Thanks for reading/following/favoring/review :) made me day!
Also made it hard to write my history essay.
Got just a wee bit excited.
Also, updates may be a bit scraggly from here on out. I wanted to get this one out before I go on holiday, which really shouldn't be described as a holiday. More like a "we're going sit around in our parent's houses for the summer." Yay ~ I'll do my best to update though .
XI
[It Tolls for Thee]
"Every man has secret sorrows which the world knows not;
and often we call a man cold when he is only sad."
-Henry Wadsworth Longfellow-
She was scowling at him; an expression that was on the verge of pure hatred. It was to be expected, Brynjolf had only hoped that she wouldn't catch on as quickly as she did. Now she stood before him, hair messy and her face streaked with tears. The dog had long since abandoned his bone, and was standing faithfully by Lucina's side. In retrospect, now of all nights, was probably not the best choice. But Karliah had all but pushed him out the door, desperate for an answer. Desperate to get back onto Mercer's trail.
It would have been fine, if he hadn't mentioned it of course.
She wasn't speaking now. She'd barely spoken two words since he mentioned it. Lucina turned on her heel abruptly. "My answer is no." He barely caught it over the growls of her guard dog. He watched for a moment, wondering what to do. Karliah had been rather insistent that Lucina join them. No-one else, she had said rather firmly, when he asked her. But he knew it would be difficult. Lucina hadn't exactly adjusted well to the guild, not to mention she'd seemed rather on edge recently. Especially since the incident with that woman. He sighed again, and ran a hand briefly through his hair.
He chased after her now, not before taking another swig of the bottle. Brynjolf almost laughed at himself. Afraid? Of a tiny Imperial woman? Certainly not. Catching up to her quickly, he grabbed her arm and spun her back around towards him. He opened his mouth to speak, but was stunned by the sudden pain on his forearm. Had she... Bitten him? She glared at him and pulled her arm free of his grasp.
"Come on lass," he called. "At least consider it!"
"No," came the short reply, but she stopped a small way away from him. Her shoulders were trembling slightly. Approaching her slowly, he gently placed a hand on her shoulder. Placing her own over his, she pushed him off, gently this time. "Did Karliah tell you to... Use me, like that?" Her voice was barely above a whisper again, and he strained to hear her.
"Not in so many words."
She stiffened slightly. "So, you just decided you'd... You'd..."
"Lass-"
"I should probably hate you right now." She was shaking again. "But I don't, and it makes me feel sick." She finally looked up at him again, hazel eyes brimming with tears. "I won't consider it. Not after what you've both done. I'm sure you can find someone more willing."
Brynjolf grimaced. "But Karliah-"
"She shouldn't have put you up to this," she said shortly. She sounded bitter, betrayed. "I don't think I'll be coming back to the guild, either. I came to Skyrim for a reason. Not to get caught up in your petty little squabbles over riches." She turned away from him slightly, and looked over her shoulder as she spoke. "To be honest, I'm a little shocked that you just decided to go along with it... Or did you conspire together?"
He saw red. Was that how she saw it? He went to grab her, shake reason into her. Anything. But she had long since vanished. Even the dog was nowhere to be seen. He frowned in the silence, surely he would have heard, or even seen her left. His shoulders slumped. "I guess I'd better go tell Karliah the wonderful news."
[x x x]
"You didn't have to swoop in and save me," she murmured against Meeko's head. She was cuddling the dog closely. Astrid just smiled.
"You looked like you were having a little trouble getting rid of him." She was perched on a table opposite her, watching as she clutched to the dog's grey furs. Her eyes were red and distant. She hadn't seen the whole episode of course, but heard enough. "Trouble in paradise, hm?"
Lucina sighed. "Just a little bit. He used me... I don't want to go back there."
"What? To the guild?"
She nodded sadly. "I don't really know what to do now, though."
"My offer still stands." Astrid watched the girl's face carefully. A myriad of expressions flitted across her face, before she finally settled on doubt.
"Won't I just be joining another group then? Doesn't make sense to escape one just to join another within minutes." She fiddled with her hair slightly. "But I suppose I have no where else to be... I'll just need to let my sister know I'm going away for a while." Meeko whined slightly. "And I'll need to give you back, I guess." At her sad expression the dog nuzzled her hand. "Though I suppose you could stay with me for a while... I'm sure they're busy... Doing whatever married couples do when they're... Married."
"So you'll come with me, then?" Lucina nodded. "I'll just leave a note at their door or something." Meeko barked. "Don't worry I'm not leaving you behind."
It hadn't taken them long to reach their sanctuary. Astrid led her inside quickly, before stopping her before the stairs.
"I don't know what you know of the Dark Brotherhood, but things work... Differently, here. I am in charge of this Sanctuary. My-"
"I don't really care, so that's fine with me."
Astrid stared at her for a while, briefly stunned by her outburst before nodding. "Head down that way, introduce yourself to the rest of the group."
[x x x]
"You should probably watch where you're going." Lucina jumped at the sudden voice, not realising that she had almost trampled over someone in her desperation. She had met quite a few people already. Feeling overwhelmed she had asked for directions to where the beds were. Even Meeko seemed tired, but he had found company- and food- with Nazir.
"Sorry, I-I didn't see you there," she said awkwardly. The Dunmer woman smiled and gestured to the seat next to her.
"You must be the new member of our little family. Astrid's mentioned you a few times before."
Lucina nodded, and rubbed her hands anxiously together. She felt as though the other woman was just waiting for her to say something. So, she blurted out the first thing that came to mind. "What can you tell me about yourself?"
The woman laughed. "What a curious question!" Lucina blushed slightly. "Well, my name is Gabriella for one, nice to meet you. I enjoy moonlit nights, taking long walks on the beach, knitting and unicorns. In fact, one time I took a seaside stroll, on a moonlit night, and discovered a unicorn... which I proceeded to stab in the throat with a crochet needle." She reclined slightly. "I'm a woman of refined, yet simple tastes."
Lucina swallowed, the people here almost seemed to get crazier the further she went in to the sanctuary. "Lucina, I've never seen a unicorn before," she started while attempting to control the wavering of her voice. "For some reason I imagine you would tame the unicorn and train it to project crochet needles at your enemies."
Gabriella almost had to strain to hear the last words, and found herself chuckling at the girl's admission. "I think you're going to fit in just fine," she said smiling. "Now I believe you were looking for the beds, hm?" Standing up she offered her a hand, which she took gratefully. "We can talk some more in the morning." She led her there before leaving promptly, but not without seeing the slender girl fall into a spare bed in the corner. Astrid was right about one thing, she thought as she left.
The next morning she was awoken by someone poking her cheek softly. She opened one eye while trying to kick her mind into gear. Where did I leave that dagger? The face of a girl appeared in front of her, her blue eyes wide with curiosity. Her brown hair was tucked back up into a hood, and she proceeded to poke Lucina in the cheek.
"I think she's dead," the girl said.
"Idiot, why would she be dead?" A male voice, from behind the other girl.
"Most people get annoyed when I poke their cheeks."
"I am annoyed," she finally sat up, her loose shirt crumpled around her frame. The girl cocked her head to the side, before shrugging.
"I'm hungry," she said as she wandered off, and the man behind her finally came into view.
"Sorry about that," he apologized with a smile. "My sister can be a bit of a handful. Its not often we see new people, so she gets a little bit excited when there are." He held out his hand to her, and she took it. "Dax," he said proudly. "Not my real name, don't actually know what that is."
"Lucina," she said, slightly concerned at the way he was still shaking her hand. He looked down at her, as though he were expecting something more. When she didn't say anything, he pulled her up and close to him.
"Aren't you going to ask?" He whispered in her ear teasingly. She shook her head.
"Not my place," she replied and pulled away from him, not realising that he had slid her shirt up around her waist. He stepped back and scrutinized her for a moment.
"So that's what he meant by damage," he murmured out loud. Lucina followed his gaze to her side, and quickly covered it up. He snapped up and sent an apologetic glance her way.
"I didn't mean to stare, its just an interesting scar. How'd you get it?" He watched her carefully as she pulled a robe around herself and went to leave the room.
"Not your place to ask." Gods, she must be bitter about that.
"Alright, I won't ask. But maybe we can at least sit and have breakfast together? As an apology, of course." He winked at her, gods knows why, and she stared at him looking rather incredulous.
"Did you just... Never mind."
[x x x]
There was a pair of arms firmly around her waist; soft, content sighs in her ear. For a brief moment she was startled, stunned by the layout of the room. When realisation dawned on her, she remembered it was partially a dream. The rest was a rather dreamy reality. She bit back a giggle, not quite wanting to wake her sleeping husband. Husband. She stared at the rings on the bedside table, another giddy laugh almost escaping her. She turned over gently and snuggled her head into his chest.
The dream she had was still fuzzy, but comforting nonetheless. It was a dream about their old home, and other times. She even seemed to recall something about watching slaughterfish, at one point. Her eyes gazed around the room curiously. Honeyside was a far side larger, warmer and well furnished, compared to their little shack in the Imperial City. She smiled, wondering what had become of that little place. Or the place in Bruma. Perhaps one day they could return there, if they ever managed to open the pass again.
Wiggling her way out of the bed, she wrapped a robe around herself. Soft, she thought, as it warmed her slightly. Another wedding gift. In all honesty she hadn't expected they'd be showered in gifts as they had, but it seemed word had got around faster thanks to Lucina.
Lucina.
Her stomach dropped slightly at the thought of her twin. It puzzled her slightly. Not just the sinking feeling, but the effort she went to to make the day special for her. She sighed, making a note to herself to thank her sister again. Gods knew how shy she was, though she'd never admit it. Moving towards the fire, set upon making breakfast, she saw the piece of crumpled paper that had been shoved unceremoniously under the door. She picked it up, reading over the words several times before what was said finally sunk in.
Ysabel
I'm going away, with a friend, for a few days or so.
Meeko's coming with me, so don't worry about him.
Have a good... Whatever married couples do these
days.
Lucina
"What isn't she telling me?" She said aloud, feeling irritated. Hadvar wrapped his arms around her from behind and softly nuzzled her neck.
"What's wrong?"
She almost smiled just at the sound of his voice. "My sister just ran off somewhere unknown, and she's taking Meeko, and she's not telling me something." She was sure she sounded like a rambling idiot, but he just took her gently by the hand and led her back to the bed. He pushed her down with only a soft squeak of resistance from her.
"She'll be fine, just don't worry about it for now." He sat next to her, pulling her into him. Ysabel sighed softly and melted into his touch. "What do you want to do today?" He asked suddenly as he gently stroked her hair. She shrugged in response and snuggled closer into him. "Talk about it?"
She sighed again and pushed herself off the comfort of his chest and stretched out over the bed. "I didn't really think about it until yesterday," she began as she felt the bed sink beside her. "But there's something... Off. I think she's not telling me something, and maybe I shouldn't be worried about it. And maybe I'm just being petulant, but its kinda sad to think that after all this time, she's been keeping things from me. When she was leaving for Skyrim she hadn't even planned to tell me, just a letter and a sack of coin to keep me going." She rolled over and faced him, watching his eyes soften slightly. "She's never been good at... Expressing herself. I just... I don't know."
Hadvar pulled her closer to him and pressed his lips into her hair. "I will be honest, I'm not really sure what to say. But she is your sister, and she cares deeply for you. I think she'll let you know in time, maybe she's just figuring things out on her own for now." His words gave her comfort, for now. And for now, she could at least let herself enjoy the sensations with being married. "Let's go back to bed for a little while longer," he murmured, breaking her thoughts. Nodding eagerly she followed him back under the covers.
When she awoke, he was no longer in the bed. She sat up, rubbing her eyes sleepily, and was startled when she saw him come in from the balcony door. He walked over to her side and gently lifted her out of the bed. "I was about to come wake you," he said, looking rather proud of himself.
"I got some breakfast together on the balcony, its quite a nice day today."She smiled warmly at him.
"Did you get up to cook or something?"
He looked sheepish. "In a way, I guess."
On the table was quite a selection of sweet rolls and fruits, as well as a sweet-smelling drink a lot like the fruit present. Fruit juice, Hadvar had explained. Something some of the farms had been experimenting with. When they were done, Ysabel sat back with a contented sigh. Just a few days ago she was here with her sister; and the breakfast had reminded her of when they used to go out.
"Thank you for breakfast," she said with a small smile. "It reminds me of when Lucina and I used to go out on our little picnics on the Waterfront. There were even a few times when we'd manage to get some sweets like this," her smile grew when he took her hand.
"I'm glad it made you happy," he smiled as he dipped his head and gently brushed his lips over her palm. She blushed at the gesture, hiding her face slightly from him. As he let go of her hand, she looked up, suddenly worried. When he grinned at her, she frowned, now very much confused. Leaning down by her ear, he whispered.
"Its a nice day."
She opened her mouth to retort, wishing to state that she could see the weather quite clearly, when he scooped her up effortlessly. "Like I said," he said between her disgruntled pleas, "it's a nice day." He stepped up onto a chair next to the railing. In one smooth movement, he stepped up onto the railing and jumped into the water. "For a swim!" She heard him shout right before they hit the water. As they resurfaced she heard several people shouting, and she looked over them and waved joyfully, hoping they'd at least get the idea that she wasn't in trouble. Bubbles filled her vision as Hadvar cheekily pulled her under again and planted a kiss on her nose. "Maybe we should go back to bed... Just a little while longer."
[x x x]
Lucina was glad to have brought her horse with her. She was sturdy, and quick on her feet- at least compared to the vast majority of the horses around Skyrim. She pondered whether it was something to do with their breed, she was sure the horses weren't this slow back in Cyrodiil. "Hm, maybe I was imagining it," she murmured as she petted the horse's neck. Meeko trotted along happily beside her, occasionally straying from her to momentarily chase a butterfly. They had arrived at Ivarsted surprisingly quickly, but then again, perhaps she was imagining things again. "I seem to be doing that a lot lately." Meeko barked in response, before charging off to sniff a guard. Lucina watched as the guard laughed, and petted him softly on the head.
As she jumped down he looked up at her, and gestured to Meeko. "Your dog?"
She shook her head. "Sister's, just looking after him for a time." The guard smiled.
"He's a nice breed, have you been traveling far?"
"Around and about." The guard nodded, then pointed out the inn to her. Smiling, she led the horse away to the river to drink for a moment. Meeko trotted over after, a piece of what appeared to be a sweetroll in his mouth. Lucina giggled when she saw the guard look at his now bitten sweetroll.
It didn't take her long to find Narfi. The beggar was pacing next to the ruins of a house, his face contorted in a strange expression. When she approached him, he jumped back slightly.
"Hello," she said softly. "Are you Narfi?"
"I can't see you, Reyda! I can't find you! Why are you hiding? Hiding, hide, hide, hide! Don't make me sad!"
Lucina stepped back, slightly concerned. "Are you... Okay?" She asked tentatively. His eyes began to water, and his hands gripped his stomach as though he were in pain.
"Reyda was here, then gone," he said pitifully. "Went to gather plants and never came home... Nope nope." His body shook. "Everyone looked and no one could find her, Wilhelm said she'll be back... told Narfi not to worry... Reyda will come back."
"Is there something wrong?" Lucina bit her tongue. Perhaps she'd said that a little too harshly. Yet Narfi continued, his eyes still watering and his body still shaking.
"With father I said goodbye... With mother I said goodbye. Reyda leaves and I can't say goodbye. Makes Narfi very, very sad. Narfi needs Reyda to say goodbye." Lucina walked away slowly, pondering the situation. She'd been sent to kill the man... Not listen to his life story. But she couldn't allow herself.
Not without giving him some peace first, at least.
She went to the inn that the guard had pointed out to her. She stepped in quietly, and approached the man behind the bar, who grinned slightly.
"What can I get ya?"
"Hello, uh... Could you tell me what's wrong with Narfi?" The man raised an eyebrow, and it dawned on her that perhaps her question was a little strange. She opened her mouth to explain, but he began speaking before she could try.
"Narfi? He's harmless, been in a state since his sister Reyda disappeared over a year ago. He just keeps to himself in what's left of his folk's farmhouse across the river."
"You told him she's coming back." Oops, she thought as she watched his face darken slightly. Didn't mean to sound accusatory.
"I just said that to make the poor guy feel better," he shrugged. "I'm pretty sure she's dead. Reyda would gather ingredients from the small island in the river east of here," he explained quickly. "Then one day, she just vanished. I tried to look for her, but she never turned up." Lucina turned away that that, and after nodding her thanks to the man, retrieved Meeko from his place at the door. She walked towards the river, not noticing the guard waving to her.
Meeko barked suddenly and she jumped. The guard was standing next to her, a small smile on his face. "What's up?"
"Narfi's sister," she said quietly. "Perhaps its odd. But I'm going to try to search the river for her remains."
"Narfi?" He raised an eyebrow. "Ah, him. I've heard the story. I'll help you out, if you want." She glanced up at him, unsure of what to make of his rather friendly act. Sighing, she nodded.
"It would be a lot of ground to cover on my own."
"Water."
"Excuse me?"
"Heh, you're gonna be searching in the river. So, water." He grinned, and placed his helmet on the ground. The light caught the softness of his brown hair, his green eyes bright. "Wait here, I'll get some spare clothes so we can swim."
He jogged off back towards the town, speaking to people as he went. Lucina turned to Meeko, who was studying her quizzically. "Right, boy, we're looking for someone in the water, okay?" She paused and looked over her shoulder. The guard was jogging back already, a bundle of clothes in hand, and Narfi tagging along behind him.
"I talked to Narfi, he wanted to come with. I think." He smiled sadly at the man, who was now wearing a new set of clothes. "I gave him something new to wear as well, dunno why I didn't do that earlier." He smiled at her apologetically. "I got some things for you, too." He handed her a soft blue dress, and pointed to some ruins nearby. "They say its haunted, but I reckon you're tough and can handle getting dressed in there." She raised an eyebrow, and opened her mouth to speak, but closed it quickly again. It seemed better to get this over and done with.
They regrouped moments later, Lucina blushing wildly and Meeko watching Narfi with a curious expression on his face. The man was seated on the ground, clutching at the grass and muttering his sister's name over and over. She tugged at the dress- the guard was right, it was too short for her. It would do, though. At least while they were searching the river. She turned to the guard, who was talking to Meeko and Narfi- as far as one could, at least- in realising that she didn't even know his name.
Perhaps he was some sort of psychic. "Caiden," he said with a wide smile. "Nice to meet you!" He chuckled at this.
"Lucina."
"Hm," he replied, looking thoughtful. "I quite like that name." When she smiled at him, he turned away slightly with reddened cheeks. "Shall we get started?"
When she called him, Meeko dashed off into the water, apparently chasing the fish. As they took on different sections of the river, Narfi watched from the shore, his eyes staring longingly at the sky. Eventually Meeko barked, seemingly carrying something in his mouth. He went up to Caiden, and presented him with what he'd found. Lucina watched from a distance as he laughed, and took a mudcrab from the dog's mouth and put it back on the shoreline. "Not what we're looking for, I'm afraid!" She heard him say as he petted Meeko's head before diving into the water again. After a short while he resurfaced and beckoned her over. Diving down together, she grimaced when she saw the skeleton.
After they rose to the surface, she spoke to him again. "Do you think its..."
"I found a necklace," he said sadly. "And there's a pouch with alchemical ingredients, too. Let's go ask Narfi."
He barely registered them as they approached, still staring forlornly at the sky. "I miss Reyda. She was so nice to Narfi, Narfi sad he can't be with Reyda." Caiden looked over at Lucina, before kneeling in front of Narfi.
"I- We... Found Reyda's necklace, Narfi."
His eyes lit up for a second. "Reyda!" He exclaimed. "You saw Reyda? Did you tell her Narfi cries? Did you tell her Narfi never said goodbye like mother and father?"
Caiden looked awkward, and slightly confused. Lucina sat next to him, and pulled Meeko closer to her. "Sorry Narfi, she's dead."
"Oh no!" He clutched the ground again, his whites of his eyes flashing. "Narfi never got to say goodbye! Now Narfi's all alone..." He trembled as though he were about to cry. Finally he looked up at them. "At least Narfi has Reyda's necklace... reminds Narfi of his sister. Thank you for giving this to Narfi."
Caiden moved to walk away, but Lucina stayed where she was. "Narfi," she said quietly after a moment's silence. "Do you want to bury Reyda?"
"Bury... Reyda?"
She nodded, then pointed to his house. "We can make a place for her there, and plant some flowers around it. She can have a resting place, other than the river. Do you want to?"
"Resting place for Reyda," he seemed to ponder. "Narfi... Would like that." Lucina smiled and stood up, Narfi following suit.
"You can head back, and choose a place for her. I'll work on getting her... Ready."
It was late in the afternoon by the time they were finished. Caiden had offered to go get some of the others to help, but she refused. He was slightly confused by this; if she was just doing this out of the kindness of her heart, why didn't she just leave him be after the necklace? Narfi had seemed rather content. He shook his head at the thought. It seemed to make everyone more at peace with the situation than anything else. Still, he couldn't help but wonder if she had ulterior motives. But at that thought, he felt guilt. He could hardly go assuming that everyone had ulterior motives behind everything.
Or maybe they do.
Caiden almost laughed at himself as he shook the persistent thought away again. If anyone could read his thoughts, they'd likely become dizzy. Or maybe they wouldn't, he wasn't too sure. Lucina had finally finished laying the bones down on the make-shift stretcher, and was now stretched out on the shore, her face flushed under the red sky with Meeko faithfully by her side. He had gone and dug the grave earlier, with the help of another guard who just happened to be walking by. It had been quick work, though he was apologetic to Lucina who was now thoroughly soaked to the bone.
"Shall we go do this then? Narfi's waiting." He said and offered a hand to her. An expression of hesitation flitted across her face before she took it. "I also thought after we're done, we could go get changed and have dinner with Narfi at his place. I got some candles." She smiled at that, and nodded. Taking one end of the stretcher each, they made their way over to the grave.
No words were spoken during their little ceremony, and they were glad to have at least the warmth of the settling day. A few people around the settlement stopped to watch for a few moments, but would soon move on again. Lucina and Caiden covered the body quickly, and Narfi watched on as she planted a few flowering plants she had found near the river. She explained to Caiden to water the plants, and he nodded apprehensively.
Part of him hoped she would stay a little while longer in Ivarstead.
He left quickly to gather the food that had been sorted for them, and found his three companions sitting near the fire that Lucina had managed to get going. Narfi was staring at his sister's necklace, one hand resting gently on Meeko's back. Lucina smiled when she saw him approach, and helped him set up the food. Narfi watched them sorrowfully.
"Narfi... Is not alone?" He asked tentatively. Lucina smiled at him.
"No, you're not." She glanced over at Caiden. "I believe your sister is watching over you, Narfi. Along with you mother and father. Just as my parents are watching over my sister and I."
"Did you say goodbye? To father? Mother?"
She shook her head, and mumbled something Caiden barely caught. "I don't know what happened to them."
Caiden smiled weakly, guilty as though he were somehow better than them for having a family who were living out in Rorikstead, who he could visit whenever he got the chance. He sighed, making Lucina look up at him with worry on her face. He shook his head and she smiled, and offered a drink to both of them.
She's quite cute, he thought as he watched her play with Meeko's ears. Strange, but cute.
As they walked away from Narfi's home, who had now fallen asleep, he asked her to stay in Ivarstead, just a little while longer. She shook her head softly. There was an indescribable expression on her face as she glanced back at Narfi's home.
"There's somewhere I need to be," she said softly. The next morning, she had left with just a short farewell. After he made her promise she would visit again, he left to begin his morning routine, with an added moment for checking on Narfi. When he arrived there, he found him still sleeping peacefully where they had left him, so he left to check back later. When he still hadn't woken, he grew concerned and shook him.
Later that night, he went out and gathered flowers from alongside the river, making a note to himself to water them the next day.
[x x x]
Title comes from John Donne's poem, 'No Man Is An Island'. Spooky. The rest of the titles, which I updated on a whim today, are nonsense! But fun nonsense none-the-less. Thank you, and I hope you enjoyed reading this :)