The Romancer Opalbane

Episode Thirty-Two: When crazy people fall in love, part I…

When crazy people fall in love, they have two choices. They can either completely destroy each other with their problems, or work together in some kind of freakish symbiotic relationship.

Opalbane was about to learn this firsthand.

She stood on the worn path to Alessandre's home in the small clearing. All around her, thick violet boughs of treetops at the crown of the mountain swayed gently in the breeze. Opalbane was very familiar with Ashenvale and thought she could never be surprised by its beauty. But the air at the top of the mountain was so fresh, and the sky a perfect clear blue. She'd hiked around the area and knew that the ruins of a large tree house were at the end of an overgrown road to the north. Opalbane had no way to be completely sure until Alessandre returned, but some old scrawlings and other markings in the still living tree bark of the ancient house seemed to imply that an old Kaldorei family lived there. Opalbane fantasized that it was Alessandre's old family house. The idea that he might have asked her to go and live in his old home made Opalbane feel more welcome than she'd ever felt in her life. Eventhough Alessandre was not with her, she was growing to love him more and more.

"I guess he's not coming today, either." Opalbane admitted to herself at last. Still, she waited a few moments longer. Opalbane hoped that saying it out loud would make abandoning the road easier. It didn't.

Alessandre had been gone for two and a half months. It only took two weeks to get to the Eastern Kingdoms by boat, and hardly more than a day by griffon to reach Stormwind. Then, it took another two weeks to travel back. Opalbane supposed that Alessandre would finish by the end of the month. He seemed intent on getting his mission done on time for Shadowstep. Opalbane didn't doubt why, she wouldn't dare give Shadowstep any more reason to hate her if she was in Alessandre's position. His desperation had seemed a little unwarranted though. Wisthera had broken a contract to turn Opalbane over to Shadowstep hadn't she? Her life had not ended… Shadowstep might be cruel but he wasn't a villain who was going to ruin Alessandre's life if he didn't comply. But, two and a half months had passed, and Opalbane was getting worried. In fact, she was terrified. She'd resisted the urge to ride down the mountain and speak with her brother many times. Alessandre's instructions had been clear: go to my cottage and don't leave for any reason, unless there's trouble that threatens your life. If that's the case, take Starshatter and try to get to Darnassus.

Opalbane fiddled with her long braid and then hesitantly turned around. She stifled a cry and went inside to make dinner.

There was an enormous cellar below the house filled with dried beans, meat, and grain for bread. Opalbane wondered how Alessandre had it so well stocked. He had to have been away from this place for more than a month when he asked her to go at the last minute. He must steal away to hideout frequently, Opalbane realized… but come with a year's worth of supplies every time? That part made no sense. Truly, Alessandre lived like an outlaw or something.

There were only three rooms in the house: a tiny bedroom, a kitchen, and a common room. A small wooden table and two chairs were the only furniture. The kitchen was a bit dingy, which Opalbane expected from a bachelor, but the bedroom was painted a sunny yellow, there was a charming dresser made of wood that was a butter color and the bed had a plush comforter and soft sheets and pillows that felt like silk. Opalbane was annoyed at first, because it implied certain things about Alessandre's lifestyle, namely that he often brought women up there. But then, there was something very satisfying about being able to make love to Alessandre as the most important woman in his life on that bed. Opalbane lay awake, at night, smiling at all the warm fantasies Alessandre had given her. She certainly had some of her own, and she was beginning to see them take place before her eyes in the beautiful sunlight bedroom that was now hers too.

Starshatter wasn't always around. Clearly, he was very familiar with the woods at the mountain top… which also revealed that Alessandre was an excellent cook. Starshatter kept killing deer and leaving them on the doorstep. Opalbane had no clue how to clean a deer carcass or prepare it for dinner.

Opalbane set the table, complete with candles and her version of what food was. She sat before her plate and Alessandre's, frowning. She was beginning to wonder if she was going crazy, being married to an invisible man and living in a shack in the woods with just a cat.

A loud roar interrupted Opalbane's meal. Opalbane ran into the bedroom and got her dagger. Alessandre had told her that was Starshatter's signal for when there was trouble. This sound was more panicked and insistent than what she'd gleaned from Alessandre's mind though. Opalbane considered running into the trees… or were they in the trees? She allowed her shadowform to flare up, and tried to push her fear for Alessandre out of her mind. He hadn't come back because there was danger… it should have been obvious to her by now. Opalbane cursed herself for not wanting to believe the obvious.

As the rose evening sky turned to night, Opalbane came outside and shadowmelded. She boldly conjured up her memories from Silithus and decided that if she could not run or get to Starshatter, she would fight. She'd whistled for the cat but he'd fallen silent some time ago. Perhaps he couldn't answer.

Two riders came up the path at the edge of the woods. Opalbane tried but could not make them out. One of the nightsaber mounts was overburdened with strange weight. It almost looked like a dead body…

"Alessandre!" Opalbane cried out and ran to the riders. "Oh, my husband! Is he alright?" Opalbane froze when she saw what was coming to her out of the night.

Alessandre looked up from where he was leading a dark striped nightsaber. Long parcels were loaded on either side of the cat's saddle. Starshatter walked beside the other cat, purring loudly and rubbing his head against it in a feline embrace. The other mount was a girl.

"Al!" Opalbane began to cry and ran to embrace her husband. She hugged him tight and he held her back. She began to ask him about his mission and ask if he was alright, but Alessandre wouldn't say anything for a long time. She tried to lead him into the house for dinner, but he wouldn't let her go.

"Alessandre… is something wrong?"

Alessandre swallowed, and smoothed back Opalbane's hair. "We need to talk." He said. Then, he began to unload the packages from the other cat. He started to shuttle them to the cellar.

"Would you like help?" she asked. Alessandre waved her off. She waited uncomfortably for him to finish. Starshatter seemed grateful when Alessandre finally got the reigns and saddle off the other nightsaber. They chased eachother playfully through the yard around the house and then darted off into the woods.

"Starshatter has a girlfriend?" she slipped her hand into Alessandre's and followed him into the house.

"It might be awhile, and he likes Arwena." He shrugged.

Alessandre sat down at the dinner table. "Arwena? Whose mount is that?"

Alessandre gave Opalbane a look. "Why do you even ask me if you can read my mind?" he griped.

Opalbane's heart sank. Something was very wrong. "Alright then… you have many mounts. Arwena is just one of them… I have no idea why you feel you need so many different ones, but—"

"Is this dinner?" Alessandre turned his nose up at Opalbane's cooking.

Opalbane tried to laugh it off, though his words stung. "I've done a lot of interesting things in my life, but learning to cook was not one of them. But, I suspect you might know a thing or two. That kitchen is filthy, but at least it's well stocked."

"I'll make us something." Alessandre announced, largely ignoring his wife. He took both their plates and set them outside for the cats to have.

Opalbane felt a pang of sadness which broiled over into anger when Alessandre, the love of her life and brand new husband, shut her out. She would have pressed further but something was clearly wrong. She was going to let Alessandre to tell her when he was ready.

Two more hours later, venison spiced with herbs and fresh rice was ready and on the table. They started eating and Alessandre began to talk.

"I killed Benactus." He said abruptly. Opalbane cleared her throat.

"Oh… I see." She said in a small voice.

"Can you live with that?" Alessandre pressed her. He sounded a bit rude.

Opalbane leaned back in her chair. It creaked softly. "You told me that you would… I understand why it had to be done."

"I gave him a choice, you know." Alessandre went on in his tone that seemed to accuse her. "He didn't want to live. He just wanted to take you with him to Silithus, no matter what."

Opalbane played with her long white braid. "I understand. I would have… done the same." Then, she reached out across the table and touched Alessandre's hand. "I forgive you for that. I understand about your mission and all. Our life together is more important to me though. If that is what it took, I thank you."

Alessandre moved his hand away from hers and kept eating. Opalbane tried to do the same.

"Faltheriel is dead now too, along with about fifty Twilight Cultists in Stormwind. Every last one is dead, for you."

Opalbane bristled. "Why do you sound like you're mad at me? I didn't do anything wrong, you know."

Alessandre stopped eating. "I'm sorry."

Opalbane frowned. "No, I am. I truly am sorry… I forget that I'm married to an assassin. I never considered that killing people for a living could be so depressing. And, now I feel like an idiot saying that. I guess, I just imagined me running to you along that path when you came home, and that we would forget everything and make love..." Opalbane blushed. "Maybe I'm being insensitive, but those fantasies you gave me… it was all I could think about for two whole months!" She giggled.

"I'm a murderer."

Opalbane stopped laughing. "You're what—"

"I never stopped being a druid. I was the reason for the riot. The people of Stormwind finally got sick of it and came after me, only I got away. I took you to Darnassus because you needed to be safe, but also because I needed to get out of there… the riot's over now, but I'm the murderer. I covered my tracks pretty well. I know they believed the letters I forged, I saw for myself… the two men I blamed the whole thing on are dead, and they can't talk."

Opalbane just stared at her husband.

Alessandre looked up at the ceiling, then he looked away. "The reason it took me so long to get back… because I was finished more than a month ago and sent Shadowstep my mission report then… I almost left you."

Opalbane blinked.

"Just like you said at our Wreathe Day… every time I get scared and need to tell you something, I run away and do something stupid. Well, I wanted to run away, start over and be someone else. I even had a new name picked out." Alessandre paused and scratched his goatee. "But what stopped me was, I always come back here before I start over. I lay low, and think about what needs to be done. When, I'm ready, I come down from this mountain as a new man. Then, I pick a different mount from the stables and—"

"But I'm here."

Alessandre nodded. "And… this time I didn't want to come home just to run away. I wanted to come home to you. I had to tell you… even if you hated me… you deserved to know the truth about me, that I am a murderer."

Opalbane got angry. "Why are you telling me this, you idiot?"

Alessandre hung his head. "You have to hear it. I'm sorry. I'll go if you want."

"Go? Where? To whom? To some other woman's bed? To the next Wisthera, or Myrielle? That's not fair. That's so… selfish and evil. Opalbane pushed her dinner away. "Who the hell do you think you are? I thought you were smarter than this, Alessandre."

"I know, I'm sorry."

"No you're not. You're relieved, right? You're glad that you got it off your chest. Now Opalbane, the endless font of forgiveness has to go along with this, right? We have to bare our souls now. My husband is a murderer and now we have to deal with it."

Alessandre looked at Opalbane curiously. She wasn't just talking about him.

"Why? What have you done that's so terrible?"

Opalbane clawed her hands and hid her face in them. She looked like she was about to cry, then she didn't. She looked at Alessandre and disgust was clear on her face.

"I know… I always knew that you were a druid, and the one killing people in Stormwind."

Alessandre was shocked.

"Don't look so surprised. I'm a priestess, remember? And, do you really think that I was going to get involved with someone like you if I didn't know exactly what was going on?"

That hurt. Alessandre said as much.

"Do you really expect anything less from me? As far as I knew, you were a man-whore, a liar, and a killer by profession… think about how much you care for me. Would you really want me to marry someone like that?"

Alessandre leaned back in his chair. He wouldn't look at his wife. "I looked into your mind, without your permission to protect myself." Opalbane continued, "And do you know what I saw? A man with a good heart, but a nasty addiction. I saw someone so like myself that it was scary. And that I could despise myself so much but love you… that was even more terrifying."

Alessandre folded his arms across his chest. Opalbane went on. "Al… how many times have I told you that I already knew all that I needed to know about you, but that I loved you regardless. Didn't you think that I meant it?"

Alessandre took a deep breath and turned back to her. "I didn't really believe you."

Opalbane gave a sad smile. "Well, I did mean it, and I do still love you. I understand why you didn't want to tell me. I am grateful that you decided to be honest though. I guess I just wasn't ready for us to be so honest yet."

"We did get married pretty fast. I'm realizing that there's still so much I don't know about you." Alessandre seemed to calm.

Opalbane shook her head. "We're not finished with this yet. I can't let you share something with me, and not tell you about myself. You don't have the benefit of reading my mind and having hours alone in a quiet room to decide whether or not you're okay with it. But… I see where I went wrong. I want to offer you the same."

"Opal, we don't need to—"

"The reason why I didn't want to tell you that I knew you were a murderer is because I didn't want to have to explain why… why I was okay with it."

Alessandre sat up.

"I'm… a murderer too. I know you… you love me because you think I'm innocent, and different from Arianna. Well, in a way, we aren't so different. I gave into my dark desires in Silithus. I tortured innocent people, killed them on a whim. And before that, Onyxbane can tell you how cruel I was to him and our little friends growing up, and even as a young woman… I didn't mind Wisthera conning me all those years because I was doing far worse to other people. What she did to me was child's play. When I got to Silithus, I felt liberated. I could really indulge, I could destroy people's lives."

"Opalbane that's different—"

"It is not!" Opalbane flared and stood up. "I killed people. I killed women and children, and soldiers alike. Sometimes the others and I walked for miles to civilization, to find new victims when they didn't come to us fast enough. Why do you think that I almost killed you the first time we made love? I get a sick thrill out of it. A part of me really wanted to kill you, to give into that ecstasy of having complete control over whether someone lives or dies. In fact, when I found out what you were doing in Cutthroat Alley, I was a bit jealous. I wished that I could tell you who I really was and then go join you… Goddess! I'm a mess."

Opalbane sat back down and folded her arms on the table. Then, she buried her face.

"But every day, I'm getting better and better at resisting the urges. It's a true task, but I know I can do it. You did it, didn't you? When we were in Stormwind, you found the strength to stop. And Shadowstep is going to get you some help too. Maybe I can get some—"

"You know about my trial? You know everything?" Alessandre was outraged.

Opalbane whimpered a yes from under her folded arms. It was muffled.

"While in Silithus, I learned to listen to everything, with my mind as well as my ears, or get stabbed in the back by one of my rivals." She explained. "I know you treasure your privacy, but old habits are hard to break."

"They sure are." Alessandre wasn't being compassionate, however. He was angry. "Like, falling in love with the same despicable woman that I met one thousand years ago. I can't believe I did this, again!"

Opalbane looked up. "We may be similar, but I am not Arianna." Opalbane defended herself.

"Yes you are! In fact, you're much worse. How could I—"

"What?" Opalbane dared him.

Alessandre kept his mouth shut.

"Come on and say it. 'How could you marry me?' Is that what you were about to say? So is that what you really think of me, now that you know who I really am?"

More silence.

"I'm going to bed." Alessandre pushed away from the table.

"What, so my husband comes back from saving my life, and the conquering hero doesn't even want sex? Are you rejecting me, you furry hypocrite?"

Alessandre slammed the bedroom door shut behind him.

Opalbane walked out the front door. She stood alone, seething in the night for a few moments, then she forced herself to come back into the house.

"You're only the most beautiful person in my life!" she shouted at Alessandre's shut door. "I only worship the ground that you walk on, literally, because I can't ever stop being a cultist. But it was the best thing I could do for myself, marrying you… or didn't Benactus explain that to you? I read your mind, Alessandre, I know that he did." Then, she hesitated before finally saying, "Because I love you," her voice broke, "I want to tell you that I'm going for a walk. I'm angry, and I need to cool off before I kill something." Opalbane cringed at her choice of words while she waited. From behind the closed bedroom door, Alessandre didn't say anything.

"Fine, I can live in this world by myself. I don't need you, I don't need anyone at all." Opalbane had a shocking moment of déjà vu then. Those were the same words she'd said to her brother almost five months ago, when she ran off to Silithus. Opalbane tried to tell herself that this time was different. She had a husband who loved her, right? Wasn't that all that mattered? But there was no guarantee that Alessandre still cared for her. They'd fallen in love too fast, and he didn't truly know the real her. He could change his mind and leave if he really hated her, Darnassian law or not. The shadowpriestess kept up her fast angry pace until she reached the deep woods where she had to pick the path more carefully. Opalbane came to the edge of a cliff surrounded on all sides by silent night sky. She looked over the edge of the mountain. The soft lantern glow of Astranaar was barely distinguishable. Opalbane blinked through her angry haze. Suddenly the world below seemed incredibly inviting. Why not throw herself off the edge, and put an end to all the suffering at last?

Opalbane took off her clothes. She stood alone and naked, the way she'd come into this world. Then, she brought her arms around and up above her head. She flattened her palms and made a spearhead of her fingers where her hands pressed together. She looked like a diver, ready to take that amazing leap into glory.

Opalbane meant to leap off the edge, but then she slipped on the hard rock and fell. She cried as her bare leg scraped painfully on the stone. Then she disappeared over the edge, screaming. The night swallowed her up.

Alone in the bedroom, Alessandre stared out of the window of the cottage he'd made near his old family home with his bare hands. It took him years to get it right. But finally, the building came together nicely. The foundation was finally even enough, and the roof didn't leak. The house needed constant maintenance, but it was well worth the effort. A large lonely white moon looked down on him from the window. All that white served to cool his anger. The guttural mews of nightsabers mating somewhere in the wilderness reached his ears. Alessandre could not help laughing. It was definitely Starshatter and Arwina.

The house, the cats, the moon… his mistake was starting to become obvious. Marriage was work, as well as love. "Alright," he sighed. "Elune, I can take a hint."

Alessandre wandered in the woods just outside his house, but could not find Opalbane. He shifted in his catform to track her. She could not have wandered far. But then, he saw her clothes tangled up in a scraggly bush just above a terrible drop off. Blood spattered the rock below.

Alessandre's eyes went wide. "Dear goddess!"

Without thinking, Alessandre stealthed and jumped off the ledge after his wife.

Author's note:

The next episode is the last one! Thanks again for reading. More information about the next story in the series is forthcoming.