A/N: I'm really sorry for the long wait. Hopefully, I can make it up to everyone by posting the rest of the story. All chapters will be up in the next few days!

Chapter 25

Aria got up early the next morning. No one else was up yet, so the Sanctuary was quiet. She silently dressed and gathered her gear, then slipped into the main room to put everything on. She was lacing up her boots when Vicente appeared in front of her.

"What are you doing up this early?" she asked as she stood up.

Vicente handed her Sufferthorn. "I wanted to see you off."

Aria strapped on the shortsword, then slid her Blade of Woe into her boot. She gave Vicente a hug. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Be safe, dear one. May the Night Mother go with you."

Aria gave him a lingering kiss, then picked up her bag and left. The sun was just starting to rise as she slipped past the lone watchman and out of the city.

It took her several hours to ride to the Imperial City. By early afternoon, she was able to stable her horse outside the city's walls. Getting into the city was easy. It had been over a year since she'd lived here, so it was highly unlikely that any of the guards would remember her.

She paused just inside the gate. Now for the hard part. The Imperial City was the biggest city in the province. People of every race were everywhere. Finding one Altmer would take some work.

Aria spotted a young girl dressed in rags sitting in the shade of some boxes. It had been several months since she had last seen her, but Aria felt sure it was the same girl that had helped her the last time she was in the city. She walked over and knelt in front of the girl.

"Please, milady," the girl said quietly. "Just one coin."

Aria took out a septim and laid it on the ground between them. "I need some information."

The girl glanced at her, then back down at the coin. "What kind of information, milady?"

"I need to know where the local Elves like to hang around."

The girl stared at the gold coin, then said, "Try the Feed Bag in the Market district. Lots of shopkeepers go there for drinks. I think there's a couple of Elves with them."

Aria laid another coin down. "And you'll tell no one that we spoke, right?"

"Of course not, milady," the girl said. She looked up at Aria long enough for her to see that she was telling the truth.

"What's your name?" Aria asked.

"Branwen."

Aria put down a final coin. "Thank you, Branwen." She stood up and walked away as Branwen eagerly snatched up the coins.

She wove her way through the crowded streets to the Market district. Here, she had to be more careful. As a beggar, she'd spent a lot of time in this district. Several of the shopkeepers might be able to recognize her. She wandered the streets, keeping her head down, until she found the wooden sign for the Feed Bag, a local tavern.

Despite the crowded streets outside, the place was nearly empty. The evening crowd hadn't arrived yet. Aria chose a stool at the bar and ordered a bowl of stew. The barkeeper brought it and shared various bit of gossip while she ate. When she finished, Aria paid him and left. She needed to find a place where she could keep an eye on the building.

Thoronir stepped outside of his shop with a sigh. His business, the Copious Coinpurse, had been busy all day, and he was tired. It was time for a good meal before going home for the night. The Bosmer locked the front door and walked down the street toward his favorite dinner place, the Feed Bag.

After over an hour of eating and relaxing with some of his fellow merchants, he was ready to call it a night. He paid his tab and left the building. No one was in sight as he started to walk home.

A few feet from his front door, a hand suddenly covered his mouth. He started to give a muffled scream, but the feel of a blade at his throat silenced him. The hand and blade guided him backwards into a dark alley.

"I'm going to uncover your mouth," a soft voice said in his ear, "and you're not going to make a sound. Is that clear?"

Thoronir nodded as quickly as he could and the hand over his mouth disappeared. The blade, however, remained at his throat. "Where is Faelian?" The voice asked calmly.

"I-I-I don't know." The blade tightened against his throat. "No, please! I swear, I don't know! Please!"

"Quiet!" The voice hissed. "Who does know?"

"Tr-try the Tiber Septim Hotel. I-I-I think he lives there...please don't kill me..."

Thoronir whimpered as the blade pressed tighter. He felt a trickle of blood drip down his neck. "If you tell anyone we spoke," the voice said, "I will find you, and I will end you. Is that understood?"

"Yes..." Thoronir squeaked.

The blade moved away from his neck and something hit him hard between the shoulder blades. He stumbled out into the street, gasping for breath. By the time he turned around, the alley was empty.

Thoronir touched his neck and looked at the blood on his fingers. Whoever had threatened him had only wanted information. He shuddered as he thought about what could happen if they had truly wanted to hurt him.

Aria thought about her next move as she slipped through the shadows. The Tiber Septim Hotel, located in the Talos Plaza district, was the most expensive inn in the city. Faelian had to be wealthy if he was living there.

Which posed a problem for Aria. She was dressed in common clothing. There was no way she wouldn't draw attention if she went to the hotel dressed as she was. She needed a new disguise.

She sneaked to the back door of Divine Elegance, an upscale clothing seller in the Market district. At this hour, the owner wouldn't notice if a few items went missing for a little while. Aria picked the lock and slipped inside. A few minutes later, she slipped back into the street, a bundle of cloth in her hands. She walked quietly down a ramp to the canal that ran around the inner part of the city. It was dark enough down here that no one would see anything as she put on the borrowed dress.

The lobby of the Tiber Septim Hotel wasn't very busy when Aria walked in. One person was working at the desk, while a few people sat at some tables at the other end of the room, enjoying a late dinner. Aria smoothed the front of her borrowed black velvet dress and walked up to the counter. The young woman standing on the other side greeted her with a smile.

"Welcome, friend, to the Tiber Septim Hotel. I am Augusta Calidia, your hostess. Are you in need of a room for the night?"

Aria shook her head. "I'm not staying long. I actually came because I heard an old friend was staying here. His name is Faelian?"

Augusta's smile vanished. "Faelian? Oh, I know him alright. A waste of life, that one. He lives here with his sweetheart, Atraena. That's her, over there." Augusta pointed toward an Altmer woman with blonde hair, seated at one of the tables. "What that poor girl sees in him, I'll never know. Atraena pays for their room, their food, everything. She's quite wealthy, I believe. Faelian used to have money...used to be quite a gentleman, too. But that was before he took a fancy to the, you know." She glanced around and lowered her voice. "The skooma."

"Hmm. That doesn't sound like the Faelian I remember," Aria said, continuing her role play.

"Now Faelian's hardly ever here," Augusta continued. "He's off using skooma, or wandering the city looking for some, I imagine. He comes back every night to be with Atraena, but only for a few hours. I swear, that High Elf is going to wind up dead if he keeps living like this."

"I'll have to see if it's the same man I grew up with," Aria said. "If it is, maybe there's something I can do to help. You said her name is Atraena?" The other woman nodded and Aria said goodbye before crossing to the other end of the room. As she approached Atraena, she noticed that the other woman had a cup of wine and a nearly empty flagon in front of her. "Excuse me, but you're Atraena, right?"

The woman looked up. Her eyes were slightly bloodshot. "That's right. Why do you ask?"

"I'm looking for an old friend, and I was told that you know him. His name is Faelian."

Atraena looked puzzled. "Faelian? He's...he's my sweet. My true love. But I don't know why I'm telling this to you. I mean, we hardly know each other."

Aria pulled out a chair and sat down next to the Altmer. "We grew up in the same community. We were never really close, though. When I heard that someone with that name was here in the Imperial City, I had to come see of it was the same person. Is your Faelian a Bosmer, with black hair?"

Atraena shook her head. "No. My sweet is an Altmer, with blonde hair."

"I guess it's not the same man, then. That's disappointing." Aria hesitated for a moment, then leaned forward. "I'm sorry, but is...everything alright with your Faelian?"

"Of course it is! Not that it's any of your business!" Atraena insisted, becoming defensive.

Aria raised an eyebrow and glanced pointedly at the flagon, then back at Atraena. The other woman gave a defeated sigh. "Please, I...I don't mean to get emotional, but...I feel I can trust you." She hesitated, then blurted out, "I just don't know what to do about Faelian! All he thinks about, all he cares about, is skooma! He was a fine young man once, but he's lost everything. His looks, his money...his self-respect."

Aria gave a sympathetic murder as Atraena continued. "I followed him a few times, to see where he goes. He walks around the city looking for skooma, and then goes to Lorkmir's house for several hours."

"Lorkmir's house?" Aria asked. Finally, information she actually needed.

"Yes, it's in the Elven Gardens district, but I don't know where. I think the house is deserted. That's why he goes there. So he can escape from life and do his skooma!"

Atraena stopped and took a deep breath. Her outburst seemed to have drained her. She dropped her head and looked down at her glass of wine. After a moment, she looked up at Aria again.

"Thank you for listening. You're a good friend. I just hope my sweet Faelian can clean himself up or that awful skooma will be the death of him!"

Aria hid a smile as she stood up. "Well, I really hope everything works out for you. It was nice to meet you."

She started to move away, but Atraena grabbed her hand. "Wait, you never told me your name."

Aria gave her a small smile. "Tissina. Tissina Grey. Goodbye, Atraena."

She left Atraena at the table and slipped out the nearest door.