Chapter Text
The pain was gone. Cicero blindly shifted around as his senses gradually came back to him. He took a deep breath and opened his eyes; the bitter taste of an unknown alchemic concoction coated the back of his throat. He was still on the floor, but judging by the sound of crackling and warmth, he was lying near the hearth. Someone had fed the fire. How long was he out for?
Cicero groaned and slowly pulled himself up. His muscles were stiff suggesting he had been unconscious for a while. He glanced down to see that he was no longer wearing the top piece of his armor and a bandage was wrapped around his torso with precision. His eyes shifted up to the room. The blood that once covered the wooden floor had been cleaned up and an old rug now covered most of the stains. Meegs and Quen's bodies were gone. Jade. Where was Jade!?
Strength rapidly returned to his muscles. Cicero shifted to get to his feet; the clanking of a chain startled him. He glanced down to see an old rusted shackle clamped around his ankle. It appeared to be secured to a metal clasp bolted near the foot of the bed. The chain length was enough to move about the cabin, but clearly whoever put it on didn't want him going anywhere.
Cicero lifted the chain and before even testing its strength, he realized that someone was lying in the bed—a blonde woman. She was lying with her back to him, clean linen wrapped around her, and appeared to be sleeping. There were empty potion bottles scattered around the nightstand, some with unique and exotic designs, possibly from another region. Cicero made his way closer with caution. Could this be the person who dressed his wounds?
"Miss?" he asked, his voice was hoarse and his throat felt dry. She didn't seem to hear him. He approached the bed and leaned slowly to see her face. She had dried blood caked in her hair and her cheek seemed to be slightly stained. She- ...it was Jade.
Cicero's concerns about being captive vanished; there was no way he'd leave her behind. His head began to spin. Maybe it was from standing after being on the ground for so long, but he felt like he was about to faint. He gently sat on the bed beside her and brushed her blonde hair from her face noticing that her makeup had been cleaned away. Her skin was warm but not as warm as it should have been.
Cicero squeaked as he struggled to hold in his conflicting emotions of relief and regret. He was so convinced that she had been killed. There's no way anyone could have survived such an injury. He leaned down to touch his lips to her temple before laying beside her, pulling her into his arms. She was unresponsive.
"This should have never happened," he whispered, holding her head against his shoulder. Her body, though breathing, felt cool against his skin. Someone else had to have saved them. There's no way Jade could have aided his wounds and then cared for herself in her condition. And where did all those strange potion bottles come from?
"This was my fault," he continued while running his fingers through her blood-stained hair, "I led them here... I brought you into this mess. It was my job to keep you from harm, but instead, I brought you into it. You and Eris... I did it again. I was distracted; thinking with my heart instead of my head... I'm a fool."
Cicero's hand brushed against the thin chain of a necklace at the back of her neck. He hooked it with his finger and lifted his head to see. It was the silver necklace with the gemstones he had given her back in Whiterun. She never wore jewelry and didn't seem to like it when he had first presented it to her. She never liked anything he gave her. Jade was a difficult woman to please. But here she was, wearing that second-hand necklace. The little blue and green gems suited her.
It was then that Cicero noticed a small clasp on the side of the pendant. He gently flicked it with his thumb causing it to pop open revealing something folded inside. He carefully removed the delicate item to examine it.
It was a flower petal that seemed to be preserved in a soft resin. He rolled it around in his fingers while thinking. It looked like a petal from a deathbell. Perhaps she kept it to use for alchemy? No, no. That's silly. Jade knew next to nothing about alchemy. Nor was she one to ever plan ahead.
Then a strange thought crossed his mind. Was this a petal from the flower he had attempted to give her several months ago? Jade acted so upset that he had picked flowers for Mother but had none to offer her. She just never seemed like a woman who cared about such gestures. Even when he tried to reconcile with the offering of this flower, she seemed to not care and even threw it back at him, if memory served. Did she pick it up after he'd left? Even if she did, why did she preserve it like this?
Cicero's thought process was shattered by the sound of the cabin door creaking open. He knew it was a matter of time before whoever aided them would return.
"Hey, you're finally awake," a young blond man said as he set a bucket of water down by the door. He looked to be in his late twenties, a bit thin and rather small for a typical male Nord in these parts. Though, he wasn't dressed like a typical Nord either. His attire suggested affluence and importance. Clean-cut, rich fabrics, and what appeared to be a velvet duster with a fur collar. Oddly, he also wore long black leather gloves up to his elbows as if to keep his hands clean in whatever profession he practiced.
"Who are you?" Cicero asked as he slowly sat up on the edge of the bed.
"I should be asking you the same thing, bro," the man replied as he wiped his gloves with the end of a long blood-spattered cloth hanging from his belt, "What are you doing in my cabin, and what in Oblivion happened? It took me two days to get all of the blood out before it began attracting wildlife."
"Your cabin? This place is abandoned."
"It's my uncle's cabin. I grew up here. That's not the point," the man moved over to a small table near the door and picked up a fancy blue pipe. He then pulled a tiny container from the pouch on his belt and began pouring some sort of powder into it and packing it down with his pinky finger.
"Are you Winter-Heart?" Cicero inquired as he watched the man conjure a small flame to light the pipe.
"Ah, so this isn't a coincidence? You know my sister, then," he began to smoke, "I honestly figured you were a bandit of sorts but that didn't explain why you were wrapped around her so intimately."
"Jade's never mentioned a brother," Cicero rapidly began noticing the resemblance. The man's bold green eyes and plush lips; his petite frame confirming it.
The man exhaled a plume of light purple smoke and chuckled as he sauntered over, "Ah, yes. 'Jade'. Such an uninspired epithet."
Cicero instinctively took note of the Blade of Woe lying on the nightstand among the various potion bottles, "She said her mother died in childbirth."
"I'm her older brother. Twin. Hard to tell, right? Youthful genetics," he laughed, "I'm lying, bro. It's a facade. A lucrative one, at that."
"So you're not her brother?"
"No, no," he lowered to the floor in front of Cicero, crossing his legs casually, "She's my little other half, yes. But the youthful facade... well, that's paid for."
"I'm still not following..."
The man took another hit from his pipe and held his gloved hand out to him, "Name's Yavni Winter-Heart. I deal in black-market trades and transactions. I'm also the guy you call when you need a favor. Clean up, disposal, alibies, witness protection, forged documents, fencing, you name it. I make it happen."
It was no surprise to Cicero that Jade's brother would also operate within the criminal underground. It seemed their entire family was connected through the Thieves Guild. Given his status with the faction, Cicero felt it would be best to play it safe by limiting how much personal information he shared. He shook Yavni's hand, "Cicero."
"Imperial. Nice. I love a man with money." He winked.
"I don't have any wealth to my name."
"Well, damn. You must be hung then."
"Excuse me?"
"Money or dick, the slut's after something. What'd you offer her?"
"Unbelievable. You so freely call your sister a slut?"
Yavni burst into laughter and promptly began choking on his smoke. He waved his hand around as he tried to get control again, "Okay, okay! You clearly do not know her well. Honest mistake!"
"I know her very well, thank you," Cicero clenched his jaw, suddenly realizing that perhaps he didn't know nearly as much as he had thought. He didn't even know Jade had a twin brother. She was extremely secretive about her past. It was only by tragic circumstance that he learned of her uncles.
Yavni grinned as he examined his pipe, "If sleeping with the bitch means you know her, well... half of Skyrim knows her quite well."
"You don't seem to know her at all if you deem her a gold-digging prostitute," Cicero said in a low tone, quite annoyed to be having this conversation yet again.
"The most opening up she does is with her legs," Yavni shrugged, "and I'm not about incest, so my observation stands. But I'll tell you what, my mysterious friend. You seem rather interested in my family, so let's play a little game. I'm in a friendly mood today-"
"I'm sure that skooma helps..."
"It does, indeed. Yes, I'm in a friendly mood today," he repeated, "So instead of alerting the local patrol and having you arrested for trespassing, murder, and possible assault, let's swap some information. Coolio?"
Cicero glanced down at the chain attached to his ankle. He had little choice. He knew he needed to watch what he said. With this man's alleged profession, he was likely very adept at finding things out. The situation could turn bad to worse in a heartbeat.
"Fair enough..." Cicero muttered, subtly reaching back to brush his hand on Jade as if to ground himself.
"I'll ask a question, and you answer truthfully," Yavni explained, "Then you can ask me something and figure out if I'm lying."
Cicero lowered his brow. This guy was hard to read and seemed to find enjoyment in being difficult. His snide grin and relaxed posture just oozed confidence. Though, unlike Jade, Yavni's narcissism didn't feel like an act.
"First question," Yavni leaned back onto his arm and pointed the mouth of the pipe at Cicero, "How do you know my sister?"
"She's my boss," he replied, tightening his lips as he tried to gauge Yavni's reaction.
"Boss, eh? You a hired sword?"
"Something like that."
"Fair enough. I have to say, though, nice job protecting her from the Dark Brotherhood and the Thalmor," he said sarcastically.
Cicero squinted, "They're dead, aren't they?"
"True," Yavni shrugged and sat forward, resting his arms on his thighs, "Your turn. Ask away."
"What did you mean when you said, 'youthful facade'?"
"HA!" he slapped his knee, "I knew you'd come back to that! As mentioned, I run black-market items from shady sources from all around Tamriel. Potions, scrolls, drugs... contraband. You name it, I've smuggled it," Yavni leaned to the side and began fishing in his belt pouch again, "Njadya comes to me every so often for her hook-up. Custom made to suit her wishes."
Cicero felt his heart sink. Yet one more thing he didn't know about Jade. He knew she was a free spirit and known to drink to excess... but he wasn't aware that she was into experimental and illicit stuff.
Yavni pulled out a small blue flask and held it up between his forefinger and thumb, "Youth in a bottle... kinda. Made from elf blood and nymph tears or something. I don't know. I don't make it. I just sell it," he handed it to Cicero, "It's a tonic that lasts until dispelled. Keeps 'em guessin'. Did you seriously think that Njadya's tits were that perfect? Damn girl hasn't aged in ten years. Her bizarre choice of hair pigment should have given away the fact that she wasn't natural."
Cicero had never really thought about it. Sure, Jade's appearance always seemed off. She was beyond superficial. He figured the hair was something she chose to do to get even more attention. Being the Dragonborn and having an amazing body just wasn't enough for her.
Cicero turned and glanced back down at Jade. She did look a bit older. He thought it was from seeing her without makeup for the first time-
"It wore off?" he asked and lovingly tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear.
Yavni sighed, "She was dead when I arrived... though, I was able to revive her. So, the potion was dispelled. Goodbye, perfectly round tits. Goodbye, permanent makeup. Goodbye 20-something girl."
Cicero truly liked her better this way. She looked more mature and closer to his own age. She seemed oddly refined and almost innocent. Almost.
"She's gonna want that bottle when she wakes up," Yavni sniffed, "That girl doesn't want anyone to see those scars."
"Scars?" Cicero glanced back at him.
"Yeah, that leads to my next question.... what's with the black blood, bro?"
Cicero tensed up. He wasn't sure how to reply. He had first noticed it after Mother had given him the 'kiss-of-death' that triggered a cold pressure in his chest. The same pain he had just before the Brotherhood arrived at the cabin...
"Legend says that a man with black blood has no soul," Yavni grinned and toked his pipe again, "What say you, ginger?"
"Ha."
"Aw, no sense of humor?"
Oh, the irony. Cicero squinted, "I don't have an answer for you and frankly, I'm over this little game," he stood up.
"Whoa, why the sudden shift in mood, my man? Are we not friends yet?"
"My actual friend is out there and I need to find her and make sure she's safe. Remove this shackle."
Yavni scrambled to his feet, "Chill, I got you. Describe her. I've got scouts all over the Rift. Alive or dead, we'll find your girl."
His offer didn't seem wise to take. Jade's brother or not, this guy was sketchy.
"I don't need help," Cicero grabbed the chain and yanked it.
"Clearly," Yavni gestured to his bandages, "Only a fool would go running half-naked into the woods with a wound like that."
"You have no idea, " Cicero scoffed, "It wouldn't be the first time. I'd rather my business not be alerted to the entire Rift."
"If you're worried about the law knowing what's going on, don't be," he crossed his arms, "You're safe with me, fam. I'm sleeping with Maven Black-Briar." Yavni grinned wickedly.
>>>New character added to the Character Guide Book: Yavni Winter-Heart