This was my first Skyrim fanfic, so please bear with me as I attempted to find the characters' voices. I finished this story one year to the day I began fleshing this adventure out. It spans across 15 chapters and follows the Dragonborn as she struggles to find a place in her strange, new life. While she's not as physically badass as many other stories' heroines, I imagined her biggest assets being strength of character and determination. Hopefully that comes across in her tale.

Enjoy.

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I groggily awoke to the sound of horses. Cracking my eyes open with a groan, I was greeted to a sky filled with stars, daylight beginning to stain it with pinks and oranges.

'Where are you, Dani?' I wondered to myself, adrenaline from the sudden onset of panic waking me up fully.

Propping myself up from the ground and the rocks that had been digging into my back, I attempted to take better stock of my surroundings. The horses which had summoned me to consciousness stood in the distance, their heads peeking over some doors in the back of what I assumed to be a stable. Otherwise, all I saw through a considerable layer of fog were trees, boulders, and the distant stone of a wall to my south. Rubbing at my throbbing head, I desperately tried to recall what I had been doing prior to waking in this strange place.

"I was home for spring break," I murmured to myself, running my hands through my dark brown hair. "Mom and Dad were at work… Tom had his friends over during the afternoon…"

Slowly rising to my feet, I continued to walk myself through the previous day. My younger brother, Tom, had invited some friends over while I lazed about on my final break from college. Being a student-teacher, I had the same spring break as my students, so I took advantage by going home one last time. After his friends left, Tom had showed off the new virtual reality kit he'd recently gotten for his birthday, offering to let me try it to play a re-released version of Skyrim he had purchased. I had only casually attempted the game a few years prior for a brief period, after a former boyfriend had encouraged me to play. Despite that, I had been curious how the game had changed since being pushed out again with the new virtual reality capabilities. Tom had helped attach the sensors to various parts of my body before I layed down with the headset on and gave it a try. I hadn't played long due to the game making me dizzy and giving me an awful headache, so I'd quickly gone to lay down after taking some aspirin.

And then I woke up here…

"That doesn't make sense," I grumbled, stumbling over some unearthed roots. Looking down to glare at the offending root, I noticed my attire for the first time. I remembered going to rest in my favorite t-shirt and flannel pants. Now I found myself donning a navy tunic that went to mid-thigh and snug cloth pants tucked into some mid-calf leather boots. I ran a couple curious fingers over the leather of a satchel slung about my torso before raising my hands, barely taking stock of the fingerless leather gloves.

My mind swimming with questions, I continued to stumble my way through the fog and passed the stables until I came to an old cobbled road.

'So this is what a stone road looks like?' I thought to myself, confusion overthrown for a moment by the unexpected sight. Growing up in the suburbs of America, and never having been to places like Europe where such things were common, I'd only ever been acquainted with concrete and asphalt.

Shaking myself back to the situation at hand, I took a moment to look up and down the road. In one direction, I could only make out fog and trees. In the other, not too far beyond the stables, I saw the stone wall from before surrounding what looked like a town. Standing outside the gated entrance to this town were two men dressed like medieval soldiers.

"Was I drugged?!" I wondered aloud, turning in a circle to look for anyone to jump out and inform me this was all a prank. Reaching up tentatively, I pinched my upper arm hard through the tunic. The sharp pain and involuntary gasp confirmed I was not dreaming or hallucinating. Rubbing at where I had pinched, I decided I'd better approach the two men and glean whatever I could from them.

"Excuse me," I called out as I approached the two. Before they could greet me back, I had a sudden sense of deja vu. Had I been there before? Quickly trying to place why the picture before mye was so familiar, I continued slowly toward the funnily-dressed men.

"Good morning, miss. Welcome to Riften," one called out in a strange accent. I stopped abruptly, everything clicking into place upon hearing the man speak.

'I have to be dreaming! Isn't this from that video game? But that pinch hurt, and I've never had dreams this lucid before. Could it be a dream brought on after using that headset?'

My mind continued to whirl at the implication, becoming more and more convinced something had gone terribly wrong.

"...that it's not often we get mages around here...miss? Are you alright?" My attention snapped back to the guard speaking to me.

"I'm afraid I'm not," I began slowly, my voice trembling slightly. I was certain this was a place in that Skyrim game, especially after he implied I was a mage. But having spent more hours watching my then-boyfriend, Kevin, play I couldn't be sure.

"You see, I think I'm lost. What did you say this place was called again?"

"You're in Riften, miss. By your foreign accent, I can tell you're not from around here. Where is it you were heading?"

"Riften? Home to that group of assassins, right?" I desperately tried to recall anything I could about the quests I'd watched Kevin do around here and struggled to recall some underground group of bad guys.

"Oh, no, that's the Dark Brotherhood you're on about. Completely unaffiliated with us here," the other guard said a bit defensively. "We do have a bit of a thieving problem, but no assassins. Perhaps you've heard of the Black-Briar Meadery? That is located here in Riften."

"I see," I said softly, those name also sounding familiar.

Before anything more could be said, the wooden gates pushed open revealing a man and woman clad in leather with daggers holstered to their waists. The pair observed me and the guards for a moment before quietly passing through and heading up the road. Thinking it best to roll with what was happening, be it prank or dream, I faced the first guard.

"Well, I'll bid you two a good morning and thank you for your assistance," I said softly, putting on a brave face and proceeding through the now opened wooden gates.

"She never did say where she was headed," I heard the second guard mention as they shut the gates behind me.

Immediately, I took note that the town was just as foggy inside as it was beyond the stone perimeter. Walking to a nearby window, I peered inside to find it stocked like any normal home would be.

"We've got enough trouble 'round here without newcomers adding to the riffraff," came a woman's voice. Looking up, I found myself being approached by a guard I hadn't noticed before.

"Oh, sorry, I just…," I floundered. I had once gone out to California on a family vacation and toured around an outdoor television set. How was I going to explain to this guard that I had been inspecting to see if I was being pranked on some elaborate set?

"Move along," the guard said after an awkward moment of silence.

"Yes, ma'am," I replied quickly, grateful the other woman had decided I wasn't worth the interrogation. But still, everything around me seemed as real as could be. Some townspeople were starting to make their way outdoors, and everything seemed to be functioning like any regular medieval town would.

Riften seemed much larger than what I could remember from my time with the game. It was somewhat familiar, but the additional buildings lining the wooden walkways added to my lost feeling. As I crossed over a bridge, I couldn't help admiring the scenery below. Along the wide channel of dark water, many fishing boats bobbed gently against the piers they were tied to, the remaining stars in the sky reflected in the water around them.

While I was taking in the sight, an Argonian exited a door next to a nearby boat and started removing supplies from it.

'This can't be a prank! I must be dreaming! Lizard people aren't real!' It was at that moment the Argonian looked up and caught sight of me watching him.

"What you looking at, human?" he hissed at me, the sound carrying well through the otherwise silent morning. I realized I must have been wearing an astonished look.

"No-nothing, sorry," I replied weakly, backing up and continuing across the bridge.

The sun's continued ascent into the sky afforded me a better view of the surrounding buildings. Within each home, I could hear the stirrings of families beginning their tasks for the day. Each step made me feel more numb with confusion. After wandering around a few more minutes, I found myself at another point along the channel. Nearby, an old-style wooden sign hung from a building proclaiming the establishment as "The Bee and Barb". Hoping it was the town's inn, I proceeded to go inside.

As luck would have it, it was indeed the local inn and watering hole - and not many people were around yet.

"Come in and sit down," a female Argonian greeted from behind the counter.

"Thank you," I replied, making my way over to a table between the innkeeper and a couple of patrons. I had no idea whether I had any money, and intended to look through my mysterious satchel in a place more private than the open walkways outside.

"How can I help you this morning, mage?" the Argonian asked, walking up to me. The unexpected title threw me off for a moment.

"I'm not sure, I need to check how much money I have," I replied timidly, pulling the satchel from around my body.

"If you've got the coin, you're welcome here. Otherwise, hit the road," the Argonian replied haughtily before returning to her counter.

Emptying the contents of my bag on the table, I failed to find any kind of money. An empty journal, a half-full inkwell, a couple quills, a small dagger, three small phials of some violently blue liquid, and an instructional book on fire spells were all I had. Panic started to settle more firmly in the pit of my stomach.

'If this isn't a dream, what am I going to do? Who would I even go to for help?' I wondered to myself, placing the items carefully back in my bag. As I was preparing to leave, so as to avoid the penetrating glare of the innkeeper, an elderly man dressed in mage robes entered from the staircase.

"Good morning, Master Thadyn."

"And a good morning to you, Keerava," the mage greeted back to the innkeeper, noticing me. "Well, what do we have here? Greetings sister."

"Uh, hello," I replied shyly, surprised as the mage took the seat opposite me.

"Forgive me, it's so rare to see another mage here in Riften. Most of our kind seem to avoid this area, preferring The Pale, Whiterun, The Reach, and so on."

Not knowing how to respond, I thought it best to remain silent and merely nodded in acknowledgement.

"What brings you to The Rift?" Thadyn inquired after a moment wherein he seemed to decide there was something strange afoot. My mind raced for an answer before deciding to present my dilemma to a magic user, even if he might be merely a figment of my imagination.

"To be perfectly honest, I don't know." The man's wisened eyes shone with curiosity.

"I'm afraid I don't follow," he responded gently.

"If I tell you something crazy, will you promise you won't go running to a guard or run away screaming?" I asked quickly, anxious for input from someone else on what was happening to me. This old man seemed amiable enough and, being a mage, would have seen many incredible things. I breathed a sigh of relief when he nodded his agreement and sat back to hear what I would say.

"Okay, so, I think I'm in a very lucid dream," I said quietly, leaning onto the table.

"What has lead you to believe such a thing?"

"You see, this place, Skyrim, I know it as being from a video game. It doesn't really exist!"

The old man closed his eyes in thought before leaning toward me.

"You've lost me again. The beginning is the best place to start. Tell me more about yourself and where you come from, if Skyrim is what you claim," he said calmly, bushy white eyebrows furrowing in concentration as I began my story. I spent the next 15 or so minutes quickly walking him through my family, growing up in the suburbs, working my way through college as an education major, and finally the previous day that led to my current situation.

"I'm worried whether that new headset of my brother's didn't fry some part of my brain and now I'm lying comatose in my bed at my parents' house! There's no way this can be real," I finished desperately, my hands worrying at the leather strap on my satchel. "That or I'm the victim of a very elaborate prank. But, I don't know why anyone would do that."

"The mind is an amazing and mysterious thing, child," Thadyn finally responded. "Who is to say this -" he gestured to the room around us "- isn't reality and the other world of yours was, in fact, the dream? I've seen some elaborate and terrifying magic in my time, and it does not seem so far fetched to think someone could have developed such an illusion spell. Perhaps this video game of yours was the trigger to allowing you to finally wake up from such a spell?"

I floundered in my seat, struggling to accept the possibility he presented. I had played the game before yesterday, so if he was correct, I should have woken from any spells previously. Unless it was experiencing Skyrim in virtual reality?

"Could a spell have created years of memories, though? And erased whatever memories I had prior to having it cast on me? It's hard for me to believe something so real could have been nothing more than, well, an illusion!"

I cradled my head in my hands as I propped my elbows on the table.

"My dear," the mage murmured, reaching out a gloved hand to gently pat the crown of my head. "If spells can reanimate the dead, why couldn't they also plant memories and let imagination do the rest?"

"You're telling me there's zombies in Skyrim?" I deadpanned, looking up at the old man.

"There are those, whom we call necromancers, who practice the art of reanimation, yes."

"I don't suppose there are any headache remedies in this world?" I inquired, feeling the beginnings of a tension headache taking hold. The mage let out a hearty laugh.

"You'll find the population of Tamriel prefers to drink their pains away," Thadyn jested, reaching into his own satchel.

"What a mind fuck," I groaned, leaning back in my chair. "How am I to know what's real and what isn't?"

"Dreams are usually of short duration. I would suggest that, if you find yourself still with us in the next couple days, with no interruption in memory, you should probably accept this as your new reality," he replied, laying a few gold coins on the table.

"What is this?" I asked as he pushed them toward me.

"Keerava has been glaring at you since I walked in, meaning you likely have no money, am I correct?" I gave an embarrassed nod.

"Well, I don't have much on me since I am on my way home from traveling. But, I can at least offer you this much to see you through today," he said, rising from the table.

Words wouldn't come to me through my immense feeling of gratitude, thus I couldn't help flinging myself from my chair to embrace the man in a tight hug.

"Oh, there there," he chuckled, patting my back as I began to cry into his shoulder. "Things always work out with time. I've found, through the years, it is best to go with the flow. Try it for a while and see how you fare."

"So, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade?" Stepping back, I gave the man a weak smile at his confused look.

"Thank you for your help, and not thinking I'm crazy," I gurgled through my constricted throat.

"Do you think you will stay in Riften?"

"Probably. I don't know where else I would go…"

"Well, I travel here frequently. If you would like to speak when next I'm in town, feel free to leave a note with Keerava for Thadyn," he said with finality, moving to the exit.

Gripping the coins in my hand, I smiled wryly, not knowing whether I would be here long enough to see him again. I hoped I would wake up soon, but also felt pity at the prospect of not meeting the kind man again.

"Thank you," I called out, indicating the coins. "Even if you end up being only a figment of my imagination."

"By the way, what is your name?" he asked before pushing the door open. I realized I had never actually introduced myself.

"Danielle," I replied. "But everyone calls me Dani."

"Well, Dani," he said with a small smile, "I will leave you with this final bit of advice. Don't hesitate to put your trust in whatever it is you most believe."

With those esoteric words, he pulled up his cowl and left the inn.