Nara Of The Shadows: The Listener's Beginnings

chapter 1

I stretched my limbs as I awoke from my deep sleep. It had been ages since I had last slept on a bed. By oblivion; it had been ages since sleeping indoors.
A gentle knock on the door distracts me from my thoughts. A blond Nord woman opens the door, a worried smile adorning her face.

Placing a steaming bowl of cabbage soup on my lap, urging me to eat the contents. I accept it with caution. I slowly scooped the first bite in my mouth, savouring it before downing the rest of its contents hungrily. After the last gulp, she asked about my well-being.

“I am feeling much better, thanks to you, ma’am.” I blushed, wiping the dribbles of food that had leaked out of my mouth. The kind lady smiled, taking the bowl away from me. That was the first hot meal I’d had in months.

“May I ask why a young girl like yourself was doing half frozen to death in the streets?” She asked.

I explained I was an orphan at Honor Hall in Riften who had recently been kicked to the curb, “I’ve been travelling ever since.”

The Nord’s eyes widened and gasped in astonishment, “My, you are such a brave adventure, aren't you? May I ask how old you are?"

“I believe I’m closing on my  16th winter now, maybe even my 17th.” I chuckle. “Very short for my age, I'm afraid.”

“Very.” She mused. “If it isn’t too rude of me to ask. What are you? I was guessing maybe a Breton, from your face and height, but your ears are far too pointy.”

“I’m a mixed breed, ma'am, I believe my birth mother was a Breton but my birth father was a Bosmer,” I replied.

She patted me on the head." No more of this ma’am talk, My name is Susanna."

“My name is Nara. It’s nice to meet a friendly face around here. I was almost sure that everyone would be... Hostile toward others like me." I said.

“Ah. Some are like that, but not everyone.”

“Like most of Skyrim?” I asked.

“Yes, like most of Skyrim, yes,” she replied.

I hummed in acknowledgement. I had heard many stories of Windhelm, some of them were good but a majority of them of tales of racism and prejudice. Such as the Argonians that live in the docks, and swim in icy cold water to find fish. Then again they also work at the Riften docks as well, at least they aren't paid jack-shit.

"Is there anything to drink here? I've been hankering for mead for days." I ask.

"There is but if you want a real drink we should head on over to the corner club. They've got argonian wine to die for." Susanna answered. As she slapped at her knees, standing up.

"I'll take you there."

As we leave to go to the grey quarters, we heard an argument. It was between a Dunmer woman and 2 Nord men. From the look of her body language, they were giving her trouble.

“You come here where you aren’t wanted, You eat our food. You pollute our city with your stink, and you refuse to help the Stormcloaks,” one man spoke. The sneer on his face was visible as he chastised the woman.

“But we haven’t taken a side because it is not our fight.” The Dark elf rationales, trying to reason with the man. But her sound argument fell on daft ears.