Kaiah was rummaging through Ria's drawers to try and find the contraception potion. It had not even been an hour since the encounter and she was already feeling desperate. Everyone was still at the tavern and she was the only person in the living quarters. Arcadia's Cauldron was closed, and she needed to take a potion soon or else the unthinkable might happen.

"What are you doing?"

Kaiah jumped and saw Njada standing in the doorway of their quarters, giving her a suspicious glare. She thought that everyone was still at the tavern. The Redguard wiped the tears from her eyes. "Do you have a potion?"

"A potion?" she had asked, crossing her arms.

"Yes! A contraception potion!" Kaiah pleaded, quickly approaching Njada. The Nord's previously stern glare softened as she studied her shield-sister. Her eyes were red and puffy and her face was covered in dried tears. There was a bruise around her neck and her wrists were just as bad. 'Gods, was she…?' Njada closed the doors behind her and rushed over to her own nightstand and pulled out one of her own potions. She quickly handed it to Kaiah and she immediately uncorked it and downed all of its contents. She coughed and gagged after doing so and Njada grabbed the now empty bottle from her.

"Kaiah," Njada started, her expression showing genuine concern, "I'm only going to ask this question once so we both understand what you had just endured tonight." Kaiah closed her eyes and shook her head, not saying any word of affirmation. Njada frowned, "Were you raped?"

It had seemed that the question was all Kaiah needed to hear before breaking down and kneeling to the floor. Njada knelt down as well and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Who did this? We'll 'round everyone up, and kill the bastard-"

"No, Njada!" Kaiah cried, "He's gone…"

"We'll find him."

"It isn't that simple-"

"My shield-sister was raped on the street! Seems pretty simple to me!"

Njada was a short-tempered woman and was never afraid to speak her mind. Though she never saw things further than the surface. Kaiah knew Kematu. He wasn't some stranger, they had history. Kaiah wiped the tears from her eyes and looked at Njada, "You can't tell a soul."

"W-Why not?"

"Please! Just-" Kaiah's breath hitched, "If you care about our friendship at all you won't tell a soul!"

Njada swallowed the lump forming in her throat, "I'm not your friend, Kaiah. I'm your sister. And sisters look out for each other. We protect each other! From disgusting men who want to take advantage of us!"

"I knew him!"

Njada stopped her tirade and stared at Kaiah with widened eyes. The Redguard shut her eyes and then looked up at the ceiling, tears falling down her flushed cheeks. "I knew him." She looked at Njada with pleading eyes, almost begging for her to understand what she was trying to say. "You can't tell the others-"

"She doesn't have to."

Njada and Kaiah turned their heads to the now opened doorway to their quarters and saw their auburn-haired shield-sister leaning against the door frame, her arms crossed and her expression stoic. Kaiah stuttered as she tried to find the words to express her wavering emotions, "H-How did you-"

"The walls are very thin here," she stated plainly, "You never came back to the tavern so I went to look for you." Aela walked over and kneeled beside Kaiah and Njada, resting her weight in her own knee. "Don't worry, everyone else is still at the tavern."

Kaiah shook her head at the Nord woman, "No one can know what happened tonight, Aela."

"You don't expect me to let that bastard walk away after what he did to you?"

"Please, just…" Kaiah rolled her head back and exhaled, "mention nothing to anyone."

Aela and Njada both looked at each other with shared concern for their shield-sister. There was no use pushing the Redguard to accept their help, and they were almost as furious as she was about the events that had transpired tonight. Though Aela felt an immense amount of guilt weighing on her. If she had just gone out with Kaiah, and not let her leave by herself, maybe she wouldn't have been assaulted. The two Nord women stood up and left the room but not before reassuring Kaiah that she was safe now.

Kaiah knew better though.

Kematu knew where she was now, and no doubt had an entire group of Alik'r warriors held up in some encampment in Whiterun Hold. He mentioned a target of some kind, for whom she didn't know, but his line of work involves the movement of high value goods. Which never excludes people.

Kaiah stripped herself of her clothes and changed into a nightgown. She set her dress aside to burn the next day, even though the piece was one of her favorites. She crawled under her furs and stared at the unoccupied bed across the room. She couldn't bring herself to close her eyes, for every time she did she relived this horrible and agonizing night.

Rest would never find her that night.

Kodlak was sitting outside by the training yard watching the Companions train. He had been spending many days in his quarters lately and wanted a change of scenery. The Harbinger had taken writing in a personal journal as he grew in his old age. He found himself obsessing over finding a cure to his lycanthropy, but was concerned that he would never succeed before he inevitably passed on. However, watching the whelps train took his mind off his daily worries.

The old warrior watched as he saw Kaiah and Vilkas sparring together. The two usually fought like sabre cats over a deer, but something was off about the Redguard. She seemed tired, like she hadn't slept at all the night before. The bags under her eyes were so prominent that he could see them from where he was sitting.

Kaiah went to swing her sword at Vilkas but fell over as he dodged her incredibly slow and predictable strike. He managed to catch her before she hit the ground but it didn't stop her from nearly passing out from exhaustion. She dropped her sword on the ground and tried to grip his biceps for support. Vilkas lifted her to her feet and gave her a look of concern. Kodlak observed from his chair but his lycanthropic hearing wasn't what it used to be.

He watched as Vilkas sent Kaiah away from the training yard. She walked slowly towards the hall, holding herself as she passed the old warrior. Kodlak knew something was wrong with the young woman. She had been so quiet and the fire that usually burned so bright within her had been seemingly extinguished.

The Companions had all sat down for their midday meals and Kaiah had not come upstairs from her quarters. The Harbinger took notice and asked Vilkas about his missing student. He explained to his mentor that he told her to go rest since it was apparent that she had not slept at all the previous night. Of course, he knew that the hall had gone out to the Bannered Mare to celebrate Ria and Farkas' announcement, but her sluggishness was not due to an overconsumption of alcohol.

"I'm worried about her." Kodlak spoke up, grabbing the Master of Arms' attention. Vilkas took a drink of his water before speaking, "Her scent is different today." The blunt analysis was more than enough to get Kodlak to ask. "Were you with her last night?"

"At the Mare?" Vilkas cocked a brow, "Yes, until she left later in the night."

"Did she leave with anyone?"

"No…?"

The two men looked at each other, trying to read the other's thoughts. Kodlak had a lingering suspicion in the back of his mind that he was praying wasn't true. The obvious change in her scent and her insomnia was not a mere coincidence. She was usually energetic and always ready for a good fight, and her scent was always the same.

"Bring her some food, son." Kodlak handed Vilkas an empty plate. He began filling it with the food that had been laid out for lunch, conscious of what she liked and disliked.

Vilkas took the food down to his quarters, where he asked Kaiah to rest so no one would disturb her. He opened the door slowly and peeked inside. Kaiah was laying in his bed with her knees to her chest underneath the furs, sleeping soundly. He brought over the plate of food and water and placed it on his dresser beside his bed. He looked down at the Redguard and observed her. Her face was puffy and red from what he could only assume was crying. He felt a pain in his chest, seeing her like this.

His attention suddenly turned to the crook of her neck. There was dark discoloration that he hadn't noticed before. She was wearing a scarf around her neck and her hair was down during training this morning, so he couldn't see it until now.

She was hiding something.

He bent down to look closer, gently moving the locs of her hair so he could see better. She had dark blue and green bruises in the back of her neck, blown out in the shape of someone's hand. Her skin was so dark that it would have been difficult to see at first, but Vilkas could see it clear as day now. The change in her scent, the insomnia, the bruises on the back of her neck…

No words could truly describe what he was feeling at that moment. Anger seemed to be the strongest; anger towards the man who did this to her. Sadness for what she had to endure, and guilt, for not being there to prevent it.

He left the room quietly, gently closing the door behind him. A million thoughts were racing through his head, trying to comprehend what happened to Kaiah. He didn't want to believe it was true, but who could deny the abrasions on her neck? That didn't come from a consensual night of passion… she was raped.

"How is she?"

Vilkas turned his head and saw Kodlak standing in the hallway. He had a look of concern for Kaiah, but his attention was turned towards Vilkas, who seemed to be fuming. His silver eyes shifted to a glowing golden color as he glared at the old warrior.

"I'm going to kill whoever did this to her."