The Pink Haired Pirate: An Old Norse Saying

Rated: M for language, future mature themes, violence, gore

Warnings: Spoiler alert for Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

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Sakura blinked softly as the lights of the Imperial City were disturbing her sleep with their color blotches. It was night time, but the oil lamp posts were still lighting up the stone path their carriage was driving on.

"Sakura. Wake up." She heard Marcurio whispering, shaking her shoulders gently.

"We are here." When Sakura opened her eyes, she spotted a rare, excited smile on his face. No matter how many times he said he was more than glad to leave home and explore, she could see right through him. He was homesick and glad to be home. Even if he said he did this mostly for his mother.

"Are we there yet?" She whispered, sleepy, scratching her cheek. The carriage driver stopped.

"Yes, young lady, we're here."

"Thank you, sir." Sakura smiled, yawning. Both of them dug out for two coin purses and hopped off the carriage. Marcurio took her hand and led her through the Market District.

They stopped in front of a closed bookshop, but the lights seemed to be on. Marcurio took a deep breath and knocked on the door, before taking a step back.

When they heard footsteps coming from upstairs, Sakura felt the need to hide right behind him, as the key turned in the lock of the door and hit the bell. Before them was a young girl, around Sakura's height, with long brown hair braided and let loose over her shoulder, and freckles dusting her nose.

The girl gaped as her eyes widened.

"Mamma? Papá! You have to come see this..." she called out, and two.. or three sets of footsteps followed suite.

"Hello, Alessia. It's been a while..." He managed to say. The girl, Alessia, nodded shyly, as she let him - them - inside the house. She had yet to see the guest.

Behind Alessia, were three other unknown figures. A woman in her 50s came in a hurry, almost tripping over her long dress. She pushed the horn-rimmed glasses back on the bridge of her nose as she stopped beside the counter, in shock.

"Be careful, dear." She was held from tripping by a man, easily towering over her height. His brunet hair had more than a few of 'wisdom' highlights. Judging by the way he was walking, he seemed to have had a leg injury in the past.

And right behind, a boy, an almost perfect copy but male-variant of Alessia was trying to get a better look at what was happening downstairs, bending to look over the railway.

The woman took a few steps closer to Marcurio and raised an uncertain hand to touch his cheek. Her eyes veiled with tears almost instantly.

"Marcurio... mi figlio..." She was instantly brought in a tight embrace.

"Sono a casa, mamma..." He replied, barely holding tight onto his own emotions.

Vincent crossed his arms and smiled, going to pat right onto his son's back. They didn't seem mad... yet.

When his father moved, Alessio finally had enough visual range to see what was going on. It was his big brother! He has been rather young when Marcurio left, and even so, he was often hidden in his room, studying. They have not been that close, but both he and his sister were upset when their mother told them that he ran away.

So he was kind of glad. But he owed them gifts. And for breaking their mother's heart like that.

Unlike everybody else, however, the always-perceptive Alessio, spotted the newcomer standing shyly behind his older brother, with a gray coat draped over her shoulders and holding a basket in her hands. He motioned Alessia to come over and she gasped.

"You're right." She mouthed and almost squealed. The woman had pink hair. Pink. Hair. And it looked really pretty too. She wondered if it was as soft as it looked. Like a pink cloud.

Alessia wanted to say something, but she was instantly beaten by her brother, who pulled a mischievous grin.

"Big brother, you didn't say you would bring home a girlfriend!"

The sweet, nostalgic moment was broken like a spell, as both Marcurio and Sakura froze in their spots. Her face flushed instantly.

"She's not-"

"I'm not-" Minerva took a step closer.

"Alessio, don't be rude! Marcurio has written to us that he might be coming with a friend, but he didn't tell us you were so adorable!" She pulled her in to briefly kiss her cheeks three times: one on the left, one of the right, and finally, again on the left.

"You must be Sakura. Look how thin you are... are you even eating well, my dear?"

"Mamma, please..." He could see that Sakura was getting a little uncomfortable from his mother's smothering; he knew he has forgotten something to tell her.

"Luckily for you two, we have just started dinner. Tesoro, will you be kind and bring two more chairs upstairs?" Vincent nodded and kissed the top of his wife's head, before leaving the room.

"Of course."

Marcurio cleared his throat. "Sakura, this is my mother, Minerva. The one who just left is Vincent, my father, and the two over there are my younger siblings. Alessia and Alessio. Family, this is Sakura."

"I'm pleased to meet all of you..." Sakura smiled, bowing her head quickly.

"Enough with the formalities. Let's go eat; you two must be famished and tired!" Minerva put her hands together as she lead the way. Vincent followed with two spare chairs, and the twins stopped right in the middle of the stairs.

"Wait there for a blessed second, big brother. You have been gone for nine whole years. You have to pay the passage rite to go upstairs." Alessio said as they both crossed their arms. Marcurio sighed.

"Yes, I brought you two gifts, you little twerps. After dinner."

The twins 'humped' and turned around on their heels, before heading right for the dining room. Marcurio shook his head as they followed.

The dining room was exactly how he remembered it. The same ebony table, the same beige tablecloth, the same drawings made by Alessia and Alessio pinned on the cupboard, done when they were very little. They didn't replace the chipped Shrine of Mara in the hallway either; it was sitting on top of a drawer in the hallway. A slight bit of it chipped during a hazardous game of tag, years back.

His father brought two chairs from downstairs, while his mother got ready two more plates. Both of them sat down, being served a plate of porridge, steamed vegetables and a piece of juicy steak. Their meal hasn't started long ago, so they weren't that much behind them.

Then, they started chatting amiably, the family's attention being turned exclusively towards the new guests.

Sakura has learned a few new things. For example, Marcurio's surname. It was not uncommon not to have a surname in Skyrim, so if somebody approached her to greet her with their first name only, she'd find it totally believable that a surname was absent. It wouldn't be strange at all. Hence why she hasn't asked him about it.

Motierre was an old, wealthy and powerful Breton surname, established in Chorrol, but they have wormed their way up in the Capital. They did gain strong Imperial influences later in the last few centuries, however. Vincent, a Breton, has married an Imperial woman, after all, while his brother Amaund, stuck more and more to the family traditions.

Including their love for politics. That's why Marcurio's immediate family was so diverse. That's why they weren't exactly living in the lap of luxury, either. They were happier that way too.

"So, how did you two meet?" Minerva asked, smiling, as their whole attention focused on Marcurio and Sakura, who stopped eating for a second. They both looked at each other, silently agreeing onto who should start talking first.

"Well..." Marcurio began. "I live in Riften now. There's an inn called Bee and Barb. I've been living there for a while. But I met Sakura about two weeks ago. She needed someone to help her with a Dwarven ruin in The Pale, so she hired me. We became friends after we fought and beat down a Dwarven Centurion." He explained and Sakura simply nodded.

Life-death experiences usually brought souls together, and if Marcurio had to guess, a Centurion was the strongest single opponent he has beaten so far. He's been unlucky on certain missions, but the enemies usually had strength in numbers.

Richie doesn't count, they had to hold back a lot, to not seriously injure each other. It was not a matter of life and death.

"A Dwarven ruin you say... "

"Aa." Sakura smiled. "A woman has lost a sword in the Gatehouse, right beside a Centurion, and I kind of promised I'll find it."

"Yes, but that was after the night you decided to play sleuth and look for a serial killer which has been plaguing Windhelm for weeks." Sakura simply shrugged at that.

"Hey, we caught him. I lured him out and you froze him in place."

"It sounds like you two went through a lot..." Minerva's expression sobered quite out of a sudden. She has been having conflicted feelings about the whole situation.

"How long has it been...?"

A thick, metaphoric storm cloud settled on their heads, over the whole table. The question sunk in slowly.

"Nine... nine whole years..." Marcurio eventually answered. He has turned 28 months ago... he has left home when he has freshly turned 19.

It was not just the monotony of his life that drove him to go. Pressure and expectations have been raised and dumped heavily on his shoulders. It has not been... easy.

But he has not thought of the consequences. Or what his family would think about it. Or the pain he would cause. He just packed the bare minimum and left without looking back.

"I'm sorry... I didn't think..."

"No, boy, you didn't," Vincent said, eventually. "But it's our fault we haven't seen it earlier. Only then we have seen how they overworked you, and how high their expectations were of you. Just tell me one thing."

Marcurio waited.

"Do you regret leaving? Do you enjoy what are you doing right now? Have you learned more on the field than at the University?"

"No. I don't regret a thing. I could see for myself everything I have studied and put to test the efficiency of the spells." He shook his head. "Skyrim is rough and cold, but it molds your character in ways you didn't know you could ever be."

Vincent paused for a moment, before sketching a smile. "Then you haven't been gone for nothing. You could have just sent us a letter from time to time. Your mother will worry sick if you keep us from hearing news about your whereabout."

Maybe he hasn't outwardly show it, but Sakura could certainly feel the relief that washed over Marcurio. It went better than she expected.

"I will write regularly." Especially now that he has signed a contract. He could have Tora, or another cat, to deliver the letters to his family. He wouldn't have to hire a courier and send him all across the border and hope he hasn't died on the field.

"Now, what about you, my dear? Where do you come from? You don't seem to be a Nord..." Minerva has changed the subject, much to everybody's appreciation.

Sakura looked up from her plate. "I was born on a warm island in the Eastern Sea, far away from Skyrim. But my clan hailed from Land of Fire. Tamriel is an uncharted land for us, so I'm kinda glad I had the opportunity to explore."

"That's wonderful. Now, you'll have plenty of time to explore tomorrow, but I want all of you here for lunch." They all nodded in agreement, and it kind of felt nice, to have regular family meals for once.

Sakura, as much as she liked the food in Skyrim, did not eat often. She had no time for it, but she'd sometimes steal a wedge of cheese when given the chance - or pay for it if she found herself in a tavern, to eat it on the go. But she has been relying on stamina potions as of late, which was kind of a bother, given the size of the bottles they had to carry around.

Minerva pushed her chair away and got up, and Sakura immediately followed her example by gathering the dirty plates, cutlery, and cups.

"You don't need to bother yourself with it, dear."

"Oh please, I insist." She would assist her in washing the plates, and Marcurio immediately saw that as an opportunity to unseal the scroll.

He would tell her. Soon. Just not right now.

"Come on, you twerps. I said I had gifts." He got up, and walked towards his room, out of the kitchen, at the end of the hallway. Opening his door, he'd expect to be assaulted by loads of dust bunnies, but who was he kidding? His sweet mother must have cleaned his room at least daily because no sign of dirt or dust was present.

It was exactly as he remembered it. The bed was made with no crease in sight on the covers, the sturdy bookshelves were ready to collapse from the weight of the cramped in books, and his desk was cleaned spotless, with the exception of several ink spots that stained the wood beyond removal.

The twins followed immediately, not giving it much thought, and by the time they reached his room, they saw a puff of white smoke vanish.

"Have you heard anything?" Sakura blinked, hearing a familiar sound, as she dried up a plate.

"Hear what?"

Sakura shook her head. It must have been her imagination. "No, never mind."

Marcurio tucked the scroll back in his bag, as he handed out the masks, then the two other special presents. The first was the cat ear headband, and the second was the three-pronged dagger. Alessia enjoyed wearing her headband, but as Marcurio was prepared to give Alessio the dagger, he stopped for a second.

"Careful with this. It's unlike any kind of weapons we have here, and you must only use it as self-defense."

Alessio snorted. "I'm not a child anymore, big brother. I'll take care of it." He gently took the dagger. It felt much heavier than a simple iron or steel dagger, and much sharper. He could theorize that the extra prongs would prove themselves to be useful in melee combat. He stuck it back in its sheath. Alessia seemed to be focused on it too.

"I wonder if I could use a flute to stab someone."

"There are many more useful ways to use a flute in combat, you know," Sakura said, as she walked inside the room. The door has been half-open anyways, so she let herself in.

Alessia raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

Sakura nodded, making no comments on the very familiar headband, or weapon, as she continued. "Aa. I knew someone who used a flute to cast auditive illusions. It was quite horrifying."

"I never heard of these kinds of illusions. They seem to be quite interesting." Alessia said, making a mental note to check them out sooner or later.

"It's late, we can talk about books and magic tomorrow. I, on the other hand, have another idea. Let's make a fort blanket!"

"Absolutely not." Marcurio crossed his arms.

"Come on, big brother! Your room is the biggest! Like the good old days! Fort blanket! Fort blanket!" He started to cheer. His sister joined in too.

"Fort blanket! Fort blanket! Fort blanket!"

The mage blinked a few times and sighed. He wanted to look at Sakura, silently pleading for help.

"Fort blanket! Fort blanket!" She echoed after the twins, grinning. Whatever their reason was, Hers was quite different. Sakura enjoyed seeing that small twitch above his left eyebrow, whenever he was annoyed or irritated. It was kind of funny to see.

But it was three against one, so Marcurio sighed, defeated. The three of them sat on his bed, grinning, while he went to gather blankets and pillows. He remembered the spot quite well; they always had a lot of spares - for some reason. When he came back, he dumped them on the floor.

"Now you three, get to work." He crossed his arms, watching sternly as they started making the whole floor of his room, comfy and perfect to sleep on.

Sakura grabbed a blanket, attached a chakra string to it, and tied it high on the ceiling, like a tent, and continued to do so, until their fuzzy cave network expanded over the whole room. The desk and bookshelves were being left out, not to damage any tomes and books.

It looked comfy enough and warm, and Alessia was more than happy to lend Sakura a nightgown to wear and change in her room. They had a pretty similar size. There was a shop named Divine Elegance in the Market District, in the North, where she could have tailored a few clothes. Honestly, after everything she's been through the last two weeks... she deserved a bit of pampering. Not to mention her last task landed her a damned ancient Falmer relic. She still had the Right Eye, by the Nine! Delvin only wanted the Left.

They headed back together to their fort blanket. Sakura laid somewhere next to Marcurio, who has already laid down.

"You know, you were supposed to be on my side."

"Don't be a wet blanket. You can't deny this was not a bad idea. It's warm, and yet it does wonders for straightening your back."

"I might have taken your suggestion if I still would have studied at the University. Do you see me hunched over scrolls all the time?"

"You do know you can still take the bed. Right?" Sakura raised her pink eyebrow. She saw something shift in his face, or at least she thought she did. It was pretty dark, after all. He simply turned his back at her.

"Just go to sleep."

"Aye, aye captain..." She drew in a long yawn.

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The mornings were rather basic. They all got ready for the day and gathered together for breakfast. Sakura was ashamed to say she has slept a little longer than she would have liked to, as she would have been more than happy to help Minerva to set the table, but she was dismissed with a simple smile.

After breakfast, they would all have a cup of coffee, imported right from Elsweyr.

Sakura sealed most of her basket's contents away, except for coin.

The schedule for the day was simple: Vincent would take Alessio to the warehouse, then return to the bookshop to open and tend the desk. Marcurio was planning to deliver the Centurion Core to the Arcane University, strongly hoping the Dean won't whack him with his staff, for leaving so out of a sudden. The guy was an elderly Altmer, old enough to be perfect for teaching Dwemer history and civilization.

Alessia had classes early in the morning at the local Bards College, and Sakura has tasked herself with Minerva's shopping list. It was the perfect occasion to look around the city. And remembering her initial task... maybe find out where to find Gray Fox.

The weather was rather warm, despite being close to the end of Hearthfire. They all bid goodbye to Minerva, before taking different directions.

Sakura followed Alessia and Marcurio to the College, then right outside the University, before she decided to wander on her own.

The Imperial City was... well you could imagine a large, round isle in the middle of Lake Rumare. Right in the very middle, was the White-Gold Tower. Or well... whatever was left from it. A good portion of the city was destroyed during the Great War, thirty years ago, but the work on rebuilding the city (and the rest of the country) has started long enough to bring Cyrodiil back to its former glory.

The center also housed the Imperial City Palace and the Elder Council Chambers. The district was overall known as the Green Emperor Way.

The circle around was divided into six different locations: the Market District, the Arena District, the Arboretum, Talos Plaza District - which has been renamed as the Divine Plaza District following the White-Gold Concordat, the Elven Gardens, and the Temple District.

The Arcane University was located behind the Arboretum, and the road in the Temple District leads to the Waterfront, the poorest area in the whole city.

She had a few hours before she had to return to go back, so it didn't hurt to take a look around. The Cyrodiilic Thalmor Embassy was somewhere close by the White-Gold Tower too. Familiar Altmers in robes and Elven golden armors were patrolling the streets. Sakura knew to stay out of their way, this time. She wanted to cause no trouble.

Her destination was the Waterfront District. It was a harbor, filled with many East Empire warehouses, docked ships and wooden shacks. The cobblestone pavement soon turned into a dirt path. She dropped a coin for one of the beggars, deep in thought.

If she was a Gray Fox, where would she live? Somewhere well hidden, if the guards never seemed able to catch him. Him - Delvin said that the Fox was a lad. The guards were rather few and seemed to be flocking around the docks, mostly, protecting incoming shipments and the warehouses.

As she walked among the shacks, she spotted something really interesting which made her stop in her tracks. There was a certainly interesting carving on the last shack, right next to the entrance.

It was a rhombus with a chipped point, and the rest of the body was slashed in half. If Sakura's memory served well... it was a shadowmark. And not just any shadowmark.

It meant Fence. And who else but a fence would know something about a Guild of Thieves?

With uncertain footsteps, Sakura walked closer to the shack and knocked on the door. She took a step back and waited. And waited. And waited.

Until an elderly lady opened the door gently.

"Yes?"

Sakura blinked a few times. Nonetheless, she smiled. "Good morning. I was wondering if you were interested in buying something I... found."

The old lady paused a little. "Why do you think I would be interested in whatever are you selling, my dear?"

"Because.." Sakura paused. "I spotted that symbol on the door, and I wish to get rid of something."

The woman's eyes widened in recognition. She nodded and opened the door a little wider, allowing Sakura to step through. She immediately closed the door and turned the key in its lock. She had to make sure nobody would barge in during a 'transaction'. The old woman valued the privacy and personal identity of her clients.

"I see, then. Excuse my paranoia, but we can not afford to be interrupted." She lit a petrol lamp and placed it on the round table poised against the wall.

"I understand, ma'am. Don't worry." Sakura has stepped in the nicest and coziest shack she has ever seen. Almost every inch was covered by carpets, except for the doormat at the door and a small space in front of the hearth. The windows were draped with heavy, burgundy curtains, obscuring every trace of daylight that would creep through the windows. There was a bed, a wardrobe, a chest, and a bookshelf right at the end of the shack.

Right above the hearth was a horizontal metal pole that hung a few pots. Next to it was a cupboard with sacks, shelves, and barrels of food.

She also spotted a basket full of yarn balls somewhere on the floor.

"Sit down. Would you care for some tea?"

"Yes please."

The woman smiled amiably, as she reached for two cups and set them on the table, before grabbing the hanging kettle above the fire and pouring the hot liquid for them to enjoy. She sat down as well.

"Now, what do you wish to get rid of?"

Sakura pulled a single sapphire out of her basket. It was rather big too; even the small ones were quite costly to have them embedded in a ring or a necklace. Or earrings.

The old woman stretched a pale, wrinkled hand and took the sapphire. She turned it around, using the artificial light of the lamp to gaze through the gemstone, pushing her golden framed glasses higher on her nose.

"Splendid. Just splendid. You're in luck, my dear. A client of mine was talking about someone searching for a sapphire necklace. If I pull the strings right, she might buy it to get it to a jeweler!"

Sakura simply smiled, as she blew into her tea.

"Thank you. It was a rather rare finding of mine. I was lucky to land such a gemstone. It was a job in Solitude." She remembered snatching it from the East Empire Warehouse when she has been tailing Gulum-Ei. Or whatever his name was.

"A job, you say." The old lady mused as she grabbed three coin purses out of the safe hidden in her end table. She placed them before Sakura. "300 septims. Is that alright?"

Sakura simply nodded. "Very, thank you." They were dumped right in the basket.

"You know, I know everybody within the Thieves Guild. I can't say I've ever seen you around. There has been a recruit wandering around lately, but it was a young man not older than you."

"Ah, I'm apart of the branch in Skyrim. But I haven't joined them too long ago. Let's say I was kind of thrust in the middle of things out of nowhere."

"So I heard. There's been a change in the management of the Guild. Delvin has sent a letter a while ago, to make a few deals. That hasn't happened since Gallus, you know? It means that now that Mercer kicked the bucket, the luck of Lady Nocturnal will shine upon your Guild once again. I was a priestess of her Murkiness in my prime."

It finally made sense.

"A ... guy's journal talked about priests within the Twilight Sepulcher. I guess that even if Nocturnal doesn't seek worship as some others do, there must be a bridge between her and the mortals."

The old lady smiled. "You guessed right. I was one of the last. When Ebonmere was sealed... I had to return to Cyrodiil. There was nothing for me I could do. I cleaned her shrine one last time, said a prayer and she let me leave. I decided to retire and offer my services as a fence. She's the Matron of all thieves, you know. I felt it like a duty." Then, the old woman winked. "Who would suspect a nice old lady like myself, anyway?" She chuckled.

And Sakura joined her too. She finished her tea as well.

"Thank you, ma'am. For the tea... and for putting my mind at ease."

"And for the coin." She supplied.

"Ah, yes. And for the coin as well." She bowed, as she got up, grabbing her basket. The old lady sat up as well, leading Sakura to her door. She quickly unlocked it.

"I enjoyed our little chat, my dear. Stop by more often, especially if you have more goods to sell. I will happily take them off your hands."

"Thank you, I will do!" Sakura waved and walked outside, heading out of the Waterfront District. She stopped mid-track, just as she was about to exit it. She has forgotten to ask anything about the Gray Fox! Damnit!

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But the old lady has made it very clear that she was welcomed on her doorstep as often as possible. If anything, it was a good sign. She could earn her trust, and then the lady would slip. She knew more about the Guild than she would care to admit. The network of fences usually were under the protection of the Thieves Guild. Your occasional petty thief could have goods fenced for coin, but they wouldn't exactly care if a fence died. As long as somebody can buy their stolen shit, why would it matter?

However, a Thieves Guild - a whole legion of trained professionals, would have a far wider percentage of the total quantity of stolen goods, which meant they depended on a fence network to get rid of them as soon as possible and make coin out of it. Replacing a fence would be tedious because not everybody could just fill in the spot. They needed to have their hands dirty, experience and a wide array of connections.

Fences didn't hoard their bought goods. They distributed them. They made them 'legal'. Once a stolen item has gone through a fence's hands, it was completely 'lost' in the eyes of the authorities and the guy who has lost it. It became ready to be sold to your everyday general goods store, jewelry, and chances are a lot of items you could buy from a store might have been stolen at some point in their life.

But enough with the Thieves theory. The point was that the lady was protected by the Guild, perhaps by the Fox personally, so letting her guard down might bring in quite a good amount of information.

Sakura had to remember to buy some tea on the way there, the next day.

She has pondered her next destination a few times. Well... she has always wanted to see the Arcane University. She could bet it was really cool. And she could learn new stuff as well. But would they allow her to go inside? She was not a mage or a student.

Maybe Marcurio could talk with his former teachers to let her in and have a tour. She could promise she would not break anything, but she couldn't promise she would not flip through at least a book.

Minerva wanted them all together for lunch soon, so she could also make sure he would not lose track of time and go back to the Market District together.

She paused, stopping, before rubbing her cheeks. No. Bad thoughts. Still, she strolled back to the City Isle. It was not hard to guide herself; using the tall White-Gold Tower as a point of reference.

She has considered using the rooftops... but she wouldn't risk that during plain daylight. No, she'd attract too much attention and the last thing she wanted was to be marked down on the pointy-eared bastards' radar.

She has seen the Thalmor patrol around, after all. But damn, those Elven armors looked so cool... she has been wondering how efficient they were.

But it wasn't long until a familiar, feminine voice called out behind her.

"Sakura! Wait up!" When Sakura turned around, she could see Alessia jogging to catch up to her. She grinned as she stopped, panting. Sakura gave her a few moments to catch her breath.

"Finally. You walk pretty fast, you know? Plus, I kept calling for you but you wouldn't answer. Where are you going?"

"Oh.. I was ... well..." Alessia watched her rub the back of her neck, a little nervously. "I was thinking of going to get your brother. Just to make sure he will be there in time for lunch."

Alessia crossed her arms, holding a flute in her hand. "Uh-huh. Okay then, I suppose I'll tag along. We can pick big brother up, finish mamma's shopping list and go home. Sounds good."

Oh right, the shopping list.

"But you really shouldn't wander so much around the Waterfront District."

"Why, because of the thieves?" Sakura raised an eyebrow.

Both of them started their way to the Arboretum and the gardens. Sakura still couldn't get over how beautiful the statues were. And all of them were in the same place. Surprisingly, they haven't knocked down the statue which represented Talos. She could guess they kept it as just a sculpture of Tiber Septim and having a statue of a beloved Emperor was not a crime nor was it heresy.

There was a statue of Saint Alessia in the Arena district as well, after all.

"The Thieves? Those are local threats we are used to. No, I mean pirates. All kinds of ship dock at the pier. They pose a threat even if they don't break the law immediately."

"Pirates, you say..." she suddenly started to feel nostalgic.

"Yes. They do cause some trouble in inns, drinking all the mead and sometimes harassing the barmaids. But it's not all that bad... they like music so they leave bards alone." Unless one of them was particularly angry. Sakura knew there existed 'good' pirates. Hell, she's been apart of the Straw Hats for years, and saving a kingdom was only one point on the list.

But few were like them. Very few.

"So... any cool song you learned about today?" Sakura decided to change the subject, and thankfully, Alessia made no comments about it. Instead, she nodded.

"I did. There's this song, The Dragonborn Comes. I really like it. In our textbook, there's a passage of the verses being written in the dragon language. At least, that's what the myth says." She started to sing, and Sakura listened to her song intently, being washed by a sense of familiarity.

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Our hero, our hero

Claims a warrior's heart

I tell you, I tell you

The Dragonborn comes

With a Voice wielding power

Of the ancient Nord art

Believe, believe,

The Dragonborn comes

It's an end to the evil

Of all Skyrim's foes

Beware, beware

The Dragonborn comes

For the darkness has passed

And the legend yet grows

You'll know, you'll know

The Dragonborn's come

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And without Sakura knowing, she started to hum along. When Alessia finished the song, she was all smiles.

"Of course, it's not quite the complete variant. There's a verse that hasn't been integrated into the song. It's been lost, recovered and translated, but it doesn't quite fit in. Nobody really knows dragon language either to sing it."

"I see. Dragon language?"

"Yeah. There's a myth that dragons once roamed the skies and Men worshipped them. It's said to be dragon language but for all we know, it could be a metaphor." Alessia explained as she opened the heavy doors of the University, after they climbed the first flight of stairs, past the braziers lit by purple fire.

"Most of this place has been locked away from visitors, but after the Mage's Guild disband, there are a few wings that are kept out of sight, but nobody will bark at you for wandering around. Especially if you're expecting someone here." Like they did.

They walked in the large, circular hallways until they spotted Marcurio walking with an old Altmer. He was old, so old, that Marcurio had to link his arms with his to assist his locomotory problems. But he had problems with his legs, not his arms, so the staff carried on his back could be used both with spells and for beating the shit out of ... everything.

Two young healers would come over soon, right from the Restoration Wing, to make sure their professor was safe and sound.

"It seems that two lovely young ladies are already waiting for you," Canuldil observed, making Marcurio raise an eyebrow. Then he finally spotted who was he talking about. His sister and .. his friend.

Greetings were exchanged, as Sakura bowed her head to the Dean of Dwarven History and Sociology, Canuldil.

"Professor, this is my sister Alessia, and my friend, Sakura. Sakura has played an important role in defeating a Centurion."

"That's quite impressive. The artifact will be more than useful to be studied by our experts. Boy," Canuldil looked up to Marcurio. "Go give them a tour around, we are quite done here." He unlinked his arm, letting himself be taken care of by the Restoration students mentioned earlier.

"Are you sure?"

"Go, before I change my mind."

Marcurio shrugged and turned to Sakura. "Come then, you wanted to see the University anyways." Alessia hasn't seen it fully either. It was not as pretty as the Bards College - because honestly, nothing could beat a building destined for arts and aesthetics, but it held a beauty within its mysticism.

Sakura fought the strong urge to freely skip ahead. They were permitted to go everywhere but the labs where others were working, and lecture halls where students were attending their courses.

"This is the Paraxographical Center. It used to be the home to the Mages' Guild spell crafters, but now every student can take spell crafting as an elective. You can, of course, get spell tomes, or try to make your own, if you are at least a student, and you hope you won't die trying. The Cyrodiilic mages are usually known to craft original spells but few are actually drafted and added to official spell books."

It was also the classroom for the spell crafting courses, with at least twelve desks equipped with a simpler variant of an alchemy lab set.

A two-story chamber was called the Mystic Archives. A pleasant-looking lady let them take a loot around the circular walls filled to the brim with books. Bookstores were bookstores, but she has never seen anything as impressive as this! It was amazing. Truly. The lady even let them browse, and Sakura was more than happy to do so.

They have taken a look at the Practice Rooms as well. Mages could not only test out their spells, but a few areas specialized for duels have been raised and enchanted so no collateral damage would be inflicted upon the building. They even arrived just in time to witness a duel between two Destruction students. Most of the students wore red robes with tan-colored linings, as their University's uniform - much like how the College of Winterhold's students wore blue robes and beige linings, but these two wore something similar to what Marcurio was wearing.

They bowed their heads quickly, as the proctor lowered his hand.

The match was over quite quickly, with a young Imperial being called as the winner before they finally moved on.

"The Chironasium is the enchanting classroom, but the resident enchanters. This is the place where initiates also get their staff. The overseer is quite nice when it comes to new students."

The Lustratorium and the Museum came up next. The first was a large alchemy laboratory, a class taught by a Breton woman, and the museum was specially curated by Canuldil. But the Dwemer artifacts were just a single wing of the Museum. There were Nordic, Ayleid, Chimer and Nedic sections as well, including a rather familiar slab of stone encased by a glass box.

Sakura walked closer, before stepping away and shaking her head.

"Come on, you will like what's next." Marcurio led the two of them to the Orrery. It was but the biggest Observatory she has ever seen, and the sight was more than worth it after the endless staircases they had to climb.

"It's so beautiful..." Alessia gushed, and Sakura couldn't help but silently agree.

"Right? I often came here to study. But I used to forget about coming home in the meanwhile. I would fall asleep until the janitor found me while doing his routine cleaning work." He related, rather nostalgic.

Sadly, they had to go soon. There was a weird look on Sakura's face nobody knew how to decipher, however.

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A/N: Done! I'm done! Finally! I had many more things to say in this chapter but half a day was stretched along over 6k words and that's getting a bit too long.

Okay so let me clarify a few things.

The Motierres are a Breton family. Originally. Nobody says that the blood can't have been mixed with Imperial since that's where they have been living for so long. Am I right or am I right?

In-game, if you have read the wikis as much as I did, characters are always written down as ONE race. No half-half, except for Pelagius Septim III but he's a special case. And they mostly take after the mother. Let's take Aventus Aretino. He's a Nord, with an Imperial name. Which can imply that his mother was a Nord (because of his in-game race), and his father was an Imperial (because of the surname most likely). It does make sense.

So it would also make sense for Vincent and Minerva's children to be half Imperial and half Breton while taking more on the Imperial side of blood.

Amaund Motierre is the one you think you're thinking of. Yes. He will, obviously, be added to the story.

Minerva is the Roman Goddess of Knowledge, the equivalent of Athena from Greek mythology if I remember well. I thought it would be a fitting name, but you will see why later.

I always thought that the Tamrielic countries should have their own initial language and influences before the whole Empire took over. Lemme rephrase that tho. Everywhere you go, everyone's speaking the same language. Which means there's one language - Tamrielic, that's universal across the countries. But what language did they speak before? Exactly.

I always saw Cyrodiil as having Italian/Latin influences. Oh, right, If you want to, here are the translations:

*Marcurio... my son...

*I'm home, mother...

Skyrim could be well off having Nordic and Scandinavian influences.

If you think about it, High Rock and the Bretons could pass as French and/or British. Or a mix between those two.

The Mer also have their own alphabet and culture, so even if they speak a common language, they have their own inflections and native vocabulary. Hell, in real-life, the language in a country can have a lot of differences varying from region to region.

So yeah. It's not far-fetched for Cyoridiilic families to still use Italian or Latin in their everyday speech. Sakura has learned the Nordic-Tamrielic, so that would be completely new for her.

A lot of the characters are OCs. Why? Because there have been hundreds of years since Oblivion took place, and the game characters are most likely dead. Or very very very old in case of some Altmers. Maybe. Maybe. But honestly, do you want me to narrate a perfectly empty city? XD

Since there's a Bards College in Solitude, why wouldn't there be one built eventually?

I'm trying to adapt what I know about the Imperial City to the present. Change things here and there to make sense.

I hope it's been fine. So far. I will get back to writing soon so...

Cheers!