Title: Mourner's Dawn

Author: Kytten

Pairing: Lucien Lachance/OMC

Rating: PG13

Disclaimer: I don't own Elder Scrolls.

Summary: Without him, they'd be nothing. Without them, he would still be alive. They should have known better. Lucien does not pick his silencers idly.

Author's Note: I've written 5,000 words today. Gack!

Mourner's Dawn

Chapter Four

It took three full days to patch Lachance back up. Would have been shorter had Sam not gotten into an argument with May about his broken nose.

It'd been busted in five separate places. May wanted to leave it and heal it as is. It wasn't really that crooked if you pushed it in the right place. Sam, on the other hand, needed him to be perfect.

Like there'd never been an attack.

So he'd spent the better part of an hour, prodding and holding and molding, healing in tiny pinpricks until it was finally in the right place.

Three days with no sleep to speak of, with no food May didn't force down his throat. He was exhausted.

But he was finished.

"You should sleep." May perched on the edge of the bed, checking to make sure the bones in his ankles had patched up all right. "Get a few hours in you, then call him back. He won't rot, you know. Not with the enchantments we loaded on him."

Sam shook his head, eyes raking over the Lucien's back, wishing that he could have done something to replace his hair. What was left of it was uneven, an inch long in some places, cutting the scalp in others. Whoever it was hadn't been quite so handy with the knife.

A shaking hand.

Sam suspected Bellamont.

"Sam." May snapped him out of his daze. "You can't even concentrate on a conversation. How are you supposed to pull him back?"

"Lucien's crotchety. He'll wander off if we make him wait too much longer. I'm not sure he hasn't already."

"Then at least we can put him into the ground whole." She stopped her inspection and moved onto his spine. "Just take a nap, Sam. That's all I'm asking."

"No. It has to be done as soon as we can."

"And you can't."

Sam pursed his lips and shook his head.

"You don't know that. I'm going to try."

"Don't be stupid," she snapped, turning to look at him. "He'll drag you under if you're not strong enough to pull him out. And the guardians—"

"There are no guardians."

"The guardians killed my mother, Sam. If you're not careful, they'll drag you down too, make you sick."

"Your mother spent her life as a healer. She wallowed in disease." Sam frowned. "There are no guardians."

May shrugged and moved away from the bed.

"Suit yourself. I'm going to get Vicente."

"Vicente?" It was strange enough to stop him in his tracks. "Why?"

"Because he's strong enough to tie you down," she said, as if it were the most normal thing the world. "You need to sleep, Sam."

And then she slipped off down the corridor, shutting the doors behind her. Sam watched her go for a moment, not knowing what hour it was, or how much time he had. If it was morning, she'd have a hell of a time waking Vicente up. If it was midnight, he'd probably be out.

Best not to risk it. Sam closed his eyes and searched.

"You've been missing for quite awhile." Arquen said, catching up to her as she left the room. "Vicente says you haven't completed any contracts."

"I've been helping the listener." She faced straight ahead and kept on down the hall. But the altmer wasn't about to let her pass. Catching her arm, she pulled her around.

"Show some respect, girl." The last word punctuated with a resounding slap.

May's head dropped.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Now, tell me. What are you two up to in there?"

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but I have to get to Vicente. It's urgent."

"Vicente can wait," she growled. "Answer the question."

"What question?" Vicente asked, padding down the hallway for his room. "And why am I waiting?"

May didn't bother to hide her relief.

"Sam's about to do something very stupid. I need your help."

"Stupid?" Arquen looked between the two of them. "What's he doing?"

But apparently Vicente understood, as he nodded and opened the doors to his room.

"He's still in the room above, yes? Mine and his are connected. Follow me."

Arquen glared, storming after them.

"Murderer! You were not dismissed."

"She is." Vicente fixed her with a look that shot terror through her heart. "And you may take it up with me later."

He strode over and very nearly shoved her out of the room, locking the doors behind her. Slowly, her heart rate returned to normal. But the whisper in the back of her head remained.

Prey, it hissed. You're about to be prey.

They were too late. Arquen's distraction had cost them the few precious minutes they had. Sam was laying with his head pressed against the edge of the bed, like a child praying.

Vicente was at his side in a second, checking for a pulse.

There.

A flutter against his fingers. Sam was alive still, only exhausted past all tolerance. And Lucien… Lucien was breathing.

Vicente grinned, while behind him May alternately praised and cursed Sam's efforts, all the while doing a silly little dance of success.

"You should stay with Lachance," Vicente said, cutting through her noise as he leaned down and lifted the little Bosmer into his arms.

She stopped and looked up.

"Where are you going with him?"

"I intend on keeping him in my rooms. I don't trust Arquen enough to leave him in the commons just yet. And besides," a secret little smile then, "Lucien will probably want to see him when he wakes. Can't have two dead men roaming the halls, can we?"

Arquen glared, leaning as close to the doors as she dared. She could hear them inside, laughing and carrying on. And then voices, names, soft agreements. Nothing came through clear enough to make sense of, but it was there. She clenched her teeth.

Why was no one coming out? For that matter, what was the emergency?

Had the Listener died?

No, no… They would have emerged with the body if nothing else. No, May had said he was about to do something stupid. About to. Which meant they were probably convincing him otherwise.

No doubt this had something to do with that traitor's body.

Bellamont was the traitor. The Night Mother…but what if the Mother was wrong?

She shook her head, pushing the thoughts away. Perhaps Lucien Lachance wasn't the traitor, but he deserved what he got. He'd been a thorn in the guild's side, her side for far too long. If he thought he could run around playing with whoever the hell he felt like, he was dead wrong.

Dead.

And that poor boy, his Silencer, had been drawn into this whole mess as well. Damn Lucien with his snake's tongue. No doubt he'd promised the boy something to win such loyalty. What was it, she wondered.

She doubted Sam was dull enough to believe Lucien could love anyone other than himself.

But, no… Maybe that was it. The boy had killed for love of him, and for love of him, would raise the dead.

"Oh, no." She whispered, running a hand through her hair.

This was very, very bad.