Mage and Wolf Chapter 1: New in Town
Though approaching the later hours of evening, Riften's gates were supporting a steady stream of visitors going in and out, as the border roads allowed for a plentiful supply of travelers and the hold itself seemed to be a bit of an on-the-way for people traveling to the hot springs up north. The female nordic guards leaned against the frames of the stone walls, arms crossed and eyes scanning the individuals for any signs of trouble or suspicious behavior as they passed by, giving an occasional nod of greeting.
Night approached, and shifts changed, the female guards taking leave as their male coworkers took their duty at the surrounding gates. One of the men at the main gate had taken on a new recruit, laughing and joking with the younger male as the stream of people had died down significantly, the lack of activity giving them reason to close the gates for the night, only opening them to filter travelers in and out.
They were amongst themselves until their fellow watchman noticed a shadow moving outside of the torchlight, his sudden alarm causing them to pipe down.
"Hail Traveler! What brings you to Riften so late at night?"
The black-furred khajiit almost seemed to meld into the shadows, the only giveaway to her presence had been that she'd made herself purposefully obvious, allowing her tools and weapons to clatter noisily.
"Same as everyone else, I hope." the female started, her silver eyes reflecting the torchlight in an eerie manner at her approach. "I'm hungry, tired, and heard there's an inn here with beds."
She stood outside of their reach, watching intently as the younger man confidently strode up to her.
"Well, cat. We have a little visitors tax that newcomers have to pay. A one-time fee, no big deal."
"Newblood..." his senior warned, "We talked about this earlier."
"Oh no, it's okay. I can pay the tax if he insists." she responded to the older nord, causing the younger to beam and hold out a hand
"Ah, good! A reasonable lass!"
The female grabbed his wrist, and faster than he could react, pulled him in one direction and swept a leg out under his feet in the other, tripping him easily and shoving him into the ground, pulling an ebony dagger from her side and pressing the blade against his neck lightly.
"A one-time fee of your blood would do well, hm?" she suggested, tail swishing at the frightful situation the man found himself in. She turned her head to the other two, grinning as they smirked, shook their heads, and looked away.
"Luckily for you, I'm feeling rather poor on funds tonight, and full of humor." she rose from the lad, sheathing her dagger and strolling towards the gate, handing the older men a few septims each as she passed through.
The Bee and Barb, being the only hangout in town, was packed. The locals were there, as was typical, but a large assortment of strangers had the place bustling more than usual.
Marcurio sat in the corner as he often did, relaxed on the outside, but inwardly, kept an eye out on the various goings-on and who all traveled in and out of the building. He sipped lightly at his ale-filled tankard, half-lidded gaze going from one door to the other and watching the people all the same, catching snippets of conversations that were hardly interesting. Keerava, the Argonian owner, was practically beaming at everyone (or, as well the lizard folk could even smile), as the amount of customers tonight was an occasion on its own, and her boyfriend, Talen, scurried back and forth between customers, trying to fill orders as quickly as possible.
How dull and boring.
"Marcurio!" Talen called, striding over to the Imperial, refilling his steel cup and passing him a hot bowl of stew. "Sorry your order took so long, but as you can see, we're running a bit behind.
"It's busy, I understand." he took the bowl with a grateful nod.
"Any luck with employment this evening?"
"Hardly."
"But, there are so many people here tonight!"
"Hmph, well, you tell me if it's a good idea to run off with a bunch of plastered drunks intent on taking down a dragon and getting paid in fame and glory. I'll pass on that 'paycheck', thanks."
"Well, you know you're always welcome to stay here. Keerava and I don't mind."
"Considering I payed you enough gold to outright own a room in this Inn, I'd hope you wouldn't mind my presence too awfully." he gave a playful scoff at the kind server.
"Tch, at least you stay out of trouble," the Argonian showed a toothy grin, glancing at a Dunmer and Nord that had started to fight each other, "I should probably handle this..."
"Hmm."
Marcurio watched with mild disinterest, eating a bite of the stew he'd been letting cool, when he suddenly noticed a fur-clad figure standing directly in front of him. Startled, he flinched, nearly spilling the hot food on himself and surprising the khajiit woman in the process.
"S-Sorry!" she started, giving him a worried look and holding her hands up in a show of non-aggression.
The mage was sitting right by the door, and yet he hadn't even seen her come in.
He glanced her up and down, and she looked taken aback, her body language obviously uncomfortable, so he cleared his throat.
"No need to apologize, I'm sorry for startling you. I just...didn't see you come in."
"Yeah, I get that a lot."
The mage couldn't help but give her a puzzled look, raising an eyebrow at the very odd response.
"Um, is this...the Inn?"
"Yes. Ahh, Keerava is the owner. She's the Argonian, over there." he stood, gesturing over to the bar where the pale woman was, flitting about with her customers. "She's gruff and no-nonsense, nice enough, but just...don't expect any handouts."
"Oh, I have money, but thanks."
"Sure..." he trailed off as the khajiit walked past him, and he gawked. She was tiny! Surely no taller than five feet.
His mild disinterest was hardly gone, but this woman had him curious. Khajiit were almost nonexistent in Riften from what he'd seen. The closest he'd gotten to were the traveling caravans that circled Skyrim, but that was pretty much it. They stayed out of towns, and he wasn't ignorant as to why, so it was intriguing that one would just waltz into town like a regular person.
He frowned, then grumbled silently to himself, unable to believe that he was starting to think less of a group of people based on a common sterotype. This twon was really starting to rub off on him in a bad way…
"Damn, I really need to get out of this city..." he muttered aloud, then let out a slightly-audible sigh and went to take a bite of his food, watching the small khajiit chatter on at the bartender before taking a seat at one of the only empty corner-tables with a drink in hand.
"You know the rules!" someone yelled, "No weapons, fists only!"
By now, Talen had separated the brawling duo and ushered the knife-wielding instigator out, though the Inn was settled only a moment- as the remaining fighter, the dark elf, had approached the small female.
"You're in me seat." the man stated, standing over the khajiit.
"There's a chair on the other side of the table. You're welcome to sit with me." she offered with a smile, seemingly oblivious to the threatening stance.
"I don't sit with no filthy feline." he growled near her face, grabbing her shoulder roughly as she continued to assess her situation. "When I say 'jump', you jump- and when I say move, you git outta me way, or there's gonna be trouble."
A few individuals made to grab the man, but were all halted when the khajiit said boldly;
"Then brawl me for it, mead-mouth."
Now that got Marcurio's attention, as well as the others inside the tavern.
Talen looked to Keerava, who shrugged in response, and the duo looked to Marcurio, eyes questioning him on what to do. It seemed almost cruel, to allow a small woman to fight a much larger man, but she was the one who offered a fair fist fight, so...
"Twenty septims on the little one!" he yelled, causing an uproar with the other patrons, who cheered and hollered, making a ring for the two to step into as they started taking bets.
In reality, he hadn't been interested in seeing them fight, but it was commotion enough for him to try and figure something out while everyone was distracted- probably not his brightest idea, not that he thought about it, but he wanted to find out more about this unusual stranger.
A few more people filtered in as the commotion kept building, and Marcurio was struck with a bad feeling at their sight; armed thugs from the look of it, and on the prowl. They sat themselves in one of the tables away from the door, looking through the whole Inn with a calmness that was almost unsettling.
The mage made his way over to the bar, addressing his friend quietly and retaining a casual disposition.
"Keerava, I need you to talk to you." he started, passing the Argonian maid a telling glance.
"What's that?" she replied, catching the hint.
"First off, whatever the khajiit ordered, charge it on my tab."
"Marcurio, you don't even know what she ordered."
"Have you seen her? She's so small, there's no way she's ordered much."
"Ah...as you wish." Keerava relented. "What else?"
"There's a few men that just walked in, be mindful, but let me handle them if there's a problem. With all due respect, I don't think it'd be wise to let Talen deal with those...killers."
"You'd best be careful, too. I don't want my best paying customer dead because of some careless fighting."
"As if. You know a mage as talented as myself would be running circles around those brutes. "
"Much the same way like that cat and coal-skin fighting over there?"
"Speaking of..."
The crowd had gotten terribly raucous, all bets made and clamoring for the fight to begin. The bigger man had removed his tunic, showing an impressive display of form, and the smaller female had removed her traveling gear, now only clothed in a barbaric set of fur clothing. The whole sight was just...ridiculous; as the mer was all but eager to put the hurt on such a small woman, and she looked ready to take it.
"You want to stay in, you fight by the rules!" Talen called loud enough for everyone to hear.
"No Weapons! No kicking, no bone breaking or eye gouging, and no pulling tails or ears. Choking is allowed, but NO killing! Three taps or passing out counts as a loss. Understand?!"
The brawlers nodded in agreement, taking their stances and setting tensions to a near breaking point.
Marcurio was all but holding his breath, having sidled his way to the crowd and feeling a bit guilty of the situation that he felt somewhat responsible for.
But, there was something about this cat that made him feel...excited? No, surely not that but he was entirely intrigued, even if his aloof expression said otherwise.
Unlike the unusually-brawny Dunmer, her small stature was relaxed, focused… and when the Argonian sounded for them to start, they were at it.
The Dunmer rushed his small opponent, throwing a first swing and just barely missing, as she dodged to the side and leaned into his momentum, throwing a punch to his gut and then another two to his ribs. His arms curled inward to grab the feline, but she turned around him, clambering up on his shoulders before he could even react and gripped him around the throat with her arms, wrapping him in a vice-like grip and tightening hard. He chocked and spat, swinging an arm up and landing a solid hit to her shoulder, just barely missing her head. He swung again, and she grit her teeth, but refused to let go even as the rocking impact sent a sharp pang through her body.
"Give up." she snarled, grinning menacingly as he sputtered and spat. "Tap out, or I'll send you nighty-night!"
Again, he swung a punch, and she took it with a grunt, watching the man's face change color from lack of blood flow and air.
"Last chance." she warned as he wheezed out his last bit of breath he'd saved- and tossed his head back against her face with all the force he could muster.
She tried to turn her head, but the blow still hit her directly in the jaw, clattering her teeth together with an audible 'CLACK' and sending her sprawling to the floor in a daze.
Both opponents panting, the elf was quick to turn on the khajiit, preparing himself to continue fighting- before he suddenly slumped to the ground, totally stunned as his body caught up to the lack of oxygen for his brain. The female stood, holding her jaw with a grimace-
And was declared the victor.
Cheers and shouts roared through the tavern, and gold was passed around to the bidders that'd won- a paltry few that'd made quite the handful overnight. Some patted the feline on the shoulder, some congratulated her, and some grimaced and glowered, calling it no fair but accepting their defeat regardless. The dark elf was roused back to reality, and sour at his loss, frowning at his opponent before putting his tunic back on.
The small woman sat herself back down in the hard-won chair, and Marcurio joined her across the table, much to her surprise.
"Please don't tell me you wanna fight, too." She rubbed her temples with a low groan, "I just wanna eat and take a nap."
"Oh, not at all." he reassured her, "Forgive my intrusion, but I wanted to-"
"Hey!" the familiar voice called, causing the khajiit to turn with a nervous look, and the Imperial to look with a frown. The dark elf, having regained his composure, came over with a huff, but calmed himself before making a scene, taking a swig of his own drink as he approached.
"A mighty fine swing you have there." he stated, patting his ribs before holding his free hand out to shake.
"You as well!" she responded, cautiously taking his hand and giving it a friendly clasp.
"I'm sorry I let me temper get the better o' me. Cat or not, you put me in place, and strangled some humility back into my head. The name's Vandus."
"Pleased to meet you on good terms, Vandus. I'm Hunter."
"I run a small trading caravan between Skyrim, Cyrodiil, and Morrowind. If you ever find yourself nearby and in need, let us know. I'll help you in whatever way I can, provided it's nothing against the law."
"Will do. Thanks! Oh, and, I'm sorry about choking you so hard, I didn't think you'd stay so stubborn!"
The two of them shared a laugh in an oddly brotherhood-like gesture, leaving the mage privately bewildered at the sight; two people that'd just been aggressively brawling one moment, now turned as friendly as could be the next.
"Well, I got a good story to tell my family back at the wagons, if nothin' else. My apologies for starting a fight with ye'. Just...well, y'know how it is with our sort."
"No offence taken. Safe travels!"
The Dark elf walked off cheerfully to a small group of people, presumably members of his caravan, and they left out the door for the roads.
The Imperial and Khajiit were tense a moment, collectively sighing in relief as the tension in the building died down again.
"So, Hunter," the man started, looking back at the fur-clad female, "I'm-"
"Marcurio!" Talen called, coming over to stand by the table and stooping over to speak quietly. "Here's your winnings, and for you too, m'lady." the Argonian insisted, passing each of them a decently sized coin purse of septims.
"Thank's, Talen."
"Of course. Oh, and, M'lady, your food is on it's way. Sorry it's taken us so long." he bowed out respectively and left back to the bar.
"Marcurio, huh..." Hunter mused, leaning against the wall and propping a foot up in her chair, tail swishing around lazily as she gazed at the mage with an expression of tired curiosity. "What on Nirn made you want to come over and sit with lil' ole' me?"
Marcurio considered it a moment, but figured he couldn't just outright say that he was simply curious in talking to her, else she might find that to be too direct.
"Well..." he relaxed a bit to match her demeanor, though kept an eye on his surroundings, "I'd figured those three burly men in the back were looking for some trouble, and seeing as you're new in town, I'd come and sit with you, keep an eye on your back in case they wanted to start something."
"Because I'm a small, helpless girl?"
"After that impressive display you put on? I hardly believe you're helpless just because of your stature."
"What about my stature?"
"Ah, I mean not to offend you."
"Oh my, I'm so offended." she rolled her eyes, scoffing playfully. "I'm just kidding. You'll hafta do better than that if you wanna set my ego on fire. I'm fully aware of my- Oh!"
Talen and Keerava both came to the table, hauling a fair assortment of items between them to set down in front of the duo.
"Thank you!" she was instantly drooling at the sight of the hot food and dug in once the couple walked away.
"Feel free to help yourself." she offered, chomping away at a venison chop in one hand, while having a grilled leek on standby in the other.
Divines above, Marcurio couldn't help but notice that the woman had some atrocious table manners, though was captivated all the same as he took a sip of his tankard. "I take it you like food." he stated bluntly, silently regarding the hit on his wallet. She huffed at the remark, her tail swishing happily as she scarfed down half of a baked potato in seconds.
He was going to need another drink at this rate.
"You've got to be the most interesting thing that's happened to this city in quite a while."
She froze mid-bite, taken aback by the unexpected comment, but couldn't help but let a grin spread across her features.
"Are you sober?"
"Very much so, but I didn't mean it like that."
"Well, what did you mean?"
He frowned, trying to think of a better way to communicate his thoughts as she continued to munch away, eyeing him with a playful sparkle in her eyes when she wasn't looking at the food.
"What I meant was...Well, let's just put it this way: Riften is a cesspool. I'd love to refer to it as 'the rear-end of Skyrim', but that's probably not good enough. The likes of...you," he gestured vaguely in her general direction, still struggling with words, "I've not seen your sort around this town before. I... suppose it's just nice to see a fresh face that isn't a thief, drunkard, troublemaker...that sort of thing."
Damn, he was out of practice with conversation.
Not to mention tha being ut on the spot was something he was used to either…
"Why are you here then, if it's so bad?" she spoke around a mouthful of food.
"Hrrm. Dare I be frank?"
"With me? Please. I hate guessing games."
He was suddenly uncomfortable, realizing that his admission might well come off as soliciting, which he didn't want to do, but sighed and spoke honestly anyways.
"I'm looking for work."
"Ahh, I had you figured for a mercenary. Are you a mage, or? You smell like one, but scents can rub off on things and be confusing sometimes."
"Hmph. Yes, I'm a Mage-for-Hire, hardly some mead-swilling axe-dragging fool that'd rather run up to your enemies and get poked to death. What a waste...wait, I 'smell' like one?" he didn't really get a chance to have that part elaborated before she continued.
"I take you you're picky on who you work for?"
"I'd prefer the term 'discerning'; nobody has made a decent offer to hire me as of late, so I'm just loitering around at this point, waiting."
He took another swig of his mug, glancing back at the food that covered the table and grabbed a piece of bread, dipping in a bowl of soup to appreciate the melded flavors.
"Can't go out on your own?"
"I'd really prefer company, truth be told. 'Safety in numbers' is reasonable on it's own, especially considering the amount of bandits that roam this province."
"Well, if you're comfortable traveling with me, I'd like to hire you."
It was Marcurio's turn to be taken aback.
"Really now? Dare I ask why?"
"You don't wanna?'
"No, no, perhaps I do. I'm just surprised you suggested that without knowing my fee, or anything about me for that matter."
Hunter considered his point, gnawing on a goat bone.
"I like to get to know people when I'm traveling with them, and for what it's worth, I'd like to think I'm a decent judge of character…and with all due respect, money ain't really an issue for me right now. I've been considering a traveling companion for a while, so I've saved up for 'just in case'. Actually, here. I've been putting it in a separate purse..."
She reached into her backpack, pulling the little bag out and passing it to the mage, who gave her a skeptical look.
"You can't be serious." he raised an eyebrow, looking between her honest face and the bag of coins.
"Is it not enough?" she folded her ears back in embarrassment, "I can give you more-"
"Yes. No! I mean- stop, stopstopstop." he passed the purse back to her, "It's plenty- too much, in fact, if I know my weight's worth of gold. Let's just count it later. I only charge five-hundred septims, and no more. Since you seem genuine on the matter, consider my services in affect as of now."
"Oh, wonderful! That's great! I was really worried those thugs might be after me, and wouldn't leave me alone long enough to get some sleep."
"Mm? Why do you think they're after you specifically?"
"Oh, well," she chomped on another grilled leek, "I might've threatened a guard on the way into town, but I'm not sure."
"You what?!" he yelled as quietly as possible in the crowded tavern.
"I'm innocent, really. He tried to rake me for money in front of his superiors, so I threw him to the ground and they all but laughed at him for it." she finished the last of the food with a satisfied sigh, and took a swig of milk. "Not my fault he got embarrassed for acting a fool."
"Dirty thieves..." the mage grumbled, glancing at the thugs from the corner of his vision.
"I'll be right back." She stood, stretching.
"Where are you going?"
"To rent a room for the night."
Hunter walked over to the bar, seeming nonchalant of the thugs that sat so close, but knowing they wouldn't dare attack her in such a crowded place.
"Miss Owner, I'd like to rent a room for the night, please."
"Sure thing, I'll show you upstairs."
The women strolled through the clutter of people, leisurely walking up the stairs as they left Talen to care for the customers in the meantime.
"Where'd Marcurio run off to?" Hunter questioned.
"Up here." he responded.
The two beast folk looked around curiously, only to see that the mage had positioned himself against the wall, casually leaning against the wooden beams with Hunters backpack by his feet.
"Finally got yourself a new boss, eh Marcurio?"
"It would seem so."
"This will be your room for-"
"Actually, If I may be so bold as to suggest..."
They gave him curious glances, waiting.
"I would propose the idea that Hunter sleep in my room for the night."
"WHAT?!" they cried in unison, but the mage raised a hand.
"Don't be so crude as to lump me in with some bedraggled dog, please."
"Then what's going on here?"
"Those thugs downstairs are looking for trouble with this one here, and as her employee, it's my foremost duty to see that she's safe."
"What does that have to do with sharing bedchambers, Marcurio? If you're looking for a female to warm your blankets, you should go to Haelga's-"
"Ugh! No! That's not-" he grimaced in disgust, "Divines sake, Keerava, just let me finish!"
"It's okay, I'll hear him out." Hunter responded.
"If the ruffians are looking for Hunter, of course they're going to search the guest rooms. But, considering I own this one, they shouldn't have any reason to look twice at it. Besides, by the law, I have every right to defend my property with any means necessary." he trailed the thought off, leaving it open for them to consider.
"What in Sithis' name did you do attract this kind of attention?" Keerava eyed the khajiit suspiciously.
"She put a thieves guild member in their place."
"Dirty thieves..." the Argonian growled. "Fine, if Hunter agrees to it, then this is on you two. But know this! I'll not have any part of the consequences if the guardsmen show up. That's on the two of you."
"Fair enough." Marcurio agreed easily.
"And the both of you will be staying for breakfast!"
"Of course!" Hunter exclaimed.
"Oh, and Hunter, you let me know if he tries anything funny with you. I'll have him booted to the river in a heartbeat!" she promised, giving Marcurio a half-teasing grin, though the man didn't doubt her threat in the slightest.
The duo watched their hostess leave back downstairs, before exchanging an awkward glance.
"Well, M'lady, if you are ready to rest, I will show you my most humble abode."
He opened the door to a room on the right, waiting patiently as she followed him the few steps and walked in, smiling at the simplicity of it.
There was a small desk, neatly piled with various books, a candle stand, and a few unopened drink bottles. A single chair rested in the alcove of the desk, and a mage's backpack leaned against the side. The floor was covered in caribou hides, reducing the din of the downstairs crowd by a surprising amount, and a couple of wall sconces were lit on the wall for some light. Against the back of the wall was a bed, providing the small room with as much space to move around as possible, and there was a pair of boots and some nicely folded clothes that rested underneath the bed frame.
"It's not much, but please, use whatever you need."
"Do you...live here?"
He watched as she sat on the edge of the bed with a sigh of relief, glad to be off her feet again.
"Hm? Oh, well, y'know. Somewhat." he shrugged, seemingly unbothered by the thought. "When I'd left Cyrodiil to come here, I was looking for adventure. It doesn't really do me any good to have an attachment to a place if I don't have a reason to stay long-term."
"You don't wanna stay here?"
"In Riften? Gods no! The only good things about this city are the people that hate the crime as much as I do, and the Temple of Mara."
He wrinkled his nose; as much as he liked Talen, Keerava, and a few other select individuals in the city, Riften was far from his dream home.
"Oh, I'd heard about the temple of Mara." she responded, removing the spiked bracers and greaves from her arms and legs, and tossing them to the floor. "I'd like to visit it while I'm here, if that's okay with you."
"Sure. It's just across the way from here. I'll make sure you get to see it before we leave town."
"I'll hold your paycheck to it!" she flopped into the bed and burrowed under the covers.
"I'll be just outside the door if you need anything, m'lady."