Disclaimer: I am not the owner of Morrowind, (Though I do own a disc of the game) or Bethesda
A Cruel Fate by: Sineari
Rubbing her head slightly as she walked up the steps, Kairet muttered about stupid store signs and turned her head to glare back at Bakari as he followed her. The look on his face was a normal one, but she just knew that he was laughing at her. It was a conspiracy, the young dunmer decided, he had plotted this with that stupid sign and the whole released prisoner bit was just a ruse to gain her trust, he had been against her all along! Shaking her head again, the teenaged elf opened the door to her right and waited for her companion to enter before her. Walking in behind him, she was amused to see him gawk and goggle at the different wares of the trade house. Compared to some of the shops that she had seen since 'joining' the Camonna Tong, it was pretty boring. She did have to admit herself though, that for a small town store, it was doing pretty good, probably because it was the only one around for quite a while unless one decided to make the trek to Pelagiad, which was to the north. Shaking her head and smiling slightly, she called him over and told him that he could look later, they had to meet somebody who didn't like to be kept waiting.
Again as they walked up the stairs, the red-eyed elf girl turned her mind to thinking. It was risky bringing him to meet these people, Mesedj wasn't so bad but, Seba on the other hand, she was one of the most dangerous people that Kairet had ever met, monster or not. Sighing slightly, she reminded herself that this stranger was potentially the ticket to her freedom, without his help, her plan would be crushed and she would be beaten badly for ever coming up with it. The walk up to the second, or was it third, floor was much quicker than the one they had taken to the entrance of the building itself. As they reached the top, her new 'friend', if he could be called that, looked around at the wide variety of people. From this, she guessed that either he hadn't seen so many different people before, or he just wasn't as social as she thought. Shaking her head and resisting the urge to smile, as she had just spotted Seba and didn't want to warrant any unwanted attention, the now scowling dunmer motioned to her friend and made her way to the table at which her master sat.
(Change P.O.V.)
Red eyes watched quietly as the young female dark elf slipped quietly past one of the tables and sat down at another that already seated two older dunmer. They greeted her with looks of distaste and harsh sounding words, they did not seem happy to see her. However, their manner greatly changed as soon as their eyes landed on the watcher who had followed the white haired girl to the table. The older male's eyes narrowed and he turned to the girl and exchanged words at an angry whisper. The older female on the other hand smiled, a strange one that did not seem to bode well for the watcher, and motioned for him to sit down. He did so and was not surprised when the two whisperers stopped immediately and watched to see what would happen next. Taking a deep breath, the one who was obviously the stranger looked at the younger female dunmer who in turn watched him and waited for him to say something to her superiors. Looking back at the older woman, completely ignoring the man, the longhaired male spoke out, "Greetings, my name is Bakari."
(Change P.O.V.)
"Greetings, my name is Bakari." That is what Kairet heard when her new acquaintance spoke out. She let out a breath that she had been holding in. For a moment, when he looked at her, she had feared that he would say something to her and would anger Seba or cause Mesedj to do something stupid. Not that Mesedj didn't already do dumb things but, he might have tried to attack or something like that. Watching carefully as Seba's smile widened fractionally and she returned the greeting, Kairet mentally worried that perhaps the older woman had recognized the boy or was coming up with some sort of twisted plan that included him in it. Forcing her face to assume a much-practiced look of neutrality, the white haired teen put her hands on the table and said, "He says he's looking for a man in Balmora, and I thought perhaps we could bring him with us when we return and help find his way around the city so he doesn't get lost so easily." Pausing a moment to take in the heated glare of Mesedj, the quirked eyebrow of Seba, and the curious look that Bakari was giving her, Kairet then continued, "He tells me that he came recently from the capitol, I assumed that in return for our help he might be able to give us a bit of news that is quite rare in our province." Closing her mouth she looked once around the table before settling her eyes on her temporary master, Seba looked thoughtful, with luck this meant that she would consider the idea and maybe even accept it. She told herself that it was because she would finally have a chance at freedom but, the annoying voice in her head that had been silent since after she met him spoke up again telling her that it was because as a person she was quite alone and wanted a friend, she chose to believe the latter one.
(Neutral P.O.V.)
The four dunmer sat for a while before the eldest one, a female named Seba, spoke up, "This idea is most interesting, I believe that we just might be able to help you, Bakari." The youngest male smiled, he had been hoping to find someone who would be able to help him, coming to a new place wasn't very easy and he didn't that the local people would be quite as friendly as the ones here, it was a pleasant surprise. The one elf though, didn't seem too happy with him, and Bakari was curious as to why. The elf himself, an older male, merely held his scowl for a few more moments before turning to the older female and said, "Seba, since our young 'friend' here," The word was clearly said with distaste, "Has the knowledge that we came here to seek, why do we not leave now?" So we can get rid of him as soon as possible. Those words were unsaid but both he and the two women dunmer beside him knew what he had been about to say. The younger one scowled and resisted the urge to spit out some sort of nasty saying, while the older one looked calmly at him and said, "Soon perhaps Mesedj but first, we must introduce ourselves to our new young 'friend'." For the last part she said it in a mocking tone of voice, mimicking the words he had used earlier. She had much more patience than her associates and used it far better than they did, or so she thought. Placing a fake smile on her face, the dunmer woman said in a friendly voice, "Well Bakari, my name is Seba and the scowling man you see to my right is called Mesedj. I assume that you already know Kairet, so why don't we get going now? My friends and I were only planning on staying for a short while anyways but if you would like to purchase some equipment we could wait a while." Frowning in thought, the plainly dressed male dunmer paused a moment or two before saying slowly, "If it doesn't bother you, your friends and yourself could go ahead while I purchase some equipment from the man down stairs, I promise to be quick and catch up to you as soon as possible but, it seems that having you wait around for me isn't very polite." He gave a small smile as if to prove his statement true and fell quiet. Putting a thoughtful look on her face, the one called Seba turned and looked at her two 'friends'. Mesedj didn't seem too happy about bringing the brat with them but didn't seem to have a problem with this plan. Kairet's face was, as usual when doing business, completely neutral, she noticed Seba watching her questioningly and nodded slightly. Smiling, the older woman turned to the young man facing her and said, "Then that is what we shall do serjo, we'll be waiting for you by the Silt Strider north east of here." Standing quietly and motioning for the others to do the same, Seba nodded once to the white haired male and walked swiftly towards the stairs. Mesedj followed soon after, leaving a glare at the young one Bakari and Kairet went with him, leaving only a quick glance before exiting the room.
Tapping her foot slightly, Kairet glanced towards the small town again. Bakari was taking a bit longer than expected and the three members of the Camonna Tong were getting restless. Mesedj glared pointedly at the former thief and thought of starting an argument, however when Seba sent him one of her 'looks' he quieted down and turned to fussing with the bags they had brought. When Seba got angry, usually someone around her would feel it, and one could only hope that it wasn't them. Growling slightly, Seba turned and walked quickly over to the youngest of the three. As she approached, Kairet turned and cautiously stepped backwards, the look on her master's face was one that indicated that if something didn't happen soon, there'd be one heck of a price to pay. Averting her gaze nervously, the teenaged dunmer stood and waited for the verbal torrent she was sure to receive. After a few moments of silence, she looked up and was shocked to see a look of surprise on the leader's face. Mesedj seemed equally as surprised and then they both turned to see what on earth the red haired Camonna Tong leader was looking at. They turned, and were struck again with shock and confusion. It was Bakari…. And if it wasn't for his long, almost feminine hair, they wouldn't be able to recognize him. He now was outfitted in various pieces of armor, had different clothes on, AND he also had a fairly good quality sword strapped to his side. Almost simultaneously the three shook their heads and turned to watch as he climbed the steps to approach them. Smiling nervously, he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly and said, "I didn't over do it, did I? I thought that maybe since I'm probably going to be traveling a lot I should get the proper equipment…" He trailed of as he noticed that none of them were speaking. A minute or so past till one of the, Kairet actually, spoke up. "How is it that your were able to buy all that? The imperial's aren't exactly known for their generosity, much less generosity to prisoners." Blinking in surprise at the question, Mesedj, Seba and Bakari looked at her before the long haired male gave a nervous laugh and replied hesitantly, "Well actually before I left the office I noticed that a bunch of stuff was there and I um, took it and sold it at the trade house after you guys left… I managed to get some stuff with that and what I was given but the rest of the money was from stuff I found in that cave over there." He turned and pointed a bit behind them and to the left, "I saw it on my way here and went in to take a look… I thought that the people inside were practicers of evil magic and I well, killed them… Turns out they were only smugglers, pretty dumb huh?" Laughing slightly again at the last part, he raised his hand to sheepishly rub the back of his head again as Seba's, Mesedj's and Kairet's jaws dropped and they simultaneously swore. The same thought was on their minds. Great, now we have to deal with a Witchhunter!
Sineari: Sorry about another, much longer this time, wait. I got so caught up in other things like school and other issues that I forgot to post the third chapter of my story. This time, I actually will try to get up the fourth chapter soon after this one and hopefully have a little more progress in it than this.