Mal Keyye Ko Keizaal

by Dragon Dreaming

Interlude - Distant Omens

A chill ran down his spine, despite the relative warmth of the hall. The frigid winds outside were kept at bay by stone and enchantment, but Winterhold was aptly named. The frozen hand of Winter had gripped this place in ages long past and never seemed to let go completely, even in the height of summer. Tolfdir set his quill down and rubbed his arms reflexively. The parchment before him was one of a dozen or so similar pages that were swiftly stacking up on his desk, and his wrist and fingers had gone numb some hours ago.

"Master Tolfdir?" The old man turned to find the source of the voice, and smiled warmly when he found it.

"Ah, Miss Sparkle! Come in, do come in." He gestured to a seat just inside the door. "Please, have a seat." The woman nodded in appreciation, pulling back the hood of her robes as she settled into the chair. She was a pretty woman; long dark hair, deep chestnut skin, and marvelously bright lavender eyes. Tolfdir still wasn't completely sure how those had come about. Her cheeks were flushed from the exposure to the icy winds outside, no doubt from time spent at the pinnacle of the Hall of the Elements.

"Twilight, my dear," Tolfdir continued, leaning against the table, "You've been spending more time up on that tower than is good for you. I know we have some strong healers in our ranks, but that's no excuse for you to go and catch cold."

"I'm fine, Tolfdir," Twilight replied with a smirk, before noticing the stack of paper on his desk. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

"Not at all, not at all. My fingers could use the rest, and the reports can wait a bit. Now, what can I do for you today?" The Breton seemed to consider her words carefully before answering.

"Have you heard about the dragons, Tolfdir?" she asked. "The stories filtering north from Whiterun and Falkreath?"

"I'd have to be deaf as a stone not to have heard," Tolfdir chuckled. "The rumors are on everyone’s lips these days, especially the Novices. It seems to be the only thing they talk about." He gave Twilight a searching look. "If you're here to ask if they're true, I know no more than anyone else." Twilight shook her head emphatically at the suggestion.

"No no, Tolfdir. Nothing like that. I've actually come to tell you that... well... I know they're true." The older mage raised an eyebrow at that revelation.

"How can you know that for certain, Twilight?"

"I saw one," she answered, almost nonchalantly. This time, both eyebrows shot upwards in alarm and a worried frown tugged at Tolfdir's mouth.

"Where? I thought the rumors said they were staying well south of Windhelm!" Twilight raised a hand to slow her mentor's train of thought.

"It's okay, Tolfdir! The rumors are still true! I saw it while using this to look at the Throat of the World last week." She reached into her satchel and pulled out a collapsed length of metal tubes made of Dwemer metal, proffering it to Tolfdir. It was a portable spyglass, and a rather good one at that. "I saw one fly through my field of view. Since then, I've had three more sightings, all in the same area."

"Three separate dragons?" Tolfdir asked, looking for clarification. Twilight shook her head uncertainly.

"I can't say for sure. They were too fast and too out-of-focus to be absolutely certain. It could have all been the same dragon, for all I saw, but it was definitely a dragon." Tolfdir's frown redoubled.

"So... the ancient legends come to life..." His expression went vacant for a few moments before he blinked and shook his head. "This is dire news indeed. I'll be sure to let Arch-mage Aren know as soon as he's free." He expected Twilight to dismiss herself, but instead she was looking at him expectantly. "Something else on your mind, Miss Sparkle?"

"Yes, actually," she answered, seeming rather excited. "In light of this new information, I would like to request the formation of an official expedition to the areas near the dragon sightings in order to study th-"

"Absolutely not," Tolfdir interjected.

"I ... what?" She seemed startled. Clearly she hadn't expected that response.

"The College is far too busy right now, my dear, especially with the excavation of Saarthal in full swing. The Masters have too much interest vested in those ruins to follow you on such a venture, and the apprentices and novice students..." He shook his head vehemently. "They are not ready for a challenge on the scale of dragons, if half the legends are true. I will not allow them such risks. I'm sorry, Twilight, but your request is denied. An official expedition is out of the question."

"But... but, I..." She seemed to collapse in on herself, slumping down in her seat, head hanging. She looked... crushed. Tolfdir sighed heavily, running a hand through his thinning white hair.

"No, Twilight. An expedition is impossible... but you know the College always encourages personal projects." That caught her attention, her head rising sharply.

"Oh! But... alone?"
Tolfdir nodded confidently. "You're a skilled mage, Miss Sparkle. I dare say, you're the brightest student of the arcane we've seen here in a long time. So long as you stay alert and keep your wits about you on the road, you should be fine."

"You know ... You're absolutely right, Tolfdir! I can do this myself, and I'll move a whole lot faster on my own. Thank you so much!" She rose sharply from her seat, giving her mentor a quick hug before grabbing her spyglass and striding quickly for the door. "I'll make sure to get you my notes before I leave so you can present them to the Arch-mage!" The door swung open and shut before the Master could reply. He stood there for a moment, smiling and shaking his head.

"I'm sure you will, my dear Twilight. I'm sure you will." He sighed and turned to his desk once more, lowering himself into the chair. "Now then... where was I?"

It was a clear day, for once. Not a single snowflake fell from the sky. A good start to her journey. "Well... here I go. Ready Lyra?" Her horse snorted, bringing out a smile from Twilight as she stroked her neck. "I'll take that as a yes. Let's head on out, then!" With a light snap of the reigns, Twilight began the long trip, heading south towards where the Throat of the World stood proudly on the horizon; heading south towards the dragons.

Comments

[EternallyLost]

Holy crap... one of my favorite fics on the site got updated. this is a pleasent surprise. Welcome back

as for the interlude makes sense for Twi to start here and throw herself fully into a major world changing events. If i recall spike is elsewhere(been while since I reread things which is certainly different considering how joined at the hip she and spike are in canon much of the time. should be an interesting meeting. also nice lyra cameo, made me chuckle