[Story] pt.24 another mouth to feed

Part one is here Part 23 is here

[...]

Inside it's a hub of rooms, with a fire and a load of sleeping bags around it. This must be where they sleep. We can hear voices. They appear to be arguing. We sneak around the fire and I spot a bandit moving back towards the fire, I wait for them to get closer and drop them with an arrow. The dead bandit turns out to be a woman, and the closer we get, it sounds like what they're arguing about is a woman. We advance down the passage with me on point and Sofia in the rear.

The passage flairs out into a small room I get a few arrows into the big guy, but Vilja steps up to do most of the fighting, she's not half bad with a sword. She takes out the archer on her own with no help from me. The chest has a few coins in it, and the barrels are full of food, apart from the cloaks and beer there's nothing much worth taking on either of them. But the big guy must have been our man, as they were the only ones left alive in the whole place.

There appears to be another passage spurring off the room at one corner, that leads to a locked door. I figure it's worth a shot, now that I have a fair few lockpicks. On the third one the door opens.

The room appears to be a simple store room. There are a few weapons made by the odd forge, some potions, some food and another coin chest. There is also a switch, but all that does is close the door, the only other way out is the ladder.

[...]

We climb out into a very dark room until Vilja puts up some light, there is a chest, and a pull chain. Which opens the portcullis to the outside world. We find a Whiterun guard outside, "everything is in order" he says when we approach. Sofia keeps quiet, but she seems quite pleased by what Vilja can do. I tell Sofia that we may have trouble finding the horses in the dark. She just smiles and whistles, the horse soon appears. "You trained him well I see" I say, she smiles and nods. Vilja pulls out a large horn, blows it, and her horse comes running too.

We've no idea what time it is, but it is pitch black outside. We better get home. Scanning the horizon shows up a shadow which looks like it might be Dragonsreach, and it's in vaguely the right direction, so we head for that. The fog that sits on top of the small stream we have to cross looks very spooky in the dark. But after we cross it, the shadow resolves itself into Whiterun proper. We ride for it We again cross the lit cave mouth, from out here in the dark we can see shadows moving within, but we don't need to go looking for trouble at this hour.

[...]

We approach the walls of Whiterun, and ride along it until we can make out the lanterns on the road,and we follow that to the stables, where we park the horses for the night.

When we get to the gate and ask the time, it turns to be relatively early, so we decide to drop off some loot at home, and head out to the mare. Vilja agrees to come with us this time. But not before Sofia starts to cook something, she says she needs to eat. She makes some kind of meat and potato dish, it's not bad. Time for beer!

[...]

On the way in, we check the notice board, it has another bandit mission in a place called Redoran's retreat, we pick that up before going in.

Inside the place is packed, with no chance of getting a table. So we tell Hulda were going to make use of the baths. we strip off an climb in while somebody brings in some beer. Vilja is a bit bashful at first, but she eventually strips off and climbs in, she's​ a well built girl I'll give her that. We drink some beer and get to talking.

I tell Vilja that Sofia and I were quite impressed with her performance today, she's quite handy with a sword, she's certainly welcome to stay. Vilja brightens upon hearing this. Sofia is having a small fit of the giggles, when we hear a noise from the main room, a voice cries out, and then there is a commotion.

I put on a towel and duck out to see what's going on, seems like one of the labourers, stood up clutched his heart and toppled into the fire, when the guards pull him out he's not breathing. The guards carry the body out.

I go back to the baths. To find Vilja telling Sofia how she always wanted to be a bard and tell tall tales. I tell them about the dead guy and Vilja looks concerned while Sofia laughs. Two peas temporarily in a pod, but otherwise from different plants.

Sofia seems happy enough so I get Vilja another beer and she tells me about nights out at the tavern at home. Her father is quite the drinker it seems.

[...]

We decide we've had enough of the baths, and while Vilja and I are getting dressed, Sofia slips out into the main room, she's incorrigible that girl. We find her parked in a chair by the fire talking to a new face in an expensive looking outfit. Vilja meanwhile orders another drink and decides to jump onto the bar and dance, which cause quite a stir. When I look back Sofia and the new girl a no longer there, I scan the room and see the girl leaving by the front door, I call out for Sofia and somebody tells me she left just moments ago. I pull Vilja off the bar and we go outside.

I see the girl walking with Sofia across the market Square, and into a house. I approach and the door is locked. I bang on the door and eventually a man appears. Opens the door a bit, so I force it open. Vilja and I go inside.

[...]

Sofia sees me and smiles, she seems unharmed, the new girl is also naked, a Redguard by the colour of her skin, and both the man and the girl tell me I should leave. Vilja puts her hand on her sword, and steps out from behind my shadow. Something very odd going on here. At that point another naked woman wearing a chef's hat and manacles comes out of a side room looks at Vilja and cowers. The man follows my line of sight and I take advantage of the disturbance to grab hold of Sofia and back out of the house. I'm not sure what they were trying to do. But they don't look too happy about it.

I drape a cloak around Sofia and we head back to the mare to get her clothes. Once she's dressed again, I ask her what she was talking to the girl about. "She said she was new in town and would I like to join her for a drink, so she invited me back to her place. At that point she said she'd feel more comfortable without clothes, and then the guy turned up. He seemed confused when you started banging on the door."

We wander back home, Vilja says that the night was good fun and we should do it again sometime. Another mouth to feed.

[...]

Part 25 is here