Note: I do not own WoW, Blizzard, or anything about it. I just like to write and I like WoW. Thank you to all who have reviewed my story. As always, constructive criticism is encouraged. I always want to do better. ^.^ Hope you enjoy.
Jinny was beginning to think that the entirety of Azeroth was in decay. Well, except for Silvermoon. She smiled a little sadly. She missed Silvermoon. Its gardens, it's fountains, her friends. She only had a few, but she still missed them.
Jinny took a sweeping glance of the small village that was Andorhal. Tall stone buildings and a splashing of tents were all that comprised the meager community. Forsaken were running here and there. She shuddered. It wasn't that she had anything against the strange, reanimated race. They just creeped her out. They didn't breath, didn't need to eat or drink. They were, effectively, zombies. They were walking, talking, moving, shaking undead. Their skin (what was left of it) hung off their bones. Speaking of bones: Those stuck out through gaping holes in not only their skin, but also the clothes that almost covered them. She was being shallow, she knew. Especially since she'd no reason whatsoever for her petty feelings towards them. They just unnerved her.
"We stop here, Mage." She looked at him. "It's a long way from here to Tarren Mill. Hostile territory. The Alliance are ruthless."
Jinny's face paled. "We have to go through Alliance territory?"
He nodded, a wide grin breaking across his face. "Don't worry, Mage. You've got me. I'll protect you."
She couldn't believe it! He was actually looking forward to this! Well, alright, she could believe it. He was a warrior. It was in his blood to fight. Still, she didn't see what was so appealing about combat. Particularly with the Alliance in light of his evident friendships within the Argent Crusade.
He tossed her a small coin purse that jingled heavily with coins when she caught it. "Here. Go buy enough food and water for about a week. I'll go and secure a nice place for us to sleep tonight." The mage simply nodded in response and went about shopping for the week's worth of rations.
"You what?" she exclaimed a little louder than intended, when he told her about the room he'd procured for the two of them. "One room? As in singular?" she sputtered incredulously.
He looked confused. "But, we just spent the last week sleeping together." She blushed at the implications of what he'd said. And out loud, too!
She looked around, catching the innkeeper chortling softly to himself. "Shh!" she hissed, her eyes narrowing dangerously. "I have not been 'sleeping' with you!" she bit out.
His eyes danced playfully under his fiery brows. He knew what he'd said, and how it had sounded. This infuriated her even more. She glared at him.
"If you think I'm sharing a room with you, you are sadly mistaken."
He shrugged, grinning. "You've no choice, Mage. I've only enough coin for one room. So, you can share it with me or you can sleep outside. Your choice."
She huffed, and held out a hand. "Fine. Could I have the key?" He smirked, dropping the key into her hand. She eyed him, still glaring, and huffed once more before spinning on her heels to stomp away.
Darreek looked over to the innkeeper, a smug look on his face. The innkeeper, on the other hand, was laughing so hard now that he couldn't even begin to breathe. Not that he needed to, being forsaken. His bony shoulders shaking rhythmically. The warrior flashed him a smile, winking as he folded his arms across his broad chest. With his back turned to the direction she'd stormed off in, Darreek held up three fingers to the innkeeper and silently counted down.
On cue, Jinny quietly cleared her throat behind him. "Which room?" she asked softly.
He turned, plucking the key out of her hand before she could react. "I'll show you." He traipsed off in the direction of their room with her trailing behind.
"Here we are," Darreek said, opening the door with a flourish. A tiny, delighted gasp escaped her lips as she looked upon something she hadn't seen in a week. Just like a youngling, she ran over to the giant four-poster bed and flopped on the soft and wonderfully plush mattress. She'd expected the usual coffins the Forsaken had taken to sleeping in, but never once had she expected such a large bed, or curtains on the window, or such comfy overstuffed arm chairs. She told Darreek as much. He chuckled, a half smile showing just the right side of his white teeth as he looked down at the floor with his hair dancing around his eyes.
"Is there a bathing facility here?"
He shook his head, a secret dancing behind his green orbs. Just then, there was a soft knock on the door. Without so much as a word from either of them, the door burst open and a large brass bathing tub was unceremoniously lugged into the room. It was a wonder that the two men could carry such a heavy looking object. They were both Forsaken, nothing more than rotting flesh and bones. The smaller of the two turned to them before walking out the door to inform them that they'd be bringing hot water to fill the tub.
Jinny looked at her warrior, a huge grin almost cracking her face in half. "A bath? You called for a bath for me?"
He wasn't able to resist. He nodded his head, shrugging. "Of course I did." He winked. "I've been smelling you for the past three days. You stink." He received a strong punch in the arm for that remark.
The offense of sharing one room with him fading from her thoughts, she hugged him. "Thank you!" she chirped.
Jin'ala sighed contentedly as she eased herself down into the hot water. The men had brought the steaming buckets and filled the copper tub almost three-quarters of the way full. And now, with her own body submerged, the water came up to cover her shoulders. She took another deep breath and smiled. Darreek had surprised her, yet again, by pulling out lavender scented bath oil from one of his bags and presenting her with it. Its aroma now wafted up into her delicate nose, calming the senses, relaxing her muscles and lulling her into an exhausted state of half sleep. That strange realm where reality meets dream. The state of mind where anything is possible, everything is within reach.
She let her mind wander, drifting to thoughts of Silvermoon. Its beautiful gardens, the alluring scents of the floating flower baskets. The exquisite flair of the huge stone fountain in the Court of the Sun. The delightfully refined denizens of the city, flitting here and there, enjoying the finer things in life. Of course, there were … less refined … citizens of Silvermoon. Every city has them. Those people who are unruly, who don't really care about others. The show-offs. People like...
Her warrior.
The memory of their first meeting flooded her mind. The way he'd stood in front of her as tall as a tree, blocking out the sun. The joke he'd made about the strange man splashing in the fountain. It was almost as if she were back there, in the Court of the Sun. She could almost hear the musical tinkling of the running water. Almost feel his lips on hers as he stole that first kiss that had infuriated her so.
Her brain flashed forward to where they'd stopped the first time at the river clearing. Secretly, she'd been intoxicated by the feel of his body against hers. She flushed just thinking about it. Warmth spread over her entire body and pooled deep within her core. The way he'd kissed her ear had made her feel things she'd never experienced before. Her mind drifted to that same night when she'd woken up with him on top of her. Her heart raced and her blood rushed in her ears as she relived the tender kiss he'd given her. She blushed. She shouldn't be thinking about things like that. She should be worrying about getting that envelope to Shattrath. She sighed and blinked back to the here and now. Her water had gone cold during her day dreams. She didn't want to get out of the tub, but she was cold and her skin was wrinkled. Grabbing a towel that was surprisingly fluffy, she stepped out of the tub to dry off.
Darreek had been sitting in the small common area of the inn, cleaning his armor when he heard her shriek. The innkeeper barely blinked before the warrior was up and running, sword in hand, in the direction of their room. He hardly took a breath before he reached the door. Adrenaline tore through his veins and he threw the door open. She shrieked again as he burst in and quickly scanned the room for danger, and, finding none, his eyes finally fell on her. A slow smirk crept across his face as he realized she was standing on a chair, just about in tears...and completely naked. He could hear the innkeeper only steps behind him and pushed the door shut just as the undead man made it to the room. His eyes never left her.
"What's happened?"
She lifted a shaking finger to point at the far corner of the room. "M-m-mouse..." she stammered, the tears starting to fall.
He just couldn't contain himself. The warrior burst out in laughter, walking towards the corner. "A mouse?" he asked, raising his brows, looking back at her.
She nodded earnestly. "It ran right across my foot! I was getting out of the tub, and as soon as my foot touched the floor, it ran right across it!" She was calming down the more she talked. "It just scared me...I...didn't mean to make you come running," she said softly.
He chuckled thickly. "I don't mind." He eyed her openly and suddenly she remembered her state of dress. More specifically: The lack thereof. She flushed bright red, fire spreading across her entire body. She quickly covered as much as she could with her arms and crouched into a tiny ball on the chair.
"Get out!" she yelled.
A mischievous grin pulled at the corner of his mouth as he took a few steps towards her. "But you seemed pretty happy that I was here not a moment ago..."
"Get out!" she repeated. "Or I'll make you get out." Her eyes narrowed.
He chuckled again, picking up her towel and throwing it at her. She inwardly sighed with relief as she covered herself with the towel. "But, what if the mouse comes back?" he teased her.
She'd stood and was turned away from him. Jin'ala glared at him over her shoulder as she finished wrapping the towel around her. "I'm fine. Thank you for the concern, but I assure you, I will manage."
His face softened and he took a few more steps towards her, closing the space between them. Her back was still towards him. The warrior reached out a gentle hand to caress her bare shoulder. She shrugged away his hand. He chuckled again, low and soft. "Are you sure you want me to leave?" he asked against her ear, causing a shiver to shimmy down her spine.
By the Light! This man was intoxicating! Her senses were overwhelmed by him. The smell of the oil he used on his armor drifting up to her nose, the feel of his hands on her skin, the heat of his body so close to hers. The entirety of her body seemed to rebel as she struggled to maintain control. Her brain tried to reason with the rest of her. This was silly. One touch caused this? She needed to pull it together. But... Oh, Fel... His touch set her on fire.
"I...uh...really need..." she sucked air through her teeth as his grazed her neck. His low, gritty laugh melted over her. She tried pushing him away with her shoulders. "No, really...I need to...get..." Her sentence was cut off with a tiny yelp when he snaked an arm around her waist and drew her tightly against him. She wriggled, trying to push him away, but he only moaned softly in response, burring his face in her wet hair. His free hand dropped to her exposed thigh and made slow strokes to her hip and back. Oh, my! This was unnerving. "No, really. I need to get dressed," she protested, warring with her emotions.
He gave her that laugh that made her insides melt. "You amaze me, Mage." His husky voice was at her ear again.
She composed herself and cocked an eyebrow. "Oh, really? Do you think, maybe, we could discuss this after I get some clothes on?"
Darreek seemed to mull this over for a minute. "We could, but I rather like what you're in now," he said, drawing a finger across her collar bone and leaving a trail of fire along her skin.
She sighed, trying to block out what he was doing, but...My word!...he was making this hard. "So, just how do I amaze you?"
He nipped lightly at her ear, causing her to gasp. He grinned and turned her to face him. "You amaze me..." he trailed off, looking into her eyes. A man could loose himself in those eyes alone. He started again, hoping to finish the statement this time. "You amaze me..." Light! She was beautiful. And in his arms. And except for that thin towel, completely nude. The words escaped his head, only to be replaced by her scent. Lavender flowers seemed to be all around him. It mingled perfectly with her scent, causing his thoughts to swim and dissipate inside his head. He swallowed, his eyes wandering down her face. She was blushing. Oh, fel, she was beautiful when she blushed.
Darreek was a mighty warrior, but at that moment, Deathwing, himself, wouldn't have been able to stop the man. Slowly, his head came down to gently brush his lips to hers. Their kiss lingered, and when he finally pulled his head up, the look of quiet annoyance on her face had changed.
To fear.
He quickly took a step back, releasing her. "I'm sorry," he said, softly.
"Please, may I get dressed now?" He could barely hear her whisper. He gave a short nod and turned on his heels to leave. She surprised him with a hand on his shoulder just as his was reaching for the door. "Stay?" He turned to her, a questioning look on his face. "Please, stay?" she asked again. When he only continued to look at her, she said, "I feel safer when you're near. And I feel I owe you an explanation."
His easy smile returned. "You don't owe me a thing, Mage."
She shook her head. "No, I do. For right now. For that night at the tower. I owe you an explanation."
"Alright. If you say so." The warrior walked over to the chair he'd found her on and sat, looking at her expectantly.
Jinny watched as he strode across the room. Taking a cleansing breath to steady her nerves, she walked over to her satchel and pulled out a fresh cloth sleeping shift. "That night. At the tower when I woke up screaming..." she walked behind the dressing screen. "I had a dream..."
The next ten minutes were filled with her voice reconstructing what had happened in her dream. She walked over to the bed, pulling lotion out of her bag and smoothing it over her skin. He sat there, listening intently as she wove her tale, of course, leaving out certain...unbecoming situations. Jinny had been worried that her retelling of her dream would encourage his constant advances, but he seemed genuinely interested in what she had to say. He nodded every now and then to let her know that they were on the same page.
"So, you see," she concluded. "That's why I seemed so...well, I was scared," she finished lamely. Now she felt foolish, embarrassed for revealing such a personal dream. She blushed, fiddling with the hem of her sleep shift.
"You know," he said finally.
She sighed. "Aye, I know. I'm beautiful when I blush. You tell me that all the time."
He chuckled, low and soft. "Yes, you are. But that isn't what I was going to say."
She quirked an eyebrow. "Then, what were you going to say?"
He shrugged one shoulder, a sly grin creeping across his lips. "I was going to say that you completely amaze me."
She blushed. "You've said that already," she said softly.
"I know," he nodded. "But you amaze me because you are a strong, confident, and skilled Mage who can fight the scourge, and stare down an entire pack of fel hounds without blinking." She blushed and even deeper crimson. His chuckle became more full, as if someone had told him an extremely funny joke that he was only getting just now. "You can do all that," he said, laughter twinkling in his eyes. "And yet, you scream and cry like a little youngling over a little mouse!" His full-bellied laughter was muffled by the pillow that had smacked him in the face.
"That's it! You sleep on the floor tonight!" She feigned anger, sticking her tongue out at him.