Tilma’s face was blank like an unused piece of parchment while her eyes seemed vacant of all life. Aela was a different story. In one fluid motion, she jumped off the bed, spilling gold coins all over the fur skins which Kodlak used for blankets. The young she-wolf blurted out word after word in a wave of gibberish.
“This isn’t what it looks like! It’s him, no it’s not it’s... I tried to stop him, but he made me! I’m sorry, Tilma... I... please, wait let me explain. Don’t tell Kodlak, please, I’m begging you”.
Tilma took a step back towards the doorway to the corridor just in case she needed a quick escape from the lunatic who almost came bounding towards her. Thinking there was something wrong with the girl, Tilma held out the palm of her hand and felt Aela’s forehead.
“The Harbinger told me you would be taking the gold this morning. Aela whatever is the matter? You look as white as a ghost; are you ill?”
Aela became weak at the knees. She grabbed hold of Tilma’s waist to support herself as she slowly turned towards Sotek. The worry of the past half hour had already taken its toll on her, fraying her nerves. When Tilma’s words finally sunk in, all Aela could do was stare mindlessly at the Argonian.
She finally managed to speak although by now she was so confused she didn’t know which way was up. She leaned into Tilma, demanding confirmation to the situation she now found herself in.
“You what!” While she waited for any response from the maid, Aela slowly looked down at the chest and the bags of gold which still coated the bed. As no answer was forthcoming, she asked Tilma a second time although this time around her attitude started kicking in. “You fucking what?”
Knowing Aela was close to ‘psycho mode’ Sotek quickly grabbed two more bags of gold then ran for the stairway, darting around the other side of Tilma so he was out of Aela’s reach.
His sudden movement was like a red rag to a bull. Aela screamed at him and gave chase, running out of the Harbinger’s study as fast as she could.
“You bloody bastard! You made me think you were stealing those bags. Come here you sniffling coward! You prick, I’ll kill you”.
The disruption caused by Aela screaming as she ran down the corridor, drew Farkas from his room. He had hardly taken a step out on the main corridor when Aela shoved him as she ran past. Being caught completely off guard and off balance, Farkas cried out as he toppled backwards while his arms flailed about aimlessly in a vain attempt to grab hold of anything. A loud thundering crash signalled the fact that he failed in trying to prevent his fall.
Vilkas came out from one of the Whelp’s quarters where he was discussing the various advantages of a two handed sword compared to the single handed smaller blades and started laughing at his brother just to find himself in Aela’s path.
Aela yelled as she ran around him while Sotek’s footsteps could be heard running up the stairs.
“Get out my way; ape!”
Vilkas hurriedly stepped back into the room and tripped over the Whelp’s boots which were lying on the floor.
Sotek managed to open a bit of ground between them by slamming the Undercroft door behind him but it didn’t delay Aela for very long. She finally caught up with him in the main hall. Instead of closing in upon him, she stopped at the end of the table and growled as she noticed two bowls of fruit which were set out the night before.
Sotek girlishly shrieked when an apple whizzed past his head. He pulled a shield from the weapon rack and ‘cowered’ behind it in the far corner by the infirmary as Aela opened up with a whole barrage of anything she could snatch from the table as she worked her way around it. Sotek could do little as Aela systematically cleared the table top. Everything became ammo which she threw with the utmost prejudice. Rolls, flagons, and apples; even the bowls they were in fell foul to Aela’s temper.
Upon hearing the disturbance, Kodlak stepped out from the infirmary just to see a plate go flying past him, just missing his nose.
“Aela! What the hell in all of Tamriel is going on? What is the matter? Sotek, what have you done this time?”
“Him, it’s him! He made me think; oh by the nines... he made me open it. You bastard”. She was practically screaming at Sotek who was peering over the top of the shield. Bits of apple, food and drink lay around him in a mucky puddle. His reptilian green eyes switched from Kodlak to Aela and back as he waited for someone else to speak. Aela’s eyes narrowed in a spiteful gaze causing him to grin back at her.
This was the final straw for the she-wolf. Losing all control, she drew her dagger and closed in upon her prey.
“Oh fuck it, I’ll just kill him”.
Kodlak briskly stepped between them and intercepted the Huntress before she could make good her threat. He held her firmly by the arms as he could see she was way past her normal bad temper.
“Aela, take a deep breath. When you’re ready, tell me; what happened?”
Aela closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, thereby calming herself down. It was only slightly but it was enough for Kodlak to pull her closer to him and hold her in his arms. She looked up at him and tried to explain. When she saw Sotek, who was laughing at the situation, she couldn’t hold it in. Within a second she joined in. Her eyes watered as she held her sides from the pain from laughing so much while all Kodlak could do was hold on to her and wonder what had happened.
As Aela laughed along with Sotek, she managed to say one thing.
“I’ll kill you, you prick. You’ll wake up dead in the morning”.
Once they both started to calm down, the she-wolf proceeded to tell Kodlak of the events leading up to the ‘fight’ in the hall.
“I thought, I really thought he was going to steal the gold from the chest under your bed. I tried to get him out of your room but he just wouldn’t leave. He found the chest under your bed... the chest of gold”.
Sotek laughed as he walked over towards them. With a big smirking grin he pointed to Aela.
“Then I said I couldn’t lock pick it so I threatened to smash it but Aela was so worried and messed up that she picked the lock so it wouldn’t be damaged”.
Aela covered her face with her hands and peeked through three fingers at a bemused Kodlak who was still trying to get to grips with the whole situation.
“Then that prick threw some bags of gold at me and that’s when Tilma came in! I really thought I was in trouble because of that fucking moron”.
Kodlak looked less confused than he felt; mentally he had no idea at all what she was on about.
“But Aela, why did you pick the lock?”
Aela huffed back at him and gave Kodlak a light shove in his chest to help him focus.
“Because he was going to smash the chest. I told you that”.
Kodlak looked at Sotek and slowly shook his head. He turned back to Aela and raised his hands in surrender to the whole mystifying situation.
“I’m sorry I don’t understand. Why would he when he has the key?”
At that point Sotek dangled the key which was tied to an old boot lace in front of her face. The silver key slowly spun around, catching the light of the fire pit, reflecting the sparkling moonlike metal in her eyes.
“You had the key all that time? You prick; you slimy reptilian bastard”.
Before Kodlak could even think of stopping her, Aela dived at the Argonian; knocking him to the ground. She straddled his waist, pinning his arms under her legs as she lashed out at his chest between fits of laughter.
“I hate you, you bastard”.
Aela collapsed in his chest and he slipped out his hands from beneath her and held his mate in his arms who was laughing as she laid out her fears.
“I really thought you were stealing the gold”.
Kodlak raised his white bushy eyebrows and gave Aela a weak grin as he finally realised what had happened.
“Ahhh... you thought Sotek was stealing the gold from under my bed? No, I told him about the chest last night. The gold you four have given me during the last four months has been way too much for the upkeep of the hall. After all we gather our own supplies and food, for the most part. So... I’ve kept the rest of it secure, in case one of you might one day need it. Sotek’s training program seemed a perfect time so I told him to take what he needed so he could arm the Whelps”.
Sotek roared hysterically as he pointed to the maid who did her best to follow them up the stairs.
“You should have seen your face when Tilma walked in”.
Aela snarled back at him.
“Shut the hell up”.
She followed through with a swift knee to the groin, causing him to groan in pain as he rolled over to his side and curled up.
“Oww!! Bang on target; Argonian down. Priestess? Anyone?”
Aela started slapping him on the side whilst she was still laughing.
“I’ll take care of you”.
Sotek lifted up his hand and with an air of despair to his voice, he asked the crowd around them both for a second option.
“Anyone else?”
Aela glanced around the hall at everyone then smirked as she tapped Sotek with her foot.
“No other offers. You’re all mine, hahaha”.
Once she let him up, Kodlak sternly looked at her despite the fact that Sotek had a big grin on his face.
“Have you quite finished?”
Aela scrunched up her face as she contemplated the morning’s events. Having thought back to earlier in the day, she decided Sotek hadn’t suffered enough. Looking at Kodlak, she shook her head as her hand formed a fist.
“Ermm no”. Her clenched hand shot out and punched Sotek in the arm.
He groaned from the blow but Aela still wasn’t satisfied. She stepped right in front of him but his hands moved across his groin, protecting his vulnerable area from Aela’s knee. She glanced down at his hands and smirked back at him then she smiled mischievously. Before he could react, Aela slapped him lightly across the face. Now she felt she had satisfaction for the stunt the Argonian pulled earlier. Looking back at Kodlak once more, Aela smiled and fell in by Sotek’s side.
“Ok, now I’m good”.
Sotek rubbed his cheek then sneered contemptibly at the she-wolf.
“Thief”.
Aela slowly turned her head towards him then went to grab his groin but he was quicker and moved out of the way. She screwed her face up as she waved a fist in the air at him.
“Yea you’d better run, you bastard”.
Kodlak called out to him in an attempt to bring the matter to an end.
“Are you determined to wind her up so she kills you, because she will”.
Sotek thought upon Kodlak’s words as he watched the heaving chest of the she-wolf. She was tense and ready to leap at him like a deranged animal. Knowing it was safer and less painful to back away from the possible fight, Sotek carefully stepped close to her then held her arms in a firm grip as he moved in front of her. Tucking her head under his chin, he spoke softly to her; all the while hoping she would agree to his proposal.
“Truce, we call a truce”.
Being careful so her features wouldn’t give anything away, Aela gave Kodlak a quick wink and lifted her knee up catching Sotek perfectly between the legs. He doubled over instantly and fell to his knees. Aela patted him on the head then proceeded to walk towards the yard doors.
“Accepted, now get up we have things to do”. She shoved the door open and stepped outside in the yard all the while feeling particularly pleased with herself.
The two brothers came either side of Sotek and lifted him up to his feet by his arms. Once they felt his legs support himself, they let him go and watched as he hobbled up the steps to the training yard doors. Farkas couldn’t hide the smirk on his face as he delivered a parting shot, adding to Sotek’s unease.
“Ten gold; that is all it is for the maids. No pain and no below the belt. Well, no punches or knees below the belt anyway. I’m only saying”.
Sotek slowly pulled himself up the steps and tugged on one of the door handles. Ignoring Farkas altogether, he turned to Kodlak and weakly smiled.
“She loves me”. Then he staggered outside and made his way to the Skyforge.
Vilkas pointed to him and spoke quietly to the Harbinger.
“You’ve got to get her to calm down. She is really going to kill him one day”.
Kodlak just shook his head at the suggestion and smiled back at the Nord.
“No, I don’t need to. Why do you think I like having you two around me? I’ll get you and Farkas to do it”.
Comments
Even Alduin would cower in fear.
Hi Sotek!