Walk by the Shadows

III. A Thief Can Be Honest

Even with them waking up with the sun, it took them half the day to reach Solitude because of Macayla's inability to move with ease. She had checked her body when Brynjolf's had turned to gather everything: most of her abdomen was purple or black; oddly there were no broken ribs. The redness was fading from her wrists, but her face was still sore from being struck. She had also checked her reflection in a stream to see that her face wasn't as swollen as it should've been, either. Her lip was busted from Teane's fists and there was some dark bruising, but she just looked like she had lost a brawl, not beaten to a bloody pulp and left to die.

So, with Macayla wincing at every step she took, it was a slow trek to the city of Solitude. Brynjolf had given her a cloak to hide her bloody and tattered clothes. She had taken another health potion before they left and even though it made the movements less painful, it would still take days before she recovered fully.

Brynjolf seemed to have no problem with the slow pace. He would carry on a conversation with her to keep the air from becoming stilted between them with ease, then drift off to watch the passing landscape, lost in some thought. She had to keep her eyes down so she wouldn't trip over a loose rock as the road rose and fell with the hilly landscape.

The main topic their conversations swirled around was their thieving histories. Hers wasn't nearly as grand or as bountiful as his. Unlike her, he wasn't alone: he was part of the Thieves Guild in Riften and most of the loot he stole went into his own pocket. She knew better than to push for him to divulge everything about the guild, but he would talk freely about some of his memorable heists; the more humorous ones were when he was paired with someone named Delvin Mallory. Macayla had picked up on the way Brynjolf skirted around talking about the guild's success; he kept something back.

On thinking about her miraculous condition once again, she wondered if Brynjolf had tried giving her a health potion before she woke. So she asked to quell her curiosity.

"No. You weren't in a condition to swallow, lass; I would've choked you. Why?"

She pulled the cloak closer around her. "I'm just trying to figure out why I'm in this good of shape considering what I went through."

"Perhaps you just have a fast healing rate."

"Maybe so; I've never noticed it before."

The road rose steeply and looming far before them, the daunting stone gates of Solitude awaited at the top of the hill. The iron gates of the first gate were open, but the large steel door on the main gate was closed and monitored by two guards. Fortunately, the guards did nothing but eye Macayla and Brynjolf as someone from the inside hauled open the door.

Solitude's marketplace consisted of stores and stalls, with people milling about everywhere. Vendors advertised their merchandise; friends spoke and laughed together while children chased each other—some parents scolded their children not to run among the crowds. Flags of many colors hung over the marketplace; the red flag of Solitude with the face of a wolf staring down in challenge was the most predominant. The clanging of a hammer on a piece of iron echoed down to them. If Macayla remembered right, the blacksmith was up the stone rise she could see and near Castle Dour.

Macayla noticed the subtle tip of his head as Brynjolf saw the strange pictorial signs etched near a store's main door. One was a lined square within a circle and another store had a diamond surrounded by circles. She had seen those symbols all across Skyrim, but never knew what they meant; maybe they were something to do with his Thieves Guild.

"We'll go shopping soon, but first, a drink," Brynjolf said.

One vendor specifically sold wine and another food; they appeared as normal customers by paying for their items, but Macayla saw Brynjolf quickly swipe an extra tart when the vendor turned his eyes down to count the gold. It was nearly impossible to break thieving habits; if Macayla was more secure on her feet, she would take what she could as well. They moved away from the hustle and bustle of the busy marketplace to enjoy their snack and to discuss plans.