"So now what, oh wise and fearless leader?"

Jerold ignored the sarcasm in Lara's question. "We wait, of course." He rummaged through his bags, checking to make sure the flasks and potions he had brought didn't break during their travel. "It's a game right now. Who can outsmart who."

The room they were in had the basic comforts of the living. A soft bed, a bowl of fruit, and a wash basin. Mostly useless to them. It was Gavor, Lara, and Jerold in the room at the moment. The two deathguards, the rogue, and the shadow priest they had hired remained in the other rooms.

"Do you trust this Ravenholdt? He is, after all, among the living."

"To a degree, yes. He knows that he must remain neutral. And if there is any inconsistency to his choice tomorrow, he knows we have but to inform the Dark Lady of his ...preferences."

Jerold picked up a pear and cut it in half with his dagger. Raising it to his mouth, he took a bite out of curiosity. Undead had no need to eat regularly, though they did partake on occasion partially from habit, and partially to keep up the necromantic energies animating their bodies. Fresh meat and blood does the best job, though- especially freshly killed.

He set the pear down, chewing on, but barely tasting, the the fruit. "If, for some reason, he releases the mage and they portal out of here, then we'll track them down again. Better yet, I have an idea on how to take the blood elf out of the equation once and for all." He waved off their inquiries on how he planned to do this. "I'll let you know when and if it comes time to do so."

"So then, what happens if they get away?" Gavor asked, watching Jerold.

"Then, we recapture the rest and kill them. One. By. One." A vengeful smile crossed his face, tightening the dead skin. "And after they die, we'll take them to the Dark Lady to enlist them into her service...and ours." He mashed the pear slice into the table. "Except the child and infant. We can sell the mixed-race elf baby for enough gold to keep us going for a long time. And the child, well, I just want to observe her more."

"Observe?" Lara glanced at him curiously.

Gavor interjected with a flat voice. "He means he want's to obsess more."

Lara grimaced. "Obsess? Over that little thing? Why bother with her?"

"The child is the anti-thesis of unlife. I want to learn more about what makes her tick." Jerold pulled a small vial from his pack and poured a drop onto the mashed up pear.

"Hm, okay. But why her? Wouldn't any child do?"

Jerold glanced at Gavor and shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe it's because I started my observations with her." He said no more on the matter as he looked back at the mashed pear. The once white insides were now brown and rotten.

"Anyhow, by tomorrow, we'll have had one success without having to lift a finger." He scooped up a small amount of the rotten pear and put it in his mouth. "Hm. At least I can taste it now." He wiped his hand on the bedspread and looked at his companions. "Where was I? Oh yes..." He let out a soft cackle. "If my calculations are correct, by morning, one of our escaped prisoners will be dead."

...

Baros knocked on Ravenholdt's office door and waited for the command to enter. After receiving permission, he entered shutting the door behind him. Ravenholdt sat comfortably behind his desk with a mixed look of curiosity and apprehension. "I had a feeling I'd be seeing you tonight."

The architect furrowed his eyebrows. What he had to say was difficult enough. He didn't like Lord Jorach gloating it over him.

"Before you say anything, Mr. Alexston, what I told Mr. Shaw earlier was true. I will put my guild first over you. I am well aware that your daughter is in the Alliance group. I cannot favor the Alliance just because I want something from you. I will mourn the loss of your services, but I will not let it sway me one way or the other."

Baros considered Jorach's words carefully. Shaw said this man was smart. He could see the wisdom in the man's eyes, now that he took the time to notice it. Still, Baros caught something that the man had said and focused on it. "You'll mourn the loss of my services? Does that mean you're letting me go?"

Lord Jorach broke into a relaxed, but smug grin. "That depends, my dear Mr. Alexston, on my decision tomorrow. I cannot very well convince you to work for me if I've been the inadvertent vessel of your daughter's capture and possible death."

"No." His voice was flat. "You couldn't." Baros studied the man before him with some confusion. "Lord Jorach, I don't understand you. You kidnap me, yet you don't threaten me or lock me up. Shaw insists that you would not hurt my daughter, yet you admit that you would turn her over to those poor excuses for life." The last part came out more as a growl than anything else.

"Mr. Alexston, no offense, but I don't need to threaten you. You were easy to kidnap, and keeping you here is as simple as alerting my guild to my desire that you stay on the grounds." He sat back and steepled his fingers, resting his elbows on the arms of his chair. "As for your daughter, I've already explained that. I must put my guild first."

Baros crossed one arm over his chest and rested his other elbow on it, rubbing his chin in thought. He didn't trust rogues, and this man was no different. However, he felt himself observant enough to realize that most rogues had a greedy streak. He was hoping to use this to his advantage. "Your current situation is that the Horde wants to hire you to detain the Alliance that sought shelter from you?"

Lord Jorach raised an eyebrow. "It is."

"Hm. Does that Alliance group include myself, Shaw, and Maggie?"

"That's a good question." Ravenholdt leaned forward once more as he considered it. "I suppose it would not. You three are here for different reasons."

Now Baros put his hands on the edge of Lord Jorach's desk, leaning down a little to do so. "Then you wouldn't be compromised if I want to hire you?"

The corner of Ravenholdt's mouth twitched as if he was trying not to smile. "For what, pray tell?"

Baros felt a modicum of success. Maybe he was beginning to figure out the mentality of these rogues. "Should, for whatever reason, those forsaken get a hold of my family, then I want you to go in there and rescue them. And by rescue, I mean they are returned all the way to Stormwind safe and sound." He stood up straight again. "Now, that wouldn't be compromising your little guild, would it?"

Conflicting emotions crossed Lord Jorach's face for a moment before he looked Baros in the eyes. "Mr. Alexston ...My dear Baros, because I like you, and against my better judgment, I'm going to tell you exactly what you just offered to me." He stood up and moved around to the side of his desk. "You just told me that I will get exactly what I wanted from you in the first place if I simply give your daughter over to the forsaken."

Baros felt the blood drain from his face. That is most definitely not what he had meant to offer!

Jorach saw this and gave a regretful smile. "Now, are you sure you want to make this deal?"

"No!" Baros pounded his fist on the desk in frustration. "Dammit Jorach! I just want to ensure that my family is safe!"

"And you come to me? What about your friend, Shaw?"

"You said so yourself. This is your land, your rules. You have the ability to help my family right at this moment. ….And he's not my friend."

"No?" Lord Jorach pursed his lips as though he was about to say something, then seemed to change his mind. "You're right. This is my land..." He stepped around the desk and stood next to Baros. "And my rules. Now, I wonder. If I were to come up with a solution that would keep my guild out of trouble, yet find a way to give the Alliance an unexpected advantage, then that would be something more worthy of the payment I expect, would it not?"

"Yeah, probably." Baros answered without thinking, then he eyed the rogue suspiciously. Wait a minute... He tried to go back over just what Ravenholdt had said in his mind.

"Good!" Jorach clapped his hands together and rubbed them back and forth. "It's a deal, then."

Baros sighed in resignation. "I just played right into your hands, didn't I?"

Ravenholdt gave him an amused smile. "Don't worry. I'm used to it." Baros didn't have time to react to this as Lord Jorach quickly escorted him to the door. "Remember, a deal's a deal. Have a good night, Mr. Alexston."

Baros turned around and opened his mouth to protest, but the door was shut in his face.

"I told you so."

The architect turned his head to see Mathias leaning against the wall with one knee bent, his foot on the wall, and his arms crossed over his chest.

"Shut up." Baros passed him and headed back to his room.

...

Everyone was gathered in Baros' room with the exception of Jelune, Amy, and Lord Aron. The noble, who was tired himself, had promised to look after the sleepy child. And Jelune needed a good night's rest at least before he was fully recovered. The others had stayed up to try to brainstorm some options but in the end, they decided it might be best to see what happens in the morning and then play it by ear. Either way, Kirlothenin was determined not to let themselves be caught by Jerold again.

With nothing left to discuss, he escorted Ileeya and Adorei to the room they had been assigned. He had his own room, but he entered Ileeya's room to put Adorei on the mattress that was on the floor next to the bed. Ravenholdt's guild had pulled it from the bed of an empty room since they didn't have any cribs there. After wrapping a blanket over the infant, he stood and paused as his eyes locked with Ileeya's. There was a look in her eyes that he couldn't quite place.

Still, they both stood there staring at each other, seemingly unable to move or speak. Kirlothenin finally broke eye contact and cleared his throat. "Ileeya..." He felt he should say something to her, but what? He couldn't come up with anything and sighed. "Good night." He moved towards the door, but was stopped by her voice.

"I understand."

Kirlothenin paused and looked at her in confusion. Understand? Understand what?

"N'Lar." He stiffened as Ileeya stepped closer, seeking eye contact again. "You loved her." She seemed to be searching for the right words to say. "I guess I just wanted you to know that I understand why you wanted to protect her ...to have her remember who she was, despite what she is now."

She turned away apparently finished with what she had wanted to say, but Kirlothenin stopped her and gently pulled her back. "N'Lar is dead. That woman is Lara, in N'Lar's dead body. She lost me when she left you to die, Ileeya."

She stared into his eyes and Kirlothenin couldn't resist stroking her cheek as he felt a tightness in his chest. "I'm proud of you." He took in a deep breath and let it out slowly as he dropped his hand. "You've become a strong woman." He couldn't look at her anymore as he finally spoke his own fears. "Pretty soon you won't need me around..."

The silence between them was thick. "Earthroot." This caused him to furrow his brows and look at her in confusion. "Earthroot. It's what I was picking when we first ...met."

Kirlothenin had no idea why she had brought it up. He leaned his shoulder against the wall and kept his attention on her, waiting for her to come around to her point.

"Every herbalist knows how difficult it is to pick earthroot. The reason is because it grows its roots deep into the nooks and crannies of rocks and hard-packed earth. The earthroot is strong, because its foundation is strong."

The mage took this in, not quite sure what she was saying. It made no sense for her to give him an herbalism lesson. So it was supposed to mean something else. After thinking about it for a minute he slowly asked, "So, you're saying you're strong because you have a good foundation?"

He must have been right because she smiled. "In a sense, yes." Adorei moved in her sleep and Ileeya glanced at her to make sure she was okay. When she looked at Kirlothenin again, she sighed. "I need you, Kir. You're my foundation. And I'm tired right now. My strength is failing and I need to lean on you."

Kirlothenin's heart pounded in his chest. She needed him. It felt like a breakthrough. Sure, she didn't say she loved him, but ...she needed him. Before he realized what he was doing, he pulled her close, lifting his chained wrists over her head to encircle her. He wrapped his arms around her and just held her.

"Kir, I don't want to take advantage of your feelings for me, especially when I'm still confused about my own. But..." She looked off to the side. "Would you mind sleeping in here tonight? I don't want to be alone."

"I don't mind. You know that." He couldn't help himself. Kirlothenin slowly eased his head forward and placed his lips gently on hers. Her mouth was soft and accommodating and it was a struggle for him to keep it to just a simple kiss. The moment lasted far shorter than he wanted, but he was the one to pull away first. She had said she was still unsure of her own feelings, after all.

He had to respect that. He removed his arms from around her and indicated for her to lie down on her bed. After she lay down, he made himself comfortable on Adorei's mattress. A few minutes later, Ileeya's voice spoke softly in the dark room. "I trust you, Kir."

He smiled to himself and reached out his hand to search for hers. Once he found it, he pulled it to his lips to kiss. "I know. Good night, Ileeya." She told him good night as well and he thought he could hear a bit of disappointment in her voice. Part of him wanted to join her on her bed instead of be on the floor mattress with Adorei. However, even though she trusted him, he didn't trust himself.