I'm on a roll now! Another chapter up. Thanks for reading.
Kia walked slowly through the ruined forest around Stormwind, along with a few dozen other druids, allowing their magic to remove the impurities left behind by the demons and heal the land. Demon blood was poison and it took powerful magic to scrub it from the earth, preventing permanent damage.
It had been almost a week since the attack and, rather than sit with Anduin as he discussed the situation with the other leaders of the Alliance, Kia opted to join the other druids working their magic around Goldshire. She was still weakened by her injuries sustained in the battle, though she was fully healed, thanks to Anduin's powerful connection to the Light. The other healers had done a good job, but Anduin insisted on double checking their work. The Light could repair the damage, but it would still take time to regain strength.
Kia had been lucky and she knew it. The maneuver she performed was dangerous and insane, but it worked, though she'd have to be more careful in the future. She was destined to be the queen and it would kill Anduin if he lost her, particularly to the same enemy who had claimed his father's life.
"How are you feeling, your Highness?" Asked one of the night elf druids who worked his magic directly to her left. Helo had studied to become a druid under Malfurion and was one of her father's most talented students. Kia had grown up watching him learn to use his druidic powers. They had been friends most of her life.
"I'm fine, Helo." She stopped and turned to him. "I'm guessing my father tasked you with looking out for me."
Helo chuckled and nodded. "Both your parents, your betrothed and Rell, actually. I offered to keep an eye on you, as well. I watched you grow up, Kia. You're a sister to me, in every way but blood."
Kia smiled at the young night elf. Helo looked quite a bit like Rell, though his frame was slightly more bulky.
"Well, in that case, I'll forgive you. I don't like being watched." She scoffed. "I guess that's something I'll need to get used to."
"If you're going to be the human's queen, I'd imagine so. Are you sure you've thought all this through? I'm sure you love the king, but are you really prepared for the job this particular title holds?" Helo turned, putting his hands up in the air towards Kia. "Not that I don't think you're up to the task, of course."
Kia was silent for a moment as they continued to walk through the woods, deep in thought. Helo walked quietly beside her.
"Trust me, I've thought this through. Anduin and I have been together for far longer than the announcement he made on Remembrance Day. I used to fight him on the topic, telling him he should forget me and find a human queen, but Anduin is as stubborn as his father. He loves me and damned if I don't love him just as much."
Helo nodded. "Then consider the topic closed."
They reached the edge of Goldshire and turned east. Kia couldn't help but wonder if Helo's inquiries were really his own, or if her parents might have put the young night elf up to the interrogation. She'd need to ask, when she returned to the castle.
After another hour or so, Kia was beginning to feel the strain of continuous magic use and left Helo and the other druids to continue with their task, opting to return to the castle before she overexerted herself. It would only worry Anduin and he certainly didn't need any more worries, at the moment.
Very late that night, Anduin returned to his chambers looking more tired than Kia felt.
Kia didn't say a word, only went up to him and wrapped him into a supportive hug. He hugged her back with a relieved sigh.
"You have no idea how nice it is to come back to my chambers and have you here. No more sneaking around or using secret passages."
"Well, soon enough, we'll be officially moving to the royal chambers. Not sure if they have secret passages or not."
"They do. Almost all the rooms on this side of the castle have emergency entrances and exits. At least all rooms meant to be used by the royal family."
Kia returned to her seat at the desk, where she had been writing in a journal. Anduin leaned up against the side of the desk.
"The secret passages are the least of our worries. We need to actually find time to get married. It's hard to think about something happy with all this chaos going around." Kia said, closing her journal and resting her head on Anduin's side.
Anduin actually chuckled, placing a gentle hand on her head. "Our wedding was actually one of the big items on tonight's agenda with the other leaders."
Kia lifted her head and frowned. "You were talking about our wedding without me?"
Anduin gave her a reassuring smile. "It wasn't anything like that. We weren't talking about the wedding itself, we were just discussing my involvement with the ongoing war against the legion and the coming battles to stop them for good." He stood and took a few steps. "And how, as much as I should be there as the high king, I can't be, since I'm the last of my line and none of the other leaders want to risk my death. They're all afraid the legion will be aiming for me, to end the Wrynn line."
Anduin walked over to the balcony and sat at a small couch just outside the door. Kia followed and sat next to him.
"All the other leaders agree that I need to remain here, to do what I do best, which is to unite people of all factions. Our wedding will serve to strengthen the bond between the humans and the night elves, as will our future children. Everyone seems very anxious for all of it to happen."
Kia sighed very loudly. "I'm so glad everyone is so focused about OUR wedding and OUR children."
Anduin wrapped his arm are Kia. "I know everything's happening very fast. I wish things were different."
"It's not the pace that bothers me. I just feel so out of control, like my life is happening, but I'm just a spectator watching as it passes from the outside." She looked up into Anduin's worried blue eyes. "I'm ready to marry you and I'm ready to have children with you. I'm just not ready to have everyone else be so involved with those two activities."
Anduin smiled down at her. "Well, as of right now, I'm all yours. The other leaders and I have agreed on a course of action as it pertains to the war, so you and I can take some time to plan our wedding. Oh, I almost forgot. Wait here."
Kia gave Anduin a confused look, but nodded. A few moments later, he returned carrying a small wooden box. It was shaped like a miniature chest, intricately engraved. Anduin knelt down before her. "I know it's not customary for night elves to exchange rings, but…" He opened the box. Inside here two golden rings. One was a simple solid gold and the other contained three diamonds. "These were my mother's. We'll probably need to have them resized, but I'd very much like for you to have them."
Kia looked first at Anduin, then the rings, then back up at Anduin. She placed a gentle hand on his cheek. "I think sometimes you forget that I'm just as much human as night elf. Of course I'll wear them."
Anduin took the ring with the diamonds out of the box, setting the other ring aside. He took Kia's hand and slipped the ring on her finger. "Let's see how it fits. I have a jewelcrafter waiting to fix the size."
The ring fit perfectly.
"Or maybe we won't need to." Anduin said, kissing Kia's hand. "How does it feel."
Kia chuckled. "Like it was made to fit on my hand."
Anduin beamed at Kia, pulling her to stand with him. He hugged her, secretly taking this as a sign that Kia was meant to be his wife.
"I've already spoken to Genn. He's agreed to sit on the throne in my sted after we're married, so we can take some time together. It feels wrong to leave in the middle of a war, considering all Wrynn kings have been on the front lines for them, but our lives can't stop, just because of it. We'll go somewhere quiet and spend some time alone."
The news seemed to cheer Kia up. She returned Anduin's smile. "I guess the children part of the plan will happen faster if we're allowed to be alone and not stressed out."
"Exactly!" Anduin said, taking Kia's hand. "And, there is nothing stopping us from starting early. Practice makes perfect and all that."
Kia laughed, following Anduin back into the chamber. One moment he was sweet and romantic, the next, he bowed down to his more basic needs. It was sometimes easy to forget Anduin was just barely out of his adolescence. Her future husband could be such a male, sometimes, but Kia loved him anyway.
To Be Continued...