Fresh cuts of venison in hand, Auri hummed to herself as she handed over a small sum of gold to the market vendor. She jumped from vendor to vendor. Few things caught her interest though some of the jewelry did stay her gaze. The necklaces and rings sold here were nice to admire from a distance, what with the shine of their metal and the gems embedded within them, but she preferred the carved bones around her neck. Those things felt so cold and lifeless that any appeal they had vanished on contact.

Once her curiosity was satisfied Auri nimbly stepped around other early risers, on her way back to the inn which also doubled as a tavern. That always seemed to be the case in Skyrim; it was never one or the other.

Over the past week she’d come to like Markarth. Barring the market stalls and various other things, a vast majority of the city was made of aged stone and metal. It was different. New. Interesting. Nothing in Skyrim would compare to her home but this was leagues better than Falkreath whose people boxed themselves in dead trees.

Some nodded as they passed on the old steps, a gesture she returned, but many people went about their morning rituals without acknowledging anyone around them.

Another point in Markarth’s favor.

The people here weren’t friendly and, while she did get a few looks after forgoing her cloak, minded their business. It wasn’t out of disdain for outsiders or anything like that. A sense of privacy where people focused on themselves was the norm here.

Don’t bother anyone and they wouldn’t bother you.

Quite a different approach to life compared to the tight-knit tribe she grew up in but preferable to being treated like a wild animal liable to strike out at any moment.

She reached Silver-Blood Inn, the stone building closer to the ground than most of the other buildings here. Auri couldn’t believe the stone steps were safe during heavy rain fall. One slip and a person would be in for a ride full of broken bones and bruises. If they survived they’d wish otherwise.

She entered the inn.

The interior was made of stone and lit up by candles on the wooden bar that took up most of the central room. The fireplace behind it, surrounded by empty chairs, was being prepared with fresh wood for the day.

Auri held back a sigh.

She was getting used to it but still hated seeing something so needless done. Why not use the parts of animals they threw away especially in this hold where trees weren’t nearly as plentiful due to the mountains?

Aside from the married nord couple that ran the place, the main room was empty.

Auri headed down the left hall and not to her room but to the one across from it, lightly knocking on its metal door.

“Come in.”

She pushed the door open and stepped into the room. It was identical to her own. A compact stone room that came with a fireplace and pot for cooking, a wooden desk, chairs, and a bed.

A stone bed.

Auri couldn’t believe people actually slept on those things. Like her, Athias covered the stone slab these people had the nerve to call beds with furs as well as his sleeping bag.

Athias was scanning the pages of one of the spell tomes he bought. He didn’t spare her a look. Not when she took a seat beside him and not when she began unwrapping the cuts of meat to flavor them. Once she had a pair skewered on bones and held up towards him, he finally acknowledged her presence by laying his book on the table and raising a hand.

A flame burned to life over his palm, a rush of heat hitting her face. Auri held the meat near the unnaturally hot flames.

This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

Nord meat was either bland or drowned in dead plant parts so she’d decided to cook her own meals during their stay here. She couldn’t replace the wood in her room with animal parts since there’d be complaints about the smell. Auri, against her better judgement, had almost given in the customs here in Skyrim and used the chopped wood in her room for a fire, but then it hit her.

She was traveling with a walking campfire.

Athias had approved her request, surprisingly okay with the idea, dubbing it magicka practice. The first day he’d burnt the meat. On the second, it wasn’t evenly cooked. Just yesterday he actually managed a decent result. Hopefully that would be the case today.

“Your fire is really saving my life.” Auri teased. She got a slight exhale from his nose from nothing else.

Starting a conversation with Athias when he got to reading one of his spell tomes was always a fruitless endeavor. The world around him ceased to exist once his nose was in one of them.

Auri watched him quietly, idly spinning around her soon to be breakfast to ensure an even cook.

In the little over a month they’ve spent together, he’d grown.

In their first week together Auri had realized that while his claim to be an adventurer wasn’t a lie, he wasn’t truly experienced with all that came with it. So far nothing took him by complete surprise but there had been a rough rigidness to his movements akin to a fledging hunter with less than a handful of kills under their belt. She imagined a majority of his knowledge came from stories and books rather than first hand experience.

And yet he faced all that danger with a grin on his face and a fire in his eyes.

That fire, so reminiscent of the determination that filled her younger sister’s eyes. Auri hadn’t been lying when she said she wanted to see Skyrim, not used to being in one place for so long, but that fire had been what motivated her to tag along with him that day.

She was still stuck in the past, chasing a life she couldn’t have. A life she didn’t deserve.

Not after what she did.

Auri sighed.

She truly enjoyed being around Athias but when they were just together, not joking around or out in the wild adventuring, the comfortable silence always found a way to dig up memories she’d rather keep buried. His carefree lax attitude reminded her of her people in so many different ways.

Once her breakfast was done, Auri chowed down and rewrapped the rest, prepared to come back later.

“Hold on, Auri. I need your help with something.” Athias suddenly said. He picked up a dark blue vial from the table. “This is a poison.”

And he was going to ask for something insane.

“I’m not drinking that.” Auri shot down the idea immediately. The things he was willing to do to test out his spells never failed to shock but she wasn’t going to be a test subject in it.

“Obviously. Why would I ask you to drink poison?” So he wasn’t that insane. “I’m going to drink it.” Nevermind; he had crossed beyond insane long before they ever met.

“I understand that this is to test a spell but don’t you think drinking poison is going a little too far?”

“How else am I suppose to know if this spell properly cures poison? Wait until something trying to kill us does poison me and then hope I’ve been doing everything right? Come on, we both know that’s stupid.”

“Isn’t everything you do?”

“True, but stupidity now saves me from stupidity later. Quote me on that when this saves our lives.”

Auri shook her head, relenting to whatever this was. As long as he kept that shine in his eyes she doubted anyone or anything short of death could stop him from doing whatever he decided on.

“What do you want me to do?” Auri asked.

He pointed to another vial on that table, the liquid in that one red in color. “That’s the antidote. The alchemist who sold this poison to me said it’ll only make me feel a lethargic but you can never be too careful. If I pass out or anything give that to me.”

“Alright, but just so we’re clear…” Auri didn’t even have the antidote in hand before Athias popped the cork off the poison and downed its contents in one gulp. “…I’m not at all comfortable with these little experiments of yours.” She finished with a resigned sigh.

How was it that she felt more apprehensive about this when he was the one drinking the poison?

Auri anxiously awaited any signs that something was wrong but Athias sat there looking no different than usual. Something that annoyed him more than relieved. Just as he opened his mouth, his brow furrowed and his shoulders lowered, not quite slumping but close enough.

The poison was taking root.

Athias raised a hand, a golden orb appearing over it. It was different than usual, a greenish tint at its center. He held the orb close to his chest, eyes closed, and face scrunched up in pained concentration.

Thankfully whatever he was doing was over far faster than it took for the poison to start affecting him.

“Hmmm, the spell is better than I expected.” Athias said once he released the spell.

“Are you alright?”

“Yep, perfectly fine. The spell didn’t just cure the poison’s effects but got rid of the poison altogether. Thanks for the help.” He said flashing her a smile.

“Right, happy to help.” Auri muttered. Someone thanking her for watching them drink poison; just one of the many firsts she experienced since setting out with this man.

Auri set out from his room while he returned to his reading.

Honestly, she’d have to worry about him killing himself more than all the monsters and creatures they’d encounter on this journey.