Maggie could feel the call of slumber, but refused to succumb. She began to pace the room silently in order not to wake up Mr. Alexston. The movement should help her stay awake. She wasn't used to pulling such a long shift. Where was Shaw? She had no idea where he went or why. That was Mathias for you. Secretive to the end.

Maggie switched her thoughts to Adam and Kristie. There were few people she would call her friend. They were at the top of her list. She worried for them. For the umpteenth time, she wished she could have abandoned her post and gone after them instead of asking Dormir to do it. She comforted herself that the druid had many years of experience under his belt. Still, it didn't change the fact that she wanted to go find Adam, Kristie, and Amy herself.

The door began to open and Maggie immediately vanished. She crouched and stayed on the balls of her feet, ready to move in whichever direction she needed to in case the person entering the room was unwanted. Light from the hallway shadowed the man's face, but Maggie relaxed as she recognized the form of Mathias Shaw. She let herself be seen and approached, whispering, "He's asleep. Did you find anything?" She had news of her own, but was curious as to where he had gone.

"No. I hear you had company while I was gone." Mathias changed the subject rather quickly.

Maggie kept the disappointment from showing on her face. She was curious about where he had gone. Instead, she nodded and told him about the locator stone and giving it to Dormir.

Mathias nodded his head. "Is Simpson still here?" He inquired after the agent who had brought Dormir.

"Yes. I sent him off to another room a couple of hours ago to get some sleep."

"I'll wake him in a few minutes to take a shift. Go get some rest. We'll both need our sleep. I have a feeling it's going to be a busy day tomorrow."

Maggie nodded and headed for the room next to Alexston's to get some sleep.

…

Lara paced back and forth in her cell. Anger and frustration surrounded her. These Hillsbrad refugees had some way of preventing her from using her magic. She couldn't detect any magic-prevention wards, then again, most of the time, one never could. She had hoped to teleport out of here. Who knew they had the resources for a ward?

Her mind raced back to the fight with the worgen. She wasn't sure if she would have been able to stop the pack of worgen from killing her and freeing the prisoners. But when the three dreadguards showed up, she had been sure they'd win. That is, until the prisoners broke free. That damn rogue! She growled to herself. He would have killed her if it hadn't been for the sappy mage and his insistence that she was this N'Lar person.

Lara stopped her pacing as she recalled his automatic defense of her from the worgen. That's when she knew. She just needed to play along and he would keep them from harming her. Oh the nobility of the living. Jerold was right. The living were too emotional.

She paused her thoughts to think back. Was she his wife in life? Was she this, N'Lar? She tried to recall anything from her days in the living world. Nothing. She shrugged. It mattered not. She would use him and discard him when the time was right. He had obviously moved on anyhow. That night elf female- the one Jerold had bought, was his interest now. Lara allowed a small grin to cross her face. Maybe that knowledge could be used against him at some point in the future.

The sound of footsteps coming down the stairs could be heard. She looked up and saw Kirlothenin descending. She gave him a smirk. "Is it time to leave now?"

"Not yet." He was studying her, probably trying to see her as she was when she was alive.

Lara accommodated him by spreading her arms and turning around. "Get a good look? Do you still think that I am she?" She could see emotions flicker in his eyes. If she could breathe, she would have sighed.

"You are N'Lar, whether you remember it or not."

"So what if I am? Are you going to come claim me as your own?" Her sarcasm dripped heavily as she watched him lean against a wall.

"N'Lar... I-"

Oh great! He's going to pour his heart out to her. She would have turned her back to him, but thought better of it. She still needed to be on his good side. He was her ticket out of here. Instead, she stood there and watched him.

"I had hoped that you hadn't been..." The mage didn't seem to be able to look at her.

"I hadn't been what? Risen?" She couldn't help but sneer at this. "What did you expect? That Arthas," if she could spit, she would have at the mention of his name, "would leave me dead in eternal darkness while he raised just about everyone else?"

"No. Yes." He glanced up at her with a frustrated look. "N'Lar-"

"Lara!"

"...Beyond all, I had hoped that you hadn't been killed, period. I looked for you. I risked all trying to find you. But when I didn't find your body, I knew..."

Lara had no idea how to respond so she kept silent.

"Then when the blood elves joined the Horde, I considered looking for you in Undercity to see if you had survived." He looked away again. "I...chose not to. I wanted to remember you as you were when you were alive."

Lara couldn't help it. Her snarkiness responded for her. "Oh, I see. You loved your wife enough to rush to find her body, but not enough to go find her if she were undead!"

"I didn't mean it that-"

"Oh please. Forget the platitudes. I'm not this N'Lar you think I am!"

"You are." Now his eyes bore into hers and he grabbed the bars of the cell for emphasis. "I can tell you how you got that scar on your jaw. I can tell you that you have another scar on your back right side just under your ribcage. I can tell you have-" He cut himself off and winced.

Lara didn't care how she got any of her scars. But she was curious what pained him just now. "I have...?" She slowly prompted.

"Our...unborn child...inside you." His voice was merely a whisper and his eyes were actually misting over!

Lara's hand went to her abdomen as this sunk in. No one knew about the dead fetus inside her except Jerold. For the first time, she had to consider that maybe, just maybe this elf was right. Maybe she was this N'Lar.

…

"Adam? Can we talk?"

Adam turned around and made a shushing motion. Amy had just fallen asleep on a mat. He stood up and walked to the other side of the room with Kristie. "What is it?"

"I think you should know how we escaped."

"I'm sure you used that smart head of yours. Is Jerold...?"

She shrugged. "I'm not sure. Ileeya did a good job on him in her bear form. But...well, I don't know. I didn't take a good look at him, not to mention I'm not sure how to tell if an undead is...uh, dead."

Adam wrapped his arms around her and rested his forehead on hers. "Are you okay?" He knew she still had an occasional nightmare from their last adventure together in which she had killed a goblin in order to save his life.

"I'm just glad to be free from there." She fell silent for a minute then took in a deep breath and let it out. "It was your- It was Lord Aron who got us out of there."

Adam frowned and let her go, though he stayed where he was. His eyes flicked to the nobleman sitting by Amy. For a brief moment, their eyes met. Adam looked away. He said nothing.

"Adam, he offered to pay for our release."

He scoffed. "Figures. Money answers everything, to him."

"Adam, he tried. And he wants... He wants to reconcile with you."

He looked at her now with narrowed eyes. "Has he been bothering you?"

"He approached me yesterday morning before you arrived to pick us up. He wanted me to speak to you about talking to him."

"You can tell him he's wasting his time!" Adam growled out.

"Adam-"

He shrugged her away and turned from her. He didn't want to talk about it, period! To his surprise, she grabbed his arm and turned him back to face her, a determined and angry look on her face. "Adam, don't turn away from me!" Her voice was quiet, but seething. "You've been holding this grudge for nearly fourteen years! How long will it take-"

"Never, Kristie! He killed my brother!" Adam saw a few heads turn in their direction and he realized that he had raised his voice a little too much. He took hold of Kristie's elbow and led her outside the building for more privacy. "He's a selfish man who'd do anything to save his own skin, Kristie, including sending his eldest and favorite son out into a mob of rioters that killed him!"

"And he's regretted that decision, Adam! And if he's as selfish as you believe him to be, then I wouldn't be here, standing in front of you right now!"

Adam looked into her flashing hazel eyes with a little confusion. He flexed his hands open and closed as the adrenaline coursed through his veins. A part of him wanted to ask what had happened. The grudge in him kept him silent.

"He didn't have any gold on him. He had to go to Ironforge to get it."

"Jerold let him go?" Adam was confused about this.

"Yes. But only after giving him the option of taking a deadly poison to ensure his return. Jerold gave him the antidote when he returned. I think Jerold did something to him to prevent him from telling anyone about us. But you'll have to ask him if you want to know any more." She rubbed her arms. "He somehow got someone to write something on his arm. When Ileeya read it, she was able to use her magic again."

Adam ran his hand through his hair, pulling a few strands out of his ponytail. He felt at war with himself. He was still angry at his father. After so many years of hating him, he couldn't just turn around and forget what he did. He said this to Kristie.

She put her hand on his arm. "I can understand how you feel, Adam. But..." She glanced out into the night sky. "Just a little food for thought, here. Who else do we know that held a grudge because of the death of a family member and never let it go?"

Adam couldn't think of any of their friends that would fit that description.

"Marissa."

Adam snapped his head at her. "How can you compare her to me? She's insane!"

"And you're not. But would we have been in the situation we were in if she hadn't held the grudge over the death of her father?"

Adam couldn't help but agree that Kristie was right about that. But he couldn't admit that to her right now. She kissed him. "Adam, no matter what, I love you. And I will support whatever you decide. But I really feel that before you do decide anything, you need to talk to your father." She left him there to go back inside and let him have some time alone to think.

…

Ileeya finished talking to the few people who were in charge of the gardens, satisfied that they knew what they were doing. She didn't feel it was right to help their gardens grow if the people couldn't take care of them correctly. Besides, the talks also gave her time to rest after healing their wounded. They had two healers among their numbers. Two. That's it. It was no wonder they were worn out with the constant attacks they have to deal with, and needed her help. She wondered if the Cenarion Circle could send a couple of druids here to help out.

Now the only thing left to do was grow the gardens. She hadn't attempted this before. It was always one plant at a time whenever she did increase the growth time. She closed her eyes and let herself relax, just enough to concentrate. She quietly asked of the plants to grow faster for her as she fed them nature's magic to help them along. At first she concentrated on one plant, then extended herself to the others in the garden. When she finished, she found she was successful. But there were two more gardens to go.

She rested a few minutes before moving on to the next garden. Kristie and Amy were on either side of her, ready to help her in whatever way they could. Basically, that meant giving her some water to drink when she needed it. When one uses magical energy, it tends to make one quite thirsty.

When she was finished, she drank her water and sat down. All she wanted to do now was sleep. But the three hours were up and they had to leave. But leave to where? She had no idea where they were other than on an island in Lordaemere Lake. The Hillsbrad people were grateful to her for what she could do for them, but they were also reserved and bitter from all the fighting with the forsaken.

Apparently only Adam and his father had been up here before, even then, fairly briefly. The small group was led to the water's edge on the north side of the island where a rowboat awaited. They were given a couple of skins of water and some dry bread. It wasn't much, but considering their situation, it was very generous.

"As much as you'd want to avoid the place, I'd suggest you row closer to the Ruins of Lordaeron than to the other islands in this lake. This is the only one that is not swarming with murlocs. Stay in the boat and they may leave you alone. There are also lake frenzies, a deadly fish, but they usually stay near the bottom of the lake." One of the Hillsbrad people took the time to tell them of the dangers. He was in his human form and kept glancing at Amy. Ileeya thought that perhaps he didn't want to scare the girl.

"I wish you could stay with us, Ms. Whitestar. We could use your help."

Ileeya gave him a tired smile. "I wish I could help further, but I need to make sure my family and friends arrive home safely. But, if you don't mind, I plan to tell the Cenarion Circle about you and see if they can send someone to help you here."

"That is much appreciated." The man then glared as Kirlothenin and N'Lar approached the boat. Ileeya didn't like the way the forsaken looked at any of them. She couldn't help but think that she would betray them at the first possible opportunity. She checked on Adorei, who was being held by Kristie. Jelune was awake, but still very weak from his blood loss. They laid him down in the bottom of the boat. Ileeya lay down next to him, hoping to get some rest while they traveled.

Kristie, Adorei, Amy, and Lord Aron sat on one small bench in the boat. Kirlothenin, N'Lar, and Adam sat on the bench on the other end. Kirlothenin and Adam would be rowing. The Hillsbrad refugee helped push them into the water and they were off.

The travel was slow, but peaceful so far. After awhile, they could see one of the great walls of the Ruins of Lordaeron, underneath which lay the forsaken city of Undercity. Ileeya had felt herself drift in and out of sleep so she wasn't quite sure how much time had passed. There was little talking among the passengers of the boat. It was almost as if they were afraid of drawing any attention to themselves.

A splash of water could be heard in the distance. Ileeya sat up and looked around. The man had said to watch out for the murlocs. Would they attack the boat?

"Lie back down, Ilee. You need your rest."

She looked at Kirlothenin. He had a worried look on his face. This touched her and she gave him a brief smile, but wasn't sure about lying back down. They weren't out of danger, yet. Another splash. This time it was closer. Ileeya turned and peered over the edge of the boat. It was dark out still, though she figured the sun should be coming out soon. Jelune had fallen back asleep. Only she could see in the dark night. She was needed, still.

Two more splashes, and this time she saw something break the water, but couldn't make out what it was. "Over there." She pointed out to where she saw the splash. The others looked in that direction just as a slimy hand reached out of the water and grabbed Ileeya's wrist. She screamed out in surprise and felt herself pulled halfway out of the boat. The only reason she hadn't been pulled all the way into the water was because her lower half of her body was bent and had caught on the side of the boat.

She tried to pull herself back in as Kirlothenin reached out for her. But more three-fingered hands reached out of the water, grabbed her, and pulled her under the water.

…

Kirlothenin's heart jumped when he saw Ileeya pulled under the water. He started to dive in after her, but he was stopped by Adam. "You can't do anything, Kirlothenin! Especially with those shackles on! You'll only be committing suicide!"

He knew the rogue was right but he couldn't just let her die! ...Die... Kirlothenin turned to N'Lar and pleaded with her. "You still have your magic! Save her!"

The forsaken looked at him almost in disbelief. Then a slow smile came to her face as she stood. "Very well." She moved towards the center of the boat, straddling Jelune so as not to step on him. "In order to thank you for saving me from the worgen..." She muttered her spell under her breath.

Kirlothenin's eyes went wide as he realized what spell she was casting and he stood to grab her. But it was too late. The mage disappeared. A moment later, her voice traveled from the lake's shore. "I'll be sure to retrieve her body from the lake bottom and present her to The Dark Lady when you are gone." After that, no more was heard from the forsaken.

Kirlothenin froze. For once he had no reply. He had no reaction. The one he once loved had abandoned him when he needed her. Perhaps he should have seen it. Perhaps he shouldn't have- He turned around and looked over the side of the boat for any sign of Ileeya. He hadn't felt this helpless since... N'Lar. Kirlothenin felt his eyes water and a darkness surround his tight chest. "Ileeya... Fight them!"

A moment later a large splash was seen a few feet away. It was a sea lion! It jumped into the air, arched, and dove back into the water a few more feet away. "It's Ileeya! She shifted!" Kirlothenin felt a great relief when he saw her alive! She could breathe under water in that form. Ileeya jumped into the air again even farther away. Ripples in the water followed her.

"She's leading them away from us!" Adam called out. He grabbed hold of his oar and began rowing hard. Kirlothenin joined him, but his worry hadn't dissipated. When she had jumped in the air again, he had seen a small spear sticking out of her side. How long could she swim before they wore her down? They rowed after her fast and hard.

They were getting farther away from the islands and now heading southeast. The shore could be seen in the distance. Then silence. Ileeya didn't jump up again. Kirlothenin almost stopped rowing, but forced himself to continue even harder. Did they get her?

A storm began to blow above the lake. Kirlothenin narrowed his eyes as he tried to look around him. It was odd. The storm had gathered just above the lake above where Ileeya was last seen. Winds tossed the water into small, choppy waves. And lightening struck the water, even below the surface. Kirlothenin sucked in a hopeful breath. He'd seen Ileeya practice this spell. It was a hurricane spell that had to be channeled. But she couldn't cast it as a sea lion. In order to cast it, she had to be in her elven form. The murlocs would attack her and interrupt the spell, so how is it continuing?

The storm finished and a moment later, Ileeya's sea lion head popped above the water. She switched into her elven form and looked around. Kirlothenin waved and called to her, but she turned away as if she didn't hear or see him. Finally, when she was facing the shore, she called out "An'da!"

Kirlothenin looked up as Ileeya began to swim towards the shore. Standing there was the tall figure of a night elf. Dormir had found them.