JoS/Henriette/31st Journal - Plaything

Rain's Hand, 23rd, 4E 203

If you enjoy bad things happening to me, boy are you in for a lot of fun!

Everything in the past week has been a bit of a blur. My head is like a jigsaw puzzle I haven't had a whole lot of time to put them together. I'm used to having my rights violated, having my freedom taken away from me, but apart from just few unlucky times, I've always had the means to fight back and defend myself, you know… Not this time, not for time being. The price I'm paying is heavier than I ever anticipated.

It began when Maven herself had dragged her ass down to the filthy Ratway to look at what kind of rodent her men had caught. She woke me up, calling my name, sounding somewhat angry, but mostly just flabbergasted. She wasn't expecting to find me behind the bars, and she scolded me. What was I thinking? How could I be so foolish? Above everything else, how could I betray her trust and disappoint her like this after everything I've done to impress me?

Honestly, I was feeling a little ashamed as well. It's not like me to fail a job like that. I was too careless, or rather, I'm way too used to working in my own way. Had I gone for the kill inside that house, I wouldn't be here right now. Then again, that would've created trouble for me as well as Maven wouldn't have taken it lying down. Karliah would've been royally pissed as well. Now they're just disappointed in me. Not actually sure what's worse; to anger someone, or to fail someone's expectations and have them be ashamed of me doing a lousy job.

For a lousy, botched job, there was going to be a steep price to pay. Slap on a wrist wasn't going to cut it, and any apology wasn't going to make it better. Maven has to set an example and make it clear that she's the last person on Skyrim you want to screw and whatever status I've acquired in the Cistern wasn't going to cut it. She's above the Guild and ain't nobody gonna help me get out of this mess.

She then grabbed a little stool and sat down. We had ourselves a discussion.

"My men told what you were after. A certain jewel… A stone of Barenziah… Worthless piece of junk to me, but invaluable to someone we know. Karliah hired you for the job, am I correct?"

"Yes, you are correct."

I had been quiet up until that point, so I didn't know what to expect when I opened my mouth. I guess my response was a little bit too tacky for her liking, or maybe she was just enjoying my little predicament. Oh, who am I kidding, she was definetily enjoying making me feel like a worthless piece of meat. Either way, she wanted me to address her more respectfully. I hung my head as I corrected myself.

"Yes ma'am, you are correct."

"What was in it for you, Henriette?"

"Two thousand drakes, ma'am, half paid up front."

Hearing the sum made Maven's eyebrows rise in shock. "Why would that bitch pay so much money for a worthless piece of jewelry is beyond me." Then, she leaned in and stared me square in my eyes. "Where is that grey-skin bitch?"

Maven's words confused me. Never mind the racial slur, which I wasn't expecting from her, Karliah had assured that not only would this job be an easy one, but also that Karliah would be able to deal with the fallout, but nothing that was unraveling before me suggested that was the case. Granted, I failed, as is already painfully obvious, but still…

Regardless, I replied as honestly and truthfully as I could. We were only missing two stones, so we split up. Karliah headed for Windhelm while I struck Maven's house. Maven nodded, and then spoke. "I thought it should've been clear even to a stupid brat like yourself, but just because I do not dwell in your smelly cistern doesn't mean I'm not your boss. You know, I know, everyone knows, I am your guild's true leader. Without me, there would be no Thieves Guild in Riften. Let this punishment of yours be a reminder of that. You're hereby excommunicated from the Thieves Guild, Henriette."

I felt like crying, not because I was sad or angry, but because I was just so ashamed and disappointed of myself, and of managing to fail like this. "Yes, ma'am", was all I could utter in reply.

"You disappoint me, Henriette", she said as she stood up with a hand inside her breast pocket. She whipped out a leather collar painted in red, padded with steel and connected to a sturdy chain. She then made it quite clear that I was powerless, I have no more rights, I could do nothing, I'm her property now, I'm a slave… She said it's over for me. She demanded that I drop the "ma'am" and address her properly as "mistress", and I did as was asked of me. The game she wanted to play was starting to unravel before my eyes.

"Even a failure like yourself can be useful", she said as she gestured at two of her mercenaries to come forward and open up the cell. "Stay still, dog."

As soon as the door opened, I started calculating my next move. I backed down, wondering if there was a way for me escape. In the end though, it was all in vain. Maven locked the collar around my neck and pulled on the leash. She ordered me to stay on my knees where I belong, and to listen closely, as she was about to lay down the terms.

"One full calendar year", she said, as she played with the chain. "That's your punishment. You serve your time in labor, working your ass off around the clock, seven days a week as a whore, a plaything for customers. No objections, no excuses, just blind servitude. Displease me, I'll add to your punishment. Understand?"

"Yes, mistress."

"Oh, and you're still free to try and prove me wrong my escaping my chains", she said. "Of course, I'm not expecting that to happen, so if you do manage, who knows… Maybe you can prove me wrong by showing me you're not as useless as I think you are…"

Challenge accepted, I thought. Add to my bounty, I don't care. I may be clumsy and careless at times, but there's nothing that can hold me back for good if I just put my mind into it. I'll shout and scream my way to freedom if I have to! During this week I've been in this predicament though, it looks hopeless. I've got no clue how to get out from here, apart from waiting and working my way out. I hope it doesn't have to come to that, because damn it, year is a long time.

Anyway, after that discussion was over, it was time for me to get straight to work. She dragged me out from the Ratway through some backdoor that led to a building I wasn't expecting to be entering: Haelga's Bunkhouse. Turns out, this place is another one of local establishments that are operated independently, but kind of owned by Maven in the end. If you're familiar with Riften, you might just think this is a simple inn or a lodging house that the working men and women come to after being done with their work at the marketplace, the fishery or wherever the fuck, but that's only half of the story. This building operates a brothel too. I guess it's Haelga's way of worshipping Dibella, although this does seem a tad bit too sinful even for the goddess of love.

What's more, Maven's meadery, the underground Skooma bar, even the damn orphanage, they're all connected to the business. Like, I knew that people whore themselves out down in the Ratway, but fuck me, I had no idea so many businesses are connected in sex trade.

You might be wondering, is any of this even legal? What about the guards? What of the Empire? Do they all turn a blind eye? Not for free, and the business is quite lucrative, you know… Maven herself made it clear to me and said that I'm expected to not just serve, but also to make money. To her, a whore that can't turn profit is as useless as a soup-spoon with a giant hole in the middle. At least you can sharpen a dull blade, she said, but what do you do with a broken spoon? You throw it into trash and replace it with a new one. Yeah, go figure.

Haelga herself took a great interest in me when I was brought to her office. She didn't recognize me at first, but after thinking about it for a while, she admitted that she'd seen me around a few times, thought I was just a nobody. I did notice her inspecting at my body more than I expected. Was she looking at the tattoo on my pubic area? I swear I could've heard her say it too, while I read the word "Interesting" from her lips. Haelga confirmed to Maven that she's glad to have me around, and Maven reminded me to behave myself, or else. Maven also made it clear that Haelga is my boss now, and I am to treat her word as law, almost as if it was coming from Maven's mouth itself. I more or less expected that.

So, I'm expected to turn profit for both Haelga and Maven, as the latter made clear. The actual goal might sound like a hard goal to reach, as it's five hundred Septims, but since customers usually pay one hundred for an hour, it's not too hard a goal. Of course, all of that money is something I'll never see and will go straight to expenses like upkeep, rent, food, security, and keeping the guards shut… Haelga said that if I want to earn some money of my own while doing this, I can always work for more, and it might even work in my favor, so there's an incentive for me to make as much money as possible for my new mistresses.

Anyway, that's the deal here. I didn't expect to see Maven again, but she actually came to interrogate me once, again about Karliah. They've searched her home, searched for her everywhere, but she seems to have disappeared from Skyrim entirely with no trace left behind. She seems to be good at that, considering how long she was in hiding from Mercer too. I insisted on not knowing anything about what was going on, and although it didn't look like Maven believed me at first, she took my word as the truth. Like seriously, what's up with Karliah? I still hope she can help me… If not, I have a feeling she's going to face a punishment similar to what I'm going through, if not worse.

Let's talk about my workplace, because that's what I've been dealing with. Easiest way to access is through the Bunkhouse, if you're a customer anyway. The entrance is in the basement and it's being constantly guarded. It leads to the eatery as well as Haelga's office, where she has her Dibella statues, her customers and her bedrooms and such. The actual brothel is a bar maybe a little bigger than the main-floor of Bee and Barb. You know, the actual inn here in Riften. There's a counter for drinks, there plenty of tables and there are poles too, for dancing.

The place, despite being underground and technically in the Ratway is very clean. It's also to the Skooma den. Most of the customers are from the Bunkhouse, but sometimes an occasional guy from the Skooma den also pays for our services. I've been prohibited of actually stepping into the Skooma bar even though it's part of the premises as well. It's for my own safety, Haelga says, but I have a feeling… It could actually be possible to escape this place through the Ratway. I don't know its layout well enough though, and without any weapons I'm not sure I could sufficiently defend myself anyway.

There are also rooms for business, and each one of the girls have their own, me included. It's where I sleep, where I keep myself clean, and where most of the adult stuff happens. It's also where I keep you updated, my dearest diary.

Now, you should get the gist of it all now. I'm stuck here, but for how long? So far, I haven't caused problems, so… Maybe one week shy of a year? Gosh, that's a long time… I suppose I could look for more clues about how to escape, or I can just pray for Karliah or someone else to save me. I mean, my friends must know by now, and everyone at the guild must also know… Nobody has come looking for me yet though. Maven has probably made it clear to the guild members that helping me is out of question, and my friends are unlikely to know where I am.

Anyway, I'm hoping to figure something out while I work. Anything rather than something, actually. Below I've kept tabs and scribbled some notes and even wrote a few stories and memoirs about the customers I've served.