Kodlak had spent half the day trying to do absolutely anything as long as it was away from Ebony who seemed to be as excited as a small child, whose birthday party was mere moments away. At one point, he even headed to his study but somehow the Whelp managed to get in front of him and was there by his door, walking around impatiently so she could talk about Kul-et and her ceremony.
Kodlak stopped half way along the corridor of the Undercroft when he saw her waiting for him. He looked over his shoulder at Tilma and wondered how the Whelp managed to get past him. He only stopped to talk to Tilma for a few seconds, after all.
Unable to face yet another barrage of questions, comments and excited screams, he turned around and started to head away from the girl when a pitiful whine caught his attention.
He opened Aela’s door, which was ajar to see Fang slumped down on her bed. Often the wolf, who had grown in considerable size, would lay about in the hall or the yard when Aela was around but when she wasn’t there, he would slink off to her room and mope.
“She’ll be back soon Fang. No need to fret”.
Fang lifted his head up and licked Kodlak’s hand as he stroked the wolf on the head. After whining once more, the wolf lowered its head on the bed, resting it between his front paws as he stared at the doorway. His ears pricked up expectantly as he heard footsteps, but his eager face turned to disappointment when Tilma stuck her head around the door.
“Kodlak, she’s waiting again. Can’t you send her off to get eaten by a dragon or something?”
“Eaten by a dragon? Hahaha” Kodlak laughed. “That’s not nice”.
“It wasn’t supposed to be nice! Get her out of my way!” Tilma stated. She looked down at Fang and tutted. “It’s no good you looking like that either. Here!” She threw him a biscuit which she kept in her dress pocket. She would always carry a few biscuits or small treats as she found them to be useful when she wanted to move the wolf out of her way when she was cleaning Aela’s room.
“And I thought you didn’t like him!” Kodlak said with a sneaky grin.
“It’s a pest! Fur everywhere, undisciplined. Annoying and a renegade. No regards for the rules either. We were talking about Sotek weren't we?” Tilma asked as she leaned against the doorframe.
“Sotek? Are they back?” Ebony asked.
Kodlak groaned and whined just as loudly as Fang did.
“Everywhere I go, she is there…” He glanced down at Fang and nodded to himself. “Tilma, you have the hall”.
“What? Where are you going?” Tilma asked as she watched the Whelp walk towards her.
Kodlak got off the bed and whistled, calling Fang to his side.
“I’m taking Fang for a walk”.
Ebony tugged on Tilma’s dress, trying to get the maid to face her. With a groan, Tilma slapped the offending hand away and quickly moved towards Kodlak.
“Not without me!”
Around ten minutes later, after leaving Vilkas in charge of the hall and in charge of answering all of Ebony’s questions, Kodlak, Fang, and Tilma, who was now wearing a set of brown leather boots and a fur armor set which Eorlund had made for her, set off towards the main gate. Kodlak stopped at Carlotta’s stall and purchased four apples along with two sweetrolls. He then popped into the Bannered Mare, leaving Tilma and Fang outside. Mere moments later, he reappeared with a small bulge in his backpack.
Tilma eyed him suspiciously but she kept her thoughts to herself. With a sharp whistle, Kodlak called Fang to his side and once more they set off towards the farms.
Just as they were passing Belethor’s shop, Tilma saw a small stick which was lying beside the wood pile. She picked it up and threw it along the street after waving it in front of Fang. The stick bounced a few times then came to rest near the Warmaiden’s workbench where Adrianne was busy working on a leather chest piece, which she had made to add to the shop’s wares.
Fang bound towards the stick excitedly with all the intentions of picking it up and returning it to Tilma but when he approached the Warmaiden’s, he saw Adrianne who had her back to him. He prowled forwards, right up to her back and nudged her in the side with the tip of his nose. The sheer weight and size of the animal threw her off balance and she grabbed hold of the table to support herself, but she was too late. She fell on her backside and screamed as a long, wet tongue, started smothering her face.
“Get off! Eugh! Aela! Sotek? Oh, Harbinger. Fang, move… Get off!” She struggled with the wolf, but he was just too strong for her to move.
Kodlak pulled him by the scruff of the neck, giving Adrianne room to get up. She looked down at herself and cringed as she wiped her face off with an old rag.
“That was disgusting! This isn’t how you earn a roll you know!” She said as she scorned the wolf.
Fang whined but then he lowered his head between his front paws and growled playfully, ready to leap up at her. She backed away and raised her finger, stopping the wolf’s advance.
“No! Here, that should curb your chaotic mood”. She opened a box which had her lunch in it and tossed a slice of meat towards Fang.
His fangs snapped together but he missed the food as it flew past him. He eagerly chased it for a few feet then pounced on it as if it was trying to run away. Once he ate it, which took mere seconds, he gave off a low quiet howl then moved towards her, lifting her hand up with the tip of his nose, forcing Adrianne to stroke him.
Kodlak quietly watched the wolf interact with the blacksmith and then he turned towards the market. Fang never wandered off or made a nuisance of himself but was rather well behaved. Smiling to himself, Kodlak thanked the Nine that Aela and Sotek had at the very least managed to tame and, to a certain extent, domesticate the animal, even if they had failed to domesticate each other. Thankful for small mercies, he gave Adrianne a smile then headed off outside Whiterun’s gate.
Both he and Tilma headed along the pathway which would lead them around the defences, but Fang stopped and looked at them with a tilt of his head. He whined at them, as if he wanted them to follow. When they didn’t, he growled then headed straight for the small ramp which would lead him above the gatehouse. Kodlak saw the route Fang was heading to and grumbled to Tilma.
“I knew it! That’s the way a group of Whelps went when I took them to search that tower by Bleak Falls Barrow. I knew Sotek and Aela led them that way”. He whistled a few notes, calling the wolf by his side. “You are with me cub. So, you walk with me. Not that renegade and that harlot of his!”
Tilma shook her head at the situation and added her pound of flesh.
“Typical. Yes, and I noticed we’re getting more and more claw marks on the wall outside the training area. Scarface and Red have a habit of climbing over there. It’s not a blasted shortcut either!”
“Really?” Kodlak grumbled. “I’ll have to come up with something. Time to tug those reins I think”.
As they passed the farms, Fang seemed to pick out the chickens with the tip of his snout, but he never moved away from Kodlak’s side as if he knew the fowl birds were out of bounds. Instead, he gave a growl, scaring the birds away from him lest they had it in their heads that they were invincible.
From the farms, Kodlak led Tilma and Fang towards Riverwood or rather towards a small plateau of bedrock which rested between Bleaks and the pathway which would have taken them to Riverwood. The plateau had a gentle grassy slope leading up the side of it and the top was flat enough to construct a building if someone wanted to. Kodlak dreaded anyone actually doing that because it was a nice peaceful place where he could watch over the surrounding farms and yet it was still within Whiterun’s protection, so he could react to any threat to the farmsteads if he needed to.
Now they arrived at their destination, which happened to be Tilma’s favourite spot as well, Kodlak unrolled a fur which was tied to the top of his pack. He laid it out for Tilma and himself to sit on then he prepared the small picnic which he had managed to put together, thanks to Carlotta and Hulda from the Bannered Mare. He even had two tankards and a bottle of wine to share out between them.
As they ate and talked about trivial matters and formed a rough plan to curb Sotek’s shortcuts, Fang had a bit of a wander around the area. A loud howl and a scampering of feet caused Kodlak and Tilma to turn around just in time to see Fang chase a rabbit along the rocky mountainside. Kodlak watched with a keenness of a hunter as the wolf bound from side to side while the rabbit leapt about as it tried to escape.
“Ten gold he catches it”. Tilma said as she watched with just as much interest as what Kodlak held.
“Ten gold? I thought you would have wanted me to call him off”. Kodlak stated as he studied Tilma’s face.
“He’s a wolf doing what he should be doing. He’s not a dog, he’s a hunter, hunting just like nature intended. With that girl being his mistress, it’s a wonder he left the chickens alone”. Tilma stated as she gave the farm a quick once over with her eyes before returning her gaze to the chase.
“Twenty gold the rabbit escapes”. Kodlak stated as he watched the critter jump to the side, throwing Fang off its tail.
Tilma was just about to agree when Fang bound forwards, catching the rabbit in his maw. He shook the small animal furiously, killing it in seconds.
“Deal. You owe me twenty gold”. She grinned as the wolf bound towards them with the rabbit held firmly in its fangs.
In loving memory of Susie
Our faithful German Sheppard
31/03/2005 --- 07/08/2018
Comments
would lay about in the hall or the yard when Aela was around but when she [wasn’t] there,
We were talking about Sotek [weren't] we?”
He glanced down at [Fang... more