Yes,it's finally done! I'm sorry if you think I was lazy in writing this,but the truth is that...no you're right,I'm extremely lazy. BUT,I do actually have a lot of other projects going on right now that slowed me down quite a bit. I'm still happy I got around to finish this...

So,this chapter takes place a few years (two to five) after the last chapter. It is what leads up to Alleria's appearance in the novel 'Tides of darkness' and the game 'Warcraft II:Tides of Darkness'. I really like Alleria,but I think she'll be a difficult character to write about in future chapters because of her thorough hate of the Horde. Wish me luck and cheer for me...

Please enjoy!

Chapter III: Potential

"Lady Alleria, sir Galéndi called for you."

The oldest of the Windrunner sisters froze in her steps as the message was transferred. She glanced between her father's assistant who had come to deliver his call, and Sylvanas who had stopped in her tracks at the same time as her. When their eyes met, her sister quickly nodded. "Oh that's alright. I'll just tell the others you'll be with us in a while."

She hesitated for a moment, before giving her a warm smile. "Thank you."

Sylvanas dashed away, her silvery blonde hair floating behind her. Of course she would be eager to meet with her friends from the capital that they never got to see often enough. Especially when they perhaps carried news about a certain young prince, Alleria mused as she followed the messenger.

The day was warm, as it would seem natural during the middle of the summers in Quel'thalas. The golden sunlight carefully peered through the almost ruby red leaves of the trees that never changed colour despite the time of the year, perhaps due to a magical effect. Or maybe it was just the presence of the peaceful elves that made the trees carry a beautiful mood and stand unchanged through the flow of seasons. The high elves did care for the nature, in which they lived, and to sing for the plants in their presence was perhaps a remnant of the time they lived as high borne in Kalimdor, but it was something they would never stop with. Elves naturally belonged in the woods, and as did Alleria.

This was her home. This was the village that she and her ancestors had grown up in, thus naming it the 'Windrunner village' after the noble family which had cared for it during all these years. The village lay in the southwest part of Quel'thalas, a long way from Silvermoon.

The noble family itself lived inside the village, in a house that carried an undeniable and astonishing beauty compared to that of the other residents nearby.

But such was only a small detail in the every day life of the habitants in the Windrunner village. After all, they were the ones who would defend their village and represent them for the royal family.

Standing majestically above the village, raised above the ocean was the Windrunner Spire where Galéndi and his advisors spent most of their time, doing work for the capital. Although it was considered the main point of the village, it still lay separated from the other residents, causing Alleria to sigh as she started to head up the long path that led up to the Spire. She was even further annoyed when reminded of the amount of stairs that the building had. But, it was her father's summons, and even if she was not of his blood, she was still far enough below him so that his orders were her absolute law.

She took a deep breath and began to climb the stairs that circled round and round, seemingly never- ending. As she climbed, she encountered many of her father's assistants, advisors and servants, who all seemed very happy to see her. Most of the males threw her appreciating looks to say the least, which reminded Alleria to ask her father about his skill in hiring staff again.

At last, she reached the platform that represented Galéndi's private office door. The door frame was much more richly decorated than the others, and even the floor seemed to be more accurately cleaned here.

She heard voices from inside, yet she still made a light knock with the back of her gloved hand. The voices inside temporarily stopped, and then grew a bit louder. Her sharp hearing told her that the individuals inside began to approach the door, thus beginning to end their conversation. The door swung open, revealing to her the face of a very old and scarred elf. A stung of recognition flared through her mind, and she remembered that this was one of the nobles from the Fairbreeze village, that lay slightly closer to the capital. He had participated in the Troll wars and fought bravely for the country, thus granting him his noble title. He was very, very revered among the higher society. If she could only place his name…

His glimmering, wise eyes pierced right into hers, his face a stern mask. Over his shoulder, she spotted her father who gave her an equally straight expression, though with a hint of expectation. He was giving her a silent test on whether she could remember the high nobles or not, something which was required from a noble daughter as herself.

Do not stutter…Alleria told herself. She swallowed. Think… Something that began with an E… right? Or not? Why was her throat so dry? Why were her cheeks darkening? It was clearly obvious that she did not remember his name.

The answer suddenly flashed before her, and her face burst into a bright smile, both of politeness and joy over succeeding. "Lord Elildor! What a great honour to be able to meet you on a day as beautiful as this one!" She made a deep bow, managing to catch her father's nod of approval before lowering her head.

The wise noble returned a bright grin. "Lady Alleria," he said and made a half as deep bow. "The pleasure is purely mine." He turned to Galéndi, though saying nothing for a brief moment. "Well then friend, think about what we discussed and I hope to hear an answer from you as soon as you can manage."

"Of course, sir." Alleria's father bowed deeply as Lord Elildor made his way down the stairs. As soon as he was out of sight, he put a hand to his daughter's shoulder, motioning for her to come inside his office.

It was decorated just like it always was, ever since she was a child. Numbers and rows of bookshelves lined up against the walls, filled with tomes of all from history descriptions to magical techniques to different bestiaries. Occasionally, a shelf would be covered by an enchanted object, like a blue gem that floated just above the surface on its own, or a feather that changed colour when you touched it. She smiled to herself as she remembered how her father had picked one of the objects down once in a while, and allowed her to toy with them while he busied himself with his necessary work. Those days seemed so far away now.

In the middle of the office, a wooden desk stood placed, several books lined up at its edges. Different gems lay spread over its surface, along with feather quills, jars of magical essences and other things that she could not identify. The light source, a large and neatly cleaned window was placed right behind it, blinding her momentarily as she turned around.

Galéndi closed the door behind her, and studied her in silence for a few seconds. She gave him a questioning glance, and he moved to sit in the chair behind his desk. Once he was sitting, she uttered her wonder out loud; "What is the reason for you to summon me, father?"

Perhaps it sounded harsh, but Alleria did not feel like waiting for his point longer than necessary, as he didn't have any time to stay away from his subject. At the time when the only children of the family had been herself and her brother Ísen, the oldest of the Windrunner siblings, Galéndi had taken his time off for them all once in a while, often enough to be a strong father's figure for them both. But then came Urondil and Sylvanas, and not long after, Vereesa and Lirath as well. Not only did the growing amount of children cause their mother to grow weaker and weaker, it made it harder for their father to take private time for them all. And so, he had gradually begun to grow further away from them, as if building a wall of no emotions between them. He simply couldn't afford to let children disturb his work.

The days that he would carry her in his arms and hold her up to the sky were nothing more than a memory right now.

Galéndi pulled his mouth into a thin line and lowered his head, as if avoiding looking her in the eyes. "I heard that you gave Ísen the rank of assistant ranger- captain," he said emotionlessly.

She nodded slowly. "Yes. He's in Silvermoon as we speak."

"I must say you have done well in keeping the clan and its reputation intact, even in matters like these," her father said, leaning backwards in his chair. "The rest of our people will have to realize the greatness in potential that we carry, second only to the royal family."

Alleria was startled. "But… father, I made Ísen assistant captain because of his skill in leadership and archery, not because he is my brother. That would make me seem so… narrow- minded."

Galéndi nodded, focusing his gaze at her face, though still not looking directly at her. "I know. Yet you manage to keep the family together very skilfully. You were the one who taught him how to rise in the ranks, were you not?"

She made a sound as to express how offended she felt, but her father did nothing but slightly raising an eyebrow behind his interlaced fingers. "Father- "

"You've shown much talent of late, Alleria," Galéndi said and stood up to walk around the desk. "Not only in keeping the family together. Leadership, ability to foresee consequences and unexpected events, skill in archery and other weapons…" he counted. Alleria frowned, wondering where he was going. He swirled around, for a moment meeting her eyes. During those few seconds, they were both silent. An indescribable mood flooded through the office, and was broken when Galéndi looked away.

"Such abilities," he continued, "is exactly what I expect from a future clan- leader."

Alleria's eyes widened. For a moment, she had trouble registering exactly what he had said, but when the meaning of the words came to her mind, she quickly began to feel insecure.

"I... father, I… But, what about Ísen? He's older than me and just as capable of… and with my current position, I doubt I would have any time to take care of noble business as well…"

"By the time that I and your grandfather will pass onto you the role, you can name Ísen your successor," Galéndi said sternly. "He and I have talked, and we both think that you're the one most suited to lead the clan."

She swallowed, suddenly realizing what was now expected of her. And that without her knowing, he and her grandfather had been watching her perform her duties, always judging her by her decisions and choices of solving problems that was given to her. Biting her lip, she considered dashing out of the room and hiding out among the trees of the forest, temporarily escaping anything that had to do with leadership. Then, her father put a hand to her shoulder again.

"Do not be afraid, Alleria. I was just as shaken as you are now when my father named me the successor. In time, you will learn all that the role will mean."

He looked at her, expecting a sort of reaction from her. Slowly, she nodded. She lightly shook of his hand and exited the room, with an almost inaudible; "Goodbye, father." She closed the office door behind her. This was most defiantly not what she had expected when she was summoned earlier.

Silently, almost as if in a trance of some sort, she walked down the stairs, completely oblivious to the greetings advisors and assistants passed on to her. Her mind stood still, not even working to process their conversation. She was suddenly just so tired. She needed to talk to someone about this, but who would that be? Defiantly not Ísen, because even if it weren't for his current absence, she was too afraid of hurting him. He was after all the oldest of them all, and most of them had always believed him to be the future clan- leader. Not Urondil or Vereesa, they were both too carefree to rely on about something like this. Sylvanas? No, despite loving her sister to death, she still felt that the second Windrunner daughter admired her far too much to be able to see the full importance of it.

As an unexpected loneliness started to creep upon her, the face of her youngest sibling suddenly appeared before her mind. Lirath was young and not yet trained in any art of war, but he was calm and gathered when it came down to things. Yes, she would rely on him in this case.

She ran down the path of the Spire, mind focused on finding her little brother, when a gathering of people in the village caught her eyes. She mentally slapped herself, remembering the group of riders and friends from the capital that had arrived just before her summons. She had promised to meet with some of her closest acquaintances from there, Lor'themar Theron and Halduron Brightwing.

The two young men were rangers as well, and she had first befriended them during her lessons in archery in Silvermoon. Both of them were sons of prominent quel'dorei families, most likely also meant to succeed the leadership of their clans. Perhaps they could, too, give ear to her worries.

As she approached the mass of people, she began to discern some of her aunts and uncles, as well as Vereesa who quickly disappeared somewhere with another young elf. She smiled, remembering that how well brought up that her sister yet was, she was still considered a child and had not yet began her training. Better to let her play while she had the chance.

Her eyes wandering over the amount of faces, she suddenly saw a flash of silver hair, which turned out to belong to Sylvanas. She laughed loudly at something another person said, who in turn stood leaned against one of the resident's walls. His long, golden hair was brought up in a high ponytail, emphasizing his sapphire blue eyes. He was dressed in a classic ranger suit, and smiled brightly at the young woman in front of him. It was Halduron Brightwing.

Alleria made a slight sigh of relief as she saw his face, and began to make her way up to him through the crowd. A lot of villagers had come to see their sons and daughters and relatives come back from training and studying in the capital, and during times like these, the streets of the village were always packed with people. Eventually, she managed to get closer to them, and thus also catching fragments of their conversation.

At first, all she heard was laughter. Then, from the storm of voices that sounded through the forest air, she was able to discern the words they said.

"What are they thinking? Wouldn't it be interesting to see how the brainwork of a human fares?" Sylvanas said in a mocking tone, almost completely overcome of laughter.

Alleria stopped a pace away from them, close enough to hear what they said, but still hidden by the bodies of the villagers. It was not often that any of the younger elves spoke of the humans, since they had no real experience with them. She focused more intently on their words, to hear what Halduron would reply.

"They're so silly. Perhaps the quel'dorei does owe the humans a favour for aiding us in the Troll Wars, but come on, make a real threat!" Halduron said, shaking his head. "What kind of a name is 'the Horde' anyway?"

The Horde? Were they talking about the orcs that the humans from Lordaeron apparently had sent word of, asking for the high elves assistance? Alleria did not know much, but she doubted that anyone actually did. From what she had been told, the Council of Silvermoon thought didn't acknowledge the orcs as any real threat, more like an excuse to for them to repay their ancient debt. Almost as a sort of mockery, they had done nothing more than sending a small squad of elven warriors to Lordaeron.

Alleria approached them, Halduron lifting his head as he caught sight of her. "Ah, Alleria!" he greeted with a wide smile. Sylvanas instantly turned around and beamed with an equally obvious joy at seeing her.

Alleria nodded to her sister, before focusing on Halduron. "What did you say about the Horde?"

Halduron seemed startled at her stern demand, regaining himself to pass on the word. "Nothing much. It just appears as if the humans have once again asked for the high elves' assistance in their little war, as if we did not have own trouble to think about." He chuckled, causing Sylvanas to join in. Alleria however, did not smile.

In her experience as the ranger- captain, she knew that a real leader, even if it were a weak little human, would have a greater pride than to summon help from another fraction were it only for a minor threat. And to ask for that help twice, when already having gained a small group of assistance – surely it could not be just a small invasion that hovered above them.

Halduron seemed to grow insecure at her lack of humour. "…Alleria? Is something wrong?"

The oldest of the Windrunner daughters looked up. "No… nothing. I think I'll go and see where Vereesa took off."

The golden haired man nodded. "Alright. You'll accompany us back to the capital, won't you?"

"Of course I will. I will see you tonight."

She left, now two questions burning on her mind.

The journey to Silvermoon went well, and was full of joy as the students reunited with friends they had been separated from during the last weeks. They would all now stay in the capital for the next coming months, to further build up their skills in whatever technique they had chosen. As for those who had practiced their arts for a longer time, like Alleria and Ísen, it was their duty to control the training of the younger students and help them improve. The two siblings would now also need to focus on eventual duties that would be assigned to them, in case war befell their kingdom.

And that, Alleria thought, was in the moment a very possible scenario. All thoughts forgotten about the earlier shock that her father had given her, her mind was now solely fixated on the 'threat' that Halduron and Sylvanas had been talking about. The two younger elves in question were riding a bit ahead of her, both focused on the road ahead of them as they talked about merry subjects. They did not even think for a moment that any orc could be dangerous in the least.

Another rider joined up beside her, leaning forwards to catch her eyes. It was Urondil. He was carrying a worried expression, most likely due to her own troubled one. "Is there anything bothering you, sister?" he asked carefully.

Taking a deep breath, Alleria forced herself to smile and look at her younger brother. "No, not at all. I'm just thinking of how much I will miss mother and the others," she lied.

Urondil nodded slowly, and for a moment, it seemed as if he wasn't completely satisfied with her answer. But he didn't say anything more about it. After that, the only thing he would talk about his difficult magic exams, and how he would always mix up two specific spells, causing his master to yell at him in frustration. Alleria laughed an honest laugh.

They soon reached the gates of the capital, open and guarded for the expected procession. There were a few elves that waited on the inside for the approaching students and visitors. Among them, was Ísen. The oldest of the Windrunner siblings brightened like a star when sighting his brother and sisters, instantly running forwards to greet them and help them off their mounts. Alleria thanked him with a hug as soon as she was on firm ground.

He looked down at her with a smile. "Finally, the captain herself arrives to aid her slave," he said with a joking tone.

Alleria smirked, poking him in the forehead. "What do you mean with 'slave'?" He replied with a chuckle, and together they walked into the city.

During the evening, the students were welcomed with a party thrown by their masters and seniors. Delicious food, marvellous drinks and entertainment by musicians was offered throughout the entire dinner. Alleria held a mask, laughing, talking and dancing with all of her friends, while she really was thinking of the Horde. She had to talk to someone about it, perhaps Lor'themar. He was always reliable and serious; he had even left the dance first because of lack of entertainment. All she had to do later was to find him.

As always when it came to scenarios like these, a lot of young men and women came to ask the Windrunners for a dance. Ísen, Alleria and Urondil never had a moment free during the entire evening, while Sylvanas retired herself and mostly sat down by their table, enjoying the dance from afar. Her sister suspected that her secludedness might in some way be related to the prince. It wasn't unknown in Silvermoon that Prince Kael'thas always had a reserved dance partner for all of the parties thrown by the royal family, and that the two tended to disappear from the crowd after some time, only to appear again together.

As happy as she was that her sister had found love, she was also a bit worried about what it could mean in the future. Of course her father was satisfied to say the least about the situation; it could after all mean a future place on the throne for his grandchildren. But Alleria, and she knew her remaining sister and her brothers had done the same, were considering what would happen if the relationship ended. Sylvanas would still be forced to meet with the prince, and if he were to find another partner, she would have to bow to this girl as well. It would make her very life hard to live.

The night came to an end, and everyone began to stream to their residents, more or less sober and in need of support from their friends. Alleria had to help Ísen drag a completely wasted Urondil out of the party building, Sylvanas laughing behind them. He mumbled something inaudible.

"You be quiet now, you big fool," Ísen groaned under his weight and sniffed in the air. "Gee, your breath is horrible."

He looked up to clear his nostrils by breathing in the pure summer night air. It was almost dark outside, and the streets would soon be empty. Most of the party participants had withdrawn to their respective quarters, to talk and reunite with their classmates further. The four noble children, however, were headed straight to their common residence.

Except for Alleria. "You go on ahead," she said, offering her brother's arm to Sylvanas' who gave out a groan in protest. She motioned with her head towards the ranger's quarters. "I think I'll go and have a short talk with my new students.

"Ah maybe I should-"Ísen started, but Alleria stopped him.

"No, you've got to help get Urondil to bed. I'll be back soon."

Sylvanas and Ísen stared at her for a while, then nodded and began dragging Urondil away. Alleria watched them depart for a short while, until finally turning around and practically running into the ranger's quarters, though not to where the new trainees would be. She burst the door open that led to her private squad of rangers, the ones assigned to the quel'dorei army.

Most of them looked up as she dashed in, some stood up to salute, all of them equally surprised to see their captain in their quarters at this time.

"Is there something wrong, captain?" one of them asked, a talented archer named Verana.

"To say the least," Alleria replied seriously. She gazed out over them all, and counted their numbers. She waited until she was sure that now everyone had their attention focused at her, until she spoke again. "I want all of you to pack, but pack lightly. I've been thinking about this since morning, and I think it necessary. We're going to Lordaeron."

Murmur spread between the rangers in shock and confusion. Verana walked up to her, eyes wide and insecure.

"Lordaeron? But… why, captain?"

"Not to sightsee, Verana." She gazed out over the rangers again, who now had grown quiet, awaiting her next words. "We're going to war."