"Cicero is here, oh sweet listener." I say, catching up with him. "How many times have I told you not to call me LISTENER! It ruins the idea of stealth." He yells at me.
Oh no, I've upset the Listener, the almighty Night Mother will know.
"Cicero apologises sincerely. But how is full steel armour stealthy? Cicero thinks that you should-"
"Cicero, if you don't shut up I'm sending you straight back to the sanctuary. Do you understand?" He says, quieter. I nod, oh, Cicero is such a disappointment to the Listener. Maybe if I kill the Listener, Mother will bestow her voice upon my ears. I think of it now, the very sounds of death and evil being spoken by such a beautiful corpse! No...no... Cicero is getting his hopes up again, the Listener could kill me in an instant anyway.
I follow him all the way from Riften to Solitude, acting as his pet backpack that annoys him. When we do indeed reach the Manor he owns, we head inside and I deposit my items into his safe. It's about Nine, to it's dark. Like Sithis, Sithis only visits at night. He sleeps in his Luxury bed, and I lie awake in a filthy bed roll in the basement. The skeevers are running around like mad under the floorboards, oh well, Cicero is annoyed but fed and warm. Goodnight.
I wake up and feel achy, it's early and dawn begins to break as I pull myself out of the roll. I yawn and equip my dagger, ready for another day of carrying the stolen goods that he owns. Hooray. Cicero has an interesting life with the Listener. I hear his footsteps and his grumbles, he comes into my room and says that he is going to be on his own today because his wife has been stolen. He instructs me to go back to the sanctuary.
I heed his words, but I don't follow them, where's the fun in that? I exit the Manor and find a young maiden about to come in. She introduces herself, she's a bard at the college, here for training. Bah, so much for the heroic "I have to find my wife!" act. I chuckle as I leave Solitude and think of what I'm going to do.
Something involving sneaking and stabbing? Yes. Something involving gold? Yes. Something involving the Listener being killed? Maybe... Oh just maybe... I could have FUN! It's just one mere twenty four measly hours, how much harm could that possibly do? Cicero can be free to roam Skyrim! But the Night Mother is watching my every move. I can feel her freshly oiled eyes watching. But Cicero is happy, the Night Mother mustn't be too harsh on her keeper, the only one allowed to handle her body.
Hmm…yes…she will be kind. I know. The Listener said that he was looking for an old dagger. Cicero can find the dagger in Myskolo Cave. He said Myskolo is a Mage, but Cicero is prepared, Cicero has….talents….of a sort, to use against them. The sweet Listener mentioned where to find this so called Myskolo Cave, it's by the old Falkreath Sanctuary. Well, time to head there then.
Cicero is now hiding in the trees along the road. There's still an Imperial camp set outside. I sneak around, not wanting to tangle with them right now. I get out of earshot and continue down the pathway, killing a traveller because they had a nice amount of gold.
I come across the cave within an hour. There's three wolves outside, but I kill them easily, I need to sharpen my blade later. And clean it.
I enter the cave and find a mage at an alchemy table, his back is facing me. I sneak behind him and I stab him in the back. Blood never looked so…red before. I drag him out of sight. I steal the poison he has created as well.
Beyond the door on the other side of the room is another two mages and two spiders. I cast a spell I was taught as a child, and turned the mage and the spiders upon the other mage. The mage now with the three attackers casts a spiralling fire spell at the spiders. They die. The attacking mage now casts an electricity bolt at the one who has just murdered the spiders. He dies and I shoot the other with my bow.
Hmm…no good loot. Cicero is sad. Oh well, easy to kill, easy to be replaced only to be killed again.
There is a flight of stairs, leading to a throne and a chest. On the throne a skeleton sits gracefully. Myskolo, I would imagine. I shoot a flaming arrow at him, and it explodes. I switch to daggers and run up to him. He's stood up and has a dagger in his hands. I kill him effortlessly. I pick up his dagger and find that it's Daedric and enchanted with 50 flame damage. I'm keeping this. Cicero will show it to the thieves guild later to check the price.
I check the chest and smile, there's a large amount of gold. All mine. All Cicero's. Not the Listeners. No. No, No, No. The Listener wins everything, doesn't he? The Initiates give him EVERYTHING, time in bed with them, sweetrolls, gold, weapons…. The list goes on.
Well today is the day Cicero wins. Cicero wins. CICERO WINS! I chuckle loudly testing the words on my tongue. Victory, oh the taste of victory. So….sweet.
I hear footsteps behind me, followed by claps. I turn around and see the Listener, at the bottom of the stairs. The clapping stops. A smile crosses his lips. "Yes Cicero, you do win." He says, smiling. His grin stretching across his face.
"Thank you Listener. I will keep it. Cicero was successful wasn't he?" I ask, hopping from foot to foot and waving the dagger.
"Yes." He says. And then his smile is gone.
"Give it to me." The Listener commands.
"But Cicero found it. Finders keepers, Losers weepers." I sing, looking him in the eyes. He smiles, nods, and shouts. Gosh, the shout was so inexplicably loud, I thought I'd be deaf after. I remember feeling fuzzy and warm and then just feeling like a feather.
I wake up in a cell.