-Buzz-
Haylan wrinkled his nose and wriggled his whiskers.
-Buzzzz
He inhaled sharply. The air was thick with a musk he found comforting.
-Buuuzz-
Whatever was making that horrid buzzing noise was getting on his nerves.
-Buzz-Buzz-Buzz-
Haylan felt a tickle on his ear. He twitched it.
Buzz
Instinctively, he tried to move his right arm to swat away the annoyance, but he was unable to. Irritation growing, his eyes opened. After quickly adjusting to the dim lighting, Haylan found his mind besieged by several memories.
**
"Haylan, you silly boy. What are you doing?"
"Momma! I'm a paladin! Behold my wielding of the holy light!"
"Oh really, little man?"
"Poppa! Grab your sword! We have to go!"
"I'll get breakfast going. You two get going. Don't take to long though, we've all got plenty of duties to get to before long."
*
"Oh Haylan... My baby boy... Come here."
"NO! I want my Poppa! Where is he Momma? WHERE IS HE?
"Here, Love. Drink this. This will make you feel better and then we can go for a walk, okay?
*
"I need you to pull through, Haylan. This dosage is strong enough to-- You will be fine. Trust me. I know what you're going through. Now drink up and close your eyes."
*
"Ah! Look who's awake! It looks like Krennan's potion finally worked. Either that or all of these earthquakes scared you into being a human! It's a good thing. I'd hate to shoot you. You're so young, innocent even. "
"Where's my mother?"
"She... My dear boy... Go see Krennan Aranas. You need to see him immediately. He needs to ensure that you're... okay.
*
"Who are you?"
"Haylan?"
"Ah! Well welcome back, boy! I hate to say it, but my cure seems to be rather ineffective for those who have the curse as young as you. In order to ensure that it fully takes hold, we will need to get you a dosage of the stabilizing potion...
**
Haylan blinked and cleared his mind of the memories from the past . In the time that he had been "cured" he had learned several things. First, for the last half year before he had come to his new home, the alchemists, magi, and healers had been perfecting what they were calling the cure for the lycanthropy curse which had infected seemingly the entire population of Gilneas. After testing it on a number of volunteers, it was Krennan Aranas who figured out the current formula which seemed to be the most effective. Of course, the curse could not be completely removed, as intense anger, pain, or fear still triggered the physical transformation for those who were able to revert to a human form.
The second thing he had learned, was that his mother was not among the cured. While she initially appeared to be cured, a few days later she mentally had an adverse reaction to the cure. Her mind broke down and she had to be put to rest for the safety of other citizens.
Haylan could understand that. His mother would never have wanted to be the source of pain or fear for anyone else. Had she been in her right mind and not tearing through Duskhaven, looking for her next meal, she would have consented. He knew that. As a result and since Haylan was still but a boy, he was orphaned. Fortunately for him though, his mother had planned for such an eventuality and made arrangements long before he was even a year old.
The third thing, and possibly the one of the most consequence, that Haylan had learned, was that he was, of course, left the few possessions that his mother had owned. They had no house, as they were servants, nor did they have much gold or silver. What Christina had left for her son was what he would consider his most precious treasure. To the casual onlooker, it appeared to be a dusty, worn leather diary. To Haylan, it was a way to look into his mother's mind and gain the infinite wisdom that only mothers hold. Haylan doubted there was any other book anywhere within the Eastern Kingdoms with as much knowledge as the diary he kept beneath his pillow.
Haylan blinked again, twitching his ears to dislodge what he had decided was a fly. Slowly, he wriggled, pulled and crawled until he was free of the boy he shared the room with. DenJer, the boy who was still fast asleep on the floor, had taken to Haylan immediately. He was born to an upper class family. While he was unsure of who exactly his parents were, the clergy felt the need to be perfectly honest with the boy. He killed his mother while being born. Like Haylan, he was born as a worgen cub.
Unlike Haylan, his birthing was not an easy one. Unfortunately, he began breaching before he was completely turned over in his mother's womb. Instead of crowning properly with his head coming out first, his body was turned; an arm came out instead. The healers tried to turn the baby, but it was simply not working. When they finally got him turned, the arm retracted and his mother began wailing with an unknown pain.
The babe within her was struggling to emerge and was panicked in a way that no one could understand. The woman screamed again as her belly bulged upward and a small trail of blood erupted along the left side of her abdomen. A deep gouge formed as the bulging became more frequent. Though the time that elapsed was less than two minutes, after what seemed to be an eternity, a clawed hand emerged, followed by a small worgen pup. The woman, assumed to be delirious, smiled and whispered soft words to the newborn. Her husband was at her side, holding her hand, the instant he realized the creature would not attack any further. Before she left the world, she asked her husband promise to make sure the child was safe.
The man could not bring himself to look at the child without wanting to kill it. It had taken the love of his life away from him. Hours later, after the healer had been dismissed, the man ordered the servants to bundle the sleeping, faux human child. In the dead of night, he carried it halfway across the kingdom and dumped it at a chapel. It was the best he could do to honor his wife's wishes. In his grief, he would have surely smothered the child at best. He was not an evil man. He was a hurting, mourning man. Truly, dumping the child was the best he could do.
Haylan closed his eyes and exhaled deeply before turning the doorknob, it would not do to emerge into the hallway in this form. Sure, many Gilneans had been affected by the curse, but the little town of Brookhaven still treated the curse as a tabooed subject, and the clergy within the chapel were no different. Nevermind the fact that they walked the fine line of hypocrisy seeing as how they had to convert over to their lupine forms in order to power their prayers. Actually, Haylan, being the silly, yet thoughtful boy that he was, found that to be ironic. One had to openly allow the curse to manifest before being able to begin blessing and fortifying the souls and hearts of others. Yes, the other citizens of Gilneas were indeed a funny lot.
"Sleep well?"
Haylan turned around to see his bunkmate sitting up, stretching like a great cat. More irony. Haylan smiled at DenJer and nodded. Their relationship was an exceptionally uncomplicated one. DenJer, having been an orphan since nearly birth, had taken immediately to the slightly younger boy. They became fast friends and were nearly inseparable from the day they met. DenJer, having been around as long as he had, helped ease the newly orphaned Haylan into his new life. Naturally, as usually happens, one boy proved to be more dominant than the other. After some time, Anjanetta found her way to the chapel in Brookhaven that her grandmother had told her about. With the addition of another of their kind, the three youngsters took to referring to themselves as a pack of sorts. DenJer, being the more dominant male, was considered the leader, the alpha.
"Yes." Haylan answered quietly. He really had not been much of a talker since his mother had died. Of course, he would always feel the sting of that loss, but he was still a relatively happy boy all around. His lack of talking had more to do with his insecurities with his speech impediment. It was nothing major, just a moderate stutter, but still. He was very self conscious of it.
"Well let's go! It's the last day of lower classes! We'll get to start our apprenticeships tonight!" DenJer cried gleefully. "We're going to be the most amazing druids ever!"
Haylan felt a pang of guilt at this. When they were younger, the pair had planned to study to become shape shifters like the elves who had come into the kingdom since the earthquakes which had shaken and broken the walls and kept Gilneas separate from the rest of the the world. Being master of the druidic arts, the pair would leave the cursed kingdom of their youths for greener pastures like those of Stormwind. There they could start over and keep their afflictions secret. Haylan's problem came in the fact that he didn't feel that he would make a very good druid. Even in his worgen form, he was rather small, a runt. He would never be able to strike anything very hard with a physical attack of any sort, nor did he feel very connected to nature in general, so the also took out the option of his being able to use it to keep others vitalized, let alone use the power of nature and ever manage to transform into a tree. The final avenue, the one that at least had a little appeal, was the one which would allow Haylan and others like him to strike from a distance. The problem with specializing within that branch of the druids sacred magic was the fact that even still, that drew upon nature. Haylan tried speaking with his pack several times about the matter, but DenJer always shushed him and told him it would come.
Well it hasn't come today, so I'm going to assume that it just doesn't plan to. Whatever 'it' is. Haylan thought grimly.
Breakfast was an unusually loud affair. Shirley, the church cook, being so proud of the youngsters for throwing themselves so thoroughly into their studies and already having plans for the future, had gone truly outdone herself that morning. The table was so loaded up with food that at one point that Haylan was sure he had heard it groan in protest when the giant serving flagon of orange juice was set on it. DenJer carefully loaded up his plate with roasted boar meat, a monster omelet, and a few slices of melon before filling his mug with hot apple cider. Anjanetta, not one to be shy when food was present, had a plate full of roasted boar meat, bacon, coyote steak and a curiously tasty omelet. Her own mug was filled from the flagon with the fresh pressed orange juice. Aside from the profuse "thank you"s, everything was rather normal, until Haylan sat down that is.
Haylan grabbed a large grapefruit from the dish in the center of the table and lopped it in half and sat down, pulling his own mug of orange juice over. He hungrily tucked in with his spoon and only paused and looked up once he noticed the lack of scraping utensils from his friends. They stared at him. Mother Shirley tutted, but remained quiet otherwise. Haylan blinked at his friends. As if on cue, Haylan's least favorite person, Father Charles, strolled into the dining area and plucked a bit of bacon from the serving plate. Sensing the vibe in the room, he looked over at Anjanetta and DenJer, then to Haylan.
"No meat, runt? That's why you're a runt as it is." he said. Naturally, Haylan said nothing. He blinked at the man before him and looked down and went to work on freeing another bit of his grapefruit. Father Charles, despite knowing that Haylan did not speak, decided to take offense to the boy deciding to not say anything and just continue as if he were not there.
"You wasteful little mongrel." Father Charles spat with disgust. "Mother Shirley most have gotten up at least an extra hour earlier than she usually does to fix a feast like this to commemorate your leaving, and you have the gall to only eat a bit of fruit and ignore her labor?"
"It's fine, Father." said Mother Shirley. "Haylan has never had much of a morning appetite. Even after all these years, I can count on one hand how often he eats much more than a piece of fruit."
"Well then he should commemorate the day buy eating the breakfast of a man, no?" sneered Father Charles. "Fix yourself a proper plate, boy. Now."
With a neutral expression, Haylan moved with the grace of a dancer and filled his plate. Never looking up to meet the man in the eyes, he ate without ever saying a word. Haylan was used to Father Charles and his misplaced aggressions. After today, he was sure he would rarely see the bitter man again. In the eight years he had lived under the church's roof, he had never actually snapped on the man or said anything to him aside from the most basic two word sentences of "yes sir" or "no sir" and he certainly had no intentions of changing that today. As he finished his helping of food, he drained his mug of the remaining juice, nodded his head once to Mother Shirley in appreciation, and smirked at Father Charles, who was shoving some sort of meat into his mouth with a disturbing lack of grace or dignity, as he slid his own chair back and made to leave the room.
You have to love the man's repulsive eating mannerisms, Haylan thought to himself. Without saying a word, he had certainly gotten the last word. He had timed his exit with the filthy man shoveling more food into his gullet. Even a woefully classless creature like Father Charles would venture to not speak with a mouth filled with food, even if the reason was more hoping to avoid choking than following proper etiquette.
The rest of the predawn morning was spent doing the usual chores, a quick bath, and changing of clothes before heading out to Brookhaven proper for the last day of classes. For what his gut told him was the last time, Haylan waited just outside of the church, on the bench near the gas lamp, for Anjanetta and DenJer.
"Oi! Haylan!" exclaimed DenJer as he jogged over to his bunkmate. "That Father Charles, is such a bastard. At least we won't have to see too much of him after we start out druid training!"
"DenJer, I'm n--"
"Hey! You two! Let's go! We're going to be late."
Anjanetta had appeared a little way up the old cobbled road that lead to the rest of Brookhaven. The chapel had been built on a far-flung plot of land to the northeast. Really, the distance was relatively short, but it would still take them at least fifteen to twenty minutes to reach the school house. Along the way, the group grew as their classmates joined them turning the trio to a fair dozen or so of graduates. Haylan broke off from his friends, knocking on one of the doors in the village. A harried looking woman flung the door open and met his smile with one of her own.
"Oh Haylan! Good morning!" a voice not belonging to the woman cried. A small boy appearing to be five or six poked his head through the small space between hips and door frame between his face and Haylan.
"JEFFREY! BACK TO THE TABLE AND FINISH YOUR BREAKFAST!" the woman snapped. She turned back to Haylan, smile back in place. "I'll be taking Jeffrey to the schoolhouse myself this morning. Actually, you'll find the other parents and grandparents have decided the same. We can't have you flustered from dealing with our fool children during the ceremony, now can we. Oh and believe that we will all be there supporting you. You've been such a help to us since this whole mess started!" Haylan blushed and nodded a goodbye as the woman took one of his hands into her own soapy ones and barked for Jeffrey to "SIT DOWN!" before she broke his legs and he would "HAVE NO OTHER BLOODY OPTION!"
Haylan was still blushing when he caught up to his friends. He had not taken up escorting the littles to school because he wanted to be recognized for it. He had done it because most of their fathers, and in some cases mothers, had been involved in the seemingly never ending battle for Gilneas City against the horde. When he and DenJer had been younger, someone from the chapel had always walked them to the schoolhouse and someone had walked them back until they were deemed to be old enough to get there without much trouble, delay or random mischief. As he got older, Haylan noticed that there were a gaggle of smaller children who were walking alone. Concerned, he asked a few of them why that was, and the common response was whoever their caregiver was had so many other responsibilities since the household income had either dwindled to nothing or next to it, they simply did not have time to waste with walking back and forth twice a day. Haylan took it upon himself to make sure they all got to and from school safely. It really just seemed to be the right thing to do.
Before he knew it, the time had come for the actual ceremony and declarations. Since they were arranged by age, DenJer, Haylan, and Anjanetta stood, in that order, in the last third of their classmates. Had it not been so quiet, allowing all in attendance to hear his whispers, Haylan would have tried telling DenJer of his intentions, but he was unable to. DenJer was called up by the headmaster and strode confidently up to the center of the stage. As expected, after being congratulated for attaining the necessary knowledge of reading, writing, and arithmetic, the first of the two questions that Haylan knew would dissolve his friendship when he had to answer them came.
"Which professions do you plan to study?"
"Headmaster, my primary professions will be those of a Leatherworker and Skinner. Though, naturally I plan to learn about first aid, how to fish, and how to cook so that if worse come to worse, I may bandage myself or my comrades, catch a school of fish, then feed myself or my friends if needed." DenJer recited the phrasing just as they had been trained to do and had done since their first day of schooling eight years ago.
"Very well. Under which apprenticeship do you wish to present yourself so that you may protect both Gilneas and her interests at home or abroad should you be called upon to do so?
"Headmaster, I wish to study druidism. I will throw myself into my future studies so that I may learn and understand the balance of nature, connect with the feral power of nature, and utilize the restorative force of nature which all creatures are bound to merely by having ever been alive."
The crowd applauded unenthusiastically as DenJer bowed to his new master, as was customary, and walked over to her side. Lost in his thoughts, Haylan missed his own name being called and did not move forward until Anjanetta nudged him ever so slightly.
"Young Haylan, on behalf of the village of Brookhaven, I welcome you to adulthood. Congratulations on having attained and displaying an outstanding comprehension of reading, writing, and arithmetic. Wh-"
"YAY HAYLAN!" shouted a voice Haylan was suspected to be Jeffrey as there was an immediate growl from someone threatening to unhinge his jaw should he disrupt again. The headmaster smiled and shook her head before continuing on.
"Which professions do you plan to study?"
"Headmaster, my pr-primary -p-pr-professions will be those of an Alchemist and Herbalist." Haylan carefully looked over to where DenJer was frowning slightly with confusion. Looking to the other side, he could see a small smile play at the corners of Anjanetta's mouth. "Though, naturally I pl-plan to learn about first aid, how to fish, and how to cook so that if worse come to worse, I may bandage myself or my comrades, catch a school of fish, then feed myself or my friends if needed."
"Very well. Under which apprenticeship do you wish to present yourself so that you may protect both Gilneas and her interests at home or abroad should you be called upon to do so?
"Headmaster, I wish..." Haylan broke off and again looked over to DenJer, and was certain that his betrayal would never be forgiven. Remembering himself, he resolved himself to endure whatever may come and continued on in a voice louder than he had used since losing his home and family. "I wish to study the arcane. I will devote myself to my future studies so that I understand the arcane, connect with the power of the flame, and may commune with the power of frost."
Haylan was taken aback when the crowd seemingly erupted. (Anjanetta assured him later that the audience had indeed cheered for him the loudest and hardest of any of the graduates.) Had it not been for the exemplary control the trio had learned that to their long hours of meditation and prayer, Haylan was sure the flash in DenJer's eyes would have extended from not only turning them to the dangerous yellow they had become, but resulted in a full blown transformation. He made his way over to the magi who would be mentoring him. Catching Haylan's eyes, DenJer snarled silently before shaking his head, clearing the anger he must have gobbled up within the depths of his mind. He turned his icy blue gaze back to the stage, where Anjanetta had just been congratulated and had been asked which professions she planned to pursue.
""Headmaster, my primary professions will be those of a Tailor and Enchantress. Though, naturally I plan to learn about first aid, how to fish, and how to cook so that if worse come to worse, I may bandage myself or my comrades, catch a school of fish, then feed myself or my friends if needed."
"Very well. Under which apprenticeship do you wish to present yourself so that you may protect both Gilneas and her interests at home or abroad should you be called upon to do so?
"I wish to join the clergy. I will devote myself to my future studies so that I may truly be disciplined by the Holy Light, become pure enough to mentally and physically heal my comrades, and, if necessary, turn enemies away when others cannot." She smiled at Haylan before looking to DenJer, raising an eyebrow, silently challenging the latter to say or do anything.
Haylan blinked, his mouth slightly agape. Anjanetta had never mentioned wanting to be anything aside from a druid, not that he could recall anyway. He wondered if she had been planning to stay in Brookhaven the whole time or if she had taken the idea from his own initiative to deviate from DenJer's grand plan. One of the magi smiled kindly at him and patted his shoulder before nodding to his companion, who drew a circle in the air with his hand. The air shimmered and wavered before somehow solidifying into what looked like a tunnel with no depth. The woman who had conjured the portal walked up to it, and smirked before stepping into it and vanishing altogether. Ashley, the other graduate who had also chosen the path of an arcanist stepped into the portal, albeit somewhat clumsily before vanishing.
"It's perfectly safe. Ginny hasn't splinched anyone in at least a month."
Haylan's eyes widened as he looked at the man standing before him.
"Kidding! Kidding! Go on through, it won't last much longer."
Haylan stepped through. The sensation was far different than he had expected. He was sure the experience would we rather uncomfortable and he wouldn't be able to breath at all. Instead, it felt more like someone had scooped the rocks, fish, and plants out of a particularly quick moving stream and he was sliding along it. Just as he was getting to enjoy himself, the ride ended. He staggered into what must have been a foyer of a large house. He looked around, finding himself being observed by Ashley and the woman who had created the portal, Ginny.
Ginny was woman of average height. Her skin was smooth, and rather pale if one ignored the freckles. Her hair was so intensely crimson that he was sure she had to be deeply entrenched with the flames and she had been marked as such by having such remarkably bright hair.
"You might want to step over here," Ashley said, motioning Haylan over. "Ginny says it is rather uncomfortable to find the person behind you landing with their feet in your back." Silently, Haylan walked over to stand beside the boy. Just as soon as he turned, he found the man gracefully stepping out of the portal.
"Oi! How did the landing go?" he asked.
"Actually," Ginny smirked at the boys to her left. "Ashley here landed on his face. This one," she nodded at Haylan, "somehow managed to stay on his feet.
"Well now, that may be very telling indeed!"
He and Ginny, who had just come over to stand beside him, looked at both Haylan and Ashley, and stood straight. The both raised their right arms, bringing them to a soft violet glow, and placed them across their chests before nodding slightly.
"I am Arik."
"I am Ginerva, but I prefer to be called Ginny. I'm not my grandmother after all."
Immediately, Ashley touched the tip of his shaggy blonde hair with his right hand, and bowed deeply. At the same time, Haylan clasped his hands together and inclined his head as he had been trained by the clergy of the chapel. The pair smiled at the boys.
"Time for your first lesson," said Arik. "Take a deep breath, close your eyes, and clear your minds. Once your minds are clear, take a moment to just listen. Listen to your surroundings."
"Listen to the crackle of the hearth." said Ginny. Haylan had not noticed a fireplace when he had come out of the portal, but, in his defense, he had been highly disoriented and had yet to be in the room for even five minutes. Of course, as soon as Ginny mentioned it, he could hear a fire raging as if it had been going all along. The smell of the burning logs swirled around his head until he felt a bit punch drunk. Just as he was sure he was losing his grip, Arik's voice slipped into his ears. He was unsure on if he was being whispered to directly or if the voice was just being carried to him on an un-seen, un-felt current.
"Listen to the breeze as it plays against the window. Listen to the chill creep across the windowpane and across the glass." Haylan more than heard it. He felt it deep within his body. He was positive that had he opened his eyes, he would have seen his breath billow from his mouth and nose as if he were in the midst of midwinter snowstorm.
"Lastly," Arik and Ginny intoned together, "listen to the beating of your heart. Listen as the blood rushes from it to the rest of your body and back. Feel it. Feel the power your own body contains. Extend that sensibility to everything in this room; the floor, ceiling, the walls, the hearth, the window. Feel it all."
"Now," Ginny continued alone "pull some of the power within the room toward you."
"You see, Young Ashley, Young Haylan, we, the magi, the masters of magic in all its most refined forms: as blunt as simple force itself, as powerful as the mighty flame, as calm and cunning as ice, are superior to all others. We connect our minds and spirits with the true force that connects us all."
"Command the power you've collected to coalesce around your right arm," cooed Ginny. "If it resists, remind it that you, as a mage, pledge to never abuse it. You will respect it, but you will also use it to do as you wish."
"Now, open your eyes," whispered Arik. "Follow our movements."
Haylan opened his eyes and looked down at his own arm. To his surprise, he had actually done it. A bright blue-violet substance like liquid mercury lazily curled and flowed around his arm. He smiled and looked over at Ashley. The other boy had accomplished the same feat, though his had a faint violet tint in place of Haylan's blue-violet. Remembering himself for the second time that day, Haylan wrenched himself from his own thoughts and looked up at Ginny and Arik. As instructed, he mimicked their actions. He balled his fist, brought it across his chest, and bowed his head.
"That is the Magi's Bow." said Arik. "This is how we identify ourselves to other magi. You may wish to practice until it becomes second nature."
"Now, that's all we have planned for today. Supper is always served at six sharp, as is breakfast. Be late, miss your plate. At least that's Master Ryken's stance. Until you learn to conjure some sort of biscuit at least, I would advise arriving at least five minutes early just to make sure you're on time." said Ginny, smiling widely.
"We actually don't have anything planned for you two for the next few days so feel free to acquaint yourselves with the manor. Unfortunately, you'll not be permitted off the premises until you have been outfitted properly, but that shouldn't last too long. A few days at most." assured Arik. "We'll leave you to it then. Feel free to explore. You'll find your rooms in the upper portion of the west wing."
To keep his mind occupied, Haylan actually made an effort to carry a conversation when Ashley absently commented on a bust here, painting there, or the heavily warded doors they occasionally passed. To Ashley's surprise, Haylan actually verbally speculated on what wonders may have been behind the wards.
I have to make an attempt at least, thought Haylan. For all I know, DenJer will never speak to me again, and who knows if he or Anjanetta are even anywhere near here... Where is here? I'll have find out.
Supper was a relatively subdued affair compared to everything that had happened at breakfast. When Ashley and Haylan arrived at the dining room, the found Arik sitting at the table, tossing a ball of fire from hand to hand. Seeing the new duo, he banished the source of his amusement mid-throw and smiled.
"We're actually going to do supper a little differently tonight," he stated. "Instead of an overtly formal affair with an uncomfortable silence, Ginny and I persuaded the chef to just get us a few ingredients and leave us to our own devices. Follow me."
The boys followed him outside and found Ginny walking a circle, lighting what appeared to be lanterns which were suspended in the air by no visible means by tossing a small ball of fire into each, lighting the their wicks. She waved the approaching group over.
"Alright, here's lesson number two. The powers we have at our disposal are generally classified into three trees as you well know. There's the simple force we can use, known as arcane, and the two self-explanatory fire and frost. Now, a common misconception outsiders have is that they are mutually exclusive. They would have you think that a person who has further studied the power within the frost tree cannot access the power of the flame. False."
"Yeah," Arik chimed in. "A student of the arcane can utilize both flame or frost or any other way you care to mix the three."
"Right," nodded Ginny. "Now, before we continue, could the two of you shift to your other selves, please?"
Haylan heard Ashley suck in a sharp breath before closing his mouth abruptly.
"A condition of being mentored under Master Ryken is that you spend the majority of the time in your worgen form," Arik informed them. "I know it's uncommon to be encouraged to show your other form, but everyone within this house has been affected by the curse, and Master Ryken doesn't agree with most anyone else. He says that everyone on the planet has more than one face, some of us literally."
"Aside from that," Ginny said through the smile she was wearing, "you'll find that larger cities within the kingdom actually have a substantial amount of people who walk around in their worgen form like it's nothing. Mostly because it IS nothing. It's as common as having ten fingers and ten toes these days."
Ashley was first. His arms elongated as before their weight proved to be too much and he hunched over. A red flash, as was typical enveloped him and he stood, stretched, and smiled toothily. Haylan's transformation was much more subdued. A puff of smoke, which he had never been able to source, wrapped itself around him and when he cleared, he was in his worgen form. Sadly, he was still significantly smaller than Ashley. He was significantly smaller than everyone truth be told. His parents had both been average height, so he assumed it must have come from an ancestor on his mother's side since she was from Stormwind. He knew for sure that there were, or at least had been, gnomes and dwarves intermingling with regular humans.
"Wow... Um... Haylan..." started Ginny.
"Aye. I assume I know your question, and I suggest you not ask it," a voice rasped from behind. The speaker was a man... worgen... man... Haylan was sure that he and his fellow Gilneans were still considered to be boys and girls then men and women. Either way, the man before him was definitely human looking, but very shabby. His eyes were beady and yellowed, all the more to match his teeth. He was hunched over, and walked with the aid of a cane. The air around him thrummed with a power Haylan was not quite able to place. An epiphany smacked Haylan in the face and he brought his blue-violet glow into being around his right arm and made the gesture of the Magi's Bow."
"Well done," croaked Master Ryken, returning the gesture. A bright violet light erupted from his eyes, temporarily blinding Haylan, though when the youngster's eyes cleared, he could see the old man had transformed. Turning his head, he saw that Ginny and Arik had as well. "Why don't you lot grab the logs so we can get going. I'm famished."
It took no time for the foursome to grab the logs just outside of the wreath of light emitted by the levitating lanterns. Haylan had to admit, he felt more comfortable in this body rather than the form he had spent the majority of his life in thus far. The logs would have surely presented a problem for him had he not transformed.
"Alright, stand back," the old man ordered. He rolled his sleeves up. His hands flashed briefly as blue and violet energies blasted the earth repeatedly, carving a pit several feet deep. He motioned for the others to throw the biggest of the logs and spoke while the worked. "Now, as these two were saying, the branches of magic we utilize can be intermingled and used to our advantage. A commoner would merely look to light these logs and allow them to burn too quickly. As a member of the elite class, you have a different option. Or at least you will later."
Dramatically, Ryken took a deep breath. The air around his hands shimmered with what appeared to be snow, but at the same time there appeared to be fire. He channeled the energies and thrust toward the logs in the pit. Looking at it, Haylan couldn't determine if he was watching a flaming ball of ice or a frozen fireball as it streaked through the air and collided with the wood. Ice crept up and around the logs before the burst into flame.
"Okay... that was just flat out awesome," whispered Haylan. Ashley just nodded dumbly.
"The first spell I used is commonly referred to as an arcane barrage, the second was a frostfire bolt." huffed Ryken. "Note how I utilized all three branches of power. The arcane energies gouged out our pit. Fire obviously gives us the flame we are watching, while frost is preserving the wood, keeping it from burning too fast."
"Our turn to be flashy!" declared Arik. He closed his eyes, bringing what looked to be a portal into being.
"Okay, time to show the old man what you've got," Ginny said in all seriousness. "Use the same technique you learned earlier to perform the Magi's Bow, but instead of pulling the energy toward you, push it out toward the portal. Even a warrior can help with this, though he would stupidly tap into his own energy rather than using the ambient magic around him."
Acting off of instinct, Haylan pulled the magic out of the air around him and pushed it toward the portal. He smiled when his hands took on a pale blue glow, matching Arik's. It took a moment of concentration, but Ashley also managed to produce his own blue light and pushed it toward the portal. A sound like a bell and whistle combined came from the portal before a table very similar to the one in the dining room appeared. It hovered slightly off the ground, loaded with an assortment of raw vegetables, fruit, juices, a bowl of partially cooked meat and bread. On either end, one could find gleaming steel sticks.
"Kabobs! Marvelous!" smiled Ashley.
Of course, such a good night had to be interrupted by something awkward.
"No meat?" asked Ryken.
Everyone paused and focused on Haylan. He cursed himself inwardly.
"No sir," He frowned before continuing. Haylan was uneasy about divulging the next bit as DenJer had laughed at him when Haylan answered a similar question. "I don't really enjoy eating red meat. It's always upset my stomach, even when I was little. I mean, fish is okay, but most land creatures and the like feel really heavy in my stomach and I feel sluggish afterward, not to mention the nausea..."
Despite not having any visual flesh showing, Haylan knew his cheeks were flush with color.
"Meh, just as well," responded the old man. "Seafood in general is a better choice for us anyway. It stimulates the mind. You'll find in your studies that there is a lot of thought and concentration required to focus your spells. Presence of mind is important."
Some time later, Haylan found himself in his bedroom. His very own bedroom. The furnishings were a bit much to him initially. In the center was what had to be the most cushy, plush bed he had ever seen. There was a tall armoire in the corner, a bench which opened into a trunk at the foot of his bed, and a tall chest of drawers on the wall with the door. The space where there should have been a fourth wall was extended with a small open room. There was a room divider made of a wood to match his bedroom furniture and a thin parchment like material stretched between the reeds. Behind the divider was a large basin for bathing and a small door the what turned out to be a toilet of sorts. Instead of it dropping into a hole in the ground like the bathrooms at the church, there was a tiny, permanent portal. He wondered where it went, but he had not intentions of finding out on his own.
He had taken a nice, long bath after supper and sat on the edge of his bed, reading a book from the bookshelf he had missed upon his initial inspection of the room. Just as he got ready to blow out the light, a soft knock came from his door. Haylan got to his feet, and padded across the room, and pulled the door open. Ashley stood there, with a pillow tucked beneath his arm and a blanket over his shoulder.
"Um... I've never spent a night away from home before," the boy bravely said. His voice softened to a whisper when he continued. "Would it be okay if I slept in here with you?"
Haylan sized the boy up, before giving what he hoped was a comforting smile. He was still unsure on how his facial expressions appeared now since he had spent so little time in this form. "Sure, I snore though." Ashley swung at him with his pillow, stepping into the room. Once they had settled into the most luxurious bed every, by both their standards, Ashley scratched behind his ear, with his hand and sighed.
"What?" asked Haylan, his voice barely above a whisper.
"What made you decide not to follow DenJer into druidism?"
"How did you know about that?
"What? You mean aside from the way he used to talk about it to any and everyone who would listen?" teased Ashley.
"Well..." Haylan considered his words before he spoke. He had known Ashley of course, they were in the same age group, but he still didn't really know him very well. He didn't want to say something that sounded like he was no longer loyal to DenJer and Anjanetta. "I guess I initially wanted to study druidism for the same reasons he does, but something changed. He was planning for after this whole messy war comes to an end. If no one ever finds a cure for the curse, he figured that if he stayed with the military or became an adventurer, he could just shift into an animal form instead of revealing that he's not a normal human.
"And while that seemed like a good idea when we first met, I decided I wasn't ashamed of who and what I am. I am a Gilnean. Period. If people don't like it, they can just get bent. Besides that, I've never felt very connected to trees, cats, bears or owls. And I like bathing. Regularly."
Ashley snorted at the last bit. "So what made you decided to take this route and not that of say, a rouge? I swear almost everyone seems to go into that."
"I'm not nearly stealthy enough to be a rogue. I chose this because, well... my mother left a diary and she mentioned that both she and my father studied with the Kirin Tor of Dalaran before it fell."
"Really? Well that explains how you've been so quick on the uptake. It's in your blood!"
"What about you, Ashley? What brought you down this path?"
"My answer isn't nearly as romantic as yours," Ashley stated simply. "I like fire. I like fire, but I don't want to play with ruddy demons. And call me Ash, all of my friends do."
The boys chatted into the wee hours of the night until Ash finally realized that Haylan's responses came slower and slower and made less and less sense. Comforted by the simple fact that the other was there, not to mention the fact that Haylan had not had to think about the betrayal etched deeply into DenJer's face, and Ash felt like he wasn't alone in this new endeavor, the boys slept peacefully through what remained of the night and deep into the morning.