Chapter Ten

"Vex, you alright?" Delvin asked, leaning over towards the imperial who was clutching a tankard, her eyes drooping with exhaustion. "Where's that recruit? I quite liked her spirit." He looked around the Ragged Flagon, not spotting a single glimpse of the redguard in question. "You two did alright on the job didn't ya? Why aren't we celebratin' like kings?"

Brynjolf was sitting comfortingly beside the imperial who's forehead was pressed against the wooden bar counter. He held up a hand, shaking his head with an exaggerated expression to the breton to lay off. Delvin cocked an eyebrow, and then began to snort until his sides were aching with laughter.

"What did she steal your jewels again?"

Glaring at the breton, Vex rose her head up above the bar just long enough to judge the distance between the laughing Delvin and herself. With one fluid motion she'd pulled one of her daggers from it's sheath and thrown it at him. It sunk into the wood of the stool not an inch from his own jewels. Instantly the laughing stopped. "That's a warning." Vex muttered coldly before she returned to clutching the tankard with both hands, exhaustion and depression battling over which one would win out. Eventually exhaustion did, and she rose to her feet to head into the cistern to sleep.

But before she could, Brynjolf gave her a gentle touch on the shoulder, asking for her to stay with him for a bit to talk. "I'm not in the mood." She said flatly to him.

"I know Vex, but I need to talk to you." He replied firmly, concern in his green eyes.

Delvin had long since departed them, having scurried off after her warning to bother Tonilia about joining the Guild officially again. It had left the two with each other and Vekel the Man, who also quickly left at that moment. Granting the two a privacy Vex didn't want, because she didn't want to talk with anyone right now. "I said I'm not in the mood. I just want to sleep Brynjolf. Yosa'Min will show up eventually, and I'd like to be well rested when that comes." She shrugged him off, once again moving towards the cistern.

Brynjolf followed her all the way to her bed, at which she turned to him with death threats in her eyes. The nord easily brushed them aside and sat down on the edge of her bed. "Talk now, once we're done you can go right to sleep." He insisted.

With a frustrated roll of her eyes, Vex slipped off her boots and the top tunic, leaving herself in a green cloth shirt and the Guild pants. Stashing them and her hood into the nearby mini dresser she'd long since claimed, she crawled onto the bed and pulled the blanket up around her. After the long silence, Brynjolf realized there was no way she was going to open up to him.

Sighing with obvious exasperation at his attempts of helping her being ignored, Brynjolf pulled the blanket off of her and promptly received a glare that made even him cringe a little. "Vex. We're talking."

"No, we're not."

"Stop being a child."

"I'm not!" She shot back, and then rolled onto her other side, blocking him off thoroughly. But Brynjolf was nothing if not persistent, and got up and walked to the other side, plopping down onto the other bed with his body turned to her. Vex wasn't just going to prove his point about being childish, and turn onto the her side once more, so with a huff she ignored him. They stayed like that for ten minutes before the imperial groaned in frustration. "Fine! What do you want to say?"

The nord paused for a bit, before he asked of the annoyed thief. "What happened?"

"What are you talking about?"

Shoving his thumb over his shoulder to a nearby empty bed, Brynjolf got his point across. "Yosa'Min and you go out to Goldenglow. Only you come back and you're obviously hurt. And I'm not talking about a physical wound." He replied.

Vex sat up some, scowling heavily at him. "Stop."

"No, you need to talk to someone about this. Because you don't get hurt Vex, you hurt others. So do I need to throw our new recruit out or something? Have a stern talk to her? I need to know what happened."

"Don't. It's not her fault." Vex quickly replied, appalled at the thought of Yosa'Min getting kicked out because of her. "Besides the Guild needs her."

Brynjolf tilted his head to the side, his red hair following suit with a waving motion. "And just what isn't her fault?"

Vex muttered a few things under her breath. Brynjolf and she were friends, of a sort, and while she'd always liked the nord compared to the others she didn't feel like confiding in him. And then she realized one way or another she'd have to get him to leave, might as well not start trouble with it later. "We did the job, got to the beach and she started laughing. That adrenaline hype after the first Guild heist you do right? Well, next thing I know we're kissing and-"

"Kissing?" Brynjolf cut in with wide eyes. That was in no way what he expected.

Annoyance returned to her tone as Vex continued. "Yes, kissing. And then things picked up, when she suddenly stops. I look at her and she's torn between myself and something else."

"Someone else." Brynjolf concluded, following along every word the imperial said.

"Exactly, and can you take a guess who that is?"

Frowning in concentration, the nord didn't know many of the people Yosa'Min knew. Outside of the Guild and maybe a few of the locals around town he and she didn't know a single face that were the same. But then he paused, thinking on the locals. "Mjoll!" He suddenly said with revelation, gaining a nod from Vex. "You mean, romantically?"

"Yes, maybe, I don't know." Vex sighed, shaking her head with exasperation. "She claims she doesn't because she's lying to the woman constantly for the sake of the Guild, which shows just how much she wants to be here, and asked me how she could want to be with a woman when she's doing that to her. Yosa intends on taking her out of the city and get us leeway here in the city again." Vex paused. "She's doing a lot for us."

Brynjolf nodded his head. "Aye. She is. And Maven wants to see her."

"What?" Vex's gaze snapped up to him, shooting herself to sit up straight. "Why does Maven want to see her?"

Brynjolf shrugged. "You know I don't ask those kind of questions. I'd guess it's because of the stir she'd causing down here. Feels almost like our luck is returning. First Brand-Shei, then the debts, now Goldenglow. Don't lie to yourself, she's impressive."

Vex skulked for a moment before she replied. "Yes, she is." In more then one way. "Just hope Maven isn't going to screw up how Mjoll is looking at Yosa. It's kind of fragile right now."

The words made the fiery haired nord once again tilt his head to a side. "How so?" There was a long silence, Vex's eyes focused on one of the stones lining the cistern wall. "Vex, what do you know?"

The platinum haired woman gave another frustrated sigh. "I saw them in the woods okay! After she and I fought Yosa went off into the woods. I stayed there, thinking and then there was this scream. I went towards it thinking it might be Yosa and considering the storm that was raging around us I was... concerned." Her tone became guarded, defensive. "Yosa was there alright, but so was Mjoll."

"And she was in her Guild armor..." Brynjolf added, quickly processing the story being told. "So does Mjoll know?"

"Maybe. Yosa seemed to alleviate her fears. Told Mjoll her armor was destroyed by a bear and was attacked by a thief and just took the armor for herself. We'll probably have to gouge some wear into it to help that story sell when it's not wet." Brynjolf gave a nod. "The brute seemed like she might have been buying it, I don't know, seemed good enough at the time with her ankle twisted." Brynjolf perked up with keen interest. "She slipped or something, got hurt, Yosa took her back here to Riften and I tailed them to the temple."

And then Brynjolf nodded his head once more, obviously having thought deeply with each word. "I uh, didn't know you were interested in women Vex." He said with a surprising lack of awkwardness.

"Well I am." Vex said harshly. "Does that change anything for you?"

Shaking his head and hands rapidly, Brynjolf tried to move past that. "No, nothing at all. But look here Vex, I want you to know I think you should take care of your business of the heart before the business of the Guild." He offered his advice, gaining a confused expression of non-understanding from the imperial. "You're unhappy, terribly unhappy. Whatever words and gestures were shared between you and the recruit obviously has effected you, and the rejection because of the thorn in our side isn't doing you any good either. If you go out there, and slip up because you're not all together, you could get hurt. So, no jobs on the outside until you're all good in here." He pointed at her heart.

Instantly she was furious, jumping up to her feet in challenge. "You can't do that Bryn!"

"I'll talk with Mercer then." She scowled deeply at his reply, and just how sure he was that Mercer would agree with him. But no, she knew that Mercer would tell her to get over it and go make some coin. Either way she'd end up being public with her feelings for the redguard and the entire Guild would look at her differently. Something she refused to have after all the time she'd spent building up her reputation.

"Just let me sleep Brynjolf." Came the gritted reply. The nord dipped his head, and then left her to sleep. Vex could feel some of the other members that were across the cistern watching her, the shouts obviously had caught their attention. Her skin grew hot with their gazes, and she promptly gave them all a death glare to buzz off before retrieving her blanket and laying back down to sleep.

You better know what you're doing Yosa. Vex mulled as her mind began to slip into a light rest.

Light filtered in through the temple's windows, casting the two cuddling figures in a golden haze. By the time the first of them was opening her eyes, the other had long since pulled the blanket up over their face. Mjoll blinked blearily in the morning light, the long room they occupied surprisingly empty save for each other. Yosa'Min was hidden from view, but Mjoll could feel the redguard's body against her. A gentle smile spread across her face and the small murmuring coming from beneath the blanket, the sounds of someone reluctantly stirring back into wakefulness.

"Come on Yosa, I doubt the priests want us crashing here much longer." Mjoll chuckled warmly, pulling the blanket down to reveal Yosa'Min's frowning face, blue eyes narrowed into slits at the bombardment of light.

"They're priests of love, they're supposed to be nice." Replied Yosa'Min with a reluctant voice, very well aware of just how weak her argument was.

Her words brought a lightness to Mjoll's voice, having to stifle a laugh that would only encourage the behavior. "Doesn't mean their kindness doesn't have an end. This time, you really will be getting out of someone else's hair."

"Can't we stay a little bit longer...?" Murmured Yosa'Min as she tried to nuzzle further against Mjoll's neck and block out the morning light that was so harshly blinding her.

Mjoll gave her a sharp but quick prod to the side, making Yosa'Min squirm instantly. The nord grinned widely as she understood her discovery. "You're ticklish?" The taunt came, and instantly Yosa'Min's blue eyes snapped with alarm, already starting to move away.

"Don't you- Mjoll!" Her voice quickly pitched at another prod, this one making her legs spasm and nearly hit the nord's ankle. "Mjoll I'm warning you- Mjoll! Damn it you nord!" Yosa'Min jumped right out of the bed, the blanket catching on her feet and making her ungracefully stumble onto her rump.

"The great and noble Dragonborn is ticklish?" The wounded warrior couldn't help but begin to laugh over and over again. "And I thought it was just because you were drunk that you refused to let me dry you the other night."

"Ha. Ha. Ha." Yosa'Min dryly said. "Laugh it up."

Mjoll's eyes were sparkling to the redguard with mirth, her lips curled back into a smile that could only be likened to a cat with a prize within reach. "Oh I am Yosa." The Lioness laughed as Yosa'Min disentangled herself from the blanket that had so happily clung to her legs. A disgruntle murmur or two came from the redguard on the ground in response.

When she was at last free she stood up and offered a hand to help Mjoll sit up and then stand. "I'll see about getting you a crutch later." The redguard offered once the nord's left arm was slung over Yosa, a dark hand wrapped around Mjoll's waist to help support her. "Easy going..." Cooed the redguard as they began to awkwardly hobble their way outside.

The storm from the night before had long since blown away, but with as long as it had lasted Riften seemed hardly different then normal. The ground was freshly wet on the upper layers and the run off still streamed off the rooftops, but aside from that and the fresh after rain smell, the two couldn't notice a difference. "Looks like it was nothing but water and rumble." Mjoll commented.

"Like a drunk man taking a piss." Yosa'Min crudely stated, making Mjoll guffaw near instantly. A self-pleased grin spread across Yosa'Min's face as she aided Mjoll down the boardwalk towards Aerin's house, catching the gaze of several of the Riften's citizens, alarmed by the either Mjoll being hurt or the stranger aiding her. Yosa'Min really could care either way.

By the time they'd gotten down and in to Aerin's house, the imperial inside was nearly tearing his hair out with worry. "Mjoll!" He let out with relief and frustration, allowing himself to relax at last at the sight of her being alive. And then he noticed the injury, and rushed down to help Yosa'Min carry her over to where one of their dining chairs waited. Mjoll was awkwardly shuffled in before Aerin ran to get something for her to rest her foot.

When he came back down the stairs with a familiar looking bucket, Yosa'Min gave a slight laugh. "Hey, I've seen that before!"

Mjoll gave her a warm and teasing expression. "Yes you have, and your face was shoved down in it for at least an hour."

"I really drank that much?"

Mjoll smirked. "Oh yes."

"I don't believe you, I've never gotten so drunk to vomit for an hour."

"Cuddle me like there's no tomorrow." Mjoll cheekily quoted the redguard's drunken statement, getting her point across easily. She promptly laughed as the redguard stuck her tongue out at her, squinting playfully. It was then that they remembered Aerin, who looked ill at ease by their conversation. "Aerin, I'm sorry." The warrior started to explain. "I shouldn't have gone out there."

"It's fine, I knew you would anyways. There is no point in trying to convince you of something when you're so dead set on it. And I know how much that ring means to you." Aerin replied with a slightly forced smile.

Yosa'Min took the chance to crack a joke. "Stubborn nords right?"

"Right." Laughed Aerin with a real smile to the redguard. Mjoll once again just rolled her eyes at their comments, long since having brushed off such small jokes against her race. So long as she got to make a few back herself. "Well I'll go and look for that ring for you."

"No need." Mjoll replied with a wave of her hand. "Yosa'Min's already said she would. She needs to get my armor anyways considering we had to leave it behind to get back to Riften with my injury." Yosa'Min narrowed her eyes when she didn't see relief or gratitude in Aerin's eyes but jealousy almost.

Her jaw clenched almost instantly. "Indeed, you said the farm to the south right? There aren't many that way are there?" Yosa'Min questioned Mjoll, a suddenly guarded tone slipping into her voice as she looked at Aerin with narrowed eyes.

The imperial was quick to notice, and scowled right back. Mjoll was oblivious at first as she replied. "Aye, that one. There was a woman visiting the owners, she might still be there."

"Then I'll get to it at once so I don't lose her trail. And Aerin, she'll need a crutch if she'll get around anywhere. Though keeping her grounded might be a good idea. I'll get going, someone needs to get you that ring back." Yosa'Min said, dipping her head to Aerin. Before she could stop herself or cower out, she bent down and gave Mjoll a slightly awkward sitting hug, and then turned on her heels and headed out.

An elder woman was tending to the crops when Yosa'Min rode up to her on Archer, gaining a polite nod from the imperial woman. Before she'd left Riften she'd gotten bought a new suit of leather armor to help conceal herself from the snarky Grekla, changed into it, returned the robes to the priests to get back her own Guild armor. Having already picked up the iron armor belonging to an injured nord back in Riften, she just had to find the ring and hope it would be there or at least a clue as to where the new owner was. "Good afternoon dear, what can I help you with?" She asked with a friendly and cheerful manner. The woman wore simple clothing, a hat concealing any hint of hair on her face, and a farmers tan testified to the years of hard work tending the field.

"I'm looking for a woman that had wore a golden banded ring with the words 'sand elske' inscribed on it. It belongs to a friend of mine and means a lot to her." Yosa'Min replied from atop of Archer, the furrow of the woman's brow made her wary for a brief moment. "Have you seen her? I'm afraid I don't know what she looks like, just that she is wearing the ring."

The farmer gave a nod of her head, pointing towards the one of two buildings on the farm, the farmhouse. "She took shelter in there from the storm. Caught something might fierce from it too."

Instantly Yosa'Min brightened, and climbed off Archer. "Thank you ma'am. I'm Yosa'Min." She offered up her name, and the caution on the imperial's face melted away.

"Leonara Arius, and welcome to the Snow-Shod farm." She replied, and returned to hoeing the ground. Yosa'Min led the stallion up to the front of the farm house before she left him there.

The redguard slipped into the house without a word, her eyes quickly adjusting to the darkness. Leonara hadn't lied, the woman seemed terribly sick where she lay on the bed with coverlets up to her chin. Yosa'Min stood at a distance as she studied the woman that very well could potentially be an enemy. The woman was a dark elf, shaking horribly in fits with shivers and would cough every so often. The left side of her face was covered in scars that nearly made the red war paint on her that led from her eyes away and bisected her lips indiscernible from them. Short, red hair grew out from her head and was all pushed to one side, the right, while the left was shaved bare. When she opened her eyes, aware of the stranger's presence, they were a milky white.

She jolted out of the bed despite her sickness, magic gathering in her hands with flames. Instantly Yosa'Min recognized the spell, and threw up the lesser ward she'd learned just before the tendrils of magic shot outwards from her and burned parts of the inside of the home, none of it catching. Yosa'Min rolled to a side, a dagger drawn, and threw it at the blind mage. But somehow she knew it was coming, and threw up a far more powerful ward that deflected the blade sending it right back at the redguard who was forced to duck behind a chair.

"Who are you?" Shouted the dunmer mage, fire gathering in her hands once more.

"I am someone who just wants to talk blast it woman! I would have attacked when you were laying down otherwise!" Shouted Yosa'Min back, her hair felt singed. "Now calm down before you burn the farmhouse down!"

The fire didn't come in massive tendrils, but it was still ready and alive in the dunmer's hands, casting shadows all around the single room house. "I asked who you were." Restated the mage with a hostile tone.

The exasperated huff from Yosa'Min made the mage raise her arms to fire. "Yosa'Min!" Shouted the crouched redguard. "I just wanted to see where you got your ring!"

After a moment the woman dropped her arms, dispelling the magic and scowled at Yosa'Min. "How do you know about my ring?"

"A dear friend of mine lost hers, with sand elske written in the gold. If I could take it back for her and compensate you for it, I'll happily do so." Yosa'Min replied, not daring to rise out of the minimal cover she'd found behind the wooden chair. She pushed aside the thought of it actually catching fire and then she too with it. She didn't fancy the idea of burning.

A dry laugh came from the dunmer. "And if I don't just give it over? I bought it myself with my hard earned gold."

"It was stolen!" Yosa'Min found herself fighting the urge to just up and deck the blind woman. But this was a mage that was far more powerful then she'd expected. And she didn't get along well with fire at all. "Now please, I'm willing to give you back equal and then some the worth of it!"

"I don't want your gold, I want my ring!" Sneered the dunmer, before she raised her hands back up with the telltale signs of a spell starting to come to life sparkling between her ashen fingers.

Yosa'Min muttered several strings of profanities under her breath. "I can cure you!" When the fire didn't come down once more she let out a small sigh of relief. "I can cure you, your ailment, I can get rid of it for you, pay you the gold, and all I ask if for my friend's stolen ring. If a guard catches you with it, recognizes it, he might just turn you in if not cut your down on the spot. And you won't even know will you dunmer?"

"That is not my name." The words came out pointedly, obviously calling her such wasn't a good idea, but Yosa'Min simply brushed it aside.

The redguard rolled her eyes with aggravation. Mages and their damn egos, almost as bad as warriors. "Then what is?"

"Siulon of Morrowind."

"Well then, Siulon of Morrowind, will you take me on my offer. Gold, and a cure, for the ring?" Yosa'Min tried to keep the hostility out of her voice.

Siulon was no fool however, and though her hands dropped some once again, her blind eyes stared endlessly in Yosa'Min's direction. "And I am to trust you will not poison me?"

"What, does the word of the Dragonborn have no weight?" Yosa'Min scoffed, hating to drop that card but there it was. Siulon gave little recognition to the words, but seemed convinced as she nodded her head slightly. "Good, now here." Pulling out a potion that was made to cure diseases, Yosa'Min placed it in the dunmer's hands with a forceful intention. She slipped the ring off Siulon's finger, checking it over to assure it had the words on the band before she handed over at least five hundred septims in a coin purse. "Pleasure doing business with you Siulon. That potion will make you light headed but nothing else. And I suggest you pay back the kind farmer for burning some of her books." Yosa'Min said as she left the home, hearing the dunmer whisper something to Azura under her breath.

Yosa'Min pocketed the the ring, climbed onto Archer, apologized for the mess to the kind woman, and rode back to Riften, a grin spreading across her face.

AN: Yes, Siulon is an OC, so don't start looking for who she is. In the game there is the implication by Brand-Shei that the ring has been stolen, and considering Mjoll continually talks about it (especially to Aerin) around Riften I figured it would be a good thing to use in the plot. Give it my own ending. I hurt my hand the other day and while it still hurts some I was able to finish up the chapter that I had intended on having out sooner. Ah, well. Let me know what you think in a review! Thanks for reading!