deadly nightshade

9

{Irri's POV}

I was sitting on my bed, unable to sleep myself. Nightshade hadn't woke me up with her frustrated yell, but I had heard it from my room. That cat.. she's so odd. Very unpredictable to be honest. Not that it was a bad thing, unpredictability is a great way to confuse and ambush the enemy.

Maybe going for a walk would distract my mind. Falkreath was very pretty at night. I quietly moved through the Sanctuary, but was stopped by Veezara.

"Where are you headed to this late?" He asked. I should've known he would still be awake, he hardly sleeps. It's his nature though, so I don't blame him.

"Need to clear my mind. I'll be back soon." I said in a relaxed tone. He nodded, lowering his head down once more. He and I were not much different from one another to be honest. Quiet, reserved, and powerful when we need to be.

As I exited the Sanctuary, the fresh night air filled my lungs, It was quite peaceful. I walked down the path, the occasional crunch of a leaf or stick and the soft blow of the wind being the only sounds I could hear. The world was asleep right now, and the peacefulness was almost intoxicating.

"Excuse me!" a voice pulled me from my thoughts, and I turned to see a courier. Odd, I had no clue they worked this late.

"Evening." I replied, looking the guy up and down. Wonder how he found me out here in the wild. Couriers were masterful trackers, it was almost scary.

"I have something for you, something about an inheritance." He said, shuffling through his letters before handing me. slightly heavy letter. "Sorry for your loss." Were his final words before he dipped his head and headed off. I considered killing him just for the fun of it, but what was the point.

Hurriedly I opened the letter. A pretty moderate amount of gold was in there, and I wondered who had died. I read the letter, and I paused on the name written on the page.

Shiro.

The bandit leader, he was one of my few friends outside of the Sanctuary that I actually kept in contact with. He taught he how to use bows, and usually helped me keep my supplies in order. I felt an odd pant of distantness. Losing one of the few friends I had.. I actually felt sort of sad.

As much as I wanted to hide the sadness, but I suppose it wasn't like anyone could see me. I sighed, tucking the letter into my bag. There was no way.. Nightshade had been in Solitude, but it had to be coincidence, right? She couldn't be responsible for this. But if she was.. what would I even say to her? I'll confront her tomorrow morning.. It wouldn't hurt to ask.

**

{Nightshade's POV}

I paced in the Night Mother's chamber. Surprisingly I had a very nice sleep, I will credit a bit of that to Irri. I'll admit, her presence was quite calming. I heard footsteps coming from down the hall, and I turned, expecting Cicero. However, rather than the cheery little clown, Irri appeared in the doorway.

"Hello furface." She said slowly, and I saw a spark of sadness in her voice. Almost immediately I wanted to lighten the situation, whatever had happened must've been bad. Irri doesn't let anyone see her sad. Not ever.

"Hi.. Nordface." I said, an awkward grin appearing on my face. Though Irri wasn't having it, as she stepped in. Her face was quite serious, and my smiled faded,

"I received a letter, a close friend of mind was killed." She said, pulled out a letter from her bag. I twitched, wondering what I had to do with this. "His name was Shiro, I mentioned his bandit gang a couple times before. They supplied many things for me."

It took so much for me to not physically become sick. I hadn't realized.. I should've realized that name was familiar. I kept myself as stable as possible as I replied.

"Oh dear.. but, why are you telling me this?" I questioned, meeting her eyes. "I mean, I'm very sorry for your loss, but it's odd. You don't really share this sort of stuff with anyone." I pointed out, and she looked to the side as to avoid my eyes.

"I was just wondering if you knew anything about it." She sighed, allowing herself to become emotionally vulnerable for once. "You were in Solitude after all, and that's where they had their camp."

"I'm really sorry, if I knew anything I would tell you." I replied, feeling awful the moment I told the lie. I shouldn't be lying to her when she's in this state, but I couldn't imagine telling the truth either. This was fine for now

"Yeah, I know," She mumbled, her voice trailing off. She paused for a moment, then tucked the letter away once again. "Sorry for bothering you, I'll be going." I frowned as she turned and left without another word. This wasn't good.