First thing: This story is separated into 3 parts, and what you think is fast-paced is as slow as possible without boring you. I cannot stress this enough. We are still in part 1, and will be for at least 2 more chapters. Also, with Lex not seeming to use Margot's name much, or even know it, is entirely a mistake on my part. Remember though, how many of you know the Beast's name in Beauty and the Beast?

Second thing: THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS! I keep forgetting to add that in. You guys are wonderful!

Disclaimer that I forgot in the last few chapters but always applies: I don't own Oblivion.


Chapter 8

Armand didn't have any news, so I left only a minute or two after he arrived.

I didn't catch anything, not that it really matters. I mostly just sat on a rock on the bank, trying to focus on fishing… and more fishing… and the lack of mud crabs… It was pretty boring.

So I went home, had a snack, washed some clothes, and went to bed.

The morning was a little more entertaining; I spoke to Methredel while loitering on the docks.

"I never got to talk to you about how that job ended up." I said, "What happened?"

She shuffled her feet a bit. "Well we already had someone else stealing for us, so I wasn't really involved."

"Who was stealing for you?"

"I can't remember her name." She shrugged. "It was something strange though, especially for a Bosmer."

Then someone I had seen around the docks came to mind, "Weird, mismatched armor?"

"Yeah! That's her." She responded, "So, everything went okay after you played your part. Arano will be imprisoned and we probably won't have to deal with her again."

"Good."

Methredel leaned against a crate, "So, why did you offer to join in?"

I shrugged, "I thought you might need help. Unless you plan on paying me, then that's my reason."

She chuckled, but realized that I was serious. "I can't pay you, so you had better be happy with the old morally right reward." I laughed a bit too, but honestly was disappointed. She changed the subject, "I never got the chance to thank you for helping with… that schedule."

"No problem; it helped me too." I replied, smiling.

"You must've gotten close to Lex to get that." I started to respond but she continued, "Maybe you helped with that other job because you were jealous." She joked, but I just felt awkward.

"Of course not," I tried to laugh, but it really was awkward. She's spent too much time with Carwen. "I just got the right information at the right time." It's not like I could end up with a guard anyway. I excused myself to go back home and eat lunch, hoping to avoid talking to anyone else for the time being.


I sat at my little table eating a bowl of grapes and peeling an apple, thinking, what a boring day. When I realized that a couple of weeks ago that it would be a normal day.

"What happened?" I said, leaning back in my chair. I listed off the things in my head: Lex, raid, getting beat up by a dark elf, catching mud crabs, bad fishing weather… "What happened?"

So I got a lazy (normal) day. Too bad everything likes to blow up in my face. I thought that only happened to mages that used a lot of destruction magic…


The next day was interesting, believe it or not. I spent the morning wandering the city, doing a little people watching. I thought that perhaps if I watched some nobles long enough, I might be able to act like them. It hadn't occurred to me before, but I had begun to wonder why Lex would invite me to the Tiber Septim, of all places. I lived on the Waterfront, not even in the city walls. Of every reason that flashed through my head (trap, bored, last resort, trap…), none of them made sense. I went back to watching the nobles.

They acted strangely…normal for someone with enough money in their pockets to buy my house. It took me a little while, but I noticed that many of the things they did didn't seem to serve a purpose. It was even more apparent in the Market District, where people entered and left stores with either nothing or more than they needed. Beggars were ignored for the most part, but occasionally someone would spare a coin or two. I made a point to give Simplicia the Slow some bread after someone actually stepped on her.

"What exactly are you doing?" I heard an Imperial voice behind me and turned quickly to see a guard watching me intently.

"Just out for a stroll." I said, putting on my best polite voice that I could at the moment.

He looked skeptical, "Really? You don't look like someone who lives around here…"

It wasn't hard to look offended, "I expected the guard wouldn't be so… insulting." I pretended to try and find the right word, hiding my slightly dirty clothes with my (thankfully clean) cloak.

"I'm sorry ma'am; we just have a lot of problems around here. Thieves running around, a dead emperor, we just have to check everything." He made a quick but good excuse, and I decided that, as a well-meaning citizen, that I would forgive him.

"That's okay, you be careful yourself. Women don't like being insulted, and you might end up with a nice handprint if you pick the wrong person." I said, masking my voice with one that sounded less… socially inept than my own.

He seemed more willing to talk now, actually chuckling a bit, "I know what you mean." He looked up, checking the time, "I should go. Again, I apologize."

"Don't worry about it." I brushed it off with a smile, but as he left I muttered. "This is going to be a piece of cake."


I went home and changed, but continued to wear my cloak during a slight detour before the party started. The Black Horse Courier was still up and running that evening, so I just knocked and walked in. Ra'jiradh was working on something in the back, papers in one hand, and quill in the other. He turned around when he heard me enter.

"Ah, hello Margot, Hassiri is getting some parchment from the basement, he should be back in a moment." He started to say something else, but some papers fell and he scrambled to push them back onto the desk.

I walked over and picked a few scattered papers up, balancing them on the other mounds of papers. I was careful to keep the newest document, clearly a letter, on the top. It was titled to someone named Witseidutsei, and assumed that it had something to do with news.

I heard the basement door open and close and Hassiri emerged from the doorway. "Oh, you actually came!" He said, looking slightly surprised.

"I thought you might want to see the dress, so I swung by here on my way to the party." I replied, pulling off my cloak so he could see.

"It looks wonderful!" Hassiri has always reminded me of that friend that everyone has, where you can wear anything or do anything and they will find some way to justify it.

"Thank you, it feels a little odd to go to a party like this…"

"You'll fit right in looking like that!" People often wonder how you tell Khajiit apart…

"Stop gossiping like little girls! You talk about the party after it's over." Urjabhi walked down the stairs.

Ra'jiradh thought it was fairly rude too, "Just come over here and help me with this!" As the brothers started arguing, I decided that that was my cue to leave.

"Umm… I'm going to go now. I don't think I should be fashionably late in this case." I said, trying to leave. Hassiri got the message and ushered me out with one final encouraging word.

"Have fun!"


I met Lex near the Tiber Septim; well, more like ran into him as I didn't recognize him at first without the armor. He seemed almost surprised to see me and it took a moment before I realized it might be the dress.

"You look…nice."

"Well thanks; I think I look nice all the time." I said, getting out the last of any impolite nature before going inside.

He both smiled and looked a bit… confused. "Alright then, we should go inside."

Inside… I started to feel a bit anxious about everything. I was racking my brain to remember everything from my life in High Rock, but some seemingly important things escaped me.

"Just in case, what exactly is your full name? I checked the records for it, but I want to pronounce it correctly." Of course he would have checked my records, or at least what they had. That's probably why he hasn't run away by now; he knows that the only charges held against me were dropped.

"Ah, it's Marguerite Louise, Margot to friends." Well telling the only person who knew me at all my name just set the evening off on a wonderful note.

A couple of Argonians in dark clothing were passing by on our way in and I heard their short conversation:

"They're lucky none of our siblings are invited, huh sister." The female seemed to find this hilarious, but that was all I heard. Maybe I missed the punch line.

Lex didn't seem to hear anything though and continued inside.

Have you ever been to a party and not known anyone? You know, you're kind of stuck shuffling your feet hoping you aren't doing anything stupid, that kind of thing? It's not any fun at all. After a few fast introductions to people whose names I still don't know, the occasional taking a coin or two from a passing person, and the nibbling on food that I barely swallowed; I finally asked Lex just why he invited me in the first place.

He sighed and pulled me over to sit down, "Well… Have you noticed who's here?" I looked around, recognizing a few faces, though I couldn't name or really remember them.

"Who are they?" I asked.

"Well, he is a Watch Captain from Skingrad," He pointed out a man in a green shirt, "he is the jailor in Cheydinhal," the next one was a man standing next to an Imperial woman, "and she is a Captain in Bravil." He pointed out another person with red-blonde hair.

"They're all guards…?" I wasn't sure what he was trying to say.

"The reason I invited you to this: According to several people here, I almost had to have someone with me, or they would be talking about it until the next gathering."

"…Huh?" I honestly didn't have a clue about what he was talking about. I really didn't. It went in one ear and out the other, just like that.

He thought for a moment, seemed to give up phrasing it differently and said, "I was supposed to bring a date." So it turned out he was paying me back while I was unknowingly doing him a favor.

But something still escaped me, "Why choose me?"

He shrugged, "I owed you something, and dinner seemed to be sufficient payment. Plus, no one knows you so no one will notice you." He looked slightly apologetic, "Sorry, but-"

"It was a good idea." I interrupted, actually slightly impressed with his reasoning. "I get it, and the food really is good." I didn't know what some of the food was, but it tasted fine…

Hey, don't laugh. It'd been a few years since High Rock.

Lex seemed relieved, "Good, then everyone wins."

I couldn't help but smile. "Yeah, everyone wins." I wasn't losing anything by staying, assuming the Guild was smart enough to stay away. I made a note to ask Armand why he didn't tell me about a bunch of high-ranked guards staying in town. I got up from the table, fully intent on enjoying the evening.

"Where are you going?"

I looked Lex in the eye and responded in my best high class voice, "Since I am supposed to enjoy myself I am going to eat free food, laugh at pompous nobles, and very possibly drink until I start to sound like them."

He raised his eyebrows and laughed, "I might have to join you." He stood and led me into the crowd.

I really did enjoy myself, but something in the back of my mind kept me from stealing anything else, and when Lex and I parted ways at the lighthouse (he insisted on walking me home, but I stopped him from passing the Garden and catching the attention of unwanted eyes), something happened that had been building up until that very moment, evidenced by my epiphany the night before.

My conscience woke up.


Ah, so things are moving along nicely. Not for Margot, but as a writer I think they are. Lex's explaination was supposed to be a bit vague, and can be interpereted differently depending on how you see the character. Thank you for reading, and please review! Also, I hope you can guess who the two Argonians are.