3 months later…
Sheets of rain sleeted against the small windows of Honeyside in the gloomy night, and jagged streaks of lightning severed the sky as rumbling intervals of thunder shook the rickety docks. Maevyn jolted awake as the walls of the small cottage shivered in the raging storm and sat up to look out the window. Only rivers of inky rain could be seen as they streaked down the pane in the dark. She shuddered and lay back down on her pillow, pulling the thick quilt around her as she tried to block out the sounds of the storm.
A warm arm wrapped around her waist, and Brynjolf mumbled incomprehensively as he tossed in his sleep. She turned and buried her face in his chest as more thunder shook the house. She hated thunderstorms; they were always unpredictable, dangerous, something you couldn't control. Maevyn could never sleep when there was a storm, but fortunately, Brynjolf solved the problem for her.
The past three months had been smooth and uneventful, besides the completion of sponsors her and Brynjolf had gathered for the guild, and the fact that their relationship was no longer in the shadows. A large streak of lightning shattered the sky and illuminated the inside of the cottage, allowing Maevyn to briefly glimpse the peaceful face of her bed partner. The orange scruff on his jaw grazed her forehead as he slightly shifted with the rumbling of the thunder, both causing her to shiver.
Sighing at her inability to sleep, Maevyn wormed her way out from under his warm arms and crept over to the wardrobe, where she slipped into a thin robe. The chilled wooden planks were icy against her bare feet in the Evening Star winter, and she rushed across the floor to pull on her fur-lined boots. Creeping down the ladder into the cellar, Maevyn smiled as the heady scent of dried herbs and bottled mixtures entered her nose. After slightly fumbling around for a candle, she smiled larger at the sight of her alchemy table, which had always brought solace to her in any situation. The roaring thunder was considerably less noticeable down there, she gladly noted, and began pulling various powders and flasks off of the numerous shelves that lined the basement.
The door on the opposite wall slightly creaked open, and Iona stepped out, also clothed in a robe. "Maevyn," she said, her voice was brisk, as if she had been awake the entire night.
Maevyn turned and smiled at her housecarl. Their relationship had strengthened in the past weeks, though the nord warrior still seemed like an ice block, if now only a partially defrosted ice block now. "Did I wake you, Iona?" she asked as she lit the miniature woodstove on the table, worried that she had disturbed the housecarl's slumber.
Iona's eyes slightly narrowed, "No. Why are you awake?" she asked as she crossed her arms and leaned against the doorframe, "It's 2:00 in the morning, you know,"
Maevyn laughed sheepishly, embarrassed to reveal the truth, "I don't care for storms too much…" she trailed off as she began measuring void salts into an indentation on the alchemy table.
Iona nodded and sat down in the chair next to one of the shelves, watching Maevyn as she created various tinctures. After awhile, Iona spoke, "Why do you enjoy that so much?" she asked, gesturing to the pile of chopped mountain flowers Maevyn was pouring into the table and the flasks of liquid that were simmering over the heat.
Maevyn stopped and looked at the nord, contemplating of how she should answer, "…I'm not really sure why. I suppose it might be how precise everything has to be, or just the fact that I'm creating something entirely new out of a combination of unlikely ingredients." She looked down at the bench and ran her finger along the small divots that were carved into the table, thinking of other reasons. "It relaxes me. And reminds me of home, when my mother taught me how to do it."
The blond eyebrows of the nord knit together as she stared intently at the table. She pointed to the carved pattern on the face of the lab, "why must that be there, in that particular shape?"
Maevyn stared at the tabletop, trying to recall the information she had gathered from novice books or from what her mother had told her, but nothing came to mind, "You know," she said, "I'm not sure. But I use the smaller ones on the outside for organizing my separate ingredients, while the larger one in the middle is where I combine everything. I'm not sure if they're technically used for that though…" she admitted with a slight frown. "I'll have to look into that…"
As the early morning wore on, Iona retired back to her room after her curiosity of alchemy was sated, and Maevyn was left alone with her thoughts, which frequently drifted between Brynjolf and what had happened in her new life so far…
The three months that had passed had brought a lot of changes to Maevyn's life. First was the notoriety her and Brynjolf had brought back to the guild; many, if not all of the empty stalls in the Flagon were taken up by alchemists, blacksmiths, fletchers, and enchanters. The vault was brimming with coin they had brought in, Brynjolf had proudly told her. Mercer was slightly nicer to her, now that she had a big part in fixing the guild, yet he still treated her like a child. The relationship she had with Brynjolf was no longer a secret, but they still didn't go around advertising it. It was only within the confines of Honeyside that they cherished intimate moments together. As for the nights, Brynjolf often stayed in the cottage, but still periodically slept in the Cistern when Mercer was absorbed with work. The issue of retrieving the Horn of Jurgen Windcaller frequently pestered Maevyn, but she knew she wasn't ready to face that side of her life yet. The entire Dragonborn business didn't appeal to Maevyn at all; she preferred to stalk the shadows with Brynjolf for the time being. Overall though, she was content with her life at the moment, and couldn't ask for anything better.
A pearly light began to filter through the ladder door, signaling that morning was approaching. A soft series of thuds emanated through the above floorboards, which told Maevyn that Brynjolf was now awake, most likely searching for breakfast. Smiling to herself, she finished corking the small red bottle in her hands, and climbed up the ladder to greet him.
He was at the table with a bowl of fruit in front of him, his back to her as he munched on an apple. A sly smile spread across her face as she silently crept through the cellar door and across the room. Sneaking up behind his chair, Maevyn held out her palm and let a small ripple of electricity conjure in her hand, which she placed on Brynjolf's spine lightly. She laughed in delight as he yelped, and watched him quiver in unison with the blue strand of electricity that shimmied through his body. He spun around as he heard the giggle, his eyes wide and wild after he received the shock. He too smiled after he realized he was in no danger and laughed as he pulled Maevyn into his lap.
Joining his laughter, Maevyn leaned in to kiss him, but was only met with surprise when Brynjolf pointedly jabbed the various pressure points throughout her body, making her flinch and laugh as she tried to escape.
With flight as her only available defense, Maevyn escaped from Brynjolf's embrace and ran to the other side of the room, hoping to retreat from his playful wrath. A conniving grin sitting upon his lips, he followed her, pushing her into a corner where he then scooped her up from underneath and planted a series of rough and endearing kisses across her lips and neck. Laughing between breaths, Maevyn eagerly returned the gestures, clinging to his neck as he walked back to the kitchen table.
"Well, it seems the wolf has caught the fleeting swan," Brynjolf mumbled roughly as his lips brushed against Maevyn's.
She laughed and planted one last kiss before leaving his lap to retrieve her own breakfast, which consisted of a small bowl of blueberries and toast. She sat across from him, smiling largely before beginning her breakfast. Moments of silence passed before she spoke,
"Is there anything special you have in mind? Any jobs or contracts you need?" she asked him in between bites of fruit.
Brynjolf rested is elbow on his knee as he thought, "I don't think so, lass. Although Delvin did mention something about an heirloom that needs to be stolen…"
Maevyn smiled and gathered up her empty dishes, as well as his, "Alright, we know what to do today,"
As the two entered the Cistern through the cemetery, Mercer waved them over to his desk with a frantic flick of his wrist and a scowl. As they walked over, they could see numerous scraps of paper were scattered across the table in a disheveled pile.
"It's been a long time you two, but I finally know who Gajul-Lei is," Mercer said with a smug grin as they stepped up to the desk.
Maevyn's eyes lit up at the prospect of continuing her and Brynjolf's important task for the guild. It seemed like forever since Honningbrew.
Brynjolf was just excited as Maevyn, "Excellent!" he said enthusiastically, "what's the plan, Mercer?" he asked as he leaned against the desk.
The lopsided grin was replaced by Mercer's usual sour frown as he began, "Gajul-Lei is actually Gulum-Ei, you remember him, don't you?" he asked as he addressed Brynjolf, "He's still in Solitude with the East Empire Company, that slimy bastard…"
The name was alien to Maevyn, and she was curious as to how this man had any previous involvement with the guild and why he was interfering now, "Who is Gulum-Ei?" she asked as she slightly cocked her head.
Mercer turned and scowled at her, "Brynjolf can explain it to you," he then turned to her partner again, "Gulum-Ei should have enough information to reveal who this symbol belongs to," he said as he pointed to the marking from both Goldenglow and Honningbrew that was sketched on a fragment of parchment and tacked to the wall.
Don't harm him," Mercer growled, "he may still prove to be invaluable to us, is that understood?"
Maevyn nodded her head as Brynjolf voiced a firm "yes."
"Good. I expect you two to be in Solitude by tomorrow morning," he finished with a smug grin before turning on his heel and exiting the cistern.
Maevyn turned to Brynjolf, waiting for information on the man, but was instead led to a table in a shrouded corner. There, the two sat with a bottle of mead to share.
"Gulum-Ei is an Argonian who works for the East Empire Company," Brynjolf said after he drank from his bottle, "He used to be a part of the guild, smuggling in valuable items from shipment, where he would get part of the profit."
Maevyn nodded and let him continue, "Over the course of a few months, the lizard gradually stopped sending items in, which put a fairly good dent in our income. We never confronted him over it, but now is the time."
"I see," Meavyn said, "what if he doesn't know who the symbol belongs to? What if her or she gave Gulum-Ei a fake name?"
The nord stared into the neck of his bottle as he spoke, "Gulum-Ei will know. That argonian has his scaly fingers in everyone's pies."
Maevyn slowly bobbed her head as she thought of the preparations that needed to be made, "Very well," she said, "I suppose we should start to pack now. I'll go tell Iona we're leaving,"
"Alright lass. Let's meet down here before lunch, okay?"
AuthorsNote: I'm baaaaacckkkkk! Hey guys! How's everything doing? Thought I was dead, didn't you? Well I'm not!
First of all, I really need to apologize for not updating in like, months. Sorry... But I have (slightly) good reasons!
1.) I went on like, three vacations and didn't have a lot of time
2.) I didn't feel very motivated to write... hehe...
3.) My computer went for bust for awhile
I think a special apology is in store for Barenziah the Luminous...
Dear Barenziah the Luminous, I know you specifically asked me to not stop and leave you hanging there. But I did. For a while. I really do apologize for that. I hope you haven't forgotten about this story!
I hope none of you have forgotten about this story!
There are somethings I need to clean up, and I'll start doing that little by little. First, I'll start off with the ages of my characters...
Maevyn: 26 years old, joined at age 26
Brynjolf: 36 years old, joined at 14
Vex: 32, joined at 20
Delvin: 52, joined at 29
Mercer: 56, joined at 16
Alright, I know this was a long AN, but I have sooo much on my mind right now! Sorry this chapter is a bit on the short side, and it's a filler, unfortunately. I hope you guys aren't too mad at me for my break.
Enjoy! Comments and suggestions are welcomed here!
PS: I have A LOT of catching up to do on stories to read. Can't wait to read them:)