"Where's Mercer?!" I shouted as soon as I got into the cistern, looking around wildly.

After my body had recovered from the tunnels, it didn't take long for my mind to catch up, bringing on a whole other level of pain. The lunatic had been my first kill, my first real fight. The first one that was truly life or death, and winning brought no solace. Then there was the fact that the three of them, Maven, Mallus, and Mercer knew about the lunatic, and that Mercer had known how hopeless I was in a fight, and that they had sent me in anyways. To add insult to injury, the richest woman in Riften gave me an iron dagger with a simple enchantment as a 'generous' reward. I had the two-day journey to wallow in self-pity; to be mad at myself for taking a life. Now, I was just mad.

"Where is he?"

Brynjolf held up his hands. "He said he had some personal business to take care of, he should be back soon".

"I know exactly where he is" I spat, turning on my heel.

I stood in the night air banging on the oak door shouting his name until he opened it. I knocked one more time, accidentally/on purpose hitting him on the chest.

"Good to hear you came back" He drawled sarcastically, stepping out of the doorway to let me in.

"You bastard" I spat, pacing the open floor.

"You wound me" He calmly closed and barred the door behind me.

I threw the book at him.

"What's this?"

"You knew. You knew and you didn't tell me. I almost died, Mercer. I almost got caught".

He flipped through the journal. "That only says you're a poor swordsman and a terrible thief".

"You could have told me". I wanted to hit him.

"If everyone was told exactly who and how they have to fight, combat wouldn't be considered a skill, would it? Perhaps now that you know what it's really like you'll take your lessons seriously" He snapped the book shut, looking at me. There was something searching about his gaze. "I'm surprised you came back".

"Why wouldn't I?" My steam had run out. I didn't know how I had expected this conversation again, but I had thought that it would be more satisfying.

He moved towards me in slow, easy steps. His hand found the tear in my armor. "Recent events made many believe you wouldn't".

I didn't move away from his touch "What?"

When his eyes met mine I was keenly aware of how close his face was. "You haven't heard? You must really be dense".

"Heard what?"

"Helgen was attacked by a dragon. The whole town was destroyed".

My mouth felt dry. I hadn't thought about what the gate guard had said or the strange behavior of the priest and priestess since I'd left. I hadn't thought of my former home since I joined the guild. I had the sudden urge to go there, to that abandoned house where my mother had died and my father had left… if it was even still there. I could feel panic rising into my chest as the lump rose into my throat.

"You're right, I shouldn't have come back" I started moving, pacing. I had to move. I couldn't sit still. I needed to leave, to see if it was still standing. "Ah- Maven wanted you to look at this" I remembered, handing him the paper. "I-I think that I'm going to leave. Yeah, I'm going to leave".

Mercer wasn't reading the paper. He was looking at me. "Where do you think you're going?"

"I shouldn't have come back" I muttered, reaching for the door bar.

He grabbed my hand, simultaneously pushing me against the wall. It was powerful, but not rough. I glanced at the door, then at him. His face was inches from mine. I couldn't decide which I wanted.

"I knew, Adelie, I knew the second you walked into the city that something was going to change".

I looked at him, not sure what he was talking about. I think that was the first time he used my name. I searched his face. His eyes were deep green and intense. The salt and pepper stubble brought out the strong square of his jaw, and his nose was not nearly as crooked as I initially thought. That strange feeling returned to my stomach.

"I just have to make sure that change is to my advantage. You're staying right here, Adelie".

It felt weird to hear my name from his mouth.

"Mercer what are you talking-"

His mouth was suddenly on mine, strong and hungry. He released my wrist, letting that hand twist into my hair instead, his other wrapping around my waist, pulling me closer to him. I began to return his kiss, but I pulled back.

"Do you want to stop?" I could feel his lips brushing against my cheek as he spoke.

My heart beat wildly against my chest. I looked towards the door again. I closed my eyes, feeling his lips brush my neck. "No. Keep going".

He didn't need to be told twice.

I must have dozed off. I turned over, and found the bed next to me empty, not that I had expected him to be there. I yawned as I stretched out, glancing down at my body and all the little bruises that appeared. I smiled to myself, tracing the outline of one, wondering if I had given as good as I got. The smile disappeared when I remembered what I needed to do. I pulled on my armor slowly, muscles aching and slipped silently out the back door of the house, forcing myself to be just a shadow until I was out of the city gates.

Smoke was still rising from the ruins. The tall towers were toppled; chunks of the walls were missing. The gate swung open without resistance. I chewed my lip as I walked through the city. Most of the road was blocked by debris. Lumps of smoldering ash decorated every corner, outnumbered only by the bodies. The hardest to believe was that it was empty. For as long as I could remember, Helgen was a bustling town. As the southernmost city it was the first place Imperial soldiers were stationed. The steady stream of soldiers made the businesses prosperous, perhaps even more so than Whiterun, Skyrim's trade center. I found myself standing in the middle of the inn, right where a table had been, looking up into the blue sky. The ceiling was gone. The people were gone. The town was gone.

I moved out the southern road. The turnoff was mostly overgrown now, anyone else probably would have missed it. I followed the short path to the house. I stood in front of it, my hands on my hips. It was smaller than I remembered it. Someone had gone in and boarded up the windows. It was unnecessary. We could never afford glass, the holes in the wall had always just been covered by furs.

The door swung open as soon as I touched it. I jumped as a skeever skittered out, disappearing into the forest. I stepped inside. Dust rose with every footfall as I paced the length of the house.

Someone took most of the furniture. Only one chair and my mother's bed remained. No one had touched it since she died. Maybe it was cursed. I walked over to it, staring at the wooden frame.

I couldn't remember her face.

I sat in front of the house with my knees tucked up against my chest and watched the shadows grow.

A/N: Shout out to ScienceGuy23 for letting me know that I needed to set the scene up better. I'm pretty new to writing fiction of any kind, so I appreciate all the feedback I can get. I was depending on formatting to help with my transitions, and didn't realize that I had lost it when uploading (huge oversight on my part, oops), but I think (hope) that I've fixed it now. Other than that, I'm glad you like the story so far, thanks for the follow, and thanks to everyone else who has fav/followed so far!