Skyrim calls. But Lena wouldn’t leave without seeing Hauk first, after all he was waiting for her in the Shivering Isles, and she didn’t know how long she would be gone.

“And this time I am coming with you!” – Hauk was adamant. Ok, let’s go.

Lena and Hauk crossed the border to Skyrim and reached Riverwood without anything significant getting in their way.

“Hello, brother” – Lena noticed Geralt on the porch of Sven’s house. “Have you been talking to Sven’s mother again? You know she spreads rumours.”

“Yep, and where else do you think witchers get their contracts from?” – Gerald grinned. “Good to see you, sis. And I see you brought a Nord to Skyrim” – he nodded at Hauk.

“This is Hauk, we’ve been adventuring together back in Cyrodiil. Is there any food at the cabin? It’s been a long way.”

Lena always kept the hunter’s cabin well stocked with supplies when she was around. She hoped that Geralt didn’t leave it empty. He didn’t, and soon the three of them were sitting by the fire with mead and roast.

“Hadvar is back in Riverwood” – Geralt remarked casually. “Something must be going on by the border. He claims he is on leave, but I don’t believe him. He asked about you.”

“Did he now? In what way?”

“Either he was sent to get you to join the Legion, or to prevent you joining the Stormcloacks.”

“Well, there’s no danger of that – I have no wish to meddle in Skyrim politics.”

“Too late for that, I’m afraid. They all want you now – you’re the Dragonborn. Why are you back, actually?”

“I need to find out more about this Dragonborn business, why I never noticed anything before, what it does exactly, except letting me shout, which is kind of neat but not world-shuttering. I mean, other people can shout too, and they are not proclaimed to be Dragonborn. Didn’t Ulfrick kill the High King by shouting at him? Yet no one calls Ulfrick Dragonborn.”

She didn’t say anything about her investigation for the Dark Brotherhood. This was her business alone. Hauk was watching the exchange between Lena and Geralt and thinking how close they seemed, even though he knew they could not have spent that much time together – they only met fairly recently. And the difference in years… Geralt was much older then Lena, as he didn’t “skip” nearly two centuries as Lena did while residing in the Shivering Isles. Yet he wasn’t 250 years old as he should have been… Time must pass differently beyond the Great Maelstrom. Geralt looked just over 50, but was probably pushing 100 – you can’t tell with witchers. His age only showed in the things he said – wisdom coming from experience.

The roast was significantly diminished and the mead bottles around them were nearly all empty, when they heard footsteps coming their way.

“Hadvar!” – Geralt saw him first. “I see you’ve heard Lena is back. Come and join us, before all of the roast is gone.”

“This is–” Lena started introducing Hauk.

“Hauk” – Hadvar didn’t look surprised at all. “Hello, old friend!”

Was that a secret handshake or some such that they exchanged?

“We’ve met during the Great War, but Hauk returned to Cyrodiil afterwards and I stayed in Skyrim” – Hadvar offered, making it clear that this topic was now closed. This meant only one thing – there was so much more to that!

The conversation turned to lighter things, to stories of recent adventures in Cyrodiil – Ayleid ruins, caves, battles with beasts and undead, comparisons of draugr of Skyrim with skeleton heros of Cyrodiil, that sort of thing. It was already dawning when Lena finally declared she needed a nap and went into the cabin, and Geralt went to Sven’s house where he was staying – Sven’s mother insisted he should use their spare bed. Hauk and Hadvar stayed by the fire a bit longer.

“How do you know Lena?” – Hadvar asked.

“Met her through the Mages Guild.”

“Tracked her down?”

“No, that was a real coincidence. I spotted her at the Arcane University, thought she looked out of place somehow, made some enquiries… Then introduced myself and we’ve been adventuring together ever since. I was getting pretty bored without any work, you know. I didn’t know she was Dragonborn until later.”

“That she is, but it doesn’t mean much in itself, I think we both know that. It’s what she does with it, if anything.”

“Is that why you’re here?” Hauk didn’t believe that Hadvar was hanging around exclusively on Legion business.

“Well…” – Hadvar looked a bit uneasy. “The Legion is not going to interfere unless she tries to join the Stormcloacks, which we don’t believe she will.”

“And?” – Hauk was not to be put off that easily.

“And… Are you two… Should I leave her alone?” Finally! The real reason.

“We are just friends at this stage” – Hauk wasn’t about to burn any bridges either. “But she is not wearing an Amulet of Mara.”

She wasn’t, not at that point anyway. It wasn’t that long since Lena returned from the Shivering Isles, found her citizen rights suspended, went to the Northern Realms, met Geralt, came back to escape the war there, ran around the Imperial bureaucracy to get her rights reinstated, and she was still in the process of recovering her repossessed property, and now also this Dragonborn affair added on top. Lena’s life was too tumultuous right now for the Amulet of Mara! Perhaps later. Hadvar and Hauk both saw that, and each was willing to wait.