Disclaimer:

I don't own anything related to the rights of Harry Potter or Warcraft.

Author's Note:

I received a request to start adding a list of characters at the end of each chapter, similar to what plums does in Wizard Runemaster, to help readers remember who is who and whatnot, so the end of this chapter has that.

No Beta, so all mistakes are my own.

(Aug. 20th, 2013) - Reworked and tweaked.

Publish Date: Mar. 31st, 2013

Update Date: Aug. 20th, 2013


Chapter Eleven

Traveling in Style

Harry woke early the next morning and began his meditations. So far, things in his mindscape were just as he remembered them, with only subtle differences he examined thoroughly and concluded it was simply the effect of being in a different world and altogether benign. He came out of it to find the others talking and preparing for the day.

"So what should we pick up first?" Meridia asked. "And how are we going to go about this?"

Lyannara responded, "Since the auction house will keep our purchases the longest, Alurmi and Meridia can stay here and start sorting out supplies, the rest of us can pair off like yesterday and make trips out to pick everything up. Harry, Garrim, Hagin and I can go look for a suitable wagon and horses. Then we can all go and pick up the supplies that Alurmi and Meridia bought because that's probably going to be the biggest order we have."

Arko'narin frowned a bit and said, "Why are you four going to look for a wagon and horses?"

Lyannara smiled and replied, "Harry needs to go because he knows what he needs to make his magic work, Garrim said last night that he's a good woodworker and can judge the quality of the wagons for sale, Hagin is an engineer and can come up with a plan for any alterations we need to make, and before I started studying magic, I was going to take over the family business as a breeder. I still remember what I learned, even if I don't use it often."

Arko'narin tried to find a reason to argue, but there really wasn't one. After a moment she sighed and nodded in agreement, and no one else spoke up. Harry looked around and said, "Alright then, we have a plan. Give me a minute and we'll get started." He dug out a number of trunks and enlarged them, lining them up against the wall and opened them. He turned to Meridia and Alurmi and said, "Those trunks will hold quite a bit, so store things in those."

Alurmi walked over and looked down into one of the trunks. Her eyes widened and she exclaimed, "There's an entire room in there!" She lifted one side of the trunk to check the bottom and set it back down, looking back into the trunk. "How does that work?"

Harry shrugged and simply said, "Space expansion charms."

The group came over and looked in the trunks, showing varying levels of surprise and shock. There was a ladder attached to the side of the trunk to make it possible to get in and out, and the space was quite large, complete with shelves along the walls and tables to keep things up off the floor. After the shock wore off, Harry said, "These should make it easier to sort and store everything we purchased and not clutter up the space. Once the trunk is closed, everything will stay in place, so no worries about being careful during transport. Let's get to work."

The group wandered off to begin picking up their purchases, a task that would take most of the day. Harry, Garrim, Hagin, and Lyannara were walking along, Garrim and Hagin in front, talking and joking, while Harry and Lyannara walked a bit behind them. Lyannara broke the silence between her and Harry by quietly saying, "I'd like to talk to you about some things in private later, some questions I have about business."

Harry turned to her and nodded, knowing what she was talking about. "Later today if we can get away. If not, then as soon as it's convenient." After a short moment of silence, Harry raised a few privacy wards centered on himself and asked, "So what made you want to take up magic instead of the family business?"

"The family business was burned to the ground," Lyannara replied with a hard edge. "And my family was slaughtered shortly thereafter. I started studying magic to be strong enough to not let something like that happen again, but the mage path was too slow, and the Kirin Tor was too geared towards research, so I began picking up fel magics." She sighed and looked away, saying sadly, "It was a shortcut to greater power. By the time I realized that I had made a mistake, I was too far gone to be welcomed back."

Harry looked at her intensely for a long moment. Lyannara shifted and looked down, unable to meet his gaze. Finally he spoke, "I think I might have a codename for you, now."

Lyannara snorted, still unable to look at him. "What, failure?"

Harry shook his head. "Usually when one entered the organization, they inherit a name from a former member. I inherited my boss' when I started this in Azeroth. I think you should inherit my old codename, but if you don't want to, it's fine."

"What name?" Lyannara asked softly.

Harry turned to her and waited for her to look up and meet his eyes. When she did, he answered softly, "Guardian."


The next three days were a hectic rush to get everything ready. Garrim and Hagin got the wagon ready, enclosing it and making it a mobile room with a covered seat so the driver wouldn't get wet when it rained. Everyone else pitched in with the sorting and organizing of supplies, making last minute purchases, and filling in wherever they could. Harry spent time digging through his books for the charms he would need and etching runes all over the wagon's surface. He refused to let anyone look inside while he was working, saying he wanted it to be a surprise. Harry spent more time working than anyone else, casting preservation charms on food, featherlight charms on heavy items, protection and unbreakable runes on nearly everything, and when the rest of the group compared notes, they noticed several instances where he was literally in more than one place at the same time. When he was asked about it, he simply grinned and said it was magic, refusing to elaborate any further on it and shutting down any questioning on the subject.

On the morning of the fourth day, everyone stepped outside to find Harry bouncing excitedly in place with a wide grin on his face. "Everything is ready with the wagon. Go on, everyone. Climb in and take a look."

Seeing the others hesitate, Lyannara stepped forward and walked to the door in the side of the wagon, opened it, and stepped inside. Everyone waited with bated breath for her to say something. They were all a bit confused as to what she meant when they heard her say, "Huh. Well that's interesting."

One by one, they stepped inside to find a large central room with a kitchen on one side and doors along the walls with their names carved in each one, along with a door that lead directly to the driver's seat. Lyannara, still heading the pack, walked to the door with her name on it, and threw it open.

As soon as Lyannara opened the door to what was now her room, she froze in shock and her breath left her lungs in a rush. It was beautifully decorated in dark greens and blues, a desk on the far wall under a window showing the view from outside the wagon next to a currently empty bookshelf, a four poster bed, a wardrobe and dresser, and a door leading to an attached bathroom. She absolutely loved it. She heard Garrim sum up everyone's thoughts about their new accommodations.

"Now this is travelin' in style!"

She turned and saw Harry standing in the middle of the common room, grinning like an idiot. She smiled brightly at him and said, "Definitely a surprise worth the wait." She looked around and saw into everyone's rooms, all tailored for them. Garrim's looked like it was carved out of stone, Meridia, Arko'narin and Jessir's looked like a forest, with the furniture grown naturally, Hagin's was a mechanical wonderland with a giant workbench for his engineering experiments, Kriinos and Karinaa had rooms that looked like they were taken straight from the Exodar, Alurmi had a wooded area with a small cave for her whelp form, Jaina's was similar to her study in the Violet Hold, and Jasmine's was dark, with well placed lighting to leave enough shadows but still be able to see what one was doing.

"So everyone like their rooms?" Harry asked, receiving grins and affirmative nods. "So who's going to take first shift driving this thing? Because I have no idea how."

Lyannara laughed and shut her door, saying, "I will. Let the others get a feel for the place. I can wait."

Harry nodded and called out, "Okay everyone, let's get everything loaded up and ready to leave!"

"Considering we have the room for it now, there are some things that I've stored in the bank that I'd like to pick up to decorate my room, along with some of my tools. Since the banks are all linked together, it's a simple matter to get it out of storage," Hagin said.

Seeing others agreeing, Harry nodded and said, "Alright then everyone, head off and pick up your stuff. We'll head out in an hour."

After gathering their things from the bank, Harry was helping Lyannara hitch up the two horses, the others were loading in the trunks and lining them up against the wall next to the door for easy access to their supplies. As soon as everyone was settled, Lyannara started the horses moving and they made their way out of the city. During the ride through Elwynn Forest, Harry flipped through some of his ritual books, making notes and adjustments in a small notebook. Finally her curiosity got the better of her and she asked, "What are you doing?"

Harry looked up at her and said, "Coming up with a ritual. Well, trying to at least. I'm starting to think I'm going to need some help with this one. I've gotten most of it put together, but some of the subtleties and intricacies are beyond me."

"Where are you planning to get help for it? And what's it do?" Lyannara questioned curiously.

"It's designed to restore the body back to a functional state. Basically a way to return someone back to life." Harry answered. He sighed and continued, "It's part of my deal with Sylvanas. She gets her people to help me and in return I restore the Forsaken back to the land of the living." He closed his books and slid them into his bag, giving up for the moment. He ran his fingers through his hair and huffed, saying, "As for getting help, I know who to talk to, but getting to a place where I can speak with her is a bitch."

Lyannara tilted her head and asked, "Why is that?"

"Because I have to die to do it," Harry sighed.


Garrim was in the process of setting up an intricate model of the central area of Ironforge. The pieces themselves weren't delicate, but it was prone to falling apart until everything was attached. Once it was fully assembled, it was as solid as stone, but until then, there was always a risk of it tumbling down.

He was smiling as he picked up the last piece, lined it up, and-

"WHAT?!"

-the model fell into pieces. Garrim sighed and started sorting out the parts. Looks like I'll be startin' over, he thought to himself. Oh well. Least I ain't dealin' wit' explosives like Hagin likely is.


Hagin was grinning madly, tinkering away at his new workbench. He was trying to improve on the power supply for his various inventions, attempting to make it more compact and lighter. Picking up the last wire that needed to be attached, he noticed a flaw in the design. The last wire needed to be attached at the back of the device. Any attempt to attach it earlier would cause the power generated to feed back into the power cell, quickly causing a detonation, destroying the device. He shrugged to himself, thinking that he could fix that small oversight on the next model.

This was going to be the most difficult and delicate part of the procedure. He attached the first half of the wire, and began carefully threading the other end into place. He had to be extra cautious with this half, because touching any exposed wires now would have the same effect as attaching it too early. He was almost there, just a little-

"WHAT?!"

-dive under the bed as the power cell whined and overloaded, scattering tools and scrap across the room and leaving behind a black scorch mark on the workbench.

Hagin stood and brushed himself off, looking around the room. Such a mess, he thought to himself. Oh well. At least I can improve on the design before rebuilding it.


Jasmine was sitting at her desk mixing up a new batch of poisons, restocking her current toxins and perfecting one that she had been working on for more than two years. This particular concoction was a long-acting poison that worked in stages, culminating in a stacking effect of all three results. It could be ingested, absorbed through the skin, or, if necessary, rendered into a gas and inhaled.

The first stage induced a euphoric state, causing the person to become excessively giddy and much more talkative.

The second stage lowered the target's inhibitions, made them made them more apt to answer questions and do things that they normally wouldn't.

The third would induce hallucinations in a person, and in combination with the first two effects, made interrogations far easier.

After it wore off, the person would have the worst hangover they had ever experienced, bar none.

Jasmine was almost done mixing what she was fondly calling Maiden's Kiss. She just had to shake it for a minute, uncork it, and let it air out a bit to reduce the potency some. She finished shaking it, pulled off the stopper, and started pouring it into the set aside vials. She just needed a bit-

"WHAT?!"

-splashed on her skin. She stared wide-eyed at the spot where her brand new toxin had soaked into her arm, one word repeating over and over in her head.

Fuck.


"Damn, woman! Did you have to screech right in my ear?" Harry said. "I think there might be some deaf Night Elves in Darnassus that didn't quite hear you."

Lyannara was standing up, glaring down at Harry, fists clenched tightly, scowling dangerously. "What do you mean, die?!" she hissed out.

Harry turned and glared back. "I mean exactly what I said, die. As in the opposite of alive."

Lyannara's eyes narrowed and she hissed, "And just how are you expecting to do anything if you're dead?"

Harry blinked owlishly and replied, "Oh, right. You don't know yet. Sit down and I'll explain."

Lyannara dropped down into her seat, still glaring at him. The further he got in his story, the more the glare lessened, until he finished his tale and she was looking at him with an unreadable expression. "That's a horrible fate, not being able to stay dead. I guess it could be useful at times, but still... You have to outlive everyone you ever get close to, don't you?"

Harry smiled sadly and responded, "You know, you're the first person I've told that's made that connection. Everyone else sees it as a blessing, being able to live forever." He shook his head and sighed. "I'll never get to move on, never get a chance to spend time with my family." He looked at the ring on his finger and scowled, "I have to be satisfied with a shade of who they were, nothing more."

"I'm sorry," Lyannara whispered sadly. "I may not be able to help you shoulder that particular burden, but the least I could do is help you stay standing, not let you collapse under the weight of it."

Harry grinned and said, "I'd appreciate that." He took a deep breath and continued, "But enough about that for now. How are your Occlumency studies coming along?"

"Difficult. I notice a lot of the book seems to say what your teacher is supposed to be doing," She replied pointedly.

Harry nodded in agreement, saying, "I know, but I wanted you to start getting used to the meditation and exercises before we start." He turned to her and added, "The beginning is the hardest part, it's where most people give up. When we begin, I'll start walking you through building your mindscape. You will have to sort your memories before you can start constructing your shields and defenses." He sighed and continued, "For the first year at least, you'll need to meditate every night, sorting your memories from the day and reinforcing and strengthening your shields and defenses. You'll also need to constantly focus to keep your shields up all the time, because I'll be checking," he said with a grin. "Eventually, it'll become subconscious to keep them up, but until then it's going to take consistent concentration. This is where most others give up, because they simply don't have the discipline to constantly keep a mental wall." He sat in thought for a moment and continued, "Think of it like a mask. Eventually it becomes second nature, but at first you have to work at keeping it up all the time."

Lyannara nodded in agreement. "So how long have you been studying this?"

Harry tilted his head in thought and said, "About twenty years."

Lyannara blinked in surprise and asked, "Exactly how old are you?"

"Forty," Harry said with a chuckle.

"Oh."

They continued on in a peaceful silence, only broken by the sound of the wagon rolling along the road. It was about half an hour later when the door between the inside of the wagon swung open and Jasmine tumbled through, grinning and giggling madly. She turned and spotted Harry, grinned wider, and immediately plopped down in his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck. She stopped her giggling suddenly, leaned back and studied him intensely for a moment before breaking out in titters again. "Why do you have to be so damn attractive?" she asked drunkenly.

Lyannara turned slowly and arched an eyebrow at the woman's forwardness. Harry just looked at her in confusion and asked, "What?" Jasmine frowned and dropped her head on his shoulder, nuzzling into his neck. Harry looked over her head at Lyannara, extreme confusion showing on his face. "What is going on?" he mouthed to Lyannara who just shrugged in response. Harry sighed and asked, "What are you talking about, Jasmine?"

The woman in his lap nuzzled further into his neck with a sigh, giggling occasionally. After a moment she replied, "You're too attractive. It makes it difficult to do my job with you distracting me all the time."

"And what job is that?" Harry asked curiously.

Jasmine looked up at him and said innocently, "Spying on you and making sure you don't take over the world."

Harry snorted and swallowed his laughter. "If I really wanted to take over the world, there's not much you could do to stop me, Jasmine."

She nodded into his neck and said seriously, "I know. But I'm still supposed to try. Even if it kills me."

Harry stilled. "Even if it kills you?" he repeated. He turned his head and looked at Lyannara, who looked as shocked at all this as he felt. Lyannara shook her head at him and shrugged her shoulders, indicating that she had no idea what the woman was talking about.

Jasmine nodded into his neck again and added, "I'm supposed to do what I can to make sure you don't go evil and go on a rampage and burn down Stormwind, among other things."

Harry couldn't contain his curiosity and asked, "What other things?"

"Hmm?" Jasmine looked up at him and blinked a few times before saying, "Oh, I'm supposed to find out who the other spy in your group is, and find out everything I can about their organization. Master Shaw was rather vague on that point. It was almost as if he wasn't physically able to give me any more than that to go on. I'm also supposed to keep all this a secret, so don't tell anyone, 'kay? Oh! And I am not, under any circumstances whatsoever, supposed to try and get in your pants. Master Shaw was quite clear on that part. Unfortunately that's proving to be quite difficult." Lyannara snorted at that and bit down on her hand to stifle her laughter, her shoulders shaking harshly in mirth.

Harry sighed. "What happened to make you tell me all of this?"

"I accidentally poisoned myself while I was working on perfecting a new toxin I invented. It's a rather ingenious new concoction that makes it easier to interrogate people," Jasmine stated seriously, worrying Harry.

"Jasmine, is that new poison deadly?" Harry asked seriously.

Jasmine shook her head and replied, "Nope. Not in the slightest."

Harry nodded and said, "Good. So how long does it last?"

Jasmine frowned in thought and said, "About eight hours."

"And how long have you been affected by it?" Harry questioned.

Jasmine hummed in thought and answered, "About three hours. It should wear off sometime late this afternoon. I'll have a horrible hangover though."

Harry sighed and said, "Well then, I'm not sure that you're going to remember this, but for what it's worth, I'm sorry."

Jasmine looked at him quizzically and asked, "For wha-"

"Somnus."


Early that evening, they stopped at Westbrook Garrison, just before the bridge into Westfall. They probably could have continued a bit further, but the extra distance wasn't worth the hassle of posting guards that night to protect the horses. There would be no shortage of time for that in the future. Jasmine had recovered from her poison, and unfortunately remembered the entire incident. Harry had given her a hangover potion to ease the aftereffects, and she winced when he told her that they would be talking later.

A wanted poster sparked a new discussion for the group, whether or not to pick up tasks as they traveled or head straight for Karazhan. Jessir was the one that pointed out some things to the entire group that silenced practically all opposition. "This 'Hogger' is a threat to the farmers and travelers in this section of Elwynn. Didn't Harry create The Worldwalkers to act as protectors? Can we honestly just shrug out shoulders and say 'not our problem' and still call ourselves such?"

It was decided that Harry and Jasmine would scout out the area, look for Hogger, and come back for reinforcements if there was more than they could handle alone. Alurmi snorted at that and said, "After seeing you on Mount Hyjal, some gnolls will be stupidly easy." Harry just rolled his eyes and headed off with Jasmine trailing behind him, while Arko'narin, Jessir, and Alurmi told the others about what happened at Nordrassil Inn.

Harry and Jasmine made their way south along the riverbank, staying in the shadows and keeping their eyes open for their target. They counted six camps of gnolls, all loosely grouped together, but still far enough away from each other that they couldn't communicate easily. They finally found Hogger, prowling around the south riverbank alone. He was far bigger than the others they had seen in the loosely formed camp, wearing patchwork leather armor, a large spiked collar, and wielding a wicked-looking stone axe.

To Harry, he just looked like a big, bipedal, hunchbacked dog.

Harry nudged Jasmine to get her attention. "This one's all yours. Let's see what the spy can do," he whispered in her ear.

Jasmine winced a bit at the words, but couldn't suppress the shiver that ran up her spine at having him so close to her. She sighed quietly and checked to make sure her daggers were still envenomed. Seeing that they were, she stalked towards her target, fading from Harry's view and she did so. She followed Hogger until he was a decent distance away from the gnoll camps, and waited for him to pause in his prowling. As soon as he was stationary, Jasmine moved closer behind him, gritted her teeth and tensed, preparing to shove her daggers into Hogger's back, one in the heart and one in the lung, just as she was taught.

Unfortunately, as she was in motion, so was Hogger. He turned and threw off Jasmine's angle of attack, one dagger glancing off the Gnoll King's armor, the other biting into his arm. Shit, Jasmine thought. This is not good.

Hogger roared and swung at the rogue with his damaged arm, twisting the dagger embedded in it out of her grasp and backhanding her off to the side. Jasmine slammed back first into a nearby tree with a sickening thud, causing the air to leave her lungs with an explosive rush and her vision to blur.

Hogger ripped the dagger out of his arm and tossed it to the side. He glared at the dazed rogue and roared, charging at her and swinging his axe wildly. Jasmine's head cleared enough for her to see the massive form of Hogger bearing down on her. Her eyes widened and she rolled out of the way, coming up and sprinting towards her discarded dagger. Hogger slammed into the tree hard enough to shake it's trunk before spinning around to spot it's prey, stalking towards her and growling angrily.

Jasmine tensed, readying herself for combat. As the Gnoll King swung at her, she twisted out of the way and cut into his arm, making him yip in pain. The dance continued, with Hogger swinging wildly and Jasmine twisting and spinning just enough to get out of the way, continuing to nick and cut every exposed piece of flesh she could reach. She didn't even try to block his attacks, knowing he was physically far stronger than her and knowing just how dangerous it would be to even try it with her daggers.

The fight turned into a battle of attrition, the small injuries on Hogger adding up to become dangerous, and in combination with the poison, Hogger was tiring quickly. Other than the minor injury Jasmine had sustained at the beginning, she was still going strong. One of the first lessons she ever learned was to not waste energy moving any more than was absolutely necessary.

It wasn't much longer until Hogger swung blindly and stumbled, overextending himself and completely exposing his unarmored side. Jasmine took advantage of the mistake by plunging both of her blades through his ribcage and into his lung. She twisted her daggers and ripped them out, spraying blood across her and the ground as Hogger fell and began gargling and choking, slowly drowning. He attempted to get up, only to fall back down in a heap as Jasmine kicked him hard in the stomach, knocking what little breath he had left out of his body. Soon, Hogger stopped moving, finally dead.

Jasmine kicked him twice more just to make sure.

She straightened up and looked around her, spotting Harry leaning against a tree. She frowned and said, "You could have helped, you know."

Harry grinned and replied, "You had it well enough in hand." He pointed over his shoulder back towards the gnoll camps and added, "Besides, I was a bit busy myself." She frowned further and looked closer at him. The first thing she noticed was that he had a silver sword in one hand and his wand in the other. She knew he hadn't been carrying a blade when they headed out. His hair was messier than usual, matted with blood, and he had bits of flesh stuck to his armor and blood splashed across his face. She couldn't tell in the darkness, but she was sure his armor was soaked in it as well.

Jasmine leaned to the side and looked past him, nearly vomiting at what she saw. She knew she was no stranger to bloodshed and death, but seeing every gnoll in pieces, with organs everywhere was quite a bit more than she was used to. She forced herself to look closer, and saw gnolls that had been choked with intestines, armored skeletons surrounded by massive pools of blood and strips of fur and flesh, some that had been literally cut into pieces, others that were twisted and broken masses of flesh and bone, and still others that had been burned black. She swallowed thickly and looked at Harry and back at the massacre, her mind unable to reconcile the attractive, kind and playful prankster she had come to know with the bloody butcher before her.

Harry took a step towards her, making her take an involuntary step away, causing him to flinch and sigh. He looked at her intensely and said, "I've been a fighter, a soldier, for twenty-five years. I fought against monsters in human disguises that reveled in rape and torture and murder, monsters that make the sight behind me look like Christmas morning. I worked alone for the most part, so I had to be absolutely sure I wasn't leaving an enemy at my back that could kill me. I've tailored my spell list to instill the most fear in my enemies, because a terrified enemy is one that has already lost the battle."

He pointed behind him again, saying, "Could I have done that without leaving such a mess?" He shrugged and continued, "Probably. But it would have been far more painful for them, and while killing is necessary, causing pain is not. Even the ones I burned died quickly." He sighed and asked, "Do you understand?" At Jasmine's hesitant nod, Harry said softly, "I'll understand if you want to leave and head back to Stormwind."

Jasmine looked at the scene and back at Harry and shook her head. "I'm staying." She grinned and added, "You can't get rid of me that easily."

Harry grinned back and nodded once. He sighed and pulled a trunk out of his pocket and enlarged it, saying, "Well, lets look around and see what we can scavenge. No sense in letting useful stuff rot out here in the woods."

As they were searching and piling the useful things in the trunk, Harry said, "So what can you tell me about this organization that has a spy in the group?"

Jasmine frowned in thought and replied, "Not much, actually. Master Shaw seemed unable to tell me anything other than that. He wanted to, but it seemed like something was stopping him every time he tried." She sighed and added, "It's rather frustrating actually."

"You realized there's two obvious outcomes in you finding whoever it is," Harry said. "Either the same thing will happen to you, and you'll be unable to report anything, or you'll be silenced in some other manner."

Jasmine jerked slightly and asked, "You think that they would kill me to keep this a secret?"

Harry shrugged and responded, "Not necessarily, but it is a risk. What are you supposed to do when you find out who they are anyway?"

"Find out what they want, and whether or not they are a risk to Stormwind," She sighed. "If they aren't I'm supposed to see about some kind of alliance, or at least a truce."

"And if they are?" Harry asked curiously.

Jasmine snorted and replied, "Then I'm screwed. I don't think I'll be able to handle that alone, but backup isn't an option." She sighed again and continued, "I'll do my best to stop it, but I'll likely be killed in the attempt."

Harry shook his head. "Not going to happen. Not while we're around at least." He grinned and added, "You're one of mine now, and will be as long as you're a part of this group."

Jasmine turned and smiled softly at him. "I don't think I mind that much."

Harry was silent for a moment before he spoke up. "You know, I already knew you were going to be reporting to Shaw about us. Just like I know Jaina is reporting to someone as well."

"Then why are you so open with us if you know that already?" Jasmine asked in confusion.

Harry shrugged and said, "I don't have anything to hide, so why act suspicious? I need allies if I'm going to take down Kil'jaeden and Arthas."

Jasmine nodded in agreement. "So you don't mind people keeping an eye on you?"

"Not really," Harry replied. "Not much I can do about it, other than sending you away." He turned and grinned at her and continued, "But then you would just spy on me from a distance wouldn't you?"

Jasmine grinned back and nodded once, saying, "Yep!"


Lyannara was the first one to spot Harry and Jasmine coming back. Both of them were bloody, but Harry more so, almost as if he had bathed in the viscous fluid. "I take it you two didn't need any help?" She asked with a smirk.

Harry shook his head and replied, "Nope. All taken care of. Even got a bunch of loot that we scavenged from the camps and corpses." He pulled out a piece of paper and continued, "Including the deed to a farm, but I'm betting the original owners want it back. Since we're heading that way anyway, keep an eye out for a Theodore or Verna Furlbrow."

Jasmine was carrying a bag, which she walked over and handed to Marshal Dughan, the man who had issued the bounty on Hogger. He opened the sack and looked in, immediately closing it and turning away for a moment to compose himself. He glared lightly at her and said flatly, "While I appreciate the proof that Hogger is officially taken care of, I'm not sure I needed to see that." He sighed and added, "Although I guess I was asking for it with posting wanted posters all over the place. Come with me and we'll get your payment sorted out. Shouldn't take more than a few moments."

Jasmine walked inside while Harry was talking with Meridia and Alurmi. Harry had put them in charge of keeping track of supplies and funds in and out of the organization. Alurmi had taken over sorting and keeping track of their items and equipment and Meridia had picked up a ledger in Stormwind to keep track of the coin, both currencies, coming in and out for the group.

"So what do you think we can do with all this stuff?" Harry asked, showing them the contents of the loot trunk.

Alurmi sifted through some of it, not really bothered by the blood and bits of fur stuck to varies pieces. "Most of it is scrap. We should be able to melt down the metal into bars and either sell it that way or reforge it into something useful, but that'll take time, and facilities we simply don't have yet." She looked around and continued, "Given that you have quite a bit of storage space, we can keep it until we get a good forge set up. I remember Kriinos saying he worked as a blacksmith on the side, and that he made his armor, shield and sword. If he can use the metal scrap, let him work with it. As for the leather, most of it can be cut up and salvaged for armor patches and smaller things, some of it is even big enough to make basic armor with, but I don't think we have a leatherworker who would be able to tell." She sighed and added, "As for the cloth, some of it is simply ruined, but you might want to get Lyannara down here to double-check that. As for the various other items, some we can use, the rest I'll set aside for selling."

Harry nodded and turned to Meridia, who was currently sorting and counting the coins they had found on the gnolls. Harry wasn't sure why they had money, but he wasn't going to complain since they acquired it. "How much did we make, Meridia?"

Meridia finished counting out the coins and wrote in her ledger for a moment. "You came away with two gold, fifteen silver, and eighty-three copper. Actually quite a bit for gnolls." She looked up at Harry and said, "While I don't mind keeping the books in order, I really do hope you find someone who likes to do this full-time soon." She grinned and added, "I much prefer my research."

Harry grinned back and said, "I'll add it to the list of things to get done."

"You better," Meridia agreed playfully. She grinned and added, "It's not like you'll find someone who's better at research than I am."

Harry laughed and said, "Agreed. Come on, let's head back to the rest of the group."

The three climbed out of the expanded trunk and Harry closed it up. They joined the group in the common area just as Jasmine came in carrying a small pouch and flipping a new dagger in her hand. She grinned as she sat down and said, "Made ten gold and got a new dagger out of the deal. I'll need to get it enchanted, but I think it might end up replacing one of my old ones."

"Ten gold doesn't sound like much," Harry frowned.

Meridia piped in and said, "Harry, gold doesn't have the same value here as where you're from. Ten gold is enough for a family to live comfortably for a week."

Jasmine looked at Harry and added, "I've been a member of SI:7 since I was thirteen. When I first started, I earned two gold a week, and it was enough for me to live on my own and still set up a nice little nest egg just in case everything went bad for me." She smiled and asked, "So what do we do about the coin we earn doing things like this? I still get paid from SI:7 because I'm an attachment to your organization, and technically this was earned as a member of the group, and not as an outside job for me."

Harry sighed and said, "I've been thinking about that." He ran his fingers through his hair and continued, "The Worldwalkers does need funds to function, but I'm not sure how to do that. Anyone have any ideas?"

Hagin spoke up and said, "Well, Garrim and I used to be part of a guild that did various jobs all over Azeroth. All of the loot found and payment earned went into the guild, and the person or group that brought it in got a percentage of the coin and value of the items. They could take their payment in items or coin, and they got first shot at anything they brought in. It worked pretty well, actually, but it could sometimes take up to a week to get paid."

"That's not a bad idea. Why did you leave though?" Harry asked.

"Leadership changed, an' we had a differen' opinion on how things shoulda been run," Garrim shrugged. "Friendly enough parting on tha whole, however."

Harry nodded and looked at everyone. "So does anyone have any objections to a similar setup with us?" Seeing everyone agree, Harry turned to Alurmi and asked, "What do you think is the value of the items we brought in?"

Alurmi leaned back in thought, mentally doing the calculations. Eventually she said, "I'd say around four gold. A lot of it is going to take work to be usable, and that takes away from the overall worth."

Jasmine tossed the pouch to Harry and said, "That brings the total to-"

Sixteen gold, fifteen silver and eighty-three copper," Meridia interrupted. She looked at Jasmine and said, "I already counted up the coin you two gathered off the gnolls." The Night Elf turned to Harry and questioned, "What kind of percentage do we pay out?"

Harry hummed in thought and replied, "Twenty percent divided among the ones that do the job sound good with everyone?" Everyone nodded and Harry said, "Then twenty percent it is." He tossed the pouch to Meridia and said with a grin, "You handle all the money."

Meridia sighed in exasperation and rolled her eyes. She stood and responded, "Fine, I'll be right back."

The group sat around and talked for a bit, and when Meridia returned, she handed a pouch to Jasmine and said, "Three gold, twenty-three silver and sixteen copper." She turned to Harry and added, "I've already updated the books."

Harry nodded and looked around at the group. "We should probably get some sleep," he said. "We head into Westfall tomorrow, and I want everyone well rested for the journey. Lyannara, come with me, I need to talk to you."

The warlock nodded and left the wagon with Harry. They walked together in silence until they were near the road. Harry put up his privacy wards and leaned against a tree, saying, "You are about to get your first assignment as an Unspeakable. I want you to approach Jasmine. Apparently she's supposed to find out about us and assess if we're a threat to Stormwind. If we aren't she's supposed to try and form a more official alliance between us and SI:7." He looked at her and continued, "I want a report on both her and your judgment on whether or not an alliance is worth it."

Lyannara nodded hesitantly and asked, "What kind of report do you want on her personally?"

Harry grinned and replied, "I want to know where her loyalties ultimately lie. She doesn't seem to be too happy with SI:7 currently, and I think she's looking for a change. I want you to evaluate her for being a part of The Unspeakables." He sighed and continued, "I need to tell you the rules for this. One, never refer to a member or yourself as 'he' or 'she', just use codenames. Secrecy is paramount. Two, if you aren't sure about an agreement, defer and say you have to report to your boss before it can be agreed upon."

Lyannara nodded again in agreement. "When do you want me to do this?"

"Now," Harry grinned. "It's the perfect time and I'm your alibi. I'll stay under my invisibility cloak and transport you in and out of her room. I'll be there the whole time, but this is your show, and yes, you still have to make a verbal report sometime later."

Lyannara tilted her head and asked, "Why not do it as soon as we're done?"

"Because I want you to mull over what you learn and I want to see how good your memory is. A report given immediately doesn't accomplish that," Harry replied.

He pulled a trunk from his pocket and opened it, pulling out a dark gray and black robe. She put it on and pulled up the hood and asked, "Do I look okay?" She started slightly at the change in her voice, and said, "Well that's strange. I see why you said not to refer to anyone as he or she."

Harry just grinned in reply and threw on his invisibility cloak. She felt him grab her arm and say, "Brace yourself, this is going to be uncomfortable. Don't show it."


Jasmine was lying in bed, lost in thought. She had been in SI:7 for eleven years, a Stormwind Assassin for six, and in all that time, she hadn't felt completely welcome. She didn't have any really good friends in either organization, and her work kept her away enough that making any friends outside of her job was nearly impossible. The organizations themselves were changing as well, much to her distaste.

SI:7 was too bureaucratic nowadays, too much red tape for any real results, and the Stormwind Assassins were becoming too disorganized with Shaw trying to run it as well as SI:7. Every Assassin had some kind of agenda recently, and the Thumb was the worst. They had fractured, taking sides on how things should be run, and it was becoming more 'who you know' than 'how good you are' for advancement. She had been a Fourth Finger, the lowest rank in the Assassins, for her entire career, even with one of the highest success rates in the organization.

She sighed and rolled onto her side. She had originally joined both organizations to protect innocent people. Sure, Stormwind was her home, but she was of the belief that everyone should be protected. Unfortunately, both organizations were recently more 'Stormwind above all others' than anything else. She knew for a fact that the information she turned in as urgent about the attempt on Tyrande Whisperwind made it to Varian Wrynn and didn't go any further, and she still didn't know why. The king didn't even bother to attempt to pass it on to the Night Elves. She had heard through her contacts that someone had, however, and she had a strong suspicion that it was Harry. She didn't know why she felt like that, but it was an unshakable belief that Harry had gotten the information to Tyrande herself.

"I hear you are looking for me."

Jasmine jumped out of bed and landed in a crouch, ready to defend against an attack. She didn't recognize the voice, then again she couldn't tell anything about the speaker from it. It was an amalgamation of so many different types that the only thing defining about it was the fact that it was undefinable. The figure was leaning against her desk, dressed in a black and dark gray robe with plain black gloves, with a face completely obscured in darkness with the exception of two glowing, smoky gray eyes boring into her soul. "Who are you?" She questioned the figure. "And how did you get in here?"

"I am Guardian, and a representative of The Unspeakables," the figure answered. "And as I said before, I heard you were looking for me." Guardian shrugged and continued, "Here I am."

Jasmine narrowed her eyes at Guardian and asked, "And where did you hear that I was looking for you?"

Guardian chuckled and replied, "The Unspeakables have ears in many places." Guardian straightened and asked, "I hear SI:7 is interested in some kind of alliance. Why should we agree to such a thing?"

"SI:7 is only interested in an alliance if you don't intend to harm the people of Stormwind," Jasmine retorted.

"Only Stormwind?" Guardian questioned. "I would think that such an organization would be for the protection of all innocents, not just the ones of a single affiliation," Guardian said.

Jasmine narrowed her eyes and stated hotly, "SI:7 will protect any innocent!"

Guardian was silent for a moment before whispering, "Are you so sure? Can you personally guarantee that? Or is it just wishful thinking?"

Jasmine froze momentarily before looking away and whispering, "No. I can't guarantee it."

"I thought so," Guardian snorted. "For what it's worth, we don't intend to harm any innocents in any city. But if we catch wind of a something, even inside Stormwind, we will act, with or without SI:7's permission or approval." Guardian's eyes narrowed as he or she added, "We exist to do the things no one else wants to do, the dirty jobs that must be done. We live in the gray areas between black and white." Guardian shrugged and continued, "We deal with criminals and malcontents, we let the small fish go to catch the big sharks. A petty thief is not our concern, that's what city guards are for. We want the man that gets a cut of everything stolen and has his fingers in every pie that isn't his own."

"Why is that?" Jasmine questioned. "If you can catch a thief, why let him go?"

"Because the thief will lead us higher up the chain. In the grand scheme of things, a loaf of stolen bread is not worth much." Guardian shrugged again and added, "Our organization is small compared to others. We can not afford to become a secret police force."

Jasmine sighed and nodded at the logic. "So is an alliance between SI:7 and The Unspeakables possible?"

"That depends on the nature of the alliance," Guardian shrugged in response.

"An exchange of information and intelligence, occasionally working together on jobs, things of that nature," Jasmine responded.

Guardian looked at Jasmine for a moment before asking, "Will the intelligence and information be used? Or will it sit and gather dust? And as for working together, that depends on the job. As I said earlier, we don't worry about small fish, and we might have a different idea about how things should be handled, enough that it could cause unnecessary friction. Either way, it's not a decision I can make, I need to take it to my boss."

Jasmine was silent in thought. Eventually she said, "If an alliance isn't possible, then a truce would be sufficient. Basically just staying out of each other's way and trying not to interfere with each other."

Guardian nodded and replied, "That, at least, is most likely. We have no quarrel with SI:7, just a difference of opinion. But it's still my Boss' decision."

"Who is your boss?" Jasmine asked quizzically.

"My boss goes by Watcher," Guardian replied. "Watcher leads the organization, and I am Watcher's second in command."

Jasmine's eyes widened a bit at that. She was expecting to deal with a mid-level member at best, not the organization's second in command. "The second in command is spying on a new organization? Seems a waste."

Guardian shrugged in response and said, "Watcher wanted one of the organization's best on this assignment. I was asked personally to take it, and it's only a waste if I let it become one." Guardian stood and continued, "I'll leave you with a parting gift of information, what you do with it is up to you. Watcher knows you are unhappy with SI:7 and being a Stormwind Assassin. You are currently being observed and evaluated for acceptance into our ranks." Guardian's eyes narrowed, "We place the utmost value on our secrecy. Telling anyone will result in your chance disappearing before it is even offered." Jasmine could almost hear the grin as Guardian finished with, "I'll be seeing you."

With that, Guardian simply disappeared, leaving Jasmine alone and massively confused about what she was going to do and what she wanted her future to be.


Character List:

Harry – Human? - Wizard from Earth, now on Azeroth, leader of The Worldwalkers, and Master of Death. Recently started a shadow organization, The Unspeakables, to handle the things he can't officially do. Unspeakable codename is 'Watcher'.

Arko'narin Ravenstar – Night Elf – Warrior - Student under Jessir Moonbow and just barely over one century old.

Jessir Moonbow – Night Elf – Hunter – Arko'narin's mentor, and just over one thousand years old.

Meridia Moonblade – Night Elf – Former Sentinel, now works for Harry after she was dismissed from service and stripped of her rank. Very good with numbers and research.

Alurmi – Bronze Whelp/High Elf – Formerly the Quartermaster for the Keepers of Time. Sent by Nozdormu to spy on Harry, and kill him if necessary.

Paladin Kriinos – Draenei – Paladin – Sent by Prophet Velen to assist Harry in his quest against the Burning Legion. Brother to Priestess Karinaa.

Priestess Karinaa – Draenei – Priestess – Sent by Prophet Velen to assist Harry. Sister to Paladin Kriinos.

Jaina Proudmoore – Human – Mage – Member of the Kirin Tor. Sent by Kalecgos to investigate Harry and find out what kind of person he is. Friend and former mentor of Lyannara.

Lyannara Spellweaver – Human – Warlock – Former mage and former member of the Kirin Tor. Second in command of The Unspeakables. Codenamed 'Guardian'.

Jasmine Nightshade – Human – Rogue – Member of SI:7 and Stormwind Assassins sent by Mathias as an attachment to The Worldwalkers.

Garrim Thunderaxe – Dwarf – Warrior – Partner of Hagin Geargrinder.

Hagin Geargrinder – Gnome – Mage – Engineer and partner of Garrim Thunderaxe. Rather eccentric and doesn't like it when goblins call themselves engineers.