As this story follows various parts of the Mists of Pandaria plot, be warned that there will be some spoilers for the events of that particular World of Warcraft expansion - particularly closer to the end. If for some reason you don't already know what happens and prefer to remain unspoiled, turn back now!

Also, this story is dedicated to galaxywolf27, whose series of Warcraft fics inspired me to sit down and start writing this one. Be sure to check out her stories if you haven't already! They're amazing!

Chapter One

"Two hundred ships at my disposal, yet the one carrying my son goes missing!"

The angry voice of King Varian Wrynn emanated from the war room of Stormwind Keep, echoing out into the throne room and beyond as he shouted in frustration. A loud thud followed, and anyone who knew of the king's sometimes volatile temper made a wide arc around the doorway leading into the room where he was meeting with one of his military advisors and a high-ranking member of SI:7. One person, however, remained resolute in standing just outside the doorway in order to listen in on the rest of the conversation – despite the fact that the sound of what she imagined to be the king's fist coming down upon the table sporting a tactical map of Azeroth had startled her, causing her to jump and let out a soft gasp.

She continued to listen in as the king demanded to hear the last message sent by Admiral Taylor, whose ship the prince had been on for his diplomatic mission. She could barely understand the garbled, static-filled transmission but was able to pick out enough to make out that Anduin was safe in spite of the wreckage caused by an unexpected attack from a Horde air fleet. A relieved sigh escaped her lips at the same time she heard the king utter his son's name, but their moment of relief was short-lived.

"Surprise attack!" she heard Taylor's voice call out urgently. "Requesting immediate... If anyone's receiving..."

The transmission seemed to go dead at that point, and she could feel her heart hammering wildly in her chest in panic. A soft whine came from her side and she looked to the large grey wolf sitting next to her. He had been able to sense his mistress' distress and was looking at her with concerned eyes. She forced a smile and reached out to gently pat her companion's head, even as she returned her attention to the conversation going on within the war room. She heard the king giving orders to send an elite task force to go to the last known location of Taylor's ship and search for his son, followed by Rell Nightwind's assent and assurance that he would see to it the best men were sent on the mission and that they would set out before nightfall.

She wasn't at all surprised when the purple-haired night elf stopped just outside the doorway upon exiting the war room, his head turned slightly in her direction. He gave a brief nod, indicating she should walk with him, and she fell in step at his side with her wolf bringing up the rear. They walked in silence through the throne room, and it wasn't until they were halfway down the main corridor of the castle – and well out of earshot of the king – when the elven rogue finally spoke.

"You really shouldn't eavesdrop on other people's conversations," he admonished her in his deep voice, his eyes remaining forward.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but SI:7 is a group of spies. Isn't that sort of what we do?"

"You are not a member of SI:7, and this entire ordeal is none of your concern."

His firm tone caused her to stop in her tracks and she reached out to grasp his arm, forcing him to a halt. He turned to look at her, and his glowing eyes narrowed as he met her gaze.

"This is my concern," she corrected him, her green eyes never breaking the contact between them. "Rell... It's Anduin."

He sighed and turned away from her, reaching up to gently remove her hand from his arm before continuing on his way out of the castle.

"I know you and the prince sometimes played together as children, but that does not mean you have a right to demand a place on this team, Larraine."

Larraine moved quickly to cut off the much taller man, a piece of her light auburn hair falling into her eyes. Her wolf, meanwhile, quickly stepped to her side and let out a low growl. Rell gave the animal an almost threatening look, though it refused to back down, then he turned his gaze toward the young girl before him.

"This is not up for debate," he insisted, annoyed that she would think he would just give his consent to allow her to join his team for such an important mission.

"I'll go to Mathias," she threatened, straightening her posture in a defiant manner. Rell started to grind his teeth together, holding back a growl of his own even as the wolf at her side continued to let out a low rumbling of its own.

"Be my guest," he told her, gesturing to the road leading away from the keep and toward Old Town, where the headquarters of SI:7 was located. She appeared taken aback by the ease at which he gave in, blinking rapidly a few times before giving a single nod and turning on her heel to head in the direction of their home within the great city of Stormwind.

Rell knew what she expected to happen. She expected that Shaw would easily agree to her request. After all, she had become somewhat of a favorite of his since they took her in after the death of her father – likely due to the master assassin having been a long-time friend and mentor to her mother. However, Rell also knew that since the guild master did have legal guardianship over Larraine he would want to keep her out of danger and therefore wouldn't be too keen on the idea of her going into uncharted territory where they already knew they would be facing Horde forces in addition to whatever native peoples might try to prevent them from accomplishing their mission. Not only would the mission be dangerous, but the girl was hardly qualified to accompany them as a representative of SI:7. She was an excellent archer, yes, and her skills in tracking were quite impressive, but she wasn't trained in the same skills as the other members of the organization. She wasn't a rogue, after all, but a hunter – and hunters were not known for their subtlety.

As soon as they reached the small courtyard outside of headquarters, Larraine's wolf took off in the direction of the stables to play with the stable master, who would often give him treats for performing special tricks. Rell and Larraine, meanwhile, made their way inside and up to the office of Master Mathias Shaw without a word passing between them. Rell moved quickly to open the door for her as they reached the small room near the top of the tower staircase, refusing to allow his sense of chivalry to be compromised by his current feelings toward the younger woman. Larraine quietly thanked him, a small smile crossing her lips, but a moment later her resolve had hardened once more and she strode purposefully into the room ahead of him.

"I had a feeling you would be coming, Larraine," Shaw said without turning around.

"She seems to think she'll be going along on the mission," Rell grumbled as he rounded the desk to stand next to the guildmaster, "though I have repeatedly told her that won't be the case."

"I don't think that's really your decision to make, Nightwind," Shaw reminded him, leveling his gaze at his subordinate before turning around fully to look at Larraine.

"The prince is in danger, I take it?"

"Yes," Larraine replied, a light blush coloring her cheeks. "And-"

"And that is precisely why she shouldn't be allowed on this mission," Rell interrupted. "Her emotions will end up clouding her judgment."

Larraine looked down at her hands in front of her, the locks of her red hair which had come loose from her ponytail falling before her face. Shaw watched her in silent contemplation for a long moment, then quietly said her name to get her to look back up to him. He knew Rell was right. The reason she was so adamant about accompanying his people on their mission was because she cared about Anduin. However, she and the heir to the throne of Stormwind had known each other for years and despite the other man's insistence to the contrary, he knew that could potentially be an asset in their search.

"Why are you so determined to go with them?" he asked, wanting her to voice it herself. "If it merely is because of your feelings toward the boy, I must agree with Rell. I am, however, wiling to hear you out before making my final decision."

Larraine's gaze flickered to Rell briefly, then she met the eyes of the man before her once more. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and bowed her head for a few seconds to gather her thoughts before speaking.

"I do care about Anduin," she admitted quietly. "But it's more than that. After my... After the Wrathgate, we made a promise to each other. We promised that if either of us needed the other, we'd be there. Now he's missing, Light knows where, with Horde and who knows what else closing in on him. If I don't go... If I don't at least try to find him, I'm not holding up my end of the bargain."

She looked up at that, her gaze locking with that of the man her parents had entrusted her to. Shaw's usually unreadable expression softened a bit when he saw how hard she was trying to not cry as she no doubt relived the memory of losing her father. In that moment, he knew if he didn't let her go and something were to happen to the young prince she would never forgive herself and the ramifications of that would likely be worse than death itself.

"Very well," he assented after a long pause. "Rell, you will take Larraine with you as support."

"What?" Rell barked angrily. "Master Shaw, with all due respect, I don't think-"

"Are you questioning my orders, Nightwind?" Shaw asked, turning to the taller man. Though he wasn't imposing by his size, his hard gaze was enough to make even the staunchest of warriors feel a bit uneasy, and Rell immediately dropped his argument.

"No, Master Shaw," he said stiffly. "If you truly think she will be an asset out in the field, then I will welcome her help in retrieving Prince Anduin."

"You heard him," Shaw said, turning back to Larraine. "Now, you best get yourself ready to go before I change my mind."

"Thank you, Uncle Mathias!" Larraine said, addressing him by the friendly term of endearment she'd used since she was a small child. She quickly rounded his desk to give him a brief hug, then rushed from the room to gather the things she would need to take on her journey.

"I still think this is a bad idea," Rell muttered as soon as she had left the room. "She's too young, too inexperienced."

"She'll never get more experienced if we continue to keep her cooped up here," Shaw pointed out. "That said, I'm not expecting you to put her on the front lines. Use her skills and her connection to the prince to your advantage, but take some of the others to make up your actual scouting team."

"I was planning to bring Sully and Amber," Rell informed him.

"Very well," Shaw agreed, making a note of which of his agents would be unavailable. "Take the sisters with you, too."

"Are you punishing me for talking out of line?" Rell wondered, balking at the suggestion. Shaw merely chuckled.

"I figure they could help keep Larraine occupied so that she doesn't constantly try to go out on her own looking for Anduin," he explained. "Besides, they're not that bad are they?"

"Have you ever worked with them?" Rell asked, then continued when Shaw shook his head. "Bixby never shuts up. Her sister is more quiet, but I've never been entirely comfortable around those who willingly use fel magics."

"Like I said, Rell, you're not expected to take them out scouting with you. Just take them along to help keep an eye on Larraine so she doesn't run off by herself."

"Are you sure you even want her to go? You seem to not want her to do anything once we arrive at the last known location of the missing fleet."

Shaw let out a sigh, placing his hands upon his desk and leaning over it a bit. "She's not the only one who made a promise. I swore to Ramona in her final moments that I would make sure nothing happened to Larraine. Still, she's fast becoming a young woman and I know I cannot hold onto her forever. So I'll let her go on this mission, but I want her to be kept out of danger as much as possible. Baby steps, as they say."

"I never thought I would see the day that Master Mathias Shaw – the man who spouts to all of our new recruits that emotional attachments are the bane of the best assassins – would be a father, but it seems you've grown into one in the last few years," Rell mused with a quiet chuckle. Shaw leveled a gaze at him, causing him to hold up a hand in apology as he brought his laughter under control. "Forgive me, but in all honesty I actually think it's a good thing. Sometimes, amidst all the spying and assassination, we forget that we're human."

"You're not human, though," Shaw pointed out with a bit of a smirk.

"You know what I meant," Rell said, and Shaw nodded and returned his attention to the paperwork upon his desk.

"I do know, and I'd also thank you to keep my softer side quiet."

"Have to keep up that reputation you have of being a hardass, huh?" Rell asked good-naturedly as he began making his way to the door. "Not to worry, Mathias, I won't let the recruits know you have a heart hidden in there."

"Go get the others and head out, Nightwind," Shaw ordered brusquely, and Rell gave him a slight bow before leaving the office to go inform his team of their latest mission.