Haldar poked Haltan once more with a curious look on his face. "Would you stop that?" Haltan asked as Haldar finished healing his shockingly small amount of injuries.

"I just don't understand how you are not more injured. That dragon hit you so hard it cracked stone." Haldar said as he stood up his wounds already only aches that would be gone in a few hours.

"Maybe it is the same reason the dragon was so hard to injure." Lydia suggested. "Perhaps whatever makes them so durable also aids Haltan."

Haldar shrugged. "I don't know maybe, this dragonborn thing is getting more and more unfair." he grumbled.

The warriors behind him rolled their eyes in amusement, it was little things like this that reminded them he was a child. Decked out in formal wizard robes and a hood often covering his face, it was easy for one to assume he was just a short mage especially given the natural lack of height most bretons had.

"So where to next?" Mozan asked Haltan. "Should we head back to High Hrothgar or go to Winterhold?"

Before he could answer Haldar spoke. "High Hrothgar we don't have time to waste on going to Winterhold." plus he didn't want to go, but that didn't change the fact that his argument was a solid one.

"Lad's got a point, we don't exactly have time to waste on a trip to Winterhold." Morzan agreed nodding.

"It does seem to be the best course of action." Lydia said and Haltan nodded.

"So then we are all agreed we get back to High Hrothgar as fast as possible and learn everything else they can teach me." not one of them missed the fact that he didn't include Delphine in that vote count.

"I can't deny the Greybeard will be able to help." she admitted making Morzan scoff at the way she acted like they cared about her opinion.

"Great to know you approve." she scowled at him and he responded by raising an eyebrow in challenge. What did she think Haltan would take her side over his. Regardless of how strange he was acting he still trusted Haltan with his life.

"Anyway…" she continued turning away from Morzan, but not before shooting him a dirty look. "I have a few contacts who might be able to help us find out about how the Thalmor caused this."

Haldar burst out into laughter and Morzan chuckled while both Lydia and Haltan looked at her like she was crazy. "You think the thalmor brought the dragons back?" Haldar asked still giggling. "Do you also think they are responsible for those rabbits get into your garden?" he asked mockingly.

Delphine growled. "Joke all you want but think about it just Ulfric was captured and the civil war about to end the dragons return restarting the conflict!"

"You know nothing about war girl." Morgan told her. "Killing Ulfric wouldn't have ended the war not with the way they captured him. They caught him by surprise in a sneak attack set up by the Thalmor. Do you think after that the stormcloaks would just give up? That Ulfric was the only general in the entire army? That would have made him a martyr to rally behind."

"You don't know that wars have ended in the past by killing their leader." She pointed out. "They might have thought that it was better safe than sorry."

"Those commanders were captured in outright battle not an ambush, killing him may have slowed recruitment but also make the remaining stormcloaks fight even harder."

"I'll prove I'm right." She growled jumping on her horse and taking off.

"Uppity Bitch." Morzan called after her. "Not the dragonborn because of the company he keeps." He muttered remembering one of the comments she made, saying the dragonborn would never trust an elf.

"Yeah she's a racist bitch." Haltan agreed jumping on his own horse. "Now can we get going?" He asked. "Because if we stand here listing all the things wrong with her we won't to worry about The dragons destroying Tamriel, time would have done it for us."

"Aren't dragons technically fragments of time since they are the children of Akatosh?" Haldar asked.

"Don't you start poking holes in my metaphases." Haltan told Haldar as the young boy climbed onto a horse with Morzan.

"Metaphors." Haldar corrected once more his smile widening.

"My thane perhaps you should quit while you are still ahead." Lydia suggested a small smile playing at her lips. Haltan glanced at Morzan and saw he was smiling as well.

"Bah traitors the lot of you." He grumbled good natured.

"Of course my thane."

"Why do I keep you guys around?" He asked. "I mean Lydia is sworn to carry my burdens so I guess she could carry all my crap but what do I need the rest of you for."

Morzan placed a hand on his chin in thought. "Well considering the last time you picked up a smithing hammer you ruined six basic daggers you need me for weapons and armor."

Haldar continued. "And consider you know about as much as a giant does about magic you need me for that, so unless you are secretly a master smith/wizard/swordsman you are stuck with us."

"And I may be sworn to carry your burdens but if you made me hold all you random crap I wouldn't see as I was walking so I might not see you stop on the way up High Hrothgar and 'bump' into you." Lydia said surprising them with the venom in her voice. Before any of them could say anything she ushered her horse forward.

The trio exchanged looks of surprise before Haldar let out a small. "Oh." As he remembered something.

"What is it lad?" Morzan asked noticing he had realized something.

"Nothing." He said shaking his head. "Let's catch up to her." He suggested kicking the sides of the horse to get it moving. Morzan quickly grabbed the reins to guide the horse.

Later that night as they rested around the campfire Haldar sat down next to Lydia. "Sorry." He muttered. "I forgot about-"

"Don't." She interrupted him holding a hand. "You didn't do anything wrong and neither did Haltan, it's just a sore point." she said dismissing the problem. "It's no one's fault but that bastards." she spat angrily.

"I know but I should have remembered." he told her before getting up and heading into his tent.

A few minutes after he left Haltan came over and took a seat. "So want to tell me what that was all about?"

"Just bad memories." she muttered angrily jabbing the fire with a stick knocking over some logs and sending sparks flying.

"Trust me I get that." he said nodding.

She looked at him skeptically. "Really? You get it? I saw your relationship with your parents they adore you."

"My parents yes." he agreed. "I am lucky to have them. I know that but I had an uncle, A useless drunk of an uncle." he growled. "I remember as a boy I used to idolize him he was a soldier in the great war and while he may have drunk too much after I still thought he was a good man and he was a hard worker." Haltan ran a hand through his hair. "I didn't even realize how his own prejudices affected me." his eyes darkened and he let out a small but inhuman growl. "I remember one day there was this small Altmer family coming through. I was annoyed by that, not for any real reason just because my uncle told they were all cowards and curs who only wanted to control man and they should all be put to the sword. I thought that was just a bit of bitterness from the war, I didn't like elves but I didn't think they were all monsters. But my uncle had described them as all these rich lazy Milk drinkers who were all high and mighty. So when the daughter started asking me what I was doing while working on the farm I mistook her bored curiosity for contempt. So I started yelling at her and she was so shocked she just stood there. I thought she was ignoring me so I shoved her." he looked down in shame. "It was only once she began crying did I realize what I had done. That I had pushed around and bullied a girl a year or two younger than me for no real reason. I felt so ashamed, I apologized, I found out her family was here on their way to Riften to take a ride back to their home in Cyrodiil and she had convinced them to stop so she could see the seven thousand steps." he shook his head with a chuckle. "At the end of the next day she was leaving and gave a small kiss on the cheek nothing major, hell I probably would have forgotten about it in a few weeks if my uncle hadn't seen." his eyes darkened once more.

"I take it he didn't react well." Lydia said seeing his eyes darken.

He let out a humorless snort. "No in the slightest started to ranting and rave about how some high elf bitch was seducing he nephew and he was going to stand for it. Looking back it was clear he had already drunk too much. He stormed up to the girl and grabbed her by the hair threw her down and started screaming at her, he raised his hand to hit her and before anyone could react I tackled him." his fist clenched as he remembered what happened. "He started yelling at me calling me a traitor and bunch of other insults. I started punching him in the face and before I knew it my dad and three friends were pulling me off him." he looked at her. "Last I heard from my uncle was that he got into the fight against the empire siding with the stormcloaks. I will be happy pretending he didn't exist for the rest of eternity."

"Thank you for sharing my thane but-"

"You still don't want to tell me." he finished for her nodding. "I didn't expect you I just wanted you to know you could come to me, that you can trust me." he told her getting up. "Now we should get some rest I want to be at High Hrothgar in two-three days at most."

Haltan smiled as they walked into town their horses cantering behind them. It was always nice to come home, luckily it had been a quicker trip back to Ivarstead then was to Kynesgrove. "Happy to be back already?" Lydia asked and Haltan shrugged with his smile still in place.

"What can I say after spending nearly two years away it's nice to spend some time back home."

"Don't let your mother hear you say that, Halt otherwise she will never let you leave." Tommen warned as Haltan and his companions approached the house. "Gods know she has been nothing but worried ever since you left." she had been bad enough when he went to join the fighters guild but going off to fight dragons his wife looked ready to tie him down forbid him to go.

"Haltan!" on cue his mother stepped out of the house and saw him.

"Ma." he smiled hugging her as she rushed over. He chuckled as she began to fuss over him looking for new scars and injuries. "Ma I am fine." he told her, brushing off her concern.

"I swear you going off on all these adventure is going to make me go grey early." she scolded slapping her son's chest playfully. "Now you must be tired from your long trip." she told him gesturing inside. "Come in and eat." she ordered.

"Tessa we should tell him." Tommen said to his wife and she grimaced. "He is going to find out."

"Find out what?" Haltan asked glancing between his parents as they looked at each other nervously.

"It's about your-" she was interrupted by a loud booming voice.

"Haltan!" a deep voice called immediately his eyes darkened. It took Lydia less than a second to realize who it was the only time she had seen him react like this was around the campfire a few nights back. "It's been awhile Laddie!"

Haltan turned around and growled out. "Uncle."

Done so as you can probably guess I don't like Delphine she is such a fucking hypocrite and more then most characters. She says the dragonborn is the one the blades serve but unless you do exactly as she tells you you can't lead them? Go to hell. There are so many other problems I have with her that I don't have time to list.

Bunny153539: thank you for such in depth reviews I will fix some of the things you have pointed out but for the backstory and character development first of all yes most backstory will be revealed over time for this arc as I have shown with Haltan but a lot of character development will happen after the defeat of alduin and before and During the rise of the vampires. Them dealing with the problems that emerged throughout their world saving quest. I can't say anymore without spoiling the story.

About getting a beta the main problem with that is that I post my stories almost as soon as finish them so I don't like waiting for someone to finish looking it over for flaws I do read over the chapter before I post but I know I don't get everything. Also thank you for reminding me about the compression I had completely forgotten about that. And you aren't being nitpicky you are giving an honest review which is what I like so thank you.