Opportunities

Four: A Fox to Chase

After a quick nap in my mother’s room at the Count’s Arms, for which I assured them she would be paying, I started back up towards Bruma, where my “official” fence should be. If I was going to be a Guild member I may as well be getting the benefits of that.

I’d never really spent much time north of the Imperial City, and I found Bruma ridiculously cold. I had to spend some of the money I was saving for Othrelos on a decent room and warmer clothes. Then I spent a couple of evenings sitting in the Tap and Tack, picking up local gossip so I would know who was worth robbing. Apparently the nicest houses in town were right across the street, and both theoretically easy marks: a senile old mer named Baenlin who barely ever got up out of his chair, and next door, the Bruma residence of the Arch-Mage herself, who was almost never there at all.

I was nervous going into the latter, thinking she might have some sort of magical traps or wards set, but she didn’t. But a lot of what she had were items too obviously meaningful not to be missed, too unique to be easily sold. I wasn’t interested in getting an Arch-Mage interested in me. I took some less hazardous things - pieces of silver, and items she had a great number of, like Welkynd stones. Baenlin’s house was easier: just the typical sorts of expensive nothings rich old people all had, and with the sense I’d picked up at the Tap and Tack of the butler’s schedule, it was easy to avoid him.

Ongar the Weary, my fence, was a tiresome man but not an offensive one. He paid me several hundred septims for everything, and sold me some extra lockpicks. Between that money and what I’d gotten from the cave in Anvil, I was making real progress toward paying my debt to Othrelos - and by now it was nearly time to meet him in Skingrad, so I made the journey down there.

Skingrad was an odd city, divided into two separately walled halves across from each other down the main road. I turned into the northern side, where the West Weald Inn was. As I was walking down to the west end, I suddenly felt someone come in close behind me, and Othrelos’s voice murmured in my ear.

“Not the Inn. Wait a few minutes, then double back to Summitmist Manor. It’ll be the last house on your left. No one lives there.” Then he was gone. I didn’t turn to look at him, assuming there was some reason for this added discretion. I wandered down the rest of the street more slowly, pretending to look at the Guild halls and shops.

When I came back the other way, I found that being the “last house” meant that Summitmist Manor was right next door to a guard tower. Besides that, there was no back door. A little challenge. I smiled. He used to pull this kind of trick on me back home, when I was still perfecting my craft, to test me.

Well, I’d just be lazy and use the front door. I pulled a lockpick out of my braid and palmed it, then continued to wander idly around as I observed how often the city guards walked by. When the way was clear I hurried to the door and jimmied it open.

Othrelos was waiting for me in the entryway, looking a little peaked but smiling. “I’m glad to see you, Lum,” he said, pulling me into his embrace.

“I’m glad to see you too. I’ve got a thousand septims for you.”

He looked down at me with his eyebrows raised. “You’ve been busy.”

“I want to pay you back as soon as I can. I know it was a lot of money, and I don’t want to be an inconvenience for longer than I have to be.”

“Ah. Well.” He gave me an additional squeeze. As I put my arms further around him, it registered that he was wearing his bow and quiver. “That’s good of you,” he said, “but you shouldn’t worry about it.”

“Of course I should. I’m going to have the rest of it next month.”

He kissed the crown of my head. “Anyway, since we’re here, I think we should look around and see what we like, don’t you?” He broke away from me and took off his weapons. “Make yourself comfortable. The owner only comes to town a few days a year.”

The house was huge, three stories, and stashed in various places were some interesting weapons, lots of pieces of silver, and a few expensive bottles of wine. Othrelos dumped the arrows out of his quiver so he could use it as a sack for the smaller items. “Arrows are cheap,” he said.

I giggled. “I miss this,” I told him, sitting down in front of the dining table we’d just cleared of valuables. “I miss doing houses together.”

“So do I,” he grinned, and knelt in front of me. He took hold of the arms of my chair and looked intently into my eyes. “I’ve missed a lot of things.”

“So come around more.” I leaned forward and gave him a light kiss. He returned it hungrily, and I wrapped my arms around his neck.

“I can’t,” he muttered between kisses. “I’m not sure I should even be here now.” He stroked my bottom lip with the tip of his tongue. “You joined the Guild?”

“Yes.” I kissed his neck beneath the ear, making him sigh. “Under Armand, like you asked me.”

“Good.” His hands ran up and down my sides. “So you haven’t had any trouble from Fathis?”

“No. I haven’t even seen him.” I nibbled at the base of his throat. “Everything’s fixed, O. Stop worrying.”

He groaned and bit into my neck. I moved to the edge of the chair so that more of our bodies could be in contact. His hands came up under my shirt, lifting it past my breasts, and he fondled and licked them with building urgency. I purred and held his head in place: his hands moved down to my legs, slowly raising the edge of my skirt over my thighs.

He slid one finger inside me and moved it slowly, just enough to tease. “I like you in a skirt,” he whispered. I rocked my hips in time with his hand, whining for more, and he smiled. My bites at his lips and throat did not convince him to give me what I wanted, either.

“You’re not fair,” I growled, scooting forward more and grinding against him, forcing him to move his hand away entirely. I pushed him back a little and grabbed at his trousers to open them.

“I’m not?” he grinned into my shoulder as I stroked him. By now we were both panting together.

“You know what I want. Give it to me.”

“What?” he asked, but then he brushed my hand aside and thrust into me, and stopped. “This?”

I grabbed him to me and wrapped my legs around his thighs. “Yes!”

He started to move again, and pressed his lips and tongue to mine. Having him inside me again gave me chills, even though I was dressed and inside a warm house. I ran my hands all over him, strangely annoyed that I couldn’t touch him everywhere at once. His thrusting sped up, and he pulled my hips forward to meet him more and more frantically. I began to reinforce the rhythm by pulling him toward me with my legs.

He looked into my eyes, and it felt as if we both realized at once how perfectly in sync we were, and that swept through both of our bodies in a delicious wave. We clutched each other tight as it happened, and gasped, and stopped very still for a moment. He reached up and stroked my cheek tenderly, then gave me a very soft kiss.

For a while neither of us broke the silence: we just stayed there, with him leaning into me, his cheek against mine. Finally I whispered, “Do you know yet whether you should be here?”

He laughed a little. “Yes.”

“So when do we do this again?”

“In a month. Keep being careful.”

I leaned back to look at his face, and noticed more than before how weary he seemed. “Still Fathis? Why are you so scared of him?”

He frowned for a moment, then stroked my hair. “He’s had people killed before, Lum. I’m scared of him because he’s dangerous. But he stays clear of Armand, so make yourself valuable to him.”

That was alarming. “I thought Guild members weren’t allowed to kill people.”

“Not during a robbery, but that’s not what Fathis does. And he has to be more careful what he does to Guild members, which is why I wanted you to join. And he makes enough to keep his fines paid if he’s found out.” He kissed me again. “And just humor me.”

“Oh. Well, all right, then.” I smiled. “How long do you think he’ll hold the grudge?”

“He’s a Dunmer,” he snarled. “Just make sure he never gets another claim on you.”

“No problem. I never intend to gamble.”

As another part of his excessive-seeming caution, he insisted that we leave the manor separately. He took everything we’d collected, because he had more time in the Guild and so more access to better fences. I told him to keep my half against the amount I still owed him. After a few more kisses, he left first.

So, I was to make myself valuable to Armand. That was fine. And when I got back to the Imperial City, an opportunity immediately presented itself: Hieronymus Lex was making trouble again. As a member of the Imperial Watch he’d always had it in for the Gray Fox, even when some of his superiors thought he was only a legend. Lex was more adamant against robbery and theft than against rape and murder – and now that Adamus Phillida had retired, Lex had been raised to Captain. His first act was to collect taxes from the Waterfront, which had always been exempt before, as a “message.”

One would assume it would be difficult to break into a watch tower, but it wasn’t really. Civilians were actually allowed into the ground floor, and I found that during a shift change, it was easy enough to sneak up the ladders into the upper levels. I got the tax money and records from Lex’s desk without any problem. Sneaking back down was more of an issue: I had to wait for another shift change. Fortunately, I was as small as most Breton girls, and could fit into a standard wardrobe, so I hid until I heard the telltale chaos beneath me.

Armand was as delighted with me as Othrelos could have wished. He asked me to do another special job for him, this one in Cheydinhal. I was to steal a bust of the deceased Countess from the Chapel of Arkay.

That I wasn’t sure about at all. I knew how important the dead were to the Dunmer, and I didn’t think Othrelos would approve, even for the sake of impressing Armand.

“I know it seems like an odd request,” he said when he saw my hesitation, “but I assure you it will be worth your while. You seem like an ambitious young woman, and the Gray Fox watches for thieves who are willing and able to do this kind of work.”

He didn’t seem like the sort of man to invoke a meaningless legend to inspire people. “So he’s real?” I asked, with what was probably a little too much girlish enthusiasm in my face.

He smiled. “If you do well, I will arrange for a personal meeting.”

Make yourself valuable, he’d said. He would forgive me this.

“Anyway,” he added with a playful smirk, “it would be too bad if I had to send Methredhel instead.”

“Oh!” I said, deliberately casual. “She got in after all, then?”

“She did. She insisted she’d actually gotten the journal even though she couldn’t give it to me.” He chuckled. “So I gave her another task, and without you here to take that one out from under her, she did just fine. Honestly, I would have given Amusei another chance too, but he never came back.”

I agreed to the job and set off for Cheydinhal. I’d never been before, but I’d heard enough about the Dunmer to recognize the feel when I got there. The buildings were a sweet-looking combination of white plaster and dark wood, and of course there was a higher proportion of dark elves walking the streets than I’d seen elsewhere. I used some money I’d acquired from a fellow traveler to book a room in the local inn. In the lobby, a young man who introduced himself as Guilbert Jemane chatted me up while I ate dinner. He was not unattractive, but he was also a little too earnest for my taste, and blond, so I slept by myself.

Normally there wouldn’t be guards posted in a chapel undercroft, but apparently the Count of Cheydinhal liked to be different, because the Chapel of Arkay’s undercroft had one. I almost stumbled right into her because I wasn’t expecting anyone to be there. I ducked into a dark corner, cursed at myself, and vowed to be more mindful of using detection spells rather than making assumptions.

She wasn’t terribly attentive though: she wasn’t really expecting any trouble. I quietly waited for her bored ambling to carry her to the opposite end of the undercroft, and then crept with more caution toward the coffin and the bust sitting on top of it. Out of respect I decided against checking the coffin for valuables, and left with only the bust.

It was the drop that turned out to be the problem. Lex had stirred up the Imperial Watch against the Guild, I guessed, because they had people posted before and behind Dareloth’s house. Armand was, wisely, neither there nor in his own house, which meant that I couldn’t find him to deliver the bust.

So I did the only thing I could think of to do: I dropped in on Methredhel.

She was terribly thrilled to see me. “Armand told me you’d gotten in. I guess it was you who took the journal from me, wasn’t it?” She gave me a very false looking smile. “Good one.”

I shrugged. “Nothing personal. It’s the Thieves’ Guild, not the Asking Politely Guild. So what’s happening with the Watch? Where’s Armand?”

“Hiding. The bust he had you steal wasn’t a normal contract – he’s trying to flush out a spy. Someone’s been snitching to Lex.”

“That’s great. Do we have any idea who?”

“Well, he left those tax records here for me to show you. Notice anything?”

She handed me the papers, and I looked them over. The name of Myvryna Arano, the old Dunmer woman next door to Methredhel, was conspicuously absent. “I assume we don’t think this was an oversight,” I said, handing the papers back. “Or kindness to an old lady.”

Methredhel smirked. “No, and no. Pin the theft of the bust on her. That should get the both of them out of our hair for a while.”

“There are guards all over the place. I don’t suppose you’d provide me with some sort of distraction for them?”

She sneered. “It’s too late to start asking politely.”

Oh well. I camped out in the shadow of the house that used to be mine, and watched the comings and goings of the guards, trying to get a feel for their rhythm. After a while, I picked my moment to start wandering innocently in that direction. When I knew no one was looking, I let myself into her house and put the bust of the Countess into her cupboard.

Then I went looking for Lex. It didn’t take me long to find him, since he was in the neighborhood, personally overseeing his big project.

He smiled when he saw me. We’d known each other growing up – he was only a few years older than me. He’d been the athletic type: popular for being fairly attractive and fine and upstanding and so on, but not terribly bright.

“Luminara! I heard you’d left town.”

For example, he’d never picked up on the fact that I was always a petty thief. He just felt bad about my father being such a loser. Since he’d been decent to me, I hadn’t stolen anything from him. From a couple of his girlfriends, yes.

“I came back,” I said. “I felt it was my duty.” I waited for him to raise his eyebrows. “I know where that bust you’re looking for is. Myvryna took it.”

“Myvryna? But she’s my – I mean she couldn’t have.” He frowned at how he had just barely stopped himself from telling me outright that she was the mole. “Poor old thing.”

“I saw it when I dropped by to say hello to her. You know, she always did have that weird fascination with the Count and Countess of Cheydinhal.”

“She… but it’s nonsense. I… well, come on, we’ll look, but I’m telling you, it can’t have been her.” He took me by the arm and strode toward Myvryna’s little shack, to which she was just coming home.

We all went in together and stood in a row as Lex opened the cupboard and found the bust sitting there. Myvryna stammered out denials, along with some accusations that Lex was turning on her. But the proof was right there, and Lex was compelled by honor to take her away.

That meant that the big search died down, and Armand resurfaced for his usual late-night appointments. He was more than pleased with me: he gave me a hundred septims and the name of another fence, this one in Leyawiin. A city I already knew someone in, damn it, but at least it was a sign of favor. He also asked where I was staying the night, and told me that the Gray Fox would be there to meet me.

And sure enough, he was. He was waiting in my room at the Wawnet.

I’d always wondered whether he was ever real. People had been telling stories about the Gray Fox for so long that no one even remembered the name of the man who’d stolen his mask from Nocturnal herself. All thoughts of legend or trickery flew out of my head when I saw him, though. I could feel daedric energy pouring out of the gray cowl and half-face mask he was wearing. I could recognize the faint blue lettering around the cowl’s edge as daedric writing, even though I couldn’t read it.

It was rather magnetic.

He smiled at me. “Capital job with the bust. Now we can return it to Cheydinhal. Armand said you had an issue with stealing from the dead, so I thought you should know it’s going back home.”

“Oh. Thank you.” I hated myself for blushing.

“You show a lot of promise, Luminara,” he said. His accent seemed Imperial. “I would like to transfer you to a different doyen – S’krivva, down in Bravil. I think she’ll be the best one to hone your particular set of talents.”

“But Othrelos wanted me to – ” I cut myself short when I realized that I was arguing with the Gray Fox about my position in his Guild.

“Hmm? What’s this about Othrelos? Know him well?”

“Um, yes.” I shuffled one foot uncomfortably. “He was very keen for me to work with Armand in particular. I’m sure S’krivva is fantastic, though.” I cleared my throat. “Really he wanted me to keep clear of Fathis Ules.”

“Oh, Fathis. Yes.” A mild disdain crept into his voice. “I assure you that Fathis does not want to run afoul of S’krivva. She is very much in charge of Bravil.”

“I’ll go. Thank you.”

He smiled again. “She’ll like you, I think. You’ll advance quickly there.”

We stood there silently for a moment. Perhaps he’d expected me to respond, but I had no other words. He seemed to look at me strangely.

“What is it?” I finally asked.

“You just, you look a little bit like – it’s not important.” He shook off whatever thought had been troubling him. “Armand knows I’m moving you, so go ahead and report to S’krivva as soon as you like. Keep doing well, and we will see each other again.”

He went casually out my door into the hall, and I wondered how he was going to slip past everyone downstairs. Perhaps by taking off the mask. When I thought of that, I went out myself, curious to see his real face. But as I looked down at the late-night rabble still in the tavern area, I couldn’t seem to remember what he had been wearing other than the cowl, so I never spotted him.