The construction of The Windrunner was going well. I thought that if it kept going the way it was, it would be ready within three months or less. Sylvanas had ordered other ships to be built as well, so that the Tirisfal Glades Harbor was a veritable flurry of activity. The harbor needed to be guarded, because it wasn't only the Scourge who attacked, no. The remnants of the Scarlet Crusade hadn't yet quit trying to get rid of the Forsaken, and attacked the ships regularly, until I had the idea to build a magical barrier around the harbor, thus keeping humans from seeing what was going on.

"If they can't see us, they won't attack us," I told a bemused Sylvanas one morning.

"You don't want to kill all of them, do you?"

"There are so few living people left in Lordaeron after everything that's happened. I kind of wish we could all coexist without killing each other."

"They won't bend the knee to me," she remarked.

"Well, no, but that's because they value their souls. They're afraid you're going to suck them out of their bodies and twist them to your will."

She looked at me blankly, "What's wrong with that?" she asked.

I wasn't getting dragged into that conversation, which would only lead to a fight. We'd been getting along since my return to Undercity, better than I'd anticipated, although we hadn't made love yet. I was jittery because of it, not liking being this close to Sylvanas and being unable to have her for myself. It reminded me too much of what we had gone through before the Scourge had invaded us.

I had moved into her chambers, as had been planned. But Sylvanas had been right: she wasn't there often. Now that I was back in Undercity, I took on my old jobs again, leaving her free to do whatever else she needed to do to keep the Forsaken safe from Arthas.

The Scourge had attacked Undercity twice more, with mixed results. Two of the humans that the Forsaken kept as slaves had been murdered and raised before we'd been able to find the necromancer who had somehow gotten into the city. The second time, we were able to intercept them before they got very far. I hadn't been very happy about camping out in the sewers, but it had worked.

"How's Vengeance Landing faring?" I asked her.

Vengeance Landing was the town Sylvanas had ordered built in the Howling Fjord, in Southeastern Northrend. It had been little more than a campsite at first, but from what I had heard, a lot more had been done to it.

"It'll be a good base for us in Northrend," she said. "And so will New Agamand and Venomspite." She looked up at me, her face showing just enough emotion for me to read, "You're going to ask me to go to Northrend, aren't you?"

"Can you think of a good reason for me not to go?"

"There will be plenty of people there, and they won't need you."

I leaned against her desk, "Try again," I said gently.

"Fine, I want you to stay here with me." Her eyes flashed, "Stop getting me to confess what I feel for you."

"But it's fun for me to know," I said, moving to close the door to her office before going to her and sitting on her lap. She let me, even putting an arm around me, "You don't want me to go?" I asked her, beginning to kiss her.

"I want you safe. Is it too much to ask?"

"Can you guarantee my safety in Undercity, Sylvanas?"

"I can guarantee it more than I can in Northrend, that's for sure." She sounded moody now, and moved her head away from mine, "Why are you so eager to go?"

"Sylvanas. Sweetheart." I pulled her towards me again, kissing her softly. "My love." My lips brushed her cheek, "My heart." Her forehead, "My soul." I looked into her eyes, "You know that I'm in love with you."

She pursed her lips, "Get to the point."

"The point is that almost eight years ago, Arthas took away everyone I loved. He killed you. He raised you as a banshee. And I am not about to let the Northrend campaign happen without me."

Sylvanas placed her hands on my hips, "I died to keep you safe. I didn't die to watch you risk your life trying to kill him."

"So you would have me sitting in Undercity, gathering dust, while everyone else fights my battle?"

"Yes. I would."

"Ah, my love, you know that I'm no longer the same girl who sat at the window waiting for her general to ride home on a white horse." I kissed her again, more deeply this time, and her grip on my hips tightened considerably as she kissed me back. I nearly got lost in her, my heart racing in my chest and my body beginning to shake, "Oh, you're not fair."

"You kissed me," she whispered. "Not the other way around."

"Technicalities," I said.

She moved her hands to cup my face, "You really want to go to Northrend?"

"Let me think. Being away from you for months at a time, again, fighting against the Scourge in a cold and desolate world... Want is a strong word. It's more like I need to go. I have to fight for my home, Sylvanas."

"You want to go out of revenge."

"And you don't? Sylvanas, he..." my voice broke, and I put my forehead on her shoulder, taking several deep breaths as she rubbed my back. "He killed you. Not just that but he... damn it." I pressed my fingers against my eyes, trying to keep calm.

"Go ahead and cry," she told me. "It's all right."

I did. She held me, making soothing sounds in my ear.

"I will kill him for you," I said finally. "I promise I will."

"You don't have to kill him for me, my darling," she said, her own voice shaking. "You don't. All you have to do is live."

"I don't want to live," I said. "It hurts to live, Sylvanas. It hurts to breathe, knowing what he's done."

"What are you saying, you want to die?" Sylvanas sounded more than a little alarmed now. "Is that why you've been so reckless? You're trying to get killed?"

"No. Well, maybe."

"Maybe?"

"Please don't get upset," I begged her. I was feeling horrible enough without needing to be guilty about it.

"Upset... you tell me you want to die, and you don't want me to get upset. What do you want me to feel, happy?"

I took a deep breath, "No. I'm just... I don't know. I'm working on it."

"You'd better be working on it. Because if you commit suicide, Faith, I will bring you back and make you pay for it a thousand fold."

"You would bring me back?" I asked her. My voice was small.

"No. I wouldn't do that to you. But you would destroy what's left of me if you did that."

"I know. And I'm sorry, I don't mean to feel that way. I love you."

"Yeah, I know you do." She kissed me briefly, "Now, get out of here. I have work to do and you're making me feel too many things that I don't want to feel."

I got off her lap and walked to the door, opening it. I felt wretched.

"Faith?"

I looked back, "Yeah?"

"I love you."

It was unbelievable how much those words meant to me. Hearing her telling me that made me laugh and cry at the same time. Sylvanas smiled, a real smile that transformed her face into the one I remembered. For a second, she was alive. My Sylvanas.

What would I do if anything were to happen to her? Something that would irrevocably take her from me? I didn't know, nor did I want to think about it, but I began to understand what Sylvanas felt.

"You don't want me to go to Northrend at all, do you?"

Sylvanas' smile faded, "No, I don't."

It would hurt me. I didn't want to be inactive, but she came first, she always had. "Okay."

"You'll stay?" she asked, sounding stunned. "You'll stay here?"

"If it's what you really want, then yes. I'll stay."

"You'll hate being stuck here."

"Oh, you'll make it up to me. I have no doubt about that." I smiled at her and left her office.

If I wasn't going to go to Northrend, what would I do? Train recruits? Would I take care of the Scourge here? I wasn't thrilled with the idea, but Scourge was Scourge, whether they were in Tirisfal Glades, or in Northrend. I made my way to the harbor, taking out a few undead along the way and setting their corpses on fire.

There was activity going on there as usual. A storm was brewing, so everyone was working on anchoring the ships to make sure that nothing happened to them.

"Are you all right, Captain?" asked one of the dock hands, a man named Farrow.

"Oh, I'm fine, thank you," I replied. "How's everything going here?"

"The storm will be bad. I hope nothing gets damaged. It looks like one of his again."

I nodded, shivering. It was only October, and we'd had two snowstorms so far, neither of which had been the fun ones kids usually anticipated, where they could build snowmen and warm themselves by a fire, drinking hot cocoa.

"So we'll have to hunker down. I'll use some magic around the harbor so that the damage is minimal."

I got to work, performing multiple spells on the ships anchored in the harbor and hoping that it would be enough. Snow began to fall the instant I was done, and the wind picked up soon after that, quickly getting so bad that I knew I'd never be able to make my way back to Undercity without getting lost or killed.

Prince was with me, and I quickly took him inside the only building at the harbor, which wasn't very warm, but was at least better than outside. He disliked snow, and stamped angrily as I quickly brushed it off him.

Farrow and the few other Forsaken who were there watched Prince and I huddling together for warmth, but there was nothing they could do. I put a couple of warming spells on the two of us, and waited the storm out. Somehow, I managed to fall asleep, waking up when someone shook my shoulder.

It was Sylvanas, looking worried beyond measure. Her hood was covered with snow, and I could only guess that she had rushed to the harbor because of something horrible happening.

"Sylvanas... what... what's wrong? Did something happen?"

"You're trapped in the worst storm of the season, that's what's happened."

Prince and I were shivering, which was enough for me to realize that the temperature had dropped dramatically.

"The storm came so suddenly, Sylvanas, I wouldn't have made it back." I didn't want her to think that I'd purposefully gotten stuck out there.

"I know, I know." She held up a heavy cloak, which was sodden with snow, "Could you dry this, maybe?"

I did so, waving my hand at the cloak so that it dried in a couple of minutes, after which Sylvanas wrapped it around me. She also carried a few carrots and apples for Prince, which he ate gratefully, right out of her gloved hand.

"Are you staying?" I asked her.

"I could bring you both back to Undercity, but it's so cold you'd die on the way. So, yes, I'm staying."

Sylvanas had come out into the storm to make sure that I was warm enough. If she and I had been alone, I would have probably collapsed into her arms in tears. As it was, I buried my head in Prince's neck, and he nuzzled me lovingly.

"You've taken good care of my horse," she said quietly, looking at the way we interacted. "I suppose that's only natural, since he was the last thing I gave to you."

"No, you gave me something else afterward," I murmured.

"What? The bracelet?"

"No. Your heart."

Sylvanas glanced at the Forsaken who were gathered on the other side of the room. They were pretending not to listen to us, and while I'd spoken quietly, and the storm covered my words pretty well, I was sure they'd heard me. "Well, make sure you take care of it. It may not be beating anymore, but I happen to care about it. A little."

I conjured some hot water, which immediately chilled in the cold air, and gave it to Prince to drink. He wasn't doing well, and I worried about him. He began to cough an hour afterwards, and looked at me imploringly.

"Hey," I whispered. "You're all right, baby. You know you are." I took off my cloak and put it over him, not caring about my own health. "I'm right here." I began to rub his legs, neck, and flanks, noticing that he was shivering, despite the warming spells I'd put on him, which the blizzard seemed to leech out.

The storm died down around twilight. The sky was dark by the time the snow stopped falling and we finally emerged from the building we had taken refuge in. It was still bitterly cold, unseasonable for the end of October, and when I helped Prince struggle to his feet, he flattened his ears at me for a moment.

"Come on, baby, you're going to go home, and I'll give you a nice rubdown." I looked at Sylvanas, "It won't be enough, will it?"

"He can't stay in Tirisfal Glades, honey. It's not good for him."

"You're saying that I should send him back to Quel'Thalas..."

"They'll take good care of him there, you know that. Ask Lor'themar or Halduron to take him."

Prince was my horse. The thought of giving him to anybody that wasn't Sylvanas tore at me. But she was right, he couldn't stay in Tirisfal Glades. He would end up dying if he stayed here any longer.

"I'll give you a skeletal horse to ride while you're here. I know it's not your favorite form of transportation, but it'll work for you, if you keep the saddle."

I wasn't fond of skeletal horses at all to ride. Only Forsaken could enjoy riding them in any capacity. Even when I rode with Sylvanas, being on a skeletal horse was a pain in the nether regions... literally.

"I'll walk back with him," I said to Sylvanas, rubbing Prince's nose gently. "It's all right, baby."

"He was my horse before he was yours, love," she told me. "Tie his reins to Venom's saddle and he'll lead him."

I did that, and we began to walk together through the snow and ice that now covered the darkened land. I couldn't remember any storm having been that bad before, "He did this to kill some of us, didn't he?"

She nodded, "Undoubtedly. But none of the ships were damaged thanks to you."

"I didn't do anything."

"Of course you did. We might have lost all of them if you hadn't come by and put spells on them." She glanced at me, "You've never been able to accept my praise. Why is that?"

"I do!"

"No, Faith, you don't."

I thought about it, "I guess maybe it's that I don't feel worthy of your praise. I never felt..." I blushed and swallowed as I shivered hard, "worthy of you."

"Faith, if you weren't worthy of me, I would have never spent so much time with you. I used to always take the most direct path to Everstone Village when I left Silvermoon. Getting home was secondary, I always had to see you first, if I could."

"You never told me this," I pulled my cloak tighter around Prince, who was struggling. "Sylvanas, I don't think he's going to make it."

"Yes he will. He'll be fine once we get him warm." She scratched his forehead, and he was so cold and tired that he didn't really react. "Come on, boy."

Prince began to walk again. Really worried now, I didn't say much until we got back to the Ruins of Lordaeron, where stables for the living creatures were located. I stabled him and brushed him, thoroughly rubbing his coat so as to warm him up. Sylvanas got water for him, which I warmed up before I fed him and put his rug on him.

"Do you want to stay with him tonight?"

I nodded. "Thank you for coming to get us."

"Anytime." She brushed a kiss onto my forehead and left.

I settled into the stall with Prince, and the moment I sat down, he did the same, lying down and putting his head in my lap. He was warm to the touch. Too warm.

I knew that Prince wasn't a young horse. He had been eleven years old when Sylvanas had died, and was now approaching his eighteenth year. He should have had another eight to ten years ahead of him, but I had a feeling that living in Tirisfal Glades, surrounded by undead creatures, had taken its toll on him. He coughed again, harshly, and actually brought up blood.

"Oh, you're not doing well, are you, baby?" I asked him, cuddling him. I kissed his nose, "Don't worry, you'll be okay after a good rest."

He gave a halfhearted neigh, accepting a piece of apple.

"I know it's horrible to be sick, but see? You get to have me cuddling you all night."

Prince blinked his soft brown eyes at me. I thought I felt him relax against me, and he whickered.

Sometime in the night, I fell asleep, resting my head on Prince's neck. It was a peaceful sleep, and I dreamt of home, of Sylvanas and I relaxing in a sunlit clearing, slowly making love and whispering each other's names as passion overtook us.

"Faith... honey, wake up. Come on, love."

I opened my eyes, seeing that Sylvanas was there, stroking my face. I smiled briefly, reaching out for her, "Hi, my love..." I froze. Prince's body was cold and unmoving under my head. I sat up and slowly turned around to look at him, seeing that his eyes had closed, and would never open again. Never again would he nudge my pocket for apples or flatten his ears whenever Sylvanas approached.

I gave a sob, "Prince..."

Sylvanas, her face stricken, looked at me, "I didn't think about the effect this place would have on him, Faith. I'm so sorry."

"He was your horse," I cried. "The only reason I got to Silvermoon when I did was because he was there to take me away from the Scourge..."

"Shh, baby, I know. I know." She held me tightly, allowing me to cry in her arms. I didn't want to believe that Prince was gone. My last link to Sylvanas' life. My companion who had been with me since the nightmare had happened.

"Why?" I asked, barely able to form that word in my throat.

"He was a good horse, baby. You did good by him. Sometimes, these things happen, and you can't explain it. He loved you, and I know he tried to hold on for you."

I just cried.

Hamu found us that way a while later - I couldn't have said whether it was a few minutes or a few hours. He gave a soft sound of distress when he saw Prince, but didn't try to make either myself or Sylvanas feel any better, perhaps understanding that our grief went a little deeper than that.

Sylvanas and I buried our horse in the Ruins of Lordaeron, using the wall as a tombstone. Magically, I etched a portrait of him onto the wall, adding his date of birth and death as well as some of the deeds he had committed. Sylvanas added something under that, mentioning that he had taken me to safety during the Scourge invasion of Quel'Thalas.

I don't know how long I stayed at that grave. Sylvanas didn't move from my side, even when it began to snow again. Eventually, she picked me up and carried me inside, forcing me to eat a bowl of soup before she put me to bed and telling me that she loved me.