Morning came, and morning went. The trio spent the first part of the day drinking, all of them hoping that when the dinner party came, the alcohol would have them desensitized to the idea of people eating human flesh that they weren't bothered by it. After several drinks, they realized that that wasn't going to happen, and so they instead decided to wander off and see who there was to meet.
They bumped into Adara once again, and another conversation just as awkward as the one from the previous evening ensued. They passed by Dalfina, but she ignored them, and so they did the same to her. Leola figured there was a reason she ignored them, perhaps just not wanting to associate with them for fear of someone finding out what she did, but she tried not to question it. She might tell them later that night when they met with her.
They had lunch at the inn, each went back to the palace for an afternoon nap, and all too soon, evening had come. They all dressed in regular clothing - even Aventus, who was rather put off by not being permitted to wear his usual Dark Brotherhood attire. They kept their weapons on them - not to show hostility, but simply because it was Skyrim, and there was always a high possibility of encountering bears or bandits in the wild.
"There are no bears outside of Markarth," Erith had assured them. Leola and Aventus weren't so certain. Aventus took his daggers and Leola carried a sword, strapping her magnificent new Stahlrim shield across her back. Erith took a staff, as she always did.
They left the city, and just as she'd promised, Dalfina was waiting for them by the bridge. They approached, and a smile came to her lips.
"Aventus Aretino?" she murmured, taking a moment to admire him. "I didn't expect you to be in on this."
"Dalfina," Aventus said curtly. "I didn't expect you to be in on this."
Dalfina laughed. "No, that's true, I suppose you wouldn't have," she said before nodding in the direction that they had to go. "Come, let us be off."
She began to walk, and the others followed along. Dalfina was silent, and so were the others. Leola was nervously holding on to Erith's hand, and she could feel the uneasiness hanging about the group of them, weighing heavily in the air. It was deeply unusual compared to how things normally were - her two friends both tended to ooze confidence, and they rarely seemed frightened or uneasy about the places they were going. Leola was usually the nervous one, but this time, it was all three of them. She couldn't use her friends as crutches when they felt the same knots in the pits of their own stomachs.
The walk ended up taking only a few minutes, and true to Erith's words, they didn't encounter even so much as a sign of bears in the area. They came to a cave entrance, and Dalfina shot them a smile.
"Last chance to turn back if you're feeling squeamish," she said with a giggle.
"We're not turning back now," Aventus said firmly, shaking his head.
Dalfina laughed and nodded. "Fair enough," she said, beginning to lead them into the cave. They followed, and Leola hid her face in Erith's shoulder. She didn't like this one bit.
"I'm not looking forward to this any more than you are," Erith whispered to the blonde.
When the group stopped, Leola unshielded her eyes. They were in a large, cavernous room. A long table sat in the middle of the room, and a number of people were seated patiently around the table. At the head of the table was an elderly Breton woman with grey hair and one blind white eye. She rose to her feet as they entered, smiling.
"Welcome, Princess Leola," she said. "Thank you for taking the time to join us."
"Thank you for having us," Leola said, and she could feel the trembling in her voice as she spoke. "We understand that you can help us find something we're seeking?"
"We hope so," said the woman. "My name is Eola - I am the coven's current leader, and I can speak directly to Namira on your behalf in order to find what you need."
"Thank you," Leola said softly. Some tiny part of her mind might normally have been mildly entertained by the way their names rhymed, but for now, she just wanted to get this over and done with.
"Do sit down," said Eola, gesturing towards the table. Leola kept her grip on Erith's hand, following her lover's lead as Erith led her to a pair of empty seats in the middle of the table. Erith was seated beside Dalfina, and to the side of Leola was a pretty Imperial with dark hair and blue eyes. Aventus seated himself between an elderly Nord man and a young Redguard woman.
"Erith, Aventus," said the Redguard politely, nodding.
"Marisa," replied Erith with a nod. "I talked to your sister yesterday."
"Lucky that you talked to her before seeing me here and not after," Marisa replied. "I'd hate for you to tell her about seeing me here."
"You know you have our silence," said Erith. She turned towards Leola next, smiling. "Marisa is Adara's little sister."
"It's nice to meet you," Leola said softly.
"You too, Princess," said Marisa, smiling. "I never met your mother, but my parents and sister said good things about her."
"It's kind of a relief to meet someone who's actually never met her," Leola said with a slight laugh.
"Most of us haven't, actually," chimed in the dark-haired girl beside Leola.
"Same," Dalfina agreed.
"Speak for yourselves, youngsters," said the older man who sat beside Aventus. He grinned at Leola. "My family's been breeding war dogs for years, I'm sure you can figure out the business relationship your mother and I had on your own."
"We never had a dog," Leola said, raising an eyebrow.
"That's a shame," he replied. "I'm sure my Vigilance woulda loved you."
"Vigilance?" Leola asked.
"One of the best dogs I ever bred. He took quite the shining to your mother, that he did - spent most of his days out and about with her, romping around Skyrim and doing what a good war dog does."
"It's a shame I never got to meet him," said Leola softly. She paused for a moment, glancing around. In just a brief conversation, her uneasy feelings had faded somewhat. It was just like being anywhere else, people telling her about her mother and sharing with her their memories of her. She should have known this was how the dinner would turn out.
"Now," came the voice of Eola from the head of the table as the grey-haired woman rose to her feet, "let's get to business. Princess Leola, I trust that Dalfina already told you what my requests were?"
"Yes," Leola said, nodding quickly. "She said that anyone in your group should be free from persecution now that I know who you are - you expect me to be Queen one day, and don't want your people to be in danger from me."
"Exactly," said Eola with a nod.
"You have my word that your people won't be persecuted for this," Leola said softly, gesturing towards the table in front of her. "That being said, I'm not giving your group free reign to do as you wish - any crimes unrelated to your - er - lifestyle choice…will go punished as usual."
Eola smirked, giving another nod. "Fair enough - I wouldn't have it any other way," she agreed.
Before another word could be said, there came noises and all heads turned to face the entrance. A young Nord woman entered, a pretty blonde who was a bit on the bigger side, accompanied by an older Breton woman with brown hair.
"My apologies that I'm late, I - Aventus?" spoke the blonde, her eyes falling upon the assassin.
"Minette?" breathed Aventus, in the strangled whisper of a lover trade...but a small house, a single soul in a sword, and his own determination to find