A/N: Hiii. I'm back! Sorry for the HUGE delay! Been busybusybusy. Anyway, a bit of a glimpse into Mari's past for ya! I'm not 100% happy with these next two chapters, but I can't keep you lovelies waiting any longer! That's just mean. :) Thanks for all the support in my absence, by the way. I was shocked to see how many people wanted this story to continue so badly! Many 3's to all of my readers! Thank you, thank you! -CPop.
Mariella held the little wooden pendant close to her chest as she ran. She was so excited. She just knew her father would love it!
The Wendell homestead came into view.
She greeted the cows and the chickens and the curious horses that watched her as she stampeded past them. Throwing open the front door to the small cottage, she began to call for her father.
At last, she found him in the bedroom he shared with her mother.
"Look, papa! Look what I've made for you!" she cried, nearly bursting with joy and pride as she held out her cupped palms, the pendant cradled in the center of them. "I carved it all by myself to look just like the Stormwind emblem! I made it just for you, papa!"
Her father stared at it wordlessly. Mariella's mother entered the room, carrying a stack of linens.
"Oh, that's beautiful, Mari-bell! Isn't it just lovely, Samuel? Our daughter has such talent," she said coming to stand by her father and survey the pendant.
Samuel let out a low, indifferent grunt and turned back to his desk. Picking up his quill, he resumed his letter-writing without a word.
Crushed, Mariella lowered her hands, squeezing the pendant hard in her palm, as if she willed it to disappear into itself. Her mother could clearly see the hurt in her daughter's face.
"Mari..."she said softly, moving forward. Before her mother could say anything, Mariella was out of the door, running faster than she ever had.
Running and running and running until she reached the lake. Splashing in up to her knees, she threw the pendant with all her might.
---
"I refuse to leave! We can send an ambassador in my place! My men need me here. Southshore needs me here!"
"Magni Bronzebeard specifically demanded that you come, Dean! If we send anyone else in your place, they will be turned back!"
"Then we will postpone the negotiations. I'm not abandoning my post at a time like this."
"You think it wise to keep the king of Ironforge waiting?"
"Listen, magistrate, I lost a good man out there! And I nearly lost another of my most valued soldiers. I do not intend to leave until she is well or at least until she is stable."
"I completely advise against this, Dean! You are putting hold on negotiations just so you can sit by the bed of an injured woman! I don't know what this soft spot you are nursing for this wench is but it must be put to an end!!"
The sound of tin bowls hitting the floor and glass shattering filled Mariella's ears and she stirred slightly. There was a gurgling sound and a woman screeched.
"Sergeant Dean, NO!! Put him down! Sergeant I must remind you that this is an infirmary- Sergeant, you're choking him!!"
"How dare you insult her!! And how dare you question my motives, you miserable old fool! I care for my soldiers and the people of this town far more than I care about Magni! He's sitting high and mighty on a comfortable throne right now and a week from now I can guarantee he'll be doing exactly the same thing! The negotiations can wait a few more days just as his royal highness can!"
"Sergeant, PLEASE! Let him down!!"
---
"Mari! Come here! Your cousin Dorian is here!"
Mariella peeked shyly around her mother's leg at the gangly little boy standing in her yard.
Her mother and Aunt Dora disappeared into the house and Mariella was left on her own with him.
"Do you want to come feed the chickens with me?" she asked tentatively after a moment.
Dorian shrugged, looking bored. Dorian and his mother and father lived in Stormwind City and were much more well-off than the Wendell's and their small farm just outside of Goldshire.
Five minutes later, Mariella was scattering grain and dried corn kernels on the ground. The chickens clucked excitedly and hobbled around her feet, pecking at the meal sprinkled over the damp earth. She giggled at their antics.
"I know why your papa hates you so much," Dorian said suddenly.
Mariella frowned at him.
"My papa doesn't hate me," she replied defensively, turning her back on him.
"Yes, he does. My mama says Uncle Samuel barely even looks at you!" he called after her.
Swallowing hard, she began to walk a little faster.
But Dorian hurried after her.
"He won't even say your name! You're just some little girl. He's practically disowned you."
Mariella began to throw the grain and kernels a little more forcefully than before.
"That's why he hates you so much, you know. Because you're a girl," Dorian said triumphantly.
Mariella nearly dropped the bag of feed in her hands, spilling half of its contents across the ground. The chickens went into a frenzy.
Her cheeks burned with shame, feeling as though she'd just been slapped in the face by his harsh words.
"Uncle Samuel wanted a son. A boy, like me! A boy that could bring honor and pride to his family. But, he got stuck with you. A girl," he said with such disgust, she may as well have been a squished bug on his dinner plate.
"Not true!!" she screeched suddenly, whirling around to face him. Dorian laughed, obviously enjoying her anguish.
"Uncle Samuel hates you! He hates you! He hates you!" he chanted, sticking his tongue out at her.
"No! No! No!" Mariella shrieked over and over, collapsing into the dirt. She wasn't sure when or how it had happened, but she was crying. She could feel the tears wet on her face as she screamed.
She heard her mother's voice and her aunt yelling at Dorian.
But Mariella's already fragile heart was broken.
It was true.
Her father couldn't stand the sight of her.
---
Mariella blinked slowly.
There was a candle burning on the nightstand beside her. The curtains were open. A full moon illuminated the room with a soft, unearthly glow.
Williem Dean was sitting in a chair in the corner. His arms were crossed over his broad chest and his head lulled slightly to one side. He had dozed off.
The moonlight splashed across one half of his handsome face, the remaining half sheathed in shadow.
You are always here.
She smiled and nodded off again.
---
"I'm joining the Stormwind Guard, papa," Mariella said, setting down her fork.
Samuel only grunted and continued eating.
"Don't you have anything to say, papa?" she asked, gritting her teeth.
"Why bother? You'll only fail," he replied finally. Mariella clenched her fists.
"You don't know that!"
"Only truly skillful warriors can make it through their training! What makes you think you can handle it?" he barked.
"What makes you think I can't?! You never give me a chance, dammit!" she cried, slamming her fists on the table. The fork on her plate clattered noisily.
Samuel looked upon his grown daughter with such intensity that Mariella recoiled slightly.
"Don't do it! If you enter the training and fail, you'll only bring more shame upon this family! Just leave it well enough alone!" he said, throwing down his fork and napkin and stalking out of the room.
"I'm joining! And I'm going to finish training! I'll be top of the regimen, you just wait and see!" she yelled at his retreating figure.
The bedroom door slammed.
Letting out a growl of frustration, Mariella seized her glass of water and threw it against the wall. It exploded into a hundred crystalline shards.