literature

Bird Flu

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    She let out a deep breath, after staking out the same Forsworn camp for the last two days, she was starting to wear down from it. It wasn't what she would normally do. She would have stormed in there the first night and slaughtered the whole lot of them. But the Jarl of Markarth had requested that she watched them, and studied them. Why, she hadn't quite figured out.
    Sap sighed, running a hand through her short hair. Their actions hadn't changed from the night before. So what was she doing here? She growled, another night of nothing happening and she was going straight back to the Jarl and get answers. 
    There was a snap from behind her, and as she whipped around, her bow at the ready, something swung at her in a blur. Then she saw darkness.

    Her eyes fluttered, before they slowly opened. As consciousness creeped back in, so did the throbbing pain in her left temple. As she slowly leaned up, she groaned.
    "Does ... The little Bosmer ... Awaken?" Came a rasp and breathy question.
    She stiffened, that was a Hagraven. A freakin' Hagraven!
    Her eyes finally focused, and she looked around. It was dark, a sliver of moonlight seemed to cut through from a slit of a window at the other end. Not giving much light for her eyes. So most of the room was filled with dark black corners that hid their secrets from her eyes. She forced herself to breath lightly as she reached for her blade. But found none. Her dagger had been taken, and as she examined, so was her bow. Of course they took her weapons. A quiet worried sigh escaped her.
    "Yes ... I do believe she has." The Hagraven replied to its self.
    Lying on the ground wasn't a place to be in a room with a Hagraven, so she rushed to her feet. Slowly backing up until she hit a wall. Good, now she only had to worry about her front.
    She heard shuffling, and the sound of claws padding on the wooden floor. The hair on the back of her neck stood up, she was going to have to face it weaponless.
    "Magic." She whispered under her breath.
    She always forgot she had magic. But what good would it bring her? She never used it. Better than nothing, though.
    The rustling started again, and sounded louder, it was closer.
    "Stay back, I won't hesitate to kill you." She warned.
    She was replied to by a raspy laugh. "No weapon .. hack ... You have no weapon."
    The Hagraven had seen right through her. Damn.
    "I'm waning you." She said with a shaky voice.
    The rustling stopped, then she heard another hack. "Pah, Jesper wants nothing to do with you annoying nibblet anyway."
    It went silent again.
    Sap tilted her head. "Nothing to do with me? Then why am I here?"
    "Stupid Forsworn, threw nibblet in here." Was the reply from the darkness.
    She stopped, was this the reason why the Jarl had sent her to watch them? Because of a Hagraven? Almost all Forsworn groups had one. What was special about this one?
    "Stupid Forsworn?" She repeated to herself under her breath. "Why do you say that?" 
    "Forsworn stupid! Worship Jesper. Think he leader." Shouted the shadows.
    He?
    She squinted her eyes, trying to peer into the darkness. "Step into the light."
    The Hagraven had defiantly said 'he', and it wasn't mistaken. But, there has never been known to be a male Hagraven. All reports have been female, witches that have given up their humanity to be such creatures. So, she had to see it, for herself.
    "No." Came a growl, "Jesper is ... hideous."
    Now she HAD to find out about him. He was the most unique Hagraven she had ever spoken to. Actually, he was the only Hagraven she had ever had an intelligent conversation with!
    "Then," she replied sharply, "I'll just come to you."
    "Fine..." A raspy cough, "fine.."
    The sound of feathers brushing against the floor filled the air, then more rustling movement sounds. Sap peered into the slit of light, but didn't see anything.
    "Come now, show yourself." She demanded.
    "BOO!" 
    The face that was suddenly forced into hers from the darkness sent her back to the ground. She breathed quick and deep as she looked up from her position on the floor. The face cocked to the side at her.
    "Bosmer said ... To show himself." It replied calmly.
    She leaned up slowly. She had never seen such a face on a Hagraven.
    "Your ..." she gasped lightly, "an Altmer..."
    It was true, even though his skin had been tinted slightly grey from dirt and the lack of sunlight, she could still see the familiar golden tone that the High Elf was famous for. His face fell as he looked away.
    "Yes..." He growled in response.
    Sap stood up, wanting to look him over more. Even though he bent over in the usual fashion of a Hagraven, he still toppled over her short form. Another usual sign of an Altmer. His originally golden hair was now a dirty grey, matted from not being taken care of. His arms unusually long and slender, clawed fingers at the end. The usual fashion for a Hagraven. His legs disappeared into a billow of feathers. Sap tilted her head, he had more feathers than a usual Hagraven. The way they sat on him, it almost looked like a robe. They even rose up from his neck to form a small hood on top of his head.
    "How did this ... happen?" She asked, holding herself from touching the feather like robe.
    "Cursed ... Jesper was cursed." He rasped.
    "Cursed? How?" She was getting intrigued.
    He pushed away from her, seeming to be annoyed. "Jesper is done answering the Bosmer's questions."
    He disappeared into the darkness again.
    "But wait!" She chased after him.
    "No." She heard him growl.
    She stopped, not wanting to provoke him into attacking. He might have been different from other Hagraven, but it didn't mean he still wasn't one. She had to remember that.
    "I want to help." She said calmly to the shadows, entwining her fingers together and resting her hands in front of her.
    "The silly little Bosmer cannot help Jesper." He laughed.
    "How in Oblivion do you know? Have you tried?" She shouted back, she was done being nice.
    "No.." He grumbled, "stupid Forsworn lock Jesper up here."
    "Why?" She wasn't going to let him stop answering her questions.
    "Forsworn say Jesper is special, say he is blessing to their cause. Jesper just unlucky fool." He replied sadly.
    "That settles it, I'm helping you." She said, straightening up.
    He didn't reply.
    "How did you get cursed?" She asked, tapping her chin.
    "Hagraven in Hog's End curse Jesper." He said quietly.
    "Then I will go to her for answers." Sap stated. It seemed like it would work, if he didn't know any other way of curing him of the curse.
    He didn't say anything, the darkness engulfing both of them during their silence. After a few minutes she heard him shuffle.
    "Why does little Bosmer help Jesper?" He asked.
    His head poked out slightly into the light, she finally had something to focus her eyes on. They softened as she smiled to him.
    "Because it's what this little Bosmer does." Was her only response.
    She couldn't truly answer it herself as she rattled it through her head. She just could never leave someone in peril. Always had to put her fingers in someone else's pie. Always having to help. It's what got her into trouble most of the time.
    "Now, how in Oblivion do I get out of here?" She asked, turning and clapping her hands together.

    After a long discussion, and a little bit of a fight from his part, Jesper finally gave into Sap. Somehow, the two were able to push her through the small window slit, slowly lowering her down on a small bit of rope. It wasn't long enough to reach the ground, but just enough that she could survive the fall once she got to the end.
    He watched as she climbed to her feet at the bottom and gave him an 'I'm okay' wave.
    "Remember, back by sunrise!" His raspy voice called after her. She nodded, then turned and disappeared into the wilderness.
    He had wrapped a special talisman around her neck, one made from a few of his own feathers. And the magical spell he put on it made sure she wouldn't run out on him. It would cause great pain to her if she didn't return before the sun rose, or if she tried to take it off. She had tried to keep him from forcing her to wear it, but like all Hagraven, they don't let you double cross them.
    She let out a long sigh, she hated being on a leash. "Stupid thing."
    Looking up into the sky, she guessed she had three hours at the most. Time to hurry!

    After finding a dead body outside of the cave, and acquiring herself a steel blade, she made her way through the maze. After killing more than her fair share of Frost Spiders, the things making her skin crawl, she found the being she had come for. The Hagraven backed away from her into a corner, cowering in fear.
   Sap rushed up at it, grabbing it by the dirty shirt it wore. The blade pressed violently against the beasts throat.
    "The man you cursed. How do I break it?" It wasn't a question, she was demanding the answer.
    "Haha ... The dumb Brenton think she break it?" The Hagraven rasped.
    "The answer!" She shouted, tightening her grip on the clothing and pressing the blade harder. She didn't have time to fix it on the mistake it made on her race.
    "Only true loves kiss. HA! Who would love Hagraven?" The beast finally blurted, a load of spit following it.
   Sap threw the ugly thing to the floor, not wanting to waste her energy with it. Rubbing the fowl things spit from her face, she looked back towards the entrance. How long had she spent down here? She had to hurry back!
   
   Damn! She wasn't going to make it. The sky was starting to lighten up, and the usual blue tint started to shine through the black. Soon, soon the sun would rise.
    Just as she rounded the next corner, she saw the peek of the tower Jesper inhabited. She was almost there. Glancing back, she could see the golden glow of the sun. Swallowing hard, she couldn't waste anymore time.
    Never before had she ran as fast as she had then. She almost couldn't register feeling the ground at her feet. And, before she knew it, she was at the base of the tower. Quickly, she had to get up the rope and into the window. Then, only then, could Jesper remove the spell on the talisman.
    Halfway up, she felt a tingling around her neck, and as she focused in on it, it turned into a searing pain that shot through her back. Gritting her teeth, she had to constantly tell herself not to let go of the rope. She had to bare through it, to get to the top.
    Her breathing became ragged as she forced her eyes closed, her hands slowly inching her up and up. Move your hands, don't let go, try to block out the pain. Repeated this to herself over and over.
    The pain was to much, she wasn't going to make it.  It started to shoot through her hands, and as she tried to convince herself to not let go, it started to weaken her fingers. She couldn't grip any longer.
    "Fuck it all..." She gasped, as she finally gave into the pain and let go.
    As she slowly began to slip into unconsciousness and fall towards the ground, clawed hands shot out and gripped her wrist tightly. Pulling her back to the window.
    "Dumb Bosmer .. Dumb Bosmer. Jesper say before sunrise. Before sunrise!" He growled as he dropped her limp body to the floor. Gripping one of his hand around the feathers, he ripped the trinket from her neck, breaking the spell.
    Instantly, the pain disappeared, and she slowly regain her thought.
    "Dumb Altmer!" She growled weakly as she awoke from her stunned state. "Next time don't give me such a short time limit."
    He was surprised to see that she was fine, that it hadn't done to much harm to her. She stumbled to her feet, her knees weak from the events that had passed. Groaning, she stretched lazily, her body had tensed up from the pain.
    She didn't have long to be on her feet. Suddenly something knocked her to the ground. When the world finally stopped spinning, she was surrounded by darkness. As she peered into it, Jesper's face suddenly appeared in front of hers. His eyes met with hers, but his were upside down.
    "Jesper?" She asked.
    Small bits of light broke into the darkness as she noticed she was lying against Jesper, wrapped up in a ball of feathers. He tilted his head at her. He seemed to embrace her, curling her into a comforting hug.
    "Bosmer is okay?" He asked.
    "Yeah Jesper, I'm fine." She blushed, his personality seemed to soften the longer she was with him. Was he worried for her?
    "Bosmer find the bloody curser?" He asked, tilting his head the other way, blinking.
    "I did, and was able to get the answer out of her!" She replied excited to tell him.
    "Yes?" He asked.
    "True loves kiss." She replied, straight to the point, not wanting to sugar coat it.
    His expression showed that his heart had sank. She understood. The Hagraven had been correct, how could anyone love such a beast? Not only because of how they looked or acted, it was just known that Hagraven were beast and should be slaughtered.
    His head turned as he looked away. His body relaxed depressingly, opening a doorway out of the feather. The light breaking in over the two. Sap looked up at him, his face was turned away as he sulked in his gown depression. She frowned.
    "Bosmer can leave no--"
    As he spoke and turned his face back to hers, he was interrupted as her mouth smothered his words away in a kiss. His eyes widened, and when she finally pulled away, he looked at her dumbfounded.
    "But..." He said in a low raspy voice.
    "I may not love you, Jesper, but I love you like family. I care for you enough to risk my own life to help you. And if that isn't considered a true love, then I.." She sighed. In her mind it sounded legit.
    She broke away from him, her head hanging low. She couldn't break his curse,  and had failed not only him but herself. She decided it was time for her to go. As she looked back at him, she noticed the plumage on top of his head had decreased in size slightly. A slight chuckle escaped her, her caring kiss seemed to have worked. 
    "If ... If your ever in Solitude, look me up." She smiled, tucking a strain of hair behind her ear.
    He cocked his head, not understanding her. But as he watched, she disappeared through the window, leaving him alone again.
Okay, explanation:

This is based from a CRAZY dream I had. So don't attack me.

Sap runs into a strange Hagraven, a male Altmer Hagraven who she decides to help, and finds hidden feelings for in the end.

Don't worry, there's more, this is just part one.

Everything Elder Scrolls (c) Elder Scrolls
Sap and Jesper (c) Me
© 2012 - 2024 Mcbutt3r
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Secretlyshy's avatar
Awww how sweet! :) I hope poor Jesper hooks up with Sap again. :D