Thanks to everyone reading this tale. Hope you're enjoying it.

Kia started to wake up, but didn't allow any outward signs of her changing status. She needed to figure out where she was and if she was in any danger, before allowing anyone else to know she was awake. The last thing she remembered was fleeing the doomed Teldrassil once making a final sweep to make sure everyone still alive had been evacuated.

She remembered suffering a few burns, mostly on her wings, which would translate to your arms and back. Thinking about those areas of her body, she decided someone had healed her, since she couldn't feel her injuries and she knew burns hurt. Thankfully, she actually felt pretty good. Nothing hurt at all, which was a good sign.

Next, she focused in on her surroundings. She was laying on something soft and she was covered, so she was warm, but she also noted the room as a whole seemed to be a nice, moderate temperature, which implied she was inside. Someone had obviously found her and made sure she was healed and comfortable, though she knew for sure she wasn't in her chambers and the fire hadn't been just a bad dream. She could still smell the smoke, most likely lingering on her body.

After a few minutes of contemplation, Kia decided to risk waking up. She'd need to do it eventually and it seemed she was reasonably safe, at the moment. She was far too comfortable to be a prisoner. Groaning slightly, she began to move around experimentally. She was stiff, but not sore. She opened her eyes and saw she was in some kind of room. Laying in a bed across from her was a large form. It took a few moments for Kia to recognize Vera Bloodhoof.

"Vera?" She asked softly, her voice slightly raspy, which wasn't a surprise, considering how much smoke she'd been exposed to recently.

The sleeping tauren awoke, turning her head towards the direction of her name, then sat straight up in the bed, swinging her legs around. She was standing by Kia's bed faster than one would think possible for a being of her size.

"Kia!" She said excitedly. "Thank the Earth Mother you're awake." She took Kia's hand, enveloping it entirely.

"Where am I? What happened?"

"You're safe." Vera said reassuringly. "You tried to escape Teldrassil by flying out. You got out, but you crash landed, fortunately, near the tauren army. I saw a stormcrow fall from the sky, but I didn't realize it was you. You were injured and exhausted, but we had a shaman fix you up."

"Am I a prisoner?" Kia asked, suddenly on edge. She hadn't thought of Vera as an enemy before, but if she was a part of the army that attacked Darkshore, then it was possible she wasn't exactly free, regardless of being safe.

"You are a guest, not a prisoner." Came a deep, male voice from the doorway. Kia looked up to see Chieftain Baine Bloodhoof standing in the door.

Kia sat up quickly, but almost as quickly, lowered herself back down, as a wave of dizziness caught her by surprise. Her vision blurred slightly and she fought back nausea. She took several deep breaths in and out.

"Don't try to get up. You've been through a great ordeal." Baine said, entering the room fully and sitting down at the table at the far end, so Kia could see him without sitting up.

Kia marveled at the immense presence of the Tauren Chieftain. She had met other male tauren before, of course, but Baine seemed larger and far more intimidating, somehow.

Vera cleared her throat, deciding formal introductions were in order. "Kia, this is my cousin Baine...obviously. Baine, this is my druid friend Kia."

"It's an honor to meet you, Chieftain." Kia said, though she felt silly being so formal while lying on her back. She didn't exactly feel dignified.

"Likewise, Kia, or should I say, your Majesty?" Baine bowed his head slightly at the recognition. "Vera as spoken of you fondly. I feel like I already know everything about you. Please, call me Baine, there is no need for the formality unless you require it."

Kia shook her head, suddenly feeling beyond tired. "Kia is fine. I'm still not used to the 'your Majesty' stuff."

"Now, as I was saying before, you are not a prisoner. We snuck you away before anyone saw you. We're currently on opposite sides of a war, but I respect Anduin Wrynn too much to simply hand his wife over to Sylvanas, knowing I'd be condemning you to a horrendous fate." Baine paused, as if considering what to say next, then looked Kia in the eyes. "There was your condition to consider, as well."

"Condition?" Kia asked. As far as she knew, she didn't have any condition.

"According to the shaman who healed you, you're in the early stages of pregnancy." Vera replied with a smile.

Kia's jaw dropped. "Pregnant?" Her hand automatically caressed her stomach. "Anduin and I have been trying since before we got married. We knew it would be difficult to get pregnant, considering my unique background, but we were told it was still possible. I had no idea."

Baine shook his head. "I would have condemned you and your baby. We've already stepped over too many lines in this war. I was not going to step over this one."

Kia let a few tears slip out of her eyes. She wasn't normally a crier, but she couldn't control her emotions at the moment. If she had landed anywhere else, things could have been so very different. She could be dead, along with her unborn child and Anduin would never know. She had been lucky. Lucky where she landed. Lucky who found her.

"Thank you. Both of you." She said, looking between Vera and Baine. "I know the risk you're taking for me. For us."

Baine stood. "It was the right thing to do. You should get some rest. Our shaman says there was no impact to the baby from your ordeal, but it's probably better to be safe than sorry. Once you've recovered enough to travel, we'll figure out how to get you home quietly, so we minimize the risk of anyone outside of us finding out about all of this. I regret there is no secure way to contact the king about your safety."

Kia already knew how she'd get back to Stormwind, but she didn't bring it up yet. She was too weak to use the magical method of transportation. She was too weak to do much of anything. She hated to make Anduin worry about her whereabouts, but she had little choice in the matter. She agreed it was too risky for Baine and Vera to try to get a message to Anduin. For the moment she was safe and so were they.

She closed her eyes and quickly fell back asleep.

To Be Continued...