Sins of the Dovahkiin

Saadia got up early, just like she always did. It was a pain after a life of comfort and luxury, but it was also needed. There was a brawl last night and the inn was particularly messy, fortunately it didn't seem to bother the clients that were already sleeping. The last thing that The Bannered Mare needed was a bad reputation.

"Morning, Saadia." Hulda greeted, not raising her look to her for she was too busy cleaning one of the tables. "Go tidy up the first floor; we really need to make this inn decent before everyone wakes up." Her boss said and Saadia did as she was told. She went upstairs and started putting everything back to its place before sweeping the floor in a rather slow and lazy way for Saadia didn't even had her breakfast and was still quite tired.

A noise coming from one of the rooms caught her attention, it sounded like something or someone heavy had fallen. Saadia ignored at first, she had no patience for the clients' hangovers and often tried to stay out of their business when they were in that state. She was not always successful, of course. Saadia and Hulda were the only people who worked in the biggest establishment in Whiterun. It could be a hard job to do sometimes.

Another noise echoed in the corridor, it did not take long for Hulda to climb the stairs and ask her what was happening. "What's this noise? Can't you be more careful?" She muttered.

"It's not me." Saadia answered. "It's coming from that room, over there." She pointed.

Hulda knocked the door gently. "Is everything alright?" At first she only heard silence, but then she could hear someone was coughing heavily. "May I come in?" Hulda asked while opening the door, slowly, she didn't know what was happening but she couldn't let anything happen to a client inside her Inn's walls for it would give the place an awful reputation.

On the other side of the door, Slava's temperature was much higher than normal. Her body pulsed and her head seemed to be burning with the heat. She tried to speak, but her throat was so dry that all she could do was to cough more. "Oh, by the Divines! Saadia, get Arcadia or the Priestess, whoever you see first! Go fast!" Hulda yelled while putting her hand over Slava's head. "Damn, girl, what did you get yourself into?"

Hulda wetted a piece of old cloth and put it over the stranger's head, she kept coughing so Hulda also made her drink some water until the girl was able to speak. "Do you know why this happened to you?" Hulda asked. "No…" Slava whispered with a husky voice. It did not take long for Saadia to appear, but instead bringing the Priestess or Arcadia, she brought Aela the Huntress.

"Has she spoken? Do you know anything about her?" Aela asked in her usual demanding tone.

"No, she's a stranger. I've never seen her before. I only know that she did something for the Jarl, don't know what though." Hulda answered.

"Right." Aela said while grabbing Slava and putting her over her shoulder with no effort. "Did she pay for the night?"

"Yes." Hulda nodded.

"Good, do me a favor, Hulda, please don't mention this to anyone else." Aela said before disappearing with the stranger over her shoulder. It was still pretty early so she managed to not alert the city's folk. In Jorrvaskr was a completely different story though.

"Aela, are you mad?" A large man with war paintings and blind on his left eye said. "You don't even know her, damn, you don't even know if she wants to join us!"

"She's the Helgen girl, Skjor. She has also the one who has been working for the Jarl." Aela replied.

"So? Let her work for him! You don't even know if she's honorable!" The man protested.

"I'm sorry, Aela, but he is right." A younger man in a steel armor said.

"Leave it with me, yes? I'm going to get her healed and then we will discuss this. Now don't disturb her." The redheaded said, the men took her leave and turned her attention to Slava who had passed out again thanks to the fever.

Aela closed the door and took off her gloves. "Now, let's see where that that trap hit you." She whispered to herself, there was a visible wound on her shoulder but Aela could also tell that it had been treated in time, there was also a small bite on her leg, but it didn't seem infected. Aela thought that made she had run into a trap, but there were no other injuries besides some small bruises on her left leg. She decided to turn the stranger around and check her back after lifting her shirt. "There you are." Slava had been hit by some kind of dart some one of the many traps that she did her best to avoid, it only left her a small superficial scratch, but the skin around it was black and infected. Aela did her best to clean it before turning Slava around again. "Hope you will now listen to me, since I took care of you and all. It would be nice of you." The Huntress said in a dry tone, even though she knew that Slava couldn't hear her. "You're going to be scared shitless if I'm not here when you wake up. That's what you get for being a bitch." She added before leaving the room, Aela actually had a job to do and was already late. "Skjor, keep an eye on the girl. I gotta care of those Bandits east of here. I'll be back today."

Skjor sighed and mumbled something inaudible. He didn't look very happy, but Aela knew that he said yes.