Cut Short *Slight 18+*

The evening was bitter and cold as the two figures left the cave. The high trees sprinkled with a dash of pure snow, and the nipping wind swayed the leaves making it shower the blade of grass with a shimmering glaze of white. 

Lucius and Ciri wandered over to a small outcrop of rock and stone, each boot letting off a soft crunch of the frosted mud as their steps fell into a soothing rhythm, and sat down with a small thud. 

"So how long do you think this is gonna take?" Ciri asked whilst leaning into his shoulder, enjoying the feel of the soft fabric of his ebon robe. 

"Not too long," He hummed, his mind still plagued with the annoyance of his blade's failure. "Or, she just didn't want an audience... "

"Hn," She nodded in response. "And...what'd you think of her?" Another question came, but this one softer. 

"She's alright, I suppose." He sighed, rubbing a hand over her ashen hair. "We hardly know her, Ciri. But, she seems kind enough for my tastes. Witty at times, but mostly she just seems to be lonely." 

"Yeah, I thought that too. I can't even imagine going to sleep and waking up a year later, let alone millennia." She shuffled closer glancing up into his eyes. "Let's play a game from my world."

"That was... random, Ciri." Lucius raised a brow.

"I know, but I'm bored so why not." She sat up straight, "It's like this... We ask each other two questions, one at a time. You can either answer it; truthfully, or, you can lie. But the catch is, on the next question you have to tell the truth if you lied on the first."

'This is a trap! I'm almost certain.' Alarm bells rang in Lucius's head, but the look Ciri gave him with those emerald eyes made it impossible for him to refuse. "Ladies first."

With a twinkle in her eye Ciri asked her first question. "Why do you really want to take this thing between us so slow?"

"Really went straight into the deep end, huh?" He huffed out. "As I'm sure you've noticed. People aren't exactly my thing." He started. "They're stupid, yet benign, and most of them are outright annoying unless they want something from you. But with you? It's easy. Almost too easy that at times I find myself doubting if we would even work."

"That's stupi-

"Stupid. Yes I know." He cut her off, gently grabbing her hand in the process. "And once this vampire crisis is over I'll be sure to make it up to you… In any manner you so desire."

"Hurry up and make me immortal..." Her lips formed a small pout.

A small grin made its way onto Lucius' lips as he peered down at the woman. "Oh? So you can leech off my alcohol supply forevermore?" 

"No~" She grinned back, worming her way around so she was sat in his lap."So we can stop the pussyfooting, and get to the good parts." She whispered in his ear as began grinding down on him.

Feeling the elf's breeches tightening beneath her, Ciri's grin turned almost feral as she continued her movements. Sighing as Lucius's soft hands wormed their way around her behind and began squeezing at her supple flesh.

"If you carry on any longer," He began through a strained smile. "We're gonna have a very unhappy princess to deal with." 

"Hm~" Ciri shuddered, closing her eyes as heat was building within. "You're going to have one in your lap right now if you even think of stopping."

"My turn then?" He spoke, guiding her back and forth atop him. "What colour underwear do you have on?" He smirked at the slightly panting Ciri as she leant on his chest.

"Black lace" She started nipping at his neck. "But, why tell you when I can show you~?" She purred, grabbing his hands and guiding them down past her brown leather breeches. Shivering as his cold touch caressed her every curve until reaching a slight patch of wetness.

"L-last question... W- Mhmn~ what's my name?" She stifled a moan as his slender fingers slipped past her drenched panties.

"Sneaky little-" She heard him whisper before he swooped down to take her lips with his own. Muffling the moans that gained volume with each and every thrust of his hand.

"Ahem!" A third voice cut in from the cave's entrance. Where a severely unimpressed vampire stood with both arms crossed, a huge blush adorning her perfect face, with a meek looking priest who seemed to find the floor very, very, interesting.

"Again?!" Lucius angrily bellowed as Ciri casually ignored the spectator.

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.

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Some time later the 4 were sat around a large wooden table back in Riverwood. The hearth was burning bright, providing the room with ample warmth for Lucius and Ciri to be in their simple night clothes. 

Serana's amber eyes glared across the table at the two figures sat close together, switching between the smug looking Ciri and a rather nonchalant elf who looked far too proud of himself.

A rather embarrassed Moth priest spoke up against the tense atmosphere of the room.

"Ah, I'm not quite sure where to begin. But I think gratitudes are in order... My name is Dexion Evicus, a moth priest from Cyrodiil. For saving me you have my eternal thanks. If there is something I can do to repay you, you need only to say the word."

"We know why they needed you, because we need you for the very same purpose. We have an elder scroll, and you're going to read it for us.

"You do? Remarkable! I will be happy to assist you with your Elder Scroll."

Lucius deftly stood from his chair and walked over to Dexion. Holding out his arms as a marvellous scroll of pure gold dropped into his hands before he held it out for the priest to receive.

"Now, if everyone will please be quiet, I must concentrate. I see a vision before me, an image of a great bow. I know this weapon! It is Auriel's Bow! Now a voice whispers, saying "Among the night's children, a dread lord will rise." In an age of strife, when dragons return to the realm of men, darkness will mingle with light and the night and day will be as one.

The voice fades and the words begin to shimmer and distort. But wait, there is more here. The secret of the bow's power is written elsewhere. I think there is more to the prophecy, recorded in other scrolls. Yes, I see them now... One contains the ancient secrets of the dragons, and the other speaks of the potency of ancient blood.

My vision darkens, and I see no more. To know the complete prophecy, we must have the other two scrolls."

"How ominous." Lucius deadpanned.

"So we need to find one more scroll. It's almost guaranteed the first scroll we have is about dragons considering; Well." Ciri summarised, waving a hand over to Lucius at the end. "And since the last is about potency in blood..." Grey and Emerald honed in on the still glaring vampiress, who rapidly blinked as she came to realise she was the centre of attention. 

"Hehe, c'mon old man. Let's get you some rest." Ciri giggled at her expression before helping the tired moth priest to a guest room.

Watching them leave Lucius went to take a seat back at the table. "So~ Do you have any ideas for a scroll mentioning blood?"

" Ah, Um... I think I know where we can start looking." She coughed into her pale hand. "But, it runs the risk of my father figuring me out."

"Do you trust Harkon at all? No, no. Let me rephrase that, can you trust what he would do if he found out?" Lucius hummed as he placed his cheek of his fist, leaning on the table.

"It's not a question of trust... he's just obsessed with the prophecy. And from what I could tell, a thousand extra years of obsession hasn't made him any better. So no. You can never truly understand a madman...We should have found him a hobby or something." She tried lightening the mood.

"So where is this Elder Scroll?"

"Right. We need to find my mother, Valerica. She'll definitely know where it is, and if we're lucky, she actually has it herself." Serana's voice gained a hopeful tone.

"The last time I saw her, she said that she'd go somewhere safe... somewhere that my father would never search. Other than that, she wouldn't tell me anything. But, the way she said it..."someplace he would never search." It was cryptic, yet she called attention to it."

"Honestly, Serana?" Lucius muttered. "It sounds like she trust you a whole lot either..."

"That's. That's always a possibility." She deflated slightly. "She was almost as obsessed as my father by the time she shut me in. However, I can't worry about that now. We need the scroll, and she's our only lead. Besides, I can't imagine a single place my father would avoid looking. And he's had all this time, too. Any ideas?"

"The castle.""Oblivion." Two voices rang, Ciri strutted back into the room with a skip in her step and chin held high.

"Wait... that almost makes sense!" Serana whispered as she ignored Ciri's entrance. "I used to help my mother tend a garden in the courtyard here. All of the ingredients for our potions came from there. She used to say that my father couldn't stand the place. Too... peaceful.

"Oi, Isn't that pretty risky, staying around the castle?" Ciri persisted. 

"Without a doubt. Absolutely. But my mother's not a coward. That is... I don't think we'll actually trip over her there. But it's worth a look."

"How can we get in without your father noticing? Not like we can waltz through the front door" Lucius chipped in.

"Trust me. I lived there for a very long time and I know every nook and cranny. There's an unused inlet on the northern side of the island that was used by the previous owners to bring supplies into the castle. An old escape tunnel from the castle exits there. I think that's our way in."

"Hmm, then it's settled. On the morrow we'll head for this courtyard. Lets get some sleep."

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I swear I didn't start out with that scene in mind, It kinda just... happened?

Well, I hope it was better than the last one at least :|

Your comments and reviews are my motivation,

See you next time.