A Breton of House Ravenwatch, Part 4 – The Calm Before the Storms (Fanfiction) by Rhonda Parker

It was several days before Fennorian sought out Isabelle Kingston for a conversation. She had chosen to remain at Castle Ravenwatch until he was ready to speak with her, and she mostly kept to herself.

The house's somber atmosphere began to abate as the Ravenwatch grieved for their beloved founder. Every so often there was some moment of laughter or joy, a rememberance of some antic or habit of Verandis's, and the little family would smile. When Isabelle saw a twinkle return to Gwendis's eye, she felt like things were starting to get better.

Isabelle sat at a table in the library, pouring over an old Ayleid tome, a few more books laying off to the side. She was trying to teach herself the language, a daunting task for any scholar, but she relished the comfort such concentration brought her. Being in the library gave her some solace, both for her own love of books and ancient writings, and that it made her feel a little closer to Verandis.

"Hello, Isabelle," Fennorian's quiet voice greeted her. "May I join you?"

"Hello, Fennorian," Isabelle said with a slight smile. "Of course, please do. I could use a break from this."

Fennorian sat down and picked up one of the books on the table. "Ah, Ayleidoon. Not an easy language but certainly worth the effort." He chuckled. "So many hours I spent with these same books. I remember once when he found me asleep at my desk, and he asked me if I was trying to learn by osmosis." The two vampires shared a laugh. Isabelle could just see the look on Verandis's face.

After a moment Fennorian cleared his throat. "I was wondering if perhaps you had time for that talk about… Father's death." His matter-of-fact tone brimmed with the faintest hint of emotion.

Isabelle knew that this conversation would be straighforward and no less difficult than she expected. "Of course. What would you like to know?"

"Well, 'what happened?' seems like the obvious choice, but I know there is much more to it. Perhaps we should begin with the situation that started him on this path to the Doomcrag."

For the next hour, Isabelle told Fennorian everything that happened, from the events that began Montclair's descent into madness to the final moments with Verandis and how he teleported her to safety at the last second. She answered his questions as he asked them, in plain and simple terms.

Fennorian listened with little to no reaction for the most part, until she told him about the agreement Verandis had made with Molag Bal to take the Lightless Remnant into Coldharbour. Then the young Altmer seemed to grow paler than usual.

"Why would he do that? He fought so hard to get away from his maker. And why Molag Bal? Would not another Prince take the relic?"

"Perhaps he thought Coldharbour was the safest place for the relic. It was already tainted from both its own history and the vampiric influence affecting it. Or perhaps dealing with another Prince would have taken too long and Verandis knew Molag Bal would be certain to accept his offer."

Fennorian nodded. "That does make sense. But still. To make a bargain with the master you tried to leave behind…. he must have been desperate. But it does not surprise me. Father always believed in doing what was best for the greater good. I would have expected no less."

As Isabelle looked at Fennorian and waited for a response, she was taken aback when she saw tears start to fall from his eyes. She went to his side, knelt down and placed her hand on his shoulder as her own tears began. After a few long moments the young vampire tried to compose himself and began to apologize. Isabelle shut him down with a gentle tone.

"Please don't apologize, Fennorian. While I didn't know Verandis for very long, I miss him too. It was my honor to stand with him at the end."

Fennorian nodded. "To be honest, I'm glad you were there. I don't know that Adusa, Gwendis or myself would have been able to let him do it. Perhaps it's better than you were the one to ascend the Doomcrag with him."

Isabelle was dumbfounded, and more than a little moved. Perhaps Fennorian was right. And perhaps Mara had used her to show Verandis the love and mercy he needed in such a critical moment.

Fennorian stood and walked around the room, running his fingers over some of the shelved books. He seemed to recover his composure, but the pain lingered below the surface.

He pulled a book from a shelf, examined it, and then laid it on the table. "This might help make translating that tome easier."

He paused for a moment, as if considering something else. "I'd be glad to help you learn Ayleidoon if you like. Once you get more familar with it, the language does start to flow better. Besides, it will give me a chance to refresh my own knowledge on the subject."

They shared a laugh. "I would appreciate that, Fennorian. Thank you. Perhaps we could begin next week?"

"That sounds good. Well, I shall leave you to your studies."

As Fennorian reached the door, he placed a hand on the door jam and turned to face her. "Thank you, Isabelle. Not just for telling me what happened, but also for standing with my father. I don't think I can ever repay you for that kindness."

Isabelle felt a lump rise in her throat. She nodded, as she felt that saying "You're welcome" wouldn't be enough. A small smile escaped Fennorian's lips as he left the library.

———-

"Interesting. That will likely be their next target…"

Fennorian's fingers traced the words on the page as Isabelle entered the library. "Looks like you're doing some research," she noted. "Getting ready for a mission?"

He opened up a scroll. "Yes. I'm going to Bangkorai soon. There's an ancient grave site for an army known as The Gray Host. An unholy alliance of vampires, werewolves and other creatures that tried to take over Tamriel in the First Era. A group of necromancers calling themselves the Draugrkin may be headed their burial site. Quite a nasty group of individuals, with some cutthroats thrown in for good measure. I just hope I get there before they do."

"Sounds intriguing," Isabelle said as she pulled a book from a shelf and starting thumbing through it. "I'm leaving for Daggerfall tomorrow. I received a letter from an old friend who's on a mission for Jorunn the Skald-King. Something about a coven of witches, an island to the far North, and some odd storms. She's tracked some of the members to Covenant territory."

Fennorian looked up from his documents. "Any idea on what kind of witches?"

"Not sure. She seems to think that it might have been a coven of Reach witches. If so, this could get ugly. Reach magic is nothing to mess with." Isabelle shelved the book in her hand and moved to another collection.

"Interesting. Well, let's hope these two cases aren't tied together. By the way, Gwendis and Adusa left for Western Skyrim yesterday. They're looking into some reports of a clan of vampires led by a powerful woman that we have very little information about."

Fennorian paused and lifted his head. "Vampires, witches…. if one of us was looking into werewolves, I'd say all of these cases could be related."

Isabelle frowned. "Well, that's a frightening thought. Let's hope they aren't tied together."

"Yes," he said, his brow furrowed. "Well, good luck. If you find anything that ties your witches and their storms to my Draugrkin and an unhallowed grave, please send word. Otherwise, just another day for the Ravenwatch, hm?"

Yes, another day for the Ravenwatch, Isabelle thought. "We're stretched pretty thin, though. You, Adusa, Gwendis, and I will be gone. And Melina is away making her enchanting supply deliveries. That leaves Janeve and Heloise here at the castle."

"Hm, you're right. Well, Janeve can handle herself, and Heloise is an excellent healer. Between the two of them I think they can handle anything in general that comes up. Hopefully one or more of us will be back before something serious happens."

"We can only hope. Good hunting, Fennorian."

"To you as well."