A/N: Forgot this website still exists. Already deleted the doc. I thought I uploaded it here. Had to copy and past from Ao3.
Fugo awoke next to Trish. She was still asleep. He got out of bed and changed into his favorite green outfit and headed downstairs to the kitchen. He checked the pantry and brought out some eggs, bacon, and slices of bread. Once he was done cooking, he brought out two plates and placed them on the dining table. There were some fruit juices such as apple and strawberry juice. There wasn't any orange juice. A shame, he was craving it. He took the strawberry juice, took two glasses from the cabinets, and poured some juice for himself and Trish.
He sat down and ate his breakfast. Trish eventually woke up and headed downstairs.
“Oh, you made breakfast,” she commented and sat down at the table.
“Yeah, I need to head over to my friend’s house to fetch my armor. If he’s home.”
Trish wasn’t the only biggest fan. He had a Wood Elf friend named Narancia. They were good friends and knew each other's secrets. However, he didn’t know that he was part of the Dark Brotherhood. He wasn’t sure how he’d react. Perhaps it’d be best if nobody knew.
“Hey, I just remembered something,” Fugo said, causing Trish to stop eating. “When you go to Cheydinhal, do I have to come? There’s somebody I’d like to avoid.”
“You’re free to do what you want, but if you’re trying to avoid someone, can’t you just beat them up?”
“I would, but that would be assault. Besides, I’m tired of fighting.”
“Owyn and Ysabel probably won’t like that. Wait, what will you do?”
“I don’t know. Maybe I should be a potion seller?”
“That would be nice. I could grow a garden. Hmm, do you think we could move somewhere else? This place stinks. I hate it here. Maybe we could live somewhere in High Rock? I wonder if it’s beautiful there.”
“Not sure, but that’s too far away. How about Skingrad? You might like it there.”
“Maybe. Just wondering, these recommendations I will be doing, could you tell me what I have to do?”
“They’ll probably ask you to do some meaningless task. Don’t worry too much about it.”
Fugo then ate his food, and Trish continued eating. Once they were done, they placed their dishes on the counter.
“If you need me, I’ll be at the Waterfront District. Be sure to pack things you need,” he said to her before he left.
It was 10 AM when he arrived at the Waterfront District. While on his way, he bought some supplies, which made him arrive later. While walking around the district, he stopped and noticed Hieronymus Lex wasn’t there as well as fewer guards. Instead, there was a different captain with long white hair. He wore black lipstick as well. Fugo has never seen him before. He continued walking to Narancia’s house—technically his—behind the walls of the Waterfront district. Fugo’s house was the only one with a bunch of weeds growing, except for the abandoned house. Once at the door, he knocked.
“Come on in!” someone yelled. “It isn’t locked.”
Fugo entered his home. He could see Narancia and Mista were there, lying in their beds. Mista is Fugo’s friend as well. He didn’t know much about him except that he was a murderer, but that didn’t seem likely. If Mista did commit murder, he would’ve been a part of the Dark Brotherhood. Instead, he and Narancia were members of the Thieves Guild.
“Narancia, it’s good to see you. And Mista,” Fugo said, “do you ever wash that hat?”
The hatted Imperial touched his head. “Doesn’t feel dirty.”
“You should probably wash it once a week or two.” Fugo looked at his armor, which was between both of their beds. “Ah, it’s still here, and it's shiny. Narancia, you didn’t have to do that.”
“Well, I did,” the Wood Elf responded. “So, where are you heading this time, and for how long?”
“My first stop will be Chorrol and then other places. I’m not sure how long this will take. I need to bring my armor with me. I should get going. I need to pack some food.”
“Hey, Fugo, catch!” Mista said, tossing him a coin pouch. The blond managed to catch it. The coin purse was big and a little bit heavy. Narancia’s mouth was wide open.
“Judging from Narancia’s expression, this seems like a lot for you to hand out,” Fugo examined.
“Don’t worry about it. You’re going to need it more than me. Besides, I can figure out ways to get more money.”
“Mista, you still can’t pickpocket to save your life.”
“Yes, I can. If I can manage to sneak in this potion of paralysis—”
Fugo took the armor and left before they got into an argument.
It was 7 AM when Giorno awoke in the mage quarters. Some of the other mages were asleep while others lazed in their beds. The blond Breton immediately got out of bed and headed outside to gather some plants for Fugo. He took every plant that grew from the gardens. Whatever their properties were, it did not matter. Fugo could make a potion out of it and sell it for some Septims.
When Giorno finished gathering herbs, it was 8 AM. He still had some time to kill. Giorno may as well shop around. If he weren’t so tired from traveling, he would’ve done some night shopping. Instead, he’ll just have to charm the shopkeepers for discounts. His first stop was at the staff shop. Giorno had a staff, but since Trish was going to join the Mages’ Guild, he might as well buy a gift for her.
Giorno entered Rindir’s Staffs. Since Rindir recently opened, there was hardly anyone here. Enchanted clothing, armor, and weaponry were on display. The weapon racks held unenchanted staves. Rindir, the Wood Elf, stood behind the counter and noticed him walking in.
“Hello,” he greeted.
Giorno walked towards the counter. “Greetings, how’s business?”
“Not doing well, I’m afraid. So, what are you up to?”
“Planning an adventure with someone. I’ll be away from the city for quite a while. I’m going to need a staff that can cast fire. Do you have any of that?”
“I have plenty of that. Although, the cost of the staff depends on how strong the enchantment is. If you’re looking for one with a strong enchantment, I’d say we’re looking into the thousands.”
Giorno’s eyes wandered to the staff locked behind a standing glass display. There were many locks on that one. Rindir noticed what he was staring at.
“Oh, I see you noticed Apotheosis. That would be 3,500 Septims,” he said.
“Why so much?”
“It does frost, fire, and shock damage.”
“Impressive,” Giorno said before casting a charm spell on him. “How much did you say?”
“3,500 Septims, but I could lower that a little.”
“Would 1,600 Septims do?”
“Sure!” Rindir said. He walked over to the case and unlocked it, handing him the staff. “It’s yours, my friend.”
Giorno handed him the coin and left. Now all he needed was food to pack.
-
Trish looked into her dressing table’s mirror and applied her usual pink lipstick. Afterward, she brushed her hair. When she finished, she was getting hungry. It was already lunchtime. It must be time to head to the arena. On her way out, she took her heavy bags, went downstairs into the kitchen, and took some braided bread.
Arriving at the arena, she spotted Fugo and Giorno near the entrance. The two seem well-equipped and ready for an adventure.
“Good afternoon, I hope you two weren’t waiting forever,” Trish said.
“No,” Giorno said, “we just got here a few minutes ago. Anyways, I have a gift for you.”
He handed her Apotheosis. Fugo saw the smile growing on her face as she received it. She thanked him. The blond Imperial couldn’t help but feel jealous.
“I was wondering why you were carrying two staves,” Fugo commented. “And Trish, I thought I’d never see you wearing pants. You look good.” Why didn’t I think of buying her something?
Trish wore a white off-shoulder puff sleeve shirt with a pink and red floral decorated corset. Her pants and high-heeled boots were black.
“You sure you should be wearing heels?” said Giorno. “This is going to be a long walk.”
Trish pouted. “You two are alike, you know. We wasted enough time. Since we’re here, let’s go.”
She turned around and headed to the exit.
Their trip on the Black Road was uneventful. Sometimes there would be a highwayman near Fort Ash, but nobody was there. It was peaceful, too peaceful. Giorno wondered if the vampire activities could be why there were hardly any bandits. Wouldn’t it be easier to prey on the weak? Then again, Giorno had no experience fighting vampires. Perhaps they were stronger than he thought.
Trying to find something else to focus on, Giorno cast the clairvoyance spell. The mist separated, but the other path no longer led north but southwest.
“Are you casting spells?” Fugo grabbed his attention. “We’re almost there.”
They entered Chorrol, where a statue greeted them. The city wasn’t as beautiful as Skingrad, but it was spacious. As for the temperature, it was a bit breezy.
They continued walking along, heading to the Mages Guild, until Trish stopped.
“I’m a bit nervous,” she explained. “Fugo, you said I might be doing some meaningless task, but what if it’s different now?”
“Avdol believed getting accepted into the Mages Guild was too easy,” Giorno replied. “You’ll be performing a task that matches what each guildhall specializes in. We’re in Chorrol, and this guildhall specializes in conjuration.”
“They’ll probably ask you to conjure a broom and sweep their floors,” Fugo said. “Don’t worry so much about it. I’ll be outside.”
Trish and Giorno went in. Banners and paintings decorated the walls of the guild hall, and glass cases displayed different types of soul gems. A large circular yellow rug with a sun and eye in the middle caught Trish’s attention. There were some symbols around it that she didn’t understand. As for Giorno, he sees that all five residents were here. One of them, an Argonian in blue robes, approached the two.
“Giorno, it’s been a while,” the Argonian said. “Is this elf the reason why you’re here?”
“Hello, Teekeeus,” the Breton replied. “Yes, she’s looking to get a recommendation. Her name is Trish.”
“A recommendation, huh? I don’t know. Are you sure she can handle this by herself?”
“I can handle it,” Trish responded. “I have to conjure something, correct?”
“Well, yes, you conjure something, but you have to do slightly more than that, such as fighting. Speaking of fighting, Avdol needs someone to clear a vampire lair up north. Do you know where Lipsand Tarn is?”
“It’s west of Sancre Tor,” Giorno answered. “But isn’t Will hunting vampires? Why let newcomers do it?”
“I haven’t thought of a task for it. I might as well kill two birds with one stone. Trish, do you know any conjuration spells?”
“I’m sorry. I don’t,” the High Elf replied. Teekeeus handed her a tome filled with novice-leveled spells. “Thank you, but what happens if a vampire bites me?”
“Did you already forget I cured your mother’s illness?” Giorno commented.
“Right, sorry. Let’s get going before it gets dark.”
Before Trish could leave, Giorno still had a few words to say. “One second. Teekeeus, where are all the other books? I know you have more than soul gems locked behind glass displays. What happened to them?”
“We had to send them to the Arcane University. Avdol didn’t want to risk a thief getting close to the books. Since the Oblivion Crisis ended, people’s stares have been scornful.”
Having nothing to say, Giorno left the guildhall with Trish. Fugo, who was sitting near the oak tree, stood up.
“So, what pointless task do we have to do this time?” the blond Imperial asked.
“There’s a vampire lair in Lipsand Tarn,” Trish answered.
“What?” He no longer had an unamused expression on his face. “They’re making you do this?”
“Yes, now let’s go before daylight fades. How long will it take for us to get there?” She looked towards Giorno.
“Should take us a couple of minutes. We have time.”
It took them a couple of minutes to get there, just as Giorno predicted. It was getting cloudy and colder.
“I hate Ayleid ruins,” Fugo commented. “They all look the same. It’s easy to get lost in them.”
“Agreed,” Giorno added. “I got lost in one once. You’d think clairvoyance would help, but it wasn’t showing me the way properly. I ended up in a circle. Oh, and Trish, be aware of traps.”
They entered the ruins and went down the stairs. It was dark until Giorno summoned a ball of light around him. They could see the cracked white stone floors. It smelled musty, and Trish couldn’t stand the smell. Up ahead, there was some fog and some blood.
“What do you know, a trap. Rest in peace to the poor fool,” Fugo commented. “There’s one way around this. Just hug the walls until we get past the pillars with the Welkynd stones.”
Once they got past the pillars, a Wood Elf vampire cladded in fur armor approached them. A bow and quiver were behind his back.
“I was wondering what that noise was,” he said. “Three against one. That seems unfair, but perhaps I could take care of at least one of you guys.”
The vampire drew his bow, but before he could release the arrow, Fugo charged and pierced his glass sword through him, turning the elf into a pile of ash.
“Fugo!” Giorno whispered. “That was Trish’s kill.”
“And?” Fugo responded. “It’s not like Teekeeus is going to know.”
“He might not notice, but the other members might notice her lack of skill.”
Trish heard another set of footsteps while the two blonds were bickering. She conjured a dagger. Nobody was in front of her, but Trish knew something was off. She noticed a shape moving that blended with the background just slightly. The High Elf charged toward the vampire, thrusting her dagger upwards. Once she hit the vampire, the invisibility wore off, revealing a Redguard dressed in leather. The man had two daggers.
“Bitch!” he yelled, slicing the right side of Trish’s cheeks. At least that managed to get the two to stop talking. The pinkette used the staff Giorno gave her and instantly incinerated him.
“Trish!” the blonds both yelled.
“Are you alright?” Fugo asked.
“I’m fine. It’s nothing,” the High Elf lied. Nobody had ever cut her before, and the wound bled.
“Here, let me heal that,” Giorno said, placing a hand on her cheek and healing it. Luckily, the light beside him died out, hiding her blushed face. “Oh, sorry about that. How are you now?”
“Fine, let’s move.”
“How about I light a torch instead,” Fugo said. “We’re going to need a reliable source of light.”
Trish stared into the hallway, spotting a chandelier with white crystals, brightening the room a little. “That won’t be necessary, but I’ll let you know if I do.”
In the next room was a chamber with a bridge. Down below was nothing but space and rats. The bridge brought them to some stairs and a platform with a Varla stone with a hallway behind it. They couldn’t reach it. They went down the stairs, where they fought off some rats. Well, Trish fought them off with her conjured dagger.
“This isn’t so bad,” she commented. “This is surprisingly fun. Oh, but now my clothes are covered in blood. Disgusting!”
“I’m sure you have some spare clothes in your bags,” Fugo said.
“I do. Anyways, this can’t be all of them.” She then looked under the bridge, which led somewhere deeper down. “Everyone, down here!” she whispered.
They followed behind her. The tunnel of stairs led them to a small room containing a vampire, an Imperial in robes. She looked upset and stared into the dying fire. Whatever the reason why she was upset did not matter. Trish crouched down and slowly approached her. Before she could conjure her dagger, the vampire must’ve heard her footsteps and turned around. Terrified of being hit, she used the staff again, killing the vampire. The fire died out.
“This sucks!” she whined. “Couldn’t I summon a bow or perhaps some help? Do I have to do this on my own?”
“Giorno, come on, you know this will take a while with Trish’s skill level.”
“I suppose if it looks like you’re struggling, I guess we could help.”
“We’re talking about a nest of vampires here. Who knows how many there are,” Fugo said.
“The platform we couldn’t reach before,” Trish mentioned. “Does the button on the stone table do anything?”
“Let's find out,” said Fugo, who pressed the button. They heard stones scrapping.
They head back up to see what has changed. The stone steps connecting to the bridge were gone, but they could now reach the Varla stone. Before they could continue down the hallways, an orc in heavy armor approached them. He wore iron armor and held an iron warhammer.
“Faldindil, what’s the meaning of—who are you people?” the Orc demanded. “Bah, it doesn't matter. You’re all going to die!”
Trish trembled in her place. Fugo managed to protect her by setting the Orc on fire with a spell. He turned to ash instantly.
“Hey, Trish, could you try conjuring something besides a dagger? I know you can conjure some armor.”
“Sorry, this is all so intimidating.” She conjured the bound armor. “It doesn’t feel heavy. How do I look?”
“Probably scary to some people,” Fugo replied. “Doubt you’ll scare off the vampires, though. I don’t think anything can scare them other than the sun.”
She looked at the bound gauntlets. They were Daedric. “Are the weapons and armor Daedric?”
“Yes, you didn’t notice?” Giorno said. “We should hurry before the spell wears off.”
Trish never got the chance to examine her bound dagger. She will once she gets into combat.
After minutes of fighting ill-equipped vampires, they cleared the lair. Each fight was mediocre and not worth mentioning. As for the treasure locked away in chests, Giorno managed to open them. Once the ruins were devoid of undead life, they left and began walking back to Chorrol. The sun was setting.
“Hey, Giorno, you’re an expert at alteration,” Fugo said. “Couldn’t you open the locks with a spell?”
“I could, but I’m used to using lockpicks,” he replied.
“How do you know how to open a chest with lockpicks? Where did you even get them in the first place?”
“A friend gave me them.”
“What kind of friends do you have?”
“Guys, we’re here.” Trish grabbed their attention. “Giorno, didn’t you have something to do here? How about you deal with your problem? If you need us, we’ll be outside the guild hall.”
“Yes, I’ve almost completely forgotten. Oh, and before the shops close, here.” Giorno handed some herbs to Fugo.
“What’s this for?”
“To make potions. You are a master of alchemy.”
“I’ll see what I can make.”
The three entered the city. Trish went inside the guild hall while Fugo waited outside. As for Giorno, he used the clairvoyance spell, checking to see if anything had changed. Nothing has. The path led to the chapel—probably for the entire time—and southwest. He went to the chapel to investigate.
Inside there were pews, stained-glass windows, and an altar. Some priests were walking about, but one in dark blue robes was sitting down, praying. He was a Redguard. His hair was short with some shaved lines and white. Once the man turned his face around to face Giorno, he got a good look at his face. A thin zig-zag line of white hair connected to his eyebrows. The same for his beard. What a strange-looking priest, Giorno thought.
“You look just like him,” the Redguard said.
“Excuse me?”
“Like Dio. You look just like him.”
“Who? Do you know who I am?”
“Yes, and just from looking at you, I know you’re his son.”
“Where is he?”
“He’s in Skingrad—or near it. He didn’t tell me where. You’ll find him.”
“I can. The clairvoyance spell led me to him, but the spell also led me here.” He cast the spell again. “It’s leading me to the undercroft.”
“Don’t bother. I know where it’s leading you to. That’s just his dead brother.”
“Who are you?”
“I am Enrico Pucci.”
“Why do you know so much?”
“Because your father is my best friend.”
The chapel bell rang. It was 6 PM.
“I must go and eat,” Pucci said. “Perhaps you should try finding your father.”
Pucci went downstairs to one of the rooms. Giorno would try to talk to him some more, but he wasn’t sure if he was allowed. Maybe he should head to Skingrad, but it was getting dark. He walked out and returned to Fugo and Trish, where they stood outside the guildhall.
“Did you find what you were looking for?” Trish asked.
“I don’t know. I still have some questions, but we’ll have to continue our journey. It’s getting too dark to travel, however. Trish, we should rent a room.”
“I’ll pay for it,” Fugo said. “I got plenty of money.”
There were two inns they could’ve rested at, but Fugo went inside the Oak and Crosier. Inside the inn, a Khajiit woman in a blue velvet dress tended the bar. Behind her was an unlit fireplace, and beside the bar was the area where people dined.
The woman behind the counter was named Talasma. Fugo rented two rooms for 20 Septims.
Before they headed to their rooms, they sat at a table and brought their dinner. Trish had some mudcrab corn fritters and some alto wine. Fugo had some salmon and some tonic. Meanwhile, Giorno was eating some Sun Height’s pudding and drinking some rose herbal tea that he warmed up with magic.
“Fugo, I noticed you rented two rooms,” Giorno said. “Why didn’t you get three separate rooms?”
“Trish and I belong together.”
There was nothing left to discuss. The three went upstairs to go to their rooms and rested.
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