The Tale of the Opal Assassins

5: Aedra, and Daedra, and Sithis, Oh my!

~Gudrun~
          Ingrid has pissed me off so much today. First she gets seriously mad at me for keeping my head about the Ireonna situation, and then she beats the shit out of Theon. I'm not gonna say that he didn't deserve it because he did throw the first punch, be she could've laid off after knocking him to the ground. I know she's hated him from day one, but she should keep it to herself. I guess I can see where she's coming from. I try to protect my sisters from harm too, but Theon poses no threat to me. In fact, he's brought me plenty of happiness.
I remember her first threat to him. Ingrid and I were exploring the town after only a week of living here in Winterfell when I ran into a familiar face. This was the face of the man that I snuck out of my father's celebration with, roamed in the woods and lost track of time with, and received a lecture about sneaking out with boys (particularly Theon Greyjoy) because of. This was the face of my first new friend in my new home, Theon Greyjoy. I decided that I would sneak up and start a conversation. During said conversation, he asked me what my father had said to me after we had snuck out and gotten caught. I explained that my father told me that I should sneak out with guys like him because it would make me look bad and all of that sludder. As he replied with, "He should be concerned. The Greyjoys are famed for their skill at archery, navigation, and lovemaking." Ingrid walked up behind him in enough time to hear the entire statement. Normally I would've slapped him, but Ingrid had beaten me to it. That's when I first introduced the two. I remember the conversation going a bit like this...
          "Theon," I said as I gestured to Ingrid, "I don't believe you've been properly introduced to my sister. This is Ingrid. Ingrid, this is Theon."
          "If you ever," Ingrid sternly began, "And I mean ever touch or speak to my sister in anyway that I do not consider appropriate I will see to it that my sword has kindly been introduced to your hands."
          "A pleasure to meet you too," replied Theon, "Gudrun, I think she likes me!"
          "I am tolerant of your existence as of now. That should be pretty obvious considering you're hands are still attached to you, but stop trying to come on to my little sister or I'll change my mind."
          The conversation seemed to have ended due to my attempt to change the subject, but sadly an attempt was all that I could call it. He asked if I would've liked to go on a walk with him. I said yes, and so did Ingrid. He said that he wanted to speak with me alone which lead to more threats of cutting off hands. The point is that Ingrid has always disliked Theon, but she's never gone this far before. I suppose there's a first time for everything. As I used what little skill in alchemy I had to care for my injured kærasti, I thought more deeply about why the fight even happened in the first place. Ingrid was mad at me for keeping my head because it looked like I didn't care.
          "I'm so sorry about that," I said, "She goes overboard sometimes, but you shouldn't have thrown the first punch."
          "She was upsetting you," hoarsely whispered Theon, "I don't like you being upset."
          "That's very kind of you, and I'm glad that you care so much about me, but fighting my sister isn't a way to make me less upset. In fact, it upset me more than I already was. Anyway, is the elixir working? Are you feeling any better?"
          "Much better. What's in it that heals so well?"
          "Blue mountain flowers, a swamp fungal pod, and wheat. I learned the recipe from an old friend back in Skyrim."
          "It's proved to be a very useful skill. You're very skilled at this alchemy stuff, aren't you?"
          "Not really. I just started doing it for fun with my old friend, Babbette. I'm not very skilled in healing."
          "Well you've done a fine job of soothing the pain. I don't know what I'll do about this busted lip though. Damn thing is still bleeding."
           I thought to myself, "Don't do it, Gudrun! For the love of Talos, don't do it. Resist! Resist! Resist, you little psychopath!" Tragically I couldn't resist. I leaned in and licked the blood from his lip. Oh how it tasted so wonderful! I hadn't tasted the sweetness of blood in so long. His was the absolute best tasting that I had ever had. It must be a literal statement when they say that salt runs in their veins. I could taste it among many other flavors. It was at that moment that I knew that he was looking at me like I was insane. It probably something to do with the fact that I was. I'll admit any day that I'm actually batshit crazy. It's just a part of my personality.
"Gudrun," Theon whispered, "You are the most fucked up individual I have ever met. You and your sisters anyway. Is everyone just like that in Skyrim?"
"You know I don't like to talk about my home. Don't mention Skyrim."
"I'm just glad that you don't try to hide where you're from as much as you used to. I'm particularly happy that you don't cut and dye your hair black anymore. You know how much I love red hair."
          "Well I figured that once I fell in the river, and the black dye washed out, there was no point in hiding it anymore. Besides, how would red hair reveal that I'm from Skyrim."
          "You never told me. Why were you outcasted anyway?"
"I didn't tell you for a reason."
"You know you can trust me."
"The reason is that I honestly don't know. However, I may know something that may have had to do with it."
"What is it then?"
"Theon," I lowered my voice even more, "I'm only telling you this because I know I can trust you. I've already trusted you with everything else. If you dare tell anyone I'll cut your throat in your sleep."
"I won't tell anyone. I promise. You know that all of your secrets are safe with me."
I leaned very close to his ear. Telling him this was a major risk, but I had already trusted him a lot. I knew that there would be no possibility of regret. I simply had to get this information off my chest. My voice became nearly inaudible.
"I watched my father murder a man," I whispered.
I watched one of Theon's eyes widen. The other was still black from Ingrid's fist.
"Who was it," Theon asked, "Who did he kill?"
"I'm not fully sure. I believe it was someone that had something to do with the Vigilant of Stendar, daedra hunters."
"Daedra? Those are the mythical Devine beings that you told me about that one time, correct?"
"Yes, I do remember that conversation. I believe that I had made the comment that Dibella, an Aedra, had cursed you."
"What did your parents think of these Daedra?"
"They obviously thought a lot of them. They taught us all about them when we were children. Particularly four of them. They spent a lot of time talking about Sheogorath and Nocturnal, the Daedric Prince of Madness and the Daedric prince of shadows. Our family name comes from these two."
"I wonder if your father killed that man for some reason affiliated with the Daedra."
"I honestly believe that it was a reason more affiliated with Sithis than the Daedra."
"Who's Sithis?"
"He's the void. He what keeps the Dark Brotherhood, Tamriels most notable assassins, together."
~Ireonna~
My parents brought me back home in the night. I was quite disappointed that I had not completed my journey, or seen my Tyrion. However, I will admit that it was good to not be alone on that creepy road. My murderer parents make it so much less creepy. I wondered what Ingrid, and Gudrun will have to say about this.
It didn't take long to find the answer to that question. I was greeted by a silent house as soon as I returned home. I thought that my sisters were asleep so I decided to just get some rest as well. I would talk to them the next morning. I had planned on explaining what had happened and hoping that they would understand that I must see my love soon. Perhaps they might.