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<\/p>\nDag woke first the next morning and smiled to find her head still on Roggi\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 Poor man\u2019s arm was going to be numb.\u00a0 He was sound asleep, snoring gently.\u00a0 She had one arm and one leg draped over him, and spent a moment admiring what a contrast her dark skin made against his very pale body. There had almost been no need for a cover, for all the heat he radiated.<\/p>\n
Roggi hadn\u2019t given her all that much opportunity to sleep.\u00a0 They had endeavored together with the fervent, intense urgency of two people solitary too long, with needs too great to be postponed a moment longer. They had held each other, afterward, talking quietly, until another sweet kiss had led them into another, gentler, slower exploration that left them both delighted with each other and ready for rest.<\/p>\n
She sighed happily.\u00a0 It was altogether too tempting to wake him up for another go by nibbling on his ear, but they really did need to get back on the road.<\/p>\n
She slid away from Roggi as gently and quietly as possible and pulled on her clothes, then started down the ramp.\u00a0 Turning to look at him again, she had to smile. \u00a0She was glad she\u2019d shared a night with her best friend and, better yet, that it had been his first move and not hers.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t as though she\u2019d never had men approach her before, but only in a \u2026 utilitarian way, without any feeling, and simply because she was female. She certainly didn\u2019t think of herself as especially attractive with the big scar on her face. Nobody else had, either, since Coyle, or so it seemed. Roggi had made it seem as though she was the most exquisite thing in the world. It made her happy in ways she hadn\u2019t felt in ages.<\/p>\n
As she rummaged around in their things to find something to make for breakfast, an unwelcome thought began dancing around in the back of her mind.\u00a0 Roggi didn\u2019t know the implications of what they\u2019d done in Whiterun.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t know who she was working for, and she hoped to keep it that way because he definitely didn\u2019t like thieves or bandits. Not that she did, either, but she was rather stuck with her current situation.\u00a0 She frowned.\u00a0 He was going to figure it out eventually, especially if he returned to Riften with her; he certainly wasn\u2019t a stupid man, even if he appeared to like playing dumb when the situation called for it. It hadn\u2019t mattered so much when she\u2019d first gone to him with his shield, but it mattered a lot more, now. Maybe the satisfaction of taking out some skooma dealers would soften the blow.<\/p>\n
She heard footsteps behind her and turned to find Roggi smiling at her, his hair back in a tail, dressed and ready to go.\u00a0 He walked over and kissed the top of her head, then sat down to eat the meager meal she\u2019d pulled together.\u00a0 \u201cDid you sleep well, love?\u201d he asked, munching at some bread.<\/p>\n
She grinned at him.\u00a0 \u201cAre you kidding?\u00a0 After yesterday a wolf howling in my ear wouldn\u2019t have kept me awake. Not that it was very long, thank you, but it was sound sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n
He laughed, and waggled his eyebrows at her, his eyes twinkling.\u00a0 Then he smiled and said, \u201cthank you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor?\u00a0 Just the obvious?\u201d Dag grinned.<\/p>\n
He looked down at her and smiled.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s been quite some time since I\u2019ve had something to smile about,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cIt feels good.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dag was about to make some jest but stopped.\u00a0 \u201cIt does,\u201d she said, realizing that yes, in fact, she felt more centered, somehow lighter than she had since leaving home.\u00a0 She hadn\u2019t expected to feel that way ever again. Maybe there was some hope that the wounds would eventually heal.<\/p>\n
\u201cListen, Roggi,\u201d she said, glancing at him and hoping his good mood would continue, \u201cI have a proposition for you.\u201d<\/p>\n
He smiled, mischief dancing in his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cAnother one?\u201d<\/p>\n
She grinned. \u201cYes. Though the last one was yours, as I recall.\u201d\u00a0 He laughed.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know how much of a hurry you are in to get back to Kynesgrove.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot much,\u201d he said, smiling.\u00a0 \u201cWhy do you ask?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWell I know it\u2019s a bit out of our way given that we were heading straight to Riften and all, but I need some help taking on a little problem.\u00a0 Potentially a big problem.\u00a0 While I was in Riften I stumbled over a skooma operation and the Jarl asked me to take care of the headquarters.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Jarl herself?\u00a0 That must be quite the tale!\u201d<\/p>\n
Dag nodded, explaining the circumstances of meeting Wujeeta and getting herself involved in the issue. \u201cI saw too many people lose everything to skooma. Some\u2026important people, to me.\u201d She frowned. Every time she tried to talk about them, the pain came way too close to the surface. She cleared her throat and met his eyes. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t even a decision to make, in my mind.\u00a0 But then I came this close to dying fighting Sarthis.\u00a0 If not for that, I never would have realized how much I needed your help.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201dOf course. I\u2019ll be happy to help any way I can.\u00a0 The more bandits we remove from Skyrim the better, as far as I\u2019m concerned.\u201d\u00a0 He took another bite of bread and said around it, \u201cReally, the mine will be there when I return, and maybe Kjeld can get his son off his lazy behind while I\u2019m gone.\u00a0 Kjeld and I do all the work in there. The others are just pretending. Young Kjeld is a big strapping lad who ought to pull his own weight. Besides,\u201d he smiled at her, \u201cI\u2019m in no rush to part from my current company.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dag smiled back.\u00a0 \u201cNor I,\u201d she said.\u00a0 In fact, she thought, I could happily spend a week or so just playing amongst the bedrolls with you.\u00a0 \u201cHowever,\u201d she continued with a sigh, \u201cwe will need not to linger. \u00a0The people I\u2019m working for in Riften are not likely to take the waiting well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Roggi frowned a bit, pondering, then nodded. \u201cWell then.\u00a0 Let\u2019s get going.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The road east from Nilheim was steep, and downhill.\u00a0 They were surprised to find that the bandit\u2019s overturned cart actually was abandoned along the road, a good way down, with vegetable sacks and a trail of odd potatoes and cabbages behind it.\u00a0 \u201cAmazing,\u201d Dag said, shaking her head.\u00a0 \u201cHe went to the bother of tipping over a cart.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt would make an impression on people coming up the hill,\u201d Roggi agreed.\u00a0 \u201cHe won\u2019t be impressing anyone from now on, though.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBears or saber cats, maybe,\u201d Dag said.\u00a0 \u201cFree lunch.\u201d\u00a0 Roggi shot her a look and rolled his eyes.<\/p>\n
As they strolled along, Dag was surprised to hear Roggi humming, a pleasant sound and a tune that seemed familiar somehow.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s that song?\u201d<\/p>\n
Roggi smiled and started singing, his voice a mellow, honeyed baritone that she could easily have listened to all day.\u00a0 \u201cThere once was a woman as fair as an evening in springtime on old Stros M\u2019Kai\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dag grinned.\u00a0 \u201cYou know that one, eh?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve known it all my life, but never so well as I do now,\u201d he said, smiling at her.<\/p>\n
Dag blushed.\u00a0 She was glad that her blushes didn\u2019t show very well.\u00a0 Her thoughts started tumbling. What am I going to do with you, Roggi? Her small voice whispered to her:\u00a0 Whatever you both like and for as long as you care to do it. <\/em>I suppose so, she answered herself.\u00a0 That was, after all, how she\u2019d lived her life so far.<\/p>\n The road hugged the northern rim of the Rift\u2019s plateau, above the volcanic tundra below.\u00a0 It was an amazing, panoramic view, off to their left, at the places where the road was particularly close to the cliff face.<\/p>\n Dag stopped at one of these spots to catch her breath and enjoy the breeze.\u00a0 \u201cLook at that view,\u201d she breathed.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll bet on a really clear day you could almost see all the way to Wind-\u201c<\/p>\n Suddenly she was stumbling off to her right, a searing pain erupting from her left thigh.\u00a0 She scrambled to her feet, fumbling for her swords. She was off-balance, but she could feel the rush of air from the figure near her, too near, trying another attack but missing by a whisper.\u00a0 Roggi rushed in behind the assailant, screaming, with his sword drawn.\u00a0 The attacker turned to face him.\u00a0 Dag could see sharp, curved daggers slashing a whirling attack at him, and then heard a cry of pain and saw a red line open across Roggi\u2019s chest, under his raised arms.<\/p>\n \u201cNo!\u201d Dag ignored the pain in her leg and attacked with everything she had, thanking the Eight that the scimitars were so sharp and that she knew how to use them.\u00a0 Even so, the slight figure in red and black leathers had bought a moment by wounding Roggi, and he matched her move for move.\u00a0 He\u2019s going to kill me, she thought.\u00a0 I can\u2019t get him, I can\u2019t move fast enough, he\u2019s going to \u2013 And then the man\u2019s eyes opened in surprise as the point of Roggi\u2019s greatsword slid out through his chest.\u00a0 He slumped.\u00a0 Roggi dumped him onto the ground.<\/p>\n \u201cQuick, let me see that,\u201d Dag said, placing her hands on Roggi\u2019s ribcage and casting a healing spell.<\/p>\n He stood for just a moment with eyes closed, breathing deeply, then opened them and shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m fine, now,\u201d he protested.\u00a0 \u201cIt surprised me, but it\u2019s not a deep cut. See to that leg.\u201d<\/p>\n Dag looked down at herself.\u00a0 In the adrenaline of the moment she\u2019d forgotten about herself, but now it was starting to hurt badly.\u00a0 Blood was running down the outside of her pants.\u00a0 \u201cDammit.\u201d\u00a0 She sat and turned her attention to the wound. It was deep, but not as bad as the arrow wound from the necromancer outside Whiterun had been.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019ll be ok in a few minutes,\u201d she said to Roggi.\u00a0 \u201cWho in Oblivion was that guy? And how in the world did he come from just out of nowhere like that?\u201d<\/p>\n Roggi\u2019s face was as dark as a storm off the Sea of Ghosts.\u00a0 \u201cI hope I\u2019m wrong about my guess,\u201d he growled, reaching down to check the dead Argonian’s pockets.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s a note here.\u201d\u00a0 He read for a moment, then went pale and looked up at Dagnell.<\/p>\n \u201cDark Brotherhood. Why would someone want you killed?\u201d<\/p>\n Dag\u2019s heart froze. She\u2019d never encountered such a thing before but she knew about the guild of assassins.\u00a0 They didn\u2019t stop until they had eliminated their target.\u00a0 Now she was in deep trouble. \u201cAn assassin? Really?\u00a0 I don\u2019t know.\u00a0 I can\u2019t think of anything I\u2019ve done that would..\u201d\u00a0 But as she trailed off she wondered.\u00a0 Sabjorn\u2019s contacts? Maven? No, that didn\u2019t make sense; he was in Whiterun\u2019s prison and Mallus was happy about it.\u00a0 Did Aringoth\u2019s people send someone after her? The silent partner, maybe?\u00a0 That was the only thing she could come up with.\u00a0 She was going to have to come clean with Roggi sooner or later.\u00a0 Maybe she could ease into it.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2026\u00a0 I suspect it has something to do with the errand we did in Whiterun.\u201d<\/p>\n He frowned. \u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s about the people who asked me to do the errand. I told you true, I\u2019m not sure why it had to be me and not someone who was already in Whiterun, but what I do know is that there are layers of things going on that I don\u2019t begin to understand.\u00a0 I\u2019m sorry. I\u2019ll tell you more, if I\u2019m able to, after I check in back in town.\u201d<\/p>\n He was quiet for a moment, but Dag could see his thoughts dancing across his face and knew where they were going. \u201cHmm. There are some bad people in Riften.\u201d<\/p>\n I\u2019m so sorry, Dag thought, looking at the suspicion on his face. \u201cYeah, there are, and I fear somehow we \u2013 I \u2013 have gotten on the wrong side of some of them.\u201d\u00a0 Dag\u2019s mind was racing.\u00a0 She had to salvage this situation somehow but she didn\u2019t know whether it was even possible. \u00a0She stood, dusted her pants off, and tried hard to smile.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are some really nice people in Riften, too, though,\u201d she said, trying to sound nonchalant and probably failing. \u201cTruly.\u00a0 Balimund, for example. He\u2019s the blacksmith.\u00a0 I like him a lot and I\u2019ll bet you will too.\u201d Roggi was still frowning.\u00a0 She was trying too hard, and she knew it, but she had to set things right.\u00a0 \u201cOh and the Jarl.\u00a0 I think you\u2019ll like her as well.\u00a0 She\u2019s very, well, noble.\u201d She laughed. \u201cYeah, that was dumb. Anyway, she says if I can get rid of the skooma dealers I\u2019ll be, oh how did she put it, on my way to a title in Riften.\u201d\u00a0 I\u2019m babbling, she thought.\u00a0 But I can\u2019t stand it if Roggi loses faith in me. He\u2019s \u2026 important.<\/p>\n His mouth dropped open for a moment. \u201cA Thane? Really?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cReally. I\u2019m pretty amazed.\u00a0 All I wanted was to get rid of the dealers.\u201d\u00a0 She stopped, grinding her teeth yet again, her voice threatening to catch.\u00a0 Roggi reached out and touched her arm, and she smiled at him, nodding.<\/p>\n \u201cBut yeah, if I do, you can say you\u2019re best friends with a Thane, how\u2019s that?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m impressed, love.\u00a0 That\u2019s really something.\u201d<\/p>\n Dag looked at his face, the bright blue of his eyes, and a wisp of a thought that had been dancing about in the back of her mind suddenly became solid.\u00a0 There it was again. \u201cLove.\u201d Roggi truly cared about her. That was beginning to be clear.\u00a0 The previous night hadn\u2019t just been a playful whim for him. She wasn\u2019t sure it really had been just a whim for her, either. \u00a0She had no idea what she was going to do about it.<\/p>\n They continued along the road, quietly keeping a more wary eye out than they had before in case there was more than one assassin. They stopped for a quick lunch as the road began to rise again, back up the eastern side of the escarpment.\u00a0 She watched Roggi eating, his mind clearly a million miles away.\u00a0 She hadn\u2019t expected anyone to care about her again, really, after Coyle, and her stomach was doing flips just thinking about it. I don\u2019t want to give him reason to hate me, she thought.\u00a0 I wonder if I\u2019ve already mucked it up.\u00a0 And now I sound like Brynjolf.<\/p>\n Not too much farther, the road converged with another one that doubled back in a steep switchback.\u00a0 \u201cI remember this spot,\u201d she said.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re not too far from the path that takes a shortcut through to Riften.\u00a0 I think that\u2019s where we have to go.\u201d<\/p>\n Roggi nodded.\u00a0 \u201cI know the place.\u00a0 We\u2019ll need to be really careful; there are a few caves up there and an old ruin, and who knows how many bandits or thieves might be holed up in them.\u201d\u00a0 She shot a sideways look at him.\u00a0 His face was grim.<\/p>\n Dag woke first the next morning and smiled to find her head still on Roggi\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0 Poor man\u2019s arm was going to be numb.\u00a0 He was sound asleep, snoring gently.\u00a0 She had one arm and one leg draped over him, and spent a moment admiring what a contrast her dark skin made against his very … <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/baakay.com\/FanFic\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/1-1-21-2.png\")
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<\/p>\nPart I: Survivors<\/a><\/div>\nPrevious<\/a> \/ Next<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"