Chapter Six: Pitiful Parchments and Peaceful Naps
Anjaarra had woken up early that morning and waited for Gro-Gluk and Hulgar to wake up. She could barely smell the fresh morning breeze in the dank cellar and knew that it would be a few more hours before they woke up. The trapdoor was still locked and there was no way that she could pick the lock. Not that she would want to, anyways. Those days were behind her; at least, she hoped they were. She sat at the base of the ladder, her tail flicking lazily about behind her. Her thoughts were swirling around S'Baadar, thinking of how she had learned of his death…
It had been over a year ago. Dragons had just returned to Skyrim and Anjaarra was preparing for the Harvest's End holiday. S'Baadar had been away from home for a few weeks on an expedition with a local Khajiit caravan. Anjaarra had stayed behind so that she could tend to the crops and build up a little bit more money while he was away.
"It'll only be for a few days," He told her the morning before he left. "I'll come back and we'll have more gold than any harvest could bring, I promise." But those few days had turned into a few weeks and almost turned into a few months before they came…
Anjaarra had been quietly weeding the farm plot her and S'Baadar owned when the cracks of whips made her look up. It was a large caravan but it wasn't the Khajiit one her husband had left with: it was an Imperial Legion caravan. There were five wagons being pulled down the road, two large gray horses attached to each one. Every wagon was filled to the brim with rookie soldiers, their faces filled with fear and anxiety. Cavalry men followed alongside the wagons, all lead by General Tullius himself. His black stallion stood out among the dull browns and greens of the tundra. But what really made him noticeable was when he slowed down by the wooden fence that encompassed the Khajiit's farm.
"Are you Anjaarra Chiran?" The general asked, his back straight and his head held high as the Khajiit looked up at him. She nodded at him, standing up straight.
"Yes, sir, I am. What is this about?" She asked, a nervous tone in her voice making her tail flick quickly with worry. General Tullius gave her a look of pity with a mix of distrust before pulling out a rolled up piece of parchment.
"I am sorry to tell you but your husband is dead." He said, holding out the parchment to her. It felt as if a war hammer had been rammed into Anjaarra's stomach, all the breath from her lungs leaving her.
"D-dead…? N-no, he can't be…" She said, tears welling up in her eyes, her ears pressed back against her skull. General Tullius nodded gravelly at her.
"I'm afraid so. He was executed for the traitorous crime of theft and destruction of private property." The general explained. Anjaarra was hit with another invisible blow to the stomach, her tears slipping down her furry cheeks. Her tail fell limp behind her as she dropped to her knees in the fresh tilled soil. She covered her face with her hands and sobbed. She knew that her husband had finally been caught at his own game but she didn't think the Empire would go as far as executing him.
Tullius stared at her before sighing and tossing the parchment roll towards her. With a click of his tongue, he drove his horse back to the front of the still moving caravan, leading them away towards the frontline. The roll seemed to fly around in the air before it landed a few feet away from the crying cat-woman. Anjaarra peeked at it through her fingers, wiping away her tears vainly before snatching up the roll. Slowly unfurling it, she saw that it was just a death certificate with her husband's name on it.
Anjaarra glared at it through her tears before screaming in anguish as she tore it up. She threw the pieces into the wind, large tears falling down her cheeks as the shreds of parchment slowly flew away in the breeze…
A floorboard creaked above Anjaarra's head, making her snap out of daydream. She wiped away the pinpricks of tears out of her eyes before looking up. There were no other sounds from the floor above and the Khajiit sighed. It was probably just someone turning over in their sleep. She leaned back against the ladder, closing her eyes. She hoped to maybe get another hour's worth of sleep before Hulgar finally got up and released her from her stinking dungeon.
Her mind was clear for a moment, a strong wind blowing through an open window upstairs brought the soothing sounds of songbirds and rustling leaves. A small smile tweaked at her feline lips as she slowly drifted back to sleep, another memory playing before her closed eyes.
It was several years back, when she first came to Skyrim. Anjaarra had first arrived in Falkreath by wagon from Chorrol. It was a relief to finally be out of the wagon after being stuck it for almost two weeks. Her whole body ached from all the bumps that the wooden wagon wheels had rolled over, but to finally stretch out her sore bones was a relief.
"A pretty town, init?" The Bosmer wagon driver asked. Anjaarra only nodded as she looked around in amazement. There were pine trees everywhere and a few mountains outlined the horizon. Anjaarra, hailing from the arid desert of Elsweyr was captivated by the beauty of this foreign place. The Bosmer watched her before clearing his throat, grabbing her attention. "Now before you daze over into a comma or somethin', I'd like my pay." The wood elf said, looking at her with a scrutinizing eye.
Having come practically straight out of her homeland, she knew very little Imperial at that time. But she had learned very quickly what the word "pay" meant. She nodded quickly and pulled out her coin purse. She opened it and looked at the Bosmer. She quickly raked her brain for the right words to say.
"Much pay?" She asked in her thick accent. The words rolled awkwardly over her tongue and seemed to fumble through her lips. The Bosmer smirked at her poor language skills.
"Two hundred septims." He said, watching as the Khajiit looked back down at her coin purse. She just barely had enough. Carefully counting through the coins, she took out about twenty coins and put them in her pocket, handing the purse to the Bosmer. The wood elf quickly scooped it up and put it in his pocket. "Thanks, cat." He practically laughed as he turned the horse away from the Nordic town and back towards Cyrodiil.
Anjaarra watched him before turning towards Falkreath, taking in its beauty again. After another couple of minutes of soaking in the splendor of the town, the Khajiit slowly walked through the wooden gates and into the farming town. Even though it was the capital city of Falkreath Hold , the town was almost like an overpopulated farming town compared to other hold capitals. But to Anjaarra, it was the most amazing place she had ever seen.
The dirt road was mostly filled with bustling Nords trying to get to some place other than where they were. Most were women and children trying to keep busy while the men were out working at the lumber mills or patrolling the area. The Great War had ended almost a decade before though hostilities between the Empire and Jarl Ulfric were growing ever stronger. But it seemed as though none of that had touched this town. A smile had crept across Anjaarra's face as she walked down the busy street, watching children ran past and as…
"Watch out!" A man shouted out behind her. Anjaarra turned only halfway to see what the shout was about but was plowed over, falling to the ground in a tangle of limbs and fur. She groaned quietly in pain, rubbing her head as she slowly sat up, looking at a bewildered looking Khajiit. It was only then that she realized that the man had called out in the Khajiit language.
"Are you okay?" He asked the cat-woman sitting in front of him. She nodded and smiled.
"That's one way to warm someone in this cold land." Her smile grew wider as the Khajiit man before her smiled and laughed softly. Seemingly jumping up to his feet, he helped to pull Anjaarra to her feet, stroking at his tiger-like sideburns. His fur was a pitch black with stripes of white. The burly sideburns that came off his face were smoky gray along with his eyebrows and the tufts of fur growing out of his ears.
"How is…?" He paused, waiting for the Khajiit woman before him to say her name. She smiled softly and her tail flicked playfully behind her as she told him her name. "Ah, well, how is Anjaarra today on this fine, but cold day?" He asked in their native tongue, taking her by the arm and leading her to the side of the street.
"I am warm," She said, grinning before continuing. "I'm warmer now by your presence." She said, not noticing the group of Nords trailing behind them. The Khajiit man smiled and kept her close before dropping his voice to a very low whisper.
"We're both in danger. Don't look!" He quickly said as Anjaarra went to look behind her but stopped at the distress in his voice, looking straight ahead as he lead her down an alley between two large buildings. "I accidentally brought you into a bit of a disagreement when I tangled into you in the street. I'm sorry, moon flower." He quietly said. Anjaarra's heart skipped a beat at the mention of her nick name. Even though her life was in danger, she couldn't help but smile.
"I'll fight at your side…" It was her turn to wait for his name. The Khajiit man smiled and said his name was S'Baadar. ..
A sudden crash from the floor above made Anjaarra jump awake from her nap, her bright orange eyes quickly looking up at the wooden floor. A bout of laughter followed the crash, Gro-Gluk sputtering out curses that the Khajiit had never heard before. She sighed softly and sat back down at the base of the ladder, waiting patiently as she heard footsteps walk over to the trapdoor. A click was heard and the door opened, Hulgar's face present.
"Mornin', cat." He said, extending a hand to help her out. Anjaarra only glared slightly at the Nord before jumping up the ladder and onto the floor above. She grinned at Hulgar's shocked face. He had no idea that a Khajiit could move with such speed and grace. The Khajiit stretched out her tired limbs, yawning quietly before looking at the Nord.
"Are we leaving now or are you eating breakfast?" She asked, making sure not to say "we". She thought that she saw him flinch slightly at that but dismissed it from her mind.
"No, we're taking something to go. We've lost too much time as it is." Hulgar explained as he walked over to a cupboard and opened it. The opened doors revealed a stock full of all manner of weapons: Swords, daggers, hammers, axes. You name it, it was in that cupboard. Hulgar grinned like a child who just received a room full of gifts as he plucked two war axes off the cupboard's shelves. Hooking them to his belt, he pulled out an iron shield, sliding it onto his back.
"Feel free to take anything you might need." Hulgar said over his shoulder, stepping aside for the Khajiit. She looked at the Nord then at the cupboard of weapons. She already had her ebony dagger that Belethor gave her. There wasn't much else that she would need. Except maybe…
"A bow?" Hulgar said with a confused look as Anjaarra pulled out a hunting bow. She only nodded quietly and placed a quiver of iron arrows over her shoulder. She strapped the bow onto her back and adjusted everything until it was comfortable. With a content smile she looked at Hulgar.
"Now are you ready?" She asked but only received a shaking head in return. Holding back a groan of impatience, Anjaarra watched as Hulgar walked over to another cupboard and pulled it open, revealing armor. It was mostly just different kinds of cuirasses but there were some greaves to match with the cuirasses. With a quick look over, Hulgar pulled out some iron armor and slid it over his head. Strapping it into place, he readjusted his shield and axes to comfortable spots outside of armor. He pulled on some leather boots along with some leather gloves as well.
Taking a step forward, Anjaarra looked over the cupboard. Most of it looked heavy and bulky and it didn't seem like her fit either. But she spotted some rough leather armor that looked like it could be her fit. Slipping the bow and quiver off of her shoulder, she pulled off her dress. Hulgar seemed to flush with embarrassment at the Khajiit's semi-nude body for he looked away. She didn't care; he brought her into this and he was going to have to deal with the fact that she would change in front of him. Grabbing the leather armor, she slipped it on, fixing it to be more comfortable on her lean body. She grabbed the gloves to match but didn't bother with the boots; the boots wouldn't have feet on her feet, anyways. Most clothes made by the races of men didn't put beastfolk into consideration so most shoes didn't fit their feet. Anjaarra didn't mind though.
"Alright, now we're ready to go." Hulgar said as Anjaarra slung her bow and quiver back over shoulder. Gro-Gluk had quietly walked into the room with two knapsacks. She handed them to the pair, taking a step back.
"I put more food into your packs along with a map of some other people who will help you get to wherever your going." The Orc's gravelly voice explained. Even though she was meant to talk to both of the travelers, Gro-Gluk looked at Hulgar as she spoke. The Nord nodded.
"Thank you, Gro-Gluk," He put his hand on her shoulder as she did the same. "May Talos guide you."
"And you as well, my friend." They both nodded before they dropped their hands. Hulgar walked to the door and opened it. Anjaarra nodded her thanks to the Orc who only sneered at the Khajiit. Dropping her ears slightly, she quietly walked out the door and into the bright morning sun. Hulgar followed her and closed the door behind them, sighing quietly. He opened his mouth to say something but a tremendous roar cut him off. They both looked up into the sky above Riverwood to see the predatory flying pattern of a dragon.