Chapter Four

Moss did in fact sleep until the morning. She was awoken by the sound of a blacksmith at work. She poked her head to the edge of the crack, not daring to get too close in fear of being noticed.
The man with white hair was busy repairing a sword, muttering under his breath about something, probably related to the condition of said sword.

But that wasn't much concern to Moss. What was, on the other hand, was the circle of people including the woman with the horse, and the two from last night. They were all wearing similar black and red outfits.

"I'm telling you, I left it there just before I went to bed!" The woman said angrily.

"Astrid, relax. I don't think any of us took it," Nazir replied coolly.

" 'any of us'? What, do you think someone managed to sneak in here?" The woman- Astrid, replied. Nazir crossed his arms and opened his mouth to speak but the little girl interrupted him.

"Maybe it was the rats. I saw one last night by my bed."

Astrid seemed to consider this for a moment.

"Yes, maybe. Perhaps you could brew some potion to get rid of them, Babette?" She replied.

Babette grinned. "How about a poisoned loaf of bread left in the corner?" She suggested. Astrid waved her hand, giving the child permission and began walking casually away.

"However," she paused, "just in case there is someone who snuck in, make sure to keep an eye on your supplies. All of you." The other figures nodded their heads and Astrid left the room.

"And if there is a thief among us, I will find him. And I will show him what happens when you steal from the Dark Brotherhood," the Argonian said.

Moss jumped back, clamping both hands over her mouth to quiet her sudden rapid breathing.

The…. The Dark Brotherhood….. This is bad, I should get out of here, I need to leave now, she thought to herself, her brain frantic with trying to figure out an escape route. But none came quickly, that didn't involve waiting until nighttime and hoping to sneak out the way she came in.

The other members talked amoung themselves for a while, telling stories of their kills and legends of the brotherhood's glory days. Slowly, Moss's pulse slowed and she began to think rationally again.
She leaned back against the far wall, so she was hidden but still had a clear view of the open area.

Her stomach growled and she instinctively threw her arms around herself to muffle it. She remembered the cheese- the stolen cheese- hidden in her pocket and pulled it out, nibbling on it slowly. It might be the only bit of food she would have for a while, so she needed to make it last.

Moss leaned her head back against the wall.
"What a predicament I've gotten myself into…." She murmured to herself, closing her eyes.

She meant to only have them shut for a split second, but she had apparently fallen asleep as she was jolted awake by someone grabbing her arm and pulling her out of her hiding spot.
Moss gaped, her eyes wide as Nazir grabbed her wrists, tying them together quickly.

"Good job, Festus, your spell worked. It seems our little 'mouse' is a bit bigger then most, though." The elderly man smiled. "I have a spell for everything," he replied simply.
Nazir turned his attention to Moss, who was trying to not hyperventilate.
"So, little mouse, do you have a name?" he asked, his voice cold. Moss glanced frantically around, frozen in fear.
"P-please don't kill me," she breathed. She felt sick to her stomach, remembering the skeleton by the spider she had seen the previous day. She tried to wrench her arm free of Nazir's grip but she wouldn't have been strong enough on a good day, much less when she was petrified in fear.

"That will depends on how quickly you can answer me, mouse," he replied sternly. Moss took a deep gulp of air.

"I-i-i'm Mo…. Moss," She stammered out.

"And just how did you get in here?" Astrid asked, walking around the corner, her arms crossed and her eyes narrowed in a piercing glare.

"I-i saw y-you op-pen the door, I-i m-memor-memorized the p-password you s-said, p-please don't hurt me I was just so cold and hungy-" Moss's stammering improved the faster she spoke, her words picking up as she tried to get out another plea for life, but Astrid interrupted her.

"You were watching me? Have you been trying to get in for a while?" She pressed. Moss shook her head vigorously.

"N-no, I ju-just stumbled ac-cross it, I didn't know you were- you were-" she breathed in deeply, in her struggle to speak she had forgotten to breath.
"The Dark Brotherhood." Astrid finished her thought, somehow making it sound like a death sentence. Moss gave a tiny nod. "So, you're an orphan then?" Moss nodded again, opened her mouth, and then shut it to gather her thoughts. Astrid lifted an eyebrow, pressing the younger woman onwards into explaining herself.

"I- I didn't like the orphanage, the woman who runs it is cruel, and I… I wanted to explore the world. You can't send me back there though! I, I mean, I'm not a child anymore, they wouldn't let me in," she clarified. Astrid nodded slowly.
"So you live by yourself? There's no-one important in your life?"

Moss gulped. "N-no, I wander from city to city," she answered. Astrid glanced at Nazir, and his iron grip on her arm waned, though her hands were still tied. Moss dared not move. The three stood in silence for a while, while Astrid thought. Festus Krex had walked over to a chair by the spider pit to watch from a distance, and catch up on his reading.

After a few infinite minutes, Moss spoke up, her voice barely audible.
"What are you going to do with me?" She asked, glancing up at Astrid with her big black-brown eyes. Her fingertips messed with the frayed end of the ropes that held her hands together. Astrid furrowed her brow for a split second, then smoothed out.

"I considered having a child for the longest time. But such a thing would only cause problems in the Brotherhood, and a small child wandering around here would be dangerous. And babies give me a headache. But you, you could be my… apprentice. You remind me of myself when I was a kid, though I doubt you've even had your first kill yet. But we will fix that, in time. However, you must promise to not steal any more food," Astrid decided. Moss stared at her a few moments, dumbstruck. She wasn't going to die? And on top of that, someone wanted her to…. Stay? And to look after her?

Moss didn't even register the fact that Astrid was encouraging her to murder innocent people, she was just surprised she wasn't going to kill her immediately.

"I- y-yes, I promise!" Moss replied.

~~~~~~~~~~
Author's notes:
So sorry about the previous chapters being so short! I have the whole story plotted out in my mind but i am terrible at putting thoughts into words haha ^^"

anyways, i based Moss's stuttery dialogue here on my own speech pattern. I am autistic and have severe social anxiety and ptsd, so my speech is awkward at best. But the faster i speak, and the more confident i am, the clearer it is. The more anxious i am the more it falls apart.

I havent decided yet if Moss is autistic, it seems most of my ocs are because i tend to base them on myself haha.

Yes, i know this would totally never happen and im probably taking characters ooc. But i dont care. this is my story and illl write it how i please.

Thanks for reading! xoxo