Chapter 18: Northshire Abbey

The Abbey was small, smaller than she'd expected. It was about the size of the cathedral in Stormwind City, but she knew that the living quarters of the Priests were part of the same building, unlike the rectory which housed them in the city. They made their money off a nearby vineyard, which was currently covered in snow. The area surrounding the abby was filled with tents, where about a hundred people were making camp. Luckily, she and Father Samuel got their own tent, and didn't have to squeeze into one of the large communal set ups which held as many as ten different people.

The tents were charmed, and cozy warm inside, with small cots that kept their bedrolls off the ground. there was a small table between the cots, with a lantern on it, and a mat on the floor to keep their feet dry.

It wasn't anywhere near as nice as her shabby apartment in Stormwind, but still somehow nicer than the hovel she lived in in westfall.

She'd given her apartment key to Mr. Tim when she'd left, but he'd just stared at her blankly.

"You coming back?" He'd asked.

Addy shrugged, remembering her promise to Anduin, "Probably."

He looked down at the glass he was washing. "Keep it. No one else in this city is dumb enough to take a job here."

Fairly certain that she'd just been insulted, she took the key with her.

It was night time when they arrived, and Addy quickly ate some stew that a large man with huge sideburns was cooking over a large central fire. Afterwards she loosened her damp clothing, leaving them hanging to dry over night. The warming spells on the tent left it toasty warm and she quickly found herself falling asleep.

The next day Father Samuel brought her to a large group of about a hundred people, all gathered outside the Abbey. Most were humans, but she saw the occasional dwarf and Gnome throughout the crowd as well. She tucked herself quietly in the group as Father Samuel took his place in front of them. Everyone in the group quieted down immediately, each peering over each other to get a good look.

"I'm not going to do introductions," Father Samuel began quickly "You're all here for your own reasons, but it all comes down to learning how to fight. Some of you might have held a sword before, but I bet most of you haven't. So today we train, and tomorrow you'll be split into groups based on your knowledge. Now, let's get started, we don't have time to waste."

The rest of the day was filled with what Addy considered a normal day. They all went on a run, shorter than the one's she was used too due to the bitter cold, and then did some basic exercises. After that he paired them up and set about having them do routines.

Addy expected to work with Father Samuel specifically, but to her surprise he paired her up with a rather large man with a smug smirk on his face that immediately annoyed her. She was hesitant as she walked over to him, watching Father Samuel move to help some of the less experienced trainees.

"You ready?" The guy asked, holding up a monster of a sword. Addy, who had herself picked a sword a bit lighter than what she usually trained with, eyed it nervously.

She held up her sword, trying to think about everything Father Samuel said about fighting a larger opponent.

But it turned out she didn't need too. For all his bravado, the man seemed to run off pure strength and no skill. The sword he held was far too large, and he didn't seemed to know how to use it. He'd thought her an easy target and had started the routine aggressively. But Addy knew better. She easily used his own momentum against him, causing him to burst past her, and fall into the dirt.

Addy paused for a moment, worried that she'd pissed him off. But after a few seconds she heard a low rough chuckle escape from the man. He pressed a fist into the ground, using the tip of his sword to push himself up.

"You're faster than you look." He grunted.

Addy shrugged, "You're build like a brick house. Hard not to be."

He laughed, "I've been told that before."

He introduced himself as Joseph. Apparently his wife had been in the Stormwind army and had died in the second invasion. He'd been a farm hand, but when he learned of her death he'd immediately decided to sign up for the army - but first he had to learn to fight.

"I figure." He grunted as they ran one morning, "If I die, then I get to see her again. And if I don't then that's another demon I can kill."

Addy could respect that.

Addy spared with him for the rest of the day, finding him a better sword, remembering what Father Samuel had told her about sword balance. He was noticeably better by the end, but she wasn't surprised when Samuel sorted him into the beginner's group.

"While you'll start in different groups." Father Samuel explained as he separated them, "By the end of Winter I expect you to all be in the same group. Nobody will have it easier than any other, and if you can't keep up I won't wait for you. Be warned, if you're slowing down the group you'll be finding a different trainer."

Addy had been put into the advanced group, which had made her preen. She had seen some of the other fighters in the group and they had been very good. There had been a very tiny girl with dark brown skin, short hair and a hoop through her nose who was deadly with just about any kind of blade in her hand; and a tall skinny ginger boy who looked innocent enough but could barrage through a dozen men with a sword and shield in his hands.

"Why are they here?" She asked Father Samuel one day over dinner, "They're already pretty amazing."

He shrugged, ripping more meat off the mystery bone he was eating off of, "Most have their reasons. Some want recommendations before they join the army. A good recommendation can give them good postings. They want to fight the legion, not freeze their ass off in some abandoned Garrison in Northrend."

Addy gave him a wide smile, "Will I get a good recommendation?" She asked teasingly.

He snorted, "Too mouthy. You'd be awful in the Army. Can't follow orders for shit."

"Gryan always said I'd be terrible in the army." She pointed out, only wincing a little bit when she said his name.

"He's right." Father Samuel chuckled. "You wouldn't last a day."

"You're giving me too much credit."

The training routine was brutal, but she was used to it. Running through forests and over uneven terrain was different than running over even, well kept cobblestones, but she adapted easily and was able to keep up readily. Group sparring was...different. She had a new partner every day, which was different then fighting a single person. She knew Father Samuel, his moves, his weaknesses, how he feints and dodges. Every day she had to learn how each person fought - some she won, some she lost - most she lost actually. Samuel seemed to find some sort of sick joy out of pairing her with the best and baddest of the lot.

They trained one-on-one once or twice a week, in private away from prying eyes. Most of the group knew she was his apprentice, and most didn't give her a hard time about it - they all had their reasons for being there and as long as they got what they needed they didn't pay her much attention.

Two weeks in she got her first letter.

Father Samuel came back to their tent that night holding a small handful of parchment and scrolls. He tossed her one, startling her. She barely caught it, juggling it a bit before it settled and she stared at it in surprise.

"What's this?" Addy frowned, studying. It wasn't anything fancy, basic parchment with a hemp sting and sealed with blue wax.

Samuel shrugged, opening his own papers, "Mail. Picked it up for you."

"Mail?" Addy wrinkled her nose, "Who'd be sending me..." She trailed off as a thought came to mind and she ripped the letter open, the wax crumbling and falling to the floor as she scanned over the unfamiliar scribbles. She saw her name at the top, but her eyes travelled to the bottom to see the signature.

There wasn't one, instead there were just two letters. A.W.

She felt her lip curling up a bit before she could stop herself. She'd told him briefly that she knew her alphabet, but she didn't think he'd remember something like that. But she still couldn't read the letter.

"Who's it from?" Samuel asked.

Addy flushed, quickly rolling the letter up and tossing it into her bag, "No one. Doesn't matter."

He raised an eyebrow, looking amused at her flustered attitude, but just shrugged going back to his own letters.

They were running with weights after that, large sand bags handing from rods they carried with them. Addy hated every moment of it, but Father Samuel assured her that it was to increase her endurance. Plus he promised they'd start working with the light soon enough, and strengthening her connection too it. So she endured.

It was after New Years that the second letter came. They could see the fireworks from the Abby and they all stayed up later to watch them burst in colours across the skies. The last time she'd seen them she'd been at Sentinel hill, travelling from her home to spend the night with Gryan and James.

She gritted her teeth, not allowing old memories to ruin the night. Half the camp was drunk, the other half was on their way. Even Father Samuel was laughing loudly with some members of the Abbey, looking shockingly out of place with his tight leather and bright red dreadlocks falling straight to his waist. But he seemed right at home with the different members of the church.

The next day he was no less brutal on them, looking far too pleased when they showed up wrecked and hungover the following morning. By the end of the day at least ten people had thrown up, and dozens more looked far too green in the face.

Soon after Samuel returned with another letter for her. She opened it, although she wasn't sure why. She knew who it was from and she couldn't read it, but she still looked over the scribbled words, her eyes drinking in a initials at the bottom with a smile.

"Is that your lover?"

Addy sputtered, crumpling the letter in her hand. "Excuse me?" She squeaked.

Samuel nodded at her letter, ripping a piece of salt pork with his teeth, "Your letter. You're blushing."

"I am not." She scoffed. "And no, it's just a friend. Someone I met in Stormwind."

Samuel shrugged, "Alright."

She let out a breathe. Sometimes she was glad that Samuel had little interest in her personal life. If Gryan had been her he wouldn't have stopped hounding her until she told him or he ripped the letter from her hands.

Addy sighed, smoothing out the crumpled paper and tossing it into her pack.

"Did you hear about Winter's Veil." Ivy Mckinley gushed one morning, sitting by the fire next to the small group of women Addy had taken to eating with. Inwardly she groaned and started to shovel her porridge into her mouth quicker.

Vindi, the short haired girl, grimace as well, looking just as awkward to be standing there - but the third girl in their group Beatrice, leaned forward in excitement.

"Oh! I wish I could have gone!" She gushed, "I've been trying to snag an invite for years. my Uncle is senior assistant to Lord Hatherly you know."

Addy zoned out afterwards, feeling a bit awkward. She supposed that she should have been honoured to be invited to the Winter's Veil ball, even if it had been a scattered last minute invite. She felt a bit warm in the cheeks when she thought about it.

"Did you hear about the prince?"

Addy suddenly zoomed back into the present and her head snapped up, "What?"

Ivy giggled, looking far less deadly than she had at practice the day before, "I heard the Prince didn't attend with Princess Greymane this year."

Vindi raised a single eyebrow, then shrugged, going back to her meal. Addy relaxed, "Well she went to visit family in Darnassus, right?"

"She did?" Beatrice blinked, tilting her head.

Addy panicked for a moment - was that not common knowledge?

"Er..." She flushed, trying to look nonchalant, "I...heard it somewhere."

"That would make sense I guess." Ivy tilted her head, before a large grin crossed her face, "I heard he attended with Lady Margaret!"

Vindi snorted unattractively, "Who cares." She spoke with a mouth full of food.

"Maybe it means something?" Beatrice pointed out, "He's never gone with any girl but the Princess, and god knows they aren't going to get married."

"Why not?" Addy asked.

Beatrice gave her a strange look, "Because she likes women of course."

"Oh." Addy frowned, "Of course." Had she been the only person on the planet who hadn't known this?

Ivy shook her head, "Either way - Lady Margaret is beautiful - blond hair, green eyes. Perfect figure. They'd make such a good couple."

Addy felt a twinge in her stomach and she knew her face was pinched. She felt a strange sort of anger in her gut, kindled with a vindictiveness knowing that he'd asked her before the beautiful Lady Margaret.

Addy froze. Oh light no...

She was jealous.

No. No she wasn't jealous of some stupid bint she'd never met in her life. She didn't care if she had beautiful hair, which was probably long and shiny and not choppily cut and half burnt from demon fire. Or if her skin was probably pristine and perfect unlike the mangled monstrosity that was her neck and jaw.

Addy groaned inwardly, dropping her spoon back into her porridge. She wasn't hungry anyways.

Addy watched from the centre of the makeshift arena as Samuel walked around, tossing various weapons on the around, axes, hammers, staves and daggers. Finally he grabbed the sword that she had taken to calling her own. He went and tossed it on the ground near the edge of the arena, behind him.

Addy raised an eyebrow, watching his movements carefully. She knew that at any second he could pounce on her like a cat.

Just as she suspected, he brought his own sword up, signalling his intent to start the fight. Addy swallowed, eyeing her sword behind him on the floor.

He charged, swinging his sword and Addy dodge right, tucking into a summersault before coming back to her feet, quickening running around the edge of the arena. Samuel shifted easily, slicing his sword down in front of her, cutting off her path. She lurched backwards, quickly spinning to move out of his grasp.

Samuel was watching her as she edged around him, his eyes searching. Addy wasn't entirely sure what he was looking for, but she couldn't help but feeling that this was a test more than a training session.

She put on a burst of speed, running straight at him. At the last second she slid along the ground, hoping to go past him. But he was far quicker than her, grabbing the back of her pony tail and yanking her back - making her scream in pain. She immediately tried to kick his leg out, but Father Samuel just pulled her up and placed his sword at her throat.

"I thought I said to deal with this." Samuel chastised, pulling lightly on her ponytail. She winced, and cleared her throat awkwardly.

"I will." She grumbled.

"You'd better." Samuel pointed out, "It's a liability."

Addy glared, reaching up and grabbing a fistful of his dreads and yanking them down hard. At the same time she pushed his arm away from her neck, leaning back and yanking him over her back. He flipped over her and landed on his back in the dirt.

"It's a liability." She mocked.

"Alright, Alright." He grunted, pulling himself to his feet, "Point made. Now back to the centre. We go again."

And they went again, and again, and again. Until Addy was bruised and tired and sore and not once could she make it past him. Every time he beat her down, tossing her back into the centre ring. Every few bouts he moved the position of her sword and the other weapons around them, before starting again.

"Okay stop." Addy held up her hand, breathing heavily as she bent over, trying to catch her breathe. "Obviously I'm not getting something."

"No, you're not." He agreed roughly, "Try again."

She sighed, annoyed. She looked at her sword, sticking straight up out of the dirt. Then she looked at him. It was an uneven fight, she needed to even the playing field.

Without waiting for him to start she rushed at him. Taking him by surprised she went shoulder first into his stomach, knocking him off his feet. Before he could catch his breath she knocked his sword out of his hand, sending it flying.

She climbed off of his and ran for her sword.

A hand curled around her ankle and she yelped, flying face first into the ground. She groaned as her lip smashed into a rock and she knew it was going to be tender for days.

Samuel twisted and she felt the cold tip of a dagger against her throat.

"Damn." Addy grumbled, resting her head against the cold earth as she eyed the cold steel of the dagger, "Where'd you get that?"

Samuel raised an eyebrow and looked sideways. Addy frowned and looked at the dozen or so weapons he had scattered around the field between her and her sword.

She winced as she finally realized what the lesson had actually been about.

"You get it now." Father Samuel grunted, lifting himself to his feet.

Addy pursed her lips, climbing to her feet with a slight wince, touching her lip gently. "Yeah I get it."

Father Samuel picked up her sword, holding it out and tossing it, "You've lost your sword, now what? You could try and find it, but someone is trying to kill you. You need to find a weapon and fast - luckily, on a battlefield there's usually an abundance of them."

"I can't use most of these." Addy pointed out, "Staves are a magic user's weapon, but aren't much good against a sword. And I'm more likely to stab myself than an enemy with a dagger."

"Hammer and Maces." Father Samuel continued, "The Hammer is a well known paladin weapon, but most useful in the hands of larger beings than you. You couldn't wield one large enough to do any damage, but a spiked mace can do a hell of a lot of damage."

Addy looked around and noted the number of maces around. She realized he was right - Most maces weren't too much heavier than a sword, just much shorter with a different balance.

She reached down and picked one up, swinging it a few times to get the hang of it.

"Dagger's are tricker." Samuel nodded, "But sometimes you don't get a choice. A stave won't do much damage, but I can tell you getting whacked in the head with one can disorientate you. The point is to survive long enough to find your sword. Or to get somewhere safe."

Addy swallowed, looking around the arena feeling a bit dejected. She'd failed his stupid test and she couldn't help but feel bitter and angry with herself.

She reached forward and grabbed a large two handed war axe. She grunted a bit, not expecting the weight. It was strangely balanced compared to her sword - a very heavy top that threatened to push her off balance.

Samuel smirked, and once again raised his sword. Addy swallowed, spotting her sword across the arena. She just needed to survive long enough to reach it.

She raised the axe, trying to look more confident then she felt.

And then she charged.

A week later he started her light training.

Addy was nearly vibrating with excitement. She had been waiting to learn how to fight with the light for ages. She had been at Northshire for two months now and she'd progressed greatly. She could say without modesty that she was probably the best swordsman of the bunch. She was alright with axes and hammers - daggers were a no-go with her and she'd hit herself more with the staves more times than she could count.

Samuel had them fighting against people with different weapons proficiencies - she fought against Vindi with her deadly daggers, trying to keep her from getting close enough to kill her. She fought against Joseph, who had taken up a large hammer which he was much better with than a sword. With him she'd learned how to properly dodge a heavy blow that could crush her skull easily. She even fought against a mage whose fireball display had been extremely impressive.

She knew that Father Samuel was preparing them for battle - for situations where they might not know what exactly they would be fighting. Having them team up in every conceivable way. Two on two, one on three, five on five. He'd created mock battles and skirmishes and slowly over time their group grew bigger as the men and women from the beginners group graduated.

She was the only one training with the light however. The others would need to find their own trainers for various means. Vindi had been seen speaking with a representative of SI:7 in the stables, most were in talks with recruiters for the army. She saw some talking to priests and others speaking with Archmages. She seemed to be the only Paladin in training.

"The first thing I'll show you is a very simple spell." Samuel started, "But your most important."

He raised his sword and swung it. Without hesitating Addy swung her own up to catch it, sliding to his hilt and pulling to yank his sword out of its blow.

He pulled back after that. He stared at her for a few moments as if contemplating. Addy furrowed her eyebrows, watching him curiously. What was he doing?

Then he attacked again - the same blow, from the same direction.

Addy raised her sword to block it, misdirecting the blow in the same way. But once his blade hit hers she immediately knew something was different.

She felt her feet slid back in the dirt at the force of the blow. She gasped as she felt her feet give way and she was suddenly flying back. She landed in the dirt with a loud thump and for a moment she couldn't breathe. She rolled to her side, taking in deep breathes as she held a hand to her chest.

"Fighting another human is one thing." Father Samuel walked over, holding a hand out for her, "Fighting a Blood Elf, or a Goblin or even smaller demons is one thing. Fighting against an Orc...or a Troll, or a Doomguard?" He yanked her to her feet, "They are stronger than you - they will always be stronger. Their blows are stronger too."

"How did you do that?" Addy bent over, holding her hands on her knees.

He smirked, holding up his sword. As she stared at it she noticed a faint shimmering on the weapons - like small veins of gold sparkling throughout the iron.

"Ask the Light for strength." Father Samuel explained, "Imbue it into your weapon - into your blow."

Addy felt stupid for a moment. She knew that - it was one of the few things Gryan had taught her. It was what she had been trying to do when she'd attacked the Pit Lord back at Sentinel Hill. But the sheer amount of power he'd pushed into it had surprised her. She'd never been able to call on that much power before.

"How?" Addy asked him.

Father Samuel smirked. "Close your eyes."

Addy didn't think closing her eyes in the middle of battle would be a great idea, but she did as she was told, letting her eyes fall shut.

"Find the light."

Addy could do that easily. She was always somewhat aware of the bubbling light within her chest - feeling like it was a warm bubble around her heart. She immediately located it and felt the warmth grow out to her entire body. She felt herself smile despite herself.

"Good." Father Samuel spoke. "Now pull on it and try to focus it into your hands...your weapon."

Addy didn't as she was told - it wasn't anything new for her. She pulled until there was nothing left tp pull, pushing it into her sword which suddenly felt lighter than a dagger.

"You stopped."

Addy frowned, fighting the urge to open her eyes, "There's nothing left."

"There's always something left." Samuel spoke softly, "The light resides in your but isn't a part of you. How much you can use depends on your strength and will."

Addy wanted to argue. She knew her own body and she knew how much she could pull. There was nothing left!

But she huffed instead and reached back inside of her, looking for more light. True to her word there wasn't anything left - it had all gathered into her weapon and hands, preparing for a devastating blow.

She bit back her annoyance, but decided 'screw it'. She reached into the space where her light had resided and pulled.

To her surprise, more light came. She paused for a moment, but then pulled the light, pushing more and more of it into her blow. She felt elated, her heart racing with sheer excitement at the amount of power she could feel flowing underneath her veins. She had never felt anything like it before - her skin was tingling like there were bugs crawling all over her and her entire body felt charged with lightning.

She opened her eyes, and swung her blade.

Father Samuel raised his sword to block, but it was no use. The last thing she saw as his eyes widening in surprise as a blinding burst of light exploded from her sword and he was sent flipping through the air.

Addy gasped in shock and a burst of worry filtered through her - but that was the last thing she felt before darkness covered her eyes and the ground came rushing up to meet her.

"Perhaps I should I have spoken about restraint a bit first."

Addy turned her head on her cot in the medical tent. Laying in the bed next to her was Father Samuel. He'd had a shattered arm and a few broken ribs before they'd healed him. She felt incredibly guilty, but another part of her felt pride. She'd done that! Shattered the arm of a man three times her size!

"Don't look so smug." Samuel scoffed, "You won't feel so prideful when you pass out in the field of battle"

"Still." Addy smirked, leaning back into her pillow, "I was pretty good."

"You had much more...control than I expected." Samuel conceded, "If not a bit overzealous."

He took time after that to help her control the flow of the light. How to use what her body possessed and how to call upon more from...well wherever it came from. She quickly learned how much was needed for various blows of various strengths - getting used to the flowing of energy until it came second nature to her.

She could now pull on the light without pause, going from one blow to the next. Deciding when she needed it and when she didn't as to not tired too quickly. Father Samuel seemed pleased that she had picked up on so fast and only a few weeks later he had started on more aggressive attacks.

He taught her how to form the light into a single burst of power, sending it flying at the enemy. How to cause the ground to erupt underneath them, shields that could protect from spells and weapons. He showed her how to use her light to find hidden traps and spies. How to confuse the mind and clear your own, how to stop others from casting on her and how to burn poisons from her blood. She'd been sick for days as she learned the last one, being poisoned over and over as she practiced healing herself from them. He taught her how to create a light so startling that it blinded everyone who looked at it. Poor Joseph had been in the medical tent for three days as they healed his eyes when he'd happened to see her practicing that one.

And then one day it happened.

She was sparing with Father Samuel, twisting and turning. Jumping to avoid his spells and turning to send a blast of her own. She blinded him and he healed himself, he made the ground collapse under her and she twisted, delivering a blow with her light enhanced weapon. He toss up a shield that her sword bounced off of and she sent blow after blow, slamming her sword onto the shield until it broke. Then she sent a single burst of light, distracting him long enough to drop low and kick his ankles out from under him. Twisting she landed on top of him, pressing her sword to his throat and holding her hand above him - a pulsing ball of pure light waiting in her hand - ready to be thrown at him - delivering the killing blow.

They froze like that, both of them looking surprised. Addy had never beat him before - not in single combat, and he was well and truly trapped.

Without another word he let out a deep chuckle, "Well done."

Addy pulled the light back inside and took her sword off of his neck. She still felt exhausted - using the light so much tired her out far too quickly, but Father Samuel said that that would fade with time.

"Congratulations." Father Samuel spoke and she pulled him to her feet.

"I only beat you once." Addy chuckled.

He raised an eyebrow, "There's a reason I come here to train people every winter, Adeile. There are fully trained and battle hardened warriors who've never once beat me in single combat. Don't be so quick to dismiss your accomplishments."

Addy looked down, flushing in pride.

"You've learned quickly." Father Samuel grabbed his weapon, turning back to face her and entering into a battle stance, "But there's always room for improvement."

And once again - he lunged.

Addy received a number of letters, every single one of them with the same flowing initials at the bottom of the page. Every time she got one she smiled, opened them and scanned her eyes over the strange foreign letters like maybe if she stared at them long enough they would start to make sense. In her brain she started to make up stories and messages that all sounded like they could be plausible.

Hi Addy, spent another day in the library, I must've read every book in here by now...

Hey Addy, Nothing new to report. Spent some time in our crystal cave - it's a bit slippery but I haven't fallen to my death yet!

Hello Addy! The cold weather's been making my joints a bit stiff, my knee's been hurting something awful...

Addy frowned. Her grandfather had a lovely herbal recipe for a tea that used to sooth his joints - it was made of peacebloom and was cheap and easy to make. She wondered if he knew about it. Maybe she should send it to him...

She shook her head. She was being ridiculous! She didn't even know if his knee was actually hurting him! She didn't know what he'd been up to at all expect that he seemed to have an abundance of time to write to her.

Addy leaned back against the wall of her tent, huffing. She supposed it was as easy as finding a scribe to read her letters - there were plenty of them, and most of the local priests could read just fine. But she didn't want to share them with anybody. Partly because she didn't want it getting out that she was possibly friends with the Crown Prince (and might be getting preferential treatment), but mostly because...well their conversations had always been private. She didn't want to betray his trust by showing someone something that could be potentially damning. And what if he said something embarrassing about her? The last thing she needed was Father Samuel finding something out about her like that - she'd never hear the end of it.

She huffed again and launched herself off her cot. She needed a stranger - someone she could trust not to blab anything. Someone who didn't answer to the church or the crown like priests or scribes.

A though came to her mind and she started to make her way from the tent. She scanned the snow covered ground, pulling her warm cloak further around herself to keep out the cold. Daily training had finished over an hour ago, but people were still milling around - some chatting, others practicing. Most had returned to the warmth of the charmed tents, and some were huddled around the fire, warming their hands and toes. She scanned the courtyard until she found who she was looking for.

"Joseph" She called, running over to the man she'd fought that first day of training at the Abbey.

The man turned around, holding a large war hammer which suited him much better than the sword he'd been using before. He nodded as he saw her, giving her a small grin.

"Addy." He greeted, reaching out to shake her hand. Her whole arm shook with it and she grunted a bit, wincing as she held her arm, "How are you doing today?"

"Good." She nodded, "Good. I, er- I wanted to ask you a question."

He shrugged, smiling at her good natured, "Sure. How can I help?"

"Can you read?"

He seemed startled by the question, but then shrugged, nodding his head, "Yeah. I mean - my father taught me when I was a kid. My mother thought he was crazy but well.." He sighed, looking fond. "Why do you ask?"

She quickly explained her predicament, not looking him in the eyes as she muttered bitterly about her stash of letters. He listened kindly, but looked a bit confused.

"Why not ask the scribes?" He asked, curiously. "They're always discreet."

"Er- Well..." Addy shifted from foot to foot, "It's not the contents so much as it is...who they're from?"

He gave her a hesitant look, "I'm not about to commit a crime, am I?"

"No!" Addy blinked in surprise, "No, no. Nothing like that. I just...well." She cleared her throat, "I just don't want it getting out who I'm talking with. For...personal reasons."

He sighed, rubbing a hand over his face, "Alright. Fine, sure. As long as you're not committing treason or something, I suppose I could help out."

Addy beamed, grabbing his hand and yanking him back towards her tent, "Thank you! Let's go!"

She handed him the first one.

He took it gingerly and gave her a small frown. With one last dubious glance he opened it and quickly scanned it.

He dropped it like it burnt him.

"T-That's-" He pointed at it aggressively, "From the bloody Prince!" He hissed the last words in a whisper.

"Shh!" Addy snapped at him, "That's what I was talking about okay? Don't freak out. We're friends is all, and I don't want people knowing that because then-"

"They might think you get special treatment?" Joseph looked unconvinced, "Last I checked you're still in the same shit tents as the rest of us, running the same shit laps and doing the same shit drills all day."

"All the same." Addy snapped, "It's not something I want getting out."

"Alright, Alright." Jospeh shook his head, looking a bit stressed, "Fine okay."

"What's it say?"

He looked over it again, "He's talking about the Ball - He attended with Lady Margaret, apparently because she was taken already in all but name and therefore wouldn't cause any fuss."

"That sounds like him." Addy chuckled, feeling a bit better knowing Lady Margaret was taken. "Anything else?"

"Er..." He looked a bit nervous, looking between her and the letter, "Are you sure I'm supposed to be reading this?"

"Why?"

"Well...his father...the bloody King, oh light. Well his father is recalling troops from...well, pretty much everywhere it looks like."

"Hmmm." Addy nodded. It made sense. They needed to replenish their forces and quickly. It hardly seemed that the Legion would attack Northrend or Pandaria. They'd focus on the large cities and greater population centres.

He moved onto the next letter. He read it before shaking his head.

"I'm going to be arrested for this." Joseph groaned, but continued anyways, "He wishes you a Happy New Year. Is suspicious of Tess...Princess Tess? Actually, I don't want to know. And they're looking for the 'source of the invasion' with Khadgar and Lady Proudmoore. And..." He dropped the letter and hissed at her, "Working with the Horde!"

"Shhhh." Addy smacked his arm, looking around, "It's not like that."

"Fine! Fine." He continued going through the letters, "Okay this one says they think the portal is in the great sea near Pandaria. Also he's worried his father has a grey hair."

Addy smiled fondly at that, but felt a lurch of hope. Had they found the portal? How long ago had he sent that letter?

"The king is sending Shaw on a secret mission. I don't know who Shaw is."

"I do." Addy grumbled. She still wasn't particularly fond of the man after their one and only meeting.

Joseph gave her a strange look and continued on.

"And this one...Oh."

Addy poked her head up, "Oh? Oh what?"

"It's his birthday." He pointed at the letter, "I forgot about that. There's always a big party. "

Addy chuckled, "Oh I bet he hates that. What else did he say?"

"Er- Tirion Fordring might be coming to Stormwind, he seems pretty excited about that. Oh and I think he misses you."

Addy paused for a moment, trying to keep a blush off her face. Most people got presents on their birthday, didn't they? She'd never gotten any from her grandfather, mostly because he was usually too drunk to remember. Gryan would sometimes sneak extra supplies into her bundles when she wasn't looking around her birthday, but she usually tried to return them in an equally sneaky way.

"I should get him something." She declared out loud.

Joseph snorted, "Like what?"

"I-I dunno. hat do people usually give?" Addy asked.

"Depends on the person. Something related to hobby's or interests. Jewelry, fine swords and weapons maybe. Or a card."

"A card?" She asked.

He shrugged, "Sure. Some people think it's cheap. But writing a nice birthday greeting can be a bit more personal than a gift - plus I bet he gets loads of gifts."

Addy nodded, an idea slowly entering her head, "Yeah, Yeah I'll write him a card."

"Good idea." He pointed at her, before snatching a blank piece of parchment from the stack on Samuel's bedside, "What do you want it to say?"

"No." Addy reached forward, snatching the parchment, "I want to write it."

He paused for a moment, before a large grin crossed his face, "That sounds like a perfect idea."

He spent the next few hours showing her the letter's for Happy Birthday. She wasn't very good at it - her 'y's' were always backwards and her hands shook tremendously as she wrote. But he seemed to have an unending amount of patience, helping her until she got it right. Addy supposed on another life he would have been a fantastic father.

"It's cause the muscles in your hand are undeveloped." He explained as he helped steady her hand again, "The more you write the more smooth it'll become."

Not long after she had written something that was somewhat passable - it looked like she just had bad penmanship rather than being completely illiterate. She beamed at it, feeling a burst of pride in her chest. She'd written something! She written a letter all by herself! She beamed and rolled up the scroll, tossing a quick thank you towards Joseph before quickly running towards the small tent that housed the mail courier.

The snow was melting on her final day at Northshire.

She hadn't gotten a message back from Anduin yet, but she checked the mail every day. Joseph promised to help her write back after every one now. She was excited to show off every letter she learned to Anduin.

The day had started out normal. They ran laps around the Abbey, started up several mock skirmishes and had moved onto hand to hand combat.

Addy noticed the unease around the camp quickly. People were running around and shouting orders. She paused in her fight, looking around confused. It only took a few seconds for everyone else to notice. Father Samuel paused where he was, moving around and helping people correct their stances. He was staring at the Abbey with a frown.

Addy watched him run towards the Abbey, grabbing a Priest and asking questions with hushed voiced. It took only a moment and he was hurrying back with large determined steps.

"What's going on?" Addy asked, catching up with him before he joined the rest of the group.

He looked at her with dark, sad eyes and Addy felt a burst of worry in her chest and he moved to look at the group in front of him.

"There's been another attack." He spoke to entire crowd of now more than two hundred people, "The King is placing a Call for Arms. Any man or woman who can hold a sword is being called to defend the Alliance."

Addy sucked in breath through her teeth, her eyes scanning the horizon with wide eyes as she tried to spot the familiar site of the green portal and the single black ship.

"Stormwind?" She asked, her voice breathless. She thought about Anduin. He couldn't fight. He could barely use a sword. Against a demon warrior? He was defenceless.

"No."

Addy paused, blinking in confusion as she turned to glance back at Samuel. It had to be Stormwind! It made the most sense...it was what they had been preparing for. Where all their troops were...their army.

"Where are they?" She asked, feeling like they'd once again been duped by the Legion.

Father Samuel looked like he'd swallowed a lemon as he seemed to understand the same thing.

"Ironforge."

A/N: This entire chapter was basically a training montage in written form, and was kind of a bitch to write. No Anduin this chapter, but I hope having a long chapter makes up for it!

You guys have been so amazing! I'm happy that so many people seem to be reading this. Your reviews and comments make my day!

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Until Next Time,

-Ash