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“But if you forget to reblog Madame Zeroni, you and your family will be cursed for always and eternity.”

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Ayep.

Two seals got stuck trying to get in the same ice hole

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Purr

We drink to our youth, to days come and gone. For the age of aggression is just about done. Certainly a catchy tune, pretty frequently heard about Riften these days. The Imperials had occupied and put Maven in charge outright. That was only good for the Guild, Gaius in particular. He was able to expand his shop down in the Flagon into something worth having, something he could maybe take aboveground at some point. If nothing else, the Imperials were a bit more willing to tolerate Khajiit; they had plenty in Cyrodiil.

He was working on a few batches of his all-time favorite potion: Blue Mountain Flower and Wheat with some honey from the Riften Brewery for flavor. He hummed as he stirred, bottling each batch with genuine loving care. As the thieves around him bustled, buying things and discussing their next jobs, he was able to tune the whole world out.

Gaius looked up and saw a familiar friend come in, smiling at her and giving her a small wave. He seemed uncommonly serene, quite contentedly giving her a full-mouth smile. She looked a little beat up, so he beckoned her over. Wordlessly, he held a bottle gently out to her and motioned for her to drink it. No charge, no nothing. He was in his element; and more importantly, actually very happy for once.

He'd seen his daughter, he had work to do, no one he knew was dead or in jail. The sun had been warm today, the water soothing and everyone pleasant. For once, things seemed to be going well for the Khajiit alchemist. It was almost cute how happy he looked, merrily stirring his pot. Would it last? He figured not, instead resolving to enjoy the moment while he had it.

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Loving and Looming

Gaius could barely believe it. Only the piece of paper in his hands was proof that he really, well and truly had her. That when he held Smiles in his arms, he could take her home now. She belonged to him and he belonged to her, and it was all legally binding. Elation was the only word for it. Gaius got down on his knees and thanked Maven with every word he had in him. He knew the price for invoking a favor from Maven. When she said he owed her, she meant the kind of debt paid in blood, sweat, and tears. That didn’t matter in the least right now, though. ONly his daughter mattered. Gaius sprinted to the Orphanage and practically kicked the door down. "Constance! Grelod!" He slammed the paper down on the table and pointed at Smiles. "She's mine! She's my daughter! She’s mine and I’m hers and-" "There are no adoptions!" Grelod screeched back.   Gaius grabbed her by the chin and waved the paper right up in her face. "Maven said so! I've got the papers right here! Do you wanna go to jail, you stupid old bat?! She’s free, she’s mine and that’s it!" He shouted with pure glee. Guards had already come in to investigate the commotion, and Gaius ran up to them too! He danced and pranced about with the all-important adoption papers as if they were worth all the gold in the Empire.

One of the guards snatched the paper from his hands and began reading it. By the time he was done, he could only shrug. "Well, the brat's his, so keep it down, all of you. You’re disturbing the peace.” The guard tossed the paper behind him as he walked back to his patrol Gaius snatched the page from the air like his life was written to it. To him, it was. As his baby girl ran to him, there were envious looks from every kid in there, especially Aventus Aretino. Gaius didn't see a single one of them though. Strolling on out the door with a kid in his arms, he did a spin and clutched her tightly. "We're going home, Smiles." "For good, Daddy?" "For good. I've got a bed all ready for you, and we can go see Mister Brynjolf tomorrow to tell him the good news." "Why not now?" "Because I think we both need some sleep, darling."

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Smile at the Dawn

Like looking into a scaly mirror "Well, hello there, little lady." Having cleared another cave of unprofessional bandits, near the back Gaius found something that brought back dull, aching memories. A little Argonian girl chained up, bound and gagged. She looked at Gaius with fear at first, something he recognized and remembered. "Hey, take it easy now." He insisted on his approach "I'm gonna get you right out of those chains. You just give me a second." He continued in a soft, soothing voice. "All the bad men are dead. I promise. I’m not here to hurt you.” True to his word, Gaius got the chains off of the poor girl and pulled the gag from her spiky mouth. "T-thanks, Mister." She gratefully said, scrabbling to get to her feet. Gaius immediately pulled both food and water for the girl, offering her several apples and some bread as well as a waterskin. That he was covered in bandit blood didn't really seem to trouble the girl. Gaius took a seat next to her as the little girl voraciously filled her belly. "So, kiddo, what'd they get you on?" "Trade, sir?" "Trade?" "I, uh, I've... sort of been a slave for a while now to different bandits. They make me do tricks for them and get stuff from under the water. Things like that. One of them... made me dance for them... without clothes." The mere thought hit Gaius with a wave of revulsion. "I hope it wasn't these bastards or I'd have killed them all twice." He commented. Watching the girl itch a particular spot several times, he decided to speak up. "Got an itch?" "Scale rot, sir." "Ah... y'know, I was imprisoned like this once. Shaved off all my fur, tore my claws out." "By whom?" "Thalmor." "Why did the want you, sir?" "Picking flowers at the wrong time. How about you, kiddo?" "Well... I was supposed to be coming to the Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary here in Skyrim." That piqued the Khajiit's interest. "Oh yeah?" "Yes, sir. I'm a Shadowscale, though I was born in Cyrodiil. That sanctuary collapsed, I'm told, so I was trying to get here." "Do you want to come with me, kiddo? I can get you set up at the Honorhall Orphanage over in Riften. There's a Thieves Guild there. It's not exactly the Brotherhood, but it's a good place to learn a few things before you go." "I would like that very much! Thank you, sir!" When he carried the girl outside, it was obvious she hadn't seen the sun in a long while. Her face beamed like the very sun itself. The morning had just hit; the sky was still that gorgeous mix of red and purple. "What's your name, kid?" "I don't really have one. Not that I remember. The bandits called me-" "Doesn't matter. Let’s see... you’re an Argonian, so...” 

After a brief silence, Gaius’ eyes lit up. “Smiles-At-Sunrises. That’s your name now. Smiles.” “Really?!” “Really. Now, let’s get you to your new home.”

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Sour Dreams

"Just bring the mead. I'll take care of the rest." He simply couldn't understand it. It defied all explanation he could muster up, frankly. But still, there were customers, and he had to serve them. The closer they got to uncovering this whole Gallus/Mercer business, the more dangerous things got. And now, it felt like they were all under attack! Thieves, guild and not, were coming to him about terrifying nightmares of eyes! Assassins from the Dark Brotherhood came about the same thing, as did unaffiliated thieves, rogues, and bandits. Anyone who relied upon stealth complained of the same symptoms: Somehow, they all shared the same nightmare. It started as a job, whatever job didn't seem to matter.... and then the eye came. A single, giant white eye that shone a light upon them. Run where they might, there was no escaping it. The eye simply saw them. And then more. More eyes. Sets of eyes, and it was always sets. Sets that followed them until they woke up screaming. No one had slept through it, and the dream kept occurring. The line was practically out the door for the one man who’d found a remedey. Admittedly, it didn't last long; Usually only one or two nights. Its ingredients were blue mountain flower, charred skeever hide and honey all boiled in some kind of alcohol. Customers had to provide their own booze, from simple mead to Black-Briar Reserve. But it worked. People were calling him "lifesaver," "miracle worker," "smarter than any college asshole," "a thief and a saint," and other such names. For his part, Gaius was making a killing! He hadn't time for jobs; he spent all day picking flowers, harvesting honey and killing skeever for their hides. It felt incredibly fulfilling to the Khajiit to be healing and helping people, serving only to reaffirm his desire to get out of the game one day and go legit. Unto everyone, he showed a smile and a potion until the last customer was done. Now, it was about time he enjoyed some of his own brew. Hitting the bed after a long day, he smiled up at the ceiling. Might've been a better bed with a woman in it, and Smiles nearby in another... but this was only the start. "Cheers, everyone." He mumbled as he raised his own glass to his lips. "And sleep well."

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Barely Making It

"That was a mistake..." Potions, potions, potions! Gaius couldn't even keep count of how many he'd had to take! He just knew his stomach was going to be very, very unhappy with him if he made it out of this alive. Wandering around the barren wastes of Eastmarch, he'd encountered not just one but two enraged Frost Trolls that were rapidly bearing down on him. Sprinting as fast as he could, he plugged the smaller one with as many arrows as he could get off while running from his life. A hill! A hill, perfect! Gaius ran up it as fast as he could, dodging claws remarkably well. He wasn't exactly experienced, but he wasn't some greenhorn anymore either. Still, two frost trolls?! He knew this much: he had to kill one of them quickly. Trolls regenerated. That, unfortunately, meant engaging a pair of furious trolls in combat. Gathering wits and courage about him, Gaius audibly gulped. Man... this was going to suck..... --- Blood. Man, that was a lot of blood. The snow around the Khajiit was stained red, but he was the one standing when it was all done. His armor was practically in tatters. The flame enchantment on his prized Elven dagger had run out ten minutes ago. He could only see out of one eye, the other one being blotted out by blood running down his brow. Somehow, though, he'd managed it. Gaius collapsed into a sit. When he could gather his energy, he'd harvest some fat from these bad boys and- A pause. More footsteps. By the sounds of it, heavily armored one. With every ounce of strength he had left, Gaius hefted a troll up and hid under it. That turned out to be a good call; as far as he could tell, it was bandits returning with a haul. The sound of a few women protesting, bags jingling and men laughing seemed to agree with his assessment.

As soon as he was clear, the Khajiit managed to get himself out from under the Troll corpse. For one, it smelled of rotten feces. For two, he was freezing to death down there. Sitting atop one of the corpses, the sun set on the now rather battered Khajiit. Damn. And that pretty Imperial girl had left too. He'd almost looked forward to showing up all battle-scarred to her... too bad. Still, he'd survived, and that was more than most could say. He'd survived fighting a pair of bloodthirsty trolls and lived to tell the tale. Armor useless, weapons dulled and almost broken, but he had lived. After another few minutes, the Khajiit collected himself and started about the business of picking up his litter. Those bottles had to go somewhere, after all, and the troll fat wouldn't harvest itself. Gaius hoped he could catch a carriage home. Riften was a long, long walk away. Plus, there was still the job. Maybe that would wait until he had clothes again though.

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Family Meeting

"Wot 'ave we got 'ere, then?" The poor boy no longer even knew how long he'd been down there. All he had been doing was picking herbs in the wrong place. That was all. Bleary and constantly in pain, he was practically senseless when he heard his cage door open. But it wasn't an Altmer. It wasn't even an elf. It was some Breton in black leather armor. The young Khajiit looked up through squinted, pained eyes. He couldn't find his voice at all. Whatever was in front of him was not Thalmor, he had to guess. His entire body ached and shivered. It was cold here, and he'd been almost entirely shaved as punishment for attempting escape. As much as he despised Grelod, he'd have given anything to be in Honorhall again. Anything. His arms ached, for they were chained up to the walls. His legs ached, for they were weighed down with iron balls. He felt as if his spine wanted to pop out, and he swore he'd grown three inches. "Allo there, li'l fella." A voice finally reached the kitten's ears. "I fink I seen you 'round before. You ain't from Riften, are ya?" It took almost all of his energy to nod, closing his tired eyes. Suddenly, there was something put to his lips. Water? Water! He drank as if his life depended on it, greedily drinking the entire waterskin. It had been days since his last drink, and food? He had barely known the taste of it since he'd been here. His ribs showed, never mind his collarbone. "Well, you were thirsty. How long y'been down 'ere?" "I... I don't know, sir." Gaius warily replied. Hearing footsteps, he looked away for just a moment... and when he looked back the man had outright disappeared! What? His cage was closed, the door was locked and the man had just vanished! But when the guard had come and gone, he was right back there again. "Tha's downright cruel, takin' a little kid prisoner." He commented as he began to fiddle with the locks on Gaius' arms. It took him a few picks, but he was finally freed. Gaius' spine nearly collapsed as he doubled over in pain from the sudden release. It felt like he barely had the strength to hold himself up. "Awwright, kiddo. I'm gonna getcha outta 'ere. Can you walk?" "I... I can try, sir." "Follow my lead, kid. You might learn somethin'. Name's Delvin. Delvin Mallory." "I'm, uh, I'm Gaius. Are you with the Gutter Saints?" "Tha's right. Crouch down and follow me. And eat this-" He was handed half a loaf of bread. "You'll need your strength." A few minutes worth of genuine stealth and the pair came upon the Investigator's Chest. Gaius' clothes and his ingredient basket were quickly located. "Lotsa flowers in there, kiddo." "I, uh, I... I like to try alchemy." "Alchemy, eh? The Guild could use a bona fide alchemist. Maybe I could talk ta Brynjolf for you." "Really?!" Gaius couldn't hide his excitement, readily jumping at the chance to be a part of something like that. A family! A real family! And a chance to learn so many new, useful things! And perhaps, one day, he could get his revenge! "If you can get outta 'ere without bein' caught, then you'll have passed my test. Let's move. Keep up." "Yes, Sir!"

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Easy Mode

It could've always been this easy?! Gaius could scarcely believe himself. As much as he'd always prided himself on never relying on magic, this was an absolute breeze! He could actively muffle his footsteps, he could cast fear and calm, he could even turn himself invisible?! This was an absolute breeze! Hardly anyone in the Guild used magic like this. Everyone prided themselves on their raw skills alone, and Gaius had always been behind that. It had always felt... felt right! But he was a Nightingale now. After a long talk with his Great-grandfather, Gaius had come to an important realization: as a Nightingale, it was his duty to push the boundaries of what a thief could be. As the Agent of Subterfuge, he could already incite violence among groups. The hood certainly didn’t hurt though. Magic flowed through it like water, so much easier. Better! He traipsed joyously through the streets of Windhelm, taking everything his heart desired. Jewels and jewelry? Sure! Weapons? Why not?! Armor? None of it was too bulky or loud! He moved in pure silence and his form was imperceptible to the naked eye! Quaffing plenty of magic potions along the way, he had even had to learn new recipes for this! Ones to buff illusion, ones to buff his admittedly poor magicka supply, restoring it and making it bigger. By the Nine, this was pure joy! Karliah hadn't been wrong. He'd had a long talk to his fellow Nightingale about the use of magic. She had encouraged Gaius to take up his own study instead of going to the College, though he had resolved to go there one day. That would bein the day, though, and this was night. Joyous, glorious night. A pure, moonless, beautiful night where his fingers found what they wanted and his heart jumped by leaps and bounds. It was pure poetry to the Khajiit. Ingredients? By the pocketful! Whatever he could possibly want, he found. The streets and shops of Windhelm were all hit within the course of the night. He moved at speeds he'd never dared try and he stuffed his pockets so full, he needed a strength potion to get around by the end of it. The smile on his face, on the other hand, was utterly priceless. He returned to the guild by the time the sun rose with plenty of loot for Tonilia, more than he'd ever brought back in a single run. "Someone had a good night." "Someone had a magnificent night, Ton."

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Infiltration Step 3

"Watch and learn, Dragondunce.”

Another Wizard dead in absolute silence. Gaius was unlocking doors, he was swiping books and jewelry, he was doing his job. The Dragonborn was... mostly watching. Gaius had to enchant his boots on the fly with muffle just to give them a shot at this. No wonder Delphine had hired a thief; this guy was a total sap!

That said, he was a rather dangerous sap. He was proving rather strong with his Greatsword, and his Battle Cry had been useful. Gaius had almost tripped up and gotten caught, but the Dragonborn had struck fear into both of the guards, giving Gaius time enough to slit their throats. Still, it had been loud, and he'd practically had to drag the big galoot into cover before more guards showed up.

He had been careful though; no bodies to be found. Admittedly, the next guard patrol would have some questions about the bodies found outside second story windows. They were inside the Solar now, though, and there appeared to be only one good option. Were it just himself, he'd have been able to sneak over there. He wasn't alone though...

So instead, he shoved the Nord forwards with a hearty slap on the back. "Go get 'em, tiger!" And then he got to sit back and watch as the Dragonborn single-handedly overpower a pair of Dominion guards. Damn! It was almost impressive! A powerful Unrelenting Force shout blew them both into the wall and then he just went to town. Turning around, the Dragonborn already had a smug grin. "That’s how it’s done, rug."

Ugh. Gaius sighed as he picked himself up. He'd found a rather useful book, a circlet, and a pair of elven daggers. Nice. Good loot as payment and he could hide the bodies easily. Still, they had been talking about torturing a prisoner of some sort, getting information about someone named Esbern.

Headed down into a dungeon, he spotted someone he knew. Etienne? Really? Already, the muscled fool was lurching forwards. all the while claiming to be an Interrogator. Gaius quickly realized they'd killed the proper interrogator and this idiot was claiming to be the new one! No, he had to put a quick stop to this. With a graceful draw of his bow, Gaius put an Ebony arrow into the guard's head, leaving no one down there but himself, Etienne and the Dragonborn. Shooting the Nord a rather disdainful look, Gaius slunk down the stairs to release his fellow thief.

Unfortunately, the timing couldn’t have been worse. Malborn came down in chains, escorted by a pair of guards. Once again, the Dragonborn roared into action, hitting Malborn once before managing to get his damn aim right. The two guards attempted combat, falling rapidly before an onslaught of steel. In the meantime, Gaius was tending to the wounds of both the Bosmer and the thief.

He prayed to Nocturnal that this job was almost over. Delphine definitely owed him, fuck “on the house.” A frosty cave and a troll awaited them, but freedom was not far ahead. Etienne thanked Gaius graciously before setting off for the Flagon. Malborn, on the other hand, seemed entirely ready to be done with the whole ordeal, fleeing as soon as they hit terra firma. "Good job, cat!" "Yeah. Thanks." Gaius replied insincerely, faking a big ol' smile. "Good job, Hero. Way to, uh, hero it up.” With a shake of his head, Gaius took off after Etienne. “So, drinks on me?”

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Infiltration Step 2

"Are you for real?" Gaius could scarcely believe himself. Was this jackass running around in steel armor? Steel?! Seriously? Somewhere the asshat had found himself up a dwarven shield, probably from Ulfberth or something, and it hadn't even been touched by a hammer since he'd bought it! The best thing he had was a Blades sword! Gaius had even had to volunteer his services as a blacksmith! He wasn't a big fan of the heavier stuff, but he clearly knew more than this moron, who was bopping around shouting "FUS RO DAH" at just about everything, watching stuff fly all over Adrienne's workshop. Gaius, on the other hand, bought the supplies and improved every bit of the Dragonborn's armor. This unrepentant git.

Finally, though, they were ready to set out. Getting in hadn't been too hard. The fact that he barely spoke wasn't a bad thing by any means. Giving their things to Malborn was quick and painless. It wasn't like the "Grand Hero" carried much, and Gaius traveled light almost always. Handing over his prized Guildmaster armor was tough though. That, his favorite daggers, about thirty lockpicks, a few poisons, some health and stamina potions, it was all working out fairly well. 

Slipping in was... demeaning and degrading, as he'd expected. Twice he was spit upon, and once he was attacked. Ondolemar, some Thalmor goodie-goodie, punched Gaius in the stomach and threatened him with fire magic. "Why don't you draw your claws, Khajiit?" He demanded, knowing perfectly well why. Gaius the Clawless had become a tale told around the Thalmor campfire to prove their superiority ever since he’d made something of himself. What better way to degrade a thief than take something away from him?

Gaius, for his part, bared his fangs as he stood but had to remain silent and calm, difficult though it was. Getting to his feet, the entire party seemed to be laughing at him. Fine. They would all be suffering here before too long. Gaius had plans. 

The Dragonborn was among the ones laughing, it was worth noting. The damn Nord bastard seemed to blend right in with the crowd while laughing at the sub-human cat man. Fine. He'd suffer too. Every last one of these fucks would suffer.

After an excruciatingly long time parading around his "slave," the distraction started in earnest. A drunk named Razelan began holding court on all manner of subjects. Perfect. Gaius hunched down and snuck out while the Dragonborn simply sauntered towards the door, seemingly in no particular hurry.

Arriving at the door, Malborn gave them both their things back and Gaius sighed in relief to be armored again. When the Hero opened his mouth, Gaius silenced him with quite a look. "Let us get this straight. You treat me like that again, you will be silenced." He said with a dagger pointed at the Dragonborn's throat. "Now. I've got some soup to poison and some guards to listen in on. Try not to get caught, dumbass." 

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Infiltration Step 1

"This one's on the house." So, the Blades needed help? Gaius was partly amazed they still existed, and even more amazed they came to him. To be fair, Delvin was better at getting in places and Vex better at getting out. Gaius' hatred of the Thalmor was apparently widely enough known that he’d been specifically requested for this job.

Admittedly, he wasn't a big fan of the set-up. Delphine came to him with what was interesting news at first. They were doing an infiltration of the Thalmor Embassy. That was good news for the Khajiit. Then it took a turn for the worse. He was working with the shitty Dragonborn, and he was posing as a slave.

It was thus explained: the Dragonborn was being invited to a party held at the Embassy and would be going in disguise.Delphine was certain there would be a need for espionage and trickery; that was where Gaius came in. The Dragonborn would be bringing along a Khajiit slave. That wasn't entirely unheard of, be it in Skyrim or the Summerset Isles. Gaius would be sneaking in very minimal equipment as the rest of it would be held by a Bosmer servant named Malborn.

From there, the Dragonborn would be entertaining the party and keeping them busy as long as he could while Gaius gathered what information he could. The Dragonborn would slip away at some point to help find what there was to be found. Killing was allowed on this particular outing, something the scarred Khajiit was particularly looking forward to. Still, posing as a slave? It was going to be cold, it was going to be demeaning and it was going to be around the damned Dragonborn.

But there really weren't many options on the table for the alchemist. Could he really turn this down? A chance to take the Thalmor down a notch, a chance to help the people of Skyrim and a chance to show off around that damned Nord? Slave or no, he'd make himself useful, and perhaps make a tidy profit while he was at it, maybe line his pockets with Thalmor gold.

"Fine." He told Delphine as he shook her hand. "What do I owe you?" "Nothing. This one's on the house."

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Uncommon Acts

You're not a good person. Good people don't wind up down here."

Enthir didn't have anywhere else to turn, apparently. This was ordinarily Dark Brotherhood territory, but he'd asked for The Clawless. That was just fine, honestly.

Sharpening an elven dagger, Gaius was slowly pacing around a gagged, bound mark whom he'd roughly thrown into a chair. The dagger was among the first he'd ever made; Gaius was quite proud of it too. Fire enchanted and rather sharp all things considered, he was purring. The blood price was waived for this little venture. Perfect.

According to Enthir, Ancano had other plants within the College. Gaius had only recently joined, but he'd already been given a position teaching alchemy to students - a subject previously untaught. Apparently, a few relatives of fellow members had gone missing: Onmund's younger sister and parents, Colette's son, Tolfdir's wife and Sergius' brother. Smiles had also reported on an Altmer attempting to shove her in a sack, though the little assassin had evaded him easily.

"There once was a hero named Ragnar the Red..." Gaius began, humming part of the tune beforehand. "So, here we are, Thalmor." Of course, there was no response; he'd gagged the Altmer before this whole ordeal got started.  It made things far easier, honestly.

And the braggart did swagger and brandish his blade/As he told of bold battles and gold he had made. As he did that, Gaius took the poor Altmer's hand and sliced across the fingertips. "Trapped. How're you feeling, mm? Vengeful? I bet you'd love to get out and throw some fire at me, wouldn't you?" He taunted. "Just like I wanted to tear your friends' guts out when they yanked my claws from my fingers, searing the tips shut over the course of two hours.”

As the elf's fingertips burned, poison began to course through his veins; a very potent magicka draining poison, just in case. "So we're going to make this easy. I'll remove your gag, you'll curse at me and spit at me. Then, you'll tell me where my colleagues’ family members are." He instructed as he began removing the gag.

"You fool! Do you even comprehend what you've done?! The Thalmor will find you, and they wi-" A dagger at his throat silenced the Thalmor agent rapidly. "I can only tolerate so much of your screechy, whiny voice," Gaius said coldly, a wrathful stare filling his eyes. "You and yours tried to take my daughter from me. How did it feel when you heard your agent died at the hands of a twelve-year-old girl?" "Inconsequential. It-" He was cut off with a dagger through the hand. The scream of pain echoed through the little cave Gaius had picked to do this in. A small branch-off of the Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary. They'd graciously allowed him to rent this space out for a few hours, a kindness Gaius would not soon forget. "I knew you didn't care about your subordinates. You're all the same. Smelling of ocean water, fancy teas and the little snack cakes you eat with them." He continued cruelly.

"So. Last chance, friend. Tell me where they are." "Auri-el banish you." "I was hoping you'd say that." 

What followed was torment and torture ordinarily far out of Gaius' realm of possibility. A father threatened, however, was a truly furious thing. They'd captured and tortured family members of his colleagues and Gaius had promised to get their location at any cost.

Any cost turned out to be plenty of fear and frenzy poisons and several hours of intense questioning and bodily torture. The mix of fear and frenzy rendered his mind practically jelly, and the knives didn't exactly help matters. Finally, though, he cracked. It was at a dear cost, but the Altmer broke down. "Fine! Fine! They're held in Uttering Hills Cave! We contracted out the Summerset Shadows!"

"Mm? I thought we'd wiped them out..." Gaius muttered as he cleaned the blood from his blade. Restoration magic had turned out to be a great course of study! Not only was it what his Great-Grandfather had specialized in, but it had prolonged the torment enough to give him his answer. "Now, by the Eight, release me!" 

That gave the Khajiit some pause. This was Thalmor scum. The same people who had torn his claws from his body. The people who had nearly killed him, torturing him for weeks on end for Guild information. Could he even really risk releasing him? He'd just go back and rat him out? No. He couldn't. But he wouldn't make this a slow kill. Mercy in death, if nothing else. "See you in Oblivion." "What?! But-"

Not another word. Gaius whirled around and beheaded the Altmer, finally putting an end to his suffering. "Don't wait up." He added as the astonished-looking head bounced to the ground. It rolled into a corner while blood jetted from the neck stump, covering Gaius' black leather armor. "Ugh... yech. Dunno how the Brotherhood does it." The body went limp in the chair and Gaius unceremoniously kicked it over. "Thalmor shit."

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Reluctance

"No."

That was Gaius' flat out answer. He utterly declined. No way in Oblivion, man. Absolutely, positively, beyond a shadow of a doubt, no.

He finally had his store! His daughter had decided to quit the Dark Brotherhood and apply herself as an assassin of a different sort, killing people she thought would bring about change and peace! He was making profits! He was even allowed to remove his mask! Maven waived the "NO KHAJIIT" policy just for him, and the people of Riften seemingly were mostly okay with it! He had no qualms with Elgrim, who was admittedly advancing in years. Still, they'd hammered out a decent profit-sharing deal involving Gaius' specialty in rarer ingredients and poisons! Life... life was finally going his way.  

His daughter was upstairs as this damnable Argonian asked him to don his armor and draw his blade once again for some bullshit final quest. "One last run," she called it. Pah! It had taken some talking, but Smiles had parted the Brotherhood of Cyrodiil in relative peace! They told her she was welcome back if she ever chose to rejoin and had no issue with her using her training for other purposes here in Skyrim!

Dammit, he was even reformed. Gaius still stayed in practice by... bizarrely, sneaking into people's houses and putting things into their chests and pockets. Those who had been good to him, who had vouched for the gray Khajiit when he came out with his true race, were being rewarded with valuable gems and potions suddenly appearing in their homes. That was how good his life was. He was able to give back for the first time in years. He was able to proudly call himself a citizen of Skyrim, of Riften!

But, she wanted one last mission. That fucking grin on her face, that smile that reminded him of that one night. Of the one night thrown away all sense, rational thought, and decency and embraced in passion and lust. That fucking smile he never quite seemed to be able to get out of his head or away from him.

"No. No way. I have stuff here now! I can't just uproot..." Skooma-teeth why was this getting harder to resist? Admittedly, his sword arm had been itching... the "I can't do it without you" hadn't hurt either. The promise of payment, allure of adventure and a chance to really stick it to that shit-eating Dragonborn was burning in the back of his mind. She could already tell the no was morphing into a maybe. 

Gaius silently drummed his fingers on his counter, absentmindedly playing with a septim. One last mission. One last big hurrah. Maybe he was bored. Three months in and his store was making profit hand over fist. Surely he couldn't want anything else, right? Aside from the Amulet of Mara he kept in his desk, praying he'd find some woman to call his daughter's mother. 

"... What's the job?" He finally asked, growling slightly as he slowly got to his feet. While his cloak covered much of it... he was still wearing his Nightingale set. He was still Gaius the Clawless, High Alchemist after all. He had even gone to the College of Winterhold to teach Alchemy and learn some Restoration and Illusion spells. He was still a Nightingale of Nocturnal. He was still a thief, and he still had every reason to want to kick Nord ass.