Her eyes swam with a feverish light, her fingers attached firmly to the plume that danced ever fluid across the crips vanilla pages. Here she had settled, amongst her belonging and a ring of books both titled and of her own make, stacked and strewn about in some undetectable form of organized chaos. It had been two days, or perhaps it was three since the pouch of coins had spilled forth on to the polished wood on which the taverns owner leaned and she had staked claim to a room and begun her work. The pages before her, the book snuggly tucked against the sleeve of her left arm, were the culmination of her month long journey and since arriving had stolen all her attention. It had made others weary, it was no secret, that one should sit for days without rising to take of food nor drink but she cared little. Her records, illustrations, and field journals were almost ready for the journey back to Winterhold and she would finish them yet within the day.
It was upon this scene that the courier would enter with muddy boots and a nervous stance in her doorway. She had left the dooropen as proof that no experimentation was taking place and so the imperial had no need to nock and had given her no need to rise. This was not to say that she had not heard him but rather that she was bothered very little by it, the current sentence demanding her full focus. It was her way and if it was little more than curiosity he would come though the warmth of the fire must have called to him to turn back as he faced the cold eyes of the Breton.
"Come," she sighed, letting her plume rest and her back touch the carved surface of the chair. "I will hear you, and take that letter. Assuming the paper that you have been fiddling with incessantly Is why you are here, Courier."
He had not told the woman his profession nor did he need to though he seemed surprised at her words. His outstretched hand was all the reply she needed and meeting his over the books below she took the Manila envelope into her own possession.
"Stay please," she indicated to him as she noted the state of the paper. "I may have some queries to make of you."
It is dry at least, no water stains. She nodded absent-mindedly, pleased by this at least. She was not unfamiliar with such official letters as these and took in the details quickly before procuring a knife specifically designed for this exact action. Slipping it under the edges she watched as the wax bulged against the side of the blade then gave away, crumbling and tumbling to the table in variously sized chunks. The paper itself matched the quality of its housing and was brought forth easily to rest in the slender hand. By the weight, she could have predicted the single page, though it was not the norm. Preparing to reveal its contents her eyes jumped to the man catching his own brown gaze. Throwing him an intimidating and a rather aggressive look he realized his mistake and began taking a few steps back, muttering many apologies. Now she was free to open it.
Dear colleague,
It has come to my attention that you happen to possess a set of skills which would be fitting for the task I have - one that would be in your best interests, perhaps.
If you see a chance to engage such a transaction, please meet in The Winking Skeever and further regulations will be discussed from there.
Regards
Anonymous
Business, this confirmed it. Yet another call to work. She had expected to be flooded with requests in due time however this was slightly sooner than she expected. Having just finished her approximate days, which were as exact an approximation as always it irked her, more so even than the vagueness. The latter, however, made her more uneasy. It seemed much to unprofessional and all too much like a trap, though she shouldn’t blame others for lacking to live up to her own high held standards of detail. Never the less she had received less credible calls with ample educational or monetary reward and if it was to be a trap she would hopefully make up for the time wasted via the belongings of the sender, stripped from his still warm corpse.
Decided she lifted her eyes and inhaled sharply, preparing to give orders. It was a shame that this courier was unfamiliar with her ways, it would have been much more efficient that way. Though Skyrim was not always the place for efficiency.
"Now, I'm assuming by the anonymous that you took no initiative to identify the sender." She raised a dainty finger to halt the words that began to leave his mouth. "One moment if you will, I have a few instructions for you and would prefer them to be addressed promptly. Worry not, you will be tipped well and will be compensated for your time. This should even be a rather enjoyable experience for you. The sender matters not to you, though if you have any information I will expect that post instructions. See here boy, you will wait for me this night. I have another delivery for you, though I will need the time to finish my scrawling and to prepare the package for travel. I will provide food and coin for lodging along with all the extra expenses. I expect you to hire a mercenary or two along with a carriage. The delivery will be given to a teacher at the college of Winterhold, none of those bloody students. They are apt to lose things of importance. If it arrives safely we will have no issue you and me, if not I WILL right that wrong, however, I see fit."
"Ah, well of course ma'am." The fire in her palm flickered, the letter having been tucked away into the folds of her robes during her speech. "That will do just fine."
His eyes never left the flames as he departed. Fear she thought as she watched him I can work with that. The night continued accordingly from there, with the Breton feeding both herself and the courier and ensuring all payments were made and the package prepared. She found even the time for rest, finally escaping into the sightlessness of sleep.
The morning, just as the night followed exactly as it should. Even the journey was rather pleasant and took little toll on the cremello mare and her exalted rider having been already near to the city itself. Trouble would not come until they reached the city itself...
"Closed?" She snarled angrily at the Nord before her, her face growing all the more poisonous by the second and she began; "HERE ME WELL, FOR I WILL NOT BE REPEATING MYSELF."
Nords. Her eyes were certainly aflame, and her palm began to tingle with magic. If they could wrench their heads out of their hind ends long enough to understand magic perhaps they would change their views, but no. She could only assume that if not for official business it was simply the prejudice against the mages that was so widespread amongst them. It boiled her blood. To add insult to injury the man seemed so confident in his capability to bar her way. She could destroy the gates in front of which they stood with a simple spell or at the very least let forth a torrent of flames that would consume both of the men and eat away at the wood... it would be so easy. Once more she felt her hand tingle...
"If you are the cause of my tardiness I will have your head." She hissed as she thrust her hand against his chest, the letter tucked securely underneath it.
She held this position until the guard lifted a hesitant finger to the paper. only when he slid it from under her hand did she lean back. Go back to your college now girl. His words played through her head as she waited, angered.
"Oh, this is not the first time I have seen one of these today." He drawled in his thick accent "You can come in, I will lead the way."
She tried to protest, of course, indicating that she had visited the area on numerous occasions unharassed in the past. It fell on deaf ears however and shortly she settled on not wasting words on the oaf. Instead, she set her eyes to roam the city and its occupants. So little had changed, yet so much. The stress, the tense aura in the air had begun to suffocate many, she could see. It would not be long until something had to be done. She sighed, dipping through the doorway of the tavern and waving her escort off, thanking him. She would be proper in manners if nothing else.
She was not done with her thanks and it seemed that the situation she had just escaped had fallen on her again. One more man leading her through yet another door. No matter, at least the contents of this room held some interest for her. Settling in the doorway she chose to watch the individuals, making observations and watching them interact naturally without her interference. She would wait to be noticed, or leave off. If not one of them could identify her shapely form at the door they were no company that she wanted.
