AN: I'm sorry for the extremely delayed update. I've been having writer's block and I've been busy trying to figure some personal things out. Hopefully this gap hasn't caused me to lose anyone. And I'm hopeful that this break hasn't ruined my writing skill.
In addition, I have been piecing together a new fanfiction. It involved a new OC, Arnbjorn, and Lucien Lachance (not all at once though, yikes). I'm unsure of whether I will actually publish any of it. It's all been in pieces and ideas put down sloppily. If enough are curious enough, I'll try putting out a chapter, but I'm struggling enough to keep up with this fanfic. We'll see.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is property of Bethesda Softworks. I own nothing but Roseleigha. Thank you for allowing my words to have the privilege of your time.
The Seer and Her Thief, Chapter 13
Running is all she had been doing for months. She was out of Solitude, but what now? Her family was dead, her "adoptive family" was now dead to her, and no one was left. She had nowhere to go. She didn't even know where to start.
Living out in the woods was a nightmare. Five years of being in the house of nobility dulled her skills. Though she was a servant, in all means, she was living a very pampered lifestyle. She wasn't used to being out in the wild, and being blind only made it worse. She had to adjust now. Quickly.
After being able to steal a bow and some arrows from a shop in Dragon Bridge, she went on her way further south. She had an idea of where to go: Riften. She remembered going there once with her father once when she was a child, 7 winters old perhaps? The people there were… more her style.
She relaxed and stared into the night sky, thinking about her last trip to Riften.
"Daddy!" she jumped with excitement. "Look at the horsies!"
He chuckled, looking down at his little flower. "I know, sweetie. Do you wanna pet one?"
She gasped and opened her eyes wide. "Pleeaaasee?" she begged.
Her father laughed and whispered something to the man standing by the stables, dropping a few coins in his hand. The man nodded as her father picked her up, putting her on his shoulders.
"Go on," he said. "But be slow. Don't want you to get hurt, alright?"
She kissed her dad on top of his head. "I promise I'll be careful, da."
He smiled, watching his daughter reach out to the horse and softly touching its nose. She rested her chin on top of her father's head and hummed happily.
The two spent time with the horse and then entered Riften.
"Da," the little girl asked, still atop his shoulders. "Why didn't mum and Nirn come?"
He laughed. "Would you rather be with them, lassie?"
She immediately shook her head. "No! I just thought… mum would like the colors here. It's so pretty back home, too. But it's like a whole other world here!"
"It is, indeed," he sighed, thinking back to his youth.
"Da?" she asked. "Do you miss it here?"
He stopped walking and put her to the ground, kneeling beside her and looking her in the eye. "What do you know?" he asked in return.
"N-nothing!" she said in a rush. "Mum just said you two used to live here, and you really liked it. I-I was just curious…"
He sighed again. "Yes, I do. But my life is with my little flowers now. And with your mother. All of that means more than any memories I have here."
His daughter frowned. "I love you, da…"
"I love you too, Rosie."
She chuckled. Ten years later, it makes more sense now. She wondered why her dad snapped when she mentioned his past in Riften, but she believed that she had figured it out now.
"I'll make you proud, da."
Brynjolf thought back to the dream of the blind woman he had from the previous night. She was beautiful: out of her normal brown Thieves Guild outfit and in a sheer mossy-green nightgown that complimented auburn her hair. She practically glowed, and she was smiling. Happy to be with him, he hoped. It was his dream, after all.
Her body was beautiful. All the way from her thin neck, round shoulders, full breasts, thin waist, toned abdomen, wide hips, and strong thighs. It was like she was crafted from his dreams. Well, since he was in a dream, she was technically, but he didn't care right now.
The rising sun illuminated her features as it shone in through the windows. They were resting in the double bed in her manor in Solitude. He remembered how comfortable the bed was when he was recovering in it, and how much more comfortable it would be lying next to a woman like her. No, not just a woman like her, but actually her.
The slam of a fist against a table sent him out of his thoughts. "Are you even listening?" A soft male voice said in a harsh tone.
Brynjolf focused on the Imperial's face, worry washing over him secretly. "Sorry, Rune," he said. "Didn't sleep well last night."
"Dreaming of my sister?" he asked, an angry smile on his face.
Trying to feign innocence, Brynjolf reacted immediately, "What? Hang on, lad, you got the wrong idea. Rosie and I aren't like that."
Rune laughed back at him. "I'm just giving you a hard time." He roughly clapped Brynjolf on the shoulder. "But don't forget, if you hurt her, I won't hesitate to hang you by your ankles above some hungry slaughterfish."
Once Rune was far enough away, Brynjolf let out a laugh. "Poor lad," he whispered to himself. "If anyone is going to get hurt, it's me."
Brynjolf paced around the cistern floor. Roseleigha had gone off to Solitude to question Gulum-Ei about the mysterious buyer involved in Goldenglow and Honningbrew, but she had been gone for more than two weeks now. He wasn't getting nervous for her, but more anxious to find how who it was. Whoever this person was, they were going to pay dearly.
The Nord tried to imagine their motive. Money? No, that couldn't be it. They would need a fortune to buy and fund both properties out from under Maven Black-Briar. Power? But what type of power would someone gain from owning a bee farm and meadery who had a past with the Black-Briars?
No. This person wanted revenge. They were hungry for it. Revenge for what, though? They weren't killers. The Thieves Guild was simply a band of misfit thugs who had landed on their asses in a bout of bad luck, as Delvin put it. A curse, rather.
Brynjolf stopped walking for a moment. Maybe he is right, though. His other thought was that someone was piss-drunk mad at them. Old coot might end up being right.
The sound of the hidden entrance opening shook him from his thoughts. He saw the shadow of the slim woman smoothly but swiftly make its way to Mercer's desk. He moved in closer to listen.
"Karliah…" Mercer whispered. His eyes were wide open in disbelief.
Karliah. The name made his blood boil. This was no mere annoyance to be taken care of anymore. This was now a serious issue regarding the very future of every Thieves Guild member. Brynjolf gritted his teeth.
"This is grave news, indeed," Mercer continued. "She's someone I hoped to never cross paths with again."
"Gulum-Ei also told me she was a murderer," Roseleigha responded.
"Karliah destroyed everything this Guild stood for. She murdered my predecessor in cold blood and betrayed the Guild."
Roseleigha didn't seem to be shocked by all of this, though this was her first time hearing about it clearly. She was extremely dedicated to the Guild; why wasn't she upset by this?
"Karliah and I were like partners," Mercer sighed. "I went with her on every heist. We watched each other's backs. I know her techniques, her skills. If she kills me, there'll be no one left that could possibly catch her."
Roseleigha seemed to whisper something under her breath, but both Mercer and Brynjolf were unable to catch it. "Gulum-Ei told me she was 'Where the end began'," she then spoke confidently.
"There's only one place that could be. The place where she murdered Gallus... A ruin called Snow Veil Sanctum. We have to go out there before she disappears again."
"We?"
"Yes, I'm going with you and together, we are going to kill her."
Brynjolf sat himself against the wall, processing the information he just heard. Mercer and Roseleigha talked a little bit longer while he simply stared into the small pool in the middle of the cistern.
Was Karliah truly back to end the Guild for good? Or did she just want Mercer dead so she could be free? No one else in the Guild knew much about Karliah or her skills. If he was gone, only the gods could pass judgment on her for what she did to Gallus.
"Bryn?" his friend's voice came from above him.
He jumped up and dragged her back to the Ragged Flagon, into his room he shared with Delvin.
"What is Karliah up to?" he asked angrily.
"I can't talk about that," she said.
"Why not?" He was losing his temper. "You told Mercer where she was. Let me come with you."
"Why should I?" She yanked her arm away from his unaware grip, rubbing where his fingers dug into her muscle. "What are you going to do? Kill her?"
"Why shouldn't I? After all she's done? Do you have any idea about how she tore the Guild apart, murdered the last Guild Master, nearly destroyed us?!"
She flinched at his harsh words. He had never seen her like this before. It was as if she was taking every word to her core. Her body shook with a chill.
"Answer me, damnit!" He slammed his fist into the wall next to her.
He was livid. He didn't even know why he was so upset. He had just joined the Guild when Gallus was murdered. Mercer was always the Guild Master to him; he was his teacher and mentor. Gallus didn't really mean anything to him, but the news of his murder made everyone angry and on edge: it always had and it always will.
Every thief in the Guild was sad at the mention of Gallus. Everyone scorned at the name Karliah. No one wanted to mention either of them anymore because it would always bring in a heavy air into the sewers.
Roseleigha looked straight into Brynjolf's eyes. She was cornered now, trapped between his large body and the wall, and she dared not to move. The pearls in her eye sockets were beautiful as always, but they were even more stunning right now. They showed weakness, a fragile side of this cold woman he had seen only once before. It was heartbreaking, but exciting in an odd way too.
He looked down to her lips. They were still a pale pink, but were a bit chapped. Probably from the trip back from Solitude. Despite being chapped, though, they looked soft. So soft.
She sighed and began to speak. "Your anger is unnecessary, Brynjolf. I have to go. Mercer believes he knows where Karliah is. I'm going with him, and you are not coming." He let her brush past him and leave the room. She lingered in the doorway and looked at him with lots of worry in her blank eyes. "I'm going to prepare for the trip. I'm very sorry, Bryn. Please take care of Rune for me."
Before he could protest or ask questions, she rushed off to her room. He sat on his bed rubbing his knuckles, staring vacantly ahead of him.
