World: Oblivion

Status: 1 chapter, not posted anywhere

Why I wrote it: I love the plot twist of Count Hassildor being a vampire, and I kind of wanted to write a love story between him and a khajiit (who is, btw, my favorite race). I changed a few things (like he looks younger in this story than he does in the game; blame it on graphics). I also really wanted to address racism in the Elder Scrolls. Khajiit and Argonians are the most affected by this, but this will be a common theme in some of my books (this one, Yakahirvi, and another story idea I'm workshopping). It'll have some really heart-wrenching stuff in it for sure. 

Link: none

Summary: Is it wrong to want love? Is it wrong for a girl who is barely 20 years old to love a man who will become 73 years of age soon, even if his body is still in it's 20's? Is it wrong to love a man who is already bound another, even when she has not laid eyes upon her beloved in decades? Maybe. But unlike her, I loved Janus just as he was. I did not see him as an abomination, but rather someone who was met with an unfortunate fate. He is still the same person he was 50 years ago, just with a different... diet. So, whether or not it was wrong, I did it anyways...

Chapter one:

I was an orphan, raised in Bravil by City-Swimmer, a beautiful and yet misunderstood Argonian. He raised me from a kit after he found me alone on the streets, crying for my mother. I was chatting with City-Swimmer idly when I saw a strange figure walking through the market.

"That one looks strange, doesn't he?" I whispered to my friend, my tail flicking.

"Indeed, M'rasha. See how he is hiding his face? That is a tell-tale sign of a criminal on the run."

I purred softly to myself. "I wonder what kind of trouble he has gotten himself into?"

City-Swimmer chuckled. "I don't know, but it's getting hot up here. I'm going for a dive. Care to join me?"

I wrinkled my nose. "I don't know why you enjoy swimming in the canals, Swims. I think it smells funny." 'Swims' was the nickname I came up for him when I was young.

He shrugged. "You get used to it." He then turned and dove into the canal, generating a big splash.

I laughed, shielding myself from the water, then felt my stomache growl impatiently. I winced and reached into the pockets of my dress to check how much coin I had. My hand came up empty. I sighed and started off towards The Lonely Suitor Lodge, hoping that Bogrum Gro-Galash was feeling charitable today.

As I sat down on a stool, I saw someone else sit next to me. As I looked over, I realized that it was the same strange man that I had seen earlier. His hood kept his face hidden, even when looking straight at him.

I shrugged. If he wanted to hide his identity, who was I to deny him of his privacy?

"Hey, Bog!" The inkeeper visibly cringed, dropping the iron mug he was cleaning to turn slowly at me. I purred in amusement, as I knew he hated me calling him that. He really just hated me, period.

"What do you want, beast?" He growled in a low, irritated voice.

"I was just wondering if you had anything on the house tonight." I flicked my tail mischeiviously, batting my eyes and leaning on the bar flirtatiously. He was obviously not impressed.

"You know my policy. No coin, no meal." He eyed the man next to me, still obscured by his hood and baggy robes. They looked like mage's robes, but it was hard to be certain.

I groaned and collapsed dramatically. "But I'm starving!"

That part wasn't a dramatization. The only things I could eat was one loaf of bread a week, and whatever fish City-Swimmer was able to catch, which was usually one or two Cyrodilic Spadetails from the city canals (which are tiny and full of bones) per day. My ribs jutted out from my stomach, and my face felt hollow and thin. Even my coat had taken a toll- its leopard-print spots had dulled from a black to a dark, muddled brown, and it no longer shone golden like it once had. Things had been rough since City-Swimmer's Sneak training hadn't been bringing as many customers as it once had. '

The Orsimer squinted his beady, dumb eyes at me in a way that made his whole ugly, green face scrunch up. It took all I could not to laugh at him.

"You're starving, huh? Well, ya know who else is starving? Cosmus and Aia, and they're homeless and Imperial. So why waste my charity on some filthy stray when I can help those that deserve it?"

"You mean Wretched Aia and Cosmus the Cheater? At least I haven't made a reputation for myself." I snorted.

Bogrum chuckled. "Well, you've made a reputation with me of being a nuisance. Now scram, before I decide that I'd rather have a new rug than deal with you!"

I guess that settled it. He wasn't feeling charitable. I sighed and dismounted the stool. It was as Swims had always said: That damn mouth of yours will kill you one day. I guess my punishment was starvation.

As I exited the building, I heard Bogrum speak. "And for you, good sir, how may I be of service?" I snorted. Through our conversation, the figure that had sat next to me had flashed a pale hand for just a moment. I guessed that was enough to tell Bogrum that he wasn't a beast race, and that he could treat him decently. Figures.

I was so tired of all the stereotypes and racism. I didn't choose to be a khajiit. I didn't choose the name M'rasha, which not only meant "young", but was clearly a khajiit name. I wanted an Argonian name at least, to honor Swims, but he would not have it. You are Khajiit, so you have Khajiit name. Simple. He had said.

"Hey, you." I froze at the sound of a low, commanding voice.

I turned and, to my surprise, was the man in the robe. He held his pale hand out, and in it was a tan, skin sack. A coinpurse.

"Take it." He said.

"Sir, I couldn't possibly-"

"Take it, or I'll throw it in the canals." He commanded. I begrudgingly took the purse into my hands, and immediately felt its weight.

"But why-" He held up his hand to silence me.

"You'll need it." He said with certainty. For just a moment I thought I got a glimpse of red eyes under that heavy hood, which would make sense except for the fact that his skin color indicated that he wasn't Dunmer. Strange. Perhaps he was a hybrid? They were rare but, evident in the Breton race, did happen.

"Thank you." I whispered, then watched him disappear before my eyes. One moment he was there, the other he was not.

I looked down at the purse in my hand and sighed. I could finally afford some blackberries, now.

I loved blackberries. The way they felt on my tongue was like Aetherius on Nirn. I hadn't had one in years.

I rushed home, excited to tell Swims about this kind stranger. However, once I reached the small, shabby house, I immediately knew something was wrong. The door was open.

I saw a guard pacing nearby. "Excuse me, Sir, do you know what happened to my dear friend City-Swimmer?" The guard just laughed in my face.

"Oh, she was sent to the city prisons. For pickpocketing a blackberry, no less. A single blackberry! Can you imagine being that desperate?" He laughed in my face.

I growled at the incorrect pronoun use. City-Swimmer had always felt like a man in a woman's body, and always preferred to be called a 'he'. But, racist Imperials didn't give a shit about that.

A blackberry. He was in prison for a blackberry. I wanted to cry. I knew he had tried to snatch it for me.

He had a bad habit of taking things that weren't his. I tried to tell him to stop, not to seccumb to the stereotypes assigned to our races, that we couldn't be what they see us as, but he didn't listen. He always took things he thought I would like, and I always did enjoy them, albeit guiltily. But now he had gotten caught, and I would have to bail him out.

The general rule for pickpocketing was that your bounty was 25 gold. On top of stealing? That would make 26 gold. Damn him and his generosity.

I turned, not bothering to thank the guard. I had measured about 30 septims in the coinpurse. Well, make that 4 now. Not enough for a blackberry anymore.

Now, I know what you're thinking: Blackberries cost 1 gold, right? Wrong. They cost 1 gold for everyone except me. I was a Khajiit and I was practically a beggar. They thought I was disgusting and gross. They all had unanimously suddenly raised their blackberry prices to 5 gold, something they knew I could never afford. They were taunting me, and I so wanted to walk in, shove the coinpurse in their smug faces, and demand a blackberry. But I had to bail my friend out of jail, so I begrudgingly headed towards the jail. It only occurred to me later that perhaps that man had known that I would need money for his bounty.

"M'rasha!" Swims gasped, reaching for me through the thick iron bars. I grabbed his scaly hands, pulling them close to me as I tried to hug him though the cell door.

"I couldn't just leave you here!" I said with a sad smile. He shook his head, tisking.

"You should have just let me rot. Anu knows I deserve it." I took his hands in mine, purring.

"Don't be ridiculous. Without you, how would I ever get blackberries?" He chuckled lightly, but I could tell he felt bad.

"Ahem." The jailer behind me cleared his throat, and I turned. "The bounty?"

I took the purse out of my pocket and counted out 25 septims. I could feel Swims looking at me, wondering where the money came from. As I pulled the last coin from the leather bag, I felt something papery on the bottom. When I took it out, I saw a folded piece of parchment. I pocketed it, planning to read it later.

"26 gold. Will you let him go, now?" The jailer took the gold and traded it for a ring of rusted iron keys.

"Keep yourself out of trouble, now." He commented as he opened the door, and I smiled and nodded politely.

"Where did you get that gold?" Swims hissed once we were out of the jail. I shrugged.

"Some stranger gave it to me. Said he had a feeling I would need it." Swims narrowed his eyes.

"Be wary of strangers, M'rasha. Only trust those you know." I rolled my eyes and flicked my tail impatiently. This stranger had seemed okay.

That reminded me to read the note from the purse. As I pulled it out, I saw that it was written on worn and crumpled paper, like it had been folded repeatedly. In neat, if not slightly hurried handwriting, was this note:

𝓓𝓮𝓪𝓻 𝓜'𝓻𝓪𝓼𝓱𝓪,

𝓘 𝓼𝓮𝓷𝓼𝓮 𝓪 𝓼𝓽𝓻𝓸𝓷𝓰 𝓶𝓪𝓰𝓲𝓬𝓪𝓵 𝓪𝓾𝓻𝓪 𝓯𝓻𝓸𝓶 𝔂𝓸𝓾. 𝓘 𝓻𝓮𝓬𝓸𝓶𝓶𝓮𝓷𝓭 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓼𝓮𝓮𝓴 𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓻𝔂 𝓲𝓷𝓽𝓸 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓜𝓪𝓰𝓮𝓼 𝓖𝓾𝓲𝓵𝓭. 𝓝𝓸𝓽 𝓸𝓷𝓵𝔂 𝔀𝓲𝓵𝓵 𝓲𝓽 𝓵𝓮𝓽 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓬𝓱 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓯𝓾𝓵𝓵 𝓹𝓸𝓽𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓲𝓪𝓵, 𝓫𝓾𝓽 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝔀𝓲𝓵𝓵 𝓪𝓵𝓼𝓸 𝓫𝓮 𝓪𝓫𝓵𝓮 𝓽𝓸 𝓮𝓪𝓻𝓷 𝓪 𝓼𝓽𝓮𝓪𝓭𝔂 𝓲𝓷𝓬𝓸𝓶𝓮 𝓽𝓸 𝓼𝓮𝓷𝓭 𝓽𝓸 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓬𝓪𝓻𝓮𝓽𝓪𝓴𝓮𝓻, 𝓒𝓲𝓽𝔂-𝓢𝔀𝓲𝓶𝓶𝓮𝓻. 𝓘 𝔀𝓲𝓼𝓱 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓫𝓮𝓼𝓽 𝓸𝓯 𝓵𝓾𝓬𝓴 𝓲𝓷 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓮𝓷𝓭𝓮𝓪𝓿𝓸𝓻𝓼.

𝓐𝓵𝓵 𝓫𝓮𝓼𝓽,

𝓐 𝓯𝓻𝓲𝓮𝓷𝓭

I smiled to myself. I had a feeling that from here on out, things would be looking up.

Notes: Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh I'm so excited, I really hope you guys vote on this one!