Chapter Three: Unsettled Plans and Free Trades
It only took Anjaarra an hour or so to gather up all of her belongings. After her husband had died, she didn't keep much around the house and the only thing that she really had to pack was food and a few spare clothes. She also packed a map of the local area along with one of the entire province of Skyrim. Hulgar, having nothing but the clothes on his back, waited patiently by the doorway, watching the cat-woman bustle around her small cottage home.
"About ready?" The Nord asked her, his patience starting to slip from him. The Khajiit pushed another blouse into her knapsack before she nodded her head. Her bright orange eyes kept welling up with tears but she would quickly blink them away, not wanting to look weak in front of the man. When she knew that her voice wouldn't crack, she spoke strongly.
"Yes, I'm ready." She pulled the knapsack onto her back, keeping her chin up high. Hulgar stared at her before giving one good nod.
"Okay." He straightened up in the doorway. "We probably have about two or three days ahead of us before the Thalmor figure out that their precious hunters were defeated. So, we'll have to move fast if we want to stay ahead of them." Hulgar continued, watching Anjaarra nod slowly. He stared at her for a moment before giving her a single nod and walking out of the cabin. The Khajiit let out a mournful sigh and gave the house one last look around before stepping outside. She closed the thin wooden door behind her, not bothering to lock it. She didn't leave anything of any monetary value and whatever she did leave; it wasn't of any use to her now.
"Any bright ideas for getting there faster?" She asked, trying to hide the sadness and regret in her voice. Hulgar glanced at her before walking towards the road.
"There's some stables down the road some just outside of Whiterun. I figured we could sell anything odd bits of junk you have, too." The Nord explained to her. She followed him a few steps back, thinking over his plan. It really wasn't that bad of an idea. They'd probably be there before nightfall but there was one issue.
"Wait… Aren't there Thalmor in Whiterun?" She asked him. Anjaarra noticed Hulgar pause for only a second as he walked.
"Well… How about you go into Whiterun, get any supplies we need and then I'll stay outside at the stables?" Now that didn't seem too bad of an idea. Anjaarra nodded with only a bit of reluctance.
"Okay, that'll work," She said quietly. With a mutual silence, they both walked one behind the other down the road. There wasn't much to look at as the pair traveled. The golden hills of the tundra were beautiful to look at but it was easy to lose your interest. A creek cut through the hills at times or a lone fir tree would stand out in the golden grass. But that was all there really was to see out in the tundra plains of the hold of Whiterun. But in the distance, on top of a hill, stood the capital.
Whiterun stood out of the grass like a manmade mountain, the hill that it stood upon making it easy mark to spot. It looked like a mighty acropolis, a few farms and homes dotted the fields outside of the large stone walls. The war had ended only a few months back with the Empire winning over the rebels. And now the Thalmor were present in this once neutral city.
"Will you be okay with going into the city without me?" Hulgar asked after several quiet hours of walking. It took Anjaarra a moment to recollect her thoughts. She had been thinking of her late husband but the Nord's voice brought her back to reality.
"Yes. I have before and I most certainly don't need any help now." She tried to sound strong even though she wasn't feeling like that in the least. Hulgar suppressed a smile at her attempt, walking ahead quietly. Tired of walking in silence, the Khajiit spoke up.
"Where do you plan on running to?" She stared ahead at the back of the Nord's head. She didn't see the blank on his face but she knew the answer.
"I… I don't know…" He choked out. He never actually thought of where to run, just that he had to run from the Thalmor. Anjaarra scoffed quietly and shook her head in disbelief. After dragging her away from her only home, he didn't even have a clue of where they were going.
"Great plan," She muttered to him with disdain. Hulgar opened his mouth to say something back to him but she pushed past and quickly walked down the stone road. He stared after her before letting out a sigh. He could never please anyone it seemed.
The rest of the walk wasn't as redundant as it was on the way there. There were few more farms that surrounded the city along with the West Black-Briar Meadery. It had started out as Honningbrew Meadery, but after a skeever infestation and the near poisoning of the Whiterun general, the place was closed down. Seeing her opportunity, which rumor had it that she planned herself; she scooped up the empty meadery and ran her second business. Over the last eight months or so, the meadery had grown from two buildings to about four, having more and more orders to fill almost every month. Hulgar was half-tempted to stop to get a fresh bottle but Anjaarra showed no signs of stopping, who was a few good strides ahead of him now.
"Wait," He told her, watching her stop and turning halfway to look back at him. "I'll wait back at the meadery for you since I shouldn't go into the city. The Thalmor shouldn't be in there so I'm sure I'll be okay." Anjaarra rolled her eyes slightly, knowing that the Nord's addiction to the honey sweet drink was drying out his tongue.
"Yeah, sure. I'll be back in about an hour." The Khajiit told him. And without a second to spare, she turned back to face the acropolis and continued her quick pace to it. Hulgar only watched for a second, noticing his gaze linger over her tail and hips before shaking his head. Was he really staring at skooma sucker? He shook his head again, glaring at himself. That just couldn't be possible. True Nords like him only looked at other Nords. Okay, maybe the occasional Breton or Redguard but not a beastfolk. That just wasn't right… Was it? With the still contorted look of confusion and self anger on his face, he quickly walked back to the meadery, knowing he need more than just one bottle to help solve his problems.
Anjaarra was oblivious to the whole ordeal, walking past the stables and up the wooden ramps to the gate. After the war ended, most of the wooden bridges that crossed the small streams were made into stone ones and the drawbridge was replaced with a thicker and more resilient one. The large wooden gates were always kept open, even at nighttime. That was one of the things that Anjaarra liked about the Imperials taking over; it made her feel welcome in the city and actually appreciated for the work she had done.
She strolled through the gates, the guards nodding at her. The Khajiit smiled softly at them and nodded back. Most people in Whiterun knew her or at least recognized her. After living outside in the tundra plains for almost five years, you start to get along with most of the other inhabitants of the hold. She had actually been asked to stay for dinner at the Battle-Borns' home at one point in time, which she gladly accepted. It was nice to be able to get along with everyone and it was so much easier after the war since everyone accepted strangers and foreigners a little bit better. But then you had the stubborn Nords like Hulgar who were probably ex-Stormcloaks that thought Skyrim was only for the Nords and no one else.
Anjaarra snarled quietly to herself at that thought, her face contorted in anger for a second before a group of children ran past. They waved at her and said their hello's as they ran by. The cat-woman laughed and waved back at them, flicking her tail happily as she walked to Belethor's General Store. A bell rang as she opened the bright brown door, the once dozing Belethor quickly snapping away. His eyes lit up at Anjaarra and he smiled widely at her.
"Well, hello there, Anjaarra!" He seemed to bellow with his hoarse, but somewhat soft voice. "What a pleasant surprise. I wasn't expecting you for a few more days." The Khajiit nodded at him as she closed the door behind her. She walked across the store to him, leaning over the counter slightly.
"I know and I'm sorry to surprise you. But I have a bit of bad news for you." She began to tell him. Belethor's bushy black eyebrows furrowed slightly with worry as she continued. "I'm leaving Whiterun for a little while and I'm not sure when I'm coming back, so I need to know what you'll give me for these." She took out a medium sized leather pouch and dumped out its contents onto the counter.
A few little silver trinkets tumbled out, along with a few precious jewels and cloth. She choked back a sob as a gold ring with a flawless ruby, diamond, and sapphire set into it. Her late husband had made it for her, made in the traditional way of the Khajiit. The diamond represented the newly wedded couple, surrounded by the two moons, which were represented by the ruby and sapphire. Belethor knew the importance in this ring and stared at it sadly. He had known her husband very well. Hell, he knew her husband years before he actually meant Anjaarra. He sighed mournfully, gently picking up the ring between his thumb and forefinger.
"I'll give you two thousand for everything. But at least keep this," He told as he held out the ring to her. She stared at with her bright orange eyes, feeling tears start well up in them as she slowly nodded and took it in her furry fingers.
"Thank…" She stopped, clearing her throat to help open up her closing throat. She wiped her eyes and started again. "Thank you, Belethor." Anjaarra said meekly, quickly tucking the ring away. The Breton shopkeeper only nodded as he scooped up the rest of the jewelry and replaced it with the said amount of septims. The pouch they were placed in jingled loudly with the hefty weight but it didn't take away her sadness as she took it off the counter. Most of those trinkets were given to her by her husband, and seeing them sold away pulled at her heartstrings.
She nodded her thanks again at Belethor but he held up a hand to stop her. She paused and watched him as he stooped over behind his counter. He had stayed hidden for a moment before he stood back up. He placed a black scabbard onto the counter, staring at the Khajiit with a serious look. "Look out for yourself out there, okay?" He said quietly, sliding it over to her.
Anjaarra stared at the scabbard for a long minute with her orange eyes. The last time that she had held a knife it was so long ago during a terrible time in her life. She shook her head slightly to shake away any memories that dwindled in the shadows of her mind. With a slow but strong movement, she picked up the scabbard and pulled out the dagger slightly. It was made of pure ebony, the dark material seeming to radiate a cold chill. She suppressed a shudder as she slid it back into place and tied the scabbard around her waist.
"Thank you, Belethor. If I ever come back, I promise I'll repay you." She told him, but he only smiled slightly and shook his head.
"It's on the house." This time, Anjaarra was the one who smiled slightly before nodding her thanks again. With the nod returned, she walked to the door and left the shop for probably the last time in her life.