The metal seats on both sides of the carriage were quite cold when I first sat down on them. I could also feel a number of the bolt heads and rivets through my clothing.

As the contraption began to move some tens of seconds later, I was still holding onto Valen's hand, and quickly found that the most comfortable spot in the otherwise uncomfortable place was as close as I could be to his warmth and grasp, without sitting on his lap, either.

As the speed and noise of the tram began increasing, so did a familiar alertness and desire to be somewhere else that I could feel again.

From the quick look I stole at the others before starting on my standard panic-avoidance by focusing my attention on one of my toes, I saw that Morgan, the gnome looked quite relaxed and seemed to enjoy the ride as she eyed the papers she had taken from the gnomish office in Ironforge, while her big bodyguard sat silently and motionlessly, still showing no new expressions or speaking any words. Valen had a rather neutral look on his face, with a bit of...some sort of embarrassment in the mix that he was trying to hide. Even after all that had happened, it still took me a moment of thought to remember that he didn't feel exactly neutral about me. It also made me realize once again how instinctively and naturally I looked to him for safety and comfort again, for something to ponder while trying not to remember where I was.

The tram began shaking, making more noise, and generally feeling less and less steady as it still gained speed. It also seemed to be heading downwards, deeper into the underground tunnel. Knowing that didn't exactly help my concentration.

I was just about starting to be ready to close my eyes and try to get even closer to Valen when I heard the gnome's high-pitched voice though the noise of the tram.

"I looked through these documents that my colleague wrote about your inquiry back there. You're looking for some undead using an arm-mounted net launcher and a stealth generator, among a few other devices?"

"And here I thought he wasn't even listening to me. Yeah, that sounds like what we told him," Valen responded.

"Most of this stuff is pretty trivial, but the stealth generator has some rare components we could follow up on. I can't remember this sort of details offhand in most cases, but I do keep quite a few records in my house to help my investigations," she responded in turn.

"Taking your work to your home sounds just like you. You never were that excited to travel anywhere on a mission. I'm starting to see why you've taken up your current position even if it sounds like a bunch of dull, neverending paperwork to me," Valen teased at her, sounding almost like he wanted to laugh, and furthering my understanding that he knew the gnome quite well.

"I was stationed in Kalimdor for a good while until just a few years ago, you know. And quite frankly, observing you lot was quite a lot more boring, with not much going on," the gnome replied, sounding slightly annoyed. "Of course, you wouldn't know much about that since you're always somewhere on your...personal business," she continued.

With that, her attention shifted to me again, as revealed by her next sentence.

"You don't look very confortable with this...umm...Cailea," she struggled to remember my name, having only heard it once before. "Is it the tunnel, the tram, or maybe me?" she proceeded to ask me.

"It's the tunnel," Valen covered for me before I could say it myself, so I simply nodded in agreement.

"I...don't really like the machine either," I then added in a slightly shaky voice.

"Hmph. It's only the greatest technological marvel on Azeroth," Morgan replied in a surprisingly insulted tone. "But I guess a night elf who hasn't grown up around these parts like Valen wouldn't appreciate it much," she finished, then went silent for a moment before speaking again.

"Tell you what, Cailea. I'll strike you a bet," she blindsided me with such a proposition.

"Huh?" was all I could cough out in response.

"You tell me something you really enjoy doing back in Kalimdor, and I bet I'll have some gnomish invention in my home that does it better, or somehow improves the experience."

"Umm..."

I wasn't sure how to react.

"Think about it for a moment. This ride will still take a little while. Valen is going to have to report to headquarters once we get to Stormwind City, so if you can come up with something, we can keep ourselves busy while he's out."

She took a pause again.

"After all, you two are going to accept my offer for a night's stay at my home, aren't you?"