“No.” This time, she was positively acerbic. “You do NOT get to make exceptions for me. Not when it’s to excuse the failings of my birth.”
Well, Einarth thought darkly, this couldn’t get any worse. The girl wasn’t wrong on the matter, but if that was how she felt, then it would seem that she had already determined her position in the war. He feared that if Elisif was named High Queen, there would have a puppet ruler who could not defend Skyrim. On the other hand, there were other worthy candidates, and if the Dragonborn supported them, there must be worthy individuals among the Legion. But that meant fighting Ulfric, and though his betrayal had cut deep, the old man still worried for the boy. He was too stubborn to surrender. He would probably embrace death all too easily. And there was Arngeir to consider: what would the man do if one of this students killed the other?
“He still loves you, you know.”
Both men stared at the Dragonborn upon her admission. Ulfric, clearly incredulous, warily questioned her, “What makes you think that? Did you not see what happened at the conference? He barely spoke to me at all.”
“And how could he, when you went in there with the spirit of battle?” she replied. The boy looked like he would have liked to respond, but he held his tongue, and the girl continued, “I can see why you’re his favorite. You’re everything that a Nord should be. If you were the Dragonborn, everything would have been so much simpler.”
This time, the boy did respond. “And I disobeyed the philosophy of the Graybeards. Surely, I could not be his ‘favorite’ as you said.”
“Does a father stop loving his son even when he believes he has lost him?” she countered. “I spend a lot of time training here, and every time he teaches me something new, I see the flashes of memories in his eyes. When I’m too passive, he disapproves. When I’m too enthusiastic, he mourns. When I leave he never sees me off. And when I return, he always determines the purpose of my visit before anything else.”
The girl tilted her head back so her face was upturned to the sky, and Einarth suspected that she was doing her best to withhold her tears.
“You tell me. Who else could he possibly be thinking of?”
A Hero for Skyrim 13/?
“No.” This time, she was positively acerbic. “You do NOT get to make exceptions for me. Not when it’s to excuse the failings of my birth.”
Well, Einarth thought darkly, this couldn’t get any worse. The girl wasn’t wrong on the matter, but if that was how she felt, then it would seem that she had already determined her position in the war. He feared that if Elisif was named High Queen, there would have a puppet ruler who could not defend Skyrim. On the other hand, there were other worthy candidates, and if the Dragonborn supported them, there must be worthy individuals among the Legion. But that meant fighting Ulfric, and though his betrayal had cut deep, the old man still worried for the boy. He was too stubborn to surrender. He would probably embrace death all too easily. And there was Arngeir to consider: what would the man do if one of this students killed the other?
“He still loves you, you know.”
Both men stared at the Dragonborn upon her admission. Ulfric, clearly incredulous, warily questioned her, “What makes you think that? Did you not see what happened at the conference? He barely spoke to me at all.”
“And how could he, when you went in there with the spirit of battle?” she replied. The boy looked like he would have liked to respond, but he held his tongue, and the girl continued, “I can see why you’re his favorite. You’re everything that a Nord should be. If you were the Dragonborn, everything would have been so much simpler.”
This time, the boy did respond. “And I disobeyed the philosophy of the Graybeards. Surely, I could not be his ‘favorite’ as you said.”
“Does a father stop loving his son even when he believes he has lost him?” she countered. “I spend a lot of time training here, and every time he teaches me something new, I see the flashes of memories in his eyes. When I’m too passive, he disapproves. When I’m too enthusiastic, he mourns. When I leave he never sees me off. And when I return, he always determines the purpose of my visit before anything else.”
The girl tilted her head back so her face was upturned to the sky, and Einarth suspected that she was doing her best to withhold her tears.
“You tell me. Who else could he possibly be thinking of?”