Ratway

by onlinesorcery

An orphan girl on the streets of Riften struggles for survival by falling in with the thieves that infest the city. But hints of her destiny weave themselves into her life, and one day she may no longer be able to resist their call. An origin story of the Dragonborn using the Thieves' Guild storyline.

11. Interlude

Cynric pulled off our merchant scam off flawlessly. We all got rich. Well, Cynric, Vex and I got rich. Temporarily.

But I had the respect of the Guild.

I ran with them for four years after that. Vex never tried to pull one of her stunts; she contented herself with goading a rather bitter rivalry out of me. Whenever one of us planned a heist, the other planned something bigger. Whenever I good haul from picking pockets and burglaring, she tried to pull off something better. But it didn't matter. I was better. She knew it. Brynjolf knew it; Divines, I think he'd known it from the beginning. Delvin saw it too, and it wasn't long before he started sharing his schemes with me instead of Vex. I could pick locks as easily as a hunter ties his boots; I could vault rooftops and get through windows that nobody else noticed. And I was silent. I made a game of it for awhile, coming up behind other members of the Guild and spooking them whenever I got the chance.

But it was like giving water to a dying animal. The Guild was surviving, but only just; it limped on with only a few contracts coming through every month. There were days we all went hungry; Divines, I think each of us even spent our fair share of time in Riften's jail.

But I had a family. Somewhere I belonged. Brynjolf was the father I never knew, Rune was my brother; even Sapphire, that woman with a stare as sharp as the knives she carried, developed a grudging respect for my talents.

I had a home. And even without food, that was enough.