Thank you guys for all the reviews and excessive patience with me. Real life decided to kick my ass for awhile there, then I was horribly distracted by some video games, and then I had trouble getting myself to write. It just refused to come out when I sat at the computer even though I had the basic situation in my skull.

Hope you guys enjoy the chapter and for those who are calling for smutty goodness I promise there will be some soon. By soon I of course mean Blizzard's definition of soon. gets pummeled by annoyed readers

Seriously though I promise things will pick up. I'll get to work on the next chapter asap!

This chapter brought to you by the song "Just my size" by Amalie Bruun.

Chapter 10: Something in Common

(squeaking, then a loud explosion) "Woah! Gonna need a new hamster." Goblin tinker from Warcraft III.

She almost didn't go. The idea of locking herself in her room and refusing to come out sang like a siren in her mind.

She didn't though. Aside from the fact that to her mind it would be cowardly, she had agreed to the bet instead of thinking everything through.

It pricked and prodded at her pride.

Illidan was at the summit of the temple, as was usual for him. Nokami found herself wondering why he was always up here, and always by himself. She sneered a bit as she shoved the thought away, she certainly didn't care about the hybrid's reasons for anything.

For his part, Illidan had been pondering what question to ask Nokami first. As he stared at her coming up the steps though only one dominated his mind.

"How did you get those scars?"

Nokami blinked at him in surprise while Illidan scowled at himself. She not expecting a question about herself and him for asking a personal question.

He opened his mouth to brush the question away as just a curious one but she sneered at him and beat him to the punch.

"It's none of your business."

He frowned at her. Never mind that he had been about to brush the question off anyways, she was refusing to answer him. "I won the bet, you have to answer any of my questions."

"No I don't." She snapped back glaring up at him as he advanced, unconsciously trying to use his size to intimidate her. She snorted and stabbed his chest with a finger as if it would help drive her next words into his thick skull. "I agreed to spend seven nights of questioning with you. I never agreed to answer your questions."

Illidan caught her hand and glared. "Your twisting the deal around woman."

"Like you twisted the rules?" She snarled yanking on her hand and gaining nothing. "Let go."

He pulled her so close that their bodies were touching. Nokami expected the panic and fear of memory to invade but found herself thinking instead of the time she woke up in those arms. The slightest tremor shivered through her and Nokami shook herself as if trying to snap out of a dream.

Illidan found himself staring at that scarred face, something was tugging at the back of his mind. He was mesmerized by her hair for some reason, as white as the moon...

She pulled at her caught wrist, trying to pry his hand open with her free one. "I said let go!" She demanded.

His lips twitched, as if he would've grinned but was suppressing the urge. "Or you'll what?"

She made a sound like an angry panther and swatted at his face with her free hand.

The sounds of their scuffle reached the ears of the blood elf guards who'd brought Nokami. Illidan having assigned two, thinking Nokami might have been a handful for one after her defeat.

One guard grinned and looked at the other. "Physically fighting in under ten minutes. Pay up."

The other guard grumbled mildly and fished in his pouch for some gold. He'd been so sure that night elf girl was close to just surrendering. "Here, take your blasted money."

"Hey wanna bet that's all they do all night?"

"I don't do Nathrezim bets thanks."

As was becoming the usual with the pair of them Nokami found herself pinned under Illidan. She huffed and bucked but the hybrid was not moving. How the hell does he keep doing that? She grumbled to herself.

Illidan was mildly annoyed with himself. It had taken him longer to get her pinned then last time. "Why do you insist on fighting me?" He asked with a sigh. "You know your not going to win."

She didn't answer but renewed her struggles to throw him off her. He didn't move an inch and she growled in frustration.

"Give up?" He asked.

"Never!" She snapped. "One of these days you'll make a mistake, and when you do I'm going to beat the crap out of you so badly..."

"I'm sure." He rumbled in an amused tone that infuriated her with it's unspoken statement that there would be snow in Molten Core before that happened. Illidan did however slowly start to stand, wary of any new attack Nokami might launch. She simply scrambled away and sat glaring at him with her arms crossed defensively.

"You still did not answer my question of why you insist on fighting me." He stated. "Is life here really all that terrible that you'd prefer to die out in the wilds?"

Nokami opened her mouth to make a rude comment but froze. One thing she had learned from animals was that body language often told more then anything. For just a split second Illidan's had whispered of hurt.

Don't be ridiculous. She told herself. Why would he be care about anything you say? Your just imagining things.

She was tired though. So very tired of constantly fighting on so many fronts. Part of her did just want to give into her situation. After all she got anything she wanted, she never had to work for anything, and she certainly would never have to fear people hunting her again.

She just had to surrender.

No matter how nice, a cage is still a cage. She told herself as she pulled hard on her own hair, reminding herself of the last cage she'd been in.

Of all the people in existence, surely Illidan should've been able to understand why she hated being caged. The irony of it made Nokami snicker.

Illidan frowned at her odd behavior. He'd been a bit worried that she would pull her hair out by it's roots when she'd yanked so hard on it. Certainly struck him as odd, then to hear her snickering...

"What's so funny?" He asked.

"This situation." Nokami replied seeing no reason not to point out the irony to him. "I was thinking it funny that a man who was put in a hole for ten thousand years is asking his captive what's so bad about being in a cage. The irony is amusing to me, certainly you'd know if death was better then being a prisoner."

Illidan scowled and crossed his arms. "That is not the same."

"Isn't it?" Nokami said getting up and staring at him. "Doesn't matter if it's a iron barred cell or a luxurious room, a prison is a prison. I don't know about you but I've never done well in chains, much less stone prisons." She looked away from him then, off towards the direction she knew lead to the forests, plains, and swamps of Outland. "I need to feel the grass under my feet and run like the wind under blue sky." She ran a finger over her scars subconsciously, remembering. "For no other reason than I can."

Illidan stared at her. She reminded him of a time when he had been centuries younger and out hunting with his brother and Tyrande. He'd caught a hawk in a snare of his. The bird had fought with all it's might against the teether that kept it from flying free. He had wanted to keep the bird and train it to be his pet. Malfurion had pointed out that it would've broken the bird's proud spirit and Tyrande had begged him to let the bird go. He had never been able to refuse Tyrande during those days...

Who broke you Nokami? Who clipped your wings?

It was on the tip of his tongue to ask but he didn't. He simply watched her scarred face and watched her force herself to swallow tears as she stared off.

He could push her now he realized. Break her completely and utterly. Crush her with despair till she simply gave in. She was so fragile now and exhausted from fighting on so many levels.

He'd been wanting to do that, he'd meant to do that. He told himself that later.

Instead he found himself calling her guards.

"I'm finished with her for tonight." He told them simply as he turned his back to the lot of them and her stunned expression.

Once they had left he settled himself on the edge facing the same direction Nokami had. He found himself thinking about what she'd said.

He let himself remember those days of being imprisoned in the burrow.

He'd hated it. To the point where he'd hated his brother for putting him there, there were many times he would've preferred the death many had wanted to give him.

Now it seemed fate had turned the tables on him. Now he was the warden of a prisoner.

Illidan couldn't suppress the shudder that ran through him. He was in a position he really did not want to be in.

Then again, who better to watch someone imprisoned for life then one who had been sentenced to it himself.

He stayed on the summit for awhile, pondering ways to simply make life easier for the both of them. He needed to give her some sense of freedom but still keep her in check.

Something...

Nokami found herself lying fully awake in bed. Normally she had no problems sleeping. If anything sleep was her one vice.

There had been a moment when the guards were pulling her away that she'd looked over her shoulder and seen him just standing there on the summit. His body language, now that she actually thought to stop and read it had spoken of confusion, understanding, and for moment she could've sworn she read loneliness in there.

She kept brushing it off. Surely she'd been imagining things. It simply was refusing to leave her mind though.

It had been as if he'd actually been listening to her.

So what if he listened. Not like it'll change anything.

Nokami snorted at herself and rolled over pulling the covers up to her chin. She wasn't going to waste anymore time pondering the stupid hybrid. She'd give him his blasted seven nights, answering what she felt wouldn't hurt her or anyone else. He'd have to live with that.

It was the thought of the rest of her life that made her crack. Stuck in this tomb of an old temple with no one caring a wit about her. The tears formed in her eyes again and she squeezed her eyes tight trying to keep them from falling. She refused to surrender to the emotional storm inside her. She'd kept it back for years and would continue to do so even if it killed her.

Though she did wonder on nights like this, what she had done to anger Elune so. She certainly could not think of any transgressions to warrant this.

Nokami took a breathe in hops of steadying herself. It came out more like a sob and made her curse herself.

She was just tired, a good nights sleep and she would be better in the morning.

She was crying. There was nothing for it. Not like there was anyone who'd hear or care, not here. So she let go. Let everything drain out of her. She was alone here.

It was the softest touch on her hair that told her otherwise.

She cringed away from her fellow night elf at first. She'd never seen him before after all. Never encountered anyone here before. He didn't move as she blinked watery eyes at him. Simply offered her strong arms to seek comfort in.

She feared those arms though. Someone else had offered her arms to cry in before and it had nearly destroyed her.

"No." She stated backing away.

He blinked at her and pain flashed like lightning across his face. For a moment she thought she knew him but couldn't place him. She was certain she would have remembered someone with those gold colored eyes.

He looked about to say something but she shook her head and stepped back again. "No, please..."

The roar had them both looking to the trees. A pair of angry green eyes glaring back at them.

Her blood ran cold where a moment ago it had been warm.

He got in front of her. As if intending to be her defender against the animal coming out of the trees. Whatever it was though had a hold of him before he could breath. Black chains pulling at him like puppet stings and forcing him away.

As usual, she was alone and no one would care as that darkness attacked and devoured her whole.