A/N: Woot! Another chapter – read, enjoy, and review!

Chapter 7: We Thank You for Your Kindness

Enthir was indeed a resident mage at the College, and apparently he was the go-to elf for difficult-to-acquire goods and services, from what I gathered by watching him and listening in on all the wrong kinds of conversations over the next three weeks. Everything could be bought, found, sold or 'lost' to a certain degree, and for certain prices. Unfortunately I was already in his debt, and judging by the way some fellow students and mages treated him, he was one to fear regarding late payments and unfulfilled promises. And no-one ever mentioned dealing with him, ever. They only mentioned coming across some very rare and expensive (there was usually a lot of emphasis on 'expensive' where that Bosmer was involved) arcane tools, ingredients, tomes, and so forth.

Very well, then – two can play the game of providing for the more discreet needs of the mages here. I had the skills, I just needed the contacts.


This Solän'cae turned away from her Delany, on her way to the College to study and research and find out what this one could not do yet. There was a lead to the Dark Brotherhood, and this would-be-Khajiit-Nightstalker would not rest until she had found them. I picked the lock to the house, walking in and up the stairs, listening to a tired boy chanting something, and the dull thud of a knife against the wooden-floating-floor.

"Sweet mother… sweet mother… send you-ur child… unto me… for the –" the cub yawned loudly, "– sins of the unworthy must be… bap-tized… in… blood and fear…."

The cub must have been awake for a very, very long time. This Solän'cae followed his voice to a room with the Black Sacrament. There were the candles, the rib cage, the skull, the blood, the heart… the boy stabbing the effigy with his kitchen knife. Could there be anything more exciting than this?!

"The Dark Brotherhood has come, Aventus Aretino. What is it you require of this one?" I asked the cub, watching him drop his kitchen knife, fall onto his tail-less rear and back away from this Khajiiti before grinning brightly. How do these creature eat, with such round, flat, blunt teeth? It must be difficult and painful.
"You're the Dark Brotherhood! You've come, you've come! Thank goodness! I haven't slept since I started the Black Sacrament… with all the things."
"Yes…. This one can see that," I purred, tail swishing happy-excited. "What is it you want done, cub?"
"I want you to kill Grelod the Kind! My mother… she died, and I, I'm all alone. Then I was sent to that orphanage in Riften. Honorhall. The headmistress is an evil, cruel woman – that's Grelod. They call her Grelod the Kind, but she really isn't. She's terrible, to all of us. So I ran away, came home. And did the Black Sacrament! And now you're here! And you can kill her!" he shouted at the end, getting excited.
It was an interesting proposition – if I stole this kill from the Dark Brotherhood, would they come looking for me, or would they try to kill me?

"Assassinations are not dust in the sand, cub," I said. Of course, I was not so interested in the money as I was joining the Dark Brotherhood, but I wanted to know he would need to give to get.
"Yeah, sure – uhm, I have a family heirloom you can have, when you're done. It's supposed to be sorta valuable or something," he finished, his face going red.
So it will not be worth much, this Solän'cae thought, nodding. "I will kill this woman for you, child."

And then this Solän'cae left, a cheering-exhausted cub falling to the floor as this one shut the door.

What did it matter to this one if the cub died? He was not the one holding the Black Door open-or-closed – but he was showing me which way to go.


I booked a cart to Riften, apparently south of here, and home to all the thieves in Skyrim. Why was Delany not going there? It was her desire-dream-wish-goal to find the Skyrim Thieves Guild and join them – yet she was running in the opposite direction, where there would be great order-law-restriction, and she had such wandering hands and fingers, surely she would not keep them to herself and out of the pockets of others. But, each must make and find their own path. This one was on her way through the desert to the canyon, and soon I would be at the oasis that is the Dark Brotherhood.


Riften was in a warmer part of Skyrim, and a more autumn-colored part too. It was lightly wooded, and full of bees and honey and bears and elk. And thieves. This one even had to pay fifteen septims to get inside the city gates! It was ridiculous! It made this one's fur stand and her teeth bare. This entire city was corrupt to the core! Assassins this one could deal with, and perhaps one or two thieves, but an entire city?!

No. This one would not stay here for long. This one would find out where the orphanage was, look around, meet the old woman, Grelod, and then this one would make a quick plan and kill her the next day. It would be quick, simple, messy.

Because of all the blood, of course.

I grinned – ah, this Khajiiti couldn't wait to feel the life flee from her target, her prey…. A few strange looks made this one realize she was purring and grinning. There was a market ahead – the perfect place to find out what was going on in this slum. "This is pure Wisp Essence, ladies and gentlemen! The true elixir for prolonged youth! For great energy! If you catch my drift…!"

This one followed the laughter of a crowd to a small stall with pale-green-white-glowing potions, a red-haired man holding one high and trying to sell it to the people. He continued talking, and the women and older men all bought one – for ridiculous prices. This one stopped an excited customer waiting to buy a bottle. "This one would know – where is Honorhall Orphanage?"
The woman glared at this Khajiiti. "Let go of me, cat," she snapped, pulling her arm away as this Solän'cae let her go, snarling. There were many people here, but no hairless-cubs…. Except for one stealing meat from a man more interested in the Wisp Essence. This Solän'cae followed the child to a back alley, then grabbed his arm.

"Hey, l-let go!" he stuttered, trying to look fierce. Of course, he was tall and broad for a cub.
"Tell me, where is this Honorhall Orphanage?" The boy looked confused. "Tell this one, and she will let you go with your stolen meat. Otherwise, this one will drag you back to the old tomcat – man – and the guards, too," I hissed.
"Fine!" the cub hissed back, fierce-afraid. "It's over there. I need to get back there, anyway – that old Hagraven will notice I'm gone soon. I'll walk you there, just… just don't take me in through the front door."
"Good. Lead the way, cub. This one will keep her word."


The orphanage was large – there were almost thirteen cubs inside, all dirty and afraid and angry and tired and unloved. Except for about four or five – the tomcat I found was one of them. There was a young woman working with the children: she was kind, but just as afraid as the children of the old woman – Grelod the Kind.

The old woman liked beating the cubs with a hard leather belt, locking them inside cupboards, not feeding them. Those who tried to escape had their feet burned by a hot poker.

The young woman knew a little of healing, so when Grelod wasn't near, the young woman would heal the children as best she could. Grelod liked lecturing the children too – and insisted the slightest necessity she gave them was a great kindness, and all had to say 'we thank you for your kindness, Mistress Grelod' whenever the old hag was done. This one snarled silently, and slipped away. Too many potential witnesses to tell the others what this Solän'cae looks like – I shall need a cowl. Cubs are too honest, too easy to make tell the truth.

Though… these cubs might not want to tell on me.

This one shall see – after the purchase of a cowl, and a bed for the night.


The red-haired man was still selling his Wisp Essence when this one bought her cowl – though, I must confess, it was more of a thin, fraying hood that could be wrapped around this one's face than an actual cowl. This one couldn't afford to buy something more expensive. The only way out was through the city gates, through the waterway – but this one really did not want to get wet – or to hide in the city sewers, where this one would surely get lost or be discovered eventually.

No. This one would have to strike hard and fast like lightning, and then disappear before the thunder can be heard. This one wandered down to the alchemist, buying some nightshade and deathbell and a few others to make poisons, and try to get a free lesson while the old-tomcat taught a woman called Ingun. Mostly to pass the time – but also to learn without using coin. I think the alchemist realized, though, and eventually asked this one to leave.

And so I did – it was almost time to kill, almost time to feel the crimson-red-life-water leave the body of Grelod, and this one couldn't wait! Oh, how it would be to kill again…. Cleanly, quickly…. "What shall this one do to leave her mark?" I wondered, walking into the inn – a place called Bee and Barb, and paid for a room to leave my things in while this Solän'cae worked. There would be dinner first, and this one would need the sharp knife that would surely come with the meat. It was easier to hide than a sword, and faster to kill with when close to another. I need to buy a dagger, but a good one – this one will not settle for anything less than glass, I decided, listening to the soon-full common room.

Empire and Stormcloak – a quick way to start a bar fight, steal the knife, run to the orphanage, kill my prey, my unsuspecting, pathetic and helpless-to-escape prey, and come back. No-one would know that Solän'cae left, no-one would know that she had killed, and ran back in time.

But every artist needs to sign her work, and that this Solän'cae would have to figure out on the way. There was no more time to think.

"– Ulfric is perfectly justified! If he isn't here to intervene on behalf of all the people, of all the Nords, who knows what the gods-damned elves will do next! Will they tell us to worship their gods, follow all of their customs?!" a man shouted, slamming down a tankard and spilling drink.
"Justified?! He's fighting the enemy! He's fighting the Empire for the love of –"
"And the Empire rolled over to the demands of the elves!" a woman joined the argument.

Now, to push one fighter into the other, and make sure there was an earnest fight!

This one stood, carefully joining the argument and pushed into one who stumbled into another.

And then there were fists flying everywhere.

No-one saw this Khajiiti steal the knife, no-one saw this Khajiiti slip out the back door.


I stood outside the orphanage, drawing my cowl over my head and walked around to the back, where the cub had shown this one was another entrance. The doors were all unlocked, as if Sithis and Mehrunez wanted this one to succeed! Ah, this one could not keep from smiling! This one almost purred, but the sleeping cubs were what kept me serious. They could not wake and hinder this one. Slowly, quietly, I crept in, looking for the light under a door, voices in the halls.

And this one found old Grelod's room, the 'hagraven' – this one wonders what that is – hissing at a young woman she sent out angrily. This one shrunk back into the shadows – I was still undetected, unfound inside this place. The girl – woman, like this Solän'cae – was close to tears. She wouldn't have seen this Khajiit unless I spoke.

"Insolent girl – I swear, she spoils these ungrateful urchins and makes sure they never obey a single thing I tell them to do!" the old woman coughed, gagging.

This one peered inside the door. Grelod the Soon-Dead had her back to this Khajiit-assassin.

I purred, grinned, pulled out the knife.

I stepped in, one, two, three.

Tail high, one hand reaching around and grabbing the mouth-chin.

"What, who are – gah-ahh!"

The flesh was soft and old, giving under the knife like warm butter. The cartilage and tendons gave a bit of trouble, made the ear-to-ear a little jagged.

And then the blood sprayed, drowned, flowed over this one's white-white fur. I hissed. "So messy, look what you did!"

But the blood on this one's hand-paws….

The woman fell to the floor, and this one quickly made a paw-shape, pressed it to the wall.

And fled the orphanage for the inn. This one had to leave tonight, now – surely they would see the blood, and follow it to this one's room!

The thrill, the not-chase-run…. Ah, this one could live on the feeling. So sharp, so real, alive! Everything was crisp and clear and beautiful! Hail Sithis and the Night Mother!


I returned to the inn in time to see the fight being broken up by guards, and a few members dragged away in chains. I hurried past and into my room, trying to wash out the worst of the blood. This one snarled – how dare her prey make her dirty like this?! I grabbed my pack, and went out the second entrance. The guards let this one pass without looking twice, and I was close to running. I only needed a little more distance, a little further to go. I just needed to pass the city gates, get out of sight, then this one would run for joy, for freedom!

And North towards Windhelm, to tell Aventus Aretino, and collect this one's reward.


A Khajiit trader-caravan was busy packing up the early morning when this Solän'cae headed into Windhelm. Thankfully, the guards remembered this one was with Delany, and let this one in without much fuss. I went straight to the house of this one's client. I walked in, and found the boy sleeping on the floor, next to the rotting organs and dead flowers. "Cub, wake up," this one ordered.

The boy jumped, waking up and standing almost immediately. And he sat down again just as fast. "You – she's dead, right?" he asked.
"Yes. The woman this one was sent to kill is dead."

This one was not expectant of the grin, the cheer and the sudden crash of an ugly tail-less, furless cub in a tight embrace.

"Oh, thank you! Thank you! You did it! Ha ha! This is the best day ever!" he laughed, letting me go and racing away to fetch this one's pay.
"Here! It's a family heirloom – supposed to be worth quite a bit! Thank you, thank you so much Miss Assassin!"

This one could only stare.

And try not to gape.

The hairless cub wanted this Solän'cae to take a plate.

A tarnished, stained plate as payment. This one took it, and left. There was a Dark Elf pawnshop nearby – this thing wasn't worth more than ten septims clean, but it would be a few more coins more than this one currently had.


"Hold, Sister of the Sands!"

This one turned to look at a tabby-tomcat in steel armor. Unusual for our kind – we preferred lighter armor, movement over protection, like the Bosmeri cousins. This one wanted to be gone from this white-cold-rain city and go somewhere warmer, why was he stopping me? "Yes?"
"If you would leave this city, this Kharjo would vouch for you to travel with us. It is safer to travel in a caravan-pride through Skyrim. The furless-ones are not fond of us, the air cold and the animals dangerous. We go to Whiterun – from there, one could go anywhere, you know. And it is warmer there. You will get food and a bed, if you come with us."

This one stared at the tabby-tomcat. Light grey-tan fur, with a dark-brown-black patch over one eye. Young, like this one, but good with the weapon and armor. He was a caravan guard, one who protected against bandits and animals. This one found him… pleasing… to look at. It would be safer to travel in a pride…. "Very well. This Solän'cae accepts your offer, Kharjo. This one will travel with you, and she is grateful for that."

The tomcat grinned broadly, tail twitching as he laughed. "No, Solän'cae, this one is grateful you accepted his offer! Come, come! I will take you to Ahkari. She is the one who leads this caravan, and she will want to meet you before you travel with us."
"This one will be glad to meet her."

Ahkari is a dark, almost-black Khajiiti, matron of this caravan of jewels, weapons and alchemy supplies. This one is tasked with helping around the caravan, setting up and taking down the tents when needed. But mostly, helping with the wares and horses.

At least this one was going somewhere warmer. I would have to send a letter to Delany to tell her the good news, too.