The two large wooden doors clanged behind her as Maevyn Eldurvari stepped into the city of Riften, brushing off her annoyance that was invoked by the gate guard that demanded her to pay a 'visitor's tax to the city'.

'City', she thought, was an understatement.

Riften was essentially an upscale cesspool on stilts. The air smelled of the salty marshes that flowed beneath the docks. Every building was paneled in the same birch-wood planks. The elevated docks the city stood on slightly swayed and creaked with each step. Shady figures were hidden in the shadows of the lower docks, she noted. Shrewd women were bickering loudly in the central market place that only contained 4 stalls. And rats were seen in multiple areas around buildings.

Overall, it was not a cheerful place. And Maevyn loved it. It was places like this that she felt most comfortable in, where she knew she wasn't expected to be perpetually good. To her right, she saw a strong-looking woman and a man sitting next to a building, sternly talking about some kind of problem the city had

"…Guild is causing this whole city to fall apart. Someone needs to stop them…"

Maevyn didn't want to get too involved just yet; she wanted to look around the small city and what it had to offer. As she walked past the first door on her left, a large man leaning against a support beam pushed off of it and called to her.

"Hey,"

It was one of those sketchy-looking men she noticed earlier. Maevyn looked over her shoulder and walked toward the burly man, stopping a few feet away from him.

The man introduced himself as Maul, and was obviously trying to intimidate Maevyn, puffing out his chest and scowling. He began to tell her that the Black-Briar's owned the city and she had better not cause any trouble, or she'd have to deal with him.

Maevyn assured the man called Maul that she wasn't going to do anything harmful to Riften, but was going to try and fit in.

"There might not be a difference there, between fitting in and not causing trouble" the man growled, eyeing the glass bow that was slung across her back.

The girl brushed off his assumptions and questioned him about the city; what businesses there were, if there was a house for sale, who the Jarl supported. Questions of that nature. She was pleased to hear there was a house for sale, if small, and a moderately sized apothecary's shop, all on the Plankside.

Maevyn Eldurvari was a young Nordic woman, around 26, who looked for adventure around every corner. She was a rouge at heart, having advanced skills in archery and dagger-usage. She was also very skilled at alchemy, which often served her well in terms of monetary value. She was a slim woman, but still lean, as years of being a hunter often proved. She had dark hair that flowed down her back in a fashion her mother had once shown her long ago, and her eyes were an odd yellow-green color that seemed to change involuntarily. A pale scar ran down from her left eye down to the corner of her mouth; a result of a battle with a bandit clan years before.

Maevyn had grown up in the forest of Falkreath, alongside her mother and father in a log cabin that only contained two rooms and was almost completely isolated from the rest of civilization. There, she was taught how to hunt and use the plants and flora around her to survive. The isolation in the woods also provided Maevyn with ample opportunity for reading about the world that was unbeknownst to her, which she had greatly taken to, reading about anything she could. When the Great War arrived, it had taken its toll on the Eldurvari family greatly. Maevyn's father had left to serve in the war against the elves and never returned. The young girl would often lay in bed at night, listening for the stamp of her father's boots against the steps that led up to the cabin, which would then lead her to running out of bed and through the door to welcome home her Pa who had been gone for months. After years without husband, Maevyn's mother said she was no longer content in Skyrim, and set off for High Rock, in hopes of living the rest of her elderly life without the hardships that were required in the forest. Her daughter, though, elected to stay in her homeland, and lived the earlier part of her adult life utterly alone in that cabin, only traveling to Falkreath when it was absolutely necessary.

The winter she turned 25, Maevyn decided to follow her mother to High Rock, not finding any peace in Skyrim. As she neared the point at which Hammerfell, Skyrim and High Rock met, she was attacked by Imperial guards in a flurry of confusion in which she was knocked unconscious. Upon her awakening, she was in a cart with three men, which none of she knew. The events that then happened were almost a blur to Maevyn: she was taken to a town called Helgen where she was to be executed for unknown reasons. A dragon then attacked and she escaped with a Stormcloak soldier called Ralof, who welcomed him in his family at Riverwood. Being ordered to go to Whiterun after, another dragon showed up, (which she had proudly slain) and absorbed its soul. After being summoned by old men on top of the tallest mountain, she was found to be the Dragonborn, who was said to be able to save Nirn from Alduin, the so-called World-Eater. Her next step decided that she should get to know the world she was going to save, and traveled to only Falkreath and Whiterun so far. Now, she was here.

During her time in the holds she had already been in, Maevyn had helped the locals with minor problems and quests, often receiving something of value. She was proud of her work that helped the people around her, even if it only affected their lives in the smallest of ways. Being the legendary dragonborn, though, had changed Maevyn's life greatly. If she stayed in a hold for too long, she soon got frequent side-glances and whispers.

She wasn't noticed too much when she first entered a new hold, and she liked it that way; it gave people time to get to know for who she really was, not just the 'dragonborn'. She was content with being Maevyn Eldurvari, the woman who'd help you.

And now she was in Riften, thinking about settling this town as her permanent residence. It was quaint and old; it almost had a charm about it that wasn't held in Whiterun. As she walked towards the small ring of vendor stalls in the center, a man intercepted her. He was finely dressed in blue garments that complimented his fiery hair and blue eyes. He stopped, and eyed her, and she suddenly became self-conscious of his scrutiny. This stranger was looking her up and down as if she were something to buy. She was about to cut the man in the jaw with a fist, but as he gauged her reaction, he said in a low voice,

"Never done an honest day's work in your life for all that coin you're carrying. Eh, lass?"

Maevyn stared at him open-mouthed, not expecting something like this. His low voice was oddly accented, and appeared friendly enough. She lowered her hand in guilt, admitting that she had stolen some of the coin she was carrying in her pouch. Still staring the man in the eyes, she kept her voice low as well,

"What do you want?" she asked warily, watching as his eyes gave off a slight glimmer.

He smiled as he realized he was intimidating the woman, and lightly laughed to show he was no predator,

"I am Brynjolf," the man chortled at first, "and I would like your assistance in completing a certain… job. This may sound sketchy, but I can tell you that you seem like the exact type of person to help me. Small, unnoticed, stealthy." He said the last word in a way that made Maevyn more curious as to what he was talking about.

"Go on," replied Maevyn, "What kind of job do you have in mind,"

"Do you see that dark elf over there? That's Brand-Shei. Someone has given me the task of framing him for theft, and I intend to do that."

"How exactly are we going to do that?" Maevyn asked. She knew by now that she was essential to this plan, if she was reading what Brynjolf was saying correctly.

"That argonian sells jewelry. I will distract everyone in the market, and you will sneak behind his stall, pick the lock to the door underneath the counter, and place the ring you find there in Brand-Shei's pocket. But you must do this when no one is looking. That is the most important part,"

Maevyn stared blankly once again at the man in front of her. He expected her to frame an innocent man? Reading her doubt, he quickly explained,

"Remember lass, there's a fine amount of coin involved here, and if this… line of work piques your interest, then we can speak about it later."

Maevyn slowly nodded, the idea of more coin enticing her.

"Alright," she agreed, "this should be something fun,"

"Oh, it will," encouraged Brynjolf.

The man walked over to a vacant stall and raised his voice so most in the vicinity could hear.

"Ladies and gentlemen, come one and all to experience this extraordinary concoction! It has guarantees that it will improve your life-span by 15 years…"

As everyone gathered around Brynjolf, Maevyn crouched, sneaking behind Madesi's stall. There, she took out her set of picks and intently worked on turning the two handles in multiple directions. Hearing the right set of clicks, the lock sprang open. Maevyn was satisfied; she had picked a few locks before, but never this fast, and under pressure, too. There was a silver ring inside the box, which Maevyn slipped inside her pocket. She crept back out and nonchalantly walked over to a pile of crates and boxes, which Brand-Shei was standing in front of. Crouching once again, she took the ring out of her pocket and slipped it effortlessly into his own, as if it had been there the whole time. She got up and leaned against the boxes signaling to Brynjolf that the job was done. The man who was advertising the esteemed product looked up at the sky, as if to gauge the position the sun and proceeded to say,

"Oh my, it seems my time is up here! But do not worry, I will be back tomorrow!"

He finished this sentence while looking at Maevyn and giving her a warm smile.

AuthorsNote: Well, here is my new story for Skyrim. I hope you guys enjoy this beginning and such.

Do you know what's best for a new story? Opinions.

THEY'RE APPRECIATED, GUYS!

Really. I do enjoy reading the comments that you post on my other story. Feel free to say WHATEVER you want.

Thank you! Have a nice day.