"And this as well. Thank you!"

Kyra slammed the bag on the counter. The bank clerk's eyebrows went up for a split second, but he was quick to regain his composure. With a polite smile, he nodded and motioned to another employee to take it in the back of the vault.

"Anything else, miss Moongaze?" the dressed up Night elf added

"Yes. I would like to withdraw ten thousand gold from my family deposit."

The clerk's eyes went wide and his jaw dropped for a split second.

"Are you sure, miss?" he forced a smile

"What do you think?" she kept his gaze with a cold stare.

The male smiled reluctantly once more, and added in a calm voice.

"You know, that in these cases, we need to inform our superiors, and it can take up to a day to finish the process..."

"I do not care." Kyra's voice sounded glacial. "I want my money by tomorrow morning. Do what you have to do. Prepare my belongings to be shipped also by tomorrow morning."

"Where?" the clerk added, confused

"Stormwind. Dwarven District . For now."

And before the dumbfounded male could say anything, she quickly turned around on her heels and started to walk in a steady pace towards the Rut'theran Village portal.

Before she reached the entrance, her gaze fell on the tall female Argent Crusade representative, and she stopped. The recruiter boldly and proudly displayed her white and gold tabard over her shiny robes, while standing behind a simple wooden sign that read "Argent Crusade is recruiting for Northrend campaign".

Kyra suddenly turned, closed her eyes to steady her breathing and slowly started approaching the recruiter.

Kyra did not even look at the Sentinels guarding the portal when she passed them, in a rush. They undoubtedly saluted her, she could tell, the short clang of their armor was proof enough. When she was on the other side, she stopped for a brief moment, her eyes seemingly scouting after a familiar figure.

Her gaze stopped upon a night elf woman, with long purple hair, dressed in fisherman clothes. The woman was clearly busy, as she was hastily hanging some early caught prey on a rope outside her tent. Her movements were rushed, what appeared to be her usual chores taking a back seat, as she was absently arranging her day's work. The woman's mind was elsewhere, her errands were executed mechanically.

Kyra smiled. She knew this woman for so many years now, one of the only living beings she was truly fond of. She delivered fish every two weeks to her doorstep, and casual talks turned up to become conversations. Sharing similar struggles and passing no judgement made the two women almost friends.

Kyra took a deep breath, and started walking towards the busy fisherwoman.

Even though the elven society was always reminded of how important their lives were and the wellbeing of their race, not all were receiving equally fair treatment, and this fact was quite visible in the villages. The class disparities were supposed to be a thing of the past, but still the difference between villages and the grand city of Darnassus were quite painful. The ones that had the luck to have influential relatives held most businesses in the community, leaving the common folk with little choice for professions and occupations – like fishing, herb gathering, ore mining or cooking. As it always goes – improvements are never made to serve the common folk.

Needless to say, the people were still happy. Albeit struggling, but content with their simple lives. This was the nature of their society – forget the past, bury it, move on.

And then there was another issue, that seemed to have slipped everyone's mind.

Kyra's gaze fell on a dark haired male, that was sitting on the small dock, his eyes seemingly scouting the horizon.

He was really tall, but fairly thin. His cheeks were hollow and ashen colored, a faint rose tint still residing on his features, like a weak reminder of the fact that he was still alive. He had his pants rolled up, letting his bare feet enjoy the warmth of the water, moving his toes ever so slightly from time to time, when a new wave caressed his exposed skin.

"Sister Moongaze!" The woman drying the fishes exclaimed when her eyes caught the a warrior, making her jump in surprise. She added with a gleaming smile "I have some fresh capture for you today!"

"Thank you, Elariel" Kyra bowed her head, and a slight smile, reserved for a handful of people lit her features.

Seeing that, the purple haired fisherwoman hastily bowed hers, smiling back.

" But I will not buy fish today, Elariel. I want to discuss something with you, something important. Mind if I sit down?" the warrior pointed at a small set of chairs, in front of the patched up tent.

"Oh, by all means, sister Moongaze!" Elariel moved fast in front of the warrior, dusting with one hand the chairs

" Have a sit! It's always a pleasure having you here". Elariel offered with a wide gesture the seat, smiling excitedly at the warrior.

"Come, join me. Please" Kyra said as she sat down, the slow clang of her armor making her words sound grave. She extended her arm, offering the other elf a seat next to her.

Confusion spread across the fisherwoman's feature and she smiled once more, her eyes darting from Kyra to the chair, questioning the meaning of the gesture. After pacing in one place for a few seconds, she exhaled and sat next to the warrior. A moment of peaceful silence crawled between them.

Kyra cleared her throat, making the other woman shift in her seat, startled.

"How have you been lately?" the warrior started in a calm tone. Her eyes were warm while turning towards Elariel. This simple gesture made the fisherwoman smile.

"Oh..." Elariel smile widened ."Trade has been pretty slow lately, but we can still make ends meet. Luckily, tonight is the festival, and they bought some fresh fish. Not a lot, since the gnomes and the goblins have new ways of fishing, and the traditional ways are not that efficient. Can't really compete with grenades and explosives with a fishing pole, you know?... But still we made enough money that should last us till the end of the week"

"How is your brother?"

A shade of sadness washed for a brief moment over Elariel's feature and a sad smile spread across her pale face. Her eyes moved towards the small dock, resting upon the lean figure sitting there.

He seemed at peace, Kyra noticed, but even she knew that this was merely a temporary state. She could see clearly that he lost weight.

"Well... We can manage it. " The fisher woman spoke in a calm, warm tone. Her words were full of love, but for some reason her voice sounded tired in that second. Silence descended upon the pair once more.

"He's been getting worse, hasn't he?"

Kyra's words cut through the quietness like an icy blade. Elariel sighted and let her arms limp in her lap.

" The nightmares have been more frequent, I can barely hold him now when he becomes overwhelmed. He lost weight, as you can see... I am trying my best, but here, he doesn't feel safe. It reminds him too much of the war... It;s the passing of people, the lack of a true roof over his head..."her voice cracked, and suddenly tears streamed down her cheeks.

"Silly me" she added and quickly started wiping the traitorous tears with her shaky hands. "I am sorry...I...have work to do... I hope to see you soon, I caught...I am sorry..." the woman quickly rose to her feet, hiding her face.

In that very moment, a hand grasped her wrist, halting her movement. She quickly turned her gaze down, towards Kyra. The warrior was still sitting down, her plate gloved hand around the fisherwoman's wrist, her eyes fixated on the man gazing in the distance.

"No need to be sorry. Sit. Please"

Elariel took a step back and looked at her caged wrist. Kyra slowly retracted her hand and nodded. The fisherwoman sat down, wiping her tears once more. Another second of silence crawled between them and it felt like ages.

The next words that left Kyra's mouth were unexpected, rushed and pronounced in a shaky tone.

"I want you to move in to my house. Both of you. You can move there right now, if you want."

Elariel's eyes went wide, her gestures froze for a brief second. She shook her head, not sure if what she heard was real. Not sure if it was a joke. And if it was, why would the warrior in front of her be so cruel?

"What? I am sorry, sister Moongaze, I am not sure I heard you properly..."

" I want to give you my family house. As a gift."

Elariel rose up, her fists clenched next to her small frame, lips slightly parted. Confusion and anger were switching their shadow on her otherwise beautiful features. Kyra slowly rose up as well, placing her hand gently on the fisherwoman's shoulder, a weak attempt for a comforting gesture.

But Elariel stepped back, shaking off the affectionate gesture, absently. Her eyes met warrior's gaze, and she uttered in disbelief:

"What are you talking about? What is all this? Is this some sort of sick joke? I do not understand..."

" I know how it sounds... But please, listen to me, Elariel. This will mean you can finally have a place, a proper place to take care of your brother...And maybe others..." Kyra added in the most calm tone she could muster "Accept it, please. There is no hidden meaning to it... I owe this...to your brother..."

Elariel's mouth opened in shock, as the sudden realization washed over her at enormous speed. Tears started to drown her eyes, slowly carving a narrow path along her cheeks.

"Where are you going to live then?"

Kyra closed her eyes and responded with a short phrase.

"I have a plan."

"I understand..." Elariel lowered her gaze, letting her tears fall on the ground.

Then something happened, that turned Kyra's world upside down entirely.

The fisherwoman hugged her.

Kyra froze. She had this sobbing mess of a woman with her arms wrapped around her ribcage, and she did not know how to respond. She just stood there, with her arms in the air, palms facing each other, confused, as Elariel was crying quietly into her chest. She did not know how to respond, so she just didn't, letting the fisherwoman to spill her emotions in her armored chest. She was unsure if she should hug her back, so she didn't. The truth is, she forgot how to do it. In a way, this small woman that she would probably never see again meant for her more than all of Darnassus higher ups combined. And if there was any doubt in her heart about the decision she took earlier, this moment vanished it entirely.

Elariel slowly took a step back, smiling. Tears were still were visible on her cheeks, but they were born out of joy this time.

"Thank you..." she murmured. " You have no idea how many people you will help..."

Kyra simply nodded in response. She turned her gaze towards the male that was scouting, absently the horizon.

"Can I, please...Speak with him?"

Elariel nodded in approval, her smile widening.

"He would love that."

Kyra turned on her heels and slowly walked towards the small dock, leaving the smiling woman to watch her move away.

Kyra made sure she did not startle the thin male as she approached him, trying to step as lightly as she could, and once she reached the pier, quietly sat down next to him.

They grew up together, played children's games when they were young, and even though she was a priestess trainee, she asked him in secret to teach her the ways of the warrior. And he agreed wholeheartedly. They met every night, after the last prayer and sparred with small wooden swords. It was their little secret, a bond that no one could ever break. They swore they will never betray each other, never forget each other. But then, they grew up and became soldiers – each in different parts of the world.

She came back from Outland to find her home empty and her only friend broken beyond recognition. War of the Shifting Sands twisted his soul and distorted his reality. When they met again, they did not recognize each other. So they avoided to meet as much as they could. The pain was too great. There was a feeling that tormented both of them, but never dared to share – they both felt like they failed.

On rare occasions when they met, they sat next to each other, in silence. When they departed, they felt relieved for a moment, and guilty because of it. But those seconds would pass, and strangely they would kind off miss the other's company. Friendship is truly a strange thing.

The breeze was cool and gentle, caressing the water surface, softly making small ripples intro the vast blue surface. A slightly bold gust of wind blew few of her hair strands from her face, with a warm, sweet touch. She closed her eyes, letting herself grow accustomed to the sun rays. She spent so much time hating day time, that she forgot how pleasant something as simple as sun rays can feel.

She inhaled. The smell of salt filled her nostrils. It was an odd feeling, a nostalgic sensation that overwhelmed her in that very moment.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?"

The raspy voice startled her. She turned towards the thin male. He was facing her, no longer absent, fully aware of her presence. His eyes were full of sadness and behind that familiar emotion, there was something more. Something that had no word assigned to it. Something that only people that danced with the Death could understand and feel.

"It...It is." Kyra met his gaze

The man let out a shaky, barely audible sigh. Despite being almost the same age as Kyra, he looked much older. His skin was unusually pale and small, unusual wrinkles were adorning his skin.

"I am leaving tomorrow morning. I talked with Elariel. I am leaving my house to you two. I hope you will find peace there."

The man eyes went wide, only for a second. In the next moment, pain could be read in his gaze as he looked at her.

"You are going back, aren't you?"

"No..." she murmured, confused at his remark

"Yes you are, silly. I can see it in your eyes. My nightmare is your reason to live. You are going back to war."

His words were no filled with anger or resentment. They were full of pity, sorrow and compassion. He extended his arm, and pointed with his shaky hand somewhere in the distance.

"You see that cloud?"

Kyra looked up and scouted the horizon. The sky was clear and blue, but somewhere along the long line where the sea and the sky kiss there was a small, barely visible cloud. Half transparent, seemingly ready to melt forever, the hazy formation was floating peacefully towards an unknown destination.

"Yes." She answered

The man smiled, and let his weak hand rest in his lap.

"I've been following this cloud since this morning. In the beginning, it was a massive red and dark, proud and arrogant blue puff. It looked unpredictable. It could've been a storm cloud, or just one that could swallow the sun and turn this sunny day in to a dark, gloomy one . But slowly, as he moved, he started to disintegrate. Step by step. Winds ripped his beautiful shape apart, sun pierced it's composure. His red and blue colors were soon gone, he broke in other small clouds that vanished. Slowly, but surely he will be gone, melting away once the sun sets. Burned by his own arrogance. He dared to cross the sky..."

The man looked at Kyra, and she could see his eyes fill with tears.

"This is my torture. This is what I feel. Every day. I am that cloud."

Kyra gently cupped his weak hand in hers. It felt strange, as her gloves did not allow her to truly feel the warmth of human skin. But after all, this was one of the purposes of combat gear – to numb your senses. She lifted her gaze and looked at him. His cheeks had long, wet streaks – traitorous proof of supposed weakness. Gone were the days of his strong frame, gloomy eyes and wicked smile. The war broke him forever, leaving behind a weak shadow of a witness to the carnage.

"This cloud" she added in a hushed tone "Will return to Earth, Water or Air. And tomorrow it will start again it's journey. Nothing is forever, Kaylin and everything passes. Patience, my friend."

The man smiled and nodded towards the warrior,

"Just so you know" he added in a hushed tone " No matter what we do as soldiers, people will still hate us. "

She let her head rest on his arm. She had the strange feeling that this will be the last time they will see each other.

"I know..." she murmured and closed her eyes

"Northrend?" he added, and she could tell, his voice was breaking.

She let out a long sigh, as tears pooled in her eyes, and a strange smile spread across her face.

"Yes..."