HYFD: Umtaz and Drevis Neloren

Here is my colourful new contribution to 's proprietary Dunmer-hugging extravaganza!

I thought it was bout time I did some arts with Umtaz, my Orcish thief.

Loud, rude and cynical, with lewd make-up, wild dreadlocks and piercings in every body part imaginable, Umtaz acts precisely the way everybody expects her to act - and no-one realizes that this street-born Orcish thug is actually wearing a mask to conceal the pain caused by constant vain attempts to fit in.

She spent her early years at Honourhall Orphanage, helping out her starving peers by stealing food in the Riften market. One fine night Grelod walked in on Umtaz cooking a succulent, freshly-pilfered joint of meat for the rest of the children; infuriated, she tore the frying pan out of the little Orc girl's hands and splashed the boiling grease into her face, leaving a scar that warps Umatz's features to this day.

The pain caused the girl to fly into her very first fit of berserker rage; after thrashing the orphanage and injuring Grelod, she dashed into the streets, while the Honourhall mistress called the guards. The young Orc barely evaded arrest thanks to a sympathetic Dunmeri priest of Mara, who provided her with supplies and helped her slip out of Riften. Thus began Umtaz's life as a vagabond, unwanted by her stronghold-bred kin for being a 'filthy city Orc' who had forsaken the code of Malacath, and shunned by the other races for her appearance - especially her scar.

After years of aimless wandering, she figured that the Ratway was where the likes of her belonged, and returned to her native Riften. There, she joined the Thieves' Guild, and made quite a few good scores - little did her brothers and sisters in crime know that she spent a large portion of the spils on buying pretty dresses, which she would put on when no-one was watching, and whirl in front of a mirror, pretending that she was anyone but her loathsome, ugly self.

For all her success as a thief, Umtaz was still an Orc, so her stealth skills could use a lot of improvement. Someone suggested Illusion magic as an effective means of enhancing one's abilities, so off Brynjolf sent his fanged protégé to the College of Winterhold.

There, Umtaz has found a true sanctuary for herself. She spends hours on end at the Arcanaeum, studying ancient tomes under the watchful (but approving) eye of her kinsman, and gladly studies Illusion, along with the other schools of magic. Recently, to her utmost horror, she has discovered that she is rapidly, irrevocably falling in love with her mentor, a good-natured, absent-minded Dark Elven scholar named Drevis Neloren.

Of course, the poor Orc struggles to conceal her feelings, certain that if they were revealed, everyone would only laugh at her. After all, she might have read a few books and learned a few spells - but she still remains an ugly, scarred gutter rat from the Ratway. Thus, she only dares to hug her dear Drevis stealthily, under the combined influence of Invisibility and Muffle spells - this is why he looks so puzzled.

UPDATE: Changed Drevis' expression a mite. There was an uncharacteristic crankiness to it that kinda bugged me.