Skyrim: Annabeth the Ranger

"Annabeth! Not again!" said my Nord mother as one of the Bruma guards escorted me back home. "What did she do this time?"

The guard replied "She jumped on one of the other kids from a tree and 'assassinated' him, playing I'm assuming, but he got up and started swinging his- Ah, Finan!"

My Imperial father, Finan, walked into view as I try to avoid his eyes. He was very well-liked among the other people in the city and the guards loved him because he would bring them food and drink to their posts at night.

"Hello Esden, I hope my daughter wasn't causing too much trouble?" my father said.

"Nothing but the usual, sir. She's getting good with a sword, starting to look like her mother." Esden said, jokingly.

"Well, then she'd be one hard force to stop. I'll talk to her about it. Thank you Esden, I'll bring you some extra mead next time you have night shift" he replied.

"Thank you sir, you all have a nice night" Esden said, leaving me with my parents.

My mother rushed me inside. Our house was pretty big for our family. After entering, there was a hallway with rooms off to the sides and a stairway at the end. The first room off to the left was the dining room, which contained a large central table, some chairs, and a goat horn chandelier. My mother sat me down in the dining room as my father entered behind us.

"Annabeth, we have been over this, you have got to stop hurting the other children" my mother said.

"But mother, I didn't! We were playing a game and I was supposed to kill him! It's not my fault that I'm just a better stalker than he can defend against!" I responded.

"Annabeth, that doesn't mean that you can start fights!" she replied.

"Then give me a real challenge! All of these people are too eas-"

"Annabeth, would you like to go hunting with me?" my father asked.

My mother interjected "Finan she's too young!"

"Why not, Astrid? Her 7th birthday is tomorrow after all," my father replied.

My mother paused. "Because the 12th celebration of the White-Gold Concordat is tomorrow"

"Astrid, both of us know that neither of us like the Concordat. It will be okay. She's been training with that old hunting bow for a year and has been on hunts with the both of us. I think it's time for her to have some more freedom in the forest" my father smiled.

My mother couldn't help but smile back. "Oh...okay. But you better bring back some elk for tomorrow's dinner." My mother turned to me as she was walking into the kitchen. "Okay, Annabeth, go upstairs and get washed, then come back down and help me with our meal." 

"Yes ma'a" I said before running upstairs and changing. I took off my green dress and replaced it with a light blue dress.

 As I was coming back downstairs, I noticed my father coming out of the library across from the kitchen. When I looked into the room, I noticed the door to another room was slightly open. My parents never let me into it but I do not know why. I decided not to go in and turn back to help my mother.

"Ah, Annabeth, I'm almost done. Just set the table for us and start moving food into the dining room." my mother pleaded.

"Yes ma'am" I answered as I walked into the dining room. I put down the deer-skin mats that my mother had made before moving food into the dining room. "Hello father"

"Hey Annabeth, doing as your mother says?" my father asked, walking into the room with an Amulet of Talos.

"Yes sir, I am."

"Alright, here's the rest. Let us eat" my mother said with excitement as she brought in the last plate of food and took a seat.

"Let us pray to the Nine, first" my father suggested, "Oh sacred Talos, heir to the Seat of Sundered Kings, Dragonborn, Ysmir, first god-king of Cyrodiil, we give thanks unto you for the graces you have given us. Chosen amongst all men and destined for power, you realized the Empire. By your will alone was Cyrodiil restored. Great Talos, guide the emperors along the road of righteousness. Show mercy to the just and show vengeance to the wicked. Oh Lord of Cyrodiil, whose eyes are likened unto the sky, grant peace of your kingdom and favor to her rulers. Glory be Thine Forever." 

"Amen" we said in unison. 

My father got up and took the amulet to the locked room.

"Father, why do you have to put that away?" I asked when he returned

My parents exchanged looks. "Well, Annabeth, do you know what the White-Gold Concordat did?" my father asked hesitantly

"No, I do not" I reply quietly.

"Well, it-" my father paused for a few seconds. "I'll tell you tomorrow while we hunt."

"Yes, sir." I said, starting to eat.

After dinner, I went up to my room and began planning. This was the first time I could have access to the room, even if it's by accident! I was very excited and decided that I would go down to explore about an hour after my parents went to bed. 

"Goodnight, my daughter. Sleep well. I love you" my father said to me as he kissed my forehead.

"Goodnight, father. I love you too," I replied with a grin on my face.

Roughly twenty minutes after my father left, I started getting antsy. My parents went to bed shortly after I did, but I wanted to make sure they were asleep. I slowly pulled the wolf and Sabre skin blanket off of me, sat up, and let my feet hit the wood floor. The wood under my feet creaked a little, but I slowly started walking to the stairway. As I passed my parents room, I heard my father snoring and I assumed my mother was asleep as well. I slowly made my way down the wooden stairs and snuck into the library, when I came to the door.

Every door in our house was made of wood and iron, but this door was different. It was made of mostly steel and iron with a large lock on it. I was always been puzzled as to why this door was so different, but tonight I have the chance to find out what's truly behind that door. I slowly pushed it open and as the heavy door opened, I walked inside. 

I came into a pretty large room with a bunch of Talos things, like some shrines, some banners, and at the center, the amulet. On either side of the amulet, there were two armor stands, one male and one female. 

Both armor stands had this weird looking armor. "By Talos...what is this?" I thought to myself. They weren't the standard armor that the guards wear or what the soldiers wore to battle. They were both made from a hard, dark metal with navy and black clothing under it. They also seemed to have some bone in it. The helmet was really weird to me because it almost looked like a dragon's face in the nose guard. The swords above them were also really weird to me. They seemed to be made of the same material as the armor, but what was really weird was that they were curved and single-bladed. My parents were keeping secrets and I don't know why. 

As I was backing out of the room, I heard someone walking down the stairs. I quickly snuck into the library and randomly picked up a book on the other side of the room. I opened it and started reading, realizing it was about Skyrim, the Imperial province to the north and where my mother is from. As the person stopped at the doorway, I was preparing to be nagged on.

"Couldn't sleep either, could ya?" I heard. It was my father. I gave a sigh of relief.

"No, father, I was getting antsy about the hunt in the morning." 

He came and sat down in his chair and motioned me to come. I obliged and sat in his lap. He noticed the book I was holding. "Curious, aren't you? I don't blame you. It is your homeland. Perhaps one day I can take you to the hunting grounds in Whiterun. Your mother's family lives there, after all." 

As I sit there confused, I can't help but think about the room. "Yes father, I would love to! I want to learn of the secrets of our family's history and of Skyrim"

My father looked at me sort of concerned before taking the book from me. "Yes, I will tell you if we go. Anyway, let's get you back to bed" He picked me up and put me on his shoulders before putting the book away. He carried me upstairs and put me in bed. "Goodnight, daughter. Be ready for the hunt in the morning. I love you."

"Goodnight father, I love you too." I said before falling asleep.