When Farkas and Vilkas, who were acting as Kodlak’s ‘shield bearers’, approached the main gate, they started cheering. Kodlak however wasn’t feeling very jubilant; he was too preoccupied with the task of trying to stay on their shoulders.
Passing the gate provided Kodlak with new dangers as the two Companions were too busy with their rallying cries to notice how close they came to smacking Kodlak’s head on the roof of the gateway. He haphazardly pushed himself lower only just avoiding hitting his head whilst he yelled out at them but they were making too much of a racket to notice and their echoing cries drowned out his own pleas. Once Vilkas had realized Kodlak’s predicament, they sheepishly lowered themselves a little so he was clear of the ceiling of the gatehouse.
Aela stared at them in disbelief. She shook her head as she cursed to Sotek about their stupidity.
“They are a pair of bloody morons. Not a single brain between them”.
She expected some sort of response from Sotek but he never gave her one. She turned around to see him with his back to the gate. The palm of his hand covered his face but there was just enough space between his fingers for his eyes to peek out of; if his eyelids were open. With his eyes tightly shut, he replied in a half hearted prayer.
“Please tell me they passed the gate without dropping him!”
Aela started smirking over his comment. She turned back to the gatehouse and breathed a sigh of relief as she watched them pass through and enter the streets of Whiterun.
“Yes, they made it”.
“Thank Hircine for that; now for my part”. He approached the gate knowing full well that the guards were all staring at him. One guard in particular, the only female guard, Lydia, left her position and walked down the ramp to intercept them.
Aela was expecting some snarky comment from her but instead she produced a square sheet of linen and tipped her flask on it, soaking the linen in water. She wiped Sotek’s face over quickly and smiled at him.
“Ahh it is you. I didn’t recognize you with all the mud”.
Aela, who felt more than a hint of jealousy pointed behind Sotek and snapped at Lydia.
“I thought it would be easy to see who he is because of his tail”.
Lydia stepped back in the revelation that she overstepped her boundaries. She blankly glanced at them both then stared at the ground before heading off towards the ramp.
Sotek looked back at her and discretely observed the other guards. He leaned across to Aela and whispered to her while being sure to let her know he wasn’t happy with what she had done.
“Lydia’s a friend and thanks to you, every guard is laughing at her now. It’s funny you go out your way to protect Kodlak from ridicule yet you so quickly condemn others to that fate”.
Aela’s scowl was wiped from her face in an instant to be replaced with shame. She looked over her shoulder to see Lydia facing the plains in an attempt to avoid the other guards gaze. Two of them were pointing at her while, thanks to Aela’s heightened hearing from being infused with the wolf blood, she could hear a multitude of soft sniggering and snide comments concerning Lydia.
The Companion turned around and headed up the ramp, deliberately making her boots clomp on the wooden ramparts. She spotted two buckets and snatched them off the table before calling Lydia over.
Throughout this time Sotek kept watching the gate, relying solely upon his own heightened hearing. All of a sudden ice cold water splashed over his back. He turned around to receive a second bucket of water which struck him full in the face.
Aela took Lydia’s bucket away from her and tossed them both at the two guards who were laughing earlier before walking back down the ramp.
“Lydia’s right. The state you were in, from up there you could have been anyone. Least we can see it’s you now”.
Sotek’s jaw fell open as his tail flapped about in an attempt to shake off the water. His hands rose up despairingly over the fact that he was still muddy but now soaked as well.
“I suppose you think you’re clever”.
Aela flashed her eyes at Lydia and nodded sarcastically back at Sotek.
“Yes, I do!” She then shoved the gate open, leaving the Argonian standing there in an ever increasing puddle of dirty muddy water and Lydia with a big smile on her face.
When he walked over the small humpbacked bridge which was just inside Whiterun, Adrianne called him over to her. She was, as usual working the forge outside the War Maidens. Aela was leaning against one of the posts which supported the outer roof of the shop while she talked to the blacksmith. Adrianne tutted and added a disapproving shake of her head due to the state of Sotek’s armor which she considered to be a disgrace.
“What’s going on with you? I thought I trained you better than that; look at the state of you! You won’t keep any girl looking like that”.
Aela gave a slight chuckle, adding yet more mockery upon Sotek’s already overloaded shoulders.
“Tell me about it. He’s an animal”. She lightly slapped the back of his head and walked further along the pathway to join the others.
Sotek’s face cringed from the slap he received from Aela. He tried to return the blow by striking her backside but she darted forwards a few feet escaping from retribution and moving beyond his reach.
Before he could pursue her, Adrianne called out to him, drawing him towards her.
“Aela said you fought Kodlak. By the looks of things he gave you a sound beating. What happened?”
Knowing full well what he was walking into, Sotek had the answer already prepared. He played on the fact that he was young and rash which was easily believable.
“I was too arrogant. I still haven’t learned to pick my fights better. The silly hatchling that I am, challenged Kodlak to a friendly fight. Slipped in the mud… the next thing I knew, there was a sword being pointed to my throat. Guess who won”. As he said his pre-planned story, he pointed at the market where the two brothers were tackling the steps to the Winds district.
Adrianne looked back at Kodlak with a puzzled yet a somewhat disappointed expression.
“I would have thought he would let you back up. That doesn’t seem so honorable to win like that; taking advantage of your opponent slipping up”.
Aela was just in ear shot of Adrianne. She stopped dead in her tracks and glanced along the pathway to Kodlak, fearing what others might now inadvertently think of him.
Sotek wasn’t put off though. He smiled back and brushed Adrianne’s comment aside like it was a small web on a rafter facing Tilma and her mop.
“Oh he did. This was the third time I fell. I spent more time on my backside than I did actually fighting. I suspect he ended it because he felt sorry for me but he won’t admit it. He isn’t one to let others needlessly suffer. This armor’s to blame”.
Aela couldn’t help herself. She cheerfully swung her arms by her side as she made hFer way to the wall which she sat on while she waited for Sotek to catch her up. All the while a broad smile spread across her face.
Adrianne nodded back to Sotek in agreement over his assessment on his current gear.
“Yes, well… heavy armor isn’t your thing really; is it? How are you doing for dragon scales? Have you got enough yet? I’m curious to see how they work”
Sotek walked past her and rested his foot against the side of the forge. As he stared deeply into the hot burning coals, he spat a mouthful of spittle into the fire and watched as the water evaporated.
Turning back to Adrianne, he shook his head, knowing full well that he had yet to gather enough materials.
“I need more, a lot more. I’ve got to get Aela and the others to help. She can bring them down a lot easier than I can. With some luck the rest of us can finish them once they are on the ground. I’ll have enough soon. Give it a few weeks maybe, who knows?”
She nodded back at him in such a manner to suggest she knew the familiar problem of a lack of resources all too well.
“When you are ready, you know you can use the forge and the shop. Now, it’s bad enough that you are filthy; you shouldn’t keep her waiting as well. Be off with you, you’re scaring away my customers”.
Bellowing with laughter, Sotek looked around the front of the shop which, except for him, Adrianne and Aela, was deserted.
“You don’t have any customers”.
Adrianne picked up an iron bar and waved it at the Argonian in jest.
“With your stench in the air I’m not surprised. Get out of here before I set the dog on you!”
With a friendly yet sarcastic wave of his hand, Sotek cheerfully replied.
“You don’t have any dogs!”
He carried on along the street to where Aela was sitting atop a stone wall. As he neared her, she shook her head disapprovingly although the smile as well as the tone in her voice told a different story regarding her mood.
“You’re a cunning bastard at times, you know that? You’ll make a great Harbinger”. She leaned into him and kissed him full on the lips, completely blanking the market stall holders who were watching them.
Sotek wrapped his arms around her and whispered in her ear.
“Maybe, but you still can’t go hunting as Red”. He then let her go and quickly walked off in front of her, leaving her behind.
She slid off the wall and watched him run through the market and up the steps to the Winds District with fascination like a mother watching one of her children play with a basic toy as if it was the greatest treasure in all the kingdoms.
“Hey what’s the rush?” She yelled out and she knew he had heard her but for some reason he never answered. He just kept on running.
As she walked through the market following his footsteps, all the children started laughing and pointing at her.
After a few seconds she stopped and asked then what amused them so much in her usual, rough begrudged manner.
“Oi you little bastards; what’s so funny?”
One of the young girls walked up to her and grinned as she pointed to Aela’s lower back.
“You got two muddy handprints on your bum”.
Aela felt her backside; her rear was covered in mud. She wiped her hand on the girl's dress and screamed across the market square.
“I’ll bloody kill you, you blasted snake!”
Sotek was watching her when she initially walked through the market. He guessed the children told her about what he did for her bellowing shout and the fact that she broke into a run made it all too clear.
As soon as her pace quickened he knew he was busted, then she looked up the stair way and saw him.
“Oi! I want a word with you”. As she shouted she pointed straight at him, leaving any doubt in pieces like shattered glass.
Sotek, being the Harbinger, and a member of the Inner Circle of the Companions, done the only thing his honor would allow.
He ran around the outside of the hall of Jorrvaskr screaming at anyone who was unfortunate to be standing in his way.
Sotek’s heart beat wildly as he heard the lighter yet quicker steps of Aela’s boots as she closed in upon him. When she managed to catch him, she darted her foot out, tripping him up. Sotek sprawled forwards and tumbled to the floor with a crash as he hit the ground.
When he finally came to a stop, he opened his eyes to find himself looking straight up at Kodlak and the others.
“Don’t get up!” yelled a voice from behind them. He cringed as he heard her footsteps approach until a new shadow loomed over his face, blotting out the sunlight.
A boot pressed down on his chest, pinning him to the ground while its owner, Aela, glared down at him in her gruff and unsympathetic way.
“Are you hurt?”
Half wishing that he was so Aela would be satisfied and leave him alone; Sotek moved his fingers and feet as he checked himself over. The tip of his tail rose up like a snake and turned towards Aela then sank back down and tried to slide under Sotek’s leg for safety.
Knowing he was actually unhurt Sotek gulped loudly then hoarsely spoke.
“Maybe”.
Aela leaned forwards, increasing the pressure of her foot on Sotek’s torso. The Argonian felt like he was trapped between the talons of a wild animal and gulped as the Huntress snapped her teeth together.
“You had better be!” For good measure and her own ease of mind, she lightly kicked him in the side just so she knew he was in some pain rather than escape from her clutches unhurt.
Kodlak, who was now standing beside the doors of Jorrvaskr, gruffly called out to her, allowing Sotek to get back up.
“Aela! What is wrong with you? Leave him alone”.
With a scolding growl, Aela snapped her head around at Kodlak, and baulked back at him.
“What?” Without even bothering to wait for an answer, she barged past Farkas and Vilkas, pushing them aside as she headed inside Jorrvaskr.
Vilkas grabbed hold of a pillar to prevent himself from being knocked sideways while Farkas hardly moved due to his stance. They were both going to yell at her when Farkas noticed her backside and between cascades of chuckles, he pointed straight at her haunches, making sure everyone around them would notice.
“Hey, Aela! You got muddy hand prints on your ass”.
She hollered back at him before shoving the doors wide open, causing Tilma to jump with fright.
“I bloody know!” Blanking Tilma altogether, Aela headed inside and proceeded to cross the hall where the maid was currently mopping the wooden flooring. Holding back the urge to kick Tilma’s bucket, Aela headed downstairs to get changed.
Vilkas stretched out his arm and gave Sotek a helping hand, pulling him off the dusty dirt ridden ground while Farkas laughed at him.
“I told you before Sotek; it’s only ten septims for the whole evening. All I’m saying is think about it”.
Sotek softly growled at the pair of them as he followed Kodlak inside.
Comments
Thanks for the corrections.
"She looked over her shoulder to (see) Lydia facing the plains ... more