One

Eira

My body grew still as I heard the rusty metal doorknob jiggle. I had less than a second to crawl out of sight before it swung open with a squeak on not so quiet hinges; the shuffle of two sets of feet touched my ears. I crouched lower, slowing my breathing for silence just as my father had taught me.

I found a sliver of light between the pile of baskets I was huddled under. I could spy my father through that sliver of light, looking grim as he stood behind his desk with his arms crossed over his chest. I held my breath, if he caught me I was dead meat. A chill of fear crawled up my spine.

"Olava." My fathers' voice hummed in a deep bass. I couldn't see his mouth through his auburn tinted beard, "It has been many years my old friend."

"Friend. I didn't realize that's how you felt. Considering how we left things last time. I'm touched." It was a woman's voice, my attention turned to her curiously. There was no anger in her voice, but sincerity. From this angle, I couldn't see her face.

I bit my lip. Dodd told me I would see something special if I did this. So far I only felt fear of getting caught; I took a deep breath as my father had taught me. I couldn't let fear get to me. I would not get caught.

The woman wore a long blue dress and a hood that covered salt and pepper hair longer than the ends of the covering. A steel sword adorned each of her hips; her leather clad hands gripped them now, but not tightly. Her stance was loose, and she appeared to be docile. All of my assessments went without my own notice, my fathers teachings coming more naturally to me every day.

Dodd had said there was a visitor in the Guild that could tell the future. The future. I wasn't exactly sure what that meant, for me especially. I wanted to hear about my fathers future. I did know there were many things happening that I couldn't understand, but I knew that something bad was coming. He couldn't hide everything from me.

My father chuckled, bringing me back to attention. "I was hoping you could do the courtesy of—"

"A reading?" Olava interrupted, turning away from him. "How did I know?" She muttered thoughtfully.

"There is much at stake. I fear war is upon us sooner than we think. And not just the Imperials, but the entire city and all of us with it." His tone was full of disgust. My fathers words sent a chill down my back, at the same time my hiding spot suddenly felt stuffy. A war?

"And you fear for your daughter?" Olava's words froze my skin to ice. I couldn't move from my crouched position if I had wanted to.

"With my whole being." He said quietly.

"How old is she now?" Olava asked briskly.

"Almost ten summers." My father answered, akin to silence.

There was a moment of pause; it was a quiet that I knew for certain meant they had suddenly become keen enough to hear my breathing. I held it; a bead of sweat dripped down my neck and I could feel myself getting light headed.

"Having a reading done is dangerous for an adult... let alone a child.'' Olava began uncertainly.

"I'm aware of the dangers..." My father answered calmly, too calmly. I was suddenly certain for a moment that he did know I was here. He was going to pull me out of this basket and hand me over to this woman—

"... which is why I am only asking you to read me. Perhaps I will receive some clues at the very least. Something I can go on. I have no idea what to do Olava, and that terrifies me."

I exhaled silently, feeling the relief wash over me. I don't know why I was still afraid he would turn me away. The others told me he wasn't truly my father, but to me he was even if our blood was not. Their whispers tickled my ears; I rubbed them, feeling the ends of my ears consciously. They weren't as long as an elf's ears, nor as short as a human's. The whispers touched my ears again, sending a familiar kind of ache in my chest.

Half-breed.

"As long as you understand the risks Alaric. The younger you are, the more dangerous a reading can be." She paused, shaking her head in warning. "The more likely you are to alter a decision based on what you've heard."

"I have not heard that name in years." My father breathed. I could see him smiling under his cowl, only I knew Pa's real name. I narrowed my eyes suddenly at this woman. Could she know who my mother is? My mind started racing, how could I talk to this woman before she left. How could I sneak behind them and catch her alone?

"Yes. I'm ready." My father's voice was sure, pulling me from my own thoughts.

The room was silent but I noticed that the candles started to go out one by one, leaving us all in complete darkness. A slight breeze seemed to enter the room, whirling and whirling until nothing could be heard over the scream of it. Then all at once silence again and I felt myself falling. I was falling down down down into the darkness. I hit the ground, yet it didn't hurt. I squinted my eyes against the sun, finding myself in a meadow full of blooming colorful flowers. The wind tickled my ears and my hair flew around me as I whirled around and around, where was I?

I recognized this place, yet I had no idea where it could possibly be from. I stopped and looked at the meadow. It stretched on for miles and miles. I turned and almost ran into Olava.

"You." She muttered, putting her hand down on my shoulder firmly. All at once the meadow disappeared and I could see only blue light around us. Her eyes turned milky white and I watched the color leave her hair, draining slowly of any color. I opened my mouth to scream but no sound came.

"Daughter of power, mother of crime;

A connection so strong as ancient as time,

A Child of Shadow; speaker of sin,

Desperate for answers that never begin.

He will break his own bones to find his lost twin,

In exchange for the blood spilled of their kin.

There is a chance that you'll catch a glimpse

And change the things that are amiss;

But beware the hand of a Prince that spites you

May not be the hand that bites you."

I shrugged off her arm and stumbled away from her, backwards with a cry of fear as her head changed into the bloody image of my father. The twisted face twisted harder, until it was another, a face I knew well, she was dead. It twisted back into Olava the Knowing and she rocked back on her heels. I could hear somebody screaming in terror, I realized after a moment it was me.

XXX

I woke up with a blood curdling scream that tore my entire body from sleep by force or willpower.

"Eira!" My name through their lips didn't make me feel better as multiple faces peaked at me from the other side of my 'privacy' screen. The others that had shaken me awake looked down at me with pity that made my blood suddenly turn hot.

"I'm fine." I waved them off, still trying to catch my breath from the intensity of the nightmare. Once I was alone again I held my temples gently and tried to breathe deeply.

I hadn't had that dream in years. A memory I had tried to bury long ago, right in my lap like a slap in the face. I looked around the cistern, my guildmates had given me the privacy I wanted thank the gods. I stood slowly, pulling on my gear and pulling my dark hair back into a ponytail at the nape of my neck. I tucked it into my tunic and belted my shortsword on my left hip, my dagger in the right.

I made sure my satchels were in place before heading to Brynjolf's desk. He was there now, squinting at some paperwork I was probably going to end up filling out for him anyway.

"Bryn." I greeted as I came closer.

"Gave me quite the start this morning, Eira." He looked up at me through his lashes and stood up straight. "You haven't had a nightmare like that in here in… well years."

"I know." I hear myself say.

"Anything you want to talk about?" He asked, upon seeing my expression he threw his arms up in defense. "Or not."

I snorted, and shook my head. "It's nothing really, just dreams from when I lived with my father in the Imperial City."

"Ah," Brynjolf said in understanding, whether he really did or not I had no idea. "Well, since I have your attention, I have to tell ya that Maven wanted to talk to you."

A chill ran down my spine. "What about now?" I hissed, then tried to make my face softer for Brynjolf's sake.

"I'm not sure, you'll have to ask her yourself." He said. "It didn't seem urgent at the time."

"Well that's good, because I'm not seeing her today." I grunted, "I'll be in the Flaggon, I need a days rest after all this traveling I've been doing. Have you been keeping everyone on high alert?"

"Of course. Every member has been warned and is keeping their eyes open for anything suspicious." He told me quietly. "We will find out who has been doing this."

"I found nothing when I was in Markarth. The same deal as the rest of the bodies. Although within Markarth it really could be the Forsworn instead of whoever is doing the other killings. I'm still going to investigate them though." I turned on my heel and headed towards the Flagon, "I'll be back in a bit. I need a drink."

XXX

I took a deep breath as I gazed into my tankard. The hum of the Flagon didn't do anything to relax me like it usually did. My mead felt warm in my belly as I guzzled down the rest of my cup. Vipir came by to refill it but I declined.

I was so exhausted from my trip, all I wanted was more sleep… but now I was worried about what would be waiting for me there. I sat, contemplating, when a blonde Breton plopped down into the seat across from me.

"Vex." I muttered, not in the mood.

"Eira." She replied curtly.

"Can I help you with something?" I asked without emotion. I was not in the mood to bicker, but her presence here was making it much more likely.

"Yes, actually. Funny thing you should ask, since i'm still waiting for that amulet job you were supposed to take care of..." She pulled a piece of paper out of her bag and laid it down on the table in front of me. I had the other copy in my satchel but I picked it up anyways with my eyebrows knit together.

"I've been looking for this job everywhere." I lied, "Can you give me another few days?" I asked, feeling the magic roll off my tongue.

"Don't you even try to use that persuasive sexy shit on me." Vex glared at me, and I ducked my head.

"I'm sorry." I told her. "I haven't gotten to it since I've been hunting these bastards. I honestly forgot about it."

"Look, if you can't do it just say you can't and I'll do it myself." She told me flatly, arms crossed over her chest.

"I thought the client asked for me specifically?" I asked.

"They did… But how will they really know who stole it?" Vex chuckled. "I know you're busy trying to find these murderers, the only reason I gave it to you was because they asked for you. I'll tell them you did it."

"Thank you." I breathed, relieved. I give her back her flier, and she stood.

"Don't mention it." She turned to go but quickly swung back towards me, "Looks like your lover boy is on his way over here—"

"Shut up." I hissed and she laughed before slipping through the small crowd accumulating in the bar.

Just as she had predicted, not five seconds after she disappeared from my view, a High elf in Imperial armor took her seat across from me: Legate Fasendil.

"Eira." He smiled, his warm eyes making me feel better than the shit mood I was in. "How did it go?"

"I found nothing." I told him quietly. "Whoever is doing this knows what they're doing."

"I've found some information I need to share with you." His eyes were searching my face in a way that made me very uneasy. My curiosity was piqued all the same. "We should find somewhere private to talk."

I nodded and stood, he followed me out of the Ratway and into the night. I was silently glad to be out in the fresh air. I felt confined to the cistern like everyone else. We slowly made our way outside the city, into the shadows of the trees just beyond the wall and the gate. My heart was pounding when we finally stopped.

"Alright, I hope it's information on the murders—"

"It's not. It's you." He said.

I felt myself freeze in place. The sun was dipping towards the horizon, but it was still light enough to see his face. My fingers twitched, and I considered activating my cloak for a moment before I was still.

"What do you mean?" I hesitated.

"I found your friend. M'aiq the Liar. He's been taken into custody in Falkreath and is being brought back to Riften for execution."

Silence stretched between us. There was obviously more he had to say.

"While I was researching him... " Fasendil looked up at me, I made sure my eyes were empty. "I also came across information on the old Guild Master, right before the Great War. Apparently this M'aiq the Liar had been previously known as Kharjo the Nimble. He was the right hand man to the Guildmaster of the Imperial City, the Gray Fox. They still don't know who he was."

"Fasendil—"

"I learned that the Guild Master had apparently had a half-breed little girl that he had smuggled out of the city when the war began. Nobody was certain she was even his, but he took care of her like she was. Nobody knew what happened to her, or him, for that matter."

Fasendil was right next to me now. I looked up at him uncertainly. "And what do you plan on doing with this information?" I ask.

He was slow as he reached his fingers up and brushed my hair behind my whole ear, revealing the metal hoops that lined the cartilage there, almost all the way around. I winced, knowing I probably could not deny this fact. My piercings had been the idea of a kind blacksmith that had had pity on me during our journey from the Imperial city.

"First, I have to prove I'm right." He said, smiling down at her. "Don't tell me you're not part elf Eira I can see it in your beautiful face."

I took a step back, unwavered by his words.

"What's wrong?"

"You really think that? Even knowing that now?" I asked, uncertainly. When I was a child, people treated me with disgust for being myself. I felt my throat constricting as fear of what the guild would think clouded my brain.

"You're beautiful Eira, no matter who your parents were." He stepped closer and I felt his fingers on my chin. I didn't resist as he tilted my head to kiss me softly on the lips. I melted into the embrace, hating myself for wishing I could have this. Really have this. Not just dream about it.

This was a weakness, and that was something I could no longer afford.

Fasendil pulled away, cupping my face in his hands. "I know how it feels to lose someone close to you, I can only imagine how you felt." He whispered to me.

"Who did you lose?" I asked looking deeply into his golden eyes. Now that, that was beautiful.

He looked down at me, him the uncertain one now. "My sister." He whispered softly.

"I'm sorry." I murmured.

"It's alright." He responded.

We both knew it wasn't.

XXX