently patting her head. With her super-sharp hearing, she could tell he murmured under his breath, "Good night." then he left after seeing her sleeping.
Little did he know his action brought her to tears. She buried her face on the blanket to muffle her sniffling and cry. All this talk about 'daughter' started to make her hope for something that she knew she would never have. Nevertheless, Gaihla felt content now. It never left her mind that she couldn't ask for more than what she already got.
The feeling was genuinely warm for her to be perceived as normal and accepted—probably— for the first time. Under the dark sky with glistening stars, like other citizens, she enjoyed the comfort Whiterun could offer behind its wall; a safe haven.
*****
The sun would rise in a couple of hours. After what felt like the shortest sleep, Gaihla has awoken again with a sting of pain inside her ears. She was exhausted but the voices became unbearable. At that time, she suddenly thought of going to Gildergreen for a quick solution.
Luckily nobody in the house noticed her leaving. The street of Whiterun was still empty so she could enjoy a lonesome morning—or night—walk until she arrived by the dead tree. Gaihla sighed in relief.
"Is something bothering you?" she gasped in surprise hearing Yngvar's voice ring from behind. It seemed she would need years of practice to sneak on him.
When Gaihla turned her head and their eyes met, Yngvar could tell she was in distress. He did not miss her pale skin and cold sweat.
"Is it the voices?" he took a guess and Gaihla nodded silently. "What did it do to you?" Yngvar was drawn by her darkened face. She flicked her eyes nervously. "It's okay, you can tell me. Nothing bad will happen." He added with a soft tone while putting his palm on her head then gently ruffling her hair.
For someone who had been battered by kindness after so much misery, Gaihla couldn't be happier. In addition, being in the middle of tortured feelings because of some unknown disease, what he did totally made her feel vulnerable. She had no more power to disclose her fear, to tell the truth.
"The world is talking." She said, shuddering. "It began long ago with a sharp hearing. I could tell someone talking from another side of the room. Then it became sharper to the point I could hear everyone's heartbeat in the kingdom. It haunts me...but it did not stop there. Now even the world is talking; the air, the land, the sky, the water...all these voices...so difficult to shut them out."
Yngvar frowned in sadness hearing her pain. Gaihla continued, "If I let this happen longer, I will have blood from my eyes and my nose. I always think my end is near."
"How do you manage to get this far?" he asked.
The girl swallowed a lump in her throat. Turning into a dragon was one temporary way to deal with the voices. But she would not tell him—and any person with a sane brain wouldn't believe her either. Thus, she decided to tell him about the Gildergreen Tree.
"So, this tree calms you down?" he asked and Gaihla nodded. He chuckled lightly and added "It is strange because it gives me the same effect too. I always feel calm when I am near this tree."
She smiled. "I want to try something...but..." she paused but finally added, "don't tell anyone."
"You have my word," said he with a smile and pose a noble gesture as if he'd bring the secret to his grave.
After confirming that nobody was around, she began releasing her inner flame energy toward the tree through her touch. In a few seconds, young leaves began to grow and rapidly followed by flowers. Not so long after, Gildergreen was blooming.
"Having my power used would save me some painful hours from the whispers." Gaihla smiled.
Yngvar was stunned. He'd never seen such magic. The man stood in silence, gazing at the magnificent tree in serenity. The Last Dragonborn walked closer and touched its trunk.
Suddenly he sensed as if mild electricity struck him, sending a flash of an image of a woman; golden long hair, tall and slender body. She was bright, covered in starlight. Her angelic face was so calming.
But before he could talk to the woman, he was brought back to reality in a mere second, almost at the same time when Danica stepped out from the temple and saw him—Gaihla had immediately hidden. The priest began muttering in excitement when she saw the sacred tree blossoming as if newly born. She deliberately concluded it was Yngvar's doing and thanked him.
*****
"Why did you hide this?" Yngvar asked Gaihla when they returned to Breezehome.
"Because people in the manor might sell me." She replied innocently. "And an excessive usage of this power will also cause me to ooze blood," Gaihla added slowly.
Yngvar drew his first conclusion about her condition; Giahla would suffer from the blood tear if she had an either deficient or excessive amount of Magica. He couldn't help but exhale in sympathy for her. The young girl must have had a hard time.
"Don't worry. I will not tell anybody. But you must promise me one thing."
"What is it?" she began to falter and wonder if Yngvar would exploit her.
"Promise me you will tell me if the pain comes again so I can do something to help you, okay?" He demanded in a soft way. She did not reply at once but only seized his eyes instead.
Had it not for the serious situation, Yngvar would have laughed seeing Gaihla's quivering lips when she held back her tears. She looked so silly and helplessly innocent.
Then came a weak nod from her; the simplest gesture that mark her their trust in each other.