Teresa of the Faint Smile, Adventures of a Stringy Bosmer Options

[Grits]

What a lovely walk through autumn countryside. Nice to know that Teresa and Simplicia are still in regular contact through letters.

What would a woman like that - an aristocrat - ever see in a gutterspawn like herself?
A fair and uncomfortable question. If Teresa comes to see Tadrose as an aristocrat, it might be difficult for her to set aside her own prejudices. This also brings up the mystery of Teresa’s origin. I’m led to think by her very unusual pale skin and special connection with things Arimer that she is not at all gutterspawn, but someone special herself. Hmm, interesting!

"A little rain never hurt anyone." Tadrose looked back to Teresa and smiled. "That is something I am used to. Besides, it will be good for your armor. The leaves need water as much as they do sunlight."
Well that’s good to know – the Jewel of the Rumare has been keeping Teresa dry and comfortable, but her poor armor must be parched! Better strip it off immediately and give it a good drink. And Tadrose’s better come off, too. To keep it dry.

"For Ancondil's birthday," Tadrose said, smiling once more. "What did you get him?"
Oh, darn it! She still thinks that Teresa and Ancondil… And Teresa got him a book of erotic poetry and a bottle of wine… Oh dear.

[SubRosa]

haute ecole rider: I think it is only the unintentional innuendos that get Foxy's attention... Poor Ancondil will eventually get lucky, but not until someone puts on their Emma hat to help him along.


Olen: I had to look up Mills and Boon. In the States we have Harlequin instead. I do not see Ancondil normally sitting around reading erotica either. So I went back and made it more plain that it was Ardaline who suggested the Catullus. Ancondil's tastes to run to women who are tall, slender, and golden-skinned. Just like a certain alchemist at the Bravil Mages Guild...

Tadrose was indeed an Indoril. It was alluded to before, in the scenes from her pov back in chapter 37. No one really seemed to pick up on them though, except for the part about her daughter.

But Sere was a name for another time, and another world, Tadrose thought. Along with names like Tyrela, and Indoril. They had no place here, thank Mara.

and later

Goddess, how strange it was to feel so for another after so many years! It had not been since Morrowind, when she had been Teresa's age. But she had been younger then, and foolish enough to let her feelings rule her body. Balen Dres had taught her the folly of that.

Acadian: I have been working off the idea that the Imperial City has a climate like that of Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, or NYC. Bravil like that of Wilmington, North Carolina, Leyawiin like Nawlins, and Bruma is Montana. That helps me keep all the winter/summers straight.

Oh the puns! I cannot complain though, because whenever I hear Poison's Every Rose Has Its Thorn, I keep thinking Every rose has its tad...

Funny you asked for lunch. Coming right up!


liliandra nadiar: The new few scenes will be similar. Then things will pick up. That dinner with Ungarion and Aela was indeed right after the events of Bawnwatch Island. Aela has not been back to Bravil since. Gah! I don't know what happened to the links on that page. Thank you for mentioning it, because I had no clue.


King Coin: That is not so much rudeness on Teresa's part, as low self-esteem. If Tadrose was not an aristocrat, Teresa would just find some other excuse to think she would not want her. Tadrose does not mind the rain because she is used to it from her life in Morrowind. We will see more about that soon.


Grits: I keep wishing I could find some way to tie Simplicia in more to events in the story. So I have been looking for allusions like that letter that I can slip in to keep her still on people's minds. Because Teresa certainly has not forgotten her!

I was thinking the same thing about Teresa's armor and the Jewel of the Rumare. It needs to be watered like any other plant, but her ring is keeping it dry!

And now we see another reason why Tadrose thinks that Teresa and Ancondil are an item. We will have more examples next week as well.


Previously On Teresa of the Faint Smile: In our last episode Teresa and Tadrose began their trek north along the Green Road. Tadrose revealed more of her past, concerning her being a noble, and how she spent her time living between Mournhold and the Ghostgate. Teresa also related that they had to return in time for Ancondil's birthday, and she learned that the book she had bought for him was erotica! Next, the two women continue to share more of their lives with one another.


Chapter 41.5 – Nothing is Trivial

The sky had turned slate grey by the time they stopped for lunch at the village of Dewhurst. Most of the men were toiling in the fields, but the two mercenaries found that the women of the settlement were happy to greet them. Once they saw their guild medallions that is. Teresa was reminded of how relieved the farmers of Maplemill had been to see her as well. Where city folk took their safety for granted, those who lived outside of stone walls were far less carefree. To them the swords and bows of the guild always seemed to be a welcome sight.

Once Teresa mentioned that they were out hunting for trolls, the villagers practically fell over themselves to make them welcome. Before either could say a word, they found themselves plied with fried squash, soft cornmeal muffins, and mugs of tangy apple cider to wash down the meal.

Tadrose tried to pay them for the food, but the women of Dewhurst refused to take a single coin. They said it was enough just to have them nearby, and doing something about the trolls. Given that, Teresa could plainly see their disappointment when she and Tadrose went on their way again afterward.

Teresa naturally found herself walking along the forest-side of the road. Whenever a long branch reached out near enough, she met it with her soft fingers. The song of birds filled her ears, along with the scuttling of squirrels hiding away the last of their winter stores. Tadrose's footsteps were quiet beside her. For all the metal pieces in her armor, it made barely a whisper. Teresa wondered if that was normal for all elvish panoplies, or if hers had been enchanted to make it silent, as Aldariel had been?

"It is good to see you out here," Tadrose said when Teresa glanced her way. "You seem so at home here. It is just as I always thought."

"Ever since I first set foot in the forest, I have known that I belonged here." Teresa hoped that she was not blushing again.

"Is that because you are a Witch?" Tadrose asked.

Teresa's heart skipped a beat for a moment. When Imperials said 'Witch' it was usually a curse, rather than a compliment. How had Tadrose meant it? The Dunmer's crimson eyes held no rancor in them however, and Teresa breathed easy as she replied.

"I suppose so," she admitted. "Or maybe I am a Witch because I belong here?"

"You will have to pardon me for asking, but even after ten years, some things in Cyrodiil still elude me," Tadrose said. "Just what is a Witch anyway? I have never understood that."

"To be honest, sometimes I don't either," Teresa almost chuckled. It brought back memories of her first meeting with Morcant, who had said likewise when she asked the same question. "I suppose it depends on who is saying it. To the Mages Guild, anyone not in their guild seems to be a Witch. To the Church of the Nine, anyone not in their faith. To men, any woman who is better at them in something."

"But I thought you followed the Nine?" Tadrose asked. "You swear by Mara's name often enough."

"I do," Teresa admitted, "and out of all of them, Mara is the one I feel closest to. She speaks straight to my heart. Because of Simplicia I think."

"But since I came out here, I realized there is so much more than the Nine. There are Raven, Bear, and all the other spirit guides."

Teresa stopped at the side of the road, and dug her fingers deeply into the cool dirt there. Lifting her hand, she let the soil fall slowly from between her fingers. "Other people look at this, and just see dirt. I see divinity. They look at a stag, and only see an animal. I see Cernon. We are surrounded by gods, we are gods. People like Aela and I celebrate the full beauty and majesty of the world. Not just the Nine alone, or the Daedra."

"I think I understand." Tadrose stepped up beside Teresa. "I am glad you have this. It is not always easy to find serenity and a place to belong. I know life was hard for you, being an orphan on the streets, and looking so much like an Arimer."

Teresa's breath hitched in her throat at the last word. Tadrose knew about the Arimer? Most people simply thought she was a freak, with her flour-white skin. They did not seem to realize that the ancient elves of Cyrodiil - so renowned for the horrors they had inflicted upon others - had the same white skin as her own.

But of course Tadrose would know. She was a noblewoman after all, and an elven one at that. The Imperials and other round-eared races felt no need to keep the memory of the Arimer alive, except as monsters to frighten children. Herminia Cinna was an academic outcast because of how she clung to the facts over propaganda. But why should the elven races feel that way? The Arimer were their kin after all.

"I was hoping you might start coming to the chapel with me on Sundas," Tadrose went on, seemingly oblivious to Teresa's thoughts. With one hand, she gestured at the riot of brightly-colored trees before them. "But I see that this is your chapel."

"You really like it there, don't you," Teresa said. It took every fiber of her being to avoid putting her arm around the other woman. "The chapel I mean. It gives you the same sense of peace?"

"It does," Tadrose breathed. "In Morrowind I followed Azura. As goddess of dawn and dusk, she holds sway over transitional periods in life. As I imagine most teens do, I could identify with her because of that. She helped me go from being a girl to a woman. I never felt anything for the Tribunal however. They were just there, and we all went to Temple because it was required. Of course once everyone learned that they had stolen their power from the heart of Lorkhan… Well, no one is saddened by their passing. No more than any in Bravil miss Kurdan."

"Were you there when that happened?" Teresa asked.

"No," Tadrose shook her head. "I had already come here, and found Mara. It felt like I had lost everything in the world back then. But she was there, always, with me."

Now it was Tadrose who slid her arm around Teresa, so that the folds of her cloak stretched out over the two of them. Teresa felt herself press closely against the other woman's armored frame, and an instant later her head was laying upon Tadrose's shoulder.

"No matter how alone I felt, I knew that she could understand what I was feeling." Tadrose said softly. Her head leaned to one side, touching Teresa's. "She was the one thing in the world I could count on, and she got me through it all."

"Tadrose." Teresa felt her heart pounding in her chest, like a like an army of blacksmiths hammering upon their anvils. "Why did you leave Morrowind?"

Tadrose sighed, and turned to face Teresa. Her arm still clung to the wood elf, and was followed by the other. Teresa stared up into the Dunmer's fiery eyes, hoping that she had not pushed the armorer too far with her questioning. She was relieved when the vice-commander finally spoke.

"I fell in love." Tadrose's words were bitter ashes, and her face was covered in shadows deeper than those cast by the forest.

"What is wrong with that?" Teresa found one hand rising to cup one of the Dunmer's cheeks. Tadrose leaned her head against the wood elf's fingers, and Teresa could not stop herself from gently caressing the armorer's dusky skin.

"When it is with the wrong man, from the wrong House, it is the worst thing in the world." Tadrose closed her eyes, her lips fluttered, and her jaw clenched tightly. Teresa wondered if she might begin to weep?

"Because you are a noblewoman?" Teresa said.

Tadrose nodded. "When you are noble, you do not have the same freedoms as others. Everyone thinks we are so lucky, to live in palaces, wear silk and jewels, and be waited on hand and foot. But the truth is those manors are prisons. To be a noble, is to be a sacrifice. Stretched out upon the altar of duty, and disemboweled by the dagger of authority. Our own children are our first victims."

A roll of thunder punctuated the dark elf's words. The pitter-patter of raindrops followed, as if the sky wept for the Dunmer's plight. Teresa did not know what to say. Instead she drew the taller woman close, and folded her in the warmest embrace she could muster.

This post has been edited by SubRosa: Dec 2 2011, 10:53 PM

[Olen]

There's a few more details there. You'd more or less already said that a man was behind her leaving, though there's still nothing on why she left - just honour or avoiding repercussions or something more... I'd missed his name before, along with him being from another house there's an obvious contender, though it's not certain.

As ever the conversation is a joy to read - I particularly liked Tadrose subtly asking Teresa questions, like on her being a witch. I suppose from Tadrose's point of view Teresa's past is a bit of a mystery and she won't necessarily know exactly how much of a mystery it is to Teresa too.

We have a definite cuddle now too. I'll be very surprised if they aren't an item when they return to Bravil, it will be interesting to see how surprised the Bravillians are.

[liliandra nadiar]

While I would like to agree with Olen, I doubt the two will work through thier respective misconceptions of the other in this trip. After all, Teresa has just found out that Tadrose was in love with a man, so "naturally" she wouldn't want to be with a woman.

Still, cuddles! ^.^!!

[Acadian]

Thanks for the wonderful lunch! Just the thing to precede more of our beautiful walk through the temple forest.

Wonderful tidbits here as Teresa shares what she believes a Witch to be and Tadrose shares more of her background. I love that dear Mara is a powerful link between them.

Although it might give rise to some doubts (after all, Teresa is full of them), I actually do not believe that the nature of Tadrose’s love history with *gasp* a man, will weigh that heavily on Teresa. I suspect Nerussa taught her better than that.

[haute ecole rider]

I'm with Acadian - never mind that Tadrose has been with a man.

In truth, I know more than one Lesbian who discovered her sexual orientation after being with men *yawn*. Sorry, guys! So it comes as no surprise that Tadrose would be interested in Teresa after her experiences.

But I also agree that Teresa is so besotted with Tadrose that she will find it difficult to believe that Tadrose feels the same way about her. After all, she is only "gutterspawn," for that is how others have viewed her for most of her formative years. And that's a tough baggage to get rid of. Like that infamous red suitcase Dere unloaded himself on by the docks of Anvil in another story . . .

[Grits]

"I think I understand." Tadrose stepped up beside Teresa. "I am glad you have this. It is not always easy to find serenity and place to belong. I know life was hard for you, being an orphan on the streets, and looking so much like an Arimer."

Oh, how fun to get even a hint of this. Hopefully Teresa will allow Tadrose to be her ally whenever she gets to facing that uncomfortable part of herself.


"No matter how alone I felt, I knew that she could understand what I was feeling." Tadrose said softly. Her head leaned to one side, touching Teresa's. "She was the one thing in the world I could count on, and she got me through it all."

It’s great to see part of why Tadrose might be drawn to Teresa. They do have some common ground in their pasts, as far as feeling alone and out of place.


Tadrose nodded. "When you are noble, you do not have the same freedoms as others. Everyone thinks we are so lucky, to live in palaces, wear silk and jewels, and be waited on hand and foot. But the truth is those manors are prisons. To be a noble, is to be a sacrifice. Stretched out upon the altar of duty, and disemboweled by the dagger of authority. Our own children are our first victims."

This is beautifully put. Of course Teresa doesn’t know that Tadrose is talking about her own child (I think), but she should still gain some insight here.

And a nice hug! Yay.

[King Coin]

Fighter’s guild is definitely different from the image I have of a typical mercenary group. It’s rather nice though. I suppose the other guild halls might not have such a good reputation either.

I’m enjoying Teresa and Tadrose’s discussion of beliefs. They are both wonderfully open minded. Oh and snuggle!

Tadrose left everything she knew for a powerful reason. I can’t wait to learn more about this forbidden love. Possibly a child involved as well. Yikes.

[ghastley]

Teresa being the one to over-think things, she's probably now trying to decide if Tadrose's past has turned her against men, against getting emotionally involved with anyone else, or if she's pining for a lost love. Plenty of opportunity for getting the wrong answer, maybe more than once.

I'm just wondering what interesting plot twist will ensue from the book gift to Ancondil. And how it will tie in to this in the end.

[liliandra nadiar]

I'm not saying that Tadrose is straight, just that Teresa will take it as such. And yes, she should know better from Nerussa, but our girl here seems quite determined to find reasons against being happy.

This post has been edited by liliandra nadiar: Dec 2 2011, 09:26 PM

[McBadgere]

Weird...The song I'm listening to says to reach out and touch faith...I'm loving the whole thing about worship and faith in this story...I don't and I have little, but it's always fascinating to read...

Absolutely brilliant...

I know I try to hide my lesser descriptive abilities behind jokes and a Nice One...But I was really moved by these last two parts...I shall refrain from my usual...

I'm just loving this story...

[SubRosa]

Olen: Teresa is indeed just as much a mystery to Tadrose as the other way around. De-mystifying their relationship is one of the things this chapter, and especially these first five episodes, have been all about. By the time this chapter and the next are over with, T&T are going to know one another very well, including itemization.


liliandra nadiar: Expect to see a lot of misconceptions blown away this trip, this episode especially. I do love the fact that so many people are instantly seeing how Teresa will turn the things she learns into excuses for Tadrose not wanting her. It is all so like her! It is good to see that I have conveyed that part of her nature well.


Acadian: Teresa's worries about Tadrose only being interested in men will be resolved this episode.


haute ecole rider: I did not find out I was a lesbian after sleeping with man, I always knew. OTOH, I certainly had it confirmed when I finally did try one out!

And as you noted, Teresa has yet to shed the low self-esteem she has spent a lifetime learning.


Grits: I am not sure when the story will roll around to Teresa facing (and learning) the truth behind her parentage. I do have the broad strokes planned out, and every Arimer ruin she explores contributes to it. Her mother was clearly a wood elf, as that is definitely her race. She has their body type, their ears, their special powers, etc... But her father on the OTOH, is a different story. He may be where that ghost white Arimer skin comes from. Just as the Grey Prince inherited his skin tone from his dear old dad.

We will also find more about Tadrose's daughter at the very end of this chapter and especially at the end of the next.


King Coin: You are right, in that the TF FG (can I put more acronyms in here? ) is different from the common idea of a band of mercenaries. The latter is more like the Blackwood Company. The FG is different from most merc groups because it has an Imperial Charter, which provides it with a legal framework it has to abide by, or else. Such as not hiring criminal scum. Even their origin was as a law-enforcement force, to replace the private armies that the Potentate had abolished. While they are not the police anymore, they still retain much of those trappings in their rules of engagement (which is another example of the effect of their charter with the Empire. Other merc bands would not have clearly defined rules of what jobs they can or cannot take, etc...). We will actually hear more about the FG's rules of engagement later this chapter.


ghastley: Teresa over-think things? Naaaw! I really did not have anything extra planned for Teresa's gift. My expectation is that she will take it back to Nilawen and trade it for another, less racy, book. Maybe I can work that in the next chapter.


McBadgere: Thank you McB. You do not have lesser descriptive abilities. I think you conveyed exactly what you meant to. I look forward to seeing more of that *gentle nudge*.

By the by, I do not worship, and have no faith. That does not stop me from being deeply religious however. Look here and here if you are interested.

My religious background is where I bring most of the "flavor" I write into the religious aspects of this story, whether it is the theories and viewpoints that Teresa and Tadrose are discussing in this chapter, or the ceremonies depicted in previous chapters, like Olava's harvest blessing, or Aela's Witches Festival. It is also where I get my descriptions of the inner workings of magic from, as that is all taken from IRL magical traditions.


Previously On Teresa of the Faint Smile: In our last episode, Teresa explained to Tadrose that she was a Witch, and what that meant. Tadrose also related that she had followed Azura in Morrowind, but not the Tribunal. But when she came to Bravil, she left all that behind, and found a powerful relationship with Mara. She confessed that she left Morrowind because she fell in love with a man from the wrong House. She also admitted to being noble, but expressed how much she hated the sacrifices that being so entailed. Next, we find the two women spending time together on a dark and stormy night.


Chapter 41.6 – Nothing is Trivial

Teresa followed Tadrose into the stable. The open area near the door was lined with shovels, pitchforks, and other tools. Saddles and tack were stacked up on sawhorses and hung from pegs on the other wall. Stalls stretched down either side of the remainder of the long building, leaving a single, open lane between them. The heads of sturdy draft horses loomed from above the walls of the enclosures, as well as smaller donkeys and mules.

As soon as Teresa entered the livery, the pungent smell of the animals and their droppings invaded her nostrils. The wind whipped past her willowy frame, sending a sheet of rain into the structure. A flash of lightning filled the building with light, followed by the crashing of thunder a moment later.

"I'm sorry we don't have room anywhere else. Our homes are small, and we don't get many visitors staying the night." A short Nibenean entered the stable behind the two women and shut the double doors, but did not latch them. The amber light of his lantern bathed the chamber in its warm glow, and he gestured to a ladder leading to a loft above the stalls. "Best you sleep up there. Don't you worry, the roof don't leak, and the hay's just as good as any bed. Believe me, with a wife like mine, I know."

Teresa wondered if that was supposed to be a joke about being kicked out of the house? Or that he was an adulterer?

"This will do fine," Tadrose filled the silence between the three. She threw back the hood of her cloak and gazed up at the loft overhead. "It is very kind of your village to give us shelter."

"Let it not be said that Clearwater is no friend of the Fighters Guild. It's not fit for man or beast out there tonight. Mark my words, we'll find more than one tree turned over in the morning, and I'll probably be re-thatching the roof all damned day." The dark-haired man handed Teresa his lantern. "Here, you'll need this to see by. Just be careful with it around the hay."

"That is alright," Teresa waved his hand away, and produced a glowing white crystal from her Thieves Bag. "We have plenty of light."

"Well then, we'll be seeing ye in the mornin' then," the Nibenean nodded. "Akatosh keep you safe and sound."

"Aye, and you and your family." Tadrose drew the cloak from her shoulders and shook the water from its folds. Teresa noticed that except for her boots, her armor was dry underneath.

The farmer vanished into the night a moment later, shutting the door behind him with a clacking of wood. Another peal of thunder reverberated through Teresa's ears, and a chorus of whinnies rose from the stalls. Teresa walked to the line of enclosures, and spoke softly to the horses. "Shhh, it's just Kynareth redecorating."

"In Morrowind, we used to say it was the Dwemer playing ninepins." Tadrose smiled and hung her cloak from an empty peg in the wall, beside the rows of tack.

"I'm sorry it had to rain on our first day out." Teresa bit her lip as she looked back to the Dunmer. "I didn't realize it would."

"Rain I am used to," Tadrose remarked as she ascended the ladder. "It rains from Second Seed all the way through the end of Midyear in Morrowind. Besides, my cloak keeps most of me dry."

"I noticed," Teresa said as she followed the dark elf up into the loft. "Is it enchanted?"

The beams of the roof rose up into an inverted 'V' just inches above their heads, causing Teresa to reflexively duck. Bales of hay were stacked against either wall, and filled the far end of the loft as well. Loose fibers were scatted everywhere between, and Teresa found the dark elf gathering these into a large pile against one wall of the bales. The wood elf joined her, and in moments the two sat down together in the soft bed of hay.

"Aye," Tadrose said. "Henantier did it for me years ago. The inside is always dry, and it resists the cold. I am not sure if I could survive the winters here without it."

"I wish I had something like that when I was growing up," Teresa said as she pulled her gauntlets off. "We used old crates, trash, whatever we could find to start fires in the alleys to keep warm. When it got really cold, we'd have to go down in the sewers."

"That sounds terrible," Tadrose said as she followed Teresa's lead, and began taking off her armor. A moment later the wood elf moved to help with the numerous plates and pieces of the elvish armor.

"I never knew anything different," Teresa shrugged.

"Tell me more about it," the dark elf asked as they worked on the vambraces sheathing her arms.

Teresa felt her cheeks grow warm. "Oh, there is nothing much to say," she dissembled. "Nothing interesting."

"Sure there is," Tadrose insisted. "I would like to know. One of the reasons I came out here was so we could spend time together. You told me that Simplicia raised you. Who were your friends when you were growing up?"

"Oh well, that was Methredhel and Adanrel I suppose." Teresa stared intently at the golden plates of light - but extremely durable - metal that covered the Dunmer's body. She hoped that she was not blushing as deeply as she thought she was. "We met in an alley, when they were being chased by a shopkeeper."

"Now that sounds like a story!" Tadrose exclaimed. "Even when you were little, you were getting into adventures."

With more coaxing from Tadrose, Teresa related how she met the other two wood elves, ran afoul of Valen Dreth, and eventually defeated him with the unwitting help of Raminus Polus. She continued on long after both of the women had stripped off their armor, and sat in nothing but their tunics. She told the armorer about her life as a beggar with Simplicia, her fumbling attempts at thievery, moving to the Chamber Pot when she was fifteen, and of course how Emperor Uriel Septim changed everything. Through it all the older elf sat in rapt attention, her red eyes practically glowing in the soft illumination of the lightstone at their feet.

"I am surprised that Ancondil did not come with us," Tadrose said as she poured apple cider from her waterskin into a pair of redware cups that Teresa had removed from her bag.

"I didn't ask him," Teresa said. She lifted one of the cups to her lips and took a sip of the tangy drink. "He may be built like a minotaur, but he's a big baby inside. I remember the first time we had dinner together, he said he barely survived the ride down here from Cheydinhal, and he was stopping at inns every night along the way! By his own admission, he'd probably walk into more trees than around them."

"You must miss him on these trips in the wilderness," Tadrose said. Her eyes were veiled as she sipped from her own cup.

"No more than anyone else." Teresa wondered why the dark elf would ask such an odd question? "I do miss his playing. The only music I ever heard before I met him was from street corner musicians. Let me tell you, most of them are on the street corner for a reason! But I can sit and listen to his lute all day. And then his voice. It's so deep and strong, it just runs through me when he reads poetry."

"Aye, he plays very well," Tadrose agreed. Teresa wondered if she detected a note of sourness in the other elf's voice? "And recites poetry well too. I often think he was made for better things than the guild."

"I think he's shy." Teresa shrugged. "Sure he's fine at going up and talking to people, even if they're complete strangers. I wish I could be more like that. But when it comes to his lute, or his writing, well he just turns into a little boy then."

They sat together in silence for long moments, until Tadrose finally spoke again. "I know you miss Simplicia," she said. "But you never mention any men. Is there anyone you left behind in the Imperial City?"

"Men?" Teresa could not prevent her eyes from goggling at what Tadrose was suggesting. "Me? Not hardly. I am not what men are looking for. Even before…" Teresa's eyes dropped to her shoulder, where her tunic hid the web of scar tissue that marred her skin.

"Surely there was someone," Tadrose suggested, staring intently at the wood elf.

"Well, there is Nerussa," Teresa squirmed in the hay, and stared down at her hands.

"Nerussa?"

"She's an innkeeper," Teresa explained. "Well, she is now at least. Ever since I met her. Which wasn't that long ago really."

The Dunmer laid a comforting hand on her leg, and Teresa felt her heart slow its pace. Without really thinking about it, she found her own hand sliding atop Tadrose's. "I have never met anyone like her. She was a courtesan, and it still shows in everything she does. She was like being with Dibella herself."

"Oh my," Tadrose breathed. She turned her hand, so that her fingers could interlace with Teresa's and gently squeeze. "So she was special then?"

"She was my first," Teresa said, knowing that she was red as a beet. Still, she forced herself to turn and look Tadrose in the eye. The dark elf looked surprised, and Teresa wondered if like so many Imperials, she did not approve of women being with one another. "I thought I was trying to seduce her. I was such an idiot! But she saw something in me in spite of it all."

"I can imagine why," Tadrose said softly. Teresa felt herself blushing even worse, and found herself looking down at her lap once more. "You have so much beauty in you Teresa. Anyone would be lucky to be with you."

"So what about yourself." With a supreme effort of will, Teresa forced herself to look back at Tadrose. "Who was your first?"

Tadrose leaned back into the hay. A soft smile crept across her features, and she rolled her cup this way and that under her fingers. "That was Sondryn Girith. Her family was one of those in my House, and we knew each other from childhood. We were sixteen, and it was Azura's Summoning Day. We spent the evening under the mushroom trees on the banks of the Odai river, drinking shein, singing, and dancing." Tadrose sighed. "One thing led to another, as it often does. The next thing I knew we were in each other's arms. To be so young and carefree…"

"So you're sapphic too then?" Teresa asked, feeling her heart beat like a drum in her chest.

"Well of course!" Tadrose laughed. "Dibellic at least. Are not most of us elves attracted to both genders? Especially when we are young, and exploring our passions?"

"I had no idea," Teresa admitted. "I'm not good at being an elf."

"You are just fine at being an elf," Tadrose insisted. She leaned forward, and tapped a playful finger against Teresa's nose. "You grew up around Imperials is all, and in the Imperial capital no less. No one can fault you for not being taught elven culture. But your heart is the same as any other elf's."

This post has been edited by SubRosa: Mar 25 2012, 02:14 AM

[liliandra nadiar]

"Shhh, it's just Kynareth redecorating."

Ha! Love that saying.

Funny, I don't remember Tadrose packing a crowbar and dynamite. Didn't think anything else would get Teresa to talk about herself. To be fair though, Tadrose does have an inside track on getting Teresa talking.

"Well of course!" Tadrose laughed. "Are not all of us elven women?

Aw, what about the men? Though I suppose they wouldn't want to be called sapphic.

And that's the major mutual misconception cleared, hopefully. They both know the other has slept with women in the past, now they both just need to get it through those lumps of ebony on their shoulders that the other really is interested in them.

[Doommeister]

Dangitall I've caught up again.

You enjoy hanging Cliff don't you... He is going to start haunting you very soon.

S.G.M.

This post has been edited by Doommeister: Dec 5 2011, 05:51 PM

[Olen]

Hands on legs, each discussing their history with women - I'm not sure I want to know what's going to happen in that hayloft...

Believe me, with a wife like mine, I know.

I liked this line, it's ambiguity made me smile.

Well that's the main barrier broken and they both must know the other is interested:
"Anyone would be lucky to be with you."
The Dunmer laid a comforting hand on her leg, and Teresa felt her heart slow its pace. Without really thinking about it, she found her own hand sliding atop Tadrose's.
"But your heart is the same as any other elf's."

I suspect their tme might be spent cementing a relationship rather than initiating it.

liliandra - I'm sure if all the women are sapphic the men will find something to do

[King Coin]

Teresa wondered if that was supposed to be a joke about being kicked out of the house? Or that he was an adulterer?
Did you mention she over thinks things?

I was smiling when they finally figured each other out. I was going to be very frustrated if this chapter ended with Tadrose thinking Teresa was with Ancondil!

[Acadian]

So, we have moved from an Almost Kiss to an Almost Roll in the Hay. Seriously, this was lovely! And a perfectly wonderful setting up in the loft of a stable on a stormy night. You painted the entire atmosphere inside the stable perfectly. I’m so glad they were using a glow stone to see by instead of a flaming lantern!

It was fun to hear Teresa review her past and learn more of Tadrose’s.

This post has been edited by Acadian: Dec 6 2011, 03:23 AM

[Grits]

I like the Nibenean farmer. It was a nice touch that Teresa didn’t get what he was talking about.

T & T learned a lot about each other in the hayloft, and the storm isn’t over yet. Hopefully no one from the village will have a hay emergency and spoil the mood. Teresa has summoned her courage, and it's going so well!

[McBadgere]

Well that made my dinner interesting... ...

*Applauds*...

Damn good job they don't have...Hay-fever...Allergies do you call it over there?...I'd be sneezing like a git... ...

Back to the...Nice one!!... ...

... ...

[SubRosa]

liliandra nadiar: When I was little my parents used to always say thunder was God redecorating, or the angels bowling. So I just ESized those sayings for T&T.

You had me rolling with the crowbar and dynamite! So correctly put. In some ways Teresa can be just as close-mouthed about her life as Tadrose.

I am not sure what to call gay men in ES. Since I went with sapphic for the women, it would be nice to name them after a male homoerotic poet. But I am afraid I cannot think of any (man on man just is not high on my reading list). Maybe Walt Whitman? He did Sing the Body Electric. Maybe I could elfinate his name?


Doommeister: Hey, I am not as bad as treydog! He has stretched out poor Cliff's neck by at least a mile.


Olen: I went back and edited that a bit, since I did not want it to seem that all young elven women were sapphic, but rather bisexual, or at least willing to experiment with both sexes.


King Coin: Unfortunately, Teresa talking about having dinner with Ancondil, and what a great musician and poet he is, did not help her cause for being unattached. But that will be dealt with directly before this chapter is done.


Acadian: Maybe this means they will be Almost Girlfriends soon? These past 5 episodes were a lot of fun to write, because of how much ground it allowed the T&T to cover in their relationship. To the point of being on the verge of really having one, if not already.


Grits: The Nibenean was mainly there to provide a link to the village that they were staying at. His comment about the hay being comfortable was also primarily meant to show that it was not going to be a miserable place to spend the night. But I could not resist throwing some married humor in there.

One emergency coming up! Although not a hay one.


McBadgere: Most of the elven races have resistances to diseases. Hopefully this will make lunch entertaining as well.


Previously On Teresa of the Faint Smile: In our last episode, the rain turned to a raging thunderstorm, and Teresa and Tadrose took refuge for the night in a village's stable. At Tadrose's prompting, Teresa related the events of her childhood, including how she outwitted Valen Dreth with the help of Methredhel, Adanrel, and Raminus Polus. Then talk went to their first lovers, and Tadrose revealed that her first was another girl in her House, when she was sixteen. She also confirmed for Teresa that most elven women are open to sex with both genders, at least when they are young and exploring their sexuality.

The next episode is a little long, but if I had spit it up into two, the first half would be been just too dull.


Chapter 41.7 – Nothing is Trivial

"It's a ship, a ship!"

The cry of a young girl's voice pulled the forester from her dreams. She felt Tadrose's arm stretched out across her waist, underneath the blanket they both shared. Teresa sighed. If only they had done more than just lay next to one another… Yet she knew it was a start, and a good one at that. For it appeared that so long as she did not push, Tadrose was willing to share her past with her, as well as her present. In the end, that was all that she could hope for. She only wished that girl's voice would go away and leave the two of them alone.

The dark elf's eyes opened an instant later, and she rose to a sitting position along with Teresa. Drawing her arm back, she rewarded Teresa with a shy smile, and rubbed the sleep from her eyes.

"It's wrecked on the shore!" The voice rang out from beneath them. "Come quick!"

Tadrose pulled on her boots and gathered up her longsword. Then she slid down the ladder with a flash of blue skin and raven-black hair. Teresa followed after pulling on her boots, gorytos, and Thieves Bag. Now she was thankful that nothing had happened after all. At least now they still had their tunics on. Sparing only a glance at the pieces of their armor - stacked neatly against the hay - she made her way down the ladder. If it really was an emergency, there would be no time for donning the gear.

They found a dark-haired Imperial child waiting for them on the floor of the stable. She pointed out the open doors, toward the coast beyond. "It's out past the fields, on the rocks!"

"Tell the others," Tadrose patted the girl on the shoulder. "If your village has a healer, tell them to hurry."

Teresa sprinted out the open doors of the stable with Tadrose in hot pursuit. Magnus had yet to appear in the east, but the sky was clear, and the pre-dawn light was bright enough to see by without goggles or glowstones. Her boots flew across the muddy village streets, taking her to the gate in moments. She passed a few other villagers on the way, stepping from their homes with bleary eyes and confused expressions. The wooden gates of the settlement were open, and a young boy stood beside them, pointing the way to the shores of Niben Bay.

Teresa raced past him, and sped across the fields. Avoiding the gentle mounds of the Three Sisters, she kept her feet on the firmer ground that snaked between them. She heard Tadrose's steps behind her, and the dark elf's strong, regular breaths. Neither said a word, saving their breath for the run.

The fields went on for at least half a mile, then turned to scattered trees and brush for another half mile. That ended with a rocky cliff, as if some god had simply plunked down a gigantic shovel and carved out a chunk of Nirn there. Teresa stopped at the rim as the sun rose into the morning sky. She did not pause to take in the beauty of the moment however. Instead she stared down the precipice to the pebble beach, at least a hundred feet below. She instantly saw the ship, pointed nose-first toward the shore. The strand ended just beyond it, and the cliff-face jutted out sharply into the sea like a great hook of tall rock.

"There!" Tadrose gasped. She pointed in the other direction, to a path that led down the bluff. Teresa led the way without a word, and in moments the two women scrambled down onto the stones of the beach. Making their way across the strand, they finally came to a halt before the wreck.

It was not a galleon, Teresa noted, but a holk - one of the flat-bottomed river craft that made runs between the cities along the Niben. The ship's high prow and forecastle had collapsed into a shambles of broken timbers. Its single mast had snapped at its base, and stretched out across the water to the beach. Most of the overlapping boards of his hull were hidden by the waves, which washed across the top deck. Only the sterncastle remained free of water. There Teresa saw a lone figure, standing with head down, as if forlornly pondering the scene of destruction before him.

"There's a survivor!" Teresa pointed, and fought to regain her breath. Once again she thanked Pappy for his idea that she run laps around city. She never would have made a mile-long run before she had come to Bravil. Let alone had the breath to speak afterward.

With that in mind, she reached into her Thieves Bag and withdrew a pair of potions. Handing one to Tadrose, she guzzled the other. Instantly she felt refreshed. Her heart slowed, and her breathing returned to normal. It felt as if she had but leisurely walked the distance, instead of ran flat out.

She waded into the surf and grabbed hold of the mast. She could use it to climb up onto the deck of the ship. From there she could get to the survivor.

But Tadrose's hand stopped her. "Wait," the armorer said, pointing to the lone figure on the ship. "Look again."

Teresa followed the other woman's hand, and studied the man on the back of the ship. That is when she realized that she could also see the rocks of the cliff through his body. He was not a man at all, but a ghost!

"Damn," Teresa cursed. "Undead. Do you think he killed the crew?"

"Or perhaps he is the crew," Tadrose suggested.

"I'll need to string my bow then," Teresa said, turning back to shore. That is when a voice came to her ears.

"Help!" It was the voice of an ordinary man, with the soft, sing-song tones of a Breton. It came from the direction of the ship. The forester turned back, and saw that the ghost was now standing at the edge of the sterncastle's rail. He was looking directly at her and Tadrose, and reached out one hand in supplication. "By the Nine please!"

Teresa bit her lip. What kind of ghost cried for help, or swore by the Nine? She remembered the one time she had previously encountered such a creature. It has been at Castle Magia, and had nearly killed her. That creature had floated in the air, missing its lower body entirely, and seemed to be almost composed of mist. Yet this specter was clearly a man. Teresa could see every detail on his face, and every fold of his simple clothing. If it not for the fact that she could see through him, she never would have imagined that anything was unusual about him at all.

She pushed against the beating surf and grabbed the mast once more. Using it to pull herself against the waves, she slowly drew closer to the ship.

"Teresa, what are you doing!" Tadrose's hand clapped down on her shoulder, and held her tight.

"I have to help him!" Teresa cried, and shook herself loose.

"He's dead!" Tadrose replied, pulling herself after the wood elf.

"So is Cassius Longinus." Teresa said resolutely. She paused to turn back to face Tadrose. "But he was still there for me. I won't leave this man. I just won't."

"Teresa, look at him!" Tadrose insisted. "It's probably a trick."

"Maybe it is," Teresa admitted. "But I can't just stand by safe and sound when someone else needs me."

Teresa turned back to the holk, and pulled herself closer. The water rose high around her, first to her breasts, then past her shoulders, and finally the stones under her feet fell away. She was thankful for the Jewel of the Rumare - which allowed her to breathe the water - for the tide continued to crash over her in a steady rhythm.

Hooking her legs around the thick pine, she climbed up onto the mast and crawled her way along the rest of its surface. Then she was on the deck of the ship, and rose to her feet. The water swirled around her ankles, and she could see that many of the boards under her feet were warped upward, or completely missing. It was as if some great hand and twisted the ship this way and that, until the planks had burst loose.

A glance back revealed that Tadrose was following her, but still laboring in the surf. She was strong, but could not breathe water. Biting her lip, Teresa stared from the Dunmer to the ladder leading up to the top of the sterncastle. Should she wait for Tadrose, or go up to face the ghost?

She looked back to Tadrose. The dark elf was coming after her. Even though it was obvious she thought it was a fool's errand. Teresa was not going to betray that loyalty by rushing even further into possible danger alone. Instead she untied the flap that covered the top of her gorytos and slid it aside. Drawing Ravenfeeder from its depths, she pulled forth a string of Argonian spidersilk and set it to the sihas at either end of the recurved shaft. She followed with an elven swallotwail, and set the arrow to the nock of her bow.

By then Tadrose was clambering onto the edge of the hull. Holding her ready bow with her left hand, Teresa reached out with her right to help her. She was thankful for the strength enchantment on her thumb ring as she pulled the larger Dunmer aboard. Tadrose did not say a word as Teresa helped her to her feet. She merely shook her head, and drew her sword.

Teresa reached into her bag with her free hand, and drew forth another potion. This had a triangular shield etched upon its surface. She handed it to Tadrose, who drank it down as Teresa pulled out its twin and guzzled it as well. Tadrose held up one hand and signaled that she would go first. Teresa nodded, and followed the woman to the ladder.

Tadrose rose awkwardly, still holding her sword in one hand. Teresa found it no easier with Ravenfeeder, and was obliged to unock her arrow and hold it in her teeth as she rose. Once upon the sterncastle, Tadrose stepped forward with her two-handed sword ready. Teresa was right behind her, and set her arrow to the string the moment her feet were on the deck.

The ghost stood before them. From his features, Teresa guessed he might be a Breton. Now that she was closer, she could see that he had gone bald down the center of his head, leaving only a tuft of hair that went from his temples to the back of his head. His skin was lined and worn, and the clothing he wore was equally frayed and threadbare.

"Please help me!" he exclaimed. He took a step toward the two women. Tadrose shifted her grip on her sword, drawing the hilt up over her head and pointing the blade directly forward. The edge was neither vertical nor horizontal to the deck, but rather at a diagonal. She led with her left foot, and kept her right behind her.

The Ox, Teresa thought, one of the basic stances in longswording. She had seen Pappy and the others practicing it often enough. She knew that from that position, Tadrose could thrust forward, turn to make a diagonal cut, or draw back to cut up from underneath. She only hoped that the Dunmer would not have to do so. Just in case she did, Teresa moved to one side, where she could get a better shot at the ghost. If the specter came at her, Tadrose would have a clear opening at his side. If he approached the armorer, she would have the same.

"Hold on there friend." Teresa took her hand off the string and held it up, palm out, toward the ghost. "Why don't you just tell us who you are, and what you are doing here first."

The Breton stopped, and stared from Teresa to Tadrose, and finally back to the wood elf. "My name is Grantham Blakely," he said. "I am the captain of this vessel. Or at least I was until last night."

"What happened last night?" Teresa asked.

"I was murdered," Grantham spat onto the deck beneath his feet. The saliva was just as ghostly as he was, and simply faded into nothingness as Teresa stared. "Please, friends, lower your weapons. I mean you no harm. You are my only hope for salvation."

Neither Teresa nor Tadrose lowered their weapons.

"Salvation from what?" Teresa asked.

"Look at me," he said. "I am trapped here. We are all trapped here. We cannot escape and go on to… whatever is next."

"How are you trapped," Tadrose finally spoke. "Was it a curse?"

"Yes," Grantham replied. "A curse. Even now, I can feel its chains pulling down upon me, binding me to this place, to him."

"Why don't you just tell us the whole story," Teresa said. Now she did lower her weapon, and gestured for Tadrose to the same. The Dunmer had a sour look, but did drop the blade of her longsword. However, Teresa noted that the casual way in which she held the blade was actually the stance known as The Fool. With both hands on the grip, she let the point of the sword hover just above the deck. Yet Teresa knew that from that position, Tadrose could quickly counter in many directions.

"Well then, where to start," the Breton stared down at his hands. "Yesterday morning, we left Leyawiin bound for the Imperial City. We make the run every week. Two days there, two back, and one in between to load and unload. Sometimes we make side trips to Pell's Gate, or Sideways, and sometimes we stop in Bravil. I don't like to do that though, because I usually lose half the crew in the taverns."

"Usually we only run freight, like rice and cotton from Leyawiin. Sometimes we haul Akaviri silk instead, or Morrowind shein, or carpets from Hammerfell… Then we bring back wine and olive oil from the Imperial City, or clothing, or metals. You name it, and I've hauled it at some time or another. I can even change the hold over to stalls, so I can transport horses and other-"

"Just get to the part about the curse," Teresa interjected. She hated to be rude, but while he could literally stand there forever and talk, she and Tadrose would eventually die of old age. If not hunger or thirst. The thought almost made her chuckle. Who ever thought the undead would bore someone to death?

"Ahh, yes. I am sorry, my mind wanders. I keep remembering things. Things I had thought I had forgotten. I remember my wife Aodrena. She used to always care so much about the little things. Trivial things, that I was always too busy for. Like sitting together and watching the sunset. 'It'll be there every day' I'd say. But how many times did I ever actually just sit and watch with her? Half a dozen times? A dozen? Now I will never share another sunset with her again. Believe me friend, nothing is trivial."

Now even Tadrose lowered her guard for real. Teresa wondered if the dead man had struck a chord somewhere deep within the armorer? Perhaps something related to the secret of her past, that she could not tell anyone?

"There I go again," the ghost shook his head. "It started yesterday in Leyawiin. We took on a passenger. A Nord from the Mages Guild, by his robe and staff. His only baggage was a satchel that he kept with him at all times. He said he was in a hurry to get to Urasek, and paid us extra to take him there before our stop at the Imperial City. He paid a lot extra. I should have known better. I should have realized he was trouble. But all I could think of was what that money could buy for my sons."

"Everything was fine until last night, on the bay. We got rain on the river coming up here, but we'd been through worse before. But that storm that came up on the bay was a bad one. Really bad. Our passenger, Kalthar was his name, insisted we push on. I knew that was folly. Once we neared the mouth of the Upper Niben, we'd be throwing the hard six against the chance of crashing on either shore. Safer to just ride it out in the open water. The Emma May, she's a tough old bitty. May not look like much, but she's put together like a brick dreck house. At least she was."

"What happened?" Teresa asked.

"Kalthar bribed the crew to mutiny," Grantham explained. "Promised them a fortune. I knew right then that he was on the run from something. I'd never seen a man so desperate. But I couldn't make the men see reason. All they could see was the gold. Just like me when I first took his cursed self on board."

"But why would they mutiny, even for money?" Teresa wondered. "Surely they knew they'd be caught once they reached port?"

"These crews of mine, they come and go," the Breton explained. "I get to port and they scatter to spend their pay. Then I have to take on a new complement for the trip back. It's different men every time. A few of them I recognize sometimes. But I never know what I am going to get from one voyage to another. Most of them have no families, nothing to tie them down. They just go from one ship to the next. They can put aboard one for High Rock, Skyrim, or Morrowind, and vanish."

"Well, these dogs took me down to my cabin and tied me up, then tried to push on in the dark. They rolled the dice alright, and came up dragon eyes. We crashed on the rocks here sometime last night. I could hear the whole side of the hull just tear out, and knew we were all doomed. We foundered, and the water started coming in, even up here."

"I always kept a little knife in my boot. Just in case of emergencies you know. Well I managed to get it out, and cut myself free. Then Kalthar came in. He was wearin' some kind of strange helmet, like some animal's head. Well I didn't stop to stare, I just buried my knife in the fetcher's chest. But as he keeled over, he damned me, damned us all. This cold light came out of his helmet as he died. It liked to freeze me to the bone. It went out over all the ship as far as I could tell. Then the water came in, and that was the end for me too."

"But it wasn't, not really," the Breton looked down at his transparent body. "I found myself looking down at myself. I'm still down there in the cabin. At first I thought it was normal. I thought I'd be off to meet my ancestors. I thought it was all over."

"But it's not normal. I know I'm supposed to be going somewhere, but I can't. I'm trapped here, in this cold darkness between life and death. He did something with that helmet. Something to all of us."

"Fetching necromancer," Tadrose growled.

"Can't you just take the helmet and destroy it?" Teresa asked. "That might break the spell."

"I can't," Grantham shook his head. "He won't let me. He's a nightmare. If I wasn't dead, I'd fill my britches with dreck just to look at him. I guess whatever he did to us, he did to himself as well. But even worse."

"You said us?" Tadrose asked. "How many others are there?"

"We set sail from Leyawiin with fifteen souls," the Breton said. "Those who were on deck were doubtlessly swept away when we hit the rocks. But the carcasses of the dogs who were below are still floating down there. How many are cursed, I know not. But I did see some of them in the hold with axes and boat pins. They're ghosts, but can hold things somehow. I can't do that. I couldn't pick up a thimble now."

"Wraiths," Tadrose murmured. "That will be trouble."

"Are they as friendly as you?" Teresa asked.

"I think not," Grantham shook his head. "They are his thralls. I don't know why I am free of his will. Perhaps because I was the only one to defy him in life?"

This post has been edited by SubRosa: Apr 6 2012, 11:41 PM