Groove

It's been three weeks since Michael and his friends had come to Skyrim, and they were finally starting to get into the routine of things. Getting used to it was difficult, as Skyrim was a substantially different place compared to any nation back in Halkeginia. Things as simple as gathering and chopping your own wood to use, not having bathhouses to bathe, or even getting used to the new currency.

Indeed, Michael had never been as relaxed as he had been now. Not getting chased, not having the apocalypse looming above him, not having a 'master' over him. The friends he'd made in Falkreath too made a difference, he and the others were starting to call this place home.

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, at least for the moment. Falkreath was only the beginning of their journey in this world, and now that Charlotte and Tiffania had a very basic grasp on the language, it was time that they depart.

Michale had gathered a few thousand Septims from his time working under the Jarl, and it would be enough to fund their trip. As for the route itself, he'd bought a couple maps from the local general store and went through it, quickly deciding that going through Helgen to get to Riften was the best way for now. They could go North to Whiterun first, then venture around the Throat of the World into Riften, but that was inefficient in his eyes.

Plus, he didn't want them to stay in Riften any longer than they had to. The place was a cesspit and home of the Thieves Guild, people who he just so happened to have offended recently. They'd stop there, go to the Temple of Mara, then leave as soon as they came.

After that they'd probably go to Whiterun. He wanted to spend some time with the Companions, more to see how his martial abilities compared to this world's warriors. The Companions were considered some of the best, so he was hoping to learn some things from them.

There was also the Skyforge and the 'best smith in Skyrim', Eorlund Gray-Mane who Michael wished to make use of the ebony he had.

Regardless, everything else after that could be planned later. For now, Michael shrugs the heavy backpack full of supplies he'd just bought and stores it in his inventory once he was out of sight. With that done, he heads down to Grave Concoctions where he'd last seen Charlotte and Tiffania.

Yeah, both of them had started learning the basics of Alchemy from Zaria not long after Tiffania had woken up. They couldn't just spend all their time trying to learn the language, so he'd paid Zaria to tutor them in her free time. Her shop wasn't all that busy most of the time, and with him paying for their tutelage along with all the ingredients they'd use, the duo had made a fair amount of progress in their studies... Not that Michael could really tell, he had no clue when it came to Alchemy.

It was significantly different to what you did when playing Skyrim... You couldn't just haphazardly mix shit together to see what would happen... Depending on the ingredients an explosion would occur more often than not. That wasn't the most common outcome though, that would be causing the Alchemy Table itself to melt, get damaged, or simply cease working all together... Michael had made a good amount of money, but he couldn't afford to replace Alchemy Tables that often... So, he'd either have to get someone to teach him, or ignore this particular art for now...

Considering that Tiffania and Charlotte were learning about it, he was more interested in Smithing and Enchanting, so he'd see if he could start learning one of them once they settled in the College of Winterhold.

When the girls weren't learning under Zaria, they also spent time watching Runil work. The mage had offered to teach them things about Arkay and such when Michael had brought Tiffania in for a check-up.

Michael asked if the guy could teach magic as well, but apparently, Charlotte and Tiffania's grasp on Tamrielic wasn't good enough to risk it. One misunderstood word and shit would hit the fan, or so he says. Michael understood where he was coming from though once he learned just how dangerous Restoration magic could be, despite the public's general goodwill towards its practitioners, the results of a miscast Restoration spell sounded more like dark magic than anything else.

Runil claims to have once seen someone accidentally alter someone's brain when trying to heal a gash on their head, causing their body to grow randomly and abnormally as if they had whatever the elephant-man had. They grew so tall that their body couldn't support their weight, they had tumours all over them, and eventually, their heart couldn't keep up with it all.

Michael didn't have to be told twice not to start messing with that magic alone. He quickly gave the girls the same story, wanting to preempt any attempts that they may make as well. He did this for Charlotte more than anything, before she tried to take her mother's healing into her own hands.

She did badger Runil with enough questions to the extend where the man was considering kicking her out of the Hall of the Dead... Fortunately, Michael managed to convince both of them to avoid such a thing.

Tiffania also made sure to continue her studies with Brimir's Prayerbook. Her Void Magic was no lesser to anything in Skyrim, so she'd be a fool to ignore it. The World Gate worked, despite the rather crazy and difficult journey through said gate. Michael only hoped that the next time wouldn't be so... Chaotic.

Their interaction with the locals was the main reason that people were sad to see them go. Michael was kinda creeped out by the way Nenya looked at him after he'd told her and the Jarl, so he made a quick exit after that. He was stopped by the Jarl though, but fortunately, the man wasn't upset, and instead gifted them with a couple of horses and a carriage for his contributions to Falkreath.