Beautiful Insanity (A Skyrim/Oblivion Fanfiction) ((ORIGINAL))

A Walk With the Sun

The morning sun shone into my eyes, and I shifted from my place beside Brynjolf. From my judgment, it couldn't have been any later than five o'clock a.m. I pressed a soft hand to my husband's arm before standing. I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep any longer. Besides, the fear and adrenaline would give me more than enough energy to stand up to that bitch of a Prince.

I quietly lifted myself up from the bed and headed for the door, intent on clearing my head. The inn was completely deserted, save the innkeeper wiping down tables. I tried to swallow the lump in my throat when I walked away from my room and passed Kary. She was snoring lightly, a quirk she'd inherited from her father. For a silent thief, Bryn had been a noisy sleeper. Still was, in all truthfulness.

My feet carried me out of the inn and out into the world. The crisp air was filled with snowflakes that tickled at my nose. After a quick sneeze, I continued my short walk. I'd intended to simply take a stroll through the forest, hoping for one last serene and peaceful moment before this fight. 

"Lass?" I jumped, holding onto a tree at the sound of a voice. It was instantly recognizable, and I couldn't help a smile when I turned. 

"Hello, my love," I whispered. Brynjolf approached me slowly, worry etched onto his features. I realized for the first time just how much we'd both changed, personally and physically. He had wrinkles set into his cheeks and was much thinner than he'd been during our first fight. "Come to drag me back?"

"Not unless you're planning to desert us," he said humorlessly.

"Of course I won't. I'd never abandon our daughter." We were silent for a moment. "Come. Take a walk with me." Brynjolf raised an eyebrow. "Bryn... this may sting, but we're not exactly the strongest sons-of-bitches around anymore. We're aging, and every battle on this quest could be our last. Let's take the time." I held out my hand, which he took without hesitation this time. "Thank you."

Ten minutes passed without speech as we wandered around the Cyrodilian landscape. It was beautiful, and a sight I hadn't seen very often in my life. I may have gone around the various provinces, but rarely had I gotten the chance to simply live in the moment.

"It was always going to end like this, wasn't it?" I blurted, sticking out my lower lip. "Nocturnal. She's always been the enemy."

"No one could have guessed all of this would happen," Bryn comforted, though it was clear to me that my comment was pricking at his mind. "But..."

"She would have found a way out eventually." My trepidation must have been clear in my voice, because Brynjolf leaned in and embraced me warmly in comfort.

"What happened to a peaceful walk, lass?"

"Fear for Regina." The sharpness in my tone seemed to set him on edge as well. "I-- I'm sorry, I just..."

"Don't worry, lass." He kissed my forehead lightly. "I understand." Bryn looked out over our surroundings, pulling me towards the edge of a cliff. He sat and patted the ground beside him, a signal to sit. I obeyed and leaned against my husband, thankful that the gods had given us this moment to watch the sun rise.

"Bryn..." I began, almost unable to get the words out. "If I do fall--"

"You won't," he insisted fiercely, wrapping his arms around me. "I'll make damn sure of that."

"I know, I know. I'm just saying, if I do--"

"No."

"Listen to me!" I barked, instantly feeling guilty for losing my temper. "Please, I have one request, Bryn. If I die, tell our girls that I love them... and tell Regina that I'm sorry." Bryn stiffened, though his posture soon changed to hold me tightly. I did not refuse his hold, closing my eyes and trying to push my worries from my mind.

"Russet?" Brynjolf rarely spoke my full name. I turned my head to look at him, surprised when I saw tears making his emerald-colored eyes gleam. "Here." He held something out to me, something I'd nearly forgotten had ever existed. I held it up to the sun, marveling that it had still been in his possession.

Mist rose from the blue blade's icy surface. "You kept Chillrend?" I kissed his stubbled chin. Bryn followed up by passing me the sheathe.

"Of course I did. Someone had to. What, you think it would have gotten any use sitting in a museum?"

"I'd have expected you to toss it all those years ago. Reminder of Frey."

"You rid yourself of it, I simply rescued it." I nudged his side teasingly. "Took you a few years to really accept what had happened, lass."

"Only took you a few years to get over your pride, Bryn."

"Same for you." I chuckled slightly at his simple retort, strapping the blade to my side. "But I'm glad that it's all worked out." He looked up into the sun, now high enough in the sky to shed light over all of Cyrodil. In the distance, the Imperial City stood proudly. The White-Gold Tower, rebuilt after I'd helped annihilate the Thalmor scourge, shone inside the walls.

"Even if it's ended here?" The lighthearted mood wavered.

"Every step we've taken ended here, with two beautiful daughters."

"One of them is unreachable to us." Panic rose in my voice.

"Nothing is unreachable, my lass." He softly held my chin and kissed me sweetly, full of promise and love. "We will save her, and we're gonna go back to Solitude as a family." I smiled, tears spilling over the sides of my cheeks.

"Alright, Bryn." I leaned on his side once more. "We'll go back."

"As long as we believe it, it'll happen."

"We'll go back."

"We'll go back, lass."

"We'll be free, won't we?"

"Free from pain, Russ. Free from worry and mistakes."

"Bryn? I love you."

"And I you."

"I always have."

"And I always will." There was nothing else to be said, and nothing else that needed to be said. We sat there, resting against each other, until our companions found us at the top of that cliff asleep in each other's arms.