Deception, Domination, and Dragons (Skyrim Self-Insert)

At first glance, I assume this new Svana is an older sister or something. But the longer I stare at this doppelganger of my Dragonborn in front of me, the more I realize it’s less a matter of age, and more a mature of physicality. My Svanna isn’t younger than the new Svana, she’s simply built different. Where my Svanna has lived a life of lean meals and scarcity, this new Svana has clearly had plenty of access to milk and all of the other nutrients she would need to grow up big-breasted and tall.
 
But beyond those differences, beyond the fact that the Svana in front of us is busty as all hell and has an inch or two more on my Dragonborn, they might as well be the same person. This… this doesn’t make sense. How the fuck does this even work?
 
Svanna doesn’t have any other answers either, to be honest. And Svana…
 
“C-Can I help you? You two…”
 
The doppelganger’s words provoke a sudden and visceral reaction from Svanna, who all but lunges forward as she slams her clone into the wall behind her, a dagger in her hand that wasn’t there a moment before, pressed up against Svana’s throat.
 
“Eep!”
 
I step forward just as fast, placing one hand on Svanna’s wrist to stay her blade, and the other on Svana’s brow, Charming her with my most powerful Charm effect right then and there. Luckily, Svanna’s evil twin isn’t as resistant to my magic as she was. This new Svana is NOT the Dragonborn.
 
“You may be tempted to kill her Svanna but look… she’s already under. She’s no threat to us.”
 
It was the age old question, wasn’t it? What would you do, if you came face to face with your clone? People liked to say it really only boiled down to one of two options. Oh sure, maybe not at first, but eventually you’d either fuck or kill your clone. Maybe you’d tried and talk it out at first. Maybe you’d try to make it work, try and live a half-life where you and your clone shared everything.
 
But eventually, that proximity would result in you either fucking or killing each other. Svanna, of course, had jumped straight to murder, and if Svana was actually another Dragonborn, I would have been in full agreement, because that shit is scary.
 
But no. Whatever Svana was, she wasn’t… this wasn’t the worst case scenario. She wasn’t another source of narrative power. She was just… an NPC, for lack of a better word. As evidenced by the fact that she’d glazed over and was completely entranced by my magic.
 
“Who are you?”
 
“My name is Svana Far-Shield. I work for my aunt Haelga, here at the bunkhouse.”
 
Svana’s immediate response is what finally relaxes Svanna, the Dragonborn pulling her dagger away once she sees that her doppelganger truly is under my control. She still doesn’t look happy, but she leans back and crosses her arms over her chest… almost defensively, I note after a moment. Svana is MUCH better endowed than Svanna. Giving my lithe little Dragonborn a grin and a wink, I do my best to assuage any worries she might have.
 
“Hey, it’s not the size that counts, Svanna. It never has been.”
 
Svanna flushes, but nods all the same, before averting her gaze. Meanwhile, I turn back to Svana. She worked for Haelga, here at the bunkhouse… fuck, my shitty memory was really coming back to bite me in the ass here.
 
Look, I’d done the Thieves Guild Questline more times than I could count. I’d shook Haelga down for her debts before, I know I had. But it was… such a simple task. A blink and you’ll miss it quest. Svana Far-Shield MIGHT have been here all along in the video game, or she might not have. I thought I remembered her, but what if that was just confirmation bias?
 
One thing was for sure, we needed to get to the bottom of this. Luckily, just as I was thinking that another voice fills the room.
 
“Svana, has that Skooma-riddled addict paid her rent yet? Or does she just have… more… excuses.”
 
Turning to regard Haelga as the blonde Nord steps into the room and finds us accosting Svana, I smile.
 
“Ho there. Brynjolf sent us.”
 
Immediately, the blonde’s face closes off into a scowl.
 
“Yeah? What does he want now? I already explained to him that you can’t get blood from a stone.”
 
“Oh, this isn’t about the money or Brynjolf, not anymore. We want to know about your niece here, Svana.”
 
Blinking, Haelga glances from me to Svana… and then finally notes Svanna’s presence. Her eyes widen for a brief second at the sight of the Dragonborn’s features, and a shiver goes through her body that tells me she definitely has something she’s hiding. I grin, even as she tries to cover up whatever it is she’s thinking.
 
“What’s there to know? Fool girl always has her head in the clouds. Svana! Svana, are your chores done?”
 
Svana doesn’t reply, of course, and I quickly draw Haelga’s attention back to me.
 
“Where did you come by her, if you don’t mind me asking? She’s your niece… that mean her parents aren’t in the picture anymore.”
 
Another slight stiffening, Haelga’s nostrils flaring as she tries to practice an air of nonchalance.
 
“… That’s right. She’s been with me ever since she was a babe, ever since her parents were killed by bandits and she was dropped in my lap.”
 
Stepping away from Svana, knowing that the busty red head wasn’t going anywhere, I step closer to Haelga. The blonde Nord is also quite attractive, but for once, I’m barely paying that any mind. This mystery Svanna and I find ourselves involved in… I want to get to the bottom of it.
 
“Now, that’s not entirely true, is it? Please… don’t lie to me.”
 
Haelga takes a step back, as if finally registering the threat inherent in an armed pair of adventurers standing in her bunkhouse.
 
“Don’t… don’t know what you’re talking about.”
 
I consider, for a moment, whether I should just blackmail her for the info using the Dibella statue like in the game, or just use Charm Magic. In the end, I go with the latter. I’m not interested in playing games at this point. I just want answers. Thrusting out my hand, I catch the blonde Nord in my magic before she can react, putting her in the same state as Svana. With two busty Nord women under my control, it feels like this is where things should start getting hot and heavy, but neither Svanna nor I are currently in the mood, I don’t think.
 
Instead, it’s all about business.
 
“Tell me the truth, Haelga. What’s Svana’s story? Where did you really find her?”
 
“Wanted… wanted a babe. Thought raising an extra pair of hands around the bunkhouse would be fun. Obviously, I’m not the marrying type, so she couldn’t be my daughter. Said she was my niece instead. Gave her a good home, all I ask in return is a hard worker…”
 
To my mild surprise, Svana speaks up without prompting at that, the charm magic putting them both in a talkative mood as the glazed-over red head scowls.
 
“Might as well be her slave. Don’t get paid anything for my work, making it impossible for me to ever strike out on my own.”
 
This was beginning to job my memory. I’m pretty sure Svana gave a miscellaneous quest regarding collecting three Marks of Dibella that Haelga had given out to men around Riften, hoping to shame her and get out from under her thumb. I’d probably only ever done that quest once, which is why it was so hard to remember. That was good at least. Meant that Svana actually was a normal video game character. Still didn’t explain Svanna though.
 
“Where did you get here, Haelga? If she’s not truly your niece… where did she come from?”
 
“… Grelod the Kind. It’s not talked about, but if you have the coin, she can get you a babe. Much harder for her to sell the kids once they’re old enough to have distinguishing features and be known, but the babies? No one notices one of those going missing. And then you turn up with a baby you say is your niece, and everything is fine…”
 
I nod slowly, processing this. It makes sense. While they’re both Nords, and it’s not like aunts and nieces HAVE to look alike as a rule or anything, there is the plain and simple truth that Haelga and Svana look nothing alike. They don’t look blood-related, to put it bluntly. And the reason why? They aren’t blood-related. Svana was… she was an orphaned baby that Grelod sold to Haelga. Svana’s claim that she was less of a niece and more of a slave wasn’t entirely inaccurate.
 
The problem was, Svana Far-Shield and MY Svanna… they looked to be the same age. So, did that mean they were twins, separated at birth? Had Grelod sold the one baby, and kept the other? And then their differing lifestyles led to a difference in physical stature? Svanna had had to scrounge for her grub, and when she’d been exiled, she’d clearly had a few hard years that stunted her growth in several areas. Meanwhile, for all that Svana was enslaved to Haelga, the blonde Nord had to at least treat her like she was her niece, meaning she was always fully fed and always had a warm roof over her head.
 
Something about all of this was still niggling at the back of my mind though. It all lined up, this idea that Svanna and Svana were twins, but even still…
 
I glance over at Svanna, to see her staring at her doppelganger with a scrunched up nose. Sidling over to the lithe Dragonborn, I raise an eyebrow.
 
“What do you want to do? If you want, we can have fun with them still… but I fully understand if you’re not in the mood.”
 
Svanna hesitates, and I see a flash of interest at the idea in her eyes. Said eyes dart down to Svana’s tits, and I can only imagine what she’s thinking of doing to those fun bags. For a moment, the archer dances from foot to foot… before ultimately shaking her head.
 
“… Need to speak to Grelod. Want to find out more.”
 
That made sense, I nod my head amicably, before glancing over to Haelga and Svana.
 
“Haelga, pay me your debt. And then the two of you… forget this for now, but always remember who your Master and Mistress truly are. We may or may not be back later.”
 
“”Yes, Master~””
 
Haelga hands me the gold easily enough, and Svanna and I step out of the Bunkhouse and head down the road to Riften’s Orphanage. From the set of Svanna’s shoulders and just how… stormy she’s being, I can tell that she didn’t want to do this, originally. It was never her intention to confront Grelod the Kind like this. At the very least, she wasn’t going to before she was forced into it.
 
Unfortunately, I really don’t know what to say. All I can do is be by her side for the moment, as emotional support. If Grelod really did separate Svanna and her twin sister at birth, will that change anything? And why… why do I still feel like something is off about this? Why does it feel like the easy answer just doesn’t fit perfectly in my head?
 
We step into Honorhall Orphanage together, Svanna and I. Almost immediately, we run into a child, who looks up at us with big, bright eyes.
 
“A-Are you here to adopt?”
 
… This can’t be a natural interaction. Almost certainly, this cute kid was told to act like this the moment that anyone stepped into the Orphanage. Or maybe that was just the cynic in me. But is it paranoia, if they really are out to get you?
 
Either way, unfortunately for the kid, neither Svanna nor I seem to have a parental bone in our bodies, because I’m not swayed, and neither is the Dragonborn. In fact, she steps right past the kid without even so much as an acknowledgment, dismissive in a way that tells me my initial opinion was right, and this was some sort of baited trap.
 
Following Svanna’s lead, I ignore the kid as well, walking after her as she stalks through the Orphanage, not looking anywhere but straight ahead. We locate Grelod in the very next room, and she eyes us suspiciously as we approach.
 
“What do the two of you want? You have no business being in here!”
 
I nod my head towards Svanna as we both invade Grelod’s personal space.
 
“Remember her?”
 
Grelod’s eyes pass over Svanna, sliding up and down her frame, before she snorts derisively.
 
“Not one of mine.”
 
Her almost immediate reply incenses the Dragonborn even more than Svana’s presence back in the bunkhouse. Once again, I have to stop Svanna from killing someone. If there’s anyone who deserves it, its Grelod the Kind, but still… we want answers, not a dead body.
 
“How dare you! I will not be intimidated in my own orphanage! Get out! Get out this instant!”
 
Right, I don’t know why I even tried to talk to this old bat without Charm Magic. Casting the spell on her, I put her under in an instant, though even as Grelod’s eyes glaze over, her frown remains. She’s THAT cantankerous, I can tell. I don’t bother with any further niceties of pleasantries; I get straight down to brass tacks.
 
“Svanna here was one of your orphans for most of her childhood. We just ran into Svana down the road and Haelga told us how she bought the girl from you. We want the truth. The girls were twins, weren’t they? Where exactly did you get them from?”
 
“Never seen this one before in my life.”
 
I blink, surprised, while Svanna bristles, but I hold up a hand to stop her. Grelod is DEFINITELY under the effects of my Charm Magic, which means she’s telling the truth.
 
“… You never had an orphan named Svanna?”
 
“No.”
 
I look to Svanna, blinking even more.
 
“… Did you go by a different name, back then?”
 
Svanna looks just as confused as I feel, if not more so. She shakes her head silently, and so I turn back to Grelod.
 
“The baby you sold to Haelga… she wasn’t part of a matched set? She didn’t have a sister that you kept for yourself?”
 
“No. That would have been stupid. The brats would have grown up at the same time and looked damn near identical.”
 
Shit, that was a good point. In fact… looking to Svanna, I furrow my brow.
 
“Svanna… you never ran into Svana before today? Not in all your years in this city?”
 
“… No, I didn’t.”
 
“But you knew of Haelga and her Bunkhouse, right?”
 
“… Yeah.”
 
“And she… didn’t have a niece, as far as you were aware?”
 
“No, she didn’t.”
 
The pieces are beginning to slot into place. I’m starting to figure things out, a bit. The easiest solution, that Svana and Svanna are twins, really isn’t correct here. Rather, my initial assumption is actually turning out to be more accurate. The two of them ARE doppelgangers. Clones, even. That’s what was niggling at the back of my mind before. The fact that so far, Svanna hadn’t recognized anyone from the Thieves Guild, and no one in Riften had seemed to recognize her either. It didn’t make sense. Unless…
 
Stepping over to Svanna, I lean in close to her.
 
“Svanna… I don’t think this is your Grelod.”
 
She looks at me owlishly, confused and off-balance.
 
“What?”
 
“I don’t think this is the Grelod you knew. I don’t think this is the Riften you knew. I… don’t think this is the Skyrim you knew. Svanna… I don’t think you’re in your timeline anymore.”
 
It’s the only explanation that makes sense, and as I say it, I feel like I’m right, I feel it in the very depths of my soul. But at the same time, I also feel… I feel like maybe there’s something ELSE I’m missing, something else I’m not quite connecting yet. The threads are right there, and I so badly want to bring them together, but I can’t make that final leap for some reason.
 
Meanwhile, Svanna stares at me for a long moment in silence… before her arm shoots out. Grelod goes down with a dagger in her throat, choking on her own blood. As she dies, Svanna whips around and races out of the Orphanage, and I can only stare after her, mouth agape.
 
… I suppose I shouldn’t have expected much better, in terms of reactions.

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