Chapter 4 - Friends

John looked at Perfume for a moment, "Surly ya can't be serious. Why would yer own daughter do such a thing?

Perfyume lowered her eyes, "Cologne and I didn't see eye to eye. Everything I worked for in my life seemed to make her hate me more and more. Eventually she left my home and moved into the mage's quarter in Stormwind. About the time I was casting this spell, she was nearing the peak of her abilities as a mage."

"Aye, it's a known fact that mages and warlocks don't get along very well. It must have been hard on ya both. Still, that doesn't explain why she would do such a thing."

"Until I know more, John, I can't tell you anything more about it. I will say that what I had planned after the spell finished would have changed Gnomeregan forever and possibly prevented its fall. When my daughter interrupted my spell, her actions allowed the near destruction of the Gnomish race."

"Do ya think the lass is still alive?"

"I'm sure she is. After all, we Gnomes live for quite a long ti…"

She suddenly stopped talking and as she did, her eyes widened and she started to laugh. John stared at her for a moment not having any idea what could be so funny. When she got herself under control she said, "Oh this is priceless! I have the body of a twenty year old and my daughter…giggle…my daughter is about two hundred years old and probably showing every day of it!"

She looked at her hands for a moment and said, "I'm going to have to take a bath and put on some clean clothes. John, would you come with me please?"

John got up from the floor and watched as Perfyume slid off the bed and walked over to the wall next to chest of drawers. She placed her hands on the wall and said a quiet phrase. A few seconds later she placed her hands on the wall again and said the phrase a bit louder.

"Something's wrong. There is a hidden door here that is magically sealed. It is a simple spell that has kept the door and this room hidden from the outside while I slept."

John looked at the wall for a few seconds, "I can't tell if there's a door here or not, but it shouldn't take much more than a dispel magic to wash it off. I might have something here."

He squatted to the floor and started to dig in his ever present knapsack. "Ah, here it is."

He handed her a tightly wrapped scroll. She took it from his hands and after she unrolled it a bit, read the title, "Dispel Magic?"

"Aye, it should clear the cloaking spell off of your door."

She studied the scroll for a few moments. Once she had the spell memorized, she spoke it softly in the direction of the wall. Instantly a small spark appeared at the bottom of the wall and started to rise. As it did, it swayed right and left almost like a spiral. When it reached the ceiling, the spark softly exploded into a hundred tiny little sparks that faded before they hit the ground.

John saw it first, "Look there, lass! I can see the door now!

Perfyume also saw the door appear and immediately reached out and grabbing the handle. A quick twist of her hand, and she slid the door along its track and into the wall.

They walked into the next room and when she reached the center, she studied the condition of what was the living room. Her tapestries were bit dusty but unlike the bedroom, viewable. The couches and reading chairs also had a little bit of dust, but it was not so bad that it couldn't be brushed off. On one side of the room was a massive fireplace with a large mantle. Along the top of the mantle were several crystals. John was particularly drawn to the crystals and as he walked over to take a better look, Perfyume said, "They're not very valuable, but they sparkled very nice in the light. I kept them to help me relax and meditate. I know you're a mineral enthusiast, so you're welcome to take any you wish."

John pulled out his brush and started to clean the crystals to get a better look. While he did, Perfyume walked into the next room where the bath was located. When she had her home built, one of the few technological luxuries she allowed herself was the hot springs bath. A pipe from a nearby hot spring diverted a steady stream of very hot water into her bath. As the tub overflowed, the excess water drained out through a clay pipe and down the mountain outside. She was gratified to find it still very hot after all these years. After removing her robe, she climbed into the tub and with a contented sigh, lowered herself into the water.

John was still inspecting and cleaning the crystals when she finished her bath and walked back in the room wearing a plain white robe. She observed him as he held one up to the light and watched it sparkle. "You seem to like that one quite a bit. You're welcome to keep it if you wish.

John paused before carefully placing the crystal on the mantle. He turned to her and said, "Perfyume, there's something I've been wanting to ask ya for a while. I haven't because I didn't want to offend ya, but it's been nagging me for quite a while now, and I need to know some things before I go on."

She looked at John for a moment and flashed a small smile. Then she walked over to an upholstered chair and after sitting down, said, "What's on your mind?"

John took her hint sat down across from her on a couch. "Well, lass, when I discovered ya laying on that bed, ya had on the robe of a high warlock. I've always been told that warlocks are evil creatures and they are not to be trusted. Yet ya seem like a good person. Not once have ya tried to cause me harm and I've not seen a single pet. I-I just need to know for sure."

Perfyume looked at john for a few moments. She could easily lie to him and say anything she wanted, but something inside her told her that she needed to tell the truth. "I owe you much John. You saved my life when you broke that spell. Without you, I probably would have been sealed in that room not for hundreds, but thousands of years. The gods only know what horrors would have greeted me then."

She continued, "You are correct in thinking I'm a high warlock. In my time I was one of the most powerful warlocks the world had seen. I used my magic powers to change the world around me to my liking. If someone didn't please me, I had a long list of ways to make them feel waves of horrible pain. And if they really got me upset, I had several pets to call on that were superbly trained in the arts of painful death."

"So, why the change?"

She smiled at the young dwarf, "It would have been very easy to have just forced you to do my bidding, and in my past, I probably would have. But now, I just didn't feel right to do something like that to a person who rescued me from what could have been a very ugly future. It is a very different feeling for me, but I feel in debt to you."

John blushed slightly and got off of the couch. "Ya owe me nothing, lass. But if ya really want to make me happy, lets you and me be friends."

"F-friends? You may not believe this, but I've not had many friends."

She thought about it for a while and then said, "Alright, I'd like that. I'd like that very much, John."

A huge grin formed across his face as he held his huge hand to her, "Shake!"

She turned her head slightly to one side, "Huh?"

John rolled his eyes. "Look, if you're gonna be one of my friends, you're gonna have to learn how to shake."

Reaching to her he gently took her hand and placed it in his. Then he closed his fingers around it and slowly shook it up and down a few times. "That's all there is to it."

She looked at him for a moment and said, "So this is what you Dwarves do for fun, eh."

John laughed aloud, "Perfyume, ya get a few mugs of Thunderale in me and you'll see some real fun!"

She flashed him a smile, "Thanks for the warning."

John was about to say something else when they heard a horrible whining sound coming from the bedchamber. Moments later, three nasty looking creatures charged into the room with knives ready.

John jumped in front of Perfyume and pulled out his axe. "Stand behind me, lass. I'll get their attention, while ya prepare your spells."

"What the hell are they?"

"Those be Troggs."