Work Text:
Wandering through the Ragged Flagon, Alaina spots Delvin Mallory sitting alone at a table. She’s been doing a few jobs for him here and there, and he always seems friendly enough when she asks him for work. Unlike Vex. She doesn’t think she’ll ever stop being terrified of Vex.
She starts walking over to sit with him, wondering how to bring up the Dark Brotherhood. Nobody here knows, she hasn’t really talked to anyone enough to be friendly with them yet. They all probably think she hates them, rather than she’s scared they’ll turn her in. Big difference between thievery and murder, and she’s not sure what side of the fence everyone sits yet. She gets to his table and sits down, offering him a nod.
‘Something bothering you? I’ll listen.’
‘Well… um, it’s just -'
‘Spit it out, I’m not getting any younger.’ His eyes crinkle as he smiles at her, but she misses it as she goes red and quickly looks down at the table.
‘Right. Yes. Sorry.’ She takes a deep breath. ‘I’m in the Dark Brotherhood and we’ve got a new contract and they gave us this amulet and Astrid sent me to ask you what it’s worth and whether you’ll buy it.’
She pulls the amulet out from her pocket and runs it between her fingers nervously, as he stares at her with his eyebrows raised. ‘Full of surprises, aren’t you? You’ll have to tell me how all that happened later. Give us the amulet, then.’
She hands it over, drumming her hands on the table nervously. He turns it over in his hands, inspecting every inch, before he looks up at her with a grin.
‘This is an amulet of the Emperor’s Elder Council, specially crafted for each member. Where’d you get this?’ He shakes his head. ‘You know what, I don’t need to know. Although if you’ve killed someone in the Elder Council you’d better -'
‘I didn’t, it’s payment for a big job coming up.’
He looks up sharply. ‘Piece of advice, you’d better stop talking.’ Glancing around, he sighs. ‘Nothing wrong with telling me, mind, but most other people in here aren’t as good with the Brotherhood as I am. Used to be in it myself, but nobody really knows that little fact.’
‘Will you buy the amulet?’
A slow smile creeps over his face. ‘Oh yes. Yes, indeed. Wait just one moment…’ He searches through his pockets and hands her a letter. ‘One letter of credit, for the eyes of your lovely mistress, for any service or item I can provide. Our standard arrangement. Bring that back, with my regards, to Astrid. Tell her she should stop by, we can catch up. Have a drink.’
She raises her eyebrows. ‘You want me to tell her to come see you?’
He rolls his eyes at her. ‘Haven’t seen her in a while, you know?’
‘Should I tell her husband he’s invited too?’
He pales and shifts around in his chair. ‘Maybe not. Just the letter, then.’ He clears his throat as she tries to stifle a laugh. ‘Oi, none of that.’
‘He’s a werewolf, you know.’
‘Okay –'
‘He wouldn’t be happy with you –'
‘Right, yes, I get it.’ He glares at her as she’s trying to pull herself together.
‘It’s not easy out there, I know.’ She reaches for one of the notes on the table, the one from Vex. ‘No takers?’ He snatches it from her hand and puts it away, scowling as she smiles innocently at him.
‘Mention this to Astrid and I’ll kill you.’
‘No, you won’t.’ She puts her hand back in her pocket, feeling the letter he gave her. ‘How’d you get out of the Brotherhood alive? They don’t seem like the most forgiving people.’
‘I was only a kid when I joined, just wanted to get out of Honorhall.’ He suddenly looks up at her. ‘Did you…’
She nods. ‘That’s how I got in. Heard about a kid alone in Windhelm, I wanted to take him there, give him a home, you know? Turned out he’d run from her and wanted her gone.’
‘Wish I’d had the guts to do it when I was that age. She was horrible even back then.’ He rubs the back of his head. ‘I didn’t know about the Guild, but everyone’d heard of the Brotherhood. My brother and me would talk about it every night, Astrid too.’
‘Astrid? Wait, your brother?’
He nods. ‘Glover. He took up smithing then moved to Raven Rock. He’s still our Guild contact out that way, haven’t seen him in years though.’
‘Why don’t you go over? It’s not that pricey.’
He shakes his head. ‘Nah, I’m needed here. Maybe one day.’ He goes silent for a while, swilling his drink around his tankard. ‘Astrid was a couple years younger than me, but she was the most dedicated person I’ve ever met. She knew all about the brotherhood, the sacrament, how to find them, everything. She ran away when she was thirteen and joined them. How they let in a kid I’ll never know. I followed her when I was sixteen, she was already one of the best assassins there.’
‘I’ve never seen her in action, but I reckon it’s terrifying.’
‘Right you are. She fought for me to get a chance, and they all listened.’ He smiles fondly. ‘They already listened to her, when she was just a kid. She found my first assignment, the one that’d make sure I’d get in. Easiest thing ever, from a distance. Just some beggar in the middle of nowhere.’
She furrows your brow. ‘How’d you mess that one up?’
He glares at you. ‘Thanks. I messed it up, as you said, because some bandits had already moved in and got him before I could. I thought I was going into an easy backstab, when five of them surrounded me. I barely got out.’ His fingers ghost over his ribs. ‘Injured me real good, took ages to recover then when I did I just snuck out in the middle of the night.’
‘And they never came after you?’
‘I think Astrid had a say in that. I certainly wouldn’t be here if they chose to.’ She hums her agreement. ‘I came back here to find Glover, hoping he’d put me up, but he’d gone to some other city. I was on the streets for a couple of weeks before Gallus caught me pickpocketing him. Had no idea who he was and thought he’d kill me, but he just told me to come along to the Flagon.’
‘And then you became the best sneak here.’
‘And then I got older, and my knees creak when I bend, so I started showing other people.’ He laughs. ‘So how’d you do it? Grelod was one thing, but then I guess Astrid found you?’
‘Yeah, I got this random note with a hand on it. She kidnapped me when I was in Whiterun for the night, took me up to some abandoned shack.’ She shudders at the memory. ‘No idea how she got me out. I was in the busiest inn there.’
‘She’s good like that. We’ve caught up a few times over the years, she just appears in a room when you thought were alone. Couldn’t tell you how she pulls off half the stuff she does.’
‘She had these people tied up, told me to pick one to kill because I owed her one. I thought about taking her out instead, but I’m glad I didn’t.’ She thinks back to the moment, just woken up in the middle of nowhere with a scary, hot lady towering over you. ‘She got me down to the sanctuary, then I started the contracts.’
‘Do you reckon this big next one will be yours?’
‘Don’t know.’ She chews on her fingernail. ‘It might be, but there’s a few steps. If I were Astrid I’d want it for myself.’
‘Guess I’ll hear about it when it happens.’
‘Definitely, it’ll be all anyone talks about.’ She scrubs her hands over her face, then stands up. ‘I’d better get back to Astrid, then. Thanks, Delvin.’
‘No worries, love. Tell her hello from me, won’t you?’
She snorts. ‘I’ll tell her you’re still hopelessly in love with her, and you want her to leave her husband to live in a sewer with you.’ Jumping out of the way as he swats at her, she treks out of the cistern to start the long journey to Falkreath.