Lorlathil. In the morning, they'd decided to stop there so that Syeris could send that letter to Xal and Sinala could sleep in a real bed. The Sentinel was clearly overjoyed to be among her own people again. Specifically, members of her own people who did not recognize and therefore revile her. Truth be told, Mina was also calmed listening to the dryads' cheerful chittering and seeing the squat little houses shaped from trees by druidic architects. However, if Syeris had been uncomfortable in the woods of Val'Sharah, she was practically radiating unease in the town itself. Her posture was almost hunched, her arms always either crossed over her stomach or uncomfortably straight at her sides, and she barely smiled or spoke. It was easy to see why. Mina felt a pang of guilt every time she saw the nervous, disapproving, or outright hostile glances her friend received, but Syeris did not complain, bearing their hatred with unusual grace.
The worst was when they had arrived and were walking towards the tiny inn located in the tiny town's square. A woman with green hair in two long tails was glaring at Syeris, her arms crossed over her chest. She was wearing the robes of the Dreamweavers and looked from her manner to be fairly important. "Warden!" she called, turning the angry gaze to Mina. "Who is this?"
Mina shifted uncomfortably. "This is Illidari Syeris Verdana, Miss—?"
The woman's lip curled. "I am Sylvia Hartshorn, Emissary of the Dreamweavers. And I do not appreciate your bringing that… thing… to our forest, Warden. Please be sure she does not damage these sacred lands." She turned back to Syeris, whose face was utterly blank.
Even Sinala, who had seemed even more wary of Syeris of late, was staring at the demon hunter with a look of pity in her gaze. The Sentinel turned to Hartshorn and said, "Miss Hartshorn, I understand your concern, but it's not right to address a peaceful visitor to your town this way—"
"I did not ask your opinion, Miss!" snapped the Emissary, her eyes glowing with fury. Sinala's eyes flashed in turn and she opened her mouth to reply, but Mina put a hand on her arm with a warning look, staying her.
Mina turned back to the irate Hartshorn. "Please, Emissary, we merely wish to go about our business here in peace. I hope that is acceptable?"
Mina's soothing, respectful tones worked their magic, and Hartshorn relaxed slightly. "I advise you to do so quickly." Her gaze fell again on Syeris, whose eyes were darting between Mina, Sinala and Hartshorn. She looked confused and wary, unsure what to do. Finally she met Hartshorn's gaze, her eyes narrowing slightly beneath the blindfold. Hartshorn's eyes narrowed too, and she whispered, "What have you done to yourself, Syeris? You're more demon than blood elf."
A slow smile grew across Syeris's lips until it became a wide, slightly manic grin. She looked Hartshorn right in the eye and hissed menacingly, waggling her long tongue with clear relish. A line of thin, faintly green spit connected her long canine with the edge of her lip, and the fel fires of her eyes practically burned through the blindfold.
"Ugh!" Hartshorn backed away in disgust. She whirled to face Mina. "Go about your business here, Warden, but I warn you: control your pet, or there will be consequences," she snarled, and then stomped off, accompanied by Syeris's nasty laughter.
Mina smacked her on the arm. "Elune, Syeris! Pull yourself together," she said in a harsh whisper. "She'd kick you out without a second thought!"
"Oh, please," Syeris growled, "She'd do that anyway! She thinks I'm an animal. Worse than an animal." She glared at Sinala. "And she's not the only one either." Sinala had the decency to look away guiltily. Syeris sneered and drew herself up to her full height. "Well, fine. Revile me and my kind. Hate us, go ahead. But remember that we are the ones who gave everything to save this world, including your ungrateful hides." She hissed again, earning even more worried stares from the Dreamweavers, dryads, and other adventurers traversing the square. "I'm getting real fucking tired of you kaldorei, I swear. Always better than everyone, always above it all, even when you've sunk exactly as low as anyone else." She spat. "If not lower."
Stung, Mina said quietly, "And you think you'd fare any better in Silvermoon? You said yourself they'd likely kill you on sight."
"Ha! Yes," Syeris laughed bitterly. "Because my people, unlike yours, are fucking merciful. They wouldn't accept your aid with one hand and fling mud at you with the other." They weren't your people a few days ago, Mina thought resentfully. And anyway, I don't see the sin'dorei refusing to work with demon hunters, either, though they hate them just as much as we do.
"You think your people above such?" Sinala's voice, calm with restrained malice, surprised Syeris, who jerked her neck around to face the Sentinel. Her face was as bitter as Syeris's own moments ago. "I assure you, you are very wrong. Do you think I didn't receive as many scornful looks and whispered comments when they thought Lo—my husband wasn't looking?" she whispered, her voice full of vitriol.
Unsettled, Syeris backed down slightly, shifting from foot to foot. "That's different."
"Is it, now?" said Sinala testily.
Syeris clenched her fists. "Yes," she replied, staring angrily into Sinala's face. "You—"
"All right, all right, let's not argue," said Mina, putting a hand on each woman's shoulder. "We have work to do. Sinala, come with me to the inn, you should rest. Syeris, go mail your letter and meet us there." Both grumbled, but the tension broke. With a final nod to Syeris, Mina put a light hand on the small of Sinala's back, ushering her towards the inn, while Syeris stalked towards the mailbox.
Mina sighed. We'd better find that dreadlord fast, or I fear these two hotheads will kill each other first.