At Dawn's Light
Chapter One
The imperial walked along the boardwalk, a pool of disgusting sewage water besides her, light pouring in from above. The Ragged Flagon was a mix of things, from disgusting to homey, to a grand palace of thieves. Vex smiled faintly to herself as she looked at the realm she had helped rebuild around her. What previously was a hollow shell of once grand glory and wealth, now thrived and pulsed with life.
It had taken six months of grueling work, from simple jobs to some rather elaborate ones that Vex would always remember, she and the other senior members of the Guild had restored it to what it once was, and then some. It was like she remembered back in her days as a footpad. They had their own smith, armorer, alchemist, fletcher, and fence, not to mention bar and some new bosmer that had started to take up a bench on the floating portion of the tavern.
As Vex peered over her Guild, amber eyes flicking from the breton who was talking with Tonillia, trying once more to coerce her into joining the Guild, to Brynjolf who was happily chatting with Karliah besides a few crates. She used to hate that woman, but since the defeat of Mercer, Vex had at last forgiven Karliah for all the lies Mercer had told the entire Guild. She'd become the third in the Guild since Vex had become the Guildmaster, Brynjolf holding his position as second. Delvin had happily let the dunmer take the position, saying something about too much responsibility for him.
There was a constant shadow in the Guild however, a lone figure who always had her hood up to hide her face from the others. It made Vex frown and feel horrible whenever the redguard would walk by, silent and lonely. Once upon a time there was life in the blue eyes of the thief, but now anytime Vex was so lucky as to catch a glance they were pained and broken. The woman wasn't the same one as the redguard Vex had met in Whiterun over a half a year ago.
As Vex found herself thinking of the redguard, a form moved in from the corner of her vision and swiftly approached Vekel at the counter. Vex frowned as she recognized the person as Yosa'Min, the very redguard she had been thinking of. She stood back and watched for a minute as Yosa'Min ordered a strong tankard of drink from the imperial bartender, and then start to drown herself in ale once more.
Vex narrowed her eyes, arms crossed over her chest as she watched the redguard hunch herself into the drink, self-pity and grief emanating thick off her. The others in the Flagon had noticed, Brynjolf and Karliah's voices had grown quiet as they talked, Delvin and Tonilia had completely stopped and instead looked at the drinking redguard with slight distaste. The kind one felt for seeing someone so great having fallen so far.
Sighing, Vex walked over and took the seat besides Yosa'Min, the redguard who rudely had the hood of her Thieves Guild armor still up turning a bit away from her. "Mead Vekel," Vex said, ignoring the woman right back for a few moments until the bottle was pressed into her hand. She raised it to her lips and took a long swig before slowly lowering it to the bar counter."What are you doing Yosa'Min?" She tiredly asked.
Silence answered her, the redguard turning even further away from her. They'd been through it several times. Six months ago, they'd been friendly and happy a bit, they'd put behind them all the drama that had soiled their relationship and the Guild even. Vex had watched the woman get broken and had decided that instead of simply standing to the side or even worse trying to crush the shards that remained like she would have long ago, she'd try to help piece it back together.
It had worked too, for a while. Yosa'Min had started to smile, to laugh, to make jokes and comments that only she could. She had started hunting too, bringing back magnificent catches and offering them to the entire Guild to have so long as someone else had cooked it. For a few weeks, it had looked like she was return to herself, but then the redguard had gotten stupid and tried to talk to the woman that had crushed her heart, Mjoll. Vex didn't know what happened, but she didn't need to be told to see that it hadn't gone well whatsoever for the hurt redguard who came back into the Cistern and was stone silent for days.
Despite the type of cold, uncaring persona Vex put on for the Guild, she always found herself hurting when she saw her friend and once lover Yosa'Min crying or saddened. Since whatever happened that night four months ago, Yosa'Min hadn't returned to herself in the slightest. She'd been silent, compliant, unconfident. The woman who had faced down a world-eating dragon, beaten by a single woman. And for the most part, it made Vex sick to see.
What felt like a lifetime ago, she had fallen hard for the redguard and her wild personality, her strong will and striking beauty. She'd always been into men, but only on occasion did a woman strike her fancy, and none quite like Yosa'Min had. But instead of that cunning, charming thief who'd given her smiles that melted her defenses, Vex was met with a broken, empty shell. One that cracked a little bit more with each passing day.
She'd not had a single clue what to say or do after that night, Yosa'Min never speaking a word about what she'd done that had caused more heartache. Vex could only assume that she'd tried to speak with Mjoll, and the nord had rejected her just as firmly as before. There was some weird scheme the redguard had thought would work, in which she'd become a thane of the Rift Hold, hoping that by seeming honorable once more, the nord would forgive her.
But obviously, she hadn't.
So now, Vex was trying once more to convince the redguard to open up to her. "Come on, what are you doing?" Vex urged her a bit more, "I thought you were trying to work again, keep your mind off things." As more silence answered her, Vex grew a bit frustrated and shook her head before drinking more of her mead. Yosa'Min quietly sipped from the tankard besides her.
"Talk to me Yosa, I can't help if you don't," tightly said Vex, trying to sound sympathetic but she herself was about done with the pity party too.
The redguard turned towards her at last, only her head facing her, looking over her shoulders. There was so much sorrow in the Dragonborn's blue eyes that it made any anger Vex felt instantly vanish. "Can we go somewhere to talk in private?" There was no honey on her words, only pain and grief. Vex numbly nodded, getting to her feet and leaving a bit of coin for Vekel. Yosa'Min followed her out of the Flagon, both of them ignoring the eyes watching them depart.
It was a silent walk through the Cistern to the secret tomb entrance above ground, Vex climbing up the ladder before Yosa'Min. On the surface, Vex walked a few paces and then turned to look at Yosa'Min who's face was still obscured by the hood. It was night, perhaps a bit past dusk, stars still shining and growing brighter with every few seconds as a torn blanket of clouds lazily crawled across the sky. There was a cold chill as winter took hold of the region in the air.
Riften, Falkreath and Markarth were the three most southern holds of Skyrim, and Riften seemed to almost always bask in summer and fall. But the past few weeks had been the start of a very hard, and very cold winter. Snow fell lightly onto the city and the rest of the province, falling down and kissing the imperial's platinum hair and pale skin. "I want to show you something," Vex said, ignoring the cold and holding a hand out towards Yosa'Min. The woman hesitated before accepting it.
Giving her an encouraging smile,Vex led her towards the Temple of Mara. She liked to climb onto the roof at night and watch the city go on about, sometimes during the day even. It wasn't a simple easy climb, the roof was highly slanted making it a bit slippery and dangerous especially when it was slick with water, but it was always well worth it. As they walked up the front stone steps toward the door, Yosa'Min watched the imperial the entire time. Vex showed her to where she liked to climb, just to the side of the building where there was a small lip to get one's fingers in.
They clambered up with ease, skilled thieves at breaking into places they shouldn't be finding it no difficult task other than the hazard of the snow. Together they made their way up to the top of the wooden shingles to where it leveled out, a wooden tower almost in the center rising for about five feet. Vex brushed snow off the thick log of wood at the top and gestured for the redguard to sit down besides her. Obeying silently, Yosa'Min rested on the wood and stared out at the city, Vex allowing a bit of silence as she too gazed at the realm before them.
The trees of Riften were all bare, snow and ice clinging to their branches instead of the usual golden leaves. Lake Honrich itself was half frozen already, thankfully for the businesses that relied on the body of water the plankside of the city remained unfrozen, though the canal waters were excessively cold. An ever present fog crept around the lower part of the city, clinging to the waterworks like a flea, sucking the life out of the businesses that were along the boardwalks.
But above the lower half, there was a certain beauty to be found in the winter bashed city. The marketplace for instance, was quite lovely, the wooden stalls ladden with snow that also slipped between the cobblestone streets. The roofs of homes and shops white beauties, while smoke rose out of chimneys at a constant rate. The smell of burning wood and charcoal in the air as well as the sharp bite of frost. The city that most always looked a bit brown to the duo was more like a glittering diamond when draped in snow.
After a long time of watching a few guards go about their rounds, Vex looked at Yosa'Min and tenderly reached out a hand and held the redguard's. Yosa'Min didn't turn to face her, making Vex bite the inside of her cheek with a bit of frustration. "Yosa-"
"It's pretty up here," Yosa'Min cut her off, her voice flat.
Vex nodded her head, "That it is," she agreed, "but I was hoping you'd like to talk to me."
Amber eyes stared at the side of the woman's hood for a long time, and then Yosa'Min pulled her hand free of Vex's and reached up towards it. A small smile of hope grew across the imperial's face. She hadn't seen Yosa'Min's face completely for months, only the end of her face and a glimmer of blue eyes. It had driven her mad to not know what was going on with her. Yosa'Min was certainly an open woman about many things, and she had always been very confident in her appearance. Her suddenly hiding it, always ducking her head and remaining silent beneath the hood had filled Vex's heart with worry.
Yosa'Min pulled the leather down, and Vex could hardly stop herself from gasping. The Dragonborn's once long, wild black hair that was always swept back almost like a strong breeze of wind had blown by, was gone. Instead, her hair was short, hardly going more than an inch off her skull in any direction, a small bit falling on her forehead but not going more than a few centimeters down. In the back, it was cut right along her head, ending at about the middle of her neck. Only faintly, did it retain the wild spirit about her.
"Yosa, when did you cut your hair?" Vex asked, her voice a whisper of shock.
The redguard brought her knees closer to her body, leaning down and trying to hide herself already. Quickly, Vex leaned over and grabbed her by the shoulders, pulling her into a warm hug. Silence fell for a long while, and then the redguard started to cry. Yosa'Min wrapped her arms around the imperial's body and hid her face against her neck, tears running down her face with only quiet but sharp gasps from the woman. Vex was quiet also, letting her release whatever it was she was feeling again without asking what it was.
Six months ago, she didn't know entirely how to react to this kind of situation, much less how to properly handle it. But every time the redguard had broken down, the imperial had been there to help piece her back together. But there was always something missing when she was finished, a small sliver of the woman still lost. Lydia had helped a vast amount, but she wasn't permitted into the Cistern and hardly ever the Flagon, so she still missed plenty of the times that Yosa'Min needed someone there by her side. Vex had plenty of practice now with comforting the redguard.
When the Dragonborn's crying had halted, small sniffles in the cold air replacing the gasps, Vex pulled back. Vibrant blue eyes were reddened, dark skin flushed red, her cheeks puffy and damp. Black lips quivered as Yosa'Min struggled to control herself, to bring up the mask she'd learned how to wear. "About four months ago," admitted Yosa'Min, "I cut it all off back then though, taken a while to grow back."
"You mean after you tried to win back Mjoll with that Thane scheme?"
"It wasn't a scheme," defended Yosa'Min sharply, glaring a bit at the imperial before she softened with regret and guilt. "I was just, trying to prove I still had honor. But with Maven influencing the Jarl, she didn't believe I had earned it for myself. Even after I went off and killed the bandits and got rid of the skooma dealers on the docks." Yosa'Min's voice broken anew, "Why won't she ever believe me when I tell her how I feel for her? That I didn't mean to hurt her or tell those lies? I can't help it sometimes, it just sorta happens."
The redguard lowered her gaze. "I don't know," Vex sighed, "Mjoll is both a woman and a nord, a deadly combo for stubborn." Yosa'Min gave a faint, coughing laugh, shaking her head at the joke. It was the first time in months Vex had heard anything close to the woman's powerful laughter. She took hope from it, and kept on, hands clasped together with Yosa'Min's. "She deals with her anger and grief differently than either of us."
"Yeah, unlike me she doesn't wallow in pity and drink," Yosa'Min glumly said, spitting hate at herself, "instead she goes on with her life but shuts those doors for good, she doesn't let those that hurt her back in." There was a long pause before a hushed voice spoke, "She won't let me back in."
"At least she's not burning down homes or trying to kill people," Vex countered, pointing out her own fault in handling this type of situation.
Another small laugh came from Yosa'Min, "Well, she hasn't tried to burn the Guild down but I'm not betting against it."
Vex smiled a bit, shrugging at the idea. Amber eyes ran up and down the redguard's face. Her scars were faded, three rising lines across the left of her face that crossed over from the right of her nose. But they were still there, the redguard reaching up and touching them on occasion as she recalled how she'd gotten them. A snow troll while fighting for the woman she loved, as romantic as it sounded. But it was only a reminder of whom she had lost now.
To the imperial however, the woman was still among the most beautiful she had ever seen. Even with the scars and the new hair, Vex found herself wishing for a different ending to their story, one with the two together like before. She'd fancied it more than a few times the past six months, but she wouldn't dare try to make a move on the redguard when she was so vulnerable. So instead, she was silent and there, and admired the redguard from afar despite it all. Though sometimes, she couldn't help herself.
"Hey," Vex said tenderly, leaning forward towards the redguard until their noses were nearly touching. Yosa'Min swallowed hard, blue eyes widening in alarm. "Would you like to go on a mission, just the two of us like we did at Goldenglow?"
She could see the redguard's face flushing, her chest rising a bit faster at how close the imperial was there on the roof. They both were ignoring the biting cold, snow falling down and tickling their faces and fingers. "I-uh-that would be nice," Yosa'Min admitted, "But where?"
Vex smiled, "There's a castle, not far from us here in Riften. It's called Fort Dawnguard, and it's somewhere in the Velothi Mountains to our east. There are rumors saying they're in the Dayspring canyon."
Yosa'Min nodded her head as she followed along, "What's inside that we're after?"
"Crossbows."
Yosa'Min frowned with confusion, furrowing her dark brow together to look at the woman. "Crossbows?"
"Yeah, they're some new kind of weapon that this group of people called the Dawnguard wield," Vex nodded her head, leaning back a bit to allow cold air to flow between them.
"Why would we steal them?"
"Aside from being extremely powerful, they sell for tons of gold. Just a few would be worth ten thousand septims at least." Yosa'Min nodded her head as Vex continued, "And they're not that heavy either. A man came through Riften about two days ago asking for recruits for the order, and he was carrying one. I got a good look at it, easily transportable, but very unique. I bet we could turn a profit real fast."
One of the few things that ever seemed to bring Yosa'Min back to herself, was when she was thieving, especially when she was on some kind of big heist rather than petty thievery. She couldn't afford to lack confidence then, because when a thief was unsure they got themselves killed or jailed. But she certainly didn't smile like she used to when they got away, or laugh at the guards who would go mad like bees when they realized there was a criminal in their went through the motions of the job, but she was always as silent as the shadows that guided them.
Even though Vex had become the third Nightingale, Karliah insisted that Yosa'Min was favored by Nocturnal because of her aid in bringing down Mercer. Later when Vex had returned the key to the Twilight Sepulcher, and the luck of the Guild had been restored, Vex had erected a statue to Nocturnal in the Cistern. No one questioned why after a day, the Guildmaster simply telling them that it was a homage to their patron saint, Lady Luck, and it was left at that. While Karliah was rather fond of it, Yosa'Min would spend a disturbing amount of time besides it. Vex would sometimes walk in to find the redguard hadn't left the side of the statue since she'd walked out hours prior, lost in thought and memory.
The only purpose to the redguard sometimes seemed to be to serve Nocturnal, even if it were only as a lowly thief. It was the only thing that kept her going after all, even more so after Mjoll had rejected her once more. So here Vex was, hoping to bank on that sole purpose once more to try to help her out of her depression.
"Sounds like a plan," Yosa'Min agreed, "How many people are we going to take?"
"Just us two," Vex smiled warmly, "I want you all to myself, and no one can keep up with us either. Not even Karliah." The duo certainly had proved to be a deadly pair when it came to thieving, bringing in more gold combined then the rest of the Guild ever could. Not even Brynjolf or Karliah came close these days. Yosa'Min was only a senior member like Delvin because she hadn't gotten over her loss of Mjoll, Vex not wanting to put any additional responsibilities on her when she was still recovering.
Yosa'Min looked up at her, and nodded her head in agreement. "So, we'll have to do some looking before we actually find it. We can take my horse, Archer," she offered, Vex nodding along with her with a bit of gratitude.
Amber eyes started at the woman for a few moments as the conversation died, pale fingers still holding firmly onto dark red ones. The imperial looked at the woman's hair which looked a bit choppy, and sighed faintly. Instantly she regretted it, the redguard having been extra sensitive as of late instantly taking it badly and reaching for the hood that hung around her neck. Vex quickly stopped her, grabbing the other hand and holding it in the redguard's lap. "Don't hide," she pleaded, "please."
"There's nothing I want others to see left of me," said Yosa'Min with pain slipping into her voice once more.
"Why is that Yosa? Why can't you stand people seeing who you are anymore?" Vex asked, coming off a bit hard.
Stiffening, Yosa'Min tried to jerk her hands free but Vex wasn't that easy to escape. "Because there is nothing of worth to be see. I'm a liar, a cheater, a thief, I have no family left because of my own actions, and I only saved the world because I was selfish!" She shouted, her voice at last rising above a soft broken whisper. Anger flooded her body, something that despite it all Vex was relieved for. The redguard she'd known was particularly hot-headed.
"You also have a family once again because of your actions, you're highly respected by both the Guild and others throughout Skyrim, and so what if you're a thief? There is nothing wrong with embracing the shadows, no matter what some government and some law tries to pass. And no matter what, it doesn't matter if you were being selfish, you still met Alduin and killed him," Vex said, squeezing the redguard's hands encouragingly.
Blue eyes stared at her, trying to agree but not finding the will to. Vex let go of one hand and caressed the redguard's cheek, rubbing her thumb along red skin a few times before she ran it up into what was left of the redguard's hair. Instantly the woman had been leaning into the touch, eyes lidded and breaths slow. "You're still beautiful," Vex said earnestly, blue eyes opening just a bit to look at her. "No one can take that away from you, even if you don't realize that."
"Vex..." Yosa'Min croaked, tears starting to glimmer in her eyes.
If Vex hadn't been terrified of hurting her, she might have moved back in closer and silence her cries with a kiss. But instead, she was a coward, terrified of breaking the glass that made up the woman before her. But worse yet, she was terrified of being rejected or losing her once more. Deep down, the imperial could easily tell who it was that the redguard yearned for, and always would yearn for. Much to her despair, it wasn't her but rather the Lioness that roamed the streets of Riften the redguard was so hopelessly taken by.
Some day or another, Yosa'Min would finally get over the nord. Perhaps she would be reunited with her love, or perhaps she would find someone entirely new that held no strings of the past, or memories of Riften. Either way, she could tell that the person Yosa'Min would stay with forever, wasn't going to be her, no matter how hard she wished it.
She blinked her eyes, looking at the snow that was falling into the woman's short hair and clinging to her black armor. Vex smiled slightly, "Just in case you'd forgotten," she said softly, getting to her feet.
"Wait!" Yosa'Min nearly cried, the imperial pausing and looking at her with a faint frown of confusion. "Will you... Stay here for a bit?" The Dragonborn timidly asked, Vex smiling and sitting back down. The redguard shuffled against her, shaking a bit in the cold as they watched the snow fall around them. "Thanks Vex," Yosa'Min whispered, head leaned against the taller woman's shoulder, "For everything you've done for me."
Shrugging, Vex replied, "Of course. You're my friend, and a fellow sister of the Guild." A friend and sister that the imperial was more than fine with allowing their physical reactions to be rather romantic, hugs, holding hands, and on occasion cuddling when they were far from everyone else. Things of that sort, but never anything that was truly romantic anymore. To anyone else, and each other, they were just very friendly with one another.
Oddly enough, though a part of her would always wish for more, Vex was rather alright with it. At least she hadn't lost her entirely. So she sat there, holding the redguard at her side as the night grew and the clouds thickened, snow falling down in ever growing flakes and coating the city around them in a beautiful white sheet. Perhaps, it wasn't so bad. Soon, they'd be off on another adventure, as the robbery of the fort would take quite a bit of time and work. If she was lucky, it would be just what the Dragonborn needed to finally come to peace with her loss.
If not, the Guild would just be a whole lot richer. Either way it was a win.
AN: So, it's begun. If you haven't realized already, this story will be following along the Dawnguard DLC plotline and quests. However, just as you would know from the previous story "Two Thieves and a Lioness" there will be plenty of changes to it that would still be reasonable, but interesting. If you haven't read that story, then I suggest you do because this won't make near as much sense as it would with having read it. I'd love to hear what you think in a review about where we find our characters after all that has happened, and what you think is going to happen. I hope you're ready for another adventure, because there is no turning back now.
