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Recruiting Lucien

     "Wait!" Lucien cries after the couple, lungs heaving and throat burning, "Wait, just wait for me!" Ravenna and Kaidan stop dead, turning their exasperated gazes on him. Finally, Lucien manages to catch up, stumbling to a stop and hunching over as soon as he reaches them, panting and heaving as he tries to catch his breath. Kaidan offers him no sympathy. "What do you want?" he demands. "Those - those Vigilants of Stendarr," Lucien pants out, "They were following you, right?" he looks to Ravenna, "You?" Ravenna glares at him. "What does it matter to you? This isn't your business," she asserts. "Well," Lucien wheezes, "It is now. They were asking after you in the tavern. I told them you fled to Cyrodill," he grins as he finally stands back upright, pleased with himself. Ravenna and Kaidan both look further exasperated. "Azura's tits!" Ravenna swears, "What in Nirn were you thinking, getting involved in this!!" "Because I still want to tag along with you! You said things were too dangerous for me, but that was just because of the Vigilants, wasn't it? Well now it isn't a problem anymore," he says excitedly, "So now you can let me come along, right?" Ravenna stares, bewildered. Kaidan can't believe his fucking ears. "They told you I was a vampire, right?" Ravenna breaks their stunned silence first. "They might've mentioned that, yes. I didn't figure it was true, though! No vampire on the run would be mad enough to just waltz around in a populated space like that, right?" Ravenna stares at him incredulously. Lucien's confident smile wavers. "It's not true, is it? You're not really a vampire, right?" he asks, a slight nervous tremor in his voice. Kaidan shoves his face into his hands as Lucien stands there awaiting an answer. "Yes" Ravenna cries, "I am! They're not mistaken! Do you really want to travel with a vampire?" she demands, and Lucien flinches, but doesn't back down. "Well, you haven't tried to eat me yet, so far, so, maybe?" he tries. Ravenna presses her fingers into her temples, looking at Kaidan, finally. "What do you make of this?" she asks. Kaidan drags his hands down his face and looks at Ravenna with furrowed brows. "Well, he's sort of done my job for me, by the sound, but we should still get out of here and into the Rift. They'll find out eventually that you haven't really left Skyrim, so we should keep moving. If you really want to bring him, I suppose I won't stop you. Might be a good idea for him too, since he just outright lied to the Vigil to defend you. It's up to you. Either way, I'll stay with you for now until I feel I've seen this through," is Kaidan's final judgement. Lucien is making aggressive puppy-eyes at Ravenna. "Pleeeeeeeeeeeease??" he begs. Ravenna's face scrunches in anger. "You will listen to the two of us, and not get in our way, or so help me-" she begins, but the rest of what she says is drowned out by the wailing of a dragon in Helgen, just a few tens of meters ahead of them all.

Meeting Inigo

"Isn't that my ring?" Madesi asks. Ravenna looks at her hand, confused. She's not wearing any- Oh. "Is it? I don't know whose this is," she replies, taking it off and holding it out, "If it is yours, I'm more than happy to return it?" Madesi scowls at her, eyes narrowed. "How kind of you, to return something to me which you've already stolen. Guards! Over here!" At Madesi's call, two guards shuffle over. Lucien cowers, while Ravenna, infuriated and dumbstruck, confronts Madesi. "I didn't take it from you! I said you could have it back if it was yours, why do we need to get the guards involved?" she demands. "Because I don't believe you didn't steal it. You’re only offering to return it because you were caught." In the background, Kaidan gets between Ravenna and the guards. "Woah, hey now. Let's not make this bigger than it is," he attempts to placate them, but they don't seem to care. In fact, they care so little, that they decide to arrest Kaidan along with Ravenna. Only Lucien is let be, but he trails behind the guards as they cart away his companions like a lost puppy regardless. Ravenna and Kaidan are shut up in the same cell, across the prison from a strange Khajiit with blue fur, who talks to himself in his cell. Ravenna looks to Kaidan as the guard locks their door. "I didn't steal that ring from him." "Know you didn't. Think it was that hooded bastard who bumped into you while we were at Brand-Shei's stall, must've planted the ring on you. Sorry I didn't notice when it happened." "Not your responsibility to look after me. Hopefully this will sort itself out quickly." As they are talking, deliberating what to do and trying to guess what may next happen, the Khajiit from across the room speaks to them. More specifically, he calls to Ravenna, waving his arm at her through the bars of his cell. "You there," he calls, "the woman! Do you recognize me?" Ravenna and Kaidan exchange confused gazes. "No," she calls back to him, "Should I?" The cat looks crestfallen. "You don't?" "No," she repeats. "You've not come to Riften to finish me off?" he asks. If Ravenna had liquid in her mouth, she'd have been spitting it out right then. "Why would I be here to 'finish you off'?" she asks. "You don't remember? The job? Anything?" "No, I don't know what you're talking about." "That," he begins, "That is my fault also." "What do you mean?" "Let me introduce myself. I am your so-called friend Inigo. I was the one who killed you, I tried anyway. I am guilty! Kill me!" "You didn't do a very good job, did you? Also, I'm locked up too. I couldn't kill you if I wanted to. Why are you in here?" "After I shot you I realized my mistake and turned myself in. Your body was gone, the guards did not believe me! I had to pay them to put me in this cell. It's where I belong. I needed to repent, I need to repent." "If you thought I was dead than why were you here waiting for me?" "I heard tales of an adventurer, both brave and resourceful, matching your description! I knew it was you,  it had to be! I knew you were going to be coming for me, so I waited. Are you going to kill me? Or not?" "Kill you for what? I don't remember what happened." The cat - Inigo - sighs heavily. "I see I must relive it again, your memory is not what it was." Ravenna's memory is perfectly intact, actually, but she does not bring this up. "We met on a job." "What kind of job?" "The killing kind. We were hired by a lord called Dupan to kill his brothers," Inigo starts the tale and already Ravenna knows this wasn't her. This is an assassination job; a variety of work she usually never takes. "With them gone, Dupan would inherit a great fortune, and promised us much gold in return. Do you remember none of this?" "No. Inigo, I'm fairly sure I'm not who you think I am." "You are," he insists, "Before we left, Dupan said that if only one of us returned from the mission, that one would get the other's reward also. I was hooked on skooma at the time, and I had a bit of a debt problem, so..." "You killed me for my half of the reward," Ravenna fills in the blank. "I tried," he agrees, "That is what matters. It wasn't an easy choice. We had only known each other for a short time, but I grew to like and respect you. We got on well, and fought bravely side-by-side. I threw all that away for gold, and skooma." "Did you end up getting the reward?" She asks. "Hah. No, Dupan was murdered by his sister before I returned. Our deal died with him. Money is an evil like no other, my friend. It is only just that I die at your hand." "Are you still hooked on skooma?" "No. I am done with the stuff. I want to die with my senses intact. Kill me now, I am ready." "No," she replies, "Even if I were able to from here, I would not. Don't ask me again. I am not the person you remember-" "What's all the ruckus down here, lass?" another voice cuts in, and Kaidan sits upright in the chair he'd been occupying while all this went down, suddenly at attention. Brynjolf walks down the stairs, one of the guards trailing not far behind. “I cleared things up with the guards for you, lass. Bad business for the guild to make trouble with someone we’re hoping to recruit. You and your beau are free to go,” the thief tells them as the guard unlocks their cell and lets them out. Kaidan looks to Ravenna with raised eyebrows as they leave. “Trying to recruit you? That why you’ve been avoiding the guild all this time?” He asks. Ravenna nods. “‘Afraid so. They’ve known about me for years, unfortunately.” “That we have,” Brynjolf agrees, “We know she plays nice, but the guild wants her for reasons other than stealing - not that she wouldn’t make a fine thief if she were willing.” "And I believe I've made it fairly clear that I am not-" "Not yet," Brynjolf insists. "Not ever," Ravenna pushes back. "Keep tellin' yourself that, lass. I'll be seein' you," he offers his parting words - and a wink - to Ravenna before turning and heading on his way. Ravenna's attention returns to their new, blue friend. "You said you had to pay them to put you in here? Do you know where they've put the key?" she asks. Inigo nods uncertainly. "In a chest above the fireplace. Why?" "I may not be the person you think I am, but that doesn't mean they're not out there somewhere. Why don't you come travel with me, and we can look for them, instead of staying here to rot in this cell?" she offers. Inigo perks up. "I fight with you?" He asks, hopefully. Ravenna nods. "For now, until you're ready to move on," she says. "Ravenna, are you sure about this," Kaidan cuts in, looking concerned, "I'm not making extra effort to look after him." "I don't expect you to," Ravenna placates, "You just focus on me. Don't worry about him, and don't worry about Lucien - leave them to me. Besides, I'm confident this fellow can at least handle himself." "Fair enough," Kaidan agrees, "If you're sure." "I am," she says, and returns to Inigo, "Are you though?" "I am more than sure, my friend! I accept! I feel lighter in my heart now you have given me this opportunity!" Inigo cheers. "Very good," Ravenna answers sweetly, "Just mind your aim, would you?" "Do not joke about such things my friend," he says glumly, "The sadness I feel for what I have done is brutal enough, for now." "What's going on!? They said you two could leave already!" Lucien's voice echoes in from the hallway, "We need to go! The Vigil are here again!" "Oh, for the love of Talos," Kaidan laments as Lucien runs down the stairs, tripping over himself to get down to reach them. "The Vigil?" Inigo asks, "Who are the Vigil?" "We can explain that later, but for now, we have to leave. Get your things," Ravenna orders, and as Inigo gathers his belongings within his cell, Ravenna and Kaidan recollect their weapons and tools from the warden, Lucien panicking around them all the while. "Where to next?" Ravenna asks the group as they rush out the nearest Riften gates. "Whiterun!" Lucien suggests, "Hadvar surely warned Riverwood about the dragon, but we should still go and make sure the Jarl knows!" "Dragon?! Do you mean to say that you have seen a dragon, my friend?" Inigo asks. "Whiterun works," says Kaidan, "Lucien's right, someone has to make sure the Jarl knows about that fucking wyrm. We'd have to move on again quick, though."