Hyara woke just before dawn with Galmak's arms still wrapped around her.
"Good morning," he said and kissed her.
She stretched and nuzzled him. "Don't tell me you didn't sleep."
He shook his head. "I only woke up a few hours ago so Gink could get a little rest. He said some Winterfall passed by in the night but barely glanced at us."
Winterfall, walking by only a few steps from where they had slept, oblivious. It made Hyara shudder, even though Galmak had warned her the day before of the possibility.
Stop it, girl, Gink growled from nearby, ever aware of his mistress's moods. You've got to stop pushing yourself to be afraid.
"Gink has the right of it," she said in a small voice.
"Hmm?" Galmak had his eyes closed and was relishing the feeling of holding her.
"Gink said I have to stop pushing myself to fear them. I... I feel that I should be afraid of them... being afraid might keep me from making another stupid mistake. I don't know what could have happened if you hadn't found me. I might have died... but it might have been worse than that." She fell silent.
"Hyara, what do you mean it might have been worse? I saw you, saw how bad it was. That was a killing wound. I don't know what you mean by something worse than dying."
She shuddered, remembering. "I don't understand exactly either. But I was tainted. There was something going on inside me, something was..." She could barely bring herself to voice her fears but she continued, "...something was fighting me for control."
Galmak felt a chill grip him. This sounded all too familiar to an orc who had grown up hearing the stories and warnings of his parents- parents who had firsthand experience of demonic corruption.
As if mirroring his thoughts, Hyara said in a near-whisper, "All the things I heard as a child, everything that happened on Argus and Draenor..." There was a look of terror in her eyes. "I was being corrupted from the inside out. I'm not afraid of furbolgs, Galmak. I'm afraid that my stupid overconfidence almost... almost had me joining the ranks of the man'ari eredar. Furbolgs are just the reminder." To her surprise, voicing her fears had calmed her.
Galmak was stunned. Surely she was overstating things? But maybe not. Only she knew what had been going on inside her as that wound gnawed away at her life. "Hyara, how can that be? How could that thing have been so evil that it could do that to you?"
She shook her head. "I have no idea." She looked at him and reached to brush her hand over his cheek. "Your people were not the only ones corrupted by the Burning Legion."
Galmak had nothing to say to that. His thoughts on that matter were too tied up in knots, and raised emotions he'd rather not deal with. Sometimes he felt deadly angry with his parents for passing knowledge of their guilt on to their son; then there were times when he was grateful he knew all he did because it was his heritage, all the horror of it, and if shouldering a small part of the burden could help atone, then so be it. And how did Hyara fit into all this? She was a draenei... she was one of the innocent who had suffered at the hands of the Legion. Galmak was too honest with himself not to wonder if he had begun traveling this road with her out of guilt. He choked on that thought and knew it couldn't be true. He loved her, he knew, even after so short a time. But how to deserve her? Why did she love him? Or did she love him.
"Whatever happened, it's passed now," he said gently. He recognized the irony of his words. "I won't let anything happen to you. I'll fight the entire Legion for you if I have to."
Hyara smiled and wrapped her arms around him. "I love you," she whispered, and was instantly afraid of having her heart broken.
But she needn't have worried. Galmak growled and hugged her so tightly it left her breathless. "I love you too. And you have no idea how much I wanted to hear you say that."
Not to intrude... Palla's thought came delicately into his mind.
But intrude you will. I know, it's time to get moving, he replied a little gruffly. Palla had made it abundantly clear since Hyara's days of recovery at the Glade that the wolf did not understand all this finicky maneuvering that seemed to accompany humanoids' relationships. She didn't understand it, but she respected it at least.
He released Hyara and started to speak, but she beat him to it. "Time to go," she sighed, and he smiled and nodded.
"We'll be in Everlook by early evening," he said. "But until then, I'll have my arms around you all I want."
She laughed and they started to pack up their little camp. Hyara suspected that she would always have a fondness for Winterspring and for this spot in particular.
"Master, I have some news which will please you."
"Oh?" He was distracted; this new succubus was better than most.
"One who meets your specifications has entered Winterspring."
He shoved the succubus roughly aside. "You are certain?"
The imp shrank from his master's sudden attention. "Y-yes, master... That is to say, I have been assured by those I sent out for the purpose of watching... th-they are certain. There is also a traveling companion who may prove useful."
The master appeared satisfied with this for now. Any who were wrong would of course pay with their lives. "Very well... See that they are brought here. Both alive and in good condition. I'm sure I needn't tell you how very important that is. I suggest you be absolutely certain those you send know that as well."
The imp bowed and fled from his master's smoldering glare.
Everlook was smaller than Hyara had expected, and nearly deserted. A few goblin merchants could be seen going about their business, but the real life of the town took place inside out of the cold. The two hunters confirmed that there would be room in the stables for Gink and Palla, then headed for the warmth of the inn. On the way to Everlook they had discussed how they ought to behave once they reached the town and had come to the conclusion that it would depend solely on how many Horde and Alliance were around. The goblins wouldn't care if a draenei and an orc were travelling together; in fact, goblins were known for their discretion and could probably be counted on not to advertise it to either faction.
The inn too was nearly deserted, but Hyara groaned to herself when she saw a male draenei, a vindicator from the looks of it, seated at a back table. He was reading something and didn't even glance up as they walked in.
The innkeeper yawned. "Have a seat if you want something, kiddos. You'll both be wanting rooms? Twenty-five silver extra for running water."
"Yes, please," Hyara said, and Galmak nodded. Hyara chose a table as far as she could get from the other draenei and hoped that his book would keep him absorbed. Galmak sat down across from her after an uneasy look across the room.
"Oh, don't worry about it," Hyara said in a low voice. "He'll probably mind his business. And we can't hide from everybody all the time."
Galmak shrugged but kept the paladin in his line of sight.
The innkeeper trundled over carrying two plates laden with food and plopped them down on the table. "Special'a the day. Sorry 'bout the lack of choice, but there aren't enough people through here lately for me to pull out the menus. Rooms are thataway, first ones you come to." They thanked her and she disappeared back into the kitchen.
"He's finally decided to notice us," Galmak said. Hyara risked a glance and saw that the draenei appeared to be trying to stare Galmak down. As soon as he saw Hyara notice though, he smiled at her. Hyara groaned inwardly as the paladin rose and came over to their table.
"Hello," he said in draenei, and Hyara smiled as sincerely as she could. "Traveling with this orc? I don't blame you for wanting someone to travel with around here; Winterspring can be quite dangerous." He was clearly feigning nonchalance; Hyara could feel the tension sparking between the orc and the paladin. Galmak had half-risen from his seat.
"I am traveling with him. He's proved to be a decent guide, as he promised. I'm Hyara, by the way," she said smoothly and extended her hand, turning her body so that she was squarely between the two men.
The paladin stopped glaring at Galmak and took her hand to shake. "I'm Dalthus," he said, bowing slightly. He chuckled and said, "If you're interested in having a guide you can understand better, I could take over the task myself. I was planning on leaving Winterspring tomorrow, but for you I wouldn't mind staying."
Hyara smiled and looked up at him through her eyelashes. "Oh no, Dalthus, I wouldn't dream of making you change your plans just for me. I will be absolutely fine on my own. Besides," she added with a dismissive wave, "I'm told I speak orcish like a native." She turned back to her plate. Dalthus's face fell, and Galmak hid a grin as the draenei walked back to his table dejectedly. Galmak could almost feel sorry for him; whatever Hyara had said had stopped him cold.
Hyara made a face as she turned back to Galmak. "Was I rude? I hate being rude... He's probably a nice guy, despite... er, coming on a little strong." She sighed. "We can't rebuff everyone who tries to talk to us. Galmak, how is this going to work?" she said in distress.
He gave her hand a squeeze and shrugged. "I don't know how it's going to work. We'll just have to play it as we go along."
"Alright you two, no bedroom eyes out here," the innkeeper said, bustling over and clearing away the plates. Hyara jumped and blushed dark blue and Galmak instantly dropped her hand and became very interested in the tabletop. The innkeeper raised an eyebrow. "Ahh, so that's how it is..." She nudged Galmak with an elbow. "Aight, if you're trying ta play it close to your chest, I won't give ya away. Eh... so it is two rooms you want still?"
"Two rooms are fine," Galmak growled firmly.
"Okay then. But you two could be in for some trouble, ya know."
"As if we didn't know," Hyara muttered as the innkeeper walked off, clucking to herself and shaking her head. Hyara gave Galmak a furtive glance, then lowered her eyes to her lap.
Galmak was looking at her quizzically. "What's wrong? Don't... uh, don't worry about her. She's just making talk." He gestured toward the innkeeper.
"It's nothing. Nothing's wrong," Hyara replied and rose abruptly.
Galmak followed her, sensing trouble. "Hyara, tell me." They reached his room and he held the door open. "Please... will you talk?" She shrugged and walked over to one of the round windows inside the room. Night had fully fallen by now and the pale domed buildings of the tiny goblin town glowed ghostly with reflected light from the snow that lay on every surface not cleared for walking.
As Galmak closed the door Hyara rounded on him. "We are in for trouble, just like she said."
The orc sighed, but partially with relief. He hadn't done anything wrong then. "I don't care," he said. That was pretty much how he felt, consequences be damned. He'd worry about complications as they came up.
Hyara laughed incredulously. "You really don't. I don't either. Light, this is wonderful," she whispered. He closed the distance between them in an instant and all Hyara could care about was how good his lips
felt pressed against hers. Her hands moved over his body, searching for gaps in his armor where she could feel the warmth of his skin and the strength in his muscles. Galmak's hands moved over her too, sliding along her sides and then coming to rest on her butt. He gave it a firm squeeze and then wrapped a huge hand around her tail and gave it a gentle tug. She wanted more from him and she moaned with longing.
Abruptly he broke away, and Hyara was horrified to see shame on his face. "What? Galmak, what?"
He felt terrible and knelt in front of her as she sank down to sit on the bed. "Hyara... I'm so sorry. It's nothing you've done." How to explain without hurting her? That was the last thing he wanted; the reason for his reticence. "I... I'm afraid of hurting you."
"Why? We just talked about that... I don't care what kind of problems we run into. Galmak, I meant it when I said I love you. But if you didn't mean it-" There were tears rolling down her cheeks now. Why would he suddenly do this to her?
Galmak shook his head and looked down at his hands. "That's not it at all, I do love you." He took a deep breath. "Hyara, you seem so young... so inexperienced. I want you to be sure..." He floundered in embarrassment. "I want you to be sure before... uh, before we do anything. I just don't want you to regret it." He finally convinced himself to stop examining his hands and looked up to her face.
Hyara's mouth had opened in shock once she realized where Galmak was going with this. He thought she was inexperienced? Well, she was...in a way... but that was beside the point. He could tell. What other "inadequacies" had he found? Or would he find? She was terribly embarrassed, and although she knew it was ridiculous, she was also hurt. He was only looking out for her. He loved her. And yet there it was: she was hurt. She wiped her eyes and stared straight ahead.
"Since you want to know," Hyara said in a flat voice, "I'm not completely 'inexperienced,' as you put it. He was a friend from childhood and we met again during our training in Exodar. It was a mistake, years ago. I haven't seen him since." She rose.
Galmak was horrified at how badly his concern had backfired. "I- I didn't want to know, that's not what I meant." He slapped a palm to his forehead. "Hyara, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to embarrass you, I really didn't want it like this. I love you, I don't want to hurt you," he said desperately.
"It's alright," she said woodenly and stepped into the hallway. "Good night, Galmak." He heard her door close down the short hallway.
Galmak paced for a moment, not knowing what to do and cursing himself for a bumbling fool. Finally he strode out and knocked loudly on her door. "Hyara. Let me in, we have to talk." No answer. "Hyara, please? I'm so sorry, you have no idea..." He turned the doorknob and pushed inside, determined to set right this mess he'd made.
Galmak stopped short in shock. Hyara was slumped on the floor next to the bed, her eyes closed. The room's single window stood open and snow whirled around her motionless body, stirring her hair. Galmak sprang into the room, but a movement behind the door caught his eye; he turned, but not fast enough. He had time to catch a glimpse of a felguard's twisted, ugly face before his head rung from a vicious blow and he crumpled to the floor.