Chapter Text
It was late afternoon by the time Jade and her companion had entered the gates of the large northern city of Solitude to grab some supplies. The shouts of merchants and mongers rang over the footsteps of potential patrons shuffling down the cobblestone streets. Despite the crisp chill of the air, Jade was delighted to be out on the freedom of her own personal quest after weeks of being holed up in a dank, musty sanctuary. As a Nord, it was in her blood to prefer the outdoors. If she wasn't on the move, she quickly became restless. Jade was the Dragonborn, damn it. She had more than earned her right to an adventure.
Word had it of some strange activity from the Forsworn around Karthspire. Jade was always ready for a good fight, especially if rare treasure was involved. She knew that the area was just littered with those Dwarven ruins which were always good for finding some unique trinkets. She didn't care about history or antiques. She just knew that they were worth a nice fist full of septims.
Capering gleefully beside her was Jade's odd companion, Cicero. Though a formerly well-respected member of the Dark Brotherhood assassins, he was dressed as an outdated court jester. His personality matched the look with random bouts of laughter and terrible out-of-context punchlines. The fool was mad, but he was useful. Highly skilled with a blade, his deadliness was only matched by his unwavering loyalty to the Brotherhood and all who served and respected it.
Cicero made quite sure not to step on a crack between the cobblestones, humming something about breaking Mother's back. He was also joyous to be outside again. After spending nearly a decade in hiding, just being around other people and not having to fight for his life was invigorating.
"I just need to grab a pickaxe and some gloves," Jade muttered glancing back at the fool, "Please, don't draw attention to us..."
Cicero chirped before slowing to a casual walk, glancing over at her. With odd navy blue hair and accessible cleavage, perhaps she was the one who should worry about drawing attention. Men passing by made no attempt to hide the fact that they had noticed.
Solitude was bustling with more Imperial soldiers than Cicero had seen since his arrival in Skyrim months before. It felt strange. He would possibly never return to his home in Cyrodiil, but this place felt very much more familiar than the other Nordic cities he'd visited. Perhaps he had gotten too used to the brutal nature of the Nords of this region; He had all but forgotten about the clean refined nature of his race. Though, Cicero was never one to follow the ideals of the Imperial Empire or worship their deities and leaders. If anything, he felt betrayed by his people. He felt abandoned and judged like an unwanted red-headed stepchild. Leave the war effort to the meatheads. Cicero lived to serve the Dark Brotherhood.
Jade slowed to a stop outside of the "Bits and Pieces" general store and turned to face the fool. Still distracted by the activity of the town, Cicero almost walked right into her before realizing she stopped. He took a step back and raised his eyebrows awaiting her command.
"Stay out here," Jade said in an authoritative tone, "I've got some business to take care of really quick," she motioned to a thieves' guild etching on the wall near the lower half of the door frame. Being raised in the guild, it wasn't uncommon for her to casually utilize their teachings.
"Of course, my Listener!" Cicero nodded, "Cicero will keep watch from here!" His tone was a bit more enthusiastic than necessary. Jade sighed feeling as if his extreme personality and strangely outdated garb would draw too much attention from the guards. She bit her lip and squinted her eyes in thought before reaching into her coin purse and pulling out five gold.
"Here, " she said as she placed it in his hand, "Go to the market over there and buy yourself a sweet roll or something. We won't be near another town until we reach Markarth in a few days."
Jade hoped that the little errand would keep him distracted long enough to buy her a few minutes to steal what she needed from the general store without incident. Cicero clasped his hands together around the gold pieces and smiled widely.
"Thank you! Yes! Thank you, sweet Listener! You are too good to humble Cicero!" he gasped and bowed his head. With almost no hesitation, Cicero hurried off toward the market plaza around the side of the building, leaving the Dragonborn to her business. He scanned over the stands looking for the pastry of choice, yet only saw fresh produce and fish. His excitement faded as he stepped over to one of the vegetable stands and handed the merchant 2 gold in exchange for a carrot. It wasn't the sweet roll he had his heart set on, but he'd enjoy the fresh snack nonetheless.
Turning to head back toward the general goods store, Cicero stumbled as he collided with something small. Agile from his years of assassin training, he caught his balance and stepped to the side quickly, glancing down to see a small child. She looked about five or so; her face was smeared with either dirt or chocolate. By her tattered blue dress, she appeared to be from a rather poor family. Her eyes were full of wonder as she stared up at him: the man dressed in the funny jester motley.
"Are you a real clown?" the girl asked in a tiny voice. She swayed back and forth while twisting the bottom of her dress with both hands.
Cicero hesitated after being caught off guard by the question by such a little person. Yet, almost like it came completely naturally, a smile spread across his face again and he threw his arms out to the sides, bowing theatrically.
"Why, yes, little lady! Cicero is a merry man! A jester of joy! A fool of hearts!" he cheered.
The girl squealed with delight before turning to wave at two other children hiding in the shadows of a stall nearby. When they saw her gesture, an older boy and another girl around her age ran over. The two wore equally ragged attire with scraped-up hands and knees.
"Do you know any tricks?" the older boy asked without skipping a beat. All of the sudden attention had made Cicero's heart race. Not just any attention, but positive attention. He quickly placed the carrot into his pocket and clapped his gloved hands together, nodding with much enthusiasm.
"Have you ever been to a backward show?" Cicero chanted as he removed the remaining gold from his coin pouch, "So many pay to see such amusement! Only kings benefit from the free!" He began to juggle the coins while skipping around his small audience. The children gasped as if never seeing such skill. The youngest girl giggled with glee.
"-but here today, you will see, a backward show, just watch me!" the jester sang and then through sleight of hand, the coins seemed to vanish when they hit his palms. "Where is the gold?"
The amused expressions of the children suddenly turned to surprise. Cicero pretended to be confused and pulled out his pockets as they stared in awe. He spun around, raising his arms helplessly, and shrugged. The two youngest children ran closer to him and began pulling at his ratty outfit, searching for a hidden pocket.
"THERE!" Cicero gasped, pointing over dramatically at the older boy who had held his distance, "The gold had left my view! Disappeared, out of the blue!" he stepped over and poked the boy in the chest with his fingertip, "But have you ever seen a show, a backward show, that in the end-" he flicked the boy's chin causing him to flinch. He blinked a few times to see that the jester suddenly had a gold coin between his index and middle fingers, "...would pay YOU?"
The children exploded with cheers and laughter. Cicero continued to hold the coin out to the boy, insistently. The girls clapped and gathered closer to see. A few seconds passed as the boy stared at the coin. Finally, Cicero reached down to place the coin in his hand. The girls suddenly became even more excited as he turned and flipped his other hand open revealing the other missing coins.
"Share," Cicero said holding the coins out for the girls to take, "Buy something sweet and unhealthy to share with your friends."
The girls timidly took one coin each and smiled up at the generous merry man, their eyes sparkling with joy. The older boy nodded to him, seeming a bit more skeptical as he backed away, perhaps worried that this strange man would want the gold back. Cicero bowed and retrieved his carrot, snapping a bite into it as he headed back toward the general store.
"What was that about?" Jade asked, already waiting for him at the edge of the market with her arms crossed. It seemed as if she had seen the whole act.
"Happiness, " Cicero replied as he chewed, "Everyone deserves some joy."
"Joy? You're an assassin. You kill people for a living," she snorted, hiking a supply bag up over her shoulder, a pickaxe sticking out the top.
"Did you see their eyes?" he asked as if not even hearing her, "Such admiration and attention! They loved me!"
"They were street children. They love gold." Jade said in a snarky manner as she turned to make her way to the front gate.
Cicero sighed. It was hard to be positive around Jade. She seemed to always find the negative side to everything with the clear intention of discrediting anything enjoyable. Well, anything she didn't enjoy, anyway.
"It's fun to make others laugh. It brings me joy. Cicero loves joy..." he muttered.
"And that makes you a hypocrite," Jade laughed walking a bit faster than him, "You can't tell me that you like to bring joy to others when you kill people. How do you know that those kids aren't orphans because of a contract on their parents?"
Cicero stopped walking; his arms stiff at his sides. He could tell that there was really no getting through to this woman. Not everything was black and white.
"For someone called, the Listener, you sure don't listen very well," he grumbled.
Jade stopped dead in her tracks and turned to face him, "Excuse me, little man?" It was almost unheard of for the fool to speak so disrespectfully to her.
"I don't think you understand." Cicero cleared his throat, "I don't kill because I just want to hurt people. The joy Cicero gets from killing is through Sithis. Serving the Brotherhood makes him happy-"
"Oh, give me a break," Jade rolled her eyes, "You like to kill because killing is fun. Don't try to tell me that you only do it for specific reasons. You're just not that deep, kiddo. I see the way you light up with every stab."
"You don't know me, Listener!" he huffed, "The pain and sacrifice! Rejection! You don't know what it is like to need that attention. The love! Everyone loves you! Everyone loves the Dragonborn. The Listener! The leader of the Thieves Guild! Just look at you!" he gestured to her dramatically.
Jade put her hands on her hips in an attempt to mirror his outrageous attitude. She'd never seen Cicero act out like this before. He had a tendency to be over-emotional at random moments, but now it actually seemed like he was trying to start something. She curled her lip, bracing herself for the baseless insults to follow.
"You are beautiful and powerful," he said in a shaky tone, "Your age is ambiguous, and you carry yourself with such grace. A voluptuous bosom and slender frame... broad hips and strong thighs that could tear a man in two-"
"Is there a point to this? Or are you trying to get me to sleep with you?" Jade scoffed, though honestly enjoying the compliments.
"Everyone admires the Dragonborn. Even the Night Mother chose you to be the Listener... YOU! OVER ME! I've sacrificed my life- my sanity to serve... yet she chose you! You have the Black-Briars under your thumb... you play the empire like a fiddle and the Stormcloaks fear you! Dragons fall from the sky for you! DRAGONS!" Cicero shouted.
Jade flinched and moved closer to him. She was delighted by the praise but worried about making a scene, "What are you getting at, already?" she whispered.
"I'm none of these things. Cicero is nothing."
"You're the Keeper."
"I'm the Keeper..." his shoulders slumped, and his gaze drifted, "I grew up in Bruma alone. I didn't know my father. My mother... she-"
"By Sithis," Jade grunted and turned to walk away, "Don't start."
Cicero quickly gathered himself and followed.
"But Cicero does remember the other children. The street children like me. They didn't like Cicero either. I was the strange ginger boy with the crazy mom and no one to play with. When I was old enough, I joined the Dark Brotherhood... they became my family. They embraced Cicero! They too were abandoned and rejected. The Night Mother became my mother and Sithis my father. I do everything... EVERYTHING I can to honor them," Cicero felt himself having to take wider and wider strides to keep up with Jade who appeared to be trying desperately to separate herself from the conversation. The irony was not lost on him.
"They gave me what I needed most, but I had to sacrifice so much in return," he lowered his tone as they arrived at the gate.
Jade tightened her grip on the backpack and smiled at the guards. Cicero watched as they looked her over. He knew this too well. They knew she was a thief. They'd seen her before. Yet, just as expected, the guards waved her through with no issues. Cicero paused to watch Jade freely strut through the gates with her stolen goods. The guards tilted their heads as she went... watch her ass.
"Eyes front, gentlemen!" Cicero barked as he fumbled to catch up to her. He made an attempt to block their view before attempting to finish his rant. Jade tried her best to hasten her pace down the stone path, hoping that he'd take the hint.
The noise of the city faded behind them, giving way to the calming sounds of the wilderness... only to be ruined by Cicero's nasally voice.
"Cicero had a love once," he continued, "Oh, yes. Cicero is capable of loving another just as much as anyone! And not the same love he has for Mother and the Listener, no."
Jade rolled the bag of supplies off her shoulder and tossed it to him, hoping to interrupt his banter. He caught it without losing his thought and continued.
"But I sacrificed it. She was a distraction. Cicero was very young and didn't want to disappoint the Brotherhood. They took me in, and I owed them. I wasn't going to throw it all away for the chance to..." he hesitated, "...for love. I hurt her. She's gone now. They all are. My entire family. Dead. Purified. Cicero is the only one left. Cicero is ALWAYS the only one left."
"What are you babbling about?" Jade finally responded, "The Dawnstar Sanctuary may have a small following at the moment, but it's growing. We get new initiates all of the time."
"Until when? When will it happen again? When will Cicero be alone again? I've been alone for most of my life... So let me have this. Can't a fool feel loved and accepted for just a moment? Those children loved Cicero, if only for a minute. And Cicero needs love too... I suppose that's hard for you to understand because everything is handed to Jade," Cicero's voice deepened, "Love comes easily to ones like you."
"I don't love anyone," she snapped.
"You love yourself," he replied in a strangely normal voice. He almost sounded like a different person altogether. Jade stopped and stared off at the tree line ahead. Her expression was difficult to read.
"...and?" she mumbled.
"To be normal, though?" Cicero said calmly as he stood beside her, staring off in the same direction.
"What's normal? I fight dragons. I assassinate emperors. I mingle with vampires. I don't think I want normal. Why would you?"
"Just to see what it's like," he sighed, "To have your own home. Keeping friends and taking a wife. Starting an actual family-"
Jade broke the moment with a burst of laughter. It almost sounded forced.
"Mr. Cicero?" she cackled in a mocking tone, "I can't see that. If you could even FIND a female desperate enough to marry you and foolish enough to bear your offspring, you'd be a horrible father! Look at you! You're a middle-aged man in a clown outfit who oils a corpse for a living! You're a walking joke!" she took a few steps back to get a better look at him.
His faded makeshift motley was crudely stitched together, covered in dried blood and dirt and who knows what else. His long unkempt red hair was filthy and slicked back beneath a tattered donkey-eared jester's cap. He was just a mess both physically and emotionally.
"Get your shit together. There'll be no more of this emotional madman banter if you are to accompany me on my quests anymore. Got it?" Jade commanded with a condescending smirk.
"...Yes, Listener," Cicero replied, his stoogish yet still depressive tone returning.
The sun had lowered since they had first arrived in Solitude, and night travel was dangerous, even for the Dragonborn. Plans to set up a camp upriver fell into conversation between them as they continued down the path toward the Reach. Cicero said very little, just the way Jade liked it.
>>>New characters added to the Character Guide Book: Jade and Cicero