Serana

"It'll be good to get out of the sun for a while."

- Serana

Serana is the deuteragonist of Dawnguard, the first official expansion pack of The Elder Scrolls V:Skyrim. Serana is an ancient pure-blood vampire and the daughter of Lord Harkon, leader of the Volkihar vampires and the main antagonist of Dawnguard.

Background
Although her exact age is unknown, she's believed to be predating the Alessian Empire from the eearly first era. She is one of the few pure-blood Vampires known to exist. Pure-blood vampires are individuals who are granted vampirism directly from Molag Bal, the creator and patron deity of Vampires.

The process is somewhat similar to the creation of the first vampire, Lamae Beolfag. Serana gained her vampirism through a ritual in which members of her family pledged themselves to Molag Bal. Females like Serana and her mother, Valerica, who survive the horrific ordeal are dubbed "Daughters of Coldharbour".

In Dawnguard
When the Dragonborn is sent to investigate a strange activity occuring at Dimhollow Crypt, (s)he finds out that the vampires are looking for an artifact. After killing the vampires (s)he discovers a large coffin containing Serana as well as her Elder Scroll within.

After setting her free from centuries-long hibernation and introducing herself to the Dragonborn, they get out of the crypt and set out to Castle Volkihar where Lord Harkon is waiting for her as well as her Elder Scroll which seems to be his primary concern. Lord Harkon offers his own vampirism to the Dragonborn as a reward for securing both his daughter and the Elder Scroll leaving him/her an option to either join him or remain loyal to the Dawnguard.

Dawnguard Story Line
Dragonborn refuses Harkon's offer and is banished from the castle. A few days later, Serana sets out to find the Dragonborn in Fort Dawnguard. Isran, the leader of the Dawnguard, is quite offended with Serana's presence in the Fort and only allows her in the Fort because of Dragonborn's company.

Serana explains that her father is attempting to complete a prophecy called Tyranny of the Sun which might be harmful even for the vampires and that he needs three Elder Scrolls, a divine weapon called Auriel's Bow and the blood of a Daughter of Coldharbour, which is in fact Serana herself. She also states that they need to decipher the Elder Scroll she's carrying but only a Moth Priest can actually read it.

Characteristics and Personality
She is enterprising and friendly, but also lonely due to her troubled childhood and her mother's self-exile, which is why she confides in the Dragonborn.

She harbors a degree of resentment towards her mother, Valerica for locking her away for centuries and is angry that her feelings weren't taken into consideration.

As a child she was close with her mother, but once her parents began to fight, she felt trapped between both. Her mother would often feed her negative opinions of her father and after a time Serana began to believe them. She was never very close with her father Harkon before her family were vampires, but once they became followers of Molag Bal, it only worsened as her parents became drunk with power and were always in conflict. Her father started to see her as a means to an end and would often state "Power takes precedence". Despite this she still admits to loving him as he is still her father.

She feels trapped between the conflict that consumes her parents and sees herself as a pawn that they are using against each other. Deep down she wishes they were able to reconcile and become a family again, but realizes that it's not possible.

When questioned about her vampirism, she can be defensive. She doesn't like to talk about the actual ceremony as it was degrading, but she doesn't seem to regret the power it has granted her, and rather sees it as a gift that she earned. The only regret she does seem to have is how it tore her family apart.